cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Handwritten character recognition using Hopfield neural network

The project investigates the character (digit) recognizing ability of the discrete Hopfield neural network model used as a pattern classifier. Through different experiments, we are looking for quantitative factors that influence the recognizing ability of the neural network.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Cultural Differences in Attitudes Toward Smoking: Developing Messages Using the Theory of Reasoned Action1

The theory of reasoned action was used to identify the culturally appropriate beliefs of Hispanic smokers that might be targeted in an anti-smoking campaign. In-depth interviews were conducted with 263 Hispanics and 150 non-Hispanic whites. Intentions to quit smoking were predicted most strongly by the attitudinal rather than the normative component of the model. A pattern of cultural differences between the two ethnic groups was identified. Family-related consequences and concerns about bad smell contributed more to Hispanic attitudes toward quitting than to those of non-Hispanic whites, while the effects of withdrawal from cigarettes contributed more to non-Hispanic whites'attitudes than to Hispanics'. The bad smell of cigarettes, improving relationships with the family, weight gain, breathing more easily, and having a better taste in the mouth were the consequences of smoking and quitting that most strongly discriminated between those Hispanics intending and not intending to quit. These results should be used in the creation of culturally appropriate anti-smoking messages for this group.
The evolution of residual stresses in thermoplastic bonding to metals

The ability to create strong joints between thermoplastics and metals offers many advantages. Differential properties between the polymer and metal generate residual stresses during cooling. In our study, both amorphous thermoplastic thin films and semi-crystalline thermoplastic thin films are joined to metal strips and the curvature is measured during controlled cooling. A series of five designed experiments uses a fast cooling (∼30°C/s) and slow cooling (∼4.5–10°C/min) to create different residual stresses. Experimental evidence shows that the residual stresses begin to develop at ∼190°C for amorphous Poly Ether Imide (PEI, Tg = 210°C), but at ∼255°C for semi-crystalline Poly Ether Ether Ketone (PEEK, Tg = 143°C). A mechanics based curvature model, combined with the elasticity and viscoelasticity of thermoplastics, successfully predicts the residual stress development. An elastic behavior is exhibited during the fast cooling (∼30°C/s), whereas a viscoelastic behavior occurs during slow cooling (∼4.5°C/min).
Disconnection, pouch revision and reconnection of the ileal pouch-anal anastomosis.

The aim of this retrospective study was to determine the outcome of patients with a dysfunctional pelvic ileal reservoir in whom disconnection of an ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA), pouch revision and reanastomosis had been carried out. There were 23 patients (15 women). At the revision operation functional problems were found to be due to a long efferent spout (nine patients), sepsis and/or fistula (four), a redundant blind limb (three), a twisted pouch (three), anastomotic problems (three) or no reservoir (one). The pouch was salvaged in 16 patients and a new pouch was constructed in seven. The pouch-anal anastomosis was resutured in 22 patients and stapled in one. Postoperative complications (all minor) occurred in six patients. Two patients underwent two revisions of IPAA. At a median follow-up of 5 (range 1-10) years, 11 patients reported good to excellent function, five reported fair function and one reported recurrent pouchitis. Revision surgery was unsuccessful in six of 23 patients (three had gross incontinence, two excessive bowel movements and one Crohn's disease), and they subsequently underwent pouch excision. It is concluded that revision of an ileal reservoir and IPAA can be undertaken safely with good results in carefully selected patients.
IVGG therapy in Kawasaki disease: mechanism(s) of action.

Abstract Kawasaki disease (mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome) has emerged as a major pediatric disorder throughout the developed world, including the United States where it is now a leading cause of acquired heart disease in children. Coronary artery abnormalities, including ectasia, aneurysms, stenosis, and thrombosis, that may result in myocardial ischemia and/or infarction, develop in approximately 20–25% of patients as a consequence of coronary arteritis. Although epidemiologic and clinical findings strongly suggest an infectious etiology, the etiology of Kawasaki disease remains unknown. Marked immune activation is present in the acute state of Kawasaki disease, Investigators in Japan and a U.S. multicenter investigative group have demonstrated in controlled studies that administration of IVGG early in the course of Kawasaki disease is associated with (i) a striking anti-inflammatory effect, and (ii) a marked reduction in the development of coronary abnormalities, as assessed by echocardiography and/or angiography. The mechanism(s) by which IVGG produces these dramatic effects is unclear. Possible mechanisms include (i) Fc receptor blockade, (ii) a direct anti-etiologic agent (neutralization) effect, (iii) an anti-toxic effect, (iv) an immunomodulating effect possibly mediated either by anti-idiotypic antibodies or by induction of suppressor T cells, and (v) down-regulation of cytokine production by activated immune cells. Clarification of the mechanism of action of IVGG in Kawasaki disease should provide insights into the pathogenesis and/or the etiology of this fascinating disorder.
Rotation as a Course: Lessons Learned from Developing a Hybrid Online/On-Ground Approach to General Surgical Resident Education

Purpose To improve the consistency and the quality of resident education on clinical rotations, 5 surgical rotations (thoracic, bariatrics, surgical oncology, pediatrics, and critical care) were restructured “as courses” with learning objectives, educational activities (online and on-ground), pretests, posttests, and oral examinations. Setting/Participants University surgical training program in a large metropolitan area, which serves approximately 65 residents per year. Methods The online course management system, WebCT/VISTA (Blackboard Inc., Washington, DC), was used to build 5 online course sites. To engage and garner support from faculty, several organizational change tactics and resources were employed, such as Grand Rounds presentations, a faculty retreat, consultation and support from professional staff, and the use of residents as reviewers and codevelopers. To support resident use of the online sites, a designated education coordinator provided individual and group orientation sessions and employed weekly tracking and reminder systems; completion of pretests and posttests was mandated. Results Between 6 and 8 learning modules were created per rotation, with over 50 reading assignments (collectively) and 45 online presentations. Since July 2006, 53 residents have completed a total of 106 rotations on these services. Preliminary results from a longitudinal study suggest that the hybrid approach is well received and effective when fully executed, but that online course materials are used by residents only if they feel that the faculty members are truly engaged and actively promoting the site. Conclusions Changing the culture of learning on rotation to include learning objectives, assessment, and integrated online/on-ground activities takes significant leadership, resident input, professional staff support, faculty engagement, and time.
On equilibrium in Hart's securities exchange model

Abstract In this paper, we use a no unbounded arbitrage condition to give a very direct proof of the existence of equilibrium in Hart's unbounded securities exchange model (J. Econ. Theory, 9 (1974), 293–311). We also examine the relationship between the no unbounded arbitrage condition and the sufficiency conditions of Hart, ibid. and Hammond (J, Econ. Theory, 31 (1983), 170–175). We present an example to show that if traders are not sufficiently risk averse, then Hammond's overlapping expectations condition is not, in general, equivalent to the no unbounded arbitrage condition or Hart's sufficiency conditions, and therefore, is not sufficient to guarantee the existence of equilibrium. We also present an example to show that it is possible for the no unbounded arbitrage condition to hold without overlapping expectations, and therefore, it is possible for equilibrium to exist without overlapping expectations.
The consistency of inconsistency in serial homicide: patterns of behavioural change across series

Linkage analysis is a crucial part of the investigative process when faced with a possible series of related offences. Establishing behavioural consistency (i.e., offender's behaviours consistently present across the series) is at the core of linkage. Recent empirical studies have found little evidence of consistency looking at either individual or groups of behaviours in serial homicide. It is argued that behavioural changes are rooted in the changing cognitive strategies that offenders use to reach their ultimate goal (i.e. the commission of multiple homicides). Factors that could account for these changes include learning, situational factors, loss of control, and changes in the offender's fantasy. Patterns of behavioural change have been identified in serial crimes, such as rape. However, no empirical studies have looked at patterns of behavioural change in serial homicide. The present study examined patterns of consistency and change using a combination of thematic and behavioural subgroup approaches that use Multidimensional Scaling. Thematic differentiation indicative of behavioural manifestations of cognitive strategies was found in all three examined subgroups: planning, wounding, and offender–victim interaction, and patterns of change within these subgroups provided support for the above theories. Looking at behavioural patterns rather than individual behaviours, may be a more fruitful way of examining consistency in serial homicide, and could have significant implications for linkage analysis. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Visual Study of In-Situ EGR Cooler Fouling Layer Evolution

Exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) is a major technology to reduce NOx from diesel engines for future emission standards. The implementation of EGR coolers has been a common methodology to provide engine in-cylinder NOx reduction. However, EGR cooler fouling is a common problem. The particulate matter in exhaust tends to form a deposit layer on the wall of the heat exchangers. This effect leads to a reduction of thermal effectiveness of the heat exchangers resulting in insufficient EGR cooling and subsequently higher engine NOx emission.This paper utilized a unique test rig offering visible and infrared optical access to the deposit layer in a simulated diesel EGR cooler to study the evolution of the layer from fresh to heavy deposit. A 460μm thick deposit layer was built during a 37 hour exposure. Time lapse videos were taken provide visual in-situ evidence for the investigation of the layer thickness development and morphology change during the deposition. The layer growth tended to stabilize from about 22 hours of deposition. The shear force exerted by the gas flow moves surface particles of 20μm in diameter or larger. This could contribute to the stabilization phenomenon.Copyright © 2014 by ASME
ULTRASONOGRAPHY OF THE CANINE, FELINE AND EQUINE TONGUE: NORMAL FINDINGS AND CASE HISTORY REPORTS

A submental approach using a 5, 7.5 and 10 MHz mechanical sectorial transducers was used to evaluate the ultrasonographic appearance of the normal and abnormal canine, feline and equine tongue. Seven normal animals were used to characterize the in vivo normal ultrasonographic appearance of the oropharynx. Consistently seen anatomical landmarks included the lingual parenchyma, lingual artery, soft and hard palate interfaces, mandible, basihyoid bone and sublingual musculature. Seven fresh canine, feline and equine cadavers were dissected to confirm the ultrasonographic findings. Seven animals with signs of ptyalism, dysphagia, halitosis and visible lingual lesions were also studied. A foreign body and abscesses secondary to a penetrating wound were detected in a horse. Ultrasound guidance aided surgical dissection, removal of the foreign body and intraoperative drainage of the abscesses. Ultrasound provided valuable non-invasive documentation of the architecture, size and margins of six lingual neoplasms. Ultrasonographic monitoring of the response to the treatment of lingual lesions may be beneficial in the management of patients.
Dedicated word processors

Abstract The word processing market has been growing at 30% for the past three or four years and is expected to continue this growth. The market is segmented between thin window and display word processing systems, and electronic typewriters. A brief look at the history of word processing (WP) is provided and the paper examines some recent trends in this market. The ‘unbundling’ of WP systems, WP support, the role of the microcomputer with WP package and the control of the introduction of these systems are discussed.
Enhanced intranasal delivery of gemcitabine to the central nervous system

ii ACKNOWLEGEMENTS v DEDICATION vii TABLE OF CONTENTS viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS xii LIST OF TABLES xiv LIST OF FIGURES xv CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1 Blood brain barrier (BBB) and its barrier functions 1 Drug delivery to the brain 3 Intranasal route 7 Intranasal drug delivery 8 Intranasal drug delivery to the brain 10 Nasal transport routes 11 Successes in intranasal (IN) delivery to brain 13 Current study 13 HYPOTHESIS 27 SPECIFIC AIMS 28 AIM 1 (a): To determine the deposition of IN drugs/molecules 29 Introduction 29 Material and methods 29 Animals 30
4.6.1 Combining Heuristic Search, Visualization and Data Mining for Exploration of System Design Spaces

Finding a near-optimal solution to a complex design problem is challenging. On the one hand the problem space is too large and convoluted for human comprehension, while on the other hand it is infeasible to elicit the entirety of design knowledge required for fully automatic problem solving. We report on a practical application of information technology techniques to aid system engineers effectively explore large design spaces. We make use of heuristic search, visualization and data mining, the combination of which we have implemented within a risk management tool in use at JPL and NASA. This approach is demonstrated on the planning for development of an advanced technology for spacecraft applications. In this context of risk-informed design, numerous risk abatement options give rise to a huge space of potential design solutions. We show how our approach enhances the system engineers' ability to explore this design space.
Microbial growth in fresh-cut lettuce increases when wound-induced phenolic accumulation is suppressed

Abstract Wounding lettuce ( Lactuca sativa L. Longifolia) leaf mid-rib tissue initiates physiological responses that include increased synthesis and accumulation of phenolic compounds. Chlorogenic acid is the predominant wound-induced phenolic compound that accumulates in excised lettuce leaf tissue held at 10 °C for 2 days. The growth of five bacterial isolates associated with lettuce decay ( Erwinia carotovora , Erwinia chrisanthemi , Pseudomonas putida , Pseudomonas fluorescens , or Pseudomonas syringae ) on TSA (tryptic soy agar) media was not markedly reduced by concentrations of chlorogenic acid identical to those found in wounded lettuce. Growth of E. carotovora and P. fluorescens was stimulated when prepared with TSA media containing homogenized non-wounded lettuce mid-rib tissue, while the increase was much less when the media was prepared with 5 mm thick mid-rib tissue segments that were held for 2 days at 10 °C after excision. Inhibiting the wound-induced increase in phenolic content with a 1-hexanol or heat-shock treatment allowed E. carotovora to grow on media prepared with excised tissue that had been held at 10 °C for 2 days at significantly higher rates than on media prepared with non-treated excised tissue. Hexanol is thought to interfere with the synthesis and/or propagation of the wound signal, so delaying its application to excised mid-rib tissue reduces its effectiveness. Delaying application of the inhibitor for 4 h, allowed increased accumulation of wound-induced phenolic compounds in 2 day old lettuce tissue that resulted in a concomitant reduction in the growth of E. carotovora on media prepared with this tissue. Neither the hexanol nor the heat-shock treatment themselves made the excised lettuce tissue a better substrate for microbial growth. It appears that treatments that suppress wound-induced increases in antimicrobial phenolic compounds reduce the ability of excised lettuce tissue to suppress the growth of bacteria associated with lettuce decay by limiting the production and accumulation of these antimicrobial compounds. A critical distinction is made between whether a treatment renders the tissue more susceptible to microbial growth, or whether a treatment prevents the wound-induced increase in disease resistance that limits microbial growth. If all treatments that reduce tissue browning by interfering with the wound-induced accumulation of phenolic compounds also inadvertently make the tissue more susceptible to microbial growth, then research should be directed to prevent the production of brown pigments from the wound-induced accumulated phenolic compounds, rather than devising treatments that reduce their accumulation.
Formative Evaluation of the Early Development Instrument: Progress and Prospects.

This article is a commentary for the special issue on the Early Development Instrument (EDI), a community tool to assess children's school readiness and developmental outcomes at a group level. The EDI is administered by kindergarten teachers, who assess their kindergarten students on 5 developmental domains: physical health and well-being, social competence, emotional maturity, language and cognitive development, and communication skills and general knowledge. In this commentary, the author critically integrates research findings from projects that used the EDI to assess children's development at a community or population level, as presented in the research articles of this special issue. In addition, the EDI is situated in the school readiness literature, and forthcoming research directions and challenges that will largely determine the risk-benefit ratio of the EDI are discussed in regard to the following 3 topics: the advantages and limitations of using teacher judgment for the EDI, the establishment ...
Plasma 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) and clinical symptoms in Alzheimer's disease

Postmortem findings point to significant abnormalities in central noradrenergic function in Alzheimer's disease (AD) which may be associated with changes in peripheral markers. In this study, the relationship between the peripheral noradrenergic marker, plasma 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG), and clinical symptoms was examined in 23 patients with probable AD. Basal MHPG levels correlated significantly with increased cognitive impairment (r = .58, p = .005), controlling for age, age at onset, gender, and time interval between plasma MHPG determination and cognitive testing. These results suggest that plasma MHPG increases as cognitive function in AD deteriorates, further supporting preliminary evidence for increases in noradrenergic indices in association with disease severity in AD.
Writing manuscripts for a scientific journal

This article provides general guidelines on preparing yourself to write for a scientific publication, organising your work to meet the standards of acceptable manuscripts, writing to avoid frequently forgotten common rules of grammar and incorrectly used words, and double-checking and prereviewing your manuscript for accuracy, clarity, preciseness, and thoroughness. Numerous examples are included to demonstrate the guidelines being advocated. Although writing successfully for a scientific publication is not easy, the task could be made simpler by reviewing and following the guidelines provided.
Effects of thyroid hormone on lipide, metabolism in the rat.

On a sterol-free diet, which contained only 10% fat, hypothyroid rats exhibited hypercholesterolemia but maintained normal levels of liver cholesterol. On the same diet, hyperthyroid rats maintained subnormal concentrations of nonesterified cholesterol in plasma and greater than normal concentrations in liver. Differences in the concentrations of lipide phosphorus in serum among hyperthyroid and hypothyroid rats and their respective controls were not significant; however, the hepatic levels of lipide phosphorus and total fatty acids in the hyperthyroid rats were higher than those in their normal litter mates.After sodium l-C14-acetate was administered intraperitoneally, more carbon-14 was recovered in the digitonfn-precipitable sterols, fatty acids and phospholipides from livers of hyperthyroid rats than in these substances from the livers of their normal controls. There was no significant difference between hypothyroid rats and their normal litter mates with regard to the levels of the carbon- 14 in thes...
Engineered antibodies for molecular imaging of cancer

Antibody technology has transformed drug development, providing robust approaches to producing highly targeted and active therapeutics that can routinely be advanced through clinical evaluation and registration. In parallel, there is an emerging need to access similarly targeted agents for diagnostic purposes, including non-invasive imaging in preclinical models and patients. Antibody engineering enables modification of key properties (immunogenicity, valency, biological inertness, pharmacokinetics, clearance route, site-specific conjugation) in order to produce targeting agents optimized for molecular imaging. Expanded availability of positron-emitting radionuclides has led to a resurgence of interest and applications of immunoPET (immuno-positron emission tomography). Molecular imaging using engineered antibodies and fragments provides a general approach for assessing cell surface phenotype in vivo and stands to play an increasingly important role in cancer diagnosis, treatment selection, and monitoring of molecularly targeted therapeutics.
ALMOST FINITE-VALUED LATTICE-ORDERED GROUPS

Almost finite-valued l-groups were introduced by Chen and Conrad [CC00] in studying special-valued l-subgroups of lattice-ordered groups. Among their results were that maximal special-valued l-subgroups of abelian l-groups must be weakly saturated, the class of almost finite-valued l-groups forms a quasitorsion class, and several characterizations of almost finite-valued l-groups. In this article, we show that maximal special-valued l-subgroups of representable l-groups must be saturated, show that maximal almost finite-valued l-subgroups of abelian l-groups must be saturated, and show the finite-valued radical of an l-group must be contained in all maximal almost finite-valued l-subgroups. A condition is given to ensure that each maximal almost finite-valued l-subgroup of an abelian l-group contains a maximal finite-valued l-subgroup.
Evidence for scaling invariance and universality of the irreversibility line of high temperature superconductors.

Measurements of the irreversibility line H(${\mathit{T}}^{\mathrm{*}}$) of ${\mathrm{Y}}_{1\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}\mathit{x}}$${\mathrm{Pr}}_{\mathit{x}}$${\mathrm{Ba}}_{2}$${\mathrm{Cu}}_{3}$${\mathrm{O}}_{6.97}$, a system in which the superconducting transition ${\mathit{T}}_{\mathit{c}}$ can be varied from 0 to 92 K, show that H(${\mathit{T}}^{\mathrm{*}}$) obeys a universal scaling relation characterized by an m=3/2 power law near ${\mathit{T}}_{\mathit{c}}$, with a crossover to a more rapid temperature dependence below T/${\mathit{T}}_{\mathit{c}}$\ensuremath{\approxeq}0.6. The applicability of the scaling formula to other high ${\mathit{T}}_{\mathit{c}}$ superconductors is tested, with the results suggesting that both the crossover phenomenon and the power law temperature dependence are ubiquitous, scale-invariant properties of high temperature superconductors.
Analysis of Sniper Localization for Mobile, Asynchronous Sensors

In this work we analyze the performance of several approaches to sniper localization in a network of mobile sensors. Mobility increases the complexity of calibration (i.e., self localization, orientation, and time synchronization) in a network of sensors. The sniper localization approaches studied here rely on time-difference of arrival (TDOA) measurements of the muzzle blast and shock wave from multiple, distributed single-sensor nodes. Although these approaches eliminate the need for self-orienting, node position calibration and time synchronization are still persistent problems. We analyze the influence of geometry and the sensitivity to time synchronization and node location uncertainties. We provide a Cramer-Rao bound (CRB) for location and bullet trajectory estimator errors for each respective approach. When the TDOA is taken as the difference between the muzzle blast and shock wave arrival times, the resulting localization performance is independent of time synchronization and is less affected by geometry compared to other approaches.
Online simulation‐based process control for injection molding

An online numerical simulation is presented that is capable of predicting state variables such as flow rate, melt temperature, shear rate, and melt viscosity by using real time data from a nozzle pressure sensor. The simulation solves the non-Newtonian nonisothermal polymer flow into multicavity tools while executing rapidly enough for real time process control. Numerical accuracy and stability were first validated offline by comparing the online simulation to results obtained from a commercial mold filling simulation. Simulation-based process control was then demonstrated by transferring a molding machine from fill to pack-based on the predicted flow front position. The simulation-based controller dynamically determined the appropriate transfer position for each part and transferred the machine at the correct time, thereby eliminating flash. The simulation, however, did increase process variability slightly due to delay times associated with the controller-machine interface. A full factorial design of experiments (DOE) was performed varying injection velocity, mold temperature, and melt temperature. Results show that while the simulation dynamically adjusted the process on a part-by-part basis, it did not fully account for the process changes. Accuracy could potentially be improved by incorporating data from additional process sensors, by developing adaptive viscosity models, and by accounting for the melt compressibility. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2009. © 2009 Society of Plastics Engineers
Trajectory Matching Flight-Path Optimization of Aerospace Vehicles

A new class of six-degree-of-freedom optimization problems referred to as trajectory matching e ight-path optimization is addressed and explicitly described via an example problem. The essence of this class of e ightpath optimization problems is to force an aerospace vehicle to follow prescribed translational and rotational velocity histories or to motion-match. For this example, a lightweight, axisymmetric re-entry vehicle decoy is designed to match the motion of a typical full-weight re-entry vehicle by optimizing its mass properties. The optimization problem, which is performed in two steps, is given as the minimization of the difference between the target trajectory and the actual trajectory subject to physical constraints. The e rst step utilizes a unique stability measure to develop similarity parameters that provide excellent initial guesses for the numerical optimization routine employed in the second step. The second step utilizes a sequential quadratic programming algorithm to numerically solve the constrained minimization problem. Simulation results demonstrate the robust trajectory matching of the lightweight re-entry vehicle.
Pregnancy patterns of pantropical spotted dolphins ( Stenella attenuata ) in the eastern tropical Pacific determined from hormonal analysis of blubber biopsies and correlations with the purse-seine tuna fishery

The northeastern offshore population of the pantropical spotted dolphin (Stenella attenuata) in the east- ern tropical Pacific remains listed as depleted under the Marine Mammal Protection act, and recent estimates of abundance show that recovery has been slow. One hypoth- esis for the slow recovery is that continued chase and encir - clement by the tuna fishery negatively affects reproduction. Insufficient life-history sampling in this region over the last two decades makes traditional estimates of reproductive rates impossible. Here, we examine the current reproduc- tive patterns of these dolphins by measuring blubber pro- gesterone (BP) concentrations in biopsy samples to assess pregnancy state. BP was quantified in 212 biopsies from female offshore spotted dolphins sampled between 1998 and 2003 in the northeastern tropical Pacific, and we found that 11.5 % of the biopsied females (mature and immature) were pregnant. The relationship between pregnancy and fishery exposure was analyzed, and we found that pregnant females were exposed to significantly less fishery activ- ity than non-pregnant ones (p = 0.022), suggesting that the fishery may have an inhibitive effect on pregnancy. Spatial analysis indicated that pregnancy was more aggre- gated than random (p < 0.05) at a scale up to 180-nmi, with
SCALES: A Computer Program to Convert among Three Developmental Stage Scales for Wheat

The Haun, Feekes, and Zadoks-ChanpKonzak developmental stage scales are often used to report phenological information for wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) development. Agronomists familiar with one of these scales may have only a passing acquaintance with developmental scales other than the one they consider most appropriate for their purposes. This makes review and interpretation of the literature more difficult. Although wheat development models often report phenological results, they generally use no more than one scale. For these reasons, and because there is not a simple numeric correspondence among the three scales, a computer program to convert among them is a useful tool. SCALES is a three-module FORTRAN program that relates the three scales based on published descriptions. The interactive user interface module requests an input scale value and minimal additional information, which the conversion module uses to determine values for the remaining two scales via a dichotomous key. The output module writes the conversion results to the monitor. SCALES may be used independently for comparing phenological data based on different developmental scales, or the conversion module may be incorporated into computer models to provide output of developmental stage information for the simulation.
Dysphagia in individuals with tetraplegia: incidence and risk factors

AbstractBackground/objective: Dysphagia following cervical spinal cord injury (SCI) can increase risk for pulmonary complications that may delay the rehabilitative process. The objective of this study was to identify risk factors for dysphagia after cervical SCI.Design: Prospective cohort study.Methods: Individuals with cervical SCI within 31 days of injury underwent a bedside swallow evaluation (BSE) followed by a videofluoroscopy swallow study (VFSS) within 72 hours of the BSE. Subjects were diagnosed as having dysphagia if they had positive findings in either BSE or VFSS.Results: Twenty-nine patients (7 female and 22 male) were enrolled. Of these, 21 (72%) had high cervical tetraplegia (C4 or higher) and 8 (38%) had lower cervical tetraplegia. A tracheostomy was present in 18 (62%) patients; 15 (52%) subjects were on ventilators. Dysphagia was diagnosed in 12 (41%) subjects. Dysphagia was noted in 62% of the subjects with tracheostomy and 53% of the subjects on the ventilator, but only tracheostomy res...
Judgment in older adults: Development and psychometric evaluation of the Test of Practical Judgment (TOP-J)

This article reports on the development and validation of a novel, objective test of judgment for use with older adults. The Test of Practical Judgment (TOP-J) is an open-ended measure that evaluates judgment related to safety, medical, social/ethical, and financial issues. Psychometric features were examined in a sample of 134 euthymic individuals with mild Alzheimer's disease (AD), amnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCI), or cognitive complaints but intact neuropsychological performance (CC), and demographically-matched healthy controls (HC). Measures of reliability were adequate to high, and TOP-J scores correlated with select measures of executive functioning, language, and memory. AD participants obtained impaired TOP-J scores relative to HCs, while MCI and CC participants showed an intermediate level of performance. Confirmatory factor analyses were consistent with a unidimensional structure. Results encourage further development of the TOP-J as an indicator of practical judgment skills in clinical and research settings. Longitudinal assessments are being performed to examine predictive validity of the TOP-J for cognitive progression in our clinical groups.
Hot Boys Are Blue: Temperature-Dependent Color Change in Male Eastern Fence Lizards

Abstract Color is important for signaling, camouflage, and thermoregulation in many species. The costs and benefits of coloration can vary under different scenarios, increasing fitness under some conditions but decreasing it under others. Some animals are able to resolve these conflicts by changing color. Color change can increase fitness by maintaining crypsis across variable environments, by minimizing costs associated with signaling, and by aiding thermoregulation when environmental conditions change. We examined the effect of temperature on short-term color change in males of the sexually dichromatic Eastern Fence Lizard, Sceloporus undulatus. Color is associated with social dominance in this species and may be important in facilitating camouflage and thermoregulation. This study revealed that dorsal color and badge color are affected by temperature. This suggests that short-term color change in this species may aid thermoregulation and provide an honest signal of thermally dependent performance.
THE ULTRASONIC DIAGNOSIS OF URACHAL ANOMALIES

Seven cases of urachal anomalies are presented. The spectrum of the disorder and the criteria for ultrasound diagnosis are described. Six of seven cases were correctly diagnosed pre-operatively with diagnostic ultrasound, but one case with no cystic component was missed. The appearance of a fixed, midline, cystic, extraperitoneal swelling between the umbilicus and the bladder should suggest the diagnosis.
Linguistic transfer and the use of context by Spanish-English bilinguals

In this study, Spanish-English bilinguals and English monolinguals used brief English contexts to choose among possible meanings for unfamiliar words. Two types of errors were compared: transfer errors, which were answers consistent with Spanish, but not English, syntax, and nontransfer errors, which were inconsistent with the syntax of both languages. Nontransfer errors were found to be negatively correlated with reading proficiency in both Spanish and English. Transfer errors, on the other hand, were positively correlated with reading proficiency in Spanish and were unrelated to reading proficiency in English.
An Analysis of the Elliptical Cup Hydraulic Drawing Process

AbstractIn this study, finite element was utilized to simulate elliptical cup hydroforming deep drawing to explore the relationship between the punch load and stroke, workpiece thickness changes, the major stress distribution, the punch fillet radius, hydrostatic pressure, deformation mechanism and the forming limit, etc., in the process of forming. The numerical simulation and experimental results show that the punch load increases as the stroke increases and levels off until the forming is done. The maximum punch load and punch fillet radius is proportional. When the hydraulic pressure grows larger, the bottom of the cup and the fillet become thinner; the maximum punch load value is also increased due to increased hydraulic pressure. The minimum thickness value is concentrated in the junction of the workpiece and long axis of the punch. And due to a larger radius of curvature, the short axis region bears smaller circumferential tensile stress; therefore, there is little change in thickness. The limit dr...
Remodeling the Brain Plastic Structural Brain Changes Produced by Different Motor Therapies After Stroke

Background and Purpose— Studies on adult stroke patients have demonstrated functional changes in cortical excitability, metabolic rate, or blood flow after motor therapy, measures that can fluctuate rapidly over time. This study evaluated whether evidence could also be found for structural brain changes during an efficacious rehabilitation program. Methods— Chronic stroke patients were randomly assigned to receive either constraint-induced movement therapy (n=16) or a comparison therapy (n=20). Longitudinal voxel-based morphometry was performed on structural MRI scans obtained immediately before and after patients received therapy. Results— The group receiving constraint-induced movement therapy exhibited far greater improvement in use of the more affected arm in the life situation than the comparison therapy group. Structural brain changes paralleled these improvements in spontaneous use of the more impaired arm for activities of daily living. There were profuse increases in gray matter in sensory and mo...
Ideal jet flow in two dimensions

A jet is a stream of one fluid entering another at high speed. In the simplest classical model of jet flow, the geometry is two-dimensional, gravity and viscosity are ignored, the moving fluid is a liquid, and the stationary fluid is a gas whose influence is assumed negligible. The description of this idealized flow can be reduced to a problem of complex analysis, but, except for very simple nozzle geometries, that problem cannot be solved analytically. This paper presents an efficient procedure for solving the jet problem numerically in the case of an arbitrary polygonal nozzle.
Software-based communication latency hiding for commodity workstation networks

A variety of latency hiding techniques has been investigated at the hardware level. However, except multithreading, which may require substantial program structuring effort, other software-based latency hiding methods have not been investigated. In this paper, we consider design alternatives for latency hiding other than multithreading. Furthermore, we present experimental evidence for the validity of a new technique for software-based communication latency hiding for commodity workstation networks: Up to 89 percent of useful computational power can be squeezed out of a workstation CPU while communicating with TCP/IP via an Ethernet and almost 90 percent while communicating across the Internet.
Interfaces and integration of medical image analysis frameworks: Challenges and opportunities

Clinical research with medical imaging typically involves large-scale data analysis with interdependent software toolsets tied together in a processing workflow. Numerous, complementary platforms are available, but these are not readily compatible in terms of workflows or data formats. Both image scientists and clinical investigators could benefit from using the framework which is a most natural fit to the specific problem at hand, but pragmatic choices often dictate that a compromise platform is used for collaboration. Manual merging of platforms through carefully tuned scripts has been effective, but exceptionally time consuming and is not feasible for large-scale integration efforts. Hence, the benefits of innovation are constrained by platform dependence. Removing this constraint via integration of algorithms from one framework into another is the focus of this work. We propose and demonstrate a light-weight interface system to expose parameters across platforms and provide seamless integration. In this initial effort, we focus on four platforms Medical Image Analysis and Visualization (MIPAV), Java Image Science Toolkit (JIST), command line tools, and 3D Slicer. We explore three case studies: (1) providing a system for MIPAV to expose internal algorithms and utilize these algorithms within JIST, (2) exposing JIST modules through self-documenting command line interface for inclusion in scripting environments, and (3) detecting and using JIST modules in 3D Slicer. We review the challenges and opportunities for light-weight software integration both within development language (e.g., Java in MIPAV and JIST) and across languages (e.g., C/C++ in 3D Slicer and shell in command line tools).
Understanding Athletic Trainers' Beliefs Toward a Multifacted Sport-Related Concussion Approach: Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior

Context: Practice guidelines recommend a multifaceted approach for managing concussions, but a relatively small percentage of athletic trainers (ATs) follow these recommendations. Understanding ATs' beliefs toward the recommended concussion practice guidelines is the first step in identifying interventions that could increase compliance. The theory of planned behavior (TPB) allows us to measure ATs' beliefs toward the recommended concussion practice guidelines. Objective: To examine the influence of ATs' beliefs toward the current recommended concussion guidelines on concussion-management practice through an application of the TPB. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: A Web link with a survey was e-mailed to 1000 randomly selected members of the National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA). Patients or Other Participants: A total of 221 certified ATs working in secondary school/clinic, high school, and college/university settings. Main Outcome Measure(s): A 66-item survey reflecting the current recom...
Strategyproof cost-sharing mechanisms for set cover and facility location games

Strategyproof cost-sharing mechanisms, lying in the core, that recover 1/@a fraction of the cost, are presented for the set cover and facility location games: @a=O(log n) for the former and 1:861 for the latter. Our mechanisms utilize approximation algorithms for these problems based on the method of dual-fitting.
Global diversity of fishlice (Crustacea: Branchiura: Argulidae) in freshwater

The Branchiura of freshwater habitats, consisting of the valid genera Argulus, Chonopeltis, Dipteropeltis, and Dolops, presently contains 113 valid species and 12 undescribed species. The entire group is composed of ectoparasitic species that usually live on fishes. The highest diversity of genera and species occurs in the Afrotropical and Neotropical regions. The diversity of the freshwater species surpasses that of species in marine and brackish waters, but this could be due to inadequate study of the fauna of the latter habitats. One species, Argulus japonicus, has been introduced from east/southeast Asia to all other continents, except Antarctica. Studies of higher level relationships place the Branchiura with either Pentastomida or Ostracoda. Hypotheses about phylogenetic relationships of either the genera or species in this group have not been proposed.
Effect of growth conditions on flow‐induced inhibition of population growth of a red‐tide dinoflagellate

The population growth of some dinoflagellates is known to be reduced by exposure to fluid flow. The red-tide dinoflagellate Lingulodinium polyedrum was used to examine the effect of growth conditions on flow-induced inhibition of population growth. Three factors were tested: time of exposure relative to the light : dark (LD) cycle, illumination level, and culture growth phase (early vs. late exponential phase). Cultures maintained on a 12 : 12 h LD cycle were exposed to one of two flow conditions: quantified laminar shear produced by Couette flow or unquantified flow generated in shaken flasks. The duration of exposure to flow wa s1hd 21 for 5‐8 d in all experiments; the shear stress in Couette shear experiments was 0.004 N m 22 . There were many qualitative similarities in the pattern of response to flow in the two hydrodynamic conditions. In both cases, exposure to flow in the last hour of the dark phase resulted in greater reduction of net growth than exposure during the light phase. Cultures grown under lower illumination had proportionally greater reductions in net growth than cultures under higher light. Finally, late exponential phase cultures exhibited much greater reductions in net growth following a given flow exposure than early exponential phase cultures. The higher sensitivity of late exponential phase cultures did not appear to be linked to nutrient limitation or changes in pH of the medium; it may be partially attributed to exudates from late exponential phase cells. These results suggest that the response of red-tide dinoflagellate population growth to in situ turbulence may depend on both environmental conditions and the physiological state of the cells.
Substance P (subP) and Minocycline Suppress Induction of Human Ragweed Specific Memory IgE Responses By Different Mechanisms

S A T U R D A Y 214 Substance P (subP) and Minocycline Suppress Induction of Human Ragweed Specific Memory IgE Responses By Different Mechanisms Charles J. Kim, BS, Bryan McCarthy, BS, Seto M. Chice, MS, Maja Nowakowski, PhD, Jonathan Silverberg, MD, PhD, MPH, Stephan A. Kohlhoff, MD, Rauno O. Joks, MD, FAAAAI, Tamar A. SmithNorowitz, PhD, Helen G. Durkin, PhD; Center for Allergy and Asthma Research at SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, Department of Dermatology, Northwestern University School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, Department of Medicine, SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, Department of Pediatrics, State University of New York Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, Department of Pathology at SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY. RATIONALE:We reported that CD4+ andCD8+CD60+ T cells and 6 cytokines, including IL-4, were required for ragweed specific (RS) memory IgE responses by PBMC of ragweed sensitized humans, and that minocycline strongly suppressed T cell expression of phosphorylated p38MAP kinase (p38MAPK) and IL-4, while preventing induction of RS memory IgE responses. Others previously reported that CD4+ T cells and IL-4 were required for human IgE responses and that p38MAPK is associated with IL-4. We hypothesize that subP, previously shown to suppress murine memory IgE responses, will prevent induction of human RS memory IgE responses. METHODS: PBMC were obtained from ragweed sensitized humans (n54-6) and CD4+IL-4+ and CD8+CD60+IL-4+ T cell numbers determined 6 incubation with PMA/ionophore. The effect of subP 6 PMA/ ionophore on these cells, on CD4+p38MAPK+ T cells, and on RSmemory IgE responses were determined (flow cytometry, ELISA). RESULTS: CD4+IL-4+ T cells were 5% of CD4+ T cells; CD8+CD60+IL4+ T cells were >99% of CD8+CD60+ T cells. SubP did not suppress CD4+IL-4+ or CD8+CD60+IL-4+ T cells. Nevertheless, subP suppressed T cell p38MAPK (30-70%) and induction of RS memory IgE responses. As reported, minocycline strongly suppressed IL-4, T cell p38MAPK and RS memory IgE responses. CONCLUSIONS: SubP and minocycline appear to suppress RS memory IgE responses by different mechanisms. SubP did not suppress IL-4 but minocycline did. Both suppressed IgE responses. It is possible that subP suppresses events occurring downstream of IL-4. Further, it is possible that subP suppresses other cytokines required for memory IgE responses.