cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Natural history and clinical effect of aortic valve regurgitation after left ventricular assist device implantation.

Objectives Aortic valve regurgitation reduces left ventricular assist device mechanical efficiency. Evidence has also suggested that left ventricular assist device implantation can induce or exacerbate aortic valve regurgitation. However, this has not been compared with aortic valve regurgitation progression in a nonsurgical end-stage heart failure population. Furthermore, its clinical effect is unclear. We sought to characterize the development and progression of aortic valve regurgitation in left ventricular assist device recipients and to identify its clinical effect. Methods A review of all consecutive patients who received an intracorporeal left ventricular assist device at Duke University Medical Center from January 2004 to January 2011 was conducted. Cases of previous or concomitant aortic valve surgery were excluded. Data from the remaining implants (n = 184) and a control group of contemporaneous nonsurgical patients with end-stage heart failure (n = 132) were analyzed. Serial transthoracic echocardiography was used to characterize aortic valve regurgitation as a function of time. Results Left ventricular assist device implantation was associated with worsening aortic valve regurgitation, defined as an increase in aortic valve regurgitation grade, relative to the nonsurgical patients with end-stage heart failure ( P P = .0348). Moderate or severe aortic valve regurgitation developed in 21 left ventricular assist device recipients; this was unrelated to the type of device implanted (continuous vs pulsatile; P = .754) or aortic valve regurgitation grade before left ventricular assist device implantation ( P = .42). Five patients developed severe aortic valve regurgitation; all of whom underwent aortic valve procedures. Conclusions Native aortic valve regurgitation developed and/or progressed after left ventricular assist device implantation, with this effect being more pronounced in continuous flow left ventricular assist device recipients. However, the preoperative aortic valve regurgitation grade failed to correlate with the development of substantial aortic valve regurgitation after left ventricular assist device implantation. After left ventricular assist device implantation, aortic valve regurgitation had a small, but discernible, clinical effect, with some patients developing severe aortic valve regurgitation and requiring aortic valve procedures. These data have implications for the long-term management of left ventricular assist device recipients, in particular as the durability of implantable continuous flow left ventricular assist device therapy improves.
Surveillance of Hazardous Substance Releases and Related Health Effects

The public health consequences of hazardous substance releases have not been characterized adequately. In response, therefore, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry implemented an active, state-based surveillance system. Information is collected with respect to the events, chemicals, victims, injuries, and evacuations. Five states reported 1,249 events during 1990 and 1991. Seventy-two percent of the events occurred at fixed facilities, and 28% of the events were transportation related. In 80% of the events, one chemical was released. The most frequently released chemicals were herbicides, acids, volatile organic compounds, and ammonias. In 204 events, 846 persons were injured and 7 died. Employees were injured more frequently than first responders or the general public. The most frequently reported injuries were respiratory irritation and eye irritation. Evacuations occurred in 14% of the events. These results provide information for preparedness planning and training of first responders and employees.
Vascular Ring in an Infant With Cystic Fibrosis

A vascular ring (VR) is a rare congenital anomaly that has variable clinical presentation, but may cause trachea-esophageal compressive symptoms. We describe an infant with cystic fibrosis and subtle trachea-esophageal compressive symptoms which were initially attributed to other causes, delaying the diagnosis of a VR. Int J Clin Pediatr. 2014;3(4):108-110 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.14740/jicp178w
Reduction evaporation of BeO to provide a beryllium metal sample for accelerator radiometric dating

Abstract A technique is described for preparing beryllium metal samples from beryllium oxide for use in accelerator ion sources. These samples are used to measure minute 10 Be/ 9 Be ratios for radiometric dating at the University of Washington tandem Van de Graaff accelerator.
A quasiclassical trajectory study of reagent vibrational excitation effects in the OH+H2→H2O+H reaction

Quasiclassical trajectories have been used to determine reaction rate constant enhancements and product state energy partitioning in the OH(v)+H2(v′)→H2O+H reaction for (v,v′)= (0,0), (1,0), (0,1), and (1,1). An analytical fit to the accurate ab initio potential surface of Walch and Dunning was used in the Monte Carlo calculations. Final H2O vibrational states were assigned using the histogram method to bin the good action variables governing H2O vibrational motions. These actions were calculated by using second order classical perturbation theory to solve the vibrational Hamilton–Jacobi equation. The resulting integral reaction cross sections and thermal rate constants, indicate that OH vibrational excitation leads to a very small enhancement (only a factor of 1.28) in the thermal rate constant at 300 K. H2 excitation, on the other hand, causes a large reduction in the reaction activation energy (from 0.18 eV to 0.03 eV) and a large enhancement in the rate constant (a factor of 393 at 300 K). These resul...
Construction Engineering Process and Knowledge Requirements for Fostering Creative Design Solutions on Infrastructure Projects

Construction engineering for major infrastructure projects covers a wide range of activities to evaluate and select the techniques for assembling materials and components. Construction engineering inherently presents a very challenging opportunity for creative design, particularly on infrastructure projects. This construction engineering activity can be described as one of creating and developing workable, cost-effective, low-risk technical solutions for an array of infrastructure construction problems that must be solved from the plans and specifications stage through facility completion. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate a 10-step construction engineering process and define important knowledge requirements to foster creative design solutions using four case studies, including (1) positioning and holding a concrete bridge caisson in a 7-knot tidal current for a 4-month period; (2) skidding a 55,000-t immersed tube tunnel element 200 m on dry land from casting site to launch site; (3) building a ...
Binary choice under social interactions: an empirical study with and without subjective data on expectations

This paper examines two methods of modeling binary choice with social interactions: models assuming homogeneous rational expectations and models using subjective data on expectations. Exploiting a unique survey conducted during the 1996 US presidential election that was designed to study voting behavior under social context, we find that in various model specifications using subjective expectations consistently improves models' goodness-of-fit; and that subjective expectations are not rational as formulated by Brock and Durlauf. Specifically, members' characteristics are individually important in forming expectations. We also include correlated effect in the rational expectation model. This extension provides a remedy to the selection issues that often arise in social interaction models. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Reaction of Live Hog Futures Prices to USDA Hogs and Pigs Reports

Strong concerns about how efficiently live hog futures prices react to U.S. Department of Agriculture Hogs and Pigs Reports have been raised by livestock producer groups. Using market survey data, direct tests of the efficient markets hypothesis are performed for the live hog futures market. Two-limit tobit models account for institutional price limits. Results support the efficient market hypothesis in that live hog futures prices (a) do not react to anticipated changes in reported information, (b) do react significantly and in the expected direction to unanticipated changes in reported information, and (c) generally adjust to unanticipated information on the day following release of the reports.
Metal binding to angiotensin converting enzyme: implications for the metal binding site

Angiotensin converting enzyme interacts with the chelator, 1,10-phenanthroline (OP) to form an OP-Zn-ACE ternary complex, which subsequently dissociates to OP-Zn and apoenzyme. The association and dissociation rate constants for the reaction OP + Zn-ACE in equilibrium OP-Zn-ACE have been determined and compared with those of known OP-metal complexes. Such constants were also used to calculate the rate constant for formation of the OP-Zn complex from OP-Zn-ACE. The rate of dissociation of zinc from ACE has been measured in the presence of EDTA (which acts only as a metal scavenger) as a function of chelator concentration, at different pH values, and with different buffers. The stability constant for the binding of zinc to apoACE log Kc = 8.2, determined by equilibrium dialysis using atomic absorption spectroscopy to assess metal concentration, is much smaller than that for Zn-carboxypeptidase A. Zn-thermolysin, or Zn-carbonic anhydrase. This weak binding is attributable to the zinc dissociation rate constant of ACE, 7.5 X 10(-3) sec-1 at pH 7.0, which is much greater than that of the other zinc metalloenzymes. These results lead to inferences regarding the metal binding site of ACE.
TIVA and SEI Developments for Enhanced Front and Backside Interconnection Failure Analysis

Thermally-Induced Voltage Alteration (TIVA) and Seebeck Effect Imaging (SEI) are newly developed techniques for localizing shorted and open conductors from the front and backside of an IC. Recent improvements have greatly increased the sensitivity of the TIVA/SEI system, reduced the acquisition times by more than 20X, and localized previously unobserved defects. The system improvements, non-linear response of IC defects to heating, modeling of laser heating and examples using the improved system are presented.
EFFECT OF MECHANICAL INJURY ON THE LIPID CONTENT AND QUALITY OF POTATOES

Bake King or Katahdin potatoes that were injured by bruising and/or wounding were compared with control tubers for crude lipid, phospho-lipid content and fatty acid composition. Both bruised and wounded tubers showed marked signs of discoloration at the time of analysis. The crude lipid content of both bruised and wounded tissue was significantly lower than the controls and the phospholipid content followed the same trend as the crude lipid. The fatty acid composition of the bruised tissue was similar to that of the control, but in the wounded cortical tissue the phospholipid showed an increase in saturated fatty acids and a decrease in unsaturated.
Use of systems analysis in water management

Over the past 30 years systems analysis applied to the planning and operation of water resource systems has grown from a mathematical curiosity to a major specialty. We define systems analysis as that set of mathematical planning and design techniques which includes at least some formal optimization procedure. Based on the increasingly large number of systems-oriented papers which appear in the civil engineering literature, it is not unreasonable to expect that the use of one or another optimization technique would have been undertaken in a significant number of completed projects and described in the literature; this turns out not to be the case. Moreover, U.S. federal agencies and major consultants do not appear to use these techniques in any but a handful of projects. We offer several explanations for this, including institutional resistance to use of the techniques, deficiencies in data bases, inadequacies in modeling, and the fundamental insensitivity of many systems (not merely the models thereof) to wide variations in design choices. We explore the differences between application in developed and developing countries.
Radiographic evaluation of weight-bearing orthotics and their effect on flexible pes planus.

Abstract Objective: To determine whether any positive change in the alignment of the bones of the feet occur with the use of custom-made flexible orthotics, cast by weight bearing, in individuals having flexible pes planus. Methods: Anteroposterior and lateral radiographs were obtained with and without orthotics in place. The anteroposterior and lateral talocalcaneal angles and the lateral pitch of both the left and right foot were assessed. Results: The t test values and P values derived from the radiographic measurements indicated statistically significant improvements in weight-bearing foot alignment. Discussion: Biomechanical faults in the pedal foundation can adversely affect any of the joints and structures of the foot/ankle complex, lower extremities, pelvis, and spine. Conclusion: This study supports the use of a custom-made flexible orthotic for the improvement of pedal structural alignment. (J Manipulative Physiol Ther 1999;22:221–6)
Relativistic effective potential SCF calculations of AgH and AuH

Relativistic effective potentials (REP) are now widely used in molecular electronic structure calculations. Tests of these REP are needed to assess their accuracy. This can now be done for AgH and AuH since Lee and McLean have published Dirac-Fock calculations for these molecules. Comparative SCF calculations have been performed for two types of effective potential. Satisfactory agreement between the effective potential results and Dirac-Fock values is found for spectroscopic constants and dipole moments, which supports the use of these potentials for heavy atom containing molecules.
Lessons learned in embedding fiber sensors into large civil structures

Fiber optic cables have long since held the promise of providing low cost, widespread sensing capabilities. The use of fiber optic sensors within a large civil structure could allow for multiple sensing capabilities providing information as to the health of a structure. The Stafford Emerging Technologies Research Complex is a five-story, 65,000 square foot building currently under the final phases of construction on the campus of the University of Vermont. Over the course of the eight months approximately seventy fiber optic sensors have been installed within the concrete frame work of the building. The intrinsic and extrinsic fiber sensors are comprised of various types of singlemode and multimode cables. Since this project is the first major installation of it's kind, very little was known as to what techniques should be implemented to maximize fiber survivability. While installing the sensor network at the Stafford building site many lessons have been learned that would aid in future fiber installations. The techniques developed while installing fiber optic sensors are presented.
Differential gene expression and genomic patient stratification following left ventricular assist device support

Abstract Objectives We sought to determine whether mechanical unloading of the failing human heart with a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) results in significant changes in overall left ventricular gene expression. Background Mechanical circulatory support by LVAD in end-stage human heart failure (HF) can result in beneficial reverse remodeling of myocardial structure and function. The molecular mechanisms behind this salutary process are not well understood. Methods Left ventricular samples from six male patients were harvested during LVAD placement and subsequently at the time of explantation. Cardiac gene expression was determined using oligonucleotide microarrays. Results Paired ttest analysis revealed numerous genes that were regulated in a statistically significant fashion, including the downregulation of several previously studied genes. Further statistical analysis revealed that the overall gene expression profiles could significantly distinguish pre- and post-LVAD status. Interestingly, the data also identified two distinct groups among the pre-LVAD failing hearts, in which there was blind segregation of patients based on HF etiology. In addition to the substantial divergence in genomic profiles for these two HF groups, there were significant differences in their corresponding LVAD-mediated regulation of gene expression. Conclusions Support with an LVAD in HF induces significant changes in myocardial gene expression, as pre- and post-LVAD hearts demonstrate significantly distinct genomic footprints. Thus, reverse remodeling is associated with a specific pattern of gene expression. Moreover, we found that deoxyribonucleic acid microarray technology could distinguish, in a blind manner, patients with different HF etiologies. Expansion of this study and further development of these statistical methods may facilitate prognostic prediction of the individual patient response to LVAD support.
Mesoscale convective complexes in Africa

Abstract Digitized full-disk infrared satellite imagery from the European geostationary satellite (Meteosat) for 1986 and 1987 was used to construct a climatology of mesoscale convective complexes (MCCs) in Africa One hundred ninety-five systems formed over Africa and its near vicinity during the two-year study period. From this database, characteristics of African MCCs were calculated. The results indicate that these MCCs display many of the same characteristics as those found in the Americas, the Indian subcontinent, and the western Pacific region. The systems are predominantly nocturnal and tend to form over or in the immediate vicinity of land. Much of the activity occurs over the African Sahel. while comparatively little occurs over the equatorial rain forest. The average lifetime of African MCCs is about 11.5 h, whereas systems in the western Pacific region and the Americas last about 11 and 10 h, respectively. The size distributions of the African systems are also extremely similar to those of the ...
EFFECTS OF MULTIPLE AND SERIAL BRONCHIAL-ALVEOLAR LAVAGE SAMPLING ON HEMODYNAMIC AND PULMONARY STATUS OF VLBW INFANTS. 2091

Cardiopulmonary decompensation during repeated bronchial-alveolar lavage(BAL) sampling is of both technical and clinical concern. The pathophysiologic, hemodynamic and pulmonary function changes were evaluated in 25 bedside studies of 13 VLBW infants (mean±SD: GA = 26.0±2.8wks, BW = 780±284g, study weight = 1037±263g). The protocol for BAL consisted of: increasing the FiO2 20%, disconnecting the infant from the ventilator, instilling 0.5cc saline irrigant into the ET tube, suctioning any secretions, and reconnecting to the ventilator. The effects of 3-4 sequential BAL procedures were studied.Results: Each BAL was seldom associated with bradycardia (HR < 80/min) but usually with desaturation (SpO2 < 90%) and stabilization to near baseline levels occurred within 60 to 120 sec. The mean ± SEM percent changes from baseline after successive suctions for some cardio-respiratory parameters are as follows: Table The initial samplings (#1-#2) are associated with significant hemodynamic and pulmonary compromise (**p<0.001,*p<0.05). The initial decompensation was followed by a significant reduction in pulmonary resistance after BAL (13.8% from baseline values, p<0.05). In 7 infants there were no significant changes in function residual capacity lung compliance, blood gas or systemic blood pressure after serial BAL. These data suggest that appropriate adherence to BAL protocol is associated with initial but no progressive deleterious effects such that the infants may tolerate third and fourth serial samplings.
Optimal Length Resolution Refutations of Difference Constraint Systems

This paper is concerned with determining the optimal length resolution refutation (OLRR) of a system of difference constraints over an integral domain. The problem of finding short explanations for unsatisfiable difference constraint systems (DCS) finds applications in a number of design domains including program verification, proof theory, real-time scheduling and operations research. It is well-known that resolution refutation is a sound and complete procedure to establish the unsatisfiability of boolean formulas in clausal form. The literature has also established that a variant of the resolution procedure called Fourier-Motzkin elimination is a sound and complete procedure for establishing the unsatisfiability of linear constraint systems (LCS). Our work in this paper first establishes that every DCS has a short (polynomial in the size of the input) resolution refutation and then shows that there exists a polynomial time algorithm to compute the optimal size refutation. One of the consequences of our work is that the Minimum Unsatisfiable Subset (MUS) of a DCS can be computed in polynomial time; computing the MUS of an unsatisfiable constraint set is an extremely important aspect of certifying algorithms.
Impact on Pregnancy of Gross and Microscopic Vasal Fluid during Vasectomy Reversal

Purpose: We compared fertility outcomes with gross and microscopic fluid findings at vasectomy reversal at a high volume vasectomy reversal center.Materials and Methods: A retrospective study of a prospective database was performed. All vasectomy reversals were performed by a single surgeon (EFF) between 1978 and 2011. The clinical pregnancy rate was self-reported or determined via patient mailers. Patient and operative findings were determined through database review. We classified vasal fluid as opalescent, creamy, pasty or clear. Intraoperative light microscopy was used to determine if sperm or sperm parts were present and if they were motile. Multivariate analysis was performed evaluating patient age, partner age, years after vasectomy, type of surgery, and gross and microscopic fluid analysis.Results: A total of 2,947 microsurgical vasectomy reversals were reviewed after we excluded reversals performed for post-vasectomy pain. We determined the pregnancy status of 902 (31%) cases. On univariate analy...
Alterations in stomach ghrelin production and in ghrelin-induced growth hormone secretion in the aged rat

Ghrelin is a recently discovered stomach hormone that stimulates growth hormone (GH) secretion, food intake, adiposity, and growth. In this report, we present new and previously published data from our laboratory showing that stomach ghrelin production and secretion are increased, and that GH release in response to exogenous ghrelin is enhanced in the aged rat. Together, these data suggest that the aging associated decline in GH secretion is not due to a reduction in stomach ghrelin secretion or a stimulatory action on GH release.
Computational model of VEGFR2 pathway to ERK activation and modulation through receptor trafficking

Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) signal transduction is central to angiogenesis in development and in pathological conditions such as cancer, retinopathy and ischemic diseases. We constructed and validated a computational model of VEGFR2 trafficking and signaling, to study the role of receptor trafficking kinetics in modulating ERK phosphorylation in VEGF-stimulated endothelial cells. Trafficking parameters were optimized and validated against four previously published in vitro experiments. Based on these parameters, model simulations demonstrated interesting behaviors that may be highly relevant to understanding VEGF signaling in endothelial cells. First, at moderate VEGF doses, VEGFR2 phosphorylation and ERK phosphorylation are related in a log-linear fashion, with a stable duration of ERK activation; but with higher VEGF stimulation, phosphoERK becomes saturated, and its duration increases. Second, a large endosomal fraction of VEGFR2 makes the ERK activation reaction network less sensitive to perturbations in VEGF dosage. Third, extracellular-matrix-bound VEGF binds and activates VEGFR2, but by internalizing at a slower rate, matrix-bound VEGF-induced intracellular ERK phosphorylation is predicted to be greater in magnitude and more sustained, in agreement with experimental evidence. Fourth, different endothelial cell types appear to have different trafficking rates, which result in different levels of endosomal receptor localization and different ERK response profiles.
Effects of excessive exercise and weight loss on adolescent menstrual cyclicity

Abstract In the young female patient with menstrual irregularities, the clinician must keep in mind that excessive exercise or weight loss may be the cause of the menstrual abnormalities. The responsibility of all health care providers is to educate young women about the potential serious sequelae of hypothalamic menstrual dysfunction and the resultant hypoestrogenic state so that a change in lifestyle or hormone replacement is strongly considered by the patient.
The pyrimidine catalogs of M12 and R17 ribonucleic acids.

Abstract The RNA's from the bacteriophages M12 and R17, were digested with pancreatic ribonuclease to yield pyrimidine mononucleotides and pyrimidineterminated oligonucleotides. All the non-isomeric digestion products were separated by ion exchange chromatography. The complete set of such fragments has been designated the pyrimidine catalog of the RNA. M12 RNA and R17 RNA were found to have very similar pyrimidine catalogs and, by inference, very similar RNA sequences.
Dynamical Structures in Stochastic Chemical Reaction Systems

Motivated by the need for dynamical analysis and model reduction in stiff stochastic chemical systems, we focus on the development of methodologies for analysis of the dynamical structure of singularly perturbed stochastic dynamical systems. We outline a formulation based on random dynamical system theory. We demonstrate the analysis for a model two-dimensional stochastic dynamical system built on an underlying deterministic system with a tailored fast-slow structure and an analytically known slow manifold, employing multiplicative Brownian motion noise forcing.
Purification and kinetic properties of galactokinase from human placenta

Abstract Galactokinase from human placenta was purified about 350-fold using DEAE-Sephadex-A-50 chromatography followed by Sephadex-G-200 and CM-Sephadex-C-50 filtration. The final steps of purification involved electrofocusing and ammonium sulfate precipitation. In analytical disc electrophoresis the purified enzyme moved as a single protein band. Crude enzyme is extremely unstable. Purification of the enzyme increases the stability slightly. The activation energy of the enzyme was found to be 9500 Cal. Galactokinase has an absolute requirement for a divalent ion. The enzyme is maximally active in the presence of Mg 2+ , 5 m m . However, Mg 2+ could be partially replaced by Ca 2+ , Co 2+ , and Mn 2+ . The enzyme is almost completely inhibited by p -chloromercuribenzoate and partially inhibited by N -ethylmaleimide. The K m of placental galactokinase for galactose and ATP is 250 μ m and 100 μ m , respectively. Galactose-1- P appears to inhibit the enzyme in a competitive fashion with ATP with a K i of 2.0 m m . The isoelectric point of galactokinase is 5.7 and the molecular weight is 58,000. The kinetic properties of placental galactokinase have been compared to the red cell galactokinase. The K m of the placental enzyme for galactose is about twice as high as that of the red cell enzyme whereas the affinity of the placental enzyme for ATP is twice as high as that of the red cell enzyme. Co-chromatography of placental and adult erythrocyte extract resulted in the separation of two peaks of galactokinase activity, one peak with the kinetic characteristics of the purified placental enzyme and the other peak with the kinetic characteristics of the red cell enzyme.
EFFECT OF VARYING FINAL INTERNAL TEMPERATURE ON SHEAR VALUES AND SENSORY SCORES OF MUSCLES FROM CARCASSES SUSPENDED BY TWO METHODS

A comparison of changes in tenderness in response to heat was made between meat from three animals that had one side suspended from the achilles tendon and the other side suspended from the obturator foramen. There was a decrease in tenderness due to heating muscles to higher internal temperatures as evidenced by higher shear force values and lower sensory panel scores for all muscles, except for shear of the longissimus, biceps femoris, and psoas major and ease of fragmentation for the longissimus and the gluteus medius. Analysis of the regression lines of shear and fragmentation versus mean temperature at a given cooking time indicated there was more toughening due to higher internal temperatures in a majority of muscles that were allowed to shorten than there was in those that had been prevented from shortening. These data indicate that muscles which are tenderized by prevention of shortening are less susceptible to toughening when cooked to greater degrees of doneness.
Polémicos privilegios: dos versiones de la primera sátira conocida en contra de los conversos

The anti-Converso literature of the 15 th century is noteworthy for its variety of genres –prose treatises, sermons, satirical poetry, allegories, etc.–, but what unites all of these works is their intent to mock individuals or vilify conversos as a whole. While most of these works convey their hostility in crude, stereotypical fashion, a few are distinguished by their clever form, a rhetorical cloak designed to conceal the morally repugnant sentiments contained in these texts. Among the latter is a curious, unedited document entitled Privilege that King Juan II granted to a man named Hernando, one of his favored, to become a marrano, even though he was not one by birth . The 18 th -century manuscript –“copied by hand from an old book”– is housed in the Royal Library of Madrid, and satirizes not only conversos but also patents of nobility. It is here edited for the first time. A work belonging to the same tradition, Transcript of a letter of privilege that King Juan II granted to a hidalgo , is found in two manuscripts in the National Library of Madrid. The editorial misfortunes it has suffered over more than a century warrant its publication here in a reliable edition.
The Availability of Optical Glass in America

Optical glass is manufactured in the United States by one company only, but that company manufactures a wide range of glass types and could produce any additional types for which a demand might develop. Blanks for prisms and refractor lenses of moderate size are available from the same source; larger sizes probably could be obtained, but only on special order. Disks for reflecting telescopes are not made of optical glass, and methods for manufacturing them have been developed by one of our leading glass companies. As a result, the manufacture of reflector disks of the largest size has been put on a production basis. The characteristics of optical glass are made clear by a short discussion.
Aggregation-deficient embryonal carcinoma cells: defects in peanut agglutinin (PNA) receptors

The components involved in cell adhesion were studied using the H6 line of embryonal carcinoma cells. H6 cells are especially suitable for studies on cell interactions, since genetic mutants can be selected, and various processes of cell adhesion can be controlled by regulating the calcium concentration in the medium. Three aggregation-defective variants of H6 were isolated, all of which showed reduced binding of the lectin, peanut agglutinin (PNA). Quantitation of PNA receptors on the cell surface by immunoprecipitation of iodinated surface proteins indicated that these receptors were reduced on the variants by one-half to one-quarter. The separation of immunoprecipitated PNA receptors on sodium-dodecyl-sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) demonstrated that one type of receptor, with an apparent molecular weight of 94 kilodaltons, was reduced. Parental and variant cells bind similar quantities of concanavalin A and soybean agglutinin, suggesting that there is no generalized effect on major glycoproteins. Thus, the defect in aggregation and the defect in the 94-kilodalton protein may be correlated, and this glycoprotein may have a role in the mediation of H6 cell-cell adhesion.
Laser-Doppler Anemometry to Study Fluid Transport in Fibrous Assemblies:

Laser-Doppler anemometry is a technique that has evolved over the past fifteen years as a powerful tool for measuring velocity fields in various research and industrial applications. Traditional techniques for measuring the transport characteristics of fluids in a fibrous assembly do not unfortufiately provide quantitative information about the actual dynamic transport processes occurring within the fibrous assembly. A laser-Doppler anemometer system that can provide such quantitative dynamic transport information is described. The fundamental fluid dynamic information ob tained with a laser-Doppler anemometer system should enhance our knowledge about the flow of fluids in fibrous assemblies. Such information is virtually nonexistent in the literature.
Compliance with Sport Fishery Regulations in Minnesota as Related to Regulation Awareness

Abstract We quantified angler party awareness of regulations for 35 Minnesota fisheries using creel surveys. On average, 14% (range = 0–48%) of angler parties were unaware a regulation was in effect for a particular fishery, while 78% (range = 27–100%) of angler parties were aware a regulation was in effect. Awareness varied within and across regulated species: black crappie (Pomoxis nigromaculatus), largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), northern pike (Esox lucius), smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieui), and walleye (Sander vitreum). Greatest mean awareness (89%, range = 80–95%) was observed among smallmouth bass fisheries, while lowest mean awareness (70%, range = 52–82%) was observed among largemouth bass fisheries. Awareness was typically lower for fisheries regulated by complex regulations (e.g., slot limits) and for recently implemented regulations. Angler party awareness appeared to be associated with a number of angler demographic characteristics (e.g., days fished on lake and angler residency...
A distribution-free test for the relationship between model input and output when using Latin hypercube sampling

Abstract A test for the detection of non-monotone relationships between the inputs and outputs of computer simulation models is described for use in sensitivity analyses employing Latin hypercube sampling. The test is based on the squared differences of the consecutive ranks of the output variable when the values of the output variable have been ordered by the corresponding values of an input variable. The test is distribution-free and does not require the values of the output variable to be independent of one another. Instead, the weaker assumption of exchangeability is used. The resulting test statistic is shown to be independent of Spearman's rank correlation coefficient, and a simple method for combining the two statistics is discussed. The test is illustrated with an example from a recent performance assessment for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.
Monitoring the fate of chlorine from MSW sampling through combustion Part II: Combustion studies

Abstract Combustion measurements were carried out in a multi-kilogram capacity flow calorimeter on cellulose and cellulose/sand samples in 100% oxygen and several oxygen/nitrogen mixtures. Some measurements were made on cellulose/sand samples, which had 1 mass % of polyvinylchloride (PVC) as part of their composition, to study the conditions related to the formation/destruction of chlorinated organic compounds as combustion products. Qualitative identifications of a significant variety of chlorinated organic compounds have been made.
Acute respiratory failure in asthma

Although asthma is a condition that is managed in the outpatient setting in most patients, the poorly controlled and severe cases pose a major challenge to the health-care team. Recognition of the more common insidious and the less common rapid onset acute asphyxic asthma are important. The intensivist needs to be familiar with the factors that denote severity of the exacerbation. The management of respiratory failure in asthma, including pharmacologic and mechanical ventilation, are discussed in this article. Two important complications of the positive-pressure ventilation, the dynamic hyperinflation and barotrauma, may be life-threatening. Interventions with helium-oxygen mixtures, anesthesia, and paralysis may be considered in certain situations.
Contribution of rhizoplane organisms to the total capacity of plants to utilize organic nutrients

The distribution of enzymatic activity between roots of barley and the rhizoplane has been determined for three enzymes, namely phosphatase, urease, and invertase. Phosphatase and invertase activity of the root zone can be attributed in great part to enzymes of the root itself, while urease activity is entirely a function of rhizoplane organisms. In contrast, appreciable amounts of proteinase, esterase, amidase and asparaginase activities were not found in the roots and the rhizoplane of barley during the same short times of observations. The kinetics of phosphatase activity of sterile, 6-day barley roots have been studied in some detail. The pH optimum is pH 5.3; the temperature optimum is at 38°C. Magnesium ion in concentrations of 0.2×10−3 to 1×10−3 moles per ml has a stimulatory effect on sterile root phosphatase activity and quaternary ammonium compounds in low concentration induce a doubling of root phosphatase activity. Root phosphatase activity is found in the root cap and on the epidermis.
Word-finding abilities of three types of aphasic subjects.

Word-finding difficulties are often observed among different types of aphasic patients. This investigation analyzed the word-finding abilities of 30 aphasic subjects (10 Broca's, 10 Wernicke's, and 10 anomic). Forty nouns counterbalanced according to word length and frequency of occurrence in English language usage were used as stimuli and presented through four modalities (oral expression, writing, auditory comprehension, and reading comprehension). It was expected that patterns of word finding abilities would help in the classification of the different types of aphasia. In addition, long words and less frequently occurring words in English language usage should prove more difficult in word-finding ability, regardless of modality. The results of this study found long words and less frequent words were more difficult for aphasic subjects. Among the modalities, long words were significantly harder than short words for the writing modality only. It was also found that semantic errors were the most common errors for all types of aphasic subjects. Broca's subjects produced significantly moreno response errors in oral expression; Wernicke's subjects produced significantly more semantic and phonemic errors in reading comprehension; and, Wernicke's subjects produced significantly more unrelated errors in both oral expression and reading comprehension. Clinical implications were also discussed.
I2SEMS: Interconnects-Independent Security Enhanced Shared Memory Multiprocessor Systems

Protection and security are becoming essential requirements in commercial servers. In this paper, we present a fast and efficient method for providing secure memory and cache-to-cache communications in shared memory multiprocessor systems that are becoming enormously popular in designing servers for various applications. Since our scheme is independent of underlying interconnects and cache coherence protocols, we refer to it as interconnects-independent security enhanced shared memory multiprocessor systems (I2SEMS). The main challenge in designing I2SEMS is how to precompute keystreams in a timely manner, which is critical to minimize performance overhead. We achieve this goal by adopting a single system-wide global counter controller (GCC) and three additional components for each processor: a key stream queue, a key stream cache, and a key stream pool. The GCC assigns a unique range of counters as a way to help processors precompute the counters' keystreams. We have implemented I2SEMS using Simics with Wisconsin multifacet general execution-driven multiprocessor simulator (GEMS). We tested our design with SPLASH-2 benchmarks on up to 16-processor shared memory multiprocessor systems. Simulation results show that the overall performance slowdown is 4% on average and the keystream hit rate is as high as 78%. The stable keystream hit rate shows that PSEMS works well with both memory-read and memory-write dominant applications. Similar to the conventional cache, a large keystream pool size is beneficial to high hit rates.
Fuzzy-trace theory and children's acquisition of mathematical and scientific concepts

Abstract We summarize the historical background of fuzzy-trace theory along with its major assumptions about cognitive development. The theory is a product of two forces: the current dissatisfaction with Piagetian and information processing metaphors for cognition and the basic processes movement in memory development research. Intuition is the theory's core metaphor for cognition. Its key explanatory constructs are (a) gist extraction, (b) fuzzy-to-verbatim continua of memory representations, (c) the fuzzy-processing preference, (d) hierarchies of gist, (e) simple readout versus reconstructive retrieval, (f) readout and reconstruction in both short- and long-term memory, (g) memory limitations as a function of the time courses of verbatim and gist representations, and (h) output interference. We define these constructs and discuss their implications for developmental and individual differences in cognition with special reference to mathematical and scientific reasoning.
Changes in Soil Microbial Community Structure and Function in an Alpine Dry Meadow Following Spring Snow Melt

Previous work in an alpine dry meadow in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains has shown that microbial biomass is high during winter and declines rapidly as snow melts in the spring, and that this decline is associated with changes in temperature regime and substrate availability. In this study we tested the hypothesis that the summer and winter microbial communities differ in function and composition. Shifts in species composition between pre- and post-snowmelt communities were detected using reciprocal hybridization of community DNA; DNA extracted from soils sampled at different times was significantly less homologous relative to spatial replicates sampled at the same time. Fungal/bacterial ratios, as measured by direct microscopic counts and by substrate-induced respiration experiments with specific inhibitors, were higher in winter soils. Specific activity of cellulase (absolute cellulase activity per unit microbial biomass C) was higher in the winter soils than in summer soils, while specific amylase activity was not different between winter and summer. Based on most-probable number measurements, the use of the phenolic compound vanillic acid was highest in the winter, while the use of the amino acid glycine was lowest in the winter. Winter and summer soil respiration responded differently to temperature; at 0 degrees C, winter soils respired at a higher proportion of the 22 degrees C rate than did summer soils.
Trait‐mediated effects of predation across life‐history stages in container mosquitoes

1. It was determined if the predatory midge Corethrella appendiculata Grabham imposes a fitness cost in a native mosquito, Ochlerotatus triseriatus Say, and an invasive mosquito, Aedes albopictus Skuse. The hypothesis that decreased activity of immature prey in the presence of predator cues is associated with life history costs through all life cycle stages was tested. 2. In experiment 1, individual larvae of O. triseriatus or A. albopictus were raised in the presence or absence of predation cues at two resource levels. Prey were video recorded to detect behavioural responses and to measure development time, size at emergence, and adult longevity. In experiment 2, prey populations were reared in similar environments and the frequency of predator cue additions was varied. 3. Only O. triseriatus reduced its activity in the presence of predation cues. Predation cues were associated with longer immature development times and shorter adult life spans in O. triseriatus, whereas in A. albopictus, the cues were associated with a larger size of emerging adults. 4. In the present study, it was found that behavioural modifications during the larval stage can affect mosquitoes through multiple stages of their complex life cycle. The species-specific behavioural differences are probably attributable to the longer evolutionary history O. triseriatus has with predators, relative to the invasive A. albopictus.
Tissue engineering: The first decade and beyond

This article reviews the important developments in the field of tissue engineering over the last 10 years. Research in the area of biomaterials is examined from the perspective of providing the foundation for the development of tissue engineering. Early efforts combining cells with biocompatible materials are described and applications of this technology presented, with particular focus on uses in orthopaedics and maxillofacial surgery. The basic principles of tissue engineering and state-of-the-art technology in cell biology and materials science as used currently in the field are presented. Finally, futures challenges are outlined from the perspective of integrating technologies from medicine, biology, and engineering, in hopes of translating tissue engineering to clinical applications. J. Cell. Biochem. Suppls. 30/31:297-303, 1998. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Resurgence of a new "clean living" movement in the United States.

This is the accepted version of the following article: Engs, R.C. (1991) "Resurgence of a New "Clean Living" Movement in the United States. Journal of School Health, 61 (4)155-159 available from:http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1746-1561.1991.tb01198.x/abstract.
On the Evolution of Wikipedia

A recent phenomenon on the Web is the emergence and proliferation of new social media systems allowing social interaction between people. One of the most popular of these systems is Wikipedia that allows users to create content in a collaborative way. Despite its current popularity, not much is known about how users interact with Wikipedia and how it has evolved over time. In this paper we aim to provide a first, extensive study of the user behavior on Wikipedia and its evolution. Compared to prior studies, our work differs in several ways. First, previous studies on the analysis of the user workloads (for systems such as peer-to-peer systems [10] and Web servers [2]) have mainly focused on understanding the users who are accessing information. In contrast, Wikipedia’s provides us with the opportunity to understand how users create and maintain information since it provides the complete evolution history of its content. Second, the main focus of prior studies is evaluating the implication of the user workloads on the system performance, while our study is trying to understand the evolution of the data corpus and the user behavior themselves. Our main findings include that (1) the evolution and updates of Wikipedia is governed by a self-similar process, not by the Poisson process that has been observed for the general Web [4, 6] and (2) the exponential growth of Wikipedia is mainly driven by its rapidly increasing user base, indicating the importance of its open editorial policy for its current success. We also find that (3) the number of updates made to the Wikipedia articles exhibit a power-law distribution, but the distribution is less skewed than those obtained from other studies.