cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Imaging Myeloperoxidase Activity in Cardiovascular Disease

Inflammation and oxidative stress play central roles in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and outcomes such as myocardial infarction and stroke. The enzyme myeloperoxidase (MPO) is secreted by activated leukocytes in atherosclerotic plaques and generates several pro-oxidative species that participate in biological activities that promote plaque destabilization and rupture; the catastrophic event that defines which plaques are benign and which are life-threatening. Serum MPO levels are also highly predictive of downstream cardiovascular events and patient outcome. Recently, several molecular imaging probes sensitive to the presence of MPO activity have been developed. Here we review the design and application of probes developed for MRI, single photon emission CT, and fluorescence and bioluminescence imaging. Continued development of these probes may one day allow detection of plaques prior to plaque rupture, yielding significant diagnostic and prognostic improvements and ultimately allowing proper staging and treatment of high-risk patients.
On-Line Monitoring of Vacuum Dryers Using Mass Spectrometry

Mass spectrometry was used to monitor vacuum-drying endpoints in the laboratory and pilot plant to demonstrate feasibility of its application. The technique is relatively simple to interface to exi...
Dose response and factors related to interstitial pneumonitis after bone marrow transplant

Purpose: Total body irradiation (TBI) and chemotherapy are common components of conditioning regimens for bone marrow transplantation. Interstitial pneumonitis (IP) is a known regimen-related complication. Using published data of IP in a multivariate logistic regression, this study sought to identify the parameters in the bone marrow transplantation conditioning regimen that were significantly associated with IP and to establish a radiation dose-response function. Methods and Materials: A retrospective review was conducted of articles that reported IP incidence along with lung dose, fractionation, dose rate, and chemotherapy regimen. In the final analysis, 20 articles (n = 1090 patients), consisting of 26 distinct TBI/chemotherapy regimens, were included in the analysis. Multivariate logistic regression was performed to determine dosimetric and chemotherapeutic factors that influenced the incidence of IP. Results: A logistic model was generated from patients receiving daily fractions of radiation. In this model, lung dose, cyclophosphamide dose, and the addition of busulfan were significantly associated with IP. An incidence of 3%-4% with chemotherapy-only conditioning regimens is estimated from the models. The {alpha}/{beta} value of the linear-quadratic model was estimated to be 2.8 Gy. The dose eliciting a 50% incidence, D {sub 50}, for IP after 120 mg/kg of cyclophosphamide was 8.8 Gy; inmore » the absence of chemotherapy, the estimated D {sub 50} is 10.6 Gy. No dose rate effect was observed. The use of busulfan as a substitute for radiation is equivalent to treating with 14.8 Gy in 4 fractions with 50% transmission blocks shielding the lung. The logistic regression failed to find a model that adequately fit the multiple-fraction-per-day data. Conclusions: Dose responses for both lung radiation dose and cyclophosphamide dose were identified. A conditioning regimen of 12 Gy TBI in 6 daily fractions induces an IP incidence of about 11% in the absence of lung shielding. Shielding the lung to receive 50% of this dose lowers the estimated incidence to about 2.3%. Because the lungs can be adequately shielded, we recommend against using busulfan as a substitute for fractionated TBI with cyclophosphamide.« less
Failure of massive doses of estrogen to promote growth of endometrial coiled arterioles.

The administration of massive doses of estrogens to monkeys has been demonstrated to produce squamous metaplasia of the endocervical mucosa and cystic hyperplasia of the endometrium. The present report is made to direct attention to the fact that estrogenic stimulation of this magnitude can induce excellent proliferative activity of endometrial glands and stroma without proliferation of endometrial coiled arterioles. In addition, further observations in reference to cervical epiderniidization and endometrial hyperplasia have been made. observations Six rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) were given 25,000 I.U. of Amniotin2 a day from February 11 through March 8 with the exception of No. 182 which was treated through March 4 only. They were all mature female castrates, resident in the colony of the Department of Embryology for several years. They had been employed during the previous six months in a series of estrogen and estrogen-progesterone withdrawal studies, in the course of which they demonstrated the ex...
Assessing design features of virtual keyboards for text entry.

Objective: The present research examined design of a virtual keyboard for text entry with a rotary controller, emphasizing users who differ in age and system experience. Background: Existing research has minimally addressed usage frequency, age, and the effects of display shape and letter arrangement on movement and visual search components of text entry tasks. The present research was conducted to close these gaps. Method: Two experiments were completed to examine younger (18-28 years) and older (60-75 years) adults' movement and visual search capabilities using four keyboard shapes and three keyboard arrangements. In a third experiment examining combined effects on shape design, 32 younger (18-28 years) and 32 older (60-75 years) adults entered words on the two best shapes from the first experiments. Results: For the movement task, movement time was lowest for shapes with higher shape-controller compatibility. For the visual search task, search time and accuracy were best on the alphabetic arrangement. In the combined task, shape did not significantly influence performance at different levels of practice. Transfers, however, suggested that the shape with salient visual features elicited a text entry strategy for older adults that may promote more consistent performance under occasional usage. Conclusion: The studies together demonstrate that keyboard shape is important for efficient performance. Shape-controller compatibility facilitated performance in both age groups. Salient features facilitate performance, especially for older adults. In nearly all cases alphabetic arrangement yielded the best performance. Application: Recommendations are provided for virtual keyboard design for different usage frequencies, contexts, and users.
Benzodiazepine exposure increases risk of Alzheimer's disease.

Commentary on : Billioti de Gage S, Moride Y, Ducruet T, et al. Benzodiazepine use and risk of Alzheimer's disease: case-control study. BMJ 2014;349:g5205.[OpenUrl][1][Abstract/FREE Full Text][2] Benzodiazepines (BZ) are widely prescribed for older patients. They have Food and Drug Administration (FDA) indications for a number of conditions including generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorder and insomnia. However, there are many worries about safety in the elderly including withdrawal, tolerance, ataxia, drug–drug interactions and adverse effects on cognition. For these reasons most guidelines recommend against long-term use of BZ. The study presents evidence for another type of toxicity, namely increasing the risk of incident Alzheimer's disease (AD) in the elderly. A case–control epidemiological observational study using a large pharmacy database for the province of Quebec was performed. Patients with a diagnosis of AD (1796) were randomly sampled with 7184 controls matched on sex, age group and … [1]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DBMJ%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1136%252Fbmj.g5205%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F25208536%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [2]: /lookup/ijlink?linkType=ABST&journalCode=bmj&resid=349/sep09_2/g5205&atom=%2Febmed%2F20%2F2%2F75.atom
Multi-Modality Microscopy — Combining Multiphoton and Optical Coherence Microscopy Using an Ultrafast Laser Source

Multiphoton microscopy and optical coherence tomography (OCT) are combined on a single platform to provide simultaneous functional and structural information about tissues in three imaging channels including second harmonic generation, two-photon excited fluorescence, and OCT.
Differential firing patterns of the peptide-containing cholinergic motor neurons B15 and B16 during feeding behavior inAplysia

Abstract During egestive responses neuron B16 fires at 20 Hz, while neuron B15 is not active. During ingestive responses B16 fires for 0.5–1.0 s at 15–20 Hz, then B15 and B16 fire together, with B15 firing at 7.5–12 Hz. The duration of activity during ingestive responses depends on consumption of food: when food is not consumed, bursts are shorter (e.g. 2 vs 4 s). This study establishes a basis for investigating the role of peripheral neuromodulation under physiologically relevant conditions.
Ischemic expansion during acute myocardial infarction and reversal by coronary reperfusion.

Abstract Previous studies have shown that infarct expansion occurs at least 1 day after a large transmural infarction. To assess whether regional left ventricular expansion is evident within hours of an acute myocardial infarction, 25 adult mongrel dogs underwent left circumflex coronary artery occlusion for 2 hours and 22 of these were subsequently reperfused. Two-dimensional echocardiography was used to record left ventricular topography and function at baseline, at 2 hours of occlusion, and following reperfusion. Short-axis midpapillary echocardiograms were analyzed using a microcomputer digitizing routine by establishing a 360-degree circumferential map of the left ventricle. The central ischemic zone was defined as that region with the most depressed contractility after 2 hours of occlusion, and the normal zone was set at 180 degree away from the central ischemic zone. Endocardial and epicardial segment lengths and wall thickness were measured for both the normal zone and the central ischemic zone at end diastole. After 2 hours of occlusion, diastolic central ischemic endocardial (1.3 ± 0.05 to 1.42 ± 0.04 cm, p p 2 , p r = 0.56, p r = 0.55, p
Elevated Joint Contact Forces in ACL-Reconstructed Knees: A Finite Element Analysis Driven by In Vivo Kinematic Data

Assessment of in vivo human cartilage loading generally requires computer modeling, since loads usually cannot be directly measured. The utility of these models for assessing knee behavior during complex activities has been limited by the relatively poor quality of experimental data on in vivo knee function. We have developed a method combining high-accuracy knee kinematics (from high-speed stereo-radiography) with subject-specific finite-element models to estimate in vivo cartilage contact pressures during stressful tasks. When applied to ACL reconstruction, significantly higher contact pressures were found in reconstructed knees as compared to the contralateral (uninjured) knees of the same individuals.Copyright © 2003 by ASME
Analysis of temperature and microstructure in the quenching of steel cylinders

A finite-element procedure has been developed for temperature and microstructural analyses of quenching problems involving nonisothermal phase transformations. The finite-element analysis incorporates temperature-dependent material properties, time-temperature-transformation (TTT) diagrams to describe the microstructural evolution in steels, and the latent heat released during a phase change. The procedure is applied to calculate temperature, microstructure, and hardness distributions in 1080 steel cylinders quenched in water and in two polymeric quenchants. The calculated values for the three quantities are found to be in good agreement with corresponding measurements made in quenched 1080 steel cylinders. The effect of latent heat released during a phase change on the temperature and microstructural evolution is studied computationally. It is found that, when the latent heat is not included in the calculations, the resulting volume fractions of pearlite and matensite present in the quenched steel are nearly one order of magnitude different from the corresponding values calculated by including the latent heat in the formulation. Finally, the quenching of a large-diameter 1080 steel cylinder in water is analyzed to show the nonlinear effect of cylinder diameter on the temperatures and microstructures.
Integrating and transcending divorce: A transpersonal model

Abstract. Many traditional Western psychologies fail to recognize spirituality and transcendental needs as intrinsic aspects of human nature and therefore may not be meeting the needs of those who are experiencing psychospiritual distress due to the trauma and loss associated with divorce. There is a growing recognition among clinicians that current divorce models of intervention may not, in fact, be meeting the needs of this population in that they tend to ignore the spiritual or transpersonal dimensions of the person. The purpose of this paper is to move entirely beyond the pathogenic and reactive grief models of divorce into an emergent growth model of transpersonal development, and to present this model with its eight phases of intervention as it has been adapted for use with divorcing clients.
Recent advances in the ocean carbon system

Ocean biogeochemistry is a critical component of the Earth's climate system, regulating on timescales of decades to millennia the atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide (CO2), and other radiatively active gases. Since the pre-industrial era, the ocean has taken up about half of the carbon released by fossil fuel combustion, partially mitigating climate change. The future behavior of this oceanic sink, however, is not well understood and remains one of the major climate uncertainties [Sarmiento and Gruber, 2002]. The ocean carbon inventory depends, in part, upon the complex responses of the natural ocean ecosystems and carbon system to changes in ocean circulation, dust deposition, ocean pH, ultraviolet radiation, and other factors [Fasham, 2003]. Addressing this problem requires an integrated research effort on a variety of fronts, ranging from monitoring the temporal evolution of the ocean inorganic carbon inventory to innovative studies of poorly known biological and chemical dynamics.
The Comprehensive Application of Behavior Analysis to Schooling (CABASï

Using a university-based training model, CABAS provides teacher training, supervisory support and administrative support to implement a system or school-wide program for students with various disabilities including visual impairment, mild to profound mental retardation, autism, learning disabilities, and emotional disturbances and has also been used to mainstream students. CABAS-trained teachers provide academic instruction and classroom behavior management based on a combination of technologies developed through scientific research in applied behavior analysis. These technologies include Direct Instruction, Precision Teaching, and PSI (Personalized System of Instruction) for staff and parent training. Instruction is individualized and based on measurable objectives. Supervisors provide teacher training and assist with data collect in the classroom. Teaching is adjusted as needed based on student performance. In a range of studies over 15 years, CABAS students made greater gains than non-CABAS students with smaller special education placement and significant cost reductions.
Making your programming questions be answered quickly: A content oriented study to technical Q&A forum

Online programming forums enable programming knowledge sharing across organizational boundaries. Understanding how questions are asked and answered in forums will not only help developer to access the knowledge they need fast but bring important design implications. We report a study of Q&A process on MSDN's visual C# general forum. This study is content oriented instead of conventional social factor analysis to Communities of Q&A. We identified eight topic categories through two-round card sorting.We also explored various content feature's influence to Q&A process. A qualitative analysis was performed to identify different life-cycle patterns of questions. These findings highlight the role of content features, and the interaction effects between them. Based on these findings, we make a set of suggestions to information seekers on how to make their questions be answered faster, and derive implications for technical forums design and operation. To verify our findings, we also conducted a small replication to a Java technical forum and compared the results.
Comparative metabolism of benzene and trans,trans-muconaldehyde to trans,trans-muconic acid in DBA/2N and C57BL/6 mice.

Abstract Our laboratory recently identified trans, trans -muconaldehyde (MUC), a six-carbon diene dialdehyde, as a hematotoxic microsomal metabolite of benzene (Latriano et al , Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 83 : 8356–8360, 1986). We also showed that MUC is metabolized in vitro to trans,trans -muconic acid (MA), a six-carbon diene dicarboxylic acid and known urinary metabolite of benzene. To elucidate further the role of ring-opened metabolites in benzene toxicity, the metabolism of benzene and MUC was examined in the benzene sensitive DBA/2N mouse strain and the less benzene sensitive C57BL/6 strain. A sensitive assay for urinary MA analysis was developed. The percent of benzene dose excreted as urinary MA within the first 24 hr after treatment decreased with an increase in benzene dose, i.e. from 9.8 to 0.4% in DBA/2N mice and from 17.6 to 0.2% in C57BL/6 mice treated with 0.5 to 880 mg/kg benzene. DBA/2N mice excreted significantly (P ⩽ 0.05) more MA compared with C57 BL/6 mice after treatment with hematotoxic benzene doses (220–880 mg/kg). At low benzene doses (0.5 to 2.5 mg/kg), C57BL/6 mice excreted significantly (P ⩽ 0.05) more MA compared with DBA/2N mice. There were no significant differences in the metabolism of MUC to MA between the two strains after treatment with 0.5 to 3.0 mg/kg. Furthermore, mice from both strains excreted similar amounts of muconic acid when treated with 0.7 to 7.1 mg/kg MA. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that reactive ring-opened metabolites such as trans, trans -muconaldehyde play a role in benzene hematotoxicity. Sensitivity towards benzene may be due, in part, to increased metabolism to ring-opened compounds.
IT-enabled sense-and-respond strategies in complex public organizations

City governments face difficult challenges in serving their increasingly Net-connected constituencies in an environment of change, uncertain demand, and reduced budgets. These conditions require their IT departments to enable governments to adapt to citizen requests in a sense-and-respond (S-R) manner. In this article, the application of S-R concepts is demonstrated by the approaches used in developing an IT strategic plan for Columbus, Ohio. The fractal-based, request-focused strategy used here creates a unified organizational and IT context for connecting the Department of Technology and city government departments to their customers by utilizing an incremental, lean portfolio-management-based action plan and architecture.
Expert system for IE student advisement

Abstract Student advising is a key function within an academic environment. An expert system may be used as a first line of response to students' advising needs. The system currently under development, uses hypermedia as the interface between user and hidden expert system routines. Hypermedia allows use of user oriented facilities (icon driven menus, branching following user requests, digitized photographs, video discs, animation, etc). The software architecture chosen is that of a hypergraph with embedded, distributed expert systems.
Iatrogenic Central Retinal Vein Occlusion and Hyperviscosity Associated with High-dose Intravenous Immunoglobulin Administration

Purpose To describe a patient with iatrogenically induced central retinal vein occlusions secondary to serum hyperviscosity from intravenous immunoglobulin administration. Method Case report. Results The patient developed bilateral central retinal vein occlusions in association with high-dose intravenous immunoglobulins. The central retinal vein occlusions resolved when the immunoglobulins were withheld and serum hyperviscosity decreased. Conclusion Administration of high-dose intravenous immunoglobulins can be associated with hyperviscosity syndrome manifested by central retinal vein occlusion.
Building safety into ICU care

The Institute of Medicine's (IOMs) report, "To Err is Human," recently addressed patient safety in the United States, alerting the nation to the need for improved systems of health care. Seven main findings were addressed in this report, we focus on 3: (1) patient safety is a nationwide problem, (2) health care workers are not to blame, and (3) safety and harm are products of care systems. This article discusses systems in intensive care units (ICUs) and how these systems affect patient safety. We use a case example to outline the complex chain of medical and administrative system failures that can result in an adverse event. Then we discuss evidence linking ICU organizational characteristics with patient safety, focusing on how safer systems in ICUs can directly improve patient care.
Methionine is the Methyl Group Donor for Sulfite-Associated Methanethiol Formation in Isolated Soy Proteins

ABSTRACT: Addition of 3.2 mM sodium sulfite resulted in a 5.1-time higher amount of methanethiol in aqueous slurries of isolated soy proteins (ISP) over the corresponding controls after being stirred for 60 min. Introduction of 4.0 mM methionine to the slurries induced a 2.7-time increase. However, when both sodium sulfite (3.2 mM) and methionine (4.0 mM) were added, a 25.7-time higher amount in methanethiol concentration was observed. Similar results were obtained when sodium sulfite and methionine were added to a partially purified protein fraction prepared from defatted soy flakes. Mass spectra of the methanethiol formed with addition of L-methionine-methyl-13C1 and unlabeled sulfite showed that the carbon-13 labeled methyl group was actually integrated into methanethiol. But no incorporation of isotopic sulfur was observed when 34S-labeled sodium sulfite was applied. The free methionine contents in commercial and lab-prepared ISP and in-process protein extracts ranged from 10.34 μg/g to 52.74 μg/g, which were not proportional to the indigenous methanethiol contents. Results from the current study showed that methionine is an important methyl group donor for methanethiol in ISP associated with sulfite as a reducing agent.
A Computational Approach to Modeling Nucleic Acid Hairpin Structures

Hairpin is a structural motif frequently observed in both RNA and DNA molecules. This motif is involved specifically in various biological functions (e.g., gene expression and regulation). To understand how these hairpin motifs perform their functions, it is important to study their structures. Compared to protein structural motifs, structures of nucleic acid hairpins are less known. Based on a set of reduced coordinates for describing nucleic acid structures and a sampling algorithm that equilibrates structures using Metropolis Monte Carlo simulation, we developed a method to model nucleic acid hairpin structures. This method was used to predict the structure of a DNA hairpin with a single-guanosine loop. The lowest energy structure from the ensemble of 200 sampled structures has a RMSD of
Colonic “urticaria” pattern due to early ischemia

The unusual radiographic pattern of bleblike mounds on the surface of the colon mucosa, previously described as colonic urticaria, was seen in 3 patients in whom no allergic state was present. This urticaria-like pattern was due to colonic distention in all 3, and represented only submucosal edema on the gross and microscopic specimens. We hypothesize that this pattern is due to early changes of ischemia caused by colon distention.
Testing for relative economic efficiency without imposing arbitrary farm size

Past test of differences in economic efficiency between small and large farms in developing countries used arbitrary criteria to divide samples of farms into the two size groups. Given the inferential danger from such arbitrary groupings, this paper presents a method for conducting the efficiency tests where the cut-off point between small and large farms is determined statistically. The test is applied to dryland food grain farming in Morocco. The estimated cut-off point was significantly different from the conventional one, but the efficiency test results were similar.
Why don't people read the manual?

Few users of computer applications seek help from the documentation. This paper reports the results of an empirical study of why this is so and examines how, in real work, users solve their usability problems. Based on in-depth interviews with 25 subjects representing a varied cross-section of users, we find that users do avoid using both paper and online help systems. Few users have paper manuals for the most heavily used applications, but none complained about their lack. Online help is more likely to be consulted than paper manuals, but users are equally likely to report that they solve their problem by asking a colleague or experimenting on their own. Users cite difficulties in navigating the help systems, particularly difficulties in finding useful search terms, and disappointment in the level of explanation found.
A Dynamically Adapting Network Programming Framework

High speed networking is a demanding task that has traditionally been performed in dedicated, purpose built hardware or specialized network processors. These platforms sacrifice ?exibility or programmability in favor of performance. Recently, there has been much interest in using multi-core general purpose processors, which have the advantages of being easily programmable and upgradeable. We present the design of a high performance packet processing framework that divorces application programming from packet scheduling and mapping
Improving weak-signal identification via predetection background suppression by a pixel-level, surface-wave enabled dark-field aperture

We report the successful implementation of a surface-wave enabled dark-field aperture (SWEDA) directly on a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor sensor pixel (2.2μm). This SWEDA pixel allows predetection cancellation of a uniform coherent background. We show that the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the SWEDA pixel is better than that of a single undressed pixel over a significant range of signal-to-background ratio (SBR). For a small SBR value (SBR=0.001, background intensity=3.96W/m2, integration time=5ms), we further demonstrate that a SWEDA pixel can detect a weak localized signal buried in a high background, while conventional postdetection background subtraction cannot (improved SNR=2.2 versus SNR=0.26).
Imaging of Oncologic Emergencies: What Every Radiologist Should Know

The pathophysiology and imaging findings of select oncologic emergencies are reviewed, with emphasis on those in which radiologists play a critical role in timely diagnosis and thus have a significant impact on patient care
Elementary Science: Where Are We Now?

“Elementary Science: Where are We Now?” is a review of Elementary Science Education from the 1960s to 1999. Curriculum moved from uniform programs in the 1960s based on two assumptions to a wide diversity of goals, philosophies, and types of materials in the 1970s. The two assumptions behind the elementary science curriculum programs of the 1960s included (1) If science is presented as scientists would do it, it will be interesting to all students; and (2) Any subject can be taught to any child at any stage of development. Project Synthesis was a discrepancy study of data collected from three earlier studies on the state of science education in the 1970s. The programs of the 1970s varied in student outcomes, learning/teaching styles, cost, format, and content. The goal for science education for the 1980s was scientific and technological literacy (Staver & Bay, 1987). National Science Foundation funds were invested in developing new curriculum materials in the 1980s to reach this goal (Harms & Yager, 1981).
Association between thyroid disease and its treatment with ANCA small-vessel vasculitis: a case–control study

Background. Case reports have described the onset of antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)associated small-vessel vasculitis (ANCA SVV) with use of anti-thyroid agents, but an association with thyroid disease in general has not been described. This association was evaluated in a southeastern US population-based case–control study. Methods. Cases (n ¼ 158) had ANCA SVV with biopsy-proven glomerular involvement. Controls (n ¼ 99) were frequency matched by age, gender and state. Use of drugs and comorbidities prior to diagnosis of ANCA SVV were assessed by telephone interview. Information on medications used for thyroid conditions was available in a subset of cases (n ¼ 129). Logistic regression models were used to estimate adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Estimates among females were also of interest. Results. History of thyroid disease was reported in 31 cases (20%) and 7 controls (7%) (OR ¼ 3.7; 95% CI 1.5–9.2; P ¼ 0.005); among females 25/65 (38%) cases and 5/53 (9%) controls (OR ¼ 5.6; 95% CI 1.9–16.8; P ¼ 0.002). Use of anti-thyroid agents was reported in 2 cases and 0 controls (OR not calculable). Among cases, myeloperoxidase (MPO)-ANCA was more common (86%) than proteinase 3 (PR3)-ANCA in those with a history of thyroid disease than those without (53%) (P ¼ 0.007). Conclusions. Thyroid disease was associated with ANCA SVV, especially among women, and was most frequently associated with MPO-ANCA. The specific diagnosis and detailed clinical history of thyroid disease were not known; a limitation of the study. Use of anti-thyroid agents was uncommon. The association of thyroid disease with ANCA SVV may reflect a propensity for autoimmune disease.
A hybrid integral‐equation method for steady two‐dimensional ship waves

This paper presents a novel integral-equation technique for solving the steady-state wave-resistance problem. The free-surface condition is linearized, but the body condition is satisfied exactly. An integral relation describing the flow inside an arbitrarily truncated internal region is first obtained by applying Green's Theorem, using only the simple source function for an infinite fluid. The internal flow is next matched with eigen expansions in the upstream and downstream outer regions. The radiation condition can be satisfied exactly simply by a proper choice of the solution form in these outer regions. The method is applied to investigate flows about both lifting and non-lifting two-dimensional bodies. Agreement with existing results is excellent. The present formulation provides a simple yet rational basis for tackling the practical three-dimensional ship-wave problem, in which past workers have encountered considerable difficulties using a complicated free-surface Green function.
Vehicle classification framework: a comparative study

Video surveillance has significant application prospects such as security, law enforcement, and traffic monitoring. Visual traffic surveillance using computer vision techniques can be non-invasive, cost effective, and automated. Detecting and recognizing the objects in a video is an important part of many video surveillance systems which can help in tracking of the detected objects and gathering important information. In case of traffic video surveillance, vehicle detection and classification is important as it can help in traffic control and gathering of traffic statistics that can be used in intelligent transportation systems. Vehicle classification poses a difficult problem as vehicles have high intra-class variation and relatively low inter-class variation. In this work, we investigate five different object recognition techniques: PCA + DFVS, PCA + DIVS, PCA + SVM, LDA, and constellation-based modeling applied to the problem of vehicle classification. We also compare them with the state-of-the-art techniques in vehicle classification. In case of the PCA-based approaches, we extend face detection using a PCA approach for the problem of vehicle classification to carry out multi-class classification. We also implement constellation model-based approach that uses the dense representation of scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT) features as presented in the work of Ma and Grimson (Edge-based rich representation for vehicle classification. Paper presented at the international conference on computer vision, 2006, pp. 1185–1192) with slight modification. We consider three classes: sedans, vans, and taxis, and record classification accuracy as high as 99.25% in case of cars vs vans and 97.57% in case of sedans vs taxis. We also present a fusion approach that uses both PCA + DFVS and PCA + DIVS and achieves a classification accuracy of 96.42% in case of sedans vs vans vs taxis. 68T10; 68T45; 68U10
Propagation Phases of Plasma Bullets

Plasma bullets have recently been used in novel applications in biology and medicine, which spurred interesting developments in the new interdisciplinary field of “Plasma Medicine.” In this paper, using high speed ICCD camera images we show that during their lifetime, plasma bullets undergo three distinctive phases: a launching phase during which the bullet velocity increases rapidly, a propagation phase during which the bullet velocity is temporarily maintained but later steadily decreases, and an ending phase during which the bullet collapses.
Using high-level primitives to speed up circuit partitioning in a mixed scan and non-scan environment for system level test generation

An approach to carving circuit partitions starting and stopping at controllable and observable points using high-level primitives is described. This approach allows considerable speed up over gate level partitioning. The minimum set of properties to accommodate multi-input, multi-output primitives is presented. The approach is both memory efficient and fast allowing for both deterministic and interactive heuristic partitioning at the system level. Partitioning is orthogonal to test generation, and the best scan test generator can still be used on the generated scan targets. Practical application of the approach for the system level scan test generation of the Apollo DN10000 and its CPU upgrade, both designs of more than a million gates, are presented. Evolution of the techniques to accommodate new technology will be addressed. Partitioning for test generation for both stuck-at and delay faults are addressed. >
Estrogen Receptor β in the Sheep Ovary During the Estrous Cycle and Early Pregnancy

Abstract Objectives were to sequence and examine the expression of the estrogen receptor β (ERβ) in the sheep ovary. The sequence of the ovine ERβ (oERβ) was determined using reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and cloning techniques. The reading frame of oERβ contained 527 amino acids and exhibited high overall homology with cow (98%), rat (88%), and human (88%) ERβ. In addition, an oERβ isoform having a 139-base pair deletion (oERβ1) was identified. The predicted amino acid sequence of this isoform is lacking the ligand-binding and carboxyl-terminal transactivation domains. The oERβ protein and mRNA were determined in ovaries obtained from ewes on Days 0 (first day of estrus), 2, 6, and 10 of the estrous cycle and Day 30 of gestation. Immunohistochemistry showed that oERβ protein was located in granulosa cells, the ovarian surface epithelium, endothelium, and Day 2 corpus luteum (CL). Weak immunostaining for ERβ was detected in the theca interna. Relative steady-state amounts of oER...
Oxygen consumption of human endometrium during the menstrual cycle.

Human endometrial exygen consumption was measured with a small polarographic chamber designed in the authors laborator and having a sensitivity approximately 1000 times that of the Warburg apparatus which was used previously in measuring oxygen consumption. 17 proliferative endometria and 26 secretory endometria were included in this study. Oxygen uptake varied depending on the stage of the menstrual cycle and rose during the late proliferative phase with a peak during the early secretory phase. Consumption during the early proliferative phase was .646 plus or minus .226 (S.E.) and during the secretory phase 1.332 plus or minus .112 (S.E.) mcl/mg dry weight per hour. The difference in oxygen consumption was statistically significant between the secretory endometrium and proliferative phase (p2.01) and between the secretory and early and midproliferative endometria (p less than .05) but not between the secretory and late proliferative endometria. The cyclic change of oxygen uptake by human endometrium coincides with that of oxidizing enzymes reported by other authors.
Quantum Theory of Gravitation: General Formulation and Linearized Theory

The problem of quantizing general relativity using the Schwinger action principle is considered. The advantages of this technique are discussed and the general formulation of the action principle using the Palatini Lagrangian is given. The difficulty in quantizing general relativity is due to the constraint equations. Two types of constraints are distinguished: algebraic constraint equations and differential constraint equations. The former may be dealt with trivially in this formalism. The latter arise due to the presence of function-type ("gauge") group invariances. In order to eliminate these variables one must make use of the group transformations themselves. Thus in general relativity the transformation from the full set of variables to the independent canonical ones is a coordinate transformation. The linearized theory is treated in detail from this viewpoint and the full theory is briefly discussed.
Lateral collateral ligament deficiency of the elbow joint: A modeling approach.

A computational model capable of predicting the effects of lateral collateral ligament deficiency of the elbow joint would be a valuable tool for surgical planning and prediction of the long-term consequences of ligament deficiency. The purpose of this study was to simulate lateral collateral ligament deficiency during passive flexion using a computational multibody elbow joint model and investigate the effects of ligament insufficiency on the kinematics, ligament loads, and articular contact characteristics (area, pressure). The elbow was placed initially at approximately 20° of flexion and a 345 mm vertical downward motion profile was applied over 40 s to the humerus head. The vertical displacement induced flexion from the initial position to a maximum flexion angle of 135°. The study included simulations for intact, radial collateral ligament deficient, lateral ulnar collateral ligament deficient, and combined radial and lateral ulnar collateral ligament deficient elbow. For each condition, relative bone kinematics, contact pressure, contact area, and intact ligament forces were predicted. Intact and isolated radial collateral ligament deficient elbow simulations were almost identical for all observed outcomes. Minor differences in kinematics, contact area and pressure were observed for the isolated lateral ulnar collateral ligament deficient elbow compared to the intact elbow, but no elbow dislocation was detected. However, sectioning both ligaments together induced substantial differences in kinematics, contact area, and contact pressure, and caused complete dislocation of the elbow joint. © 2016 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 34:1645-1655, 2016.
Reconstructing historical range and population size of an endangered mollusc: long-term decline of Popenaias popeii in the Rio Grande, Texas

Although freshwater molluscs in the order Unionoida are considered one of the most endangered groups of animals in the world, sufficient data on their status are lacking for most species. As a result, a species may become rare, endangered, and even extinct before the first population assessment is conducted. This is especially true for endemic species, particularly those limited to remote regions with difficult access. We studied the current distribution and population densities of Popenaias popeii endemic to the Rio Grande drainage in Texas, and developed a method to evaluate changes in the population’s size and distributional range over the last 100 years. Sampling over 250 sites in four rivers that constitute the entire historical range of P. popeii in Texas, we found that this species has likely been extirpated from two rivers. The total length of the rivers populated by this mussel has declined by 75%, and the total P. popeii population size has declined by 72%. The remaining population of this species in the Rio Grande is fragmented, with only one 190-km stretch still supporting high densities. The developed approach could be used for other rare freshwater molluscs to reconstruct their historical range and population size.
p53 Protects renal inner medullary cells from hypertonic stress by restricting DNA replication.

We previously found that p53 upregulation by hypertonicity protected renal inner medullary collecting duct (mIMCD3) cells from apoptosis. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the mec...
Clouds and blood. More on vagueness and the mass/count distinction

A vagueness-based approach to the mass/count distinction was developed in Chierchia (2010). Liebesman (2015) argues against Chierchia’s proposal developing four arguments against it. He furthermore tries to make a case that regardless of the details of C’s proposal no vagueness-based account of the distinction is viable. In this paper I show that Liebesman’s arguments against C don’t go through and that a line of investigation on the mass count contrast in terms of vagueness is not only viable but also perhaps a source of insight on the nature of this much debated distinction and on the relations between grammar and metaphysics in general. The outcome of the present discussion is of interest beyond the question of who is right in this debate, as it puts into sharper focus several issues pertaining to mass vs. count, plural vs. singular, and the role of vagueness in natural language semantics.
Analysis of major phospholipid species and ergosterol in fermenting industrial yeast strains using atmospheric pressure ionization ion-trap mass spectrometry.

Knowledge of the individual lipid species that are associated with ethanol tolerance in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is necessary to understand potential mechanisms of how this organism uses these molecules to mitigate the toxic effects of ethanol. Three industrial yeast strains with varying degrees of ethanol tolerance were examined utilizing normal phase high-performance liquid chromatography and atmospheric pressure ionization–ion-trap mass spectrometry methods to quantitatively determine phospholipid and ergosterol levels at numerous fermentation time points. Both high and low Brix fermentations were performed to assess the sugar utilization capabilities of the strains. The results indicated that the strain with the most robust fermentation characteristics had the highest phosphatidylinositol levels and lowest phosphatidylcholine levels. Examination of the phospholipid structural data from tandem MS experiments indicated that the levels of several phospholipid species were unique to the slowest fermenting...
DFT Insights into the Competitive Adsorption of Sulfur- and Nitrogen-Containing Compounds and Hydrocarbons on Co-Promoted Molybdenum Sulfide Catalysts

The adsorption of 20 nitrogen-/sulfur-containing and hydrocarbon compounds on the sulfur edge of cobalt-promoted molybdenum sulfide (CoMoS) catalyst was studied using density functional theory, accounting for van der Waals interactions, to elicit comparative structure–property trends across different classes of molecules relevant to hydrotreating. Unhindered organosulfur compounds preferentially adsorb on a “CUS-like” site formed by the dimerization of two neighboring sulfur atoms on the edge to create a vacancy. Nitrogen-containing compounds and 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene, however, prefer the brim sites. Binding energy trends indicate that nitrogen-containing compounds will inhibit hydrodesulfurization on the brim sites and, relatively weakly, on the CUS-like sites. Edge vacancies are, therefore, likely to be essential for hydrodesulfurization of unhindered organosulfur compounds. Further, van der Waals forces contribute significantly to the binding energy of compounds (up to 1.0 eV for large compounds...
Evaluating environmental impacts of alternative construction waste management approaches using supply-chain-linked life-cycle analysis:

Waste management in construction is critical for the sustainable treatment of building-related construction and demolition (C&D) waste materials, and recycling of these wastes has been considered as one of the best strategies in minimization of C&D debris. However, recycling of C&D materials may not always be a feasible strategy for every waste type and therefore recycling and other waste treatment strategies should be supported by robust decision-making models. With the aim of assessing the net carbon, energy, and water footprints of C&D recycling and other waste management alternatives, a comprehensive economic input-output-based hybrid life-cycle assessment model is developed by tracing all of the economy-wide supply-chain impacts of three waste management strategies: recycling, landfilling, and incineration. Analysis results showed that only the recycling of construction materials provided positive environmental footprint savings in terms of carbon, energy, and water footprints. Incineration is a better option as a secondary strategy after recycling for water and energy footprint categories, whereas landfilling is found to be as slightly better strategy when carbon footprint is considered as the main focus of comparison. In terms of construction materials' environmental footprint, nonferrous metals are found to have a significant environmental footprint reduction potential if recycled.
Common Auditors and Relationship-Specific Investment in Supplier-Customer Relationships

Using a sample of key supplier-customer relationships, we investigate whether an auditor common to a supplier and customer firm reduces information asymmetry between the two parties, leading to an increase in relationship-specific investments. We find evidence that the presence of a common auditor is positively related to relationship-specific investments. In addition, we show that industry structure and financial constraints play a role in explaining this relation. Finally, we use Arthur Andersen’s failure as an exogenous shock to the information environment and show that supplier-customer pairs that shared Andersen prior to its failure are more likely to share an auditor post-failure. Moreover, this higher propensity to share an auditor post-failure is prevalent only in sub-sample of firms where relationship-specific investments are important. Overall, we demonstrate that common auditors in supplier-customer relationships reduce information asymmetry in the supply chain and mitigate the investment inefficiency in relationship-specific assets.
Online News Discussions: Exploring the Role of User Personality and Motivations for Posting Comments on News

This study examines personality traits and motivations in association with individuals’ online news comment behavior. A survey of 517 participants indicated that those who were more agreeable and narcissistic were motivated for posting comments on online news. Motivations including informing, getting feedback, and exhibitionism predicted the frequency of posting on news comment sections, while social connection was a major predictor of commenting on the news shared in social media. Implications for using this online opinion-posting mechanism are discussed.