cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Neoplasms of the Esophagus and Stomach

Esophageal cancer is one of the most lethal of all neoplasms. During the last two decades, there have been significant changes in the epidemiology and treatment of esophageal cancer. The incidence of adenocarcinoma is increasing whereas that of squamous cancer is decreasing. Surgery, the mainstay of treatment of esophageal cancer, has been used with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy to improve prognosis in patients with localized disease. Accurate staging is essential for selection of the best mode of therapy and to predict prognosis. In addition, with widespread use of neoadjuvant therapy, accurate assessment of response to therapy has become very important because responders have better a prognosis than nonresponders. Anatomical imaging methods, such as computed tomography and endoscopic ultrasonography, that are commonly used to evaluate esophageal cancer have shortcomings in demonstrating the true extent of disease and in assessing or predicting response to therapy. Positron emission tomography (PET) with 2-[(18)F]fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose (FDG) has been shown to be a useful adjunct to anatomical imaging methods. For initial staging of esophageal cancer, the combination of PET and endoscopic ultrasonography with fine-needle aspiration biopsy has been suggested to be the most effective strategy. For restaging and monitoring response to therapy, FDG-PET has been shown to be superior to conventional imaging. The incidence of gastric cancer is decreasing worldwide, but it is also a highly lethal cancer. Similar to esophageal cancer, noninvasive staging of this cancer is unsatisfactory. Approximately one-third of the patients thought to have limited disease and to be candidates for surgery by conventional staging methods, are found to have advanced disease at surgery. Only a few published studies have evaluated gastric cancer with FDG-PET. These studies suggest that FDG-PET may be useful in evaluating gastric cancers of intestinal type and nonmucinous tumors.
Objectives for a Course in Aircraft Gas Turbines

Education is similar to other endeavors in that for effective achievement there must be goals. Hence, teachers should explicitly formulate learning objectives in every course they teach. Teachers usually list only the subject matter. This should be supplemented by precise statements as to what the students are to learn. The statements should be operational. They should be expressed in action words which prescribe what the student is to do, how, and under what conditions he will demonstrate that he can do it. The establishment of objectives is illustrated by developing them for a course in aircraft gas turbines.Copyright © 1974 by ASME
A liposome-based ion release impedance sensor for biological detection

Low-cost detection of pathogens and biomolecules at the point-of-care promises to revolutionize medicine through more individualized monitoring and increased accessibility to diagnostics in remote and resource-limited areas. While many approaches to biosensing are still limited by expensive components or inadequate portability, we present here an ELISA-inspired lab-on-a-chip strategy for biological detection based on liposome tagging and ion-release impedance spectroscopy. Ion-encapsulating dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) liposomes can be functionalized with antibodies and are stable in deionized water yet permeabilized for ion release upon heating, making them ideal reporters for electrical biosensing of surface-immobilized antigens. We demonstrate the quantification of these liposomes by real-time impedance measurements, as well as the qualitative detection of viruses as a proof-of-concept toward a portable platform for viral load determination which can be applied broadly to the detection of pathogens and other biomolecules.
Envisioning user models for adaptive visualization

Adaptive search systems apply user models to provide better separation of relevant and non-relevant documents in a list of results. This paper presents our attempt to leverage this ability of user models in the context of visual information analysis. We developed an adaptive visualization approach for presentation and exploration of search results. We simulated a visual intelligence search/analysis scenario with log data extracted from an adaptive information foraging study and were able to verify that our method can improve the ability of traditional relevance visualization to separate relevant and irrelevant information.
Lung metastasis 21 years after initial diagnosis of osteosarcoma: a case report

To the best of our knowledge, this case report describes the longest disease-free interval between primary diagnosis and metastatic recurrence of an osteosarcoma. A 35-year-old Caucasian American man presented with asymptomatic lung metastases 21 years after being diagnosed and treated for lower extremity osteosarcoma. He underwent curative lung resection, but 2 years thereafter developed metastatic disease in the scapula and tibia and, after resection and chemotherapy, is in remission 1 year later. This case highlights the importance of long follow-up periods and continued surveillance of osteosarcoma patients after initial curative treatment.
Conservation of the dental pulp—Cavity preparation

Abstract The thoughts in this article may be summarized by stating that patients with dental caries are afflicted by a serious ailment. Their teeth are diseased and have carious lesions within them. When a carious lesion is excised, living tissues are cut. Excision of viable dentin is excision of extended living pulp. In order to treat patients with diseased teeth successfully, sound clinical judgment is required in addition to surgical skill. Sound clinical judgment dictates a sensible combination of old and new therapeutic practices for the patient's benefit. The dentist wants each patient to have the best treatment he can provide. The patient receives such treatment when the operation is carefully planned and executed within the broad framework of basic biomechanical principles from which all successful therapy derives. An operation so planned and conducted conserves the dental pulp, promotes patient welfare, and enhances the dentist's professional reputation.
The establishment of core gender identity in normal girls. I. (a) introduction; (b) development of the ego capacity to differentiate.

There has been a gradual shift from Freud's point of view that there is no femininity until the phallic phase. Modification of Freud's view on the onset of femininity is furthered by establishing that differences between boys and girls are observable in the preoedipal period and by studying the origin of a girl's sense of femaleness, i.e., her core gender identity. It is not essential whether we call this early development of the girl's sense of her femaleness core gender identity, earliest gender identity,or precursors of gender identity.Several studies confirm it is an essential foundation on which subsequent gender identity is built, Its establishment is normally well under way and sometimes irreversible by age 3 and more firmly secured in the fourth and fifth years. Of the multiple factors—biological (including its expression as instinctual drive), genetic, and experiental—contributing to core gender identity, the ego capacity to differentiate is traced and stressed as a necessary condition. The psychoanalytic and relevant nonpsychoanalytic literature is reviewed. Cognitive functions play a more significant role in core gender identity formation than previously believed and probably are more universally contributory at this early age (before 3) than identification mechanisms, envy of the male genitals, or castration anxiety. Ascription of gender at birth followed by the environmental confirmation impinging on progressively maturating cognitive capacities in the child would then normally be the organizer of gender identity, although definitely not the sole forces molding it.
An XZ Micropositioning Mechanism (XZMM) With Out-of-Plane Translation

This paper introduces the XZ Micropositioning Mechanism (XZMM) that is fabricated in the x-y plane and translates components in the x-z direction using one linear input. The positioning platform of the mechanism remains parallel to the substrate throughout its motion. The XZMM has been tested and actuated using thermal actuation and achieves an out-of-plane output displacement of 41 micrometers with a 27 micrometer x-direction input.Copyright © 2003 by ASME
Chromatographic Separation and Bioassay of the Gentamicin Complex

The gentamicin complex consists of three components, C1, C1a, and C2, which are separated by paper chromatography using the lower phase of a solvent system of chloroform, methanol, and 17% ammonia (2:1:1). Two identical chromatograms are developed. On one, the positions of these components at Rf's of approximately 0.75, 0.35, and 0.50, respectively, are located by means of ninhydrin. On the other, corresponding areas are cut out, eluted from the paper with 0.1 M potassium phosphate buffer, pH 8.0, and assayed microbiologically. This procedure determines the relative amounts of the three gentamicin fractions, and is superior to the original official FDA procedure that measured only two fractions.
Measurement of nucleotide, amino acid, and DNA contents of tissues after whole-body x-irradiation.

Abstract An automated method for the separation of artificial mixtures of nucleotides (1, 2) has been applied to the more difficult problem of obtaining quantitative and qualitative measurements on biologically occurring nucleotides in complex tissues. These data may be correlated with changes in amino acid and DNA contents following whole-body x-ray exposure to intense doses of 2000 roentgens (R). Results indicate that the techniques utilized may be useful in determining the early effects of absorbed energy in tissues. Liver, gut, and thymus from rats have been used to compare radiation-resistant with radiation-sensitive tissues.
An Evaluation of Patient-Physician Communication Style During Telemedicine Consultations

Background: The quality of physician-patient communication is a critical factor influencing treatment outcomes and patient satisfaction with care. To date, there is little research to document the effect of telemedicine (TM) on physician-patient communication. Objective: The objectives of this study are to measure and describe verbal and nonverbal communication during clinical TM consultations and to compare TM with in-person (IP) consultations in terms of the quality of physician-patient communication. Methods: Veteran patients (n = 19) requiring pulmonary medicine consultations were enrolled into the study. The study group included 11 patients from the Iron Mountain Veterans Affairs Hospital (VAMC) remote site. Patients had individual TM consultations with a pulmonary physician at the Milwaukee VAMC hub site. A control group of 8 patients had IP consultations with a pulmonary physician at the Milwaukee VAMC. Video recordings of medical consultations were coded for patient-physician verbal and nonverbal communication patterns using the Roter Interaction Analysis System (RIAS). Results: There were no differences in the length of TM consultations (22.2 minutes) and IP consultations (21.9 minutes). Analysis of visit dialogue indicated that the ratio of physician to patient talk was 1.45 for TM and 1.13 for IP consultations, indicating physician verbal dominance. Physicians were more likely to use orientation statements during IP consultations (P = .047). There were greater requests for repetition from patients during TM consultations (P = .034), indicating perceptual difficulties. Conclusions: The study findings indicate differences between TM and IP consultations in terms of physician-patient communication style. Results suggest that, when comparing TM and IP consultations in terms of physician-patient communication, TM visits are more physician centered, with the physician controlling the dialogue and the patient taking a relatively passive role. Further research is needed to determine whether these differences are significant and whether they have relevance in terms of health outcomes and patient satisfaction with care. [J Med Internet Res 2009;11(3):e36]
U(VI) reduction by Fe(II) on hematite nanoparticles

Nanoscale size effects on U(VI) reduction by Fe(II) on hematite were investigated with four aerosol-synthesized hematite nanoparticles (12, 30, 50, 125 nm) and one aqueous-synthesized hematite (70 nm). Batch experiments were conducted at loadings of 0.01 mM U(VI) and 5 mM Fe(II) at pH 7.5 and 9.0. Rate constants for reduction of U(VI) to U(IV) were determined using a pseudo-first order reaction rate law. Reduction was faster at pH 7.5 than at pH 9.0. Rate constants were higher for aerosol-synthesized hematite than for aqueous-synthesized hematite. Rate constants were not significantly different for the 30, 50, and 125 nm particles. However, reduction was two orders of magnitude faster for the 12 nm hematite particles. Possible explanations for the dramatically faster reduction with the 12 nm hematite include the formation of a more reactive solid such as magnetite, effects on electron conduction through hematite, and quantum confinement effects.
The Medial Prefrontal Cortex Regulates the Differential Expression of Morphine-Conditioned Place Preference Following a Single Exposure to Controllable or Uncontrollable Stress

Experiential factors, such as stress, are major determinants of vulnerability to drug addiction and relapse. The behavioral controllability of the stressor is a major determinant of how exposure to a stressor impacts addictive processes. Recent evidence suggests that controllable stressors, such as escapable shock (ES), activate ventral regions of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFCv), whereas physically identical, but uncontrollable stress (inescapable shock, IS) does not. This activation is critical to the blunting effect that control has on neurochemical and behavioral sequelae of stress. Our laboratory has previously shown that IS, but not ES, potentiates morphine-conditioned place preference (CPP). However, the role of the mPFCv in this phenomenon is unknown. The present experiments investigated the role of the mPFCv during ES and IS in determining the effects of the stressor on subsequent morphine-CPP. Intra-mPFCv microinjection of the GABA(A) agonist muscimol 1 h before ES led ES to potentiate morphine-CPP, as does IS. Conversely, the potentiation of morphine-CPP normally observed in IS rats was blocked by intra-mPFCv microinjection of the GABA(A) antagonist picrotoxin 1 h before IS. These results suggest that during stress, activation of the mPFCv prevents subsequent potentiation of morphine-CPP, whereas inactivation of the mPFCv during stress does not. Thus, activation of the mPFCv during a stress experience is both necessary and sufficient to block the impact of stress on morphine-CPP, and control over stress blunts stress-induced potentiation of morphine effects by activating the mPFCv.
A review of the use of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in rheumatology

The principal use of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is to diagnose and monitor osteoporosis and therefore reduce fracture risk, associated morbidity, and mortality. In the field of rheumatology, DXA is an essential component of patient care because of both rheumatologists' prescription of glucocorticoid treatment as well as the effects of rheumatological diseases on bone health. This review will summarize the use of DXA in the field of rheumatology, including the concern for glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis, as well as the association of osteoporosis with a sampling of such rheumatologic conditions as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus, ankylosing spondylitis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, and scleroderma or systemic sclerosis. Medicare guidelines recognize the need to perform DXA studies in patients treated with glucocorticoids, and the World Health Organization FRAX tool uses data from DXA as well as the independent risk factors of RA and glucocorticoid use to predict fracture risk. However, patient access to DXA measurement in the US is in jeopardy as a result of reimbursement restrictions. DXA technology can simultaneously be used to discover vertebral fractures with vertebral fracture assessment and provide patients with a rapid, convenient, and low-radiation opportunity to clarify future fracture and comorbidity risks. An emerging use of DXA technology is the analysis of body composition of RA patients and thus the recognition of "rheumatoid cachexia," in which patients are noted to have a worse prognosis even when the RA appears well controlled. Therefore, the use of DXA in rheumatology is an important tool for detecting osteoporosis, reducing fracture risk and unfavorable outcomes in rheumatological conditions. The widespread use of glucocorticoids and the underlying inflammatory conditions create a need for assessment with DXA. There are complications of conditions found in rheumatology that could be prevented with more widespread patient access to DXA.
Ontogeny of small‐granule APUD cells in hamster lung: A morphological study

Development of small-granule APUD cells and cell clusters was studied in 13-day to 15-day fetal hamster lungs by periodic acid-Schiff (PAS)-lead hematoxylin staining, monoamine fluorescence, and transmission electron microscopy. We examined 11-day and 12-day fetal, early postnatal, and adult animals only by PAS-lead hematoxylin. Precursors of small-granule cells first appear as PAS-negative clear cells in proximal airways of 13-day lung, occurring singly or in clusters of 2-25 cells and standing out among their undifferentiated, glycogen-laden, PAS-positive neighbors. By 14 days, developing small-granule cell clusters are prominent in main and lobar bronchi, extending 2-3 airway generations into the periphery. Clear-cell clusters, similar to those seen in 13-day lung, appear in peripheral airways and reach within one generation of developing terminal sacs. By 15 days, a few small, small-granule cell clusters are located at bronchioloalveolar junctions. Comparatively mature clusters occur in proximal airways; they are characterized by specific formaldehyde-induced monoamine fluorescence demonstrable after exposure in vitro to 5-hydroxytryptophan. In early postnatal stages, PAS-positive granules are resolvable toward the base of some endocrine cells. Ultrastructurally, pulmonary APUD cells contain numerous membrane-limited granules (180-nm diameter) of varying electron density. In 13-day lung, granules sparsely populate the cytoplasm of clear cells, but as the cells mature, the granule population increases and becomes concentrated in the basal cytoplasm. Fetal development of small-granule cells is therefore compressed into the last 4 days before birth. Most clusters appearing in neonatal lungs are not yet fully mature, and not all subtypes of this population are present until some time later.
Heat capacity changes at the helix-coil transition of polypeptides in mixed organic solvents

Abstract The thermally induced inverse helix-coil transition of poly(γ-benzyl- l -glutamate) (PBLG) in dichloroacetic acid/1,3-dichloropropane, dichloroacetic acid/1-chlorobutane and dichloroacetic acid/1-chlorooctane solvent systems was studied using sensitive differential microcalorimetry. A negative heat capacity increment at the transition was observed for all solvent systems. The experimental values of ΔC p are in reasonable agreement with the values calculated using a recently developed theoretical model. The transition enthalpy for PBLG in the dichloroacetic acid/1-chlorooctane solvent system using very dilute solutions was also determined. No solute concentration dependence in either ΔH tr or in the transition temperature in the range 0.007–0.05 mol of monomer unit/kg solvent was found.
Three brief assessments of math achievement

Because of wide disparities in college students’ math knowledge—that is, their math achievement—studies of cognitive processing in math tasks also need to assess their individual level of math achievement. For many research settings, however, using existing math achievement tests is either too costly or too time consuming. To solve this dilemma, we present three brief tests of math achievement here, two drawn from the Wide Range Achievement Test and one composed of noncopyrighted items. All three correlated substantially with the full achievement test and with math anxiety, our original focus, and all show acceptable to excellent reliability. When lengthy testing is not feasible, one of these brief tests can be substituted.
Ultrastructural comparison of transformed human cells and their normal counterparts at various passage levels.

A comparison of the ultrastructures of two lines of human cells transformed by the oncogenic virus, SV40, revealed that the percentage of mitochondria with completely transverse cristae, the number of lysosomes and autophagic vacuoles, the morphology of the nucleus and endoplasmic reticulum, and the paucity of Golgi apparatus, were similar in both lines. These characteristics, previously shown to be age-related in the cells from which these lines originated, are similar to those found in young normal cells. These transformed lines differed from each other only in their percentage of bizarre mitochondria. Since one of the transformed lines originated from cells in early passage and the other from cells in late passage, the inverse correlation between Golgi-lysosomal activity and division potential suggests that the line derived from late passage cells either underwent a major change in this activity or is derived from the occasional “young” cells believed to occur in old cultures.
Learning to become a Second Language Teacher: Identities-in-Practice.

Despite the accumulating body of research on teacher cognition and teacher learning in the field of second language (L2) teacher education over the past 2 decades, few studies have followed novice L2 teachers’ development over time, and still fewer have focused specifically on teacher identity development. This study begins to fill this gap by examining how novice English-as-a-second-language (ESL) teachers learn to teach and how this learning-in-practice experience shapes their identities as teachers. For 1 academic year, we followed 2 graduate students in a Master of Arts for Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages program at a U.S. university as they taught their own ESL classes for the first time. In analyzing the 2 case studies from a situated learning perspective, we show an intertwined relationship between novice teachers’ identity development and their changing classroom practice. Based on our findings, we argue for the need to include a deeper understanding of teacher identity development in the knowledge base of L2 teacher education.
Relationship between Unrestricted and Extended Hartree-Fock Wave Functions as Function of Number of Electrons

The justification of the use of unprojected many-electron wave functions for solids and large molecules is examined from the point of view of an extended Hartree-Fock method in the one-$\ensuremath{\lambda}$ approximation presented in previous papers. It is shown that, in the limit of a large number of electrons, the Hartree-Fock operators are the same for the projected and unprojected case. It is further shown that the expectation value of purely spatial operators for the projected and unprojected functions are equal in this limit. Graphs of the differences of the relevant quantities as a function of number of electrons are given.
Metal-oxide lift-off for optimized heterointegration of photonic circuits

Crystal ion slicing can fabricate microns-thin-films from bulk, single-crystal metal oxides, which are important materials in optical, microwave, and electrical applications. These thin-films maintain single-crystal properties, which are very difficult to achieve in other thin-film technologies such as epitaxial growth. In this paper, ion-slicing technique is reviewed briefly from a process, material, and device perspective. The demonstrated applications in integrated optics are listed, along with a complete reference to ion-slicing related publications.
A new paradigm of knowledge production in higher education

Purpose – This article seeks to introduce how the convergence of globalization, emergence of the knowledge society and accelerating change contribute to what might be best termed a new paradigm of knowledge production in higher education.Design/methodology/approach – A review of the literature was conducted regarding the three driving trends of the new paradigm. Following a discussion on these trends, the new paradigm is discussed in relation to old and emergent paradigms of the twenty‐first and twenty‐second centuries.Findings – The article concludes that the new paradigm requires a systems approach to thinking and leading in higher education.Practical implications – This article provides a macro‐level perspective of the three phenomena as they impact higher education. Such perspectives provide insight to higher education leaders throughout the world on how tertiary institutions relate to the new paradigm of knowledge production. By putting the pieces of the new paradigm together, improved leadership dir...
Simultaneous Structural and Control Optimization of Large Space Structures

This paper focuses on the simultaneous structural/control optimization of a large space structure (LSS) subject to the gravity-gradient. The finite element method is used in conjunction with the Lagrangian formulation to derive the mathematical model for the structure. It is assumed to be a long unidimensional orbiting beam. In deriving the model vibrational and rotational planar motion and circular orbit are assumed. The NEWSUMT-A and the ORACLS computer programs are integrated to perform the simultaneous structural/control optimization problem. MATLAB software package is used for the transient phase simulation of the optimal integrated system. The simultaneous structural/control optimization is performed by the combined and the sequential integrated approaches (approach definitions are presented in this paper) with constraints on the structural weight, first natural frequency of vibration (bending), and on the damping (control). The results about the vibrational-rotational control for the optimal integrated system are presented through graphics. Comparison between those approaches shows some gains for the performance and control efforts for the sequential integrated approach.
Seizure types and frequency in patients who "fail" temporal lobectomy for intractable epilepsy.

BACKGROUND Temporal lobectomy can lead to favorable seizure outcomes in medically-refractory temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). Although most studies focus on seizure freedom after temporal lobectomy, less is known about seizure semiology in patients who "fail" surgery. Morbidity differs between seizure types that impair or spare consciousness. Among TLE patients with seizures after surgery, how does temporal lobectomy influence seizure type and frequency? OBJECTIVE To characterize seizure types and frequencies before and after temporal lobectomy for TLE, including consciousness-sparing or consciousness-impairing seizures. METHODS We performed a retrospective longitudinal cohort study examining patients undergoing temporal lobectomy for epilepsy at our institution from January 1995 to August 2010. RESULTS Among 241 TLE patients who received temporal lobectomy, 174 (72.2%) patients achieved Engel class I outcome (free of disabling seizures), including 141 (58.5%) with complete seizure freedom. Overall seizure frequency in patients with persistent postoperative seizures decreased by 70% (P < .01), with larger reductions in consciousness-impairing seizures. While the number of patients experiencing consciousness-sparing simple partial seizures decreased by only 19% after surgery, the number of individuals having consciousness-impairing complex partial seizures and generalized tonic-clonic seizures diminished by 70% and 68%, respectively (P < .001). Simple partial seizure was the predominant seizure type in 19.1% vs 37.0% of patients preoperatively and postoperatively, respectively (P < .001). Favorable seizure outcome was predicted by a lack of generalized seizures preoperatively (odds ratio 1.74, 95% confidence interval 1.06-2.86, P < .5). CONCLUSION Given important clinical and mechanistic differences between seizures with or without impairment of consciousness, seizure type and frequency remain important considerations in epilepsy surgery.
A Study of Topical Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drops and No Pressure Patching in the Treatment of Corneal Abrasions

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of an ophthalmic nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) in the treatment of noninfected, non-contact lens-related, traumatic corneal abrasions and no pressure patch. Design: A single-center, randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled study. Participants: One hundred patients with noninfected, non-contact lens-related, traumatic or foreign body removal-related corneal abrasions less than 36 hours in duration. Intervention: All patients received a cycloplegic drop and erythromycin or polymyxin B (Polysporin Ophthalmic Ointment, Burroughs Wellcome, Research Triangle Park, NC). Patients were then randomized to receive either ketorolac tromethamine 0.5% ophthalmic solution or control vehicle drops. Main Outcome Measures: The main outcome measures were six subjective symptoms monitored daily, evaluation of corneal abrasion, and determination of adverse events. Long-term complications were determined 3 to 8 months after randomization. Results: Twelve patients were excluded from the study. One day after randomization, patients receiving ketorolac tromethamine 0.5% ophthalmic solution noted significantly decreased levels of pain ( P P P P Conclusions: Ketorolac tromethamine 0.5% ophthalmic solution provides increased patient comfort without clinical adverse effects when used as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of noninfected, non-contact lens-related, traumatic corneal abrasions.
Identification of a detergent-solubilized plasma membrane protein from rat liver recognizing apolipoprotein A-IV.

Abstract Apolipoprotein A-IV (apo A-IV) is present in plasma associated to both HDL and as a complex with lipids that cannot be flotated by ultracentrifugation at 1.21 g/ml density. Apo A-IV is likely an important molecular determinant in HDL binding to the liver. In this communication, data are presented supporting the view that a specific liver plasma membrane protein of Mr 95000 is a constituent of the apo A-IV binding site. The protein was solubilized with CHAPS from purified rat liver plasma membranes and subjected to SDS-PAGE. Transblotted to nitrocellulose sheet could be identified as recognizing 125I-apo A-IV-DMPC by autoradiography. 125I-apo A-I-DMPC and radioiodinated rat apo E-poor HDL, also bound to the protein. Apo B-100 (as human LDL) and apo C-III did not bind. The protein identified is likely to be the same that has been previously identified by Graham and Oram ((1987) J. Biol. Chem. 262, 7439–7442) as ‘HDL receptor protein’.
Membrane cholesterol uptake by recombinant lipoproteins.

Abstract Recombinant lipoproteins, prepared with apo A-I isolated from human high density lipoprotein (HDL) and various phospholipids (PLs), were compared with respect to their ability to remove cholesterol (Chol) from labelled erythrocyte ghost membranes. It was found that uptake of Chol was essentially complete following an 8 h incubation at 37°C. Quantitation of the amount of cholesterol taken up showed that recombinants prepared from bovine brain sphingomyelin (BBSM) or dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) acquired the highest proportion of Chol (80–140 mol/mol protein), whereas shorter chain phospholipids like dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine (DMPC) acquired little or no membrane Chol. Chemical analysis of the incubation products indicated that this latter result was due to loss of PL, presumably to the membrane, with consequent disruption of the recombinant particle. Results with DPPC:A-I recombinants of differing PL/protein ratios and sizes showed that Chol uptake was fairly constant at 0.70 mol Chol/mol PL. It is concluded that discoidal, phospholipid-rich recombinant lipoproteins can effectively take up substantial amounts of Chol from physiological membranes, provided that the PLs utilized form micellar complexes which are capable of retaining their structural integrity during the incubation with the membranes.
Speed discrimination and its relation to involuntary eye movements in human vision

In addition to a selective response to a narrow range of motion directions, a neural mechanism specialized for motion detection must also be able to discriminate between different speeds of target movement. Many psychophysical [5, 6, 8] and electrophysiological [2, 10, 11] investigations of motion perception have largely been concerned with identifying possible schemes or mechanisms capable of discriminating motion direction, but the ability to discriminate faster or slower movement in the same direction has so far received comparatively little attention. Two schemes capable of motion detection and speed discrimination are reported here, together with experimental data which show that the visual system employs both schemes, one for the slow speed range (i.e.
Rationing and Rent Dissipation in the Presence of Heterogeneous Individuals

This paper discusses the implications of rationing by waiting when consumers have different time costs and personal valuations. The joint distribution function of time costs and personal valuations is used to characterize market equilibrium. It is argued that, under certain conditions, an increase in the variance of time costs will reduce the dissipation of rent. Furthermore, it is shown that introducing a secondary market for a rationed good does not necessarily improve welfare because total surplus under rationing by waiting depends more on the variance than on the level of time costs and personal valuations. The model is also used to discuss other institutions that involve rent-seeking activities, such as the patent system and import quotas.
An in Vitro Model of the Wound Microenvironment: Local Phagocytic Cell Abnormalities Associated with in Situ Complement Activation

An in vitro model was developed to investigate the inflammatory response to tissue damage. Human fibroblasts were heat killed and incubated with serum. Complement studies showed activation of the alternative pathway proportional to the number of dead cells; C3 was fixed on dead cells, and C5a was generated. Neutrophils (PMNLs) adhered to killed fibroblasts, a process requiring fresh serum. After adhering to killed fibroblasts in the presence of serum, PMNLs exhibited depressed chemotactic responsiveness to activated serum and reduced bactericidal activity against preopsonized Staphylococcus aureus. These data suggest that thermally killed cells activate and fix complement, a process generating cleavage products that, in turn, recruit PMNLs and bind them to the inflammatory site. Thus, in our model, dead tissue activates humoral mechanisms and inflammatory cells; this process results in depressed in situ host-defense function upon subsequent local challenge with microbes.
Kentucky Bluegrass Growth Responses to Trinexapac-Ethyl, Traffic, and Nitrogen

Understanding the whole-plant response of Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.) to the plant growth regulator (PGR) trinexapac-ethyl (TE) [4-(cyclopropyl-α-hydroxy-methylene)-3,5-dioxo-cyclo-hexane-carboxylic acid ethyl ester] while subjected to traffic and variable N rates would facilitate recommendations regarding its safe and effective use. The objectives of this study were (i) to investigate the extent and duration of TE-induced shoot growth suppression on Kentucky bluegrass and determine any interactive traffic or N effects, and (ii) to investigate if TE-induced reductions in shoot growth affect tillering, rooting, and quality of Kentucky bluegrass, and determine any interactive traffic or N effects. Trinexapac-ethyl (0.27 kg ha -1 ) was applied to main plots three times a year at 6-wk intervals. Traffic was applied to subplots with a cleated roller. Four increasing rates of a slow-release N source were applied annually to sub-subplots. Trinexapac-ethyl consistently reduced clippings by 1 to 2 wk after treatment (WAT), with maximum suppression occurring at 3 to 4 WAT. Greater suppression occurred for July and August application dates relative to May. Traffic consistently reduced clippings and tiller density. Tiller density was increased by TE in 1996. Higher annual N did not, in general, affect tiller density, root mass, or quality. Repeated TE application did not affect Kentucky bluegrass root mass. Trinexapac-ethyl did not affect quality, while traffic consistently reduced it. Quality was poorest at the three highest N-rates under TE and traffic during the last treatment cycle of 1997. These results suggest caution when using TE on highly trafficked Kentucky bluegrass.
Application-Specific Memory Interleaving for FPGA-Based Grid Computations: A General Design Technique

Many compute-intensive applications generate single result values by accessing clusters of nearby points in grids of one, two, or more dimensions. Often, the performance of FGPA implementations of such algorithms would improve if there were concurrent, non-interfering access to all points in each cluster. When clusters contain dozens of points and access patterns are irregular, multiported memories are infeasible and vector-oriented approaches are inapplicable. Instead, the grid points can be distributed across multiple interleaved memory banks so that, when accessing any cluster, each point comes from a different memory bank. We present a general technique based on the knowledge of the application?s multidimensional indexing. This technique maps access clusters into a custom-interleaved memory using the FPGA?s multiple on-chip RAMs and configurable data paths. Case studies examine rectangular and non-rectangular grids of different dimensionality, including performance vs. resource tradeoffs when cluster sizes are not powers of two. We also present a prototype tool for generating interleaved memories automatically from concise, application-specific definitions.
Screening for congenital hypothyroidism: the value of retesting after four weeks in neonates with low and very low birth weight.

Objectives Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), normally a reliable screening test for congenital hypothyroidism (CH), may fail to detect cases among infants who have low and very low birth weight. The purpose of this study was to identify neonates with false-negative screening results. Setting A province in Poland in which 3854 neonates had body weight p2500 g, between 1999 and 2001. Methods TSH levels in blood on filter paper were measured in all neonates between the third and sixth days after birth, but were repeated in low and very low birth weight infants after four weeks of age. Results The repeat test showed TSH levels X10 mIU/L in 19 of the 3854 low birth weight neonates. The final diagnosis in these neonates was permanent CH in two, transient CH in five, possible compensated CH in six and transient high TSH in six. Of the 19, 16 (84%) required iodine and/or thyroxine replacement therapy. Conclusions In neonates with low and very low birth weight, normal TSH levels measured between the third and sixth day of life do not exclude thyroid dysfunction, but a repeat TSH measurement after the fourth week of life identifies the false-negative results. In our data, the prevalence of primary and secondary hypothyroidism (both permanent and transient) was about 0.5%.
Fast construction of overlay networks

An asynchronous algorithm is described for rapidly constructing an overlay network in a peer-to-peer system where all nodes can in principle communicate with each other directly through an underlying network, but each participating node initially has pointers to only a handful of other participants. The output of the mechanism is a linked list of all participants sorted by their identifiers, which can be used as a foundation for building various linear overlay networks such as Chord or skip graphs. Assuming the initial pointer graph is weakly-connected with maximum degree d and the length of a node identifier is W, the mechanism constructs a binary search tree of nodes of depth O(W) in expected O(W log n) time using expected O((d+W)n log n) messages of size O(W) each. Furthermore, the algorithm has low contention: at any time there are only O(d) undelivered messages for any given recipient. A lower bound of Ω(d + log n) is given for the running time of any procedure in a related synchronous model that yields a sorted list from a degree-d weakly-connected graph of n nodes. We conjecture that this lower bound is tight and could be attained by further improvements to our algorithms.
Compressed mapping of communication signal strength

In this paper we consider a mobile cooperative network that is tasked with building a map of the received signal strength to a fixed station. By using the recent results in the area of compressed sensing, we show how the nodes can exploit the sparse representation of the channelpsilas spatial variations to build a map of the signal strength with minimal sensing. We furthermore propose a successive interference cancellation method for signal reconstruction based on a considerably incomplete set of measurements. The proposed method is an extension of the existing signal reconstruction strategies but with a considerably better performance. Finally, we present simulation results that show the performance of the proposed framework.
Assessing NIH's big idea.

The U.S. National Institutes of Health’s (NIH’s) Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) program ([ 1 ][1]) is now nearly 6 years old and has grown from an initial 12 to 61 centers distributed around the United States. In order to ensure that this $461 million program is doing all it can
Beyond a Rule-Following Model of Skillful Practice in Teacher Development

Both contemporary popular and scholarly discourse on teacher development and evaluation assumes the truth of a certain view of normative human behavior, one that holds that skill in a given domain is predicated upon the application of maxims, rules, or principles in a given situation. Such a view would allow one to isolate behaviors associated with expert practice, distill the rules that give rise to them, and both develop new teachers and evaluate practicing teachers on the basis of such maxims. In this essay, Derek Gottlieb argues that the phenomenon of skillful teaching, and studies thereof, expose the inconsistencies and confusion underlying this model, encouraging the field generally to consider alternative holistic accounts of expert teacher practice as we seek to train and appraise great teachers.
Synthetic Genomes for Synthetic Biology

A genome synthesized entirely from scratch has been used to replace the native genome of a living cell, thus creating a new cell. This achievement marks a new frontier in synthetic biology to design and create genomes for organisms with few genetic tools and for applications in areas of energy, health care and the environment.
Visual Representation of the Victims of Hurricane Katrina: A Dialectical Approach to Content Analysis and Discourse

This study examines how minority victims of Hurricane Katrina are visually presented. The authors posit that the victims' images intersect across multiple contexts, including history, economics, class, and race, among others. The authors invite both policy makers and researchers to adopt inclusive perspectives when exploring the complexities of human interaction.
Refinements in Anhysteretic Characterization and Permeability Modeling

This paper sets forth several refinements in the anhysteretic characterization and permeability modeling of ferromagnetic and ferrimagnetic materials. The refinements are focused on reducing the engineering time required to carry out the characterization and to make the magnetization and permeability functions numerically robust.
Using magnetic resonance imaging to characterize recent myocardial injury: utility in acute coronary syndrome and other clinical scenarios.

The work of Ricardo Cury et al1 published this week in Circulation uses T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to detect recent myocardial ischemia on the basis of subtle differences in myocardial water characteristics. They found that T2-weighted MRI improved diagnostic accuracy when characterizing patients with possible or probable acute coronary syndrome (ACS) who presented to the emergency department with chest pain. Article p 837 This editorial will highlight recent developments in cardiac imaging that reliably allow differentiation of acute from chronic wall-motion abnormalities. The idea of imaging recent ischemia, either with T2-weighted MRI or with single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) agents such as 123I beta-methyl-p-iodophenylpendadecanoic acid (BMIPP), represents a significant step in characterizing the metabolic condition of the myocardium beyond simple indices of regional strain or contractile function. T2-weighted MRI has generated significant interest over the last few years because it offers the ability to characterize or detect a recent reversible myocardial injury. It is important to recognize that acute and chronic myocardial infarction (MI) can be difficult to differentiate with conventional imaging. Both will typically exhibit wall-motion abnormalities on echocardiography or MRI. Chronic MI is more likely to be associated with a thin wall, but this finding is not specific for nonviable myocardium. Both acute and chronic MI cause defects on conventional SPECT scans. Acute and chronic MI both enhance with gadolinium on MRI scans. Thus, individually these imaging methods cannot reliably differentiate acute from chronic MI. A landmark study by Abdel-Aty et al documented that T2-weighted …
Reconfigurable antenna implementation in multi-radio platform

The reconfigurable antenna exhibits a number of attractive features such as compact size and dynamic reconfigurability to increase the throughput and meet flexible demands for the end users. The multi-band frequency reconfigurable antenna implemented in Intelpsilas mobile concept PC demonstrates small antenna count and supports seamless switching between 3G and WiFi standards using mixed network software.
Does cigarette nicotine yield affect puff volume

Subjects smoked cigarettes that were similar except for their mean nicotinic yields. Total smoke exposure was found to be inversely related to nicotine content. As nicotine yield decreased, puff volume, puff duration, number of puffs, and carbon monoxide boost increased. Smoking low-nicotine cigarettes may increase exposure to other harmful smoke constituents. Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (1982) 32, 418–422; doi:10.1038/clpt.1982.182