cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Ancient Greek terminology in pediatric surgery: about the word meaning

It is widely accepted that the medical terminology has its roots in ancient Greek and Latin. Greek words have been used not only in the field of medicine but also in every day language for many centuries. The aim of this article is to provide an abbreviated guide to the etymology and the meaning of Greek words used in the medical literature today, emphasizing on the field of pediatric surgery. Thus, the term paediatric is constructed from the words paedion, meaning "child", and iatriki, meaning "medicine", literally, "medicine for children." Surgery, however, is not a Greek word. The corresponding Greek term is chirourgiki, derived from cheir and ergon, that is, "hand and action," meaning the action made by hands. This term is also found in the French and German medical literature as chirourgie and chirurgie, respectively. Some general terms in surgery are also of Greek origin. The word trauma has been transferred into the English literature without modification and comes from the verb diatitreno, meaning to "penetrate." Other such terms include diagnosis, from the verb diagignosko, meaning to "discriminate"; symptom, from the verb sympipto, that is, "to coinside"; and the adjectives clinical and clinic, from the noun klini, meaning "bed." Focusing on special fields of pediatric surgery, the etymology and the meaning of Greek words used in the medical literature will be shown and analyzed.
Juvenile hormone esterase activity from Manduca sexta corpora allata in vitro

Juvenile hormone esterase (JHE) activity released by the corpora allata (CA) into incubation media (CA-JHE) was titered daily during the course of the last (fifth [V]) larval stadium of Manduca sexta. This CA-JHE activity was relatively low during the early last stadium up to the time of commitment (V4), then rose rapidly to a peak on V6. Activity declined sharply almost to precommitment levels by V8, before rising to a second peak on the first day of the pupal phase (P0). This pattern of activity is distinct from that of hemolymph JHE activity, which peaks just prior to wandering on V4 and again just prior to pupation (V9). Although the CA-JHE and hemolymph-JHE possess different temporal patterns of activity, isoelectric focusing, gel electrophoresis, and initial studies with selected inhibitors suggest that the enzymes responsible for the CA-JHE and hemolymph-JHE activities are similar, but not identical, in nature. Exposure of the V6 CA in vitro to JH II (0.1 μM) or fluoromevalonolactone (FMev; 0.1 mM) produced an approximate fivefold increase and 60% decrease in JH acid synthesis, respectively. Conversely, the same treatments resulted in an inhibition (JH II) and stimulation (FMev) of CA-JHE activity. These observations suggest that JH may be involved in the direct positive feedback regulation of postwandering larval CA and that the CA-JHE may also be integrally related to this positive feedback mechanism.
Interactive posters: THE MISUNDERSTOOD PICTURE: A STUDY OF ICON RECOGNITION

Icons are a prevalent feature in current computer systems. Yet, little substantive research has been done on the benefits, drawbacks, ideal properties, and cognitive impact of icons. To some extent, it seems that it has just been assumed that icons are a generally better representation.
A Java based framework for off-line collaboration

This paper describes a framework that supports a collaborative work environment for scientific computing. Implemented using the Java programming language, the framework allows teams of researchers to collectively visualize and analyze the results of graphs, diagrams, pictures, etc. in an off-line collaborative setting. The framework allows participants to load a diagram, or other graphic object, into workspace and make annotations to this document. These activities will not be carried out simultaneously, but rather each participant will work in tandem, with participants being able to view prior annotations. This off-line method of collaboration involves pulling together these ideas and separate efforts. Using this type of collaborative working method, geographically distributed users are able to visualize results on their own workstation as well as tracking and steering the results of their research counterparts. This project covers the design and implementation of this framework for off-line collaboration.
Expressed emotion versus relationship quality variables in the prediction of recurrence in bipolar patients.

Abstract Background The expressed emotion (EE) construct has predicted clinical outcomes in schizophrenia and depression, but few studies have been conducted with bipolar patients. Moreover, there is a particular dearth of information regarding the prediction of depressive versus manic episodes in bipolar patients. Questions also remain about the utility of EE compared to other variables (perceived criticism, relationship negativity, and chronic strain in close relationships) that more directly evaluate interpersonal stress and about specific predictions of mania or depression. Methods Forty-seven outpatients with bipolar I disorder participated in a 1-year longitudinal study. A close collateral of the patient completed the Five Minute Speech Sample (FMSS) to assess EE, and participants completed perceived criticism and negativity ratings of collaterals. Clinical outcomes and chronic interpersonal stress were assessed by interview at 3-month intervals. Results High EE predicted depressive, but not manic recurrence. Other variables of close interpersonal relationships were not significant predictors of recurrence. Limitations Participants nominated collaterals, and those who did not have such a confidant were excluded. Conclusions The FMSS was sensitive to even mild negativity by the collateral that predicted later depressive episodes. This is the first study to demonstrate polarity-specific effects of EE on the prediction of recurrence in bipolar disorder.
“The Enchanter's Wand”: Charles Darwin, Foreign Missions, and the Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle*

It often goes unmentioned that one of the primary purposes of the famous circumnavigation of H.M.S. Beagle was foreign missions. Charles Darwin, the voyage's most famous participant, was at best noncommittal about the missionary activity surrounding him for most of the trip. He emerged from the voyage, however, as an enthusiastic and outspoken proponent of missions. The British missions at Tahiti prompted him to change his view. Sailing to Tahiti, he read several accounts about the South Sea missions, and had already begun making arrangements to publish his "Diary" as a travel journal. Darwin became convinced that missionaries helped "advance" the natives toward "civilization" and thereafter enthusiastically defended missionaries in an ongoing public debate.
Use of randomised controlled trials for producing cost-effectiveness evidence: potential impact of design choices on sample size and study duration

Background: A number of approaches to conducting economic evaluations could be adopted. However, some decision makers have a preference for wholly stochastic cost-effectiveness analyses, particularly if the sampled data are derived from randomised controlled trials (RCTs). Formal requirements for cost-effectiveness evidence have heightened concerns in the pharmaceutical industry that development costs and times might be increased if formal requirements increase the number, duration or costs of RCTs. Whether this proves to be the case or not will depend upon the timing, nature and extent of the cost-effectiveness evidence required. Objective: To illustrate how different requirements for wholly stochastic cost-effectiveness evidence could have a significant impact on two of the major determinants of new drug development costs and times, namely RCT sample size and study duration. Design: Using data collected prospectively in a clinical evaluation, sample sizes were calculated for a number of hypothetical cost-effectiveness study design scenarios. The results were compared with a baseline clinical trial design. Results: The sample sizes required for the cost-effectiveness study scenarios were mostly larger than those for the baseline clinical trial design. Circumstances can be such that a wholly stochastic cost-effectiveness analysis might not be a practical proposition even though its clinical counterpart is. In such situations, alternative research methodologies would be required. For wholly stochastic cost-effectiveness analyses, the importance of prior specification of the different components of study design is emphasised. However, it is doubtful whether all the information necessary for doing this will typically be available when product registration trials are being designed. Conclusions: Formal requirements for wholly stochastic cost-effectiveness evidence based on the standard frequentist paradigm have the potential to increase the size, duration and number of RCTs significantly and hence the costs and timelines associated with new product development. Moreover, it is possible to envisage situations where such an approach would be impossible to adopt. Clearly, further research is required into the issue of how to appraise the economic consequences of alternative economic evaluation research strategies.
In Situ Formation of Protease-resistant Prion Protein in Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy-infected Brain Slices

The transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) comprise a group of fatal neurodegenerative diseases that are characterized by the conversion of the normal host cellular prion protein (PrPC), to the abnormal protease-resistant prion protein isoform (PrP-res). It has been proposed, though not proven, that the infectious TSE agent consists solely of PrP-res and that PrP-res-induced conformational conversion of PrPC to additional PrP-res represents agent replication. In this study we demonstrate in situ conversion of protease-sensitive PrPC to PrP-res in TSE-infected brain slices. One step in this process is the binding of soluble PrPC to endogenous PrP-res deposits. The newly formed PrP-res associated with the slices in a pattern that correlated with the pre-existing brain distribution of PrP-res. Punctate in situ PrP conversion was observed in brain regions containing PrP-res amyloid plaques, and a more dispersed conversion product was detected in areas containing diffuse PrP-res deposits. These studies provide direct evidence that PrP-res formation involves the incorporation of soluble PrPC into both nonfibrillar and fibrillar PrP-res deposits in TSE-infected brain. Our findings suggest that the in situ PrP conversion reaction leads to additional polymerization of endogenous PrP-res aggregates and is analogous to the process of PrP-res fibril and subfibril growth in vivo.
Development transitions of thin filament proteins in rat extraocular muscles.

Abstract Extraocular muscles are a unique subset of striated muscles. During postnatal development, the extraocular muscles undergo a number of myosin isoform transitions that occur between postnatal day P10 (P10) and P15. These include: (1) loss of embryonic myosin from the global layer resulting in the expression restricted to the orbital layer; (2) the onset of expression of extraocular myosin and the putative tonic myosin (myh 7b/14); and (3) the redistribution of nonmuscle myosin IIB from a subsarcolemmal position to a sarcomeric distribution in the slow fibers of the global layer. For this study, we examined the postnatal appearance and distribution of α-actinin, tropomyosin, and nebulin isoforms during postnatal development of the rat extraocular muscles. Although sarcomeric α-actinin is detectable from birth, α-actinin 3 appears around P15. Both tropomyosin-1 and -2 are present from birth in the same distribution as in the adult animal. The expression of nebulin was monitored by gel electrophoresis and western blots. At P5-10, nebulin exhibits a lower molecular mass than observed P15 and later during postnatal development. The changes in α-actinin 3 and nebulin expression between P10 and P15 coincide with transitions in myosin isoforms as detailed above. These data point to P10–P15 as the critical period for the maturation of the extraocular muscles, coinciding with eyelid opening.
Introduction of selectin-like binding specificity into a homologous mannose-binding protein.

Abstract The structures of the ligand-binding C-type carbohydrate-recognition domains of selectin cell adhesion molecules and of mannose-binding proteins (MBPs) are similar to each other even though these proteins bind very different carbohydrate ligands. Our current understanding of ligand binding by E-selectin is based on structural studies of unliganded E-selectin and of MBP-carbohydrate complexes, combined with results from mutagenesis of E-selectin. Five regions of E-selectin that differ in sequence from the corresponding regions of MBP have been introduced into the carbohydrate-recognition domain of MBP. Four of the changes have little effect on ligand binding. Insertion of one stretch of positively charged amino acids alters the sugar binding selectivity of the domain so that it now binds HL-60 cells and serum albumin derivatized with sialyl-Lewis tetrasaccharide, thus mimicking the properties of E-selectin.
A Burkean Hermeneutics for Understanding the Social Character of Schizophrenic Language

Drawing upon Kenneth Burke's distinction between semantic and poetic meaning in all language used by human actors, this study develops a hermeneutics for understanding the language of people afflicted with schizophrenia in social interaction. Documentary evidence from first person accounts, TV and video portrayals, and clinical reports is used for purposes of explication. A review of previous literature on schizophrenic language is provided to identify the particular contribution of this study for the development of more inclusive interactions with people afflicted with schizophrenia.
Extending event-driven experiments for human activity for an assistive environment

Many different aspects go into the generation of the data and methods needed to recognize human activity within an ambient assistive living environment. The Heracleia @Home apartment has been configured to include both wireless sensor networks as well as wired sensors of multiple types to capture information about subjects in the living space. The responses of these sensors are then analyzed to create key episodic events that occur at each time and place. Once these sensors are equipped to recognize a set of events, the data can then be processed by applying a Hidden Markov Model approach and by an adaptation of the Baum-Welch algorithm to identify different human activities within the assistive living environment. An application has been created to help manage and track the different sensors placed within the environment.
Soret, Dufour and Heat by Chemical Reaction Effects in a Chemical Vapor Deposition Optical Fiber Coating Process

In this paper, we studied the effect of thermal diffusion (Soret effect), the heat flux due to species concentration gradient (Dufour effect) and the heat by chemical reactions in a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process used to hermetically coat optical fibers. Using a previously developed mass and heat transfer model to investigate the transport phenomena in this process, the Soret and Dufour effects are compared to ordinary mass diffusion. The thermal conductivity, molecular diffusivity and thermal diffusivity are calculated using a multi-component model. The contribution of heat of chemical reactions to overall heat transfer in the CVD is also discussed. Soret effect and heat by chemical reactions are found to be very important in this process, and their effect is related to operating conditions such as draw speed and optical fiber inlet temperature.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
The role of lipid abnormalities, aqueous and mucus deficiencies in the tear film breakup, and implications for tear substitutes and contact lens tolerance

Abstract We had earlier proposed a “two-step, double-film” mechanism of tear film rupture, which traces the instability of the tear film in the van der Waals interaction mediated rupture of the thin mucus coating of the corneal epithelium. A transport model is now formulated for investigating the instability of the mucus layer in the presence of naturally occurring solutes of the tear film. It is shown that the normal lipids of the tear film play a dual role in stabilizing the mucus layer: (1) they augment the mucous-aqueous interfacial tension and (2) they induce an interfacial tension driven Marangoni convection. Both of these oppose the growing interfacial perturbations and consequently, the thinning of the mucus layer which is caused by the van der Waals interactions. An increased surface activity of lipids, due to numerous pathological conditions of the eyes, is shown to affect the tear film breakup time (BUT) adversely. The observed deleterious effects of highly surface active ingredients of tear substitutes, clinical stains, and anesthetics on BUT are also explained within the framework of the proposed mechanism. The aqueous tear deficiency which is reflected in the reduced thickness of the tear film, is shown to facilitate a rapid redistribution of solutes and thus undermines the stabilizing effect of the Marangoni convection. A marginally healthy eye may thus develop dry eye syndromes because of the aqueous tear deficiency. The proposed mechanism is in agreement with clinical observations of the factors causing the dry eyes and numerous other experimental and clinical findings related to the phenomenon of tear film rupture. The role of tear substitutes in prolonging the time of rupture as well as the implications of the present mechanism for the formulation of tear substitutes are delineated. The factors affecting the contact lens tolerance due to the altered physiology of the tear film are discussed. A particular emphasis is, however, placed on the possible adhesion of the contact lens to the cornea. Finally, it is emphasized that the clinical measurements of BUT are an overall outward manifestation of several factors discussed above and their synergisms thereof.
Specificity of the action of parathyroid hormone upon mitochondrial metabolism. Cyanogen bromide-derived parathyroid-hormone peptides.

The mitochondrial response to cyanogen bromide-treated parathyroid hormone was studied as a means of testing further the relationship between the structure and the effects in vitro of this hormone. The treated hormone and appropriate control hormone were tested in a standard bioassay and in a mitochondrial assay system in vitro. Reaction of more than 90 % of the methionine residues in the hormone resulted in total inactivation of the hormone both in vivo and in vitro. This result disagrees with previously published data.
Treating CNS sarcoidosis with infliximab and mycophenolate mofetil.

Introduction: Neurosarcoidosis is a complication of systemic sarcoidosis that is frequently diffi cult to manage. Manifestations of central nervous system (CNS) sarcoidosis are quite variable. They include infi ltration of the optic nerve, perivascular retinopathy, leptomeningitis and pachymeningitis, chiasmal and hypothalamic lesions, cortical en plaque meningioma-like lesions, and spinal cord and cauda equina nodules and infi ltration. The rarity of this condition (5%– 10% of all sarcoidosis) makes any systematic randomized masked trial of treatment alternatives problematic. Most patients with neurosarcoidosis are treated with systemic corticosteroids with fair success. Problems arise when the neurosarcoidosis fails to yield to corticosteroids or fl ares as the corticosteroids are tapered, leading to the use of a long list of variably effective immunosuppressant alternative or adjunctive treatments [1]. None of these anecdotally recommended drugs have been subjected to a randomized prospective study. The paper by Moravan and Segal is typical of reports published since 2002 on the use of infl iximab as a next step in the treatment of corticosteroidand immunosuppressant drug–resistant CNS sarcoidosis.
Domains of attraction in neural networks

On calcule le domaine d'attraction du point fixe d'une memoire a reseau de neurones en fonction des champs magnetiques locaux. Ces resultats, combines a des algorithmes d'apprentissage standard rendent possible la construction de memoires associatives saturees
Axial CID and high pressure resonance CID in a miniature ion trap mass spectrometer using a discontinuous atmospheric pressure interface

Axial collision induced dissociation (CID) and high-pressure resonance CID were implemented and compared with normal low-pressure resonance CID in a miniature ion trap mass spectrometer to obtain more complete fragmentation spectra. Axial CID was realized simply by applying a potential to the discontinuous atmospheric pressure interface (DAPI) capillary without performing parent ion isolation before dissociation. High-pressure resonance CID employed a double-introduction pulse scan function, by means of which precursor ions isolated at low-pressure (<10−3 torr) were dissociated at high-pressure (0.1 torr-1 torr) with higher excitation energy, so that tandem MS of isolated precursor ions was achieved and extensive fragmentation was obtained. A simple peptide (Leu-enkephalin) and dye molecule (rhodamine B) ionized by ESI were used to investigate both methods and compare them with normal low-pressure resonance CID.
Using GENESIS 3 for single neuron modeling

Introduction GENESIS, now referred to as GENESIS 3.0 (G3), has recently been reconfigured to adhere to the software design requirements specified by the Computational Biology Initiative (CBI) software architecture [1]. This highly modular approach to the development of simulator software leads to independent stand-alone components that integrate on a just-in-time basis to form a federated software platform. Different modules contribute functionality to the workflow of model development, model exploration and analysis, model simulation, and (ultimately) data analysis and model publication. Here we introduce the G3 workflow and through it present examples of how we use G3 to define and examine single neuron models, run simulations, and extract results using modern and backwardly compatible interfaces.
Two applications of wavelets and related techniques in medical imaging

We present two applications of wavelet and related techniques to problems arising in medical imaging. Both make considerable use of the edge detection and classification properties of wavelet-type representations. First we describe simple and effective techniques for image denoising and contrast enhancement based on the multiscale edge representation of images. These techniques are sufficiently flexible to successfully address the varying requirements posed by several different medical imaging modalities in common use today. Experimental results are presented to illustrate the application of these techniques to various types of medical images. Next we describe adapted waveform encoding, a technique for magnetic resonance imaging. One advantage of this technique is that it can be used to efficiently encode edge features of the object being imaged. This has a particular diagnostic application in tracking heart wall thickness during the cardiac cycle, which we present along with some experimental results along this line. We also present an analysis of the signal-to-noise ratios of images formed with this technique, as this is a factor of paramount importance in MRI. The fact that wavelet schemes tend to concentrate energy near edge features makes the result rather different than that found in standard Fourier based approaches. We indicate an exciting potential application of our technique: reducing spectral leakage in phosphorus spectroscopy.
Simulated normal gait wear testing of a highly cross-linked polyethylene tibial insert.

Abstract Polyethylene wear can compromise long-term performance of total knees. We investigated articular and backside wear rate of tibial inserts made from conventional vs highly cross-linked polyethylenes. The inserts were tested on a knee simulator at a frequency of 1.1 Hz using normal gait kinematics with a 7° posterior slope for 7 million cycles. Gravimetrically, the combined articular and backside wear rate was 23 ± 6 and 4.6 ± 2 mm 3 per million cycles for the conventional and cross-linked inserts, respectively. We independently measured articular surface wear rates, which were 15 ± 4 and 5 ± 2 mm 3 per million cycles for conventional and cross-linked inserts, respectively. Electron beam cross-linked and subsequently melted polyethylene reduced the wear rate of polyethylene on articular and backside surfaces in a cruciate-retaining total knee design when tested on a knee simulator under simulated normal gait.
Video texture cues enhance stereoscopic depth perception in a virtual reality-based, telerobotic interface

A major challenge in our telerobotic research is helping operators understand complex spatial relationships at the remote robot work site. Many researchers have reported that the technology of field-sequential displays, such as stereoscopic goggles, can be useful when depth perception is important. In applying this technology to our work, we met and explored a major limitation to field-sequential displays: the effect of target orientation. Stereoscopic depth cues do not define the depth of large, homogeneous, horizontal objects. The variance of operator's depth estimates for the same target increases as the orientation of the target's major edge is rotated from a vertical position to a horizontal position. However, drawing an appropriate texture on the surface of the feature completely overcomes the orientation factor. Further experiments explore some critical features of the texture, including texture coarseness and orientation. A final experiment shows the benefit of etching textures directly onto the surface of the graphical model compared to superimposing a texture on a window looking into a 3D model.
Multipotential stem cells and progenitors in the vertebrate retina

The vertebrate retina is derived from paired evaginations from the neural tube in embryonic development and is initially produced by progenitor cells similar to those that generate the neurons and glia of other areas of the central nervous system. In some amphibians and fish, the retina continues to grow along with the eye throughout the life of the animal. The new retinal cells are added at the ciliary margin of the eye from the mitotic activity of neural/glial stem cells in a region known as the germinal zone and are seamlessly incorporated into the existing retinal circuitry. Little is known about the cell or molecular biology of these stem cells; however, studies of retinal progenitor cells in chick and mammalian embryos have led to the identification of several factors that control their proliferation. Moreover, studies of retinal regeneration have shown that retinal stem cells can also be derived from two or perhaps three additional sources after retinal damage: (a) the retinal pigmented epithelium (RPE) in amphibians and embryonic chicks and mammals; (b) a specialized rod progenitor in fish; and (c) the Muller glial cells. While there is currently no evidence for a neural/glial stem cell in the adult mammalian retina, and the retina of the mature mammal does not show regenerative capacity after damage, there is a possibility for the reinitiation of stem cell potential at the peripheral retinal margin, from the RPE or from the Muller glial cells. The application of information derived from the studies of retinal progenitor cells in developing organisms should soon provide a test of these possibilities.
Oxide-isolated integrated Schottky logic

Integrated Schottky logic has been fabricated in an oxide-isolated technology using 5 /spl mu/m lines and spaces. The novel device uses a merged substrate p-n-p (base width /spl sime/1.0 /spl mu/m) to clamp the collector-base junction of the oxide-walled base, down-operated n-p-n transistor. Ion-implanted low-barrier PtSi-nSi Schottky diodes are used for n-p-n collector decoupling. The average propagation delay measured on a 25-stage ring oscillator (fan-in=fan-out=1) was 2.3 ns at 65 /spl mu/A/stage and 25/spl deg/C. This 150 fJ/V power-delay product is a 3.6/spl times/ improvement compared with 540 fJ/V for junction-isolated ISL (2.7 ns at 200 /spl mu/A/stage).
Pregnancy and acute baroreflex resetting in conscious rabbits

To test the hypothesis that acute resetting of baroreflex control of heart rate (HR) is enhanced during pregnancy, we determined whether the rightward shift in the baroreflex relationship between a...
Adam Citings before the Intrusion of Satan: Recontextualizing Paul's Theology of Sin and Death

The article surveys early references to the story of Adam and Eve, which are surprisingly few in number, beginning only around 200 bce, with the Book of Tobit. The common notion that Adam was punis...
Response to Letter Regarding Article, “Peripheral Nociception Associated With Surgical Incision Elicits Remote Nonischemic Cardioprotection via Neurogenic Activation of Protein Kinase C Signaling”

We appreciate Dr Madias’ recognition that our recent study1 published in Circulation represents an “advancement in the field of noninvasive cardioprotection for ischemic/reperfusion injury.” We are fully cognizant of the issues that Dr Madias raises, and we agree that interventions applied after the onset of ischemia would be the most clinically relevant because patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction typically present >30 minutes after the onset of coronary occlusion. Although studies in swine,2 dogs,3 and humans4,5 suggest the efficacy of ischemic postconditioning, Dr Madias points …
Extracting and Ingesting DDI Metadata and Digital Objects from a Data Archive into the iRODS Extension of the NARA TPAP Using the OAI-PMH

This prototype demonstrated that the migration of collections between digital libraries and preservation data archives is now possible using automated batch load for both data and metadata. We used this capability to enable collection interoperability between the H.W. Odum Institute for Research in Social Science (Odum) Data Archive and the integrated Rule Oriented Data System (iRODS) extension of the National Archives and Record Administration's (NARA) Transcontinental Persistent Archive Prototype (TPAP). We extracted data and metadata from a Dataverse data archive and ingested it into the iRODS server and metadata catalog using the OAI-PMH, Java, XML/XSL and iRODS rules and microservices. We validated ingest of the files and retained the required Terms & Conditions for the social science data after ingest.
Spatial Variability of Turbulent Fluxes in the Roughness Sublayer of an Even-Aged Pine Forest

The spatial variability of turbulent flow statistics in the roughness sublayer (RSL) of a uniform even-aged 14 m (=h) tall loblolly pine forest was investigated experimentally. Using seven existing walkup towers at this stand, high frequency velocity, temperature, water vapour and carbon dioxide concentrations were measured at 15.5 m above the ground surface from October 6 to 10 in 1997. These seven towers were separated by at least 100 m from each other. The objective of this study was to examine whether single tower turbulence statistics measurements represent the flow properties of RSL turbulence above a uniform even-aged managed loblolly pine forest as a best-case scenario for natural forested ecosystems. From the intensive space-time series measurements, it was demonstrated that standard deviations of longitudinal and vertical velocities (u;w )a nd temper- ature (T ) are more planar homogeneous than their vertical flux of momentum (u 2 ) and sensible heat (H ) counterparts. Also, the measured H is more horizontally homogeneous when compared to fluxes of other scalar entities such as CO 2 and water vapour. While the spatial variability in fluxes was significant (>15%), this unique data set confirmed that single tower measurements represent the 'canonical' structure of single-point RSL turbulence statistics, especially flux-variance relationships. Implications to extending the 'moving-equilibrium' hypothesis for RSL flows are discussed. The spatial variability in all RSL flow variables was not constant in time and varied strongly with spatially averaged friction velocity u, especially whenu was small. It is shown that flow properties derived from two-point temporal statistics such as correlation functions are more sensitive to local variability in leaf area density when compared to single point flow statistics. Specifically, that the local relation- ship between the reciprocal of the vertical velocity integral time scale (Iw) and the arrival frequency of organized structures (N u=h) predicted from a mixing-layer theory exhibited dependence on the local leaf area index. The broader implications of these findings to the measurement and modelling of RSL flows are also discussed.
Vaccinia Virus WR Gene A5L Is Required for Morphogenesis of Mature Virions

The vaccinia virus WR A5L open reading frame (corresponding to open reading frame A4L in vaccinia virus Copenhagen) encodes an immunodominant late protein found in the core of the vaccinia virion. To investigate the role of this protein in vaccinia virus replication, we have constructed a recombinant virus, vA5Li, in which the endogenous gene has been deleted and an inducible copy of the A5 gene dependent on isopropyl-beta-D-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG) for expression has been inserted into the genome. In the absence of inducer, the yield of infectious virus was dramatically reduced. However, DNA synthesis and processing, viral protein expression (except for A5), and early stages in virion formation were indistinguishable from the analogous steps in a normal infection. Electron microscopy revealed that the major vaccinia virus structural form present in cells infected with vA5Li in the absence of inducer was immature virions. Viral particles were purified from vA5Li-infected cells in the presence and absence of inducer. Both particles contained viral DNA and the full complement of viral proteins, except for A5, which was missing from particles prepared in the absence of inducer. The particles prepared in the presence of IPTG were more infectious than those prepared in its absence. The A5 protein appears to be required for the immature virion to form the brick-shaped intracellular mature virion.
Assessing and modeling standing deadwood attributes under alternative silvicultural regimes in the Acadian Forest region of Maine, USA

Estimating the amount of standing deadwood in forests is crucial for assessing wildlife habitat and determining carbon stocks. In this analysis, snags (standing dead trees) in various stages of decay were inventoried across eight silvicultural treatments in eastern spruce–fir forests in central Maine nearly 60 years after treatments were initiated. Several modeling strategies were developed to estimate number of snags per hectare in various stages of decay. An unmanaged reference area displayed the highest basal area and volume of snags (5.4 ± 3.1 m2·ha–1 and 29.4 ± 23.6 m3·ha–1, respectively, (mean ± standard deviation)), while the lowest basal area and volume (0.9 ± 1.0 m2·ha–1 and 3.1 ± 5.2 m3·ha–1) were observed in selection system with a 5-year cutting cycle. Models indicated that snag abundance was related to stand density, depth to water table, and the average harvest interval of the treatment. At a fixed stand density, approximately 140% more snags were predicted to occur in treatments with an ave...
Lunabotics Student Paper Award: The University of Alabama MOLE System

The resources on Earth are diminishing while the global population continues to increase. As we move into the future, space resources and colonization will provide a path for the survival and well being of the human race and our home planet. A sustainable robotic network could access, process, transport, and utilize the solar system's resources for mankind's benefit. The moon is an ideal target for developing and implementing the technologies needed for these tasks. Specifically, excavation will hold a key role for lunar missions and is the first step to utilizing the resources found on the moon. While excavation will play an important part in lunar missions, there will still be many other tasks that would benefit from robotic assistance. An excavator might not be as well suited for these tasks as other types of robots. For example a lightweight rover would do well with reconnaissance, and a mobile gripper arm could be fit for manipulation, while an excavator would be comparatively clumsy and slow in both cases. Even within the realm of excavation it would be beneficial to have different types of excavators for different tasks, as there are on Earth.The University of Alabama Lunabotics team has made it their goal to design and build a robot that could not only compete in the NASA Lunabotics Mining Competition, but could also be a multipurpose tool for future NASA missions. The resulting system is called the Modular Omnidirectional Lunar Explorer (MOLE). Using the Systems Engineering process and three years of Lunabotics experience, the 2013 Alabama Lunabotics team, the Lunar Tide, has optimized the MOLE system to compete in the 2013 Lunabotics Mining Competition.
Critical behavior from Schrodinger representation

The Schrodinger equation for Φ4 field theory is reduced to an infinite set of integral equations. A systematic truncation scheme is proposed and it is solved in second order to obtain the approximate critical behavior of the renormalized mass. The correlation exponent is given as a solution of a transcendental equation. It is in good agreement with the Ising model in all physical dimensions.
Phase Equilibria in the System La2O3—Iron Oxide in Air

Phase equilibria data are presented for compositions in the system La2O3-iron oxide in air. Liquidus and solidus curves were obtained by the quenching method in the iron-rich portion of the system. The remainder of the diagram was determined using a strip-furnace technique. Two compounds have been found, the ortho-rhombic perovskite LaFeO3 and a compound with the magnetoplumbite structure corresponding to a composition LaFe12O19. LaFeO3 was determined to melt congruently at about 1890°C. whereas LaFe12O19 has both a stability minimum and maximum at 1380° and 1421°C., respectively. The iron-rich portion of the system is essentially ternary whereas the remainder can be considered to be a simple binary. Liquid compositions have been determined and are plotted in terms of the ternary system La2O3-Fe2O3-FeO.
Tissue resident memory T cells create genetically distinct immune microenvironments within melanoma metastasis

Meeting abstracts Blockade of inhibitory immune checkpoints (ICPs) improves survival in melanoma patients. Interestingly, the expression of these ICPs in most tumor tissues including melanoma is restricted to only a subset of tumor-infiltrating immune cells (TIICs). Here, we utilize single cell
Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose [The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same].

Reading the study by Haider and colleagues1 in this issue of Medicare Care provoked profound frustration and despair. Frustration because of limited progress towards the Healthy People 2020 goal “to achieve health equity, eliminate disparities, and improve the health of all groups”.2 Despair because of the realization that descriptive scientific work has little ability to change pervasive racial/ethnic healthcare disparities. Fifty years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King was purported to have said “Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhuman.”3 Agreed. Critiquing the disturbing work by Todd et al4 as a graduate student opened the Pandora’s box of social injustice in healthcare to which I had been ignorant. The unacceptable truth is that sweeping, widespread change to promote equity in health care in the United States has not occurred. Not with the election of President Obama. Not with the enactment of the Affordable Care Act.
Evaluating Alternative Aftercare Models for Ex-Offenders

This study examined the role played by aftercare following (mainly) inpatient community-based treatment in the outcomes of criminal ex-offenders with substance use disorders. Two hundred and seventy individuals who had been released from the criminal justice system were randomly assigned to either a Therapeutic Community (TC), recovery homes called Oxford Houses (OHs), or usual care settings (UA). The OHs and TCs are residential settings that emphasized socialization and abstinence from drugs and alcohol, but OHs do not include the formal therapeutic change interventions common to TCs, nor did they include any on-site access to drug abuse or health care professionals. UA involved what occurred naturally after completing treatment, which included staying with friends or family members, their own house or apartment, homeless shelters, or other settings. Longer lengths of stay in either the TCs or OHs were associated with increased employment, and reduced alcohol and drug use. Those assigned to the OH condition received more money from employment, worked more days, achieved higher continuous alcohol sobriety rates, and had more favorable cost-benefit ratios.
Terrorism, History, and Historians: A View from a Social Scientist

The United States was born of a violent revolution, yet political violence occupies a unique position in the collective American psyche. The historian Beverly Gage states that until recently historians had a difficult time addressing how social violence shaped America’s past; many of them assumed that “consensus rather than conflict” was the driving force behind the formation of the state. Further, she points out, even today most historians have little to say on the subject of terrorism. By the late 1960s, when the country was gripped by violence “everywhere,” Gage writes, “Americans seemed to be thinking and talking about violence, except within the historical profession.” She also highlights Richard Hofstadter’s exhortation to his fellow historians to get involved and place the ongoing debate over violence within a sound historical perspective.1 Although Hofstadter’s admonition was certainly appropriate, historians were not the only group surprised by the steadily increasing violence in the United States at that time; social scientists were as well. In the immediate aftermath of World War II, the United States was flush with total victory in a war that was seen almost unanimously as a battle between good and evil, and the nation began relishing its status as a “superpower.” This lack of moral ambiguity continued during the height of the Cold War. As the country basked in its self-perception of being at the pinnacle of military, economic, and political power, American social science scholarship remained largely self-congratulatory. Violence was seen as an outcome of institutional and social structural imperfections found only in so-called third world nations. In the democratic West, common citizens were thought to be empowered by their ability to voluntarily form lobbying groups and to change the offending social order, thereby eliminating the need for violent revolutions. Yet reality stood in the way of this rosy requiem of social conflict in the West in the 1960s and 1970s. In the context of this incongruity, the prominent political scientist Harry Eckstein lamented in 1964: “When today’s social science has become intellectual history, one question will certainly be asked about it: why did social science, which had produced so many studies on so many subjects,
Individual Responsibility and Community Solidarity — The Swiss Health Care System

The balance between respecting choice, autonomy, and individual responsibility and ensuring that no one in need of health care suffers for lack of financial resources has worked well for Switzerland. But this health care system is not without its challenges.
Behavioral and endocrine traits of obesity-prone and obesity-resistant rats on macronutrient diets

Patterns of eating behavior, body weight gain, and hormone changes were examined in normal-weight albino Sprague-Dawley rats on macronutrient diets. These diets consisted of either three separate j...
Evidence for progenitors of chronic lymphocytic leukemia B cells that undergo intraclonal differentiation and diversification

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from five patients with IgG+ B-type chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) were analyzed for the presence of clone-specific Ig H chain variable region gene mRNA transcripts linked to C mu and/or C alpha. This was assessed by (1) comparing the lengths of portions of the VHDJH of the IgG+ CLL clones with those of the mu and alpha isotype-expressing B cells, (2) performing clone-specific endonuclease digestion studies, and (3) determining the DNA sequences of the mu and alpha isotype-expressing cDNA. Thus, when B-cell mRNA from these five patients were reverse transcribed with C gamma-specific primers and then amplified by polymerase chain reaction, dominant cDNA were found with lengths corresponding to those of the IgG+ CLL B cell. In addition, in four cases, cDNA of lengths identical to those of the CLL B cell were detected when mRNA was reverse transcribed and amplified using c mu- and/or C alpha-specific primers, strongly suggesting clonal relatedness. These CLL-related mu- and alpha- expressing cDNA were present in greater amounts that unrelated (non- CLL) mu- and alpha-expressing cDNA from normal B cells that used genes of the same VH family. When the sequences of these CLL-related C mu- and C alpha-expressing cDNA were compared with those of the IgG+ CLL clones, it was clear that they were derived from the same ancestral gene as the IgG-expressing CLL B cell, thus documenting their common origin. Finally, nucleotide point mutations were observed in the mu- and alpha-expressing cDNA of certain patients, indicating divergence with the CLL. These data suggest that IgM+ B cells, which are precursors of the leukemic B cells, exist in increased numbers in the blood of most patients with IgG+ B-CELL and that these cells may differentiate, accumulate V genes mutations, and undergo isotype switching in vivo. In addition, the data are consistent with a sequential-hit model for the evolution of CLL.
Three decades of nanopore sequencing

A long-held goal in sequencing has been to use a voltage-biased nanoscale pore in a membrane to measure the passage of a linear, single-stranded (ss) DNA or RNA molecule through that pore. With the development of enzyme-based methods that ratchet polynucleotides through the nanopore, nucleobase-by-nucleobase, measurements of changes in the current through the pore can now be decoded into a DNA sequence using an algorithm. In this Historical Perspective, we describe the key steps in nanopore strand-sequencing, from its earliest conceptualization more than 25 years ago to its recent commercialization and application.
Validity and Vitality in the Transmission of Tradition

Whether it is an action in a ritual or a motif in a narrative, no element could be formed and transformed without the geographic, economic, political and religious contextual influences. In such processes, new rites and motifs constantly revise or replace the existent elements so as to adapt to the new social milieu. Based on analysis of recent fieldwork on rituals and narratives, the concepts of validity and vitality in the transmission of tradition have been briefly discussed so as to make deep reflection and discussion on reasons of traditions' surviving and developing or perishing after various affections.