cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Curative Effect of Radix Astragali Injection on Peripheral Blood Leukopenia Caused by Viral Infection

[Objective] To observe the therapeutic effect of Radix Astragali Injection (RAI) on peripheral blood leukopenia caused by viral infection in Children. [Methods] Sixty confirmed cases of viral infection complicated with peripheral blood leukopenia (4.0 × 109/L) were divided into RAI group (group A) and control group (group B). Group B received routine anti-virus treatment and supportive treatment; group A was given intravenous drip of RAI 5-10 mL plus 0.555 mmol/L glucose solution 50 -100mL (one time per day for 7 days) on the basis of routine treatment. The number of peripheral white blood cells, incidence of concurrent bacterial infection and duration of hospitalization were compared in the two groups. [Results] After 7-day treatment, the number of peripheral white blood cells rised to 5.0 × 109/L in 30 cases of group A and in 23 cases of group B; no case in group A was complicated with bacterial infection but there were 2 cases in group A (P 0.01). No significant difference of immunological parameters and fever period was found in the two groups (P 0.05). The hospitalization period was 10.57 卤 7.83 days in group A and 12.40 ± 9.23 days in group B, the difference being not statistically significant ( P 0.05) . [Conclusion] RAI has certain therapeutic effect on peripheral blood leukopenia caused by viral infection in children.
Emphatically giving to full play subjectivity of the educated in medical ethics education

In medical ethics education,individual subjectivity,including subject consciousness,emotion,will and action,is characterized by "self" serving,independence,activity and creativity. For many yeaars,there has been a lack of effectiveness and attraction in medical ethics education due to the ignorance of the subjectivity of the educated. How to initiate an individual subjectivity to ensure a more efficient medical ethics education has become an issue that requires our research in practice and the key to the creation and improvement of medical ethics educational models and the promotion of effectiveness.
Pediatric Bone Drugs: Calcium and Vitamin D

In this chapter, we discuss the role of calcium and vitamin D as therapeutic agents to sustain pediatric bone health. Vitamin D acts primarily through effects on its metabolite, calcitriol, to ensure the availability of calcium, and plays a key role in calcium homeostasis. Deficiency of these nutrients is harmful to the skeleton, resulting in secondary hyperparathyroidism and, in severe cases, rickets or osteomalacia. Pediatric studies evaluating the optimal dose of calcium and vitamin D supplementation, as well as the optimal level of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] for improving pediatric bone health, are limited. There are also limited data as to what represents the ideal pediatric vitamin D treatment dose. This chapter will review the sources and metabolism of calcium and vitamin D, the mechanism of their effect on bone, the significant pediatric studies that have shaped our understanding of this topic, and current recommendations guiding our use of calcium and vitamin D as pediatric bone drugs.
Parenting Among Adolescents and Young Adults with Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection in the United States: Challenges, Unmet Needs, and Opportunities

Given the realistic expectations of HIV-infected adolescents and young adults (AYA) to have children and start families, steps must be taken to ensure that youth are prepared to deal with the challenges associated with their HIV and parenting. Literature reviews were conducted to identify published research and practice guidelines addressing parenting or becoming parents among HIV-infected AYA in the United States. Research articles or practice guidelines on this topic were not identified. Given the paucity of information available on this topic, this article provides a framework for the development of appropriate interventions and guidelines for use in clinical and community-based settings. First, the social, economic, and sexual and reproductive health challenges facing HIV-infected AYA in the United States are summarized. Next, family planning considerations, including age-appropriate disclosure of HIV status to those who are perinatally infected, and contraceptive and preconception counseling are described. The impact of early childbearing on young parents is discussed and considerations are outlined during the preconception, antenatal, and postnatal periods with regard to antiretroviral medications and clinical care guidelines. The importance of transitioning AYA from pediatric or adolescent to adult-centered medical care is highlighted. Finally, a comprehensive approach is suggested that addresses not only medical needs but also emphasizes ways to mitigate the impact of social and economic factors on the health and well-being of these young parents and their children.
A D3R prospective evaluation of machine learning for protein-ligand scoring

We assess the performance of several machine learning-based scoring methods at protein-ligand pose prediction, virtual screening, and binding affinity prediction. The methods and the manner in which they were trained make them sufficiently diverse to evaluate the utility of various strategies for training set curation and binding pose generation, but they share a novel approach to classification in the context of protein-ligand scoring. Rather than explicitly using structural data such as affinity values or information extracted from crystal binding poses for training, we instead exploit the abundance of data available from high-throughput screening to approach the problem as one of discriminating binders from non-binders. We evaluate the performance of our various scoring methods in the 2015 D3R Grand Challenge and find that although the merits of some features of our approach remain inconclusive, our scoring methods performed comparably to a state-of-the-art scoring function that was fit to binding affinity data.
Ocular von Hippel-Lindau Disease – clinical characteristics and future directions

ABSTRACTIntroduction: von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease is an autosomal dominant, inherited multisystem cancer syndrome involving mutations in the VHL tumor suppressor gene. The hallmark lesion in ocular VHL disease is the retinal capillary hemangioblastoma (RCH), a benign vascular tumor capable of causing visual loss through exudative changes.Areas covered: Combining epidemiological and clinical data with an analysis of recent treatment and outcomes literature, this review aims to update the clinician on research findings and upcoming potential therapies. We describe the clinical features of ocular VHL disease and the factors that can help prognose visual outcome in affected patients and provide a summary of current treatment modalities.Expert commentary: We provide an update on the advent of genetic testing for pathogenic mutations in the VHL gene which has enabled earlier diagnoses and more detailed prognoses in affected patients, and have opened the way to future potential treatments aimed at the downst...
A scheme on adaption detection of large-capacity wind turbines to the power grid

It was presented that a design scheme on adaption detection device for large-capacity wind turbines to the power grid, based on back-to-back voltage source converter parallel system. The voltage-current dual closed loop control strategy was used in converter modules connecting to power grid, to maintain the voltage of DC capacitor at a predetermined value, and make the detection device run with the unity power factor. In converters connected to a wind turbine, it was designed that master-slave control strategy including feedward control segment. Voltage control was used in the master module to maintain the output voltage of the detection device at the expected value, and simulate the interconnected voltage of wind turbines. Besides, voltage disturbances, such as frequency disturbances, voltage fluctuation disturbances, negative sequence voltage disturbances, etc., were also simulated in the master module. In slave modules, current control was used to ensure the module output current can match its own capacity, and meet the bidirectional power transmission requirements further. According to design requirements, using actual parameters of AC / DC and DC / AC converters made by the Infineon Technologies, parameters of key components in the detection device were designed and calculated in detail. Simulation of designed adaptive detection device was carried out by using PSCAD/EMTDC, in accordance with the above proposed control strategy and designed parameters of components. The device can work in 35kV rated voltage; output voltage frequency disturbance from 45Hz to 60Hz; output negative sequence voltage disturbance with variable amplitude and phase, imbalance less than 10%; output voltage fluctuation disturbances, amplitude fluctuations between −10% and +10%, frequency from 0.5Hz to 25Hz. The output voltage imbalance of the detection device ranges from 0 to 4%, and the total harmonic distortion is between 0 and 5%.
Divine Healing in Australian Protestantism, 1870–1940

The topic of divine healing was not at the forefront of the Protestant movement during its first three centuries as it reacted to what was seen as an exaggerated and often fallacious miraculous supernaturalism in Roman Catholicism. By the middle of the nineteenth century the Protestant churches in Britain, America, Europe and Australia had to consider divine healing in light of a newly emerging holiness movement. This article examines the developments in practice and theological perspective of the Protestant churches in Australia, particularly as they responded to the clear claims of the growing Pentecostal movement in the nation and the sacramental perspective on healing supported by the High Anglican sector of the Australian Church of England.
A receptor-based analysis of local ecosystems in the human brain

Abstract Background As a complex system, the brain is a self-organizing entity that depends on local interactions among cells. Its regions (anatomically defined nuclei and areas) can be conceptualized as cellular ecosystems, but the similarity of their functional profiles is poorly understood. The study used the Allen Human Brain Atlas to classify 169 brain regions into hierarchically-organized environments based on their expression of 100 G protein-coupled neurotransmitter receptors, with no a priori reference to the regions’ positions in the brain’s anatomy or function. The analysis was based on hierarchical clustering, and multiscale bootstrap resampling was used to estimate the reliability of detected clusters. Results The study presents the first unbiased, hierarchical tree of functional environments in the human brain. The similarity of brain regions was strongly influenced by their anatomical proximity, even when they belonged to different functional systems. Generally, spatial vicinity trumped long-range projections or network connectivity. The main cluster of brain regions excluded the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. The nuclei of the amygdala formed a cluster irrespective of their striatal or pallial origin. In its receptor profile, the hypothalamus was more closely associated with the midbrain than with the thalamus. The cerebellar cortical areas formed a tight and exclusive cluster. Most of the neocortical areas (with the exception of some occipital areas) clustered in a large, statistically well supported group that included no other brain regions. Conclusions This study adds a new dimension to the established classifications of brain divisions. In a single framework, they are reconsidered at multiple scales—from individual nuclei and areas to their groups to the entire brain. The analysis provides support for predictive models of brain self-organization and adaptation.
Influence of grinding media and water quality on flotation performance of gold bearing pyrite

Abstract Flotation performance is strongly dependent on the surface properties of the constituent mineral particles, and may therefore serve as a diagnostic tool to evaluate grinding chemistry interactions. The surface properties can be altered by numerous factors such as the type of grinding media used in the preparation of the flotation feed, the presence of chemical species in the process water, and the characteristics of flotation reagents added. This paper investigates the influence of grinding media (forged steel, 18% chromium and ceramic) and water quality (tap water and synthetic process water) on floatability of gold bearing pyrite using XPS and EDTA extraction technique. The grinding of pyrite ore was performed in a Magotteaux Mill® which allowed better simulation of plant chemical conditions by controlling pH and pulp potential during the grinding. Cupric ions were added as an activator prior to the grinding. This work demonstrated that there is no significant effect of water quality on flotation performance of pyrite. The results also showed that the pyrite recovery was slightly higher when the grinding was performed with the forged steel media rather than with the chromium media or the ceramic media. XPS and EDTA extraction technique demonstrated that the forged steel media produced more iron hydroxide species than the 18% chromium or the ceramic media, indicating the high corrosion rate of the forged media. XPS technique failed to explain the influence of different grinding media on the floatability of pyrite from its ore probably due to the insensitivity of XPS technique to detect the presence of a low amount of copper species on the surface of the particles collected by flotation. The results obtained from this study confirmed that the selection of grinding media may be important to maximize pyrite recovery by flotation. The conclusions should be limited to ores low (
Development of a virtual supermarket shopping task for cognitive remediation of memory and executive functions in schizophrenia

Impairment of executive and memory functions was repeatedly observed in various neuropsychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia. As the pharmacological treatment does not influence the deficit sufficiently, the significance of cognitive remediation increases in importance. The presented study introduces the virtual Supermarket Shopping Task (vSST), a novel method aimed at memory and executive functions, designed in ecologically valid environment. The results of the first pilot study showed significant difference in the performance between the males and females. In the second pilot, the difference between males and females was eliminated subsequently to adding other items besides groceries to the shopping list. The debriefing of participants pointed out the importance of elected encoding strategy. Considering adjustable parameters that allow us to increase the task difficulty and complexity, vSST represents potentially well-adjustable remediation method.
Comparison Between S2-Alar-Iliac Screw Fixation and Iliac Screw Fixation in Adult Deformity Surgery: Reoperation Rates and Spinopelvic Parameters:

Study Design:Retrospective cohort study.Objective:The S2-alar-iliac (S2AI) technique has been described as an alternative method for pelvic fixation in place of iliac screws (ISs) in spinal deformi...
Access to High Pediatric-Readiness Emergency Care in the United States.

Objective To determine the geographic accessibility of emergency departments (EDs) with high pediatric readiness by assessing the percentage of US children living within a 30-minute drive time of an ED with high pediatric readiness, as defined by collaboratively developed published guidelines. Study design In this cross-sectional analysis, we examined geographic access to an ED with high pediatric readiness among US children. Pediatric readiness was assessed using the weighted pediatric readiness score (WPRS) of US hospitals based on the 2013 National Pediatric Readiness Project (NPRP) survey. A WPRS of 100 indicates that the ED meets the essential guidelines for pediatric readiness. Using estimated drive time from ZIP code centroids, we determined the proportions of US children living within a 30-minute drive time of an ED with a WPRS of 100 (maximum), 94.3 (90th percentile), and 83.6 (75th percentile). Results Although 93.7% of children could travel to any ED within 30 minutes, only 33.7% of children could travel to an ED with a WPRS of 100, 55.3% could travel to an ED with a WPRS at or above the 90th percentile, and 70.2% could travel to an ED with a WPRS at or above the 75th percentile. Among children within a 30-minute drive of an ED with the maximum WPRS, 90.9% lived closer to at least 1 alternative ED with a WPRS below the maximum. Access varied across census divisions, ranging from 14.9% of children in the East South Center to 56.2% in the Mid-Atlantic for EDs scoring a maximum WPRS. Conclusion A significant proportion of US children do not have timely access to EDs with high pediatric readiness.
Patterns of symptomatology over time and their relation to outcome

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between characteristics of the symptomatology change curve (i.e., initial symptomatology, rate of change, curvature) and final treatment outcome. The sample consisted of community clients (N = 492) seen by 204 student therapists at a training clinic. A multilevel approach to account for therapist effects was followed. Linear, quadratic, and cubic trajectories of anxiety and depression symptomatology, as assessed by the Shorter Psychotherapy and Counseling Evaluation (sPaCE; Halstead, Leach, & Rust, 2007), were estimated. The multilevel quadratic trajectory best fit the data and depicted a descending curve (partial “U”-shaped). The quadratic growth parameters (intercept, slope, quadratic) were then used as predictors of both symptom change and reliable improvement in general symptomatology (pre- to post-treatment), as assessed by the Outcome Questionnaire-45.2 (OQ-45.2; Lambert, Hansen, Umpress, Lunen, Okiishi et al., 1996). The quadratic growth parameters of depression and anxiety showed predictive power for both symptom change and reliable improvement in general symptomatology. Patterns for two different successful outcomes (1-change in general symptomatology and 2-reliable improvement) were identified. For symptom change, successful outcomes followed a pattern of low initial levels of depression and anxiety, high initial rates of change (slope), and high (flattening after initial drop) curvature, and the pattern applied to both within- and between-therapist levels. For reliable improvement at within-therapist level, successful outcomes followed a pattern of high initial rate of change (slope) and high curvature. For reliable improvement at between-therapist level, successful outcomes were associated with a pattern of low initial levels of depression and anxiety. Implications for clinical practice are discussed.
Family Background and School Effects on Student Achievement: A Multilevel Analysis of the Coleman Data:

Background/ContextA main objective of the Equality of Educational Opportunity Survey (EEOS), conducted in 1965, was to document the lack of availability of equal educational opportunities for minor...
Confidence Estimation Methods for Partially Supervised Information Extraction.

Text documents convey valuable information about entities and relations between entities that can be exploited in structured form for data mining, retrieval, and integration. A promising direction is a family of partially-supervised relation extraction systems that require little manual training. However, the output of such systems tend to be noisy, and hence it is crucial to be able to estimate the quality of the extracted information. We present Expectation-Maximization algorithms for automatically evaluating the quality of the extraction patterns and derived relation tuples. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our method on a variety of relations.
Circadian pituitary adrenal rhythms.

A circadian periodicity of plasma corticosteroid levels has been well established in many species, including the human (Migeon, Tyler, Mahoney, Florentin, Castle, Bliss and Samuels, 1956; Hal berg, 1969; Dusseau and Meier, 1971; Singley and Chavin, 1971). The present report will attempt to define the characteristics of such periodicity and describe experimental approaches, both in animals and humans, which have been designed to delineate the factors underlying this periodicity.
The Origins of Climate Science—The Idea of Energy Balance

Heat is the kinetic motion of atoms or molecules. The Laws of Thermodynamics were developed in the middle of the nineteenth century. These laws state that energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only change form; that two nearby systems, each internally in thermodynamic equilibrium, but not in equilibrium with each other, will exchange matter or energy and reach a mutual thermodynamic equilibrium; and, as the temperature approaches absolute zero, the entropy of a system approaches a minimum. Entropy is energy that is no longer available for doing mechanical work; it is the random motion of atoms or molecules; it is waste heat; it cannot be used to do anything: it is Mother Nature’s tax on everything. The ability of some gases to absorb and reradiate energy and to heat the air was discovered and measured in the middle of the nineteenth century. The idea of the climate being the result of a balance between the energy received and emitted by the Earth arose but lacked a formal analysis. The concept of a ‘black body,’ a perfect absorber and emitter of energy was developed in the latter half of that century. It formed the basis for understanding the energy balance of incoming radiation from the Sun and outgoing radiation from the Earth, and hence the planetary temperature.
El "continuum" oralidad-“literacidad” en entornos biculturales y bilingües: el gallego y el español nuevo mexicano tradicional

In the Iberian Peninsula, Galician, a language spoken in Northwest Spain that, after reaching a high point of development as a written language in the Middle Ages, survived as a mostly oral language for centuries, finds itself today looking for a standard variety that would help it survive and define its own space between Portuguese and Castilian Spanish. In the United States, Traditional New Mexican Spanish (TNMS), a variety of Spanish associated with New Mexico and Southern Colorado and recognized as the oldest known variety of Spanish in the Americas, is about to disappear, or has already disappeared, immersed within different linguistic varieties and standard forms of Spanish and English. Both Galician and TNMS have historically gone through stages of literacy and orality. With the goal to examine the relationship between cultural and linguistic identity as it relates to the orality-literacy continuum, this article shares preliminary results of a research project in progress that includes a comparative look at the socio-linguistic situations of Galician in Spain and Traditional New Mexican Spanish in the US.
Understanding Γ(ϱ → πγ)Γ(ω → πγ)

Abstract In the usual quark-model treatment of the radiative decay of vector mesons, assumption is made that the photon is emitted by the valence quarks alone. This assumption leads to the prediction of the amplitude ratio A(ϱ → πγ) A(ω → πγ) = 1 3 that is nearly independent of detailed dynamics. The discrepancy with experimental results implies that emission of photon by the sea quarks should be included.
Kinetics of Li-Mediated N2 Electroreduction

Electrochemical ammonia production is a possible sustainable alternative to the energy-intense Haber-Bosch process. An active and selective catalyst for electrochemical nitrogen reduction is thus highly desired. Developing a more active and selective catalyst requires detailed kinetic studies; however, poor selectivity and low rates of nitrogen electroreduction on many candidate materials challenge kinetic analysis. Li-mediated nitrogen electroreduction provides sufficient nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) rates for kinetic analysis. In this issue of Joule, Manthiram and coworkers perform a detailed examination of NRR kinetics for this system. They further use the obtained information to optimize the reaction conditions for electrochemical ammonia formation.
Ideation-Execution Transition in Product Development: Experimental Analysis

Bringing a new product to market involves both a creative ideation stage, and an execution stage. When time-to-market constraints are binding it is an important question how to divide limited time between the two stages and who should make this decision. We introduce a laboratory experiment that closely resembles this setting: it features a product development task with an open design space, a downstream cost increase and two development stages. We show that performance is significantly worse when designers choose for themselves when to transition from ideation to execution and that decision control explains a large share of performance variation even after controlling for individual differences. How the time is allocated between ideation and execution does not affect mean performance, but later transition increases risk. One driver of poor design outcomes in the designer-initiated transition regime are delays in physical construction and testing of designs. We show that such delays can be prevented by "nudging" designers towards early prototyping. However, the most important performance driver is the lack of task structure in endogenous regimes, which can be remedied by demanding a concrete, performance-oriented deliverable prior to a transition.
Sexual and Reproductive Health Web Sites: An Analysis of Content for Sexual and Gender Minority Youth

Purpose:Sexual and gender minority (SGM) youth face risks for negative sexual and reproductive health (SRH) outcomes; it is critical to provide these populations with health education that is both ...
Therapy Response Imaging in Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Malignancies

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), cholangiocarcinoma, and pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) are the most common primary hepatobiliary and pancreatic cancers and are associated with poor survival. With improvements in anticancer therapy during recent decades, assessment of treatment response has become more significant and different methods have been utilized in evaluating response to therapy. While conventional methods rely solely on size reduction, newer techniques focus on changes in tumor functional features as a response to treatment. In assessing HCC tumors response, WHO and RECIST only considered tumor shrinkage as a response to treatment. With the introduction of locoregional and molecular-targeted therapies in HCC treatment, the limitations of size-based criteria were addressed by development of new criteria that considered functional imaging parameters such as tumor enhancement. Functional criteria such as Choi, RECICL, EASL criteria, and mRECIST mostly focus on the viability/functionality of the tumor and are considered more accurate in assessing treatment response. In addition, new advanced technologies like CTPI, DWI, IVIM, MRS, MR-PWI, FDG-PET/CT, and PET/MRI can detect response at molecular level and can assess treatment response before any morphological changes take place. Similar to HCC, functional criteria using modalities like FDG-PET/CT, PET/MRI, DCE-MRI, and DWI are also being utilized in the evaluation of cholangiocarcinoma and PDAC in addition to conventional size criteria to detect early changes of treatment response.
Direct Links: Using E-mail to Connect Preservice Teachers, Experienced Teachers, and High School Students Within an Undergraduate Teacher Preparation Program

Much of pre-service teacher education at the undergraduate level is based on indirect links between those preparing to teach and those who spend their days in schools. This article describes two kinds of direct links based in the culminating courses required for state certification to teach at the secondary level through an undergraduate teacher education program: one between pre-service teachers and experienced teachers and one between pre-service teachers and high school students. Consisting primarily of weekly email exchanges, these dialogues constitute a unique forum for learning and teaching for all participants. The benefits participants identify—including the creation of a space that allows for immediate, frequent, individualized communication, careful analysis and reflection, and insights into others’ perspectives—as well as the drawbacks—including time constraints, access problems, and the limits of email as a medium—offer new angles on perennial challenges in teacher preparation and in education in general as well as raise new issues for teacher educators to consider.
Base Station Location Optimization in Cellular Wireless Networks using Heuristic Search Algorithms

Heuristic Search techniques such as Genetic Algorithms, Simulated Annealing, Tabu Search and Random Walk Algorithms have been proposed as useful approaches for difficult global optimization problems. We focus on one such problem that arises in the design of cellular mobile communication systems: the optimal location of base stations. We investigate important parameter settings for each algorithm and then compare them with each other using a common neighborhood definition to ensure fairness. The results suggest that Tabu Search and Genetic Algorithms perform well on this problem, with Tabu Search providing high-quality solutions consistently.
Justice: The Racial Motive We All Have and Need

This essay posits that justice is the core value epitomizing our moment. Justice is violated when positive outcomes are undeserved, and the felt sense of injustice motivates a need for retribution. Because politics involves allocation (distribution and redistribution), deservingness is a core appraisal of “who gets what” and therefore justice is fundamental for politics. This is especially germane to race, ethnicity, and politics scholars. I present a few core tenets of justice theory, and argue that political science can take advantage of the moment to engage the concept of justice; especially as it relates to the study of racial attitudes and the identification of racial enablers—those ostensible non-racists who facilitate the status quo. Summarily, I propose that justice can unify debates over prejudice and politics, and advance our scholarly understanding of how well-intentioned people—regardless of their identities, or ideological or partisan labels—can facilitate racism, racial inequality, and injustice.
Guardians at the Gate: the Career Paths and Professional Development of Private U.S. Immigration Lawyers

This paper presents preliminary findings from a qualitative study of 71 U.S. immigration lawyers who are engaged in private practice in the New York City area. The study is designed to explore the professional development, socialization and ethical decisionmaking of this segment of the bar. This first paper focuses on the lawyers' backgrounds, career paths and professional education. It describes, inter alia, the unusual diversity of this bar, the lawyers' reasons for practicing immigration law, their introduction to legal practice and their networks. Ultimately, the goal of the project is not only to better understand the private immigration bar, but to enhance our understanding of the professional development, organization and socialization of the U.S. legal profession.
Getting Into ‘Good Trouble’: An Interview with History is Illuminating

SPECTRA editors Sarah Plummer and Shaun Respess interview a group of rogue historians called History is Illuminating about their work installing unofficial interpretive signs along Monument Avenue in Richmond, Virginia following public protests and discourse surrounding Confederate monuments in Summer 2020.
2014 Drexel Law Review Symposium: Erisa at 40 (Foreward)

ERISA, arguably the last major piece of social legislation of the last century, and the subject of this Symposium Issue of the Drexel Law Review, will celebrate its fortieth birthday at about the time of this Issue's publication. As is common with decennial anniversaries, ERISA's fortieth birthday provides an opportunity to pause, to remember, to reflect, to evaluate, and to take stock. And, in more or less equal measures, that is what we hope this Symposium Issue accomplishes.
A 4-channel diversity QAM receiver for broadband wireless communications

Robust wireless communication at tens of Mb/s in a limited bandwidth requires sophisticated techniques to mitigate impairments such as adjacent-channel interference (ACI), co-channel interference (CCI), and multipath. Spatial diversity minimizes the effects of such impairments by using multiple received signals from spatially-distinct antennas to nullify directional interference. This 42 Mb/s diversity QAM receiver, implemented in a 0.6 /spl mu/m CMOS process, includes a 4-channel 1-7 MBaud demodulator with variable channel selection, adaptive antenna combiner, matched filter, adaptive equalizer, and synchronization.
The Primary Structure of Staphylococcal Enterotoxin B II. ISOLATION, COMPOSITION, AND SEQUENCE OF CHYMOTRYPTIC PEPTIDES

Abstract Oxidized and reduced carboxymethylated enterotoxin B was digested with chymotrypsin. The peptides were fractionated on AG1-X2 and Dowex 50W-X2, and further purified by paper chromatography and electrophoresis. A total of 67 pure peptides was isolated and their sequences were determined completely or partially. These peptides provide important overlaps of tryptic peptides previously isolated and sequenced. Since most of the overlaps involve only a single residue, the complete primary structure of enterotoxin B could not be elucidated.
Project AZORIAN: The CIA and the Raising of the K-129, by Norman Polmar and Michael White

Norman Polmar and Michael White offer the latest account of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency's Cold War attempt to recover a sunken Soviet nuclear-armed submarine. Named Project AZORIAN, this i...
UDel: refining a method of named entity generation

This report describes the methods and results of a system developed for the GREC Named Entity Challenge 2010. We detail the refinements made to our 2009 submission and present the output of the self-evaluation on the development data set.
Citizen Participation in the Budget Process and Local Government Accountability: Case Studies of Organizational Learning from the United States and South Korea

Citizen participation in budgeting can be a governmental mechanism to minimize organizational learning pathologies resulting from sole reliance on an administrative accountability model. This study analyzes case studies of Los Angeles and Bukgu, South Korea, to show how participative budgeting combines exploration and refinement strategies to create processes that foster information exchange between citizens and public officials. Although the analysis finds representativeness problems in both cases, scholars, administrators, and citizen advocates should have an interest in the narratives on how cities construct and refine processes that can improve citizen-administrator information exchange.
Anatomical and physiological evidence for D 1 and D 2 dopamine receptor colocalization in neostriatal neurons

Despite the importance of dopamine signaling, it remains unknown if the two major subclasses of dopamine receptors exist on the same or distinct populations of neurons. Here we used confocal microscopy to demonstrate that virtually all striatal neurons, both in vitro and in vivo, contained dopamine receptors of both classes. We also provide functional evidence for such colocalization: in essentially all neurons examined, fenoldopam, an agonist of the D1 subclass of receptors, inhibited both the Na+/K+ pump and tetrodotoxin (TTX)-sensitive sodium channels, and quinpirole, an agonist of the D2 subclass of receptors, activated TTX-sensitive sodium channels. Thus D1 and D2 classes of ligands may functionally interact in virtually all dopamine-responsive neurons within the basal ganglia.
Party Agency and the Religious—Secular Cleavage in Post-Communist Countries: The Case of Romania:

Research focusing on several post-communist countries has found evidence of social cleavage effects on political behaviour similar to those found in Western Europe. In some post-communist countries, however, social cleavage effects appear far weaker (if at all). To understand why this is the case, I perform a case study of Romania, focusing on the religious—secular cleavage. Drawing upon research that emphasises the role of parties in forming cleavages, I argue that the reason for the absence of social cleavage effects is due to party competition for the same group of voters by parties from opposing ends of the ideological spectrum. By shifting their positions, some parties have prevented the appearance of cleavages by shaping individuals' perceptions of the parties and, in doing so, have even altered individuals' own left—right self-placements.
On-wafer calibration techniques for measurement of microwave circuits and devices on thin substrates

Two sets of on-wafer microstrip calibration standards were fabricated on 50 /spl mu/m GaAs and 25 /spl mu/m polyimide substrates for the purpose of measuring microwave circuits and devices up to 50 GHz. The accuracies of one and two tier LRM and TRL calibration techniques were investigated on PHEMT devices. Substantial improvements were found with the use of a weight function in the averaging of two tier TRL and LRM-TRL calibrations. The dependence of the isolation on the spacing between the input and output probes was also determined for these thin substrates. >
Accepting the Unthinkable

The editor of this journal has drawn our attention to "an incredible story".1 He juxtaposed two 1994 New York Times articles2,3 and a letter to the editor published in 19734 that relate to an important article published in 1973.5 Comment about the matter has also appeared in Science.6 The fundamental issue is that new information concerning an original study by Steinschneider et al that focused on apnea and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) has emerged. It now appears that the deaths of two children of one family from the study cohort of five children of three families may have been murder.
Genetic analysis of mutants with a reduced Ca2+-dependent K+ current in Paramecium tetraurelia.

ABSTRACT Two mutants of Paramecium tetraurelia with greatly reduced Ca 2+ -dependent K + currents have been isolated and genetically analyzed. These mutants, designated pantophobiac , give much stronger behavioral responses to all stimuli than do wild-type cells. Under voltage clamp, the Ca 2+ -dependent K + current is almost completely eliminated in these mutants, whereas the Ca 2+ current is normal. The two mutants, pntA and pntB , are recessive and unlinked to each other. pntA is not allelic to several other ion-channel mutants of P. tetraurelia . The microinjection of a high-speed supernatant fraction of wild-type cytoplasm into either pantophobiac mutant caused a temporary restoration to the wild-type phenotype.
Factors impeding dispatcher-assisted telephone cardiopulmonary resuscitation

Abstract Study objective Dispatcher-assisted telephone cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) instruction can increase the proportion of sudden cardiac arrest victims who receive bystander CPR and has been associated with improved survival. Most sudden cardiac arrest victims, however, do not receive bystander CPR. The study objective was to examine factors that may impede implementation of telephone CPR. Methods We reviewed dispatcher audio recordings and emergency medical services reports for 404 cases of sudden cardiac arrest that occurred from July 1, 2000, to June 30, 2002, in the study county to assess the phase (1, instructions not offered; 2, instructions offered but declined; or 3, instructions offered and accepted but CPR not implemented) and specific factors within each phase that potentially impede telephone CPR. Results Twenty-five percent (99/404) of victims received bystander CPR without dispatch assistance, 34% (139/404) received telephone CPR, and 41% (166/404) did not receive bystander CPR. Each phase of telephone CPR process impeded the implementation of CPR: (1) instructions not offered in 48% (80/166); (2) instructions offered but declined in 31% (52/166); and (3) instructions offered and accepted but CPR not implemented in 21% (34/166). During the first phase, telephone CPR was potentially impeded most frequently because the victim was reported to have signs of life (51/80, 64%); during the second and third phases, telephone CPR was most often impeded because of bystander physical limitation (32/86, 37%). Emotional distress, disease transmission, disagreeable victim characteristics, or medicolegal concerns uncommonly impeded telephone CPR (10/86, 12%). Conclusion Factors potentially impeding telephone CPR can be identified. Although many are logistically challenging, some may be addressable and hence provide opportunities to strengthen the chain of survival.
Breast Implants for Graduation: A Sociological Examination of Daughter and Mother Narratives

The purpose of this research is to examine through sociological theories how young women and their parents make sense of the desire, attainment, and gifting of breast implants for graduation. A qualitative study of 10 high school graduates and their mothers was conducted in the state of Texas, USA, in order to understand why the daughters asked for implants as a graduation gift and why their parents, especially, mothers paid for them. Four theoretical paradigms provided a better understanding of the gifting and receiving of breast implants for graduation: symbolic interaction theory, the social construction of reality, reference group theory, and conspicuous consumption. This study shows that gifting and receiving implants for graduation is primarily motivated by both personal feelings of physical inadequacy and sociocultural representation of beauty.
Induction of immediate cutaneous reactivity to an antigen (Ascaris) in cancerous and noncancerous individuals.

Abstract 1.1. Rapid cutaneous reactivity to ascaris can be induced in atopic patients (2 to 4 weeks) and in a somewhat longer time in noncancerous, nonatopic and, also, aspirin-sensitive patients (4 to 7 weeks). 2.2. The capacity of non-ascaris sensitive cancer patients to develop immediate cutaneous reactivity to ascaris is impaired or slow in appearing, although this can be induced after 8 to 24 weeks of immunization. 3.3. Cancer patients with presumptive evidence of existing, though weak, ascaris sensitivity rapidly recalled in 1 or 2 weeks high levels of cutaneous reactivity, suggesting that, in this group, recall or secondary immunization is apparently unimpaired. 4.4. A stage of delayed reactivity, in terms of time of onset after test injection, frequently preceded the onset of immediate cutaneous reactivity in many of the cancer patients being primarily immunized and also in the non-atopic, noncancerous, and aspirin-sensitive group of patients. 5.5. The observations noted do not permit a decision as to whether they point to a pre-existing immunologic defect in the pre-cancerous patient or an alteration in the immunologic response because of the establishment of the cancerous state.
Crystallization and Chemical Strengthening of Nepheline Glass-Ceramics

Electron micrographic and X-ray diffraction techniques were used to study the nucleation and growth of titania-nucleated nepheline in glass. On heating, the glasses phase-separated as a prelude to the crystallization sequence. The first crystalline phase identified was the metastable phase, carnegieite. With time, the equilibrium phase, nepheline, crystallized and the titania crystallized to anatase. The resulting materials were nonporous and largely crystalline. These nepheline glass-ceramics were chemically strengthened by treatments in molten potassium salts. A K+→ Na+ exchange took place and effected transformation of nepheline to kalsilite. This transformation was a function not only of the exchange treatment, but of the composition of the initial nepheline crystals. Confining the kalsilite surface against a volume increase during the phase transformation created a surface compressive stress. Glass-ceramics containing nepheline crystals with an appropriate structure were chemically strengthened in this manner to yield bulk, abraded modulus of rupture values above 200,000 psi.
Laser initiated thermal isomerization of methyl isocyanide

Abstract Application of single pulses of CO 2 TEA laser radiation to a vapor of methyl (CH 3 NC), with the laser tuned to coincide with the fundamental frequency v 4 of this molecule, results in more than 50% conversion of the gas to its isomer methyl cyanide (CH 3 CN). The experiments, performed at room temperature at pressures 10–100 torr, are interpreted in terms of laser induced heating which is sufficient to trigger a thermal explosion.
Three-Dimensional Fibre-Optics LDV Measurements in the Endwall Region of a Linear Cascade of Controlled-Diffusion Stator Blades

Abstract : Measurements were taken of the vortex system that results from the interaction between a stator blade tip and the approaching endwall boundary layer in a linear cascade of controlled-diffusion compressor stator blades. Measurements were taken at Reynolds numbers based on stator blade chord of 240000 and 71 1000. Total pressure measurements were first conducted upstream and downstream of the controlled-diffusion stator blades. The approaching boundary layer was characterized and the location of the downstream vortices were approximated. Upstream and downstream three-dimensional fiber-optic LDV surveys were then conducted to observe the velocity profiles of the approaching boundary layer and to map the location and velocity characteristics of the downstream vortex system. Results clearly show the effect that the over-all secondary flow in the blade passage has on the location of the two oppositely rotating vortices. The downstream flow characteristics were also shown to be periodic. Laser doppler velocimetry, LDV, Fiber-Optic LDV, Cascade wind tunnel, Controlled diffusion blades, Endwall region, Vortices, Secondary flow.
Bayesian approach for BOD and DO when the discharged pollutants are random

A stochastic model for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and dissolved oxygen (DO) at a distance t downstream, when pollutants are discharged over a continuous stretch, is a random differential equation of the form X(t)=AX(t) + Y(t), t⩾0, with the initial condition X0 = X(0). Assuming that X0 is a random vector having a bivariate normal distribution with the mean vector μ0 and the precision (the inverse of the variance-covariance) matrix Λ0, we provide the prediction equation X(t) at any point t a for μ0 keeping Λ0 fixed and known, and (ii) a normal-Wishart prior for (μ0, Λ0. The theory is supplemented by numerical studies.