cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The relation of cognitive control to social outcome after paediatric TBI: Implications for intervention

Hypothesis: This study postulated cognitive control is related to social outcome in children with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and orthopaedic injury (OI).Procedure and design: This study analysed 12-month, post-injury, cross-sectional data from 52 children (7–17 years) with moderate-to-severe TBI and 41 children with OI. Cognitive control was measured with the Sternberg Task (memory) and the Flanker Task (resistance to interference). Relations to social outcome (Vineland Adaptive Behavioural Scales—Socialization and Communications domains) were measured.Results: Reaction time (RT) on the Sternberg task was related to social outcome, with stronger relations in children of lower SES. Flanker baseline and interference RTs were related to social outcome, with the relation for interference RT more robust in children with lower SES.Conclusions: Cognitive control is related to social outcome. Further, it is suggested that cognitive training may have positive effects on social function through improved efficienc...
An alternative estimate of real inventory change for national economic accounts

Abstract In 1996, the Bureau of Economic Analysis adopted the Fisher index (a particular superlative index) for the national income and product accounts of the United States (NIPAs). This change was, on balance, a major improvement in the US national accounts, for it greatly improved the measurement of rates of growth of real economic aggregates. However, the change posed a special problem for inventories: the Fisher index is not suitable for time series that, like inventory change, exhibit changes in sign. The Fisher quantity relative is the geometric mean of Laspeyres and Paasche quantity relatives. When some detailed components of inventory change are negative, the Laspeyres and Paasche can easily differ in sign, in which case the Fisher index is undefined. In the NIPAs, this problem is avoided by measuring real-inventory change as the period-to-period change in inventory stocks. However, attempts to approximate real GDP by two-stage aggregation, combining this measure of inventory change and other major GDP subaggregates, show that the NIPA measures of real inventory change and of real GDP are inconsistent. This paper attempts to resolve the problem by investigating an alternative measure of inventory change. The alternative measure of inventory change considered is the difference between a Fisher index of inventory acquisitions and a Fisher index of inventory disposals. The consistency of this measure with real GDP is first examined analytically. It is shown that, for inventory changes likely to be observed, the approximation error in the aggregation of GDP components due to measuring inventory change as the difference between Fisher indexes of inventory acquisitions and disposals should be small. Second, the consistency of the alternative measure with real GDP is tested over the period 1977–98. The tests compare the actual approximation errors in the two-stage aggregation of GDP using inventory change based on the two methods: the present NIPA methodology and the alternative, Fisher difference method. These tests provide further support for the alternative method of estimating real inventory change.
The alcohol problem in America: from temperance to alcoholism.

Summary This paper traces the ideology and politics of the ‘liquor problem’ in America from its invention or discovery at the end of the 18th century up to the present. In the 17th and 18th centuries alcohol was highly regarded, universally consumed, and even Puritans called it ‘the Good Creature of God’. In the early 19th century, physicians and laymen developed and promulgated a new scientific and popular view of alcohol as an addicting, toxic, and dangerously unpredictable stimulant - and they organized a mass movement to spread their ideas and to get people to give up drinking. Throughout the 19th century, temperance supporters regularly referred to alcohol addiction as a disease beyond the control of the will and engaged in reform and treatment efforts for habitual drunkards. They campaigned against alcohol because they believed it to be the cause of most of the major social problems in America. In short, they made alcohol a scape-goat. The paper then discusses the passage and repeal of national Constitutional prohibition. They should be understood in the context of the new economic and political conditions of 20th century America - especially the new power of the corporation, the decline of the old middle class, and the rapid growth of the industrial working class. The middle class supported prohibition as a panacea for many social problems, but the 18th Amendment's passage was achieved partly through the help of the corporate sector. Similarly, the repeal effort was led by the key elements of the corporate rich. Repeal was passed, and alcohol regulatory systems were designed and put into place, in the midst of the Great Depression - in large part as a response to the political forces the Depression unleashed. Since the 1930s, concerns and policies about alcohol have focused on helping to aid the treatment and recovery of ‘alcoholics ‘. The paper traces the development of Alcoholics Anonymous and the spread of its ideas about alcoholism and its organizational forms; it also briefly looks at new public health and social scientific ideas about ‘alcohol problems’ or ‘alcohol abuse’. The paper suggests that both alcoholism and public health conceptions have much more in common with 19th century temperance ideas than is usually thought. Indeed, nearly all present day ideas – like addiction – are derived from temperance ideas. Further, both 19th and 20th century forumulations have a tendency to blame drinking and individual behaviour for many problems which have much broader political and economic causes.
Risk factors for equine acute abdominal disease (colic): Results from a multi-center case-control study

Abstract Many causal hypotheses for acute equine abdominal disease (colic) have been proposed. However, few epidemiologic studies have been undertaken to identify risk factors for the syndrome. Risk factors for equine colic were identified using a hospital-based, multi-center, case-control study. Horses admitted with abdominal pain to Cornell, Guelph, Ohio State, Pennsylvania or Tufts university veterinary hospitals between March and December 1991 were selected. Control horses were randomly selected from a list of all other non-colic admissions. The person(s) responsible for the day-to-day care of the horse completed a telephone questionnaire. Risk factors were identified using multivariable logistic regression analysis. A total of 406 colic and 406 control horses were used in the final analysis. Age, breed, outdoor access (pasture or drylot), outdoor water supply, use of a daily worming product, amount of concentrates and whole-grain corn consumed, type of person responsible for the day-to-day care of the horse and previous colic history were all significantly associated with colic risk. Arabian horses were more than twice as likely to be colic cases ( OR = 2.0, 95% CI = 1.0–3.9), whereas Standardbred horses were nearly half as likely ( OR = 0.6, 95% CI = 0.4–1.0) to be colic cases compared with the comparison Thoroughbred group. Horses that had access to outdoor enclosures without a continuous supply of water were more than twice as likely ( OR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.2–4.3) to be colic cases compared with horses that had an adequate supply of water on outside enclosures. The use of a daily worming product for at least 60 days during the 12-month period prior to presentation was associated with a significantly lower colic risk ( OR = 0.11, 95% CI = 0.02–0.55). Colic risk increased with greater consumption of whole-grain corn; however, when all non-roughage concentrate feeds were combined, colic risk decreased with increased intake of concentrates. Significant interactions were identified between age and drylot use and between the type of care-person responsible for the day-to-day care of the horse (owner or non-owner) and previous colic history. The findings of this study illustrate the complex multi-factorial nature of equine colic and point towards the importance of the overall quality of stable management and care, as well as the type of outdoor enclosure (pasture or drylot), water access, carbohydrate intake, parasite control and intrinsic (breed-related) factors.
Attention to pain in persons with chronic pain: A behavioral approach

Preoccupation with or attention to pain may influence perceived pain severity and other pain responses. The purpose of this study was to investigate attention to pain in persons with chronic pain. Participants for this study were patients (N = 80, 58.8% female) with chronic low back pain referred to a university pain clinic. A measure of attention to pain, the Pain Vigilance and Awareness Questionnaire (PVAQ), was constructed for this study. It was intended to assess a number of related responses including awareness, vigilance, preoccupation, and observation of pain. The PVAQ showed adequate internal consistency and temporal stability over a short interval. PVAQ scores were positively correlated with private body consciousness and cognitive disability, and negatively correlated with a measure of ignoring pain, supporting their validity. The results of this study show that persons with chronic low back pain who report greater attention to pain also report higher pain intensity, emotional distress, psychosocial disability, and pain-related health care utilization. Regression analyses showed that level of attention to pain remained a significant predictor of distress, disability, and health care utilization independent of pain intensity and relevant demographic variables. These results provide preliminary support for a behavioral conceptualization of attention to pain.
Absence of transmethylation reactions involving choline, betaine, and methionine in the insecta

Abstract 1. 1. Methyl 14C-labelled methionine, choline, or betainc were fed to larvae of Phormia regina, Heliothis zea, and Hylobius pales for extended periods and the insects were examined for pomble transmethyladon products. 2. 2. The results indicate that choline is used for phospholipid synthesis but does not give rise to the methyl group of methioninc and that, although methinninc is readily metabolized, its methyl group does not give rise to the methyl groups of choline or betainc. 3. 3. Metabolism of betainc could not be detected in any of the three species.
High open circuit voltage organic photovoltaics: Minimizing energetic loss with a high band gap donor polymer and a small-molecule acceptor

Solution-processed, bulk-heterojunction Organic Photovoltaic (OPV) devices with a high V oc (up to 1.35 V) were fabricated with a high band gap electron-donor copolymer blended with a small-molecule electron-acceptor. The copolymer (PInCZ), based on carbazole and indolocarbazole monomers, posseses a deep lying HOMO (Highest Occupied Molecular Orbital) of −5.6 eV. Coupling this polymer with the small-molecule acceptor (HPI-BT), with a relatively shallow LUMO (Lowest Occupied Molecular Orbital) near −3.6 eV, resulted in an effective electronic band gap in the donor-acceptor pair of approximately 2.0 eV. This value, which is important in determining the maximum V oc attainable in the device, is substantially higher than the typical values found in OPV devices of ∼1.0 – 1.5 eV. In the devices presented here, the thermodynamic loss in energy from the optical band gap compared to the V oc is ∼41%, which is substantially lower than that commonly found in OPV materials of 50+%.
Gender differences in the relationship of moderator variables to stress and symptoms

Abstract This study focused on gender differences in the relationship of four moderator variables (hostility, social support, optimism, and Type A behavior) to perceptions of symptoms and stress based on a sample of 120 female and 79 male undergraduates. Results confirmed significant gender differences in hostility, Type A behavior, and social support but not in optimism. Multiple regression analyses exposed distinct gender differences. For females, social support accounted for 21% and hostility 5% of the total variance in perceived stress. For males, only hostility accounted for any significant variance (10%). Hostility contributed 21% and social support contributed 13% to the total variance in the number of symptoms for females. For males, optimism contributed 14% and hostility 5%. Results indicate that social support is a potent variable for females in their perception of both stress and symptoms but essentially unrelated for males. Hostility, however, relates to perceptions of stress and symptoms for ...
What is the proper role of polytetrafluoroethylene grafts in infrainguinal reconstruction

Abstract Polytetrafluoroethylene grafts have been used extensively for infrainguinal vascular reconstruction either as the conduit of choice or as a substitute when saphenous vein is unavailable. Although numerous studies have shown satisfactory early patency rates, the long-term efficacy of these grafts in a large number of patients for specific indications and in various positions has been less well defined. From 1977 to 1987 we used four PTFE grafts from three different manufacturers to perform 300 infrainguinal reconstructions on 240 patients on our vascular service. The indications for surgery were disabling claudication in 28% and limb salvage in 72%. The 30-day operative mortality of 1% was not different from the 1.4% associated with infrainguinal autogenous vein grafting. The 5-year cumulative patency rate achieved with all infrainguinal polytetrafluoroethylene grafts was 35%, significantly higher for grafts placed for claudication (57%) than those placed for limb salvage (24%). There were no significant differences between the above-knee and below-knee locations for distal anastomoses regardless of indication, but femoropopliteal grafts provided significantly higher 5-year patency (37%) than infrapopliteal grafts (12%). Comparison of the 5-year patency rates among the three manufacturers of polytetrafluoroethylene grafts showed no significant differences. Fifty-four polytetrafluoroethylene grafts that failed underwent 67 revisions after catheter thrombectomy or thrombolysis, which resulted in a minimal 11% 5-year patency rate. Based on this experience, it is concluded that infrainguinal polytetrafluoroethylene prostheses provide significantly inferior results when compared with autogenous reconstruction. (J Vasc Surg 1989;10:299–305.)
A multienvironment conditional probability density function model for turbulent reacting flows

The multienvironment conditional probability density function (MECPDF) model was first proposed by Fox [Computational Models for Turbulent Reacting Flows (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2003)] as a simple extension of multienvironment probability density function models for turbulent reacting flows. Like the conditional moment closure (CMC) and the laminar flamelet model (LFM), the MECPDF model describes the reacting scalars conditioned on the value of the mixture fraction. However, unlike CMC and LFM, the new model provides a consistent description of conditional fluctuations in both the scalar dissipation rate and the reacting scalars, and hence can be used to model partial extinction and reignition in homogeneous turbulent reacting flows. In this work, a general derivation of the MECPDF model is presented for a single reaction-progress variable using the direct quadrature method of moments. Extensions of the model to multiple reaction-progress variables and conditioning on the mixture-fraction ...
Water in the Balance

Earth's climate is changing, and so is its hydrologic cycle. Recent decades have witnessed rising rates of global precipitation, evaporation, and freshwater discharge ( 1 ). Extreme flooding is occurring with greater intensity and frequency in some regions; in others, extreme drought is becoming more common ( 2 ). Most climate models indicate that by the end of this century, the dry regions of the world will become drier, whereas the wet areas will become wetter ( 3 ). Meanwhile, groundwater reserves, the traditional backup for water supplies during extended periods of drought, are in decline globally ( 4 – 6 ). GRACE (the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment, a joint U.S.-German satellite mission) monitors these variations on monthly to decadal time scales, providing detailed data on the water cycle that are an essential prerequisite for contemporary water management.
Export Versus FDI and the Communication of Complex Information

Abstract Traditional proximity-concentration models of the decision to serve foreign markets through exports or FDI sales tend to overemphasize physical transport costs and market size while underemphasizing the cost of transmitting information. I augment those models with the importance of interacting with customers and communicating complex information within firms and use these characteristics to predict the location of production. Goods and services requiring direct communication with consumers are more likely to be produced in the destination market. Activities requiring complex within firm communication are more likely to occur at the multinational's headquarters for export, especially when the destination market has weak institutions. These predictions are tested using firm-level data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis US Direct Investment Abroad Benchmark Survey of Multinationals combined with task-level data from the Department of Labor's Occupational Information Network. The approach developed in this paper performs well for both manufacturing and service industries and is robust to a variety of specifications.
Deployable antennas for CubeSat and space communications

In this paper we propose two UHF antenna concepts to be deployed on a CubeSat platform. Both antennas display logarithmic periodicity in their structure. The first antenna proposed is the conical log spiral antenna while the second is the log periodic crossed dipole antenna array. The design of these antennas as well as their deployment mechanisms are also discussed and presented.
A combustion bomb study of fuel-oil solubility and HC emissions from oil layers

Measurements of the exhaust hydrocarbon mole fraction from a constant volume reactor with and without oil layer coating one surface of the reactor are used to determine the solubility of fuel molecules in an oil (squalane). Four fuels—methane, ethane, propane, and n -butane—are used during this study, and their solubilities in squalane are determined in the temperature range 298 K to 382 K. Comparisons with other methods for measuring solubilities are made and show good agreement with this technique. The results indicate that the hydrocarbon emission from oil layers can be directly related (in magnitude) to the solubility of the fuel and oil, if sufficient time has elapsed for equilibrium to occur between gas phase and absorbed fuel.
A Novel Nonchemical Method for Quarantine Treatment of Fruits: California Red Scale on Citrus

A process for removing or killing California red scale, Aonidiella aurantii (Maskell), from citrus fruit as a postharvest treatment was evaluated. The process subjects the fruit to vacuum, steam, and vacuum that physically removes red scale from the fruit and kills those scales that are not removed from the fruit. Different numbers of cycles and steam temperatures were compared for efficacy in removing scale from lemons or killing those that remained. Multiple (two to three) cycles removed up to 96% of first molt scales on the fruit, but they were much less effective in removing other stages, especially those that had advanced beyond the second instar. However, it was extremely effective in killing the scales remaining on the fruit. Although this process does not eliminate cosmetic damage caused by scale presence, it might be used in combination with high-pressure washers currently used in packing houses to allow importers and exporters to meet the most stringent quarantine requirements. Because of its killing power, this technique should be tried on other insects and commodities to see whether it can be substituted for certain uses of methyl bromide.
Interoperability testing for shop floor measurement

Manufactured parts are typically measured to ensure quality. Measurement involves equipment and software from many different vendors, and interoperability is a major problem faced by manufacturers. The I++ Dimensional Measuring Equipment (DME) specification was developed to solve interoperability problems and enable seamless flow of information to and from dimensional metrology equipment. This paper describes validation testing of the I++ DME specification. The testing was intended to improve the specification and also to speed up its adoption by vendors. Testing issues are described, and a software test suite is detailed. Interoperability testing with real equipment was done over several years, and lessons learned from the testing will be presented. The paper concludes with recommendations for improving this type of testing.
Calculation of fast pipe diffusion along a dislocation stacking fault ribbon

The diffusion of an interstitial Si atom along an edge dislocation in Al is studied by using a quantum-mechanics/molecular-mechanics coupling method. It is found that the diffusing Si atom follows approximately a sinusoidal trajectory. The diffusion energy barrier along the partial dislocation core is in excellent agreement with the experimental value. We predict that the stacking fault ribbon could provide a fast pathway for diffusion which increases the diffusivity by 6--7 orders of magnitude comparing to the bulk value at 700 K. At the same temperature, the diffusivity along the stacking fault is found to be three to four orders of magnitude greater than that along the partial dislocation core.
Specific Permeability of Porous Compacts as Described by a Capillary Model

The specific liquid permeabilities of a wide variety of phosphatebonded, porous alumina compacts prepared from alumina powders of differing size distribution, and ranging in porosity from 32 to 50 vol%, were not described well by the Carmen-Kozeny model but were described by a capillary model based on mean entry pore radius. The specific permeability varied directly with the square of the mean entry pore radius determined by mercury intrusion. The compacts containing the lowest phosphate bond phase obeyed Poiseuille's law.
Air abrasion of failed bonded metal brackets: A study of shear bond strength and surface characteristics as determined by scanning electron microscopy

Abstract Failed bonded orthodontic brackets generally require their replacement with a new bracket. The introduction of air abrasion (microetching) technology to orthodontics may allow for immediate use of these failed brackets. This study compared the in vitro shear bond strengths of previously failed bonded metal brackets (experimental group) subjected to air abrasion with new untreated brackets (control group). All bonding used a light-cured orthodontic bonding system. In addition, representative samples from each group were examined by scanning electron microscopy. The results of this study found no significant differences in shear bond strengths between the two groups. Scanning electron microscopy examination of the air abraded brackets revealed a roughened mesh surface with residual bonded material in the bracket base. This simple technique should allow for the immediate reuse of previously failed bonded metal brackets. (Am J Orthod Dentofac Orthop 1996;110:96-8.)
Reduction of nitrate losses from filter and impactor samplers by means of concentration enrichment

Abstract Sampling errors (artifacts) have greatly affected the precision of the quantitative analysis of volatile species, such as particulate ammonium nitrate. This work presents the effect of the enrichment in concentration of particulate nitrate in reducing volatilization losses in impactors and Teflon filter samplers. During the performance characterization of an ambient fine particle concentrator developed by Sioutas et al. (1995a, Environmental Health Perspectives 103, 172–177, 1995b, Inhalation Toxicology, 7, 633–644, 1977, Journal of Aerosol Science 28, 1057–1071) losses of ambient ammonium nitrate from denuded and undenuded Teflon filter samplers as well as the microorifice uniform deposit impactor (MOUDI) were evaluated in Los Angeles, CA, an area where ammonium nitrate constitutes a major component of ambient fine particulate matter. The field study data were compared to those predicted theoretically for a given set of gas and particulate nitrate concentrations, temperature and relative humidity. Both theoretical and experimental results indicated that the ratio of nitrate gas-to-particle concentration affects significantly the volatilization loss, with higher volatilization losses occurring at higher gas-to-particle concentration values. The concentration enrichment of particulate-phase nitrate resulted in reducing evaporation losses from the MOUDI from 20–50% to less than 10%. Losses of nitrate from denuded Teflon filters were reduced from 60–95% to less than 30%, and for undenuded Teflon filters from 30–80% to less than 5%. Our study concluded that nitrate losses from impactor, denuded and undenuded Teflon filter samplers could be virtually eliminated by placing the sampler downstream of a particle concentrator with a small cutpoint (i.e., 0.1 μm).
Use of oligohaline marshes by fishes and macrofaunal crustaceans in North Carolina

Fishes and invertebrate macrofauna (nekton) inhabiting three low salinity, intertidal rivulets were sampled biweekly from July 1981 through June 1982. Twenty-nine species of fishes (24,335 individuals, 9.671 kg wet weight) representing 19 families and four species of invertebrates (6,812 individuals, 4.708 kg wet weight) were collected. The most abundant species were spot (Leiostomus xanthurus), grass shrimp (Palaemonetes pugio), bay anchovy (Anchoa mitchilli) and Atlantic menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus). Only a few large predacious fish (e.g., largemouth bass,Micropterus salmoides) were collected in the rivulets although largemouth bass and longnose gar (Lepisosteus osseus) were abundant in a nearby permanently flooded area. The number of species was greatest during the warmer months and lowest, during the winter. There were three seasonal peaks of numerical abundance: spring peak attributed to the influx of junvenile spot Atlantic menhaden, Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulatus), and southern, flounder (Paralichthys lethostigma); summer peak due to grass shrimp; and fall peak to bay anchovy and grass shrimp. The occurence of these species was not correlated with salinity in the study area. Average densities of spot and Atlantic menhaden in the oligohaline rivulets at the peak of juvenile recruitment were similar to the average densities of these species reported for salt marshes. The results suggest that oligohaline estuarine areas contain important nursery habitat for some euryhaline species.
A Comparison of Inpatient Glucose Management Guidelines: Implications for Patient Safety and Quality

Inpatient glucose management guidelines and consensus statements play an important role in helping to keep hospitalized patients with diabetes and hyperglycemia safe and in optimizing the quality of their glycemic control. In this review article, we compare and contrast seven prominent US guidelines on recommended glycemic outcome measures and processes of care, with the goal of highlighting how variation among them might influence patient safety and quality. The outcome measures of interest include definitions of glucose abnormalities and glycemic targets. The relevant process measures include detection and documentation of diabetes/hyperglycemia, methods of and indications for insulin therapy, management of non-insulin agents, blood glucose monitoring, management of special situations (e.g., parenteral/enteral nutrition, glucocorticoids, surgery, insulin pumps), and appropriate transitions of care. In addition, we address elements of quality improvement, such as glycemic control program infrastructure, glucometrics, insulin safety, and professional education. While most of these guidelines align with respect to outcome measures such as glycemic targets, there is significant heterogeneity among process measures, which we propose might introduce variation or even confusion in clinical practice and possibly affect quality of care. Guideline-related factors, such as rigor of development, clarity, and presentation, may also affect provider trust in and adherence to guidelines. There is a need for high-quality research to address knowledge gaps in optimal glucose management practice approaches in the hospital setting.
Design for Effective Support of User Intentions in Information-Rich Interactions.

With the rise of Web pages providing interactive support for problem-solving or providing large amounts of information on which a person is expected to act, designers and writers need to consider how a person interacts with increasingly complex information-rich environments and how they intend to use the information. This article examines some of the theory underlying why people make errors early in the problem-solving process when they form an intention. Since these errors are cognitively-based and occur before any physical action, it is harder to analyze their cause or incorporate changes to reduce them in a design. It examines factors which contribute to user errors and which designers and writers must consider to produce documents which reduce user errors in forming intentions.
Processable conductive polypyrrole/poly(alkyl methacrylate) composites prepared by an emulsion pathway

Electrically conductive polymer composites of polypyrrole and poly(alkyl methacrylate) have been prepared using a two-step procedure. First, an emulsion is generated by dispersing a chloroform solution of poly(alkyl methacrylate) and pyrrole in a small amount of an aqueous surfactant solution. The surfactant is adsorbed upon the interface between the two phases and ensures, via double-layer repulsion, the stability of the emulsion. Second, the pyrrole present in the emulsion is polymerized and doped by introducing with stirring an aqueous solution of an oxidant in the emulsion. The polypyrrole deposits on the host polymer, and the composite formed is precipitated using a suitable non-solvent. Smooth, lustrous films or other shaped objects with good mechanical properties have been prepared by hot-pressing the obtained materials. The relation between conductivity and the polypyrrole content of the composite exhibits a percolation behaviour. The electrical conductivity can reach values as high as 6–7 S cm−1. The mechanical properties of the material depend on the nature of the host polymer employed and on the content of polypyrrole in the composite. The effect of the length of the alkyl chain on the mechanical properties is investigated. The polypyrrole-poly(ethyl methacrylate) composites appear to be the most suitable because they have enough flexibility and also sufficient strength. Compared to cold-pressing, hot-pressing improves the mechanical characteristics, but decreases somewhat the conductivity. Two single-step procedures have also been employed, but they are less efficient than the two-step procedure and lead to very low conductivities.
CAM Kinase IV Regulates Lineage Commitment and Survival of Erythroid Progenitors in a Non-Cell–Autonomous Manner

Developmental functions of calmodulin-dependent protein kinase IV (CaM KIV) have not been previously investigated. Here, we show that CaM KIV transcripts are widely distributed during embryogenesis and that strict regulation of CaM KIV activity is essential for normal primitive erythropoiesis. Xenopus embryos in which CaM KIV activity is either upregulated or inhibited show that hematopoietic precursors are properly specified, but few mature erythrocytes are generated. Distinct cellular defects underlie this loss of erythrocytes: inhibition of CaM KIV activity causes commitment of hematopoietic precursors to myeloid differentiation at the expense of erythroid differentiation, on the other hand, constitutive activation of CaM KIV induces erythroid precursors to undergo apoptotic cell death. These blood defects are observed even when CaM KIV activity is misregulated only in cells that do not contribute to the erythroid lineage. Thus, proper regulation of CaM KIV activity in nonhematopoietic tissues is essential for the generation of extrinsic signals that enable hematopoietic stem cell commitment to erythroid differentiation and that support the survival of erythroid precursors.
Effects of deceptive self-reports of quitting on the results of treatment trials for smoking: A quantitative assessment

Abstract Problems with self-report measures for smoking motivate the use of biochemical tests in treatment trials for smoking. These biochemical tests, unfortunately, are not perfect. In this paper, we present an algebraic model of bias in treatment trials for smoking. Bias is expressed in terms of the deception rate among continued smokers in a control group, the relative deception rate among continued smokers in an experimental group, and the sensitivity and specificity of a biochemical test which may be used either to confirm self-reports of,quitting or to replace self-report entirely. For given test specificity and sensitivity, the mode) defines deception rates for which different biochemical testing strategies are preferred. The model is presented in the context of current knowledge on the phenomenon of deception among adult smokers. The paper concludes that better judgements regarding the role of biochemical tests in treatment trials for smoking require more precise information regarding the magnitude and determinants of deception.
Magnetic field induced metal–insulator transitions in p-SiGe

Abstract Low density modulation doped p-SiGe, where the holes lie in a strained SiGe quantum well, frequently exhibits anomalous insulating behaviour between filling factors ν =2 and 1. There is also anomalous metallic behavior with a metal–insulator transition between the two. It is shown that in these samples exchange effects are sufficiently large to induce the paramagnetic–ferromagnetic phase transition predicted by Giuliani and Quinn in 1985, also that the metallic and insulating behavior is associated with the coincidence of two Landau levels of opposite spin. A model calculation shows that while a ferromagnetic polarization may occur at integer filling factors screening suppresses it for non-integer filling factors. It is argued the Landau levels then stick-together and allow a spin-density instability to form. Because of the strong spin–orbit coupling in p-SiGe the transport properties of this state differ from those of other systems where a similar quantum Hall ferromagnet probably forms.
Quality of Well-being profiles followed paths of health status change at micro- and meso-levels in trauma patients.

Abstract Objective The objective of this study is to analyze Quality of Well-being Scale scores and profiles tracing Trauma Recovery Project (TRP) patient scores over time. Study Design and Setting A total of 787 TRP patients had complete preinjury and injury day data. Of these 787, 574 patients were followed up 6 months after hospital release. Analyses include persons with head injury vs. long bone and pelvic injury. Results Paired t -tests found significant differences for scores between each measurement point. Means analyses found significant variation on first day of hospitalization vs. 6-month recovery scores by injury site—head worse off than long bone and pelvic injury at first, but becoming better off 6 months after release from hospital. These effects were traced to specific symptom/problem complexes and functional limitations. Conclusion Examination of such profiles can add significant information about health implications not obvious from overall scores. The size and direction of such contributions to overall scores may be reliably traced over time.
An empirical investigation of DSS usage and the user's perception of DSS training

Abstract Financial analysts, financed managers, and other finance specialists participated in a laboratory study to examine the perceived value of specific DSS training with DSS usage, the decision process, and task structure. Measures included the frequency of DSS features used, the number of syntax errors made, comfort with and the use of a computer terminal to improve decision effectiveness, and the use of a specific DSS to enhance decision making. Forty-nine participants received DSS training, were randomly assigned to a structured or semi-structured task, and conducted analyses. Results showed that DSS users see a strong positive correlation between their training and the use of a DSS to improve decision making. Significant relationships were also noted between perceptions of training and task structure differences.
High-level goal-directed concurrent processing in ICON

Concurrent language features have been added to an experimental dialect of Icon called Conicon. These new language features allow Icon to deal with new application domains such as intelligent robot control and real-time natural language processing. Besides widening the scope of Icon's intended application domain, these experimental concurrent processing notations also encourage programmers to revise existing programs to take advantage of the new language capabilities. For example, concurrent evaluation of the alternative arms of compound goal-directed expressions is now possible. This paper describes these concurrent processing notations and presents several examples of their expressive power.
Modeling of permeation and damage in graphite/epoxy laminates for cryogenic tanks in the presence of delaminations and stitch cracks

Abstract Composites are extensively used for various aerospace applications and one of its important potential uses is as cryogenic fuel tank material for crew launch vehicles. Composites offer high specific strength and stiffness, and therefore are preferred over many other materials. However under structural mechanical loads and/or thermal loads, transverse micro-cracks develop in the polymer matrix. These cracks along with interlaminar delaminations produced at the crack tips, lead to permeation of cryogenic fuel permeation through the laminates. In this study, mathematical models have been proposed to determine the delaminated crack opening displacement (DCOD) for each ply of a damaged laminate and the permeability associated with it. In addition, a stitch crack model has been proposed to address experimental observations. The through-thickness DCOD distribution for a damaged composite under the action of thermal and/or mechanical load is predicted using a five-layer model which is developed based on first order shear deformation theory. The DCOD predicted by this mathematical model, with and without stitch cracks, shows good agreement with two dimensional finite element analysis. The DCOD values predicted for IM7/5250-4 laminate of lay-up [0/45/−45/90]S were used to predict permeability using Darcy’s law for fluid flow through porous media. The analysis results were benchmarked using test data from Air Force Research Laboratory. A parametric study for permeability conducted with varying stitch crack lengths shows that the permeability of the composite is sensitive to this form of damage in individual plies.
Comparison of Clinician Judgments and Measurements of Swallow Response Time: A Preliminary Report.

Practicing clinicians frequently offer judgments about aspects of swallowing physiology rather than performing actual measurements. Little is known about the accuracy of those judgments. The purpos...
HTLV-1 Tax transgenic mice develop spontaneous osteolytic bone metastases prevented by osteoclast inhibition

One in 20 carriers of human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) will develop adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL), a disease frequently associated with hypercalcemia, bone destruction, and a fatal course refractory to current therapies. Overexpression of the HTLV-1–encoded Tax oncoprotein under the human granzyme B promoter causes large granular lymphocytic leukemia/lymphomas in mice. We found that Tax+ mice spontaneously developed hypercalcemia, high-frequency osteolytic bone metastases, and enhanced osteoclast activity. We evaluated Tax tumors for the production of osteoclast-activating factors. Purification of Tax+ tumor cells and nonmalignant tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes demonstrated that each of these populations expressed transcripts for distinct osteoclast-activating factors. We then evaluated the effect of osteoclast inhibition on tumor formation. Mice doubly transgenic for Tax and the osteoclast inhibitory factor, osteoprotegerin, were protected from osteolytic bone disease and developed fewer soft-tissue tumors. Likewise, osteoclast inhibition with bone-targeted zoledronic acid protected Tax+ mice from bone and soft-tissue tumors and prolonged survival. Tax+ mice represent the first animal model of high-penetrance spontaneous osteolytic bone metastasis and underscore the critical role of nonmalignant host cells recruited by tumor cells in the process of cancer progression and metastasis.
Hydroxyurea in the treatment of HIV-1.

OBJECTIVE:To describe the role of hydroxyurea in the treatment of HIV-1.DATA SOURCES:Published clinical studies using hydroxyurea in HIV treatment were accessed through MEDLINE (January 1994–March 1999) and conference abstracts. All relevant studies were evaluated.DATA SYNTHESIS:Adherence, expense, and resistance limit the pharmacotherapeutic options in the management of patients with HIV. Hydroxyurea may be an alternative to conventional HIV treatments.CONCLUSIONS:Several potential advantages of adding hydroxyurea to antiretroviral treatment regimens include the drug's well-documented toxicity, convenient dosing, good tolerability and low cost, and its unique mechanism of action. Hydroxyurea may have synergistic effects that prove promising in initial and salvage therapy antiretroviral regimens. Larger, well-controlled clinical studies are needed to adequately define the role of hydroxyurea in the treatment of HIV.
Recombinant Neisseria meningitidis Transferrin Binding Protein A Protects against Experimental Meningococcal Infection

To better characterize the vaccine potential of Neisseria meningitidis transferrin binding proteins (Tbps), we have overexpressed TbpA and TbpB from Neisseria meningitidis isolate K454 in Escherichia coli. The ability to bind human transferrin was retained by both recombinant proteins, enabling purification by affinity chromotography. The recombinant Tbps were evaluated individually and in combination in a mouse intraperitoneal-infection model to determine their ability to protect against meningococcal infection and to induce cross-reactive and bactericidal antibodies. For the first time, TbpA was found to afford protection against meningococcal challenge when administered as the sole immunogen. In contrast to the protection conferred by TbpB, this protection extended to a serogroup C isolate and strain B16B6, a serogroup B isolate with a lower-molecular-weight TbpB than that from strain K454. However, serum from a TbpB-immunized rabbit was found to be significantly more bactericidal than that from a TbpA-immunized animal. Our evidence demonstrates that TbpA used as a vaccine antigen may provide protection against a wider range of meningococcal strains than does TbpB alone. This protection appears not to be due to complement-mediated lysis and indicates that serum bactericidal activity may not always be the most appropriate predictor of efficacy for protein-based meningococcal vaccines.
A novel digital implementation of a Gaussian noise generator

A method is proposed and studied for digital generation of analog Gaussian noise. In the proposed system, the parallel output from a maximal-length shift register (MSR) forms a sequence of random numbers with equal probability, which are then transformed into a Gaussian distribution by a mapping table. The system is different in its principle of operation and performance from the well-established technique of summing a large number of consecutive random outputs of an MSR to generate a Gaussian noise by virtue of the central limit theorem. Furthermore, it can be made to generate any arbitrary probability distribution function by changing the mapping table. The generator can be realized readily both in hardware as a physical instrument and in a software package as a simulated instrument. While the probability distribution of the generated noise is governed by the mapping table, its random properties are dominated by the behavior of the MSR. >
A semiblind adaptive antenna for WCDMA using a least-squares constant-modulus formulation

This paper presents a semiblind adaptive antenna for the downlink of wideband code-division multiple-access (WCDMA) systems. The weight vector of the antenna array is computed using the coded-multiplexed pilot channel as well as the estimated traffic channels in an extended training sequence. This approach suppresses the self-interference from physical channels in the same base station, leads to more accurate cochannel signal separation, and thus improves the performance compared to a conventional pilot-only trained beamformer. Moreover, a constant modulus constraint with a least-squares formulation is combined with the semiblind approach to refine the antenna weights. The performance of the proposed semiblind antenna system is evaluated via computer simulations.
Distortion of gravity wave spectra of imaging Doppler interferometry horizontal winds

We elsewhere suggest (Rastogi et al., this issue) that an analytic model for spectral distortion in the Doppler beam steering (DBS) horizontal wind estimates should also qualitatively hold for the imaging Doppler interferometry (IDI) and spaced antenna (SA) methods. Here we give further support for this suggestion through a statistical model for spectral distortion in the IDI horizontal wind estimates. In IDI the signals observed with a single or multiple receivers at ground are used to identify the locations and radial velocities of virtual atmospheric targets; wind components are then estimated by regression. The statistical model includes the effect of isotropic target configurations as a spatial filter on an isotropic ensemble of atmospheric gravity waves. It shows that the frequency spectrum of IDI horizontal wind estimates is enhanced beyond a knee, located at a ∼0.7-hour period in the upper mesosphere, and then drops near the buoyancy frequency. The occurrence of the knee and its location is similar to the spectral distortion in the DBS horizontal wind estimates modelled earlier.
CONSIDERING THE TIES THAT BIND: Kinship, marriage, household, and territory among the Maya

The meaning of ancient Maya social organization continues to engender heated debate. Hierarchy and heterarchy are suggested as organizational principles that reflect the variability characteristic of the Maya households past and present. The presence or absence of lineage in the core area or hinterland reflects the social dimension of Maya social organization and small and larger households are tied to the larger political structure. Detailed archaeological data have documented extreme economic variability in Maya household patterns and relationships associated with these. Scholars argue that structures contain rich symbolic statements and reflect Maya ideological structure. Discussion of Maya household patterns moves beyond a monolithic understanding of social organization in the past and the present, including extreme variation in kinship and marriage patterns, associated economic structure, power, and symbolic representations that bind the society and tie individuals to higher structural levels.