cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Do different rates of gene flow underlie variation in phenotypic and phenological clines in a montane grasshopper community

Species responses to environmental change are likely to depend on existing genetic and phenotypic variation, as well as evolutionary potential. A key challenge is to determine whether gene flow might facilitate or impede genomic divergence among populations responding to environmental change, and if emergent phenotypic variation is dependent on gene flow rates. A general expectation is that patterns of genetic differentiation in a set of codistributed species reflect differences in dispersal ability. In less dispersive species, we predict greater genetic divergence and reduced gene flow. This could lead to covariation in life-history traits due to local adaptation, although plasticity or drift could mirror these patterns. We compare genome-wide patterns of genetic structure in four phenotypically variable grasshopper species along a steep elevation gradient near Boulder, Colorado, and test the hypothesis that genomic differentiation is greater in short-winged grasshopper species, and statistically associated with variation in growth, reproductive, and physiological traits along this gradient. In addition, we estimate rates of gene flow under competing demographic models, as well as potential gene flow through surveys of phenological overlap among populations within a species. All species exhibit genetic structure along the elevation gradient and limited gene flow. The most pronounced genetic divergence appears in short-winged (less dispersive) species, which also exhibit less phenological overlap among populations. A high-elevation population of the most widespread species, Melanoplus sanguinipes, appears to be a sink population derived from low elevation populations. While dispersal ability has a clear connection to the genetic structure in different species, genetic distance does not predict growth, reproductive, or physiological trait variation in any species, requiring further investigation to clearly link phenotypic divergence to local adaptation.
Impact of sleep on complicated grief severity and outcomes

BACKGROUND Complicated grief (CG) is characterized by persistent, impairing grief after losing a loved one. Little is known about sleep disturbance in CG. Baseline prevalence of subjective sleep disturbance, impact of treatment on sleep, and impact of mid-treatment sleep on CG and quality of life outcomes were examined in adults with CG in secondary analyses of a clinical trial. METHODS Patients with CG (n = 395, mean age =53.0; 78% female) were randomized to CGT+placebo, CGT+citalopram (CIT), CIT, or placebo. Subjective sleep disturbance was assessed by a grief-anchored sleep item (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index: PSQI-1) and a four-item sleep subscale of the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (QIDS-4). Sleep disturbance was quantified as at least one QIDS-4 item with severity ≥2 or grief-related sleep disturbance ≥3 days a week for PSQI-1. Outcomes included the Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG), Work and Social Adjustment Scale (WSAS), and Clinical Global Impressions Scale. RESULTS Baseline sleep disturbance prevalence was 91% on the QIDS-4 and 46% for the grief-anchored PSQI-1. Baseline CG severity was significantly associated with sleep disturbance (QIDS-4: p = .015; PSQI-1: p = .001) after controlling for comorbid depression and PTSD. Sleep improved with treatment; those receiving CGT+CIT versus CIT evidenced better endpoint sleep (p = .027). Mid-treatment QIDS-4 significantly predicted improvement on outcome measures (all p < .01), though only WSAS remained significant after adjustment for mid-treatment ICG (p = .02). CONCLUSIONS Greater CG severity is associated with poorer sleep beyond PTSD and depression comorbidity. Additional research including objective sleep measurement is needed to optimally elucidate and address sleep impairment associated with CG.
Vericiguat — Another Victory for Targeting Cyclic GMP in Heart Failure

Pivotal advances in basic scientific investigation have led to innovative drugs that have reduced the burden of cardiovascular disease in humans. There is no better example than the Nobel Prize–win...
Uniaxial tension of a nematic elastomer with inclined mesogens

Abstract Nematic elastomer, consisting of mesogens and polymer network, has emerged as a promising material for constructing soft actuators and attracted much attention in recent years. In this paper, we conduct a systematic study of uniaxial tension of a nematic elastomer film with the loading direction forming different angles with respect to the mesogen alignment. We found that if the two ends of the film are clamped without allowing rotation during the stretch, inhomogeneous deformation in the specimen often occurs. However, if both ends of the film can freely rotate during the stretch, the film elongates and shears nearly homogeneously. Our theoretical predictions based on the free energy function of nematic elastomer agree well with experimental measurements of the elastomer undergoing homogeneous deformation with only two fitting parameters. The necking phenomena observed in nematic elastomer during the uniaxial tension have also been discussed.
Intersection Numbers of Twisted Differential Forms

This chapter proposes a physical interpretation of intersection numbers as computing tree-level scattering amplitudes in quantum field theories. We start by reviewing the basic geometric and topological properties of moduli spaces of punctured Riemann spheres, as well as the notion of twisted differential forms and their intersection pairings. We show how their mathematical properties constrain scattering amplitudes, such as their mass spectrum and finiteness of the basis of amplitudes. After presenting a few instructive examples, we give a list of relations to other objects, most notably scattering amplitudes in open- and closed-string theory. In this context intersection numbers appear as coefficients of a basis expansion. We provide a few theorems regarding the low- and high-energy behaviour of intersection numbers, the former localizing on the boundary divisor of the moduli space, while the latter localizes on the solutions of scattering equations according to Morse theory. We discuss conditions under which the two are equal. We finish with a consideration of special classes of logarithmic twisted forms, which are particularly important in the study of scattering amplitudes of massless particles.
Minimally invasive surgical aortic valve replacement in setting of pseudoxanthoma elasticum

ABSTRACT We present a rare case of surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in a patient with pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE). Our patient developed severe symptomatic aortic stenosis (AS) at a relatively young age of 61 despite a trileaflet valve. Notable intraoperative challenges included difficulties with arterial access and hemodynamic monitoring accuracy due to PXE effects on peripheral arteries. Additionally, the diseased valve itself was unusual in its very crumbly nature with micro-popcorn-like calcifications, which easily broke apart with handling. Lastly, rivaroxaban was chosen and warfarin avoided to anticoagulate for postoperative atrial fibrillation in PXE to prevent thromboembolism.
Stealth Mode: Infusing Leadership Training into a Required 1L Course on Professional Identity Formation

Law schools across the country are beginning to address the growing need to incorporate leadership training into their curricula; however, very few explicitly cover leadership in the 1L year. This Article argues for the value of providing leadership training to 1Ls as part of a required course on professional identity formation. Because foundational leadership concepts overlap in meaningful ways with core lawyering competencies, such integration is both effective and efficient. Beginning leadership in the 1L year allows law schools to build on that foundational material in later clinics, externships, upper-level classes, and other experiences, creating deeper leadership skills in their students. In addition, providing 1Ls with competency-focused leadership training can also provide a number of benefits to both students and the institution, including helping students improve their academic performance in their first year and reframing their experience to emphasize the development of skills that will help them interview most effectively for the jobs they want. In addition, leadership training can help 1Ls better process and deal with the normal challenges and pressures of law school that create mental health problems for many students. In fact, emphasizing those related benefits of 1L leadership training—specifically, helping students improve their grades and more effectively identify careers that are a good fit for them—may be the strongest selling points of such a program to many students.
Phylogenomics, floral evolution, and biogeography of Lithospermum L. (Boraginaceae)

Lithospermum (Boraginaceae), a geographically cosmopolitan medium-sized genus, includes diverse floral morphology, with variation in corolla size and shape and in breeding system. Over the past decade, multiple studies have examined the evolutionary history of Lithospermum, with most utilizing DNA regions from the plastid genome and/or the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer. These studies have, in general, not resulted in well-resolved and well-supported phylogenies. In the present study, 298 nuclear DNA regions, amplified via target sequence capture, were utilized for phylogenetic reconstruction for Lithospermum and relatives in Boraginaceae, and patterns of floral evolution, species diversification, and biogeography were examined. Based on multiple phylogenetic methods, Lithospermum is resolved as monophyletic, and the New World species of the genus are also monophyletic. While minimal phylogenetic incongruence is resolved within the nuclear genome, incongruence between the nuclear and plastid genomes is recovered. This is likely due to incomplete lineage sorting during early diversification of the genus in the Americas approximately 7.8 million years ago. At least four shifts to longer corollas are identified throughout Lithospermum, and this may be due to selection for hummingbird-pollinated flowers, particularly for species in Mexico and the southwestern United States. In the New World, one clade of species of the genus diversified primarily across the United States and Canada, and another radiated throughout the mountains of Mexico.
The role of the protein in the stabilization of the charge separated states in photosynthetic reaction centers

Electron transfer from the excited singlet state of a bacteriochlorophyll dimer (P) to a bacteriopheophytin (HL) 18 A away occurs within 2 picoseconds even at cryogenic temperatures in photosynthetic reaction centers. Estimates of the reaction field energy that would stabilize the ion pair P+HL -, shows that a medium with a dielectric constant of 2 would be insufficient to place the energy of the ion pair below that of the excited singlet state of P. The contribution of additional dielectric screening appears to be small. Thus, the protein must play an active role in stabilizing the charge separated state. A static field due to pre-existing charges and dipoles is calculated to exist within reaction centers which is negative near P and positive near H. This field stabilizes P+HL - so that is lies below P*.
Research Between 1960 and 1970 on the Standing Height of Young Children in Different Parts of the World

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on recent research pertaining to the standing height of preschool children. It assembles and orders research findings from more than 200 investigations made in different parts of the world between 1960 and 1970. The focus is on standing height of children at ages 3 and 5 years. By pooling metric data gathered on similar samples of children, statistics adequate are provided to support more precise factual statements and more tenable generalizations than are obtainable from the component studies taken piecemeal. New facets of biologic knowledge are also explored and a substantial array of findings on similarities and differences in average height among tribal and national groups, rural and urban groups, intracity ethnic and socioeconomic groups, and sex groups have been presented. The chapter treats within-group variability in height, and assembles studies, presently sparse, on relations of height in early childhood with birth weight, birth order, maternal use of tobacco during pregnancy, single versus twin delivery, and elevation of habitat.
Extended HLA profile of an inbred isolate: The Schmiedeleut Hutterites of South Dakota

HLA-A, -B, -C, -DR, and -DQ typings of the Schmiedeleut Hutterites of South Dakota were collected as part of an ongoing genetic-epidemiologic study of HLA and fertility. A total of 1,082 individuals, including 852 married adults representative of the reproductive population of this isolate, were characterized for five-locus HLA haplotypes. HLA-A1, A2, A3, and A24 accounted for 75% of observed HLA-A alleles and HLA-B27, B35, B51, and B62 accounted for 55% of observed HLA-B alleles. S-leut Hutterites are derived from 68 or fewer ancestors. However, only 48 ancestral HLA haplotypes were observed and nine of these accounted for over 52% of the observed haplotypes. Measures of two-locus linkage disequilibrium derived from these haplotypes indicated that one-third to half of the observed HLA-A/B, B/DR, and A/DR allele combinations exhibited highly statistically significant linkage disequilibrium. Allele and haplotype frequencies did not differ between males and females. Recombination rates of 0.004% and 0.005% between HLA-A and -C and between HLA-B and -DR, respectively, were observed. This HLA profile points out a paucity of HLA alleles and haplotypes in this population and marked linkage disequilibrium among the HLA alleles that are present. © Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Global robotic experience and the type of surgical system impact the types of robotic malfunctions and their clinical consequences: an FDA MAUDE review.

OBJECTIVES To assess annual rates of robotic system malfunctions and compare the da Vinci S(®) system (dVS) and da Vinci(®) surgical system (dV). To assess the types of malfunctions and associated outcomes for robotic cases and determine the extent to which experience and technological improvements impact these. PATIENTS AND METHODS This study is a retrospective review of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) MAUDE (Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience) database, a publicly available, voluntary reporting system (http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfmaude/search.cfm). The database was searched using the two phrases 'da Vinci' and 'Intuitive Surgical' from 2003 to 2009. Malfunctions of the instruments, console, patient-side cart, camera and cannula were recorded. Data on intraoperative injuries, case delays and conversions were also collected. RESULTS In all, 1914 reports were reviewed (991 dVS and 878 dV, 45 unclassified) with peak years for reports of 2008 for dVS (571) and 2007 for dV (211), P < 0.001. With respect to time, the proportion of console and patient-side cart malfunctions declined from 2007 onward compared with the proportions prior to 2007 (5.1% vs 9.4% and 6.6% vs 10.9%). Patient injury did not change with year of surgery (0.5-5.4% of malfunctions, P= 0.358), open conversions declined (21.3% of malfunctions before 2007 vs 9.9% from 2007 onward, P < 0.001) and patient deaths increased (0.0013% of cases before 2007 vs 0.0061% of cases from 2007 onward, P < 0.001). With regard to robotic system, console and patient-side cart malfunctions were more frequent with the dV than the dVS: 82/878 vs 39/991 and 100/878 vs 48/991, P < 0.001. Open conversion was more frequent with dV than dVS (19.3% vs 7.7% of reported malfunctions, P < 0.001), while patient injury was less with dV than dVS (3.5% vs 5.9%, P= 0.021). CONCLUSIONS The dVS decreased console and patient-side cart errors relative to total malfunctions, which were also influenced by surgical year. Open conversions were reduced by increased robotic experience and newer surgical system. Differences in patient injury may reflect changes in reporting or case complexity.
Fuzzy C-means Clustering Analysis to Monitor Tissue Perfusion with Near Infrared Imaging

During surgery, conventional or minimally invasive, a surgeon's ability to identify biological tissue properties is critical. Near Infrared (NIR) Imaging, a continuous, non-invasive imaging modality, offers a surgeon an augmented perception of the tissue characteristics (oxygenation, edema, etc.) In this paper, we present our NIR imaging setup and cluster analysis for localizing areas of similar NIR light absorbance, which relates directly to the tissue's Hb, HbO2, and H2O content. Through NIR imaging, a surgeon is equipped with auxiliary information to determine the extent and location of tissue injury.
Stability and generalization of bipartite ranking algorithms

The problem of ranking, in which the goal is to learn a real-valued ranking function that induces a ranking or ordering over an instance space, has recently gained attention in machine learning. We study generalization properties of ranking algorithms, in a particular setting of the ranking problem known as the bipartite ranking problem, using the notion of algorithmic stability.In particular, we derive generalization bounds for bipartite ranking algorithms that have good stability properties. We show that kernel-based ranking algorithms that perform regularization in a reproducing kernel Hilbert space have such stability properties, and therefore our bounds can be applied to these algorithms; this is in contrast with previous generalization bounds for ranking, which are based on uniform convergence and in many cases cannot be applied to these algorithms. A comparison of the bounds we obtain with corresponding bounds for classification algorithms yields some interesting insights into the difference in generalization behaviour between ranking and classification.
Rebuilding the Visible Man

This paper describes a collection of techniques designed to create photo-realistic computer models of the National Library of Medicine's Visible Man. An image segmentation algorithm is described which segments anatomical structures independent of the variation in color contained in the anatomical structure. The generation of pseudo-radiographic images from the 24-bit digital color images is also described. Three-dimensional manifold surfaces are generated from these images with the appropriate anatomical colors assigned to each surface vertex. Finally, three separate smoothing algorithms — surface, normal, and color, are applied to the surface to create surprisingly realistic surfaces. A number of examples are presented which include solid surfaces, surface cutaways, and mixed opaque and translucent models.
IL-Converting Enzyme/Caspase-1 Inhibitor VX-765 Blocks the Hypersensitive Response to an Inflammatory Stimulus in Monocytes from Familial Cold Autoinflammatory Syndrome Patients

Familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome (FCAS) and the related autoinflammatory disorders, Muckle-Wells syndrome and neonatal onset multisystem inflammatory disease, are characterized by mutations in the CIAS1 gene that encodes cryopyrin, an adaptor protein involved in activation of IL-converting enzyme/caspase-1. Mutations in cryopyrin are hypothesized to result in abnormal secretion of caspase-1-dependent proinflammatory cytokines, IL-1beta and IL-18. In this study, we examined cytokine secretion in PBMCs from FCAS patients and found a marked hyperresponsiveness of both IL-1beta and IL-18 secretion to LPS stimulation, but no evidence of increased basal secretion of these cytokines, or alterations in basal or stimulated pro-IL-1beta levels. VX-765, an orally active IL-converting enzyme/caspase-1 inhibitor, blocked IL-1beta secretion with equal potency in LPS-stimulated cells from FCAS and control subjects. These results further link mutations in cryopyrin with abnormal caspase-1 activation, and support the clinical testing of caspase-1 inhibitors such as VX-765 in autoinflammatory disorders.
The character of seafloor ambient noise recorded offshore New Zealand: Results from the MOANA ocean bottom seismic experiment

[1] We analyze the characteristics of ambient noise recorded on ocean-bottom seismographs using data from the 2009–2010 MOANA (Marine Observations of Anisotropy Near Aotearoa) seismic experiment deployed west and east of South Island, New Zealand. Microseism and infragravity noise peaks are clear on data recorded on the vertical channel of the seismometer and on the pressure sensor. The noise levels in the infragravity band (<0.03 Hz) on the horizontal seismometer channels are too high to show the infragravity peak. There is a small difference (∼0.25 Hz versus ∼0.2 Hz) in microseism peak frequencies between the two sides of the South Island on all three seismic channels. Our results show clear depth dependence between the peak frequency of infragravity waves and the water depth. We find that the product of water depth and wave number at the peak frequency is a constant,koH = 1.5. This relationship can be used to determine the variation of phase and group velocity of infragravity waves with water depth, and the location of the infragravity peak and corresponding noise notch at any water depth. These estimates of spectral characteristics, particularly low noise bands, are useful for future OBS deployments.
Signals and signal processing for acoustic monitoring of ocean processes

Systems for bistatic monitoring of ocean processes differ radically from monostatic systems searching for targets. The paper discusses basic principles,showing how these effect signal design, signal processing goals and signal processing techniques. In addition, computer advances have a strong influence in changing signal processing choices, sometimes rendering yesterday's optimums today's curiosities, and perhaps converting today's impossibilities into tomorrow's challenges.
Evaluation and evolution of a browse and search interface: Relation Browser++

We present in this paper the design and an evaluation of a novel interface called the Relation Browser++ (RB++) for searching and browsing large information collections. RB++ provides visualized category overviews of an information space and allows dynamic filtering and exploration of the result set by tightly coupling the browsing and searching functions. A user study was conducted to compare the effectiveness, efficiency and user satisfaction of completing various types of searching and browsing using the RB++ interface and a traditional form-fillin interface for a video library. An exploration set of tasks was also included to examine the effectiveness of and user satisfaction with the RB++ when applied to a large federal statistics website. The comparison study strongly supported that RB++ was more effective, efficient, and satisfying for completing data exploration tasks. Based on the results, efforts to automatically populate the underlying database using machine learning techniques are underway. Preliminary implementations for two large-scale federal statistical websites have been installed on government servers for internal evaluation.
Agricultural intensity and its measurement in frontier regions

Agricultural intensification is a process of raising land productivity over time through increases in inputs of one form or another on a per unit area basis. Its study is important for several reasons, many of which relate to agroforestry objectives. However, the concept of intensification often is poorly defined in the literature and existing methods and approaches to measuring agricultural intensity are problematic, making it difficult to precisely compare particular farming systems. This paper examines the concept of agricultural intensity, its relevance to efficient and sustainable land use, and the ways it can be measured. A review of existing approaches and methods for measuring intensity, such as those based on output, cropping frequency, and agrotechnologies, revealed that these feature a number of problems. Some of these problems relate simply to imprecision and inaccuracy. But others are due to the unsuitability of these approaches in the context of farming environments, such as frontiers, which are characterized by limited production data; unconventional cropping cycles; myriad production strategies, cropping patterns, and crop-fallow cycles on a single farm; and a high level of system dynamism and production variability over time. A modified approach to measuring agricultural intensity, based on fieldwork in Peten, Guatemala, is presented. This approach, which is better suited to frontier regions, employs an agricultural intensity index to help evaluate the intensity of particular farm units based on the technologies and practices used by the farmer, and the degree to which they are used.
Itinerant Kingship and Royal Monasteries in Early Medieval Germany, c . 936–1075: MONASTERIES IN HESSE AND THURINGIA

GEOPOLITICAL STRUCTURE OF HESSE AND THURINGIA With the accession of the Ottonian kings from Saxony to the German throne, the strategic importance of Thuringia and Hesse increased dramatically. Located in the centre and on the eastcentral border of the German realm, Hesse and Thuringia lay between the familial power base of the Ottonian kings in the Harz region and the valuable crown properties in the Rhine—Main basin (see Maps 1 and 4). Thus, the Ottonian kings and the early Salians, who assumed control of the crown properties in Saxony in succession to the Ottonians, continually had to cross these regions when travelling between their centres of kingship in Saxony and those in the middle Rhineland. Moreover, because these two areas were likewise situated between Saxony and the southernmost duchies of the realm, their strategic importance actually increased in the early eleventh century when Henry II and the first two Salian kings began to integrate Bavaria and Swabia more fully into the royal itinerary. Therefore, the structure of the realm and political necessity demanded that the early German kings have secure passage through the centre of their realm. This meant that they had to control Hesse and Thuringia politically or at least decentralize the local power structure there sufficiently, so that no indigenous power could grow strong enough to block royal access to the other regions of the realm. In addition, since these two areas did not abound in royal property, the Ottonian and Salian monarchs had to assure the accommodation and upkeep of the royal retinue during its passage.
Taking It with You: Teacher Education and the Baggage of Cultural Dialogue.

This case study contributes to counterpoints made to world culture theory and underscores that at the micro, classroom-level, rural Chinese teachers in a reform-oriented professional development course, and reform-oriented U.S. teacher trainers, understand educational reform, and the realities of education in these two cultures, very differently. This study examines interviews conducted with U.S. teachers of English who taught the Oral English Training Course (OETC), a professional development course for rural Chinese teachers of English in Jiangxi province from 2007 to 2013. These teachers reveal how their own understandings and assumptions around teaching and learning shape what and how they teach, and how they evaluate the work of others. This study explains that included in the literal baggage of these foreign teachers teaching in China, is their figurative baggage, which includes their own cultural lens. The thrust of this study lies in uncovering the ideologies, assumptions, and educative constructs of foreign teachers, how these may be perceived by the Chinese teachers that they teach, and how all of this is steeped in the realities in education and the individual experiences of local actors. This study ends with recommendations for collaboration between foreign teachers of English in China, and their students, particularly Chinese teachers of English in China.
Iron deficiency anemia: higher prevalence in Mexican American than in non-Hispanic white females in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988–1994

Background Mexican American females have a higher prevalence of iron deficiency than do non-Hispanic white females. Objective The objective was to estimate the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia and examine potential reasons for this difference between Mexican American (n = 1194) and non-Hispanic white (n = 1183) females aged 12-39 y. Design We used data from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988-1994). Iron deficiency anemia was defined as abnormal results from >/=2 of 3 tests (erythrocyte protoporphyrin, transferrin saturation, and serum ferritin) and a low hemoglobin concentration. We used multiple logistic regression to adjust for factors that were more prevalent in Mexican American females and significantly associated with iron deficiency anemia. Results The prevalence of iron deficiency anemia was 6.2 +/- 0.8% (f1.gif" BORDER="0"> +/- SE) in Mexican American females and 2.3 +/- 0.4% in non-Hispanic white females. Mean dietary iron intake, mean serum vitamin C concentrations, and the proportion of females using oral contraceptives were similar in the 2 groups. Age 3.0, however, the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia was 2.6 +/- 0.9% in Mexican American and 1.9 +/- 0.6% in non-Hispanic white females (NS). Conclusion Although much of the ethnic disparity in iron deficiency anemia remains unexplained, factors associated with household income may be involved.
How important are dispersion interactions to the strength of aromatic stacking interactions in solution

In this study, the contributions of London dispersion forces to the strength of aromatic stacking interactions in solution were experimentally assessed using a small molecule model system. A series of molecular torsion balances were designed to measure an intramolecular stacking interaction via a conformational equilibrium. To probe the importance of the dispersion term, the size and polarizability of one of the aromatic surfaces were systematically increased (benzene, naphthalene, phenanthrene, biphenyl, diphenylethene, and diphenylacetylene). After correcting for solvophobic, linker, and electrostatic substituent effects, the variations due to polarizability were found to be an order of magnitude smaller in solution than in comparison to analogous computational studies in vacuo. These results suggest that in solution the dispersion term is a small component of the aromatic stacking interaction in contrast to their dominant role in vacuo.
Adding Value to the First-Year Experience: Embedding Self and Major Exploration in the College of Business Curriculum.

This paper details the First-Year Career Development Program (First-Year Program) a component of a comprehensive multi-year program designed to guide business students through self-assessment and the selection of an appropriate business major and ultimately to prepare them to secure professional career positions. The First-Year Program is designed to integrate student self-assessment and career and business major exploration into the First-Year Experience. A survey of students who participated in the First-Year Program indicated a high level of student satisfaction. It further indicated that participants were more positive about completing their degree programs at the regional university where the First-Year Program is conducted. The First-Year Program was developed collaboratively by Career and Academic Planning Center professionals and College of Business faculty.
Agile cities: the role of intelligent transportation systems in building the learning infrastructure for metropolitan economic development

The concepts of agile cities and regional learning infrastructure are systematically presented as a post-Fordist response to the changing nature of global competition. The potential leverage underlying these two concepts in balancing the bargaining power between the cities and private investors is analyzed. The importance of agile government and agile communities in the establishment of regional learning infrastructure is discussed. Finally, the role of intelligent transportation systems in the building of regional learning infrastructure is summarized.
The use of subtractive hybridization to obtain a DNA probe specific for Pseudomonas solanacearum race 3

Pseudomonas solanacearum, the causal agent of bacterial wilt, has been classified into three races based on host range and into five biovars based on physiological properties. Strains of race 3 belong exclusively to biovar 2 and primarily affect potatoes. Although this race is thought to have originated in the Andean highlands, it has unusual physiological properties that make it a potential threat to potatoes grown at the cooler latitudes worldwide. Consequently, there is need for a rapid and sensitive method for detection of race 3 strains. We have used subtractive hybridization to enrich for race 3-specific DNA sequences in total race 3 genomic DNA, and thereby obtained a 2 kb clone homologous to DNA from all 28 race 3 strains tested, but with only five of 90 non-race 3 strains. In addition, two larger regions of the genome, containing a minimum of 23 kb of DNA, are also specific for race 3. Deletion of this DNA did not affect virulence. This race 3-specific DNA is a potentially useful diagnostic tool for the detection of race 3 strains.
A fluidized-bed coating technology using near-critical carbon dioxide as fluidizing and drying medium

Abstract A Wurster-type coater employing near-critical carbon dioxide as the fluidizing medium and antisolvent was developed for pharmaceutical applications. Suitably designed glass inserts housed in a high-pressure chamber allow for the controlled fluidization and circulation of the substrates with dense CO 2 . The CO 2 also removes the solvent from the coating solution sprayed on the substrates, thereby precipitating the coating as a smooth layer. A variety of substrates were successfully coated with thin polymer films for aesthetic/handling purposes or for delayed release applications such as taste masking. The geometry of substrates include glass and microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) beads ranging in diameter from 0.5 to 2 mm, tablets up to 7.9 mm and cylindrical stents up to 20 mm in length. The demonstrated coating process expands the range of substrate/coating combinations possible with the conventional air-fluidized Wurster coater, making it feasible to coat water-soluble substrates with solutes sprayed from organic solutions at near-ambient temperatures wherein degradation of the active pharmaceutical ingredient is avoided. Coating with dense CO 2 enables the use of traditional organic solvents with no risk of explosion.
Effects of analogues of inorganic phosphate and sodium ion on mineralization of matrix vesicles isolated from growth plate cartilage of normal rapidly growing chickens.

The mechanism of matrix vesicle (MV) mineralization was studied using MVs isolated from normal growth plate tissue, as well as several putative intermediates in the MV mineralization pathway—amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP), calcium phosphate phosphatidylserine complex (CPLX) and hydroxyapatite (HAP). Radionuclide uptake and increase in turbidity were used to monitor mineral formation during incubation in synthetic cartilage lymph (SCL). Inhibitors of phosphate (Pi) metabolism, as well as replacing Na+ with various cations, were used to study MV Pi transport, which had been thought to be Na+-dependent. MVs induced rapid mineralization ∼3 h after addition to SCL; CPLX and HAP caused almost immediate induction; ACP required ∼1 h. Phosphonoformate (PFA), a Pi analog, potently delayed the onset and reduced the rate of mineral formation of MV and the intermediates with IC50’s of 3–6 μM and ∼10 μM, respectively. PFA:Pi molar ratios required to reduce the rate of rapid mineralization by 50% were ∼1:30 for ACP, ∼1:20 for HAP, ∼1:3.3 for CPLX, and ∼1:2.0 for MVs. MV mineralization was not found to be strictly Na+-dependent: substitution of Li+ or K+ for Na+ had minimal effect; while N-methyl d-glucamine (NMG+) was totally inhibitory, choline+ was clearly stimulatory. Na+ substitutions had minimal effect on HAP- and CPLX-seeded mineral formation. However with ACP, NMG+ totally blocked and choline+ stimulated, just as they did MV mineralization. Thus, kinetic analyses indicate that ACP is a key intermediate, nevertheless, formation of CPLX appears to be the rate-limiting factor in MV mineralization.
Orientational Dynamics of β-Cyclodextrin Inclusion Complexes

The structure and dynamics of organic dye molecules included in β-cyclodextrin are studied using spectroscopic measurements and theoretical models. The effect of the charge and the size of the guest molecule on the properties of the host−guest complex is probed by comparing complexes formed with three different chromophores: resorufin (anion), oxazine-118 (cation), and oxazine-725 (cation) in aqueous solutions of cyclodextrin. The binding is characterized using absorption and calorimetry titrations. The structure of the complexes is analyzed by molecular modeling using empirical force field and semiempirical quantum theory calculations. Time-resolved polarization spectroscopy is used to investigate the rotational dynamics of different chromophores bound to β-cyclodextrin. Internal motion of the guest and overall rotational tumbling of the complex are observed for resorufin and oxazine-118. Modeling the internal motion of the chromophore as diffusion in a cone provides the mean square diffusion angle insid...
The conductive propagation of nuclear flames. II. Convectively bounded flames in C + O and O + Ne + Mg cores

We determine the speeds, and many other physical properties, of flame fronts that propagate inward into degenerate and semidegenerate cores of carbon and oxygen (CO) and neon and oxygen (NeOMg) white dwarfs when such flames are bounded on their exterior by a convective region. Combustion in such fronts, per se, is incomplete, with only a small part of the initial mass function burned. A condition of balanced power is set up in the star where the rate of energy emitted as neutrinos from the convective region equals the power available from the unburned fuel that crosses the burning front. The propagation of the burning front itself is in turn limited by the temperature at the base of the convective shell, while cannot greatly exceed the adiabatic value. Solving for consistency between these two conditions gives a unique speed for the flame. Typical values for CO white dwarfs are a few hundredths of a centimeter per second. Flames in NeOMg mixtures are slower. Tables are presented in a form that can easily be implemented in stellar evolution codes and yield the rate at which the convective shell advances into the interior. Combining these velocities with the local equations for stellar structure, we find a minimum density for each gravitational potential below with the local equations for stellar structure, we find a minimum density for each gravitational potential below which the flame cannot propagate, and must die. Although detailed stellar models will have to be constructed to reslove some issues conclusively, our results that a CO white dwarf inginted at its edge will not burn carbon all the way to its center unless the mass of the white dwarf exceeds 0.8 solar mass. On the other hand, it is difficult to ignite carbon burning by compression alone anywhere in a white dwarf whose mass does not exceed 1.0 solar mass. Thus, compressionally ignited shell carbon burning in an accerting CO dwarf almost certainly propagates all the way to the center of the star. Implications for neutron star formation, and Type Ia supernova models, are briefly discussed. These are also applicable to massive stars in the about 10-12 solar mass range which ignite neon burning off center.
22 INVESTIGATION OF AMBULATORY COMPLIANCE RATES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE FOLLOWING HOSPITALIZATION FOE SUICIDE ATTEMPT

In the forty-two month period ending July 1983, 80 youths aged 10–21 were hospitalized because of an attempted suicide. The purpose of this study is to determine the rate of follow-up for those patients who stayed in the hospital less than 48 hours. To acheive this end, we mailed questionnaires and obtained phone interviews from the admitting physicians. We received adequate data on 65 adolescents (8l%). Forty-nine of these patients were released within 48 hours of admission and are included in the data analysis (n=49).
HIGH-INFLATION PRESSURE AND POSITIVE END-EXPIRATORY: Injurious to the Lung? No

Survival rates in ARDS with conventional ventilation using high oxygen fractions and low PEEP levels have been reported to be less than 10%. In three prospective evaluations of ARDS in the 1980s, mortality rates remained greater than 60%. Early studies using high-level PEEP therapy in severe ARDS by Douglas, Downs, Kirby, and Civetta showed improved survival rates with ranges between 60% and 80%. In 1979 Gallagher reviewed 59 patients with ARDS who were treated with PEEP greater than 15 cm H2O titrated to improve FRC by achieving an intrapulmonary shunt fraction of 15%. The overall survival was 65%, with only 5% of the patients dying secondary to respiratory failure. In the more recent study by Miller in trauma patients and later by DiRusso in a variety of surgical patients, the overall mortality rate for those patients receiving PEEP greater than 15 cm H2O was 20% to 30%. Of the 14 patients who died, only seven (10% of the total) succumbed to respiratory failure. The remaining patients died from the primary underlying disease with normal oxygenation or after significant weaning from high PEEP levels. By using a goal-oriented approach to the management of patients with severe ARDS, we have found that high-level PEEP therapy was effective in lowering the intrapulmonary shunt and improving the SaO2 at acceptable levels of inspired oxygen. All of these patients were ventilated with traditional high tidal volumes (10 to 15 mL/kg) and therefore exhibited high peak inspiratory airway pressures. This support method did not seem to cause lung injury or an excessive amount of barotrauma in these patients, but in fact, was associated with a lower mortality rate (30%) than reported in other studies of patients with lesser degrees of lung oxygenation dysfunction and extrapulmonary organ system dysfunction. Currently available information indicates that increases in mean airway pressure (induced with PEEP or other modes of ventilatory support to restore losses in FRC that occur during ARDS) and limiting exposure to toxic concentrations of oxygen minimize ventilator-induced secondary lung injury and maximize chances for survival. Arbitrary limitations of peak inspiratory or end-expiratory airway pressure or mandatory tidal volume in patients with severe ARDS seem to be unfounded. Failure to achieve adequate physiologic end-points in these patients may increase morbidity and mortality rates.
Small-angle X-ray scattering investigations of fractal dimensions of hybrid inorganic organic network (ceramers) based on tetraethylorthosilicate and polytetramethylene oxide

Over the last 2 years the sol gel technique has become very popular because of its ability to yield multicomponent inorganic glasses at low temperatures. More recently techniques to incorporate functionlized organic species into a sol gel network of metal alkoxides have been developed and studied in our laboratory as well as others. Most of these studies have focussed on the structure-property behavior of these materials, with an emphasis on understanding the properties in terms of the level of microphase separation that occurs during the network buildup in these systems. While much has been gained in this respect, the desire exists to characterize better the structure of the inorganic phase in such systems, and in this respect, utilization of small-angle X-ray scattering profiles can provide information about this structure through fractal analysis. The work discussed here focuses specifically on the fractal character of specific ceramer materials produced as a result of the reaction between tetraethylorthosilicate and end-functionalized polytetramethylene oxide. It is shown that the cosolvent system utilized to compatibilize the reactants plays a very important role in development of the structure of the inorganic phase in these hybrid materials.
Role of antioxidant enzymes in cell immortalization and transformation

The role of antioxidant enzymes, particularly superoxide dismutase (SOD), in immortalization and malignant transformation is discussed. SOD (generally MnSOD) has been found to be lowered in a wide variety of tumor types when compared to an appropriate normal cell control. Levels of immunoreactive MnSOD protein and mRNA for MnSOD also appear to be lowered in tumor cells. Tumor cells have the capacity to produce superoxide radical, the substrate for SOD. This suggests that superoxide production coupled with diminished amounts of MnSOD may be a general characteristic of tumor cells. The levels of MnSOD in certain cells correlates with their degree of differentiation; non-differentiating cells, whether normal or malignant, appear to have lost the ability to undergo MnSOD induction. These observations are used to elucidate a two-step model of cancer. This model involves not only the antioxidant enzymes, but also organelle (particularly mitochondria and peroxisomes) function as a dominant theme in carcinogenesis.
Perturbations in the Swan system of the C2 molecule

Abstract An extension of rotational analyses of bands of the Swan system of C2 has resulted in the discovery of additional rotational perturbations, all belonging to the A 3 Π g state. Some of them can be shown to be further perturbations produced by a known interaction with the A′ 3 Σ g − state. Others may be produced by an interaction with excited vibrational levels of the x 1 Σ g + state. A vibrational perturbation may be setting in at v′ = 6 of the A 3 Π g state.
HLA molecules in autoimmune diseases

The association of certain autoimmune diseases with HLA molecules is being refined through the use of sequence-specific oligonucleotide probes and amino acid sequencing, together with continuing elucidation of the functional features of HLA molecules derived from the milestone description by Bjorkman of the HLA molecular structure. The association of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus and HLA began with weak associations of Class 1 antigens (B8 and B15) and progressed to Class II antigens (DR3 and DR4), then to subtypes of DR4 (Dw4, 10, and 14), and now to DQ molecules including the absence of aspartic acid at position 57 of the DQ beta chain and the presence of arginine at position 52 of the DQ alpha chain. In rheumatoid arthritis (RA) the HLA antigen association remains with certain Class II molecules of the DR series (DR4 and DR1) that share amino acid sequences with a restricted number of other DR antigens seen in RA, as well as a segment of the gp 110 protein of the Epstein-Barr virus. Although ankylosing spondylitis has a strong association with the Class I antigen B27, that association is not explained by any of the B27 subtypes defined by monoclonal antibodies, by the eight variable amino acids in B27 subtypes, or by the two unique amino acids on B27. The remarkable antibody cross-reactivity among lymphocytes bearing B27, a synthetic peptide sequence (63–84) of B27, and the 188–193 sequence of K. pneumoniae nitrogenase has provided strong support for molecular mimicry being an important mechanism in the association of HLA molecules with disease. As the molecular features related to HLA and disease are being discovered, elucidating the all-important functional roles that they have in actually producing the disease will be an even greater challenge.