cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Frequency of lupus flare in pregnancy : the Hopkins lupus pregnancy center experience

To determine whether pregnancy is associated with an increased rate of flare in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), we prospectively studied 40 pregnancies in 37 women with SLE. The women were evaluated on a monthly basis in the Hopkins Lupus Pregnancy Center. Flare was designated using a previously developed quantitative definition, i.e., a change of greater than 1.0 in the physician's global assessment (scale of 0-3) since the preceding visit or during the last 93 days. Flare occurred in 24 (60%) of the pregnancies. Flares presented most commonly as constitutional symptoms, renal involvement, or involvement of skin or joints. Comparison of the rates of flare in the same patients after delivery and in nonpregnant SLE patients showed a significant increase in the rate of flare during pregnancy (P less than 0.001 and P less than 0.0001, respectively). We conclude that flare of lupus during pregnancy is common and occurs significantly more frequently than does flare in nonpregnant SLE patients or in the same patients after pregnancy.
Infection of Fetal Feline Brain Cells in Culture with Bartonella henselae

Bartonella henselae is known to cause central nervous system (CNS) disease in humans, and neurological signs have been observed in experimentally infected cats. However, the pathogenesis of CNS disease remains unclear. This study was undertaken to determine whether B. henselae infects feline fetal brain cells in vitro. Microglial-cell- and astrocyte-enriched cultures were inoculated with B. henselae. Gimenez staining identified bacterial organisms within microglial cells by day 7 postinoculation. The viability of the intracellular bacteria was demonstrated by incubating cultures with gentamicin and plating cell lysate on agar. Electron microscopy identified intracellular organisms with characteristic Bartonella morphology but identified no ultrastructural abnormalities within infected microglial cells. No evidence of infection was seen in Bartonella-inoculated astrocyte cultures. These findings suggest a role for microglia in the pathogenesis of B. henselae-associated neurological disease.
Temperature-dependent aggregation and diffusion in nanofluids

While particle aggregates play a central role in recent models for nanofluid thermal conductivity, the effect of particle diffusion in a temperature field on the aggregation and transport has yet to be studied in depth. The present work separates the effects of particle aggregation and diffusion using parallel plate experiments, infrared microscopy, Monte Carlo simulations, and rate equations for particle and heat transport. The predicted thermal conductivity and viscosity enhancements are compared to determine the favorability of aggregating nanofluids. Experimental data show non-uniform temporal increases in thermal conductivity and are well described through simulation of the combination of particle aggregation and diffusion. The simulation shows concentration distributions due to thermal diffusion causing variations in aggregation, thermal conductivity and viscosity. The aggregation produces an unfavorable nanofluid. An optimum nanoparticle diameter is calculated to minimize settling, thermal diffusion and aggregation.
The Role and Responsibility of Teachers and Child Care Workers in Identifying and Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect.

Because of their daily interactions with young children, teachers and child care workers play a central role in the prevention, identification, and treatment of child abuse and neglect. In most states in the United States, teachers or other school personnel are legally mandated to report any suspected cases of abuse and neglect. This article provides a brief summary of the role and responsibility of the teacher in the prevention and identification process.
Virulence and multigeneration passage of a nuclear polyhedrosis virus selected for an increased rate of vertical transmission.

Abstract A strain of Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) nuclear polyhedrosis virus (NPV) was selected in previous research for an increased rate of vertical transmission by isolating it from pupae that were infected through vertical transmission. The median lethal concentrations (LC 50 s) of the wild and selected NPVs in first instar S. frugiperda were 2.0 and 4.0 polyhedral inclusion bodies (PIB)/insect (significantly different at P 50 s were 4.18 × 10 4 and 4.45 × 10 4 PIB/mm 2 diet surface, respectively. The stability of the vertical transmission was studied by feeding fifth instars the LC 50 s of each NPV and then rearing the survivors for five to seven generations without further exposure to virus. The percentage infection by the wild NPV declined from 13.8% of the insects in the first generation after exposure to 3.9% in the fifth generation, whereas that by the selected NPV declined from 18.8% in the first generation to 12.2% in the fifth and 9.8% in the seventh generation. Relatively few of the insects infected by vertical transmission were killed by the virus. During the five generations after exposure to NPV, 4.3% of the insects were killed by the wild virus and 5.6% by the selected isolate.
ORC and Cdc6p interact and determine the frequency of initiation of DNA replication in the genome

The origin recognition complex (ORC) binds replicators in the yeast S. cerevisiae in a manner consistent with it being an initiator protein for DNA replication. Two-dimensional (2D) gel techniques were used to examine directly initiation of chromosomal DNA replication in temperature-sensitive orc mutants. Unlike in wild-type cells, in orc2-1 and orc5-1 mutant cells, only a subset of replicators formed active origins of DNA replication at the permissive temperature. At the restrictive temperature, the number of active replicators was diminished further. Using a genetic screen, CDC6 was identified as a multicopy suppressor of orc5-1. 2D gel and biochemical analyses demonstrated that Cdc6p interacted functionally and physically with ORC. We suggest that ORC and Cdc6p form a prereplication complex at individual replicators and therefore cooperate to determine the frequency of initiation of DNA replication in the genome.
Metabolic changes in male snakes, Thamnophis melanogaster, during a breeding period.

Abstract 1. 1. Daily basking periods were lengthened substantially during a breeding period in a natural population of the snake, Thamnophis melanogaster . 2. 2. In the laboratory, oxygen consumption of male T. melanogaster significantly increased during a breeding period, compared to pre- and post-breeding levels in the same males. 3. 3. In both laboratory and field males, serum lipid increased initially and then decreased during the breeding period. 4. 4. Serum protein of laboratory males decreased significantly following the breeding period. 5. 5. Serum glucose did not change significantly in laboratory males, but increased significantly during the breeding period in field males. 6. 6. Changes in oxygen consumption and nutrient distribution may reflect changing energy demands attendant with gonadal recrudescence in this snake.
Polarization dependence in ultrawideband impulsive radar target versus clutter discrimination

An account is given of the basic principles of radar polarimetry, and various optimization procedures for the propagation (scattering) range operator equation and the received-power expressions are presented and compared. On the basis of a complete description of isolated and distributed scatterers, polarimetric target classification, target vs clutter discrimination, and optimal polarimetric contrast enhancement algorithms are derived; these should be useful in the interpretation of wideband polarimetric data sets obtained with wideband coherent, dual (orthogonal) polarization channel radar systems.
Intimate relationships among returning soldiers: the mediating and moderating roles of negative emotionality, PTSD symptoms, and alcohol problems.

Research examining relationship quality among combat veterans largely focuses on the role of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with less attention devoted to other correlates of PTSD and relationship quality, such as personality and problematic drinking. In a sample of combat-exposed National Guard soldiers recently returned from Iraq (N = 308), we examined (a) a meditational pathway from negative emotionality, to elevated postdeployment PTSD symptoms, to poorer relationship quality; and (b) the moderating role of problematic drinking. Moderated mediation regression strategies supported the mediating role of postdeployment PTSD symptoms, but not the moderating role of problematic drinking on soldiers' relationship quality. Findings suggest negative emotionality creates a vulnerability to more severe early postdeployment PTSD symptoms and poorer early postdeployment relationship quality. Language: en
Identification of the Viridicatumtoxin and Griseofulvin Gene Clusters from Penicillium aethiopicum

Summary Penicillium aethiopicum produces two structurally interesting and biologically active polyketides: the tetracycline-like viridicatumtoxin 1 and the classic antifungal agent griseofulvin 2 . Here, we report the concurrent discovery of the two corresponding biosynthetic gene clusters ( vrt and gsf ) by 454 shotgun sequencing. Gene deletions confirmed that two nonreducing PKSs (NRPKSs), vrtA and gsfA , are required for the biosynthesis of 1 and 2 , respectively. Both PKSs share similar domain architectures and lack a C-terminal thioesterase domain. We identified gsfI as the chlorinase involved in the biosynthesis of 2 , because deletion of gsfI resulted in the accumulation of decholorogriseofulvin 3 . Comparative analysis with the P. chrysogenum genome revealed that both clusters are embedded within conserved syntenic regions of P. aethiopicum chromosomes. Discovery of the vrt and gsf clusters provided the basis for genetic and biochemical studies of the pathways.
Classical representation of a quantum system at equilibrium: Applications

In the preceding paper, the structure and thermodynamics of a given quantum system was represented by a corresponding classical system having an effective temperature, local chemical potential, and pair potential. Here, that formal correspondence is implemented approximately for applications to two quantum systems. The first is the electron gas (jellium) over a range of temperatures and densities. The second is an investigation of quantum effects on shell structure for charges confined by a harmonic potential.
Florida Noise barrier evaluation and computer model validation

The results of a project that investigated the effectiveness of in situ noise barriers in Florida are presented. The prediction accuracy of the FHWA Traffic Noise Model (TNM) is compared with STAMI...
Parental perspectives on chronic schizophrenia

Parents of chronic schizophrenics are an understudied population. Few researchers have asked them about their wants, needs, and difficulties. The little work that has been done indicates that their suffering is great, their coping skills better than had been previously assumed, and the stresses they are experiencing almost unendurable. This paper looks at what parents are coping with: a child with a terribly debilitating disease about which little is known, a culture which heaps stigma and shame upon them, very difficult and often unworkable mental health and legal systems, and to top it all off, a large number of clinical (non-researchers) professionals who are ignorant about schizophrenia and often unsympathetic towards the parents. This paper then looks at what little data we have from parents about their needs, and offers suggestions about how parents and professionals might best work together, towards the benefit of all concerned.
H2O splitting in tubular plasma reactors

Abstract Significant hydrogen productivity (0.33 mol% in products) from H2O splitting by atmospheric dielectric barrier discharges has been achieved with tubular plasma reactors at room temperature. The water splitting activity varies with different metal-coated inner electrodes and different peak voltages across the reactor. An optimal emission spectroscopic study was performed in order to explain the metal effect. O*/Ar* emission intensity ratio as well as excitation temperatures were used for rationalizing the metal effect.
Alchian, Buchanan, & Coase: A Neglected Branch of Chicago Price Theory

This paper suggests that there exists a neglected third branch of Chicago price theory, which includes Armen Alchian (1914-2013), James Buchanan (1919-2013), and Ronald Coase (1910-2013). While this branch shares characteristics that are common to the other branches of Chicago price theory, there are two fundamental contributions of this branch that distinguishes it from the others in the Chicago price theory tradition. The first contribution is the application of the logic of choice in discovering alternative institutional arrangements. That is, individuals will engage in exchange not only within a given institutional arrangement, but will also engage in exchange behavior to foster more preferable institutional arrangements that further the particular goals of the exchanging parties. The second contribution is the notion that the provision of markets is an entrepreneurial activity. We argue that this Alchian, Buchanan, Coase approach to price theory provides not a bridge between the "Old" Chicago School and the "New" Chicago School, but an alternative development of the Chicago School. Our paper while building on the joint insights of Alchian, Buchanan and Coase, is focused on Coase’s development of this approach, and clarifying his contribution. By drawing the economist’s attention to transactions costs, Coase more than any other economist of the 20th century brought institutional analysis to the foreground by stressing the role they play in ameliorating or exacerbating conflicts in a world of positive transactions costs.
The influence of mood on the willingness to take financial risks

The purpose of this study was to determine whether support could be found for either the Affect Infusion Model or the Mood Maintenance Hypothesis regarding how mood influences financial risk tolerance. An ordinary least‐squares regression model was used to determine if people who exhibited a happy mood at the time they completed a survey scored differently than those who were not happy. In a sample (n = 460) of employed mid‐western respondents between the ages of 18 and 75 years, being in a happy mood was positively associated with having a higher level of financial risk tolerance, holding biopsychosocial and environmental factors constant. Support for the Affect Infusion Model was obtained.
Numerical methods disguised

Our first course in Computer Science is supposed to be a gentle introduction to both the world of computing and to computer programming. It is a core course, which when I taught it had a preponderance of communications arts and psychology majors enrolled for what is euphemistically known as a "mathematics substitute."
Adults Desires for Childrens Emotions across 48 Countries: Associations with Individual and National Characteristics

The present study examined college students’desires for their children’s emotions across cultures. Atotal of 10,175 respondents from 48 countries on six continents participated. Across nations, people desired high levels of happiness and fearlessness for their children. The desire for anger suppression showed greater variability than desires for happiness and fearlessness. Greater desires for happiness were predicted by being female, by greater individual and national levels of positive affect, by greater beliefs about the appropriateness of positive affect, and by individualism. Greater desires for fearlessness were predicted for sons versus daughters, by being male, by greater individual levels of and beliefs about the appropriateness of positive affect, by lower national wealth, and by higher national levels of negative affect and greater beliefs about the appropriateness ofworrying. Greater desires for anger suppression were predicted for sons versus daughters, by being male, by greater individual and...
Protracted analgesia in young and adult rats maternally exposed to methadone

The analgesic response to the hot-plate test was studied in 21-, 45-, 60-, 120- and 300-day-old rats maternally exposed to methadone (5 mg/kg). An elevation in nociceptive threshold, in the absence of further exposure to methadone, was observed in young and adult rats perinatally subjected to methadone.
Case Study in Teacher Education

(1988). Case Study in Teacher Education. The Educational Forum: Vol. 52, No. 3, pp. 235-241.
Circadian gene Bmal1 regulates diurnal oscillations of Ly6C(hi) inflammatory monocytes.

Circadian clocks have evolved to regulate physiologic and behavioral rhythms in anticipation of changes in the environment. Although the molecular clock is present in innate immune cells, its role in monocyte homeostasis remains unknown. Here, we report that Ly6Chi inflammatory monocytes exhibit diurnal variation, which controls their trafficking to sites of inflammation. This cyclic pattern of trafficking confers protection against Listeria monocytogenes and is regulated by the repressive activity of the circadian gene BMAL1. Accordingly, myeloid cell-specific deletion of BMAL1 induces expression of monocyte-attracting chemokines and disrupts rhythmic cycling of Ly6Chi monocytes, predisposing mice to development of pathologies associated with acute and chronic inflammation. These findings have unveiled a critical role for BMAL1 in controlling the diurnal rhythms in Ly6Chi monocyte numbers.
Sensitivity of mice to lipopolysaccharide is increased by a high saturated fat and cholesterol diet

Background It was hypothesized that a pro-atherogenic, high saturated fat and cholesterol diet (HCD) would increase the inflammatory response to E. coli endotoxin (LPS) and increase its concentration in plasma after administration to mice.
Dichloroacetate Induces Apoptosis in Endometrial Cancer Cells

Purpose. A recent landmark study demonstrated that Dichloroacetate (DCA) treatment promoted apoptosis in lung, breast, and glioblastoma cancer cell lines by shifting metabolism from aerobic glycolysis to glucose oxidation coupled with NFAT-Kv1.5 axis remodeling. The objective of this study was to determine whether DCA induces apoptosis in endometrial cancer cells and to assess apoptotic mechanism. Methods. A panel of endometrial cancer cell lines with varying degrees of differentiation was treated with DCA and analyzed for apoptosis via flow cytometry. Biological correlates such as gene expression, intracellular Ca 2+ , and mitochondrial membrane potential were examined to assess apoptotic mechanism.
Influence of Atomic Layer Deposition Temperatures on TiO2/n-Si MOS Capacitor

This paper reports on the influence of deposition temperature on the structure, composition, and electrical properties of TiO2 thin filmsdepositedonn-typesilicon(100)byplasma-assisted atomiclayerdeposition(PA-ALD).TiO2 layers ∼20nmthick,depositedat temperatures ranging from 100 to 300◦C, were investigated. Samples deposited at 200◦C and 250◦C had the most uniform coverage as determined by atomic force microscopy. The average carbon concentration throughout the oxide layer and at the TiO2/Si interface was lowest at 200 ◦ C. Metal oxide semiconductor capacitors (MOSCAPs) were fabricated, and profiled by capacitance-voltage techniques. The sample prepared at 200 ◦ C had negligible hysteresis (from a capacitance-voltage plot) and the lowest interface trap density (as extracted using the conductance method). Current-voltage measurements were carried out with top-to-bottom structures. At −2 V gate bias voltage, the smallest leakage current was 1.22 × 10 −5 A/cm 2 for the 100 ◦ C deposited sample.
SHORT: self-healing and optimizing routing techniques for mobile ad hoc networks

On demand routing protocols provide scalable and cost-effective solutions for packet routing in mobile wireless ad hoc networks. The paths generated by these protocols may deviate far from the optimal because of the lack of knowledge about the global topology and the mobility of nodes. Routing optimality affects network performance and energy consumption, especially when the load is high. In this paper, we define routing optimality using different metrics such as path length, energy consumption along the path, and energy aware load balancing among the nodes. We then propose a framework of Self-Healing and Optimizing Routing Techniques (SHORT) for mobile ad hoc networks. While using SHORT, all the neighboring nodes monitor the route and try to optimize it if and when a better local sub-path is available. Thus SHORT enhances performance in terms of bandwidth and latency without incurring any significant additional cost. In addition, SHORT can be also used to determine paths that result in low energy consumption or optimize the residual battery power. Thus, we have detailed two broad classes of SHORT algorithms: Path-Aware SHORT and Energy-Aware SHORT. Finally, we evaluate SHORT using the ns-2 simulator. The results demonstrate that the performance of existing routing schemes can be significantly improved using the proposed SHORT algorithms.
Improving the accuracy of a variable step-size method for solving stiff Lyapunov differential equations

A method based on the matrix generalization of the second-order backward differentiation formula is proposed for computing the solutions of stiff Lyapunov differential equations. The proposed method efficiently computes the solutions by exploiting the matrix structure of the Lyapunov differential equations and by allowing the step-size of integration to increase automatically. Such a variable step-size feature shortens the computational time when the transient part of the solution becomes insignificant. This proposed method was encoded as a MATLAB/sup /spl reg// script file and was tested on several Lyapunov differential equations with known closed-form solutions. This method produced accurate solutions. It was observed that the step-size of integration could increase automatically. Also when it was in or near the steady state, the errors of the computed solutions remained very small even for very large step-sizes of integration. This proposed method was also compared with the matrix version of the backward Euler method proposed. It was found that the new method produced solutions with accuracy an order of magnitude higher than the matrix backward Euler method.
CMP design space exploration subject to physical constraints

This paper explores the multi-dimensional design space for chip multiprocessors, exploring the inter-related variables of core count, pipeline depth, superscalar width, L2 cache size, and operating voltage and frequency, under various area and thermal constraints. The results show the importance of joint optimization. Thermal constraints dominate other physical constraints such as pin-bandwidth and power delivery, demonstrating the importance of considering thermal constraints while optimizing these other parameters. For aggressive cooling solutions, reducing power density is at least as important as reducing total power, while for low-cost cooling solutions, reducing total power is more important. Finally, the paper shows the challenges of accommodating both CPU-bound and memory-bound workloads on the same design. Their respective preferences for more cores and larger caches lead to increasingly irreconcilable configurations as area and other constraints are relaxed; rather than accommodating a happy medium, the extra resources simply encourage more extreme optimization points.
Influence of age on venous physiologic parameters.

Abstract Purpose: The incidence of deep venous thrombosis increases significantly with age. Attempts to explain this association have failed to identify factors that could be contributory. We hypothesized that age-related changes in venous physiologic parameters might contribute to an increased risk of deep venous thrombosis. Methods: Air plethysmography was used to measure a number of physiologic parameters in two sets of patients. Group A consisted of 17 subjects (33 limbs), age range 23 to 40 years. Group B consisted of 11 subjects (22 limbs), age range 60 to 83 years. No subject in either group had peripheral vascular disease or a history of deep venous thrombosis. Parameters measured were venous volume, venous filling index, ejection volume, ejection fraction, residual volume fraction, and outflow fraction. Results: Venous volume and ejection fraction were significantly reduced in Group B compared with Group A. Residual volume fraction was significantly increased in Group B compared with Group A. There were no statistically significant differences in outflow fraction, venous filling index, or ejection fraction between the two groups. Conclusions: These results suggest that the efficiency of the calf muscle pump diminishes with increasing age, possibly contributing to the increased incidence of deep venous thrombosis in the elderly. (J VASC SURG 1993;18:749-52.)
Task Partitioning with Replication upon Heterogeneous Multiprocessor Systems

The heterogeneous multiprocessor task partitioning with replication problem involves determining a mapping of recurring tasks upon a set consisting of different processing units in such a way that all tasks meet their timing constraints and no two replicas of the same task are assigned to the same processing unit. The replication requirement improves the resilience of the real-time system to a finite number of processor failures. This problem is NP-hard in the strong sense. We develop a Fully Polynomial-Time Approximation Scheme (FPTAS) for this problem.
Commentary: Introductory Comments to Some Applied Papers by David R. Brillinger, by Tore Schweder and Haiganoush Preisler

In addition to statistics, David took care in developing my attitude as a scientist - and he wrote a poem of his own in my draft thesis about whales and statistics. He also cared for us personally. We were invited to use Lorie's and David's house when they went to New Zealand in the summer of 1973. Our newborn child spent her first time out of Alta Bates hospital in their house. David also gave me support in a more touchy matter. I was on a US Navy grant, and felt uneasy when I realized that I had to acknowledge the grant in a publication. Strike it in the last galley, was David's advice - which I in the end did not follow. And there was fun, also outside the soccer field. David suggested the movie "The harder they come". My son, an aspiring reggae musician, was happy to find the Jimmy Cliff LP in my old stock. In the last couple of years we have been lucky to have David as an advisor in our Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis in Oslo, and to have David repeatedly visiting.
Output-based shared-memory crosspoint-buffered packet switch for multicast services

The incorporation of broadcast and multimedia-on-demand services are expected to increase multicast traffic in packet networks, and therefore in switches and routers. Combined input-crosspoint buffered (CICB) switches can provide high performance under uniform multicast traffic, however, at the expense of N 2 crosspoint buffers. In this letter, we propose an output-based shared-memory crosspoint-buffered (O-SMCB) packet switch where the crosspoint buffers are shared by two outputs and use no speedup. The proposed switch provides high performance under admissible uniform and nonuniform multicast traffic models while using 50% of the memory used in CICB switches. Furthermore, the O-SMCB switch provides higher throughput than an SMCB switch with buffers shared by inputs, or I-SMCB.
Helps and hindrances for adolescents making important real-life decisions

Abstract This article presents data from college students reminiscing about important decisions they have made in the last year. Students who consider more alternatives report more stress and difficulty while they are in the process of making the decision. Students with a connected knowing (CK) epistemological style report themselves to draw on intuition and report more certainty and comfort with the decision; students with a separate knowing (SK) epistemological style report using a more analytic approach to decision-making. Students who report themselves to be good planners are significantly more certain they have made the right decision, more comfortable with the process, more satisfied with the information they have gathered, more likely to consider future consequences of their decision, and more likely to make their decision based on their overall values or principles. These findings are discussed in terms of what educators might do to help adolescents improve decision-making.
Gating effects along mitral cell lateral dendrites

Background It is generally thought that granule-mitral cell synapses in the olfactory bulb function to inhibit mitral cell firing, and that this inhibition can underlie such functionally important phenomena as lateral inhibition and synchronization [1]. Recent electrophysiology [2] and imaging [3] studies indicate that the location of the dendrodendritic synapse must be close to the soma to impact the mitral cell's firing.
Terminating ventricular tachyarrhythmias using far-field low-voltage stimuli: mechanisms and delivery protocols.

Background Low-voltage termination of ventricular tachycardia (VT) and atrial fibrillation has shown promising results; however, the mechanisms and full range of applications remain unexplored. Objectives To elucidate the mechanisms for low-voltage cardioversion and defibrillation and to develop an optimal low-voltage defibrillation protocol. Methods We developed a detailed magnetic resonance imaging-based computational model of the rabbit right ventricular wall. We applied multiple low-voltage far-field stimuli of various strengths (≤1 V/cm) and stimulation rates in VT and ventricular fibrillation (VF). Results Of the 5 stimulation rates tested, stimuli applied at 16% or 88% of the VT cycle length (CL) were most effective in cardioverting VT, the mechanism being consecutive excitable gap decreases. Stimuli given at 88% of the VF CL defibrillated successfully, whereas a faster stimulation rate (16%) often failed because the fast stimuli did not capture enough tissue. In this model, defibrillation threshold energy for multiple low-voltage stimuli at 88% of VF CL was 0.58% of the defibrillation threshold energy for a single strong biphasic shock. Based on the simulation results, a novel 2-stage defibrillation protocol was proposed. The first stage converted VF into VT by applying low-voltage stimuli at times of maximal excitable gap, capturing large tissue volume and synchronizing depolarization; the second stage terminated VT. The energy required for successful defibrillation using this protocol was 57.42% of the energy for low-voltage defibrillation when stimulating at 88% of VF CL. Conclusions A novel 2-stage low-voltage defibrillation protocol using the excitable gap extent to time multiple stimuli defibrillated VF with the least energy by first converting VF into VT and then terminating VT.
Effects of Commercial Energy Drink Consumption on Athletic Performance and Body Composition

Energy drinks are frequently marketed to individuals interested in athletics and an active lifestyle. From 2001 to 2008, estimates of energy drink use in adolescent to middle-aged populations ranged from 24% to 56%. Most energy drinks feature caffeine and a combination of other components, including taurine, sucrose, guarana, ginseng, niacin, pyridoxine, and cyanocobalamin. This article examines the evidence for 2 commonly purported uses of energy drinks: athletic performance enhancement and weight loss. Observed ergogenic benefits of energy drinks are likely attributable to caffeine and glucose content. There is conflicting evidence regarding the impact of energy drinks on weight loss, although some data suggest that combining energy drink use with exercise may enhance body fat reduction. As with any pharmacologically active substance, energy drinks are associated with adverse effects. Combining energy drinks with alcohol exacerbates safety concerns and is an increasingly common practice contributing to toxic jock identity among college-aged male athletes. Practitioners should monitor identified populations likely to consume these loosely regulated beverages.
Tumor inhibitors. VII. Podophyllotoxin, the active principle of Juniperus virginiana.

An alcohol extract of Juniperus virginiana L. was found to show tumor-inhibitory activity against Sarcoma 180 in mice and against human carcinoma of the nasopharynx carried in cell culture (KB). Systematic fractionation of the extract led to isolation and characterization of podophyllotoxin as the active principle.
Rank 0 Quadratic Twists of a Family of Elliptic Curves

In this paper, we consider a family of elliptic curves over Q with 2-torsion part Z2. We prove that, for every such elliptic curve, a positive proportion of quadratic twists have Mordell-Weil rank 0.
Community Social Status, Suburban Growth, and Local Government Restrictions on Residential Development

Residential development restrictions among Southern California suburban jurisdictions are examined. The purpose of the analysis is to assess the relative importance of various measures of community...
Estrogen receptor phosphorylation

Estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) is phosphorylated on multiple amino acid residues. For example, in response to estradiol binding, human ERalpha is predominately phosphorylated on Ser-118 and to a lesser extent on Ser-104 and Ser-106. In response to activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway, phosphorylation occurs on Ser-118 and Ser-167. These serine residues are all located within the activation function 1 region of the N-terminal domain of ERalpha. In contrast, activation of protein kinase A increases the phosphorylation of Ser-236, which is located in the DNA-binding domain. The in vivo phosphorylation status of Tyr-537, located in the ligand-binding domain, remains controversial. In this review, I present evidence that these phosphorylations occur, and identify the kinases thought to be responsible. Additionally, the functional importance of ERalpha phosphorylation is discussed.
Gaining and Losing Interest in Running for Public Office: The Concept of Dynamic Political Ambition

Considering a candidacy for public office involves pondering the courageous step of going before an electorate and facing potential examination, scrutiny, and rejection. Anyone who contemplates running for office, therefore, must answer a series of questions. Is the time right to inject my family into the political arena? Where am I in terms of my professional goals? Do I know enough about the issues and the political system to run for office? Am I in sync with my potential constituents on the issues that matter most? Have electoral gatekeepers indicated support for my foray into politics? Do I really want to take part in a political process that is so often associated with self-interest, corruption, and cynicism? In short, a variety of personal, professional, and political circumstances—circumstances that often change over time—undoubtedly affect the extent to which someone considers entering the electoral arena.
AST/ASTS Workshop on Increasing Organ Donation in the United States: Creating an “Arc of Change” From Removing Disincentives to Testing Incentives

The American Society of Transplantation (AST) and American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS) convened a workshop on June 2-3, 2014, to explore increasing both living and deceased organ donation in the United States. Recent articles in the lay press on illegal organ sales and transplant tourism highlight the impact of the current black market in kidneys that accompanies the growing global organ shortage. We believe it important not to conflate the illegal market for organs, which we reject in the strongest possible terms, with the potential in the United States for concerted action to remove all remaining financial disincentives for donors and critically consider testing the impact and acceptability of incentives to increase organ availability in the United States. However, we do not support any trials of direct payments or valuable considerations to donors or families based on a process of market-assigned values of organs. This White Paper represents a summary by the authors of the deliberations of the Incentives Workshop Group and has been approved by both AST and ASTS Boards.
The Influence of Verification Jig on Framework Fit for Nonsegmented Fixed Implant-Supported Complete Denture

Purpose: The purpose of this retrospective study was to assess if there was a difference in the likelihood of achieving passive fit when an implant-supported full-arch prosthesis framework is fabricated with or without the aid of a verification jig. Materials and Methods: This investigation was approved by the University of Rochester Research Subject Review Board (protocol #RSRB00038482). Thirty edentulous patients, 49 to 73 years old (mean 61 years old), rehabilitated with a nonsegmented fixed implant-supported complete denture were included in the study. During the restorative process, final impressions were made using the pickup impression technique and elastomeric impression materials. For 16 patients, a verification jig was made (group J), while for the remaining 14 patients, a verification jig was not used (group NJ) and the framework was fabricated directly on the master cast. During the framework try-in appointment, the fit was assessed by clinical (Sheffield test) and radiographic inspection and recorded as passive or nonpassive. Results: When a verification jig was used (group J, n = 16), all frameworks exhibited clinically passive fit, while when a verification jig was not used (group NJ, n = 14), only two frameworks fit. This difference was statistically significant (p < .001). Conclusions: Within the limitations of this retrospective study, the fabrication of a verification jig ensured clinically passive fit of metal frameworks in nonsegmented fixed implant-supported complete denture.
Case study: the design of a mixed-signal global positioning system receiver using multichip module packaging

In a collaborative project, the Mayo Foundation and Motorola have developed a fully functional miniaturized global positioning system (GPS) receiver using laminated multichip modules (MCM-L). This paper presents the system requirements, design constraints, substrate selection criteria and description, design approach, assembly, and test of a fully operational GPS receiver to describe the generic mixed-signal design techniques used during the development cycle.
Principal Currents in the Economic Historiography of Latin America

It will perhaps clarify the remarks that follow if we observe at the outset that the economic history of Latin America is in its infancy. This is not to say that the development of economic institutions, the operation of economic systems, the formation and growth of economic activities and attitudes, and the formulation and execution of economic policy have gone unnoticed in the history of Latin America. It is only to state that the formal discipline of economic history, even the use of economic history as part of a title, are of recent date. As in the historiography of most areas of the world, political developments and personalities in Latin America have constituted the core of historiography, and even today the “new” interdisciplinary history of half a century ago in the United States or the more recent French school of “total” history have drawn few adherents to Latin America. Many factors may be adduced to explain the delayed interest in economic history, but one may hazard the guess that there is a positive correlation between the degree of criticism of the nature and function of an economy and both the quantity and quality of economic historiography. At least in the United States, economic history owes no small debt to a muck-raking tradition. In Latin America, on the contrary, the nature of the literate elite and the limits on education have tended to stifle until recently the development of a body of economic literature of protest and, by extension, of economic history.
Matching logic: a new program verification approach.

Matching logic is a new program verication logic, which builds upon operational semantics. Matching logic specications are constrained symbolic program congurations, called patterns, which can be matched by concrete congurations. By building upon an operational semantics of the language and allowing specications to directly refer to the structure of the conguration, matching logic has at least three benets that could be key factors in its usability: (1) One’s familiarity with the formalism reduces to one’s familiarity with the operational semantics of the language, that is, with the language itself; (2) The verication process proceeds the same way as the execution of the program, making debugging failed proof attempts manageable because one can always see the \current conguration" and \what went wrong", same like in a debugger; and (3) Nothing is lost in translation, that is, there is no gap between the language itself and its verier. Moreover, direct access to the structure of the conguration facilitates dening sub-patterns that one may reason about, such as disjoint lists or trees in the heap, as well as supporting framing in various components of the conguration at no additional costs.
Pressure Scale Effects on Shape Drag in Conduit

While testing cylinders in closed conduit flow, it was found that the drag coefficient varied with pressure at a constant Reynolds number. The conditions at which this phenomenon occurs are presented along with a possible explanation of why it occurs. It is the purpose of the paper to present the problem and to generate ideas and discussion by the readers to help explain the phenomenon.
Fusion near and below the barrier for the systems /sup 32,34/S+/sup 24,25,26/Mg and /sup 32/S+/sup 27/Al

Excitation functions are reported for total fusion near and below the Coulomb barrier of the systems /sup 32,34/S+/sup 24,25,26/Mg and /sup 27/Al. The data cannot be reproduced by one-dimensional barrier penetration calculations. The enhancement of the cross sections at low energies is compared to predictions of models taking into acount the static deformation or zero point vibration of the reaction partners. Calculations including zero point motion do not reproduce the observed variations of the measured cross sections with respect to the neutron number of target and projectile. Reasonable agreement is obtained when calculating fusion between statically deformed nuclei. Finally, the fusion process is described in a quantum mechanical coupled channels model, indicating the importance of dynamical effect on sub-barrier fusion.
Combinaorial Multi-attribute Auction (CMOA) Framework for e-auction

The traditional auction protocols (aka Dutch, English auctions) that Ebay, Amazon and Yahoo use; although considered success stories [9], have limited negotiation space: The combinatorial auction (CA) and multi-attribute auction (MAA) [10], [17] have been developed to address these shortages but even these do not allow users to negotiate more than one attribute at a time. As an answer to these limitations a new e-auction protocol has been created to enable agents negotiate on many attributes and combinations of goods simultaneously. This paper therefore shows how the automated hybrid auction was created to reduce computational and bid evaluation complexity based on CMOA bidding language and Social Construction of Technology (SCOT) principles. SCOT states that (i) the ’relevant social group’; (ii) their ’interpretative flexibility; and workability / functionality of the technology must be considered for the development of system such as e-auction as an alternative to E-Bay. SCOT is of the view that technologies emerge out of the process of choice and negotiations between ’relevant social groups’ [15], [8], in this case the bidders, auctioneers, sellers and auction house. This paper represents a collaboration of studies in progress - The Combinatorial Multi-attribute Auction as an online auction as compared to existing e-auction protocols such as Amazon, eBay, and applicaiton of intelligent software and Agent UML in e-auction.
Analysis of Age of Onset Data from Case-Control Family Studies

Age of onset data from case-control family studies are frequently used to study the relationship between disease and environmental or genetic factors. Dependence of age of onset within family and case-control sampling designs must be taken into account in analyzing such data. In this paper, we propose a parametric likelihood approach to study the relationship between disease risk and covariates, allowing for any correlations in age of onset of disease between family members and to study the familial association in age of onset of disease due to genetic factors, after adjusting for other shared covariates within the family. The method provides a way to combine the information relating disease incidence to risk factors in relatives with the information contained in the case/control contrasts in order to obtain more precise estimates of the effects of the putative risk factors. A data set from a case-control family study of lung cancer is used to illustrate the method. The analysis indicated that history of smoking, passive smoking, and history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are positively associated with lung cancer risk, and that, after adjustment for these risk factors, there is little evidence of familial aggregation in lung cancer risk.
Effect of dimethylsulfoxide on the intestinal sugar transport.

SummaryThe effect of DMSO upon intestinal transport of glucose, galactose, and 3-0-methylglucose was examined. If glucose or galactose are present in the lumen in high initial concentrations, DMSO enhances the rate of absorption, and also changes the kinetics of transport from a saturation type (typical for carrier-mediated transport) to a diffusion type. Intestinal absorption of 3-0-methylglucose is not influenced by DMSO. If the sugar absorption is primarily an active transport, DMSO does not enhance it. It is concluded that DMSO causes glucose and galactose to become sufficiently fat-soluble to bypass carrier mediation.
Generalized stacking fault energies and slip in β-tin

Abstract The preferential slip systems in β-tin were investigated using density functional theory (DFT). The gamma surface entering dislocation modeling was calculated using DFT for three different nonequivalent slip systems in β-tin. The generalized stacking fault energies (GSFE) of different slip systems led to the conclusion that the {100)
Neurophysiological Monitoring During Pedicle Screw Placement

Publisher Summary This chapter highlights that the use of pedicle screws for spinal stabilization has become commonplace during various spinal surgical procedures. The placement of these screws is largely done blindly, and even in the hands of experienced surgeons, the incidence of misplaced pedicle screws resulting in neurological impairment is reported to be quite high, despite the use of surgical inspection and imaging techniques. As a result, surgeons and clinical neurophysiologists have used various electrophysiological monitoring techniques for assessing nerve root function and pedicle screw placements. The combined use of spontaneous and triggered myogenic activity for intraoperative monitoring purposes satisfies all the criteria that a monitoring technique should meet. This technique is cost-effective and improves surgical outcomes. The incidence of neurological complications associated with the placement of pedicle screws has been reported as 2–10%. All the techniques that can be used to monitor pedicle screw placements have some limitations. The combined use of spontaneous and triggered myogenic activity is the only technique that meets all the necessary criteria if it is to be widely and effectively used to assess pedicle screw placements and to preserve nerve root function.