cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Stimulus overselectivity four decades later: a review of the literature and its implications for current research in autism spectrum disorder.

This review of several topics related to “stimulus overselectivity” (Lovaas et al., J Abnormal Psychol 77:211–222, 1971) has three main purposes: (1) To outline the factors that may contribute to overselectivity; (2) to link the behavior-analytical notion of overselectivity to current nonbehavior-analytical research and theory; and (3) to suggest remedial strategies based on the behavior-analytical approach. While it is clear that overselectivity is not specific to autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and also that not all persons with ASD exhibit overselectivity, it is prevalent in ASD and has critical implications for symptoms, treatment, research, and theory. Weak Central Coherence and Enhanced Perceptual Functioning theories are briefly considered. The research areas addressed here include theory of mind, joint attention, language development, and executive function.
Shifts in the Composition of Government Spending in Response to External Debt Burden

Abstract This paper examines the effects of external public debt burden on the composition of public spending in a sample of 47 developing countries for 1972–2001. We specify a system of equations for the relative spending shares of six economic categories and estimate it using several estimation methods and samples. We find support for the adverse effect of the debt burden on “capital expenditure” in the full sample and in the Middle East-North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa subsamples where the debt burden was relatively high. Among components of “current expenditure,” increased debt burden shifted the shares against “nonwage goods services” and “subsidy and transfers” while leaving the share of politically sensitive category of “wages and salaries” unscathed in most cases.
Partial characterization of basic proteins of chicken, turtle and frog central nervous system myelin.

— Myelin basic proteins were isolated from CNS tissues of chicken, turtle and frog and compared with the corresponding protein of bovine origin. At acid pH all four proteins had comparable mobilities in polyacrylamide gels. Upon electrophoresis at alkaline pH the submammalian proteins, like the bovine protein, were separated into multiple components. The components of the chicken and frog proteins had exceptionally high and low mobilities, respectively, while those of the turtle protein had mobilities comparable to those of the bovine protein. The chicken and turtle proteins were similar to the bovine protein in amino acid composition except for containing considerably more serine and valine and having higher proportions of histidine to lysine. The frog protein differed further in having an unusually high content of tyrosine (approx 9 mol/mol protein), an unusually high arginine: glycine ratio (1.09) and practically no methylated arginine (0-0.036 mol/mol protein). Like those of mammalian origin, the submammalian proteins each contained a single tryptophan and two methionines. Arginine, serine and glycine together accounted for approximately 40 per cent of the residues in each protein. The chicken and turfle proteins each contained roughly equal amounts of NG-monomethyl- and NG, NG-dimethylarginine, the two derivatives together comprising 0.5-0.6 mol/mol protein. No NG, NG-dimethylarginine was detected in any of the proteins examined. The microheterogeneity observed in the chicken and turtle proteins upon electrophoresis at alkaline pH was reproduced upon alkaline pH chromatography on carboxymethylcellulose. Chromatographic fractions of the chicken protein which differed electrophoretically at alkaline pH had virtualy identical amino acid compositions and apparent molecular weights and all contained comparable amounts of both NG-monomethyl- and NG, NG-dimethylarginine. Treatment of the submammalian proteins with BNPS-skatole yielded two fragments comparable in size, charge and staining characteristics to those similarly produced from the bovine protein (residues 1-116 and 117-170). Fragments produced from the frog protein by treatment with BrCN were comparable in size and charge to those similarly produced from the bovine protein; those produced from the chicken and turtle proteins were much different. In immunodiffusion studies the submammalian and bovine proteins showed reactions of identity when tested against rabbit anti-chicken basic protein serum.
An Examination of Five Reform Periods in the U.S. House of Representatives in the Twentieth Century

This paper addresses the research questions of why, in the United States House of Representatives, so few Congresses attempt major institutional reforms and why some reforms succeed where others fail. Rejecting the most common approach of analyzing individual reform eras in isolation, I create three conditions that must be met in order for major institutional rule changes to be successfully implemented and apply those conditions to the five most recent major reform periods in the House of Representatives. Using the Congressional Record, other primary sources, the rich scholarly literature, and Poole and Rosenthal's DW-NOMINATE scores, I analyze the reform eras of 1910 - 1911, the mid-1940s, the early and mid-1970s, 1992 - 1993, and 1994 - 1995. The comparative analysis suggests that the three conditions outlined help move us away from explanations of individual reform eras and towards a more general theory of institutional reform.
Synthesis and characterization of 4-methoxy-7-nitroindolinyl-d-aspartate, a caged compound for selective activation of glutamate transporters and N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors in brain tissue

The d-isomer of aspartate is efficiently transported by high-affinity Na+/K+-dependent glutamate transporters and is an effective ligand of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors. To facilitate analysis of the regulation of these proteins in their native membranes, we synthesized a photolabile analogue of d-aspartate, 4-methoxy-7-nitroindolinyl-d-aspartate (MNI-d-aspartate). This compound was photolyzed with a quantum efficiency of 0.09 at pH 7.4. Photorelease of d-aspartate in acute hippocampal slices through brief (1 ms) UV laser illumination of MNI-d-aspartate triggered rapidly activating currents in astrocytes that were inhibited by the glutamate transporter antagonist dl-threo-β-benzyloxyaspartic acid (TBOA), indicating that they resulted from electrogenic uptake of d-aspartate. These transporter currents exhibited a distinct tail component that was ∼2% of the peak current, which may result from the release of K+ into the extracellular space during counter transport. MNI-d-aspartate was neither an ago...
Retrograde ureteropyeloscopy for lower pole caliceal calculi.

Purpose:: Contemporary treatment of lower pole renal calculi includes extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy, percutaneous nephrostolithotomy and retrograde ureteropyeloscopy. Success rates for shock wave lithotripsy are reduced in this setting, especially for stones greater than 1 cm. and/or in patients with anatomical variants. Percutaneous treatment, although effective, subjects the patient to increased morbidity. We studied the safety and efficacy of retrograde ureteroscopic treatment of lower pole intrarenal calculi.Materials and Methods:: We evaluated 90 stone burdens localized to the lower pole and treated with a small diameter, actively deflectable, flexible ureteropyeloscope and a 200 μ. holmium laser fiber. Stone burdens were classified as group 1—10 or less, group 2—11 to 20 and group 3—greater than 20 mm. in largest diameter. Patients with calculi less than 2.5 cm. were treated as outpatients unless concurrent medical conditions required hospitalization. Larger stones and partial staghorn calcu...
Liver-Specific β-Catenin Knockout Mice Have Bile Canalicular Abnormalities, Bile Secretory Defect, and Intrahepatic Cholestasis

Beta-catenin plays important roles in liver physiology and hepatocarcinogenesis. While studying the role of β-catenin in diet-induced steatohepatitis, we recently found that liver-specific β-catenin knockout (KO) mice exhibit intrahepatic cholestasis. This study was undertaken to further characterize the role of β-catenin in biliary physiology. KO mice and wild-type (WT) littermates were fed standard chow or a diet supplemented with 0.5% cholic acid for 2 weeks. Chow-fed KO mice had higher serum and hepatic total bile acid levels and lower bile flow rate than WT mice. Expression levels of bile acid biosynthetic genes were lower and levels of major bile acid exporters were similar, which therefore could not explain the KO phenotype. Despite loss of the tight junction protein claudin-2, KO mice had preserved functional integrity of tight junctions. KO mice had bile canalicular morphologic abnormalities as evidenced by staining for F-actin and zona occludens 1. Electron microscopy revealed dilated and tortuous bile canaliculi in KO livers along with decreased canalicular and sinusoidal microvilli. KO mice on a cholic acid diet had higher hepatic and serum bile acid levels, bile ductular reaction, increased pericellular fibrosis, and dilated, misshapen bile canaliculi. Compensatory changes in expression levels of several bile acid transporters and regulatory genes were found in KO livers. Conclusion: Liver-specific loss of β-catenin leads to defective bile canalicular morphology, bile secretory defect, and intrahepatic cholestasis. Thus, our results establish a critical role for β-catenin in biliary physiology. (HEPATOLOGY 2010)
Low-temperature-induced rate transitions in DNA synthesis of Escherichia coli 15T.

Abstract DNA synthesis rates were measured in Escherichia coli 15T − (555-7) at each degree increment in the range of 8 to 37 °C. These measurements were made (a) by means of continuous incorporation of thymine into temperature-equilibrated cultures, (b) by incorporation of short pulses of thymidine into chilled, intact cells, or (c) by incorporation of deoxynucleotide triphosphate into chilled, toluenized cells. Measurements were made in wild type and in a fast-growing mutant, with each assayed at doubling times of less than 60 min (glucose-grown cells) and greater than 60 min (aspartic acid-grown cells). Rates of DNA synthesis from each experimental system were plotted according to the method of Arrhenius, and data points fitted to either one, two, or three lines. Using the slopes of the regression lines as a general index of temperature coefficients, it is possible to relate growth history, medium (or growth rate), and cell type to temperature coefficients. Only in temperature-equilibrated cells did DNA synthesis possibly have a single temperature coefficient across the entire 8 to 37 °C range; in cells grown at 37 °C and cooled to a lower temperature before DNA synthesis was measured, at least two temperature coefficients were observed. In addition to affecting the actual slopes of the regression lines, growth history, medium (or growth rate), and cell type appear to affect the temperatures at which slopes change. Collectively, these observations show that DNA synthesis rates measured at certain low temperatures cannot routinely be extrapolated to higher temperatures, to different growth conditions, or to other strains.
Digital analysis of ESR spectra of spin labeled nucleic acid systems

Abstract Programs written in FORTRAN II have been developed for analyzing ESR spectra of spin labeled nucleic acid ligand complexes. The spectra are aligned and standardized with respect to an external standard for studying parameters of nucleic acid ligand complexes by taking into account the entire spectral arrays. Results obtained on spin labeled nucleic acids and poly-L-lysine systems indicate the existence of a two component system with two kinds of apparent spin mobilities.
Substantia innominata: critical link in the behavioral expression of mesolimbic dopamine stimulation in the rat.

The 'supersensitive' locomotor response to apomorphine resulting from 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-induced denervation of the nucleus accumbens (N.Acc.) was studied in animals following selective damage to cell bodies within the substantia innominata (SI) and lateral preoptic region (LPO). Ibotenic acid-induced lesions of the SI and LPO dramatically attenuated the locomotor response to apomorphine in 6-OHDA-infused animals. Thus, the locomotor response that follows dopaminergic stimulation within the N.Acc. depends to a great degree on the integrity of cells within the SI and LPO region.
Transmission polarization devices using an unsupported film/pellicle: closed-form design formula

We present a comprehensive study of the polarization characteristic of an unsupported film/pellicle in the transmission mode through the use of the transmission ellipsometric function τ. We determine the behavior of the unsupported film. In addition, we identify all possible transmission polarization devices using a pellicle. We present for the first time analytically-derived closed-form design formulae for each and every device, in addition to a unified closed-form design formula that works for the design of any and all possible devices. It also works for any general transmission polarization device. Due to the limited size of the paper, we only present a limited number of device characteristics and performance.
Electronic structure computations and theoretical chemical kinetics: developments at the interface

Abstract The past quarter century has seen considerable advances both in the accurate ab initio calculation of features of the Born-Oppenheimer potential energy surface and in the statistical dynamical calculation of chemical reaction rates. Although each of these areas has in the past played a significant role in fueling advances in the other, the relationship between them is now more immediate. These areas are now, and will be for the forseeable future, inextricably linked.
Clinical surveillance testing after lung cancer operations.

Background. Although routine clinical surveillance testing after lung cancer operation has important clinical implications for patients and financial implications for society, the ideal surveillance strategy is unknown. Methods. We surveyed The Society of Thoracic Surgeons membership by questionnaire to characterize the current practice of follow-up among experts in lung cancer treatment. There were 2,009 responses (54% return) from the 3,700 members; 768 of those responding both operate on and provide long-term follow-up for lung cancer patients. These responses form the basis of this study. Results. The follow-up methods most frequently used during a 5-year follow-up include clinic visit, chest roentgenography, complete blood cell count, liver function testing, and chest computed tomography. Sputum cytology, head computed tomography, bone scanning, chest magnetic resonance imaging, and bronchoscopy are used infrequently. Although there is wide variation in the frequency of use of these ten methods, there is significant ( p Conclusions. This survey provides direct evidence regarding current surveillance practices among thoracic surgeons. There appears to be marked variation among members of The Society of Thoracic Surgeons in frequency of and rationale for routine clinical surveillance testing.
A multiconfigurational molecular orbital study of N-methyl oxatriazole

A multiconfigurational molecular orbital analysis has been carried out for a representative of a class of compounds found to have hypotensive activity in biological systems. N-methyl oxatriazole is a mesoionic compound isoelectronic with N-methyl sydnone and is found to be a highly polar, delocalized heterocyclic pi-electron system. A pair-excitation multiconfiguration self-consistent field (PEMCSCF) treatment of the three lowest states indicates substantial mixing of the lowest unoccupied orbital with the ground state. Orthonormal resonance analysis shows how the orbital mixing improves the description of the dipole moment in the ground state. The PEMCSCF calculation was carried out using a minimum basis of Slater–Transform–Preuss functions fitted by six Cartesian Gaussian orbitals (STP-6G) which were previously optimized on smaller molecules to yield energies below 4–31G values. This PEMCSCF calculation is one of the first applications of ab initio MCSCF techniques to a molecule of 10 atoms and represents development of practical methods for PEMCSCF treatment of up to 15 atoms.
The functional network of ion channels in T lymphocytes

For more than 25 years, it has been widely appreciated that Ca2+ influx is essential to trigger T-lymphocyte activation. Patch clamp analysis, molecular identification, and functional studies using blockers and genetic manipulation have shown that a unique contingent of ion channels orchestrates the initiation, intensity, and duration of the Ca2+ signal. Five distinct types of ion channels--Kv1.3, KCa3.1, Orai1+ stromal interacting molecule 1 (STIM1) [Ca2+-release activating Ca2+ (CRAC) channel], TRPM7, and Cl(swell)--comprise a network that performs functions vital for ongoing cellular homeostasis and for T-cell activation, offering potential targets for immunomodulation. Most recently, the roles of STIM1 and Orai1 have been revealed in triggering and forming the CRAC channel following T-cell receptor engagement. Kv1.3, KCa3.1, STIM1, and Orai1 have been found to cluster at the immunological synapse following contact with an antigen-presenting cell; we discuss how channels at the synapse might function to modulate local signaling. Immuno-imaging approaches are beginning to shed light on ion channel function in vivo. Importantly, the expression pattern of Ca2+ and K+ channels and hence the functional network can adapt depending upon the state of differentiation and activation, and this allows for different stages of an immune response to be targeted specifically.
On the robust control aspect of a class of systems involving interconnected rigid and flexible appendages: case study

A robust control procedure for precision pointing and tracking of fast moving elastic structures is proposed. Based on a combination of the sliding manifold approach with the theory of optimal interpolation, this design procedure generates a control effort capable of insuring high pointing and tracking performance in the presence of induced disturbances and modelling uncertainties. The uncertainties are handled by sliding control and estimation of the nonlinearly excited elastic elastic dynamics by an interpolator of the structure dynamic response. Chattering behaviour of the controller is avoided at the expense of tolerating a known tracking error. It is shown through analysis that a trade-off has to be set, by taking into account the main requirements of a given mission and the system hardware capabilities. For illustration purposes, a set of numerical simulations is then run to assess the system dynamical performance.
Extraocular Muscle Involvement in Sarcoldosis

Background: Sarcoidosis is a granulomatous inflammatory disease that may have a variety of ocular and orbital manifestations. The most common ocular manifestation is uveitis, and the most common orbital manifestation is dacryoadenitis. Extraocular muscle involvement in sarcoidosis has rarely been reported. The authors report a case of sarcoidosis involving the extraocular muscles of a 15-year-old boy with bilateral, painful, external ophthalmoplegia and enlargement of all extraocular muscles on computed tomography (CT) scan. Results: Lateral rectus muscle biopsy and transbronchial lung biopsy showed noncaseating granulomas characteristic of sarcoidosis. Cultures and serologic studies excluded fungal and mycobacterial diseases. Treatment with oral corticosteroids improved symptoms and signs. Conclusions: The authors report the first case of sarcoidosis in a patient with symptomatic extraocular muscle involvement, and only the third case in which extraocular muscle involvement has been shown histologically.
Strategies for the in vivo inhibition of endogenous atriopeptin.

Summary Pharmacological strategies have been employed to manipulate the response to atriopeptin (AP-28; ANF 99–126) in rats. These approaches include: heparin infusion which blocks the natriuresis-diuresis produced by exogenous AP infusion or by acute volume expansion; and autoimmune rats with endogenous antibody that blocks the natriuresis-diuresis produced by administration of exogenous AP or by acute volume expansion in anesthetized rats. Administration of the pressor analog 1-deamino-arg 8 -vasopressin (dAVP) to rats produces an elevation in systemic and right atrial blood pressure and markedly increases atriopeptin blood levels. The dAVP also produces a delayed natriuresis-diuresis which is effectively blunted in the autoimmune or heparin treated rats. The above approaches provide tools, in the absence of a specific receptor antagonist, with which to validate the intrinsic involvement of AP in physiological, pharmacological, or pathophysiological events.
Reversibility of posttransplantation diabetes mellitus following liver transplantation

Post-transplantation diabetes mellitus (PTDM) is reversible in a considerable number of patients. We examined the prevalence and predictive factors of transient PTDM following liver transplantation. Forty-two of 74 PTDM patients showed the clinical features of transient PTDM. Compared with the persistent PTDM patients, they were characterized by younger age at the time of transplantation (49 ± 7 vs. 53 ± 8 yr, P < 0.05), longer time before the development of PTDM (44 ± 59 vs. 13 ± 20 days, P < 0.05), lower rate of hepatitis c virus seropositivity (0.0 vs. 9.4%, P < 0.05), and use of mycophenolate mofetil (59.5 vs. 28.1%, P < 0.05). Among these risk factors, age at the time of transplantation is the single independent predictive factor associated with the reversibility of PTDM.
Entropic and enthalpic contributions to annexin V-membrane binding. A comprehensive quantitative model

Annexin V binds to membranes with very high affinity, but the factors responsible remain to be quantitatively elucidated. Analysis by isothermal microcalorimetry and calcium titration under conditions of low membrane occupancy showed that there was a strongly positive entropy change upon binding. For vesicles containing 25% phosphatidylserine at 0.15 m ionic strength, the free energy of binding was –53 kcal/mol protein, whereas the enthalpy of binding was –38 kcal/mol. Addition of 4 m urea decreased the free energy of binding by about 30% without denaturing the protein, suggesting that hydrophobic forces make a significant contribution to binding affinity. This was confirmed by mutagenesis studies that showed that binding affinity was modulated by the hydrophobicity of surface residues that are likely to enter the interfacial region upon protein-membrane binding. The change in free energy was quantitatively consistent with predictions from the Wimley-White scale of interfacial hydrophobicity. In contrast, binding affinity was not increased by making the protein surface more positively charged, nor decreased by making it more negatively charged, ruling out general ionic interactions as major contributors to binding affinity. The affinity of annexin V was the same regardless of the head group present on the anionic phospholipids tested (phosphatidylserine, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylmethanol, and cardiolipin), ruling out specific interactions between the protein and non-phosphate moieties of the head group as a significant contributor to binding affinity. Analysis by fluorescence resonance energy transfer showed that multimers did not form on phosphatidylserine membranes at low occupancy, indicating that annexin-annexin interactions did not contribute to binding affinity. In summary, binding of annexin V to membranes is driven by both enthalpic and entropic forces. Dehydration of hydrophobic regions of the protein surface as they enter the interfacial region makes an important contribution to overall binding affinity, supplementing the role of protein-calcium-phosphate chelates.
Tracer versus trace element diffusion - Diffusional decoupling of Sr concentration from Sr isotope composition

Chemical diffusivities for nonalkali major, minor, and selected trace elements have been measured at 10 kbar, 1300 C during interdiffusion of dacitic and rhyolitic melts. Sr tracer diffusivities were measured at the same conditions in melts of dacitic and rhyolitic composition and in a diffusion couple of these two melts undergoing simultaneous chemical diffusion. Chemical diffusivities of all elements studied are functions of the silica content of the melt, but at any one silica content the chemical diffusivities of all elements studied are within a factor of five of the Si and Al diffusivities. Si diffusivity varies from 2.8 x 10 to the -9th sq cm/s at 65 percent SiO2 to 5.1 x 10 to the -10th sq cm/s at 75 percent SiO2. The diffusivities of minor and trace elements are proposed to be controlled by the ability of the local melt structure to accommodate these elements while maintaining LTE. The measured Sr tracer diffusivities are an order of magnitude above Sr chemical diffusivities.
Time-gated photon echo spectroscopy in liquids

Abstract Optical dephasing of a cyanine dye chromophore in solution is investigated by time-gated photon echo spectroscopy in a three-pulse scattering geometry. The third-order polarization response is gated by up-conversion with a reference pulse in a nonlinear optical crystal. Time gating establishes two controllable periods of system evolution in an optical coherence. The measurements are compared with numerical simulations employing the measured OKE spectrum of solvent (butanol, DMSO) fluctuations. The time-shift of the time-gated echo signals for several gating forming pulse time delays agrees with simulation while the narrower simulated widths suggest a frequency-dependent solute-solvent interaction and the consideration of chromophore vibronic transitions.
Insulin-like biological activity of culinary and medicinal plant aqueous extracts in vitro.

To evaluate the possible effects on insulin function, 49 herb, spice, and medicinal plant extracts were tested in the insulin-dependent utilization of glucose using a rat epididymal adipocyte assay. Cinnamon was the most bioactive product followed by witch hazel, green and black teas, allspice, bay leaves, nutmeg, cloves, mushrooms, and brewer's yeast. The glucose oxidation enhancing bioactivity was lost from cinnamon, tea, witch hazel, cloves, bay leaf and allspice by poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) treatment, indicating that the active phytochemicals are likely to be phenolic in nature. The activity of sage, mushrooms, and brewers's yeast was not removed by PVP. Some products such as Korean ginseng, flaxseed meal, and basil have been reported to be effective antidiabetic agents; however, they were only marginally active in our assay. Our technique measures direct stimulation of cellular glucose metabolism, so it may be that the active phytochemicals in these plants improve glucose metabolism via other mech...
Aromatase inhibitor therapy and hair loss among breast cancer survivors

The objective of this study was to examine the associations between aromatase inhibitor therapy and hair loss or hair thinning among female breast cancer survivors. Data were analyzed from 851 female breast cancer survivors who responded to a hospital registry-based survey. Data on hair loss, hair thinning, demographic characteristics, and health habits were based on self-report; data on aromatase inhibitor therapy were collected on the survey and verified using medical record review. Logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratios (ORs) and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) for the associations between aromatase inhibitor therapy and the hair outcome variables adjusted for potential confounders, including age and chemotherapy treatment. The results showed that 22.4 % of the breast cancer survivors reported hair loss and 31.8 % reported hair thinning. In the confounder-adjusted analyses, breast cancer survivors who were within 2 years of starting aromatase inhibitor treatment at the time of survey completion were approximately two and a half times more likely to report reporting hair loss (OR 2.55; 95 % CI 1.19–5.45) or hair thinning (OR 2.33; 95 % CI 1.10–4.93) within the past 4 weeks compared to those who were never treated with an aromatase inhibitor. Current aromatase inhibitor use for two or more years at the time of the survey and prior use were significantly associated with hair thinning (current users, ≥2 years: OR 1.86; prior users: OR 1.62), but not hair loss. Findings from this study suggest that aromatase inhibitor use is associated with an increased risk of hair loss and hair thinning independent of chemotherapy and age; these side effects are likely due to the substantial decrease in estrogen concentrations resulting from treatment with this drug. Future research should focus on examining these associations in a prospective manner using more detailed and objective measures of hair loss and thinning.
Defenses to malpractice: what every emergency physician should know.

Abstract Background Emergency medicine is a high-risk specialty that carries a constant risk of malpractice litigation. Fear of malpractice litigation can lead to less-than-optimal patient care as well as impairments in physician quality of life. Although malpractice fear can be ubiquitous among emergency physicians, most receive little to no education on malpractice. Discussion Medical malpractice requires that 1) The physician had a duty, 2) The physician breached the duty, 3) There was harm to the patient, and 4) The harm was caused by the physician’s breach of duty. Even if all four medical malpractice conditions are met, there are still special legal defenses that have been and can be used in court to exonerate the physician. These defenses include assumption of the risk, Good Samaritan, contributory negligence, comparative fault, sudden emergency, respectable minority, two schools of thought, and clinical innovation. Conclusions These legal defenses are illustrated and explained using defining precedent cases as well as hypothetical examples that are directly applicable to emergency medical practice. Knowledge of these special legal defenses can help emergency physicians minimize their risk of litigation when caring for patients.
Sustainability in the Union.

Operating as the center of student life, college unions have a central role to teach citizenship, social responsibility, and leadership. The perspective of stewardship is adopted in this chapter to advance a discussion about college unions as a model for campus sustainability.
Short-term acetaldehyde exposure depresses ventricular myocyte contraction: role of cytochrome P450 oxidase, xanthine oxidase, and lipid peroxidation.

Background: Chronic alcoholism leads to the development of alcoholic cardiomyopathy, manifested as ventricular dilation and impaired ventricular contractility. However, the specific toxic mechanism responsible for alcoholic cardiomyopathy remains unclear. One major candidate toxin is the first metabolic product of ethanol, acetaldehyde (ACA). This study was designed to examine the role of cytochrome P450 oxidase 2E1 (CYP 2E1), xanthine oxidase, and lipid peroxidation in the short-term ACA exposure-induced mechanical defects in adult rat ventricular myocytes. Methods: Mechanical and intracellular Ca2+ properties were evaluated by an IonOptix SoftEdge® system. Lipid peroxidation was assessed with malondialdehyde levels by using high-performance liquid chromatography. Results: Short-term (4- to 6-hr) culture of myocytes with ACA (1–100 μM) in sealed containers with silicone septum depressed cell-shortening amplitude, maximal velocity of shortening/relengthening, and prolonged duration of relengthening, as well as intracellular Ca2+ clearing without any effect on the duration of shortening and electrically stimulated an intracellular Ca2+ increase. It is interesting to note that the ACA-induced effects on myocyte mechanical properties were abolished with co-treatment of the lipid peroxidation inhibitor butylated hydroxytoluene (20 μM), the CYP 2E1 inhibitor diallyl sulfide (100 μM), and the xanthine oxidase inhibitor allopurinol (100 μM). Short-term incubation of ACA with the myocytes also produced a significant increase of the lipid peroxidation end product malondialdehyde, which may be prevented by butylated hydroxytoluene. Conclusions: Collectively, these data provided evidence that ACA depressed cardiomyocyte mechanical function at micromolar levels, possibly through mechanisms related to CYP oxidase, xanthine oxidase, and lipid peroxidation.
Evangelicals and Catholics in El Salvador: Evolving Religious Responses to Social Change

Recent scholarship on religion and politics in Latin America has highlighted grassroots participation as an important means of under standing the ways in which people respond to the concrete challenges of everyday life. While recognizing that institutional factors remain im portant, many scholars have moved away from an exclusive emphasis on church and state as all there is to religion and politics. Some au thors have added another level of analysis by pointing to the impor tance of mediating actors, especially pastoral workers and semi-official religious groups.1 Others have highlighted the ways that the historical developments and institutional structures of different religions shape the boundaries within which grassroots dynamics occur. According to this perspective, different religions provide different sets of resources for responding to political and social conditions.2 While religious tradi tions and institutions are often highly diverse and fluid, in this view the resources and central values, symbols, and narratives of each tradition shape the responses of individual believers, grassroots communities, pastoral agents, and church officials.
The Current Status of Local Medicare Payment Policy: How Specialty Societies Can Influence Local Coverage Determinations

The Medicare Fee-for-Service Program is in the midst of numerous administrative and regulatory changes that may affect the way local Medicare payment policy is implemented. These changes involve redefining the contractors' jurisdictions, competitive bidding for the contractor selection process, combining the administration of Part A and Part B services, and error rate auditing. In addition, the roles of the Contractor Medical Directors and Contractor Advisory Committees are yet to be defined, and the future of the existing advisory process, while currently unchanged, remains uncertain. Most likely, the majority of coverage decisions will continue to be made at the local level; however, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has begun to increase its use of Technology Assessments and National Coverage Determinations for new technology and has developed a new payment category for coverage of new technology: Coverage with Evidence Development. Specialty societies continue to have the ability to exert influence on the coverage process. The American College of Radiology (ACR) monitors the activity of the local contractors and assists local physicians through the ACR Carrier Advisory Committee Network. The ACR has used a combination of clinical and economic experts to develop model Local Coverage Determinations for use by the local contractors, and some of these model policies have been developed in conjunction with other specialty societies, which bolsters their effectiveness. The changing administrative environment presents challenges and opportunities for specialty societies to influence local CMS payment policy.
Preparation of a human lung purified plasma membrane fraction: confirmation by enzyme markers, electron microscopy, and histamine H1 receptor binding.

A simple and rapid method of isolating plasma membranes from human peripheral lung tissue is described. The method involves homogenization of tissue in 0.25m sucrose-buffered medium followed by differential and sucrose density gradient centrifugation. Enzymatic and morphological characterization of the plasma membrane fraction revealed minimal contamination by nonplasma membrane fragments. The isolated plasma membranes showed an 18-fold purification of 5′-nucleotidase activity compared to the original homogenate. Electronmicroscopic studies of the plasma membrane fraction revealed the presence of small membrane vesicles having a trilaminar membrane structure. To further examine the purity of the plasma membrane preparation, the binding of the H1 receptor antagonist,3H pyrilamine, to the plasma membrane-enriched fraction was compared to the binding to crude membrane preparations. Both the plasma membrane-enriched fraction and the crude membrane preparation had similar Kd's for the histamine antagonist, but the plasma membrane-enriched fraction had a threefold greater binding capacity, reflecting the relative enrichment of plasma membranes of the preparation. Thus, a method has been developed for the isolation of plasma membranes from human peripheral lung which should provide material for a variety of biochemical and pharmacological studies.
Stimulus representations that are invariant under invertible transformations of sensor data

Humans have a remarkable ability to perceive the constancy of a stimulus even though its appearance has changed to factors that are extrinsic to it. This paper shows how sensory devices can invariantly represent stimuli, even though their sensor state may have been transformed by factors extrinsic to the stimuli. Such transformations may be caused by changes of observational conditions such as: 1) alterations of the device's sensory apparatus, 2) changes in the observational environment external to the sensory device and the stimuli, and 3) modifications of the presentation of the stimuli themselves. The stimulus representations are invariant because they describe certain relationships of each sensor state to the time series of recently encountered sensor states, and these relationships are unchanged by any invertible transformation of sensor states. This paper describes three analytic methods of creating such representations, utilizing tensor calculus, affine-connected differential geometry, respectively. These techniques may be useful for designing a representation engine that comprises the front end of an intelligent sensory device. It could create stimulus representations that are amenable to pattern analysis because they are not affected by many factors that are extrinsic to the stimuli.© (2001) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Reflection and Transmission of Extraordinary Waves in an Inhomogeneous Magnetized Plasma II. Thin Plasma Slab

A more accurate analytical expression for the reflection and transmission coefficients of an extraordinary wave incident upon a thin finite plasma slab perpendicular to a static magnetic field is obtained. The analytical result is compared with that obtained by the numerical method and with that of earlier experimental observations. The effect of small collisional damping on mode conversion, particularly at antiresonance is also discussed.
Early edema in warfarin-related intracerebral hemorrhage

The pathophysiology and clinical significance of perihematomal edema (PHE), a cause of secondary neuronal injury after intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), is poorly understood. A leading theory proposes that early PHE results from activation of the clotting cascade. We sought to test this theory by examining the relationship between early PHE and warfarin use in ICH patients. ICH and PHE volumes were measured in consecutive patients with warfarin-related ICH and compared to those of controls with non-coagulopathic ICH. Subjects were identified from a prospective database of ICH patients. Clinical and radiological predictors of PHE volume and relative PHE (PHE volume/ICH volume) were identified. The relationship between PHE volume and 90-day mortality was determined. For the 49 consecutive warfarin-related ICH patients and 49 matched controls: median INRs (interquartile ranges) were 3.2 (2.3, 4.1) and 1.1 (1.08, 1.2); median hematoma volumes were 37.8 cm3 (6.7, 102.9) and 18.1 cm3 (9, 51) (P = 0.18); median PHE volumes were 12 cm3 (3.7, 36.7), and 11 cm3 (4.1, 24) (P = 0.87); and median relative PHE was 0.38 (0.28, 0.52) and 2 (1.37, 3.06), respectively. In multivariable analysis, ICH volume and warfarin use independently predicted PHE volume. There was an association between higher PHE volume and decreased 90-day mortality. Warfarin-related ICH is associated with less early relative edema than non-coagulopathic ICH. This is consistent with the theory that coagulation contributes to early edema. Early edema may be associated with improved functional outcome.
Including Virtual and Hybrid Meeting Planning Within the Curriculum: A Knowledge Management Perspective

This study utilizes a knowledge management platform to transfer information from industry to learning institution to industry, therefore incorporating industry knowledge into the curriculum to produce better educated students. Through consultation with industry professionals and use of a modified Delphi technique, best practices, opportunities, and barriers for planning virtual and hybrid meetings were identified and then incorporated into the Meeting and Business Event Competency Standards.
Ventricular tachycardia and torsades de pointes complicating pentamidine therapy of pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome

Abstract Torsades de pointes is a polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (VT) that occurs in the setting of acquired or idiopathic QT-interval prolongation and may be facilitated by nutritional deficiency 1 and electrolyte abnormalities. 2 Four reports have associated the occurrence of this arrhythmia in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia with QT-interval prolongation related to the use of pentamidine isethionate. 3–6 We have recently seen 4 patients who developed torsades de pointes or monomorphic VT during the course of pentamidine treatment for P. carinii pneumonia and a description of them follows.
Leadership research in Asia: A brief assessment and suggestions for the future

The main purpose of this essay is to discuss fundamental issues regarding future research on leadership in Asia. In order to meaningfully introduce these issues, I begin with an overview of leadership research in Asia, briefly covering some of the similarities and differences between Asian and Western leadership approaches. Throughout the essay, I rely chiefly on China as an example. I stress that instead of developing theories and measures unique to specific countries, such as China, the focus should be on the identification of moderators that explain relationships between leadership and both its antecedents and outcomes. I further argue that for such an approach to be viable, future scale development efforts should include respondents from multiple cultural contexts so that relatively universal boundary conditions/domains can be identified. I further contend that assessing differences between countries, such as China compared to Western countries, will be most beneficial if cross-level research designs and analyses are employed.
Reflections on interdisciplinary team development for the design of a platform for computer supported collaborative play

The Constructed Narratives project has been designed for use in public spaces where there is the opportunity for individuals and groups of people, who are not acquainted with each other, to encount...
The natural history of IgE sensitisation and atopic disease in early childhood.

ABSTRACT. We have prospectively followed 57 children of atopic parents up to 5 years of age, documenting clinical atopic disease and allergen skin test reactions. The cumulative prevalences of the clinical features of atopic disease over the 5 years were: atopic dermatitis (58%), wheeze (49%), recurrent wheeze (33%), rhinitis (68%) and immediate food reactions (18%). Atopic dermatitis and immediate food reactions predominated in infancy (birth to 20 months) while wheezing was more prominent in later childhood (20 months to 5 years). Rhinitis was common in both infancy and childhood. IgE sensitisation to ingested allergens was prominent in early infancy and was usually transient. Inhaled allergen sensitisation occurred later in infancy and was generally permanent with wheal sizes tending to increase with age. There was a significant association between IgE sensitisation to ingested but not inhaled allergens and all atopic manifestations in infancy, with the exception of rhinitis. In contrast IgE sensitisation to inhaled allergens was associated with rhinitis and wheeze in later childhood. We found two clinical groups. One group, with only ingested allergen sensitisation had a high incidence of atopic dermatitis but low incidence of respiratory symptoms at 5 years of age. The other group, who developed evidence of IgE sensitisation to inhaled allergens, had a high incidence of rhinitis and wheeze but low incidence of atopic dermatitis at 5 years of age.
ACID AND ALKALINE RIBONUCLEASES OF HUMAN PAROTID, SUBMAXILLARY, AND WHOLE SALIVA.

Abstract Parotid and submaxillary saliva samples were collected from a number of adults and children with the use of specially constructed and carefully fitted appliances. These samples and whole salivas were examined for the presence of several ribonucleases and ribonuclease inhibitor. Both acid and alkaline ribonucleases were demonstrated in the parotid and submaxillary secretions and in whole saliva of men, women, and children. Some properties of the ribonucleases of the parotid and submaxillary secretions were studied, and conditions for the assay of the two enzymes were determined. Analysis of parotid, submaxillary, and whole salivas collected sequentially from the same subject has led to the conclusion that the ribonuclease activity of the glandular secretions accounts for a large percentage of the total RNase activity found in whole saliva at pH's 6.5 and 7.8 and that the salivary RNases may play an auxiliary role to pancreatic RNase in gastrointestinal digestion. Since only the alkaline enzyme is found in human serum, it is unlikely that serum is the source of salivary RNase activity. Ribonuclease levels have been determined in groups of normal adults and children. Neither RNase inhibitor nor latent RNase activity has been found in parotid or submaxillary saliva.
Oxygen Transport in Silica at High Temperatures: Implications of Oxidation Kinetics

The apparent change in activation energy describing the parabolic rate constant for the passive oxidation of SiC is examined. New data are combined with reevaluated previous results to determine the influences of crystallinity, impurity contamination, and multiple flux mechanisms. The results suggest that the high-temperature transition from interstitial-dominant to network-dominant oxygen transport is a property of amorphous SiO2 scales and does not exist for cristobalite. Highly crystalline scales do not show this transition. Agreement among various studies also suggests that, for high-purity SiO2 scales, there is no difference between the rates of interstitial oxygen transport in amorphous SiO2 and in β-cristobalite.
The therapeutic alliance: An evidence-based guide to practice

Change in psychotherapy can be partially understood to be a function of the degree to which the therapist is able to provide a positive bond and collaborate with a client on the goals and processes...