cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Gene Marking to Establish the Biology of Minimal Residual Disease and Relapse

Gene marking studies have provided valuable information about stem cell biology, the factors that influence gene transfer efficiency, and the mechanism of relapse in patients receiving stem cell rescue as therapy for malignant disease. Second generation studies are beginning to provide even more information about a wider variety of clinical and biological issues. Although marker studies have been useful, it is becoming apparent that the indicator genes used up to now have a number of undesirable characteristics. Future applications of marking, in the hemopoietic system and elsewhere, will require the use of marker elements that will not produce any modification of the cells’ behavior. Finally, marker studies have proved safe so far, but follow up of the treated patients continues.
MODE SELECTIVE VAN DER WAALS CHEMISTRY

Three vibronic levels of similar energy (16b2, 16a2, and 6a1) have been excited in the van der Waals molecules aminotetrazine-Ar and aminotetrazine-Ar2. The dissociation rates observed for aminotetrazine-Ar were found to vary by over two orders of magnitude depending on the initially excited level. The product branching ratio observed when aminotetrazine-Ar2. dissociates can be changed from pure aminotetrazineAr to almost pure aminotetrazine by changing the initially excited level.
Maintaining subject engagement during robotic rehabilitation with a minimal assist-as-needed (mAAN) controller

One challenge of robotic rehabilitation interventions is devising ways to encourage and maintain high levels of subject involvement over long duration therapy sessions. Assist-as-needed controllers have been proposed which modulate robot intervention in movements based on measurements of subject involvement. This paper presents a minimal assist-as-needed controller, which modulates allowable error bounds and robot intervention based on sensorless force measurement accomplished through a nonlinear disturbance observer. While similar algorithms have been validated using healthy subjects, this paper presents a validation of the proposed mAAN control algorithm's ability to encourage user involvement with an impaired individual. User involvement is inferred from muscle activation, measured via surface electromyography (EMG). Experimental validation shows increased EMG muscle activation when using the proposed mAAN algorithm compared to non-adaptive algorithms.
Investigation of coloration defects in porous zirconium by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Abstract Given the importance of zirconium in a wide variety of applications, defect identification, isolation, and prevention is critical. In this study, an unknown coloration defect on the surface of porous industrial zirconium sponge is assessed. Various microscopy and spectroscopy techniques (energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy mapping, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy depth profiling, and Raman spectroscopy) are implemented to assist with characterization of impurities and compound identification. The combined effect of sample porosity and overlap of core-shell excitations provides a unique challenge in spectrum analysis, particularly with respect to background function computation. Various curve fitting and data analysis techniques are applied and compared in order to weigh their efficacy in quantifying the chemical state and other characteristics of the specimen. Peak-specific cumulative distribution functions are weighed against the Shirley background in terms of their impact on reliable spectrum quantification. In addition, the quantification merits of various peak functional forms and techniques for establishing reliable fitting in depth profiles are discussed. These analyses suggests that the defect film is zirconium dioxide colorized by trace impurities (principally Fe, Cl, and Mg).
A scientific data provenance harvester for distributed applications

Data provenance provides a way for scientists to observe how experimental data originates, conveys process history, and explains influential factors such as experimental rationale and associated environmental factors from system metrics measured at runtime. The US Department of Energy Office of Science Integrated end-to-end Performance Prediction and Diagnosis for Extreme Scientific Workflows (IPPD) project has developed a provenance harvester that is capable of collecting observations from file based evidence typically produced by distributed applications. To achieve this, file based evidence is extracted and transformed into an intermediate data format inspired in part by W3C CSV on the Web recommendations, called the Harvester Provenance Application Interface (HAPI) syntax. This syntax provides a general means to pre-stage provenance into messages that are both human readable and capable of being written to a provenance store, Provenance Environment (ProvEn). HAPI is being applied to harvest provenance from climate ensemble runs for Accelerated Climate Modeling for Energy (ACME) project funded under the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Biological and Environmental Research (BER) Earth System Modeling (ESM) program. ACME informally provides provenance in a native form through configuration files, directory structures, and log files that contain success/failure indicators, code traces, and performance measurements. Because of its generic format, HAPI is also being applied to harvest tabular job management provenance from Belle II DIRAC scheduler relational database tables as well as other scientific applications that log provenance related information.
Outpatient oxygen therapy.

SUMMARY Arterial hypoxemia should be documented before home oxygen therapy is prescribed. Patients with polycythemia, pulmonary hypertension, or cor pulmonale are the most likely to benefit from oxygen therapy. In other patients, exercise tolerance can be improved and the neuropsychiatric effects of hypoxemia relieved. Home oxygen therapy is safe, and the potential benefits of this therapy outweigh the limited complications.
The Relationship Between MRI Parameters and Spinal Compressive Loading

Intervertebral disc (IVD) is a leading source of Low back pain (LBP). The health and functions of the IVD are determined by the inherent biomechanical properties of the IVD and its interaction with external mechanical loading. Quantitative Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) parameters have the potential in detecting loading-induced changes in biomechanical properties of the IVD. T1ρ, T2 and Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) were obtained with a 7T MRI scanner from 20 functional spinal units (FSU) before and after receiving compressive loading of 263.27 N for 60 min. Compressive loading was found to significantly reduce T1ρ and T2 but not ADC, indicating that T1ρ and T2 had the potential to detect loading-induced changes in biomechanical properties of the IVD. These parameters may provide more sensitivity and specificity to understand the injury mechanism of the IVD and contribute to early diagnosis of IVD degeneration.
Post-Verification Debugging and Rectification of Finite Field Arithmetic Circuits using Computer Algebra Techniques

Formal verification of arithmetic circuits checks whether or not a gate-level circuit correctly implements a given specification model. In cases where this equivalence check fails – the presence of a bug is detected – it is required to: i) debug the circuit, ii) identify a set of nets (signals) where the circuit might be rectified, and iii) compute the corresponding rectification functions at those locations. This paper addresses the problem of post-verification debugging and correction (rectification) of finite field arithmetic circuits. The specification model and the circuit implementation may differ at any number of inputs. We present techniques that determine whether the circuit can be rectified at one particular net (gate output) – i.e. we address single-fix rectification.Starting from an equivalence checking setup modeled as a polynomial ideal membership test, we analyze the ideal membership residue to identify potential single-fix rectification locations. Subsequently, we use Nullstellensatz principles to ascertain if indeed a single-fix rectification can be applied at any of these locations. If a single-fix rectification exists, we derive a rectification function by modeling it as the synthesis of an unknown component problem. Our approach is based upon the Grobner basis algorithm, which we use both as a decision procedure (for rectification test) as well as a quantification procedure (for computing a rectification function). Experiments are performed over various finite field arithmetic circuits that demonstrate the efficacy of our approach, whereas SAT-based approaches are infeasible.
米国ロースクール教員の現場レポート(1)(2) (A Field Report from a Japanese Professor at an American Law School (1)(2))

Japanese Abstract: 筆者は,2013年11月以来,日本の法律雑誌NBLに,UC Hastingsとアメリカの法学教育に関する連載を行ってきた。これらは,その第1回と第2回である。English Abstract: The author has been writing a series of essays on UC Hastings and American legal education in a Japanese law journal, NBL (New Business Law), since November 2013. These are his first and second essays.
Language and Nuance

I met James and his wife, Rita (not their real names), when I was a postdoctoral fellow working in a family therapy clinic. They were coming there because it was free to low-income patients and was one of a handful in our community that offered full translation services. They were illegal immigrants from Mexico with two teenage children. James and Rita did not speak any English, but their children were good students and spoke both English and Spanish fluently. We discussed having their daughter translate for them but decided to use an interpreter so that the whole family could be part of the therapy and because family interpreters introduce errors into clinical conversations. James had been cheating on Rita for several years with a younger woman who was part of their community, and when this came to light, it caused scandal for their family in the community.
The crowding out effect of out-of-pocket medication expenses of two major non-communicable diseases in Pakistan.

Background Elevated blood pressure (i.e. hypertension) and diabetes (BPD) are the two major noncommunicable diseases that expose households to high out-of-pocket treatment costs in low- and middle-income countries. Medication is the biggest share of BPD treatment expenses, and households with someone suffering from BPD may need to adjust consumption of other commodities to pay for essential BPD medicines. We assess how BPD medication expenditures are associated with crowding out of other household commodities in Pakistan. Methods We analyze self-reported household consumption data from the nationally representative Pakistan Household Income and Expenditure Survey 2015-16. We estimate conditional Engel curves under the Quadratic Almost Ideal Demand System framework to examine the differences in average consumption shares between BPD medication-consuming and not-consuming households. Results We find that BPD medication expenditures are associated with crowding out of food and crowding in of other medical expenditures for all households, but the magnitudes of crowding out and crowding in are larger for the poorer households. BPD medication spending is also associated with crowding out of education and personal care for middle-class and wealthier households. Conclusions Our results indicate that allocations for essential commodities, like food and education, are lower for BPD medication-consuming households and inform policies for preventive health promotions and affordable treatment for hypertension and diabetes.
Fertility preservation before breast cancer treatment appears unlikely to affect disease-free survival at a median follow-up of 43 months after fertility-preservation consultation.

Background The objective of this study was to determine whether fertility preservation (FP) with oocyte/embryo cryopreservation is associated with differences in disease-free survival (DFS). Methods This retrospective study included patients aged 18 to 45 who were diagnosed with invasive breast cancer between 2007 and 2017 and were seen for FP consultation at a university fertility center before cancer treatment. The primary endpoint, DFS, was defined as the time from FP consultation until patients developed a locoregional recurrence, distant metastasis, a contralateral breast tumor, or a new primary malignancy. DFS was compared for FP versus no FP using Kaplan-Meier survival estimates and Cox proportional-hazard regression analysis. Results The study included 329 women, with 207 (63%) in the FP group and 122 (37%) in the no FP group. Patients who underwent FP had more aggressive initial disease profiles than those in the no FP group. In addition, they were younger (35 vs 37 years; P = .009), more often had stage II or III disease (67% vs 55%; P = .03), and had higher rates of requiring chemotherapy (77% vs 65%; P = .01). Over a median follow-up of 43 months, the rates of DFS were similar among patients in the FP group and the no FP group (93% vs 94%, respectively; hazard ratio [HR] 0.7; 95% CI, 0.3-1.7). Positive ER status (79% vs 83%; P = .38), neoadjuvant chemotherapy (41% vs 48%; P = .32), ER-positive DFS (HR, 0.4; 95% CI, 0.1-1.6), and neoadjuvant chemotherapy DFS (HR, 1.4; 95% CI, 0.2-9.1) were similar in the FP and no FP groups, respectively. Conclusions At a median follow-up of 43 months, FP appears unlikely to affect DFS, even in the setting of tumors with positive ER status or treatment with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (in which the tumor remains in situ during FP).
'Coercive Ambiguity' in the Routine Traffic Stop Turned Consent Search

Certain types of routine traffic stops that then turn into searches of a car raise privacy concerns at three possible levels under federal and state constitutional prohibitions against unreasonable or warrantless searches and seizures. In some cases, these stops amount to a temporary "seizure" of the car and its occupants. Additionally, many seizures of cars and detention of occupants go well beyond what is needed to investigate the traffic stop at hand. Finally, the search of the car itself invades the privacy of the occupants. This article considers these levels of privacy concerns, focusing on the constitutionality of the police conduct going beyond that which is necessary to fulfill the function of the stop for speeding or another infraction. Section I examines the constitutional issues implicated by the search and seizure violation and focuses on the ever-declining Fourth Amendment protections for motorists on public roadways under United States Supreme Court interpretation. Section II analyzes current Supreme Court precedent. Section III describes the need for a remedy, both generally and under applicable state law. Section IV describes some remedies fashioned by various courts for similar situations. Finally, the author proposes a specific remedy drawn from the case law considered in Section IV.
Feasibility of Two Northeastern Species in Three-Layer ANSI-Approved Cross-Laminated Timber

AbstractCross-laminated timber (CLT) is a massive panel product made from orthogonal layers of solid-sawn lumber. Because of its composite nature and engineered layup, CLT provides the possibility ...
A benchmark of algorithms for the analysis of pooled CRISPR screens

Genome-wide pooled CRISPR-Cas-mediated knockout, activation, and repression screens are powerful tools for functional genomic investigations. Despite their increasing importance, there is currently little guidance on how to design and analyze CRISPR-pooled screens. Here, we provide a review of the commonly used algorithms in the computational analysis of pooled CRISPR screens. We develop a comprehensive simulation framework to benchmark and compare the performance of these algorithms using both synthetic and real datasets. Our findings inform parameter choices of CRISPR screens and provide guidance to researchers on the design and analysis of pooled CRISPR screens.
Associations Between Placental Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone, Maternal Cortisol, and Birth Outcomes, Based on Placental Histopathology

Preterm birth remains the leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality, with complex biochemical pathways requiring continued understanding and assessment. The objective of this study is to assess the associations between maternal cortisol and placental corticotropin–releasing hormone (placental CRH) concentrations with birth outcomes when stratified by placental histopathology. We conducted an analysis of 112 singleton pregnancies who received betamethasone between 23 and 34 weeks’ gestation. Maternal blood and saliva were collected prior to betamethasone administration and samples assayed for plasma cortisol (pCort), salivary cortisol (sCort), and placental CRH levels. Placental findings were characterized as inflammatory, maternal vascular underperfusion (MVU), or no pathology, and compared for the outcomes of placental CRH, pCort, and sCort levels, gestational age at birth (GAB), and birthweight percentiles (BWP). Thirty-six subjects were characterized as inflammatory, 38 as MVU, and 38 without placental abnormalities. Histopathology groups differed significantly on placental CRH levels, GAB, and BWP. Post hoc tests suggested that the MVU group had higher placental CRH than the inflammatory or no pathology groups, and despite delivering earlier than the other two groups, the inflammatory group had infants with significantly higher BWP. No differences existed between groups in terms of mean plasma or sCort levels. Higher placental CRH and pCort levels were associated with earlier GAB in the overall sample, but when split by group, these associations remained significant only among the MVU group. Higher placental CRH was also associated with lower BWP in the overall sample but did not remain significant when split by group. Higher sCort was associated with lower BWP only in the MVU group. There is differentiation of placental CRH, cortisol, and birth outcomes when evaluated by placental histopathology. This highlights the importance of evaluating birth outcomes within the context of placental histopathology.
Oncolytic Activity of Targeted Picornaviruses Formulated as Synthetic Infectious RNA

Infectious nucleic acid has been proposed as a superior formulation for oncolytic virus therapy. Oncolytic picornaviruses can be formulated as infectious RNA (iRNA), and their unwanted tropisms eliminated by microRNA (miRNA) detargeting. However, genomic insertion of miRNA target sequences into coxsackievirus A21 (CVA21) iRNA compromised its specific infectivity, negating further development as a novel oncolytic virus formulation. To address this limitation, we substituted a muscle-specific miRNA response element for the spacer region downstream of the internal ribosomal entry site in the 5′ non-coding region of CVA21 iRNA, thereby preserving genome length while avoiding the disruption of known surrounding RNA structural elements. This new iRNA (R-CVA21) retained high specific infectivity, rapidly generating replicating miRNA-detargeted viruses following transfection in H1-HeLa cells. Further, in contrast with alternatively configured iRNAs that were tested in parallel, intratumoral administration of R-CVA21 generated a spreading oncolytic infection that was curative in treated animals without associated myotoxicity. Moreover, R-CVA21 also exhibited superior miRNA response element stability in vivo. This novel formulation is a promising agent for clinical translation.
Social network analysis and domestic and international retailers: An investigation of social media networks of cosmetic brands

Abstract As brands’ use of social media to connect with customers becomes increasingly important, there is a need to continually monitor social network activities. Although numerous studies have examined consumer behaviors on social media, only a handful of studies have adopted a social network analysis approach. Considering this gap, the current study analyzed Twitter networks of two multi-brand retailers to investigate network activities. The findings from analyzing network patterns reveal that while brands are able to deliver messages through digital platforms, they may only have limited control over the communications within networks, and thus cannot govern the spread of information.
Coming of Age of AI-Assisted Network Management & Control

The utilization of AI/ML techniques in transport networks is a current area of focus of the research community and industry alike. Leveraging the availability of data to improve how networks are operated holds the promise of simplified network operation and enhanced network optimization. However, materializing the promise of AI/ML will demand a joint effort and close cooperation between system vendors and network operators as it can only be achieved through a shift in long standing operational paradigms. That change is already well under way in the transition from Central Office centric networks towards Datacenter networking. This paper discusses the adoption of AI/ML in production networks as part of this ongoing transformation.
Immigration and state system legitimacy

Several political philosophers have recently developed novel legitimacy-based theories of migration. These accounts argue that individual states’ legitimacy depends upon their role in a legitimate ...
Cultural Humility: Retraining and Retooling Nurses to Provide Equitable Cancer Care.

BACKGROUND Cancer outcome disparities exist among Black, Indigenous, and people of color despite advancements in screening, detection, and treatment. In addition to racial and ethnic diversity, the U.S. population is experiencing shifts in sociodemographics, including a growing aging population, sex and gender identities, spiritual and religious belief systems, and divides between high- and low-income households. OBJECTIVES This article provides a foundation for cultural humility as a clinical competency in nursing to improve the quality of cancer care. METHODS CINAHL®, PubMed®, Google Scholar, and grey literature were searched using keywords, including cultural humility, cultural competence, nursing, nursing pipeline, nursing workforce, and health. FINDINGS Retraining and retooling the nursing workforce promotes multiculturalism in oncology care and increases opportunities to provide more appropriate, patient-centered care to those living with cancer. Increasing the diversity of nursing faculty and staff, enhancing nursing curricula and education, and creating equitable relationships to support patient-centered care are initiatives to ensure high-quality care.
Henry James and the Queerness of Style

Introduction: On the Erotics of Literary of Style 1. Writing Queerness: Zeugma and Syllepsis in The Golden Bowl 2. The Burden of Residuary Comment: Syntactical Idiosyncrasies in The Wings of the Dove 3. Hover, Torment, Waste: Late Writings and the Great War 4. Lambert Strether's Belatedness: The Ambassadors and the Queer Afterlife of Style Acknowledgments Notes Index
The Influence of the Gallbladder Epithelium on Gallstone Formation

The gallbladder has the simplest mucosal structure in the gastrointestinal tract. The surface epithelium of the gallbladder mucosa contains a single layer of monomorphic columnar cells which overlie the fibromuscular layers of the gallbladder wall. Unlike the other epithelia in the gastrointestinal tract, the gallbladder epithelium does not contain a submucosa. The surface epithelium is arranged into ridges and folds which effectively increase the surface area exposed to the gallbladder lumen. True glands are found only in the neck of the gallbladder, and these contain simple mucus-secreting cells. Ultrastructural studies of surface epithelial cells have identified intracytoplasmic vesicles which transport the secretory glycoprotein mucin from the Golgi apparatus to the apical surface where secretion takes place by exocytosis. In addition, during periods of active fluid absorption, dilatation of the lateral intracellular spaces can be observed.
On the Nonlinear Theory of Elasticity

Publisher Summary This chapter gives a brief introduction to the nonlinear theory of elasticity. It presents a concise derivation of the basic equations followed by a detailed discussion of the underlying boundary value problems. The discussion demonstrates why this theory is far more difficult than most nonlinear theories of mathematical physics. The notation used in the chapter is summarized in a tabulated form. The material time derivative is defined in the chapter. A discussion is presented in the chapter on mass distribution, reference density, system of forces, surface forces, body forces, and the balance of momentum. The salient features of the equation of elasticity are compared with those of the Navier–Stokes equations. The elasticity tensor is defined, the boundary value problems of elastostatics are discussed, and the displacement problem is also elaborated in the chapter.
Memory and the Computational Brain: Why Cognitive Science will Transform Neuroscience

Preface. 1. Information. Shannon's Theory of Communication. Measuring Information. Efficient Coding. Information and the Brain. Digital and Analog Signals. Appendix: The Information Content of Rare Versus Common Events and Signals. 2. Bayesian Updating. Bayes' Theorem and Our Intuitions About Evidence. Using Bayes' Rule. Summary. 3. Functions. Functions of One Argument. Composition and Decomposition of Functions. Functions of More than One Argument. The Limits to Functional Decomposition. Functions Can Map to Multi-Part Outputs. Mapping to Multiple-Element Outputs Does Not Increase Expressive Power. Defining Particular Functions. Summary: Physical/Neurobiological Implications of Facts about Functions. 4. Representations. Some Simple Examples. Notation. The Algebraic Representation of Geometry. 5. Symbols. Physical Properties of Good Symbols. Symbol Taxonomy. Summary. 6. Procedures. Algorithms. Procedures, Computation, and Symbols. Coding and Procedures. Two Senses of Knowing. A Geometric Example. 7. Computation. Formalizing Procedures. The Turing Machine. Turing Machine for the Successor Function. Turing Machines for f is -even Turing Machines for f + Minimal Memory Structure. General Purpose Computer. Summary. 8. Architectures. One-Dimensional Look-Up Tables (If-Then Implementation). Adding State Memory: Finite-State Machines. Adding Register Memory. Summary. 9. Data Structures. Finding Information in Memory. An Illustrative Example. Procedures and the Coding of Data Structures. The Structure of the Read-Only Biological Memory. 10. Computing with Neurons. Transducers and Conductors. Synapses and the Logic Gates. The Slowness of It All. The Time-Scale Problem. Synaptic Plasticity. Recurrent Loops in Which Activity Reverberates. 11. The Nature of Learning. Learning As Rewiring. Synaptic Plasticity and the Associative Theory of Learning. Why Associations Are Not Symbols. Distributed Coding. Learning As the Extraction and Preservation of Useful Information. Updating an Estimate of One's Location. 12. Learning Time and Space. Computational Accessibility. Learning the Time of Day. Learning Durations. Episodic Memory. 13. The Modularity of Learning. Example 1: Path Integration. Example 2: Learning the Solar Ephemeris. Example 3: "Associative" Learning. Summary. 14. Dead Reckoning in a Neural Network. Reverberating Circuits as Read/Write Memory Mechanisms. Implementing Combinatorial Operations by Table-Look-Up. The Full Model. The Ontogeny of the Connections? How Realistic is the Model? Lessons to be Drawn. Summary. 15. Neural Models of Interval Timing. Timing an Interval on First Encounter. Dworkin's Paradox. Neurally Inspired Models. The Deeper Problems. 16. The Molecular Basis of Memory. The Need to Separate Theory of Memory from Theory of Learning. The Coding Question. A Cautionary Tale. Why Not Synaptic Conductance? A Molecular or Sub-Molecular Mechanism? Bringing the Data to the Computational Machinery. Is It Universal? References. Glossary. Index.
Tightly Integrated Design Space Exploration with Spatial and Temporal Partitioning in SPARCS

This paper describes the tight integration of design space exploration with spatial and temporal partitioning algorithms in the SPARCS design automation system for RCs. In particular, this paper describes a novel technique to perform efficient design space exploration of parallel-process behaviors using the knowledge of spatial partitioning. The exploration technique satisfies the design latency constraints imposed by temporal partitioning and the device area constraints of the RC. Results clearly demonstrate the effectiveness of the partitioning knowledgeable exploration technique in guiding spatial partitioning to quickly converge to a constraint satisfying solution. Results of design automation through SPARCS and testing designs on a commercial RC board are also presented.
Digestive System of Mammals

Mammalian digestive systems share many common characteristics, but also feature numerous species-specific adaptations to diet and habitat. Keywords: digestion; absorption; nutrients; bacteria; diets; herbivores
Cranial neural crest cell contribution to craniofacial formation, pathology, and future directions in tissue engineering

This review provides an overview of the state and future directions of development and pathology in the craniofacial complex in the context of Cranial Neural Crest Cells (CNCC). CNCC are a multipotent cell population that is largely responsible for forming the vertebrate head. We focus on findings that have increased the knowledge of gene regulatory networks and molecular mechanisms governing CNCC migration and the participation of these cells in tissue formation. Pathology due to aberrant migration or cell death of CNCC, termed neurocristopathies, is discussed in addition to craniosynostoses. Finally, we discuss tissue engineering applications that take advantage of recent advancements in genome editing and the multipotent nature of CNCC. These applications have relevance to treating diseases due directly to the failure of CNCC, and also in restoring tissues lost due to a variety of reasons.
A marching-on-in-time based transient electric field integral equation solver for microstrip structures

Microstrip elements are widely used to realize transmission lines, antennas, and filters. Not surprisingly, a multitude of computational schemes for analyzing microstrip structures have been studied; among them, the finite-difference time-domain algorithm dominates. In recent years, time domain integral equation (TDIE) methods however have been receiving increasing attention. In this paper, a transient electric field integral equation (EFIE) pertinent to the analysis of microstrip structures is established and a marching-on-in-time (MOT) algorithm for solving this EFIE developed. Compared to earlier MOT schemes, the proposed algorithm requires no analytic approximation of the Green's function kernel and therefore can be considered numerically exact.
Dynamic Modeling of the Human Coagulation Cascade Using Reduced Order Effective Kinetic Models

In this study, we present a novel modeling approach which combines ordinary differential equation (ODE) modeling with logical rules to simulate an archetype biochemical network, the human coagulation cascade. The model consisted of five differential equations augmented with several logical rules describing regulatory connections between model components, and unmodeled interactions in the network. This formulation was more than an order of magnitude smaller than current coagulation models, because many of the mechanistic details of coagulation were encoded as logical rules. We estimated an ensemble of likely model parameters (N = 20) from in vitro extrinsic coagulation data sets, with and without inhibitors, by minimizing the residual between model simulations and experimental measurements using particle swarm optimization (PSO). Each parameter set in our ensemble corresponded to a unique particle in the PSO. We then validated the model ensemble using thrombin data sets that were not used during training. The ensemble predicted thrombin trajectories for conditions not used for model training, including thrombin generation for normal and hemophilic coagulation in the presence of platelets (a significant unmodeled component). We then used flux analysis to understand how the network operated in a variety of conditions, and global sensitivity analysis to identify which parameters controlled the performance of the network. Taken together, the hybrid approach produced a surprisingly predictive model given its small size, suggesting the proposed framework could also be used to dynamically model other biochemical networks, including intracellular metabolic networks, gene expression programs or potentially even cell free metabolic systems.
Reconstructing metabolic flux vectors from extreme pathways: defining the α-spectrum

The move towards genome-scale analysis of cellular functions has necessitated the development of analytical (in silico) methods to understand such large and complex biochemical reaction networks. One such method is extreme pathway analysis that uses stoichiometry and thermodynamic irreversibly to define mathematically unique, systemic metabolic pathways. These extreme pathways form the edges of a high-dimensional convex cone in the flux space that contains all the attainable steady state solutions, or flux distributions, for the metabolic network. By definition, any steady state flux distribution can be described as a nonnegative linear combination of the extreme pathways. To date, much effort has been focused on calculating, defining, and understanding these extreme pathways. However, little work has been performed to determine how these extreme pathways contribute to a given steady state flux distribution. This study represents an initial effort aimed at defining how physiological steady state solutions can be reconstructed from a network's extreme pathways. In general, there is not a unique set of nonnegative weightings on the extreme pathways that produce a given steady state flux distribution but rather a range of possible values. This range can be determined using linear optimization to maximize and minimize the weightings of a particular extreme pathway in the reconstruction, resulting in what we have termed the α-spectrum. The α-spectrum defines which extreme pathways can and cannot be included in the reconstruction of a given steady state flux distribution and to what extent they individually contribute to the reconstruction. It is shown that accounting for transcriptional regulatory constraints can considerably shrink the α-spectrum. The α-spectrum is computed and interpreted for two cases; first, optimal states of a skeleton representation of core metabolism that include transcriptional regulation, and second for human red blood cell metabolism under various physiological, non-optimal conditions.
Bound States in Quantum Field Theory

The relativistic two-body equation of Bethe and Salpeter is derived from field theory. It is shown that the Feynman two-body kernel may be written as a sum of wave functions over the states of the system. These wave functions depend exponentially on the energies of the states to which they correspond and therefore provide a means of calculating energy levels of bound states.
A possible block in the intermediary metabolism of glucose into proteins and lipids in the brains of undernourished rats

[U-14C] Glucose or [1-14C] L-leucine was injected intraperitoneally into 28-day-old undernourished rats and control sibs who were killed 6 hr later. Brain proteins and lipids were extracted and the lipids fractionated by silicic acid column chromatography into cholesterol, glycolipids and phospholipids. The specific activity of labeled carbon derived from [U-14C] glucose in brain proteins was reduced by 25% in undernourished animals when compared to controls. A similar reduction was seen in the specific activity of brain lipids of undernourished animals: 14% for cholesterol, 21% for phospholipids and 35% for glycolipids. When [1-14C] l-leucine was used as a direct precursor of brain protein synthesis, the specific activity in the undernourished group was only 5% less than that found for the controls. This was not statistically significant. The results suggest that there may be a block in the intermediary metabolism of glucose in the brains of undernourished rats that reduces the availability of glucose carbon to the precursor pool used for protein and lipid synthesis.
Male Sexual Health Questionnaire (MSHQ): scale development and psychometric validation

Abstract Objectives To validate a new, self-administered questionnaire for assessing key domains of sexual function and satisfaction in aging men with urogenital health concerns. Methods The initial items were identified by patient interviews, review of current reports, and expert panel solicitation. The resulting 25-item questionnaire was subjected to psychometric evaluation and refinement using two discriminant validity studies in aging men with urogenital symptoms compared with age-matched controls. Psychometric tests of reliability, discriminant, and criterion validity were performed. Results Qualitative testing revealed adequate comprehension and content validity of the initial item set. Two domains of sexual function (ejaculation, erection) were identified in the first discriminant validity study, each of which showed a high degree of internal consistency (alpha = 0.81 and alpha=0.90, respectively) and test-retest reliability ( r = 0.86 and r = 0.87, respectively). Both sexual function domains discriminated well between men with and without urogenital manifestations of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and sexual dysfunction ( P r = 0.88). Tests of convergent and divergent validity, including correlations with standardized scales for depression (Center for Epidemiologic Studies–Depressed Mood Scale), sexual function (International Index of Erectile Function), and life satisfaction (Fugl-Meyer), confirmed the criterion validity of the new measure. Conclusions The Male Sexual Health Questionnaire assesses sexual function and satisfaction in older men with urogenital symptoms of LUTS and sexual dysfunction. This new instrument has excellent psychometric properties and is well suited for use in clinical and research settings.
The “screwed aorta” after spinal deformity surgery

A 26-year-old woman with prior T3–L4 spinal fusion for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis was incidentally found to have a malpositioned left T6 pedicle screw encroaching the descending thoracic aorta...
A new method for evalution of antithrombogenicity of materials.

A new method was developed for evaluating kinetically the antithrombogenicity of materials. The amount of thrombus formed was measured gravimetrically at an appropriate interval of time after calcium chloride was added to ACD blood in contact with a test material. Graphic curves for thrombus formation on glass, Silastic, Hydron, and treated natural tissues were obtained and compared. There was good correlation between our in vivo tests and in vivo observations.
Acceleration and transport of energetic particles observed in the inner heliosphere

Abstract A number of distinct species of energetic particles—ranging from those accelerated at the Sun and heliosphere to galactic cosmic rays, are observed in the inner heliosphere. In turn, a number of different acceleration mechanisms—including stochastic fluctuations, shocks and more-gradual compressions—have been proposed to explain the various observations and each mechanism has its adherents. In this tutorial review, various popular mechanisms are introduced, and the differences between statistical acceleration and acceleration at shocks at quasi-perpendicular and quasi-parallel shocks and compressions are discussed. Spatial transport is an important part of the acceleration process, and the accelerated particles must propagate through the turbulent solar wind to the point of observation. Both the acceleration and the subsequent transport of the particles depend fundamentally on the nature of the ambient, generally turbulent, plasma and electromagnetic fields. New constraints imposed by recent in situ and remote observations of the energetic particles in the inner heliosphere will be discussed.
Hierarchical reconstruction with up to second degree remainder for solving nonlinear conservation laws

The hierarchical reconstruction (HR) (Liu et al 2007 SIAM J. Numer. Anal. 45 2442–67) can effectively reduce spurious oscillations without local characteristic decomposition for numerical capturing of discontinuous solutions. However, there are still small remaining overshoots/undershoots in the vicinity of discontinuities. HR with partial neighbouring cells (Xu et al 2009 J. Comput. Phys. 228 2194–212) essentially overcomes this drawback for the third order case, and in the mean time further improves the resolution of the numerical solution. Extending the technique to higher order cases we observe the returning of overshoots/undershoots. In this paper, we introduce a new technique to work with HR on partial neighbouring cells, which lowers the order of the remainder of the polynomial in the current cell while maintaining the theoretical order of accuracy, essentially eliminates overshoots/undershoots for the fourth and fifth order cases and reduces the numerical cost.
Collective mechanism for atomic recombination in plasmas

A new mechanism is proposed for atomic recombination in plasmas, whereby the binding energy is carried away by a plasmon. It is suggested that this mechanism may compete with radiative and three-body modes in the case of recombination to sufficiently highly excited and perturbed states of hydrogen. A procedure for calculation of the transition rate is outlined in a model which treats the plasma oscillations by the Bohm-Pines canonical transformation and the atomic bound states by a second canonical transformation.
Wading into the stream of Chinese life: The life and missionary career of Roderick Scott in China, 1916-1949

The legacy of Western Christian missionaries to China during the early twentieth century has often been debated by historians, being judged both positively and negatively. Yet, the truth is usually more complex. In examining the lives of Roderick and Agnes Scott, two American missionaries and educators who were active in Fuzhou from 1916–1949, the historian can see how the interaction between Western Christianity and Chinese culture played out in at least one instance, and observe how one American couple developed a growing affinity for the Chinese people and their culture, which gradually led them to the role of interpreters and advocates on behalf of the Chinese during and following World War II. Yet the papers of Roderick Scott also provide examples of the complex relationship between the Chinese and resident foreigners during these years. They document the rise of anti-foreigner sentiment in the 1920s, the debates over the Sinicization of western institutions in the years that followed, the solidarity...
One-loop amplitudes on orbifolds and the renormalization of coupling constants

Abstract We consider three-point one-loop amplitudes for strings propagating on orbifolds that preserve a supersymmetry. For three external gauge bosons, we compute the explicit wave-function renormalization of the external legs and show that it leads to the correct value for the Yang-Mills β-function. For two gauge bosons and a graviton, we show that there is no renormalization of the coupling, but if the graviton is replaced with an antisymmetric tensor, then the coupling is renormalized.
Three dimensional discrete particle simulation of an AOTV

A discrete Particle Simulation method, recently formulated by Baganoff, is discussed in the context of its application to the simulation of the flow field about the Aeroassisted Flight Experiment (AFE). As a basis for discussion the current algorithm is first described. Because of the use of a cubic Cartesian mesh, the representation of the geometry is different than that of other particle methods and an algorithm for its generation is discussed. The method is applied to test problems and then to the AFE calculation with the use of 9.52 million particles and 432,000 cells.
Resource-intensive endoscopic procedures: do the dollars make sense?

Background The rapid development of endoscopic technologies over the past decade has led to an increased utilization of resource-intensive endoscopic procedures in clinical practice. These procedures are technically challenging, time consuming, and typically involve major equipment-related costs. Objective To determine the economics associated with performing resource-intensive endoscopic procedures in a tertiary-referral center Design A retrospective practice database review. Setting A single, North American tertiary-referral medical center. Patients All the patients whose initial contacts with the medical center were as outpatients for an EUS, EMR, or ERCP between July and November 2004. Main Outcome Measurements Hospital charges, the cost of providing services, revenue, and net income from all services provided through June 2006. Results Seventy patients were tracked. During the review period, these 70 patients generated a total of $2.9 million, or $42,126 per patient, in hospital charges. The net profit was $407,263 ($5790 per patient). Endoscopic services alone resulted in a loss of $424 per patient. Surgical services generated just over $300,000 in net profit. Conclusions Economics for only resource-intensive endoscopic procedures are not financially viable under the current health care reimbursement system. The first step to removing disincentives to performing these cost-effective procedures would appear to be an insistence that reimbursement be weighted equitably to ensure reasonable profitability.
The Relation Between Self-Report Mindfulness and Performance on Tasks of Sustained Attention

Validation of self-report mindfulness measures has been promising, although comparisons with non-self-report instruments are lacking. Because past research suggests that mindfulness training is associated with improved attention, this study predicted that higher self-report mindfulness would be positively related to performance on tasks of sustained attention. Fifty undergraduates completed the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), the Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills (KIMS), the Cognitive and Affective Mindfulness Scale, Revised (CAMS-R), and performed the Continuous Performance Test II (CPT-II) and the Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test (PASAT). Mindfulness scores, as measured by the MAAS and CAMS-R, were negatively related to target omissions on the CPT-II (ps ≤ 0.001), but were not related to PASAT performance (ps ≥ 0.11). Scores on the KIMS were not related to the CPT-II or PASAT (ps ≥ 0.15). Results suggest that self-report mindfulness is related to exaggerated lapses of attention, as measured by the CPT-II.
Assembly and architecture of precursor nodes during fission yeast cytokinesis

The contractile ring is essential for cytokinesis in most fungal and animal cells. In fission yeast, cytokinesis nodes are precursors of the contractile ring and mark the future cleavage site. However, their assembly and architecture have not been well described. We found that nodes are assembled stoichiometrically in a hierarchical order with two modules linked by the positional marker anillin Mid1. Mid1 first recruits Cdc4 and IQGAP Rng2 to form module I. Rng2 subsequently recruits the myosin-II subunits Myo2 and Rlc1. Mid1 then independently recruits the F-BAR protein Cdc15 to form module II. Mid1, Rng2, Cdc4, and Cdc15 are stable node components that accumulate close to the plasma membrane. Both modules recruit the formin Cdc12 to nucleate actin filaments. Myo2 heads point into the cell interior, where they efficiently capture actin filaments to condense nodes into the contractile ring. Collectively, our work characterizing the assembly and architecture of precursor nodes defines important steps and molecular players for contractile ring assembly.