cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Redefining Preventable Death-Potentially Survivable Motorcycle Scene Fatalities as a New Frontier.

Abstract Background The National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine defined a roadmap to achieve zero preventable trauma deaths. In the United States, there are over 5000 motorcycle fatalities annually. Florida leads the nation in annual motorcycle crash (MCC) deaths and injuries. It is unknown how many are potentially preventable. We hypothesize that certain patterns of injuries in on-scene fatalities that are potentially survivable and aim to make recommendations to achieve the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine objective. Materials and methods Miami-Dade County medical examiner reports of MCC deaths pronounced on scene, and emergency medical service or law enforcement reports from 2010 to 2012 were reviewed by board-certified trauma surgeons. Causes of death were categorized into exsanguination, traumatic brain injury or decapitation, crushed chest, or airway complications. Determination of potentially survivable versus nonsurvivable injuries was based upon whether the riders had potentially survivable injuries and had they been transported immediately to a trauma center. Traumatic brain injury cases were reviewed by a board-certified neurosurgeon. Results Sixty MCC scene deaths were analyzed. Ninety-five percent were men, 55% were helmeted, and 42% had positive toxicology. The median Injury Severity Score was 41 (Range 14-75, IQR 31-75). Nineteen (32%) deaths were potentially survivable, with death due to airway in 14 (23%) and exsanguination in 4 (7%) patients. Conclusions One-third of on-scene urban motorcycle deaths are potentially survivable in a young patient population. ISS score comparison demonstrates the lower injury burden in those deemed potentially survivable. Automatic alert systems in motorcycles and first responder training to police are recommended to improve trauma system efficacy in reducing preventable deaths from MCCs.
Strategic confrontation: Examining the utility of low stakes prodding as a strategy for confronting sexism.

Confronting sexism has been routinely operationalized in experimental research as assertive behavior that expresses disapproval of sexism. The present research examines an indirect confrontation st...
Technology-assisted methadone take-home dosing for dispensing methadone to persons with opioid use disorder during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Abstract Introduction Covid-19 confers substantial risk for the >400,000 patients who receive methadone for the treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD) and methods for safely dispensing large quantities of methadone to patients are lacking. Methods This study evaluated the MedMinder “Jon”, an electronic and cellular-enabled pillbox that provides real-time monitoring to remotely manage take-home doses of methadone using a 12-week, within-subject, Phase II ( NCT03254043 ) trial. We transitioned all participants from liquid to tablet methadone one week prior to randomization. Participants completed both treatment-as-usual and electronic pillbox conditions before choosing a condition in a final “choice phase”. We assessed feasibility, satisfaction, and safety outcomes during the exit interview. Results Overall, we randomized 25 participants, 24 (96.0%) completed >1 study session, and 21 (84.0%) completed the exit interview. We dispensed 167.92 g (1,974 doses) of methadone. Participants would use the pillbox again (86.3%) and recommend it to others (95.4%). Overall, 52.4% selected the pillbox in the choice condition and those who did not cited issues related to study requirements. Less than 1% of pillbox alerts were for medication being consumed outside the dosing window and we observed no evidence of actual or attempted methadone diversion. Discussion We were able to adequately manage patients who would not otherwise qualify for large quantities of take-home methadone when we dispensed methadone tablets via a secure pillbox. The integration of a commercially available pillbox into routine clinic operations increases opportunity for dispensing medication. Our data support remote monitoring of methadone take-home doses and may inform clinic practices related to Covid-19.
PET/CT acceptance testing and quality assurance: Executive summary of AAPM Task Group 126 Report.

Purpose A Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography quality assurance program is necessary to ensure that patients receive optimal imaging and care. We summarize the AAPM Task Group (TG) 126 report on acceptance and quality assurance (QA) testing of PET/CT systems. Methods TG 126 was charged with developing PET/CT acceptance testing and QA procedures. The TG aimed to develop procedures that would allow for standardized evaluation of existing short-axis cylindrical-bore PET/CT systems in the spirit of NEMA NU 2 standards without requiring specialized phantoms or proprietary software tools. Results We outline eight performance evaluations using common phantoms and freely available software whereby the clinical physicist monitors each PET/CT system by comparing periodic Follow-Up Measurements to Baseline Measurements acquired during acceptance testing. For each of the eight evaluations, we also summarize the expected testing time and materials necessary and the recommended pass/fail criteria. Conclusion Our report provides a guideline for periodic evaluations of most clinical PET/CT systems that simplifies procedures and requirements outlined by other agencies and will facilitate performance comparisons across vendors, models, and institutions.
Just Be Open About It or Turn Up the Radio: A Qualitative Analysis of Parent-Child Sexual Communication Experiences in Adolescence

Parent-child sexual communication (PCSC) has been found to be an important predicting factor for later sexual health. This paper explored the topics, values, and communication styles of PCSC, and emerging adults’ suggestions for improving PCSC. The current study utilized data collected from focus groups conducted in 2012 with 38 college-aged emerging adults (50% female) who reported previously having sexual intercourse regarding their memories of PCSC. The findings show that the most salient topics discussed during PCSC were the adolescents’ sexual history/activity, birth control/contraceptives, abstinence or delaying sex, and parents’ personal experiences. Participants reported communication characterized by infrequent and one-sided conversations dominated by the parent. They also reported that parents tended to communicate accepting values (parental acknowledgement or acceptance that their children would likely be sexually active in adolescence) during PCSC. Finally, participants’ most common suggestion for improvement was to have supportive and open PCSC where children can go to their parents for information and support regardless of their sexual decisions. Gender differences arose across multiple subthemes. Parents are rarely discussing in-depth sexual health topics in an open manner. There are multiple areas in which parents can improve when discussing sexuality with their children. Funding for parent-targeted programming should be allocated to help parents be more effective sex educators in the home by improving PCSC quality. Comprehensive sex education should be provided for students in schools to help supplement the sexual values they learn at home when parents do not provide sexual health information.
Novel Organic Polymer Composite-Based Thermoelectrics

Inorganic nanofillers-incorporated polymer-based composites have gained great attention due to their exceptional thermoelectric (TE) properties. These composites are a simple combination of polymer matrices and incorporated fillers and they are widely known not only due to the TE properties of each component but also due to the organic-inorganic interfacial boundary with interesting energy filtering effect and phonon scattering property. However, challenges still remain for the composites, such as nanofiller aggregation that reduces the interfacial area between two components resulting in ultralow thermal conductivity with high power factor. Current studies on organic TE composites showed that structures of periodically patterned inorganic nanofillers with coated organic polymer matrix displayed exceptional TE properties. Figure-of-merit ZT value of the fabricated composites using Bi2Te3 as inorganic filler material and PEDOT as organic matrix reaches ~0.58 at room temperature, which is the highest value reported for organic–inorganic composites till date. In this chapter, we cover some of the previous research works in the field of organic-based composites and mainly focus on the state-of-art composites with monodispersed and periodic nanostructures. The fabrication process, as well as the principle of these high-performance TE composites with unique nanostructures, is introduced in detail.
CFO Fiduciary Responsibilities and the Design of Incentive Compensation

We provide theory and empirical evidence on the design of incentive compensation for chief financial officers (CFOs). CFOs are different from other executives in that much of their effort is aimed at safeguarding the integrity of financial reporting. Thus, to motivate our empirical analysis, we rely on a model first introduced by Crocker and Slemrod (2007) where a firm hires a CFO who performs profit-enhancing activities but also has an opportunity to embellish firm profitability prior to its public release. We show that the equilibrium weight on self-reported profit increases with the importance of CFO value-enhancing effort, decreases with the susceptibility of the firm's accounting system to misreporting, and decreases with the costs of misreporting borne by the firm. Our survey evidence on compensation and incentives of 1,353 CFOs is consistent with these theoretical insights and corroborates that the importance of CFO fiduciary responsibilities affects CFO incentive design. Most notably, we find that after the enactment of Sarbanes-Oxley legislation public entities (in contrast to private entities) have reduced the emphasis on financial performance measures in CFO compensation.
U74389F, a 21-aminosteroid antioxidant, improves neoendothelial morphology, but not neointimal thickening after balloon catheter injury

U74389F is a compound in a family of 21-aminosteroids devoid of classical glucocorticoid action that inhibit lipid peroxidation. These compounds improve neurologic function and tissue survival after head or spinal cord injury. Dexamethasone inhibits development of intimal hyperplasia (IH) and improves attenuated nitric oxide (NO) production of the rabbit aorta subsequent to balloon catheter injury. We tested the hypothesis that U74389F is protective in a catheter-induced endothelial-denuded and arterial injury model. A 4-Fr Fogarty balloon (BALL) embolectomy catheter was passed through the thoracic aorta of New Zealand White rabbits treated with 15 mg/kg U74389F (LAZ) 2 days before and 1 week after injury. Animals were killed at 4 weeks after surgical intervention, and formation of IH was determined by calculating the intimal/medial ratio (I/M). The treatment groups of animals were injured untreated (BALL), injured treated (BALL/LAZ), uninjured treated (CONTROL/LAZ), and sham-operated treated (SHAM/LAZ). ...
Provision of trusted identity management using trust credentials

The Trusted Computing Group (TCG) has developed specifications for computing platforms that create a foundation of trust for software processes, based on a small amount of extra hardware [1,2]. Several million commercial desktop and laptop products have been shipped based upon this technology, and there is increasing interest in deploying further products. This paper presents a mechanism for using trusted computing in the context of identity management to deal with the problem of providing migration of identity and confidential information across users' personal systems and multiple enterprise IT back-end systems in a safe and trusted way.
Adolescent victimization and associated suicidal and violent behaviors

This study examined the relationship between victimization and both suicidal and violent behaviors among 1,569 public high school students in New York State (excluding New York City). They had participated in the 1997 Youth Risk Behavior Survey and, based on their responses, were divided into four groups: no suicidal or violent behavior, suicidal behavior only, violent behavior only, and both suicidal and violent behaviors. Males reported significantly more victimization, less suicidal behavior, and more violent behavior compared with females. Logistic regression analyses indicated that all categories of suicidal/violent behaviors were more frequent among those who had been victimized compared with the nonvictimized, for both males and females. In addition, victimized males were over two times more likely than victimized females to report violent behavior only. Gender differences were not significant for victimized students in two groups, suicidal behavior only and both suicidal and violent behaviors, although the results were in the hypothesized direction for suicidal behavior (e.g., females were more prone to suicidal behavior only). It was concluded that identifying and treating the victims of violence should be an integral component of suicide prevention programs and interventions aimed at reducing interpersonal violence in schools.
Cities and Sustainable Development

When considering the future of the world, one must first and foremost consider the future of its cities. Cities are currently home to more than half the world's population and are projected to encompass the preponderance of all future population growth. Cities also require vast inputs of energy and resources while producing vast outputs of waste. Recognition that these trends are not sustainable has generated a wealth of relevant research. How cities can be sustainably developed in such a way that meets present needs without limiting the ability of future generations to meet their own needs is the critical problem to solve. Research in a myriad of fields, including sociology, political science, economics, and geography, is active in its pursuit of the sustainable city. This essay explains the components of sustainable development and underscores the connection between sustainability and cities. Foundational research, which primarily takes a regional approach to urban analysis, is then explored. This, then, is followed by cutting-edge research that highlights new ways to measure sustainability and new efforts to build sustainable cities. The essay concludes with an examination of some of the key issues for future research, including the need to consider the cultural diversity within and between cities, as well ways to generate sustainability through pioneering efforts of planning and governance. Keywords: cities; sustainable development; urban planning; environment; equity; economics; growth
Bundle branch block with intact atrioventricular conduction: Electrophysiologic and pathologic correlations in three cases

Serial sections of the conduction system were examined in three patients with bundle branch block. Cases 1 and 2 had right bundle branch block with electrical axes of −110° and −120°, respectively, whereas Case 3 had left bundle branch block. The findings in Case 1 were: P-A interval 40 msec (normal 27 ± 18, mean ± 2 standard deviations), A-H interval 115 msec (normal 92 ± 38), H-V interval 77 msec (normal 43 ± 12), and duration of His potential 34 msec (normal 15 to 20). Atrial and atrioventricular (A-V) nodal refractory periods were prolonged. In Case 2, the P-A interval was 20 msec, A-H interval 215 msec and H-V interval 70 msec. In Cases 1 and 2, type I block occurred proximal to the His bundle at a low paced rate of 100/min. Case 3 had atrial flutter, 4:1 block proximal to the His bundle and a normal H-V interval of 55 msec. Conduction lesions were graded according to severity (1+ minimal, 2+ moderate, 3+ marked and 4+ severe). All cases had 3 to 4+ sinoatrial nodal and atrial lesions, 2+ A-V nodal lesions and 3 to 4+ lesions of the left bundle. The right bundle had 3 to 4+ lesions in Cases 1 and 2, but only 1+ lesions in Case 3. The His bundle had 3+ lesions in Case 1, and 1+ lesions in Cases 2 and 3. In summary: (1) The P-A interval was normal despite extensive atrial disease. (2) A prolonged A-H interval suggested A-V nodal involvement whereas a normal A-H interval did not exclude such involvement. (3) Atrial pacing and measurement of the refractory period improved detection of atrial and A-V nodal disease. (4) A prolonged duration of the His potential suggested extensive His bundle involvement. (5) Bundle branch block with a prolonged H-V interval suggested extensive bilateral bundle branch disease.
A Workbench for Discovering Task Specific Theories of Learning

This chapter examines why learning theories expressed as artificial intelligence programs have not had much direct effect on education and training. It suggests a new research direction.
Be Careful What You Wish For: A Reply to Craig

Recently William Lane Craig (2000, 2001) has attempted to resuscitate an argument, originally given by George Schlesinger (1980), against the tenseless or B-theory of time, according to which the only intrinsically temporal entities are the temporal relations of earlier/later than and simultaneity. According to Craig, the objective reality of temporal becoming the passage of time or events in time, from the future to the present and into the past is implied by "the experience of wishing it were now some other time; for example, '[Wishing that] it were now 1968!'" (2001, p. 160).1 For, following Schlesinger, Craig maintains when I wish that it were now some other time, what I am wishing for or what my wish is about is that the temporal particular, the NOW, or the temporal property of presentness, or some other metaphysical substitute for the property of presentness, be at some moment in the temporal series other than the moment at which it is now located. Since, however, on the B-theory there is no moving NOW and there are no suitable tenseless surrogates with the same meaning as the wish, Craig concludes that B-theorists must maintain that anyone who has such a wish (including B-theorists themselves since such a wish is commonplace) is to that extent irrational. Since Craig believes that the wish is rational and that the rationality of the wish can only be explained by appealing to the objectivity of tense and temporal becoming he infers that the experience in question is a strong argument for the A-theory and against the B-theory. But is the wish rational? And can it be explained only if an A-theoretic ontology is true? The aim of my paper is to explore those questions and in so doing provide a B-theoretic response to Craig's argument. Craig's use of the terms "rational" and "irrational" is ambiguous, so I shall begin by delineating two possible interpretations of the
Accuracy of moose age determinations from canine and incisor cementum annuli

We sent 76 canines and 77 incisors (I1) from 84 known-age moose (Alces alces) ≥2 years old sampled from near Fairbanks, Alaska, USA (2003–2011) to Matson's Laboratory (Milltown, MT) to test G. Matson's accuracy rate in estimating moose ages. To estimate ages, G. Matson counted annuli in the cementum of root tips using a Giemsa-staining technique and assumed a birth date of 1 June. We originally radiocollared moose at 9 months of age, and we extracted teeth upon death. Estimated moose ages averaged 7.0 years using canines and 6.9 using I1 teeth (range = 2–16 year), and known ages of each sample averaged 7.1 years. The accuracy rate among 76 canines was 74% and improved to 95% when ignoring errors within 1 year of the known age; comparative results among 77 I1 teeth were 66% and 94%. By far the most frequent error was a 1-year underestimate in age, particularly for moose that died in July and August, which included the seasonal transition period associated with completing peripheral annuli formation. After controlling for −1-year errors associated with the seasonal transition period, we found evidence for errors accumulating with age. We found no significant difference in accuracy based on which tooth was sectioned. However, G. Matson observed more individually distinct annuli and regular deposition patterns in canines, compared with incisors. Thus, we recommend the more easily extracted canine for estimating moose age. © 2015 The Wildlife Society.
Periodic Points: Global Theory

First recall the following. Let f: \(\widehat {\Bbb C} \to \widehat {\Bbb C}\) be a rational map of degree d ≥ 0
The effect of creatine supplementation on mass and performance of rat skeletal muscle

This study investigated the effect of dietary creatine supplementation on hypertrophy and performance of rat skeletal muscle. Male Sprague-Dawley rats underwent either tibialis anterior ablation or partial ablation of the plantaris/gastrocnemius to induce compensatory hypertrophy of the extensor digitorum longus (EDL) or soleus respectively, or sham surgery. Creatine (300 mg/kg) was administered to one half of each group for 5 weeks, after which force production was measured. With the leg fixed at the knee and ankle, the distal tendon of the EDL or soleus was attached to a force transducer and the muscle was electrically stimulated via the sciatic nerve. Synergist ablation resulted in a significant increase in EDL mass and in soleus mass relative to control muscles. However, no effect of creatine supplementation on muscle mass or performance was found between control and either group of creatine-treated rats. Despite an apparent increase in muscle creatine content, creatine supplementation did not augment muscle hypertrophy or force production in rat EDL or soleus muscle, providing evidence that the potential benefits of creatine supplementation are not due to a direct effect on muscle but rather to an enhanced ability to train.
Interaggregate Interaction in Filled Rubber

Abstract Measurements of the dynamic properties of carbon-black-filled rubber can be carried out on most instrumentation at strains within the limits of linear behavior; thus, assessments of acoustic performance can readily be made. The equivalence of small-strain dynamic-mechanical testing and acoustic measurements has been demonstrated herein. Blends of NR with a high concentration of 1,2-BR are attractive candidates for damping applications because of the extended frequency range of the glass to rubber transition. One approach to improving the magnitude of the damping is to incorporate high levels of carbon black into the material. Significant interaggregate interaction, promoted for example by a low degree of carbon-black dispersion, will amplify the energy dissipation. The strain dependence of the dynamic properties implicit in such an approach can result in a damping performance sensitive to deformation. The loss tangent rises significantly after such a deformation, while the loss modulus experience...
Enhanced Water Splitting Efficiency Through Selective Surface State Removal.

Hematite (α-Fe2O3) thin film electrodes prepared by atomic layer deposition (ALD) were employed to photocatalytically oxidize water under 1 sun illumination. It was shown that annealing at 800 °C substantially improves the water oxidation efficiency of the ultrathin film hematite electrodes. The effect of high temperature treatment is shown to remove one of two surface states identified, which reduces recombination and Fermi level pinning. Further modification with Co–Pi water oxidation catalyst resulted in unprecedented photocurrent onset potential of ∼0.6 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE; slightly positive of the flat band potential).
Channel-optimized transform coding of imagery

This paper presented a DCT-based image coder optimized for transmission over binary symmetric channels. The proposed coder uses a robust channel-optimized trellis-coded quantization stage that is designed to optimize the image coding based on the channel characteristics. This optimization is performed only at the level of the source encoder, and does not include any channel coding for error protection. The robust nature of the coder increases the security level of the encoded bit stream and provides a much more visually pleasing rendition of the decoded image. Consequently, the proposed robust channel-optimized image coder is especially suitable for wireless transmission due to its reduced completely, its robustness to non-stationary signal and channels, and its increased security level.
Modeling microstructure development and release kinetics in controlled drug release coatings

In recent years, controlled release coatings, comprised of drug-polymer composites, have been integrated with medical devices, improving device functionality and performance. However, relationships between material properties, manufacturing environment, composite (micro)structure, and subsequent release kinetics are not well established. We apply a thermodynamically consistent model to probe the influence of drug-polymer chemistry (phobicity), drug loading, and evaporation rate on microstructure development during fabrication. For these structures, we compute release profiles for exposure to polymer-insoluble media and media in which the polymer readily dissolves. We find that with increasing drug-polymer phobicity, structural heterogeneities form at lower loadings and more rapid rates. The heterogeneities remain isolated and compact at low loadings and become interconnected as the drug to polymer ratio approaches 1.0. Release into polymer-insoluble media was dramatically enhanced by heterogeneities, resulting in up to a fourfold increase in drug release. In polymer-soluble media, however, heterogeneities diminished release. Although reductions of only 30% were typically observed, the absolute changes were much larger than observed in polymer-insoluble media. Our results suggest that improved comprehension and quantification of the physico-chemical properties in controlled release systems will enable the microstructure to be tailored to achieve desired responses that are insensitive to manufacturing variations.
Radio and Localism: Has the FCC Dropped the Ball?

Although no news of the FCC task force initiative on localism came forth between 2004 and 2006, members of Congress have taken an interest in the effects of localism in radio broadcasting. This interest can be attributed to the view that radio consolidation has minimized local radio service. As well, satellite-delivered radio has begun to encroach on local radio as it now provides traffic and weather updates in selected metropolitan markets. This article investigates the status of radio and localism, an issue that affects listeners across the nation. The original version of this article was presented within the competitive paper session of the Radio & Audio Media Division at the Broadcast Education Association 2006 Annual Convention in Las Vegas, NV.
Thoughts on Hermaphroditism : Miyatake Gaikotsu and the Convergence of the Sexes in Taishō Japan

When thirty-year-old Kazutoshi was arrested in Dalian, Manchuria, he turned out to be far more riveting than the common thief he appeared to be at first glance. It soon became apparent that Kazutoshi was a "cripple" (fugusha) who was part male and part female. Calling him a "strange double-sexed person" (kikai naru ry?sei no hito), government officials probed into his past, only to discover that Kazutoshi had been born with the name Fuji?and as a woman. During her youth in Nagasaki, Fuji was a renowned beauty and the recipient of many amorous advances. Despite these affirmations of her femininity and her desir ability as a woman, Fuji sought medical advice because she did not "feel like a woman." The examining physicians found it impossible to declare her either male or female and eventually resorted to surgery to solve the puzzle that Fuji presented. When the examination revealed the existence of testicles, it was decided that she was male, and Fuji took the name Kazutoshi. Now a twenty-one-year-old man, Kazutoshi cut his hair, discarded his skirts, and married. He began drinking and being physically active. "A previously gentle woman, he completely transformed into a man of sturdy physique." Despite his marriage and successful transformation, Kazutoshi left his birth town, driven by the gossip sur rounding his metamorphosis. After a decade of wandering, Kazutoshi arrived in Man churia and?destitute and desperate?turned to thievery. After the arrest in Dalian,
Network inference and network response identification: moving genome-scale data to the next level of biological discovery

The escalating amount of genome-scale data demands a pragmatic stance from the research community. How can we utilize this deluge of information to better understand biology, cure diseases, or engage cells in bioremediation or biomaterial production for various purposes? A research pipeline moving new sequence, expression and binding data towards practical end goals seems to be necessary. While most individual researchers are not motivated by such well-articulated pragmatic end goals, the scientific community has already self-organized itself to successfully convert genomic data into fundamentally new biological knowledge and practical applications. Here we review two important steps in this workflow: network inference and network response identification, applied to transcriptional regulatory networks. Among network inference methods, we concentrate on relevance networks due to their conceptual simplicity. We classify and discuss network response identification approaches as either data-centric or network-centric. Finally, we conclude with an outlook on what is still missing from these approaches and what may be ahead on the road to biological discovery.
Structure-Activity Relationships for the Action of Dihydropyrazole Insecticides on Mouse Brain Sodium Channels

Abstract Assays of radiosodium uptake into mouse brain vesicles and the binding of [ 3 H]batrachotoxinin A 20-α-benzoate (BTX-B) were used to compare the actions of six dihydropyrazole (3-aryl-1-arylcarbamoyl-2-pyrazoline) insecticides on mouse brain sodium channels. The relative potencies of the six dihydropyrazoles as inhibitors of either pumiliotoxin B-stimulated sodium uptake measured in the presence of scorpion ( Leiurus quinquestriatus ) venom or veratridine-stimulated sodium uptake were closely correlated with the relative potencies of these compounds as inhibitors of the binding of BTX-B to mouse brain sodium channels. A comparison of the enantiomers of the most potent dihydropyrazole, RH 3421, as inhibitors of radiosodium uptake showed that the (−) enantiomer of RH 3421 was approximately six-fold more potent than the (+) enantiomer. The potencies of these dihydropyrazoles in these assays and the stereoselectivity observed in the action of enantiomers of RH 3421 are in good agreement with available information on insecticidal activity in this group of compounds. Assays of the combined effects of RH 3421 and dibucaine as inhibitors of BTX-B binding revealed mutually competitive interactions between these compounds. This finding is consistent with the existence of a common site of action for dihydropyrazoles and local anesthetics on the sodium channel. The results of these studies provide further evidence for the toxicological relevance of the effects of dihydropyrazoles on sodium channels.
Supervision of multiple-robot systems

Teams of miniature robots (land-based, airborne, or submerged) constitute a new breed of robotic systems where the issue of controlled behavior arises naturally. At the highest level, the dynamics of such systems are event-driven. Herein, we consider multiple-robot systems whose robot units go off-line upon the occurrence of certain events. To supervise such event-varying structure, we propose an adaptive supervisory control method.
Ab initio studies of some negative complexes of lithium compounds

Abstract Negative complexes of the form [X---Li---Y] − , where X and Y are OH − , NH − 2 and CH − 3 , are studied using the 6–31 + G* basis set. It is found that the most stable complexes feature the lithium cation shared by the two anions.
Electron microscopic heteroduplex analysis of "killer" double-stranded RNA species from yeast

Wild-type and mutant double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) species from the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae were studied by electron microscopic heteroduplex mapping to determine the sequence relationships among the different RNA molecules. Three mutant dsRNAs, 1.5, 1.4, and 0.73 kilobase, were found to be derived by the same internal deletion of the wild-type (I83 kilobases) molecule. This deletion includes a wild-type (1.83 kilobases) molecule. This deletion includes a segment of about 200 base pairs that was estimated to be nearly 100% A+U. In addition, the sequences of the two larger mutant RNA species are tandem, direct duplications. One of the duplicated molecules appears to have a second internal deletion that occurred after the duplication. The mutant dsRNAs are functionally similar to the defective interfering virus particles of animal viruses--all of the mutant species prevent the propagation of the wild-type dsRNA when both are present in the same cell. The four dsRNAs share the same sequences at their termini, a finding that may suggest that these sequences are important for the replication of the dsRNAs.
Ubiquitous volatile compound facilitates efficient host location by a non-native ambrosia beetle

Xylosandrus germanus (Blandford), a species native to Asia but currently invading North American and European forests, exploits living, but weakened trees. In response to many sources of stress, trees emit ethanol, which represents an important host-location cue for X. germanus. Because stressed trees can be spatially and temporally variable over a landscape, we assessed the role of olfaction in aiding X. germanus to efficiently locate vulnerable trees during natural dispersal. We conducted a series of experiments and observed that attacks occurred on trees baited with ethanol, but immediately ceased upon removal of the ethanol cue. X. germanus also efficiently located and attacked ethanol-injected trees, but rarely landed on adjacent trees not emitting ethanol, and never attacked these neighboring trees. A spatial analysis of trees attacked by ambrosia beetles within diverse landscapes revealed that only certain host species or cultivars, and only certain individuals within these host species or cultivars, were attacked; ethanol was also detected in the attacked trees, but not in non-attacked trees. Thus, X. germanus uses an efficient olfactory mechanism while orienting among perceived non-hosts to specifically locate trees associated with ethanol. Combined with other attributes, we propose that the remarkable efficiency by which this non-native ambrosia beetle uses volatile cues to locate specific vulnerable hosts across a diverse landscape aids its successful establishment and population spread.
Impact of parental psychopathology: Diagnosis, severity, or social status effects?

Children with mothers who had a variety of psychiatric disturbances were studied in a longitudinal investigation from birth to four years of age. The children were assessed for cognitive and social-emotional functioning at each age and the scores related to maternal characteristics. The results were that specific maternal diagnoses of schizophrenia, neurotic depression, and personality disorder had few unique effects on child performance. Social status was the most important factor affecting cognitive development. The severity of the mother's disturbance was the most important factor affecting the child's social-emotional competence.
Particle Network Model for Simulating the Filtration of a Microfine Cement Grout in Sand

This paper describes the application of a quasi-one-demensional (1D) network, bubble model to simulate the filtration of a microfine cement suspension injected through a column of sand. The bubble model represents the soil column as a series of homogeneous sites linked through bundles of cylindrical bonds that characterize the distribution of pores. The model captures mechanisms of particle sieving at the inlet sites and infiltration within each of the bonds under the action of hydrodynamic and gravitational forces. The behavior of each bond is based on numerical simulations of particle transport, collection, mounding, and clogging within a cylindrical model pore. Two empirical parameters are introduced to account for uncertainties in particle attachment at the pore wall and observed mechanisms of resuspension of hindered particles. In principal, these parameters can be calibrated from measurements of effluent concentrations. The bubble model provides useful physical insights to explain the transient dyna...
Tutorial on JML, the java modeling language

The Java Modeling Language (JML) is widely used in academic research as a common language for formal methods tools that work with Java. JML is a design by contract language that can be used to specify detailed designs of Java programs, frameworks, and class libraries. Over twenty research groups worldwide have built several tools for checking code and finding bugs (see jmlspecs.org). This tutorial will give background for researchers and practitioners interested in doing formal methods research and in using JML for specifying the sequential behavior of Java classes and interfaces. Attendees will write JML specifications for a data type, including pre- and postconditions for methods and object invariants. They will also learn how to use the most important JML tools. In addition, they will learn how to use model fields to hide the actual field declarations in classes, and how JML supports modular reasoning about subtypes with behavioral subtyping
Should we screen preschoolers

Abstract The last decade has seen a substantial increase of interest on the part of professionals and legislators in early identification of children with potential learning/ behavior problems. In the present report, the purposes of early screening are delineated and selected arguments against preschool identification and intervention programs described. Arguments favoring the early screening of preschoolers are developed.
Active and cooperative learning: more tips and tricks (part II)

Active and cooperative learning provides one way to encourage student involvement with course material. This second article in a series on active and cooperative learning discusses different levels of risk in class exercises and how activities can be designed to minimize that risk. Asking questions and class discussions are ways to enliven the classroom. Ways to use these techniques at various risk levels are presented.
Wavelength dependence for ornithine decarboxylase induction in vivo.

— The wavelength dependence for ornithine decarboxylase induction was investigated in vivo in the epidermis of albino hairless mice. A 4 cm2 area of dorsal skin was exposed to narrow wavebands (HPBW 6.6 nm) from a monochromator optically coupled to a 5 kW Xe arc source. Dose-response studies were caried out at 260, 275, 290, 300 and 315 nm. The animals were sacrificed 24 h after irradiation and the epidermis separated and assayed for ODC activity. A dose-related induction of ODC was observed at 260, 275, 290 and 300 nm. No stimulation was observed following exposure to 315 nm (maximal dose 6400 J/m2). ODC induction appeared to be linearly related to log UV dose within the dose range of 200 to 1600 J/m2. The dose required to induce an approximately 50-fold increase in activity (1.5 nmol CO2/h/mg protein) was determined from the dose-response regression lines and used to construct an action spectrum. Peak effectiveness occurred at 290 nm, with a rapid loss after 300 nm. After correction for epidermal transmission, peak effectiveness was shown to occur around 260 nm.
Synthesis and Spectroscopy of Near Infrared Fluorescent Dyes for Investigating Dichromic Fluorescence

We developed a series of near infrared (NIR) cyanine dyes to study dichromic fluorescence phenomenon, which provides new protocols for in vivo optical imaging. Preliminary spectroscopic studies show that dichromic fluorescence correlates with structural symmetry. This feature suggests the potential use of dichromic fluorescent molecules to study biological processes that can alter the structural symmetry of the molecular probes.
Acrylonitrile solubility in human blood: Determination of the Ostwald partition coefficient

An in vitro head space method was used to determine the Ostwald partition coefficient (OPC) of acrylonitrile in the following liquids: lactated Ringer's solution, fresh rat blood, fresh human blood, outdated human blood and cellular fractions of either fresh or outdated human blood. Fresh human blood cells have the strongest affinity for acrylonitrile (OPC >700). Fresh whole human blood has a lower OPC, approximately 500. Lactated Ringer's solution, outdated human blood and water had lower OPC values, approximately 200.
The Role of βγ and αγ Complexes in the Assembly of Human Fibrinogen

The role of αγ and βγ dimers as intermediates in the assembly of fibrinogen was examined in cell fusion experiments using stably transfected baby hamster kidney cell lines expressing one or combinations of fibrinogen chains. Fibrinogen was readily formed and secreted into the culture media when cells co-expressing β and γ chains and generating βγ complexes were fused with cells expressing only the α chain. Likewise, when cells co-expressing α and γ chains and generating αγ complexes were fused with cells expressing only the β chain, fibrinogen was also formed and secreted. The relative amounts of αγ or βγ intermediates observed during fibrinogen biosynthesis were determined by the levels of the component chains; i.e. when the β chain was limiting, the αγ dimer was the predominant intermediate; likewise, when the α chain was limiting, the βγ complex was the predominant intermediate. The incorporation of preformed αγ and βγ complexes into secreted fibrinogen did not require concurrent protein synthesis, as shown by experiments employing cycloheximide. These data strongly support the role of αγ and βγ complexes as functional intermediates in the assembly of fibrinogen.
Galaxy Morphology without Classification: Self-organizing Maps

We examine a general framework for visualizing data sets of high (greater than 2) dimensionality and demonstrate the framework by taking the morphology of galaxies at moderate redshifts as an example. The distributions of various populations of such galaxies are examined in a space spanned by four purely morphological parameters. Galaxy images are taken from the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 in the I band (using the F814W filter). Since we have little prior knowledge on how galaxies are distributed in morphology space, we use an unsupervised learning method (a variant of Kohonen's self-organizing maps, or SOMs). This method allows the data to organize themselves onto a two-dimensional space while conserving most of the topology of the original space. It thus enables us to visualize the distribution of galaxies and study it more easily. The process is fully automated, does not rely on any kind of "eyeball" classification and is readily applicable to large numbers of images. We apply it to a sample of 2934 galaxies and find that the morphology correlates well with the apparent magnitude distribution and, to a lesser extent, with color and bulge dominance. The resulting map traces a morphological sequence similar to the Hubble sequence, albeit two-dimensional. We use the SOM as a diagnostic tool and rediscover a population of bulge-dominated galaxies with morphologies characteristic of peculiar galaxies. This result is achieved without recourse to classification by eye. We also examine the effect of noise on the resulting SOM, and conclude that our results are reliable down to an I magnitude of 24. We propose using this method as a framework into which more physical data can be incorporated as they become available. We hope that this method will lead to a deeper understanding of galaxy evolution.
Recent advances in the genetics of disease resistance.

Summary Breeders selecting for disease resistance need measures of general resistance because they have limited potential for multiple trait selection. Among mechanisms of resistance, active immunity appears to have the best potential for measuring general resistance. The search for selection criteria to improve general resistance may be aimed at single genes, such as the major histocompatibility complex, or at measures of immune response that are controlled by multiple genes. Current research approaches require testing potential genes or phenotypes with several criteria of resistance to determine their general nature. Extreme selection for one measure of immuno‐responsiveness may lead to failure in another type of immunity. If this is true true, a balanced breeding approach is required.
Automatic creation of indexed presentations from classroom lectures

This paper describes a system designed to automatically capture classroom events as videos and images. This content is delivered in several ways, most commonly as indexed multimedia presentations but also in real time as notes of classroom events. This content creation system identifies when significant events occur, e.g., material presented by computer and projected on a screen or written on a standard whiteboard, and saves these events as enhanced images. In parallel with the whiteboard capture, a digitally-zoomed video of the speaker is created. The significant event images (from cameras and computers) are used to create an index into the video and the images, video and index are complied into a Flash presentation. These presentations are used by on-campus or distance students. The event images can also be stored and exported to a Ubiquitous Presenter-style server that provides students with real-time, in-class access. The event images and video are recorded transparently to the lecturer. The lecturer need not make any modifications to teaching style or modality (whiteboard, computer-based presentation, or a combination). The primary focus of this paper is on event image and video capture techniques. The lecture capture system has great benefits for education and we report some initial experience using it in support of computer science curricula.
Arthroscopy of the Metacarpophalangeal Joint

The use of arthroscopy in the diagnosis and treatment of disorders involving small joints is growing. In 1979, Chen was the first to describe arthroscopy of the metacarpophalangeal (MP) joint for arthroscopic synovectomy in a patient with rheumatoid synovitis (Chen, Orthop Clin North Am 10:723-733, 1979). Since then, MP joint arthroscopy has been used to release contractures, reduce Stener lesions, and assist in the reduction of intra-articular fractures. This work describes the technique for MP arthroscopy with a review of our experience in 20 patients.
Papillomavirus infection of the cervix I. Correlation of histology with viral structural antigens and DNA sequences.

Eight cervical biopsies showing mild dysplasia and one showing squamous metaplasia were studied for the presence of papillomavirus (PV) antigens using an immunoperoxidase method having immunospecificity against the genus-specific (common) structural antigen(s) and for PV-specific DNA sequences by molecular hybridization under nonstrigent conditions. Of the eight cases showing mild dysplasia, both PV antigens and PV DNA sequences were detected in five, PV antigens only in one, and PV DNA sequences only in one; viral antigens and DNA sequences were not detected in the remaining lesion. A characteristic cellular atypia (PV-induced atypia) was present in the superficial and intermediate layers of the epithelium in the six cases positive for viral antigens, and a proliferation of basal and parabasal cells (PV-induced hyperplasia) occurred in five of these. PV structural antigens were localized within nuclei of some of the cells displaying atypia but not in the proliferating cells. The PV-specific DNA sequences in all six cases had the properties of unintegrated PV-DNA. In view of the demonstration of both PV antigens and DNA sequences in this distinctive lesion (PV-induced atypia and/or hyperplasia), traditionally regarded as a form of dysplasia, it is proposed that this lesion be referred to as "papillomavirus infection of the cervix."