cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A review of BCG and other antituberculosis vaccines.

Summary A brief review of antituberculosis vaccines has been presented with emphasis on BCG. At the present time BCG is the only antituberculosis vaccine which has been shown to be effective. Current concepts of BCG vaccination have been discussed. It has been recommended that BCG vaccine be used for tuberculin-negative individuals living or working in an environment where there is a high incidence of tuberculosis.
High gravimetric capacity and long cycle life in Mn3O4/graphene platelet/LiCMC composite lithium-ion battery anodes

Abstract We report the synthesis, characterization and battery performance of a novel Mn 3 O 4 /graphene composite based on graphene platelets and also an Mn 3 O 4 /reduced-graphene-oxide composite for comparison. The electrodes were cast from aqueous dispersions in which lithium carboxymethyl cellulose was used as a binder thus enabling an aqueous based process for anode fabrication. The Mn 3 O 4 /graphene-platelet and the Mn 3 O 4 /reduced-graphene-oxide composites anode system possess high gravimetric capacities (∼700 mAh g −1 ) and excellent cycling stability (>100 cycles).
Thumbs Up for Our Authors [Editorial]

Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert became famous for their wit and wisdom about movies. Many of us both enjoyed their opinions, and relied on their good judgments about which movies were worth seeing.
The rationale for direct linear closure of facial Mohs' defects.

Background Closing Mohs' defects is a challenging undertaking for surgeons. There are many methods, including linear repair, local flaps, and skin grafts. Traditionally, geometric flaps have been a mainstay, particularly in the cheek and forehead. However, many flaps violate basic principles of following relaxed skin tension lines; also, they often necessitate significant dissection. Methods All repairs of Mohs' facial defects performed sequentially from 2001 to 2008 by the senior author (J.F.T.) were reviewed. Chart review identified the size and location of the defect, method of closure, and complications. Results Chart review revealed 1354 reconstructions, with 475 direct repairs (35 percent). The highest rate of direct repair was seen in the forehead (77 percent). The lowest rate of direct repair was seen in the nose (7 percent). Analysis of cases revealed good results, with very low morbidity for direct linear closure. Conclusions For many large defects, the simple method of direct linear closure often yields results superior to those of more time-consuming local flap options. Several dogmas of facial reconstruction are too unyielding, and the option of direct repair should not be overlooked. Traditional estimates of defect size requiring flap repair are incorrect; it is possible to close some large defects by direct approximation, with superior results.
Toward reverse engineering: accuracy of adaptive thin-plate surface fitting

This paper presents algorithms to create a robust CAD-compatible surface model of an object utilizing data input from an active ranging device. The algorithm is divided into two stages, each of which approximates the data. The first stage 'cleans' the data and creates a dense grid. The second stage uses uniform B-Splines as the finite element to create a global description of the surface. This technique is a regularized approximation and can deal with data which does not necessarily have to lie on a grid, or be regularly spaced. The first stage of the algorithm eliminates outliers, while the second stage smooths over Gaussian noise. The algorithm can also be used to reconstruct a surface from sparse binocular stereo disparities including errors due to mismatches. The algorithms have been implemented and tested on a wide variety of data: sparse data from binocular stereo, depth measurements from laser radar, and depth measurements from active triangulation using a plane of light. In this paper, we present results of varying the parameters of the second stage of the model, in order to better understand the behavior of the algorithm, and to provide users with quantitative measures of the effect of the variations in order to choose the optimal parameters for a particular application.© (1992) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
THE USE OF ePORTFOLIOS IN EVALUATING THE CURRICULUM AND STUDENT LEARNING

Portfolios can foster the integration of theory, action, self-reflection, and assessment. Electronic portfolios (ePortfolios) extend this concept by acting as a "content-management system" that facilitates the collecting, considering, sharing, and presenting of learning outcomes with and to others via a digital medium. This article describes the systematic examination of an ePortfolio application under development and illustrates its potential usefulness to not only facilitate and assess individual student learning, but also aid curricular assessment. Our evaluation uncovered organizational, curricular, learning, logistical, and technological issues involved in moving from a linear approach to teaching and learning toward an integrated systems approach.
Thyroid hormone analog inhibition of hepatic 5'-iodothyronine deiodinase activity.

Studies using thyroid hormone analogs have provided insight into the structural requirements for thyromimetic activity and for thyroid hormone binding to thyroxine-binding globulin, thyroxine-binding prealbumin, and nuclear T3 receptors. To determine the structural specifications for iodothyronine interaction with 5′-iodothyronine deiodinase (5′-ITD), we examined the ability of 35 thyroid hormone analogs to inhibit hepatic T4 5′-deiodination in vitro. The compounds were incubated in concentrations of 0.1-500 μM with rat liver homogenates, and concentrations producing 50% inhibition of T3 production were calculated. Those iodothyronine analogs which likely serve as substrate for 5′-ITD, e.g. rT3 and 3′5′-T2, and those which have one tyrosyl iodide were the most potent inhibitors of 5′-ITD activity. The presence of tyrosyl iodides enhanced inhibition by compounds with alkyl and halogen substitutions. Inhibition was likely due to direct interaction with the enzyme, since it was readily reversed by DTT. The terminal amino and phenolic hydroxyl groups, as well as the ether linkage, do not appear to be essential components of enzyme interaction.
Loss of cardiac muscle taurine after acute left ventricular ischemia

Abstract Ischemia was produced by occluding the circumflex branch of the left coronary artery in dogs. The artery remained patent in control animals. Tissue samples were obtained after 4 hours with or without occlusion. Right and left atria contained the highest taurine levels. In controls, an increasing outer to inner gradient in taurine content was observed in the posterolateral wall ventricle. No gradient was found in the right ventricular wall. For the first time, ischemia has been shown to reduce cardiac muscle taurine 47 percent in the left ventricle and 26 percent in right and left atria. Thus heart taurine 1) shows a non-uniform regional distribution in control and ischemic animals, and 2) is decreased after ischemic injury.
Additive effects of exogenous IL‐12 supplementation and antibiotic treatment in infection prophylaxis

The increasing clinical incidence and host risk of open fracture-associated infections, as well as the reduced effectiveness of conventional antibiotics to treat such infections, have driven the development of new therapies for the prophylaxis of open fracture-associated infections. We investigated percutaneous supplementation of a natural cytokine (i.e., interleukin 12p70 or IL-12) at an open fracture site to reduce open fracture-associated infections. We also determined the efficacy of the combination therapy of IL-12 and conventional antibiotic therapy in the prophylaxis of open fracture-associated infections. An open femur fracture infection model was produced by direct inoculation of a clinical isolate of Staphylococcus aureus after creating a femur fracture using rats. The animals were assigned to one of four groups: no drug administration, percutaneous supplementation of IL-12, intraperitoneal administration of the antibiotic ampicillin, or percutaneous IL-12 in combination with intraperitoneal ampicillin. Animals were euthanized at postoperative days 6, 10, 14, and 21. Percutaneous IL-12 led to a reduction in infection at postoperative days 6 and 10. For the first time, exogenous IL-12 was found to have additive effects in the prevention of infection when combined with conventional treatment (i.e., antibiotic therapy). Combination therapy of ampicillin and IL-12 substantially reduced the infection rate at postoperative day 6 and also decreased the time needed for complete inhibition of infection. Therefore, exogenous IL-12, providing a mechanism of protection independent of antibiotic resistance, complements the routine use of antibiotics.
Effect of digitonin and digitoxin on the phospholipid metabolism of mammalian tissue culture cells

Abstract The effects of digitonin and digitoxin on the phospholipid metabolism of mammalian tissue culture cells have been studied. Digitonin stimulates the incorporation of inorganic orthophosphate- 32 P into the total phospholipid. The phospholipid was then separated on silicic acid-impregnated glass paper chromatography, and the specific activity of each phosphatide was calculated. It was found that digitonin caused a linear increase in the specific activity of phosphatidyl inositol and diphosphatidyl glycerol at the time periods studied. The increase in the specific activities of phosphatidyl choline and phosphatidyl ethanolamine was delayed but to the same extent (more than twofold) after 120-min incubation. The specific activities of phosphatidyl serine and sphingomyelin were low and not significantly affected. The increase was similar in specific activity values of phospholipids of digitonintreated HeLa cells as that of the controls in the nuclear, mitochondrial, and microsomal fractions. Digitonin failed to stimulate the incorporation of palmitic-l- 14 C acid into the phospholipids of HeLa cells. A nonsteroid surface-active agent (Triton X-100) did not stimulate the incorporation of 32 P, into the phospholipids of HeLa cells, but other steroids, desoxycholate, and estradiol did stimulate such incorporation of 32 P i . Digitoxin had little effect on the phospholipid labeling of HeLa cells. However, digitoxin stimulated the incorporation of 32 P, into phosphatidyl inositol and sphingomyelin fraction of human heart culture cells. The specific interaction of various steroids with the target-cell membranes and its relation to phospholipid metabolism is discussed.
Alterations in respiratory neuronal activities in the medullary 'pre-Bötzinger' region in hypocapnia.

Abstract ‘Pre-inspiratory’ neuronal activities in a rostral ventrolateral medullary ‘pre-Botzinger’ complex have been hypothesized to generate eupnea. Respiratory-modulated neuronal activities were recorded in this region in decerebrate, vagotomized, paralyzed, and ventilated cats, having bilateral carotid sinus nerve sections. As end-tidal partial pressures of carbon dioxide were reduced to hypocapnic levels, all neuronal activities which were tonic or expiratory–inspiratory (‘pre-inspiratory’) either ceased or lost respiratory-modulation. Similarly, most expiratory and inspiratory–expiratory activities did not maintain a phasic discharge. Half of the inspiratory neuronal activities did continue a phasic discharge, which commenced after phrenic activity or became independent of the phrenic rhythm. Results do not support a fundamental role of the ‘pre-Botzinger’ complex in the neurogenesis of eupnea. Some neuronal activities can establish a phasic discharge in hypocapnia which is independent of the central respiratory rhythm. At normocapnia, this independent discharge is superseded and incorporated into the ponto-medullary respiratory neuronal circuit which generates eupnea.
An enzymatic basis for the acceleration of ciliary activity by negative air ions.

IT has recently been shown that small negative air ions accelerate the tracheal ciliary activity of mammals both in vitro and in vivo1,2. The subsequent discovery that the actual mediator of these effects is negatively ionized oxygen3 suggested the possibility of a direct action by negative air ions on one or more of the respiratory enzymes. This seemed increasingly likely when it was found that : (a) dilute solutions of sodium azide (as low as 1 × 10−5 molar) inhibit ciliary activity; (b) the haemoglobin of animals killed with carbon dioxide recovers its bright red colour more rapidly in a negatively ionized atmosphere than in ordinary air.
Some halogen measurements on achondrites

Halogen concentrations in basaltic achondritic meteorites, discussing applications to rare gas and lunar surface studies
Leu-enkephalin, tamoxifen and ethanol interactions: effects on motility and hepatic ethanol metabolizing enzymes.

Abstract 1. 1. Short-term treatment with tamoxifen (a nonsteroidal antiestrogen) decreased mouse spontaneous locomotor activity compared to controls. 2. 2. Short-term pretreatment with tamoxifen prior to an acute sedative dose of ethanol potentiated ethanol-medicated behavioral depression in the mouse. 3. 3. Injection of a small dose of Leu-enkephalin, which is devoid of effect on mouse motility, prior to an acute sedative dose of ethanol to tamoxifen pretreated female mice counteracted ethanol-produced suppression of motor activity. 4. 4. Mouse liver aldehyde dehydrogenase was inhibited by the short-term administration of tamoxifen when given alone or preceding acute dosages of Leu-enkephalin. Concomitantly, there was an increase in blood plasma ethanol concentration from corresponding control. 5. 5. The results of the behavioral performance test used suggest that tamoxifen possesses depressant property and exerts synergestic effect with Leu-enkephalin in antagonizing ethanol-produced behavioral depression in the mouse. 6. 6. The enzymatic part of the study indicates an adverse metabolic influence by tamoxifen on hepatic metabolism of ethanol-derived acetaldehyde which could contribute to the potentiation of the sedative effect of ethanol.
Biliary atresia and Th1 function: linking lymphocytes and bile ducts: commentary on the article by Mack et al. on page 79.

Biliary Atresia and Th1 Function: Linking Lymphocytes and Bile Ducts: Commentary on the article by Mack et al . on page 79
Race, Class, Gender, and Social Space: Using an Intersectional Approach to Study Immigration Attitudes

This study uses an intersectional approach to predict attitudes toward immigrants by examining the intersections of race, class, gender, and social space. With data from the 2004 General Social Survey and the 2000 Census, generalized hierarchal linear modeling generates significant two-way and three-way interactions in predicting attitudes toward immigrants taking jobs, improving the economy, committing crime, and migrating to the United States. Important differences in attitudes between groups and within groups only emerge when particular intersections are considered in the analysis. One implication is that pro-immigrant organizations may gain greater support by devising political strategies from an intersectional perspective.
Conformational analyses of polyoxyethylene-bound homo-oligo-L-glutamates in a helix-supporting environment, trifluoroethanol

A detailed conformational analysis of C-terminal polyoxyethylene-bound homo-oligo-L-glutamates (dimer, penta-heptamer) with N-terminal blocking groups, X = Boc, Ac, or pGlu, was carried out in the helix-supporting environment, trifluorethanol, using 1H-nmr spectroscopy to observe backbone NH resonances. The nmr structural investigations for the three glutamate POE series were based on the assignment of individual amide NH resonances through deuteration, analyses of vicinal coupling constants (3JNH-α-CH), measurements of the temperature-dependence of NH chemical shifts, saturation-transfer experiments, stable free radical titration studies, and titration experiments using a denaturing solvent (DMSO). From these investigations, a detailed picture was derived for the possible conformations of these POE-peptides.
Long-term outcome after exercising throughout pregnancy: fitness and cardiovascular risk.

Although continuing regular weight-bearing exercise throughout pregnancy and adulthood maintains fitness and/or lowers cardiovascular risk,1–6 the specific long-term effects of continuing regular weight-bearing exercise during pregnancy are unknown. The purpose of the current study was to examine this question in a longitudinal study of a cohort of women initially studied serially before, during, and for 1 year after pregnancy 18–20 years ago.3,7–9 The null hypothesis tested was that continuing a vigorous weight-bearing exercise regimen during pregnancy has no discernible long-term effect on indices of fitness and/or cardiovascular risk in the perimenopausal period. Other aspects of long-term outcome were also examined (musculoskeletal, genitourinary, psychosocial, etc) and will be reported separately.
Effects of prudhoe bay crude oil contamination on sediment working rates of Abarenicola pacifica

Abstract Lugworms (Abarenicola pacifica) were exposed to sediment containing 250 to 1000 ppm Prudhoe Bay crude oil. At concentrations of 500 and 1000 ppm the rate of feeding, as measured by faecal production, was reduced by 70%. Smaller control animals turned over more sediment in proportion to their body size than larger ones. Exposure to oil at high levels abolished this difference by greater depression of the rate of faecal production by smaller individuals.
The Intersectionality of Domestic Violence and Welfare in the Lives of Poor Women

The U.S. social welfare system has a long history of engaging in gendered and racialized social control of service recipients. This paper explores the utility of an approach to examining the interaction of such categories as race, class, and gender developed by African-American feminist scholars—the use of the heuristic concept of “intersectionality” — and applies the approach to one aspect of contemporary social policy in the United States: the domestic violence provisions of the 1996 federal welfare law. The paper discusses the evidence regarding the relationship between domestic violence and welfare receipt and analyzes the interaction between state, social, and individual partner's efforts to control women receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).
Unpacking the effect of IT capability on the performance of export‐focused SMEs: a report from China

. Export-focused small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in China face a number of barriers to success, two primary ones being the liability of foreignness and resource scarcity. In order to transcend these challenges and be able to survive/prosper in the hypercompetitive international market, where players include large resourceful multinational organizations with experience in varied national contexts, these firms need to develop different organizational capabilities. In this paper, we specifically examine the role of a key organizational capability – information technology (IT) capability – and its different dimensions, in determining performance of export-focused SMEs in China. Our study reveals that IT capability has a positive impact on such firms' performance. This finding indicates the need for their owners/managers to invest in IT capability. Further, the study also highlights specific sub-dimensions of IT capability that export-focused Chinese SMEs should (or should not) develop, so as to derive maximum performance-related gains for the minimum amount spent on IT.
Similarity and scaling in creep and load relaxation of single‐crystal halite (NaCl)

[1] This work explores the physical basis for Hart's mechanical equation of state in high-temperature plasticity. The experiments seek to identify a possible microstructural basis for the “hardness” parameters associated with load relaxation curves. The experiments also seek to examine the microstructural basis for scaling in load relaxation data and to explore the relationship between creep and load relaxation. Constant stress creep and load relaxation tests were conducted on [100] oriented single crystals of halite at 700°C and stresses between 0.6 and 3 MPa. Load relaxation tests were performed at 400°C up to a stress level of 13 MPa. After testing, specimens were sectioned, and dislocation densities and subgrain size distributions were measured. Results at 700°C reveal that distributions of subgrain size in crystals crept at different stress levels are similar to each other; that is, they have the same shape but different average subgrain sizes depending on stress level. Hardness curves obtained from load relaxation experiments at different levels of work hardening were found to correspond to different average subgrain size. Load relaxation data from 700°C and 400°C belong to a single-parameter family of curves, with hardness curves translating onto each other with a scaling slope m = 0.33 ± 0.05. Subgrain size distributions generated in creep are statistically identical to those from load relaxation. The hardness parameter, σ*, specified as the (apparent) high-strain rate limit of stress in the load relaxation data, is approximately 50Gb/DI, where G is the shear modulus, b is the Burgers vector, and DI is the mean intercept subgrain diameter. During creep under constant stress the subgrain size evolves until a steady value is approached. The experimental data lend credence to Hart's interpretation that load relaxation data represent (nearly) constant “structure” with subgrain size playing the role of the structural variable.
Development of nano-composite lead-free electronic solders

Inert, hybrid inorganic/organic, nano-structured chemicals can be incorporated into low melting metallic materials, such as lead-free electronic solders, to achieve desired levels of service performance. The nano-structured materials technology of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (POSS), with appropriate organic groups, can produce suitable means to promote bonding between nano-reinforcements and the metallic matrix. The microstructures of lead-free solder reinforced with surface-active POSS tri-silanols were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Wettability of POSS-containing lead-free solders to copper substrate was also examined. Steady-state deformation of solder joints made of eutectic Sn-Ag solder containing varying weight fractions of POSS of different chemical moieties were evaluated at different temperatures (25°C, 100°C, and 150°C) using a rheometric solids analyzer (RSA-III). Mechanical properties such as shear stress versus simple shear-strain relationships, peak shear stress as a function of rate of simple shear strain, and testing temperature for such nano-composite solders are reported. The service reliability of joints made with these newly formulated nano-composite solders was evaluated using a realistic thermomechanical fatigue (TMF) test profile. Evolution of microstructures and residual mechanical property after different extents of TMF cycles were evaluated and compared with joints made of standard, unreinforced eutectic Sn-Ag solder.
A comparison of treatment‐seeking pathological gamblers based on preferred gambling activity

Aims To compare and contrast gamblers with different forms of problematic gambling activities. Design, setting and measurements Pathological gamblers completed the Addiction Severity Index (ASI) and gambling questionnaires when initiating out-patient treatment. Participants Participants (n = 347) were categorized by their most problematic form of gambling activity: sports, horse/dog-races, cards, slots and scratch/lottery tickets. Differences in demographics, gambling variables, and ASI composite scores were compared across groups. Findings After controlling for demographic variables, the types of gamblers differed in severity of gambling, alcohol and psychiatric problems. Horse/dog-race gamblers were generally older, male and less educated; they began gambling regularly at a young age and spent relatively high amounts of money gambling. Sports gamblers were young males and had intermediary gambling problems; they had relatively high rates of current substance use but few psychiatric problems. Card players spent low to moderate amounts of time and money gambling, and they generally reported few alcohol problems and little psychiatric distress. Slot machine players were older and more likely to be female. Slot gamblers began gambling later in life, had high rates of bankruptcy and reported psychiatric difficulties. Scratch/lottery gamblers spent the least amount of money gambling, but they gambled the most frequently and had relatively severe alcohol and psychiatric symptoms. Conclusions Gambling patterns and severity of psychosocial problems vary by form of problematic gambling, and these differences may influence treatment recommendations and outcomes.
Behavioral sensitization and long-term neurochemical alterations associated with the fungicide triadimefon

Abstract Triadimefon (TDF), a widely used triazole fungicide, blocks reuptake of the neurotransmitter dopamine (DA), similarly to cocaine. Preliminary studies show that intermittent intraperitoneal injections of TDF increase ambulatory and vertical activity across repeated injections [Neurotoxicology (in press)] leading to the hypothesis tested here, that exposure to TDF may influence the development and expression of behavioral sensitization, a model of psychostimulant-induced psychosis. Exposure of adult male C57BL/6 mice to 75 mg/kg ip TDF (TDF75) twice a week for 7 weeks increased vertical activity at each injection. Following a 2-week withdrawal period, a TDF challenge to test for expression of behavioral sensitization revealed further increases in vertical activity levels relative to all other conditions. TDF induction/expression of behavioral sensitization was associated with long-term, perhaps permanent modulation of dopaminergic function that included increases in striatal dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and DA turnover, increases in medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) dopamine transporter (DAT) binding, as well as decreases in DA D1 and increases in DA D2 and DAT receptor binding that appeared to target the nucleus accumbens shell (NAs) subregion. Thus, TDF exposure may serve as an environmental risk factor for DA system dysfunctions.
Articular cartilage vesicles contain RNA

Small membrane-bound extracellular organelles known as articular cartilage matrix vesicles (ACVs) participate in pathologic mineralization in osteoarthritic articular cartilage. ACVs are also present in normal cartilage, although they have no known functions other than mineralization. Recently, RNA was identified in extracellular vesicles derived from mast cells, suggesting that such vesicles might carry coding information from cell to cell. We found that ACVs from normal porcine and human articular cartilage and primary chondrocyte conditioned media contained 1 microg RNA/80 microg ACV protein. No DNA could be detected. RT-PCR of ACV RNA demonstrated the presence of full length mRNAs for factor XIIIA, type II transglutaminase, collagen II, aggrecan, ANKH and GAPDH. RNA in intact ACVs was resistant to RNase, despite the fact that ACV preparations contained measurable levels of active RNases. Significantly, radiolabeled RNA in ACVs could be transferred to unlabeled chondrocytes by co-incubation and produced changes in levels of chondrocyte enzymes and proteins. The demonstration that ACVs contain mRNAs suggests that they may function to shuttle genetic information between articular cells and indicate novel functions for these structures in articular cartilage.
The Impact of Anti-infective Drug Shortages on Hospitals in the United States: Trends and Causes

Anti-infective shortages pose significant logistical and clinical challenges to hospitals and may be considered a public health emergency. Anti-infectives often represent irreplaceable life-saving treatments. Furthermore, few new agents are available to treat increasingly prevalent multidrug-resistant pathogens. Frequent antiinfective shortages have substantially altered patient care and may lead to inferior patient outcomes. Because many of the shortages stem from problems with manufacturing and distribution, federal legislation has been introduced but not yet enacted to provide oversight for the adequate supply of critical medications. At the local level, hospitals should develop strategies to anticipate the impact and extent of shortages, to identify therapeutic alternatives, and to mitigate potential adverse outcomes. Here we describe the scope of recent antiinfective shortages in the United States and explore the reasons for inadequate drug supply.
Indelibility of subcortical emotional memories

Acquisition and extinction of fear responses conditioned to a visual stimulus were examined in rats with ablations of visual cortex. Visual cortex lesions did not interfere with acquisition, indicating that visual fear conditioning, like auditory fear conditioning, is mediated by sub-cortical, probably thalamo-amygdala, sensory pathways. In contrast to acquisition, extinction was greatly prolonged, if not prevented, by cortical ablation. This resistance to extinction of sub cortical emotional memories may explain certain aspects of emotional memory in man.
Airway trauma in a high patient volume academic cardiac electrophysiology laboratory center.

Background Providing anesthesia and managing airways in the electrophysiology suite can be challenging because of its unique setting outside of the conventional operating room. We report our experience of several cases of reported airway trauma including tongue and pharyngeal hematoma and vocal cord paralysis in this setting. Methods We analyzed all of the reported airway trauma cases between December 2009 and January 2011 in our cardiac electrophysiology laboratories and compared these cases with those without airway trauma. Data from 87 cases, including 16 cases with reported airway trauma (trauma group) and 71 cases without reported airway trauma from the same patient population pool at the same period (control group), were collected via review of medical records. Results Airway trauma was reported for 16 patients (0.7%) in 14 months among 2434 anesthetic cases. None of these patients had life-threatening airway obstruction. The avoidance of muscle relaxants during induction in patients with a body mass index less than 30 was found to be a significant risk factor for airway trauma (P = 0.04; odds ratio, 10; 95% confidence interval, 1.1-482). Tongue or soft tissue bite occurred in 2 cases where soft bite block was not used during cardioversion. No statistically significant difference was found between the trauma and the control groups for preprocedure anticoagulation, anticoagulation during the procedure, or reversal of heparin at the end of the procedure. Conclusions The overall incidence of reported airway trauma was 0.7% in our study population. Tongue injury was the most common airway trauma. The cause seems to have been multifactorial; however, airway management without muscle relaxant emerged as a potential risk factor. Intubation with muscle relaxant is recommended, as is placing a soft bite block and ensuring no soft tissue is between the teeth before cardioversion.
Effects of bleaching and backgrounds on the flash response of the cone system

1. Increment-threshold functions for flashed backgrounds were measured in the human fovea under several conditions: (1) during dark adaptation following full bleaches, (2) in the presence of steady adapting backgrounds and (3) 500 msec following extinction of adapting backgrounds. 2. To prevent the intense flashed backgrounds from interfering with the course of dark adaptation the inter-trial interval was continuously increased during dark adaptation. This technique may prove generally useful for presenting suprathreshold stimuli during dark adaptation. 3. All the increment-threshold functions measured during dark adaptation were found to be roughly shape invariant and continuously accelerating when plotted in log—log co-ordinates. Furthermore, in order to translate a function obtained at any given time into coincidence with a function obtained at any other time, it had to be translated vertically and horizontally the same number of log units. This is equivalent to adding or removing neutral density filters from in front of the eye. 4. The increment-threshold functions obtained with steady adapting backgrounds were also continuously accelerating, but could not be brought into coincidence by equal vertical and horizontal translation. However, this became possible again if the adapting background was extinguished during presentation of the flashed background. 5. These results contradict the equivalent-background hypothesis. None the less, they suggest that under present conditions the effects of bleaches and backgrounds may be similar except that steady backgrounds provide additional quanta which drive the visual system part of the way up its intensity—response function. 6. The conclusions above were supported by applying a simple model based on the equation R = Rmax. In / (In + I1n), which has frequently been used to describe the peak responses of retinal neurones to flashed stimuli. Virtually all of the data reported here were fitted by this simple model with Rmax held constant. 7. The parameters estimated from the model imply that the flash responses measured in the present experiments differ in at least one fundamental way from receptor responses. Even after taking into account changes in the half saturation constant I1, steady backgrounds were found to be much less effective than flashed backgrounds in driving the visual system up its intensity—response function. A subtractive inhibitory network prior to the non-linear stages responsible for threshold saturation could explain this result.
Personality Traits and Childhood Environments of Eminent Essayists.

The goal of the research was to define conditions of excellence by an historical analysis of the psychological traits and childhood environments of eminent essayists of history. A sample of 42 foremost essayists, historians, and critics was used. The sample was derived from earlier work on eminence by Cattell (1903) and Terman (1925). Encyclopaedia Britannica biographers and other researchers rated a list of traits and conditions concerning cognitive, affective, familiar, and educational aspect of the sample. The results of Chi-square tests of significance focus on the degree of persistence of the traits and conditions and suggest that while intelligence is a component of eminence, environmental influences are substantial. Familial, school, and social conditions reticulated an indispensable support during the childhoods of the future essayists. Educators and parents have a responsibility to provide the conditions that foster excellence.
Development of Inferior Temporal Cortex in the Monkey

Inferior temporal (IT) cortex is critical for visual pattern recognition in adult primates. However, the functional development of IT cortex appears to be incomplete until late in the first year of life in monkeys and probably beyond. Responses of neurons in IT are substantially weaker, of longer latency, and more susceptible to anesthesia within at least the first half year of life. In addition, refinement of connections of IT, particularly those with regions in the opposite hemisphere and with regions related to memory and attention, continues for at least several months after birth. Moreover, many of the pattern recognition functions that IT supports in adulthood themselves show a very protracted period of development, and damage to IT cortex in infancy appears to have relatively little effect on pattern recognition abilities, despite the pronounced effects of comparable damage in adulthood. These findings all suggest that IT undergoes an extended period of postnatal development, during which both visual experience and the maturation of other brain structures may contribute to the emergence of mechanisms of pattern recognition within IT. In other respects, fundamental characteristics of IT emerge quite early. For example, despite their weaker responses, IT neurons have adult-like patterns of responsiveness--including pronounced form selectivity and large bilateral receptive fields--as early as we were able to test (approximately 6 weeks). Thus, IT cortex appears to be prewired with (or predisposed to develop rapidly) neural circuitry sufficient to produce basic properties remarkably similar to those found in the adult animal. Future studies of IT cortex will need to address the development of signals related to perceptual constancies and to formation and retrieval of visual object memories, the development of interactions with other regions involved in visual recognition (particularly frontal cortex), and the specific mechanisms underlying various types of plasticity present in IT cortex in both developing and mature primates.
Shared memory vs. message passing in shared-memory multiprocessors

It is argued that the choice between the shared-memory and message-passing models depends on two factors: the relative cost of communication and computation as implemented by the hardware, and the degree of load imbalance inherent in the application. Two representative applications are used to illustrate the performance advantages of each programming model on several different shared-memory machines, including the BBN Butterfly, Sequent Symmetry, Encore Multimax and Silicon Graphics Iris multiprocessors. It is shown that applications implemented in the shared-memory model perform better on the previous generation of multiprocessors, while applications implemented in the message-passing model perform better on modern multiprocessors. It is argued that both models have performance advantages, and that the factors that influence the choice of model may not be known at compile-time. As a compromise solution, the authors propose an alternative programming model, which has the load balancing properties of the shared-memory model and the locality properties of the message-passing model, and show that this new model performs better than the other two alternatives. >
High-performance VGA-resolution digital color CMOS imager

This paper discusses the performance of a new VGA resolution color CMOS imager developed by Motorola on a 0.5micrometers /3.3V CMOS process. This fully integrated, high performance imager has on chip timing, control, and analog signal processing chain for digital imaging applications. The picture elements are based on 7.8micrometers active CMOS pixels that use pinned photodiodes for higher quantum efficiency and low noise performance. The image processing engine includes a bank of programmable gain amplifiers, line rate clamping for dark offset removal, real time auto white balancing, per column gain and offset calibration, and a 10 bit pipelined RSD analog to digital converter with a programmable input range. Post ADC signal processing includes features such as bad pixel replacement based on user defined thresholds levels, 10 to 8 bit companding and 5 tap FIR filtering. The sensor can be programmed via a standard I2C interface that runs on 3.3V clocks. Programmable features include variable frame rates using a constant frequency master clock, electronic exposure control, continuous or single frame capture, progressive or interlace scanning modes. Each pixel is individually addressable allowing region of interest imaging and image subsampling. The sensor operates with master clock frequencies of up to 13.5MHz resulting in 30FPS. A total programmable gain of 27dB is available. The sensor power dissipation is 400mW at full speed of operation. The low noise design yields a measured 'system on a chip' dynamic range of 50dB thus giving over 8 true bits of resolution. Extremely high conversion gain result in an excellent peak sensitivity of 22V/(mu) J/cm2 or 3.3V/lux-sec. This monolithic image capture and processing engine represent a compete imaging solution making it a true 'camera on a chip'. Yet in its operation it remains extremely easy to use requiring only one clock and a 3.3V power supply. Given the available features and performance levels, this sensor will be suitable for a variety of color imaging applications including still/full motion imaging, security/surveillance, and teleconferencing/multimedia among other high performance, cost sensitive, low power consumer applications.© (1999) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Self-expansion as a mediator of relationship improvements in a mindfulness intervention.

In a recent randomized controlled trial, couples participating in a mindfulness-based relationship enhancement program demonstrated significant improvements in relationship satisfaction and relationship distress (Carson, Carson, Gil, & Baucom, 2004). Here we report on a multiple mediation analysis of these couples’ improvements. Potential mediators included measures of couples’ engagement in exciting self-expanding activities, couples’ ability to accept one another’s difficult characteristics, and individual partners’ ability to relax. Results indicate that to a large extent, the mindfulness-related relationship improvements can be attributed to partners’ sense that they were participating in exciting self-expanding activities together during the course of the intervention. The implications of these findings for future mindfulness research are discussed. Research into mindfulness training—that is, the practice of focusing on the reality of the
Detection of Murine Leukemia Virus in the Epstein-Barr virus-positive human B-cell line JY using a computational RNA-seq based exogenous agent detection pipeline, PARSES.

Many cell lines commonly used for biological studies have been found to harbor exogenous agents such as the human tumor viruses Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and human papillomavirus. Nevertheless, broad-based, unbiased approaches to globally assess the presence of ectopic organisms within cell model systems have not previously been available. We reasoned that high-throughput sequencing should provide unparalleled insights into the microbiomes of tissue culture cell systems. Here we have used our RNA-seq analysis pipeline, PARSES (Pipeline for Analysis of RNA-Seq Exogenous Sequences), to investigate the presence of ectopic organisms within two EBV-positive B-cell lines commonly used by EBV researchers. Sequencing data sets from both the Akata and JY B-cell lines were found to contain reads for EBV, and the JY data set was found to also contain reads from the murine leukemia virus (MuLV). Further investigation revealed that MuLV transcription in JY cells is highly active. We also identified a number of MuLV alternative splicing events, and we uncovered evidence of APOBEC3G (apolipoprotein B mRNA-editing enzyme, catalytic polypeptide-like 3G)-dependent DNA editing. Finally, reverse transcription-PCR analysis showed the presence of MuLV in three other human B-cell lines (DG75, Ramos, and P3HR1 Cl.13) commonly used by investigators in the Epstein-Barr virus field. We believe that a thorough examination of tissue culture microbiomes using RNA-seq/PARSES-like approaches is critical for the appropriate utilization of these systems in biological studies.
Fungal Genomes and Beyond

The sequencing of fungal genomes is advancing at breakneck-speed, producing voluminous amounts of data. Within the next five years, it is possible that over a couple thousand genomes, representing every major fungal family will be completed and available to the scientific community. In order for this data to have a truly transformative effect on mycological and other research, however, several factors need to be addressed. These include; (1) the establishment of user-friendly platforms for examining, sorting, and sifting through the genomes, (2) integration, or at least cross-communication, between the various databases that house the genomic data, and (3) investment in community resources that can act as repositories for and provide materials to researchers, i.e. strains, clones, plasmids, etc. The frameworks for some these needs, e.g. the materials available from the Fungal Genetics Stock Center (FGSC, University of Missouri), are already established and should be reinforced, whereas for others, e.g. data accessibility, the sooner that a plan can be implemented the better. The Fungal Kingdom is considered to contribute greater than 15% of the species richness found in the major groups of organisms [1]. Displaying a wide range of facultative to obligate saprophytic, symbiotic, and pathogenic lifestyles, fungi have colonized all terrestrial ecosystems. Often noticeable in soils only in their fruiting body form, a largely hidden under- or inaccessible world is populated by fungal organisms performing ecological functions that have significant impacts on plant, animal, and even other microbial communities. Fungal contenders exist for our planet’s largest and amongst the oldest organisms, i.e.
“No Way My Boys Are Going to Be Like That!” Parents’ Responses to Children’s Gender Nonconformity

Drawing on qualitative interviews with parents of preschool children, the author addresses parental responses to children’s gender nonconformity. The author’s analyses indicate that parents welcome what they perceive as gender nonconformity among their young daughters, while their responses in relation to sons are more complex. Many parents across racial and class backgrounds accept or encourage some tendencies they consider atypical for boys. But this acceptance is balanced by efforts to approximate hegemonic ideals of masculinity. The author considers these patterns in the context of gender as an interactional accomplishment, demonstrating that parents are often consciously aware of their own role in accomplishing gender with and for their sons. Heterosexual fathers are especially likely to be motivated in that accomplishment work by their own personal endorsement of hegemonic masculinity, while heterosexual mothers and gay parents are more likely to be motivated by accountability to others in relation ...
Physical fitness levels of persons with cerebral palsy

During the past decade, the promotion of physical fitness as a major benefit to health promotion and health maintenance has gained increasing momentum. Level of physical fitness has been shown to be inversely associated with heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and colon cancer. Several studies also have noted that good-to-high levels of physical fitness (muscular strength and endurance and cardiorespiratory fitness) can offset the decline in function that occurs during the natural ageing process, and can assist people in maintaining their physical independence in later adulthood.
Therapeutic potential of macrolide immunosuppressants in dermatology.

Dermatologists are frequently presented with inflammatory dermatoses that are responsive to treatment with immunomodulating drugs. Corticosteroids, particularly when applied topically, have been the mainstay of treatment in the past. Their undoubted efficacy, however, has been undermined by problems with repeated use including tachyphylaxis and side effects such as skin atrophy and hypertension. Macrolide immunosuppressive drugs, originally used for prophylaxis of organ transplant rejection, have been shown to be effective in the treatment of inflammatory dermatoses. The original drugs used in dermatology in this class have their own limitations including poor absorption when used topically and their distinct side-effect profiles. A search for other immunosuppressive macrolide antibiotics has led to the development of new agents, which have enhanced profiles for the treatment of skin disease. This review discusses the main dermatoses that may be targeted by this class of drugs and summarises the topical a...