cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Organization of work in the honeybee: a compromise between division of labour and behavioural flexibility

Although the caste concept has been central to our understanding of the organization of work in social insect colonies, the concept has been the subject of considerable recent criticism. Theoretically, it has been suggested that temporal castes are too inflexible to allow a colony to rapidly reallocate labour in response to changing conditions. In addition, several authors have suggested that task switching is so prevalent that it precludes even the possibility of a rigidly controlled temporal caste system. This study addresses these two criticisms by presenting and testing a revision of the temporal caste concept that recognizes two categories of tasks: those that require a physiological specialization for their efficient performance, and those that all workers are equally able to perform. Only those tasks requiring a physiological specialization are relevant to the temporal caste concept. Two castes of honeybees were shown to vary in response to increased nectar influx, which requires a physiological specialization, but not to heat stress, which requires no specialization. This work suggests that the organization of work in social insect colonies reflects a compromise between selection for the benefits of division of labour and opposing selection for flexibility in task allocation.
Viewing stereopair micrographs: facilitated alignment through use of color filter.

On propose l'emploi d'un ecran colore, dispose devant un des oculaires, comme aide a la superposition d'images paires pour l'observation stereoscopique d'objets examines en microscopie a balayage. Le filtre permet un alignement facile et rapide, ce qui reduit appreciablement la fatigue et les maux de tete que beaucoup ressentent au cours de ces manipulations.
Effects of molybdate and pentachlorophenol on the sulfation of dehydroepiandrosterone.

Abstract Pentachlorophenol (PCP) and molybdate have been shown to inhibit the sulfoconjugation of various chemicals in rats and therefore are useful to examine the role of sulfoconjugation on the toxicity of a chemical. PCP inhibits sulfation by competing with substrates for phenol–sulfotransferases, but not hydroxysteroid–sulfotransferases. In contrast, molybdate decreases sulfation by limiting sulfate availability and thereby decreasing the synthesis of 3′-phosphoadenosine 5′-phosphosulfate (PAPS), which is the obligate cosubstrate for sulfation. Therefore, it was of interest to determine whether PCP or molybdate is effective in decreasing the in vivo sulfation of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), which is a substrate for hydroxysteroid–sulfotransferases. PCP (40 μmol/kg ip) or molybdate (7.5 mmol/kg po) was given 45 min and 4 h, respectively, prior to the start of DHEA infusion. The effects of these two sulfation inhibitors on DHEA sulfation were dependent on the rate of DHEA infusion in rats. PCP had different effects on the sulfation of various infusion rates of DHEA in rats. PCP had little effect on the sulfation after the two lowest infusion rates of DHEA (12.5 and 25 mg/kg) and actually increased (233%) DHEA–sulfate serum concentrations with the highest DHEA infusion rate (50 mg/kg). Although molybdate had little affect on the sulfation of the lowest DHEA infusion rate, it significantly decreased (50–85%) DHEA–sulfate serum concentrations with the two higher DHEA infusion rates. These data indicate that molybdate, unlike PCP, decreases the sulfation of DHEA and may be a useful tool to decrease the sulfation of other substrates of hydroxysteroid–sulfotransferases.
Distress among matriculating medical students relative to the general population

PurposeMany medical students experience distress during medical school. If matriculating medical students (MMSs) begin training with similar or better mental health than age-similar controls, this would support existing concerns about the negative impact of training on student well-being. The author
Borders and Margins: Giving Voice to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Immigrant Experiences

President Barack Obama has made comprehensive immigration reform one of his priorities for his second term in office and, for the first time in the history of the United States, a president's propo...
The Influence of Anthropomorphism and Agency on Social Judgment in Virtual Environments

This project examined how information provided in virtual worlds influences social judgment. It specifically tested the influence of anthropomorphism and agency on the level of uncertainty and social judgment, using a between-subjects experimental design. Anthropomorphism had three levels; a high anthropomorphic image, a low anthropomorphic image and no image. Agency had two levels; whether the participants were told they were interacting with a human (avatar condition) or a computer (agent condition). The results showed that the virtual image influenced social judgment. The less anthropomorphic image was perceived to be more credible and likeable than no image, which was more credible and likeable than the anthropomorphic image. There were no discernable differences in social judgment between participants who were told they were interacting with a human as compared to those told they were interacting with a computer agent, consistent with findings from previous reports. Neither anthropomorphism nor agency influenced reported levels of uncertainty. Implications of these results for those designing and using virtual environments are discussed.
A Human Relations Laboratory Approach to Death and Dying

In response to a request from the hospital nursing service, the authors devised a one day human relations laboratory experience focused on death and the dying patient. The lab consisted of four exercises, two that dealt with personal feelings about death and two that dealt with professional responses to the dying patient. Details of these exercises and reactions of the participants are presented.
Pulmonary Veins‐Left Atrial Junction: Anatomic and Histological Study

Pulmonary veins (PVs) are the target of ablation procedures to cure paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF). There are few anatomic and histological studies of PVs. Sixteen human hearts were obtained from autopsies performed at our hospital and cadavers from a local medical school. The anatomic relationship between the PVs and the left atrium (LA) was categorized according to the spatial orientation of the veins within horizontal and vertical planes viewed from the dorsal aspect of the LA. The PVs were sectioned longitudinally, and the sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin. In addition, selected sections were stained with antismooth muscle antibodies (vessel wall), antipankeratin, and antimyoglobin antibodies (myocardium). The PV-LA junction has variable orientations. Confluent superior and inferior veins, observed in 25% of the hearts, were more common on the left side. A myocardial sleeve extended from the LA onto the adventitial surface of the PV. The sleeve was distinct from the smooth muscle in the PV media, from which it was separated by loose fibrous strands. There was no microscopical boundary between the PV and the LA endocardium. The PV join the LA at variable angles. Each PV is surrounded by a myocardial sleeve extending from the LA.
Development of Surface Functionality of Casein Particles as the Controlling Parameter of Enzymic Milk Coagulation

Abstract Changes in a colloidal milk system were monitored by measuring changes in turbidity and the modulus of the resultant milk gel. Turbidity was measured in milk of normal concentration and in milk that had been diluted to eliminate the effects of multiple light scattering. The relationship between true gelation time and observed coagulation time, and how gelation time might affect the theoretical modelling of enzymic milk coagulation are discussed. The turbidity of milk at normal concentration cannot be directly related to particle size but it could be correlated with gel modulus measurements. True gelation time was calculated by fitting gel modulus data to an exponential equation. The result coincided with the inflexion point in the turbidity plots. Surface functionality of casein particles in relation to the collision area and the extent to which k -casein macropeptide must be removed from the particle surface for successful collisions are discussed.
Transformation of pecan and regeneration of transgenic plants.

A gene transfer system developed for walnut (Juglans regia L.) was successfully applied to pecan (Carya illinoensis [Wang] K. Koch). Repetitively embryogenic somatic embryos derived from open-pollinated seed of ‘Elliott’, ‘Wichita’, and ‘Schley’ were co-cultivated with Agrobacterium strain EHA 101/pCGN 7001, which contains marker genes for beta-glucuronidase activity and resistance to kanamycin. Several modifications of the standard walnut transformation techniques were tested, including a lower concentration of kanamycin and a modified induction medium, but these treatments had no measurable effect on efficiency of transformation. Nineteen of the 764 viable inoculated embryos produced transgenic subclones; 13 of these were from the line ‘Elliott’6, 3 from ‘Schley’5/3, and 3 from ‘Wichita’9. Transgenic embryos of ‘Wichita’9 germinated most readily and three subclones were successfully micropropagated. Three transgenic plants of one of these subclones were obtained by grafting the tissue cultured shoots to seedling pecan rootstock in the greenhouse. Gene insertion, initially detected by GUS activity, was confirmed by detection of integrated T-DNA sequences using Southern analysis.
Thermal lensing in the ocular media

A tissue phantom of water with an absorbing dye, Allura Red, was used to observe the effects of thermal lensing in a thick sample exposed to a CW 532 nm Verdi laser. A collimated beam was sent through a sample 2.9 cm thick. Results from the collimated beam revealed qualitative information about thermal lensing in a liquid media. The studies presented here argue the relevance of incorporating oscillating factors such as convectional flow into higher order thermal lensing models in a fluid such as water.
Approximation of nonlinear functional differential equation control systems

We develop a general approximation framework for use in optimal control problems governed by nonlinear functional differential equations. Our approach entails only the use of linear semigroup approximation results, while the nonlinearities are treated as perturbations of a linear system. Numerical results are presented for several simple nonlinear optimal control problem examples.
Body size and social dominance influence breeding dispersal in male Pachydiplax longipennis (Odonata)

1. Dispersal behaviour can be affected by an individual's phenotype, by the environmental or social context they experience, and by interactions between these factors. Differential dispersal propensities between individuals may also be an important modifier of functional connectivity between populations. To assess how a key trait, body size, affected both social interactions and dispersal behaviour, this study examined the relationship between body size, antagonistic interactions, and breeding dispersal in male dragonflies (Pachydiplax longipennis) across a seasonal decline in adult body size. 2. During a seasonal peak in male body size in this study, dispersers were smaller than non-dispersers. Later in the season, the body size of dispersers and non-dispersers did not differ. 3. Focal observations found that body size was related to competitive dominance, large males engaged in aggressive chases more often and smaller males were more frequently pursued. 4. These results indicate that when large males were present, small males were more likely to disperse suggesting that dispersal is a tactic adopted by social subordinates in this context. If breeding dispersal is typically undertaken by subordinate males, functional connectivity between populations may be less than estimated from absolute dispersal rates.
Monolithic CuO–NiO aerogels via an epoxide addition route

Abstract In this report we demonstrate the synthesis of monolithic mixed copper(II)–nickel(II) (Cu–Ni) oxide aerogels using the epoxide addition method. This single step synthetic method provides a straightforward route to synthesize highly porous CuO–NiO materials composed of nanometer sized particles. Control of the particle size and gel morphology is achieved by simple changes in the initial synthetic conditions. The as-synthesized Cu–Ni aerogels were identified as being highly amorphous with the crystalline species identified as a copper/nickel chloride hydroxide. Calcination of the aerogel materials at relatively low temperatures resulted in a complete phase transition of the material to give the CuO–NiO aerogel. The aerogels were characterized by high resolution scanning electron microscopy (HR-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and nitrogen adsorption/desorption techniques (BET). The as-synthesized Cu–Ni aerogels are highly porous and exhibited high surface areas (∼ 400 m2/g).
Fast Food Consumption of U.S. Adults: Impact on Energy and Nutrient Intakes and Overweight Status

Objective: To compare the diet quality and overweight status of free-living adults, ages 20 years and older, grouped based on their fast food intake status.Methods: USDA’s 1994 to 1996 Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals (CSFII 1994–1996) data was used. Three separate analyses were conducted: (1) effect of fast food on diet quality of males and females based on day-one data, (2) comparison of dietary and overweight status of adults who ate fast food on one- two- or none of survey days and (3) within-person analysis comparing energy and macronutrient intakes of adults who ate fast food on one of the two survey days. SUDAAN software package was used in pair-wise mean comparisons and regression analyses (α = 0.05).Results: At least one in four adults reported eating fast food. The diet of males and females who consumed fast food was high in energy and energy density. Fast food provided more than one-third of the day’s energy, total fat and saturated fat; and was high in energy density. Negligibl...
A Review of Multidisciplinary Clinical Practice Guidelines in Suicide Prevention: Toward an Emerging Standard in Suicide Risk Assessment and Management, Training and Practice

The current paper aims to: (1) examine clinical practice guidelines in suicide prevention across fields, organizations, and clinical specialties and (2) inform emerging standards in clinical practice, research, and training. The authors conducted a systematic literature review to identify clinical practice guidelines and resource documents in suicide prevention and risk management. The authors used PubMed, Google Scholar, and Google Search, and keywords included: clinical practice guideline, practice guideline, practice parameters, suicide, suicidality, suicidal behaviors, assessment, and management. To assess for commonalities, the authors reviewed guidelines and resource documents across 13 key content categories and assessed whether each document suggested validated assessment measures. The search generated 101 source documents, which included N = 10 clinical practice guidelines and N = 12 additional resource documents (e.g., non-formalized guidelines, tool-kits). All guidelines (100 %) provided detailed recommendations for the use of evidence-based risk factors and protective factors, 80 % provided brief (but not detailed) recommendations for the assessment of suicidal intent, and 70 % recommended risk management strategies. By comparison, only 30 % discussed standardization of risk-level categorizations and other content areas considered central to best practices in suicide prevention (e.g., restricting access to means, ethical considerations, confidentiality/legal issues, training, and postvention practices). Resource documents were largely consistent with these findings. Current guidelines address similar aspects of suicide risk assessment and management, but significant discrepancies exist. A lack of consensus was evident in recommendations across core competencies, which may be improved by increased standardization in practice and training. Additional resources appear useful for supplemental use.
Membrane bound pituitary metalloendopeptidase: apparent identity to enkephalinase.

Abstract A membrane bound zinc-metalloendopeptidase from bovine pituitaries with a specificity toward bonds on the amino side of hydrophobic amino acids, cleaves Met- and Leu-enkephalin at the Gly-Phe bond, releasing Phe-Met and Phe-Leu respectively. The enzyme also hydrolyzes bonds on the amino side of hydrophobic amino acids in oxytocin, bradykinin, neurotensin and several synthetic substrates. A free carboxyl group on a dipeptide C-terminal to the hydrolyzed bond is not a requirement for activity. The enzyme is also present in brain membrane fractions. The regional distribution of this enzyme in brain, its specificity toward natural and synthetic substrates, and its sensitivity to inhibitors, suggest that the enzyme is identical to an activity referred to as “enkephalinase”, which has been described as dipeptidyl carboxypeptidase. The data show that the enzyme is an endopeptidase with a specificity similar to that of a group of microbial proteases, one of which is thermolysin.
The deterrent effect reconsidered: The minimum-time approach

Abstract This article reconsiders the deterrent effect in the economics of crime according to Becker-Ehrlich's model of optimal allocation of time under uncertainty. In a particular group of crime suppliers, we can think of a certain type of individuals who are concerned with the minimum time allocated to illegal activities. Thus, our analysis is closer in spirit to that of insurance under conditions of risk. It is proved that the aforementioned individuals will increase the minimum time allocated to illegal activities when the subjective probability of apprehension exogenously increases. Some empirical estimates of larceny, in Japan are provided.
Head movement in Hebrew nominals: A reply to Shlonsky

Abstract In his recent article (Shlonsky, U., 2004. The form of Semitic noun phrases. Lingua 114, 1465–1526), Shlonsky proposes a phrasal-movement analysis of word order in Hebrew (and Arabic) noun phrases and argues that the positioning of nominal modifiers with respect to the head-noun cannot be adequately handled by an N-raising derivation. In the present article I argue that in fact the head movement approach to Hebrew noun phrases handles the data more adequately and without as many stipulations. Specifically, I show that Shlonsky's remnant phrasal movement analysis fails provide an account of three empirical problems: (i) the distinct behavior of light and heavy adjectives, (ii) the position of DP and PP complements of the noun, and (iii) the correlation between agreement in definiteness (but not necessarily in gender or number) and pre- versus post-nominal position of modifiers. Furthermore, I identify several theoretical complications needed for Shlonsky's analysis to work and argue that they outweigh the apparent reduction in theoretical complexity that the elimination of head movement is supposed to result in.
Probabilistic model of strain hardening of Fe–Mn-based austenitic steels

The probabilistic model of strain hardening of Fe–Mn-based austenitic steels accounting stochastic character of interaction of the dislocation gliding; the transformation-induced plasticity; the twinning-induced plasticity, and the dynamic strain aging is present. The results of prediction are in the satisfying agreement with the published data.
Draft U.S. ocean policy plan precedes proposal to move NOAA to Interior department

The Obama administration's ambitious plan to protect oceans was released on 12 January, just 1 day prior to the administration's apparently unrelated announcement of a proposed governmental reorganization that would move the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) from the Department of Commerce to the Department of the Interior. The proposed NOAA move is part of a larger administration proposal to consolidate six federal agencies that are focused on business and trade into one department. The action is contingent upon congressional approval. The proposal to move NOAA to the Interior department has prompted a variety of reactions, with some considering it common sense to group agencies dealing with natural resources in the same department. Others have charged that the proposed move could blunt NOAA's leading role in protecting oceans, among other concerns.
Prophylactic activation of neuroprotective stress response pathways by dietary and behavioral manipulations.

It is well established that when most types of cells, including neurons, are exposed to a mild stress they increase their ability to resist more severe stress. This “preconditioning” phenomenon involves up-regulation of genes that encode cytoprotective proteins such as heat-shock proteins and growth factors. We found that a similar beneficial cellular stress response can be induced in neurons throughout the brain by a “meal-skipping” dietary restriction (DR) regimen in rats and mice. DR is effective in protecting neurons and improving functional outcome in models of stroke, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s diseases. DR induces an increase in the levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and heat-shock proteins in neurons. DR also stimulates neurogenesis in the hippocampus, and BDNF plays a role in this effect of DR. Physical exercise and environmental enrichment are two other manipulations that have been shown to induce BDNF expression in the brain, presumably because it is a mild cellular stress. When taken together with epidemiological and clinical studies in humans, the data from animal studies suggest that it may be possible to reduce the risk for age-related neurodegenerative disorders through dietary and behavioral modifications that act by promoting neuronal plasticity and survival.
CROP: fast and effective congestion refinement of placement

Modern circuits become harder to route with the ever decreasing design features. Previous routability-driven placement techniques are usually tightly coupled with the underlying placers. So usually they cannot be easily integrated into various placement tools. In this paper, we propose a tool called CROP (Congestion Refinement of Placement) for mixed-size placement solutions. CROP is independent of any placer. It takes a legalized placement solution and then relocates the modules to improve routability without significantly disturbing the original placement solution. CROP interleaves a congestion-driven module shifting technique and a congestion-driven detailed placement technique. Basically the shifting technique targets at better allocating the routing resources. Shifting in each direction can be formulated as a linear program (LP) for resizing each G-Cell. Instead of solving the computationally expensive LP, we discover that the LP formulation could be relaxed and solved by a very efficient longest-path computation. Then the congestion-driven detailed placement technique is proposed to better distribute the routing demands. Congestion reduction is realized by weighting the HPWL with congestion coefficient during detailed placement. The experimental results show that CROP is capable of effectively alleviating the congestion for unroutable placement solutions. We apply it to placement solutions generated by four different placers on the ISPD05/06 placement benchmarks [1] [2]. Within a very short runtime, CROP greatly improves the routability and saves execution time for the routing stage after refinement.
Microchip laser mid-infrared supercontinuum laser source based on an As_2Se_3 fiber

We report on a proof of concept for a compact supercontinuum source for the mid-infrared wavelength range based on a microchip laser and nonlinear conversion inside a selenide-based optical fiber. The spectrum extends from 3.74 to 4.64 μm at −10 dB from the peak and 3.65 to 4.9 μm at −20 dB from the peak; emitting beyond the wavelength range that periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) starts to display a power penalty. Wavelength conversion occurs inside the core of a single-mode fiber, resulting in a high-brightness emission source. A maximum average power of 5 mW was demonstrated, but the architecture is scalable to higher average powers.
Voxel‐based morphometry elucidates structural neuroanatomy of high‐functioning autism and Asperger syndrome

Efforts to examine the structural neuroanatomy of autism by using traditional methods of imaging analysis have led to variable findings, often based on methodological differences in image acquisition and analysis. A voxel-based computational method of whole-brain anatomy allows examination of small patterns of tissue differences between groups. High-resolution structural magnetic resonance images were acquired for nine males with high-functioning autism (HFA; mean age 14y [SD3y 4mo]), 11 with Asperger syndrome (ASP; mean age 13y 6mo [SD2y 5mo]), and 13 comparison (COM) participants (mean age 13y 7mo [SD3y 1mo]). Using statistical parametric mapping, we examined contrasts of gray matter differences between the groups. Males with HFA and ASP had a pattern of decreased gray matter density in the ventromedial regions of the temporal cortex in comparison with males from an age-matched comparison group. Examining contrasts revealed that the COM group had increased gray matter density compared with the ASP or combined HFA and ASP group in the right inferior temporal gyrus, entorhinal cortex, and rostral fusiform gyrus. The ASP group had less gray matter density in the body of the cingulate gyrus in comparison with either the COM or HFA group. The findings of decreased gray matter density in ventromedial aspects of the temporal cortex in individuals with HFA and ASP lends support to theories suggesting an involvement of these areas in the pathophysiology of autism, particularly in the integration of visual stimuli and affective information.
STATEMENT FROM THE DIRECTOR OF THE W. E. B. DU BOIS INSTITUTE

In 1903, William Edward Burghardt Du Bois famously predicted that the problem of the twentieth century would be the problem of the color line. Indeed, during the past century, matters of race were frequently the cause of intense conflict and the stimulus for public policy decisions not only in the United States, but throughout the world. The founding of the Du Bois Review: Social Science Research on Race at the beginning of the twenty-first century acknowledges the continuing impact of Du Bois's prophecy, his pioneering role as one of the founders of the discipline of sociology in the American academy, and the considerable work that remains to be done as we confront the “problem” that Du Bois identified over a century ago.
A preconditioner for systems with symmetric Toeplitz blocks

Proposes and studies the performance of a preconditioner used in the preconditioned conjugate gradient method for solving a class of symmetric positive definite systems, A/sub p/x = b, which we call lower rank extracted systems (LRES). These systems correspond to integral equations with convolution kernels defined on a union of many line segments in contrast to only one line segment in the case of Toeplitz systems. The p /spl times/ p matrix, A/sub p/, is shown to be a principal submatrix of a larger N /spl times/ N Toeplitz matrix, AN. The preconditioner is provided in terms of the inverse of a 2N /spl times/ 2N circulant matrix constructed from the elements of AN. The preconditioner is shown to yield clustering in the spectrum of preconditioned matrix similar to the clustering results in iterative algorithms used to solve Toeplitz systems. The analysis further demonstrates that the computational expense to solve LRE systems is reduced to O(N log N).
Quality management in health care: Successes and lessons in implementation

Continuous quality improvement (CQI) is being used to address both administrative and clinical processes. As this approach addresses more clinical processes, continuing medical education (CME) and CQI are likely to begin to interact as both become involved in improving clinical decision making. This article presents some of what is known about CQI implementation and interprets how that knowledge impacts on the changing role of CME. These lessons from the application of CQI are outlined according to the three stages of the CQI process — planning, implementation, and evaluation. For planning, CME should participate in the team designing the CQI training efforts, focusing on the role of training physicians in the community and liaison with clinical chiefs about adapting clinical guidelines to local needs. The interdisciplinary nature of the CQI teams and the need to train teams as a unit may present a challenge to established CME values. During implementation, CME staff working with CQI will need to cooperate with other staff units, such as management engineering. Staff will have to understand the strategic reasons behind their institution's use of CQI, recognize the grief process that accompanies process change, consider different pedagogic approaches, mediate the tensions between institutional and professional process demands, and work to remove the perceived barriers to clinician participation in CQI. CME personnel will also have to monitor the ongoing evaluation efforts that will need to accompany the implementation of CQI, in order to fine tune the effort and to be able to present a balanced assessment of CQI to its constituents.
Parametric Design of Photo-catalytic Concrete Cladding Panels

The paper documents the research conclusions, design methodology, and development of a prototype for an exterior wall paneling system which utilizes proprietary self-cleaning photocatalytic cementpanels. The developed method of design is performatively modeled utilizing data from site conditions as a means of customizing each particular cladding panel variation to its location. Buildings’ energy demands are closely related to the building envelope, and can be decreased with efficient envelope design. As the building industry continues to be among the main accessories to the looming energy crisis, sensible envelope design and choice of exterior cladding are imperative.
Entire and Meromorphic Functions

A function is said to be entire if it is analytic on all of C. It is said to be meromorphic if it is analytic except for isolated singularities which are poles. In this chapter we describe such functions more closely. We develop a multiplicative theory for entire functions, giving factorizations for them in terms of their zeros, just as a polynomial factors into linear factors determined by its zeros. We develop an additive theory for meromorphic functions, in terms of their principal part (polar part) at the poles.
Intraoperative lymphatic mapping for non–small cell lung cancer: The sentinel node technique

Abstract Background: The purpose of the study was to determine the accuracy and role of the sentinel node technique in patients with non–small cell lung cancer. Methods: This study was carried out on 36 consecutive patients undergoing lung resection. Peritumoral tissue was infiltrated with isosulfan blue dye and the first lymph node to stain was identified as a sentinel node. Sensitivity and specificity of the sentinel node in predicting the status of other lymph node stations were determined. Results: Seventeen patients had sentinel lymph nodes. In 9 of these 17 cases neither the sentinel node nor any other lymph node contained metastatic carcinoma. In 5 cases the sentinel node was in the mediastinum and documented unexpected N2 disease. In 19 patients no sentinel node was found. Final lymph node statuses were N0 in 13 patients, N1 in 5, and N2 in 1. Conclusions : The use of isosulfan blue for intraoperative lymphatic mapping is feasible. The specificity in our experience was good; 9 of 9 patients with negative sentinel nodes were found to be N0 on the final pathology report. Unexpected N2 disease was found in 5 patients. The accumulation of further experience will determine the role of the sentinel node technique in patients with non–small cell lung cancer. (J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 1999;117:220-4)
On aspects of the physical realizability of perfectly matched absorbers for electromagnetic waves

[1] A discussion on the physical realizability of electromagnetic wave absorbers with perfectly matched impedances over arbitrary (i.e., doubly) curved, smooth surfaces is presented. The focus is on the analysis of the spectral characteristics (and their impact on the absorptive properties) of hypothetical material blueprints derived from the zero-reflection condition over such geometries.
Censoring Biological Echoes in Weather Radar Images

Weather radar data is susceptible to several artifacts due to anamalous propagation, ground clutter, electronic interference, sun angle, second-trip echoes and biological contaminants such as insects, bats and birds. Several methods of censoring radar reflectivity data have been devised and described in the literature. However, they all rely on analyzing the local texture and vertical profile of reflectivity fields. The local texture of reflectivity fields suffices to remove most artifacts, except for biological echoes. Biological echoes have proved difficult to remove because they can have the same returned power and vertical profile as stratiformrain or snow. In this paper, we describe a soft-computing technique based on clustering, segmentation and a two-stage neural network to censor all non-precipitating artifacts in weather radar reflectivity data. We demonstrate that the technique is capable of discrimination between light snow, stratiformrain and deep biological ”bloom”.
A test of the haploid susceptibility hypothesis using a species with naturally occurring variation in ploidy

The haploid susceptibility hypothesis (HSH) was proposed as an explanation for how behavioral roles in haplodiploid social systems evolved. It posits that haploid males are more susceptible to disease than diploid females due to decreased genetic variability at key disease resistance loci. The resulting decreased immunocompetence is hypothesized to have played a role in the evolution of social behavior by limiting the behavioral repertoire haploids perform. Here, we test this hypothesis in a study system that separates ploidy from behavioral sex roles: Polistes dominulus, a social wasp, has colonies with naturally occurring diploid males. We report results from two immune function assays—hemolymph phenoloxidase activity and encapsulation response—performed on haploid males, diploid males, and diploid females. Our data suggest that ploidy is not a significant contributor to immune function in P. dominulus; thus, our data do not support the HSH for the evolution of behavioral roles. Instead, our data indicate that time of emergence is the best predictor of immune function in Polistes. We speculate that seasonal trends result from seasonal differences in pathogens and parasites.
Use of Gas Jet Appositional Pressurization in Endoscopic Laser Photocoagulation

A hybrid optical fiber catheter has been developed which is capable of simultaneously emitting from its distal end 20 W of continuous laser radiation and a jet stream of CO2 gas. The catheter can be readily inserted into the biopsy channel of conventional flexible endoscopes for control of gastric bleeding. Experiments on bleeding animal ulcers and an artificial bleeding vessel model show that a catheter which delivers a simultaneous jet of gas with laser radiation is much more effective in achieving hemostasis than laser radiation alone. The laser/gas catheter also incorporates other improvements in device durability. Results of controlled animal trials are discussed.
Spontaneous CSF leaks: factors predictive of additional interventions.

Objective: Spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks represent a significant challenge due to frequent association with elevated intracranial pressure (ICP) and higher risk of surgical failure. The study objective was to review management strategy and identify factors associated with need for acetazolamide and/or ventriculoperitoneal shunt (VPS) placement. Study Design: Retrospective data analysis. Methods: Chart review performed from 1999 to 2009 at a tertiary-care medical center. Results: A total of 105 patients underwent CSF leak repair; 39 patients (37.1%) were treated for spontaneous CSF leaks. Mean age was 57.7 years and 33 were female (85%). Average body mass index (BMI) was 38.5 kg/m2. The most common sites were cribriform plate (51%), sphenoid lateral pterygoid recess (31%), and ethmoid roof (8%). All patients underwent endoscopic repair utilizing image guidance with multilayered closure in most cases. Five patients (12.8%) developed recurrent CSF leak with mean ICP of 27.0 cm H2O, compared to 25.0 cm H2O for those without recurrence (P = .33). All had successful rerepair at mean follow-up of 2.8 years. Acetazolamide was used in nine patients, whereas six patients underwent VPS placement for elevated ICP management. Diagnosis of benign intracranial hypertension (BIH) was statistically associated with need for acetazolamide or VPS (P < .001), whereas elevated ICP reached borderline significance (P = .049). Conclusions: Management of spontaneous CSF leaks requires a comprehensive strategy after endoscopic repair. Diagnosis of BIH may be associated with requirement of further ICP treatment. Close ICP monitoring, coupled with selective use of acetazolamide and VPS, may decrease risk of failure. Laryngoscope, 2010
Architecture-Level Thermal Characterization for Multicore Microprocessors

This paper investigates a new architecture-level thermal characterization problem from a behavioral modeling perspective to address the emerging thermal related analysis and optimization problems for high-performance multicore microprocessor design. We propose a new approach, called ThermPOF, to build the thermal behavioral models from the measured or simulated thermal and power information at the architecture level. ThermPOF first builds the behavioral thermal model using the generalized pencil-of-function (GPOF) method. Owing to the unique characteristics of transient temperature changes at the chip level, we propose two new schemes to improve the GPOF. First, we apply a logarithmic-scale sampling scheme instead of the traditional linear sampling to better capture the temperature changing behaviors. Second, we modify the extracted thermal impulse response such that the extracted poles from GPOF are guaranteed to be stable without accuracy loss. To further reduce the model size, a Krylov subspace-based reduction method is performed to reduce the order of the models in the state-space form. Experimental results on a real quad-core microprocessor show that generated thermal behavioral models match the given temperature very well.
T Regulatory and Primed Uncommitted CD4 T Cells Express CD73, Which Suppresses Effector CD4 T Cells by Converting 5′-Adenosine Monophosphate to Adenosine

CD73 (5'-ectonucleotidase) is expressed by two distinct mouse CD4 T cell populations: CD25+ (FoxP3+) T regulatory (Treg) cells that suppress T cell proliferation but do not secrete IL-2, and CD25- uncommitted primed precursor Th (Thpp) cells that secrete IL-2 but do not suppress in standard Treg suppressor assays. CD73 on both Treg and Thpp cells converted extracellular 5'-AMP to adenosine. Adenosine suppressed proliferation and cytokine secretion of Th1 and Th2 effector cells, even when target cells were activated by anti-CD3 and anti-CD28. This represents an additional suppressive mechanism of Treg cells and a previously unrecognized suppressive activity of Thpp cells. Infiltration of either Treg or Thpp cells at inflammatory sites could potentially convert 5'-AMP generated by neutrophils or dying cells into the anti-inflammatory mediator adenosine, thus dampening excessive immune reactions.
Wyner-Ziv coding of motion video

In current interframe video compression systems, the encoder performs predictive coding to exploit the similarities of successive frames. The Wyner-Ziv theorem on source coding with side information available only at the decoder suggests that an asymmetric video codec, where individual frames are encoded separately, but decoded conditionally (given temporally adjacent frames) could achieve similar efficiency. We report the first results on a Wyner-Ziv coding scheme for motion video that uses intraframe encoding, but interframe decoding.
Results of a Culturally Adapted Internet-Enhanced Physical Activity Pilot Intervention for Overweight and Obese Young Adult African American Women

Purpose: This study evaluated a culturally relevant, social cognitive theory–based, Internet-enhanced physical activity (PA) pilot intervention developed for overweight/obese African American (AA) ...
Robotically Assisted Laparoscopic Nephrectomy and Adrenalectomy

Robotic nephrectomy is not a common procedure in children. However, when it is performed, the sequence of steps is those used in adults. Fortunately, the indications for nephrectomy or nephroureterectomy are typically for benign disease and the non-functioning kidney rather than for malignancy. In this chapter, we aim to provide the reader with an understanding of performing robotic nephrectomy, nephroureterectomy, and adrenalectomy.
Predicting abundance with presence-only models

Understanding and predicting the spatial patterns of species abundance is a critical need in macroecology. But, widespread abundance data are rare, and habitat models based on species occurrences are typically poor predictors of abundance. I ask whether presence-only species distribution models based on locations of high species abundance can more effectively predict abundance than models based on occurrences. I created climatic suitability models for fifteen problematic, non-native, invasive plants in the continental US using each of three datasets (1) occurrence data derived from herbarium records, (2) occurrence data derived from regional expert knowledge surveys, and (3) locations of high invasive plant abundance derived from regional expert knowledge surveys. Models based on occurrences from regional surveys were most effective for distinguishing presence from absence. Models based on locations of high abundance were most effective for characterizing both intermediate and high ranks of abundance. Occurrence data from herbarium records were poor predictors of both presence and abundance. This analysis suggests that climate suitable for abundant populations is predictable with species distribution modeling, but not using distribution data alone. High probability of species occurrence does not equal high probability of species abundance, suggesting environmental factors differentially influence abundance and distribution. This difference highlights the need for a macrosystems approach to regional habitat modeling to consider how local-scale processes (e.g., biotic interactions) affect regional patterns. Moreover, as abundance is critical for understanding species roles and impacts on ecosystems, large-scale surveys of quantitative or qualitative species abundance are strongly needed.
Constant-Velocity Mössbauer Drive Systems

Most Mossbauer effect apparatus currently in use is either of the constant-acceleration or the constant-velocity type. In constant-acceleration equipment the acceleration is a squarewave function of time, and the velocity a symmetric triangular wave, The integral of the velocity over one cycle, the net displacement, must be zero, so that the spectrum is necessarily taken symmetrically about zero velocity. One can, of course, store data only for a portion of the velocity range, but with a corresponding loss of useful counting time. The motion for such a system may be obtained either mechanically or electromechanically; detailed discussions are given elsewhere in this book.
Abstract 078: Differential Phosphorylation of Inositol 1,4,5-triphophate Receptor by CaMKIId During Cardiac Remodeling

Natesan Sankar 1 , Sukriti Dewan 1 , Joshua Maxwell 1 , Donald Bers 2 , Joan Heller Brown 3 , Jeffery Molkentin 4 , Pieter deTombe 1 , Gregory Mignery 1 . 1 Department of Cell and Molecular Physiology, Stritch School of Medicine, Loyola University Chicago, Maywood, IL. 2 Department of Physiology, Department of Pharmacology University of California at Davis, Davis, CA. 3 Department of Pharmacology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA. 4 Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Molecular Cardiovascular Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Cincinnati, OH. In cardiac myocytes the type-2 isoform of the inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate receptor (InsP 3 R2) Ca 2+ release channel is expressed predominantly in the nuclear envelope. InsP 3 R2 releases intracellular Ca 2+ bidirectionally towards the cytoplasm and nucleoplasm in response to an array of pro-hypertrophic signaling. Thus, InsP 3 R2 mediated Ca 2+ release may contribute to both Excitation-Contraction Coupling (ECC) and Excitation-Transcription Coupling (ETC) during normal and pathophysiologic conditions such as cardiac remodeling. However, the regulation of InsP 3 R2 mediated Ca 2+ release and its role in ECC and ETC during cardiac remodeling is not fully understood. We have shown that CaMKIIδ and InsP 3 R2 forms a signaling complex in the heart and CaMKII mediated phosphorylation of InsP 3 R2 at S150 modulates its intrinsic Ca 2+ channel activity. Here we show that InsP 3 R2 is differentially phosphorylated by CaMKIIδ B and CaMKIIδ C , the predominant nucleoplasmic and cytoplasmic isoforms respectively, in cardiac myocytes. Using adult rat cardiac myocytes we show that the differential phosphorylation by CaMKII of InsP 3 R2 at S150 leads to elevated nuclear Ca 2+ signaling and diminished release towards the cytoplasm. Additionally we show that the InsP 3 R2 was phosphorylated in the hearts of Angiotensin II infused and pressure overload induced cardiac remodeling animal models. Finally, we show that there was an increase in InsP 3 R2 phosphorylation in human heart-failure samples compared to non-failing hearts. Collectively our studies demonstrate that, CaMKIIδ mediated regulation of InsP 3 R2 Ca 2+ channel activity contributes to ECC and ETC during all the phases of cardiac remodeling processes.
Rebuilding New Orleans: Editor's Introduction

The Review Articles section of this issue is devoted to real estate issues involved in rebuilding New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. This introductory essay describes the recent economic...
Introducing Network Analysis in R

This book is a user’s guide for conducting network analysis in the R statistical programming language. Networks are all around us. Humans naturally organize themselves in networked systems. Our families and friends form personal social networks around each of us. Neighborhoods and communities organize themselves in networked coalitions to advocate for change. Businesses work with (and against) each other in complex, interlocking networks of trade and financial partnerships. Public health is advanced through partnerships and coalitions of governmental and NGO organizations (Luke and Harris 2007). Nations are connected to one another through systems of migration, trade, and treaty obligations.
Masculinization of the Female Rat by Gonadotropic Extracts

SummaryGonadotropic extracts of human pregnancy urine or pregnant mare's serum cause masculinization of female rats if treatment is started at 6 days of age and continued until the thirtieth day. The hypertrophy of the clitoris, prepuce and preputial glands is quite comparable to that induced by a similar course of treatment with testosterone. A gonadotropic pituitary extract did not cause any masculinization.