cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract 5489: An amiloride derivative capable of inducing ER stress and cell death in highly invasive breast cancer

Metastasis, which is the spread of tumors from their place of origin to other locations in the body via the lymph or blood, is associated with a significant increase in morbidity and mortality. Studies on amiloride, an FDA-approved diuretic, have shown it to suppress metastatic characteristics such as cell invasion and suppression, and impair their proliferation and viability. Here we show that 38B, a cell-permeant amiloride derivative, is more efficacious at causing cell death of cancer cells than amiloride. We also show that the cell death produced by 38B does not seem to be caused by apoptosis, autophagy, or calcium-dependent necrosis. However, bright field and immunofluorescence microscopy reveal vacuole formation and ER stress in cells, characteristics typically associated with a recently discovered type of cell death known as paraptosis. Since cancer cells have shown to be efficient at evading common forms of cell death such as apoptosis, the discovery of alternative pathways of cell death and a good understanding of the drugs that activate them can be can be key in the improvement of cancer therapy. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 5489. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-5489
Effects of response effort on self-control in rats

Five rats served as subjects in an experiment that examined the effect of increasing response effort on self-control (choice of a larger, more delayed reinforcer over a smaller, less delayed reinforcer). The rats made significantly more self-control choices as the force required to respond on each lever increased from 0.1 to 0.8 N. As the force required to press the levers increased to 1 N and then began to decrease, some of the rats stopped responding. For those rats that continued to respond, self-control tended to decrease. The results suggest that increasing the required response force can increase selfcontrol choices, as long as the required response force is low enough that some responding occurs.
Translating Between Research and Practice in Serving Infants at Risk for ASD

In research studies, we are now able to identify many infants who are at risk for later diagnoses of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) as early as 12 months of age. The authors are part of a research...
Impact of Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis infection on serologic surveillance for Johne's disease in goats.

False-positive results on serologic assays for Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) are believed to occur due to cross-reacting antibody produced by Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis (C. pstb) infection in goats. This issue of compromised specificity was evaluated by testing 771 adult goats from 10 Midwestern goat herds in 2004. Assays for MAP infection included radiometric fecal culture and 2 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs); ELISA-positive samples were tested by agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID). A synergistic hemolysin inhibition assay (SHI) was used to detect C. pstb antibody. Four infection status categories were evaluated. Category 1 goats (free of both MAP and C. pstb infection) tested negative on all MAP fecal cultures and SHI tests. Five of 181 goats were positive in both ELISAs, and 2 more were positive in ELISA-1 only. For Category 2 (MAP infected; no C. pstb infection), all animals were SHI negative. Six goats were fecal culture positive and strongly positive in both ELI...
Carbon cycling in extratropical terrestrial ecosystems of the Northern Hemisphere during the 20th century: A modeling analysis of the influences of soil thermal dynamics

There is substantial evidence that soil thermal dynamics are changing in terrestrial ecosystems of the Northern Hemisphere and that these dynamics have implications for the exchange of carbon between terrestrial ecosystems and the atmosphere. To date, large-scale biogeochemical models have been slow to incorporate the effects of soil thermal dynamics on processes that affect carbon exchange with the atmosphere. In this study we incorporated a soil thermal module (STM), appropriate to both permafrost and non-permafrost soils, into a large-scale ecosystem model, version 5.0 of the Terrestrial Ecosystem Model (TEM). We then compared observed regional and seasonal patterns of atmospheric CO2 to simulations of carbon dynamics for terrestrial ecosystems north of 30 ◦ N between TEM 5.0 and an earlier version of TEM (version 4.2) that lacked a STM. The timing of the draw-down of atmospheric CO2 at the start of the growing season and the degree of draw-down during the growing season were substantially improved by the consideration of soil thermal dynamics. Both versions of TEM indicate that climate variability and change promoted the loss of carbon from temperate ecosystems during the first half of the 20th century, and promoted carbon storage during the second half of the century. The results of the simulations by TEM suggest that land-use change in temperate latitudes (30‐60 ◦ N) plays a stronger role than climate change in driving trends for increased uptake of carbon in extratropical terrestrial ecosystems (30‐90◦N) during recent decades. In the 1980s the TEM 5.0 simulation estimated that extratropical terrestrial ecosystems stored 0.55 Pg C yr −1 , with 0.24 Pg C yr −1 in North America and 0.31 Pg C yr −1 in northern Eurasia. From 1990 through 1995 the model simulated that these ecosystems stored 0.90 Pg C yr −1 , with 0.27 Pg C yr −1 stored in North America and 0.63 Pg C yr −1 stored in northern Eurasia. Thus, in comparison to the 1980s, simulated net carbon storage in the 1990s was enhanced by an additional 0.35 Pg C yr −1 in extratropical terrestrial ecosystems, with most of the additional storage in northern Eurasia. The carbon storage simulated by TEM 5.0 in the 1980s and 1990s was lower than estimates based on other methodologies, including estimates by atmospheric
A Memory-Efficient Hashing by Multi-Predicate Bloom Filters for Packet Classification

Hash tables (HTs) are poorly designed for multiple off-chip memory accesses during packet classification and critically affect throughput in high-speed routers. Therefore, an HT with fast on-chip memory and high-capacity off-chip memory for predictable lookup-throughput is desirable. Both a legacy HT (LHT) and a recently proposed fast HT (FHT) have the disadvantage of memory overhead due to pointers and duplicate items in linked lists. Also, memory usage for an FHT did not consider the bits in counters for fair comparison with an LHT. In this paper, we propose a novel hash architecture called a Multi-predicate Bloom-filtered HT (MBHT) using parallel Bloom filters and generating off-chip memory addresses in the base- 2x number system, xisin{1,2,hellip}, which removes the overhead of pointers. Using a larger base of number system, an MBHT reduces on-chip memory size by a factor of log2 b2/ log2 b1 where b1 and b2 are bases of number system (b2>b1). Compared to an FHT, the MBHT is approximately x(log2 n + 4)/(2 log2 n) times more efficient for on-chip memory, where n is the number of keys. This results in a significant reduction in the number of off- chip memory accesses. A simulation with a dataset of packets from NLANR shows the on-chip memory reductions by 1.7 and 2 times over an LHT and an FHT are made. Besides, an MBHT of base-16 needs less off-chip memory accesses by 2117 in total URL queries of NLANR, compared to an FHT.
On the linear stability of swept attachment-line boundary layer flow. Part 1. Spectrum and asymptotic behaviour

The temporal stability of swept attachment-line boundary layer flow based on a swept Hiemenz flow model is studied. Starting from the global stability problem and motivated by analytical free-stream solutions, a Hermite expansion is employed in the chordwise coordinate direction which results in coupled local stability problems. A complete study of the temporal spectrum is presented and the discrete and continuous modes are classified according to their symmetry, chordwise polynomial order and asymptotic decay. Uniform, Gortler-Hammerlin and higher-order modes are described in detail. Estimates are given for the location of the continuous spectrum, and bounds are derived for the validity of the linear approximation
Food, fun, and fitness internet program for girls: pilot evaluation of an e-Health youth obesity prevention program examining predictors of obesity.

article i nfo Article history: Available online 30 July 2008 Objective. This pilot study tested whether an Internet-based intervention could achieve change in fruit, juice, and vegetable consumption, physical activity, and self-efficacy in youth at-risk of obesity. Method. Participants were 80 8-to-10-year-old African American girls at-risk of obesity, with a home computer, Internet access, and an e-mail address. A two-group design was followed. Groups differed only on incentive schedule (immediate, delayed). The 8-week home-based program, conducted entirely over the Internet, promoted fruit, juice, vegetables, and water intake and physical activity. Pre-post measures were collected through self-report via the program website. The study was conducted in the greater Houston, TX, area September through November, 2004. Results. Statistically significant pre-to-post differences were observed in fruit, juice, and vegetable consumption (p=.002), physical activity—yesterday (pb.001), physical activity—usually (p=.001), and fruit, juice, and vegetable self-efficacy (p=.003). Conclusion. Internet-based obesity prevention programs may be an effective channel for promoting healthy diet and physical activity behaviors to youth at-risk of obesity. Additional research is needed to more fully examine their effectiveness at promoting and maintaining diet and physical activity change.
Prenatal diagnosis of lipomyelomeningocele.

Spinal dysraphism is a group of congenital anomalies involving incomplete midline closure of bony, neural, and soft tissue elements.1–5 The condition represents one of the more common congenital malformations in the Western world. The dysraphic states can be classified into open or closed forms. Open defects can be further subdivided into either meningoceles or myelomeningoceles, depending on whether or not these meninges lined defects contain neural tissue. The majority of these open dysplasias are associated with the Chiari II malformation, in which the posterior fossa contents are displaced into the upper spinal canal and accompanied by ventriculomegaly. In 1986, Nicolaides and associates described two characteristic cranial findings associated with the Chiari II malformation, the “lemon sign” and the “banana sign.”6 These signs have been shown to be very sensitive in the detection of Chiari malformations and the associated open form of spinal dysraphism. Occult dysraphic lesions, however, compose a more heterogeneous spectrum of abnormalities, including dermal sinus, lipomyelomeningocele, diastematomyelia, and various types of spinal lipomas. Unlike their open counterparts, these closed neurulation defects do not have accompanying cranial findings, making prenatal diagnosis more challenging. We present an unusual case of a lipomyelomeningocele with tethered cord, which was diagnosed on prenatal ultrasonography. An ultrasonogram showed the posterior fossa to be normal. The abnormality was identified only upon imaging of the lumbosacral spine.
Cloning and Mapping of Telomere-Associated Sequences from Rice

We have isolated three telomere-associated sequences from rice using cassette-ligation-mediated polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Each of the obtained clones hybridized to the terminal of one or several rice chromosome arms. The telomeres recognized by the clones displayed a high level of polymorphism between two rice varieties, Nipponbare (a japonica variety) and Kasalath (an indica variety). Variability in the chromosome termini was also detected among individual F2 progeny plants, which were derived from a cross between the two rice varieties. One clone containing telomere-associated sequences was located to one end of chromosome 5, and another clone to one end of chromosome 11. For another clone, non-allelic segregation of polymorphic hybridization bands was observed between japonica and indica rice; this clone was mapped to one end of chromosome 12 in japonica and to one end of chromosome 11 in indica rice. This indicates an exchange of termini between nonhomologous chromosomes.
Large Eddy Simulation of Shallow Cumulus Convection during BOMEX: Sensitivity to Microphysics and Radiation.

A number of large eddy simulations with the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System have been made to study the sensitivity of shallow marine cumulus convection to different microphysics and radiation schemes. In particular, the sensitivity of shallow marine cumulus convection to drizzle and radiation effects, and how drizzle and radiation modify turbulent fluxes, are investigated. It is shown that for the case of prescribed radiative heating, drizzle—albeit very slight—leads to reduced buoyancy fluxes and less turbulence. Consequently, drizzling boundary layers appear to entrain less than their nondrizzling counterpart. Heavy drizzle events are simulated in association with deeper clouds as high as 2 km, even though the majority of clouds are only a few hundred meters deep. A heavier and longer lasting drizzle episode associated with a deeper boundary layer is produced when a two-stream radiative parameterization replaces the prescribed radiative heating in the simulation. Simulated surface precipitation rates agree reasonably well with observations. The greatest alteration in boundary layer structure is obtained when radiative heating interacts explicitly with the broadened drop distribution associated with drizzle formation.
Itinerant and Localized d-Electrons in Transition Metals from Positron Annihilation Data

The positron annihilation data for non-transition metals are treated as a combination of annihilation by conduction electrons, ion-core electrons, and d-electrons localized on the ion core. It is possible to account for the high positron annihilation rate of transition metals and the gradation across the transition series by the further partition of the d-electrons into localized and itinerant d-electrons. All d-electrons are itinerant for Sc, Ti, and V, and only a fraction of a d-electron is itinerant in Fe, Co, and Ni; there are two and five localized d-electrons for Cr and Mn, respectively. Die Positronen-Annihilationswerte fur Nicht-Ubergangsmetalle werden als Kombination der Annihilation durch Leitungselektronen, Ionenrumpfelektronen und d-Elektronen, die am Ionenrumpf lokalisiert sind, behandelt. Es ist moglich, die hohe Positron-Annihilationsrate von Ubergangs-metallen und den Abfall uber der Ubergangsserie durch die weitere Teilung der d-Elektronen in lokalisierte und itinerante d-Elektronen zu erklaren. Alle d-Elektronen sind itinerant fur Sc, Ti und V und nur ein Bruchteil eines d-Elektrons ist itinerant in Fe, Co und Ni; fur Cr und Mn existieren zwei bzw. funf lokalisierte d-Elektronen.
Student Spanish Use and Investment in a Dual Immersion Classroom: Implications for Second Language Acquisition and Heritage Language Maintenance

In dual immersion classrooms, students from different language backgrounds are immersed in the minority language for large portions of the school day with the expectation that they will become equally proficient in their first language (L1) and in their second language (L2). Research on dual immersion indicates that students reach above-average levels of academic achievement and linguistic proficiency, but, to date, very few quantifications have been made of how much of the minority language is used in these environments. Given that actually speaking a language is crucial for L2 acquisition as well as for heritage language maintenance, this study explored how much Spanish was used and for what purposes by 4 students (2 Spanish L1 and 2 two Spanish L2) in a Spanish/English dual immersion classroom. Over 2,000 turns of natural classroom speech were recorded during a 5-month period. Overall, the students used Spanish 56% of the time, with 4 major trends: (a) The girls used more Spanish than the boys, regardless of L1; (b) the students averaged 82% Spanish when talking with the teacher, but only 32% when talking to peers; (c) Spanish was used primarily for on-task topics; (d) the students' English when speaking with peers covered a wider range of functions than did their Spanish. These findings lend support to proposals that a kind of diglossia exists in immersion classrooms (Tarone & Swain, 1995). Additional ethnographic data gathered through extensive participant-observations and interviews were interpreted using the concept of investment (Norton, 2000). Explanations of the students' language use are offered according to their sometimes competing identity investments.
Intracellular Salmonella dublin Induces Substantial Secretion of the 40-Kilodalton Subunit of Interleukin-12 (IL-12) but Minimal Secretion of IL-12 as a 70-Kilodalton Protein in Murine Macrophages

The induction by intracellular pathogens of interleukin-12 (IL-12) secretion is of particular importance since this cytokine has been shown to be necessary for optimal cell-mediated immune responses. Several recent investigations have suggested that cultured macrophages are a significant source of IL-12 following intracellular infection with pathogens such as Salmonella spp. In an effort to critically evaluate the magnitude of the IL-12 response in cultured macrophages following interaction with Salmonella dublin, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays specific for the 40- and 70-kDa subunits of IL-12 (IL-12p40 and IL-12p70) and a sensitive bioassay for IL-12p70 were used. Using BALB/c macrophages, S. dublin at various challenge doses was a potent inducer of IL-12p40 secretion (>6,000 pg/10(7) macrophages). However when secretion of IL-12p70 was evaluated, S. dublin did not induce comparable IL-12p70 production (<80 pg/10(7) macrophages) at any time, despite varying the challenge dose of Salmonella. The limited ability of BALB/c (Ity(s)) macrophages to secrete IL-12p70 in response to Salmonella was not a strain-specific phenomenon since similar results were demonstrated for macrophages isolated from CBA/J (Ity(r)) and C3H/HeJ (lipopolysaccharide [LPS]-hyporesponsive) mice. While intracellular infection with Salmonella was not a potent stimulus for IL-12p70 secretion in these mouse strains, macrophages from these mice responded significantly to a stimulus of gamma interferon plus LPS. Taken together these results demonstrate a limited capacity for intracellular Salmonella to stimulate murine macrophage secretion of IL-12p70, despite being a significant stimulus for IL-12p40 secretion. Furthermore, our results suggest that Salmonella-induced IL-12p40 secretion by macrophages is not solely an LPS-mediated event.
Conformational Structure and Energetics of 2‐Methylphenyl(2′‐methoxyphenyl)iodonium Chloride: Evidence for Solution Clusters

Diaryliodonium salts allow the efficient incorporation of cyclotron- produced ( 18 F)fluoride ions into elec- tron-rich and electron-deficient arenes to provide potential radiotracers for molecular imaging in vivo with posi- tron emission tomography (PET). This process (ArI + Ar' + 18 F � !Ar 18 F + Ar'I) is still not well understood mechanisti- cally. To better understand this and similar reactions, it would be valuable to understand the structures of diary- liodonium salts in organic media, where the reactions are typically con- ducted. In this endeavor, the X-ray structure of a representative iodonium salt, 2-methylphenyl(2'-methoxy- AA chloride (1), was de- termined. Our X-ray structure analysis showed 1 to have the conformational M-P dimer as the unit cell with hyper- valent iodine as a stereogenic center in each conformer. With the ab initio rep- lica path method we constructed the in- version path between the two enantio- mers of 1, thereby revealing two addi- tional pairs of enantiomers that are likely to undergo fast interconversion in solution. Also LC-MS of 1 showed the presence of dimeric and tetrameric anion-bridged clusters in weak organic solution. This observation is consistent with the energetics of 1, both as mono- meric and dimeric forms in MeCN, cal- culated at the B3LYP/DGDZVP level. These evidences of the existence of di- meric and higher order clusters of 1 in solution are relevant to achieve a deeper general understanding of the mechanism and outcome of reactions of diaryliodonium salts in organic media with nucleophiles, such as the ( 18 F)fluoride ion.
Moisture Lifetime Testing of RF MEMS Switches Packaged in Liquid Crystal Polymer

This paper presents for the first time the effects of moisture on radio frequency microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) switches packaged entirely inside a flexible, organic polymer [namely, liquid crystal polymer (LCP)]. Moisture tests were administered at 100degC and 100% relative humidity to evaluate long-term exposures and at 85degC and 85% relative humidity to evaluate short-term exposures. The effect of the moisture was quantified by before and after S-parameter measurements, by a weight gain analysis, and by visual inspection. Both global and localized bonding techniques were investigated to compare the best-case scenario to a more practical case. The effects of an 18 mum thick copper layer on both sides of the package were studied as well as the size of the bonding contact area. It was found that many packages that passed the Military Standard 883 G, Method 1014.12 for seal quality were unable to provide adequate protection from moisture. This indicates that the requirements for MEMS devices is more rigorous than the Military Standard. This standard is commonly quoted in literature as a metric for qualifying polymer packaging techniques. This paper demonstrates the necessity for proper testing of MEMS devices in a moist environment. It has been determined that for the bonding methods presented in this paper, an LCP packaged MEMS switch could potentially survive 7-10 h in jungle conditions, 5-7 weeks in ambient conditions, or 1.4-1.8 years in desert conditions.
Family Rituals as a Protective Factor for Children With Asthma

Objective: To examine how one aspect of family life, notably family rituals and routines, may protect children with asthma from anxiety-related symptoms. Methods: Eighty-six families (43 children with asthma, 43 healthy comparison children) participated in the study. Children completed measures of anxiety (Revised Child Manifest Anxiety Scale) and health. Parents completed measures of stress (Parenting Stress Index), family rituals (Family Routines Questionnaire), and family health. Results: Families that reported more meaning in their family routines had children who reported lower levels of anxiety. Mother endorsement of family ritual meaning and father endorsement of family ritual routine were most strongly related to lower levels of anxiety. Support for the protective function of meaningful family rituals was stronger when a general health stress model was used rather than the presence or absence of asthma alone. Conclusions: Family rituals may serve a protective function for children with asthma under conditions of heightened parenting stress.
Distributed queueing over a broadcast channel

We present a new protocol called distributed queueing over a broadcast channel (DQBC). It is a distributed protocol that has the potential to support a large number of users with different performance requirements in the medium access control layer. There is a separate reservation channel from the transmission channel and information is carried over time slots. DQBC presents a solution which requires only two reservation slots of one bit long per time slot. Under Poisson traffic conditions, DQBC has bounded delay up to input rates of 0.9. Under bursty traffic, DQBC has a delay performance comparable to the round-robin protocol.
Health insurance selection in Chile: a cross-sectional and panel analysis

In Chile, workers are mandated to choose either public or private health insurance coverage. Although private insurance premiums depend on health risk, public insurance premiums are solely linked to income. This structure implies that individuals with higher health risks may tend to avoid private insurance, leaving the public insurance system responsible for their care. This article attempts to explore the determinants of health insurance selection (private vs public) by individuals in Chile and to test empirically whether adverse selection indeed exists. We use panel data from Chile’s ‘Encuesta de Proteccion Social’ survey, which allows us to control for a rich set of individual observed and unobserved characteristics using both a cross-sectional analysis and fixed-effect methods. Results suggest that age, sex, job type, income quintile and self-reported health are the most important factors in explaining the type of insurance selected by individuals. Asymmetry in insurance mobility caused by restrictions on pre-existing conditions may explain why specific illnesses have an unambiguous relationship with insurance selection. Empirical evidence tends to indicate that some sorting by health risk and income levels takes place in Chile. In addition, by covering a less healthy population with higher utilization of general health consultations, the public insurance system may be incurring disproportionate expenses. Results suggest that if decreasing segmentation and unequal access to health services are important policy objectives, special emphasis should be placed on asymmetries in the premium structure and inter-system mobility within the health care system. Preliminary analysis of the impact of the ‘Garantias Explicitas de Salud’ plan (explicit guarantees on health care plan) on insurance selection is also considered.
3D Collaborative Virtual Environments: Exploring the Link between Collaborative Behaviors and Team Performance

Increasingly, organizational work is conducted by virtual teams interacting across boundaries of space and time. Despite advances in collaborative technologies, members of virtual teams often find the experience challenging and a far cry from physically “being there.” In response, immersive and interactive three-dimensional collaborative virtual environments (3D CVEs) are emerging and purported to address the shortcoming of earlier technologies. How teams will interact and ultimately perform in a 3D environment remains to be seen. In this study, drawing from group and communication theories, we explore the link between collaborative behaviors and the performance of virtual teams working in a 3D CVE. We report on the results of a controlled experiment consisting of 39 virtual teams of 91 individuals. Through cluster analysis, we identify distinct patterns of collaborative behaviors associated with differential levels of performance. Our findings provide a deeper understanding of how the unique spatial and visual characteristics of 3D CVEs may transform virtual work.
Relation between index finger width and hand width anthropometric measures

Measures of hand and finger anthropometry are very important for designing many hand held devices as well as understanding anthropometric effects on the operation of such devices. Many historical datasets have measured and recorded gross hand dimensions but do not often record the finer dimensions of the hand such as finger anthropometry. Knowing the size and mass of fingers across genders can be critical to the design and operation of hand held devices. In this paper we compare two empirical linear models that predicts index finger width at the proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joint (a finger anthropometric measure) based on hand-width (hand anthropometric measure). This will be especially useful for deriving population measures of finger anthropometry from large historical data sets where only gross hand dimensions are available.
Complications of Arthroscopic Shoulder Surgery: Miscellaneous Shoulder Conditions

Overall rate of complications after arthroscopic shoulder surgery was once believed to be quite low.1–3 For instance, Ellman reported no major complications, one localized hematoma at a portal site, and three transient dysesthesias in the thumb (attributed to inadequate padding on the traction device) in his review of 50 consecutive subacromial decompressions.4 Subsequently, a report from the Committee on Complications of the Arthroscopy Association of North America in the 1980s documented a wider range and scope of complications after arthroscopic shoulder surgery, and noted rates as low as 0.76% for subacromial space procedures and as high as 5.3% for arthroscopic anterior staple capsulorrhaphy.5 Even for the “experienced” surgeons, the committee noted a fairly high complication rate of 5.2% after arthroscopic shoulder surgery.6 More recent retrospective review studies noted even higher complication rates, between 6.5 and 10.5%, with adhesive capsulitis being the most common complication.7,8 In 2002, Weber and colleagues reviewed the available literature and found the overall complication rates after shoulder arthroscopy to be between 5.8 and 9.5%.9 Thus, complications after arthroscopic shoulder surgery may be more common than once believed and warrant particular attention to increase awareness and to provide appropriate treatment.
Parasitism of Tufted Apple Bud Moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in Conventional Insecticide and Pheromone-Treated Pennsylvania Apple Orchards

A faunistic study was conducted over a four year period in apple orchards utilizing different pesticide management strategies to determine the parasitoid complex of the tufted apple bud moth, Platynota idaeusalis (Walker). The relative effectiveness of these parasitoids as control agents in conventional orchards using broad-spectrum insecticides was compared to those using pheromone-mediated mating disruption to control P. idaeusalis. Limited samples were also taken of other tortricids found in these orchards to determine if they were serving as alternate hosts for P. idaeusalis parasitoids. Thirty-one parasitoid and two hyperparasitoid species were recovered during this study which, when combined with other records, present a total parasitoid complex of 41 species for P. idaeusalis. Total parasitism was higher for summer brood P. idaeusalis larvae in mating disruption orchards than in conventional orchards. Total parasitism of the overwintering brood of P. idaeusalis was higher than the summer brood in conventional orchards. Rates of parasitism were comparable in mating disruption blocks during both broods. The ichneumon Exochus atriceps Walsh. was the most common parasitoid species, and it attacked both broods of P. idaeusalis. The braconids Meteorus trachynotus Viereck, Bassus anulipes (Cresson), B. cinctus (Cresson), Apanteles polychrosidis Viereck, and an Apanteles sp. near edwardsii Riley were also common but they attacked only the overwintering brood. Four undescribed species of braconids were found during this study.
Grandlure for Boll Weevils: Controlled Release with a Laminated Plastic Dispenser

A new system of dispensing grandlure, the synthetic pheromone of Anthonomus grandis Boheman, is composed of a 3-layer plastic dispenser containing grandlure in the inner layer. The laminated dispenser was equal in effectiveness to currently used formulations and sometimes was attractive longer than 14 days.
Phenotypic Characteristics of Nitrogenase-Positive Strains of RhizobiumJaponicum

Knowledge of the physiology and genetics of nitrogenase synthesis has advanced considerably during the past eight years. However, one gap in our knowledge is that we do not know the physiological controls of nitrogenase derepression in the fast-growing rhizobia and in many slow-growing strains.
Privacy and Library 2.0: How Do They Conflict?

Library 2.0 has a great potential to provide customized services to patrons. However some librarians are concerned that the information needed to provide these services may have a detrimental effect on privacy. How are librarians dealing with this potential conflict?
Rethinking number-needed-to-vaccinate for pneumococcal conjugate vaccines in older adults: Current and future implications.

Number-needed-to-vaccinate (NNV) is increasingly used to inform decisions about vaccine use, but it is not calculated uniformly across studies. This study compared two methodologies for calculating NNV with 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) to prevent one case of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) among US adults aged ≥65years: (i) using one-year absolute rate differences as was originally performed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and (ii) using absolute risk reduction over 5years.We constructed a hypothetical fixed cohort of 200,000 adults aged ≥65years equally separated into PCV13-vaccinated and PCV13-unvaccinated groups. We incorporated the same conservative assumptions used by CDC in 2014 regarding annual incidence of hospitalized (1375 per 100,000) and outpatient (2010 per 100,000) CAP, the initial (2014) proportion of adult PCV13-type CAP (10%), and PCV13 efficacy against vaccine-type CAP (45%). To model PCV13 impact over time, we assumed annual mortality was 5% for both groups, the percentage of adult PCV13-type CAP declined annually due to pediatric herd effects, and PCV13 efficacy did not wane over 5years.Among adults aged ≥65years, NNV with PCV13 to prevent one hospitalized and one outpatient case of CAP as originally calculated by CDC in 2014 were 1620 and 1110, respectively. Accounting for 5-year cumulative effects, NNV with PCV13 to prevent one hospitalized and one outpatient case of CAP over 5years were 576 and 394, respectively. These revised NNV estimates are roughly one third of initial estimates in which cumulative effects were ignored. NNV to prevent any CAP (inpatient or outpatient) over 5years with one PCV13 dose was 234.Accounting for cumulative preventive effects of PCV13 vaccination over time is critical. Failing to do so, even when using conservative disease burden parameters, can grossly underestimate the public health impact of adult PCV13 use.
The effects of preference assessment type on problem behavior

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities who engage in problem behavior maintained by access to tangibles may exhibit more problem behavior during certain preference assessments. We compared three common preference assessments to determine which resulted in fewer problem behaviors. The paired stimulus and multiple-stimulus without replacement assessments produced higher rates of problem behavior than the free operant (FO) assessment, suggesting that the FO assessment may be the most appropriate assessment for individuals who engage in problem behavior maintained by access to tangibles.
Multidisciplinary approach to cardiac and pulmonary vascular disease risk assessment in liver transplantation: An evaluation of the evidence and consensus recommendations

Liver transplant (LT) candidates today are older, have greater medical severity of illness, and have more cardiovascular comorbidities than ever before. In addition, there are specific cardiovascular responses in cirrhosis that can be detrimental to the LT candidate. Cirrhotic cardiomyopathy, a condition characterized by increased cardiac output and a reduced ventricular response to stress, is present in up to 30% of patients with cirrhosis, thus challenging perioperative management. Current noninvasive tests that assess for subclinical coronary and myocardial disease have low sensitivity, and altered hemodynamics during the LT surgery can unmask latent cardiovascular disease either intraoperatively or in the immediate postoperative period. Therefore, this review, assembled by a group of multidisciplinary experts in the field and endorsed by the American Society of Transplantation Liver and Intestine and Thoracic and Critical Care Communities of Practice, provides a critical assessment of the diagnosis of cardiac and pulmonary vascular disease and interventions aimed at managing these conditions in LT candidates. Key points and practice-based recommendations for the diagnosis and management of cardiac and pulmonary vascular disease in this population are provided to offer guidance for clinicians and identify gaps in knowledge for future investigations.
Is therapeutic hypothermia during neonatal extracorporeal membrane oxygenation associated with intracranial hemorrhage

Introduction:The use of therapeutic hypothermia during neonatal extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) as a neurologic protective strategy has gained interest among clinicians despite limited d...
Measuring and mapping multi-user cell-virtualization performance in a cloud-RAN small cell network

This paper describes the first series of measurements to characterize and map spatial spectral reuse and total system throughput as a function of the location of multiple users within the coverage area of the “OneCell” virtualized Cloud-RAN smallcell deployment. The measurements demonstrate that the adaptive frequency reuse algorithm which creates virtual cells from the set of all active users each 1 millisecond TTI provides multiple units of reuse within the single borderless cell. The transition from one unit of reuse to two full units of reuse was observed. Total system throughput approaching 240 MBPS in a 20 MHz allocation was attained with two UE's.
Learning Orientation and Performance Satisfaction as Predictors of Small Firm Innovation: The Moderating Role of Gender

Research on innovation in the context of small entrepreneurial firms is limited. Limited available studies on innovation in small firms are devoted mostly to firms operating in knowledge-intensive or technology industries and ignore the vast majority of small firms operating in traditional and less knowledge-intensive sectors of the economy. The rapid pace of technological change and the intensifying environmental turbulence in our economy influence all firms, including the majority of small firms that are perishing at a faster rate. Innovation is a key competitive tool for survival in a turbulent environment. Thus, it is important to understand factors influencing innovation in small firms. In this paper, we explore how learning orientation, a small-firm owner’s satisfaction with firm performance, and the firm owner’s gender influence innovation in small firms. We test the proposed model on a sample of small firms located in the United States of America.
An Environmental Understanding of the Local Land Use System

This Article is adapted from Chapter Three of John R. Nolon, Protecting the Environment Through Land Use Law: Standing Ground, published in 2014 by ELI Press. The book updates and expands on the author’s previous work, describing in detail how localities are responding to new challenges, including the imperative that they adapt to and help mitigate climate change and create sustainable neighborhoods. This Article outlines a comprehensive framework for understanding how traditional local land use authority can be used to preserve natural resources and environmental functions at the community level.
Comparative aspects of the regulation of corpus luteum function in various species.

Central to understanding the pivotal role of the corpus luteum in governing reproductive cycles of mammals has been the study of those factors that control the function of this gland. Research on control of luteal function has encompassed a broad spectrum of mammalian taxa and has evolved from early studies to identify the source and nature of controlling factors to present day attempts to resolve their action at the level of the luteal cell. From this research data have emerged leading to the realization that among mammals a diversity of factors regulate the function of the corpus luteum. The fact that function of the corpus luteum, in most mammals, is influenced by hormones from several sources, namely the pituitary gland, uterus and placenta, makes this organ truly unique among endocrine glands. As the student of the corpus luteum is well aware, some of these hormones are involved in promoting steroidogenesis and(or) prolonging the life span of the corpus luteum while others serve to provoke its demise. In recent years several excellent reviews have appeared that discuss differences among mammals in regard to the hormonal regulation of luteal function (Rothchild, 1981; Keyes et al., 1983; Niswender et al., 1985; Khan-Dawood and Dawood, 1986). Consequently, certain portions of the present treatise on luteal function may appear to be redundant. Although old ground may be trod upon once again, an effort will be made to present new information.
Critical-Mode-Based Soft-Switching Modulation for High-Frequency Three-Phase Bidirectional AC–DC Converters

In this paper, a novel critical-conduction-mode-based modulation is proposed for three-phase bidirectional ac–dc converters. With this modulation, the switching frequency variation range shrinks, zero-voltage-switch soft switching is achieved, and the switching-related loss is reduced, which is especially beneficial for systems operating above hundreds of kHz high switching frequency with wide-band-gap power semiconductor devices to achieve both high power density and high efficiency. A 25 kW silicon carbide based high-frequency three-phase bidirectional ac–dc converter prototype is designed to achieve a power density of 127 ${\text{W/in}}^{3}$ , which is at least five times higher than commercial products. All the control functions are digitally implemented with one low-cost microcontroller, and the aforementioned benefits are experimentally verified on this prototype under both inverter mode and rectifier mode operations. With the proposed soft-switching modulation, the tested peak efficiency is close to 99.0% for this prototype even at above 300 kHz high switching frequency operation.
MRI in patients with a pacemaker or ICD requires expertise

Nazarian et al. recently studied the safety of magnetic resonance imaging in a large cohort of patients with cardiac devices not considered to be MRI-conditional (termed a "legacy" device). More than 2100 thoracic and nonthoracic MRI examinations were performed in 1509 patients. It was found that with appropriate precautions, including a prespecified safety protocol, no long-term clinically significant adverse events occurred. It could easily be concluded from these observations that MRI can now be considered "safe" in this category of patients. Whether such a conclusion is justified, is questionable however. Although not life-threatening, interactions between MRI and devices still occur and clinical consequences remain unpredictable. It is therefore strongly recommended that MRI in patients with a legacy device should exclusively be performed in centres of excellence. Only in the presence of a multidisciplinary radiological and cardiac expert team can MRI be conducted with acceptable risks in patients with a legacy device.
The value of “communication strategies” in the treatment of aphasia

Neither aphasic nor non-aphasic speakers communicate in perfectly articulate, grammatically full sentences, unless they are reading from a printed text or have learned the text of a strange and unw...
The Nasopharyngeal and Gut Microbiota in Children in a Pediatric Otolaryngology Practice

BACKGROUND The human microbiome evolves rapidly in early life with contributions from various factors such as diet, delivery mode, medical history, antibiotics exposure, genetics, immunomodulators and the environment. A high use of antibiotics in pediatric outpatient settings has been well documented, and improvement in antibiotic selection is required to reduce the risks of antibiotic resistance and disruption of the microbiome. METHODS We performed an exploratory study using 16S rRNA gene-based sequencing to characterize the gut and nasopharyngeal microbiome of children (n = 50) age 1-6 years of age in a pediatric otolaryngology practice. RESULTS Relative abundance of Haemophilus and Moraxella were higher in nasopharyngeal swabs, while Prevotella, Bacteroides, Porphyromonas and Faecalibacterium were highly abundant in rectal swabs. The gut microbiome composition in children <2 years old was different compared with children ≥2 years age. Gut bacterial diversity increased with an increase in age of the children. Children taking probiotics had a notable increase in abundance of potentially beneficial gut bacteria such as Bacteroides and Akkermansia. The nasopharyngeal microbiome differed between children who received antibiotics in the 3 months before sample collection compared with those that did not. Haemophilus spp. was highly abundant in children who received antibiotics 3 months before sampling. CONCLUSIONS The pediatric nasopharyngeal and rectal microbiomes differ in bacterial composition and diversity. The increased abundance of Haemophilus spp. in the nasopharyngeal microbiome of children who received antibiotics during the 3 months before sampling suggests a potential impact of antibiotics in colonization with the otopathogen and may be relevant to clinical practice.
COVID-19 pandemic: An intensivist's perspective

We present a case of COVID-19 patient, who had multiple comorbidities, including diabetes mellitus, bronchial asthma, morbid obesity (BMI:48) and obstructive sleep apnea. She had good compliance with CPAP treatment. After a vacation, she developed typical symptoms of COVID-19, including fever, cough with blood tinged sputum and shortness of breath. She had to be treated with polypharmacy for all of her concurrent diseases. Her hypoxia responded well to oxygen therapy. Laboratory reports and chest x-rays presented a typical picture of COVID-19, including lymphopenia and lung infiltrates. Patient received inj. ceftriaxone, inj. azithromycin and hydroxychloroquine, to which her response was quite satisfactory and after two weeks, she was discharged and shifted to home.
A Review on Thermophysical Properties and Nusselt Number Behavior of Al2O3 Nanofluids in Heat Exchangers

During the last several years, the increase in cooling power requirements for heat exchangers have led to an escalation in heat transfer studies being performed on the use of nanofluids as heat transfer fluids. However, limited effort has been attempted to relate and interpret these findings or the anomalies associated with them. The paper compiles test data from several studies conducted on different types of heat exchangers. In this review, a concentrated effort is spent to clarify the ambiguities regarding the effect of nanoparticle size on the nanofluid thermal conductivity and Nusselt number. Results show that the nanofluid thermal conductivity is not influenced by the nanoparticle size, but by the clustering of the particles themselves. The less compact the structure of the nanoparticle clustering is, the greater the enhancement in the nanofluid thermal conductivity is. Data were also compiled to interpret the relation between the nanofluid flow pattern, nanoparticles volume fraction in the base fluid, and the convective heat transfer. The results from the majority of the heat exchanger studies show an increase in the heat transfer coefficient with the increase in nanoparticle volume fraction. However, studies conducted on plate heat exchanges display some inconsistencies. In the majority of the heat exchanger studies with the exception of few, the decrease in the nanoparticle size is shown to result in an enhancement of the bulk fluid Nusselt number. Compiled test data also reveal that the effectiveness of the alumina nanoparticles is dependent on the flow pattern. The increase in the nanoparticles concentration is shown to result in an increase in the nanofluid heat transfer enhancement as the fluid is transitioning from laminar to turbulent flow. In general, the smaller the nanoparticle size is, the greater the enhancement in the fluid Nusselt number is.