cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Planning training programmes to support business initiatives: a model for business and training partnership

The ‘Model for Business and Training Partnership’ (MBTP) draws upon insights of HRD and adult education programme-planning scholars, integrating training and development processes with a typical business-planning model. It is a practical, client-focused programme-planning model designed to promote strategic alliances between the HRD practitioner and business manager at all levels and development phases. The model may be utilized on a cross-functional group project for implementation of a customer relationship management (CRM) system or other large system change initiative within a large organization. This model has not been tested empirically.
The Standardization of Lawyers’ Services

Recent Supreme Court decisions dealing with advertising by lawyers have focused new attention on the question whether lawyers perform services that are standardized or susceptible of standardization. The author examines the concept of standardization as applied to lawyers’ services and suggests five indicators that might reveal the extent to which such services are or could become standardized. He also discusses bow advertising could accelerate the standardization of lawyers’ services and briefly raises questions about what this will mean to lawyers and the public.
Helping New Teachers Enter and Stay in the Profession

(2005). Helping New Teachers Enter and Stay in the Profession. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas: Vol. 78, No. 4, pp. 158-163.
Establishing Amide···Amide Reliability and Synthon Transferability in the Supramolecular Assembly of Metal-Containing One-Dimensional Architectures

On the basis of a combination of new structural data (eleven single-crystal structure determinations are presented) and information from the Cambridge Structural Database, it has been shown that self-complementary hydrogen-bond based amide...amide dimers can be relied upon as effective supramolecular synthons for the assembly and organization of acac- and paddle-wheel complexes of a variety of metal(II) ions. The targeted molecular recognition event and intended extended one-dimensional motif appear with a supramolecular yield of 78% (a total of 28 structures were examined). Despite the fact that the hydrogen bonds that give rise to the R2(2)(8) motif can be disrupted by both carboxylate- and acac-ligands, as well as by solvent molecules, they remain remarkably resilient and therefore represent useful synthetic tools in inorganic crystal engineering.
Parasitism and decreased response to sex pheromones in male Periplaneta americana (Dictyoptera: Blattidae)

Parasites are known to alter the behavior of their hosts, but little is known about their effects on responses to sexual stimuli. Periplaneta americanainfected with the acanthocephalan Moniliformis moniliformiswere compared to uninfected animals in their behavioral and electroantennogram responses to a synthetic P. americanapheromone component, periplanone-B, and a pheromone mimic, bornyl acetate. In a t-maze there was no significant difference between infected animals' responses to periplanone-B and a random binomial distribution; the responses of uninfected animals were significantly nonrandom. The electroan-tennogram responses of infected and uninfected animals to bornyl acetate or periplanone-B did not differ significantly, however, indicating that the alteration probably does not occur at the peripheral level but at a central nervous system level.
Synthesis and in vivo disposition studies of 18F-labeled HFA-134a.

Abstract A rapid synthesis of the chlorofluorocarbon replacement compound 1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane (HFA-134a) was identified and utilized to prepare 99 + % radiochemically pure [18F]HFA-134a in 20–35% radiochemical yield. Four rats were then exposed to no-carrier-added (NCA) [18F]HFA-134a and monitored via coincidence detection. Following withdrawal of the test atmosphere of [18F]HFA-134a, the me an half-life of [18F]HFA-134a in four rats was determined to be 7.8 ± 1.5 min following a 10 s exposure and 8.1 ± 1.7 minutes following a 10 min exposure.
Dimuons Produced by Antineutrinos

In a run with a predominantly $\overline{\ensuremath{\nu}}$ beam we have observed seven dimuon events which show clearly that dimuons are produced by $\overline{\ensuremath{\nu}}$ as well as by $\ensuremath{\nu}$. Using the signature of those events we tentatively identify twelve dimuon events from earlier runs as $\overline{\ensuremath{\nu}}$-induced. The characteristics of the total sample support the explanation that dimuons arise from new hadron production.
Influences of depositional environment and diagenesis on geophysical log response in the South Carolina Coastal Plain: effects of sedimentary fabric and mineralogy

Abstract Interpretations of depositional environments and hydrologic units are made routinely from the study of geophysical well logs. Spontaneous potential (SP) and resistivity logs can be used as indicators of textural parameters. Gamma-ray logs denote lithologic zones based on the presence of radioactive material, particularly in fine-grained sediments. On the South Carolina Coastal Plain, surficial fluvially derived cobbles, sands and clays are characterized by very low radioactivity. Weathered paleosurfaces enriched in hydroxy-interlayered vermiculite (HIV) and associated mica produce higher gamma-ray responses at discrete intervals. The underlying sequence of siliciclastic shelf sands, deposited under conditions of eustatic sea-level rise, has high concentrations of smectite and low gamma-ray signatures. Small-scale variability of gamma radiation reflects temporal changes of sub-environments; higher values are recorded in finer-grained, organic-rich nearshore sediments. Calcareous Ecocene sediments are characterized by highly variable signals on the gamma-ray, SP and resistivity logs. Phospharic material, smectite and disseminated organic matter produced very high gamma-ray values; corresponding low SP readings are a function of low macro- to microscale porosity resulting from the fine grain size and authigenic pore-filling cement. Intervals that resemble massively bedded chalks at the macroscale are characterized by low gamma-ray and resistivity values and high SP readings. High SP values result from microposity preserved in biogenic tests rather than intergranular porosity that would be expected for a permeable sand. These observations indicate the importance of incorporating sedimentologic techniques with well-log data for a comprehensive evaluation of subsurface lithologic units.
Computational physics, local density theory and mixed valence

Abstract The role and nature of computational physics and its relationship to the other separate branches of physics — analytic theory and experimental physics — are discussed. Some aspects of local (spin) density functional theory and, in particular, the recent development of an all-electron total energy full potential energy band approach for determining the electronic structure of bulk solids and surfaces (the FLAPW method), are described. An example of the application of this approach is given using results recently obtained for the mixed valent compound, TmSe, by Jansen, Freeman and Monnier.
A power meaning of multiplication: Three eighth graders’ solutions of Cartesian product problems

Abstract This article examines data from five teaching episodes with three eighth grade students who were participants in a 3-year constructivist teaching experiment. The five teaching episodes were a transition point in the teaching experiment: the students were beginning to work in contexts that were deemed to support their development of a meaning for squaring quantities—a power meaning of multiplication. Prior to these teaching episodes, the students had worked in contexts that were deemed to support their development of a linear meaning of multiplication. This paper focuses on the novel cognitive operations and multiplicative concepts that the students developed to solve Cartesian product problems, problems that were deemed could support students to establish a power meaning of multiplication. The findings from the study contribute to prior research by (1) examining an appropriate use for Cartesian product problems with middle grades students, and (2) identifying similarities and differences in the multiplicative concepts students constructed to solve linear-meaning multiplication problems and power-meaning multiplication problems. Implications for teaching are considered.
IgE secretion by Epstein-Barr virus-infected purified human B lymphocytes is stimulated by interleukin 4 and suppressed by interferon gamma

Abstract The cytokine interleukin 4 (IL-4) has been shown to induce lipopolysaccharide-activated murine B cells to differentiate into IgE-secreting cells and to stimulate IgE secretion by cultured human peripheral blood lymphoid cells. It is unclear, however, whether this effect of IL-4 on human peripheral blood lymphoid cells is a direct effect on the B cell because IL-4 can stimulate T cells and monocytes as well as B cells and does not induce purified human B cells to secrete immunoglobulin. To investigate this issue we studied the ability of IL-4 to induce IgE secretion by purified human B cells (93-96% CD20+, less than 1% CD3+) that were cultured with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Although B cells cultured with IL-4 alone did not secrete Ig and B cells cultured with EBV alone secreted IgM, IgG, and IgA but less than 150 pg of IgE per ml, the combination of EBV and IL-4 induced an IgE response that ranged from 11.4 to 40.3 ng/ml of culture supernatant after 26 days of culture. While IL-4 also enhanced IgM, IgG, and IgA secretion, as well as proliferation by EBV-infected B cells, these effects were less pronounced, occurred earlier during culture, and required a lower concentration of IL-4 than did the stimulation of IgE secretion. Furthermore, interferon gamma at 10 units per ml was found to inhibit IL-4/EBV-induced IgE secretion without inhibiting the other stimulatory effects of IL-4. We conclude that (i) IL-4 and interferon gamma can act directly on polyclonally activated human B cells to respectively stimulate and suppress IgE secretion and (ii) IL-4, in addition to its specific effect on IgE secretion, has a general stimulatory effect on the growth and differentiation of EBV-infected human B cells.
Boundary detection using simulation of particle motion in a vector image field

This paper introduces a novel approach in image processing based on a vector image model. A major advantage of the model is that it allows vector operations to be performed on an image. An example of a vector operation is the computation of mechanical moments for detecting inhomogeneities in an object or equivalently edges in an image. A new edge operator derived from a vector image model yields an edge vector field analogous to the Hamiltonian gradient field of the image. The distinct feature of the edge vector field is that edge vectors form current loops encompassing the objects. This feature is exploited to develop a new boundary extraction algorithm based on particle motion in a force field. The edge vector field forces a particle to move along the edges while an orthogonal normalized Laplacian gradient vector field guarantees that the particle will not drift away from the edges. The object boundary can be obtained from the convergent path of the particle trajectory. Using a fine stepping factor, the extracted boundary can achieve subpixel accuracy. The proposed algorithm has major advantages over the conventional edge-detection, edge-thinning, and edge-linking techniques in that it effectively utilizes both direction and magnitude of edges. The algorithm is simple, robust and performs very well even on high curvature objects.
Consistency of Psychiatric Crisis Care With Advance Directive Instructions

Objectives Psychiatric advance directives document clients' treatment preferences in advance of periods of diminished capacity for decision making. This article presents the first empirical data regarding rates and predictors of whether crisis care is consistent with psychiatric advance directives. Methods Participants were 106 community mental health outpatients who had completed a directive. Participants' mental health services were examined over a two-year period with interviews and chart reviews to determine whether clinical interventions were consistent with directive instructions. Results Across 90 crisis events in which an advance directive was accessed, the average rate of care consistent with directive instructions was 67%. Instructions regarding medications, preemergency interventions, nonhospital alternatives, and most nontreatment personal care issues were consistent with care in nearly all cases. Somewhat less consistent with care were instructions to contact a surrogate decision maker and preferences among hospitals; between hospitals and hospital alternatives; and among seclusion, restraint, and sedating medication. Clients with fewer prior outpatient commitment orders and who had a surrogate decision maker who accessed the directive were more likely to have care consistent with directive instructions. The most commonly reported reason for overriding directive instructions was clinical need. Conclusions Overall, crisis care was largely consistent with directive instructions. To increase the likelihood of consistency, clients would be well advised to appoint a surrogate decision maker, particularly one who could be actively involved during crises. Encouraging creation and use of directives could be viewed as a positive step in the process of recovery and as an additional method of communicating client preferences during psychiatric crises.
The trematode parasites from a red-bellied watersnake, Farancia abacura

A number of trematode parasites were taken from the digestive tract of a red-bellied watersnake, Farancia abacura (Holbrook), on 27 March 1933. This snake had been captured on the previous day from a canal at Harvey, Louisiana. The parasites were studied while still alive and were tentatively identified before being fixed with formalin while under the pressure of a cover-slip. Representatives of three genera were encountered. Two of the species, representing two separate genera, are considered by us to be new to science and are herein described under the proposed names of Cercorchis auridistomi n.sp. and Stomatrema guberleti n.sp. The third species was recognized as Vitellotrema fusipora Guberlet, 1928.
Protocols for wide-area data-intensive applications: design and performance issues

Providing high-speed data transfer is vital to various data-intensive applications. While there have been remarkable technology advances to provide ultra-high-speed network bandwidth, existing protocols and applications may not be able to fully utilize the bare-metal bandwidth due to their inefficient design. We identify the same problem remains in the field of Remote Direct Memory Access (RDMA) networks. RDMA offloads TCP/IP protocols to hardware devices. However, its benefits have not been fully exploited due to the lack of efficient software and application protocols, in particular in wide-area networks. In this paper, we address the design choices to develop such protocols. We describe a protocol implemented as part of a communication middleware. The protocol has its flow control, connection management, and task synchronization. It maximizes the parallelism of RDMA operations. We demonstrate its performance benefit on various local and wide-area testbeds, including the DOE ANI testbed with RoCE links and InfiniBand links.
Vector algebra in the analysis of genome-wide expression data

Background Data from thousands of transcription-profiling experiments in organisms ranging from yeast to humans are now publicly available. How best to analyze these data remains an important challenge. A variety of tools have been used for this purpose, including hierarchical clustering, self-organizing maps and principal components analysis. In particular, concepts from vector algebra have proven useful in the study of genome-wide expression data.
A Re-Examination of the Speculative Demand for Money

I. Weintraub's argument, 326. — II. Reconstruction of the liquidity preference theory, 327. — III. Conclusion, 332.
Global optimization of sensitivity and dynamic range for two-center holographic recording

The performance of two-center holographic recording is theoretically studied and described in detail. We present a systematic method for global optimization of two-center holographic recording. Whereas the method presented is general, we perform optimization for lithium niobate crystals doped with iron and manganese (LiNbO3:Fe:Mn). Both dynamic range (M/#) and sensitivity (S) are considered for global optimization, and the optimum design parameters for LiNbO3:Fe:Mn crystals are predicted. To achieve optimization we use both an analytic approach and a complete numerical approach. The absorption of light in the crystal is also considered. We show that the optimum design parameters for maximizing M/# are different from those for maximizing S. Therefore a trade-off exists between dynamic range and sensitivity. We also describe the complete dependence of S in two-center recording on the design parameters. We show in particular, for the first time to our knowledge, that S depends on the ratio of recording and sensitizing intensities and not on the absolute intensities.
Developing Uncertainty Models for Robust Flutter Analysis Using Ground Vibration Test Data

A ground vibration test can be used to obtain information about structural dynamics that is important for flutter analysis. Traditionally, this information#such as natural frequencies of modes#is used to update analytical models used to predict flutter speeds. The ground vibration test can also be used to obtain uncertainty models, such as natural frequencies and their associated variations, that can update analytical models for the purpose of predicting robust flutter speeds. Analyzing test data using the -norm, rather than the traditional 2-norm, is shown to lead to a minimum-size uncertainty description and, consequently, a least-conservative robust flutter speed. This approach is demonstrated using ground vibration test data for the Aerostructures Test Wing. Different norms are used to formulate uncertainty models and their associated robust flutter speeds to evaluate which norm is least conservative.
Sexual Confusion among Certain College Males.

In dealing with college age (18-22) males, clinical observations have shown a fairly common inability to successfully form intimate relationships with same-age females. This problem often appears to be due to an inability to bond and trust that is rooted in the formative years in the nuclear home. When this happens, the young male frequently develops a fear of being sexually abnormal, perhaps even homosexual. This manifests itself in shame, anxiety, depression, denial, reaction formation, performance anxiety, concern about being found out, isolation, substance abuse and, occasionally, acting out. Getting such persons to admit these fears is generally extremely difficult, requiring gentle and empathetic, but persistent, probing on the part of the therapist. Therapy consists of understanding and acceptance by the client that these fears are most often reactive, that they are commonly held, and that when they are seen in proper perspective, they often diminish. The present paper reviews some of the literature on sexual developmental issues of the adolescent male as a backdrop for this problem. The specific difficulties related to reactive homophobia are explored, and some therapeutic approaches suggested.
Caution Is Needed in the Interpretation of Added Value of Biomarkers Analyzed in Matched Case Control Studies

Biomarker research is at the forefront of the quest toward personalized medicine. It is hoped that the discovery of new biomarkers will aid in better understanding of disease pathways and in turn will lead to improved stratification of individuals at risk and to disease prevention. This avenue of research is actively pursued in all major domains of modern medicine, including, but not limited to, cardiovascular research (1) and cancer research (2). Risk stratification is usually based on the probability that a person has or will develop the event of interest within a prespecified time interval. These probabilities are usually derived from risk-prediction models that use regression-based approaches as well as nonparametric techniques (3). Published reporting guidelines have outlined what is expected of research reports that describe the impact of novel biomarkers (4) and genetic factors (5). The ability to improve risk-prediction models is one of the key elements used to evaluate new biomarkers. Numerous metrics have been proposed to assess model performance and quantify its improvement. The area under the ROC curve (AUC),2 a frequently reported standard that originated in the diagnostic setting, equals the probability that given any 2 randomly selected individuals, one with an event (a future event in prognostic and a current event in diagnostic applications) and one without an event, the one with the event has a higher predicted risk. The AUC can be visualized as the area under the plot of sensitivity as a function of 1 minus specificity across all risk thresholds. Improvement in model performance can be quantified by using the increase in the AUC when the new biomarker is added to the risk model. An alternative measure of discrimination …
Kinetics of diffusion-controlled reaction between chemically asymmetric molecules. II. Approximate steady-state solution

The previously published equation for the rate of a diffusion-limited bimolecular reaction between chemically asymmetric molecules is studied numerically for the case that one of the reactant molecules is uniform. The results are reproduced quite well by a simple approximate chemical-kinetic steady-state scheme and, in principle, allow estimates of the size of the reactive region and of the activation-controlled rate to be made from the observed dependence of rate on solvent viscosity. The simple scheme is easily generalized to the case of two nonuniform reactants. In general, restriction of reactivity to some fraction of the molecular surface (i.e., a steric factor) must reduce the observable reaction rate, but to an extent which is moderated by the rotational diffusion of the reactant molecules.
Propofol and magnesium attenuate isoflurane-induced caspase-3 activation via inhibiting mitochondrial permeability transition pore

The inhalation anesthetic isoflurane has been shown to open the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) and induce caspase activation and apoptosis, which may lead to learning and memory impairment. Cyclosporine A, a blocker of mPTP opening might attenuate the isoflurane-induced mPTP opening, lessening its ripple effects. Magnesium and anesthetic propofol are also mPTP blockers. We therefore set out to determine whether propofol and magnesium can attenuate the isoflurane-induced caspase activation and mPTP opening. We investigated the effects of magnesium sulfate (Mg2+), propofol, and isoflurane on the opening of mPTP and caspase activation in H4 human neuroglioma cells stably transfected to express full-length human amyloid precursor protein (APP) (H4 APP cells) and in six day-old wild-type mice, employing Western blot analysis and flowcytometry. Here we show that Mg2+ and propofol attenuated the isoflurane-induced caspase-3 activation in H4-APP cells and mouse brain tissue. Moreover, Mg2+ and propofol, the blockers of mPTP opening, mitigated the isoflurane-induced mPTP opening in the H4-APP cells. These data illustrate that Mg2+ and propofol may ameliorate the isoflurane-induced neurotoxicity by inhibiting its mitochondrial dysfunction. Pending further studies, these findings may suggest the use of Mg2+ and propofol in preventing and treating anesthesia neurotoxicity.
Chlorite and mica as indicators of depositional environment and provenance

The nature and distribution of clay minerals in three distinct penecontemporaneous facies of Upper Devonian alluvial-plain sedimentary deposits have yielded information on contrasting drainage conditions and the petrology of the source rocks. Slip-off slope deposits characteristically have (1) chlorite of relatively high magnesium content and (2) a low proportion of chlorite to mica. In contrast, the chlorite in oxbow-lake and overbank flood-plain deposits is more abundant and is of an iron-rich variety. The source rocks appear to have consisted predominantly of pelitic schist of the greenschist facies.
Accuracy and effectiveness of laparoscopic vs open hepatic radiofrequency ablation.

Background The purpose of this study was to compare the accuracy (in terms of ultrasound-guided probe placement) and the effectiveness (in terms of pathologic tumor-free margin) of laparoscopic vs open radiofrequency (RF) ablation.
Chomsky and Philosophy

Book reviewed in this article: Noam Chomsky, New Horizons in the Study of Language and Mind.
Effect of MWCNT size, carboxylation, and purification on in vitro and in vivo toxicity, inflammation and lung pathology

Several properties of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) have the potential to affect their bioactivity. This study examined the in vitro and in vivo outcomes of the influence of diameter, length, purification and carboxylation (in vitro testing only) of MWCNT. Three original ‘as received’ MWCNT that varied in size (diameter and length) were purified and functionalized by carboxylation. The resulting MWCNT were characterized and examined for cytotoxicity and inflammasome activation in vitro using THP-1 cells and primary alveolar macrophages from C57BL/6 mice. Oropharyngeal aspiration administration was used to deliver original MWCNT and in vivo bioactivity and lung retention was examined at 1 and 7 days. Studies with THP-1 macrophages demonstrated that increased length or diameter corresponded with increased bioactivity as measured by inflammasome activation. Purification had little effect on the original MWCNT, and functionalization completely eliminated bioactivity. Similar results were obtained using alveolar macrophages isolated from C57BL/6 mice. The in vivo studies demonstrated that all three original MWCNT caused similar neutrophil influx at one day, but increasing length or diameter resulted in the lavaged cells to release more inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-1β) ex vivo. Seven-day histology revealed that, consistent with the in vitro results, increasing width or length of MWCNT caused more severe pathology with the longest MWCNT causing the most severe inflammation. In addition, the same two larger MWCNT were retained more in the lung at 7 days. Taken together, the results indicated that in vitro and in vivo bioactivity of MWCNT increased with diameter and length. Purification had no significant modifying effect from the original MWCNT. Functionalization by carboxylation completely eliminated the bioactive potential of the MWCNT regardless of size in in vitro testing.
A timing optimization technique for nanoscale CMOS circuits susceptible to process variations

Performance variation is one of the primary concerns in nanoscale CMOS circuits. This performance variation is worse in circuits with multiple timing paths such as those used in microprocessors. In this paper, a Process Variation-aware, Transistor (PVT) sizing algorithm is proposed, which is capable of reducing worst-case delay, delay uncertainty, and delay sensitivity to process variations in nanoscale CMOS circuits. The proposed algorithm is based on identifying the significance of timing paths in a design, and performing respective optimization for optimal design performance. Additional advantages in this algorithm include its simplicity, accuracy, independent of the transistor order, and initial sizing factors. Using 90 nm CMOS process, the proposed algorithm has demonstrated an average improvement in worst-case delay by 36.9%, delay uncertainty by 44.1%, delay sensitivity by 19.8%, and power-delay-product by 35.3% when compared to their initial performances.
Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone in the Hypothalamus of the Rat

The hypothalamic content of thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) has been determined in normal and thyroxine-treated, thyroidectomized and hypophysectomized rats. Preliminary studies showed that hypothalamic and stalk median eminence homogenates destroyed TRH immunoreactivity, though neither was as effective as cerebral cortex in this regard. Consequently, TRH was extracted from hypothalamic homogenates with methanol. Recovery of TRH added to hypothalamic tissue ranged from 83.0 to 103.8%. The immunoreactivity of hypothalamic extracts was destroyed by incubation in human serum and eluted from Sephadex G-25 in the same fractions as synthetic TRH. In normal adult male rats of increasing size, the mean hypothalamic TRH contents ranged from 7.1 to 8.4 ng, not differing significantly in four groups of animals whose mean weights varied from 152 to 359 g. Hypothalamic TRH was 4.7 ± 0.2 ng/100 g body wt in the smallest and fell progressively to 2.2 ± 0.1 ng/100 g body wt in the largest animals. Serum T4 and TSH le...
Effective flicker removal from periodic intra frames and accurate flicker measurement

Flicker at periodic Intra-coded frames is a commonly seen video coding artifact, especially in low or medium bit rate coding. In this paper, a novel two-pass scheme is proposed to effectively remove I-frame flicker. The scheme involves a first pass of simplified P-frame coding to derive the no-flicker reference of the current frame, which is then taken as the target frame and coded with small quantization scales in the second pass of actual I-frame coding. Extensive experiment results demonstrate that our scheme successfully removes I-frame flicker, and greatly enhances the overall perceptual quality of coded video. Another contribution of this paper is a novel flicker distortion metric, which is superior than the existing metric, and can accurately measure flicker for any single frame.
Grain Size and Chemical Composition Effects on the Grain Boundary Resistance of Ceria

Studies related to the effects of grain size (30nm – 5.0μm) on the electrical conductivity of undoped CeO 2 and Ce 0.90 Gd 0.10 O 1.95 were performed. A series of impedance spectra as a function of temperature and grain size were analyzed. It was found that the ratio of the grain boundary resistance to the total resistance became lower with decreasing grain size, increasing temperature or increasing Gd content. For the case of Gd doped CeO 2 , the source of the grain boundary resistance may be due to the trapping of oxygen ions in the grain boundary area.
34 Differential circulating microRNA profile in insulin-sensitive vs. insulin-resistant mares

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small endogenous single stranded, non-coding RNA molecules that have an important role in several biological processes such as gene regulation, proliferation, apoptosis and metabolism. Emerging research in humans and laboratory animals has shown that miRNAs play important roles in regulating genes associated with type II diabetes and metabolic syndrome, and that the levels of specific miRNAs circulating in the bloodstream can serve as potential biomarkers for the diagnosis and prognosis of these diseases. We hypothesized that insulin resistant horses would have a different circulating miRNA profile than those who are healthy. Fifteen non-pregnant mares housed at the Virginia Tech Middleburg Agricultural Research and Extension Center were evaluated for insulin sensitivity with the frequent sampling intravenous glucose tolerance test to determine insulin sensitivity. Six mares representing the most insulin-sensitive (IS, n 1⁄4 3) and insulinresistant (IR, n 1⁄4 3) states, and paired for age, weight, and body condition, underwent miRNA profiling. Serum samples were collected, miRNA was extracted and microarray analysis was performed to investigate the presence and relative amount of 340 equine miRNAs. Paired t-tests were performed to compare miRNA between groups. Confirmation by qRT-PCR clearly demonstrated that miRNA was present in the serum of all animals, with 5 miRNAs present only in IS mares. Included in the latter are mir-302, a described inhibitor of adipogenesis and hepatic insulin resistance; mir-208a,implicated in cardiac metabolism and regulation of metabolic genes involved in energy expenditure; and mir-381, previously shown to be upregulated in obese sheep and their offspring. Eight of the 82 miRNAs recovered from all samples demonstrated differential expression (P < 0.10) between IS and IR groups; 3 were upregulated and 5 were downregulated in IR relative to IS horses. The novel results of this preliminary study suggest a potential new tool that could be developed for the diagnosis and treatment of metabolic syndrome in horses.
Nonoperative Treatment of Rotator Cuff Tears.

Historically patients with rotator cuff tears who presented with pain were treated with surgical repair; however recent evidence has demonstrated that nonoperative treatment is highly successful in patients with symptomatic atraumatic rotator cuff tears. The case presented highlights the effectiveness of physical therapy in treating chronic rotator cuff tears. Physical therapy should include scapular and glenohumeral motion and strengthening exercises as well as joint and soft-tissue mobilization to maximize a patient’s chance of successful treatment. Success with an exercise program is declared by 12 weeks. Patient expectation should be managed carefully as expectations are the most important feature predicting success with physical therapy.
Communal nesting in a North American pearly-banded bee, Nomia tetrazonata, with notes on nesting behavior of Dieunomia heteropoda (Hymenoptera: Halictidae: Nomiinae)

Information on the biology of the ground-nesting bee, Nomia tetrazonata Cockerell, provides the first documentation of large, multifemale nests in a North American nomiine bee. Females nest in aggregations of loosely clumped nests, and from 1 to at least 20 females actively provision cells in a single nest on the same days. Nests are parasitized by a cuckoo bee, Triepeolus verbesinae (Cockerell) (Nomadinae), but parasitism rates are low (<2%). Information is also given on nest architecture, provisioning behavior, and diel and seasonal activity. Comparable information is also provided for a solitary species, Dieunomia heteropoda (Say), females of which are pollen specialists on Helianthus petiolaris . The provision masses of these mostly solitary bees are parasitized by another cuckoo bee, Triepeolus distinctus (Cresson). The discussion summarizes behavioral data on nomiine bees which may provide useful systematic characters.
GRK2 in Lymphocytes: Expanding the Arsenal of Heart Failure Prognostics

Heart failure (HF) has been described as the inability of the myocardium to deliver oxygen and nutrients to a degree commensurate with the metabolic requirements of the body.1 Myocardial dysfunction induces compensatory neurohumoral mechanisms, including the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), as an attempt to preserve contractile performance. Mediators of the SNS consist predominantly of 2 catecholamines, namely epinephrine and norepinephrine (NE), released by cardiac sympathetic nerve terminals or secreted directly into the circulation by the adrenal medulla. Effects of these neurotransmitters are mediated through cell surface adrenergic receptors (ARs), members of the G protein–coupled receptor superfamily. Stimulation of the β-AR promotes a conformational change to activate the heterotrimeric G protein Gα and Gβγ subunits, promoting positive inotropic and chronotropic effects culminating in improved myocardial function.2 Article, see p 1116 This functionally beneficial pathway refers exclusively, however, to acute receptor activation; sustained β-AR stimulation, as occurs in most cardiovascular disease, is characterized by molecular modifications, leading to reduced receptor sensitivity and membrane expression. Receptor desensitization and downregulation are regulatory processes thought to moderate persistent agonist stimulation to prevent catecholamine-induced toxicity. The desensitization process is initiated in large part by agonist-dependent phosphorylation of the receptor’s cytoplasmic tail by G protein–coupled receptor kinase 2 (GRK2), a serine/threonine kinase. GRK2 is a cytosolic enzyme that localizes to the plasma membrane after recruitment by active Gβγ subunits. This is followed by recruitment of β-arrestin to the phosphorylated receptor, which prevents recoupling of the dissociated cognate G protein and targets the receptor for internalization and eventual degradation. It is now appreciated that chronic SNS activity and subsequent GRK2-mediated receptor downregulation result in a loss of responsiveness to catecholamines and contribute to further contractile dysfunction and increased patient mortality.2,3 Pivotal studies have indicated that properties of β-AR signaling seem …
The Effect of Ultra-Low Temperature Treatments on the Stress in Aluminum Metallization on Silicon Wafers

The stresses in Al-0.75w%Si-0.5w%Cu unpatterned metallization on silicon wafers have been measured using substrate curvature and x-ray diffraction techniques after quenching in liquid nitrogen. Stresses were measured with and without phospho-silicate glass overlayers and Si02 underlayers, and thermal cycling followed by relaxation at room temperature. It was found that cooling the substrates to 77 K and warming to room temperature caused the metallization stress to go from tensile to compressive. Subsequent heating of the substrates to above -70 °C followed by cooling to room temperature caused the stress to become tensile. Both compressive and tensile stresses were found to relax at room temperature with a time constant of 2.3 ± 0.2 hours. The magnitude of stress relaxation was a function of temperature, being about 20 MPa after heating to 240 °C. The metallization exhibited both compressive and tensile flow stresses of ~ 100 MPa near room temperature.
Surface Cleaning, Topography, and Temperature Measurements of Single Crystal Diamond

Application of surface science methods to single crystal diamond surfaces requires the preparation of clean, well-ordered surfaces and accurate measurement of substrate temperature. Cleaning of diamond (100) in H2SO4/HNO3/HClO4 produced several infrared absorption features between 1025 and 1275 cm-1, as observed by infrared multiple-internal-reflection spectroscopy. These modes are assigned to surface hydroxyl and bridge-bonded oxygen. Heating an oxidized surface to ca. 1130 °C caused disappearance of a surface hydroxyl mode centered at 1080 cm-1. We show by atomic force microscopy that an as-polished diamond (100) sample is covered by grooves and ridges several nm in height, implying a modest density of atomic steps. The surface of a diamond that underwent etching via numerous adsorption/desorption experiments in ultrahigh vacuum and was acid cleaned several times was essentially unchanged, indicating a minimal perturbation of the surface topography. The capability of Fizeau interferometry for accurate measurement of single-crystal diamond temperatures is demonstrated.
Evaluation of a Renal Transplant Program for Incarcerated ESRD Patients

Renal transplantation (Tx) improves mortality and morbidity but is limited by availability of suitable organs. Clinical and economic impact of a Tx program for end-stage renal disease (ESRD) prisoners was evaluated. Wait list time and patient and organ survival rates were assessed. Twelve of the 104 ESRD prisoners at a prison dialysis unit were activated; 9 transplanted, 2 released active on the United Network for Organ Sharing list, and 1 died after listing. Kidneys from antibody-positive hepatitis C (HepC) donors were given to consenting HepC antibody-positive recipients. The average waiting period was 6.6 months for HepC-positive kidney recipients and 49.6 months for others. Compared with costs of continuing dialysis, Tx resulted in substantial savings. Patients with HepC experienced good graft and survival rates when given grafts from HepC donors, suggesting that transplantation is a viable, cost-effective option for the incarcerated patient with ESRD including those who have chronic HepC infection.
Quantum chemical insights into Alzheimer's disease: Curcumin's chelation with Cu(II), Zn(II), and Pd(II) as a mechanism for its prevention

We provide quantum chemical insights into curcumin's prevention of Alzheimer' disease through curcumin's scavenging of neurotoxic Cu(II), Zn(II), and Pd(II) transition metal ions that catalyze polymerization of amyloid-β and promote misfolding of amyloid into neurotoxic conformations. We have employed high level quantum chemical computations to study the chelate complexes of curcumin with Cu(II), Zn(II), and Pd(II). Quantum chemically derived structures, IR spectra, and UV-visible spectra of these complexes corroborate with the observed spectra, confirming that the primary site of chelation is the β-diketone bridge through the loss of an enolic proton of curcumin. We have also obtained the various structural parameters such as the Mulliken charges on various centers, highest occupied, lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals—all of which confirm that curcumin forms chelate complexes and thus acts as a scavenger of these neurotoxic metal ions preventing Alzheimer's disease. We find that the open-d-shell Cu(II) and Pd(II) form nearly square planar complexes while the closed-d-shell Zn(II) forms a tetrahedral complex with curcumin. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Thoughts on Transformation of China's Added Value Tax

In 1994, China made a reform on the tax system taking carrying out the added value tax of production as its core, which was suitable to the economic situation at that time and attained the reform on the over-expansion of demand and over-heated economic development. But with the market economic development and the change of global economic situations, it has once emerged in China the demand shortage and the currency deflation, so the demand promotion growth and the economic growth promotion have become the main objectives in the governmental macroeconomic policy. Many defects of the added value tax of production are exposed in the operation, which shows that it has not been suitable to the current economic development situations. Especially with China's accession to WTO, it is inevitable to reform the current added value tax to transform it from production into consumption.
Colonel Higginson, Appearing

As Austin and Susan’s family grew, it became clear to the Dickinson family that the children’s best care-giver was Aunt Emily. Dickinson’s role with Ned, Mattie, and their friends is described lovingly by MacGregor Jenkins, who played with the Dickinson children, living nearby in the pastor’s house; his father officiated at the funerals of both Edward Dickinson and Emily. In his Emily Dickinson, Friend and Neighbor, Jenkins draws a differently nuanced picture of the “exquisite, vibrant life” the poet led. Seen from her bedroom window as she lowered a basket of gingerbread to the waiting children, Aunt Emily was “a joyous person,” ready to help them build gypsy camp sites, providing news about the neighborhood to them (speaking of herself in third person), and sending notes to Mac’s parents addressed to “Mr. and Mrs. Clergyman” or “Mr. and Mrs. Pastor” (Jenkins 35, 45, 58, 83). Jenkins recalled that Ned and Mattie’s aunt “was not shy” with the children and their friends (21).
Teacher Repertoires for Students from Prelistener to Early Reader Status

The communicative repertoire of students is a reliable predictor of the types of strategies that their teachers require. There are two broad categories of teacher competence based on the communicative repertoires of their students. They are the basic repertoires of communication and reader and writer repertoires. Those strategies and tactics associated with the basic repertoires of communication that are described in this chapter. The strategies and tactics involved in teaching students repertoires are different than those needed to teach students, who have basic communication repertoires and are under the control of written forms of verbal behavior. While the basic principles of behavior are not different, the tactic, the analytic, and the contingency shaped repertoires needed for implementing those principles are so different that they require separate treatments. The communicative repertoires collectively as repertoires of verbal behavior are referred to in the chapter. However, the word verbal refers to vocal, gestural, and textural forms of communication. Speaker behavior may be either vocal or gestural verbal behavior. Listener behavior may also refer to responses of the student to any of the modes of communication (vocal or gestural).
Improving Patient-Centered Transitional Care after Complex Abdominal Surgery

Background Poor-quality transitions of care from hospital to home contribute to high rates of readmission after complex abdominal surgery. The Coordinated Transitional Care (C-TraC) program improved readmission rates in medical patients, but evidence-based surgical transitional care protocols are lacking. This pilot study evaluated the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of an adapted surgical C-TraC protocol. Study Design The intervention includes in-person enrollment of patients. Follow-up protocolized phone calls by specially trained surgical C-TraC nurses addressed medication management, clinic appointments, operation-specific concerns, and identification of red-flag symptoms. Enrollment criteria included pancreatectomy, gastrectomy, operative small bowel obstruction or perforation, ostomy, discharge with a drain, in-hospital complication, and clinician discretion. Engaged patients participated in the first phone call, which was within 48 to 72 hours of discharge and continued every 3 to 4 days. Patients completed the program once they and surgical C-TraC nurse agreed that no additional follow-up was needed or the patient was readmitted. Results Two hundred and twelve patients were enrolled, October 2015 through April 2016, with a mean age of 56 years (range 19 to 89 years); 33% of patients were 65 years or older. Surgery sites included colon (46%), small bowel (16%), pancreas (12%), multivisceral (9%), liver (4.5%), retroperitoneum/soft tissue (4.5%), gastric (4%), biliary (2%), and appendix (1.5%). Refusal rate was 1% and engagement was 95%. At initial call, 47% of patients had at least 1 medication discrepancy (range 0 to 6). Mean number of calls from provider to patient was 3.2 (range 0 to 20, median 3). Conclusions A phone-based transitional care protocol for surgical patients is feasible, with
Telepresence Robot with Autonomous Navigation and Virtual Reality: Demo Abstract

Telepresence technology enables users to be virtually present in another location at the same time through video streaming. This kind of user interaction is further enhanced through mobility by driving remotely to form what is called a Telepresence robot. These innovative machines connect individuals with restricted mobility and increase social interaction, collaboration and active participation. However, operating and navigating these robots by individuals who have little knowledge and map of the remote environment is challenging. Avoiding obstacles via the narrow camera view and manual remote operation is a cumbersome task. Moreover, the users lack the sense of immersion while they are busy maneuvering via the real-time video feed and, thereby, decreasing their capability to handle different tasks. This demo presents a simultaneous mapping and autonomous driving virtual reality robot. Leveraging the 2D Lidar sensor, we generate two dimensional occupancy grid maps via SLAM and provide assisted navigation in reducing the onerous task of avoiding obstacles. The attitude of the robotic head with a camera is remotely controlled via the virtual reality headset. Remote users will be able to gain a visceral understanding of the environment while teleoperating the robot.