cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An Affable Bust of Pompey the Great: Insight Into a Major Roman Figure and his Times

This paper uses a famous bust of Pompey the Great (106 BC to 48 BC) to gain insight into the personality and self-representation of this major Roman military and political figure by comparing this particular portrait with those of his model (Alexander the Great), mentor (Sulla), and rivals (Julius Caesar, Crassus, Cicero). (Cicero was more of a friendly rival.) This exercise shows the value of investing time in integrating Roman art with Roman political history.
The DIY Unitary Executive

This Article explores a simple argument for preserving a measure of formal agency decisional independence in the event that the Supreme Court, as Seila Law LLC v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau seems to portend, adopts an unalloyed, strong version of the unitary executive theory. According to strong unitarians, Article II’s vesting of the executive power in the President authorizes that official to control discretionary powers that Congress has granted to agencies. The executive power, however, is the power to enforce laws, not to break them. It should follow that the President, to exercise an agency’s statutory discretion legally, should have to comply with any procedural constraints that Congress has placed on the exercise of that power. Put another way, the President, to take over an agency’s role as the “decider,” should have to do the decider’s work. Presidents, notwithstanding their authority to delegate, should find that these burdens are often not worth the trouble, preserving space for agency decisional independence even in a unitarian world.
Robust multi-stage hybrid vision/force control of industrial robots

This paper presents a novel multi-stage method for robust hybrid vision/force control of industrial robots, subject to model uncertainties. It aims to improve the performance of the three phases of the control process: a) free-motion using the image-based visual servoing (IBVS) before the interaction with the workpiece; b) the moment that the end-effector touches the workpiece; and c) hybrid vision/force control during the interaction with the workpiece. First, the camera motion is decomposed into transitional and angular movements. Then, utilizing a switching method, the rotational and translational movements of the camera are controlled in the first two stages, respectively. In the last stage, hybrid vision/force control is activated. For each stage, super-twisting sliding mode controller (STSMC) is utilized. Employing STSMC results in robustness against uncertainties while addressing the chattering problem. A variable-gain sliding surface is also proposed to address the instability and convergence speed issues of the traditional switch IBVS. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed multi-stage method compared to other traditional approaches.
Transference of recombinant VE-cadherin cytoplasmic domain alters endothelial junctional integrity and porcine microvascular permeability.

VE-cadherin constitutes endothelial adherens junctions through a homophilic binding of its extracellular domain and by the anchoring of its intracellular domain to actin cytoskeleton via catenins. The aim of this study was to determine the functional importance of VE-cadherin–cytoskeleton association in the maintenance of endothelial junctional integrity. A recombinant VE-cadherin cytoplasmic domain (rVE-cad CPD) was expressed in E. coli and purified through Ni-NTA spin columns. Immunoprecipitation assays showed that rVE-cad CPD was able to bind β-catenin in vitro and to compete with endogenous VE-cadherin for binding of β-catenin in human umbilical vein endothelial cells. A significant increase in the transendothelial flux of albumin was observed in the endothelial cell monolayers transfected with rVE-cad CPD. Importantly, transfection of rVE-cad CPD into intact isolated coronary venules markedly elevated the albumin permeability of the venular endothelium. In addition, immunofluorescence microscopic analysis revealed a conformational change of VE-cadherin from a uniform, continuous distribution along the cell membrane under control conditions to a diffuse, stitch-like pattern after rVE-cad CPD transfection. The effects were likely due to an attenuated anchorage of endogenous VE-cadherin to the cytoskeleton, as evidenced by a decreased partitioning of VE-cadherin in the detergent-insoluble cytoskeletal pool. The results suggest that the intracellular association of VE-cadherin with β-catenin-linked cytoskeleton is essential to the maintenance of endothelial junctional integrity and microvascular permeability.
Modulation of the stability of rabbit skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinase through the calmodulin-binding domain.

The binding of Ca2+(4).calmodulin (CaM) to rabbit skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinase (MLCK) is required for expression of the enzyme's activity. While both MLCK and CaM were stable at 30 degrees C, their complex was not. The binding of CaM to MLCK resulted in a time- and temperature-dependent inactivation that reflected an intrinsic instability of the complex. Separation of the components of the inactive complex yielded functional CaM, but catalytically inert MLCK, indicating that the site of the inactivating event was confined to MLCK. The behavior of proteolytic fragments further localized this event to the C-terminal 60% of the 603-residue protein. Changes in the tryptophan fluorescence and proteolytic susceptibility of MLCK-CaM indicated that a conformational change accompanied, and thus may have caused, inactivation. Substrates protected against inactivation, as did millimolar concentrations of Mg2+, Mn2+, and Ca2+. These metals appeared to bind to a site on MLCK distinct from that which recognized Mg2+.ATP. A proteolytic fragment of MLCK lacking the ability to bind CaM, C beta 35 (residues 255-584; Edelman, A. M., Takio, K., Blumenthal, D. K., Hansen, R. S., Walsh, K. A., Titani, K., and Krebs, E. G. (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 11275-11285), was unstable at 30 degrees C, whereas a similar fragment which does bind CaM, T beta 40 (residues 236-595; Edelman, A. M., Takio, K., Blumenthal, D. K., Hansen, R. S., Walsh, K. A., Titani, K., and Krebs, E. (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 11275-11285), was unstable only when CaM was bound.
Observations of Lens Systems with Keck I

The extreme difficulty of many essential optical and infrared observations of lens systems has impeded progress and contributed to the popular but erroneous view that lensing is a curiosity rather than an important astrophysical tool. Keck I, with its unprecedented sensitivity for spectroscopy and infrared imaging, will have a major impact on lensing observations.
Properties of State Space Models

This chapter briefly discusses three properties of dynamic systems in state space form that are important in our model-building procedure. They are stability, observability, and reachability (controllability). The notion of stability is well known. A dynamic system is asymptotically stable if the effects of initial conditions vanish asymptotically over time. This property holds if and only if all the eigenvalues of the transition matrix A of a state space model are less than one in magnitude. The other two properties are less familiar to statisticians and econometricians. They may be motivated by requiring that state space model representations be parsimonious—i.e., by the “minimality” of state vector dimension. We briefly mentioned observability in connection with the observability canonical form in Chapter 4. The pair of matrices A and C in a state space model determines this property. More on these properties, as well as economic examples of state space models, can be found in Aoki [1976]. The pair of matrices A and B jointly determines the reachability property. When the model possesses both of these properties, then the minimality of the state vector dimension is assured (see Kalman [1960], or Lindquist and Picci [1979]).
Teaching resources for undergraduate educators in biochemistry and molecular biology: TRUE BMB (618.28)

Through a grant from the NSF, the ASBMB Implementing Vision and Change: developing concept driven teaching strategies in biochemistry and molecular biology project has held 14 regional workshops around the country and at 4 national meetings starting in 2011.The workshops focused on identifying foundational concepts and assessment tools for biochemistry and molecular biology educators. These were highlighted in the September/October 2013 edition of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education. In the next phase of this project, the ASBMB is developing an online repository of teaching resources for the scientific community; the BMB Online Instructional Resources. These will include test questions, laboratory exercises, and syllabi of entire courses submitted by biochemistry and molecular biology educators. These artifacts will be mapped back to broader principles, concepts, skills, and learning objectives proposed earlier in the project, curated and peer reviewed. Resources will also be open to the communit...
Stereoselective Cycloaddition Reactions

Cycloaddition is a member of pericyclic reactions in which reactive components possessing conjugated π-electrons (e.g., diene/dienophile, 1,3-dipole/dipolarophile, and ketene/imine) transform into cyclic molecules. These reactions proceed in a concerted mechanism with a high degree of regio- and stereoselectivity. Thus, they have been widely used for the construction of cyclic skeletons of numerous natural products and pharmacologically active molecules. Based on the π-electron systems of reactants, they can be further classified into [4 + 2], [3 + 2], and [2 + 2] cycloadditions that produce six-, five-, and four-membered rings, respectively. On the other hand, whereas natural products and designed synthetic molecules may offer a starting point in drug development, improvement of their structures and properties is frequently needed to optimize their biological efficacy. To this end, solid-phase synthesis is a powerful tool for generating a large number of compounds with synthetic convenience and many solid-phase cycloaddition reactions have been reported to date. This review, in particular, summarizes stereoselective cycloaddition reactions and their solid-phase versions carried out on polymer supports for the synthesis of natural products and their analogs, focusing on the reactions that were employed as key steps. Keywords: cycloaddition reaction; stereoselective; pericyclic reaction; CC bond formation; total synthesis; regioselectivity; stereoselectivity; [4+2] cycloaddition; [3+2] cycloaddition; [2+2] cycloaddition; solid-phase synthesis
Breastfeeding Practices among Poor Women in Mesoamerica

BACKGROUND: Breastfeeding is an effective intervention to reduce pediatric morbidity and mortality. The prevalence of practices and predictors of breastfeeding among the poor in Mesoamerica has not been well described. OBJECTIVES: We estimated the prevalence of ever breastfeeding early initiation of breastfeeding exclusive breastfeeding and breastfeeding between 6 mo and 2 y of age using household survey data for the poorest quintile of families living in 6 Mesoamerican countries. We also assessed the predictors of breastfeeding behaviors to identify factors amenable to policy interventions. METHODS: We analyzed data from 12529 children in Guatemala Honduras Mexico (Chiapas State) Nicaragua Panama and El Salvador using baseline survey data from the Salud Mesoamerica 2015 Initiative. We created multivariable Poisson regression models with robust variance estimates to calculate adjusted risk ratios (aRRs) and 95% CIs for breastfeeding outcomes and to control for sociodemographic and healthcare-related factors. RESULTS: Approximately 97% of women in all countries breastfed their child at least once and 65.1% (Nicaragua) to 79.0% (Panama) continued to do so between 6 mo and 2 y of age. Breastfeeding in the first hour of life varied by country (P < 0.001) with the highest proportion reported in Panama (89.8%) and the lowest in El Salvador (65.6%). Exclusive breastfeeding also varied by country (P = 0.037) ranging from 44.5% in Panama to 76.8% in Guatemala. For every 20% increase in the proportion of peers who exclusively breastfed there was an 11% (aRR: 1.11 95% CI: 1.04 1.18) increase in the likelihood of exclusive breastfeeding. CONCLUSION: Our study revealed significant variation in the prevalence of breastfeeding practices by poor women across countries surveyed by the Salud Mesoamerica 2015 initiative. Future interventions to promote exclusive breastfeeding should consider ways to leverage the role of the community in supporting individual women. (c) 2015 American Society for Nutrition.
Postpartum follow-up: can psychosocial support reduce newborn readmissions?

PURPOSE: To determine whether there was a relationship between postpartum psychosocial support from healthcare providers and the rate of normal newborn readmissions (NNRs), and whether there was a cost benefit to justify an intervention. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Data were abstracted for all normal newborn births from 1999 to 2006 (N = 14,786) at a community hospital in southern California at three different time periods: (1) at baseline prior to any intervention (1999-2000), (2) the 4 years during the comprehensive psychosocial support intervention (2001-2004), and (3) the 2 years during a limited psychosocial support intervention (2004-2006). A cost-benefit analysis was performed to analyze whether the financial benefits from the intervention matched or exceeded the costs for NNRs. RESULTS: There was a significantly lower readmission rate of 1.0% (p = < .001) during the comprehensive intervention time period compared to baseline (2.3%) or to the limited intervention time period (2.3%). Although there was no significant difference in the average cost per newborn readmitted across the three study time periods, during the comprehensive intervention time period the average costs of a NNR were significantly lower ($4,180, p = .041) for the intervention group compared to those who received no intervention ($5,338). There was a cost benefit of 513,540 dollars due to fewer readmissions during the comprehensive time period, but it did not exceed the cost of the intervention. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Providing comprehensive follow-up for new mothers in the postpartum period can reduce NNRs, thus lowering the average newborn readmission costs for those who receive psychosocial support. Followup for new mothers should be an accepted norm rather than the exception in postpartum care, but NNRs should not be considered the sole outcome in such programs.
The Study of the Relations among Ethical Considerations, Family Management and Organizational Performance in Corporate Governance

Corporate governance is increasingly becoming an issue of global concern, not least because we are more and more living in a corporate world that transcends international boundaries. The main purpose and motivation of this study is to determine how the international community should motivate businesses in fostering exemplary corporate governance, therefore eliminating obstacles to ethically exemplary behavior. The empirical approach utilized here has been applied to 161 businesses, both listed and over-the-counter (OTC) companies, with the results indicating that ethical considerations, corporate governance and organizational performance are inextricably linked and, to an extent, demonstrably proportional. This study also indicates a major finding that family management is a significant mediating variable of the ethical considerations of corporate governance and organizational performance. Finally, this study has developed an operational model of ethical considerations of corporate governance as a consultancy aid for businesses that wish to implement and/or boost their performance in respect to corporate governance.
Supererogation in clinical research

‘Supererogation’ is the notion of going beyond the call of duty. The concept of supererogation has received scrutiny in ethical theory, as well as clinical bioethics. Yet, there has been little attention paid to supererogation in research ethics. Supererogation is examined in this paper from three perspectives: (1) a summary of two analyses of ‘supererogation’ in moral theory, as well as an examination as to whether acts of supererogation exist; (2) a discussion of supererogation in clinical practice, including arguments that both physicians and patients can practice acts of supererogation; (3) a discussion as to why researchers, qua researchers, are not routinely recognized to perform acts of supererogation, while at the same time the very nature of research subject participation involves supererogation. The article concludes by considering three examples of supererogation on the part of researchers, with a plea that researchers’ supererogatory actions be recognized as such.
Caratheodory's concept of temperature

EXAMPLE: Let S{ = S2 = S3 = R and let F^Si, s?) = sin [tt(S? s?)] for i, j = 1, 2, 3. Assume there exist continuous functions t?: S,?>R, ? = 1, 2, 3 such that t\(s\) = t2(s2) = t3(s3) if and only if Fi2(si, s2) = F13(si, s3) = F23(s2, s3) = 0. Thus t\(s\) = t2(s2) = t3(s3) if and only if Si = s2 mod 1 = s3 mod 1. Consider the triples (0, 2, 3) and (1, 2, 3) belonging to Si x S2 x S3. This implies i,(0) = f,(l) and ^,(5) * tx(0) for s i (0,1). Thus t\ is not continuous.
Precision determination of high- Z K-shell fluorescence yields from 195 Au, 207 Bi, and 235 Np decays

A new method utilizing a cooled, high resolution, windowless Si(Li) x-ray and Auger electron detector has been developed for the accurate measurement of high-Z K-shell fluorescence yields. With this method, values of theK-fluorescence yield ω k have been determined with high accuracy atZ=78, 82, and 92 from the radioactive decay of carrier-free195Au,207Bi, and235Np, respectively. The values of ω k are 0.968±0.008, 0.972±0.008, and 0.970±0.005, respectively where the error limits represent 95% confidence. In addition, relativeK-Auger electron group intensities atZ=92 were measured and found to be(K-LL)∶(K-LX)∶(K-XY)=100∶(65.2±6.0)∶ (8.1±0.8). The experimental results for ω k are compared with the relativistic calculations of Bhalla, Ramsdale and, Rosner, and satisfactory agreement is found.
Aortic diastolic pressure decay in congenital arteriovenous malformations

We describe three infants with large congenital arteriovenous malformations, two intracranial and one intrathoracic, who have high output congestive heart failure but normal pulse pressures. The theoretical basis of these pulse pressure findings in contrast to those in infants with shunting secondary to the patent ductus arteriosus is presented.
Phthalic acid amygdalopetal lesion of the nucleus basalis magnocellularis induces reversible memory deficits in rats.

The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is extensively implicated in emotional learning and memory. The current study investigated the contribution of cholinergic afferents to the BLA from the nucleus basalis magnocellularis in influencing aversive learning and memory. Sprague-Dawley rats were given permanent unilateral phthalic acid (300 ng) lesions of the nucleus basalis magnocellularis and were chronically implanted with cannulas aimed at the ipsilateral BLA. Lesioned rats showed a pronounced inhibitory avoidance task retention deficit that was attenuated by acute posttraining infusions of the muscarinic cholinergic agonist oxotremorine (4 ng) or the indirect agonist physostigmine (1 microg) into the BLA. Continuous multiple-trial inhibitory avoidance training and testing revealed that lesioned rats have a mild acquisition deficit, requiring approximately 1 additional shock to reach the criterion, and a pronounced consolidation deficit as indicated by a shorter latency to enter the shock compartment on the retention test. Because lesioned rats did not differ from sham-operated controls in performance on a spatial water maze task or in shock sensitivity, it is not likely that the memory impairments produced by the phthalic acid lesions are due to any general sensory or motor deficits. These findings suggest that the dense cholinergic projection from the nucleus basalis magnocellularis to the BLA is involved in both the acquisition and the consolidation of the aversive inhibitory avoidance task.
AN APPLICATION OF A REALISTIC JOB PREVIEW IN AN INSTRUCTIONAL SETTING

This study, which applied the research findings on realistic job previews in a classroom setting, compared the effects of a “realistic” and “traditional” preview on students' initial classroom expectations, attitudes, classroom attrition, and performance. During registration, either a realistic or traditional preview booklet was placed in the registration materials of the 402 students enrolled in the class. During the first class period students were asked to predict their final grades for the course. A course evaluation was completed by each student at the end of the semester. Final course grades were obtained for each student as well as the identity of those students who had resigned from the course. No significant differences were found between the realistic preview group and the traditional preview group on any of the dependent variables. Regardless of the treatment group, the preview booklet was well received by the students.
Radiative heating rates near the stratospheric fountain

Radiative heating rates are computed for various sets of conditions thought to be appropriate to the stratospheric fountain region: with and without a layer of cirrus cloud between 100 and 150 mbar; with standard ozone and with decreased ozone in the lower stratosphere, again with and without the cirrus cloud; and with different temperatures in the tropopause region. The presence of the cloud decreases the radiative cooling below the cloud in the upper troposphere and increases the cooling above it in the lower stratosphere. The cloud is heated at the base and cooled at the top and thus radiatively destabilized; overall it gains energy by radiation. Decreasing ozone above the cloud also tends to cool the lower stratosphere. The net effect is a tendency for vertical convergence and horizontal divergence in the cloud region. High resolution profiles of temperature, ozone, and cloudiness within the fountain region are required in order to assess the final balance of the various processes.
A case of inappropriate apolipoprotein e testing in Alzheimer's disease due to lack of an informed consent discussion.

Background/objective Apolipoprotein E (APOE) genetic testing is used to assist in the diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease (AD). Whenever genetic testing is performed, an informed consent process should occur. Methods In this case, a patient with memory loss presented to the neurologist. The neurologist ordered a lumbar puncture (LP). The LP was performed by a neuroradiologist who also ordered APOE genetic testing. The patient received no genetic counseling, nor was an informed consent document offered. Results After the testing was completed, the neurologist faced an ethical dilemma. His solution was to offer the genetic testing to the patient in order to have an informed consent process. It was clear that the patient and her adult children did not want the genetic testing and that they would have been burdened with the results. The neurologist opted not to disclose the results. Conclusion Genetic counseling and a signed informed consent document are required prior to any genetic testing. In this case, neither occurred and it led to an ethical dilemma that was ultimately resolved by the neurologist. As the population ages and AD becomes more prevalent, there is a need to expand the workforce of genetic counselors and educate physicians who commonly treat AD about genetic testing.
Product Code Schemes for Error Correction in MLC NAND Flash Memories

Error control coding (ECC) is essential for correcting soft errors in Flash memories. In this paper we propose use of product code based schemes to support higher error correction capability. Specifically, we propose product codes which use Reed-Solomon (RS) codes along rows and Hamming codes along columns and have reduced hardware overhead. Simulation results show that product codes can achieve better performance compared to both Bose-Chaudhuri-Hocquenghem codes and plain RS codes with less area and low latency. We also propose a flexible product code based ECC scheme that migrates to a stronger ECC scheme when the numbers of errors due to increased program/erase cycles increases. While these schemes have slightly larger latency and require additional parity bit storage, they provide an easy mechanism to increase the lifetime of the Flash memory devices.
The Social Psychology of Black–White Interracial Interactions: Implications for Culturally Competent Clinical Practice

Social psychological research suggests that because of concerns about being perceived in stereotypical ways, people may experience negative affect and diminished attention and cognitive capacity during interracial interactions. The authors discuss this research in relation to therapy and assessment and also offer practical suggestions for ensuring culturally competent professional practice. La investigacion en el campo de la psicologia social sugiere que, debido a la preocupacion por ser percibida de forma estereotipada, la gente puede experimentar sentimientos negativos y un nivel reducido de atencion y capacidad cognitiva durante interacciones interraciales. Los autores discuten esta investigacion en relacion a la terapia y evaluacion, y tambien ofrecen sugerencias practicas para asegurar una practica profesional culturalmente competente.
Development of a Multiple-Stage Differential Mobility Analyzer (MDMA)

A new DMA column has been designed with the capability of simultaneously extracting monodisperse particles of different sizes in multiple stages. We call this design a multistage DMA, or MDMA. A prototype MDMA has been constructed and experimentally evaluated in this study. The new column enables the fast measurement of particles in a wide size range, while preserving the powerful particle classification function of a DMA. The prototype MDMA has three sampling stages, capable of classifying monodisperse particles of three different sizes simultaneously. The scanning voltage operation of a DMA can be applied to this new column. Each stage of MDMA column covers a fraction of the entire particle size range to be measured. The covered size fractions of two adjacent stages of the MDMA are designed somewhat overlapped. The arrangement leads to the reduction of scanning voltage range and thus the cycling time of the measurement. The modular sampling stage design of the MDMA allows the flexible configuration of d...
Thermal conductivity and specific heat of non-crystalline solids: Polystyrene and polymethyl methacrylate

Abstract Below 1 K, the specific heat of amorphous polystyrene and polymethyl methacrylate varies as AT + BT3 and the thermal conductivity varies as T1.8 in agreement with measurements on inorganic glasses, demonstrating that this phenomenon is not sensitive to details of morphology.
The Role of Cytology in the Preoperative Assessment and Management of Patients with Pancreaticobiliary Tract Neoplasms

Objective Endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration and bile duct brushings are utilized in the cytologic evaluation of solid and cystic pancreaticobiliary tract lesions. We sought to determine the diagnostic accuracy of cytology.
Purification and Properties of Avian Growth Hormones

Growth hormone has been isolated from the pituitaries of four species of birds (chicken, duck, pigeon and turkey) and partially characterized. All four preparations are active in the tibia test. All elute from a Sephadex G-100 column with a Ve/Vo of about 2.0 and have similar characteristics when examined by disc electrophoresis. In addition, the amino acid contents of all four are similar, and resemble mammalian growth hormone in composition. The N-terminal amino acid sequence ofboth duck and pigeon growth hormones begin with the sequence Phe-Pro-Ala-Met-, which is virtually identical to the N-terminus of ovine and bovine growth hormone. Immunochemical studies (agar diffusion and radioimmunoassay) showed all bird growth hormones to be closely related to one another and to share antigenic determinants with mammalian and reptilian growth hormone. It is concluded that the growth hormone structure has been strongly conserved during evolution. (Endocrinology 95: 1560, 1974)
Evaluation of transient response coefficients

A method is presented for evaluating the transient response coefficients of response functions having poles of any multiplicity. The calculations are effected by use of a recursion-type formula with data obtained from distance and angle measurements on the root-locus plot of the system being analyzed.
Sensory Retraining: A Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Altered Sensation

Sensory retraining teaches the patient to ignore or blot out postinjury unpleasant orofacial sensations to optimally tune into and decipher the weakened and damaged signals from the tissues. Sensory retraining is a simple, inexpensive, noninvasive exercise program, which initiated shortly after injury, can lessen the objectionable impression of orofacial altered sensations. Sensory retraining exercises are most effective on decreasing the perceived burden associated with hypoesthetic orofacial altered sensations.
Pharmacists' interest in and commitment to obtaining an advanced pharmacy degree through continuing education

A 1980–81 survey sent to all 1,893 pharmacists licensed to practice in West Virginia produced 698 returns expressing views on continuing education (CE) and advanced pharmacy degrees. Only 39 percent indicated an interest in an advanced degree via CE with over 50 percent of these favoring the Pharm.D. degree. Z-tests were performed on the selected survey questions to determine the significance of interests and implied commitments. In comparing degree interest to degree goals via CE, a significant difference was found. Interest in an advanced degree was also compared against four question components implying a commitment for the CE degree. Degrees and areas of study, willingness to pay a reasonable tuition and declaration of a tuition amount all produced significant statistical differences in those issues comparisons. Only 24.4 percent of the interested pharmacists were positively committed to a higher degree when a reasonable tuition was considered. Conclusions indicate a small percentage of pharmacists are interested in a higher degree via CE. A general participant profile projects they would be interested if the Pharm.D. were offered with heavy course programming of an independent study nature pertaining to clinical areas encompassing an average of 227 clock hours yearly devoted to degree study.
Pretreatment of donor cells with FGF-2 enhances survival of fetal hippocampal CA3 cell transplants in the chronically lesioned young adult hippocampus.

The lesioned CA3 region of the young adult hippocampus is very conducive for robust survival and integration of fetal hippocampal CA3 cell grafts when transplanted at an early postlesion delay of 4 days. However, similar CA3 cell grafts placed at 45 days postlesion display significantly diminished cell survival, implying that the receptivity of the lesioned young adult host hippocampus to grafts decreases considerably with a prolonged postlesion transplantation delay. We hypothesize that decreased cell survival in grafts placed into the chronically lesioned hippocampus is due to a reduced level of host neurotrophic factors that support fetal hippocampal cells; hence, pretreatment and grafting of donor fetal CA3 cells with fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) considerably enhances graft neuronal integration into the chronically lesioned young adult hippocampus. We employed the optical fractionator cell counting method and rigorously quantified the number of surviving cells and neurons derived from 5'-bromodeoxyuridine-labeled Embryonic Day 19 CA3 cell grafts pretreated and transplanted with FGF-2 into the lesioned CA3 region of the young adult rat hippocampus, at a delay of 60 days after a unilateral intracerebroventricular administration of the kainic acid. For comparison, we also analyzed the survival of standard fetal CA3 cell grafts (i.e., without FGF-2 treatment) after similar transplantation. Pre treatment and transplantation of CA3 cell grafts with FGF-2 resulted in a robust yield of surviving cells (115% of injected cells) and neurons (100% of injected cells) from grafts. In contrast, standard CA3 cell grafts exhibited a reduced yield of surviving cells (29%) and neurons (25%). Thus, the yield of neurons from fetal hippocampal CA3 cell grafts placed into the chronically lesioned young adult hippocampus can be greatly enhanced by a simple pretreatment and grafting of donor fetal CA3 cells with FGF-2. These results have significance toward advancement of clinically feasible cell grafting strategies for repair of the damaged young adult hippocampus, particularly at extended periods after the injury or the onset of neurodegenerative diseases.
Antiangiogenesis in haematological malignancies

Angiogenesis, the growth of new capillary blood vessels, is a central regulator of cancer growth, and a validated target for cancer therapy. The antiangiogenic agents in clinical use target one or more cellular pathways involved in the cascade of vascular growth. In haematological malignancies, angiogenesis occurs within a bone marrow ecosystem comprised of closely apposed malignant cells, endothelial cells, pericytes, fibroblasts, endothelial progenitor cells, dendritic cells, and extracellular matrix. Inhibition of angiogenesis therefore blocks not only the delivery of oxygen and micronutrients to cancer cells, but also disrupts the interdependency of these cellular players and the paracrine effects they exert to maintain the malignant phenotype. Agents such as thalidomide, lenalidomide, bortezomib, and bevacizumab, have demonstrated clinical activity in myeloma, myelodysplastic syndrome, and leukaemias. In leukaemia, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is emerging as a compelling biological target for therapy, as well as a potential predictive marker for disease relapse. Initial clinical studies suggest that the anti-VEGF strategies may advance the primary, sequential or adjunctive treatment for leukaemia, and establish the basis for other potential antiangiogenic strategies in haematological malignancies.
Purification and mass spectrometry of six lipid A species from the bacterial endosymbiont Rhizobium etli. Demonstration of a conserved distal unit and a variable proximal portion.

Lipid A of Rhizobium etli CE3 differs dramatically from that of other Gram-negative bacteria. Key features include the presence of an unusual C28 acyl chain, a galacturonic acid moiety at position 4′, and an acylated aminogluconate unit in place of the proximal glucosamine. In addition, R. etli lipid A is reported to lack phosphate and acyloxyacyl residues. Most of these remarkable structural claims are consistent with our recent enzymatic studies. However, the proposed R. etli lipid A structure is inconsistent with the ability of the precursor (3-deoxy-D-manno-octulosonic acid)2-4′-32P-lipid IVA to accept a C28 chain in vitro (Brozek, K. A., Carlson, R. W., and Raetz, C. R. H. (1996) J. Biol. Chem. 271, 32126–32136). To re-evaluate the structure, CE3 lipid A was isolated by new chromatographic procedures. CE3 lipid A is now resolved into six related components. Aminogluconate is present in D-1, D-2, and E, whereas B and C contain the typical glucosamine disaccharide seen in lipid A of most other bacteria. All the components possess a peculiar acyloxyacyl moiety at position 2′, which includes the ester-linked C28 chain. As judged by mass spectrometry, the distal glucosamine units of A through E are the same, but the proximal units are variable. As described in the accompanying article (Que, N. L. S., Ribeiro, A. A., and Raetz, C. R. H. (2000) J. Biol. Chem. 275, XXXX–XXXX), the discovery of component B suggests a plausible enzymatic pathway for the biosynthesis of the aminogluconate residue found in species D-1, D-2, and E of R. etli lipid A. We suggest that the unusual lipid A species of R. etli might be essential during symbiosis with leguminous host plants.
Unusual thiophene complexes from reactions of Cp*Ir(2,5-dimethylthiophene) with sources of W(CO)5, Cr(CO)4, Mo(CO)4, and Fe(CO)3

Abstract The isomers, Cp*Ir(η 4 -2,5-Me 2 T) ( 1 ) and Cp*Ir(C,S-2,5-Me 2 T) ( 2 ), where 2,5-Me 2 T is 2,5-dimethylthiophene, are observed to coordinate to metal carbonyl fragments in various ways when reacted with metal complexes W(CO) 5 (THF), Cr(CO) 4 (COD), Mo(CO) 4 (NBD) and Fe(CO) 3 (BDA), that contain readily displaceable ligands (COD=1,5-cyclooctadiene, NBD=norbornadiene, BDA=benzylidene acetone). In Cp*Ir(η 4 -2,5-Me 2 T·M(CO) 5 ), the M(CO) 5 unit (M=Cr, Mo, or W) is coordinated to the sulfur atom of 1 . The iridathiabenzene ring of 2 coordinates to a M(CO) 3 moiety through all six atoms in [η 6 -Cp*Ir(C,S-2,5-Me 2 T)]M(CO) 3 , where M=Cr or Mo. The iridathiabenzene ring in the CO adduct of 2 , Cp*Ir(C,S-2,5-Me 2 T)(CO), coordinates through the sulfur to W(CO) 5 in 6 , Cp*Ir[C,S-2,5-Me 2 T·W(CO) 5 ](CO), and through five atoms (not the Ir) to Cr(CO) 3 in 14 , Cp*Ir(C,S-2,5-Me 2 T·Cr(CO) 5 )(CO). Structures of 6 and 14 are reported.
Dynamic Factor Analysis Models With Time-Varying Parameters

Dynamic factor analysis models with time-varying parameters offer a valuable tool for evaluating multivariate time series data with time-varying dynamics and/or measurement properties. We use the Dynamic Model of Activation proposed by Zautra and colleagues (Zautra, Potter, & Reich, 1997) as a motivating example to construct a dynamic factor model with vector autoregressive relations and time-varying cross-regression parameters at the factor level. Using techniques drawn from the state-space literature, the model was fitted to a set of daily affect data (over 71 days) from 10 participants who had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Our empirical results lend partial support and some potential refinement to the Dynamic Model of Activation with regard to how the time dependencies between positive and negative affects change over time. A simulation study is conducted to examine the performance of the proposed techniques when (a) changes in the time-varying parameters are represented using the true model of change, (b) supposedly time-invariant parameters are represented as time-varying, and
A multi-plane scout sequence using flash imaging.

Abstract A new pulse sequence is presented for multi-plane imaging which simultaneously acquires images in the axial, coronal, and sagittal planes. Combined with FLASH imaging or other similar techniques, T1- and T2-weighted images in all three planes can be acquired in approximately 12 and 30 seconds, respectively. The sequence is easily implemented by modifying a multi-slice sequence to provide a rotation of gradient assignments between slice excitations. This sequence has been used extensively as a rapid “scout” scan. Several clinical examples are included.
Zinc status, pregnancy complications, and labor abnormalities.

Abstract Maternal plasma zinc levels, red blood cell levels, and serum alkaline phosphatase activity were used as indices of zinc status in 279 pregnant women at delivery and were compared with the incidence of complications during the antenatal period and major dysfunctional labor patterns. The median values for plasma zinc, red blood cell zinc, and alkaline phosphatase were used as cutoff points to subdivide the patient population into "low" and "high" groups. Low levels of maternal plasma zinc were associated with more complications in the antenatal or intrapartum periods than maternal levels of either alkaline phosphatase or red blood cell zinc. Plasma zinc levels less than the median value were more commonly associated with mild toxemia ( p = 0.02), vaginitis ( p = 0.01), and postdates ( p = 0.01) in the antenatal period. During the intrapartum period, low plasma zinc levels were associated with a prolonged latent phase ( p = 0.05), a protracted active phase ( p = 0.04), labor >20 hours ( p = 0.03), second stage >2.5 hours ( p = 0.01), and cervical and vaginal lacerations ( p = 0.02). Low levels of maternal alkaline phosphatase were strongly associated with a history of previous stillbirth ( p = 0.0005). A low maternal red blood cell zinc level was not associated with complications during either period. Since a low plasma zinc level is a valid predictor of pregnancy complications and abnormal labor, the results suggest that plasma zinc screening, as part of the patient's antenatal workup should be evaluated.
Sixteen-Year-Old Drivers in Fatal Crashes, United States, 2003

Objective. Key features of graduated licensing were introduced in 46 states and the District of Columbia between 1993 and 2003. State evaluations consistently have reported positive overall effects and positive effects of nighttime and passenger restrictions. Sixteen year-olds are the main target of graduated licensing, and the present study investigated changes in their fatal crash involvement and crash characteristics that have taken place nationally during 1993–2003. By looking at 16 year-olds nationally, the study does not constitute a direct test of the effect of graduated licensing laws per se. Methods. Data on fatal crashes were obtained from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System. Sixteen year-olds were compared with older drivers. Results. During these years, the extent to which 16-year-old drivers were in fatal crashes decreased substantially compared with older age groups. The drop in the per capita crash rate for 16 year-olds was 26%. The major change was a reduction in crashes involving trans...
Managing the College Library's Acquisitions Budget

The day-to-day monitoring of the acquisitions budget in a small to medium-sized college library is examined within the context of the educational and fiscal realities of the parent institution. The acquisitions budget is discussed in terms of the allocation of funds for different types of materials, internal accounts for monitoring the budget within these categories, and recommendations for coping with unexpected changes during the course of the fiscal year. A discussion of the book budget offers advice on controlling encumbrances and expenditures, as well as guidelines for a fiscal timetable and the use of allocation formulas. Special problems associated with monitoring standing orders and approval plans are examined. A section on monitoring the periodicals budget addresses concerns with their escalating costs as well as methods for ordering journals and allocating periodical funds in a college library.
Relationship between Dose and Plateau Levels of Drugs Eliminated by Parallel First-Order and Capacity-Limited Kinetics

Repetitive administration at constant time intervals of fixed doses of drugs which are eliminated by apparent first-order kinetics will usually result in the eventual attainment of a drug level plateau in the body. If a drug is eliminated solely by capacity-limited (Michaelis-Menten) kinetics in the therapeutic dose range, it will accumulate in the body without limit when the dose exceeds a certain amount. Drugs eliminated by parallel apparent first-order and capacity-limited kinetics will attain a drug level plateau but, unlike drugs eliminated only by first-order kinetics, the ratio of plateau level-dose is not independent of dose but increases with increasing dose. The rate of this increase is particularly high in a certain dose range which, therefore, represents a “danger zone” in which an increase in dose causes a considerably more than proportional increase in plateau level. This may be the cause of some adverse and toxic effects of certain drugs, such as the salicylates, during chronic therapy.
Dynamic Analysis of Vehicle-Guideway Interaction in a Maglev Cargo Transportation System

The dynamic response of a magnetic levitation (maglev) transportation system has important consequences for guideway design and system costs. The objective of this research is to develop a framework to analyze the dynamic interaction between a flexible guideway structure and a maglev vehicle named Electric Cargo Conveyor (ECCO). Different from other maglev vehicles, which use either electromagnetic or electrodynamic suspension technologies, the ECCO is the only system utilizing the Inductrack levitation technology, where the permanent magnets are arranged as so-called Halbach arrays to create a levitating force. The theoretical dynamic model of the ECCO system is derived in this paper. The guideway structure is modeled as a simply supported beam based on Bernoulli-Euler beam theory. The vehicle is modeled as a two-degree-of-freedom mass-damper-spring system. They are coupled with each other through nonlinear magnetic forces. To investigate the dynamic interaction between the vehicle and guideway, a finite element model of the ECCO system is created in COMSOL Multiphysics using its equation-based modeling interface. Numerical simulations are conducted to examine the effects of different factors such as the cargo weight and the vehicle speed.Copyright © 2012 by ASME
Fluid---structure interaction simulation of pulsatile ventricular assist devices

In this paper we present a collection of fluid---structure interaction (FSI) computational techniques that enable realistic simulation of pulsatile Ventricular Assist Devices (VADs). The simulations involve dynamic interaction of air, blood, and a thin membrane separating the two fluids. The computational challenges addressed in this work include large, buckling motions of the membrane, the need for periodic remeshing of the fluid mechanics domain, and the necessity to employ tightly coupled FSI solution strategies due to the very strong added mass effect present in the problem. FSI simulation of a pulsatile VAD at realistic operating conditions is presented for the first time. The FSI methods prove to be robust, and may be employed in the assessment of current, and the development of future, pulsatile VAD designs.
Transmission Range Optimization for FH-CDMA Networks in Time-Varying Channels

Optimization of the transmission range for maximizing information efficiency is studied in this paper for mobile ad hoc networks with frequency-hopped (FH) CDMA and multiple antennas. Realistic channel models are employed to account for path-loss, log-normal shadowing, and Rayleigh fading. The shadowing and fading are assumed time-varying with different time-scales. The receiver performs decision-feedback demodulation for differential unitary space-time modulation and erasure insertion decoding for Reed-Solomon codes. The decoding error probability is derived based on distributions of the multiple access interference power and the SIR for ground propagation model (path-loss exponent equal to 4). The trade-off between information efficiency and transmission range is studied in detail and insight is obtained into the impact of various system parameters.
Small-angle elastic differential scattering cross section for 25-keV electrons scattering from helium.

We report here small-angle absolute elastic-scattering cross sections for 25-keV electrons scattering from helium in a crossed-beam apparatus. Our results disagree with those reported by Geiger and Moron-Leon, but agree with relativistic Born cross sections obtained with an explicitly correlated wave function. Our results are in agreement with those of Coffman, Fink, and Wellenstein, who used a different approach to measure the elastic differential cross sections. Our experimentally measured x-ray incoherent-scattering factors also agree with the results obtained with the explicitly correlated wave function.