cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Association between insurance status and admission rate for patients evaluated in the emergency department.

OBJECTIVES To determine if differences exist in hospital and intensive care unit (ICU)/operating room admission rates based on health insurance status. METHODS This was a retrospective, cross-sectional study of data from hospital clinical and financial records for all 2001 emergency department (ED) visits (80,209) to an academic urban hospital. Hospital admission and intensive care unit (ICU)/operating room admissions were analyzed, controlling for triage acuity, primary complaint, diagnosis, diagnosis-related group (DRG) severity, and demographics. Multivariate logistic regression models identified factors associated with hospital admission for under insured (self-pay and Medicaid) compared with other insured (private health maintenance organization, preferred provider organization, worker's compensation, and Medicare) patients. RESULTS Compared with the other insured group, under insured patients were less likely, overall, to be admitted to the hospital (odds ratio [OR], 0.82; 95% CI = 0.76 to 0.90), controlling for all other factors studied. Subgroup analysis of common complaints showed under insured patients with a chief complaint of abdominal pain (OR, 0.67; 95% CI = 0.55 to 0.80) or headache (OR, 0.61; 95% CI = 0.39 to 0.95) had the lowest adjusted ORs for admission to the hospital, compared with other insured patients. Under insured patients with DRG of "menstrual and other female reproductive system disorders" (OR, 0.17; 95% CI = 0.06 to 0.51) or "esophagitis, gastroenteritis, and miscellaneous digestive disorders" (OR, 0.55; 95% CI = 0.28 to 0.96) also were less likely to be admitted compared with the other insured group. No significant differences in ICU/operating room admission rates were found between insurance groups. CONCLUSIONS Whereas there was no difference in admission rates to the ICU/operating room by insurance status, this single-center study does suggest an association between insurance status and admission to a general hospital service, which may or may not be causally related. Factors other than provider bias may be responsible for this observed difference.
Auto Trips To The Central Business District

Study of relative effectiveness of various areal characteristics as predictors of one specific type of travel, automobile trip to central business district; series of regression equations relating total, shopping and business-work trips to vehicle registration, population, residential density, dwelling density, vehicle density, and distance; reliability of predicting factor or factors is tested and computed and actual values are compared.
Blockade of 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase generates CD8+ effector T cells with enhanced anti-tumor function.

Although T cell expansion depends on glycolysis, T effector cell differentiation requires signaling via the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Because the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) regulates ROS by generating nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH), we examined how PPP blockade affects T cell differentiation and function. Here, we show that genetic ablation or pharmacologic inhibition of the PPP enzyme 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (6PGD) in the oxidative PPP results in the generation of superior CD8+ T effector cells. These cells have gene signatures and immunogenic markers of effector phenotype and show potent anti-tumor functions both in vitro and in vivo. In these cells, metabolic reprogramming occurs along with increased mitochondrial ROS and activated antioxidation machinery to balance ROS production against oxidative damage. Our findings reveal a role of 6PGD as a checkpoint for T cell effector differentiation/survival and evidence for 6PGD as an attractive metabolic target to improve tumor immunotherapy.
An Antitrust Analysis of NCAA Amateurism as an Unlawful Tying Restraint: Market Power, Surplus Extraction, and Foreclosure

Economists have long recognized the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a monopsonistic cartel that restrains athlete labor compensation below competitive market levels. However, an additional restraint has been heretofore ignored. This article argues that NCAA justifies the restraint on athlete compensation through an anticompetitive tying restraint between two distinct products: intercollegiate athletic participation and post-secondary academic education. Contrary to the unitary “college education” market definition used in the O’Bannon v. NCAA case and to which parties stipulated in subsequent litigation, this article presents evidence of separate relevant markets for these goods. The NCAA Division I cartel leverages its market power in the intercollegiate athletics market, particularly through dominant autonomy “Power-5” conference members, to enhance market power in the tying market, extract consumer surplus from both athletes and the general student body and foreclose competition in the tied market. The existence of separate markets, market power in the tying market, and non-trivial foreclosure sales in the tied education market confirm that NCAA’s model of “amateurism” meets the Supreme Court’s three-pronged per se test for unlawful tying. Further, even in the absence of foreclosure share, the tying arrangement enhances dominant schools’ market power in athletics and achieves surplus extraction by harming competition, which should warrant the imposition of antitrust liability. This article presents an analysis of relevant markets and discusses relevant economic arguments raised by economic experts in the O’Bannon and NCAA Grant-in-Aid litigation, along with a review of the relevant academic literature and legal precedent.
Russian Cyber Operations: Coding the Boundaries of Conflict

This superb new book by Scott Jasper analyzes the theoretical and technical components of Russian cyber operations since approximately the Georgian-Russian conflict of 2008. Deeply informed and cri...
Deconvolution for Acoustic Emission

A new technique is presented for deconvolution of time series (digitally recorded temporal waveforms) such as obtained in acoustic emission. The method, called cross-cut deconvolution, combines two different least squares methods—one completely new, the other a recently developed variant of singular valued decomposition—to produce a potentially robust technique for treating ill-conditioned problems. A simple example is given for deconvolution of a Gaussian kernel in the presence of varying amounts of noise by each least squares method.
vlogsl: a strategy language for simulation-based verification of hardware

Languages such as SystemVerilog and e play an important role in contemporary hardware verification methodology. Through direct, language-level support for notions like constrained randoms, functional coverage, assertions, and so forth, they help verification engineers adopt useful paradigms. This paper demonstrates the usefulness of a new strategy-based paradigm for hardware test generation which is not directly supported by any language we are aware of. A strategy is formed by coordinating multiple simulations toward achieving a high-level goal, such as the generation of a targeted stimulus driving the device through a specific behavior. Strategies are made possible at the language level through constructs exerting meta-level control over simulation, making simulation traces first-class data objects that can be stored, queried, and otherwise manipulated programmatically. These ideas are embodied in a language and tool, called vlogsl. vlogsl is a domain-specific embedded language in Haskell, providing a sophisticated set of strategy language features, including first-order symbolic simulation and integration with an SMT solver. We motivate strategies, describe vlogsl, present several pedagogical examples using vlogsl, and finally a larger example involving an open-source I2C bus master.
Availability of wood-residue fuels for agribusiness and industry in Georgia

Data were collected from 278 wood-using firms (mostly sawmills) from January to September 1980. The weekly capacity of sawmills, seasonal variations in production, quantities and values of wood residues produced, their destinations, marketing conditions and transportation costs were recorded. Wood residues were available at prices ranging from $3.86/ton for sawdust to $12.30/ton for shavings. Fuel quantity, price and availability were analysed for 14 firms identified as potential wood fuel users; sufficient unsold residues were available to meet the fuel needs of 7 of these (mostly textiles and poultry processing firms), at a saving of 23-51% depending on the fuel currently in use. This change, would however, be expected to increase residue prices. (Refs. 3).
Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura in pregnancy.

Abstract The fourth case of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura complicating pregnancy has been reported, the subject briefly reviewed, and therapy discussed as to the advantages and disadvantages of medical versus surgical treatment.
Customer-focused IT: a process of continuous value innovation

Purpose – Transition to a digital economy and the pervasiveness of IT in a firm’s operations together has brought the IT function in corporations to the threshold of a needed transformation: from an orientation that prizes technical excellence to one that achieves continuous innovation by finding new opportunities to provide value to customers. Design/methodology/approach – The author believes that companies need to adopt customer-focused IT, this requires a shift in organizational culture, from considering technical excellence as an end in itself, to respecting customers as the centrally important stakeholder of an organization. Findings – In many companies, rethinking the IT function to focus it on providing value to the customer presents an opportunity to empower frontline employees, to make innovations in the company value chain and to maintain and to enhance competitive advantage. Practical implications – Changing to a customer focus requires dedicated continuous innovation to enlist the full resourc...
Learning From The Skills Of Others: Experimental Evidence

This paper reports an experimental test of how, when observing others' actions, participants learn more than just information that the others have. We use a setting where all information is public and where subjects face two kinds of information sets: (1) the information that is necessary and su±cient for them to payoff-maximize and (2) the decisions of previous players. We show that by observing the second type of information subjects learn how to improve their own decision-making process. Specifically, the accurate players make small errors no matter what information set they face whereas the inaccurate players perform much better when the decisions of others are public.
The S.T.O.N.E. Score: A new assessment tool to predict stone free rates in ureteroscopy from pre-operative radiological features

^a Objective: To develop a user friendly system (S.T.O.N.E. Score) to quantify and describe stone characteristics provided by computed axial tomography scan to predict ureteroscopy outcomes and to evaluate the characteristics that are thought to affect stone free rates. Materials and Methods: The S.T.O.N.E. score consists of 5 stone characteristics: (S)ize, (T)opography (location of stone), (O)bstruction, (N)umber of stones present, and (E)valuation of Hounsfield Units. Each component is scored on a 1-3 point scale. The S.T.O.N.E. Score was applied to 200 rigid and flexible ureteroscopies performed at our institution. A logistic model was applied to evaluate our data for stone free rates (SFR). Results: SFR were found to be correlated to S.T.O.N.E. Score. As S.T.O.N.E. Score increased, the SFR decreased with a logical regression trend (p 90% and typically falls off by 10% per point thereafter. Conclusions: The S.T.O.N.E. Score is a novel assessment tool to predict SFR in patients who require URS for the surgical therapy of ureteral and renal stone disease. The features of S.T.O.N.E. are relevant in predicting SFR with URS. Size, location, and degree of hydronephrosis were statistically significant factors in multivariate analysis. The S.T.O.N.E. Score establishes the framework for future analysis of the treatment of urolithiasis. ^len
Partitioned strategies for lane assignment in multi-lane AHS

This paper discusses partitioned strategies for lane assignment in automated highway systems (AHS) having three lanes for (semi)-automated driving. The authors discuss the functional role of lane assignment. Next, the authors classify lane assignment strategies into nonpartitioned (chaotic, unconstrained and constant lane) and partitioned (destination monotone, origin monotone and monotone) strategies. An optimization problem is formulated with performance criterion being a combination of travel time and maneuver costs. Conditions under which the optimal strategy is partitioned, or nearly so, are discussed. Finally, a case study of a 20 section highway and the strategies obtained for it under the minimization of total travel time criterion is presented. >
Hand to hand.

Examination of the hands has the potential to transform the encounter between physician and patient. Taking the hands conveys a sense of warmth and connectedness and is a means to communicate the physician's mindfulness. The hands can focus the examination on the individual patient as a complete human being, and not merely a disease or a collection of symptoms. The hands provide readily accessible information that may not be available through other evaluations, and they offer clues to a patient's physical and mental health. Commonplace observations, such as those revealed in the hands, can unravel medical mysteries and provide profound clinical insights.
Localized States for Elementary Systems

It is attempted to formulate the properties of localized states on the basis of natural invariance requirements. Chief of these is that a state, localized at a certain point, becomes, after a translation, orthogonal to all the undisplaced states localized at that point. It is found that the required properties uniquely define the set of localized states for elementary systems of non-zero mass and arbitrary spin. The localized functions belong to a continuous spectrum of an operator which it is natural to call the position operator. This operator has automatically the property of preserving the positive energy character of the wave function to which it is applied (and it should be applied only to such wave functions). It is believed that the development here presented may have applications in the theory of elementary particles and of the collision matrix.
Carbon and water flux responses to physiology by environment interactions: a sensitivity analysis of variation in climate on photosynthetic and stomatal parameters

Sensitivity of carbon uptake and water use estimates to changes in physiology was determined with a coupled photosynthesis and stomatal conductance (g s) model, linked to canopy microclimate with a spatially explicit scheme (MAESTRA). The sensitivity analyses were conducted over the range of intraspecific physiology parameter variation observed for Acer rubrum L. and temperate hardwood C3 (C3) vegetation across the following climate conditions: carbon dioxide concentration 200–700 ppm, photosynthetically active radiation 50–2,000 μmol m−2 s−1, air temperature 5–40 °C, relative humidity 5–95 %, and wind speed at the top of the canopy 1–10 m s−1. Five key physiological inputs [quantum yield of electron transport (α), minimum stomatal conductance (g 0), stomatal sensitivity to the marginal water cost of carbon gain (g 1), maximum rate of electron transport (J max), and maximum carboxylation rate of Rubisco (V cmax)] changed carbon and water flux estimates ≥15 % in response to climate gradients; variation in α, J max, and V cmax input resulted in up to ~50 and 82 % intraspecific and C3 photosynthesis estimate output differences respectively. Transpiration estimates were affected up to ~46 and 147 % by differences in intraspecific and C3 g 1 and g 0 values—two parameters previously overlooked in modeling land–atmosphere carbon and water exchange. We show that a variable environment, within a canopy or along a climate gradient, changes the spatial parameter effects of g 0, g 1, α, J max, and V cmax in photosynthesis-g s models. Since variation in physiology parameter input effects are dependent on climate, this approach can be used to assess the geographical importance of key physiology model inputs when estimating large scale carbon and water exchange.
Ultrasonography and diagnosis of pediatric genitourinary rhabdomyosarcoma

Rhabdomyosarcoma is the most common tumor of the lower genitourinary tract in children during their first two decades of life. Four patients with genitourinary rhabdomyosarcoma are presented, with ultrasonographic and radiographic findings. The utility of ultrasound in the diagnosis of this pediatric tumor is emphasized.
Heterophilic interactions of sodium channel β1 subunits with axonal and glial cell adhesion molecules

Voltage-gated sodium channels localize at high density in axon initial segments and nodes of Ranvier in myelinated axons. Sodium channels consist of a pore-forming α subunit and at least one β subunit. β1 is a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily of cell adhesion molecules and interacts homophilically and heterophilically with contactin and Nf186. In this study, we characterized β1 interactions with contactin and Nf186 in greater detail and investigated interactions of β1 with NrCAM, Nf155, and sodium channel β2 and β3 subunits. Using Fc fusion proteins and immunocytochemical techniques, we show that β1 interacts with the fibronectin-like domains of contactin. β1 also interacts with NrCAM, Nf155, sodium channel β2, and Nf186 but not with sodium channel β3. The interaction of the extracellular domains of β1 and β2 requires the region 169TEEEGKTDGEGNA181 located in the intracellular domain of β2. Interaction of β1 with Nf186 results in increased Nav1.2 cell surface density over α alone, similar to that shown previously for contactin and β2. We propose that β1 is the critical communication link between sodium channels, nodal cell adhesion molecules, and ankyrinG.
Adhesion of Enteromorpha swarmers to microbial films

Laboratory experiments were conducted to determine the effect of bacterial films on adhesion ofEnteromorpha sp. reproductive swarmer cells. Swarmers always attached in greater numbers to filmed than to unfilmed polystyrene surfaces. Surface energy measurements produced higher values on filmed surfaces than on unfilmed surfaces. Our data indicate that this higher surface energy may contribute to the increased adhesion by the algal swarmers.
Improving efficiency of dynamic analysis with dynamic dependence summaries

Modern applications make heavy use of third-party libraries and components, which poses new challenges for efficient dynamic analysis. To perform such analyses, transitive dependent components at all layers of the call stack must be monitored and analyzed, and as such may be prohibitively expensive for systems with large libraries and components. As an approach to address such expenses, we record, summarize, and reuse dynamic dataflows between inputs and outputs of components, based on dynamic control and data traces. These summarized dataflows are computed at a fine-grained instruction level; the result of which, we call "dynamic dependence summaries." Although static summaries have been proposed, to the best of our knowledge, this work presents the first technique for dynamic dependence summaries. The benefits to efficiency of such summarization may be afforded with losses of accuracy. As such, we evaluate the degree of accuracy loss and the degree of efficiency gain when using dynamic dependence summaries of library methods. On five large programs from the DaCapo benchmark (for which no existing whole-program dynamic dependence analyses have been shown to scale) and 21 versions of NANOXML, the summarized dependence analysis provided 90% accuracy and a speed-up of 100% (i.e., ×2), on average, when compared to traditional exhaustive dynamic dependence analysis.
Spectroscopic and magnetic studies of tetravalent Pa and trivalent Th compounds

Abstract At the beginning of the actinide series, the 5f and 6d configurations are very close in energy. Consequently, both the 5f and 6d energy level splittings may be observed experimentally in Pa 4+ and Th 3+ compounds. The available magnetic and optical data on these systems are reviewed.
Live imaging of endogenous periodic tryptophan protein 2 gene homologue during zebrafish development

Yeast Periodic tryptophan protein 2 gene (Pwp2) is involved in ribosome biogenesis and has been implicated in regulation of the cell cycle in yeast. Here, we report a zebrafish protein-trap line that produces fluorescently tagged Periodic tryptophan protein 2 gene homologue (Pwp2h) protein, which can be dynamically tracked in living fish at subcellular resolution. We identified both full-length zebrafish Pwp2h and a short variant. The expression results show that Pwp2h is present in numerous sites in the early developing embryo, but later is restricted to highly proliferative regions, including the forebrain ventricular zone and endoderm-derived organs in the early larval stage. At the subcellular level, Pwp2h protein appears to be localized to the region of the nucleolus consistent with its presumed function in ribosomal RNA synthesis. This Pwp2h protein trap line offers a powerful tool to study the link between ribosome biogenesis and cell cycle progression during vertebrate development.
Binswanger's disease—Its clinical and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) correlation

Abstract Six cases of Binswanger's disease (BD) were presented to better define the clinical and neuroimaging features. All patients had progressive mental deterioration with characteristic sub-cortical dementia including mutism, abulia and focal neurological signs and symptoms. All the patients showed marked periventricular high intensity (PVH) on MRI, and SPECT revealed cerebral blood flow reduction both in the subcortical and cortical regions. We consider disconnections between the subcortical nuclei and the cerebral cortex and between the cortices, secondary to hypoperfusion through the long penetrating arteries with few collaterals, play a major role in producing characteristic clinical features of BD. Early diagnosis especially by MRI and careful control of risk factors may be essential for preventing further progression of BD.
The P & p illusion

Identical letters can appear to differ in size and shape depending on whether they are interpreted as uppercase or lowercase. The effect is most dramatic with the letter p. Examination of subjects’ estimates of the magnitude of the effect for different stimuli suggests that two factors are involved in the illusion. One factor depends only on whether a letter is interpreted as uppercase or lowercase. Thisfactor can be manipulated by changes in the size or case ofthe surrounding letters. The second factor, which depends on the possibility of interpreting a vertical line alternatively as an ascender or a descender(as in p or y), seems to involve a change in the perceived size of the letters’ loops.
Estimating the design value(s) of the shunt-peaking inductor(s) in CMOS trans-impedance amplifier system by placement of poles and zeros

This article provides a guideline towards estimating the design value(s) of the shunt-peaking inductor(s) used in a wide-band CMOS amplifier system. Mathematical analysis and numerical technique followed by circuit simulation, have been used to demonstrate the feasibility of the approach. The procedure applied to a common-gate amplifier in 0.5 micron CMOS technology produces a simulation result with 51.8 dBΩ gain, 4.32 GHz bandwidth, a peaking < 1dB, with 2.8 mW of DC power. Similarly, the design of an interstage PI configuration of inductors, demonstrates a −3dB bandwidth of 37 GHz, peaking <0.3 dB with a total inductance of 2.24 nH.
Enhancements and performance of Seaglider Iridium communications system

iRobot licensed Seaglider from the University of Washington in 2008 and has subsequently been working to improve the reliability and performance of the design. One area that has received particular attention is the performance of the Iridium communication system. Improvements to the glider have been made in hardware and firmware. In combination with a new hosted cloud basestation and utilization of RUDICS, Seaglider now connects on the first call almost 90% of the time and data throughput rates have increased by greater than 10% resulting in greater reliability and less operational costs.
On‐farm monitoring of soil and crop nitrogen status by nitrate‐selective electrode

Abstract Nitrate‐nitrogen concentration in fresh petiole sap, as measured by a portable, battery‐operated, nitrate‐selective electrode, was highly correlated with NO3‐N concentration in dry petiole tissue of broccoli [Brassica oleracea L. (Italica group), r2 = 0.84], celery [Apium graveolens L. var. dulce (Mill.) Pers., r2 = 0.88], lettuce (Lacluca saliva L., r2 = 0.77), pepper (Capsicum annuum var. annuum L., r2 = 0.89), tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill., r2 = 0.83), and watermelon [Citrulius lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai, r2 = 0.88]. This relationship was linear over a wide range of NO3‐N values and was generally unaffected by site, crop, cultivar, or growth stage, provided that petiole tissue analyzed was from recently matured leaves. Sap was analyzed directly without dilution or filtration. The slope of the regression equation differed widely among crops. Selective electrode analysis of NO3‐N concentration of soil solution samples obtained by suction lysimetry was also highly correlated with co...
Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Inhibits Endothelial Nitric-oxide Synthase Gene Promoter Activity in Bovine Aortic Endothelial Cells

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) has been shown to reduce endothelial nitric-oxide synthase (eNOS) gene expression through post-transcriptional regulation of mRNA stability. The current study documented an independent effect of the cytokine on the eNOS gene promoter. TNF-alpha effected a time- and dose-dependent reduction in activity of a transiently transfected human -1197 eNOS-luciferase reporter. This reduction was inhibited by co-transfection of dominant negative IKKbeta as well as a nonphosphorylatable constitutively suppressive mutant of IkappaB implying involvement of the NFkappaB cascade in the inhibitory effect. The locus of the TNF-alpha-dependent inhibition was traced to two Sp1-binding sites positioned between -109 and -95 and -81 and -67 relative to the transcription start site. Electrophoretic mobility shift analysis and immunoperturbation studies showed evidence for Sp1 and Sp3 binding to each element. TNF-alpha treatment had no effect on the binding pattern to the downstream (-81 to -67) site but did suppress association of Sp1 and Sp3 to the upstream (-109 to -95) site. Collectively, these data indicate that TNF-alpha exerts transcriptional, as well as post-transcriptional, effects on eNOS gene expression and suggest a potential mechanism to account for the endothelial dysfunction that accompanies disorders such as diabetes mellitus and heart failure.
Time decay for solutions to one-dimensional two component plasma equations

1. Dedication and introduction. We represent three generations of students: Bob Glassey, Walter’s student finishing at Brown in 1972, Jack Schaeffer, Bob’s student finishing at Indiana University in 1983, and Steve Pankavich, Jack’s student finishing at Carnegie Mellon in 2005. We have all thrived professionally from our association with Walter and are delighted to dedicate this note to him on the occasion of his 70th birthday. The problem we study below concerns the asymptotic behavior of solutions, an area to which Walter has contributed greatly. The motion of a collisionless plasma is described by the Vlasov–Maxwell system. If we neglect magnetic effects we then have the Vlasov–Poisson system (VP). We can also consider the effect of large velocities and solutions to the relativistic Vlasov–Poisson system (RVP). We will study both systems in one space and one momentum dimension with two species of oppositely charged particles. We further assume that each system is neutral , which means that the average value of the density ρ vanishes (see below). The
Effects of histamine on gastric blood flow.

In anesthetized dogs, volume flow rate of blood to the stomach and distribution of blood through the stomach were studied by means of an electromagnetic flow meter and a surface counting technic. Simultaneous measurements of gastric secretory activities were made. Histamine was found to decrease volume flow rate of blood to the stomach. Distribution of blood through the stomach was altered by histamine. Whereas under resting conditions distribution of blood flow was predominantly antral, during histamine-induced gastric hypersecretion, blood flow tended to shift toward the fundus and away from the antrum. Therefore, it appears that distribution of blood through the stomach is not uniform but is characterized by a “borrowing and lending” phenomenon.
Uptake and distribution of 14C during and following inhalation exposure to radioactive toluene diisocyanate

Inhalation of toluene diisocyanate (TDI) results in toxic responses ranging from pulmonary irritation to immunological sensitization. The use of radioactively labeled isocyanate has made it possible to follow the initial uptake of the compound into the bloodstream independent of the final fate of the isocyanate. This study shows that the rate of uptake into the blood is linear during exposure to concentrations ranging from 0.00005 to 0.146 ppm and that the uptake continues to increase slightly postexposure. It also demonstrates that the radioactivity clears from the bloodstream to a level corresponding to approximately a 100 nM concentration of tolyl group after 72 hr and persists at a nanomolar level even 2 weeks following the exposure. This is similar to the response previously reported by this group for radioactively labeled methyl isocyanate. The initial rate of 14C uptake is also a linear function of the concentration of TDI when expressed either as concentration (ppm) or as concentration multiplied by duration of exposure (ppm.hr). This is discussed in comparison with the toxic responses as a function of both ppm and ppm.hr. Finally, the inclusion of the data on methyl isocyanate indicates that the uptake into arterial blood is a function of exposure concentration, independent of isocyanate structure.
Rapamycin ameliorates age-dependent obesity associated with increased mTOR signaling in hypothalamic POMC neurons

The prevalence of obesity in older people is the leading cause of metabolic syndromes. Central neurons serving as homeostatic sensors for body-weight control include hypothalamic neurons that express pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) or neuropeptide-Y (NPY) and agouti-related protein (AgRP). Here, we report an age-dependent increase of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling in POMC neurons that elevates the ATP-sensitive potassium (K(ATP)) channel activity cell-autonomously to silence POMC neurons. Systemic or intracerebral administration of the mTOR inhibitor rapamycin causes weight loss in old mice. Intracerebral rapamycin infusion into old mice enhances the excitability and neurite projection of POMC neurons, thereby causing a reduction of food intake and body weight. Conversely, young mice lacking the mTOR-negative regulator TSC1 in POMC neurons, but not those lacking TSC1 in NPY/AgRP neurons, were obese. Our study reveals that an increase in mTOR signaling in hypothalamic POMC neurons contributes to age-dependent obesity.
Lifted inequalities for 0-1 mixed integer programming: Superlinear lifting

We study the mixed 0-1 knapsack polytope, which is defined by a single knapsack constraint that contains 0-1 and bounded continuous variables, through the lifting of continuous variables fixed at their upper bounds. We introduce the concept of a superlinear inequality and show that, in this case, lifting is significantly simpler than for general inequalities. We use the superlinearity theory, together with the traditional lifting of 0-1 variables, to describe families of facets of the mixed 0-1 knapsack polytope. Finally, we show that superlinearity results can be extended to nonsuperlinear inequalities when the coefficients of the variables fixed at their upper bounds are large.
Ab initio simulation of high-pressure phases of GaAs

The pressure-induced phase transition in GaAs is studied using an ab initio constant-pressure relaxation simulation. GaAs undergoes a first-order phase transition to $\mathrm{Cmcm}$ at 54 GPa. Upon further increase of pressure a gradual phase change to $\mathrm{Imm}2$ structure is seen at 57 GPa, which confirms an earlier experiment and clears some doubts about the existence and identity of $\mathrm{Imm}2.$ The transition pressures are also calculated from the Gibbs free energy, and it is found that the structural phase change occurs at 23.5 GPa for $\mathrm{Cmcm}$ and at 24 GPa for $\mathrm{Imm}2.$ The transformation path from $\mathrm{Cmcm}$ and $\mathrm{Imm}2$ proceeds through sliding of some $\mathrm{Cmcm}$ planes and relatively large sliding yields a transition from $\mathrm{Imm}2$ to simple hexagonal structure. We find that $\mathrm{Cmcm}$ and $\mathrm{Imm}2$ phases are semimetals.
How to interfere with FLT3

Comment on Walters et al, page [2952][1] An siRNA approach targeting the FLT3 receptor with internal tandem duplication may increase the efficacy of the FLT3-specific tyrosine kinase inhibitor MLN518 in acute myeloid leukemias. In recent years it has become evident that tyrosine kinases are
An interspecific comparison using immunofluorescence reveals that synapse density in the avian song system is related to sex but not to male song repertoire size

Immunofluorescent labeling of synaptic vesicle protein 2 (SV2) and confocal microscopy were employed to assess the role of synapse density in the functioning of the avian song system. Synapse density in premotor nuclei HVC and RA was measured, in both sexes of two species characterized by male-only singing behavior: the zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata, which sings a single, stereotyped song, and the Carolina wren Thryothorus ludovicianus, which sings a large repertoire of different songs. Multiple levels of analyses demonstrate overall similarity of synapse density between nuclei HVC and RA, suggesting that synapse density is regulated uniformly across these regions within individuals. Male zebra finches and male Carolina wrens have equivalent synapse densities, suggesting a common pattern of masculinized development despite dramatic behavioral differences. Female Carolina wrens have synaptic density similar to that of males of both species, while female zebra finches exhibit greater synaptic densities in both regions than do male zebra finches or both sexes of wrens. Prior reports implicate testosterone as a regulator of synapse density in this system; sex differences in circulating or neural testosterone may contribute to the sexual dimorphism of synapse density observed here. Interspecific comparison of song system synapse density in nonsinging females suggests that synapse density in female songbirds may be a particularly labile trait.
Electromagnetic and finite βe effects on the counterstreaming ion instability

Abstract It was found theoretically and by computer simulation that finite electron βe simply enlarges the region of instability of ions counterstreaming across a magnetic field while the rest of the linear and nonlinear theory remains unchanged.
Oxygen-Induced Ligand Dehydrogenation of a Planar Bis-μ-Chloronickel(I) Dimer Featuring an NHC Ligand

Planar bis-μ-chloronickel(I) dimers undergo rapid aerobic oxidation to yield bis-μ-hydroxonickel(II) dimers with concomitant ligand dehydrogenation.
Advanced Adenoma Detection Rate Is Independent of Nonadvanced Adenoma Detection Rate

OBJECTIVES Adenoma detection rate (ADR) is the accepted rate marker in colonoscopy quality. Advanced adenomas detected at index colonoscopy, while less frequent than nonadvanced adenomas, carry greater risk for future advanced neoplasia during surveillance colonoscopy. This study aimed to determine the effect of the colonoscopist and other factors on advanced ADR and to define the correlation of advanced and nonadvanced ADRs among colonoscopists. METHODS An observational study of a cohort of patients undergoing first-time colorectal cancer screening colonoscopy was conducted. Patient characteristics and colonoscopic findings were collected. Adenoma, advanced adenoma, and nonadvanced ADRs were calculated. Logistic regression was used to determine variable effects on advanced adenoma detection, and Spearman's rank-order correlation was used to evaluate the relationship between advanced and nonadvanced ADRs. RESULTS A total of 1,944 patients had first-time screening colonoscopies by 14 colonoscopists. All colonoscopists had adequate (>20%) ADRs. The variability in the colonoscopist ranges of detection was 22.22 to 44.66% for adenomas and 2.00 to 18.18% for advanced adenomas. Logistic regression showed that increasing patient age (odds ratio (OR) 1.16 per 5-year increase, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.05-1.28, P=0.008) and male gender (OR 2.15, 95% CI 1.51-3.06, P<0.0001) were variables associated with advanced adenoma detection. Colonoscopists were significantly different in detecting advanced adenomas by random effects model (P=0.002), adjusting for patient age, gender, race, year of colonoscopy, gastroenterology fellow participation during colonoscopy, and nonadvanced adenomas. Spearman's rank-order correlation coefficient of -0.42 (95% CI -0.77 to 0.14, P=0.13) was not significant and showed no correlation between advanced and nonadvanced adenoma detection by the group of colonoscopists. CONCLUSIONS Advanced ADR is variable among colonoscopists with acceptable ADRs. Colonoscopists' advanced ADRs are independent of their nonadvanced ADRs.
Production of composite neutral Higgs bosons in photoproduction and e + e - experiments

We examine the consequences of a sizable tree-level coupling of a neutral Higgs boson to two photons, which could exist in composite models where the intermediate vector bosons and scalar Higgs bosons are made of the same subconstituents. We find that for certain ranges of the coupling strength and Higgs-boson mass, a neutral composite Higgs boson can be produced and detected in photon-proton scattering and e/sup +/e/sup -/ annihilation at currently accessible energies. We also discuss other processes that are not present in the standard model at the tree level, but may lead to observable neutral-Higgs-boson production at, for instance, a p-barp collider.
The Role of Emotional Response during an H1N1 Influenza Pandemic on a College Campus

This study investigates how both positive and negative emotions relate to stakeholders' attributions of crisis responsibility, relational trust, and willingness to engage in crisis-related information seeking from the organization. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze data obtained from a survey of 429 students in a university that experienced a large H1N1 influenza outbreak. Students felt several positive emotions more frequently than negative emotions during a flu pandemic. Crisis responsibility was associated with both negative and positive emotions, and these emotions were significant mediators between crisis responsibility and both relational trust and willingness to seek information from the organization in a crisis. Implications of these findings are discussed.
Restoring a Tooth with Massive Internal Resorption to Form and Function: Report of Case

This case report describes an innovative restorative technique using glass ionomer and posterior composite resin materials. It was used to treat a patient with extensive internal resorption of the clinical crown of the maxillary first molar. Although unconventional, this method successfully strengthened and restored the tooth.
Risk of significant coronary artery disease as determined by CT measurement of the distribution of abdominal adipose tissue.

Purpose: The purpose of this work was to determine if CT measurement of the distribution of abdominal adipose tissue is reproducible between observers and is associated with patient risk of significant coronary artery disease. Method: We compared 11 male patients having abdominal CT who had a history of significant coronary artery disease and 9 male patients having abdominal CT without a history of coronary artery disease. Two observers, at the level of the umbilicus, independently measured the ratio of visceral adipose tissue (VAT) to total abdominal adipose tissue (TAT). VAT is equal to the sum total of intraperitoneal and retroperitoneal adipose tissue. TAT equals the sum total of visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue. Measurements were made using a standard software package. Results: The mean ratio of VAT to TAT was significantly different (p < 0.05) between patients with a history of coronary artery disease (mean = 0.51, SD = 0.10, range = 0.38-0.69) and without a history of coronary artery disease (mean = 0.40, SD = 0.12, range = 0.23-0.51). Agreement in measurements between observers was excellent (mean difference = 0.01, range = 0.00-0.03, intraclass correlation = 0.99). Conclusion: The measurement of the VAT/TAT ratio is highly reproducible between observers, and a high ratio is associated with patient risk of significant coronary artery disease.
Glyphosate influence on phytoplankton community structure in Lake Erie

Abstract In this study we investigated the effect of the phosphonate herbicide glyphosate ( N- (phosphonomethyl)glycine) on the phytoplankton community structure in Lake Erie using lake water incubations, laboratory growth experiments and phylogenetic analysis of phosphonate metabolism genes. In microcosms, addition of glyphosate to Sandusky Bay water resulted in a significant increase in phytoplankton abundance, specifically causing an increase in the abundance of Planktothrix spp. In microcosms using Maumee Bay water, glyphosate did not stimulate phytoplankton growth but caused a decrease in Microcystis spp. abundance. The difference in the ability of Planktothrix spp. and Microcystis spp. to grow in the presence of glyphosate was confirmed in laboratory growth experiments. Further, an examination of the molecular pathways involved in phosphonate metabolism demonstrated that heterotrophic bacteria may be critical in allowing this proliferation. The results indicate that glyphosate has both positive and negative influences on phytoplankton community structure, serving as a nutrient source to microbes able to tolerate the herbicidal effects of the compound while killing those less tolerant. Moreover, this work highlights that in natural environments microorganisms function as communities, and the metabolic abilities of individual species are often less important than the collective ability of the community.
Influence of several antibiotics, singly and in combination, on the growth of Listeria monocytogenes.

Three strains of Listeria monocytogenes were studied for their in vitro susceptibility to five antibiotics alone or in various combinations. Penicillin or ampicillin plus kanamycin or gentamicin gave earlier and more complete killing than any of the agents alone. Penicillin and tetracycline together were no more effective than tetracycline alone and the combination was less effective than penicillin alone. The possibility of in vivo synergism of various commonly used antibiotic combinations should be further investigated since many patients with listeriosis receive such combinations for broad antibacterial coverage until the specific etiologic diagnosis is made.
E-selectin ligand 1 regulates bone remodeling by limiting bioactive TGF-β in the bone microenvironment

TGF-β is abundantly produced in the skeletal system and plays a crucial role in skeletal homeostasis. E-selectin ligand-1 (ESL-1), a Golgi apparatus-localized protein, acts as a negative regulator of TGF-β bioavailability by attenuating maturation of pro–TGF-β during cartilage homeostasis. However, whether regulation of intracellular TGF-β maturation by ESL-1 is also crucial during bone homeostasis has not been well defined. Here, we show that Esl-1−/− mice exhibit a severe osteopenia with elevated bone resorption and decreased bone mineralization. In primary culture, Esl-1−/− osteoclast progenitors show no difference in osteoclastogenesis. However, Esl-1−/− osteoblasts show delayed differentiation and mineralization and stimulate osteoclastogenesis more potently in the osteoblast–osteoclast coculture, suggesting that ESL-1 primarily acts in osteoblasts to regulate bone homeostasis. In addition, Esl-1−/− calvaria exhibit an elevated mature TGF-β/pro–TGF-β ratio, with increased expression of TGF-β downstream targets (plasminogen activator inhibitor-1, parathyroid hormone-related peptide, connective tissue growth factor, and matrix metallopeptidase 13, etc.) and a key regulator of osteoclastogenesis (receptor activator of nuclear factor κB ligand). Moreover, in vivo treatment with 1D11, a pan–TGF-β antibody, significantly improved the low bone mass of Esl-1−/− mice, suggesting that elevated TGF-β signaling is the major cause of osteopenia in Esl-1−/− mice. In summary, our study identifies ESL-1 as an important regulator of bone remodeling and demonstrates that the modulation of TGF-β maturation is pivotal in the maintenance of a homeostatic bone microenvironment and for proper osteoblast–osteoclast coupling.
Control of finger force direction in the flexion-extension plane

We have examined the interaction among individual finger forces in tasks that required the production of the total force by a subset of fingers in a particular direction in the flexion-extension plane. Nine subjects produced fingertip forces in a prescribed direction with a maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) effort and held the peak force for two seconds. Six finger combinations were tested, four single-finger tasks--Index (I), Middle (M), Ring (R) and Little (L)--one two-digit task (IM), and one four-digit task (IMRL). The subjects were asked to generate the finger forces in two directions, 0 degrees (perpendicular to the surface of the transducer) and 15 degrees toward the palm. In all task conditions, there were two experimental sessions, with and without visual feedback on the task force vector. The main findings were: 1. The target direction significantly affected the constant error (CE) but not the variable error (VE) while removal of the feedback resulted in an increase in VE. 2. The direction of the forces produced by fingers that were not explicitly required to produce force (enslaved fingers) depended on the target direction. 3. In multi-finger tasks, the individual fingers produced force in directions that could differ significantly from the target direction, while the resultant force pointed in the target direction. There was a negative co-variation among the deviations of the directions of the individual finger forces from the target direction. If a finger force vector deviated from the target, another finger force vector was likely to deviate in the opposite direction. We conclude that a multi-finger synergy is involved in the control of the finger force direction.