cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Improving Clinical Outcome with Centrifugal Mechanical Assist for Postcardiotomy Ventricular Failure

: Between October 1986 and May 1994, 65 patients undergoing cardiac surgery required centrifugal mechanical assist devices to separate from cardiopulmo-nary bypass. This experience was arbitrarily divided into early (n = 33) and recent (n = 32) groups for the purpose of comparing trends in morbidity and mortality. The incidence of mechanical assist application decreased from 2.19% in the early group to 0.96% in the recent group (p < 0.0001). Ability to wean patients from centrifugal assist increased from 33% in the early group to 53% in the more recent group, and hospital survival increased from 15 to 28%. The median chest tube drainage during the first 24 h decreased from 3,245 ml to 1,535 ml, and the incidence of renal failure decreased from 39.4% and 18.8% in the more recent group. Clinically relevant improvement in patient outcome following application of centrifugal mechanical assist for postcardiotomy ventricular failure is being observed.
Trends in the ionicity in the average valence V materials

An ionicity scale is given for average valence V materials. The scale is derived via the methods of the Phillips spectroscopic theory.
Recognition of the Minor Groove of DNA by Hairpin Polyamides Containing α-Substituted-β-Amino Acids

Incorporation of the flexible amino acid β-alanine (β) into hairpin polyamides composed of N-methylpyrrole (Py) and N-methylimidazole (Im) amino acids is required for binding to DNA sequences longer than seven base pairs with high affinity and sequence selectivity. Pairing the α-substituted-β-amino acids (S)-isoserine (^SIs), (R)-isoserine (^RIs), β-aminoalanine (Aa), and α-fluoro-β-alanine (Fb) side-by-side with β in hairpin polyamides alters DNA binding affinity and selectivity relative to the parent polyamide containing a β/β pairing. Quantitative DNase I footprinting titration studies on a restriction fragment containing the sequences 5‘-TGCNGTA-3‘ (N = A, T, G, and C) show that the polyamide ImPy^SIsImPy-γ-PyPyβImPy-β-Dp (^SIs/β pairing) binds to N = T (K_a = 4.5 × 10^9 M^(-1)) in preference to N = A (K_a = 6.2 × 10^8 M^(-1)). This result stands in contrast to the essentially degenerate binding of the parent ImPyβImPy-γ-PyPyβImPy-β-Dp (β/β pairing) to N = T and N = A, and to the slight preference of ImPyβImPy-γ-PyPy^SIsImPy-β-Dp (β/^SIs pairing) to N = A over N = T. Additionally, this study reveals that incorporation of ^RIs, Aa, and Fb into polyamides significantly reduces binding affinity. Therefore, DNA binding in the minor groove is sensitive to the stereochemistry, steric bulk, and electronics of the substituent at the α-position of β-amino acids in hairpin polyamides containing β/β pairs.
The how and why of disagreement among perceivers: An exploration of person models

Abstract Impression formation has been conceptualized as a process whereby perceivers form person models of others, describing what the person is like and why ( Park, DeKay, & Kraus, 1994 ). If they exist, person models could help explain why there appears to be little consensus in personality judgments; perceivers forming different models of a person would also view them differently on trait and affect ratings. Two experiments were conducted to test assumptions of the person-model paradigm using naturalistic targets. The structure of person models was examined, along with their content. Results demonstrated that three distinct person models emerge for each target and that the majority of perceivers can easily identify with one of the three models. We found that person models were valid across different groups of perceivers, and that the models differed in terms of masculinity–femininity and affect. Implications for the person model formulation process are discussed.
Sympathetic noradrenergic before striatal dopaminergic denervation: relevance to Braak staging of synucleinopathy.

Braak’s staging concept of Lewy body disease pathogenesis is based on a spatiotemporal sequence of alpha-synuclein deposition, with autonomic nervous system involvement before synucleinopathy in substantia nigra neurons. A patient with primary chronic autonomic failure underwent biennial brain 6-[18F]DOPA and myocardial 6-[18F]dopamine scanning over 4 years. Low myocardial radioactivity indicated cardiac noradrenergic denervation that persisted. Striatal 6-[18F]DOPA-derived radioactivity initially was normal, 2 years later was decreased subtly, and by 4 years was clearly decreased, accompanied by dementia and parkinsonism. In this case, neuroimaging evidence of cardiac noradrenergic denervation and subsequent progressive striatal dopaminergic denervation fit with Braak staging.
Effect of pre-heat treatment on a Fischer-Tropsch iron catalyst

Mossbauer spectroscopy was used to investigate the effect of heating the Fischer-Tropsch catalyst 100 Fe/5 Cu/4.2 K/24 SiO2 in two different atmospheres while ramping the temperature of the catalyst from room temperature to 280 °C in 5.5 h prior to pretreatment of the catalyst. Preheating in H2/CO=0.7 gave rise to an iron (Fe2+) silicate, while preheating in helium resulted in the formation of e′-carbide Fe2.2C. Iron oxides and χ-carbide Fe5C2 were also formed in both preheat treatments.
Learning from Others

I once believed that there are several naturally occurring isotopes of gold. When asked, “Are there several naturally occurring isotopes of gold?” either I would simply say, “Yes,” or, if I was in the mood to be more explicit, I would say, “There are several naturally occurring isotopes of gold.” But four years ago, while browsing through the Encyclopedia Britannica article titled “Gold”, I read the sentence “The element’s only naturally occurring isotope is gold-197.” I took the author’s words at face value—I took him to have asserted that the element’s only naturally occurring isotope is gold-197—and I accepted that the element’s only naturally occurring isotope is gold-197 solely because I trusted him. I thereby took myself to have learned from him that the element’s only naturally occurring isotope is gold-197. It ordinarily goes without saying that we can learn from others in this way—by taking their words at face value and accepting what they write or say solely because we trust them. C. A. J. Coady has recently argued that we can justify our trust in what others write or say by appealing to Donald Davidson’s principle of charity, which exhorts us to interpret another speaker’s words in such a way that under the assigned interpretation, what the speaker asserts is true by our own lights. Against this, I will argue that if Davidson’s principle of charity is a constraint on correctly interpreting what others write or say, then our ordinary impression that we can learn from others by taking their words at face value and accepting what they write or say is an illusion created by habitual but unjustified misinterpretations of their utterances. The reason is that in a large number of cases in which we take ourselves to be learning from others by accepting what they write or say, what we take them to write or say, given ~what Davidson sees as! our tacit interpretations of what we read or hear, is not true by NOUS 36:4 ~2002! 525–549
The Role of Inhaled Corticosteroids in the Management of Cystic Fibrosis

The lung disease of cystic fibrosis (CF) is characterized by a vicious cycle of airway obstruction, chronic bacterial infection, and vigorous inflammation, which ultimately results in bronchiectasis. Recognition that excessive and persistent inflammation is a key factor in lung destruction has prompted investigation into anti-inflammatory therapies. Although effective, the use of systemic corticosteroids has been limited by the unacceptable adverse effect profile. Inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) are a widely prescribed anti-inflammatory agent in CF, likely as a result of clinicians’ familiarity with these agents and their excellent safety profile at low doses in asthmatic patients. However, while multiple studies are limited by small sample size and short duration, they consistently failed to demonstrate statistically or clinically significant benefits of ICS use in CF. This review provides an overview of the inflammatory response in CF, the mechanisms of action of corticosteroids, the safety of ICS, and the literature relevant to the use of ICS in CF.
Radiographic differentiation of enchondroma from low-grade chondrosarcoma in the fibula.

To evaluate demographic and radiographic features that may differentiate between enchondroma and low-grade chondrosarcoma of the fibula. The radiographs of ninety-three histologically-confirmed cartilaginous tumors of the fibula were retrospectively reviewed along with demographic information as to patient age and gender. Fifty-four enchondromas and thirty-nine low-grade chondrosarcomas were included in the study. Multiple previously-established radiographic features distinguishing enchondroma from chondrosarcoma were evaluated in each fibular tumor in a consensus manner by two experienced, board-certified and fellowship-trained musculoskeletal radiologists. Five radiographic features were shown to statistically favor chondrosarcoma over enchondroma in the fibula. These were soft-tissue mass (p<0.0001), periosteal reaction (p=0.008), cortical disruption in the juxta-articular fibula (p=0.0133), cortical thickening (p=0.032), and tumor size greater than 4 cm (p=0.0046). No statistically-significant demographic differences were found between patients with enchondroma and chondrosarcoma of the fibula. When two or more of the identified features of malignancy are identified in the same patient, chondrosarcoma is 2.4 times more likely than in those patients exhibiting none of the features of malignancy. Soft-tissue mass, periosteal reaction, cortical disruption in the juxta-articular fibula, cortical thickening, and tumor size greater than 4 cm indicate chondrosarcoma over enchondroma of the fibula. Radiographs demonstrating more than one of the identified malignant features are more likely to be due to chondrosarcoma than radiographs demonstrating none or only one of the identified features. No unique malignant features of chondrosarcoma in the fibula were observed when compared to previous descriptions of these tumors in the long and short tubular bones of the appendicular skeleton.
Placement of primary-secondary trust nodes in smart grid communication network

The communication network of the smart grid needs to be secure as well as efficient. Trust nodes can be deployed in the communication network to provide the necessary security protection. However, the mechanism should support self-recovery in case that one or more trust nodes stop working. Moreover, the runtime recovery shall be time efficient so as to meet the time constraints in the communications between the components in the smart grid. This paper proposes the Primary-Secondary trust node placement algorithm (P-S algorithm) to identify the set of primary and secondary trust nodes to address the above issue. In case of faults, secondary trust nodes will be activated immediately to avoid the cost of identifying the alternative trust nodes during runtime. Comparisons between the original trust node placement and the proposed P-S algorithm are performed based on a network under different tolerant levels. Simulation results demonstrate that our approach is effective in providing the security of the smart grid system with the low overall cost.
Competing Paradigms in Pastoral Development? A Perspective from the Far North of Cameroon

Summary The debate over the future and development of African pastoral systems is dominated by two paradigms that are considered mutually exclusive: the modernization and the mobility paradigm. However, an ethnographic study of a peri-urban pastoral system in the Far North Province of Cameroon shows that these paradigms need and should not be mutually exclusive. Peri-urban pastoralists combine intensive and extensive strategies to cope successfully with the disappearance of grazing lands in peri-urban areas. I discuss what the implications are of this autonomous development for pastoral development in Africa.
An efficient framework for optimal robust stochastic system design using stochastic simulation

The knowledge about a planned system in engineering design applications is never complete. Often, a probabilistic quantification of the uncertainty arising from this missing information is warranted in order to efficiently incorporate our partial knowledge about the system and its environment into their respective models. This leads to a robust stochastic design framework where probabilistic models of excitation uncertainties and system modeling uncertainties can be introduced; the design objective is then typically related to the expected value of a system performance measure, such as reliability or expected life-cycle cost. For complex system models, this expected value can rarely be evaluated analytically and so it is often calculated using stochastic simulation techniques, which involve an estimation error and significant computational cost. An efficient framework, consisting of two stages, is presented here for the optimization in such robust stochastic design problems. The first stage implements a novel approach, called stochastic subset optimization (SSO), for iteratively identifying a subset of the original design space that has high plausibility of containing the optimal design variables. The second stage adopts some other stochastic optimization algorithm to pinpoint the optimal design variables within that subset. The focus is primarily on the theory and implementation issues for SSO but also on topics related to the combination of the two different stages for overall enhanced efficiency. An illustrative example is presented that shows the efficiency of the proposed methodology; it considers the optimization of the reliability of a base-isolated structure considering future near-fault ground motions.
An algorithm for management of deep brain stimulation battery replacements: devising a web-based battery estimator and clinical symptom approach.

Objective: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an effective technique that has been utilized to treat advanced and medication-refractory movement and psychiatric disorders. In order to avoid implanted pulse generator (IPG) failure and consequent adverse symptoms, a better understanding of IPG battery longevity and management is necessary. Background: Existing methods for battery estimation lack the specificity required for clinical incorporation. Technical challenges prevent higher accuracy longevity estimations, and a better approach to managing end of DBS battery life is needed. Methods: The literature was reviewed and DBS battery estimators were constructed by the authors and made available on the web at http://mdc.mbi.ufl.edu/surgery/dbs-battery-estimator. A clinical algorithm for management of DBS battery life was constructed. The algorithm takes into account battery estimations and clinical symptoms. Results: Existing methods of DBS battery life estimation utilize an interpolation of averaged current drains to calculate how long a battery will last. Unfortunately, this technique can only provide general approximations. There are inherent errors in this technique, and these errors compound with each iteration of the battery estimation. Some of these errors cannot be accounted for in the estimation process, and some of the errors stem from device variation, battery voltage dependence, battery usage, battery chemistry, impedance fluctuations, interpolation error, usage patterns, and self-discharge. We present web-based battery estimators along with an algorithm for clinical management. We discuss the perils of using a battery estimator without taking into account the clinical picture. Conclusion: Future work will be needed to provide more reliable management of implanted device batteries; however, implementation of a clinical algorithm that accounts for both estimated battery life and for patient symptoms should improve the care of DBS patients.
Ultra-precise rotation sensing with a superluminal ring laser

We show that group velocity of light far exceeding the vacuum speed can be realized when a medium that produces a narrow band dip in the gain profile is placed inside a ring laser. The dip leads to an effective negative dispersion, which can be tuned to produce a very small group index. The rotational sensitivity of the ring laser is enhanced by a factor equaling the inverse of the group index. For a realistic system, the enhancement factor can be as high as 1.8*105. In order to realize such a device, the background gain can be produced by using, for example, an optically pumped Ti:Sapphire crystal, a semiconductor optical amplifier, or a diode pumped alkali laser. The narrow dip can be produced, for example, by a Rb cell configured for Raman depletion. Here, we present the theoretical model behind such a superluminal laser, and describe a preliminary experiment for realizing such a device.
Decentralized Sequential Detection with a Fusion Center Performing the Sequential Test

A decentralized sequential detection problem is considered in which each one of a set of sensors receives a sequence of observations about the hypothesis. Each sensor sends a sequence of summary messages to the fusion center where a sequential test is carried out to determine the true hypothesis. A Bayesian framework for this problem is introduced, and for the case when the information structure in the system is quasiclassical, it is shown that the problem is tractable. A detailed analysis of this case is presented here.
A two-step implanted base (TSIB) process for high-performance bipolar transistor

The fabrication process, device profiles, and electrical characteristics of an advanced bipolar transistor with a two-step ion-implanted base (TSIB) are described. This base implant scheme has achieved a significant collector-emitter leakage yield improvement over the conventional transistor (control) which does not receive the TSIB implant. The TSIB base profile can be kept almost identical to that of the control transistors by using the selective implanted collector process. The maximum cutoff frequency of 20 GHz is measured. >
Amelioration of Radiation-Induced Pulmonary Fibrosis by a Water-Soluble Bifunctional Sulfoxide Radiation Mitigator (MMS350)

A water-soluble ionizing radiation mitigator would have considerable advantages for the management of acute and chronic effects of ionizing radiation. We report that a novel oxetanyl sulfoxide (MMS350) is effective both as a protector and a mitigator of clonal mouse bone marrow stromal cell lines in vitro, and is an effective in vivo mitigator when administered 24 h after 9.5 Gy (LD100/30) total-body irradiation of C57BL/6NHsd mice, significantly improving survival (P = 0.0097). Furthermore, MMS350 (400 μM) added weekly to drinking water after 20 Gy thoracic irradiation significantly decreased: expression of pulmonary inflammatory and profibrotic gene transcripts and proteins; migration into the lungs of bone marrow origin luciferase+/GFP+ (luc+/GFP+) fibroblast progenitors (in both luc+ marrow chimeric and luc+ stromal cell line injected mouse models) and decreased radiation-induced pulmonary fibrosis (P < 0.0001). This nontoxic and orally administered small molecule may be an effective therapeutic in cl...
Cognitive control, cognitive reserve, and memory in the aging bilingual brain

In recent years bilingualism has been linked to both advantages in executive control and positive impacts on aging. Such positive cognitive effects of bilingualism have been attributed to the increased need for language control during bilingual processing and increased cognitive reserve, respectively. However, a mechanistic explanation of how bilingual experience contributes to cognitive reserve is still lacking. The current paper proposes a new focus on bilingual memory as an avenue to explore the relationship between executive control and cognitive reserve. We argue that this focus will enhance our understanding of the functional and structural neural mechanisms underlying bilingualism-induced cognitive effects. With this perspective we discuss and integrate recent cognitive and neuroimaging work on bilingual advantage, and suggest an account that links cognitive control, cognitive reserve, and brain reserve in bilingual aging and memory.
Millimeter-wave AlGaAs-GaAs HBT power operation

The AlGaAs-GaAs HBT has demonstrated good power performance up to 18 GHz. Although f/sub max/ is typically above 100 GHz, the power performance limitation and large signal operation at millimeter wave frequencies have not been studied. Power results from two HBT structures at 35 GHz are analyzed based on numerical simulation. The HBT demonstrated 8.5-dB linear power gain, 30% PAE with 7.8-dB gain and 7.5-V V/sub ce/ bias. The power density reaches 1.25 mW/ mu m/sup 2/. A shorter collector (0.4 mu m) is shown to be better suited for 35-GHz operation as a result of shorter collector transit time and smaller residual collector voltage. Improvement can be achieved by reducing the base and collector resistance, and the collector capacitance. >
Inhibition of Local Immune Responses by the Frog-Killing Fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis

Amphibians are suffering unprecedented global declines. A leading cause is the infectious disease chytridiomycosis caused by the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis. Chytridiomycosis is a skin disease which disrupts transport of essential ions leading to death. Soluble factors produced by B. dendrobatidis impair amphibian and mammalian lymphocytes in vitro, but previous studies have not shown the effects of these inhibitory factors in vivo. To demonstrate in vivo inhibition of immunity by B. dendrobatidis, a modified delayed-type-hypersensitivity (DTH) protocol was developed to induce innate and adaptive inflammatory swelling in the feet of Xenopus laevis by injection of killed bacteria or phytohemagglutinin (PHA). Compared to previous protocols for PHA injection in amphibians, this method induced up to 20-fold greater inflammatory swelling. Using this new protocol, we measured DTH responses induced by killed bacteria or PHA in the presence of B. dendrobatidis supernatants. Swelling induced by single injection of PHA or killed bacteria was not significantly affected by B. dendrobatidis supernatants. However, swelling caused by a secondary injection of PHA, was significantly reduced by B. dendrobatidis supernatants. As previously described in vitro, factors from B. dendrobatidis appear to inhibit lymphocyte-mediated inflammatory swelling but not swelling caused by an inducer of innate leukocytes. This suggests that B. dendrobatidis is capable of inhibiting lymphocytes in a localized response to prevent adaptive immune responses in the skin. The modified protocol used to induce inflammatory swelling in the present study may be more effective than previous methods to investigate amphibian immune competence, particularly in nonmodel species.
Study of Random Dopant Fluctuation Effects in Germanium-Source Tunnel FETs

The effects of random dopant fluctuations (RDFs) on the performance of Germanium-source tunnel field-effect transistors (TFETs) is studied using 3-D device simulation. The RDF in the source region is found to have the most impact on threshold voltage variation (σVTH) if the source is moderately doped (1019 cm-3) such that vertical tunneling within the source is dominant. If the source is heavily doped (1020 cm-3) such that lateral tunneling from the source to the channel is dominant, the impact of RDF in the channel region is also significant. RDF-induced threshold voltage variation (σVTH) for an optimally designed Ge-source TFET is relatively modest (σVTH <; 20 mV at Lg = 30 nm), compared with a MOSFET of similar gate length. Supply voltage scaling is not beneficial for reducing TFET σVTH.
Sexual Health Education: A Psychiatric Resident’s Perspective

Objective This report discusses psychiatric residents’ perceptions of sexual health education and their opinions regarding curricular improvements.
Dynamics of Winner-Take-All Competition in Recurrent Neural Networks With Lateral Inhibition

This paper studies the behavior of recurrent neural networks with lateral inhibition. Such network architecture is important in biological neural systems. General conditions determining the existence, number, and stability of network equilibria are derived. The manner in which these features depend upon steepness of neuronal activation functions and the strength of lateral inhibition is demonstrated for a broad range of nondecreasing activation functions including the discontinuous threshold function which represents the infinite gain limit. For uniform lateral inhibitory networks, the lateral inhibition is shown to sharpen neuron output patterns by increasing separation of suprathreshold activity levels of competing neurons. This results in the tendency of one neuron's output to dominate those of the others which can afford a "winner-take-all" (WTA) mechanism. Importantly, multiple stable equilibria may exist and shifts in inputs levels may yield network state transitions that exhibit hysteresis. A limitation of using lateral inhibition to implement WTA is further demonstrated. The possible significance of these identified network dynamics to physiology and pathophysiology of the striatum (particularly in Parkinsonian rest tremor) is discussed
Two-Dimensional Problem Solution

The previous chapter developed the general formulation for the plane problem in elasticity. This formulation resulted in two types of in-plane problems: plane strain and plane stress. It was further shown that solution to each of these problem types could be conveniently handled using the Airy stress function approach. This scheme reduced the field equations to a single partial differential equation, and for the case of zero body forces, this result was the biharmonic equation. Thus, the plane elasticity problem was reduced to finding the solution to the biharmonic equation in a particular domain of interest. Such a solution must also satisfy the given boundary conditions associated with the particular problem under study. Several general solution techniques were briefly discussed in Section 5.7 . These included the use of power series or polynomials and Fourier methods. We will now pursue the solution to several two-dimensional problems using these methods. Our formulation and solution will be conducted using both Cartesian and polar coordinate systems. In many cases we will use MATLAB ® software to plot the stress and displacement field distributions in order to better understand the nature of the solution.
Segmentation Methods for Recognition of Machine-printed Characters

This paper reports an investigation of some methods for isolating, or segmenting, characters during the reading of machine-printed text by optical character recognition systems. Two new segmentation algorithms using feature extraction techniques are presented; both are intended for use in the recognition of machine-printed lines of 10-, 11- and 12-pitch serif-type multifont characters. One of the methods, called quasi-topological segmentation, bases the decision to “section” a character on a combination of feature-extraction and character-width measurements. The other method, topological segmentation, involves feature extraction alone. The algorithms have been tested with an evaluation method that is independent of any particular recognition system. Test results are based on application of the algorithm to upper-case alphanumeric characters gathered from print sources that represent the existing world of machine printing. The topological approach demonstrated better performance on the test data than did the quasi-topological approach.
Uncovering the Matter-Neutrino Resonance

Matter-neutrino resonances (MNRs) can drastically modify neutrino flavor evolution in astrophysical environments and may significantly impact nucleosynthesis. Here we further investigate the underlying physics of MNR-type flavor transitions. We provide generalized resonance conditions and make analytical predictions for the behavior of the system. We discuss the adiabatic evolution of these transitions considering both symmetric and standard MNR scenarios. Symmetric MNR transitions differ from standard MNR transitions in that both neutrinos and antineutrinos can completely transform to other flavors simultaneously. We provide an example of the simplest system in which such transitions can occur with a neutrino and an antineutrino having a single energy and emission angle. We further apply linearized stability analysis to predict the location of self-induced nutation-type (or bipolar) oscillations due to $\ensuremath{\nu}\ensuremath{\nu}$ interactions in the regions where MNR is ineffective. In all cases, we compare our analytical predictions to numerical calculations.
Creating Organizational Buy-in: Overcoming Challenges to a Library-Wide Discovery Tool Implementation

While launching a discovery tool can be technically easy, establishing a process that will result in organizational buy-in for the tool is an exceptionally important first step for a successful implementation. Many lessons about creating organizational buy-in can be learned from experiences with federated search software and next-generation catalogs. Libraries must grapple with three critical areas before discovery tool implementation. First, the library will need to consider how the discovery tool will affect key library departments and create a plan for addressing their concerns. Second, training will need to be developed for staff as well as end users. Finally, monitoring and assessing the discovery tool’s performance and impact will inform future decision-making related to the tool’s integration with the library’s other systems and services. Each of these areas will be explored in the context of existing library research, with illustrations from James Madison University’s discovery tool implementation.
Current management of tumors of the liver.

Choice of therapeutic approach rests on an accurate determination of the location and extent of liver involvement and whether extrahepatic disease is present. The three most useful preoperative tests are the physical examination, liver scan, and selective angiography.
Role of the Placenta in Preterm Birth: A Review

Preterm birth is a multifactorial syndrome with a variety of risk factors and long-term health consequences for the child. Placental pathology provides important diagnostic information to ascertain the cause of preterm birth. For example, intra-amniotic infection is one risk factor, but accumulating evidence based on placental pathology, amniotic fluid cultures, and polymerase chain reaction studies suggests infection may be a less common cause of preterm birth than previously suspected, especially after 32 weeks' gestation. Instead, many cases of spontaneous preterm labor leading to preterm birth appear to be caused by placental insufficiency, similar to preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction. Other causes of preterm birth, including retroplacental abruption, chronic villitis, and twin gestations, also have specific placental pathology related to placental insufficiency. New insights into the underlying mechanisms regulating uteroplacental blood flow and the impact of placental malperfusion on placental health may lead to improved early gestation diagnostic testing and a revolution in preventative care for both the mother and her child.
Double midline intracranial atypical teratomas: A recognizable neuroendocrinologic syndrome.

Although we report only 4 cases, the striking similarity of clinical presentation and roentgenographic findings in these cases, and those reported by others, causes us to strongly consider this entity a distinct neuroendocrinologic and roentgenographic syndrome.These patients suffer from double, possibly simultaneously arising, atypical teratomas and may present with symptoms referable to one or other of the lesions. However, the anterior lesion usually produces symptoms first and characteristically there is insidious, but progressive, onset of diabetes insipidus and hypopituitarism. The posterior lesion characteristically leads to abnormal eye signs consisting of loss of pupillary light reflex and loss of upward gaze (Parinaud’s syndrome).In addition, if the lesion is large enough, aqueduct obstruction and hydrocephalus occur. The anterior lesion, if large enough, may encroach upon the optic nerves and produce visual field deficits.
Investigation of Confirmation Strategies for Speech Recognition Applications

Guidelines for speech user interfaces generally promote the use of delayed confirmation in speech recognition applications that require users to provide multiple elements of information. In our initial investigation of a simple delayed confirmation method, we discovered a significant design flaw (requiring users to review a fairly large amount of correct input multiple times when asked to correct two errors). To avoid this flaw, we designed two new methods. In one (Serial Collection/Correction), users named an item that needed correction, then made that correction before naming the next item to change. In the other (Batch Collection/Correction), users named all items that needed correction first, then changed the named items in sequence. An experiment comparing the methods indicated no significant difference in user preference, but significantly fewer memory errors occurred when using the Serial Collection/Correction method. Thus, we recommend the use of the Serial Collection/Correction method. We also re...
George Chester Stone (1924-2013)

George Chester Stone was born February 21, 1924, and died on July 13, 2013. A quiet revolutionary, George was a founder of the field of health psychology. George played critical roles conceptualizing the field of health psychology, charting its bounds and potential, promulgating guidelines for training, founding the first doctoral program in health psychology, editing influential volumes defining the new field, launching the flagship journal for the field, and establishing a home for the field within APA. He was able to accomplish all this through his talent for working collaboratively.
Discussion on Damage of Bearing Shell at Low Speed of 1000 MW Class Unit

This paper analyzes the reasons for the damage of bearing shell at low speed of some homemade 1 000 MW class unit during commissioning,utilizing the data,accident process curve and bearing shell inspection results.The main reason for the accident is deemed to be the manufacturer's change in the treating process of wear-resistant layer on rotor surface,which made the hardness and brittleness of journal surface too large and the spray-coating organization adhesion poor.After taking key control measures in the operation and maintenance of unit,the number of accidents is reduced to some extent.It is indicated that to solve the problem thoroughly,equipment manufacturers need to make further test and research on manufacturing process and optimal design.
Imagining Ourselves in the Future: Toward an Existential Ethics for Teachers in the Accountability Era

“I think education is about people and it’s kind of messy and not, maybe, quite as standardizable as someone might think. I am fundamentally not interested in enacting other people’s plans. There’s no creativity in that, there is no opportunity to use what I know in that situation, and also I think it’s a slap in the face to me as a professional.” Stephanie found that it was impossible to exercise her moral agency and teach “right” within policy mandates that dismissed her pedagogical knowledge, constrained her pedagogical judgment, and so tightly circumscribed her pedagogical authority.1 Stephanie is one of a number of teachers interviewed in Doris Santoro’s powerful study of those she calls “principled leavers” 2 of the profession. Scores of teachers find something that resonates with the frustration and disillusionment expressed by Stephanie in the era of accountability. This era has introduced educational policies emphasizing standardized content knowledge as well as (allegedly) quantifiable evaluations of student progress shaping teacher evaluations. In its wake, the opportunities for teachers to be active agents, enacting embodied, relational, and reasoning pedagogies, are dwindling. Accountability curriculum and testing policies have increased the rate at which teaching has become a deskilled profession, a concept over three decades old but which has been recently revived, intensified, and amplified. 3 Canned curricula, the overemphasis of standardized test scores, and the general technicization and mechanization of the teaching profession has left many teachers facing what Stephen Ball calls the “terrors of performativity.” 4 These terrors pressure teachers to perform various routinized and prescribed subject positions, none of which seem to involve any sense of their own powers as actors who use critical intelligence to evaluate, judge, and shape their own practice. There is certainly “no creativity in that,” as Stephanie well knows. It is fair to say that the net result of the current policy trajectory in schools is the disappearance of the teacher as a certain kind of subject position. 5 Constitutive of the disappearance of teachers are the ways in which the ethical subjectivities of individual teachers are marginalized and often completely usurped by the accountability environment. The encroachment on the messy ambiguities connoting human elements of teaching involves not simply the denial of teacher professionalism and agency, but the political consequences of what John Dewey called “the quest for certainty.” 6 This quest, in our current era of education, squelches any sense of the ambiguity that Simone de Beauvoir claimed was fundamental to being human. She writes, “Let us try to assume our fundamental ambiguity. It is in the knowledge of the genuine conditions of our life that we must draw our strength to live and our reason for acting.” 7 Schools operate now (and perhaps always did) in ways
The Stock Market Reaction to the Allowance of LIFO for Tax Purposes

I investigate the stock market response to the allowance of LIFO for tax purposes. I structure the analysis as an event study of the Revenue Acts of 1938 and 1939. Accordingly I can examine market behavior in a way that is less subject to the potential confounding of self-selection which characterizes most LIFO adoption studies. I observe a reliably positive market reaction to the incorporation of LIFO into the tax code and the most significant effects are for firms having the largest estimated LIFO tax benefits. I conclude the market revised its probabilities that at least some firms would avail themselves of the opportunity to use LIFO and defer taxes on inventory profits.
Non-invasive measurement of oxygen diffusion in model foods.

Abstract In this study, we developed a non-invasive method to determine oxygen diffusivity (DO2) in food gels using an Oxydot luminescence sensor. We designed and fabricated a transparent diffusion cell in order to represent oxygen transfer into foods packaged in an 8-ounce polymeric tray. Oxydots were glued to the sides (side-dot) and bottom (bottom-dot) of the cell and filled with 1, 2, and 3% (w/v) agar gel as a model food. After deoxygenation, local oxygen concentrations in the gels were measured non-invasively at 4, 12 and 22 °C. Effective oxygen diffusivities in gels (DO2g) and water (DO2w) were obtained after fitting experimental data to the analytical solution (data from side-dot) and the numerical solution (data from bottom-dot) to Fick's second law. Temperature had significant positive influence (P 0.05) was found between the activation energy (Ea) of water and gels (1–3% w/v) for temperatures ranging from 4 to 22 °C. We used a combined obstruction and hydrodynamic model to explain why DO2g decreased as gel concentration increased. The method developed in this study can be used to study the oxygen diffusivity in foods.
Learning to Learn: Model Regression Networks for Easy Small Sample Learning

We develop a conceptually simple but powerful approach that can learn novel categories from few annotated examples. In this approach, the experience with already learned categories is used to facilitate the learning of novel classes. Our insight is two-fold: (1) there exists a generic, category agnostic transformation from models learned from few samples to models learned from large enough sample sets, and (2) such a transformation could be effectively learned by high-capacity regressors. In particular, we automatically learn the transformation with a deep model regression network on a large collection of model pairs. Experiments demonstrate that encoding this transformation as prior knowledge greatly facilitates the recognition in the small sample size regime on a broad range of tasks, including domain adaptation, fine-grained recognition, action recognition, and scene classification.
Bridging Understanding between Preservice Teachers and Diverse Students through Service-Learning.

AbstractThis study examines the effectiveness of service-learning as a pedagogical approach that seeks to bridge the gap of understanding between predominantly White undergraduate preservice teachers (PSTs) and diverse students at a local elementary school. Analysis of ‘before’ and ‘after’ reflective papers and surveys from 23 PSTs enrolled in an entry-level education course as well as reflective letters from 41 fourth-grade students, revealed that prior to the project, PSTs feared that students’ language barriers or home circumstances might prohibit them from understanding or valuing the concepts introduced through the project. In PST ‘after’ reflections, PSTs expressed their new realizations that teaching is complex and requires careful preparation, that the children were ‘less different’ and more engaged than they expected, and that they can make a difference in children’s lives. Benefits to the children include development of new and usable social skills and an increase in their interpersonal confidence.
Condensed milk storage and evaporation affect the flavor of nonfat dry milk

Unit operations in nonfat dry milk (NFDM) manufacture influence sensory properties, and consequently, its use and acceptance in ingredient applications. Condensed skim milk may be stored at refrigeration temperatures for extended periods before spray drying due to shipping or lack of drying capacity. Currently, NFDM processors have 2 options for milk concentration up to 30% solids: evaporation (E) or reverse osmosis (RO). The objective of this study was to determine the effect of condensed milk storage and milk concentration method (E vs. RO) on the flavor of NFDM and investigate mechanisms behind flavor differences. For experiment 1, skim milk was pasteurized and concentrated to 30% solids by E or RO and then either stored for 24h at 4°C or concentrated to 50% solids by E and spray dried immediately. To investigate mechanisms behind the results from experiment 1, experiment 2 was constructed. In experiment 2, pasteurized skim milk was subjected to 1 of 4 treatments: control (no E), heated in the evaporator without vacuum, E concentration to 30% solids, or E concentration to 40% solids. The milks were then diluted to the same solids content and evaluated. Volatile compounds were also measured during concentration in the vapor separator of the evaporator. Sensory properties were evaluated by descriptive sensory analysis and instrumental volatile compound analysis was conducted to evaluate volatile compounds. Interaction effects between storage and method of concentration were investigated. In experiment 1, E decreased sweet aromatic flavor and many characteristic milk flavor compounds and increased cardboard and cooked flavors in NFDM compared with RO. Liquid storage increased cardboard flavor and hexanal and octanal and decreased sweet aromatic flavors and vanillin concentration. Results from experiment 2 indicated that the characteristic milk flavors and their associated volatile compounds were removed by the vapor separator in the evaporator due to the heat and vacuum applied during concentration. These results demonstrate that off-flavors are significantly reduced when RO is used in place of E and storage of condensed milk is avoided.
CHAPTER 21 – Muscle and Nonmuscle Contractile Systems

This chapter focuses on muscle and nonmuscle contractile systems. Mammals have four types of cells specialized for contraction, which include skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, smooth muscle, and myoepithelial cells. Skeletal and cardiac muscles contract with more force and much more speed, shorten less, and consume much more ATP during maintenance of tension than smooth muscle or myoepithelium. The skeletal muscles of the torso and limbs arise from the mesoderm of the somites, while those of the head arise from the mesoderm of the somitomeres, which contribute to the branchial (pharyngeal) arches. They form by the fusion and elongation of numerous precursor cells called myoblasts. Some stem cell precursors of myoblasts remain in an adult animal, where they are located between the sarcolemma and basement membrane of mature muscle cells, and are called satellite cells. Muscle fibers contain long cylindrical myofibrils, aligned longitudinally, and consisting of interpenetrating arrays of thin myofilaments and thick filaments. During muscle activation, ATP consumed by the myofibrils must be replaced by aerobic and/or anaerobic resynthesis. Their ATP resynthesis is largely dependent on supplying reducing equivalents to the cytochromes via α-oxidation of fatty acids and via glycolysis and the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. When the volume of work is such that glycogen is functionally depleted, muscle power output must decrease to the level that can be supported by fatty acid oxidation. During prolonged moderate-intensity exercise, most of the fatty acid oxidized is derived from lipolysis in adipose tissue. Adipocyte lipolysis depends, at least in part, on activation of lipoprotein lipase by catecholaminergic stimulation and other hormonal changes accompanying exercise, and takes around around 20–40 minutes to fully accelerate.
Electrostatic Interactions as Mediators in the Allosteric Activation of Protein Kinase A RIα.

Close-range electrostatic interactions that form salt bridges are key components of protein stability. Here we investigate the role of these charged interactions in modulating the allosteric activation of protein kinase A (PKA) via computational and experimental mutational studies of a conserved basic patch located in the regulatory subunit’s B/C helix. Molecular dynamics simulations evidenced the presence of an extended network of fluctuating salt bridges spanning the helix and connecting the two cAMP binding domains in its extremities. Distinct changes in the flexibility and conformational free energy landscape induced by the separate mutations of Arg239 and Arg241 suggested alteration of cAMP-induced allosteric activation and were verified through in vitro fluorescence polarization assays. These observations suggest a mechanical aspect to the allosteric transition of PKA, with Arg239 and Arg241 acting in competition to promote the transition between the two protein functional states. The simulations al...