cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Pursuing Medicaid Block Grants with the Healthy Adult Opportunity Initiative: Dressing Up Old Ideas in New Clothes

The Trump administration's Healthy Adult Opportunity waiver follows a long history of Republican attempts to retrench the Medicaid program through block grants and to markedly reduce federal spending while providing states with substantially greater flexibility over program structure. Previous block grant proposals were promulgated during the presidential administrations of Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush and majorities in Congress led by House Speaker Newt Gingrich and House Budget Committee Chair and then Speaker Paul Ryan. Most recently, Medicaid block grants featured prominently in Republican efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. This essay traces the history of Republican Medicaid block grant proposals, culminating in the Trump administration's Healthy Adult Opportunity initiative. It concludes that the Trump administration's attempt to convert Medicaid into a block grant program through the waiver process is illegal and, if implemented, would leave thousands of people without necessary medical care. This fact, combined with failed legislative efforts to block grant Medicaid during the last forty years, highlights the substantial roadblocks to radically restructuring a popular program that helps millions of Americans.
Development and Processing of Novel Heparin Binding Functionalized Modified Spider Silk Coating for Catheter Providing Dual Antimicrobial and Anticoagulant Properties.

Abstract Tailored surface coatings have been used for decades to improve material performance in blood. Among different approaches, heparin based biomedical coatings have found great success in the commercial catheter market. However, they have their own limitations. Coating of a vascular device with a heparin binding peptide (HBP), which can sequester the circulating heparin, presents numerous advantages over both systemic heparin therapy and direct heparin bound surfaces. Embedding HBP in a silk biopolymer provides the mechanical integrity necessary under dynamic flow conditions to both insert the catheter and maintain proper blood flow. Furthermore, due to the similarity in structure of HBP with antimicrobial peptides, it is predicted that the fusion protein will also show antimicrobial property, a critical and unique aspect to combat catheter related blood stream infections and extend the longevity of hemodialysis catheters. To assess this hypothesis, a recombinant fusion protein (S4H4) containing both silk amino acid motifs and HBP was assessed as a coating on a silicone surface. After validating that, the protein was deposited on the surface via XPS, Raman spectroscopy, ATR and SEM imaging, antimicrobial and anticoagulant activities were evaluated. The coating was able to prevent not only planktonic bacterial growth but also prevented the growth of a biofilm. Finally, the coating had both antibacterial and anticoagulant effect simultaneously. This study proves the successful production of a silk-based biopolymer that can be embedded with a heparin-binding functionality to create a dual functional device coating that can prevent infection and thrombosis together.
Players of African descent representing European national football teams: a double-edged sword

As Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) plans to host the Euro Cup 2020 (now deferred to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic) in 12 cities of 12 countries around Europe, one feature that wi...
Towards Guaranteed Safety Assurance of Automated Driving Systems with Scenario Sampling: An Invariant Set Perspective

How many scenarios are sufficient to validate the safe Operational Design Domain (ODD) of an Automated Driving System (ADS) equipped vehicle Is a more significant number of sampled scenarios guaranteeing a more accurate safety assessment of the ADS Despite the various empirical success of ADS safety evaluation with scenario sampling in practice, some of the fundamental properties are largely unknown. This paper seeks to remedy this gap by formulating and tackling the scenario sampling safety assurance problem from a set invariance perspective. First, a novel conceptual equivalence is drawn between the scenario sampling safety assurance problem and the data-driven robustly controlled forward invariant set validation and quantification problem. This paper then provides a series of complete solutions with finite-sampling analyses for the safety validation problem that authenticates a given ODD. On the other hand, the quantification problem escalates the validation challenge and starts looking for a safe sub-domain of a particular property. This inspires various algorithms that are provably probabilistic incomplete, probabilistic complete but sub-optimal, and asymptotically optimal. Finally, the proposed asymptotically optimal scenario sampling safety quantification algorithm is also empirically demonstrated through simulation experiments.
Chapter 16 Dermal Fibroblasts1

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the different aspects of dermal fibroblasts. Differences in growth requirements between fibroblasts from newborn foreskin and from fetal lung as well as differences between the growth requirements of fibroblasts and those of various types of epithelial cells are discussed in the chapter. The latter differences suggest the interesting possibility of developing culture media that strongly favor multiplication of a particular type of cell. Cultures are generally initiated either as outgrowths from tissue fragments or by inoculating with cell suspensions prepared by enzymatic digestion of the tissue. Outgrowth from fragments is strongly preferred for the small tissue samples obtained from punch biopsies and is frequently used for foreskin cultures. The karyotype and other normal properties are generally quite stable in human skin fibroblast cultures. Aneuploidy is relatively rare, even in old cultures, and transformation due to causes other than oncogenic viruses is essentially nonexistent. The combination of polylysine coating of culture vessels and low-temperature trypsinization reduces cellular damage and improves attachment to an extent that makes it possible for trypsin-dispersed human fibroblasts to reattach to the culture surface, flatten, and resume normal metabolism.
Over thirty years later: A contemporary look at symbolic racism.

Publisher Summary This chapter summarizes the available evidence on twelve controversies surrounding symbolic racism, which was proposed over 30 years ago to explain new forms of racial conservatism appearing after the civil rights era. The conceptualization of symbolic racism was originally somewhat fuzzy and has evolved over time; but the measurement of it has been surprisingly constant over time; and it seems to form a substantively meaningful and statistically consistent belief system, with two highly correlated variants that differ slightly in the language they use but not in their effects. Its effects on racial politics are quite stable and consistent. It is a distinctive construct necessary for the understanding of Whites' responses to racial politics, not merely redundant with other constructs and hence disposable in the service of parsimony. It focuses on antagonism toward Blacks, which has little to do with either symbolic racism or opposition to policies targeted for Blacks.
The Path from Pluripotency to Skeletal Muscle: Developmental Myogenesis Guides the Way

Following cues from mouse embryogenesis, Chal et al. (2015) identified key regulators of skeletal myogenesis from mouse and human pluripotent stem cells. Emerging myogenic progenitors were specified to form multinucleated fibers that enabled development of quiescent, satellite cell-like progenitors and a model for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.
The Role of an Integrated Multidisciplinary Clinic in the Management of Patients with Cutaneous Lymphoma

The clinical benefit of a multidisciplinary clinic practice model has been well described in a variety of medical specialties and cancer types. It proves particularly valuable when an integrated team is needed to optimally manage patients with rare or complex neoplasms. However, the ideal implementation of an integrated multidisciplinary care program for translational research and education has not been well reported. Herein, we propose how a multimodality cutaneous lymphoma clinic model can optimally manage cutaneous lymphoma patients. We offer our perspective on this model as an efficient means for delivering patient care, a continuing education resource for referring physicians, a conduit for translational and clinical research, and an educational tool for medical students, house staff, and fellows.
The First Lady as Formal Advisor to the President: When East (Wing) Meets West (Wing)

Abstract Drawing on archival research, this article examines how the position of the first lady has been formally defined, and how that definition has affected presidential advising by first ladies. Three first ladies-Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosalynn Carter, and Hillary Rodham Clinton-have served in a formal capacity within the executive branch. In each instance, the first lady's appointment, and subsequent exercise of formal and informal power, carried significant implications for our understanding of this position, the presidency, and the political system.
Management of Extramedullary Leukemia as a Presentation of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Extramedullary involvement is considered to be an uncommon presentation of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), although some data suggest it may be present in up to 30% of patients. Extra-medullary involvement by AML can present in a variety of clinical manifestations, most notably in the form of myeloid sarcoma, leukemia cutis, and central nervous system involvement. Each presents a unique clinical scenario in terms of symptoms and management. Extramedullary disease in any form presenting without evidence of bone marrow disease is still considered evidence of systemic disease and is usually treated as such. Most commonly, extramedullary disease presents concurrently with bone marrow disease, and although it may require additional local therapy in the form of intrathecal chemotherapy or radiation, the principles of systemic treatment remain unchanged. The prognostic impact of extramedullary disease is unclear. Specifically, whether hematopoietic stem cell transplantation should be considered in first remission irrespective of other prognostic factors has not been established. Patients who undergo transplantation have similar outcomes as patients without extramedullary disease, although they do have a higher rate of extramedullary relapse. More research is needed to define the molecular basis for extramedullary disease, its prognostic impact, and optimal management.
Academic Professionalism and the Betrayal of the Land-Grant Tradition.

Contemporary academic professionalism undercuts the moral imperative of the land-grant tradition in America. The author is primarily concerned with assessing the impact of post-modern modes of thought on both the rise of academic professionalism and the decline of civic engagement at the heart of the land-grant mission. A revitalization of the land-grant tradition, he argues, requires the rebuilding of the social personae of the academic professions not on the logic of commercial free agency or through the spiritually empty traces of theory, but in the language of ethics and through moral praxis.
Helical hexaazamacrocyclic ligands containing pyridyl and (+ or −)-trans-diaminocyclohexyl groups: effect of ligand constraints upon metal ion binding

Abstract The synthesis of 2( R ),7( R ),18( R ),23( R ), 1,8,15,17,24,31-hexaazatricyclo[25.3.1.1.0.0]-dotriaconta-10,12,14,26,28,30-hexaene ( rrrr -Cy 2 PYAN) and its 2( S ),7( S ),18( S ),23( S ) enantiomer ( ssss -Cy 2 PYAN) from enantiomerically pure starting materials is reported. The ligands were isolated by precipitation in their tetraprotonated form as bromide salts. Circular dichroism spectra of the tetraprotonated, diprotonated, and neutral macrocyclic ligands in aqueous solution were obtained, as well as of the enantiomeric pairs of the [Cu(Cy 2 PYAN)] 2+ and [Zn(Cy 2 PYAN)] 2+ complexes. Aqueous solution CD spectra, NMR spectra, and potentiometric titrations of the macrocyclic ligands are consistent with protonation at the amine nitrogen atoms only in the pH range 2–11. Comparing the CD spectra of the diprotonated ligands and the metal complexes indicates that the diprotonated species has enhanced circular dichroism, similar in form to that observed for the helical metal complexes. rrrr -Cy 2 PYAN and ( ssss -Cy 2 PYAN) form 1:1 complexes with Mg 2+ , Cu 2+ , Zn 2+ , Mn 2+ , Cd 2+ , Ca 2+ , Sr 2+ , Ga 3+ , Sc 3+ , Y3+ Lu 3+ , Gd 3+ and La 3+ . The formation constants for these complexes were determined from potentiometric titrations. Compared to the metal complexes of [18]aneN 6 and PYAN, Cy 2 PYAN) has smaller log K ML for large metal ions as well as for very small metal ions and thus shows enhanced selectivity for the intermediate-sized ions.
A method to construct reflectionless potentials

This paper gives a method, with an example, of constructing a potential which is near reflectionless for some range of energies. The assumed structure of the desired reflection coefficient, r(k), is known function that is filtered by an inverted Gaussian. This gives an r(k) that is zero at particular energy and is exponentially near zero in a surrounding range.
Market rivalry and learning-by-doing

Abstract The failure to link learning-by-doing to its market effects and the complementary failure to consider market models in which competition extends to the search for cost efficiency can have unfortunate implications for economic policy. This paper considers how the firm's equilibrium investment in learning arises in a two-period oligopoly. Implications of these results for the manufacture of high-technology products, particularly by Japanese semiconductor firms, are developed.
Caveats concerning multi‐culturalism

This article explores the negative ramifications of pursuing a policy of multi‐culturalism. It suggests that such a policy is foreign to the western philosophical tradition. It argues that the merits of multi‐culturalism are assumed rather than demonstrated. It questions whether multi‐culturalism is reconcilable with democracy, systemic maintenance and stability, and economic viability. Focusing on the USA it defends the traditional melting pot/assimilationist policy toward cultural variety.
Performance criteria for optimization of cardiac assistance.

A performance criterion and weighting factors for the optimal cardiac assistance are investigated by applying Tellegen's network theorem and tolerance analysis on animal experimental data for left ventricular (LV) bypass on the failing heart. Two major factors with respect to cardiac assistance (total power delivered to the peripheral circulatory system, and changes in temporal pattern of ventricular contraction) are represented by two performance criteria,J 1 andJ 2 whereJ 1 relates to the sum of LV and pump power, andJ 2 relates to the “peakedness” factor of LV power. The total performance index (J) is determined as the weighted sum ofJ 1 andJ 2;J=w 1J1+w2J2. The weighting factors,w 1 andw 2, are computed as inverses of the tolerance in the performance contours with respect to improvement of stroke work per minute from pre- to post-bypass condition.
Routine Use of Autotransfusion Following Cardiac Surgery: Experience in 700 Patients

An autotransfusion technique has been developed for collection and reinfusion of shed mediastinal blood. This system has been routinely applied in the postoperative management of 592 consecutive adult and 108 pediatric cardiac surgical patients. Two hundred seventy-one adult patients (46%) and thirty-six pediatric patients (33%) actually received autologous blood. Autotransfusion volume ranged from 50 to 21,350 ml per patient. In 1976 at our institution, homologous transfusion requirements averaged 8.4 +/- 0.7 units per adult patient. During 1978, with the routine use of postoperative autotransfusion, bank blood transfusions were lowered to 4.2 +/- 0.3 units per patient (p less than 0.001). In contrast to perioperative autotransfusion techniques, collection and reinfusion of shed mediastinal blood is particularly useful for intravascular volume replacement in patients with serious postoperative bleeding.
Social anxiety and social judgment: the example of detecting deception

Abstract On the basis of information-processing models of the relationship between anxiety and performance, as well as the literature on the self-presentational strategies of the socially anxious, we predicted that socially anxious subjects would be worse at discriminating truth from deception than would nonanxious subjects. Fifty subjects low in social anxiety and 52 subjects high in social anxiety watched videotapes of people who were sometimes lying and sometimes telling the truth. Subjects high in social anxiety were significantly less successful at detecting deception than were subjects low in anxiety. In fact, highly anxious subjects performed essentially at a chance level. Possible mechanisms underlying the differences in performance of the lows and the highs are discussed.
Effects of vincristine, maytansine, and cis‐platinum on behavioral and electrophysiological indices of neurotoxicity in the rat

The effects of the antineoplastic drugs vincristine, maytansine and cis-platinum were studied to determine the appropriateness of a behavioral and electrophysiological test battery for characterizing the neurotoxicity of such therapeutic compounds. Single- and repeated-dose studies in rats were performed initially, to establish doses for the subchronic neurobehavioral study. Measurements obtained in the subchronic study included body weight, rectal temperature, forelimb and hindlimb grip strengths; performance of a multisensory conditional avoidance response task and other behavioral tests; and a series of evoked responses (ventral caudal nerve action potential, brainstem auditory response and responses from other modalities). The drugs were injected intraperitoneally 5 days per week for 7 weeks. The rats were tested weekly during baseline, treatment and recovery phases. Each drug caused a different pattern of effects, but they all altered body weight, rectal temperature, peripheral nerve conduction velocity, the somatosensory evoked potential and undifferentiated motor activity. cis-Platinum was the most toxic, and maytansine was the least toxic. The results indicated that some elements of the test battery were useful for evaluating the neurotoxicity of anticancer drugs. However, other tests - notably, a test of negative geotaxis and the cortical auditory evoked response - were unreliable.
Yield locus in deep, single-face-cracked specimens under combined bending and tension

After a brief review of existing slip line and upper bound fields, we provide a completely analytical formulation for Rice's least upper bound. Then, we propose an improved approximate elliptical yield locus and compare it with finite element limit analyses of Lee and Parks
P01-134 Pregabalin GAD-treatment in different patient populations under clinical practice conditions

Background The safety and efficacy of pregabalin in Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) has been confirmed based on the results of 7 large, placebo-controlled trials. We report data on different patient populations from an open-label non-interventional observational trial under naturalistic conditions. Methods 331 physicians (mainly psychiatrists) recruited 578 adult GAD patients and documented treatment with pregabalin over 4 weeks. GAD severity was rated by the patients using Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and a 100mm daily Visual Analogue Scale (VAS-anxiety). Spontaneous Adverse Events (AEs) were collected. Results Most patients received an initial dose of 150mg pregabalin per day, which was then increased to 300mg per day. Mean HADS-A Baseline Score (15.5 vs. 14.6) and Improvement (-5.9 vs. -6.1) was similar in younger (≤65 years, n=484) and older (>65 years, n=71) patients. Treatment naive patients had a lower HADS-A-Score (mean 14.2) than patients who got pregabalin add-on to their current medication (mean 15.8); both groups showed a similar improvement by 5.9 points over 4 weeks. A total of 26 AEs occured during this study, most of them rated mild to moderate in severity with no treatment related serious events. The pattern of events resembled the one known from clinical trials and post-marketing experience. 1.2% of subjects discontinued treatment due to adverse events. Conclusion Data from this non-interventional study in GAD show that pregabalin demonstrates similar effectiveness in adults and older (≤65 years) patients, regardless of whether used as mono- or adjunctive therapy.
THE FUNCTION OF FORMAT: Consumer Responses to Six On-line Advertising Formats

This study represents an initial empirical test of a new construct--attitude toward on-line advertising format (A format ). An on-line survey was used to examine both antecedents and consequences of A format for each of six on-line ad formats (e.g., pop-ups, banners, skyscrapers). Regression analyses revealed A format to be significantly related to attitude toward the ad (A ad ) for all formats. Furthermore, A format was significantly related to self-reported on-line ad behaviors such as clickthrough. Overall, the results strongly suggest that the nature of the on-line ad format is an important characteristic that influences on-line advertising response.
Full-wave method of calculation of electromagnetic fields in stratified media

Stanford Full Wave Method (SFWM) is capable of calculating monochromatic electromagnetic waves in an arbitrary stationary anisotropic plane-stratified medium with arbitrary dielectric permittivity and magnetic permeability tensors, given in each layer of the medium. The electromagnetic radiation may be emitted by an arbitrary configuration of harmonically varying currents (both electric and magnetic). The typical problems to which SFWM has been applied are: (1) transport of plane waves upward through the ionosphere and their attenuation; (2) radiation from ionosphere regions, such as electrojet currents modulated by HF heating; (3) radiation from ground-based transmitters; (4) radiation from lightning; (5) Earth-ionosphere waveguide modes; (6) scattering on ionospheric disturbances.
Avoidant disorder and social phobia in children and adolescents.

Abstract The diagnoses of avoidant disorder and social phobia in children have received little research attention. Although DSM-III-R describes avoidant disorder and social phobia as distinct disorders, no empirical data are available to support this notion. The current study examined characteristics of avoidant disorder and social phobia by comparing outpatient youngsters with avoidant disorder, social phobia, and avoidant disorder plus social phobia on demographic variables and patterns of comorbidity. The psychiatric groups were compared with matched normal controls on symptom measures of depression and fear. Findings indicated that the three psychiatric groups were strikingly similar on all but one variable, age at intake. These findings question the notion of avoidant disorder and social phobia as distinct disorders in children and adolescents.
Coordinated Regulation of Mesenchymal Stem Cell Differentiation on Microstructured Titanium Surfaces by Endogenous Bone Morphogenetic Proteins

Human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) differentiate into osteoblasts on microstructured titanium (Ti) surfaces without addition of medium supplements, suggesting that surface-dependent endogenous mechanisms are involved. They produce bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), which regulate MSC differentiation and bone formation via autocrine/paracrine mechanisms that are modulated by changes in BMP mRNA and protein, receptors, and inhibitors (Noggin, Cerberus, Gremlin 1, and Chordin). We examined expression of BMPs, their receptors and their inhibitors over time and used BMP2-silenced cells to determine how modulating endogenous BMP signaling can affect the process. MSCs were cultured on tissue culture polystyrene or Ti [PT (Ra<0.4 μm); sandblasted/acid-etched Ti (SLA, Ra=3.2 μm); or hydrophilic-SLA (modSLA)]. BMP mRNAs and proteins increased by day 4 of culture. Exogenous BMP2 increased differentiation whereas differentiation was decreased in BMP2-silenced cells. Noggin was regulated by day 2 whereas Gremlin 1 and Cerberus were regulated after 6days. Osteoblastic differentiation increased in cells cultured with blocking antibodies against Noggin, Gremlin 1, and Cerberus. Endogenous BMPs enhance an osteogenic microenvironment whereas exogenous BMPs are inhibitory. Antibody blocking of the BMP2 inhibitor Cerberus resulted in IL-6 and IL-8 levels that were similar to those observed when treating cells with exogenous BMP2, while antibodies targeting the inhibitors Gremlin or Noggin did not. These results suggest that microstructured titanium implants supporting therapeutic stem cells may be treated with appropriately selected agents antagonistic to extracellular BMP inhibitors in order to enhance BMP2 mediated bone repair while avoiding undesirable inflammatory side effects observed with exogenous BMP2 treatment.
Driving force in electromigration

The driving force in electromigration is generally assumed to consist of a "direct force" due to the applied field and an "electron-wind" term due to momentum exchange with the current carriers. In the case of the "direct force" it is uncertain how effectively the charge is screened. In the case of the "electron wind" it is unclear whether the moving atom senses the carrier's change in lattice momentum or real momentum. A method first utilized by Bosvieux and Friedel, and expanded by Sorbello, resolves these problems by calculating driving forces on the unscreened ion resulting from the nonuniformities in spatial carrier distribution. These theories depend, however, on an incomplete picture of the spatial variations in the electric field, which inevitably accompany current flow past localized scatterers. Furthermore, "screening" of the charge of a lattice defect is related to inhomogeneities in carrier density and the resulting spatial inhomogeneity in the rate of current production which a uniform field would provide. Terms of this latter sort have never received explicit consideration.
Surfactant modulates calcium response of neutrophils to physiologic stimulation via cell membrane depolarization.

Pulmonary surfactant (PS) reduces inflammation in the lung by poorly understood mechanisms. We have observed that surfactant-associated proteins (SAP) insert monovalent cation channels in artificial membranes. Neutrophils are primary mediators of acute pulmonary inflammation, and their functions are activated by increases in cytosolic ionized calcium concentration ([Ca2+]) and by changes in membrane potential. We hypothesize that PS inserts SAP-dependent cation channels in neutrophils, causing membrane depolarization, altered [Ca2+] response, and depressed activation. Human neutrophils were isolated, exposed to PS+SAP (1% Survanta), PS−SAP (1% Exosurf), or buffer, and washed before activating with selected stimulants. PS+SAP reduced phorbol ester- and formyl peptide–stimulated adherence and aggregation by 38% (p < 0.05) and 54% (p < 0.02), respectively. PS+SAP also inhibited the formyl peptide–induced [Ca2+] response of neutrophils (p < 0.01), but only in the presence of external Ca2+. Further characterization of this inhibition demonstrated that PS+SAP blocked formyl peptide–induced influx of both Ca2+ and Mn2+, and that this inhibition was present during activation by other neutrophil stimulants (IL-8, immune complexes). Prior depolarization of neutrophils with gramicidin-D similarly inhibited the [Ca2+] response of neutrophils to formyl peptide, and analysis of neutrophil membrane potential by 3,3′-dipentyloxaearbocyanine iodide (diOC5(3)) fluorescence revealed that PS+SAP induced rapid neutrophil depolarization. In contrast, PS−SAP exhibited little effect on neutrophil function, [Ca2+], or membrane potential. We conclude that PS+SAP decreases neutrophil adherence and aggregation responses, blocks Ca2+ influx after physiologic stimulation, and decreases membrane potential. We speculate that these effects are caused by membrane depolarization via SAP-dependent cation channel insertion, and that all of these effects contribute to the antiinflammatory properties of PS+SAP.
Ice cloud microphysics and its temperature dependence retrieved from satellite data

A near-global (50 degree S to 50 degree N) survey of ice crystal sizes for both continental and oceanic areas is presented, along with a description of the methodology for retrieving ice cloud particle size from ISCCP data. To retrieve ice particle sizes, a radiative transfer model is used which includes all major absorbing gases and cloud scattering/absorption to compute synthetic radiances as a function of satellite viewing geometry. The surface reflectance effect is considered according to retrieved monthly average reflectance values at each location. Ice crystal shapes are assumed to be hexagonal columns. The model results have been validated against clear sky observations and are consistent with the observed radiance range under cloudy conditions. We investigated the relationship between cloud temperatures/optical thickness and cirrus ice crystal sizes based on the retrieved cirrus particle size data. We found that for thick clouds ((tau) greater than or equal to 10), most of the regions over the globe show positive relationships between cloud temperature and cirrus ice crystal sizes. However, if relatively thin clouds are included ((tau) greater than or equal to 3), this correlation becomes negative for tropical areas but remains mostly positive for midlatitudes.
Temperature and humidity biases in global climate models and their impact on climate feedbacks

[1] A comparison of AIRS and reanalysis temperature and humidity profiles to those simulated from climate models reveals large biases. The model simulated temperatures are systematically colder by 1–4 K throughout the troposphere. On average, current models also simulate a large moist bias in the free troposphere (more than 100%) but a dry bias in the boundary layer (up to 25%). While the overall pattern of biases is fairly common from model to model, the magnitude of these biases is not. In particular, the free tropospheric cold and moist bias varies significantly from one model to the next. In contrast, the response of water vapor and tropospheric temperature to a surface warming is shown to be remarkably consistent across models and uncorrelated to the bias in the mean state. We further show that these biases, while significant, have little direct impact on the models' simulation of water vapor and lapse-rate feedbacks.
Coefficients of thermal expansion of some laminated ceramic composites

Abstract The coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) were determined for several non-fibrous alumina-based laminated ceramic composites. The results were compared with the CTE values predicted by the modified equations of Schapery and Chamis. Both models are identical in the longitudinal direction and showed differences from experimental CTE of 2.3 and 4.1% for alumina/barium zirconate (Al 2 O 3 /BaZrO 3 ) and alumina/tin dioxide (Al 2 O 3 /SnO 2 ) composites, respectively. For Al 2 O 3 /BaZrO 3 in the transverse direction, Schapery's model showed a 1.9% difference while Chamis’ model showed a 7.5% difference. For the Al 2 O 3 /SnO 2 in the transverse direction, Schapery's model had an 8.2% difference while Chamis’ model showed only a 2.3% difference. Results for alumina/calcium titanate (Al 2 O 3 /CaTiO 3 ) laminates showed larger differences, 27.6% in longitudinal CTE and differences of 9.6 and 19.8% transverse CTE for the Schapery and Chamis models, respectively. These differences were attributed to the formation of cracks that occurred in this composite system during processing because of the large CTE mismatch between Al 2 O 3 and CaTiO 3 . Results for Al 2 O 3 /BaZrO 3 and Al 2 O 3 /SnO 2 composites showed that for continuous laminae both the Schapery and Chamis models were adequate predictors of CTE for the systems.
Transaction Costs, Uncertainty and Generally Inactive Futures Markets

Transaction costs were originally introduced into the competitive equilibrium framework in order to explain the sequential pattern of trade that is observed in the real world. This pattern exhibits the following two properties: 1. The bulk of trading activity is conducted on spot markets; 2. Futures trading, when it occurs, tends to cluster around the delivery date. The existing theory of competitive equilibrium with transaction costs seems only to have considered the case of certainty.1 In the present paper I contend that the trading pattern just described only emerges as a special case in the certainty framework, but become generic once uncertainty is admitted. The intuition underlying this result is quite straightforward. By assumption, all trading (both spot and futures) requires that transaction costs be incurred. Notice that with uncertainty only spot contracts stipulate certain delivery. In contrast, an individual futures contract stipulates delivery contingent on some future event which may or may not occur. Consequently most potential contingent contracts would not result in delivery despite the fact that transaction costs were incurred when these contracts were traded. As a result, there will be present a strong tendency to economize on transaction costs by avoiding futures markets. Of course, this need not mean that no futures market is active. Yet the same principle explains why we should not expect to see very many contracts for delivery far into the future: the closer together are the transaction data and the delivery date, the greater the number of events whose occurrence can be ruled out. The above argument does not apply to the certainty framework because all contracts (both spot and futures) result in certain delivery. Therefore, although trading will be timed so that transaction costs are incurred at the most convenient date, there is no structural reason why transaction and delivery dates need be close together. The discussion can be made rigorous by adding uncertainty to the Hahn (1973)-Starrett (1973) transaction costs model. This serves to illuminate the precise way that competitive prices induce the trading pattern under discussion.
Traversal times for rectangular barriers within Bohm's causal interpretation of quantum mechanics

Abstract In sharp contrast to the conventional interpretation of quantum mechanics, Bohm's causal or trajectory interpretation provides a unique, well-defined, and unambiguous prescription for calculating the average time spent by a transmitted particle inside a one-dimensional barrier. Numerical results for such traversal times are presented for the special case of a particle described initially by a minimum-uncertainty-product wavepacket incident on a rectangular barrier. These are very different from the corresponding Larmor clock or time-modulated barrier results unless the transition probability is close to unity.
Superconductivity and Hole Source in Hg(Ba2-xSrx)CuO4+δ

Abstract Mercury cuprates Hg(Ba2-xSrx)CuO4+δ (x = 0.0-0.7) were synthesized, and their structure and superconductivity were characterized. Single phases of Hg(Ba2-xSrx)CUO4+δ can be obtained for x = 0.0-0.7; they crystallize in a tetragonal structure, and their a- and c-parameters decrease smoothly with increasing x . The superconducting transition temperature of Hg(Ba2-xSrx)CuO4+δ decreases with increasing x, and superconductivity vanishes for x ≥ 0.5. These observations and tight-binding electronic band structure calculations suggest that the hole source of Hg(Ba2-xSrx) CuO4+δ is not the Hg 6s band but the interstitial oxygen atoms in the HgOδ sheet.
Crisis Management in the Catholic Church: Lessons for Public Administrators

The Catholic Church offers a timely, significant case study of institutional failure. Looking at an in-depth examination of the sex abuse scandal conducted by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, the author discusses how the church crisis relates to classic public administration and crisis management theory. Given the similarities between the church and the government as public bureaucratic institutions, public administrations have much to learn from the case. Lessons include immediately sharing harsh truths with the public, accepting the stark realities of higher “public” expectations, establishing appropriate accountability systems, and fostering trust by building close community relationships. It is equally important to consider that church leaders neither fully considered nor absorbed key lessons from existing administrative theory. Concepts such as inappropriate organizational culture, bureaucracy, technicism, and goal displacement often blind leaders to adopting best practices based on well-established theory.
Radial intensity filters using radial birefringent elements

A birefringent crystal with a surface curvature ρ provides a radial variation of polarization retardation. One or more such radial birefringent elements in combination with a polarizer form a radial intensity filter (RIF). RIF’s permit the generation of a variety of radial transmittance and reflectance profiles that are useful in resonator and spatial filter applications.
Wound healing in the fetal lamb.

Abstract The most striking findings in a study of wound healing in the fetal lamb include: (1) healing in lamb fetuses prior to 120 days of gestation occurs without the presence of granulocytes; (2) there is virtually no scar formation in any healing wound presumably due to the relative absence of collagen in the fetal tissues; (3) open wounds contract very rapidly, even though they are moist and there can be no contraction of the coagulum; (4) open wounds do not form the normal slough of hyalinized collagen in the base; (5) very rapid healing of all wounds in spite of the low oxygen tension in the surrounding tissues; (6) the rapid healing cannot be explained by the germ-free environment.
Ultrasound evaluation of flexor tendon lacerations.

Thirteen injured digits in 10 patients (10 hands) with 20 potentially injured flexor tendons were preoperatively evaluated using real-time ultrasonography. The time interval between injury and ultrasonographic evaluation averaged 22 days. If a complete tendon laceration was found, the location of the proximal tendon stump was determined. Surgery was performed an average of 4 days after the ultrasonographic evaluation to determine the accuracy of the ultrasound study. Ultrasonography accurately identified the status of the flexor tendon in 11 of 13 digits and in 18 of 20 flexor tendons (12 intact, 2 partial lacerations, and 6 complete tendon lacerations). With complete tendon lacerations the location of the proximal tendon stump was accurately identified in 5 of 6 digits. There were 2 false ultrasound findings, including incorrectly identifying a 75% laceration in an intact index flexor and a complete tendon laceration in a 75% lacerated index finger flexor. Ultrasonography can help to evaluate the preoperative status of injured flexor tendons and, in cases of completely lacerated tendons, can help identify the location of the proximal tendon stump.
Skeletal muscle StO2 kinetics are slowed during low work rate calf exercise in peripheral arterial disease.

The time course of muscle oxygen desaturation (StO2 kinetics) following exercise onset reflects the dynamic interaction between muscle blood flow and muscle oxygen consumption. In patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD), muscle StO2 kinetics are slowed during walking exercise; potentially reflecting altered muscle oxygen consumption relative to blood flow. This study evaluated whether StO2 kinetics measured using near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) would be slowed in PAD during low work rate calf exercise compared with healthy subjects under conditions in which blood flow did not differ. Eight subjects with PAD and eight controls performed 3 min of calf exercise at 5, 10, 30, and 50% of maximal voluntary contraction (MVC). Calf blood flow responses were measured by plethysmography. Power outputs were similar between groups for all work rates. In PAD, the time constants of StO2 kinetics were significantly slower than controls during 5% MVC (13.5 ± 1.7 vs. 6.9 ± 1.2 s, P < 0.05) and 10% MVC work rates (14.5 ± 2.7 vs. 6.8 ± 1.1 s, P < 0.05). Blood flow assessed when exercise was interrupted after 30 s did not differ between PAD and control subjects at these work rates. In contrast, the StO2 time constants were not different between groups during 30 and 50% MVC work rates, where blood flow responses in PAD subjects were lower as compared with controls. Thus in PAD, the slowed StO2 kinetic responses under conditions of unimpaired calf blood flow reflect slowed muscle oxygen consumption in PAD skeletal muscle during low work rate plantar flexion exercise as compared with healthy skeletal muscle.
Work Alienation as an Individual‐Difference Construct for Predicting Workplace Adjustment: A Test in Two Samples1

This study represents the first attempt to examine the validity of work alienation as a general attitude toward the work domain. As hypothesized, hierarchical regression analyses of data from 2 employee samples (n= 99 and n= 250) indicated that work alienation explained incremental variance in selected workplace adjustment variables (i. e., job involvement, affective organizational commitment, affective occupational commitment, overall job satisfaction, and volitional absence) beyond the variance accounted for by work conscientiousness (i. e., dependability and achievement orientation) and by variables used to control for sources of self-report variance (i. e., self-deception and negative affectivity). These results support the legitimacy of work alienation as an individual-difference construct associated with work-related adjustment.
Satisfying general proximity / similarity queries with metric trees

Abstract Divide-and-conquer search strategies are described for satisfying proximity queries involving arbitrary distance metrics.
265 AGE-SPECIFIC SENSITIVITY TO HYPOXIA ON METHIONINE ENKEPHALIN CONCENTRATION WITHIN BRAINSTEM NUCLEI

265 AGE-SPECIFIC SENSITIVITY TO HYPOXIA ON METHIONINE ENKEPHALIN CONCENTRATION WITHIN BRAINSTEM NUCLEI
Computer-aided instruction in structural analysis

Abstract Structural Engineering is presently in an era of rapid growth and development. Design concepts never thought possible have become common place. To adequately prepare the student for these advances, the engineering educator faces a formidable task. When used with forethought, computers can be a valuable tool in accomplishing this task. Three areas of application are presented demonstrating utilization of computers in the classroom. Included are sample problems in the different areas.
Fast and adaptive color-to-grayscale conversion

Methods and systems, including computer program products, for determining a plurality of color clusters based on a plurality of pixels associated with a color image, the clusters being fewer than the pixels. A grayscale value for each one of a plurality of points in a color space is determined. Each grayscale value is based on a weighted average of target differences between each point and the clusters. Each of the pixels is associated with one or more of the points. A grayscale value for each pixel is identified based on the grayscale value of the associated one or more points.
THE EFFECTS OF NEOSTIGMINE UPON GANGLION RESPONSES AFTER ADMINISTRATION OF BLOCKING DRUGS.

Abstract The effects of block of autonomic ganglia by chlorisondamine and by hexamethonium, the administration of neostigmine and of atropine upon blood pressure, nervous transmission through the superior cervical ganglion, stimulation of autonomic ganglia by dimethylphenylpiperazinium, and the carotid occlusion reflex, have been studied in the dog anaesthetized with sodium pentobarbitone. The results of these studies have shown: (1) A ganglion blocking agent blocks synaptic transmission in the superior cervical ganglion at the same time as it lowers blood pressure. Neostigmine administered after ganglion-block raises the blood pressure without much change in the response to stimulation of the preganglionic cervical sympathetic nerve. (2) If the effects of preganglionic nerve stimulation are recorded as a contraction of the nictitating membrane, a ganglion-blocking agent also abolishes this response at the same time as it blocks the reflex rise in blood pressure produced by occlusion of both common carotid arteries. Neostigmine administered under these conditions does not affect the responses of the nictitating membrane, but restores the carotid occlusion reflex. This restoration of reflex activity is sensitive to atropine, as is the blood pressure rise. (3) At the same time that neostigmine restores the carotid occlusion reflex, there is no restoration of sensitivity of autonomic ganglia to chemical stimulation by dimethylphenylpiperazinium. In these animals atropine not only blocked the restored carotid occlusion reflex, but produced a further inhibition of the pressor response to dimethylphenylpiperazinium. It is concluded that neostigmine may raise blood pressure by partially restoring autonomic ganglionic transmission, but that total ganglionic function is not restored.
Polymorphism of DNA ligase I and risk of lung cancer--a case-control analysis.

Abstract DNA ligases catalyze the joining of single and double-strand DNA breaks, which is an essential step in DNA replication, recombination and repair. Recently, a common single nucleotide polymorphism (A→C) in exon 6 of DNA ligase I ( LIG1 ) was identified, but its functional relevance remains to be determined. Because LIG1 participates in DNA repair and reduced DNA repair capacity is associated with risk of lung cancer, we evaluated in a non-population-based case-control study of 530 lung cancer cases and 570 cancer-free controls the role of this polymorphism in susceptibility to lung cancer. All of the subjects were non-Hispanic whites and the controls were frequency-matched to cases on age, sex and smoking status. Using the polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism method, we found that this LIGI A→C substitution was very common in healthy controls and that the A and C allele frequencies were close to 0.5. However, there was no significant difference in the frequency distributions of LIGI genotypes between lung cancer cases and controls (25.7, 49.8 and 24.5% in cases and 26.1, 49.7 and 24.2% in controls for the AA, AC and CC genotypes, respectively). Therefore, there was no evidence to support an association between this polymorphism and the risk of lung cancer (adjusted odds ratio (OR)=1.06, 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.76–1.49 for AC versus CC and OR=0.93, 95% CI=0.64–1.36 for AA versus CC) neither in all cases nor in different histopathologic types. The results of this large case-control study suggest that this LIG1 polymorphism may not play an important role in susceptibility to lung cancer.