cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Regulation of growth cone behavior by calcium: New dynamics to earlier perspectives

Guidance of axons to their targets is in part due to theability of motile growth cones to integrate signalsgenerated through coincident interactions with multi-ple extracellular cues and to translate those signalsinto proper behavioral changes. Although many newaxon guidance cues and their receptors have recentlybeen discovered (for review see Goodman andTessier-Lavigne, 1997), signaling through traditionalsecond-messenger systems continues to emerge as acrucial intermediary for guidance. For example,changes in intracellular calcium concentration([Ca
Rapid confirmatory assay for the simultaneous detection of ronidazole, metronidazole and dimetridazole in eggs using liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

A relatively fast, sensitive and very selective high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for the detection of ronidazole, metronidazole and dimetridazole in eggs has been developed. After a simple extraction with acetonitrile and evaporation of the organic solvent, the extract was filtered and directly injected into the LC-MS-MS system on a C18 column. The abundant parent ions [M + H]+ produced by positive electrospray ionisation were selected for fragmentation with argon. Validation parameters such as detection limit, recovery, linearity and repeatability were determined. The advantage of this method over existing methods is the very simple sample pre-treatment and the high specificity due to the multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) transitions.
Testing satisfaction of basic psychological needs as a mediator of the relationship between socioeconomic status and physical and mental health

This research applied self-determination theory to examine the degree to which satisfaction of basic psychological needs for autonomy, relatedness, and competence explained the association between socioeconomic status and physical and mental health outcomes, while controlling for age, exercise, and smoking status. This was a survey research study with 513 full-time employees in professions representative of a hierarchal organization. The results of the structural equation model verify that psychological need satisfaction mediates the inverse association between socioeconomic status and physical and mental health. Self-determination theory contributes to understanding the psychosocial roots of the uneven distribution of health across the socioeconomic gradient.
The Role of Fuel Preparation in Low-Emission Combustion

The attainment of very low pollutant emissions, in particular oxides of nitrogen (NO{sub x}), from gas turbines is not only of considerable environmental concern but has also become an area of increasing competitiveness between the different engine manufacturers. For stationary engines, the attainment of ultralow NO{sub x} has become the foremost marketing issue. This paper is devoted primarily to current and emerging technologies in the development of ultralow emissions combustors for application to aircraft and stationary engines. Short descriptions of the basic design features of conventional gas turbine combustors and the methods of fuel injection now in widespread use are followed by a review of fuel spray characteristics and recent developments in the measurement and modeling of these characteristics. The main gas-turbine-generated pollutants and their mechanisms of formation are described, along with related environmental risk and various issues concerning emissions regulations and recently enacted legislation for limiting the pollutant levels emitted by both aircraft and stationary engines. The impact so these emissions regulations on combustor and engine design are discussed first in relation to conventional combustors and then in the context of variable-geometry and staged combustors. Both these concepts are founded on emissions reduction by control of flame temperature. Basicmore » approaches to the design of dry low-NO{sub x} and ultralow-NO{sub x} combustors are reviewed.« less
Simulation of Diauxic Production of Cephalosporin C by Cephalosporium acremonium: Lag Model for Fed‐Batch Fermentation

We extend a previously reported model (Chu, W.B.; Constantinides, A. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 1988, 32, 277-288) for the batch fermentation of cephalosporin C under the diauxic growth of Cephalosporium acremonium on glucose and sucrose to a fed-batch system. For this purpose, a novel lag model is proposed for diauxie, which has two functional forms, each embodying the dependence of lag on total cell mass and secondary substrate concentration. This lag model is applicable for batch simulations for arbitrary initial glucose and sucrose concentrations. We used the previously reported batch data to perform locally optimized fed-batch simulations. When applied to fed-batch fermentations, multiple lag times were accounted for. These studies showed that fed-batch fermentations (under the restriction that cell mass concentration did not exceed 25 g/L) could be more productive than simple batch runs. A representative result for a glucose-pulse fed-batch run at optimal cephalosporin production is a productivity of 4.22 mg of cephalosporin C/(L.h) and a yield of 9.25 mg of cephalosporin C/g of total sugar used.
Abstract B45: TRAIL sensitivity in triple-negative breast cancer cell lines from different ethnic backgrounds

Introduction: Tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) can kill tumor cells while leaving normal cells unharmed. However, many breast and ovarian cancer cells are resistant to TRAIL-mediated apoptosis. Breast cancers can be divided into those which express the estrogen (ER) and progesterone (PR) receptors, those with HER-2 amplification, and those without expression of ER, PR, or HER-2 amplification (referred to as basal or triple-negative breast cancer). Due to the lack of specific target there is no targeted therapy for triple negative breast cancer. Recently, we demonstrated that a set of triple negative breast cancer cell lines with mesenchymal features are sensitive to TRAIL. Still TRAIL has very little or no effect on the triple negative cells with epithelial characteristics. We are investigating if this is true for the cell lines derived from different ethnic group. Method: Both epithelial (viz., MDA-MB-468, from African American and HCC1937 from non Hispanic white) and mesenchymal cell lines (viz., MDA-MB-157 from African American, and MDA-MB-231 from non Hispanic white patient) were selected for this study. All of the cell lines were grown in MEM medium supplemented with 10% FCS with or without 1ug/ml TRAIL for 16h. Percentage of growth inhibition was determined by MTS assay. Correlation between growth inhibition and apoptosis were established by mitochondrial membrane depolarization, caspase assay, and DNA fragmentation. Result: Both of the epithelial triple negative cells were non responsive to TRAIL. Only some (10.5% for MB-468 and 18.6% for HCC1937) growth inhibition was observed even with highest concentration (5ug/ml) of TRAIL irrespective to the ethnicity differences. The effect of TRAIL in these cell lines was not dose dependant. On the other hand, both cell lines with mesenchymal feature from both ethnicities were highly responsive to TRAIL. More than 70% (71.5% for MB-157 and 75.2% for MB-231) of growth inhibition was achieved with TRAIL at 1ug/ml concentration and the effect was dose dependent. In epithelial cells both the TRAIL-receptor-1 (TR-1) and TRAIL receptor-2 (TR-2) expression were very low. In MB-231 silencing of only TR-2 reduces the effect of TRAIL but not TR-1. Conclusions: Though cells from non Hispanic white patients were a little more sensitive to TRAIL than cells from African American patient, the difference was minor and it was not statistically significant. Low level or TR-2 expression in epithelial cell lines may contribute to TRAIL resistant to these cell lines. We think TRAIL could be used either alone or in combination to treat breast cancer with mesenchymal phenotype. Appropriate combination could be searched for TRAIL therapy for breast cancer with epithelial phenotype. We are investigating additional cell lines derived from different racial or ethnic groups to determine if there is any correlation between ethnicity and TRAIL sensitivity and underlying possible molecular mechanism. Citation Information: Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2011;20(10 Suppl):B45.
An object-oriented approach to the design of a mail system for a heterogeneous environment

Abstract The design of an electronic mail system, MASH, is presented in this paper. The system, to be used in a heterogeneous environment, provides common user interfaces that allow the use of several diverse workstations. It also allows message transmission through different networks. An object-oriented approach is adopted to model the handling of the user interface and communication. This approach results in procedural transparency to users when using the system.
Effect of oxygen on steady-state product distribution in Bacillus polymyxa fermentations.

Bacillus polymyxa ferments glucose to 1-2,3 butanediol, acetoin, ethanol, acetic acid, lactic acid, and formic acid. This research investigates product formation as a function of oxygen availability. A predictive model that simulates product distribution at known oxygen transfer rates is developed on the hypothesis that, in an energy-limited environment, B. polymyxa utilizes glucose and oxygen in the most efficient manner. The efficiency of utilization of glucose and oxygen is measured in terms of the ATP yields of each oxidative pathway. The identity of the products constituting the profile at the given oxygen transfer rate is determined by comparing the ATP production and consumption rates. While the ATP generated is calculated from a knowledge of the oxygen transfer rate and ATP yields of the oxidative pathways, the ATP consumption is estimated by the Pirt expression in terms of growth- and nongrowth-associated components. The product formation rates are obtained by solving ATP and NAD balance equations. They equate the production and consumption rates of these intermediates and are derived from the pseudo-steady-state hypothesis. The model is applied to continuous culture systems that are both open and closed with respect to biomass. At a given oxygen transfer rate, dilution rate, and inlet glucose concentration, the model predicts steady-state concentrations of two dominant fermentation end products with the help of four parameters that can be determined from independent experiments. In contrast with earlier approaches, the experimental studies are carried out in continuous culture. Product profiles are obtained at various oxygen transfer rates, fer rates, inlet glucose concentrations, and dilution rates. The effect of pH on the relative distribution of products is also demonstrated. Results indicate that the model is fairly successful in predicting product profiles as a function of oxygen availability.
Cycles and perfect matchings

Fan Chung and Ron Graham (J. Combin. Theory Ser. B 65 (1995) 273-290) introduced the cover polynomial for a directed graph and showed that it was connected with classical rook theory. Dworkin (J. Combin. Theory Ser. B 71 (1997) 17-53) showed that the cover polynomial naturally factors for directed graphs associated with Ferrers boards. The authors (Adv. Appl. Math. 27 (2001) 438-481) developed a rook theory for shifted Ferrers boards where the analogue of a rook placement is replaced by a partial perfect matching of K"2"n, the complete graph on 2n vertices. In this paper, we show that an analogue of Dworkin's result holds for shifted Ferrers boards in this setting. We also show how cycle-counting matching numbers are connected to cycle-counting ''hit numbers'' (which involve perfect matchings of K"2"n).
Effect of acute ventricular pressure changes on QRS duration

The effect of acute changes in ventricular pressure is examined on the QRS duration to clarify the mechanism of ventricular pressure-related arrhythmogenesis. Ventricular pressure was changed acutely by arterial transfusion-bleeding into an open-air ventricular pressure reservoir that was either off or on a metaraminol intravenous drip. While maintaining ventricular pressure at several levels, the QRS duration was measured at 200 mm/s paper speed. The QRS duration correlated significantly with the left ventricular pressure in all 14 dogs examined. An average change in ventricular by 100 mmHg was associated with a change of about 18% in the QRS duration. An acute ventricular pressure elevation impairs the ventricular conduction, which may contribute to ventricular pressure-related arrhythmogenicity.
New sensitizers for PDT

For a number of well-defined reasons, research into the development of alternative photosensitizers to PhotofrinTM, for use in Photodynamic Therapy, continues. The efforts described in this paper cover the study of a number of sensitizers absorbing at different wavelengths, which may have selective applications in the field of photomedicine. In one approach, the use of tetraazoporphyrins (porphyrazines) as sensitizers is studied. Although related tetramacrocyclic systems such as porphyrins and phthalocyanines have been, and continue to be, well studied in this field, porphyrazines have, to-date, received little attention. In a second study, purpurins are examined as possible alternatives to PhotofrinTM. In a recent study, tissue distribution properties of tin etiopurpurin dichloride, as a function of time, were examined. Results indicate that this purpurin continues to show promise for applications in PDT.
A Low-Power Directional Gamma-Ray Sensor System for Long-Term Radiation Monitoring

A Low-power directional gamma-ray sensor system for long-term radiation monitoring is presented in this paper. The system can determine the direction of gamma-rays emitted from multiple point sources while simultaneously identifying them. The overall system is formed by merging a sensor section with a compact and low-power computational radiation sensor section. The sensor section houses three NaI gamma-ray detectors arranged in a spatial configuration that allows detection on a plane defined by the front faces of the detectors. The computational section is based on a single chip solution developed by the authors that house multiple low-power event-driven sensor front ends, event-driven analog-to-digital converters, and a dedicated microcontroller on the same silicon die. The presented system is capable of collecting individual gamma isotope detection events within the three separate NaI scintillator detectors. Further processing of the data to yield direction finding and multiple isotope identification is possible by executing software algorithms using the computation resources available on chip. To that end, a compact fixed-point program is developed to perform on-chip real-time gamma isotope identification and direction estimation. The single chip solution is fabricated in a 0.18- $\mu{\rm m}$ CMOS technology with field tests demonstrating the validity of the approaches taken. The total computational sensor system power consumption is less than 20 $\mu{\rm W}$ , excluding the detector power consumption. The gamma isotope identification and direction finding program executes in less than 100 ms. The system is validated by multiple 1- $\mu{\rm Ci}$ gamma-ray calibration button sources set at 25-cm distance from the detector setup. The system starts to provide consistent and repeatable results with less than 5 $^{\circ}$ errors in accuracy, once more than 2000 total photopeaks are gathered in a detection session. Since the underlying processing paradigm is event-driven and low-power, the possible field applications of the presented system involve long-term monitoring for radiation detection and protection, where low count rates may be present.
Presidentialism and the Development of Party Systems in Hybrid Regimes: Russia 2000–2003

Abstract This article addresses the relationship between presidentialism and democracy by examining the role of parties in legislative bargaining in the 2000–2003 Russian Duma. Using a novel methodological approach, I empirically identify legislative voting coalitions to investigate whether the president's preference for party-based legislative bargaining prevailed. I find that in contrast to the 1996–1999 Duma, legislative voting coalitions closely followed party lines and that factions representing narrow interests were less relevant. The results demonstrate that presidential politics dominates electoral incentives in this political system and, more broadly, that political parties could be indispensable for regimes in transition to authoritarianism.
Using the Level of Service Inventory-Revised to Improve Assessment and Treatment in Drug Court

More than 2,000 drug courts in the United States provide supervision and substance-abuse treatment to thousands of offenders. Yet the treatment continuum from assessment to aftercare is underexplored. The effectiveness of the Level of Service Inventory-Revised (LSI-R) as a risk assessment tool is well established. However, fewer studies have considered its use in guiding treatment strategies. In using the LSI-R, the drug court program relied on the structured interview protocol (not the risk classification scores) to identify criminogenic needs that then helped determine placement in a high- or low-needs treatment track. To evaluate the effectiveness of these treatment placement decisions, this research used the LSI-R scores to examine individual and group differences (N = 182). Significant and substantive differences at the individual and group levels were found thus providing empirical support for using the LSI-R as a link between assessment and treatment. Implications for developing standards and practice protocols for drug courts are discussed.
6B-2 Visualizing the Anatomic Structures of Human Prostates Using Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse (ARFI)Imaging

McNeal's zonal anatomy for prostate has been the standard anatomical model for human prostate for about 30 years. It divides a human prostate into one non-glandular zone (the anterior fibromuscular stroma), and three glandular zones (central zone (CZ), transitional zone (TZ) and peripheral zone (PZ)). Visualizing these zones is of great importance for diagnosing prostate diseases. However, they are not well visualized by current ultrasound techniques. In this study, 3D Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse (ARFI) imaging has been implemented in order to visualize anatomic structures of excised human prostates. Prostate specimens were obtained immediately after radical prostatectomy and put in an isotonic saline bath at room temperature. ARFI data were acquired from the posterior side of the prostate using a Siemens Antares scanner and a VF10-5 linear array, whose imaging plane is the axial/lateral view in the normal anatomy. The position of the imaging transducer was controlled by a 3D translation stage. The scanner and the translation stage were programmed to scan the entire prostate specimen automatically with 1 mm spacing between elevation planes. 3D ARFI images with high spatial resolution were acquired for each specimen. Different zones and structures within the prostates have been well visualized in 3D ARFI images, which are in agreement with McNeal's zonal anatomy. Prostate lesions and benign prostatic hyperplasia were also detected and correlated with histopathological results. This study demonstrated that ARFI imaging is capable of visualizing internal structures and detecting suspicious lesions in the prostate.
Surrender and catch

When I drove out of the city I was slowly becoming surprised and frightened. I feit I was no longer in streets, with their familiar smells (familiar now — by what hindsight?), their dirt, their conniving, converging people (lingering after them, I thought them converging even in their quarreis), but in the untouched — rocks, creeks, bushes: things unmastered, things staring me in the face, no matter how I traveled, what way, in what effort. What was catching me, had already caught me perhaps? It was the undefined: I had left the defined womb, the city in which I lived — yet that is not what the city had been while I was in it; it had so changed in my longing. The rocks now — how glibly they were called picturesque, how much were they given to the landscape architect (I was traveling on a parkway), while I was shocked to realize that I knew not a thing about them and that even the architect didn’t: the rocks were merely pieces in his scheme (though thus also of his own making).
An Improved Near-Surface Specific Humidity and Air Temperature Climatology for the SSM/I Satellite Period

AbstractA near-surface specific humidity (Qa) and air temperature (Ta) climatology on daily and 0.25° grids was constructed by the objectively analyzed air–sea fluxes (OAFlux) project by objectively merging two recent satellite-derived high-resolution analyses, the OAFlux existing 1° analysis, and atmospheric reanalyses. The two satellite products include the multi-instrument microwave regression (MIMR) Qa and Ta analysis and the Goddard Satellite-Based Surface Turbulent Fluxes, version 3 (GSSTF3), Qa analysis. This study assesses the degree of improvement made by OAFlux using buoy time series measurements at 137 locations and a global empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis. There are a total of 130 855 collocated daily values for Qa and 283 012 collocated daily values for Ta in the buoy evaluation. It is found that OAFlux Qa has a mean difference close to 0 and a root-mean-square (RMS) difference of 0.73 g kg−1, and Ta has a mean difference of −0.03°C and an RMS difference of 0.45°C. OAFlux shows n...
Matrix Attachment Region-Dependent Function of the Immunoglobulin μ Enhancer Involves Histone Acetylation at a Distance without Changes in Enhancer Occupancy

Nuclear matrix attachment regions (MARs), which flank the immunoglobulin μ heavy-chain enhancer on either side, are required for the activation of the distal variable-region (VH) promoter in transgenic mice. Previously, we have shown that the MARs extend a local domain of chromatin accessibility at the μ enhancer to more distal sites. In this report, we examine the influence of MARs on the formation of a nucleoprotein complex at the enhancer and on the acetylation of histones, which have both been implicated in contributing to chromatin accessibility. By in vivo footprint analysis of transgenic μ gene constructs, we show that the occupancy of factor-binding sites at the μ enhancer is similar in transcriptionally active wild-type and transcriptionally inactive ΔMAR genes. Chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments indicate, however, that the acetylation of histones at enhancer-distal nucleosomes is enhanced 10-fold in the presence of MARs, whereas the levels of histone acetylation at enhancer-proximal nucleosomes are similar for wild-type and ΔMAR genes. Taken together, these data indicate that the function of MARs in mediating long-range chromatin accessibility and transcriptional activation of the VH promoter involves the generation of an extended domain of histone acetylation, independent of changes in the occupancy of the μ enhancer.
New Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphisms in the Cytochrome Oxidase I Gene Facilitate Host Strain Identification of Fall Armyworm (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Populations in the Southeastern United States

Several restriction sites in the cytochrome oxidase I gene of fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith), were identified by sequence analysis as potentially being specific to one of the two host strains. Strain specificity was demonstrated for populations in Florida, Texas, Mississippi, Georgia, and North Carolina, with an AciI and SacI site specific to the rice (Oryjza spp.)-strain and a BsmI and HinfI site joining an already characterized MspI site as diagnostic of the corn (Zea mays L.)-strain. All four of these sites can be detected by digestion of a single 568-bp polymerase chain reaction-amplified fragment, but the use of two enzymes in separate digests was found to provide accurate and rapid determination of strain identity. The effectiveness of this method was demonstrated by the analysis of almost 200 adult and larval specimens from the Mississippi delta region. The results indicated that the corn-strain is likely to be the primary strain infesting cotton (Gossypium spp.) and that an unexpected outbreak of fall armyworm on the ornamental tree Paulownia tomentosa (Thunb.) Sieb. & Zucc. ex Steud. was due almost entirely to the rice-strain.
Influence of Androgenicity on Adipocytes and Precursor Cells in Female Rats

We examined the effects of overexposure of testosterone (T) on fat cell morphology and adipocyte precursor pools in inguinal and retroperitoneal fat depots of ovariectomized rats. In both tissues peripubertal T decreased weights without affecting adipocyte mean cell size or the size distribution profiles, but adipocyte number was decreased by 65% in the inguinal and by 38% in the retroperitoneal depots. Immunofluorescent flow cytometry utilizing a specific antibody to rat adipose tissue lipoprotein lipase was used to quantify regional precursor cell populations. T sharply reduced the percentages of differentiated and undifferentiated preadipocytes in the inguinal depot, from 43.2 +/- 5.3 to 23.5 +/- 2.1% and from 57.7 +/- 4.0 to 43.6 +/- 5.3%, respectively, with a concomitant increase in fibroblasts from 1.6 to 32.9%. On the other hand, T had no effect on retroperitoneal preadipocyte pools. Perinatal androgenization exacerbated the decline in the inguinal weight (1.4 +/- 0.1 vs. 2.2 +/- 0.1g) but otherwise did not influence the actions of peripubertal T. Androgens may thus act in a tissue-specific manner to regulate fat cell growth potential in the femoral region in the female.
An Empirical View of the Transparent Objectivity of Forensic Accounting Expert Witnesses

This paper reports the views of forensic accountants, attorneys, and accounting academics concerning the perception of forensic accounting expert witness transparency. The results of Kruskal-Wallis tests comparing the three groups on their responses to each survey statement indicated that the three groups were not equivalent in their responses to any of the nine items. In addition to the nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis tests, one-way ANOVAs were performed comparing the three groups on their mean response to these items. All one-way ANOVAs were statistically significant, confirming the results from the Kruskal-Wallis tests. A series of Mann-Whitney tests were performed comparing academics to forensic accountants, academics to attorneys, and forensic accountants to attorneys using a Bonferroni correction. Forensic accountants and attorneys differed on all survey items. Academics and forensic accountants differed on the majority of survey items.
The aggressive peripheral T‐cell lymphomas: 2013

Background T-cell lymphomas make up approximately 10–15% of lymphoid malignancies. The frequency of these lymphomas varies geographically, with the highest incidence in parts of Asia. Diagnosis The diagnosis of aggressive peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) is usually made using the WHO classification. The ability of hematopathologists to reproducibly diagnosis aggressive PTCL is lower than for aggressive B-cell lymphomas, with a range of 72–97% for the aggressive PTCLs. Risk Stratification Patients with aggressive PTCL are staged using the Ann Arbor Classification. Although somewhat controversial, PET scans appear to be useful as they are in aggressive B-cell lymphomas. The most commonly used prognostic index is the International Prognostic Index. The specific subtype of aggressive PTCL is an important risk factor, with the best survival seen in anaplastic large cell lymphoma—particularly young patients with the anaplastic lymphoma kinase positive subtype. Risk Adapted Therapy Anaplastic large cell lymphoma is the only subgroup to have a good response to a CHOP-like regimen. Angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma has a prolonged disease-free survival in only ∼20% of patients, but younger patients who have an autotransplant in remission seem to do better. PTCL-NOS (not otherwise specified) is not one disease. Anthracycline containing regimens have disappointing results and a new approach is needed. NK/T-cell lymphoma localized to the nose and nasal sinuses seems to be best treated with radiotherapy containing regimens. Enteropathy associated PTCL and hepatosplenic PTCL are rare disorders with a generally poor response to therapy, although selected patients with enteropathy associated PTCL seem to benefit from intensive therapy. Am. J. Hematol. 88:911–918, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Infrared search and track signal processing: a potential application of artificial neural computing

A requirement of modern airborne infrared search and track (IRST) systems is to detect targets at long distances, often in the presence of heavy cloud clutter in sky scenes, or possibly ground clutter when the IR sensor is looking down. A number of spatial processing algorithms have been tested in this study, including (1) an LMS filter and (2) an artificial neural network trained to recognize point source objects. It is the purpose of this paper to present the preliminary findings and conclusions relative to the performance of these two quite dissimilar signal IRST processing architectures. The two IRST signal processing algorithms mentioned are compared using seven test images from an IR imagery database.
The Preventive Health Education and Medical Home Project: A Predictive and Contextual Model for Low-Income Families

The Preventive Health Education and Medical Home Project (PHEMHP) is a predictive and contextual model intended to reduce low levels of health services utilization and improve preventive health techniques and disease self-management for low-income families in South Central Los Angeles, with the ultimate goal of attaching each child to a medical home. The model is designed to be implemented through educational and case management strategies. This paper presents the conceptual framework, critical intervention activities, and the different implementation variations the PHEMHP has already assumed. Implications for research, policy, and practice are discussed.
Coordinated CPU and event scheduling for distributed multimedia applications

Distributed multimedia applications require support from the underlying operating system to achieve and maintain their desired Quality of Service (QoS). This has led to the creation of novel task and message schedulers and to the development of QoS mechanisms that allow applications to explicitly interact with relevant operating system services. However, the task scheduling techniques developed to date are not well equipped to take advantage of such interactions. As a result, important events such as position update messages in virtual environments may be ignored. If a CPU scheduler ignores these events, players will experience a lack of responsiveness or even inconsistencies in the virtual world. This paper argues that real-time and multimedia applications can benefit from coordinatedel event delivery mechanism, termed ECalls, that supports such coordination. We then show ECalls's ability to reduce variations in inter-frame times for media streams.
Prenatal cadmium exposure dysregulates sonic hedgehog and Wnt/β-catenin signaling in the thymus resulting in altered thymocyte development

Cadmium (Cd) is both an environmental pollutant and a component of cigarette smoke. Although evidence demonstrates that adult exposure to Cd causes changes in the immune system, there are limited reports in the literature of immunomodulatory effects of prenatal exposure to Cd. The sonic hedgehog (Shh) and Wnt/beta-catenin pathways are required for thymocyte maturation. Several studies have demonstrated that Cd exposure affects these pathways in different organ systems. This study was designed to investigate the effect of prenatal Cd exposure on thymocyte development, and to determine if these effects were linked to dysregulation of Shh and Wnt/beta-catenin pathways. Pregnant C57Bl/6 mice were exposed to an environmentally relevant dose (10 ppm) of Cd throughout pregnancy and effects on the thymus were assessed on the day of birth. Thymocyte phenotype was determined by flow cytometry. A Gli:luciferase reporter cell line was used to measure Shh signaling. Transcription of target genes and translation of key components of both signaling pathways were assessed using real-time RT-PCR and western blot, respectively. Prenatal Cd exposure increased the number of CD4(+) cells and a subpopulation of double-negative cells (DN; CD4(-)CD8(-)), DN4 (CD44(-)CD25(-)). Shh and Wnt/beta-catenin signaling were both decreased in the thymus. Target genes of Shh (Patched1 and Gli1) and Wnt/beta-catenin (c-fos, and c-myc) were affected differentially among thymocyte subpopulations. These findings suggest that prenatal exposure to Cd dysregulates two signaling pathways in the thymus, resulting in altered thymocyte development.
Work and Family Over Time: A Life Course Approach

Given the fundamental changes in the institutions of both work and family, the need to focus on the work-family interface is greater than ever. Most studies, however, examine this interface in terms of individuals and at only one point in time. The authors propose a coupled-careers model, based on a life course perspective, directly addressing the multiple interfaces between work and family and between men and women as they unfold over time. This approach challenges implicit assumptions and stereotypes about work, careers, and gender that are increasingly outdated. Analysis of the data collected in the Cornell Retirement and Well-Being Study consistently shows the asymmetry between husbands and wives in their distinctive work-family interfaces over the life course. The evidence from our data leads us to believe that what is required are new, more open, and more flexible institutional arrangements for structuring the work-family interface for both men and women at all life course and career stages.
Development of a PET-Transrectal Ultrasound Prostate Imaging System

Multimodality imaging has an increasing role in the management of a large number of diseases, particularly if both functional and structural information are acquired and accurately registered. Transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) imaging is currently an integral part of prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment procedures, providing high-resolution anatomical detail of the prostate region. Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging with 11C-choline is a sensitive functional imaging technique that can identify biochemical states associated with prostate cancer. We believe that merging these prostate imaging technologies will help identify the location and aggressiveness of prostate cancer. We envision using dual PET-TRUS prostate imaging to guide biopsy, guide treatment procedures, and detect local recurrence earlier than is currently possible. Hence, we have developed a dual PET-TRUS prostate imaging system and protocol designed to allow accurate 3-D image registration. We have evaluated this PET-TRUS system by performing dual PET-TRUS imaging of custom phantoms. We describe here our dual-modality imaging system, custom phantoms and phantom study results. We also discuss our investigation of the PET-TRUS registration accuracy. We measure an average PET-TRUS registration error for our phantom studies of 2.1 ±1.7nmm in the x direction, 1.9 ±1.6nmm in the y direction, and 0.6 ±0.2nmm in the z direction. This registration accuracy is sufficient for some clinical applications such as biopsy guidance and early detection of recurrence.
Why Science Is Not Necessarily Self-Correcting.

The ability to self-correct is considered a hallmark of science. However, self-correction does not always happen to scientific evidence by default. The trajectory of scientific credibility can fluctuate over time, both for defined scientific fields and for science at-large. History suggests that major catastrophes in scientific credibility are unfortunately possible and the argument that “it is obvious that progress is made” is weak. Careful evaluation of the current status of credibility of various scientific fields is important in order to understand any credibility deficits and how one could obtain and establish more trustworthy results. Efficient and unbiased replication mechanisms are essential for maintaining high levels of scientific credibility. Depending on the types of results obtained in the discovery and replication phases, there are different paradigms of research: optimal, self-correcting, false nonreplication, and perpetuated fallacy. In the absence of replication efforts, one is left with unconfirmed (genuine) discoveries and unchallenged fallacies. In several fields of investigation, including many areas of psychological science, perpetuated and unchallenged fallacies may comprise the majority of the circulating evidence. I catalogue a number of impediments to self-correction that have been empirically studied in psychological science. Finally, I discuss some proposed solutions to promote sound replication practices enhancing the credibility of scientific results as well as some potential disadvantages of each of them. Any deviation from the principle that seeking the truth has priority over any other goals may be seriously damaging to the self-correcting functions of science.
Automatic phase identification with one and two large aperture seismic arrays

Schemes to automatically identify later phases using LASA and using LASA together with NORSAR were designed and tested. With a single array, phase identification was accomplished by searching for a P or PKP phase that could be associated with a particular later phase such as PP , PcP , etc. On the basis of the time interval between the signals, their slowness, and relative amplitudes, the best phase interpretation was chosen by means of the Neyman-Person likelihood ratio test. With two arrays, detections from one array were checked against detections from the other array for signals originating from the same event. Testing the schemes on the LASA and NORSAR detection logs, 9 later phases per day were detected and 11 events per day were found common to the LASA and NORSAR detection logs. Confusion of later phases was very minor. The most serious problem was the identification of fictitious phases and events that occurred due to various coincidences.
Assortative Matching, Adverse Selection and Durable Goods: Transaction History, Safety Regulation and the Likelihood of Trade in the Business Aircraft Market

In recent years, considerable progress has occurred in modeling durable goods transactions in dynamic settings under asymmetric information. Most notable among these contributions are the works of Hendel and Lizzeri (1999, 2002), Janssen and Roy (2002), and Hendel, Lizzeri and Siniscalchi (2005). I explore registration changes for a sample of business aircraft over the period 1980-1999 to test some of the predictions of these models. The empirical regularities highlighted in this paper support these models. My results are also consistent with the view that high levels of efficiency can obtain even when information asymmetries condition the durable good trading environment.
Flow invariant droplet formation for stable parallel microreactors

The translation of batch chemistries onto continuous flow platforms requires addressing the issues of consistent fluidic behaviour, channel fouling and high-throughput processing. Droplet microfluidic technologies reduce channel fouling and provide an improved level of control over heat and mass transfer to control reaction kinetics. However, in conventional geometries, the droplet size is sensitive to changes in flow rates. Here we report a three-dimensional droplet generating device that exhibits flow invariant behaviour and is robust to fluctuations in flow rate. In addition, the droplet generator is capable of producing droplet volumes spanning four orders of magnitude. We apply this device in a parallel network to synthesize platinum nanoparticles using an ionic liquid solvent, demonstrate reproducible synthesis after recycling the ionic liquid, and double the reaction yield compared with an analogous batch synthesis.
Feedback in concept development: Comparing design disciplines

Design feedback is an essential pedagogical tool to promote student design progress, yet little research has focused on what instructor feedback looks like, especially across design disciplines. In this paper, we analyzed feedback provided in dance choreography, industrial design, and mechanical engineering to explore variation in feedback type across disciplines as well as how feedback type encouraged students to take convergent or divergent paths in their design processes. Many common feedback types were observed across the three disciplines, regardless of variance in context and expectations, as well as some notable distinctions. With regards to feedback directing convergent and divergent thinking, feedback suggesting convergent pathways was more prominent across all three disciplines.
Interracial attraction among college men The influence of ideologies, familiarity, and similarity

The current study integrated constructs from the fields of relationship science (i.e., similarity and familiarity) and intergroup research (i.e., racial ideologies, particularly color-blind racial ideology and multiculturalism) to explore interracial romantic attraction. Using a person-perception design, 124 Black (n = 62) and White (n =62) heterosexual college men indicated their romantic attraction to the dating profiles of three Black and three White women. Results from analyses consistent with a linear mixed-model approach supported most of the hypotheses, including participants in general were more attracted to women of the same race and that greater endorsement of multicultural ideological beliefs was associated with increased interracial attraction. For White men, greater endorsement of color-blind racial ideology was predictive of a decrease in interracial romantic attraction as hypothesized. Contrary to the hypotheses, increased interracial contact for Black men was associated with an increase in...
Mozambique : the Chissano era - Mozambique comes to terms with itself

Gillian Gunn, a researcher at Georgetown University's Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington DC, provides a personal insight into the changes that Mozambique has undergone since President Chissano came to power.
How to Add Fast—on Average

In a recent article in this Monthly C. C. McGeoch [1] described an ingenious method for parallel addition of two n-bit binary integers in 210g2 n + 1 steps, as well as related methods for the sum of three or more integers. These constructions have suggested the subject of the present paper, a very simple, iterative algorithm for the sum of two numbers, which works on average about twice as fast, that is, in about log2 n steps. Thus it adds two 64-bit numbers in about six short steps. This is close to amazing, since these are numbers on the order 1019. Apparently, however, the variable length of the method limits its practical usefulness, but it leads to the interesting mathematical problem of finding the probability distribution and the expected value of the length. This length, that is, the number of steps in the new algorithm, is determined by the length of the longest "carry sequence" (i.e. the longest string of consecutive non-zero carries) in the ordinary addition algorithm as applied to binary numbers. In a classic paper Burks, Goldstine and von Neumann [2, pp. 45-46] have discussed the latter length and obtained log2 n as an upper bound for its expected value. However, they did not propose any new algorithm to take advantage of this bound; they only suggested that "either the carries must be accelerated, or use must be made of the average number of carries or both." Our algorithm, which does this, has been described in the book by Scott [3, pp. 54-55], although without any discussion of the number of steps. In the present paper we make the connection between the new algorithm and the mathematical analysis of [2], and carry it somewhat further by providing an asymptotic formula rather than an upper bound for the expected value, and an approximate evaluation of the probability distribution as well.
Determinants of early success in repair of aortic coarctation in infants.

Fifty-five infants less than 1 year of age underwent repair of coarctation of the aorta between 1967 and 1981. Sixteen (29%) died while in the hospital, with one death occurring from “pure” coarctation. Of the remaining patients, four among 20 with associated ventricular septal defect (VSD) and 11 among 19 with other major associated cardiac anomalies (p = 0.002) also died. Thirteen (62%) of 21 patients treated by resection and end-to-end anastomosis died in the hospital, while only two (7%) of 30 in whom the subclavian flap repair was used died (p
SELF-DESCRIBED DIFFERENCES BETWEEN LEGS IN BALLET DANCERS: DO THEY RELATE TO POSTURAL STABILITY AND GROUND REACTION FORCE MEASURES?

Ballet technique classes are designed to train dancers symmetrically, but they may actually create a lateral bias. It is unknown whether dancers in general are functionally asymmetrical, or how an individual dancer's perceived imbalance between legs might manifest itself. The purpose of this study was to examine ballet dancers' lateral preference by analyzing their postural stability and ground reaction forces in fifth position when landing from dance-specific jumps. Thirty university ballet majors volunteered to participate in this study. The subjects wore their own ballet technique shoes and performed fundamental ballet jumps out of fifth position on a force plate. The force plate recorded center of pressure (COP) and ground reaction force (GRF) data. Each subject completed a laterality questionnaire that determined his or her preferred landing leg for ballet jumps, self-identified stronger leg, and self-identified leg with better balance. All statistical comparisons were made between the leg indicated on the laterality questionnaire and the other leg (i.e., if the dancer's response to a question was "left," the comparison was made with the left leg as the "preferred" leg and the right leg as the "non-preferred leg"). No significant differences were identified between the limbs in any of the analyses conducted (all statistical comparisons produced p values > 0.05). The results of this study indicate that a dancer's preferential use of one limb over the other has no bearing on GRFs or balance ability after landing jumps in ballet. Similarly, dancers' opinions of their leg characteristics (such as one leg being stronger than the other) seem not to correlate with the dancers' actual ability to absorb GRFs or to balance when landing from ballet jumps.
Precipitants of Cyclic Vomiting

The precipitants and etiological factors in 32 patients aged 2 - 22 years (mean, 12 years) with cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS) compared to 64 controls were evaluated by parental questionnaire at the Princess Margaret Hospital for Children, Perth, Australia.
Rapid Sensory Adaptation Redux: A Circuit Perspective.

Adaptation is fundamental to life. All organisms adapt over timescales that span from evolution to generations and lifetimes to moment-by-moment interactions. The nervous system is particularly adept at rapidly adapting to change, and this in fact may be one of its fundamental principles of organization and function. Rapid forms of sensory adaptation have been well documented across all sensory modalities in a wide range of organisms, yet we do not have a comprehensive understanding of the adaptive cellular mechanisms that ultimately give rise to the corresponding percepts, due in part to the complexity of the circuitry. In this Perspective, we aim to build links between adaptation at multiple scales of neural circuitry by investigating the differential adaptation across brain regions and sub-regions and across specific cell types, for which the explosion of modern tools has just begun to enable. This investigation points to a set of challenges for the field to link functional observations to adaptive properties of the neural circuit that ultimately underlie percepts.