cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Risk aversion and credit constraints in farmers' decision‐making: A reinterpretation

In 1976 the Agricultural Development Council sponsored a conference on ‘Risk, Uncertainty and Agricultural Development’ which has been summarised in a volume edited by James Roumasset, Jean‐Marc Boussard and Inderjit Singh [1979]. The volume provides an excellent review of the state of the art at that time. However, as discussed in the summary chapters of that volume, there were few theoretical, empirical, or policy issues on which clear conclusions could be reached on the basis of knowledge then available. In the intervening years progress has been made on a number of issues as a result of both empirical investigations and theoretical advances. This paper concentrates on advances which have relevance to the controversy about the relative roles of risk aversion and credit constraints in limiting farmers’ investment levels, especially for purchased inputs such as seeds or fertilizers. In particular, we review recent experimental studies on the extent of risk aversion among farmer populations in developing ...
Using metalevel techniques in a flexible toolkit for CSCW applications

Ideally, software toolkits for collaborative applications should provide generic, reusable components, applicable in a wide range of circumstances, which software developers can assemble to produce new applications. However, the nature of CSCW applications and the mechanics of group interaction present a problem. Group interactions are significantly constrained by the structure of the underlying infrastructure, below the level at which toolkits typically offer control. This article describes the design features of Prospero, a prototype CSCW toolkit designed to be much more flexible than traditional toolkit techniques allow. Prospero uses a metalevel architecture so that application programmers can have control over not only how toolkit components are combined and used, but also over aspects of how they are internally structured and defined. This approach allows programmers to gain access to “internal” aspects of the toolkit's operation that affect how interaction and collaboration proceed. This article explains the metalevel approach and its application to CSCW, introduces two particular metalevel techniques for distributed data management and consistency control, shows how they are realized in Prospero, and illustrates how Prospero can be used to create a range of collaborative applications.
Dosimetric measurements of Onyx embolization material for stereotactic radiosurgery.

Purpose: Arteriovenous malformations are often treated with a combination of embolization and stereotactic radiosurgery. Concern has been expressed in the past regarding the dosimetric properties of materials used in embolization and the effects that the introduction of these materials into the brain may have on the quality of the radiosurgery plan. To quantify these effects, the authors have taken large volumes of Onyx 34 and Onyx 18 (ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer doped with tantalum) and measured the attenuation and interface effects of these embolization materials. Methods: The manufacturer provided large cured volumes ({approx}28 cc) of both Onyx materials. These samples were 8.5 cm in diameter with a nominal thickness of 5 mm. The samples were placed on a block tray above a stack of solid water with an Attix chamber at a depth of 5 cm within the stack. The Attix chamber was used to measure the attenuation. These measurements were made for both 6 and 16 MV beams. Placing the sample directly on the solid water stack and varying the thickness of solid water between the sample and the Attix chamber measured the interface effects. The computed tomography (CT) numbers for bulk material were measured in a phantom using amore » wide bore CT scanner. Results: The transmission through the Onyx materials relative to solid water was approximately 98% and 97% for 16 and 6 MV beams, respectively. The interface effect shows an enhancement of approximately 2% and 1% downstream for 16 and 6 MV beams. CT numbers of approximately 2600-3000 were measured for both materials, which corresponded to an apparent relative electron density (RED) {rho}{sub e}{sup w} to water of approximately 2.7-2.9 if calculated from the commissioning data of the CT scanner. Conclusions: We performed direct measurements of attenuation and interface effects of Onyx 34 and Onyx 18 embolization materials with large samples. The introduction of embolization materials affects the dose distribution of a MV therapeutic beam, but should be of negligible consequence for effective thicknesses of less than 8 mm. The measured interface effects are also small, particularly at 6 MV. Large areas of high-density artifacts and low-density artifacts can cause errors in dose calculations and need to be identified and resolved during planning.« less
Racial Succession and Residential Mobility in Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio

ABSTRACT:This paper examines the differences in residential succession patterns for black, Hispanic, and Anglo-American households in the Dallas-Forth Worth and San Antonio metropolitan areas. Demographic variables such as household income, household size, and age of household head are compared to improve understanding of housing mobility among groups. In addition, relevant variables are analyzed through application of multivariate logistic regressions. It was found that of the demographic variables that play roles in determining interracial residential succession, race was of overwhelming importance. This implies that there is a lack of interaction between housing markets for the different groups in both Dallas-Forth Worth and San Antonio. In San Antonio, however, the Anglo housing market appears to interact more with the other two groups.
Cone beam local tomography

Methods, systems and processes for providing efficient image reconstruction using local cone beam tomography which provide a reduced level of artifacts without suppressing the strength of the useful features; and in a dynamic case provide reconstruction of objects that are undergoing a change during the scan. An embodiment provides a method of reconstructing an image from cone beam data provided by at least one detector. The method includes collecting CB projection data of an object, storing the CB projection data in a memory; and reconstructing the image from the local CB projection data. In the reconstructing step, a combination of derivatives of the CB projection data that will result in suppressing the artifacts are found. The combination of derivatives includes collecting cone beam data that represents a collection of integrals that represent the object.
Cerebral microvessels contain a beta 2-adrenergic receptor.

Cerebral microvessels isolated from cat forebrain contain a specific β-adrenergic-sensitive adenylate cyclase. Among various compounds tested, the most potent activator of enzyme activity is isoproterenol (ka = 1.4 × 10−7M), followed in order by epinephrine (ka= 1.5 × 10−6M), norepinephrine (ka= 1.4 × 10−5M) and phenylephrine (ka> 3 × 10−4M). Isoproterenol-stimulated enzyme activity is blocked by propranolol (ki= 2.4 × 10−9M, IPS 339 (ki= 4 × 10−9M), H35/25 (ki = 1.2 × 10−7M), atenolol (ki= 5.9 × 10−6M) and practolol (ki= 1.8 × 10−5M). These agonist and antagonist properties are quite similar to those demonstrated by β2-adrenergic receptors and β2-stimulated adenylate cyclase present in other tissues and indicate that the majority of adenylate cyclase-associated adrenergic receptors in cerebral microvessels are β2. The findings are relevant to physiological studies of cerebral blood flow and vascular permeability.
Single-sperm typing: determination of genetic distance between the G gamma-globin and parathyroid hormone loci by using the polymerase chain reaction and allele-specific oligomers

The frequency of recombination between the G gamma-globin (HBG2) and parathyroid hormone (PTH) loci on the short arm of human chromosome 11 was estimated by typing greater than 700 single-sperm samples from two males. The sperm-typing technique employed involves the polymerase chain reaction and allele-specific oligonucleotide hybridization. Our maximum likelihood recombination fraction estimate of 0.16 (95%) confidence interval, 0.13-0.19) falls well within previous estimates based on family studies. With current technology and a sample size of 1000 sperm, recombination fractions down to approximately 0.009 can be estimated with statistical reliability; with a sample size of 5000 sperm, this value drops to about 0.004. Reasonable technological improvements could result in the detection of recombination frequencies less than 0.001.
Nonadiabatic Effects in the Quantum Hall Regime

Abstract We consider the effect of a finite electric field on the states of a Bloch electron in two dimensions, with a uniform magnetic field present. We make use of the concept of electric time translation symmetry and treat the electric and magnetic fields symmetrically in a time dependent formalism. In addition to a wave vector k, the states are characterized by a frequency specifying the behavior under electric time translations. An effective Hamiltonian is employed to obtain the splitting of an isolated Bloch band into "frequency" subbands. The time-averaged velocity and energy of the states are expressed in terms of the frequency dispersion. We examine the relationship to the Stark ladder eigenstates in a scalar potential representation of the electric field. This is seen to justify the use of the averaged energy in determining occupation of the states. In the weak electric field (adiabatic) limit, we recover an expression for the quantized Hall conductivity of a magnetic subband as a topological invariant. A numerical procedure is outlined and results obtained over a range of electric field strengths. A transition between strong and weak field regimes is seen, with level repulsions between the frequencies playing an important role. The numerical results show how the magnetic subband structure and quantized Hall conductivity emerge as the electric field becomes weaker. In this regime, the behavior can be understood by comparison to the predictions of the adiabatic approximation. The latter predicts crossings in the frequencies at certain locations in wave vector space. Nonadiabatic effects are seen to produce gaps in the frequency spectrum at these locations.
Calcium dysregulation and neuronal apoptosis by the HIV-1 proteins Tat and gp120.

Patients with AIDS often develop cognitive and motor dysfunction that results from damage to synapses and death of neurons in brain regions such as the hippocampus and basal ganglia. This brain syndrome, called AIDS dementia or HIV encephalitis, is believed to result from the infection of one or more populations of mitotic brain cells with HIV-I, which then release viral proteins that are toxic to neurons. Two neurotoxic HIV-1 proteins have been identified, the viral coat protein gp120 and the transcription regulator Tat. Each of these proteins can induce apoptosis of cultured neurons and can render neurons vulnerable to excitotoxicity and oxidative stress. Gp120 and Tat also cause neuronal dysfunction and death in rodents in vivo. Both gp120 and Tat disrupt neuronal calcium homeostasis by perturbing calcium-regulating systems in the plasma membrane and endoplasmic reticulum. Accordingly, drugs that stabilize cellular calcium homeostasis can protect neurons against the toxic effects of gp120 and Tat. By altering voltage-dependent calcium channels, glutamate receptor channels, and membrane transporters, the HIV-1 proteins promote calcium overload, oxyradical production, and mitochondrial dysfunction. A better understanding of how gp120 and Tat disrupt neuronal calcium homeostasis may lead to the development of novel treatments for AIDS patients.
Pharmacokinetic study of lipoic acid in multiple sclerosis: comparing mice and human pharmacokinetic parameters

Lipoic acid is a natural anti-oxidant available as an oral supplement from a number of different manufacturers. Lipoic acid administered subcutaneously is an effective therapy for murine experiment...
Effect of hypocalcemia and vitamin D-induced hypercalcemia on the incidence of metastases in rats.

To evaluate the effect of serum calcium on tumor metastases, studies were done with Walker sarcoma on hypo-, normo-, and hypercalcemic rats. Hypocalcemia was produced by thyroparathyroidectomy, and hypercalcemia was produced by vitamin D3 administration. No significant difference was found on the incidence of tumor takes in any group, or at any specific serum calcium level.
DNA SEQUENCING: Massively Parallel Genomics

Using the URL at the end of this item, readers can immediately offer feedback and suggestions on this topic. An enormous amount of genetic sequence data has been obtained with gel-based DNA sequencing methods [[HN1][1]]. To understand the function of the genes and their health implications, genetic
Predicting Functional Interactions in the Influenza Hemagglutinin Transmembrane Domain Via Simulation

The precise mechanism of cell entry by influenza remains poorly understood, despite many years of research. Entry into the cytoplasm is preceded by a membrane fusion event between the virion and endosomal membrane, mediated by the fusion protein hemagglutinin. Hemagglutinin resides in the viral membrane with one transmembrane helix. Its ectodomain is trimeric, and this enforces close proximity between the three helices in the viral membrane. Previous research has demonstrated that the transmembrane domain of hemagglutinin is crucial to its pathogenicity, and that while some mutations are allowed, full viral fusion to the target membrane is blocked by drastic deletions or replacement with a GPI anchor. We have conducted molecular dynamics simulations of the hemagglutinin transmembrane domain to understand any interactions that may occur between the domains and postulate how they can impact hemagglutinin function. Preliminary results indicate that the helices can associate in a membrane, without the ectodomain present. We have used a multi-scale simulation approach to examine the stability of encounter complexes in order to identify key interactions and predict changes that would disrupt them. First, coarse-grained simulations were used to generate encounter complexes between helices, which were then simulated at atomic resolution to test the stability of each complex and identify specific interactions in the membrane. Our goal is to discover stabilizing interactions that can shed light into functional data on possible hemagglutinin transmembrane domain mutants.
Silicon-fluorine chemistry XII. Enthalpy of formation of polydifluorosilylene and the silicon-silicon bond energy

Abstract The energy of fluorination of polydifluorosilylene (SiF2)x has been measured in a bomb calorimeter. From the combustion results the standard enthalpy of formation ΔHfo(SiF2, solid polymer, 298.15 K) was determined to be −(186.3 ± 1.7) kcal mol−1. Combination of this result with various subsidiary data gives a silicon-silicon bond energy in the polymer of (46.8 ± 6.7) kcal mol−1, a value comparable with that in other straight chain fluorosilanes.
Parallel processing with attached processors in a computer center environment

The 3 collaboration at CERN is constructing LEPICS, the L3 parallel integrated computing system, to meet the CERN site off-line computing needs of the L3 experiment. LEPICS consist of an IBM 3090-180E host computer, and a heterogenous selection of attached processors with a total CPU power of several times that of the 3090-180E. The attached processors are linked to the host through high-speed VME to IBM channel interfaces. A “joint study” has been started between L3 and IBM to determine the suitability of IBM's Parallel FORTRAN environent in conjunction with attached processors, and to develop software to manage the attached processor resources automatically and dynamically. This paper comments on the evaluation of attached processors for LEPICS, and describes the project currently under way for their software integration with the host computer.
Current clinical management of Fanconi anemia.

Fanconi anemia (FA) is a heterogeneous disease characterized by spontaneous chromosomal breaks and abnormal DNA repair. Major clinical problems in FA include congenital abnormalities, endocrinopathies, early onset bone marrow failure and increased risk of myelodysplastic syndrome, acute leukemia and solid tumors. To date, 15 different genes have been shown to cause FA, all of which have some role in DNA double-strand break repair. Very few strict genotype–phenotype associations have been identified and clinical manifestations vary widely from patient to patient, most likely due to modifier genes, environment and chance effects. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the only proven cure for the hematopoietic manifestations of FA and aggressive lifelong surveillance for solid tumors is essential.
Surgical Stapler Adverse Events in the Veterans Health Administration Root Causes and Lessons Learned

In many operations, surgical staplers are utilized to ligate and divide blood vessels and other structures. Because staplers are often used to divide major blood vessels, adverse events may be associated with high morbidity and mortality. Previous research has identified a number of distinct failure modes. In the present study, 13 cases involving surgical staplers were identified in the Veterans Health Administration’s adverse event database. Pulmonary operations represented the largest group, and outcomes were generally severe. A large number of the root causes involved environmental factors; user, equipment, and task factors were also identified. While surgical stapler use is generally safe, there are a number of steps that surgical teams could take to promote safe use and recovery from adverse events.
A comparison of propagated action potentials from tropical and temperate squid axons: different durations and conduction velocities correlate with ionic conductance levels

To determine which physiological properties contribute to temperature adaptation in the squid giant axon, action potentials were recorded from four species of squid whose habitats span a temperature range of 20 degrees C. The environments of these species can be ranked from coldest to warmest as follows: Loligo opalescens>Loligo pealei>Loligo plei>Sepioteuthis sepioidea. Action potential conduction velocities and rise times, recorded at many temperatures, were equivalent for all Loligo species, but significantly slower in S. sepioidea. By contrast, the action potential's fall time differed among species and correlated well with the thermal environment of the species ('warmer' species had slower decay times). The biophysical underpinnings of these differences were examined in voltage-clamped axons. Surprisingly, no differences were found between the activation kinetics or voltage-dependence of Na(+) and K(+) currents. Conductance levels, however, did vary. Maximum Na(+) conductance (g(Na)) in S. sepiodea was significantly less than in the Loligo species. K(+) conductance (gK) was highest in L. pealei, intermediate in L. plei and smallest in S. sepiodea. The time course and magnitude of g(K) and g(Na) were measured directly during membrane action potentials. These data reveal clear species-dependent differences in the amount of g(K) and g(Na) recruited during an action potential.
Growth fixation and the performance of bank initial public offerings, 1983–1991

Numerous banks and thrifts went public amid the favorable regulatory climate and strong capital market of the mid-1980s. A sample of 393 bank initial public oAerings from 1983 to 1991 lagged three benchmarks of returns over a five-year post-oAering holding period. This poor performance is concentrated among larger institutions with more aggressive loan growth. Following the IPO, many of these banks also recorded dramatic increases in loan losses. The evidence suggests the market may have fixated on the rapid growth of these institutions or did not adequately account for changes in the post-IPO risk of their loan portfolios. ” 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Adrenarche and Gonadarche in Contemporary US Girls

surface of the tubes did not have such an appearance, nor were there pelvic adhesions beyond the tubes or ovaries. Because of the unusual appearance of the dilated Fallopian tubes, tuberculosis of the pelvis was suggested as an unusual cause of PID in an 11 yo, along with the possibility of sexual abuse. Postoperatively, the patient was questioned privately and denied any consensual contact or abuse. A PPD was placed and was read as positive. The Pediatric Infectious Disease Service obtained a history of consumption of unpasteurized milk in Mexico. Mycobacterium bovis was suspected. Because the pathology of the appendix was not definitively positive for mycobacterium bovis, showing inflammation, and granulomas but no acid-fast bacilli, and because appropriate antibiotic therapy for M. Bovis differs from that of mycobacterium tuberculosis, a repeat pelvic examination under anesthesia was performed with endometrial curettings obtained for culture, which subsequently grew M. bovis. She has been clinically well, and is nearing completion of 1 year’s therapy with isoniazid, rifampin, and ethambutol. Comments: Mycobacterium bovis is an unusual cause of pelvic inflammatory disease and pelvic pain. The concurrent diagnoses of appendicitis and PID are also unusually in the absence of a ruptured appendix. M. Bovis of the gastrointestinal track can be a cause of appendicitis. M. Bovis as a cause of PID is less common, and presumably results from hematogenous spread of the organism that is acquired through the GI tract. PID is unusual in an 11 y/o without sexual contact, and thus other unusual causes should be considered, particularly in an adolescent with a history of travel to areas where M. Bovis is found. The history of ingestion of unpasteurized milk products was important in our patient.
A 28nm 360ps-access-time two-port SRAM with a time-sharing scheme to circumvent read disturbs

With the rapid growth in the market for mobile information terminals such as smart phones and tablets, the performance of image processing engines (e.g., operation speed, accuracy in digital images) has improved remarkably. In these processors, 2-port SRAM (2P-SRAM) macros [1], in which a read port and a write port are operated synchronously in a single clock cycle, are widely used. As shown in Fig. 13.4.1, since the 2P-SRAM is placed in front of large scale logic circuitry for image processing, a faster access time (e.g., <1ns) is required. In general, the read-out operation in 2P-SRAM utilizes full-swing of the single read bitline (BL), so a drastic improvement of the access time is not expected. On the other hand, the dual-port SRAM (DP-SRAM) makes use of the voltage difference between BL pair in the read-out operation, which is suitable for the high-speed operation. In this study, we present a time-sharing scheme using a DP-SRAM cell to achieve high-speed access in 2P-SRAM macros in such image processors.
Pulmonary Aspiration in Pediatric Patients During General Anesthesia: Incidence and Outcome

Abstract Study Objectives: To determine the incidence of, outcome of, and risk factors for anesthesia-related pulmonary aspiration in the predominantly pediatric population receiving anesthesia care. Design: Using a clinical concurrent quality assessment system we developed, we used data stored in a custom-designed computerized database to initiate a retrospective review. Statistical relationships were analyzed by Fisher's exact test and binary logistic regression with commercially available software. Setting: University-affiliated pediatric hospital. Patients: All patients receiving anesthesia (n = 50,880) between April 1, 1988, and March 31, 1993. Measurements and Main Results: Aspiration occurred in 52 (0.10% or 10.2 per 10,000) of the 50,880 general anesthesia cases. Aspirate was food or gastric contents in 25 cases (0.049% or 4.9 per 10,000), blood in 13 (0.026% or 2.6 per 10,000), and unknown material in 14 (0.0275% or 2.76 per 10,000). There were no deaths attributable to aspiration. Morbidity was confined to unanticipated hospital admission (n = 12), cancellation of the surgical procedure (n = 4), and intubation, with or without ventilation (n = 15). Aspiration occurred significantly more often in patients with greater severity of underlying illness (ASA physical status III or IV) (p = 0.0015), intravenous induction (p = 0.0054), and age equal to or greater than 6.0 years and less than 11.0 years (p = 0.0029). Emergency procedures had a marginally significant increased aspiration risk (p = 0.0527). Conclusions: The overall incidence of anesthesia-related aspiration in our series (0.10%) was twice that reported in studies of adults, and four times (0.25%) higher for those at highest risk (ASA physical status III or IV vs. physical status I or II). Anesthesia-related pulmonary aspiration was proven to be a rare event in this tertiary pediatric center and its consequences relatively mild. Because of the very low frequency and the lack of serious outcome after aspiration in ASA physical status I and II pediatric patients, it appears that routine prophylactic administration of histamine blockers or propulsive drugs in healthy pediatric patients is unwarranted.
Implicit stereotypes and women's math performance : How implicit gender-math stereotypes influence women's susceptibility to stereotype threat

Abstract This experiment examined the effects of implicit gender-math stereotyping and implicit gender and math identification on women’s math performance under stereotype threat and reduced threat conditions. Results showed that of the three, only implicit gender-math stereotyping moderated stereotype threat effects on women’s math performance: women who showed less implicit math-gender stereotyping showed the largest performance difference across experimental conditions. These results suggest that women’s implicit associations between gender and math interact with situational cues to influence their math performance: women who implicitly associate women more than men with mathematics were most benefited by reduction of stereotype salience during testing.
The increased incidence of circulating anti-beef albumin in the sera of allergic persons and some comments regarding the possible significance of this occurrence

Abstract The incidence of antibody against beef albumin (anti-BSA) in the sera of 70 allergic and 75 nonallergic adults has been studied. Anti-BSA was detected three to five times more frequently in the sera of allergic persons than in the sera of nonallergic persons. There was no reason to suspect that the antibody being measured was playing a pathogenic role in either the normal or allergic persons because: None of the allergic persons used for this study had known symptoms following the ingestion of milk or beef products; among the allergic group, there was no correlation between the positive skin tests to milk or beef extract and the presence or absence of anti-BSA; none of the normal individuals with circulating anti-BSA had positive skin tests to BSA; most of the antibody being measured can cross the placental barrier; and the antibody being measured is stable when treated at 56°C. for 2 hours. These results are interpreted to indicate that "allergic" adults have a greater statistical chance than normal adults of maintaining or reinitiating antibody production following prolonged oral administration of antigens capable of eliciting anti-BSA formation. The possible consequences of this phenomenon, if it holds true other antigens present in foods, have been discussed.
Negotiating Child Sexual Abuse: The Interactional Character of Investigative Practices

This paper provides insight into debates about coercion in investigations of child sexual abuse. It describes adults' and children's interactional practices which produce sequences of talk investigating and negotiating the occurrence of child sexual abuse and focuses specifically on children's responses. Using conversation analysis, transcripts of eight interviews conducted to question children about sexual abuse are examined. The analysis demonstrates that adults elicit children's confirmations by producing candidate response initiations, ratifying confirming turns, censuring children's non-confirming responses, producing subsequent versions of initiations, and treating children's weak agreements as strong agreements. Children, nonetheless, competently negotiate adult's proposals for confirmation by answering adults' initiations, but also by altering and/or rejecting proposed responses, declining to respond, and neglecting to account for minimal or rejecting responses. The analysis problematizes charges of coercion and suggests that future research investigate the concept of coercion as a members' construct.
Stream and riparian management for freshwater turtles.

The regulation and management of stream ecosystems worldwide have led to irreversible loss of wildlife species. Due to recent scrutiny of water policy and dam feasibility, there is an urgent need for fundamental research on the biotic integrity of streams and riparian zones. Although riverine turtles rely on stream and riparian zones to complete their life cycle, are vital producers and consumers, and are declining worldwide, they have received relatively little attention. I review the literature on the impacts of contemporary stream management on freshwater turtles. Specifically, I summarize and discuss 10 distinct practices that produce five potential biological repercussions. I then focus on the often-overlooked use of riparian zones by freshwater turtles, calculate a biologically determined riparian width, and offer recommendations for ecosystem management. Migration data were summarized on 10 species from eight US states and four countries. A riparian zone encompassing the majority of freshwater turtle migrations would need to span 150 m from the stream edge. Freshwater turtles primarily chose high, open, sandy habitats to nest. Nests in North America contained eggs and hatchlings during April through September and often through the winter. In addition, freshwater turtles utilized diverse riparian habitats for feeding, nesting, and overwintering. Additional documentation of stream and riparian habitat use by turtles is needed.
Steroid Hormone Receptor Signals as Prognosticators for Urothelial Tumor

There is a substantial amount of preclinical or clinical evidence suggesting that steroid hormone receptor-mediated signals play a critical role in urothelial tumorigenesis and tumor progression. These receptors include androgen receptor, estrogen receptors, glucocorticoid receptor, progesterone receptor, vitamin D receptor, retinoid receptors, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors, and others including orphan receptors. In particular, studies using urothelial cancer tissue specimens have demonstrated that elevated or reduced expression of these receptors as well as alterations of their upstream or downstream pathways correlates with patient outcomes. This review summarizes and discusses available data suggesting that steroid hormone receptors and related signals serve as biomarkers for urothelial carcinoma and are able to predict tumor recurrence or progression.
The guilted body: a foucauldian perspective on food guilt

ABSTRACTThis essay reflects on a defining moment in the author’s life. The author narrates her meaningful encounters with a “Guilt-Free Snacking” sticker and a “Not Guilty” food truck. Adopting a Foucauldian perspective, she argues that the sticker and the food truck belong to the “morality of food” discursive formation. In and through discourse, our bodies are positioned to experience guilt from the meanings we attach to food consumption. The author concludes by offering questions that are relevant for the health communication field.
A longitudinal daily diary analysis of condom use during bleeding-associated vaginal sex among adolescent females.

Objective Sex during bleeding is a risk factor for sexually transmitted infection (STI) and other bloodborne viruses, including HIV. We examined daily predictors of adolescent women9s male condom use during bleeding-associated vaginal sex. Methods Adolescent females (N=387; 14–17 years) were recruited from primary care clinics for a longitudinal cohort study of STIs and sexual behaviour. Data were daily partner-specific sexual diaries; generalised estimating equation logistic regression assessed the likelihood of condom use during bleeding-associated vaginal sex. Results Less than 30% of bleeding-associated vaginal sex events were condom protected. Condom use during these events was less likely with younger age, higher partner support, higher partner negativity or past week bleeding-associated sex with a given partner; condom use was more likely with high individual mood and past week condom use during bleeding-associated vaginal sex with a given partner. Conclusions Low condom rates during bleeding-associated vaginal sex can increase STI and bloodborne virus risk. Providers should consider integrating partner-specific and behavioural factors when they deliver sexual health messages to young women.
Control methods for merging ALSM and ground-based laser point clouds acquired under forest canopies

Merging of point data acquired from ground-based and airborne scanning laser rangers has been demonstrated for cases in which a common set of targets can be readily located in both data sets. However, direct merging of point data was not generally possible if the two data sets did not share common targets. This is often the case for ranging measurements acquired in forest canopies, where airborne systems image the canopy crowns well, but receive a relatively sparse set of points from the ground and understory. Conversely, ground-based scans of the understory do not generally sample the upper canopy. An experiment was conducted to establish a viable procedure for acquiring and georeferencing laser ranging data underneath a forest canopy. Once georeferenced, the ground-based data points can be merged with airborne points even in cases where no natural targets are common to both data sets. Two ground-based laser scans are merged and georeferenced with a final absolute error in the target locations of less than 10cm. This is comparable to the accuracy of the georeferenced airborne data. Thus, merging of the georeferenced ground-based and airborne data should be feasible. The motivation for this investigation is to facilitate a thorough characterization of airborne laser ranging phenomenology over forested terrain as a function of vertical location in the canopy.
Self‐Knowledge and Rational Agency: A Defense of Empiricism

How does one know one's own beliefs, intentions, and other attitudes? Many responses to this question are broadly empiricist, in that they take self-knowledge to be epistemically based in empirical justification or warrant. Empiricism about self-knowledge faces an influential objection: that it portrays us as mere observers of a passing cognitive show, and neglects the fact that believing and intending are things we do, for reasons. According to the competing, agentialist conception of self-knowledge, our capacity for self-knowledge derives from our rational agency—our ability to conform our attitudes to our reasons, and to commit ourselves to those attitudes through avowals (Burge 1996; Moran 2001; Bilgrami 2006; Boyle 2009). This paper has two goals. The first is exegetical: to identify agentialism's defining thesis and precisely formulate the agentialist challenge to empiricism. The second goal is to defend empiricism from the agentialist challenge. I propose a way to understand the role of agency in reasoning and avowals, one that does justice to what is distinctive about these phenomena yet is compatible with empiricism about self-knowledge.
The presence of Hb J alpha15 Gly leads to Asp in an Italian family in the United States.

A fast-moving hemoglobin variant was detected by electrophoresis. Sequence analysis revealed a substitution of glycine by aspartic acid at position 15 in the α chain.
Adsorption of the cationic surfactant benzyldimethylhexadecylammonium chloride at the silica-water interface and metal salt effects on the adsorption kinetics.

The adsorption of the cationic surfactant benzyldimethylhexadecylammonium (BDMHA+) chloride has been studied at the hydrophilic silica–water interface by Raman spectroscopy in total internal reflection geometry (TIR Raman). This Raman spectroscopic technique takes advantage of an evanescent electric field that is generated at the silica–water interface in TIR mode with specific probing depth. The present study demonstrates the capabilities of the TIR Raman sampling configuration to provide structural information and simultaneously serve as an experimental platform for studying thermodynamic and kinetic properties of BDMHA+Cl– at the silica–water interface at neutral pH and compare its adsorption behavior with the modified adsorption properties in the presence of four different concentrations of a divalent metal salt. Spectral analysis of the Raman scattering intensities as a function of time and concentration provided the input data for evaluating adsorption properties of the surfactant in the absence and...
Pancreatic transplantation : a review

Pancreatic transplantation recently became a routine treatment for Type I diabetic patients with uremia or for those who previously received a kidney transplant with 1 year graft and patient survival of over 80% and 90%, respectively. Despite the life-long need for immunosuppression, this is clearly acceptable when compared to the need for dialysis and insulin therapy, and it reduces the evolution of diabetic complications. Isolated pancreatic transplant is less commonly applied because of the need for immunosuppression and the high rate of complications. However, this can still be an acceptable option for individual patients with brittle diabetes and hypoglycemic unawareness. Despite the fact that pancreas transplantation is an effective treatment for selected Type I diabetics, it remains a difficult surgical procedure with many potential complications and with several issues still subject to debate. In this article, the authors describe the procedure in all of its aspects and variations, and offer, through a review of the recent literature, insights on the current status of this transplant
A signal processing approach for recovery of precision high-Q dielectric resonance profile measurements

The Fabry-Perot open resonator is widely recognized for the measurement of dielectric permittivity and loss tangent for low-loss materials at high frequencies. A 10 nanometer step of the cavity length variation increases the quality factor to 100,000 or more, thus allowing the loss tangent measurement with high precision. Such a small step size often introduces mismatch of the computer clock rate in data collection. The signal processing technique was applied to data to produce measurements with similar accuracy as assumed uncorrupted data. This method, when applied to uncorrupted data, will likely further improve the precision of dielectric property measurements.
An empirical study of modifying the Fagan inspection process and the resulting main effects and interaction effects among defects found, effort required, rate of preparation and inspection, number of team members and product 1st pass quality

We present findings from a six sigma black belt project. Every black belt project has a charter that defines the customer focus and the goals of the project. This project is designed to identify the key factors that impact effectiveness for software inspections and to compare Fagan inspections and modified Fagan inspections used at Motorola. Empirical data is collected and simulation models of the generic processes are created. The models that are created abstract away unnecessary details of the process and provide a test-bed to evaluate the methodologies relative to their effectiveness, cost in effort, time required (duration), and complexity of the activity.
Coupled Heterogeneous and Homogeneous Hydrocarbon Oxidation Reactions in Model Diesel Oxidation Catalysts

In testing model diesel oxidation catalysts to treat exhaust from low temperature combustion (LTC) vehicle engines, the simulated exhaust conditions were such that both homogeneous and heterogeneous oxidation of some hydrocarbons took place. When homogeneous oxidation occurred, NO was readily oxidized to NO2 and the larger hydrocarbon species were partially oxidized to aldehyde, alcohol, and alkene intermediates. The homogeneous oxidation potentials of several hydrocarbons were compared in the absence and presence of a model oxidation catalyst. Of the hydrocarbons evaluated, diethyl ether led to the best NO to NO2 oxidation in terms of temperature and extent of conversion, and it did not inhibit the oxidation of other hydrocarbon species. The clear evidence of homogeneous reactions occurring within the monolith catalyst channels, and the formation of associated reaction intermediates, may impact reactions that would normally be considered isolated to the catalyst surface. These findings demonstrate that, in modeling such reactions, the homogeneous reactions need to be considered and may influence future catalyst design, especially considering the importance of NO2 for downstream selective catalytic reduction and particulate filter catalyst systems.
The Dynamics of Belief Formation and Price Momentum

In classical perfect and complete markets, prices form a Martingale and stock returns (or equivalently, successive price changes) are serially uncorrelated. However, there is considerable evidence in the finance literature showing that stock returns are serially correlated both in the short and the long-term. This empirical phenomenon has been viewed as a violation of semistrong efficiency and has resulted in considerable discussion in the literature. In this paper we demonstrate that within a multi-period noisy rational expectations equilibrium framework, a first order autoregressive (AR-1) liquidity trading process, by itself, suffices to give rise to systematic correlations in price changes, either positive or negative, depending on the specific parameters of the process, even if the (unknown) underlying liquidation value is fixed. That is, unsystematic random fluctuations in observed prices arising from factors such as liquidity trading affect Bayesian belief formation, and thereby trading strategies, in such a way that equilibrium price changes can manifest both momentum and reversals.
Mathematical Analysis of Glioma Growth in a Murine Model

Five immunocompetent C57BL/6-cBrd/cBrd/Cr (albino C57BL/6) mice were injected with GL261-luc2 cells, a cell line sharing characteristics of human glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). The mice were imaged using magnetic resonance (MR) at five separate time points to characterize growth and development of the tumor. After 25 days, the final tumor volumes of the mice varied from 12 mm3 to 62 mm3, even though mice were inoculated from the same tumor cell line under carefully controlled conditions. We generated hypotheses to explore large variances in final tumor size and tested them with our simple reaction-diffusion model in both a 3-dimensional (3D) finite difference method and a 2-dimensional (2D) level set method. The parameters obtained from a best-fit procedure, designed to yield simulated tumors as close as possible to the observed ones, vary by an order of magnitude between the three mice analyzed in detail. These differences may reflect morphological and biological variability in tumor growth, as well as errors in the mathematical model, perhaps from an oversimplification of the tumor dynamics or nonidentifiability of parameters. Our results generate parameters that match other experimental in vitro and in vivo measurements. Additionally, we calculate wave speed, which matches with other rat and human measurements.
Re-Appropriation of Transitional Justice or a Developing Parallelism in Africa?

War and large scale violence deeply scar individuals and societies and peace does not come with the silencing of guns. Beyond death and destruction, large scale violence destroys and destabilizes the social fabric as well as it traumatizes the person. In the wake of violent conflicts and repressive regimes it has become standard practice for the international community to expect societies to confront violent pasts through trials, truth commissions, reparations, amnesties and/or lustrations. A powerful human rights movement has insisted on international standards of justice in all societies. The impacts of transitional justice processes at the community and inter-personal level have not been clear, but there has been in Africa an emergence of localized transitional processes parallel, subsequent or in alternative to internationally defined and nationally instituted transitional justice processes. Examples include Mozambiques traditional cleansing ceremonies and Sierra Leones fambul tok. This paper will explore whether such experiences signal a re-appropriation of transitional justice by the local. Is this a reverse flow of ideas or simply the re-assertion of pre-existing African processes? Alternatively, might there be an emerging in Africa a transitional justice parallelism that will see international standards societal level processes existing in tandem with locally defined forms that cater to micro level needs?
Belief in Life After Death and Attitudes Toward Voluntary Euthanasia

Research has documented associations among religious affiliation, religious practice, and attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia, yet very few studies have investigated how particular religious beli...
EI Approaches to Treating Trauma

This chapter explores the use of existential-integrative (EI) techniques in the treatment of adolescents who have experienced trauma. It begins with an overview of the clinical description, incidence, and prevalence of trauma-related disorders in adolescents, followed by a description of the etiology of these disorders. The author then reviews established treatment approaches as well as specific EI techniques that one could apply to the treatment of adolescent trauma. Also included is a conceptualization of trauma from an EI framework. The chapter closes with a composite case example from the author’s own practice.
Effect of Booster Vaccination with Inactivated Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus on Neutralizing Antibody Response in Mammary Secretions

Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) causes acute diarrhea, dehydration in pigs, and high mortality rates in piglets <3 weeks of age. Maternal immunity protects piglets, but information on vaccination before or after natural infection in endemically exposed sow herds is limited. Currently, the recovery goal in sow units infected with PEDV is to become fully naive again or use natural virus infection to develop immune gilts through a feedback program before introduction into the sow herd. Since neutralizing antibodies in the gut are critical for protection against enteric viral infections such as PEDV, we evaluated the effect of a conditionally licensed, adjuvanted inactivated PEDV vaccine on neutralizing antibody levels in milk and colostrum in both naive and previously naturally exposed sow herds. The results illustrate that intramuscular vaccination increased neutralizing antibody titers, and anti-PEDV IgA and IgG in milk and colostrum of sows that were previously infected. Thus, inactivated PEDV vaccines may provide increased protection to piglets nursing on previously infected sows against exposure to PEDV through increased delivery of lactogenic neutralizing antibodies to the enteric site of infection.
Medicine for malcolm.

Although there is a strong tendency to medicate children and adolescents for all types of behavioral problems, physicians must be prudent in also using nonpharmaceutical treatments. Virtual Mentor is a monthly bioethics journal published by the American Medical Association.
Leveraging Their Family Capital: How Latino Males Successfully Navigate the Community College.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to apply Yosso’s community cultural wealth framework to the experiences of Latino male community college students to understand how they balance family oblig...