cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Structure and thermodynamics of RNA-protein binding: using molecular dynamics and free energy analyses to calculate the free energies of binding and conformational change.

Abstract An adaptive binding mechanism, requiring large conformational rearrangements, occurs commonly with many RNA-protein associations. To explore this process of reorganization, we have investigated the conformational change upon spliceosomal U1A-RNA binding with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and free energy analyses. We computed the energetic cost of conformational change in U1A-hairpin and U1A-internal loop binding using a hybrid of molecular mechanics and continuum solvent methods. Encouragingly, in all four free energy comparisons (two slightly different proteins, two different RNAs), the free macromolecule was more stable than the bound form by the physically reasonable value of ∼10 kcal/mol. We calculated the absolute binding free energies for both complexes to be in the same range as that found experimentally.
569 BETA-GLUCOSIDASE ACTIVITY IN CULTURED SKIN FIBROBLASTS FROM CONTROLS AND PATIENTS WITH GAUCHER'S DISEASE

Gaucher's disease is a group of autosomal recessive disorders involving the storage of glucosylceramide because of a deficiency of glucosylceramide β-glucosidase activity. The clinical pictures range from the non-neuronopathic form with variable symptoms ranging from mild to severe (Type 1), acute neuronopathic form with severe visceral and CNS involvement (Type 2) and sub-acute neuronopathic form with less severe visceral and CNS involvement (Type 3). A study of β-glucosidase activity has been aimed at defining a method for predicting the clinical type before symptoms are obvious. This is especially true of samples received from 2-4 year old patients who are still free of neurological symptoms. Beta-glucosidase activity has been measured in cultured skin fibroblasts using 4-methylumbelliferyl-β-D-glucopyranoside and 14C-glucose-labeled glucosylceramide. Kinetic studies using 14C-glucosylceramide and pure sodium taurocholate of varying concentrations have provided evidence for two β-glucosidases. Using either 5-7 nmoles or 60-65 nmoles of glucosylceramide, controls and patients with all clinical types of Gaucher's disease were studied. Type 2 patients had less residual activity when the higher substrate concentration was used than when the lower concentration was used. The Type 1 patients did not show this difference. This effect was not observed with the fluorogenic substrate.
Effects of early tactile enrichment on open field activity and tactile discriminative ability in the rat.

Twenty-eight blinded rats reared from 24 days of age under enriched and control tactile environmental conditions were examined at 90 days for the ability to discriminate between surfaces inscribed with different tactile features, and for exploratory activity in an open field. The 2 groups failed to differ on any of the 5 tactile discriminative problems, although open-field scores revealed differences in exploration. These findings are discussed in relation to the effects of early experience on emotionality and learning ability.
Tracing Home-Based Health Care Change in an Andean Indian Community

Qualitative and quantitative data collected over a period of 11 years indicate that Saraguro Indians in the southern Ecuadorian highlands rely almost exclusively on mothers as family healers despite access to a range of specialized traditional and biomedical services. However, the home-based health care system has begun to change in recent years as mothers increasingly integrate selected features of biomedicine into family curing. I suggest that the tenacity of home-based therapy is a product of its receptivity to innovations that complement core health care values.
No Magic Bullet Explains the Evolution of Unique Human Traits

Here I outline the argument in Kim Sterelny’s book The Evolved Apprentice. I present some worries for Sterelny from the perspective of modelers in behavioral ecology. I go on to discuss Sterelny’s approach to moral psychology and finally introduce some potential new applications for his evolved apprentice view.
High-copy-number transformants and co-transformation in Dictyostelium.

Abstract We have recently established a DNA-mediated transformation system for Dictyostelium . The vector (pB10) contains the promoter from the Dictyostelium actin 6 gene fused to the Nm R gene from Tn5 which confers resistance to antibiotic G418. Dictyostelium cells can be stably transformed and express kanamycin phosphotransferase (APHII). There is an average of three to five copies of vector DNA in transformed populations. We have fused an A + T-rich region containing the 3 ' end of the Dictyostelium actin (Act) 8 gene to the end of the Act6-Nm R fusion. Though the fragment is inserted in reverse orientation, this adds a transcription termination and/or 3′ processing site and results in the formation of a discretely sized mRNA from the Act6-Nm R gene fusion. Using this vector, the number of transformants increases by approx. 5–10-fold. We also describe conditions that allow for the isolation of transformants having a high copy number of vector DNA per cell (approx. 150 copies/cell). In addition, we show that cells can be co-transformed with the transformation vector and other pBR322 derivatives. Both plasmid DNAs are present in transformed Dictyostelium cells in high- M r DNA. When cells are grown under selective conditions in the presence of the antibiotic G418, both DNAs are present in high copy number and Dictyostelium genes present on both vectors are transcribed and are properly regulated under the conditions examined. These modifications of the original transformation system should facilitate the introduction of modified genes into Dictyostelium to study gene regulation during development and allow one to examine the effects of high gene dosage.
A tag-mediated game designed to study cooperation in human populations

How and why cooperation develops in human populations is not known. The iterated prisoner's dilemma game provides a natural framework for studying cooperation growth in human populations. However, recent experiments with human subjects has exposed a number of serious flaws in virtually all of the game-theoretical models that have appeared in the literature. Indeed, some experiments suggest network reciprocity-thought to be essential for cooperation in human populationsmay actually play no role whatsoever. In this paper we briefly review some human experiments that were conducted in the last three years. We then present preliminary results of a new tag-mediated model designed for studying cooperation in human populations. The model exhibits many characteristics found in the human experiments including assortment, which many researchers now believe is necessary for maintaining cooperation.
Large-Scale Quantitative Analysis of Sources of Variation in the Actin Polymerization-Based Movement of Listeria monocytogenes

During the actin polymerization-based movement of Listeria monocytogenes, individual bacteria are rapidly propelled through the host cell cytoplasm by the growth of a filamentous actin tail. The rate of propulsion varies significantly among individuals and over time. To study this variation, we used a high-throughput tracking technique to record the movement of a large number (∼7900) of bacteria in Xenopus frog egg extract. Most bacteria (70%) appeared to maintain an individual characteristic speed over several minutes, suggesting that the major source of variation in average speed is intrinsic to the bacterium. Thirty percent of bacteria had significant changes in speed over time spans of a few minutes, including 17% that appeared to collide with obstacles and 13% that moved with a significant periodic component. For the latter, the peak frequency was proportional to speed, suggesting a mechanism with a fixed spatial scale of ∼0.6 bacterial length. Near the rear of the bacterium, temporal fluctuations in actin density were positively correlated with fluctuations in speed, whereas near the front the correlation was negative. A comparison of the performance of linear models that predict motion given actin density suggests that the mechanism has a history of 5–10 s, and that fluctuations in actin density near the front of the bacteria contain more predictive information than the rear. Our results are consistent with physical models where bacterial speed is governed by the rate of dissociation of bonds between the bacterial surface and the actin tail, and individual variation is determined by long-lived intrinsic variability in bacterial surface properties.
A comparison of the demographics, clinical features, and survival of patients with adenoid cystic carcinoma of major and minor salivary glands versus less common sites within the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registry.

BACKGROUND: The scientific literature to date lacks population-based studies on the demographics, clinical features, and survival of patients with adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) of different anatomic sites. METHODS: The authors identified 5349 patients who had ACC of the major salivary glands (N = 1850), minor salivary glands (N = 2077), breast (N = 696), skin (N = 291), lung and bronchus (N = 203), female genital system (N = 132), and eye and orbit (N = 100) from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registry. Differences in demographics, clinical features, and survival of patients were assessed. RESULTS: ACC of the eye and orbit was associated with younger age at presentation (mean age,49.9 years). ACC of the skin or breast tended to present with less aggressive prognostic features, whereas ACC of the lung and bronchus or eye and orbit tended to present with more aggressive prognostic features. In a multivariate survival analysis of patients who presented with localized disease, patients with ACC of the breast (hazard ratio [HR], 0.40) or skin (HR, 0.40) had a significantly lower risk death than patients with ACC of the major salivary glands; whereas patients with ACC of the lung and bronchus (HR, 3.72) or the eye and orbit (HR, 3.67) had a significantly higher risk. For patients who presented with regional disease, the only clear prognostic difference in multivariate analysis was that patients with ACC of skin fared significantly better. CONCLUSIONS: The demographics and clinical features of patients with ACC differ by disease site. The current results indicated that site may be an important predictor of survival for patients who present with localized disease but is less important for patients who present with regional disease. Cancer 2012. © 2011 American Cancer Society.
Status! yes!: Tom Wolfe as a sociological thinker

The journalist Tom Wolfe draws heavily upon sociology in his works, yet sociologists have largely ignored his writings. This article argues that Wolfe’s journalism presents a coherent vision of contemporary society which emphasizes the importance of what has become a neglected sociological concept—status. Wolfe argues that economic expansion after World War II fostered the emergence of new “statusspheres,” and encouraged status competition. Wolfe treats issues of religion, character, and politics within the framework of status. His work should remind sociologists of the importance of status and the role of irony as a stance for sociological analysis.
Functional and Molecular Changes with Progression to Contractile Failure in the Hypertrophied Immature Myocardium ♦ 126

Progression from ventricular hypertrophy to failure has been well-described, and recently includes molecular changes such as altered glucose metabolism and calcium handling. However, functional correlates of molecular changes using non-invasive indices have not been made.
Cerebrospinal fluid levels of benzathine penicillin G in the neonate.

T n E I N C ! D E N C E of congenital syphili s has increased in recent years, 1 prompting renewed interest in the treatment of this entity. One recommended form of therapy is benzathine penicillin G, 100,000 units per kilogram of body weight given in a single intramuscular injection. ~ Few data exist in respect to the achievable levels of penicillin within the cerebrospinal fluid space in neonates following administration of BPG? A study was therefore undertaken to measure penicillin levels in the CSF at varying time intervals after the administration of BPG.
Nursing strategies for smoking cessation

Abstract The purpose of this article is to provide the staff nurse with an overview of the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research Smoking Cessation guidelines. The authors outline the practical components of the guidelines to enable nurses in any clinical setting to implement various smoking cessation strategies according to individual patient needs. Treatment options, including behavioral modification and a comprehensive review of pharmacological therapy, are discussed. (Heart Lung® 1999;28:295-302)
Accurately measuring outcomes after surgery for adult Chiari I malformation: determining the most valid and responsive instruments.

BACKGROUND There has been a transition to using patient-reported outcome instruments (PROi) to assess surgical effectiveness. However, none of these instruments have been validated for outcomes of adult Chiari I malformation (CMI). OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to determine the relative validity and responsiveness of various PROi in measuring outcomes after surgery for CMI. METHODS Fifty patients undergoing suboccipital craniotomy for adult CMI were prospectively followed for 1 year. Baseline and 1-year patient-reported outcomes (visual analog scale for head pain and visual analog scale for neck pain, Neck Disability Index [NDI], Headache Disability Index, SF-12, Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale, and EuroQol-5D [EQ-5D]) were assessed. A level of improvement in general health after surgery was defined as meaningful improvement. Receiver-operating characteristic curves were generated to assess the validity of PROi to discriminate between meaningful improvement and not. The difference between standardized response means (SRMs) in patients reporting meaningful improvement vs not as calculated to determine the relative responsiveness of each outcome instrument. RESULTS For pain and disability, the NDI was the most accurate discriminator of meaningful effectiveness (area under the curve: 0.90) and also most responsive to postoperative improvement (standardized response means difference: 1.87). For general health and quality of life, the SF-12 PCS, EQ-5D, and Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale were all accurate discriminators; however, SF-12 Physical Component Scale (SF-12 PCS) and EQ-5D were most accurate. SF-12 PCS was also most responsive. CONCLUSION For pain and disability, NDI is the most valid and responsive measure of improvement after surgery for CMI. For health-related quality of life, SF-12 PCS and EQ-5D are the most valid and responsive measures. NDI with SF-12 or EQ-5D is the most valid in patients with CMI and should be considered in cost-effectiveness studies.
Rise Height for Negatively Buoyant Fountains and Depth of Penetration for Negatively Buoyant Jets Impinging an Interface

A vertical jet or fountain, whose velocity is opposite to the direction of its buoyant force, reverses direction after reaching a maximum penetration depth. This penetration depth is measured from the jet exit or, if present, the location of the undisturbed interface, This paper shows that the penetration depth is only a function of a Richardson number divided by a jet spreading factor. If no interface is present, the spreading factor is one; otherwise the spreading factor is only a function of distance between the jet exit and the interface. As long as the jet is fully turbulent, the penetration depth is independent of Reynolds and Weber numbers. These trends are applicable to a broad range of fluid systems including air jets impacting liquids as well as miscible and immiscible liquid-liquid systems with only slight density differences
Transport and functional behaviour of poly(ethylene glycol)-modified nanoporous alumina membranes

The development of hybrid organic–inorganic membranes with a low propensity for protein adsorption and highly uniform nanometre size pores is described. Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) monolayers were grafted to nanoporous alumina membranes using covalent silane and physical adsorption poly(ethyleneimine) (PEI) immobilization chemistries. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and electron microscopy were used to investigate the chemical and physical surface properties of the membranes. The adsorption behaviour of a serum albumin on the membranes was characterized with fluorescence spectroscopy and it was determined that the PEG coating reduced nonspecific protein adsorption to a level too small to be measured. The gas and liquid permeabilities of membranes were measured to determine if the surface chemistries changed the functional behaviour of the membranes. Surprisingly, the silane chemistry produced little change in the permeabilities while polymer adsorption resulted in a total loss of water permeability. The diffusion of ovalbumin through the membranes was also measured and compared with a theoretical value. Diffusion of ovalbumin through the silane-PEG-modified membranes was found to be 50% slower than the unmodified membranes, which suggests that the pores are coated with a dense film of PEG. These results suggest that hybrid organic–inorganic membranes can provide significantly improved functional behaviour over existing organic or inorganic membranes.
Cleavage crack-growth-resistance of grain boundaries in polycrystalline Fe–2%Si alloy: experiments and modeling

Abstract Experiments were carried out on the modes of advance of cleavage cracking through a field of randomly oriented grains at −30 °C in the pure cleavage range (lower shelf) in very large grain size Fe–2%Si alloy, permitting detailed observations of the chronology of percolation of the cleavage crack front across a field of grains. Utilizing previously developed model-based information on the peak resistance to fracture of high angle grain boundaries, with a given tilt and twist misorientation across them, and detailed measurements of orientations of individual grains in the samples, it was possible to develop percolation maps of cleavage through the field of grains that for the initial phases of fracture through grains predicted the actual path with about 70% accuracy when compared with experimental observations. On the basis of these experiments and modeling a simple expression is projected for the effect of grain boundaries on the overall cleavage fracture resistance of low-carbon steel in the lower shelf region. The model gives a nearly 3-fold rise of cleavage resistance of the polycrystal over the single crystal, substantially independent of grain size. Additional experiments on decarburized 1010 steel of 50 μm grain size with an unusually low brittle-to-ductile transition temperature gave very similar results on the mode of percolation of cleavage cracking through grains even though in this case the cleavage propagation was under upper shelf conditions.
Litigation Risk, Intermediation, and the Underpricing of Initial Public Offerings

We formally examine the role of litigation risk in initial public offering (IPO) pricing. The underwriter's pricing decision trades off current revenue against expected future litigation costs, both of which are increasing in the IPO price. Given a time-consistency constraint and rational expectations on the part of investors, however, the "standard" litigation risk argument does not lead to equilibrium underpricing. We develop a richer model that provides sufficient conditions under which there is equilibrium underpricing. The issuer's choice of employing an underwriter versus floating the IPO on its own is examined, and various testable implications of the model are developed. Article published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Financial Studies in its journal, The Review of Financial Studies.
T-Cell Properties Determine Disease Site, Clinical Presentation, and Cellular Pathology of Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis

Two distinct clinical phenotypes of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis are observed in BALB interferon-γ knockout mice immunized with encephalitogenic peptides of myelin basic protein. Conventional disease, characterized by ascending weakness and paralysis, occurs with greater frequency after immunizing with a peptide comprising residues 59 to 76. Axial-rotatory disease, characterized by uncontrolled axial rotation, occurs with greater frequency in mice immunized with a peptide corresponding to exon 2 of the full length 21.5-kd protein. The two clinical phenotypes are histologically distinguishable. Conventional disease is characterized by inflammation and demyelination primarily in spinal cord, whereas axial-rotatory disease involves inflammation and demyelination of lateral medullary areas of brain. Both types have infiltrates in which neutrophils are a predominating component. By isolating T cells and transferring disease to naive recipients, we show here that the type of disease is determined entirely by the inducing T cell. Furthermore, studies using CXCR2 knockout recipients, unable to recruit neutrophils to inflammatory sites, show that although neutrophils are critical for some of these T cells to effect disease, there are also interferon-γ-deficient T cells that induce disease in the absence of both interferon-γ and neutrophils. These results highlight the multiplicity of T-cell-initiated effector pathways available for inflammation and demyelination.
On the sensitivity of cells and tissues to therapeutic and environmental electromagnetic fields

Abstract The question of the thermal noise threshold at biological membranes for electromagnetic field (EMF) effects is addressed. It is shown that increased EMF sensitivity occurs when cells are connected by gap junctions (short circuits) in a tissue, as compared with isolated cells. A distributed parameter (transmission line) model representing a cell array allowed the transmembrane voltage to thermal noise ratio to be evaluated. The results show that this ratio increases by a maximum factor of 103 at the ends of the cell array as array length progresses from 10 μm (single cell) to 1 mm, a physiologically relevant length for tissues other than nerves insulated with a myelin sheath. The frequency response of the cell array is always at much lower frequencies than isolated cells with significantly higher spatial amplification. This study provides a physical basis, using simple linear modelling, for demonstrating how real cells and tissues can be significantly more sensitive to weak EMF signals than commonly realized.
Surfaces defined on surfaces

Abstract Two methods for constructing interpolants to data arbitrarily located on convex surfaces are presented. One is a modified Shepard's method [Barnhill, Piper & Rescorla'87] and the other is a triangular-based method. The latter is an extension of triangular-based methods on a sphere [Lawson '84], [Renka '84] and [Nielson & Ramaraj '87], to arbitrary convex surfaces. The two methods are compared both numerically and by means of color interactive computer graphics on a set of examples.
Molecular Theory of Liquid Adsorption Chromatography

Abstract A statistical-mechanical theory, based on a lattice model, has been developed to address the molecular mechanism of retention and selectivity in both normal-phase and reversedphase liquid adsorption chromatography. The model is a natural “competitive-equilibrium” one, where possible contributions from solvent-solvent and solute-solvent interactions, and, hence, from solution nonideality, are not neglected. Homogeneous and heterogeneous adsorbent surfaces, single-solvent and binary mixed-solvent mobile phases, and solute molecules of different size and shape are treated. Practical applications of the theory are presented to demonstrate its utility and significance. For homogeneous adsorbents and neat solvents, the molecular energetics of retention and selectivity are examined, with special emphasis on the effects of solute size and shape, and, relatedly, the modes of solute adsorption. Separations of geometrical isomers and homologous series in real and simulated chromatographic processes are inve...
A minimally invasive approach is more cost-effective than a traditional sternotomy approach for mitral valve surgery.

Objective The aim of this study was to compare the cost and effectiveness of a minimally invasive (MI) versus traditional sternotomy (ST) approach for mitral valve surgery (MVS). Methods From January 1, 2003, to December 31, 2008, a total of 847 patients underwent isolated MVS at our institution. Propensity matching on 22 clinical variables was carried out to generate a study cohort of 434 patients (217 matched pairs). Direct and indirect costs from the hospital perspective were retrospectively obtained from our finance department. Total hospital costs were further stratified into 13 standardized institutional billing categories. In addition, data on morbidity, mortality, discharge location, hospital readmissions within 1 year, and freedom from reoperation were obtained. Results Compared with ST, MIMVS was associated with a $9054 ± $3302 lower mean total hospital cost ( P = .006), driven largely by a reduction in direct ( P = .003) versus indirect costs ( P = .06). Among the 13 billing categories, MIMVS was associated with a significant reduction in costs of cardiac imaging ( P = .004), laboratory tests ( P = .005), boarding and nursing ( P = .001), and radiology ( P = .002). More patients in the ST group required intubation for more than 72 hours ( P = .019); however, there were no differences in morbidity or long-term survival ( P = .334). A higher proportion of MI patients were discharged home with no nursing services ( P = .018), and a higher proportion of ST patients required readmission within 1 year ( P = .023). There were no differences in freedom from reoperation between groups ( P = .574). Conclusions With equivalent efficacy across a range of measures and lower costs compared with ST, MIMVS represents a cost-saving strategy for MVS.
Thermochemistry of gaseous ammonium nitrate, NH4NO3(g).

From the measured molecular weight of vapor over NH4NO3(c) by the simultaneous torsion-effusion/mass loss method, the partial pressure of NH4NO3(g) was evaluated over the range 321−360 K; in addition, the presence of the gaseous nitrate was verified by effusion-beam mass spectrometry. Third-law calculations of the sublimation enthalpy of NH4NO3 were made with estimated molecular constants, yielding ΔH298o(sub) = 20.9 ± 2 kcal mol−1, as compared to a less-reliable second-law value of 23.2 ± 3 kcal mol−1. We prefer the third-law value, which leads to the enthalpy of formation ΔfH298o (NH4NO3(g)) = −66.5 ± 2.1 kcal mol−1 when combined with the known ΔfH298o value of NH4NO3(c).
Assessing word processing capability of the nonvocal, nonwriting

Issues in clinical assessment of nonvocal, nonwriting individuals (school-aged or adult) for prognosis for learning to read and spell and thus for using computers for linguistic communication are discussed. Specific tests of visual skills (for whole word or word-like patterns and for embedded symbol or symbol sequence) and of linguistic skills (for phonemic analysis and vocabulary knowledge) are recommended because they were shown to have concurrent validity for achievement in word decoding and encoding for a nondisabled sample of beginning readers before and after a year of formal reading instruction; these tests can be administered in the same way to nonvocal, nonwriting individuals as to nondisabled individuals on whom the tests were normed. Tests are also recommended for monitoring text comprehension, once reading instruction is implemented that is adapted to the response capabilities of the nonvocal, nonwriting individual. Professionals in the field of augmentative and alternative communication are u...
CIRCAL: On-line circuit design

On-line circuit design involves interaction between a designer who initiates circuit modifications on the basis of circuit performance, and a digital computer which calculates the performance resulting from such modifications. Besides network analysis, the flexibility of an on-line utility makes possible a variety of other services such as on-line definition and modelling of new circuit elements, while graphical input and display devices facilitate man-machine communication, requiring no programming knowledge on the part of the user. Compared to conventional design or batch-computer design, the on-line approach includes advantages such as savings in design time and cost, and progressive accumulation of diverse and accurate knowledge about expected circuit behavior, before actual construction is undertaken. This paper discusses a family of on-line nonlinear circuit-design systems known as CIRCAL, in terms of features visible to a user, internal structure, supporting theory, experience, and future plans.
Management and research: the uneasy compromise

Management and research should not in any way be incompatible. Nevertheless, it is undoubtedly true that management is not a popular concept among UK research scientists and engineers. Is that however more an aspect of the people than the subject?
The role of social capital in African-American women's use of mammography.

Abstract Black/African–American women are more likely to get breast cancer at a young age and/or be diagnosed at a late disease stage, pointing to a greater need to promote mammography for Black women at earlier ages than are currently recommended. This study explores how perceived neighborhood social capital, that is, perceptions of how tight-knit a neighborhood is and what power that confers to neighborhood members, relates to use of mammography for Black women in Philadelphia. Living in a community with tight social ties (social cohesion) or that have a collective motivation for community change (collective efficacy) may increase the likelihood that an individual woman in that community will hear health messages from other community members and neighbors (diffusion of information) and will have access to health-related resources that allow them to engage in healthy behaviors. No prior studies have explored the role of social capital in decisions for mammography use. Using multilevel logistic regression, we analyzed self-report of mammography in the past year for 2586, Black women over age 40 across 381 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA census tracts. Our study included individual demographic and aggregates of individual-level social capital data from the Public Health Management Corporation's 2004, 2006, and 2008 Community Health Database waves, and 2000 US Census sociodemographic characteristics. Individual perceptions that a Black woman's neighborhood had high social capital, specifically collective efficacy, had a positive and statistically significant association with mammography use (OR = 1.40, CI: 1.05, 1.85). Our findings suggest that an individual woman's perception of greater neighborhood social capital may be related to increased mammography use. Although this analysis could not determine the direction of causality, it suggests that social capital may play a role in cancer preventive screening for African–American women in Philadelphia, which warrants further study.
Implementation of standard order sets for patient-controlled analgesia.

Purpose. The implementation of standard order sets for patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) is described. Summary. A review of naloxone usage at the University of Minnesota Medical Center (UMMC) from January to June 2004 found that 8% of patients receiving PCA had severe respiratory depression. A subanalysis of each event found that 85% of these patients had never before received opioid therapy. To reduce the risk of respiratory depression with PCA, separate standard order sets were developed for patients new to or tolerant of opioid therapy. A major component of both order sets was the standardization of a 10-minute lockout interval between each PCA dose. Implementation of the new PCA order sets raised concerns among health care professionals at UMMC that medication safety may be improved at the cost of increased pain. After implementation of the order sets, prescriber compliance, pharmacist interventions, the frequency of adverse effects, and patients’ pain management were evaluated. After implementation of standard order sets for patients receiving PCA, 57% of patients’ pain was documented as being controlled, and the orders for 93% of patients were in compliance with the recommended dosage interval of ≥10 minutes. There were no reports of oversedation or respiratory depression requiring reversal with naloxone. Conclusion. The implementation of standard order sets for PCA resulted in a dramatic decrease in the number of cases of severe respiratory depression and increased use of the order set for patients new to opioid therapy. Changing the order sets to improve medication safety did not appear to negatively affect patients’ satisfaction with pain management.
A performance evaluation model for a digital group with multislot traffic streams

We present a unified model to compute various performance measures when a mixture of multi-slot traffic streams is offered on a trunk group of an integrated digital network under various bandwidth control schemes. When we considered a bandwidth reservation scheme based on traditional trunk reservation and a variation called partial bandwidth reservation, we have observed that the performance criteria themselves has significant impact in deciding which reservation scheme to use and at what level to use.
High pressure X-ray diffraction study of all Fe–Sn intermetallic compounds and one Fe–Sn solid solution

Abstract The present study describes the preparation of all five Fe–Sn intermetallic compounds, FeSn 2 , FeSn, Fe 3 Sn 2 , Fe 5 Sn 3 , and Fe 3 Sn, and the results of the X-ray diffraction study under static high pressure up to 25 GPa using nitrogen as a pressure-transmitting medium. The samples were prepared with phase purities of 97% and higher. Four Fe–Sn intermetallics, FeSn 2 , FeSn, Fe 5 Sn 3 , and Fe 3 Sn, show no phase transition to the highest pressure achieved; Fe 3 Sn 2 undergoes two transitions to 25 GPa. The bulk moduli of these materials decrease approximately linearly with increasing Sn content, with the exception of Fe 3 Sn 2 . We also studied the solubility of Sn in α-Fe (α-Fe 1− x Sn x ). Tin expands the α-Fe lattice according to Vegard's law to at least 6 at.% Sn. The solid solution α-Fe 0.92 Sn 0.08 was examined beyond the pressure of the α/ɛ-phase transition. The onset of the phase transition in α-Fe 0.92 Sn 0.08 occurs at about 24 GPa, higher than the transition pressure of 14 GPa in pure α-Fe, but at a similar lattice parameter, a ≈ 2.800 A.
Sleep patterns in patients with cancer and patients with cardiac disease.

Summary Thirty cancer out-patients, 28 out-patients with cardiac disease, and 24 controls matched for age, sex, race, religion, and marital status were administered a 38-item questionnaire on sleep habits. Patients with cardiac disease perceived that they had more difficulty falling asleep, awakened earlier than planned, and felt sleepy during the day more often than the other two groups. Patients with cancer differed from controls only in feeling that they had more difficulty staying asleep. The findings demonstrate that while patients with two different chronic diseases have altered sleep patterns, the patterns are disturbed in different ways. This has important implications for therapy as a different approach is needed for the patient who has difficulty falling asleep as compared with the patient who has difficulty staying asleep.
Dynamic strain aging in a Ti-modified 316 stainless steel

Abstract The stress-strain rate characteristics of a Ti-modified 316 stainless steel were experimentally evaluated for test temperatures in the range 300°–700° C and strain rates in the range 0.002–10.0 in. in. −1 min −1 . An analysis of the results indicates that the deformation characteristics of this alloy are determined by the dislocation barrier structures produced and that a significant part of the dislocation barrier structures are the solute configurations produced by the straining. These may vary from single atom conditions (Snoek effect) to complex equilibrium type configurations. The density and character of the solute configurations are determined by the variables, degree of strain, strain rate and temperature of straining. Thus, the deformation characteristics of a Ti-modified 316 stainless steel are determined to a significant degree by the dynamic strain aging tendencies of this material.
Reproductive success of the interior least tern (Sterna antillarum) in relation to hydrology on the Lower Mississippi River

The annual hydrograph of large rivers, including flood pulses and low-flow periods, is believed to play a primary role in the productivity of biota associated with these ecosystems. We investigated the relationship between river hydrology and Interior least tern (Sterna antillarum) reproductive success on the Lower Mississippi River from April to July 1986–1993. The number of fledglings produced per adult pair was negatively correlated with July mean (r =− 0.95, p=0.0004) and July maximum river elevation (r =− 0.97, p= 0.0001), but no other aspects of river hydrology were related to tern reproduction. Low-water elevations in July may benefit least tern reproductive success by increasing sand island area or the area of shallow-water habitat that surrounds islands. Loss of deep-water habitats in conjunction with an increase in shallow habitat during stage decreases may concentrate fish prey in shallow-water habitats and backwater areas, thereby increasing food availability during chick-rearing. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Rearrangements within human spliceosomes captured after exon ligation

In spliceosomes, dynamic RNA/RNA and RNA/protein interactions position the pre-mRNA substrate for the two chemical steps of splicing. Not all of these interactions have been characterized, in part because it has not been possible to arrest the complex at clearly defined states relative to chemistry. Previously, it was shown in yeast that the DEAD/H-box protein Prp22 requires an extended 3 ′ exon to promote mRNA release from the spliceosome following second-step chemistry. In line with that observation, we find that shortening the 3 ′ exon blocks cleaved lariat intron and mRNA release in human splicing extracts, which allowed us to stall human spliceosomes in a new post-catalytic complex (P complex). In comparison to C complex, which is blocked at a point following first-step chemistry, we detect specific differences in RNA substrate interactions near the splice sites. These differences include extended protection across the exon junction and changes in protein crosslinks to specific sites in the 5 ′ and 3 ′ exons. Using selective reaction monitoring (SRM) mass spectrometry, we quantitatively compared P and C complex proteins and observed enrichment of SF3b components and loss of the putative RNA-dependent ATPase DHX35. Electron microscopy revealed similar structural features for both complexes. Notably, additional density is present when complexes are chemically fixed, which reconciles our results with previously reported C complex structures. Our ability to compare human spliceosomes before and after second-step chemistry has opened a new window to rearrangements near the active site of spliceosomes, which may play roles in exon ligation and mRNA release.
A history of computer applications in libraries: prolegomena

Modern libraries are constituted within and by a tradition of techniques and practices that represent 100 years of codified professional knowledge. This article provides a historical overview of this tradition that created a complex environment of expectation and misunderstanding for introducing library automation. A generation of systems development was needed to assimilate and further develop this tradition.
Solution space reasoning to improve IQ-ASyMTRe in tightly-coupled multirobot tasks

In our prior work, we proposed the IQ-ASyMTRe architecture as a general method to combine coalition formation and execution for tightly-coupled multirobot tasks. IQ-ASyMTRe extends the ASyMTRe architecture by introducing several new mechanisms to provide more flexibility for coalition formation as well as to facilitate coalition execution. On the other hand, these mechanisms also change the process of reasoning about solutions and further increase the complexity of the solution space. In this paper, we provide improvements for utilizing the IQ-ASyMTRe architecture based on reasoning about the solution space. We introduce a method in which the exponential growth of the number of potential solutions to be searched can be avoided; instead, the search space is only of linear size for certain tasks. Unnecessary potential solutions are removed to further increase online efficiency. Moreover, the relationships between the created solution space and the complete solution space are studied, and are utilized to provide more coverage of the complete solution space for arbitrary tasks. Although these improvements are discussed with respect to IQ-ASyMTRe, they are also applicable to architectures that approach the generality that IQ-ASyMTRe achieves. Robot simulation and experimental results are provided to demonstrate that the generation and searching of the solution space can be done online (which was impractical previously even for tasks with relatively modest complexities) for certain tasks, and to illustrate how our approach impacts the solution space.
How Do Long‐Shot Outcomes Affect Preferences for Climate‐Change Mitigation?

This article takes a fresh look at how public uncertainty influences willingness to pay (WTP) for climate-change mitigation programs. I elicit subjective distribution functions over future global mean temperatures and WTP for mitigation. I find, not surprisingly, that subjects, on average, view climate change as a �bad,� and the higher the expected temperature increase they perceive, the more they are willing to pay for mitigation. Subjects are generally risk averse, so that they are WTP more for mitigation programs when the outcome of the program is more certain. The skew of the subjective climate-change distribution also affects preferences, so that aversion to catastrophic outcomes is an important component of WTP for mitigation. I find that models that ignore skew are likely to underestimate the influence of uncertainty on willingness to pay for climate-change mitigation.
The future may be closer than you think: a response from the Personalized Medicine Coalition to the Royal Society's report on personalized medicine.

A recent report from the British Royal Society on the prospects for personalized medicine provides a sobering assessment of the field and its prospects. The report contends that pharmacogenetics has little clinical relevance at the moment and will only progress with the completion of large, cumbersome clinical trials. The report goes on to note that the regulatory infrastructure, medical education initiatives and public deliberation necessary to make personalized medicine a reality are essentially nonexistent, at least so far. In our view, personalized medicine is much more than a hypothetical protocol designed to correlate genotypes with prescriptions. We argue that the development of personalized medicine is a broader phenomenon that is already being practiced in one form or another in many contexts. Both academic medicine and the pharmaceutical industry have a huge stake in bringing pharmacogenetic-based personalized medicine to fruition; we expect both entities to act as drivers of what will be a long...
Quantifying historical trends in the completeness of the fossil record and the contributing factors: an example using Aves

Improvements in the perceived completeness of the fossil record may be driven both by new discoveries and by reinterpretation of known fossils, but disentangling the relative effects of these processes can be difficult. Here, we propose a new methodology for evaluating historical trends in the perceived completeness of the fossil record, demonstrate its implementation using the freely available software ASCC (version 4.0.0), and present an example using crown-group birds (Aves). Dates of discovery and recognition for the oldest fossil representatives of 75 major lineages of birds were collected for the historical period ranging from 1910 to 2010. Using a comprehensive phylogeny, we calculated minimum implied stratigraphic gaps (MIG range) across these 75 lineages. Our results show that a reduction in global MIG values of 1.35 Ga (billion years) occurred over the past century in avian paleontology. A pronounced increase in the average rate of global MIG reduction is noted in the post-1970s interval (290.5 Myr per decade) compared to the pre-1970s interval (31.9 Myr per decade). Although the majority of the improvement in the fossil record of birds has come from new discoveries, substantial improvement (∼22.5%) has resulted from restudy and phylogenetic revision of previously described fossils over the last 40 years. With a minimum estimate indicating that at least 1.34 Gyr of gaps remain to be filled between the predicted and observed first appearances of major lineages of crown Aves, there is much progress to be made. However, a notable tapering off in the rate of global MIG reduction occurs between 1990 and 2010, suggesting we may be approaching an asymptote of oldest record discoveries for birds. Only future observations can determine whether this is a real pattern or a historical anomaly. Either way, barring the discovery of fossils that substantially push back the minimum age for the origin of crown-clade Aves, new discoveries cannot continue to reduce global MIG values at the average post-1970s rate over the long term.
Attitudes Toward Placentophagy: A Brief Report

Placentophagy is the consumption of the placenta after birth. For the present study, an online survey explored knowledge and attitudes toward the practice. Participants (N = 216, 78.7% female, 19.9% male) completed Internet-based surveys on placentophagy. A majority (66%) had heard about placentophagy, and of these, 23.1% had learned about the practice through the media. A small number of participants (3.3%) had eaten human placental tissue. Male and female respondents did not differ in willingness to eat placenta (χ (2)(2) = 1.60, p = .45). Contrary to popular belief, placentophagy appears to be rare in human history and across cultures. Future research should explore changing attitudes toward placentophagy across cultures.
Model Integrated Computing in the Large

As model integrated computing gains wider and wider acceptance, the scalability of the supporting tools becomes a significant issue. Large, complex projects involve many developers who create large and complex models. Supporting large-scale model integrated computing requires two key features currently lacking in available tools: (1) distributed, simultaneous multi-user access to the models; and (2) model versioning. Our proposed solution is based on storing the models at a relatively fine granularity in XML files on a server under the control of a traditional source code control system. The model builder tool then only needs to implement the client functionality of the version control tool. However, there is one significant technical challenge that needs to be solved. Models are captured as complex interdependent data structures in a model editor. Containment, binary and n-ary relations are kept as a consistent set of data by the model builder. The model builder tool needs to keep track of these interdependences and ensure consistency at all times even when multiple users edit the models