cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Comparison of the clinical manifestations of cystic fibrosis in black and white patients

Abstract No large-scale studies of the incidence or disease severity of cystic fibrosis (CF) in black patients have been reported to date. In this study, the CF Foundation National Patient Registry was used to establish new incidence figures and to compare the clinical status of U.S. black ( n = 601) and white patients ( n = 17,755) with CF. Results indicate that the incidence of CF is approximately 1 in 3,200 white and 1 in 15,000 black live births in the United States. Black patients with CF are currently, and were at diagnosis, younger and have poorer nutritional status and pulmonary function than white patients with CF. Fewer have meconium ileus, but more have distal intestinal obstruction syndrome. To control for genotype, each black ΔF508 homozygote ( n = 47) was compared with four age- and sex-matched white ΔF508 homozygotes. Only the difference in nutritional status remained. The ΔF508 mutation is associated with higher levels of meconium ileus than other genotypes, independent of race. In conclusion, the clinical manifestations of CF are similar in black and white patients except for poorer nutritional status in black patients, which appears to be independent of age and genotype. (J Pediatr 1998;132:255-9)
Multichannel restoration of single channel images using a wavelet decomposition

Multichannel linear filtering is applied to the restoration of single-channel images through the use of a wavelet decomposition. A novel matrix structure for the separable 2-D wavelet transform is presented which allows the transformation of block circulant operators, found in 2-D linear filtering problems, into semiblock circulant operators, which are defined here. These operators are easily treated as block diagonal matrices in the wavelet-frequency domain. An adaptive Wiener filter is implemented in this domain, which uses the cross-correlations between subbands in the decomposition to improve substantially the restoration of noisy-blurred images over that found with single-channel filtering. This improvement is especially evident when the power spectrum of the original image is available. >
The treatment of severe arterial hypertension with pentolinium.

Abstract Eight cases of severe hypertension treated with pentolinium are presented. Treatment was discontinued in one patient because of the unpredictability of hypotensive response. A cerebrovascular accident discouraged treatment in the other case. Unpleasant drug effects other than the hypotensive one caused no discontinuance of treatment although all patients experienced such effects to a variable degree. Six are continuing treatment. Among these all showed clearing of retinal hemorrhages. Papilledema cleared in the three cases in which it had been present. Three of four patients showed disappearance of the signs of heart failure while on antihypertension drugs alone, and the fourth showed improvement but this may have been primarily due to digitails. The renal status and electrocardiographic pattern stayed essentially constant in all patients.
Prostacyclin increases gastric mucosal blood flow via cyclic AMP

Abstract Although prostacyclin has been shown to inhibit stress-induced gastric mucosal ulceration, the mechanism for this cytoprotection is unknown. This experiment measures the effect of intravenous prostacyclin on gastric mucosal blood flow and any modification of this effect by pretreatment with the phosphodiesterase inhibitor, theophylline. Miniature swine were anesthetized, intubated, and ventilated. Three groups of six animals each were studied: (1) theophylline, (2) prostacyclin, and (3) prostacyclin plus theophylline. After stabilization, baseline gastric mucosal blood flow was measured with radioactive spheres. Theophylline (or vehicle) was then infused at 50 mg/kg/hr × 15 min followed by 2 mg/kg/hr thereafter. After 30 min prostacyclin (or vehicle) was infused at 0.005, 0.05, and 0.5 μg/kg/min for three consecutive 15-min periods, each followed by measurement of gastric mucosal blood flow. Results: At 0.5 μg/kg/min, prostacyclin increased gastric mucosal blood flow despite a drop in mean arterial pressure (50.1 ± 8.4 vs 17.4 ± 4.1 ml/100 g/min). Significant differences in cardiac index were not seen among the three groups. Pretreatment with theophylline potentiated prostacyclin's effect on gastric mucosal blood flow suggesting that prostacyclin increases gastric mucosal blood flow by a mechanism dependent on cyclic AMP (113.2 ± 23.3 vs 50.1 ± 8.4 ml/100 g/min). Since mucosal ischemia is an accepted prerequisite for stress-induced ulceration, prostacyclin's effect on blood flow may contribute to its protective effect on gastric mucosa.
A cell-intrinsic inhibitor of HIV-1 reverse transcription in CD4+ T cells from elite controllers

HIV-1 reverse transcription represents the predominant target for pharmacological inhibition of viral replication, but cell-intrinsic mechanisms that can block HIV-1 reverse transcription in a clinically significant way are poorly defined. We find that effective HIV-1 reverse transcription depends on the phosphorylation of viral reverse transcriptase by host cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 2 at a highly conserved Threonine residue. CDK2-dependent phosphorylation increased the efficacy and stability of viral reverse transcriptase and enhanced viral fitness. Interestingly, p21, a cell-intrinsic CDK inhibitor that is upregulated in CD4(+) T cells from "elite controllers," potently inhibited CDK2-dependent phosphorylation of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase and significantly reduced the efficacy of viral reverse transcription. These data suggest that p21 can indirectly block HIV-1 reverse transcription by inhibiting host cofactors supporting HIV-1 replication and identify sites of viral vulnerability that are effectively targeted in persons with natural control of HIV-1 replication.
Reactivation of chick erythrocyte nuclei in young and senescent WI38 cells

Abstract The chromatin of the dormant chick nucleus is dispersed in the heterokaryons made by Sendai virus fusion of phase II WI38 cells with chick erythrocyte nuclei. The erythrocyte nucleus resumes RNA synthesis and enters into DNA synthesis with the host nucleus. In the heterokaryons of phase III WI38 cells and chick erythrocytes, the nuclear chromatin is not dispersed and RNA synthesis occurs at a reduced rate. The differences in the physiological state of the young and senescent cells measured by [ 3 H]uridine incorporation into nuclear RNA is reflected in the extent of reactivation of the chick erythrocyte nuclei in the cytoplasm of these cells. The reactivation of the chick nucleus in enucleated fibroblasts parallels the nucleated cells. The results of these studies are interpreted as evidence that there is a specific loss of nuclear function in the senescent cells.
Photochemical Properties, Composition, and Structure in Molecular Beam Epitaxy Grown Fe “Doped” and (Fe,N) Codoped Rutile TiO2(110)

We have investigated the surface photochemical properties of Fe “doped” and (Fe,N) codoped homoepitaxial rutile TiO2(110) films grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. Fe does not incorporate as an electronic dopant in the rutile lattice but rather segregates to the film surface. However, codeposition of Fe with N enhances the solubility of Fe, and DFT calculations suggest that codopant complex formation is the driving force behind the enhanced solubility. The codoped films, in which a few atomic percent of Ti (O) are replaced with Fe (N), exhibit significant disorder compared to undoped films grown under the same conditions, presumably due to dopant-induced strain. Codoping redshifts the rutile bandgap into the visible. However, the film surfaces are photochemically inert with respect to hole-mediated decomposition of adsorbed trimethyl acetate. The absence of photochemical activity may result from dopant-induced trap and/or recombination sites within the film. This study indicates that enhanced...
Schedule controlled and drug induced release of norepinephrine-7-3H into the lateral ventricle of rats

Abstract Trace doses of tritiated norepinephrine(NE-3H) or carbon fourteen urea (urea-14C) were injected into the lateral ventricle of rats 1 hr prior to ventricular perfusion with a pushpull cannula. While working on a higher fixed-ratio (FR) schedule of reinforcement, more radioactivity from NE (and metabolites) was in the perfusate than when working on a low FR schedule. When reinforcement was withheld (extinction), the behavioral effect was accompanied by an abrupt change in the profile of radioactivity in the perfusate. To determine if release of the catecholamine (or metabolites) can be specific, approximately equipotent behavioral disruptive doses of mescaline and (+)-amphetamine were injected intraperitoneally. Both drugs, which almost immediately disrupted the operant and isotonic saline (which had no effect upon the operant), produced an increase in radioactivity from urea-14C at the time of injection. Only (+)-amphetamine produced an increase in radioactivity from NE-3H following drug injection. This indicates that extracellular “markers” are sensitive to transient environmental (both internal and external) changes while compounds that are presumably bound intraneuronally might be preferentially releaseable by drugs thought to act through those aminergic systems.
Effects of retinoic acid on NIH3T3 cell transformation by the H-ras oncogene.

Exposure of NIH3T3 cells to retinoic acid resulted in a dose-dependent modulation of transformed focus formation after transfection with an activated H-ras oncogene. Inhibition induced by 10 μM retinoic acid was maximal at 21.4% of control values. Maximal inhibition of transformation was found after exposure to 10 μM retinoic acid between days 0 and 3 of the transfection period. This concentration was also inhibitory for colony formation upon transfection of the non-transforming geneaph, suggesting that retinoic acid acts primarily on the process of transfection to inhibit focus or colony formation. Exposure to retinoic acid during the late period of the transfection protocol (days 14–20) resulted in alterations in focus morphology. A transformed cell line containing H-ras underwent reversion of the transformed phenotype after 4 weeks of treatment with retinoic acid, as determined by alterations in cell morphology and anchorage-independent growth. Phenotypic reversion was not associated with changes in the expression of the exogenous H-ras or endogenous c-myc or c-fos oncogenes.
Studies of inhibition of deoxynucleotide synthesis in chick embryos.

Abstract The distribution of label after the incorporation of (α- 32 P) CTP by cell-free extracts of chick embryos indicates that these extracts synthesize new DNA. The crude multienzyme system for the synthesis of DNA from CMP is inhibited by dGMP. Pretreatment of chick embryos with deoxyguanosine inhibits embryo growth without significantly affecting the capacity of this multienzyme system (per cell). However, extracts of the pretreated embryos are much less susceptible to dGMP inhibition. This system can now function in the presence of increased dGMP concentrations and the embryo growth rate returns to normal. In spite of this apparently successful adaptation, these embryos usually die or give rise to malformed chicks. These extracts are also inhibited by dAMP, excess CMP, hydroxyurea, and proflavin. Thioinosinetriphosphate does not inhibit, and can substitute for ATP as energy source. Polymerase activity is not limiting (about 25 times the V max of the over-all reaction).
The Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Thyroid Negative Feedback Control Axis in Children With Treated Congenital Hypothyroidism

Measurements of serum concentrations of free T4, T3, TSH, and thyroglobulin (Tg) were conducted in 42 infants (2-9 months of age) detected and treated through the Northwest Newborn Regional Screening Program and 63 children and adolescents (1-18 yr of age) with congenital hypothyroidism (CH) detected and managed in the Northern California Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program. Normal feedback control axis data were developed by Quest Diagnostics, Inc. - Nichols Institute Diagnostics and Loma Linda University, from free T4 and TSH measurements in 589 healthy subjects, 2 months to 54 yr of age; 83 untreated hypothyroid patients; and 116 untreated hyperthyroid patients. Twenty-four of the 42 CH infants and 57 of the 63 CH children manifested serum TSH concentrations appropriate for the measured free T4 level. In the remaining 18 infants and 6 children, serum free T4 values were increased 0.2-1.4 ng/dL (2.6-18.0 pmol/L) for the prevailing TSH level, suggesting a state of mild to moderate pituitary-thyroid hormone resistance. In the treated children, the mean T3 concentration was lower (by 32%, 102 vs. 150 ng/dL; 1.57 vs. 2.31 nmol/L) than in normal children, in agreement with earlier data in hypothyroid adults treated with exogenous T4. Serum Tg concentrations were normal or elevated in 90% of the 19 children with ectopic glands and 93% of 27 children with eutopic glands in whom measurements were available. There was a positive correlation between serum TSH and Tg concentrations (P < 0.001), suggesting significant endogenous thyroid hormone production in these children. Our results suggest that the majority of infants and children with CH have a normal hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid negative feedback control axis during treatment and that the measurement of serum TSH is a useful marker complementing the free T4 measurement in the management of children with CH. A minority have variable pituitary-thyroid hormone resistance, with relatively elevated serum TSH levels for their prevailing serum free T4 concentration. The prevalence of resistance is greater (43%) in young infants (< 1 yr of age) than in older children (10%), indicating that, in most children, the resistance improves with age.
A hypomorphic myogenin allele reveals distinct myogenin expression levels required for viability, skeletal muscle development, and sternum formation.

Abstract The myogenic basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor myogenin plays an essential role in the differentiation of skeletal muscle and, secondarily, in rib and sternum formation during mouse development. However, virtually nothing is known about the quantitative requirements for myogenin in these processes. Here, we describe the generation of mice carrying a hypomorphic allele ofmyogenin,which expressesmyogenintranscripts at approximately one-fourth the level of the wild-typemyogeninallele. The hypomorphic allele in combination with wild-type andmyogenin-null alleles was used to create an allelic series. Embryos representing the complete range of genotypes from homozygous wild type to homozygous null were analyzed for their viability, ability to form normal ribs and sternum, and extent of skeletal muscle differentiation. Embryos carrying the hypomorphicmyogeninallele over a wild-type allele were normal. In embryos bearing homozygous hypomorphic alleles, the sternum developed normally and extensive skeletal muscle differentiation occurred. However, muscle hypoplasia and reduced muscle-specific gene expression were apparent in these embryos, and the mice were not viable as neonates. When the hypomorphic allele was placed over amyogenin-null allele, the resulting embryos had sternum defects resembling homozygousmyogenin-null embryos, and there was severe muscle hypoplasia. Our results demonstrate that skeletal muscle formation is highly sensitive to the absolute levels of myogenin and that correct sternum formation, skeletal muscle differentiation, and viability each require distinct threshold levels of myogenin.
Physical and Psychosocial Well-Being Among Adults with Spinal Cord Injury: The Role of Volunteer Activities

The purpose of this study was to investigate the association of volunteering with the personal well-being among adults with spinal cord injury (SCI). Four hundred forty-seven unemployed adults with SCI completed the Life Situation Questionnaire-Revised. Of these participants, 88 were performing volunteer activities (19.7%) and 359 were not performing volunteer activities (80.3%). Results indicated that individuals who participated in volunteer activities reported higher levels of overall quality of life, current adjustment, and general health with fewer depressive symptoms and hospitalizations than those who did not volunteer. The primary implication of this study for health care professionals who work with adults with SCI is that participation in volunteer activities is an important rehabilitation goal that is associated with favorable outcomes, even in the absence of gainful employment.
Operational performance of the Antares alignment system

AbstractA review of the operational performance of the alignment system for the large Antaresoptical system is presented. The alignment of twenty -four optical channels consistingof two hundred optical elements is verified and established as required prior to each target shot for this CO2 laser fusion test facility. The overall system designincluded features such as automatic operation, data base driven controls, self calibration, provisions for initial optical alignment set up, and system aideu fault location. The system approach employed two alignment stations which sequentially viewedthe 24 optical channels (sectors) and could be used for prealignments and calibrations.Closed -loop operations via the computer permit rapid mirror alignments. The performance of the applied techniques and devices is evaluated and compared to the requiredperformance specifically from the standpoint of accuracy and shot rate. Overall systemperformance with verification by actual target shots is presented.Introduction
Comparison of Nuclear and Nonnuclear Pavement Density Testing Devices

The density of a hot-mix asphalt (HMA) pavement is an important factor for assessing pavement quality. Sufficient density is an essential characteristic of a well-constructed pavement and will lower its potential for distress. Traditionally, pavement density is determined by laboratory measurements of core samples and in situ readings via nuclear density gauges. Recently, nonnuclear devices that measure the electromagnetic properties of pavements have been developed. Nonnuclear devices have an inherent advantage over nuclear density gauges in that stringent monitoring of the user and extra security precautions are not required. However, the literature is unclear whether the readings from these devices are equivalent to those from nuclear density gauges. In this study, in-place pavement density readings from nonnuclear and nuclear density gauges were compared with laboratory-measured density values from core samples taken from the same location. Density readings from both gauges were compared with density ...
Optimization of single injection liver arterial phase gadolinium enhanced MRI using bolus track real‐time imaging

Purpose: To measure contrast agent enhancement kinetics in the liver and to further evaluate and develop an optimized gadolinium enhanced MRI using a single injection real-time bolus-tracking method for reproducible imaging of the transient arterial-phase. Materials and Methods: A total of 18 subjects with hypervascular liver lesions were imaged with four dimensional (4D) perfusion scans to measure time-to-peak (TTP) delays of arterial (aorta-celiac axis), liver parenchyma, liver lesion, portal, and hepatic veins. Time delays were calculated from the TTP-aorta signal, and then related to the gradient echo (GRE) k-space acquisition design, to determine optimized timing for real-time bolus-track triggering methodology. As another measure of significance, 200 clinical patients were imaged with 3D-GRE using either a fixed time-interval or by individualized arterial bolus real-time triggering. Bolus TTP-aorta was calculated and arterial-phase acquisitions were compared for accuracy and reproducibility using specific vascular enhancement indicators. Results: The mean bolus transit-time to peak-lesion contrast was 8.1 ± 2.7 seconds following arterial detection, compared to 32.1 ± 5.4 seconds from contrast injection, representing a 62.1% reduction in the time-variability among subjects (N = 18). The real-time bolus-triggered technique more consistently captured the targeted arterial phase (94%), compared to the fixed timing technique (73%), representing an expected improvement of timing accuracy in 28% of patients (P = 0.0001389). Conclusion: Our results show detailed timing window analysis required for optimized arterial real-time bolus-triggering acquisition of transient arterial phase features of liver lesions, with optimized arterial triggering expected to improve reproducibility in a significant number of patients. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2011;33:110–118. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
From teacher to manager : the role of the academic middle manager in secondary schools

Summary This paper examines the role of academic middle managers since the implementation of the Education Reform Act 1988, drawing on the perceptions of middle managers. The data were collected from a large‐scale postal survey of middle managers in secondary schools in three local authorities and from three case‐study schools. Middle managers have acknowledged the need for management tasks, including the monitoring of colleagues' teaching, to be a central part of their role. The departmental team was found to be the most influential part of the middle managers' role set in all areas of decision‐making, with the head‐teacher and senior management team the next most significant. Middle managers still give top priority to their teaching, which takes up a high proportion of the school day, but now acknowledge the need to monitor colleagues' work to ensure the implementation of school policy. Despite the acceptance of their new managerial role, it remains difficult for middle managers to fulfil the new expect...
Inter-Turn Fault Detection in PM Synchronous Machines by Physics-Based Back Electromotive Force Estimation

In this paper, the inter-turn short circuit fault detection in permanent magnet synchronous machines (PMSM) using an open-loop physics-based back electromotive force (EMF) estimator is presented. The back EMF estimator is designed based upon a current mode tracking scheme. The thermal and saturation aspects of the machine are considered in the design of the estimator. The design procedure and stability criteria of the estimator are presented in detail. The fault detection is carried out based on the difference between the estimated back EMF and a reference back EMF. A 0.8 (kW) PMSM is studied experimentally as well as numerically under different inter-turn fault and operational contingencies. The numerical modeling is accomplished by a finite-element-based model coupled with the thermal network and polluted with inter-turn fault. The acceptable agreement between the simulated and experimental result validates the modeling process. The back EMF estimator fault detection system is led to discriminative inter-turn fault signatures in a fraction of second for wide speed range even in the presence of harmonic loads and dynamic eccentricities.
Preconditioning of a secondary reinforcer

Using 40 Ss, an attempt was made to precondition a secondary reinforcer by pairing two lights during preconditioning, making the paired presentation of one of the lights and reinforcement contingent upon a button-pressing response during conditioning, and measuring the number of responses for presentation of the other light during extinction. Relative to controls, there was a preconditioning effect (p<.05) which was more pronounced when S was a dim light and the test stimulus a bright light (p =.025). The results suggest that the preconditioning effect is a more general phenomenon than previous research would indicate.
Selectively fortifying reconfigurable computing device to achieve higher error resilience

With the advent of 10 nm CMOS devices and "exotic" nanodevices, the location and occurrence time of hardware defects and design faults become increasingly unpredictable, therefore posing severe challenges to existing techniques for error-resilient computing because most of them statically assign hardware redundancy and do not account for the error tolerance inherently existing in many mission-critical applications. This work proposes a novel approach to selectively fortifying a target reconfigurable computing device in order to achieve hardware-efficient error resilience for a specific target application. We intend to demonstrate that such error resilience can be significantly improved with effective hardware support. The major contributions of this work include (1) the development of a complete methodology to performsensitivity and criticality analysis of hardware redundancy, (2) a novel problem formulation and an efficient heuristic methodology to selectively allocate hardware redundancy among a target design's key components in order to maximize its overall error resilience, and (3) an academic prototype of SFC computing device that illustrates a 4 times improvement of error resilience for a H.264 encoder implemented with an FPGA device.
Nonlinear excitation control of a synchronous generator with implicit terminal voltage regulation

The objective of this paper is to design nonlinear excitation controllers for single-machine infinite-bus power systems. Because of the nonlinear nature of such systems, nonlinear controllers are more effective in providing larger stability margins than their linear counterparts. To take advantage of well-developed linear control techniques, the concept of feedback linearization is used. A characterization of the region over which the linearizing state transformation is guaranteed to be diffeomorphic is provided. Also, a new formulation for the linear controller design is provided to solve the problem of the terminal voltage regulation. Simulation results of a single-machine infinite-bus power system indicate that in the presence of major disturbances the proposed controller outperforms existing linear and nonlinear controllers in maintaining the system's stability, in damping the rotor angle oscillations, and in reaching the desired performance during postfault operations.
Abstract 631: Role of thymidylate synthase in genomic instability and tumorigenesis.

Proceedings: AACR 104th Annual Meeting 2013; Apr 6-10, 2013; Washington, DC Thymidylate synthase (TS) is a well-established chemotherapy target frequently overexpressed in cancer. Multiple clinical studies demonstrated that high levels of TS correlate with the disease stage and resistance to fluoropyrimidine chemotherapy. Previous studies from our laboratory reassessed the paradigm of TS as a passive proliferation biomarker by providing evidence towards its tumor-promoting capabilities (Cancer Cell 2004; Oncogene 2007). We demonstrated that ectopic TS overexpression combined with loss of tumor suppressor genes significantly enhances the rate and severity of tumorigenesis; however the underlying mechanism of this process remained unclear. TS fuels DNA replication and repair through dTMP and folate biosynthesis. We hypothesized that TS overexpression could become a strong tumor-promoting force by inducing nucleotide imbalance that results in DNA misincorporation and damage. In this study, we analyze effects of TS overexpression in context of aberrant DNA repair and cell cycle misregulation by using Ink4/Arf−/- genetically engineered mouse model. We show that ectopic TS overexpression markedly enhances tumorigenesis in hTS/Ink4/Arf−/- mice compared to Ink4/Arf−/- control resulting in more aggressive tumors. HPLC analyses of mouse tumor-derived cell lines confirmed significant nucleotide imbalance and increase in dTMP, dTDP and dTTP levels in hTS/Ink4/Arf−/- mice compared to control. Analysis of chromosomal changes by spectral karyotyping demonstrated 4 to 5 fold increase in chromosomal aberrations and aneuploidy in hTS positive tumor cell lines. Chromosomal translocations were only found in hTS/Ink4/Arf−/- subtype, indicative of strand-break damage. We assessed extent of damage by Comet assay and yH2AX phosphorylation in mouse tumor cell lines and found increased DNA fragmentation and high yH2AX signal in hTS/Ink4/Arf−/- cells as opposed to Ink4/Arf−/- control. In summary, these studies demonstrate a novel capacity for TS to promote nucleotide imbalance, increase DNA susceptibility to damage and chromosomal aberrations, suggesting a new model where TS overexpression plays a role in the development of genomic instability and tumorigenesis. Citation Format: Lidia V. Kulemina, Min Chen, Kyungah Maeng, Akbar Nawab, Maria Zajac-Kaye. Role of thymidylate synthase in genomic instability and tumorigenesis. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 631. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-631
Perspectives of Public Health and Prevention

ABSTRACT The average life expectancy at birth of Americans has increased 30 years since the turn of the century and is mostly attributable to public health measures. Although death rates for cardiovascular diseases have declined in the past two decades, cardiovascular diseases still cause more deaths in the United States than all other causes combined. The major etiologies of heart disease, atherosclerosis and hypertension, are associated with modifiable risk factors—high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure, cigarette smoking, diet, and inactivity. Social status and access to medical care are also important contributors. Consequently, the greatest potential for reducing heart disease mortality and morbidity rests with prevention and public health practice. Recent directions in health-care reform emphasize fiscal management, medical care, and clinical medicine, and not general health. This emphasis exacerbates policy and financing imbalances between preventive and curative medicine. Consequently, the concept of a health system needs to be designed more rationally to allocate resources that include prevention and health promotion. The Bogalusa Heart Study provides understanding of the early origin of cardiovascular problems and the environmental and lifestyle factors that contribute to development of adult heart disease. To apply this information, public health models of intervention, like the school Health Ahead/Heart Smart program, are needed to address heart disease in the population. Changes in the true determinants of poor health, such as environmental factors and unhealthy behaviors, are the directions for prevention and future improvement in quality of life.
Stability monitoring and analysis of learning in an adaptive system

The ability to ensure reliable adaptation is important in safety-critical applications. Traditional software verification and validation techniques cannot account for the time-evolving nature of a system, making them inapplicable for adaptive computing system assurance. In this paper, we propose considering stability of adaptation as a heuristic measure of reliability. We present a stability monitoring technique that detects unstable learning behavior during online operation of adaptive systems. The stability monitoring relies upon Lyapunov-like functions that detect distinct states in learning that bifurcate away from stable behavior. Dempster-Shafer theory is used for combining stability estimates provided by the monitors into an easily interpretable stability belief function. The proposed analysis technique is evaluated using online learning experiments based on data generated by an actual adaptive flight control system. Results indicate that the stability monitoring successfully detects unstable learning conditions. Our approach is one of the first that can be used for the verification, validation and monitoring of adaptive computing applications.
Silver and its application as an antimicrobial agent

This review summarises patents published from 2001 to 2004 on the microcidal properties of silver-releasing materials for healthcare and medicine. The anti-inflammatory, re-epitheliasation and antihaemorrhagic properties of the silver-releasing materials are also disclosed. A biological evaluation of the anti-viral properties of silver tetra-silver tetra-oxide is discussed, but no biological data have been reported to support the claim that silver (I) has anti--viral prop-erties, as disclosed by most of the patents.
Medical Ethnomusicology: Wherein Lies Its Potential?

音楽と癒しの関連性は何世紀にもわたって存在し、また認められてきた。それらは、「音楽は野蛮な獣を鎮め、岩を和らげ、節くれ立った樫〔訳注：oak、樫その他の総称〕をたわめる」（The Healing Music Organization 2011）というCongreveの有名な一節にも明らかである。音楽療法、医学、医療人類学はおしなべて音楽と癒しの相互作用を研究するものだが、この共生的関係を文化的視点から研究する学問分野である医療民族音楽学は、近年発展を始めたばかりである。さらに、音楽の癒しの力は西洋医学・生理医学においてますます重要な役割を演じてきているが、医療民族音楽学という専門用語は、Michael Bakan（2009）の自閉症に関する研究が際立つことを除けば、非西欧的研究にほぼ限られているようだ。本稿では、医療民族音楽学が民族音楽学のより広い領域に関与していることについて考える。そして、いかに医療民族音楽学が、音楽と癒しに関する西欧の概念と実践に応用でき、またされるべきかを示すため、この領域の方法論的アプローチに関する問題について述べる。
Cirrhotic Fever in the 1990s: A Prospective Study with Clinical Implications

Fifty consecutive patients with fever and cirrhosis were prospectively studied to assess if cirrhotic fever was a true clinical entity and to determine its characteristics and outcome. In 20% (10) of the 50 patients, an identifiable source of fever or infection, was not documented (these patients were defined as having cirrhotic fever). The patients with cirrhotic fever were significantly less toxic, as indicated by lower temperature (P = .0001), tachycardia (P = .0005), and tachypnea (P = .05), but had fever for a longer duration (P = .009) than did patients with infectious fever. Patients with cirrhotic fever were significantly less likely to have focal signs or symptoms (P < .0001) or a portal of infection confirmed by culture (P = .0001), as compared with patients with infectious fever. Outcome (at 30-days or long-term) was not different for patients with cirrhotic fever vs.-patients with infectious fever or matched controls who did not have fever. Eight (80%) of the 10 patients with cirrhotic fever underwent transplantation; fever did not recur after transplantation in any of these patients. Thus, fever in up to 20% of the febrile patients with cirrhosis may be attributable to cirrhosis itself; such patients may be spared the ongoing diagnostic maneuvers and unnecessary trials of antibiotics.
Prosthetic vascular graft infection: a risk factor analysis using a case-control study.

Summary Objectives Several factors have been anecdotally reported to increase the risk of prosthetic vascular graft infection (PVGI), a serious complication with high mortality and limb amputation rates. The goal of this study is to confirm purported risk factors using a well-designed statistical model. Methods Patients undergoing vascular graft placement at Mayo Clinic Rochester between January 1, 1982 and December 31, 2002 were retrospectively evaluated, excluding redo cases. PVGI cases had to meet one of the following criteria: perigraft air or fluid >8 weeks postoperatively, positive Gram stain or cultures of graft or perigraft material, intraoperative gross purulence, failure of graft incorporation, or exposed graft. Each case had two controls matched for age, gender and date of surgery. Duration of follow-up for a given control had to be at least equal to the time to infection of the corresponding case. Demographic and other clinical data were collected for each patient. Results Fifty-one cases and 102 controls met the inclusion criteria. Median age was 68 years. Staphylococcal species were identified in 45% of the total number of cases, and 60% of cases with a recovered organism. Univariate analysis identified groin incision, wound complication and wound infection as significant risk factors for PVGI ( p Conclusions This is the first published risk factor analysis that includes statistical evaluation in a case–control study of PVGI. Groin incision, wound complication, and wound infection are significantly associated with developing PVGI. These findings will assist in identifying patients at increased risk of developing subsequent infection. Summary In order to confirm purported risk factors of prosthetic vascular graft infections (PVGI), a well designed case–control study was conducted at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN. Univariate and multivariate analyses of 51 cases and 102 controls identified three statistically significant risk factors for the development of PVGI: groin incision, wound complication, and wound infection.
Optical accumulator for signal processing

An optical fiber accumulator is designed and experimentally demonstrated for different accumulation rates. The design is based on an optical-fiber loop resonator. Excellent agreement between theory and experiment is obtained for 1.8 MHz sampling rate.
The Ontological Status of Consent and its Implications for the Law on Rape

One of the dominant themes of the symposium from which this collection of articles arose was the ontological status of consent. Is consent a particular state of mind? Is it the signification of that state of mind via a conventionally recognized act? Or, is consent a normative concept that evaluates not only the presence of a state of mind or act, but also the appropriateness of that state of mind or act in the particular circumstances?
Unresolved Issues in the Dimensionality of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) has achieved widespread use in organizational settings, despite the fact that research on its dimensionality has been scarce and that some studies have questioned the validity of its four-factor scoring system. Confirmatory factor analyses of 94 MBTI items (N = 1,091) were performed, the results of which provided qualified support for the four-factor model; the qualifications arose from the fact that model-fit indexes for even the best-fitting models were considerably below their maximum desirable values. In an attempt to identify areas in which model fit could be improved, exploratory factor analyses were also conducted; these analyses strongly supported a four-factor view of the MBTI and indicated several additional factor loadings that could be freed to improve model fit.
Rethinking Retransmission Policy In Concurrent Multipath Transfer

In this paper, We find that all of retransmission policy in CMT has some defects for reducing receive buffer blocking. In order to further alleviate some of the throughput degradation caused by rbuf blocking problem, the combination of Lossrate, Congestion window and Slow start threshould (LCS) to be taked into account. So, we present compound parameter Retransmission policy named RTX-LCS policy to further improve the goodput of infinite rbuf CMT association. We also discuss CMT performance using proposed policy and different constrained rbuf values. A demonstrate using simulation is provided showing how rbuf blocking is reduced and overall throughput of an rbuf-constrained CMT association could benefit from proposed policy.
The Insertional History of an Active Family of L1 Retrotransposons in Humans

As humans contain a currently active L1 (LINE-1) non-LTR retrotransposon family (Ta-1), the human genome database likely provides only a partial picture of Ta-1-generated diversity. We used a non-biased method to clone Ta-1 retrotransposon-containing loci from representatives of four ethnic populations. We obtained 277 distinct Ta-1 loci and identified an additional 67 loci in the human genome database. This collection represents approximately 90% of the Ta-1 population in the individuals examined and is thus more representative of the insertional history of Ta-1 than the human genome database, which lacked approximately 40% of our cloned Ta-1 elements. As both polymorphic and fixed Ta-1 elements are as abundant in the GC-poor genomic regions as in ancestral L1 elements, the enrichment of L1 elements in GC-poor areas is likely due to insertional bias rather than selection. Although the chromosomal distribution of Ta-1 inserts is generally a function of chromosomal length and gene density, chromosome 4 significantly deviates from this pattern and has been much more hospitable to Ta-1 insertions than any other chromosome. Also, the intra-chromosomal distribution of Ta-1 elements is not uniform. Ta-1 elements tend to cluster, and the maximal gaps between Ta-1 inserts are larger than would be expected from a model of uniform random insertion.
Very First Impressions

First impressions of people's personalities are often formed by using the visual appearance of their faces. Defining how quickly these impressions can be formed has critical implications for understanding social interactions and for determining the visual properties used to shape them. To study impression formation independent of emotional cues, threat judgments were made on faces with a neutral expression. Consequently, participants' judgments pertained to the personality rather than to a certain temporary emotional state (e.g., anger). The results demonstrate that consistent first impressions can be formed very quickly, based on whatever information is available within the first 39 ms. First impressions were less consistent under these conditions when the judgments were about intelligence, suggesting that survival-related traits are judged more quickly. The authors propose that low spatial frequencies mediate this swift formation of threat judgments and provide evidence that supports this hypothesis.
Serum Lipids in Breast-Fed Infants and in Infants Fed Evaporated Milk

R ECENT investigations into the role of the lipid components of diets fed human infants have revealed a paucity of data concerning serum lipid patterns in infants fed the foods most commonly used in the United Stateshuman milk and evaporated whole cow’s milk. The purpose of the present study is to document the lipid patterns in infants fed these two diets between birth and six months of age, including as many lipids and lipid-soluble substances as could be readily measured when these studies were begun in 1957. The infants in this study were selected after interviewing mothers in the last trimester of pregnancy in the prenatal clinic at Vanderbilt Hospital and choosing those either planning to nurse their infants or willing to use the evaporated milk provided. Premature infants and twins were excluded from the study as were all infants having any illness other than mild infection of the respiratory tract. The infants were seen regularly in the Well Baby Clinic and in all growth, development and state of health were within the limits of clinical normal.
Urinary stone risk factors in the siblings of patients with calcium renal stones.

Purpose: We determined which, if any, urinary stone risk factors accurately discriminate stone forming and nonstone forming siblings of patients with calcium renal stones.Materials and Methods: A total of 252 siblings of stone formers provided 2, 24-hour urine samples, which were sent overnight and analyzed at a central laboratory. Standard stone risk factors were measured and the supersaturation of calcium oxalate, calcium phosphate and uric acid was calculated.Results: Discriminant functions were derived for each gender by multivariate analysis. In stone forming sisters higher urinary calcium and pH discriminated with a success rate of 70%. In stone forming brothers higher urinary calcium, lower urinary potassium and older age discriminated with a success rate of 79%.Conclusions: Select urinary measurements as well as age classify siblings into those with and without stones with fair accuracy. Calcium excretion and urinary pH in females, and calcium excretion, urinary potassium and age in males are feas...
The Dynamics of Water Resources Management in AN Urban Environment

The traditional approach to water resources management for urban areas has been based on the examination of needs and the design of separate facilities for water supply, drainage, and waste water collection and treatment. The complexity and interaction among the separate systems required by a metropolitan area has complicated their management and promoted research interest in developing a methodology for better coordination. However, a more thorough evaluation of the problem reveals the real research need to be both more complicated and different in character than the problem in systems analysis suggested by the first superficial glance. Water management relates to the much broader problem of community design; when, where, and in what manner should new urban development take place. Furthermore, the character and needs of areas within the metropolis are constantly changing. The key distinctiveness of urban water management is the imperative for design and operation flexibility. The key research need is to develop new designs, operation procedures, and institutional arrangements to make the flexibility demanded by a dynamic urban community possible.
HLS: combining statistical and symbolic simulation to guide microprocessor designs

As microprocessors continue to evolve, many optimizations reach a point of diminishing returns. We introduce HLS, a hybrid processor simulator which uses statistical models and symbolic execution to evaluate design alternatives. This simulation methodology allows for quick and accurate contour maps to be generated of the performance space spanned by design parameters. We validate the accuracy of HLS through correlation with existing cycle-by-cycle simulation techniques and current generation hardware. We demonstrate the power of HLS by exploring design spaces defined by two parameters: code properties and value prediction. These examples motivate how HLS can be used to set design goals and individual component performance targets.Additionally, these traces are not as susceptible to transient behavior because they are restricted to frequently executed code. Empirical results show that on average this mechanism can achieve better instruction fetch rates using only 12KB of hardware than a trace cache requiring 15KB of hardware, while producing long, persistent traces more suited to optimization.
E2F1 Responds to Ultraviolet Radiation by Directly Stimulating DNA Repair and Suppressing Carcinogenesis

In response to DNA damage the E2F1 transcription factor is phosphorylated at serine 31 (serine 29 in mouse) by the ATM or ATR kinases, which promotes E2F1 protein stabilization. Phosphorylation of E2F1 also leads to the recruitment of E2F1 to sites of DNA damage where it functions to enhance DNA repair. To study the role of this E2F1 phosphorylation event in vivo, a knock-in mouse model was generated in which serine 29 was mutated to alanine. The S29A mutation impairs E2F1 stabilization in response to ultraviolet (UV) radiation and doxorubicin treatment but has little effect on the expression of E2F target genes. The apoptotic and proliferative responses to acute UV radiation exposure is also similar between wild type and E2F1S29A/S29A mice. As expected, the S29A mutation prevents E2F1 association with damaged DNA and reduces DNA repair efficiency. Moreover, E2f1S29A/S29A mice display increased sensitivity to UV-induced skin carcinogenesis. This knock-in mouse model thus links the ability of E2F1 to directly promote DNA repair with the suppression of tumor development.
Influence of steric bulk on the oxidative stability of phenolate-based magnesium-ion battery electrolytes

A compilation of electrolytes within the standard RPhOMgCl and AlCl3 in a THF electrolyte system with varying alkyl-based steric bulks about the phenol ring were prepared and cycled electrochemically. Most notably, 2,4,6-trimethylphenol-based solutions exhibited high conductivity (2.56 mS cm−1) and compatibility with the Chevrel-phase Mo6S8 intercalation cathode (over 200 h cycle time at C/10 current).