cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Proper ROC analysis and joint ROC analysis of the satisfaction of search effect in chest radiology.

Rationale and Objectives. The purpose of this study was to test whether the satisfaction of search (SOS) effect in chest radiology could be demonstrated with proper receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and with joint detection and localization ROC curves. Material and Methods. Data from an earlier ROC study of SOS in chest radiology were analyzed with three proper ROC models and one ROC model for joint detection and localization. Fits of the models were compared on the basis of likelihood-ratio chi-squared statistics (G2). To examine further the validity of the SOS effect in chest radiology, the authors also replicated the earlier study with a new sample of readers, analyzing the new data with the same methods. Results. The proper contaminated binormal model fit the data better than the other two proper ROC models. Contaminated binormal analysis of the earlier and the replication experiment demonstrated an SOS effect: a reduction in area under the ROC curve for detection of the native abnormalities with the addition of nodules. Similarly, joint ROC analysis producing curves that appropriately cross the chance line gave similar results. Conclusion. Preventing inappropriate chance line crossing reduces measurement error and provides more powerful statistical tests. Results of both experiments showed that the SOS effect in chest radiology can be demonstrated with ROC methods that avoid inappropriate crossing of the chance line.
Evaluating the role and integration of contract manufacturing strategy in supply chain management: an empirical study

Recently, the US manufacturers have been facing strong competition domestically and globally for cost reduction and product customisation. A key response to these competitive pressures is the outsourcing strategy. While sporadic case studies have investigated outsourcing's cost implication, empirical analyses examining outsourcing's financial and operational performance are lacking. This paper investigates the impacts of outsourcing in the US manufacturing sector and hypothesises that higher level of outsourcing will lead to higher performance. Using the US Economic Census as the data sources, the paper finds that outsourcing is positively associated with ROA and ROI but is negatively associated with product specialisation.
The Relative Effectiveness of Human Tutoring, Intelligent Tutoring Systems, and Other Tutoring Systems

This article is a review of experiments comparing the effectiveness of human tutoring, computer tutoring, and no tutoring. “No tutoring” refers to instruction that teaches the same content without tutoring. The computer tutoring systems were divided by their granularity of the user interface interaction into answer-based, step-based, and substep-based tutoring systems. Most intelligent tutoring systems have step-based or substep-based granularities of interaction, whereas most other tutoring systems (often called CAI, CBT, or CAL systems) have answer-based user interfaces. It is widely believed as the granularity of tutoring decreases, the effectiveness increases. In particular, when compared to No tutoring, the effect sizes of answer-based tutoring systems, intelligent tutoring systems, and adult human tutors are believed to be d = 0.3, 1.0, and 2.0 respectively. This review did not confirm these beliefs. Instead, it found that the effect size of human tutoring was much lower: d = 0.79. Moreover, the eff...
A Family of 32 nm IA Processors

Westmere is the latest IA processor family for mobile, desktop and server market segments, implemented on Intel's second-generation high-k metal gate 32 nm process. Westmere not only increases core count, cache size, and frequency within the previous generation's power envelope, it also provides further improvements in power efficiency, feature set, and support for combo DDR3 and low voltage DDR3 despite using a thin gate technology.
Modeling and Querying Scientific Workflow Provenance in the D-OPM

We present the D-OPM, a model that extends the Open Provenance Model (OPM) with workflow-specific aspects. In particular, our model captures aspects such as the workflow structure, traces, data structure, and workflow evolution. Thus, it enables scientists to obtain detailed information about the origin of data resulting from past experiments, as well as about the process itself and its possible future executions. A reference implementation of the D-OPM validates our model and opens the opportunity for interoperation with multiple workflow systems. Furthermore, to facilitate querying D-OPM data we introduce a querying mechanism based on regular path queries (RPQs) on provenance graphs. Our RPQs evaluator is built on a relational DBMS which makes it robust and extensible.
Glacial chronology of the Ruby Mountains-East Humboldt Range, Nevada

Abstract The Ruby Mountains-East Humboldt Range, one of the interior mountain groups of the Basin and Range Province, lies about midway between the Wasatch Mountains and the Sierra Nevada. After Blackwelder's description in his review of glaciation in the western mountains, Sharp mapped and named the deposits of the Lamoille and Angel Lake glaciations and correlated them with early and late Wisconsin deposits of the Great Lakes area. The refinement of relative dating (RD) methods, the availability of airphotos and modern topographic maps, and new road cuts have aided the restudy of these alpine glacial deposits and the basis for their correlation. Lamoille moraines are smooth ridges and show little detail of constructional topography. Valleys glaciated only by Lamoille ice still show the characteristics of a glaciated trough, but they have been greatly modified by weathering and erosion. Granite boulders on Lamoille moraines are pitted, and pegmatites have grotesque shapes with 30-cm-deep pits. Cuts through Lamoille end moraines (and alluvial talus cones) expose a thick soil profile with a well-developed blocky structure in a reddish-brown argillic B horizon. Subsurface granitic boulders in the B horizon of Lamoille tills show much greater weathering than do those in Angel Lake tills. In contrast, Angel Lake moraines are irregular and rugged, contain closed depressions, and have been little altered since deposition. Surfaces scoured by Angel Lake ice are fresh and unweathered. Granites of Angel Lake moraines have weathered surfaces but show little pitting; pegmatites have pits up to 10 cm deep. The thin soil profiles on Angel Lake tills and alluvial talus cones display brown colors, minor clay accumulation, and no B-horizon structure. These weathering and morphological differences suggest that the Lamoille deposits have been exposed to weathering and erosion for a period of time as much as an order of magnitude longer than the Angel Lake deposits. Thus only the Angel Lake is Wisconsinan in age, and the Lamoille drift is more reasonably correlated with the Illinoian Stage of the Great Lakes region.
Cosmetic results following primary radiation therapy for early breast cancer

In order to assess the cosmetic results of treatment, the results in 239 patients with early breast cancer treated by primary radiation treatment without adjuvant chemotherapy were reviewed. Four patients had bilateral cancers, making a total of 243 breasts available for analysis. Follow-up ranged from 24 to 78 months with a median of 33 months. The parameters measured were breast edema, retraction, telangiectasia, arm edema, and the overall cosmetic appearance. The cosmetic results declined over the first 3 years after treatment, but then stabilized. At 5 years, the overall cosmetic results were judged by physicians as excellent in 77%, good in 9%, fair in 9%, and poor in 5%. A fair or poor cosmetic result was highly correlated with the development of moderate or severe breast retraction. Telangiectasia was uncommonly the only cause of a fair or poor cosmetic result. Breast and arm edema were rarely noted to be significant, but were more common in patients who underwent axillary dissection. In 210 cases, a supplementary boost dose of radiation was delivered to the primary tumor area, and in 33 cases a boost was not used. This boost consisted of an interstitital iridium-192 implant in 204 cases and either high-energy photons or electrons in the remainder. At 4 years, no patient treated without a boost had a fair or poor result compared with 22% who received a boost (P = 0.13). The conclusion is that, in general, primary radiation treatment provides highly satisfactory cosmetic results for patients with early breast cancer.
Phospholipase C, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, and intracellular [Ca2+] mediate the activation of chicken HD11 macrophage cells by CpG oligodeoxynucleotide

The activation of phospholipases is one of the earliest key events in receptor-mediated cellular responses to a number of extracellular signaling molecules. Oligodeoxynucleotides containing CpG motifs (CpG ODN) mimic microbial DNA and are immunostimulatory to most vertebrate species. In the present study, we used the production of nitric oxide (NO) as an indicator to evaluate the involvement of the signaling cascades of phospholipases and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) in the activation of chicken HD11 macrophage cells by CpG ODN. Using selective inhibitors, we have identified the involvement of phosphatidylinositol (PI)-phospholipase C (PI-PLC), but not phosphatidylcholine (PC)-phospholipase C (PC-PLC) and PC-phospholipase D (PC-PLD), in CpG ODN-induced NO production in HD11 cells. Preincubation with PI-PLC selective inhibitors (U-73122) completely abrogated CpG ODN-induced NO production in HD11 cells, whereas PC-PLC inhibitor (D609) and PC-PLD inhibitor (n-butanol) had no inhibitory effects. Additionally, inhibition of PI3K and protein kinase C (PKC) with selective inhibitors and chelation of intracellular [Ca(2+)] also significantly attenuated NO production in CpG ODN-activated HD11 cells. Our results demonstrate that PI-PLC, PI3 K, PKC, and intracellular [Ca(2+)] are important components of the CpG ODN-induced signaling pathway that leads to the production of NO in avian macrophage cells.
Stimulation of Solute Loss from Radicles of Gossypium hirsutum L. by Chilling, Anaerobiosis, and Low pH

The loss of organic substances from cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) radicles is enhanced by chilling, low pH, or anaerobic conditions. Solute loss returns to a low level when the stimulus is removed, indicating no permanent injury to membranes. Loss of solute induced by chilling or anaerobiosis is reversed or prevented by calcium or magnesium. These cations did not reduce the solute loss resulting from low pH. The site of loss appears to be localized at or near the root tip. If the seedling cotyledons are removed, the loss is greatly reduced, indicating the need for a reserve pool of organic substances.
Sign-nonsingular skew-symmetric matrices

Abstract Sign-nonsingular skew-symmetric matrices are investigated. The concept of a nonsingular graph is introduced, and such graphs are related to pfaffian graphs. Considerable attention is devoted to properties of sign-nonsingular skew-symmetric matrices A = ( a ij ) for which there do not exist sign-nonsingular skew-symmetric matrices B = ( b ij ) of the same order with more nonzero entries and a ij = 0 whenever b ij = 0.
Magnetic field configurations associated with polarity intrusion in a solar active region. II: Linear hydromagnetic stability

The theoretical force-free magnetic fields in the first paper of this series, modeling magnetic configurations associated with polarity intrusion in active regions, are established to be all stable to linear ideal hydromagnetic perturbations under the boundary condition that anchors the lines of force rigidly to the photosphere. It is shown first that these force-free fields belong to an even larger class found by Chang and Carovillano (1981). A proof by the energy principle is then given to establish that all force-free magnetic fields in the larger class are absolutely stable. The physical implications of this result are discussed.
A B2 Repeat Insertion Generates Alternate Structures of the Mouse Muscle γ-Phosphorylase Kinase Gene

Abstract A variety of cDNA and genomic clones for the γ-subunit of mouse muscle phosphorylase kinase (Phk-γM) have been isolated and characterized. The murine gene for Phk-γM (Phkg) exhibits multiple transcription start sites that are identical in skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, and brain. The gene is composed of 10 exons and includes a 4.9-kb intron located in the 5′ untranslated region. Two mRNA species of 1.75 and 2.55 kb are produced from Phkg in ICR and C57BL/10 mice; these transcripts are colinear throughout the coding region and differ only in the length of the 3′ untranslated region. We have mapped the polyadenylation site of the 1.75-kb mRNA to the middle of exon 10; the 2.55-kb mRNA terminates further 3′ at the end of a mouse B2 repeat. In Balb/C mice an additional B2 insertion and related genomic rearrangements alter the sequence of Phkg exon 10 and are accompanied by an increase in the quantity of the 1.75-kb transcript and a decrease in the abundance and size of the longer transcript, from 2.55 to 2.35 kb. A PCR assay for sequences contained in exon 10 reveals that the Balb/C 3′ gene structure is shared by Mus musculus castaneus and Mus musculus molossinus; the C57BL/10 gene structure is shared by Mus spretus, Mus domesticus, and several strains of laboratory mice. These results suggest that Phkg in Balb/C mice was derived from M. m. molossinus and that Phkg of the other examined laboratory strains was derived from M. domesticus.
Outcomes and problems in pediatric pulmonary rehabilitation.

Objective : To provide baseline information on the state of pediatric pulmonary rehabilitation, including data regarding diagnosis, age, gender, race, gestational age, disposition, medications, complications, procedures, consultations, pulmonary status, and outcomes. Design : Retrospective review. Setting : Pediatric pulmonary rehabilitation unit of a pediatric rehabilitation hospital that is free-standing, but that receives most of its referrals from a tertiary care pediatric hospital. Patients : All patients (70 subjects) who had completed a course of inpatient rehabilitation over the 5-yr life of the hospital. Main Outcome Measures : Descriptive data were collected in regard to the objectives. In addition, outcome measures were developed for this study. They include measurements of developmental equivalence at admission and discharge and the changes in these scores, both actual and expected. Results : Descriptive characteristics are listed in the text. Forty-six patients had bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). The success rate of weaning those with BPD who were admitted with a goal of ventilator weaning was 81% (24% for those without BPD). On admission, 36 of those with BPD required three pulmonary aids (O 2 , continuous positive airway pressure, ventilator, and tracheostomy) ; at discharge, 28 required three aids. Of those without BPD, 16 required three aids at admission and 14 did so at discharge. Conclusions : Basic descriptive data are provided. The characteristics are similar to those in previous studies, although with a larger sample size and more detail. The outcome measures described cannot be compared with a criterion standard, but do offer a starting point in this underdeveloped field and will assist in future research directions.
E-cadherin Immunohistochemical Expression as a Prognostic Factor in Infiltrating Ductal Carcinoma of the Breast: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Purpose Multiple studies examining the relationship between loss of E-cadherin expression, a pivotal event for evolving metastatic behavior among epithelially derived cancers, and 5-year survival in infiltrating ductal breast carcinoma have yielded inconclusive and contradictory results.
Evaluation of the pharmacokinetics and safety of bosutinib in patients with chronic hepatic impairment and matched healthy subjects.

Bosutinib, a dual Src/Abl kinase inhibitor in development for treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia, is primarily metabolized by the CYP3A4 hepatic enzyme. This study evaluated the pharmacokinetics and safety of bosutinib in patients with chronic hepatic impairment and matched healthy subjects. Hepatically impaired patients were aged 18–65 years and of Child-Pugh classes A, B, or C; healthy subjects were matched by age, sex, body mass index, and smoking habits. A single oral dose of bosutinib 200 mg was administered on day 1 within 5 min after completion of breakfast. Compared with healthy subjects (n = 9), maximal plasma concentration (C max) and area under the curve increased 2.42-fold and 2.25-fold in Child-Pugh A (n = 6), 1.99-fold and 2.0-fold in Child-Pugh B (n = 6), and 1.52-fold and 1.91-fold in Child-Pugh C patients (n = 6). Time to C max decreased from 4 h in healthy subjects to 2.5, 2.0, and 1.5 h in Child-Pugh A, B, and C patients, respectively; the elimination half-life increased from 55 h in healthy subjects to 86, 113, and 111 h in Child-Pugh A, B, and C patients. Bosutinib oral clearance was lower in hepatically impaired patients compared with healthy subjects. Frequently reported adverse events included prolonged QTc interval (37.0 %, n = 10), nausea (11.1 %, n = 3), and vomiting (7.4 %, n = 2). A single oral dose of bosutinib 200 mg showed acceptable tolerability in healthy subjects and in patients with mild, moderate, or severe chronic hepatic impairment.
Efficient retrieval for browsing large image databases

The management of large image databases poses several interesting and challenging problems. These problems range from ingesting the data and extracting meta-data to the efficient storage and retrieval of the data. Of particular interest are the retrieval methods and user interactions with an image database during browsing. In image databases, the response to a given query is not an exact well-defined set, rather, the user poses a query and expects a set of responses that should contain many possible candidates from which the user chooses the answer set. We first present the browsing model in Alexandria, a digital library for maps and satellite images. Designed for content-based retrieval, the relevant information in an image is encoded in the form of a multi-% dimensional feature vector. Various techniques have been previously proposed for the efficient retrieval of such vectors by reducing the dimensionality of such vectors. We show that for even moderately large databases (in fact, only 1856 texture images), these approaches do not scale well for exact retrieval. However, as a browsing tool, these dimensionality reduction techniques hold much promise.
A comparison of murine T-cell-depleted adult bone marrow and full-term fetal blood cells in hematopoietic engraftment and immune reconstitution.

Umbilical cord blood has been increasingly used as a source of hematopoietic stem cells. A major area of concern for the use of cord blood transplantation is the delay in myeloid and lymphoid recovery. To directly compare myeloid and lymphoid recovery using an animal model of bone marrow and cord blood as sources of stem cells, hematopoietic engraftment and immune recovery were studied following infusion of T-cell–depleted adult bone marrow or full-term fetal blood cells, as a model of cord blood in a murine allogeneic transplantation model (C57BL/6 [H-2b] → BALB/c [H-2d]). Allogeneic full-term fetal blood has poorer radioprotective capacity but greater long-term engraftment potential on a cell-to-cell basis compared with T-cell–depleted bone marrow. Allogeneic full-term fetal blood recipients had decreased absolute numbers of T, B, and dendritic cells compared with bone marrow recipients. Splenic T cells in allogeneic full-term fetal blood recipients proliferated poorly, were unable to generate cytotoxic effectors against third-party alloantigens in vitro, and failed to generate alloantigen-specific cytotoxic antibodies in vivo. In addition, reconstituting T cells in fetal blood recipients had decreased mouse T-cell receptorδ single-joint excision circles compared with bone marrow recipients. At a per-cell level, B cells from fetal blood recipients did not proliferate as well as those found in bone marrow recipients. These results suggest that full-term fetal blood can engraft allogeneic hosts across the major histocompatibility barrier with slower hematopoietic engraftment and impaired immune reconstitution.
RNA-Seq Atlas of Glycine max: a guide to the soybean transcriptome.

Next generation sequencing is transforming our understanding of transcriptomes. It can determine the expression level of transcripts with a dynamic range of over six orders of magnitude from multiple tissues, developmental stages or conditions. Patterns of gene expression provide insight into functions of genes with unknown annotation. The RNA Seq-Atlas presented here provides a record of high-resolution gene expression in a set of fourteen diverse tissues. Hierarchical clustering of transcriptional profiles for these tissues suggests three clades with similar profiles: aerial, underground and seed tissues. We also investigate the relationship between gene structure and gene expression and find a correlation between gene length and expression. Additionally, we find dramatic tissue-specific gene expression of both the most highly-expressed genes and the genes specific to legumes in seed development and nodule tissues. Analysis of the gene expression profiles of over 2,000 genes with preferential gene expression in seed suggests there are more than 177 genes with functional roles that are involved in the economically important seed filling process. Finally, the Seq-atlas also provides a means of evaluating existing gene model annotations for the Glycine max genome. This RNA-Seq atlas extends the analyses of previous gene expression atlases performed using Affymetrix GeneChip technology and provides an example of new methods to accommodate the increase in transcriptome data obtained from next generation sequencing. Data contained within this RNA-Seq atlas of Glycine max can be explored at http://www.soybase.org/soyseq .
Guilty bystanders? On the legitimacy of duty to rescue statutes

L'A. etudie la legitimite morale des reglements concernant le devoir de porter assistance a une personne en danger, et denonce la strategie causaliste qui consiste a nier la responsabilite criminelle des homicides par omission au nom d'une distinction entre causer et laisser faire un tort
The NYU Ada translator and interpreter

The NYU-Ada project is engaged in the design and implementation of a translator-interpreter for the Ada language. The objectives of this project are twofold: a) to provide an executable semantic model for the full Ada language, that can be used for teaching, and serve as a starting point for the design of an efficient Ada compiler; b) to serve as a testing ground for the software methodology that has emerged from our experience with the very-high level language SETL. In accordance with these objectives, the NYU-Ada system is written in a particularly high-level, abstract SETL style that emphasizes clarity of design and user interface over speed and efficiency. A number of unusual design features of the translator and interpreter follow from this emphasis. Some of these features are described below. We also discuss the question of semantic specification of programming languages, and the general methodology of "Software Prototyping" of which the NYU-Ada system is a sizeable example.
Neuronal lipidosis and neuroaxonal dystrophy in cerebro-hepato-renal (Zellweger) syndrome.

Neuropathological examination of three males with cerebro-hepato-renal (Zellweger) syndrome (CHRS) revealed selective neuronal lipidosis and neuroaxonal dystrophy of the dorsal nucleus of Clarke and lateral cuneate nucleus. This lipidotic alteration was visualized as perikaryal or axonal enlargements with cytoplasmic striations. With the light microscope, the striated material was birefringent and resistant to traditional lipid stains; ultrastructurally, it was composed of lipid clefts, lamellae and lamellar-lipid profiles; biochemically, the affected region contained large amounts of cholesterol esterified to very long-chain fatty acids, both saturated and mounounsaturated. This metabolic lesion, though localized to specific sensory neurons, suggests that a more generalized defect in neuronal fatty acid metabolism may be operative in CHRS.
Phospholipid biosynthesis and secretion by a cell line (A549) which resembles type II alveolar epithelial cells

The A549 cell line is a continuous cell line derived from a human adenocarcinoma of the lung. At low cell population density the cells contain relatively few lamellar bodies, but in mature cells in very confluent cultures lamellar bodies are abundant. The lamellar bodies from these cells are enriched for phosphatidylcholine and disaturated phosphatidylcholine. In mature cells, 45% of newly synthesized phosphatidylcholine is disaturated. Stimulation with the calcium ionophore A23187 produces exocytosis of phosphatidylcholine (46% disaturated). The A549 cell synthesizes, stores in lamellar bodies, and secretes phosphatidylcholine, and thus has many important biological properties of the alveolar epithelial type II cell.
Perturbation analysis of Raman echo

A time-dependent perturbational approach is used to study the Raman echo generated by an inhomogeneous ensemble of three-level atomic systems in the Λ configuration. The sixth-order perturbative solution for coherence between the two lower states contains eight echo terms that are visualized with double Feynman diagrams. The echo is interpreted as a response of the ensemble to six short single-frequency optical pulses whose timing satisfies a special condition. Nonperturbative numerical simulation confirms the predictions of the perturbation analysis about the main characteristics of the echo. When the excitation pulses vary adiabatically with respect to fast optical coherence decay the echo amplitude depends on interference of the eight terms. A computational scheme developed for the higher-order perturbative analysis is also discussed.
Sleep Disturbances as the Hallmark of PTSD: Where Are We Now?

The hypothesis that rapid eye movement (REM) sleep disturbances are the hallmark of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), proposed by Ross and colleagues in 1989, has stimulated a wealth of clinical, preclinical, and animal studies on the role of sleep in the pathophysiology of PTSD. The present review revisits this influential hypothesis in light of clinical and experimental findings that have since accumulated. Polysomnographic studies conducted in adults with PTSD have yielded mixed findings regarding REM sleep disturbances, and they generally suggest modest and nonspecific sleep disruptions. Prospective and treatment studies have provided more robust evidence for the relationship between sleep disturbances and psychiatric outcomes and symptoms. Experimental animal and human studies that have probed the relationship between REM sleep and fear responses, as well as studies focused more broadly on sleep-dependent affective and memory processes, also provide strong support for the hypothesis that sleep pl...
Route Choice Modeling Using GPS-Based Travel Surveys

The extensive use of GPS-based travel surveys in the past few years now allows vehicle movements to be traced and, thus, data on the actual routes chosen for various trips to be collected. However, efforts on the empirical modeling of route choices through the use of GPS traces are still limited. In this context, the broad focus of this research was to combine data from a large-scale GPS-based travel survey and geographic information system-based roadway network databases to develop models for route choice. Data from GPS streams for 1,913 trips were used in this analysis. Three models that considered choice set sizes of five, 10, and 15 alternatives were built. The estimation results indicated statistically significant and intuitively reasonable effects of free-flow travel time, left turns, right turns, intersections, and circuity on the attractiveness of different route alternatives. Furthermore, the sensitivity to these factors was found to vary on the basis of trip (purpose, time of day, and day of the...
Synthesis and reactivity of a stable crystalline diastereomerically pure trifluoromethanesulfinic acid derivative: (S)-(−)-1-trifluoromethylsulfinyl-(R)-4-phenyloxazolidin-2-one

Efficient synthesis of the title compound, the first diastereomerically pure trifluoromethanesulfinic acid derivative (8), has been achieved by direct trifluoromethanesulfinylation of the lithiated (4R)-(−)-4-phenyloxazolidin-2-one; in contrast to the reaction between CF3S(O)Cl and (1R,2S,5R)-(−)-menthol which occurs with low stereoselectivity ( 98% de.
Onset of convection over a transient base-state in anisotropic and layered porous media

The topic of density-driven convection in porous media has been the focus of many recent studies due to its relevance as a long-term trapping mechanism during geological sequestration of carbon dioxide. Most of these studies have addressed the problem in homogeneous and anisotropic permeability fields using linear-stability analysis, and relatively little attention has been paid to the analysis for heterogeneous systems. Previous investigators have reduced the governing equations to an initial-value problem and have analysed it either with a quasi-steady-state approximation model or using numerical integration with arbitrary initial perturbations. Recently, Rapaka et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 609, 2008, pp. 285–303) used the idea of non-modal stability analysis to compute the maximum amplification of perturbations in this system, optimized over the entire space of initial perturbations. This technique is a mathematically rigorous extension of the traditional normal-mode analysis to non-normal and time-dependent problems. In this work, we extend this analysis to the important cases of anisotropic and layered porous media with a permeability variation in the vertical direction. The governing equations are linearized and reduced to a set of coupled ordinary differential equations of the initial-value type using the Galerkin technique. Non-modal stability analysis is used to compute the maximum growth of perturbations along with the optimal wavenumber leading to this growth. We show that unlike the solution of the initial-value problem, results obtained using non-modal analysis are insensitive to the choice of bottom boundary condition. For the anisotropic problem, the dependence of critical time and wavenumber on the anisotropy ratio was found to be in good agreement with theoretical scalings proposed by Ennis-King et al. (Phys. Fluids, vol. 17, 2005, paper no. 084107). For heterogeneous systems, we show that uncertainty in the permeability field at low wavenumbers can influence the growth of perturbations. We use a Monte Carlo approach to compute the mean and standard deviation of the critical time for a sample permeability field. The results from theory are also compared with finite-volume simulations of the governing equations using fully heterogeneous porous media with strong layering. We show that the results from non-modal stability analysis match extremely well with those obtained from the simulations as long as the assumption of strong layering remains valid.
Cardiorenal actions of a novel chimeric natriuretic peptide, CD-NP, as compared to C-type natriuretic peptide, in the normal dog

Background The novel chimeric natriuretic peptide, CD-NP, is a Mayodesigned cGMP-activating synthetic peptide that consists of the 22-amino-acid (AA) residues of C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) and the 15-AA C-terminal extension of Dendroaspis natriuretic peptide (DNP) [1]. The rationale for the design of CD-NP was to transform CNP, which activates natriuretic peptide receptor-B (NPR-B) and is natriuretic, diuretic and less hypotensive than ANP and BNP which activate NPR-A into a CNP-like peptide with added renal actions. The goal of this investigation was to directly compare the cardiorenal profile of CD-NP to that of CNP.
Development of Adjustment and Scaling Factors for Measured Suspended Solids Removal Performance of Stormwater Hydrodynamic Treatment Devices

Suspended solids removal performance of a manufactured stormwater treatment device varies greatly with operating conditions and laboratory or field evaluation techniques. Laboratory testing and field monitoring protocols have been established to evaluate the performance (removal efficiency or effluent concentration) of manufactured stormwater treatment devices and other structural BMPs. However, deviations from the recommended evaluation conditions and techniques are expected and may lead to a significant difference in the measured performances. Range of the parameters/variables specified within the protocol itself may also have a significant effect on the measured performances. Potential effects of six variables are discussed in this paper: TSS vs. SSC methods, operating flow rate, size of the treatment unit, size and density of solid particles in the influent, solids concentration/loading in the influent, and initial volume of solids at bottom of the treatment unit. It is recommended that appropriate adjustment and scaling factors be developed to support certification of performance claims and to appropriately design the stormwater treatment system.
Post‐Radiation Malignant Fibrous Histiocytoma Following Treatment of Eruptive Squamous Cell Carcinoma In‐Situ in an African American Male

A 32-year-old African American male presented with a five year history of multiple verrucous plaques in a Blaschkoid arrangement on the left leg. Biopsies demonstrated squamous cell carcinoma in-situ. The patient’s medical history did not reveal any heritable or exposure related risk factors. The patient was treated with radiotherapy. Four years later, he presented with a subcutaneous nodule within a prior site of radiation. MRI showed a 2.0 × 1.2 cm enhancing nodule in the subcutis. On biopsy, an ill-defined spindle cell proliferation was present in the dermis and subcutis. Marked nuclear pleomorphism and numerous multinucleated cells embedded in a myxoid stroma were noted. Spindle cells stained for CD68. Cytokeratin and S-100 were negative. A diagnosis of Malignant Fibrous Histiocytoma was rendered. Surgical excision was undertaken. A dominant lesion of MFH was identified, as well as multiple, clinically undetectable foci of early sarcoma. This is an unusual case of multifocal post-radiation sarcoma in an African American patient with squamous cell carcinoma in-situ. While sarcoma is a known risk factor following radiotherapy, the course of this patient would suggest caution in applying radiation in similar clinical settings, as well as long-term clinical follow-up for early detection and treatment of post-radiation sarcoma.
B cell activation in multiple sclerosis.

— A microtechnique was established for the study of the limited numbers of cells available in CSF. The method allowed for the determination of the number of immunoglobulin-secreting cells (IgSC) as well as the quantitation of immunoglobulin or specific antibody secreted into the culture medium. Dose-response curves and kinetic profiles for the IgSC responses induced by pokeweed mitogen (PWM), a polyclonal B cell activator, were similar for CSF cells (CSFC) and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). When equal numbers of unstimulated CSFC and PBMC from patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) were cultured, both the number of IgSC and the amount of secreted IgG were significantly greater in CSFC cultures. The addition of PWM resulted in the differentiation of B cells among both CSFC and PBMC, as shown by an increase of both the number of IgSC and the amount of secreted IgG. Results with cultures of unstimulated cell suspensions from MS patients suggested that CSF cells from these patients may be activated in vivo. The addition of mitomycin-C treated autologous peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCM) to cultures of small numbers of CSFC or PBMC resulted in an augmentation of the number of IgSC in both, whether or not they were stimulated with PWM, and also in an increased secretion of IgG into the culture supernatants. This culture system should prove useful in functional studies when limited numbers of cells are available.
Theoretical Estimates of Vibrational Relaxation in Nitrogen up to 40,000 K

Vibrational relaxation of N 2 molecules is considered at temperatures up to 40,000 K in gas mixtures contain electrons as well as heavy collision partners. The theory of vibrational excitation due to N 2 -N 2 collisions is fit to experimental data to 10,000 K by choice of the shape of the intermolecular potential and size of the collision cross section. These values are then used to extrapolate the theory to 40,000 K. Electron collisions promote vibrations transitions much more readily than the heavy particle collisions; and equilibration of vibrational temperature with the electron temperature occurs almost instantaneously for many practical purposes
Apoptin Nucleocytoplasmic Shuttling Is Required for Cell Type-Specific Localization, Apoptosis, and Recruitment of the Anaphase-Promoting Complex/Cyclosome to PML Bodies

The chicken anemia virus protein Apoptin selectively induces apoptosis in transformed cells while leaving normal cells intact. This selectivity is thought to be largely due to cell type-specific localization: Apoptin is cytoplasmic in primary cells and nuclear in transformed cells. The basis of Apoptin cell type-specific localization and activity remains to be determined. Here we show that Apoptin is a nucleocytoplasmic shuttling protein whose localization is mediated by an N-terminal nuclear export signal (NES) and a C-terminal nuclear localization signal (NLS). Both signals are required for cell type-specific localization, since Apoptin fragments containing either the NES or the NLS fail to differentially localize in transformed and primary cells. Significantly, cell type-specific localization can be conferred in trans by coexpression of the two separate fragments, which interact through an Apoptin multimerization domain. We have previously shown that Apoptin interacts with the APC1 subunit of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C), resulting in G2/M cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in transformed cells. We found that the nucleocytoplasmic shuttling activity is critical for efficient APC1 association and induction of apoptosis in transformed cells. Interestingly, both Apoptin multimerization and APC1 interaction are mediated by domains that overlap with the NES and NLS sequences, respectively. Apoptin expression in transformed cells induces the formation of PML nuclear bodies and recruits APC/C to these subnuclear structures. Our results reveal a mechanism for the selective killing of transformed cells by Apoptin.
Simplified Distributed Authoring Via Component-based Object Construction and Deconstruction in Collaborative Croquet Spaces

We introduce a component architecture in support of a simplified approached to distributed authorship of functional content and user interface elements within Croquet-based 3D spaces. Known as "Brie," the approach is designed to take advantage of social opportunities afforded by Croquet?s collaborative architecture by greatly simplifying content creation through an intuitive and highly flexible user interface approach. By reducing the technical demands of authoring functional content in Croquet-based multiuser environments, we hope to facilitate expansion of the potential community of content developers to include graphic designers and technically na?ve users. The Brie component-based approach addresses this in two ways: 1) it establishes a fundamentally new way for users to construct new objects and behaviors de novo, and 2) it establishes a way for users to easily deconstruct and recombine objects and behaviors received from other users, discovered through a search mechanism, or encountered as objects within existing Croquet spaces.
The Open Reference Case A Reference Use Case for the SLA@SOI Framework

The Open Reference Case (ORC) is a Software as a Service (SaaS) solution supporting the sales process in supermarkets. Within the European research project SLA@SOI, the ORC is used as an open source demonstrator to highlight features offered by the SLA management framework. As per the vision of SLA@SOI, the ORC runs on a virtualised infrastructure operated by an infrastructure provider. The ORC also allows for the inclusion of services offered by external service providers, such as banks. Such external providers are used in this scenario to highlight the process of negotiating SLAs between the ORC and an external provider. More generally, the interactions defined in the ORC scenario cover the SLA negotiation phase as well as the automated provisioning of software and monitoring of SLA violations.
Impact of Stress Mode on Stochastic BTI in Scaled MG/HK CMOS Devices

Stochastic bias temperature instability (BTI) modeling has gained importance for scaled metal gate/high- k CMOS devices to ensure SRAM circuit functionality. In this letter, we discuss the impact of the BTI stress mode on the ΔVT distribution and the time evolution of VT in small and large area CMOS devices. It is shown that the stress mode has strong impact on the evolution of the threshold voltage distribution in small area devices leading to an increase in the σ-value for constant overdrive stress, whereas no change is observed for constant voltage stress. Since CMOS circuits share the supply voltage, the constant voltage stress σ-values are relevant and thus, the reliability guidance for future CMOS design should be based on constant voltage stress.
Structure and tectonics of the northern Sierra Nevada

Recent detailed mapping suggests a new working hypothesis for the structure of the northern Sierra Nevada. We propose that pre-Cretaceous rocks are deformed by a series of eastward-directed over-thrusts modified by west-directed folds and faults. The highest and westernmost tectonic unit is the Jurassic Smartville complex. Structurally below it, there are imbricate thrust slices of Jurassic and older ophiolitic and oceanic sedimentary rocks in the Central belt and of Paleozoic to Jurassic sedimentary and volcanic rocks in the Eastern belt. The Paleozoic Feather River peridotite separates the Eastern and Central belts, and our hypothesis suggests that both of its margins may be important thrust faults. The east-directed faults and folds are deformed by northwest-trending, upright, and west-vergent folds and reverse faults that control the present outcrop pattern. These later structures have so modified the earlier east-directed structures that the latter have been recognized only recently. An important key to understanding the structure has been the recognition of ophiolitic complexes that can be correlated across major faults and that contain a pseudostratigraphy useful in determining local structures. The events recorded by both the east- and west-directed deformations occurred during Callovian through Kimmeridgian time and represent the Nevadan Orogeny. Our hypothesis of early east-directed overthrusts followed by west-directed back folding and faulting implies shortening and thickening of the crust during the Nevadan Orogeny and is consistent with the idea that the northern Sierra Nevada is the result of a crustal collisional process.
The kappa statistic: a second look

In recent years, the kappa coefficient of agreement has become the de facto standard for evaluating intercoder agreement for tagging tasks. In this squib, we highlight issues that affect κ and that the community has largely neglected. First, we discuss the assumptions underlying different computations of the expected agreement component of κ. Second, we discuss how prevalence and bias affect the κ measure.
A systematic review of advanced practice nurses' skin cancer assessment barriers, skin lesion recognition skills, and skin cancer training activities.

Purpose: Little is known about the skin cancer detection skills of advanced practice nurses (APNs). This systematic review of published literature seeks to describe (a) barriers to APNs’ performance of skin examination, (b) APNs’ ability to recognize suspicious skin lesions, and (c) APNs’ skin cancer detection training activities. Data sources: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement guided the literature search (OVID Medline, Web of Science, and CINAHL databases) and interpretation of findings. Of the 136 articles meeting criteria for selection, 12 pertaining to the purpose were selected for further review. Conclusions: Barriers to skin examination by APNs have been infrequently and inconsistently measured. Limited time to conduct skin examination is the most consistent barrier. APNs’ ability to recognize and refer suspicious and benign lesions is inconsistent, but shows improvement after training. Few skin cancer training programs are available for APNs. Implications: Larger and more rigorously designed studies are needed to better determine APNs’ barriers and facilitators to skin cancer assessment and their ability to recognize and appropriately refer potentially malignant skin lesions with a high level of sensitivity and specificity. Training to increase these skills needs to be targeted to APNs and occur at a much higher volume than current efforts.
Negative piezoresistivity in continuous carbon fiber epoxy-matrix composite

The negative and positive piezoresistivity in continuous carbon fiber epoxy-matrix composite has been clarified. The negative piezoresistivity associated with the increase of the through-thickness resistivity upon longitudinal tension and decrease in the through-thickness resistivity upon longitudinal compression is practically attractive for strain sensing and is attributed to the decrease in the degree of contact between fibers of adjacent laminae upon longitudinal tension. This effect is stronger, more reversible and less prone to causing minor damage for the tension case than the compression case. The positive piezoresistivity associated with the longitudinal resistivity increasing upon longitudinal tension is negligibly weak, if any, independent of the number of laminae. The previously reported negative piezoresistivity associated with the longitudinal resistivity decreasing upon longitudinal tension does not occur for a commercially manufactured composite in which the fibers are well aligned.