cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Polypyrrole@polyHIPE Composites for Hexavalent Chromium Removal from Water

In the present study, polymerized high internal phase emulsions, known as polyHIPEs, are used as a template for the synthesis of polypyrrole (PPy) monolithic composites. The unique properties of po...
The Trouble with Conceptions of Giftedness

In this chapter, I argue that conceptions of giftedness are problematic in that they derive from what Dai and Chen have identified as “the gifted-child paradigm,” which has dominated the thinking of scholars and practitioners in gifted education since the field’s advent. However, I believe that the gifted-child paradigm encompasses beliefs that are untenable and that have rendered the field nugatory.
Aortic pulsatility index predicts clinical outcomes in heart failure: a sub-analysis of the ESCAPE trial.

AIMS Aortic pulsatility index (API), calculated as (systolic-diastolic blood pressure)/pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP), is a novel haemodynamic measurement representing both cardiac filling pressures and contractility. We hypothesized that API would better predict clinical outcomes than traditional haemodynamic metrics of cardiac function. METHODS AND RESULTS The Evaluation Study of Congestive Heart Failure and Pulmonary Artery Catheterization Effectiveness (ESCAPE) trial individual-level data were used. Routine haemodynamic measurements, including Fick cardiac index (CI), and the advanced haemodynamic metrics of API, cardiac power output (CPO), and pulmonary artery pulsatility index (PAPI) were calculated after final haemodynamic-monitored optimization. The primary outcome was a composite endpoint of death or need for orthotopic heart transplant (OHT) or left ventricular assist device (LVAD) at 6 months. A total of 433 participants were enrolled in the ESCAPE trial of which 145 had final haemodynamic data. Final API measurements predicted the primary outcome, OR 0.47 (95% CI 0.32-0.70, P < 0.001), while CI, CPO, and PAPI did not. Receiver operator characteristic analyses of final advanced haemodynamic measurements indicated API best predicted the primary outcome with a cutoff of 2.9 (sensitivity 76.2%, specificity 55.3%, correctly classified 61.4%, area-under-the-curve 0.71), compared with CPO, CI, and PAPI. Kaplan-Meier analyses indicated API ≥ 2.9 was associated with greater freedom from the primary outcome (83.5%), compared with API < 2.9 (58.4%), P = 0.001. While PAPI was also significantly associated, CI and CPO were not. CONCLUSIONS The novel haemodynamic measurement API better predicted clinical outcomes in the ESCAPE trial when compared with traditional invasive haemodynamic metrics of cardiac function.
Mental health indicators and lung function following a large oil spill

Natural and anthropogenic disaster-related experiences can exacerbate background stressors, which may lead to negative mental health outcomes [1]. However, few studies have assessed mental health indicators related to measured lung function in the aftermath of a disaster. In 2010 the Deepwater Horizon ( DWH ) disaster resulted in the largest maritime oil spill in US history and negatively affected proximal communities, which experienced increased distress and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-like symptoms attributed to the disaster [2, 3]. We investigated the relationship between mental health indicators and lung function following this disaster. Footnotes This manuscript has recently been accepted for publication in the European Respiratory Journal . It is published here in its accepted form prior to copyediting and typesetting by our production team. After these production processes are complete and the authors have approved the resulting proofs, the article will move to the latest issue of the ERJ online. Please open or download the PDF to view this article. Conflict of interest: Dr. Lawrence has nothing to disclose. Conflict of interest: Dr. Werder has nothing to disclose. Conflict of interest: Dr. Kwok has nothing to disclose. Conflict of interest: Dr. Engel has nothing to disclose. Conflict of interest: Dr. Sandler has nothing to disclose.
American Criminal Justice Policy: An Evaluation Approach to Increasing Accountability and Effectiveness

American Criminal Justice Policy examines many of the most prominent criminal justice policies on the American landscape and finds that they fall well short of achieving the accountability and effectiveness that policymakers have advocated and that the public expects. The policies include mass incarceration, sex offender laws, supermax prisons, faith-based prisoner reentry programs, transfer of juveniles to adult court, domestic violence mandatory arrest laws, drug courts, gun laws, community policing, private prisons, and others. Optimistically, Daniel P. Mears argues that this situation can be changed through systematic incorporation of evaluation research into policy development, monitoring, and assessment. To this end, the book provides a clear and accessible discussion of five types of evaluation - needs, theory, implementation or process, outcome and impact, and cost-efficiency. It identifies how these can be used both to hold the criminal justice system accountable and to increase the effectiveness of crime control and crime prevention efforts.
Epidemiologic Concerns for Exposure Assessment

Publisher Summary Epidemiology is the study of the distribution and determinants of disease frequency in humans. The object of all epidemiological studies whether descriptive, analytica1, or intervention studies is to demonstrate an association between exposure and outcome. When an association is demonstrated, the epidemiologist must first assess whether the association is causal and then determine the degree of causality. The epidemiologic concept of causality is that of a link where the change in one event is followed by a change in outcome. The relationship is not necessarily a one to one relationship, there being a determination of the relative risk of one event to the other. This chapter describes several types of human pesticide exposures that are currently being used. In the United States and in other developed areas of the world, while the risk of poisoning is still a very real one, especially with the changing profile of pesticide use patterns, significant progress has been made.
Laparoscopic repair of malrotation: what are the indications in neonates and children?

Abstract Aim: To define the role of laparoscopy for treating malrotation in children. Materials and Methods: The Ladd procedure (9 laparoscopic [lap-Ladd], 17 open [open-Ladd]; n=26) was performed in children up to and including 30 days of age (neonatal [Group N]) and older (Group C). These groups were compared retrospectively. Results: Group N (n=14) comprised 3 lap-Ladd and 11 open-Ladd patients. Group C (n=12) comprised 6 lap-Ladd and 6 open-Ladd patients. No case had ischemic bowel preoperatively. Intestinal volvulus was confirmed in 3 of 3 lap-Ladd and 9 of 11 open-Ladd patients in Group N, compared with 5 of 6 lap-Ladd and 6 of 6 open-Ladd patients in Group C (P=not significant). Mean operating times were significantly longer for lap-Ladd patients (130.7 minutes versus 81.1 minutes in Group N and 119.2 minutes versus 74.2 minutes in Group C). Conversion to an open-Ladd procedure was necessary in 1 of 3 patients in Group N and 1 of 6 patients in Group C (P=not significant). Complications arose in ope...
Statistical Significance vs. Practical Significance: An Exploration through Health Education

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to examine the differences between statistical and practical significance, including strengths and criticisms of both methods, as well as provide information surrounding the application of various effect sizes and confidence intervals within health education research. Provided are recommendations, explanations and examples of reporting effect size and confidence intervals. Understanding and integrating practical significance measures provides health education scholars and practitioners with the tools to address issues related to statistical and practical significance.
Gender and Decolonization in the Congo: The Legacy of Patrice Lumumba

Lumumba's Discourse on Women: From Qualified Vote to Universal Suffrage, Still Wives and Mothers? Lumumba's Women, Women of the Congo: Negotiating Patriarchies Andree Blouin: A Sister among Brothers in Struggle Leonie Abo and the Political Lessons of the Maquis: Commanding Troops, Carrying Water Sexual and Political Prowess: Cesaire's Lumumba , a Potent Symbol Peck's Lumumba : Telling the 'Truth' and Masculinist Bias Beyond the 'Truth': The Maternal Voice in Peck's Death of a Prophet Conclusion
Stochastic Volatility Risk and the Size Anomaly

Investors’concerns about systematic volatility risk explain a large portion of the small …rm premia in the long run. This novel …nding supports the concept of market e¢ ciency and indicates a “‡ight to quality”during recessions: investors shift their preferences away from small …rms, which are considered as being relatively risky. Instead they use large, “quality”stocks, whose returns co-vary positively with innovations in volatility (a recession-and-distress proxy), and therefore
Modification to the Long Pulse Ion Source for operation on the Tokamak Physics Experiment (TPX)

The 12/spl times/43 cm Long Pulse Ion Source was designed for a 2 second beam pulse duration at the 120 kV, 70 A D/sup +/ level. While the accelerator grids and most of the plasma chamber are designed for DC operation, the back plate ("electron dump") was designed for pulsed operation. Replacing the central region of the back plate with an actively cooled insert will allow full DC operation. Cooling passages within the insert were designed to keep the required inlet and exit pressures at current levels.
Scientific Programming: The Promises of Typed, Pure, and Lazy Functional Programming: Part II

This second installment picks up where Konrad Hinsen's article "The Promises of Functional Programming" from the July/August 2009 issue left off, covering static type inference and lazy evaluation in functional programming languages. In the first installment in this series on functional programming, Konrad Hinsen introduced the functional programming paradigm, which encourages recursion and higher-order functional abstraction in algorithms. In this second installment, we explore several other aspects of the functional paradigm. Using examples in the Closure, Java, and Haskell languages, we discuss some of the benefits of static typing with type inference and pure, side-effect-free functional programming with lazy evaluation. In particular, we argue that these features make Haskell a compelling choice for general software development. The scientific computing community, however, likely require better numeric library support and efficient functional versions of scientific algorithms before accepting Haskell more widely.
Renal papillitis and urinary obstruction caused by a substituted pyrimidine.

A single oral administration of 2-amino-5-bromo-6-methyl-4-pyrimidinol caused deposits of crystalline material in collecting tubules of the rat renal medulla, followed by acute inflammation and intrarenal obstruction. Renal pelvis and urinary bladder epithelium developed reactive hyperplastic changes. The lesions were largely reversible. The pathology is of interest for comparison with hyperuricemic nephropathy and drug-induced urothelial hyperplasia.
Release of prostaglandins and metabolites from guinea-pig lung: inhibition by catecholamines.

Abstract Prostaglandins E and F2α and metabolites 13,14-dihydro-15-keto-PGE2 and 13,14-dihydro-15-keto-PGF2α were measured by specific radioimmunassay in outflows from isolated, perfused guinea-pig lungs. Samples were collected from non-sensitized and sensitized guinea-pigs during baseline period and during challenge with ovalbumen or NaCl. Anaphylactic reaction greatly increased the release of both metabolites. Catecholamines, particularly epinephrine markedly reduced the content of metabolites in the outflow. Inhibition of prostaglandin release is parallel to that of histamine and points to the important role catecholamines may play in allergic reactions, specifically in modulating the release of mediators.
George C. S. Lin, Developing China: Land, Politics, and Social Conditions, and You-Tien Hsing, The Great Urban Transformation: Politics of Land and Property in China

(2010). George C. S. Lin, Developing China: Land, Politics, and Social Conditions, and You-Tien Hsing, The Great Urban Transformation: Politics of Land and Property in China. Eurasian Geography and Economics: Vol. 51, No. 5, pp. 683-686.
Surface recombination and sulfide passivation of GaN

The surface recombination velocity in n-type heteroepitaxial GaN(0001) is shown to decrease dramatically when the surface is chemically treated with aqueous and alcoholic solutions of inorganic sulfides, such as ammonium or sodium sulfide (NH4)2Sx and Na2S). The room-temperature excitonic photoluminescence (PL) intensity increases by a factor of four to six after treatment, and improvements persist for at least seven months in room air. Various other chemicals commonly used in device processing are investigated and shown to change the PL intensity by factors ranging from 0.7 to 2.5, buffered oxide etching being the most beneficial. Schottky barrier diodes using gold as the contact metal are fabricated using a sulfide treatment prior to evaporation. The barrier height from capacitance-voltage measurements is as high as 1.63 ± 0.07 V, the highest value ever achieved on n-GaN. This result is evidence that the effect of surface states on the Fermi level has been substantially reduced by the treatment.
A Review of Wave Rotor Technology and Its Applications

The objective of this paper is to provide a succinct review of past and current research in developing wave rotor technology. This technology has shown unique capabilities to enhance the performance and operating characteristics of a variety of engines and machinery utilizing thermodynamic cycles. Although there have been numerous efforts in the past dealing with this novel concept, this technology is not yet widely used and barely known to engineers. Here, an attempt is made to summarize both the previously reported work in the literature and ongoing efforts around the world. The paper covers a wide range of wave rotor applications including the early attempts to use wave rotors, its successful commercialization as supercharges for car engines, research and development for gas turbine topping, and other developments. The review also pays close attention to more recent efforts: utilization of such devices in pressure-gain combustors, ultra-micro gas turbines, and water refrigeration systems, highlighting possible further efforts on this topic. Observations and lessons learnt from experimental studies, numerical simulations, analytical approaches, and other design and analysis tools are presented.Copyright © 2004 by ASME
709 Use of Superoxygenated Intraluminal Fluorocarbons in the Treatment of Experimental Intestinal Ischemia

Direct amelioration of intestinal ischemia using an inert intraluminal oxygen carrier is an appealing concept. The perfluorocarbons are biologically inert substances known to reversibly bind oxygen such that passive local delivery of oxygen to tissues is theoretically feasible. 75-100 gram weanling male Sprague-Dawley rats (n=46) were divided into timed study groups from 0.5 to 5 hours. All underwent laparotomy with identical complete de-vascularization of two adjacent 5 cm segments of terminal ileum. Each intestinal segment was treated with a single intraoperative instillation of either; Superoxygenated FC-43 (initial pO2596) or physiologic saline. Timed sacrifice was performed and tissue taken for light and electron microscopy. Blinded (norwai) histologic evaluation was performed in triplicate using a scoring system to quantitate the ischemic injury. (0= normal to 6= full thickness necrosis). The fluorocarbon treatment group has a significantly (p<.01) lower histologic score than the saline treated controls at comparable time points; indicating a cytoprotective effect in the treatment group. (Wilcoxian sign rank test). The utility of this preliminary observation will require further laboratory and clinical experience.
Weak acid permeability of a villous membrane: Formic acid transport across rat proximal tubule

Chloride/formate exchange, in parallel with Na+/H+ exchange and nonionic diffusion of H2CO2, has been proposed as a mechanism of electroneutral transcellular Cl- reabsorption by the proximal tubule. However, the measured brush border H2CO2 permeability of the rat proximal tubule is at least an order of magnitude too low to support sufficient H2CO2 recycling. To investigate the possibility that an unstirred layer within the brush border might depress the measured H2CO2 permeability, we constructed a mathematical model of a villous membrane. Axial fluxes along villous and intervillous spaces were specified by Nernst-Planck diffusion equations. Model parameters were set to achieve agreement with ion and water fluxes measured in the rat proximal tubule. The equations were solved numerically to generate steady-state concentration profiles in the villous and intervillous spaces. An apparent brush border H2CO2 permeability was determined by perturbing luminal [H2CO2] and calculating the change in H2CO2 flux. Overall, the ratio of apparent brush border H2CO2 permeability to cell membrane H2CO2 permeability was greater than 90%. Contributing to the small decrease in apparent permeability are finite diffusion coefficients, folding of the membrane, and acidification of the luminal solution. An approximate analysis of this system shows the critical parameters of brush border formate transport to be the actual membrane H2CO2 permeability, and the diffusion coefficients of HCO2- and HCO3-. Nevertheless, decreasing the diffusion coefficients by one order of magnitude failed to depress apparent brush border H2CO2 permeability by more than an additional 25%. We conclude that although permeability is systematically underestimated across a villous membrane, unstirred layer effects in the brush border are still too small to resolve the discrepancy between the measured value of H2CO2 permeability and the value needed to allow recycling.
Selective deacylation of peracylated ribonucleosides

Abstract A protocol for chemoselective deprotection of N,O-acylated ribonucleosides has been developed. Peracylated pyrimidine ribonucleosides subjected to guanidinium nitrate and NaOMe in MeOH/CH 2 Cl 2 at 0 °C undergo high yielding O-deacylation, while even more pronounced chemoselectivity is observed with peracylated purine ribonucleosides as O5′-acyl groups are preserved. Nucleobase-protecting groups (A Bz , C Bz , G iBu , and U Bz ) are stable to these conditions, rendering this reagent mixture as a valuable addition to the collection of protecting group protocols in nucleoside chemistry.
Lattice image studies on the intervariant boundary structure and substructure of Cu-Zn-Al 18R martensite

The boundaries between 18R martensite plates in a Cu-Zn-Al alloy, which join martensite variani each plate group and are designated as the A:C and A:D type intervariant boundaries, have been studied in a lattice imaging mode. The details of the atomic configurations across these interfaces are discussed. It is found that the A:C boundary is a straight coherent twin boundary matching exactly the (128)18R planes of the adjoining martensite variant plates. The A:D boundary, although generally planar, does not match a particular crystallographic plane of a variant plate, but rather has a tendency to wander and form curved segments, except in the regions where occasional 2H structural faults internal to one of the variants, meet the 18R structure in the variant on the other side of the boundary Nonbasal stacking faults are observed as well, with a faulting plane, (128), which is crys tallographically equivalent to the A:C type intervariant plane. This nonbasal faulting is considered to be a consequence of cross-slipping of partial dislocations related to the basal plane faults.
Enhanced recovery of solavetivone from Agrobacterium transformed root cultures of Hyoscyamus muticus using integrated product extraction

The integrated recovery of solavetivone from fungus elicited "hairy root" cultures of Hyoscyamus muticus is examined using volatile organic solvents and solid-phase adsorbents in an external loop extraction configuration. Hexane and pentane are shown to be toxic when added directly to the culture; however, growth of roots is not inhibited when cultures are exposed to media saturated with these hydrocarbons. Solid-phase neutral adsorbents, XAD-7 and XAD-16, display higher capacity and better solavetivone partitioning capability than the hydrocarbons; however, their selectivity for the sesquiterpene solavetivone is poor in comparison with hexane. In both cases, the integration of product recovery through extraction resulted in a doubling of product formation by alleviating feedback repression. Implications of these results to the recovery of secondary metabolites from plant root cultures are discussed. .
Structural insights into the regulation and the activation mechanism of mammalian guanylyl cyclases

Guanylyl cyclases (GC) are proteins that are essential for the production of the second messenger cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP). Mammalian GC have attracted considerable interest due to their roles in important physiological processes such as vasodilation, vision, and bone growth. In addition, their link to disease and concomitant pharmaceutical potential have made these cyclases a long standing target for probing their intriguing mechanism of activation with the aim of drug development. The vasodilatory drugs nitroglycerin and nesiritide act through (different) GC pathways and have both been shown to provide beneficial relief for congestive heart failure patients. New structural insights are recently emerging on the activation mechanism and regulation of these receptors. The aim of this review is to discuss the interesting differences and similarities between members of the soluble and membrane bound GC in detail and put these in context with the structural knowledge that is available to date. These efforts contribute to an enhanced understanding of the GC and will likely lead to an increased success in structure-based therapeutic intervention.
Adaptive RF canceller for transmit-receive isolation improvement

For effective operation, Simultaneous Transmit And Receive (STAR) systems require high isolation between the transmitted signals and the receiver input, the absence of which can lead to the saturation of a receiver's front end. This paper presents an adaptive RF canceller used to improve isolation. The canceller is configured as an RF tapped delay line with four taps, each with independent amplitude and phase weights that are tuned by a Dithered Linear Search algorithm. This canceller produces 30 dB of signal cancellation over a 30 MHz bandwidth centered at 2.45 GHz in an isolated environment. When combined with a high-isolation antenna, an overall STAR system isolation of 90 dB is achieved, while also maintaining omni-directional transmit and receive antenna patterns.
OCLC Users Council Meeting Report: February 7–9, 1993

The effects of electronic access on the provision of information continue to be the focus of the OCLC Users Council. Building upon the Internet theme of the last Users Council meeting in October, Economic Aspects of the Electronic Information Community, this meeting continued to highlight the necessity of cooperation between vendors, publishers, and librarians. The problems faced by each of these groups is often a variation on the same theme. The most pressing issues are pricing, distribution, and copyright.
Improved Risk Stratification for Biochemical Recurrence after Radical Prostatectomy Using a Novel Risk Group System based on Prostate Specific Antigen Density and Biopsy Gleason Score

Purpose: Previous studies have suggested that prostate specific antigen (PSA) density is a significant independent predictor of biochemical failure after primary therapy. We determined whether pathological PSA density using surgical weight of the radical prostatectomy specimen was an independent predictor of adverse pathological features or biochemical recurrence after radical prostatectomy. We also examined whether combining pathological PSA density with biopsy Gleason score improved risk stratification compared with serum PSA and biopsy Gleason score for predicting PSA recurrence after prostatectomy.Materials and Methods: Multivariate analysis was used to determine whether pathological PSA density was an independent predictor of adverse pathology or PSA recurrence after radical prostatectomy in 325 patients treated at a Veterans Affairs medical center. Cutoff points of pathological PSA density were generated to identify patients at various risks for biochemical recurrence. These cutoffs were combined wi...
VEGF as a mediator of tumor-associated immunodeficiency

Decreased immune function in cancer patients is well-characterized (I), and tumor cells have developed a variety of mechanisms, to avoid anti-tumor immune responses (2–8). One mechanism for inhibition of immune cell function by tumors in the production of soluble factors, such as IL-10, TNF, TGF-β, and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF). The effects of these factors appear, to be twofold: To inhibit effect or function and to impair the development of immune cells by acting on earlier stages of immunopoiesis. Immune suppression by tumors is accomplished by a variety of cellular and molecular mechanisms, and virtually all branches of the immune system can be affected. VEGF and its receptors have profound effects on the early development and differentiation of both vascular endothelial and hematopoetic progenitors (9). It induces proliferation of mature endothelial cells and is an important component in the formation of tumor neovasculature (10). VEGF is abundantly expressed by a large percentage of solid tumors and this over-expression is closely associated with a poor prognosis (11, 12). Some of the earliest hematopoetic progenitors express receptors for VEGF (13), and we have demonstrated that VEGF causes a defect in the functional maturation of dendritic cells (DC) from progenitors. This developmental defect is associated with impaired activation of NF-κB (14–17). This review describes research demonstrating that VEGF is not only important for tumor vascularization, but is also a key factor produced by solid tumors to inhibit recognition and destruction of tumor cells by the immune system.
Adherence of an Axisymmetric Flat Punch Onto a Clamped Circular Plate: Transition From a Rigid Plate to a Flexible Membrane

A clamped circular film is adhered to a rigid cylindrical punch. An external force pulls the punch away causing delamination at the punch-plate interface. The deflections of the film are discussed for a range of film thickness and stiffness, detailing the continuous transition from a plate under bending to a membrane under stretching. An equilibrium theory of delamination mechanics is derived based on an energy balance. A complete separation at the punch-film interface, or the "pull-off" event, is predicted when the contact circle shrinks to approximately 0.18 of the film diameter. The values and trends, presented in dimensionless normalized form here, should have implications in biological and colloidal sciences in relation to thin-walled capsules and in electronics in relation to thin encapsulating films. ©2002 ASME
Stochastic differential equations for Dirichlet processes

We consider the stochastic differential equation dXt = a(Xt)dWt + b(Xt)dt, where W is a one-dimensional Brownian motion. We formulate the notion of solution and prove strong existence and pathwise uniqueness results when a is in C1/2 and b is only a generalized function, for example,the distributional derivative of a Holder function or of a function of bounded variation. When b = aa′, that is, when the generator of the SDE is the divergence form operator ℒ = \(\), a result on non-existence of a strong solution and non-pathwise uniqueness is given as well as a result which characterizes when a solution is a semimartingale or not. We also consider extensions of the notion of Stratonovich integral.
High Resolution Printing of DNA Feature on Poly(methyl methacrylate) Substrates Using Supramolecular Nano-Stamping

In recent years, a large number of devices based on organic and biological materials have been developed. To scale-up the production of these systems to industrially acceptable standards, there is a need to develop soft-material stamping approaches with the needed resolution, complexity, and versatility. We have recently developed a DNA-based stamping method (supramolecular nano-stamping, SuNS) that has superior resolution and can print multiple molecules at the same time. A similar technique was independently developed by Crooks and co-workers. Here we show that SuNS can be used to efficiently print DNA features on a polymeric substrate (poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA) with a 40 nm point resolution and a coverage that exceeds 100 mum2. The stamped PMMA substrate was also used as a master to print on a gold substrate. With PMMA being optically clear and electrically insulating, future applications of SuNS to print DNA micro- and nanoarrays are envisioned.
A local model of concurrent performance.

Concurrent procedures may be conceptualized as consisting of two pairs of schedules with only one pair operating at a time. One schedule of each pair arranges reinforcers for staying in the current alternative, and the other schedule arranges reinforcers for switching to the other alternative. These pairs alternate operation as the animal switches between choices. This analysis of the contingencies suggests that variables operating within an alternative produce behavior that conforms to the generalized matching law. Rats were exposed to one pair of stay and switch schedules in each condition, and the probabilities of reinforcement varied across conditions. Both run length and visit duration were power functions of the ratio of the probabilities of reinforcement for staying and switching. The local model, a model of performance on concurrent procedures, was derived from this power function. Performance on concurrent schedules was synthesized from the performances on the separate pairs. Both the generalized matching law and the local model fitted the synthesized concurrent performances. These results are consistent with the view that the contingencies in the alternative, the probability of stay and switch reinforcement, are responsible for performance consistent with the generalized matching law. These results are compatible with momentary maximizing and molar maximizing accounts of concurrent performance. Models of concurrent performance that posit comparisons among the alternatives are not easily applied to these results.
Bias in peer review

Research on bias in peer review examines scholarly communication and funding processes to assess the epistemic and social legitimacy of the mechanisms by which knowledge communities vet and self-regulate their work. Despite vocal concerns, a closer look at the empirical and methodological limitations of research on bias raises questions about the existence and extent of many hypothesized forms of bias. In addition, the notion of bias is predicated on an implicit ideal that, once articulated, raises questions about the normative implications of research on bias in peer review. This review provides a brief description of the function, history, and scope of peer review; articulates and critiques the conception of bias unifying research on bias in peer review; characterizes and examines the empirical, methodological, and normative claims of bias in peer review research; and assesses possible alternatives to the status quo. We close by identifying ways to expand conceptions and studies of bias to contend with the complexity of social interactions among actors involved directly and indirectly in peer review. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Bridging the divide between community indicators and government performance measurement

Anyone familiar with both community indicators projects around the country and the growing movement to encourage governments to engage in performance measurement and reporting will recognize that these two activities have much in common but are not the same. This article describes in broad terms the nature, benefits, and problems of community indicators projects and government performance measurement, and it suggests a means by which the two can be brought together to achieve the benefits of both.
Relationships between parent-teaching activities and emergent literacy in preschool children.

Research indicates that both home literacy activities and direct instruction of reading skills promote reading development. The current study investigates how parent‐led direct teaching activities impact emergent literacy. Preschool children (n = 47) were administered subtests from the Test of Early Reading Ability‐3 and the Kaufman Survey of Early Academic and Language Skills. In addition, parents responded to a questionnaire about direct teaching of literacy activities implemented within the home. The majority of parents reported directly teaching their children literacy skills (86%), particularly letter names (71%) and sounds (65%). Fewer parents reported directly teaching printing letters (45%), writing words (29%), reading words (26%), or reading stories (26%). A trend emerged in which children receiving any direct instruction scored higher on most emergent literacy tasks. However, statistical significance was only found in a few areas including direct teaching of alphabet knowledge and writing words...
Experimental study of early-age behavior of high performance concrete deck slabs under different curing methods

Abstract Curing techniques and curing duration have crucial effects to the strength and durability of concrete. Proper curing can protect against moisture loss from fresh concrete. The objective of this experimental study is to examine the early-age behavior of high-performance concrete (HPC) under various curing methods. Laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate the early-age shrinkage development, temperature change, and evaporation rate when different curing methods were used. Four curing techniques and two curing durations were applied to concrete deck slab and cylindrical specimens. The measured experiment data were also compared with several shrinkage prediction models. The results show that proper moisture-curing methods can effectively reduce concrete temperature due to hydration heat and limit the development of early-age shrinkage strains. The concrete of a longer curing duration would yield lower shrinkage deformation and lower evaporation rate.
Hormesis--basic, generalizable, central to toxicology and a method to improve the risk-assessment process.

Hormesis, a dose-response, phenomenon characterized by a low-dose stimulation and a high-dose inhibition, has been the object of controversy due to its challenging of basic understandings of the do...
The binaural masking level difference in infants and adults: Developmental change in binaural hearing

Abstract The binaural release from masking, evidence of ability to analyze interaurol differences in signal phase, was measured in infants and adults using a 500-Hz pure tone. A statistically significant difference between groups suggests a developmental change in one dimension of central auditory nervous system processing.
Marxism in a snail shell: Making history in Chiapas

The Zapatistas of Chiapas, Mexico, have engaged the Mexican government in a 15-year struggle over political, cultural, and economic autonomy. In the process, they have challenged fundamental precepts of modern thought, including the idea of ‘modernity’ itself. This article argues that the Zapatistas, both through their counternarrative and their political organization, offer insight and possibilities in current debates over hegemony, universality, and historical agency. In turn, the Zapatistas weigh in on the merits of postcolonialism, postmodernism, and post-Marxism.
Politics, School Philosophy, and Language Policy: The Case of Crystal City Schools:

Language policy development connects a school district's educational philosophy and the day-to-day practice of educators. An educational philosophy elaborates the aims a school district has for its students; language policy, on the other hand, engages day-to-day practice because it is concerned with how students are going to achieve the aims through language. Moreover, administrators and teachers, in their educational practice, participate in an ongoing process of language planning, a process linked to power and social justice issues. This article maps out the relationship between cultural nationalist ideology and language policy development in the Crystal City Independent School District. Using qualitative data and teacher narratives, it analyzes how language planning unfolds at the level of the school site and the effects this has on teachers and instruction. The analysis supports the conclusion that the school district as an institution has limitations in promoting cultural and linguistic maintenance i...
The Association of Postcardiac Surgery Acute Kidney Injury with Intraoperative Systolic Blood Pressure Hypotension

Background. Postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) is associated with high mortality and substantial cost after aortocoronary bypass graft (CABG) surgery. We tested the hypothesis that intraoperative systolic blood pressure variation is associated with postoperative AKI. Methods. We gathered demographic, procedural, blood pressure, and renal outcome data for 7,247 CABG surgeries at a single institution between 1996 and 2005. A development/validation cohort methodology was randomly divided (66% and 33%, resp.). Peak postoperative serum creatinine rise relative to baseline (%ΔCr) was the primary AKI outcome variable. Markers reflective of intraoperative systolic blood pressure variation were derived for each patient including (1) peak and nadir values (absolute and relative to baseline) and (2) excursion episodes beyond selected thresholds (by duration, frequency, and duration × degree). Each marker of systolic blood pressure variation was then separately evaluated for association with AKI using linear regression models with adjustment for several known risk factors (age, aprotinin use, congestive heart failure, previous myocardial infarction, baseline creatinine, bypass time, diabetes, weight, concomitant valve surgery, gender, and preoperative pulse pressure). Results. An association was identified between systolic blood pressure relative to baseline and postoperative AKI (P < 0.006). Conclusions. In CABG surgery patients, intraoperative systolic blood pressure decrease relative to baseline systolic blood pressure is independently associated with postoperative AKI.
Achieving fluency through perceptual-symbol practice in human-robot collaboration

We have developed a cognitive architecture for robotic teammates based on the neuro-psychological principles of perceptual symbols and simulation, with the aim of attaining increased fluency in human-robot teams. An instantiation of this architecture was implemented on a robotic desk lamp, performing in a human-robot collaborative task. This paper describes initial results from a human-subject study measuring team efficiency and team fluency, in which the robot works on a joint task with untrained subjects. We find significant differences in a number of efficiency and fluency metrics, when comparing our architecture to a purely reactive robot with similar capabilities.
Almost normal: experiences of adolescents with implantable cardioverter defibrillators.

PURPOSE. The purpose of this study was to describe the experiences of adolescents with implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs). DESIGN AND METHODS. This qualitative study explored the lived experiences of 14 adolescents with ICDs using face-to-face, semistructured interviews. RESULTS. Six themes were identified: life interrupted; still the same, except; sometimes it's tough; it cuts both ways; unique joule; and living life regular. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS. These findings suggest that nurses could make a significant impact on the lives of adolescents with ICDs by focusing their efforts away from viewing the adolescent through an illness lens and more toward a normalization lens.
The Application of Learning Theory to Information Literacy

ABSTRACT Many colleges and universities are advocating information literacy within their mission statements. To this end, many librarians are offering for-credit courses that incorporate the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Information Literacy Competency Standards in their instructional programs. In their role as instructors, librarians should be familiar with learning theory, in particular behaviorism and constructivism. The application of a particular learning theory dictates the structure of the course and reinforces the role of librarian as educator.
Level of Negative Sidelobes in an Array Beam

It is shown that the level of negative sidelobes of an array's beam in the snapshot observation does not depend on the array configuration and is determined completely by the number of the elements at the array. This level is not less than -1/(N-1) for any array's beam, where N is the number of elements at the array. For the central symmetry arrays, all negative sidelobes are tangent to the horizontal line at the level -1/(N-1). For large N, positive sidelobes are bigger than negative ones (in absolute values). For example, for VLA (N = 27) and VLBA (N = 10), the value of negative sidelobes should be 0.038 and 0.11, respectively, for any configuration.
Application of Flow Cytometric Techniques to Veterinary Clinical Hematology

Flow cytometry has emerged as a major new technology in veterinary clinical laboratories. Flow cytometers in current use include stand-alone instruments and cytometers incorporated into hematology analyzers. Flow cytometers offer rapid and quantitative analysis of a variety of cell types based on cell size, molecular complexity, and antigenic composition. Therefore, flow cytometry complements and extends the knowledge that can be obtained by light microscopy. Stand-alone instruments are very flexible, however, this flexibility opens the instrument to obtaining invalid or misleading results. The recent development of monoclonal antibodies specific for epitopes on blood cells of food and companion animals has greatly expanded the spectrum of tests with potential clinical application. Tests that appear to have the greatest potential for routine application include reticulocyte and reticulated platelet enumeration, detection of erythrocyte-bound immunoglobulin, immunophenotyping of leukemias and lymphomas, and bone marrow differential cell counting. This report will briefly review the technical aspects of flow cytometry and then focus on techniques with present or potential application to the veterinary clinical laboratory.
Powering Up, Philanthropically

Faculty members have an important role to play in helping to fund programs and direct donor dollars at colleges and universities. This paper outlines the ‘golden age of philanthropy’ that the United States has currently entered, explaining the combination of material resources and spiritual inclinations that have led to increased giving. It then outlines several principles that faculty members should keep in mind in approaching prospective donors, including the reasons for giving, donors’ interest in ideas, and the importance of persistence, local focus, and collaboration. Finally it offers several practical steps that faculty members can take to marshal philanthropic support for their visions.
Pulsatile infusion of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone: Effects on luteinizing hormone secretion and ovarian function in prepuberal gilts

Ten intact and hypophysial stalk-transected (HST), prepuberal Yorkshire gilts, 112–160 days old, were subjected to a pulsatile infusion regimen of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) to investigate secretion profiles of luteinizing hormone (LH) and ovarian function. A catheter was implanted in a common carotid artery and connected to an infusion pump and recycling timer, whereas an indwelling external jugular catheter allowed collection of sequential blood samples for radioimmunoassay of LH and progesterone. In a dose response study, intracarotid injection of 5 μg LHRH induced peak LH release (5.9 ± 0.65 ng/ml; mean ± SE) within 20 min, which was greater (P < 0.001) than during the preinjection period (0.7 ± 0.65 ng/ml). After HST, 5 μg LHRH elicited LH release in only one of three prepuberal gilts. Four intact animals were infused with 5 μg LHRH (in 0.1% gel phosphate buffer saline, PBS) in 0.5-ml pulses (0.1 ml/min) at 1.5-h intervals continuously during 12 days. Daily blood samples were obtained at 20-min intervals 1 h before and 5, 10, 20, 40, 60 and 80 min after one LHRH infusion. Plasma LH release occurred in response to pulsatile LHRH infusion during the 12-day period; circulating LH during 60 min before onset of LHRH infusion was 0.7 ± 0.16 ng/ml compared with 1.3 ± 0.16 ng/ml during 60 min after onset of infusion (P < 0.001). Only one of four intact gilts ovulated, however, in response to LHRH infusion. This animal was 159 days old, and successive estrous cycles did not recur after LHRH infusion was discontinued. Puberal estrus occurred at 252 ± 7 days in these gilts and was confirmed by plasma progesterone levels. These results indicate that intracarotid infusion of 5 μg LHRH elicits LH release in the intact prepuberal gilt, but this dosage is insufficient to cause a consistent response after HST.
The temperature dependence of intracellular pH in isolated frog skeletal muscle: lessons concerning the Na(+)-H+ exchanger.

We used 31P NMR to investigate the temperature-dependence of intracellular pH (pHi) in isolated frog skeletal muscles. We found that Ln[H+i] is a linear function of 1/Tabs paralleling those of neutral water (i.e., H+ = OH-) and of a solution containing the fixed pH buffers of frog muscle cytosol. This classical van't Hoff relationship was unaffected by inhibition of glycolysis and was not dependent upon the pH or [Na+] in the bathing solution. Insulin stimulation of Na(+)-H+ exchange shifted the intercept in the alkaline direction but had not effect on the slope. Acid loading followed by washout resulted in an amiloride-sensitive return to the (temperature dependent) basal pHi. These results show that the temperature dependence of activation of Na(+)-H+ exchange is similar to that of the intracellular buffers, and suggest that constancy of [H+]/ [OH-] with changing temperature is achieved in the short term by intracellular buffering and in the long term by the set-point of the Na(+)-H+ exchanger. Proton activation of the exchanger has an apparent standard enthalpy change (delta H degree) under both control and insulin-stimulated conditions that is similar to the delta H degree of the intracellular buffers and approximately half of the delta H degree for the dissociation of water. Thus, the temperature-dependent component of the standard free-energy change (delta F degree) is unaffected by insulin stimulation, suggesting that changes in Arrhenius activation energy (Ea) may not be a part of the mechanism of hormone stimulation.
Analysis of oxidized heme proteins and its application to multiple antioxidant protection

Oxidation in tissues and homogenates can be determined by the analysis of oxidized heme proteins. Oxidation of heme proteins can be measured by spectral changes and the deconvolution of the spectra of mixtures of heme proteins by a spreadsheet heme spectra analysis program (HSAP), incorporating the spectra of the individual pure heme proteins. HSAP also is used to analyze the spectra of mixtures of heme proteins found in the literature. HSAP is applied in measuring the protective effects in rats of multiple antioxidants suitable for use in humans for protection against diseases.