cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Promoting the APS Chapter Program by sharing its history, best practices, and how-to guide for establishing new chapters.

Early establishment of physiological societies in Oklahoma and Ohio demonstrated the benefits of networking physiologists and paved the way for establishing the APS Chapter Program. Designed to pro...
Measuring the Work Values of Technical College Students: The Ohio Work Values Inventory.

The Ohio Work Values Inventory (OWVI) was constructed for use with elementary and secondary school children. This study investigated the internal structure of the OWVI when used with college-age st...
Diversity, Dynamics and Topographic Arrangement of Microorganisms are Essential Parameters that Identify a microbial Consortium

Years ago it was already clear that elucidation of the microbial flora of complex ecosystems requires identification of microrganisms directly, in samples from the ecosystems, avoiding culture-isolation procedures (Colwell et al., 1985; Macario and Conway de Macario, 1982; Zambon et al., 1984; and references therein). The latter procedures have been, and will always be, extremely useful for the purification and characterization of the components of a microbial community, and to provide axenic cultures to the scientific community. However, culture-isolation is insufficient, and may even be misleading for studies in microbial ecology, inasmuch as it may reveal the microbes culturable in the media utilized, but not necessarily the most significant ones for the ecosystem under analysis. Therefore, for accurate characterization of microbial communities, culture-isolation must be complemented with direct identification and quantification, with minimal sample manipulation, to avoid artifactual distortion of the microbial flora.
Titania-Supported Single-Atom Platinum Catalyst for Water-Gas Shift Reaction

Density functional theory (DFT) and microkinetic modeling are used to examine the water-gas shift (WGS) reaction on TiO2(110)-supported single Pt atoms. A CO-adsorbed Pt atom supported on a TiO2 surface exhibits a lower activity for the WGS than the Pt2+ ion supported on a doped TiO2 surface, although DFT predicts the CO-adsorbed Pt on an undoped TiO2 surface to be thermodynamically more stable. Trends observed in WGS activity for different active sites of TiO2-supported Pt catalysts can be explained in terms of CO adsorption strength and the ability to form an oxygen vacancy on the oxide support.
Vietnam Writings and the National Security State

This chapter examines Morgenthau’s growing opposition to the Vietnam War as part of his broader criticisms of the national security state and the threats it posed to republican constitutional order. In advancing its case for the relevance of Morgenthau’s insights today, the chapter begins by situating several of Morgenthau’s views within contemporary scholarship on the national security state. The next two sections focus on his general critique of American policy in the Vietnam War and the perceived pathologies in the policymaking process. The fourth section shows how Morgenthau’s views converged with Noam Chomsky in several important respects. The fifth section examines his concern over the decline of the ethic of responsibility among policymakers. The final section examines his criticisms of Henry Kissinger’s conduct as statesman.
Variable-Temperature NMR Spectroscopy, Conformational Analysis, and Thermodynamic Parameters of Cyclic Adenosine 5'-Diphosphate Ribose Agonists and Antagonists.

Cyclic adenosine 5′-diphosphate ribose (cADPR) is a ubiquitous Ca2+-releasing second messenger. Knowledge of its conformational landscape is an essential tool for unraveling the structure–activity relationship (SAR) in cADPR. Variable-temperature 1H NMR spectroscopy, in conjunction with PSEUROT and population analyses, allowed us to determine the conformations and thermodynamic parameters of the furanose rings, γ-bonds (C4′–C5′), and β-bonds (C5′–O5′) in the cADPR analogues 2′-deoxy-cADPR, 7-deaza-cADPR, and 8-bromo-cADPR. A significant finding was that, although the analogues are similar to each other and to cADPR itself in terms of overall conformation and population (ΔG°), there were subtle yet important differences in some of thermodynamic properties (ΔH°, ΔS°) associated with each of the conformational equilibria. These differences prompted us to propose a model for cADPR in which the interactions between the A2′–N3, A5″–N3, and H2–R5′ atoms serve to fine-tune the N-glycosidic torsion angles (χ).
Trends in Coverage for Disease Modifying Therapies for Multiple Sclerosis in Medicare Part D (P3.161)

Objective: To characterize coverage policies for disease modifying therapies (DMTs) for multiple sclerosis (MS) within the Medicare Part D program from 2007 to 2015. Background: Costs for MS DMTs have risen at an alarming rate and the annual cost for most DMTs now exceeds $80,000. A consequence of high DMT costs is increased payer restrictions and cost-sharing, which may adversely impact patient care. Design/Methods: We used Medicare Part D Formulary data to quantify coverage policies for the interferons (IFNs), glatiramer acetate (GA), fingolimod, dimethyl fumarate (DF), and teriflunomide between 2007 and 2015. For each DMT, we quantified the proportion of Part D Plans (PDPs) that 1) covered the drug and 2) used either prior authorizations (PA) or step therapy (ST) policies to manage use. We also summarized changes in formulary tier levels over time. Results: In 2007, 100% of PDPs covered IFN beta-1b and GA; IFN-beta-1a intramuscular and subcutaneous formulations were covered by 87% to 85% of plans respectively. In 2015, the proportion of PDPs covering specific IFNs dropped to between 62% and 68%; Coverage for GA remained near 100%. From 2007 to 2015, the use of PA policies increased from 64% to 78% for IFNs and GA. Use of ST policies for these DMTs increased from tier 4) increased from a median 11% to 89% of PDPs. In 2015, the proportion of PDPs covering an oral DMT ranged from 51% for teriflunomide to 73% for fingolimod. Use of PAs for oral DMTs ranged from 88% to 93%, but ST use was rare ( Conclusions: Over the last decade, Medicare PDPs have reduced coverage, increased access restrictions, and shifted DMTs to highest cost-sharing tiers. Study Supported by: National Multiple Sclerosis Society Disclosure: Dr. Hartung has nothing to disclose. Dr. Johnston has nothing to disclose. Dr Bourdette has nothing to disclose.
TURBULENCE AND MIXING IN STABLY STRATIFIED FLUIDS

Abstract Length scales and dissipation rates of motion and mixing in stably stratified fluids for both present and previous turbulence are reflected by microstructure of scalar fields such as temperature. Methods of classifying microstructure patches according to hydrodynamic state are described and applied to oceanic, lake and laboratory data. Patches observed below the air-sea interface are generally in the active-fossil-turbulence state, with fossil-turbulence at large scales and active-turbulence at small scales, or completely fossil-turbulence. This suggests that the turbulence and mixing process has been undersampled because completely active-turbulence patches, with the larger previous dissipation rates implied by the measured fossils, are not included in the data sets.
Defense of the Original Position

In Chap. 5, I argue that metaphysical objections to Rawls’s characterization of the person in the “original position” are unsuccessful. I explain the original position, which is a hypothetical decision procedure in which a person who is subject to certain unusual constraints is asked to select the principles she would like to govern her society. The unusual constraints are that, on the one hand, the person is deprived of almost all knowledge of herself, such as knowledge of her gender, race, and socio-economic status and, on the other hand, the person is supposed to have knowledge that people may not have, such as knowledge about the laws of psychology, the basis of social organization, and principles of economic theory. Critics have taken this characterization of the person implicitly to rely on a metaphysical conception of personal identity that is inconsistent with a conception of persons as socially constituted. I argue that it is false that the characterization of the person in the original position relies on any metaphysical conception of personal identity, and, for this reason, these objections fail. The discussion of the original position brings Rawls’s conception of political identity into sharper relief. Rawls claims that this conception is a normative conception of identity. For this reason, a clearer understanding of Rawls’s conception of political identity paves the way for understanding the normative criticisms of that conception.
A Cross-Cultural Study of the Psychosocial and Spiritual Impact of Natural Disaster

We report a cross-cultural comparison of coping with natural disaster involving two populations—survivors from the 1999 earthquake in Turkey and from the 1994 Northridge earthquake in California. The research project was explorative in design and included 222 people—123 individuals from Turkey and 99 from California. A main focus of the study was how age, gender, marital status, and cultural differences impact on levels of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Concomitantly, the association of many other variables was explored including cultural education, presence and degree of loss, extent of damage to one's home, whether individuals did or did not receive assistance, etc., and how these impacted their coping. Statistical analysis revealed strong associations between PTSD and age for both studies. It was found that the highest level of PTSD in the California sample occurred among individuals at least 60 years old. In the Turkey sample, those in their fifties showed the highest level of PTSD. The article highlights similarities and differences between the post-earthquake coping responses in California and Turkey and concludes by discussing forms of assistance to earthquake victims.
Formal Language Evaluation

The formal, clinical assessment of dysphasia encompasses at least five aspects. Depending on the circumstances, all may be given equal weight, one may be dominant to the exclusion of all the others, or any distribution of emphasis between these extremes may obtain. These aspects are the following: 1. dysphasia testing as an inventory of language input and Output modalities, 2. linguistic aspects, 3. diagnostic aims, 4. the dysphasia examination as a case study, 5. quantitative aspects.
Human Testis Extracellular Matrix Enhances Human Spermatogonial Stem Cell Survival In Vitro.

Successful human spermatogonial stem cell (hSSC) culture could enable cell therapy for male infertility. Mammalian extracellular matrix (ECM) promotes mitogenesis, migration, and/or differentiation...
Mitochondrial dysfunction in type 2 diabetes mellitus: an organ-based analysis.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a systemic disease characterized by hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia, and organismic insulin resistance. This pathological shift in both circulating fuel levels and ...
The Birth of Modern Entitlement Programs: Reports from the Field and Implications for Welfare Policy:

One of the most controversial public policy debates of the present decade involves entitlement programs for the poor. Many of these programs originated during the widespread poverty of the Great De...
A gelling vitreous replacement.

A rapidly gelling, biocompatible co-polymer, tested in rabbit and non-human-primate models of retinal detachment, makes for an effective replacement of the damaged vitreous.
Using data from connected thermostats to track large power outages in the United States

Abstract The detection of power outages is an essential activity for electric utilities. A large, national dataset of Internet-connected thermostats was used to explore and illustrate the ability of Internet-connected devices to geospatially track outages caused by hurricanes and other major weather events. The method was applied to nine major outage events, including hurricanes and windstorms. In one event, Hurricane Irma, a network of about 1000 thermostats provided quantitatively similar results to detailed utility data with respect to the number of homes without power and identification of the most severely affected regions. The method generated regionally uniform outage data that would give emergency authorities additional visibility into the scope and magnitude of outages. The network of thermostat-sensors also made it possible to calculate a higher resolution version of outage duration (or SAIDI) at a level of customer-level visibility that was not previously available.
Robust Deformation Model Approximation for Robotic Cable Manipulation

Cable manipulation is a challenging task for robots. The major challenge is that cables have high degrees of freedom and are easy to deform during manipulation. In this paper, we propose a novel framework SPR-RWLS to manipulate cables, which includes real-time cable tracking and robust local deformation model approximation. For cable tracking, structure preserved registration (SPR) is utilized to robustly estimate the movement of selected points on a cable even in the presence of sensor noise, outliers, and occlusions. Robust weighted least squares (RWLS) is then applied to calculate the local deformation model of the cable under uncertainties. We show that SPR-RWLS enables the dual-arm robots to manipulate cables with different thicknesses and lengths to different desired curvatures in multiple scenarios. We also show that real-time implementation of the proposed method can be simplified by parallel computation.
Combating the Hidden Health Disparity of Kernicterus in Black Infants: A Review.

Importance Kernicterus is a devastating, permanently disabling neurologic condition resulting from bilirubin neurotoxicity. Black neonates account for more than 25% of kernicterus cases in the US, despite making up only approximately 14% of all births. This is a largely overlooked health disparity. Observations The black kernicterus health disparity exists despite a lower overall incidence of clinically significant hyperbilirubinemia among black neonates, a paradox recently explained by a previously unrecognized risk for hazardous hyperbilirubinemia. Aligned with national and global health initiatives to reduce or eliminate health disparities, this review highlights the multiple biologic and nonbiologic factors contributing to kernicterus risk in black infants and approaches to reduce this health disparity. This includes both parent-level and clinician-level kernicterus prevention strategies, with an emphasis on improving parental health literacy on neonatal jaundice and acute bilirubin encephalopathy and clinician awareness of the key factors that contribute to hazardous hyperbilirubinemia risk in this vulnerable group. Parent-level prevention strategies include efforts to improve their health literacy on neonatal jaundice and acute bilirubin encephalopathy and empower care seeking for jaundice. Clinician-level prevention strategies include efforts to eliminate community and institutional barriers that impede access to care, heighten clinician awareness of the factors that contribute to kernicterus risk in this vulnerable patient group, and strengthen newborn hyperbilirubinemia management and bilirubin surveillance. Conclusions and Relevance There are multiple opportunities for intervention to reduce black kernicterus risk. Although kernicterus is a rare disorder, the incidence among black infants is not a trivial matter nor are efforts to prevent kernicterus. While the multiple interacting biologic and nonbiologic contributors to increased kernicterus risk among black infants pose a considerable challenge to clinicians, there are opportunities for intervention to reduce this risk and health disparity. Continued study is imperative to understand the current scope of kernicterus and its occurrence in black neonates.
Dormancy break and germination requirements in acorns of two bottomland Quercus species (Sect. Lobatae ) of the eastern United States with references to ecology and phylogeny

Quercus species are ecologically and economically important components of deciduous forests of the eastern United States. However, knowledge pertinent to a thorough understanding of acorn germination dynamics for these species is lacking. The objectives of this research were to determine dormancy break and germination requirements for acorns of two eastern United States bottomland species, Quercus nigra and Quercus phellos (Section Lobatae), and to present results within ecological and phylogenetic contexts. Three replicates of 50 acorns of each species received 0 (control), 6, 12 or 18 weeks of cold stratification, followed by incubation in alternating temperature regimes of 15/6, 20/10, 25/15 and 30/20°C. Eighteen weeks of cold stratification were not sufficient for dormancy break in Q. nigra acorns. Cumulative germination percentages at 4 weeks of incubation were ≥77%, but only in incubation temperatures of 25/15 and 30/20°C. Dormancy break in Q. phellos acorns was achieved with 18 weeks of cold stratification, and cumulative germination percentages were ≥87% at 4 weeks of incubation in all test temperature regimes. Gibberellic acid solutions were not an effective substitute for cold stratification in either species. Phylogenetically, Q. nigra and Q. phellos are closely related species and, ecologically, both grow in the same habitat. Acorns of both species possess deep physiological dormancy (PD), but dormancy break and germination requirements differ in acorns of these two Quercus species.
Standardized Tests as benchmarks for Artificial Intelligence

Standardized tests have recently been proposed as replacements to the Turing test as a driver for progress in AI (Clark, 2015). These include tests on understanding passages and stories and answering questions about them (Richardson et al., 2013; Rajpurkar et al., 2016a, inter alia), science question answering (Schoenick et al., 2016, inter alia), algebra word problems (Kushman et al., 2014, inter alia), geometry problems (Seo et al., 2015; Sachan et al., 2016), visual question answering (Antol et al., 2015), etc. Many of these tests require sophisticated understanding of the world, aiming to push the boundaries of AI. For this tutorial, we broadly categorize these tests into two categories: open domain tests such as reading comprehensions and elementary school tests where the goal is to find the support for an answer from the student curriculum, and closed domain tests such as intermediate level math and science tests (algebra, geometry, Newtonian physics problems, etc.). Unlike open domain tests, closed domain tests require the system to have significant domain knowledge and reasoning capabilities. For example, geometry questions typically involve a number of geometry primitives (lines, quadrilaterals, circles, etc) and require students to use axioms and theorems of geometry (Pythagoras theorem, alternating angles, etc) to solve them. These closed domains often have a formal logical basis and the question can be mapped to a formal language by semantic parsing. The formal question representation can then provided as an input to an expert system to solve the question.
Visualization of the liver with 99mTc-EHDP in thalassemia major.

A case is reported in which substantial liver uptake of99mTc-hydroxyethylidene diphosphonate (99mTc-EHDP) was seen on bone scan. The patient, a 25-year-old male with the diagnosis of thalassemia major made at the age of 3 years, had received regular blood transfusions over many years. Clinical and laboratory evidence of hemosiderosis suggests that the presence of large quantities of iron in the liver of this patient may have been responsible for the hepatic uptake of the bone scanning agent.
Fundamentals and innovations in regional anaesthesia for infants and children.

Regional anaesthesia in children has evolved rapidly in the last decade. Although it previously consisted of primarily neuraxial techniques, the practice now incorporates advanced peripheral nerve blocks, which were only recently described in adults. These novel blocks provide new avenues for providing opioid-sparing analgesia while minimising invasiveness, and perhaps risk, associated with older techniques. At the same time, established methods, such as infant spinal anaesthesia, under-utilised in the last 20 years, are experiencing a revival. The impetus has been the concern regarding the potential long-term neurocognitive effects of general anaesthesia in the young child. These techniques have expanded from single shot spinal anaesthesia to combined spinal/epidural techniques, which can now effectively provide surgical anaesthesia for procedures below the umbilicus for a prolonged period of time, thereby avoiding the need for general anaesthesia. Continuous 2-chloroprocaine infusions, previously only described for intra-operative regional anaesthesia, have gained popularity as a means of providing prolonged postoperative analgesia in epidural and continuous nerve block techniques. The rapid, liver-independent metabolism of 2-chloroprocaine makes it ideal for prolonged local anaesthetic infusions in neonates and small infants, obviating the increased risk of local anaesthetic systemic toxicity that occurs with amide local anaesthetics. Debate continues over certain practices in paediatric regional anaesthesia. While the rarity of complications makes comparative analyses difficult, data from large prospective registries indicate that providing regional anaesthesia to children while under general anaesthesia appears to be at least as safe as in the sedated or awake patient. In addition, the estimated frequency of serious adverse events demonstrates that regional blocks in children under general anaesthesia are no less safe than in awake adults. In infants, the techniques of direct thoracic epidural placement or caudal placement with cephalad threading each have distinct advantages and disadvantages. As the data cannot support the safety of one technique over the other, the site of epidural insertion remains largely a matter of anaesthetist discretion.
Epidemiology of Renal Cell Carcinoma

Kidney cancer is a relatively rare malignancy. In the United States, there are roughly 30 000 new cases of kidney cancer each year, accounting for approximately 2% of all incident cancer cases diagnosed annually (Parker et al. 1996).
In-situ ion irradiation study of alloy 709 stainless steels with different processing histories

Abstract Alloy 709 stainless steel (A709 SS) has gained an increased interest in nuclear applications due to its advanced properties at high temperatures over the widely used Type 316 SS. However, how this alloy behaves under irradiation with concurrent environmental factors, such as mechanical deformation and/or thermal annealing, has not been studied. In this work, we used in-situ ion irradiation inside a transmission electron microscope (TEM) to investigate the effects of irradiation on the microstructures of A709 SS samples with different prior processing histories, including as-received, annealed, and creep-deformed. It was found that, compared to room temperature irradiation, 600°C irradiation led to larger dislocation loop sizes and lower loop densities. With 600°C irradiation, the creep-deformed sample, which had the highest precipitate density and the highest dislocation density, had the smallest loop size and the lowest loop density compared to others. This observation has been rationalized with quantitative evaluation of the sink strength factors in each sample. This study shows that in-service deformation can significantly affect the irradiation performance in structural materials at reactor operating conditions.
The Importance of Considering Undocumented Immigration from Multiple Perspectives in the Context of Social Justice

Undocumented immigration is a contested topic in the United States and elsewhere. Currently, it is estimated that close to 12 million people reside in the United States without legal authorization (Pew Hispanic Center, 2009). Few issues are as polemic and contentious as the issue of undocumented immigration. Although much can be said and written about this issue, I will limit my discussion of this topic to aspects of this debate that I consider to be neglected. Specifically, when people advocate for the rights of undocumented immigrants to reside in the United States in the name of social justice, whose social justice do they have in mind?
Analysis of CAK activities from human cells.

The cdk-activating kinase (CAK) activates cyclin-dependent kinases (cdks) that control cell-cycle progression by phosphorylating a threonine residue conserved in cdks. CAK from humans contains p40(MO15) (cdk7), cyclin H and MAT1, which are also subunits of transcription factor IIH where they phosphorylate the C-terminal domain of the large subunit of RNA polymerase II. In contrast, budding yeast Cak1p is a monomeric enzyme without C-terminal domain kinase activity. Here, we analyze CAK activities in HeLa cells using cdk2-affinity chromatography. In addition to MO15, a second CAK activity was detected that runs on gel filtration at 30-40 kDa. This activity phosphorylated and activated cdk2 and cdk6. Furthermore, this 'small CAK' activity resembled Cak1p rather than MO15 in terms of substrate specificity, reactivity to antibodies against MO15 and Cak1p, and sensitivity to 5'- fluorosulfonylbenzoyladenosine, an irreversible inhibitory ATP analog. Our findings suggest the presence of at least two different CAK activities in human cells. (Less)
Role of nitric oxide in the in vitro splanchnic vascular hyporeactivity in ascitic cirrhotic rats

Abstract Background: The locally acting vasodilator nitric oxide has recently been implicated as a possible mediator in the vasodilatation observed in prehepatic portal hypertension. The aim of this study was to assess if nitric oxide could also be implicated in the vasodilation observed in experimental cirrhosis. Methods: In an in vitro preparation, the vascular responsiveness to potassium chloride of Krebs'-perfused superior mesenteric arterial vascular beds of control (n = 12) and cirrhotic (n = 10) rats with ascites, induced by CCl 4 , were tested. Results: Increases in perfusion pressures over baseline in response to potassium chloride (125 mmol/L) were significantly lower in vessel preparations of cirrhotic rats (84.7 ± 12.3 and 134.2 ± 16.3 mm Hg for cirrhotic and control rats, respectively, P ω -nitro-l-arginine (10 −4 mol/L). The corresponding increases in perfusion pressures were 145.1 ± 18.0 and 173.0 ± 14.8 mm Hg for cirrhotic and control rats, respectively ( P = NS ). Nitric oxide formation blockade increased the vascular response to KCl in cirrhotic and control rats, the respective percentage changes being 84.6% ± 14.8% and 38.5% ± 12.1% ( P Conclusions: (1) Superior mesenteric arterial vascular beds of cirrhotic rats express a significant contracting hyporeactivity to KCl and (2) nitric oxide at least partly mediates the hyporesponsiveness in this in vitro preparation.
Glyoxylate Carboligase of Escherichia coli IDENTIFICATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE AS THE PRIMARY REACTION PRODUCT

Abstract An acidimetric method is proposed to distinguish between carbon dioxide and carbonic acid as the primary product of enzymic decarboxylation reactions. Application of this method to the thiamine pyrophosphate-requiring Escherichia coli glyoxylate carboligase reaction (the decarboxylating condensation of glyoxylate to yield hydroxymalonic semialdehyde) at pH 8 shows a transient disappearance of protons. Kinetic analysis of this proton uptake shows that the reaction occurs according to the pathway [for equation see PDF] The value of kh measured during the enzyme-catalyzed reaction is identical to the independently determined rate constant of carbon dioxide hydration. Thus, the intermediate is carbon dioxide, and the enzyme does not catalyze its hydration. The identity of the intermediate is further confirmed by the fact that addition of carbonic anhydrase to the reaction mixture suppresses the pH changes.
Anti-tumor effects of a novel MEK inhibitor in combination with cytotoxic chemotherapy in human melanoma cell lines

3796 Melanoma is the most common fatal skin cancer, killing over 7500 people in 2005 alone. The incidence of melanoma in the United States continues to increase annually. Dacarbazine and its analog, the orally available Temozolomide (TMZ), are chemotherapeutic agents commonly used to treat advanced melanoma. However, with treatment there is only a 15-20% response rate and an overall disease free survival rate of 5%. Signal transduction inhibitors are being investigated for the treatment of most human cancers, including melanoma. An alteration in approximately 50% of melanomas is mutations in B-Raf that leads to constitutive activation with concomitant downstream signaling through MEK and MAPK pathway. This suggests that the use of a signal transduction inhibitor that acts subsequent to B-Raf signaling may be beneficial in some melanomas. Further, strategies that combine cytotoxic chemotherapy and signal transduction inhibitors should be investigated in vitro prior to combinations being used in vivo . To this end, we have began studying the effect of cytotoxic chemotherapy in combination with a novel MEK inhibitor (AR389, Array Biopharma) in three melanoma cell lines that encompass early (WM35) and late stage disease (WM852) and an activating mutation in B-Raf (A375). Cell lines were screened for sensitivity to chemotherapeutic agents (paclitaxel (PTX), viblastine (VBL), etoposide (ETP), cisplatin (CDDP), SN-38 and temozolomide (TMZ)) as well as to the molecularly targeted agents AR389 and Iressa. IC 50 values for each drug by cell line were determined using a cell proliferation assay. The effect of AR389 in combination with cytotoxic chemotherapy was determined to try to design an effective melanoma treatment strategy. Preliminary studies suggest that AR389 in combination with cytotoxic chemotherapy produces an additive or synergistic effect in melanoma cell lines. Additionally, we report AR389 effects on cell cycle and cell signaling by flow cytometry and western blotting. Data from these studies will lead to AR389 combination and scheduling with cytotoxic chemotherapy in murine tumor models.
Contrast Media Induced Nephropathy in Diabetic Renal Disease

Diabetes mellitus has been incriminated as a risk factor for radiocontrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) since the I960’s [39]. Two decades later, the precise risk to the diabetic kidney is still debated with incidence rates ranging from less than 1 % to over 30% [31,50,52], especially when complicated by chronic renal failure (CRF). Almost 100% of diabetics with a serum creatinine level (SCr) greater than 400 /?mol/1 (4.5 mg/dl) can develop CIN after contrast exposure [22,52]. Dialysis is needed in 25–50% of all patients who develop CIN [23,29,49] but in 40–50% of diabetics [16,54], a few permanently [54]. Few studies are confined to diabetic patients and most do not report on diabetic subtypes yet differences in outlook between older and younger diabetics and various subtypes of diabetes almost certainly exist — perhaps Type II diabetic patients are less likely to develop CIN than type 1 patients [22,46]. Methodologie differences between studies and variability in contrast dosages exist. Diagnostic increases in SCr vary between 20% [26] and 50% [12,19,37] over baseline, whereas absolute increases may be as little as 26 /xmol/1 (0.3 mg/dl) [26] or as liberal as 177 /xmol/l (2.0 mg/dl) [8,9]. A rise in SCr of at least 50% [12,19,38] or 88 /?mol/1 (1 mg/dl) [14,19,22,51,52,54] within 48 hours of contrast administration seems acceptable. Furthermore, the applicability of »low osmolality« or »nonionic« radiocontrast materials to the diabetic kidney is unclear. These issues will be addressed in this chapter.
Foreword to Robert Eli Rosen, Lawyers in Corporate Decision-Making

This Foreword describes the contributions made by Robert Eli Rosen in his classic, ground-breaking sociological study of inside counsel in business corporations, Lawyers in Corporation Decision-Making (Quid Pro Books, 2010).
Infrared radiation associated with protostars.

Various stages in the collapse of an interstellar gas cloud into a cluster of protostars are discussed. The residual gas of the cloud which does not go into the protostars should form an opaque envelope which will thermalize the energy output of the protostars and be detectable as a high-luminosity infrared object. The infrared object in Orion newly discovered by Low is interpreted to be one of these objects.
Metastable phase relationships in zinc-rich copper and silver alloys produced by rapid freezing

Abstract By using the very rapid freezing technique of “splat” cooling the two phase field between the cph η-terminal solid solution and the cph e-phase have been explored in the Zn-Cu and Zn-Ag systems. Metastable extensions of both the η- and the e-phases can be produced for all compositions in the two phase region. Nevertheless a discontinuity in structure remains between the metastable extensions of the stable phases at nearly equal electron concentrations: 1.912 for Zn-Ag and 1.9516 for Zn-Cu. The discontinuity, most clearly shown by the change in slope of unit cell volume with composition, occurs at nearly equal values of axial ratio: about 1.61. The result of the very rapid freezing has been to eliminate the equilibrium two phase field and to bring metastable e and η phase fields together until they just touch one another. A consideration of thermodynamic arguments is presented to support the idea that the miscibility gap occurs not because of a hump in an otherwise continuous free energy curve for the solid phase but because the e- and η-phases do correspond to two distinguishably different structures.
The effects of centrifugation and titanium fiber reinforcement on fatigue failure mechanisms in poly(methyl methacrylate) bone cement.

The contributions to fatigue resistance in poly(methyl methacrylate) bone cement (PMMA) by centrifugation and titanium fiber addition were studied. Three modified bone cements were tested: porosity reduced cement (C-PMMA); titanium (Ti) fiber-reinforced cement (R-PMMA), using a novel method to incorporate fibers; and porosity reduced and Ti fiber-reinforced cement (C-R-PMMA). Specimens of untreated bone cement (PMMA) were included as controls. Non-notched and notched specimens were cyclically loaded in fully reversed bending. For the non-notched specimens, at all stress levels, C-R-PMMA had significantly greater fatigue life than either C-PMMA or R-PMMA (except C-PMMA at 30 MPa). R-PMMA had lower fatigue life than the control at 30 MPa (nominal maximum stress), but higher fatigue life at 20 and 15 MPa. At both 20 and 15 MPa, there was no statistical difference between the fatigue lives of C-PMMA and R-PMMA. Fractography revealed that, at 30 MPa, characteristics of rapid fracture predominated. At 20 and 15 MPa, in contrast, almost the entire fracture surface showed the characteristic fatigue morphology, indicating that subcritical crack growth was predominant. For the notched specimens, C-PMMA showed greater life than PMMA at the highest stress intensity, but the lifetimes converged with decreasing stress intensity. In contrast, the lifetimes for PMMA and R-PMMA diverged with decreasing stress intensity. The effect of centrifugation appeared to be strongest at higher stress intensities, and diminished with decreasing stress intensity. The reinforcing effect of Ti fiber addition increased the notched fatigue life at high initial stress intensities, and the reinforcing effect increased with decreased stress intensity. In both the non-notched and notched fatigue experiments, the combination of porosity reduction and Ti fiber reinforcement (C-R-PMMA) led to substantial improvements in fatigue life at each stress and stress intensity level, suggesting that Ti fiber reinforcement and porosity reduction effects are additive. Fiber reinforcement affects the fatigue crack propagation phase of failure in bone cement, enhancing the fatigue crack propagation resistance. Pore reduction may affect fatigue crack initiation as well as fatigue crack propagation resistance. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Background exposure to toxic metals in women adversely influences pregnancy during in vitro fertilization (IVF)

Low-level environmental exposure to Hg, Pb and Cd may interfere with pregnancy during in vitro fertilization (IVF). The aim of this study was to generate hypotheses concerning associations between background exposures and pregnancy. In modified Poisson regression models including 24 women and adjusted for urine Cd and creatinine, blood Pb, age, race and smoking, 1 μg/L increases in blood Hg are associated with decreases of 35% (P=0.03) and 33% (P=0.01) in clinical and biochemical pregnancies, respectively. In alternate Poisson models including 26 women and adjusted for blood Pb, blood Hg, age, race and smoking, 1 μg/L increases in blood Cd are associated with decreases of 94% (P=0.01) and 82% (P=0.04) in clinical and biochemical pregnancies, respectively. No effects are detected in 15 men, although inverse associations are suggested for urine cadmium and pregnancy. These data suggest that low-level, background exposures to Hg and Cd may interfere with pregnancy following IVF.
The forces on a flat plate in a couette flow

A bounded shear flow proposed by Glauert is re-examined, to determine more precisely the disturbance caused by the boundary layer on the plate. Toomre and Rott's result, that the pressure gradient due to bounding overtakes the Li-Murray value for an unbounded flow within a surprisingly short distance of the leading edge, is thereby confirmed in a more realistic context. But both of these are found to be less important than that due to the induced circulation predicted by Glauert. While bounding produces a larger leading edge drag than the unbounded theory predicts, circulation gives more lift. The discussion of pressure on and ahead of the plate is given for general bounding. In particular, it shows that the present results are typical and that the anomaly found by Toomre and Rott always disappears when the limit of remote bounding is taken correctly.
Reduced Medication Access A Marker for Vulnerability in US Stroke Survivors

Background and Purpose— Medication access is crucial to secondary stroke prevention. We assessed medication access and associated barriers to care across region and time in a national sample of US stroke survivors. Methods— Among all 5840 black or white stroke survivors aged ≥45 years responding to the National Health Interview Survey years 1997 to 2004, we examined inability to afford medications within the last 12 months across region (Northeast, Midwest, West, South) and time. With logistic regression, we adjusted associations between medication inaffordability and region and time for age, sex, race, neurological disability, comorbidity, health status, insurance, income and out-of-pocket medical expenses. Results— In 2004, ≈76 000 US stroke survivors were unable to afford medications. Lower medication affordability was reported among stroke survivors who were P P P =0.001), income P P trend =0.01) overall and increased in all US regions except the Northeast. Conclusions— We identified a vulnerable stroke survivor population with reduced medication access and increased barriers to medical care. Membership in this population has grown substantially from 1997 to 2004, potentially leading to increased recurrent stroke incidence.
Pulmonary complications of acute leukemia

The lungs of 50 consecutive autopsied cases of acute leukemia were studied and cultures were obtained from 36. Thirty-one patients had major pulmonary lesions. Most of these were not recognized antemortem. Infection was the most common pulmonary complication. Pulmonary disease was present in 95% of those cases with abnormal chest x-rays but 59% of the patients with normal chest x-rays also had pulmonary pathology. Leukemic involvement was identified microscopically in 64% of the lungs. Peribronchial infiltrates were found most frequently. Patients with high levels of circulating abnormal cells had more severe leukemic involvement of the lung. Pulmonary hemorrhage was found in 54% of the lungs and was severe in 12%. The incidence of pulmonary hemorrhage was higher in patients with severe thrombocytopenia. Thirty-one major and 29 minor pulmonary infections were found in 40 of the patients. Many of these were unrecognized clinically and the offending organism was seldom isolated antemortem. The most frequently identified pathogens were Pseudomonas sp., Candidia sp., and Aspergillus sp.
The Politics of Peace in Mozambique: Post-Conflict Democratization, 1992-2000

Carrie L. Manning. The Politics of Peace in Mozambique: Post-Conflict Democratization, 1992-2000. Westport, Conn.: Praeger/Greenwood, 2002. xii + 230 pp. Bibliography. Index. Map. $66.95. Cloth. Carrie Manning has provided a focused analysis of party politics in Mozambique in the years following the implementation of the 1992 Peace Accord. She has organized her study within the political science concept of "elite habituation" (4), which refers to the ways that political leaders and other elites learn to behave in particular political modes. This framework serves her well as a window into the internal dynamics of Frelimo and Renamo (respectively, the ruling party since 1975, formerly the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique, Frente da Libertacao de Moaambique; and the primary opposition party, the Mozambique National Resistance, Resistencia National de Mocambique) . However, there is little attention paid to other political actors, such as the mass organizations of women, youth, and trade unionists, nor is there any extended mention of religious institutions or other associations that have had an impact on recent politics in Mozambique. Manning begins with a brief chapter of background on Mozambique in the 1970s, but quickly proceeds to discuss the negotiations during the 1980s peace process. Subsequent chapters deal with Renamo's transition from guerrilla movement to political party, the impact of the move to multiparty politics, and the elections of 1994 and 1999. Her broadest insights suggest how the experience of negotiating for peace led to the perpetuation of practices that have hampered the development of a strong democratic tradition. Renamo continues to be overly reliant on international actors such as donors and diplomats, and continually turns to boycotts and disruption rather than bargaining as equals whenever political discussions do not proceed as they wish. The inability of Renamo party members to advance their democratic practice may reflect a recognition of their own weaknesses. Fearing they would lose any parliamentary discussion or vote, they avoid such confrontations rather than risk defeat. Frelimo, on its side, has turned to a legalistic approach, sometimes, as Manning indicates, an excessive legalism designed to prove that they are more democratic in practice because they are willing to rely on civic structures, government bodies, and the courts to gain their point. Renamo leaders dismiss outcomes from such proceedings because they believe that these structures continue to be dominated by Frelimo supporters, yet at the same time they refuse to get involved in the process of governing in a way that might integrate Renamo party members. The result is that Renamo continues to want extrapolitical negotiations over every dispute, all the while complaining about the "tyranny of the vote" (169). President Joaquim Chissano and Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama have been forced to negotiate over mundane as well as important issues rather than relying on other individuals and entities to make the decisions. …
An Integrated Approach to Reconstructing Genome-scale Transcriptional Regulatory Networks

Transcriptional regulatory networks (TRNs) program cells to dynamically alter their gene expression in response to changing internal or environmental conditions. In this study, we develop a novel workflow for generating large-scale TRN models that integrates comparative genomics data, global gene expression analyses, and intrinsic properties of transcription factors (TFs). An assessment of this workflow using benchmark datasets for the well-studied γ-proteobacterium Escherichia coli showed that it outperforms expression-based inference approaches, having a significantly larger area under the precision-recall curve. Further analysis indicated that this integrated workflow captures different aspects of the E. coli TRN than expression-based approaches, potentially making them highly complementary. We leveraged this new workflow and observations to build a large-scale TRN model for the α-Proteobacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides that comprises 120 gene clusters, 1211 genes (including 93 TFs), 1858 predicted protein-DNA interactions and 76 DNA binding motifs. We found that ~67% of the predicted gene clusters in this TRN are enriched for functions ranging from photosynthesis or central carbon metabolism to environmental stress responses. We also found that members of many of the predicted gene clusters were consistent with prior knowledge in R. sphaeroides and/or other bacteria. Experimental validation of predictions from this R. sphaeroides TRN model showed that high precision and recall was also obtained for TFs involved in photosynthesis (PpsR), carbon metabolism (RSP_0489) and iron homeostasis (RSP_3341). In addition, this integrative approach enabled generation of TRNs with increased information content relative to R. sphaeroides TRN models built via other approaches. We also show how this approach can be used to simultaneously produce TRN models for each related organism used in the comparative genomics analysis. Our results highlight the advantages of integrating comparative genomics of closely related organisms with gene expression data to assemble large-scale TRN models with high-quality predictions.
A new dimension hidden in the shadow of a wall

Abstract We propose a new way to hide the fifth dimension, and to modify gravity in the far infra-red. A gravitating tensional membrane in five dimensions folds the transverse space into a truncated cone, stoppered by the membrane. For near-critical tension, the conical opening is tiny, and the space becomes a very narrow conical sliver. A very long section, of length comparable to the membrane radius divided by the remaining conical angle, of this sliver is well approximated by a narrow cylinder ending on the membrane. Inside this cylindrical throat we can reduce the theory on the circle. At distances between the circle radius and the length of the cylinder, the theory looks 4D, with a Brans–Dicke-like gravity, and a preferred direction, while at larger distances the cone opens up and the theory turns 5D. The gravitational light scalar in the throat can get an effective local mass term from the interplay of matter interactions and quantum effective potentials on the cone, which may suppress its long range effects. We discuss some phenomenologically interesting consequences.
Procaine smooth muscle

Abstract 1. 1. Procaine hydrochloride depolarized guinea-pig ureteral muscle. A level of 0.1% converted action potentials to plateau-type and prolonged their durations. 2. 2. Phasic contractions were increased in duration but reduced in magnitude by procaine 0.1–0.5%. 3. 3. Spike activity of taenia coli was enhanced by procaine 0.01–0.1%, and hence tension was increased at relatively low K + levels. 4. 4. Potassium (80 mM)-induced tonic contractions were reduced by procaine 0.01–0.1% in both ureter and taenia. 5. 5. Ca 2+ had antogonistic actions. The observations could be explained by inhibition of Ca 2+ activity.