cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Fitness Fatness Index and Alzheimer-specific mortality

Abstract Objective We evaluated the specific association between a Fitness Fat Index (FFI) and Alzheimer's-specific mortality among a national sample of the broader U.S. adult population. Methods FFI was calculated as cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) divided by waist-to-height ratio (WHR). Data from the 1999–2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were used to identify 16,146 participants, ages 20–85. Data from participants in these cycles were linked to death certificate data from the National Death Index. Person-months of follow-up were calculated from the date of the interview until date of death or censoring on December 31, 2011, whichever came first. Results In a Cox proportional hazard model, for every 1 FFI unit increase, participants had a 14% reduced hazard of Alzheimer-specific death (HR = 0.86; 95% CI: 0.83–0.90; P Conclusion In this national sample of individuals at risk for Alzheimer's disease, increased FFI was associated with reduced risk of Alzheimer's-specific death. Thus, a more favorable fitness-to-fatness ratio is associated with reduced risk of Alzheimer's-specific mortality, underscoring the importance of fitness promoting and fatness reducing strategies.
Impromptu speech gamification for ESL/EFL students

Courses: Any introductory undergraduate public-speaking course, in particular in ESL/EFL contextsObjectives: This single-class activity is intended to (1) build students’ ability to communicate orally “off the cuff;” (2) foster students’ understanding of the major organizational formats used in organizing speeches; and (3) increase students’ awareness of their nonverbal communication.
Kinetics of Adatom Ordering on Surfaces

Chemisorbed and physisorbed systems provide in principle a rich testing ground for the study of pattern formation in systems undergoing phase transitions. This topic belongs to the general area of the kinetics of first order phase transitions, which involves the evolution of systems initially far from equilibrium to equilibrium, ordered states. The basic physics involves an understanding of interface instabilities in particular and the kinetics of topological defects in general. The field as such has a long history, involving experimental studies of systems such as liquid-gas, binary fluids, multicomponent alloys, intercalated compounds, and superfluids and superconductors. Only rather recently have detailed studies begun of similar phenomena in surface science. The article by K. Heinz in this volume provides a comprehensive summary of the current status of experimental work in this field. It also provides a thorough analysis of the difficulties involved in typical diffraction experiments. The general field has profited by computer simulation studies, which in surface science was initiated by a study of phase separation in a lattice gas model of 0/W(110) by SAHNI and GUNTON [1]. The difficulties involved in such Monte Carlo studies have been critically reviewed recently by MILCHEV et al [2].
Subcellular Localization of SARS-CoV Structural Proteins

Coronaviruses are enveloped viruses that assemble at intracellular membranes of the endoplasmic reticulum–Golgi intermediate compartment (ERGIC) in infected cells.1 S and M are the main components of the viral envelope. The E protein is a minor component of the envelope, but plays an important role in virus assembly.2 Coronavirus envelope formation is nucleocapsid independent. Expression of only the E and M proteins is sufficient for the formation of virus-like-particles (VLPs) of many coronaviruses.3–5 The N protein is a multifunctional phosphoprotein that encapsidates the viral genome and plays a role in virus assembly.6, 7 N also appears to be involved in viral RNA replication and/or transcription.8, 9 The aim in this study was to provide a comprehensive view of the subcellular localization of the main SARS-CoV structural proteins. The S, M, E, and N genes were expressed in BHK-21 cells, and localization of the proteins was analyzed by indirect immunofluorescence microscopy. The proteins were co-analyzed with specific organelle markers for the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and Golgi. Additionally, the M and E proteins were co-localized with a cellular marker for the ERGIC. The N protein remained cytoplasmic. The S, M, and E proteins were found to concentrate to the Golgi region, although some S appeared to also be transported to the cell surface.
Good news and bad news of blue carbon.

Traditionally, ocean acidification researchers have focused on how secular changes in carbon dioxide (CO2) or pH will impact organisms. Global mean pH is estimated to have decreased by 0.1 pH units (representing a 28% increase in acidity) since the preindustrial age and may drop another 0.3 pH units by the end of this century (1). Several recent papers, however, have highlighted the importance of understanding changes in the short-term variability in carbon parameters in addition to the secular trends (2⇓–4). An article in PNAS by Pacella et al. (5) examines how net community metabolism (NCM) in a coastal seagrass bed can help slow the long-term secular change in ocean acidification but exacerbates the short-term variations in carbon system parameters. These short-term variations can drive the pH or the saturation state of the waters with respect to aragonite below a threshold for certain organisms that may prevent them from ever benefitting from the long-term relief. Of course, the driver of the secular ocean acidification trend is the accumulation of anthropogenic (human-derived) carbon in the surface ocean. This accumulation occurs everywhere (coastal and open ocean) as atmospheric CO2 increases, even in areas where seawater CO2 values are higher than atmospheric values. Whether it is low CO2 waters absorbing more CO2 from the atmosphere over time or high CO2 waters releasing less CO2 back into the atmosphere over time, the net effect of carbon accumulation and acidification of the waters is the same. The seasonal cycle of CO2 has been appreciated for its impact on our ability to detect when … [↵][1]1Email: csabine{at}hawaii.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
Group Services for Learning Disabled Children and Their Parents

Learning disabilities affect cognitive and social development. Group services for learning disabled children, adolescents, and their parents can provide effective intervention. Voluntary participat...
Abstract 16952: Genetic Deficiency of 12/15Lipoxygenase Activates EP4 Receptor on Proresolving Macrophages to Attenuate Renal Inflammation After Myocardial Infarction

Introduction: 12/15lipoxygenase (12/15LOX) metabolites and cyclooxygenase-2(COX-2)-derived prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) are key mediators of the inflammatory response after myocardial infarction (MI); t...
THE ABSORPTION OF SULFUR DIOXIDE BY WATER DROPLETS DURING CONDENSATION

It is known that the rate of absorption of a gas by a liquid can be accelerated by surface renewal, but current theories do not explain this phenomenon adequately. An experimental study was made to measure the rate of absorption of sulfur dioxide by water droplets falling through a gas mixture while simultaneously condensing water vapor on the droplets. The droplets were allowed to fall through tubes of 27, 77, 127, and 177 cm length, and the super saturation ratios tested were 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, and 2.5. The SO 2 concentration in Nitrogen was varied between 500 and 3, 000 ppm. The results of this study were compared with the predictions of current theories, and an alternative theory based on surface effects has been postulated.
Use and Misuse of Stochastic Hydrology in Water Resources

Proper use of stochastic modeling and generation of samples in utilitarian hydrology significantly outweighs misuse and unwarranted expectations. A major use of this stochastic technology is in the solution of water resources problems for which time horizons of solutions and the number of spatial points needing generation of samples are relatively large. This technology then produces multiple solutions, permitting the drawing up of the frequency distribution and the economic optimization or conventional decision making of the unique solution to be provided by the system. It further enables investigators: to experimentally derive the sampling frequency distributions; to check the analytically derived exact, asymptotic and approximate solutions of stochastic hydrology; to assess the characteristics of inferred or assumed models; to solve the complex problems of the regional water resources character; to develop the optimization-based operational rules for the water resources systems; to study the effects of uncertainty in the models and in their estimated parameters; to determine the confidence limit solutions; to investigate the sensitivity of solutions to various changes in models; to condense information; and to solve several other problems for which the modeling/simulation technology gives more accurate results than any other method available. This technology is good for the extraction and transfer of information contained in observational data. It is not a technology that could increase information beyond that contained in the data, except when the physical information available is combined with the statistical information.
Video: Enabling Public Cameras to Talk to the Public

This video presents a real-time end-to-end system which enables cameras to send personalized messages to people in a public area without knowing any addresses of their mobile phones. For facilitating this communication, we solve the problem of digitally associating people in the camera view with their smartphones without prior knowledge of the phones' IP/MAC addresses. The system doesn't need any dedicated devices and doesn't request people to wear digital tags. It utilizes users' motion patterns and leverages the diversity in motion features as the address for communication. The cameras broadcast a message to all the phones in the camera view using the target's motion features as the destination. Then a user's phone can locally compare the "motion address" of the packet against its own sensor data and will accept the packet if it's a "good" match. To protect the privacy of users' sensor data, we keep the users' personal sensing data on their phones instead of asking them to upload the data to server. Moreover, to prevent users' walking behavior from being revealed to public, we transform the raw motion features via principal component analysis (PCA) while maintaining their distinguishing power. On the whole, our system achieves 98%, 95%, 90%, 90%, 87% matching correctness for 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 users respectively.
Miscellaneous Uses of Metal Complexes

The variety of clinically used inorganic agents may be gauged by the number of miscellaneous reagents included in this chapter, ranging from diuretics to vasodilators. Although mercurial diuretics are nowadays not as frequently used as previously, they are worth remembering for the specific effects that can be induced by toxic substances when selective reactivity occurs, as well as for the contributions their study have made to the techniques and principles of renal pharmacology. The vasodilation properties of sodium nitroprusside are an important aid in heart surgery and treatment. The curare-like effect of charged metal complexes, while certainly not of clinical advantage, is an effect which can be predicted from the nature of cellular membrane receptors and, in the case of ruthenium red, does have useful attributes as a probe of biochemical reactions. As with the gold salts discussed in the previous chapter, the biochemical effects of these agents may be traced back to the enzymatic level and involving disruption of the balance of essential ions such as Na+, K+, and Ca2+.
Updated optical modeling of JWST coronagraph performance contrast, stability, and strategies

We update performance simulations and contrast predictions for JWST's coronagraphs based on the latest infor- mation on the as-built telescope and instrument properties, including both static and dynamic contributions to wavefront error. By combining optical modeling of the telescope, instruments and coronagraph optics along with STScI's rigorously-validated exposure time calculation engine, we develop updated contrast models including contributions from effects such as target acquisition residuals, stellar color differences, etc. We present assessments of the impact of wavefront error changes over time between science and PSF reference stars, using modeled wavefront drifts on various timescales based on available observatory structural/thermal/optical modeling and tested performance during the OTIS cryo test, extrapolated to on-orbit conditions. For NIRCam we explore tradeoffs between different occulting masks at a given wavelength. Between now and the start of Cycle 1 science, these and other updated simulations will enable the science community to prepare analysis tools and PSF subtraction software to hit the ground running with JWST coronagraphic observations.
The technological performance of populism

This article investigates the Trump campaign’s strategic use of digital platforms and their affordances and norms that contribute to a technological performance of populism. To do so, I build on th...
Core analysis of spectral shift operated SmAHTR

Abstract Fluoride High-temperature Reactors (FHRs) are regarded for their high temperature output and passive decay heat rejection. Small Modular Advanced High Temperature Reactor (SmAHTR), a 125 MWth reactor falls under the FHR group. Along with FHRs, SmAHTR also uses multilayered, high accident tolerant TRistructural ISOtropic (TRISO) fuel kernels. Despite the reactor’s benefits due to its high efficiency and safety parameters, its considerably higher fuel costs compared to traditional UO 2 fuel creates a drawback. To mitigate this problem and use the fuel more efficiently, lower fraction of fuel can be loaded into the core, however the resulting cycle length may be prohibitively short. This study proposes a spectral shift scheme to improve both the discharge burnup and the cycle length simultaneously for these types of reactors. Our analyses include both the neutronic and the thermal hydraulics (T/H) assessment for the non-spatial implementation of this scheme under single- and multi-batch scheme operation. The safety performance, i.e. reactivity coefficients and T/H limits, for this concept is comparable to the original design. The results confirm that performance benefits of more than 32% compared to the original design are achievable.
Association between diet quality and sleep apnea in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Rationale Although short sleep duration has been linked to unhealthy dietary patterns, little is known about the association of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a disorder characterized by sleep fragmentation and diet.
Graphene-based Slot Waveguide Photodetectors for Optical Communications

Here we report on a novel graphene-based plasmonic slot waveguide photodetector. The ultra-narrow 15 nm slot waveguide enables short carrier transitions times resulting in a gain-bandwidth product 5.3×1015 at λ = 1.5 µm.
Posterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome (PRES) Secondary to Use of Axitinib in Renal Cell Cancer (P4.012)

Objective: Posterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome is a constellation of nonspecific symptoms. Therefore, the diagnosis needs a high clinical suspicion. The pathogenesis of this condition is still unclear, although several hypotheses and different triggers have been proposed. Chemotherapy agents are believed to be associated with this condition. We report a rare case of PRES in a renal cell cancer patient who was on Axitinib. Background: N/A Design/Methods: A 68-year-old right-handed female presented to the hospital after she was found unresponsive on the floor. She did not have a witnessed seizure. On admission, she was noted to be hypertensive and had mild acute kidney injury most likely secondary to rhabdomyolysis. Her renal function improved after intravenous hydration. Routine EEG showed signs of encephalopathy. Brain MRI with and without contrast showed extensive white matter signal abnormalities in the bilateral posterior parietal lobe, left anterior parietal lobe and left posterior frontal lobe in the FLAIR sequence. Similar signal abnormalities were also seen on bilateral cerebellar lobes. The patient had a known history of renal cell cancer and was started on Axitinib a week prior to hospitalization at our facility. Axitinib was stopped and she was back to her baseline functional status in 2 days. A repeat brain MRI which was done 21 days later showed complete reversal of signal abnormalities. Results: N/A Conclusions: Axitinib is being increasingly used in renal cell cancer and advanced thyroid cancer. The drug should be immediately discontinued in patients who develop clinical and radiologic features suggestive of PRES. Study Supported by: N/A Disclosure: Dr. Sanei Moghaddam has nothing to disclose. Dr. Ramaiah has nothing to disclose. Dr. Jumaa has nothing to disclose. Dr. Zaidi has nothing to disclose.
Numerical Simulation of the Coal and Straw Co-firing in Swirling Stabilized Burner

The aim of this paper is to valorize straw waste by co-firing coal and straw in a swirl-stabilized reactor in order to produce a clean energy. To fulfill this purpose, a comprehensive computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling of co-firing coal and straw was presented, in which the pulverized straw particles and coal particles are independently injected into the burner through two concentric injection tubes. The numerical approach is based on Reynolds averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) approach using the realizable k–e turbulence model for turbulence, the non-premixed combustion model for gas phase combustion, the Lagrangian approach (DPM) for the discrete second and the DO for radiation. The finding results show a good agreement with numerical and experimental data.
The IMS 2009 Quiz [Microwave Surfing]

For this edition of the fill-in-theblank IMS Quiz, the author has chosen all the questions from the various feature articles appearing in the 2008 issues of IEEE Microwave Magazine. So, if you have been reading the magazine faithfully, you should be able to zip through the quiz. Otherwise, you can look at the answers and use the cited articles to learn about some neat stuff that you might have missed in the magazine last year.
Tube feeding outcomes of infants in a Level IV NICU

NICU patients are commonly discharged home with nasogastric (NG) or gastrostomy (G-tube) feeding, but wide practice variation exists. The objective of this study was to evaluate feeding and growth outcomes and complications in NICU patients discharged home with NG or G-tube feeding. Retrospective cohort study of infants discharged from a Level IV NICU with an NG or G-tube who had follow up to 1 year. Clinical characteristics and outcomes were compared between groups. The study sample included 264 infants: 140 with NG and 124 with G-tube. More infants in the G-tube group (65%) still required tube feedings 12 months post-discharge than infants in the NG group (24%). Infants in the G-tube group had more tube-related ER visits than infants in the NG group. Growth outcomes did not differ. Home NG feeding may be a safe alternative to a surgically placed G-tube in select NICU patients.
Earthquake simulation: Shaking up the ethics education of future business marketing leaders

Three intrastate universities developed a corporate social responsibility (CSR) simulation in an upper-division, undergraduate online markets and stakeholders class. The simulation engaged students...
Multiscale effects of spaceflight on murine tendon and bone

Despite a wealth of data on the effects of spaceflight on tendons and bones, little is known about its effects on the interfacial tissue between these two structures, the enthesis. Mice were sent to space on three separate missions: STS-131, STS-135, and Bion-M1 to determine how spaceflight affects the composition, structure, mechanics, and gene expression of the humerus-supraspinatus and calcaneus-Achilles entheses. At the nanoscale, spaceflight resulted in decreased carbonate levels in the bone, likely due to increased remodeling, as suggested by increased expression of genes related to osteoclastogenesis (CatK, Tnfsf11) and mature osteoblasts (Col1, Osc). Tendons showed a shift in collagen fibril size towards smaller diameters that may have resulted from increased expression of genes related to collagen degradation (Mmp3, Mmp13). These nanoscale changes did not result in micro- and milliscale changes to the structure and mechanics of the enthesis. There were no changes in bone volume, trabecular structure, failure load, or stiffness with spaceflight. This lack of tissue-level change may be anatomy based, as extremities may be less sensitive to spaceflight than central locations such as vertebrae, yet results highlight that the tendon enthesis may be robust against negative effects of spaceflight.
Energy Balance Analysis for an Island PV Station Used for EV Charging on the Basis of Net Metering

The Soft Energy Applications & Environmental Protection Laboratory of UNIWA has recently installed a small PV power station in order to offer zero-cost clean energy to the Tilos island community. The scope of this new PV station is twofold, i.e., first to cover the electricity consumption of the municipality building and secondly to meet the lighting (electricity) demand of the coastal street at the island harbor. On the other hand, the PV station is also supporting an electrical vehicle (EV) charging station, installed also in the same building in order to charge two EVs of the local municipality. According to the data gathered, it is obvious that the installed PV station contributes considerably on covering the electrical needs of the local municipal loads and EVs, while the developed solution may equally well apply in several other similar cases all around the Mediterranean Sea.
L’empathie en médecine

Resume L’empathie a bonne presse. Elle est reconnue pour avoir un impact positif dans la pratique clinique. Cependant, la profession medicale se debat pour parvenir a un equilibre entre la distance clinique et l’empathie. Trop de sensitivite aux emotions exprimees par les patients, sans regulation appropriee, peut conduire a de l’anxiete, au stress et a une detresse personnelle chez les medecins, nuisant a leur bien-etre et pouvant etre au detriment de leur fonctionnement cognitif. Trop peu d’empathie pourrait mener a sous-estimer la douleur des patients et a de moins bonnes relations avec eux. Cependant a mesure que le champ de l’empathie se developpe, le manque de coherence conceptuelle et de clarte entrave les progres. Dans certains cas, l’utilisation du terme meme d’empathie, par nature multidimensionnelle et interpersonnelle, n’a guere de valeur theorique ou clinique ajoutee. Les travaux recents en neuro-imagerie fonctionnelle avec des medecins et des professionnels de la sante mettent en lumiere les mecanismes neurocognitifs qui sous-tendent la sensibilite interpersonnelle, l’empathie et la motivation pour se soucier de l’autre. L’article conclut par une perspective nuancee et plus sobre du role de l’empathie en medecine et propose que cultiver le souci de l’autre est plus important que de partager l’etat emotionnel d’autrui ou de se mettre a sa place.
Tuberculosis: An Epidemic Perpetuated by Health Inequalities

Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading single-agent infectious disease killer worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO)'s End TB Strategy aims to achieve tuberculosis (TB) elimination by 2030, and in September 2018, the United Nations General Assembly held a High-Level Meeting on TB to address the urgency of the TB epidemic and the health inequalities that continue to propel it. The meeting endorsed an ambitious, comprehensive approach to the TB epidemic that incorporates universal health coverage and tackles the social determinants of this disease. In this article, we provide an overview of the key strategies promoted in this meeting and introduce work by five Rhode Island-based physicians that align with these goals.
The Re-Novicing of Elementary Teachers in Science? Grade Level Reassignment and Teacher PCK.

There is growing recognition of the prevalence of “within school churn”, a phenomenon in which teachers remain within a school but are assigned a new grade level or course. In this study we examine...
To Boldly Go Where No Man, or Woman, Has Gone Before!

This chapter challenges several common assumptions regarding the assessment of outcome goodness. In Part I Larry Temkin challenges various Axioms of Transitivity, including the Axiom of Transitivity for All Things Considered Better Than, according to which for any three outcomes, A, B, and C, if, all things considered, A is better than B, and all things considered, B is better than C, then, all things considered, A is better than C. Whether or not the Axioms of Transitivity hold, he suggests, depends on the nature of the good; in particular, on whether an Internal Aspects View or an Essentially Comparative View of outcome goodness is correct. In Part II, Temkin considers whether we should be neutral between different possible locations of the good: space, time, and people. He suggests that from a normative perspective we should treat space differently than time, and people differently than space and time. Temkin shows that three intuitively plausible dominance principles regarding space, time, and people are incompatible. He also argues that in some cases we should give priority to people over space and time, and to time over space, but that, controversially, in some cases, we should give priority to time over people.
Vexed and Insatiable: Unfeelable Feelings and the Marketplace of Early Modern Drama

This chapter examines the depiction of unruly emotional responses to economic practice in early modern English drama. It focuses specifically on potentially inaccessible structures of desire and anger, such as vexation and destructive consuming passions for goods, and argues that there is a significant historical distance built into these feelings that our own emotional instincts cannot properly access. This essay adapts ideas from contemporary economic theory like “affective forecasting” and “hedonic psychology” to work through the problems posed by the distant, unfeelable feelings animating marketplace plays by Jonson, Massinger, and Rowley.
Interventions Addressing Social Needs in Perinatal Care: A Systematic Review.

Introduction: Health is impacted by a wide range of nonmedical factors, collectively termed the social determinants of health (SDoH). As the mechanisms by which these factors influence wellness and...
The Divided (But Not More Predictable) Electorate: A Machine Learning Analysis of Voting in American Presidential Elections

Partisan sorting by social groups is believed to increase affective polarization and decrease group-level leverage in representation. Mounting evidence suggests that social groups are increasingly polarized in voting behavior, but how reliable are demographic labels as predictors of vote choice? We test for demographic sorting, using public opinion surveys between 1952--2020 and applying tree-based machine learning models to calculate out-of-sample predictions of presidential voting decisions. We calculate predictions based on voters' demographics and then gradually incorporate more information to test whether the electorate is becoming more predictable. Demographics alone typically can predict 63.5% of vote choices correctly. But contrary to the sorting hypothesis's implications, demographics have not grown more predictive over time, while partisanship has. Additional information about voters, such as issue positions or candidate perceptions, continue to be necessary for obtaining out-of-sample error rates of 5% or less. However, their added value decreases as partisanship's predictive power grows.
Elemental Sentential Reflection

“Sentential reflection” in the sense of [Fr03] is based on reflecting down from a category of classes. “Elemental sentential reflection” is based on reflecting down from a category of elemental classes. We present various forms of elemental sentential reflection, which are shown to interpret and be interpretable in certain set theories with large cardinal axioms.
Influence of agricultural managed aquifer recharge on nitrate transport: The role of soil texture and flooding frequency

Author(s): Murphy, NP; Waterhouse, H; Dahlke, HE | Abstract: Agricultural managed aquifer recharge (Ag-MAR) is a concept in which farmland is flooded during the winter using excess surface water to recharge the underlying groundwater. In this study, we show how different recharge practices affect NO3− leaching and mineralization–denitrification processes in different soil systems. Two contrasting soil textures (sand and fine sandy loam) from the Central Valley, California, were repeatedly flooded with 15ncm of water at varying time intervals in field and soil column experiments. Nitrogen species (NO3–, NH4+, total N), total C, dissolved O2, and moisture content were measured throughout the experiments. Results show that when flooding occurs at longer intervals (every 1–2nwk), N mineralization increases, leading to an increase of mobile NO3− in the upper root zone and leaching of significant quantities of NO3− from both soil textures (137.3 ± 6.6% [sand] and 145.7 ± 5.8% [fine sandy loam] of initial residual soil NO3−) during subsequent flooding events. Laboratory mineralization incubations show that long flooding intervals promote mineralization and production of excess NO3− at rates of 0.11–3.93nmg N kg–1 wk–1 (sand) and 0.08–3.41nmg N kg–1 wk–1 (fine sandy loam). Decreasing the flooding frequency to 72nh reduces potential mineralization, decreasing the amount of NO3− leached during flooding events (31.7 ± 3.8% [sand] and 64.7 ± 10.4% [fine sandy loam] of initial residual soil NO3–). The results indicate that implementing recharge as repeated events over a long (multiple-week) time horizon might increase the total amount of NO3− potentially available for leaching to groundwater.
Lemierre's Syndrome: A Case Series.

Lemierre’s syndrome (LS) is a potentially fatal complication of oropharyngeal infection, resulting in contiguous suppurative thrombosis of the internal jugular vein (IJV) and septic emboli. It is most commonly associated with Fusobacterium necrophorum (F. necrophorum), though other pathogens have also been implicated in its pathogenesis. The incidence of LS had so significantly decreased that it was referred to as "the forgotten disease." However, cases of LS have shown a resurgence, which may be partly attributed to an overreliance on a negative group A beta-hemolytic streptococcal rapid antigen detection test (RADT), commonly referred to as "rapid strep test." Clinicians must maintain a very high index of suspicion for LS in patients with persistent sequelae from tonsillopharyngitis who have a negative RADT.
Respirometric protocol to evaluate acute microbial inhibition in activated sludge

In the past, biological treatment has proven to be an efficient and cost-effective means for the removal of synthetic organic chemicals from wastewaters. As a result, many wastewater treatment facilities have incorporated activated sludge (AS) technology. A drawback of AS systems is their susceptibility to influent toxicity resulting from discharges of inhibitory compounds or process-related wastestreams. It is, therefore, desirable to quantify AS system performance deterioration resulting from such discharges. Although several researchers have compiled listings of IC50 values for several organic chemicals to individual groups of microorganisms (Blum and Speece, 1990; Tang et al., 1992), it is preferable to evaluate a compound’s effect to a particular microbial consortium (e.g., AS community). Furthermore, the ability to obtain IC50 values for specific biokinetic parameters such as µ max and K s would be beneficial.
The Renegotiation Act: A Study in Government Litigation Tactics

HUS Mr. Justice Burton closed four years of litigation. The validity of the Renegotiation Act had been under attack in several hundred cases. The stake was large. Re-examination of war contracts aggregating nearly $200,000,000,000 had returned more than $3,000,000,000 of excessive war profits to the United States.2 The theory of renegotiation, divorced from the complexities of the statute, was simple enough. Congress correctly concluded that profits on government war business are likely to be exorbitant and that an excess profits tax standing alone is too rigid to control profiteering either efficiently or fairly. Renegotiation therefore abandoned a formula definition of excessive profits appropriate to a revenue act in favor of an exercise of administrative judgment appropriate to a regulatory statute. The Act required each person doing war business with the Government, directly or indirectly, to refund to the United States the amount by which his profits in the judgment of government officials were excessive. Those who were dissatisfied with the figure fixed by
H/sub /spl infin// control of nonlinear systems via output feedback: a class of controllers

The standard state space solutions to the H/sub /spl infin// control problem for linear time invariant systems are generalized to nonlinear time-invariant systems. A class of nonlinear H/sub /spl infin// controllers are parametrized as nonlinear fractional transformation on contractive, stable free nonlinear parameters. As in the linear case, the H/sub /spl infin// control problem is solved by its reduction to a state feedback and output injection problems, together with a separation argument. the sufficient conditions for H/sub /spl infin//-control problem to be solved are also derived with this machinery. The solvability for nonlinear H/sub /spl infin// control problem requires positive definite solution to two parallel decoupled Hamilton-Jacobi inequalities and these two solutions satisfy and additional coupling condition. An illustrative example, which deals with a passive plant, is given. >
Low-noise silicon mid-infrared frequency comb

We demonstrate low-noise mid-infrared frequency comb generation using a silicon microresonator. Using an integrated PIN-diode detector, we show a transition to a low RF-amplitude-noise state consistent with demonstrations of phase-locking in other microresonator platforms.
Grain Destruction, Formation, and Evolution

Grains do not exist statically in the interstellar medium (ISM), but undergo processing depending on their environment. Timescales are used to estimate the relative importance of various grain processes. Destruction in supernova shock waves is shown to occur on a shorter timescale than any other process, including the injection of new grains from red giants and supernova ejecta. This finding, if it holds true, implies that most of the grain mass in the diffuse ISM was formed by accretion in dark clouds, rather than by thermal condensation in cool star atmospheres and supernova ejecta. The physics of grain destruction in shocks is briefly outlined, as well as accretion and coagulation processes in dark clouds. A general scenario for the life cycle of grains in the ISM is presented.
Immunodeficiency Viruses: Not enough sans Nef

The nef genes of HIV and SIV are dispensable in vitro, but are essential for viral spread and disease progression in vivo. Nef-induced down-regulation of CD4, the viral receptor, may be the key to this requirement.
A study of light 4n nucleides employing a three-part gaussian interaction

Abstract The properties of the light 4n doubly even nucleides ranging from 4He to 40Ca are studied in a simple restricted Hartree-Fock calculation, employing an effective three-part two-body nucleon-nucleon interaction. This interaction consists of a trio of Wigner plus Majorana exchange forces each having Gaussian radial dependence. A rectangular harmonic oscillator basis of states is utilized. Two classes of parameter sets are studied: one generated from fitting the ground state energy and root-mean-square radius of 4He and ground state energy and density of nuclear matter, and one obtained from fitting the ground state energy and root-mean-square radius of both 4He and 40Ca. The resulting parameters are used to compute the ground state binding energies and harmonic oscillator energies of seven nucleides, 3Be, 12C, 20Ne, 14Mg, 28Si, 32S, and 36Ar, treated as being axially symmetric, with two possible configurations for all but 8Be and 12C considered. Moreover, 28Si is also analysed as a spherically symmetric nucleide. Additionally, the deformations of the axial nucleides are determined.
Beating the cost curve and redefining the scientific telescope utility using 0.4-meter robotic cluster network

Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope (LCOGT) is redefining the function of robotic telescopes by deploying 0.4 meter telescopes that act as a highly networked intelligent instrument. The 0.4 meter telescopes, (P4) are optimized for quick and accurate object acquisition and tracking. This minimizes response time and enables the leveraging of the instrument. A single P4 can independently execute multiple science programs concurrently or team up with other P4s for deeper or multi-color observations of a single target. The intelligent control software will optimize the observation schedule for each individual telescope and the entire network. LCOGT is deploying 6 networked clusters consisting of four P4s around the world, providing capacity and versatility beyond the classical observatory. Each P4 has zero slippage, no backlash friction systems, and is currently achieving 20 deg/s slewing. Blind pointing is currently 8 arcsec RMS. Using the AG acquisition routine, the drive will have repeatable pointing to within 0.6 arcsec within 12 seconds from anywhere on the sky. Other features include wind buffet correction, rapid thermalization, dual autoguiders, novel scanning flat fielding device, large 20 kg instrument capacity, high speed instrument changer, and a stiff split ring mount.
Development of behavioral arousal and inhibition in the Swiss-Webster mouse

The development of behavioral arousal was examined in mice ranging from 9 to 100 days of age. An inverted U-shaped ontogenetic activity curve was obtained, consistent with past studies of other altricial rodents. However, the peak in the activity curve for the mouse occurred at 13 days of age, at least 2 days earlier than reported for the rat and hamster. The findings are interpreted as indicating that the onset of behavioral inhibitory capacities occur earlier in the mouse and are discussed in relation to development of brainstem arousal and forebrain inhibitory biochemical systems.
Comparison of Fatty Acid Content of Milk from Jersey and Holstein Cows Consuming Pasture or a Total Mixed Ration

Holstein (n = 19) and Jersey (n = 18) cows were used to study effects of two feeding systems on fatty acid composition of milk. Confinement cows were fed a total mixed ration with corn silage and alfalfa silage and pastured cows grazed a crabgrass (90%) and clover (10%) pasture and were allowed 5.5 kg of grain per head daily. Two milk samples were collected from each cow at morning and afternoon milkings 1 d each week for four consecutive weeks in June and July 1998. One set of milk samples was analyzed to determine fatty acid composition, and the second set was used for crude protein and total fat analyses. Data were analyzed by the general linear models procedure of SAS, using a split-plot model with breed, treatment, and breed x treatment as main effects and time of sampling and week as subplot effects along with appropriate interactions. Milk from pastured cows was higher than milk from confinement cows for the cis-9, trans-11 octadecadienoic acid isomer of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). Also, milk from Holsteins was higher than milk from Jerseys for C16:1, C18:1, and CLA and lower than Jerseys for C6:0, C8:0, C10:0, C12:0, and C14:0. Several treatment x week interactions existed, but main effects were still important; for example, proportions of CLA in milk of grazed cows were relatively constant across weeks (0.66, 0.64, 0.64, and 0.69% +/- 0.02%, respectively), but the CLA in milk of confinement cows increased in wk 4 (0.35, 0.31, 0.31, and 0.48% +/- 0.02% for wk 1 to 4, respectively). There are potentially important differences in fatty acid composition of milk from cows consuming a warm season pasture species compared with milk from cows consuming a total mixed ration, as well as differences between Holstein and Jersey breeds.
A finite element study of the effect of the angle between two intersecting cylindrical shells subjected to internal pressure

Abstract The results of a study of the critical region of two intersecting cylindrical shells due to internal pressure loading are presented as a function of the angle between the two axes. The investigation was performed using the thin shell element of a three-dimensional finite element program. Three models with the angle between the axes of the two cylindrical shells equal to 30, 60, and 90°, were analyzed. In all of the three models, the diameter ratio of the two shells was 0.5283; the diameter to thickness ratio of the larger or main shell was 44.76, while the same ratio for the smaller or attached shell was 15.487. The results of these analyses show that the stresses in the critical intersection region are least when the two axes are perpendicular to each other; for other angular configurations, the stresses increase as the acute angle between the two axes decrease. This effect of inclination for pressure loading is just opposite of the effect found by authors [1] for external moments. In that case, for in-plane as well as out-ofplane moments, the stresses are larger for normally intersecting shells as compared to other angular configurations.
THE PROBLEM OF HORMONAL DISTRIBUTION AS CONTROLLED BY TISSUE UPTAKE1

THE ETIOLOGY of various endocrine syndromes was usually considered to be a hypo′ or hyperfunction of a gland. When this was found to be an inadequate explanation for certain of the syndromes, the term “dysfunction” was added. This term implied more but explained less; we understood that when an abnormal function occurred it was due entirely to an improper functioning of the gland in question. We lost sight of the important fact that for an endocrine function to take place it is essential to have a gland that stimulates and a tissue that responds. It is this tissue responsiveness that concerns us here. The following example will illustrate this point. The ovary supplies estrogenic hormone to the entire genital tract, specifically to the vagina, the cervix, myometrium, endometrium and tubes, in addition, to those tissues implied by the general term, secondary sex characteristics.
Amphotericin B-Induced Oxidative Damage and Killing of Candida albicans

Amphotericin B (AmB) is known to bind to ergosterol in fungal cell membranes, but the precise mechanism of its toxicity to cells is as yet poorly understood. AmB autooxidizes, and it is possible that its antifungal effects could result from oxidative damage. Exposure of protoplasts of Candida albicans to AmB under hypoxic conditions reduced protoplast lysis by as much as 80% compared with incubations in air. Protoplasts were protected from AmB-induced lysis by exogenous catalase and/or superoxide dismutase (SOD). Whole cells of C. albicans were protected by exogenous catalase from AmB-induced leakage of [3H]leucine and from killing by AmB. Cells grown on medium inducing high levels of endogenous catalase were resistant to AmB-induced growth inhibition. In contrast, AmB-induced K+ leakage was not hindered under hypoxic conditions or in the presence of catalase or SOD. Thus the lethal and lytic effects of AmB on C. albicans cells and protoplasts, but not prelethal AmB-induced K+ leakage, are mediated by oxidative damage.
Scanning tunneling microscopy of indolo[2,1-b]quinazolin-6,12-dione (tryptanthrin) on HOPG : Evidence of adsorption-induced stereoisomerization

Abstract Scanning tunneling microscopy was used to observe monolayers of indolo[2,1-b]quinazolin-6,12-dione (tryptanthrin) at the solution–graphite interface. The monolayers were formed via physisorption from a saturated solution in 1-phenyloctane. Sub-molecular resolution was achieved allowing elucidation of the primary electronic features of the molecule. The adsorbed molecules form rows that are differentiable via the apparent heights of portions of each molecule, from row to row. The variation between the rows is attributed to adsorption-induced stereoisomerization of individual molecules, with each row comprised of one stereoisomer.
Popliteal artery pseudoaneurysm after isolated hyperextension of the knee.

We report an unusual case of a traumatic pseudoaneurysm of the popliteal artery after an isolated blunt hyperextension injury to the knee. A 56-year-old man presented with a 1-month history of left knee pain that occurred after a fall onto his buttocks with hyperextension of the knee while transferring a relative out of a wheelchair. A large pulsatile mass in the posterior aspect of the left knee was palpated on physical examination, although he had warm distal extremities and 2+ distal pulses bilaterally. Magnetic resonance angiography revealed a 7.6 × 6.2 × 4.9 cm left popliteral artery pseudoaneurysm, which was subsequently treated with aneurysm exclusion with end to end reverse saphenous vein graft bypass. The development of a popliteal artery pseudoaneurysm after blunt knee injury without dislocation, fracture, or ligament injury is extremely unusual, but requires prompt treatment to avoid the potential complications of permanent functional impairment and limb loss.
The implications of multiple circadian clock origins.

Genetics has had an awesome impact on our understanding of basic processes like circadian rhythms, which were mysterious before the incredibly successful marriage between genetics and recombinant DNA technology about 30 years ago. Subsequent to the pioneering work of Konopka and Benzer [1], genetic screens and DNA sequencing in multiple systems (including but not limited to humans, mice, Drosophila, Neurospora, plants, and cyanobacteria) identified many circadian genes as well as their protein sequences. Coupled with PCR methods to bootstrap from one system to another (e.g., [2,3]), this strategy also revealed that many clock proteins are shared between systems. For example, mammals and Drosophila use orthologs to construct their clocks [4–6]. Fly proteins include the PAS domain-containing transcription factor heterodimer Clock–Cycle (CLK–CYC [orthologs in mammals: CLK–BMAL1]) and the negative regulator Period (PER [orthologs in mammals: PER1, PER2]). These relationships indicate that a similar, basic clock mechanism was present in a common ancestor, before the separation of insects and mammals more than 500 million years ago. Some argue that the relationship of basic clock mechanism and proteins extends to Neurospora [7,8], which would push back the common ancestor date even further. (I am assuming that horizontal gene transfer is not responsible for the commonalities between systems.) There is, however, no evidence that this relationship extends across the animal–bacterial kingdom divide; i.e., the key circadian proteins of mammals appear completely unrelated to the key circadian proteins of cyanobacteria. Although negative evidence must be interpreted with great caution (“absence of evidence is not evidence of absence”), there is no relationship evident between the circadian proteins of cyanobacteria and those of mammals [4,9]. As this is not the case for many other classes of proteins, the strong suggestion is that circadian rhythms have arisen at least twice, once in an ancestor of present-day cyanobacteria and then again in an ancestor of animals. (More than two evolutionary origins are also possible, as the different set of plant circadian proteins may indicate a third independent origin; although see below.) As some early version of cyanobacteria are generally credited with the rise of oxygen about 2.4 billion years ago, and multicellular eukaryotes did not appear for another 1.5 billion years or so [10], the evolution of cyanobacterial rhythms was probably well before that of eukaryotic rhythms.