cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Asphodosides A-E, anti-MRSA metabolites from Asphodelus microcarpus.

Bioassay guided fractionation of the ethanolic extract of Asphodelus microcarpus Salzm. et Viv. (Xanthorrhoeaceae or Asphodelaceae) resulted in isolation of five compounds identified as asphodosides A-E (1–5). Compounds 2–4 showed activity against methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) with IC50 values of 1.62, 7.0 and 9.0 μg/mL, respectively. They also exhibited activity against Staphylococcus aureus (non-MRSA) with IC50 values of 1.0, 3.4 and 2.2 μg/mL, respectively. The structure elucidation of isolated metabolites was carried out using spectroscopic data (1D and 2D NMR), optical rotation and both experimental and calculated electronic circular dichroism (ECD).
Perceived and Actual Breast Cancer Risk Optimistic and Pessimistic Biases

Perceived risk can influence health behaviors. Studies using various populations and breast cancer risk bias assessment methods have identified both risk over- and underestimation. Among 1803 women in primary care settings, 47 percent were at average epidemiologic risk (Gail calculated relative risk ±50 percent of age-adjusted population average) and 55 percent perceived themselves to be at average risk (compared to same-age others) but there were mismatches or 'biases': 31 percent underestimated personal risk; 26 percent overestimated. Multiple logistic regression revealed that smokers were more likely to overestimate risk. Overestimation decreased with more education. Mammography use did not independently predict perception bias but, among never-screened women aged over 40 years, those contemplating mammograms were most likely to overestimate risk; precontemplators were most likely to underestimate. Implications for research and intervention are discussed.
Assay of the second component of serum complement in a variety of human diseases.

Abstract We have measured the second component (C′2) and whole complement (C′) activity in a variety of patients. C′ and C′2 titers were higher than normal in a number of patients with inflammatory and neoplastic disorders and less than normal in some patients with leukemia. In patients with leukemia, low C′2 titers were associated with relatively high p-tosylarginine methyl esterase activity, suggesting that proteolysis of complement components was occurring in vivo. C′2 activity was decreased in patients with hereditary angioedema but C′ titer was also strikingly decreased in these patients, suggesting that the latter might be a more useful and more readily obtainable screcning test for this disease than C′2 assay.
Solar irradiance forecasting using a ground-based sky imager developed at UC San Diego

Abstract Solar irradiance forecast accuracy of a ground-based sky imaging system currently being developed at UC San Diego is analyzed by assessing its performance on thirty-one consecutive days of historical data collected during winter. Sky images were taken every 30 s, and then processed to determine cloud cover, optical depth (thick or thin), and mean cloud field velocity. Cloud locations were forecasted using a frozen cloud advection method at 30 s intervals up to a forecast horizon of 15 min. During the analysis period, cloud field matching errors, which monotonically increase as a function of forecast horizon, did not exceed 30% over the sky imager’s field-of-view. On average, frozen cloud advection forecasts were found to perform superiorly to image persistence forecasts for all forecast horizons during the analysis period. Six (later eleven) distributed pyranometer installations over the UCSD campus provided 1-s instantaneous GHI measurements with which to validate irradiance forecasts. Excluding clear days or days with small forecast sample size, sky imager irradiance forecasts were found to perform the same as or better than clear sky index (clear-sky normalized GHI) persistence forecasts on 4 out of 24 days for 5-min forecasts, 8 out of 23 days for 10-min forecasts, and 11 out of 23 days for 15-min forecasts. Furthermore, visual comparison of forecast irradiance with measured irradiance revealed the ability to accurately predict cloud-induced irradiance fluctuations, which persistence forecasts cannot offer. An additional month of data collected during summer was analyzed to evaluate performance consistency during a time period with different meteorological conditions. Due to sky conditions favoring persistence forecast and challenges with cloud detection, sky imager forecasts were unable to surpass persistence forecasts for all 32 days for 5-min forecasts and only succeeded on 1 day for 10-min forecasts. However, bulk errors indicated consistency with winter forecasts, with rRMSE of 24.3% (20.0% for winter) and 27.7% (22.9%) for 5- and 10-min forecasts, respectively. A discussion of the challenges and sources of error applicable to the sky imaging system used is also presented, as well as future research intended to address potential areas of improvement.
Ethical and legal issues in emergency research: barriers to conducting prospective randomized trials in an emergency setting.

Introduction As in any area of medicine, clinical trials are crucial to the advancement of trauma care and the establishment of evidence-based guidelines. This work identifies consent regulations that impede advances in trauma resuscitation research and examines several ethical issues underlying current policies in the United States which regulate how clinical trials are conducted in an emergency setting. Trauma is a leading cause of mortality in the U.S. Minorities and those in low socioeconomic groups are subject to a disproportional amount of traumatic injuries and have worse treatment outcomes than non-minority individuals. Current regulations guiding consent requirements in emergency research were enacted to protect such vulnerable populations from exploitation. Ironically, these same regulations also serve as barriers to clinical trials in trauma research, thus depriving these same vulnerable groups from the benefits of advances in trauma care. Methods A literature review was conducted on areas affecting emergency medical research including: informed consent, socioeconomic and racial disparities, federal regulations in trauma research and biomedical ethics. Results In the ten year period following the passage of the FDA's Common Rule (21 CFR 50.24) in 1995, 21 published emergency research studies were conducted under the waiver of informed consent. Misconceptions regarding federal regulations and cumbersome internal review board approval processes are frequently cited as significant barriers to conducting prospective randomized trials in the emergency setting. Conclusions Given the history of past abuses in medical research, the principle of maintaining autonomy of choice is of paramount importance. However, trauma resuscitation is unique in that patients are either unconscious or of limited mental capacity at the time treatment is required, and thus the standard of informed consent is unable to be achieved as in other areas of medicine. While this paradox was recognized by the FDA in 1995 with the creation of an exception to the requirement for informed consent in emergency research (the “Common Rule”), the wording of this exception is ambiguous, and has consequently deterred trauma investigators from pursuing valuable research endeavors. In particular, the language requiring “community consultation” and demonstration that existing treatments are “unproven or unsatisfactory” have been identified as the most problematic terms to satisfactorily address by those aiming to conduct trauma research. It is imperative that the current exemptions to the Common Rule be more thoroughly operationalized, so that greater advancement in emergency medicine research can be promulgated, while concurrently maintaining a high standard of protection for the rights of trauma patients.
The purge threat: scientists' thoughts on peta-scale usability

In high-performance scientific computing, users output millions of files per project or simulation, resulting in petabytes of information. Little is known about how users make sense of it all, and what the major usability issues are in interacting with a file system at scale. We conducted interviews with scientists at national laboratories to identify common practices and issues with current peta-scale file system usage. The major usability problem encountered in the interviews was the purge threat, triggered when the parallel file system reaches capacity, and warning users about impending data loss. We show that the threat is not communicated to the users of the system in a meaningful way. We present three methods scientists used to address the purge threat--analysis, automation, and subversion--and discuss how subversion of the purging system is a clear indication of its lack of utility and indicative of its cognitive complexity. We define reactionary and cautionary archiving and draw a parallel between archiving methods and data production paradigms. Finally, we propose two non-hierarchical file and directory representation models to address the purge threat.
Structural equation models and personality research

This article is a nontechnical introduction to the use of structural equation models in personality research Although such models can be fruitfully used to address a variety of important theoretical issues, the substantive focus in this article is on the use of such models for elucidating the construct validity of personality measures We include numerous more specific topics under our treatment of construct validity First of all, we show how structural equation models can be applied to the issues of convergent and discriminant validity Do our variables measure the constructs we want them to measure and not other constructs that we would prefer not to measure? Second, we show the utility of structural equation models for predictive validity Do our variables reliably predict other constructs with which they are theoretically linked? Finally, we examine the stability of personality constructs through structural equation models Through-out, our emphasis is on the particular advantages that structural equation models bring to these analytic tasks Ultimately, such models must be used in the service of theory, and when used appropriately, they can help us to refine both our measures and our theories of individual differences
A statistical framework for eQTL mapping using RNA-seq data.

Summary. RNA-seq may replace gene expression microarrays in the near future. Using RNA-seq, the expression of a gene can be estimated using the total number of sequence reads mapped to that gene, known as the total read count (TReC). Traditional expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) mapping methods, such as linear regression, can be applied to TReC measurements after they are properly normalized. In this article, we show that eQTL mapping, by directly modeling TReC using discrete distributions, has higher statistical power than the two-step approach: data normalization followed by linear regression. In addition, RNA-seq provides information on allele-specific expression (ASE) that is not available from microarrays. By combining the information from TReC and ASE, we can computationally distinguish cis -a ndtrans-eQTL and further improve the power of cis-eQTL mapping. Both simulation and real data studies confirm the improved power of our new methods. We also discuss the design issues of RNA-seq experiments. Specifically, we show that by combining TReC and ASE measurements, it is possible to minimize cost and retain the statistical power of cis-eQTL mapping by reducing sample size while increasing the number of sequence reads per sample. In addition to RNA-seq data, our method can also be employed to study the genetic basis of other types of sequencing data, such as chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by DNA sequencing data. In this article, we focus on eQTL mapping of a single gene using the association-based method. However, our method establishes a statistical framework for future developments of eQTL mapping methods using RNA-seq data (e.g., linkage-based eQTL mapping), and the joint study of multiple genetic markers and/or multiple genes.
Biology of Aceria guerreronis (Acari: Eriophyidae) on queen palm, Syagrus romanzoffiana (Arecaceae)

Abstract In 1997, an eriophyoid mite associated with meristem necrosis and death of young queen palm seedlings, Syagrus romanzoffiana (Cham.) Glassman, was discovered in a number of southern California nurseries. The mite was identified as Aceria guerreronis Keifer, the coconut mite. In this paper we describe the effect of temperature on immature development and mortality, and we also report female fecundity and longevity. Development from egg to adult required 30.5, 16.0, 11.5, 8.1 and 6.8 days at 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35°C, respectively, and the thermal maximum was estimated to be close to 40°C. Optimal development was determined from the total immature developmental rate curve to be at 33.60°C, while the lower threshold for development was 9.36°C. Using these values, we found that 172.71 degree days are required for mites to mature from the egg to the adult stage. As adults, fertilized females laid more eggs and lived longer than non-fertilized females, with a maximum of 51 eggs produced over a maximum of...
On-Field Management of Spine and Spinal Cord Injuries

Acute spinal injuries are rare in athletes. However when these injuries occur, they can be life threatening. All team physicians should be prepared to deal with spine and spinal cord injuries, and it is critical that on-field physicians have an established plan and protocol in place. All patients with a suspected spine injury should undergo an advanced trauma and life-support survey, as well as a thorough neurologic examination. During this initial evaluation, precautionary measures for the spine must be maintained. Athletes wearing helmets should have their helmets left in place; however, face masks should be removed to allow for access to the athletes' airway. If a spine injury is suspected or confirmed on field, the athlete should be rapidly taken to a trauma center for a complete evaluation and early treatment. However, additional early interventions, such as high-dose methylprednisolone or hypothermia, are not supported by the evidence and should not be a routine component of care.
Reproductive toxicology of water contaminants detected by routine water quality testing.

The presence of a reproductive toxicant in drinking water is one possible explanation of differences in spontaneous abortion rates between women who drink tapwater and those who do not. As part of the investigation conducted by the California Department of Health Services, several routine water quality assays were used to screen water sources available to the populations studied. I reviewed information in the literature about the potential reproductive toxicity of contaminants detected in these assays. None of these contaminants was clearly linked to increased incidence of abortion in the studies reviewed.56 references.
Immobilization of alpha-chymotrypsin on oxygen-RF-plasma functionalized PET and PP surfaces.

In this contribution the immobilization of α-chymotrypsin on plasma activated PET and PP surfaces is investigated. The ‘anchoring’ C O groups on polymer surfaces were created under RF-O2- plasma environments. The identity and relative concentrations of plasma-created functionalities were evaluated using survey and high resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and differential attenuated total reflectance-FTIR spectroscopy. Surface morphology changes of plasma-exposed substrates were analyzed by atomic force microscopy. Enzyme assays were performed from both virgin and plasma modified samples which underwent the immobilization procedure. It was demonstrated that cold-plasma technique is suitable for generating functional, synthetic polymeric surfaces which can initiate enzyme coupling reactions. It also has been shown that the activity of the immobilized enzyme is lower in comparison to the free enzyme. Reduced conformational mobility resulting from multiple-point coupling process might be responsible ...
Regional 2-[18F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose uptake varies in normal lung.

2-[18F]fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) is a promising imaging procedure for detecting primary and metastatic cancer in the lungs. We have, however, failed to detect some small tumors in the lower lobes of the lungs. This study aimed to determine whether increase18F background activity in the dependent lower lungs is present, which could make lesion detection more difficult. We measured the standardized uptake values (SUVs) for FDG of normal lung remote from the nodular lesion in 16 patients with newly diagnosed untreated lung lesions stronlgy suspected to represent non-small cell lung cancers. In addition, 15 patients with known or suspected primary breast cancers without pulmonary lesions were included as control subjects. After PET transmission images of the thorax were obtained, approximately 370 MBq of FDG was injected intravenously and imaging was immediately begun. Patients were supine throughout the study. SUVs were determined with images obtained 50–70 min after FDG injection. Regions of interest (ROls) of 6×6 pixels were positioned over normal lung in anterior, mid, and posterior portions of upper, middle, and lower lung fields. Thus, as many as 18 ROls were positioned in each patient. The SUVs of the posterior portion were significantly higher than those of the anterior and mid portions in the population of 31 cases (P <0.001). Also, the mean SUV of the lower lung field was significantly higher than the SUVs of the upper and middle lung fields in this population (P <0.01). This pattern was seen among the two groups of 16 patients suspected of having lung cancer and 15 control subjects. Background18F activity was highest in posterior and lower lung in these patients. The maximum value of mean SUV observed in normal posterior lower lung was 0.804±0.230 (41% greater than the mean SUV in the anterior upper lung), which is in the range of the apparent SUV for a 5-mm lung lesion, with higher SUV, due to recovery coefficient issues. Thus this phenomenon could contribute to occasional false-negative lesions in those areas. Increased blood flow and FDG delivery and also scatter from heart and liver may contribute to the increased lower lung background activity. Regional differences in normal lung FDG uptake are significant and should be considered when interpreting pulmonary PET studies in patients with suspected primary or metastatic lung cancer.
LAND COVER CHARACTERIZATION USING MULTITEMPORAL RED, NEAR‐IR, AND THERMAL‐IR DATA FROM NOAA/AVHRR

A simple land cover classification scheme is proposed based on energy absorption and exchange properties of various land cover types, observable from remote sensing. Seasonal trajectories of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and surface temperature (Ts), routinely available from NOAA/AVHRR (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer), are used to characterize different land cover types into four groups: water limited (shrub, grass), energy limited (wetlands, boreal forests, snow, ice, and water), atmospherically coupled (aerodynamically rough canopies, forests), and atmospherically decoupled (aerodynamically smooth canopies, crops). Further separation is achieved using growing-season average NDVI for shrub and grass, seasonal NDVI amplitude for deciduous vs. evergreen, and near-infrared (NIR) reflectance for broadleaf vs. needleleaf vegetation. The methodology using threshold-based rules is completely remote sensing based; classification rules ...
Issue Ownership in Congressional Campaign Television Spots

This study investigated issue ownership patterns in 602 U.S. House and Senate Democratic and Republican political campaign television advertisements from 1980–2000. First, the themes in these ads were about equally split between policy and character (unlike presidential TV spots from the same time period, which are roughly two-thirds policy and one-third character). Candidates from each political party addressed their own party's issues more than issues owned by the other party. However, unlike presidential spots, congressional ads discussed Democratic issues more than Republican issues (59% to 41%). Although candidates from both political parties discussed their own issues more, winners tended to discuss issues from the other party more than losers. There was no difference in issue ownership emphasis between the House and Senate ads in this sample.
To cease or 'de-cyst'? The evaluation and management of pancreatic cystic lesions.

Due to the widespread use of cross-sectional imaging and advances in imaging technology, pancreatic cystic lesions are increasingly being detected. The diagnosis and management of such cysts remains challenging and continues to evolve. Different pancreatic cyst types have varying malignant potential. Thus, accurate cyst characterization is essential to appropriate management; the most clinically important distinction is differentiating mucinous lesions, which have malignant potential and may benefit from surgical resection, from non-mucinous cystic lesions. Endoscopic ultrasound with fine needle aspiration with cytologic, chemical,, and tumor marker analysis appears to be the best currently available method for accurately characterizing a cyst’s malignant potential, and therefore impacts the most important management decision for a pancreatic cyst—continued surveillance or surgical resection.
Endomotives of toric varieties

We construct endomotives associated to toric varieties, in terms of the decomposition of a toric variety into torus orbits and the action of a semigroup of toric morphisms. We show that the endomotives can be endowed with time evolutions and we discuss the resulting quantum statistical mechanical systems. We show that in particular, one can construct a time evolution related to the logarithmic height function. We discuss relations to F_1-geometry.
Operation Java blitz: extracurricular programming workshops to engage it students

An engaging context has been shown to improve student motivation and performance in programming courses. Therefore, we incorporated six hands-on, supplementary, voluntary workshops (called Operation Java Blitz, or OJB) on subjects that were not exhaustively included in the current programming curriculum in Spring 2014. The poster will discuss the sessions, the initial results from 34 students, and future plans.
Instrumentation for combined laser-synchrotron photoemission experiments

Abstract A combined laser-synchrotron photoemission experiment has been constructed on the Naval Research Laboratory soft X-ray beam line on the X-ray ring at the NSLS, Brookhaven National Laboratory. A pulsed copper vapor laser operating at 6 kHz is currently incorporated. The instrumentation is based on a time-to-digital converter and simultaneously records spectra for all times within a data window tens of microseconds in duration. A resolution of ∼ 2 ns is achieved when the ring is operated in single bunch mode and the laser and synchrotron are synchronized in time. When the laser is free running, resolution is determined by transit time spread in the cylindrical mirror analyzer, which has been measured directly. Examples of performance based on transient laser-induced photovoltages on silicon surfaces are given.
In the Absence of Priests: Young Women as Apostles to the Poor, Chile 1922-1932

The Roman Catholic Church in Chile first acknowledged its inability to pastor its flock in the 1920s because of an acute shortage of priests. Alberto Hurtado Cruchaga, SJ addressed the clerical crisis in a 1936 article, La Crisis Sacerdotal en Chile. When critics found his analysis “exaggerated,” he conducted a survey of Chilean religious practices and published the findings in a controversial essay entitled Es Chile un pais catolico? which is said to have earned him the wrath of the hierarchy because it called attention to the woeful neglect of pastoral duties especially among the rural and working class populations. This empirical data demonstrated that the Catholic Church in Chile had 1615 priests, of whom 780 were secular and 835 regular clergy; of the same 1615 priests 915 were Chilean and 700 were foreigners. There were 451 parishes, some of which contained several towns and villages scattered over a thousand square kilometers with 10,000 parishioners to be ministered to by a single priest. Hurtado's solution—a larger and better-educated clergy—was a long-term solution to an urgent problem that would never be achieved. Something had to be done immediately to keep the faith alive. In the gendered world of Chilean Catholicism, the task of preserving the faith fell to young laywomen.
Marketing Structure and the Theory of Economic Interdependence: Early Analytical Developments

The elements of an economic system are interdependent, and the structure formed by system interrelationships is crucial to the survival of an economy. Attempts to identify and measure structure are traced from the mid-eighteenth century to the publication of Distribution in a High-Level Economy The first major study including the marketing sector of an economy, Does Distribution Cost Too Much?, does not provide structural inferences because parts of the economic system were omitted, and system inputs were not specified. The often repeated estimate that marketing costs represent 59% of the consumer's dollar is overstated because system output is underestimated. Structural inferences can be developed with data presented in Distribution in a High-Level Economy, using the analytical framework provided by the Leontief input-output table.
Polarized LEED investigation of the order/disorder transition at a Cu3Au(100) surface

Abstract The results of an exploratory polarized LEED study of the order/disorder transition at a Cu 3 Au(100) surface are reported. The data provide no evidence of a sudden change in surface composition or local order at the bulk transition temperature, and are consistent with the results of earlier LEED and low energy ion scattering studies.
Blood pressure management in early ischemic stroke.

Elevated blood pressure is common at the time of presentation among patients with ischemic stroke, occurring in two-thirds to three-quarters of cases.1,2 The early hypertension that follows ischemic stroke often reflects undiagnosed or undertreated chronic hypertension. However, in the great preponderance of patients, an early hypertensive response to brain ischemia is an important contributing factor, partially explained by neuroendocrine response to physiologic stress. This initial hypertensive response is self-limiting, most marked in the first few hours following the onset of cerebral ischemia and resolving over several days. Within the first 24 hours after stroke, blood pressure spontaneously declines by about one-quarter in most patients.3
Perspectives on the Open Standards for the Practice of Conservation

The Open Standards for the Practice of Conservation (OS), and its software platform Miradi, are becoming central tools for conservation management. There is, however, very little literature on either after 5 years of widespread implementation. We applied the OS, using Miradi, to five widely varied conservation projects as the foundation for this perspective. We find, in general, that the OS are logical, clear, and provide a robust hierarchical structure from which to organize management action and track progress toward conservation project goals. One goal of the Conservation Measures Partnership in creating the OS is to foster a community of practice for conservation. To better accomplish this, we recommend working toward: (1) creating a library of case studies to illustrate tension between structure and flexibility in the OS for project management; (2) broadening definitions of conservation targets and threats to accommodate the variety of conservation projects; (3) developing critical linkages between the OS to complementary conservation tools (e.g., structured decision-making, spatial planning tools); (4) clearly distinguishing between using threats rankings for action prioritization given expert opinion versus testing hypotheses to gain a mechanistic understanding of cause and effect; and (5) developing rapid assessment tools for the OS to better discern when conservation projects should invest in the cost of fully developing a plan using the OS. We call on both academics and the conservation practitioners to better engage with one another for the benefit of training, cross-project learning and better conservation action.
Toward a more ethical clinical trial

Current methods of conducting clinical trials require the patient to agree to have his treatment assigned randomly, where his individual characteristics are taken into account only to balance the treatment groups. A Bayesian alternative involves eliciting the prior opinions of the group of clinicians who designed the study. Each patient is then guaranteed that the treatment he will receive is the best for him either in the opinion of at least one individual clinician or as a consensus of several, given the patient's characteristics and all the information available from the trial when the assignment is made.
Analysis of sugars in milk and ice cream by high pressure liquid chromatography

The use of high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) for the analysis of sugars in ice cream and lactose in whole milk and nonfat dry milk was studied. Sugars were extracted with 80% ethanol-20% water and analyzed using a μBondapak/carbohydrate column and a refractive index detector. The recovery of lactose was 98% from nonfat dry milk and 97% from whole milk. Fructose, glucose, sucrose, maltose, and lactose were quantified in ice cream. With the exception of maltose, the coefficient of variation for the method was in the range of 0.7-5.8%. HPLC was shown to be a useful technique for the analysis of sugars in these products.
KRAS and guanine nucleotide-binding protein mutations in pancreatic juice collected from the duodenum of patients at high risk for neoplasia undergoing endoscopic ultrasound.

Background & Aims Pancreatic imaging can identify neoplastic cysts but not microscopic neoplasms. Mutation analysis of pancreatic fluid after secretin stimulation might identify microscopic neoplasias in the pancreatic duct system. We determined the prevalence of mutations in KRAS and guanine nucleotide-binding protein α-stimulating genes in pancreatic juice from subjects undergoing endoscopic ultrasound for suspected pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia, intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms, or pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Methods Secretin-stimulated juice samples were collected from the duodenum of 272 subjects enrolled in Cancer of the Pancreas Screening studies; 194 subjects were screened because of a family history of, or genetic predisposition to, pancreatic cancer, and 78 subjects were evaluated for pancreatic cancer (n = 30) or other disorders (controls: pancreatic cysts, pancreatitis, or normal pancreata, n = 48). Mutations were detected by digital high-resolution melt-curve analysis and pyrosequencing. The number of replicates containing a mutation determined the mutation score. Results KRAS mutations were detected in pancreatic juice from larger percentages of subjects with pancreatic cancer (73%) or undergoing cancer screening (50%) than controls (19%) ( P = .0005). A greater proportion of patients with pancreatic cancer had at least 1 KRAS mutation detected 3 or more times (47%) than screened subjects (21%) or controls (6%, P = .002). Among screened subjects, mutations in KRAS (but not guanine nucleotide-binding protein α-stimulating) were found in similar percentages of patients with or without pancreatic cysts. However, a greater proportion of patients older than age 50 years had KRAS mutations (54.6%) than younger patients (36.3%) ( P = .032); the older subjects also had more mutations in KRAS ( P = .02). Conclusions Mutations in KRAS are detected in pancreatic juice from the duodenum of 73% of patients with pancreatic cancer, and 50% of asymptomatic individuals with a high risk for pancreatic cancer. However, KRAS mutations were detected in pancreatic juice from 19% of controls. Mutations detected in individuals without pancreatic abnormalities, based on imaging analyses, likely arise from small pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia lesions. ClinicalTrials.gov no: NCT00438906 and NCT00714701.
On the formal properties of weighted averaging as a method of aggregation

I first encountered Keith Lehrer's work on consensus during the summer of 1977,l and was immediately intrigued by the possibility of developing a formal account of his model of rational group decision making. I adopted as a model for this enterprise the axiomatic method of social choice theory and was not surprised to discover that the question of how to aggregate probabilities was as complex and prob lematic as the question of how to aggregate preferences and utilities. The former issue has only recently received the kind of attention which has been directed at the latter for several decades, and is finally beginning to be as vigorously debated, as attested to by the essays in this volume. I am grateful to Barry Loe wer for organizing this forum on Rational Consensus in Science and Society. My replies to the preceding critical essays follow.
Collective modes and sound propagation in a p -wave superconductor: Sr 2 RuO 4

There are five distinct collective modes in the recently discovered p-wave superconductor ${\mathrm{Sr}}_{2}{\mathrm{RuO}}_{4};$ phase and amplitude modes of the order parameter, clapping mode (real and imaginary), and spin wave. The first two modes also exist in the ordinary s-wave superconductors, while the clapping mode with the energy $\sqrt{2}\ensuremath{\Delta}(T)$ is unique to ${\mathrm{Sr}}_{2}{\mathrm{RuO}}_{4}$ and couples to the sound wave. Here we report a theoretical study of the sound propagation in a two-dimensional p-wave superconductor. We identified the clapping mode and study its effects on the longitudinal and transverse sound velocities in the superconducting state. In contrast to the case of ${}^{3}\mathrm{He},$ there is no resonance absorption associated with the collective mode, since in metals $\ensuremath{\omega}{/(v}_{F}|\mathbf{q}|)\ensuremath{\ll}1,$ where ${v}_{F}$ is the Fermi velocity, $\mathbf{q}$ is the wave vector, and $\ensuremath{\omega}$ is the frequency of the sound wave. However, the velocity change in the collisionless limit gets modified by the contribution from the coupling to the clapping mode. We compute this contribution and comment on the visibility of the effect. In the diffusive limit, the contribution from the collective mode turns out to be negligible. The behaviors of the sound velocity change and the attenuation coefficient near ${T}_{c}$ in the diffusive limit are calculated and compared with the existing experimental data wherever it is possible. We also present the results for the attenuation coefficients in both of the collisionless and diffusive limits at finite temperatures.
A direct proof of the exponential limit law for one dimensional small noise diffusion processes

On considere la suite des processus de Markov xe(t) satisfaisant l'equation differentielle stochastique: dxe(t)=(e) 1/2 dW(t)−G'(xe(t)) dt, e>0, ou G(x) est un potentiel en puits double. On donne une description intuitive de la metastabilite en fonction de ce modele
Security model for picture archiving and communication systems.

The modern information revolution has facilitated a metamorphosis of health care delivery wrought with the challenges of securing patient sensitive data. To accommodate this reality, Congress passed the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). While final guidance has not fully been resolved at this time, it is up to the health care community to develop and implement conprehensive security strategies founded on procedural, hardware and software solutions in preparation for future controls. The Virtual Radiology Environment (VRE) Project, a landmark US Army picture archiving and communications system (PACS) implemented across 10 geographically dispersed medical facilities, has addressed that challenge by planning for the secure transmission of medical images and reports over their local (LAN) and wide area network (WAN) infrastructure. Their model, which is transferable to general PACS implementations, encompasses a strategy of application risk and dataflow identification, data auditing, security policy definition, and procedural controls. When combined with hardware and software solutions that are both nonperformance limiting and scalable, the comprehensive approach will not only sufficiently address the current security requirements, but also accommodate the natural evolution of the enterprise security model.
Gateway-compatible tissue-specific vectors for plant transformation

Understanding regulation of developmental events has increasingly required the use of tissue-specific expression of diverse genes affecting plant growth and environmental responses. To allow for cloning of presumptive promoters with tissue-specific activities, we created two plant expression vectors with multiple cloning sites upstream of a Gateway cassette for expression of either untagged or YFP-tagged genes of interest. For fast and easy tissue-specific expression of desired genes, we further developed an initial set of Gateway-compatible tissue-specific gene expression vectors that allow for the expression of YFP-tagged or untagged proteins driven by the ALCOHOL DEHYDROGENASE1, CHLOROPHYLL A/B BINDING PROTEIN 1, COBRA LIKE1, EXPANSIN7, LATERAL ORGAN BOUNDARIES-DOMAIN 16, SCARECROW, UBIQUITIN10, and WOODEN LEG upstream regulatory regions. These vectors provide an invaluable resource to the plant community, allowing for rapid generation of a variety of tissue-specific expression constructs.
A Transiting "51 Peg-like" Planet.

Doppler measurements from Keck exhibit a sinusoidal periodicity in the velocities of the G0 dwarf HD 209458, having a semiamplitude of 81 m s 21 and a period of 3.5239 days, which is indicative of a “51 Peg‐like” planet with a minimum mass ( ) of 0.62 MJup and a semimajor axis of 0.046 AU. Follow-up photometry reveals M sin i a drop of 0.017 mag at the predicted time (within the errors) of transit by the companion based on the velocities. This is the first extrasolar planet observed to transit its star. The radius of the planet derived from the magnitude of the dimming is 1.42 RJup, which is consistent with models of irradiated Jupiter-mass planets. The transit implies that , leading to a true mass of 0.62 MJup for the planet. The resulting mean density of 0.27 g cm 23 sin i 1 0.993 implies that the companion is a gas giant. Subject headings: planetary systems — stars: individual (HD 209458)
Nuances of Profile Management: The Radix

Profile refinement is one of the most common reasons patients seek consultation for rhinoplasty. Emphasis on creating a natural-appearing nasal dorsum demands a methodic nasal and facial analysis. Areas of dorsal excess and deficiency are identified, quantitated, and considered when determining surgical goals. The radix is an essential component of the profile and is carefully assessed from the standpoint of projection and position. Height and contour are evaluated at the radix, rhinion, and nasal tip. Each component of the dorsal profile is individually classified as overprojected, underprojected, or of appropriate height. Case studies demonstrate the necessary surgical steps to create a more balanced profile.
A Method for modeling long-duration joint motion

Musculoskeletal disorders of the upper extremities, in particular the wrist and the shoulder, have become the largest class of injury in workers' compensation claims in the United States. Monitoring the development, progression, and treatment of degenerative orthopedic diseases, such as carpal tunnel and shoulder impingement syndrome, may be more effective when joint motions are assessed over long durations in real-world settings rather than controlled movements in standardized assessment and exercise protocols. Noninvasive long-duration measurements of joint motion would allow the standardized protocols to be quantitatively individualized and/or refined. In order to record three-dimensional joint activities over durations of eight or more hours, a portable, autonomous data logging system, using bi-axial electrogoniometers, was developed. Initial study results placed electro-goniometers on the shoulders and wrists of several subjects and demonstrated that variations in joint motion for multiple occupational settings between individuals can be quantified for the wrist. Based on the data collected, the cumulative effects of repetitive joint motions, which are a significant biomechanical risk factor in the development of work-related musculoskeletal disorders, can be accurately measured over long durations to provide detailed models of joint health in real-world scenarios.
THE EFFECT OF TESTOSTERONE, TESTOSTERONE PROPIONATE AND DEHYDROANDROSTERONE ON THE SECRETION OF THE GONADOTROPIC COMPLEX AS EVIDENCED IN PARABIOTIC RATS1

A number of experimental studies have indicated that androgenic preparations are able to limit the secretion of gonadotropic complex by the anterior pituitary. Martins and Rocha (1) were able to prevent ovarian stimulation of female rats in parabiosis with castrated male rats by subcutaneous implantation of fresh, macerated rat testicle into the castrated males, but not in females joined to castrated females which had also received testis tissue. These investigators concluded that they had demonstrated a sex-specific suppression of hypophyseal gonadotropic secretion. McCullagh and Walsh (2) also observed that the hypertrophy of the male accessory organs which usually occurs when an adult male rat is placed in parabiosis with a castrate partner can be prevented by the administration of both the fat-soluble and fat-insoluble fractions of beef testes to the castrate partner. Nelson and Gallagher (3) have reported that androsterone, androstanediol, and androstenedione will prevent the development of castratio...
Effectiveness of a parent education intervention for at-risk families.

ISSUES AND PURPOSE: Although many parenting programs exist to prevent child maltreatment, few are supported by research evidence. This study explored whether parents who completed the Bavolek Nurturing Program improved their parenting attitudes. DESIGN AND METHODS: Secondary analysis of data from a larger study involved a convenience sample of 154 families from 15 county child maltreatment prevention councils. RESULTS: On the pretest, parents demonstrated scores associated with maladaptive parenting practices. Posttest scores were consistent with nurturing parenting attitudes. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Effective and readily accessible parent education programs are highly indicated for prevention of child maltreatment. It is important for nurses to have the information either to provide effective parent education interventions or to be able to refer parents to effective programs. Language: en
Clinical predictability of left ventricular function post myocardial infarction from the electrocardiogram.

L'electrocardiogramme permet d'evaluer la fraction d'ejection ventriculaire gauche et les resultats sont comparables a ceux donnes par l'angiocardiographie
Functional Properties of Dendrites in the Mammalian Brain

The problem of defining the functional properties of dendrites has been of central importance in the study of the bioelectrical activity of the brain for several decades. In consideration of the many outstanding contributions of Prof. M. N. Livanov to the analysis of electrocortical rhythms, it may be of interest to indicate here some aspects of recent studies which have provided additional information on the properties of dendrites and their role in the functional organization of different neuronal systems.
Analysis of multiplex techniques for land mobile radio service

Two types of frequency multiplexing are theoretically analyzed for their applicability as a form of modulation in the land mobile radio service (LMRS). Both SSB/FM and FM/FM are analyzed for their signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) versus modulation index. These results are normalized to the signal-to-noise performances of the existing 5-kHz deviation system for comparison purposes. The latter performance is developed using the actual Electronic Industries Association (EIA) response of a LMRS receiver. The spectrum of the multiplex system for the case of equal subchannel signal-to-noise is developed using a computer. The spectrum is used to determine the spectrmm occupancy of multiplex systems. Based on the tradeoffs of transmit power and spectrum occupancy, a discussion of the interference characteristics of the multiplex systems compared to the existing system is presented. Finally, conclusions are drawn on the spectrum efficiency of a multiplex system compared to the present system.
The Tree of Knowledge System and the Theoretical Unification of Psychology

The outline for theoretically unified psychology is offered. A new epistemological system is used to provide a unique vantage point to examine how psychological science exists in relationship to the other sciences. This new view suggests that psychology can be thought of as existing between the central insights of B. F. Skinner and Sigmund Freud. Specifically, Skinner’s fundamental insight is merged with cognitive neuroscience to understand how mind emerges out of life. This conception is then joined with Freud’s fundamental insight to understand the evolutionary changes in mind that gave rise to human culture. By linking life to mind from the bottom and mind to culture from the top, psychology is effectively boxed in between biology and the social sciences.
A novel thiol oxidation-based mechanism for adriamycin-induced cell injury in human macrophages

Adriamycin is a widely used antitumor antibiotic, but its use has been limited by its cytotoxicity in both cardiomyocytes and non-cardiac tissues. While adriamycin's ability to redox cycle via one-electron transfer reactions and generate ROS is thought to promote cardiotoxicity, the mechanisms involved in non-cardiac tissue injury are not clear. Here we show that prolonged exposure (48 h) of human monocyte-derived macrophages to adriamycin at concentrations as low as 1 microM promotes caspase-independent cell death. Treatment of cells with scavengers of superoxide and peroxyl radicals blocked adriamycin-induced oxidation of dichlorodihydrofluorescein (DCFH) but did not prevent macrophage injury. Macrophages treated with either adriamycin or the thiol oxidant diamide showed elevated levels of glutathione disulfide and increased protein-S-glutathionylation prior to cell injury, indicating that thiol oxidation is involved in adriamycin-induced macrophage death. Furthermore, inhibition of glutathione reductase (GR) with 1,3-bis[2-chloroethyl]-1-nitrosourea or transfection of macrophages with small inhibitory RNA (siRNA) directed against GR or glutaredoxin (Grx) potentiated adriamycin-induced macrophage injury. Thus, both GR and Grx appear to play a crucial role in protecting macrophages from adriamycin-induced cell injury. These findings suggest a new mechanism for adriamycin-induced tissue injury whereby thiol oxidation, rather than one-electron redox cycling and ROS generation, mediates adriamycin-induced cell damage.
Defect Clusters in Nonstoichiometric 3d Transition-Metal Monoxides

The energies of defect clusters in Mn/sub 1-x/O, Fe/sub 1-x/O, Co/sub 1-x/O, and Ni/sub 1-x/O have been calculated using molecular orbital theory. The results indicate that (i) relatively large extended defects of a zinc blende type coordination are stable in MnO and FeO, (ii) only small defects are stable in CoO, and (iii) no defect structures are stable in NiO.