cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Border Health: Inequities, Social Determinants, and the Cases of Tuberculosis and HIV

The US-Mexico border region attracts migrants from Mexico and Latin America who seek economic opportunities through relocation to the United States. These goals are not always achieved once they arrive in the region, thus creating populations that are displaced and vulnerable. Further, when poor people migrate into developed countries, there is an increased risk for adverse health outcomes. An example is the association between the distributions of TB and HIV with social disparities and access to medical care and treatment. The trend in public health research along the border has increased focus on an individual’s behavior while deemphasizing the social determinants of disease. This chapter includes a description of the social determinants of health and health outcomes prevalent along the border, the case of TB and HIV with appropriate or lack of structural interventions, and recommendations for policy.
Asociaciones de poliquetos de fondos blandos en la bahía de Buenaventura, Pacífico colombiano

En esta investigacion se realizo la caracterizacion espacial de las asociaciones de poliquetos en la bahia de Buenaventura, Pacifico colombiano, con el proposito de evaluar su calidad ambiental. Se eligieron los poliquetos, debido a que comprenden aproximadamente el 90% del bentos tanto en numero como en biomasa y tambien porque responden rapidamente al estres causado de forma antropogenica y natural. Para ello se empleo un indice biotico marino (AMBI, por sus siglas en ingles). Se muestrearon siete estaciones distribuidas a los largo de la bahia, y se tomaron muestras de la columna de agua y de sedimento. Se determino la abundancia y distribucion de poliquetos, se calculo el AMBI para cada estacion y a partir de ello se realizaron pruebas de significancia estadistica y correlacion para explicar los patrones de distribucion de los organismos. Finalmente, mediante el AMBI se determino el estado de la calidad ecologica de la bahia de Buenaventura. Se concluye que la alta densidad de Aricidea simplex, no es debida unicamente al enriquecimiento de materia organica, sino a que en el momento de muestreo se encontraba en la etapa de reproduccion.
Zwitterionic Ring-Opening Polymerization of N-Substituted Eight-Membered Cyclic Carbonates to Generate Cyclic Poly(carbonate)s

The zwitterionic ring-opening polymerization of N-functionalized eight-membered cyclic carbonates with N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHC) in the absence of alcohol initiators generates cyclic polycarbonates of Mn ∼ 30–100 kDa. The polymerization behavior of these eight-membered cyclic azacarbonates depends sensitively on the nature of the nitrogen substituent. The N-benzyl-substituted eight-membered cyclic carbonate (8CCBn) polymerizes readily with 1,3-diisopropyl-4,5-dimethylimidazol-2-ylidene to generate cyclic polycarbonates with molecular weights of Mn = 14 000 to 96 000 Da. In contrast, the N-phenyl-substituted cyclic carbonate (8CCPh) catalytically dimerizes in the presence of the NHC to afford the crystalline cyclic dimer. The zwitterionic ring-opening copolymerization of δ-valerolactone (VL) and the cyclic carbonates afford gradient cyclic copolymers. The cyclic topology of both the homopolymers and copolymers was supported by MALDI-TOF MS and intrinsic viscosity measurements. 13C NMR and differential ...
Prostaglandin E2 promotes intestinal repair through an adaptive cellular response of the epithelium.

Adaptive cellular responses are often required during wound repair. Following disruption of the intestinal epithelium, wound‐associated epithelial (WAE) cells form the initial barrier over the wound. Our goal was to determine the critical factor that promotes WAE cell differentiation. Using an adaptation of our in vitro primary epithelial cell culture system, we found that prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) signaling through one of its receptors, Ptger4, was sufficient to drive a differentiation state morphologically and transcriptionally similar to in vivo WAE cells. WAE cell differentiation was a permanent state and dominant over enterocyte differentiation in plasticity experiments. WAE cell differentiation was triggered by nuclear β‐catenin signaling independent of canonical Wnt signaling. Creation of WAE cells via the PGE2‐Ptger4 pathway was required in vivo , as mice with loss of Ptger4 in the intestinal epithelium did not produce WAE cells and exhibited impaired wound repair. Our results demonstrate a mechanism by which WAE cells are formed by PGE2 and suggest a process of adaptive cellular reprogramming of the intestinal epithelium that occurs to ensure proper repair to injury. ![][1] Intestinal wound‐associated epithelial (WAE) cells are a transient class of repair cells critical for repair initiation. Prostaglandin PGE2 triggers WAE cell generation in response to injury, acting through its epithelial receptor EP4. [1]: /embed/graphic-1.gif
Management of Burn Injuries in the Wilderness: Lessons from Low-Resource Settings

Burns are a common source of injuries worldwide, with a high burden of disease in low- and middle-income countries. Burns also account for 2%−8% of wilderness injuries. Although many are minor, the potential for serious morbidity and mortality exists, and standard treatments used in high-resource settings are not readily available in the backcountry. A literature review was performed to find evidence from low-resource settings that supports alternative or improvised therapies that may be adapted to care of burns in the wilderness. There is good evidence for use of oral rehydration to support volume status in burn patients. There is moderate evidence to support cold therapy as first aid and adjunct for pain control. Some evidence supports use of alternative dressings such as boiled potato peel, banana leaf, aloe vera, honey, sugar paste, and papaya when standard therapies are not available.
Cancer cell motility: lessons from migration in confined spaces

This Opinion article discusses the various migration modes used by cancer cells in confining microenvironments and explains how understanding confined cancer cell motility in vivo through the application of engineered in vitro models could help to develop therapeutic approaches to prevent metastases.
Test-Retest Reliability and Agreement Between In-Person and Video Assessment of Facial Mimetic Function Using the eFACE Facial Grading System

Importance Use of a robust high-resolution instrument for grading of facial symmetry would enhance reporting the outcomes of facial reanimation interventions. The eFACE is one such tool. Objective ...
Performing Black womanhood: a qualitative study of stereotypes and the healthcare encounter

The US health system remains fraught with racial, gender, and class biases that lead to health care inequities. Although Black middle-class women are rarely studied in the context of health care di...
Predicting Arrest in a Sample of Youth Perinatally Exposed to HIV: The Intersection of HIV and Key Contextual Factors

We examined the role of youth HIV status and other key factors on past-year arrest in perinatally HIV-exposed but uninfected (PHIV−) and perinatally HIV-infected (PHIV+) youth using data from a multi-site study of psychosocial behaviors in PHIV-exposed urban youth (N = 340; 61% PHIV+; 51% female; ages 9–16 at baseline). Youth and caregivers were administered 5 interviews, spanning approximately 7.5 years. Using longitudinal logistic mixed-effect models, we explored the association between past year arrest, internal [e.g., substance use disorder (SUD)] and external (e.g., neighborhood arrest rates) contextual factors, and social-regulation processes (e.g., in-school/work). Arrest rates increased from 2.6 to 19.7% across follow-ups; there were no differences in arrest over time by HIV status. In the final model, odds of arrest were greater for youth who were male, with SUD, ≥ 18 years old, with high levels of city stress, and neither in school nor employed. PHIV-exposed, urban youth have much higher rates of arrest than national samples. Lack of differences in arrest by HIV status suggests key contextual factors are more important in promoting arrest.
Clustering: Models of High Dimensional Data

High-dimensional data comes with problems. Data points tend not to be where you think; they can scattered quite far apart, and can be quite far from the mean. There is an important rule of thumb for coping with high dimensional data: Use simple models. One very good, very simple, model for high dimensional data is to assume that it consists of multiple blobs. To build models like this, we must determine which datapoints belong to which blob by collecting together data points that are close and forming blobs out of them.
Problem Formulation Research: From Systems Theory to Discovery of System Pathology

The purpose of this paper is to communicate the nature of problems using systems theory. The importance of problem formulation is provided. Then, the nature system pathologies (aberrant conditions and factors) affecting performance in complex systems is provided. A method (M-Path) that can be used to guide practitioners through the identification and assessment of pathological conditions that negatively impact the healthy or normal functioning of a system is described. The paper concluded with research implications and suggested research.
vmPFC activation during a stressor predicts positive emotions during stress recovery

Despite accruing evidence showing that positive emotions facilitate stress recovery, the neural basis for this effect remains unclear. To identify the underlying mechanism, we compared stress recovery for people reflecting on a stressor while in a positive emotional context with that for people in a neutral context. While blood-oxygen-level dependent data were being collected, participants (N = 43) performed a stressful anagram task, which was followed by a recovery period during which they reflected on the stressor while watching a positive or neutral video. Participants also reported positive and negative emotions throughout the task as well as retrospective thoughts about the task. Although there was no effect of experimental context on emotional recovery, we found that ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) activation during the stressor predicted more positive emotions during recovery, which in turn predicted less negative emotions during recovery. In addition, the relationship between vmPFC activation and positive emotions during recovery was mediated by decentering-the meta-cognitive detachment of oneself from one's feelings. In sum, successful recovery from a stressor seems to be due to activation of positive emotion-related regions during the stressor itself as well as to their downstream effects on certain cognitive forms of emotion regulation.
Elevated systemic microbial translocation in pregnant HIV-infected women compared to HIV-uninfected women, and its inverse correlations with plasma progesterone levels

In HIV infection, increased adverse perinatal outcomes reported among HIV-associated pregnancies are not fully understood. Currently, microbial product translocation (MT) from a permeable mucosa is demonstrated as a driver of inflammation, and may contribute to preterm delivery in HIV. Here, our results showed that plasma LPS levels (a representative marker of MT) were increased in HIV-infected women in the first and second trimester. Progesterone levels were significantly decreased in HIV-infected subjects in the first trimester and second trimester. There were significant inverse correlations between plasma LPS and progesterone in the first and second trimester. These results suggested heightened systemic MT and decreased plasma progesterone levels in HIV-infected pregnant women may play a role in increased incidence of preterm delivery.
Implementation of Trauma Systems Therapy-Foster Care in child welfare

Abstract Trauma exposure is pervasive among children living in foster care, and yet most resource parents (foster parents and kinship caregivers), child welfare staff, and others in the child welfare system are not adequately prepared to recognize and respond effectively when children exhibit trauma symptoms. Trauma-systems Therapy-Foster Care (TST-FC) is a systemwide model of trauma-informed care focused on meeting the emotional needs of children in foster care who have experienced traumatic events. This study evaluated the implementation of TST-FC in two state child welfare agencies that included training for staff (n = 123) and resource parents (n = 111). Study findings show training participants had positive perceptions of TST-FC and found it useful. TST-FC also was associated with significant increases in trauma-informed parenting and tolerance of children's misbehavior by resource parents, as well as more trauma-informed policies and practices in the child welfare agencies. Training participants reported that TST-FC provided useful tools and a common language about trauma that enhanced their capacity to collaborate with one another and manage children's difficult behavior. An exploratory study of resource home retention and children's placement stability revealed fewer foster home closures and placement disruptions when resource parents were trained in TST-FC compared to homes not trained in the model. The results of this study suggest that TST-FC is a promising model for increasing the capacity of child welfare agencies to provide trauma-informed care to children and families in the foster care system.
Bewertung strategischer Wettbewerbsvorteile durch Informationssysteme

Seit rund zwei Jahrzehnten spricht man uber Kosten- und Nutzenanalysen bei Datenverarbeitungsanwendungen. Dabei wurden in der Vergangenheit verstarkt die klassischen Investitionsrechnungen eingesetzt. Zu diesen Methoden kamen vorwiegend in jungster Zeit eine Reihe von weiteren Losungsansatzen.
Observations of the Alaska Coastal Current

The Alaska Coastal Current is a narrow, intense coastal current hordering the southern coast of Alaska. It is characterized by relatively low salinities and its transport is significantly influenced by the regional freshwater discharge. The flow is also modified hy the winds which cause a downwelling condition here throughout most of the year. In many aspects, this current is similar to the Norwegian Coastal Current, with the important exception that wind-driven reversals have not been observed.
The Role of Matrix Metalloproteinases in Neurovascular Injury

Cell–matrix homeostasis is vital in the CNS. In a large number of CNS disorders, abnormal activation of extracellular proteases may disrupt neuronal function by degrading neurovascular matrix integrity. This chapter surveys the role of a key family of extracellular proteases, the matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), in stroke and brain injury. Blood–brain barrier (BBB) leakage and brain edema is a critical part of stroke pathophysiology. A large body of data in both experimental models as well as clinical patient populations suggests that MMPs may disrupt BBB permeability and interfere with cell–cell signaling between neuronal, glial, and vascular compartments. Hence, ongoing efforts are underway to validate MMPs as potential therapeutic targets as well as biomarkers in stroke. Because BBB perturbations may also occur in neurodegeneration, MMPs and associated neurovascular mechanisms may also be potential targets in a broader range of CNS disorders.
National Trends in Spinal Fusion Surgery for Neurofibromatosis.

Analysis of a national database. To analyze trends in spinal fusion surgery for neurofibromatosis type I (NF-1) patients and to compare the surgical approaches. The preferred surgical approach for fusion treatment of spinal deformity in NF is not well established. We identified 548 patients with a diagnosis of NF-1 who had received spinal fusion surgery between 2003 and 2014. We compared posterior spinal fusion (PSF), anterior-posterior spinal fusion (APSF), and anterior spinal fusion with respect to patient demographics, institutional characteristics, in-hospital complications, and hospitalization lengths and costs. Significance was set at a value of p less than .05. The number of spinal fusions for NF-1 significantly increased (p = .02) over the study period. The rate of PSF surgeries increased 2.9-fold, whereas the rate of APSF surgeries decreased 2.2-fold. There was also a significant association between the location of the fusion and surgical approach (p<.01), with 66% of ASF cases being cervical spine cases. Compared with patients undergoing PSF and ASF, patients undergoing APSF were significantly younger (p<.01) and had significantly higher hospitalization lengths and costs (p<.01). APSF costs were $180,714 as compared to $144,027 for PSF and $105,312 for ASF. There have been significant increases in the rate of spinal fusion surgeries for NF-1 patients. Surgical treatment has shifted over the years and is dependent on the location of the deformity. Patients undergoing APSF are significantly younger. Level III.
Pneumomediastinum in blunt trauma: If aerodigestive injury is not seen on CT, invasive workup is not indicated.

Abstract Background Pneumomediastinum following blunt trauma is often observed on CT imaging, and concern for associated aerodigestive injury often prompts endoscopy and/or fluoroscopy. In recent years, adoption of multi-detector CT technology has resulted in high resolution images that may clearly identify aerodigestive injuries. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the utility of multi-detector CT in the identification of blunt aerodigestive injuries. Methods Over five years, patients with pneumomediastinum following blunt trauma were identified from the registry of a level 1 trauma center. All CT imaging of trauma patients during this time period was accomplished with 64-slice scanners. Results 127 patients with blunt traumatic pneumomediastinum were identified. Five airway injuries were identified, and all injuries were evident on CT imaging. No patient was found to have airway injury by endoscopy that was not evident on CT. No patient had an esophageal injury. Conclusion Multi-detector CT imaging identifies aerodigestive injuries associated with pneumomediastinum following blunt trauma. The absence of a recognizable aerodigestive injury by CT effectively rules out the presence of such injury.
Biocatalytic Friedel–Crafts Alkylation Using a Promiscuous Biosynthetic Enzyme

The Friedel-Crafts alkylation is commonly used in organic synthesis to form aryl-alkyl C-C linkages. However, this reaction lacks the stereospecificity and regiocontrol of enzymatic catalysis. Here, we describe a stereospecific, biocatalytic Friedel-Crafts alkylation of the 2-position of resorcinol rings using the cylindrocyclophane biosynthetic enzyme CylK. This regioselectivity is distinct from that of the classical Friedel-Crafts reaction. Numerous secondary alkyl halides are accepted by this enzyme, as are resorcinol rings with a variety of substitution patterns. Finally, we have been able to use this transformation to access novel analogues of the clinical drug candidate benvitimod that are challenging to construct with existing synthetic methods. These findings highlight the promise of enzymatic catalysis for enabling mild and selective C-C bond-forming synthetic methodology.
Water stress tolerance tracks environmental exposure and exhibits a fluctuating sexual dimorphism in a tropical liverwort

Water shortage events negatively impact plant productivity, threaten ecosystem functioning, and are predicted to increase dramatically in the coming years. Consequently, building a detailed understanding of how plants respond to water stress is critical for improving predictions of ecological processes and species range shifts under climate change. Here, we characterized patterns of intraspecific variation in dehydration tolerance (DhT, also dehydration tolerant) across a variable landscape in the tropical plant, Marchantia inflexa. DhT enables tissues to survive substantial drying (below an absolute water content of − 10 MPa) and despite the ecological significance of DhT, many questions remain. We tested if DhT was correlated with an environmental exposure gradient, if male and female plants had contrasting DhT phenotypes, and if variation in DhT had a genetic component. To do so, we collected plants from five populations, spanning an environmental exposure gradient in the forests of northern Trinidad, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. We measured DhT immediately after collection, and after growing plants for ~ 1 year in a common garden. We found that DhT varied significantly among populations and tracked the characterized exposure gradient. Additionally, we showed that phenotypic differences among populations in DhT were maintained in the common garden, suggesting that underlying genetic differences contribute to DhT variability. Finally, we detected a fluctuating sexual dimorphism where males had lower DhT than females in less exposed sites, but not in more exposed sites. Interestingly, this fluctuating sexual dimorphism in DhT was driven primarily by male variation (females exhibited similar DhT across sites).
The Radiated Field Generated by a Monopole Source in a Short, Rigid, Rectangular Duct

This thesis develops a method to model the acoustic field generated by a monopole source placed in a moving rectangular duct. The walls of the duct are assumed to be infinitesimally thin and the source is placed at the center of the duct. The total acoustic pressure is written in terms of the free-space pressure, or incident pressure, and the scattered pressure. The scattered pressure is the augmentation to the incident pressure due to the presence of the duct. It satisfies a homogeneous wave equation and is discontinuous across the duct walls. Utilizing an integral representation of the scattered pressure, a set of singular boundary integral equations governing the unknown jump in scattered pressure is derived. This equation is solved by the method of collocation after representing the jump in pressure as a double series of shape functions. The solution obtained is then substituted back into the integral representation to determine the scattered pressure, and the total acoustic pressure at any point in the field. A few examples are included to illustrate the influence of various geometric and kinematic parameters on the radiated sound field.
Molecular characterization of envelope gene of dengue virus type 2 imported from Bangladesh to Wuhu, Anhui provice, China

Objective To determine the genotype of dengue virus (DENV) and its molecular characteristics of E gene from 1 case imported from Bangladesh to Wuhu city. Methods The viral RNA was extracted from patient serum sample, the serotype of DENV was determined by Real-time RT-PCR through screening the universal and serotypes 1/2/3/4 of DENV. The completed sequence of DENV E gene was amplified, the phylogenetic tree of E gene was constructed by MEGA 7.0 software, and the nucleotide and amino acid sequences alignments of E gene were analyzed. Results Patient serum was positive for DENV type 2 nucleic acid. The DENV type 2 belonged to the Cosmopolitan genotype by phylogenetic analysis of the E gene, and it had the highest homology with the isolate D2/Malaysia/1408aTw which was imported from Malaysia to Taiwan in 2014, the homologies of nucleotide and amino acid reached 99.60% and 99.80%, respectively. Totally 6 nucleotides (42: G→A; 141: G→A; 490: G→A; 516: A→G; 954: A→G; 1344: C→T) and 1 amino acid (164: V→I) had changed in E gene. E protein possessed attenuated strain characteristic site E126-E and virulent strain characteristic site E383-385-E-P-G. Conclusions The imported patient is infected with DENV type 2 and the virus is originated from Malaysia. Key words: Dengue virus; E gene; Phylogenetic analysis
Predictive Factors for Outcomes of Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty

We sought to determine predictive factors for selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT) outcome. 252 eyes from 198 adult patients with open-angle glaucoma who underwent SLT between July 2016 and February 2018 with a minimum 6 month follow up were reviewed. We defined success as ≥20% IOP reduction or ≥1 medication reduction without an IOP lowering procedure. We also evaluated the relationship of these factors to postoperative IOP elevation >5 mmHg (IOP spikes). Our primary outcome measure was association between age, type and severity of glaucoma, pigmentation of the trabecular meshwork (PTM), total energy delivered, and baseline intraocular pressure (IOP) with success. At 2 and 6 months, 33.6% (76/226) and 38.5% (97/252) of eyes met success criteria respectively. Baseline IOP > 18 mmHg was significantly associated with success both at 2 and 6 months, reducing IOP by 5.4 ± 5.3 mmHg (23.7% reduction), whereas those with lower baseline remained at −0.7 ± 4.6 mmHg (4.9% increase) at 6 months (P < 0.001). No other baseline characteristics significantly predicted success or IOP spikes. Patients with higher baseline IOPs had greater success rates and mean IOP reduction at both 2 and 6 months following SLT. Age, type and severity of glaucoma, PTM, or total energy delivery had no association with procedural success or IOP spikes. Patients with higher baseline IOP may experience greater lowering of IOP after SLT. However, SLT may be equally successful for patients with a variety of other characteristics.
Justice in Intellectual Property

Intellectual property (IP) rights represent an anomaly within a free market economic system. IP rights, that is, necessarily constrain the actions of individuals within the market. In response to this anomaly, IP scholars have offered various justifications for the application of such supposed constraints within a free market economy. Chief among these justifications is the widespread appeal to utilitarianism via incentivization. Yet, it is not exactly clear that this incentivization is actually producing the benefits required for the utilitarian justification. Rather than abandoning the IP system, however, some have simply suggested an alternative justification. These scholars argue that IP rights are actual, moral rights that deserve protection as moral rights. Further, scholars argue that any distributional inequality generated by the IP system are nonetheless justified under Rawls’s theory of justice. I argue, however, that Rawls’s theory of justice does cannot “justify” a selective, IP regime.
The LPGA’s global tour and domestic audience: factors influencing viewer’s intention to watch in the United States

The purpose of current study was to examine the impact of potential factors that influence audience’s attitude toward and intention to watch LPGA tournaments that are typically led by a large numbe...
Does Technology Drive the Growth of Government

I consider technology as a partial explanation of the historical shift towards big government. The late nineteenth century and early twentieth century saw a fundamental change in the production technology for large government, and for large institutions more generally. Large institutional structures require a certain degree of communications, organization, and coordination. Only in the late nineteenth century did these structures become possible and big government was one result of that expansion of the production possibilities frontier.
Challenges in machine translation

In recent years there has been an enormous boom in MT research. There has been not only an increase in the number of research groups in the field and in the amount of funding, but there is now also optimism for the future of the field and for achieving even better quality. The major reason for this change has been a paradigm shift away from linguistic/rule-based methods towards empirical/data-driven methods in MT. This has been made possible by the availability of large amounts of training data and large computational resources. This paradigm shift towards empirical methods has fundamentally changed the way MT research is done. The field faces new challenges. For achieving optimal MT quality, we want to train models on as much data as possible, ideally language models trained on hundreds of billions of words and translation models trained on hundreds of millions of words. Doing that requires very large computational resources, a corresponding software infrastructure, and a focus on systems building and engineering. In addition to discussing those challenges in MT research, the talk will also give specific examples on how some of the data challenges are being dealt with at Google Research.
Copyright, Custom, and Lessons from the Common Law

In this essay prepared for the University of Pennsylvania’s conference on Intellectual Property and the Common Law, I build upon my work on custom and intellectual property. I focus here on one important facet of the subject — how longstanding common law principles should inform our understanding of custom. The common law provides a number of lessons on how to appropriately limit the consideration of custom in intellectual property law and elsewhere. The essay begins by considering the traditional role of custom in the common law. Part II then examines several of the ways that courts have incorporated custom into copyright law, particularly in the context of determining fair use. Part III explores recent efforts to use custom to ameliorate the uncertainty of fair use and to limit copyright’s ever-expanding boundaries. Parts IV through VI criticize the unreflected reliance on custom and consider appropriate limits on custom’s role, taking into consideration the traditional common law limits on the use of custom. Finally, I suggest a number of useful insights (other than the provision of legal rules) that custom and the common law provide for copyright law. These insights include the need for the copyright system to have public support to function, the importance of consensus for copyright rulemaking, and the need for a coherent normative framework. The history of the use of custom in the context of real property also reveals that uses of copyrighted works that cannot be substituted for or that serve communal recreational purposes should be given a privileged status.
Ger Districts in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia: Housing and Living Condition Surveys

Mongolia has been facing an onslaught of rural migration to the urban areas with negative consequences. Traditionally the country's economy was based on a survival livestock herding. Nowadays, the country's economic prospects are bright due to rich and abundant mineral deposits. Some researchers believe Mongolia will be the next Dubai. However, the general panorama of the country is not completely brilliant. In Mongolia's growing cities migrants have erected rural nomadic felt tents, known as a ger. The traditional ger are sustainable structures very well adapted for a nomadic society but, when they are located in high-density, unplanned, informal settlements they create many issues. These informal urban areas lack sanitation, adequate vehicular access and other basic services. The traditional use of wood and coal for heating contributes to heavy air pollution, especially in winter. This paper presents some of the findings of more than 100 householder surveys, held in the summer of 2011, related to housing conditions in four informal Ger districts of Ulaanbaatar. This paper describes some aspects of ger households, discusses how quickly the Ger districts are growing and explains their relation to the increasing problems of the city. Finally it concludes how Mongolia needs to develop and grow according with sustainable parameters or its pristine nature and cultural values such as the vernacular architecture will be lost.
SMART — improving customer service

The quality and consistency of customer service offered by telecommunications providers is now a key differentiator in the residential market-place. BT has introduced the ‘SMART‘ customer handling system to provide competitive advantage through worldclass levels of customer service. A large-scale, three-tier client/server system, SMART exploits the existing functionality, data and security mechanisms of an established mainframe system and adds ease-of-use, reduced error rates and a focus on ‘service‘ and ‘selling‘. The development and deployment experiences of the SMART programme provide lessons in the delivery of large-scale distributed systems in a business-critical environment. The key issues of security, performance, resilience and operability are discussed and the solutions implemented for SMART are presented.
Agent failures in totally balanced games and convex games

We examine the impact of independent agents failures on the solutions of cooperative games, focusing on totally balanced games and the more specific subclass of convex games. We follow the reliability extension model, recently proposed in [1] and show that a (approximately) totally balanced (or convex) game remains (approximately) totally balanced (or convex) when independent agent failures are introduced or when the failure probabilities increase. One implication of these results is that any reliability extension of a totally balanced game has a non-empty core. We propose an algorithm to compute such a core imputation with high probability. We conclude by outlining the effect of failures on non-emptiness of the core in cooperative games, especially in totally balanced games and simple games, thereby extending observations in [1].
Rough surface modeling using surface growth

In this paper, we present a novel modeling method for synthesizing rough surfaces using discrete surface growth models. We employ a two-pass method. Initial point cluster data is generated using discrete simulation models derived from physical surface growth and evolution. Then, a final surface is reconstructed from the point clusters by a level set method. Since many rough surfaces in nature are formed by deposition and diffusion processes, discrete models simulating these processes can reasonably reproduce natural rough surfaces. These discrete models are easy to implement and efficient enough for interactive control. After generating initial data set from the application of a discrete model, a level set method is used to obtain implicit surface representations. This approach allows us to easily handle complex surface topologies. We demonstrate that our approach allows a flexible and general way to create various rough surfaces.
Broad-band waveforms and robust processing for marine CSEM surveys

SUMMARY In the marine controlled-source electromagnetic method, the Earth response varies in frequency; therefore, using a wide range of frequencies may better constrain geological structure than using a single frequency or only a few closely spaced frequencies. Binary waveforms, such as the square wave, provide a number of frequencies, though many are limited in usefulness because of the rapid decline of amplitude with frequency. Binary waveform design can be improved by recognizing that the class of doubly symmetric waveforms has special properties: they are compact, have controlled phase, are never polarizing and can be described by a simple closed-form mathematical solution. Using this solution, we discovered a compact waveform in which the amplitudes of the third and seventh harmonics are maximized and which has a signal-to-noise advantage at higher frequencies over several other common waveforms. Compact waveforms make possible improved methods for time-series processing. Using short time windows and a first-difference pre-whitener lessens spectral contamination from magnetotelluric signal and oceanographic noise; robust stacking reduces bias from time-series noise transients; and accurate variance estimates may be derived from averages of waveform-length Fourier transform windows of the time-series.
Determination of the size and chemical nature of the stabilizing "cap" at microtubule ends using modulators of polymerization dynamics.

The size and chemical nature of the stabilizing cap at microtubule (MT) ends has remained enigmatic, in large part because it has been difficult to detect and measure it directly. By pulsing steady-state suspensions of bovine brain microtubules (MTs) with trace quantities of [γ32P]GTP and sedimenting the MTs through 50% sucrose cushions to reduce background contaminating 32P to negligible levels, we were able to detect a small number of 32P molecules that remain stably bound to the MTs (a mean of 25.5 molecules of 32P per MT). Analysis of the chemical form of the stably bound 32P by thin-layer chromatography revealed that it was all 32P-orthophosphate (32Pi). The 32Pi was determined to be located at the MT ends because colchicine and vinblastine, drugs that suppress tubulin incorporation into the MT by binding specifically at MT ends, reduced the quantity of the stably bound 32Pi. Taxol, a drug that stabilizes MT dynamics by binding along the MT surface rather than at the ends, did not affect the stoichio...
Molecular Mechanism of Store Operated Ca2+ Entry in Adult Mammalian Skeletal Muscle

In skeletal muscle, store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) is a trans-sarcolemmal Ca2+ influx pathway activated when sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ stores are depleted. However, the mechanism of activation and physiological role of SOCE in adult skeletal muscle remains largely unknown. We recently reported that both STIM1 and Orai1 proteins are required for SOCE in skeletal myotubes. Here we investigated the mechanism of SOCE in adult skeletal muscles using mouse FDB fibers following electroporation of either cherry-tagged dnOrai1 cDNA or STIM1 siRNAs. Using a Mn2+ quench assay, we found that thapsigargin-induced SR Ca2+ store depletion activates a Ca2+ influx pathway in adult FDB fibers that is inhibited by: 1. multiple SOCE channel blockers (La3+, BTP-2 or SK&F96365) (3321±598 counts/sec, n=16 and 477±274 counts/sec, n=4 in the absence and presence of La3+, respectively), 2. expression of cherry-tagged dnOrai1 (571±130 counts/sec, n=12), or 3. STIM1 knockdown (7565±1590 counts/sec, n=3 and 217±247 counts/sec, n=5 in control and after STIM1 knockdown, respectively). To further assess the role of SOCE in muscle, we generated skeletal muscle-specific HA-tagged dominant negative Orai1 transgenic mice (HSAdnOrai) using a transgene driven by the human skeletal muscle actin (HSA) promoter (provided by Dr. J. Molkentin). HSAdnOrai mice survive beyond weaning and develop/breed normally. Western blot analysis using an HA antibody confirmed dnOrai1 transgene expression in skeletal muscle, but not in heart, lung, brain, spleen kidney, or liver. Primary myotubes derived from HSAdnOrai mice show significantly decreased SOCE following store depletion as assessed in Mn2+ quench (>92%) and Ca2+ influx (>95%) assays These results demonstrate that STIM1-Orai1 coupling mediates SOCE in adult skeletal muscle and that HSAdnOrai transgenic mice are a valuable tool for future studies of the physiological role of SOCE in skeletal muscle.
Molecular Mechanisms of Trastuzumab-Based Treatment in HER2-Overexpressing Breast Cancer

The past decade of research into HER2-overexpressing breast cancer has provided significant insight into the mechanisms by which HER2 signaling drives tumor progression, as well as potential mechanisms by which cancer cells escape the anticancer activity of HER2-targeted therapy. Many of these preclinical findings have been translated into clinical development, resulting in novel combinations of HER2-targeted therapies and combinations of trastuzumab plus inhibitors of resistance pathways. In this paper, we will discuss proposed mechanisms of trastuzumab resistance, including epitope masking, cross signaling from other cell surface receptors, hyperactive downstream signaling, and failure to induce antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity. In addition, we will discuss the molecular mechanisms of action of dual HER2 inhibition, specifically the combination of trastuzumab plus lapatinib or trastuzumab with pertuzumab. We will also discuss data supporting therapeutic combinations of trastuzumab with agents targeted against molecules implicated in trastuzumab resistance. The roles of insulin-like growth factor-I receptor and the estrogen receptor are discussed in the context of resistance to HER2-targeted therapies. Finally, we will examine the major issues that need to be addressed in order to translate these combinations from the bench to the clinic, including the need to establish relevant biomarkers to select for those patients who are most likely to benefit from a particular drug combination.
Macrophage-derived nitric oxide inhibits the proliferation of activated T helper cells and is induced during antigenic stimulation of resting T cells.

To examine how macrophage-derived nitric oxide (NO) affects T helper (Th) cell activity, T cell clones representing Th1 and Th2 subsets were activated before exposure to stimulated peritoneal macrophages or microglia. Both Th subsets were similarly sensitive to inhibition by NO, indicating that macrophage-derived NO regulates the proliferation of activated Th1 and Th2 cells equally well. Since IFN-gamma production remained intact in NO-treated Th1 cells, we studied whether NO was produced during antigen-specific activation of Th1 cells by unstimulated macrophages. Indeed, T cell proliferation only occurred when a NO synthase inhibitor was included, while IFN-gamma was essential for the induction of NO. These studies demonstrate that macrophages produce NO following antigen presentation to Th1 cells and that macrophage-derived NO inhibits Th1 and Th2 cell proliferation without inhibiting cytokine production.
Cartographic applications of model-based optimization

Model-based optimization (MBO) is a paradigm in which an objective function is used to express both geometric and photometric constraints on features of interest. A parametric model of a feature (such as a road, a building, or coastline) is extracted from one or more images by adjusting the model's state variables until a minimum value of the objective function is obtained. The optimization procedure yields a description that simultaneously satisfies (or nearly satisfies) all constraints, and, as a result, is likely to be a good model of the feature.© (1996) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Effects of delayed post treatment of gamma-irradiated seed with cysteine on the growth of Sorghum bicolor seedlings

Abstract Post-treatment with cysteine reduced seedling injury caused by gamma radiation of sorghum seed. The effects of cysteine were most pronounced in primary root elongation. A nearly three-fold increase in primary root length was observed when irradiated seed were treated with cysteine 9 months post-irradiation. Similar but less dramatic effects were observed for coleoptile length and 7 day seedling height. The effects of cystein in reducing injury were independent of radiation levels tested.
Constraint-based software for concurrent engineering

The Galileo3 programming language for developing product life-cycle design advice software is described. Galileo3's various application-oriented features, the algorithm on which the runtime system is based, and its underlying computational theory are discussed. >
Mechanisms underlying oneiric behaviour released in REM sleep by pontine lesions in cats

SUMMARY Bilateral thermal lesions in the feline pontine tegmentum release elaborate behaviours during rapid eye movement sleep (REM). The behaviours, which are lesion-site specific, are consistent with the brain's paradoxical appearance of ‘alertness’ in REM and are largely isolated from environmental events, as are human dreams. This phenomenon may aid in understanding the neurophysiology underlying human dreams but offers little to the unravelling of their cognitive aspects.
Quantitative Temporal Profiles of Penumbra and Infarction During Permanent Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion in Rats

The basic premise of neuroprotection in acute stroke is the presence of salvageable tissue, but the spatio-temporal volume profiles of the penumbra and infarction remain poorly defined in preclinical animal models of acute stroke used to evaluate therapies for clinical application. Our aim was to define these profiles using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) quantitative cerebral blood flow (CBF) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) for dual-parameter voxel analysis in the rat suture permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO) model. Eleven male Sprague Dawley rats were subjected to pMCAO with MRI measurements of quantitative CBF and ADC at baseline, over the first 4 h (n = 9) and at 7, 14, and 21 days (n = 4). Voxel analysis of CBF and ADC was used to characterize brain tissue ischemic transitions. Penumbra, core, and hyperemic infarction volumes were significantly elevated (P < 0.05) and unchanged over the first 4 h of pMCAO while the total lesion volume progressively rose. At 7, 14, and 21 days, tissue compartment transitions reflected infarction, tissue cavitation, and selective ischemic neuronal necrosis. Anatomical distribution of penumbra and core revealed marked heterogeneity with penumbra scattered within core and penumbra persisting even after 4 h of permanent MCAO.
Relaxation times in an open interacting two-qubit system

In a two-qubit system the coupling with an environment considerably affects the entanglement dynamics, usually leads to the loss of entanglement within a finite time. Since entanglement is a key feature in the application of such systems to quantum information processing, it is highly desirable to find a way to prolonging its lifetime. We present a simple model of an interacting two-qubit system in the presence of a thermal Markovian environment. The qubits are modeled as interacting spin-$1∕2$ particles in a magnetic field and the environment is limited to inducing single spin-flip events. A simple scheme allows us to calculate the relaxation rates for all processes. We show that the relaxation dynamics of the most entangled state exhibit critical slowing down as a function of the magnetic field, where the relaxation rate changes from exponentially small values to finite values in the zero-temperature limit. We study the effect of temperature and magnetic field on all the other relaxation rates and find that they exhibit unusual properties, such as nonmonotonic dependence on temperature and a discontinuity as a function of magnetic field. In addition, a simple scheme to include non-Markovian effects is presented and applied to the two-qubit model. We find that the relaxation rates exhibit a sharp, cusplike resonant structure as a function of the environment memory time, and that for long memory times all the different relaxation rates merge into a single one.
Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome Presenting as a Refractory Noninflammatory Pulmonary Vasculopathy

The clinical manifestations of antiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APLAS) are protean. Pulmonary manifestations are often thromboembolic in origin; ARDS and pulmonary hypertension have been reported as features of a widespread vasculopathy associated with systemic lupus or Sjogren's syndrome. This is the report of a woman with primary APLAS who died of a noninflammatory pulmonary vasculopathy. The case is unusual in its pulmonary manifestations, its initial response to corticosteroids and antithrombotic medications, its failure to stabilize with high-intensity warfarin sodium and aspirin treatment, and finally its fulminant progression despite multiple interventions.
Expected cover times of random walks on symmetric graphs

We give very simple proofs for an (N−1)HN−1 lower bound and anN2 upper bound for the expected cover time of symmetric graphs.