cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of Otosclerosis on Middle Ear Function Assessed With Wideband Absorbance and Absorbed Power.

Objective Wideband absorbance and absorbed power were evaluated in a group of subjects with surgically confirmed otosclerosis (Oto group), mean age 51.6 years. This is the first use of absorbed power in the assessment of middle ear disorders. Results were compared with control data from two groups of adults, one with normal hearing (NH group) mean age of 31 years, and one that was age- and sex-matched with the Oto group and had sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL group). The goal was to assess group differences using absorbance and absorbed power, to determine test performance in detecting otosclerosis, and to evaluate preoperative and postoperative test results. Design Audiometric and wideband tests were performed over frequencies up to 8 kHz. The three groups were compared on wideband tests using analysis of variance to assess group mean differences. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was also used to assess test accuracy at classifying ears as belonging to the Oto or control groups using the area under the ROC curve (AUC). A longitudinal design was used to compare preoperative and postoperative results at 3 and 6 months. Results There were significant mean differences in the wideband parameters between the Oto and control groups with generally lower absorbance and absorbed power for the Oto group at ambient and tympanometric peak pressure (TPP) depending on frequency. The SNHL group had more significant differences with the Oto group than did the NH group in the high frequencies for absorbed power at ambient pressure and tympanometric absorbed power at TPP, as well as for the tympanometric tails. The greatest accuracy for classifying ears as being in the Oto group or a control group was for absorbed power at ambient pressure at 0.71 kHz with an AUC of 0.81 comparing the Oto and NH groups. The greatest accuracy for an absorbance measure was for the comparison between the Oto and NH groups for the peak-to-negative tail condition with an AUC of 0.78. In contrast, the accuracy for classifying ears into the control or Oto groups for static acoustic admittance at 226 Hz was near chance performance, which is consistent with previous findings. There were significant mean differences between preoperative and postoperative tests for absorbance and absorbed power. Conclusions Consistent with previous studies, wideband absorbance showed better sensitivity for detecting the effects of otosclerosis on middle ear function than static acoustic admittance at 226 Hz. This study showed that wideband absorbed power is similarly sensitive and may perform even better in some instances than absorbance at classifying ears as having otosclerosis. The use of a group that was age- and sex-matched to the Oto group generally resulted in greater differences between groups in the high frequencies for absorbed power, suggesting that age-related norms in adults may be useful for the wideband clinical applications. Absorbance and absorbed power appear useful for monitoring changes in middle ear function following surgery for otosclerosis.
Hostile Heartland: Racism, Repression, and Resistance in the Midwest

Review of: Hostile Heartland: Racism, Repression, and Resistance in the Midwest, Brent M.S. Campney
Splicing Control of Pontocerebellar Development.

In this issue of Neuron, Chai et al. (2021) analyze several families with neurodegeneration and marked pontocerebellar hypoplasia and microcephaly and identify recessive (bi-allelic) mutations in peptidyl-prolyl isomerase-like 1 (PPIL1) and pre-RNA-processing-17 (PPR17). PPIL1 patient mutation knockin mice develop neuronal apoptosis. Loss of either protein affects splicing predominantly involving GC-rich and short introns.
Constructing small genome graphs via string compression.

MOTIVATION The size of a genome graph-the space required to store the nodes, node labels and edges-affects the efficiency of operations performed on it. For example, the time complexity to align a sequence to a graph without a graph index depends on the total number of characters in the node labels and the number of edges in the graph. This raises the need for approaches to construct space-efficient genome graphs. RESULTS We point out similarities in the string encoding mechanisms of genome graphs and the external pointer macro (EPM) compression model. We present a pair of linear-time algorithms that transform between genome graphs and EPM-compressed forms. The algorithms result in an upper bound on the size of the genome graph constructed in terms of an optimal EPM compression. To further reduce the size of the genome graph, we propose the source assignment problem that optimizes over the equivalent choices during compression and introduce an ILP formulation that solves that problem optimally. As a proof-of-concept, we introduce RLZ-Graph, a genome graph constructed based on the relative Lempel-Ziv algorithm. Using RLZ-Graph, across all human chromosomes, we are able to reduce the disk space to store a genome graph on average by 40.7% compared to colored compacted de Bruijn graphs constructed by Bifrost under the default settings. The RLZ-Graph scales well in terms of running time and graph sizes with an increasing number of human genome sequences compared to Bifrost and variation graphs produced by VGtoolkit. AVAILABILITY The RLZ-Graph software is available at: https://github.com/Kingsford-Group/rlzgraph. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Role of Ba in low temperature thermochemical conversion of carbon dioxide with LaFeO3 perovskite oxides

Abstract Reverse water-gas shift chemical looping (RWGS-CL) is a low temperature thermochemical process to convert CO2 to CO by perovskite oxides. In this research, perovskite oxides of the form of La1-xBaxFeO3 (x = 0.25−0.75) are explored for enhancing CO yield while maintaining stability over multiple cycles. DFT was utilized to calculate the oxygen vacancy formation energies (Evac) identifying Evac of La0.75Ba0.25FeO3 (3.3 eV) and La0.5Ba0.5FeO3 (3.0 eV) are in the ideal range of 3.4 ± 0.5 eV. Additional Ba resulted in instability. XRD confirmed cubic perovskite structure and XRF analysis established the precise composition. XPS revealed that the materials had Ba enrichment at the surface, compared to the overall bulk. Temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) and oxidation (TPO) experiments determined that CO2 is converted to CO in the low temperature range of 400–600 °C for all compositions, which is lower than temperatures of many thermochemical CO2 processes. Isothermal cycling between hydrogen and CO2 at 600 °C indicated La0.5Ba0.5FeO3 and La0.4Ba0.6FeO3 were stable (verified by XRD and XPS) and produced CO at high yields of 200 and 500 μmol/gLBF, respectively. The CO2 conversion step fits to Langmuir–Hinshelwood type kinetics based on its partial pressure dependency and is consistent with DRIFTS studies. Therefore, multiple materials in this study enhance performance, indicating their suitability for industrial scale adaptation upon energy integration as a possible strategy for renewable energy storage in chemical form.
Metabolism: Evolution of dolphin sperm endurance.

Summary Mammalian sperm have long been known to use energy derived from the metabolism of sugars and fatty acids. A new study shows that sperm of dolphins and their relatives lost functionality of the glycolysis pathway and are fueled only by energy-rich fatty acids that are metabolized by extra-large mitochondria, giving them exceptional endurance.
TCL-232: Integrated Genomic and Transcriptomic Sequencing Reveals the Landscape of T, NK, and Gamma-Delta Large Granular Lymphocyte Leukemia

Context Large granular lymphocyte (LGL) leukemia is a rare lymphoproliferative disorder of primarily CD8+ T or natural killer (NK) cell lineage whose molecular landscape is poorly characterized. Objective In this study, we defined the landscape of non-synonymous somatic variants in LGL leukemia exomes, asked whether these mutational profiles differed across LGL leukemia subtypes, and tested whether mutational groups were associated with clinical features. Design We leveraged paired whole-exome and transcriptome sequencing in the largest LGL leukemia study to date, which included 116 patients (93 TCRαβ T-LGL, 11 NK-LGL, and 12 TCRγδ T-LGL). Patients The study was conducted under IRB-approved protocols for the LGL Leukemia Registry at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. 116 LGL patients meeting diagnosis criteria by the World Health Organization (evidence of clonality, persistence of chronic expansion >6 months) were recruited for this study. Results The mutational landscape of LGL leukemia identified ARHGAP25, CCL22, CDH8, DNMT3A, FAS, KDM6A, KMT2D, PIK3R1, STAT3, STAT5B, TET2, and TNFAIP3 as recurrently mutated putative drivers using IntOGen bioinformatic driver analysis. The majority of gene mutations spanned all LGL subtypes, with the notable exception of CCL22, which was mutated exclusively within NK-LGL (4/11; 36.4%; p=0.0008). Moreover, there was a predilection for co-occurrence of STAT3 mutations with epigenetic modifier KMT2D (p Conclusions These findings highlight the clinical and molecular heterogeneity of this rare disorder. LGL leukemia research is supported by NCI R01CA178393, P30CA044579, T32LM012416, T32GM007267, F30CA225046. Additional support is provided by Bess Family Charitable Fund, LGL Leukemia Foundation, Dr. Charles and Katharine Hutton Tweedy, William J. Branch, Dr. Szabolcs Szentpetery, and a generous anonymous donor.
Adolescent sexting: ethical and legal implications for psychologists

Sexting has become a prominent part of adolescent culture. Under current laws, adolescents caught sexting are being arrested, facing child pornography charges, and having to register as sex offende...
An experimental investigation concerning the effect of AFP defects on progressive damage in CFRP coupons

Abstract Manufacturing of composite laminates using the fiber placement process introduces the possibility of several types of defects and features that are not present in traditional hand-layup fabrication techniques . The effect of these defects on structural performance and failure has not been fully investigated, especially for those defects with small geometrical features. The innovation lies in using advanced methods to capture the effect of defects generated during manufacturing processes which can be used to determine if these defects warrant immediate repair to ensure part integrity. Several types and configurations of defects that may occur during the automated fiber placement (AFP) process were inserted within the coupons. Acoustic emission (AE) was employed as a nondestructive evaluation technique to investigate correlations between mechanical properties and damage propagation during tension and 3-point bending tests. Digital Image Correlation (DIC) was utilized to monitor damage progression in the bending test .
Ion-pair reversed phase liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection for analysis of ultraviolet transparent cations

Abstract This paper describes the use of an anionic ion-pair reagent (IPR) to impove the ultraviolet (UV) detection and hydrophobic retention of polar and UV transparent cations. Anionic IPR added to the mobile phase forms an ion-pair with cations. Formation of the ion-pair causes a redshift in the absorption wavength, making it possible for direct UV detection of UV-inactive cations. The ion-pairs with increased hydrophobicity were separated by reversed phase liquid chromatography (RPLC). Different perfluorinated caboxylic acids (trifluoroacetic acid, heptafluorobutyric acid, nonafluoropentanoic acid) were evaluted as IPR in the separation and detection of the common cations sodium, ammonium and Tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane (Tris). The effects of the IPR type and concentration on separation and detection have been investigated to understand the separation and detection mechanisms. The optimal separation and detection condtions were attained with mobile phase containing 0.1% nonafluoropentanoic acid and with the UV detection at 210 nm. UV detection and charged aerosol detection (CAD) were compared in the quantitation of the cations. The limit of quantitation (LOQ) of sodium and Tris with UV detection is comparable to that by CAD. The LOQ of ammonium with UV detection (1 ppm or 3 ng) is about 20-fold lower than that (20 ppm or 60 ng) by CAD. The RPLC-UV method was used to monitor ammonium clearance during ultrafiltration and diafiltration in the manfucaturing of biopharmceutical drug substance.
Better for whom? Policy implications of acting on the relation between volume and outcome in coronary artery bypass grafting.

In this issue of the Journal, Nallamothu et al. [(1)][1]provide an important addition to the extensive literature on the relation between volume and outcome in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). They use clinical and administrative data from 56 U.S. hospitals with CABG patients in 1997,
A Method for Concept Exploration of Hypersonic Vehicles in the Presence of Open & Evolving Requirements

Presented at the 5th World Aviation Congress and Exposition, San Diego, CA, October 10-12, 2000.
Discovery of numerous clusters of spontaneous mutations in the specific-locus test in mice necessitates major increases in estimates of doubling doses

Both the precision with which mutations can be quickly identified and the extensive application of the method make results from specific-locus experiments in mice especially important for estimating the doubling dose, which is the radiation exposure that induces a mutation frequency equal to the total spontaneous mutation frequency per generation. Because of gonadal mosaicism and the mechanism by which it occurs, the frequency with which new spontaneous mutations occur per generation is much higher than has been thought. While it will be some time before many of the newly-apparent uncertainties related to understanding this phenomenon can be resolved, consideration of what is known suggests that it would already be reasonable to raise the doubling dose from 1 to 5 Gy for low-dose-rate exposures to X and gamma radiation. Doing so would reduce risk estimates made by the doubling-dose method fivefold. Because the doubling dose for chemical mutagens is also calculated by division of the total spontaneous mutation frequency per generation by the induced mutation frequency per unit of chemical exposure, hereditary risks for chemicals have also been considerably overestimated if they are based on specific-locus data.
Chapter 7 Perceptual constancies: Analysis and synthesis

Publisher Summary Perceptual constancies are tendencies for the appearances of objects to remain unaltered as their sensory correlates vary. This chapter examines the divergence and presents a framework aimed toward a synthesis. Constancy research has been focused on perception as opposed to performance in part, because the research has been guided by linear models of perception–action relationships, according to which all sensory guided action is based on perception. However, diverging theories construct and operations suggest that linear models cannot account for constancy data. It has been suggested that a synthesis should be sought in the ecological efference mediation theory, a multilinear model with multiple representations of spatial layout.
ENABLING CONCURRENT ENGINEERING THROUGH BEHAVIORAL ANALYSIS

Engineering organizations are actively seeking ways to better enable concurrent engineering. At the IBM Federal Systems Company (FSC), we are finding behavioral analysis an excellent means to integrate the disciplines needed to develop complex systems. Key to effective use of behavioral analysis are: (1) a shared methodology and (2) the support environment which makes the methodology executable. At IBM FSC, we are finding RDD-100®, developed by the Ascent Logic Corporation, to provide an environment which is highly compatible with our existing system development methodology. We have found Requirements Driven Development, RDD-100®, developed by Ascent Logic Corporation, to be well accepted by all of our various engineering organizations. Our expectation is that implementation of our methodology using RDD-100® will greatly decrease the development cycle time as it encourages concurrent participation in the definition of the system model.
Exogenous gene expression and protein targeting in lens fiber cells.

Purpose To test the ability of lens fiber cells at various stages of differentiation to transcribe and translate microinjected DNA templates. Methods Expression plasmids encoding green fluorescent protein (GFP) or a GFP-tagged membrane protein (human CD46) were microinjected into organ-cultured embryonic chicken lenses. Protein expression was visualized by confocal microscopy. Results GFP expression was detected within 12 hours of microinjection, evenly distributed throughout the cytoplasm of the injected cell. All nucleated fiber cells were competent to express GFP, whereas the anucleated central fiber cells were not. When GFP was fused to the C-terminal of CD46, the fusion protein was synthesized intact and properly inserted in the fiber cell plasma membrane. In contrast, N-terminal fusions were cleaved during synthesis, resulting in retention of the GFP tag in the endoplasmic reticulum. Conclusions Microinjection of expression plasmids is an effective technique for introducing exogenous genes into individual fiber cells. With this approach, the results show that fiber cells are transcriptionally and translationally competent until the time of organelle loss, and that fiber cells deep within the lens are capable of synthesizing new plasma membrane proteins. The techniques described here should have broad application in studies of fiber cell differentiation and provide a useful complement to conventional transgenic approaches.
Radiocarbon profiles of the NW Pacific from the LGM and deglaciation: Evaluating ventilation metrics and the effect of uncertain surface reservoir ages

During the last deglaciation, the ventilation of the subarctic Pacific is hypothesized to have changed dramatically, including the rejuvenation of a poorly ventilated abyssal water mass that filled the deep ocean, and fluctuations in the strength of North Pacific intermediate and deep water formation at millennial timescales. Foraminiferal radiocarbon reconstructions of past ventilation changes in the Pacific are valuable but are hampered by poor carbonate preservation, low sediment accumulation rates, bias from bioturbation, and poorly constrained past surface reservoir age. In this study, we present paired benthic-planktonic radiocarbon measurements from the Okhotsk Sea and Emperor Seamounts. We take advantage of large contemporaneous peaks in benthic abundances from the last glacial maximum, Bolling-Allerod (BA), and early Holocene to produce time slices of radiocarbon from 1 to 4 km water depth. We explore the impact of uncertain surface reservoir age and evaluate several approaches to quantifying past ocean radiocarbon distribution using our NW Pacific data and a compilation of published data from the North Pacific. Both the calendar age and the absolute value of an ocean radiocarbon estimate depend on the assumed surface reservoir age. But for a time slice from a small geographical area with radiocarbon-independent stratigraphic correlation between cores, the shape of a water column profile is independent of surface reservoir age. The NW Pacific profiles are similar in shape to the compilation profiles for the entire North Pacific, which suggests that deglacial surface reservoir age changes across the N Pacific did not diverge dramatically across the areas sampled. The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) profile >2 km spans a wide range of values, ranging from values similar to today to lower than today. However, by the BA the profile has a similar shape to today. Ultimately, local surface reservoir ages, end-member water mass composition, and mixing ratios must each be constrained before a radiocarbon activity reconstruction can be used to confidently infer ventilation changes.
Function of anti-Streptococcus mutans antibodies : inhibition of virulence factors and enzyme neutralization

The levels of parotid salivary IgA and serum IgG antibodies from dental caries-resistant (CR) and caries-susceptible (CS) individuals to Streptococcus mutans antigens were determined. In general, the levels of salivary IgA and serum IgG antibodies to S. mutans antigens were significantly higher in CR subjects than in CS individuals. There were significantly higher levels of IgA2, but not IgA1, salivary antibodies to S. mutans whole cells in CR subjects than in CS individuals. These results led us to investigate the functional effects parotid saliva and sera containing these antibodies had on several factors associated with S. mutans virulence. Parotid saliva and sera from CR subjects significantly inhibited S. mutans growth, adherence, acid production, glucosyltransferase and glucose-phosphotransferase activities to a greater extent than saliva and sera from CS individuals. The data suggest that neutralization of S. mutans enzymes and inhibition of S. mutans virulence factors by saliva and serum may be responsible for the lower numbers of carious lesions in CR subjects.
Routing, weight assignment and load balancing for tunnel-based fast IP local failure recovery

To alleviate the impact of network component failures, many fast IP local recovery schemes have been proposed to reroute traffic in the event of failure. Tunnel-based fast IP local recovery is one of the most commonly adopted techniques. In IP-in-IP tunneling, when a failure occurs, the nodes adjacent to a failure are activated to encapsulate and reroute the affected traffic to the endpoint along the shortest path. Once the endpoint receives the affected traffic, it decapsulâtes and delivers the packets to original destination along the shortest path. These shortest paths are computed based on link weights. Therefore the design of link weights for tunnel-based fast IP local recovery is a critical issue. The goal of this paper is to determine a set of link weights in a tunnel-based fast IP local recovery system to jointly achieve: (1) load balance in the normal state (i.e., non-failure state) and (2) protection of any single link failure without incurring link overload during the failure recovery. We first formulate this problem as a mixed integer programming (MIP). Due to the NP-hard property of the MIP, a Simulated Annealing based Tunneling (SATu) scheme is proposed to obtain the solution of the MIP. In SATu, only the nodes adjacent to a failure are activated to encapsulate the affected packets and forward them to endpoint without disturbing regular traffic. Numerical results show that the proposed scheme improves tunnel-based IP fast reroute approach to achieve high rate of fault recovery in protecting single link failures without incurring link congestion in the non-failure state.
Anticyclonic Rings in the Gulf of Mexico

Abstract Using the historical data set, this study describes the anticyclonic rings that separated from the Loop Current in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Six quasi-synoptic data sets are used to describe the evolving circulation of the Gulf of Mexico from October 1966 to September 1967, showing the separation and movement into the western Gulf of three anticyclonic rings. The historical data are used to determine that these rings typically translate to the west at a mean speed of 2.1 km day−1. Their length scale as defined by their rms radii is 183 km. An estimate of ring life-span, as defined by an e-folding time, is one year. Within the context of the Gulf's water property distributions, these rings appear as warm salty bodies. The heat and salt added by one of these rings after separation are estimated to be 7×109 J m−2 and 17 g cm−2, respectively. The heat and salt added by one of these features play an important role in the heat and salt budget of the western Gulf. The latter indicates that about one r...
Investigating the production and distribution of plain ware pottery in the Samoan archipelago with laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS)

This paper presents a provenance study of 170 ceramic artifacts and 21 ceramic tiles from three islands in the Samoan archipelago using laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). Our analyses confirm that LA-ICP-MS can be used to differentiate between clay formations on a single island. We identify different distribution patterns for pottery recovered from lowland and highland sites on Tutuila Island. We also examine evidence for movement of pottery between islands, and find only limited evidence for such movement. Our findings suggest dynamic patterns of prehistoric interaction and site use that need to be evaluated with further data from across the archipelago.
Long-range, nonautonomous effects of activated Notch1 on tissue homeostasis in the nail☆☆

Abstract Using an antibody directed against γ-secretase-generated antigen unique to activated Notch1, we mapped Notch1 activation strictly to suprabasal cells in epidermis, nail matrix, and other skin appendages during normal development. The consequences of Notch1 activation in keratinizing nail cells were investigated in a transgenic mouse model. Ectopic activation of Notch1 in postmitotic cells within the nail keratogenous zone resulted in longer nails. BrdU labeling revealed an increased number of mitotic cells in transgenic nails. The matrix and keratogenous zone expanded distally due to the increase in cell numbers. The mitosis-promoting effects by a gene product expressed exclusively in postmitotic cells indicates a long-range effect of transgenic Notch1 on regulation of nail homeostasis. We demonstrate that activation of Notch1 in the keratogenous zone resulted in ectopic activation of Wnt signaling, the first such evidence in vertebrates. However, we detected little or no β-catenin activation in proliferating matrix cells, indicating that Wnt is at most an indirect mediator of Notch-induced proliferation. These data support the existence of a novel, cell-nonautonomous role for Notch in maintaining homeostasis of stratified squamous epithelia by indirectly promoting mitosis in basally located cells.
Rapid Determination of Rubidium in Cæsium Nitrate by Neutron Activation

DETECTION and determination of rubidium in caesium nitrate by use of neutron irradiation followed by γ-scintillation spectrometry have been attempted. It is known that when natural rubidium is irradiated with neutrons, rubidium-86m (61 sec), rubidium-86 (18.7 days), and rubidium-88 (18 min) are formed. When any one of them is used for detecting rubidium, it is preferable that irradiation is continued for a period comparable with the half-life. Therefore, it was thought that the use of rubidium-86m offered a method for the rapid analysis for rubidium: this method has so far not been reported.
C3: Concurrency control on continuous queries over moving objects

Moving object management approaches, especially continuous query processing techniques, have attracted significant research effort due to the broad usage of location-aware devices. However, little attention has been given to designing concurrency control protocols for continuous query processing. Existing concurrency control protocols for spatial indices are based on a single indexing tree, while popular continuous query processing approaches require multiple indices. In addition, continuous monitoring combined with frequent location updates challenges the development of serializable isolation for concurrent index operations. This paper proposes an efficient concurrent continuous query processing approach C3, which fuses scalable continuous query processing methods with lazy update techniques on R-trees. The proposed concurrency control protocol, equipped with intra- and inter-index protection, assures serializable isolation, consistency, and deadlock-freedom. The correctness of the proposed protocol is theoretically proven, and the experiment results demonstrated its scalability and efficiency.
Using Demand Response to Improve the Emission Benefits of Wind

Although wind generation is emissions- and cost-free, real-time output can be highly variable and uncertain. This can require additional conventional generating capacity to be committed. Since the efficiency of emissions controls can depend on generator loading, this additional capacity can increase generator emissions rates. Another method of accommodating wind is using demand response, which has system loads that more closely follow supply. Using a case study based on the Texas power system, we examine the emissions and cost impacts of using these two strategies to accommodate wind. While we find that wind decreases loading and increases emissions rates of generators, it has a positive net emissions benefit overall. We also find that while demand response reduces some of the emissions benefits of wind, combining wind and demand response provides more cost-effective emissions abatement than wind alone.
Dynamical trajectories in category learning.

Category learning has traditionally been studied by examining how percentage correct changes with experience (i.e., in the form of learning curves). An alternative and more powerful approach is to examine dynamical learning trajectories — that is, to examine how the parameters that describe the current state of the model change with experience. We describe results from a new experimental paradigm in which empirical-learning trajectories are directly observable. In these experiments, participants learned two categories of spatial position, and they were constrained to identify and use a linear decision bound on every trial. The dependent variables of principal interest were the slope and the intercept of the bound used on each trial. Data from two experiments supported the following conclusions. (1) Gradient descent provided a poor description of the empirical trajectories. (2) The magnitude of changes in decision strategy decreased with experience at a rate that was faster than that predicted by gradient descent. (3) Learning curves suffered from substantial identifiability problems.
Assessment and management of chemotherapy-induced mucositis in children

Oral mucositis is one of the most common side effects of cancer treatment. The oral mucosa is comprised of membranes of a high mitotic index with rapid epithelial turnover and maturation rates. This causes the mucosa to be vulnerable to the adverse effects of chemotherapy. Chemotherapy alters the integrity of the mucosa, the microbial flora which normally inhabit the oral cavity, salivary quantity and composition, as well as the epithelial maturation. As a result, the child receiving chemotherapy may experience significant pain, dysphagia, alteration in nutritional status, and risk of infection. Severe mucositis can also delay therapy that may compromise the child's treatment and chance for cure. Not all chemotherapy-induced mucositis can be prevented. However, with proper management, the severity and duration of oral complications can be minimized.
The end-to-end distance of RNA as a randomly self-paired polymer.

Abstract In this paper, we present the end-to-end distance of randomly self-paired polymers (RSPPs). We define a randomly self-paired polymer as a linear polymer each of whose monomers has a probability, f ( 0 f 1 ) , of pairing with any other one monomer. The RSPP model is inspired by numerous observations that the ends of RNAs are in close proximity. We use this model to explain this proximity. The prediction made by the RSPP model is consistent with these observations. Mapping an RNA with a length of 1000 nucleotides and a pairing fraction of 0.6 onto our RSPP model, for example, we predict an expected end-to-end distance of about 14 unpaired bases. We have also found that the expected end-to-end distance of the RSPP scales roughly as the 1/4 power of its total length.
Gradient polymers by diffusion polymerization

Gradient polymers are multicomponent polymers whose structures or compositions are not macroscopically homogeneous, but vary as a function of position in the sample. One method to prepare such polymers is by diffusing a guest monomer into a host polymer and then polymerizing the monomer in position to retain the concentration gradient created by the diffusion. One series of such type of materials was prepared by diffusing acrylonitrile into polystyrene. The gradient profile was determined by analyzing the nitrogen content in succeeding layers of the sample. These gradient polymers exhibit improved resistance to hydrocarbon solvents. The second series of gradient polymers was made by diffusion of methyl acrylate into poly(methyl methacrylate). These materials are shown to possess substantially increased fracture strain. Eyring's stress-biased activated rate theory of yielding was used to rationalize the observed toughening effect in gradient polymers.
Gray hematite distribution and formation in Ophir and Candor chasmata

[1] We have studied eight of the spatially largest locations in Ophir and Candor chasmata that have the highest abundances of coarse-grained gray hematite, as measured by the Mars Global Surveyor Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES). All of the eight hematite locations correspond to relatively smooth dark units that overlie or are adjacent to light-toned rock units. Linear modeling of TES spectra sampled in the eight hematite locations shows mostly mafic associations with the hematite, dominated by pyroxene and feldspar, with a lower abundance of sulfates. The spectral and morphologic similarity between the hematite-bearing units at Ophir and Candor to those at Meridiani Planum lead us to favor a similar aqueous origin for the hematite in Valles Marineris. Water that may have infiltrated the light-toned rocks by an increase in the water table or when lakes may have existed within the canyons could have resulted in the formation of hematite-rich grains in a scenario similar to that proposed for Meridiani Planum. Erosion by wind of the formerly overlying or adjacent friable light-toned rocks that contain the hematite-rich grains enabled the more resistant hematite grains to be concentrated in sufficient abundances along the surface to be detected by TES. A more limited supply of hematite grains within the light-toned rocks, inadequate winds, subsequent burial beneath dust or sand, and fewer low-lying terrains upon which the grains could form a lag deposit may explain why there are smaller exposures of hematite within Valles Marineris compared to Meridiani Planum and Aram Chaos.
Mechanism of the cardiovascular response to systemic intravenous administration of leucine-enkephalin in the conscious dog

Leucine-enkephalin (Leu5-ENK) (35 micrograms/kg) increased heart rate and mean systemic arterial blood pressure following intravenous injection into chronically-instrumented, conscious dogs. Repeated injections at five-minute intervals were not associated with a diminished response. Naloxone (1 mg/kg) pre-treatment inhibited both heart rate and blood pressure increases. Prazosin (1 mg/kg) attenuated the increase in blood pressure but did not influence the heart rate response. Propranolol (1 mg/kg) attenuated the heart rate response but not the pressor response. Clonidine (30 micrograms/kg) attenuated the positive chronotropic effect of Leu5-ENK. Atropine (1 mg/kg) plus propranolol (1 mg/kg) blocked the heart rate response but the pressor effect was still present. The attenuation of the heart rate response by propranolol and the pressor response by prazosin suggests an adrenergic component to the enkephalin response; the reduction in the heart rate response by clonidine and atropine-propranolol indicates a role for cholinergic mechanisms in the chronotropic response. Hexamethonium (10 mg/kg) blocked the heart rate response and markedly inhibited the pressor response. Vagal interruption attenuated both heart rate and blood pressure responses. It is concluded that intravenous Leu5-ENK stimulates afferent pathways located in fibers which are contained in the vagosympathetic trunk to reflexly increase heart rate and blood pressure.
The Bankruptcy System's Chapter 22 Recidivism Problem: How Serious is It?

This paper is adapted from the keynote address from the Eastern Finance Association's 2014 meeting in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. We highlight a recidivism problem: about 15% of debtors who emerge as continuing entities under Chapter 11, or are acquired as part of the bankruptcy process, ultimately file for bankruptcy protection again (18.25% when considering only those firms which emerge as a continuing, independent entity). We argue that the “Chapter 22” issue should not be dismissed by the bankruptcy community just because no interested party objects during the confirmation hearing. Applying the Z”-Score model to a large sample of Chapter 11 cases reveals highly different and significant expected survival profiles at emergence. Credible distress prediction techniques can effectively predict the future success of firms emerging from bankruptcy and be used by the bankruptcy court to assess the feasibility of the reorganization plan, a requirement mandated by the Bankruptcy Code. Branch reviews, discusses, and critiques in this follow-up article to Altman's original thesis.
The effect of laser polarization on the two-laser excitation of a diatomic molecule

Abstract A theoretical calculation demonstrates that a larger fraction of an ensemble of diatomic molecules (hydrogen fluoride) can absorb energy from two lasers of different frequencies when the electric field vectors are parallel than when they are perpendicular to one another.
Peripheral nerve regeneration through silicone chambers in streptozocin- induced diabetic rats

The silicone chamber model was used to evaluate peripheral nerve regeneration (PNR) in streptozocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. Diabetic and control animals underwent sciatic nerve transection and silicone chamber implantation establishing gaps of various lengths between the transected nerve ends. In animals with 5 and 10 mm gaps, diabetes was induced in experimental rats 1 week before surgery, and the animals were sacrificed 3 weeks after surgery. In animals with 8 mm gaps, diabetes induction occurred 3 days after surgery, and they were sacrificed after 7 weeks. Diabetic rats with 10 mm gaps demonstrated an impaired ability to form bridging cables, the initial step of regeneration through chambers. Morphometric studies of bridging cables between transected nerve ends demonstrated a significant reduction in the mean endoneurial area in diabetic animals with 5 and 8 mm gaps compared to controls. The number of regenerated myelinated axons in the chamber was significantly decreased in diabetic rats with 8 and 10 mm gaps. The mean myelinated fiber area in the regenerated cables of the diabetic group was significantly decreased with 5 mm gaps and significantly increased with 8 mm gaps compared to controls. Size-frequency histograms of regenerated myelinated fiber areas suggest a delay in the maturation of small caliber axons. Schwann cell migration across 5 mm gaps was examined with S-100 immunohistochemistry. The total distance of Schwann cell migration into cables from both proximal and distal ends was significantly reduced in diabetic animals. Characterization of PNR across gaps through silicone chambers in diabetic rats showed impairment in multiple aspects of the regenerative process, including cable formation, Schwann cell migration, and axonal regeneration.
Preliminary characterization of a laser-generated plasma sheet

Abstract We present the results from recent experiments to create a flowing plasma sheet. Two groups of three laser beams with nominally 1.5 kJ of energy per group were focused to separate pointing locations, driving a shock into a wedge target. As the shock breaks out of the wedge, the plasma is focused on center, creating a sheet of plasma. Measurements at 60 ns indicate the plasma sheet has propagated 2825 microns with an average velocity of 49 microns/ns. These experiments follow previous experiments [Krauland et al. 2013], which are aimed at studying similar physics as that found in the hot spot region of cataclysmic variables. Krauland et al. created a flowing plasma, which represents the flowing plasma from the secondary star. This flow interacted with a stationary object, which represented the disk around the white dwarf. A reverse shock is a shock formed when a freely expanding plasma encounters an obstacle. Reverse shocks can be generated by a blast wave propagating through a medium. They can also be found in binary star systems where the flowing gas from a companion star interacts with the accretion disk of the primary star.
Homogeneous nucleation of vapor by depressurization at constant volume

An analysis has been carried out to determine the thermodynamic requirements for homogeneous nucleation of a vapor bubble when the pressure drops inside a constant-volume container of liquid. This situation can occur in phase change processes when a rigid vessel filled with liquid is cooled. The nucleation equations at constant volume have a somewhat different character from their more familiar constant-pressure counterparts that reflects the change in the boundary conditions for bubble formation. Both the physical and mathematical implications of the new solution are explored in detail, and it is shown to reduce to the well known constant-pressure result in the limiting case of a very large container volume. To illustrate an application of the new equations, some numerical examples have been worked out for homogeneous nucleation of water with various container sizes and initial liquid temperatures. In addition to increasing fundamental understanding of homogeneous nucleation, these results should prove valuable for calculation purposes when vapor nucleation takes place under isochoric rather than isobaric conditions.
Exploration of Lexical–Semantic Factors Affecting Stress Production in Derived Words

Purpose This study examined whether lexical frequency, semantic knowledge, or sentence context affect children’s production of primary stress in derived words with stress-changing suffixes (e.g., -...
Computation of Microstructure Utilizing Young Measure Representations

An algorithm is proposed for the solution of non-convex variational problems. In order to avoid representing highly oscillatory functions on a mesh, an associated Young measure, which characterizes such oscillations, is also approximated. Sample calculations demonstrate the viability of this approach.
Confirmation of tPA Treatment Effect by Baseline Severity-Adjusted End Point Reanalysis of the NINDS-tPA Stroke Trials

Background and Purpose— Baseline severity-adjusted end point analysis, an emerging approach to the evaluation of primary end points in acute stroke trials, offers a novel means of adjusting trial analysis for baseline imbalances in presenting stroke severity among treatment groups, a factor that has complicated interpretation and reception of the results of the pivotal National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke tissue plasminogen activator (NINDS-tPA) trials. Methods— The sliding scale dichotomy end point responder analysis applied in recent acute ischemic stroke clinical trials was used to analyze NINDS-tPA stroke trials 1 and 2. Good outcomes were: 3-month Rankin scale=0 if pretreatment NIHSS scores were 1 to 7; 3-month Rankin scale=0 to 1 if pretreatment NIHSS scores were 8 to 14; 3-month Rankin scale=0 to 2 if pretreatment NIHSS scores were >14. Results— Both of the NINDS-tPA stroke trials showed a statistically significant beneficial treatment effect of tPA. In unadjusted analyses, in tr...
Calculation of fluid fluxes in Earth’s crust

Abstract The movement of fluids in the crust and upper mantle not only lead to important mineral reactions but also play an essential role in the geochemical cycling of elements and in controlling global change. Numerous papers have focused on calculation of fluid fluxes driving metamorphic reactions in the earth’s crust. The extent of reaction in nature has been “inverted” to predict the total amount of fluid that was required to drive that much reaction. These models, although based on thermodynamic equilibrium, have extended the earlier concept of water-rock ratio. Any quantitative treatment of the fluid fluxes and the relationship between these fluxes and other variables such as temperature and mineral abundances requires a kinetic model. A simple model is presented that incorporates the essential dynamics of metamorphic processes including both heat flow by conduction and convection as well as fluid flow in and out of a representative volume. Overall mineral reactions can then take place within this rock volume in response to internal and external factors. The production and subsequent expulsion of excess fluids (H2O and CO2) as a result of these reactions leads to increased fluid fluxes, which the model can also handle. Using this kinetic model, the assumption of thermodynamic equilibrium can be tested and forward calculations can compare the numbers “inverted” for total integrated fluid fluxes based on equilibrium with the “actual” integrated fluid fluxes. Other effects such as changes in the temperature field or the presence of dispersion/diffusion can also be readily quantified with this kinetic model. The nontrivial consequences of heterogeneity in natural systems make the kinetic approach much more essential but at the same time much more “invertible” than earlier approaches. Ultimately, the effects of the rates of overall mineral reactions and their interplay with the other kinetic processes taking place in these open systems have to be evaluated to guide us in developing much more powerful and correct ways of extracting fluid velocities from petrologic field data.
An auditory psychometric function from newborn chicks

This study shows how the hearing of newborn chicks can be quantified with receiver operating characteristics (ROCs). A detailed auditory psychometric function was constructed from areas under ROCs, derived from delays in ongoing vocalizations elicited by pulsing pure tones. Over 20 000 delays were analyzed from 160 birds tested at four frequencies (0.25–2 kHz), eight intensities (−3 to 18 dB above estimated threshold), and two ages (0 and 4 days posthatch). Areas under these ROCs increase in an S‐shaped function over intensity, as expected. Maximum responsiveness at approximately 75% correct shows that these neonates never achieve the near‐perfect performance of mature listeners. Thresholds appear best estimated by the level required for 65% correct. Results replicate previous findings, showing that thresholds mature at low frequencies before high. Although there is no simple way to alleviate decreasing responsiveness caused by habituation over trials, improved performance results from presenting different frequencies, but only in the younger birds, and primarily with louder stimuli.
Frequent detection of infectious xenotropic murine leukemia virus (XMLV) in human cultures established from mouse xenografts

Purpose: To investigate the frequency of xenotropic murine leukemia virus (MLV) presence in human cell lines established from mouse xenografts and to search for the evidence of horizontal viral spread to other cell lines. Methodology: We examined xenograft tumor cell lines from 7 independent laboratories and 128 non-xenografted tumor cell lines. Cell line DNA was examined for mouse DNA contamination, and by three Taqman qPCR assays targeting the gag, env or pol regions of MLV. Sequencing was used for viral strain identification. Supernatant fluids were tested for reverse transcriptase (RT) activity. Results: Six of 23 (26%) mouse DNA free xenograft cultures were strongly positive for MLV and their sequences had greater than 99% homology to known MLV strains. Four of five available supernatant fluids from these viral positive cultures were strongly positive for RT activity. Three of these supernatant fluids were studied to confirm the infectivity of the released virions for other human culture cells. Of th...