cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Claudin-9 structures reveal mechanism for toxin-induced gut barrier breakdown

The human pathogenic bacterium Clostridium perfringens secretes an enterotoxin (CpE) that targets claudins through its C-terminal receptor-binding domain (cCpE). Isoform-specific binding by CpE causes dissociation of claudins and tight junctions (TJs), resulting in cytotoxicity and breakdown of the gut epithelial barrier. Here, we present crystal structures of human claudin-9 (hCLDN-9) in complex with cCpE at 3.2 and 3.3 A. We show that hCLDN-9 is a high-affinity CpE receptor and that hCLDN-9-expressing cells undergo cell death when treated with CpE but not cCpE, which lacks its cytotoxic domain. Structures reveal cCpE-induced alterations to 2 epitopes known to enable claudin self-assembly and expose high-affinity interactions between hCLDN-9 and cCpE that explain isoform-specific recognition. These findings elucidate the molecular bases for hCLDN-9 selective ion permeability and binding by CpE, and provide mechanisms for how CpE disrupts gut homeostasis by dissociating claudins and TJs to affect epithelial adhesion and intercellular transport.
Globalization and the erosion of geo-ethnic checkpoints: evolving signal-boundary systems at the edge of chaos

Spatial boundaries, thermodynamic–economic specialization, and signal processing are at the core of evolution’s major transitions. Centered on these three dimensions, a proposed evolutionary informatics model roots ethnic and racial cleavages in zero-sum contests over rivalrous resources within geophysical sites. As the geophysical boundaries and signal-processing complexity of social systems coevolved, zero-sum contests centered on metropoles extracting resources from hinterlands. In this colonial extraction process, racialization arose from non-market spatial segregation of populations tagged with hinterland lineage. Subsequent post-industrial erosion—and greater permeability—of racial and ethnic boundaries has been enabled by the progressive uncoupling of more highly evolved complex adaptive systems from geophysical location (non-territorial adaptation). Signal and physical topologies are becoming more distinct. This uncoupling from physical location is driven by cybernetic parallelism in complex adaptive systems: diverse and independent agents learning from their mutual exchange of signals. Cybernetic parallelism has generated epistemic and geopolitical challenges to formal apartheid and racializing immigration policies, but not without friction or reversals.
Inside-Out Venous Access–Assisted Transcatheter Pulmonary Valve

A 39-year-old man with congenital heart disease presented with right heart failure due to severe pulmonic regurgitation. The patient was born with pulmonary atresia and intact ventricular septum. He was managed with atrial septostomy and a Waterston shunt, followed by patch augmentation of his
TRANS-DOCK: Expanding the Interactivity of Pin-based Shape Displays by Docking Mechanical Transducers

This paper introduces TRANS-DOCK, a docking system for pin-based shape displays that enhances their interaction capabilities for both the output and input. By simply interchanging the transducer module, composed of passive mechanical structures, to be docked on a shape display, users can selectively switch between different configurations including display sizes, resolutions, and even motion modalities to allow pins moving in a linear motion to rotate, bend and inflate. We introduce a design space consisting of several mechanical elements and enabled interaction capabilities. We then explain the implementation of the docking system and transducer design components. Our implementation includes providing the limitations and characteristics of each motion transmission method as design guidelines. A number of transducer examples are then shown to demonstrate the range of interactivity and application space achieved with the approach of TRANS-DOCK. Potential use cases to take advantage of the interchangeability of our approach are discussed. Through this paper we intend to expand expressibility, adaptability and customizability of a single shape display for dynamic physical interaction. By converting arrays of linear motion to several types of dynamic motion in an adaptable and flexible manner, we advance shape displays to enable versatile embodied interactions.
Validating wearable sensors using self‐reported instability among patients with knee osteoarthritis

BACKGROUND Self-perceived instability among patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA) is defined as giving way, buckling, or shifting of the knee during activities, especially walking. Although instability is a leading cause of mobility decline with knee OA, methods for quantifying the symptom, determining the mechanisms, and establishing effective interventions remain unclear. Recently, data outputs (ie, linear acceleration and its time-derivative, jerk) from wearable sensors are showing strong associations with self-perceived instability among patients with other knee pathologies and may offer insight into OA-related instability. OBJECTIVE To examine discriminant and convergent validity of using data outputs from wearable sensors to quantify self-reported instability among patients with knee OA. DESIGN Secondary analysis of a cross-sectional study. SETTING Primary recruitment from an institutional outpatient physical therapy clinic and collection completed in an institutional research laboratory. PATIENTS Thirty-nine total participants. The OA group included 26 participants with radiographic evidence of moderate to severe knee OA in the medial compartment; knee pain >3 out of 10, and a walking speed of ≥1.0 m/s. The control group included 13 participants with no history of knee OA. Participants with current or history of low back, hip, or foot/ankle injury; knee replacement; skeletal realignment surgery; or comorbidities that limit walking, pregnancy, and inability to walk without an assistive device were excluded. INTERVENTIONS N/A MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Data output from wearable sensors at the tibia. RESULTS Midstance acceleration (P = .01) and jerk (P = .04) were significantly greater for those with than without knee OA. Acceleration was significantly associated with self-reported instability (Spearman's rho = -0.63, P < .01). CONCLUSIONS Data from wearable sensors are a valid measurement for exploring the mechanisms and risks of instability among patients with knee OA.
The activity of sulfono-γ-AApeptide helical foldamers that mimic GLP-1

Existing long α-helix mimicking necessitates the retention of most natural amino acid residues to maintain their biological activity. Here, we report the exploration of helical sulfono-γ-AApeptides with entire unnatural backbones for their ability to structurally and functionally mimic glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1). Our findings suggest that efficient construction of novel GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists could be achieved with nanomolar potencies. In addition, the resulting sulfono-γ-AApeptides were also proved to display remarkable stability against enzymatic degradation compared to GLP-1, augmenting their biological potential. This alternative strategy of α-helix mimicking, as a proof of concept, could provide a new paradigm to prepare GLP-1R agonists.
Epitope-based sieve analysis of Plasmodium falciparum sequences from a FMP2.1/AS02A vaccine trial is consistent with differential vaccine efficacy against immunologically relevant AMA1 variants.

Abstract To prevent premature dismissal of promising vaccine programs, it is critical to determine if lack of efficacy in the field is due to allele specific-efficacy, rather than to the lack of immunogenicity of the candidate antigen. Here we use samples collected during a field trial of the AMA1-based FMP2.1/AS02A malaria vaccine, which incorporates the AMA1 variant encoded by the reference Plasmodium falciparum 3D7 strain, to assess the usefulness of epitope-based sieve analysis for the detection of vaccine-induced allele-specific immune responses. The samples used are from volunteers who received the malaria vaccine FMP2.1/AS02A or a control (rabies vaccine), during a vaccine efficacy field trial, and who later developed malaria. In a previous study, P. falciparum DNA was extracted from all samples, and the ama1 locus amplified and sequenced. Here, a sieve analysis was used to measure T and B-cell escape, and difference in 3D7-like epitopes in the two treatment arms. Overall, no difference was observed in mean amino acid distance to the 3D7 AMA1 variant between sequences from vaccinees and controls in B-cell epitopes. However, we found a significantly greater proportion of 3D7-like T-cell epitopes that map to the AMA1 cluster one loop (c1L) region in the control vs. the vaccinee group (p = 0.02), consistent with allele-specific vaccine efficacy. Interestingly, AMA1 epitopes in infections from vaccinees had higher mean IC50, and consequently lower binding affinity, than epitopes generated from the control group (p = 0.01), suggesting that vaccine-induced selection impacted the immunological profile of the strains that pass through the sieve imposed by the vaccine-induced protection. These findings are consistent with a vaccine-derived sieve effect on the c1L region of AMA1 and suggest that sieve analyses of malaria vaccine trial samples targeted to epitopes identified in silico can help identify protective malaria antigens that may be efficacious if combined in a multivalent vaccine.
Getting Back to work: A framework and pivot plan to resume Elective Surgery and procedures after COVID-19.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has compelled a majority of hospital systems to reduce surgical and procedural volumes in an attempt to preserve resources. Elective surgery and procedures (ESP) resumption has proven to be a calculated risk between COVID-19 exposure and resource depletion and patient morbidity and mortality from surgical deferral. Methods: Within a few days of halting ESP, our 7-hospital (2427 in-patient beds, 26,647 inpatient surgeries) healthcare system developed a multidisciplinary Pivot Plan with the primary outcome of a phased resumption of ESP. The plan entailed the integration of our electronic medical record, order entry automatization, perioperative staff utilization, partnering with primary care providers, and a step-wise COVID-19 testing algorithm based on a pre-determined hierarchy of case acuity and timeliness of patient care. Results: The Pivot Plan was instituted on May 10, 2020. Since then, 22,624 patients have been tested for COVID-19 in anticipation of an ESP; 140 (0.62%) tested positive for COVID-19 and had their procedure deferred. As our testing capability has increased, we have been able to increase our added ESP capacity from 13 cases per day to 531 cases per day. In turn, we have seen the case volume increase by 52%. Conclusion: Our academic healthcare system located in one of the initial COVID - 19 hotspots in the United States has successfully resumed ESP in part due to a receptive and supportive culture, based upon nimbleness, agility, and rapid integration of multiple resources from a cohort of diverse disciplines applied to the perioperative services workflow.
A Machine-Learning-Based Data-Centric Misbehavior Detection Model for Internet of Vehicles

The Internet of Things (IoT) boosts road safety, efficiency, and infotainment by connecting vehicles to form the Internet of Vehicles (IoV). Specifically to safety, IoV complements autonomous cars beyond sensors’ line-of-sight, facilitating vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications in a smart transportation environment. The correctness of data exchanged among vehicles is paramount to ensure vehicles behave as per norms. Traditional misbehavior detection methods hardly defend vehicular security effectively due to rapid dynamics and location privacy. In particular, those node-centric classifiers become ill-fit in IoV. This work proposes a data-centric misbehavior detection model based on supervised machine learning (ML). The work also integrates plausibility checks with ML techniques and instantiates the model with six algorithms to demonstrate their comparative effectiveness. In addition to misbehavior detection, the model classifies attack types to support validating countermeasures. Specifically, the work analyzes the supervised learning algorithms for detecting misbehavior in IoV, compares their performance, and identifies their limitations. VeReMi, a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) position forgery attack built-in simulated road traffic data set, is used to test the effectiveness of the proposed model. The performance metrics include precision–recall (PR) and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. The results demonstrate the effectiveness and significance of ML to detect misbehavior in IoV. The addition of plausibility checks improves the precision and recall by 5% and 2%, respectively.
Evaluating Intel 3D-Xpoint NVDIMM Persistent Memory in the Context of a Key-Value Store

Intel's 3D-Xpoint NVDIMM product1 is now in general availability. This technology, herein termed Optane-PM, is a first-in-breed persistent memory technology, designed for the enterprise storage domain. Optane-PM is attached to the memory-bus and is load-store addressable. It provides higher capacity and density than DRAM, while also enabling non-volatility - data is persistent and durable across power-cycles. This paper presents a detailed evaluation of adopting Optane-PM in key-value stores. To achieve this goal, we designed and implemented a high-performance, memory-centric key-value store (MCKVS), that directly leverages persistent memory for data and meta-data storage. Multiple storage back-ends, with different software stacks, are used to provide a comparative analysis and help us understand how Optane-PM is positioned on the performance landscape. We also conducted comparisons against popular in-memory KV stores based on DRAM.
Self-supervised Pre-training with Hard Examples Improves Visual Representations.

Self-supervised pre-training (SSP) employs random image transformations to generate training data for visual representation learning. In this paper, we first present a modeling framework that unifies existing SSP methods as learning to predict pseudo-labels. Then, we propose new data augmentation methods of generating training examples whose pseudo-labels are harder to predict than those generated via random image transformations. Specifically, we use adversarial training and CutMix to create hard examples (HEXA) to be used as augmented views for MoCo-v2 and DeepCluster-v2, leading to two variants HEXA_{MoCo} and HEXA_{DCluster}, respectively. In our experiments, we pre-train models on ImageNet and evaluate them on multiple public benchmarks. Our evaluation shows that the two new algorithm variants outperform their original counterparts, and achieve new state-of-the-art on a wide range of tasks where limited task supervision is available for fine-tuning. These results verify that hard examples are instrumental in improving the generalization of the pre-trained models.
Applying Human-Centered Design to Refinement of the Jumpstart Guide, a Clinician- and Patient-Facing Goals-of-Care Discussion Priming Tool

Abstract Context Human-centered design provides a framework to understand the needs of patients and clinicians who are the target of goals-of-care discussion priming tools. Few studies employ human-centered design to develop and refine their tools. Objectives To describe how human-centered design can be applied to the development and refinement of clinician- and patient-facing inpatient goals-of-care discussion guides (Jumpstart guides). Methods Human-centered design was applied to the development and refinement of the inpatient Jumpstart guides in four phases: (1) discovering problems based on prior pilots, studies, and research team priorities; (2) further defining problems based on stakeholder and expert review of the current guides; (3) designing solutions based on consensus among stakeholders; and (4) validating solutions after research team review of stakeholder comments. Results Five initial problems were identified by the research team in phase 1. After expert and stakeholder review in phase 2, 30 additional problems were identified related to Jumpstart guide format, structure, and content. In phase 3, stakeholders proposed solutions to these 35 problems and reached consensus on 32 of these. There was disagreement in 3 areas, including how to frame discussions around cardiopulmonary resuscitation and 2 perceived barriers to inpatient goals-of-care discussions. In phase 4, the research team reviewed all stakeholder input and reached final consensus on solutions to all of the identified problems. Conclusion Human-centered design is a useful tool for enhancing communication interventions in serious illness and can easily be integrated in future development and refinement of clinician- and patient-facing interventions to enhance goals-of-care discussions.
Splenic rupture after sexual intercourse in a pregnant woman: an extremely rare case.

A 33-year-old pregnant woman presented at 36 weeks gestation to the emergency with acute abdominal pain that started after vaginal intercourse. No bruising was present on the abdominal examination. An emergent cesarean delivery was performed for resistant hypotension and collapse. A fetus with cardiac arrest was delivered, and active spleen bleeding was identified at the splenocolic and gastrosplenic ligament insertion. The patient had a conservative treatment of the spleen and an uncomplicated postoperative course. The infant was resuscitated and discharged after 18 days. In conclusion, traumatic spleen rupture is an etiology to consider in pregnant women presenting with acute abdominal pain following sexual intercourse. Early suspicion and emergent cesarean delivery are the keys to optimize maternal and perinatal outcomes.
Barbarigenesis and the collapse of complex societies: Rome and after

"Barbarism" is perhaps best understood as a recurring syndrome among peripheral societies in response to the threats and opportunities presented by more developed neighbors. This article develops a mathematical model of barbarigenesis-the formation of "barbarian" societies adjacent to more complex societies-and its consequences, and applies the model to the case of Europe in the first millennium CE. A starting point is a game (developed by Hirshleifer) in which two players allocate their resources either to producing wealth or to fighting over wealth. The paradoxical result is that a richer and potentially more powerful player may lose out to a poorer player, because the opportunity cost of fighting is greater for the former. In a more elaborate spatial model with many players, the outcome is a wealth-power mismatch: central regions have comparatively more wealth than power, peripheral regions have comparatively more power than wealth. In a model of historical dynamics, a wealth-power mismatch generates a long-lasting decline in social complexity, sweeping from more to less developed regions, until wealth and power come to be more closely aligned. This article reviews how well this model fits the historical record of late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages in Europe both quantitatively and qualitatively. The article also considers some of the history left out of the model, and why the model doesn't apply to the modern world.
Technical Change and Efficiency

Technical change plays a central role in dynamic economics. Economic theory considers technology as the main driving force behind economic growth of capitalist economies. From an economic viewpoint three aspects of technical change have been discussed as important in the current economic literature. Technological progress embodied in labor and capital inputs, or disembodied in a time-varying form has focused on the effects of technology in improving factor productivity over time. Optimal rules of switching from one technique to another so that the economies of scale can be exploited over time have been widely investigated in modern theories of economic growth. At the microeconomic level the specification of technological diffusion and the way it affects the dynamic production process have provided an active field of modern research. One major implication of this research has been to modify the production frontier parameters, so that the impact of technological substitution and updating can be incorporated. Finally, the multi-stage aspects of the production process and the need for flexibility rather than fine tuning have been evidenced in the modern technology-intensive industries. The whole new field of flexible manufacturing systems, which is discussed in some detail in Chapter Five deals with these multi-stage aspects of the production process.
Functional group interactions of a 5-HT3R antagonist

Background Lerisetron, a competitive serotonin type 3 receptor (5-HT3R) antagonist, contains five functional groups capable of interacting with amino acids in the 5-HT3R binding site. Site directed mutagenesis studies of the 5-HT3AR have revealed several amino acids that are thought to form part of the binding domain of this receptor. The specific functional groups on the ligand that interact with these amino acids are, however, unknown. Using synthetic analogs of lerisetron as molecular probes in combination with site directed mutagenesis, we have identified some of these interactions and have proposed a model of the lerisetron binding site.
Zn²(+) -containing protein S inhibits extrinsic factor X-activating complex independently of tissue factor pathway inhibitor.

Summary. Background: Protein S (PS) has direct anticoagulant activity, independently of activated protein C (APC). The mechanisms underlying this activity remain unclear, because PS preparations differ in activity, giving rise to conflicting results. Some purification procedures result in loss of intramolecular Zn2+, which is essential for inhibition of prothrombinase. Objective: To investigate the inhibition of extrinsic factor (F)Xase by Zn2+-containing PS. Methods: Purified component extrinsic FXase assays were used to determine FXa generation in the presence and absence of PS and/or tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI). Binding assays, immunoblots and thrombin generation assays in plasma supported the FXase data. Results: Zn2+-containing PS potently inhibited extrinsic FXase in the presence of saturating phospholipids, independently of TFPI, whereas inhibition of extrinsic FXase by Zn2+-deficient PS required TFPI. Immunoblots for FXa and functional assays showed that Zn2+-containing PS inhibited primarily the quantity of FXa formed by tissue factor (TF)–FVIIa, rather than FXa amidolytic activity. Zn2+-containing PS, but not Zn2+-deficient PS, bound to TF with high affinity (Kd app = 41 nm) and targeted TF function. Binding of PS to FVIIa was negligible, whereas PS showed appreciable binding to FX. Increasing FX concentrations 10-fold reduced PS inhibition five-fold, suggesting that PS inhibition of FXase is FX-dependent. PS also exhibited TFPI-independent and APC-independent anticoagulant activity during TF-initiated thrombin generation in plasma. Conclusions: PS that retains native Zn2+ also retains anticoagulant functions independently of APC and TFPI. Inhibition of extrinsic FXase by PS at saturating levels of phospholipids depends on PS retention of intramolecular Zn2+, interaction with FX, and, particularly, interaction with TF.
An efficient implementation of a threshold RSA signature scheme

Several threshold RSA signature schemes have been proposed, in particular the schemes [4,8] and [20]. Recent research has shown that the earlier schemes [4,8] may be in some cases more “efficient” than these later schemes. Here we describe efficient implementations of threshold RSA schemes as well as further enhancements to improve performance of the Desmedt-Frankel scheme. Our conclusion is that if memory is not an issue there will be situations, for example if one can expect shareholders know who will be participating in the signature generation, that the Desmedt-Frankel scheme is very efficient.
An Interview with Ron Seaver, President and CEO of Seaver Marketing Group

Ron Seaver is in a unique position within the sport industry. He has worked on both sides of the sponsorship business, selling sponsorships for teams and assisting corporations in securing productive sponsorship. In his current role as President and CEO of Seaver Marketing Group, Ron is working to bring all parties in the sponsorhip industry together. Here he talks to Dr David Stotlar, of the University of Northern Colorado, sharing his experience and his insights.
A Brand's Advertising and Promotion Allocation Strategy: The Role of the Manufacturer's Relationship with Distributors as Moderated by Relative Market Share

Abstract Results of this study suggest that the type of exchange relationship between a packaged-goods manufacturer and its distributors influences a manufacturer's brand allocation between the frequently opposing strategies of advertising and promotion. As exchange relationships become more relational, manufacturers increase their allocation to advertising. Conversely, as relationships become more discrete, manufacturers increase their allocation to promotion. Additionally, study results suggest that a brand's relative market share moderates the influence of the exchange relationship type. Brands with low relative market share may experience greater opportunity for advertising in relational exchange and increased pressure for promotion in discrete exchange.
Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed

Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed James C. Scott. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1998.
Parallax photography: creating 3D cinematic effects from stills

We present an approach to convert a small portion of a light field with extracted depth information into a cinematic effect with simulated, smooth camera motion that exhibits a sense of 3D parallax. We develop a taxonomy of the cinematic conventions of these effects, distilled from observations of documentary film footage and organized by the number of subjects of interest in the scene. We present an automatic, content-aware approach to apply these cinematic conventions to an input light field. A face detector identifies subjects of interest. We then optimize for a camera path that conforms to a cinematic convention, maximizes apparent parallax, and avoids missing information in the input. We describe a GPU-accelerated, temporally coherent rendering algorithm that allows users to create more complex camera moves interactively, while experimenting with effects such as focal length, depth of field, and selective, depth-based desaturation or brightening. We evaluate and demonstrate our approach on a wide variety of scenes and present a user study that compares our 3D cinematic effects to their 2D counterparts.
Responses: Toward an Antiracist Pedagogy

The authors respond here to each other's essays published in this issue of the journal. In “Holding Us Accountable,” Anna Floerke Scheid and Elisabeth T. Vasko respond to Karen Teel's essay, “Getting Out of the Left Lane.” In “Challenges and Convergences,” Karen Teel responds to the essay “Teaching Race” by Anna Floerke Scheid and Elisabeth T. Vasko.
Biodynamics of the living human spine during -gx impact acceleration

Spinal kinematics of living human volunteers undergoing minus G//x impact acceleration are described along with the experimental procedures followed to acquire such data. There were 4 male and 3 female volunteers who were subjected to impacts in the tensed and relaxed mode from 2-8 g, in 1-g increments. Their lower extremities were tightly clamped to the impact seat and the pelvis was restrained by a lapbelt. The biodynamic response of the living spine is quite similar to that of the cadaveric spine, particularly in terms of T1 displacement, acceleration at T1 and flexural resistance. Female volunteers tend to withdraw from the test program at lower g-levels than males due to transient neck pain.
The interplay of graph and text in the acquisition of historical constructs

Graphs are often conjoined with text passages in history textbooks to help students comprehend complex constructs. Four linkages connect text and graphs: appropriate elements, fitting patterns, suitable labels and causal markers. Graphs in current textbooks contain few such linkages and seldom mirror the construct under study. An experiment conducted with seventh grade students investigated the effect on construct comprehension of loosely and tightly linked graphs. The experiment (n=118), employed a mixed-model design with reading ability as a between-subjects factor and graph treatments as a within-subjects factor. An analysis of variance with planned Helmert contrasts showed that proficient and advanced readers scored significantly higher on construct comprehension with a tight graph supporting a text passage as opposed to a loose graph.
Medical therapy for benign prostatic hyperplasia progression

The vast majority of patients presenting to their physicians with concerns about voiding are seeking quick resolution of a disturbed urination pattern. The primacy of their concern over symptoms is appropriate, given the current focus on amelioration of voiding complaints in the treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms. Patients also ask about the risks of symptom progression and how this should impact their decision to choose either medical or surgical intervention. The concept of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) progression has recently become a growing area of interest as new information emerges concerning the natural history of BPH and the identification of risk factors for progression. The impact of medical treatment on the prevention of BPH progression is slowly becoming apparent. The Proscar Long-Term Efficacy and Safety Study trial (Proscar; Merck & Co., Whitehouse Station, NJ) revealed a reduced risk of acute urinary retention and the requirement for invasive treatment with the long-term use of finasteride. More recent data from the Medical Therapy of Prostate Symptoms trial revealed that symptomatic men with BPH who were treated with a combination of an a-blocker and a 5-a reductase inhibitor showed significantly delayed clinical progression of their symptoms compared with treatment with each drug individually. Combination therapy appears to be more effective than doxazosin or finasteride alone in producing significant improvements in American Urological Association Symptom Index and flow rate changes. Interestingly, finasteride and combination therapy reduced the long-term risk of acute urinary retention.
Challenges and Strategies for Conducting International Public Management Research

Cross-cultural management research is a valuable but complex and error-prone endeavor. The main challenges the authors encountered in conducting a multinational research project included nonequivalence of key concepts, cultural stereotypes, assumptions of universality, and difficulties in comparative analysis. The authors identified crucial questions that need to be asked at each stage of the research for it to be both reliable and valid. These questions address such pitfalls as the importance of focusing on culture as an independent variable, the cultural dynamics of the research team, and the importance of translation and of finding culturally equivalent definitions of key concepts.
Irish Nationalists and the Making of the Irish Race

In this book Bruce Nelson, Professor Emeritus of History at Dartmouth, analyzes the development of Irish nationalism in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries through the lens of race. More s...
Measurements of Equilibrium Vacancy Concentrations in Aluminum

Measurements of change in length and change in lattice parameter were made at identical temperatures on 99.995% aluminum in the temperature range 229 to 656\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}C. Length changes, $\ensuremath{\Delta}L$, were measured on an unconstrained horizontal bar sample using a rigid pair of filar micrometer microscopes. X-ray lattice parameter changes, $\ensuremath{\Delta}a$, were observed using a high-angle, back-reflection, rotating-single-crystal technique. The measurements are compared to earlier work. The relative expansions $\frac{\ensuremath{\Delta}L}{L}$ and $\frac{\ensuremath{\Delta}a}{a}$ were equal within about 1:${10}^{5}$ from 229 to 415\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}C. At higher temperatures additional atomic sites were found to be generated: the difference between the two expansions could be represented by $3(\frac{\ensuremath{\Delta}L}{L}\ensuremath{-}\frac{\ensuremath{\Delta}a}{a})=\mathrm{exp}(2.4)\mathrm{exp}(\ensuremath{-}0.76 \mathrm{ev}/kT)$. At the melting point (660\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}C) the equilibrium concentration of additional sites is $3(\frac{\ensuremath{\Delta}L}{L}\ensuremath{-}\frac{\ensuremath{\Delta}a}{a})=9.4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}4}$. This result is independent of the detailed nature of the defects, for example, the lattice relaxation or degree of association. The nature of the defects is considered and it is concluded that they are predominantly lattice vacancies; it is estimated that the divacancy contribution at the melting point may well be less than about 15%, corresponding to a divacancy binding energy \ensuremath{\leqslant} 0.25 ev. The observed formation energy agrees with the values obtained by quenching techniques and by interpretation of the high-temperature electrical resistivity of identical material by Simmons and Balluffi. The present work is the first direct measurement of formation entropy; the value is near that expected from theoretical considerations. The contribution of the thermally generated defects to other physical properties at high temperatures is considered briefly.
Effects of Δ8- and Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol on experimentally induced seizures

Abstract Effects of Δ 8 - and Δ 9 -tetrahydrocannabinol ( Δ 8 - and Δ 9 -THC) on three experimentally induced seizure models, i.e., audiogenic seizure (AS) test, maximal electroshock seizure (MES) test and pentylenetetrazol (PTZ)-induced seizure test were determined in the audiogenic rat. Both tetrahydrocannabinols possess a dose-related anticonvulsant effect against AS, MES and PTZ-induced maximal seizure. Although anticonvulsant potencies do not significantly differ, Δ 8 THC is three times more neurotoxic than Δ 9 THC. In addition, both THC's are without effect on minimal seizure and lethality induced by PTZ. Furthermore, the low protective indexes (TD50/ED50) determined in this study suggest that Δ 8 and Δ 9 THC may have poor therapeutic potentials as antiepileptic drugs.
The Fujita-Ziegler model: a new semi-quantitative technique for estimating paleoclimate from paleogeographic maps

Abstract The Fujita-Ziegler model combines approaches developed by T.T. Fujita and A.M. Ziegler of the University of Chicago to produce semi-quantitative retrodictions of paleoclimates based on paleogeographic maps that include the sizes and positions of land and sea areas and the positions and extents of upland areas. Based on such paleogeographic maps, the Fujita model extrapolates past values of surface air pressure from present-day relationships among air pressure, land area, latitude and season. Zonal mean air pressure for each latitude and season is hypothesized to depend on the amount of land area at that latitude and deviations from this mean over major bodies of land or water are hypothesized to depend on the area of the relevant body at that latitude. Fujita diagrams both illustrate these hypottheses and permit application of the model to paleogeographic maps. Surface air pressure maps based on these diagrams can be used to qualitatively retrodict seasonal windflow patterns and ocean currents. Tests of the Fujita model on the Recent geography suggest that most major air pressure cells are positioned accurately and that the values at the centers of cells are within 2–3 mb of measured values at low and middle latitudes and within 5 mb at the poles. Because the Fujita model extrapolates from a partly glaciated world, its retrodictions for ice-free times are suspect, particularly near the poles. The Ziegler model infers the areal and seasonal distribution of precipitation from reconstructed patterns of winds and ocean currents on paleogeographic maps. Retrodictions are based on (1) mechanisms that lift air, including global patterns of atmospheric circulation (Intertropical Convergence Zone), regional storm systems (extratropical cyclones) and relatively local lifting mechanisms (orographic effects, land-sea breezes and summer convective thunderstorms); (2) sources of moist air (i.e., bodies of warm water upwind); and (3) mechanisms that interfere with convection (e.g., upwelling zones and trade wind inversions). Tests of the Ziegler model on the Recent geography accurately retrodicted seasonal precipitation at low and middle latitudes but did less well near the poles. Comparison with maps of the seasonality of precipitation in the Recent shows that the model accurately retrodicted most ever-dry and ever-dry regions. Results emphasize the importance of accurately retrodicting the effects of orography, moisture source and upwelling zones on precipitation.
The use of the artificial kidney in the treatment of glomerulonephritis.

Abstract The dynamics of hemodialysis, with the artificial kidney employing a cellophane membrane, are described. The artificial kidney may be of therapeutic benefit in acute glomerulonephritis and in exacerbations of glomerulonephritis when it is employed to modify the severe renal failure until such time as spontaneous healing of the renal lesion occurs. In chronic glomerulonephritis, it may be used to ameliorate acute decompensation secondary to infection, dehydration, surgery, or trauma. In other instances of chronic renal failure, dialysis may cause temporary remission when conservative measures have failed, providing the renal failure and not accompanying cardiovascular disease is primarily responsible for the morbid state. The successful operation of an artificial kidney requires more than possession of the apparatus, and its successful use depends upon the skill and experience of the operator.
Do we know the site of action of cyclosporin

The site and mode of action of cyclosporin A (CsA) have been subjects of study ever since CsA was discovered and demonstrated to be a selective suppressor of allograft rejection. In this article, Bernard Erlanger traces progress to date and presents evidence that the site of action is not cytoplasmic cyclophilin but a lymphocyte cell-surface receptor that might be related in structure to cyclophilin.
Tonic Immobility: Differences in Susceptibility of Experimental and Normal Sheep and Goats

Tonic immobility ("animal hypnosis" or catatonic trance) could not be induced in 1-year-old foster lambs and kids. Control animals, conforming to a characteristic of their species, could be readily immobilized. The suggested explanation for this difference in behavior is that the foster animals did not develop a normal flight distance because of the ambivalent behavior of the "stepmother," who alternately permitted and refused nursing.
Asma y virus respiratorio sincitial. Nuevas oportunidades de intervención terapéutica

Numerous studies have described an association between respiratory sincticial virus (RSV) infection in infancy and the subsequent development of airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR). Besides the exaggerated immune response and the abnormal neurogenic mechanisms induced by RSV, recent studies have correlated the "persistence" of RSV in the lower respiratory tract with the development of AHR. Several investigators have evaluated whether treatment with antiviral or immunosuppressive agents could decrease the long term respiratory abnormalities induced by RSV. The RSV murine model has allowed us to study the immunopathogenesis of RSV-induced AHR. Once the airway obstruction, typical of acute disease, is resolved and no virus is longer detected by cell cultures, mice progress into a chronic phase characterized by AHR and persistent airway inflammation. The use of polymerase chain reaction assay for RSV quantitation has demonstrated, quite unexpectedly, the presence of RSV RNA in the lower respiratory tract of mice during the chronic phase of the disease. As an example of intervention, the administration of an anti-RSV neutralizing antibody (palivizumab) was associated with a significant reduction in viral replication, pulmonary inflammation and inflammatory cytokines, as well as a significant improvement in the pulmonary function both in the acute and chronic phases of the disease. Future clinical studies to determine whether therapy with palivizumab can prevent the long-term morbidity associated with RSV in children are warranted.
Dynamic Coupling Between the Joint and Elastic Coordinates in Flexible Mechanism Systems

The aim of this investigation is to develop an efficient proce dure for decoupling the joint and elastic accelerations while maintaining the nonlinear inertia coupling between the rigid body motion and the elastic deformation. The inertia projec tion schemes used in most existing recursive methods for the dynamic analysis of flexible robotics and mechanism systems lead to dense coefficient matrices in the acceleration equations, and consequently there is a strong dynamic coupling between the joint and elastic coordinates. When the number of elastic degrees of freedom increases, the size of the coefficient matrix in the acceleration equations becomes large, and consequently the use of these recursive methods for solving for the joint and elastic accelerations becomes less efficient. This investigation discusses the problems associated with the inertia projection schemes used in the existing recursive methods, and it is shown that decoupling the joint and elastic accelerations using these methods requires t...
Visualizing nanotechnology: the impact of visual images on lay American audience associations with nanotechnology

Developments in nanotechnology are attracting the attention of scholars of science communication who can play a strategic role in understanding technology adoption by the public. This paper begins ...
Chromosome studies in a "cancer family".

A family with a high incidence of malignant disease has been followed for 11 years. Thirty-seven of the 405 members of the family have had some type of malignant process. The most common types of malignancy were carcinoma of the breast, sarcoma, and acute leukemia. Cytogenetic studies were performed on the peripheral blood of 27 members of the family. Increased numbers of abnormal chromosomes were not consistently seen, although some members of the family seemed to have more aneuploidy than would be expected from studies of the general population. One member of the family had chromosome studies before and after developing acute leukemia, and was found to have a mode of 46 chromosomes before leukemia developed and a mode of 45 chromosomes in the peripheral blood and bone marrow after acute leukemia had developed. Examination of the family tree indicates that the predisposition to develop malignancies is probably inherited as an autosomal dominant trait. There is no evidence as to the mechanism by which this takes place, although the cytogenetic studies carried out on the one family member prior to and after the development of acute leukemia suggest that the malignant cells in this individual were associated with an abnormal number of chromosomes.
Modeling of the charging dynamics in silicon nanocrystal nonvolatile flash memory cells

Abstract Charging dynamics of silicon nanocrystal nonvolatile flash memory cells is explained using a simplified engineering model based on effective mass approximation. The model is comprehensive with all necessary physics and includes the presence of discrete energy levels in these nanocrystals and also the effect of shift in energy levels in the nanocrystals with more than one electron. The simulated results of current versus time and current versus gate voltage match very well with the experimental results. The results explain the anomalous peaks observed in the I – V characteristics. These peaks can be attributed to the charging of the smaller diameter nanocrystals with more than one electron at higher gate voltages.
Towards practical page coloring-based multicore cache management

Modern multi-core processors present new resource management challenges due to the subtle interactions of simultaneously executing processes sharing on-chip resources (particularly the L2 cache). Recent research demonstrates that the operating system may use the page coloring mechanism to control cache partitioning, and consequently to achieve fair and efficient cache utilization. However, page coloring places additional constraints on memory space allocation, which may conflict with application memory needs. Further, adaptive adjustments of cache partitioning policies in a multi-programmed execution environment may incur substantial overhead for page recoloring (or copying). This paper proposes a hot-page coloring approach enforcing coloring on only a small set of frequently accessed (or hot) pages for each process. The cost of identifying hot pages online is reduced by leveraging the knowledge of spatial locality during a page table scan of access bits. Our results demonstrate that hot page identification and selective coloring can significantly alleviate the coloring-induced adverse effects in practice. However, we also reach the somewhat negative conclusion that without additional hardware support, adaptive page coloring is only beneficial when recoloring is performed infrequently (meaning long scheduling time quanta in multi-programmed executions).
Approximation by Analytic and Harmonic Functions, Incompressible Vector Fields, and Temperature Distributions

Abstract The best (in theL2sense) approximations of a given function by solutions of certain PDEs are found, including approximations by analytic and by harmonic functions, by incompressible vector fields, and by solutions of the heat equation. In each case the problem is reduced to a boundary value problem (BVP) for a second or fourth order PDE. The corresponding BVPs are well posed and can be solved numerically. For some domains, analytic expressions for the solutions are found.
Effects of the new Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education work hour rules on surgical interns: a prospective study in a community teaching hospital.

Abstract Background On July 1, 2011, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) eliminated 30-hour call in an attempt to improve resident wakefulness. We surveyed interns on the Newton Wellesley Hospital (NWH) surgery service before and after the transition from Q4 overnight call to a night float schedule. Methods For 15 weeks, interns completed weekly surveys including the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS). The service changed to a night float schedule after 3 weeks (ie, first to 3–4 and then to 6 nights in a row). Results The average ESS score rose from 9.8 ± 5.2 to 14.9 ± 3.1 and 14.4 ± 4.5 ( P = .042) on the 3/4 and 6/1 schedules, respectively. Interns were more likely to be abnormally tired on either night float schedule (relative risk=2.86; 95% confidence interval, 1.17–6.97, P = .029). Conclusions The new ACGME work hours increased the ESS scores among interns at NWH and caused interns to be more tired than interns on the Q4 schedule. This is likely caused by the multiple nights of poor sleep without a post-call day to make up sleep.