cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Body Mass Index, Weight Loss, and Cause-Specific Mortality in Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Objective To examine associations of body mass index (BMI) and weight loss with cause-specific mortality in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods A cohort of US veterans with RA was followed until death or through 2013. BMI was categorized as underweight, normal, overweight, and obese. Weight loss was calculated as the 1) annualized rate of change over the preceding 13 months, and 2) cumulative percent. Vital status and cause of death were obtained from the National Death Index. Multivariable competing-risks regression models were utilized to assess the time-varying associations of BMI and weight loss with cause-specific mortality. Results Among 1,600 participants and 5,789 patient-years of followup, 303 deaths occurred (95 cardiovascular, 74 cancer, and 46 respiratory). The highest weight-loss rate and weight-loss percent were associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular mortality (rate: subdistribution hazard ratio [sHR] 2.27 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.61–3.19]; percent: sHR 2.31 [95% CI 1.06–5.01]) and cancer mortality (rate: sHR 2.36 [95% CI 1.11–5.01]; percent: sHR 1.90 [95% CI 1.00–3.62]). Overweight BMI was protective of cardiovascular mortality (sHR 0.59 [95% CI 0.38–0.91]), while underweight BMI was associated with a near 3-fold increased risk of respiratory mortality (sHR 2.93 [95% CI 1.28–6.67]). Incorporation of time-varying BMI and weight loss in the same models did not substantially alter individual associations for cardiovascular and cancer mortality, but an association between weight-loss percentage and respiratory mortality was attenuated after BMI adjustment. Conclusion Both BMI and weight loss are predictors of cause-specific mortality in RA. Weight loss is a strong predictor of cardiovascular and cancer mortality, while underweight BMI is a stronger predictor of respiratory mortality.
Samuel Hazard: Editor and Archivist for the Keystone State

sylvania Archives: Selected and Arranged from Original Documents in the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Before coming to Harris burg on a commission from the governor, Hazard was already widely known for his sixteen-volume periodical entitled The Register of Penn sylvania (1828-1836), the six-volume United States Commercial and Statistical Register (1839-1842), and the one-volume Annals of Penn sylvania, from the Discovery of the Delaware, 1609-82 (1850). What these three publications of printed documents have in common is aptly summed up in the sub-title of Hazard's first publication enterprise? "Devoted to the Preservation of Every Kind of Useful Information Respecting the State." To be sure, Samuel Hazard's most important historical undertaking was the Colonial Records and the Pennsylvania Archives, of which he was both a promoter and editor. His editorial service to state and nation was recognized by his contemporaries; it is rather surprising, however, that no one has assessed Hazard's contri bution within the context of his own time and that he has so long re mained a neglected subject of study.1 Born on May 26, 17 84 in Philadelphia, the son of Ebenezer Hazard2 and his wife Abigail Arthur, Samuel Hazard's life spanned important epochs of American history. He received his early education at the
Planar and outerplanar cayley graphs of free groups

All finite planar graphs are subgraphs of certain planar Cayley graphs of free groups; outerplanar graphs are subgraphs of certain outerplanar Cayley graphs of free groups. It is shown for these particular planar presentations of free groups that special planar is equivalent with outerplanar.
Mechanisms of microbial entry and endocytosis by mononuclear phagocytes.

Phagocytosis is a primary component of the host defense against invading microorganisms. Macrophages, working in concert with cellular and humoral immune mechanisms, are active both in clearing organisms from the blood or tissues and in killing and degrading them once they have been ingested. In this chapter we examine the molecular recognition mechanisms involved in the interaction of microbial pathogens with the macrophages and how these interactions contribute either to eradication of the invaders or to their ultimate ability to survive in the host. To that end, we review the physiology of phagocytosis, the classes of membrane binding sites currently recognized on the macrophage, the alteration of these binding sites upon macrophage activation, and the ways in which these sites may contribute to or oppose microbial infection. We are especially interested in examining the hypothesis that the initial plasma membrane binding mechanisms play important roles in determing the ultimate intracellular fate of phagocytized organisms.
Is There A Youth Politics

What is the nature of 'youth politics', if any? This article proposes an analytical lens which may help us consider ‘youth’ as a useful category, and 'youth politics' in terms of the conflicts and negotiations over claiming or defending youthfulness. Understood in this fashion, youth politics is mediated by the position of the young in class, gender, racial, sexual and other involved social structures. It concludes that the political outlook of a young person may be shaped not just by the exclusive preoccupation with 'youthfulness', but also by his/her position in society as citizen, poor, female, or a member of a sexual minority.
Introducing the Computer Science Concept of Variables in Middle School Science Classrooms

The K-12 Computer Science Framework has established that students should be learning about the computer science concept of variables as early as middle school, although the field has not yet determined how this and other related concepts should be introduced. Secondary school computer science curricula such as Exploring CS and AP CS Principles often teach the concept of variables in the context of algebra, which most students have already encountered in their mathematics courses. However, when strategizing how to introduce the concept at the middle school level, we confront the reality that many middle schoolers have not yet learned algebra. With that challenge in mind, this position paper makes a case for introducing the concept of variables in the context of middle school science. In addition to an analysis of existing curricula, the paper includes discussion of a day-long pilot study and the consequent teacher feedback that further supports the approach. The CS For All initiative has increased interest in bringing computer science to middle school classrooms; this paper makes an argument for doing so in a way that can benefit students' learning of both computer science and core science content.
Direct Determination of Hydroxymethyl Conformations of Plant Cell Wall Cellulose Using 1H Polarization Transfer Solid-State NMR.

In contrast to the well-studied crystalline cellulose of microbial and animal origins, cellulose in plant cell walls is disordered due to its interactions with matrix polysaccharides. Plant cell wall (PCW) is an undisputed source of sustainable global energy; therefore, it is important to determine the molecular structure of PCW cellulose. The most reactive component of cellulose is the exocyclic hydroxymethyl group: when it adopts the tg conformation, it stabilizes intrachain and interchain hydrogen bonding, while gt and gg conformations destabilize the hydrogen-bonding network. So far, information about the hydroxymethyl conformation in cellulose has been exclusively obtained from 13C chemical shifts of monosaccharides and oligosaccharides, which do not reflect the environment of cellulose in plant cell walls. Here, we use solid-state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (ssNMR) spectroscopy to measure the hydroxymethyl torsion angle of cellulose in two model plants, by detecting distance-dependent polarization t...
Effects of Metformin on Cellular Proliferation and Steroid Hormone Receptors in Patient-Derived, Low-Grade Endometrial Cancer Cell Lines

Endometrial cancer (EC) is the most common gynecologic malignancy and is the result of disruption of the balance between estrogen-stimulated growth and progesterone-induced growth modulation. Metformin has been shown to inhibit EC proliferation; however, its role in early-stage EC and its effects on steroid hormone receptors have not been adequately explored. Our aim was to examine the effects of metformin on cellular proliferation in patient-derived, low-grade EC cell lines and to determine whether it directly modulates steroid hormone receptor expression. Two novel EC cell lines were produced (EM2 and 3) from endometrial tumor tissue obtained from women undergoing surgery. Cellular proliferation was determined by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazolyl-2)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay, and in both cell lines, metformin decreased cell proliferation in a dose-dependent (10-200 µmol/L) manner and induced apoptosis as measured by cleaved PARP. Furthermore, metformin abrogated the effects of E2 on cell proliferation. Using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western immunoblotting, metformin significantly decreased estrogen receptor (ER) α messenger RNA abundance but did not consistently affect the expression of progesterone receptor. Estrogen receptor α protein levels significantly decreased across all metformin doses tested, which resulted in a significant decrease in the expression of the ER targets genes Keratin-19 and Wnt-1 inducible signaling pathway 2. In addition, metformin increased phosphorylation of AMPK in a dose-dependent manner (10-200 µmol/L) indicating an effect on mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling. Our data suggest that metformin therapy represents a potential fertility-sparing option for women with early-stage EC, given its capacity to inhibit EC cell proliferation, ERα expression, and the mTOR cell proliferation pathway.
Power Dissipation of WSe2 Field-Effect Transistors Probed by Low-Frequency Raman Thermometry

The ongoing shrinkage in the size of two-dimensional (2D) electronic circuitry results in high power densities during device operation, which could cause a significant temperature rise within 2D channels. One challenge in Raman thermometry of 2D materials is that the commonly used high-frequency modes do not precisely represent the temperature rise in some 2D materials because of peak broadening and intensity weakening at elevated temperatures. In this work, we show that a low-frequency E2g2 shear mode can be used to accurately extract temperature and measure thermal boundary conductance (TBC) in back-gated tungsten diselenide (WSe2) field-effect transistors, whereas the high-frequency peaks (E2g1 and A1g) fail to provide reliable thermal information. Our calculations indicate that the broadening of high-frequency Raman-active modes is primarily driven by anharmonic decay into pairs of longitudinal acoustic phonons, resulting in a weak coupling with out-of-plane flexural acoustic phonons that are responsi...
Effective animal advocacy: effective altruism, the social economy, and the animal protection movement

Effective altruism is a conceptual approach and emerging social movement that uses data-driven reasoning to channel social economy resources toward philanthropic activities. Priority cause areas for effective altruists include global poverty, existential risks to humanity, and animal welfare. Indeed, a significant subset of the movement argues that animal factory farming, in particular, is a problem of great scope, one that is overly neglected and offers the potential for massive reductions in global suffering. This paper explores the philosophical and methodological tenets of these “effective animal advocates,” offering empirical qualitative insight into their motivations and perspectives. The work also considers the implications of the effective altruists’ entrance into the arena of animal advocacy, taking note of how various factions within both the effective altruist and animal protection movements have received their conceptual and practical interventions. The research highlights several potential contributions of the effective animal advocates, as their commitment to evaluate and amplify pragmatic solutions to the problems of animal suffering has the opportunity to shift institutional and consumer behaviors in ways the animal protection movement has struggled to do in the past. At the same time, key issues related to the community’s research rigor and measurability biases, its lack of demographic diversity, and its tendency to valorize corporate-driven technological solutions open it up to criticism from internal and external detractors alike.
Seismotectonics in the Southeastern United States

A study of seismotectonics in the southeastern United States was carried out by examining a variety of parameters that includes pattern of seismicity, neotectonics (including the state of stress, ground deformation and estimation of recurrence rate for larger events) and a description of seismogenic features. The direction of maximum horizontal stress (SHmax) was found to be uniform over the region, oriented in a ENE-WSW direction and due to plate tectonic forces. The current, historical and prehistorical seismicity was found to occur in local clusters that displayed spatial stationarity over the historical period (300 years). Ground deformation inferred from a variety of data was found to occur both on a regional and on a local scale, the rates of deformation varying over the region. Statistical and paleoseismological data suggest a recurrence period of about 1000–2000 years for the larger events.
Complex analysis and frames in sampling theory

Regular and irregular sampling theorems are proved using frames of exponentials, Gabor frames, and nonharmonic Fourier series. These include the Shannon sampling theorem, the Yao-Thomas irregular sampling theorem, and a result dual to the Yao-Thomas theorem. An irregular sampling algorithm is presented that allows much more general sampling lattices. These ideas are then applied to the Gabardo-Walker uniqueness theorem to obtain a corresponding representation theorem.
Online interventions to promote teacher data-driven decision making: Optimizing design to maximize impact

Abstract Although most schools are steeped in data, many teachers have not had adequate opportunities to learn how to analyze, interpret, and instructionally use data. This paper reports on the efficacy of a suite of online, data literacy interventions for in-service (n = 25) and pre-service teachers (n = 99). The paper also tests the impact of including pedagogical knowledge and data interpretational scaffolds in such interventions. Findings from two implementations of the interventions indicate changes in in-service and pre-service teachers’ data-driven decision making self-efficacy (ds ranged from 0.54 to 0.98) and anxiety (ds were −0.62 and −0.71 respectively), and pre-service teachers’ assessment beliefs (ds ranged from 0.23 to 0.62). However, results imply limited value-added effects of scaffolds on the considered outcome variables. Implications for teacher education to support teacher data literacy and data-driven decision making are discussed.
Considerations on modeling the market for softwood lumber in the United States.

This paper uses the Granger causality test to determine whether the demand for softwood lumber affects price in the current period or subsequent periods, or whether price is exogenous. This test is run for each of four geographically distinct regions in the United States. Further statistical tests are then used to detect the geographical extent of the softwood lumber market. The results indicate that demand is indeed strongly connected to prices, and that there is a national market for softwood lumber
Data Migration in Large Scale Heterogeneous Storage Systems with Nodes to Spare

In large scale storage systems such as data centers, the layout of data on storage disks needs to be frequently reconfigured for load balancing purposes or in the event of system failure/upgrades. This reconfiguration event, referred to as data migration, must be completed efficiently as the system tends to perform sub-optimally during such process. The data-migration problem has been studied extensively in the literature with efficient algorithms presented for homogeneous (all storage disks have similar capabilities) and heterogeneous (storage disks can have different capabilities) cases.In this paper, we investigate adding data forwarding to existing algorithms for the heterogeneous data migration problem. In data forwarding, we introduce additional storage nodes (called bypass nodes) during the migration process. Our simulations show that adding as few as 2 bypass nodes with limited capabilities can improve the performance by up to 15% and adding more bypass nodes with heterogeneous capabilities can improve the migration performance by 25%. We then present a novel algorithm that makes intrinsic use of bypass nodes and show that the algorithm can always achieve an optimal migration schedule while adding no more than $\alpha \times n/3$ bypass nodes where n is the numbers of disks and $\alpha$ is a term defined to reflect the heterogeneity factor of disks.
Yes, Human Rights Practices Are Improving Over Time

To document human rights, monitoring organizations establish a standard of accountability, or a baseline set of expectations that states ought to meet in order to be considered respectful of human rights. If the standard of accountability has meaningfully changed, then the categorized variables from human rights documents will mask real improvements. Cingranelli and Filippov question whether the standard of accountability is changing and whether data on mass killings are part of the same underlying conceptual process of repression as other abuses. These claims are used to justify alternative models, showing no improvement in human rights. However, by focusing on the coding process, the authors misunderstand that the standard of accountability is about how monitoring organizations produce documents in the first place and not how academics use published documents to create data. Simulations and latent variables that model time in a substantively meaningful way validate the conclusion that human rights are improving.
Prescribing Patterns of Continuous Infusions in Nonobese versus Obese Children Admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit

This retrospective study compared the continuous infusions prescribed for obese and nonobese children. Ninety-five (13.2%) received an infusion. A greater percentage of obese (n = 42/168) versus nonobese (53/552) children received infusions, p
If Memory Serves: A Game to Supplement the Instruction of Concepts Related to Pointers

In this Tips, Techniques, and Courseware presentation, we will provide an overview of If Memory Serves, a game designed to complement the instruction of pointers in computer science courses. The game was first designed during a working group in ITiCSE 2017 as a tool to enable deeper understanding of pointers due to the difficulties students often face when learning about them. Over the last two years, the game has continued to evolve and has moved from a concept of the game to near-alpha. During this talk, we will demonstrate the game, provide insight into why it was developed, and discuss how it can be used to teach pointers. We will also briefly discuss our concept behind this open-source game and invite feedback from the audience as well as invite others to remix, test, and engage in research on testing the game's effectiveness.
Structural Health Monitoring using Apodized Pi-Phase Shifted FBG: Decoupling Strain and Temperature Effects

Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBGs) as tools for structural health monitoring are broadly used for assessing the composite structures behavior under different scenarios to secure the system in a reliable and accurate way. Due to cross-sensitivity effects in optical sensors, one way to enhance the accuracy is to disentangle the strain from other affecting parameters such as temperature or vibration for recognizing the real strain that is experienced by the composite structure. In this work, design and numerical simulations of Apodized Pi-Phase Shifted FBG (π-PSFBG) are presented to evaluate the performance of non-uniform FBG for simultaneous strain and temperature monitoring. Due to specific accuracy and spectral characteristics of the π-PSFBG, it is selected as an optical sensor to enhance the sensitivity of the measurements. Sensor signals are designed and simulated by solving coupled mode equations using the transfer matrix to represent the reflection spectrum of π-PSFBG. To accomplish spectral improvement, the Gaussian apodization function is applied to the FBG reflected spectrum in order to optimize its spectra by suppressing side lobes. Moreover, we have developed π-PSFBG sensor using Neural Networks (NNs) approach to sense and discriminate strain from other affecting gauges such as temperature. The proposed neural networks is trained to learn the relationship between the reflection spectrum and the external parameters such as strain and temperature. Our investigations not only characterize the performance of an apodized π-PSFBG to simultaneously measure two parameters with high sensitivity, but also yield the minimum error in compensation of strain from temperature.
Evaluating the Gridded Agricultural Field Model in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, Using Geophysical Remote Sensing

Recent geophysical remote sensing, including ground-penetrating radar and magnetometry, has been used to investigate three areas within Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, predicted to contain prehispanic agricultural fields. These localities include a well-known but enigmatic area of large grid patterns near the Chetro Ketl great house, which are visible from the air but not at ground level. The gridded area has been interpreted by many researchers as an agricultural field system, and this perspective has in turn been utilized to model agricultural land use throughout the canyon, particularly intensification associated with emergent social complexity. The geophysical surveys revealed evidence of buried features at all three study areas, but the patterns expressed by these features do not clearly conform to the pattern predicted in the gridded agricultural field model. We argue that the surficial grid pattern seen at the Chetro Ketl field is an unusual example of land modification in the canyon and thus unlikely to represent typical Chacoan agricultural field systems. Instead, canyon residents employed a diverse range of agricultural techniques suited to the variable and patchy nature of canyon hydrology and soils.
Evaluating Spatial Thinking Ability Using Item Response Theory: Differential Item Functioning across Math Learning Disabilities and Geometry Instructions.

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education initiatives have placed pressure on teachers to bring technology tools into classroom, including three-dimensional (3D) printing. ...
Business analytics, revenue management and sport: evidence from the field

We surveyed 72 managers and executives from Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Football League (NFL), the National Basketball Association (NBA), the National Hockey League (NHL), and Major League Soccer (MLS), as well as other North American professional sport organisations including auto racing, golf, and tennis regarding the use of business analytics in sport marketing and revenue generation. We explore the use of business analytics to drive improvement in ticket pricing, customer retention, lead scoring, sponsorship, premium sales, digital marketing, food and beverage, merchandising, and fan/game experience. The main contribution of this paper is to show how managers of professional sport franchises in North America utilise business analytics to drive revenue generation and to provide possible theoretical avenues of future research. Managerial implications are that customer relationship management (CRM) and food, beverage, and merchandising are increasing areas of interest. Areas of prevalence are highlighted as well as areas of potential improvement for the use of analytics in professional sports organisations.
Changes in Tree Canopy, Groundcover, and Avian Community Following Restoration of a Montane Longleaf Pine Woodland

Fire suppression and hardwood encroachment are two of the most significant threats to the imperiled, fire-dependent montane longleaf pine ecosystem. We examined the effects of restoration of a montane longleaf pine forest in Paulding County, Georgia, U.S.A. on tree canopy, groundcover and bird communities over a decade. The restoration included a program of prescribed fire and selective thinning to reduce tree canopy density and reduce or remove offsite species. Several conservation goals were met including the recovery of characteristic tree composition and groundcover. Birds responded with sharp increases in richness and abundance, with many shrub and woodland dependent species of high conservation value detected post-restoration. Our research demonstrates these sites are easily restorable and such projects will likely yield significant gains for conservation.
Forces driving change in pharmacy education: Opportunities to take academic, social, technological, economic, and political into the future

In pharmacy education, we are experiencing the “new normal” after an “inflection point” along with a host of other overused phrases Yet, without doubt, there is pressing need to reconsider what was once standard operating procedure When an inflection point is viewed as opportunity, it sparks a strategic boom Indeed, the confluence of threats and opportunities caused—or revealed—by the COVID-19 pandemic is setting the stage for an acceleration of change in professional education In this paper, we investigate the motivations and approaches to accelerate needed change in pharmacy education Though prompted by the demand for rapid restructuring in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, these ideas transcend any one driver We argue that now is the time to disrupt current practices through innovation leading to new educational models and present sample solutions We consider academic, social, technological, economic, and political (ASTEP) forces driving the imperative to educational change
Children strategically conceal selfishness

Can children exploit knowledge asymmetries to get away with selfishness? This question was addressed by testing 6- to 9-year-old children (N = 164; 81 girls) from the Northeastern United States in a modified Ultimatum Game. Children were assigned to the roles of proposers (who offered some proportion of an endowment) and responders (who could accept or reject offers). Both players in the Informed condition knew the endowment quantity in each trial. However, in the Uninformed condition, only proposers knew this information. In this condition, many proposers made "strategically selfish" offers that seemed fair based on the responders' incomplete knowledge but were actually highly selfish. These results indicate that even young children possess the ability to deceive others about their selfishness.
Activated Sintering of Alumina by Quenching Point Defects

Aluminum oxide powders containing iron oxide were passed through a reducing oxygen acetylene flame. The resulting spherical particles of alumina coming out of the flame were quenched in water. The above process resulted in reduction of iron oxide dissolved in alumina and formation of large numbers of point defects. Quenching of the alumina spheres led to the quenching of large numbers of nonequilibrium point defects. The number of these quenched-in defects over the equilibrium concentration were estimated by using the sintering techniques. Activated sintering of alumina was observed in the case of aluminum oxide spheres containing quenched-in defects.
The Art of Intraoperative Glioma Identification

A major dilemma in brain-tumor surgery is the identification of tumor boundaries to maximize tumor excision and minimize postoperative neurological damage. Gliomas, especially low-grade tumors, and normal brain have a similar color and texture, which poses a challenge to the neurosurgeon. Advances in glioma resection techniques combine the experience of the neurosurgeon and various advanced technologies. Intraoperative methods to delineate gliomas from normal tissue consist of (1) image-based navigation, (2) intraoperative sampling, (3) electrophysiological monitoring, and (4) enhanced visual tumor demarcation. The advantages and disadvantages of each technique are discussed. A combination of these methods is becoming widely accepted in routine glioma surgery. Gross total resection in conjunction with radiation, chemotherapy, or immune/gene therapy may increase the rates of cure in this devastating disease.
Importance of heavy metal-organic matter interactions in natural waters

Abstract The role of organic ligands in metal complexing in natural waters has received little attention because of uncertainties regarding both the abundance and nature of dissolved organic carbon compounds. Recent data show that the bulk of dissolved organic matter in natural waters consists of highly oxidized and chemically and biologically stable polymeric compounds closely resembling soil humic substances. Average molar concentrations of these aquatic humics in major U.S. rivers range from 5 × 10−6to 3 × 10−5 moles 1−1. Fractional elution of soil organic matter by meteoric waters may be considered to be the main process contributing to the presence of humic matter in rivers. The aquatic humic polymers participate in complex formation through ionizable functional groups with a range of differential acidities. The stabilities of metal-humic complexes in natural waters are higher than those of the corresponding inorganic metal complexes. Quantitative evaluation of the metal-organic interactions can be approached by applying variable equilibrium functions which take into account the differential physico-chemical characteristics of the active complexing sites on the polymer molecule. Assuming an average humic concentration of 10 mg 1−1, complexation of trace metals can be significant even in the presence of excess concentrations of major cations.
Toward an account of clinical anxiety predicated on basic, neurally mapped mechanisms of Pavlovian fear-learning: The case for conditioned overgeneralization

The past two decades have brought dramatic progress in the neuroscience of anxiety due, in no small part, to animal findings specifying the neurobiology of Pavlovian fear-conditioning. Fortuitously, this neurally mapped process of fear learning is widely expressed in humans, and has been centrally implicated in the etiology of clinical anxiety. Fear-conditioning experiments in anxiety patients thus represent a unique opportunity to bring recent advances in animal neuroscience to bear on working, brain-based models of clinical anxiety. The current presentation details the neural basis and clinical relevance of fear conditioning, and highlights generalization of conditioned fear to stimuli resembling the conditioned danger cue as one of the more robust conditioning markers of clinical anxiety. Studies testing such generalization across a variety of anxiety disorders (panic, generalized anxiety disorder, and social anxiety disorder) with systematic methods developed in animals will next be presented. Finally, neural accounts of overgeneralization deriving from animal and human data will be described with emphasis given to implications for the neurobiology and treatment of clinical anxiety.
Interaction of an oblique shock wave with supersonic turbulent blunt body flows

A numerical study of shock-on-shock interactions near a cylindrical body, representative of the engine inlet cowl of the National Aerospace Plane (NASP), is presented. Among the six principal shock interference patterns depending upon the intersection point, noted by Edney, the most critical cases, of types III and IV, are considered in the present study. In these cases, anomalous amplifications of peak pressure and heat flux occur at the shear layer and supersonic jet impingement points, respectively. The primary goal of this study is to calculate the entire flow field numerically, capturing all the interacting shocks and complicated shocklayer flows. The finite volume formulation of Van Leer's flux-vector splitting MUSCL scheme, in generalized coordinates, is used to solve the full Navier-Stokes equations in strong conservative form.
Gene expression in amphibian development. I. Validity of the method used: interspecific and intraspecific hybridization between nucleic acids. Properties of messenger RNA synthesized by developing embryos.

Abstract The properties of the hybrids formed between labeled RNA from Xenopus laevis embryos and DNA trapped in agar have been studied. Some characteristics of the duplexes formed under the same conditions between DNA fragments and DNA in agar are also reported. DNA-DNA as well as DNA-RNA duplex formation is a species-dependent process. The melting point of the DNA-DNA and of the DNA-RNA duplexes formed at 60 °C is about 15 °C lower than that of native DNA. It is concluded that some inaccuracies in base-pairing exist in the hybrids resulting from an incubation at 60 °C. More inaccuracies are included in the duplexes formed at lower temperatures. In embryos exposed to carbon-14 dioxide for one hour, 12 to 14% of the labeled RNA hybridizes readily with DNA. Hybridized RNA has a base composition similar to that of DNA and turns over more rapidly than non-hybridized RNA.
High-resolution 40Ar/39Ar dating of the oldest oceanic basement basalts in the western Pacific basin

[1] We report new 40Ar/39Ar ages for the oldest Pacific oceanic floor at Ocean Drilling Program Site 801C in the Pigafetta basin and Site 1149D close to the Izu-Bonin subduction zone in the Nadezhda basin. These ages were determined by applying high-resolution incremental heating experiments (including 15–30 heating steps) to better resolve the primary argon signal from interfering alteration signatures in these low-potassium ocean crust basalts. Combined with previous results from Pringle [1992] for Site 801B and 801C, we arrive at a multistage history for the formation of the Pigafetta ocean crust. The oldest part of the Pacific plate was formed at the spreading ridges at 167.4 ± 1.4/3.4 Ma (n = 2, 2σ internal/absolute error), offering an important calibration point on the Geological Reversal Timescale (GRTS) since it represents the old end of the Mesozoic magnetic anomalies. This mid-ocean ridge basalt sequence, however, is overlain by more tholeiites and alkali basalts that were formed 7.3 ± 1.5 Myr later around 160.1 ± 0.6 Ma (n = 7, 2σ internal error). The older age group is confirmed independently by radiolarian ages ranging from Late Bajocian to Middle Bathonian (167–173 Ma [Bartolini and Larson, 2001]) and by profound differences in the structural characteristics of this basement section [Pockalny and Larson, 2003]. Thin layers comprising hydrothermal deposits separate these sequences, which in addition to the difference in isotopic age show distinct major and trace element compositions. This indicates that key volcanic and hydrothermal activity took place 400–600 km away from the spreading ridges, on the basis of a Jurassic ∼66 km/Myr half spreading rate in the Pacific. It remains unclear if these processes were active continuously after the initial formation of the Pacific oceanic crust, but all our observations seem to point to an episodic history. Site 1149D gives another important calibration point on the GRTS of 127.0 ± 1.5/3.6 Ma (n = 1, 2σ internal/absolute error) for anomaly M12 that is slightly younger when compared to current timescale compilations (134.2 ± 2.1 Ma [Gradstein et al., 1995]). This might suggest that the dated basalt from Site 1149D does not represent the age of the ocean crust formed at its ridge axis; it may also be part of the Early Cretaceous intraplate events that have produced dolerite sills in the Pacific crust at Sites 800 and 802 around 114–126 Ma.
Effect of first part of duodenum on gastric emptying in dogs: response to acid, fat, glucose, and neural blockade.

Five dogs were prepared, each with a gastric and a duodenal fistula (5 cm distal to the pylorus), to study the inhibitory role of the first 5 cm of the duodenum on gastric emptying. The basic design of the experiments was to instill the test meal (300 ml at 37°C, containing phenol red 40 mg 1−1) into the stomach and collect it at 1- or 2-min intervals for 10 or 20 min from the duodenal fistula. As the test meal emptied from the stomach it bathed the first 5 cm of duodenum and thus stimulated the appropriate receptor. A Foley catheter with an inflated balloon prevented passage into the second part of the duodenum. Test meals of hypertonic glucose (15%, 865 milliosmoles kg-1) or 20 and 80 mm of sodium oleate emptied at the same rate as water when allowed to bathe the first 5 cm of duodenum, whereas test meals of 100 mm of HCl were slowed. In further studies using neural blocking agents, the emptying of water meals was slowed with subcutaneous atropine sulfate (0.03 and 0.15 mg kg-1), intravenous hexamethonium chloride (10 mg kg-1), and norepinephrine bitartrate (0.04 mg kg-1). The emptying of 100 to 120 mm HCl meals was slowed by subcutaneous atropine sulfate (0.03 and 0.15 mg kg-1), intravenous norepinephrine bitartrate (0.04 mg kg-1), and the intravenous α-receptor blocking agents phenoxybenzamine HCl (2 mg kg-1) and phentolamine (2 mg kg-1), was unaffected by intravenous hexamethonium chloride (10 mg kg-1), and was unchanged (1.0 mg kg-1) or slightly slowed (2.0 mg kg-1) by the β-receptor blocker propranolol. In contrast, acid test meals were emptied at the same rate as water when treated with intravenous guanethidine monosulfate (2 mg kg-1) or intramuscular reserpine (1 mg kg-1), indicating that the acid inhibition was mediated by an adrenergic mechanism. The emptying of water meals was unchanged by these two drugs. The authors suggest that the first 5 cm of duodenum contain receptors for inhibition of emptying of acid but not for fat or hypertonic glucose. Furthermore, the neural blocking studies indicate that the inhibitory effect of acid in the first part of the duodenum is an adrenergic mechanism which appears to be neither α- nor β-receptor-mediated.
How Health Risks Are Pinpointed (or Not) on Social Media: The Portrayal of Waterpipe Smoking on Pinterest

AbstractWaterpipe tobacco is among the most rapidly growing trends in tobacco smoking, the growing use and acceptance of which are taking place at a time when cigarette smoking is regarded in an increasingly negative manner (Martinasek, McDermott, & Martini, 2011). Given the health risks and the misperceptions associated with waterpipe smoking, this study focuses on how waterpipe smoking is portrayed and represented on the social media platform Pinterest. In total, 800 Pinterest pins were content analyzed. The vast majority of the sampled pins were primarily image based. More than half of the pins linked to a website external to Pinterest that often redirected the pinner to a commercial website. Waterpipe-focused pins portrayed waterpipe smoking more in a positive light than in a negative light, and conveyed a sense of pleasure, aesthetic, and relaxation, which tended to trigger more repins, likes, and higher levels of engagement. Overall, the risks of waterpipe smoking were not represented on Pinterest, ...
Microcomputers in Anthropological Research

This article examines the potential offered by microcomputer technology to radically improve the effectiveness and productivity of team field research in anthropology. Microcomputers can offer in situ storage, retrieval, and analysis of field data and information. A microcomputer system may function as both a stand alone device and as a terminal to a mainframe, time sharing computer. Drawing from pilot projects using microcomputers, the various dimensions of feedback, consequences for fieldwork strategies, and efficiency are explored.
Handprinted digit recognition using spatiotemporal connectionist models

A connectionist model for recognizing unconstrained handprinted digits is described. Instead of treating the input as a static signal, the image is canned over time and converted into a time-varying signal. The temporalized image is processed by a spatiotemporal connectionist network. The resulting system offers shift-invariance along the temporalized axis, a reduction in the number of free parameters, and the ability to process images of arbitrary length. For a set of real-world ZIP code digit images, the system achieved a 99.1% recognition rate on the training set and a 96.0% recognition rate on the test with no rejections. A 99.0% recognition rate on the test set was achieved when 14.6% of the images were rejected. >
Aggregation of cationic p-phenylene ethynylenes on Laponite clay in aqueous dispersions and solid films

Previous studies of cationic p-phenylene ethynylenes oligomers (OPEs) have revealed strong antimicrobial activity and strong photophysical changes upon their aggregation that can be utilized for sensing various chemicals and biomolecules. In this article, the adsorption of two types of OPEs with different placement of charged groups onto the synthetic clay Laponite is studied, and the changes to photophysical properties, photochemical degradation efficiency, and biocidal effectiveness are determined. In addition to solution-phase studies, the material and biocidal properties of solid films formed from the OPE-Laponite complex were assessed. The results of this study suggest that OPEs aggregate on Laponite and induce aggregation between Laponite discs, leading to drastic changes to their photophysical and material properties. Solid OPE-Laponite films were shown to have fair resistance to dissolution in aqueous solution compared with Laponite alone, and adhesion and minor killing of both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria on the surface was observed. The results of this study give insight into controlling the colloidal phases of Laponite via molecular aggregation, may be useful for development of sensors and biocides involving Laponite as a scaffold, and lead to further control over slow-release and surface interactions of biocidal materials.
Film formation from polymer dispersions

The coalescence of a poly(vinylidene chloride/methyl acrylate/acrylic acid) latex was found to occur only above the Tg. The various theories of film formation from polymer dispersions attribute latex coalescence to three types of forces: the pressure due to the polymer–air interface, the pressure due to a polymer–water interface, and the pressure due to capillary action. Analysis of the forces indicates that none are sufficient to cause coalescence below Tg while any, or all, may cause coalescence above Tg.
Resonances in the CH+N2→HCN+N(4S) reaction: The dynamics of a spin‐forbidden process

The dynamics of the CH+N2(X 1Σ+g)→HCN+N(4S) reaction is studied theoretically for the first time. A simple two‐dimensional model is developed, treating the reaction dynamics on the doublet and on the quartet Born–Oppenheimer surfaces of CHN2 by exact quantum mechanics and the coupling between the two electronic states within first‐order perturbation theory. Summation over total angular momentum states is carried out within the J‐shifting approximation and the Boltzmann rate constant is computed over the temperature range of interest for combustion T≲1700 K. The reaction probability exhibits a rich resonance pattern, manifesting the existence of long‐lived quasibound intermediate states on both the doublet and the quartet surfaces. These resonances affect the dynamics profoundly, being the driving force behind the spin‐changing reaction. The thermal rate constant increases with temperature in an Arrhenius type fashion and in qualitative agreement with high‐temperature experiments.
Ozone induction of cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant (CINC) and nuclear factor-κb in rat lung: inhibition by corticosteroids

We determined in rat lung whether ozone exposure was associated with the expression of the chemokine, cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant (CINC), and of the transcription factor, NF-κB. CINC mRNA expression peaked at 2 h after cessation of ozone exposure, and returned to basal levels by 24 h. DNA-binding activity of NF-κB showed a marked increase after ozone, maximal at 2 h. Dexamethasone inhibited CINC mRNA and NF-κB expression, together with neutrophilic inflammation. Our data supports the concept that ozone leads to NF-κB activation which increases CINC mRNA expression. These series of events could lead to neutrophilic inflammation.
Phospholipid-protein interactions: Membrane permeability correlated with monolayer “penetration”

Abstract The effectiveness of various soluble proteins in increasing the permeability of phospholipid membranes was found to be directly correlated with their ability to “penetrate” monomolecular films of the same phospholipids. We propose that the increase in permeability depends on hydrophobic associations of the protein with the phospholipid which are facilitated by initial electrostatic binding.
Services, growth poles and advanced economies

In the twenty-first century, nearly 70% of new jobs in the US have been in services, matching worldwide expansion of the services sector. This paper discusses the role of services in advanced economies internationally as a vehicle for ongoing growth and prosperity. The discussion will be frames through pole theory. Contributions of private, profit driven service activity is assessed. Services provide stability while contributing to the growth process, and may constitute growth poles on their own as in money markets and insurance. Services facilitate business and business change, both in domestic and international markets.
In vitro induction of flowering inCucumis sativus L.

Erster Bericht uber die Blutenbildung einer hoheren Pflanze (Schosslinge vonCucumis sativus L.) im Reagenzglas und mit synthetischem Nahrstoff, welche in der Natur mannliche und weibliche Bluten hervorbringt.
High molecular weight Alzheimer's disease amyloid peptide immunoreactivity in human serum and CSF is an immunoglobulin G.

Abstract A radioimmunoassay (RIA) was developed to detect the 4200 Dalton amyloid (A 4 ) peptide or it's precursor (A 4 P) in human serum or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). A synthetic peptide containing the first 28 amino acids of the 43 amino acid A 4 peptide was covalently coupled to bovine thyroglobulin and a polyclonal antiserum in rabbits was prepared. This antiserum was specific for vascular amyloid and neuritic plagues in Alzheimer's disease brain as detected by immunoperoxidase. The synthetic peptide, which has a tyrosine at residue 10, was iodinated with chloramine T and [ 125 I]iodine and was purified to homogeneity by C 4 reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Extraction of human serum over a C 18 Sep Pak cartridge indicated immunoreactive A 4 peptide was not detectable in human serum. Conversely, high molecular weight A 4 peptide immunoreactivity was detectable in human serum, at a concentration of 8.9 ± 1.2 pmol-eq./ml, and in human CSF, at a concentration of 0.25 ± 0.01 pmol-eq./ml, giving a CSF/serum ratio of 3.2%. The immunoreactivity in human serum was nearly completely removed by affinity deletion of serum immunoglobulin G (IgG), but not by affinity removal of IgA or IgM. Serum immunoreactivity was decreased 90% in hypogammaglobulinemia, and was increased 83% in human cord serum. There was no statistical difference in serum A 4 immunoreactivity in Alzheimer's serum or CSF. Serum immunoreactivity in Down's syndrome was increased 50%. These studies indicate the high molecular weight A 4 P immunoreactivity in human serum or CSF is an IgG. Whether the A 4 precursor in Alzheimer's disease is, in fact, an IgG, or whether there is an antibody in human serum and CSF that cross reacts with the A 4 precursor cannot be determined until the serum immunoreactivity is purified and structurally characterized.
Parameter identification for elliptic problems

Abstract The problem of computing a principal coefficient function P in the differential equation −∇·(P(x)∇u)=f, x∈Ω⊂ R M , M⩾1, on a bounded region Ω from a knowledge of the solution function u and the right-hand side f, where u, f are known only approximately and P may have mild discontinuities, is solved by minimization of an associated functional.