cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Constraining Reionization with the Evolution of the Luminosity Function of Lyman Alpha mitting Galaxies

At redshifts beyond z>6, as the mean fraction of neutral hydrogen x_HI in the intergalactic medium (IGM) increases, the line flux of Lyman alpha (Lya) emitters can be significantly suppressed, which can result in a decrease in the observed number of emitters at a given Lya flux. However, cosmological HII regions surrounding the Lya emitting galaxies alleviate these effects. We use simple models of the Lya line suppression that incorporate the presence of HII regions to predict the overall effect of the Lya absorption on the Lya luminosity function. We find, in agreement with other recent studies, that unless ionizing sources are unusually strongly clustered, a fully neutral IGM may be inconsistent with the large abundance of confirmed z=6.5 Lya emitters. However, the presence of local HII regions prohibits placing a tight constraint on the mean neutral fraction. We find x_HI < 0.25; the presence of strong winds and/or the clustering of ionizing sources would further weaken this constraint. We conclude that the evolution of the Lya LF is consistent with reionization occurring near this redshift. Finally, we suggest that a measurement of observed Lya line width as a function of the Lya luminosity, in a future, larger sample of Lya emitters, may serve as a robust diagnostic of the neutral fraction in the IGM.
Quintuple AISI 1010 carbon steel core coil for highly focused transcranial magnetic stimulation in small animals

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive neuromodulation technique used to regulate the synaptic activity of neurons in the brain, improving the functionality of connecting regions and bringing effective treatment to different neurological and psychiatric disorders. The TMS induced E-field needs to be focal enough to avoid unwanted side effects caused by stimulation of the regions adjacent to the target. Attempts at TMS in small animals like rodents are highly constrained, since most of these studies use commercial equipment intended for humans, with power and coil geometries not designed for small animals. Using finite element modeling in ANSYS Maxwell, the present work shows the design and evaluation of customized arrays of two and five dual-winding solenoids, including a ferromagnetic core, to restrict the stimulation to areas as small as 1 mm2. Each solenoid is made with 50 turns of a wire with thickness = 1 mm, height = 25.4 mm and elliptical top-view cross section. Ferromagnetic cores with V-shape tip sharpening were included, using AISI 1010 carbon steel of 2 T of saturation flux density (Bsat) at 4×104 A/m, and an initial relative permeability µr=667.75. Electric fields and magnetic flux densities were calculated around 4.00 mm below the coil (vertical distance from the top of the scalp to the cortical layer 5/6 in adult rats) with peak currents of 10kA, in a single non-repetitive pulse at 2.5kHz. The achieved 100V/m in a small area of 1 mm2 suggests the suitability of the coil for in vivo experimentation in rodents. Future works will seek to improve the duration of the pulses for repetitive TMS with pulse shaping techniques and validate the novel coil with in vivo experiments in rat models.
The medical response to climate change

The growing mass of colorless and odorless greenhouse gases high in earth’s atmosphere may be about as far away from a hospital bedside or clinic exam room as any concern imaginable. Despite this, the challenges of climate change have progressively moved nearer to the work of all those in health care. From sinister storms, fires, and heat waves that imperil our patients, facilities, and supplies to the outsized contribution of medical care to air pollution, the motivations and needs for a medical response to climate change are many and clear.
Highly selective hollow fiber membranes for carbon capture via in-situ layer-by-layer surface functionalization

Abstract Multilayer films of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and poly(methyl acrylic acid) (PMAA) deposited on a Torlon© poly(amide imide) (PAI) hollow fiber substrate using layer-by-layer (LbL) method yield highly CO2-selective membranes. These all-polymer membranes were deposited in-situ on low-cost, high permeability, and low selectivity Torlon© hollow fibers for post-combustion carbon capture. Surface functionalization of hollow fibers using poly(ethylene imine) (PEI) in isopropanol increased hydrophilicity, aiding LbL deposition. Coatings of [PEO2/PMAA2] polymeric pair were successfully deposited on both untreated hollow fiber (10, 15, and 20 bilayers) and PEI-functionalized hollow fiber substrates (2, 5, and 10 bilayers) achieving one of the highest reported selectivity for CO2:N2 (240:1) at 1018 Barrer CO2 permeability (101 GPU permeance); exceeding the 2008 Robeson upper bound for homogenous polymer films. These results suggest membranes deposited via in situ LbL methodology on industrially applicable hollow fibers pave a way for carbon capture from flue gases at power plants.
Implementation determinants and mechanisms for the prevention and treatment of adolescent HIV in sub-Saharan Africa: concept mapping of the NIH Fogarty International Center Adolescent HIV Implementation Science Alliance (AHISA) initiative.

Adolescent HIV prevention and treatment is a high priority for youth healthcare in sub-Saharan Africa. This study employed concept mapping to identify factors that impact the implementation of HIV prevention and intervention programs for adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa. Key stakeholders including researchers, policymakers, and non-governmental organization (NGO) personnel constituting membership of the NIH-sponsored Adolescent HIV Prevention and Treatment Implementation Science Alliance responded to the question: “In your experience, what factors have facilitated or hindered implementation of evidence-based HIV prevention or treatment for adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa?” Participants generated statements in response to the focus question, sorted them into thematically relevant groups, and rated each statement on its importance and changeability. Through data analyses and participant feedback, 15 distinct themes were derived. “Workforce/Workflow” and “HIV Stigma and Adolescent Development” were rated highest for importance, and “Threshold Conditions for Treatment” and “Structure of Implementation Efforts” were rated most changeable. Understanding implementation science determinants and mechanisms can facilitate the uptake of successful implementation and sustainment strategies for the prevention and treatment of HIV in a given context. We placed determinants and mechanisms within the Exploration, Preparation, Implementation, Sustainment (EPIS) framework to provide greater contextual integration with broader theories in implementation science. Implementers across multiple disciplines can use these findings to improve the scale-up of evidence-based practices for adolescent HIV prevention and treatment in sub-Saharan Africa. Implementation approaches that consider the determinants and mechanisms identified in this study and integrated in implementation frameworks will likely have utility for other health conditions and contexts.
Is it the Surgeon? A Re-examination of Mid-urethral Sling Complications.

Abstract Objective To identify potential technical factors during initial mid-urethral sling (MUS) placement that contribute to subsequent sling revision procedures. Methods A retrospective chart review was performed examining synthetic MUS reoperations at a single institution from 2008-2020. The implanting surgeon's operative note, when available, was critically reviewed with respect to trocar placement, sling location, and tensioning technique. The reoperative report was reviewed for aberrant intraoperative findings relating to the index surgery. Results A total of 306 women underwent revision of their MUS. Operative reports from the implanting surgeon were available for 276 (90.2%) women. Review of index operative reports revealed 47 unambiguous descriptions of improper technique, including 19 cases of described excessive tensioning and 2 cases of MUS placement despite noted urethral injury during the index case. Indications for reoperation were clinical obstruction (63%), pain (40%), and mesh erosion/exposure (33%). In 186 (67.4%) women, there was an intraoperative finding during the revision that likely contributed to the need for reoperation. Among these 186 women, 110 (59.1%) slings were noted to have been placed too proximally, 78 (41.9%) were over-suspended, and 57 (30.6%) were placed too deep in the periurethral fascia. Conclusion Review of the index operative note and findings at operative re-exploration of MUS surgeries, often reveals evidence that the initial MUS implantation was technically suboptimal. Such findings suggest that intraoperative surgical technique is a critically important factor contributing to postoperative complications in MUS surgery. This underscores the importance of surgical training and adherence to surgical principles during the placement of a synthetic MUS.
The Global Health Security Index is not predictive of vaccine rollout responses among OECD countries.

OBJECTIVE: This study sought to evaluate the utility of the Global Health Security (GHS) index in predicting the launch of COVID-19 vaccine rollout by Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member countries. METHODS: Country-level data on the preparedness to respond to infectious disease threats through vaccination rollout were collected using the GHS index. OECD member countries were rank-ordered based on the percentage of their populations fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Rank-ordering was conducted from the lowest to the highest, with each country assigned a score ranging from 1 to 33. Spearman's rank correlation between the GHS index and the percentage of the population that is fully vaccinated was also performed. RESULTS: Israel, ranked 34th in the world on the GHS index for pandemic preparedness, had the highest percentage of the population that was fully vaccinated against COVID-19 within 2 months of the global vaccine rollout. The Spearman rank correlation coefficient between GHS index and the percentage of population fully vaccinated was -0.1378, with a p-value of 0.43. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest an absence of correlation between the GHS index rating and the COVID-19 vaccine rollout of OECD countries, indicating that the preparedness of OECD countries for infectious disease threats may not be accurately reflected by the GHS index.
Lock them up! Punitive aggression and populism as political vigilantism

Abstract Populist leaders and movements are incredibly diverse, but one factor that most share is the tendency to pick fights. Populists often stir up conflict and use aggressive rhetoric that would destroy the reputation of mainstream politicos. Furthermore, many of these fights have little material benefit for base-level supporters, and often actively harm them. Yet populist militants generally reward combative behavior. Why is populism so conflict prone? And why do populists so often escape negative consequences for provoking damaging dustups? I argue that these sorts of conflict are driven by an emotional impulse that lies at the heart of populism: punitive aggression. Populists view political problems as the result of malign actions by hostile outgroups, and they perceive the state as either negligently allowing or actively abetting these actions. The failure of the state to punish the guilty breeds an intense and deep-seated desire to harm those seen as violating norms and values, regardless of the cost. Observational and experimental data are consistent with the hypothesis that, while the never-ending conflict typical of populism may harm its adherents’ interests, it continues because it satisfies much more basic emotional and psychological needs. This paper suggests that confronting and challenging populists may be difficult because forceful responses will reinforce the bond between the leader and his or her followers.
Current advances in immune checkpoint inhibitor combinations with radiation therapy or cryotherapy for breast cancer.

Purpose Immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) has demonstrated clinically significant efficacy when combined with chemotherapy in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). Although many patients derived benefit, others do not respond to immunotherapy, therefore relying upon innovative combinations to enhance response. Local therapies such as radiation therapy (RT) and cryotherapy are immunogenic and potentially optimize responses to immunotherapy. Strategies combining these therapies and ICI are actively under investigation. This review will describe the rationale for combining ICI with targeted local therapies in breast cancer. Methods A literature search was performed to identify pre-clinical and clinical studies assessing ICI combined with RT or cryotherapy published as of August 2021 using PubMed and ClinicalTrials.gov. Results Published studies of ICI with RT and IPI have demonstrated safety and signals of early efficacy. Conclusion RT and cryotherapy are local therapies that can be integrated safely with ICI and has shown promise in early trials. Randomized phase II studies testing both of these approaches, such as P-RAD (NCT04443348) and ipilimumab/nivolumab/cryoablation for TNBC (NCT03546686) are current enrolling. The results of these studies are paramount as they will provide long term data on the safety and efficacy of these regimens.
Immunophenotype of Dermal Spindled Cell Tumors

Spindled cell neoplasms of the dermis may have overlapping histological features. Immunohistochemical stains allow the detection of proteins that characteristically are expressed by specific tumors.
Does segmental overlap help or hurt? Evidence from blocked cyclic naming in spoken and written production

Past research has demonstrated interference effects when words are named in the context of multiple items that share a meaning. This interference has been explained within various incremental learning accounts of word production, which propose that each attempt at mapping semantic features to lexical items induces slight but persistent changes that result in cumulative interference. We examined whether similar interference-generating mechanisms operate during the mapping of lexical items to segments by examining the production of words in the context of others that share segments. Previous research has shown that initial-segment overlap amongst a set of target words produces facilitation, not interference. However, this initial-segment facilitation is likely due to strategic preparation, an external factor that may mask underlying interference. In the present study, we applied a novel manipulation in which the segmental overlap across target items was distributed unpredictably across word positions, in order to reduce strategic response preparation. This manipulation led to interference in both spoken (Exp. 1) and written (Exp. 2) production. We suggest that these findings are consistent with a competitive learning mechanism that applies across stages and modalities of word production.
6. Scanning electron microscopy with polarization analysis (SEMPA) and its applications

Publisher Summary Scanning electron microscopy with polarization analysis (SEMPA) is a technique for directly imaging the magnetic microstructure of surfaces and thin films. SEMPA relies on the fact that secondary electrons emitted from a magnetic sample in a scanning electron microscope (SEM) have a spin polarization, which reflects the net spin density in the material. This spin density, in turn, is directly related to the magnetization of the material. By measuring the secondary electron spin polarization, SEMPA can be used for the direct, high resolution imaging of the direction and the relative magnitude of a sample's magnetization, in the same way that a SEM can be used to image topography by measuring the secondary electron intensity. SEMPA is one of several methods used for imaging magnetic microstructure. This chapter reviews the technique and describes the types of magnetic imaging applications for which SEMPA is best suited. The origin of the magnetic contrast is described in the chapter as well as the instrumentation required for its measurement.
Biot-Savart Law in Cosmic Plasma

Our knowledge of magnetism and magnetic phenomena is as old as science itself. According to the writings of the Greek philosopher Aristotle (384–322 B.C.), the attractive power of magnets was known by Thales of Miletus, whose life spanned the period 640?–546 B.C. It was not until the sixteenth century, however, that any significant experimental work on magnets was performed. During this century the English physician Gilbert (1544–1603) studied the properties of magnets, realized that a magnetic field existed around the earth, and even magnetized an iron sphere and showed that the magnetic field around was similar to that around the earth. Several other workers also contributed to the knowledge of magnetism during this same period.
Walking the grid: robotics in CS 2

This paper describes the use of inexpensive robotics platforms to create engaging student projects for a second course in computer programming. These projects employ the stack and queue data structures, reinforce basic concepts such as two dimensional arrays, and are situated in the context of modern, object-oriented programming. Advanced concepts from autonomous mobile robotics are introduced in a gentle manner, including occupancy grids, path planning, and sensor fusion. The fundamentals of depth and breadth first search are used in the solutions to the various projects described.
Nutritional Requirements and Support in Liver Disease

The liver has a central role in energy metabolism, nutritional homeostasis and absorption of nutrients. Severe liver disease, whether acute or chronic, leads to multiorgan failure, which can have significant effects on growth and development in the long term. Malnutrition is common in infants and children with chronic liver disease (CLD). The pathophysiology of malnutrition in liver disease is complex and multifactorial and has extensive implications. Insufficient dietary intake is probably the most important factor and is correctable (Table 7.1). It is most severe in infants with chronic cholestatic liver disease, who are particularly vulnerable to the effects of malnutrition because of their high-energy and growth requirements [1].
Routine chest radiographs in pediatric intensive care: a prospective study.

The clinical value of routine chest radiographs was prospectively evaluated in a pediatric intensive care unit. Physicians were asked to predict findings of clinical impact in 353 routine morning chest radiographs performed in 101 patients after examining the patients. In 81 instances (23%), the clinical impact of the chest radiographs was incorrectly predicted and significant alterations in management would have potentially been missed had the chest radiographs not been available. These 81 chest radiographs included 72 unpredicted radiographic changes of clinical significance, and nine chest radiographs in which a significant radiographic change was incorrectly predicted. Thirty five (43.2%) of these 81 chest radiographs had unpredicted pulmonary findings and 46 (56.8%) showed unpredicted appliance malpositions. Incorrect predictions were significantly associated with radiographs from patients who were younger, intubated, mechanically ventilated, and had indwelling central venous catheters. Level of training of the predicting physicians did not affect prediction accuracy. In analysis of 43 routine postintubation chest radiographs and 39 routine postcentral venous catheter placement chest radiographs, appliance malpositions were disclosed in 34.9% and 43.6%, respectively. Routine daily and postappliance placement chest radiographs have significant clinical value in the pediatric intensive care unit.
Mary Daly v. Boston College: The Impermissibility of Single-Sex Classrooms Within a Private University

This Comment discusses the rationale underlying single-sex education and the diversity in its implementation. This Comment argues that not only are single-sex classrooms withing private undergraduate institutions legally unsound, but also that this approach fails to address long-term public policy concerns about the situation of women in education. As the United States grapples with education reform, it is far too easy to initiate Band-Aid solutions. Single-sex education, ranging from single-sex classrooms to single-sex public schools, should exist as an option, but Title IX and equal protection standards must be satisfied.The first section of this article discusses the historical perspective on single-sex education. The second section argues that single-sex classes within a private university receiving federal funding violate Title IX and other legal principles. This Comment concludes with recommendations for ways to incorporate single-sex education into the landscape of a private, coeducational university.
MVAPICH2 over openstack with SR-IOV: an efficient approach to build HPC clouds

Cloud Computing with Virtualization offers attractive flexibility and elasticity to deliver resources by providing a platform for consolidating complex IT resources in a scalable manner. However, efficiently running HPC applications on Cloud Computing systems is still full of challenges. One of the biggest hurdles in building efficient HPC clouds is the unsatisfactory performance offered by underlying virtualized environments, more specifically, virtualized I/O devices. Recently, Single Root I/O Virtualization (SR-IOV) technology has been steadily gaining momentum for high-performance interconnects such as InfiniBand and 10GigE. Due to its near native performance for inter-node communication, many cloud systems such as Amazon EC2 have been using SR-IOV in their production environments. Nevertheless, recent studies have shown that the SR-IOV scheme lacks locality aware communication support, which leads to performance overheads for inter-VM communication within the same physical node. In this paper, we propose an efficient approach to build HPC clouds based on MVAPICH2 over Open Stack with SR-IOV. We first propose an extension for Open Stack Nova system to enable the IV Shmem channel in deployed virtual machines. We further present and discuss our high-performance design of virtual machine aware MVAPICH2 library over Open Stack-based HPC Clouds. Our design can fully take advantage of high-performance SR-IOV communication for inter-node communication as well as Inter-VM Shmem (IVShmem) for intra-node communication. A comprehensive performance evaluation with micro-benchmarks and HPC applications has been conducted on an experimental Open Stack-based HPC cloud and Amazon EC2. The evaluation results on the experimental HPC cloud show that our design and extension can deliver near bare-metal performance for implementing SR-IOV-based HPC clouds with virtualization. Further, compared with the performance on EC2, our experimental HPC cloud can exhibit up to 160X, 65X, 12X improvement potential in terms of point-to-point, collective and application for future HPC clouds.
Coming Out in Mid-Adulthood

Abstract This paper presents results of an exploratory study that examined psychosocial issues faced by gay men and lesbians who come out in mid-adulthood. Analysis of the data obtained through a semi-structured interview instrument revealed six common themes faced by this population: coming out in mid-adulthood disrupts relationships; the loss of everything is feared; self-destructive behaviors are used to cope with heterosexism and oppression; the loss of a “normal” adolescence is grieved; religion is the most oppressive force encountered; and coming out in mid-adulthood requires great courage and strength.
Free Groups and Free Products

Among the basic properties of free groups established in Chapter 2 was the fact that every group is isomorphic with a quotient group of a free group, a fundamental result that demonstrates clearly the significance of free groups. Thus the quotient groups of free groups account essentially for all groups. By contrast subgroups of free groups are very restricted; in fact they too are free. This important fact, first proved in 1921 by Nielsen in the case of finitely generated free groups, is the principal result of the first section.
Abstract 3501: Aspirin modulates oncogene expression in hct 116 colon cancer cells

Proceedings: AACR Annual Meeting 2014; April 5-9, 2014; San Diego, CA Aspirin is a 100 year old Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). Beside its use a cardio-protective agent, it is also used for treatment of headache, fever, and inflammation. Many studies have shown that regular intake of aspirin for 5 years or more reduces the risk of colon, breast, prostate, lung and skin cancers. However, mechanism for such actions is not very well understood. Since transformation of a normal cell to cancer cell often involves mutation and activation of proto-oncogene, we initiated this research to understand if aspirin modulates the level of oncogene products. In this study we focused on three different oncogenes; c-FOS, c-JUN and c-RAF. c-FOS and c-JUN are transcription factors, they form a heterodimer called Activator protein (AP-1) transcription factor and regulate the expression of other genes. We observed that, in serum starved HCT-116 colon cancer cells Aspirin and Salicylic acid inhibited serum induced c-FOS protein expression, however, levels of c-JUN protein were not inhibited. In fact Aspirin and Salicylic acid increased c-JUN levels marginally over the serum induced levels at all time points examined. Exposure of cells to Aspirin and Salicylic acid inhibited c-RAF levels in a concentration dependent fashion. Inhibition was observed at physiologically achieved concentration of 250 -500 micro molar Salicylic acid suggesting that Aspirin may mediate its effects through the formation of Salicylic acid. We are currently investigating how inhibition of c-RAF levels by Aspirin and Salicylic acid affects downstream signaling molecules such as p42/p44 MAP kinases. Modulation of proto oncogenes by Aspirin may represent an important pathway by which Aspirin may mediate its anti-cancer effects. Citation Format: Rakesh Dachineni, Goqiang Ai, Jayarama B. Gunaje. Aspirin modulates oncogene expression in hct 116 colon cancer cells. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 3501. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-3501
Participation of Parents in Programs for the Gifted in New York City

The historical relationship between parents and the schools forms the background for this recent survey that examined the role that parents of gifted children now play in educational programming. Parents across the New York metropolitan area responded to survey items built on twenty-seven modes of participation. Analysis of the results included comparisons of responses by parents, officers in parent associations, and public/private school affiliations. The survey confirmed the hypothesis that parents of gifted/talented children have not yet achieved high rates of participation in these school programs.
A Business Sustainability Model for Government Corporations. A Belgian Case Study

A government's decision to tackle societal non-sustainability problems by setting up a government corporation also necessitates the choice of a business model. This article seeks to contribute to this debate through an analysis of the (linkages between the key elements of the) business model of the Kringloopfonds (TKF), a Belgian government corporation set up in order to provide finance to sustainable companies. Based on documentary information and semi-structured interviews with stakeholders TKF's business model is reconstructed which next is evaluated by means of program theory. It was found that TKF's portfolio allocation rule did not foresee in sufficient flexibility in order to cope with the shortage in financeable companies TKF was confronted with. This case thereby advocates for more business model flexibility in terms of portfolio allocation rules, time and asset requirements as well as for thorough sensitivity analyses testing business model's resistance to an initial and temporary shortage of sustainable companies. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.
Synthesis, crystal structure, and thermoelectric properties of two new barium antimony selenides: Ba2Sb2Se5 and Ba6Sb7Se16.11

Two new antimony selenides, Ba2Sb2Se5 and Ba6Sb7Se16.11, were synthesized via high-temperature solid-state reactions and their structures were determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction. Both of the title compounds crystallize in two new structure types in orthorhombic space groups, Ba2Sb2Se5: Pbam (No. 55) Z = 4, a = 8.403(2) A; b = 27.567(5) A c = 4.6422(8) A; and Ba6Sb7Se16: Pnnm (No. 58) Z = 4, a = 12.469(2) A; b = 62.421(7) A; c = 4.6305(5) A. The crystal structures of both phases contain Sb–Se slabs and one-dimensional Ba–Se chains that are not commonly found in alkaline-earth antimony selenides. Ba2Sb2Se5 is an n-type semiconductor with a bandgap close to 1 eV as revealed by resistivity measurements and UV-visible spectroscopy. Due to the complex crystal structure and disorder in the Se sublattice, Ba2Sb2Se5 exhibits extremely low thermal conductivity (0.4 W m−1 K−1) from room temperature to 800 K.
Analyzing genomes: current realities and future possibilities

The rapidly developing databases of genomic sequences of human and model organisms herald the beginning of a new era in genetic analysis. New, genome-based technologies are revealing important details in the structure and diversification of mammalian genomes and are fundamentally changing the field of genetics. In the future, genomic analysis will become a standard tool of geneticists and has the potential to revolutionize the field of immunogenetics.
Sex Differences in Item Functioning in the Comprehensive Inventory of Basic Skills-II Vocabulary Assessments.

The Brigance Comprehensive Inventory of Basic Skills–II (CIBS-II) is a diagnostic battery intended for children in grades 1st through 6th. The aim of this study was to test for item invariance, or differential item functioning (DIF), of the CIBS-II across sex in the standardization sample through the use of item response theory DIF detection methods. Specifically, we studied two subtests—Reading Vocabulary Comprehension and Listening Vocabulary Comprehension. Form A exhibited a smaller degree of DIF compared to Form B across the two subtests. Thus, we recommend that Form A be the form of choice for practitioners.
Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs and their effects.

New information about the mechanisms of action of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) offers potential opportunities to minimize the complications of these commonly used drugs. Traditionally, the accepted mode of action of the NSAIDs has been the inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis through either reversible or irreversible binding to cyclooxygenase (COX). However, drugs that are weak prostaglandin synthesis inhibitors in vitro have been demonstrated to be equally as effective in vivo as other "stronger" COX inhibitors in treating inflammatory diseases, suggesting the importance of other actions of these drugs. Various NSAIDs have been used for years to palliate pain and inflammation in many different disease processes; unfortunately, they have not been demonstrated to alter the natural history of disease such as rheumatoid arthritis. Perhaps that is because prostaglandins do not play a large role in most inflammatory diseases; alternatively, it might be attributable to the inability of NSAIDs to exert their full effects because of their potential toxic reactions.An understanding of the effects of cyclooxygenase inhibition has been further complicated by the recently described second isoenzyme of prostaglandin synthase. One form of cyclooxygenase appears to be important in the maintenance of normal physiologic functions (COX-1), whereas the other form is induced primarily in sites of inflammation (COX-2). Even if inhibition of cyclooxygenase is only one mechanism of action for these drugs, with only some of the potential toxic effects modulated by the inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis such as inhibition of COX-1, an understanding of the actions of the two isoforms of cyclooxygenase is an important step in further delineating the inflammatory cascade. Ideally, the treatment of inflammation could be improved by inhibiting the effects of COX-2 without inhibiting COX-1 activity. Thus, some potential side effects of the NSAIDs might be alleviated. The presently available NSAIDs all affect both COX-1 and COX-2, although not equally. There are also data describing some of the NSAIDs as less toxic to the gastrointestinal mucosa because of their chemical composition. These data are typically based on in vitro experiments that use varying methodologies, making it difficult to compare the effects of any one NSAID between studies.This paper presents a brief review of several of the newly described effects of the NSAIDs and concentrates on the possible implications of the experimentally observed COX-2-selective effects of these clinically useful antiinflammatory agents.
Effect of decaborane injection on operant behavior of monkeys

Summary Ten adult monkeys, eight on negatively reinforced (low level shock) tasks and two on positively reinforced (food reward) tasks, were injected with either 2 mg/kg, 4 mg/kg, or 1 mg/kg followed by 2 mg/kg of decaborane, and their performance on various operant tasks was compared with baseline performance. All animals exhibited a performance decrement on at least one task, with six of the subjects exhibiting a decrement on the remaining tasks. In over half the cases performance changes preceded clinical symptoms. There was no significant difference between the 2 mg/kg and 4 mg/kg exposures when a subject showed a decrement on negatively reinforced tasks. However, those subjects that received 1 mg/kg followed the next day by 2 mg/kg (positively reinforced animals) did not noticeably improve or return to baseline for a much longer period than the negatively reinforced groups. Subjects exposed to levels of decaborane such as those employed in this research may be expected to exhibit a performance decrement or clinical symptoms during the first 50 hours, since one or the other will probably occur during that time period. Usually, the first indication will be a performance decrement on a task requiring continuous motor behavior or a series of discriminations within the first 30 hours. Tasks of a discrete nature may, at lower exposure levels, reflect no decrement and, in these instances, there may also be a total absence of clinical symptoms. When performance decrements do take place, one may expect a return to baseline between 3 and 10 days.
Simulation of Seasonal and Interhemispheric Variations in the Stratospheric Circulation

Abstract This paper describes the stratosphere as simulated by the time integration of a global model of the atmosphere as developed at the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory of NOAA. It is shown that the model is capable of simulating a number of the features of the seasonal variation in the stratosphere. For example, it qualitatively reproduces the seasonal reversals of zonal wind direction in the mid-stratosphere between westerlies in winter and the zonal easterlies prevailing during the summer season. In the mid-latitude region of the lower model stratosphere, zonal mean temperature is highest in the winter when solar radiation is weak. At the cold equatorial tropopause of the model, the seasonal variation of temperature is also quite different from that which would be expected from the seasonal variation of solar radiation. These results are in qualitative agreement with the observed variation. Attempts are made to identify the factors which are responsible for the various aspects of the seasonal ...
Interaction of family history of breast cancer and dietary antioxidants with breast cancer risk (New York, United States)

We sought to determine if specific dietary antioxidants may be particularly effective in reducing breast cancer risk for women reporting family history (FH) of breast cancer in a first-degree relative. Interviews regarding usual diet, health, and family histories were conducted with 262 premenopausal and 371 postmenopausal women with incident, primary breast cancer from western New York (United States). These women were frequency-matched by age and county of residence with community controls. Among premenopausal women, there was a significant interaction between FH and alpha-tocopherol; alpha-tocopherol was associated with significantly decreased risk among FH+ women (adjusted fourth-quartile odds ratio [OR] = 0.01, 95 percent confidence interval [CI] = 0.0-0.3). This association was much weaker for FH- women [OR = 0.7, CI = 0.4-1.2]. For FH- women, a significant inverse association was observed between beta-carotene and premenopausal breast-cancer risk (OR = 0.4, CI = 0.3-0.5), but not for FH+ women (OR = 0.5, CI = 0.1-4.0). Similar relationships, although not as strong, were noted among postmenopausal women. Although limited by small numbers, these results suggest that biologic mechanisms of tumorigenesis may differ in FH+ and FH- women, and that alpha-tocopherol may be a potential chemopreventive agent for women with a family history of breast cancer, particularly premenopausal women.
Mixotrophy, a major mode of nutrition for harmful algal species in eutrophic waters

Historically most harmful algal species (HAS) have been thought to be strictly phototrophic. Mixotrophy, the use of phototrophy and heterotrophy in combination, has been emphasized as operative mainly in nutrient-poor habitats as a mechanism for augmenting nutrient supplies. Here we examine an alternate premise, that many harmful algae which thrive in eutrophic habitats are mixotrophs that respond both directly to nutrient inputs, and indirectly through high abundance of bacterial and algal prey that are stimulated by the elevated nutrients. From review and synthesis of the available data, mixotrophy occurs in all HAS examined thus far in the organic substrate- and prey-rich habitats of eutrophic estuarine and marine coastal waters. Where data are available comparing phototrophy versus mixotrophy, mixotrophy in eutrophic habitats generally is significant in nutrient acquisition and growth of HAS and, therefore, likely important in the development and maintenance of their blooms. In eutrophic habitats phagotrophic mixotrophs, in particular, have been shown to attain higher growth than when in phototrophic mode. Yet for many HAS, quantitative data about the role of mixotrophy in nutrition, growth, and blooms are lacking, especially relating laboratory information to natural field assemblages, so that the relative importance of photosynthesis, dissolved organic nutrients, and ingestion of prey largely remain unknown. Research is needed to assess simultaneously the roles of phototrophy, osmotrophy and phagotrophy in the nutritional ecology of HAS in eutrophic habitats, spanning bloom initiation, development and senescence. From these data, models that include the role of mixotrophy can be developed to gain more realistic insights about the nutritional factors that control harmful algae in eutrophic waters, and to strengthen predictive capability in predicting their blooms. An overall forecast that can be tested, as well, is that harmful mixotrophic algae will become more abundant as their food supplies increase in many estuaries and coastal waters that are sustaining chronic, increasing cultural eutrophication.
Mitigating challenges of using virtual reality in online courses: a case study

Case study methodology was used to describe the challenges experienced in the development of a virtual component for a freshman‐level undergraduate course. The purpose of the project was to use a virtual environment component to provide an interactive and engaging learning environment. While some student and faculty feedback was positive, this pilot was riddled with challenges. Five categories of challenges were identified and included: (1) shared meaning, (2) software and support, (3) programming, (4) implementation, and (5) student support.
Principles of surgery for adult brain injury

Traumatic brain injuries are a leading cause of death and disability in modern society. Most traumatic injuries to the brain occur in young individuals and increased survival rates have resulted in a growing number of spastic patients. The rehabilitation of these individuals involves a multi-disciplinary approach that begins immediately following the neurologic insult. The orthopaedic surgeon is an integral part of the treatment team involved in care of these patients. The development of established techniques and the improved understanding of brain injury has expanded the armanentarium available to the orthopaedic surgeon. The orthopaedic management of brain injury can be divided into acute, subacute, and residual time periods. l
A NEW DEFINITION OF VARIATIONAL DERIVATIVE

[b It is shown that the functional F{x, y, y')dx fails to 'a possess a variational derivative, contrary to what is claimed byGel fand and Fomin. A modified definition is given with respect to which the functional does possess a variational derivative.
A hexagonal arrangement of subunits in membrane of mouse urinary bladder

Surface membranes of mouse urinary bladder have associated with them a hexagonal structure with a unit cell side of 160 A containing subunits about 50 A in diameter packed on a p6 lattice. The structure has been confirmed and refined by analysis of electron micrographs of negatively-stained specimens using an optical diffractometer.
The effect of sentence context on associations to ambiguous, vague, and clear nouns

This study examined the effects of sentence context on response variation for vague, ambiguous, and clear nouns. Thirty‐four subjects within a 2x3 mixed design responded to five nouns of each type. The results indicated that nouns appearing in sentence context produced less response variation than nouns appearing alone. It was also found that clear nouns generated more homogeneous responses than did vague or ambiguous nouns. Finally, the study showed that ambiguous nouns appearing in sentences did not result in more or less response variation than did vague nouns appearing in sentences.
An Examination of Women's Decision-Making Processes During Unplanned Pregnancy

Through the current study the author sought to analyze discourses of women who have experienced an unplanned pregnancy. A qualitative approach was used to gather responses regarding the decision-making process women undergo during this phenomenon. Data showed that persuasive messages from outside sources frequently had a reported impact on the pregnancy option women chose. Often, women would plan on carrying their pregnancy to term initially, yet the persuasive messages they received caused them to change their mind. Women's speculations about the assumed reactions they would receive from others also had an impact on their decision. Implications from this research suggest that women experiencing an unplanned pregnancy may benefit from their family members, significant others, and friends' awareness of the strong impact opinions can have on this decision-making process.
Distributed Association Mining on Message Passing Systems

Association mining in finding relationships between items in a dataset has been demonstrated to be practical in business applications. Many companies are applying association mining on market data for analyzing consumers’ purchase behavior. The Apriori algorithm is the most established algorithm for association mining in finding frequent itemsets. However, the time complexity of the Apriori algorithm is dominated by the size of candidate itemsets. Research to date has focused on the efficient discovery of itemsets in a large dataset. Those improvements include the optimizations of data structures, the partitioning of datasets, and the parallelism of data mining. In this paper, we propose a distributed association mining algorithm in finding frequent itemsets. The work is different from many existing distributed algorithms where most of existing algorithms center on the reduction of the size of the dataset. Our distributed algorithm focuses on the reduction of the size of candidate itemsets. The work of candidate k-itemsets generation is evenly distributed to the nodes for workload balancing among processors. The complexity analysis of the distributed algorithm is also presented.
Dipolon theory of energy gap parameters at finite temperature and transition temperatures Tc and T* in high-temperature superconductors

Abstract First temperature dependent regular and pseudo-energy gap parameters and regular and pseudo-transition temperatures arising from the same physical origin have been calculated in the strong coupling formalism. Temperature dependent many-body field-theoretic techniques have been developed, as an extension of our previous zero-temperature formalism, to derive temperature dependent general expressions for the renormalized energy gap parameter Δ ( k → , ω ) , the gap renormalization parameter Z ( k → , ω ) and energy band renormalization parameter χ ( k → , ω ) for momentum k → and frequency ω making use of dipolon propagator and electron Green’s function taking into account explicitly the dressed dipolons as mediators of superconductivity, the screened Coulomb repulsion and nonrigid electron energy bands considering retardation and damping effects and electron–hole asymmetry. The theory takes into account all necessary and important correlations. Our self-consistent calculations utilize the previously symmetry predicted two energy gap parameters for superconducting cuprates, one being antisymmetric (“as”) with respect to the exchange of the k x and k y components of vector k → and the other being symmetric (“s”) with respect to the exchange of k x and k y . Our present temperature dependent self-consistent solutions of the real and imaginary parts of the Δ ( k → , ω ) , Z ( k → , ω ) and χ ( k → , ω ) confirm the existence of these two (different) solutions and conclude that the antisymmetric solution of the gap parameter corresponds to the observed regular (“reg”) superconducting energy gap whereas the symmetric solution corresponds to the observed pseudo -(“pse-”) energy gap. Explicit temperature dependent self-consistent calculations have been performed here for Bi 2 Sr 2 CaCu 2 O 8+ δ as well as Bi 2 Sr 2 CaCu 2 O 8 giving temperature dependent energy gap parameters and corresponding transition temperatures. The calculated results are consistent with the available experimental data. Our calculated results take into account different appropriate sets of electron–electron Coulomb interaction energy and screening constant with Pauling’s as well as TKS polarizabilities for various ions in these systems. The uncertainties in the calculated values of the energy gap parameters and transition temperatures are mainly due to uncertainties in the polarizabilities of the ions, Coulomb energy and the screening constant. Migdal vertex correction has been estimated. The calculated results have been discussed with respect to the available experiments. In particular, our calculations show that T ∗ is greater than the corresponding T c and they ( T c and T ∗ ) have the same physical origin, in agreement with experiments. Our results have been discussed and directions for further investigations have been pointed out.
Erratum: A Correction to ``Parallel Approximation Algorithms by Positive Linear Programming''

This note points out and corrects a mistake in the paper ``Parallel Approximation Algorithms by Positive Linear Programming'' [Algorithmica , 21:72—88]. The mistake was discovered by Pavlos Efraimidis.