cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Trapping light rays aperiodically with mirrors

We construct a configuration of disjoint segment mirrors in the plane that traps a single light ray aperiodically, providing a negative solution to a conjecture of O’Rourke and Petrovici. We expand this to show that any finite number of rays from a source can be trapped aperiodically. 1. Background and statement of results We consider a point source of light together with a finite collection of disjoint, double-sided segment mirrors in the plane. Light rays travel from the source in fixed directions until they contact a mirror, at which point they reflect according to the laws of geometric optics: the angle of incidence equal to the angle of reflection. Rays that contact mirror endpoints are assumed to die there, and such rays are called degenerate. A ray is said to be trapped if it never escapes from the convex hull of the mirrors. A ray is said to be trapped aperiodically if it reflects at infinitely many distinct mirror points. Such a ray reflects forever but never retraces its own path. O’Rourke and Petrovici [2001] asked whether the light rays emanating in every direction from a point source could be simultaneously trapped in such a system. The authors show that the set of rays from a source trapped periodically is countable; this can also be shown for the set of degenerate rays. The remaining rays either escape or are trapped aperiodically. Thus, if all the light rays from a point source are trapped by the mirrors, then there must be uncountably many aperiodically trapped rays. The authors’ conjecture that mirrors cannot trap a light ray aperiodically would have implied that no mirror system could trap all light from a point source. We provide a counterexample to this conjecture: Theorem 1. There is a mirror configuration in the plane that traps a light ray aperiodically.
An Embeddable SOI Radiation Sensor

The feasibility of developing an embeddable silicon-on-insulator (SOI) buried oxide MOS dosimeter (RadFET) has been demonstrated. This dosimeter takes advantage of the inherent properties for radiation-induced charge buildup in the buried oxides of commercial SOI wafers. Discrete SOI buried oxide RadFETs and fully-functional read-out circuitry have been fabricated in Sandia's CMOS7 radiation-hardened SOI technology. Discrete RadFETs have been irradiated under various radiation conditions and subjected to post-irradiation anneals. Data show only a small dose rate dependence and less than a 10% annealing or fade of the dosimeters output characteristics when irradiated with all pins shorted. These results show less fade than dual-dielectric RadFETs irradiated under the same bias conditions and support the use of SOI buried oxide RadFETs for low dose rate applications. Read-out circuitry has also been designed and fabricated to monitor changes in the ?off? state leakage current induced by radiation-induced charge buildup in the buried oxide dosimeter. The analog-to-digital output from the read-out circuit changes linearly with the ?off? state leakage current. Preliminary radiation characterizations of the read-out circuitry show no spurious effects of radiation-induced charge buildup in the read-out circuitry on the dosimeter output. These results indicate it is feasible to develop an embeddable SOI buried oxide RadFET as an attractive choice for many low power, low dose rate applications requiring real-time knowledge of total ionizing dose radiation levels.
A prospective, randomized trial comparing the efficacy of dexamethasone and betamethasone for the treatment of antepartum HELLP (hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelet count) syndrome.

Abstract Objective: This study was undertaken to determine whether dexamethasone or betamethasone is superior for the antepartum treatment of HELLP (hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelet count) syndrome. Study Design: This prospective, randomized, clinical investigation compared intravenously administered dexamethasone and intramuscularly administered betamethasone in the treatment of gravid women with HELLP syndrome. Efficacy end points included laboratory values (platelet count, lactate dehydrogenase activity, aspartate aminotransferase activity) and clinical parameters (mean arterial pressure, urinary output). Results: Forty patients were enrolled in the study, 19 in the dexamethasone arm and 21 in the betamethasone arm. The adjusted time-averaged changes from baseline were significant for aspartate aminotransferase activity (dexamethasone, –20.4 ± 9.6 U/L; betamethasone, 9.9 ± 8.9 U/L; P = .029), mean arterial pressure (dexamethasone, –15.6 ± 1.4 mm Hg; betamethasone, –8.1 ± 1.4 mm Hg; P P = .043). Conclusion: Intravenously administered dexamethasone appears to be more effective than intramuscularly adminstered betamethasone for the antepartum treatment of mothers with HELLP syndrome. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2001;184:1332-9.)
Tropospheric ozone: Coupling transport and photochemistry

The budget of tropospheric ozone is re-examined in the light of lower observed nitrogen oxide densities and revised reaction rates. To estimate the relative importance of transport and photochemistry, model calculations are presented which determine one-dimensional vertical ozone profiles at midlatitudes for equinoctial conditions. These calculations imply that both photochemistry and transport are important in controlling the abundance of tropospheric ozone. It is estimated that photochemical processes produce about 0.6 times 10 to the eleventh and destroy about 1.4 times 10 to the eleventh tropospheric ozone molecules per sq cm per sec, while mixing processes transport about 1.4 times 10 to the eleventh ozone molecules per sq cm per sec from the stratosphere into the troposphere and ground level fluxes destroy about 0.6 times 10 to the eleventh ozone molecules per sq cm per sec. The sensitivity of our model calculations to transport parameters, key rate coefficients, and nitrogen oxide densities are discussed.
Emotional well-being in spouses of patients with advanced heart failure.

Abstract Background The physical demands and psychological stressors of caregiving negatively impact the emotional well-being of spouses in many chronically ill populations such as patients with Alzheimer’s disease and end-stage renal failure. Heart failure (HF) is a chronic illness with a poor prognosis that is increasing in prevalence and incidence, yet little is know about its effect on the family, particularly the spouse. Objective We conducted this study to describe the emotional well-being of spouses of patients with HF, to identify factors associated with spouses’ decreased emotional well-being, and to compare emotional well-being between spouses with higher and lower levels of perceived control. We proposed a model that included age, sex, employment status, perceived control, and caregiver burden to explain the emotional well-being of spouses. Methods Data were collected from 69 spouses of patients with advanced HF (mean age 54 years and predominantly female) using 2 subscales of the SF-36, control attitudes scale—family version and caregiver appraisal tool. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlations, and stepwise multiple regression were used to analyze data. Results The model explained 40% of the variance in the emotional well-being of spouses ( P = 0.001). Perceived control ( P = 0.001) and age ( P = 0.046) were associated with emotional well-being. In spouses with higher levels of control, emotional well-being was significantly higher than in spouses with lower levels of control ( P = 0.003). Older spouses had higher levels of emotional well-being compared with younger spouses ( P = 0.01). Conclusions Health care professionals must assess the level of control perceived by spouses of patients with advanced HF and provide information and counseling directed toward increasing their sense of control. Younger spouses are particularly at risk for decreased emotional well-being and may require special intervention.
Phenotypic characterization of immortalized normal and primary tumor- derived human prostate epithelial cell cultures

BACKGROUND. Cell lines can provide powerful model systems for the study of human tumorigenesis. However, the human prostate cancer cell lines studied most intensively by investigators (PC3, DU145, and LNCaP) were established from metastatic lesions, and it is unlikely that they accurately recapitulate the genetic composition or biological behavior of primary prostate tumors. Cell lines more appropriate for the study of human prostate primary tumors would be those derived from spontaneously immortalized cells; unfortunately, explanted prostate cells survive only short-term in culture, and rarely immortalize spontaneously. Therefore, we examined whether cell lines developed through viral gene-mediated immortalization of human normal or primary tumor prostate epithelium express aspects of the normal or malignant phenotypes, and could serve as appropriate models for normal or transformed human prostatic epithelium. METHODS. To accomplish these goals, we assessed the phenotypic expression of cell cultures established through the immortalization of normal (1532N, 1535N, 1542N, and PrEC-T) or malignant (1532T, 1535T, and 1542T) human prostate epithelium with the E6 and E7 genes of HPV-16, or the large T antigen gene of SV40. RESULTS. Examination of these cell lines for their proliferative rates and their abilities to grow with or without serum or androgen stimulation, to form colonies in soft agar, or to form tumors in vivo, suggests that they may serve as valid, useful tools for the elucidation of prostate tumorigenesis. Moreover, the observation of structural alterations involving chromosome 8, including gain of 8q in 3 of the 4 cell lines expressing aspects of the malignant phenotype, implies that these cell lines accurately recapitulate the genetic composition of primary prostate tumors.
Regulated inactivation of the spindle assembly checkpoint without functional mitotic spindles

The spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC) arrests mitosis until bipolar attachment of spindle microtubules to all chromosomes is accomplished. However, when spindle formation is prevented and the SAC cannot be satisfied, mammalian cells can eventually overcome the mitotic arrest while the checkpoint is still activated. We find that Aspergillus nidulans cells, which are unable to satisfy the SAC, inactivate the checkpoint after a defined period of mitotic arrest. Such SAC inactivation allows normal nuclear reassembly and mitotic exit without DNA segregation. We demonstrate that the mechanisms, which govern such SAC inactivation, require protein synthesis and can occur independently of inactivation of the major mitotic regulator Cdk1/Cyclin B or mitotic exit. Moreover, in the continued absence of spindle function cells transit multiple cell cycles in which the SAC is reactivated each mitosis before again being inactivated. Such cyclic activation and inactivation of the SAC suggests that it is subject to cell-cycle regulation that is independent of bipolar spindle function.
Eta Simulations of Three Extreme Precipitation Events: Sensitivity to Resolution and Convective Parameterization

A versatile workstation version of the NCEP Eta Model is used to simulate three excessive precipitation episodes in the central United States. These events all resulted in damaging flash flooding and include 16‐17 June 1996 in the upper Midwest, 17 July 1996 in western Iowa, and 27 May 1997 in Texas. The episodes reflect a wide range of meteorological situations: (i) a warm core cyclone in June 1996 generated a meso-b-scale region of excessive rainfall from echo training in its warm sector while producing excessive overrunning rainfall to the north of its warm front, (ii) a mesoscale convective complex in July 1996 produced excessive rainfall, and (iii) tornadic thunderstorms in May 1997 resulted in small-scale excessive rains. Model sensitivity to horizontal resolution is investigated using a range of horizontal resolutions comparable to those used in operational and quasi-operational forecasting models. Sensitivity tests are also performed using both the Betts‐Miller‐Janjic convective scheme (operational at NCEP in 1998) and the Kain‐Fritsch scheme. Variations in predicted peak precipitation as resolution is refined are found to be highly case dependent, suggesting forecaster interpretation of increasingly higher resolution model quantitative precipitation forecast (QPF) information will not be straightforward. In addition, precipitation forecasts and QPF response to changing resolution are both found to vary significantly with choice of convective parameterization.
Shape engineering of dipole-coupled nanomagnets for magnetic logic devices

Magnetic logic devices are, in principle, capable of transmitting and processing binary information in an entirely magnetic way. Magnetic quantum-dot cellular automata (MQCA) (R.P. Cowburn and M.E. Welland, Science vol. 287, p. 1466, 2000; G. Csaba et al., IEEE Trans on Nanotechnology vol. 1, p. 209, 2002) realize logic functionality based on arrays of dipole-coupled nanomagnets. Recent experimental studies investigated the correlation length of antiferromagnetic ordering on chains of coupled single-domain ferromagnets (R.P. Cowburn, Phys. Rev. B vol. 65, p. 092409, 2002; A. Imre et al., Proc. IEEE-NANO 2003). Switching-field variations of the nanomagnets was identified as a critical issue during the ordering process. We present a combined experimental and theoretical study on arrays of closely-spaced magnetic dots with varying shapes in the size of 70-300 nm. The goal of our study is to identify those shapes which yield the longest correlation lengths for MQCA applications.
Erythropoietin Increases Expression and Function of Vascular Copper- and Zinc-Containing Superoxide Dismutase

Previous studies have shown that treatment with erythropoietin (EPO) exerts vascular protective effects. The exact mechanisms responsible for these effects are not completely understood. In the present study, we hypothesized that EPO stimulates expression and activity of copper- and zinc-containing superoxide dismutase (SOD1), thus protecting vascular tissue from oxidative stress induced by excessive concentrations of superoxide anions. EPO treatment of wild-type mice for 2 weeks (1000 U/kg, SC, biweekly) significantly increased aortic expression of SOD1. This effect resulted in a significant reduction of superoxide anion concentrations in aorta of treated mice. The ability of EPO to reduce vascular production of superoxide anions was abolished in SOD1-deficient mice. In a mouse model of wire-induced injury of the common carotid artery, treatment of wild-type mice with EPO prevented pathological remodeling, whereas the vascular effect of EPO was absent in SOD1-deficient mice. Our findings demonstrate that treatment with EPO increases vascular expression of SOD1. This effect appears to be an important molecular mechanism underlying vascular protection by EPO.
Allosteric Inhibition of Thermus Thermophilus Phosphofructokinase

Thermus thermophilus phosphofructokinase (TtPFK) comes from an extreme thermophile and exhibits entropically-driven inhibition by phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP). Interestingly, a PFK from the moderate thermophile Bacillus stearothermophilus also exhibits entropically-driven inhibition, while enthalphically-driven inhibition is observed for PFK from mesophilic E. coli. Although the thermodynamics of inhibition are similar for TtPFK and BsPFK, TtPFK exhibits a much weaker coupling between the inhibitor and substrate (ΔGay = 1.60±0.04 kcal/mol) when compared to that of BsPFK (ΔGay = 5.0±0.9 kcal/mol). Sequence alignment and crystal structures of BsPFK suggest that there is a network of interacting residues leading from the allosteric binding site to the active site. In the apo form, H215 forms a hydrogen bond with T158 and T156 interacts with D12 across the interface. In the inhibitor-bound form, T158 forms a hydrogen bond with D12. In TtPFK these interactions are missing due to substitutions at positions 215 (Ser) and 158 (Ala). Changing the amino acid residues at these positions to the corresponding amino acids in BsPFK resulted in an increase in coupling free energy to ΔGay = 2.47±0.02 kcal/mol for S215H and ΔGay = 2.45±0.04 kcal/mol for A158T. Currently the double mutant A158T/S215H is being investigated to see if the coupling can be augmented to the level of BsPFK coupling. Supported by NIH grant GM33216 and Welch Foundation grant A1548.
Radially Inhomogeneous Spherical Dielectric Lens for Matching 100-ps Pulses Into Biological Targets

Design, simulations, and experiments on a radially inhomogeneous spherical dielectric lens, that is used at the second focal point of a prolate-spheroidal impulse radiating antenna, are presented. This lens is designed to match 100-ps pulses into a biological medium. The higher field amplitude and smaller spot size obtained with such a lens are useful for various bioelectric applications.
IL-16 effects on A549 lung epithelial cells: dependence on CD9 as an IL-16 receptor?

Interleukin-16 (IL-16) is a pro-inflammatory cytokine released by many types of cells found in the lungs, including normal airway and alveolar epithelial cells. Though a chemotactin for CD4+ cells ...
THE ORIGIN OF THE ELECTRICAL CHARGES OF COLLOIDAL PARTICLES AND OF LIVING TISSUES.

1. When a solution of a salt of gelatin or crystalline egg albumin is separated by a collodion membrane from a watery solution (free from protein) a potential difference is set up across the membrane in which the protein is positively charged in the case of protein-acid salts and in which the protein is negatively charged in the case of metal proteinates. The turning point is the isoelectric point of the protein. 2. Measurements of the pH of the (inside) protein solution and of the outside watery solution show that when equilibrium is established the value pH inside minus pH outside is positive in the case of protein-acid salts and negative in the case of metal proteinates. This is to be expected when the P.D. is caused by the establishment of a Donnan equilibrium, since in that case the pH should be lower outside than inside in the case of a protein-acid salt and should be higher outside than inside in the case of a metal proteinate. 3. At the isoelectric point where the electrical charge is zero the value of pH inside minus pH outside becomes also zero. 4. It is shown that a P.D. is established between suspended particles of powdered gelatin and the surrounding watery solution and that the sign of charge of the particles is positive when they contain gelatin-acid salts, while it is negative when the powdered particles contain metal gelatinate. At the isoelectric point the charge is zero. 5. Measurements of the pH inside the powdered particles and of the pH in the outside watery solution show that when equilibrium is established the value pH inside minus pH outside is positive when the powdered particles contain a gelatin-acid salt, while the value pH inside minus pH outside is negative when the powdered particles contain Na gelatinate. At the isoelectric point the value pH inside minus pH outside is zero. 6. The addition of neutral salts depresses the electrical charge of the powdered particles of protein-acid salts. It is shown that the addition of salts to a suspension of powdered particles of gelatin chloride also diminishes the value of pH inside minus pH outside. 7. The agreement between the values 58 (pH inside minus pH outside) and the P. D. observed by the Compton electrometer is not only qualitative but quantitative. This proves that the difference in the concentration of acid (or alkali, as the case may be) in the two phases is the only cause for the observed P.D. 8. The Donnan theory demands that the P.D. of a gelatin chloride solution should be 1(1/2) times as great as the P.D. of a gelatin sulfate solution of the same pH and the same concentration (1 per cent) of originally isoelectric gelatin. This is found to be correct and it is also shown that the values of pH inside minus pH outside for the two solutions possess the ratio of 3:2. 9. All these measurements prove that the electrical charges of suspended particles of protein are determined exclusively by the Donnan equilibrium.
Cellular lifespan and senescence: a complex balance between multiple cellular pathways

The study of cellular senescence and proliferative lifespan is becoming increasingly important because of the promises of autologous cell therapy, the need for model systems for tissue disease and the implication of senescent cell phenotypes in organismal disease states such as sarcopenia, diabetes and various cancers, among others. Here, we explain the concepts of proliferative cellular lifespan and cellular senescence, and we present factors that have been shown to mediate cellular lifespan positively or negatively. We review much recent literature and present potential molecular mechanisms by which lifespan mediation occurs, drawing from the fields of telomere biology, metabolism, NAD(+) and sirtuin biology, growth factor signaling and oxygen and antioxidants. We conclude that cellular lifespan and senescence are complex concepts that are governed by multiple independent and interdependent pathways, and that greater understanding of these pathways, their interactions and their convergence upon specific cellular phenotypes may lead to viable therapies for tissue regeneration and treatment of age-related pathologies, which are caused by or exacerbated by senescent cells in vivo.
Matrix effects in analysis of dialkyl phosphate metabolites of organophosphate pesticides in urine by gas chromatography/tandem mass spectrometer

Urinary dialkyl phosphate metabolites (DAPs) are used as biomarkers to evaluate human exposure to organophosphate pesticides. The objective was to evaluate potential artifacts in urinary DAPs analysis during sample preparation and method calibration. Diluted urine pools were commonly used to prepare calibration standards to minimize the effects due to the complexity of urine matrix. Matrix effects on measurements of DAPs were evaluated by spiking known amount of standards into distilled water, synthetic urine and diluted urine pool. Different matrices resulted in similar concentrations detected for all target compounds, except dimethylphosphate (DMP) with the deviation of measurement as large as eight times the spiked amount. In this study, we also found that urinary particles, which usually appeared after thawing frozen human urine samples, could affect the measurements of DAPs, especially DMP and diethylthiophosphate (DETP). Results of DAPs measurements in three types of sample matrices, i.e. urine without particles, urine with particles and particles only were compared. DETP could be subject to large error during this preparation step. The use of deuterated and (13)C(12)-labeled DAPs as internal standards is also evaluated. Overall, these issues can cause misidentification and inaccuracies, which may significantly affect the data quality.
The exponential map

This line is (in a sense we explain below) the tangent to the circle at its identity element 1. And, in fact, any Lie group has a linear space (of the same dimension as the group) as its tangent space at the identity.
Quality of Life for Epileptics

Several years ago, the benchmark of epilepsy treatment was viewed as effects on seizures – frequency, severity, etc. As inevitable changes in health care occur, more emphasis is placed on the overall well-being of the patient, especially in pediatric cases. The outcomes of treatment over many years are of concern, and physicians, health care workers, and parents are all concerned with “quality of life.”
Subsidizing Discrimination Through Recognition: Associational Rights in Public Colleges and the Right to Exclude

Must a public school subsidize a student club that discriminates on the basis of race, sex, or other protected status? In Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, the Supreme Court was faced with this question - but the justices passed the buck. They dodged the real issue - whether to uphold a university's policy against extending school resources to clubs discriminating on the basis of sex, race, and sexual orientation. Instead of deciding whether such a policy unconstitutionally discriminates on the basis of content or viewpoint, the Court covered its eyes, pretending that the university's policy instead mandated that clubs accept "all comers." As Justice Scalia noted in his dissent, this was not the policy at issue, and the court missed an opportunity to clarify what we intuitively know: That a public university has a right, if not a duty, to refuse to recognize clubs that discriminate on the basis of race, sex, or other protected status. This article highlights a circuit split on this very issue that predates CLS v. Martinez and remains unresolved today, due to the Supreme Court's reluctance to engage the issues before it. A public university has no obligation to subsidize discrimination, and in fact has an affirmative duty to avoid it.
Recent Trends in Ultimate Strength Design

To obtain reasonably accurate predictions of member capacity at cracking load and near ultimate load, use of ultimate strength theory is required; load factor proposals call for use of reduced material strengths and increase over working loads; use of separate load factors for dead and live load; developing systematic theory of ultimate strength by use of strains and rectangular stress block for concrete stresses.
Immunoglobulins Associated with Elevated Riboflavin Binding by Plasma from Cancer Patients

Plasma from 182 patients with different malignant diseases was tested for riboflavin binding by immunoglobulins, which have been recently identified as major carriers of this micronutrient. A wide range of binding (5.9 to 130 pmole/ml plasma) was observed, and significant elevations were found for patients having breast cancer (21.2 +/- 1.9, P less than 0.05) and melanoma (25.7 +/- 1.9, P less than 0.001) compared to controls (15.5 +/- 1.9). The proteins responsible for a majority of the higher binding were identified as immunoglobulins, based on their elution from gel filtration columns and the removal of 57-88% of the non-albumin binding by treating of plasma with Protein A-agarose. The binding was only weakly related to the total concentration of immunoglobulins (r = 0.11 by linear regression analysis), however, and is apparently due to a subclass that is elevated in some types of cancer. Elevated levels of these immunoglobulins may contribute to the lower urinary levels and clearance of riboflavin in cancer.
Multi-Plane Image Reconstruction Using Cascaded Phase Elements

Cascaded phase only holograms, designed by a deterministic iterative algorithm, are used for multi-plane image formation. Numerical results show that, increasing the number of holograms decreases the error in all output planes. Therefore, this technique might be promising for the ultimate construction of a static micro-holographic 3D display.
Gravity and Gravity Gradient Data: Understanding Their Information Content Through Joint Inversions

Gravity and gravity gradient data inherently have different frequency contents based on the differing decay rates with distance from the source and differing signal to noise ratios. Gravity contains more low frequency content, and gravity gradient contains relatively more high frequency content. We develope an algorithm to jointly invert the two data sets using a generalized 3D inversion to obtain a model that benefits from both differing frequency contents of the data sets and test the methodology on two synthetic cases: a simple block model and a more realistic basin and range model with a vertical intrusion. The models improve at depth with the added gravity data and the joint inversion reconstructs more meaningful models. The algorithm helps to highlight the difference in information content in data and is applicable for integrated interpretation of two data set in practice.
Fe-base alloys in CH4/H2 carburizing gas mixtures

This study involved cyclic carburization exposures of three Fe-base alloys (310SS, 800HT, and 556) at 800°C in 2% CH4/H2 and at 1,100°C in 10% CH4/H2 carburizing gas mixtures for 500h. Carburization thermodynamics, kinetics, and carburization behavior are discussed. The exposure at 800°C in 2% CH4/H2 was mixed oxidizing/carburizing, but reducing carburizing at 1,100°C in 10% CH4/H2. At 800°C Fe-base alloys suffered external carburization and oxidation, and the external Cr-rich scale layers were continuous consisting of oxides and carbides. Carburization resistance primarily depends on the protection afforded by external continuous layers rather than Ni content. At 1,100°C, extensive external carburization occurred, and external layers became discontinuous consisting of Cr/Fe-carbides or metallic CrFe phases. Carburization resistance depends greatly on Ni (Co) content.
Pecan Weevil Preference for Various Pecan Cultivars

The very early maturing pecan cultivar Johnson was damaged signiificantly less than were later maturing cultivars by Curculio caryae (Horn) In studies made In 1978 and 1979. In a different test in 1976, the cultivar 48-15-3 was the only one of 39 cultivars tested that escaped damage. Both of these cultivars mature extremely early; thus, although the possibility of discovering immunity to the pecan weevil is negligible, resistance through host evasion by asynchrony is possible.
Effects of some old and proposed anticonvulsants on the threshold for electrical convulsions.

SummaryOver 400 tests were made in 210 animals with 23 different agents on the threshold for electrical convulsions, chiefly in white rats; a few in rabbits. Of 3 new hydantoins studied, di-isobutyl-hydantoin was the most promising, being somewhat comparable to sodium diphenylhydantoin in high doses. Among the ineffective agents were 4 drugs of the curare group, alleged central depressants, and 5 different dyes, including hematoxylin and vital red, alleged antiepileptic agents.
An Electric Field–Induced Change in the Selectivity of a Metal Oxide–Catalyzed Epoxide Rearrangement

The rearrangement of cis-stilbene oxide catalyzed by Al(2)O(3) was studied in the presence of interfacial electric fields. Thin films of Al(2)O(3) deposited on Si electrodes were used as the opposing walls of a reaction vessel. Application of a voltage across the electrodes engendered electrochemical double layer formation at the Al(2)O(3)-solution interface. The aldehyde to ketone product ratio of the rearrangement was increased by up to a factor of 63 as the magnitude of the double layer charge density was increased. The results support a field-dipole effect on the selectivity of the catalytic reaction.
Persistence of systemic and cerebral perfusion impairment in patients with neurocardiac injury after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage

Although it has been demonstrated previously that patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) who also experience neurocardiac injury have lower short term (0-3 days after aneurysm rupture) systemic and cerebral perfusion parameters compared to those without neurocardiac injury, it remains unknown if these changes persist over a longer time.
Transbronchial Cryobiopsy in Diffuse Parenchymal Lung Disease: Retrospective Analysis of 74 Cases

Background Diagnostic evaluation of patients with diffuse parenchymal lung disease (DPLD) is best achieved by a multidisciplinary team correlating clinical, radiological, and pathologic features. Surgical lung biopsy remains the gold standard for histopathologic diagnosis of idiopathic interstitial pneumonias. Emerging data suggest an increasing role for transbronchial cryobiopsy (TBC) in DPLD evaluation. We describe our experience with TBC in patients with DPLD. Methods We retrospectively reviewed medical records of patients with radiographic features of DPLD who underwent TBC at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota from June 2013 to September 2015. Results Seventy-four patients (33 women [45%]) with a mean age of 63 years (SD, 13.8) were included. The mean maximal diameter of the samples was 9.2 mm (range, 2-20 mm [SD, 3.9]). The median number of samples per procedure was three (range, one to seven). Diagnostic yield was 51% (38 of 74 specimens). The most frequent histopathologic patterns were granulomatous inflammation (12 patients) and organizing pneumonia (OP) (11 patients), resulting in the final diagnoses of hypersensitivity pneumonitis (six patients), cryptogenic OP (six patients), connective tissue disease-associated OP (three patients), drug toxicity (three patients), infection-related OP (two patients), sarcoidosis (two patients), and aspiration (one patient). Other histopathologic patterns included respiratory bronchiolitis (three patients), acute fibrinous and organizing pneumonia (two patients), desquamative interstitial pneumonia (1 patient), diffuse alveolar damage (one patient), pulmonary alveolar proteinosis (one patient), amyloidosis (one patient), eosinophilic pneumonia (one patient), necrotizing vasculitis (one patient), bronchiolitis with food particles (one patient), and malignancy (three patients). Pneumothorax developed in one patient (1.4%), and bleeding occurred in 16 patients (22%). Conclusions Our single-center cohort demonstrated a 51% diagnostic yield from TBC; the rates of pneumothorax and bleeding were 1.4% and 22%, respectively. The optimal use of TBC needs to be determined.
Funiculitis mimicking appendicitis: A rare culprit

Abstract Acute appendicitis is an extremely common cause for pediatric admissions, most notably presenting with right lower quadrant pain. There are few other etiologies for a young male to have pain aside from appendicitis. We present a young boy who presented with right lower quadrant abdominal pain and fevers, but was found to have funiculitis. Funiculitis, or inflammation of the spermatic cord, is a very rare condition in the pediatric population, almost always occurring in the elderly with urinary flow conditions. We share our case to remind providers the importance of a full differential diagnosis.
Diversity Matters in Academic Radiology: Acknowledging and Addressing Unconscious Bias

To meet challenges related to changing demographics, and to optimize the promise of diversity, radiologists must bridge the gap between numbers of women and historically underrepresented minorities in radiology and radiation oncology as contrasted with other medical specialties. Research reveals multiple ways that women and underrepresented minorities can benefit radiology education, research, and practice. To achieve those benefits, promising practices promote developing and implementing strategies that support diversity as an institutional priority and cultivate shared responsibility among all members to create inclusive learning and workplace environments. Strategies also include providing professional development to empower and equip members to accomplish diversity-related goals. Among topics for professional development about diversity, unconscious bias has shown positive results. Unconscious bias refers to ways humans unknowingly draw upon assumptions about individuals and groups to make decisions about them. Researchers have documented unconscious bias in a variety of contexts and professions, including health care, in which they have studied differential treatment, diagnosis, prescribed care, patient well-being and compliance, physician-patient interactions, clinical decision making, and medical school education. These studies demonstrate unfavorable impacts on members of underrepresented groups and women. Learning about and striving to counteract unconscious bias points to promising practices for increasing the numbers of women and underrepresented minorities in the radiology and radiation oncology workforce.
Employment proximity and outcomes for Moving to Opportunity families

The Moving to Opportunity for Fair Housing Demonstration (MTO) randomly assigned housing vouchers to public housing residents in an experimental test of the effect of neighborhood and location on household outcomes. In terms of adult employment outcomes, the 2 treatment groups did not significantly differ from the control group. We use MTO data to examine whether spatial proximity to jobs and job growth explains this lack of treatment effect. We first estimate differences in access to jobs and job growth for the 3 MTO groups. We then use 2-stage least squares models to test relationships between employment accessibility and 2 key outcomes: employment status and earned income. We find that employment accessibility declined for all groups, and these declines were strongest for the 2 treatment groups. However, our results show essentially no effect of employment proximity on earnings or employment status for MTO participants.
Who's Who in Mineral Names: Rodney C. Ewing (b. 1946)

Ewingite, Mg8Ca8(UO2)24(CO3)30O4(OH)12·138(H2O), is a rare secondary uranium mineral. It was named in honor of Rodney C. Ewing, professor of geological sciences, Frank Stanton Professor in Nuclear ...
Biologically Triggered Delivery of EGF from Polymer Fiber Patches

Wound healing is modulated by complex spatial and temporal regulation of growth factors within a wound site. Regenerative medicine seeks to generate materials that can mimic this environment for the healing of chronic or traumatic wounds. Herein, we report a programmed release of epidermal growth factor (EGF) from coextruded polymer fiber patches, which is triggered by the natural biological cascade of wound healing. Genetically engineered EGF containing a matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) cleavage site was covalently conjugated to a nonwoven poly(e-caprolactone) (PCL) fiber mat fabricated by multilayered melt coextrusion. The genetically modified EGF showed rapid release in the presence of a biological trigger, MMP-9, while a control protein showed negligible release. The biologically responsive fiber mat dramatically enhanced proliferation and migration of human keratinocytes in the presence of MMP-9. This study describes the release of a critical wound-healing growth factor as triggered by the biology inh...
Spatial Signal Processing for Time-Dispersive Digital Communication Channels

Abstract Severely time-spread communication channels require long equalizers to combat intersymbol interference. In conjunction with spatial diversity, receiver performance may become limited by its complexity through noise enhancement, slower tracking and increased sensitivity to numerical errors. To alleviate these problems, beamforming interpretation of the optimal diversity combining method is exploited. The resulting receiver consists of a many-to-few coherent spatial pre-combiner followed by a reduced complexity multichannel equalizer. Its performance is studied on experimental underwater acoustic data demonstrating capability to fully exploit spatial variability of multipath channels while keeping the complexity at minimum, thus allowing efficient use of large receiver arrays.
“Whoso wele schal wyn, a wastour moste he fynde”: Interreliant Economies and Social Capital in Wynnere and Wastoure

This chapter evaluates the ideas of earning and spending in the fourteenth-century poem Wynnere and Wastoure by considering the interreliant nature of an economy. The economic thought that runs through the poem brings to the forefront the idea that an economy is ultimately a collection of individuals exchanging together in the market and that the actions of those individuals can affect the economy at large. Immoderate winning may help protect one’s household against future scarcity but in doing so it can harm others involved in that economy. The shift into an exchange economy here does not supplant social obligations, as antimercantile perspectives fear, but instead forms new methods of understanding and properly performing exchange in the interest of interpersonal relationships.
Perioperative Risk Profiles and Volume-Outcome Relationships in Proximal Thoracic Aortic Surgery

Background Using the national Society of Thoracic Surgeons Adult Cardiac Surgery Database data for thoracic aortic surgical procedures for aortic aneurysm, this study aimed to (1) characterize patients' risk profiles and outcomes, (2) evaluate center volume-outcome relationships across US centers, and (3) identify risk factors for operative mortality. Methods Between 2011 and 2016, 53,559 operations for ascending aortic aneurysm performed across 1,045 centers in the United States were identified. Logistic regression related baseline characteristics and comorbidities to operative mortality. Ten-fold cross-validation was performed to estimate sensitivity and specificity across a range of the discrimination threshold. Centers were stratified into five strata by average annual case volume. Predicted probability of operative mortality was calculated from the model and was used to evaluate patients' risk profiles across the volume strata. Results Operative mortality occurred in 3.2% of all cases and in 2.2% of elective cases. Only 24 (2.3%) centers performed ≥50 cases annually, whereas 609 (58.3%) centers performed fewer than five cases annually. Multiple logistic regression, of which the c-index was 0.80, revealed that compared with centers with ≥50 cases, centers with fewer than five cases had an increased risk of mortality (odds ratio, 2.50; 95% confidence interval, 2.08 to 3.01; p Conclusions Proximal thoracic aortic surgical procedures for aortic aneurysms in the United States are associated with a low operative mortality rate of 2.2% for elective cases. Risk of operative death decreases significantly at an annual center volume of more than 20 to 25 cases per year.
Cognitive Antecedents of Violence and Aggression

Research on the antecedents of aggression and violence has increased considerably in recent years, as parents, researchers, and policy makers endeavor to understand this phenomenon. Many theories have been proposed (e.g., Pincus, 2001) and numerous intervention strategies have been tried (see Elliott & Tolan 1999), with varying degrees of success. Many factors contribute to the development of aggressive behavior, and although research offers some general predictors, there remains a large degree of uncertainty that at present can not be captured by a single theory. In this chapter, we explore the role of impaired or altered cognition in the genesis of aggressive behavior: what neuropsychological deficits are observed in aggressive individuals, what might be contributing to or causing these deficits, and how do these limitations influence behavior? Special emphasis is given to the frontal lobes and executive functioning, as well as putative brain disease and a number of environmental factors that contribute directly and indirectly to aggression. While impaired cognition may not account for all the variance, it seems to represent an important piece of the aggression puzzle.
Clinical evaluation of a new antimetabolite, 6-mercaptopurine, in the treatment of leukemia and allied diseases.

1. A new antimetabolite, 6-mercaptopurine, has been shown to produce good clinical and hematologic remissions in fifteen out of forty-five children with acute leukemia. Another ten showed partial remissions and clinical improvement. 2. Remissions in adults with acute leukemia have occasionally been brought about by 6-mercaptopurine, and in a few cases it has produced temporary remissions in both the early and the late stages of chronic myelocytic leukemia. 3. The compound has been effective in some children whose disease was resistant to the folic acid antagonists, as shown by the fact that out of twenty-four children with acute leukemia whose disease had been proved to be resistant to amethopterin, five had good clinical and hematologic remissions and five had partial remissions with some marrow and clinical improvement. Some benefit was seen in eight out of eighteen patients whose disease was resistant to ACTH and cortisone. 4. In children the daily oral administration of 2.5 mg./Kg. rarely caused toxic manifestations, but continued therapy at this dose in adults or at higher levels in children occasionally produced bone marrow depression or gastrointestinal symptoms. 5. There is evidence that the therapeutic resistance of the acute leukemias to 6MP develops somewhat more rapidly than it does to the folic acid antagonists but there is, as yet, no laboratory or clinical evidence of cross resistance between these two types of antimetabolites. 6. In a total of thirty-five patients with lymphomas and miscellaneous carcinomas and sarcomas, 6MP did not produce any definite clinical improvement at doses which produced hematologic toxicity. 7. Although 6-mercaptopurine acts as a purine antagonist in certain forms of bacteria, the exact mechanism of its action in leukemia is at present unknown. Since its mode of action appears to differ from that of other agents previously employed clinically in the treatment of leukemia, this compound would appear to be of fundamental as well as practical interest.
Agentive Phenomenal Intentionality and the Limits of Introspection

I explore the prospects for overcoming the prima facie tension in the following four claims, all of which I accept: (1) the phenomenal character of experience is narrow; (2) virtually all aspects of the phenomenal character of experience are intentional; (3) the most fundamental kind of mental intentionality is fully constituted by phenomenal character; and yet (4) introspection does not by itself reliably generate answers to certain philosophically important questions about the phenomenally constituted intentional content of experience. The apparent tension results from the following initially plausible thought: if indeed the answers to such questions are entirely fixed by phenomenal character by itself, then presumably these answers should be directly available introspectively. I focus the discussion specifically on certain questions about the phenomenal intentional content of agentive experience—e.g., the question whether the content of agentive experience is compatible with causal determinism. I consider three alternative possibilities for explaining why the answers to such questions are not directly available introspectively—two of which I argue against and the third of which I embrace.
Pediatric aspects of bioterrorism

Potential microbes for bioterrorism threats include Bacillus anthrax, Yersinia pestis, Francisella tularemia, Clostridium botulinum, variola virus and hemorrhagic fever viruses such as Ebola. This review covers selective topics associated with anthrax and smallpox, such as epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical presentation, diagnosis, prevention, and therapy, as well as approaches for clinical management of children in suspected exposure to anthrax and smallpox. Information is lacking regarding weaponized anthrax spores, including LD50, optimal management, alternatives for antibiotic-resistant strains and use of genetically modified strains to escape vaccine protection. The recent US outbreak in 2001 highlights the following features: case fatality rates of 45%, no secondary cases among household contacts of the inhalation anthrax subjects and no cases of anthrax among individuals on antibiotic prophylaxis. Regarding smallpox, discussions have concerned the identification of first response individuals and vaccination of such individuals; however, smallpox vaccine is associated with mortality and morbidity, and current issues include principles and procedures associated with vaccination.