cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Oxoammonium cation intermediate in the nitroxide-catalyzed dismutation of superoxide.

Dismutation of superoxide has been shown previously to be catalyzed by stable nitroxide compounds. In the present study, the mechanism of superoxide (.O2-) dismutation by various five-membered ring and six-membered ring nitroxides was studied by electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometry, UV-visible spectrophotometry, cyclic voltammetry, and bulk electrolysis. Electron paramagnetic resonance signals from the carbocyclic nitroxide derivatives (piperidinyl, pyrrolidinyl, and pyrrolinyl) were unchanged when exposed to enzymatically generated .O2-, whereas, in the presence of .O2- and reducing agents such as NADH and NADPH, the nitroxides underwent reduction to their respective hydroxylamines. The reaction of 4-hydroxy-2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-hydroxypiperidine (Tempol-H) with .O2- was measured and, in agreement with earlier reports on related compounds, the rate was found to be too slow to be consistent with a mechanism of .O2- dismutation involving the hydroxylamine as an intermediate. Voltammetric analyses of the carbocyclic nitroxide derivatives revealed a reversible one-electron redox couple at positive potentials. In contrast, oxazolidine derivatives were irreversibly oxidized. At negative potentials, all of the nitroxides studied exhibited a broad, irreversible reductive wave. The rate of .O2- dismutation correlated with the reversible midpoint redox potential. Bulk electrolysis at positive potentials was found to generate a metastable oxidized form of the nitroxide. The results indicate that the dismutation of .O2- is catalyzed by the oxoammonium/nitroxide redox couple for carbocyclic nitroxide derivatives. In addition to the one-electron mitochondrial reduction pathway, the present results suggest the possibility that cellular bioreduction by a two-electron pathway may occur subsequent to oxidation of stable nitroxides. Furthermore, the cellular destruction of persistent spin adduct nitroxides might also be facilitated by a primary univalent oxidation.
Temporary PSA rises and repeat prostate biopsies after brachytherapy

Abstract Purpose: The long-standing confusion regarding the clinical relevance of postimplant biopsies is complicated by the common occurrence of temporary PSA rises between 1 and 2 years after brachytherapy. We report here 4 patients with temporary, self-limited PSA rises and postimplant biopsies, for whom radical prostatectomy was strongly advised but for whom surgery would probably have been the wrong choice. Materials and Methods: Transperineal I-125 or Pd-103 implants were performed as previously described. After implantation, patients were followed routinely, with repeat PSA and physical examination at approximately every 4 to 6 months. Timing of postimplant PSAs was at the discretion of the patient and his doctors. Postimplant biopsies were performed in all cases out of concern for a persistently elevated serum PSA. Sections of fixed and embedded tissue were stained with standard hematoxylin and eosin. Results: All 4 patients presented here were advised to have a salvage prostatectomy based primarily on their PSA changes. However, all of the patients have subsequently had a dramatic PSA fall, consistent with long-term cancer control, despite the fact that 3 of the 4 had histologic evidence of persistent cancer on repeat prostate biopsy. Conclusions: It is crucial that clinicians be aware of the potential for the doubly confusing situation of temporary PSA rises and apparently positive rebiopsies and the pressure it puts on both patients and their physicians to go ahead with inappropriate salvage therapy.
The effect of surface charge on in vivo biodistribution of PEG-oligocholic acid based micellar nanoparticles

To systematically elucidate the effect of surface charge on the cellular uptake and in vivo fate of PEG-oligocholic acid based micellar nanoparticles (NPs), the distal PEG termini of monomeric PEG-oligocholic acid dendrimers (telodendrimers) are each derivatized with different number (n = 0, 1, 3 and 6) of anionic aspartic acids (negative charge) or cationic lysines (positive charge). Under aqueous condition, these telodendrimers self-assemble to form a series of micellar NPs with various surface charges, but with similar particle sizes. NPs with high surface charge, either positive or negative, were taken up more efficiently by RAW 264.7 murine macrophages after opsonization in fresh mouse serum. Mechanistic studies of cellular uptake of NPs indicated that several distinct endocytic pathways (e.g., clathrin-mediated endocytosis, caveolae-mediated endocytosis, and macropinocytosis) were involved in the cellular uptake process. After their cellular uptake, the majority of NPs were found to localize in the lysosome. Positively charged NPs exhibited dose-dependent hemolytic activities and cytotoxicities against RAW 264.7 cells proportional to the positive surface charge densities; whereas negatively charged NPs did not show obvious hemolytic and cytotoxic properties. In vivo biodistribution studies demonstrated that undesirable liver uptake was very high for highly positively or negatively charged NPs, which is likely due to active phagocytosis by macrophages (Kupffer cells) in the liver. In contrast, liver uptake was very low but tumor uptake was very high when the surface charge of NPs was slightly negative. Based on these studies, we can conclude that slightly negative charge may be introduced to the NPs surface to reduce the undesirable clearance by the reticuloendothelial system (RES) such as liver, improve the blood compatibility, thus deliver the anti-cancer drugs more efficiently to the tumor sites.
The effect of the vesicular stomatitis virus-associated protein kinase on viral rnRNA transcription in vitro

Abstract The role of the vesicular stomatitis virus(VSV)-associated protein kinase in primary transcription in vitro was examined. Purified VSV-B particles were treated with detergent and salt to release the transcribing core particles. After a few washes with the above solution, the VSV cores contained 60-fold less protein kinase than the B-particles from which they were derived. The residual amount of kinase on the cores, however, appeared to be nearly saturating in terms of its ability to phosphorylate endogenous substrates in vitro. These cores were very active in primary transcription in vitro. When partially purified VSV-protein kinase was added to these transcriptionally active cores, the kinase had no effect in low concentrations and in high concentrations was inhibitory. The cores were treated with bacterial alkaline phosphatase to deplete them of endogenous phosphate groups and again tested for their ability to catalyze primary transcription. These phosphatase-treated cores were drastically reduced in their capacity to synthesize primary transcripts. However, readdition of VSV-protein kinase did not reverse the effect. Further studies indicated that during the phosphatase treatment, VSV phosphoproteins NS1 and NS2 were released from the virion, thereby accounting for the decrease in transcription. These studies suggest that the in vitro phosphorylation of core-associated proteins does not play an important role in primary transcription.
Outcomes in pancreatic resection are negatively influenced by pre-operative hospitalization

Background Quality improvement in high-acuity surgery increasingly relies on clinical pathways to streamline patient care and to maximize cost-efficiency. Yet, it remains unclear whether immediate pre-operative hospitalization (non-elective resection) influences operative performance and to what extent it alters the post-operative course.
shamanism and schizophrenia: a state-specific approach to the “schizophrenia metaphor” of shamanic states

Shamanism and schizophrenia are examined as altered states of consciousness. A state-specific approach to the phenomenology of these altered states is employed to demonstrate that the existence in the anthropological literature of the “schizophrenia metaphor” of shamanism and its altered states is untenable. A current psychiatric diagnostic manual is utilized to show that significant phenomenological differences exist between the shamanic and schizophrenic states of consciousness. [shamanism, schizophrenia, altered states of consciousness, spirit possession, ethnopsychiatry, psychological anthropology].
Spring and summer growth rates of subarctic Pacific phytoplankton assemblages determined from carbon uptake and cell volumes estimated using epifluorescence microscopy

In order to determine whether phytoplankton growth rates were normal or depressed, total plant carbon (μg l−1) and in situ production rates (μg C l−1 d−1) were measured for phytoplankton assemblages at Weathership Station P (50°N; 145°W) and at 53°N; 145°W in the subarctic Pacific in May and August 1984. Plant carbon, estimated from cell volumes determined using epifluorescence microscopy, was distributed as follow: 28% in the 5 μm. Carbon-specific growth rates (k), as doublings d−1, were calculated for the phytoplankton assemblages as a whole at each sampling depth down to 100 m for three days in May and for four days in August. The populations in the upper part of the euphotic zone showed average doubling rates of 1 d−1 and thus appeared to be growing at rates normally expected for the prevailing conditions of light and temperature. The low chlorophyll concentrations (0.3 to 0.4 mg chl a m−3) characteristically found in this oceanic region do not seem to be due to very slow growth of algal populations.
Thyroid function in the rat during pregnancy and lactation.

1) Pregnant rats were fed 0.15% propylthiouracil (PTU) from the 10th to the 19th day of pregnancy and 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 μg. T4 were injected daily during this time. The regression slopes of the thyroid weights were similar to those of the corresponding controls except that 2 μg. T4 produced less decrease in thyroid size in pregnant than in non-pregnant rats. 2) Pregnant rats were fed a low-iodine diet from the 10th to the 19th day of pregnancy and doses of T4 were administered during this interval as in 1). The regression slopes of the thyroidal I131 uptake of the pregnant and non-pregnant rats were identical but uptakes were consistently slightly lower at each point for the pregnant rats. 3) Following seven days of low-iodine diet, thyroidal I131 uptakes were determined at one to two day intervals from the 8th day of gestation to the 29th day of lactation. Uptakes were not statistically different from the controls until the 20th day of pregnancy when a marked drop of approximately 50% occurred which persis...
Post-yield material nonlinearity: Optimal homogeneous shear-frame sections and hysteretic behavior

Abstract A nonlinear hardening rule that describes a general yield surface change for frame members is proposed. The rule is valid for homogeneous materials and is defined by a nonlinear constitutive model. The model is given as the stress–strain relationship through the section thickness. The post-yield behavior of shear frame members is assessed using a hardening index parameter, a plastic strain coefficient, and a smooth and optimal mathematical function to model the geometry of structural wide-flange and tube sections. This enables a continuous distribution of post-yield curvatures to exist along the member length and results in accurate finite-element member displacement predictions. Steady-state hysteresis responses are determined for frame sections using the model’s nonlinearly degrading stiffness. The hardening rule is used to model the detailed material behavior of shear frame members that are subjected to lateral loads. The results of the model are validated through experimental published literature.
Qualitative acoustic analysis in the study of motor speech disorders.

Traditional measurements performed on the acoustic signals of normal speech are frequently used to quantify the acoustic characteristics of disordered speech as well. This letter demonstrates how important aspects of speech production deficits in motor speech disorders may be overlooked if stringent quantification procedures are employed, especially in the stage of exploratory data analysis. It is suggested that qualitative procedures, wherein phenomena are inferred from visual examination of certain acoustic displays, are useful to supplement traditional measurements, and moreover, that they be used to point to the types of measurements that should be made in the finer‐grained stages of quantitative analysis.
Out of the nest: the cataloger in a public services role

In today’s libraries, catalogers must often assume other roles. Because of outsourcing, shrinking staffs, expanded services, and shifting priorities, specialization in cataloging is frequently no longer an option. Taking on other types of responsibility can be quite daunting to those who have been in technical services for an entire career. This paper examines the benefits and challenges for a cataloger who is working in public services. It discusses what qualities a cataloger can bring to public services work along with the advantages for the cataloger in working with the public. Some survival strategies will be offered for the cataloger making the transition to public services work or working with multiple departmental assignments. The overall approach is positive, but realistic in the acknowledgment that this role change can be very demanding for catalogers.
Aberrant function of the Ras signal transduction pathway in human breast cancer

Althoughras mutations are infrequent (approximately 5%) in breast cancers, there is considerable evidence that suggests that the pathways which Ras services may still be deregulated in breast cancer cells. The recent identification of many of the components of the Ras signal transduction pathway has defined a network of proto-oncogene proteins controlling diverse signaling events that regulate cell growth and differentiation. Consequently, mutations that perturb the function of any one component of this signal pathway may trigger the same oncogenic events as mutation ofras itself. Moreover, several Ras-related proteins have recently been demonstrated to possess the ability to trigger malignant transformation via signaling pathways shared with Ras proteins. Thus, it is possible that the aberrant function of Ras-related proteins may contribute to breast cancer development. Consequently, it is important not to dismiss the Ras pathway in the development of breast cancer merely because of the infrequent detection of mutations inras itself, but rather to consider the influence of aberrations upstream or downstream of Ras and of certain Ras-related proteins in the development of breast cancer. Finally, the critical importance of components upstream and downstream of Ras provides additional targets for rational drug design approaches to block the aberrant function of Ras signaling in human tumors.
Effect of neutral salts and methylglyoxal on the cis‐trans equilibrium of n‐methylacetamide. A 13‐carbon nuclear magnetic resonance study

Cis-trans isomers of N-methylacetamide were observed by using 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The addition of neutral salts altered the isomer ratio favoring the cis form. The salt-induced cis isomerization is reversible and depends on salt concentration. Methylglyoxal added to N-methylacetamide formed a stable cis isomer. It is proposed that concentrated salts and methylglyoxal, by binding to the peptide bond, affect the properties of proteins.
Growth and analysis of vascular smooth muscle on microspheres

Protocols for culturing vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) on polystyrene microspheres, assessing VSMC contractility while adhered to the microspheres, and analyzing VSMCs cultured on microspheres by flow cytometry are described. These procedures preserve optimal VSMC viability and function, while providing a method for assessing these cells within the parameters required for analysis by flow cytometry.
Registered Dietitian Time Requirements in the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease Study

Abstract Objective To assess time expended by registered dietitians to conduct clinical and research activities during the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) Study. Design Two randomized, controlled clinical trials among persons with diminished levels of renal function using a factorial design to evaluate effects of dietary protein restriction and blood pressure control on progression of renal disease. In study A, subjects with moderate renal insufficiency were randomly assigned to a diet of usual protein (1.30 g/kg per day) or low protein (0.58 g/kg per day) and to either a usual or low blood pressure level. Study B involved subjects with advanced renal insufficiency who were randomly assigned to the low-protein diet or a very-low-protein prescription (0.28 g/kg per day) with a ketoacid-amino acid supplement (0.28 g/kg per day) and to either the usual or low blood pressure level. A time-log form designed by MDRD Study dietitians was completed for each participant at 36 monthly follow-up visits. Setting Fifteen clinical centers throughout the continental United States. Subjects Eight hundred forty adults aged 18 to 70 years with chronic renal diseases participated in the MDRD Study — 585 in study A and 255 in study B. Statistical analyses One-way analyses of variance and t tests were used to evaluate significant time requirement differences by diet groups, diagnosis, and sociodemographics. Results Mean total time for all participant visits declined from 183+1 minutes per visit during months 1 through 4 to 116±41 minutes per visit during months 25 through 36. Significantly more dietitian time was required for participants consuming the low-protein and very-low-protein diets than for those consuming the usual-protein diet. Age, gender, race, marital status, and renal diagnosis did not influence time requirements. A significant inverse association between education level and dietitian time was apparent. Applications The MDRD Study time-log data should be useful when determining staffing patterns for nutrition management in clinical and research settings. J Am Diet Assoc. 1995; 95:1307-1312.
Boundary entropy can increase under bulk RG flow

The boundary entropy log(g) of a critical one-dimensional quantum system (or two-dimensional conformal field theory) is known to decrease under renormalization group (RG) flow of the boundary theory. We study instead the behavior of the boundary entropy as the bulk theory flows between two nearby critical points. We use conformal perturbation theory to calculate the change in g due to a slightly relevant bulk perturbation and find that it has no preferred sign. The boundary entropy log(g) can therefore increase during appropriate bulk flows. This is demonstrated explicitly in flows between minimal models. We discuss the applications of this result to D-branes in string theory and to impurity problems in condensed matter.
Detection of three-dimensional patterns of atoms in chemical structures

An algorithm for detecting occurrences of a three-dimensional pattern of objects within a larger structure is presented. The search technique presented uses the geometric structure of the pattern to define characteristics demanded of candidates for matching. This is useful in cases where the properties of each atom, considered individually, do not adequately limit the number of sets of possible matchings.Several applications of this technique in the field of chemistry are: (1) in pharmacology: searching for a common constellation of atoms in molecules possessing similar biological activities; (2) in X-ray crystallography: fitting a structure or a structural fragment to a set of peaks in the electron-density distribution of a Fourier map; (3) in chemical documentation: retrieving from a file the structures containing specified substructures.
A likely in vivo probe of human circadian timing system function using PET.

The human circadian timing system (CTS) imposes a temporal organization on many physiologic and behavioral functions (Moore-Ede et a11982). The CTS has three principal components: (1) a circadian pacemaker, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus; (2) a direct retinohypothalamic projection to the SCN that mediates entrainment effects of bright light-, and (3) SCN efferent pathways that regulate circadian function (Moore 1992). The direct efferent projections of the SCN are predominantly intrahypothalamic, and little is known of the pathways by which the CTS regulates the physiologic and behavioral processes under its control, particularly the complex behaviors. The intent of this study was to initiate an analysis of the mechanisrns by which the CTS regulates human brain function. Bright light is the principal circadian zeitgeber with effects on the SCN that differ between day and night. More specifically, the SCN is most sensitive to bright light-induced phase delays during the evening [i.e., near zeitgeber time (ZT) 14-15, when ZT 0-12 hr is the light phase and Z'T 13-24 is the dark phase], whereas midday (i.e., near ZT 6) bright light does not change pacemaker function (Moore 1991). In addition, rat autoradiographic studies demonsttate that evening light exposure markedly increases the low nighttime SCN metabolism, whereas midday light exposure only minimally increases the high daytime SCN metabolism (Schwartz et al 1980). For these reasons, we employed bright light as a probe of human CTS function with the hypothesis that bright light would
Uses of entropy and divergence measures for evaluating econometric approximations and inference

This paper provides the uses of the Kullback and Leibler divergence measure in two directions. First a new result on the asymptotic expansion of the Kullback and Leibler divergence is provided which can be used for comparing two distributions. An application to compare two alternative approximate distributions from the unknown true exact distribution of a Student t-statistic in a dynamic regression is given. Second we explore the application of the Kullback and Leibler divergence measure to non-parametric estimation and specification testing in regression models. A non-parametric specification test is proposed.
Feasibility and Potential Efficacy of High-Intensity Stepping Training in Variable Contexts in Subacute and Chronic Stroke

Background. Previous data suggest that the amount and aerobic intensity of stepping training may improve walking poststroke. Recent animal and human studies suggest that training in challenging and...
Simultaneous stabilization and synchronization for multiple systems of non-identical agents

We address a simultaneous stabilization and synchronization problem for one class of non-identical multi-agent systems. The agent dynamics can be different and the orders of agents are not necessarily equal. One single control loop is designed for each agent to enable some agent states, named as internal states, to be stabilized and some other states, named as external states, to be synchronized. A distributed control law is designed based on local measurements and information exchanged from neighboring agents to achieve simultaneous stabilization and synchronization. The necessary and sufficient conditions to achieve simultaneous stabilization and synchronization have been obtained using the closed-loop form of the system, followed by specific approaches of designing the control gain matrices that make the sufficient conditions satisfied. A precise form of the synchronized trajectory has also been determined. Simulation results have been provided to demonstrate the performance of the proposed method.
A bio-inspired analog scheme for navigational control of lightweight autonomous agents

We present an approach for the development of lightweight analog cognition for autonomous navigation in unknown environments. We consider a hypothetical differential drive robot, equipped with a limited sensor suite that includes one front and one rear monocular obstacle sensor and a target (bearing and distance) sensor. A robotic motion control scheme is developed for obstacle avoidance and target-seeking using an innovative dynamical systems architecture incorporating a nonlinear controller derived using Lyapunov techniques. We claim that the avoidance-steering behavioral property of the agent is a weakly emergent characteristic. Simulations are provided and discussed.
Application of membrane filtration to antibiotic quality control sterility testing.

Membrane filtration procedures for antibiotic sterility testing as described in the recently amended Antibiotic Regulations of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) offer an improved approach for determining the sterility of antibiotics.
Influence of Initial Stresses on the Fracture of Composite Material Weakened by a Subsurface Mode III Crack

By using the relations of linearized mechanics of deformable solids, we study the space problem of fracture of prestressed semibounded composites weakened by subsurface disk-shaped torsion (mode-III) cracks. With the help of representations of the general solutions of linearized equilibrium equations in terms of harmonic potential functions and Hankel integral transforms, we reduce the problem to a system of dual integral equations and then to the resolving Fredholm integral equation of the second kind. From the analysis of the stress distribution in the vicinity of the crack, we obtain the values of the stress intensity factors and study their dependences on the initial stresses, mechanical characteristics of the components of the composite, and geometric parameters of the problem.
Structure-activity relationships for nicotine analogs comparing competition for [3H]nicotine binding and psychotropic potency

The structure–activity relationships were established for nicotine analogs and related agents comparing their competition for [3H]nicotine binding to rat brain membranes, Torpedo membranes, and transfected insect cells with their ability to produce prostration in rats following administration into the rat lateral ventricles. A total of 59 compounds were investigated, consisting of pyridine- and pyrrolidine-substituted analogs of nicotine, other tobacco alkaloids and related molecules, various aminoalkylpyridines, and ring-shifted analogs of nicotine. Some of the compounds were also evaluated for [3H]nicotine binding to Torpedo electroplax membranes and to Sf9 cells expressing an α4β2 nicotinic cholinergic receptor subtype. Linear regression plots of Ki vs ED50 values for prostration of the various classes of the compounds yielded correlation of determination (R2) of 0.923 for the pyridine-substituted analogs, 0.725 for the pyrrolidine-substituted analogs, 0.947 for other tobacco alkaloids and related compounds, and 0.537 for all 59 compounds. An excellent correlation was observed comparing Torpedo Ki values with both prostration ED50 values and rat brain Ki values. Within the pyridine-substituted series, methyl substiuents in the 6-position resulted in over three-fold greater potency compared to nicotine, whereas potency decreased markedly with bulkier alkyl and cycloalkyl substituents. Within the pyrrolidine-substituted series, methyl groups in the 2′-position only slightly reduced potency compared to nicotine, whereas 3′- and 5′-addition markedly reduces potency. A linear regression plot of the Ki values of brain vs. those of Sf9 cells expressing the α4β2 nicotinic cholinergic receptor subtype yielded a coefficient of correlation of 0.981; a finding which is consistent with the notion that the α4β2 subtype comprises over 90% of total rat brain receptor. Drug Dev. Res. 45:10–16, 1998. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
(αS, Z, 1R, 3R)-[4′,4″-3H]cyhalothrin and -[4″,6′,-3H]4″-fluorocyhalothrin: Synthesis of candidate pyrethroid radioligands for the sodium channel

(αS,Z,1R,3R)-Cyhalothrin (1) and (αS,Z,1R,3R)-4′-fluorocyhalothrin (2), highly potent insecticides, were selected as candidate radioligands for studies on pyrethroid-sodium channel interactions. This report describes the synthesis of dihalo derivatives of 1 and 2 and their reductive dehalogenation to the corresponding deuterium- and tritium-labelled pyrethroids. Thus, reduction of 4″,6′-dibromo-2 with deuterium gas, platinum oxide and potassium carbonate in ethyl acetate went quantitatively to [4″,6′-2H]-2; however, the use of tritium instead of deuterium failed to yield [4″, 6′-3H]-2 giving instead decomposed materials. Fortunately the use of the iodo compounds 4″,4′-diiodo-1 and 4″,6′-diiodo-2 with tritium gas and palladium on carbon in absolute ethanol gave [4″,4′-3H]-1 and [4″,6′-3H]-2 in near quantitative yields at 55 Ci/mmol.
Anisotropic Laplace-Beltrami eigenmaps: Bridging Reeb graphs and skeletons

In this paper we propose a novel approach of computing skeletons of robust topology for simply connected surfaces with boundary by constructing Reeb graphs from the eigen-functions of an anisotropic Laplace-Beltrami operator. Our work brings together the idea of Reeb graphs and skeletons by incorporating a flux-based weight function into the Laplace-Beltrami operator. Based on the intrinsic geometry of the surface, the resulting Reeb graph is pose independent and captures the global profile of surface geometry. Our algorithm is very efficient and it only takes several seconds to compute on neuroanatomical structures such as the cingulate gyrus and corpus callosum. In our experiments, we show that the Reeb graphs serve well as an approximate skeleton with consistent topology while following the main body of conventional skeletons quite accurately.
Organizational Culture and Organizational Effectiveness: A Meta-Analytic Investigation of the Competing Values Framework's Theoretical Suppositions.

We apply Quinn and Rohrbaugh's (1983) competing values framework (CVF) as an organizing taxonomy to meta-analytically test hypotheses about the relationship between 3 culture types and 3 major indices of organizational effectiveness (employee attitudes, operational performance [i.e., innovation and product and service quality], and financial performance). The paper also tests theoretical suppositions undergirding the CVF by investigating the framework's nomological validity and proposed internal structure (i.e., interrelationships among culture types). Results based on data from 84 empirical studies with 94 independent samples indicate that clan, adhocracy, and market cultures are differentially and positively associated with the effectiveness criteria, though not always as hypothesized. The findings provide mixed support for the CVF's nomological validity and fail to support aspects of the CVF's proposed internal structure. We propose an alternative theoretical approach to the CVF and delineate directions for future research.
Possible precursors of regenerated hair cells in the avian cochlea following acoustic trauma

Hair cell regeneration following acoustic trauma to the avian cochlea has been documented using DNA labeling with tritiated thymidine. The goal of this study was to identify potential precursor cell populations for regenerating hair cells. Chicks were exposed in pairs to a 1500 Hz pure tone at 120 dBSPL for 18 h. The animals received repeated injections of 3H-thymidine over a survival period of 6, 15, or 24 h, 3 days or 30 days after the completion of noise exposure. One cochlea from each animal was processed for autoradiography and the other for scanning electron microscopy. Labeled, regenerated hair cells were present by 3 days after exposure and recovery from injury was nearly complete by 30 days. Examination of animals in short survival groups suggest that two precursor populations may exist. For inferior sensory epithelial damage, cuboidal or hyaline epithelial cells appear to serve as the precursor cell population for the regeneration of both hair cells and supporting cells. With isolated superior damage, however, supporting cells may be the precursor population.
Reading Comprehension Instruction for Middle and High School Students in English Language Arts: Research and Evidence-Based Practices

Whether driven by individual state or national efforts, the desire by key stakeholder groups to make American students internationally competitive brings a renewed focus on reading comprehension instruction in middle and high schools. Such efforts push reading comprehension instruction beyond understanding text and the author’s message to critical or “close” reading that integrates text-based information with the reader’s prior knowledge resulting in new and expanded understanding of complex ideas. In order to ensure that students become proficient in the type of higher order comprehension expected by more rigorous standards, teachers need to be effective in teaching high impact reading comprehension strategies. In this chapter, we briefly highlight new expectations for English language arts at the middle and high school levels, review reading programs shown to be effective in rigorous research studies that measure reading comprehension or reading achievement outcomes with middle and high school students in core English language arts courses. Finally, we discuss specific reading strategies and vocabulary instruction that support close reading and suggest a model for teaching reading comprehension in middle and high schools.
A Search for Fractional Charges in Native Mercury

Abstract We have searched 2.0 mg of native mercury for fractional charges. Details of the apparatus and measurement procedure are presented. We find no fractional charges, giving a limit on quark concentration comparable to other experiments carried out on refined materials.
Impact of ocean dynamics on the simulation of the neoproterozoic “snowball Earth”

A fully coupled ocean-atmosphere general cir- culation model (the Fast Ocean-Atmosphere Model) is used to simulate the Neoproterozoic climate with a reduced so- lar luminosity (95% of present-day), low atmospheric CO2 (140 ppmv), and an idealized tropical supercontinent. Two coupled simulations were completed with present-day and coldinitialoceantemperatures. Theseexperimentsarecom- pared with uncoupled(i.e., mixed-layer) model experiments to determine the impact of a dynamical ocean on the Neo- proterozoic simulations. In contrast to global sea-ice cover- age in the uncoupled experiments, the sea-ice margin sea- sonallyadvancesto46and55latitudeinthecoupledexper- iments. Thecoupled simulations demonstrate thatdynamic ocean processes can prevent a snowball solution and sug- gest that a reduced solar luminosity and low atmospheric CO2are not by themselves sucient conditions for a snow- ball solution. Heat exchange through vertical mixing in the mid-latitudes,causedbystaticinstability,isidentiedasthe primary process halting the advance of the sea-ice margin.
Feedback in Radiologic Education

Feedback influences everyone’s sense of whether they have been successful or not, and so influences how they think and act in the future. In education, it is a critical component in how learners monitor and evaluate their own performance (1). The absence of a clear program for assessing learner performance and providing feedback is a strong mark against any educational program (2). Whether we realize it or not, feedback constitutes an important teaching strategy. Yet many radiologic educators do not employ feedback as effectively as they could, and some misuse it altogether. Improving the quality of feedback that learners receive is a crucial element in improving educational programs in radiology. Despite the fact that all residency programs are required to provide regular feedback to residents, the nature and quality of that feedback vary. Most medical educators receive little or no training in how to provide effective feedback (3). Moreover, as clinical demands have grown, providing high-quality feedback has become a more difficult and, clinically speaking, more expensive proposition (4). Overburdened with other responsibilities, faculty members may simply circle a few numbers on routine evaluation forms and write a comment such as “Doing fine” or “Needs to work harder,” which provides very little guidance. Some may view the requirement to provide feedback as an unwelcome burden. Despite these difficulties, the influence of feedback pervades our lives as educators. It should not be regarded merely as a means of keeping score or patting a learner on the back, but as one of the most important teaching opportunities educators enjoy (5). When applied well, feedback encourages learners to improve and thus enhances educators’ satisfaction with teaching (6). When feedback is poorly applied and negative, however, learners tend to avoid it, and the quality of the teaching program suffers (7). The purpose of this article is to review some of the key principles underlying high-quality feedback in hopes of raising the profile of this important strategic component of radiologic education.
Measurement Issues in the Use of Cognitive Neuroscience Tasks in Drug Development for Impaired Cognition in Schizophrenia: A Report of the Second Consensus Building Conference of the CNTRICS Initiative

This overview describes the goals and objectives of the second conference conducted as part of the Cognitive Neuroscience Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia (CNTRICS) initiative. This second conference was informed by a series of online surveys and brought together basic and clinical scientists from academia and industry to address the concerns central to each field of research. Our goal was to develop recommendations for future research addressing the psychometric and practical challenges involved in translating paradigms from cognitive neuroscience into tasks that are feasible for use in the treatment discovery and development process. In this overview article, we describe the series of talks that were presentations at the conference. This article serves as an introduction to the set of articles included in this special issue that provide overviews and discussions of the issues raised and the recommendations made in these talks and in the subsequent discussions at the meeting. In addition, we describe the online surveys conducted in the month before the conference that were used to obtain suggestions from the field as to important task selection criteria and to generate initial benchmark goals for psychometric development for cognitive neuroscience tasks.
Plasmid vectors for the selection of promoters

Vectors were constructed which contain promoterless genes for chloramphenicol (cam) or tetracycline (tet) resistance, as promoter-probe plasmids. Escherichia coli cells harboring these plasmids are sensitive to cam or tet but resistant to ampicillin. In plasmids pKK231 -1 and pKK232 -8 the gene for cam acetyltransferase (CAT) and in pKK175 -6 the gene for tet resistance are flanked by efficient transcription terminators, preventing transcription from other pBR322 promoters into the antibiotic resistance region. In one of the vectors, pKK232 -8, translational stop codons were introduced in all three reading frames upstream from the initiation codon of the cat gene. If a DNA fragment containing a promoter is inserted into one of the cloning sites upstream from the antibiotic genes, cells carrying such plasmids acquire resistance to cam or tet. Using these vectors two restriction fragments that contain promoters were identified. One of these fragments contains sequences upstream from an unidentified gene ( ORFII ) located distal to the rrnB rRNA operon of E. coli.
Costophrenic septal lines in pulmonary venous hypertension.

On the thoracic roentgenograms of patients with mitral stenosis, costophrenic septal lines are frequently seen. These lines are a sign of pulmonary venous hypertension. They were not seen in a representative group of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension but without pulmonary venous hypertension.
Prediction of in vivo cytotoxicity of chemotherapeutic agents by their effect on malignant leukocytes in vitro.

A DRUG for the treatment of a patient with leukemia, the physician makes a choice based on a statistical analysis of the response of a large group of patients to the agent under consideration. Treatment is often initiated with the knowledge that a significant percentage of patients will not be benefited by the chosen compound. The ability to predict which drug will not be effective or, even better, which dnig will be effective in the treatment of a particular patiesit would be highly desirable. Previous attempts to select chemotherapeutic agents bydetermining their effects in vitro on some parameter of cell metabolism have been unsuccessful either because tile test systems were not sufficiently reliable in predicting clinical effects or were too cumbersome for routine use.’’ This report describes a test metilod for predicting the in vivo cytotoxicity of chemotherapeutic agents based on their effect on the iiicorporation of H’� uridine iiltO the rii)onucleic acid ( RNA ) of neoplastic cells in tissue culture. In
Teaching Gender for the Multicultural Workplace

There is on-going debate in the United States about the best way for higher education to prepare students to become thoughtful world citizens who can compete successfully for jobs in the global environment. Students today must develop creative, critical, analytical, and pragmatic skills necessary to respond to a wider variety of cultural, economic, social, and political variables at a faster pace of change than their peers have faced in the past.
Antibiotic treatment of sepsis

Early, appropriate antibiotic therapy is critical to the treatment of the septicemic patient. The degree of organ dysfunction, underlying medical conditions, and physiologic abnormalities are important prognostic factors but are not important in initial antibiotic selection. Initial empiric therapy should be directed against the resident flora of the organ, which is primarily involved in the infectious process. Blood cultures should be obtained in all patients for the initiation of antibiotic therapy, and methods should be employed for the early detection of septicemia. Other conditions that mimic sepsis, e.g., pseudosepsis, should be ruled out initially to avoid an incorrect diagnosis and unnecessary antibiotic therapy. Monotherapy and fully recommended doses of antimicrobial drugs delivered by the intravenous route as soon as the diagnosis is established remain the cornerstone of therapy in treating the septic patient. Monotherapy with an antibiotic of the appropriate spectrum is more than adequate to treat the great majority of septicemic patients. Double-drug therapy is recommended to treat febrile leukopenic compromised hosts, serious P. aeruginosa infections, and selected cases of intra-abdominal sepsis. At the present time, corticosteroids and mediator therapy have no place in the treatment of the septic patient.
Greed is (sometimes) not enough

Many analyses in economic theory or in real life attempt to achieve global optimization by piecewise response to local considerations. Examples include the regulation of whole economies through the self-seeking strategies of individual participants. In the world of mathematics, we sometimes find examples in which the (plausible) argument that local advantage produces global optimization is not sustained by the facts. We will deal with some geometric situations in which we seek to optimize a gain by a sequence of steps
Point-of-interest recommendation in location based social networks with topic and location awareness

The wide spread use of location based social networks (LBSNs) has enabled the opportunities for better location based services through Point-of-Interest (POI) recommendation. Indeed, the problem of POI recommendation is to provide personalized recommendations of places of interest. Unlike traditional recommendation tasks, POI recommendation is personalized, locationaware, and context depended. In light of this difference, this paper proposes a topic and location aware POI recommender system by exploiting associated textual and context information. Specifically, we first exploit an aggregated latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) model to learn the interest topics of users and to infer the interest POIs by mining textual information associated with POIs. Then, a Topic and Location-aware probabilistic matrix factorization (TL-PMF) method is proposed for POI recommendation. A unique perspective of TL-PMF is to consider both the extent to which a user interest matches the POI in terms of topic distribution and the word-of-mouth opinions of the POIs. Finally, experiments on real-world LBSNs data show that the proposed recommendation method outperforms state-of-the-art probabilistic latent factor models with a significant margin. Also, we have studied the impact of personalized interest topics and word-of-mouth opinions on POI recommendations.
TOPOLOGY ADAPTIVE CLUSTERING ALGORITHM FOR MANET

A Mobile Ad hoc Network (MANET), also called a Mobile Mesh Network, is a self – configuring network of mobile devices connected by wireless links. Unlike Traditional Mobile Wireless Networks, Ad Hoc Networks do not rely on any fixed infrastructure. The researches on various issues in Mobile ad hoc networks are becoming popular because of its challenging nature and all time connectivity to communicate. This paper discusses about Topology Adaptive Clustering Algorithm (TACA) for Mobile Ad Hoc Networks. Two major node parameters like its mobility and available battery power are considered for the node suitability as cluster head. This results into faster cluster set up time. Non – volunteer cluster heads are selected locally as and when required. This improves the network life time and reduces the maintenance over head. This paper discusses about various protocols which govern communication in an infrastructure-less Mobile Ad Hoc Network. It introduces the topic of clustering and the various protocols involved with clustering in order to establish communication.
Building Watershed Management Capacity in Nigeria: Expanding the Role of Agriculture Colleges

Developing countries face many critical social, agricultural, and natural resource-related issues where watershed management plays a prominent role. Short-term gains in productivity often occur at the expense of long term system resiliency needed to achieve sustainability. Post-secondary (tertiary) education institutions are underfunded and hampered by bureaucratic inertia limiting their relevance toward addressing emerging water resources concerns. As populations urbanize, rural constituencies continue to lose influence. Using the case of Samaru College of Agriculture, part of Ahmadu Bello University in north-central Nigeria, this paper identifies institutional challenges and suggests solutions to help similar institutions better address watershed management issues. Given current constraints, a watershed management curriculum could be built upon existing courses offered in related majors. Developing partnerships with an expanding private sector could help create opportunities for meaningful solutions to management issues and foster problem solving skills among students. Outside investment in increasing university capacity to address watershed education, including hiring staff focused on these issues, is justifiable given the humanitarian and security crises that have been afflicting northern Nigeria's vulnerable agricultural landscape.