cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Duration of Positive Throat Cultures for Group A Streptococci After Initiation of Antibiotic Therapy

Objective. To determine if it is appropriate to recommend that patients with group A β-hemolytic streptococcal pharyngitis, who are clinically well by the morning after starting antibiotic treatment, can return to school or day care, or if they should wait until they have completed 24 hours of antibiotics as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Infectious Diseases. Methods. We examined the duration of positivity of the throat culture after antibiotics were begun as a means of assessing the potential risk of transmission to close school contacts. Forty-seven children (4 to 17 years of age) with pharyngitis and a positive throat culture for group A streptococci in an outpatient, staff model health maintenance organization clinic were enrolled and were randomly selected to receive therapy with either oral penicillin V, intramuscular benzathine penicillin G, or oral erythromycin estolate. Additional throat cultures were obtained and clinical findings were recorded for each child during three home visits in the 24 hours after their initial clinic visit. Acute and convalescent sera were obtained for determination of anti-streptolysin O and anti-DNase B titers. Results. Seventeen (36.2%) of the 47 patients had a positive culture the morning after initiating antibiotic therapy. However, thirty-nine (83%) of the patients became "culture negative" within the first 24 hours. Neither the time interval to the first negative culture nor the presence or absence of group A streptococcal organisms on any single convalescent culture could be predicted by clinical findings. Six of the eight children who failed to convert to a "negative" throat culture within 24 hours of initiating therapy were receiving erythromycin. We could detect no difference in either time to conversion to a negative culture or the presence of a positive culture 24 hours after starting antibiotics between those who demonstrated a significant antibody increase and those who did not. Conclusion. The data from this study strongly suggest that children with group A β-hemolytic streptococcal pharyngitis should complete a full 24 hours of antibiotics before returning to school or daycare.
The Increasing role of otolaryngology in the management of surgical thyroid disorders

Objectives/Hypothesis To determine trends in office visits and medical specialty seen for surgical diagnoses of the thyroid gland. Study Design A cross-sectional analysis of a national healthcare database. Methods From the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS), all cases of surgical thyroid disorders (e.g., benign neoplasm of thyroid gland, malignant neoplasm of thyroid gland, multinodular goiter) were extracted for 2 calendar year cohorts: 1995 to 1999 and 2005 to 2009. In addition to demographic information, the medical specialty of the health care provider seen was extracted. Comparisons were conducted for the proportion of surgical thyroid cases seen between general surgeons and otolaryngologists for the respective cohorts. Results In the 1995 to 1999 cohort, there were a total of 107 ± 13 thousand outpatient visits annually to either general surgery or otolaryngology for surgical thyroid conditions. Among these, 62.7 ± 8.4 thousand visits (58.3 ± 5.6%) were seen by general surgery versus 44.8 ± 9.1 thousand (41.7 ± 5.6%) seen by otolaryngology. In comparison, in the 2005 to 2009 cohort, there were 218 ± 29 thousand visits annually for surgical thyroid conditions. Among these, 88.4 ± 17 thousand (40.5 ± 5.4%) were seen by general surgery versus 130 ± 21 thousand (59.5 ± 5.4%) seen by otolaryngology. The increase in proportion of surgical thyroid patients seen by otolaryngology in the second 5 year cohort was statistically significant (P = 0.032, chi-square). Conclusions There is a national trend in the United States toward otolaryngologists seeing an increasing majority proportion of increasingly prevalent surgical thyroid conditions. These data objectively confirm the perceived increasing role of otolaryngologists in the management of surgical thyroid disorders on a national level. Level of Evidence 2a. Laryngoscope, 123:3239–3242, 2013
Roots of the Fact

A Culture of Fact England, 1550-1720. Barbara J. Shapiro. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, 2000. 296 pp. $42.50. ISBN 0-8014-3686-9. In opposition to previous claims that the concept of fact initially developed in the domain of Baconian natural philosophy, Shapiro argues that the concept originated in the English law court of the 16th century.
Experimental approaches to nutrition and cancer: fats, calories, vitamins and minerals.

Chronic energy intake restriction (CEIR) inhibits lymphoproliferative disease, autoimmune-based renal disease and mammary adenocarcinoma in mice of numerous short-lived strains (MRL/1pr, C3H/Bi, C3H/Ou). Doubling and tripling of life span and health span and inhibition of development of diseases associated with aging could be attributed to restriction of calories but not to restriction of dietary fat in the absence of calorie restriction. In mice of both long- and short-lived strains, CEIR dramatically prevents the waning of immunologic vigor that commonly occurs with aging, delays thymic involution, impairs formation of circulating immune complexes, prevents the renal injury that accompanies autoimmune disease, and significantly forestalls development of genetically determined lymphoproliferative or neoplastic disease. Evidence suggests that CEIR may exert these beneficial influences in part through regulation of cellular proliferation. Trace elements, particularly zinc, as well as vitamins may play important roles in maintaining immunocompetence and also appear to be of significance in the dietary prevention of certain experimental cancers.
Fault-Mode Classification of Solid State Luminaires Using Bayesian Probabilistic Models

A new method has been developed for assessment of the onset of degradation in solid state luminaires to classify failure mechanisms by using metrics beyond lumen degradation that are currently used for identification of failure. Luminous Flux output, Correlated Color Temperature Data on Philips LED Lamps has been gathered under 85°C/85%RH till lamp failure. The acquired data has been used in conjunction with Bayesian Probabilistic Models to identify luminaires with onset of degradation much prior to failure through identification of decision boundaries between lamps with accrued damage and lamps beyond the failure threshold in the feature space. In addition luminaires with different failure modes have been classified separately from healthy pristine luminaires. It is expected that, the new test technique will allow the development of failure distributions without testing till L70 life for the manifestation of failure.Copyright © 2014 by ASME
Aspirin is associated with lower melanoma risk among postmenopausal Caucasian women: the Women's Health Initiative.

BACKGROUND: Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have been associated with decreased risk of gastric, colorectal, and breast cancer. However, the impact of NSAIDs on the risk of melanoma has been inconsistent. The authors evaluated the association between NSAID use and cutaneous melanoma risk in the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) Observational Study (OS). METHODS: At study entry, use of aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid [ASA]) and nonaspirin NSAIDs was assessed among 59,806 postmenopausal Caucasian women ages 50 to 79 years. Cox proportional hazards models were constructed after adjusting for participant skin type, sun exposure history, and medical indications for NSAID use among other confounders. RESULTS: During a median follow-up of 12 years, 548 incident melanomas were confirmed by medical review. Women who used ASA had a 21% lower risk of melanoma (hazard ratio, 0.79; 95% confidence interval, 0.63-0.98) relative to nonusers. Increased duration of ASA use (<1 year, 1-4 years, and ≥5 years) was associated with an 11% lower risk of melanoma for each categorical increase (Ptrend = .01), and women with ≥5 years of use had a 30% lower melanoma risk (hazard ratio, 0.70; 95% confidence interval, 0.55-0.94). In contrast, use of non-ASA NSAIDs and acetaminophen were not associated with melanoma risk. CONCLUSIONS: Postmenopausal women who used ASA had a significantly lower risk of melanoma, and longer duration of ASA use was associated with greater protection. Although this study was limited by the observational design and self-report of NSAID use, the findings suggest that ASA may have a chemopreventive effect against the development of melanoma and warrant further clinical investigation. Cancer 2013. © 2012 American Cancer Society.
Adam Lankford. The Myth of Martyrdom: What Really Drives Suicide Bombers, Rampage Shooters, and Other Self-Destructive Killers

It is not common for a book focusing on a subject as grim as suicide terrorism, a non-fiction book published by an academic press, to make a splash in the news. Lankford's The Myth of Martyrdom: Wh...
Electric Field-Reversible Three-Dimensional Colloidal Crystals

We have developed a general method of ordering colloidal particles into three-dimensional crystals rapidly and reversibly using electric fields. The novel mechanisms involved appear to rely on a combination of induced dipole interactions and hydrodynamic flows to create close-packed, mechanically stable crystals. Because the effective interactions can be moderated using the applied field, colloids in a wide variety of size ranges can be crystallized. We show here the ordering of particles of diameter 200−450 nm and illustrate how the nucleation of these crystals can be directed through the selective application of the electric field. Since the time scale for crystallization is minutes, significantly faster than in previous methods, the crystallization method present here is expected to allow development of practical devices for photonics and other applications.
Time and Social History: Problems of Atemporality in Historical Analyses with Illustrations from Research on Early Modern Witch Hunts

(1997). Time and Social History: Problems of Atemporality in Historical Analyses with Illustrations from Research on Early Modern Witch Hunts. Historical Methods: A Journal of Quantitative and Interdisciplinary History: Vol. 30, Research in Historical Sociology, pp. 46-57.
Effect of Location of Restraint on Fire Response of Steel Beams

Restrained steel beams, when exposed to fire, develop significant restraint forces and often behave as beam-columns. The response of such restrained steel beams under fire depends on many factors including: fire scenario, beam slenderness ratio, location of axial restraint at the supports, and high-temperature properties of steel. A set of numerical studies, using finite element computer program ANSYS, is carried out to study the fire response of steel beam-columns under realistic fire and restraint scenarios. Results from the parametric studies indicate that fire scenario, beam slenderness, location of axial restraint and high-temperature creep have significant influence on the behavior of restrained beams under fire conditions. Severe fires produce high axial forces at early stages of fire exposure; whereas in moderate fires, significant axial force develops only at later stages of fire exposure. Axial restraint enhances the fire resistance due to the development of tensile catenary action in restrained beams. Furthermore, restrained beams with low slenderness ratio exhibit better fire performance when the axial restraint at the support is located at the bottom flange.
Environmental Chamber Temperature Calibration: Which Method to Use?

Calibration of environmental simulation temperature test chambers is anything but simple. This article addresses factors that complicate attempts to calibrate these machines, and discusses strengths and weaknesses of various calibration approaches.
Preserving the African memory: Critical challenges for ESARBICA archival organizations

The focus of this paper is on identifying challenges related to preservation of archives faced by member states of ESARBICA. A survey questionnaire was sent out to all. The research indicates that archival preservation measures are not a top priority for regional archival organizations. Records management and access to information contained in archives are given attention ahead of preservation. This is in contrast to the recommended practice of ensuring preservation of records through integration of preservation measures in the overall policies of archival organizations. The paper identifies various challenges which are common in the region and brings to the fore some of the consequences of continued neglect of preservation. It submits that without deliberate efforts of archival organizations to deal with the challenges identified, some of Africa's earliest documentary memory will be lost over time.
Mechanical properties of Nylon bonded Nd–Fe–B permanent magnets

Abstract Tensile and flexural strengths as well as Young's modulus of Polyamide-11 (Nylon-11) based injection molded Nd–Fe–B magnets have been determined from −40°C to 100°C. Two types of Nd–Fe–B powders were included in this study. One is the conventional melt spun powder of irregular shape, the other is the atomized powder of spherical morphology. It was found that the tensile strength varies significantly with both test temperature and morphology of Nd–Fe–B powder. For a fixed volume fraction of magnet powder, the tensile strength decreases with increasing temperature. For bonded magnets made of melt spun powder, the tensile strength increases with increasing volume fraction of magnet powder. Specimens made of spherical atomized powders exhibit much lower tensile strength and better flexibility when compared to those made of melt spun powder. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis indicated that the debonding at the Nd–Fe–B powder and Nylon interface is the main cause of failure at 23°C and 100°C. At −40°C, a different failure mechanism with the fracture of Nd–Fe–B particle was observed on magnets prepared from melt spun powders. For the specimen containing 59.7 vol% of melt spun powder, a bending strength of 41 MPa and dynamic Young's modulus of 12.7 GPa were obtained.
Experimental techniques for information requirements analysis

Abstract Techniques are needed to improve the communication between user and analyst in the elicitation of information requirements. In particular, techniques are needed to enable them to work together in formulating and developing a model for the analysis of problems characterized by unclear statement of requirements. Hence, the need for an experimental approach to systems development. This paper describes some techniques and discusses the rationale for their application to the process of information requirements analysis in the context of an experimental strategy. Guidelines to support strategy formulation are provided.
Fos-related Antigen 2 Controls Protein Kinase A-induced CCAAT/Enhancer-binding Protein β Expression in Osteoblasts

Abstract Transcription factor CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein β (C/EBPβ) plays an important role in hormone-dependent gene expression. In osteoblasts C/EBPβ can increase insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) transcription following treatment with hormones that activate protein kinase A, but little is known as yet about the expression of C/EBPβ itself in these cells. We initially showed that prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) rapidly enhances C/EBPβ mRNA and protein expression, and in this study we identified a 3′-proximal region of the C/EBPβ promoter containing a 541-bp upstream sequence that could account for this effect. PGE2-dependent activation of C/EBPβ was blocked by expression of a mutated regulatory subunit of protein kinase A or by mutation of two previously identified cAMP-sensitive cis-acting regulatory elements within the promoter between bp –111 and –61. Nuclear protein binding to these elements was induced by PGE2, required new protein synthesis, and was sensitive to antibody to the transcription factor termed Fos-related antigen 2 (Fra-2). Fra-2 cDNA generated from rat osteoblasts by reverse transcriptase PCR was 95% homologous to human Fra-2, and PGE2 rapidly induced Fra-2 mRNA and protein expression. Consistent with these findings, over-expression of Fra-2 significantly increased C/EBPβ promoter activity in PGE2-induced osteoblasts, whereas expression of Fra-2 lacking its activation domain had a dominant negative inhibitory effect. Together, these results reveal a significant, hormone-dependent role for Fra-2 in osteoblast function, both directly, through its ability to increase new C/EBPβ gene expression, and indirectly, through downstream C/EBP sensitive genes.
Characterization of the interactions between the bacteriophage T4 AsiA protein and RNA polymerase.

The anti-σ factor AsiA effects a change in promoter specificity of the Escherichia coli RNA polymerase via interactions with two conserved regions of the σ70 subunit, denoted 4.1 and 4.2. Free AsiA is a symmetrical homodimer. Here, we show that AsiA is monomeric when bound to σ70 and that a subset of the residues that contribute to the homodimer interface also contributes to the interface with σ70. AsiA interacts primarily with C-terminal sections of regions 4.1 and 4.2, which show remarkable sequence similarity. An AsiA monomer can simultaneously, and apparently cooperatively, bind both isolated regions 4.1 and 4.2 at preferred, distinct subsites, whereas region 4.1 alone or region 4.2 alone can interact with either subsite. These results suggest structural and functional plasticity in the interaction of AsiA with σ70 and support the notion of discrete roles for regions 4.1 and 4.2 in transcription regulation by AsiA. Furthermore, we show that AsiA inhibits recognition of the −35 consensus promoter eleme...
Temporal and spatial activity in mirror segments of mature dog fibulae.

This investigation was undertaken to determine if the metabolic activity of homotypic segments of dog fibulae could be reliably compared in a thirty day period. Activities analyzed were: cumulative formation, porosity, resorption and apposition. Analyses were performed on contiguous tissue sections using microradiographic and tetracycline techniques. Spatial arrangements of the various activities were analyzed by constructing three dimensional models. The data permitted the following conclusions: 1) The mean differences between dog homotypic fibular segments are much smaller than the mean differences between heterotypic sites. 2) The use of homotypic fibular sites as valid controls should be limited to investigations in which the differences worth detecting are at least greater than 4% (apposition), 2% (resorption), 0.6% (porosity), and 2% (cumulative formation). 3) Of the four parameters measured, porosity was the most constant, showing no significant differences between mirror segments. 4) Lag correlations emphasize the importance of utilizing all available contiguous sections in a given specimen. 5) Physiologic resorption was not exclusive in old bone. 6) The sites of metabolic activity were predominantly found among specific active osteons which were primarily distributed peripherally in a strikingly similar pattern between mirror segments.
An acute hemolytic transfusion reaction due to anti-IH in a patient with sickle cell disease.

Background A hemolytic transfusion reaction (HTR) due to anti-IH is reported in a patient with sickle cell disease (SCD). Case report An 18-year-old woman with SCD and a complete phenotype on file had been identified as group B-positive with negative antibody-screening tests and had received 1 unit of packed RBCs. Ten days later, she was readmitted in painful crisis with a Hb of 4.2 g per dL. Antibody-screening tests and panel cells were positive at all test phases with a negative autocontrol, which suggested alloantibodies. Phenotypically matched group O RBCs were issued emergently. After the transfusion of 100 mL, the patient had an HTR with chills, fever, and tachycardia and laboratory findings of hemoglobinemia, hemoglobinuria, and negative DATs. A high-titer, IgM anti-IH with a high thermal amplitude (reactive with group O, but not group B RBCs at 37 degrees C) was identified. Autologous RBCs appeared to have normal I antigen expression, but less H antigen than pooled group B RBCs. She was given group B RBCs, uneventfully, by use of a blood warmer. Conclusions This is a rare case of anti-IH as the cause of a HTR, as a serologic problem that may be seen in SCD, and as an autoantibody that may mimic an alloantibody. Ironically, this HTR resulted from the effort to provide phenotypically matched RBCs, which necessitated the selection of group O RBCs.
Particle Size as a Basis for Predicting Frost Action in Soils

SYNOPSIS Maximum heaving pressures caused by ice lens growth were determined experimentally for saturated specimens consisting of fragmental particles in several size ranges. Theoretical predictions show that the pores produced by the smaller particles in the system are responsible for the maximum heaving pressures measured. The suggestion is that the ice-water interface assumes an undulating configuration over the smaller pores when ice proliferation stops, and hence heaving pressures rise to a maximum. Particle size seems to be an adequate basis for predicting frost susceptibility in practice although the exact amounts and size limits permissible have not been evaluated. The nature of the failure caused by frost action is not the same for all engineering structures. Failures by “rate of heave” and “heaving pressure” should both be considered if the possibility of frost damage exists. The results substantiate earlier conclusions that there is no sharp dividing line between frost-heaving and nonfrost-heaving soils. Recent studies by the author have shown that the theory of Everett (2) and Everett and Haynes (3) provides a realistic basis for the growth of ice lenses from pure water in porous systems of simple and uniform geometry. Difficulties arise when the theory is applied to soils which have a more complex porous structure because a grain size, and hence a pore size, distribution exists. For a porous system of this complexity, the theory as it stands is not adequate for prediction, since little is known about the size of pores, in a given pore size range, that determine the heaving pressure characteristics. The two laboratory approaches for assessing frost susceptibility (“rate of heave” and “heaving pressure”) are not entirely compatible, but it is clear and consistent that soils which are not frost-susceptible should not exhibit any measurable heaving pressure or rate of heave. Soils that have a low heaving pressure may show a considerable rate of heave under little or no restraint. On the other hand, some soils that exhibit a high heaving pressure from ice lens growth, such as dense clays, may due to permeability limitations have a sufficiently low heaving rate to be acceptable for some engineering structures subject to freezing conditions, (Fig. 1). The trend in soil engineering has been to predict the frost susceptibility of a soil from its particle size characteristics through relationships determined by “rate of heaving” experiments. Many organizations have carried out such tests but there are no generally-accepted limits to particle size or percentage of fines which determine frost susceptibility. In this paper attempt is made to elucidate further the mechamism of heaving, particularly the development of “heaving pressures” by ice lens formation in relation to the particle size distribution of the sample. It will be shown that from measurements of heaving pressure it is possible to obtain an estimate of the sizesof particles which are responsible.
1,3-Diene-Containing Phase Transfer Catalysts and Their Removal From Solution by a Diels-Alder Reaction with an Immobilized Triazolinedione Dienophile

Abstract 8E,10E-Dodecadienyl-tri-n-butylamonium and -tri-n-butylphosphonium methanesulfonates were prepared and shown to be effective phase transfer catalysts. After reaction the catalysts can be removed quantitatively from the organic phase by addition of a silica gelimmobilized triazolinedione dienophile followed by filtration.
An analysis of the design of a programmable autonomous business

Community‐based business models attempt to profit from the value created by individuals interacting in virtual communities. An interesting variant of this model is the programmable autonomous business. A programmable autonomous business is an automated business built entirely in software, that once developed can profitably operate without any human involvement. We know little about how to systematically design such businesses. Existing research on designing virtual communities does not address how to transform them into autonomous businesses, nor is it clear whether all the design principles for virtual communities are relevant to an autonomous business. The research reported in this paper takes an inductive, business‐centered approach to understanding how to design autonomous businesses. The information activity in a successful, yet basic autonomous business is analyzed and its functions compared with those in a conventional business. From this analysis a set of design guidelines for a prototypical auton...
Structural dynamics of riparian forests along a black cottonwood successional gradient

Abstract Black cottonwood Populus balsamifera L. subsp. trichocarpa (Brayshaw) dominated riparian forests are important habitats for organisms in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems in the Pacific Northwest. Using a chronosequence approach and fixed area plots, successional processes were quantified in 28 stands along 145 km of the Willamette River in Western Oregon. Cluster analysis yielded five successional stages; stand initiation, stem exclusion, early, mid, and late seral. Ordination, using non-metric multidimensional scaling, revealed stand variables were strongly associated with these groupings, e.g., stand age, cottonwood dbh, tree biomass, basal area, structural diversity. Tree densities decreased through time from a high of 96,200 to 410 trees/ha in late seral stands. Structural diversity increased through time as understory plant and late-successional tree species established in early seral stands, creating multiple vegetative layers. Aboveground standing tree biomass increased through time from
Clinical Applications of Feminist Identity Development: An Illustrative Case Study

This case study applies feminist identity development (FID) theory to a feminist-oriented psychotherapy treatment. Although there is a strong body of literature on the principles of feminist psychotherapy, the concept of FID must be further integrated into this work. As a link between psychiatric symptoms and different levels of FID has been empirically supported, FID has a natural connection with psychotherapeutic treatment. This case presentation follows Tara, a working-class woman in her midtwenties, who initially presented in psychotherapy with symptoms of anxiety, depression, and some indication of thought disorder. During her 3½ year treatment, she confronted issues of her mental health, employment and education, and issues related to pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting. These topics were addressed in the context of Tara's emerging understanding of her identity as a woman in a patriarchal society. Attention to issues related to FID facilitated understanding of key issues in treatment.
Flowfield scaling in sharp fin-induced shock wave/turbulent boundary-layer interaction

This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation of the three-dimensional interaction of a swept planar shock wave with a turbulent boundary layer. The shock wave was generated by a sharp, unswept fin mounted normal to a flat test surface. On the two test surfaces used, the incoming boundary layers varied in thickness by 3:1. In both cases, the freestream Mach number was nominally 3, the freestream Reynolds number 6.3 X 10 m~ *, and the wall temperature close to adiabatic. Detailed yaw angle and pitot pressure surveys in the two cases reveal a similar flowfield structure that can be correlated using a simple scaling technique.
Spectroscopic studies of structural changes in two β-sheet-forming peptides show an ensemble of structures that unfold noncooperatively

A characterization of the conformation and stability of model peptide systems that form β-sheets in aqueous solutions is considerably important in gaining insights into the mechanism of β-sheet formation in proteins. We have characterized the conformation and equilibrium folding and unfolding of two 20-residue peptides whose NMR spectra suggest a three-stranded β-sheet topology in aqueous solution: Betanova [Kortemme, T., Ramirez-Alvarado, M., and Serrano, L. (1998) Science 281, 253−256] and DPDP with d-Pro-Gly segments at the turns [Schenck, H. L., and Gellman, S. H. (1998) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 120, 4869−4870]. Both circular dichroism (CD) and infrared measurements indicate only 20−26% β-sheet-like structure at 5 °C for Betanova and 42−59% β-sheet for DPDP. For both peptides, the CD and infrared spectra change nearly linearly with increasing temperatures (or urea concentrations) and lack a sigmoidal signature characteristic of cooperative unfolding. Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) measurement...
A review of chromium, molybdenum, and tungsten alloys

The mechanical properties of chromium, molybdenum, and tungsten alloys are reviewed with particular emphasis on high-temperature strength and low-temperature ductility. Precipitate strengthening is highly effective at 0.4 to 0.8 times the melting temperature in these metals, with HfC being most effective in tungsten and molybdenum, and Ta(B,C) most effective in chromium. Low-temperature ductility can be improved by alloying to promote rhenium ductilizing or solution softening. The low-temperature mechanical properties of these alloys appear related to electronic interactions rather than to the usual metallurgical considerations.
Optimal reinsurance with a rescuing procedure

Abstract We consider a large insurance company whose reserve is modeled by a diffusion process. The management of the insurance company makes a decision on reinsurance in order to reduce the insurance risk. An optimal decision is the one which minimizes the expected time to reach a goal before the reserve reaches a ruin level. We introduce a rescuing procedure to deal with the case that the company is “too big to fail”. We disclose that the optimal decision of the management heavily depends on how much time the company needs to wait for rescuing when it gets in trouble.
Dense, Ionized, and Neutral Gas Surrounding Sagittarius A*

We present high-resolution H41α hydrogen recombination line observations of the 12 (3 pc) region surrounding Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*) at 92 GHz using the Millimeter Array at the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) with an angular resolution of 7'' × 3'' and velocity resolution of 13 km s-1. New observations of H31α, H35α, H41α, and H44α lines were obtained using the NRAO 12 m telescope, and their relative line strengths are interpreted in terms of various possible emission mechanisms. These NRAO 12 m measurements are the most extensive recombination line survey of this region to date. These OVRO data also represent the highest angular resolution and the highest sensitivity observations of Sgr A West in hydrogen recombination line and continuum emission at millimeter wavelengths. Observations of HCO+(J = 1 → 0) transition at 89 GHz are obtained simultaneously with a 40% improved angular resolution and 4-15 times improved sensitivity over the previously published results, and the distribution and kinematics of the dense molecular gas in the circumnuclear disk (CND) are mapped and compared with those of the ionized gas. The line brightness ratios of the hydrogen recombination lines are consistent with purely spontaneous emission from Te ~ 7000 K gas with ne ~ 2 × 104 cm-3 near LTE condition. A virial analysis suggests that the most prominent molecular gas clumps in the CND have mean densities on the order of 107 cm-3, sufficient to withstand the tidal shear in the Galactic center region. Therefore, these clumps may survive over several dynamical times, and the CND may be a dynamically stable structure. We estimate a total gas mass of about 3 × 105 M☉ for the CND. Our combined analysis of the new high-resolution H41α and HCO+ images and our kinematic model demonstrates a widely spread physical and dynamical link between the molecular gas in the CND and the ionized gas, including along the eastern rim of the CND where a gap was previously suggested.
Rhetorical and ideological conservatism in thirty something

This article approaches fictional television programming as hegemonic rhetoric and examines how television can be seemingly progressive but substantially conservative in its construction of reality. Particularly, affirmation of traditional views of family, patriarchy, and gender roles is analyzed in terms of the series thirtysome‐thing.
Efficient color image retrieval using hue distribution similarity

In content-based image indexing and retrieval (IIR), hue component histograms of images are widely used for indexing the images in an image database. It is to retrieve all color images whose distance between hue distributions are within some threshold distance of the query image. Edit distance has been successfully used as a similarity measure. Our earlier algorithm O(b 2 ) computing the edit distance between two angular histograms, where b is the number of bins in the hue histogram, tends to be too slow for users to wait for the outputs when applied to every image in the database. For this reason, we design two filtration functions that eliminate most color images from consideration as possible outputs quickly and exact edit distances are only computed for those remaining images. We are still guaranteed to find all similar hue distributions and the filtration technique gives significant speeds-ups.
Shortchanged? An assessment of chronic disease programming in major US city health departments.

A self-administered survey was distributed to members of The Big Cities Health Coalition, a group of Health Officers/Commissioners from 17 of the largest US metropolitan health departments. The survey asked participants about their chronic disease priorities, data sources, budgets, and funding sources as well as examples of successful chronic disease interventions. Members of the Coalition discussed the survey results in a scheduled conference call. Chronic diseases account for 70% of all deaths nationwide on average, yet the health departments surveyed allocated an average of 1.85% of their budgets to chronic disease. Average chronic disease spending per inhabitant was $2.33, with a median of $1.56. Among the group’s top chronic disease priorities were asthma, diabetes, tobacco, cancer, and cardiovascular disease (CVD). Nearly half of the group’s chronic disease spending was on tobacco. Chronic disease funding sources varied across localities, but direct federal funding was minimal. In 14 cities serving a combined 37 million people (13% of the US population), direct federal chronic disease funding totaled $8.7 million, an average of $0.24 per capita. The group described successful chronic disease interventions, particularly related to tobacco and asthma.
DNA sequence of the E.coli trpR gene and prediction of the amino acid sequence of Trp repressor

Abstract A DNA sequence of 1041 base pairs from a BamHI fragment containing the E. coli trpR gene has been determined. With this sequence and other experimental evidence, the primary structure (88 amino acids) of the Trp repressor can be predicted. Additional features of the DNA sequences include a 22 base pair region upstream from the proposed structural gene which exhibits striking homology with the trp operator, thus implying that expression of the trpR gene may be under autogenous regulation.
Peptide-Elicited Protein-Reactive Antibodies in Molecular Biology and Medicine

A relatively short peptide can be used as an immunogen to elicit antibodies that are capable of reacting with full-length proteins containing the peptide's amino acid sequence. Such peptides are frequently represented in the primary sequence of a protein. The antibodies elicited by these peptides are directed against a specific region of the protein chosen in advance by the investigator and so have a predetermined specificity. In basic research, such antibodies are useful in identifying the gene product of an open reading frame, purifying enzymatically active proteins by immunoaffinity techniques, and investigating protein folding domains and immunogenic structure and function. In medicine, since some peptides are capable of eliciting antisera that can bind to and neutralize virus, the antibodies may be reagents for passive vaccination, antitoxin therapy, and targeted immunotherapy of neoplasia. The peptides themselves may serve as the basis for safe, chemically defined vaccines.
LARGE AMPLITUDE LIQUID SLOSHING IN SEISMICALLY EXCITED TANKS

An innovative method of analysis was developed to simulate the non-linear seismic finite-amplitude liquid sloshing in two-dimensional containers. In view of the irregular and time-varying liquid surface, the method employed a curvilinear mesh system to transform the non-linear sloshing problem from the physical domain with an irregular free-surface boundary into a computational domain in which rectangular grids can be analysed by the finite difference method. Non-linearities associated with both the unknown location of the free surface and the high-order differential terms were considered. The Crank-Nicolson time marching scheme was employed and the resulting finite difference algorithm is unconditionally stable and very lightly damped with respect to the temporal co-ordinate. In order to minimize numerical instability caused by the computational dispersion in spatially discretized surface wave, a second-order dissipation term was added to the system to filter out the spurious high-frequency waves. Sloshing effects and structural response were measured in terms of sloshing amplitude, base shear and overturning moment generated by the hydrodynamic pressure of the liquid exerted on the container walls. Simulation results of liquid sloshing induced by earthquake and harmonic base excitations were compared with those of the linear wave theory and the limitations of the latter in assessing the response of seismically excited liquids were addressed.
Keynote review: allosterism in membrane receptors.

Allosteric modulation of membrane receptors has been intensively studied in the past three decades and is now considered to be an important indirect mechanism for the control of receptor function. The allosteric site on the GABA A receptor is the target for the most widely prescribed sleep medicines, the benzodiazepines. Cinacalcet, an allosteric enhancer of the calcium-sensing receptor, is used to treat secondary hyperparathyroidism. Allosteric ligands might be especially valuable to control receptors for which the design of selective orthosteric agonists or antagonists has been elusive, such as muscarinic acetylcholine receptors.
A comparison of the anti-inflammatory activities of conjugated estrogens and 17-β estradiol

Objective and design: Unregulated chronic inflammatory process partly due to an estrogen deficiency may render postmenopausal women vulnerable to degenerative conditions such as arthritis, osteoporosis, atherosclerosis, and Alzheimer’s disease. Current confusion regarding therapeutic efficacy of estrogen replacement therapy may be due to different estrogen formulations used, short term therapy, as well as advanced stage of the disease. Materials and methods: We compared anti-inflammatory activities of two major estrogen preparations, conjugated equine estrogen (CEE) and 17-β estradiol, using an animal model (rat mesentery) of in vivo inflammatory reaction to intravenously infused amyloid-β, examined by video recording and subsequently analyzed by transmission electron microscopy. Cellular markers of inflammation were monitored: leukocyte migration, platelet activation, mast cell activation/degranulation, and endothelial disruption. Results: Low doses of CEE (0.3 mg/kg for 3 weeks) demonstrated significant anti-inflammatory activity, whereas even at high doses (2.0 mg) 17-β estradiol had only minimal activity. Conclusion: CEE, a mixture of several compounds, may have some component(s) with significant anti-inflammatory activity. The anti-inflammatory activity of CEE may have a role in prevention of several degenerative diseases associated with menopause.
Remote Agent: to boldly go where no AI system has gone before

Abstract Renewed motives for space exploration have inspired NASA to work toward the goal of establishing a virtual presence in space, through heterogeneous fleets of robotic explorers. Information technology, and Artificial Intelligence in particular, will play a central role in this endeavor by endowing these explorers with a form of computational intelligence that we call remote agents . In this paper we describe the Remote Agent, a specific autonomous agent architecture based on the principles of model-based programming, on-board deduction and search, and goal-directed closed-loop commanding, that takes a significant step toward enabling this future. This architecture addresses the unique characteristics of the spacecraft domain that require highly reliable autonomous operations over long periods of time with tight deadlines, resource constraints, and concurrent activity among tightly coupled subsystems. The Remote Agent integrates constraintbased temporal planning and scheduling, robust multi-threaded execution, and model-based mode identification and reconfiguration. The demonstration of the integrated system as an on-board controller for Deep Space One, NASA's first New Millennium mission, is scheduled for a period of a week in mid 1999. The development of the Remote Agent also provided the opportunity to reassess some of AI's conventional wisdom about the challenges of implementing embedded systems, tractable reasoning, and knowledge representation. We discuss these issues, and our often contrary experiences, throughout the paper.
Development and Validation of a Risk‐Adjustment Tool in Acute Asthma

Risk adjustment is an important method in health services research, particularly when profiling provider performance and adjusting capitation-based payment (Iezzoni et al. 1998; Majeed, Bindman, and Weiner 2001a,b; Blumenthal et al. 2005;). A number of risk-adjustment tools have been developed in cardiology (Krumholz et al. 1999; Hall et al. 2007;), trauma (Reiter et al. 2004), and critical care (Zimmerman et al. 2006) for profiling hospital performance. Risk-adjustment tools for acute respiratory disorders, such as acute asthma, are very limited. Acute asthma is a common medical problem, accounting for approximately 2 million emergency department (ED) visits and 500,000 hospitalizations each year (Moorman et al. 2007). Despite its importance, only a few risk indices or scoring systems for acute asthma are available in the literature (Rodrigo and Rodrigo 1997, 1998; Cham et al. 2002; Gorelick et al. 2004; Kelly, Kerr, and Powell 2004). These indices, however, are designed to risk-stratify asthmatic patients in clinical practice and include subtle physical findings that are infrequently documented in the medical record. As a result, these indices are not well suited for risk adjustment in health services research. Accordingly, we developed and prospectively validated a risk-adjustment tool for acute asthma using data from two large multicenter cohort studies. To demonstrate the use of this risk-adjustment tool, we chose hospital admission as a potentially important outcome measure and profiled admission practices across the EDs. Hospitalization is an important outcome in asthma because it represents a large portion of the expenditures for asthma care, with an estimated $4.7 billion spent each year (NHLBI 2007). The decision to admit, however, can vary from hospital to hospital (Morris and Munasinghe 1994; Ansari et al. 2003; Lougheed et al. 2006;). With risk adjustment, differences in patient mix across hospitals can be taken into account such that hospitals caring for sicker patients are not unfairly penalized for their higher admission rates. Moreover, by minimizing the differences in patient mix, practice profiling can identify hospital outliers with unexplained variations in admission practices and these unexplained variations could be further investigated.
Efficient Shuffled Decoder Architecture for Nonbinary Quasi-Cyclic LDPC Codes

In this brief, a shuffled schedule (SS) of the min-max decoding algorithm is proposed for nonbinary low-density parity-check (LDPC) codes. To increase the throughput and reduce the memory requirement, a modified SS (MSS) with much simpler check node processing is also proposed, based on a new shuffled merge algorithm. Numerical simulations for three LDPC codes with different lengths and rates over GF(32) show: 1) both SS and MSS converge faster and have slightly better error performance than the flooding schedule, and 2) the degradation of the MSS in error performance as well as convergence rate is negligible. Finally, an efficient decoder architecture based on the MSS is proposed for quasi-cyclic LDPC codes. The proposed decoder architecture further enhances the decoding throughput with improved check and variable node processing units. The implementation results of an (837, 726) LDPC decoder over GF(32) demonstrate that the proposed architecture outperforms those in previous works.
ON DEFINING THE AGENCY COSTS OF DEBT

Since Jensen and Meckling [1976] first introduced the concept of an agency cost of debt, most research on the agency cost of debt has centered on who bears these costs. Jensen and Meckling's original contention was that if bondholders have rational expectations, then the owner‐manager should bear the agency costs of debt. The alternative to this explanation was first offered by Barnea, Haugen and Senbet [1981] who claimed that because of the effects of agency costs on the supply of debt, these costs would be borne by the bondholders. Roberts and Viscione [1984] extend the analysis of Barnea, Haugen, and Senbet by including costly tax avoidance on personal and corporate levels to show that the agency costs of debt are shared by bondholders and owner‐managers.
Why new neutron detector materials must replace helium-3

Helium-3 has such unique physical and nuclear properties that to a physicist it seems appalling the isotope was once indiscriminately released to the atmosphere as a waste gas. Not gravitationally bound to our planet, a He-3 atom is effectively lost to the human race once released. Consequently, when a confluence of independent factors in national security and research in the last decade created a “custody battle” over this scarce isotope, an intense search for substitutes and alternative technologies ensued for various applications. This Focus Point of EPJ Plus is dedicated to neutron detector alternatives.
Examples of expression systems based on animal RNA viruses: Alphaviruses and influenza virus

Successful recovery of RNA viruses and functional RNA replicons from cDNA has greatly facilitated molecular genetic analyses of viral proteins and cis-regulatory elements. This technology allows the use of RNA virus replication machinery to express heterologous sequences. Both positive-strand and negative-strand animal RNA viruses have been engineered to produce chimeric viruses expressing protective epitopes from other pathogens and for transient expression of heterologous sequences.
NSAIDs and Colorectal Cancer Risk: Do Administrative Data Support a Chemopreventive Effect?

Background Randomized trials show non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) reduce precancerous polyps. Observational studies of the NSAID aspirin (ASA) suggest that it reduces invasive colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence, but because ASA use may also be a marker for healthy behaviors, these studies may be subject to selection bias. We sought to estimate the effectiveness of NSAIDs in CRC prevention in the population of elderly Medicare beneficiaries, minimizing this selection bias.