cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
10 Bold Steps to Prevent Burnout in General Internal Medicine

Physician burnout is an escalating problem receiving little attention from health care leaders. Burnout is a long-term stress reaction which includes emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and a lack of sense of personal accomplishment. Physician burnout rates range from 30–65 % across medical specialties, with the highest rates experienced by those at the front line of care, including emergency medicine and general internal medicine.1 Recruitment of medical students into general internal medicine is worrisomely low, and may relate in part to the perceived stressfulness of a primary care career. Addressing burnout among general internists is a national imperative, as health care reform necessitates greater reliance on primary care. Burnout poses problems for both health care organizations and patients. While burned-out physicians attempt to maintain quality of care at their own expense, work conditions that result in burnout are associated with poorer care quality.2 Burned out doctors are more likely to leave their practice, thus reducing access to care. Turnover sacrifices continuity, and replacement costs are at least $250,000 per primary care physician. Satisfied role models could make a difference in this steady drain on primary care, but it is getting harder to find them. The situation may be no better for hospitalist physicians, for whom burnout is also common.3 Women physicians in national surveys have a 60 % higher burnout rate than that seen in men, yet the workplace remains largely unmindful of gender as a predictor of burnout. And despite known work condition challenges that contribute to burnout in clinics serving minority patients, few if any changes have occurred to improve this situation. Finally, models to prevent physician burnout are not well documented. We offer suggestions for addressing these challenges. The fact that burnout is a long-term stress reaction allows time to measure and intervene. To combat burnout, organizations need to identify stress in its earlier stages (Fig. 1), and choose programs to prevent burnout before it occurs. Following this quality improvement (QI) model for organizational self-care can produce a sustainable workplace for clinicians, with high quality and accessible care for patients (see Table 1). Figure 1. Conceptual model of Ql feedback loop to prevent stress, burnout and turnover. Table 1 Ten Steps to Prevent Physician Burnoutᅟ
Peer Rating in Higher Education

Abstract Peer rating has become a part of the academic environment. Good or bad, right or wrong, many institutions of higher learning require that faculty and administrators rely on some form of peer evaluation when decisions about promotion and tenure must be made. However, empirical research has consistently demonstrated that peer evaluations lack reliability and validity. Thus, decisions impacting the very essence of teaching in a university environment are made based upon unreliable and invalid testing. This article offers an alternative to the present system of peer evaluation. Instead of peer raters, raters would be persons outside the immediate system. In order to qualify, a rater must be a trained educator, researcher, statistician, counselor, and psychometrist. To those who might argue that such a person does not exist, then the researchers would ask, “How then can we expect our peers to be able to do the job?”
Thin palladium membranes supported on microstructured nickel for purification of reformate gases

Abstract Palladium membrane purification technology is a key unit operation to produce high purity hydrogen from a feedstock of hydrocarbon fuel. Palladium membrane technology has been investigated for many years, but designing affordable, leak free, and high flux membranes remains a challenge. Even more challenging are portable reforming applications where the membrane must integrate into fuel processing systems typically operating at much lower pressures than stationary industrial systems, in order to meet strict size, weight and rapid start-up requirements. In this work, a new supported palladium membrane composite structure is developed to meet the above challenges. Using microfabrication techniques, an ultra-thin palladium film supported on a microstructured nickel honeycomb is fabricated and characterized. The composite membrane is entirely metallic, highly selective and demonstrates flux rates of 0.47 mol of hydrogen per second per square meter of membrane area (140 standard cubic feet per hour per square) at 350 °C, using under 1 atm hydrogen partial pressure gradient driving force.
Role of the O/U ratio on the sintering of UO2

Abstract The sintering of UO 2 is a volume diffusion controlled process. The sintering rate as a function of the concentration of hyperstoichiometrie oxygen at the sintering temperature shows the influence of the O/U ratio on the effective uranium diffusion coefficient. Except under atmospheres having a low oxygen capacity, a sintering specimen is in equilibrium with the furnace atmosphere which can therefore be used to set the sample stoichiometry. The resulting diffusion coefficients of stoichiometric material determined from the rate of initial shrinkage of powder compacts are in good agreement with values determined directly from tracer studies. Hyperstoichiometric specimens (O/U= 2.02) show an enhancement of the shrinkage rate and hence the effective uranium diffusion coefficient is several orders of magnitude greater than expected from published diffusion coefficients.
Effect of brain-stem lesions on conditioned responses of cats.

The possibility was explored that certain central brain-stem areas might be critical for the performance of conditioned reflexes. In 6 cats, large bilateral electrolytic lesions were placed in the medial diencephalon or mesencephalon and subsequently defined by histology. A tone served as conditional stimulus and foot-shock as unconditional stimulus. The EEG, respiration, and the EMG of the conditioned limb were recorded. Persistent low voltage, fast activity consistently reappeared in the EEG in 7 to 10 days and was seen even after destruction of over 100 mm3 of the mesencephalon, including the reticular formation. Conditioned reflexes usually appeared only when such faster EEG patterns were present. Conditioned reflexes and discrimination between tones could occur, however, during relatively high voltage, slow activity in the cortical areas sampled. Extensive lesions essentially transecting the ascending reticular system or destroying the posterior hypothalamus did not preclude conditioning. In contrast, one animal could not be retrained when lesions were in the mamillary area. It is concluded that the medial mesencephalic systems are not essential for this type of conditioning and that, if any essential system does exist, it is located in the region of the mamillary bodies, field H1 of Forel, center median, and the habenulopeduncular tract.
Coulter Counter use in the enumeration of muscle and fat stem cells

Although the manual counting chamber (hemacytometer) is the gold standard for counting cells, this method is subject to great variability due to the 'human factor'. The automated cell counter (Coulter Counter) can enumerate cells in less time and with greater accuracy than the hemacytometer by removing many of the steps in which errors are made. While the Coulter Counter (and others of its type) has been used for many years in the cell culture field, there have been few studies to validate its use with specific cell types. We conducted several experiments in which we assessed the accuracy of the Coulter Counter over counts made with a hemacytometer as well as validated its use for the counting of satellite cells and preadipocytes.
Melt-particle mixing in gas-stirred ladles with throughflow

An experimental study is performed on a gas-particle stirred ladle system with throughflow, using a simplified water model. Narrow ladles are used to produce 2-D flows. Flow visualization by the direct photographic method is employed to investigate the effects of ladle geometry, throughflow rate, air flow rate and its injection location on the melt-particle mixing performance. Image processing is applied to aid in determining the mixing performance. It is disclosed that an efficient mixing may be achieved if the gas at a higher flow rate is injected with particles through a nozzle near the bottom corner of the ladle wall on the melt inlet side. The mixing performance is better in a rectangular ladle (aspect ratio of 2) than in a square ladle (aspect ratio of unity). The effect of throughflow rate on mixing is minor. The study has an important application in manufacturing processes, such as continuous casting process, and materials processing.
Combining feedback and assessment via Web‐based homework

Multiple choice homework, including feedback on each incorrect answer, is administered over the Web using an in‐house program. The large enrollments in lower division courses hinder the use of homework without the aid of a computer for grading, recording, and reporting. The current system permits faculty to create assignments using only a word processor, which allows the facile inclusion of symbols, pictures, and other non‐textual information. This is particularly important in science classes, where such material is a major part of any assignment. The system includes security measures, and reports scores back to instructors in a form which can be easily included into a spreadsheet.
Synthesis of 5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-1,6-naphthyridines and related heterocycles by cobalt-catalyzed [2 + 2 + 2] cyclizations.

Microwave-promoted, cobalt-catalyzed intramolecular [2 + 2 + 2] cyclizations of dialkynylnitriles successfully gave 5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-1,6-naphthyridines. The efficient synthesis of these relatively simple, yet rarely addressed heterocycles enabled the preparation of a collection of these compounds.
Conformational Statistics of Semiflexible Macromolecular Chains with Internal Joints

Fluctuations in the bending angles at internal irregularities of DNA and RNA (such as symmetric loops, bulges, and nicks/gaps) have been observed from various experiments. However, little effort has been made to computationally predict and explain the statistical behavior of semi-flexible chains with internal defects. In this paper, we describe the general structure of these macromolecular chains as inextensible elastic chains with one or more internal joints which have limited ranges of rotation, and propose a method to compute the probability density functions of the end-to-end pose of these macromolecular chains. Our method takes advantage of the operational properties of the non-commutative Fourier transform for the group of rigid-body motions in three-dimensional space, SE(3). Two representative types of joints, the hinge for planar rotation and the ball joint for spatial rotation, are discussed in detail. The proposed method applies to various stiffness models of semi-flexible chain-like macromolecules. Examples are calculated using the Kratky-Porod model with specified stiffness, angular fluctuation, and joint locations. Entropic effects associated with internal angular fluctuations of semi-flexible macromolecular chains with internal joints can be computed using this formulation. Our method also provides a potential tool to detect the existence of internal irregularities.
Tertiary Contact Formation in α-Synuclein Probed by Electron Transfer

To explore tertiary contact formation in α-synuclein, a natively unfolded protein implicated in Parkinson's disease, we have measured the rates of reaction between a powerful electron donor, the tryptophan (W) triplet excited state, and an acceptor, 3-nitro-tyrosine (Y(NO2)) in six different variants, probing loop sizes between 15 and 132 residues. Electron transfer rates decrease with loop size with the fastest contact time of 140 ns for the N-terminal pair and the slowest of 1.2 μs for the N- to C-terminal pair. Diffusion coefficients ranging from ∼2 × 10-6 to ∼10-5 cm2 s-1 were extracted from simultaneous fits of the W to Y(NO2) electron (triplet excited state) and energy transfer (singlet excited state) kinetics.
Regulation of chicken apolipoprotein B: cloning, tissue distribution, and estrogen induction of mRNA

Abstract Apolipoprotein (apo) B is a major protein component of plasma very low-density and low-density lipoproteins (VLDL and LDL, respectively) and serves as a recognition signal for the cellular binding and internalization of LDL by the apoB/E receptor. In contrast to the situation in mammals, avian apoB is also a component of specialized VLDL particles that are produced by the liver in response to estrogen. These particles transport cholesterol and triglyceride from the liver to the ovary for deposition in egg yolk. We report here the identification and characterization of cDNA clones for chicken apoB and their use in examining the tissue distribution and hormonal regulation of chicken apoB mRNA. The cDNA clones were identified by immunological screening of a phage λgt11 library constructed with hen liver mRNA and their identity was supported by sequence comparisons with mammalian apoB. The chicken apoB mRNA is approximately the same size as mammalian apoB mRNA (14 kb), and, as occurs in mammals, is present at high levels in liver and small intestine. Unlike mammals, the chicken apoB mRNA is also found at high levels in the kidney, consistent with previous protein biosynthetic studies. A DNA-excess solution-hybridization assay was used to quantitate apoB mRNA in these tissues and to examine its hormonal regulation. In control roosters the liver and kidney contained 65% and 10%, respectively, as much apoB mRNA as the small intestine. Within 24 h after estradiol administration, apoB mRNA was increased five- to seven-fold in liver but was unchanged in intestine and kidney. The increase in apoB mRNA content and the kinetics of induction parallel hepatic apoB synthesis, indicating that estrogen regulates apoB production through changes in the cellular abundance of apoB mRNA. The apoB mRNA increased rapidly following hormone treatment while the mRNA for another VLDL protein (apoII) showed a lag or slow phase of several hours before significant mRNA accumulation occurred. These data indicate that the liver can respond immediately to estrogen to increase apoB mRNA accumulation, while apoII mRNA accumulation appears to involve additional events or signals which occur slowly and are specific to this gene.
First Appearance of Red-eye in the wild Gammarus chevreuxi , Sexton

IN a letter to NATURE1, we were able to show that heterozygosity existed in the wild stock of this species —eggs from an outside mating, hatched some days later in the laboratory, gave 2 red-eyed recessives in a brood of 11 young.
The crystalline lunar spherules: Their formation and implications for the origin of meteoritic chondrules

— Crystalline lunar spherules (CLS) from three thin sections of Apollo 14 regolith breccias (14318,6; 14318,48 and 14315,20) have been examined. The objects have been classified and their abundances, size distributions, bulk compositions, and (where possible) plagioclase compositions determined. By number, 64% consist predominantly of very fine-grained equant plagioclase grains but can also contain larger (∼50 μm) feldspar crystals (type X), while 22% contain plagioclase lathes in a fine-grained mafic mesostasis (type Y). Plagioclase in both spherule types displays bright yellow cathodoluminescence that is conspicuous among the blue CL of the normal feldspar of the breccias. Type Z spherules (5%) contain feldspar with blue CL and minor amounts of olivine and pyroxene. Type Q spherules (4%) contain feldspar with yellow CL but in a luminescent mesostasis (of quartz or feldspar?). A few spherules are mixtures of type Y and type X textures. Most type X spherules, and a few type Y spherules, have fine-grained opaque rims. Compound objects were also found and consist of two or more CLS that appear to have collided while still plastic or molten. The CLS are thought to be impact spherules that crystallized in free flight, their coarse textures suggesting fairly slow cooling rates (∼ <1 °C/s). The abundance of the CLS resembles that of chondrules in the CM chondrite Murchison, and their cumulative size-frequency distributions are very similar to those of the chondrules in several meteorite classes. The bulk compositions of the CLS do not resemble regoliths at any of the Apollo sites, including Apollo 14, or any of the common impact glasses, but they do resemble the bulk compositions of several lunar meteorites and the impact glasses they contain. The Apollo 14 site is located on a region containing Imbrium ejecta, and we suggest that the CLS derive from the Imbrium impact. Ballistic calculations indicate that only impact events of this size on the Moon are capable of producing melt spherules with the required free flight times and slow cooling rates. Smaller impacts produce glassy spherules and agglutinates. As has been pointed out many times, the CLS have many properties in common with meteoritic chondrules. While much remains unclear, difficulties with a nebular origin and new developments in chondrule chronology, studies of asteroid surfaces and impact ejecta behavior, and the present observations indicate that meteoritic chondrules could have formed by impact.
Eruptive melanocytic nevi after Stevens-Johnson syndrome

Widespread melanocytic nevi may rarely appear suddenly after a severe bullous disease. We describe two patients in whom eruptive melanocytic nevi developed 3 weeks after a severe episode of Stevens-Johnson syndrome. Benign melanocytic proliferation may develop after a bullous dermatosis and should not be confused with malignant or metastatic melanoma.
Patterns of Time: Mizoguchi and the 1930s

Although Kenji Mizoguchi is one of the three most important Japanese directors (along with Yasujiro Ozu and Akira Kurosawa), there has been no systematic critical study of his work in English. Correcting this omission. Donald Kirihara examines in detail the brilliant early works of one of the world's great film directors, offering an analysis of his career. The book targets a key phase of Mizoguchi's career, the 1930s. It was in that period that conditions within the Japanese film industry allowed Mizoguchi more freedom to experiment with film style and narrative structure. Kirihara analyzes the formal and stylistic components of four of Mizoguchi's films. "The Downfall of Osen" (1935), "Naniwa Elegy" (1936), "Sisters of the Gion" (1936) and "The Story of the Last Chrysanthemum" (1939), while considering the historical context in which they were produced and consumed. Using scores of frame enlargements, drawing from a variety of historical sources, and integrating concepts from contemporary film theory, Kirihara proposes a new way of understanding Mizoguchi's films. He argues that at the heart of Mizoguchi's brilliance as a filmmaker is an obsessive need to challenge spectators, implicating them in the production of meaning through the dynamic manipulation of spatio-temporal relations. The result is a film style that self-consciously leads, frustrates and surprises.
Alkyltransferase-Mediated Toxicity of 1,3-Butadiene Diepoxide

Human O(6)-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (hAGT) expression increases mutations and cytotoxicity following exposure to 1,3-butadiene diepoxide (BDO), and hAGT-DNA cross-links are formed in the presence of BDO. We have used hAGT mutants to investigate the mechanism of cross-link formation and genotoxicity. Formation of a hAGT-DNA conjugate in vitro was observed with C145S and C145A mutant proteins but was considerably diminished with the C145A/C150S double mutant confirming that cross-linking primarily involves either of these two cysteine residues, which are located in the active site pocket of the protein. Cross-link formation by BDO occurred both via (a) an initial reaction of BDO with hAGT followed by attack of the reactive hAGT complex on DNA, and (b) the initial reaction of BDO with DNA followed by a reaction between hAGT and the DNA adduct. These results differ from those with 1,2-dibromoethane (DBE) where Cys(145) is the only site of attachment and pathway (b) does not occur. The complex formed between hAGT at Cys(145) and BDO was very unstable in aqueous solution. However, the BDO-hAGT complex at Cys(150) exhibited stability for more than 1 h. The effect of hAGT and mutants on BDO-induced genotoxicity was studied in E. coli using the forward assay to rifampicin resistance. Both mutations and cell killing were greatly increased by wild type hAGT, and there was a smaller but significant effect with the C145A mutant. The R128A mutant and R128A/C145A and C145A/C150S double mutants were ineffective, supporting the hypothesis that the formation of hAGT-DNA cross-links is responsible for the enhanced genotoxicity detected in this biological system. In the absence of hAGT, there were equal proportions of G:C to A:T transitions, G:C to T:A transversions, and A:T to T:A transversions. Wild type hAGT expression yielded significantly greater G:C to A:T and A:T to G:C transitions, whereas C145A mutant expression resulted in more transitions and transversions at A:T base-pairs.
Sulfated proteoglycans in astroglial barriers inhibit neurite outgrowth in vitro

In vivo studies of the roof plate of the spinal cord and midline optic tectum in rodent and the developing subplate in the telencephalon of the chick showed that two glycosaminoglycans, keratin sulfate and chondroitin sulfate, possibly in the proteoglycan form (KS-PG, CS-PG, or KS/CS-PG), were present at times when axons approach closely but do not invade these territories. To address the question of whether KS/CS-PG actively inhibits growth cone elongation and to determine which component(s) of the proteoglycan may be critical to this phenomenon, we used a technique employing nitrocellulose-coated petri dishes onto which stripes of various purified macromolecules were attached. Isolated E9 chick dorsal root ganglia were grown on lanes of KS/CS-PG in alteration with lanes of the growth-promoting molecule laminin (LN). Neurite outgrowth was abundant along stripes of LN. In contrast, upon encountering a stripe containing KS/CS-PG, neurites either stopped abruptly or turned and traveled along the KS/CS-PG stripe border. The effect was dependent upon the concentration of the proteoglycan with intermediate concentrations producing intermittent patterns of crossing. We mixed LN with the KS/CS-PG, where the LN was in concentrations which alone support outgrowth, and observed that the KS/CS-PG was still inhibitory when such a growth-promoting molecule was present. A 10-fold higher concentration of LN was able to overcome the inhibitory effect of the KS/CS-PG. These results suggest that the interaction of inhibitory and growth-promoting molecules can interact to produce a wide spectrum of neurite patterns ranging from complete inhibition to totally unimpeded outgrowth. Selective enzymatic removal of the KS or CS from the KS/CS-PG permitted various degrees of neurite outgrowth to occur across the previously inhibitory lanes, and digestion of both glycoaminoglycan moieties, leaving only the protein core of the molecule, resulted in a complete lack of inhibition. These assays demonstrated that KS/CS-PG is inhibitory to embryonic dorsal root ganglia neurites in vitro and that complete inhibition requires contributions from both KS and CS moieties.
Rate constants for the bimolecular self‐reactions of ethyl, isopropyl, and tert‐butyl radicals in solution. A direct comparison

A competitive method involving the direct measurement of radical concentrations by EPR spectroscopy has been used to show that in solution at 25°C the rate constants for the bimolecular self-reactions of ethyl, isopropyl, tert-butyl, cyclopentyl, and trichloromethyl are all approximately equal, as had been indicated previously by direct measurement of the rate constants for decay of these radicals.
Stroke Prevention Education in the Hispanic Community

The Hispanic population is the fastest growing minority population in the United States. Little research has been done to assess the stroke risk in the Hispanic population, which has a higher prevalence of hypertension, diabetes, alcohol use, and physical inactivity. Healthcare professionals therefore are faced with the management and education of a cultural group with unfamiliar health beliefs. To decrease the risk of stroke, a culturally sensitive program that combines education and risk identification is needed. This article identifies the development of a stroke education and screening program for Hispanics.
High Density Lipoprotein Phospholipid Composition Is a Major Determinant of the Bi-directional Flux and Net Movement of Cellular Free Cholesterol Mediated by Scavenger Receptor BI

The role of high density lipoprotein (HDL) phospholipid in scavenger receptor BI (SR-BI)-mediated free cholesterol flux was examined by manipulating HDL(3) phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin content. Both phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin enrichment of HDL enhanced the net efflux of cholesterol from SR-BI-expressing COS-7 cells but by two different mechanisms. Phosphatidylcholine enrichment of HDL increased efflux, whereas sphingomyelin enrichment decreased influx of HDL cholesterol. Although similar trends were observed in control (vector-transfected) COS-7 cells, SR-BI overexpression amplified the effects of phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin enrichment of HDL 25- and 2.8-fold, respectively. By using both phosphatidylcholine-enriched and phospholipase A(2)-treated HDL to obtain HDL with a graded phosphatidylcholine content, we showed that SR-BI-mediated cholesterol efflux was highly correlated (r(2) = 0.985) with HDL phosphatidylcholine content. The effects of varying HDL phospholipid composition on SR-BI-mediated free cholesterol flux were not correlated with changes in either the K(d) or B(max) values for high affinity binding to SR-BI. We conclude that SR-BI-mediated free cholesterol flux is highly sensitive to HDL phospholipid composition. Thus, factors that regulate cellular SR-BI expression and the local modification of HDL phospholipid composition will have a large impact on reverse cholesterol transport.
Relationship between age and mortality due to intracerebral versus subarachnoid hemorrhage.

This cross-sectional study compares trends in mortality by age for intracerebral and subarachnoid hemorrhage. United States mortality data from the Centers for Disease Control from the years 1991 to 1992 are examined with the program CDC Wonder, and mortality rates for 10-year age groups for each disease are compared. As expected, the crude mortality rate attributable to intracerebral hemorrhage, at 7.1 per 100,000, is much greater than that of subarachnoid hemorrhage, at 2.7 per 100,000. However, the age distribution of this mortality is found to be very different in the two conditions (χ 2 , P
The Construction of Creole-Speaking Students' Linguistic Profile and Contradictions in ESL Literacy Programs

0 Globalization of the English language makes new pedagogical demands on teachers as they come to grips with a growing number of varieties of English in their classrooms. In North America, Caribbean Creole English is the next most common variety of English in the public school system after African American Vernacular English, due to the increasing rate of migration from the Anglophone Caribbean (Nero, 2000), which is unlikely to decline soon according to statistics provided by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (1999). CreoleEnglish speakers from the Caribbean are the largest immigrant group of students in the U.S. public school system who are neither native nor nonnative speakers of English; they present a challenge for the ESL curriculum. Because North American teachers are not familiar with the structure of English-based creoles, creole-speaking students are misplaced in ESL classes designed for nonnative speakers of English, and this misplacement is one of the main factors that have contributed to their low academic achievement (Pratt-Johnson, 1993). If alternative pedagogical approaches are ultimately to be developed for creoleEnglish-speaking students, research is needed to better understand the linguistic characteristics of their language acquisition. English as a second dialect (ESD) speakers exhibit speech patterns that are indicative of the constant interaction between creole and
Vascular Disease in Scleroderma

Although scleroderma is generally considered a fibrosing disease of the tissues, it is now recognized that the underlying vascular disease is playing a fundamental role in its pathogenesis and associated tissue injury. The exact mechanism for the widespread scleroderma vascular disease is still unknown, but endothelial cell injury induced by infection, immune-mediated cytotoxicity, antiendothelial antibodies, and/or ischemia-reperfusion have all been implicated. The downstream effects of blood vessel perturbation produce “biomarkers” of vascular damage that reflect disease and may predict clinical outcomes. A complex interaction between endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, extracellular matrix, and intravascular circulating factors is now recognized to contribute to the vascular reactivity, remodeling, and occlusive disease of scleroderma. Understanding the mechanisms underlying these processes provides rationale of novel therapeutic strategies and specific targeted therapy. This review will outline some of the evidence for the causes and consequences of scleroderma vascular disease.
Disseminated Cryptococcal infection in an immunocompetent host mimicking plasma cell disorder: a case report and literature review

Cryptococcosis is a potentially fatal fungal infection caused mainly by Cryptocococcus neoformans (CN) species and it rarely infects immunocompetent hosts. The outcomes are better only if the condition is suspected and diagnosed early and treatment is instituted.
Response of algae and zooplankton to C18 fatty acids of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Three C18 fatty acids were assayed for their activity against a number of algae and zooplankton. The three acids, lenolenic, lenoleic, and oleic, reduced the growth of Haematococcus lacustris, Synechococcus leopoliensis, and Botrydiopsis alpina by 50% of control growth in concentrations below 7 ppm. Calanoid and cyclopoid copepods in mixed cultures inoculated with lenolenic and lenoleic acid had LD50 values below 10 ppm. An increase in copepod mortality was observed with increases in cyclopoid density and decreased with increases in calanoid density. Eucyclops agilis inoculated with lenolenic acid had a LD50 value of 4 ppm.
CrystalPlan: an experiment-planning tool for crystallography

Beam time at large user-program-based X-ray and neutron scattering facilities is in high demand and always at a premium. CrystalPlan, a highly efficient experiment-planning software, has been developed to maximize the use of available beam time per sample per experiment. This program can calculate and optimize the data coverage of a crystal in reciprocal space in a single-crystal diffraction time-of-flight experiment. CrystalPlan can help a user build an experiment plan that will acquire the most unique data possible, with sufficient coverage but limited redundancy, therefore increasing scientific productivity. A user-friendly graphical user interface, including a three-dimensional viewer, an automated coverage optimizer and an option to reorient the crystal for the measurement of selected hkl reflections on specific detector positions, are among its useful features. A sample use case of the program with the TOPAZ beamline at the Spallation Neutron Source will be presented.
Moisture-Induced Spallation and Interfacial Hydrogen Embrittlement of Alumina Scales

While interfacial sulfuris the primary chemical factor affecting Al2O3 scale adhesion, moisture-induced delayed spallation appears as a secondary, but impressive, mechanistic detail. Similarities with bulk metallic phenomena suggest that hydrogen embrittlement from ambient humidity, resulting from the reaction Alalloy+3(H2O)air=Al(OH)− 3+3H+ may be the operative mechanism. This proposal was tested on pre-oxidized Rene N5 by standard cathodic hydrogen charging in 1N H2SO4, as monitored by weight change, induced current, and microstructure. Cathodic polarization at −2.0 V abruptly stripped mature Al2O3 scales at the oxide-metal interface. Anodic polarization at +2.0V, however, produced alloy dissolution. Finally, with no applied voltage, the acid electrolyte produced neither scale spallation nor alloy dissolution. Thus, hydrogen charging was detrimental to alumina scale adhesion. Moisture-induced interfacial hydrogen embrittlement is concluded to be the cause of delayed scale spallation and desktop thermal barrier coating failures.
Lipid metabolism in cystic fibrosis

Purpose of review Expression of defective cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), the cause for cystic fibrosis, affects fatty acid, cholesterol and sphingolipid metabolism. This review summarizes recent observations and evaluates current understanding of mechanisms. Recent findings Recent observations implicate CFTR, in addition to known effects on fatty acid and cholesterol metabolism, in the regulation of sphingolipid metabolism and suggest that this pathway is relevant to inflammation and infection. A common mechanism on how CFTR affects such a wide spectrum of lipid classes is currently not known. One mechanism for low linoleic acid, amenable to inhibition by docosahexaenoic acid, is increased metabolism in the n-6 fatty acid pathway. Accumulation of free cholesterol in distinct perinuclear compartments, reversible by overexpression of rab9, suggests that cystic fibrosis and the lysosomal storage disease Niemann-Pick-C could share similar cell signaling defects, in addition to increased cAMP signaling and sterol-regulatory element binding protein (SREBP) expression that affect cholesterol metabolism. Novel is the recognition that CFTR modulates ceramide mass and uptake of sphingosine-1- phosphate. Experiments in different cystic fibrosis-mouse models, although not able to establish whether ceramide mass is increased or decreased, suggest that normalization of ceramide decreases infection and selected parameters of inflammation, of relevance to the complex phenotype that characterizes cystic fibrosis. Summary Expression of defective CFTR has profound effects on fatty acid, cholesterol and sphingolipid metabolism, for which mechanisms are currently poorly understood. Recent studies in different cystic fibrosis models suggest a causal relationship between altered ceramide mass and increased inflammation and susceptibility to infection. Studies in cystic fibrosis knockout mouse models suggest that normalization of ceramide decreases infection and inflammation. Studies that evaluate the diagnostic and clinical relevance of sphingolipids in patients with cystic fibrosis are needed.
The Personal Attribute Inventory as a Self-Concept Scale:

A sample of 101 educational psychology students was administered the Gough Adjective Check List (ACL) and the Personal Attribute Inventory (PAI) both at the beginning and at the end of a ten week period. High correlations were found between the very short PAI measure and the Favorable and Unfavorable subscales of the ACL (PAI and F subscale of ACL, r = -.65; PAI and U subscale of ACL r = .77). Correlations between first and second administrations revealed slightly greater stability over time for the PAI (r = .70) than for the F subscale (r = .61) and U subscale (r = .61) of the ACL. The relative utility and efficiency of the PAI in relation to the corresponding properties of the ACL for research purposes requiring group assessment of self-concept is discussed.
Ultrasonic nonlinearity parameters and third-order elastic constants of germanium between 300 and 77 °K

The ultrasonic-harmonic-generation technique has been used to determine the nonlinearity parameters of germanium between 300 and 77 \ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}K. These results have been combined with pressure-derivative results to isolate a complete set of third-order elastic constants at room temperature. Comparison of these data with predictions of simplified models reveals that a central-force-nearest-neighbor model is less accurate for germanium than for copper. The discrepancy appears to increase as the temperature is lowered.
Architecture-based testing using goals and plans

This paper presents a specification-based testing approach that compares software specifications defined at different levels of abstraction, e.g. architecture and implementation, against specified system goals. We believe that a goal-driven approach that connects several development artifacts through verification of specified goals provides useful traceability links between those artifacts as well as an efficient testing technique. Our approach begins with a system goal graph in which high-level goals are step-wise refined into low-level functional goals that can be realized as code components. Each of the architectural components is associated with a plan that describes the component's functional behavior. Source code is annotated with goals from plans and events that achieve the goals; code is then precompiled to emit those goals and events at run time. Plans are automatically translated into a rule-based recognizer. An oracle is produced from the pre- and post-conditions associated with the plan's goals. When the program executes, the goals and events emitted are automatically tested against the plans and expected results. As components achieve their component-level plans, a higher-level plan recognizer, concerned with the integration of components, can verify correct system behavior over the interaction trace of a collection of lower-level plans. A small example illustrates the concept.
Endocrine regulation in critically ill patients

Disturbances of the hormonal regulation of critically ill patients are known since many years. In the last years, two topics received a lot of attention since a single intervention led to a mortality benefit: the intensive blood glucose control in surgical intensive care patients and the low dose hydrocortisone therapy in sepsis. These results were quickly incorporated in guidelines. However, large multi-center studies failed to support the initial results in several points. This review discusses these and other disturbances of endocrine regulation of critically ill patients.
Current Insights in Whipple's Disease.

Therapy for Whipple’s disease should be continued for a minimum of 1 year, and the regimen should include an agent or agents that achieve acceptable concentrations in the central nervous system, given the likelihood of recurrence at this site. Clinical follow-up of proven cases of Whipple’s disease should be conducted for a minimum of 10 years after discontinuation of therapy, given the potential for late relapses. Polymerase chain reaction analysis is preferred rather than endoscopy when evaluating for disease recurrence.
Design and development of the t64 turboprop turboshaft engine for operation in vstol attitude

The T64 turboprop/ turboshaft engine was designed to afford a wide range of operating attitudes appropriate for use in V/STOL aircraft. The engine can operate from a -45° attitude, useful in helicopter towing applications, to a +100° attitude appropriate to tilt-wing and propeller applications. The primary design consideration for attitude capability is in the lubrication supply, sealing, and scavenging from the engine sumps. Additional considerations of structural design, rotor thrust balance, and aerothermodynamic performance were included in the engine configuration. Proof and qualification tests of the engine's attitude capability included verification of the engine's starting, stopping, stowing, and operational characteristics in its specified range of attitudes and transition modes, and these tests will continue.
Plastic Yield Conditions for Adhesive Contacts

The Hertz contact theory allows the onset of yielding to be predicted for those contacts in which the effect of adhesion can be neglected. However in microscale contacts, such as those which occur in MEMS, yielding will occur for lower loads than predicted by the Hertz theory. For such cases, the JKR, DMT, and Greenwood-Johnson theories extend the Hertz theory to include the effect of adhesion. The present study provides yield conditions for the JKR, DMT, and Greenwood-Johnson theories of adhesion. Attention is first focused on the initiation of yield along the axis of symmetry of the contact. The results show that the critical loads for the three adhesion theories are close together, but differ significantly from that predicted by Hertz. In fact it is possible for yielding to occur due to adhesion alone, without an external applied load. A curve-fit formula is given to express the yield load as a function of an adhesion parameter for different Poisson’s ratios. Results are also obtained for the onset of plastic deformation away from the axis of symmetry using the Greenwood-Johnson theory of adhesion.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Novel actions of IGFBP-3 on intracellular signaling pathways of insulin-secreting cells.

Understanding mechanisms underlying apoptotic destruction of insulin-secreting cells is critical to validate therapeutic targets for type 1 diabetes mellitus. We recently reported insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) as a novel mediator of apoptosis in insulin-secreting cells. In light of emerging IGF-independent roles for IGFBP-3, we investigated the mechanisms underlying actions of the novel, recombinant human mutant G56G80G81-IGFBP-3, which lacks intrinsic IGF binding affinity. Using the rat insulinoma RINm5F cell line, we report the first studies in insulin-secreting cells that IGFBP-3 selectively suppresses multiple, key intracellular phosphorelays. By immunoblot, we demonstrate that G56G80G81-IGFBP-3 suppresses phosphorylation of c-raf-MEK-ERK pathway and p38 kinase in time-dependent and dose-dependent manners. SAPK/JNK signaling was unaffected. These data delineate several novel intracellular sites of action for IGFBP-3 in insulin-secreting cells.
Class Performance as a Function of Student Achievement and Type of Learning Material

It was predicted that high-scoring students, when compared to low-scoring students in the same general psychology course, would better be able to answer correctly questions directed at knowledge of principles and that superior knowledge of principles by high-scoring students would result in their better performance on questions concerned with examples of principles and questions on trivial materials as well. Both predictions were supported.
A simple, one-step purification of cytochrome b from the bc1 complexes of bacteria

Publisher Summary This chapter describes a simple, one-step method for purification of cytochrome b from the bc 1 complexes of bacteria. Cytochrome b of the ubiquinol-cytochrome c oxidoreductase complex ( bc 1 complex) has a fundamental role in the mechanism of electron transfer through the respiratory complex. However, purification of this hydrophobic integral membrane protein is extremely difficult. The parameters that influence the efficiency of separation of bc 1 complex polypeptides in the respiratory complex are the concentration of Triton X-114 and the concentration of salt. Treatment of bacterial bc 1 complexes with Triton X-114 is an effective method for purification of cytochrome c 1 and the iron-sulfur protein. These polypeptides are present in a detergent-free aqueous phase following treatment with Triton X-114. Hence, a simple additional gel filtration step is all that should be required for efficient purification of these subunits.
Health literacy assessment using talking touchscreen technology (Health LiTT): a new item response theory-based measure of health literacy.

The importance of health literacy has grown considerably among researchers, clinicians, patients, and policymakers. Better instruments and measurement strategies are needed. Our objective was to develop a new health literacy instrument using novel health information technology and modern psychometrics. We designed Health LiTT as a self-administered multimedia touchscreen test based on item response theory (IRT) principles. We enrolled a diverse group of 619 English-speaking, primary care patients in clinics for underserved patients. We tested three item types (prose, document, quantitative) that worked well together to reliably measure a single dimension of health literacy. The Health LiTT score meets psychometric standards (reliability of 0.90 or higher) for measurement of individual respondents in the low to middle range. Mean Health LiTT scores were associated with age, race/ethnicity, education, income, and prior computer use (p < .05). We created an IRT-calibrated item bank of 82 items. Standard sett...
Germany and European security governance: how well does the Birmingham model perform?

Abstract The expansion of the security agenda after the end of the Cold War, propelled by the blowback of 11 September 2001, raises questions about the German ability and willingness to contribute to the regional and global security governance tasks facing Europe and Germany's continuing fidelity to its post-war European avocation. It also calls for a reconsideration of the Birmingham model of foreign policy analysis, particularly its emphasis on (and interpretation of) the ideational and institutional factors defining the German foreign policy agenda and shaping German foreign policy behaviour, at least with respect to the implementation (rather than formulation) of European Union security policies. Towards assessing the continuing utility of the Birmingham model, this article proceeds in three steps: the presentation of the Birmingham model and its restatement as six conjectures; a discussion of the security governance functions undertaken by the EU and the collective action problem facing Europe (and G...
Phenolic acids content of fifteen dry edible bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) varieties

Abstract A high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detection (DAD) procedure separating and quantifying 16 phenolic acids was used for determination of phenolic acids content in dry beans ( Phaseolus vulgaris L.). Dry beans from 10 market classes and 15 varieties that are commonly consumed in the United States were screened for phenolic acids content. Systematic sequential hydrolysis of a model Black bean (Eclipse variety) showed an insignificant amount of free phenolic acids were extracted with a mixture of methanol and water (85:15,%v/v) containing 10% acetic acid. The majority of phenolic acids were extracted from the base hydrolyzed fraction, and further sequential acid hydrolysis of the same extract did not yield any additional amounts of phenolic acid. Therefore all bean samples were ground and hydrolyzed with base in the presence of ascorbic acid and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, and the free phenolic acids were extracted with ethyl acetate and analyzed by HPLC. Ferulic acid, p -coumaric acid and sinapic acid were detected and quantified in all varieties. However, caffeic acid was detected in measurable amount only in two Black bean varieties (T-39 and Eclipse). The average phenolic acid content of dry bean sample was determined to be 31.2 mg/100 g. Total phenolic acid content among all samples varied between 19.1 and 48.3 mg/100 g of bean samples. Ferulic acid was the most abundant phenolic acid present in all samples, whereas intermediate levels of p -coumaric acid and sinapic acid were extracted from all bean samples. Over 83% of the total phenolic acids were retained in bean samples during the cooking process, and only 2% or less were detected in water extracts during overnight soaking.