cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Absorption Coefficient Measurements of Aerosol Particle-Laden Filters using Laser Heating

The absorption coefficient of carbonaceous-laden quartz filters at conditions relevant to thermal optical analysis was determined using a novel approach of rapid and controlled heating with laser radiation. Substance absorptivity is determined by perturbing the sample temperature from a preselected steady state, and monitoring the thermal response during decay back to steady state, along with thermal energy conservation. Results were obtained for clean quartz filters and for filters contaminated with aerosol particles from three different cities (Atlanta, Seattle, and Los Angeles). Absorption enhancement effects were investigated by comparing the absorption coefficient for stacked filters with different orientations. The absorption coefficient, in general, decreased with steady-state sample temperature. The absorption coefficient of two individual filters was less than the same two filters stacked together. The highest values were obtained for two stacked filters with the particle side facing one another. Nomenclature
Substrate specificity in the control of digestive enzymes in larvae of the black carpet beetle

Abstract When starved larvae of the black carpet beetle, Attagenus megatoma, were fed selected diets, increases in proteolytic, trypsin, and chymotrypsin activity were correlated with total midgut protein and not with the amount of food consumed. Although larvae initially consumed more of a starch diet than of 2 diets that contained added protein, total protease activity in these larvae was minimal. Starch-fed larvae and larvae fed a casein-sucrose diet had a consistently higher level of sucrase activity than larvae fed an all-casein diet. These total results support a secretagogue mechanism for control of digestive enzyme synthesis in insects. In addition, the absence of parallel stimulation of different digestive enzymes by a single substrate (starch) indicated nutrient class specificity in the control of inducible midgut enzymes in this species.
The reliability, validity, and stability of a measure of physical activity in the elderly

Abstract Objective: To assess the reliability, validity, and stability of an accelerometer-based monitor of physical activity in an elderly population. Design: Six studies were conducted to assess the Tritrac, a newly available accelerometer capable of storing three-dimensional activity data collected in minute epochs. After initial bench testing, the waist-worn devices were assessed for test-retest reliability during sitting and treadmill walking at 1mph and 2mph. Validity testing examined the Tritrac's ability to discriminate between different levels of physical activity and also compared the Tritrac with an established wrist-worn acclerometer, the Actigraph. Stability of the measure was examined over a period of 3 to 7 days, and in a subset of subjects this measurement was performed for a second week. Setting and Subjects: Residents of a VA Nursing Home ( n = 40; mean age=76), participants in an in-home nonaerobic exercise program ( n = 36; mean age=77), and community participants in an aerobic exercise program ( n = 10; mean age=71). Results: Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) for both the bench testing and test-retest reliability were .97. The device discriminated among subjects independently categorized as sedentary, moderately active, or active ( F = 49.4, p = .0001) and between specific activities of varying intensity ( F = 114.5, p = .0001). Tritrac and Actigraph measurement comparison showed a correlation of r = .77, p = .0001. Stability of the measure was demonstrated by ICCs=.81 and .78 for mean activity values and proportion of time spent in sedentary activity, respectively. No significant differences were observed when comparing activity measured for two separate weeks. Conclusion: The Tritrac is a reliable and valid instrument producing activity measurement that was stable over time in the elderly population we studied. During our longitudinal testing, 20% of the subjects did not comply with wearing the device; this noncompliance issue must be considered in any use of the Tritac.
Tree-Based Orthogonal Matching Pursuit Algorithm for Signal Reconstruction

Recent studies in linear inverse problems have recognized the sparse representation of unknown signal in a certain basis as an useful and effective prior information to solve those problems. In many multiscale bases (e.g. wavelets), signals of interest (e.g. piecewise-smooth signals) not only have few significant coefficients, but also those significant coefficients are well-organized in trees. We propose to exploit this sparse tree representation as additional prior information for linear inverse problems with limited numbers of measurements. In particular, our proposed algorithm named tree-based orthogonal matching pursuit (TOMP) is shown to provide significant better reconstruction compared to methods that only use sparse representation assumption.
P50 suppression is not affected by attentional manipulations

Auditory evoked potentials (EP) to high or moderate intensity, single or paired clicks were recorded from normal young adult subjects. A choice-reaction-time paradigm had two sets of instructions, for intensity discrimination and for number (single versus paired stimulus) discrimination. For intensity discrimination, the second click had no informative value and its N100 amplitude was markedly reduced relative to the first click. For number discrimination, the presence or absence of the second click provided the salient information, and N100 amplitude was actually slightly larger for the second compared to the first click. In contrast, the attentional manipulation had no effect on P50 amplitude, which showed over 50% suppression from the first to the second click for both tasks. Thus, suppression of P50 amplitude to the second of a pair of clicks is insensitive to attentional manipulations that have major effects on N100 amplitude. These findings suggest that abnormalities of schizophrenic P50 suppression reflect neuronal rather than psychological phenomena.
2. SYNTHESIS OF THE C.14-C.26 HYDROPHILIC DOMAIN OF AMPHIDINOLIDE B1 AND FORMATION OF THE (E)-1,1', 3-TRISUBSTITUTED DIENE SECTOR

Abstract In the preceding letter, we described a synthesis of the conserved C.1–C.13 hydrophobic domain common to the potent B-type amphidinolides. In this letter, we present syntheses of the C.14–C.26 hydrophilic domain specific to amphidinolide B1 and a model for uniting the hydrophobic and hydrophilic domains to form the ( E )-1,1′,3-trisubstituted diene.
Initialization of an ENSO Forecast System Using a Parallelized Ensemble Filter

Abstract As a first step toward coupled ocean–atmosphere data assimilation, a parallelized ensemble filter is implemented in a new stochastic hybrid coupled model. The model consists of a global version of the GFDL Modular Ocean Model Version 4 (MOM4), coupled to a statistical atmosphere based on a regression of National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) reanalysis surface wind stress, heat, and water flux anomalies onto analyzed tropical Pacific SST anomalies from 1979 to 2002. The residual part of the NCEP fluxes not captured by the regression is then treated as stochastic forcing, with different ensemble members feeling the residual fluxes from different years. The model provides a convenient test bed for coupled data assimilation, as well as a prototype for representing uncertainties in the surface forcing. A parallel ensemble adjustment Kalman filter (EAKF) has been designed and implemented in the hybrid model, using a local least squares framework. Comparison experiments demonstrate that t...
Inference for the model of several treatments and a control

Abstract Cohen et al. (2000, J. Multivariate Anal., 72, 50–77) noted that for the tree-order model, under exponential family distribution theory, likelihood inference may have shortcomings. In light of this we offer alternative inference procedures for this model under normal distribution theory and in the nonparametric case as well. We suggest new estimators that are not only free of the practical shortcomings of maximum likelihood estimators, but that have other desirable properties as well. We suggest an alternative to the likelihood ratio test which has desirable practical properties and competitive power properties. In the nonparametric case we offer an alternative to the popular tests based on ranks.
The little database that could: Intermountain Health Care and the uphill quest for prevention of term necrotizing enterocolitis

The little database that could: Intermountain Health Care and the uphill quest for prevention of term necrotizing enterocolitis
Surface and functional characteristics of B cells from lupus-prone murine strains.

Abstract B lymphocyte hyperactivity in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)-prone mice, originall considered a result of imbalances in T-cell subsets, more recently has been attributed to intrinsic abnormalities of B cells. In our experiments cited here, we used a variety of systems to assess the surface phenotypic and functional characteristics of B cells from several SLE strains (NZB, NZB/W, BXSB, MRL/Mp-lpr/lpr). Generation of Ig isotype diversity follows normal pathways in all these SLE strains. B cells from newborn BXSB and MRL/Mp-lpr/lpr mice, as in immunologically normal mice, do not reexpress surface Ig (sIg) after modulation with anti-Ig. In contrast, B cells of newborn New Zealand mice do reexpress sIg after anti-Ig-induced modulation. The rates at which sIg-anti-Ig complexes cap and become endocytosed in all SLE strains are within normal limits. B cells from SLE strains are stimulated mitogenically by F(ab') 2 anti-μ and lipopolysaccharide with indices no different from those of normal B cells. The ontogenic development of Ia + and Lyb5 + cells is normal with the frequency of positive cells and density of alloantigens normal or slightly elevated, respectively. SLE and normal strains are much alike in expression of retroviral envelope gp70 antigen on surfaces of lymphocytes. Anti-gp70 antibodies fail to stimulate mitosis in cells of either SLE or normal strains. However, the frequency of B-cell colony-forming splenocytes is several fold higher in autoimmune mice compared to controls. Expression of acceptor sites for helper messages and of acceptor sites for suppressor messages on B cells is within normal limits in all SLE mice as revealed by the effects of immune response enhancing anti-Lyb3 serum and immune response suppressing anti-Lyb7 serum, respectively. As a whole, these results reaffirm the generalized hyperactivity and advanced maturation of B cells of SLE mice but do not reveal any common surface or functional characteristics which might be responsible for the B-cell abnormality.
Lipid let loose in pulmonary emphysema

The lipid mediator ceramide contributes to tissue destruction in emphysema by promoting apoptosis of structural cells in the lung. This finding challenges a traditional hypothesis for the pathogenesis of emphysema ( pages 491–498 ).
Functional Role of the Active Site Glutamate-368 in Rat Short Chain Acyl-CoA Dehydrogenase†

The acyl-CoA dehydrogenases are a family of flavoenzymes with similar structure and function involved in the metabolism of fatty acids and branched chain amino acids. The degree of overlap in substrate specificity is narrow among these enzymes. The position of the catalytic glutamate, identified as Glu376 in porcine medium chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (MCAD), Glu254 in human isovaleryl-CoA dehydrogenase (IVD), and Glu261 in human long chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (LCAD), has been suggested to affect substrate chain length specificity. In this study, in vitro site-directed mutagenesis was used to investigate the effect of changing the position of the catalytic carboxylate on substrate specificity in short chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (SCAD). Glu368, the hypothetical active site catalytic residue of rat SCAD, was replaced with Asp, Gly, Gln, Arg, and Lys and the wild type and mutant SCADs were produced in Escherichia coli and purified. The recombinant wild type SCAD kcat/K(m) values for butyryl-hexanoyl-, and octanoyl-CoA were 220, 22, and 3.2 microM-1 min-1, respectively, while the Glu368Asp mutant gave kcat/K(m) of 81, 12, and 1.4 microM-1 min-1, respectively, for the same substrates. None of the other mutants exhibited enzyme activity. A Glu368Gly/Gly247Glu double mutant enzyme, which places the catalytic residue at a position homologous to that of LCAD, was also synthesized and purified. It showed kcat/K(m) of 9.3, 2.8, and 1.5 microM-1 min-1 with butyryl-, hexanoyl-, and octanoyl-CoA used as substrates, respectively. These results confirm the identity of Glu368 as the catalytic residue of rat SCAD and suggest that alteration of the position of the catalytic carboxylate can modify substrate specificity.
Identity, Belonging, and Achievement A Model, Interventions, Implications

In this article we discuss how social or group identities affect achievement. We also present a model of identity engagement that describes how a salient social identity can trigger psychological threat and belonging concerns and how these can produce persistent performance decrements, which through feedback loops can increase over time. The character of such processes may be revealed only over time because they are recursive in nature and interact with other factors in chronically evaluative social environments. Finally, we address how this model helped in the development of successful interventions.
Prebiotic synthesis of 5-substituted uracils: a bridge between the RNA world and the DNA-protein world

Under prebiotic conditions, formaldehyde adds to uracil at the C-5 position to produce 5-hydroxymethyluracil with favorable rates and equilibria. Hydroxymethyluracil adds a variety of nucleophiles, such as ammonia, glycine, guanidine, hydrogen sulfide, hydrogen cyanide, imidazole, indole, and phenol, to give 5-substituted uracils with the side chains of most of the 20 amino acids in proteins. These reactions are sufficiently robust that, if uracil had been present on the primitive Earth, then these substituted uracils would also have been present. The ribozymes of the RNA world would have included many of the functional groups found in proteins today, and their catalytic activities may have been considerably greater than presently assumed.
An apparatus for vapor—liquid equilibrium at elevated temperatures and pressures and selected results for the water—ethanol and methanol—ethanol systems

Abstract Niesen, V., Palavra, A., Kidnay, A.J. and Yesavage, V.F., 1986. An apparatus for vapor—liquid equilibrium at elevated temperatures and pressures and selected results for the water—ethanol and methanol—ethanol systems. Fluid Phase Equilibria , 31: 283–298. This paper presents a description of a system that is used to study vapor—liquid equilibrium at elevated temperatures (to 625 K) and pressures (to 10 MPa) for mixtures of compounds that are liquid at room temperature. In the evaluation of the equipment, results were obtained for the water—ethanol system at 150, 200 and 250°C and the methanol—ethanol system at 100 and 140°C. Liquid phase activity coefficients for these two systems were calculated using corrections determined from the modified Soave equation of state. The data obtained for these systems appear to be thermodynamically consistent.
Dust production from the hypervelocity impact disruption of the Murchison hydrous CM2 meteorite: Implications for the disruption of hydrous asteroids and the production of interplanetary dust

Abstract More than half of the C-type asteroids, the dominant type of asteroid in the outer half of the main-belt, show evidence of hydration in their reflectance spectra. In order to understand the collisional evolution of asteroids and the production of interplanetary dust and to model the infrared signature of small particles in the Solar System it is important to characterize the dust production from primary impact disruption events, and compare the disruption of hydrous and anhydrous targets. We performed a hypervelocity impact disruption experiment on an ∼30 g target of the Murchison CM2 hydrated carbonaceous chondrite meteorite, and compared the results with our previous disruption experiments on anhydrous meteorites including Allende, a CV3 carbonaceous chondrite, and nine ordinary chondrites. Murchison is significantly more friable than the ordinary chondrites or Allende. Nonetheless, on a plot of mass of the largest fragment versus specific impact energy, the Murchison disruption plots within the field of the anhydrous meteorites points, suggesting that Murchison is at least as resistant to impact disruption as the anhydrous meteorites, which require about twice the energy for disruption as terrestrial anhydrous basalt targets. We determined the mass–frequency distribution of the debris from the Murchison disruption over a nine order-of-magnitude mass range, from ∼10 −9 g to the mass of the largest fragment produced in the disruption. The cumulative mass–frequency distribution from the Murchison disruption is fit by three power-law segments. For masses >10 −2 g the slope is only slightly steeper than that of the corresponding segment from the disruption of most anhydrous meteorites. Over the range from ∼10 −6 to 10 −2 g the slope is significantly steeper than that for the anhydrous meteorites. For masses −6 g the slopes of both the Murchison and the anhydrous meteorites are almost flat. Thus the Murchison disruption significantly over-produced small fragments (10 −6 –10 −3 g) compared to anhydrous meteorite targets. If the Murchison results are representative of hydrous asteroids, the hydrous asteroids may dominate over anhydrous asteroids in the production of interplanetary dust >100 μm in size, the size of micrometeorites recovered from the polar ices, while both types of asteroids might produce comparable amounts of ∼10 μm interplanetary dust. This would explain the puzzle that polar micrometeorites (>100 μm in size) are similar to hydrous meteorites, while the majority of the ∼10 μm interplanetary dust particles are anhydrous.
Prefrontal and striatal dopaminergic genes predict individual differences in exploration and exploitation

The basal ganglia support learning to exploit decisions that have yielded positive outcomes in the past. In contrast, limited evidence implicates the prefrontal cortex in the process of making strategic exploratory decisions when the magnitude of potential outcomes is unknown. Here we examine neurogenetic contributions to individual differences in these distinct aspects of motivated human behavior, using a temporal decision-making task and computational analysis. We show that two genes controlling striatal dopamine function, DARPP-32 (also called PPP1R1B) and DRD2, are associated with exploitative learning to adjust response times incrementally as a function of positive and negative decision outcomes. In contrast, a gene primarily controlling prefrontal dopamine function (COMT) is associated with a particular type of 'directed exploration', in which exploratory decisions are made in proportion to Bayesian uncertainty about whether other choices might produce outcomes that are better than the status quo. Quantitative model fits reveal that genetic factors modulate independent parameters of a reinforcement learning system.
Impact of apolipoprotein E ε4 and HIV on cognition and brain atrophy: antagonistic pleiotropy and premature brain aging.

Objective The apolipoprotein E (APOE) e4 allele may accelerate the progression of HIV disease, and increase the risk for developing HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND). Whether APOEe4 allele(s) and age may influence brain atrophy in HIV patients is unknown and was evaluated.
Identification of high risk groups in breast cancer.

Endocrine and metabolic factors and genetic socioeconomic and viral associations with breast cancer are discussed. In England and Wales breast cancer is associated with intake of milk products and green vegetables and coronary artery disease mortality rate has been found to correlate positively with breast cancer mortality in 24 parts of the world. Genetic studies have estimated a relative risk of 18.8 among individuals having an excess of the blood group phenotype ss in the S antigen system and a positive association has been found between breast cancer and wet ear wax which is determined by a dominant allele. Oriental women have lower incidence and higher survival rates than do Negroes and Caucasians. Socioeconomically breast cancer incidence rises with increasing income. The isolation of virus particles in the milk of a population with a propensity toward breast cancer lends support to the hypothesis of a viral etiology for the disease. So far none of these associations has allowed identification of individuals having a risk more than 2-3 times that of the general population. It is important therefore to study these factors in combination to improve identification of high-risk individuals. Also most studies have assumed breast cancer to be a single entity. It may be that more refined classification will lead to the emergence of elusive etiologic and epidemiologic relationships.
Identification and Assessment of Gifted Students With Learning Disabilities

(2005). Identification and Assessment of Gifted Students With Learning Disabilities. Theory Into Practice: Vol. 44, Gifted Education, pp. 115-124.
Total skin electron beam therapy with or without adjuvant topical nitrogen mustard or nitrogen mustard alone as initial treatment of T2 and T3 mycosis fungoides

Abstract Purpose: To compare the efficacy of total skin electron beam therapy (TSEBT) with or without adjuvant topical nitrogen mustard (± HN2) with topical nitrogen mustard (HN2) alone as initial management of T2 and T3 mycosis fungoides (MF). Methods and Materials: A retrospective analysis of 148 patients presenting to Stanford from January, 1970 through January, 1995 within 4 months of pathologic diagnosis of MF. Fifty-five patients with T2 and 27 with T3 disease received TSEBT ± HN2. Fifty-four patients with T2 and 12 with T3 disease received HN2 alone. Boosts with radiotherapy were usually administered to cutaneous tumors of patients with T3 disease. Results: TSEBT ± HN2 yielded significantly higher complete response (CR) rates than did HN2 alone in patients with T2 and T3 disease (76% vs 39%, p = 0.03 for T2, and 44% vs 8%, p p = 0.068). However, no significant differences in survival were observed for different management programs for T2 or T3 disease. In T2 disease, both TSEBT and HN2 were as effective as salvage therapy as when utilized as initial therapy. However, salvage therapy in T3 disease was rarely effective. Limited tumor involvement in T3 disease did not correlate with improved survival compared to more generalized tumorous disease. MF contributed to 27% and 68% of deaths in patients with T2 and T3 disease, respectively. Conclusion: Because of high response rates, management of significantly symptomatic or extensive T2 MF should include TSEBT, and adjuvant HN2 should be administered after a CR to TSEBT. Patients with T2 disease who fail TSEBT or HN2 can be salvaged with the other modality. TSEBT is also an effective treatment for T3 disease. The small subset of patients with limited T3 disease may also be treated with HN2 and local radiotherapy to the tumors. Further investigations are necessary to improve the overall outcome for T3 mycosis fungoides.
Contribution of GM-CSF on the enhancement of the T cell-stimulating activity of macrophages

Abstract Mycobacterium leprae is an intracellular parasitic organism that multiplies in macrophages (MO). It inhibits the fusion of mycobacterial phagosome with lysosome and induces interleukin (IL)-10 production from macrophages. However, macrophages are heterogenous in various aspects. We examined macrophages that differentiated from monocytes using either recombinant (r) granulocyte-MO colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) (these MO are named as GM-MO) or rMO colony-stimulating factor (M-CSF) (cells named as M-MO) in terms of the T cell-stimulating activity. Although both macrophages phagocytosed the mycobacteria equally, GM-MO infected with M. leprae and subsequently treated with IFN-γ- and CD40 ligand (L) stimulated T cells to produce interferon-gamma (IFN-γ), but M-MO lacked the ability to stimulate T cells. While M-MO mounted a massive IL-10 production, GM-MO did not produce the cytokine on infection with M. leprae . M. leprae -infected, IFN-γ- and CD40L-treated GM-MO expressed a higher level of HLA-DR and CD86 Ags than those of M-MO, and expressed one of the dominant antigenic molecules of M. leprae , Major Membrane Protein-II on their surface. These results indicate that GM-CSF, but not M-CSF, contributes to the up-regulation of the T cell-stimulating activity of M. leprae -infected macrophages.
Truth and the Absence of Fact – Precis

The book is a collection of articles, on a range of topics; and they were written over a span of almost 30 years, with some major changes of view along the way. This makes a normal precis impractical, so I will confine myself here to a brief synopsis of what these articles have to say about one topic that comes up in all three of the commentaries that follow. The topic is truth, meaning and the content of psychological states, and it is this topic on which my views underwent the most radical change from the early articles to the later ones. Chapters 1, 2, 6 and 7 are from the 1970s, and they advocate both (i) the need for a rather substantial theory of truth conditions and (ii) the central role of truth conditions in the theory of the meaning of expressions and the content of mental states
Non-small cell lung cancer: an overview of diagnosis, staging, and treatment.

Objectives: To review the current status, recent advances and ongoing research efforts related to screening, diagnosis and staging, and treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Data sources: Research studies, review articles, and abstracts relating to NSCLC. Conclusions: Surgery is curative in a small number of patients. Radiation therapy can often control local disease and palliate symptoms; however, it does not impact overall survival. Current chemotherapy regimens have demonstrated ability to prolong survival when compared to “best supportive care”; however, survival benefit is limited to a period of a few weeks or months. Implications for nursing practice: An understanding of treatment modalities and new therapies for NSCLC will help nurses assist patients to make educated decisions about the potential risks and benefits of their therapeutic options.
Vitrification by ultra-fast cooling at a low concentration of cryoprotectants in a quartz micro-capillary: A study using murine embryonic stem cells ☆

Conventional cryopreservation protocols for slow-freezing or vitrification involve cell injury due to ice formation/cell dehydration or toxicity of high cryoprotectant (CPA) concentrations, respectively. In this study, we developed a novel cryopreservation technique to achieve ultra-fast cooling rates using a quartz micro-capillary (QMC). The QMC enabled vitrification of murine embryonic stem (ES) cells using an intracellular cryoprotectant concentration in the range used for slowing freezing (1-2M). The cryoprotectants used included 2M 1,2-propanediol (PROH, cell membrane permeable) and 0.5M extracellular trehalose (cell membrane impermeable). More than 70% of the murine ES cells post-vitrification attached with respect to non-frozen control cells, and the proliferation rates of the two groups were similar. Preservation of undifferentiated properties of the pluripotent murine ES cells post-vitrification cryopreservation was verified using three different types of assays: the expression of transcription factor Oct-4, the presentation of the membrane surface glycoprotein SSEA-1, and the elevated expression of the intracellular enzyme alkaline phosphatase. These results indicate that vitrification at a low concentration (2M) of intracellular cryoprotectants is a viable and effective approach for the cryopreservation of murine embryonic stem cells.
Shock-wave generation and bubble formation in the retina by lasers

The generation of shock waves and bubbles has been experimentally observed due to absorption of sub-nanosecond laser pulses by melanosomes, which are found in retinal pigment epithelium cells. Both the shock waves and bubbles may be the cause of retinal damage at threshold fluence levels. The theoretical modeling of shock wave parameters such as amplitude, and bubble size, is a complicated problem due to the non-linearity of the phenomena. We have used two different approaches for treating pressure variations in water: the Tait Equation and a full Equation Of State (EOS). The Tait Equation has the advantage of being developed specifically to model pressure variations in water and is therefore simpler, quicker computationally, and allows the liquid to sustain negative pressures. Its disadvantage is that it does not allow for a change of phase, which prevents modeling of bubbles and leads to non-physical behavior such as the sustaining of ridiculously large negative pressures. The full EOS treatment includes more of the true thermodynamic behavior, such as phase changes that produce bubbles and avoids the generation of large negative pressures. Its disadvantage is that the usual stable equilibrium EOS allows for no negative pressures at all, since tensile stress is unstable with respect to a transition to the vapor phase. In addition, the EOS treatment requires longer computational times. In this paper, we compare shock wave generation for various laser pulses using the two different mathematical approaches and determine the laser pulse regime for which the simpler Tait Equation can be used with confidence. We also present results of our full EOS treatment in which both shock waves and bubbles are simultaneously modeled.
Reproductive status of western mosquitofish inhabiting selenium-contaminated waters in the Grassland water district, Merced county, California.

This study was implemented to determine if western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) populations in the Grassland Water District suffer from impaired reproduction because of seleniferous inflows of agricultural drainwater from the Grassland Bypass Project. During June to July 2001, laboratory trials with pregnant female fish collected from two seleniferous treatment sites exposed to selenium-laden drainwater and two nonseleniferous reference sites yielded fry that averaged >96% survival at birth. In addition, none of the newborn fry exhibited evidence of teratogenesis, a typical consequence of selenium toxicity. Chemical analysis of postpartum female fish and their newborn fry indicated that mosquitofish from seleniferous sites accumulated relatively high body burdens of selenium (3.96 to 17.5 μg selenium/g in postpartum female fish and 5.35 to 29.2 μg selenium/g in their fry), whereas those from nonseleniferous sites contained lower body burdens (0.40 to 2.72 μg selenium/g in postpartum female fish and 0.61 to 4.68 μg selenium/g in their fry). Collectively, these results strongly suggest that mosquitofish inhabiting selenium-contaminated waters are not experiencing adverse reproductive effects at current levels of selenium exposure.
U.S. Clinical Studies of the Treatment of Anemia with Fluosol‐DA 20%

: This article describes the progress of clinical studies of the perfluorochemical (PFC) emulsion Fluosol-DA 20% in the United States. To date, two studies have been completed and one is in progress. All three studies have been restricted to the treatment of acute anemia in patients who refused blood transfusions on religious grounds, i.e., Jehovah's Witnesses. The first protocol, referred to as the “Humanitarian Protocol“ (no. 79006), was initiated in November 1979. Jehovah's Witness patients who were considered to have a lethal degree of anemia were treated with Fluosol to supplement oxygen transport. Collection of specific data was not mandated in this protocol. Six patients were treated under this protocol until it was replaced by the “Medical Use Protocol“ (no. 79007). In this second study, hemodynamic and oxygen transport data were collected while patients breathed room air and 100% inspired oxygen before and after a Fluosol infusion. Seven patients were treated under this protocol and it was concluded that the PFC was transporting the expected amount of oxygen based on its known oxygen solubility. This increased oxygen transport by the PFC resulted in increased oxygen consumption and arterial and mixed venous blood oxygenation. Two of the seven patients had adverse reactions to a 0.5-ml test dose of Fluosol, manifested by an increase in pulmonary artery systolic pressure. The third and current anemia protocol as of this writing is a randomized controlled study with data collection similar to the Medical Use Protocol. This third protocol, called “Anemia Protocol“ (no. 8105), stipulates that cardiac filling pressures be normalized before Fluosol treatment and then data collected (filling pressures should be similar before and after Fluosol treatment). This modification should permit a separation of the oxygen transport effects of Fluosol from its volume loading effects when compared with a control group.
Eugenic Opportunity Structures: Teaching Genetic Engineering at US Land-Grant Universities Since 1911

The eugenics movement during the first half of the 20th century has been described as a transnational social movement because of the way it flourished on different continents between World Wars I and II. Political opportunity structure is a term used to explain the social rules and resources that enable such a movement to emerge seemingly simultaneously in diverse settings. One opportunity structure in the eugenics movement that requires further exploration is the university. Since US agricultural scientists were so prominent in the transnational eugenics movement, it is especially relevant to document the initiation and persistence of eugenics courses in the US Land-Grant University (LGU) system. By examining course-offerings at LGUs through the 20th century, we demonstrate that eugenics courses were available at prominent US research institutions not only prior to World War I, but also after the end of World War II, when eugenics was considered bad and inappropriate science.
CRT-101 Cocaine Paradox: A Predictor of Myocardial Infarction, Not Premature CAD

In the present study we aim to evaluate major predictors of premature coronary artery disease (PCAD) in patients aged ≤ 35 years undergoing coronary angiography for acute coronary syndrome. We evaluated 224 consecutive patients aged ≤ 35 years who underwent coronary angiography at our
Clinical utility of fixed-dose combinations in hypertension: evidence for the potential of nebivolol/valsartan

Despite significant advances in pharmacologic approaches to treat hypertension during the last decades, hypertension- and hypertension-related organ damage are still a high health and economic burden because a large proportion of patients with hypertension do not achieve optimal blood pressure control. There is now general agreement that combination therapy with two or more antihypertensive drugs is required for targeted blood pressure accomplishment and reduction of global cardiovascular risk. The goals of combination therapies are to reduce long-term cardiovascular events by targeting different mechanism underlying hypertension and target organ disease, to block the counterregulatory pathways activated by monotherapies, to improve tolerability and decrease the adverse effects of up-titrated single agents, and to increase persistence and adherence with antihypertensive therapy. Multiple clinical trials provide evidence that fixed-dose combinations in a single pill offer several advantages when compared with loose-dose combinations. This review discusses the advances in hypertension control and associated cardiovascular disease as they relate to the prospect of combination therapy targeting a third-generation beta (β) 1-adrenergic receptor (nebivolol) and an angiotensin II receptor blocker (valsartan) in fixed-dose single-pill formulations.
On the mechanism of turbulence suppression in free shear flows under acoustic excitation

Acoustic excitation at certain high frequencies has been known to suppress large amplitude fluctuations otherwise occurring naturally in various free shear flows. The phenomenon has been observed in flows with initially laminar or transitional boundary layers. An experimental investigation is conducted to consider two possibilities in regards to the mechanism of the effect. (1) The natural shear layer is self excited by the instability waves already developed in the upstream boundary layer. This is overridden when the shear layer is excited at its maximally unstable mode, causing the observed decrease in the intensities downstream. (2) The upstream boundary layer is in a transitional or buffeted laminar state, characterized by large amplitude unsteady fluctuations, which force the large fluctuations downstream. Excitation trips the upstream boundary layer to full turbulence, reduces the unsteady fluctuations, and thus causes the observed suppression of the intensities throughout the flowfield. The present experimental results refute either of these possibilities to be the general mechanism of the effect.
Family-friendly research and workplace initiative announced

A new U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) initiative aims to increase the participation of women and girls in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) over the next 10 years by providing more flexible research policies, promoting flexible workplace options, and supporting STEM careers for women, Obama administration officials announced on 26 September. Currently, women earn about 41% of STEM doctoral degrees awarded by U.S. educational institutions but make up only about 28% of tenure-track faculty in U.S. colleges and universities, the officials said. “Unfortunately, too many young women drop out of promising careers in science, engineering, and math because of conflicts between their desire to start families and the need to rapidly ramp up their careers,” said John Holdren, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). “The way to help women stay in the STEM jobs pipeline is to create and support more flexible workplace policies that allow a women's career—or a man's, for that matter, but as we know, it's more common for women to give up STEM careers for family reasons—to thrive even as time is allowed for important family responsibilities.”
Allogeneic class I MHC requirement for alloantigen-reactive helper T-lymphocyte responses in vivo. Evidence for indirect presentation of alloantigen.

The mechanisms by which host T cells recognize transplant-associated alloantigens in vivo have not been established. Two alloantigen presentation pathways may be used : (1) allogeneic class I and class II MHC molecules may be recognized directly by host CD8 + and CD4 + cells, respectively, or (2) allogeneic MHC molecules may be processed as foreign peptide and presented by host antigen-presenting cells to CD4 + cells in the context of self class II proteins. In this study, the sponge matrix allograft model was used to examine the relative contributions of these alloantigen presentation pathways to CD4 + T-cell activation in vivo. Limiting dilution analysis was used to quantify the localization of interleukin-2-producing helper T lymphocytes (HTL) following implantation of sponge allografts. Allografts either were disparate at both class I and class II, or were derived from 132-microglobulin knockout (β2M-/-) mice, which express class II but are deficient in class I. Two measures of in vivo HTL function were monitored : (1) the accumulation of HTL within the allograft (a process that is dependent upon antigen-driven cytokine production), and (2) the development of cytolytic alloantibodies. After implantation of sponge allografts expressing both class I and class II, HTL were readily detectable in the allograft, and cytolytic alloantibodies were present in the serum. When mice were implanted with β2M-/- sponge allografts, HTL failed to infiltrate these class I-deficient allografts, and alloantibodies were not detectable in the sera of recipients of β2M-/- sponge allografts. This in vivo requirement for class I expression was not reflected by traditional in vitro measures of HTL function ; cells obtained from lymphoid tissues mounted a mixed lymphocyte response and produced interleukin-2 when stimulated with β2M-/- splenocytes in vitro. One possible interpretation of these data is that in vivo HTL functions are dependent upon the presence of class I-reactive CD8 + T cells. However, HTL readily infiltrated grafts expressing both class I and class II when recipients were depleted of CD8 + T cells, and alloantibodies were produced. These observations support the idea that indirect presentation of allogeneic class I molecules plays a critical role in regulating CD4 + HTL functions associated with allograft rejection in vivo.
Functional Cell Mediated Lympholysis I. Description of the Assay1,2

The anamnestic response by human bi-directional (BD) mixed lymphocyte cultures (MLC) to restimulation by cells of the original stimulating type is generally strikingly reduced as compared to that of standard one-way cultures. This difference was shown not to be related to a change in kinetics nor was it due to exhaustion of the media or soluble factors since fresh media did not ameliorate the effect nor were supernatants from BD cultures found to be suppressive. The relative inhibition was also not reversed by removal of the allogeneic cells by phenotype specific antiserum. Cytotoxic tests with donor and responder specific antisera revealed that the cells bearing that phenotype were dramatically reduced in BD as compared to one-way cultures. Thus, the diminished secondary response appears to be due to cytotoxic elimination of the responder cells. This allogeneic cytotoxicity is dependent on non-T, phagocytic, adherent cells. The phenomenon is called Functional Cell Mediated Lympholysis (F-CML).
A Probit Model of NLRB Bargaining Order Cases in the Appellate Courts

This study examines NLRB bargaining orders that have gone to appeals courts and ascertains what factors influence whether or not the order is enforced and to what degree these factors influence the likelihood of enforcement. Substantial information has been collected from each reported appellate decision that reviewed NLRB bargaining orders issued over a four-year period. A probit regression model is employed to examine whether factors related to an employer’s unfair labor practice campaign are involved in the circuit court’s enforcement decisions or if more weight is given to unrelated factors, such as the circuit in which the appeal is heard or the amount of judicial delay involved in the appeals process.
External noise and the origin and dynamics of structure in convectively unstable systems

Some basic concepts and earlier work on external noise and the convectively unstable Ginzburg-Landau equation are reviewed, and some of the ideas presented in the earlier work are investigated further and extended. In particular, further consideration is given to convective chaos---chaos which only occurs in a moving frame of reference; and slugs--localized structures which are surrounded by a stable stationary state. Some new results on secondary convective instabilities and on periodic systems with a spatially varying instability are discussed. Work on the coupled Ginzburg-Landau equation is reviewed. Actual physical systems are discussed.
Precipitation underestimated in extreme storms in South America

Subtropical South America experiences some of the world's most intense deep convective storms, which generate heavy precipitation. To study such storms, scientists commonly use the Precipitation Radar on the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite. However, studies have shown that the algorithm used to estimate rainfall from this instrument tends to significantly underestimate precipitation in regions of intense deep convection over land.
Estimating near-surface soil moisture availability using a meteorologically driven soil-water profile model

Abstract This paper presents a simple water budget model for determining the vertical profile of soil water content. The model is driven by conventional meteorological and land use data. The modeled solutions of soil water content become independent of their starting conditions after a few weeks to a few months into a simulation depending on rainfall and evapotranspiration. Once the model becomes free of its initial conditions (a state to which we refer as ‘balanced’), the model is driven almost completely by current environmental conditions. Two sets of data were used to validate the model which showed close agreement between simulations and measurements. This paper presents the details of the water budget model and verifications from two field experiments.
Efficient exclusive opportunistic routing for vastly dynamic mobile Ad Hoc networks

This paper addresses the problem of delivering data packets for highly dynamic mobile ad hoc networks in a reliable and timely manner. Most existing ad hoc routing protocols are susceptible to node mobility, especially for large-scale networks. Driven by this issue, we propose an efficient Position-based Opportunistic Routing (POR) protocol which takes advantage of the stateless property of geographic routing and the broadcast nature of wireless medium. When a data packet is sent out, some of the neighbor nodes that have overheard the transmission will serve as forwarding candidates, and take turn to forward the packet if it is not relayed by the specific best forwarder within a certain period of time. By utilizing such in-the-air backup, communication is maintained without being interrupted. Extremely opportunistic routing (ExOR) forwards data in a batch-operated fashion. A flow of data packets are divided into batches. All packets in the same batch carry the same forwarder list when they leave the source node.
Discrepancies in the diagnosis of intraductal proliferative lesions of the breast and its management implications: results of a multinational survey.

To measure discrepancies in diagnoses and recommendations impacting management of proliferative lesions of the breast, a questionnaire of five problem scenarios was distributed among over 300 practicing pathologists. Of the 230 respondents, 56.5% considered a partial cribriform proliferation within a duct adjacent to unequivocal ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) as atypical ductal hyperplasia (ADH), 37.7% of whom recommended reexcision if it were at a resection margin. Of the 43.5% who diagnosed the partially involved duct as DCIS, 28.0% would not recommend reexcision if the lesion were at a margin. When only five ducts had a partial cribriform proliferation, 35.7% considered it as DCIS, while if ≥20 ducts were so involved, this figure rose to 60.4%. When one duct with a complete cribriform pattern measured 0.5, 1.5, or 4 mm, a diagnosis of DCIS was made by 22.6, 31.3, and 94.8%, respectively. When multiple ducts with flat epithelial atypia were at a margin, 20.9% recommended reexcision. Much of these discrepancies arise from the artificial separation of ADH and low-grade DCIS and emphasize the need for combining these two under the umbrella designation of ductal intraepithelial neoplasia grade 1 (DIN 1) to diminish the impact of different terminologies applied to biologically similar lesions.
RANDOMIZED TRIAL OF EARLY VS LATE INTRODUCTION OF SOLID FOODS ON GROWTH AND BODY COMPOSITION. • 666

RANDOMIZED TRIAL OF EARLY VS LATE INTRODUCTION OF SOLID FOODS ON GROWTH AND BODY COMPOSITION. • 666