cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Editorial: A New Spin on Magnetic Resonance Elastography

The development of hepatic fibrosis is the hallmark of liver disease progression. Identifying fibrosis across the spectrum, from early stages to cirrhosis has become a major unmet need. Newer imaging techniques that measure liver elastography (stiffness) as a surrogate of fibrosis seem to outperform serum tests. The current study compares two-dimensional (2D) gradient-recalled echo magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) to three-dimensional (3D) spin-echo echo-planar imaging MRE. 3D-SE-EPI MRE was able to image more liver volume in less time with fewer technical failures. The current study demonstrates that 3D-SE-EPI MRE appears marginally superior to 2D-GRE and may evolve into the new gold standard.
Real-Time Tidal Volume Estimation Using Iso-surface Reconstruction

Breathing volume measurement has long been an important physiological indication widely used for the diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary diseases. However, most of existing breathing volume monitoring techniques require either physical contact with the patient or are prohibitively expensive. In this paper we present an automated and inexpensive non-contact, vision-based method for monitoring an individual's tidal volume, which is extracted from a three-dimensional (3D) chest surface reconstruction from a single depth camera. In particular, formulating the respiration monitoring process as a 3D spacetime volumetric representation, we introduce a real-time surface reconstruction algorithm to generate omni-direction deformation states of a patient's chest while breathing, which reflects the change in tidal volume over time. These deformation states are then used to estimate breathing volume through a per-patient correlation metric acquired through a Bayesian-network learning process. Through prototyping and implementation, our results indicate that we have achieved 92.2% to 94.19% accuracy in the tidal volume estimations through the experimentation based on the proposed vision-based method.
Burst Suppression Pattern on Electroencephalogram Secondary to Valproic Acid–Induced Hyperammonemic Encephalopathy

Abstract Background Valproic acid may induce hyperammonemic encephalopathy. Various electroencephalogram (EEG) abnormalities have been documented in association with this condition, but not burst suppression, an abnormal EEG pattern that is associated with severe encephalopathy. Methods Serial EEGs, clinical observations, and laboratory findings were analyzed. Patient Description This 13-year-old girl with autism and intractable epilepsy experienced increased seizures; her valproic acid dose was increased and other antiepileptic drugs were administered. She became lethargic, and her EEG showed a burst suppression pattern. Her ammonia concentration was increased to 101 μmol/L and her valproic acid level was increased to 269.9 mg/L. Valproic acid was discontinued and carnitine was administered. Subsequently she became more alert, her ammonia concentration decreased, and her EEG changed from a burst suppression pattern to a continuous pattern. Within three days, she was back to her baseline level of functioning. Conclusions Valproic acid-induced hyperammonemic encephalopathy can produce a burst suppression EEG patternin the patient's.
Contributors and arguments in Australian policy debates on fair use and copyright: the missing discussion of the creative process

A discourse analysis of 350 submissions to two Australian governmental inquiries on introducing fair use to Australian copyright law demonstrates the importance of independent research and expertise in policy debates, but the scarcity of creator voices and attention to the creative process. The absence points to the need for more scholarly research that can transcend stakeholder positions.
Thoracoscopic Repair of Pure Esophageal Atresia

Pure esophageal atresia (EA) constitutes 5–7 % of all esophageal atresias. Isolated EA lacks a tracheoesophageal fistula (TEF) and is characterized by a long distance between the esophageal pouches that often precludes primary anastomosis. We propose a treatment algorithm that incorporates the many anatomical factors affecting the timing and technical approach to esophageal reconstruction. We describe thoracoscopic techniques for esophageal lengthening and reconstruction including delayed primary anastomosis, intrathoracic esophageal elongation, extrathoracic esophageal elongation, and esophageal replacement. Using this algorithm, 80 % of EA can be reconstructed thoracoscopically using the native esophagus with excellent functional outcome.
Mislabeling Obscures the Sale of Threatened and Sustainable Fishes

In response to our recent article (Stawitz et al. 2016), Mariani et al. (2017), Donlan et al. (2017) and Warner et al. (2017) raise important concerns about how our findings could be influenced by our conservation classification system, and potential conservation consequences of misinterpreting our conclusions. We respond here to emphasize our many points of agreement, to clarify that our results should not be interpreted as an overall positive impact of mislabeling on conservation, and to argue that our overall conclusions are robust to data limitations. We discovered some errors in the original manuscript, which have now been corrected in that manuscript and are described in the Supplementary Information to this Correspondence (S1). We address statistical issues raised by Donlan et al. (2017) and Warner et al. (2017) in the Supplementary Information (S2). Finally, we highlight that this study is meant to provide a broad and first analysis; we agree that subsequent finer-scale investigations will greatly inform our understanding of the ecological and financial impacts of seafood mislabeling. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved
Fighting Stereotypes: Public Discourse About Women in Combat

This study examines reader responses to opinion editorials about women in combat and contributes to the literature on women in the military by explaining how contests over sex–gender essentialism a...
Generation of a novel human cytomegalovirus bacterial artificial chromosome tailored for transduction of exogenous sequences.

Abstract The study of herpesviruses, including human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), is complicated by viral genome complexity and inefficient methods for genetic manipulation in tissue culture. Reverse genetics of herpesviruses has been facilitated by propagating their genomes in E. coli as bacterial artificial chromosomes (BACs), which enables complex and precise genetic manipulation using bacterial recombinational systems. Internal capsid volume imposes a strict limit on the length of genome that can be packaged efficiently. This necessitates deletion of presumably nonessential segments of the viral genome to allow for incorporation of the E. coli mini-F plasmid propagation sequence. To avoid deleting viral genes, several BACs utilize a Cre/LoxP system to self-excise the mini-F sequence upon reconstitution of virus in tissue culture. Here, we describe the adaptation of Cre/LoxP to modify the mini-F sequence of the HCMV TB40/E BAC, thus generating a new self-excisable BAC, TB40/E/Cre. After excision of the E. coli propagation sequence, a 2.7 kbp genome length deficit is created due to a preexisting deletion within the US2-US6 coding region. We exploited this deficit and an FKBP12 protein destabilization domain (ddFKBP) to create a novel gene transduction system for studying exogenous proteins during HCMV infection. Using TB40/E/Cre, we: i) found genome length-associated differences in growth and ii) demonstrated its utility as a system capable of efficient transduction of exogenous proteins and regulation of their accumulation over periods as short as 2 h. TB40/E/Cre is a powerful tool of broad applicability that can be adapted to study HCMV replication and cell biology in a variety of contexts.
Globalization and Global Relief Education

With the breakdown of global security, an increase in natural disasters, and a change in the nature of armed conflict, most communities are exposed and vulnerable to some sort of hazard that could easily become a disaster if not managed or mitigated. As such, education in emergencies should not be an isolated reaction but rather an ever-present preemptive action.
Care Quality for Adult Medicaid Beneficiaries with Type 2 Diabetes Varies by Primary Care Provider Subspecialty

The study was supported by grant number 20-P91011 from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), formerly Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA), and grant numbers P01 HS10875 and R24 HS11617 from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to the Program for Healthcare Effectiveness Research, Morehouse School of Medicine, Robert M. Mayberry, Ph.D., former Director and Principal Investigator.
Advanced Building Integrated Photovoltaic/Thermal Technologies

Abstract Renewable energy technologies, particularly the integration of photovoltaic (PV) systems in the building envelope, are playing a major role in improving the building energy performance and reducing environmental effects. This chapter presents the state-of-the-art building integrated photovoltaic/thermal (BIPVT) systems. A commercial building integrated thermal electric roofing (BITER) system developed by Atlantis Energy Systems, Inc. and a novel BIPVT solar roof panel developed at Columbia University are discussed in detail. Both the BITER and BIPVT systems are the most advanced solar roof panels to harvest solar energy in the form of PV electricity and also as thermal energy. The performance of the BIPVT roof panel has been evaluated in terms of its thermal efficiency via warm water collection and PV efficiency via the output electricity. The laboratory performance test results demonstrated that significant energy conversion efficiency improvement can be achieved for both electricity generation and heat collection by the BIPVT roof panel system.
Attempts to Prove the Fifth Postulate

This chapter presents the attempts to prove Euclid's fifth postulate. The geometers who criticized Postulate 5 over the centuries did not question that its content was a mathematical fact, but only that it was not brief, simple, and self-evident, as postulates were supposed to be. One of the earliest known critics of Euclid was Posidonius , who found fault with Euclid's definition of parallels, as well as with Euclid's Postulate 5. The chapter explains that as G. Saccheri was working with different basis from that of Euclid, he reached some unfamiliar conclusions. Two parallels are not equidistant from one another. When they have a common perpendicular, they recede from one another on each side of this perpendicular. When they have no common perpendicular, they recede from each other in one direction and are asymptotic in the other direction. The last notable attempts to prove Postulate 5 were those of A. M. Legendre, the French mathematician. Throughout the 19th century non-Euclidean geometry remained a subject of great interest and study.
Inflammatory Sensory Polyganglionopathies

The inflammatory sensory polyganglionopathies are a group of uncommon neurologic disorders primarily affecting dorsal root ganglion cells and their processes. Subdivided into malignant and nonmalignant inflammatory sensory polyganglionopathy, these conditions are important in the differential diagnosis of sensory neuropathy. The clinical significance of malignant inflammatory sensory polyganglionopathy, a paraneoplastic syndrome, rests in the discovery of subclinical cancer, which may produce antineuronal nuclear antibodies directed against the dorsal root ganglion cell and other neurons resulting in characteristic neurologic deficits. Prompt recognition of these distinctive signs and symptoms may result in early diagnosis and improved patient survival and lead to a better understanding of immune-mediated neurologic disease.
UNBOUNDED INVARIANT CURVES FOR FLOWS IN THREE-DIMENSIONAL SPACE

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses unbounded invariant curves for flows in three-dimensional space. The chapter presents an assumption where a vector field X, of class C2 on some Rn (n ≥ 2) and with all first-order partials uniformly bounded on Rn are given. It is known from the established theory of linear differential equations that there will exist three linearly independent solutions that may be expressed symptotically by means of normal series. Until some convergent method of computing connection coefficients is devised, the solution of the problem in the large cannot be considered as solved.
Parental substance use: How child welfare workers make the case for court intervention

Abstract Parental substance use (PSU) is a factor in many child welfare cases; however, little is known about how child welfare agencies and their workers make the case to juvenile or family courts that PSU-related acts and omissions are harmful to children. This qualitative data-mining study explores the ways in which child welfare workers draw on child maltreatment statutes, risk assessment tools, and practice guidelines to frame evidence and make the case that PSU is harmful or poses a substantial risk of harm to children. Narrative data were extracted from child welfare court reports located in electronic case records from two California counties. Analysis revealed that workers cited multiple sources and types of evidence to make the case that, due to substance use, parents had failed to protect their children from harm or risk of harm and/or had failed to provide for their children's basic needs. Moreover, workers noted that these failures constituted neglect under California law. In addition, similarities and differences emerged within and across counties in how workers made the case that children were in need of protection, which suggested that state and local policy-practice guidelines influenced the structure of court reports and arguments made for state intervention. Implications for policy and practice are discussed and recommendations for future research are identified.
Word Problems: Abundant and Deficient Data.

What constitutes a good problem in the teaching and learning of mathematics? Quite likely, numerous characteristics come to mind in this difficult-to-define problem type. A frequent answer states that a good problem conforms to carefully worded learning objectives. Such a response may indicate that one knows or can express all the goals in the educational program to ward which he is working (see Atkin 1968). Objectives thus become rather rigid in form, hampering in many respects the stu dent's opportunity for exploration. A strict adherence to rigidly worded, easy-to-iden tify objectives is reflected in many of the verbal problems assigned to students. Stressed objectives rather typically call for translating the words of the problem into symbols, writing the mathematical model, and following through numerically to a correct solution. Moreover, the various problems ordinarily contain data in just the right amount for solving and are thus char acterized by their elegance of wording and conciseness. It is a violation of this descrip tion that opens the door to consideration of those problems containing excessive, incon sistent, or inadequate data in their formula tion. Such unconventional problems may well give rise to the unanticipated or per haps to a situation not altogether covered by stated learning objectives. These rather significant types of unconventional prob lems will be dealt with in the discussion that follows. The case for abundant data will be considered first. The student is usually perplexed by a solution to a problem that fails to use all the given information. The guiding, unwrit ten rule seems to classify such a "solution" as either incomplete or incorrect. This ob servation points out a characteristic of cer tain problems that the skillful teacher of mathematics must acknowledge. The basic question thus raised is "Does unnecessary information in the statement of a problem have instructional merit?"
Type I Interferon Potentiates IgA Immunity to Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection During Infancy

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection is the most frequent cause of hospitalization in infants and young children worldwide. Although mucosal RSV vaccines can reduce RSV disease burden, little is known about mucosal immune response capabilities in children. Neonatal or adult mice were infected with RSV; a subset of neonatal mice received interferon alpha (IFN-α) (intranasal) prior to RSV infection. B cells, B cell activating factor (BAFF) and IgA were measured by flow cytometry. RSV specific IgA was measured in nasal washes. Nasal associated lymphoid tissue (NALT) and lungs were stained for BAFF and IgA. Herein, we show in a mouse model of RSV infection that IFN-α plays a dual role as an antiviral and immune modulator and age-related differences in IgA production upon RSV infection can be overcome by IFN-α administration. IFN-α administration before RSV infection in neonatal mice increased RSV-specific IgA production in the nasal mucosa and induced expression of the B-cell activating factor BAFF in NALT. These findings are important, as mucosal antibodies at the infection site, and not serum antibodies, have been shown to protect human adults from experimental RSV infection.
Spectral parameterization for linear mixed models applied to confounding of fixed effects by random effects

Abstract Linear mixed models (LMMs) are a commonly-used tool for fitting linear models with correlated errors across a wide variety of fields. However, adding random effects to a linear model can cause unexpected large changes in fixed effect estimates relative to the same model without random effects, and the process by which such changes occur is not well understood. We present the spectral parameterization of LMMs as a tool for understanding such confounding, and develop diagnostics for evaluating the effect on fixed effect estimates of collinearities between columns of the fixed effect and reparameterized random effect design matrices, as well as individual observations. We also present spectral parameterizations of ANOVA-like models, intrinsic conditional autoregressive models, and approximations to Gaussian processes.
An a Posteriori Error Estimate for Scanning Electron Microscope Simulation with Adaptive Mesh Refinement

The intensity variation in a scanning electron microscope is a complex function of sample topography and composition. Measurement accuracy is improved when an explicit accounting for the relationship between signal and measurand is made. Because the determinants of the signal are many, the theoretical understanding usually takes the form of a simulator. For samples with nonconducting regions that charge, one phase of the simulation is finite element analysis to compute the electric field. The size of the finite element mesh, and consequently computation time, can be reduced through the use of adaptive mesh refinement. We present a new a posteriori local error estimator and adaptive mesh refinement algorithm for the scanning electron microscope simulation. This error estimate is designed to minimize the error in the electron trajectories, rather than the energy norm of the error that traditional error estimators minimize. Using a test problem with a known exact solution, we show that the adaptive mesh can achieve the same error in electron trajectories as a carefully designed hand-graded mesh while using 3.5 times fewer vertices and 2.25 times less computation time.
Multiple predictively equivalent risk models for handling missing data at time of prediction: With an application in severe hypoglycemia risk prediction for type 2 diabetes.

Abstract The presence of missing data at the time of prediction limits the application of risk models in clinical and research settings. Common ways of handling missing data at the time of prediction include measuring the missing value and employing statistical methods. Measuring missing value incurs additional cost, whereas previously reported statistical methods results in reduced performance compared to when all variables are measured. To tackle these challenges, we introduce a new strategy, the MMTOP algorithm (Multiple models for Missing values at Time Of Prediction), which does not require measuring additional data elements or data imputation. Specifically, at model construction time, the MMTOP constructs multiple predictively equivalent risk models utilizing different risk factor sets. The collection of models are stored and to be queried at prediction time. To predict an individual’s risk in the presence of incomplete data, the MMTOP selects the risk model based on measurement availability for that individual from the collection of predictively equivalent models and makes the risk prediction with the selected model. We illustrate the MMTOP with severe hypoglycemia (SH) risk prediction based on data from the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) study. We identified 77 predictively equivalent models for SH with cross-validated c-index of 0.77 ± 0.03. These models are based on 77 distinct risk factor sets containing 12–17 risk factors. In terms of handling missing data at the time of prediction, the MMTOP outperforms all four tested competitor methods and maintains consistent performance as the number of missing variables increase.
In vivo antitumor activity by dual stromal and tumor-targeted oncolytic measles viruses

The tumor stroma acts as a barrier that limits the efficacy of systemically administered oncolytic viruses (OV). We previously demonstrated that stromal-selective, retargeted oncolytic measles viruses (MVs) delay in vivo tumor progression. To further characterize the contribution of stromal targeting to MV's overall in vivo efficacy in an experimental cancer model, a dual targeted oncolytic measles virus (MV-CD46-muPA) able to simultaneously infect murine stromal (via murine uPAR) and human cancer (via CD46) cells was developed. MV-CD46-muPA infected, replicated, and induced cytotoxicity in both murine and human cancer cells. Viral infection was successfully transferred from stromal to tumor cells in vitro, leading to tumor cell oncolysis. Systemic administration of MV-CD46-muPA led to improved antitumor effects in colon (HT-29) cancer xenografts compared to vehicle or CD46 only targeted MVs. These effects were associated with improved tumor viral deposition, increased apoptosis, and decreases in murine stromal endothelial cells and fibroblasts. MV-CD46-muPA modulated cell cycle, survival, proliferation, and metabolic pathways, as determined by functional proteomic analysis of treated tumors. The above findings further validate the concept that dual stromal and tumor cell viral targeting enhances the therapeutic effects of systemically administered OVs and support further preclinical and clinical development of stromal directed virotherapies.
Dafachronic acid and temperature regulate canonical dauer pathways during Nippostrongylus brasiliensis infectious larvae activation.

While immune responses to the murine hookworm Nippostrongylus brasiliensis have been investigated, signaling pathways regulating development of infectious larvae (iL3) are not well understood. We hypothesized that N. brasiliensis would use pathways similar to those controlling dauer development in the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, which is formally known as the “dauer hypothesis.” To investigate whether dafachronic acid activates the N. brasiliensis DAF-12 homolog, we utilized an in vitro reporter assay. We then utilized RNA-Seq and subsequent bioinformatic analyses to identify N. brasiliensis dauer pathway homologs and examine regulation of these genes during iL3 activation. In this study, we demonstrated that dafachronic acid activates the N. brasiliensis DAF-12 homolog. We then identified N. brasiliensis homologs for members in each of the four canonical dauer pathways and examined their regulation during iL3 activation by either temperature or dafachronic acid. Similar to C. elegans, we found that transcripts encoding antagonistic insulin-like peptides were significantly downregulated during iL3 activation, and that a transcript encoding a phylogenetic homolog of DAF-9 increased during iL3 activation, suggesting that both increased insulin-like and DAF-12 nuclear hormone receptor signaling accompanies iL3 activation. In contrast to C. elegans, we observed a significant decrease in transcripts encoding the dauer transforming growth factor beta ligand DAF-7 during iL3 activation, suggesting a different role for this pathway in parasitic nematode development. Our data suggest that canonical dauer pathways indeed regulate iL3 activation in the hookworm N. brasiliensis and that DAF-12 may be a therapeutic target in hookworm infections.
Cognitive–Behavioral Group Therapy Versus a Wait-List Control in the Treatment of African American Women with Panic Disorder

This study examined the efficacy of group Panic Control Therapy (PCT; D. H. Barlow & M. G. Craske, 1994) for African Americans. Twenty-five African American women were assigned to either a treatment or wait-list control (WLC). Treatment was 11 group sessions, and wait-list participants did not receive any treatment for the same duration. At pretreatment, both groups were moderately anxious and depressed. At posttreatment, the PCT group experienced a significant reduction in panic frequency, avoidance behavior, state and trait anxiety, and anxiety sensitivity. There was no significant change on these variables for the WLC. There was a trend for change in depression among the PCT group only. On average, 54% of the treated group was classified as recovered, 17% as improved but not recovered, and 27% as unimproved. As many as 95% of the WLC were unimproved. The overall effect size of the study was comparable to that reported in previous studies of cognitive treatments incorporating interoceptive exposure with White Americans. These preliminary results suggest that CBT for panic is effective with African American women with panic disorder.
Accounting for US public funding in drug development: how can we better balance access, affordability, and innovation?

With the price of prescription drugs increasing rapidly, Ameet Sarpatwari, Jerry Avorn, and Aaron Kesselheim explore the ways US public funding supports drug development and identify policy reforms to help ensure that patients can affordably access therapies arising from such support
Romosozumab: A Novel Agent in the Treatment for Postmenopausal Osteoporosis:

Objective: To review the safety and efficacy of romosozumab (Evenity) in the treatment of osteoporosis in women. Data Sources: An English-language search of PubMed and Medline (1966 to August 2020)...
Comparison of Biomechanical Factors Before and After UCL Surgery in Baseball Athletes: A Systematic Review With Meta-analysis:

Background:Ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) reconstruction (UCLR) and repair (UCLr) are the gold standards in the treatment of UCL injuries. Although return-to-play timelines after UCLR have been es...
Values (Mis)alignment: Exploring Tensions Between Platform and LGBTQ+ Community Design Values

Social platforms hold great promise for supporting marginalized communities, such as the LGBTQ+ community, yet they are frequently sites of further stigmatization and harm. By engaging a diverse sample of 31 US LGBTQ+ users in five qualitative, design-based value elicitation exercises, we find that misalignments between perceived platform values and the values of the marginalized users they serve are at the heart of this disconnect. We inductively identify two community-based design values for supporting LGBTQ+ users: self-determination and inclusion. These values can be used as design heuristics for both improving existing platforms as well as guiding future new platform development. Based on participant feedback, we provide directions for enacting these values to better align platform values with this marginalized population's needs.
Underexpanded Jet for Testing Laser-Based Combustion Diagnostics

The design, construction, and operation of an underexpanded jet facility developed as a test  ow eld for laserbased supersonic combustion diagnostics are described. The continuous-running device accelerates hot gases from a 160-kPa, 2000-K, stoichiometric H2 /Air combustion chamber through a 3.15-mm i.d. alumina tube into a 11-kPa chamber. The resulting underexpanded jet of  ame species provides a range of  ow eld parameters (M = 1–4, T = 1700–500 K, P = 72.8–2.7 kPa, and 1⁄2 = 0.12–0.004 kg/m3 ) typical of practical supersonic combustion experiments. The modeling of the jet  ow eld using an axisymmetric Navier–Stokes code is also described.
Utilization of PPi as an Energy Source by a Clostridium sp

Abstract The growth of an anaerobic, spore-forming rod we have isolated from the cockroach gut after enrichment on media containing PPi was stimulated by the presence of PPi. The doubling time decreased and cell yield increased proportionately to PPi concentrations of up to 0.35%. A similar stimulation of the growth of Desulfotomaculum sp. by PPi has been reported. The PPi-stimulated Clostridium sp. fermented a number of sugars with the production of hydrogen, acetate, and butyrate, with smaller amounts of ethanol and butanol being produced from some substrates. The fermentation products were not qualitatively changed by the presence of PPi, but significantly more hydrogen was produced. The organism contained several of the enzymes previously reported from Entamoeba sp. and Propionibacterium sp., in which PPi serves as a source of a high-energy bond in place of ATP. These include significant amounts of pyruvate-phosphate dikinase and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxytransphosphorylase. The activities of many of the catabolic enzymes of the organism, as well as of its phosphatases and pyrophosphatase, were similar whether it was grown in the presence or absence of PPi. The organism did not accumulate intracellular polyphosphate granules but stored large amounts of glycogen.
The frustrations of virtue: the myth of moral neutrality in psychotherapy

This article questions a number of widely held views of the role of values in psychotherapy. It begins with a discussion of the now largely discredited view that psychotherapy can be value free. It also broadens this challenge to question the popular idea that values form an inescapable part of the therapeutic encounter. While this view is correct in outline, it is necessary to reject the underlying conception of values as largely arbitrary preferences that the client and the therapist bring to the encounter, as this fails to do justice to the inherently ethical nature of psychotherapy. It argues that we should recover the Greek notion of therapy as essentially concerned with the character of a person. In other words, the goal of therapy is virtue.
Many Perspectives on Swinging

The Pendulum . A Case Study in Physics. By Gregory L. Baker and James A. Blackburn . Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2005. 300 pp. $89.50, £45. ISBN 0-19-856754-5. Offering the pendulum as a case study of a physical system, the authors examine it from the perspectives of elementary and advanced classical physics, chaos dynamics, and quantum mechanics.
Sustainable Financing for Controlling Transboundary Pollution by Shipping in the Malacca Straits - Options and Implications

Pollution from shipping is a major issue in the Straits of Malacca (SOM). Unless appropriate measures are taken, pollution may increase as traffic through the SOM grows. This paper examines alternative mechanisms to finance straits-wide, transboundary measures to prevent or control pollution from shipping in the SOM. Cooperative programs and various user charges for cost of services are examined, and issues and options for financing these services presented. The implications of financing alternatives are assessed in general terms using the criteria of economic efficiency, fairness, transaction costs, impact on behaviour, and political feasibility.
Chapter 11 Mathematica for economists

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the design of mathematica, the front end, programming, packages, mathsource, and application in economics. Mathematica is a computer program that can help in mathematics. It can be used to do symbolic, numeric, and graphical analysis. There are two parts to the Mathematica program: the kernel and the front end. The kernel is the basic computational engine and is more-or-less platform independent; the front-end is slightly different for each platform. These two programs can be run separately: the front end can run on a Macintosh while the kernel executes on a remote workstation or a supercomputer. Mathematica keeps a record of a session in a format known as a “Notebook.” This is an ASCII file and is essentially machine independent. It allows the input and output of Mathematica to be organized in a convenient way. Mathematica also has tools for procedural programming, which is the style of programming used in Fortran, Pascal, and C. However, these tools—DO loops, WHILE loops, and the like—are normally not the best way to program in Mathematica.
The Difficulty of Tolerance: Human rights as a neutral concern

The thesis that human rights should be an important determinant of foreign policy derives support from certain ideas about what human rights are like. These include the following. Human rights, it is held, are a particularly important class of moral considerations. Their gross and systematic violation represents not just the failure to meet some ideal but rather a case of falling below minimum standards required of political institutions. Second, human rights are of broad application . They apply not only to countries that have recognized these rights in their legal institutions, and not merely to countries that are “like us” in their political traditions or in their economic development, but to virtually all countries. Human rights are not controversial in the way that other political and economic issues are. This is not to say that everyone respects them or that there is full agreement about what they entail. But the central human rights are recognized, for example, in the constitutions of countries whose political principles are otherwise quite divergent. This normal acceptance, and the fact that violations of human rights are not confined to governments of any particular ideological stripe but occur both on the left and on the right, lend support to the idea that concern for human rights is a ground for action that is neutral with respect to the main political and economic divisions in the world.
Predicting lifetimes of materials and material structures

The mechanical strength of brittle materials under stress is of prime importance in applications where allowable design stress, lifetime, and reliability are critical issues. A proper analysis should enable an engineer to select an allowable design stress that will permit a brittle component to function for the expected lifetime with an acceptable low probability of failure. It is the purpose of this paper to provide the background for assessing the mechanical reliability of brittle materials under tensile strength.
Presleep cognitive hyperarousal and affect as factors in objective and subjective insomnia.

The role of presleep cognition in insomnia was studied in normal sleepers and insomniacs with either (1) psychophysiological insomnia, an objective disorder of initiating and maintaining sleep (DIM...
Oral reading for language in aphasia: impact of aphasia severity on cross-modal outcomes in chronic nonfluent aphasia

This study examined the efficacy of a treatment, Oral Reading for Language in Aphasia (ORLA), for individuals with chronic nonfluent aphasia of varying severity levels. With ORLA, the person with aphasia systematically and repeatedly reads sentences aloud, first in unison with the clinician and then independently. Following a period of no treatment, 25 individuals with chronic nonfluent aphasia received 24 sessions of ORLA, 1 to 3 times per week. A small, but significant mean change in the Western Aphasia Battery (WAB) Aphasia Quotient (AQ) was obtained from pre- to post-treatment. When subjects were divided by severity, medium effect sizes were obtained for all severity levels from pre- to post-treatment for the WAB AQ. Medium effect sizes were obtained for the severe aphasia group on the WAB reading subtests only, for the moderate aphasia group on the discourse measures only, and for the mild to moderate aphasia group on both the discourse and WAB writing subtests. Although more intensive therapy is preferred, individuals with chronic nonfluent aphasia may improve their language skills with low-intensity ORLA treatment, and differences in modality-specific outcomes may be anticipated based on the severity of the aphasia.
Vividness in the recall of English nominalizations

Rohrman (1968) presented data which purported to show that variations in deep structure could predict the recall of English nominalizations that had identical surface structures. Evidence is presented which suggests that semantic vividness was confounded with Rohrman’s experimental manipulations, and it is argued that his results can be explained solely in terms of vividness.
Prospective study of serum dihydrotestosterone and subsequent risk of benign prostatic hyperplasia in community dwelling men: the Rancho Bernardo Study.

Purpose: Little is known about midlife serum levels of dihydrotestosterone and other androgens before the onset of clinical benign prostatic hyperplasia in community dwelling older men.Materials and Methods: We measured sex steroid hormones between 1984 and 1987 in the Rancho Bernardo Study. Between 1992 and 1996 surviving participants were evaluated for benign prostatic hyperplasia at followup clinic visits. Benign prostatic hyperplasia was defined as a history of noncancer prostate surgery or a medical diagnosis of benign prostatic hyperplasia. Regression modeling was used to examine associations of serum hormone measures with benign prostatic hyperplasia.Results: In 340 surviving participants with complete data available and no history of prostate cancer or benign prostatic hyperplasia at baseline mean ± SD age was 64 ± 9 years and mean followup was 8.4 ± 0.8 years. Men who reported benign prostatic hyperplasia during followup were older at baseline than those who did not (p <0.001). Higher baseline se...
Treatment of precocious puberty with LHRH analogue in combination with cyproterone acetate-further experience.

SUMMARY Six girls and one boy with precocious puberty were treated with a superactive LHRH analogue (D-TRP6-LHRH) for periods ranging from 1 year to 2 years and 3 months. In the first phase of the treatment it was administered in combination with cyproterone acetate (CyA) to counteract an early stimulatory effect until inhibition of gonadotrophin secretion was achieved. The gonadotrophin-dependent signs i.e. gonadarche, showed sustained arrest and even regression. Gonadal sex steroids decreased but the adrenal androgens were unaffected. In four patients who showed progression of the angrogen-dependent signs (adrenarche), despite suppression of gonadotrophins, increasing the dosage of the LHRH analogue was ineffective and combined therapy with CyA was reinstituted in three of them because of accelerated growth and bone maturation. It is concluded that at present the treatment of choice for precocious puberty is the daily administration of a superactive LHRH analogue such as D-TRP6-LHRH, together with CyA in the initial stage, and at a later state if adrenarche progresses too rapidly.
NOAA organic act planned

Comprehensive enabling legislation for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is in the works and should reach consideration by Congress during the current session, according to information from NOAA's University Affairs Office. An organic act similar to those that undergird the National Science Foundation and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is needed, say NOAA officials, because much of NOAA's structure and duties are derived from old statutes, delegations of authority, and transfers of programs from other agencies. In the past 10 years, nearly 100 statutes that govern NOAA activities have been added, according to a member of NOAA's congressional affairs staff, and some NOAA missions have no authorizing legislation.
Geotextile dewatering of flocculated, fiber reinforced fly-ash slurry

Coal-based thermal power plants are a principal source of power generation in many industrialized countries. Consequently, fly ash and other coal combustion residuals are produced in significant quantities and must be appropriately managed, most commonly using wet-storage impoundments. Concurrent with diminishing impoundment capacity and increasing beneficial reuse of coal residuals worldwide, legislation is proposed in the US to close or liner retrofit all existing impoundments. Each of these progressions necessitates an increase in the dredging, dewatering, and transport of wet-disposal ash sludge. In recent years, geotextile tubes have increasingly been used to efficiently and economically dewater a number of low percent-solids sediments, by-products, and wastes. A laboratory investigation was conducted for studying the efficacy of geotextile tubes for dewatering hydraulically transported fly ash slurry. The dewatering behavior of unmodified fly ash was compared with that of specimens reinforced with randomly dispersed flexible PVA fibers and/or flocculated with optimized polyacrylamide. Results indicate that geotextile tubes can be effectively used for dewatering flocculated fly ash slurries and that the strength of retained fly ash can be significantly improved by adding reinforcement fibers at 1% of dry solids mass.
Moving crucifixes in modern Spain

Why are religious visions believed only in certain times and places? In this book William Christian investigates the settings and responses to a series of group visions reported by Spaniards in rural Galicia, Valencia, Cantabria and Navarre in the early part of this century - the most notable one involving the crucifix at Limpia, where Jesus was first seen agonizing on the cross during a mission service in March of 1991. In light of the social strife and strong anti-clerical movements of the period, the author examines how gender and religious politics influenced the experiences of seers and the interpretation of their visions by church officials, journalists and the public.
Obtaining Potential Field Solutions with Spherical Harmonics and Finite Differences

Potential magnetic field solutions can be obtained based on the synoptic magnetograms of the Sun. Traditionally, a spherical harmonics decomposition of the magnetogram is used to construct the current- and divergence-free magnetic field solution. This method works reasonably well when the order of spherical harmonics is limited to be small relative to the resolution of the magnetogram, although some artifacts, such as ringing, can arise around sharp features. When the number of spherical harmonics is increased, however, using the raw magnetogram data given on a grid that is uniform in the sine of the latitude coordinate can result in inaccurate and unreliable results, especially in the polar regions close to the Sun. We discuss here two approaches that can mitigate or completely avoid these problems: (1) remeshing the magnetogram onto a grid with uniform resolution in latitude and limiting the highest order of the spherical harmonics to the anti-alias limit; (2) using an iterative finite difference algorithm to solve for the potential field. The naive and the improved numerical solutions are compared for actual magnetograms and the differences are found to be rather dramatic. We made our new Finite Difference Iterative Potential-field Solver (FDIPS) a publicly available code so that other researchers can also use it as an alternative to the spherical harmonics approach.
A FANTASY CONSTRUCT OF TELEVISION VIEWING

A construct of mental process during television viewing involvement is proposed, based on a cognitive-affective theory of fantasy activity. Modeling the mental process by which television communication operates is important for a more substantial understanding of self-defined viewing behavior as well as the medium's possible effects. Normal fantasy represents a psychological baseline of low arousal to which ideation returns when not engaged in goal-striving, directed thought, or environmental scanning. Fantasy reprocesses material from long-term memory related to “current concerns”—that is, action plans that have been interrupted, but not abandoned. Normative television usage facilitates responses analagous to self-generated fantasy. Because viewer perceptions of content cues conform to anticipated scripts, sampling styles of viewing allow for efficiency of processing. Three procedures for researching people's interpretive processes and expectations during viewing offer an initial glimpse at some new form...
Mod A: a post-translational mutation affecting phosphorylated and sulfated glycopeptides in Dictyostelium discoideum.

The Mod A mutation inDictyostelium discoideum results in a post-translational modification which reduces the activity and electrophoretic mobility of a group of lysosomal glycoproteins. To determine whether this mutation might affect protein bound oligosaccharides, metabolically labeled [2]3H-mannose glycopeptides were isolated from wild-type (AX3) and mutant cells (M31) ofDictyostelium discoideum. A group of large, negatively charged glycopeptides are significantly depleted in strain M31 compared to AX3. Cells of each strain double labeled with3H-mannose and35SO4 or32PO4 showed that the large, negatively charged glycopeptides of AX3 contain both sulfate and phosphate while those of M31 are depleted in these groups. The kinetics of35SO4 release from the glycopeptides of each strain suggested that both contained similar sulfated sugar(s), but that M31 glycopeptides contained three-fold less than those of AX3. Acid hydrolysis of32PO4 containing3H-mannose glycopeptides showed the presence of3H-mannose-6-32-P-phosphate in the AX3 hydrolysates while the glycopeptides of M31 contain only 15% as much mannose-6-phosphate as those of AX3.
Congenital pyloric atresia and junctional epidermolysis bullosa: a report of long-term survival and a review of the literature.

Abstract The coexistence of congenital pyloric atresia (PA) and epidermolysis bullosa (EB) in newborns is a rare but distinct association. Mortality is high. In particular, a universally fatal outcome has been reported in neonates born with the junctional type of EB and PA. This has led some investigators to advocate that surgical correction of PA be withheld to obviate needless suffering. We treated five patients, including one set of siblings. Maternal hydramnios and nonbilious vomiting were constant features. Delayed passage of meconium was found in four. Plain x-rays demonstrated gastric dilatation in an otherwise gasless abdomen. Blistering skin lesions were noted at birth in four and developed soon after in the last patient. All lesions were determined to be junctional EB based on electronmicroscopy. The clinical course for these children has been far better than the literature predicts. Successful repair of PA was performed after appropriate stabilization. One infant died at 4 months of age of staphyloccal septicemia, malnutrition, and sepsis from chronic urinary tract obstruction. Another child, born with dysmorphic features to consanguineous parents, is 9 years old and has a seizure disorder. The remaining three are alive and well at 17 months, and 9 and 16 years. The oldest two are siblings. In all four surviving patients, the blistering nonscarring lesions were found to significantly improve in severity, duration, and occurrence with age. Presently, these lesions are mild and require little therapy. Their nails, initially normal at birth, have become discoloured, thickened, and dystrophic. The management of pitted, carious, and yellow teeth is currently the major problem. Healthy, long-term survival in patients with junctional EB and PA is documented in this report. Nonoperative management of PA is inappropriate in the stable neonate with EB.