cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Occurrence, Growth-Temperature Relations and Nuclear Cytology of Protostelium mycophaga Olive and Stoianovitch

SYNOPSIS. Protostelium mycophaga Olive and Stoianovitch was isolated from 7 of 19 plant sources collected in a 15-mile radius of Syracuse, New York. Two of these isolations were made from up-right, nondecomposed plants. Spore diameter measurements of 4 of the isolates gave values that agree with those published for this species. The optimum temperature for the growth of P. mycophaga on enriched corn meal agar and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa was 20 C. Limited growth occurred at 10 C and no growth was observed above 30 C. Mitosis is described from observations on living and stained preparations.
SOD1 oxidation and formation of soluble aggregates in yeast: Relevance to sporadic ALS development

Misfolding and aggregation of copper–zinc superoxide dismutase (Sod1) are observed in neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Mutations in Sod1 lead to familial ALS (FALS), which is a late-onset disease. Since oxidative damage to proteins increases with age, it had been proposed that oxidation of Sod1 mutants may trigger their misfolding and aggregation in FALS. However, over 90% of ALS cases are sporadic (SALS) with no obvious genetic component. We hypothesized that oxidation could also trigger the misfolding and aggregation of wild-type Sod1 and sought to confirm this in a cellular environment. Using quiescent, stationary-phase yeast cells as a model for non-dividing motor neurons, we probed for post-translational modification (PTM) and aggregation of wild-type Sod1 extracted from these cells. By size-exclusion chromatography (SEC), we isolated two populations of Sod1 from yeast: a low-molecular weight (LMW) fraction that is catalytically active and a catalytically inactive, high-molecular weight (HMW) fraction. High-resolution mass spectrometric analysis revealed that LMW Sod1 displays no PTMs but HMW Sod1 is oxidized at Cys146 and His71, two critical residues for the stability and folding of the enzyme. HMW Sod1 is also oxidized at His120, a copper ligand, which will promote loss of this catalytic metal cofactor essential for SOD activity. Monitoring the fluorescence of a Sod1-green-fluorescent-protein fusion (Sod1-GFP) extracted from yeast chromosomally expressing this fusion, we find that HMW Sod1-GFP levels increase up to 40-fold in old cells. Thus, we speculate that increased misfolding and inclusion into soluble aggregates is a consequence of elevated oxidative modifications of wild-type Sod1 as cells age. Our observations argue that oxidative damage to wild-type Sod1 initiates the protein misfolding mechanisms that give rise to SALS.
In vitro phosphorylation and inactivation of spinach leaf sucrose-phosphate synthase by an endogenous protein kinase.

(1) Partially purified preparations of spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) leaf sucrose-phosphate synthase (SPS) contain an endogenous protein kinase that phosphorylates and inactivates the enzyme with [gamma-32P]ATP. (2) The kinetic effect of phosphorylation is to alter affinities for substrates and the effector inorganic phosphate without affecting maximum velocity. (3) Two-dimensional peptide mapping of tryptic digests of in vitro labeled SPS yielded two phosphopeptides (designated sites 5 and 7). Labeling of the two sites occurred equally with time, and both correlated with inactivation. Maximum inactivation was associated with incorporation of 1.5 to 2.0 mol P/mol SPS tetramer, and about 70% of the phosphoryl groups were incorporated into one of the sites (phosphopeptide 7). (4) Phosphorylation and inactivation were strongly inhibited by NaCl, and the presence of salt alters some characteristics of the kinase reaction. In the absence of salt, the apparent Km for Mg.ATP was estimated to be 5 microM. (5) The dependence of the rate of phosphorylation on SPS concentration suggested that SPS and the protein kinase are distinct enzymes, but have some tendency to associate especially in the presence of ethylene glycol. (6) Ca2+/EGTA and polyamines have no effect on the rate of phosphorylation, whereas polycations (polylysine, polybrene and protamine) are inhibitory. (7) Of the metabolic intermediates tested, Glc 6-P inhibited phosphorylation and inactivation of the enzyme. The inhibition was not antagonized by inorganic phosphate, which suggests that Glc 6-P may be an effector of the kinase, rather than the target protein. Regulation by Glc 6-P may be of physiological significance.
Peritoneal and systemic inflammatory mediators of laparoscopic bowel injury in a rabbit model

ABSTRACTPurpose: Unrecognized bowel injury following laparoscopy has a subtle and delayed clinical presentation compared with that after open surgery. We determined peritoneal and systemic immune function in laparoscopic and open bowel injury cases. We propose that laparoscopy does not activate immune responses to the same extent as open surgery.Materials and Methods: A total of 40 rabbits were divided into 4 groups. Two study groups were subjected to laparoscopic and open bowel injury, and 2 control groups underwent pneumoperitoneum and sham open surgery, respectively, without bowel injury. Animals were sacrificed 1 day, 3 days and 1 week postoperatively. Macroscopic and histological findings were analyzed. Peritoneal fluid, systemic white blood count (WBC) and differentials were done with a hemocytometer. Peritoneal fluid and serum interleukin (IL)-8 concentrations were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Results: Macroscopic and histological findings were indistinguishable in the 2 study grou...
Recent mathematical results on combustion in hydraulically resistant porous media

Gaseous detonation is a phenomenon with very complicated dynamics which has been studied extensively by physicists, mathematicians and engineers for many years. Despite many efiorts the problem is far from a complete resolution. Recently the theory of subsonic detonation that occurs in highly resistant porous media was proposed in (4). This theory provides a model which is realistic, rich and suitable for a mathematical study. In particular, the model is capable of describing the transition from a slowly propagating de∞agration wave to the fast detonation wave. This phenomena is known as a de∞agration to detonation transition and is one of the most challenging issues in combustion theory. In this paper we will present some recent mathematical results concerning initiation of reaction in porous media, existence and uniqueness of traveling fronts, quenching and propagation.
Is Eragrostis (Poaceae) Monophyletic? Insights from Nuclear and Plastid Sequence Data

Abstract Eragrostis is a large genus of grasses in subfamily Chloridoideae of the Poaceae. Recent phylogenetic analyses have suggested that the group may not be monophyletic, and there are a number of segregate genera that may be better placed within Eragrostis. We have used molecular sequence data from the plastid locus rps16 and the nuclear gene waxy from a broad sample of Eragrostis species and representatives of six of the seven segregate genera to address these issues. We find that Eragrostis is a monophyletic group with the inclusion of four segregate genera: Acamptoclados, Diandrochloa, Neeragrostis, and Pogonarthria. The placement of Cladoraphis and Stiburus is uncertain. Thellungia does not belong in Eragrostis and is actually more closely related to Sporobolus.
Running to the Moon: The Articulation and Construction of Self in Marathon Runners

In this essay, I will consider how individuals engage the marathon in the service of a project of self-transformation. To that end, I will examine cultural meanings and symbols associated with the marathon, and the way in which those meanings interact with the self-system of the runners who choose to participate in the marathon. In addition, since the marathon is ultimately a cultural practice centered on the body, I will also explore the physical and material dimension of the marathon experience. This paper thus provides an account that begins to elucidate the way in which culturally-situated individuals symbolically and physically engage the marathon as a means to actively and intentionally promote self-development.
Investigating the predictability of essential genes across distantly related organisms using an integrative approach

Rapid and accurate identification of new essential genes in under-studied microorganisms will significantly improve our understanding of how a cell works and the ability to re-engineer microorganisms. However, predicting essential genes across distantly related organisms remains a challenge. Here, we present a machine learning-based integrative approach that reliably transfers essential gene annotations between distantly related bacteria. We focused on four bacterial species that have well-characterized essential genes, and tested the transferability between three pairs among them. For each pair, we trained our classifier to learn traits associated with essential genes in one organism, and applied it to make predictions in the other. The predictions were then evaluated by examining the agreements with the known essential genes in the target organism. Ten-fold cross-validation in the same organism yielded AUC scores between 0.86 and 0.93. Cross-organism predictions yielded AUC scores between 0.69 and 0.89. The transferability is likely affected by growth conditions, quality of the training data set and the evolutionary distance. We are thus the first to report that gene essentiality can be reliably predicted using features trained and tested in a distantly related organism. Our approach proves more robust and portable than existing approaches, significantly extending our ability to predict essential genes beyond orthologs.
Characterization of SAW devices up to 2.6 GHz on GaAs and InP

The fabrication and electrical characterization of submicron GHz-range SAW devices on (001)-cut GaAs and InP substrates is reported. Single-electrode unapodized unmatched IDTs with 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and 1 /spl mu/m electrode widths were written by a JEOL JBX-5FE 50 kV electron-beam lithography system. Experimental values of the piezoelectric coupling coefficient, K/sup 2/, and the equivalent substrate dielectric constant, K/sup 2/, were extracted from one-port admittance data using 6 mil pitch coplanar waveguide probes; these values were slightly higher than theoretical values. A SAW attenuation, a, of 1.62/spl times/10/sup -2/ d/spl beta///spl mu/m and an insertion loss of 49 dB was found using two-port time-gated measurements of 2.6 GHz unmatched IDT delay lines on GaAs. The devices on InP operated up to 1.35 GHz.
Assessing the effects of learning style in business statistics

Business majors at AACSB accredited schools are required to take undergraduate statistics. Much research has been done with various learning style models for students enrolled in core business courses such as accounting, management, economics, and finance. However, the author has found no research that attempts to quantify the effects of learning style for students in business statistics. This study demonstrates that learning style as measured using the VARK model has significant effects on numerous variables of interest including academic success, student perceptions of course and instructor and academic major. The effect sizes are standardised and may be compared across studies. These findings provide a rationale for the delivery of course content in various modes to optimise student experiences and success.
Effect of Disk Waviness on Slider Dynamics

The investigation reported in this paper studies the motion of a typical pico type slider as a function of disk waviness. Laser Doppler vibrometry (LDV) is used to study the motion of a slider on three disks with different waviness. In addition, numerical analysis is applied to determine stiffness and damping of the slider motion as a function of disk waviness. Defining the ratio of slider motion over disk impact motion as the gain of the slider, we find that in the low frequency range the gain of the slider is independent of disk waviness. However, in the high frequency range the gain of the slider is a function of disk waviness.
Effects of ketazocine, ethylketazocine and phenazocine on schedule-controlled behavior: Antagonism by naloxone

Dose-effect curves were determined for phenazocine (0.64–2.5 mg/kg), ketazocine (1.25–80 mg/kg) and ethylketazocine (1.25–80 mg/kg) in pigeons responding under a multiple fixed-ratio 30-response, fixed-interval 5-min schedule of grain presentation. All three opioid agonists decreased responding with the larger doses. The effects of phenazocine were completely antagonized by small doses of naloxone (0.01–1 mg/kg), whereas the effects of ethylketazocine required larger doses of naloxone (1–10 mg/kg) to be completely antagonized. The behavioral effects of ketazocine were partially attenuated by naloxone, but were not antagonized completely even by a 10 mg/kg dose of naloxone. These data from the pigeon are consistent with previous interpretations that the effects of phenazocine are mediated by actions at a mu opioid receptor, whereas the effects of ketazocine and ethylketazocine are mediated by actions at a kappa opioid receptor.
Prediction of structures of zinc‐binding proteins through explicit modeling of metal coordination geometry

Metal ions play an essential role in stabilizing protein structures and contributing to protein function. Ions such as zinc have well-defined coordination geometries, but it has not been easy to take advantage of this knowledge in protein structure prediction efforts. Here, we present a computational method to predict structures of zinc-binding proteins given knowledge of the positions of zinc-coordinating residues in the amino acid sequence. The method takes advantage of the “atom-tree” representation of molecular systems and modular architecture of the Rosetta3 software suite to incorporate explicit metal ion coordination geometry into previously developed de novo prediction and loop modeling protocols. Zinc cofactors are tethered to their interacting residues based on coordination geometries observed in natural zinc-binding proteins. The incorporation of explicit zinc atoms and their coordination geometry in both de novo structure prediction and loop modeling significantly improves sampling near the native conformation. The method can be readily extended to predict protein structures bound to other metal and/or small chemical cofactors with well-defined coordination or ligation geometry.
A calculus for modeling and implementing variation

We present a formal calculus for modeling and implementing variation in software. It unifies the compositional and annotative approaches to feature implementation and supports the development of abstractions that can be used to directly relate feature models to their implementation. Since the compositional and annotative approaches are complementary, the calculus enables implementers to use the best combination of tools for the job and focus on inherent feature interactions, rather than those introduced by biases in the representation. The calculus also supports the abstraction of recurring variational patterns and provides a metaprogramming platform for organizing variation in artifacts.
Reply to Robinson

Reply to the letter from Stephen L. Robinson Robinson, S. L. 1980. Car pool systems. Management Sci.26 4 433-434..
Practical considerations in benchmarking digital testing systems

It is noted that there are minimum requirements benchmark circuits have to satisfy in order to be useful in evaluating digital testing systems (DTSs). The circuits need to have a profile that enables the testing to be done in an efficient way. The circuits also need to include commonly used constructs such as bidirectional pins or asynchronous signals. Also, the correctness of different versions of the same circuit needs to be verified in order to make a fair comparison of the different DTSs. The author aims to determine the features that have to be known about the benchmark circuits before using them to evaluate DTSs, to distinguish between the requirements for combinational and sequential circuits, and to show the merit of using a neutral hardware description language to facilitate the transport of the circuits between DTSs. >
Pathogenesis of intestinal strictures in Crohn's disease—an update

: Stricture formation in Crohn's disease is a complication of an important wound healing process in the intestine. The smooth muscle cells of the intestinal musculares bear a responsibility for the repair of injured intestine, and effect this wound healing process by proliferating and laying down collagen at the site of injury. Injury in the submucosa, and chronicity of injury, are important factors in the development of stricture. The resultant accumulation of collagenous scar, thickening of the muscle layers, and contracture, all play a role in producing the critical architectural changes in the intestinal wall that impede the aboral movement of chyme. Important putative facets of intestinal smooth muscle cell biology that are involved in stricture formation include: the synthesis and secretion of procollagen; the peculiar response of these cells to cytokines, ascorbate, and corticosteroids; and changes in cell phenotype that result from chronic inflammation. Therapeutic modalities designed to ameliorate the stricturing process will need to modulate these biological activities in resident intestinal smooth muscle cells.
Burst error statistics of simulated Viterbi decoded BFSK and high-rate punctured codes on fading and scintillating channels

The burst error statistics of a soft-decision Viterbi decoder were simulated and obtained for the case when the transmitted signal is: (1) encoded with constraint length=3, rate 1/2 convolutional codes and rate 2/3, 3/4, 4/5, and 7/8 punctured convolutional codes; (2) modulated via noncoherent BFSK for the AWGN channel; and (3) subjected to slow and non-selective scintillation/fading modeled by the Nakagami-m and Rician pdfs. These statistics are evaluated to determine how Viterbi decoder burst error statistics vary with the channel and code parameters, and to compare the statistics of the Nakagami-m and Rician fading models (Morris and Chang 1990). The results have important implications for the design of interleaved or noninterleaved concatenated coding schemes, and to the development of burst error models and simulators for scintillating and fading channel environments. This extends the earlier burst-error-statistics results of Deutsch and Miller (1981), and Miller, Deutsch, and Butman who looked at the nonfading case for BPSK modulation and coherent demodulation. >
Slider-Lubricant Interactions and Lubricant Distribution for Contact and Near Contact Recording Conditions

Lubricant distribution and recovery for near contact and contact recording conditions are experimentally investigated using thermal fly-height control (TFC) sliders. Contact between the protruded center pad and the disk lubricant causes a thickness modulation (rippling) together with lubricant depletion that grows with contact duration. Slider dynamics and lubricant rippling evolve quickly in the first few revolutions of contact and rippling frequencies are strongly correlated with the slider air bearing frequencies. Peculiar cases where suppressed “stable” slider dynamics occur for TFC heater power beyond the touchdown power correspond to negligible lubricant rippling and this condition may be sustained for fairly long durations in some tests. Experiments with different lubricant types (ZTMD, Z-tetraol+A20H, Z-dol+A20H) and different lubricant thicknesses show that a larger depletion is observed for the thicker lubricant of each type at a given TFC heater power. Lubricants with lower bonded fraction show shorter recovery time after the slider is unloaded. From the current experiments it is extrapolated that Z-dol+A20H (30% bonded) lubricant recovers in a time scale of a few hours, while Z-tetraol+A20H (60% bonded) lubricant of comparable thickness takes a few days, and ZTMD (75% bonded) takes weeks to fully recover.
Understanding Shareholder Activism: Which Corporations are Targeted?

This study provides preliminary empirical evidence that shareholder activists target companies because of their size as well as specific stakeholder-related practices. The data show that shareholder activists target companies with shareholder resolutions demanding changes in corporate behaviors for companies producing problematic products and where environmental concerns exist. Furthermore, companies in specific industries are targeted based on poor employee and community-related practices. Activists, that is, are selective in their targeting of companies, choosing the most visible (largest) companies and those whose practices raise specific issues of interest to society.
Integrating Structural and Construction Engineering

Today’s project teams face many challenges in meeting a diverse set of objectives. Fortunately, integrated project delivery and the modeling tools that it incorporates offer major potential benefits in meeting these challenges. The purpose of the paper is to analyze integration of structural and construction engineering on projects and make recommendations to increase integration and enhance performance in meeting project objectives. The paper describes the context and project steps for integration and analyzes two project examples to highlight conclusions and recommendations regarding integrating structural and construction engineering to increase project performance.
Incorporating Resource Protection Constraints in an Analysis of Landscape Fuel-Treatment Effectiveness in the Northern Sierra Nevada, CA, USA

Finding novel ways to plan and implement landscape-level forest treatments that protect sensitive wildlife and other key ecosystem components, while also reducing the risk of large-scale, high-severity fires, can prove to be difficult. We examined alternative approaches to landscape-scale fuel-treatment design for the same landscape. These approaches included two different treatment scenarios generated from an optimization algorithm that reduces modeled fire spread across the landscape, one with resource-protection constrains and one without the same. We also included a treatment scenario that was the actual fuel-treatment network implemented, as well as a no-treatment scenario. For all the four scenarios, we modeled hazardous fire potential based on conditional burn probabilities, and projected fire emissions. Results demonstrate that in all the three active treatment scenarios, hazardous fire potential, fire area, and emissions were reduced by approximately 50 % relative to the untreated condition. Results depict that incorporation of constraints is more effective at reducing modeled fire outputs, possibly due to the greater aggregation of treatments, creating greater continuity of fuel-treatment blocks across the landscape. The implementation of fuel-treatment networks using different planning techniques that incorporate real-world constraints can reduce the risk of large problematic fires, allow for landscape-level heterogeneity that can provide necessary ecosystem services, create mixed forest stand structures on a landscape, and promote resilience in the uncertain future of climate change.
Application of empirical and semi-analytical algorithms to MERIS data for estimating chlorophyll a in Case 2 waters of Lake Erie

Lake Erie is biologically the most active lake among the Great Lakes of North America, experiencing seasonal harmful algal blooms (HABs). The early detection of HABs in the Western Basin of Lake Erie (WBLE) requires a more efficient and accurate monitoring tool. Remote sensing is an efficient tool with high spatial and temporal coverage that can allow accurate and timely detection of the HABs. The WBLE is heavily influenced by the surrounding terrestrial ecosystem via rivers such as the Sandusky River and the Maumee River. As a result, the optical properties of the WBLE are influenced by multiple color producing agents (CPAs) such as phytoplankton, colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM), organic detri- tus, and terrigenous inorganic particles. The diversity of the CPAs and their non-linear interactions makes these waters optically complex, and the task of optical remote sensing for retrieving estimates of CPAs more challenging. Chlo- rophyll a, which is the primary light harvesting pigment in all phytoplankton, is used as a proxy for algal biomass. In this study, several published remote sensing algorithms and band ratio models were applied to the reflectance data from the full resolution MERIS sensor to remotely estimate chlorophyll a concentrations in the WBLE. Efficiency of the sensor and the algorithms performance were tested through a least squares regression and residual analysis. The results indicate that, among the suite of existing bio- optical models, the Simis semi-analytical algorithm provided the best model results for measures of algal bio- mass in the optically complex WBLE with R 2 of 0.65, RMSE 0.85 lg/l, (n = 71, P \ 0.05). The superior results of this model in detecting chlorophyll a are attributed to several factors including optimizing spectral regions that are less sensitive to CDOM and the incorporation of cor- rection factors such as absorption effects due to pure water (aw), backscatter (bb) from suspended matter and interfer- ence due to phycocyanin (d), a major accessory pigment in the WBLE.
Abstract 185: Tripartite Motif E3 Ubiquitin Ligase Family Proteins Regulate Intracellular Signaling During the Progression of Heart Failure

Heart failure is a major complication of cardiovascular disease that frequently involves initial cardiac hypertrophy that provides transient compensation for decreased heart function. Eventually, decompensation leads to compromised cardiac structure and progression into heart failure. Investigation of the downstream effector pathways for these growth factors has identified molecules involved in the progression of cardiac hypertrophy and heart failure, including phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) and Akt (Protein Kinase B). MG53, a tripartite motif (TRIM) protein family member designated as TRIM72, is highly expressed in skeletal and cardiac muscle and is known to have cardioprotective effects through modulation of PI3K signaling mechanisms. It is essential for the activation of PI3K-mediated intracellular signaling in cardiomyocytes and TRIM72 overexpression is sufficient to induce PI3K signaling. As TRIM72 regulates PI3K signaling it may play a role in regulation of heart failure, which is supported by our...
Literatura, epistemología y metodología de las ciencias humanas

En este articulo se reflexiona sobre la comprension transcultural y el tema de lo fantastico, ello desde el examen de la obra de Julio Cortazar, expresada particularmente en sus textos metalinguisticos, como un modo latinoamericano y de la misma manera mas ampliamente occidental de asumir “lo real”, lo que puede proyectar los fundamentos de la obra de Cortazar hacia las ciencias humanas y especialmente hacia la etnologia.
Mutual fund flows, performance persistence and manager skill

This paper adapts the model of Berk and Green (2004) to explain with reasonable success the data on mutual fund returns and flows. Using a Bayesian measure of fund-manager skill that controls for fund flows, I find that posterior estimates of skill vary substantially in the cross section and that perceived differences in ability persist through time. Consistent with the model, investor fund flows respond in a convex manner to posterior updates of manager skill scaled by functions of the expense ratio, and this result is robust after including a convex function of past performance. While cross-sectional variation in posterior skill estimates has predictive power for out-of-sample subsequent fund performance, such predictability is present only in the short run. Beyond one year, high-skilled managers do not consistently out-perform low-skilled managers as skill-chasing fund flows equalize the realized abnormal fund returns across managers. Overall, my empirical evidence is consistent with some managers possessing high ability, investors rationally chasing returns generated by those managers, and lack of long-run persistence in fund returns due to equilibrating fund flows and diseconomies of scale in assets under management. Outside of the model, I show that the cross-sectional distribution of managerial ability is related to fund style and fund-manager compensation in a way that is consistent with matching the managerial productivity to the nature of the underlying portfolio.
Echoes of the Danish Cartoon Crisis 10 Years Later: Identity, Injury and Intelligibility from Copenhagen to Paris and Texas

ABSTRACTThe tenth anniversary of the Danish cartoon crisis of 2005–06 invites reflection on its historical significance and contemporary relevance. In the Danish context 10 years ago, the events generated substantial debate about issues such as terrorism, immigration, blasphemy and the place of Islam in Denmark and in the Danish folk. Furthermore, they raised complex questions about Danish identity in a society that had become significantly more religiously and culturally diverse in the preceding decades. Most of these questions, however, were eclipsed by the polarized public debate about free speech and religious respect. The year 2015 brought many of these questions back to the fore after the murders that January of 12 journalists at the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo and attacks at a kosher market in Paris, followed in February by shootings at a free speech event in Copenhagen and at a synagogue, and later attacks in May at a Muhammad cartoon contest exhibit in Garland, Texas. Despite their d...
Coset Products in Rings

(1991). Coset Products in Rings. The College Mathematics Journal: Vol. 22, No. 4, pp. 323-326.
Response Covariation as a Design Consideration in Developing Workplace Safety Interventions

Accidents are among the leading causes of death in the U.S. and billions of dollars are expended annually for treatment of injuries, insurance costs, lost work-time, and other related costs (Accident Facts, 1989). Recent applications of interventions employing incentives and feedback have been successful in increasing safety-related behavior, but they are often expensive to administer over extended periods of time and their effects are often transient. Non-reward strategies emphasizing participation and commitment show great promise since they compare favorably to reward programs in terms of effectiveness, are less costly to administer, and in general, show stronger maintenance of effects. However, most studies employing commitment procedures have targeted only a single behavior, thus reducing their potential effectiveness.The notion of response classes suggests that certain safety behaviors may covary together and that interventions aimed at a single “target” behavior may also impact other “non-target” b...
Urologic Aspects of Vesicoenteric Fistulas

AbstractThe classic symptoms of pneumaturia and fecaluria were not present in many of 100 patients (male to female ratio of 2.4) with vesicoenteric fistulas who presented with fever, abdominal mass or cystitis. There was a urinary tract infection in 95 per cent of the patients studied but only 29 per cent had a mixed infection. Roentgenographic studies suggested a fistula in 18 to 35 per cent of those studied but cystoscopy was singularly the most successful diagnostic technique (79 per cent). Inflammatory bowel disease in 63 per cent and colorectal adenocarcinoma in 16 per cent were the most common etiologic factors. Bladder carcinoma was the cause in only 5 per cent. Treatment consisted of single or multistage surgical repair or fecal diversion in 95 operable patients, with gratifying results, and of expectant management in the 5 inoperable patients.
Prognosis of malignant melanoma.

Multiple factors appear to influence survival in patients with malignant melanoma. Although at present thickness appears to be the best individual prognostic factor, other variables such as anatomic site of the lesion, ulceration, and level consistently appear in multivariate prognostic models. These models enable the assessment of patient prognosis for the optimization of treatment as well as the evaluation of future therapeutic trials. Future study of these prognostic factors will hopefully help us to understand the pathophysiology of melanoma and, possibly, unlock the secrets of the biology of this disease.
Thrombosis of Inferior Vena Cava Diagnosed Using Point-of-Care Ultrasound After Pediatric Near-Syncope.

Abstract Background Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is extremely rare but under recognized in the pediatric population. Although the literature on the use of ultrasound to detect VTEs in adults is plentiful, little has been documented on its use in the pediatric population. Case Report We present a case of a healthy 16-year-old female who presented to our emergency department with 3 months of dyspnea on exertion and one episode of near-syncope. Point-of-care cardiac ultrasound identified an inferior vena cava thrombosis. Subsequent computed tomography angiography diagnosed concurrent bilateral pulmonary emboli (PE). The patient's identical twin sister presented with similar symptoms shortly thereafter and was also diagnosed with VTE and bilateral PE. Why Should an Emergency Physician Be Aware of This? This case demonstrates an instance of VTE and pulmonary embolism in twin adolescent girls. Physical examination findings, electrocardiogram, chest x-ray study, and several previous evaluations did not reveal the diagnosis. Point of care ultrasound was used to correctly diagnosis VTE and for heightened concern for a pulmonary embolism.
Pelycosaurian-Grade (Amniota: Synapsida) Footprints from the Lower Permian Dunkard Group of Pennsylvania and West Virginia

ABSTRACT The Lower Permian Dunkard Group has yielded a sparse record of tetrapod footprints that are assigned to the ichnogenera Dimetropus Romer and Price, 1940, Dromopus Marsh, 1894, and Limnopus Marsh, 1894. We report two new occurrences of Dimetropus that significantly extend its stratigraphic range in the Dunkard Group to the Washington and Greene formations. The only previous Dunkard record of Dimetropus is of D. berea (Tilton, 1931), the type ichnospecies of the ichnogenus, from the Waynesburg Formation of West Virginia. Dimetropus (eupelycosaur), Dromopus (araeoscelid), and Limnopus (large temnospondyl) footprints are present in many Late Pennsylvanian-Early Permian footprint assemblages. The Dunkard footprints of Dimetropus reported here are very large for the ichnogenus, so it seems likely they were made by one of the relatively large eupelycosaurs, Dimetrodon Cope, 1877, Ophiacodon Marsh, 1878, or Ctenospondylus Romer, 1936, known from Dunkard Group body fossils.
Hereditary Motor and Sensory Neuropathies

Transcranial magnetic brain stimulation was used to study central motor conduction (CMCT) to small hand muscles in patients with peroneal muscular atrophy and hereditary spastic paraplegia at the National Hospital and Institute of Neurology, Queen Square and the Department of Neurological Science, Royal Free Hospital, London, UK.
Kinetics of T3-DNA Ligase-Catalyzed Phosphodiester Bond Formation Measured Using the α-Hemolysin Nanopore

The latch region of the wild-type α-hemolysin (α-HL) protein channel can be used to distinguish single base modifications in double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) via ion channel measurements upon electrophoretic capture of dsDNA in the vestibule of α-HL. Herein, we investigated the use of the latch region to detect a nick in the phosphodiester DNA backbone. The presence of a nick in the phosphodiester backbone of one strand of the duplex results in a significant increase in both the blockade current and noise level relative to the intact duplex. Differentiation between the nicked and intact duplexes based on blockade current or noise, with near baseline resolution, allows real-time monitoring of the rate of T3-DNA ligase-catalyzed phosphodiester bond formation. Under low ionic strength conditions containing divalent cations and a molecular crowding agent (75 mg mL–1 PEG), the rate of enzyme-catalyzed reaction in the bulk solution was continuously monitored by electrophoretically capturing reaction substrate or pro...
An AlN-on-Si resonant IR sensor array with a large temperature coefficient of frequency

This work reports on novel AlN-on-Si flexural-mode resonators with a high fill-factor used as Infrared (IR) sensors. The devices are designed to achieve large temperature coefficient of frequency (TCF) utilizing the thermal expansion coefficient mismatch of different layers in the resonant stack. A 2×2 array of 4.6 MHz resonators with a quality factor (Q) of ∼1140 is designed and fabricated using the InvenSense CMOS-MEMS process. Measured TCF values are as high as −137 ppm/K, noticeably higher than the expected TCF derived from temperature coefficient of elasticity (TCE) of AlN and silicon. The reported TCF value in this work is more than four times larger than the previously reported values for AlN-or silicon-based resonators and resonant detectors.
Disappearance of pathologic anteroseptal Q waves after reperfusion with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in a 61 year old female: A case report.

Abstract We report a case of a 61 year old female with disappearance of anteroseptal Q waves following an anterior STEMI. At presentation a 12 lead ECG revealed frank anteroseptal Q waves and T wave inversion (V1–V3). The patient underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with drug eluting stenting to a critically stenosed left anterior descending artery. At a five month follow-up visit a 12 lead ECG demonstrated the complete resolution of anteroseptal Q waves and normal R wave progression was seen in the precordial leads. Here we discuss this observation with a review of the literature regarding Q wave resolution.
Enabling Global Science Literacy for All

Commitment to the inclusion of learners with disabilities is a necessary, integral part of making Global Science Learning “for all.” However, to do so requires two changes: transforming our thinking about individuals with disabilities from focus on their disabilities to focus on their abilities and modifying learning environments so that they are inclusive, enabling, and accessible for all learners.
Satellite jamming: A game theoretic analysis

In this paper, the problem of minimizing the damaging effect on the frequency hopping (FH) spread-spectrum satellite is formulated using the two-player asymmetric zero-sum game framework. The payoff is modeled as the channel capacity of the defender under white additive Gaussian noise. The defender and attacker are capable of spreading their signals over a pre-specified frequency band. Two scenarios are considered: (a) both the attacker and defender know each other's strategies, (b) the defender knows the attacker's strategy, but not vice versa. In each of these scenarios, we further consider whether the players have the knowledge about the environments. We show how to analytically determine the optimal strategies for the players in each scenario, and provide simulation results to verify our approach.
Stability of extemporaneously prepared cinacalcet oral suspensions

Purpose The stability of extemporaneously prepared cinacalcet suspensions over 90 days was evaluated. Methods Cinacalcet 5-mg/mL suspension was prepared by triturating 30-mg cinacalcet tablets. Twelve 30-mL batches were prepared with a 1:1 mixture of Ora-Plus and either Ora-Sweet or Ora-Sweet SF (sugar free). Three suspensions of each kind were stored at both room temperature and refrigerated conditions. A 1-mL sample was taken from each bottle at 0, 7, 18, 32, 64, and 90 days. Each sample was assayed using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). A new HPLC method for evaluating drug peaks of pure cinacalcet was developed. Stability was defined as retention of at least 90% of the initial drug concentration. Results The HPLC method established in this study serves as a novel assay for evaluating cinacalcet oral suspensions. For all suspensions tested at individual conditions, the concentration remained above 90% of the initial concentration for 90 days of storage with the exception of Ora-Plus and Ora-Sweet SF suspensions stored under refrigeration, which were stable for 64 days. Usual sedimentation of the suspensions occurred over time but resolved with agitation; there was no other change in visual appearance of the suspensions over the course of the 90-day study. The color and odor of the suspensions throughout the study remained unchanged with respect to the initial time point. Conclusion Extemporaneously compounded cinacalcet 5-mg/mL oral suspensions prepared with a 1:1 mixture of Ora-Plus and either Ora-Sweet or Ora-Sweet SF and stored in 2-oz amber polypropylene plastic bottles were stable for at least 64 days at room temperature and under refrigeration.
Discrete Element Modeling (DEM) for mixing of cohesive solids in rotating cylinders

Abstract Granular solids mixing is a pivotal unit operation in manufacturing processes for numerous industries such as pharmaceuticals, food, and petroleum refining, wherein mixture homogeneity is critical to ensure for product quality and control. In this work, Discrete Element Modeling (DEM) was used to study mixing of cohesive granular solids using a rotary kiln. This work's goal was to develop a quantitative relationship between particle properties and their simulated mixing behavior. Particle properties evaluated in this work were surface energy, particle density, and particle diameter given their relationship to particle cohesion, often quantitatively measured using the granular Bond number. For the simulations, the rotary kiln's fill level, cylinder dimensions, and angular velocity remained constant while the particle properties changed. The DEM simulated mixing results were used to regress the dispersion coefficient for the closed-closed boundary axial dispersion to quantify mixing rates. The results indicated that both surface energy and true density were negatively correlated with axial dispersion, while particle size was positively correlated. From these results and analysis, an empirical correlation was developed between the evaluated particle properties and the regressed axial dispersion constant. The empirical correlation was employed to evaluate the rates of mixing inside the rotary kiln using relative standard deviation as a mixing metric.
Cycling of Nutrients

The cycling of nutrient elements is the crux of all ecological considerations because of their limited availability in the biosphere. The concept of growthlimiting nutrients has been discussed in Chapter 2 as well as the essential elements for all biological systems. It follows that continued utilization of one element as a nutrient by a given category of living organism would eventually tie up all of the available supply and that no further growth could occur once the supply was depleted. For example, if all of the carbon dioxide available to photosynthetic organisms was fixed (reduced) into an organic polymer form as the result of photosynthetic activity, no further photosynthesis could take place. The time estimated for such an occurrence on earth is a matter of days. If it were not for the continued renewal of the supply of carbon dioxide by the respiratory activities of other types of organisms, all life would stop soon after photosynthesis stopped and all of the available carbon would be fixed in the form of dead carcasses, leaves, wood, etc., to be preserved forever.
Degenerately-Doped Semiconductors in Strong Magnetic Fields

The properties of a disordered, strongly interacting electron system, in a strong external magnetic field, are not very well understood at the present time. Thus there is strong incentive to carry out experiments on a variety of materials, to explore the behavior under different conditions.
Complications of Combat Blast Injuries and Wounds

Blast-injured patients routinely challenge the orthopedic surgeons and other who care for them. Although they have been traditionally associated with combat and military medicine, recent events have demonstrated that civilian surgeons must be prepared to deal with these complex patients and associated injury patterns. Moreover, surgeons must anticipate the most common complications that afflict blast wounds and be prepared to treat them, while understanding the underlying physiology. Wound infections, invasive fungal infection, and heterotopic ossification each present their own unique challenges. However, following prompt recognition, each can be addressed in a systematic fashion to both good effect and outcomes. The purpose of this review is to present the most common complications of combat blast injuries and provide an evidence-based approach to prevention and management.
γδ T cells: A disappearing act with a big reveal

In this issue of JEM, Sandrock et al. (https://doi.org/10.1084/jem.20181439) compare the origin of IL-17-producing γδ T cells (Tγδ17) with other γδ T cell populations and demonstrate the role Tγδ17 cells play in skin pathology. Using two genetically modified mouse models, one with inducible γδ T cell-specific labeling and the other with conditional γδ T cell depletion, the authors find that Tγδ17 are mostly long-lived lymphocytes and that depleting γδ T cells protects mice from psoriasis.
Antenatal care in rural Bangladesh: current state of costs, content and recommendations for effective service delivery

Measurement of antenatal care (ANC) service coverage is often limited to the number of contacts or type of providers, reflecting a gap in the assessment of quality as well as cost estimations and health impact. The study aims to determine service subcomponents and provider and patient costs of ANC services and compares them between community (i.e. satellite clinics) and facility care (i.e. primary and secondary health centers) settings in rural Bangladesh. Service contents and cost data were collected by one researcher and four interviewers in various community and facility health care settings in Gaibandha district between September and December 2016. We conducted structured interviews with organization managers, observational studies of ANC service provision (n = 70) for service contents and provider costs (service and drug costs) and exit interviews with pregnant women (n = 70) for patient costs (direct and indirect costs) in health clinics at community and facility levels. Fisher’s exact tests were used to determine any different patient characteristics between community and facility settings. ANC service contents were assessed by 63 subitems categorized into 11 groups and compared within and across community and facility settings. Provider and patient costs were collected in Bangladesh taka and analyzed as 2016 US Dollars (0.013 exchange rate). We found generally similar provider and patient characteristics between the community and facility settings except in clients’ gestational age. High compliance (> 50%) of service subcomponents were observed in blood pressure monitoring, weight measurement, iron and folate supplementation given, and tetanus vaccine, while lower compliance of service subcomponents (< 50%) were observed in some physical examinations such as edema and ultrasonogram and routine tests such as blood test and urine test. Average unit costs of ANC service provision were about double at the facility level ($2.75) compared with community-based care ($1.62). ANC patient costs at facilities ($2.66) were about three times higher than in the community ($0.78). The study reveals a delay in pregnant women’s initial ANC care seeking, gaps in compliance of ANC subcomponents and difference of provider and patient costs between facility and community settings.