cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Endoscopic therapy for Barrett's esophagus

Barrett's esophagus (BE) is the precursor lesion to esophageal adenocarcinoma. This cancer has undergone a rapid increase in incidence in Western societies in the last 30 years. Current practices seek to lower the risk of death from this cancer by performing screening upper endoscopy on those with chronic reflux symptoms, and then surveillance upper endoscopy on those found to have BE at periodic intervals. While this approach is intuitively appealing, no data substantiate a decreased cancer risk with these practices, and substantial issues limit the effectiveness of this approach. This article outlines the current approaches to BE, their shortcomings, and presents data supporting the use of endoscopic therapy for subjects with BE and dysplasia. A significant and growing literature supports the use of endoscopic therapy in BE, and this approach, combined with improved risk stratification, may improve our care of subjects with BE.
A Reciprocal Interdependence between Nck and PI(4,5)P2 Promotes Localized N-WASp-Mediated Actin Polymerization in Living Cells

Modulation of actin dynamics through the N-WASp/Arp2/3 pathway is important in cell locomotion, membrane trafficking, and pathogen infection. Here, we demonstrate that Nck is essential for actin remodeling stimulated by phosphatidylinositol 4,5 bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P(2)) and, conversely, that PI(4,5)P(2) is necessary for localized actin polymerization induced by Nck in vivo. Nck knockdown or knockout suppressed actin comets induced by phosphatidylinositol 5-kinase (PIP5K), and PIP5K stimulated tyrosine phosphorylation of an Nck SH2 domain binding partner, suggesting that Nck couples phosphotyrosine- and phosphoinositide-dependent signals. We show that PI(4,5)P(2) and PIP5K are both enriched at actin comets induced by Nck aggregates and that formation of actin comets was strongly inhibited by coclustering with an inositol 5-phosphatase domain to decrease local PI(4,5)P(2) levels. The extent of Nck-induced actin polymerization was also modulated by PI(4,5)P(2)-sensitive N-WASp mutants. This study uncovers a strong reciprocal interdependence between Nck and PI(4,5)P(2) in promoting localized N-WASp-mediated actin polymerization in cells.
Art Therapy: An Underutilized, yet Effective Tool.

Art therapy has been recognized as beneficial and effective since first described by Adrian Hill in 1942. Even before this time, art therapy was utilized for moral reinforcement and psychoanalysis. Art therapy aids patients with, but not limited to, chronic illness, physical challenges, and cancer in both pediatric and adult scenarios. Although effective in patient care, the practice of art therapy is extremely underutilized, especially in suburban areas. While conducting our own study in northeastern Ohio, USA, we found that only one out of the five inpatient institutions in the suburban area of Mahoning County, Ohio, that we contacted provided continuous art therapy to it’s patients. In the metropolitan area of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, only eight of the twenty-two inpatient institutions in the area provided art therapy. There could be many reasons as to why art therapy is not frequently used in these areas, and medical institutions in general. The cause of this could be the amount of research done on the practice. Although difficult to conduct formal research on such a broad field, the American Art Therapy Association has succeeded in doing such, with studies showing improvement of the patient groups emotionally and mentally in many case types.
CHOICE FUNCTIONS AND UPPER CHOICE FUNCTIONS

Choice functions play an important role in political science. We present structure results of choice functions following an algebraic approach. It is logical that rational political actors are not able to perceive every alternative in a set of alternatives X. They may also choose to exclude some alternatives from consideration. Let S be a subset of X that some set of political actors are not able to perceive. Then the complement X\S is the set comprising those alternatives considered in the decision process. If C is a choice function on X, then C(X\S) are the alternatives chosen and X\C(X\S) are those that are not. We are thus led to the concept of an upper choice function. We define upper choice functions in terms of choice functions and we give relationships between them.
Performance of Pre-Stressed Sandwich Composites Subjected to Shock Wave Loading

The present paper experimentally studies the dynamic behaviour of prestressed sandwich composites under blast loading. The in-plane static compression loadings are implemented on the sandwich composites before they are subjected to the transverse shock wave loading. Three different pre-stress levels are chosen. 3-D realtime deformation data are captured by two high-speed photography systems: a backview Digital Image Correlation (DIC) system and a side-view camera system. The results show that pre-stresses can induce local buckling in the front face-sheet of sandwich composites, consequently reduce the blast resistance of sandwich composites.
CUDA-assisted energy-efficient primality test

It has been known that the primes are infinite in number but the exact sequence of primes is not predictable. Prime numbers and computers have been linked since the Computer security authorities use extremely large prime numbers when they devise cryptographs, like RSA (short for Rivest, Shamir, and Adleman) algorithm, for protecting vital information that is transmitted between computers. There are many primality testing algorithms including mathematical models and computer programs. However, they are very time and energy consuming when the given number n is very large. In this paper, we propose a Compute Unified Device Architecture (CUDA)-accelerat ed deterministic algorithm to determine whether an input number is prime or composite much faster to save energy. We develop and implement the proposed algorithm using a system with an 8-core CPU and a 448-core GPu. Experimental results indicate that up to 45x speedup and 88% energy saving can be achieved for 20-digit decimal numbers.
Effect of tetrabenazine on computerized dynamic posturography in Huntington disease patients.

Background Impairment in computerized dynamic posturography scores has been documented in Huntington disease patients. Tetrabenazine is approved to treat chorea in Huntington disease, but its effect on posturography scores, and balance in general, is unknown.
Pseudoexfoliation syndrome and pseudoexfoliative glaucoma.

Background Pseudoexfoliative glaucoma (PXG) is a common secondary glaucoma that occurs when pigment and abnormal basement membrane material from anterior segment anatomical structures deposit in the trabecular meshwork. This anomaly arises from the predisposing condition, pseudoexfoliation syndrome (PXE). Complications are common, making this one of the most difficult glaucomas to manage. Purpose The literature is reviewed in order to facilitate understanding of this condition.
Migrant Forms: African Parade's New Literary Geographies

This article compares changing imaginations of African nationalism, Pan-Africanism, and the black diaspora through the lens of literary genre in two popular magazines, South Africa’s Drum and its lesser-known contemporary from the Central African Federation, African Parade . As traveling literary systems that contain a variety of literary forms, popular magazines are useful for theorizing new relationships between genre and geography. In particular, I consider African Parade ’s use of interstitial “migrant forms” to map the simultaneously urban and rural, national and transnational contours of the federation. Migration is a thematic as well as a formal feature of these texts, which reconfigure narratives of permanent settlement in the city—a type of story that was popular in Drum and epitomized by the figure of the deterritorialized gangster, or tsotsi . By recasting the migrant as a figure who travels across categories (rural/urban, past/present, traditional/modern), African Parade expressed an alternative vision of the region’s shifting geographies and left a lasting impact on its literary forms.
Maximizing Entropy by Minimizing Area: Towards a New Principle of Self-Organization

We propose a heuristic explanation for the numerous non-close-packed crystal structures observed in various colloidal systems. By developing an analogy between soap froths and the soft coronas of fuzzy colloids, we provide a geometrical interpretation of the free energy of soft spheres. Within this picture, we show that the close-packing rule associated with hard-core interactions and positional entropy of particles is frustrated by a minimum-area principle associated with the soft tail and internal entropy of the soft coronas. We also discuss these ideas in terms of crystal architecture and pair distribution functions and analyze the phase diagram of a model hard-sphere−square-shoulder system within the cellular theory. We find that the A15 lattice, known to be area minimizing, is favored for a reasonable range of model parameters and so it is among the possible equilibrium states for a variety of colloidal systems. We also show that in the case of short-range convex potentials the A15 and other non-clos...
Review of extend TM performance in modeling a nuclear fuel transfer activity

Simulation is emerging as a general purpose planning, modeling, and problem-solving tool for a wide range of manufacturing processes. Availability of different simulation software has made it easier for engineers and managers to approach complex problems with a tool that allows them to evaluate "what if" scenarios. Extend™ is one of the newer simulation software packages on the market that has some unique features that may prove beneficial in modeling continuous as well as discrete-event problems. It is a powerful tool for decision-support systems, and provides insight into complex manufacturing and business problems. In this paper, a brief description of a fairly complex nuclear fuel transfer project and the features of Extend in modeling complex problems are discussed.
Diagnosis and management of critical illness polyneuropathy and critical illness myopathy

Newly acquired neuromuscular weakness commonly develops in the setting of critical illness. This weakness delays recovery and often causes prolonged ventilator dependence. An axonal sensory-motor polyneuropathy, critical illness polyneuropathy (CIP), is seen in up to a third of critically ill patients with the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (usually due to sepsis). As frequently, or more so, an acute myopathy, critical illness myopathy (CIM), develops in a similar setting, often in association with the use of corticosteroids and/or nondepolarizing neuromuscular-blocking agents. This paper reviews the clinical features, diagnostic approach, and treatment of CIP and CIM. There are no specific pharmacologic treatments for CIP or CIM, but recognizing the presence of one of these disorders often improves management. Prevention of CIP and CIM is feasible in part by avoiding risk factors and by aggressive medical management of critically ill patients. Intensive insulin therapy in intensive care unit patients appears to reduce the likelihood of developing CIP and/or CIM. Future treatments of sepsis may further reduce the incidence of these neuromuscular consequences of critical illness.
Morphological and systematic study of the tribe Australiosomatini (Diplopoda : Polydesmida : Paradoxosomatidea : Paradoxosomatidae) and a revision of the genus Australiosoma Brölemann

The collection of several paradoxosomatid species in the context of ecological studies prompted an investigation into the morphology and species-level characteristics of Australian millipedes in the tribe Australiosomatini Brolemann, 1916 (Polydesmida : Paradoxosomatidae). Three new species are described: Akamptogonus caragoon, sp. nov., Australiosoma fulbrighti, sp. nov. and Australiosoma combei, sp. nov. Notes or re-descriptions are provided for nine additional species belonging to the tribe. Scanning electron microscopy was utilised to examine details of the antennal sensory fields, the fifth sternite lamella and associated pores. The presence of the fifth sternite lamella in adult males is considered a synapomorphy for the family Paradoxosomatidae, whereas the prominent tubercle on the first femur in males (adenostyle) represents a synapomorphy of the subfamily Australiosomatinae. With the description of two new species in the genus Australiosoma Brolemann, 1913 a revision of the genus was undertaken with the purpose of constructing a species-level phylogeny. The most commonly described and utilised species-specific characteristics were scored in a data matrix and analysed using PAUP. The analysis resulted in a single, fully resolved tree of the following structure: Hoplatria clavigera ((A. clavigerum, A. inusitatum) (((A. rainbowi, A. nodulosum) A. michelseni) (A. laminatum (A. combei, A. fulbrighti))).
Caldera formation and varied eruption styles on North Pacific seamounts: the clastic lithofacies record

Detailed examination of volcaniclastic and sedimentary rocks collected from the Taney (30 Ma), President Jackson (4 Ma), Vance (3 Ma) and Alarcon (2 Ma) near-ridge seamount chains of the North Pacific reveals seven clastic lithofacies that record various modes of eruption, magma fragmentation, and particle dispersal. Lithofacies are distinguished by differences in lithology, bedding habit, compositional heterogeneity, and relationship to volcanic landforms. Breccia lithofacies were produced through mechanical fragmentation during caldera collapse (polymict) or effusive eruptions onto steep slopes (monomict). Rare globular lapilli mudstone lithofacies contain clasts with morphologies formed by magma-sediment mingling processes (peperite). Seamount summit pyroclastic deposits include proximal lapilli tuff with vesicular pyroclasts, and more distal limu o Pele tuff lithofacies. Much finer-grained hydrothermal mudstone/tuff lithofacies occurs around caldera rims and contains greenschist minerals, hydrothermal clays and basaltic ash that record subsurface phreatomagmatic fragmentation processes. Very fine-grained ash is transported to distal regions by oceanic currents and hydrothermal plumes, and is a component of the regional pelagic sediment budget. Pyroclastic lithofacies only occur on seamount summits suggesting formation during the latter stages of seamount evolution. As a seamount drifts away from an adjacent ridge axis and associated heat source, its magma supply is reduced allowing for magmatic gas buildup and mild explosive eruptions. During this stage, the diminished melt supply under the seamount is unable to fully compensate for extension along the ridge axis and vertical seamount growth. Lateral intrusion into spreading-related structures in this stage causes magma withdrawal and caldera formation. Formation of caldera ring faults also promotes seawater ingress into subseafloor hydrothermal cells, which interact with magma conduits causing phreatomagmatic fragmentation.
Violence and Revolution in Latin America during the American Century

Greg Grandin and Gilbert M. Joseph, eds. A Century of Revolution: Insurgent and Counterinsurgent Violence During Latin America's Long Cold War . Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2010. 443 pp., $2...
Mathematics of Computing

After years of discussion, the consensus among academic computer scientists seems to be that undergraduate computer science programs need more mathematical content. This mathematical content is not to be found in areas such as calculus and differential equation but in areas such as discrete mathematics and mathematical logic. The objective of this article is to re‐examine the central role of mathematics in computer science by reviewing the undergraduate computer science curriculum from Curricula ‘68 to the current Computing Curricula 1991. The trend toward a greater concentration in such courses as discrete mathematics will be explored. Furthermore, we collected and put together comments and concerns of three prominent computer scientists about the importance of mathematics in computing science and lack of mathematical content in computer science programs. We then look at one area of computer science amenable to mathematical treatment. This area, software specification, is one of the important phases of t...
Adrenocortical steroids modify neurotransmitter-stimulated cyclic AMP accumulation in the hippocampus and limbic brain of the rat.

: Glucocorticoid hormones are known to affect limbic system structures that have high levels of specific receptors for glucocorticoids, especially the hippocampus (HIPP). To understand how glucocorticoids may affect syn-aptic transmission, we have tested the effects of adrenal removal and glucocorticoid replacement on neurotransmit-ter-stimulated cyclic AMP accumulation in brain slices from the rat limbic system. Adrenalectomy (ADX) caused an enhancement of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP)-stimulated cyclic AMP accumulation in HIPP, amygdala (AMYG), and septum (SEP). In HIPP, ADX increased the cyclic AMP response to isoproterenol (ISOP) and decreased the response to histamine (HIST). In the AMYG and SEP, ADX did not affect significantly the action of ISOP, but ADX did decrease the response to HIST in AMYG. Administration of dexamethasone or corticosterone reversed the effects of ADX on cyclic AMP accumulation in the HIPP. The dexamethasone action on VIP-stimulated cyclic AMP accumulation takes place within 48 h and is most apparent in the mid-range of the VIP dose-response curve. These results demonstrate that glucocorticoids regulate neurotrans-mitter-stimulated cyclic AMP generation in a fashion that is specific, both for the neurotransmitter involved and for the brain regions affected.
Impact damage on a thin glass plate with a thin polycarbonate backing

Abstract We present experimental and computational results for the impact of a spherical projectile on a thin glass plate with a thin polycarbonate backing plate, restrained in a metal frame, or in the absence of the frame. We analyze the dependence of the damage patterns in the glass plate on the increasing impact velocities, from 61 m/s to 200 m/s. Experimental results are compared with those from peridynamic simulations of a simplified model. The main fracture patterns observed experimentally are captured by the peridynamic model for each of the three projectile velocities tested. More accurate implementation of the actual boundary conditions present in the experiments will likely further improve modeling of brittle damage from impact on a multi-layered system. The peridynamic computational model sheds light into the early stages of the complex brittle damage evolution in the glass layer, and the influence of boundary conditions on the dynamic fracture process.
A Carbon Arc Image Furnace and Microscope for Studies at High Temperatures

The optical principles and operational and radiation characteristics of a 10-kw carbon arc image furnace employing paraboloidal mirrors 12 inches in diameter are described. The furnace was constructed for use in conjunction with an American Optical Company microscope having a working distance of 7.25 inches and a numerical aperture of 0.1. The maximum irradiance in the image was determined by (1) calculation from the optical system parameters, (2) phoiometry, and (3) observation of the stability of materials of known melting points. Calculations show that the theoretical maximum irradiance in the image is 3.8 mum irradiance in the image is 2.1 watts/mm/sup 2/ a flux density equivalent to the radiation from a black-body at 2200 deg C. The value of the equipment for microscopy studies was demonstrated by recording on movie film the behavior of uranium dioxide and mixtures of uranium dioxide with silicon or silicon carbide at high temperatures. Selected photographs from the movie film are included in this report. Stereomicrographs taken at room temperature show additional detail in the heated samples. Suggestions are made for further improvement of the furnace. (auth)
Understanding website complexity: measurements, metrics, and implications

Over the years, the web has evolved from simple text content from one server to a complex ecosystem with different types of content from servers spread across several administrative domains. There is anecdotal evidence of users being frustrated with high page load times or when obscure scripts cause their browser windows to freeze. Because page load times are known to directly impact user satisfaction, providers would like to understand if and how the complexity of their websites affects the user experience.While there is an extensive literature on measuring web graphs, website popularity, and the nature of web traffic, there has been little work in understanding how complex individual websites are, and how this complexity impacts the clients' experience. This paper is a first step to address this gap. To this end, we identify a set of metrics to characterize the complexity of websites both at a content-level (e.g., number and size of images) and service-level (e.g., number of servers/origins).We find that the distributions of these metrics are largely independent of a website's popularity rank. However, some categories (e.g., News) are more complex than others. More than 60% of websites have content from at least 5 non-origin sources and these contribute more than 35% of the bytes downloaded. In addition, we analyze which metrics are most critical for predicting page render and load times and find that the number of objects requested is the most important factor. With respect to variability in load times, however, we find that the number of servers is the best indicator.
Adaptive workload shaping for power savings on disk drives (abstracts only)

In order to reduce the amount of power consumption in data centers, it is becoming necessary to shut off or slow down disks that are not actively serving user requests. In addition to exploiting disk drive idleness, system features are in place that shape a disk's workload by redirecting portions of it elsewhere, with the goal to expand the periods of idleness and the potential for power savings. In this paper, we propose several workload shaping techniques that determine which part of the working set to copy elsewhere using temporal and spatial access frequencies in the workload. These workload shaping techniques, used within an analytic estimation methodology, enable a fully automated framework that determines on-line for the current workload which, if any, shaping technique to activate such that the power saving benefits are maximized without violating performance targets. Extensive trace-driven evaluation shows that the proposed workload shaping techniques complement each-other with regard to their abilities to enhance idleness in disk drives for a wide range of workload characteristics. This results to added power savings in a data center even when performance targets are stringent and workloads intensive.
Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans. Salvaging quality of life using two approaches to treatment.

Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans is an uncommon, low grade, malignant soft tissue tumor with a characteristic pattern of slow growth, a very low rate of metastatic disease, and a marked tendency to recur following local surgical excision. 1-3 The incidence of dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans is very low and is commonly reported to be less than 0.1% of all tumors and slightly greater than 1% of all soft tissue sarcomas. 4-6 It is usually found on the trunk, followed in almost equal proportions by the proximal aspect of both the lower and upper extremities, and in the head and neck area. 7 The soles and palms have been the only exceptions in targeted locations. 5, 8 Relatively few cases have been reported in the foot. Dermatofibrosarcoma was seen only once (0.037%) in a study of 2,720 lesions of the foot, and 12 times (0.21%) out of 5,802 cases of fibrous and histiocytic tumors and lesions of the foot in a larger updated study by
A Simple and Portable Algorithm for Identifying Atrial Fibrillation in the Electronic Medical Record

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is common and increases stroke risk and mortality. Many knowledge gaps remain with respect to practice patterns and outcomes. Electronic medical records (EMRs) may serve as powerful research tools if AF status can be properly ascertained. We sought to develop an algorithm for identifying subjects with and without AF in the EMR and compare it to previous methods. Using a hospital network EMR (n = 5,737,846), we randomly selected 8,200 subjects seen at a large academic medical center in January 2014 to derive and validate 7 AF classification schemas (4 cases and 3 controls) to construct a composite AF algorithm. In an independent sample of 172,138 subjects, we compared this algorithm against published AF classification methods. In total, we performed manual adjudication of AF in 700 subjects. Three AF schemas (AF1, AF2, and AF4) achieved positive predictive value (PPV) >0.9. Two control schemas achieved PPV >0.9 (control 1 and control 3). A combination algorithm AF1, AF2, and AF4 (PPV 88%; 8.2% classified) outperformed published classification methods including >1 outpatient International Statistical Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision code or 1 outpatient code with an electrocardiogram demonstrating AF (PPV 82%; 5.9% classified), ≥ 1 inpatient International Statistical Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision code or electrocardiogram demonstrating AF (PPV 88%; 6.1% classified), or the intersection of these (PPV 84%; 7.4% classified). When applied simultaneously, the case and control algorithms classified 98.4% of the cohort with zero disagreement. In conclusion, we derived a parsimonious and portable algorithm to identify subjects with and without AF with high sensitivity. If broadly applied, this algorithm can provide optimal power for EMR-based AF research.
Do Public Employment and Training Programs Work

We estimate impacts on earnings and employment of the two primary adult workforce support and training programs under the U.S. Workforce Investment Act (WIA) using administrative data on 160,000 participants from 12 states for up to four years following program entry. We find that participants in the WIA Adult program, who typically enter with poor work histories, realize improved employment levels and increased average quarterly earnings of several hundred dollars. Earnings gains for Dislocated Worker program participants are appreciably smaller, although these participants do experience employment gains. I38, J08, J24
Biodynamics of Hallux Abductovalgus Etiology and Preoperative Evaluation

Hallux abductovalgus (HAV) is a common but complex deformity. HAV is a combination of deformities and abnormalities. Because HAV is not from a single cause or pathologic process, controversies in description and potential treatments exist. Although many HAV deformities appear similar, no two are the same and thus cannot be treated the same surgically.
HETEROCYCLIC AROMATIC AMINE METABOLISM, DNA ADDUCT FORMATION, MUTAGENESIS, AND CARCINOGENESIS

Heterocyclic aromatic amines (HAAs) are carcinogenic compounds formed in meats, fish, and poultry prepared under common household cooking practices. Some HAAs are also formed in tobacco smoke condensate. Because of the widespread occurrence of HAAs in these daily staples, health concerns have been raised regarding the potential role of HAAs in the etiology of some human cancers associated with frequent consumption of these products. In this review, the metabolism of HAAs to biologically active metabolites that bind to DNA and provoke mutations and cancer in various biological systems is discussed. Some of the current analytical and molecular methods that are used to measure biomarkers of HAA exposure and genetic damage in experimental animal models and humans are also presented. These biochemical data combined may help to better assess the role that HAAs may have in the development of some common forms of human cancers.
Cortisol inhibits hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor expression and induces c-met transcripts in osteoblasts

Hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) is expressed by osteoblasts and has important effects on repair and bone remodeling. Because glucocorticoids regulate these two functions, we tested the effects of cortisol on the expression of HGF/SF and c-met, the protooncogene encoding the HGF/SF receptor, in cultures of osteoblast-enriched cells from 22-day fetal rat calvariae (Ob cells). Cortisol decreased HGF/SF mRNA levels and diminished the induction of HGF/SF transcripts by fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) and platelet-derived growth factor BB (PDGF BB). Cortisol also decreased FGF-2 and PDGF BB-induced HGF/SF mRNA and polypeptide levels in MC3T3 cells. In contrast, cortisol enhanced the expression of c-met transcripts in Ob cells. Cortisol did not modify the half-life of HGF/SF or of c-met mRNA in transcriptionally arrested cells, and it increased the rate of transcription of c-met. In conclusion, cortisol decreases HGF/SF transcripts in Ob cells and enhances c-met expression transcriptionally. The effects of cortisol on HGF/SF could be relevant to its inhibitory actions on bone formation and repair.
Robot navigation in unknown generalized polygonal terrains using a discrete scan sensor

Consideration is given to the navigation and terrain model acquisition problems in unknown two-dimensional terrains populated by disjoint obstacles whose boundaries are connected sequences of circular arcs and straight line segments. A general result is given that shows that a solution for the navigation problem (or terrain model acquisition problem) require an infinite number of scan operations in critical regions around the obstacle vertices at which a convex arc meets a concave arc. Either problem is considered to be solved with a precision in if a point p in a critical region within a distance of in from each of the arcs of the region is considered a part of fictitious obstacle. Two navigational structures are proposed for generalized polygonal terrains that yield solutions to both problems with a precision in . >
Cell transplantation for treatment of left-ventricular dysfunction due to ischemic heart failure: from bench to bedside.

Cell transplantation is an innovative technology that involves the implantation of a variety of myogenic and angiogenic cell types. The transplanted cells proliferate and augment left ventricular performance and therein ameliorate the heart failure symptoms. The concept of cell transplantation has followed the footsteps of angiogenesis starting as bench side research. The latter half of the decade saw the transformation of this potential mechanism to a promising therapy for ischemic heart failure. More than 150 patients have been treated with cellular transplantation worldwide. This novel application has the potential to revolultionalize alternative therapeutic approaches to management of heart failure.
Short-Term Throughput Maximization for Battery Limited Energy Harvesting Nodes

Deploying energy harvesting nodes can significantly extend the lifetime of a battery powered wireless network. The nature of these systems calls for specific design principles to efficiently utilize the dynamic energy resources. In contrast to the conventional wireless networks, transmission policies for these systems should take into account the recharge process of the node as well as its battery capacity. In this work, we focus on the problem of finding the optimal transmission policy to maximize the short-term throughput of an energy harvesting transmitter node with power control and a limited energy storage capacity. The transmission policy in this problem is strictly constrained with both the energy arrival process and the energy storage capacity of the node. The analysis of the problem is founded on the increasing concave nature of the power-rate relationship information theoretic findings suggest. A discrete model with packets of energy arrivals is considered for energy replenishment, and an algorithm to yield the short-term throughout maximizing policy is sought. The necessary conditions such a policy should satisfy are identified and an algorithm to yield the unique policy that satisfies these conditions is presented. The performance of this algorithm is then observed through numerical results.
Kin Networks and Poverty among African Americans: Past and Present

Trends in social welfare policy and programs place increasing expectations on families to provide members with various forms of material and socioemotional support. The historic ability of kin networks of many African Americans to provide such support has been compromised by long-term community and family poverty. The potential mismatch between the expectations of social welfare systems for kin support and the actual functional capacities of kin networks places African Americans living in poverty at great risk of chronic poverty and its long-term multiple consequences. This article reviews historical and contemporary research on the structure and function of African American kin networks. On the basis of evidence of functional decline, the authors argue that social workers must re-examine the a priori assumption of viable kin networks as a reliable source of resilience among African Americans living in poverty. Social workers must focus assessment at all levels of practice on a variety of aspects of kin networks to make accurate judgments about not only the availability of resources, but also the perceived costs and benefits of participation in exchange for resources.
Grain sorghum response to iron sources applied alone or with fertilizers

Abstract Several greenhouse pot experiments were conducted on Fe‐deficient soils to determine agronomic effectiveness of various Fe sources applied alone or with fertilizers. Grain sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) response was greatest with FeEDDHA in all experiments. Several industrial byproducts containing Fe generally were not effective, but seed application and soil application of a natural organic complex containing Fe were somewhat effective in providing Fe to the crop. Effectiveness of FeS04 or FeHEDTA band applied with fluid fertilizers decreased in the order: polyphosphate suspension, orthophosphate suspension, urea‐ammonium nitrate solution. Crop response was greater with FeHEDTA than with FeSO4, in all fertilizers. Band application of urea‐phosphate (UP), an experimental acidic phosphate fertilizer containing urea, cogranulated with FeSO4 (to contain 4% Fe) was somewhat effective for grain sorghum. Crop response to UP‐Fe products decreased with level of water‐soluble Fe and percentage of the total Fe ...
Full-swing BiCMOS logic circuits with complementary emitter-follower driver configuration

Various full-swing BiCMOS logic circuits with complementary emitter-follower driver configurations are described. The performance of the circuits is demonstrated in a 1.2 mu m complementary BiCMOS technology with a 6 GHz n-p-n and a 2 GHz p-n-p transistor. For the basic circuit, gate delay (fan-in=2, fan-out=1) is 366 ps and driving capability is 288 ps/pF at 4 V. Delay-power tradeoffs that depend on characteristics of the clamping diode between two base nodes of the complementary emitter-follower driver, parasitic capacitances at the two base nodes, and a technique that can be used to achieve full swing have been identified for these circuits. These circuits show leverage over the conventional BiCMOS circuit for reduced power-supply voltages. >
Race Is Not Neutral: A National Investigation of African American and Latino Disproportionality in School Discipline

Discipline practices in schools affect the social quality of each educa- tional environment, and the ability of children to achieve the academic and social gains essential for success in a 21st century society. We review the documented patterns of office discipline referrals in 364 elementary and middle schools during the 2005-2006 academic year. Data were reported by school personnel through daily or weekly uploading of office discipline referrals using the Web-based School-wide Information System. Descriptive and logistic regression analyses indicate that students from African American families are 2.19 (elementary) to 3.78 (middle) times as likely to be referred to the office for problem behavior as their White peers. In addition, the results indicate that students from African American and Latino families are more likely than their White peers to receive expulsion or out of school suspension as consequences for the same or similar problem behavior. These results extend and are consistent with a long history of similar findings, and argue for direct efforts in policy, practice, and research to address ubiquitous racial and ethnic disparities in school discipline.
Tensor products with bounded continuous functions

We study the natural inclusions of C b (X) ⊗ A into C b (X, A) and C b X, C b (Y ) into C b (X × Y ). In particular, excepting trivial cases, both these maps are isomorphisms only when X and Y are pseudocompact. This implies a result of Glicksberg showing that the Stone- ˇ Cech compactificiation β(X × Y ) is naturally identified with βX × βY if and only if X and Y are pseudocompact.
Text analysis and knowledge mining

As the use of IT systems expands, growing amounts of textual data are being generated, stored, and searched. This trend is widely believed to be causing information overload. Although the increase of accessible data is intended to increase our knowledge and yield insights for better actions, the data glut is making it hard to find meaning. Natural Language Processing (NLP) is a key technology to exploit text data, so applications for NLP are increasing rapidly. Such applications often exploit text mining [1], [2], but they involve a broad range of NLP technologies as the applications develop. This new trend is generating new demands for NLP that require more research.
The Legacy of Channing: Culture as a Religious Category in New England Thought

In assessing the importance of William Ellery Channing to his generation, Ralph Waldo Emerson pronounced him “our Bishop” and put in sharp focus what was for him an intellectual problem, and what has remained for us a historical one. It is not the word “bishop” that is problematic, for almost no one disputed the leadership of Channing in the first decades of the nineteenth century, that crucially formative period for our culture. His first biographer, nephew William Henry Channing, noted that he “was everywhere recognized as the most eloquent and effective preacher in Boston,” and after his death Emerson remarked that he “left no successor in the pulpit” ( JMN , 1. 470). New Englanders generally recognized him as the key spokesman for the liberal or Unitarian theology, and social reformers of all stripes looked to him with hope to support their endeavors. On the basis of a handful of literary essays and religious polemics, he became, in Sydney Ahlstrom's phrase, “the most influential American religious thinker being heard abroad,” and Robert Spiller noted that in the critical world, he was “among the first American writers to win British critical consideration.”
Locating and Exploring Teacher Perception in the Reflective Thinking Process.

In the phenomenological study from which this theoretical article derives, 18 middle school teachers were asked – during an unstructured interview or by writing a lived‐experience description – to describe moments when they recognized and responded to a student who did not understand something during an instructional activity. Based on my analysis of the data, I identified an essential meaning structure and 10 patterns of meaning that describe the structure. In this article I explicate the essential meaning structure, highlight the patterns of meaning I identified, and then illuminate one of the four patterns of meaning specifically related to recognition – perceiving body language. I use the verb illuminate to indicate how I ‘shined a light on’ one aspect of the phenomenon. In doing so, I could then reflect theoretically and practically on this aspect. To illuminate in this article, I use Merleau‐Ponty's notion of perception as a blending of perspectival views and some of Dewey's thoughts on reflective t...
Predictors of total parenteral nutrition-induced lipogenesis

Objective To evaluate the incidence and cause of parenteral nutrition-induced lipogenesis. Design Retrospective patient review. Setting A 40-bed predominantly surgical ICU. Patients One hundred forty patients receiving central venous nutrition and mechanical ventilatory support. Interventions Indirect calorimetry was used to determine patient's measured energy expenditure (MEE) and respiratory quotient (RQ). Additionally total caloric intake (TCAL), glucose infusion rate, basal energy expenditure (BEE), estimated stress factor, and calculated energy expenditure (CEE) were assessed in each patient. Measurements and main results Net fat synthesis was found as RQs exceeded 1 in 47 percent of patients. Statistically significant differences in oxygen consumption, CO2 production, measured energy expenditure, total and carbohydrate caloric intake, and glucose infusion rate were found between groups of patients with an RQ ≤ or > 1. Seventy-three percent of patients with glucose infusion rates > 4 mg/kg-min had RQs > 1. Conclusions Net fat synthesis was found in a surprisingly large number of critically ill patients receiving central venous nutrition. Many of these patients received carbohydrate calories in excess of their measured energy expenditure, even though it appeared that they needed this level of caloric intake by clinical assessment. The high carbohydrate total parenteral nutrition (TPN) solutions with lipids provided only for prevention of essential fatty acid depletion resulted in an unacceptably high incidence of fat synthesis. The results suggest that caloric intake may be optimized in critically ill patients using indirect calorimetry. When calorimetry is not available, a total caloric intake of up to 140 percent of the BEE with glucose infusion rates not exceeding 4 mg/kg-min and fats providing 40 to 60 percent of calories will meet the energy requirements of most critically ill patients without forcing the RQ > 1.
Employment and Achievement: Mothers' Work Involvement in Relation to Children's Achievement Behaviors and Mothers' Parenting Behaviors

Mothers' total weekly work hours and psychological work involvement were examined in relation to children's achievement behaviors and mothers' parenting. 105 middle-class children (M = 6 years old) and their mothers (both employed and not employed) participated in this study. Data were collected from lab observations, teacher ratings, and parent surveys. Findings of interest include: (1) for the full sample, higher weekly work hours were associated with poorer teacher ratings of children's grades, school work habits, and aspects of personality conducive to achievement; (2) within the employed sample, as mothers' weekly hours of work increased, daughters' grades were higher but sons' grades, work habits, and ego control were poorer; and (3) mothers' psychological motivation to work related to mothers' support of children's achievement and girls' stronger achievement motivation. The study findings point to the utility of including multiple measures of work involvement and children's achievement-related behaviors.
Explanation in variable phonology: An exponential model of morphological constraints

Variationist treatments of phonological processes typically provide precise quantitative accounts of the effects of conditioning environmental factors on the occurrence of the process, and these effects have been shown to be robust for several well-studied processes. But comparable precision in theoretical explanation is usually elusive, at the current state of the discipline. That is, the analyst is usually unable to say why the parameters should have the particular values that they do, although one can often explain relative ordering of environments. This article attempts to give a precise explanation —in the form of a quantitative theoretical prediction —of one robust quantitative observation about English phonology. The reduction of final consonant clusters (often called -t,d deletion) is well-known to be conditioned by the morphological structure of a target word. Deletion applies more in monomorphemic words (e.g., mist) than in inflected words (e.g., missed). In the theory of lexical phonology, these classes of words are differentiated by derivational history, acquiring their final clusters at different levels of the morphology. The theory further postulates that rules may apply at more than one level of the derivation. If -t,d deletion is treated as a variable rule with a fixed rate of application (p 0 ) in a phonology with this architecture, then higher rates of application in underived forms (where the final cluster is present underlyingly and throughout the derivation) are a consequence of multiple exposures to the deletion rule, whereas inflected forms (which only meet the structural description of the rule late in the derivation) have fewer exposures and lower cumulative deletion. This further allows a precise quantitative prediction concerning surface deletion rates in the different morphological categories. They should be related as an exponential function of p 0 , depending on the number of exposures to the rule. The prediction is empirically verified in a study of -t,d deletion in seven English speakers.
Enhancing Electricity Audits in Residential Buildings with Nonintrusive Load Monitoring

Summary Nonintrusive load monitoring (NILM) is a technique for deducing the power consumption and operational schedule of individual loads in a building from measurements of the overall voltage and current feeding it, using information and communication technologies. In this article, we review the potential of this technology to enhance residential electricity audits. First, we review the currently commercially available whole-house and plug-level technology for residential electricity monitoring in the context of supporting audits. We then contrast this with NILM and show the advantages and disadvantages of the approach by discussing results from a prototype system installed in an apartment unit. Recommendations for improving the technology to allow detailed, continuous appliance-level auditing of residential buildings are provided, along with ideas for possible future work in the field.
Evolutionary computation: practical issues

Evolutionary computation techniques, which are based on a powerful principle of evolution: survival of the fittest, constitute an interesting category of heuristic search. These stochastic algorithms whose search methods model some natural phenomena: genetic inheritance and Darwinian strife for survival, have been applied to a large number of hard, real-world problems from a variety of domains: social systems, machine learning, operations research, ecology, engineering, immune systems, economics, management, etc. Any evolutionary algorithm applied to a particular problem must address the issue of genetic representation of solutions to the problem and genetic operators that would alter the genetic composition of offspring during the reproduction process. Additional heuristics should be incorporated in the algorithm as well; some of these heuristic rules provide guidelines for initializing the population of potential solutions, for setting various parameters of the system (e.g., population size, probabilities of operators, etc.) and for evaluating individuals in the population. This paper discusses some practical issues connected with applications of evolutionary techniques.