cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Spectral Karyotyping Analysis of Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Objectives/Hypothesis: The genetic content of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas is ill defined. Spectral karyotyping (SKY) is a new technique that allows the simultaneous detection of all chromosomal translocations by labeling each individual chromosome with different fluorescent agents. In the current study we used SKY to analyze cell lines and a primary tumor derived from head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) to delineate recurrent translocations and breakpoints. Study Design: Spectral karyotyping analysis of head and neck cancer. Methods: Two cell lines (MDA886 and MSK922) and one primary tumor in short-term culture were subjected to metaphase growth arrest with colcemide in their exponential growth phase and fixed onto glass slides. Painting probes for each of the autosomes and the sex chromosomes were generated from flow-sorted human chromosomes using sequence-independent DNA amplification. The probes were labeled using a polymerase chain reaction-based reaction and hybridized to metaphase preparations for 2 days at 37°C. Biotinylated probes were detected using avidin Cy5 and digoxigenin-labeled probes with an anti-mouse digoxigenin antibody followed by goat anti-mouse antibody conjugated to Cy5.5. Chromosomes were counterstained with 4,6-diamino-2-phenyliodole (DAPI), and a minimum of five metaphases were captured and analyzed for each case. Breakpoints on the SKY-painted chromosomes were determined by comparison of corresponding DAPI banding. Results: Spectral karyotyping analysis revealed a complex pattern of chromosomal abnormalities. A total of 66 translocations were identified in the three cases, with one new recurrent translocation at (der(4)t(4;20)(q35;?)). Nine complex translocations, involving three or more chromosomes, were identified in these cases. Overall, 96 breakpoints were assigned to metaphase chromosomes and another 74 breakpoints could not be assigned. Breakpoints most commonly involved chromosomes in genetic rearrangements were 1, 3, 5, 8, 13, 16, and 17. Conclusions: Spectral karyotyping analysis reveals the true complexity of chromosomal aberrations in cell lines derived from head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. The use of SKY, in combination with other techniques, may allow for a more complete assessment of the genetic abnormalities of head and neck cancers and serve as a starting point for gene identification.
Collective motion in poly(ethylene oxide)/poly(methylmethacrylate) blends.

We present neutron spin echo and structural measurements on a perdeutereted miscible polymer blend: poly(ethylene oxide)[PEO]/poly(methyl methacrylate)[PMMA], characterized by a large difference in component glass transition temperatures and minimal interactions. The measurements cover the q range 0.35 to 1.66 A{sup -1} and the temperature range T{sub g}-75 to T{sub g}+89 K, where T{sub g} is the blend glass transition. The spectra, obtained directly in the time domain, are very broad with stretching parameters {beta}{approx}0.30. The relaxation times vary considerably over the spatial range considered however at none of the q values do we see two distinct relaxation times. At small spatial scales relaxations are still detectable at temperatures far below T{sub g}. The temperature dependence of these relaxation times strongly resembles the {beta}-relaxation process observed in pure PMMA.
Cholinergic mechanisms in the cat vestibular system

Abstract A neuropharmacological study was undertaken in the cat to obtain further evidence of the role of acetylcholine in vestibular function. It was shown that the vestibular nerve contains about half or less the enzymatic activity of choline acetyltransferase. acetylcholinesterase, cholinesterase and total cholinesterase than nucleus vestibularis lateralis (NVL). Field potentials as well as discharge of single neurones of nucleus vestibularis lateralis (NVL) were studied in locally anaesthetized, decamethonium immobilized ventilated cats before, during and after vestibular nerve and reticular formation stimulation. Various cholinergic agonists and antagonists and the adrenergic agonists l -DOPA and (+)-amphetamine were then given intravenously to determine their effects. Three major evoked potentials to vestibular nerve stimulation were recorded in NVL. These potentials were labelled N 1 , N 2 and N 3 on the basis of polarity and latency. Although the N 1 and N 3 waves were not much affected, the N 3 wave was dramatically enhanced by physostigmine and reduced by scopolamine. About half of NVL neurones excited by vestibular nerve stimulation responded to muscarinic cholinergic drugs. Nucleus vestibularis lateralis responses to reticular formation (RF) stimulation were primarily nicotinic and were blocked by the nicotinic antagonist, mecamylamine, but not trimethadinium. Some neurones excited by RF stimulation were enhanced by l -DOPA or (+)-amphetamine. The data indicate that cholinergic mechanisms are strongly involved in vestibular function. Adrenergic mechanisms are also involved, but to a much lesser extent.
Radiation-Induced Reactions of 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene in Aqueous Solution

Radiolysis of aqueous solutions of TNT was examined to provide fundamental information concerning the reactions of TNT with radical species in water. γ-Radiation was used in conjunction with radical scavengers to compare yields for radiation-induced TNT transformation under oxidizing and reducing conditions and in the presence and absence of oxygen. Pulse radiolytic techniques were employed to determine rate constants and absorption spectra for the reactions of TNT with the hydroxyl radical and the aqueous electron. TNT was rapidly transformed under both reducing (1% tert-butyl alcohol, N 2 sparged) and oxidizing (N 2 O sparged) conditions although rates under reducing conditions were greater. The initial yield for transformation of a 350 μmol L -1 TNT solution under reducing conditions was 0.14 μmol/J as opposed to 0.10 μmol/J measured in oxidizing conditions. The reactions of TNT with reduced oxygen species were found to be highly inefficient in aqueous solution. Although TNT is transformed by both oxidizing and reducing radicals, TNT degradation yields in the absence of a radical scavenger were low, indicating that under these conditions there were significant secondary reactions in which the species resulting from reactions between TNT and the primary radicals further reacted to reform the parent compound. The bimolecular rate constant for the reaction between TNT and - OH was determined to be 4.3 x 10 8 mol -1 s -1 . Byproduct analyses from γ-radiolysis suggest that hydroxyl radical abstraction of a methyl hydrogen to form the trinitrotoluyl radical is an initial oxidative reaction. The bimolecular rate constant for the reaction between TNT and e aq - was measured as 3.5 x 10 10 mol -1 s -1 . These results provide quantitative and qualitative insight into the reactions between TNT and the various aqueous radicals produced in many remediation processes.
Stat5 synergizes with t cell receptor/antigen stimulation in the development of lymphoblastic lymphoma

Signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) proteins are latent transcription factors that mediate a wide range of actions induced by cytokines, interferons, and growth factors. We now report the development of thymic T cell lymphoblastic lymphomas in transgenic mice in which Stat5a or Stat5b is overexpressed within the lymphoid compartment. The rate of lymphoma induction was markedly enhanced by immunization or by the introduction of TCR transgenes. Remarkably, the Stat5 transgene potently induced development of CD8+ T cells, even in mice expressing a class II–restricted TCR transgene, with resulting CD8+ T cell lymphomas. These data demonstrate the oncogenic potential of dysregulated expression of a STAT protein that is not constitutively activated, and that TCR stimulation can contribute to this process.
Neutron Deficient Isotopes of Iodine

Abstract : The iodine isotopes I(123), I(122), I(121), and I(120) (?) have been made by bombarding antimony with alpha-particles. Their characteristics are summarized and evidence for mass assignments presented. During the course of some investigations of abnormal change in nuclear charge following irradiation with high-energy particles, some of the nuclides encountered proved to be light isotopes of iodine which had not been reported previously. The main study will be reported at a later date while the present communication describes some work done to characterize and identify the iodine isotopes. The mass number region of interest is that below I(124) as higher isotopes are well known.
A control theory for stochastic eigenvectors of stochastic matrices through variations of entries

Abstract This paper describes the set of stochastic eigenvectors which can be obtained from a stochastic matrix S by variations of specified entries of S . Further, given any such eigenvector, the variations of entries of S needed to obtain this eigenvector are specified.
Current and Future Applications of 3-D Global Earth-Ionosphere Models Based on the Full-Vector Maxwell’s Equations FDTD Method

Advances in computing technologies in recent decades have provided a means of generating and performing highly sophisticated computational simulations of electromagnetic phenomena. In particular, just after the turn of the twenty-first century, improvements to computing infrastructures provided for the first time the opportunity to conduct advanced, high-resolution three-dimensional full-vector Maxwell’s equations investigations of electromagnetic propagation throughout the global Earth-ionosphere spherical volume. These models, based on the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method, are capable of including such details as the Earth’s topography and bathymetry, as well as arbitrary horizontal/vertical geometrical and electrical inhomogeneities and anisotropies of the ionosphere, lithosphere, and oceans. Studies at this level of detail simply are not achievable using analytical methods. The goal of this paper is to provide an historical overview and future prospectus of global FDTD computational research for both natural and man-made electromagnetic phenomena around the world. Current and future applications of global FDTD models relating to lightning sources and radiation, Schumann resonances, hypothesized earthquake precursors, remote sensing, and space weather are discussed.
Oribatid mites as predators of soil nematodes.

A new species of Pergalumna (Oribatei, Acari) was found to feed (in all stages except larval) on both saprophytic and plant-parasitic nematodes. It is suggested that the normally saprophytic oribatids may constitute an important reglator of soil nematode populations.
Gene Therapy for Myocardial Angiogenesis: Has It Come of Age?

Vasculogenesis and angiogenesis are the processes responsible for the development of the circulatory system during embryonic and adult life. Vasculogenesis occurs during embryogenesis while angiogenesis refers to blood vessel formation from any preexisting vasculature. Postnatal angiogenesis resumes during reproduction, wound healing, and ischemia. Excess blood vessel formation may contribute to initiating and maintaining many diseases such as chronic inflammatory disorders, tumor growth, restenosis, and atherosclerosis. In contrast. insufficient blood vessel formation is responsible for tissue ischemia, as in coronary artery disease. An increasing number of patients with advanced coronary artery disease remain symptomatic despite maximal interventional, surgical or medical treatment. Ideally, they would benefit most from additional arterial blood supply to ischemic areas of myocardium. Therapeutic angiogenesis, the ability to induce the growth of new blood vessels, is one of the most intriguing new frontiers in interventional cardiology for this growing patient group. Several approaches are currently undergoing intensive experimental investigations or have already entered early clinical trials involving either local angiogenic peptide administration or the transfection of angiogenic genes. Gene therapy for therapeutic myocardial angiogenesis is the most promising synthesis of two emerging technologies. In the following article, we will review the fundamental pathophysiological concepts of gene-based angiogenic therapy, the technical approaches and delivery systems, and the results of the first clinical trials. We will also discuss the controversies and unresolved issues of this new revascularization therapy.
Population regulation of brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) in Hunt Creek, Michigan: a 50‐year study

Summary 1. Fisheries models generally are based on the concept that strong density dependence exists in fish populations. Nonetheless, there are few examples of long-term density dependence in fish populations. 2. Using an information theoretical approach (AIC) with regression analyses, we examined the explanatory power of density dependence, flow and water temperature on the per capita rate of change and growth (annual mean total length) for the whole population, adults, 1+ and young-of-the-year (YOY) brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) in Hunt Creek, Michigan, USA, between 1951 and 2001. This time series represents one of the longest quantitative population data sets for fishes. 3. Our analysis included four data sets: (i) Pooled (1951–2001), (ii) Fished (1951–65), (iii) Unfished (1966–2001) and (iv) Temperature (1982–2001). 4. Principle component analyses of winter flow data identified a gradient between years with high mean daily winter flows, high daily maximum and minimum flows and frequent high flow events, and years with an opposite set of flow characteristics. Flows were lower during the Fished Period than during the Unfished Period. Winter temperature analyses elucidated a gradient between warm mean, warm minimum and maximum daily stream temperatures and a high number of minimum daily temperatures >6.1 °C, and years with the opposite characteristics. Summer temperature analyses contrasted years with warm summer stream temperatures vs years with cool summer stream temperatures. 5. Both YOY and adult densities varied several-fold during the study. Regression analysis did not detect a significant linear or nonlinear stock–recruitment relationship. AIC analysis indicated that density dependence was present in 15 of 16 cases (four population segments × four data sets) for both per capita rate of increase (wi values 0.46–1.00) and growth data (wi values 0.28–0.99). The almost ubiquitous presence of density dependence in both population and growth data is concordant with results from other trout populations and other studies in Michigan.
Wire routing by optimizing channel assignment within large apertures

The purpose of this paper is to introduce a new wire routing method for two layer printed circuit boards. This technique has been developed at the University of Illinois Center for Advanced Computation and has been programmed in ALGOL for a B5500 computer. The routing method is based on the newly developed channel assignment algorithm and requires many via holes. The primary goals of the method are short execution time and high wireability. Actual design specifications for ILLIAC IV Control Unit boards have been used to test the feasibility of the routing technique. Tests have shown that this algorithm is very fast and can handle large boards.
Abstract 5: Heart Failure Patients Hospitalized with Bacterial Infections: A Nationwide Analysis of Concomitant Clostridium Difficile Infection Rates and In-Hospital Mortality

Heart failure (HF) patients have altered gut microbiota, as do patients who receive antibiotics for bacterial infections. Altered gut microbiota is associated with increased susceptibility to C. difficile infection (CDI). It is not known if HF patients hospitalized with bacterial infections experience CDI more frequently and whether CDI impacts their mortality. We utilized Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project National Inpatient Sample data from 2010 to 2012 to determine the rate of CDI and associated in-hospital mortality for HF patients hospitalized with urinary tract infection (UTI), pneumonia (PNA) or sepsis. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed. Unweighted data are presented. We identified 868,401 HF patients hospitalized with UTI, PNA, or sepsis. There were 2,825,390 patients without HF hospitalized with the same infections. HF patients were on average older (75.4 vs 65.1 years, p<0.001) compared to patients without HF. In unadjusted analysis, HF patients hospitalized with UTI, PNA or sepsis had higher rates of CDI compared to patients without HF hospitalized with the same infections (UTI 3.9% vs 2.7%, PNA 2.9% vs 2.3%, sepsis 6.8% vs 5.3%; p<0.001 for all). Heart failure remained significantly associated with CDI (OR 1.2, 95% CI 1.18-1.23, p<0.001), even after controlling for patient demographics, insurance status, hospital characteristics, and presence of ischemic heart disease. Heart failure patients hospitalized with UTI, PNA or sepsis and diagnosed with CDI had higher in-hospital mortality rates compared to HF patients hospitalized with UTI, PNA or sepsis who did not develop CDI (figure). CDI remained significantly associated with in-hospital mortality for HF patients hospitalized with bacterial infections (OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.9-2.1, p<0.001), even after controlling for the above variables. Heart failure is associated with higher rates of CDI among patients hospitalized with common bacterial infections, even when adjusting for other known risks for CDI. Furthermore, within the HF population, CDI is associated with markedly higher in-hospital mortality. These findings suggest an opportunity to improve outcomes for HF patients through improved C. difficile screening and prophylaxis protocols. ![][1] [1]: /embed/graphic-1.gif
The Linguistic Reflex of Social Change: From Tsarist to Soviet Russian Kinship*

… a scientific statement is a statement that can be disproved, by which we mean, of course, a statement worded in such a way as to make it clear what sort of data would be adequate to overthrow it…
Effect of Errors in Adaptive Weights

Optimum weighting is used to adaptively increase the signal-to-interference ratio (SIR) of signal processors. The precision required in computing the weights is evaluated. Analytic results have been obtained and verified by computer simulation. lt is shown that for antenna adaptivity the required weight precision increases with increasing values of the attainable SIR improvement and with the number of auxiliary elements. A typical result is that when using 8 auxiliary elements with a theoretical SIR improvement of 40 dB, quantizing the optimum weights to 10 bits degrades the improvement by at most 3 dB.
Looking for trouble: Using causal semantics to direct focus of attention

Vision should provide an explanation of the scene in terms of a causal semantics. The authors propose a characterization of what constitutes visual understanding. The cornerstone of the proposal is that visual understanding is fundamentally a matter of developing a causal explanation of the scene, i.e., of determining the causal significance of the elements in a scene, and the causal relationships among those elements. Simple, naive physical knowledge is used as the basis of a vertically integrated vision system that explains arbitrarily complex stacked block structures. The semantics provides a basis for controlling the application of visual attention, and forms a framework for the explanation that is generated. It is shown that the program sequentially explores scenes of complex blocks structures, identifies functional substructures such as arches and cantilevers, and develops an explanation of why the whole construction stands and the role of each block in its stability. >
Getting Clear About Communities in Open Innovation

Research on open source software, user innovation and open innovation have increasingly emphasized the role of communities in creating, shaping and disseminating innovations. However, the comparability of such studies has been hampered by the lack of a precise definition of the community construct. In this paper we review prior definitions (implicit and explicit) of the community construct, and other suggestions for future research.
Aspiration Pneumonia in Institutionalized Children A Retrospective Comparison of Treatment with Penicillin G, Clindamycin and Carbenicillin

The antibiotic therapy of aspiration pneumonia was retrospectively reviewed in 74 institutionalized children with lung abscess (10), necrotizing pneumonia (12), and pneumonitis (52). Anaerobic bacteria were isolated in 69 patients (93%); and in 67 (90.5%), they were mixed with aerobic bacteria. Penicillin G was given to 20 patients, clindamycin to 20, and carbenicillin to 34. Genta micin was concurrently given to 35 of the patients. The mean duration of therapy in the three types of pulmonary infection was: lung abscess 30.2 days, necrotizing pneumonia 26.6 days, and pneumonitis 15.1 days. The mean dura tion of fever after initiation of therapy was 5.8 days, 8.1 days, and 3.4 days, respectively. The mean time for radiologic clearance was 35.6 days for lung abscess, 39.2 days for necrotizing pneumonia, and 13.5 days for pneumonitis. The three antibiotics were equally effective in all patients, including those from whom Bacteroides fragilis was recovered.
The structure of a tricarbonyliron derivative of Barbaralone

Abstract One minor product of the reaction of Fe2(CO)9 in ether with impure bicyclo[2.6.0]deca-2,4,6-triene, in which the major impurity was cyclooctatetreane, is a derivative of barbaralone, tricyclo [3.3.1.02,8]nona-3,6-diene-9-one, I, in which the three membered ring has been opened at the 2.8 bond. The systematic name for the compounds is (2,3,4,8-η4-bicyclo[3.2.2]-nona-3,6-diene-2,8-yl-9-one)tricarbonyliron. It is identical to the product which can be obtained by direct reaction of barbaralone with Fe2(CO)9 in ether. The most likely progenitor of the barbaralone moiety in the present instance in the C8H8 impurity, although there is no direct proof of this. Compound I crystallized from pentane at −5° in the triclinic system with unit cell dimensions a 7.476(2), b 11.912(4), c 6.606(2) A, α 94.55(2)°, β 110.17(2)°, γ 92.38(3)°, V 549.0(3) A3 and Z 2. Space group P 1 . The structure was solved by Patterson and Fourier methods and refined to R1 0.021 and R2 0.031 with all nonhydrogen atoms treated anisotropically and the eight hydrogen atoms treated isotropically, using 1283 reflections having F20 > 3 σ (F20). The coordination about the iron atom can be described as distorted octahedral if the η3-allyl is considered to occupy two of the six positions. The three CO ligands are mutually cis. The allyl group is trans to two of them and FeC σ bond is trans to the third. The mean FeCO bond lengths is 1.795(5) A, the FeC(allyl) distances are 2.137(3), 2.069(2) and 2.195(3) A, and the FeC σ bond has a length of 2.110(2) A. The broad geometrical features of the structure are quite at variance with the concept of a “homobutadiene complex”.
Plus Ça Change: Charles Taylor On Accommodating Quebec’s mInority Cultures

This article examines the 2008 report of the Quebec Government’s Consultation Commission on Accommodation Practices Related to Cultural Differences which was co-authored by Charles Taylor. Summariz...
Developing Organizational Learning Capacity in Crisis Management

The problem and the solution. The impact of crises on organizations and individuals has been stronger than ever. Despite increasing recognition of the effects of crisis events, most organizations are found not adequately prepared in managing crises. The increasingly frequent occurrence of organizational crises exemplifies the need for human resource development in preparing organizations and their members for crisis situations. However, very little effort has been made in this direction. Recognizing the dynamics and interconnectedness of crisis management, organizational learning, and organizational change, this article proposes an integrated model of organizational learning for crisis management that will likely strengthen organizational capacity and resilience in coping with crises and resultant changes.
Stability of local brain levels of insulin-like growth factor-I in two well-characterized models of decreased plasma IGF-I

Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), a functionally important neurotrophic factor, impacts tissues throughout the body including the central nervous system. In addition to the significant proportion of IGF-I that is synthesized in the liver and released into the plasma, IGF-I is expressed locally in tissues. The present study investigated the relationship between plasma and local brain levels of IGF-I in two well-characterized models of decreased IGF-I. The first is an adult-onset growth hormone deficiency (AOGHD) model, and the second is a caloric restriction (CR) model. In the first cohort of animals from both models, the hippocampus was removed from the brain immediately following decapitation, and in the second cohort, the animals were perfused transcardially with phosphate buffered saline to remove cerebral blood prior to harvesting the hippocampus. Our results demonstrated that although the plasma IGF-I levels were decreased in the CR and AOGHD rats compared to controls, the hippocampal IGF-I levels did not differ among the groups. These data suggest that local brain IGF-I levels are regulated in a different manner than plasma IGF-I levels.
Pluripotency Takes Off without Blimp1

In this issue of Cell Stem Cell, Bao et al. demonstrate that Blimp1, which is required for primordial germ cell (PGC) specification, is dispensable for the derivation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs), epiblast stem cells (EpiSCs), and reprogramming. These findings argue that the acquisition of pluripotency does not require a Blimp1-dependent PGC intermediate state.
Weight value testing in artificial neural networks

This paper presents a method for testing ANN interconnection weight values in programmable ANNs. The methodology requires separate weights for excitatory and inhibitory contributions to a neuron's activation. In the test the excitatory and inhibitory weights are set to be equal, producing no net contribution to the activation. Any faults in the weight values result in an imbalance that is amplified by the neuron activation function and is easily detectable at the neuron output. Analysis is performed on the detection approach that includes fault detection thresholds as a function of neuron gain, network size, and weight perturbation. A methodology is outlined that uses the proposed testing approach followed by example test results.
Metabolic Activity in the Insular Cortex and Hypothalamus Predicts Hot Flashes: An FDG-PET Study

Context: Hot flashes are a common side effect of adjuvant endocrine therapies (AET; leuprolide, tamoxifen, aromatase inhibitors) that reduce quality of life and treatment adherence in breast cancer patients. Because hot flashes affect only some women, preexisting neurobiological traits might predispose to their development. Previous studies have implicated the insula during the perception of hot flashes and the hypothalamus in thermoregulatory dysfunction. Objective: The aim of the study was to understand whether neurobiological factors predict hot flashes.
Coronary artery bypass: a user's manual.

m r w o t d W r t i c hat happens when the coronary artery bypass patient is the cardiologist—a cardiologist who as taken care of hundreds of patients with the disease hat now confronts him? The story that follows is a autionary tale. Joseph Perloff tells the first part himelf, but hazy memory immediately after the operation akes it incumbent for someone else—in this case the hysician’s wife, who was taking care of him—to esh out the story. The patient’s own impressions ollow.
Analytic Derivation and Monte Carlo Validation of a Sensitivity Formula for Slit-Slit Collimation With Penetration

A slit-slit collimator consists of two orthogonal slits and can be conceptualized as a generalized pinhole. Since the two slits are independent of each other, there can be independent axial and transaxial acceptance angles. A small axial acceptance angle may help mitigate axial blurring with circular orbits, allowing multiple copies axially. In addition, since the two slit planes can be placed at different distances with respect to the source, a better detector usage can be achieved, especially in the case of detectors and imaged objects with different aspect ratios. In this paper, an analytical expression is derived for the sensitivity of slit-slit collimation including effective slit widths for photon penetration. An analytical expression for sensitivity is necessary in order to accurately model the system response. This expression could also be useful for comparing a slit-slit's sensitivity performance with others. When the effective slit width is used instead of the geometric slit width, the derived analytical expression accurately accounts for photon penetration of the aperture. The derived expression for the sensitivity was validated by Monte Carlo simulation for both geometric and penetrative cases.
Willingness to pay for depression treatment in primary care.

OBJECTIVE: The authors analyzed data from 615 depressed primary care patients to determine their willingness to pay for depression treatment. METHODS: A sample of 615 adult patients from four primary care clinics participated in a randomized controlled trial of a disease management program for depression in primary care. Participants were asked at baseline interviews and six-month follow-up interviews how much they would be willing to pay per month for a six-month treatment that would eliminate their symptoms of depression. Multiple regression analyses were used to estimate the association between demographic and clinical factors and willingness to pay for depression treatment and to examine changes. RESULTS: The mean amount that participants were willing to pay for depression treatment at baseline was $270±187 per month, or about 9 percent of the participants' household income. Willingness to pay was significantly associated with household income and with the severity of depressive symptoms. Over six mon...
Echogenic Intracardiac Focus Potential for Misdiagnosis

Objective To assess the potential rate of specular reflectors within the fetal heart producing reflections of sufficient amplitude to be mistaken for echogenic intracardiac foci. Methods Between July 1999 and December 2000, 200 patients were randomly selected from the University of California, San Francisco, perinatal database who met the following criteria: (1) had singleton pregnancy, (2) delivered at University of California, San Francisco, and (3) had obstetric sonography at University of California, San Francisco, between 18 and 22 weeks' gestation. Bright focal reflections within the heart were judged to be either "true" or "false" echogenic intracardiac foci. Results In this population of patients who underwent routine obstetric sonography at a tertiary care hospital, the rate of true echogenic intracardiac focus cases was 11 per 200 (5.5%). The rate of false echogenic intracardiac focus cases was 34 per 200 (17%). The most common locations for identification of a spurious echogenic intracardiac focus were the endocardial cushion, the moderator band, and the tricuspid valve annulus. Conclusions A specular reflection from the moderator band was judged the false echogenic intracardiac focus most likely to fool examiners. The rate of specular reflection from the moderator band was 11 per 200 (5.5%). Because it is possible to generate a specular reflection from an interface in the fetal heart in virtually any patient, it is important to exercise caution before diagnosing an echogenic intracardiac focus.
Origins, characteristics, controls, and economic viabilities of deep- basin gas resources

Abstract Dry-gas deposits (methane ≥ 95% of the hydrocarbon (HC) gases) are thought to originate from in-reservoir thermal cracking of oil and C 2+ HC gases to methane. However, because methanes from Anadarko Basin dry-gas deposits do not carry the isotopic signature characteristic of C 15+ HC destruction, an origin of these methanes from this process is considered improbable. Instead, the isotopic signature of these methanes suggests that they were cogenerated with C 15+ HC's. Other gas-composition data from both nature and laboratory experiments also suggest that most methane in dry-gas deposits originates from a post-expulsion fractionation of wet gases generated with C 15+ HC's into methane-rich deposits. Only a limited resource of deep-basin gas deposits may be expected by the accepted model for the origin of dry-gas deposits because of a limited number of deep-basin oil deposits originally available to be thermally converted to dry gas. However, by the models of this paper (inefficient source-rock oil and gas expulsion, closed fluid systems in petroleum-basin depocenters, and most dry-gas methane cogenerated with C 15+ HC's), very large, previously unrecognized, unconventional, deep-basin gas resources are expected. Nonetheless, economic recovery of these gas resources will depend on drilling, completion, stimulation, production, and maintenance procedures applicable to the unique characteristics of each unconventional gas-resource base. Isotopic values of methanes from nature and laboratory experiments suggest that most ‘thermogenic’ methanes with δ 13 C values of −50 to −45 may have a significant component of biogenic methane. Also, laboratory experiments demonstrate that organic-matter facies variations have as strong a control on HC gas chemical and isotopic values as maturity. Thus, estimation of gas maturities by gas isotopic or chemical characteristics can be misleading.
Optical waveguide materials with voltage tunable polarization modes

Summary form only given. In this presentation, we introduce a new semiconductor optical waveguide material using a novel InGaAlAs variable-strain quantum well (VSQW) heterostructure in the active region, which has been demonstrated to exhibit bias controlled changes in the polarization properties of the waveguide. The VSQW has a built-in pseudomorphic strain linearly changing from compressive in one side of the quantum well to tensile strain at the other side using a gradual change of the lattice mismatch in the well.
DATALINK: A Structural Laboratory On-Line Language

The M.I.T. DATALINK system is a complete computerized system for structural laboratory measurements. The system acquires the data, stores them, reduces them, and outputs them. It consists of special-purpose data acquisition hardware plus a general-purpose digital computer. The software provides a problem-oriented command structure in which the experimenter can express his instructions to the system without being restricted by a fixed data format. It was designed to be used by students and experienced experimenters with no background in computer programming. The user’s on-line command in the English-like language is compiled into a compact internal code. The system executive interprets this code and calls into core from disk the appropriate subroutine to perform such functions as allocating files, assembling lists, setting up macros, printing, punching, calibrating transducers, reading and reducing data, computing principal strains and stresses, and any other desired computations. All computations and output are completed in real-time, that is, while the experiment is still in progress.
Is the Hole Only a Part of the Whole

The presence of a patent foramen ovale (PFO) in patients with cryptogenic stroke has generated a rich debate over whether the PFO is a culprit or a bystander. Arguably, the battle lines are between cardiologists and neurologists. The former have championed transcatheter PFO closure with a litany of
A Crash Course in Lunar Geology

While recently perusing an excellent Website devoted to the Moon, I read a rather scathing review of a lunar observer’s handbook published about a decade ago. I was a little surprised by the low opinion the reviewer had for this book, as I had enjoyed it myself — it was written by a longtime amateur lunar observer who I thought had done a nice job of conveying the enjoyment you can get from spending time at the eyepiece studying the wealth of detail our natural satellite has to offer. The reviewer’s main complaint was that this handbook ignored our current knowledge of lunar geology, which has advanced by leaps and bounds since World War II, accelerated by the convoy of American and Soviet spacecraft sent to the Moon in the 1960s and early 1970s which climaxed in Project Apollo, the only mission to successfully return to Earth significant quantities of another world’s rocks. More recently, the Clementine and Lunar Prospector missions have infused new energy into lunar studies, particularly its geologic aspects.
Mass cytometry moving forward in support of clinical research: advantages and considerations

Since 1970, the invention of flow cytometry FACS has become widely used for single-cell measurements in medicine and biology [1]. In the last 30 years FACS has become the work horse to provide fast, objective and quantitative recording of fluorescent signals from individual cells as well as physical separation of cells of particular interest. A recent breakthrough, cytometry time-of-flight (CyTOF, mass cytometry), builds on flow cytometry and adds MS for unprecedented marker detection in biological samples [2,3]. CyTOF is a novel and exciting technology for real-time analysis of single cells using inductively coupled plasma TOF-MS. Current CyTOF technique allows the detection of 40 parameters at the single-cell level; this capacity will increase as more isotopes become available. CyTOF can resolve multiple metal conjugated antibodies for biomarkers detection on cells with minimal signal overlap, which maximizes the information obtained from each individual sample. To make the best use of mass cytometry to produce high-quality quantitative data from clinical samples, we must understand the experimental variables and how to minimize them. The ability to analyze multiplexed assays is of great importance for clinical diagnostic and other analytical applications. Mass cytometry is a significant advance for studies in medical fields including immunology, hematology and oncology. CyTOF has the ability to perform complex characterization at single-cell level both phenotypically and functionally from normal and diseased states. Single cell technologies have allowed researchers to measure the effects of a drug and better understand its mechanism of action. While research in drug companies is focused on the mechanism of drug–target interactions and its resulting pharmacology, CyTOF techniques may become a driving tool for biomarker discovery. There is increasing interest from a variety of disciplines for single-cell experimentation methods, such as cancer research, cardiovascular research, embryonic stem cells and development, gene expression profiling, hematopoietic stem cells and progenitors, immunity/ infectious disease, induced pluripotent stem cells, neural research and RNA sequencing [4–9]. The advantages of CyTOF are clear, and investigators employing best practices may achieve robust discovery in a routine bioanalytical setting.
Development regulation of ganglioside metabolism.

Publisher Summary Various reports have appeared indicating that the expression of gangliosides may be largely regulated at the genetic level. Evidence from analysis of the gene for this enzyme revealed binding sequences for a number of liver restricted transcription factors such as hepatocyte nuclear factor l a, liver specific factors D-binding protein (DBP), and liver enriched transcription activator protein (LAP), as well as the more general transcription factors AP-1 and AP-2. Presumably, the expression of the various glycosyltransferases for ganglioside synthesis may be regulated in an analogous manner. Factors involved in the regulation of ganglioside expression include the proper translocation and sorting of the glycolipid products in multi-glycosyltransferase systems. Disruption of the flow of gangliosides along their biosynthetic pathways also can cause alterations in ganglioside expression. It is demonstrated that polysialogangliosides exerted inhibitory effects feedback control. Another intriguing mechanism for the regulation of ganglioside synthesis states that in cultured cerebellar cells a shift in the biosynthesis from a- to b-series gangliosides occurred when the pH of the medium was lowered from 7.4 to 6.2, with the effect being reversible. Whether changes in pH occur in vivo to effect the shift in biosynthesis of gangliosides during development remains to be substantiated.
Estrogen Levels in Girls with Premature Thelarche Compared to Age Matched Normal Prepubertal Girls as Determined by an Ultrasensitive Recombinant Cell Bioassay. † 395

Estrogen Levels in Girls with Premature Thelarche Compared to Age Matched Normal Prepubertal Girls as Determined by an Ultrasensitive Recombinant Cell Bioassay. † 395
Dysfunctional Organization: The Leadership Factor

In an extension of studies on dysfunctional organizations, vis-a-vis leadership, the current research examines leaders of dysfunctional and functional organizations in view of the functions of leadership. Sixteen variables related to leadership functions were tested to examine the relationship between leadership and organizational level of functionality and the differences between the characteristics of leaders of functional and dysfunctional organizations. A strong positive correlation was found between effective leadership and organizational level of functionality and a statistically significant difference was found between the characteristics of leaders of functional and dysfunctional organizations.
Variation in growth, leaf, and wood property traits of Chinese white poplar (Populus tomentosa), a major industrial tree species in Northern China

The natural phenotypic variation in Chinese white poplar (Populus tomentosa Carr.), which is distributed across a wide geographical area of northern China (30°N–40°N, 105°E–125°E), is a potential s...
Aero-servo-viscoelastic flutter and torsional divergence alleviation for a wing in subsonic, compressible flow

The theory of aero-servo-viscoelasticity first developed by the authors1 is extended to the subsonic, compressible flow regime for a rectangular wing. The subsonic flow is modeled using the Possio integral equation and the closed form solution derived by Balakrishnan.2 Of interest is the effect of varying viscoelastic properties and servo controller gains on the flutter boundary and torsional divergence speeds of the wing. The viscoelastic properties are the relaxation times and the ratio of initial to final moduli. The three controllers considered are the proportional, integral, and differential feedback controllers. The solution procedure for calculating the flutter boundary and torsional divergence speeds uses the extended Theodorsen function derived by Sears3 that includes both reduced damping and reduced frequency. This formulation can model both torsional divergence and flutter. Within MATLABTM, the governing equations for the wing are solved numerically using an iterative procedure. The results of extending aero-servo-viscoelasticity to the subsonic, compressible flow regime are pertinent for the design of UAVs and MAVs with fixed or movable lifting surfaces for constant flight velocities. Further research is pursued for variable flight velocities that exist during maneuvers because viscoelastic materials have a memory effect. The variable flight velocities also require extensions to the unsteady aerodynamic formulations.
A Structurally Relevant Lung Phantom for Optimization of Multiscale Imaging of Bacterial Infection

A structurally and optically pertinent phantom has been developed for the analysis of a microendoscopic bacterial detection system. Addition of a structural component into the optical phantom will provide enhanced information regarding system performance.
Studies of an Insect Mycosis III. Histopathology of an Aspergillosis of Platysamia Cecropia L.

Previous papers in this series have discussed the etiology and hostparasite ranges of a disease of the cecropia moth, Platysamia cecropia L., caused by the fungus, Aspergillus flavus Link (Sussman 1951 a, b). The effect of the parasite upon the tissues of the host and its method of entrance and attack will now be reported.
Nitrous oxide uptake in rewetted wetlands with contrasting soil organic carbon contents

Abstract Rewetting drained peatlands creates favorable reduced conditions for denitrification, but, the potential of restored peatlands to act as N2O sink is poorly characterized. We monitored N2O emissions in rewetted peatlands converted to rice paddies with a range of soil organic carbon (SOC) (6%, 11%, and 23%) during the growing season. Negative N2O emissions were repeatedly observed in all sites, which were not affected by nitrogen fertilization at 80 kg N ha−1. The highest consumption rates amounted to 8.2 tones CO2 eq ha−1 yr−1, 32% of the average CO2 emissions from drained peat soils. Porewater N2O concentrations were frequently less than the calculated in situ N2O equilibrium concentrations, suggesting diffusional constraints on atmospheric N2O into pore water. Redox potentials were correlated to N2O emission rates (r2 = 0.40, p
Femtosecond carrier dynamics near the band edge of In0.53Ga0.47As

The implementation of In0.53Ga0.47As as a material in optical and electro-optical devices, requires a fundamental understanding of the carrier dynamics and nonlinear optical properties that result from ultrashort pulse photoexcitation. The investigation of the carrier dynamics of GaAs has been reported extensively.1–4 Here we report the results of our experimental investigation and modeling of the ultrafast carrier dynamics of bulk and multiple-quantum-well (MQW) In0.53Ga0.47As as a function of excitation intensity and wavelength.
What should a fellow-in-training expect at national cardiovascular conferences? The interventional cardiology fellows' perspective.

Abstract Background It has become challenging for cardiovascular fellows-in-training (FIT) to determine which national cardiovascular conference (NCC) to attend given the broad range of meetings and the breadth of information offered. The aim of this study was to report our own experiences of the utility and individual strengths of the NCCs and to further understand the interventional cardiology (IC) FITs' viewpoint regarding the benefits of the individual NCCs. Methods A survey was formulated with questions and scenarios regarding topics deemed to be of highest importance for an IC-FIT. The survey emphasized experiences regarding the utility and benefits of the NCCs, time management, optimization of acquired education, and specific interests in clinical and research topics. The completely anonymous survey was sent via an email format to a total of 234, majority of IC (fourth and fifth years) and a minority of general (third year), FITs. Results A completed survey response was received from 131 of the fellows (56%). The results demonstrated that the IC-FITs endorsed that the small, focused sub-specialty interventional meetings vs. the large society general meetings were more beneficial in regard to the didactic education offered. In addition, the IC-FITs indicated that pre-planning for the meetings is the most beneficial approach in optimizing one's education and that the caliber of expert faculty, case-based and live-case presentations are among the most important aspects of the meetings. Conclusions Interventional cardiology FITs prefer the small sub-specialty interventional meetings over the large society general NCCs in regard to the benefits of didactic learning.