cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Establishment of a Streptococcus pneumoniae nasopharyngeal colonization model in adult mice.

Abstract Human nasopharyngeal carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae constitutes the major natural reservoir of pneumococci and is thought to be the prelude to virtually all pneumococcal disease. If carriage could be greatly reduced, pneumococcal transmission and disease could be largely eliminated. To facilitate the studies of mechanisms important in carriage and to identify immunogens that can elicit protection against carriage, we characterized an adult mouse model of nasopharyngeal carriage. Non-anaesthetized mice were inoculated intranasally with pneumococci in 10 μl of fluid. Nasopharyngeal carriage was observed with strains of capsular types 3, 4, 6A, 6B, 14, 19, and 23. Carriage was stable over time, and the numbers of pneumococci carried were relatively independent of inoculation dose; findings which indicate that the recovery of pneumococci from 1 day to 2 weeks post inoculation was dependent on colonization, rather than just temporary contamination. To ensure carriage in the largest percentage of mice, without causing sepsis or death, inoculations of 10 7 colony forming units (cfu) should be used. In this model, carriage was generally observed without concomitant bacteremia or sepsis and carriage was observed even with strains that were avirulent when injected i.v. The model should be useful for the identification of protection-eliciting antigens, since intranasal immunization with heat-killed pneumococci or lysates of pneumococci protected against carriage.
A New Standard-Setting Method for Performance Assessments: The Dominant Profile Judgment Method and Some Field-Test Results:

Traditional standard-setting methods are not well suited for applications with polytomously scored performance assessments. The present article presents a standard-setting method-the dominant profile judgment (DPJ) method-designed for use with profiles of polytomous scores on exercises in a performance-based assessment. The method is direct, in that it guides standard-setfing panelists in the articulation of their standard-setting policies. Further, it allows complex policy statements that could incorporate compensatory and/or conjunctive components. A detailed description of the method is provided, Results of an application of this standard-setting method are presented. Recommendations for improvements in the method are discussed.
The Terminal Pleistocene/Early Holocene archaeology of the Great Basin

The archaeological record of the Terminal Pleistocene and Early Holocene in the Great Basin consists largely of surface lithic artifacts, and consequently research has concentrated on typological and technological studies. The small suite of radiocarbon dates available suggests human presence in the Great Basin by at least 11,500 B.P., but evidence of subsistence is scanty. Technological analyses as well as artifact distributions suggest that the earliest occupants of this region subsisted primarily by hunting, possibly large terrestrial game. As elsewhere in North America, the earliest occupants of the Great Basin faced a rapidly changing environment, with the drying of shallow pluvial lake remnants and the creation of new habitats. Paralleling these changes, significant subsistence resource diversification coupled with expansion into new environments is evident by the close of the Pleistocene.
Evaluating the use of outputs from comprehensive meteorological models in air quality modeling applications

Currently used dispersion models, such as the AMS/EPA Regulatory Model (AERMOD), process routinely available meteorological observations to construct model inputs. Thus, model estimates of concentrations depend on the availability and quality of meteorological observations, as well as the specification of surface characteristics at the observing site. We can be less reliant on these meteorological observations by using outputs from prognostic models, which are routinely run by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The forecast fields are available daily over a grid system that covers all of the United States. These model outputs can be readily accessed and used for dispersion applications to construct model inputs with little processing. This study examines the usefulness of these outputs through the relative performance of a dispersion model that has input requirements similar to those of AERMOD. The dispersion model was used to simulate observed tracer concentrations from a Tracer Field Study conducted in Wilmington, California in 2004 using four different sources of inputs: (1) onsite measurements; (2) National Weather Service measurements from a nearby airport; (3) readily available forecast model outputs from the Eta Model; and (4) readily available and more spatially resolved forecast model outputs from the MM5 prognostic model. The comparison of the results from these simulations indicate that comprehensive models, such as MM5 and Eta, have the potential of providing adequate meteorological inputs for currently used short-range dispersion models such as AERMOD.
Formalization of Bernstein Polynomials and Applications to Global Optimization

This paper presents a formalization in higher-order logic of a practical representation of multivariate Bernstein polynomials. Using this representation, an algorithm for finding lower and upper bounds of the minimum and maximum values of a polynomial has been formalized and verified correct in the Prototype Verification System (PVS). The algorithm is used in the definition of proof strategies for formally and automatically solving polynomial global optimization problems.
Thermal Conductivity of LiF and NaF and the Ziman Limit

A model calculation of lattice thermal conductivity is presented and applied to measurements on LiF and NaF crystals of high purity. The treatment is in the spirit of a Callaway analysis, but at a somwhat more fundamental level: The Ziman variational principle for thermal conductivity derived from the phonon Boltzmann equation is used, with the phonon distribution function approximated by a displaced Planck part plus another term reducing the deviation from equilibrium for high-frequency phonons. An isotropic Debye approximation for the phonon spectra of LiF and NaF gives a good fit to the conductivity data, with only two semi-adjustable parameters (Gr\"uneisen constant and a zone-edge longitudinal phonon frequency) for the anharmonic contribution. The most important feature of the calculation is the failure of the thermal conductivity to approach the Ziman limit of resistanceless phonon-phonon $N$ processes. This is due to the important role played by high-frequency phonons in thermal conduction. Even for an infinite perfect crystal at arbitrarily low temperatures, the Ziman limit underestimates the conductivity by at least 50%. If this prediction is correct, it is not a peculiarity of LiF and NaF alone, and should be of importance for the theory of second-sound propagation in insulators.
The ‘Weakness’ of Women and the feminization of the Indian in colonial Mexico∗

(1996). The ‘Weakness’ of Women and the feminization of the Indian in colonial Mexico. Colonial Latin American Review: Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 73-94.
Use of ED Diagnosis to Determine Medical Necessity of EMS Transports

Objective. To examine interrater agreement for classifying emergency medical services transports as medically unnecessary using emergency department diagnosis as the sole determining factor. Methods. Three emergency physicians andtwo family medicine physicians classified 913 International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes as medically necessary, unnecessary, or uncertain. Overall agreement, interrater agreement, andagreement within 17 major disease categories were measured using κ statistics in SAS. Results. Physicians rated between 25% and65% of diagnoses codes as medically unnecessary. Overall agreement was fair (κ = 0.31). Agreement within specialties was higher among family medicine–trained physicians than among emergency physicians (κ = 0.52 andκ = 0.22, respectively). Agreement across all raters was highest for diseases classified as symptoms, signs, andill-defined conditions (κ = 0.40) andlowest for diseases of the blood andblood-forming organs (κ = −0.17). Agreement was obse...
THROUGH-SPACE HIGHER DIMENSIONALITY CONJUGATION TO ENHANCE OPTICAL PROPERTIES? AN EXPLORATORY COMPUTATIONAL INVESTIGATION ON A MODEL SYSTEM

AMPAC (Semichem Inc.) AM1 semiempirical calculations on stacked benzene delocalized ring systems suggest that very large third-order polarizabilities (γ) can be obtained. Systems of +2 charge consi...
Intensities and half-widths at different temperatures for the 201III←000 band of CO2 at 4854 cm−1☆

Abstract Measurements made at temperatures of 197, 233, and 294°K of the absolute intensities and self-broadening coefficients for the vibration-rotation lines of the 201III←000 band of the 12C16O2 molecule, are reported. From these measurements, values have been derived for the vibration-rotation interaction factor (FVR), the purely vibrational transition moment (|R(O)|), and the intensity (SBand). The results are: EVR(m) = 1+(2.2±0.7)×10−3 m+(5.6±1.6)×10×5m2, |R(0)| = (2.064±0.017)×10−3 debye, SBand = 21,329±69 cm−1 km−1 atm−1STP. The results for the self-broadening coefficients are presented in the text.
Chemical characterization, synthesis and distribution of proteinase inhibitor in newborn rat epidermis

Abstract A protein solubilized in Tris-HCl/saline buffer from keratinized cells of new born rat epidermis exhibited inhibitor activity to papain and ficin, but not to trypsin, cathepsin D and pepsin. This protein was purified from keratinized cells as well as nonkeratinized and germinative cells by means of IgG affinity chromatography. The inhibitors extracted from all cell layers were immunologically identical and had a molecular weight of approximately 12 500 ± 500. Since amino acid analysis showed that the inhibitor contains about 35 residues of glycine per mol, [ 3 H]glycine was used to investigate synthesis of the protein. The inhibitor from nonkeratinized and germinative cells was radioactively labeled by 2 h after injection and appeared in keratinized cells by 48 h after injection. Indirect immunofluorescence microscopy demonstrated in situ distribution of the protein in the entire epidermis, and the protein localized by the plasma membrane in granular cells and diffusely in keratinized cells was shown to be insoluble in Tris-HCl saline buffer. The results indicate that a thio-proteinase inhibitor is synthesized in epidermal cells during keratinization and is retained as part of the cytoplasmic structure.
Asymptotic test statistics for coefficients of variation

A one-sample asymptotically normal test statistic Is derived for testing the hypothesis that the coefficient of variation of a normal population is equal to a specified value. Based on this derivation, an asymptotically noraml two-sample test statistic and an asymptotically chi-square k-sample test statistic are derived for testing the hypothesis that the coefficients of variation of k ≥2 normal populations are equal. The two and k-sample test statistics allow for unequal sample sizes. Results of a simulation study which evaluate the size and power of the test statistics and compare the test statistics to earlier ones developed by McKay (1932) and Bennett (1976) are presented.
An Anglo-Saxon fragment of Alcuin's letters in the Newberry Library, Chicago

Among the fragments in the Newberry Library listed by Michael Masi in 1972,1 his item no. 15 was described as ‘ninth century’ and ‘insular’. When I examined them, the two leaves of this fragment proved to contain portions of three letters of Alcuin, written to Charlemagne in the late 790s.2 Copies of these letters are found in several ninth-century Carolingian manuscripts, but the only copy hitherto known to survive from Anglo-Saxon England is an elegant volume now in the library of Lambeth Palace, bound as the third part of manuscript 218, from the library at Bury St Edmunds.3 Both the Newberry fragments and Lambeth 218 deserve consideration both on palaeographical grounds and for what they reveal about the literary interests of Anglo-Saxon England. This study explores the circumstances in which they were produced, copied and read, in an effort to restore to them ‘the place, the traditions, the influences, the sources which explain the various aspects of its composition and contents; its destination and its purpose; the people who were involved’.4
A new variety of a thermophilic mold, Thermoascus aurantiacus var. levisporus

A member of a new thermophilic taxon, isolated from the soil from the Republic of Honduras, is described as Thermoascus aurantiacus var. levisporus var. nov. The anamorph consists of terminal and thick-walled conidia, similar to those in Thermoascus aurantiacus Miehe. The peridium consists of a more or less uniform layer of pseudoparenchymatous cells. Ascospores are smooth and thick-walled. Its optimum temperature for growth is 49–50 ° C and it grows best at pH 3.5–4.0.
Contact angle effects on boiling incipience of highly-wetting liquids

Abstract The difficulty in predicting the boiling incipience of highly-wetting liquids has slowed the application of immersion cooling technology in the electronics industry. The present effort sheds new light on this phenomenon by examining the influence of the dynamic solid/liquid contact angle and contact angle hysteresis on the incipience superheat. The results suggest that variations in contact angle, induced by changes in the direction and magnitude of the liquid/vapor interface velocity, can substantially affect the formation of bubble embryos and may well explain the wide experimental scatter in incipience superheat values reported for highly-wetting liquids.
Format Changes in Reading Achievement Tests: Implications for Learning Disabled Students.

It has been seen that children's scores on reading achievement tests vary not only with knowledge of content, but also with the differing formats of test items. Teachers working with learning disabled children or children with attention problems may wish to choose standardized tests with fewer, rather than more, format changes. The present study evaluated the number of format and direction changes across tests and grade levels of the major elementary standardized reading achievement tests. The number of format changes varies from one change every 1.2 minutes on the Metropolitan Achievement Test Level E1 to one change every 21.3 minutes on the P1 level of the Stanford Achievement Test. Teachers may wish to take this evaluation into account when considering use of standardized reading achievement tests for their students.
Structural dependence of the optical properties of narrow bandgap semiconductors with orthogonal donor–acceptor geometries

We discuss donor–acceptor conjugated polymers where the acceptor moieties are orthogonal to the donor-based backbone direction through the synthesis and study of a new class of materials (including six oligomers and three polymers) based on 4H-cyclopentadithiophene (CPDT) with an imine functionality introduced at the CPDT bridgehead position. Absorption spectroscopy provides information on the influence of structure on the optical properties. We paid special attention to the energies and oscillator strengths of the low-energy transitions and how they correlate with chain length. When the orthogonally conjugated materials are compared to a more traditional polymer, where the donor and acceptor fragments are in series along the backbone direction, fundamental differences in the optical properties are observed. Quantum-mechanical studies of the geometric structure, electronic structure, and excited-state vertical transitions using density functional theory unravel the interplay of structural design and resulting optoelectronic properties. Our findings underline that the magnitude and orientation relative to the backbone long axis of the transition dipole moment is key in designing narrow optical-gap materials with large absorption cross-sections and oscillator strengths.
The nano-mechanical morphology of shale

Abstract Shale, the sealing formations in most hydrocarbon reservoirs, is made of highly compacted clay particles of sub-micrometer size, nanometric porosity and different mineralogy. In this paper, we propose and validate a technique to identify the nano-mechanical morphology of such a nanocomposite material. In particular, by means of a massive nanoindentation campaign at two different scales on a large range of shale materials, we show that the highly compacted plate- or sheet-like clay particles have a distinct nano-mechanical morphology with no privileged orientation of the particle-to-particle contact surface, as evidenced by a mechanical percolation threshold of η 0 ⩾ 0.5. Furthermore, the nanoindentation results provide strong evidence that the nano-mechanical elementary building block of shales is transversely isotropic in stiffness, and isotropic and frictionless in strength. These observations lead to a sphere-like mechanical morphology for visibly plate- or sheet-like clay particles. The contact forces between the sphere-like particles activate the intrinsicly anisotropic elastic properties within the clay particles and the cohesive bonds between the clay particles. The mechanical stiffness and strength properties of porous clay scale with the clay packing density toward a unique set of shale-invariant material properties. The determination of mechanical microstructure and invariant material properties are of great importance for the development of predictive microporomechanical models of the stiffness and strength properties of shale. The approach presented here also applies to other chemically and mechanically complex materials exhibiting nanogranular behavior.
A numerically exact full wave packet approach to molecule–surface scattering

A numerically exact spectral method for solving the time-dependent Schroedinger equation in spherical coordinates is described. The angular dependence of the wave function is represented on a two-dimensional grid of evenly spaced points. The fast Fourier transform algorithm is used to transform between the angle space representation of the wave function and its conjugate representation in momentum space. The time propagation of the wave function is evaluated using an expansion of the time evolution operator as a series of Chebyshev polynomials. Calculations performed for a model system representing H2 scattering from a rectangular corrugated surface yield transition probabilities that are in excellent agreement with those obtained using the close-coupling wave packet (CCWP) method. However, the new method is found to require substantially more computation time than the CCWP method because of the large number of grid points needed to represent the angular dependence of the wave function and the variation in the number of terms required in the Chebyshev representation of the time evolution operator.
The Literary Elite: Titles for the Making of the Reference Librarian in Literature

The question being asked is: “If you were stranded on a desert island and had to create a reference/information service with only ten sources, which ten would you choose?” Frankly, I destest the prospect of being stranded on a desert island, or even a lush one. The heat, the sand, the bugs, and who knows what other critters — this is not my idea of an atmosphere conducive to study and reflection. And I bet that those ten reference books would deteriorate from the humidity faster than I could say “Robinson Crusoe.”
Targeted government spending and political preferences

This article addresses the question of whether incumbents can buy political support through targeted public spending. Using a regression discontinuity approach which takes advantage of the design of a recent Romanian government program that distributed coupons worth 200 Euros to poor families towards the purchase of a computer, we find that program beneficiaries were significantly more likely to support the parties of the incumbent governing coalition. These effects occurred both through higher political mobilization and through party-switching. The article also analyzes the drivers of such political gains and we find that program beneficiaries did not trust either the central government or the governing parties any more than the control group. Instead, it appears that local governments reaped the benefits of increased trust, and the political support for incumbent parties occurred mostly in towns where the local government was controlled by one of the parties of the national ruling coalition.
Weakly coupled event triggered output feedback control in wireless networked control systems

This paper examines output feedback control of wireless networked control systems where there are separate links between the sensor-to-controller and controller-to-actuator. The proposed triggering events only rely on local information so that the transmissions from the sensor and controller subsystems are not necessarily synchronized. This represents an advance over recent work in event-triggered output feedback control where transmission from the controller subsystem was tightly coupled to the receipt of event-triggered sensor data. The paper presents an upper bound on the optimal cost attained by the closed-loop system. Simulation results demonstrate that transmissions between sensors and controller subsystems are not tightly synchronized. These results are also consistent with derived upper bounds on overall system cost.
The fine structure of membrane complexes in spermatozoa of the millipede, Spirobolus sp., as seen by thin-section and freeze-fracture techniques

This study on membrane characteristics of the millipede, Spiro bolus sp., as a representative of the Diplopoda demonstrates evidence for unusual arrays of membranes and associated particle composition which will be compared to that for other spermatozoa. Mature spermatozoa of Spirobolus sp. are disk-shaped cells with a flat and concave surface. They are found juxtaposed at their flat surfaces in pairs. Highly specialized and morphologically unique membrane complexes which occur in these spermatozoa include the following: First, at the flat surface of apposed spermatozoa a heptalaminar membrane may be seen which is a composite of the limiting plasmalemma and the fused inner and outer nuclear membranes derived during spermiogenesis. Second, a tubular array of membranes occurs at the juncture of the flat and concave surfaces. Two sets of particles occur in these spermatozoa. One includes a highly ordered array of 10- to 11-nm P-face particles which form a ring lining the full circumference of the disk-shaped cells in square lattices of interparticle distance 19 to 20 nm. The second includes randomly dispersed 8- to 9-nm P-face particles which are present in particular abundance throughout the dome-shaped concave surface and along the flat juxtaposed surfaces. These data are discussed in terms of their possible function and a comparison is made with similar particle types found in other spermatozoa and in other cell types generally.
Assembly Properties of Lamprey Neurofilament Subunits and Their Expression After Spinal Cord Transection

Regenerating axon tips in transected sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) spinal cord contain dense accumulations of neurofilaments (NFs) (Lurie et al., 1994; Pijak et al., 1996; Hall et al., 1997) and NF expression by individual neurons after axotomy is correlated with their regenerative ability (Jacobs et al., 1997). This has suggested that NFs may play a role in the mechanism of axonal regeneration. NF proteins are intermediate filaments (IFs) found in the neuronal cytoskeleton. Mammalian NFs are composed of three polypeptide subunits: NFL, NFM, and NFH corresponding to light, medium, and heavy molecular mass. Rodent NFs are obligate heteropolymers, i.e., NFL must bind to either NFM or NFH to form filaments. By comparison, NFs in lampreys had been thought to contain only a single subunit, NF180 (Jacobs et al., 1995), which implied that NF180 self-assembles. However, in a previous study (Zhang et al., 2004) NF180 could not self-assemble in vitro, nor in cell cultures, including mammalian cell lines cultured at 37°C and fish cell lines cultured at lower temperatures. Furthermore, NF180 appeared to disrupt self-polymerization of rat NFL in vitro, and NF180 formed thick, rod-like filamentous structures when coexpressed with rat NFL in SW13c1.2Vim− cells, which lack endogenous IFs. More typical filament networks were observed when NF180 was coexpressed with NFL plus NFM. Transfection of NF180 into NB2a/d1 neuroblastoma cells, which contain endogenous NFs (Shea et al., 1985) resulted in the incorporation of NF180 into NFs (Hall et al., 2000). Thus, NF180 may require an NFL-like protein and possibly additional elements to form normal filaments in lamprey. Indeed, a 50 kDa neuronal IF (nlF50) was described based on sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) gels and immunohistochemistry (Jin et al., 2005). In attempting to clone this missing nIF we recently cloned and sequenced three new NF genes (Jin et al., 2011), two of them NFM-like peptides (NF132 and NF95) and the third a lamprey NFL homolog (L-NFL). None of the new sequences represented nlF50, the sequence of which is still unknown. In the present study the assembly properties of the four sequenced lamprey NFs and of truncated NF180 constructs were determined in SW13cl.2Vim−, a well-established system for assessing the assembly requirements of IFs, including NFs, due to its lack of any endogenous IF proteins (Sarria et al., 1994). The results suggest that L-NFL is essential to NF assembly and the full length of NF180 appears to be essential for the formation of thick NF bundles. In situ hybridization shows that like NF180, after spinal cord transection, expression of these newly discovered NFs first decreases, and then is recovered selectively in neurons whose axons have a high probability of regenerating.
Gastrocnemius acetylcholinesterase activity in response to burn trauma in the mouse

In this study we examined the effect of increasing size of body surface area (BSA, 20, 30 and 50 per cent) burn on distally located gastrocnemius acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity. Burn injury was applied to predefined areas of the dorsal and ventral skin surfaces of mice. AChE activity at 3 weeks postburn was measured by differential extraction and velocity sedimentation on sucrose gradients. Analysis of variance was used for all statistical evaluation. Within the sham-treated controls most of the AChE activity consisted entirely (92 per cent) of the globular forms (S1 and S2). Asymmetric (S3 and S4) and non-extractable (H5) forms were 2 and 5 per cent, respectively. The total globular, asymmetric and non-extractable forms were not significantly different in gastrocnemius among the burn groups. However, individual forms (6.5S, 10S) of the soluble globular group (S1) were decreased (P
Two-level domain decomposition algorithm for a nonlinear inverse DOT problem

Diffuse optical tomography (DOT) in the near infrared involves reconstruction of spatially varying optical properties of turbid medium from boundary measurements based on a forward model of photon propagation. Due to highly non-linear nature of the DOT, high quality image reconstruction is a computationally demanding problem that requires repeated solutions of both the forward and the inverse problems. Therefore, it is highly desirable to develop methods and algorithms that are computationally efficient. In this paper, we propose a domain decomposition approach to address the computational complexity of the DOT problem. We propose a two-level multiplicative overlapping domain decomposition method for the forward problem and a two-level space decomposition method for the inverse problem. We showed the convergence of the inverse solver and derived the computational complexity of each method. We demonstrate the performance of the proposed approach in numerical simulations.
BARRIERS TO WOMEN'S SMALL-BUSINESS SUCCESS IN THE UNITED STATES

Although ever-increasing numbers of women in the United States have been choosing small-business ownership in an apparent attempt to escape their well-documented inequality in the labor market, in this country, small businesses owned by women tend to be less successful than those owned by men. This article brings together the scattered pieces of data available in order to shed light on women's inability to gain greater parity with men in the small-business arena in the United States. Analysis suggests that U.S. women's influx into small capitalism results from their movement into expanding, but highly competitive, industrial niches that are relatively unattractive to men. The authors find that these woman-owned businesses are concentrated within traditionally female-typed fields with lower average business receipts than male-typed fields. Moreover, even within the same industrial subcategories, women owners achieve less economic success than men owners. Although some of the immediate barriers faced by U.S...
The Regime Dependence of Optimally Weighted Ensemble Model Consensus Forecasts of Surface Temperature

Abstract Previous methods for creating consensus forecasts weight individual ensemble members based upon their relative performance over the previous N days, implicitly making a short-term persistence assumption about the underlying flow regime. A postprocessing scheme in which model performance is linked to underlying weather regimes could improve the skill of deterministic ensemble model consensus forecasts. Here, principal component analysis of several synoptic- and mesoscale fields from the North American Regional Reanalysis dataset provides an objective means for characterizing atmospheric regimes. Clustering techniques, including K-means and a genetic algorithm, are developed that use the resulting principal components to distinguish among the weather regimes. This pilot study creates a weighted consensus from 48-h surface temperature predictions produced by the University of Washington Mesoscale Ensemble, a varied-model (differing physics and parameterization schemes) multianalysis ensemble with ei...
Beaver impoundments in temperate forests as sources of atmospheric CO2

Beaver impoundments trap large amounts of organic matter, and remineralization of the organic matter to CO2 could make them a significant source of atmospheric CO2. Measurements in two beaver impoundments in the Adirondack Park of New York State indicated that: (i) during the ice-free season CO2 emission averaged 197 mmol m−2d−1; (ii) concentrations of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in the water column were always >100 µM, reaching >1000 µM beneath ice cover and in midsummer; and (iii) the rate of CO2 production by sediment samples from beneath the water column could exceed 300 mmol m−2d−1 in midsummer. The CO2 emitted from the impoundments to the atmosphere is supplied both by the sediments beneath the impoundment and by transport into the water column from the surrounding uplands. If beaver impoundments cover 3% of the landscape in north temperate forests then the magnitude of the presumed CO2 sink in this landscape would be reduced by 7% compared with estimates based only on the terrestrial component.
Progress in National and Regional Guidelines Development and Deployment for the Clinical Prevention and Control of CVD and Diabetes in Africa

Successful efforts to reduce cardiovascular disease in many countries have come as a result of both population based interventions and individually guided interventions. Guidelines serve two purposes directed at the promotion of the individually guided interventions. First, they serve as a method to summarize approved and successful life-style and medical interventions to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease. Second, they guide health providers on how to identify those at high risk for cardiovascular disease and who might benefit from the available interventions. However, guidelines have been increasingly complex and at times contradictory from one body to another or they may not exist at all in certain countries. This paper will review the current status of guidelines for the region as well as for individual countries. Guidelines for the prevention of CVD as a whole will be evaluated as well as guidelines for individual risk factors such as hypertension, cholesterol, and diabetes. Finally, this paper will address the pitfalls of individual risk factor based guidelines as opposed to the absolute risk approach integrating multiple risk factors into one comprehensive set of guidelines.
More Light on the Earliest French Review of Whitman

Clears up a confusion regarding the author's article, "The Earliest French Review of Walt Whitman" in WWQR (6/3) by establishing that "the French translation of Leaves of Grass announced by the New York Saturday Press in 1860 was a literary hoax" and proposes that Henry Clapp may have been the hoax's perpetrator; see also Roger Asselineau's note in the same issue of WWQR.
Elastase, collagenase and the radial elastic properties of arteries

Studies were performed on 203 pairs of dog carotid arteries subjected to unidirectional radial compression. Treatment with 80 U/ml purified elastase for 90 min decreased radial stress, but treatment with 640 U/ml collagenase for 90 min did not. These data suggest that elastin, but not collagen, contributes to wall resistance to radial compression.
Crystallization of the class IV adenylyl cyclase from Yersinia pestis.

The class IV adenylyl cyclase from Y. pestis has been crystallized in an orthorhombic form suitable for structure determination. The class IV adenylyl cyclase from Yersinia pestis has been cloned and crystallized in both a triclinic and an orthorhombic form. An amino-terminal His-tagged construct, from which the tag was removed by thrombin, crystallized in a triclinic form diffracting to 1.9 A, with one dimer per asymmetric unit and unit-cell parameters a = 33.5, b = 35.5, c = 71.8 A, α = 88.7, β = 82.5, γ = 65.5°. Several mutants of this construct crystallized but diffracted poorly. A non-His-tagged native construct (179 amino acids, MW = 20.5 kDa) was purified by conventional chromatography and crystallized in space group P2{sub 1}2{sub 1}2{sub 1}. These crystals have unit-cell parameters a = 56.8, b = 118.6, c = 144.5 A, diffract to 3 A and probably have two dimers per asymmetric unit and V{sub M} = 3.0 A{sup 3} Da{sup −1}. Both crystal forms appear to require pH below 5, complicating attempts to incorporate nucleotide ligands into the structure. The native construct has been produced as a selenomethionine derivative and crystallized for phasing and structure determination.
Boron and lithium isotopes as groundwater tracers: a study at the Fresh Kills Landfill, Staten Island, New York, USA

Abstract A study was conducted at the Fresh Kills landfill, Staten Island, New York to investigate the use of B and Li isotopes as tracers of mixing and flow in the groundwater environment. Four end-member waters are present at the Fresh Kills: freshwater, seawater, a geochemically distinct transitional groundwater (that occurs in the zone of mixing between seawater and freshwater) and landfill leachate. The δ11B and δ6Li values of end-member waters are distinct and have isotopic compositions that reflect the solute sources: freshwater δ11B∼+30‰, δ6Li∼−22‰; transition zone groundwaters δ11B∼+20‰, δ6Li∼−27‰; seawater δ11B+40 to +75‰, δ6Li−37 to−44‰; leachate δ11B∼+10‰ (δ6Li not determined). Those wells influenced by seawater exhibited a clear chemical mixing trend, with seawater contributions ranging from 3 to 85%. Well waters with a high percentage of seawater (>30%) had δ11B values that were within 1‰ of the seawater value (+40‰), whereas a trend of increasing δ11B values (+55 to +75‰) was observed for wells with a lower percentage of seawater (
Value of early postoperative epicardial programmed ventricular stimulation studies after surgery for ventricular tachyarrhythmias

The value of early postoperative epicardial programmed ventricular stimulation studies after electrophysiologically-directed surgery for ventricular tachyarrhythmia was assessed in 34 patients who underwent epicardial stimulation within 7 to 30 days (mean 9.8) of surgery and were followed up for at least 6 months. The antiarrhythmic operation performed was an endocardial ventriculotomy (full encircling or limited), an endocardial resection, a wall resection or a combination of these procedures. All these interventions were directed by intraoperative mapping during sinus rhythm. Temporary epicardial wire electrodes left at the time of surgery rather than endocardial catheter electrodes were used to perform the pacing. The stimulation protocol included the introduction of up to three ventricular extrastimuli and incremental burst ventricular pacing performed at twice diastolic threshold (9.2 ± 5.8 mA for the right ventricle and 6.0 ± 3.5 mA for the left ventricle). A study was considered positive when ventricular tachycardia, defined as 10 or more consecutive ventricular beats, was induced by any pacing modality. Nineteen patients (Group I) had a negative study: after stimulation of both ventricles in 15 patients and of the left ventricle only in 4. Fifteen patients (Group II) had a positive study: after stimulation of the right ventricle in nine patients and of the left ventricle in six. The two groups were comparable with respect to preoperative clinical status, surgical procedures performed and postoperative ejection fraction. No arrhythmic events were observed in Group I during a mean follow-up period of 19.5 months (range 4 to 37), whereas seven arrhythmic events (47% incidence) occurred (p = 0.0008) in Group II during a mean follow-up period of 17.7 months (range 5 to 39). These arrhythmic events were sudden death (five patients) and sustained ventricular tachycardia (two patients). It is concluded that temporary epicardially-placed electrodes can be used satisfactorily to perform programmed ventricular stimulation studies in the postoperative period, thereby avoiding the cardiac catheterizations otherwise necessary to perform these studies. In addition, the protocol used in this report of epicardial programmed ventricular stimulation early after surgery for ventricular tachyarrhythmia predicts a good outcome if the study is negative and identifies patients at a high risk for future arrhythmic events when positive.
EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES OF THE NASOPHARYNGEAL SECRETIONS FROM INFLUENZA PATIENTS : VII. FURTHER OBSERVATIONS ON THE CULTURAL AND MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS OF BACTERIUM PNEUMOSINTES.

After artificial cultivation for a period of over 3 years Bacterium pneumosintes has maintained its original morphological and cultural characteristics, when grown in the original medium. Adaptation to a saprophytic existence has been accompanied by a loss of pathogenicity. Our strains now grow readily under strictly anaerobic conditions in a variety of media with peptone broth as a base, enriched with fresh tissue, blood, or by the growth of other bacteria. Surface colonies have been obtained on blood agar plates in. an anaerobic jar. These various methods of cultivation are adapted to special purposes. In broth cultures Bacterium pneumosintes grows in larger forms than in the ascitic fluid-tissue medium, but the identity of the microorganisms is proved by their serological reactions and by reversion to the minute forms on transfer to the original medium.
Absence of transovarial transmission of bluetongue virus in Culicoides variipennis: Immunogold labelling of bluetongue virus antigen in developing oocytes from Culicoides variipennis (Coquillett)

Abstract 1. 1. Culicoides variipennis midges were fed on a blood meal containing bluetongue virus (BTV) serotype 11 (BTV-11) and on four subsequent non-infective blood meals at 4-day intervals. 2. 2. Eggs were collected before each blood-feeding and reared to adults. 3. Progeny from each egg batch were incubated for 14 days (20°C, 40–60% RH) before plaque assay. 3. 4. Oocytes from several parent flies were sectioned for immunoelectron microscopy. 4. 5. Thirty-two percent of the parent females tested by plaque assay were positive for BTV. 5. 6. All 993 progeny flies were negative for BTV. 6. 7. BTV antigen was dense in proteid yolk bodies and in the vitelline membrane of the developing oocytes.
Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter-associated Deep Vein Thrombosis: A Narrative Review

Abstract Background Although common, little is known about factors associated with peripherally inserted central catheter-related deep vein thrombosis (PICC-DVT). To better guide clinicians, we performed a comprehensive literature review to summarize best practices for this condition. Methods A systematic search of the literature for studies reporting epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of PICC-DVT was conducted. Algorithms for diagnosis and management were compiled using available evidence. Results The incidence of PICC-DVT varied between 2% and 75% according to study population, testing modality and threshold for diagnosis. Studies evaluating the diagnostic utility of clinical symptoms suggested that these were neither sensitive nor specific for PICC-DVT; conversely, ultrasonography had excellent sensitivity and specificity and is recommended as the initial diagnostic test. Although more specific, contrast venography should be reserved for cases with high clinical probability and negative ultrasound findings. Centrally positioned, otherwise functional and clinically necessary PICCs need not be removed despite concomitant DVT. Anticoagulation with low-molecular-weight heparin or warfarin for at least 3 months represents the mainstay of treatment. The role of pharmacologic prophylaxis and screening for PICC-DVT in the absence of clinical symptoms is unclear at this time. Conclusions PICC-DVT is common, costly and morbid. Available evidence provides guidance for diagnosis, treatment and prevention of this condition.
Harmonic millimeter radiation from a microwave free-electron-laser amplifier

Using a free-electron laser (FEL) configured as a traveling-wave amplifier, we have caused the bunching produced by the amplification of a coherent microwave source to drive appreciable power at the harmonics. A 10-kW 24-GHz microwave input signal grows to the $\ensuremath{\sim}200\mathrm{kW}$ level using the lower frequency unstable root of the waveguide FEL dispersion relation. The FEL operates in the TE11 mode, using a helical undulator (1.85-cm period) and a 3-mm-diam 600-kV electron beam contained in an 8.7-mm-i.d. cylindrical waveguide. The harmonic currents set up by the microwave are found to cause growth of harmonic power under two conditions. First, if the design is such that the upper frequency root corresponds to the third harmonic, we see small amounts of third- and second-harmonic power, coherent with the source. Second, we have found kW emission of the seventh harmonic, most likely from the TE72 mode, which travels at the same speed as the 24-GHz wave. In order to excite the seventh-harmonic radiation, the electron beam must be displaced from the axis of the guide by $\ensuremath{\sim}2\mathrm{mm}.$ In both cases, no harmonic power is produced without gain at the fundamental. We present a one-dimensional theoretical model of the experiment, and use the numerical results to interpret our findings. The model predicts that if the microwave signal is strong enough to drive the FEL into saturation, the harmonic radiation should become powerful.
Pressure gradient effects on Reynolds analogy for constant property equilibrium turbulent boundary layers

Abstract The effects of pressure gradient on turbulent heat transfer to or from planar surfaces are examined. Only incompressible, equilibrium thermal boundary layers are investigated. The equilibrium condition is characterised by the Clauser parameter β. Temperature profiles which are parametric in β and the turbulent Prandtl number, Pr t , have been calculated for the range —0.54 ⩽ β ⩽ ∞; corresponding in one end to a favorable pressure gradient flow beyond which no equilibrium boundary layer is possible and in the other end to turbulent flow at incipient separation, respectively. It is found that an overlap exists between the temperature law of the wall region and the outer defect law region for all values of β and Pr t , except when β → ∞. The existence of this overlap region gives rise to an expression for the Stanton number which is shown to be a function of β and Pr t . At incipient separation, the skin friction coefficient goes to zero while the wall heat flux remains finite. However, the wall heat flux and the Stanton number in this limit cannot be determined because of the neglect of viscous effects in the present analysis. A modified Reynolds analogy that accounts for the effects of β and Pr t is deduced and the classical Reynolds analogy is shown to be valid only in the limit of β goes to zero, Pr t goes to 1 and the Reynolds number based on the displacement thickness approaches infinity.
To shock or not to shock: That is the question

Abstract [White RD. To shock or not to shock: That is the question. Ann Emerg Med . September 2001;38:278-281.]
A Design Guide to Cooling Cordwood Modules for Vacuum Environments

The cordwood module has been a part of the electronic Packaging concept for approximately ten years [1]. During that time period all variety of parts have been packaged in this configuration with varying degrees of success and reliability. With the coming of the space age and vacuum environments becoming commonplace, the removal of 'heat has become progressively more difficult with higher packaging densities ,and more' sophisticated piece parts. This paper describes methods utilized in the removal of heat from cordwood modules, arid takes some of the difficulty out of predicting thermal gradients.of piece parts within these modules. Fundamentally, the method is predicated on the use of the equivalent of Ohm's law. and the ability to realistically utilize proper piece part' thermal resistances. Design data and guidelines are presented that allows 'one to achieve designs for minimum weight, maximum thermal efficiency, and high reli- abil'ity.
Seismic imaging of oil production rate

Field and laboratory data indicate anomalously high reflectivity from fluid-saturated reservoirs at the low-frequency seismic range. It also has been observed that the reflected signal is frequency-dependent and is strongly related to the reservoir flow properties. We have obtained an asymptotic representation of the seismic reflection from a fluid-saturated porous medium in the low-frequency domain. The frequency-dependent component of the reflection coefficient is proportional to the square root of the product of frequency of the signal and the mobility of the fluid in the reservoir. This provides an opportunity for locating the most productive zones of the field before drilling. In the presented example we quantify lowfrequency imaging amplitude attribute in terms of reservoir fluid mobility and reservoir production rate. Theory We consider reflection of a plane elastic compression wave of an angular frequency from the boundary between dry and fluid-saturated elastic porous media. Within a reasonable range of rock and fluid properties, the dimensionless parameter ω