cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Plasma Levels of Fetuin‐A and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in US Women: The Nurses' Health Study

Background Fetuin-A may be involved in the etiology of coronary heart disease (CHD) through opposing pathways (ie, promoting insulin resistance and inhibiting ectopic calcification). We aimed to explicitly examine whether systemic inflammation, a factor leading to elevated vascular calcification, may modify the association between fetuin-A and CHD risk. Method and Results During 16 years of follow-up (1990–2006), we prospectively identified and confirmed 466 incident fatal or nonfatal CHD case in the Nurses' Health Study. For each case, 1 healthy control was selected using risk-set sampling from 26 245 eligible participants. Cases and controls were matched for age, smoking status, fasting status, and date of blood draw. After multivariate adjustment for lifestyle factors, body mass index, diet, and blood lipids, fetuin-A levels were not associated with CHD risk in the whole population: odds ratio (OR) (95% CI) comparing extreme quintiles of fetuin-A was 0.79 (0.44 to 1.40). However, a significant inverse association was observed among participants with higher C-reactive protein levels ( P interaction=0.04). The OR (95% CI) comparing highest versus lowest quintiles of fetuin-A was 0.50 (0.26 to 0.97; P trend=0.004) when C-reactive protein levels were above population median (0.20 mg/dL), whereas among the remainder of the participants, the corresponding OR (95% CI) was 1.09 (0.58 to 2.05; P trend=0.75). Conclusions In this population of US women, fetuin-A levels were associated with lower CHD risk when C-reactive protein levels were high, but null association was observed among participants with lower C-reactive protein levels. This divergent pattern of association needs replication in future studies.
To nest communally or not to nest communally: a review of rodent communal nesting and nursing

Communal nesting, the sharing of parental responsibilities between multiple individuals in a nest, is common in many rodents. Upon first glance, this behaviour seems to be selectively disadvantageous. Communal care not only involves energetic costs, but may also be subject to cheating behaviour. Despite abundant literature, many questions remain regarding advantages gained by females that form nesting groups. I discuss the communal nesting of eusocial, singular and plural breeding rodents. I first clarify the distinction between communal nesting and thermoregulatory huddling. I then review two major groups of hypotheses ('ecological constraints' and 'benefits of philopatry') that are used to explain the occurrence of communal nesting in rodents. Most likely, these hypotheses are not mutually exclusive. Regardless of the main selective pressure(s) acting on communal nesting, the indirect components of inclusive fitness that result from nest sharing most likely influence the formation and maintenance of communal nests. Communal nesting and nursing (the sharing of milk with nonoffspring) are under different selective regimes and thus, must be evaluated separately. I review adaptive and nonadaptive hypotheses for rodent communal nursing. I argue that communal nursing may not be adaptive as mothers may be forced to share milk with nonoffspring in large communal nests (i.e. communal nursing may be a cost associated with communal nesting). In conclusion, I propose directions for future study that may improve our understanding of communal nesting and nursing in the wild. Copyright 2000 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.
HCI research regarding end-user requirement specification: a tutorial

Can end users someday enter their requirements directly into program generation tools? This paper surveys literature that sheds some light upon this question, highlighting devices from HCI research that can be used to help in accomplishing this goal.
Hepatitis C-associated hepatocellular carcinomas in non-cirrhotic livers

Chronic hepatitis C viral infection can lead to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. It is generally believed that hepatitis C infection is not oncogeneic per se, but that the presence of cirrhosis determines the increased risk for hepatocellular carcinoma. However, a search of surgical pathology files from two large tertiary care centers for the years 2001-2008 identified a total of 18 hepatocellular carcinomas in non-cirrhotic livers with chronic hepatitis C infection. In six cases the background livers showed bridging fibrosis, while the remainder showed lower stages of fibrosis. Cases were negative for clinical and serological evidence of hepatitis B co-infection, and occult hepatitis B test was negative by PCR of formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded tissues. The tumors were also negative for TP53, exon 7, codon 249 mutations, a characteristic mutation strongly linked to aflatoxin exposure. The hepatocellular carcinomas had typical histology with no enrichment for unusual growth patterns or histological features. Among all resected hepatocellular carcinomas in non-cirrhotic livers over this time period, the prevalence of 16% with HCV infection was significantly greater than that expected by chance. In conclusion, these results demonstrate that hepatocellular carcinomas can arise in livers chronically infected with hepatitis C but without cirrhosis. These findings raise the possibility that in some cases hepatitis C infection and inflammation can be directly oncogeneic. It is also possible that established cirrhosis may have regressed in some cases. Regardless of the mechanism, these findings highlight an important and previously under-recognized risk for hepatocellular carcinoma in HCV-infected individuals who do not have cirrhosis.
Three-Dimensional Deformable Grid Electromagnetic Particle-in-cell for Parallel Computers

We describe a new parallel, non-orthogonal grid, three-dimensional electromagnetic particle-in-cell (EMPIC) code based on a finite-volume formulation. This code uses a logically Cartesian grid of deformable hexahedral cells, a discrete surface integral (DSI) algorithm to calculate the electromagnetic field, and a hybrid logical-physical space algorithm to push particles.
Targeting 100! envisioning the high performance hospital in six climate regions

Cost control, maintaining quality healing and working environments, and more sustainable, energy efficient operations are important topics in healthcare today. This team has developed research directed at much higher performing hospitals – targeting both energy performance and interior environmental quality, for little capital investment in six of the most populous and diverse climate regions in the USA. NamedTargeting 100!, this project creates a framework for achieving an energy use intensity of less than 315 kWh/m2 year; this energy use intensity would achieve the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star rating of 100 and meet the 2030 Challenge, signifying energy performance in the highest tier of hospitals in the USA. The project strives for radical energy reduction targets and cost control through integrated strategy sets and team collaboration. It provides a conceptual framework and decision-making structure at a schematic design level of precision for key stakeholders in the design, construction, and operation of hospitals.
Technology transfer for industrial production of superconducting magnets for the RHIC project at BNL

Abstract Industrial production of superconducting magnets for the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) has begun. The R & D for the magnets was carried out at BNL. Following the award of build-to-print contracts, staff from the laboratory and the vendors worked toward transferring both design principles and practical details to an industrial framework for cost-effective production. All magnets made thus far have been acceptable for use in RHIC.
Inhibition of salicylate binding to normal plasma by extracts of uremic fluids.

We previously reported that an extract of uremic plasma reduces binding of phenytoin and tryptophan by normal plasma and plasma albumin. This effect appears to reproduce the impaired binding of many drugs and several endogenous metabolites by uremic plasma. In the present study we further characterized the properties of extracts from uremic sera and body fluids using binding of salicylate as a model. Salicylate was chosen because it binds to both of the main albumin binding loci for aromatic, acidic drugs. Using a computer-assisted, leastsquares, curve-fitting program, LIGAND, we found that the most satisfactory model for salicylate binding to 1:10 diluted normal plasma was a binding number (n) of 2 mol of salicylate per mole of albumin with an association constant (k) of 2.85 × 10 4 L/mol, an additional binding of 0.5 mol to other sites on albumin or to other proteins, and nonspecific binding of 21%. Addition of uremic pleural fluid extract to diluted normal plasma produced a monotonic decline in k to 0.17 × 10 4 L/mol with no change in n except possibly at the highest dose of uremic inhibitor. This pattern of competitive inhibition indicates presence of unknown ligands in the uremic extract that compete at both binding loci. More efficient extraction methods might also yield additional ligand(s) that inhibit through a noncompetitive mechanism.
Squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck treated with radiation therapy: the impact of neck stage on local control

There have been several recent reports in the literature to indicate that the risk of failure at the primary site following radiation therapy is greater in patients with a clinically positive neck as opposed to those with a clinically negative neck at diagnosis. This is an analysis of 526 patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck who were treated with irradiation alone to the primary lesion with curative intent. All patients had follow-up for at least 2 years and were evaluable for analysis of local control. For each site and T stage, no evidence was found to indicate that the primary lesions were controlled less often in patients whose necks were clinically positive than in those whose necks were clinically negative.
STUDIES ON THE METHYLATION OF ETHANOLAMINE PHOSPHATIDES BY LIVER PREPARATIONS.

Abstract The phosphatidylmethyltransferase enzyme system of rat liver microsomes has been dispersed by treatment with deoxycholate and sonic oscillation. With the dispersed preparation, complete removal of endogenous phospholipid substrates could be achieved. The latter showed an absolute dependency on added N -monomethyl aminoethanol or N,N -dimethylaminoethanol phosphatides for methylation to lecithin. Kinetic study of the methylation reaction indicated that a single enzyme is involved which catalyzes the stepwise methylation of N -methylaminoethanol phosphatide to lecithin. Tests were made of the suggestion that phosphatidyl serine might be methylated prior to decarboxylation and, in this manner, might yield the first observed substrate, the monomethylethanolamine phosphatide. It was demonstrated that this reaction does not occur. The only decarboxylation product detected was ethanolamine phosphatide.
Dissimilatory Nitrite Reductase Genes from Autotrophic Ammonia-Oxidizing Bacteria

The presence of a copper-containing dissimilatory nitrite reductase gene (nirK) was discovered in several isolates of β-subdivision ammonia-oxidizing bacteria using PCR and DNA sequencing. PCR primers Cunir3 and Cunir4 were designed based on published nirK sequences from denitrifying bacteria and used to amplify a 540-bp fragment of the nirK gene from Nitrosomonas marina and five additional isolates of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria. Amplification products of the expected size were cloned and sequenced. Alignment of the nucleic acid and deduced amino acid (AA) sequences shows significant similarity (62 to 75% DNA, 58 to 76% AA) between nitrite reductases present in these nitrifiers and the copper-containing nitrite reductase found in classic heterotrophic denitrifiers. While the presence of a nitrite reductase in Nitrosomonas europaea is known from early biochemical work, preliminary sequence data from its genome indicate a rather low similarity to the denitrifier nirKs. Phylogenetic analysis of the partial nitrifier nirK sequences indicates that the topology of the nirK tree corresponds to the 16S rRNA and amoA trees. While the role of nitrite reduction in the metabolism of nitrifying bacteria is still uncertain, these data show that the nirK gene is present in closely related nitrifying isolates from many oceanographic regions and suggest that nirK sequences retrieved from the environment may include sequences from ammonia-oxidizing bacteria.
Apo-ghrelin receptor forms heteromers with DRD2 in hypothalamic neurons and is essential for anorexigenic effects of DRD2 agonism

We identified subsets of neurons in the brain that coexpress the dopamine receptor subtype-2 (DRD2) and the ghrelin receptor (GHSR1a). Combination of FRET confocal microscopy and Tr-FRET established the presence of GHSR1a:DRD2 heteromers in hypothalamic neurons. To interrogate function, mice were treated with the selective DRD2 agonist cabergoline, which produced anorexia in wild-type and ghrelin⁻/⁻ mice; intriguingly, ghsr⁻/⁻ mice were refractory illustrating dependence on GHSR1a, but not ghrelin. Elucidation of mechanism showed that formation of GHSR1a:DRD2 heteromers allosterically modifies canonical DRD2 dopamine signaling resulting in Gβγ subunit-dependent mobilization of [Ca²⁺](i) independent of GHSR1a basal activity. By targeting the interaction between GHSR1a and DRD2 in wild-type mice with a highly selective GHSR1a antagonist (JMV2959) cabergoline-induced anorexia was blocked. Inhibiting dopamine signaling in subsets of neurons with a GHSR1a antagonist has profound therapeutic implications by providing enhanced selectivity because neurons expressing DRD2 alone would be unaffected.
C-type natriuretic peptide and guanylyl cyclase B receptor

Guanylyl cyclases (GC) are widely distributed enzymes that signal via the production of the second messenger cGMP. The particulate guanylyl cyclases share a similar topology: an extracellular ligand binding domain and intracellular regulatory kinase-homology and cyclase catalytic domains. The natriuretic peptide receptors GC-A and -B mediate the effects of a family of peptides, atrial, B- and C-type natriuretic peptide (ANP, BNP and CNP, respectively), with natriuretic, diuretic and vasorelaxant properties. ANP and BNP, through the activation of GC-A, act as endocrine hormones to regulate blood pressure and volume, and inhibit cardiac hypertrophy. CNP, on the other hand, acts in an autocrine/paracrine fashion to induce vasorelaxation and vascular remodeling, and to regulate bone growth through its cognate receptor GC-B. GC-B, like GC-A, is phosphorylated in the basal state, and undergoes both homologous and heterologous desensitization, reflected by dephosphorylation of specific sites in the kinase-homology domain. This review will examine the structure and function of GC-B, and summarize the physiological processes in which this receptor is thought to participate.
Structure‐property modifications by fabrication operations

Studies of polymer morphology under ideal conditions approaching equilibrium structures have been shown to be valuable in the development of an understanding of the relationship of properties to structure. Practical fabrication operations do not permit the achievement of equilibrium structures in commercial products and its is therefore necessary to study the effects of processing on the actual structures that result. In addition, an understanding of the effects of processing variables on properties permits the development of fabrication operations which can be directed toward the improvement of properties. Topics covered include the effects of hydrostatic pressure during processing, effects of combinations of pressure and thermal history, relationships between thermal history and crystallization rates in isotactic polymers and the kinetic and morphological effects of flow deformation on crystallizable plastics.
Marrow stromal cells embedded in alginate for repair of osteochondral defects

Abstract Summary: Articular cartilage defects of sufficient size ultimately degenerate with time, leading to arthritic changes. Numerous strategies have been used to address full-thickness cartilage defects, yet none thus far has been successful in restoring the articular surface to its preinjury state. We compared the effects of agarose, alginate, and type I collagen gels on the expression of cartilage-specific markers from rabbit marrow stromal cells and then assessed the in vivo effects of cells seeded in alginate beads on the repair of full-thickness osteochondral defects in the rabbit model. Marrow aspirates from rabbits were cultured and the stromal population selected. Marrow stromal cells were then placed in either 1.2% w/v alginate, type I collagen gels (3 mg/mL), or 0.5% agarose suspension culture. After 2, 5, 10, and 20 days in culture, the RNA was extracted and analyzed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction for the cartilage-specific markers aggrecan and type II collagen. The strongest increase in aggrecan and type II collagen gene expression was found in the agarose suspension followed by alginate; type I collagen gels induced the lowest levels. Alginate beads were chondrogenic and maintained their size and consistency over time in culture, whereas the cell-seeded collagen gels invariably contracted. Full-thickness defects measuring 3 × 6 mm × 3 mm deep were then created in the medial femoral condyles of rabbit knees and filled with alginate beads, alginate beads seeded with stromal cells, or left empty. Alginate beads containing stromal cells remained within the defects and progressively filled the defects with regenerate tissue. Histologic analysis showed viable, phenotypically chondrogenic cells in the defects. The matrix stained positive with safranin O, indicating proteoglycan synthesis, and bonding between the regenerate and host tissue was excellent. We have shown quantitative differences in the chondrogenic effects of the biomaterials tested. Alginate induces the chondrogenic phenotype in marrow stromal cells in vitro, and possesses the necessary physical characteristics and handling properties to support cells and serve as a carrier to fill full-thickness osteochondral defects in vivo. Arthroscopy: The Journal of Arthroscopic and Related surgery, Vol 16, No 6 (September), 2000: pp 571–577
Observations on morphology and hydrolytic enzyme histochemistry of excysted metacercariae of Himasthla rhigedana (Trematoda: Echinostomatidae)

Abstract The morphology of in vitro excysted metacercariae of Himasthia rhigedana was studied by light microscopy, enzyme histochemistry, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The body surface is covered with longitudinal rows of pointed spines which extend from the anterior end to just below the acetabulum. Histochemical methods for acid and alkaline phosphatases, β-glucoronidasc, leucine aminopeplidase, nonspecific esterase, acetylcholinesterase, butyrylcholincsterase, chymotrypsin-like protease, α-galactosidase and β-galactosidase were applied to the excysted metacercariae. Certain systems of the metacercaria containing these enzymes showed positive reactions to the appropriate methods and were selectively visualized. Reactions for alkaline phosphatase occur throughout most of the excretory system while acid phosphatase occurs in the gut, oral, and ventral suckers. Reactions for nonspecific esterases and cholinesterascs are found throughout the nervous system, in the gut, and in the oral and ventral suckers. The results of including specific inhibitors or activators in the incubation medium after preineubation m 10−5 m diethyl p-nitrophenyl phosphate (E-600) suggested that A-and C-typc esterases are present in the gut. Inclusion of 10−4 m eserine in the incubation medium abolished cholinesterase activity in the nervous system.
Acceleration and Time Pathologies: The Critique of Psychology in Heidegger's Beiträge

In his Contributions to Philosophy, Martin Heidegger (1999) introduces ‘acceleration’ as one of the three symptoms – along with ‘calculation’ and the ‘outbreak of massiveness’ – of our technological way of ‘being-in-the-world’. In this article, I unpack the relationship between these symptoms and draw a twofold conclusion. First, interpreting acceleration in terms of time pathologies, I suggest the self is becoming increasingly fragmented and emotionally overwhelmed from chronic sensory arousal and time pressure. This experience makes it difficult for us to qualitatively distinguish what matters to us in our everyday lives, resulting in a pervasive cultural mood of indifference, what Heidegger (1995) calls ‘profound boredom’. Second, by drawing on Heidegger's hermeneutic method, I argue that the practice of mainstream psychology, by adopting the reductive methodology of the empirical sciences, largely ignores our accelerated socio-historical situation, resulting in therapeutic models that have a tendency ...
Oxygenation State as a Driver of Myofibroblast Differentiation and Wound Contraction: Hypoxia Impairs Wound Closure

Myofibroblasts are ubiquitous in the human body and may form from the differentiation of fibroblasts, epithelial cells, endothelial cells, and mononuclear cells, among others. Their clinical significance could be substantial, depending on biomedical context. Myofibroblasts help contract open skin wounds, but they could also be key drivers of fibrosis across numerous tissue systems and support tumor invasiveness. Understanding the molecular events underlying myofibroblast formation is significant for many human diseases. In this issue, Modarressi et al. address the significance of wound tissue hypoxia in impairing wound contraction by compromising myofibroblast formation. They present compelling evidence indicating tissue hypoxia conflicts with wound closure. We are reminded that correcting wound tissue hypoxia is critical for the tissue's response to other therapeutic interventions.
Evidence against the existence of the B0 meson

Recent theoretical work (1-3) on the electromagnetic structure of the nucleon has revived interest in the possibility of a bound state, of 3 pions with I = 0, J = 1. Such a particle might be of assistance in explaining the equality of the isoscalar and isovector parts of the nucleon charge distribution.
The Effects of Introduced Wild Animals on New Zealand Forests

Abstract Although New Zealand lacks native terrestrial mammals (except for two species of bats), more than 50 species of mammals have been introduced by human beings and have become established since the late eighteenth century. The impact of introduced browsing and grazing mammals on the vegetation of New Zealand is widely perceived as an ecological disaster involving severe depletion of the plant cover and widespread accelerated erosion. Although there is no doubt that introduced mammals have had profound and pervasive effects, determination of the magnitudes of these effects on the native forests is surprisingly difficult. For example, red deer (Cervus elaphus) are known to cause important shifts in understory species composition in beech (Nothofagus) forests but their long-term effects on the regeneration of the dominant tree species are not clear. Similarly, apparently excessive tree mortality in coniferbroadleaved forests has often been attributed to browsing by the Australian brush-tailed opossum (...
Impacts of rainfall on the water quality of the Newport River Estuary (Eastern North Carolina, USA)

ABSTRACT Angela D. Coulliette (corresponding author)Department of Environmental Sciences andEngineering, School of Public Health,University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,Chapel Hill 27599, North Carolina,USATel.: 252.726.6841Fax: 252.726.2426E-mail: angiecou@email.unc.eduRachel T. NobleInstitute of Marine Sciences,University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,Morehead City, NC 28557,USA The Newport River Estuary (NPRE), an important North Carolina (NC) shellﬁsh harvesting area, hasbeen experiencing alterations to the land-water interface due to increasing population andcoastal development. Water quality degradation in the estuary over the last decade has led to anincrease of shellﬁsh harvesting area closures, and has been postulated to be due to non-pointsource contamination in the form of stormwater. Water samples were taken in the NPRE(n ¼ 179) over a range of weather conditions and all seasons from August 2004 to September2006. Fecal coliform (FC), as estimated by E. coli (EC), and Enterococcus (ENT) concentrations(MPN per 100ml) were examined in relation to rainfall levels and distance from land.The relationships among the fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) and environmental parameters werealso examined. The data revealed a signiﬁcant increase in FC concentrations after measuredrainfall amounts of 2.54cm (general threshold) and 3.81cm (management action threshold).However, higher than expected FIB concentrations existed during conditions of negligible rainfall(,0.25cm), indicating a possible reservoir population in the sediment. Overall, stormwater runoffappears to be adversely impacting water quality in the NPRE.
Legionella phagosomes intercept vesicular traffic from endoplasmic reticulum exit sites

It is unknown how Legionella pneumophila cells escape the degradative lysosomal pathway after phagocytosis by macrophages and replicate in an organelle derived from the endoplasmic reticulum. Here we show that, after internalization, L. pneumophila-containing phagosomes recruit early secretory vesicles. Once L. pneumophila phagosomes have intercepted early secretory vesicles they begin to acquire proteins residing in transitional and rough endoplasmic reticulum. The functions of Sar1 and ADP-ribosylation factor-1 are important for biogenesis of the L. pneumophila replicative organelle. These data indicate that L. pneumophila intercepts vesicular traffic from endoplasmic-reticulum exit sites to create an organelle that permits intracellular replication and prevents destruction by the host cell.
Chronic Liver Disease in the Hispanic Population of the United States

Chronic liver disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality among Hispanic people living in the United States. Environmental, genetic, and behavioral factors, as well as socioeconomic and health care disparities among this ethnic group have emerged as important public health concerns. We review the epidemiology, natural history, and response to therapy of chronic liver disease in Hispanic patients. The review covers nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, viral hepatitis B and C, coinfection of viral hepatitis with human immunodeficiency virus, alcoholic cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, autoimmune hepatitis, and primary biliary cirrhosis. For most of these disorders, the Hispanic population has a higher incidence and more aggressive pattern of disease and overall worse treatment outcomes than in the non-Hispanic white population. Clinicians should be aware of these differences in caring for Hispanic patients with chronic liver disease.
Effects of sample storage on a copper‐spiked freshwater sediment

Freshwater sediment from an Oregon lake was spiked with copper in the laboratory to study the effect of storage on copper toxicity. Peat moss was added to enhance the carbon content of a portion of the sediment. One-half of the sediment samples were stored at 5°C while the other half were frozen (−20°C). At intervals up to 25 weeks, samples were brought to 20°C and 48-h toxicity tests were conducted in 1-liter beakers (200 ml sediment, 800 ml water) using the cladoceran Daphnia magna Straus. Copper released into the water from the sediment stored at 5°C increased over the first 8 weeks of storage, then decreased. Freezing the sediment attenuated the release of total and soluble copper into the overlying water, resulting in low or no toxicity to daphnids. Based on total copper concentrations in the overlying test water, LC50s ranged from 7 to 44 μg/L in sediments without peat and from 52 to 96 μg/L in sediments with added peat. Soluble copper LC50s for-the same test waters ranged from 3 to 18 and from 25 to 68 μg/L, respectively. No LC50s could be calculated from the frozen sediment tests because of low mortality. Freezing is not recommended as a storage procedure because of its undependability in preserving sediment integrity for toxicity tests.
Computations of film boiling. Part II: multi-mode film boiling

Abstract Film boiling on horizontal periodic surfaces is investigated by direct numerical simulations. A front tracking/finite difference technique is used to solve the momentum and the energy equations in both phases and to account for inertia, viscosity, and surface deformation. Effect of the unit cell size W on the interface dynamics, heat transfer, and fluid flow is studied for different wall superheats. The simulations are carried out over sufficiently long times to capture several bubble release cycles and to evaluate the quasi steady-state Nusselt number 〈 Nu 〉 ¯ . While instantaneous Nusselt number will change as result of a change in the system size, statistically steady-state Nusselt number remains almost the same. Simulations of two-dimensional systems in large unit cells, 5λd2
Protection against cadmium‐induced limb malformations by pretreatment with cadmium or mercury

Administration of 12 μmol/kg of cadmium sulfate ip to C57BL/6J mice within 3 weeks prior to pregnancy significantly reduced the incidence of limb malformations induced by 6 μrnol/kg of cadmium sulfate given ip on day 9 of pregnancy. In another experiment it was shown that administration of 6 μmol/kg or 12 μmol/kg of mercuric acetate on day 6 of gestation significantly reduced the incidence of limb malformations induced by 6 μmol/kg of cadmium given on day 9. It is postulated that this protective effect is due to the induction of increased maternal synthesis of a metal binding protein, probably metallothionein. This effect may be important in the design and interpretation of teratogenicity tests and in the evaluation of teratogenic risks to human populations chronically exposed to metals.
Perfectionist attitudes of artistically talented students in the art classroom

Abstract Perfectionism has been studied within its dimensions in the literature and often defined as adaptive or maladaptive in its nature. While various instruments have been developed to measure perfectionism, this study focused particularly on perfectionism as artistic expressions and classroom behavior. Lack of research and evidences associating perfectionism with student artworks inspired this study. Findings showed connections between aspects of perfectionism, student created artworks and student behavior in the art classroom. It was concluded that study of students’ artworks has potential to identify perfectionism as another source of information among artistically talented students. Findings revealed specific perfectionism-related attitudes and expressions in the art club.
Sociological Determinants of Life Satisfaction in Japan: The Roles of Gender, Family, and Work

This is one of the first studies on causes and correlates of life satisfaction among Japanese, based on the theoretical framework of Thibaut and Kelley (1959) on satisfaction and a nationally representative sample of Japanese adults. Emphasized are the effects of such demographic variables as gender, marital status, age, and work-related characteristics on life satisfaction. It is found that Japanese women are more satisfied with their lives than are men on the average. This difference is not explained by the gender difference in employment statuses. When examined for each employment status category, women still show higher life satisfaction than men on the average, except those employed full-time. While widowed women show lower life satisfaction, never-married and divorced men show the same pattern. The detrimental effect of divorce on life satisfaction among women disappears when economic circumstances variables are controlled for. Age is found to be strongly related to life satisfaction, particularly among men. A non-linear effect of age indicates both family responsibility and job responsibility decrease life satisfaction for Japanese men and women. The theoretical framework presented in American literature on the subject is largely supported in the present analysis with Japanese data. Rather than absolute levels of economic and/or social indicators, the salience each person places on them is found to be critical for life satisfaction. Given the cognitive definition of satisfaction adopted here which emphasizes comparisons, these results indicate the validity of this theoretical perspective.
Multiple high-definition digital display designs

Future display configurations will encompass multiple displays (as well as multiple display technologies within a single display), configured in a manner that allows the displays to be perceived as a single integrated image. Visual display technology is progressing rapidly beyond the traditional capabilities of the early industry display workhorse `the cathode ray tube'. Configuring multiple displays (to perform as a video wall, a high-resolution display monitor or a tiled display) will enhance display performance as well as requiring display designer to perform trade-off to compensate for a specific display technology's limitation. This paper will document and discuss the many of the technology issues that may be optimized for multiple digital display configurations.
Heat transfer in rotary kilns with interstitial gases

Abstract While slow granular flows have been an area of active research in recent years, heat transfer in flowing particulate systems has received relatively little attention. We employ a computational technique that couples the discrete element method (DEM), computational fluid dynamics (CFD), and heat transfer calculations to simulate realistic heat transfer in a rotary kiln. To maintain simplicity, while simulating the cylindrical kiln, we use a non-uniform grid in our code. Different materials, particle sizes, and rotation speeds are used to track the transition from convection-dominated heat transfer to conduction-dominated heat transfer. At low particle conductivities, the heat transfer is dominated by gas–solid conduction; however, at higher particle conductivities solid–solid conduction plays a more important role. Moreover, our results suggest that the rate of change of the average bed temperature can display a transition as the conductivity of the interstitial medium is increased. At low interstitial transport rates, such as in vacuum, high conductivity, high heat capacity particles get heated most rapidly, but with increased interstitial transport coefficients, lower heat capacity material may get heated faster despite lower values of conductivity.
Strategic planning by independent community pharmacies.

ABSTRACT Objectives (1) To assess the degree and level of use of the strategic planning process (none, partly, fully) by independent community pharmacy owners/managers and (2) to evaluate the relationships between independent community pharmacy owners/managers’ level of strategic planning and indicators of pharmacy performance; including new and refill prescriptions filled, gross margin, rated patient care performance, rated dispensing performance, rated non-pharmacy performance, and rated financial performance. Design Cross-sectional study. Setting United States. Participants Nationwide random sample of 1,250 owners/managers of independent community pharmacies. Interventions Mailed survey. Main Outcome Measures Quality of strategic planning conducted; pharmacy performance measures. Results Only 141 of 527 (26.8%) usable responses indicated use of some (77 pharmacies, 54.6%) or all (64 pharmacies, 45.4%) of the seven steps typical of strategic planning. Significant associations were observed between the level of strategic planning use and all pharmacy performance variables assessed, including indicators such as greater numbers of new and refill prescriptions dispensed, gross margins, patient care performance, dispensing performance, non-pharmacy performance, and financial performance. Conclusion Greater ratings of pharmacy performance were significantly associated with the level of strategic planning use. Respondents who fully used strategic planning had significantly higher indicators than partial users; respondents who partly used the process had significantly higher ratings than respondents who did not conduct strategic planning.
Zirconia: A Review of a Super Ceramic

Zirconium dioxide is an important industrial ceramics. The sol-gel chemistry of zirconia is intriguing. The preparation of hydrous zirconia and especially controlling the conditions to produce a particular crystal phase are complex. Disagreements in the phase transformations of crystalline phases in zirconia still exist. These factors which make zirconia a very important ceramic material are reviewed in this chapter.
Prevention and reversal of lupus in NZB/NZW mice by costimulatory blockade with adeno-associated virus-mediated gene transfer.

Objective To investigate the potency of costimulatory blockade with adeno-associated virus (AAV)–mediated gene transfer in the prevention and reversal of lupus in a murine model. Methods AAV vectors expressing CTLA-4Ig or CD40Ig were injected into NZB/NZW mice. Serum levels of transgene expression and autoantibody titers were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The therapeutic effects on proteinuria, renal pathologic features, and survival rate were evaluated. Splenic T cell phenotypes were analyzed by flow cytometry. The humoral immune response to a foreign antigen was also examined in treated mice. Results A single injection of AAV serotype 8 (AAV8)–CTLA-4Ig in neonatal NZB/NZW mice before the onset of lupus effectively delayed and inhibited autoantibody production, proteinuria, and kidney damage and prolonged their lifespan. In addition, coinjection of AAV8-CTLA-4Ig and AAV8-CD40Ig vectors into neonatal mice achieved a synergistic effect and the best efficacy. The preventive effects were attributed to suppression of CD4+ T cell activation and the transition from naive to memory T cells. Moreover, coinjection of these 2 vectors in adult mice reversed the existing autoantibody levels, suppressed the development of proteinuria, and prolonged their lifespan. The therapeutic effects were found to be dependent on the vector dose. In addition, AAV-mediated long-term gene expression did not severely suppress the host humoral response to foreign antigen. Conclusion Our findings show that delivery of costimulatory inhibitor transgenes by AAV vectors could prevent and reverse lupus in this murine model, suggesting the potential of AAV-mediated gene transfer as an alternative treatment for lupus.
ACCOMMODATING STUDENTS WITH EPILEPSY OR SEIZURE DISORDERS: EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES FOR TEACHERS

The most common chronic neurological condition in children is epilepsy. Because it often occurs in childhood, epilepsy is likely the most common neurological condition encountered by school professionals including teachers. Given the impact that epilepsy can have on academic functioning and specifically on the day-to-day performance of a student in the classroom, it is important for teachers to be aware not only of the presence of the disorder but also of the potential consequences and appropriate ways to handle these consequences should they arise. Herein we synthesize recommendations from several scientific sources to provide specific, evidence-based strategies that teachers of students with epilepsy can employ in the classroom as part of their naturally occurring instructional routines. These practical tips have useful application for both general and special education teachers.
A Low Jitter Programmable Clock Multiplier Based on a Pulse Injection-Locked Oscillator With a Highly-Digital Tuning Loop

This paper introduces a pulse injection-locked oscillator (PILO) that provides low jitter clock multiplication of a clean input reference clock. A mostly-digital feedback circuit provides continuous tuning of the oscillator such that its natural frequency is locked to the injected frequency. The proposed system is demonstrated with a prototype consisting of a custom 0.13 mum integrated circuit with active area of 0.4 mm2 and core power of 28.6 mW, along with an FPGA, a discrete DAC and a simple RC filter. Using a low jitter 50 MHz reference input, the PILO prototype generates a 3.2 GHz output with integrated phase noise, reference spur, and estimated deterministic jitter of 130 fs (rms), -63.9 dBc, and 200 fs (peak-to-peak), respectively.
Simulation of physical faults in VLSI circuits

Describes an approach for performing transistor-level logical fault simulation of VLSI MOS circuits. The method is based on a recently introduced algebraic approach to switch-level simulation. The faults considered are grouped into four sets: node stuck-at, transistor stuck-open, transistor stuck-on, and bridging faults. The authors consider concurrent fault simulation implementation, and compare, using typical examples, the computational and storage requirements of including all faults in the fault list in one simulation run versus using multiple runs with different fault groupings. Both output voltage and supply current monitoring are used for fault detection. >
Impact of International Presence on Service Supply Chain Quality

In this paper, we study the implications of international operations on the quality of airline service supply chain at the regional level. As a first study, we take an operations viewpoint of “how well the work is done” and explore multiple quality dimensions of the service supply chain at both international and regional level. In particular, we study the service quality of supplier (ground) services, in-flight products, in-flight entertainment systems, and flight attendants’ efficiencies. We use a global airlines dataset and quality assessments provided by a renowned quality-audit organization to test our hypotheses. We find that when an airline serves international market segment in addition to its regional operations, the quality of the service supply chain also gets better in the regional market. When managers design and manage service quality expectations in multiple market segments, service quality expectations in higher market segment influences the service quality in lower market segment.
THE SILENT MAJORITY: NEITHER SIMPLE NOR SIMPLE-MINDED

Public opinion polls in recent years have consistently shown northern whites willing to live in desegrated neighborhoods; at the same time, open housing referenda have been defeated and stable integrated neighborhoods are hard to find. The explanation, the author contends, is not that people lie to the polltaker, but that their beliefs get translated into behavior in ways more complex than might be expected. Some implications for public policy are explored. The author is Director of the Urban Policy Analysis Program and Associate Head of the Economics Department at the Rand Corporation. IT IS INCORRECT-operationally and philosophically-to look at voters or citizens as members of blocs that move back and forth along a line from left to right, consistent with the constructs of someone else's political philosophy. Voters and citizens are individuals, holding views that they believe to be consistent and changing their views along lines they believe to be consistent, even though political theorists may not agree.
Circulation of Transdisciplinary Knowledge and Culture in a High‐Tech Organization

: [circulation, applied anthropology, research method] Elizabeth Brody and Antonio Chavarria are contributing editors of “Anthropology Works,” the AAA Committee on Practicing, Applied and Public Interest Anthropology column in Anthropology News.
Adolescent boys' friendships and peer group culture

Adolescent boys perceive their male peer group culture—and their socialization toward masculine norms emphasized within this culture—as negatively influencing their abilities to develop close male friendships. Boys who manage to develop close, male friendships, however, draw strength from these relationships to resist the social pressures of their peer group.
Impact of signal processing energy and large bandwidth on infrastructureless wireless network routing and scalability

Throughput scaling and optimal hop distance of interference-limited wireless networks have been well characterized in literature. For some emerging wireless networks, throughput may be more limited by battery energy rather than by interference. In characterizing throughput scaling and optimal hop distance of such power-limited networks, prior work have invoked a zero signal processing energy assumption, which led to the belief that whispering to the nearest neighbor (WtNN, with the average number of hops per source destination pair increasing with increasing node density) achieves the optimal throughput scaling. We show that this belief must be modified for power-limited networks when signal processing energy is not an insignificant factor. In fact, for a power-limited network with nodes uniformly randomly distributed in a bounded region and in the limit of interference-free operation, taking Theta(1) (i.e. does not increase or decrease with increasing node density) number of hops is throughput, energy, and delay optimal, achieving Theta(1) pairwise throughput, energy per bit, and packet delay under uniform traffic, whereas WtNN is strictly suboptimal, achieving a pairwise throughput of O(logradic( n/ n)), which decreases with increasing node density. In addition, we show that a constant characteristic hop distance of dchar simultaneously achieves the pairwise throughput scaling and minimum network energy consumption for random networks.
Eigenvalue Characterization and Computation for the Laplacian on General 2-D Domains

In this paper, we address the problem of determining and efficiently computing an approximation to the eigenvalues of the negative Laplacian − ▵ on a general domain Ω ⊂ ℝ2 subject to homogeneous Dirichlet or Neumann boundary conditions. The basic idea is to look for eigenfunctions as the superposition of generalized eigenfunctions of the corresponding free space operator, in the spirit of the classical method of particular solutions (MPS). The main novelties of the proposed approach are the possibility of targeting each eigenvalue independently without the need for extensive scanning of the positive real axis and the use of small matrices. This is made possible by iterative inclusion of more basis functions in the expansions and a projection idea that transforms the minimization problem associated with MPS and its variants into a relatively simple zero-finding problem, even for expansions with very few basis functions.
Protective Effect of β-mercaptoethylamine and Mesenteric Vessel Clamping on Intestine-irradiated Rats

Summaryβ-mercaptoethylamine (MEA) given intraperitoneally 15 min before x-irradiation or clamping of the mesenteric vessel during x-irradiation of the exteriorized ileum and jejunum in rats reduced mortality, body-weight loss in survivors, and histological damage as compared with irradiated controls. When animals which received 1800 r and MEA were compared on a mortality and histopathological basis with those exposed to 1400 r with no drug treatment, the responses were very similar. Thus, with this method for evaluation, MEA reduced the effect of the x-ray exposure dose by about 20 per cent. MEA and clamping were not effective with x-ray exposure doses of 2200 r and above and 3000 r and above respectively. The combination of the two treatments had a substantial additive protective effect. It resulted in 67 per cent survival at the exposure dose of 3500 r where neither treatment by itself was effective, but became completely ineffective at 4500 r and above.