cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Associative, reactive and electron transfer ionization in crossed molecular beams, Al, Ba, Ta and Ti with O2

Abstract Metal atom beams of Al, Ba, Ta and Ti formed by cathode sputtering have been reacted with an O 2 molecular beam, and the positive ionic products measured. The following processes have been observed: and the product ion angular distributions measured. For some of the systems the dependence of product ion intensity on the velocity of the reactant metal atom was determined. Initial results are presented on the angular distributions for non-velocity selected metal atom beams, and on the threshold energies for some of the processes.
1011 DECREASED NATURAL AND ANTIBODY DEPENDENT CELLULAR CYTOTOXICITY IS ASSOCIATED WITH DECREASED PRODUCTION OF NATURAL KILLER CYTOTOXIC FACTORS AND INTERFERON IN NEONATES

Cord blood lymphocytes (CBL) were compared with adult peripheral blood lymphocytes (aPBL) for their: 1) natural killer (NK) and antibody dependent cellular cytotoxic (ADCC) activities, 2) target binding capacity, 3) ability to induce soluble natural killer cytotoxio factor (NKCF), 4) interferon (IFNα) and interleukin 2 (IL2) induced augmentation of NK activity and 5) capacity to produce IFN against tumor targets in vitro. For the NK assay, K562 cells were used as targets whereas in the ADCC assay, antibody coated SB cells were used in a 4 hr 51Cr release assay. CBL depleted of adherent cells and Percoll separated NK enriched subpopulations demonstrated significantly lower NK and ADCC activities compared to aPBL. However the target binding ability of CBL was comparable to aPBL. CBL produced significantly lower levels of NKCF in response to K562 tumor targets compared with aPBL. Although the NK activity of CBL was not stilmulated by either IFN or IL2 to the same levels shown by aPBL, the percent enhancement of cytotoxicity of CBL by IFN and IL2 was greater than aPBL. The ability of CBL to produce IFN in vitro against K562 target cells was significantly lower than aPBL, Our results suggest that decreased NK and ADCC activities and NKCF production by CBL may be associated with diminished IFN production, thereoy predisposing neonates to an increased susceptibility to infection.
Risk assessment in context

Abstract This article provides an overview of the context in which decisions about risk are made in child welfare including personal, task, and environmental factors that may contribute to uncertainty and less-than-optimal decision making, as well as some of the methodological challenges posed by the use of current risk assessment instruments. Actuarial, consensus-based, and clinical instruments are discussed and the more successful track record of actuarial decision-making in child welfare and related fields is highlighted. Methodological challenges to assessing risk are also presented including lack of reliability and validity of measures, definitional dilemmas, temporal issues such as changes in risk over time, absence of base rate data, predicting for individuals and sensitivity and specificity of measures. Implications for the design and implementation of risk assessment tools are considered in light of contextual influences and methodological limitations. Lastly, an overview of the contents of Part One of this special issue on risk assessment is provided.
Brachytherapy for Non-small Cell Lung Cancer and Selected Neoplasms of the Chest

This article reviews the indications, techniques, and results of brachytherapy in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and selected chest neoplasms. Various isotopes and techniques are used to place radioactive sources directly into a tumor, tumor bed, or the chest. Brachytherapy techniques can be tailored to the clinical situation and can be in the form of permanent interstitial volume or planar implants (radioactive sources permanently imbedded into the tumor or tumor bed) or in the form of temporary interstitial or endoluminal implants (where radioactive sources irradiate a tumor bed over a certain length of time and then are removed). These treatments can be delivered over a short interval (high-dose rate [HDR]) or over a more protracted time (low-dose rate). HDR treatments can be used intraoperatively to deliver a large dose of radiation to a determined target area with selective sparing of surrounding normal structures. Different methods of delivering HDR intraoperative radiation are under investigation. Most reports on brachytherapy for chest malignancies are retrospective and come from a few single institutions. Most of the published data relate to the treatment of NSCLC, but other intrathoracic malignancies, such as malignant pleural mesothelioma and malignant thymoma, have been treated with brachytherapy. To our knowledge, no major randomized trials accurately assess or confirm these retrospective studies yet, complicating the interpretation of these results. Nevertheless, brachytherapy is of value in selected situations and offers the clinician and the patient an innovative method of delivering conformal high-dose radiation to a defined target with preferential sparing of normal surrounding structures. With continued innovations in the development of radioactive isotopes, computerized treatment planning and targeting, and source delivery, brachytherapy should continue to offer an attractive alternative and complement to conventional treatment approaches, and may offer patients improved local control and survival.
A prospective comparison of hourly and quarter‐hourly oxytocin dose increase intervals for the induction of labor at term

Fifty-two women undergoing labor induction and vaginal delivery at term were randomized between two oxytocin infusion protocols, involving hourly versus quarter-hourly increases in dose. Potential differences were sought of duration of labor, amount of uterine activity generated, and amount of oxytocin required. Starting at 0.5 mU/minute, oxytocin infusion was increased regularly in small increments every hour or every 15 minutes, according to group assignment. No differences were observed in potentially confounding clinical and demographic factors between the groups, including time to ruptured membranes. There were no clinically or statistically significant differences found for the duration of any phase or stage of labor, quantitative assessment of uterine activity, incidence of hyperstimulation, or neonatal outcome. The average dose of oxytocin used was lower in the hourly than in the quarter-hourly, protocol (4.4 versus 6.7 mU/minute; P less than .005). Significantly fewer patients on the hourly protocol required a maximum infusion rate exceeding 8 mU/minute (P less than .05). More patients on the hourly protocol either had oxytocin discontinued completely or were maintained at 4 mU/minute or less during the active phase of labor (P less than .05 and P less than .001, respectively). We conclude that a slower rate of increase in oxytocin administration via continuous infusion results in no prolongation of any phase of induced labor, while permitting lower infusion rates of the drug.
The antimicrobial activity of hexapeptides derived from synthetic combinatorial libraries

A series of peptides identified through the use of synthetic hexapeptide combinatorial libraries (represented by the formula Ac-RRWWCO-NH2) were examined for their antimicrobial activity against five different micro-organisms. Their toxicity was also evaluated in an in vitro haemolytic assay. The peptides showed activity against the five micro-organisms, although higher activities were found against Gram-positive bacteria. Both growth inhibition and cell viability assays were carried out to demonstrate the bactericidal activities of these peptides against two of the micro-organisms tested. The dimeric cystine forms of these peptides were shown to have biological activities identical to the monomeric forms.
AN AZIMUTHAL ASYMMETRY IN THE LkHα 330 DISK

Theory predicts that giant planets and low mass stellar companions shape circumstellar disks by opening annular gaps in the gas and dust spatial distribution. For more than a decade it has been debated whether this is the dominant process that leads to the formation of transitional disks. In this paper, we present millimeter-wave interferometric observations of the transitional disk around the young intermediate mass star LkHα 330. These observations reveal a lopsided ring in the 1.3 mm dust thermal emission characterized by a radius of about 100 AU and an azimuthal intensity variation of a factor of two. By comparing the observations with a Gaussian parametric model, we find that the observed asymmetry is consistent with a circular arc, that extends azimuthally by about 90° and emits about 1/3 of the total continuum flux at 1.3 mm. Hydrodynamic simulations show that this structure is similar to the azimuthal asymmetries in the disk surface density that might be produced by the dynamical interaction with unseen low mass companions orbiting within 70 AU from the central star. We argue that such asymmetries might lead to azimuthal variations in the millimeter-wave dust opacity and in the dust temperature, which will also affect the millimeter-wave continuum emission. Alternative explanations for the observed asymmetry that do not require the presence of companions cannot be ruled out with the existing data. Further observations of both the dust and molecular gas emission are required to derive firm conclusions on the origin of the asymmetry observed in the LkHα 330 disk.
Capsaicin desensitization and stimulus-induced recovery on facial compared to lingual skin.

It was recently demonstrated that capsaicin desensitization of the tongue can be temporarily reversed during bouts of recurrent or constant stimulation. The present study investigated whether this "stimulus-induced recovery" (SIR) also occurs on skin other than the oral mucosa. Twenty-two subjects received capsaicin treatments on the cheek and on the tongue tip at concentrations (330 and 33 microM) that produced approximately equal sensory irritation on the two sites. Desensitization and SIR occurred on both test sites, although the longer time course of irritation on the face changed the magnitude and form of SIR. There were large individual differences in the extent of desensitization and recovery, and the two phenomena were not correlated across sites, i.e., the capacity for SIR on the tongue was not a good predictor of an individual's capacity for SIR on the face. The results are discussed in terms of possible sources of regional and individual differences, and the implications they may have for the efficacy of topical analgesics that contain capsaicin.
Modeling dichotomous item responses with free-knot splines

Item response theory (IRT) models are a class of generalized mixed effect (GME) models used by psychometricians to describe the response behavior of individuals to a set of categorically scored items. The typical assumptions of IRT are Unidimensionality(U) of the random effect; Conditional (or Local) Independence (CI), the item responses are independent given the random effect; and Monotonicity (M), the probability of a correct response is a non-decreasing function of the random effect. The simple parametric models available in the psychometric literature have proved to be too restrictive in many data sets. Non-parametric regression models are a powerful tool for the estimation of non-linear curves, and have been used in IRT as a flexible way to model the item response function. This paper develops a new method for the non-parametric estimation of item response functions based on reversible-jump Markov Chain Monte Carlo, and demonstrates the practicality of the method by examining two data sets.
Inhibiting magmatism on nonvolcanic rifted margins

The conditions under which continental rifting may occur without an accompanying protracted period of synextensional magmatism are explored with a series of finite element models that dynamically simulate continental extension. The models demonstrate that 5–7 km of new oceanic crust can be generated at the time of breakup while restricting synextensional magmatism to less than 2 m.y. prior to the end of the rifting episode if the extension rate exceeds ∼15 mm/yr and the crust contains only minor lateral variations in strength. Under these conditions, extensional strain in the mantle is localized during the early stages of rifting, preventing diffuse lithospheric thinning. Melting does not begin until lithospheric necking is well established, resulting in a narrow zone of melt production that limits magmatism to within ∼30 km of the ocean-continent boundary. Once melting begins, rifting progresses rapidly to breakup, restricting the period of synextensional magmatism to as little as 1.6 m.y. prior to the onset of sea-floor spreading. Because the models do not require either a cool mantle prior to rifting or pronounced conductive cooling of the mantle during rifting, they are able to account for the generation of new oceanic crust at the time of breakup. The model predictions are consistent with the structure and magmatic history of nonvolcanic rifted margins in the North Atlantic Ocean.
Chiral diamines. Part 3: Effect of ligand structure on the enantioselective deprotonation of N-Boc-pyrrolidine with i-PrLi: a computational comparison of (−)-sparteine and (S,S)-1,2-bis(N,N-dimethylamino)cyclohexane

Abstract The deprotonation N -Boc-pyrrolidine by i -PrLi–( S , S )-1,2-bis( N , N -dimethylamino)cyclohexane has been studied at the HF/3-21G and B3P86/6-31G* theoretical levels. The two lowest energy complexes of the N -Boc-pyrrolidine– i -PrLi–diamine ligand, as well as the transition states leading to proton transfer, were found to be similar in both geometry and energy in accord with experimental findings. The results are compared to those for the analogous but enantioselective (−)-sparteine-mediated deprotonation.
Prospective risk of fetal death in singleton, twin, and triplet gestations: implications for practice

Abstract Objective To evaluate the prospective risk of fetal death in singleton, twin, and triplet pregnancies and to compare this risk with fetal and neonatal death rates. Methods We analyzed 11,061,599 singleton, 297,622 twin, and 15,375 triplet gestations drawn from the 1995–1998 National Center for Health Statistics linked birth and death files. Prospective risk of fetal death was expressed as a proportion of all fetuses still at risk at a given gestational age and compared with fetal death rate. Fetal death risk and neonatal death rates were represented graphically for singletons, twins, and triplets. Results The prospective risk of fetal death at 24 weeks was 0.28 per 1000, 0.92 per 1000, and 1.30 per 1000 for singletons, twins, and triplets, respectively. At 40 weeks, the corresponding risk was 0.57 per 1000 and 3.09 per 1000 for singletons and twins, respectively and, at 38 or more weeks, 13.18 per 1000 for triplets. Plots of gestation-specific prospective risk of fetal death and neonatal mortality converged for singletons and twins at term but crossed for triplets at approximately 36 weeks' gestation. Conclusion Prospective risk of fetal death is greater for triplets and twins than for singletons and greater for triplets than for twins during the third trimester. The pattern corroborates with uteroplacental insufficiency as a suspected underlying mechanism. When prospective risk of fetal death exceeds neonatal mortality risk, delivery might be indicated. When this model is used, this data set suggests that it might be reasonable to consider delivery of twins by 39 weeks and triplets by 36 weeks to improve perinatal outcome.
Mitral Valve Chordal Rupture Masquerades as Endocarditis

Mitral valve chordal rupture is often associated with an inciting event. There are very few reported pediatric cases of spontaneous mitral valve chordal rupture. We describe a 9-year-old boy with a history of mitral valve prolapse who developed spontaneous mitral valve chordal rupture without evidence of endocarditis or trauma.
Feasibility of Describing Joint Nonlinearity in Exhaust Components With Modal Iwan Models

Segalman recently proposed a model for joint nonlinearity in a built up structure in which each mode is treated independently (orthogonality is assumed to be preserved) and with an Iwan model added to each modal degree of freedom to capture the nonlinearity of all of the joints that are active in that mode. Recent works have shown that this type of model can faithfully describe the nonlinearity in simple laboratory structures and in simulations of structures with several Iwan joints in the micro-slip regime. This work explores the validity of these concepts for more complicated structures, each of which is part of a production automotive exhaust system. Where possible, factory gaskets were used and the bolted joints were tightened per the manufacturer’s specifications. Tests were performed on different subassemblies of the exhaust using a modal hammer to excite the structure and accelerometers to measure its response. Mayes & Allen’s ZEFFT algorithm was used to determine which modes were behaving nonlinearly. Then an algorithm based on the Hilbert transform was used to extract the instantaneous frequency and damping for the modes of interest and to fit the behavior to a modal Iwan model. The results show several modes that exhibit small frequency shifts and damping that changes by as much as a factor of two over the range of forces that were employed.Copyright © 2014 by ASME
Carotid and cranial nerve reconstruction after removal of cavernous sinus lesions.

During the last 7 years, approximately 170 neoplasms, and 35 vascular lesions involving the cavernous sinus were treated by the first two authors. During the treatment of such lesions, the direct vein graft reconstruction of the internal carotid artery from the petrous to the supraclinoid or infraclinoid ICA was performed in 23 patients. Graft occlusion occurred in 3 patients and in one of these, it was successfully salvaged by placing a long venous graft from the extracranial ICA to the M3 segment of the middle cerebral artery. The latter 3 patients were neurologically normal. One patient with significant athero-sclerotic disease suffered the dissection of the distal internal carotid artery with the graft being patent. The dissection presumably occurred because of the separation of the intima and the media and an improper suturing technique. This patient eventually died. Two patients with severely compromised collateral circulation suffered minor strokes due to the temporary occlssion of the ICA. This has been avoided in the more recent patients by the adoption of brain protection techniques such as moderate hypothermia, induced hypertension, and barbiturate coma. Low dose heparin therapy during grafting and high dose intravenous steroids prior to the grafting also appear to be beneficial. Direct vein graft reconstruction of the intracavernous carotid artery is a valuable tool during the management of cavernous sinus lesions. The advantages and disadvantages of this technique as well as the pros and cons of other revascularization techniques will be discussed. During microsurgical removal of cavernous sinus lesions, the cranial nerves III-VI were reconstructed by direct resuture or by nerve grafting in 16 patients. In the majority of these patients, recovery of cranial nerve function was observed, which was very encouraging. Cranial nerve reconstruction should be attempted whenever the nerves are sacrificed in a patient who has a fair to excellent eye function preoperatively or whenever inadvertent injury to such nerves occurs during cavernous sinus surgery.
Protection by antioxidants against the toxicity of ozone to microbial systems

Abstract Antioxidants of a wide range of chemical classes were shown to protect a bacterium and a protozoan against ozone toxicity.
Management of Dural Tears in Spinal Surgery

Dural tears are one of the most common complications of spinal surgery. Deleterious consequences of dural leaks include dural-cutaneous fistulas that can lead to meningitis, arachnoiditis or epidural abscess, impaired wound healing, wound infection, pseudomeningocele formation, nerve root entrapment, and headache. Primary watertight closure is the most important aspect of treatment. If a dural tear is encountered during spine surgery, a direct suture repair is recommended. If the repair is tenuous or if suture repair is not possible due to location or tissue quality, use of adjuncts should be considered.
Preserving and Perpetuating Memory at the Musée Nissim de Camondo

This article investigates the complex layering of historical and memorial references at the Musee Nissim de Camondo in Paris as it has evolved from private residence to an increasingly open public museum. Built between 1911 and 1914 for an important collection of eighteenth-century furnishings and decorative arts, the house took on a commemorative function following the death of the founder’s son, Nissim, for whom the museum was named. Over the last century, through the vicissitudes of history, revised narrative priorities and changing approaches to museum presentation, this house-turned-museum has become a site of historical representation focused as much on the twentieth century and the Camondo family as on the period of its original inspiration. This article explores that transition, attending to the museum’s founding memorial goal in the wake of World War II, the tragic demise of the Camondo family, and shifting perspectives on French history.
Conduction mechanism in graphite intercalated with certain acceptors

Abstract There are a number of problems which must be resolved before it can be said that the mechanism of conduction in acceptor compounds of graphite is understood. In this paper attention will be paid to compounds prepared from AsF 5 , SbF 5 , and FeCl 3 which exhibit very high conductivities, comparable with that of copper. An analysis of recent data on the temperature dependence of the resistivity and the magnetoresistance will be given and discussed in terms of recent models of the dispersion relationship developed by Blinowski et al. The consequences of screening and the concept of a sandwich model for the conductivity will be examined. Specific values for carrier densities, mobilities, effective masses, Fermi speed, and density of states, will be computed from the models discussed and compared with other data, such as oscillatory phenomena due to magnetic quantization (de Haas-van Alphen, Shubinkov-de Haas, magnetothermal oscillations), magnetic susceptibility, etc. Using these estimates, a discussion will be developed of the effect of crystal defects on the electrical conductivity. Scattering on grain boundaries and effects of crystal misalignment will be considered, since practical synthetic conductors will be based on materials with these defects. The possibility of making inexpensive synthetic conductors will be considered within this context.
Multiplexed Intrinsic Detector Arrays With Signal Processing (MIDASP) Program Development Of Hybrid Technology For Advanced Scanning Systems

AbstractThe MIDASP program has been aimed at development of the fundamental technology necessary for fabrication ofhybrid (Hg,Cd)Te detector /silicon signal processor focal planes for second generation FLIR systems. Effort has been concentrated in four areas: 1) 3 -5 micrometer (Hg,Cd)Te photodiodes, 2) detector /CCD mechanicalinter -connect, 3) detector /CCD electrical coupling, and 4) fabrication and evaluation of small focal planestructures. Detector /CCDs with several 8 -TDI channels multiplexed to a single output have been successfullydemonstrated, with an overall D* of up to 1x1012 cm- Hz1 /2 /W. IntroductionThe multiplexed Intrinsic Detector Arrays with Signal Processing (MIDASP) program has been aimed at development of the fundamental technology necessary for fabrication of hybrid (Hg,Cd)Te PV detector /silicon signal processor focal planes for scanning applications. A TV compatible parallel scanned second generationFLIR system with TDI was used as the guideline for directing the technology development.
Fluorine Substitution Enhances the Reactivity of Substituted Phenyl Radicals toward Organic Hydrogen Atom Donors

Phenyl radicals with different positively charged, chemically inert substituents in the para position were generated by collision-activated dissociation of para-substituted iodobenzene ions in the gas phase inside a Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer. The reactivity of the radicals was examined toward organic hydrogen atom donors. The findings parallel those made by others for neutral radicals in solution. For example, the efficiency of hydrogen atom abstraction increases in the expected order phenol < thiophenol < benzeneselenol. Inspite of great exothermicity, hydrogen atom abstraction by the charged phenyl radicals occurs at a small fraction of the gas-phase collision rate, suggesting the presence of a significant barrier on the reaction coordinate. Fluorine substitution on the phenyl ring was found to drastically enhance the reaction rate for all the substrates studied. For example, hydrogen abstraction from thiophenol by the (2,3,5,6-tetrafluoro-4-dehydrophenyl)trimethylphosp...
Keeping found things found on the web

This paper describes the results of an observational study into the methods people use to manage web information for re-use. People observed in our study used a diversity of methods and associated tools. For example, several participants emailed web addresses (URLs) along with comments to themselves and to others. Other methods observed included printing out web pages, saving web pages to the hard drive, pasting the address for a web page into a document and pasting the address into a personal web site. Ironically, two web browser tools that have been explicitly developed to help users track web information - the bookmarking tool and the history list - were not widely used by participants in this study. A functional analysis helps to explain the observed diversity of methods. Methods vary widely in the functions they provide. For example, a web address pasted into a self-addressed email can provide an important reminding function together with a context of relevance: The email arrives in an inbox which is checked at regular intervals and the email can include a few lines of text that explain the URL's relevance and the actions to be taken. On the other hand, for most users in the study, the bookmarking tool ("Favorites" or "Bookmarks" depending on the browser) provided neither a reminding function nor a context of relevance. The functional analysis can help to assess the likely success of various tools, current and proposed.
An all-solid-state amperometric ethanol sensor

Abstract An all-solid-state pellet electrode for ethanol determination has been developed and compared with the membrane-layered sensor. It is found that the new pellet electrodes have reliable responses (current vs. concentration) to ethanol from 0.1 to 10 m m with response times of about 2 min. The current response decreases about 10% h −1 during continuous operation, compared with a drop of 50% h −1 with normal membrane electrodes. Fresh electrodes can be stored in a freezer for 2 weeks without apparent activity loss. The measurement procedure is convenient and it is probable that reproducible, disposable electrodes can be made at low cost. This format is general and can easily be extended to many other systems with β-NAD + /NADH as coenzyme.
Electric Dipole Moment of the 1A2 Electronic State of Formaldehyde

The measurement of the Stark effect of the near‐ultraviolet absorption spectrum of formaldehyde vapor is described. The magnitude of the electric dipole moment of the 1A2 (nπ*) state is 1.56±0.07 D and its direction is the same as that of the ground‐state dipole moment. The decrease of dipole moment on excitation (0.78 D) is much smaller than predicted from a naive molecular orbital model, but is in good agreement with the value (0.66 D) corresponding to the previously calculated orbitals of Foster and Boys.
Equivalence of the Ewald-Oseen extinction theorem as a nonlocal boundary-value problem with Maxwell’s equations and boundary conditions*

It has been shown in the past that the Ewald-Oseen extinction theorem can be generalized into a nonlocal boundary-value problem and that the scattering of an electromagnetic wave on a medium of arbitrary response can be described in terms of this boundary-value problem. The scattered field inside the medium (the interior-scattering problem) is determined, without any reference to the scattered field outside the medium, by solving a set of coupled partial differential equations, subject to certain nonlocal boundary conditions which are generalizations of the Ewald-Oseen extinction theorem. Once the field on the boundary of the medium is known, the exterior field (the exterior-scattering problem) is evaluated by direct integration. Moreover, a hypothesis was put forward according to which these nonlocal boundary conditions completely and uniquely specify the solution of the interior-scattering problem. In this paper it is shown that this hypothesis is true. The equivalence of the interior- and exterior-scattering problems to Maxwell’s equations and boundary conditions is proven. For simplicity, the proof is confined to nonmagnetic media. Thus, if Maxwell’s equations and boundary conditions have a unique solution, the interior-scattering problem will also have a unique solution, namely, that obtained from the former. Some illustrative examples are presented in the special case of a linear medium.
Low biotinidase activity in plasma of some preterm infants: possible source of false-positive screening results.

Screening for biotinidase deficiency has been added recently to some national screening programmes. To clarify the problem of false-positive screening tests in premature infants, we have studied biotinidase activities in the plasma of this population in more detail. In 64 newborns (premature and term babies) biotinidase activities correlated positively with gestational age from the 2nd to the 30th day of life. During the 1st–3rd day the activities were below the normal adult range in all 64 infants. In 56 infants the activities subsequently increased gradually and reached the normal adult range during the 4th–40th day of life. In contrast, the biotinidase activities in eight preterm infants dropped during the 3rd–7th day of life. Impaired liver function as a possible cause for this finding could be ruled out in these infants. The lowest activities in these infants were measured during the 4th–6th day of life, i.e. unfortunately at a time when samples for the screening are normally taken. According to our data, 4–8 out of 48 preterm or small-for-date infants with biotinidase activities ranging from 4.7%–26% of the mean adult value would have given false-positive screening tests. A positive screening test was also obtained in a newborn and in an older unrelated child with a partial biotinidase deficiency. In these children the biotinidase activity did not rise but remained slightly below or at the lower range for heterozygotes (at 31% and 38% of the mean adult value). Currently we do not know whether such individuals are heterozygotes, or whether they have a variant of biotinidase deficiency. However, these children have developed normally without biotin therapy.
A comparison of the BioStar Strep A OIA™ rapid antigen assay, Group A Selective Strep Agar (ssA™), and Todd-Hewitt broth cultures for the detection of group A Streptococcus in an outpatient Family Practice setting

Abstract In some studies the BioStar™ Strep A OIA (optical immunoassay) has yielded inconsistent results, although originally it was reported to be more sensitive than conventional culture for the detection of group A Streptococcus (GAS). The Group A Selective Strep Agar with 5% sheep blood (ssA™) incubated anaerobically has been reported to be more sensitive than conventional culture in the detection of GAS. We compared the BioStar™ Strep A OIA GAS rapid antigen detection kit to anaerobic culture on ssA™ with and without preincubation in Todd-Hewitt broth (THB) for the detection of GAS. From September 1995 through January 1996, throat swabs were collected in duplicate from 75 children (≤18 years) and 188 adults (>18 years) who presented with pharyngitis in the outpatient University of New Mexico Family Practice Clinic. Thirty-one (12%) of the 263 cases were positive for GAS by culture and/or broth. Compared with anaerobic culture on the ssA™, with and without preincubation in THB, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of the BioStar™ Strep A OIA were 77, 62, 22, and 95%, respectively. Compared with enrichment in THB followed by subculture on ssA™ and anaerobic incubation, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of direct culture on ssA™ and anaerobic incubation were 79, 99, 98, and 96%, respectively. All isolates were serologically grouped. The BioStar™ Strep A OIA is as sensitive as direct culture on ssA™ incubated anaerobically, but the low specificity and low positive predictive value when the OIA is used in low prevalence populations could lead to unnecessary antibiotic treatment.
Scheduling approaches in expert systems: A study of their applicability

Abstract Expert scheduling systems are being used in a variety of domains, including manufacturing, personnel, aerospace, and military applications. Very little work has been done in determining when it is most appropriate to use a particular scheduling approach in an expert system. This paper addresses this area, placing special emphasis on matching scheduling techniques to requirements in the NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) mission planning arena.
Numerical simulation of subcooled boiling and heat transfer in vertical ducts

Abstract A two-dimensional two-phase non-equilibrium model is presented to predict the void fraction distribution, flow and temperature fields for turbulent subcooled flow boiling at elevated pressures in heated vertical ducts (pipes and channels). The model is based on the conservation of mass, momentum, and energy equations for each of the two phases. Appropriate wall and interfacial conditions are formulated to close the problem. The non-equilibrium temperature and velocity distributions of the two phases and void fraction profiles show considerable variation along the radial and axial directions for the subcooled flow boiling cases considered. The effects of inlet subcooling, exit pressure and wall heat flux on the flow boiling behavior were predicted. The predicted radially averaged void fractions are compared with the experimental results available in the literature. The radial temperature distributions and void fraction profiles are also compared with available experimental measurements.
Improving Students’ Long-Term Knowledge Retention Through Personalized Review

Human memory is imperfect; thus, periodic review is required for the long-term preservation of knowledge and skills. However, students at every educational level are challenged by an ever-growing amount of material to review and an ongoing imperative to master new material. We developed a method for efficient, systematic, personalized review that combines statistical techniques for inferring individual differences with a psychological theory of memory. The method was integrated into a semester-long middle-school foreign-language course via retrieval-practice software. Using a cumulative exam administered after the semester's end, we compared time-matched review strategies and found that personalized review yielded a 16.5% boost in course retention over current educational practice (massed study) and a 10.0% improvement over a one-size-fits-all strategy for spaced study.
Control method considerations for DC-DC converters in power buffer applications

The field population of power electronics loads continues to grow. Most such loads, including motor drives, computer power supplies, and even compact fluorescent lighting "isolate" the load dynamics from the utility grid. When isolated these loads enforce local constant power behavior, which can de-stabilize a weak power system. One method to mitigate the effects of constant power loads is the use of active dynamic power buffers. This paper reviews the power buffer concept, and presents DC-DC converter control methods and considerations to implement an active power buffer.
Impact of negative affectivity and trait forgiveness on aortic blood pressure and coronary circulation

Prior research suggests that negative affectivity (NA) may have a direct adverse effect on coronary circulation, whereas forgiveness may provide cardioprotection. This study examined whether NA and forgiveness were independently related to aortic hemodynamics and the subendocardial viability index (SVI), a marker of coronary perfusion. A sample of 131 adults (M = 21.11 years, SD = 2.52) were evaluated for NA (depression, anxiety, and anger symptoms) and forgiveness (Tendency to Forgive Scale; TTF). Aortic hemodynamic parameters via applanation tonometry were assessed at rest and during sympathostimulation (cold pressor test; CPT). Hierarchical multiple regression analyses of resting values showed that NA was related to higher aortic blood pressure (ABP) and lower SVI. After controlling for demographics and for NA, TTF scores were significantly associated with decreased ABP, but increased SVI. CPT changes from baseline indicated that, after controlling for demographics and NA, TTF scores were significantly associated with SVI. Results indicate that NA significantly predicts ABP and decreased SVI. Conversely, forgiveness seems to provide cardioprotection by evoking decreased ABP while improving SVI.
Polymorphisms and Splice Variants Influence the Antiretroviral Activity of Human APOBEC3H

Human APOBEC3H belongs to the APOBEC3 family of cytidine deaminases that potently inhibit exogenous and endogenous retroviruses. The impact of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) and alternative splicing on the antiretroviral activity of human APOBEC3H is currently unknown. In this study, we show that APOBEC3H transcripts derived from human peripheral blood mononuclear cells are polymorphic in sequence and subject to alternative splicing. We found that APOBEC3H variants encoding a SNP cluster (G105R, K121D and E178D, hapII-RDD) restricted human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) more efficiently than wild-type APOBEC3H (hapI-GKE). All APOBEC3H variants tested were resistant to HIV-1 Vif, the viral protein that efficiently counteracts APOBEC3G/3F activity. Alternative splicing of APOBEC3H was common and resulted in variants with distinct C-terminal regions and variable antiretroviral activities. Splice variants of hapI-GKE displayed a wide range of antiviral activities, whereas similar splicing events in hapII-RDD resulted in proteins that uniformly and efficiently restricted viral infectivity (>20-fold). Site-directed mutagenesis identified G105R in hapI-GKE and D121K in hapII-RDD as critical substitutions leading to an average additional 10-fold increase in antiviral activity. APOBEC3H variants were catalytically active and, similarly to APOBEC3F, favored a GA dinucleotide context. HIV-1 mutagenesis as a mode of action for APOBEC3H is suggested by the decrease of restriction observed with a cytidine deaminase domain mutant and the inverse correlation between G-to-A mutations and infectivity. Thus, the anti-HIV activity of APOBEC3H seems to be regulated by a combination of genomic variation and alternative splicing. Since prevalence of hapII-RDD is high in populations of African descent, these findings raise the possibility that some individuals may harbor effective as well as HIV-1 Vif-resistant intracellular antiviral defense mechanisms.
Experimental observations of the effects of bacteria on aluminosilicate weathering

Mineral dissolution experiments using batch cultures of soil and groundwater bacteria were monitored with solution chemistry and various microscopic techniques to determine the effects of these organisms on weathering reactions. Several strains of bacteria produced organic and inorganic acids and extracellular polymers in culture, increasing the release of cations from biotite (Si, Fe, Al) and plagioclase feldspar (Si, Al) by up to two orders of magnitude compared to abiotic controls. Microbial colonies on mineral grains were examined by cryo-scanning electron microscopy (cryo-SEM), confocal scanning laser microscopy (CSLM), and epifluorescence microscopy. Bacteria colonized all mineral surfaces, often preferentially along cleavage steps and edges of mineral grains. Low-voltage high-resolution cryo-SEM of high-pressure cryofixed and partially freeze-dried colonized minerals showed many bacteria attached by extracellular polymers of unknown composition. These biofilms covered much larger areas of the mineral surfaces than bacterial cells alone. Mineral surfaces where bacteria and extracellular polymers occurred appeared more extensively etched than surrounding uncolonized surfaces. CSLM was used to observe microbial colonization of biotite and to measure pH in microenvironments surrounding living microcolonies using a ratiometric pH-sensitive fluorescent dye set. A strain of bacteria (B0693 from the U.S. Department of Energy Subsurface Microbial Culture Collection) formed large attached microcolonies, both on the outer (001) surface and within interlayer spaces as narrow as 1 mu m. Solution pH decreased from near neutral at the mineral surface to 3-4 around microcolonies living within confined spaces of interior colonized cleavage planes. However, no evidence of pH microgradients surrounding exterior microcolonies was noted.
Mitochondria and apoptosis

A variety of key events in apoptosis focus on mitochondria, including the release of caspase activators (such as cytochrome c), changes in electron transport, loss of mitochondrial transmembrane potential, altered cellular oxidation-reduction, and participation of pro- and antiapoptotic Bcl-2 family proteins. The different signals that converge on mitochondria to trigger or inhibit these events and their downstream effects delineate several major pathways in physiological cell death.
Parameter compatibility relations for accelerated testing

It is pointed out that the use of acceleration studies implies that stress does not change the mechanisms of failure but only contracts the time to reach failure level. This implication is translated into a requirement that the parameter set for the failure distribution does not change, but values of the parameters may. The generality of the relationship between parameter values at various stress levels and the time transformation that connects the respective distributions is emphasized. These are termed compatibility relations. An example of compatibility relations for acceleration studies described by a Weibull distribution is given in detail. The compatibility relations between the coefficients in the time transformation in acceleration studies based on exponential, gamma, log-normal, and Weibull distributions and respective parameter values are discussed generally. Compatibility relations can be used to improve estimation procedures, check the consistency of parameter estimation during analysis of acceleration test data, and check the validity of the use of acceleration studies in the first place. >
Vacuum-Tube Voltmeter Design

It is shown that for every input range and meter a set of optimum conditions exist, which insure maximum readability, economy, and minimum operating current. Equations are developed (and illustrated with several examples) for the rapid design of a meter for a predetermined range. Optimum conditions are imposed. The dependence of the range secured upon plate circuit impedance is shown and its variation with frequency explained. The procedure for eliminating frequency error up to and including radio frequencies is illustrated.
Annunciation Implementing an Emancipatory Communitarian Approach to Vocational Psychology

The informative and critical reactions from Fred Borgen; William Liu and Saba Rasheed Ali; Tod Sloan; and Kathy Gainor provide more reason and resolve to incorporate the emancipatory communitarian approach in vocational psychology. To move from a preoccupation with denunciation to the generation of solutions, or annunciation, we respond to each of the authors’ suggestions and comments. We highlight points raised by each author to clarify our rationale and intentions as well as to invite space for dialogue, disagreement, and growth among the many perspectives and values held within our field.
A protocol for reliable decentralized conferencing

Many approaches and topologies --- including multicast and media mixing --- have been proposed for distributed Internet conferencing. While existing solutions can work well for large or pre-arranged conferences, they can be less appropriate for smaller, impromptu ones. We present an alternative, full mesh conferencing, which allows any number of parties to communicate in a conference without a central point of control. The protocol allows parties to join and leave the conference at any time, and ensures that all members of the conference are always informed of new members. The paper gives an overview of the protocol, analyzes it, describes a simulation environment for it, and discusses its applicability to the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and to other forms of decentralized communication.
Development of Discrete Nanopores I: Tension of Polypropylene/ Polyethylene Copolymer Blends

Porous polymeric materials can be prepared by using micromechanical deformations. The development of porous structures in the tension of polyolefin blends are studied with the goal of developing a novel technique to make porous films. It is found in polypropylene/polyethyl- ene copolymer blends of near 50/50 weight ratio that a metallocene polymer pair can produce stable nanopores throughout a wide range of strain, 50 -700%. Its strain-to- break was relatively high, although its continuous phase is a brittle polypropylene. The typical size of nanopores is 10 - 300 nm; they start to develop at approximately 50% strain. The disruption of craze-like structures into discrete nanop- ores seems to be the key mechanism in stabilizing pore development. Varying stretching direction and speed con- trols the pore morphology. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 91: 3642-3650, 2004
Kinetic depth effect and optic flow—I. 3D shape from Fourier motion

Fifty-three different 3D shapes were defined by sequences of 2D views (frames) of dots on a rotating 3D surface. (1) Subjects' accuracy of shape identifications dropped from over 90% to less than 10% when either the polarity of the stimulus dots was alternated from light-on-gray to dark-on-gray on successive frames or when neutral gray interframe intervals were interposed. Roth manipulations interfere with motion extraction by spatio-temporal (Fourier) and gradient first-order detectors. Second-order (non-Fourier) detectors that use full-wave rectification are unaffected by alternating-polarity but disrupted by interposed gray frames. (2) To equate the accuracy of two-alternative forced-choice (ZAFC) planar dir~tion-of-motion ~~ri~nation in standard and zloty-alternated stimuli, standard contrast was reduced. 3D shape discrimination survived contrast reduction in standard stimuli whereas it failed completely with polarity-alternation even at full contrast. (3) When individual dots were permitted to remain in the image sequence for only two frames, performance showed little loss compared to standard displays where individual dots had an expected lifetime of 20 frames, showing that 3D shape identification does not require continuity of stimulus tokens. (4) Performance in all discrimination tasks is predicted (up to a monotone transformation) by considering the quality of first-order information (as given by a simple computation on Fourier power) and the number of locations at which motion information is required. Perceptual first-order analysis of optic flow is the primary substrate for st~cture-from-motion computations in random dot displays because only it offers suBicient quality of perceptual motion at a sufficient number of locations.