cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Two Stellar Systems of a New Kind

SOME months ago, an extremely faint, widely-extended stellar system in the constellation Sculptor was reported from the Harvard Observatory1. In many respects it appeared to be unlike any known stellar organization. The finding more recently of a similar system in Fornax, on photographs made With the telescopes at the southern station of the Observatory, suggests that a description of these objects may be of general interest.
A diagnosis for maniacs.

Melanocytes originate in the neural crest and migrateto the basal layer of the epidermis, a distance that is tinyin an embryo but large in an adult human. A little im-precision in regard to where they come to rest may seemto be a small matter. It is not a small matter to a micros-copist who must decide whether or not melanocytes situ-ated in the spinous, granular or cornified layers of theepidermis are evidence of melanoma.In the last two decades there have been a number ofstudies establishing that nevi of “special sites” may haveeccentricities that, if they were detected elsewhere wouldbe evidence of melanoma. Nevi on the genitalia featurelarge and sometimes laterally confluent junctional nests,often of melanocytes with pale staining cytoplasm anddense lymphocytic infiltrates (1). Those on the umbilicusare altered by the presence of a scar in the dermis. Nevion the conjunctiva present with even more striking con-fluence of nests than genital nevi have, with clefts be-tween the epithelium and submucosa and dense infil-trates of lymphocytes, sometimes with lymphoid folliclesand eosinophils. Pigmentation may be prominent in thedeepest nests. Nevi in the neck, axillae and groins canresemble skin tags clinically and have a polypoid con-figuration microscopically (2).Of all of the nevi on “special sites”, those on the skinof the acra are most easily confused with melanoma byvirtue of suprabasal scatter of melanocytes. Thesechanges are most notable on nevi from the palms, solesand nailbeds, but also occur on the dorsal surfaces ofhands and feet and on knees and elbows as well. When Ibegan in dermatopathology in the early 1980s, this factwas little known. Many nevi on acral skin were labeledas melanoma or melanoma in situ, or with such terms as“atypical acral melanosis” that were often joined to notessuggesting re-excision. I wondered how it could be thatearly lesions of melanoma in situ could be so commonyet acral melanomas so are so rare, and seldom associ-ated with pre-existent nevi. I called a podiatric patholo-gist and a local dermatopathologist in private practicewho both told me that they routinely saw, but ignored thefinding of pagetoid scatter of melanocytes based on theexperience of seeing it so often. Clearly, some people
Adult wilms' tumor: Prognostic and management considerations

Wilms' tumor is the most common malignant tumor of the urinary tract in children but is rare in adults. Although histologically the tumors appear to be the same, successful treatment with multimodal therapy is much more common in childhood. We report on 2 patients with adult, anaplastic, Stage IV Wilms' tumor, one of which was discovered during pregnancy and was managed successfully with chemotherapy, including ifosfamide, carboplatinum, and etoposide. As more patients are properly identified and treatment outcomes with chemotherapeutic regimens documented, better therapeutic approaches in adult Wilm's tumor will be developed, resulting in improved survival.
“I am the Author and Must Take Full Responsibility”: Abraham Verghese, Physicians as the Storytellers of the Body, and the Renewal of Medicine

Abraham Verghese proposes to renew medicine by training physicians to read the right texts—literary fiction and patients' bodies—with skilled attention. Analyzing Verghese's proposal with reference to Foucault's idea of the "clinical gaze," I find that Verghese conceives of patients as texts that only physicians can read, meaning that physicians become the storytellers of the bodies, lives, and deaths of the people they meet as patients. I conclude that Verghese's project is unsustainable and alternatively propose thinking analogically of physicians as ship captains who maintain therapeutic distance to reopen interpretative spaces for communities outside of medicine.
Intravenous thiopentone for CT and MRI in children

Summary Children undergoing computerized tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) need to be motionless for optimal image quality and therefore often need sedation or anaesthesia. Intravenous thiopentone alone has not been described for such procedures in children. The authors evaluated intravenous thiopentone as a sole anaesthetic for CT/MRI in 200 unpremedicated children mean age 2.9 ± 2.5 years (range 1 month-12 years). An initial dose of thiopentone 6 mg·kg−1 was given to all children; incremental thiopentone 1–4 mg·kg−1 was administered at the anaesthetist's discretion. A single dose of thiopentone 6 mg·kg−1 was sufficient to complete the scan in 30% of children. The mean total thiopentone dose was 8.5 ± 3 mg·kg−1. The mean duration of CT/MRI was 40 ± 21 min. Tracheal intubation was necessary in 2 children (1%); both had coughing episodes that precluded adequate imaging. Eighty-three percent of children were awake within 5 min of completing the scan and did not require recovery room admission. A single episode of vomiting occurred post-operatively in 7% of children. Intravenous thiopentone is a simple, reliable method of providing sedation/anaesthesia to children undergoing radiologic procedures. Tracheal intubation or use of other forms of airway support is rarely necessary with this technique.
The C Terminus of Mammalian Phospholipase D Is Required for Catalytic Activity

The activity of phospholipase D (PLD) is regulated by a variety of hormonal stimuli and provides a mechanistic pathway for response of cells to extracellular stimuli. The two identified mammalian PLD enzymes possess highly homologous C termini, which are required for catalytic activity. Mutational analysis of PLD1 and PLD2 reveals that modification of as little as the C-terminal threonine or the addition of a single alanine attenuates activity of the enzyme. Protein folding appears to be intact because mutant enzymes express to similar levels in Sf9 cells and addition of peptides representing the C-terminal amino acids, including the simple hexamer PMEVWT, restores partial activity to several of the mutants. Analysis of several mutants suggests a requirement for the hydrophobic reside at the -2-position but not an absolute requirement for the hydroxyl side chain of threonine at the C terminus. The inability of peptides amidated at their C termini to effect restoration of activity indicates the involvement of the C-terminal alpha carboxyl group in functional activity of these enzymes. The ability of peptides to restore activity to PLD enzymes mutated at the C terminus suggests a flexible interaction of this portion of the molecule with a catalytic core constructed on conserved HKD motifs. Participation of these C termini residues in either stabilization of the catalytic site or the enzymatic reaction itself remains to be determined. This requirement for the C terminus provides an excellent potential site for interaction with regulatory proteins that may either enhance or down-regulate the activity of these enzymes in vitro.
True scattering coefficients of turbid matter measured by early-time gating

The true scattering coefficients of turbid matter have been determined by use of picosecond time-resolved imaging. The scattering coefficients measured by the conventional cw collimation method were found to be smaller than those obtained from the early-time-sliced ballistic photons.
The Characteristics of Bronchial Clearance in Humans and the Effects of Cigarette Smoking

The clearance of radioactive monodisperse ferric oxide aerosols ranging in diameter from 0.8μ to 7.9μ was studied in a total of 117 experiments on 36 subjects. In most normal subjects there were two discrete periods of bronchial clearance, with the first usually completed within one to two hours, and the second within four to ten hours after inhalation. The fraction cleared in each phase was strongly dependent on the size of the inhaled particles, with more first phase clearance for larger particles. The rates of bronchial clearance were expressed in terms of the time required for completion of 50% to 90% bronchial clearance. On the basis of the limited data thus far accumulated, bronchial clearance was impaired in eight out of fourteen cigarette smokers, three out of three former uranium miners, and two out of two emphysema cases.
Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) is expressed in activated rat skeletal muscle satellite cells

Skeletal muscle satellite cells from uninjured muscle of adult animals are generally found to be in a quiescent state, and when cultured, they remain quiescent in vitro for a period of time which is directly related to the age of the donor animal. A technique for studying the activation of satellite cells in primary cultures has been developed and employs proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) as a marker for entrance into the S phase of the cell cycle. PCNA is a protein involved in DNA replication and is maximally expressed in S phase of the cell cycle. We monitored PCNA expression in satellite cells isolated from young (3 week) and adult (9 month) rats, and our results indicate that satellite cells begin to accumulate PCNA prior to changes in cell number in both age groups. Using ELISA techniques, we demonstrated that addition of an extract of crushed muscle (CME) activated satellite cells and significantly reduced the length of the lag phase in cells from both age groups. Addition of bFGF shortened the lag phase of PCNA synthesis in satellite cells from 3-week-old rats but had no effect on the kinetics of PCNA expression in cells from 9-month-old rats. Based on our experiments, PCNA expression can be used as a marker to follow the entry of satellite cells into the cell cycle in primary mass cultures.
Probing Melittin Helix−Coil Equilibria in Solutions and Vesicles

Melittin is a toxic, amphipathic peptide that rearranges from a random coil in solution to a helical structure upon binding to cell membranes or lipid vesicles. We have found that mutation of the valine at position five of the peptide to a phenylalanine or 3-nitrotyrosine induces aggregation and helix formation at low concentrations (20−80 μM). Donor−acceptor distances obtained from analyses of fluorescence energy transfer kinetics experiments with the 3-nitrotyrosine mutant indicate that both coil and helix structures are present in 2 and 20 μM aqueous solutions. The helical peptide population increases upon addition of phospholipid vesicles or in high ionic strength solutions.
The synthesis of pyridine derivatives possessing possible emetic and rodenticidal activity.

Since the methoxy group is present in emetine, in a patented emetic, and in several nauseant benzene derivatives it is possible that this group may be responsible for the emetic action of these compounds. In this report the syntheses of several methoxy derivatives of pyridine are described.
Normal Vibrations of Crystalline Polyglycine I

Synopsis A valence force field has been refined for crystalline polyglycine I using its known antiparallel chain pleated-sheet structure and without replacing the CH, group by a point mass. Polyglycine I and four of its isotopic derivatives were used in the refinement. The calculated frequencies are in good agreement with the observed, except for the amide I modes. It is shown that this is a consequence of the fact that no reasonable force field predicts a large Dlo term of the Miyazawa perturbation treatment. The amide I splittings can, however, be satisfactorily accounted for by introducing a direct interaction force constant between adjacent C=O groups in neighboring chains. This can reasonably arise from transition dipole coupling and corresponds to the heretofore neglected DII term.
A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Parent Training and Emotion Socialization Program for Families of Hyperactive Preschool-Aged Children

The present study evaluated the effectiveness of a parent training and emotion socialization program designed specifically for hyperactive preschoolers. Participants were 31 preschool-aged children whose parents were randomly assigned to a parent training (PT) or waitlist (WL) control group. PT parents took part in a 14-week parenting program that involved teaching parenting strategies for managing hyperactive and disruptive behavior as well as emotion socialization strategies for improving children's emotion regulation. Compared to WL mothers, PT mothers reported significantly less child inattention, hyperactivity, oppositional defiance, and emotional lability; were observed using significantly more positive and less negative parenting; and reported significantly less maternal verbosity and unsupportive emotion socialization practices. Results provide some support for the effectiveness of this parenting program for reducing attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms and associated problems in preschool-aged children.
Mating by the Fall Armyworm (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae): Frequency, Duration, and Effect of Temperature

Mating by the fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith), was studied in the laboratory. With the night cycle beginning at 2100 hours, 73–84% of the matings occurred between 2200 and 0300 hours. However, mating pairs were observed throughout the night. Most matings (80%) lasted longer than 45 min. Mean duration of mating averaged 130 min. Based on the number of spermatophores in the bursa copulatrix of mated females, female moths mated a mean of 3.7 times (range, 0–11) during their life span. Males mated a mean of 6.7 times (range, 0–15) during their life span. Matings by males were most frequent during the first three nights after their emergence. Although males mated throughout most of their adult life, the incidence of mating declined as the moths aged. The number of matings peaked at 25 and 30°C, with little mating at 10 or 15°C.
Ground source heat pump pipe performance with Tire Derived Aggregate

Abstract One of the most recently developed ground source heat pump (GSHP) models which accounts for real-time, comprehensive surface energy balance phenomena, was modified in this paper to obtain the solution for a non-homogeneous domain. Alternating direction implicit and fully explicit finite difference methods were utilized and numerical results were compared to field measurements. The developed model was then used to evaluate effectiveness of an intermediate insulation layer obtained from tire recycling, Tire Derived Aggregate (TDA). Employment of TDA is demonstrated to be beneficial for increasing energy extraction rates from the ground to maximum values of about 17% for cold climates, and about 5–6% for moderate climate conditions. Existence of an optimum configuration for the TDA blanket, which maximizes the energy gain, also was detected. Potential energy saving for GSHP operation on an annual basis, with the introduction of the TDA blanket was demonstrated as practical. Validation of these findings with field data of longer duration are necessary and currently being planned.
Screw versus cemented implant supported restorations

Implant supported restorations can be attached to implants with screws or can be cemented to abutments which are secured to implants with screws. Screw retained implant restorations are the authors' preferred method of securing restorations to implants. This article will be written from this perspective and the advantages and disadvantages of each method of retention will be discussed under the following headings: Aesthetics, Retrievability, Retention, Implant placement, Passivity, Provisionals, Occlusion, Immediate loading, Impression procedures, Long term treatment planning.
Selected elements in major minerals from bituminous coal as determined by INAA: Implications for removing environmentally sensitive elements from coal

Abstract The four most abundant minerals generally found in Euramerican bituminous coals are quartz, kaolinite, illite and pyrite. These four minerals were isolated by density separation and handpicking from bituminous coal samples collected in the Ruhr Basin, Germany and the Appalachian basin, U.S.A. Trace-element concentrations of relatively pure (∼ 99+%) separates of major minerals from these coals were determined directly by using instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). As expected, quartz contributes little to the trace-element mass balance. Illite generally has higher trace-element concentrations than kaolinite, but, for the concentrates analyzed in this study, Hf, Ta, W, Th and U are in lower concentrations in illite than in kaolinite. Pyrite has higher concentrations of chalcophile elements (e.g., As and Se) and is considerably lower in lithophile elements as compared to kaolinite and illite. Our study provides a direct and sensitive method of determining trace-element relationships with minerals in coal. Mass-balance calculations suggest that the trace-element content of coal can be explained mainly by three major minerals: pyrite, kaolinite and illite. This conclusion indicates that the size and textural relationships of these major coal minerals may be a more important consideration as to whether coal cleaning can effectively remove the most environmentally sensitive trace elements in coal than what trace minerals are present.
Structural change and market power in the U.S. food manufacturing sector.

ABSTRACTThis study develops an intertemporally linked market model to explore the relationshipsbetween price-cost margins, market concentration, and advertising outlay. The study useddata from 48 four-digit SIC (standardized industrial classiﬁcation) codes for the Food andTobacco Processing Industries during the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. The authors’ ﬁndingsprovide evidence that both high and low levels of performance provide signals to industries toconsolidate, but for obvious and different reasons. Further, increased consolidation leads toincreased entry barriers (advertising) and higher proﬁts to the industry. Our ﬁndings aresupportive of both Chicago and Traditionalist Schools of thought about antitrustenforcement: Neither emerges in a dominant position. Endogeneity issues and ﬁndings withinthe intertemporal structure cast considerable doubt about overly simplistic structure–perfor-mance paradigms of ﬁrm behavior. [JEL Code: L11, L40, L66]. r 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. 1. INTRODUCTIONOver 60 years ago, the paradigm known as Structure–Conduct–Performance (SCP)was forwarded by Bain (1951) as a formal model to explain the behavior of ﬁrms inan industry. Associated with the Harvard Tradition, this new approach came toreplace the old case-study approach. The primary distinction of SCP from casestudies was in the way researchers looked at data. The SCP approach relied on cross-sections of industry data, insisting that industries are shaped by some basicconditions: demand elasticities, product durability, and technology, which determinethe market structure: number and size of ﬁrms, entry conditions, productdifferentiation, and vertical integration, which lead to conduct: pricing, advertisingand R&D strategies, which, in turn, determine market performance: efﬁciency,equity, and technological change.High rank correlations across industries in different developed countries suggestedthat tastes and technology, which are likely to be constant across regions, determinethe equilibrium structure. Researchers in the 1950s through the 1970s producednumerous marquee articles that regressed price-cost margins (PCMs) with variablessuch as industry concentration, minimum efﬁcient scale (MES), capital intensity,R&D, and quadratic- (inverted U-) shaped effects from advertising to sales ratios(see Collins & Preston, 1969 and Kwoka, 1979 for excellent reviews of the literature
Some negatively charged phospholipid derivatives prolong the liposome circulation in vivo.

Abstract A series of negatively charged phospholipid derivatives has been synthesized by coupling aliphatic dicar☐ylic acids, HOOC(CH 2 ) n COOH, to diolcoylphosphatidylethanolamine (DOPE). The individual derivatives were incorporated into egg phosphatidylcholine/cholesterol liposomes (2:1, molar ratio) and injected into mice to test its effect on liposome circulation in vivo. The effectiveness of DOPE derivatives was dependent on the hydrocarbon chain length between the terminal car☐yl group and the amide bond. N -Glutaryl DOPE and N -adipyl DOPE were effective in prolonging the circulation time of liposomes. On the other hand, liposome uptake by the liver and spleen was increased by the addition of N -malonyi DOPE or N -succinyl DOPE, while it was not changed by the addition of N -pimelyl DOPE and N -suberyl DOPE. Our observation suggested that not all negatively charged phospholipids enhance liposome uptake by RES, some even reduce the uptake.
Evaluation of essential genes in correlation networks using measures of centrality

Correlation networks are emerging as powerful tools for modeling relationships in high-throughput data such as gene expression. Other types of biological networks, such as protein-protein interaction networks, are popular targets of study in network theory, and previous analysis has revealed that network structures identified using graph theoretic techniques often relate to certain biological functions. Structures such as highly connected nodes and groups of nodes have been found to correspond to essential genes and protein complexes, respectively. The correlation network, which measures the level of co-variation of gene expression levels, shares some structural properties with other types of biological networks. We created several correlation networks using publicly available gene expression data, and identified critical groups of nodes using graph theoretic properties used previously in other biological network studies. We found that some measures of network centrality can reveal genes of impact such as essential genes, suggesting that the correlation network can prove to be a powerful tool for modeling gene expression data. In addition, our method highlights the biological impact of nodes a set of high centrality nodes identified by combined measures of centrality to validate the link between structure and function in the notoriously noisy correlation network.
Heat Transport and Temperature Distribution in PEFCs

For detailed understanding of water and thermal management and degradation mechanisms, knowledge of the internal temperature distribution in a polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) is critical. Internal electrolyte temperature measurements as a function of current density and cathode inlet humidity were obtained using a specialized, 50cm2 fuel cell with micro-thermocouples embedded in the thin-film electrolyte at various locations. A simplified model of heat transport in the fuel cell materials was used to estimate the thermal conductivity in the gas diffusion layer media and polymer electrolyte membrane. At the same current and location in the fuel cell, steady state electrolyte temperature generally decreased with increasing humidity, a result of decreased internal resistance and/or latent heat effects. The diffusion media used had an estimated thermal conductivity 0.13–0.19 W/mK. The polymer electrolyte used (Nafion®) was estimated to have a thermal conductivity of 0.025–0.25 W/mK. The thermal conductivity and thickness of the diffusion media limits heat transfer, and opportunity exists for tailoring temperature profile in the PEFC through the diffusion layers.Copyright © 2004 by ASME
Synthesis of [1-3H]morphine-6-β-D-glucuronide

Tritiated morphine of high specific activity was protected at the 3-position by acetylation and subjected to glucuronidation by Koenigs-Knorr procedure with methyl 2,3,4-tri-0-acetyl-1-bromo-1-deoxy-D-glucopyranuronate and silver carbonate. Fully protected morphine-6-glucuronide was obtained in 42% yield and 95% radiochemical purity as determined by TLC-RAM. Alkali catalyzed solvolysis in two steps furnished [1-3H]morphine-6-β-D-glucuronide in 23% overall radiochemical yield and 99% radio-chemical purity determined by HPLC-liquid scintillation counting and TLC-RAM. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Beitrag zur Untersuchung der Portlandzementklinker. Über die hypothetische Verbindung 8 CaO.Al2O3.2SiO2

Es ist gezeigt worden, das die hypothetische Verbindung 8CaO. Al2O3·2SiO2 von Janecke nicht existiert, sondern in der Tat ein Gemisch von drei Verbindungen ist, in Ubereinstimmung mit unseren fruheren Beobachtungen. Bei gewohnlichen Temperaturen (unter 1404°) ist es ein Gemisch von 3CaO.SiO2, 2CaO.SiO2 und 3CaO.Al2O3. Weder das Gemisch 8 CaO. Al2O9. 2SiO2 noch irgendein in der Nahe liegendes Gemisch zeigt eine Phase, die von den erwahnten, in unserer Arbeit uber das ternare System Kalk—Tonerde—Kieselsaure bschriebenen abweicht.
Ethics and nanotechnology

The projected impact of nanotechnology has been touted as a second industrial revolution -- not the third, fourth, or fifth-- because despite similar predictions for technologies such as computers and robotics, nothing has yet eclipsed the first. Society is undergoing a revolution that will transform the ways in which materials and products are created. How will this revolution develop? The opportunities that will open in the future will depend significantly upon the ways in which a number of challenges are met. As we design systems on a nanoscale, we develop the capability to redesign the structure of all materials--natural and synthetic--along with rethinking the new possibilities of the reconstruction of any and all materials. Such changes in our design power introduce tremendous social and ethical questions. To enable our future leadership to make decisions for sustainable and economic nanotechnological development, it is imperative that we educate all nanotechnology stakeholders about the short-term and long-term benefits, limitations, and risks of nanotechnology. The ethical and social implications of nanotechnology encompass many key areas associated with development, such as privacy, security, the environment, and food and agriculture. This paper presents an overview of new and emerging nanotechnologies and applications and their ethical and social implications in addressing 21st century challenges and issues. The discussion addresses a range of different types of nanotechnologies and their potential risks and benefits for society. The paper also highlights the teaching methodologies and approaches used to teach Science, Technology, and Society (STS) courses, such as the one at DeVry University.
Electrophysiologic changes associated with potassium depletion of frog skin

Skins from the frogRana pipiens pipiens were studied under short-circuited conditions during the course of removing and replacing potassium in the inner bathing media in 14 experiments. The intracellular potential (V SC), fractional resistance (FR), short-circuit current (I SC) and total tissue conductance (g T) were constantly monitored during impalements of the epithelial cells. The mean value (±se) forV SC was −79 (±3) mV under baseline conditions. Removal of potassium from the inner bathing solution transiently stimulated the short-circuit current and hyperpolarized the basolateral membrane; with sufficiently long incubations, the basolateral membrane was eventually depolarized. Restoration of potassium to the inner solution within 43 min after initiating the perfusion with K+-free solution depolarized the basolateral membrane. However, restoration of potassium after at least 11/2 hr of incubation hyperpolarized the membrane. Ouabain consistently depolarized the basolateral membrane, even after extended periods of potassium depletion as long as 320 min. In the presence of ouabain, restoration of potassium depolarized the basolateral membrane. The data provide further evidence for the concept that the Na−K exchange pump of frog skin is rheogenic. Furthermore, the results suggest that the pump continues to be active even during prolonged periods of potassium depletion, reaccumulating potassium which has leaked out of the epithelial cells.
How to keep cool in tough times

Reengineering is no longer an event that has a beginning and an end. It is an ongoing process of change that continues to occur in all types of businesses. Because there is no longer the sense of security that doing a job well will guarantee continued employment, workers have to approach career planning from a different perspective. Moving up the career ladder in a single organization can no longer serve as the benchmark of success. The contemporary approach to success will be more geared toward the ability to constantly reinvent your unique set of job skills that are transferable from one job setting to another, thus ensuring employability.
Is pair programming more effective than other forms of collaboration for young students

This study investigates differences between collaboration methods in two summer enrichment classes for students entering the sixth grade. In one treatment, students used pair programming. In the other treatment, students engaged in frequent collaboration, but worked ontheir own computer. Students in the two treatments did not differ significantly in their performance on daily quizzes or responses to attitudinal survey questions. However, the students who worked on their own computer completed exercises more quickly than those using pair programming. This study compares two learning environments with high levels of collaboration to isolate aspects of pair programming that are and are not responsible for the reported success of educational research focused on pair programming. This study expands our understanding of pair programming by moving beyond simplistic comparisons of learning environments with and without collaboration and by extending pair programming research to elementary school students.
Information theory: A signal take on speech.

Approaches that abandon traditional speech categories offer promise for developing statistical descriptions that encapsulate how speech conveys information. Grandparents would be among the beneficiaries.
The Sentence Completion and Three Wishes tasks: windows into the inner lives of people with intellectual disabilities.

Background Measuring the self-perceptions, thoughts, hopes and inner lives of persons with intellectual disabilities (ID) has long been a research challenge. Unlike objective or projective tests, semi-projective tasks may provide persons with ID with just enough structure or cues to convey their self-perceptions in a spontaneous and unbiased manner. Methods Sentence Completion and Three Wishes tasks were individually administered to 128 persons with ID aged 5–50 years (mean = 18.75 years). Participants had Prader–Willi, Williams or Down syndromes. Content analyses resulted in 19 codes that were used to reliably score both tasks by independent raters who achieved excellent levels of inter-rater agreement. Participants also received IQ testing, and their parents or care providers completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Results Frequent themes across both tasks included activities, positive affect, desired objects, and relationships with family and pets. No gender or IQ effects were found, and just a few codes showed modest age effects. Several responses, including dating, friends, food, and positive or negative self-appraisals, were significantly related to either syndrome status or CBCL maladaptive behaviour. Conclusions Although not widely used, the Sentence Completion and Three Wishes tasks are useful semi-projective techniques for garnering otherwise hard-to-access self-perceptions and associations of people with ID. Implications are discussed for practice and research.
The Inevitable Hour: A History of Caring for Dying Patients in America. By Emily K. Abel. (Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2013. Pp. viii, 226. $32.95.)

Through her in‐depth analyses of hundreds of letters, articles, and books from the mid‐eighteenth century to 1965 in the United States, the author of this book provides a very sobering and enlighte...
Flatpea crossing methods and germplasm screening for reduced 2,4-diaminobutyric acid composition

Flatpea (Lathyrus sylvestris L.) is a potentially valuable forage legume, but it contains high levels of 2,4-diaminobutyric acid (A2bu), a compound that can have adverse effects on some animals, including rats and poultry. This study evaluated intercrossed pollination methodology needed for cultivar improvement and characterized intercrossed progeny for A2bu concentration. Pollen germination on an artificial medium, using pollen collected during different stages of flower development, was used to identify appropriate stages for flower emasculation. Pollen dehiscence occurred at an early-bud stage when petal color was first evident. Slightly more mature buds contained pollen with substantially higher in vitro germination than pollen from early-bud stage flowers. Lines that produced high numbers of seeds per pollination were identified from crosses between flatpea accessions. Cross-pollination resulted in significantly higher seed set than selfing. Pollination using caged honeybees was the most efficient method of hybridization, although the degree of inbreeding in bee-pollinated plants could not be determined. Intercrossed progeny produced by honeybee pollination contained a lower mean concentration of foliar A2bu than the mean for flatpea accessions.
Gender Inequality in Political Representation: A Worldwide Comparative Analysis

We examine the determinants of cross-national variation in the share ofparliamentary seats held by women in 1998. Thefindings ofprior research on this issue have differed sharply. Studiesfocusing on the most affluent longstanding democracies have emphasized the importance of political factors, whereas three of the four studies to include less developed nationsfound that only socioeconomic and/or culturalfactors matter. Our analysis uses improved variable measures, a more complete set of variables, and a larger sample of countries than has heretofore been examined. We find that political, socioeconomic, and culturalfactors are each important. Specifically, electoral system structure, leftparty government, the timing of women's suffrage; the share of women in professional occupations, and cultural attitudes toward the role of women in politics each play a role in accountingfor variation in the degree ofgender inequality in political representation around the world.
Efficient SCOP-fold classification and retrieval using index-based protein substructure alignments

Motivation: To investigate structure–function relationships, life sciences researchers usually retrieve and classify proteins with similar substructures into the same fold. A manually constructed database, SCOP, is believed to be highly accurate; however, it is labor intensive. Another known method, DALI, is also precise but computationally expensive. We have developed an efficient algorithm, namely, index-based protein substructure alignment (IPSA), for protein-fold classification. IPSA constructs a two-layer indexing tree to quickly retrieve similar substructures in proteins and suggests possible folds by aligning these substructures. Results: Compared with known algorithms, such as DALI, CE, MultiProt and MAMMOTH, on a sample dataset of non-redundant proteins from SCOP v1.73, IPSA exhibits an efficiency improvement of 53.10, 16.87, 3.60 and 1.64 times speedup, respectively. Evaluated on three different datasets of non-redundant proteins from SCOP, average accuracy of IPSA is approximately equal to DALI and better than CE, MAMMOTH, MultiProt and SSM. With reliable accuracy and efficiency, this work will benefit the study of high-throughput protein structure–function relationships. Availability: IPSA is publicly accessible at http://ProteinDBS.rnet.missouri.edu/IPSA.php Contact: ShyuC@missouri.edu Supplementary information:Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
The punishment of War criminals: The Nuremberg Trial: (First part)

It was understood from the outset that the trials would be limited, in accordance with the Moscow Declaration, to a number of the highest-ranking Nazi leaders and their principal accomplices. It was proposed by the United States in the draft of April 30, 1945, presented to the Foreign Ministers of France, Great Britain and the Soviet Union, that the trial comprise also “the principal Nazi organizations and their members, through whom the most bestial of the Nazi cruelties have been put into effect”. According to this draft, the defense of superior orders shall not absolve the accused from responsibility but may be considered, if justice so requires, in mitigation of punishment. Nor shall an accused be able to escape the trial on the ground that he was the head or principal officer of a state. Offenses against the armies of the United Nations would be punished by the appropriate national tribunals. Perpetrators of atrocities in territories occupied by Germany during the war as well as traitors such as Quisling, Laval, “Lord Haw-Haw”, would be dealt with in a similar manner.
Kinetics and mechanism of acid hydrolysis of ethylenebisbiguanidenickel(II) ion

Abstract The rate of decomposition of the square-planar low-spin ethylenebisguanidenickel(II) complex ion in acidic aqueous solution has been measured at 25, 40 and 55°C over a range of pH values. The observed rate law is −d [complex]/d t = k 2 [complex][H + ] + k 3 [complex][H + ] 2 which agrees with a proposed mechanism involving a unimolecular dissociation of the ligand from the nickel(II) ion and a protonation equilibrium. At 25°, k 2 = 0·0270 ± 0·0085M − sec 2− and k 2 = 128 ± 5·3 2− sec −1 . For K 2 , ΔH 2 ‡ = 1·27 ± 0·2kcal and ΔS 2 ‡ = −11·5 ± 0·7 e.u. For k 2 ,ΔH 2 ‡ = 2·57 ± 0·4kcal andΔS 3 ‡ = −4·9 ± 1·3 e.u.
Pathology-based vertebral image retrieval

Searching for vertebrae in a large collection of spine X-ray images that are relevant to pathology is potentially important for providing assistance to radiologists and bone morphometrists. Developing appropriate methods for such searching tasks is very challenging due to the high similarities among vertebral shapes in contrast to the subtle dissimilarities that characterize the pathology. In this paper, we target two aspects of this problem: first, we develop mathematical features that can effectively represent the biomedical characteristics of interest; second, we exploit similarity learning to enhance and try to optimize the retrieval performance. We evaluate our proposed method on an expert-annotated dataset of 856 vertebrae and demonstrate its retrieval performance by precision-recall and average-precision graphs. We also demonstrate how we have integrated our method into our Web-accessible spine X-ray image retrieval system.
Androgen Deprivation in Prostate Cancer Patients Treated with Brachytherapy

This article is addressing the role of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in prostate brachytherapy. No randomized trials to date evaluating the efficacy of hormonal therapy combined with brachytherapy. Many retrospective trials assessed the role of neoadjuvant androgen deprivation and interstitial permanent prostate brachytherapy in an effort to shrink the prostate gland and to facilitate the brachytherapy procedure in patients with large glands. Hormone ablation has been reported to downsize the prostate gland by 25-40%. Findings in regards to urinary toxicity, mainly urinary retention, related to shrinkage of the prostate are contradictory. Hormonal therapy in combination with brachytherapy is also used for patients with intermediate and high risk features as a result of extrapolation from the external beam radiation therapy data, as brachytherapy alone seems to be suboptimal treatment for men with high-risk prostate cancer. The effect of this combination on biochemical free survival is a matter of debate and varies from one study to another. Until prospective, randomized studies are done, the role of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in conjunction with brachytherapy, specifically in relation to improvement in outcome, remains unclear.
Carbohydrate‐Specific Antibodies in Normal Human Sera

A glucose-dependent hemagglutinin, present in the serum of an apparently healthy donor, is shown to be a polyclonal IgM immunoglobulin with specificity for beta-D-glucopyranose configuration. The antibody did not agglutinate erythrocytes coated with hexoses differing from glucose at C2, C3, or C4 positions or lacking the primary alcohol group at C6 position. The hemagglutination reaction, quantitated in a continuous flow system, was inhibited by the addition of 6-deoxyglucose, 5-thioglucose, 2-deoxyglucose, 2-aminoglucose or 3-0 methylglucose. D-glucose, in beta- but not in alpha-configuration, attached by a glycosidic bond to another glucose or to an aglycone, was also inhibitory. A cross-reactivity was demonstrated between glucose and 6-deoxyglucose by antibody absorption and elution techniques. The donor's serum contained independent antibodies that reacted with erythrocytes coated with melibiose, gentiobiose, cellobiose, or N-acetylmannosamine. Further investigation revealed that antibodies are present in sera of all normal adults against erythrocytes coated with melibiose and N-acetylmannosamine and with high frequency against erythrocytes coated with gentiobiose, L-rhamnose, cellobiose, D-mannose, lactose, or D-galactose.
Obscure Severe Infrarenal Aortoiliac Stenosis With Severe Transient Lactic Acidosis

A 57-year-old man presented with sudden onset of leg pain, right-sided weakness, aphasia, confusion, drooling, and severe lactic acidosis (15 mmol/L). He had normal peripheral pulses and demonstrated no pain, pallor, poikilothermia, paresthesia, or paralysis. Empiric antibiotics, aspirin, full-dose enoxaparin, and intravenous fluid were initiated. Lactic acid level decreased to 2.5 mmol/L. The patient was subsequently extubated and was alert and oriented with no complaints of leg or abdominal pain. Unexpectedly, the patient developed cardiac arrest, rebound severe lactic acidosis (8.13 mmol/L), and signs of acute limb ischemia. Emergent computed tomography of the aorta confirmed infrarenal aortoiliac thrombosis. Transient leg pain and transient severe lactic acidosis can be unusual presentations of severe infrarenal aortoiliac stenosis. When in doubt, vascular studies should be implemented without delay to identify this catastrophic diagnosis.
Adaptive Tuboid Shapes for Action Recognition

Encoding local motion information using spatio-temporal features is a common approach in action recognition methods. These features are based on the information content inside subregions extracted at locations of interest in a video. In this paper, we propose a conceptually different approach to video feature extraction. We adopt an entropy-based saliency framework and develop a method for estimating tube-like salient regions of flexible shape (i.e., tuboids). We suggest that the local shape of spatio-temporal subregions defined by changes in local information content can be used as a descriptor of the underlying motion. Our main goal in this paper is to introduce the concept of adaptive tuboid shapes as a local spatio-temporal descriptor. Our approach's original idea is to use changes in local spatio-temporal information content to drive the tuboid's shape deformation, and then use the tuboid's shape as a local motion descriptor. Finally, we conduct a set of action recognition experiments on video sequences. Despite the relatively lower classification performance when compared to state-of-the-art action-recognition methods, our results indicate a good potential for the adaptive tuboid descriptor as an additional cue for action recognition algorithms.
Probabilistic Estimation of Whole Body Contacts for Multi-Contact Robot Control

Today most robots interact with the surroundings only with their end-effectors. However there are many benefits to utilizing contact along the entire length of robot body and links especially for human-like robots. Existing control strategies for link contact require knowledge of the contact point. In an uncertain environment, locating link contact point is difficult for most robots as they do not possess skin capable of sensing. We propose a probabilistic approach to link contact estimation based on geometric considerations and compliant motions. Since for many robots, link geometry is also uncertain, we broaden our approach to simultaneously estimate link shape and environment contact. Our experimental results demonstrate that efficiency of control is significantly improved by link contact estimation
The effect of bevacizumab (Avastin) treatment on epistaxis in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia.

Objectives/hypothesis Determine the effectiveness of treating epistaxis in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) with potassium titanyl phosphate (KTP) laser cautery combined with submucosal injection of 100 mg of bevacizumab. Study design Retrospective pilot study. Methods Bevacizumab was injected throughout the nasal cavity following KTP laser treatment in 10 patients (bevacizumab/KTP group) and compared to nine patients previously treated with KTP laser alone (KTP group). Epistaxis frequency and severity, blood transfusion requirement, intravenous iron supplementation, emergency department visit frequency, and quality of life within 1 month and 1 year pre- and postsurgery were analyzed. Benefit was defined as less than three nosebleeds per week, with less than 10 minutes to stop each nosebleed, and no blood transfusions. The pre- and postsurgery data were analyzed within and between the two groups. Results The groups were comparable in age and gender. Significant benefit was found in frequency of epistaxis (P Conclusions KTP laser combined with bevacizumab in HHT epistaxis is superior to KTP laser treatment alone. It significantly decreases frequency and severity of nosebleeds and blood transfusion requirements, and significantly improves work ability and quality of life.
Random surface error effects on offset cylindrical reflector antennas

The focus of this paper is to characterize the average power pattern of an offset cylindrical parabolic reflector antenna subject to random surface errors. A novel computational method is developed for studying the random surface error effects on the boresight gain loss and the sidelobe levels of the average power pattern. The particular antenna dimensions used for this study are similar to the specifications for the second generation precipitation radar (PR-2) mission. In keeping with the requirements in the PR-2 mission, both the Ku and Ka frequency bands are considered. Random surface error effects are also studied for different edge taper levels. In addition to analysis of a reflector with uniform random surface errors, a nonuniform surface error case is presented in this study. This is an important consideration for evaluating the suitability of large deployable membrane reflector antennas for the PR-2 mission.
A low-energy chip-set for wireless intercom

A low power wireless intercom system is designed and implemented. Two fully-operational ASICs, integrating custom and commercial IP, implement the entire digital portion of the protocol stack. Combined, the chips consume 13 mW on average when three nodes are connected to the network. A high-level design methodology was used to define the protocol stack and communication algorithms, select architectures, and minimize energy.