cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Individual variation in sleep and motor activity in rats

We examined individual differences in sleep and motor activity across two consecutive days in rats. EEG and motor activity were recorded via telemetry in Wistar rats (n=29) for 48 h under well-habituated conditions. Rats were grouped based on sleep amounts and stability across days (short [SS, n=7], intermediate [IS, n=15] and long [LS, n=7] sleep) and comparisons were conducted to determine group differences for measures of sleep and motor activity. We found that correlations across recording days were significant for all selected sleep measures and motor activity counts. Rankings for 24 h total sleep time and non-rapid eye movement sleep (NREM) were SS < IS < LS rats whereas amounts of rapid eye movement sleep did not differ among groups. Further analyses of NREM episode parameters found significant differences in mean episode length (SS < IS < LS) but not in the number of episodes. Total and average motor activity counts (per waking min) were greater (32-38%) in SS compared to LS rats on both recording days. The results indicate that individual differences in sleep and motor activity in Wistar rats are stable across days. Differences between SS and LS rats have parallels to those reported for short and long sleep humans.
Natural laws and the problem of provisos

Hempel and Giere contend that the existence of provisos poses grave difficulties for any regularity account of physical law. However, Hempel and Giere rely upon a mistaken conception of the way in which statements acquire their content. By correcting this mistake, I remove the problem Hempel and Giere identify but reveal a different problem that provisos pose for a regularity account — indeed, for any account of physical law according to which the state of affairs described by a law-statement presupposes a Humean regularity. These considerations suggest a normative analysis of law-statements. On this view, law-statements are not distinguished from accidental generalizations by the kind of Humean regularities they describe because a law-statement need not describe any Humean regularity. Rather, a law-statement says that in certain contexts, one ought to regard the assertion of a given type of claim, if made with justification, as a proper way to justify a claim of a certain other kind.
Working Styles on Computers as Evidence of Second Language Learning Strategies

Data collected on 33 ESL students working with computerized spelling and dictation lessons were used to infer three learning strategies: advance preparation, monitoring input, and monitoring output. Subjects' cognitive styles were measured by the Group Embedded Figures Test (Witkin, Oltman, Raskin, and Karp 1971) for field independence and the Matching Familiar Figures Test (Yando and Kagan 1968) for reflection/impulsivity. English proficiency was measured by the TOEFL. An analysis of amount of strategy use in a variety of situations revealed that all strategies were employed more frequently for the more complex dictation task than for the simple spelling task, and that only one strategy (monitoring input) was used more frequently by the low-level students. Examining the correlates of strategy use indicated that advance preparation and monitoring output were significantly related to field independence, that advance preparation was significantly related to reflection/impulsivity, and that advance preparation and monitoring input were significant, negative predictors of performance on the TOEFL. This research concludes that learning strategies need to be considered in concert with cognitive style, and that computer collection of strategy data is a reliable method for examining strategies on different activities over a long period of time.
Some legal decisions significant for ophthalmology

The court decisions included in this article reflect judicial attitudes towards medicolegal cases in most states. The courts have defined and amplified issues of informed consent, the physician's duty to warn patients and protect third parties, the limitations of the "Good Samaritan" statute, the responsibility of the physician to prepare insurance reports, and the denial of coverage by third party payers. Several cases regarding these issues are reviewed and their implications for ophthalmologists are discussed.
T-cell mimicry of streptococcal M protein and cardiac myosin epitopes by T-cell clones from rheumatic heart disease

Abstract Mimicry between streptococcal M protein and cardiac myosin is important in the pathogenesis of rheumatic heart disease. M protein specific human T-cell clones derived from rheumatic carditis were crossreactive with human cardiac myosin, and laminin, a valve protein. Among the 11 CD4+ and CD8+ crossreactive T-cell clones, at least six different reactivity patterns were distinguished, suggesting different degrees of crossreactivity and a very diverse T-cell repertoire. The latter was confirmed by a heterogeneous Vβ-gene and CDR3 usage. The HLA-restriction and Th1 cytokine production in response to rM6 protein was preserved when the T-cell clones were stimulated by human cardiac myosin or other α-helical proteins, such as tropomyosin and laminin. The crossreactive human T-cell clones proliferated to B2 and B3A, dominant peptide epitopes in the B-repeat region of streptococcal M protein. In human cardiac myosin, epitopes were demonstrated in the S2 and light meromyosin (LMM) regions. The study of human T-cell clones from rheumatic heart disease revealed potential sites of T-cell mimicry between streptococcal M protein and human cardiac myosin and represents some of the most well-defined T-cell mimicry in human autoimmune disease.
Statistical inference in quantum mechanics

Statistical inference is discussed in the context of a C∗-algebra. No restrictions are placed on the a priori state and the partial measurement state is required to satisfy an absolute continuity condition. This permits the treatment of unbounded “Radon-Nikodym” derivatives within the theory. Relations between statistical inference, conditioning and entropy are presented. Finally, a discussion of the measuring process is given.
Carrier Recovery Enhancement for Maximum-Likelihood Doppler Shift Estimation in Mars Exploration Missions

One of the most crucial stages of the Mars exploration missions is the entry, descent, and landing (EDL) phase. During EDL, maintaining reliable communication from the spacecraft to Earth is extremely important for the success of future missions, especially in case of mission failure. EDL is characterized by very deep accelerations, caused by friction, parachute deployment and rocket firing among others. These dynamics cause a severe Doppler shift on the carrier communications link to Earth. Methods have been proposed to estimate the Doppler shift based on Maximum Likelihood. So far these methods have proved successful, but it is expected that the next Mars mission, known as the Mars Science Laboratory, will suffer from higher dynamics and lower SNR. Thus, improving the existing estimation methods becomes a necessity. We propose a Maximum Likelihood approach that takes into account the power in the data tones to enhance carrier recovery, and improve the estimation performance by up to 3 dB. Simulations are performed using real data obtained during the EDL stage of the Mars Exploration Rover B (MERB) mission.
Hormonal alterations and osteoporotic syndromes

Hormonal control of skeletal growth, modeling, and remodeling is characterized by a complex interaction between the calciotropic hormones (25-hydroxycholecalciferol, 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol, parathyroid hormone, and calcitonin), growth, and thyroid hormones in addition to the estrogenic and androgenic gonadal hormones. Although both growth and thyroid hormones are essential skeletal growth and modeling and also can produce detrimental skeletal effects in adults when circulating in excess concentrations, these hormones assume a minor role in the day-to-day bone remodeling of the mature skeleton. Following the attainment of the peak bone mass, bone mineral content begins to decline in the fourth and fifth decades of life, accelerating in females in the first 5-7 years after the menopause as a result of estrogen deficiency. Associated with this age-dependent loss in skeletal mass are decreases in calcitonin reserve primarily in the 5-7 years following the menopause, decreases in circulating 25-hydroxycholecalciferol, intestinal resistance to 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol, and a gradual progressive rise in blood parathyroid hormone. These changes in calciotropic hormone profiles, together with poor nutritional habits, anticonvulsant, glucocorticoid, and thyroid medications, diseases such as type I diabetes, immobilization, or decreased physical activity all serve to weaken the aging skeleton. The result is a gradual and subtle change in skeletal anatomy, which progresses to alterations in vertebral structure, such as kyphosis, scoliosis, and pseudospondylolisthesis, and a variety of sciatic and nerve entrapment syndromes. Vertebral, forearm, and hip fractures and edentulism ultimately comprise the syndrome of age-related bone loss, resulting in lifestyle disabilities, extensive morbidity, analgesic drug abuse, hospitalization, and escalating annual health care expenditures.
High Altitude Turbulence, A U-2 Perspective

High altitude aircraft remain an important part of the Department of Defense reconnaissance capability set. These aircraft, which fly above commercial cruise altitudes, frequently encounter a unique type of turbulence including both traditional mechanical turbulence as well as oscillatory fluctuations of temperature and horizontal and vertical wind speeds. This latter type of turbulence is attributed to gravity (or buoyancy) waves. This paper expands on previous studies by comparing simulations of a representative high flying research aircraft to a U-2 with stability derivatives and autopilot provided by the developer. The effects of wave-like behavior on these aircraft are found to produce high aircraft loads at certain frequencies. The results of this paper provide insight unique to this line of research into the performance of actual Air Force assets. The potentially detrimental effects of high altitude turbulence lead to a recommendation to carefully study of the impacts of this environment on any new aircraft design or modification.
Nuclear analysis for the blanket and shield of the KrF laser driven inertial fusion reactor SOMBRERO

The SOMBRERO inertial fusion reactor conceptual design produces 1000 MWe utilizing near symmetric illumination of targets by KrF laser. The blanket design optimization results in achieving an overall tritium breeding ratio of 1.25 and an overall reactor energy multiplication of 1.08. The first wall is expected to have a 5 full power year (FPY) lifetime. The shield surrounding the reactor chamber has been designed to reduce the operational dose rate to an acceptable level and make it possible to perform hands-on maintenance on final optics and the intermediate heat exchanger (IHX) located outside the reactor chamber. The chamber is surrounded by a cylindrical concrete shield with 10 m inner radius and 1.7 m thickness. An outer containment building is used at 55 m from the target. Grazing incidence metallic mirrors are located at 30 m and dielectric coated final focusing mirrors at 50 m from the target. Source neutrons are directed into neutron traps attached to the containment building to enhance the lifetime of the final mirrors.
Better Together? Retail Chain Performance Dynamics in Store Expansion Before and After Mergers

We study …rm performance dynamics in retail growth using a dynamic model of expansion that allow these dynamics to operate through an unobserved serially correlated process that evolves both endogenously and stochastically. The model is estimated with data on convenience- store chain diusion across Japanese prefectures from 1982 to 2012, whereby an actual merger between two chains takes place in 2001. Given the presence of serial correlation and selection biases in observed revenue, we combine recently developed particle …ltering methods for dynamic games with control functions in revenue regressions. The estimated structural model provides us insights about how performance dynamics evolve before and after the merger. Our …ndings suggest that despite major increases to revenue and pro…t growth, the underlying unobserved performance dynamics for the merged entity does not improve following the merger.
Modification Through Modeling and Reinforcement in Leaderless Groups

Summary This study compared the effects of modeling plus reinforcement (MR), reinforcement alone (R), and demand characteristics (D) on individual verbal output in a leaderless group discussion. Seventy-two male and female volunteers from undergraduate psychology courses (mean age 20.7 years) were assigned to three-person groups in the three conditions and participated in two 10 minute discussions. Ss who spoke the least in the first discussion were chosen as target persons (TPs). TPs in the R condition were reinforced for talking and punished for silence. TPs in the MR condition received the same treatment but were also exposed to a leadership modeling film. TPs in the D condition received no reinforcement, but were encouraged to become the group's leader. All conditions showed increases in verbal output, but the MR was superior to both the R (p < .05) and D (p < .01) conditions. The results were interpreted as consistent with Bandura's mediational theory of modeling.
Energy dissipation and the contact-line region of a spreading bridge

A drop on a circular support spontaneously spreads upon contact with a substrate. The motion is driven by a loss of surface energy. The loss of recoverable energy can be expressed alternatively as work done at the liquid–gas interface or dissipation through viscosity and sliding friction. In this paper we require consistency with the energy lost by dissipation in order to infer details of the contact-line region through simulations. Simulations with the boundary integral method are used to compute the flow field of a corresponding experiment where polydimethylsiloxane spreads on a relatively hydrophobic surface. The flow field is used to calculate the energy dissipation, from which slip lengths for local slip and Navier slip boundary conditions are found. Velocities, shear rates and pressures along the interface as well as interface shapes in the microscopic region of the contact line are also reported. Angles, slip length and viscous bending length scale allow a test of the Voinov–Hocking–Cox model without free parameters.
Direct gene transfer into cardiac myocytes in vivo

Abstract Recent studies have demonstrated that cardiac and skeletal myocytes share the ability to take up and stably express plasmid DNA injected directly into myocardium or skeletal muscle in vivo . Although this is a relatively inefficient process, with less than 1% of the myocytes expressing the injected recombinant DNA, expression in these cells is stable for periods of at least 6 months. The majority of the injected DNA is maintained in myocytes as an episome and apparently does not undergo DNA replication. The direct DNA injection approach has been used to map cardiac-specific transcriptional regulatory elements in cellular promoter/enhancers. Expression of recombinant proteins in the heart following direct DNA injection also holds promise for the treatment of a variety of acquired and inherited cardiovascular diseases.
Quality-of-service guarantee in high-speed multimedia wireless networks

The next generation of wireless networks (i.e. high-speed wireless networks) will provide enough resources to support multimedia traffic. In such systems, it is necessary to provide quality-of-service (QOS) guarantees for the multimedia applications. We propose a connection setup algorithm which provides the QOS guarantees for the multimedia traffic. The proposed algorithm provides the QOS guarantees by reserving resources in the surrounding cells. It is shown through extensive simulations that the proposed algorithm provides smaller connection dropping probability than existing algorithms. It is also shown that better bandwidth efficiency is obtained by using the information regarding the user's movement pattern.
Palatal flap modifications allow pedicled reconstruction of the skull base.

Objectives: Defects after endoscopic expanded endonasal approaches (EEA) to the skull base, have exposed limitations of traditional reconstructive techniques. The ability to adequately reconstruct these defects has lagged behind the ability to approach/resect lesions at the skull base. The posteriorly pedicled nasoseptal flap is our primary reconstructive option; however, prior surgery or tumors can preclude its use. We focused on the branches of the internal maxillary artery, to develop novel pedicled flaps, to facilitate the reconstruction of defects encountered after skull base expanded endonasal approaches. Study Design: Feasibility. Methods: We reviewed radiology images with attention to the pterygopalatine fossa and the descending palatine vessels (DPV), which supply the palate. Using cadaver dissections, we investigated the feasibility of transposing the standard mucoperiosteal palatal flap into the nasal cavity and mobilizing the DPV for pedicled skull base reconstruction. Results: We transposed the palate mucoperiosteum into the nasal cavity through limited enlargement of a single greater palatine foramen. Our method preserves the integrity of the nasal floor mucosa, and mobilizes the DPV from the greater palatine foramen to their origin in the pterygopalatine fossa. Radiological measurements and cadevaric dissections suggest that the transposed, pedicled palatal flap (the Oliver pedicled palatal flap) could be used to reconstruct defects of the planum, sella, and clivus. Conclusions: Our novel modifications to the island palatal flap yield a large (12–18 cm2) mucoperiosteal flap based on a ∼ 3 cm pedicle. The Oliver pedicled palatal flap shows potential for nasal cavity and skull base reconstruction (see video, available online only).
On multiple access channels with asymmetric feedback

In multiuser systems, the downlink capacity to different users is often different due to the near-far effect. We capture this asymmetry in the feedback link by introducing an asymmetric feedback model where different users get different amount of channel feedback from the base-station. Then, we derive the outage probability for the maximum-likelihood receiver, allowing us to study the impact of feedback asymmetry on multiuser performance. Interestingly, we discover that introducing systematic asymmetry in feedback can be beneficial in some cases, where only one user can adapt its power/rate to provide systemwide performance equivalent to that obtained by global feedback to all users.
Dietary Phytoestrogens to Prevent Cardiovascular Disease Early Promise Unfulfilled

A multitude of substances are present in small amounts in plants that can affect mammalian biological processes relevant to cardiovascular disease and other common human diseases.1 However, few of the thousands of bioactive molecules have been studied well in cells or animals, and still fewer in humans. This slim evidence base notwithstanding, a staggering array of these compounds are available for our use as pricey nutritional supplements. The phytoestrogens are arguably the most intensively studied of these substances, and as a result, conclusions about them can be drawn with good scientific support. Phytoestrogens are a subcategory of compounds called flavonoids, a group composed of hundreds or more types of molecules. The 2 classes of phytoestrogens are isoflavones, notably found in soy products, and lignans, present in nuts, fruits, cereal grains, tea, and coffee.1–3 Because of their assumed health benefit, isoflavone content is advertised in many foods that contain soybeans, and isoflavones are sold as nutritional supplements. See p 465 The phytoestrogen hypothesis stemmed from several independent lines of evidence.2–4 One was the recognition that phytoestrogens had estrogenic effects in animals. Another came from epidemiological studies in Asia showing a low prevalence of cardiovascular disease and hormone-dependent cancers of the breast, endometrium, and prostate. A third was the well-established animal model of hyperlipidemia and atherosclerosis that used casein, a milk protein, and that was reversed by soy protein, which often contained isoflavones. This combination of animal experiments and human epidemiological evidence coalesced into a strong hypothesis that natural phytoestrogens present in soybeans and other plant foods had wide-ranging …
Ethical Considerations of Teaching Spirituality in the Academy

Despite evidence in college students indicating a hunger for spiritual insight and spirituality’s application in health care, there continues to be guardedness within the academy towards inclusion of curricula that address spirituality. The purpose of this article is to examine the ethical considerations of teaching spirituality in the academy by describing current trends, issues relevant to nursing education and practice, legitimate concerns of the academy, and the importance of an ethical instructional response when teaching about spirituality. Data supporting the interest and desire by students to explore meaning and purpose in the context of spirituality will be presented. Challenges and barriers inherent in teaching this topic will be described, including the affective response, the lack of a universally accepted definition of spirituality, and spirituality’s relationship to religion. Pedagogical strategies consistent with an ethical instructional response will be discussed as the key to eliciting tr...
Solution of the Initial Value Problem for the Riccati Equation

(1965). Solution of the Initial Value Problem for the Riccati Equation. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 72, No. 3, pp. 270-275.
Zinc inhibits cAMP-stimulated Cl secretion via basolateral K-channel blockade in rat ileum

Zn, an essential micronutrient and second most abundant trace element in cell and tissues, reduces stool output when administered to children with acute diarrhea. The mechanism by which Zn improves...
Downlink multi-user interference alignment in two-cell scenario

In this paper, the problem of Downlink Multi-User MIMO (DL MU-MIMO) transmission from two interfering transmitters, each equipped with M antennas to multiple users each equipped with K antennas is considered. It is assumed that all users receive a single data stream of rank one from only one of the transmitters. A novel transmission/reception scheme is proposed based on the idea of Interference Alignment (IA), which aligns the interference coming from each transmitter to the users in the other cell along a single predetermined vector v ref , and hence, leaves more degrees of freedom for signal transmission from each transmitter. Furthermore, unlike other IA-based schemes in the literature, only local Channel State Information (CSI) is required at nodes. It is shown that for the case of K ≥ M, the total degrees of freedom of 2M − 2 is achievable. The proposed scheme is also extended to the case of K &#60;M based on the ideas of Euclidean distance minimization and time/frequency extension. Finally, simulation results are provided to compare the performance of the proposed scheme with that of the existing results in the literature.
Strategies to minimize fuel consumption of passenger cars during car-following scenarios

One of the important factors that affects a vehicle's fuel consumption is how it is driven. For a passenger car with an internal combustion engine and continuous variable transmission, this paper quantitatively identified its fuel-optimal driving operations in car-following scenarios and extracted two useful strategies with implementable profiles, Pulse-and-Gliding (PnG) and Constant Speed (CS). After further analysis, it is concluded that as the preceding vehicle's speed increases, a partial Pulse-and-Gliding, full-Pulse-and-Gliding and Constant Speed strategy becomes optimal successively; and their selection is mainly dominated by both static and transient fueling characteristics of engine. Moreover, in a full-PnG operation, engine always switches between minimum BSFC point and idling point while the range error oscillates between its upper and lower bounds.
Neonatal Presentations of CHARGE Syndrome and VATER/VACTERL Association

Neonatologists often care for newborns who have multiple congenital anomalies. The specific diagnosis has implications for the infant9s clinical management. In this article, we examine the neonatal presentations of CHARGE syndrome and VATER/VACTERL association. Once the features of these two entities are recognized clinically, the appropriate diagnostic evaluations can be initiated.
Heart transplantation: Some general remarks

T HE LIMITED success that has so far been achieved with heart transplantation in patients has raised early hopes. Still, a mood of pessimism and frustration has descended upon many because of the apparently unpredictable outcome of this logistically complex and expensive effort, which may be considered of questionable public health value. I believe that heart transplantation will gradually take a rightful place in the treatment of certain cardiac disorders and will take this position in the present brief summary of some of the biologic factors bearing upon the future of this procedure.
Separating Non-Isthmus- From Isthmus-Dependent Atrial Flutter Using Wavefront Variability

Objectives The aim of this study was to separate isthmus-dependent atrial flutter (IDAFL) from non-isthmus-dependent atrial flutter (NIDAFL) from the electrocardiogram (ECG) based on functional differences. Background The ECG analyses of F-wave shape suboptimally separate NIDAFL from IDAFL. The authors hypothesized that anatomic and functional differences may result in greater wavefront variability in NIDAFL than IDAFL, allowing their separation. The authors tested this hypothesis in patients undergoing ablation for atrial flutter using a novel ECG algorithm to detect subtle F-wave variability, validated by intracardiac measurements. Methods In 62 patients (23 NIDAFL, 39 IDAFL) ECG atrial wavefronts were represented as correlations of an F-wave template to the ECG over time. Correlations in orthogonal ECG lead-pairs were plotted at each time point to yield loops reflecting temporal and spatial regularity in each plane. The ECG analyses were compared with intracardiac standard deviations of: 1) atrial electrograms (temporal variability), and 2) bi-atrial activation time differences (spatial variability). Results Atrial ECG temporospatial loops were reproducible in IDAFL, but varied in NIDAFL (p Conclusions Greater cycle-to-cycle atrial wavefront variability separates NIDAFL from IDAFL and is detectable from the ECG using temporospatial analyses. These results have implications for guiding ablation and support the concept that IDAFL and NIDAFL lie along a spectrum of intracardiac organization.
Gibbs function continuation for the stable computation of chemical equilibrium

We consider the computation of the chemical equilibrium state of an ideal gas mixture of given elemental composition, with and without general linear constraints on the species present. While computer programs to solve these problems have been available for more than 30 years, it is found that they are not always successful in determining the chemical equilibrium state in the presence of constraints. We present here the new method of Gibbs function continuation, which is guaranteed to determine the chemical equilibrium state for all well-posed constrained and unconstrained problems.
Interface pressures and shear stresses: Sagittal plane angular alignment effects in three trans-tibial amputee case studies:

Interface pressures and shear stresses at different sagittal plane angular alignment settings were measured on 3 trans-tibial amputee subjects ambulating with patellar-tendon-bearing total contact prostheses. Substantial socket-shank angular alignment modifications in the sagittal plane had minimal effect on stance phase peak interface pressures, though more substantial effects on stance phase peak resultant shear stresses. No consistent trend of a greater stress at misaligned vs nominally aligned settings was identified. Changes in interface stresses from session to session tended to be greater than those for different alignment settings, suggesting that subjects compensated well for misalignments but less well for session differences.
Granuloma Annulare Mimicking Dorsal Knuckle Pads

A 37-year-old man underwent excision of what was presumed to be knuckle pads associated with Dupuytren disease. The histology revealed granuloma annulare, which is typically treated nonsurgically. This report includes a discussion of granuloma annulare and its differentiation from knuckle pads.
Phase II trial of second-line erlotinib and digoxin in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)

e19077 Background: There is laboratory evidence that digoxin sensitizes cancer cells to the induction of apoptosis by chemotherapy. Inhibition of the Na/K-ATPase enzyme by ouabain disturbs the intracellular ion composition of cancer cells, altering cellular homeostasis. This suggests that inhibition of the Na/K pump results in cellular sensitization of malignant, but not benign cells to induction of apoptosis. Epidemiologic studies also have shown beneficial effects of digitalis in breast cancer incidence. At ASCO 2007 our group presented a phase II study showing encouraging results by adding digoxin to bio-chemotherapy for melanoma. Erlotinib is one of the standard second-line treatments for NSCLC with a response rate (RR) of 10%. This study hypothesized, that adding digoxin to erlotinib may improve the RR and time to progression (TTP) in NSCLC. Methods: This was a phase II trial using daily 150 mg erlotinib and digoxin 0.25 mg. The digoxin dose was adjusted to keep levels between 1–2 ng/ml. Patients wit...
James E. Dittes: A Professional Portrait

A portrait is a representation or description of a person. A professional is a person who does something with great skill, but embedded in the word professional is another word—pro-fess—which means to make an open declaration of or to affirm. A professor, then, is a person who openly declares his or her sentiments or beliefs. Thus, in titling this “a professional portrait,” I signal my intention to represent what many others besides myself have perceived in Professor James E. Dittes: a person who professes with great skill his sentiments and beliefs.
Effect of tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-1α on heme oxygenase-1 expression in human endothelial cells

Heme iron exacerbates oxidant damage by catalyzing the production of free radicals. Heme oxygenase is the rate-limiting enzyme involved in heme catabolism. An inducible form of heme oxygenase, heme...
Osteotomies in the Cervical Spine

Rigid cervical deformities are difficult problems to treat. The goals of surgical treatment include deformity correction, achieving a rigid fusion, and performing a thorough neural decompression. In stiff and ankylosed cervical spines, osteotomies are required to restore sagittal and coronal balance. In this chapter, we describe the clinical and radiographic workup for patients with cervical deformities, and delineate the various factors that must be considered when planning surgical treatment. We also describe in detail the various types of cervical osteotomies, along with their surgical technique, advantages, and potential complications.
Malaria: Plasmodium falciparum (Welch 1898), Plasmodium vivax (Grassi and Filetti 1889), Plasmodium ovale (Stephens 1922), Plasmodium malariae (Laveran 1881)

Malaria is a mosquito-borne infection caused by protozoa of the genus Plasmodium. Humans are commonly infected by four species of the parasite: P. falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale, and P. malariae. On rare occasions, certain species of Plasmodium that usually have simian hosts also infect humans.
Hypofibrinogenemia associated with hemangioma of the liver.

A 42-year-old man with hemangioma of the liver and hypofibrinogenemia was studied. Measurement of the plasma coagulation factors revealed a decreased fibrinogen concentration, a short euglobulin lysis time, a prolonged thrombin time, and an increase of fibrinogen-fibrin split products. Platelet count, erythrocyte survival, and plasma levels of Factors VIII, V, and prothrombin were within normal limits. 125I-prothrombin metabolic values showed a normal prothrombin half-life and fractional catabolic rate. In contrast, fibrinogen half-life was short and the fractional catabolic rate was increased. These studies raised the possibility that this patient's hypofibrinogenemia might be due to a fibrinolytic process unrelated to intravascular coagulation.
Biogeographic observations on Pacific marine fungi

New records of higher marine fungi for the Hawaiian Islands in general (seven species) and for Molokai (10 species) are presented. Checklists for Moorea, Society Islands (23 species, 21 of these ne...
Isolation of an extremely boron-tolerant strain of Bacillus firmus.

A strain of Bacillus firmus (designated strain KC) isolated from a boron (B) mine in California exhibited extreme tolerance to B, provided it was first acclimated at intermediate B supply concentra...
Rotational relaxation in ortho-terphenyl: using atomistic simulations to bridge theory and experiment.

Understanding the nature of the glass transition—the dramatic slowing of dynamics and eventual emergence of a disordered solid from a cooling liquid—is a fundamental challenge in physical science. ...
Neurotrophic Function of Circulating Acetylcholinesterase in Aplysia

The catalytic function of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) is well documented (Massoulie & Bon, 1982). Yet, the significance of AChE’s presence in non-cholinergic sites is poorly understood. In Aplysia, a marine gastropod, AChE is present in the gill (Peretz & Estes, 1974), hemolymph and cholinergic as well as non-cholinergic neurons (Giller & Schwartz, 1971; Srivatsan & Peretz, 1993). Hemolymph from mature Aplysia exhibits neurotrophic property (Schachar & Proshansky, 1983). The elevated AChE activity in hemolymph of mature Aplysia (Srivatsan et al., 1992) and its link to neuronal function (Peretz et al., 1992; Srivatsan & Peretz, 1993) prompted us to investigate if AChE has a neurotrophic function.
OPTIMIZING CLOUD BASED IMAGE STORAGE, DISSEMINATION AND PROCESSING THROUGH USE OF MRF AND LERC

Abstract. The volume and numbers of geospatial images being collected continue to increase exponentially with the ever increasing number of airborne and satellite imaging platforms, and the increasing rate of data collection. As a result, the cost of fast storage required to provide access to the imagery is a major cost factor in enterprise image management solutions to handle, process and disseminate the imagery and information extracted from the imagery. Cloud based object storage offers to provide significantly lower cost and elastic storage for this imagery, but also adds some disadvantages in terms of greater latency for data access and lack of traditional file access. Although traditional file formats geoTIF, JPEG2000 and NITF can be downloaded from such object storage, their structure and available compression are not optimum and access performance is curtailed. This paper provides details on a solution by utilizing a new open image formats for storage and access to geospatial imagery optimized for cloud storage and processing. MRF (Meta Raster Format) is optimized for large collections of scenes such as those acquired from optical sensors. The format enables optimized data access from cloud storage, along with the use of new compression options which cannot easily be added to existing formats. The paper also provides an overview of LERC a new image compression that can be used with MRF that provides very good lossless and controlled lossy compression.
Plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 stimulates macrophage activation through Toll-like Receptor-4

While inflammation is often associated with increased Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), the functional consequences of PAI-1 in inflammation have yet to be fully determined. The aim of this study was to establish the in vivo relevance of PAI-1 in inflammation. A mouse model of systemic inflammation was employed in wild-type (WT) and PAI-1 deficient (PAI-1(-/-)) mice. Mice survival, macrophage infiltration into the lungs, and plasma levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines were assessed after lipopolysaccharide (LPS) infusion. In vitro experiments were conducted to examine changes in LPS-induced inflammatory responses after PAI-1 exposure. PAI-1 was shown to regulate inflammation, in vivo, and affect macrophage infiltration into lungs. Further, PAI-1 activated macrophages, and increased pro-inflammatory cytokines at both the mRNA and protein levels in these cells. The effect of PAI-1 on macrophage activation was dose-dependent and LPS-independent. Proteolytic inhibitory activity and Lipoprotein Receptor-related Protein (LRP) and vitronectin (VN) binding functions, were not involved in PAI-1-mediated activation of macrophages. However, the effect of PAI-1 on macrophage activation was partially blocked by a TLR4 neutralizing antibody. Furthermore, PAI-1-induced Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-α) and Macrophage Inflammatory Protein-2 (MIP-2) expression was reduced in TLR4(-/-) macrophages compared to WT macrophages. These results demonstrate that PAI-1 is involved in the regulation of host inflammatory responses through Toll-like Receptor-4 (TLR4)-mediated macrophage activation.
A Multi-risk Model for Understanding the Spread of Chlamydia

Chlamydia trachomatis, CT, infection is the most frequently reported sexually transmitted infection in the United States. To better understand the recent increase in disease prevalence, and help guide in mitigation efforts, we created and analyzed a multi-risk model for the spread of chlamydia in the heterosexual community. The model incorporates the heterogeneous mixing between men and women with different number of partners and the parameters are defined to approximate the disease transmission in the 15–25 year-old New Orleans African American community. We use sensitivity analysis to assess the relative impact of different levels of screening interventions and behavior changes on the basic reproduction number. Our results quantify, and validate, the impact that reducing the probability of transmission per sexual contact, such as using prophylactic condoms, can have on CT prevalence.
The Ambiguity of the -te iru form in Japanese

This article presents a formal semantic account of the ambiguity associated with the -te iru construction in Japanese. This construction is known to receive at least two distinct interpretations: on-going process interpretations analogous to the English progressive and so-called resultative interpretations. The latter are sub-classified by some researchers into concrete result state readings and experiential state readings. Based upon the distributional properties of adverbials, we suggest that progressive interpretations of DURATIVE VERBS and concrete result state interpretations of INTANTANEOUS VERBS should be grouped together, as opposed to experiential readings of DURATIVE or INTANTANEOUS VERBS. To account for the distinction between these two types of interpretation, the proposed system analyzes the -te iru form into the morpheme -te, which is claimed to bear a perfect feature, and the aspectual auxiliary iru. Our proposal for the aspectual auxiliary iru is an extension of Landman's (1992) proposal and offers a unified account of the multiple interpretations of -te iru on the basis of a new analysis of INTANTANEOUS VERBS.
Time-of-Day Discriminative Learning: Contrasting the Use of Spatial Compared to Feature Information in Homing Pigeons (Columba livia)

This study examined time-of-day associative learning to either spatial or feature information in homing pigeons in an open-field, laboratory setting. Homing pigeons are well known for their navigational abilities and generally have been shown to rely more heavily on spatial than nonspatial cues in recognizing a goal. However, during goal localization, homing pigeons also successfully use nonspatial, feature information. Homing pigeons were divided into two groups and were trained to locate two time-of-day dependent, food reward sites using either discriminative spatial or feature information. Because of the importance of the hippocampus in controlling avian memory, we hypothesized that homing pigeons trained with spatial cues would be superior in learning the time-of-day discrimination compared to the pigeons trained with feature cues. Indeed, homing pigeons that were trained with spatial information outperformed the pigeons trained with feature information in learning the time-of-day discrimination task.
Low Risk of Infectious Events in Patients (Pts) with Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML) in Chronic Phase (CP) Treated with Dasatinib.

Abstract 3291 Poster Board III-1 Background: In vitro, dasatinib inhibits proliferation of CD8+ T cells in a dose-dependent manner, associated with decreased secretion of interferon-gamma and granzyme B, as well as arrest of CD8+ T cells in the G0/G1 phase of cell cycle (Blake SJ Blood 2008 Feb.1;111(3):1366-77)). Inhibition of CD8+ T cells has also been shown in blood samples from patients receiving dasatinib compared with their T cell status prior to dasatinib (Cara K.Fraser, Ex.Hema.2009; 37:256-265). These immunosuppressive properties have raised concerns about potential high risk for opportunistic and other infections among patients treated with dasatinib. Aim: Investigate the frequency and characteristics of infectious events in pts with CML in CP treated with dasatinib. Methods: Records from 55 consecutive patients with CML CP treated with dasatinib after imatinib failure were analyzed. Median time from diagnosis to the start of dasatinib therapy was 66 months. The characteristics and management of infectious complications were analyzed for each pt. Results: After a median follow-up of 6 months from the start of therapy, 31 (56%) pts had 53 episodes of infections (Table 1). These included 20 of 34 (58.8%) pts treated with a total daily dose of 140 mg/day, 6 of 8 (75%) treated with 100 mg/day, 2 of 3 (66.7%) treated with 70 mg/day. The one pt treated with 180 mg/day and both patients treated with a dose of 30 mg/day or less (in phase I study) had infections. Most of the infections were localized and not considered related to dasatinib therapy. Blood cultures were done for 5 of the infections (9.4%): 3 were negative and 2 positive (one for coagulase negative staphylococcus and one for streptococcus). Wound cultures were done in 3 pts: one with positive staphylococcus of the foot, one with staphylococcus positive bursitis of the elbow, and one cellulitis with a positive result for MRSA. Other positive cultures included one with a sputum culture positive for MRSA and one with E .coli in a urine culture. 29 (54.7%) of the infectious events required antibiotic therapy; 3 required IV antibiotics, (one with cellulitis, one with an ear infection and one with pneumonia) and one pt needed antiviral treatment for H. zoster. Four patients needed hospital admission; 2 pts had pneumonia, one had cellulitis and positive blood culture, and one had fever and plural effusion. Infections resolved in all 31 pts without complications. ANC at the time of infection was Conclusions: This analysis shows that although many patients may develop infections during the course of therapy with dasatinib, these are overwhelmingly common infections, minor, and not related to dasatinib therapy. Opportunistic infections were rare. There is no evidence that dasatinib induces a significant risk of infections in patients with CML in CP. Disclosures: Kantarjian:BMS: Research Funding. Rios:BMS: Honoraria. Cortes:BMS: Research Funding.
Building a Successful Electronic Commerce Site: A Life Cycle Approach

This chapter discusses various issues for building and managing an e-commerce site. It highlights four popular approaches for building an e-commerce site including online auctions, Internet shopping malls, web-hosting services, and building the site from scratch. When designing e-commerce sites, businesses must clearly identify strategic goals and objectives and carefully project the site's growth rate; otherwise these sites may become inefficient after they are started. Traffic assessment is important to decide the required size and capacity of the circuit. During the problem definition and requirement analysis phase, the analyst or team of analysts must understand and analyze the current and future needs of the e-commerce site. During this phase the design team tries to define and understand the scope of the site and its requirements. The advantages and disadvantages of the new business venture must be carefully analyzed, and they should also define the competition and other forces that have direct or indirect impact on the proposed e-commerce site. Major products and services that can be successfully sold through the site must be identified. The chapter explains various dimensions of a feasibility study for e-commerce site implementation and reviews important criteria for e-commerce software platforms and RFP.
Monitoring Molecular Transport across Colloidal Membranes.

The controlled shaping and surface functionalization of colloidal particles has provided opportunities for the development of new materials and responsive particles. The possibility of creating hollow particles with semipermeable walls allows modulating molecular transport properties on colloidal length scales. While shapes and sizes can typically be observed by optical means, the underlying chemical and physical properties are often invisible. Here, we present measurements of cross-membrane transport via pulsed field gradient NMR in packings of hollow colloidal particles. The work is conducted using a systematic selection of particle sizes, wall permeabilities, and osmotic pressures and allows tracking organic molecules as well as ions. It is also shown that, while direct transport of molecules can be measured, indirect markers can be obtained for invisible species via the osmotic pressure as well. The cross-membrane transport information is important for applications in nanoconfinement, nanofiltration, ...