cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Efficacy and immunological actions of FAHF-2 in a murine model of multiple food allergies

Abstract Background Food Allergy Herbal Formula-2 (FAHF-2) prevents anaphylaxis in a murine model of peanut allergy. Multiple food allergies (MFA) are common and associated with a higher risk of anaphylaxis. No well-characterized murine model of sensitization to multiple food allergens exists, and no satisfactory therapy for MFA is currently available. Objective To determine the effect of FAHF-2 in a murine model of MFA. Methods C3H/HeJ mice were orally sensitized to peanut, codfish, and egg concurrently. Oral FAHF-2 treatment commenced 1 day after completing sensitization and continued daily for 7 weeks. Mice were subsequently orally challenged with each allergen. Results Antibodies in sera from mice simultaneously sensitized with peanut, codfish, and egg recognized major allergens of all 3 foods, demonstrating sensitization to multiple unrelated food allergens (MFA mice). Sham-treated MFA mice exhibited anaphylactic symptoms accompanied by elevation of plasma histamine and hypothermia. In contrast, FAHF-2–treated MFA mice showed no anaphylactic symptoms, normal body temperature, and histamine levels after challenge with each allergen. Protection was accompanied by reduction in allergen-specific immunoglobulin E levels. Allergen-stimulated Th2 cytokine interleukin-4 and interleukin-13 production levels decreased, whereas the Th1 cytokine interferon-γ levels were elevated in cultured splenocytes and mesenteric lymph node cells in FAHF-2–treated mice. Conclusion We established the first murine model of MFA. FAHF-2 prevents peanut, egg, and fish-induced anaphylactic reactions in this model, suggesting that FAHF-2 may have potential for treating human MFA.
College students' perceptions of notetaking and their relationship to selected learner characteristics and course achievement

Notetaking is a universal activity in college lecture courses, but little research has been done to examine students' perceptions of this study strategy as it relates to their overall study routine. In the current study, students in a large lecture course in introductory macroeconomics were asked to complete the Notetaking Perceptions Survey (NPS), an instrument that assesses students' perceptions of the worth or value of notetaking, their perceived level of notetaking activity, and their degree of confidence about their own notetaking skill. Additionally, students' learning style, as assessed by the Learning Style Inventory (Smith and Kolb, 1986), gender, high school rank, and year of high school graduation were included as predictor variables within a multiple regression analysis to predict scores on the there notetaking perception factors. Notetaking perceptions were predicted by one of the learning style dimensions and by gender. The relationships of final course grades with the three notetaking factors from the NPS and the other learner characteristics were also determined. Grades were predicted by one of the notetaking perception factors and by high school rank.
Defining cooperativity in gene regulation locally through intrinsic noise.

Regulatory networks in cells can comprise a variety of types of molecular interactions. The most basic are pairwise interactions, in which one species controls the behavior of another (for example, a transcription factor activates or represses a gene). Higher-order interactions, while more subtle, can be important for determining the function of networks. Here, we systematically expand a simple master equation model for a gene to derive an approach for robustly assessing the cooperativity (effective copy number) with which a transcription factor acts. The essential idea is that moments of a joint distribution of protein copy numbers determine the Hill coefficient of a cis-regulatory input function (CRIF) without nonlinear fitting. We show that this method prescribes a definition of cooperativity that is meaningful even in highly complex situations in which the regulation does not conform to a simple Hill function. To illustrate the utility of the method, we measure the cooperativity of the transcription factor CI in simulations of phage-λ and show how the cooperativity accurately reflects the behavior of the system. We numerically assess the effects of deviations from ideality, as well as possible sources of error. The relationship to other definitions of cooperativity and issues for experimentally realizing the procedure are discussed.
Phylogeny and biogeography of the New World siskins and goldfinches: rapid, recent diversification in the Central Andes.

Time-calibrated molecular phylogenies can help us to understand the origins of the diverse and unique Andean avifauna. Previous studies have shown that the tempo of diversification differed between the Andes and adjacent lowland regions of South America. Andean taxa were found to have speciated more recently and to have avoided the decelerated diversification that is typical of Neotropical lowland clades. The South American siskins, a Pleistocene finch radiation, may typify this Andean pattern. We investigated the phylogenetic biogeography of all the New World siskins and goldfinches in new detail. To understand the specific role of the Andes in siskin diversification, we asked: (1) Was diversification faster in Andean siskin lineages relative to non-Andean ones? (2) Did siskin lineages move into and out of the Andes at different rates? We found that siskin lineages in the Andes had higher diversification rates and higher outward dispersal rates than siskin lineages outside the Andes. We conclude that paramo expansion and contraction in response to Pleistocene climatic cycles caused accelerated diversification and outward dispersal in Andean siskins. The younger average age of bird species in the Andes compared to lowland South America may be attributable to bursts of recent diversification in siskins and several other vagile, open-habitat clades.
Use of Peat as a Bedding Material and Dietary Component for Tom Turkeys

In a study of turkeys over the period 0 to 3 wk of age, body weights of birds fed 5 or 15% dietary peat or carrier-type feed byproducts (rice hulls, sunflower hulls, peanut hulls, soybean mill feed. wood flour, and corn cobs) were compared to those of turkeys fed a diet composed primarily of corn and soybean meal. Turkeys fed 15% dietary peat or carriers showed a greater growth depression than those fed the diluents at the 5% dietary level. At the 5% peat or carrier level, growth was not significantly (P greater than .05) depressed when birds were fed rice hulls (body weight was 98.5% of control), peat (97.1%), sunflower hulls (96.9%), and peanut hulls (95.8%); growth was significantly depressed (P less than .05) when birds were fed corn cobs (93.1%), soybean mill feed (92.9%), and wood flour (92.8%). Peat, when used as a drying agent for liquid agricultural byproducts, would account for 2 to 4% of the diet. Results of this study suggest that peat as a carrier fed at the 5% level would minimally affect growth. In a market study male turkeys were raised on floor pens containing peat or wood shavings and fed 0, 5, or 10% reed-sedge peat as a diluent of a typical corn-soybean meal mash diet. Body weights of turkeys fed 5 or 10% dietary peat showed a slight growth depression on both litter materials, compared with control. Higher body weights (nonsignificant) were observed for turkeys on wood shavings compared with those on peat litter after 12 wk of age.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
The effects of handling on antibody production, mitogen responses, spleen cell number, and lymphocyte subpopulations.

The effects of a simple psychosocial manipulation, handling, on immune function in BALB/c.ByJ mice were studied. Handling for two minutes/day prior to immunization was shown to be associated with a decreased primary IgG antibody response to the protein antigen keyhole limpet hemocyanin. Handling was also associated with decreased T cell proliferative responses to Concanavalin A. No reliable changes in spleen cell number or lymphocyte subsets were found. These findings demonstrate that simply picking up an animal results in modulation of the immune response. These data are also of interest for their obvious methodological implications.
The action of threonine in inducing an amino acid imbalance.

SummaryExperiments have been reported in which the function of threonine in producting an amino acid imbalance has been investigated. The hypothesis that threonine inhibits the conversion of tryptophan to tissue pyridine nucleotides via 3-hydroxyanthranilic acid is not strongly supported by our results. the results indicate, however, that excess dietary threonine markedly interferes with the digestiion and absorption of the ration and that this is probably a better explanation for the action of excess threonine in explanation for the action of excess threonine in producing growth inhibitiion in the rat.
Parameters in a dynamically compressed xenon plasma laser

Laser action from triply ionized xenon has been found to occur during the dynamical contraction of the xenon plasma column. Laser lines between the near ultraviolet and the orange portion of the spectrum have been detected. Their peak powers, time of occurrence, duration, wavelength, and coherence length have been measured. Optimum currents and pressures have been found and compared with other published results. In addition, a simplified model of a pinching plasma has been used, in conjunction with streak camera pictures of the contracting column and time-resolved interferometric measurements of the electron density to estimate electron temperatures. Values of the electron density, temperature, and conductivity of the xenon plasma compare well with published results applicable to high-current pulsed-argon ion lasers.
CARDIOVASCULAR RESPONSE TO EXERCISE DURING ATRIAL FIBRILLATION AND AFTER CONVERSION TO SINUS RHYTHM.

Abstract Cardiovascular dynamics were studied at rest and during and after exercise in 8 patients with atrial fibrillation who were successfully converted to a sinus rhythm with a DC defibrillator. The study demonstrated an improvement in cardiac efficiency following conversion to normal sinus rhythm as evidenced by increases of 6 per cent in the cardiac index, 22 in the stroke index, 18 in the work index and 13 in the stroke power and decreases of 16 per cent in the pulse rate, 12 in peripheral resistance, 10 in the mean arterial pressure and 58 in the tension-time index. The improvement in cardiac function was more evident during exercise but did not approach the values obtained in experimental studies conducted with essentially normal hearts.
Applications of Operations Research in the Air Transport Industry

This paper presents an overview of several important areas of operations research applications in the air transport industry. Specific areas covered are: the various stages of aircraft and crew schedule planning; revenue management, including overbooking and leg-based and network-based seat inventory management; and the planning and operations of aviation infrastructure (airports and air traffic management). For each of these areas, the paper provides a historical perspective on OR contributions, as well as a brief summary of the state of the art. It also identifies some of the main challenges for future research.
Mapping quantitative trait loci associated with root penetration ability in rice (Oryza sativa L.).

Root penetration ability is an important factor for rice drought resistance in areas with soils subject to both compaction and periodic water deficits. However, breeding for root penetration ability is inhibited by the difficulties associated with measuring root traits. Our objective was to identify restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) associated with root penetration ability. Using wax-petrolatum layers as a proxy for compacted soil, we counted the number of vertical root axes penetrating through the layer, the total number of vertical root axes and the number of tillers per plant of 202 recombinant inbred (RI) lines over three replications. As a measure of root penetration ability, we used a root penetration index defined as the percent of the total number of vertical root axes that penetrated through a wax-petrolatum layer. The RI population exhibited a wide range in the number of penetrating roots axes (10–115 roots), the total number of roots axes (74–226 roots), tillers per plant (6–18), and in the root penetration index (0.11–0.71). Single-marker and interval quantitative trait analyses were conducted to identify RFLP loci associated with the number of penetrating roots, total root number, root penetration index, and tiller number. Four quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were associated with the number of penetrated roots, 19 with the total root number, six QTLs with the root penetration index and ten with tiller number. Individually, these QTLs accounted for a maximum of 8% of the variation in the number of penetrating roots, 19% of the variation in total root number, 13% of the variation in root penetration index and 14% of the variation in tiller number as estimated from regressions. The multimarker regression model accounting for the greatest proportion of the variation in the root penetration index was a three-marker model that accounted for 34% of the variation. Two-marker models accounted for 13% of the variation in the number of penetrated roots, 25% of the variation in total root number, and 21% of the variation in tiller number. This is the first research paper to apply RFLP quantitative trait analysis to dissect genetic loci associated with the total number of roots, root penetration ability and tiller number.
Calcitonin in the prevention and therapy of osteoporotic syndromes.

It is now generally accepted that estrogen status, exercise and adequate calcium intake are the singularly most important factors which guarantee the assumption of genetically programmed peak bone mass. Physicians also recognize that estrogen replacement therapy is not only essential to prevent bone loss in the early postmenopausal female, but also for the long-term preservation of bone mineral density. The efficacy of either continuous or intermittent calmon calcitonin administration in preventing further bone loss and in some instances decreasing fracture incidences in established osteoporotic syndromes is currently well established. As noted during a variety of controlled investigations performed both in the United States and abroad, and in the Physician’s Resource Manual on Osteoporosis published by the United States National Osteoporosis Foundation, salmon calcitonin is also effective in early postmenopausal women who are not candidates for estrogen replacement therapy in addition to those patients with established osteoporosis. The practicing physician should acknowledge that of all the anti-resorptive agents recommended for therapy in osteoporotic syndromes, estrogens and salmon calcitonin are currently the only two drugs recommended by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) as safe and effective as treatment modalities in osteoporosis.
Effect of the degree of crosslinking on penetrant transport in polystyrene

Abstract The effect of the degree of crosslinking of glassy polymers on the transport mechanism of penetrants was investigated using a series of divinyl benzene (DVB)-crosslinked polystyrenes of nominal crosslinking ratio X from 0.001 38 to 0.060 mol DVB/mol styrene. The number average molecular weight between crosslinks, M c , was determined from equilibrium swelling experiments in cyclohexane. Dynamic swelling experiments with cyclohexane at 30°C showed that the mechanism of penetrant transport was anomalous. An overshoot in the penetrant uptake was observed, characteristic of macromolecular relaxations and of changing solubility of the cyclohexane in the continuously swelling polystyrene. Photographs of various samples during the swelling process showed that solvent crazing occurred predominantly in loosely crosslinked samples.
Experimental performance analysis of an inverse dynamics CNC compensation scheme for high-speed execution of curved toolpaths

Experimental results from the implementation of an inverse dynamics compensation scheme on a three-axis CNC mill with an open-architecture software controller are presented. The scheme amounts to imposing a continuously variable displacement on the commanded toolpath, which compensates for the physical limitations (inertia and damping) of each machine axis, producing accurate execution of the prescribed toolpath. Numerical values for the dimensionless parameters that characterize the second-order inverse dynamics model are determined by feeding input and output data from machine runs into a system identification software tool. For a basic P-type controller, exact a priori solutions for the modified path geometry are possible, allowing implementation by simple alterations to the real-time interpolator. The experimental results based on a P-type controller indicate that the inverse dynamics scheme is highly effective in suppressing both feed (lag/lead) error and contour error (deviation from the desired path), even at high feedrates along strongly curved toolpaths. The scheme thus provides a practical means of achieving smooth and accurate execution of free-form paths, without appealing to more complicated “active” control strategies.
Fabrication and applications of negative refractive index matermaterials with chiral properties

1. ABSTRACT Realizable artificial medium with negative permittivity, permeability and refractive index are fabricated by introducing inclusions significantly smaller than the wavelengths of excitation into an archival host medium. Negative refractive index media normally posses a small degree of chirality associated with the split-rings. However in order to enhance the chirality of the artificial media, the split rings can be replaced by spirals. Recent work has shown that well controlled chiral media can be fabricated using available semiconductor techniques that have been modified to produce these structures. Specifically the glancing angle deposition technique (GLAD) has been shown to be well suited to producing these types of chiral structures. Novel devices made from metamaterials that also possess chirality are considered. When chiral properties are included in a negative refractive index slab, with n = -1, two rays are refracted in the slab. The distance between the two corresponding focal lines is determined by the magnitude of the chiral parameter. Thus this negative refractive index lens can also be used to measure the chiral parameter. At the focal lines small cross polarized components also exist. Based on the complete model expansion of the field at the chiral-chiral (or free space-chiral) interface it is shown that line sources also excite several species of lateral waves that are associated with total internal reflection. Since the refractive index is assumed to be negative, rays incident upon the chiral slab at the critical angles for total internal reflection, θ 1 and θ 2 , are refracted parallel to the interface in the backward direction, resulting in θ R 1 and θ L 1 equal to -90°. Thus the image and the source are on the same side of the negative refractive index chiral slab and the device behaves like a reflector.
Business tax incentives

Abstract Valued at $80 billion annually, state and local tax incentives are an important source of capital for expanding or relocating businesses. Using Tesla's recent $1.4 billion megadeal in Nevada as an example, we outline best practices for negotiating incentive packages. This installment of Accounting Matters discusses the evolution of incentives and provides insights regarding the regulatory and oversight changes that business owners and executives should anticipate. We conclude with recommendations for navigating increased compliance and reporting burdens.
Comments on nomenclature in traditional Chinese medicine.

The present article suggests that the nomenclature used in traditional Chinese medicine is currently unclear resulting in improper usage of terms and subsequent confusion. This paper is an attempt to clarify this nomenclature confusion. Traditional medicine of China should be called "traditional Chinese medicine" (T.C.M.) rather than the frequently used "Chinese medicine". The latter term fails to express the "tradition" associated with T.C.M., and also it does not distinguish between T.C.M. and modern Chinese medicine. "Oriental medicine", another frequently used term for T.C.M., has the same kind of shortcomings. The true colors of T.C.M. should be restored. The author also notes that "herb", "herbology" or "herbal medicine" is not synonymous with traditional Chinese materia medica. Herbal medicine is a type of folk medicine whereas traditional Chinese materia medica is a formal branch of traditional Chinese medicine. Furthermore, the author suggests that "acupunctology" be used when referring to the science of acupuncture whereas "acupuncture" should be used with reference to a method or perhaps the therapy of needling.
Integrating Spirituality and Religion Into Counseling: A Guide to Competent Practice

Book reviewed in this article: Craig S. Cashwell and J. Scott Young, Eds. (2005). Integrating Spirituality and Religion Into Counseling: A Guide to Competent Practice.
Long-term replication of Epstein-Barr virus-derived episomal vectors in the rodent cells

Plasmids containing the origin of replication, oriP, of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and EBV nuclear antigen-1 genes replicate extrachromosomally in primate cells. However, these plasmids have been believed not to replicate in rodent cells. We demonstrate here that these plasmids can replicate in some types of rodent cells over a long period. This result should offer not only the new insight into the mechanisms of species-specific replication of EBV, but also the possibility that an EBV-based vector can be used for gene transfer experiments in non-primate cells and an animal experiment regarding human gene therapy.
Kinetics of Spinodal Decomposition in Liquid Crystalline Polymers: Processing Effects on the Phase Separation Morphology

Results from a Landau−Ginzburg model which treats the problem of spinodal decomposition of liquid crystalline polymers (LCPs) in solution are presented. Morphological evolution of one conserved order parameter (polymer volume fraction) and one nonconserved order parameter (the Flory orientational order parameter) is considered. Processing effects on morphology including quench temperature, composition, solvent quality, and molecular weight are presented. Simulations of example quenching experiments demonstrate that increased LCP concentration, decreased molecular weight, increased solvation, and decreased quench depth all lead to increased domain size. Implications of the model regarding the optimization of processing conditions for LCP fiber spinning and film casting are discussed.
Immediate Recall of Driver Warnings in Forward Collision Warning Scenarios

This paper describes driver recall performance for a forward collision warning (FCW) alert immediately after a critical lead vehicle braking event. A sample of 120 younger and older test participants, balanced by gender, participated in a study of alternative FCW alerts in the Ford Motor Company VIRTTEX driving simulator. A baseline group of participants received no FCW support. Each of the other participants experienced one and only one FCW alert type, visual, auditory, or both. Half of the participants who received an FCW alert had been given knowledge that such a system was in the test vehicle, and half of the participants had been told nothing. A digit-reading distraction task was presented repeatedly during the test drive. The last repetition of this task coincided with the lead vehicle braking event and FCW. Immediately after the event, test participants were asked if they had received a warning and, if so, what they recalled about it. Results were analyzed for those 93 warned test participants who interrupted the digit-reading task to respond to the FCW alert. Approximately 26% of these test participants did not remember receiving a warning at all. Only 58% of the test participants who recollected a warning could accurately recall its modality in all its details, although nearly 90% of those who received the combined audio and video warning recalled at least one of the modalities correctly. Those who received FCW information before the drive had significantly greater recollection than those who were not given any FCW a priori information. Age and gender differences were not statistically significant. The implications of these results are discussed.
Determination of the nuclear DNA content of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and implications for the organization of DNA in yeast chromosomes.

Abstract The DNA content of the nucleus of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been determined by both renaturation kinetics and DNA per cell measurements. Renaturation kinetics experiments were performed by following the decrease of optical hyperchromicity at 260 nm and by hydroxyapatite chromatography. DNA per cell measurements were made by the diaminobenzoic acid method and by the ethidium bromide method of Klotz & Zimm (1972b). The conclusion from the above experiments is that the S. cerevisiae nucleus contains 9 × 109 ± 2 × 109 daltons of DNA. Previously we (Lauer & Klotz, 1975) had measured the molecular weight of the largest piece of DNA in the yeast nucleus to be 2 × 109 ± 0.2 × 109. Here we extend this work by using a more highly protein-denaturing buffer system and conclude that the largest piece of DNA in the S. cerevisiae nucleus contains 1.5 × 109 to 2.2 × 109 daltons of DNA in both haploid and diploid cell lysates. From genetics, the largest yeast chromosome should contain 13% of the genome, or 0.9 × 109 to 1.5 × 109 daltons of DNA (using our DNA per cell range). Thus, the large DNA we measure contains from one to two times the amount of the DNA predicted from genetics to be in the largest chromosome. In light of these new data, viscoelastic measurements on yeast DNA are now consistent with the idea that each chromosome contains one piece of DNA.
Influence of partial rare-earth substitution for Sm in the giant intrinsic magnetic hardness compound SmCo 2 Ni 3

The phenomenon of giant intrinsic magnetic hardness is investigated in compounds R1−xSmxCo2Ni3 with R=Y, Pr, Gd, Tb, Er. Partial Er substitution for Sm actually increases magnetic hardness while all other substitutions decrease magnetic hardness. The strength of coercivity is thus dependent on both the sign and magnitude of the crystal field interaction. The temperature dependence of coercivity is complex in the case of Pr substitution as a result of competing effects from thermal activation and a decrease in anisotropy at low temperatures.
Herbivore-induced volatile emissions from cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) seedlings.

The effect of herbivory on the composition of the volatile blends released by cotton seedlings was investigated by collecting volatiles from undamaged, freshly damaged (0–2 hr after initiation of feeding), and old damaged (16–19 hr after initiation of feeding) plants on which corn earworm caterpillars (Helicoverpa zea Boddie) were actively feeding. A blend of 22 compounds was consistently observed to be emitted by the old damaged plants with nine occurring either only in, or in significantly greater amounts in old damaged, as compared with freshly damaged plants. These were (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, hexyl acetate, (E)-β-ocimene, (3E)-4,8-dimethyl-1,3,7-nonatriene, (Z)-3-hexenyl butyrate, (E)-2-hexenyl butyrate, (Z)-3-hexenyl 2-methylbutyrate, (E)-2-hexenyl 2-methylbutyrate, and indole. The nature of this response is compared with other studies where herbivore-induced volatile responses are also known. The presence of large amounts of terpenes and aldehydes seen at the onset of feeding and the appearance of other compounds hours later suggest that cotton defense mechanisms may consist of a constitutive repertoire that is augmented by an induced mechanism mobilized in response to attack. A number of the induced compounds are common to many plants where, in addition to an immediate defensive function, they are known to be involved in the attraction of natural enemies.
Seasonal Distribution of Antiphospholipid Antibodies

Background and Purpose — The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a seasonal variation in antiphospholipid antibody (aPL) titers and whether this variation differed between stroke cases and control subjects. Methods — IgG and IgM anticardiolipin and antiphosphatidyl serine antibody titers were obtained on serum samples from 884 stroke patients and 1024 control subjects over a 7-year period. Temporal distributions by month of blood draw were evaluated. Results — Marked seasonal differences in the proportion of positive titers were found for control subjects, but no seasonal variability among patients was noted. In control subjects, positive titers occurred less frequently in the summer months, mirroring the seasonal trends seen in respiratory track infections and rheumatic fever. Conclusions — Our data suggest some aPL antibodies arise from different origins in patients and control subjects. The seasonality observed in the apparently normal population may be related to antibodies of infectious origin and is consistent with the reported lack of association with thrombosis of infection-related antibodies.
The role of Fas ligand in immune privilege

Immune privilege is a property of some sites in the body, whereby immune responses are limited or prevented. One explanation that has been proposed for this phenomenon is engagement of the pro-apoptotic molecule Fas by its ligand (FasL), which leads to apoptosis, and consequently limits an inflammatory response. This idea has recently been challenged, and here we review the evidence for and against a role for FasL in immune privilege.
The effects of chronic haloperidol administration on GABA‐immunoreactive. Axon terminals in rat medial prefrontal cortex

Several reports have suggested that chronic haloperidol (HAL) treatment induces ultrastructural changes in synapses of substantia nigra, corpus striatum, and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) of rat brain. The effects of HAL on specific cortical transmitter systems, however, are not well characterized. Recent studies have indicated that there may be a loss of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic cells in anterior cingulate cortex of schizophrenic subjects and this hypothesis has prompted interest in the question of whether dopamine receptor antagonists, such as HAL, may influence the activity of this transmitter system. This current report describes a quantitative light microscopic analysis of GABA-immunolabeled axosomatic terminals in mPFC of rats treated with HAL decanoate (0.5 mg/kg/day, i.m.) for a period of 4 months. GABA-containing terminals were visualized with an avidin-biotin immunoperoxidase method for localizing anti-GABA antibodies. Computer-assisted image processing was employed to determine the total number of pixels representing GABA-immunoreaction product in axon terminals that were in direct apposition to pyramidal cell bodies. Drug-treated animals showed a significant increase in the number of pixels representing GABA-immunoreaction product in axosomatic terminals of layers II, III, V, and VI (93%, 63%, 31%, and 43%, respectively). These data are consistent with the idea that chronic HAL administration may be associated with a significant increase in the amount of GABA present in terminals surrounding pyramidal neurons of rat mPFC. The fact that GABA-containing terminals showed the greatest increase in layer II is not consistent with the known distribution of dopamine afferents to this region which is lowest in superficial laminae. Based on the laminar distribution of non-dopaminergic receptor types that have a high affinity for HAL, the effect of this drug on GABAergic transmission could potentially involve changes that are mediated through mechanisms in which 5-HT2 or sigma opiate receptors play a role. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
A Method for Assessing the Physiological Impairment Produced by Low-level Exposure to Pulmonary Irritants

Abstract A sensitive means is needed for discovering and measuring early and minimal degrees of pulmonary impairment following exposure to pulmonary irritants. Reduction in the rate of respiratory uptake of carbon monoxide is shown to provide such early and sensitive test. A simple apparatus and test procedure are described for measuring CO uptake in unanesthetized rats. By this method, measurable degrees of pulmonary impairment were demonstrated following short exposures (30 minutes) to phosgene in the concentration range from 5 ppm down to less than 1 ppm. Measurable reduction in CO uptake rate was found in animals, the lungs of which could not be distinguished histologically from those of unexposed animals.
Trends in copepod species abundances across and along a Gulf Stream meander: evidence for entrainment and detrainment of fluid parcels from the Gulf Stream

Abundances of zooplankton populations are hypothesized to change across and along Gulf Stream meanders in response to meander-associated physical processes. Upwelling and northward detrainment of Gulf Stream water occur upstream of the meander crest (trailing flank) while downwelling and entrainment of Slope Water into the Gulf Stream occur downstream of the meander crest (leading flank). Two mesoscale zooplankton surveys of a Gulf Stream meander were conducted in autumn 1988 as part of the BIOSYNOP program to identify cross-stream trends and meander-associated changes in species abundances. The abundances of eight selected copepod species (five Sargasso Sea species, two Slope Water species and one widespread species) were enumerated from samples taken along three transects at different locations along the meander. The integrated abundances (0–1000 m) of seven of the selected species support the hypothesized entrainment and detrainment. Sargasso Sea species were more abundant across the upwelling flank than across the downwelling flank, whereas the opposite was true for Slope Water species. Species abundances on a trailing flank transect (upstream of the upwelling region) demonstrate effective transport of Sargasso Sea/Gulf Stream species out of the current into the Slope Water. The relative proportions of two copepod species (Pleuromamma borealis and P. gracilis) were sensitive to the processes of entrainment and detrainment in the meander, suggesting that these two species are useful indicator species of their respective water masses. Gulf Stream meanders may be sites of cross-stream exchange of plankton populations between the Sargasso Sea and the Slope Water.
The temperature dependent thermal and electrical resistivity of high purity silver from 2 to 20 K

The low temperature (T), temperature dependent electrical resistivity (ϱ), and thermal resistivity (ω), have been measured in a sample having a residual resistivity ratio of 10,000: 1. Below approximately 10 K ϱ ∝ T5 and ω ∝ T2 — in excellent agreement with theory. Both resistivities are considerably smaller than those obtained by previous workers on less pure samples. Above 10 K the resistivities rise more rapidly with temperature — particularly for ω. The experimentally determined temperature dependent Lorenz number, Li = ϱωT is examined and suggests that the augmentation of the horizontal scattering of electrons by umklapp processes is greater for ω than for ϱ.
Women's Medical Practice and Health Care in Medieval Europe

It is a commonplace-both in histories of medicine and histories of women-that throughout the Middle Ages "women's health was women's business."' Midwives, it is claimed, were the sole providers of women's health care, and they maintained an unchallenged monopoly on this specialty of medicine until it was gradually wrenched away from them by so-called man-midwives in the course of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. At least two assumptions lie embedded in statements such as these: first, that "midwife" is necessarily synonymous with "caretaker of all of women's health
Neuropsychiatric aspects of Alzheimer's disease: The cholinergic hypothesis revisited

Altered cholinergic function is a prominent feature of AD. The neuropsychological impairments of AD are attributed, at least partially, to the cholinergic disturbance, and current approaches to treatment of the cognitive abnormalities attempt to enhance cholinergic function. Behavioral changes are common in AD and include psychosis, agitation, depression, anxiety, personality alterations, and neurovegetative changes. The contribution of the cholinergic deficiency to the behavioral alterations has been little explored, but neurochemical, neuroanatomic, pharmacologic, and clinical observations suggest that the cholinergic deficiency contributes importantly to the neuropsychiatric dimension of AD. Investigation of the role of cholinergic dysfunction in the behavioral changes of AD will improve understanding of the pathophysiologic basis of these abnormalities and may lead to new types of therapy for the neuropsychiatric disturbances associated with this common dementing disorder.
Using a Computer as an Environmental Facilitator to Promote Post-Head Injury Social Role Resumption

Abstract The purpose of this case study was to determine if an adult man with traumatic brain injury could use a computer as an environmental facilitator to assume adult social roles post-injury. The participant received four months of intervention in which (a) modifications to the computer's internal system, monitor, and keyboard were made, (b) the participant received instruction in adapted word processing and e-mail packages, and (c) the participant was provided with computer-related activities that were designed to enhance his participation in desired social roles. Participant observation and qualitative interview methods were used as data collection and analysis processes. As a result of his participation in the intervention, the participant was able to (a) re-establish his roles as a brother and an adult son, (b) develop and maintain an extended family of others beyond his family of origin, and (c) create a more satisfying adult work role that has brought greater meaning to his post-injury life.
Overcoming Blind Spots in Interaction Design: A Case Study in Designing for African AIDS Orphan Care Communities

The process of designing technological systems for the developing world is a challenging task. In a project that we undertook in the summer of 2007 using an iterative design process, we attempted to develop delay-tolerant networking technology on mobile phones to support workers at AIDS orphanages in Zambia and South Africa. Despite extensive preparations and research, we found that conditions on the ground were radically different from what we had anticipated, and we had to quickly re-group and redefine our strategic goals. This experience made us realize that, for this type of design, resiliency and contingency planning were the most valuable tools in our interaction design toolbox. In response to changing conditions, we rapidly prototyped a different mobile telephony application called Nomatic*AID that provides a feedback loop among donors, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and field workers. In this paper, we reflect on the redirection of our work once we reached our field site and our resulting acceptance of design blind spots. We present lessons we learned to help practitioners meet their goals in the presence of considerable and obvious design distance.
Examination of nonfat dry milk for the presence of nitrosamines.

Abstract Nonfat dry milk prepared using indirect steam heat and direct gas firing was examined for detectable levels of nitrosamines. The addition of ten nanograms of nitrosamine per gram of nonfat dry milk could be detected by oxidation of the extracted nitrosamine to nitramines and detection by electron capture gas chromatography. No volatile nitrosamines were found in freshly prepared or stored (30 days) dry milk dried by indirect steam heat or by direct gas firing.
Optimizing equivalence checking for behavioral synthesis

Behavioral synthesis is the compilation of an Electronic system-level (ESL) design into an RTL implementation. We present a suite of optimizations for equivalence checking of RTL generated through behavioral synthesis. The optimizations exploit the high-level structure of the ESL description to ameliorate verification complexity. Experiments on representative benchmarks indicate that the optimizations can handle equivalence checking of synthesized designs with tens of thousands of lines of RTL.
Capital budgeting for new projects: On the role of auditing in information acquisition

Abstract This article studies capital budgeting for new projects in which information is acquired by managers. When information acquisition costs are small, optimal capital budgeting is not qualitatively different from that for routine projects where managers have pre-existing information. However, the need to provide incentives to acquire information results in more intensive auditing and further distortions in capital allocations. When information acquisition costs are large, optimal capital budgeting differs from that for routine projects. To provide strong incentives for information acquisition, auditing becomes more extensive, and more than the first best amount of capital is allocated whenever auditing occurs.
789 Anesthesiologist Services for Colonoscopy: Practice Patterns in the Medicare Population

Anesthesiologist Services for Colonoscopy: Practice Patterns in the Medicare Population Gregory S. Cooper, Tzuyung D. Kou, Douglas K. Rex, Cesare Hassan Gastroenterology, University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Cleveland, OH; Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH; Medicine, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN Background: Anesthesiologist participation in endoscopy allows the use of propofol for sedation but increases total procedural costs. However, the prevalence of anesthesia for endoscopy and predictors of its use has not been recently studied at a population level. Methods: We obtained a random sample of outpatient colonoscopy claims from 2000-2007 in cancer-free, non-HMO Medicare beneficiaries aged 66 and older who resided in one of the SEER registry areas. The use of anesthesiology services was identified from procedure codes. We identified patient, procedure and geographic predictors of anesthesiology services in univariate and multivariable logistic regression models. Results: A total of 133,685 procedures met the entry criteria and included 26,162 with anesthesia codes (19.6%). The frequency of anesthesiology services increased progressively from 2000 (8.6%) to 2007 (28.6%) (Figure). Other predictors of receiving anesthesiology services (p 0.001) included younger age (21% for 76 vs. 14.4% for 84), increasing comorbidity (13.8%, 26.1%, and 25.6% for Charlson scores of 0, 1, and 2, respectively), polypectomy (24.1% vs. 14.3% others), and performance in an ambulatory surgery center (27.5% vs. 21.8% hospital outpatient). There were minor differences with gender, race, and physician specialty. We also observed significant geographic differences in anesthesiology service use (6.6% Southwest, 8.1% West, 15.8% South, 29.3% Midwest, 36.1% Northeast). These findings were consistent in multivariable analysis. Conclusions: A significant number of outpatient colonoscopies are performed with anesthesiology services, with progressive increases in frequency over the eight year study period. Although some of the differences may be attributed to patient risk factors, the marked geographic variation in use suggests physician discretion and local practice patterns as important determinants.
A 65nm Sub-V t Microcontroller with Integrated SRAM and Switched-Capacitor DC-DC Converter

This paper presents a 65nm sub-Vt SoC featuring a microcontroller core and custom 128Kb SRAM functional in sub-threshold, powered by a switched capacitor DC-DC converter that delivers variable load voltages from 0.3V to 0.6V.
Implicit and explicit optimizations for stencil computations

Stencil-based kernels constitute the core of many scientific applications on block-structured grids. Unfortunately, these codes achieve a low fraction of peak performance, due primarily to the disparity between processor and main memory speeds. We examine several optimizations on both the conventional cache-based memory systems of the Itanium 2, Opteron, and Power5, as well as the heterogeneous multicore design of the Cell processor. The optimizations target cache reuse across stencil sweeps, including both an implicit cache oblivious approach and a cache-aware algorithm blocked to match the cache structure. Finally, we consider stencil computations on a machine with an explicitly-managed memory hierarchy, the Cell processor. Overall, results show that a cache-aware approach is significantly faster than a cache oblivious approach and that the explicitly managed memory on Cell is more efficient: Relative to the Power5, it has almost 2x more memory bandwidth and is 3.7x faster.
Phylogeography of the ground squirrel subgenus Xerospermophilus and assembly of the Mojave Desert biota

Aim The Mohave ground squirrel (Xerospermophilus mohavensis) is one of a few endemic species of the Mojave Desert of south-western North America. We describe phylogeographic patterns within this species and its sister taxon (Xerospermophilus tereticaudus) and test hypotheses concerning their biogeographical history using genetic signatures of stable versus expanding populations. We compare these patterns with those of other Mojave species to evaluate the role of vicariance in producing phylogeographic structure during the assembly of the Mojave Desert biota. Location The Mojave Desert and adjacent desert regions of south-western North America. Methods Complete cytochrome b gene sequences of X. mohavensis (46 individuals representing 11 localities) and X. tereticaudus (38 individuals representing 14 localities) were analysed using Bayesian methods to infer phylogenetic relationships. Genetic signals of stable or expanding populations were examined based on the distribution of recent mutations and pairwise differences, as well as with a coalescent-based approach. Results The two species are reciprocally monophyletic and may have diverged in response to the late Pliocene–early Pleistocene uplift of the Transverse Ranges and Mojave block. Little phylogeographic structure is evident within X. mohavensis, but there is a signature of northern expansion from a presumably full-pluvial refugium in the Mojave River basin. Four geographic subgroups are evident within X. tereticaudus, and there is a signature of northern expansion from a presumably full-pluvial refugium in the Sonoran coastal plains. Roughly congruent phylogeographic patterns are found within five arid-adapted taxa, indicating a strong element of vicariance during the assembly of the generally transitional Mojave Desert biota. Main conclusions We present a preliminary model for the historical assembly of the Mojave Desert biota that indicates a strong vicariant element producing autochthonous lineages (including X. mohavensis) that diverged during the major geological and climatic events of the last 5 Myr. Phylogeographic partitioning within the Mojave Desert underscores the necessity of immediate conservation measures for this unique and fragile arid ecosystem that is locked between two large metropolitan population centres and is the target of continued adverse environmental impact.
Case Report: Simultaneous rupture of the fibularis tertius and subluxation of the proximal intertarsal joint of a horse

Case report: Simultaneous rupture of the fibularis tertius and subluxation of the proximal intertarsal joint of a horse. This case report describes the successful management of a horse with simultaneous rupture of the fibularis tertius and subluxation of the proximal intertarsal joint. The objective of the report is to highlight that successful management of these injuries can be achieved with conservative therapy in suitable horses.