cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Non-Volatile Photonic Weights and their Impact on Photonic Reservoir Computing Systems

Reservoir computing (RC) is a promising implementation of a non-von Neumann computing architecture. It is well-suited to solve time-dependent and dynamic problems like speech recognition or bitwise operations [1]. In principal integrated photonic RC offers energy-efficient, high-speed signal processing capabilities [1,2]. However, current photonic RC systems perform the linear combination of the complex reservoir states in software. Software weights are ideal (high precision, no drift), but limit the processing speed and energy efficiency of the RC system [2]. Here, we discuss a hardware implementation of photonic weights compatible with silicon photonic RC architectures. First, we demonstrate non-volatile synaptic weights based on ferroelectric barium titanate (BTO) thin films. Second, we explore how imperfections in these hardware weights impact the reservoir performance.
Continuous Online Learning and New Insights to Online Imitation Learning.

Online learning is a powerful tool for analyzing iterative algorithms. However, the classic adversarial setup sometimes fails to capture certain regularity in online problems in practice. Motivated by this, we establish a new setup, called Continuous Online Learning (COL), where the gradient of online loss function changes continuously across rounds with respect to the learner's decisions. We show that COL covers and more appropriately describes many interesting applications, from general equilibrium problems (EPs) to optimization in episodic MDPs. Using this new setup, we revisit the difficulty of achieving sublinear dynamic regret. We prove that there is a fundamental equivalence between achieving sublinear dynamic regret in COL and solving certain EPs, and we present a reduction from dynamic regret to both static regret and convergence rate of the associated EP. At the end, we specialize these new insights into online imitation learning and show improved understanding of its learning stability.
Estimating the Impact of Switching from a Lower to Higher Valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine in Colombia, Finland, and The Netherlands: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis

Widespread use of ten-valent (Synflorix™, GSK) or 13-valent (Prevenar 13™; Pfizer) conjugate vaccination programs has effectively reduced invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) globally. However, IPD caused by serotypes not contained within the respective vaccines continues to increase, notably serotypes 3, 6A, and 19A in countries using lower-valent vaccines. Our objective was to estimate the clinical and economic benefit of replacing PCV10 with PCV13 in Colombia, Finland, and The Netherlands. Country-specific databases, supplemented with published and unpublished data, informed the historical incidence of pneumococcal disease as well as direct and indirect medical costs. A decision-analytic forecasting model was applied, and both costs and outcomes were discounted. The observed invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) trends from each country were used to forecast the future number of IPD cases given a PCV13 or PCV10 program. Over a 5-year time horizon, a switch to a PCV13 program was estimated to reduce overall IPD among 0–2 year olds by an incremental − 37.6% in Colombia, − 32.9% in Finland, and − 26% in The Netherlands, respectively, over PCV10. Adults > 65 years experienced a comparable incremental decrease in overall IPD in Colombia (− 32.2%), Finland (− 15%), and The Netherlands (− 3.7%). Serotypes 3, 6A, and 19A drove the incremental decrease in disease for PCV13 over PCV10 in both age groups. A PCV13 program was dominant in Colombia and Finland and cost-effective in The Netherlands at 1 × GDP per capita (€34,054/QALY). In Colombia, Finland, and The Netherlands, countries with diverse epidemiologic and population distributions, switching from a PCV10 to PCV13 program would significantly reduce the burden of IPD in all three countries in as few as 5 years.
Association between pulse pressure and aortic calcification: Findings from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2013-2014.

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is a low-cost, minimal radiation technique commonly used to assess bone density and body composition that can also provide a measure of abdominal aortic calcification (AAC). We examined the association between pulse pressure (PP) and DXA-derived AAC in a nationally representative sample of US adults. Analyses were performed in 2,478 adults from the 2013-2014 NHANES cycle. AAC scores were calculated using a validated 24-point scale from thoraco-lumbar spine images (scored 1-6 across four vertebral heights from L1-L4 for both anterior and posterior aortic walls). We examined PP as a predictor of both the presence (dichotomous) and magnitude (continuous) of AAC in age-stratified analyses (<60 years of age and ≥60 years of age) adjusting for traditional cardiovascular disease risk factors, sex, mean arterial pressure and additionally for age and antihypertensive medication. The prevalence of AAC was 25.5%. PP was a predictor of the presence of AAC in fully adjusted models in adults <60 years of age (OR 1.31, P < .05) and ≥60 years of age (OR 1.33, P < .05). PP was also associated with the magnitude of AAC in the overall sample but did not retain significance after separating by age-groups and additionally adjusting for antihypertensive medication. In conclusion, PP is associated with the presence of AAC as measured by DXA in a nationally representative sample of US adults.
Neuroinflammatory and Behavioral Outcomes Measured in Adult Offspring of Mice Exposed Prenatally to E-Cigarette Aerosols.

Background: In an effort to decrease the rates of smoking conventional tobacco cigarettes, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) have been proposed as an effective smoking cessation tool. However, l...
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in the management of granulomatosis with polyangiitis.

Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA, also known as Wegener's granulomatosis) is a type of systematic vasculitis that primarily involves the lung and kidney. Diffuse alveolar hemorrhage (DAH) and associated acute respiratory failure are uncommon but devastating complications of GPA. Experience in using extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) to manage DAH caused by GPA is limited. We report two GPA patients with DAH that were successfully managed using ECMO support. Examining 13 cases identified in the literature and two of our own, we observed that most patients experienced rapid deterioration in respiratory function in conjunction with a precedent respiratory infection. All 15 patients received veno-venous ECMO support. The median duration of ECMO support was 11 days (interquartile range: 7.5-20.75 days). Bleeding was the most common complication, seen in four (26.7%) cases. All patients were successfully weaned off ECMO after a median length of hospital stay of 42 days (interquartile range: 30-78 days). We demonstrated that the use of ECMO is a reasonable and effective support option in the management of GPA patients with DAH. The risk of bleeding is high but maybe reduced using a lower anticoagulation goal.
Heart Transplant Waitlist Outcomes and Wait Time by Center Volume: Where Should You List?

Purpose With new devices and policy changes in the heart transplantation, patients are faced with increasingly complex management options. Among one of the decisions they must make is which transplant center they can and should list under. Here we explored waitlist outcomes by transplant center volume. Methods We performed a retrospective analysis of adults listed for primary heart transplantation from 2008 to 2018 using the UNOS Database. Transplant centers were split into low ( 30 HTx/year) volume. Multivariable Cox Proportional Hazards analysis identified predictors of death prior to transplantation; Cox model was adjusted for age at listing, transpulmonary gradient, and use of LVAD while on the waitlist. Results Of the 37,779 patients included in our study, only 24,285 (64.3%) underwent transplantation. Of the remaining 13,494, 6,687 (49.6% of non-transplanted patients) died before receiving transplantation. Of the 140 centers, 51 were low volume (1,412 HTx), 64 were medium volume (11,687 HTx), and 25 were high volume (11,186 HTx); 118 patients were listed at centers which did not perform any transplants in the years analyzed. LVAD utilization (at listing or while listed) was 20.2% for low, 31.8% for medium, and 25.1% for high volume centers. Of the 3,192 patients listed in low-volume centers, only 1,412 (44.2%) underwent transplantation, while 800 (25.1%) died prior to transplant; of the 18,538 listed in medium volume centers, 11,687 (63.0%) underwent transplantation, while 3,343 (18.0%) died prior to transplant; of the 15,931 listed in high volume center, 11,186 (70.2%) underwent transplantation, while 2,503 (15.7%) died prior to transplant. Average time on waitlist was 328.7 + 453.7 days for low-volume, 358.5+469.8 for medium-volume, and 313.7+484.6 for high-volume centers (p = NS). Cox proportional hazards analysis demonstrated listing at a higher volume center to be an independent predictor of lower death rate while on transplant waitlist (HR 0.89, P Conclusion Survival to transplantation was higher for patients listed in higher volume centers. This may be associated with higher utilization rates of LVADs which was also associated with improved waitlist outcomes, or possibly better management of advanced heart failure in centers more experienced with this patient population.
Virtual SIMsanity: Strategies for successful simulation for medical educators during the era of social distancing

Telesimulation has overcome challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing. It requires a videoconferencing platform, audiovisual equipment and an internet connection. While learner feedback is favourable, there are issues to be aware of and address. This letter discusses strategies for successful telesimulation (table 1). View this table: Table 1 Recommendations for conducting telesimulation Commercially available telecommunication platforms, such as Zoom, are available which most instructors and learners are familiar with and which most institutions own the licenses to so there are no additional out-of-pocket expenses.1 Audio quality should be maximised for the instructor and learner. Instructors may be able to use the microphones and speakers built in the computers. Lapel microphones or headsets with built-in microphones may improve the audio experience for learners. Learners should be advised to wear earbuds or headphones in order to better appreciate any low-pitched sounds, such as heart or lung sounds. There may be delays in audio causing interruption of the session. Slow and clear hand signals may be effective should this occur.2 The ‘chat’ function can also be helpful in bridging audio lag and to communicate with learners who may be having microphone issues or are tentative about speaking up.3 If the instructor is using more than one computer or phone, remember to mute both the microphones and speakers on any additional computers to eliminate disruptive …
Canonical features of human antibodies recognizing the influenza hemagglutinin trimer interface

Broadly reactive antibodies targeting the influenza A virus hemagglutinin (HA) head domain are thought to be rare and to require extensive somatic mutations or unusual structural features to achieve breadth against divergent HA subtypes. Here we describe common genetic and structural features of protective human antibodies from several individuals recognizing the trimer interface (TI) of the influenza A HA head, a recently identified site of vulnerability. We examined the sequence of TI-reactive antibodies, determined crystal structures for TI antibody-antigen complexes, and analyzed the contact residues of the antibodies on HA to discover common genetic and structural features of TI antibodies. Our data reveal that many TI antibodies are encoded by a light chain variable gene segment incorporating a shared somatic mutation. In addition, these antibodies have a shared acidic residue in the heavy chain despite originating from diverse heavy chain variable gene segments. These studies show that the TI region of influenza A HA is a major antigenic site with conserved structural features that are recognized by a common human B cell public clonotype. The canonical nature of this antibody-antigen interaction suggests that the TI epitope might serve as an important new target for structure-based vaccine design.
A perspective on equity implications of net zero energy systems

Abstract We present examples of energy inequity, in both the current system and in potential net zero systems, and lay out some research needs in order to center equity in the study of net zero energy systems.
A Reminder That Stress Echocardiography Is Useful in Diagnosing Myocardial Ischemia in Nonobstructive Coronary Artery Disease: Case Series.

Identification of ischemia remains critical when assessing individuals presenting with atypical symptoms or in patients with known coronary artery disease (CAD). Several imaging modalities are currently available to attain this diagnostic goal. Unfortunately, not all case presentations are straightforward, particularly when microvascular dysfunction (MVD) is the cause of symptoms in the absence of identifiable epicardial luminal stenosis. Specifically, in such cases, current imaging guidelines do not include stress echocardiography (SE) as a recommended tool when assessing these patients. We present three cases that highlight the utility of SE for identifying MVD and provide mechanistic explanations. We believe that SE should not be completely discarded as an inadequate testing modality; we highlight the potential utility of this imaging modality not only in diagnosing CAD and pre-surgical evaluation of patients but also in identifying patients with MVD.
Efficient Analysis of COVID-19 Clinical Data using Machine Learning Models

Because of the rapid spread of COVID-19 to almost every part of the globe, huge volumes of data and case studies have been made available, providing researchers with a unique opportunity to find trends and make discoveries like never before, by leveraging such big data. This data is of many different varieties, and can be of different levels of veracity e.g., precise, imprecise, uncertain, and missing, making it challenging to extract important information from such data. Yet, efficient analyses of this continuously growing and evolving COVID-19 data is crucial to inform -- often in real-time -- the relevant measures needed for controlling, mitigating, and ultimately avoiding viral spread. Applying machine learning based algorithms to this big data is a natural approach to take to this aim, since they can quickly scale to such data, and extract the relevant information in the presence of variety and different levels of veracity. This is important for COVID-19, and for potential future pandemics in general. In this paper, we design a straightforward encoding of clinical data (on categorical attributes) into a fixed-length feature vector representation, and then propose a model that first performs efficient feature selection from such representation. We apply this approach on two clinical datasets of the COVID-19 patients and then apply different machine learning algorithms downstream for classification purposes. We show that with the efficient feature selection algorithm, we can achieve a prediction accuracy of more than 90\% in most cases. We also computed the importance of different attributes in the dataset using information gain. This can help the policy makers to focus on only certain attributes for the purposes of studying this disease rather than focusing on multiple random factors that may not be very informative to patient outcomes.
Purine analogs inhibit nerve growth factor-promoted neurite outgrowth by sympathetic and sensory neurons

Past studies have shown that purine analogs block certain, but not all, responses of cultured rat PC12 pheochromocytoma cells to nerve growth factor (NGF). In the present work, newborn rat sympathetic and sensory neurons were exposed to NGF in the presence or absence of the purine analogs 6-thioguanine and 2-aminopurine. These compounds reversibly suppressed NGF-dependent neurite outgrowth by the neurons and did so at concentrations comparable to those effective on PC12 cells. In contrast to their effects on neurites, neither compound significantly blocked NGF-promoted neuronal survival. Similar effects were seen with cultures of chick embryo sympathetic ganglia. These findings show that purine analog effects on NGF responses can be extended to mammalian and avian neurons. Moreover, the differential effects of the analogs on neurite outgrowth and survival indicate that these 2 actions of NGF can be dissected from one another and may represent different mechanistic pathways.
On-line Reorganization of Data in Scalable Continuous Media Servers

The number of simultaneous displays supported by a continuous media server (e.g, Mitra) depends on the number of disk drives as well as the amount of memory in the system. To support a higher number of displays, one may increase the number of disks in the system and reorganize the placement of data to incorporate their bandwidth. This study presents alternative on-line reorganization techniques that modify the placement of data without disrupting service. We quantify the memory and disk storage requirements of these techniques using analytical models.
Analytic Borderlands: Economy and Culture in the Global City

What happens to place in a global economy? And how is globalization inscribed — in the spaces of the economy and of culture, in built form, and generally in space? I want to use these questions to argue that the dominant narrative about economic globalization is a narrative of eviction. Key concepts in the dominant account — globalization, information economy, and telematics — all suggest that place no longer matters. And they suggest that the type of place represented by major cities may have become obsolete from the perspective of the economy, particularly for the leading industries as these have the best access to, and are the most advanced users of, telematics.
Hospital Healthcare Service Risk Assessment and Management with Risk-O-Meter Software Metrics for a Field Application

This applied research paper implements a practical methodology about how to assess and improve patient-centred quality of care in the light of nationwide healthcare quality mandate to disseminate and utilize results for the "most bang for the buck". Patient-centred quality of care risk assessment and management are inseparable aspects of healthcare in a hospital, yet both are frequently overlooked. In the State of Alabama, a 2004 study by the Kaiser Family Foundation found substantial dissatisfaction with the quality of healthcare as well as other related national reports and managing insurance companies. The primary author's automated software, Risk-O-Meter (RoM), supported by a simulation analysis to verify the analytical outcomes, will provide a patient-centred metric of hospital health-care risk, and risk mitigation advice for vulnerabilities and threats associated with automated management of healthcare quality in a hospital or clinic. The RoM will be demonstrated to assess and enhance quality in the case of an ambulatory or non-ambulatory patient seeking healthcare at local hospitals. The Risk of Service (RoS) metric out of a 100% will be followed up by a remedial cost-optimized game-theoretic analysis about how to mitigate an undesirable risk to a tolerable level by determining what first priority precautions to be taken. The primary goal of this survey paper is to evaluate a random sample of 15 subjects' questionnaires from various corners of the State of Alabama so as to indicate the practical applicability of this software with tangible results. These questionnaires have been examined by the RoM automated software algorithm resulting with conclusive risk measures and what to do toward a cost-effective risk mitigation and remedial action.
Exploiting intra-function correlation with the global history stack

The demand for more computation power in high-end embedded systems has put embedded processors on parallel evolution track as the RISC processors. Caches and deeper pipelines are standard features on recent embedded microprocessors. As a result of this, some of the performance penalties associated with branch instructions in RISC processors are becoming more prevalent in these processors. As is the case in RISC architectures, designers have turned to dynamic branch prediction to alleviate this problem. Global correlating branch predictors take advantage of the influence past branches have on future ones. The conditional branch outcomes are recorded in a global history register (GHR). Based on the hypothesis that most correlation is among intra-function branches, we provide a detailed analysis of the Global History Stack (GHS) in this paper. The GHS saves the global history in the return address stack when a call instruction is executed. Following the subsequent return, the history is restored from the stack. In addition, to preserve the correlation between the callee branches and the caller branches following the call instruction, we save a few of the history bits coming from the end of the callee's execution. We also investigate saving the GHR of a function in the Branch Target Buffer (BTB) when it returns so that it can be restored when that function is called again. Our results show that these techniques improve the accuracy of several global history based prediction schemes by 4% on average. Consequently, performance improvements as high as 13% are attained.
Solar Feature Identification using Contrasts and Contiguity

We present a new technique for the rapid, automatic identification of solar features on full-disk photometric images. The technique permits the detection of features whose contrasts are only slightly above the noise level. Contrast and contiguity criteria are used to identify pixels belonging to an individual feature. The criteria used are simple and objective, and do not require one to guess at the contrast distribution of the features. Comparison of Ca ii K images with magnetograms shows excellent agreement between the identified features and observed magnetic features. In addition, we can now reliably identify faculae on continuum images. Since this technique can be rapidly applied to a large set of images, it allows us to compile a database of the physical and photometric properties of individual solar features.
Flexible promoter architecture requirements for coactivator recruitment

The spatial organization of transcription factor binding sites in regulatory DNA, and the composition of intersite sequences, influences the assembly of the multiprotein complexes that regulate RNA polymerase recruitment and thereby affects transcription. We have developed a genetic approach to investigate how reporter gene transcription is affected by varying the spacing between transcription factor binding sites. We characterized the components of promoter architecture that govern the yeast transcription factors Cbf1 and Met31/32, which bind independently, but collaboratively recruit the coactivator Met4. A Cbf1 binding site was required upstream of a Met31/32 binding site for full reporter gene expression. Distance constraints on coactivator recruitment were more flexible than those for cooperatively binding transcription factors. Distances from 18 to 50 bp between binding sites support efficient recruitment of Met4, with only slight modulation by helical phasing. Intriguingly, we found that certain sequences located between the binding sites abolished gene expression. These results yield insight to the influence of both binding site architecture and local DNA flexibility on gene expression, and can be used to refine computational predictions of gene expression from promoter sequences. In addition, our approach can be applied to survey promoter architecture requirements for arbitrary combinations of transcription factor binding sites.
MRI of the Hip for the evaluation of femoroacetabular impingement; past, present, and future.

The concept of femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) has, in a relatively short time, come to the forefront of orthopedic imaging. In just a few short years MRI findings that were in the past ascribed to degenerative change, normal variation, or other pathologies must now be described and included in radiology reports, as they have been shown, or are suspected to be related to, FAI. Crucial questions have come up in this time, including: what is the relationship of bony morphology to subsequent cartilage and labral damage, and most importantly, how is this morphology related to the development of osteoarthritis? In this review, we attempt to place a historical perspective on the controversy, provide guidelines for interpretation of MRI examinations of patients with suspected FAI, and offer a glimpse into the future of MRI of this complex condition.
Hendra and Nipah Viruses: Lethal Zoonotic Paramyxoviruses

An emerging or reemerging infectious disease is one which either has newly appeared in a population or, although previously recognized, has increased in incidence and/or expanded its known geographic range. Nipah virus (NiV) and Hendra virus (HeV) are novel, zoonotic paramyxoviruses, and are biosecurity level 4 (BSL-4) restricted. This chapter focuses on Henipavirus biology. The HeV and NiV membrane-anchored envelope glycoproteins are the mediators of virus attachment and infection of susceptible host cells and major determinants of host cell tropism. The pathology caused by both HeV and NiV in horses is of greater severity than that caused by NiV in pigs. During the initial NiV outbreak in Malaysia, some patients were treated with ribavirin, and there was some evidence that this therapy may have been clinically beneficial. For the henipaviruses, the development of vaccines or therapeutics has largely focused on targeting virus attachment and infection. A major advance in furthering the development of specific monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) has been through the implementation of the bacterial phage display platform with combinatorial antibody libraries. The development of potential livestock vaccines against henipaviruses may also be desirable, and recently, a recombinant canarypox-based vaccine candidate for swine has been examined. In light of the highly pathogenic natures of HeV and NiV, the development of recombinant subunit immunogens would also represent a viable approach for vaccine development because they are inherently safe and are administered without risk of infection.
Model for the fingering instability of spreading surfactant drops

We show that the Marangoni effect drives the fingering instability observed at the edge of an aqueous surfactant drop spreading on a thin film of water. A calculation of the unperturbed flow profile demonstrates that the spreading of the drop is controlled by the dynamics of a thin layer which develops in front of the drop. The surface-tension gradient in this region leads to the fingering instability via a mechanism mathematically similar to that in Hele-Shaw flow despite the very different underlying physics.
Transitions from small to large Fermi momenta in a one-dimensional Kondo lattice model

We study a one-dimensional system that consists of an electron gas coupled to a spin-1/2 chain by Kondo interaction away from half filling. We show that zero-temperature transitions between phases with ``small'' and ``large'' Fermi momenta can be continuous. Such a continuous but Fermi-momentum-changing transition arises in the presence of spin anisotropy, from a Luttinger liquid with a small Fermi momentum to a Kondo-dimer phase with a large Fermi momentum. We have also added a frustrating next-nearest-neighbor interaction in the spin chain to show the possibility of a similar Fermi-momentum-changing transition, between the Kondo phase and a spin-Peierls phase, in the spin isotropic case. This transition, however, appears to involve a region in which the two phases coexist.
Effects of In-Plane Shear Loads on Transverse Shear Deformations in Composite Panels

An analytical and experimental investigation is performed to clarify the transverse shear deformations that occur in laminated and sandwich composite plates subjected to in-plane shear loads. This is part of a larger study investigating the feasibility of an in-plane shear test as a practical procedure to determine the in-plane shear modulus and/or strength of various material systems as well as the faces and cores of sandwich plates. The theorem of minimum potential energy has been used to determine the deflections and strains in the plate, including the transverse shear deformation effects. Polynomial functions that satisfy all the boundary conditions of the material system are used as trial functions. Comparison of these solutions to those first proposed by Nadai in 1925 revealed that additional terms are added to the original analysis (which used classical plate theory) to incorporate these effects. The methods developed clearly show the effects of the transverse shear deformation and are valid for any sandwich, laminate, or monocoque plate of any aspect ratio. Subsequent finite element and experimental analysis were conducted to verify the analytical study. Both the numerical and experimental results confirm that the analytical results are very good approximations for describing the linear deformation of the panels subject to in-plane shear loads.
Collisional coupling of N2(B3Πg) and N2(W3Δu) states studied by laser-induced fluorescence

Abstract The N 2 (B 3 Π g ) state was produced by laser excitation of N 2 (A 3 ∑ + u ) in Ne or Ar carrier gas in a flowing after glow apparatus. All of the vibrational levels initially populated by the laser, v' = 3–10, showed double exponential relaxation. The initial fast decay is associated with collisional coupling of the N 2 (B, v' ) level to adjacent N 2 (W 3 Δ u ) vibrational levels. The slow decay represents the overall decay of these coupled levels, which generates lower vibrational levels of N 2 (B 3 Π g )
Rethinking Statistics for Quality Control

As methods used for statistical process control (SPC) become more sophisticated, it becomes apparent that the required tools have not been included in courses that teach statistics in quality control. A basic description of these tools and their applica..
Lycanthropic frenetism in Pétrus Borel’s “Don Andréa Vésalius: L’Anatomiste”

Petrus Borel’s collection of short stories, Champavert: Contes immoraux, is perhaps the best example of frenetisme, a subgenre of Romanticism characterized by energy, violence, and cruelty. Like the other ecrivains frenetiques, Borel advocated social and political change, precepts that the self‐proclaimed lycanthrope incorporated in his literary creations. A close reading of “Don Andrea Vesalius: L’Anatomiste,” one of the Contes immoraux, reveals the extent to which the politics of 1830s France influenced Borel’s avant‐garde art.
Nonmajor histocompatibility complex alloantigen effects on the fate of Rous sarcomas

Abstract Rous sarcoma virus-induced tumor outcome is controlled by the MHC (B). Additional data, using controlled segregation in families, has indicated non-MHC effects as well, but few studies have focused on blood groups other than the B complex. Segregating combinations of genes encoding erythrocyte (Ea) alloantigen systems A, C, D, E, H, I, P, and L in B2B5 and B5B5 MHC (B) backgrounds were examined for their effects on Rous sarcomas. Six-week-old chickens were inoculated in the wing-web with 30 pfu of Rous sarcoma virus (RSV). Tumors were scored six times over a 10-wk period. A tumor profile index (TPI) was assigned to each chicken based on the six tumor size scores. Response was evaluated using tumor size at each measurement period, TPI, and mortality. The genotypes of Ea systems A, C, D, E, H, I, and P had no significant effect on any parameter in either B complex population. The Ea-L system had an effect on Rous sarcomas in the B2B5 intermediate responders and B5B5 progressors. Tumor size, TPI, and mortality were all significantly lower in B2B5 L1L1 chickens than in B2B5 L1L2 chickens. Mortality was lower in the B5B5 L1L1 birds than in B5B5 L1L2 chickens. It appears that the Ea-L system, or one closely linked, is acting in a manner independent of the B complex in response to RSV challenge.
Effective risk stratification of surgical and nonsurgical patients for venous thromboembolic disease.

Abstract Effective and safe methods of preventing venous thromboembolism (VTE) are now widely available, but a significant proportion of patients develop VTE either because thromboprophylaxis has not been used or because the intensity of thromboprophylaxis is not matched to the level of risk. Thromboembolic risk varies widely according to the clinical setting and presence of underlying risk factors, but VTE may not be suspected even in high-risk patients. Clinical risk factors for VTE include recent surgery, cancer, stroke, previous VTE, immobilization, and advanced age. Recent attention has focused on the role of inherited and acquired molecular factors in determining overall thromboembolic risk. These factors include the classic thrombo-philias—deficiencies of antithrombin III, protein C, and protein S—and several newly described molecular risk factors: factor V Leiden, the prothrombin 20210A gene mutation, and hyperhomocysteinemia. Based on emerging knowledge of risk factors, several risk assessment models (RAMs) have been devised that stratify patients according to overall VTE risk, allowing thromboprophylaxis to be tailored appropriately. Compared with older risk assessment formulas, current RAMs are simpler and include specific recommendations for thromboprophylaxis based on the available scientific evidence. Consensus documents on VTE prevention classify patients into low-, moderate-, and high-risk categories. More recently, a new risk group, very high risk, has been described. Very-high-risk patients are especially prone to thromboembolic complications and need intensive and in some cases prolonged thromboprophylaxis.
Long Period Activity of Indium Produced by Slow Neutrons

Indium was irradiated with slow neutrons from a radium-beryllium source for a period of several months. A period of 45\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}3 days was produced quite strongly. It is shown that this period is produced when ${\mathrm{In}}^{113}$ captures a neutron to form ${\mathrm{In}}^{114}$. The ratio of the activity of the long period to that of 54 minutes, due to ${\mathrm{In}}^{116}$, is approximately the same as the isotope ratio ${\mathrm{In}}^{113}$/${\mathrm{In}}^{115}$. The capture cross sections for the two processes are given by the relation ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{113}=0.56{\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{115}$.
ROLE REHEARSAL AND EFFICACY: TWO 15-MONTH EVALUATIONS OF A NINTH-GRADE ALCOHOL EDUCATION PROGRAM

A ninth-grade alcohol education program aimed at reducing drinking, drinking and driving, and riding with a drinking driver was developed on the basis of problem behavior theory, social cognitive theory and role theory. In Year 1 the program was taught by Social Studies teachers to half of the eighty-four ninth-grade classes in all nine junior high schools in a single school system; the other half served as controls. In Year 2 the program was taught to the ninth-grade students of the same school system by English teachers. Students' knowledge, skills and practices were measured before and four-six weeks and one year after the program. Results indicated significant increases in knowledge and perceived ability to resist pressures to drink among experimental students. No significant differences were noted for the drinking or the drinking and driving practices of either group. One year after the program, significantly fewer students in the experimental classes reported riding with a driver who had been drinking. Results suggested that English teachers were more effective than Social Studies teachers in teaching this program.
The Remaking of France: The National Assembly and the Constitution of 1791

Preface Part I: 1. The crisis of the Old Regime 2. The formation of the new ideal of the polity 3. The achievement of the new ideal of the polity 4. The new ideal of the polity reaffirmed Part II: 5. The reception of the new ideal of the polity 6. The realization of the new ideal of the polity 7. Rallying to the new ideal of the polity Conclusion Appendix Bibliographical note and list of manuscript sources.
Profit, Supply, and Factor Demand Functions

The concept of the profit function provides an alternative approach to the analysis of production. First, a brief exposition of the theory of profit function is presented. Then the profit function and the factor demand functions are formulated within the Cobb‐Douglas framework. A statiscal test is devised for testing the hypothesis of constant returns to scale in all factors on the profit function. As an application, both the profit and the factor demand function are estimated jointly, using data from Indian agriculture.
Carcinogenic Effect of a Dimethyl Sulphoxide Extract of Betel Nut on the Mucosa of the Hamster Buccal Pouch

THE high incidence of oral cancer in the Far East is generally attributed to the habitual use of betel nut “quids” which may contain, as well as betel nut, cured tobacco and various other organic and inorganic materials1–4. Attempts to extract from betel nut a material carcinogenic for oral tissues have not been successful5,6, possibly because extracts were prepared with solvents in which the carcinogenic materials were not soluble. We have therefore extracted betel nut, alone or in combination with cured tobacco, with dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) and applied the extracts in this vehicle. Our choice of DMSO was based on the evidence that it is an excellent solvent with a low toxicity7, that it has great powers of penetration8 and that it enhances the absorption of various drugs through skin and mucous membranes without apparently affecting their pharmacological properties9–12. Furthermore, the use of DMSO as a vehicle decreases the latency period for the production of oral tumours in hamsters with dimethylbenzanthracene13–14. We have found that repeated, topical applications of DMSO extracts of betel nut to the mucosa of the buccal pouch of hamsters result in the development of leukoplakia and tumours. The incidence of tumours increases when the extract is made from a mixture of betel nut and cured tobacco, although extracts of tobacco alone cause leukoplakia but not tumours.
Gut-enriched Krüppel-like factor regulates colonic cell growth through APC/β-catenin pathway

Studies on colorectal carcinogenesis have suggested a critical role of the adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene in the development of colorectal cancer. Gut-enriched Kruppel-like factor (GKLF) is a zinc-finger transcription protein with high expression in the colonic epithelium. Our previous studies have shown that GKLF transcript was significantly decreased in colon cancer tissue and suggested that it might play a role in the tumorigenesis of the colon. The signaling pathway of GKLF-regulated cell growth is currently unknown. We sought to determine if the functions of GKLF are mediated through the APC/β-catenin pathway. In a colon cancer cell line (HT29-APC), containing a zinc-inducible APC gene, GKLF mRNA levels were significantly increased when wild-type APC protein was induced. No effect on GKLF mRNA concentration was observed in a control cell line (HT29-β-gal), containing an analogous inducible lacZ gene. GKLF promoter activity was induced by co-transfection with wild-type APC DNA, suggesting that APC might be involved in transcriptional activation of the GKLF gene. In HT-29 cells, overexpression of GKLF resulted in decreases in β-catenin protein and mRNA levels and down-regulation of GKLF expression led to increase in β-catenin concentration. Overexpression of GKLF in HT-29 cells inhibited DNA synthesis and this effect was attenuated by co-transfection with wild-type β-catenin, suggesting an essential role of β-catenin in GKLF signaling. Furthermore, co-transfection of GKLF in colon cancer SW 480 cells abrogated the transcriptional activity of a β-catenin-T-cell factor (Tcf) reporter construct in a dose-dependent manner. These findings indicate that the growth-suppressive effect of GKLF may be mediated through the APC/β-catenin pathway. We speculate that when APC is mutated, GKLF gene expression is down-regulated, resulting in increases in β-catenin level and transactivation of growth-promoted genes.
On the efficacy of imploding plasma liners for magnetized fusion target compression

A new theoretical model is formulated to study the idea of merging a spherical array of converging plasma jets to form a “plasma liner” that further converges to compress a magnetized plasma target to fusion conditions [Y. C. F. Thio et al., “Magnetized target fusion in a spheroidal geometry with standoff drivers,” Current Trends in International Fusion Research II, edited by E. Panarella (National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Canada, 1999)]. For a spherically imploding plasma liner shell with high initial Mach number (M=liner speed/sound speed) the rise in liner density with decreasing radius r goes as ρ∼1∕r2, for any constant adiabatic index γ=dlnp∕dlnρ. Accordingly, spherical convergence amplifies the ram pressure of the liner on target by the factor A∼C2, indicating strong coupling to its radial convergence C=rm∕R, where rm(R)=jet merging radius (compressed target radius), and A=compressed target pressure/initial liner ram pressure. Deuterium-tritium (DT) plasma liners with initial velocity ∼100km...
Altered Glutamatergic and GABAergic Mechanisms in the Cingulate Cortex of the Schizophrenic Brain

The arthcle in this issue of theArchivesentitled "Glutamate Receptor Dysfunction and Schizophrenia" by Olney and Farber1presents a provocative hypothesis concerning the role ofN-methyl-Daspartate (NMDA)—mediated glutamatergic dysfunction in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. The ideas have evolved out of Dr Olney's studies of phencyclidine (PCP)-induced neurotoxicity in the cingulate and retrosplenial cortices of the rat brain and his subsequent efforts to elucidate the neuropharmacological characteristics of this effect. It is timely that the authors have brought together this body of work and that they have used it to model several key questions concerning schizophrenia. Toward this end, the article focused primarily on animal investigations to support the details of the model circuit they presented in Figure 4. It is noteworthy that other data from postmortem studies can corroborate several aspects of the Olney and Farber model, particularly the central idea that there may be
Analyzing anger : How to make people mad

Does simple displeasure cause anger without appraisals or agency attributions? The authors offer 8 observations: (a) Appraisal theory also predicts that displeasure promotes anger, (b) An emotion of frustration can be usefully distinguished from anger, (c) Aggressive reactions to norm violations among animals suggest that they too distinguish bad behavior from bad outcomes, (d) Attributions to agency are perceptual and automatic in social situations, (e) It is tenuous to argue that agency attributions are enacted in angry aggression, but absent in anger elicitation. (f) The contextualized meanings of expressive movements, rather than movements themselves, elicit emotion, (g) Expressions may be better seen as constituents than as causes of emotions, (h) Cognitive components of emotion generally come before, not after, eliciting events. Language: en
Ribosome Shifting or Splitting: It Is All Up To the EF-G

Mitochondria possess two elongation factor Gs: one with translocation activity (EF-G1mt) and the other with no confirmed activity (EF-G2mt). Tsuboi et al. (2009) now show that the function of EF-G2mt is not in elongation but, rather, in ribosome recycling.
Binding of formaldehyde to human and rat nasal mucus and bovine serum albumin.

Abstract The function of the nasal mucociliary apparatus, an important airway defense mechanism, is inhibited by inhaled formaldehyde. Nasal mucus, which contains significant concentrations of glycoprotein and soluble proteins, is an integral component of this system. This investigation addresses some reactions of formaldehyde with human and rat mucus in vitro in comparison with a model protein, bovine serum albumin. [14C]Formaldehyde was incubated with reconstituted preparations of human and rat nasal mucus or bovine serum albumin. Formaldehyde adducts, stabilized by sodium cyanoborohydride reduction to methylamines, were separated by Sepharose 2B gel filtration. [14C]Formaldehyde bound exclusively to one component of nasal mucus which had an elution volume identical to that of albumin. There was no detectable binding to the large molecular weight glycoproteins. The time course of reaction of formaldehyde to free amino groups was then measured using the fluorescamine technique. Formaldehyde binding was characterized by an initial fast phase ( 60 min). The rate of binding to human and rat nasal mucus was similar to albumin. Irreversible binding of formaldehyde to albumin was insignificant within the first 60 min indicating the reversibility of binding during this time. These data indicate that within the first 60 min, formaldehyde reacts rapidly and reversibly with nasal mucus and that it binds primarily to one component of nasal mucus. Gel filtration analysis suggests this component may be albumin although other low molecular weight proteins cannot be ruled out.
Minimal neural networks: Differentiation of classification entropy

Abstract Harrington, P. de B., 1993. Minimal neural networks: differentiation of classification entropy. Chemometrics and Intelligent Laboratory Systems , 19: 143–154. Minimal neural networks (MNNs) differ from other neural networks in that they use localized processing. Expressions for the partial derivatives of the fuzzy entropy of classification have been obtained. The use of partial derivatives by minimal neural networks improves both efficiency and efficacy over the numerical computations. The MNNs described are FuRES-1 and FuRES-2 that build classification trees whose rules are composed of a neural unit and a neural layer, respectively. Training uses a directed simulated annealing approach that has robust characteristics. The stability of the algorithm with regard to initial conditions is evaluated for single unit and dual unit rules. FuRES-2 is compared to backpropagation neural networks using a mass spectral library search post-filter that identifies classes of saturated octanols and differentiates them from ethers.