cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Archeology and the evolution of human behavior

Human paleontology and Paleolithic archeology both focus on the most ancient phases of human prehistory, and they often draw their materials from the same sites. Yet, since the mid-19th century when both fields were founded, their practice and theory have remained largely separate. As the 21st century dawns, human paleontologists are trained mainly in human anatomy or biological anthropology, and they take their theory principally from late 20th century evolutionary biology. In contrast, Paleolithic archeologists are trained to recover and sort ancient material residues, and their interpretative frameworks stem primarily from cultural anthropology. The difference in practice means that human paleontologists are usually ill-equipped to assess controversies in Paleolithic archeology and vice versa. The difference in theory is more profound, since human paleontologists unflinchingly attribute major morphological changes or differences to natural selection, mutation, gene drift, or gene flow. Paleolithic archeologists in contrast tend to ascribe major behavioral changes to newly developed cultural strategies or to population growth, even when the changes coincide with conspicuous morphological changes. Many especially reject biological explanations for perceived behavioral differences between modern humans and their immediate precursors, and some believe that such explanations smack of racism.1 Yet those who accept the reality of human evolution must also accept that some ancient humans must have lacked the inborn capacity to participate in historic human societies. Since we lack historic analogs for such premodern people and archeology cannot substitute for an eyewitness account, we can
Contact Hypersensitivity to Simple Chemicals. Incubation of Sensitized Guinea Pig Peritoneal Exudate Cells.

SummaryThe incubation of peritoneal exudate cells in Hanks balanced salt solution at 37 C, causes the release of a factor into the solution capable of specific transfer of contact sensitivity to DNFB. The release of this factor from 17-day cells appears to be complete since neither whole cells nor sonic extracts will transfer following incubation. After incubation, 13-day whole cells will transfer, yet sonic extracts of 13-day cells fail to transfer before or after incubation. The transfer factor is also released from 13-day cells in the presence of the specific DNP-protein conjugate, and in this case again, the release appears complete. DNP-protein conjugate does not cause the release of transfer factor from 17-day cells, nor does incubation in the presence of the conjugate interfere with transfer capability of the whole cell or, possibly, of the sonic extract as seen in one experiment. Transfer factor, when released, is specific and does not possess reactive capacities associated with classical antibody.
Fatty acids in virus-infected worker honey bees (Apis mellifera)

Lipids extracted from virus infected Apis mellifera adult workers and from uninfected workers were analyzed for total fatty acids by gas-liquid chromatography. In infected bees, the relative amount of C18:1 increased and C16:0, C18:2, and C18:3 decreased. Saturated acids comprised a smaller fraction of the total acid content of infected bees than of uninfected bees. The effect of virus infection on fatty acid content differed from the effect of infection with Nosema apis previously reported.
Characterization of the Escherichia coli gcv operon

Abstract The nucleotide (nt) sequence of the Escherichia coli gcvP gene was determined. The polypeptide deduced from the DNA sequence has an Mr of 104375 (957 amino acids). In a minicell system, gcvP encodes a polypeptide that migrates at 93.3 kDa on sodium dodecyi sulfate-polyacrylamide gels. After the coding region, there is a 39-nt sequence followed by a T-rich sequence within which transcription appears to terminate. This region is preceded by a G + C-rich sequence that could form a stable stem-loop structure once transcribed, and is characteristic of Rho-independent transcription terminators. A Northern analysis identified an approx. 4700-nt RNA molecule, large enough to encode the T-, H-and P-proteins of the glycine cleavage enzyme complex. Analyses of gcvP::lacZ fusions with and without stop codons in gcvT, the first gene in the operon, confirmed gcvT, gcvH and gcvP lie in an operon. RNA slot blot analyses indicated that induction of gcv by glycine, and PurR-mediated repression of gcv occur at the level of transcription.
Mitomycin Betaines: Synthesis, Structure, and Solvolytic Reactivity†

7-N-[2-(Methylamino)ethyl]mitomycin C (2b) and 7-N-[2-(ethylamino)ethyl]mitomycin C (2c) underwent rapid C(8) cyclization and oxidation to generate the novel quinoxaline mitomycin betaines 5a,b, respectively. Correspondingly, treatment of mitomycin A with N-methyl-1,2-phenylenediamine gave phenazine mitomycin betaine 17. Similar spectral properties were observed for the three heteroaromatic zwitterionic compounds 5a,b, and 17. We have learned that the formation of 5a,b proceeds by initial cyclization of the terminal amine group to the mitomycin C(8) quinone carbon to generate the corresponding hemiaminal intermediate. Dissolution of 5a,b in buffered methanolic solutions (“pH” 5.5, 7.4) at 25 °C did not lead to aziridine ring opening. The reactivity of 5a,b is briefly discussed in terms of their electronic structures.
Anomalous phonon behavior in the high-temperature shape-memory alloy Ti50Pd50−xCrx

${\mathrm{Ti}}_{50}{\mathrm{Pd}}_{50\ensuremath{-}x}{\mathrm{Cr}}_{x}$ is a high-temperature shape-memory alloy with a martensitic transformation temperature strongly dependent on the Cr composition. Prior to the transformation, a premartensitic phase is present with an incommensurate modulated cubic lattice with wave vector of ${q}_{0}=(0.22,0.22,0)$. The temperature dependence of the diffuse scattering in the cubic phase is measured as a function temperature for $x=6.5$, 8.5, and $10\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{at.}\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}%$. The lattice dynamics has been studied and reveals anomalous temperature and $q$ dependences of the $[110]\text{\ensuremath{-}}{\mathrm{TA}}_{2}$ transverse phonon branch. The phonon linewidth is broad over the entire Brillouin zone and increases with decreasing temperature, contrary to the behavior expected for anharmonicity. No anomaly is observed at ${q}_{0}$. The results are compared with first principles calculation of the phonon structure.
An UPLC–MS/MS method for quantitative profiling of bile acids in sea lamprey plasma and tissues

Bile acids (BAs) have recently gained more attention because of their diverse roles from digestion to signaling. Simultaneous analyses of various BAs in biological samples are challenging due to their structural similarity, relatively low concentrations, and the presence of isomeric forms. In this study, we report a simple and sensitive UPLC-MS/MS method for simultaneous quantifications of 13 BAs including four unique sea lamprey BAs in sea lamprey plasma, liver, intestine, and gills. A straightforward protein precipitation (PPT) method was used to extract BAs from the biological samples. Separation of all target analytes was achieved on a reverse-phase UPLC column in 15min, and detection was carried out on MS/MS with ESI in the negative ionization mode. This method was validated regarding its linearity, limits of detection (LOD), recovery, matrix effect, reproducibility, accuracy and precision. Significant improvements compared to previous LC-MS/MS methods were observed as a result of the application of UPLC and extensive optimization of experimental conditions. The method showed excellent linearity with high regression coefficients (>0.99) over a range of 0.5-1000ng/mL and LODs ranged from 0.009 to 0.11ng/mL. The applications of the developed method demonstrated that it simultaneously determined all target BAs in different biological sample matrices with excellent sensitivity, selectivity and reproducibility.
Application of warm Langmuir probe in the plasma measurements inside plasma-chemical reactor

In this report possibilities of application of warm Langmuir probe in the chemically active plasma are described. We present the results of some probe characteristic measurements obtained by means of cold and warm tungsten and platinum probe. Various types of interaction of the probe with plasma are discussed. All experiments have been performed in low-pressure glow DC discharge in argon contaminated with oil vapours. The measurements with both probes are compared with respect to their suitability for application in active low-pressure plasma.
Electoral institutions, social cleavages, and candidate competition in presidential elections

Abstract Recent scholarship on the determinants of party fragmentation in legislative elections advocates an interactive model that incorporates the combined influence of political institutions and social cleavages. I assess the relative contribution of this new approach for understanding candidate competition in presidential elections. To do so I employ aggregate and public opinion data from two separate sample populations (50 and 39 presidential democracies respectively) to evaluate two models of candidate/partisan electoral competition: pure institutional and interactive (i.e., where the effect of electoral rules is conditioned by social cleavages). In terms of its explanatory power, a pure institutional model of candidate competition is at times superior to an interactive model, and always at least its equal. This is the case with social cleavages measured using both aggregate ethnic/racial data and public opinion data.
Elucidating cold acclimation pathway in blueberry by transcriptome profiling

A fundamental goal of cold acclimation research is to understand the mechanisms responsible for the increase in freezing tolerance in response to environmental cues. Changes in gene expression underlie some of the biochemical and physiological changes that occur during cold acclimation. Detailed and comprehensive transcriptome annotation can be considered a prerequisite for effective analysis and a fast and cost-effective way to rapidly obtain information in the context of a given physiological condition. By computational predictions and manual curation, we have annotated 454 sequence assemblies from two blueberry cDNA libraries that represent flower buds in the first and second stages of cold acclimation. Gene ontology functional classification terms were retrieved for 4343 (80.0%) sequences. GO annotation files compatible with a commonly used annotation tool have been generated and are publicly available. By mining the dataset further, it was possible to associate presence of certain transcripts related to carbohydrate metabolism and lipid metabolism with different stages of cold acclimation. This was concomitant with differential presence of Zn finger functional domains and C3H-family transcription factors. The expression of a few selected genes was validated by quantitative real-time PCR assay. Results demonstrate that our transcriptome database is a rich resource for mining cold acclimation-responsive genes.
The presumptive treatment of all school-aged children is the least costly strategy for schistosomiasis control in Plateau and Nasarawa states, Nigeria

AbstractThe results of previous studies in Nigeria indicate that 81% of the villages in Plateau and Nasarawa states probably qualify for the mass administration of praziquantel (PZQ) because of Schistosoma haematobium (SH) and/or S. mansoni (SM) infection. To determine the best strategy, relative costs were modelled for four different programmatic approaches to mass drug administration (MDA) at village level. The approaches considered were (1) village-by-village screening for SH (using dipsticks to test for haematuria), with MDA confined to those villages where at least 20% of school-aged children were found infected; (2) screening for both SM (using Kato–Katz smears) and SH, with MDA confined to those villages where at least 20% of school-aged children were found infected with SH or at least 10% of such children were found SM-positive; (3) the presumptive annual treatment of all school-aged children with PZQ (without village-by-village screening); and (4) the presumptive annual treatment of all eligible ...
Estimating pan evaporation using limited meteorological observations

Abstract Pan evaporation measurements have been used worldwide as a means of estimating evapotranspiration and free water surface evaporation. The availability of pan evaporation measurements is critical to many applications including irrigation scheduling, hydrologic modeling, and irrigation system design. The ability to predict daily pan evaporation based on limited meteorological observations is highly desirable. In many situations it is advantageous to calculate, rather than measure, pan evaporation. This is often the case in developing nations or remote locations where costs are prohibitive. Many relationships that predict pan evaporation or potential evapotranspiration as a function of limited meteorological observations have been developed. The relationships are often empirical, thus they suffer from lack of transferability. The relationship between potential evapotranspiration and pan evaporation facilitates local calibration of established equations using measured pan evaporation data. This calibration may then be extrapolated to locations that have similar climatic characteristics. A calibration procedure is presented and demonstrated by calibrating three equations using data from several sites located in the southeastern United States.
AskDragon: a redundancy-based factoid question answering system with lightweight local context analysis

We introduce our QA system AskDragon which employs a novel lightweight local context analysis technique to handling two broad classes of factoid questions, entity and numeric questions. The local context analysis module dramatically improves the efficiency of QA systems without sacrificing high accuracy performance.
Enterprise Discussion Analysis

Recent business studies have shown that social technologies can significantly improve productivity within enterprises by improving access to information, ideas, and collaborators. A manifestation of the growing adoption of enterprise social technologies is the increasing use of enterprise virtual discussions to engage customers and employees. In this paper we present an enterprise discussion analysis system which seeks to enable rapid interactive inference of insights from virtual online enterprise discussions. Rapid understanding is facilitated by extracting a hierarchy of key concepts, which represent a multi-faceted thematic categorization of discussion content, and by identifying high-quality thematic exemplar comments. The concept hierarchy and exemplar comments are presented through an intuitive web user-interface which allows an analyst to quickly navigate through the main concepts and the most relevant comments extracted from the discussion. We present a preliminary validation of system efficacy through user surveys provided to test users.
Laser Processing of Fe-Based Bulk Amorphous Alloy Coatings on Titanium

Laser Engineered Net Shaping (LENS™), a solid freeform fabrication technique, was employed for the processing of Fe-based bulk amorphous alloy (Fe BAA) powder on titanium. One and two layers of the Fe BAA were deposited with the same processing parameters. SEM and XRD analyses of the Fe BAA coatings revealed the retention of the feedstock powder’s amorphous nature. The mixing of the feedstock powder in the titanium substrate was very small. A crystalline-amorphous composite microstructure evolved from the laser processing in all types of coatings. The coatings were further laser remelted. The amorphous character was found to increase and the crystallites were found to grow during remelting. The Fe BAA coatings showed higher hardness and smaller wear volume compared to the Ti substrate. A further increase in these properties was observed after laser remelting treatment. During the wear testing in NaCl solution, Ti substrate showed intergranular corrosion, whereas the Fe BAA coatings showed signs of low and localized fretting corrosion in a saline environment. Our results demonstrate that using LENS™, amorphous coatings can be deposited on metallic substrates.
Molecular Analysis of Bacterial and Circovirus Bioaerosols in Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations

Respiratory illnesses are a significant cause of morbidity for individuals who work within concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs); however, most available information about CAFO aerobiology...
Sediment transport in Norton Sound, Alaska

Abstract The Yukon River, the largest single source of Bering Sea sediment, delivers >95% of its sediment load at the southwest corner of Norton Sound during the ice-free months of late May through October. During this period, surface winds in the northern Bering Sea area are generally light from the south and southwest, and surface waves are not significant. Although wind stress may cause some transport of low-density turbid surface water into the head of Norton Sound, the most significant transport of Yukon River suspended matter occurs within advective currents flowing north across the outer part of the sound. The thickest accumulations of modern Yukon silt and very fine sand occur beneath this persistent current. We monitored temporal variations in bottom currents, pressure, and suspended-matter concentrations within this major transport pathway for 80 days in the summer of 1977 using a Geological Processes Bottom Environmental (GEOPROBE) tripod system. The record reveals two distinctive periods of bottom flow and sediment transport: an initial 59 days (July 8–September 5) of fair-weather conditions, characterized by tidally dominated currents and relatively low, stable suspended-matter concentrations; and a 21-day period (September 5–September 26) during which several storms traversed the northern Bering Sea, mean suspended-matter concentrations near the bottom increased by a factor of five, and the earlier tidal dominance was overshadowed by wind-driven and oscillatory wave-generated currents. Friction velocities ( u ∗ ) at the GEOPROBE site were generally subcritical during the initial fair-weather period. In contrast, the 21-day stormy period was characterized by u ∗ values that exceeded the critical level of 1.3 cm/s more than 60% of the time. The GEPROBE data suggest that the very fine sand constituting about 50% of the sediment on the outer part of the Yukon prodelta is transported during a few late-summer and fall storms each year. A conservative estimate shows that suspended-matter transport during the storms in September 1977 was equal to four months of fair-weather transport.
Stomatopoda From the Collection of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan

Huit especes de stomatopodes sont signalees de la baie de Sagami. Deux d'entre elles sont de nouvelles especes de Squilla; deux autres, Harpiosquilla annandalei Kemp et Squilla gonypetes Kemp, n'avaient pas encore ete signalees des eaux japonaises. Les especes restantes etaient deja connues du Japon.
Sulfur K-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy and density functional calculations on Mo(IV) and Mo(VI)=O bis-dithiolenes: insights into the mechanism of oxo transfer in DMSO reductase and related functional analogues.

Sulfur K-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and density functional theory (DFT) calculations have been used to determine the electronic structures of two Mo bis-dithiolene complexes, [Mo(OSi)(bdt)2]1− and [MoO(OSi)(bdt)2]1−, where OSi = [OSiPh2tBu]1− and bdt = benzene-1,2-dithiolate(2−), that model the Mo(IV) and Mo(VI)═O states of the DMSO reductase family of molybdenum enzymes. These results show that the Mo(IV) complex undergoes metal-based oxidation unlike Mo tris-dithiolene complexes, indicating that the dithiolene ligands are behaving innocently. Experimentally validated calculations have been extended to model the oxo transfer reaction coordinate using dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) as a substrate. The reaction proceeds through a transition state (TS1) to an intermediate with DMSO weakly bound, followed by a subsequent transition state (TS2) which is the largest barrier of the reaction. The factors that control the energies of these transition states, the nature of the oxo transfer process, and the...
An improved crystal and molecular structure of guanidinium hydrogen oxalate monohydrate, C(NH 2)3HC2O4 · H2O

The title compound crystallizes in space groupP21/c witha = 6.6922 (25),b = 10.5468(8),c = 10.2125(19) A, β = 103.74(2) °, andZ = 4. The intensities were measured on an automated X-ray diffractometer, and the structure was refined to a finalR 1 of 3.3% for 1106 reflections. The hydrogen bonding scheme is as reported by Adams (1978) with one additional bond found.
Progressive disseminated histoplasmosis in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome

Purpose Progressive disseminated histoplasmosis is now diagnosed frequently in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) living in the central United States. Previous review articles of AIDS have failed to mention this infection. Herein, we describe 48 AIDS patients with progressive disseminated histoplasmosis in an effort to better understand the clinical presentation and diagnosis of the condition in this setting and to assess the efficacy of antifungal chemotherapy. Patients and methods In the Houston metro politan area, there were 66 cases of progressive disseminated histoplasmosis among 1,300 confirmed cases of AIDS from January 1983 to July 1987. Of AIDS patients in East Texas with histoplasmosis, 16 patients were available for follow-up by one of us, and the histories of 32 were obtained by examination of hospital charts and physician records. Results Fever, weight loss, and splenomegaly were the most common presenting signs and symptoms, occurring in 81, 52, and 31 percent, respectively. One-third of the patients had hematologic abnormalities. Infiltrates on chest roentgenograms were observed in 52 percent. Progressive disseminated histoplasmosis was the initial manifestation of AIDS in almost three-fourths of our patients. Biopsy and culture of the bone marrow established the diagnosis of progressive disseminated histoplasmosis in 69 percent. Clinical or autopsy proof of relapse occurred in three patients despite an initial course of more than 2 g of amphotericin B chemoherapy followed by ketoconazole suppression. Conclusion Progressive disseminated histoplasmosis is often the first sign of immunodeficiency in patients with AIDS, and the diagnosis of this condition is most often established by bone marrow biopsy and culture. Because of the permanence of the immunodeficient state in these patients, progressive disseminated histoplasmosis is resistant to treatment.
Change within youth crisis centers.

The authors, disillusioned by their experiences in a traditional psychiatric setting, began a crisis intervention center in October 1969. As this program increased in size, their desire to create a structure responsive to a different set of values came into conflict with internalized assumptions concerning “help,” and the role of the Organization. This paper attempts to create a conceptual framework useful in discussing the issues involved in this conflict. Distinctions between the innovative professional crisis center and the counter-cultural center are discussed.
Random versus realistic interactions for low-lying nuclear spectra.

We compare the shell-model results for realistic interactions with those obtained for various ensembles of random matrix elements. We show that, although the quantum numbers of the ground states in the even-even nuclei have a high probability ( $\ensuremath{\sim}60%$) to be ${J}^{\ensuremath{\pi}}{T\phantom{\rule{0ex}{0ex}}=\phantom{\rule{0ex}{0ex}}0}^{+}0$, the overlap of those states with the realistic wave functions is very small in average. The transition probabilities $B(E2)$ predicted with random interactions are also too small. The presence of the regular pairing is shown to be a significant element of realistic physics not reproduced by random interactions.
The Future of Marriage and Family in Black America

a. Countering the attacks by focusing on the strengths of Black families (e.g., Billingsley, 1968; Hill, 1972), or more recently to focus on Black middle-class families (Lndry, 1987; McAdoo, 1988). b. Agreement that there are problems among Black families, but placing emphasis on the structural conditions that caused them (e.g., Holmes-Norton, 1987). Earlier versions of this response tended to focus on what structural changes could be made that would directly affect Black families-increased employment opportunities for Black males for example. More recent versions have called for broader changes that would affect all families; Wilson (1987), for example, calls for a national child care policy that, while helping all employed mothers, will nevertheless "trickle down" to poor Black mothers who most need it. This latter version of the "structural cause/solution" response occurs as a result of increasing awareness of shrinking national resources and the accompanying shift in public opinion (Pinkney, 1984) that reduces the chance of providing direct assistance to the Black families. c. Acknowledging problems but focusing on what the Black community has done-or continues to do-to either perpetuate or alleviate these problems (Edelman, 1987).
Vacancy formation volume in indium from positron-annihilation measurements

An equilibrium method for the determination of the vacancy-formation volume in many metals is provided by the trapping of positrons at vacancies. Utilizing a Bridgman press and angular-correlation counting techniques, the vacancy-formation volume in metallic indium has been determined to be 6.1 +- 0.2 cm/sup 3//mole or 39 +- 1% of the molar volume.
Soleus H-reflex excitability changes in response to sinusoidal hip stretches in the injured human spinal cord

Imposed static hip stretches substantially modulate the soleus H-reflex in people with an intact or injured spinal cord while stretch of the hip flexors affect the walking pattern in lower vertebrates and humans. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of dynamic hip stretches on the soleus H-reflex in supine spinal cord injured (SCI) subjects. Sinusoidal movements were imposed on the right hip joint at 0.2 Hz by a Biodex system. H-reflexes from the soleus muscle were recorded as the leg moved in flexion or extension. Stimuli were sent only once in every hip movement cycle that each lasted 5 s. Torque responses were recorded at the hip, knee, and ankle joints. A hip phase-dependent soleus H-reflex modulation was present in all subjects. The reflex was facilitated during hip extension and suppressed during hip flexion. There were no significant differences in pre- or post-stimulus soleus background activity between the two conditions. Oscillatory responses were present as the hip was maximally flexed. Sinusoidal hip stretches modulated the soleus H-reflex in a manner similar to that previously observed following static hip stretches. The amount of reflex facilitation depended on the angle of hip extension. Further research is needed on the afferent control of spinal reflex pathways in health and disease in order to better understand the neural control of movement in humans. This will aid in the development of rehabilitation strategies to restore motor function in these patients.
Tem, Raman, and Langmuir Probe Studies of the Heteroepitaxial Growth of Metastable Cd(x)pb (1−X) Te Alloys Deposited on BaF2 by Low-Energy Bias Sputtering

Metastable Cd(x)Pb(1–x)Te films with x values from 0 to 0.47, well past the range of bulk thermodynamic solubility, have been grown on single crystal (lll) BaF 2 by co-deposition from CdTe and PbTe r.f. magnetron sputter targets. Cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy and transmission electron diffraction revealed epitaxial growth across the interface. However, the lattice of the deposited epilayers was observed to be typically rotated 180°C about the surface normal axis of the substrate. Raman spectra of the alloys showed no evidence of segregation. Langmuir probe diagnostics were employed to estimate the energy of the ions incident on the substrate during growth which promote extended miscibility in the alloy epilayers.
Effect of a Bicultural Community Health Worker on Completion of Diabetes Education in a Hispanic Population

OBJECTIVE To determine the effect of a bicultural community health worker (CHW) on completion of diabetes education in an inner-city Hispanic patient population and to evaluate the impact of completion of the education program on patient knowledge, self-care behaviors, and glycemic control. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Patients were randomized into CHW intervention and non-CHW intervention groups. All patients received individualized, comprehensive diabetes education from a certified diabetes nurse educator after baseline demographic information, diabetes knowledge, diabetes self-care practices, and glycohemoglobin levels were assessed. Rates of education program completion were determined. Diabetes knowledge, self-care practices, and glycohemoglobin levels were reassessed at program completion and at a later postprogram follow-up medical appointment and compared to baseline. Logistic regression analysis and the Mantel-Haenszel χ 2 statistic were used to determine the effect of the CHW assignment on program completion. Analyses of covariance were performed with end-of-treatment behavior scores, knowledge scores, and glycohemoglobin levels as outcome variables, controlling for baseline values and testing for the effect of CHW assignment. RESULTS Of 64 patients enrolled in the study, 40 (63%) completed and 24 (37%) dropped out before completing the diabetes education program. Of the patients having CHW intervention, 80% completed the education program, compared with 47% of patients without CHW intervention ( P = 0.01). “Dropouts” were younger (age 47.5 ± 12.5 years [mean ± SD]) compared with patients who completed the program (55.9 ± 9.9 years) ( P = 0.004). Dropout status showed no significant relationship to educational level achieved or literacy level. For the program “completers,” knowledge levels and selected self-care practices significantly improved, and glycohemoglobin levels improved from a baseline level of 11.7% to 9.9% at program completion ( P = 0.004) and 9.5% at the postprogram follow-up ( P P = 0.007). The effect of the CHW on knowledge, self-care behavior, or glycohemoglobin outcome variables was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that intervention with a bicultural CHW improved rates of completion of a diabetes education program in an inner-city Hispanic patient population irrespective of literacy or educational levels attained. Our data further suggests that completion of individualized diabetes educational strategies leads to improved patient knowledge, self-care behaviors, and glycemic control.
Effect of postoperative epidural analgesia on morbidity and mortality following surgery in medicare patients.

Background Because of the uncertainty and limitations in available randomized controlled trials, we performed an analysis of the Medicare claims database to determine whether an association exists between postoperative epidural analgesia and mortality. Methods A 5% nationally random sample of Medicare beneficiaries from 1997 to 2001 was analyzed to identify patients undergoing segmental excision of the lung (International Statistical Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification codes 32.3 and 32.4), complete pneumonectomy (code 32.5), partial excision of large intestine (codes 45.73 and 45.76), anastomosis of the esophagus (codes 42.5 and 42.6), total knee replacement/revision (codes 81.54 and 81.55), total/radical abdominal hysterectomy (codes 68.4 and 68.6), partial/radical pancreaticoduodenectomy (codes 52.5 and 52.7), partial/complete nephrectomy (codes 55.4 and 55.5), partial/complete cystectomy (codes 57.6 and 57.7), hepatotomy/lobectomy of the liver (codes 50.0 and 50.3), partial/total gastrectomy (codes 43.5 to 43.9), and radical retropubic prostatectomy (codes 60.4 and 60.5). Patients were divided into 2 groups, depending on the presence or absence of postoperative epidural analgesia. The rate of major morbidity and death at 7 and 30 days after surgery were compared. Multivariate regression analyses incorporating race, gender, age, comorbidities, hospital size, hospital teaching status, and hospital technology status were performed. Results The presence of epidural analgesia was associated with a significantly lower odds of death at 7 days (odds ratio [OR], 0.52; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.38 to 0.73; P = .0001) and 30 days (OR, 0.74; 95% CI, 0.63 to 0.89; P = .0005) after surgery; however, no difference was seen between the groups with regard to overall major morbidity, with the exception of an increase in pneumonia at 30 days for the epidural group (OR, 1.91;[95% CI, 1.09 to 3.34; P = .02). Conclusions Postoperative epidural analgesia may contribute to lower odds of death after surgery.
Health education in u.s. Medical care settings: history and future prospects.

This article traces the extraordinary transfer of control over an increasingly broadly defined sphere of living known as "health" to medical institutions and personnel in the U.S.A.--and examines the role of federal policy and secular trends in shaping the future of medical care. Changes in the prevalence and quality of health education in these settings are described in relationship to these organizational structures and the "leading edges" of health education in medical care are identified. The period of the 1940s and 1950s is described as characterized by rapid infrastructure development with emphasis on technology miracle drugs curing specialization and hospital construction with the hospital as the "emotional center of the physicians life." The late 1950s and 1960s solidified this resource base in an era characterized by ferment. Emphasis was on spreading access to health resources and building community based clinics with multiservice orientations; the growing consumer movement and a disenchantment with technology and medical control of life events such as childbirth and dying predominated along with the growth of alternative delivery systems and the introduction of the Medicare and Medicaid entitlement programs. The 1970s and 1980s are characterized by limits especially in spending restriction of growth regulation of effort and a new emphasis on disease prevention. The rise of health education in medical care is traced including the establishment of national centers for health government legislation on patients rights and patient education programs. Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) and their education programs which appeared in the 1970s are described along with the shift to marketing and profit for health education. Future trends are the shifting of the population age structure an oversupply of physicians and greater cost consciousness on the part of consumers. Changes envisioned include new institutional arrangements fee for service reimbursement for education and counseling services more public and private reimbursement and innovations in care. A table of competitive alternatives to hospital care is included. (authors modified)
Long-duration low-flow sevoflurane and isoflurane effects on postoperative renal and hepatic function.

Sevoflurane degradation by carbon dioxide absorbents during low-flow anesthesia forms the haloalkene Compound A, which causes nephrotoxicity in rats. Numerous studies have shown no effects of Compound A formation on postoperative renal function after moderateduration (3-4 h) low-flow sevoflurane; however, effects of longer exposures remain unresolved. We compared renal function after long-duration low-flow (<1 L/min) sevoflurane and isoflurane anesthesia in consenting surgical patients with normal renal function. To maximize degradant exposure, Baralyme® was used, and anesthetic concentrations were maximized (no nitrous oxide and minimal opioids). Inspired and expired Compound A concentrations were quantified. Blood and urine were obtained for laboratory evaluation. Sevoflurane (n = 28) and isoflurane (n = 27) groups were similar with respect to age, sex, weight, ASA status, and anesthetic duration (9.1 ± 3.0 and 8.2 ± 3.0 h, mean ± SD) and exposure (9.2 ± 3.6 and 9.1 ± 3.7 minimum alveolar anesthetic concentration hours). Maximum inspired Compound A was 25 ± 9 ppm (range, 6-49 ppm), and exposure (area under the concentration-time curve) was 165 ± 95 (35-428) ppm h. There was no significant difference between anesthetic groups in 24- or 72-h serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine clearance, or 0- to 24-h or 48- to 72-h urinary protein or glucose excretion. Proteinuria and glucosuria were common in both groups. There was no correlation between Compound A exposure and any renal function measure. There was no difference between anesthetic groups in 24- or 72-h aspartate aminotransferase or alanine aminotransferase. These results show that the renal and hepatic effects of long-duration low-flow sevoflurane and isoflurane were similar. No evidence for low-flow sevoflurane nephrotoxicity was observed, even at high Compound A exposures as long as 17 h. Proteinuria and glucosuria were common and nonspecific postoperative findings. Long-duration low-flow sevoflurane seems as safe as long-duration low-flow isoflurane anesthesia.
Should hybrids be protected by listing; Betula × sandbergii and Botrychium minganense in Vermont1

Abstract Recent consideration of two taxa, a fern (Botrychium minganense Vict.) and a birch (Betula × sandbergii Britton), for addition to the list of protected plants by the Vermont Scientific Advisory Group on Flora revealed the need for an assessment of hybrids in the context of the listing of rare taxa for protection. Though both are hybrids in that they are the product of secondary contact between divergent lineages, the two lie at opposite ends of the hybrid continuum. A consideration of the known array of hybrid biologies in the context of the conservation literature leads to the argument that the fern should be listed, but not the birch. Botrychium minganense is reproductively competent, fully isolated from its progenitors, and evidences a genetic heritage unique relative to them. However, Betula × sandbergii does not have the integrity or genetic uniqueness typical of the rare hybrid lineages that have been listed for protection, either at the state or national level. It lacks a unique gene pool ...
Qualifying qualitative research quality (The Q 3 project): An interactive discourse around research quality in interpretive approaches to engineering education research

This workshop is set against the context of a growing methodological diversity in the field of engineering education research with a range of qualitative or ‘interpretive’ methods currently being adopted by the research community. This mini-workshop will introduce participants to a theoretical framework for ensuring quality in interpretive engineering education research that was recently published in the Journal of Engineering Education. The framework will be introduced as a lens and language for participants to actively explore their own conceptions and practices around qualitative research quality.
Multifocal angiomyolipoma in a patient with tuberous sclerosis

Angiomyolipomas are rare lesions that occur most commonly in the kidney, but also can occur in the liver and rarely, in the lymph nodes. Its rare association with tuberous sclerosis has been suggested, but never proved. We report a patient with multiple visceral angiomyolipomas as well as visceral vessel aneurysms and tuberous sclerosis. The association of the three lesions suggests a possible common connective-tissue defect.
Pyrolysis of mesoporous silica-immobilized 1,3-diphenylpropane. Impact of pore confinement and size.

Mesoporous silicas such as SBA-15 and MCM-41 are being actively investigated for potential applications in catalysis, separations, and synthesis of nanostructured materials. A new method for functionalizing these mesoporous silicas with aromatic phenols is described. The resulting novel hybrid materials possess silyl aryl ether linkages to the silica surface that are thermally stable to ca. 550 °C, but can be easily cleaved at room temperature with aqueous base for quantitative recovery of the organic moieties. The materials have been characterized by nitrogen physisorption, FTIR, NMR, and quantitative analysis of surface coverages. The maximum densities of 1,3-diphenylpropane (DPP) molecules that could be grafted to the surface were less than those measured on a nonporous, fumed silica (Cabosil) and were also found to decrease as a function of decreasing pore size (5.6−1.7 nm). This is a consequence of steric congestion in the pores that is magnified at the smaller pore sizes, consistent with parallel st...
Home Care the American Way: An Historical Analysis

An historical inquiry, this study examines a 100 year tradition of home-based nursing care in the United States. Whether considering turn of the century origins or contemporary re-emergence, the continuities in organization and delivery of home-based care are apparent and striking. Most remarkable in the American saga of home-based care are our dependence on local definition of perceived need and appropriate response; the amount of individual ingenuity required to obtain care from an often confusing assortment of competitive, duplicative and fragmented home care services; and our reliance on public sentiment and devotion to individual freedom rather than more "rational" planning methods.
Probing the different spatial scales of Kel F-800 polymeric glass under pressure

One of the fundamental open questions in condensed matter science is the origin of the unique universal characteristics of glasses. Among them, the Boson peak (BP) and the first sharp diffraction peak (FSDP) are directly related with the disordered nature of these solids. The lack of widely accepted understanding of the origin of these features makes the characterization of glass forming systems on the microscopic level challenging. Moreover a strong and open debate exists on the possible correlation between BP and FSDP and its origin. Here we present the first detailed concomitant Raman and x-ray diffraction study of these two features under hydrostatic pressure. Surprisingly, we find that the previously proposed correlations between the positions of BP and FSDP do not hold under pressure. Based on the anticorrelation of the characteristic dimensions, we conclude that, BP and FSDP probe different spatial scales corresponding to dynamical and structural dimensions, respectively.
EXTRACTION OF LIPIDS FROM EXTRUDED CORN‐SOY BLENDS1

Extruded corn-soy products developed for the US AID Food for Peace program contain high levels of lipids (about 12%) and vitamins and minerals, including oxidation-sensitive vitamins A and C and iron. Because lipid stability is probably the most important factor in maintaining long-term storage stability of these products, being able to analyze lipid content and oxidation is critical. In cereals, substantial amounts of lipid are bound to starch, making cereal lipids notoriously difficult to extract. Conventional methods such as acid hydrolysis, hot water-saturated butanol, and exhaustive soxlet extractions result in damage to the lipids and thus give inaccurate measures of lipid stability. A new method of extracting lipids from cereal-based products without damage is proposed using pretreatment with α-amylase to digest the starch and release bound lipids. One gram of the product is slurried with 25 mg α-amylase in water and incubated for 16 h. Lipids are then extracted from this mixture with 2:1 (v/v) dichloromethane or chloroform:methanol. This procedure was quantitative, extracting 98.7% of the lipid, and it gave an extract suitable for analysis of fatty acid contents and lipid oxidation products, e.g. peroxide values, and carbonyl contents.
Language, Identity, and Power: Navajo and Pueblo Young Adults' Perspectives and Experiences with Competing Language Ideologies.

Native American languages, contemporary youth identity, and powerful messages from mainstream society and Native communities create complex interactions that require deconstruction for the benefit of Native-language revitalization. This study showed how Native youth negotiate mixed messages such as the necessity of Indigenous languages for cultural continuity and a belief in the superiority of English for success in American society. Interviews and reflective writing from Navajo and Pueblo youth constituted the counter-narratives that expressed the youth's concerns, values, frustrations, celebrations, and dilemmas with regard to their heritage language and identity. The youth perspectives extended across 5 thematic areas: respect, stigmatization and shame, marginalization, impact on identity, and agency and intervention. These counter-narratives demonstrate that the Indigenous language plays an important and complex role in contemporary youth identity. Yet, their Indigenous consciousness was not diminishe...
Injudicious antibiotic use: an unforeseen consequence of the emphasis on patient satisfaction?

Abstract Background: Antibiotic resistance is an increasingly serious problem in the United States and many other parts of the world. One of the causes is the injudicious prescribing of antibiotics for self-limited viral infections. Physicians often cite parent and patient pressure as factors in their decisions to prescribe antibiotics for viral upper respiratory tract infections. Objective: This article draws from the literature to determine the extent of patient and physician knowledge of appropriate antibiotic prescribing and to seek evidence for a link between antibiotic prescribing and patient satisfaction. Physician perception of patients' expectations regarding antibiotic use is also discussed. Conclusions: Both patients and physicians demonstrate poor knowledge regarding appropriate antibiotic prescribing for respiratory infections. Physicians are unable to judge patients' expectations accurately. Educational efforts aimed at both physicians and patients hold the most promise in decreasing unnecessary antibiotic use. These efforts include informing physicians that patient satisfaction is generally linked much more to communication than to the writing of a prescription.
Monte Carlo methods for design and analysis of radiation detectors

An overview of Monte Carlo as a practical method for designing and analyzing radiation detectors is provided. The emphasis is on detectors for radiation that is either directly or indirectly ionizing. This overview paper reviews some of the fundamental aspects of Monte Carlo, briefly addresses simulation of radiation transport by the Monte Carlo method, discusses the differences between direct and inverse detection problems, and illustrates how various Monte Carlo methods can be used in design and analysis of radiation detectors.
Optic disc dysplasia in poland syndrome.

AbstractPurpose: To report optic disc dysplasia in a case of Poland syndrome.Design: Non-interventional case report.Methods: A 2-year-old boy with Poland syndrome was referred for ophthalmic evaluation after abnormal optic discs were found on exam.Results: Physical exam at birth revealed right-sided aplasia of the pectoralis major muscle, symbrachydactyly, hypoplastic scapula, and an abnormal third rib. On dilated examination the optic nerve heads were dysplastic. The findings included multiple cilioretinal vessels, situs inversus, inferotemporal excavation, and surrounding pigmentary disturbances.Conclusion: Only one case of optic disc anomaly has been reported in Poland syndrome and was described as morning glory syndrome. The optic discs in our patient do not fit well with other optic disc excavation syndromes but are most reminiscent of those in papillorenal syndrome. As both Poland syndrome and papillorenal syndrome share vascular dysfunction as a possible etiology, this case adds to the literature o...