cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Prescription opioid related deaths in New York City: a 2 year retrospective analysis prior to the introduction of the New York State I-STOP law

The United States is in the midst of an unprecedented drug epidemic. Illicit use of prescription medicine, predominantly opioids, has become one of the nation’s fastest-growing drug problems. We have conducted a retrospective review of prescription opioid fatalities in New York City (NYC) prior to the introduction of a 2013 law intended to curtail prescription drug abuse. Over the 2 years of our study, there were 1286 chemical intoxication fatalities in NYC. Of these, 547 (42.5 %) were associated with prescription opioids (6.5/100,000 population). Methadone was most frequently encountered followed by oxycodone. Only 36.7 % of decedents had a valid opioid prescription. Of non-opioid medications associated with the prescription opiate deaths, benzodiazepines were the most frequently encountered (68.4 %), and alprazolam (35.1 %) was most common. Though prescribers have no control over drug diversion they should be cognizant of the urgent public health concern regarding prescription opioid abuse and associated fatalities and attempt to identify doctor shoppers and limit prescription of these potent drugs to those with a legitimate need for pain control. They also need to be aware of the high incidence of fatalities due to combined opioid and benzodiazepine use/abuse and refrain from prescribing them in tandem.
Effects of inotropic and chronotropic stimuli on acute myocardial ischemic injury: III. Influence of basal heart rate

The influence of basal heart rate (HR) on the effects of inotropic (dobutamine infusion) and chronotropic (atrial pacing) stimuli during acute myocardial ischemia was assessed by measurement of intramural carbon dioxide partial pressure (PCO2) in open-chest dogs undergoing transient 10-minute left anterior descending coronary artery occlusions. In protocol I, in 5 dogs anesthetized with pentobarbital alone, HR increased from 153 ± 10 to 182 ± 7 beats/min between experimental coronary occlusions, but the increase in ischemic zone intramural carbon dioxide tension (ΔPmCO2) was not altered by this significant increase in HR. In protocols II to V, dogs were anesthetized with combinations of morphine, thiamylal and pentobarbital and had a basal average HR of 81 beats/min. Atrial pacing in protocol II (13 dogs) increased HR from 76 ± 21 to 134 ± 19 beats/min (p < 0.001); left ventricular (LV) myocardial oxygen consumption (MVO2) rose from 3.9 ± 1.6 to 4.9 ± 1.4 ml/min/100 g (p < 0.05), and (ΔPmCO2) rose from 42 ± 14 to 50 ± 15 mm Hg (p < 0.01), indicating more severe ischemic injury during the second experimental coronary occlusion. In protocol III, 11 dogs received 20 μg/kg/min of dobutamine before the second experimental occlusion, which significantly (p < 0.02) increased HR, LV dPdt and MVO2; (ΔPmCO2) increased from 46 ±13 to 63 ± 18 mm Hg (p < 0.01). The 7 dogs in protocol IV received 3.9 ± 1.9 μg/kg/min of dobutamine, titrated such that HR was unchanged (84 ±10 vs 81 ± 15 beats/min). but LV dPdt increased by 92% (p < 0.001). The (ΔPmCO2) was unchanged between experimental occlusions in this group. In protocol V, 9 dogs had atrial pacing before both experimental coronary occlusions (HR 133 ± 7 and 174 ± 7 beats/min, respectively, p < 0.001). The (ΔPmCO2) was similar during both periods of ischemia. In 4 control dogs anesthetized with morphine, thiamylal and pentobarbital, there was no significant change in (ΔPmCO2) during 3 successive coronary occlusions performed without interventions. Thus, in the nonfailing canine heart, deleterious effects of increased HR, whether mediated by atrial pacing or dobutamine infusion, are more pronounced when HR is increased from a “physiologic” range (approximately 80 beats/min) to approximately 135 beats/min, and are not demonstrable by mass spectrometric assessment when basal HR is increased further by either pentobarbital anesthesia or atrial pacing. Moderate inotropic stimulation with dobutamine without a concomitant increase in HR may not be associated with intensified ischemia. The studies that seek to determine whether specific interventions have either beneficial or deleterious effects on the intensity of acute myocardial ischemia in dogs should be performed at a “physiologic” HR.
Incongruence between genetic and morphological diversity in Microcebus griseorufus of Beza Mahafaly

The past decade has seen a remarkable increase in the number of recognized mouse lemur species (genus Microcebus). As recently as 1994, only two species of mouse lemur were recognized according to the rules of zoological nomenclature. That number has now climbed to as many as fifteen proposed species. Indeed, increases in recognized species diversity have also characterized other nocturnal primates – galagos, sportive lemurs, and tarsiers. Presumably, the movement relates more to a previous lack of information than it does to any recent proclivity for taxonomic splitting. Due to their nocturnal habits, one can hypothesize that mouse lemurs will show only minimal variation in pelage coloration as such variation should be inconsequential for the purposes of mate and/or species recognition. Even so, current species descriptions for nocturnal strepsirrhines place a good deal of emphasis on relatively fine distinctions in pelage coloration. Here, we report results from a multi-year study of mouse lemur populations from Beza Mahafaly in southern Madagascar. On the basis of morphological and pelage variation, we initially hypothesized the presence of up to three species of mouse lemurs occurring sympatrically at this locality, one of which appeared to be undescribed. Genetic analysis reveals definitively, however, that all three color morphs belong to a single recognized species, Microcebus griseorufus. Indeed, in some cases, the three color morphs can be characterized by identical mitochondrial haplotypes. Given these results, we conclude that investigators should always proceed with caution when using a single data source to identify novel species. A synthetic approach that combines morphological, genetic, geographic, and ecological data is most likely to reveal the true nature of species diversity.
Stability Analysis and Design of Mamdani and TS Fuzzy Control Systems

This chapter contains sections titled: Introduction Global Stability, Local Stability, and BIBO Stability Local Stability of Mamdani and TS Fuzzy PID Control Systems Local Stability of Mamdani Fuzzy Control Systems of Non-PID Type Local Stability of General TS Fuzzy Control Systems BIBO Stability of Mamdani Fuzzy PI/PD Control Systems BIBO Stability of TS Fuzzy PI/PD Control Systems Design of Mamdani Fuzzy Control Systems Design of General TS Fuzzy Control Systems General TS Fuzzy Dynamic Systems as Nonlinear ARX Systems General TS Fuzzy Filters as Nonlinear FIR/IIR Filters Local Stability of General TS Fuzzy Models Design of Perfect Tracking Controllers for General TS Fuzzy Models Summary Notes and References This chapter contains sections titled: Exercises
Calculation and interpretation of inhomogeneous line broadening in models of lungs and other heterogeneous structures

Abstract To extend previous calculations of internal inhomogeneous line broadening in models of lung, we derived a surface integral expression for the magnetic field shift produced when a structure composed of magnetic material with a magnetic susceptibility of a few parts per million is placed in an otherwise uniform magnetic field. The expression is integrated exactly for rectangular surfaces. NMR lineshapes for simple structures such as spheres, spherical shells, cubes, cubical shells, and rectangular parallelepipeds are calculated and presented. A physical interpretation of the results is given in terms of “thick” and “thin” magnetic material. Application of the results to inhomogeneous line broadening in models of the lung and correlation of NMR lineshapes with lung properties are discussed.
Intensive infiltrometer studies on a plowed big sagebrush site

Abstract Intensive infiltrometer studies were made over a 4-year period on a plowed big sagebrush ( Artemisia tridentata ) site in southern Idaho. Results of the study indicate there was a natural decay in absorptive capabilities of surface soils due to the plowing treatment. The apparent result of grazing was not to reduce the minimal infiltration capacities measured on the respective site, but rather to eliminate seasonal trends so that infiltration rates were at the low end of the scale throughout the year. Grazing did not increase sediment production potentials beyond the increases expected as a result of mechanical disturbance associated with plowing. Attempts at predicting infiltration rates and potential sediment production indicated that easily measured soil cover characteristics do not adequately reflect the potential (actual) hydrologic performance of a big sagebrush site which has been grossly modified by activity such as plowing or grazing.
Laminar free convection over two-dimensional bodies with uniform surface heat flux

A general analysis is presented of the steady nondissipative constant-property laminar boundary layer flow over a two-dimensional body of uniform surface heat flux situated in an infinite ambient fluid of undisturbed temperature. The analysis is then applied to a long horizontal circular cylinder. Numerical solutions to the universal functions associated with the first two terms in the derived series are given for Prandtl numbers 0.7, 1, 3, 5, 7, and 10. The results are compared with those obtained by Koh (1964) whose method is patterned after the Blasius-Frossling procedure for forced convection flow. The study reveals that Wilks' (1972) analysis concerning the external natural convection about two-dimensional bodies with constant heat flux is in error.
A graphical interface for production and transportation system modeling: PTS

PTS is a graphical interface for production and transportation system modeling. It provides a means of creating an economic model of production and transportation activities in a system of plants and markets. The model created by PTS is translated into the GAMS language and is solved using that system. The results are then returned to PTS and are displayed graphically. PTS runs under Windows on IBM PCs and compatibles. PTS is used to (1) provide a graphical interface for knowledge-based model development systems, (2) provide a test-bed for studies of parallel model representations and (3) analyze methods of production and transportation model development which are simpler than the knowledge-based methods. The system is currently implemented for linear programming production and transportation problems. Also, the current implementation provides graphical and GAMS representations of the model.
Feline Respiratory Disease Complex

Feline respiratory disease complex (FRDC) refers to the characteristic acute presentation of a contagious respiratory or ocular disease caused by one or multiple pathogens. Environmental and host factors impact the transmission, clinical presentation, preventive strategy, and treatment of affected cats. The FRDC is especially problematic in settings where large numbers of cats cohabit, including animal shelters, catteries, and semi-feral colonies. Although elimination of FRDC is an unrealistic goal, improved understanding can lead to strategies to minimize disease impact.
Lights, camera, legal action! The effectiveness of red light cameras on collisions in Los Angeles

This study estimates the effect of red light cameras (henceforth cameras) on collisions under the Los Angeles Automated Photo Enforcement Program that ran from 2006 to 2011. To control for selection bias and unobservables, a data set is constructed such that intersections with cameras are compared to control groups of nearby intersections without cameras, matched on observable characteristics. To capture potential spillover effects of cameras, control groups at various distances from the intersections with cameras are considered. A Poisson panel data model with random coefficients is applied to these data and estimated using Bayesian methods. The program suffered from weaknesses in enforcement. The city’s courts did not uphold citations and this dampened the effect cameras had on drivers. These problems are accounted for in modeling. Controlling for these concerns, results indicate that the cameras decreased red light running related collisions, but increased right-angle and injury collisions, as well as collisions overall.
The Western Washington and Myocardial Infarction Triage and Intervention Trials of Thrombolytic Therapy: 15 Years of Collaboration in the Pacific Northwest

Beginning in 1981, collaborative efforts developed between the University of Washington and community hospitals in Washington, British Columbia, Canada, and later outside the Pacific Northwest, have generated important findings about the treatment and outcome of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). These efforts, collectively known as the Western Washington and Myocardial Infarction Triage and Intervention Project trials, have included randomized trials of thrombolytic drugs, direct antithrombins, platelet receptors, antagonists, and cell adhesion blockers, as well as the formation of registries of consecutive patients admitted to coronary care units with the diagnosis of suspected AMI. Results of these trials have demonstrated that thrombolytic therapy significantly reduces mortality and morbidity from AMI with minimal risk to patients, and that early treatment is associated with improved infarct size and better left ventricular function. The efforts of the next decade should be focused on the further removal of barriers to rapid treatment and to the evaluation of new agents, so that the devastating effects of myocardial infarction are minimized to the fullest extent.
On clock routing for general cell layouts

Addresses the minimum-skew clock routing problem in general cell designs. The authors present a bottom-up construction method for clock distribution trees based on a generalized matching computation in channel intersection graphs. The clock routing trees produced by their method attain almost zero skew with only modest wirelength penalty. Experimental results show that clock skew of their routing tree is no more than 2% of that of a minimum spanning tree, while on average the cost of the tree is only 50% more than that of a minimum spanning tree. >
Pitfalls of Forward-Looking Monetary Policy

A distinctive feature of the procedures recently adopted by inflation-targeting central banks is their forward-looking character. Forecasts of the economy's future evolution conditional upon alternative policies play a central role in the banks' deliberations, to an extent that the procedures adopted are sometimes characterized as "forecast targeting." This emphasis upon the future consequences of policy is unsurprising in an approach that tries to maintain as transparent as possible a relation between the banks9 decisions and the ultimate goals of monetary policy; after all, current decisions can still affect the future, but not the past. Nonetheless, common descriptions of how inflation targeting is or should be practiced go too far, in proposing purely forward-looking procedures. I shall argue instead that an optimal framework for the conduct of monetary policy must generally be history-dependent in ways
A study of time warp rollback mechanisms

The Time Warp “optimistic” approach is one of the most important parallel simulation protocols. Time Warp synchronizes processes via rollback. The original rollback mechanism called lazy cancellation has aroused great interest. This paper studies these rollback mechanisms. The general tradeoffs between aggressive and lazy cancellation are discussed, and by a conservitive-optimal simulation is defined for comparitive purposes. Within the framework of aggressive cancellation, we offer some observations and analyze the rollback behavior of tandom systems. The lazy cancellation mechanism iss examined using a metric called the sensitivity of output message. Both aggressive and lazy cancellation are shown to work well for a process with a small simulated load intensity. Finally, an analytical model is given to analyze message preemtion, an important factor that affects the performance of rollback mechanisms. Results indicate that message preemtion has a significant effect on performance when (1) the processor is highly utilized, (2) the execution times of messages have high varience, and (3) rollbacks occur frequently.
An area-efficient minimum-time FFT schedule using single-ported memory

FFT design requires an exhaustive recoupling of data across successive stages of computation. The resulting memory access patterns have constantly-changing strides, making it hard to interleave the data for reliable conflict-free access of operand pairs. We modify an existing method of “swizzling” data locations so as to guarantee conflict-free access within any given stage and, with minimal support for buffering, we provide conflict-free access across the boundaries of adjoining stages as well. As a result, implementations that would naively require either a fully-associative, or at the very least a multiported register file, can be implemented using four single-ported banks of memory per butterfly unit, plus one bypass buffer. Because fewer ports means less area, and given that a butterfly must read two inputs and write two results for each cycle of operation, this solution should represent the least-area memory configuration for a resource-constrained FFT. Using this scheme, we show examples including a minimal one-butterfly FFT having 9% less area versus a competing equal-performance design and 20% better throughput versus a competing equal-area design.
The Albedo Field and Cloud Radiative Forcing Produced by a General Circulation Model with Internally Generated Cloud Optics

A general circulation model (GCM) study is presented in which cloud radiative properties are computed from cloud liquid water content inferred from the GCM hydrological cycle. Model-generated and satellite albedos are in rough agreement. Analysis of the cloud radiative forcing indicates that cloud albedo effects overcome cloud infrared opacity effects in most regions. Both computed and observed albedo of clouds decrease from low to high altitudes. The model with variable cloud optics produces significantly different regional albedos from the same one with fixed cloud optics, especially over the tropics. The cloud droplet size distribution also has a significant impact on the model albedos. The temperature of the tropical upper troposphere is somewhat sensitive to the microphysical characteristics of the model cirrus clouds.
The effect of 1 week of continuous positive airway pressure treatment in obstructive sleep apnea patients with concomitant gastroesophageal reflux.

Study objectives Patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have a very high incidence of gastroesophageal reflux (GER). Previous studies have shown that the use of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) reduces the frequency of reflux events, but these studies only assessed the effect of a single night of treatment. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of 1 week of CPAP treatment on reflux in patients with OSA and GER. Design Sixteen patients with OSA and GER were recruited. Polysomnography followed by 24-h, continuous esophageal pH monitoring were performed at baseline. Patients with an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) > 20/h and 24-h acid contact time (ACT) of at least 6% were included. As part of the polysomnography-qualifying evaluation, all patients underwent CPAP titration to reduce the AHI to Measurements and results The AHI fell from 63.3 ± 38.5 to 3.2 ± 2.2/h (mean ± SD) [p Conclusions In OSA patients with significant heartburn complaints, CPAP would appear to be an efficacious approach to the treatment of both disorders.
Experimental analysis of EMG feedback in treating dystonia

Recent clinical reports have suggested that electromyographic feedback offers promise as a palliative therapy for neuromuscular disorders. This study utilized a single-subject experimental analysis to evaluate the effects of EMG feedback training on a 20-year-old man with adult-onset idiopathic dystonia to achieve control of orofacial dysfunctions. Feedback training produced reductions in levels and variability of tension in facial and forearm muscles, as measured by EMG. Reliable blind observations of facial control indicated that feedback training enabled the patient to produce normal facial relaxation in extraclinical environments.
Rough-surface effects on subsurface target detection

The generally rough interface between air and ground produces two adverse effects on the performance of a forward-looking ground-penetrating radar system. The first is that the rough surface scatters some of the transmitted radar energy back to the receiver, raising the effective noise level. The second is the reduction in the coherent signal level scattered by a buried target and received by the radar, owing to the passage of the electromagnetic field once through the rough surface as it propagates toward the target and once again as it propagates back to the receiver. We address the second of these effects in this paper. The interface is modeled as a random phase screen, and we specifically consider the problem of backscattering form a buried conducting disk. We quantify the coherent and incoherent components of the backscattering cross-section of this target, using the physical-optics approximation to address the scattering problem itself. It is assumed that the variance of the surface roughness is small over the frequency range of interest. Representative numerical results are shown over the frequency band 300-1900 MHz, derived from the assumption of a Gaussian autocorrelation function of the surface roughness.
Applications of molecular orbital theory to the interpretation of mass spectra. Prediction of primary fragmentation sites in organic molecules

Semi-empirical molecular orbital calculations have been carried out on the steroidal hormone estrone, both as a neutral molecule and the corresponding positively charge molecular ion. These calculations provide estimates of bond densities and net atomic charges, factors deemed important in past correlations of observed mass spectra with molecular structure. Calculated net charges appear to be unrelated to fragmentation processes. Calculated bond densities of the ground state molecular ion of estrone allow prediction of gross features of fragmentation. Bond densities of excited electronic states of the molecular ion may provide a basis for finer distinction among sites of initial bond cleavage, which is information crucial to rationalization of subsequent fragmentation of the molecular ion.
Constructing scenes from objects in human occipitotemporal cortex

The authors use multivoxel pattern analysis of fMRI data to examine the role of lateral occipital (LO) cortex in the recognition of real-world visual scenes. They find that LO may support an object-based channel for scene recognition by combining information about multiple objects within a scene.
Testing sincere versus strategic split-ticket voting at the aggregate level: Evidence from split house-president outcomes, 1900-2004

Abstract We compare aggregate level predictions of sincere and strategic (balancing) models of voting behavior using data on the number of districts exhibiting split outcomes of elections for President and for representatives in U.S. House over the period 1900–2004. Our prime focus is on the mean ideological differences between Republican and Democratic House members (DW-NOMINATE scores). If voting is sincere then we argue that this variable will be negatively linked to the proportion of split outcomes. In contrast, balancing models of ticket splitting [Fiorina, M.P., 1996. Divided Government. second ed. Allyn and Bacon, New York] suggest that the further apart are the parties, the greater will be the degree of ticket splitting among individual voters, since, ceteris paribus, there will be more voters close to neither party who need to balance off House and Presidential candidates to come closer to their own more centrist position. In testing these differing predictions we control for other factors that affect the proportion of split outcomes for these two offices at the congressional district level: (1) margin of presidential victory; (2) magnitude of incumbency advantage; (3) magnitudes (standard deviations) of ideological differences among House members of the same party; and (4) mean ideological differences between Republican and Democratic presidential candidates. In our multivariate analyses, we find more support for sincere than for strategic voting as a determinant of aggregate levels of split-ticket outcomes.
Bayesian sparse channel estimation

In Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) systems, the technique used to estimate and track the time-varying multipath channel is critical to ensure reliable, high data rate communications. It is recognized that wireless channels often exhibit a sparse structure, especially for wideband and ultra-wideband systems. In order to exploit this sparse structure to reduce the number of pilot tones and increase the channel estimation quality, the application of compressed sensing to channel estimation is proposed. In this article, to make the compressed channel estimation more feasible for practical applications, it is investigated from a perspective of Bayesian learning. Under the Bayesian learning framework, the large-scale compressed sensing problem, as well as large time delay for the estimation of the doubly selective channel over multiple consecutive OFDM symbols, can be avoided. Simulation studies show a significant improvement in channel estimation MSE and less computing time compared to the conventional compressed channel estimation techniques.
Role of the adrenal in the preferential accumulation of progestin by mesencephalic structures.

Abstract Adrenally-intact and adrenalectomized female rats were administered tritiated progesterone. One hour later the radioactivity levels in diencephalic structures, anterior and posterior hypothalamus and in mesencephalic structures, “cerebral peduncle” and reticular formation were assessed. Mesencephalic tissues accumulated more radioactivity than diencephalic tissues. This differential was particularly evident in the adrenalectomized animals. These findings may provide insight into the role of progesterone in the induction of sexual receptivity and into the anesthetic effects of this steroid.
Predicted Genetic Gain and Inbreeding Depression with General Inbreeding Levels in Selection Candidates and Offspring

Methods for predicting response to selection in noninbred populations for individuals and family-based selection methods have been very well developed. However, theory to predict improvement of inbred lines derived from a recombined population, as well the predicted change in inbreeding depression rate, has not been developed. Prediction equations for general levels of inbreeding in both selection candidates and recombined offspring of selected parents for intrapopulation selection methods were developed. All common methods of individual, half-sib, and self-progeny selection were predicted to change inbreeding depression rates in a population if the covariance parameters D 1 and D 2 * were nonzero. However, the change in inbreeding depression rate was unaffected by additive genetic variance. It was further established that outbred selection in some maize (Zea mays L.) populations may be expected to increase inbreeding depression based on published estimates of the covariance parameter D 1 .
The k-trajectory formulation of the NMR imaging process with applications in analysis and synthesis of imaging methods

The fundamental operations of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) imaging can be formulated, for a large number of methods, as sampling the object distribution in the Fourier spatial-frequency domain, followed by processing the digitized data (often simply by Fourier transformation) to produce a digital image. In these methods, which include reconstruction from projections, Fourier imaging, spin-warp imaging, and echo-planar imaging, controllable gradient fields determine the points in the spatial-frequency domain which are sampled at any given time during the acquisition of data (the free induction decay, or FID). The detailed time dependence of the resulting trajectory of sample points (the k trajectory) determines the relative weight and accuracy with which image information at each spatial frequency is measured, establishing theoretical limitations on image quality achievable with a given imaging method. We demonstrate here that these considerations may be used to compare the theoretical capabilities of NMR imaging methods, and to derive new imaging methods with optimal theoretical imaging properties.
Magnetic and superconducting properties of single crystals of rare earth rhodium boride compounds RRh4B4

Abstract Small single crystals of RRh 4 B 4 compounds where R = Sm, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Lu, and Y have been prepared by precipitation from a molten copper flux. Measurements of the low frequency ac electrical resistance R are reported with particular emphasis on the behavior of R for temperatures T less than the magnetic ordering temperature. The upper critical magnetic field of ErRh 4 B 4 determined from R ( T ) measurements in applied magnetic fields is presented for parallel and perpendicular orientations of the tetragonal c -axis of the sample with respect to the applied magnetic field. Comparisons are made with previous work on polycrystalline samples of all the compounds as well as single crystals of ErRh 4 B 4 .
A Shopping Store Online Database System

This paper presents the design of a database system for a clothing store using PHP code and MySQL database that performs search functions for selected products. There will be a concentration on the administrator and employee login where they can access specific items in their inventory, and check who signed up for different opportunity the store offers. The system will also give customers a chance to see the clothes and see the sign up for the different opportunities.
Comparison between the effects of ethanol and diazepam on spatial working memory in the rat.

The present study compared the effects of ethanol and diazepam on a task that allows for the assessment of both spatial working memory and the acquisition of spatial information within each day. During the first trial of each day, subjects were shown the spatial location of a food reward on a six-arm radial-arm maze. During nine subsequent free-choice trials, subjects were reinforced for returning to that same spatial location. The location of the food reward varied across days. Thus, choosing correctly on any given trial required subjects to remember where food had been received during the previous trials of that day. The effects of ethanol and diazepam on working memory were assessed by analyzing the overall number of errors committed during the nine free-choice trials of each day. The effects of ethanol and diazepam on within-day acquisition were assessed by comparing the number of errors committed during the first three trials of each day to the number of errors committed during the last three trials of each day. Ethanol and diazepam both produced dose-dependent increases in working memory errors, and both did so without impairing within-day acquisition. The results of the present study provide further evidence of the similarities between the effects of ethanol and benzodiazepine receptor agonists on learning and memory, and are consistent with the hypothesis that ethanol’s potentiation of GABA at GABAA receptors contributes to the learning and memory impairments produced by ethanol.
What have I done

Excerpt "There's a code on 2 North!" a nurse with a high-pitched voice shouts from across the room. I remove my stethoscope from the barrel chest of a middle-aged smoker. He had arrived at the emer...
FONO : a difficult case for theory and experiment

High levels of ab initio theory are used to investigate the equilibrium structures, vibrational spectra, and relative energetics of FNO2, cis-FONO, and trans-FONO isomers. FNO2 is determined to be 36.9 +/- 2.5 kcal/mol (0 K) more stable than cis-FONO, which is more stable than trans-FONO by 2.5 +/- 1.0 kcal/mol (0 K). The molecular structure of cis-FONO is shown to have typical F-O and central O-N single bond distances, indicating that cis-FONO has a structure analogous to HONO. The computed vibrational spectrum of cis-FONO is shown to be consistent with IR matrix isolation experiments, including isotopic shifts. The experimentally deduced structure of FONO is shown to be incorrect because one of the vibrational bands included in the normal coordinate analysis is either a combination band or an overtone.
Wind shear measurements and synoptic weather categories for siting large wind turbines

Abstract The wind shear coefficient, α, in the power law relationship has been studied at a potential wind energy site in Windsor, Massachusetts. For 173 measurements of wind shear, the normal distribution was found to be an appropriate model for α. Significant differences in the average wind shear were also found for different synoptic weather patterns.
Transductions of dags and trees

Directed acyclic graphs (dags) model derivations of phrasestructure grammars analogously to the way that trees model derivations of context-free grammars.
Advanced SiC composites for fusion applications

Chemically vapor infiltrated silicon carbide (SiC) composites have been fabricated from continuous fibers of either SiC or graphite and tested for strength and thermal conductivity. Of significance is that the Hi-NicalonTM SiC based fiber composite has superior unirradiated properties as compared to the standard Nicalon grade. Based on previous results on the stability of the Hi-Nicalon fiber, this system should prove more resitant to neutron irradiation. A graphite fiber composite has been fabricated with very good mechanical properties and thermal conductivity an order of magnitude higher than typical SiC/SiC composites.
A new power-aware FPGA design metric

Dozens of Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) implementations have been presented since AES was officially published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology in 2001. Many of these implementations have targeted FPGA platforms either for ASIC prototyping or as the destination hardware. Typically, these publications have comparative metrics to show how the proposed implementation compares to previously published work. Unfortunately, these metrics often present inaccurate comparisons. To date, these metrics have focused on area and speed, neglecting the third point of the hardware optimization triangle, power. As AES becomes more prolific and attractive for use in embedded devices, power considerations will be increasingly important. In this paper, we discuss the subtleties and qualities of metrics previously applied to FPGA AES publications. We then propose a power metric to generate a more complete, quantitative description of the quality of the implementation. The proposed metric is not specific to AES but has general FPGA design applicability. Finally, we present a comparison between four AES-256 implementations that demonstrates the inconsistent conclusions drawn when various metrics are used.
A 16-site neural probe integrated with a waveguide for optical stimulation

In this paper, we report a neural probe which can selectively stimulate target neurons optically from an integrated optical waveguide and also monitor extracellular neural signals in electrical recording sites. The waveguide is composed of SU-8 core and oxide cladding layer to guide a light from optical source. A U-groove has been formed at the end of the waveguide for easy alignment with an optical fiber. The coupling loss between the optical fiber and waveguide has been measured below −3.7 dB with a waveguide loss of −0.22 dB/mm. We have successfully transmitted a light of 470nm in wavelength through the integrated polymer waveguide on the neural probe.
How green is my valley? Tracking rural and urban environmentalism in the Southern Appalachian Ecoregion.

Research on the social bases of environmentalism in the United States has generally found that urban residents are more con- cerned about the environment than rural residents . Recent research sug- gests this may no longer be the case, particularly in specific settings or un- der certain conditions . This paper examines the issue by reviewing recent survey research on rural and urban environmentalism . Tests for signifi- cant differences between urban and rural inhabitants of the Southern Ap- palachian Ecoregion on cognitive and behavioral dimensions of environ- mentalism are also conducted using data obtained from 1,239 telephone interviews . Findings are consistent with previous research showing that younger people, those with higher levels of education, and political liberals generally express higher levels of environmentalism . However, no signifi- cant rural-urban differences were found on several indicators of environ- mentalism . A range of conditions that are rapidly changing the character and composition of the region may help to explain why the findings do not conform to the general pattern of rural-urban differences . Overall, it appears that environmentalism has broadened its appeal in rural areas, es- pecially in communities located near national and state parks, wildlife refuges, and other outdoor recreation sites.
Bounded and well-placed theories in the lattice of equational theories

Among the earliest publications of Evelyn Nelson are four papers which appeared in 1971—Nelson [1971a, 1971b] and Burris and Nelson [1971/72, 1971]. These papers contributed to our understanding of the intricate structural diversity of the lattice of equational theories. In particular, these papers revealed that large partition lattices occur as intervals in the lattice of equational theories of semigroups. In the present paper, we focus on some contrasting features of the lattice of equational theories. We identify a filter in the lattice of equational theories, called the filter of bounded theories. This filter is countably infinite and fairly tractable, especially for similarity types which provide only one operation symbol. Every equational theory can be viewed as a fully invariant congruence relation on the term algebra of the appropriate similarity type. From this viewpoint, certain classes of equational theories emerge from the imposition of various cardinality restrictions on the equivalence classes of terms induced by these theories. At one extreme are the term-finite equational theories—those theories each of whose equivalence classes is finite. At another extreme, one should put those theories which induce only finitely many equivalence classes of terms. However, it is easy to see that, for each similarity type, there is only one such theory: the trivial theory based on x ≈ y. (Officially, we take equations to be ordered pairs of terms, but we frequently use the suggestive notation s ≈ t in place of the official 〈s, t〉.) A slightly more elaborate notion proves more suitable. Observe that for any equational theory T , the image of any T -equivalence class of terms with respect to any automorphism of the term algebra is again a T -equivalence class. So the automorphism group of the term algebra partitions the T -equivalence classes into orbits. We say that an equational theory T is bounded iff the automorphism group of the term algebra partitions the T -equivalence classes into finitely many orbits.
Reconstruction of the mutual coherence function for a moving source

The acoustic radiation of a randomly fluctuating source in motion is characterized analytically to determine the mutual coherence function (MCF). A far-field relation is derived via a series of invertible transformations, and a higher-dimension Radon transformation is performed to reconstruct the MCF; explicit formulas for computing the MCF from the transformed radiation data are provided. The technique is applied to the cases of an axisymmetric line source of finite extent moving at constant velocity along a line and a spatially incoherent line source. Applications to X-ray tomography and analysis of the noise emitted by a moving jet aircraft are suggested.
Use of Ventricular Assist Devices in Children Across the United States: Analysis of 7.5 Million Pediatric Hospitalizations

Background Recently, there has been a surge of interest by clinicians, industry, and the government in the development and use of ventricular assist devices (VAD) in children. Despite this rapidly expanding interest, the incidence of VAD use in children across the United States is unknown. The Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (H-CUP) Kids' Inpatients Database (KID) was analyzed to characterize the current utilization of VADs in children nationwide. Methods The most recent HCUP-KID (2006) was analyzed (n = 7.5 million). This database is a nationwide sampling of hospital discharges of patients less than 20 years old weighted to provide national estimates. Results In 2006, 187 children had a VAD implanted in the United States. Mean age was 13 ± 7 years. Forty patients (21%) were bridged to VAD by extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Forty-nine patients (26%) were bridged to heart transplant. Fifty-six patients (30%) died in hospital. Eighty-six patients (46%) were discharged or transferred. Length of stay was 29 days (range, 0 to 285). Total cost was $174,743 (range, $4,230 to $1,911,588). Sixty-seven hospitals placed VADs; 66% of VADs (124) were implanted at large teaching hospitals (more than 500 beds), and 46% (85) were at high-volume hospitals (more than 5 VADs per year). High-volume, large teaching hospitals (10) had better survival (89% versus 61%; p p = 0.002) compared with all other hospitals. On multivariate analysis, acute renal failure and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation were risk factors for mortality, whereas transplant and being at a high-volume large teaching hospital were protective factors from death. Conclusions Preliminary data suggest that the growing use of VADs in children may be better served in regard to resource utilization and outcomes if centralized to high-volume large teaching hospitals.
Parallel linear deterministic interference channels with feedback: Combinatorial structure and separability

The sum-capacity of a 2-user linear deterministic interference channel (LDIC) can always be achieved with simple deterministic codes. The existence and design of such codes has been shown to be related to an underlying combinatorial structure of the channel. This is used here to explore the capacity of parallel or ergodic LDICs and LDICs with output feedback. We present simple algorithms that generate sum-rate optimal schemes in these cases. In the case of parallel LDICs this approach gives insight into when the channels are separable, i.e. when coding over component channels is not required. We further demonstrate that output feedback can change the separability of such channels.
Importance of CNS GABAergic mechanisms in the regulation of cardiovascular function

Abstract The purpose of these studies was to assess the role of CNS GABA in regulating central parasympathetic and sympathetic outflow to the cardiovascular system. Studies were performed by monitoring arterial pressure, cardiac rate and rhythm in anesthetized cats treated with drugs that either counteract the CNS effects of GABA (picrotoxin and bicuculline) or activate CNS GABA receptors (GABA and muscimol). The agents were given intravenously, intra-arterially (vertebral artery), intracerebroventrically (lateral and third cerebroventricles, and fourth cerebroventricle), and by microinjection into specific brain stem nuclei. The antagonist drugs were found to produce central sympathetic stimulation by acting primarily in forebrain areas, and central parasympathetic stimulation by acting primarily in the medulla, specifically at nucleus ambiguus. The antagonist drugs were also found to act centrally to enhance reflex-induced vagal bradycardia. The agonist drugs were found to decrease sympathetic and parasympathetic outflow, and to counteract reflex-induced changes in heart rate and arterial pressure. The effect on parasympathetic outflow occurred in the medulla whereas an effect to counter sympathetic activity occurred in both forebrain and hindbrain regions. Results obtained suggest the existence of a tonically active GABAergic system present in the forebrain which exerts inhibitory control over sympathetic activity influencing arterial pressure and heart rate. Results also suggested the presence of a tonically active GABAergic system in the CNS that exerts inhibitory control over spontaneously active parasympathetic neurones in nucleus ambiguus. The latter system could be considered as an example for “disinhibition as an organizing principle in the nervous system”.
Expression of Pbx1b during mammalian organogenesis

Abstract Mammalian Pbx genes (Pbx1–3) encode a family of TALE homeodomain proteins that function as transcriptional regulators in numerous cell types (Curr. Opin. Genet. Dev. 8 (1998) 423). The present study highlights distinctive features of Pbx1b expression during mouse embryonic development as a framework to understand its biological functions. Immunohistochemical analyses demonstrate extensive expression of Pbx1b throughout post-implantation development, with highest levels observed during early to mid-gestation. Its initial distribution is predominantly associated with condensing mesoderm, however, Pbx1b displays dynamic expression patterns in derivatives of all principal germ layers. In particular, Pbx1b localizes to sites of mesenchymal–epithelial interactions during periods of active morphogenesis in tissues such as the lung, kidney, tooth buds and vibrissae follicles. Furthermore, BrdU labeling studies reveal that Pbx1b expression domains partially overlap with regions of cellular proliferation. Taken together, these data suggest that Pbx1b contributes to multiple cellular processes during embryogenesis, which may include roles in cell-autonomous regulation as well as in the mediation of tissue interactions.
Tone-derived vs. tone-in-noise-derived filter functions of frog auditory nerve fibers: a comparison.

Intracellular recordings were made from 112 auditory nerve fibers of Rana pipiens pipiens. For each fiber, we determined its frequency-threshold curve (FTC), and its threshold to CF-tones simultaneously masked by either cosinusoidal or inverted comb-filtered noise (CFN). From the difference between the masked thresholds using cosinusoidal and inverted CFN, the filter function of the auditory fiber was calculated based on a constant signal-to-noise algorithm (Pick, 1980). The calculated filter functions and FTCs were then compared. Of the 63 comparisons made, 42 were statistically indiscriminale, 15 fibers produced a calculated filter function that differed significantly in shape from the FTC, and six fibers produced a flat filter function. We conclude by evaluating our methods, especially for the experimental conditions found in the frog, and compare and contrast our results with those observed in mammalian systems.
31P NMR Investigation of vanadium-treated chick muscle

The phosphorus NMR profile of normal and vanadium-treated chick muscle was obtained in vivo. The data show that the differentiation of breast and thigh muscles in terms of pH, lipid related metabolites, and bioenergetic parameters can be readily followed. Although the vanadium-treated chicks showed substantial retardation of growth, the only NMR parameter that was significanty affected by dietary vanadium was the pH of breast muscle, which was substantially more acidic in the vanadium-treated animals.