cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Qualitative evaluation of a school-based support group for adolescents with an addicted parent

Background: Adolescents with an addicted parent are at risk for physical, emotional, and social problems. They are particularly at risk for developing substance abuse. School-based support groups have been suggested as a beneficial treatment and prevention strategy. Objective: To examine the features, critical attributes, processes, and benefits of school-based support groups for adolescents with an addicted parent. Methods: A qualitative evaluation using the ethnographic method was conducted at two Midwestern suburban high schools. Results: The study resulted in a comprehensive description of school-based support groups and an outline presenting benefits of participation for adolescents with an addicted parent. The benefits of group participation included increased knowledge, enhanced coping, increased resilience, improved relationships, and improved school performance. Discussion: Findings from this study suggest that school-based support groups are beneficial to adolescents with addicted parents. Experiential knowledge is the foundation of these self-help groups. School-based support group participation enhanced self-knowledge and led to self-care and self-healing. The school-based support groups expanded the adolescents’ awareness, resulting in their ability to make critical choices that facilitated changes in the dysfunctional pattern. Support group participation empowered youth to make these changes.
Fibrotic lesions of the testicle: Sonographic patterns mimicking malignancy

All testicular sonograms performed over a 2.5-year period were retrospectively reviewed, yielding eight patients with pathologically proven lesions consisting primarily of tubular sclerosis and interstitial fibrosis. Only two patients (25%) had a palpable abnormality. A variety of sonographic patterns was found, including focal hypoechoic or hyperechoic lesions and diffuse heterogeneity of the testicular parenchyma. The clinical and sonographic findings prompted open biopsy or orchiectomy in all cases. In the same time period, nine pathologically proven testicular malignancies were evaluated sonographically and displayed either well-defined hypoechoic or diffusely heterogeneous echo patterns. All but two of these patients (78%) had palpable abnormalities. This study demonstrates a significant overlap in the sonographic appearance of benign fibrotic lesions and testicular malignancies. When careful palpation of a sonographically heterogeneous or focal hypoechoic lesion fails to reveal a mass and serum tumor markers are negative, an open biopsy with frozen section analysis should be considered rather than proceeding directly to orchiectomy. Homogeneously hyperechoic masses can be considered benign and do not require surgery.
“Bats, snakes and spiders, Oh my!” How aesthetic and negativistic attitudes, and other concepts predict support for species protection

Abstract This research investigates whether species are perceived differently based on aesthetic and negativistic attitudes, and whether these and other attitudes, naturalistic activities, and gender predict support for the protection of threatened species. 228 undergraduate students completed a survey in which they rated pictures of 10 endangered species on aesthetic and negativistic attitudes, and support for protection. Findings showed that the two-striped garter snake, Ozark big-eared bat, and dolloff cave spider were conceptualized differently than other species, which may be the result of “irrational” fears linked to animal phobias, culture, and emotional reactions to pictures. The regression results support the common belief that aesthetics is an important determinant in perceptions of endangered species and that the importance of negativistic attitudes may be waning. Moralistic worldviews and attitudes toward landowner rights and the Endangered Species Act were significantly related to support for governmental protection of species. Surprisingly, naturalistic activities and gender were not significantly associated with support for governmental protection of species. In general, the results were consistent across both models. However, the amount of variance explained by aesthetic and negativistic attitudes was 23 percent higher in the other species models than in the bat, snake, and spider models.
Pathogenic interactions between alcohol and hepatitis C

Alcohol is the most commonly abused substance in the United States, and alcohol abuse leads to alcoholic liver disease, a long recognized major public health concern. The high prevalence of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, along with the clinical observation that HCV infection is common in alcoholic patients presenting with liver disease, has directed attention to the interaction between alcohol and HCV infection. Clinical studies have identified alcohol use as an independent risk factor for progression of fibrosis in chronic HCV infection. Experimental evidence suggests additive inhibitory effects between HCV and alcohol on antiviral immune responses. In addition, specific pathways have been identified by which HCV core protein and alcohol interact to activate hepatocytes. Nonspecific inflammatory cell recruitment and proinflammatory cytokine activation have also been implicated in both alcohol-and HCV-induced liver diseases. Further investigation of these and other pathways by which alcohol and HCV interact should unravel the mechanisms that accelerate the progression of liver disease.
The Decay Modes of the Proton

Abstract The decay modes of the proton (bound neutron) are studied in detail in the SU(5) and SO(10) grand unified theories of weak, electromagnetic and strong interactions. Branching fractions to specific two-body final states are estimated using non-relativistic SU(6) arguments. It is found that the branching ratios to experimentally optimal modes, such as n → e + π − , are large.
Two new ‘must-have’ books on functional MRI data analysis

Over the past decade, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has become a basic and widely used research tool in neuroscience and psychology. Proper and effective usage of fMRI requires a high-level understanding of how the technology works, its neurobiological underpinnings, experimental design and statistics. Unfortunately, the average fMRI user currently lacks sufficient understanding of some of these areas, including the non-trivial statistics involved in the analysis and interpretation of fMRI data. Furthermore, over the past decade, various groups have developed sophisticated ‘push-button’ software that permits users to analyze fMRI data even if they lack a sufficient understanding of the underlying statistics. This has lead to a problematic state of affairs: although the best papers in the field are making fundamental advances in neuroscience and psychology, a lot of flawed studies are being published (with the acquiescence of reviewers and editors who also lack sufficient understanding).
A mesh independence principle for inexact Newton-like methods and their discretizations under generalized Lipschitz conditions

In this manuscript, we study inexact Newton-like methods for the solution of nonlinear operator equations in a Banach space involving a nondifferentiable term, and their discretized versions in connection with the mesh independence principle. This principle asserts that the behavior of the discretized process is asymptotically the same as that for the original iteration and consequently, the number of steps required by the two processes to converge to within a given tolerance is essentially the same. So far this result has been proved by others using Newton's method for certain classes of boundary value problems and even more generally by considering a Lipschitz uniform (or not) discretization. In some of our earlier papers we extended these results to include Newton-like methods under more general conditions. However, all previous results assume that the iterates can be computed exactly. This is not true in general. That is why we use inexact Newton-like methods and even more general conditions. Our results, on the one hand, extend, and on the other hand, make more practical and applicable previous results. Moreover, we can solve a wider range of problems and find sharper error bounds. Several applications of our results to two point boundary value problems are illustrated.
Carotid artery by-pass and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: Geneva's experience. Should we be afraid of the carotid artery?

1st Scientific Meeting of the Head and Neck Optical Diagnostics Society Colin Hopper, Adel K El-Naggar, Tahwinder Upile, Waseem Jerjes and HJCM Sterenborg Publication of this supplement was made possible with support from KARL STORZ Endoskope Meeting abstracts – A single PDF containing all abstracts in this Supplement is available here . http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/ 1758-3284-1-S1-info.pdf
Standardization Versus Adaptation in Global Markets: Is Channel Strategy Different?

The argument over standardization versus adaptation of marketing strategy in international markets has raged for several decades. This argument has generally taken place at the aggregate level to include all four strategic areas of the marketing mix (product, price, promotion, and place) taken together. This article disaggregates the standardization-versus-adaptation argument by focusing on just one strategic area of the marketing mix—channel strategy. We argue that three underlying phenomena or forces in global markets (culturally distant distribution behavior, distributive institution rigidity, and international functional fragmentation) inhibit a firm's ability to standardize channel strategy in global markets to a greater degree than is the case for product, price, and promotional strategies.
In vitro and in situ transfer of local anaesthetics across the oral mucosa

Abstract The rates of transfer of C14-labelled lidocaine and prilocaine through the frenulum of the tongue of the dog were studied in vitro and in situ. Tenfold increases of the local anaesthetic concentration on the outside of the frenulum increased the rate the radioactivity was transferred to the inside by tenfold in the in vitro preparation. In situ, a doubling of the local anaesthetic concentration resulted in a greater than twofold increase in transfer rate. The transfer of local anaesthetic both in vitro and in situ increased as the pH of the applied local anaesthetic solution increased. Incorporation of 1 per cent cetylpyridinium chloride into the local anaesthetic solution in vitro could either increase or decrease the transfer of local anaesthetic. When 0.1 or 0.01 per cent cetylpyridinium chloride was added to the local anaesthetic solution in situ, the rate of local anaesthetic transfer was increased. The similarity between transfer of local anaesthetics across the frenulum of the tongue and transfer across lipoid membrane is discussed.
Special-Relativistic Derivation of Generally Covariant Gravitation Theory

The Newtonian gravitation theory is generalized to an inhomogeneous wave equation for a tensor gravitational potential in Euclidean space-time by invoking the special relativity postulates of Lorentz invariance and equivalence of mass and energy. Under the assumption of Lagrangian derivability, this is found to lead uniquely to the generally covariant field theories (including the general relativity theory) augmented by four auxiliary conditions. Appendices treat the general definition of the energy tensor, and an empirically disqualified special relativistic scalar generalization of the Newtonian theory.
CCAAT/Enhancer-binding Protein α (C/EBPα) Activates Transcription of the Human Microsomal Epoxide Hydrolase Gene (EPHX1) through the Interaction with DNA-bound NF-Y

Microsomal epoxide hydrolase (mEH) plays a central role in xenobiotic metabolism as well as mediating the sodium-dependent uptake of bile acids into the liver, where these compounds regulate numerous biological processes such as cholesterol metabolism and hepatocyte signaling pathways. Little is known, however, about the factors that control the constitutive and inducible expression of the mEH gene (EPHX1) that is altered during development and in response to numerous xenobiotics. In previous studies we have established that GATA-4 binding to the EPHX1 core promoter is critical for EPHX1 expression. The –80/+25 bp core promoter also contained a reversed CCAAT box (–5/–1 bp), integrity of which was required for maximal basal EPHX1 transcription in HepG2 cells. Transient transfection of CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein α (C/EBPα) substantially stimulated EPHX1 promoter activity. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays, however, revealed that nuclear factor Y (NF-Y), but not C/EBPα, directly bound to this site although increased expression of NF-Y had no effect on EPHX1 promoter activity. These results suggested that C/EBPα activated EPHX1 expression through its interaction with NF-Y bound to the CCAAT box. The existence of a C/EBPα[NF-Y] complex was supported by electrophoretic mobility shift assays using antibodies against NF-Y and C/EBPα as well as by the ability of a dominant-negative NF-Y expression vector to inhibit promoter activity. The interaction between these transcription factors was established by co-immunoprecipitation analysis and glutathione S-transferase pull-down assays, whereas the association of the two factors and the interaction of NF-Y with the CCAAT box in vivo was confirmed by chromatin immunoprecipitation assays. C/EBPα-dependent EPHX1 activation was also supported by reconstitution studies in HeLa cells that lack this protein. These results establish that EPHX1 expression is regulated by C/EBPα interacting with DNA-bound NF-Y.
SV40 and Adenovirus May Act as Cocarcinogens by Downregulating GlutathioneS-Transferase Expression☆

Abstract We have discovered a novel function of the SV40 T antigen and the adenovirus E1A proteins: the ability to downregulate the endogenous expression of an important detoxification enzyme, glutathione S -transferase alpha (GSTα). GSTα mRNA is much less abundant in rat and human cells that express SV40 T antigen than in the parental cell lines. This GSTα downregulation does not require expression of SV40 small t antigen or complex formation between large T antigen and p53, p300, or the pRb family of proteins. As might be predicted, cells that express SV40 T antigen are more sensitive than normal cells to alkylating drugs, which GSTα is known to detoxify. Finally, GSTα expression is also downregulated in cells that express the adenovirus E1A proteins. We propose that by downregulating GSTα expression and inactivating p53 function, SV40 and adenovirus may contribute to the initiation of, or the progression toward, malignancy. Thus, in their quest to establish persistent infections, these viruses may inadvertently make the cellular environment more permissive for tumorigenesis.
Treatment of Cardiac Arrhythmias with Hydroxyzine

In the previous evaluation of hydroxyzine, it was noted that the ideal anti-arrhythmic agent should be effective in arrhythmias of various types and etiologies, and possess a wide margin of safety. When acute abnormal rhythms require rapid treatment, such a drug should restore normal sinus rhythm quickly. The idea anti-arrhythmic agent should also be suitable for long-term prophylactic therapy. Hydroxyzine (oral,t I. M., I.V.tt) was reported to be clinically effective in treatment of acute arrhythmias, particularly those which disturbed ventricular rhythm. Beneficial effects occurred most frequently in patients with ventricular premature beats, paroxysmal tachycardias (auricular and ventricular), and in patients with ventricular extrasystoles complicating auricular fibrillation.1 The drug was found to be safe, easily administered and nontoxic.211 While the mechanism of action of hydroxyzine on cardiac rhythm is unknown to date, it appears that some direct myocardial effect may occur. It has been reported that in several patients treated with hydroxyzine, normal sinus rhythm resulted either during intravenous injection or within seconds thereafter.1
Molecular Dynamics from Remote Observation of CO(a) from Space Shuttle Plumes

Remote satellite observations of plume-atmosphere interaction spectral radiance from 140 to 900 nm have been made of dedicated Space Shuttle Orbiter engine burns above 250-km altitude. The dominant emission feature is theultraviolet Cameron band system of CO (∼190 to ∼250 nm). It has been observed as a function of the thrust/orbit direction and engine type (orbital maneuvering system or reaction control system). The molecular beam-like characteristics of the plume produce sensitivity in the spatial distributions to chemical reaction product angular distributions and intermolecular potentials that are often gleaned from laboratory molecular beam-type experiments. A new mechanism, including these aspects, has been assigned through agreement of the observed integrated intensity and spatial distribution of radiance with direct simulation Monte Carlo flowfield/chemistry calculations. A minor amount of methane in the exhaust and multiple chemical pathways to CO(a), involving reaction with atmospheric atomic oxygen, has been found to explain the observations.
SELECTION OF FIBERGLASS MATRIX RESINS FOR INCREASED TOUGHNESS AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESISTANCE IN WIND TURBINE BLADES

The DOE/MSU Fatigue Database has been expanded Delamination is a dominant failure mode in composite to include a number of matrix resins of potential interest material structures, leading to the breakdown of structural in wind turbine blades. The main considerations in resin integrity in areas such as the tra iling edge, spars, and root selection have been to increase the structural integrity connections. Experience in aerospace composites [1] (such as delamination resistance) in blades while indicates that the toughness of the matrix resin, as well as maintaining or improving other mechanical properties, the design of details controls interlaminar fracture particularly under hot, wet conditions. The resins resistance and structural performance, as well as f acewise included in the study are also appropriate for the wind impact resistance [2]. The low cost matrix resins (general turbine blade application in terms of cost and processing purpose polyesters, vinyl esters, and epoxies) used in characteristics (all materials were prepared by resin most turbine blades are relatively brittle, and so the transfer molding). Resins included unsaturated delamination resistance of most blade materials is polyesters, vinyl esters, epoxies, and a urethane. relatively low. Tougher versions of these and other resins Mechanical properties have been obtained for wet and dry are investigated in this study. A sec ond type of resin, specimens tested at temperatures from -20 to 70 C. thermoplastics, also have high toughness, but their high Fatigue, delamination resistance (Mode I and II crack viscosity limits their use in conventional blade growth), and performance in stiffened substructure manufacturing techniques. Tougher resins which bond sections have been evaluated for selected cases. well to the fiberglass also tend to give higher strengths in Significantly improved performance relative to baseline off-axis directions relative to the fiber reinforcement. polyester is shown for several resins. A second concern with matrix resins is that if their
Mice lacking N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase I activity die at mid-gestation, revealing an essential role for complex or hybrid N-linked carbohydrates

Abstract Eukaryotic cells require N-linked carbohydrates for survival. However, the biosynthetic intermediate Man5GlcNAc2Asn, in place of mature N-linked structures, allows glycoprotein synthesis and somatic cell growth to proceed normally. To determine whether the same would be true in a complex biological situation, the gene Mgat-1 was disrupted by homologous recombination in embryonic stem cells and transmitted to the germ line. The Mgat-1 gene encodes N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase I [GlcNAc-TI; alpha-1,3-mannosyl-glycoprotein beta-1,2-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase; UDP-N-acetyl-D-glucosamine:glycoprotein (N-acetyl-D-glucosamine to alpha-D-mannosyl-1,3-(R1)-beta-D-mannosyl-R2) beta-1,2-N-acetyl-D-glucosaminyltransferase, EC 2.4.1.101], the transferase that initiates synthesis of hybrid and complex N-linked carbohydrates from Man5GlcNAc2Asn. Mice lacking GlcNAc-TI activity did not survive to term. Biochemical and morphological analyses of embryos from 8.5 to 13.5 days of gestation showed that Mgat-1-/-embryos are developmentally retarded, most noticeably in neural tissue, and die between 9.5 and 10.5 days of development.
Achieving and sustaining high rates of influenza immunization among long-term care staff

Background Influenza causes significant morbidity and mortality in long-term care facilities. Immunization of health care workers has been shown to reduce the impact of influenza in this setting, yet few studies address improvement efforts aimed at long-term care staff immunization. Objective To determine the feasibility of achieving and sustaining high rates of staff influenza immunization for a community-based long-term care facility. Methods A needs analysis was conducted to determine the organizational and individual level barriers to influenza vaccination of staff. Systems changes, educational interventions, and reminders were implemented based on the barriers assessment. Staff immunization rates were calculated over a 10-year period from 1996 to 2006. Results Organizational and individual barriers were identified and targeted. Using data from 1996 and 1997 as a baseline, staff immunization rates improved from 54% to 55% to between 74% and 95% over the past 4 years. Conclusions Achieving and sustaining high staff influenza immunization rates is possible in a community-based long-term care facility with an involved quality improvement team and medical director.
Effect of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on death anxiety in university students.

Summary A sample of 440 undergraduate university students completed the Templer Death Anxiety Scale 2 wk. prior to and 2 wk. after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Women comprised 66% of the sample, and 79% of the sample identified themselves as 18 to 21 years of age and either freshmen or sophomores. There was no significant mean difference in the pre- and postterrorist attack Death Anxiety scores. Differences were found on two individual scale items.
Seasonal rainfall-runoff relationships in a lowland forested watershed in the southeastern USA

Hydrological processes of lowland watersheds of the southern USA are not well understood compared to a hilly landscape due to their unique topography, soil compositions, and climate. This study describes the seasonal relationships between rainfall patterns and runoff (sum of storm flow and base flow) using 13 years (1964–1976) of rainfall and stream flow data for a low-gradient, third-order forested watershed. It was hypothesized that runoff–rainfall ratios (R/P) are smaller during the dry periods (summer and fall) and greater during the wet periods (winter and spring). We found a large seasonal variability in event R/P potentially due to differences in forest evapotranspiration that affected seasonal soil moisture conditions. Linear regression analysis results revealed a significant relationship between rainfall and runoff for wet (r 2 D 0Ð68; p< 0Ð01) and dry (r 2 D 0Ð19; p D 0Ð02) periods. Rainfall-runoff relationships based on a 5-day antecedent precipitation index (API) showed significant (r 2 D 0Ð39; p< 0Ð01) correspondence for wet but not (r 2 D 0Ð02; p D 0Ð56) for dry conditions. The same was true for rainfall-runoff relationships based on 30-day API (r 2 D 0Ð39; p< 0Ð01 for wet and r 2 D 0Ð00; p D 0Ð79 for dry). Stepwise regression analyses suggested that runoff was controlled mainly by rainfall amount and initial soil moisture conditions as represented by the initial flow rate of a storm event. Mean event R/P were higher for the wet period (R/P D 0Ð33), and the wet antecedent soil moisture condition based on 5-day (R/P D 0Ð25) and 30-day (R/P D 0Ð26) prior API than those for the dry period conditions. This study suggests that soil water status, i.e. antecedent soil moisture and groundwater table level, is important besides the rainfall to seasonal runoff generation in the coastal plain region with shallow soil argillic horizons. Copyright  2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Ductal metaplasia in oesophageal submucosal glands is associated with inflammation and oesophageal adenocarcinoma.

Aims Recent studies have suggested that oesophageal submucosal gland (ESMG) ducts harbour progenitor cells that may contribute to oesophageal metaplasia. Our objective was to determine whether histological differences exist between the ESMGs of individuals with and without oesophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC). Methods and results We performed histological assessment of 343 unique ESMGs from 30 control patients, 24 patients with treatment-naive high-grade columnar dysplasia (HGD) or EAC, and 23 non-EAC oesophagectomy cases. A gastrointestinal pathologist assessed haematoxylin and eosin-stained ESMG images by using a scoring system that assigns individual ESMG acini to five histological types (mucous, serous, oncocytic, dilated, or ductal metaplastic). In our model, ductal metaplastic acini were more common in patients with HGD/EAC (12.7%) than in controls (3.5%) (P = 0.006). We also identified greater proportions of acini with dilation (21.9%, P < 0.001) and, to a lesser extent, ductal metaplasia (4.3%, P = 0.001) in non-EAC oesophagectomy cases than in controls. Ductal metaplasia tended to occur in areas of mucosal ulceration or tumour. Conclusions We found a clear association between ductal metaplastic ESMG acini and HGD/EAC. Non-EAC cases had dilated acini and some ductal dilation. Because ESMGs and ducts harbour putative progenitor cells, these associations could have significance for understanding the pathogenesis of EAC.
Presidential Communication Before and After, Then and Now

munications Agency: FDR's Office of Government Reports and Scott McClellan s What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washingtons Culture of Deception highlight the structure, style, and role of communication at top White House levels, albeit six decades apart. These two books not only contrast the first and current presidential communication apparatus, they contrast with one another in purpose and style. Lee's book on the first presidential communications agency aims to describe the historical origins of the Office of Government Reports under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In so doing, Lee provides a macro examination of events involving the executive branch and Congress as well as the White House (1). In contrast to Lee's approach, McClellan, former press secretary, aims for an insider's account of politics and communication within the White House of George W. Bush, particularly on the selling of the Iraq War, from 2001 to 2003.
An ellipsometric investigation of reaction rate oscillations during H2 oxidation on Ni

In this paper we report results of our study of reaction rate oscillations during H 2 oxidation over a polycrystalline Ni catalyst at atmospheric pressures. In our studies we have utilized the technique of in-situ ellipsometry to monitor the Ni surface. In the oscillatory region the reaction rate and the three ellipsometric parameters †°, ψ° and I oscillate simultaneously.0144
Planarian homologs of netrin and netrin receptor are required for proper regeneration of the central nervous system and the maintenance of nervous system architecture

Conserved axon guidance mechanisms are essential for proper wiring of the nervous system during embryogenesis; however, the functions of these cues in adults and during regeneration remain poorly understood. Because freshwater planarians can regenerate a functional central nervous system (CNS) from almost any portion of their body, they are useful models in which to study the roles of guidance cues during neural regeneration. Here, we characterize two netrin homologs and one netrin receptor family member from Schmidtea mediterranea . RNAi analyses indicate that Smed-netR ( netrin receptor ) and Smed-netrin2 are required for proper CNS regeneration and that Smed-netR may mediate the response to Smed-netrin2 . Remarkably, Smed-netR and Smed-netrin2 are also required in intact planarians to maintain the proper patterning of the CNS. These results suggest a crucial role for guidance cues, not only in CNS regeneration but also in maintenance of neural architecture.
Critical Lines and Phase Equilibria in Binary Van Der Waals Mixtures

The van der Waals equation of state is used to determine phase diagrams for a wide variety of binary fluid mixtures. The locus of the critical line in pressure-temperature-composition space is determined exactly by solving a set of equations with the aid of a computer. The van der Waals constants a$\_{\text{m}}$ and b$\_{\text{m}}$ for the mixture depend quadratically and linearly upon the mole fractions x$\_{\text{i}}$: a$\_{\text{m}}$ = $\sum\_{\text{i}}\sum\_{\text{j}}$ x$\_{\text{i}}$ x$\_{\text{j}}$a$\_{\text{ij}}$ and b$\_{\text{m}}$ = $\sum\_{\text{i}}$x$\_{\text{i}}$b$\_{\text{ii}}$. Mixtures are characterized by three non-dimensional parameters: $\xi $ = (b$\_{22}$-b$\_{11}$)/(b$\_{11}$+b$\_{22}$), $\zeta $ = (a$\_{22}$b$\_{22}^{-2}$-a$\_{11}$b$\_{11}^{-2}$)/(a$\_{11}$b$\_{11}^{-2}$+a$\_{22}$b$\_{22}^{-2}$) and $\Lambda $ = (a$\_{11}$b$\_{11}^{-2}$-2a$\_{12}$/b$\_{11}$b$\_{22}$+a$\_{22}$b$\_{22}^{-2}$)/(a$\_{11}$b$\_{11}^{-2}$+a$\_{22}$b$\_{22}^{-2}$). The parameter $\Lambda $ can be related to the low-temperature enthalpy of mixing and the parameter $\zeta $ to the difference between the gas-liquid critical pressures of the pure fluids. Most of the calculations are for molecules of equal size ($\xi $ = 0), but calculations for a size ratio of two ($\xi $ = $\frac{1}{3}$) are also reported. Nine characteristic types of critical lines are distinguished and these correspond to nine separate regions on a $\Lambda $, $\zeta $-diagram. Isobaric temperature-composition diagrams and pressure-temperature projections are given for one example from each region to illustrate the possible types of phase equilibrium. Special attention is given to the details of lower critical solution temperature behaviour (type IV) such as is found in the system methane + n-hexane, to tricritical points (symmetrical and unsymmetrical), to azeotropy, and to the possibility of double azeotropy. The phase diagrams calculated from the van der Waals equation seem to account, at least qualitatively, for all but one of the varieties of phase equilibria found in binary fluid mixtures: the low-temperature lower critical solution points in some highly structured aqueous solutions of alcohols and amines.
NEUTRON--PROTON INTERACTION IN ODD--ODD DEFORMED NUCLEI.

Calculations of the energy splittings between the parallel and antiparallel coupling states of odd neutron and odd proton in deformed nuclei have been made for both zero-range and finite-range nuclear forces. The energy splittings for both types of forces agree with the corresponding experimental energies. Calculations have also been made for the odd-even shift in $K=0$ bands. Finite-range interactions improve the agreement between experiment and theory for the odd-even shift, but the results are still unsatisfactory. It is shown that a tensor force is important in reproducing the experimental odd-even shift, especially in the case where ${\ensuremath{\Sigma}}_{n}+{\ensuremath{\Sigma}}_{p}=1$.
ULTRAFAST VIBRATIONAL SPECTROSCOPY OF SHOCK COMPRESSION WITH MOLECULAR RESOLUTION

Ultrafast shock compression and heat shock experiments using molecular monolayers provide atomic‐scale time and space resolution. Heat shock refers to flash‐heating a metal substrate by 600–800 K causing heat to flow into different probed functionalities of adsorbed monolayer molecules. We have developed methods to greatly improve monolayer spectra using vibrational sum‐frequency generation with nonresonant suppression. Monolayer engineering with atomic precision is used to study shock‐molecule interactions in energetic material simulants. Monolayer vibrational spectra at high pressures are obtained using diamond‐anvil cells with photonic substrates.
Polarimetric SAR image classification based on target decomposition theorem and complex Wishart distribution

Polarimetric SAR data have been frequently utilized to classify terrain types. This paper compares two terrain classification approaches: 1) classification based on the target decomposition theorem, and 2) classification based on the multivariate complex Wishart distribution. Target decomposition theorems were developed recently for extracting geophysical information of scattering media. The averaged Mueller matrix or its equivalent was decomposed into components for a thorough study. Parameters were introduced to characterize the physical aspect of the scattering process and they are used for unsupervised classification. From a different point of view, the statistical property of the polarimetric covariance matrix has been modeled with a complex Wishart distribution. Supervised and unsupervised classification based on this distribution reported good results. The authors present results of supervised classifications using both methods. Comparisons are made on the accuracy of these two classification schemes. Possible reasons for the cause of errors are discussed. The NASA/JPL San Francisco data is chosen for illustration.
Design of Class E Resonant Rectifiers and Diode Evaluation for VHF Power Conversion

Resonant rectifiers have important applications in very-high-frequency (VHF) power conversion systems, including dc–dc converters, wireless power transfer systems, and energy recovery circuits for radio-frequency systems. In many of these applications, it is desirable for the rectifier to appear as a resistor at its ac input port. However, for a given dc output voltage, the input impedance of a resonant rectifier varies in magnitude and phase as output power changes. This paper presents a design methodology for class E rectifiers that maintain near-resistive input impedance along with the experimental demonstration of this approach. Resonant rectifiers operating at 30 MHz over 10:1 and 2:1 power ranges are used to validate the design methodology and identify its limits. Furthermore, a number of Si Schottky diodes are experimentally evaluated for VHF rectification and categorized based on performance.
Prevalence of Speech and Hearing Problems in a Child Development Clinic Population

Data collected at the Child Development Clinic of the Univer sity of Iowa over two years indicate that a professional evalua tion of speech and hearing should be included routinely in eval uation of every child with problems of growth and development.
Surgical intensive care unit clinician estimates of the adequacy of communication regarding patient prognosis

Introduction: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients and family members repeatedly note accurate and timely communication from health care providers to be crucial to high-quality ICU care. Practice guidelines recommend improving communication. However, few data, particularly in surgical ICUs, exist on health care provider opinions regarding whether communication is effective. Methods: To evaluate ICU clinician perceptions regarding adequacy of communication regarding prognosis, we developed a survey and administered it to a cross section of surgical ICU nurses, surgical ICU physicians, nurse practitioners (NPs), and surgeons. Results: Surgeons had a high satisfaction with communication regarding prognosis for themselves (90%), ICU nurses (85%), and ICU physicians and NPs (85%). ICU nurses noted high satisfaction with personal (82%) and ICU physician and NP (71%) communication, but low (2%) satisfaction with that provided by surgeons. ICU physicians and NPs noted high satisfaction with personal (74%) and ICU nurse (88%) communication, but lower (23%) satisfaction with that provided by surgeons. ICU nurses were the most likely (75%) to report speaking to patients and patient families regarding prognosis, followed by surgeons (40%), and then ICU physicians and NPs (33%). Surgeons noted many opportunities to speak to ICU nurses and ICU physicians and NPs about patient prognosis and noted that comments were often valued. ICU physicians and NPs and ICU nurses noted many opportunities to speak to each other but fewer opportunities to communicate with surgeons. ICU physicians and NPs thought that their comments were valued by ICU nurses but less valued by surgeons. ICU nurses thought that their comments were less valued by ICU physicians and NPs and surgeons. Conclusions: ICU nurses, surgeons, and ICU intensivists and NPs varied widely in their satisfaction with communication relating to prognosis. Clinician groups also varied in whether they thought that they had opportunities to communicate prognosis and whether their concerns were valued by other provider groups. These results hint at the nuanced and complicated relationships present in surgical ICUs. Further validation studies and further evaluations of patient and family member perspectives are needed.
Field to fuel: developing sustainable biorefineries

Life-cycle assessment (LCA) can be used as a scientific decision support technique to quantify the environmental implications of various biorefinery process, feedstock, and integration options. The goal of DuPont's integrated corn biorefinery (ICBR) project, a cost-share project with the United States Department of Energy, was to demonstrate the feasibility of a cellulosic ethanol biorefinery concept. DuPont used LCA to guide research and development to the most sustainable cellulosic ethanol biorefinery design in its ICBR project and will continue to apply LCA in support of its ongoing effort with joint venture partners. Cellulosic ethanol is a biofuel which has the potential to provide a sustainable solution to the nation's growing concerns around energy supply and climate change. A successful biorefinery begins with sustainable removal of biomass from the field. Michigan State University (MSU) used LCA to estimate the environmental performance of corn grain, corn stover, and the corn cob portion of the stover, grown under various farming practices for several corn growing locations in the United States Corn Belt. In order to benchmark the future technology options for producing cellulosic ethanol with existing technologies, LCA results for fossil energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are compared to alternative ethanol processes and conventional gasoline. Preliminary results show that the DuPont ICBR outperforms gasoline and other ethanol technologies in the life-cycle impact categories considered here.
Adaptive evolution of testis-specific, recently evolved, clustered miRNAs in Drosophila

The propensity of animal miRNAs to regulate targets bearing modest complementarity, most notably via pairing with miRNA positions ∼2-8 (the "seed"), is believed to drive major aspects of miRNA evolution. First, minimal targeting requirements have allowed most conserved miRNAs to acquire large target cohorts, thus imposing strong selection on miRNAs to maintain their seed sequences. Second, the modest pairing needed for repression suggests that evolutionarily nascent miRNAs may generally induce net detrimental, rather than beneficial, regulatory effects. Hence, levels and activities of newly emerged miRNAs are expected to be limited to preserve the status quo of gene expression. In this study, we unexpectedly show that Drosophila testes specifically express a substantial miRNA population that contravenes these tenets. We find that multiple genomic clusters of testis-restricted miRNAs harbor recently evolved miRNAs, whose experimentally verified orthologs exhibit divergent sequences, even within seed regions. Moreover, this class of miRNAs exhibits higher expression and greater phenotypic capacities in transgenic misexpression assays than do non-testis-restricted miRNAs of similar evolutionary age. These observations suggest that these testis-restricted miRNAs may be evolving adaptively, and several methods of evolutionary analysis provide strong support for this notion. Consistent with this, proof-of-principle tests show that orthologous miRNAs with divergent seeds can distinguish target sensors in a species-cognate manner. Finally, we observe that testis-restricted miRNA clusters exhibit extraordinary dynamics of miRNA gene flux in other Drosophila species. Altogether, our findings reveal a surprising tissue-directed influence of miRNA evolution, involving a distinct mode of miRNA function connected to adaptive gene regulation in the testis.
Queue-and-Idleness-Ratio Controls in Many-Server Service Systems

Motivated by call centers, we study large-scale service systems with multiple customer classes and multiple agent pools, each with many agents. We propose a family of routing rules called queue-and-idleness-ratio (QIR) rules. A newly available agent next serves the customer from the head of the queue of the class (from among those he is eligible to serve) whose queue length most exceeds a specified state-dependent proportion of the total queue length. An arriving customer is routed to the agent pool whose idleness most exceeds a specified state-dependent proportion of the total idleness. We identify regularity conditions on the network structure and system parameters under which QIR produces an important state-space collapse (SSC) result in the quality-and-efficiency-driven (QED) many-server heavy-traffic limiting regime. The SSC result is applied here to prove stochastic-process limits and in subsequent papers to solve important staffing and control problems for large-scale service systems.
High fluorescence in situ hybridization percentage of deletion 11q in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia is an independent predictor of adverse outcome.

We have analyzed patients with previously untreated chronic lymphocytic leukemia with del11q fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) abnormality (n = 196) in this study. Detection of the 11q22.3 used a multicolor FISH technique. Patients with del11q fell into two major FISH subsets—sole del11q (n = 64) and del11q with del13q (n = 132). FISH subsets were compared using the median del11q FISH% (>58%, high vs. ≤58%, low). Overall survival (OS) and time to first treatment (TTFT) were estimated using Kaplan–Meier plots (log rank). Multivariate analysis was performed to assess the association between FISH% of del11q and outcomes. Patients with sole del11q were similar to del11q with del13q in terms of TTFT and OS. Patients with high FISH% of del11q had significantly shorter OS and TTFT as compared with patients with low FISH%, particularly in sole del11q; this negative impact of high FISH% of del11q on OS and TTFT was diminished with coexistent del13q. In multivariate analysis, high FISH% of del11q was a significant predictor for shorter OS and TTFT. A comparison of these del11q subsets with a separate cohort of (n = 673) previously untreated patients with sole del13q showed that the high FISH% del11q cohort had a significantly shorter TTFT and OS. In addition, bulky disease by physical examination or computed tomography imaging was infrequent at presentation in patients with del11q. High FISH% of del11q can reliably discriminate higher risk patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Presence of coexistent del13q should be accounted for while prognosticating patients with del11q. Am. J. Hematol. 90:471–477, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Achiral CdSe quantum dots exhibit optical activity in the visible region upon post-synthetic ligand exchange with D- or L-cysteine

Semiconductor cadmium selenide (CdSe) quantum dots (QDs) exhibited mirror-image circular dichroism (CD) spectra in the visible region (350–570 nm) after replacing the trioctylphosphine oxide/oleic acid ligands on achiral nanocrystals with D- and L-cysteines. Chiroptical properties of cysteine-capped CdSe QDs depend on their size and can be fine-tuned by changing the radius of QDs.
Applications of Spreadsheet Optimization Capabilities in Teaching Planning Methods Facility Location and Spatial Interaction

The powerful optimization capabilities included in modern electronic spread-sheets, such as the Solver in Excel, provide opportunities for implementing facility location and spatial interaction models in the spreadsheet environment. Such models are used as part of an integrated public facility location assignment in the teaching of planning methods. These spreadsheet applications provide students with the tools for applying the models to realistic planning problems and illustrate the potential for using electronic spread-sheets for implementing sophisticated planning methods.
The involucrin genes of the mouse and the rat: study of their shared repeats

The involucrin genes of the mouse (Mus musculus) and the rat (Rattus norvegicus) have been cloned and sequenced. The coding region of each gene contains, at site P, a segment of repeats homologous to that of other nonanthropoid mammals. In contrast to the repeats of species belonging to different mammalian orders, many individual repeats of the mouse and the rat can be matched. Both before and after the divergence of the two species, these repeats have been the site of systematic alterations in nucleotide sequence. One of the alterations is the correction of nucleotides of one repeat by those of another. Corrected nucleotides may be closely linked to flanking nucleotides that are uncorrected; the systematic correction process therefore appears to be due to gene conversion. There is a stretch of 18 reiterated CAGs in the segment of repeats of the Mus gene; most of these reiterations were introduced recently, supporting the idea that the gene was generated originally from poly CAG. An antiserum to a synthetic peptide encoded by the segment of repeats of the Mus gene reveals differentiation-specific expression of the gene in the epidermis.
Fruit, Minerals, and Forest Elephant Trails: Do All Roads Lead to Rome?

Tropical forests are among the most heterogeneous environments on earth, and food resources for many animals are patchy both in time and space. In Africa's equatorial forest, permanent trails created and maintained by forest elephants are conspicuous features. Trails may be several meters wide and continue for tens of kilometers. Speculation on which resources determine the distribution of trails has identified fruit, browse, and mineral deposits as candidates. In this study, the relationships between these habitat variables and elephant trails were investigated. The size of individual trails and the density of the trail system increased dramatically with proximity to mineral deposits. Fruit tree basal area decreased with perpendicular distance from trails, while that of non-fruit trees did not. Fruit tree abundance and basal area were significantly higher on trail intersections than random sites and increased with intersection size. No relationship was found between monocotyledon browse abundance and elephant trail system characteristics. Clumped resources, which are at least partially reliable, provide a high nutritional payback, and are not rapidly depleted and can thus be visited repeatedly, appear to influence permanent trail formation by forest elephants. Permanent trails may allow naive individuals or those with imperfect knowledge to locate and acquire important resources.
On future-dependent block coding for input-restricted channels

Consider a restricted channel whose constraints may be characterized by a finite state machine model. Conventional coding techniques for such channels result in codes where the choice of a word to be transmitted is only a function of the current state and the information to be represented by this word. This paper develops techniques for constructing codes where the code word choice may also depend on future information to be transmitted. It is shown that such future-dependent codes exist for channels and coding rates where no conventional code may be constructed.