cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Survey on the cognition and behavior of hepatitis B prevention and treatment among high school students in Kunshan City

Objective To investigate high school students' cognition and behavior of hepatitis B prevention and treatment in Kunshan City so as to provide a scientific basis for targetedly formulating effective strategies and measures for hepatitis B prevention and treatment. Methods High school students in 4classes from 2high schools in Kunshan City were selected by stratified cluster random sampling for questionnaire survey. Results Two hundred and thirty-six high school students were surveyed.The students' awareness rate of hepatitis B prevention and treatment knowledge was low.The correct answering rate of the question whether HBV could be transmitted through digestive tract was the lowest(30.1%, 71/236),while the correct answering rate of the question whether hepatitis B vaccine could offer effective protection against HBV was the highest(59.7%,141/236).The awareness rates of girls were higher than those of boys(P0.05),and the awareness rates of students in the third grade were higher than those of the first grade(P0.05).Compared with students in rural areas,students from urban areas had higher awareness rates in questions like whether hepatitis B was a bloodborne disease and whether it could be transmitted vertically from mothers to babies and whether hepatitis B vaccine could effectively prevent HBV infection(P0.05).Hepatitis B vaccination rate was 75.9%and the full-term coverage rate was 79.3%. The risk behavior for hepatitis B in high school students was relatively less.Girls did better than boys in not sharing razors with others and hepatitis B vaccination(P0.05).The students from urban areas did better than those from rural areas in not sharing toothbrushes,razors or towels with others(P0.05).The main approaches for the high school students to gain hepatitis B prevention knowledge were from bulletin board(18.6%),TV shows(17.8%),Internet(15.6%)and books(12.6%). Conclusions Today, the high school students in Kunshan City have not correctly and comprehensively grasp the relevant knowledge of hepatitis B prevention and treatment;and hence,the effective health education should be implemented in the ways which can be more easily accepted by the students to raise their awareness and abilities of self prevention.
Effect of Overlying Liquid Layer on Dryout Heat Flux Measurements

Revue de donnees experimentales sur le flux thermique a l'assechement de lits de particules immergees dans un liquide montrant que les divergences entre ces donnees sont dues a l'influence de la couche de liquide surmontant le lit
The Deinstitutionalization (?) of the House of Representatives: Reflections on Nelson Polsby's 'Institutionalization of the House of Representatives' at Fifty

This paper revisits Nelson Polsby’s classic article “The Institutionalization of the House of Representatives” nearly fifty years after its publication, in order to examine whether the empirical trends that Polsby identified have continued. This empirical exploration allows us to place Polsby’s findings in broader historical context and to assess whether the House has continued along the “institutionalization course” — using metrics that quantify the degree to which the House has erected impermeable boundaries with other institutions, created a complex institution, and adopted universalistic decisionmaking criteria. Empirically we document that careerism bottomed-out right at the point Polsby wrote “Institutionalization,” and that the extension of the careerism trend has affected Democrats more than Republicans. The House remains complex, but lateral movement between the committee and party leadership systems began to re-establish itself a decade after Institutionalization was published. Finally, the seniority system as a mechanism for selecting committee chairs — the primary measure of universalistic decisionmaking criteria — has been almost thoroughly demolished. Thus, most of the trends Polsby identified have moderated, but have not been overturned. We conclude by considering the larger set of interpretive issues that our empirical investigation poses.
What is the Matter with Matter, According to Plotinus?

Modern science is not linguistically original in hypothesizing the existence of dark matter. For Plotinus, the matter that underlies all perceptible objects, is essentially obscure and describable only in the negative terms of what it lacks by way of inherent properties. In formulating this theory of absolute matter, Plotinus took himself to be interpreting both Plato and Aristotle, with the result that his own position emerges as a highly original and equivocal synthesis of this tradition. Plotinus did not claim that matter is nothing, but the puzzling status he attributes to it can be aptly compared to Berkeley's doctrine that material substance is a self-contradictory notion.
American Forward Maritime Strategy in the North Atlantic, 1957–60

According to some observers, Admiral Sir John Eccles’s “frank admissions” about British naval weakness in late 1957, marked the first step in a campaign to have the US Navy assume additional duties in the Atlantic, much as the Sixth Fleet had done in the Mediterranean after the Second World War.1 And, indeed, in June 1960, the Daily Telegraph reported that for the first time the US was about to have a “continuously operational carrier striking fleet in the North Atlantic.”2 This chapter examines the growth of US naval activities and interests in the North Atlantic between 1957 and 1960, and assess their direct and indirect implications for Norway. In this context, three key areas merit particular attention: (1) the measures introduced to strengthen American anti-submarine warfare capabilities, (2) the deployment of Fleet Ballistic Missile submarines (Polaris) in the Norwegian Sea, and (3) the growing concern within the US Navy about possible limited war scenarios on the Northern Flank. The chapter also examines signs of growing Soviet concern about US maritime strategy in the far north after 1957.
Characterization of GABA A receptor ligands with automated patch-clamp using human neurons derived from pluripotent stem cells.

Abstract Introduction Automated patch clamp is a recent but widely used technology to assess pre-clinical drug safety. With the availability of human neurons derived from pluripotent stem cells, this technology can be extended to determine CNS effects of drug candidates, especially those acting on the GABA A receptor. Methods iCell Neurons (Cellular Dynamics International, A Fujifilm Company) were cultured for ten days and analyzed by patch clamp in the presence of agonist GABA or in combination with positive allosteric GABA A receptor modulators. Both efficacy and affinity were determined. In addition, mRNA of GABA A receptor subunits were quantified by qRT-PCR. Results We have shown that iCell Neurons are compatible with the IonFlux microfluidic system of the automated patch clamp instrument. Resistance ranging from 15 to 25 MΩ was achieved for each trap channel of patch clamped cells in a 96-well plate format. GABA induced a robust change of current with an EC 50 of 0.43 μM. Positive GABA A receptor modulators diazepam, HZ-166, and CW-04-020 exhibited EC 50 values of 0.42 μM, 1.56 μM, and 0.23 μM, respectively. The α2/α3/α5 selective compound HZ-166-induced the highest potentiation (efficacy) of 810% of the current induced by 100 nM GABA. Quantification of GABA A receptor mRNA in iCell Neurons revealed high levels of α5 and β3 subunits and low levels of α1, which is similar to the configuration in human neonatal brain. Discussion iCell Neurons represent a new cellular model to characterize GABAergic compounds using automated patch clamp. These cells have excellent representation of cellular GABA A receptor distribution that enable determination of total small molecule efficacy and affinity as measured by cell membrane current change.
Switching the Immunogenicity of Peptide Assemblies Using Surface Properties

Biomaterials created from supramolecular peptides, proteins, and their derivatives have been receiving increasing interest for both immunological applications, such as vaccines and immunotherapies, as well as ostensibly nonimmunological applications, such as therapeutic delivery or tissue engineering. However, simple rules for either maximizing immunogenicity or abolishing it have yet to be elucidated, even though immunogenicity is a prime consideration for the design of any supramolecular biomaterial intended for use in vivo. Here, we investigated a range of physicochemical properties of fibrillized peptide biomaterials, identifying negative surface charge as a means for completely abolishing antibody and T cell responses against them in mice, even when they display a competent epitope. The work was facilitated by the modularity of the materials, which enabled the generation of a set of co-assembled fibrillar peptide materials with broad ranges of surface properties. It was found that negative surface ch...
Osteobiologic agents in spine surgery

Abstract: The treatment of spinal disorders has evolved greatly over the last 30 years, with developments in instrumentation and biologics. Pedicle screw technology has improved fusion rates. However, even with these advances the dilemma of non-unions in spinal surgery still exists. Patients with challenging deformities or biology continue to have high rates of non-unions and autograft harvest carries its own set of complications. With the current plethora of biologics available for use, every spine surgeon should understand bone biology and the utility of each product for the benefit of their patients. In this chapter, we will discuss the biology of spinal fusions and detail each major category of biological products, from autograft to ceramics, while detailing their indications and known complications.
Microfabricated optically pumped magnetometer arrays for biomedical imaging

Optically-pumped magnetometers have demonstrated magnetic field measurements as precise as the best superconducting quantum interference device magnetometers. Our group develops miniature alkali atom-based magnetic sensors using microfabrication technology. Our sensors do not require cryogenic cooling, and can be positioned very close to the sample, making these sensors an attractive option for development in the medical community. We will present our latest chip-scale optically-pumped gradiometer developed for array applications to image magnetic fields from the brain noninvasively. These developments should lead to improved spatial resolution, and potentially sensitive measurements in unshielded environments.
The cytotoxic type 3 secretion system 1 of Vibrio rewires host gene expression to subvert cell death and activate cell survival pathways

Bacterial effectors potently manipulate host signaling pathways. The marine bacterium Vibrio parahaemolyticus ( V. para ) delivers effectors into host cells through two type 3 secretion systems (T3SSs). T3SS1 is vital for V. para survival in the environment, whereas T3SS2 causes acute gastroenteritis in human hosts. Although the natural host is undefined, T3SS1 effectors attack highly conserved cellular processes and pathways to orchestrate nonapoptotic cell death. To understand how the concerted action of T3SS1 effectors globally affects host cell signaling, we compared gene expression changes over time in primary fibroblasts infected with V. para that have a functional T3SS1 (T3SS1 + ) to those in cells infected with V. para lacking T3SS1 (T3SS1 − ). Overall, the host transcriptional response to both T3SS1 + and T3SS1 − V. para was rapid, robust, and temporally dynamic. T3SS1 rewired host gene expression by specifically altering the expression of 398 genes. Although T3SS1 effectors targeted host cells at the posttranslational level to cause cytotoxicity, V. para T3SS1 also precipitated a host transcriptional response that initially activated cell survival and repressed cell death networks. The increased expression of several key prosurvival transcripts mediated by T3SS1 depended on a host signaling pathway that is silenced posttranslationally later in infection. Together, our analysis reveals a complex interplay between the roles of T3SS1 as both a transcriptional and posttranslational manipulator of host cell signaling.
Understanding adaptations to patient-centered medical home activities: The PCMH adaptations model

Primary care practices have increasingly adopted the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) model and often adapted quality improvement efforts to fit local context. This paper implemented a modified framework for understanding adaptations in the context of primary care PCMH transformation efforts. We combined an adaptations model by Stirman et al. that categorized adaptations to evidence-based interventions in research studies with dimensions from the RE-AIM framework, as well as items specific to PCMH. The resulting constructs were translated into a "plain English" adaptations interview. We conducted interviews with 27 practices and used resulting descriptive categories to inform exploratory analyses of the relationships between adaptation characteristics and improvement outcomes in PCMH domains of team-based care and data capacity. Practices most commonly focused on development and use of disease registries and enhancements to team-based care (not disease-specific outcomes). Adaptations were common, with practices most frequently making changes to format or personnel. Adaptations were most often intended to increase effectiveness and based on pragmatic considerations. Generally similar adaptation themes emerged across different content topics (registry and quality improvement team). Adaptations initiated or carried out by the entire team or made in early to middle stages of the project were most related to outcome measures of team-based care and data capacity. This paper extends adaptation models from specific interventions in research studies to PCMH quality improvement efforts. Despite limitations, the PCMH Adaptations Model provided a useful framework to understand adaptations in this context.
Lipid Transport by Apolipoprotein AI: Structure and Function

Numerous epidemiologic studies have established a strong inverse relationship between plasma HDL levels and coronary heart disease (CHD) (Miller, 1987). Recent studies suggest that factors influencing levels and metabolism of HDL include both the composition and size of HDL and the fractional catabolic rates of apoAl or apoAll (Brinton et al., 1991). Factors modulating HDL composition and size include lipid transfer proteins (cholesteryl ester transfer protein {CETP} and phospholipid transfer protein {PLTP}) as well as enzymes, such as lecithin:cholesterol acyltransferase {LCAT} and lipases, hepatic triglyceride lipase {HTGL} and lipoprotein lipase {LPL}. Like mature HDL in human plasma, HDL precursors (designated as nascent HDL or nHDL) are also potentially subject to the above modulating agents. However, except for LCAT little is known what effect these factors may have on the structural and metabolic properties of the precursor particles or how such remodeling may influence the channeling of precursors towards specific HDL subpopulations in human plasma. LCAT-mediated transformation of apoAl-containing discoidal analogs of precursor nHDL to HDL-like products is characterized by a strong positive correlation between the size of the precursor particles and the size of their core-containing transformation products (Figure 1) (Nichols, 1990). Thus, modulation-induced change in size of nHDL particles by transfer proteins or enzymes would be expected to correspondingly shift the size of their LCAT-transformation products. In view of the association between HDL level and HDL particle size and composition, reduction in nHDL size may contribute to lower HDL levels and increased risk of CHD. Since nHDL lack core lipids and consist almost exclusively of phospholipid, unesterified cholesterol and apolipoproteins, their remodeling mainly involves phospholipid depletion as facilitated by CETP and PLTP and phospholipid lipolysis as facilitated by HTGL.
Further Evaluation of Treatments for Vocal Stereotypy: Response Interruption Redirection and Response Cost

The purpose of this study was to expand on research by evaluating the effects of response interruption redirection and response cost alone to reduce vocal stereotypy and to evaluate whether response cost increases the effectiveness of response interruption redirection. Treatment phases included response interruption redirection, response cost, and response interruption redirection plus response cost. We saw high rates of vocal stereotypy during baseline, toy baseline, and pre-intervention phases. During all treatment phases, we saw substantial decreases in stereotypy. For two of the three participants response interruption redirection and response cost was a slightly more effective treatment suggesting that using response interruption redirection with an additive of response cost may further suppress stereotypy. These results were replicated across phases. For one participant response interruption redirection was the most effective treatment. All three treatments reduced vocal stereotypy to clinically acceptable levels for two participants. For one participant, there was only a slight decrease in stereotypy when RC was implemented. We discuss limitations and areas for future research.
Musth, Sexual Selection, Testosterone, and Metabolites

Musth is an annual, yet asynchronous, rut-like condition that is experienced by many adult African and Asian male elephants. Behaviorally, musth is characterized by heightened aggression, decreased feeding, urine dribbling, temporal gland secretion and enhanced sexual activity. Musth improves the access of a male to reproductively active females through increased mobility and a higher dominance ranking (intrasexual competition). Whether females prefer males in musth as mates is as yet uncertain (intersexual choice). Females can distinguish among the odors of males in musth and nonmusth. Although behavioral musth has been associated with greatly elevated plasma testosterone levels, a recent study in Sri Lanka shows that intensified aggressiveness follows maximal testosterone secretion and proposes that behavioral musth is a consequence of declining androgen levels. Our data from an Asian male elephant in North America suggest that either declining or rising serum testosterone may be related to “musth behaviors.” Our report demonstrates that certain aspects of body physiology are greatly altered during musth. Rather than a single state, our data suggest that musth is an ever-changing condition with some typical stages. Specific chemical compounds released at different stages of musth may serve individually or in combination as honest signals of male condition.
Aspects of Sexual Response in Adults with Spinal-Cord Injury: A Review of the Literature

In this chapter, Higgins reviews the available literature on sexual function in males and females with spinal-cord injury. The number of such patients is large (approximately 100,000) and increasing as medical technology increases the life span of patients with cord injury.
Medium Voltage DC Testbed: A Hardware Based Tool to Integrate DC Microgrids/Nanogrids to the Utility Infrastructure

the futuristic distribution system which is one of the basic smart grid concepts can be viewed as a cluster of microgrids/nanogrids composed of a cluster of distributed energy resources (DER). In addition to, the exponential development of solid state transformers technology which makes it possible to directly integrate the microgrids/nanogrids to the medium voltage (MV) part of the power grid. The MVDC network facilitates the integration of DC microgrids/nanogrids clusters to the AC grid. However, this necessitates the research institutions to develop laboratory equipment to validate the hardware developed to work on the MV levels. This paper presents a design of a scaled-down MV DC laboratory testbed. The proposed system is based on Power Electronic Transformers (PETs) to provide the high step-up ratio of voltage without occupying much space. This MV DC testbed is a laboratory setup that provides a power source and a power sink for any DC hardware to be tested in the MV range. The proposed system is evaluated through Matlab Simulink simulations.
Evaluating energy efficiency potential in low-income households: A flexible and granular approach

Abstract This study presents a new approach to evaluating energy efficiency potential that provides a more accurate, granular, and flexible estimate of the cost-effective energy efficiency potential in households of various income ranges. Results from this work estimate that in U.S. single-family households with income less than 200% of the federal poverty level, energy efficiency packages tailored to maximize net present value could result in an estimated $13 billion per year in energy cost savings, or $670 per year for an average household, corresponding to about 1 EJ (0.9 quads) of annual primary energy savings. These types of metrics can be estimated for other geographies (regions, states, and counties) and for other ranges of household income. These results can be used by policymakers and program designers to improve the cost-effectiveness of income-qualified programs and to improve the equity of non-income-qualified programs. The results can also be used to understand how energy efficiency opportunities differ between urban and rural areas, as well as how energy efficiency can spur economic development in areas that have had high poverty rates for decades.
The emergence of vampire bat rabies in Uruguay within a historical context

Pathogen spillover from wildlife to humans or domestic animals requires a series of conditions to align with space and time. Comparing these conditions between times and locations where spillover does and does not occur presents opportunities to understand the factors that shape spillover risk. Bovine rabies transmitted by vampire bats was first confirmed in 1911 and has since been detected across the distribution of vampire bats. However, Uruguay is an exception. Uruguay was free of bovine rabies until 2007, despite high-cattle densities, the presence of vampire bats and a strong surveillance system. To explore why Uruguay was free of bovine rabies until recently, we review the historic literature and reconstruct the conditions that would allow rabies invasion into Uruguay. We used available historical records on the abundance of livestock and wildlife, the vampire bat distribution and occurrence of rabies outbreaks, as well as environmental modifications, to propose four alternative hypotheses to explain rabies virus emergence and spillover: bat movement, viral invasion, surveillance failure and environmental changes. While future statistical modelling efforts will be required to disentangle these hypotheses, we here show how a detailed historical analysis can be used to generate testable predictions for the conditions leading to pathogen spillover.
Biodegradable airway stents: Novel treatment of airway obstruction in children

Background Tracheobronchomalacia is the most common cause of congenital airway obstruction in infants. An alternative for surgical approach (aortopexy) can be metallic airway stents. Usually, they are not considered as a first choice because of the relatively high risk of complications. Recent years have brought encouraging reports of biodegradable stents applied in children. Objectives The aim of this study was to report our experience in the treatment of airway malacia using biodegradable stents. Material and methods Six polydioxanone (PDS), self-expanding custom-made stents (ELLA-CS) were implanted in 2 children: 3 in the patient with left main bronchus occlusion due to postpnemonectomy syndrome and 3 stents in the baby with tracheomalacia. Results Airway collapse was always relieved after stent expansion. Both patients needed repeated stenting because of limited stent lifespan. All the stents were implanted without complications through a rigid bronchoscope. The baby with stented main bronchus died because of irreversible lung lesion. Conclusions This small study shows that biodegradable airway stents seem to be an attractive option in the treatment of tracheobronchomalacia in children. We consider this method to be safe, effective, repeatable, and reversible in small children with growing airways. As a time-buying procedure they can be especially useful in the treatment of tracheobronchomalacia.
Mobile witnessing on WhatsApp: Vigilante virality and the anatomy of mob lynching

In contemporary India, Hindutva chauvinists, self-labelled as ‘gau-rakshaks’ (cow protectors) actively create misinformation campaigns through WhatsApp to set up mob attacks against alleged ‘gau-ta...
An ARIMA-NARX Model to Predict Li-Ion State of Charge for Unknown Charge/Discharge Rates

State of charge (SOC) prediction for Li-ion batteries is an essential feature of a battery management system (BMS). This paper proposes two Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) models to independently forecast cell current and voltage, respectively and a Nonlinear Autoregressive neural network (NARX-net) model. The battery parameters corresponding to an unknown higher C-rate are forecasted using the parameters corresponding to known C-rates obtained experimentally using a 3.7V, 3.5Ah Li-ion battery. Four algorithms are then used to train a NARX-net to predict SOC for an unknown higher C-rate, performances of which are compared with the experimentally obtained SOC for C/10. The resulting proposed model combining ARIMA and NARX-net predicts SOC with very low error values.
Commercial whey products promote intestinal barrier function with glycomacropeptide enhanced activity in downregulating bacterial endotoxin lipopolysaccharides (LPS)-induced inflammation in vitro

Cheese whey contains bioactive compounds which have shown multiple health-promoting benefits. This study aimed to assess the commercial whey products (CWP) whey protein isolate (WPI), galacto-oligosaccharide-whey protein concentrate (GOS-W) and glycomacropeptide (GMP) for their potential to improve intestinal health in vitro using HT29-MTX intestinal goblet and Caco-2 epithelial cells. Results from HT29-MTX culture showed that WPI mitigated reactive oxygen species (ROS) production at a higher extent compared to GOS-W or GMP. However, GMP downregulated the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced TLR-4 inflammatory pathway with the highest potency compared to the other CWP. Biomarkers of epithelial integrity assessed on both cell lines showed tight junction proteins claudin-1, claudin-3, occludin (OCC), and zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) upregulation by GMP in HT29-MTX (1.33-1.93-fold of control) and in Caco-2 cells (1.56-2.09-fold of control). All CWP increased transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) in TNF-α challenged Caco-2/HT29-MTX co-culture monolayer (p < 0.05), but only GMP was similar to the positive control TGF-β1, known for its role in promoting epithelial barrier function. The TNF-α-induced co-culture monolayer permeability was prevented at similar levels by all CWP (p < 0.05). In conclusion, CWP may be used as functional food ingredients to protect against intestinal disorders with emphasis on the GMP enhanced anti-inflammatory and intestinal barrier function properties. Further in vivo studies are guaranteed to validate these findings.
Integrating Palliative Care on an Adult Trauma Service

Background: In 2017, the American College of Surgeons' Trauma Quality Improvement Program adopted a Palliative Care Best Practices Guidelines that calls for early palliative care for hospitalized i...
A brief staff training to increase children’s physical activity during an after-school program: Preliminary effectiveness and potential for dissemination

This two-part study aimed to first evaluate the preliminary effectiveness of a brief staff training intervention to promote physical activity among children attending an after-school program, and then to determine the feasibility of delivering the training to a larger number of sites. Two Boys and Girls Club after-school sites (intervention, control) participated in study 1. Accelerometer-measured physical activity of children and directly observed staff behaviors were assessed at each site in February and May 2019. Following baseline data collection, staff at the intervention site attended a brief physical activity promotion training, which emphasized expanding the quantity and enhancing the quality of physical activity opportunities. For study 2, the training was delivered to all staff, and they completed pre- and post-training measures of self-efficacy and intention to implement strategies to promote physical activity. In study 1, children at the intervention site decreased sedentary time by 14.8 min/day, and increased light and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity by 7.8 and 7.0 min/day, respectively, relative to the control site. Instances of staff encouragement significantly increased at the intervention site. In study 2, staff reported significant improvements in self-efficacy and intention immediately following the training. These studies provide preliminary evidence that a brief staff training intervention may increase physical activity among children attending an after-school program, and that the intervention can be integrated into existing training requirements. Future research is needed to replicate these findings across a wider range of after-school programs, and to explore systematic approaches to offering sustainable physical activity training regularly at scale.
Comprehensive Quantification of Carboxymethyllysine-Modified Peptides in Human Plasma.

A prolonged hyperglycemic condition in diabetes mellitus results in glycation of plasma proteins. N(e)-Carboxymethyllysine (CML) is a well-known protein advanced glycation end product, and one of its mechanisms of formation is through further oxidation of Amadori compound modified lysine (AML). Unlike enrichment of AML peptides using boronate affinity, biochemical enrichment methods are scarce for comprehensive profiling of CML-modified peptides. To address this problem, we used AML peptide sequence and site of modification as template library to identify and quantify CML peptides. In this study, a parallel reaction monitoring workflow was developed to comprehensively quantify CML modified peptides in Type 1 diabetic subjects' plasma with good and poor glycemic control (n = 20 each). A total of 58 CML modified peptides were quantified, which represented 57 CML modification sites in 19 different proteins. Out of the 58 peptides, five were significantly higher in poor glycemic control samples with the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve ≥0.83. These peptides could serve as promising indicators of glycemic control in Type 1 diabetes management.
THE DIALECTICS OF STATE ECONOMIC INTERVENTION: Bank Deregulation and the Savings and Loan Bailout

Much research has been devoted to analyses of the factors that influence the creation and implementation of state policy. Conventional theories of the state suggest interesting frameworks for understanding the savings and loan bailout legislation. However, they are limited because they have stalled in a debate predicated on the presumption of theoretically mutual exclusivity. While an increasing number of observers have begun to call for a synthesis, there remains a need to specify the contours of such a synthesis. Of great use here to organize a synthesis of state theories is Jessop's (1990) concepts of state projects and balance of class forces as a frame for analyzing the savings and loan bailout. We use these concepts as mechanisms for exploring the conditions under which the factors identified by each of the state theories become more or less salient in explaining the production and implementation of state policy. Moreover, these synthesizing concepts facilitate an explication of the varying levels of power implied by state theories: who governs, who wins, and who benefits from policy, and under what conditions are these levels of power invoked? We focus here on the legislation for bailing out the savings and loan industry in 1989. An examination of that policy reveals that the industry itself was created as part of a larger state project to correct for contradictions in the economy that produced the Great Depression. The industry's 1980s crisis was created by a combination of the very regulations that created the special protected niche of the thrifts, Federal Reserve Board policy restricting the money supply in an effort to control inflation, and the deregulation of banking that unleashed economic forces contradicting the original mission and undermining the already precarious financial stability of the savings and loan industry. Although both capital accumulation and nonaccumulation interests received attention in the legislation, only accumulation interests actually benefited in its implementation. The savings and loan bailout was thus not a singular, isolated policy responding to a crisis but rather part of a broader dialectic process of state economic intervention, organized and implemented through state projects and informed by processes affecting the balance of class forces.
Ecological correlates of the morphology of the auditory bulla in rodents: Application to the fossil record

For rodents, hearing is essential to survival. It enables predator evasion, prey detection, and conspecific recognition; it is also likely to be constrained by the physical environment. The resulting hypothetical link between tympanic bulla morphology and ecology has never been investigated across a broad array of rodent species before. Such link may enable the determination of the ecological affinities of many fossil species only known from partial skulls. In this study, we used geometric morphometrics to quantify the shape of the auditory bulla of 197 specimens representing 91 species from 17 families of extant rodents across four different locomotory modes. We used landmarks and semi-landmarks on the ventral and lateral views of the skull to capture morphological characteristics of the bulla and external auditory meatus (EAM). Our results demonstrate an association between bullar morphology and locomotion in rodents. Bullar shape enables the correct classification of 76% of the species in our training set. Fossorial taxa, in particular, show a characteristic morphology including an asymmetric bulla with a dorsally located and laterally expanded EAM that has a small opening diameter. A phylogenetically informed flexible discriminant analysis shows a weak phylogenetic effect on tympanic morphology. There is no evidence for differences in bullar hypertrophy across locomotory categories. The application of this approach to select fossil rodents from the Oligo-Miocene shows broad agreements with prior studies and yields new locomotory inferences for 14 fossil species, including the first proposed locomotion for members of the family Florentiamyidae. Such results call for the timing of burrowing diversification in rodents to be reevaluated.
Principled leadership and business diplomacy: A practical, values‐based direction for management development

This paper introduces the concept of business diplomacy as a way to implement values‐based, ethical leadership. Drawing on the Japanese concept of kyosei, business diplomats take responsibility for themselves and others and treat people with respect and kindness while they simultaneously attempt to be entrepreneurial, add business value, and make a profit. This paper reviews the strategies and tactics of business diplomacy and provides case examples of how to be diplomatic and ethical in difficult situations. The paper concludes with recommendations for how to establish an organizational culture based on business diplomacy.
Toward recovery-oriented computing

Recovery Oriented Computing (ROC) is a joint research effort between Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley. ROC takes the perspective that hardware faults, software bugs, and operator errors are facts to be coped with, not problems to be solved. This perspective is supported both by historical evidence and by recent studies on the main sources of outages in production systems. By concentrating on reducing Mean Time to Repair (MTTR) rather than increasing Mean Time to Failure (MTTF), ROC reduces recovery time and thus offers higher availability. We describe the principles and philosophy behind the joint Stanford/Berkeley ROC effort and outline some of its research areas and current projects.
The Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction complicating syphilotherapy in pregnancy

Thirty-three gravidas with syphilis were monitored with hourly vital signs and examinations for 24 hours after treatment with benzathine penicillin G. Fifteen (45%) of the subjects had a Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction, including all three, 12 of 20 (60%), and none of ten of those with primary, secondary, and latent syphilis, respectively. The most common symptoms were fever (73%), uterine contractions (67%), and decreased fetal movement (67%). The signs or symptoms began 2-8 hours after treatment; fevers peaked at 6-12 hours post-therapy and the events usually abated by 16-24 hours after treatment. Uterine contractions and decreased fetal activity began concurrent with maternal fever in eight of ten women reporting contractions. Transient late decelerations were detected in three of 11 monitored patients. Three of the women with Jarisch-Herxheimer reactions delivered infants with congenital syphilis, including one stillbirth, but none of those without a detectable reaction had fetal treatment failures. Prostaglandin F2 alpha and prostacyclin metabolites were elevated transiently in the one subject studied, suggesting their role in mediating the cardiovascular and uterine events in the post-treatment period. The Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction in pregnancy is similar in frequency, character, and intensity to that in nonpregnant adults, but gravidas may have increase uterine activity and transient alterations in fetal well-being. The pregnant patient with a severely affected fetus with congenital syphilis may experience preterm labor, preterm delivery, or fetal death in association with the Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction.
Disaster Preparedness and Social Capital

The first decade of the 21st century has pushed the field of disaster preparedness to the forefront of public health. In a few short years, the world has witnessed the far–ranging ramifications of 9/11 and anthrax (2001), SARS (2003), the Indian Ocean tsunami (2004), Hurricane Katrina (2005) and the looming threat of pandemic influenza. Societies everywhere are responding to these developments with new policies that commit added resources for protection against future disasters.
Thermodynamics proof of sensory learning and implication of mammal homeostasis

While Oja et al. have derived a Hebbian learning neural net algorithm of PCA reproducing Petland's eigenfaces for examples, Bell-Sejnowski and Amari have improved an unsupervised maximum output entropy learning algorithm for ICA sensory pre-processing reproducing the Hubel-Wiesel edge maps, among others. This paper unifies proofs of the convergence of both supervised and unsupervised learning artificial neural networks in the Lyapunov sense. It implies the effortless division of labor such as the cocktail party effect of supervised word spotting under the unsupervised rejection of severe clutter noise. The proof is based on the minimization of Helmholtz thermodynamic free energy: A=U -TS; Hopfield dynamics: du/sub i//dt=-/spl part/U(v/sub i/)//spl part/v/sub i/; v/sub i/=/spl sigma/o(u/sub i/); and Bell-Sejnowski dynamics: du/sub i//dt=+/spl part/S(w/sub ij/)//spl part/w/sub ij/ for arbitrary brain-like open systems which suggests homeostasis constant body temperature T reservoir. This is characteristic of all mammals, as opposed to cold-blooded reptiles. Other than the known cocktail party effect, applications are given to unsupervised image de-noise generalization of PCA eigenfaces and the supervised recognition of ICA faces.
Lessons Learned Through Leadership: How to Avoid Looking Like an Onion With Your Head Stuck in the Ground and Your Feet Above

As all journeys begin with a first step, I find myself now making a tentative effort to respond to the challenge of recalling “lessons learned while serving,” largely influenced while serving as president of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (AAPMR be always employed in something useful.” Today, I too continue to view lost time as an irreplaceable resource that, when lost, can never be recovered! Time management in this epoch of revisionist managed care is an imperative if the demands for medical services are to be met in a cost-effective manner. Nowhere is it more essential than in a one-man clinical practice, especially when running between different practice sites. Without a guaranteed salary, work in the private sector is financially rewarded only by the hours spent in face-to-face patient service. Practice hourly overhead is ongoing whether the clinician is working in his or her office and/or is attending to the Academy’s business in Chicago. At the end of the day, to their dismay, physician-owners may find that they are in fact the last and the least to be paid [1]! Fortunately, Detroit and Chicago are less than 1 hour’s flight from each other. As a consequence, I rarely absented myself from work for more than 24 hours. I know my practice partners, and my wife appreciated it even more than me. I also managed to continue to reserve one afternoon a week as marital time. Now, after 55 years, it continues: Happy wife, happy life! As I reflect upon my professional career, I cannot remember ever being bored or having discretionary time. Medical school at the University of Michigan obviously did not allow
Long‐term consequences of early postnatal seizures on hippocampal learning and plasticity

Neural activity influences the patterning of synaptic connections and functional organization of developing sensory and motor systems, but the long-term consequences of intense neural activity such as seizures in the developing hippocampus are not adequately understood. To evaluate the possibility that abnormal neural activity during early development may have long-term functional effects in hippocampal circuitry that plays a role in learning, memory and epilepsy, functional properties of hippocampal circuitry were assessed in adult rats that had experienced seizures induced by kainic acid on specific days during early postnatal development. Although previous studies have suggested that the immature hippocampus is relatively resistant to seizure-induced alterations compared with adults, independent behavioural and physiological experiments demonstrated that seizures evoked by kainic acid during early postnatal development induced a long-term loss of hippocampal plasticity manifesting as reduced capacity for long-term potentiation, reduced susceptibility to kindling, and impaired spatial learning, which was associated with enhanced paired-pulse inhibition in the dentate gyrus. The enhancement of inhibition and loss of plasticity were maximal when the seizures occurred on the first day of life, but were also observed when seizures were induced as late as postnatal day 14, which delimited a period of postnatal susceptibility in the developing rat hippocampus when disruption of normal neural activity by seizures produced consistent effects on a hippocampal-dependent behaviour and several forms of hippocampal plasticity implicated in learning, memory and the development of epilepsy in adulthood.
Teaching Engineering Ethics: Assessment of Its Influence on Moral Reasoning Skills

As a result of increased concerns regarding ethical issues in engineering, this project assessed the influence on moral reasoning skills of teaching students a course specifically addressing the ethical and social issues in engineering. The Defining Issues Test (DIT), which is based on cognitive moral development theory, was used as the instrument of assessment. Students were pretested, taught a course on engineering ethics, and posttested at the end of the semester. In the Fall of 1995, a total of 301 students participated in the study with 162 students completing the DIT at both the pretest and posttest. In the Spring of 1996, a total of 263 students participated in the study with 155 students completing the DIT at both the pretest and posttest. Analysis of the data revealed a statistically significant increase in the moral reasoning skills of the students for both semesters. Statistical analysis revealed a significant correlation between the change in moral reasoning scores and age in the Spring semester with younger students showing more change but not in the Fall semester. There was no significant relationship between the moral reasoning scores and gender at either the pretest or the posttest, nor in the rate of change by gender. This study demonstrates that the teaching of ethics in engineering can be rigorously measured, tested and analyzed and that it can have a significant positive influence on the moral reasoning skills of the students. However, these findings need to be replicated by other studies in different settings.
Optimization method for creating semi-isometric flat maps of the cerebral cortex

We describe a method for creating semi-isometric flat maps of sections of the human cortical surface. These maps can be used for a wide range of applications including visualization of the distribution of functional activation over the unfolded brain surface and generating parametric models for the cortical surface that are appropriate for performing geometrical transformations and surface based inter-subject registration. In particular, their application in creating multi-resolution representations of arbitrarily shaped complex surfaces is presented in this paper. Using the property that every simultaneous conformal and equiareal mapping is isometric, we have formulated the calculation of an isometric mapping between surfaces as a constrained optimization problem. We have designed an energy function whose minima occur when the surface points are positioned in an unfolded configuration. Constraint functions imposing the requirements of preservation of angles and areas guarantee that the surface will deform to produce conformal and equiareal mappings. The constraints are imposed using penalty functions in an unconstrained conjugate gradient algorithm. The surface unfolds gradually, deforming to a near-flat form that corresponds to a minimum of the weighted sum of the energy and penalty function terms.