cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Characteristics of vegetarian adolescents in a multiethnic urban population

Abstract Purpose: To examine the prevalence of adolescents’ vegetarianism in a multiethnic, urban population, and its correlates with demographic, personal, weight-related, and behavioral factors. Methods: Self-report and anthropometric data were collected from a representative sample of 4746 adolescents from 31 public middle schools and high schools in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota. Students answered questions concerning vegetarianism, food and weight, and health behaviors. Height and weight were directly measured. Comparisons were made between self-reported vegetarians and nonvegetarians; these analyses also assessed gender and race/ethnicity interactions. In the second set of analyses, demographic and behavioral characteristics of more restricted and semi-vegetarians were examined. Analyses were done by logistic regression. Results: Teenage vegetarians comprise about 6% of the sample. The vegetarians were more likely than nonvegetarians to be female, not black, weight- and body-conscious, dissatisfied with their bodies, and involved in a variety of healthy and unhealthy weight control behaviors. Vegetarians more often reported having been told by a physician that they had an eating disorder and were more likely to have contemplated and attempted suicide. Vegetarian males were found to be an especially high risk group for unhealthy weight control practices. Few ethnic group differences among vegetarians were noted. Adolescents who did not eat chicken and fish were at lower risk than those who also ate chicken and fish. Conclusions: Adolescent vegetarians are at greater risk than others for involvement in unhealthy and extreme weight control behaviors. Vegetarian males are at particularly high risk. Vegetarianism among adolescents may therefore be a signal for preventive intervention. Adolescents who choose to become vegetarians may also need to learn how to healthfully do so.
Emotions and Culpability: How the Law is at Odds With Psychology, Jurors, and Itself

This book investigates why, when, and how ordinary human beings hold some individuals guilty of crimes, but others less so or not at all. Why, for example, do the emotions of the accused sometimes aggravate a murder, making it a heinous crime, whereas other emotions might mitigate that murder to manslaughter, excuse a killing ("by reason of insanity"), or even justify it ("by reason of self-defense")? And what emotions on the part of jurors come into play as they arrive at their decisions? The authors argue persuasively that U.S. law is out of touch with the way that jurors' "commonsense justice" works and the way they judge culpability. This disconnect has resulted in some inconsistent verdicts across different types of cases and thus has serious implications for whether the law will be respected and obeyed. Problems arise because criminal law has no unified theory of emotion and culpability, and legal scholars often seem to misunderstand or ignore what psychologists know about emotion. The authors skillfully show that the law's culpability theories are (and must be) psychological at heart, and they propose ways in which psychology can help inform and support the law.
2-Methoxyacetic acid (MAA)-induced spermatocyte apoptosis in human and rat testes: an in vitro comparison

2-Methoxyethanol (2-ME) produces adverse reproductive effects in humans at an exposure level that is about 60-fold lower (2.6 mg/m3) than the concentration toxic to rat testes (167 mg/m3), suggesting that humans are much more sensitive to the testicular toxicity of 2-ME than rats. Previous studies found that 2-ME-induced germ cell death seen in vivo could be faithfully mimicked in vitro only in cultured seminiferous tubules, using the active metabolite methoxyacetic acid (MAA). To test whether human testis per se is more sensitive than rat testis to MAA, we compared the responses of cultured rat seminiferous tubules (RSTs) and human testicular tissues (HTT) in vitro. Degeneration in spermatocytes was observed in RSTs 19 hours after a 5-hour exposure to MAA at and above 1 mM. The dying germ cells showed necrotic-like morphology, as seen in vivo. Germ cells in HTT were also killed by doses > or = 1 mM, although the dying germ cells appeared apoptotic, rather than necrotic. For both species, doses lower than 1 mM were without visible effect. Interestingly, agarose gel electrophoresis of DNA from tubules of both species showed internucleosomal DNA fragmentation after MAA treatment, indicating that MAA induced apoptosis in both human and rat germ cells, though the dying cells showed different morphology in the two species. Furthermore, MAA-induced germ cell apoptosis in both species could be significantly attenuated by calcium channel blockers such as nifedipine or verapamil, which inhibit calcium movement through plasma membranes. In conclusion, the results suggest that: 1) human testis is equally sensitive to MAA compared to rat testis; and 2) MAA induces germ cell apoptosis both in human and rat, probably through similar, calcium-dependent mechanism(s). The precise steps in this germ cell apoptosis are under investigation.
Educational Apps: Using Mobile Applications to Enhance Student Learning of Statistical Concepts

This research sought to understand whether the use of mobile applications e.g., iPhone apps had an impact on students' learning of new statistical concepts. A control group ni¾?= 12 was compared against a group that used a statistical mobile app ni¾?= 13 during a simulated statistics lecture on the topic of normal distribution. Students received a classroom lecture followed by a period of either pencil-and-paper only or technology-assisted examples. They then took a quiz on the material. The overall quiz results showed that the app group outperformed the control group. When learning through examples with the mobile app, students performed better on problems that required them to apply their knowledge, which corresponds to the third level of learning in Bloom's taxonomy. A postexperimental survey showed that students in the app group felt strongly that mobile apps helped them understand the new concepts more clearly and were more confident in their ability to learn the new material more quickly than the control group. Overall, this research demonstrates that incorporating mobile apps into lectures has the potential to positively affect student learning.
New approach for correcting distortions in echo planar imaging

A new method is described that can correct the distortions due to multiple off-resonance effects in echo planar imaging, including those caused by B0 field inhomogeneities, eddy currents, and gradient waveform imperfections. The proposed method uses a phase encoded acquisition and is as effective as the method of Chen and Wyricz (Chen and Wyricz, Magn Reson Med 1999;41:1206–1213) in correcting for distortions. Unlike Chen and Wyricz's approach, this new method works directly in distorted space and requires fewer scans. It also avoids the difficulties of phase unwrapping inherent in field mapping methods. Results using this new method with phantoms and human head scans at 3.0 T demonstrate the efficacy of the method in correcting distortions in both spin echo echo planar imaging (EPI) and gradient echo EPI. Magn Reson Med 52:1373–1378, 2004. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
ANTHOCYANINS FROM BLACK SORGHUM AND THEIR ANTIOXIDANT PROPERTIES

A black, high anthocyanin sorghum variety (Tx430) grown in several environments was analyzed for anthocyanins by spectrophotometric and HPLC methods. The samples were also analyzed for antioxidant activity using the 2,2′-azinobis (3-ethyl-benzothiaziline-6-sulfonic acid) method. Two extracting solvents, 1% HCl in methanol and 70% aqueous acetone, were compared. Sorghum brans had three to four times higher anthocyanin contents than the whole grains. The brans were a good source of anthocyanin (4.0–9.8 mg luteolinidin equivalents/g) compared to pigmented fruits and vegetables (0.2–10 mg/g), fresh weight basis. Acidified methanol extracted the anthocyanins better than aqueous acetone. Luteolinidin and apigeninidin accounted for about 50% of the anthocyanins in the black sorghums. The sorghum grains and their brans had high antioxidant activity (52–400 μmol TE/g) compared to other cereals (<0.1–34 mg TE/g). Black sorghum should be useful in food and other applications, because it is a valuable source of anthocyanins with good antioxidant activity.
Portable and desktop computer integrated field book and data collection system for agronomists

An integrated, computerized system has been developed to facilitate data collection and storage. It utilizes hardware, commercial software, and menu-driven software and has two parts. The first part utilizes a portable microcomputer to collect data in the field or lab. This microcomputer can be interfaced with an electronic balance to facilitate data entry by weighing. Off-line data storage is available when remote field situations prevent immediate data transfer. The second part utilizes a desktop microcomputer with a hard disk to generate randomized complete block design treatment arrangements with one to six replications, create and manipulate data storage files, print fieldbooks, and print adhesive labels (...)
The Principal Principle and Theories of Chance: Another Bug?

Objective chance, or the “big bad bug” of David Lewis’s account of Humean Supervenience forces, as is well known, is a modification of the Principal Principle. Here, I argue that standard assumptions regarding conditional probabilities entail several puzzling consequences for Lewis’s New Principle, namely, an apparent requirement to account for the chance of a theory of chance. These problems, I argue, cannot be adequately answered within the received framework, and so I suggest that an interpretation of conditional probabilities in terms of Alan Hajek’s recent work might go some distance toward their resolution.
Determination of cardiorespiratory function and the optimum anesthetic regimen during laparoscopic surgery in the rat model.

Background: The rat is increasingly being used in laparoscopic research yet the hemodynamic and respiratory effects of CO2 pneumoperitoneum have not been studied in this model. Methods: Five Lewis rats were anesthetized with inhaled isoflurane (1.4–2.0%) and a 50% O2/50% N2O mixture by mask (ISO). Another five rats were anesthetized with 1 ml/kg intraperitoneal sodium pentobarbital (PB) and given 100% O2 by mask. Catheters were placed in the femoral artery and the right jugular vein and a thermistor probe was placed in the aortic arch. Heart rate (HR), blood pressure (MAP), cardiac index (CI), arterial pH, and PCO2 were measured at baseline and following 10, 20, and 30 min of 2 mmHg CO2 pneumoperitoneum. Results: CO2 pneumoperitoneum had no effect on HR, MAP, CI, pH, or PCO2 in either the ISO or PB anesthetic groups. Comparing the two anesthetic groups, PB demonstrated a significantly higher MAP at all time points, a significantly higher PCO2 at baseline, and 10 min of pneumoperitoneum, a significantly lower pH at baseline, 10, and 30 minutes of pneumoperitoneum, and a significantly longer induction time (31 vs. 6 min). There was no difference in HR or CI between the two anesthetics. Conclusion: Low-pressure CO2 pneumoperitoneum up to 30 min in the spontaneously breathing rat does not significantly affect HR, MAP, CI, pH, or PCO2. Inhalational isoflurane/N2O anesthesia produces less hypertension and respiratory acidosis than intraperitoneal pentobarbital during pneumoperitoneum in the rat.
Low cost titanium and developing applications

There are a number of maturing extraction and fabrication techniques which can potentially reduce the cost of titanium. These are in part responsible for a number of developing applications for titanium.
Reflection Coefficients for Acoustic Waves Interacting with Stratified Media

Reflection coefficients for acoustic waves interacting with stratified media are obtained in closed form and expressed in terms of continuous fractions. A numerical example is given for the three layer case.
GCM response to Late Precambrian (∼590 Ma) ice—covered continents

Recent coupled energy balance/ice sheet modeling studies indicate that ice-covered continents can be simulated for the Late Precambrian with 6% solar constant reduction. We examine the ocean mixed layer response to such an ice sheet with the GENESIS 2 general circulation model and CO2 levels varying from 0.5–2.5 times present. The ocean ices over completely at 0.5–1.0X present levels, with the final phase of sea ice growth occurring within a single model year. A qualitatively different 2.5X CO2 solution is close to equilibrium and yields open water between ∼25 °N and ∼25 °S paleolatitude. The prevailing wind patterns suggest that an equatorial Pacific-type circulation may have developed in part of the Neoproterozoic ocean.
Prevention of viral hepatitis

Despite the availability of vaccines against hepatitis A and B, acute viral hepatitis due to these agents continues to be among the most commonly reported notifiable infectious diseases in the United States. Currently available hepatitis A and B vaccines are highly immunogenic and well tolerated, but vaccine coverage needs to be expanded. Use of the hepatitis A vaccine in children age 2 years and older should be more widespread than is currently the case. Hepatitis A vaccine has been shown to be cost effective when given to children in regions with high attack rates and to patients with chronic hepatitis C. Routine newborn immunization against hepatitis B has been a successful approach to disease control and is among the most cost-effective interventions. Use of the hepatitis B vaccine for all sexually active individuals with more than one sex partner should be recommended for this sexually transmitted disease. The availability of a combined hepatitis A and B vaccine should facilitate vaccine coverage in those individuals at risk for both infections. For those hepatitis infections for which no vaccine is currently available, namely hepatitis C, D, and E, reducing exposure risk by modifying lifestyle behaviors is the only control measure available. Early education and counseling about high-risk behaviors for the acquisition of blood-borne hepatitis viruses needs to be expanded to young children and adolescents. The eventual eradication of hepatitis virus infections through universal immunization is plausible for those agents for whom human beings are the only host and effective vaccines have been developed. If hepatitis E is shown to be a zoonosis with an extensive reservoir in pigs, eradication of this agent may be very difficult.
Electrochemistry of Chromium-base binary metallic glasses☆

Abstract The electrochemistry of glassy Cr70B30 and microcrystalline chromium has been studied relative to conventionally processed chromium. Alloy structure is shown to play a tertiary role in the properties of these homogeneous materials. In contrast, alloying with boron leads to a dramatic increase in corrosion resistance. This is due to the fact that Cr70B30, unlike pure chromium, cannot be activated in 1 M H2SO4.
PROTEIN COAGULATION AND ITS REVERSAL : THE REVERSAL OF THE COAGULATION OF HEMOGLOBIN.

1. The preparation from completely coagulated hemoglobin of crystalline soluble hemoglobin is described. 2. This soluble hemoglobin by all the tests tried has been indistinguishable from normal native hemoglobin which has never been coagulated. 3. The coagulation of hemoglobin is probably reversible. 4. Since hemoglobin is a typical coagulable protein, protein coagulation in general is probably reversible.
A 65nm CMOS SOC Technology Featuring Strained Silicon Transistors for RF Applications

Record breaking RF performance was recently achieved on a 65nm CMOS technology (29nm Lgate, 210nm pitch) employing uni-axial strained silicon transistors. These highest-reported cutoff frequencies for NMOS transistors achieve fT/fMAX values of 360 GHz/420 GHz. PMOS transistors also demonstrate superior performance with fT/fMAX values of 238 GHz/295 GHz. Varactor performance on this substrate technology is also discussed.
Prevalence of self-reported food allergy in American adults and use of food labels

Background Few population-based studies in the United States have determined the prevalence of food allergy in adults and the problems these individuals might have with reading food labels. Objective The objectives of this study are to report the prevalence of self-reported food allergy, to identify the characteristics of food allergy reactions, and to describe the use of labels among adults with food allergy. Methods Questions from the US Food and Drug Administration's 2001 Food Safety Survey were analyzed to determine the prevalence of food allergy and opinions about food labels in the management of food allergy. Results The prevalence of self-reported food allergy is 9.1% among all survey respondents, with 5.3% of all respondents reporting a doctor-diagnosed food allergy. The prevalence of food allergy to the 8 most common allergens (peanut, tree nuts, egg, milk, wheat, soybeans, fish, and crustacean shellfish) is self-reported as 2.7% among respondents with doctors' diagnoses. Several label issues, such as words on some ingredient lists being too technical or hard to understand and food labels not always alerting persons to new ingredients, were reported as serious or very serious obstacles for managing an allergy. Conclusion The prevalence of self-reported doctor-diagnosed food allergy among US adults is 5.3%, and a large portion of adults with food allergy found certain label issues a serious problem for managing their food allergy. Clinical implications The findings provide a needed source of population-based prevalence data of food allergy among US adults. Label issues identified are useful in understanding the difficulties of managing a food allergy.
Frequency of left atrioventricular regurgitation postoperatively after repair of complete atrioventricular defect

Abstract Experience with 43 consecutive cases of isolated (except for patent ductus) atrioventricular (AV) defects treated surgically at University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona, were reviewed to determine occurrence and amount of postoperative left AV valve regurgitation. Patients initially evaluated at ages 1 day to 59 months were included, 32 of whom had Down's syndrome and 11 of whom had normal chromosomes. Age at repair ranged from 1 month to 171 months; 70% of patients had repair at
Threat Inflation and the Failure of the Marketplace of Ideas: The Selling of the Iraq War

such as the United States are generally believed to be better at making foreign policy than other regime types. Especially, the strong civic institutions and robust marketplaces of ideas in mature democracies are thought to substantially protect them from severe threat inflation and "myths of empire" that could promote excessively risky foreign policy adventures and wars. The marketplace of ideas helps to weed out unfounded, mendacious, or self-serving foreign policy arguments because their proponents cannot avoid wide-ranging debate in which their reasoning and evidence are subject to public scrutiny.1 The marketplace of ideas, however, failed to fulfill this function in the 2002-03 U.S. foreign policy debate over going to war with Iraq. By now there is broad agreement among U.S. foreign policy experts, as well as much of the American public and the international community, that the threat assessments that President George W. Bush and his administration used to justify the war against Iraq were greatly exaggerated, and on some dimensions wholly baseless.
Multiple models to capture the variability in biological neurons and networks

Experimental work suggests that synaptic and intrinsic neuronal properties vary considerably across identified neurons in different animals. The authors propose that instead of building a single model that captures the average behavior of a neuron or circuit, one could construct a population of models with different underlying structure and similar behaviors, as a way of investigating compensatory mechanisms that contribute to neuron and network function.
Unusual Complication of Porcine Heterograft

This paper discusses a complication that is associated with mitral valve replacement utilizing the porcine heterograft and that, to the best of our knowledge, has not been reported previously. Severe mitral insufficiency developed early in 2 patients following mitral valve replacement with a porcine bioprosthesis. Both patients required reoperation. In each patient, it was discovered that one of the cusps of the mitral prosthesis was in the fixed-open position with no evidence of perivalvular leak. The assumption was that failure of the leaflet to close properly had been present from operation. Careful inspection of the valve and assurance that all leaflets close properly should be made at the time of initial valve replacement.
Helical rail glider launcher

The electromagnetic acceleration group at MIT has undertaken to build an electric glider launcher. The launcher features a mobile helical rail accelerator and power supply. It will launch a 6 foot radio-controlled glider for an overall range of several miles. This device is a prototype for a larger system that will provide a launch platform for munition and supply loaded gliders and a wide variety of RPV's. A 6 meter helical rail launcher has been constructed and is being tested. It is a twin boom device designed to accelerate a 5 kg glider to 100 m/s at 100 g's acceleration.
Effects of subfornical organ extracts on salt-water balance in the rat

The subfornical organ (SFO) is a circumventricular structure located at the junction of the lamina terminalis and the tela choroidea of the third cerebral ventricle. SFO is histologically regarded as a neurosecretory structure, although the physiological effects or biochemical nature of such secretions are not yet ascertained. Results are presented for an experimental study designed to determine whether SFO extracts alter parameters associated with salt-water balance in the rat. The data obtained support the conclusion that SFO contains some water-soluble substance(s), easily released by incubation, dialyzable and heat stable, which influences the salt-water balance after injection into ventricular cerebrospinal fluid. Whether other brain tissues or plasma contains the same or similar material is not yet convincingly established. The observation that one or more active constituents are easily released from SFO upon incubation in potassium-enriched medium may be of value.
Optimal control for pandemic influenza: The role of limited antiviral treatment and isolation

The implementation of optimal control strategies involving antiviral treatment and/or isolation measures can reduce significantly the number of clinical cases of influenza. Pandemic-level control measures must be carefully assessed specially in resource-limited situations. A model for the transmission dynamics of influenza is used to evaluate the impact of isolation and/or antiviral drug delivery measures during an influenza pandemic. Five pre-selected control strategies involving antiviral treatment and isolation are tested under the "unlimited" resource assumption followed by an exploration of the impact of these "optimal" policies when resources are limited in the context of a 1918-type influenza pandemic scenario. The implementation of antiviral treatment at the start of a pandemic tends to reduce the magnitude of epidemic peaks, spreading the maximal impact of an outbreak over an extended window in time. Hence, the controls' timing and intensity can reduce the pressures placed on the health care infrastructure by a pandemic reducing the stress put on the system during epidemic peaks. The role of isolation strategies is highlighted in this study particularly when access to antiviral resources is limited.
Multicentric endobronchial granular cell myoblastoma.

Granular cell myoblastoma (GCM) is a rare benign neoplasm involving the tracheobronchial tree. It is believed to arise from the Schwann cell. Four cases of tracheobronchial GCM, all of which were multicentric, are presented and a conservative therapeutic approach is suggested. GCM = granular cell myoblastoma
Ultrastructure of Cytotoxic Cells in Frogs

Our previous work gave evidence that leopard frogs (Rana pipiens) possess inducible killer (IK) cells (CTL-like) and spontaneous killer (SK) cells (NK-like) that can destroy allogeneic RBC. To further characterize these cytotoxic cells we have examined their ultrastructural morphology and effector cell-target cell membrane contacts. We also studied the sensitivity of these two effector cells to low temperature (4°C). Our results showed that SK effector cells are lymphocytes (10 μm) which contain numerous vacuoles and osmiophilic granules, while IK effectors are another lymphocyte population (up to 12 μm) with a small amount of cytoplasm and few mitochondria. Both IK- and SK-mediated lytic responses were suppressed significantly by low temperature. These observations allow us to propose that frog SK and IK cells may be homologous to mammalian NK and CTL.
Resveratrol transport and metabolism by human intestinal Caco-2 cells.

Resveratrol is a dietary constituent suggested to have protective effects against cancer as well as cardiovascular disease. The purpose of the study was to learn whether this agent could be absorbed in man and enter the systemic circulation. This was examined by measuring transport and metabolism of resveratrol (5–40 μM) by the human intestinal epithelial cell line Caco-2 cultured in Transwells. Transport across the Caco-2 monolayer occurred in a direction-independent manner with Papp values of ≅ 7 times 10−6 cm s−1, much higher than for the paracellular transport marker mannitol (≅ 0.4 times 10−6 cms−1), suggesting efficient absorption in-vivo. At the highest resveratrol concentration, the absorption increased, possibly due to saturation of metabolism. In sharp contrast to previous findings in the rat, the metabolism of resveratrol in Caco-2 cells involved mainly sulfation and, to a minor extent, glucuronidation. At low resveratrol concentrations, most of the sulfate conjugate was exported to the apical side, presumably by MRP2, which is well expressed in these cells. At high concentrations, there was a shift towards the basolateral side, possibly involving MRP3, which was recently shown also to be expressed in Caco-2 cells. These results indicate that absorption of resveratrol in-vivo may be high but with limited bioavailability due to efficient sulfate conjugation. Extensive accumulation of resveratrol in the Caco-2 cells, demonstrated in additional experiments, suggests enterocytes as a major target site for this cancer preventive agent.
Delayed resection in the management of non-orbital rhabdomyosarcoma of the head and neck in childhood

This retrospective study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of delayed resection on outcome of head and neck rms in a single institution which has experience in cranial base surgery. Since 1988, patients with primary non-orbital rms of the head and neck following treatment at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, were evaluated by the Department of Otolaryngology, Eye and Ear Hospital at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center either at the time of presentation or when response to chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy was thought to have been optimized for the possibility of definitive surgery. Medical records of patients who did or did not have delayed surgery were reviewed and compared with respect to demographics, tumor stage, response to therapy, survival, and cosmetic results. Of 16 children diagnosed with non-orbital head and neck rms from 1988–1994 and treated with chemotherapy according to IRS II–IV, 3 had group I or II disease following extensive surgery at diagnosis. Thirteen had group III or IV disease. Of these, 6 patients had delayed resection and 7 did not. Delayed resection was undertaken 3–12 months (median, 4 months) from diagnosis in 4 children who had a partial response (PR) and 2 children who had stable disease (SD) with chemotherapy and/or radiation. Delayed resection converted all children to complete responses (CR), including one child with clinical SD and one with PR who were found to have no viable tumor at surgery. The overall percentages of CRs for patients with group II or IV disease (documented any time post-diagnosis) were at least as good for patients who had undergone delayed surgery as for those who had not (100% vs. 71%, p = .465). Median survivals for patients with advanced disease were 3 ½ years and 2 years, respectively (p = .2801). Cosmetic and functional problems attributable to surgery were not severe but included facial asymmetry (n = 4), trismus (n = 1), cranial nerve deficits (n = 1), and abnormal dentition (n = 1). In locally extensive head and neck rms, cranial base surgery should be considered after initial cytoreductive therapy, since it may contribute to achievement of CR and to survival with acceptable morbidity. Med. Pediatr. Oncol. 28:294–298. © 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Modal based stability analysis of power systems using energy functions

In this paper a physically based decomposition technique is exploited to perform direct stability analysis of power systems using the energy function method. The slow-coherency analysis decomposes the system into r areas associated with (r- 1) slow modes of the linearized system. The centres of inertia (COIs) of these areas from the slow subsystem and the rest of the fast modes are associated with different areas. The system transient energy function E is decomposed into Eslow associated with the slow variables of the slow subsystem, Efast associated with the fast variables of the r-areas and Efast-slow which is a function of both fast and slow variables. Depending on the fault location and strength of connection between areas, the sum of Eslow, Efast-slow and Efast of the disturbed arease constitutes a good approximation to the system energy function. Using this partial E-function and the potential energy boundary surface (PEBS) method, both Ecr and tcr are computed. Numerical results on a 10-machine 39-bus system are presented in support of the technique.
Effect of Thyroxine on the Gonadotrophin Dose Response Line Using the Chick’s Testicular Response

Factorial experiments were carried out to test the interactions between DL-thyroxine and gonadotrophin injections on the gonadal response of cockerels. Mild hyperthyroidism (4 μg DL-thyroxine/day) decreased the index of precision (λ) of the dose response line obtained after subcutaneously injected PMS, FSH and LH, using the increase in testicular weight for PMS and the increase in 32P uptake for FSH and LH. The slope of the dose response line was not affected. The same degree of hyperthyroidism did not decrease the λ of the dose response line obtained after PMS was injected intravenously when 32P was used to measure the response. Administration of 2 μg DL-thyroxine twice a day appeared to increase the 32P uptake by the testes. Higher doses of DL-thyroxine did not yield consistent effects from experiment to experiment. (Endocrinology 76: 194, 1965)
Optimizing weight loss outcomes for bariatric surgery patients: the role of physical activity

The effect of physical activity on the weight loss outcomes post bariatric surgery is not well understood. This study set out to determine if there was a correlation between physical activity levels of patients and their percent excess weight loss following bariatric surgery.
Radiation-induced neoplastic transformation in vitro: evidence for a protective effect at low doses of low LET radiation.

The study of radiation-induced transformation in vitro has long been an experimental approach to examine mechanisms underlying radiation carcinogenesis. Even though the major concern of exposure to radiation is the risk of cancer induction at low radiation doses, most laboratory mechanistic studies have focused on high dose effects. This, coupled with the fact that epidemiologic data are rarely powerful enough to accurately discriminate this risk at doses <5 cGy, has led in recent years to an increased effort to study low dose effects using the endpoint of neoplastic transformation in vitro. Since transformation frequencies at low doses are typically low (< 10−4), such studies are, by necessity, large and labor intensive. However, they have yielded quantitative dose-response data, as well as insights into underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms. An interesting, and potentially important, finding is that low doses of low LET radiation can suppress neoplastic transformation in vitro to levels below that seen spontaneously. Mechanistic studies have revealed that multiple mechanisms are likely to be involved, and these include both the death of a subpopulation of cells prone to spontaneous neoplastic transformation and the induction of DNA repair. The relative contribution of these mechanisms appears to be dose-dependent. The relevance of in vitro studies to carcinogenesis in vivo is discussed.
Worst-case optimal redistribution of VCG payments in multi-unit auctions

Abstract For allocation problems with one or more items, the well-known Vickrey–Clarke–Groves (VCG) mechanism (aka Clarke mechanism, Generalized Vickrey Auction) is efficient, strategy-proof, individually rational, and does not incur a deficit. However, it is not (strongly) budget balanced: generally, the agents' payments will sum to more than 0. We study mechanisms that redistribute some of the VCG payments back to the agents, while maintaining the desirable properties of the VCG mechanism. Our objective is to come as close to budget balance as possible in the worst case. For auctions with multiple indistinguishable units in which marginal values are nonincreasing, we derive a mechanism that is optimal in this sense. We also derive an optimal mechanism for the case where we drop the non-deficit requirement. Finally, we show that if marginal values are not required to be nonincreasing, then the original VCG mechanism is worst-case optimal.
Seal eating by walruses in the Bering and Chukchi seas

Walruses (Odobenus rosmarus) feed primarily on benthic invertebrates, but they are known to eat seals (Phocidae) occasionally, ostensibly when the benthic foods are unavailable. We investigated reports of a marked increase in occurrence of seal-eating walruses in the Bering Strait region in the late 1970's by examining stomach contents of animals taken in the spring harvests by Eskimos. We also obtained relevant information during visual surveys of marine mammals in the region. Our findings from the stomachs indicated that seal eating was 10 to 100 times more common during the 1970's and early 1980's (0.6–3.0%, N=645) than it had been in the previous three decades (0.07–0.20%, N=4015). In addition, we observed walruses in possession of seal remains in 1978 and 1979, where we had not seen such a phenomenon before in the previous 25 years. We attribute the increased predatory interaction between seals and walruses partly to a larger walrus population and, especially in 1979, to unusually restrictive spring ice conditions, which tended to cause greater than usual overlap of their distributions. Stomach contents of walruses taken in the Chukchi Sea in summer, where the ranges of walruses and seals overlap broadly in all years, have indicated a similarly high rate of occurrence of seal eaters (8.6% in the 1960's, N=35; 11.4% in 1983, N=44). As a whole, our findings indicate that most of the seal eating is predation, rather than scavenging of carrion. They also indicate that it is not rare or aberrant but common behavior, and that it could exert a significant impact on seal populations in some areas.
Psychological factors related to prehospital delay during acute myocardial infarction.

BACKGROUNDPrior studies have had difficulty identifying factors that significantly explain patients' delay in responding to symptoms of acute myocardial infarction (AMI).METHODS AND RESULTSWe therefore examined factors affecting the time between symptom onset and hospital arrival for 103 AMI patients admitted to a Detroit metropolitan hospital between October 1989 and January 1990. Variables evaluated included demographic and medical history factors, psychological characteristics of somatic and emotional awareness, and type A behavior. The mean prehospital delay time was 9.0 +/- 10.8 hours (median, 5.0 hours; range, 0.25-62.0 hours). Delay time was not significantly associated with demographic or medical history categories or with type A behavior. Of study variables that can be identified prior to evolution of an AMI, somatic and emotional awareness were the only factors significantly predictive of delay time. Patients who were more capable of identifying inner experiences of emotions and/or bodily sensat...
A graphical technique for determining optimal array antenna geometry

A new graphical technique is presented for determining the optimal face tilt and element packing geometry for planar, phased-array antennas with scan limits specified in earth's coordinates. The technique, although very simple to implement, is instructive in that it clearly shows, on one graph, the relationships between required azimuth and elevation scan limits, the element packing geometry, the grating lobe locations, grating lobe scan boundaries, the maximum off-axis scan angle, and the array face tilt angle. The technique can be used to design the array to either minimize the maximum scan off-axis scan requirement or to minimize the total number of elements in the array. Examples are presented that clearly show the two designs are not the same. It is shown that the grating lobe scan boundary (GLB) for a particular array geometry can easily be constructed in sine-space by drawing unit circles centered at six grating lobe locations nearest to the origin of the sine-space plane. Equations are presented for drawing the required scan boundary (RSB) in earth's coordinates for the array with its face tilted back from the vertical. The ability to simply construct the RSB and GLB on the same sine-space plot makes it very simple to choose the tilt angle and element geometry that either minimizes the area in the GLB or the maximum off-axis scan requirement for a given RSB.
Stochastic Simulations of Spatial Variability Based on Multifractal Characteristics

Using multifractal characteristics in the stochastic simulation of environmental and agronomic variables has the potential for producing simulations that better represent features of interest, including distribution properties of the high and low values, than simulations based on geostatistical characteristics. The objective of this study was to compare the performance of stochastic simulations that reproduce certain multifractal characteristics with simulations that reproduce variogram model parameters. Data on corn ( Zea mays L.) and wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) yields collected at 1100 and 880 sampling locations, respectively, were used in the simulations. Wheat data represented an example of a variable exhibiting a multifractal scaling and corn an example of a variable exhibiting a monofractal scaling. The conditional simulations were conducted using a simulated annealing procedure. Two simulation scenarios were compared. The first scenario consisted of using the order of the structure function q = 2, which is equivalent to simulating a data set with a certain variogram, that is, a monofractal simulation. The second scenario used the histogram and the structure function with exponent values for q ranging from 1 to 5, a multifractal simulation. Based on 50 simulations, the performances of the two scenarios in representing the highest and lowest values were compared. There was no significant difference in performance of monofractal and multifractal simulations for the variable exhibiting monofractal scaling (corn). For the variable with multifractal scaling (wheat), however, multifractal simulations performed better in predicting low values. For soil or agronomic variables exhibiting multifractal scaling, stochastic simulations based on multifractal characteristics could be preferable to those based on variogram parameters.
Shock Induced Deformation and Damage in Rat Brain Slices

Shock-induced traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have received increasing attention because many soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan suffer from these disorders. The shock loading duration is typically on the order of few hundred microseconds and hence the strain rate of deformation is very high. Therefore, in the current study, high-rate loading experiments were conducted on brain tissue slices which mimic loading durations encountered in shock loading [1]. The polymer split Hopkinson pressure bar (PSHPB) was used to generate high rate loading as a high speed digital camera captured the deformation of brain tissue. To further clarify initial injury events, post-test damage was assessed through histological studies. This experimental model provides the opportunity for time-resolved visualization of actual tissue deformation thus allowing improved ability to isolate damage-sensitive tissue regions.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
An Integral Formulation of Transient Radiative Transfer

A time-dependent integral formulation is developed for modeling transient radiative transfer. The development is based on a rigorous analysis of the wave propagation process inside the participating media. The physical significance of the present integral formulation is the consideration of the time-dependent domain of computation, which is different from the domain disturbed by radiation (i.e., the wave front envelope). Numerical computations are performed for the medium that is an absorbing and isotropically scattering one-dimensional plane slab geometry. The spatial and temporal incident radiation and radiative flux distributions are presented for different boundary conditions and for uniform and nonuniform property distribution
An open and closed case for all polymerases

The recently determined structures of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase and Taq DNA polymerase in complex with DNA primer-template and an incoming nucleotide have shown that a large conformational change configures the polymerase active site for nucleotidyl transfer. The structure of reverse transcriptase in the catalytic complex will open the path to the rational design of novel nucleoside analog inhibitors of viral replication.
Runaway breakdown in the Jovian atmospheres

[1] Using detailed Monte Carlo calculations, the properties of runaway breakdown in the atmospheres of the four gas giant planets in our solar system are investigated, and the runaway avalanche lengths and average runaway electron kinetic energies are presented as a function of atmospheric electric field strengths. The runaway breakdown threshold field for the Jovian atmospheres is found to be 10 times smaller than the conventional breakdown field when hydrometeors are present, compared to 3 times smaller for Earth's atmosphere, indicating that runaway breakdown processes may be much more efficient in the gas giants than on Earth. In the Earth's atmosphere, runaway breakdown is known to produce large bursts of x-rays and gamma-rays from thunderstorms, such as terrestrial gamma-ray flashes, and may play a role in lightning initiation. These results suggest that runaway breakdown may play an important role in thunderstorm and lightning processes on the Jovian planets as well.
Optical Rotatory Power of Solutions in an Electric Field

PREVIOUS work has shown that a relationship exists between the rotatory power of an optically active solution and the electric moment of the solvent. It has been found that, in general, the rotation varies in the opposite sense to the electric moment of the solvent throughout a series of solvents derived from the same parent hydrocarbon. An explanation of this observation has been advanced in terms of dipolar association between solvent and optically active solute, and numerous results have been brought forward in support of this hypothesis.
CHROMOSOME NUMBERS OF ORTHOCARPUS AND RELATED MONOTYPIC GENERA (SCROPHULARIACEAE: SUBTRIBE CASTILLEJINAE)

A chromosome number ofn=12 is reported for the three monotypic genera of subtribe Castillejinae:Clevelandia beldingii, Gentrya racemosa, andOpicopephalus angustifolius. Chromosome numbers ofOrthocarpus correspond mostly with current infrageneric classification. SubgenusTriphysaria hasn=11.Orthocarpus sectionsCastillejoides andCordylanthoides, which are closely related toCastilleja (x=12) and the three monotypic genera above, haven=12 with aneuploid reductions ton=10 inO. linearilobus andn=11 inO. lacerus (a species also withn=12). Tetraploids are found in two species.O. brevistylus (n=24) andO. hispidus (n=12, 24). The polyploid.O. laciniatus (n=36, 48) of Peru is postulated to be of hybrid origin between a species ofCastilleja andOrthocarpus attenuatus. SubgenusOrthocarpus sectionOrthocarpus, which hasn=14 in all species except.O. bracteosus (n=15), stands apart both morphologically and in chromosome number from the remainder of the genus.
The Intraflagellar Transport Protein Ift80 is essential for Photoreceptor Survival in a Zebrafish Model of Jeune Asphyxiating Thoracic Dystrophy

PURPOSE. Jeune's asphyxiating thoracic dystrophy (JATD) is an autosomal recessive disorder with symptoms of retinal degeneration, kidney cysts, and chondrodysplasia and results from mutations in the ift80 gene. This study was conducted to characterize zebrafish lacking ift80 function for photoreceptor degeneration and defects in ciliogenesis to establish zebrafish as a vertebrate model for visual dysfunction in JATD and to determine whether ift80 interacts genetically with Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) genes. METHODS. Zebrafish were injected with morpholinos (MOs) targeted to the ift80 gene. Retinas were analyzed by histology, transmission electron microscopy, and immunohistochemistry. Ear and kidney cilia were analyzed by whole-mount immunostaining. Intraflagellar transport (IFT) particle composition was subjected to Western blot analysis. Genetic interactions were tested by coinjection of MOs against ift80 and bbs4 or bbs8 followed by in situ hybridization. RESULTS. Zebrafish lacking ift80 function exhibited defects in photoreceptor outer segment formation and photoreceptor death. Staining with opsin antibodies revealed opsin mislocalization in both rods and cones. Ultrastructural analysis showed abnormal disc stacking and shortened photoreceptor outer segments. The kinocilia of the ear and motile cilia in the kidney were shorter and reduced in number. Western blot analysis revealed a slight increase in the stability of other IFT proteins. Coinjection of MOs against ift80 and BBS genes led to convergent-extension defects. CONCLUSIONS. Zebrafish lacking ift80 exhibited defects characteristic of JATD. Because the developing outer segments degenerated, Ift80 could possibly act as a maintenance factor for the IFT particle.