cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Racial variation in the quality of care among patients undergoing cystectomy for bladder cancer

Introduction Differences in quality of care may contribute to racial variation in outcomes of bladder cancer (BC). Quality indicators in BC surgery include use of high-volume surgeons (HVSs) and hospitals (HVHs), receipt of pelvic lymphadenectomy (PLND) and undergoing radical cystectomy (RC) instead of partial cystectomy (PC) when clinically indicated. We compared these quality indicators across racial groups. Methods We used public-access versions of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project's State Inpatient Databases, selecting NY, FL, and MD (1996-2007), because they included race, surgeon and hospital identifiers. We identified cases by ICD-9-CM codes. We defined HVS / HVH as top volume decile surgeons / hospitals. Quality indicators were compared across racial groups using mixed-effects models, adjusting for age, Elixhauser comorbidity sum, insurance, and year, with random effects for state. Results There were 16,631 cases, 13,917 (83.7%) RCs and 2,713 (16.3%) PCs. The cohort was 87.0% Caucasian, 5.3% African-American (AA) and 7.8% Other. Compared with Whites, AA patients were younger (65.3 SD [11.6] vs. 69.4 [10.3] years, p Conclusions As indicators of surgical quality among BC patients, utilization of RC compared to PC, and use of PLND, HVSs and HVHs among patients undergoing RC, varied by race. Assuming that these findings do not reflect differences in surgical indications, they may identify a quality gap, which could influence important outcomes.
A modular reactor design for in situ synchrotron x-ray investigation of atomic layer deposition processes

Synchrotron characterization techniques provide some of the most powerful tools for the study of film structure and chemistry. The brilliance and tunability of the Advanced Photon Source allow access to scattering and spectroscopic techniques unavailable with in-house laboratory setups and provide the opportunity to probe various atomic layer deposition (ALD) processes in situ starting at the very first deposition cycle. Here, we present the design and implementation of a portable ALD instrument which possesses a modular reactor scheme that enables simple experimental switchover between various beamlines and characterization techniques. As first examples, we present in situ results for (1) X-ray surface scattering and reflectivity measurements of epitaxial ZnO ALD on sapphire, (2) grazing-incidence small angle scattering of MnO nucleation on silicon, and (3) grazing-incidence X-ray absorption spectroscopy of nucleation-regime Er2O3 ALD on amorphous ALD alumina and single crystalline sapphire.
Self-discrepancies in clinical depression and social phobia: Cognitive structures that underlie emotional disorders?

Previous research indicates that self-discrepancies are cognitive structures that can induce emotional discomfort. The present study compared clinically depressed and social phobic subjects (plus controls) to determine whether different self-discrepancies were associated with the two disorders. In Part 1, it was shown that the depressives possessed the greatest discrepancy between their actual and ideal/own self-states, whereas the social phobics possessed the greatest discrepancy between their actual and ought/other self-states. In a later, ostensibly unrelated study, subjects responded verbally to questions about other people while their mood changes, skin conductance responses, and verbalizations were recorded. The questions included attributes from the subject's ideal and ought self-states that were mismatches with attributes from his or her actual self, as well as mismatch attributes from other subjects. Priming with self-referential mismatches induced momentary syndromes of dejection or agitation (depending on the type of mismatch). The depressives and social phobics showed the greatest increases in dejection and agitation, respectively, according to their dominant self-discrepancy. The results suggest that specific cognitive structures may underlie clinical depression and anxiety.
Social work and day care: a role looking for a profession

The profession's present role in day care is assessed through a review of the social work literature. This analysis suggests that the profession is not systematically involved enough in child care systems on a local or national basis. The author discusses why this is so, and suggests professional points of access for social workers interested in providing social services in different types of child care. In addition, it is recommended that more policy and programmatic emphases be put on providing social services to family day care homes, the care of children by their relatives, and for centers that serve ethnic minorities and disadvantaged families.
A Dual Model for Completing Parenting Plans Postseparation

Dr. Kushner has more than 25 years of experience as a court‐appointed expert in matters pertaining to completing child custody evaluations (parenting plans) postseparation. This article combines her extensive practice experience and knowledge about social work theory to offer a “dual model of practice” that provides an alternative for child custody evaluators to consider when completing parenting plans postseparation. The model presented combines the strength-based and person-in-environment perspectives to provide an alternative way of conceptualizing the child custody expert's design of these complicated parenting assessments.
A Corresponding States Model for Generalized Engineering Equations of State

In this work, a four-parameter corresponding-states principle (CSP) model is proposed to generalize the universal technical Equation of State (EOS) developed in our previous work. This model is in the form of the Helmholtz free energy and takes the reduced density, reduced temperature, acentric factor and a polarity factor as variables. Compared to other generalized equations such as the one by Span and Wagner for nonpolar fluids, and by Platzer and Maurer and by Wilding and Rowley for polar fluids, the CSP model developed in this work shows good accuracy for the 22 nonpolar, polar, and associating fluids considered in this study and offers the flexibility to be extended to other fluids of industrial interest. In addition, the polarity factor used in this model has been successfully correlated from quantitative structure activity relationship (QSAR) molecular descriptors.
Keyhole limpet hemocyanin immunotherapy of murine bladder cancer

The current treatment of choice for superficial bladder cancer, bacillus Calmette-Guerin, has significant adverse side effects. We have compared two alternative immunotherapies--crude keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) and Immucothel, a KLH modified for clinical use (Biosyn)--in an intralesional mouse model of bladder cancer (MBT2). Crude KLH required either immunization before tumor transplant or frequent intralesional therapy after transplantation to be effective. In addition, Immucothel required pre-immunization to be effective, and increasing the frequency and dosage of post-transplant immunization was not effective without pre-immunization. Preliminary investigations into the KLH-induced anti-tumor mechanism(s) suggest that natural killer cell activity may be involved. Both crude KLH and Immucothel appear to be effective immunotherapies of use in the treatment of transitional cell carcinoma.
Monolithically integrated photonic switches driven by digital CMOS

We demonstrate a 1×2 ring resonator switch and a 2×2 Mach Zehnder switch, monolithically integrated with digital CMOS drivers in IBM's proprietary 90-nm photonics-enabled CMOS process. Static and dynamic performance metrics are characterized.
A thermobarometer for sphene (titanite)

Sphene and zircon are common accessory minerals in metamorphic and igneous rocks of very different composition from many different geological environments. Their essential structural constituents, Ti and Zr, are capable of replacing each other to some degree. In this paper we detail the results of high pressure–temperature experiments as well as analyses of natural sphene crystals that establish a systematic relationship between temperature, pressure and Zr concentration in sphene. Calibrations of the temperature and pressure relationships are presented as a thermobarometer. Synthetic sphene crystals were crystallized in the presence of zircon, quartz and rutile at 1–2.4 GPa and 800–1,000°C from hydrothermal solutions. Crystals were analyzed for Zr by electron microprobe (EMP). The experimental results define a log-linear relationship between equilibrium Zr content (ppm by weight), pressure (GPa) and reciprocal absolute temperature: \( {\text{log}}({\text{Zr}}^{{{\text{sphene}}}} ,{\text{ppm}}) = 10.52( \pm 0.10) - \frac{{7708( \pm 101)}} {{T(K)}} - 960( \pm 10)\frac{{P({\text{GPa}})}} {{T(K)}} - {\text{log}}(a_{{{\text{TiO}}_{2} }} ) - \log (a_{{{\text{SiO}}_{2} }} ). \)The incorporation of Zr into sphene was found to be rather sensitive to pressure effects and also to the effects of kinetic disequilibrium and growth entrapment that result in sector zoning. The Zr content of sphene is relatively insensitive to the presence of both REEs and F-Al substitutions in sphene. To supplement and test the experimental data, sphenes from seven rocks of well-constrained origin were analyzed for Zr by both EMP and ion microprobe (IMP). The sphene thermobarometer records crystallization temperatures that are consistent with independent thermometry. When applied to natural sphene of unknown origin or growth conditions, this thermobarometer has the potential to estimate temperatures with an approximate uncertainty of ±20°C over the temperature range of interest (600–1,000°C). The Zr-in-sphene thermobarometer can also be used in conjunction with the Zr-in-rutile thermobarometer to estimate both pressure and temperature of crystallization.
Gender, democracy, development, and overshoot: a cross-national analysis

The crux of sustainability concerns hinges on humanity’s overshoot of our global carrying capacity, which we currently exceed by about 50 %. Overshoot of the earth’s natural resource bases militates against our current and future prospects for sustainability. Despite the theoretical and practical impetus to examine these dynamics, there is a dearth of empirical sociological research that analyzes overshoot. The paper fills this gap by offering a structural equation model of each nation’s relative contributions to overshoot. The model tests key theorizations in the environmental sociology, development, and global political-economy literatures, and adds to them by theorizing and empirically testing ecofeminist positions that the status of women affects and is affected by environmental conditions. Findings support ecofeminist interpretations that resource degradation yields adverse impacts on women and that their representation in government bodes well for the environment. The theoretical, empirical, and policy-based conclusions and implications are treated, as well as future areas of research.
Detection of calprotectin and its correlation to the accumulation of neutrophils within equine large colon during ischaemia and reperfusion.

Summary Reason for performing study: The cytosolic protein complex, calprotectin, is abundant in neutrophils and could be used to improve the ability to localise and assess neutrophil infiltration in the equine intestine during ischaemia and reperfusion (I/R), but further study is required. Objectives: To assess the number of calprotectin-containing cells by immunohistochemistry in correlation with direct counting and scoring of neutrophils in the equine colon during I/R. Methods: One and 2 h ischaemia of the left dorsal colon were induced, followed by 30 min reperfusion under general anaesthesia or by 18 h reperfusion after anaesthetic recovery. Biopsies were processed for light microscopy and stained with H&E for detection of neutrophils. To identify calprotectin-containing cells, immunohistochemistry was performed on formalin-fixed tissues with the murine MAC 387 antibody and a biotin-free peroxidase staining procedure. The number of neutrophils within submucosal venules and the colonic mucosa were calculated and compared with the number of calprotectin-positive cells. Results: The number of calprotectin-positive cells within submucosal venules and within the colonic mucosa correlated significantly with the accumulation of neutrophils within the corresponding tissue segments. Within the submucosal venules, both calprotectin-positive cells and H&E-stained neutrophils increased with duration of ischaemia and peaked after 30 min of reperfusion. After 18 h reperfusion the number of these cells declined within the vessels. After 2 h ischaemia, neutrophils started to migrate into the mucosa towards the epithelium, with a significant increase over time during reperfusion, and peak infiltration after 18 h reperfusion. Conclusions: Neutrophil infiltration into the colon after I/R is a time-dependent process, involving migration through the submucosa towards the epithelium. Potential relevance: Immunohistochemical staining for calprotectin can be used to demonstrate the pattern of neutrophil accumulation and migration following I/R.
Flipping the classroom: is it for you?

Technology is being used to enhance all types of educational experiences. Several new pedagogical methods have been developed that use technology to assist students in learning. This paper will discuss one of these methods - the flipped classroom. The flipped classroom is not necessarily a new idea, in fact, it developed from such things as hybrid or blended classrooms. But flipping the classroom does have different pedagogical implications for student learning. The paper will describe the history of the flipped classroom, mechanisms of flipping the classroom, pros and cons for this method, give examples of how this has worked, and discuss how to get started creating a flipped classroom environment.
Recombinant E-Peptides of Pro-IGF-I Have Mitogenic Activity

In mammals, the post-translational proteolytic modification of many pro-hormones generates multiple peptides with similar or distinct biological activities. The production of mature insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) involves the cleavage of an E-peptide from pro-IGF-I. Although the IGF-I E-peptides are conserved among vertebrate species, their fate and biological roles have not been identified. To test whether the E-peptides possess any biological activity, three recombinant E-peptides of pro-IGF-I, namely Ea-2-, Ea-3- and Ea-4-peptides of rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, were produced in vitro with a His-tag expression system and partially purified with an affinity Ni++ column. The mitogenic activity of each E-peptide was determined by (1) the stimulation of total DNA content increase as measured by a fluorometric method and/or (2) stimulation of [3H]-thymidine incorporation into DNA. Recombinant Ea-4-peptide elicited a dose-related increase in both mitogenic assays in NIH3T3 cells. To further test the specificity of the mitogenic activity of Ea-4-peptide, three other cell lines were used: retroviral transformed human embryonic kidney cells (293GP), human mammary gland tumor cells (MCF-7) and caprine mammary epithelial cells (CMEC). Similar levels of mitogenic activity were observed in all cell lines tested for Ea-4-peptide. Mitogenic activity was also observed with recombinant Ea-2- and Ea-3-peptides when assayed in NIH3T3 cells. These results suggest that E-peptides of rainbow trout pro-IGF-I possess mitogenic activity in heterologous systems.
Preliminary evaluation of the Web Initiative for Surgical Education (WISE-MD)

Abstract Background Major changes in health care delivery and financing have negatively impacted students’ experience during the surgery clerkship, particularly their exposure to physicians’ decision-making processes and to the continuity of patient care. In response to these dilemmas in surgical education, we have developed the Web Initiative for Surgical Education (WISE-MD), a comprehensive surgery clerkship curriculum delivered through multimedia teaching modules and designed to enhance exposure to surgical disease and clinical reasoning. Methods As part of the process of creating WISE-MD, we conducted preliminary studies to assess the impact of this computer-assisted approach on students’ knowledge, clinical reasoning, and satisfaction. Results Compared to students who did not view the modules, early data show a trend toward improved knowledge and an improvement in clinical reasoning for students who used the WISE-MD modules. This effect was specific to the clinical content area addressed in the module seen by the students. Most students felt the module was superior to traditional teaching methods and enhanced their understanding of surgical technique and anatomy. Conclusions WISE-MD, a theory-driven example of a concerted technology-based approach to surgical education, has the potential to address the myriad problems of today’s clinical learning environment.
Amorphous silicon and amorphous silicon nitride films prepared by a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition process as optical coating materials

Durable, uniform, and reproducible amorphous silicon and amorphous silicon nitride thin films deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition that are appropriate for the design and fabrication of optical interference filters in the near-infrared region are found. Optical and physicalk properties of single-layer films are discussed. The durability and performance of Fabry-Perot interference filters and a 15-layer long-pass edge filter in the near-infrared region designed and fabricated with these two thin-film materials are also reported.
Shear flow-driven combustion instability: Evidence, simulation, and modeling

Combustion instability arises mostly due to the coupling between heat-release dynamics and system acoustics. In these cases, the acoustic field acts as the resonator, while the heat-release dynamics, induced due to the impact of pressure or flow velocity perturbations on the equivalence ratio, flame length, residence time, shear layer, etc., supplies energy to support pressure oscillations. In this paper, we discuss another mechanism in which the resonator may not be the acoustic field: instead, it is an absolutely unstable shear layer mode acting as the source of sustained oscillations; which morph as large-scale eddies at a frequency different from acoustic modes. These perturb the flame motion and provide energy to the acoustic field, acting here as an amplifier to support pressure oscillations. We present evidence for the existence of this mechanism from several experiments, in which a pressure spectral peak can not be explained using acoustic analysis of the system, but instead matches the predicted absolute instability mode of the separated shear layer, and from numerical simulations. We also examine the impact of the mean velocity and temperature distribution on the frequency and growth rate to determine the dynamics leading to an absolute instability, and show that absolutely unstable modes are likely to arise at low-equivalence ratios. In some cases, they can also be present at near-stoichiometric conditions, that is, only low- and near-unity stoichiometry can support an absolutely unstable mode. We use numerical simulation to distinguish between different unstable modes in the separating shear layer, the layer mode and the wake mode, and derive a reduced-order model for the shear-driven instability using proper orthogonal decomposition analysis. Estimates of pressure amplitudes of fluid dynamic modes, when applied as forcing functions to the acoustic field, using this analysis compare favorably with experimental data.
Fixation of inorganic carbon from different sources and its translocation in Spartina alterniflora Loisel

Abstract The extent to which Spartina alterniflora Loisel. fixes lacunar CO 2 and utilizes dissolved inorganic carbon in the interstitial water of sediment was investigated, and the contribution of these two processes to total primary productivity was estimated and compared with photosynthesis in the leaf blades. Atmospheric CO 2 is primarily fixed in the leaf blades, and the resultant assimilates are rapidly translocated through the leaf sheaths to the below ground tissues and growing points above ground. Lacunar CO 2 is primarily fixed in the leaf sheaths and stem. The fact that these assimilates remain in the tissues around the lacunar spaces indicates that lacunar CO 2 does not diffuse freely into the leaf blades but is recycled in the lacunar spaces. Dissolved inorganic carbon taken up by the plant from the sediment is primarily fixed by a dark reaction in the root tissues. Some dissolved inorganic carbon in the interstitial water may collect as gaseous CO 2 in the lacunae and be fixed in the leaf sheaths and stem. In addition, dissolved inorganic carbon may be taken up in the transpiration stream and be fixed in the leaf blades by photosynthesis. However, internal CO 2 fixation and dissolved inorganic carbon utilization together are only about 10% of the rate of fixation of atmospheric CO 2 by leaves.
An assessment of the ability of three‐dimensional air quality models with current thermodynamic equilibrium models to predict aerosol NO3−

[1] The partitioning of total nitrate (TNO3) and total ammonium (TNH4) between gas and aerosol phases is studied with two thermodynamic equilibrium models, ISORROPIA and the aerosol inorganics model (AIM), and three data sets: high time resolution measurement data from the 1999 Atlanta Supersite Experiment (summer case) and the 2002 Pittsburgh Air Quality Study (PAQS) Supersite Experiment (winter case), and 12-hour measurement data from the Clinton site, North Carolina, in 1999. At the Atlanta site, both models reproduced a large percentage of the observed aerosol NH4+ and HNO3 (NH4+: >94% and HNO3: >86%) within a factor of 1.5, whereas neither model reproduced a majority of observed aerosol NO3− and NH3 (NO3−: <48% and NH3: <51%) within a factor of 2. At the Pittsburgh site, both models reproduced more than 76% of observed NO3− within a factor of 2. At the Clinton site, both models performed a little better on aerosol NO3− (47–58% within a factor of 1.5) than at the Atlanta site but worse than at the Pittsburgh site. Sensitivity test of thermodynamic models with Gaussian random errors indicates that in many cases, measurement errors in SO42− and TNH4 can explain a major fraction of the discrepancies between the equilibrium model predictions and observations in partitioning of TNO3. Comparison of predictions of the three-dimensional (3-D) Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model with the observations over the continental United States indicates that the performance of the 3-D model for NO3−, HNO3, NH4+, and NH3 strongly depends on its performance for TNO3, TNH4, and SO42−. Tests show that errors associated with SO42− and TNH4 predictions of the 3-D model can result in the thermodynamic model calculation replicating only 47% and 60% of base case NO3− within a factor of 2 for summer and winter cases, respectively. It was found that errors in TNH4 are more critical than errors in SO42− to prediction of NO3−.
Chromatography of carborane monoanions on silica

Application de la chromatographie en couche mince et de la chromatographie liquide moyenne pression a la separation et la purification des monoanions carboranes
Experience, experimentation, and the accumulation of knowledge: the evolution of R&D in the semiconductor industry

This paper examines the interaction and impact on performance of two organizational mechanisms supporting generation and retention of knowledge: experience accumulation and experimentation. It provides evidence that generation of knowledge through experimentation and retention of knowledge through experience were significantly correlated with performance, whereas other measures of R&D commitment and organization, including several suggested by prior studies, were not. It argues that experience and experimentation can function as at least partial substitutes for one another, possessing more of one, firms may need less of the other, and provides evidence that they were so in the semiconductor industry. The evolution of practice at one firm—Intel Corporation—is explored at greater length, providing a qualitative perspective on the process by which a shift towards greater experimentation occurred.
Reformulation and numerical solutions of the equations for a catalytic porous wall gas—liquid reactor

On montre que les equations du modele d'un tel reacteur peuvent etre mises sous une forme que l'on peut resoudre par des programmes standards de resolution des problemes de valeur limite pour equations differentielles ordinaires. On a choisi le modele isotherme lineaire pour comparer les solutions analytique et numerique
Should Choice Be a Component in Occupational Therapy Assessments

This paper addresses the issue of allowing clients the choice of activities to perform for evaluative purposes. Studies demonstrating that choice or control may improve performance in both occupational therapy and psychology literature are reviewed. It offers a description of the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (Fisher, 1995) as an assessment that considers choice a critical component of the assessment process and describes a study that demonstrates client choice improves performance during the assessment process.
Between Spectacle and Science: Margaret Murray and the Tomb of the Two Brothers

This article explores the history of mummy unwrappings in the West, culminating in Margaret Murray's public unrolling of two mummies in Manchester in 1908. Mummy unwrappings as a practice have shifted often between public spectacles which displayed and objectified exotic artifacts, and scientific investigations which sought to reveal medical and historical information about ancient life. Although others have looked at Murray's work in the context of the history of mummy studies, I argue that her work should be viewed culturally as poised between spectacle and science, drawing morbid public interest while also producing ground-breaking scientific work that continues to this day. Murray's main goal was to excite the interest of the public while at the same time educating them in the true history of ancient Egypt, while ascertaining new scientific information and contributing to the scholarly interpretations of ancient Egypt.
Microfluidic device for single-cell analysis

We have developed a novel microfluidic device constructed from poly(dimethylsiloxane) using multilayer soft lithography technology for the analysis of single cells. The microfluidic network enables the passive and gentle separation of a single cell from the bulk cell suspension, and integrated valves and pumps enable the precise delivery of nanoliter volumes of reagents to that cell. Various applications are demonstrated, including cell viability assays, ionophore-mediated intracellular Ca2+ flux measurements, and multistep receptor-mediated Ca2+ measurements. These assays, and others, are achieved with significant improvements in reagent consumption, analysis time, and temporal resolution over macroscale alternatives.
Improving medical literature sourcing by first-year medical students in problem-based learning: outcomes of early interventions.

PURPOSE To describe and report outcomes of interventions implemented in the preclerkship curriculum at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA to guide students toward use of high-quality information sources and build a foundation for developing fluency in applying primary medical literature to answer clinical questions. METHOD The authors introduced three phases of change to instruction in literature searching and sourcing for beginning medical students writing learning issue essays: in phase 1 (2003-2006), students were introduced to online resources during orientation week and received a lecture on high-yield literature searching midway through their first curricular block; in phase 2 (2007-2008), the high-yield lecture shifted to orientation week, and a resource matrix and librarian-guided workshop on locating authoritative sources were added; and in phase 3 (2009), peer evaluation and collaboration were implemented. To track changes in sourcing skills, the authors analyzed 3,199 references from 665 essays written by 465 first-year students for two problem-based learning (PBL) cases during the first block of one representative year per phase (2006, 2008, 2009). RESULTS Over the study period, the authors found significantly increased citations to peer-reviewed journal articles and guidelines and decreased citations to general public Web sites and highly abstracted resources. Peer feedback and collaboration in phase 3 were associated with maintenance of these gains. CONCLUSIONS Early introduction of instruction on medical literature searching and sourcing, a librarian-guided workshop, and peer collaboration and feedback improved the quality of references cited by students in PBL essays during their first curricular block.
The impact of action learning on analysis of occupation

Technology and millennials have created a shift in the world and how it operates. This impact has been experienced in the field of occupational therapy education. As a result of this paradigm shift, an analysis of effective teaching methodologies was carried out to assess the most effective way to engage the millennials in an analysis of occupation process, which is a critical foundation for effective critical thinking and clinical practice for occupational therapists. An action learning assignment was utilized to bridge this gap. The action learning assignment immersed the students in a safe learning environment that recreated many types of domains that needed to be analyzed. As a result, the students experienced first-hand the outcomes of effective and ineffective analysis and problem-solving during their action learning project. Therefore, the students were able to reflect and critically think through alternatives and hear about other students' projects. Overall, the action learning project yielded pos...
Existence of polarized F-structures on collapsed manifolds with bounded curvature and diameter

We study the class of collapsed Riemanniann-manifolds with bounded sectional curvature and diameter. Our main result asserts that there is a constant,δ(n, d)>0, such that if a compactn-manifold has bounded curvature,\(|K_{M^n } | \leqslant 1\), bounded diameter, diam (Mn)≤d and sufficiently small volume, Vol(Mn)≤δ(n, d), then it admits a mixed polarized F-structure. As a consequence, infg Vol(Mn,g)=0, where the infimum is taken over all metrics with\(|K_{(M^n ,g)} | \leqslant 1\). This assertion can be viewed as a weakened version of Gromov's “critical volume” conjecture.
Off‐line programming motion and process commands for robotic welding of space shuttle main engines

The off-line-programming software and hardware being developed for robotic welding of the Space Shuttle main engine are described and illustrated with diagrams, drawings, graphs, and photographs. The menu-driven workstation-based interactive programming system is designed to permit generation of both motion and process commands for the robotic workcell by weld engineers (with only limited knowledge of programming or CAD systems) on the production floor. Consideration is given to the user interface, geometric-sources interfaces, overall menu structure, weld-parameter data base, and displays of run time and archived data. Ongoing efforts to address limitations related to automatic-downhand-configuration coordinated motion, a lack of source codes for the motion-control software, CAD data incompatibility, interfacing with the robotic workcell, and definition of the welding data base are discussed.
Sequential biochemical and morphological events during assembly of the fertilization membrane of the sea urchin

The fertilization membrane of Strongylocentrotus purpuratus undergoes changes in morphology, solubility, and permeability during the process of hardening. As the fertilization membrane elevates from the egg surface, it retains casts of the tips of the microvillous processes of the plasma membrane. The dome-shaped microvillar casts become angular at the same time that the fertilization membrane becomes resistant to solubilization in mercaptan solutions. 2-4 min after this morphological and chemical transition, the fertilization membrane becomes impermeable to the lectin conconavalin A, as monitored by binding of 125I- or fluorescein-labeled concanavalin A. Glycine ethyl ester inhibits the changes in morphology, solubility, and permeability, whereas sodium sulfite inhibits only the permeability block and resistance to solubilization by mercaptans. Parthenogenetic activation with the divalent ionophore, A23187, elicits fertilization membrane elevation more rapidly than does activation by fertilization; however, the morphological and permeability changes characteristic of hardening proceed more slowly. Elevation and hardening of the fertilization membrane thus appear to be discrete, multiple-step assembly processes that occur in fixed sequence, with kinetics that are affected by the mechanism of cortical granule exocytosis.
A Minimax Facility-Configuration Problem Involving Lattice Points

This paper considers the problem of assigning n facilities, or departments, to locations so that the maximum of the rectilinear distances between departments is minimized. The locations are considered to be points in a lattice. It develops a simple explicit expression for the minimum value of the objective function for all values of n; this expression has as a corollary a necessary and sufficient condition for an assignment, or a configuration, to be minimax; the paper also develops a simple geometrical procedure for constructing minimax configurations. Some related problems are also examined briefly.
Action science and organizational learning

Describes how individuals hold theories which govern their actions and how these theories unintentionally create organizational defensive routines and inhibit learning. Presents an action science approach whereby consultant researchers can help individuals see their taken‐for‐granted theories, test them and then redesign their action in the light of their learning.
The effects on subtalar contact and pressure following talonavicular and midtarsal joint arthrodesis

Many clinical studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of both isolated talonavicular and complete midtarsal joint arthrodesis as an alternative to triple arthrodesis. However, in many cases, controversy exists as to which procedure to utilize. Evidence of degenerative radiographic changes and stiffness of the subtalar joint have been reported postoperatively. A cadaveric study at two different loading values, utilizing low-range pressure film transducers and digital scanning, was performed to quantify articular contact effects on the subtalar joint following isolated talonavicular joint arthrodesis and complete midtarsal joint arthrodesis as compared to the intact specimen. Statistically significant differences were found at p
Measuring wounds to improve outcomes.

AJN ▼ August 2013 ▼ Vol. 113, No. 8 ajnonline.com Wound healing is a complex process, and it’s often thought of as a steady one with a typical course—until something goes awry or we’re suddenly faced with a long-standing, chronic wound. Wounds must be assessed and monitored to detect important changes, quantify progress, and guide treatment decisions. Assessment covers a variety of variables, such as the amounts of exudate, necrotic tissue, fibrin slough, and granulation tissue; the presence of undermining, tunneling, and epithelium; and the size of the wound.
Ecological Context for Examining the Effects of Transgenic Crops in Production Systems

SUMMARY Ecological processes can have strong effects on production systems, many of which prevent crops from reaching their maximal yield. Past and present management strategies have been developed to mitigate the negative interactions, thereby improving crop production. However, when applied to complex and variable agroecosystems, some of these strategies have resulted in unintended ecological effects that ultimately hindered production. Transgenic crops are a widespread and powerful management option, and there is a tremendous need to understand their intended ecological effects as well as potential unintended direct and indirect effects. The purpose of this review is threefold: (1) to discuss four of the major ecological effects that limit crop production: competition, herbivory, disease, and abiotic stresses, (2) to describe how biotechnology is addressing these problems, and (3) to examine the ways these biotechnological solutions may cause ecological effects that unintentionally hinder crop producti...
All-Glass Lyophilizer for Comparative Flavor Research

An all-glass lyophilization system was designed and constructed that permitted two samples to be freeze-dried separately and simultaneously. Both the powders and condensates can be recovered for flavor analysis. Sample volumes up to 650 ml can be dried, and the system can be dismantled easily for thorough cleaning. This lyophilization system worked well for recovery of pure condensate from milk samples and should be applicable to other dilute, aqueous food products.
How I treat Diamond-Blackfan anemia

Diamond-Blackfan anemia (DBA) is characterized by red cell failure, the presence of congenital anomalies, and cancer predisposition. In addition to being an inherited bone marrow failure syndrome, DBA is also categorized as a ribosomopathy as, in more than 50% of cases, the syndrome appears to result from haploinsufficiency of either a small or large subunit-associated ribosomal protein. Nonetheless, the exact mechanism by which haploinsufficiency results in erythroid failure, as well as the other clinical manifestations, remains uncertain. New knowledge regarding genetic and molecular mechanisms combined with robust clinical data from several international patient registries has provided important insights into the diagnosis of DBA and may, in the future, provide new treatments as well. Diagnostic criteria have been expanded to include patients with little or no clinical findings. Patient management is therefore centered on accurate diagnosis, appropriate use of transfusions and iron chelation, corticosteroids, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and a coordinated multidisciplinary approach to these complex patients.
Conserved features in the active site of nonhomologous serine proteases

Backgound: Serine protease activity is critical for many biological processes and has arisen independently in a few different protein families. It is not clear, though, the degree to which these protease families share common biochemical and biophysical properties. We have used a computer program to study the properties that are shared by four serine protease active sites with no overall structural or sequence homology. The program systematically compares the region around the catalytic histidines from the four proteins with a set of noncatalytic histidines, used as controls. It reports the three-dimensional locations and level of statistical significance for those properties that distinguish the catalytic histidines from the noncatalytic ones. The method of analysis is general and can be applied easily to other active sites of interest. Results As expected, some of the reported properties correspond to previously known features of the serine protease active site, including the catalytic triad and the oxyanion hole. Novel properties are also found, including the spatial distribution of charged, polar, and hydrophobic groups arranged to stabilize the catalytic residues, and a relative abundance of some residues (Val, Tyr, Leu, and Gly) around the active site. Conclusion Our findings show that in addition to some properties common to all the proteases examined, there are a set of preferred, but not required, properties that can be reliably observed only by aligning the sites and comparing them with carefully selected statistical controls.
Mononuclear and dinuclear molybdenum and tungsten complexes of p-tert-butyltetrathiacalix[4]arene and p-tert-butyltetrasulfonylcalix[4]arene: facile cleavage of the calixarene ligand framework by nickel.

The reactivity of p-tert-butyltetrathiacalix[4]arene, [S4CalixBut(OH)4], and p-tert-butyltetrasulfonylcalix[4]arene, [(SO2)4CalixBut(OH)4], toward Mo(PMe3)5H2, Mo(PMe3)6, and W(PMe3)4(η2-CH2PMe2)H has been used to synthesize a series of mononuclear molybdenum and tungsten calixarene compounds that feature both coordinatively saturated and unsaturated metal centers, such as [S4CalixBut(OH)2(O)2]M(PMe3)3H2 (M = Mo, W), [(SO2)4CalixBut(OH)2(O)2]M(PMe3)3H2, [S4CalixBut(OH)2(O)2]Mo(PMe3)3, [(SO2)4CalixBut(OH)2(O)2]Mo(PMe3)3, and [(SO2)4CalixBut(OH)(O)3]M(PMe3)3H. Comparison with the related {[CalixBut(OH)2(O)2]M} complexes indicates that the chemistry of the system is strongly influenced by the nature of the calixarene linker, that is, CH2, S, and SO2. For example, in contrast to the methylene-bridged calixarene system, the thiacalixarene and sulfonylcalixarene systems readily coordinate a second metal center to form homo- and heterodinuclear complexes, namely {[S4CalixBut(O)4]}[M(PMe3)3H2]2, {[(SO2)4CalixBut(...
Positive end-expiratory pressure increases capillary pressure relative to wedge pressure in the closed and open chest

The pulmonary arterial wedge pressure is used as a measure of left atrial pressure and frequently as an estimate of pulmonary capillary pressure. The arterial occlusion concept has recently been used to derive a pressure that is thought to be more representative of capillary pressure (Pcap) than wedge pressure (Pw). The object of this study was to measure the arterial occlusion Pcap at different positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) levels and to compare it with Pw. Anesthetized, paralyzed, supine, and mechanically ventilated dogs were instrumented with a Swan-Ganz balloon tip catheter (7F) for monitoring pulmonary arterial pressure (Pa), for measuring cardiac output (CO; thermodilution technique), and for performing the arterial occlusions. The postocclusion tracings were analyzed for Pcap in a conventional manner: exponential fitting of the data during the 2 seconds immediately postocclusion and back extrapolating to the instant of occlusion. Instant of occlusion was defined as the time when the Pa tracing began to deviate from the normal tracing. Pw was averaged from the data between 8 to 10 seconds after the occlusion. Increasing PEEP between 0 to 15 mm Hg caused a gradual decline in cardiac output in the closed and open chest conditions. Despite this decline, all three pressures (Pa, Pcap, and Pw) rose gradually in the closed chest. However, in the open chest, increasing PEEP from 0 to 4.7 mm Hg had no effect on the pressures, but between 4.7 and 13.4 mm Hg of PEEP, Pa and Pcap increased markedly with minimal change in Pw.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Radially sheared azimuthal flows and turbulent transport in a cylindrical helicon plasma device

A radially sheared azimuthal flow is observed in a cylindrical helicon plasma device. The shear flow is roughly azimuthally symmetric and contains both time-stationary and slowly varying components. The turbulent radial particle flux is found to peak near the density gradient maximum and vanishes at the shear layer location. The shape of the radial plasma potential profile associated with the azimuthal E × B flow is predicted accurately by theory. The existence of the mean shear flow in a plasma with finite flow damping from ion–neutral collisions and no external momentum input implies the existence of radial angular momentum transport from the turbulent Reynolds-stress.
Center for coordination science, MIT

The costs and capabilities of information technology are improving by orders of magnitude every decade, but we are only beginning to understand the opportunities these changes provide for new ways of organizing human activity and new kinds of technology to help people work together. The new MIT Center for Coordination Science conducts multidisciplinary research to help understand these possibilities better. Research in the center draws upon many parts of MIT and ongoing projects in a variety of fields, including: computer science, organization theory, psychology, information systems, management science, and economics.We believe that a powerful source of intellectual leverage on questions about how groups of people can use computers will result from a better understanding of the nature of coordination. Therefore, work in the center focuses on how coordination can occur, both with and without technology. The center includes projects in the following areas:Coordination technology - designing and studying innovative computer systems that help people work together in small or large groups (e.g., “groupware”, “computer-supported cooperative work”, and “electronic markets”).Organizational structures and information technology - observing, analyzing, and predicting how information technology affects organizational structures and processes and how organizations can use information technology more effectively.Coordination theory - developing and testing theories about how the activities of separate actors can be coordinated. These theories are expected to draw upon and illuminate coordination among people and also coordination in distributed or parallel processing computer systems.In addition to research projects in these areas, the Center also sponsors seminars, workshops, working papers, and conferences.
Dynamic centering of liquid shells

The moderate‐amplitude axisymmetric oscillations of an inviscid liquid shell surrounding an incompressible gas bubble are calculated by a multiple‐time‐scale expansion for initial deformations composed of two‐lobed perturbations of the shell and a displacement of the bubble from the center of mass of the liquid. Two types of small‐amplitude motion are identified and lead to very different nonlinear dynamic interactions, as described by the results valid up to second order in the amplitude of the initial deformation. In the ‘‘bubble mode,’’ the oscillations of the captive bubble and the liquid shell are exactly in phase and the bubble vibrates about its initial eccentric location. The bubble moves toward the center of the drop when the shell is perturbed into a ‘‘sloshing mode’’ of oscillation where both interfaces move out of phase. These results explain the centering of liquid shells observed in several experiments.
Neuropeptide Y phase shifts circadian rhythms in vivo via a Y2 receptor.

NEUROPEPTIDE Y (NPY) injected into the suprachiasmatic region 6 h before the onset of locomotor activity produces phase advances in circadian rhythms. The present study investigated whether the phase advances produced by NPY in Syrian hamsters are mediated by a Y 1 - or Y 2 -like NPY receptor by comparing the phase advancing effects of the Y 1 agonist, [Leu 31 ,Pro 34 ]NPY, and the Y 2 agonist, NPY(3-36), following their injection into the suprachiasmatic region. Microinjection of the Y 2 agonist produced phase advances that were significantly greater than those produced by the microinjection of the Y 1 agonist. These data support the hypothesis that the phase advancing effects of NPY in the suprachiasmatic region are mediated by a Y 2 -like NPY receptor, similar to results found in vitro.
Tensile Properties of Insect Tracheal Tubes

Insects are able to efficiently transport oxygen to all the cells in their body by means of a complex network of tracheal tubes. In this study, the mechanical properties of such tracheal tubes excised from American (Periplaneta Americana) cockroaches were investigated. Toward this end, a micron-scale tensile testing machine was designed and used in order to apply radial loads to ring-shaped specimens obtained from tracheal tubes. The machine was equipped with a video camera system for accurate strain measurements. The results indicated that the elastic modulus of these tracheal tubes was on the order of 273 MPA and the ultimate stress and strain of this material in the radial direction was 9.8 MPa and 11% respectively.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
Nuclear energy in an atomic lattice. 1

Evidence is presented for the assertion that an H-ion in a deuterided lattice encounters a relatively narrow Coulomb barrier before fusing to form3He.