cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The impact of survey mode on US national estimates of adolescent drug prevalence: results from a randomized controlled study.

Background and aims Increasing numbers of school-based drug surveys are transitioning data collection to electronic tablets from paper-and-pencil, which may produce a survey mode effect and consequent discontinuity in time trends for population estimates of drug prevalence. This study tested whether (a) overall, self-reported drug use prevalence is higher on electronic tablets versus paper-and-pencil surveys, (b) socio-demographics moderate survey mode effects and (c) levels of missing data are lower for electronic tablet versus paper-and-pencil modes. Design A randomized controlled experiment. Setting Results are nationally representative of students in the contiguous United States. Participants A total of 41 866 8th, 10th and 12th grade students who participated in the 2019 Monitoring the Future school-based survey administration. Intervention and comparator Surveys were administered to students in a randomly selected half of schools with electronic tablets (intervention) and with paper-and-pencil format (comparator) for the other half. Measurements Primary outcome was the total number of positive drug use responses. Secondary outcomes were the percentage of respondents completing all drug questions, percentage of drug questions unanswered and mean number of missing drug items. Findings The relative risk (RR) for total number of positive drug use responses for electronic tablets versus paper-and-pencil surveys were small and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) included the value of one for reporting intervals of life-time (RR = 1.03; 95% CI, 0.93-1.14), past 12 months (RR = 1.01; 95% CI, 0.91-1.11), past 30 days (RR = 1.05; 95% CI, 0.93-1.20) and for heavy use (RR = 1.10; 95% CI, 0.93-1.29). Multiplicative interaction tests indicated no moderation of these relative risks by race (white versus non-white), population density, census region, public/private school, year of school participation, survey version or non-complete drug responses. Levels of missing data were significantly lower for electronic tablets versus paper-and-pencil surveys. Conclusions Adolescent drug prevalence estimates in the United States differed little across electronic tablet versus paper-and-pencil survey modes, and showed little to no effect modification by socio-demographics. Levels of missing data were lower for electronic tablets.
Using Community Based Learning to Advance Student Understanding of the Homeless

This paper describes a community based learning project organized to improve students’ understanding of the structural components of homelessness, reduce stereotypes, and encourage students to enga...
Zone-Folded Phonons and the Commensurate–Incommensurate Charge-Density-Wave Transition in 1T-TaSe2 Thin Films

Bulk 1T-TaSe2 exhibits unusually high charge density wave (CDW) transition temperatures of 600 and 473 K below which the material exists in the incommensurate (I-CDW) and the commensurate (C-CDW) charge-density-wave phases, respectively. The (13)1/2 × (13)1/2 C-CDW reconstruction of the lattice coincides with new Raman peaks resulting from zone-folding of phonon modes from middle regions of the original Brillouin zone back to Γ. The C-CDW transition temperatures as a function of film thickness are determined from the evolution of these new Raman peaks, and they are found to decrease from 473 to 413 K as the film thicknesses decrease from 150 to 35 nm. A comparison of the Raman data with ab initio calculations of both the normal and C-CDW phases gives a consistent picture of the zone-folding of the phonon modes following lattice reconstruction. The Raman peak at ∼154 cm−1 originates from the zone-folded phonons in the C-CDW phase. In the I-CDW phase, the loss of translational symmetry coincides with a stro...
The Effect of Dietary Protein, Fiber, and Digesta Passage Rate on the Duration and Concentration of Escherichia coli 0157:H7 Shed by Cattle

Infection with E. coli O157:H7 is the most common cause of human hemorrhagic colitis in North America. Cattle are a reservoir for this human pathogen and individual animals are sporadically and transiently colonized. We hypothesize that pre-harvest dietary management may reduce the risk of E. coli O157-positive animals entering our food chain. The effect of dietary energy, fiber, and digesta passage rates on the duration and concentration of fecal E. coli 0157 was determined. Sixteen healthy Charlais x Hereford or Holstein heifers were acclimated to one of four diets: a finishing diet (high in energy and low in fiber), a growing diet (low in energy and high in fiber), chopped alfalfa (small particle size), or long alfalfa (large particle size). A single oral dose of 1010 colony forming-units of E.coli 0157 was administered to each animal and fecal samples were cultured for the bacteria by selective-enrichment twice a week for the duration of the study. No significant difference in the shedding of 0157 by animals on the finishing or growing diet was observed. However, withholding feed of either type, for 24 hours, did increase the concentration of the bacteria in the fecal material of about half of the animals. A significant correlation (p value=0.008) was observed between digesta passage rate and the duration of fecal E. coli 0157. Animals with slower passage rates of 2 to 3 % per hour cleared E. coli 0157 from their intestinal tract in 10 days or less compared to animals with digesta passage rates of 4 to 5 % per hour who shed the bacteria for more than 69 days. These results show that cattle diet influences the duration and concentration of fecal E. coli O157:H7.
A functional Law of the Iterated Logarithm for weakly hypoelliptic diffusions at time zero.

We study the almost sure behavior of solutions of stochastic differential equations (SDEs) as time goes to zero. Our main general result establishes a functional law of the iterated logarithm (LIL) that applies in the setting of SDEs with degenerate noise satisfying the weak Hormander condition but not the strong Hormander condition}. That is, SDEs in which the drift terms must be used in order to conclude hypoellipticity. As a corollary of this result, we obtain the almost sure behavior as time goes to zero of a given direction in the equation, even if noise is not present explicitly in that direction. The techniques used to prove the main results are based on large deviations applied to a non-trivial rescaling of the original system. In concrete examples, we show how to find the proper rescaling to obtain the functional LIL. Furthermore, we apply the main results to the problem of identifying regular points for hypoelliptic diffusions. Consequently, we obtain a control-theoretic criteria for a given point to be regular for the process.
301-OR: Effect of Vitamin D Supplementation on Insulin Sensitivity and Beta-Cell Function in Prediabetes

Vitamin D is believed to regulate pathways in glucose homeostasis, but effects of vitamin D supplementation on insulin sensitivity and β-cell function in humans remain uncertain. We completed a secondary analysis of the Vitamin D and type 2 diabetes (D2d) study to investigate the effects of vitamin D supplementation on insulin sensitivity and β-cell function. Participants at high risk for type 2 diabetes, meeting at least 2-out-of-3 ADA criteria for prediabetes, were randomly assigned to 4000 IU/day of vitamin D3 or placebo. Insulin sensitivity and β-cell function were estimated using data from 75-gram oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT). We used the University of Oxford HOMA2 Calculator to estimate insulin sensitivity from simultaneously measured fasting plasma glucose and C-peptide values. Early C-peptide and insulin responses were calculated as the ratio of C-peptide or insulin increment to glucose level changes during the first 30 minutes of the OGTT. The disposition index (DI) as an estimate of β-cell function was calculated as the product of C-peptide response and HOMA2%S. The response to vitamin D3 was evaluated in 1,774 participants over 24 months. Baseline characteristics [mean age 60.5±9.8 years, BMI 31.9±4.4 kg/m2, 56.4% male, 69.1% white, 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OH D) 28.2±10.2 ng/ml, HbA1c 5.9%±0.2, FPG 107.7±7.2 mg/dl, 2hrOGTT glucose 137.1±34.1 mg/dl] were similar between the vitamin D and placebo groups. Serum 25-OH D increased from 27.9±10.3 ng/ml to 54.9±14.4 ng/ml at 24 months in the vitamin D group and remained unchanged with placebo (p In conclusion, in this pre-specified analysis from the D2d study, supplementation with vitamin D for 24 months did not alter insulin sensitivity or β-cell function in people with prediabetes who were not selected based on their baseline vitamin D levels. Disclosure N. Rasouli: Consultant; Self; Novo Nordisk, Research Support; Self; Allergan plc, Lilly Diabetes, Novo Nordisk. I. Brodsky: None. R. Chatterjee: Research Support; Self; Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Epigenomics AG, Verily Life Sciences. S. H. Kim: Advisory Panel; Self; Bayer U. S., GI Dynamics, Stock/Shareholder; Spouse/Partner; Dexcom, Inc. R. E. Pratley: Other Relationship; Self; Hanmi Pharmaceutical, Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., Metavention, Monster Energy Company, Inc., Novo Nordisk, Pfizer Inc., Poxel SA, Sanofi, Scohia Pharma Inc., Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. M. Staten: None. J. P. Nelson: None. A. G. Pittas: None. D2d research group: n/a. Funding American Diabetes Association (1-14-D2d-01 to A.G.P.); National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (U34DK091958); Office of Dietary Supplements (U01DK098245)
Sulfur cycling and host-virus interactions in Aquificales-dominated biofilms from Yellowstone's hottest ecosystems.

Modern linkages among magmatic, geochemical, and geobiological processes provide clues about the importance of thermophiles in the origin of biogeochemical cycles. The aim of this study was to identify the primary chemoautotrophs and host-virus interactions involved in microbial colonization and biogeochemical cycling at sublacustrine, vapor-dominated vents that represent the hottest measured ecosystems in Yellowstone National Park (~140 °C). Filamentous microbial communities exposed to extreme thermal and geochemical gradients were sampled using a remotely operated vehicle and subjected to random metagenome sequencing and microscopic analyses. Sulfurihydrogenibium (phylum Aquificae) was the predominant lineage (up to 84% relative abundance) detected at vents that discharged high levels of dissolved H2, H2S, and CO2. Metabolic analyses indicated carbon fixation by Sulfurihydrogenibium spp. was powered by the oxidation of reduced sulfur and H2, which provides organic carbon for heterotrophic community members. Highly variable Sulfurihydrogenibium genomes suggested the importance of intra-population diversity under extreme environmental and viral pressures. Numerous lytic viruses (primarily unclassified taxa) were associated with diverse archaea and bacteria in the vent community. Five circular dsDNA uncultivated virus genomes (UViGs) of ~40 kbp length were linked to the Sulfurihydrogenibium metagenome-assembled genome (MAG) by CRISPR spacer matches. Four UViGs contained consistent genome architecture and formed a monophyletic cluster with the recently proposed Pyrovirus genus within the Caudovirales. Sulfurihydrogenibium spp. also contained CRISPR arrays linked to plasmid DNA with genes for a novel type IV filament system and a highly expressed β-barrel porin. A diverse suite of transcribed secretion systems was consistent with direct microscopic analyses, which revealed an extensive extracellular matrix likely critical to community structure and function. We hypothesize these attributes are fundamental to the establishment and survival of microbial communities in highly turbulent, extreme-gradient environments.
Euclidean, Pseudo-Euclidean, Conformal and Pseudoconformal Geometries

In 0.5.3 we have defined the real Euclidean space R n as the affine space E n whose vectors satisfy axioms E.1° – 5°. Since the inner product x 2 of a vector x = x 2 e i of this space by itself is a positive definite quadratic form x 2 = e ij x i x j , this space is also called a quadratic Euclidean space. In 0.5.3 we have seen that the space R n also satisfies the axioms M.1° – 3° of a metric space.
Distributive Injustice(s) in American Health Care

This article explores the hypothesis that the U.S. health care system operates more like a robber baron than like Robin Hood, burdening ordinary payers of health insurance premiums disproportionately for the benefit of industry interests and higher-income consumer-taxpayers. Thus, lower- and middle-income Americans with health coverage pay not only for their own families' health care but also to support a vast health care enterprise that primarily benefits others, including many far more affluent than themselves. The system is able to finance itself in part because U.S.-style health insurance greatly amplifies price-gouging opportunities for health care firms with market power, creating a cost burden that falls ultimately on all premium payers equally, like a severely regressive head tax. Moreover, these same consumers also bear excessive costs for their own health care because, not seeing the costs they bear with any clarity (since the tax system makes those costs appear to fall on their employers rather than themselves), they demand unnecessarily costly coverage and resist efforts to economize - all to the benefit of the health care industry and others with reasons to value high-cost medicine. Lower-income insureds also appear, for several reasons, to get less out of their employers' health plans than their higher-income coworkers, despite paying the same premiums. Finally, insured individuals' lack of cost-consciousness also affects their attitudes and behavior as citizens and as voters, enabling politicians as well as industry interests to make choices on their behalf that systematically raise costs and foreclose economizing possibilities. The burden of excess health care costs and how it is distributed is rarely recognized as the fundamental issue of social justice it is. The purpose of this article is to make the question who pays and who benefits a principal concern of health policymakers.
Retinoids and Mouse Embryonic Development

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the different aspects of retinoids and mouse embryonic development. Embryogenesis encompasses a very dynamic state of development characterized by precise temporal and spatial cell-tissue inductive interactions. The roles retinoids play during embryonic development are both basic and complex. Hyper- and hypo-vitaminosis A leads to malformations in a number of anatomical structures, which can include the central nervous, skeletal, urogenital, cardiovascular, and immune systems. The C region comprises two classical zinc finger motifs, each of which contains four cysteines that coordinate zinc to mediate DNA binding of the receptor monomer to the canonical half-site A/GGG/TTCA. The specific protein–protein contacts made between the two DNA-bound receptors appear to be partly dependent on the spacing of the half-sites. In DR5 elements bound by an RXR/RAR heterodimer, the tip of the CI finger from the retinoic acid receptor (RAR) contacts the D box of the CII finger from the RXR.
A Population of Assessment Tasks

We propose the development of a “population” of high-quality assessment tasks that cover the performance goals set out in the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics. The population will be published. Tests are drawn from this population as a structured random sample guided by a “balancing algorithm.”
Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) deposition in maternal and fetal tissues of rat and mouse. I. Chemical quantification of HCB in tissues.

Abstract CD-1 mice received a single treatment of hexachlorobenzene (HCB) on Day 11 or 16 of gestation or daily treatments on Days 6–11 or 6–16 of gestation at levels of 10, 50, or 100 mg/kg. CD rats received daily treatments of 10 or 50 mg/kg HCB on Days 6–12 or 12–16 of gestation. Animals were sacrificed 24 hr after last dose and maternal and fetal tissues were assayed for HCB content. Rat and mouse fetuses and placentas showed a dose-dependent concentration of HCB, and generally, the fetuses had a lower concentration than their respective placentas. Multiple low doses of HCB resulted in higher concentrations of HCB in mouse maternal and fetal tissues than single doses of equivalent total dose. Late gestational rats received fewer doses of HCB than midgestational rats, yet their fetuses and placentas had significantly higher concentrations of HCB suggesting a gestational effect. Resorptions had higher average HCB concentrations than their living counterparts at all dose regimens.
Optimal Search for Minimum Error Rate Training

Minimum error rate training is a crucial component to many state-of-the-art NLP applications, such as machine translation and speech recognition. However, common evaluation functions such as BLEU or word error rate are generally highly non-convex and thus prone to search errors. In this paper, we present LP-MERT, an exact search algorithm for minimum error rate training that reaches the global optimum using a series of reductions to linear programming. Given a set of N-best lists produced from S input sentences, this algorithm finds a linear model that is globally optimal with respect to this set. We find that this algorithm is polynomial in N and in the size of the model, but exponential in S. We present extensions of this work that let us scale to reasonably large tuning sets (e.g., one thousand sentences), by either searching only promising regions of the parameter space, or by using a variant of LP-MERT that relies on a beam-search approximation. Experimental results show improvements over the standard Och algorithm.
Defining palliative surgery in patients receiving noncurative resections for gastric cancer.

Abstract Background Effective palliation rather than cure is often the most appropriate goal in the management of patients with advanced gastric cancer. The literature to date is limited by the imprecise use of the term palliative and subsequent variable designation of patients into evaluable groups. Study design Between July 1985 and July 2001, 1,595 patients were entered into a prospective database after undergoing a resection for gastric adenocarcinoma. Patients who received a noncurative (R1/R2) resection were identified. A procedure was defined as palliative if it was performed explicitly to palliate symptoms or improve quality of life. Results Three hundred seven patients received a noncurative gastric resection. The operation was palliative in 48% (147/307) and nonpalliative in 52% (160/307). Palliative operations included an esophageal anastomosis less frequently (46% versus 69%, p 65 years. Conclusions There are important differences among patients undergoing noncurative operations for gastric cancer. Studies designed to measure palliative interventions would benefit from precise designations of palliative intent in patients receiving noncurative operations.
O + CnH2n Products Detected via IR Emission. 1. O + C2H4

Collisions between oxygen atoms and ethene have been investigated by using infrared emission detection of the chemiluminescent product species. A prototypical alkene, ethene, nonetheless exhibits numerous reaction pathways in reactions with O atoms. Oxygen atoms were formed via photolysis of SO 2 in the presence of C 2 H 4 , and the resultant IR emissions in the 900-3000-cm - 1 spectral region were detected by using a time-resolved, step-scan Fourier transform spectrometer. A Welsh cell mirror arrangement was used to maximize the collection efficiency of the product IR emissions. Vibrationally excited products such as CO, CO 2 , HCO, and H 2 CO have been identified, with CO and CO 2 being the dominant IR emitters. The time-evolving CO and CO 2 spectra have been characterized with respect to the SO 2 and C 2 H 4 partial pressures and laser fluence. The rate constants for vibrational relaxation of CO 2 high-v population by C n H 2 n (n = 2-4) are in the mid-10 - 1 2 cm 3 s - 1 range; SO 2 is a very inefficient relaxer. A chemical kinetics code has been used to model the chemistry and identify the operative reaction mechanisms, including the effects of secondary chemistry.
Forebrain angiotensin type 1 receptors and parabrachial serotonin in the control of NaCl and water intake

This study investigated the roles of serotonin (5-HT) receptors in the lateral parabrachial nucleus (LPBN) and brain angiotensin type 1 (AT1) receptors in the intake of 0.3 M NaCl and water induced by angiotensin II (ANG II). Rats were implanted with stainless steel cannulas for injections into the subfornical organ (SFO) and into the LPBN. Bilateral LPBN pretreatment with the nonselective serotonergic 5-HT1/5-HT2 receptor antagonist methysergide (4 micrograms/200 nl) markedly enhanced 0.3 M NaCl intake induced by injections of ANG II (20 ng/200 nl) into the SFO. Pretreatment of the SFO with the AT1 receptor antagonist losartan (1 microgram/200 nl) blocked the intake of 0.3 M NaCl induced by ANG II in combination with LPBN methysergide injections. These results suggest that serotonergic mechanisms associated with the LPBN inhibit the expression of salt appetite induced by ANG II injections into the SFO. In addition, the results indicate that the enhanced NaCl intake generated by central administration of ANG II in the presence of LPBN 5-HT blockade is mediated by brain AT1 receptors.
A comparative study of the fretting fatigue behavior of 4340 steel and PH 13-8 Mo stainless steel

The fretting fatigue behavior of two high strength structural steels, PH 13-8 Mo stainless steel and quenched and tempered 4340 steel, is investigated. Both were heat treated to a similar hardness (43-44 HRC), comparable to the condition used in structural components. Both materials experienced significant reductions in fatigue strength due to fretting, with PH 13-8 Mo stainless steel exhibiting a greater susceptibility to fretting than 4340 steel, when operating in the mixed fretting regime. The use of fretting pads with different surface profiles showed that contact geometry did not significantly influence the fretting fatigue behavior of either steel for the range of loading conditions considered. The fretting fatigue lives are discussed in light of the low cycle fatigue and crack growth rate behavior of these steels. The life trends in fretting fatigue correlate more closely to the low cycle fatigue behavior.
Optimality Conditions and Duality Models for a Class of Nonsmooth Constrained Fractional Optimal Control Problems

Abstract Both parametric and nonparametric necessary and sufficient optimality conditions are established for a class of nonsmooth constrained optimal control problems with fractional objective functions and linear dynamics. Moreover, using the forms and contents of these optimality principles, four parametric and eight parameter-free duality models are constructed and weak, strong, and strict converse duality theorems are proved. These optimality and duality results contain, as special cases, similar results for fractional optimal control problems containing square roots of positive semidefinite quadratic forms in their objective and constraint functions. The optimality and duality criteria presented in this paper generalize a number of existing results for optimal control problems and subsume a fairly large number of cognate results obtained previously in the areas of finite-dimensional linear, fractional, and nonlinear programming.
Amphetamine Sensitization Alters Dendritic Morphology in Prefrontal Cortical Pyramidal Neurons in the Non-Human Primate

Amphetamine (AMPH) sensitization in the nonhuman primate induces persistent aberrant behaviors reminiscent of the hallmark symptoms of schizophrenia, including hallucinatory-like behaviors, psychomotor depression, and profound cognitive impairment. The present study examined whether AMPH sensitization induces similarly long-lasting morphologic alterations in prefrontal cortical pyramidal neurons. Three to 3(1/2) years postsensitization, sensitized, and AMPH-naive control monkeys were killed. Blocks of prefrontal cortex were Golgi-impregnated for elucidation of pyramidal dendritic morphology in layers II/superficial III (II/IIIs), deep III, and V/VI. In AMPH-sensitized animals as compared to AMPH-naive controls, pyramidal dendrites in layer II/IIIs exhibited reduced overall dendritic branching and reduced peak spine density (22%) on the apical trunk. Across all layers, the distance from soma to peak spine density along the apical trunk was decreased (126.38+/-7.65 mum in AMPH-sensitized compared to 162.98+/-7.26 microm in AMPH-naive controls), and basilar dendritic length was reduced (32%). These findings indicate that chronic dopamine dysregulation, consequent to AMPH sensitization, results in enduring, atrophic changes in prefrontal pyramidal dendrites that resemble the pathologic alterations described in patients with schizophrenia and may contribute to the persistence of schizophrenia-like behavioral changes and cognitive dysfunction associated with sensitization. These findings may also provide key insights into the etiologic origin of the pronounced behavioral disturbances and cognitive dysfunction associated with schizophrenia.
Daily ration and specific daily ration of the chaetognath Sagitta enflata

Digestion times, obtained directly from laboratory feeding, were used in conjunction with a day/night series of field samples to estimate the daily ration and specific daily ration of Sagitta enflata Grassi, the most abundant chaetognath in the Gulf Stream near Miami, Florida (USA), during winter and early spring. Feeding was independent of time of day and increased with increasing chaetognath size from 1.7 prey day-1 for the 11.5 mm size class to 2.9 prey day-1 for the 21.5 mm class. The diet of s. enflata consisted of 94.8% copepods having a mean weight of 21.8 μg, and 5.2% prey chaetognaths estimated to be two-thirds the length of the predators. The daily ration of S. enflata from 12.5 to 20.5 mm in length increased from 48.3 to 143.3 μg of prey dry weight and from 18.5 to 48.1 μg of prey carbon. The specific daily ration declined from 0.12 to 0.08 dry weight basis, and from 0.26 to 0.14, carbon basis, over the same size range. Prey chaetognaths contributed as much as 51% of the ration on a carbon basis.
Heart Transplantation Imaging in the Adult

There are two types of cardiac transplantation, orthotopic,which is performed more commonly, and the less com-mon, heterotopic transplantation. In orthotopic trans-plantation, the recipient’s heart is removed through a me-dian sternotomy, leaving behind a cuff of both native atriaand main pulmonary artery. The donor heart is attached tothe recipient’s aorta and pulmonary artery and the atria orcava. The most commonly used technique, performed at75% of the world’s heart transplantation centers, uses theorthotopic transplantation with the bicaval technique. Thebicaval technique, described by Baumgartner and cowork-ers and Sievers and coworkers, uses individual anastomo-ses of the superior and inferior vena cavae, which areperformedinplaceoftherightatrialcuffanastomosis.
A review of adaptive cluster sampling: 1990–2003

Adaptive cluster sampling (ACS) is an adaptive sampling scheme which operates under the rule that when the observed value of an initially selected sampling unit satisfies some condition of interest, C, other additional units in some pre-defined accompanying neighborhood are also added to the sample. In turn, if any of these additional units satisfy C, then their corresponding unit neighborhoods are added to the sample as well, and so on. This process stops when no additional units satisfying C are encountered. This paper will provide a review of the major developments and issues in ACS since its introduction by Thompson (1990) [Journal of the American Statistical Association, 85, 1050–1059].
An off-Line Event-Mode Data Processing Program MULTIP

A Fortran program is described that may be used to process multiparameter data from event-mode magnetic tapes generated by data acquisition programs. It is intended to resemble a data-taking program in structure and use, but it will provide additional flexibility in the analysis of experimental events. It may be easily transported between different computer systems and it may also be adapted as a data acquisition program.
Neuronal membrane lipid asymmetry.

Abstract The outer surface of intact synaptosomes was covalently labelled with trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid prior to isolation of the synaptic plasma membrane. Analysis of the membrane lipid demonstrated an asymmetric distribution of phospholipids across the synaptosomal plasma membrane. In addition, the fatty acyl composition of phosphatidylethanolamine from this neuronal membrane fraction was also distributed asymmetrically. The data are consistent with a de novo generation of phospholipid asymmetry independent of serum lipid exchange processes. This structural asymmetry may have important consequences for neurotransmission.
Basic Blue 148: A Rapid Stain for T Helper Cells

After brief exposure to an aqueous solution of the oxazine textile dye C. I. basic blue 148 following fixation in 37% formalin, 95% ethanol and glacial acetic acid, T helper cell nuclei and cytoplasm in specimens of peripheral blood displayed a deep red-violet color. No other cell in normal blood or bone marrow specimens showed intense staining of this type. The total staining time is 1 min. Basic blue 148 stain is a promising technique for hematology and immunology laboratories as a rapid screening test for T helper cells in blood specimens using a microscopic slide and ordinary incandescent illumination.
Donatism Revisited: Moderates and Militants in Late Antique North Africa

The little we know about the relationships between moderate and militant Donatists in the late fourth and early fifth centuries tells us more about the opposition that both groups stirred among the Caecilianists. What follows is an effort to reenter the Caecilianists’ polemic to discover what we can learn about Donatism and its critics, chiefly Augustine, by reading the evidence with some useful conclusions drawn from the study of more recent religious violence.
Legal Problems of People in Mental and Penal Institutions: An Exploratory Study

This exploratory study of the legal problems or needs of prisoners and mental hospital patients (the institutionalized) reveals the wide range and diversity in the perceptions of what the needs are and what the legal responses might be. It argues for the need to conduct research that first promotes our qualitative understanding of legal demand among the institutionalized, and it suggests the need to experiment with and do research on legal supply pro-grams in the institutions. Only then can we begin to think about quantifying the needs and designing with some precision delivery programs based upon such quantitative information. The study also suggests the need for a lawyer role in the institutional context that departs from traditional role perceptions, both in terms of the approach taken to cases and clients and in terms of the substantive problems deemed deserving of legal attention.
Influence of molecular relaxation dynamics on quartz-enhanced photoacoustic detection of CO2 at λ=2 μm

Carbon dioxide (CO2) trace gas detection based on quartz enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (QEPAS) using a distributed feedback diode laser operating at λ=2 μm is performed, with a primary purpose of studying vibrational relaxation processes in the CO2-N2-H2O system. A simple model is developed and used to explain the experimentally observed dependence of amplitude and phase of the photoacoustic signal on pressure and gas humidity. A (1σ) sensitivity of 110 parts-per-million (with a 1 s lock-in time constant) was obtained for CO2 concentrations measured in humid gas samples.
Transitional cell carcinoma of renal allograft associated with BK virus infection

BK virus (BKV) has oncogenic properties and has been associated with different malignancies. However, reports of malignancy in renal transplant recipients are scarce and circumstantial. We report on a renal transplant recipient with a diagnosis of BKV nephropathy for several years, who subsequently developed a renal allograft mass. Renal allograft mass biopsy revealed a high-grade transitional cell carcinoma. The patient underwent a renal allograft nephrectomy and returned to hemodialysis. Neoplastic tissue was positive for BKV DNA by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and large T-antigen (TAg) by immunohistochemical staining. In contrast, BKV DNA by PCR was negative in non-neoplastic tissue. The presence of BKV DNA and TAg exclusively in the neoplastic tissue, suggest that malignancy was induced by BKV. Of note, JC virus DNA by PCR was negative in the neoplastic tissue. BKV is associated with transitional cell carcinoma of the allograft renal pelvis and that warrants monitoring these patients for this possibility.
Mechanism and kinetics of thermal decomposition of biodiesel fuel

Abstract Batch thermal stressing experiments have been conducted to investigate thermal stability and decomposition of biodiesel fuel in the temperature range of 250–425 °C. It was found that biodiesel was stable below 275 °C and thermal decomposition took place at 275 °C or above. It has been clearly demonstrated that biodiesel decomposition mainly involves isomerization, polymerization (Diels–Alder reaction) and pyrolysis reactions, and they occur in the temperature ranges of 275–400 °C, 300–425 °C and >350 °C, respectively. A six-lump model and a reduced three-lump model are proposed to describe the decomposition mechanism. Finally, experimental data were modeled by both reversible and irreversible general first order reactions, and it has been shown that the biodiesel decomposition kinetics can be well represented by the reversible model. The standard enthalpy of reaction for biodiesel decomposition was determined to be 80 kJ/mol.
Experience of vancomycin-resistant enterococci in a children's hospital.

Vancomycin resistant enterococci (VRE) are increasingly important nosocomial pathogens. This paper describes our experience of the epidemiology and clinical impact of VRE in the two years since the occurrence of our first case of VRE infection. Following introduction of surveillance, gastrointestinal colonization with VRE was detected in 38.3% of Haematology/Oncology and 11.1% of Hepatology/Gastroenterology patients, but in only 2.3% of children in the Paediatric Intensive Care and 1.5% of children in the Renal Unit. Only five patients with gastrointestinal colonization subsequently developed clinical infection with VRE, giving an annual incidence of 7.5%. A further six children were colonized at extra-intestinal sites. Twelve children had clinical infections with VRE, of whom three (25%) died. Contamination of bedspaces was found in association with 2/3 (66.7%) children with extraintestinal colonization and 5/7 (71.4%) children with clinical infections, compared with 6/28 (21.4%) cases of gastrointestinal colonization. In the latter group, bedspace contamination was usually associated with widespread contamination of the ward with VRE and may have been the cause rather than the result of patients acquiring VRE. Originally we employed control measures based closely on the North American HICPAC guidelines, but our control strategy has since evolved in response to epidemiological and clinical observations.
Oxygen affinity as an index of hemoglobin S polymerization: A new micromethod

Abstract The decrease in oxygen affinity with increasing hemoglobin concentration, which occurs in solutions of pure hemoglobin S, can be used to determine the minimum concentration at which polymerization of the deoxy form takes place. On this basis a very sensitive method for measuring the minimum gelling concentration has been developed. The influence of temperature, pH, and other hemoglobins on the end points obtained by this method is described. In all cases excellent agreement with the minimum gelling concentration determined directly on larger samples was observed. The results of this investigation demonstrate that the decrease in oxygen affinity of red cells containing hemoglobin S with increasing intracorpuseular hemoglobin concentration [May, A., and Huehns, E. R. (1975) Brit. J. Haematol.30, 317] is a direct consequence of the gelling properties of hemoglobin S alone.
Technical Note-The Effectiveness of Ordinal Dominance in Decision Analysis

The easily applied technique of ordinal-dominance analysis in decisions under uncertainty eliminates inferior pure strategies. It is most applicable when the decision-maker's consequence utilities are known only up to a monotonic transformation ordinally. Each strategy eliminated by ordinal dominance will also be eliminated by cardinal dominance for every utility function that preserves the decision-maker's preference order on the consequences. This note shows that, in finite decisions under uncertainty, if a pure strategy is not ordinally dominated, then there is some utility function that preserves the decision-maker's preference order on the consequences such that the pure strategy is not cardinally dominated under this utility function. Hence ordinal-dominance analysis eliminates every pure strategy that can be safely eliminated when only the decision-maker's preference weak-ordering of the consequences is known.
Identity Gap: Mediator Between Communication Input and Outcome Variables

After introducing the concept of identity gap, this study investigated the roles of 3 identity gaps (personal-enacted, personal-relational, and enacted-relational) in the relations between 2 communication input variables (assertiveness and communication apprehension) and a communication outcome variable (communication satisfaction). The results showed that the communication input variables did not have significant direct effects on the communication outcome variable. The effects of the communication input variables were transmitted to the communication outcome through the identity gaps. A personal-enacted identity gap directly mediated the effects of the communication inputs on the outcome. Personal-relational and enacted-relational identity gaps indirectly mediated the effects via a personal-enacted identity gap—that is, both communication inputs significantly predicted a personal-enacted identity gap, but neither a personal-relational nor an enacted-relational identity gap. However, a personal-enacted i...
Effect of CS-US pairings on shock-elicited aggression as a function of US intensity

Abstract In two experiments with paired rats, the effect of superimposing CS-US pairings on a baseline of shock-elicited aggression was studied. Baseline shocks (3.0 mA, 0.125-sec duration) occurred at a rate of 20 shocks per min throughout each session. In Experiment I, each independent group of two pairs of subjects received (in addition to baseline shocks) US shocks of 1.0, 3.0, or 5.0 mA and 5-sec duration, each shock signalled by a 1-min CS. At all three US intensities, aggression increased during the CS. In Experiment II, pairs of subjects received each unconditioned stimulus intensity in a within-subjects design. This procedure revealed a direct relationship between rate of responding and unconditioned shock intensity.
The application of resolution enhancement techniques to the study of factors affecting group frequencies—I. Coupling of symmetric methyl deformation frequencies in o-xylene

Abstract Deconvolution of methyl symmetric deformation frequencies of o -, m - and p -xylene yields a fully resolved doublet with 10 cm −1 spacing in o -xylene, but singlets in m - and p -xylene. Resolution enhancement of the methyl bending mode of 1-methyl-2-[methyl- d 3 ]-benzene yields a single band near 1380 cm −1 . The relative intensity of the heavy to light band systems is ∼ 0.4. The data indicate that spatial coupling exists between the symmetric methyl deformation modes of o -xylene.
Role of α5* nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in the effects of acute and chronic nicotine treatment on brain reward function in mice.

Allelic variation in the α5 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subunit gene, CHRNA5, increases vulnerability to tobacco addiction. Here, we investigated the role of α5* nAChRs in the effects of nicotine on brain reward systems. Effects of acute (0.03125–0.5 mg/kg SC) or chronic (24 mg/kg per day; osmotic minipump) nicotine and mecamylamine-precipitated withdrawal on intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) thresholds were assessed in wild-type and α5 nAChR subunit knockout mice. Noxious effects of nicotine were further investigated using a conditioned taste aversion procedure. Lower nicotine doses (0.03125–0.125 mg/kg) decreased ICSS thresholds in wild-type and α5 knockout mice. At higher doses (0.25–0.5 mg/kg), threshold-lowering effects of nicotine were diminished in wild-type mice, whereas nicotine lowered thresholds across all doses tested in α5 knockout mice. Nicotine (1.5 mg/kg) conditioned a taste aversion to saccharine equally in both genotypes. Mecamylamine (5 mg/kg) elevated ICSS thresholds by a similar magnitude in wild-type and α5 knockout mice prepared with minipumps delivering nicotine. Unexpectedly, mecamylamine also elevated thresholds in saline-treated α5 knockout mice. α5* nAChRs are not involved in reward-enhancing effects of lower nicotine doses, the reward-inhibiting effects of nicotine withdrawal, or the general noxious effects of higher nicotine doses. Instead, α5* nAChRs regulate the reward-inhibiting effects nicotine doses that oppose the reward-facilitating effects of the drug. These data suggest that disruption of α5* nAChR signaling greatly expands the range of nicotine doses that facilitate brain reward activity, which may help explain the increased tobacco addiction vulnerability associated with CHRNA5 risk alleles.
Identidication and characterization of polymers by pyrolytic—hydrogenation gas chromatography

Abstract A pyrolytic—hydrogenation gas chromatograph is used to identify polymers via the identification of specific pyrolysis products. Ten polymers were successfully analyzed by this technique, and in all cases characteristic products were found. Identification of products was accomplished by retention time measurements and microhydrogenation.
Prostaglandins and renin release: III. Effects of PGE1, E2 F2α and D2 on renin release from rabbit renal cortical slices

Abstract We have investigated the direct effects of prostaglandins E1, E2, F2α and D2 on renin release from rabbit renal cortical slices. Prostaglandin E1 (PGE1) was the most potent stimulant of renin release, while PGE2 was 20–30 fold less active. PGF2α was found not to be an inhibitor of renin release as reported by others, but rather a weak agonist. PGD2 up to a concentration of 10 μg/ml had no activity in this system. That the stimulation of renin release by PGE1 is a direct effect is supported by the finding that PGE1-induced release is not blocked by L-propranolol or by Δ5,8,11,14-eicosatetraynoic acid (ETYA), a prostaglandin synthesis is inhibitor. The fatty acid precursor of PGE1, Δ8,11,14-eicosatrienoic acid, also stimulated renin release, an effect which was blocked by ETYA. In addition to the above findings, ethanol, a compound frequently used to dissolve prostaglandins, was shown to inhibit renin release.
Water‐induced micellar structures of block copoly(oxyethylene‐oxypropylene‐oxyethylene) in o‐xylene

We previously reported the water-induced micelle formation of copoly(oxyethylene-oxy-propylene-oxyethylene), Pluronic L64, in o-xylene. The micellar properties could be controlled by varying the water to EO ratio (Z) in micelles. in micelles. In this paper, laser light scattering, transient electric birefringence (TEB), and synchrotron small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) were used to study the micellar structure at different Z values. Both TEB and SAXS results further confirmed the micellar shape transition from that of a sphere to a nonspherical shape. A comparison between TEB and dynamic light-scattering results as well as the SAXS experiments showed an ellipsoidal shape for micelles when Z > 1.3 with the oblate being the more reasonable form for fitting all the experimental parameters. The degree of asymmetry appeared to be not high. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Theory of shear suppression of edge turbulence by externally driven radio-frequency waves

Here, we propose and analyze a technique for active suppression of tokamak edge turbulence. Suppression occurs due to the effects of a sheared radial electric field generated by externally driven radio-frequency waves. Plasma flow is induced by radially varying wave-driven Reynolds and magnetic stresses, and opposed by neoclassical damping. For Alfv\'enic flow drive, the predicted shear flow profile is determined by ion inertia and electron dissipation effects. Results indicate that a modest amount of absorbed power is required for edge-turbulence suppression. More generally, several novel results in the theory of momentum transport by electromagnetic fluctuations are presented.
Effect of Exercise on Renal Clearance of Atenolol

The effect of exercise on plasma atenolol was evaluated using a two-phase complete crossover study in 12 healthy volunteers. In one phase, the volunteers were subjected to physical exertion on a treadmill; in the other phase, they remained in a sitting or standing position. Following a single 100-mg atenolol dose, frequent blood samples and a complete urine collection were obtained over 24 hr. Plasma and urine atenolol levels were assayed by high-pressure liquid chromatography. Plasma atenolol was significantly (p < 0.05) higher during the exercise phase of the study, and this result was associated with approximately an 8% decrease in the renal clearance of the drug, probably due to decreased renal blood flow during exercise.
Evaluation of a combined portable reverse osmosis and iodine resin drinking water treatment system for control of enteric waterborne pathogens

Abstract Three identical portable reverse osmosis‐iodine resin drinking water treatment systems were evaluated for their ability to inactivate/remove Klebsiella terrigena, poliovirus type 1, rotavirus SA‐11, and Cryptosporidium oocysts. The units were operated according to the manufacture's instructions for 500 hours of operation. The units were challenged with the test microorganisms after 0, 125, 250, 300, 375, 450, and 500 hours of operation. Worst case water quality challenges were done at the 60% (300 hours) and 75%(375 hours), lifetime challenge. This “worst case”; consisted of 1500 mg/l dissolved solids, 10 mg/l organic matter, a turbidity of 30 NTU, and a pH of 9.0 at 4°C. At the 90% (450 hours) and 100% (500 hours) lifetime test the “worst case”; water quality adjusted to pH 5.0 was used. The units were also tested after stagnation for 48 hours at 50%, 75%, and 100% lifetime challenges. The geometric average removals exceeded 99.9999% for the bacteria, 99.99% for the viruses, and 99.9% for the Cr...