cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Educational Technology Improves ECG Interpretation of Acute Myocardial Infarction among Medical Students and Emergency Medicine Residents

Introduction: Asynchronous online training has become an increasingly popular educational format in the new era of technology-based professional development. We sought to evaluate the impact of an online asynchronous training module on the ability of medical students and emergency medicine (EM) residents to detect electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormalities of an acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Methods: We developed an online ECG training and testing module on AMI, with emphasis on recognizing ST elevation myocardial infarction (MI) and early activation of cardiac catheterization resources. Study participants included senior medical students and EM residents at all post-graduate levels rotating in our emergency department (ED). Participants were given a baseline set of ECGs for interpretation. This was followed by a brief interactive online training module on normal ECGs as well as abnormal ECGs representing an acute MI. Participants then underwent a post-test with a set of ECGs in which they had to interpret and decide appropriate intervention including catheterization lab activation. Results: 148 students and 35 EM residents participated in this training in the 2012-2013 academic year. Students and EM residents showed significant improvements in recognizing ECG abnormalities after taking the asynchronous online training module. The mean score on the testing module for students improved from 5.9 (95% CI [5.7-6.1]) to 7.3 (95% CI [7.1-7.5]), with a mean difference of 1.4 (95% CI [1.12-1.68]) (p<0.0001). The mean score for residents improved significantly from 6.5 (95% CI [6.2-6.9]) to 7.8 (95% CI [7.4-8.2]) (p<0.0001). Conclusion: An online interactive module of training improved the ability of medical students and EM residents to correctly recognize the ECG evidence of an acute MI. [West J Emerg Med. 2015;16(1):–0.]
Response of the Rabbit Ileal Loop to Cell-Free Products from Escherichia coli Enteropathogenic for Swine

The ligated intestinal loop used to study experimental Vibrio cholerae infection in rabbits [1] has been used in pigs to study the pathogenesis of enteric Escherichia coli infection (colibacillosis) of swine [2]. Loops of swine intestine ligated in vivo became distended with fluid when exposed to strains of E. coli associated with enteric colibacillosis of swine. Those strains that caused positive ligated intestinal loops in swine caused diarrheal disease when inoculated orally into newborn pigs. In contrast, nonenteropathogenic strains of E. coli failed to cause either positive loops or diarrheal disease in swine [2-6]. Cell-free products, produced in culture by strains of E. coli enteropathogenic for swine, caused positive ligated intestinal loops or diarrheal disease in swine [7-9]. The active principle in such products has been referred to as E. coli enterotoxin(s).1 A simple quantitative assay system for such enterotoxin(s) is needed to facilitate its purification and characterization. Characterization of E. coli enterotoxin(s) is necessary to determine its significance in the pathogenesis of enteric colibacillosis of swine.
Role of adhesion molecules in vascular regulation and damage.

The trafficking of leukocytes within the microcirculation is critical for normal immune surveillance of tissues. The process of leukocyte recruitment is tightly regulated by the sequential expression and activation of specific adhesion molecules on the surface of leukocytes and endothelial cells. These adhesion molecules mediate distinct steps in the recruitment of leukocytes in the microcirculation. The selectins mediate leukocyte rolling, whereas glycoproteins belonging to the integrin and immunoglobulin supergene families enable leukocytes to firmly adhere and emigrate in venules. The leukocyte-endothelial cell adhesion that is mediated by these adhesion molecules has been shown to alter the function of endothelial cells in all segments of the vasculature (ie, in arterioles, capillaries, and venules). Diseases such as ischemia-reperfusion, hypertension, and atherosclerosis exhibit vascular changes that are characteristic of acute or chronic inflammatory responses. These vascular alterations are associated with, and influenced by, changes in the avidity and density of adhesion molecules on the surface of either endothelial cells, leukocytes, or both. The activation and increased expression of these adhesion glycoproteins have been attributed to excessive production of cytokines and oxidants. The risk factors for cardiovascular disease, particularly diabetes mellitus and hypercholesterolemia, appear to sensitize the microvasculature to these inflammatory stimuli, thereby rendering tissues more vulnerable to the deleterious effects of ischemia and reperfusion. These findings raise the possibility of applying therapeutic strategies that are directed against adhesion molecules for the management of some cardiovascular diseases
Late time magnetic field in laser produced plasmas

Summary form only given. Magnetic fields have long been known to be generated in laser produced plasmas during the laser pulse. Measurements have shown that megagauss magnetic fields are generated in the focal region of the laser. It is generally believed that these large magnetic fields dissipate through collisional or collisionless processes. However, there are measurements of magnetic fields at large distances from the target. The question then is to determine if these magnetic fields are transported in the expanding plasma. Previous measurements of magnetic fields far from the target involve the plasma expanding into a surrounding gas. Here we present the results of magnetic field measurement in plasma whose pressure is significantly greater than the ambient pressure. The laser target was a high density polyethylene. Magnetic probes were placed at several distances from the target. The probes at the farthest distance, 70 cm, were differentially wrapped and measured three orthogonal projections of the field. Faraday cups were used to measure the time of flight of the ions. A Langmuir probe was used to determine electron temperature.
A Metagenomic Approach to the Airways Microbiome of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

Current research has shown that different sites of the human body house different bacterial communities. There is a strong correlation between an individual's microbial community profile at a given site and the onset of disease. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a progressive lung disease resulting in narrowing of the airways and restricted airflow. Despite being the third leading cause of death in the United States, little is known about the differences in the lung microbial community profiles of healthy individuals vs. COPD patients. Metagenomics is the culture-independent study of genetic material obtained directly from samples. A metagenomic analysis of 56 individuals was conducted. Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples were collected from COPD patients, active or ex-smokers, and never smokers. 454 pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA was performed and analyzed using a newly designed, modular bioinformatic workflow. Substantial colonization of the lungs was found in all subjects and differentially abundant genera in each group were identified (including Tropheryma in COPD and Sneathia in smokers). These discoveries are promising and may further our understanding of how the structure of the lung microbiome is modified as COPD progresses. It is also anticipated that the results will eventually lead to improved treatments for COPD.
How do we find a true gypsophile

Abstract The unique physical and chemical properties of gypsum soils have been used to explain species distribution across landscapes, however, past research on gypsophiles often has not encompassed broad analysis of soil–landscape–plant interaction and thus may have incorrectly labeled many species as gypsophiles. We use the example of the two reported gypsophiles, Arctomecon californica Torrey & Fremont and Eriogonum corymbosum Bentham var. nilesii Reveal found in the southern Mojave Desert, USA, to test the hypothesis that both species are gypsophiles and then draw conclusions from our work to evaluate past studies of gypsum soils, their landscapes and gypsophiles. Results from detailed pedologic analyses indicate that site characteristics affecting potential soil water content (topgraphic relief, soil particle size, depth to horizons perching water, and soil chemistry and mineralogy) differentiate habitat types and suggest surface differences affecting soil water content are more important for species success than sub-surface factors. Results suggest that gypsum is but one part of the explanation for A. californica and E. corymbosum habitat differentiation and in fact neither species are gypsophiles. While few soils across all habitats had abundant gypsum, gypsum was of very low abundance at most sites and not limited to one habitat type. Foliar chemistry data also indicate neither species accumulates sulfur; the hypothesis that these species are gypsophiles is thus rejected. This research demostrates the complicated nature of determining the influence of soil and landscape on habitat differentiation and the necessity of detailed field-pedologic analysis when defining species limiting soil-landscape constraints.
Plasmon-enhanced depolarization of reflected light from arrays of nanoparticle dimers

Using spectroscopic ellipsometry and analytical multiple scattering theory, we demonstrate significant depolarization of far-field reflected light due to plasmonic near-field concentration in dimer arrays of metallic nanoparticles fabricated by electron beam lithography. By systematically investigating dimer arrays with varying sub-wavelength interparticle separations, we show that the measured depolarization presents a sharp peak at the Rayleigh cutoff condition for efficient in-plane diffraction. Moreover, by investigating the depolarization of reflected light as a function of the excitation angle, we demonstrate that maximum depolarization occurs in the spectral regions of plasmon-enhanced near-fields. Our results demonstrate that far-field reflection measurements encode information on the near-field spectra of complex nanoparticle arrays, and can be utilized to experimentally determine the optimal conditions for the excitation of sub-wavelength plasmonic resonances. The proposed approach opens novel opportunities for the engineering of nanoparticle arrays with optimized enhancement of optical cross sections for spectroscopic and sensing applications.
Resonant Neural Dynamics of Speech Perception

Air Force Office of Scientific Research (F49620-01-1-0397); National Science Foundation (IRI-97-20333); Office of Naval Research (N00014-01-1-0624).
Parallel processing improvements for full-wave electromagnetic solvers

As computing resources become increasingly parallel for both shared and distributed memory systems, computational electromagnetic methods need to take full advantage of new architectures in order to reduce simulation times. Several different aspects of the solution process make it difficult for traditional finite element field solvers to effectively utilize distributed and shared memory resources. This paper will provide insight into recent advancements made in the finite element method matrix solve (shared memory) and frequency sweep (distributed memory) that drastically reduce simulation times for signal and power integrity applications.
Configurable indexing and ranking for XML information retrieval

Indexing and ranking are two key factors for efficient and effective XML information retrieval. Inappropriate indexing may result in false negatives and false positives, and improper ranking may lead to low precisions. In this paper, we propose a configurable XML information retrieval system, in which users can configure appropriate index types for XML tags and text contents. Based on users' index configurations, the system transforms XML structures into a compact tree representation, Ctree, and indexes XML text contents. To support XML ranking, we propose the concepts of "weighted term frequency" and "inverted element frequency," where the weight of a term depends on its frequency and location within an XML element as well as its popularity among similar elements in an XML dataset. We evaluate the effectiveness of our system through extensive experiments on the INEX 03 dataset and 30 content and structure (CAS) topics. The experimental results reveal that our system has significantly high precision at low recall regions and achieves the highest average precision (0.3309) as compared with 38 official INEX 03 submissions using the strict evaluation metric.
The pawn of great powers: The East–West competition for Caucasia

Abstract My argument in this paper is that Caucasia has become an area of contention, like much of post-Soviet Eurasia, between the East and West, particularly between Russia's Caucasian policy, which revolves around its long-term interest in re-establishing its regional hegemony in the so-called Near Abroad, and the United States' grander ambition for global hegemony. The South Caucasus has provided the first opportunity for Russia to demonstrate its will to prevent the United States, NATO, and the European Community from penetrating the southern tier of the former USSR. Russia's move is not a program of imperial control, but rather a determined effort to contain or even roll back the influence of other powers, most importantly, the United States and NATO in the regions closest to Russia's borders. The “southern tier” of the former Soviet Union – Caucasia and Central Asia – contains the most vulnerable regions in which other powers might intervene, and it is here where Russia will test its new policies. Up until August 2008 it used primarily “soft power” vigorously to prevent other powers from increasing their influence in the region. In August it demonstrated it was prepared, when pushed, to use “hard power.” The Russo–Georgian War was a watershed in East–West relations with a more assertive Russia willing to take on its more powerful competitors.
Improving one-class collaborative filtering by incorporating rich user information

One-Class Collaborative Filtering (OCCF) is an emerging setup in collaborative filtering in which only positive examples or implicit feedback can be observed. Compared with the traditional collaborative filtering setting where the data has ratings, OCCF is more realistic in many scenarios when no ratings are available. In this paper, we propose to improve OCCF accuracy by exploiting the rich user information that is often naturally available in community-based interactive information systems, including a user's search query history, purchasing and browsing activities. We propose two ways to incorporate such user information into the OCCF models: one is to linearly combine scores from different sources and the other is to embed user information into collaborative filtering. Experimental results on a large-scale retail data set from a major e-commerce company show that the proposed methods are effective and can improve the performance of the One-Class Collaborative Filtering over baseline methods through leveraging rich user information.
Pregnancy outcome for nomadic Turkana pastoralists of Kenya.

The outcome of an individual pregnancy is a key component of overall reproductive success and is strongly influenced by environmental, behavioral, and biological variation within populations. This prospective study examined the outcomes of 68 pregnancies among nomadic Turkana of Kenya from July 1993 to July 1994. A total of 12 women experienced pregnancy losses, and 3 women experienced live births with a subsequent perinatal death. The following characteristics are associated with increased risk for experiencing a fetal or perinatal death: severe morbidity episodes, shorter nonpregnant intervals, lower third-trimester weight, higher third-trimester summed skinfolds but limited third-trimester reduction in summed skinfolds, and higher activity levels late in gestation. Turkana newborns measured within 48 hr of birth (n = 19) weighed an average of 2,860 +/- 640 g and had a mean ponderal index of 2.72 +/- 0.46. Variation in birth weight was predicted by preterm delivery, delivery during the wet season, and maternal morbidity levels. Birth length averaged 50.8 +/- 6.8 cm and was positively influenced by full term delivery, better maternal health, and birth during the dry season. These results suggest complicated pathways linking the physical environment, subsistence requirements, heterogeneity in maternal fitness, behavior, and pregnancy outcome. The results augment the larger picture of reproductive success for Turkana nomads who live in a highly variable savanna environment.
Genetics of common disease: a primary care priority aligned with a teachable moment?

We do indeed live in interesting times. Through genome-wide association studies, the Human Genome Project and the related HapMap project are finally yielding dividends related to the genetics of common disorders with great public health import. Not surprisingly, the rush is on to capitalize on these discoveries. Over the last several months, three companies (Navigenics, Inc., deCODE genetics and 23andMe, Inc.) have each announced the availability, direct to consumers, of reasonably low-cost pan-genome testing for markers thought to be predictive of traits and disorders ranging from earwax type to coronary artery disease. Each company has taken a slightly different approach to enhancing their customer's understanding of their genome. Navigenics, Inc., for example presents a more “medical” service, focusing on disease risk estimates, whereas 23andMe, Inc., appears to be taking a more “recreational” tack, with an emphasis on ancestry and the ability to follow traits in users' families. A fair amount of ambiguity exists in the science underlying many of the trait-marker associations that serve as a basis for each company's services, especially in diverse racial and ethnic populations. Perhaps more importantly, there is a virtual abyss regarding how (or whether) such information should be applied in clinical medicine. Each of these applications has a default suggestion when ambiguity rears its ugly head: ask your health care provider for more information.
Low calcium intake : the culprit in many chronic diseases

Calcium is the fifth most abundant element in the earth's crust and is necessary for both plant and animal life today. Moreover, the natural diets of all mammals are rich in calcium. The diet of Stone Age human adults is estimated to have contained from 50 to 75 mmol of calcium (2000 to 3000 mg)/d, three to five times the median calcium intake of present-day US adults. Human physiology has adapted to this environmental abundance with an intestinal absorptive barrier and inefficient renal conservation of calcium. Although mammalian physiology contains mechanisms by which organisms can adjust to temporary environmental shortages, chronic calcium retention has a number of health consequences, most notably bone fragility, high blood pressure, and colon cancer. Evidence indicates that improvement in calcium intake (or in vitamin D status) prevents some portion of each of these multifactorial problems. At least 14 intervention studies have established the skeletal benefit of increased calcium intake during growth and among women in the late postmenopause. Other evidence suggests that adequate calcium may protect against salt-sensitive and pregnancy-associated hypertension and that high intakes of both dietary calcium and vitamin D reduce development of precancerous changes in colonic mucosa.
The solution of a certain dual cosine series relation occurring in orthotropic fracture

Abstract This paper determines the solution of a certain dual cosine series relation that arises in the problem of the out of plane shear of a rectangular orthotropic block with an edge crack. Once the solution to the dual series is known, we solve the edge crack problem exactly. We note that for the case of a constant shear the stress intensity reduces to a simple form and numerical results are given.
Unconventional thin film IV–VI photodiode structures

Abstract An account is given of IV–VI photodiode structures that are designed to exploit the unique properties of thin films. These devices include the low capacitance pinched-off photodiode and the photo field-effect transistor (which make use of the proximity of the depletion region to an insulating substrate), the lateral-collection photodiode (which uses confinement of photogenerated carriers) and a range of devices that use optical interference to modify the spectral quantum efficiency.
Extracellular Stimulation of a Cell Having a Non-Uniform Membrane

The response to extracellular simulation of a cell having a non-uniform membrane consisting of a low resistance patch in an otherwise high resistance membrane is examined. The presence of the patch is shown to cause a shift in the isopotential value of the intracellular medium towards the value of potential just outside the patch. The quantitative dependence of this shift upon the electrical parameters of the system is examined; the effect of such a shift upon the distribution of induced transmembrane potentials is discussed; and the case of a cell with multiple low resistance patches is treated.
An adaptive multigrid technique for evaluating long-range forces in biomolecular simulations

We propose an adaptive multigrid method for evaluating the nonlocal, long-range interactions in biomolecular models. The method provides O(h^3) accuracy for the forces, where h is the mesh size of the finest cubic grid, even though the stencil size is minimal. Two new algorithmic components are developed: an adaptive technique for spreading a three-dimensional charge distribution onto a space mesh, and a procedure for performing coarse-to-fine grid interpolation of the potential, force components, and their derivatives (grid-to-particle interpolation at the finest level) in a consistent fashion. The adaptive mesh used in the spreading procedure contains two types of nodes: regular, positioned at nodes cubic grid, and flexible, one per cubic cell. Thus, the charges located in each grid cell are spread to these nine nodes. The method conserves charge, dipole, and quadrupole moments of cells. The spreading and interpolation techniques are economical in computation time and storage due to the overlap design in the stencils. Implementation is also straightforward. Our initial tests demonstrate the favorable performance for low accuracy with respect to the fast multipole technique.
The role of tribology in electrical contact phenomena

Abstract The mechanism of electrical contact resistance between lightly loaded sliding surfaces was investigated. It was found that the increase in contact resistance of non-noble or base metal contacts, such as Sn-Pb, is due to the oxidation of metallic wear debris that gets entrapped at sliding contacts. It was hypothesized that when the wear debris is continuously removed from the sliding surfaces even non-noble or base metals ( e.g. copper, nickel and Sn-Pb) exhibit low contact resistance similarly to the noble metals. Experimental work on a modulated contact surface of a base metal contact has shown that the electrical contact resistance was low because the wear debris was effectively trapped, thus confirming the validity of the hypothesis. The implication of these findings for the usage of base metals in electrical contacts is discussed.
Improved thermal management with reliability banking

Using a fixed temperature for thermal throttling is pessimistic. Reduced aging during periods of low temperature can compensate for accelerated aging during periods of high temperature. Runtime tracking of the temperature-dependent aging rate means that throttling is engaged only when necessary to maintain reliability. In this article, we show that the effect of cool (low-temperature) phases can compensate for that of hot (high-temperature) phases on reliability. Existing dynamic thermal management (DTM) techniques ignore the effects of temperature fluctuations on chip lifetime and can unnecessarily impose performance penalties for hot phases. Using electromigration as the targeted failure mechanism, we apply a dynamic reliability model and propose a dynamic reliability management (DRM) technique to dynamically track the consumption of chip lifetime during operation.
Generalized k-matches

Abstract Suppose that an urn contains m distinguishable balls, and that these balls are sampled (with replacement), thus generating a sequence of colors. Many questions can be asked about this sequence; the distribution of the time until a color is sampled twice within a memory window of size k (i.e., the waiting time till the first k-match) was derived by Arnold (1972). Next, Burghardt et al. (1994) proved that the limiting distribution of the number of k-matches in the first n draws is Poisson if k = o(m). An even more general question is discussed here: if, for every draw from the urn, a random k-sample is taken of the previous draws, what is the distribution of the number of generalized k-matches? Our solution resolves a question of Glen Meeden (see Arnold, 1972). Extensions to the case where the k-sample is drawn from the (union of the) past and the future are provided, and the case of non-uniform selection probabilities is treated.
Cross‐channel integration of advertising: does personal involvement matter?

Purpose – This paper aims to examine the effect of cross‐channel integration of an advertiser's television spot that invited viewers to play an online game and web site that featured the game on consumers' perceived media engagement and brand attitudes. An important factor, personal involvement is also to be examined.Design/methodology/approach – In total, 185 college students participate in an experimental study on participation and involvement. Participants fill out surveys and personal involvement is determined using various advertisements.Findings – The results reveal that interaction effects are evident between cross‐channel integration of advertising and personal involvement on media engagement and brand attitudes.Research limitations/implications – This study is limited, investigating only one brand, one product category, and two media that can feature advertising messages regarding cross‐channel integration. Future studies should investigate the cross‐channel integration effect on different segmen...
THE SERIES IRON OXIDES‐LIME*

The literature in general shows a considerable divergence of opinion regarding the basicity of the ferrite formed in steelmaking slags. Evidence is presented which indicates that when mixtures of iron oxide and lime are melted under oxidizing conditions in contact with metallic iron a ternary system between CaO-FeO-Fe2O3 prevails and that the compound formed between lime and ferric oxide has the composition 3CaO-Fe2O3, except possibly for melts containing somewhat less than 10 mol.% CaO. A eutectic was found between FeO and 3CaO Fe2O3, which contains approximately 40 mol.% CaO. It is believed that when basic steelmaking slags are considered, the ternary system CaO-FeO-Fe2O3 should be substituted for the binary system CaO-Fe2O3, which has been used generally in the past.
Microwave Spectrum of Chlorine Dioxide. II. Analysis of Hyperfine Structure and the Spectrum of Cl 35 O 16 O 18

The hyperfine structure of the microwave spectra of ${\mathrm{Cl}}^{35}$${\mathrm{O}}_{2}$ and ${\mathrm{Cl}}^{37}$${\mathrm{O}}_{2}$ has been analyzed. It was found possible to fit the hyperfine splitting within experimental error with the Hamiltonian: $H=A{{N}_{a}}^{2}+B{{N}_{b}}^{2}+C{{N}_{c}}^{2}+{(0)}_{S}(\mathrm{N}\ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}\mathrm{S})+\ensuremath{\Sigma}\stackrel{\mathrm{abc}}{i}{(\mathrm{ii})}_{S}{N}_{i}{S}_{i}+{(0)}_{I}(\mathrm{S}\ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}\mathrm{I})+\ensuremath{\Sigma}\stackrel{\mathrm{abc}}{i}{(\mathrm{ii})}_{I}{S}_{i}{I}_{i}+\ensuremath{\Sigma}\stackrel{\mathrm{abc}}{i}{(\mathrm{ii})}_{Q}{{I}_{i}}^{2}.$ Also, several rotational transitions of ${\mathrm{Cl}}^{35}$${\mathrm{O}}^{16}$${\mathrm{O}}^{18}$ have been observed and assigned.
Mutagenesis of Conserved Residues at the Yellow Fever Virus 3/4A and 4B/5 Dibasic Cleavage Sites: Effects on Cleavage Efficiency and Polyprotein Processing

Abstract Flavivirus proteins are produced by co- and post-translational proteolytic processing of a large polyprotein using both host- and virus-encoded enzymes, The flavivirus serine proteinase, which consists of NS2B and NS3, is responsible for cleavages of at least four dibasic sites in the nonstructural region. In this study, a number of substitutions for the conserved amino acids flanking the 3/4A and 4B/5 dibasic cleavage sites {Arg(P2)-Arg(P1)↓-Gly(P1′')} were examined for their effects on yellow fever virus (YF) polyprotein processing. The substrate for these studies was a truncated YF polyprotein, called sig2A-5 356 , which consists of a signal sequence fused to NS2A and extending through the first 356 amino acids of NS5. At the P1′ position (Gly) of the 4B/5 site, only Ser and Ala were allowed while six other substitutions abolished cleavage. Substitutions of the 4B/5 P1 Arg residue with Lys, Gln, Asn, or His were tolerated while replacement with Glu eliminated cleavage. The 4B/5 P2 position (Arg) was found to be tolerant of substitutions with polar or hydrophobic residues which allowed varying degrees of partial cleavage. Previous studies have shown that cleavage at the 3/4A site is incomplete in YF-infected cells and that the cleavage efficiency at this site is significantly less for the sig2A-5 356 polyprotein. Replacement of the 3/4A P1 Arg residue with noncharged polar or hydrophobic residues reduced the cleavage efficiency, whereas substitutions with Glu or Pro abolished cleavage. Studies with polyproteins containing one or both of the 3/4A and 4B/5 cleavage sites blocked indicate that there is not an obligatory processing order for cleavages generating the N termini of YF NS4A, NS4B, and NSS.
715: The association between thalassemia trait and preterm delivery

YVONNE CHENG, ALLISON BRYANT, AARON CAUGHEY, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California OBJECTIVE: To examine whether the presence of alpha or beta thalassemia trait is protective against preterm delivery. STUDY DESIGN: This was a retrospective cohort study of women with live, singleton, non-anomalous pregnancies delivered at a single academic institution. The diagnosis of thalassemia trait was based on clinical laboratory testing. The primary outcome was preterm delivery ( 37 weeks). Gestational age at delivery between women with and without thalassemia trait was examined by survival analysis, with log-rank test to compare Kaplan-Meier survival curves. Chi-square test was used to examine categorical variables, with p 0.05 as the cut-off for statistical significance. RESULTS: Of 39,856 women who met study criteria, 81 (0.21%) women were diagnosed with alpha-thalassemia trait and 327 (0.82%) women had beta-thalassemia. The rate of preterm delivery ( 37 weeks) was 5.8 % in women with a diagnosis of beta-thalassemia trait, compared to 10.2% in women without a diagnosis of beta-thalassemia trait (p 0.01). The protective effect of beta-thalassemia trait was also demonstrated by Kaplan-Meier survival curves (p 0.01 by log-rank test, Figure). However, alpha-thalassemia trait was not associated with a lower rate of PTD (10.1% vs 9.9%, p 0.94).
Formation and Destruction of Carbon Sulfide in SN 1987A

Mechanisms for formation and destruction of carbon sulfide (CS) molecules in SN 1987A are explored, and a chemistry model of CS is advanced. Partly because of the slow formation of CS due to the low degree of microscopic mixing of carbon and sulfur in the ejecta and mainly because of the rapid destruction of CS by the abundant neutral oxygen, the chemistry predicts a low mass of CS of the order of 10-11 M☉ in the supernova. If the 3.88 μm feature in the late-time infrared spectra of SN 1987A is indeed due to the first overtone emission of CS, the vibrational v = 2 level of CS in the supernova may be populated more efficiently by Brα pumping than by thermal electron impact.
Robust scale estimation based on the the empirical characteristic function

Abstract A new estimator of the scale parameter σ of an absolutely continuous distribution F[(x − μ)/σ] in a location-scale family is described. The estimator is based on the empirical characteristic function of the data. It is affine equivariant, strongly consistent, asymptotically normal and has desirable robustness properties.
EMOTIONS IN NONDIRECTED TEXT LEARNING

Abstract Two studies examined the influence of emotions on nondirected learning. Nondirected learning is conceptualized as learning which occurs in the absence of external prompts, reinforcements, or specific instruction. In Study 1, one of two expository texts was given to ninety-two undergraduate subjects for the ostensible purpose of obtaining attitudinal and emotional ratings. Two separate measures of motivational and emotional factors and perceived comprehension were administered immediately following the subjects' reading of the text. No mention of later testing occurred. After a brief delay, subjects' recall of the texts was obtained and scored using a propositional coding scheme. Correlational results revealed that factor-analytically derived dimensions of interest-enjoyment and task involvement were positively associated with perceived comprehension text recall, while ego-involvement, shame, and hostility were negatively related to these same variables. Study 2 was conducted: first, to replicate the emotion dimensions obtained in Study 1 on a larger, combined sample; second, using the larger samples to specify and test a “path model” of the indirect influence of emotions on nondirected learning through perceived comprehension; and, third, in Study 2 alone, to assess the stability of the recall measure over a ten-day period and the effects of verbal aptitude on the relations between the variables in the path model. The discussion focuses on the significance of motives and emotions for nondirected learning and the implications of the current study for organismic learning theories.
Rhythmic Expression of MicroRNA-26a Regulates the L-type Voltage-gated Calcium Channel α1C Subunit in Chicken Cone Photoreceptors

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) modulate gene expression by degrading or inhibiting translation of messenger RNAs (mRNAs). Here, we demonstrated that chicken microRNA-26a (gga-mir-26a) is a key posttranscriptional regulator of photoreceptor L-type voltage-gated calcium channel α1C subunit (L-VGCCα1C) expression, and its own expression has a diurnal rhythm, thereby explaining the rhythmic nature of L-VGCCα1Cs. Circadian oscillators in retinal photoreceptors provide a mechanism that allows photoreceptors to anticipate daily illumination changes. In photoreceptors, L-VGCC activities are under circadian control, which are higher at night and lower during the day. Interestingly, the mRNA level of VGCCα1D oscillates, but those for VGCCα1C do not. However, the protein expression of both VGCCα1C and α1D are higher at night in cone photoreceptors. The underlying mechanism regulating L-VGCCα1C protein expression was not clear until now. In vitro targeting reporter assays verified that gga-mir-26a specifically targeted the L-VGCCα1C 3′-untranslated region, and gga-mir-26a expression in the retina peaked during the day. After transfection with gga-mir-26a, L-VGCCα1C protein expression and L-VGCC current density decreased. Therefore, the rhythmic expression of gga-mir-26a regulated the protein expression of the L-VGCCα1C subunit. Additionally, both CLOCK (circadian locomoter output cycles kaput) and CREB (cAMP-response element-binding protein-1) activated gga-mir-26a expression in vitro. This result implies that gga-mir-26a might be a downstream target of circadian oscillators. Our work has uncovered new functional roles for miRNAs in the regulation of circadian rhythms in cone photoreceptors. Circadian regulated miRNAs could serve as the link between the core oscillator and output signaling that further govern biological functions.
The total interval number of a tree and the Hamiltonian completion number of its line graph

Abstract In this paper we investigate the problem of computing two parameters of a graph: the Total Interval Number TIN( G ), and the Hamiltonian Completion Number HCN( G ). We show that in case of a triangle-free graph these two parameters (TIN( G ) and HCN( L ( G )), where L ( G ) is the line graph of G ) are related by a simple formula. We use this relationship to find a polynomial algorithm which determines TIN( G ), for a tree G . Then we describe a construction which gives an interval representation of a tree G with TIN( G ) number of intervals.
The effect of Orem's self-care model on nursing care in a nursing home setting

The need of the functionally disabled for nursing care is a primary rationale for institutionalization in long-term care settings. However, maintenance of the self-care abilities that nursing home residents retain is an important component of their quality of life. Nurses are in an important position to encourage and sustain residents' abilities to participate in their care. Nevertheless, without specifying the role of the resident in care, nursing interventions may inadvertently reinforce dependency and apathy at the expense of autonomy, control and well-being. Data from nursing home care records and interviews suggest that nursing staff using Orem's Self-Care Deficit Nursing Theory differ in their nursing assessments and goals of care from staff on a control unit. Further study is recommended of the influence of the model on staff perspectives of care and on interventions which support nursing home residents' self-care ability and well-being.
The First Vocational Guidance Textbook

[Several times in the last few years Occupations has published notices about books dealing with vocational guidance long before the time of Parsons. See, for example, “Vocational Guidance in London—1747 to 1761,” by Owen E. Pence, page 323, February, 1940. In the following article we go even farther back—into antiquity. The book discussed, The Instruction of Tuauf, was written for his son by an Egyptian who lived more than 45 centuries ago.—Ed.]
Pharmacotherapy of alcohol dependence: Targeting a complex disorder

Consistent replication of drug studies in heterogeneous populations of alcohol-dependent individuals has been disappointing, although more is being learned about differential drug response by subtypes of alcoholics. Because alcohol affects multiple neurotransmitters, new strategies that focus on drugs with complex mechanisms of action or drug combinations is the trend in this field. Finding clinically efficacious drugs or drug combinations that benefit broad or specific subpopulations of alcoholics, drives current trials.
Variational Mixture of Experts for Classification with Applications to Landmine Detection

In this paper, we (1) provide a complete framework for classification using Variational Mixture of Experts (VME); (2) derive the variational lower bound; and (3) apply the method to landmine, or simply mine, detection and compare the results to the Mixtures of Experts trained with Expectation Maximization (EMME). VME has previously been used for regression and Waterhouse explained how to apply VME to classification (which we will call as VMEC). However, the steps to train the model were not made clear since the equations were applicable to vector valued parameters as opposed to matrices for each expert. Also, a variational lower bound was not provided. The variational lower bound provides an excellent stopping criterion that resists over-training. We demonstrate the efficacy of the method on real-world mine classification; in which, training robust mine classification algorithms is difficult because of the small number of samples per class. In our experiments VMEC consistently improved performance over EMME.
Logarithmic Power Control in KIWI-A Reactors

Power control systems for rocket propulsion reactors are unusual in that power must be increased several orders of magnitude in less than a minute. This paper describes the logarithmic power system developed at Los Alamos and used during the operation of Kiwi-A? and Kiwi-A3. Transfer functions are given for the system. Analog computer and experimentally measured data are presented showing the system response to step changes of logarithmic power demand, representative start-up programs, reactivity disturbances, and a rod-generated power excursion followed by a scram. The logarithmic power system had a bandwidth of one cps and a dynamic range of approximately six decades.
Effect of lens aberrations on pattern placement error

Projection lens aberrations are typically modeled with Zernike polynomial coefficients. In this paper significant aberration terms that affect pattern placement error are identified using Design of Experiments. Simple models are developed for various 1D and 2D mask structures. These are used to study the impact of different illumination and aberration conditions. The results are used to estimate the impact of projection lens aberrations on overlay error.
Stroke in Pregnancy

Although pregnancy-associated stroke is uncommon, the risk of stroke is greatly increased above the low baseline rate in young patients during late pregnancy and, even more so, during the puerperium. Stroke is a major contributor to the serious morbidity and mortality of pregnancy. The physiological hormonally mediated changes in circulation, vascular tissue structure, and coagulability, and the pathological state of pre-eclampsia-eclampsia contribute to this increased risk of stroke. Pregnancy-associated strokes are roughly evenly divided among hemorrhagic strokes, mainly from rupture of aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations (AVMs); ischemic strokes, mainly from late pregnancy and postpartum cerebral venous thrombosis; and strokes associated with pre-eclampsia-eclampsia, with a contribution from cardioembolism, especially in populations at risk from a high rate of underlying rheumatic valvular heart disease. Awareness of the types of stroke to expect during pregnancy will facilitate early diagnosis. This article discusses the pathogenesis of pregnancy-associated stroke, its epidemiology, and some diagnostic and therapeutic issues unique to pregnancy.
A discussion on ‘Detection of intrusions in information systems by sequential change-point methods’ by Tartakovsky, Rozovskii, Blažek, and Kim

Abstract Clearly, the focus of the paper under discussion lies in developing practical sequential change-point methodologies in a multi-channel “information system”, but the motivation is exclusively guided by modern applications in computer engineering. In real life, however, we also face other kinds of multi-channel “information systems”. So, I briefly discuss examples where one would require non-trivial modifications with further investigations, above and beyond those that are discussed in the paper.
Political Legitimacy and Participation in Costa Rica: Evidence of Arena Shopping

Considerable research has failed to establish a link between political legitimacy and system breakdown. This does not mean, however, that researchers should abandon the concept of legitimacy altoge...
Formal Introductions in the Foreign Language Class.

While some courses may be taught by lecture, a foreign language class requires constant dialogue. To promote this dialogue, teacher and students need to get acquainted early in the course. One way to do this is by having the students introduce one another formally to the class in a brief speech. This approach involves four steps: 1) The teacher presents the vocabulary. 2) Students conduct interviews to obtain the necessary information. 3) The introductory speeches are delivered, and the teacher evaluates them. 4) The material is reinforced as the speeches are written out for a grade. This lesson offers a practical vocabulary and immediately challenges people to use the target language. It causes the students some anxiety, but ultimately helps them feel at ease and at home in the class.
Point of use water treatment with forward osmosis for emergency relief

Abstract In emergencies, access to water plays a critical role in limiting loss of life. Point of use water treatment (PoUWT) is increasingly being used to fill this need. One emerging PoUWT technology is Hydration Technology Innovations'™ (HTI's) osmotic water purification system, which produces a clean sugar–electrolyte drink from almost any water source. This drink not only hydrates users, but also relieves malnutrition and diarrheal illness, two of the most prolific killers in refugee camps and disaster relief scenarios. In this study, HTI's HydroWell™ system is independently evaluated for on contaminant removal, cost, and material availability. Bench-top testing showed that HTI's systems have superior contaminant removal, rejecting > 88.3% of copper, lead, arsenic, and chromium at concentrations of 10 mg/L. The cost of the drink could be minimized to 0.23 USD/L by adjusting process variables. A sensitivity analysis showed significant room for cost reductions, especially if draw solutes could be locally sourced or if the system lifetime could be extended through the use of cleaning reagents or pretreatment. Further research on long-term operations and maintenance and community–technology interaction could yield more information about the efficacy of forward osmosis for this application.
Kantian Ethics and the Prisoners' Dilemma

The prisoners' dilemma game stands as a seminal case of the conflict between individual and collective rationality. Some scholars have suggested that Kantian duty-based ethics can prevent the suboptimal outcomes associated with the game. I argue that this claim is too strong, because Kant's moral theory does not entail specific duties requiring cooperation in prisoners' dilemma games. I support this argument in terms of Kant's categorical imperative, and also with reference to his distinction between perfect and imperfect duties.
Recent advances in neutron tomography

Neutron imaging has been shown to be an excellent imaging tool for many nondestructive evaluation applications. Significantly improved contrast over x-ray images is possible for materials commonly found in engineering assemblies. The major limitations have been the neutron source and detection. A low cost, position sensitive neutron tomography detector system has been designed and built based on an electro-optical detector system using a LiF- ZnS scintillator screen and a cooled charge coupled device. This detector system can be used for neutron radiography as well as two and three-dimensional neutron tomography. Calculated performance of the system predicted near-quantum efficiency for position sensitive neutron detection. Experimental data was recently taken using this system at McClellan Air Force Base, Air Logistic Center, Sacramento, CA. With increased availability of low cost neutron sources and advanced image processing, neutron tomography will become an increasingly important nondestructive imaging method.