cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
At therapeutic concentrations, olanzapine does not affect basal or insulin-stimulated glucose transport in 3T3-L1 adipocytes

The newer, atypical antipsychotic drugs have improved the treatment of schizophrenia and are widely used. A disadvantage is that they increase food intake, promote weight gain and may facilitate development of diabetes. The mechanism of the latter effect is controversial. A possible interaction of these drugs with glucose transporters has been proposed: peripheral insulin resistance may develop if these drugs inhibited glucose transport in cells which express the insulin responsive glucose transporter, GLUT4, i.e., muscle and adipocytes. To test this hypothesis, we incubated 3T3-L1 adipocytes, which express GLUT1 and GLUT4, with the atypical antipsychotic drug olanzapine for 1 or 20 h and then measured basal and insulin-stimulated glucose transport. The doses of olanzapine tested (70 nM and 350 nM) encompass and exceed maximal steady-state concentrations of the drug in plasma of patients maintained on maximal recommended doses (20 mg QD) of olanzapine. A maximally stimulating insulin concentration (100 nM) accelerated glucose transport 10- to 15-fold in 3T3-L1 adipocytes, and the half-maximally stimulating insulin dose was 0.4 nM. Olanzapine (70 or 350 nM) did not affect basal or insulin-stimulated glucose transport following 1 or 20 h drug treatment at any insulin concentration tested. The data do not support the hypothesis that olanzapine at therapeutically relevant concentrations may cause peripheral insulin resistance by direct interaction with the insulin responsive glucose transport system.
Numerical Simulation for Fractured Porous Media

Dual porosity and dual porosity/permeability models are considered for multidimensional, multiphase flow in fractured porous media. Different approaches for the treatment of matrix-fracture flow transfer terms are discussed; special attention is paid to the inclusion of capillary pressure, gravity, and viscous forces and pressure gradients across matrix blocks in these transfer terms. Numerical experiments are reported for the benchmark problems of the sixth comparative solution project organized by the society of petroleum engineers.
Modeling Interaction via the Principle of Maximum Causal Entropy

The principle of maximum entropy provides a powerful framework for statistical models of joint, conditional, and marginal distributions. However, there are many important distributions with elements of interaction and feedback where its applicability has not been established. This work presents the principle of maximum causal entropy—an approach based on causally conditioned probabilities that can appropriately model the availability and influence of sequentially revealed side information. Using this principle, we derive models for sequential data with revealed information, interaction, and feedback, and demonstrate their applicability for statistically framing inverse optimal control and decision prediction tasks.
Relating confidence to measured information uncertainty in qualitative reasoning

Qualitative reasoning makes use of qualitative assessments provided by subject matter experts to model factors such as security risk. Confidence in a result is important and useful when comparing competing results. Quantifying the confidence in an evidential reasoning result must be consistent and based on the available information. A novel method is proposed to relate confidence to the available information uncertainty in the result using fuzzy sets. Information uncertainty can be quantified through measures of non-specificity and conflict. Fuzzy values for confidence are established from information uncertainty values that lie between the measured minimum and maximum information uncertainty values.
Camouflage: automated anonymization of field data

Privacy and security concerns have adversely affected the usefulness of many types of techniques that leverage information gathered from deployed applications. To address this issue, we present an approach for automatically anonymizing failure-inducing inputs that builds on a previously developed technique. Given an input I that causes a failure f, our approach generates an anonymized input I′ that is different from I but still causes f. I′ can thus be sent to developers to enable them to debug f without having to know I. We implemented our approach in a prototype tool, camouflage, and performed an extensive empirical evaluation where we applied camouflage to a large set of failure-inducing inputs for several real applications. The results of the evaluation are promising, as they show that camouflage is both practical and effective at generating anonymized inputs; for the inputs that we considered, I and I′ shared no sensitive information. The results also show that our approach can outperform the general technique it extends.
SwissRanger SR-3000 range images enhancement by a singular value decomposition filter

This paper presents a preliminary study on the enhancement of the SwissRanger SR-3000psilas range images by a singular value decomposition filtering method. The image enhancement is performed by converting a conventional range image into an enhanced range image where each pixelpsilas intensity embodies the surface normal and depth information of the corresponding pixel in the original image. This representation of range image makes an objectpsilas edges distinctive. But it corrupts the objectpsilas surfaces due to the noise in range data. We propose a filtering method based on the Singular Value Decomposition to alleviate the surface corruption and preserve the edges. The efficacy of the proposed method is validated by numerous experiments in various environments.
All in the Family: The Impact of Caring for Grandchildren on Grandparents' Health

Objectives. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of caring for grandchildren on health behaviors and mental and physical health among older adults. Methods. Using a sample of 12,872 grandparents aged 50 through 80 from the Health and Retirement Study, we examined the relationship between stability and change in various types of grandchild care and subsequent health, controlling for covariates and earlier health. Results. We found no evidence to suggest that caring for grandchildren has dramatic and widespread negative effects on grandparents’ health and health behavior. We found limited evidence that grandmothers caring for grandchildren in skipped-generation households are more likely to experience negative changes in health behavior, depression, and selfrated health. We also found some evidence of benefits to grandmothers who babysit. Discussion. Our findings suggest that the health disadvantages found previously among grandparent caregivers arise from grandparents’ prior characteristics, not as a consequence of providing care. Health declines as a consequence of grandchild care appear to be the exception rather than the rule. These findings are important given continuing reliance on grandparents for day care and increasing reliance on grandparents for custodial care. However, the findings should be tempered by the recognition that for a minority of grandparents, coresidential grandchild care may compromise health.
Research Data in Core Journals in Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, and Physics.

This study takes a stratified random sample of articles published in 2014 from the top 10 journals in the disciplines of biology, chemistry, mathematics, and physics, as ranked by impact factor. Sampled articles were examined for their reporting of original data or reuse of prior data, and were coded for whether the data was publicly shared or otherwise made available to readers. Other characteristics such as the sharing of software code used for analysis and use of data citation and DOIs for data were examined. The study finds that data sharing practices are still relatively rare in these disciplines’ top journals, but that the disciplines have markedly different practices. Biology top journals share original data at the highest rate, and physics top journals share at the lowest rate. Overall, the study finds that within the top journals, only 13% of articles with original data published in 2014 make the data available to others.
Renal vasodilatation: studies on the site of action in the nephron.

1. The effect of unilateral renal vasodilatation produced by acetylcholine or bradykinin on free water clearance (C H2O ) and free water reabsorption (T c H2O ) was investigated in dogs in an effort to localize the site(s) in the nephron where renal vasodilatation inhibits tubular sodium reabsorption. 2. Renal vasodilatation in dogs undergoing water diuresis produced an increase in urinary sodium excretion, urine volume and C H2O . However, for any given level of sodium delivery to the diluting segment of the nephron, C H2O was less during the intrarenal infusion of the vasodilator drugs than during the infusion of hypo-osmotic saline. 3. During renal vasodilatation in hydropenic dogs receiving vasopressin and hyperosmotic saline, T c H2O at a given rate of osmolal clearance was depressed. The effect of bradykinin on T c H2O was greater than that of acetylcholine. 4. The results indicate that renal vasodilatation inhibits sodium reabsorption in the proximal tubule and the diluting segment of the nephron as well. Increased medullary blood flow may play an additional role in the effect of acetylcholine and bradykinin on T c H2O .
Abstract SY29-01: mTOR, metabolism, and cell growth control

The mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) is a ser/thr protein kinase complex and critical regulator of cellular metabolism, protein synthesis, autophagy and cell growth. This signaling system is normally carefully controlled by the integration of inputs from growth factors, nutrients, cellular energy status, oxygen availability and stress. A variety of loss-of-function or gain-of-function alterations in key mTORC1 regulatory proteins, very often results in inappropriate regulation of this signaling system. Uncontrolled mTORC1 activation contributes on its own or in combination with other pathways to metabolic diseases ranging from diabetes and obesity, cardiac hypertrophy, neurodegeneration, aging, benign tumor syndromes to highly malignant cancers. Mechanistically, uncontrolled mTORC1 activation leads to a constant positive input into anabolic processes and suppression of many catabolic processes. As a result, these cells require increased energy and carbon sources to meet their high metabolic needs for cell growth. To meet this demand, we have found in cells that are PTEN or TSC1/2 null, that activated mTORC1 uses distinct mechanisms to increase glutamine consumption (glutaminolysis) by elevating the expression of glutaminase and the activity of glutamate dehydrogenase. Furthermore, under nutrient-rich conditions, these tumor cells sense the increased energy production and in a positive feedback loop, promote more mTORC1 assembly via an AMP kinase (AMPK)-dependent, and a novel AMPK-independent mechanism. This acquired addiction to glutamine provides a novel therapeutic strategy for treating patients with activated mTORC1. Indeed, by acutely blocking the ability of energetically stressed cells with hyperactive mTORC1 to metabolize glutamine, we can selectively kill some tumor cells without damaging normal cells. We anticipate that these studies will lead to the development of “synthetic-lethal” drugs useful in the treatment of patients with diseases linked to inappropriate activation of mTORC1. Research supported by NIH RO1-GM51405 and the LAM Foundation. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr SY29-01. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-SY29-01
Study on Anodic Stripping Polarography with the Balanced Head Stationary Hanging Mercury Drop Electrode

Fundamental studies for the application of anodic stripping method to practical analyses have been done by use of the balanced head stationary hanging mercury drop electrode (BHMDE). Dependence of stripping peak current (lpa) on the experimental variables satisfied the following relation : Ipa.∝r02CR∝D2/3C0tr0-1ν-1/6.ω2. The relationship between lpa and pre-electrolysis potential has been examined for 1×10-6M Cu, Bi, Pb, Cd, In and Zn in supporting electrolytes of several kinds.The effect of the surface active substance on the stripping polarogram has also been examined. As for practical application, Pb and Cd in zinc metal and Pb, Cd and Zn in potassium chloride reagent have been determined. Anodic stripping polarography has been recognized to be very useful in the determination of micro-amounts of metal ions in solution and a number of reports had appeared during the last decade, for instance, on the structure of electrode assembly, the processes of electrode reactions and basic problems for the application of this method to practical analyses.The author has previously reported a new type of the hanging mercury drop electrode, “Balanced head stationary hanging mercury drop electrode” (BHMDE), which has been proved to have excellent reproducibility of the mercury drop size . Further, it is easy with this electrode to control the size of the electrode by selecting the duration of mercury run-off. For the application of the BHMDE to the anodic stripping method, the author has examined the fundamentals in voltammetric analysis with the BHMDE, i.e., the dependence of anodic stripping current on the radius of the electrode, the stirring velocity during pre-electrolysis, the potential and the period of presence of surface-active substances. Experimental results and an example of the application is presented in this paper.
Beyond the Farmer and the Butcher: Institutional Entrepreneurship and Local Meat

Increased demand for local food has led to calls for additional supply-chain infrastructure to move products from farm to market. Meat and poultry are highly perishable, rigorously regulated products that require a complex chain, and processing is often said to be the weak link for local meats. Commitment from producers and meat buyers is essential to the persistence and expansion of processing capacity, but nonmarket actors can provide critical technical support and facilitate innovation that strengthens this sector. We present four collaborative efforts, three regional and one national, that focus on processing with the goal of expanding the local meat sector. These efforts harness the experience and expertise of a variety of partners, both public-sector and private, and provide information, guidance, and direct technical assistance. They also collaborate and cooperate with each other in a national peer-learning community, sharing and generating innovative knowledge, tools, and strategies. Tentative evidence of increased processing capacity, producer access to processing, and local meats marketing, while certainly not solely attributable to these efforts, suggests their value.
Bandwidth enhancement of HF antennas mounted on military platforms using a Characteristic-Modes-Based Design Approach

Narrow bandwidth is a challenging problem for designing platform-mounted electrically small antennas in the high-frequency (HF) band. In this paper, we demonstrate a process that can be used to improve the bandwidth of a platform-mounted HF antenna or antennas by taking advantage of the presence of the platform. Specifically, we examine a simplified model for the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) and examine how the mounted antennas can be used to excite a desired natural resonant mode of this platform for bandwidth enhancement. The proposed approach is employed to successfully enhance the bandwidth of horizontally-polarized HF loop antennas from 0.64% to 0.79% and 0.89%, by using respectively one, two, or four half loop antennas to excite the desired mode of the EFV.
Incidentally discovered urachal cancer in a patient with necrotising fasciitis of the abdominal wall

Urachal cancers are rare, accounting for 90%) are adenocarcinomas.2 We describe a case of a patient with poorly controlled diabetes presenting with a 4-day history of an expanding, painful abdominal rash. CT scan performed on admission demonstrated an umbilical hernia (figure 1A) consisting primarily of fat and a 7×5×7 cm mass (figure 1C), radiographically consistent with a …
SU-C-206-05: Pixel-Wise Calculation of Noise Statistics On Iterative CT Reconstruction from a Single Scan

Purpose: As iterative CT reconstruction continues to advance, the spatial distributions of noise standard deviation (STD) and accurate noise power spectrum (NPS) on reconstructed CT images become more important for method evaluation ans algorithm parameters settings. Using data of a single scan, we propose a practical method for pixel-wise noise statistics calculation on iterative CT reconstruction image, which enables accurate calculation of noise STD for each pixel and NPS without stationary noise assumption. Methods: We first iteratively reconstruct a CT image using existing reconstruction algorithm. Noise perturbation is then simulated on the raw projection data based on the estimated noise statistics, and the iterative reconstruction continues to generate a different CT image. The above process is repeated on the same projection data but with different noise perturbations, until a sufficient number (32 in our implementations) of different noisy reconstruction images are generated. Pixel-wise calculations of noise STD and NPS are finally performed on the entire stack of noisy images. Results: We have evaluated our method via simulation studies on a clinical head-and-neck CT image, using two iterative reconstruction algorithms: penalized weighted least-square (PWLS) and total-variation (TV) regularization. 128 sets of simulated noisy sinogram are used to generate ground-truths of noise STD and NPS. Using only one set noisy sinogram, the proposed method accurately calculates noise STD map, with a correlation of 94% and 95% for PWLS and TV methods, respectively, compared with the ground-truth. The relative root-mean-square error of 1D-NPS for proposed method are 1.5% and 3.4% for PWLS and TV methods, respectively, while those for conventional method (averaging NPS of sub-ROIs in ROI of one image) are 9.0% and 12.9%. Conclusion: The proposed method accurately calculates noise STD for each pixel and NPS without stationary noise assumption on iteratively reconstructed CT image, with no requirements of repeated CT scans. Research reported in this abstract was supported by the National Institute Of Biomedical Imaging And Bioengineering of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number R21EB019597.
The Soweto uprising, by Noor Nieftagodien and The ANC Women’s League, by Shireen Hassim

Ohio University Press has recently launched a series of short histories of Africa. This series is designed to provide “informative and concise guides, lively biographies, and succinct introductions...
A survey on behavior analysis in video surveillance for homeland security applications

Surveillance cameras are inexpensive and everywhere these days but the manpower required to monitor and analyze them is expensive. Consequently the videos from these cameras are usually monitored sparingly or not at all; they are often used merely as archive, to refer back to once an incident is known to have taken place. Surveillance cameras can be a far more useful tool if instead of passively recording footage, they can be used to detect events requiring attention as they happen, and take action in real time. This is the goal of automated visual surveillance: to obtain a description of what is happening in a monitored area, and then to take appropriate action based on that interpretation. Video surveillance for humans is one of the most active research topics in computer vision. It has a wide spectrum of promising homeland security applications. Video management and interpretation systems have become quite capable in recent years. This paper looks into how hardware and software can be put together to solve surveillance problems in an age of increased concern with public safety and security. In general, the framework of a video surveillance system includes the following stages: modeling of environments, detection of motion, classification of moving objects, tracking, behavior understanding and description, and fusion of information from multiple cameras. Despite recent progress in computer vision and other related areas, there are still major technical challenges to be overcome before reliable automated video surveillance can be realized. This paper reviews developments and general strategies of stages involved in video surveillance, and analyzes the feasibility and challenges for combining motion analysis, behavior analysis, and standoff biometrics for identification of known suspects, anomaly detection, and behavior understanding.
Accelerated Processing of Boneless Hams to Dry-Cured State.

Three different cure mixtures were applied at the rate of 5% of the weight of fresh boneless hams before tumbling at 21°C for 3 h continuously at 22 rpm. The hams were held 12 h at 4.4°C for salt (NaCl) equalization, smoked for 4 h, cooked to an internal temperature of 71°C and aged for 14 d. Sensory evaluations were made and residual salt, moisture and nitrite (NO2-) were determined. Panel scores were similar for all treatments that were tumbled. Percentage salt and moisture were similar for the three treatments but the control (non-tumbled) had the lowest concentration of NaCl and NO2-. Residual NO2- levels for hams treated with 0.1 or 0.2% sodium nitrite (NaNO2) were not different (P>0.05). The highest NO2- level was detected in hams cured with nitric oxide.
Patient outcomes after transcatheter and surgical pulmonary valve replacement for pulmonary regurgitation in patients with repaired tetralogy of Fallot: A quasi-meta-analysis.

Background:Individuals with repaired tetralogy of Fallot develop pulmonary regurgitation that may cause symptoms (dyspnea, chest pain, palpitations, fatigue, presyncope, and syncope), impair functi...
Rapid tissue regeneration induced by intracellular ATP delivery-A preliminary mechanistic study.

We have reported a new phenomenon in acute wound healing following the use of intracellular ATP delivery—extremely rapid tissue regeneration, which starts less than 24 h after surgery, and is accompanied by massive macrophage trafficking, in situ proliferation, and direct collagen production. This unusual process bypasses the formation of the traditional provisional extracellular matrix and significantly shortens the wound healing process. Although macrophages/monocytes are known to play a critical role in the initiation and progression of wound healing, their in situ proliferation and direct collagen production in wound healing have never been reported previously. We have explored these two very specific pathways during wound healing, while excluding confounding factors in the in vivo environment by analyzing wound samples and performing in vitro studies. The use of immunohistochemical studies enabled the detection of in situ macrophage proliferation in ATP-vesicle treated wounds. Primary human macrophages and Raw 264.7 cells were used for an in vitro study involving treatment with ATP vesicles, free Mg-ATP alone, lipid vesicles alone, Regranex, or culture medium. Collagen type 1α 1, MCP-1, IL-6, and IL-10 levels were determined by ELISA of the culture supernatant. The intracellular collagen type 1α1 localization was determined with immunocytochemistry. ATP-vesicle treated wounds showed high immunoreactivity towards BrdU and PCNA antigens, indicating in situ proliferation. Most of the cultured macrophages treated with ATP-vesicles maintained their classic phenotype and expressed high levels of collagen type 1α1 for a longer duration than was observed with cells treated with Regranex. These studies provide the first clear evidence of in situ macrophage proliferation and direct collagen production during wound healing. These findings provide part of the explanation for the extremely rapid tissue regeneration, and this treatment may hold promise for acute and chronic wound care.
Comparative osteology of North American dichobunid artiodactyls.

The postcranial skeletal anatomy of the early Eocene dichobunid Diacodexis, the oldest known artiodactyl, is described, together with new material of Bunophorus, Antiacodon, Pentacemylus, and an undetermined homacodontine. All are characterized by relatively slender, elongate limb elements and specialized limb proportions compared to their Eocene contemporaries, indicating that they were uniformly highly adapted for cursorial-saltatorial locomotion. In nearly all postcranial features, known dichobunids are more similar to primitive ruminants such as OligoMiocene Hypertragulus and extant Tragulus and to Cainotherium than to any other artiodactyls. Dichobunids have been considered the stem group of the Artiodactyla. Although the extent of their postcranial modifications suggests that they may be too specialized to occupy this phylogenetic position, the occurrence of a cursorially adapted skeleton in all known dichobunids strengthens the probability that this is the primitive skeletal form for the Artiodactyla. If so, postcranial evolution was minimal in the transition from dichobunids to primitive neoselenodont artiodactyls (camels and ruminants), whereas suoids and other non-neoselenodonts became secondarily generalized.
Mental models accurately predict emotion transitions.

Successful social interactions depend on people’s ability to predict others’ future actions and emotions. People possess many mechanisms for perceiving others’ current emotional states, but how might they use this information to predict others’ future states? We hypothesized that people might capitalize on an overlooked aspect of affective experience: current emotions predict future emotions. By attending to regularities in emotion transitions, perceivers might develop accurate mental models of others’ emotional dynamics. People could then use these mental models of emotion transitions to predict others’ future emotions from currently observable emotions. To test this hypothesis, studies 1–3 used data from three extant experience-sampling datasets to establish the actual rates of emotional transitions. We then collected three parallel datasets in which participants rated the transition likelihoods between the same set of emotions. Participants’ ratings of emotion transitions predicted others’ experienced transitional likelihoods with high accuracy. Study 4 demonstrated that four conceptual dimensions of mental state representation—valence, social impact, rationality, and human mind—inform participants’ mental models. Study 5 used 2 million emotion reports on the Experience Project to replicate both of these findings: again people reported accurate models of emotion transitions, and these models were informed by the same four conceptual dimensions. Importantly, neither these conceptual dimensions nor holistic similarity could fully explain participants’ accuracy, suggesting that their mental models contain accurate information about emotion dynamics above and beyond what might be predicted by static emotion knowledge alone.
LiRa: A WLAN Architecture for Visible Light Communication with a Wi-Fi Uplink

Visible Light Communication (VLC) can dual purpose energy efficient LED-based lighting infrastructure for both illumination and data communication. Unfortunately, this dual-purposing is only inherent in the downlink direction, from infrastructure illumination sources to mobile devices. In this paper, we design, analyze, and implement LiRa, a Light-Radio WLAN that fuses light and radio capabilities in an integrated system design without requiring mobile devices to emit light or infrared. We design an uplink control channel for LiRa that is Wi-Fi compliant, has a controllable impact on airtime taken from legacy Wi-Fi clients, and efficiently scales with increasing VLC user population. We implement LiRa's key components and perform extensive over-the-air experiments. While LiRa inherits uplink coverage from Wi-Fi, we demonstrate that a commercial infrared uplink is subject to deep rotational fades and outages. Finally, we show that in typical WLAN scenarios, LiRa reduces response delay up to a factor of 15 and reduces throughput degradation of legacy Wi-Fi from an excessive value of 74% to less than 3% compared to transmission of VLC feedback via 802.11 without LiRa.
Towards consistent filtering for discrete-time partially-observable nonlinear systems☆

Abstract In this paper, we study the filter consistency of discrete-time nonlinear systems with partially-observable measurements, where the full state is not reconstructable from the available measurements at each time step. Linearized filters such as the extended Kalman filter (EKF) which are realized based on the corresponding linearized systems, may become inconsistent. Relying on a novel decomposition of the observability matrix based on different measurement sources, we show that the filter acquires spurious information from the measurements of each source, which erroneously reduces the uncertainty of the state estimates and hence causes inconsistency. Based on this key insight, we propose an information-aware methodology and develop two novel EKF algorithms of computing filter Jacobians which ensure that all decompositions of the observability matrix have nullspace of correct dimensions. In the first, the linearization points are selected so as to minimize their expected linearization errors under the constraints that the decompositions of the observability matrix have correct nullspace. In the second, we project the canonical measurement Jacobian onto the actual information-available directions. The proposed approaches are shown to significantly outperform the canonical EKF in the particular application of radar-based target tracking.
The impact of neuraxial clonidine on postoperative analgesia and perioperative adverse effects in women having elective Caesarean section–a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Neuraxial clonidine improves postoperative analgesia in the general surgical population. The efficacy and safety of neuraxial clonidine as a postoperative analgesic adjunct in the Caesarean section population still remains unclear. This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to evaluate the effect of perioperative neuraxial clonidine on postoperative analgesia in women having Caesarean section under neuraxial anaesthesia. We included randomized controlled trials comparing the analgesic efficacy of the perioperative administration of neuraxial clonidine alone or in combination with a local anaesthetic and/or opioids in women having elective Caesarean section under neuraxial anaesthesia when compared with placebo. PubMed, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and EMBASE were searched until February 2017. Eighteen studies were included in the meta-analysis. Neuraxial clonidine reduced 24 h morphine consumption [mean difference (MD): −7.2 mg; 95% confidence interval (CI): −11.4, −3.0 mg; seven studies] and prolonged time to first analgesic request (MD: 135 min; 95% CI: 102, 168 min; 16 studies) when compared with the control group. Neuraxial clonidine increased intraoperative hypotension [odds ratio (OR): 2.849; 95% CI: 1.363, 5.957], intraoperative sedation (OR: 2.355; 95% CI: 1.016, 5.459), but reduced the need for intraoperative analgesic supplementation (OR: 0.224; 95% CI: 0.076, 0.663). The effect of clonidine on intraoperative bradycardia, intraoperative and postoperative nausea and vomiting, postoperative sedation, and pruritus were inconclusive. Neuraxial clonidine did not negatively impact neonatal umbilical artery pH or Apgar scores. This review demonstrates that neuraxial clonidine enhances postoperative analgesia in women having Caesarean section with neuraxial anaesthesia, but this has to be balanced against increased maternal adverse effects.
SOCE mediated by STIM and Orai is essential for pacemaker activity in the interstitial cells of Cajal in the gastrointestinal tract.

Electrical pacemaker activity generates phasic contractions and motility patterns such as segmentation and peristalsis in the gastrointestinal tract. Pacemaker currents are generated in interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC), which release Ca2+ from intracellular stores that stimulates Ca2+-activated Cl− channels (CaCCs) in the plasma membrane. Thus, Ca2+ stores must be maintained to sustain pacemaker activity. Store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) facilitates the refilling of Ca2+ stores by a mechanism dependent upon interactions between STIM and Orai proteins. We investigated the role of SOCE in ICC pacemaker activity. Reintroduction of extracellular Ca2+ in store-depleted ICC resulted in CaCC activation. Blocking CaCCs revealed an inwardly rectifying current with properties of a Ca2+ release–activated current (ICRAC). An inhibitory peptide that interfered with the STIM-Orai interaction blocked ICRAC in HEK 293 cells expressing STIM1 and Orai1 and blocked spontaneous transient inward currents (STICs) and slow wave currents in ICC. STICs, which are fundamental pacemaker events in ICC, were blocked by an Orai antagonist. Imaging of Ca2+ transients linked to pacemaker activity in ICC in intact muscles showed that the Orai antagonist blocked Ca2+ transients in ICC. These data suggest that Ca2+ recovery through STIM-Orai interactions is necessary to maintain ICC pacemaker activity.
Who Will Tell the Story? Terrorism's Relationship with the International News Media

Acknowledgements List of Tables List of Figures Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: Towards a Theory of News Media – Terrorist Relations Chapter 3: A Means and A Method Chapter 4: Terrorism in God’s Name: Hamas and Hezbollah Chapter 5: Terrorism for Nationalism: ETA and PKK Chapter 6: Explanations for Variations in Media Coverage Chapter 7: Trends and Implications Chapter 8: Conclusions References Author’s Curriculum Vitae iii iv vi vii
Corporate ecological responsiveness, environmental ambidexterity and it-enabled environmental sustainability strategy

An increased focus on creating a sustainable society has thrust environmental sustainability issues to societal and governmental forefront. Organizations can seize this opportunity to use environmental sustainability initiatives to set themselves apart from competitors. Achieving sustainability requires organizations to incorporate sustainability as part of their corporate strategy. A review of extant Information Systems (IS) literature on environmental sustainability revealed that the strategic role of Information Technology (IT) in enabling environmental sustainability strategy is one perspective that has not been explored in depth. Our paper addresses this gap in research. In this research paper, we propose that firms that use IT strategically to enable their environmental sustainability strategies and are able to demonstrate environmental ambidexterity are set to achieve competitive advantage, legitimacy, and reputation from their corporate ecological responsiveness initiatives. We present preliminary results from interviews that were part of our in-depth case study approach.
Simultaneous ERG and VER in lesions of the optic pathway.

The effects of clinical disease of the retina, optic nerve, chiasm, and cerebrum upon the electrical activity of the retina (ERG) and the brain, as recorded at the occipital surface (VER), have been studied and compared to those obtained from the surface of the brain of cats surgically prepared with similar lesions. In both situations it is possible to detect variations from normal in the responses recorded. The use of the intact opposite eye or hemisphere as a control is of value in increasing the significance of the findings. A sinusoidally varying stimulus seems in some instances a more discriminating test of abnormality of function than a square wave or fiash stimulus.
Divide and Conquer Kernel Ridge Regression

We study a decomposition-based scalable approach to performing kernel ridge regression. The method is simple to describe: it randomly partitions a dataset of size N into m subsets of equal size, computes an independent kernel ridge regression estimator for each subset, then averages the local solutions into a global predictor. This partitioning leads to a substantial reduction in computation time versus the standard approach of performing kernel ridge regression on all N samples. Our main theorem establishes that despite the computational speed-up, statistical optimality is retained: if m is not too large, the partition-based estimate achieves optimal rates of convergence for the full sample size N. As concrete examples, our theory guarantees that m may grow polynomially in N for Sobolev spaces, and nearly linearly for finite-rank kernels and Gaussian kernels. We conclude with simulations complementing our theoretical results and exhibiting the computational and statistical benefits of our approach.
Intraoperative Ureter Visualization Using a Novel Near-Infrared Fluorescent Dye

Ureters can be accidentally severed during pelvic surgeries, significantly prolonging the times in the operating room to allow for complete repair of damaged ureters and leading to significant morbidities associated with consequent ureter obstruction and possible kidney dysfunction. In an effort to prevent these complications, light-emitting stents and urine-excreted dyes have been introduced to illuminate the ureter during surgery. However, problems with mechanical insertion, ureter spasm, image contrast, and localized injection have limited interest in their clinical applications. We report here the synthesis and characterization of a new near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent dye (UreterGlow) that can be injected systemically but is excreted primarily through the renal system, allowing ureter imaging with an NIR fluorescence camera. Following intravenous injection of 0.1 mg/kg UreterGlow, we have monitored the flow of UreterGlow through the proximal, medial, and distal segments of the ureter. The timing of ureter visualization was calculated from the time of injection of the drug. The null hypothesis was that "Visualization of the ureter in pigs is possible 60 min after administration of UreterGlow using an NIR camera". UreterGlow displayed excitation and emission maxima of λex = 800 nm and λem = 830 nm in phosphate buffered saline, pH 7.4, and could be imaged in the urinary tract in mice. Shortly after injection of UreterGlow into Yorkshire pigs, peristalsis of the ureter could be observed. The distal ureter could be visualized under NIR illumination after 60 min with constant fluorescence in all five pigs for >2 h. The same ureters could not be seen using visible light ( X2, p = 0.0001). Because both excitation and emission of UreterGlow occurs at >30 nm longer wavelength than most tumor-imaging fluorescent dyes, it should be possible to distinguish ureter fluorescence from tumor fluorescence with this dye.
The role of premotor areas in dual tasking in healthy controls and persons with multiple sclerosis: An fNIRS imaging study

Persons with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) experience declines in physical and cognitive abilities and are challenged by dual-tasks. Dual-tasking causes a drop in performance, or what is known as dual-task cost (DTC). This study examined DTC of walking speed (WS) and cognitive performance (CP) in pwMS and healthy controls (HCs) and the effect of dual-tasking on cortical activation of bilateral premotor cortices (PMC) and bilateral supplementary motor area (SMA). Fourteen pwMS and 14 HCs performed three experimental tasks: (1) single cognitive task while standing (SingCog); (2) single walking task (SingWalk); and (3) dual-task (DualT) that included concurrent performance of the SingCog and SingWalk. Six trials were collected for each condition and included measures of cortical activation, WS and CP. WS of pwMS was significantly lower than HC, but neuropsychological (NP) measures were not significantly different. pwMS and HC groups had similar DTC of WS, while DTC of CP was only significant in the MS group; processing speed and visual memory predicted 55% of this DTC. DualT vs. SingWalk recruited more right-PMC activation only in HCs and was associated with better processing speed. DualT vs. SingCog recruited more right-PMC activation and bilateral-SMA activation in both HC and pwMS. Lower baseline WS and worse processing speed measures in pwMS predicted higher recruitment of right-SMA (rSMA) activation suggesting maladaptive recruitment. Lack of significant difference in NP measures between groups does not rule out the influence of cognitive factors on dual-tasking performance and cortical activations in pwMS, which might have a negative impact on quality of life.
Self-Actualization and the Need to Create as a Limit on Copyright

Personhood theory is almost invariably cited as one of the primary theoretical bases for copyright. The conventional wisdom views creative works as the embodiment of their creator’s personality. This unique connection between authors and their works justifies giving authors property interests in the results of their creative efforts. This Chapter argues that the conventional wisdom is too limited. It offers too narrow a vision of the ways that creativity can develop personality by focusing exclusively on the results of the creative process and ignoring the self-actualizing benefits of the creative process itself. German aesthetic theory broadens the understanding of the interactions between creativity and personality. Psychologists, aestheticians, and philosophers have underscored how originating creative works can play an important role in self-actualization. When combined with the insight creative works frequently borrow from the corpus of existing works, this insight provides a basis for this insight provides a basis for broadening fair use rights. Moreover, to the extent that works must be shared with audiences or a community of like-minded people in order to be meaningful, it arguably supports a right of dissemination. The result is a theory that values the creative process for the process itself and not just for the artifacts it creates, takes the interests of follow-on authors seriously, and provides an affirmative theory of the public domain. The internal logic of this approach carries with it a number of limitations, specifically that any access rights be limited to uses that are noncommercial and educational and extend no farther than the amount needed to promote self-actualization.
Study of Voltage-Dependent Harmonic Characteristics of Residential Appliances

This paper focuses on the electrical characteristics of residential and domestic appliances and their effects to the power grid. With the ever-changing load landscape and the introduction of power electronics-based equipment and energy-efficient loads, it is increasingly important to have a thorough knowledge of their power quality and harmonic characteristics in addition to conventional load models. This is critical to the accurate load representations, particularly for the complete bottom-up load models, in voltage stability assessment, determining possible interactions at harmonic frequencies, the effect of the system impedance, as well as possible voltage sag and swell and unbalance conditions. For this study, the household appliances are grouped into five categories: lighting, power electronics, resistive, motor, and aggregated loads. The effect of the voltage variation on the load current characteristics is also studied. The results from laboratory experiments involving most of the commonly used domestic appliances are analyzed within a range of +10%/−5% of the nominal supply voltage and within a range of +/−3 Hz of the nominal supply frequency.
Estimation of Inelastic Crosswind Response of Base-Isolated Tall Buildings: Performance of Statistical Linearization Approaches

AbstractThe base-isolation system is increasingly adopted for tall buildings for which the wind-induced response is of concern. Previous studies have shown that the wind-induced response can be red...
The state market relationship as a real estate technology: FHA multifamily development and preservation, 1934 – present

Between the 1930s and the 1950s the United States Federal Housing Administration (FHA) developed a set of programs to spur the private development of hundreds of thousands of multifamily rental and...
Nitrogen Availability Decreases the Severity of Snow Storm Damage in a Temperate Forest

Storms are among the greatest natural disturbances in temperate forests, and increased nitrogen (N) availability is thought to increase storm damage. However, the extent to which N availability increases damage from snowfall is less clear. To test how N availability might affect the susceptibility of trees to snow damage in a temperate forest, we took advantage of an opportunistic storm and surveyed damage in fertilized and unfertilized stands, and across a native N availability gradient. In response to a severe, early season snow storm—a consequence of Superstorm Sandy—the percentages of both basal area and stems damaged were lower in a fertilized watershed than in an unfertilized watershed. Across the native N availability gradient, the percentage of basal area damaged by snow decreased with higher soil N. The effects of N availability on damage were also affected by tree species. Our results suggest that N availability decreases damage from snow storms, contrary to our hypotheses drawn from broader studies. Understanding the relation between storm damage and N availability is important, considering the global increase in N deposition, and since severe storms are likely to become more prevalent with climate change.
Understanding the Ecological Consequences of Ubiquitous Contaminants of Emerging Concern in the Laurentian Great Lakes Watershed: A Continuum of Evidence from the Laboratory to the Environment

Contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) represent a plethora of chemicals only recently recognized as potentially causing harm at environmental concentrations to organisms through diverse modes of action. Studies have confirmed CECs are pervasive in water, sediment, and fish tissues collected from the Great Lakes watershed, corroborating studies from ecosystems worldwide. In some tributaries, CECs exceed water-quality benchmarks or screening values expected to cause adverse effects in fish based on data from single-compound exposures. However, a scarcity of data precludes predictions about the adverse effects of long-term exposures of resident fish to complex mixture of CECs. We combine a literature review with recent case studies to explore evidence for the effects of CECs gathered across the continuum from field studies to controlled laboratory investigations. This information is used to identify obstacles to the development of natural resource management practices. Ranking prominent among these obstacles are the dearth of analytical capabilities, paucity of mixture studies, and complexity of integrating CEC effects with additional stressors. Despite these knowledge gaps, using existing water-quality benchmarks and developing screening values from the literature can provide limited directions in identifying CEC sources in need of mitigation. Natural resource managers are encouraged to review data on CEC presence and sources when assessing conservation efforts in Great Lakes tributaries.
Synthesis of paramagnetic ligands that target the C-terminal binding site of Hsp90.

Abstract Identification of a ligand binding site represents the starting point for a structure-based drug development program. Lack of a binding site hampers the development of improved ligands that modulate the protein of interest. In this letter, we describe the development of chemical tools that will allow for elucidation of the Hsp90 C-terminal ligand binding site. Our strategy is based on the preparation of paramagnetic analogs of KU-596, an investigational new drug that is currently undergoing clinical trials for the treatment of neuropathy and interacts with the Hsp90 C-terminal domain. In particular, we report the design and synthesis of three novel paramagnetic analogs of KU-596, which will be used to obtain long range distances for NMR structural studies of Hsp90 in complex with C-terminal ligands.