cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Tunable optofluidic microlens through active pressure control of an air–liquid interface

We demonstrate a tunable in-plane optofluidic microlens with a 9× light intensity enhancement at the focal point. The microlens is formed by a combination of a tunable divergent air–liquid interface and a static polydimethylsiloxane lens, and is fabricated using standard soft lithography procedures. When liquid flows through a straight channel with a side opening (air reservoir) on the sidewall, the sealed air in the side opening bends into the liquid, forming an air–liquid interface. The curvature of this air–liquid interface can be conveniently and predictably controlled by adjusting the flow rate of the liquid stream in the straight channel. This change in the interface curvature generates a tunable divergence in the incident light beam, in turn tuning the overall focal length of the microlens. The tunability and performance of the lens are experimentally examined, and the experimental data match well with the results from a ray-tracing simulation. Our method features simple fabrication, easy operation, continuous and rapid tuning, and a large tunable range, making it an attractive option for use in lab-on-a-chip devices, particularly in microscopic imaging, cell sorting, and optical trapping/manipulating of microparticles.
Parties as Utility Maximizers

The article introduces two models of political party decision making. Both models assume that the parties are solely interested in policy and that winning the election is just a means to that end. In one, the parties are competitive, while in the other the parties collude. The main result, in either case, is that the parties tend to be unresponsive to the interests of the voters.The models are analyzed in an intransitive case (an election concerned only with income distribution) and a transitive one (an election where all political attitudes can be put on a left-right continuum), and under the assumptions of perfect and imperfect information.With perfect information the intransitive case results in the parties ending up with all the income; while in the single peaked case neither party will have a position to the left (right) of the left (right) party's most preferred position whatever the attitudes of the voters.Finally it is shown that it is rational for the parties to collude and present similar platforms.
Cu6Sn5–TiC–C nanocomposite alloy anodes with high volumetric capacity for lithium ion batteries

A Cu6Sn5–TiC–C nanocomposite alloy anode has been synthesized by first firing a mixture of Cu, Sn, and Ti metals and then ball milling the resultant material with carbon. X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) reveal that these nanocomposites are composed of nanostructured Cu6Sn5 particles in a matrix of TiC and conductive carbon. The presence of TiC and conductive carbon improves the cycle life of Cu6Sn5 anodes compared to that found with plain Cu6Sn5. With a second cycle discharge capacity of 1340 mAh cm−3 (610 mAh g−1) and a tap density of 2.2 g cm−3, the Cu6Sn5–TiC–C nanocomposite anode offers a volumetric capacity that is at least four times higher than that of the graphite anode and 30% higher than what can be achieved with silicon. A conductive Cu framework supports the electrochemically-active Sn particles, resulting in low impedance and good rate capability. TEM data from electrodes that were cycled between 0 and 200 cycles show that the Cu6Sn5 particles do not agglomerate, and the morphology of the particles does not change during extended cycling. Furthermore, this nanocomposite anode material exhibits excellent performance in full cells with manganese-containing cathodes at elevated temperatures, indicating that it may not be poisoned by dissolved Mn.
Students' willingness to use response and engagement technology in the classroom

Abstract Purpose Increased use of student response and engagement systems in the collegiate classroom environment is a growing trend in hospitality education. However, faculties have expressed hesitance in adopting this technology due to apprehension of students. This purpose of this paper is to share the results of a survey given to undergraduate hospitality students at Iowa State University about their willingness and ability to use these systems. Principle results When analyzing the data from the 413 respondents, the results show students are in fact able and willing to use a classroom response and engagement system in order to increase engagement. In addition, students have an overall desire to use technology in the classroom. Conclusions These results can be useful for faculty considering implementation of these systems in their courses. Of those surveyed, 100% have a cell phone, tablet, or laptop, indicating a system which requires a student to bring their own device is feasible.
Electron paramagnetic resonance detection of intermediates in the enzymatic cycle of an extradiol dioxygenase.

Extradiol catecholic dioxygenases catalyze the cleavage of the aromatic ring of the substrate with incorporation of both oxygen atoms from O2. These enzymes are important in nature for the recovery of large amounts of carbon from aromatic compounds. The catalytic site contains either Fe or Mn coordinated by a facial triad of two His and one Glu or Asp residues. Previous studies have shown that Fe(II) and Mn(II) can be interchanged in enzymes from different organisms to catalyze similar substrate reactions. In combination, quantitative electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy and rapid freeze−quench experiments allow us to follow the concentrations of four different Mn species, including key metal intermediates in the catalytic cycle, as the enzyme turns over its natural substrate. Two intermediates are observed: a Mn(III)-radical species which is either Mn-superoxide or Mn-substrate radical, and a unique Mn(II) species which is involved in the rate-limiting step of the cycle and may be Mn-alkylperoxo.
The Evolution of Cost-Productivity and Efficiency Among U.S. Credit Unions

Advances in information-processing technology have significantly eroded the advantages of small scale and proximity to customers that traditionally enabled community banks and other small-scale lenders to thrive. Nonetheless, U.S. credit unions have experienced increasing membership and market share, though consolidation has reduced the number of credit unions and increased their average size. We investigate the evolution of the efficiency and productivity of U.S. credit unions between 1989 and 2006 using a new methodology that benchmarks the performance of individual firms against an estimated order-α quantile lying “near” the efficient frontier. We construct a cost analog of the widely-used Malmquist productivity index, and decompose the index to estimate changes in cost and scale efficiency, and changes in technology, that explain changes in cost-productivity. We find that cost-productivity fell on average across all credit unions but especially among smaller credit unions. Smaller credit unions confronted an unfavorable shift in technology that increased the minimum cost required to produce given amounts of output. In addition, all but the largest credit unions became less scale efficient over time.
The Need For Satellite Ocean Color Measurements In Fisheries Research And Related Activities

Ocean color measurements from satellites have tremendous potential applications for use in fisheries research, and in the proper management of fishery resources.
Relapsing Neisseria meningitidis Infection Associated with C8 Deficiency

Infection due to serogroup Y of Neisseria meningitidis has many clinical manifestations, ranging from mild bacteremia to fatal sepsis and meningitis. N. meningitidis infection may coincide with several complement deficiencies. A child is described who suffered from recurrent disease due to N. meningitidis, group Y, attributed to deficiency of the eighth component of complement (C8). In a review of the literature, recurrent infection occurred in six of 13 children with complement deficiency, four of whom had serotyping positive for N. meningitidis, group Y. Screening for complement deficiency is recommended for all children with meningococcal disease due to N. meningitidis, group Y, and for any child with recurrent infection due to any Neisseria species.
Combined free and forced convection in a constant temperature horizontal tube

An experimental study of superposed free and forced convection for air in a horizontal tube is reported. The laminar Nusselt number, based on the log mean temperature difference, ranged from 29.9 to 15.2; the laminar flow Graetz number, based on the bulk or average temperature of the air, ranged from 33 to 1,300, the Grashof-Prandtl modulus based on properties of air at the wall temperature ranged from 1.1 × 106 to 2.2 × 106. The Grashof number utilized the log mean temperature difference. An analysis of the system from a macroscopic viewpoint led to the determination of an equation which fits the laminar flow experimental data in the range of Graetz numbers from 60 to 1,300. An equation was also found for the turbulent data.
Identification and characterization of benzimidazole resistance in Monilinia fructicola from stone fruit orchards in California

Low and high levels of resistance to the benzimidazole fungicides benomyl and thiophanate-methyl were observed in field isolates of Monilinia fructicola, which is the causative agent of brown rot of stone fruit. Isolates that had low levels of resistance (hereafter referred to as LR isolates) and high levels of resistance (hereafter referred to as HR isolates) were also cold and heat sensitive, respectively. Results from microsatellite DNA fingerprints showed that genetic identities among the populations of sensitive (S), LR, and HR isolates were very high (>0.96). Analysis of DNA sequences of the beta-tubulin gene showed that the LR isolates had a point mutation at codon 6, causing a replacement of the amino acid histidine by tyrosine. Codon 198, which encodes a glutamic acid in S and LR isolates, was converted to a codon for alanine in HR isolates. Based on these point mutations in the beta-tubulin gene, allele-specific PCR assays were developed for rapid detection of benzimidazole-resistant isolates of M. fructicola from stone fruit.
Bifurcated equilibria and magnetic islands in tokamaks and stellarators

The magnetohydrodynamic variational principle is employed to calculate equilibrium and stability of toroidal plasmas without two-dimensional symmetry. Differential equations are solved in a conservation form that describes force balance correctly across islands that are treated as discontinuities. The method is applied to both stellarators and tokamaks, and comparison with observations is favorable in both cases. Sometimes the solution of the equations turns out not to be unique, and there exist bifurcated equilibria that are nonlinearly stable when other theories predict linear instability. The calculations are consistent with recent measurements of high values of the pressure in stellarators. For tokamaks we compute three-dimensionally asymmetric solutions that are subject to axially symmetric boundary conditions.
Complete and efficient methods for supporting side effects in independent/restricted and-parallelism

It has been shown that it is possible to exploit Independent/Restricted And-parallelism in logic programs while retaining the conventional “don’t know” semantics of such programs. In particular, it is possible to parallelize pure Prolog programs while maintaining the semantics of the language. However, when builtin side-eects (such as write or assert) appear in the program, if an identical observable behaviour to that of sequential Prolog implementations is to be preserved, such side-eects have to be properly sequenced. Previously proposed solutions to this problem are either incomplete (lacking, for example, backtracking semantics) or they force sequentialization of significant portions of the execution graph which could otherwise run in parallel. In this paper a series of side-eect synchronization methods are proposed which incur lower overhead and allow more parallelism than those previously proposed. Most importantly, and unlike previous proposals, they have well-defined backward execution behaviour and require only a small modification to a given (And-parallel) Prolog implementation.
Simulation of personalized services in SIP communications

A Web-based system is designed and implemented to simulate advanced services in a session initiation protocol (SIP) environment, including system basic services and personalized services (policies). Described in extended call processing language (CPL), personal policies are programmed by end users via graphic user interfaces (GUIs) and are automatically translated into extended CPL. The simulation system presented in this paper clearly displays what CPL policies should be used for the provision of presence services and call-processing services. Policy conflicts can be addressed by setting policy priority in the simulation system.
Equalized interconnects for on-chip networks: modeling and optimization framework

This paper presents a modeling framework for fast design space exploration and optimization of equalized on-chip interconnects. The exploration is enabled by cross-layer modeling that connects the transistor and wire parameters to link performance, equalization coefficients, and architecture-friendly metrics (delay, energy-per-bit, and throughput density). Appropriate models are derived to speed-up the search by more than two orders of magnitude and make a million point design space searchable in less than two hours on a standard machine. With this approach we are able to find the best link design for target throughput, power and area constraints, thus enabling the architectural optimization of energy-efficient on-chip networks. For the same latency and throughput density, equalized interconnects optimized using the new methodology have up to 10times better energy-efficiency than optimized repeater interconnects.
A near optimal approach to quality of service data replication scheduling

This paper describes an approach to real-time decision-making for quality of service based scheduling of distributed asynchronous data replication. The proposed approach addresses uncertainty and variability in the quantity of data to replicate over low bandwidth fixed communication links. A dynamic stochastic knapsack is used to model the acceptance policy with dynamic programming optimization employed to perform offline optimization. The obtained optimal values of the input variables are used to build and train a multi-layer neural network. The obtained neural network weights and configuration can be used to perform near optimal accept/reject decisions in real-time. Off-line processing is used to establish the initial acceptance policy and to verify that the system continues to perform near-optimally. The proposed approach is implemented via simulation enabling the evaluation of a variety of scenarios and refinement of the scheduling portion of the model. The preliminary results are very promising.
Workload and procrastination: The roles of psychological detachment and fatigue.

In the present study, the self-control and recovery/detachment research literatures are integrated to explore the connection between workload and procrastination. We tested a conceptual model that draws heavily from the stressor-detachment model (Sonnentag, 2011), and represents one of the first empirical tests of this model. We hypothesized that psychological detachment would both mediate and moderate the relationship between workload and fatigue and that fatigue would mediate the relationship between psychological detachment and procrastination. We tested the hypothesized model by surveying 547 working adults at 3 points in time over a 2-month period. Psychological detachment fully mediated the relationship between workload and fatigue; psychological detachment did not moderate this relationship. Fatigue partially mediated the relationship between psychological detachment and procrastination. Further, workload was indirectly related to procrastination 2 months later through relationships with psychological detachment and fatigue. These findings suggest that occupational stressors are related to procrastination and that this relationship can be partially explained by psychological detachment and fatigue.
Nonlinear energy transfer to short gravity waves in the presence of long waves

Existing theories for calculating the energy transfer rates to gravity waves due to resonant nonlinear interactions among wave components whose lengths are long in comparison to wave elevations have been verified experimentally and are well accepted. There is uncertainty, however, about prediction of energy transfer rates within a set of waves having short to moderate lengths when these are present simultaneously with a long wave whose amplitude is not small in comparison to the short wavelengths. Here we implement both a direct numerical method that avoids small-amplitude approximations and a spectral method which includes perturbations of high order. These are applied to an interacting set of short- to intermediate-length waves with and without the presence of a large long wave. The same cases are also studied experimentally. Experimentally and numerical results are in reasonable agreement with the finding that the long wave does influence the energy transfer rates. The physical reason for this is identified and the implications for computations of energy transfer to short waves in a wave spectrum are discussed.
Clutter rejection limitations from ambiguous range clutter

Limitations on achievable clutter rejection due to ambiguous range clutter are described. The profile of clutter power versus range is shown to limit achievable clutter rejection. Ambiguous range effects are discussed in the context of sea clutter, using a model that includes propagation conditions, and rain clutter. Limitations in moving target indication systems are illustrated for sea clutter, where propagation is subject to evaporation ducts. Benefits of fill pulses are illustrated for rain and sea clutter. >
Epigenetic repression of regulator of G-protein signaling 2 promotes androgen-independent prostate cancer cell growth

G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR)-stimulated androgen-independent activation of androgen receptor (AR) contributes to acquisition of a hormone-refractory phenotype by prostate cancer. We previously reported that regulator of G-protein signaling (RGS) 2, an inhibitor of GPCRs, inhibits androgen-independent AR activation (Cao et al., Oncogene 2006;25:3719-34). Here, we show reduced RGS2 protein expression in human prostate cancer specimens compared to adjacent normal or hyperplastic tissue. Methylation-specific PCR analysis and bisulfite sequencing indicated that methylation of the CpG island in the RGS2 gene promoter correlated with RGS2 downregulation in prostate cancer. In vitro methylation of this promoter suppressed reporter gene expression in transient transfection studies, whereas reversal of this promoter methylation with 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (5-Aza-dC) induced RGS2 reexpression in androgen-independent prostate cancer cells and inhibited their growth under androgen-deficient conditions. Interestingly, the inhibitory effect of 5-Aza-dC was significantly reduced by an RGS2-targeted short hairpin RNA, indicating that reexpressed RGS2 contributed to this growth inhibition. Restoration of RGS2 levels by ectopic expression in androgen-independent prostate cancer cells suppressed growth of xenografts in castrated mice. Thus, RGS2 promoter hypermethylation represses its expression and unmasks a latent pathway for AR transactivation in prostate cancer cells. Targeting this reversible process may provide a new strategy for suppressing prostate cancer progression by reestablishing its androgen sensitivity.
Optical Spectroscopy Using Gas-Phase Femtosecond Laser Filamentation

Femtosecond laser filamentation occurs as a dynamic balance between the self-focusing and plasma defocusing of a laser pulse to produce ultrashort radiation as brief as a few optical cycles. This unique source has many properties that make it attractive as a nonlinear optical tool for spectroscopy, such as propagation at high intensities over extended distances, self-shortening, white-light generation, and the formation of an underdense plasma. The plasma channel that constitutes a single filament and whose position in space can be controlled by its input parameters can span meters-long distances, whereas multifilamentation of a laser beam can be sustained up to hundreds of meters in the atmosphere. In this review, we briefly summarize the current understanding and use of laser filaments for spectroscopic investigations of molecules. A theoretical framework of filamentation is presented, along with recent experimental evidence supporting the established understanding of filamentation. Investigations carried out on vibrational and rotational spectroscopy, filament-induced breakdown, fluorescence spectroscopy, and backward lasing are discussed.
Intention versus behaviour in parental sex preferences among the Mukogodo of Kenya.

The relationship between the stated sex preferences of Mukogodo mothers and actual parental behaviors toward sons and daughters was investigated as part of ethnographic fieldwork carried out in this pastoral population in 1985-87. The data on sex preferences was derived from detailed reproductive history interviews conducted with 121 fecund Mukogodo women while information on actual treatment of children was drawn from statistics on visits to the local Catholic mission dispensary by children under 5 years of age and attendance at mission-sponsored clinics for underweight infants. Mukogodo respondents identified an ideal family size of 10 children. Only 19% expressed a preference for male children; 36% wanted an equal number of sons and daughters and 45% had no preference. Despite the existence of a weak son preference the Mukogodo are more solicitous of female children. The mission records indicated 109 visits by males 0-4 years of age (74 new visits and 35 repeat visits) and 191 visits by females this age (113 new visits and 78 repeat visits) in 1986. Both the number of female in comparison to male children who were taken to the clinic and the greater tendency for female children to be taken for a repeat visit were statistically significant. There was also a significant female bias in attendance at the underweight baby clinic (42% of eligible male infants compared to 58% of female infants were enrolled). Of importance is the fact that mission clinic visits involve considerable hardship for Mukogodo mothers both in terms of travel time (1/2-3 days) and cost. Also observed was a greater tendency for females aged 0-31 months to be breastfed than males (84% versus 70% respectively). The greater use of health services for female children probably accounts for the female-biased sex ratio among the Mukogodo.
Does Mitochondrial Haplogroup X Indicate Ancient Trans-Atlantic Migration to the Americas? A Critical Re-Evaluation

It might seem strange for an article to focus largely on the history of a single mitochondrial haplogroup in an era when complete genome sequencing is becoming more common. But as recent publicatio...
Universal Machine Tools Make Flexible Manufacturing Systems More Efficient

The free market principle in the United States has affected it’s economy tremendously. High quality, low cost imported goods are available in abundance and, hence, consumers have become extremely discerning in their choices. Local manufacturers have had to face this competition along with the added handicaps of higher labor costs and more importantly, lower productivity. These two factors have caused many firms to move abroad. This movement has two serious drawbacks, since jobs were not only being exported but the burden of generating real wealth for the country fell on fewer and fewer sectors of the economy. It is a well known fact that manufacturing is one of the real-wealth generating sectors of the economy.Thus, the United States was gradually losing it’s means of creating wealth.
Parallel object-space hidden surface removal

A parallel object-space hidden surface removal algorithm for polyhedral scenes is presented. The uniform grid technique is used to achieve parallelism for the hidden line removal. A conflict-detection and back-off strategy is then used to obtain parallelism for the visible region reconstruction from the visible segments. The algorithm has been implemented on a Sequent Balance 21000 shared-memory parallel computer. An average speedup of 10 has been obtained using 15 processors.
Cilostazol: Treatment of Intermittent Claudication

OBJECTIVE:To review the pharmacology and clinical utility of cilostazol, an antiplatelet and vasodilator agent approved for the management of intermittent claudication.DATA SOURCES:Primary literature on cilostazol was identified from a comprehensive MEDLINE literature search (1980–February 2000). Selected meeting abstracts and manufacturer literature were also used as source material. Indexing terms included cilostazol, intermittent claudication, platelet inhibitors, and restenosis.STUDY SELECTION:Human clinical, pharmacokinetic and randomized comparative trials performed in the US and Asia were reviewed. Selected in vitro, ex vivo, and animal studies were evaluated when human data were not available.DATA SYNTHESIS:Intermittent claudication, defined as reproducible discomfort of a muscle group induced by exercise and relieved by rest, is the most common clinical manifestation of peripheral arterial disease (PAD). Cilostazol, a specific inhibitor of cyclic adenosine monophosphate phosphodiesterase in plate...
A Quantification of the Injury-Induced Changes in Central Aromatase, Oestrogenic Milieu and Steroid Receptor Expression in the Zebra Finch.

In songbirds and mammals, brain injury results in the up-regulation of aromatase (oestrogen synthase) expression in astroglia. The resulting presumed synthesis of neural oestradiol (E2 ) has neuroprotective effects including a decrease in neurodegeneration, neuroinflammation and apoptosis. The development of therapeutic tools that exploit oestrogenic neuroprotection in the treatment of neurotrauma requires a precise quantification of the endogenous changes in neural aromatase and E2 following brain injury. Surprisingly, the expected increase in neural oestrogens following brain injury has not been demonstrated. Furthermore, we are just beginning to unravel the mechanisms behind the protective effects of centrally synthesised E2 . In the present study, levels of aromatase immunoprotein, neural E2 and steroid receptor mRNA were quantified in adult male and female zebra finches 48 h following a unilateral penetrating brain injury. Both aromatase and E2 were up-regulated in the injured hemisphere of the brain compared to the uninjured hemisphere, demonstrating for the first time a robust increase in neural E2 levels following injury. We did not detect an effect of injury on mRNA expression of the oestrogen receptors (ER)-α, ER-β or GPER-1, but observed a significant decrease in androgen receptor transcription in the injured lobe relative to the contralateral uninjured hemisphere. We conclude that mechanical damage causes a dramatic increase in local aromatisation, and the resultant high levels of central E2 are available to modulate steroid sensitive targets. Studies using alternate methods of receptor detection and/or time points may be necessary to understand the complete suite of mechanisms underlying the neuroprotective effects of induced oestrogen synthesis in this animal model.
ROSMOD: a toolsuite for modeling, generating, deploying, and managing distributed real-time component-based software using ROS

This paper presents ROSMOD, a model-driven component-based development tool suite for the Robot Operating System (ROS). ROSMOD is well suited for the design, development and deployment of large scale distributed applications on embedded hardware devices. We present the various features of ROSMOD including the modeling language, the graphical user interface, code generators and deployment infrastructure. We describe the utility of this tool with a real-world case study - An Autonomous Ground Support Equipment (AGSE) robot that was designed and prototyped using ROSMOD for the NASA Student Launch competition, 2014-2015.
Young adults with cystic fibrosis have altered trabecular microstructure by ITS-based morphological analysis.

Young adults with cystic fibrosis have compromised plate-like trabecular microstructure, altered axial alignment of trabeculae, and reduced connectivity between trabeculae that may contribute to the reduced bone strength and increased fracture risk observed in this patient population. The risk of fracture is increased in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). Individual trabecular segmentation (ITS)-based morphological analysis of high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT) images segments trabecular bone into individual plates and rods of different alignment and connectivity, which are important determinants of trabecular bone strength. We sought to determine whether alterations in ITS variables are present in patients with CF and may help explain their increased fracture risk. Thirty patients with CF ages 18–40 years underwent DXA scans of the hip and spine and HR-pQCT scans of the radius and tibia with further assessment of trabecular microstructure by ITS. These CF patients were compared with 60 healthy controls matched for age (±2 years), race, and gender. Plate volume fraction, thickness, and density as well as plate-plate and plate-rod connectivity were reduced, and axial alignment of trabeculae was lower in subjects with CF at both the radius and the tibia (p < 0.05 for all). At the radius, adjustment for BMI eliminated most of these differences. At the tibia, however, reductions in plate volume fraction and number, axially aligned trabeculae, and plate-plate connectivity remained significant after adjustment for BMI alone and for BMI and aBMD (p < 0.05 for all). Young adults with CF have compromised plate-like and axially aligned trabecular morphology and reduced connectivity between trabeculae. ITS analysis provides unique information about bone integrity, and these trabecular deficits may help explain the increased fracture risk in adults with CF not accounted for by BMD and/or traditional bone microarchitecture measurements.
Workforce analysis of neurotologists in the United States.

OBJECTIVE To analyze current ratio of neurotologists to the population and examine regional variation. STUDY DESIGN Population survey examining hospital referral regions (HRRs) as defined in the Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care Project and location of members of the American Neurotology Society. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Ratio of neurotologists to the population within designated HRRs. RESULTS The national estimate of practicing neurotologists per population in 2006 was 1:922664 persons. The ratio is not uniform across HRRs, indicating that referral patterns for neurotologic care are wider than the care for indicators used in designating HRRs. Distribution of specialists is closely correlated with population. Estimated procedures per population are stable or declining for lateral cranial base surgery, implying current or impending oversupply of neurotologists. CONCLUSION The number of specialists in Neurotology likely exceeds projected needs. The current supply of trainees predicts this trend will continue for decades. Development and maintenance of lateral cranial base surgical skills will be difficult for some practitioners.
Thrombosis Secondary to Medroxyprogesterone in Patient at Risk for Thromboembolism

Objective:To report a case in which a young woman receiving medroxyprogesterone acetate injections developed deep vein thrombosis (DVT) after prolonged travel.Case Summary:An obese 27-year-old African American woman who had been receiving medroxyprogesterone acetate injections 150 mg intramuscularly every 3 months for 6 years experienced DVT after a 56-hour car ride. The patient's known risk factors for DVT included immobility, obesity (140 kg), and medroxyprogesterone acetate therapy. Family and personal history for thrombotic events were denied. Tests were performed after detection of the DVT to assess the patient for anticoagulation defects; results revealed an unidentified underlying protein S deficiency. All other test results were within normal limits.Discussion:Based on the Naranjo probability scale, it is possible that the DVT experienced by our patient was due to medroxyprogesterone acetate. Although she did have other risk factors for DVT, her underlying protein S deficiency was diagnosed after ...
Is perceptual set negatively biased

Binocular rivalry and the Margaret Thatcher illusion were used to assess the bias, if any, of perceptual set. The data for 8 students suggest that set is negatively biased.
Enthalpies of Solution of the Nucleic Acid Bases. 3. Cytosine in Water.

An adiabatic solution calorimeter was used for measuring enthalpies of solution in water of seven samples of cytosine for which analytical data are given. Our best values are: ΔH∘(∞,298.15K)=(27.2±4.0)kJ⋅mol-1, and ΔCp=(76±21)J⋅mol-1⋅K-1,298K<T<324Kat(24±2)mmol⋅kg-1. Evidence is given for an unidentified side reaction at low concentrations which is responsible for the large uncertainty assigned to the enthalpy of solution at infinite dilution. An approximate value of (1.44 ± 0.08) g · mL-1 for the density of cytosine was also measured. Values are calculated for ΔG° and ΔS° for the solution reaction.
Analysis on health examination results of 5016 primary and secondary school students in Cangzhou City

[Objective]To investigate the health condition of primary and secondary school students in urban and rural areas of Cangzhou City,provide the basis for carrying out the prevention and control of common diseases in school. [Methods]5 016 primary and secondary school students in Cangzhou City were collected by the cluster sampling, to receive the physical examination. The physical examination results were analyzed,to calculate the prevalence rates of poor vision,dental caries,malnutrition,overweight and obesity among primary and secondary school students,and the differences in detection rate were compared among groups of different characteristics. [Results]The prevalence rate of poor vision and dental caries was 62.6% and12.7% respectively. The detection rate of malnutrition,overweight and obesity was 7.4%,11.3% and 14.7%,respectively. The detection rate of poor eyesight in senior middle school students was the highest(76.1%),the detection rate of dental caries in primary school students was the highest(14.9%),the detection rate of overweight in junior middle school students was the highest(13.7%),and the detection rate of obesity in primary school students was the highest(20.6%).[Conclusion]Poor vision,dental caries,malnutrition,overweight and obesity are still the main problems of school health,and the control strategies should be formulated according to age,gender,area and education stage.
The Social Welfare State

In the twentieth century, advanced industrialized nations increasingly have sought to guarantee to all citizens certain minimum living standards. The Soviet Union is no exception; in fact, in several respects it epitomizes the social welfare state. The 1936 Constitution guaranteed Soviet citizens the right to a job, health care, education, maintenance in old age, and leisure. The 1977 Constitution added to these fundamental human rights the right to housing and access to cultural achievements. To what extent has the Soviet system translated the formal pronouncement of these social and economic rights into reality? This chapter seeks to answer that question by analyzing Soviet policies and performance in three areas of social policy: housing, health care, and social security.
Terminal Ileitis as a Feature of Henoch-Schönlein Purpura Masquerading as Crohn Disease in Adults.

Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP), more recently termed immunoglobulin A (IgA) vasculitis, is a systemic small-vessel vasculitis characterized by perivascular IgA deposition. This disease manifests clinically as palpable purpura, arthralgia, gastrointestinal symptoms, and renal dysfunction. Although ileitis can be seen in HSP, terminal ileitis is virtually pathognomonic for Crohn disease. We present a comprehensive review of the literature on this association, including 2 cases of our own, to demonstrate the importance of considering HSP in the differential diagnosis of ileitis suggestive of Crohn disease. We review the growing body of literature suggesting a pathophysiologic link between the conditions, possibly through an IgA-mediated mechanism.
Marine Hydrokinetic Energy from Western Boundary Currents.

The kinetic energy in ocean currents, or marine hydrokinetic (MHK) energy, is a renewable energy resource that can help meet global energy requirements. An ocean circulation model–based census shows that subtropical surface western boundary currents (WBCs) are the only nearshore, large-scale currents swift enough to drive large electricity-generating ocean turbines envisioned for future use. We review several WBCs in the context of kinetic energy extraction. The power density in the Gulf Stream off North Carolina at times reaches several thousand watts per square meter at 75 m below the surface, and the annual average power is approximately 500–1,000 W m−2. Significant fluctuations occur with periods of 3–20 days (Gulf Stream meanders) and weeks to months (Gulf Stream path shifts). Interannual variations in annual average power occur because of year-to-year changes in these WBC motions. No large-scale turbines presently exist, and the road to establishing MHK facilities in WBCs will encounter challenges t...
Reduced Microkinetics Model for Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Simulation of the Fixed-Bed Partial Oxidation of Ethylene

An implementation of a simplified microkinetics model in three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations of an ethylene oxide fixed-bed reactor is proposed. An existing microkinetics model in the literature is simplified to a model with general rate expressions to reduce the complexity of the computations. It then is coupled with CFD simulations of flow in the fixed bed and transport inside the catalyst particles. Illustrative CFD simulations are carried out in a randomly packed bed of 120 spherical particles, which take into account surface species under steady-state conditions in the particles. The proposed approach represents a practical method to integrate simplified surface chemistry with a realistic-scale fixed bed for more in-depth analysis. It is shown that the surface coverages can be greatly affected by the surrounding flow conditions; furthermore, the effects of transport limitations, products, and different inlet compositions on the ethylene oxide selectivity are studied.
The Importance of Ideas: Innovation and Productivity in Latin America

The capacity of a society and its firms to generate and assimilate technological change is generally recognized as a key component of prosperity and growth. A long tradition of economic thinking that goes back at least to Schumpeter has identified a strong relationship between innovation and productivity growth. In developing growth theory, Solow (1956) attributed a vital role to technological change, and his vision of this issue remains a foundation of its understanding. Griliches (1986) formalized and specified the empirical content of these ideas by developing models aimed at measuring the impact of knowledge capital on productivity (Griliches proxied the research and development [R&D] stock for knowledge capital). Romer (1990) enriched the theory by modeling the determinants of knowledge creation, turning R&D into an endogenous variable in the understanding of growth instead of an external element. A considerable body of economic, sociological, and historic research has been accumulated in recent decades about the role of knowledge in economic development. This research is organized around the notion of innovation, understood as a concept that goes beyond R&D in the traditional sense-which implies that not all innovation has a technological origin (see Box 10.1).
Assimilatory Sulfate Reduction

The roles of sulfur and nitrogen in cell nutrition show many similarities. Both must be reduced by living systems to form proteins and other macromolecules and both, therefore, appear among the macroelements required by plants and plant-like microorganisms. Nutritional interactions between the two elements have been described (Friedrich and Schrader, 1978) and both elements show a rather uniform distribution throughout the tissues and Organs of higher plants and among cells of microorganisms. Sulfate reduction occurs in mitochondria and microbodies in Euglena cells (Brunold and Schiff, 1976) and is localized in the plastids of higher plants (Schmidt and Schwerin, 1971; Schwenn and Trebst, 1976). Since cell, tissue, and organ cultures can be grown on sulfateasasolesulfursource (White, 1963; White and Grove, 1965;Butenko, 1968; Thomas and Davey, 1975), and since nongreen tissues such as beet discs (Ellis, 1963) and roots (Pate, 1965) reduce sulfate, assimilatory sulfate reduction must be widely distributed throughout the plant; studies of the localization of certain enzymes of sulfate reduction are in agreement (Mayer, 1967; Ellis, 1969; Onajobi et al., 1973; Schmidt, 1976; Tamura et al., 1976; Cacco et al., 1977; Fankhauser and Brunold, 1978, 1979). In this paper we will try to summarize what is known of the process of assimilatory sulfate reduction and how it might have evolved; some recent work on an enzymatic reaction of adenosine 5′ phosphosulfate (APS) and ammonia (Fankhauser et al., 1979; Fankhauser and Schiff, 1980; Fankhauser et al., 1980) will also be described which may provide a connection between sulfur and nitrogen metabolism.
Investigational drugs for treating major depressive disorder.

ABSTRACTIntroduction: Treatment of patients suffering from major depression could be highly challenging for psychiatrists. Intractability as well as relapse is commonly seen among these patients, leading to functional impairment and poor quality of life. The present review discusses some of the novel investigational drugs that are under pre-clinical or clinical phases in the treatment of major depression.Areas covered: Molecules belonging to different classes such as triple reuptake inhibitors, opioid receptors, ionotropic and metabotropic glutamate receptors, and neurotrophin in the treatment of major depression are covered in this article.Expert opinion: Although the historical discovery of earlier antidepressant molecules (iproniazid and imipramine) is through serendipitous discovery, the present research focuses on discovering novel molecules based on our current pathophysiological knowledge of the disease condition. The fast-acting antidepressant property of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor molec...
Hospital Payer and Racial/Ethnic Mix at Private Academic Medical Centers in Boston and New York City:

Academic medical centers (AMCs) are widely perceived as providing the highest-quality medical care. To investigate disparities in access to such care, we studied the racial/ethnic and payer mixes a...
Society of Behavioral Medicine (SBM) position statement: SBM supports curbing summertime weight gain among America’s youth

The Society of Behavioral Medicine recommends adoption of policies at the district, state, and federal levels that minimize weight gain among youth over the summertime, particularly among low-income, minority school-age youth who appear to be at greater risk. Policies that facilitate (1) partnerships between school districts and community organizations to provide affordable summertime programming, (2) strategic efforts by schools and communities to encourage families to enroll and attend summertime programming via the creation of community-wide summertime offerings offices, (3) adoption of joint-use/shared use agreements in communities to promote use of indoor and outdoor school facilities to provide affordable programming during the summer months, and (4) implementation of strategies that help summer programs achieve the Healthy Eating and Physical Activity (HEPA) standards which have been endorsed by the Healthy Out-of-School Time (HOST) coalition. Research is needed to elucidate key mechanisms by which involvement in structured programming may reduce weight gain over the summer months.
A high-dose infusion of omeprazole after endoscopic treatment of bleeding peptic ulcers reduced recurrent bleeding

Source Citation Lau JY, Sung JJ, Lee KK, et al. Effect of intravenous omeprazole on recurrent bleeding after endoscopic treatment of bleeding peptic ulcers. N Engl J Med. 2000 Aug 3;343:310-6. 10922420
A Review of Fludarabine and Cladribine in Solid Tumours

Fludarabine monophosphate (FAMP) and cladribine (CDA) are adenosine analogues that were shown to be highly active in the management of lymphoid malignancies such as hairy cell leukaemia, low-grade non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, Waldenstrom macroglobulinaemia and cutaneous T-cell lymphoma [1,2]. Both have also been used in acute leukaemias and fludarabine appears particularly promising for this indication [3]. Activation of FAMP and CDA is realised through phosphorylation by deoxycytidine kinase (dCTk) to their respective triphosphate compounds and both are degraded by 5′-nucleotidase (5′-NT). As opposed to their physiologic counterparts, FAMP and CDA are resistant to deamination by adenosine deaminase (ADA). The balance between activation and degradation appears crucial for their clinical activity [4]. FAMP and CDA are cytotoxic not by inducing necrosis but rather programmed cell death, apoptosis, by means of activation of specific endonucleases [5].
Inflammation and Fibrosis

Inflammatory cells represent an important component of the pulmonary defenses, but they also play a critical role in the pathogenesis of lung disorders such as adult respiratory distress syndrome (Patterson et al., 1989), asthma (Bigby and Nadel, 1988), silicosis (Lugano et al., 1984; Sjostrand et al., 1991; Li et al., 1992), interstitial pulmonary fibrosis, and asbestosis (Sibille and Reynolds, 1990; Rochester and Elias, 1993; Gee and Mossman, 1995). Because of the generally recognized adverse effects of airway inflammation and contribution of inflammatory cells to lung fibrosis, the factors involved in inflammatory reactions, mechanisms of toxicity and development of chronic lung disease have received considerable attention. The initial steps in the cascade of events, that ultimately result in the development of chronic lung disease, include stimulation of resident cells, release of chemotactic agents and recruitment of inflammatory cells. These events can be set in motion by an intrapulmonary insult in the form of an acute or chronic inhalation exposure to either environmental or occupational pollutants.
Reanalysis of an oft-cited paper on honeybee magnetoreception reveals random behavior.

ABSTRACT While mounting evidence indicates that a phylogenetically diverse group of animals detect Earth-strength magnetic fields, a magnetoreceptor has not been identified in any animal. One possible reason that identifying a magnetoreceptor has proven challenging is that, like many research fields, magnetoreception research lacks extensive independent replication. Independent replication is important because a subset of studies undoubtedly contain false positive results and without replication it is difficult to determine whether the outcome of an experiment is a false positive. However, we report here a reanalysis of a well-cited paper on honeybee magnetoreception demonstrating that the original paper represented a false positive finding caused by incorrect estimates of probability. We also point out how good experimental design practices could have revealed the error prior to publication. Hopefully, this reanalysis will serve as a reminder of the importance of good experimental design in order to reduce the likelihood of publishing false positive results.