cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Farmers' Mental Health: Perceptions from a Farm Show

Introduction: Current economic and environmental conditions have increased awareness of farmers' mental health. Agribusiness professionals may be important key informants to assist agricultural safety and health professionals in understanding the mental health experience of farmers and inform their potential role in mental health promotion. The objectives of this study were to explore agribusiness personnel's perceptions of their farmer clients' mental health and their perceived role in mental health promotion.Methods: Fifteen brief interviews of agribusiness personnel were conducted across 3 days in July 2018 at Farm Technology Days in Wood County, Wisconsin.Results & Discussion: Many interviewees commented on the mental health status of farmers in Wisconsin, stating farmers are "stressed" and "depressed". However, agribusiness personnel were hesitant about their organization's role in mental health promotion. Several respondents cited lack of training and confidence as barriers to addressing mental health with their clients. Others were optimistic about their organization's role in mental health promotion; however, participation would be mostly passive, stating mental health is a difficult topic to broach with some individuals.Conclusion: To engage agribusiness in mental health promotion, efforts to reduce the stigma of mental health disorders and increase agribusiness representatives' confidence and skills in talking about mental health will be necessary.
Opening the Black Box: Automatically Characterizing Software for Algorithm Selection (Student Abstract).

Meta-algorithmics, the field of leveraging machine learning to use algorithms more efficiently, has achieved impressive performance improvements in many areas of AI. It treats the algorithms to improve on as black boxes – nothing is known about their inner workings. This allows meta-algorithmic techniques to be deployed in many applications, but leaves potential performance improvements untapped by ignoring information that the algorithms could provide. In this paper, we open the black box without sacrificing the universal applicability of meta-algorithmic techniques by automatically analyzing the source code of the algorithms under consideration and show how to use it to improve algorithm selection performance. We demonstrate improvements of up to 82% on the standard ASlib benchmark library.
Counteracting Throwaway Culture in Daily Clinical Practice

Since his election in March 2013, Pope Francis has brought significant attention to the concept of “throwaway culture.” This moral paradigm—which has been defined by Francis in various speeches and...
Review: The Palestinian Idea: Film, Media, and the Radical Imagination, by Greg Burris

Recently published in the Insubordinate Spaces series of Temple University Press, Greg Burris's latest book builds on his past scholarship on race, film, and cultural theory, with a focus on theori...
Guiding Residency Program Educational Goals Using Institutional Keyword Reports from the Ophthalmic Knowledge Assessment Program Examination

Introduction Residency programs receive an institutional keyword report following the annual Ophthalmic Knowledge Assessment Program (OKAP) examination containing the raw number of incorrectly answered questions. Programs would benefit from a method to compare relative performance between subspecialty sections. We propose a technique of normalizing the keyword report to determine relative subspecialty strengths and weaknesses in trainee performance. Methods We retrospectively reviewed our institutional keyword reports from 2017 to 2019. We normalized the percentage of correctly answered questions for each postgraduate year (PGY) level by dividing the percent of correctly answered questions for each subspecialty by the percent correct across all subsections for that PGY level. We repeated this calculation for each PGY level in each subsection for each calendar year of analysis. Results There was a statistically significant difference in mean performance between the subspecialty sections (p = 0.038). We found above average performance in the Uveitis and Ocular Inflammation section (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.02–1.18) and high variability of performance in the Clinical Optics section (95% CI: 0.76–1.34). Discussion The OKAP institutional keyword reports are extremely valuable for residency program self-evaluation. Performance normalized for PGY level and test year can reveal insightful trends into the relative strengths and weaknesses of trainee knowledge and guide data-driven curriculum improvement.
Risk assessment for the establishment of the Asian giant hornet (Vespa mandarinia) in the Pacific Northwest

The recent introduction of the Asian giant hornet (Vespa mandarinia Smith) in the United States in late 2019 has raised concerns about its establishment in the Pacific Northwest and its potential deleterious effects on honey bees and their pollination services in the region. Therefore, we conducted a risk assessment of the establishment of V. mandarinia in Washington and Oregon on a county-by-county basis. Our tier-1 qualitative and semi-quantitative risk assessment relied on the biological requirements and ecological relationships of V. mandarinia in the environments of the Pacific Northwest. We based the risk characterization on climate and habitat suitability estimates for V. mandarinia queens to overwinter and colonize nests, density and distribution of apiaries, and locations of major human-mediated introduction pathways that may increase establishment of the hornet in the counties of Washington and Oregon. Our results suggest that 5 counties in the region could be at low risk, 48 at medium risk, and 22 at high risk of establishment. For Washington, counties at high risk included Clallam, Clark, Cowlitz, Grays Harbor, King, Pierce, Skagit, Snohomish, and Whatcom. The high risk Oregon counties included Benton, Clackamas, Clatsop, Coos, Douglas, Hood River, Lane, Lincoln, Linn, Marion, Multnomah, Polk, and Yamhill. Many of the western counties of both Washington and Oregon were estimated to be at the highest risk of establishment mainly due to their suitable climate for queens to overwinter, dense forest biomass for nest colonization, and proximity to major port and freight hubs in the region. Considering its negative effects, these counties should be prioritized in ongoing monitoring and eradication efforts of V. mandarinia.
Predicting the hydride rim by improving the solubility limits in the Hydride Nucleation-Growth-Dissolution (HNGD) model.

Abstract During operation of a light water reactor, waterside corrosion of the Zircaloy nuclear fuel cladding causes hydrogen pickup. The absorbed hydrogen can redistribute in the cladding driven by existing concentration, stress, and temperature gradients. When the concentration reaches the solubility limit, hydrides precipitate. These hydrides can be more brittle than the Zircaloy matrix, so they can endanger the cladding integrity during a transient if their concentration is too high. In recent years, extensive efforts have been made to understand hydrogen behavior and to develop simulation tools able to predict hydrogen diffusion and hydride precipitation and dissolution. These efforts led to the development of the Hydride Nucleation-Growth-Dissolution (HNGD) model and its implementation into the nuclear fuel performance code Bison. While it offers a significant improvement and accurately predicts the amount of precipitates, this model fails to predict the thickness of the hydride rim under a temperature gradient. The current work presents the limitation of the HNGD model and proposes two hypotheses to improve the model’s accuracy. The first hypothesis introduces a time dependency to the supersolubility to reduce the nucleation barrier as hydrogen atoms find more favorable nucleation sites. The second one introduces a hydride content dependency to the solubility. These hypotheses were validated and implemented into Bison and are now available to the user community. The modified HNGD model accurately predicts the hydride rim thickness, and it was demonstrated that this updated model can be used in Bison to model Zircaloy cladding with a zirconium inner liner. Finally, potential experimental and numerical methods are discussed to further validate these hypotheses.
Internet information literacy: a study of older adults

Internet Information Literacy (IIL) is the ability to critically evaluate the content, structure and type of information found on the Internet, and presumes the basic operational skills needed for computer and Internet literacy. IIL is embedded in modern school curriculum and standards based education. Having been taught technology-based information-seeking skills in school, students develop confidence in their ability to find information using computers and/or the Internet. Senior adults, however, had no computers or instruction in how to find information on the Internet during their schooling, and may have difficulty learning to do so. Senior adults who wish to learn how to use the Internet as a source of information may take an Internet course. Those who take these courses may have age-related physical difficulties while interacting with a computer, or other special needs when in a training situation. Yet they are motivated to learn and have information needs to fulfill. The value of information skills instruction and its effectiveness in providing school students with skills for lifelong learning and information literacy (including IIL) has been validated by research. This study focused on senior adults taking introductory Internet courses: the skills being taught, the motivational strategies used to enhance information skills instruction, and how these skills align with established information skills models and contribute to IIL. Physical interactions with computers and how these impact the ability to conduct Internet research are also reported. Data for this multi-method study were collected through observational field notes, pre- and post-course questionnaires, document analysis and interviews. Content analysis of data identified computer, Internet and information literacy skills, human computer interaction and age-related issues, and motivational strategies used to enhance instruction. The study contributes to the field of Internet information literacy by identifying components from computer, Internet and information literacy that are needed in order to teach older adults how to effectively meet their information needs by using computers and the Internet.
Treating breast cancer through novel inhibitors of the phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase pathway

Recent studies indicate that constitutive signaling through the phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase (PI3K) pathway is a cause of treatment resistance in breast cancer patients. This implies that patients with tumors that exhibit aberrant PI3K signaling may benefit from targeted pathway inhibitors. The first agents to make it to the clinic are the rapamycin analogs. These compounds inhibit the downstream PI3K effector mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin). A study presented in this issue of Breast Cancer Research suggests that recently developed inhibitors of phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase 1, a more proximal target of the PI3K pathway, may provide an alternative route to effective PI3K pathway inhibition for breast cancer treatment.
Swim performance visualization capability

The System Wide Information Management (SWIM) program within the FAA is a key infrastructure program of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), responsible for implementing and providing governance to a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) framework in order to enable effective sharing of information. This implementation is an ongoing evolution that requires different components at geographically different locations, developed by different entities at different times. In order to effectively plan and deploy its infrastructure, SWIM program needs to take into consideration aspects of implementation and schedule of various user programs. They must also predict future National Airspace System (NAS) Enterprise Messaging Service (NEMS) performance in order to effectively budget for and make decisions about the roll-out schedule of the Enterprise Service Bus (ESB) and present these decisions and associated rationale to the executive Capital Investment Team (CIT) on an annual basis. In this paper, we describe a software performance visualization tool that has been developed to study the performance of the ESB. We frame the issues and provide clear rationale for the need for such a tool and also describe the design principles on which this tool has been developed. Further, we present three typical use cases for this tool and conclude by suggesting other areas where this methodology can be applied.
NMR Determination of Oligonucleotide Structure

This unit provides an overview of the use of NMR to determine oligonucleotide structure. It covers basic NMR spectral properties, acquisition of interproton distance restraints and torsion angle restraints, structure refinement, assessment of the quality of the structure obtained. Software programs used in the process are also described.
Evidence for the Periplasmic Location of Hydrogenase in Desulfovibrio gigas

Hydrogenase has been found to be located in the periplasmic space of Desulfovibrio gigas, and it is proposed that hydrogenase plays an important and specific role in interspecies hydrogen transfer.
Ultra-high-Q (>100-million) micro-cavities for stimulated and parametric laser sources

A new chip-based microcavity capable of Q factors as high as 500 million is reviewed. Fiber-coupled Raman and parametric oscillators having microWatt level threshold powers are demonstrated as well as narrow-linewidth erbium lasers.
The concept of yikhes and its transformation during the Soviet period (based on field materials collected in the town of Tulchin, Ukraine)

It is commonly thought that the concept of yikhes (Hebrew, yikhus) refers largely or even solely to the notion of noble descent. As late as 1959, the Standard Jewish Encyclopedia defined yikhes in these terms; and a similar understanding of the term can be found in other leading sources. Using extensive field materials collected under the auspices of the St Petersburg Judaica Centre, this essay demonstrates, however, that yikhes has a wide variety of meanings in the present‐day Jewish community of Tulchin (Ukraine), which is not limited to genealogical implications and may completely ignore them. The range of meanings associated with yikhes includes secular learning, “honorable” (non‐manual) profession, “respect” on the part of other community members, ethical qualities, etc. Due to a partial or complete loss of Yiddish, many residents of the town know the word yikhes solely from expressions such as “yikhes in the bathhouse,” where this word has lost its independent meaning. Through an anthropological ana...
Child as change agent. The potential of children to increase healthy food purchasing

Shoppers make many food choices while buying groceries. Children frequently accompany caregivers, giving them the potential to influence these choices. We aimed to understand low-income shoppers' perceptions of how children influence caregivers' purchasing decisions and how the supermarket environment could be manipulated to allow children to serve as change agents for healthy food purchasing in a primarily African-American community. We conducted thirty in-depth interviews, five follow-up interviews, one supermarket walk-through interview, and four focus groups with adult supermarket shoppers who were regular caregivers for children under age 16. We conducted one focus group with supermarket employees and one in-depth interview with a supermarket manager. Qualitative data were analyzed using iterative thematic coding and memo writing. Caregivers approached grocery shopping with efforts to save money, prevent waste and purchase healthy food for their families, but described children as promoting unplanned, unhealthy food purchases. This influence was exacerbated by the supermarket environment, which participants found to promote unhealthy options and provide limited opportunities for children to interact with healthier foods. Caregivers' suggestions for promoting healthy purchasing for shoppers with children included manipulating the placement of healthy and unhealthy foods and offering opportunities for children to taste and interact with healthy options.
Some comparisons of the structure and evolution of the southern Appalachian–Ouachita orogen and portions of the Trans-European Suture Zone region

Abstract Many aspects of the tectonic history of the Appalachian–Ouachita orogen and the Trans-European suture region are similar. In a tectonic sense, they are geographically linked, because at the end of the Paleozoic, one could travel from Texas to Poland following a continuous orogenic belt. Much of each of these orogenic belts is, however, buried by younger strata, and thus geophysical studies are a key element of efforts to better understand them. Many more geophysical data are needed to provide a comprehensive picture of the deep structure, but in several areas new models of the lithospheric structure are emerging. In this paper, we review some of these models and introduce two new ones for the southern Appalachians. In addition, we explore the implications of these models for the evolution of these orogenic belts, drawing attention to similarities and differences in their structure and evolution. The Appalachian and Caledonian orogens represent temporally parallel development along irregular Late Proterozoic continental margins, but the crustal structure is different because of different accretionary elements and complications in the geometry of the original margins. Lateral transport via thrusting can confuse efforts to tie geologic structures identified on the surface with deep structures. For example, in the Appalachian–Ouachita orogen, the thrust-related transport distance for major features such as the Blue Ridge–Piedmont sheet and the Benton uplift is at least 200 km. On a crustal scale, deformation in the Appalachian–Ouachita orogen varies greatly in style and intensity. In the Ouachita orogen, the Late Proterozoic continental margin seems to be preserved, while in the northern Appalachians crustal-scale deformation is intense. Along the US Appalachians, the major crustal structure variation is the thin, dense crust of Avalonia abutting the relatively thick crust of Laurentia. Along the Ouachita orogen, several large crustal blocks can be identified that are unlike anything seen along the Appalachians.
Phosphorus Losses from an Irrigated Watershed in the Northwestern United States: Case Study of the Upper Snake Rock Watershed

Watersheds utilizing surface water for irrigation often return a portion of the water to a water body. This irrigation return flow often includes sediment and nutrients that reduce the quality of the receiving water body. Research in the 82,000 ha Upper Snake Rock (USR) watershed from 2005 to 2008 showed that, on average, water diverted from the Snake River annually supplied 547 kg/ha of total suspended sediment (TSS), 1.1 kg/ha of total phosphorus (TP) and 0.50 kg/ha of dissolved phosphorus (DP) to the irrigation tract. Irrigation return flow from the USR watershed contributed 414 kg/ha of TSS, 0.71 kg/ha of TP and 0.32 kg/ha of DP back to the Snake River. Significantly more TP flowed into the watershed than returned to the Snake River while there was no significant difference between inflow and return flow loads for TSS and DP. Average TSS and TP concentrations in return flow were 71 and 0.12 mg/L, respectively, which exceeded the TMDL limits of 52 mg/L TSS and 0.075 mg/L TP set for this section of the Snake River. Monitoring inflow and outflow for five water quality ponds constructed to reduce sediment and phosphorus losses from the watershed showed that TSS concentrations were reduced 36 to 75%, but DP concentrations were reduced only 7 to 16%. This research showed that continued implementation of conservation practices should result in irrigation return flow from the USR watershed meeting the TMDL limits for the Snake River.
A K+ Channel Splice Variant Common in Human Heart Lacks a C-terminal Domain Required for Expression of Rapidly Activating Delayed Rectifier Current

We have cloned HERGUSO, a C-terminal splice variant of the human ether-a-go-go-related gene (HERG), the gene encoding the rapid component of the delayed rectifier (IKr), from human heart, and we find that its mRNA is ∼2-fold more abundant than that for HERG1(the originally described cDNA). After transfection of HERGUSO in Ltk − cells, no current was observed. However, coexpression of HERGUSO with HERG1 modified IKr by decreasing its amplitude, accelerating its activation, and shifting the voltage dependence of activation 8.8 mV negative. As with HERGUSO, HERGΔC (a HERG1 construct lacking the C-terminal 462 amino acids) also produced no current in transfected cells. However, IKr was rescued by ligation of 104 amino acids from the C terminus of HERG1 to the C terminus of HERGΔC, indicating that the C terminus of HERG1 includes a domain (≤104 amino acids) that is critical for faithful recapitulation of IKr. The lack of this C-terminal domain not only explains the finding that HERGUSO does not generate IKr but also indicates a similar mechanism for hitherto-uncharacterized long QT syndrome HERG mutations that disrupt the splice site or the C-terminal. We suggest that the amplitude and gating of cardiac IKrdepends on expression of both HERG1 and HERGUSO.
How Can We Make Our Customers Trust Our Systems

As the situations change very often and extensively today, the role of a user becomes increasingly important because it is he or she who really can understand the current situation and make decisions to cope with it. A user cannot operate machines or systems adequately if they cannot trust it. But formerly, machines and systems are very simple so that a user can expect how it would behave. But increasing complexity and diversification makes it more and more difficult. Software introduced the idea of continual prototyping and by evolving its functions step by step to a higher level after a user gets accustomed to it and build up trust in it. This paper points out that if we recall that most of the systems today are the combination of hardware and software, we might as well introduce the concept of continual prototyping into hardware- dominant systems. This would serve for a customer to build up trust more easily so that it is expected he or she can make decisions better and respond quicker and better. As hardware is physical, it has life. But software is non-physical so that it is eternal. If we consider that decommissioning of software is becoming a very big problem, we may utilize the phenomenon of deterioration as an indicator of the remaining life. Thus, if we put advantages of software and hardware together, we may come up with a system which will cancel the disadvantages each other so that it will increase user's confidence.
The structure of complex monoborides in γ-TiAl alloys with Ta and B additions

Abstract Fibrous primary borides grown from the melt in a Ti-48Al-9Ta-4.3B at.% alloy were characterized by conventional and high resolution transmission electron microscopy. The as-cast borides show predominantly the B27 crystal structure of TiB, but with twice as much Ta as Ti in the metal sublattice. The borides contained numerous planar faults parallel to the (100)TiB planes, which multiplied and evolved into long platelike precitates with the structure of TaB (Bf) upon prolonged heat treatment. The initial faults could be described as rotational twins on the (100)TiB plane, giving rise to monolayers of the Bf structure; migration of planar diffusion regions along the needle axis subsequently coarsens the TaB regions. Experimental and computer-generated diffraction patterns were consistent with the orientation relationship anticipated from the twinning model, (100)TiB|(100)TaB and [010]TiB|[001]TaB. High resolution images showed that the Bf precipitates are fully coherent with the parent B27 matrix and only a few atomic layers thick, but extend over many micrometers along the axis of the boride needles. Moreover, microchemical analysis revealed that the structural transformation occurs without apparent solute partitioning. The evolution of the boride structures is discussed in terms of phase stability, growth kinetics and lattice energy considerations.
Insect species diversity, abundance and body size relationships

BIOLOGICAL diversity, population size and body size are interde-pendent1–8, but there is little consensus on the nature or causes of these relations. Here we analyse the most thoroughly sampled ecological community to date, a grassland insect community sample containing 89,596 individuals of 1,167 species. Each taxonomic order had a distinct body size at which both species richness and number of individuals were highest, but these peak sizes varied more than 100-fold among five major orders. These results suggest that there may be fewer undiscovered small insect species than previously thought. Moreover, we found a sur-prisingly strong, simple, but unreported, relation between species richness (S) and the number of individuals (I) within size classes, S = I0.5. Because this held across numerous body types and a 100,000-fold body-size range, there may be a general rule that is independent of body size for the relations among interspecific resource division, abundance and diversity.
Dioxygenyl salts containing doubly charged mononuclear counterions

Abstract Evidence is presented for the existence of (O2+)2MF62−(M=Ni,Mn) salts. These salts are marginally stable up to about 10°C and are characterized by an OO stretching frequency of about 1805 cm−1.
Comparison of calculated sulfate scattering efficiencies as estimated from size-resolved particle measurements at three national locations

Size distributions and resulting optical properties of sulfur aerosols were investigated at three national parks by a Davis Rotating-drum Universal-size-cut Monitoring (DRUM) impactor. Sulfur size distribution measurements for 88, 177, and 315 consecutive time periods were made at Grand Canyon National Park during January and February 1988, Meadview, AZ during July, August, and September 1992, and at Shenandoah National Park during summer, 1990, respectively. The DRUM impactor is designed to collect aerosols with an aerodynamic diameter between 0.07 and 15.0 μm in eight size ranges. Focused beam particle-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) analysis of the aerosol deposits produces a time history of size-resolved elemental composition of varied temporal resolution. As part of the quality assurance protocol, an interagency monitoring of protected visual environments (IMPROVE) channel A sampler collecting 0–2.5 μm diameter particles was operated simultaneously alongside the DRUM sampler. During these sampling periods, the average sulfur mass, interpreted as ammonium sulfate, is 0.49, 2.30, and 10.36 μg m−3 at Grand Canyon, Meadview, and Shenandoah, respectively. The five drum stages were “inverted” using the Twomey (1975) scheme to give 486 size distributions, each made up of 72 discreet pairs of dC/dlog(D) and diameter (D). From these distributions mass mean diameters (Dg), geometric standard deviations (σg), and mass scattering efficiencies (em)) were calculated. The geometric mass mean diameters in ascending order were 0.21 μm at Meadview, 0.32 μm at Grand Canyon, and 0.42 μm at Shenandoah corresponding σg were 2.1, 2.3, and 1.9. Mie theory mass scattering efficiencies calculated from dC/dlog(D) distributions for the three locations were 2.05, 2.59, and 3.81 m2 g−1, respectively. At Shenandoah, mass scattering efficiencies approached five but only when the mass median diameters were approximately 0.4 μm and σg were about 1.5. σg near 1.5 were frequently measured at Shenandoah, rarely at Grand Canyon, and never during the summer at Meadview.
A Comparison Between Conventional and Laser-Excited Luminescence Spectrometry for the Detection of Thenoyltrifluoroacetone-Trioctylphosphine Oxide-Europium and Samarium Complexes in Hexane

Abstract A comparison of conventional luminescence and laser-excited fluorescence spectrometry of the Ln+3-thenoyltrifluoroacetone-trioctylphosphine oxide (TTA-TOPO) system has been carried out in hexane solution for Eu +3 and Sm +3. The maximum excitation\emission wavelengths were 339\613 nm and 339\641 nm for the europium and samarium complexes, respectively. The limits of detection (LODs) were 6.0 ng/L for Eu +3 and 180 ng/L for Sm+3 with conventional fluorescence, and with laser-excited fluorescence using a 325 nm He-Cd laser, LODs were 7.0 and 47 ng/L for Eu+3 and Sm +3, respectively.
Systolic Blood Pressure Tracking Over 25 to 30 Years and Cognitive Performance in Older Adults

Objective—To determine the extent to which individual changes in systolic blood pressure (SBP) over a 30-year interval are associated with differential neuropsychological outcomes in old age. Methods—Seven hundred seventeen survivors from the Western Collaborative Group Study, a longitudinal study of cardiovascular risk factors now in its 38th year of follow-up, with blood pressures measured in middle age (mean=45 years) and in old age (mean=75 years) and neuropsychological tests administered at follow-up were included in this analysis. Participants were grouped according to 30-year change in SBP (increased, decreased, or “normal”). Analyses focused on comparisons of neuropsychological performance of “high SBP trackers” (ie, those with persistent SBP≥140 mm Hg throughout adult life) and of SBP “decreasers” with the performance of those whose SBP was either stable or changed in an expected way over time. Results—Only 7.5% of participants had elevated SBP in middle age, but 43.8% of participants had elevate...
Incremental Health Care Utilization and Expenditures for Chronic Rhinosinusitis in the United States

Objectives:I determined incremental increases in health care expenditures and utilization associated with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS).Methods:Patients with a reported diagnosis of CRS were extracted from the 2007 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey medical conditions file and linked to the consolidated expenditures file. The patients with CRS were then compared to patients without CRS to determine differences in health care utilization (office visits, emergency facility visits, and prescriptions filled), as well as differences in health care expenditures (total health care costs, office visit costs, prescription medication costs, and self-expenditures) by use of demographically adjusted and comorbidity-adjusted multivariate models.Results:An estimated 11.1 ± 0.48 million adult patients reported having CRS in 2007 (4.9% ± 0.2% of the US population). The additional incremental health care utilizations associated with CRS relative to patients without CRS for office visits, emergency facility visits, and number...
A rapid method for determining the oxidation of n-3 fatty acids

The stability of unsaturated fatty acids to oxidation was monitored by following gas chromatographic (GC) analyses of headspace volatiles in comparison to changes in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and increases in malonaldehydevia the 2-thiobarbituric (TBA) assay. Pure standards of linoleic acid (Lo) and n-3 fatty acids [eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)] were added to headspace vials, equilibrated in air for 10 min, followed by heating at 80°C in teflon-capped vials for different time intervals. Headspace analysis showed increases in acetaldehyde, propenal, and propanal, corresponding to the oxidation of n-3 fatty acids, whereas hexanal production corresponded to losses of linoleic acid. The analysis of propanal by GC-headspace after only five minutes of heating appeared to be the most effective method of monitoring the oxidation of n-3 fatty acids, as indicated by correlations between TBA values and loss of PUFA. The oxidation of Lo, EPA and DHA appeared to be a function of the number of double bonds. Correlations between PUFA depletion, TBA values and volatile formation indicate that under the prescribed conditions of this experiment, GC-headspace analysis of propanal and pentane/hexanal is an excellent method for following the oxidation of selected n-3 fatty acids and linoleic acid.
Inhibition of membrane-bound carbonic anhydrase enhances subretinal fluid absorption and retinal adhesiveness.

· Background: The clinical use of currently available carbonic anhydrase (CA) inhibitors is limited by systemic side-effects, thought to result from the inhibition of intracellular CA isoenzymes. This study investigates how benzolamide, a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor which does not readily penetrate cell membranes, modulates retinal pigment epithelium functions relative to acetazolamide, which diffuses into the cytosol. · Methods: Small retinal detachments were made in Dutch rabbits by injecting saline into the subretinal space. Detachment height was measured using a dual He-Ne beam YAG laser focusing system, and the fluid absorption rate was calculated before and after intravenous injections of saline, acetazolamide or benzolamide. Retinal adhesiveness was determined by peeling the retina from the RPE and measuring the amount of adherent pigment. · Results: The baseline fluid absorption rate of 0.04 μl/mm2/h was unchanged after injection of 0.9% NaCl or low-dose benzolamide (5 mg/kg). The absorption increased to about 0.14 μl/mm2/h after higher benzolamide doses (20–40 mg/kg) and to 0.13 μl/mm2/h after acetazolamide (20 mg/kg). Both acetazolamide and benzolamide significantly slowed the post-enucleation failure of retinal adhesiveness. · Conclusion: Since benzolamide had effects similar to acetazolamide, inhibition of membrane-bound CA appears to be sufficient to enhance subretinal fluid absorption and retinal adhesiveness. Membrane-specific CA inhibitors may therefore be of clinical value if they minimize side-effects from intracellular CA inhibition.
Similarity relation for vortex-asymmetry onset on slender pointed forebodies

References 1 Prandtl, L., "On Boundary Layers in Three-Dimensional Flow," Ministry Aircraft Production (Volkenrode), Reports and Translations, Vol. 64, May 1946. Struminskii, V. V., "Sideslip in a Viscous Compressible Gas," NACATM1276, 1951. 3 Jones, R. T., "Effects of Sweepback on Boundary Layer and Separation," NACATN 1402, 1947. 4 Sears, W. R., "The Boundary Layer of Yawed Cylinders," Journal of Aeronautical Sciences, Vol. 15, Jan. 1948, pp. 49-52. 5 Cooke, J. C., "The Boundary Layer of a Class of Infinite Yawed Cylinders," Proceedings of Cambridge Philosophical Society, Vol. 46, 1950, pp. 645-648. Cumpsty, N. A. and Head, M. R., "The Calculation of the ThreeDimensional Turbulent Boundary Layers, Part I," Aeronautical Quarterly, Vol. 18, Feb. 1967, pp. 55-83. Mager, A., "Generalization of Boundary Layer Momentum Integral Equations to Three Dimensional Flows Including Those of Rotating Systems," NACA Rept. 1067, 1952. Thompson, B. G. J., "A New Two-Parameter Family of Mean Velocity Profiles for Incompressible Turbulent Boundary Layers on Smooth Walls," ARC R&M 3463, 1965. 9 Stock, H. W., "Integral Method for the Calculation of ThreeDimensional Laminar and Turbulent Boundary Layers," NASA TM75320, 1978. Squire, L. C., "The Three Dimensional Boundary-Layer Equations and Some Power Series Solutions," ARC R&M 3005, 1957. Myring, D. F., "An Integral Prediction Method for ThreeDimensional Turbulent Boundary Layers in Incompressible Flow," RAETR 70147, 1970. 12 Smith, P. D., "An Integral Prediction Method for ThreeDimensional Compressible Turbulent Boundary Layers," ARC R&M 3739, 1974.
PID8: COSTS OF HEALTH CARE FOR HEPATITIS C-INFECTED MEMBERS IN A MANAGED CARE ORGANIZATION (MCO)

The current literature provides limited information about the cost-burden of Hepatitis C. OBJECTIVES: To identify all medical and pharmacy costs accrued by members with Hepatitis C in a Medicaid MCO during 1999. METHODS: Hepatitis C-infected patients were identified from a database of continuously enrolled members from an inner-city Medicaid MCO in Philadelphia during 1999 using ICD-9 codes indicative of Hepatitis C. Medical and pharmacy claims for these identified members during this study period were obtained and analyzed. A subanalysis comparing patients prescribed combination ribavirin/interferon alfa-2b therapy with patients not prescribed combination therapy was performed. Costs were reported as reimbursements paid for medical claims and pharmacy claims (AWP—14.5%). RESULTS: From a cohort of 73,869 members, 395 members (0.535%) met inclusion criteria for Hepatitis C. The mean age was 46.5 years (SD = 9.5; range = 4–81) and 213 (53.9%) were male. These members had 17,507 medical claims resulting in payments of $4,075,082. Inpatient hospital services accounted for 48% of these costs. There were 27,681 pharmacy claims that totaled $1,495,096. Sixty patients received combination therapy, which totaled $375,468 in pharmacy claims (n = 444). Comparing patients prescribed combination therapy and patients not prescribed combination therapy, medical costs were $2,580/member and $11,702/member, respectively. In addition, pharmacy costs were $8,610/member and $2,920/member, respectively. Total costs in 1999 for patients prescribed combination therapy was $11,190/member and for patients not prescribed combination therapy was $14,622/member. These results were not adjusted for disease severity. CONCLUSIONS: Hepatitis C is a very costly disease. Total health care costs to this Medicaid MCO during 1999 for the 395 members identified with Hepatitis C exceeded $5.5 million. In addition, total costs were less for members prescribed combination ribavirin/interferon alfa-2b therapy compared with members not prescribed combination therapy. Further investigation is needed to explain the observed differences in health care expenditures between these two populations.
Calculations of Long Range Potential Wells for Cs2 Molecules below the Cs (ns, n ≥ 8) + Cs (6s) Asymptotes†

The weakly bound long range potential curves between a highly excited Cs* (ns, 8 ≤ n ≤ 20) atom and a ground state Cs atom are calculated using simple but reasonably accurate models for dispersion and exchange interactions. Such curves will help in the design of experiments to observe corresponding spectra.
Wireless authentication using remote passwords

Current wireless authentication mechanisms typically rely on inflexible shared secrets or a heavyweight public-key infrastructure with user-specific digital certificates and, as such, lack general support for environments with dynamic user bases where guest access is frequent. Simple Authentication for the Web (SAW) facilitates dynamic user bases in the context of web site logins by enabling users to authenticate to personal messaging identifiers (e.g., email addresses, IM handles, cell phone numbers). SAW, however, is ill-suited for wireless authentication because, in most cases, it is dependent on client-side Internet connectivity. Wireless Authentication using Remote Passwords (WARP) overcomes this constraint by building a hybrid protocol that combines the principles of SAW authentication with the Secure Remote Password (SRP) protocol.
Model of reduction

Neurophilosophy: Toward a Unified Science of the Mind–Brain. By Patricia Smith Churchland. MIT Press: 1986. Pp.546. 27.50,27.50.
LGBT health research: introduction to the special issue.

The field of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) health has emerged in fits and starts over the past 30 years. Prior to 1970, most of the articles in the health care literature were abou...
Potentiation of GABAergic synaptic transmission in the rostral nucleus of the solitary tract

Whole-cell recordings were made from neurons in the rostral nucleus of the solitary tract in horizontal brainstem slices. Monosynaptic GABAA receptor-mediated inhibitory postsynaptic potentials were evoked by single stimulus shocks or by high-frequency tetanic stimulation in the presence of glutamate receptor blockers. While single stimulus-evoked inhibitory postsynaptic potentials had variable amplitudes, tetanic stimulation-induced, hyperpolarizing postsynaptic potentials were of a more constant amplitude. Furthermore, tetanic stimulation resulted in potentiation of the amplitude of single stimulus shock-evoked inhibitory postsynaptic potentials. Of 55 neurons that were tested, potentiation lasted over 30 min for 11, 10-30 min for 13, less than 10 min for 23 and no potentiation occurred in eight. Tetanic stimulation did not result in potentiation of the tetanic stimulus-evoked hyperpolarizing postsynaptic potentials. Both the single stimulus shock- and tetanic stimulus-evoked potentials had similar inhibition concentration-response curves to the GABAA antagonist, bicuculline methiodide (EC50 = 0.75 and 0.83, respectively), indicating that they were mediated by the same postsynaptic receptors. By comparing the effect of bicuculline methiodide on the amplitude of the single stimulus shock-evoked inhibitory postsynaptic potentials and the tetanic stimulus-evoked hyperpolarizing potentials, we concluded that a single stimulus shock does not activate all postsynaptic GABAA receptors. However, tetanic stimulation results in activation of all postsynaptic GABAA receptors and induces long-lasting changes in the presynaptic GABAergic neuron. These long-lasting changes of the presynaptic neuron facilitate the release of GABA during single stimulus shock and, as a consequence, more postsynaptic receptors are activated during single stimulus shock-evoked synaptic transmission. This conclusion is supported by the results of experiments in which the extracellular Ca2+ concentration was manipulated to change the amount of neurotransmitter released from the presynaptic GABAergic terminals. The single stimulus shock-evoked inhibitory postsynaptic potentials were sensitive to the extracellular Ca2+ concentration, whereas tetanic stimulus-evoked inhibitory post-synaptic potentials were essentially insensitive to extracellular Ca2+ concentration. The relationship between the single stimulus shock-evoked inhibitory postsynaptic potential amplitude and extracellular Ca2+ concentration indicates that, in control physiological saline containing 2.5 mM Ca2+, a single stimulus shock activates less than half the postsynaptic GABA receptors. The phenomenon of long-lasting potentiation of inhibitory transmission within the rostral nucleus of the solitary tract may be important in the processing of gustatory information and play a role in taste-guided behaviors.
Queer eye for a gay guy: Using market-specific symbols in advertising to attract gay consumers without alienating the mainstream

Although advertisers have flooded gay and lesbian print media in recent years, it is estimated that more than half of the gay and lesbian population does not read gay media. Hence, this study addresses the question: How may marketers target gays and lesbians in mainstream media without alienating heterosexual consumers? As such, this study assesses responses of both heterosexual and homosexual consumers to advertising content that includes mainstream imagery, implicit gay and lesbian imagery, and explicit gay or lesbian imagery to provide advertisers with a better understanding of how to effectively crossover into mainstream media with gay-targeted advertisements. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Characterization of the progeny of pre-T cells maintained in vitro by IL-3: Appearance in the periphery and Vβ utilization in vivo

Abstract We have recently demonstrated that bone marrow-resident cells, which are able to repopulate the thymus of irradiated recipient mice (pre-T cells), can be maintained in vitro for at least 2 weeks in the presence of exogenous IL-3. Because this marrow culture system can be applied to the study of early T cell differentiation, it is important to ascertain the extent to which in vitro culture of the pre-T cells might alter the T cell progeny which can develop from them. In previous work, we showed that the progeny of cultured pre-T cells appeared to develop in a kinetically normal fashion within the thymus of recipients and that the acquisition of key developmental markers (IL-2R and CD3) was identical in the progeny of fresh and cultured pre-T cells. Here, we report the results of experiments carried out to characterize the progeny of cultured pre-T cells which were found in the peripheral lymphoid tissues several weeks following intrathymic transfer to irradiated recipients. We found no remarkable differences between the progeny of cultured or fresh marrow cells with respect to the timing of their appearance in the periphery nor their expression of CD4 or CD8. By studying the patterns of utilization of five different Vβ gene products by the T cells derived from fresh or cultured bone marrow, we were able to test the susceptibility of both sets of progeny to both positive and negative selection pressures during their in vivo maturation. These experiments established that the progeny of cultured marrow cells were equally susceptible to TCR repertoire selection, as were the progeny of fresh bone marrow cells, and that the process of in vitro growth did not alter the potential TCR repertoire of the pre-T Cells.
High grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia is a disease

High grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN) is now widely accepted as the main premalignant lesion that has the potential to progress to prostate adeno-carcinoma. High grade PIN is a standard diagnosis that must be included as part of the reported pathologic evaluation of prostate biopsies. Premalignant lesions that affect other organs have been identified and are treated when diagnosed such that the premalignant lesions itself are a disease ( eg, carcinoma in situ of the bladder, colon polyps, and cervical dysplasia). Urologists should recognize that high grade PIN is a dangerous lesion and that it should be aggressively managed either by saturation biopsies of the prostate following the diagnosis of high grade PIN, or the more common recommendation—repeated prostate biopsies every 3 to 6 months for 2 years, then annually. Treatment of these precancerous lesions would appear to be of clinical benefit notwithstanding the potential for cancer prevention. These clinical benefits would reduce morbidity, enhance the quality of life, delay surgery or radiation, and increase the interval for surveillance requiring invasive procedures.
Ring-shaped Rad51 Paralog Protein Complexes Bind Holliday Junctions and Replication Forks as Visualized by Electron Microscopy

In mammals, there are five Rad51 paralogs that form two distinct complexes in vivo. One complex is composed of Rad51B-Rad51C-Rad51D-Xrcc2 (BCDX2) and the other Rad51C-Xrcc3 (CX3). We co-expressed and purified human BCDX2 and CX3 protein complexes from insect cells and investigated their binding preferences and structure using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). We visualized the binding of BCDX2 and CX3 to DNA templates containing replication forks and Holliday junctions, intermediates observed during DNA replication and recombination, respectively. We show that both complexes bind with exceptionally high specificity to the DNA junctions with little binding observed elsewhere on the DNAs. Further analysis of the structure of free or DNA-bound BCDX2 and CX3 complexes revealed a multimeric ring structure whose subunits are arranged into a flat disc around a central channel. This work provides the first EM visualization of BCDX2 and CX3 binding to Holliday junctions and forked DNAs and suggests the complexes form ring-shaped structures.