cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Oh What a Tangled Web We Weave: Mind Mapping As Creative Spark to Optimize Transactional Clinic Assignments

Client assignments chart a course for a student’s learning experience in a live-client transactional law clinic. Assignment decisions are multifaceted, requiring careful consideration to balance educational objectives for law students with professional obligations to clinic clients. Mind mapping can be employed by clinical law faculty to organize, synthesize, and creatively evaluate information to make client assignments that effectively balance pedagogical objectives with client needs. Mind mapping is a visual tool that has inspired thinkers from da Vinci to Picasso to understand and analyze information in innovative ways. New electronic mind mapping applications make this tool easily accessible to clinical faculty, providing functionalities that expand its creative potential. Grounded in transactional clinic design principles and the author’s experiences with mind mapping at the University of Nebraska College of Law, this article provides readers with a detailed road map for utilization of electronic mind mapping in a live-client transactional law clinic.
Mainstream upflow nitritation-anammox system with hybrid anaerobic pretreatment: Long-term performance and microbial community dynamics.

Abstract Mainstream nitritation-anammox is of strong interest to energy- and resource-efficient domestic wastewater treatment. However, there lack in-depth studies of pretreatment, tests of actual wastewater, and examination of long-term performance. Herein, an upflow nitritation-anammox granular reactor has been investigated to treat primary effluent with a hybrid anaerobic reactor (HAR) as pretreatment for more than 300 days. This system achieved 92% of COD removal, 75% of which was accomplished by the HAR, and had an average final effluent COD concentration of 22 mg L −1 . More than 90% of ammonium was removed in the nitritation-anammox reactor, achieving a nitrogen removal rate of 81.0 g N m −3 d −1 in the last stage. The accumulation of sulfate-reducing bacteria in the HAR evidenced the effect of sulfate on COD removal and subsequent nitrogen removal. Anammox bacteria (predominantly Ca. Jettenia asiatica ) accounted for up to 40.2% of total granular communities, but their abundance decreased over time in the suspended communities. The dynamics of major metabolisms and functional genes involved in nitrogen conversion were predicted by PICRUSt based on the taxonomic data, providing more insights into the functions of the microbial communities. These results have demonstrated the effectiveness and importance of anaerobic pretreatment to successful mainstream nitritation-anammox.
The Hebrew School Experience: A Phenomenological Analysis of Students’ Perceptions

Abstract This study uses phenomenological analysis to examine the perceptions of students attending a supplementary Hebrew school in a New England suburb. These students have ambivalent feelings about being Jewish. They equate being Jewish with being different, and they believe being Jewish has only a minor effect on their lives. They perceive the goals of Hebrew school on three levels: 1) The immediate level of learning prayers, learning about their religion, and learning Hebrew; 2) The long term goal of Bar/Bat Mitzvah; and 3) The ultimate goal of transmitting Jewish traditions to future generations. Their perceptions about Hebrew school differ markedly and range from boring to fun. Positive aspects of Hebrew school mentioned by all students include socializing and informality of classes. A negative aspect was the inconvenience of the Hebrew school schedule. Implications drawn from this study are that the Hebrew school ought to strive to maintain practical goals and a flexible curriculum, classroom envi...
Ultrasound Elastography of Thyroid Nodules

Elastography technologies provide a new dimension in the evaluation of thyroid nodules. B-mode ultrasound imaging creates visualization of thyroid nodules but has a low sensitivity for predicting malignancy. Strain and shear wave elastography are next-generation technologies in evaluating thyroid nodules. They investigate differences in the mechanical properties of structures by applying an external force and monitoring the deformation response. Recent studies have demonstrated that strain and shear wave elastography stratify the malignancy risk for thyroid nodules as a single variable and in conjunction with other B-mode ultrasound features. Elastography can be added to B-mode ultrasound examinations of thyroid nodules. These technologies may improve our ability to detect thyroid cancer and lead to fewer unnecessary fine needle aspiration biopsies and thyroid surgeries. However, more prospective studies are required to determine the precise value of these new technologies in specific thyroid nodule subgroups.
iTrack: Tracking Indicator LEDs on APs to Bootstrap mmWave Beam Acquisition and Steering

We present iTrack, a system which steers mmWave beams at mobile devices by tracking the indicator LEDs on wireless APs to passively acquire direction estimates, and demonstrate that iTrack acquires and maintains beam alignment at the narrowest beamwidth level even in case of device mobility, without incurring any training overhead. Our implementation on custom dual-band hardware testbed shows that iTrack acquires direction estimates within 4.5 degrees of the ground truth and achieves beam steering accuracy of more than 97% while in tracking mode, without incurring any in-band training or feedback.
Clinical AP Studies

Clinical studies ranging from investigational experiments to clinical trials that compare alternate treatments and control techniques are listed.
Theory and applications of structured light single pixel imaging

Many single-pixel imaging techniques have been developed in recent years. Though the methods of image acquisition vary considerably, the methods share unifying features that make general analysis possible. Furthermore, the methods developed thus far are based on intuitive processes that enable simple and physically-motivated reconstruction algorithms, however, this approach may not leverage the full potential of single-pixel imaging. We present a general theoretical framework of single-pixel imaging based on frame theory, which enables general, mathematically rigorous analysis. We apply our theoretical framework to existing single-pixel imaging techniques, as well as provide a foundation for developing more-advanced methods of image acquisition and reconstruction. The proposed frame theoretic framework for single-pixel imaging results in improved noise robustness, decrease in acquisition time, and can take advantage of special properties of the specimen under study. By building on this framework, new methods of imaging with a single element detector can be developed to realize the full potential associated with single-pixel imaging.
RNA interfering molecule delivery from in situ forming biodegradable hydrogels for enhancement of bone formation in rat calvarial bone defects.

Abstract RNA interference (RNAi) may be an effective and valuable tool for promoting the growth of functional tissue, as short interfering RNA (siRNA) and microRNA (miRNA) can block the expression of genes that have negative effects on tissue regeneration. Our group has recently reported that the localized and sustained presentation of siRNA against noggin (siNoggin) and miRNA-20a from in situ forming poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) hydrogels enhanced osteogenic differentiation of encapsulated human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs). Here, the capacity of the hydrogel system to accelerate bone formation in a rat calvarial bone defect model is presented. After 12 weeks post-implantation, the hydrogels containing encapsulated hMSCs and miRNA-20a resulted in more bone formation in the defects than the hydrogels containing hMSCs without siRNA or with negative control siRNA. This localized and sustained RNA interfering molecule delivery system may provide an excellent platform for healing bony defects and other tissues. Statement of Significance Delivery of RNAi molecules may be a valuable strategy to guide cell behavior for tissue engineering applications, but to date there have been no reports of a biomaterial system capable of both encapsulation of cells and controlled delivery of incorporated RNA. Here, we present PEG hydrogels that form in situ via Michael type reaction, and that permit encapsulation of hMSCs and the concomitant controlled delivery of siNoggin and/or miRNA-20a. These RNAs were chosen to suppress noggin, a BMP-2 antagonist, and/or PPAR-γ, a negative regulator of BMP-2-mediated osteogenesis, and therefore promote osteogenic differentiation of hMSCs and subsequent bone repair in critical-sized rat calvarial defects. Simultaneous delivery of hMSCs and miRNA-20a enhanced repair of these defects compared to hydrogels containing hMSCs without siRNA or with negative control siRNA. This in situ forming PEG hydrogel system offers an exciting platform for healing critical-sized bone defects by localized, controlled delivery of RNAi molecules to encapsulated hMSCs and surrounding cells.
On Validating Parallel Architectures via Graph Embeddings

A viable multi-purpose parallel architecture must exhibit many qualities, including: technological feasibility, low communication overhead, robustness in the face of faults, and programmability. The maturity and reliability of techniques for detecting and studying these desiderata decrease rapidly in the order of their listing. The issues of technological feasibility and communication overhead are relatively well understood; progress is being made on the problem of detecting and enhancing the robustness of proposed architectures; but the issue of programmability has not yet even been formulated in a generally accepted way. We extrapolate here from joint work with S. N. Bhatt, F. R. K. Chung, L. S. Heath, and F. T. Leighton, to propose an avenue for assessing the programmability of a proposed parallel architecture, using the formal tool of graph embeddings. As is common, we represent the communication structure of a parallel architecture as an undirected graph, and we seek efficient embeddings of a variety of specific graph families in the architecture graph. We choose the graph families to abstract the intertask dependency structures of popular algorithmic strategies, such as divide-and-conquer and convolution. We illustrate the approach by describing recent studies of optimal embeddings in the Hypercube architecture.
Atmospheric Modelling and Air-Sea-Ice Interaction

General circulation models have been relied upon extensively for weather and climate studies in the Arctic, and are an important tool for studying air-sea-ice interactions in high latitudes. The field of GCM modelling is a well-developed branch of the atmospheric sciences, and its evolution has greatly depended upon techniques developed in other disciplines, especially numerical analysis, geophysical fluid dynamics, turbulence, and radiative transfer.
Model for Effects of Degradation on Polymer Drag Reduction

The effects of molecular weight decrease caused by degradation upon the drag reduction of a polymer in solution may be modeled by using either the drag reduction model of Virk or the correlation of Rodriguez, Zakin and Patterson. The results of the use of these two approaches is summarized in this paper. Their uses for engineering design considerations are compared.
Meeting in the Middle: The Role of Mutual Biracial Friends in Cross-Race Friendships

Social network analysis was used to examine the role of having a mutual biracial friend on cross-race friendship nominations among monoracial sixth-grade students (Mage = 10.56 years) in two racially diverse middle schools (n = 385; n = 351). Monoracial youth were most likely to choose same-race peers as friends but more likely to choose biracial than different-race peers as friends, suggesting that racial homophily may operate in an incremental way to influence friendships. Monoracial different-race youth were also more likely to be friends if they had a mutual biracial friend. The findings shed light on the unique role that biracial youth play in diverse friendship networks. Implications for including biracial youth in studies of cross-race friendship are discussed.
Temperature Dependence Study of the Kinetics and Product Yields of the HO2 + CH3C(O)O2 Reaction by Direct Detection of OH and HO2 Radicals Using 2f-IR Wavelength Modulation Spectroscopy.

The HO2 + CH3C(O)O2 reaction consists of three product channels: CH3C(O)OOH + O2 (R1a), CH3C(O)OH + O3 (R1b), and OH + CH3C(O)O + O2 (R1c). The overall rate constant ( k1) and product yields (α1a, α1b, and α1c) were determined over the atmospherically relevant temperature range of 230-294 K at 100 Torr in N2. Time-resolved kinetics measurements were performed in a pulsed laser photolysis experiment in a slow flow cell by employing simultaneous infrared (IR) and ultraviolet (UV) absorption spectroscopy. HO2 and CH3C(O)O2 were formed by Cl-atom reactions with CH3OH and CH3CHO, respectively. Heterodyne near- and mid-infrared (NIR and MIR) wavelength modulation spectroscopy (WMS) was employed to selectively detect HO2 and OH radicals. Ultraviolet absorption at 225 and 250 nm was used to detect various peroxy radicals as well as ozone (O3). These experimental techniques enabled direct measurements of α1c and α1b via time-resolved spectroscopic detection in the MIR and the UV, respectively. At each temperature, experiments were performed at various ratios of initial HO2 and CH3C(O)O2 concentrations to quantify the secondary chemistry. The Arrhenius expression was found to be k1( T) = 1.38-0.63+1.17 × 10-12 exp[(730 ± 170)/ T] cm3 molecule-1 s-1. α1a was temperature-independent while α1b and α1c decreased and increased, respectively, with increasing temperatures. These trends are consistent with the current recommendation by the IUPAC data evaluation. Hydrogen-bonded adducts of HO2 with the precursors, HO2·CH3OH and HO2·CH3CHO, played a role at lower temperatures; as part of this work, rate enhancements of the HO2 self-reaction due to reactions of the adducts with HO2 were also measured.
Assuring Gender Safety and Equity in Health Care: The Time for Action Is Now

As in other industries, sexual harassment is a pervasive problem in health care and medicine, reported by up to 50% of medical students, faculty, and staff. This commentary describes the priorities...
Functional synapse types via characterization of short-term synaptic plasticity

Abstract The strengths of synaptic connections dynamically change depending on the history of synaptic events, which is referred to as short-term plasticity (STP). While STP’s underlying mechanisms are well researched, its exact functions remain poorly understood. This is in part due to the diverse patterns of STP experimentally reported. Recently, the Allen Institute for Brain Science has launched the synaptic physiology pipeline to characterize the diverse properties of synapses. Since this pipeline generates a large-scale survey of synapses in mouse primary visual cortex using highly standardized experimental protocols, it provides a unique opportunity to study diverse patterns of STP. Here, we develop an end-to-end workflow that can characterize STP from the Allen Institute for Brain Science pipeline data and conduct network simulations to infer STP’s functions. Employing this workflow, we find 1) that diverse patterns of STP exist even in the same synapse classes and 2) that postsynaptic neurons’ responses have distinct characteristics depending on STP.
Origin and Differentiation of Osteoclasts

Abstract Bone remodeling occurs through the interactions of two major cell lineages, osteoblasts, which mediates bone formation, and osteoclasts, which mediate bone resorption. This review provides a through introduction to the myeloid precursors of osteoclasts, the signals that induce their differentiation, the signaling pathways and transcription factors that control their differentiation, fusion and resorptive actions.
Potential biomarker identification for Friedreich's ataxia using overlapping gene expression patterns in patient cells and mouse dorsal root ganglion

Friedreich's ataxia (FA) is a neurodegenerative disease with no approved therapy that is the result of frataxin deficiency. The identification of human FA blood biomarkers related to disease severity and neuro-pathomechanism could support clinical trials of drug efficacy. To try to identify human biomarkers of neuro-pathomechanistic relevance, we compared the overlapping gene expression changes of primary blood and skin cells of FA patients with changes in the Dorsal Root Ganglion (DRG) of the KIKO FA mouse model. As DRG is the primary site of neurodegeneration in FA, our goal was to identify which changes in blood and skin of FA patients provide a 'window' into the FA neuropathomechanism inside the nervous system. In addition, gene expression in frataxin-deficient neuroglial cells and FA mouse hearts were compared for a total of 5 data sets. The overlap of these changes strongly supports mitochondrial changes, apoptosis and alterations of selenium metabolism. Consistent biomarkers were observed, including three genes of mitochondrial stress (MTIF2, ENO2), apoptosis (DDIT3/CHOP), oxidative stress (PREX1), and selenometabolism (SEPW1). These results prompted our investigation of the GPX1 activity as a marker of selenium and oxidative stress, in which we observed a significant change in FA patients. We believe these lead biomarkers that could be assayed in FA patient blood as indicators of disease severity and progression, and also support the involvement of mitochondria, apoptosis and selenium in the neurodegenerative process.
Tunneling and the Energy Gap in the High-Temperature Superconductors

We argue that, when taken as a whole, the available tunneling data provide strong evidence for an energy gap in 123 YBaCuO and 2212 BiSrCaCuO. A value of 2Δ/k Tc ≃ 6–7 is deduced using data for which both the gap and the gap opening transition temperature are available. The data are compared with recent Raman and infrared reflectance data.
Cutaneous manifestations of infections: an update for general physicians.

ABSTRACT Infection rashes can present in a number of different ways, some giving a reactive pattern in the skin to infection elsewhere in the body, while others reflect infection within the affected skin itself. Recognising the possible systemic symptoms, characteristic distribution and morphology of rashes can lead to a high degree of accuracy in making a clinical diagnosis in the clinic room/at the bedside that can be confirmed with a few simple laboratory tests.
Ibrutinib Restores Tumor-specific Adaptive Immunity in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

CLL is characterized by early and profound immune suppression and reversal of these effects is essential to improve patient outcome. Targeted therapy with small molecule inhibitors such as ibrutinib is highly effective and tolerable. Emerging data suggests that CLL patients responding to ibrutinib therapy can recover anti-CLL innate immune cytotoxicity.
Learning by drawing: When is it worth the time and effort?

Abstract Two experiments compared the effects of learning by drawing to studying instructor-provided visuals on learning outcomes, learning time, and cognitive load. College students studied a text on the human circulatory system and completed comprehension and transfer tests. In Experiment 1 (N = 107), students studied the text with provided visuals (provided visuals) or generated their own drawings from the text with text-based support (verbally-supported drawing) or without support (unsupported drawing). Results showed that while the verbally-supported drawing condition spent significantly more time and experienced significantly higher cognitive load than the provided visuals condition, there were no differences across the three conditions in learning outcomes. In Experiment 2 (N = 85), students studied the text with provided visuals (provided visuals) or generated drawings from the text with provided visuals as feedback (visually-supported drawing). Results showed that the visually-supported drawing condition spent significantly more time and experienced significantly higher cognitive load than the provided visuals condition but also performed significantly better than the provided visuals condition on the comprehension test. These findings suggest generating drawings prior to studying provided visuals is worth the time and effort.
Sensory Organization Test Conditions Influence Postural Strategy Rather than Footwear or Workload

Background: Postural strategies such as ankle, hip, or combined ankle-hip strategies are used to maintain optimal postural stability, which can be influenced by the footwear type and physiological workload. Purpose: This paper reports previously unreported postural strategy scores during the six conditions of the sensory organization test (SOT). Methods: Fourteen healthy males (age: 23.6 ± 1.2 years; height: 181 ± 5.3 cm; mass: 89.2 ± 14.6 kg) were tested for postural strategy adopted during SOT in three types of occupational footwear (steel-toed work boot, tactical work boot, low-top work shoe) every 30 min during a 4-h simulated occupational workload. Postural strategy scores were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance at 0.05 alpha level. Results: Significant differences among postural strategy scores were only evident between SOT conditions, and but not between footwear type or the workload. Conclusions: Findings indicate that occupational footwear and occupational workload did not cause a significant change in reliance on postural strategies. The significant changes in postural strategy scores were due to the availability of accurate and/or conflicting sensory feedback during SOT conditions. In SOT conditions where all three types of sensory feedback was available, the ankle strategy was predominantly adopted, while more reliance on hip strategy occurred in conditions with absent or conflicting sensory feedback.
Reduced Basis Approximation and a Posteriori Error Estimation for Parametrized Parabolic PDEs: Application to Real-Time Bayesian Parameter Estimation

In this paper we consider reduced basis approximation and a posteriori error estimation for linear functional outputs of affinely parametrized linear and non-linear parabolic partial differential equations. The essential ingredients are Galerkin projection onto a low-dimensional space associated with a smooth ``parametric manifold'' --- dimension reduction; efficient and effective Greedy and POD-Greedy sampling methods for identification of optimal and numerically stable approximations --- rapid convergence; rigorous and sharp a posteriori error bounds (and associated stability factors) for the linear-functional outputs of interest --- certainty; and Offline-Online computational decomposition strategies --- minimum marginal cost for high performance in the real-time/embedded (e.g., parameter estimation, control) and many-query (e.g., design optimization, uncertainty quantification, multi- scale) contexts. In this paper we first present reduced basis approximation and a posteriori error estimation for general linear parabolic equations and subsequently for a nonlinear parabolic equation, the incompressible Navier-- Stokes equations. We then present results for the application of our (parabolic) reduced basis methods to Bayesian parameter estimation: detection and characterization of a delamination crack by transient thermal analysis.
Studies on the Use of Prophylactic Intrathecal Amethopterin in Childhood Leukemia

Central nervous system infiltration was studied in a group of 47 children with acute leukemia. CNS involvement was found to occur more frequently and appear more rapidly in patients who presented with elevated peripheral WBC counts. CNS infiltration not suspected clinically was identified by spinal fluid examination in a significant minority of children at the time of the initial diagnosis of leukemia, indicating that lumbar puncture should be a routine part of the initial evaluation of patients with acute leukemia. Intrathecal amethopterin administered "prophylactically" at the time of initial diagnosis of leukemia did not prevent or decrease the frequency of occurrence of CNS infiltration. However, it did delay the onset of CNS involvement in patients with elevated WBC counts. Intrathecal amethopterin administered before the onset of CNS infiltration appears to be useful in delaying morbidity resulting from CNS involvement in children who present with elevated peripheral WBC counts.
Differential S100 beta expression in choroidal and skin melanomas: quantitation by the polymerase chain reaction.

PURPOSE S100 beta, a member of a calcium-binding protein family (S100s), is an important clinical marker for skin melanoma. In contrast, uveal melanomas appeared to express S100 beta protein less frequently and to a lesser degree. This study was performed to verify and extend this finding to the mRNA level. METHODS A quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based method was used. A ratio, comparing the S100 beta PCR fragment to that of beta-actin (an internal reference gene), was generated to compare S100 beta mRNA expression among samples. RESULTS The ratios for skin melanomas (1.2 to 3.9; three tissues and two cell lines) were significantly higher than that for choroidal melanomas (0.1 to 0.63; seven of eight primary tumors and four of four cell lines). Only one choroidal melanoma biopsy had a ratio greater than 1. The PCR products from choroidal melanoma were identical in size and sequence to the S100 beta, as determined by gel electrophoresis and RNA conformational polymorphism. Because the ratios were also low in choroidal melanoma cell lines, the S100 beta phenotype appears to be genetically stable. CONCLUSION S100 beta is differentially expressed at the RNA and protein levels by skin and choroidal melanomas, which are derived from distinct populations of melanocytes. However, choroidal melanomas expressing little or no S100 beta were significantly stained by antiserum specific for the S100 protein family. Taken together, these data suggest that choroidal melanocytes express another, perhaps even novel, S100 protein(s).
Erraticity analysis of multiparticle production

Event-to-event fluctuations of the spatial patterns of the final states of high-energy collisions, referred to as erraticity, are studied for the data generated by a soft-interaction model called ECOMB. The moments C{sub p,q} do not show simple power-law dependences on the bin size. New measures of erraticity are proposed that generalize the bin-size dependence. The method should be applied not only to the soft production data of NA22 and NA27 to check the dynamical content of ECOMB, but also to other collision processes, such as e{sup +}e{sup -} annihilation and heavy-ion collisions. (c) 2000 The American Physical Society.
Steady rolling contact and resistance of a cylinder on a viscoelastic foundation by an integral equation algorithm

A first-kind integral equation relating the surface contact pressure to surface displacement is used to form an iterative algorithm which efficiently solves the problem of steady rolling of a cylinder on a viscoelastic half-space. The immediate solution is the contact pressure, but the quantity of interest is the friction coefficient (ratio of drag force to normal force), or effective resistance to rolling motion, which is readily obtained from the contact pressure. The so-called generalized N-parameter Maxwell model is used to characterize the rheology and is quite general and capable of representing realistic polymeric, elastomeric and rubber compounds. An iterative algorithm, like the Newton Raphson method, is used to obtain consistent equilibrium values of the contact stress profile and surface displacement for a given total resultant load. The friction coefficient is subsequently determined by integration of the interface pressure about the center of the rolling cylinder. As the employed integral equation formulation is in terms of the creep functions, a conversion of the creep parameters to relaxation parameter is also required. Results are provided for a typical rubber compound, showing the effects of velocity and applied load on friction coefficient.
Our unique microbial identity

A recent article examines the extent of individual variation in microbial identities and how this might determine disease susceptibility, therapeutic responses and recovery from clinical interventions.
Phytohemagglutinin stimulation of human lymphocytes. Failure to detect an early increase in cyclic AMP concentration.

Abstract Cyclic AMP content and adenylate cyclase activity were determined in human lymphocytes stimulated to proliferate by phytohemagglutinin (PHA). Both commercial (Difco PHA-M) and purified PHA were used at optimal stimulatory concentrations as confirmed by incorporation of [14C]leucine. Cyclic AMP levels were measured by radioimmunoassay. Exposure of lymphocytes to PHA-M alone yielded no significant change in intracellular cAMP levels; however, in the presence of the phosphodiesterase inhibitor, caffeine, PHA-treated cells had lower levels of cAMP than the caffeine controls. That adenylate cyclase remained active in these experiments was shown by marked increases in lymphocyte cAMP levels following exposure to prostaglandin E1 (PGE1). Stimulatory concentrations of PHA-M or purified PHA also failed to induce adenylate cyclase activity in lymphocyte particulate preparations whereas PGE1 or NaF produced significant increases in enzyme activity. Moreover, PGE1, at concentrations which caused a prompt and significant rise in adenylate cyclase activity and in intracellular cAMP levels, inhibited lymphocyte stimulation by PHA.
Financial Forecasting, Risk and Valuation: Accounting for the Future

Valuation involves forecasting payoffs and discounting expected payoffs for risk. Forecasting is often seen as the province of the statistician, risk determination the province of asset pricing. This paper elaborates on the idea that financial forecasting, risk determination and valuation are a matter of accounting. Accounting not only provides information to forecast payoffs but also specifies the payoffs to be forecasted. Further, accounting determines the transition from the present to the future and thus implicitly the evolutionary parameters that a statistician might estimate for forecasting. Accounting also bears on risk determination in the way it handles uncertainty. Accordingly, accounting is involved in both the numerator and the denominator of a valuation model. Indeed, a valuation model is a model of accounting for the future, and the effectiveness of a valuation model rides on the accounting principles employed.
Au-NiW Mechanically Flexible Interconnects (MFIs) and TSV integration for 3D interconnects

Mechanically Flexible Interconnects (MFIs) with a pitch of 50 µm and a standoff height of 65 µm are reported. Mechanical characterization of the MFIs using indentation demonstrates elastic deformation and the feasibility of temporary interconnection. The integration of MFIs and TSVs is also reported along with electrical testing for interposer and 3D IC applications.
Local reconstruction applied to x-ray microtomography

A characteristic of local reconstruction is that the x-ray detector array need only be slightly larger than the projected volume of interest within the object scanned. This feature of local reconstruction has several practical consequences for to- mographic imaging. We present an example in which local reconstruction extends the capability of a micro-CT scanner beyond the limits set by those physical characteristics of the scanner components that would be needed if standard global tomographic reconstruction algorithms were to be used.
Seed Viability Testing

Although the concept of seed viability is well known, there is considerable disagreement and confusion as to its precise meaning. To most seed technologists and commercial dealers, viability means that a seed is capable of germinating and producing a “normal” seedling. Therefore, it is used synonymously with germination capacity. In this sense, a given seed is either viable or nonviable, depending on its ability to germinate and produce a normal seedling; thus, only seed lots representing populations of seeds may exhibit levels of viability.
Of Affect and Ambiguity: The Emergence of Preference for Arbitrary Ingroups

What cognitive and affective processes underlie the all-too-human tendency toward group-based affiliation and exclusion? Using a paradigm in which children are randomly assigned to previously unfamiliar and meaningless “minimal” social groups, we investigate the developmental origins of the tendency to prefer and positively evaluate the actions of social ingroup members. Using a procedure derived from evaluative priming as well as children’s verbal descriptions of intergroup encounters, we show that 6-year olds but not 3-year olds manifest robust ingroup preference. These results suggest that the mechanisms underlying the wide range of human social group affiliations undergoes a striking increase in generality between ages 3 and 6, perhaps driven by a shift from an individual-level to a group-level or “sociocentric” orientation. Decisions about whom to affiliate with or exclude cluster into identifiable collectives. The forms of such collectives are dizzying, from ethnic and racial groups through religious, linguistic, and national distinctions, to identities defined via ideologies or political movements. This variety stands in stark contrast with other primates, who appear to be attentive to just a small set of social categories (namelykinship,gender,andband;Wilson&Wrangham,2003).Thus,ourspecies places great importance on culturally defined forms of social affiliation, and uses membership (or lack thereof) as an important heuristic governing how to understand and treat others. Why are we so given to group-based social reasoning? One clue comes from social psychology, where it has long been known that merelydividingsocialspaceinto“us”and“them”canproduceintergroupbias.For
Congenital Narrowing of a Pulmonary Vein: Slit‐like Pulmonary Vein Ostium

We report the case of a 60-year-old female with a history of refractory paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. Preablation contrast enhanced pulmonary vein computed tomography (CT) scan demonstrated a slit-like narrowing of the left inferior pulmonary vein ostium. The narrowing measured approximately 3 mm, with poststenotic dilation. The patient had no prior history of ablation. The patient subsequently underwent segmental antral isolation of all four pulmonary veins and cavo-tricuspid isthmus ablation with bidirectional block. The diagnosis of preexisting congenital pulmonary vein stenosis had an impact on the type of ablation procedure performed (antral rather than ostial) and will affect the interpretation of postablation CT scans. (PACE 2013; 36:e150–e152)
Cutting Edge: CXCR4 Is Critical for CD8+ Memory T Cell Homeostatic Self-Renewal but Not Rechallenge Self-Renewal

Central memory (CM) CD8 + T cells “remember” prior encounters because they maintain themselves through cell division in the absence of ongoing challenge (homeostatic self-renewal), as well as reproduce the CM fate while manufacturing effector cells during secondary Ag encounters (rechallenge self-renewal). We tested the consequence of conditional deletion of the bone marrow homing receptor CXCR4 on antiviral T cell responses. CXCR4-deficient CD8 + T cells have impaired memory cell maintenance due to defective homeostatic proliferation. Upon rechallenge, however, CXCR4-deficient T cells can re-expand and renew the CM pool while producing secondary effector cells. The critical bone marrow–derived signals essential for CD8 + T cell homeostatic self-renewal appear to be dispensable to yield self-renewing, functionally asymmetric cell fates during rechallenge.
Discriminative effects of CGS 15943, a competitive adenosine receptor antagonist, have a dopamine component in monkeys

9-Chloro-2-(2-furyl)[1,2,4]triazolol[1,5-c]quinazolin-5-amin e (CGS 15943), like caffeine, is an antagonist at adenosine A1 and A2A receptors and a behavioral stimulant in animals. The two drugs have overlapping discriminative effects. Enhancement of dopamine-mediated neurotransmission appears to contribute to the behavioral effects of caffeine. This study was conducted to determine if there is a dopamine component to the discriminative effects of CGS 15943. Squirrel monkeys discriminating between i.m. injections of 1.0 mg/kg CGS 15943 and vehicle generalized dose-dependently and completely to eight dopamine receptor agonists that encompass a variety of mechanisms and sites of action, both pre- and postsynaptic. The discriminative effects of the training dose of CGS 15943 were blocked dose-dependently and completely by the dopamine receptor antagonists R(+)-7-chloro-8-hydroxy-3-methyl-1-phenyl-2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-1H-3-benzaz epine (SCH 23390; D1) and eticlopride (D2). Thus, the discriminative effects of CGS 15943 have a dopamine component that appears to be mediated by both the D1 and D2 families of dopamine receptors. The monkeys also generalized to selective inhibitors of the neuronal transporters of norepinephrine (nisoxetine) and serotonin (fluoxetine), indicating that monoamines other than dopamine also contribute to the discriminative effects of CGS 15943.
Genetic programming for multitimescale modeling

A bottleneck for multitimescale thermally activated dynamics is the computation of the potential energy surface. We explore the use of genetic programming GP to symbolically regress a mapping of the saddlepoint barriers from only a few calculated points via molecular dynamics, thereby avoiding explicit calculation of all barriers. The GP-regressed barrier function enables use of kinetic Monte Carlo to simulate real-time kinetics seconds to hours based upon realistic atomic interactions. To illustrate the concept, we apply a GP regression to vacancy-assisted migration on a surface of a concentrated binary alloy from both quantum and empirical potentials and predict the diffusion barriers within 0.1% error from 3% or less of the barriers. We discuss the significant reduction in CPU time 4 to 7 orders of magnitude, the efficacy of GP over standard regression, e.g., polynomial, and the independence of the method on the type of potential.
Smart kindergarten: sensor-based wireless networks for smart developmental problem-solving environments

Despite enormous progress in networking and computing technologies, their application has remained restricted to conventional person-to-person and person-to-computer communication. However, continual reduction in cost and form factor is now making it possible to imbed networking - even wireless networking - and computing capabilities not just in our PCs and laptops but also other objects. Further, a marriage of these ever tinier and cheaper processors and wireless network interfaces with emerging micro-sensors based on MEMS technology is allowing cheap sensing, processing, and communication capabilities to be unobtrusively embedded in familiar physical objects. The result is an emerging paradigm shift where the primary role of information technology would be to enhance or assist in "person to physical world communication via familiar physical objects with embedded (a) micro-sensors to react to external stimuli, and (b) wireless networking and computing engines for tetherless communication with compute servers and other networked embedded objects. In this paper we present the application of sensor-based wireless networks to a "Smart Kindergarten that we are developing to target developmental problem-solving environments for early childhood education. This is a natural application as young children learn by exploring and interacting with objects such as toys in their environment. Our envisioned system would enhance the education process by providing a childhood learning environment that is individualized to each child, adapts to the context, coordinates activities of multiple children, and allows continual unobtrusive evaluation of the learning process by the teacher. This would be done by wirelessly-networked, sensor-enhanced toys and other classroom objects with back-end middleware services and database techniques. We explore wireless networking, middleware, and data management technologies for realizing this application, and describe challenges arising from ad hoc distributed structure, unreliable sensing, large scale/density, and novel sensor data types that are characteristic of such deeply instrumented environments with inter-networked physical objects.
Integrated Computational and Experimental Protocol for Understanding Rh(III) Speciation in Hydrochloric and Nitric Acid Solutions

Platinum group metals (PGMs), including rhodium, generated by the fission of 235U are present in significant quantities within spent nuclear fuel located on power generation sites in the United States, the amount of which is expected to exceed natural reserves by 2030. Yet, spent fuel raffinates are highly acidic media that may result in complex speciation of the PGM. This work provides an understanding of Rh(III) speciation up to 9 M HCl and HNO3, and utilizes a combination of ultraviolet–visible (UV-vis) and capillary zone electrophoresis data, along with computationally predicted thermochemistry and simulated UV-vis spectra to approximate the relative concentrations of potential species in solution as a function of acid concentration. One Rh(III) species, [Rh(NO3)3], is observed under all conditions in HNO3 and for Rh(III) concentrations smaller than 10–3 M. In contrast, a variety of chloridated Rh(III) species may exist simultaneously in a HCl medium. The species [RhCl2(H2O)4]+ and [RhCl3(H2O)3] are o...
Neurosteroid Analogues. 11. Alternative Ring System Scaffolds: γ-Aminobutyric Acid Receptor Modulation and Anesthetic Actions of Benz[f]indenes

Benz[f]indenes are tricyclic compounds with a linear 6-6-5 fused carbocyclic ring system. When properly substituted, benz[f]indenes can satisfy the pharmacophore requirements of the critical hydrogen-bond donor and acceptor groups found in neuroactive steroids that modulate γ-aminobutyric acidA (GABAA) receptor function. Thus, the benz[f]indene ring system provides an opportunity to extend the previously well-studied GABAA receptor structure−activity relationships (SAR) of neuroactive steroids to a different ring system. Depending on whether the stereochemistry of the 6-6-5 ring fusions are trans−trans or cis−trans, either planar or nonplanar benz[f]indenes are obtained. We found that the planar trans−trans benz[f]indenes are active, but less active than the steroids they were designed to mimic, whereas the nonplanar cis−trans compounds have little, if any, activity. The results provide new insight into the importance of the steroid framework for the actions of neuroactive steroids at GABAA receptors.
Peptide-Based Pharmacomodulation of a Cancer-Targeted Optical Imaging and Photodynamic Therapy Agent

We designed and synthesized a folate receptor-targeted, water-soluble, and pharmacomodulated photodynamic therapy (PDT) agent that selectively detects and destroys the targeted cancer cells while sparing normal tissue. This was achieved by minimizing the normal organ uptake (e.g., liver and spleen) and by discriminating between tumors with different levels of folate receptor (FR) expression. This construct (Pyro−peptide−Folate, PPF) is composed of three components: (1) pyropheophorbide a (Pyro) as an imaging and therapeutic agent, (2) peptide sequence as a stable linker and modulator improving the delivery efficiency, and (3) Folate as a homing molecule targeting FR-expressing cancer cells. We observed an enhanced accumulation of PPF in KB cancer cells (FR+) compared to HT 1080 cancer cells (FR−), resulting in a more effective post-PDT killing of KB cells over HT 1080 or normal CHO cells. The accumulation of PPF in KB cells can be up to 70% inhibited by an excess of free folic acid. The effect of Folate ...
Effects of the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T polymorphism on executive function in schizophrenia.

Abstract Background The methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T polymorphism has been associated with both overall schizophrenia risk and severity of negative symptoms. This study examined whether schizophrenia patients homozygous for the risk allele (T/T) exhibit greater impairment in executive function, and determined the extent to which MTHFR's effects on negative symptoms underlie this relationship. Methods 200 outpatients with chronic schizophrenia were evaluated with the Verbal Fluency Test (VFT), Wisconsin Card Sort Test (WCST), and California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT). Performance was stratified by MTHFR C667T genotype. Path analysis determined the extent to which MTHFR effects on negative symptoms mediated the relationship between genotype and cognitive measures. Results T/T subjects exhibited significantly greater deficits on the VFT and had more difficulty achieving the first category on the WCST. Genotype groups did not differ in CVLT performance. C677T effects on negative symptoms contributed to, but did not fully account for, genotype effects on VFT. Negative symptoms did not mediate WCST performance. Conclusions MTHFR C677T genotype contributes to certain executive function deficits in schizophrenia. These deficits remained significant when taking into account mediating effects of negative symptoms. Although the intermediate mechanisms for C677T effects remain uncertain, these results suggest that MTHFR-related cognitive impairment and negative symptoms reflect differing neural substrates.
Erratum to ‘time course of phorbol ester-induced contraction and protein kinase C activation in rat aorta’ [Eur. J. Pharmacol. Mol. Pharmacol. Sect. 290 (1995) 253–257]

Abstract This study investigates the relationship between the rate of phorbol ester-induced contraction of intact rat aorta and protein kinase C activation, as assessed by the translocation of protein kinase C from the cytosolic to the particulate fraction. Aorta was exposed to Ca 2+ -free physiological salt solution prior to phorbol ester to prevent Ca 2+ -induced protein kinase C translocation during tissue homogenization. Phorbol myristate acetate, as well as phorbol dibutyrate, decreased cytosolic and/or increased particulate protein kinase C activity as early as 5 s following ester addition, which was prior to, or coincident with, the onset of contraction. These results suggest that phorbol ester-induced contraction of intact vascular smooth muscle is associated in a time-dependent manner with protein kinase C activation.
Baclofen trial in six myotonic dystrophy patients

Six young adult patients with grade I myotonic dystrophy and a complaint of daytime somnolence underwent 36-hour polygraphic monitoring, dynamometric and electromyographic studies before and under baclofen (60 mg/daily). Patients with the most severe daytime sleepiness had pathologic Sleep Apnea Indexes. After 6 weeks' ingestion of baclofen, no subjective or objective effect on patient symptomatology was found.