cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Personal and practice-related characteristics of a subsample of US women dermatologists: data from the Women Physicians' Health Study.

Background The number of women dermatologists has increased dramatically over the past few decades. Despite this, there have been few studies examining the personal or professional characteristics of women dermatologists practicing in the USA. Methods A representative random sample of active, part-time, professionally inactive, and retired US women physicians, aged 30-70 years, was studied; this article compares data from the 95 responding dermatologists with data from 4350 other respondents. Results Women dermatologists were more likely to be US born, white, and married to a physician than were other women physicians; they were similar to other women physicians in age, marital status, children, amount of stress at home, political self-characterization, and personal health behavior. Women dermatologists were more likely to be board certified and to practice in solo or two-person practices than were other women physicians. They had fewer nights on call, were less likely to state that they worked too much, reported less stress at work, were more satisfied with their careers, and reported higher household incomes. With the decided exception of skin cancer prevention and screening, they were unlikely to have considerable training, confidence, or interest in routine prevention-related screening or counseling for patients. Conclusions Women dermatologists are unlikely to be part of a minority group, likely to be married to another physician, and likely to have a high household income. They report reasonable work stress and high career satisfaction. Given these findings, it is not surprising that only 10% would consider changing their specialty were they to relive their lives.
Cardiac death in the first 6 months after myocardial infarction: Potential for mortality reduction in the early posthospital period

In a prospective postmyocardial infarction study of 759 patients aged less than 66 years, 42 posthospital cardiac deaths (42 of 759; 6 percent) occurred during a 6 month follow-up period. The average age of those who died was 53.5 ± 8.8 (± standard error) years, and postmortem examination was obtained on 36 percent. Almost 60 percent of the 6 month posthospital mortality occurred within 2 months after hospital discharge. Fifty-five percent of the cardiac deaths occurred either outside the hospital or within hospital emergency departments, and 62 percent of the deaths were sudden (within 12 hours) or unwitnessed. The suspected mechanism of cardiac death was a primary arrhythmia in 62 percent, and a definite or probable myocardial infarction was diagnosed in only 41 percent. Use of digitalis and diuretic and antiarrhythmic agents was significantly ( P
Modulation of the stacking interaction of MN4 (M = Pt, Pd, Au) complexes with tryptophan through N-heterocyclic ligands

Abstract A survey of selected N-heterocycle ligands showed that platination of 4-N-dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP) in [Pt(dien)L] 2 + (dien = diethylenetriamine) gave especially strong π–π stacking interactions with tryptophan and the tryptophan-containing C-terminal zinc finger (ZF) of the HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) nucleocapsid protein NCp7. The association constants (all at 10 3 M − 1 ) were significantly stronger (25.0 and 28.1 for tryptophan and ZF respectively) than those previously measured for the purine nucleobase 9-ethylguanine (9EtG) in [Pt(dien)(9EtG)] 2 + (6.88 and 7.55 for tryptophan and ZF respectively). Extension to Pd and Au complexes also confirmed the utility of DMAP in assisting stacking interactions. The results confirm the utility of a “bioinorganic” approach to targeting and inactivation of medicinal chemistry targets using the dual approach of target recognition (non-covalent) followed by target fixation (covalent).
Dimensional Instability In Electroplated Copper Mirrors

The Antares high energy gas laser system uses electroplated copper mirrors to reflect the laser beam through the amplifiers and focus it on the target. These mirrors are either polished or single point diamond machined to meet rigid optical specifications. They are inspected within 24 hours after final machining using a laser interferometer. A routine reinspection of these mirrors after arrival at Los Alamos revealed that some had severe distortions far greater than allowed by the optical specifications. The worst examples exhibited a roughened surface, visible to the eye, similar to an "orange-peel" effect. Metallographic analysis of some of the mirrors showed a highly stressed layer within the electrodeposited copper. This layer had a fibrous or needle-like structure and had a micro-hardness of 170 to 180 DPH. Large, stress-free grains with a micro-hardness of 50 to 55 DPH were mixed in with the fibrous layer in some instances. It soon became evident that the hard, fibrous structure was in varying stages of recrystallization, and the recrystallization was taking place at room temperature. Further investigation revealed that the fibrous layer was the result of excessive levels of organic brightening agent in the electrolyte during the electroplating process. Enough stress was stored in the deposit due to the addition agent to provide an unstable microstructure, which subsequently recrystallized over a period of three to six months. In order to salvage the mirrors, a thermal treatment was developed to force recrystallization. Heating the mirrors to 140 for 90 minutes provides a stable microstructure which machines well. Although some of the grains are large, they have no apparent effect on machineability or reflectivity.
Chlorosis, Photosynthesis, and Transpiration of Azalea Leaves After Azalea Lace Bug (Heteroptera: Tingidae) Feeding Injury

Feeding injury caused by nymphs, males and females of the azalea lace bug, Stephanitis pyrioides (Scott), reduced rates of photosynthesis and transpiration in ‘Delaware Valley White’ azalea, Rhododendron mucronatum leaves. Females caused substantially more leaf feeding injury than males or nymphs. S. pyrioides was observed to insert stylets through stomata on the lower leaf surface and to feed almost entirely on upper palisade parenchyma tissue by piercing and removing cell contents. Lace bug feeding increased leaf stomatal resistance which indicated that gas exchange was restricted by stomatal closure. Feeding injury also reduced leaf chlorophyll content and photosynthetic capacity of remaining chlorophyll, but did not consistently affect chlorophyll a:b or specific leaf weight. Net leaf photosynthesis was negatively correlated with stomatal resistance and positively correlated with both chlorophyll content per unit leaf area and photosynthetic rate of remaining chlorophyll. These results indicated that S. pyrioides reduced leaf photosynthesis in azalea by damaging palisade parenchyma which restricted gas exchange through stomata and reduced leaf chlorophyll content and photosynthetic capacity of remaining chlorophyll.
Metabolic responses of striped bass (Morone saxatilis) to temperature acclimation. I. Alterations in carbon sources for hepatic energy metabolism.

The relative contribution of carbohydrate and lipid energy metabolism in liver tissue of temperature-acclimated striped bass was examined in vitro. Respirometry experiments were conducted to assess the role of various endogenous foodstuffs in providing reduced two-carbon fragments for aerobic metabolism. Liver composition was measured as a reflection of foodstuff flux and storage. Catabolism of 14C-labeled substrates to 14CO2 was monitored to estimate the tissue capacity for utilization of various classes of compounds. When measured at the temperature of acclimation, oxygen uptake (VO2) by liver slices shows near perfect compensation between 15 and 25 degrees C, whereas a 2.75-fold increase is found between 5 and 15 degrees C. Respiratory quotients (R.Q.) near unity are found at 5 degrees C and decrease to 0.85 and 0.82 at 15 and 25 degrees C, respectively. Inhibition of VO2 by iodoacetic acid, a glycolytic inhibitor, is near 60% at 5 degrees C and decreases to 30-40% at 15 and 25 degrees C. Evolution of 14CO2 from 14C-labeled glucoses and palmitate confirms a conservation of liver tissue capacity for carbohydrate utilization between acclimation temperatures of 5 and 15 degrees C, and an increasing capacity for utilization of fatty acids as temperature increases. Ratios of 14CO2 from 14C-6-and 14C-1-labeled glucoses indicate a relative increase in the participation of the pentose shunt in carbohydrate metabolism with cold acclimation. The results are consistent with an increasing reliance on carbohydrates for energy metabolism in the cold, whereas lipid substrates are utilized more at warm temperatures. These changes may be adaptive in partitioning energy reserves for seasonal activities of migration and reproduction.
Self-tuning deadbeat current controller for DC motor drive

A deadbeat response current controller for a converter fed de motor drive system is proposed. A self-tuning algorithm is developed which adjusts the controller parameters so as to achieve deadbeat response for unknown and/or varying plant parameters. Digital simulation results for a current control loop of a de motor drive system fed from a 3o bridge converter are presented.
Collaborative Lesson Planning as Professional Development for Beginning Primary Teachers.

This qualitative case study describes how one beginning primary grade teacher benefitted from collaborative lesson-planning meetings with her grade-level colleagues. The teacher accumulated knowledge of curriculum, pedagogy, and professional contexts as she participated in planning meetings each week during her first year of teaching. Furthermore, sustained, active participation in content-specific planning meetings changed the teacher’s efficacy for mathematics instruction over time. Findings suggest that both participation and collaboration with colleagues during planning meetings were central to the teacher’s knowledge development and sense of efficacy as a new teacher.
Integral action in the optimal control of linear systems with some inaccessible state variables

Optimal feedback control for linear systems with the usual quadratic performance index which penalizes the state and the magnitude of the control is often difficult to apply because of the requirement of complete state measurement and lack of integral mode. A technique is presented, which introduces integral mode into the optimal control law and does not require the measurement of all of the state variables during the dynamic period. The control produced is equivalent to the original optimal Kalman feedback when external disturbance is absent, and during the period of constant disturbance the method yields a trajectory which can be made arbitrarily close to the optimal trajectory without disturbance.
Work in progress - information technology project management: An industry partnership

The instructor-learner paradigm has been the principal model of teaching for many years. However, over the past year, the author has been using industry partners within academia to hire students as employees generating a new learning paradigm where students actively engage with industry as Web developers and managers, while attending classes full-time. A faculty-led team at Purdue University comprised of a graduate student as the project manager was partnered with Parish manufacturing in Indianapolis to develop their Internet Web presence. The project included advanced programming and information technology applications. This paper details the work in progress of a faculty-led project in which a graduate student serves as the communications coordinator and project manager over developers in a living laboratory environment. This enabled professors to act as both an employer and an instructor to the student, providing real- world symbolism of learning on-the-job. The additional benefits to the students of this relationship included improvement of communication skills, time management skills, and handling of stress under pressure of a deadline, as well as experience gained in development and maintenance of a live Website. The opportunity provided an alternate method of teaching that demonstrates a new instructor-learner paradigm.
Confidence in selected institutions in 1975: An attempt at replication across two national surveys

A comparison of responses to four attitudinal items included in two national surveys reveals significant differences between surveys in the marginal distributions of all four items. These discrepancies are attributed to differences in survey ‘context’ (i.e., the nature of the questions which preceded the items of interest in the interview schedules). Despite the differences in marginal distributions, however, the four items showed identical relationships in both surveys to five background characteristics of respondents in 18 of 20 tests. Although the generalizability of these findings to other attitudinal items is an open question, they do suggest the inadvisability of combining data collected in surveys using markedly different interview schedules into a time series of subjective social indicators. Contextual effects are apparently less critical in cross-sectional analyses of survey data.
Toward a mathematical model of motivation, volition, and performance

The goal of this study was to (1) empirically examine factors that affect human performance in a simulation-based learning environment, employing the framework of the integrative theory of Motivation, Volition, and Performance (MVP) (Keller, 2008a) and (2) develop and statistically evaluate a mathematical MVP model that can be applied to other digital learning environments. The development of a mathematical MVP model can provide empirical support for the elements included in the MVP theory and serve as a tool for designing effective digital learning environments. A regression analysis of motivational, volitional, and performance data of 62 graduate students that interacted with an online simulation revealed a significant model that explained approximately 70% of the variation in student satisfaction through motivational and volitional processing variables suggested by the MVP theory. Students' interest and curiosity toward the learning environment had the highest positive predicting power on students' satisfaction, while the volition processing variable had the lowest predicting power. Implications for the digital learning environments design and directions for future research are discussed.
Phototoxicity and photoinactivation of blebbistatin in UV and visible light

Abstract Blebbistatin was recently identified as a selective, cell-permeant inhibitor of myosin II. Because blebbistatin is likely to be used extensively with fluorescence imaging in studies of cytoskeletal dynamics, its compatibility with common excitation wavelengths was examined. Illumination of blebbistatin-treated bovine aortic endothelial cells at 365 and 450–490 nm, but not 510–560 or 590–650 nm, caused dose-dependent cell death. Illumination of blebbistatin alone at 365 and 450–490 nm changed its absorption and emission spectra, but the resultant compounds were not toxic. In addition, photoreacted blebbistatin no longer disrupted myosin distribution in cells, indicating loss of pharmacological activity. Fluorescence microscopy showed that upon illumination, blebbistatin became bound to cells and to protein-coated glass, suggesting that toxicity may arise from light-induced reaction of blebbistatin with cell proteins. Blebbistatin should be used only with careful consideration of these photochemical effects.
Trout Production and Standing Crop in Colorado's Small Streams, As Related to Environmental Features

Abstract Annual production of trout (Salvelinus and Salmo spp.) in 10 small northern Colorado streams (elevation 2,146-3,139 m above sea level) ranged from 1.5 to 18.4 g/m 2 in 1979 and 1980. Midsummer biomass ranged from 3.9 to 28.2 g/m 2. Ratios of production to biomass ranged from 0.23 to 0.95. Fish production and biomass were related inversely to elevation and directly to substrate diversity, conductivity, alkalinity, and water hardness. Combinations of the various factors explained much of the variation in production: elevation and width:depth ratio, 60%; elevation and substrate diversity, 54%; elevation, substrate diversity, and percentage of zero-water-velocity stations, 79%; and elevation, width: depth ratio, and alkalinity, 77%. Similar relationships were developed for midsummer biomass. There was a strong correlation between midsummer biomass and annual production as well as between annual production and the density of fish of desirable size (152 mm long or longer) in each stream. Several relati...
The Fairchild Sentry 50 Tester: Establishing New ATE Performance Limits

Traditional ATE systems cannot accommodate newly designed, technologically advanced devices with large pin counts and high data rates. Fairchild's Digital Test Systems Division has developed a new-generation tester?the Sentry 50?with a high-speed subsystem that preserves signal integrity and timing accuracy. This article describes the salient characteristics and functionality of that high-speed subsystem's major components. Included is a discussion of the technology that implements these functionalities at their required performance levels, which are achieved by the use of high-performance VLSI devices, digital and analogy hybrid circuits, surface-mounted device technology, and ``thin-line'' multilayer printed circuit boards and backplanes.
Commentary: 17-β-estradiol reappropriates mass lost to the hypermetabolic state in thermally injured rats.

DOI of original article: 10.1016/j.jss.2012.0 * Corresponding author. Department of Surg 49008. Tel.: þ1 269 337 6260; fax: þ1 269 337 E-mail addresses: shebrain1@yahoo.com 0022-4804/$ e see front matter a 2013 Elsev http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2012.08.025 Severe burns are among the most common causes of death from unintentional injury [1], and they remain an important subject in trauma and critical care medicine. The profound hypermetabolic and hypercatabolic states that are characteristic of severe thermal injury lead to extensive protein wasting, manifested as skeletal muscle breakdown, lean body mass loss, and negative nitrogen balance with subsequent compromised functional and structural changes of essential body organs [2,3]. These changes occur in response to the release of proinflammatory cytokines and counter regulatory hormones that dramatically impair the anabolic states. In searching for interventions to decrease patient morbidity and mortality, medical researchers have conducted extensive animal studies, as well as a few studies in humans, that have shown administration of specific nutrients, growth factors, and other agents to be essential components in the management of burned, trauma, and critically ill patients [4]. Among these agents is the female sex hormone estrogen, 17-b-estradiol. Estrogen exists in three forms based on the number of hydroxyl groups in its molecular structure, namely estrone,
Inhibition of melanoma growth by hemocyanin occurs via early apoptotic pathways.

Abstract Background We hypothesized that keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) would reduce cellular proliferation and effect apoptosis of melanoma cell lines in vitro. Methods Two human melanoma cell lines (HTB68 and HTB72) were subjected to a dose-response treatment regimen of KLH (0.4 μg to 100 μg/well). Cell viability was tested by MTT assay (SIGMA, St Louis, MO) at 72 hours. Apoptosis and necrosis were measured by the Annexin V FITC assay (Biovision Inc, Mountain View, CA). Results Melanoma cell proliferation was significantly reduced in the HTB68 cell line treated with 6.3 μg or higher doses of KLH. A significant reduction in cell growth was also observed in the HTB72 cells at 50 and 100 μg of KLH. KLH increased early apoptotic activity, whereas both late apoptosis and necrosis were decreased by the addition of KLH. Conclusions KLH significantly reduces cellular proliferation in vitro in melanoma, via early apoptotic pathways. The results warrant in vivo studies into the effects of KLH in melanoma.
Cadmium-responsive Element of the Human Heme Oxygenase-1 Gene Mediates Heat Shock Factor 1-dependent Transcriptional Activation

Transcription of a number of mammalian genes is activated by heavy metals, but mechanisms of signaling and transcriptional regulation are not well understood. From a comparison of heavy metal responses of several human genes, it was noted that the heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) gene is quite similar in the spectrum of metal response and induction kinetics to the heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) gene, suggesting a common regulatory mechanism shared by these genes. The cadmium-responsive element (CdRE) known to be responsible for the metal regulation of ho-1 formed complexes with proteins from heavy metal-treated HeLa cells in an electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA). These complexes were indistinguishable in mobility from those formed by the heat shock factor 1 (HSF1) and the heat shock element involved in hsp70 regulation, suggesting the involvement of HSF1 also in the CdRE complexes. Competitive EMSA and supershift analysis with an anti-HSF1 antibody revealed that HSF1 was in fact a component of the CdRE complexes. A fine analysis on the affinity of HSF1 to a series of mutant CdRE sequences showed that HSF1 recognizes a sequence motif TnCTAGA. Transient transfection analysis with overexpressed recombinant HSF1 demonstrated that CdRE has HSF1-dependent enhancer-like activity that requires direct binding of HSF1. In the absence of overexpressed HSF1, however, CdRE by itself was insufficient to mediate heavy metal-induced transcription, suggesting requirement of additional regulatory sequences. The finding that HSF1 is directly involved in the regulation of ho-1 with an anti-oxidative role revealed a new aspect of the biological defense mechanism.
T1ρ and T2ρ MRI in the evaluation of Parkinson’s disease

Prior work has shown that adiabatic T1ρ and T2ρ relaxation time constants may have sensitivity to cellular changes and the presence of iron, respectively, in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Further understanding of these magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) methods and how they relate to measures of disease severity and progression in PD is needed. Using T1ρ and T2ρ on a 4T MRI scanner, we assessed the substantia nigra (SN) of nine non-demented moderately affected PD and ten gender- and age-matched control participants. When compared to controls, the SN of PD subjects had increased T1ρ and reduced T2ρ. We also found a significant correlation between asymmetric motor features and asymmetry based on T1ρ. This study provides additional validation of T1ρ and T2ρ as a means to separate PD from control subjects, and T1ρ may be a useful marker of asymmetry in PD.
Glycine betaine accumulation, ionic and water relations of red-beet at contrasting levels of sodium supply

Exposure of plants to sodium (Na) and salinity may increase glycine betaine accumulation in tissues. To study this, red-beet cvs. Scarlet Supreme and Ruby Queen, were grown for 42 days in a growth chamber using a re-circulating nutrient film technique with 0.25 mmol/L K and either 4.75 mmol/L (control) or 54.75 mmol/L (saline) Na (as NaCl). Plants were harvested at weekly intervals and measurements were taken on leaf water relations, leaf photosynthetic rates, chlorophyll fluorescence, chlorophyll levels, glycine betaine levels, and tissue elemental composition. Glycine betaine accumulation increased under salinity and this accumulation correlated with higher tissue levels of Na in both cultivars. Na accounted for 80 to 90% of the total cation uptake under the saline treatment. At final harvest (42 days), K concentrations in laminae ranged from approximately 65-95 micromoles g-1 dry matter (DM), whereas Na in shoot tissue ranged from approximately 3000-4000 micromoles g-1. Leaf sap osmotic potential at full turgor [psi(s100)] increased as lamina Na content increased. Glycine betaine levels of leaf laminae showed a linear relationship with leaf sap [psi(s100)]. Chlorophyll levels, leaf photosynthetic rates, and chlorophyll fluorescence were not affected by Na levels. These results suggest that the metabolic tolerance to high levels of tissue Na in red-beet could be due to its ability to synthesize and regulate glycine betaine production, and to control partitioning of Na and glycine betaine between the vacuole and the cytoplasm.
All about (N-hexadecylquinolin-4-ium-1-yl)methylidenetricyanoquinodimethanide, a unimolecular rectifier of electrical current

We found unimolecular rectification in a single molecule, (N-hexadecylquinolin-4-ium-1-yl)methylidenetricyanoquinomethanide, 1, in which the ground state is zwitterionic: D+–π–A−, and has a large dipole moment (43 D) while the first excited state is undissociated: D0–π–A0 (and has a smaller moment, between 3 and 9 D). The intervalence optical absorption band connecting these two states is strongly hypsochromic. Spectroscopic measurements (FTIR, NMR, VIS–UV, XPS) all confirm this assignment. This significant ‘first step' to unimolecular electronics, i.e. a rectifier only 2.3 nm thick, confirms a 1974 proposal by Aviram and Ratner. However, the ‘real proof' that the large current under forward bias actually travels through the molecule, has not yet been obtained.
A 4-bit RF MEMS phase shifter monolithically integrated with conventional CMOS

This paper presents the design and characterization of the first RF MEMS phase shifter to be monolithically integrated with conventional CMOS using maskless post-CMOS etching. The phase shifter consists of a micromachined transmission line periodically loaded with 4-bit MEMS digital capacitors, which are controlled using a combination of vertical electrothermal and lateral electrostatic actuation. MIM capacitors are embedded in the transmission line in series with MEMS capacitors to trade tuning ratio for increased capacitor Q. Measured results of the phase shifter at 32 GHz show an average insertion loss of 2.9 dB and a maximum phase shift of 337.57#x00B0; in 16 steps.
Lifetime predictions of EPR materials using the Wear-out approach

Abstract The Wear-out approach for lifetime prediction, based on cumulative damage concepts, is applied to several ethylene propylene rubber (EPR) cable insulation materials. EPR materials typically follow “induction-time” behavior in which their material properties change very slowly until just before failure, precluding the use of such time-dependent properties to predict failure. In the Wear-out approach, a material that has been aged at its ambient aging temperature T a or at a low accelerated aging temperature is subsequently aged at a higher “Wear-out” temperature T w in order to cause the material to reach its “failure” condition. In the simplest case, which involves the same chemical processes underlying degradation at T a and T w , a linear relationship is predicted between the time spent at T a and the time required at T w to complete the degradation. Data consistent with this expectation are presented for one of the EPR insulation materials. When the degradation chemistry at the two temperatures is different, a linear relationship between the time spent at T a and the time required at T w to complete the degradation is not generally expected. Even so, the Wear-out results for a second EPR material, which has evidence of changing chemistry, are reasonably linear and therefore useful from a predictive point-of-view. The Wear-out approach can therefore be used to transform non-predictive time-dependent material property results into predictive lifetime estimates. As a final example, the Wear-out approach is applied to an EPR insulation that had been aged in a nuclear power plant environment (∼51 °C) for times up to 23 years to show its likely viability for the hundreds of years predicted at this aging temperature from accelerated aging tests on EPR insulation materials.
Experimental Investigations of Minimum Power Consumption Optimal Control for Variable Speed AMB Rotor

The purpose of this paper is to present a method for development of the optimal speed-dependent control matrix for a rotor supported on active magnetic bearings (AMBs) with the provision of minimum control power consumption over the operating speed range. The speed dependency of the optimal control matrix is the result of the dynamics of rotating machines. Most of published works on optimal control use a stationary optimal control matrix derived for the non-rotating system and thus neglecting the effect of gyroscopic phenomena. This paper employs the minimum energy consumption condition to derive the speed varying optimal control for rotating AMB rotor system. In the presented approach the control matrix is characterized by a second order polynomial matrix with the angular speed as a variable. This leads to a more compact and lower computational burden for controller implementation. Calculations are performed for a 4-axis AMB rotor test rig. Testing with rotor speed ramps is performed and experimental values for power consumption are presented. These results are compared to results with speed invariant optimal control and PID control.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
Swimming Upstream: Breastfeeding Care in a Nonbreastfeedtng Culture

Women once gave birth and began breastfeeding within the cultural context of a traditional system of care; now they begin breastfeeding in a hospital. Historically, hospital care was arranged to fit artificial feeding. Little was known about the science of breastfeeding until recently. Basing our breastfeeding care on the cultural norm of bottle feeding has led to the development of many unfavorable attitudes and practices. Given an opportunity to learn how breastfeeding works and to improve our breastfeeding care skills, hospital nurses can play an important part in current efforts to make breastfeeding the community norm.
A Novel Double-Arched-Beam-Based Fiber Bragg Grating Sensor for Displacement Measurement

A double-arched-beam-based fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor for displacement measurement is presented. Unlike most FBG sensors that measure the resonance wavelength shifts to detect the measurand, this kind of FBG sensor is proposed to measure the displacement based on the demodulation of the FBG's reflective spectra bandwidth. According to the strain distribution on the novel double-arched beam surface, the positive and negative strain will act on only one FBG, which is stuck on the beam surface. Thus, the positive and negative strain will make the spectra broaden as the displacement increases. What is more, the problem of cross-sensitivity in the FBG sensor is solved because temperature only affects the wavelength shift, but not the spectra bandwidth. Simulation and preliminary experimental results indicate the feasibility of the proposed idea and a fairly good linearity of the measurement characteristic.
Sleep stage responses of older and younger subjects after sleep deprivation.

Abstract EEG sleep stage measures were obtained on younger subjects (18–22 years) and older subjects (40–50 years) at 9 a.m. after 2 nights of sleep loss. The first 200 min were compared. Both groups displayed sharply reduced latencies and increased stage 4 sleep. The proportionate distribution of stage amounts and numbers was not different. However, the younger group entered slow wave sleep more quickly.
Mating Behavior, Egg Production, and Egg Fertility In the Pear Psylla

Through observation of the mating behavior of individual pairs of pear psylla, Psylla pyricola Foerster, caged on Bartlett pear seedlings in a greenhouse, the following characteristics of their reproduction were determined. females produced fertile eggs only after mating, although unmated females deposited a few infertile eggs. Males had a precopulatory period of about 5 days after their final molt, while females could mate successfully within a few hours after molting. One male had a mating capacity to fertilize 4 but not 6 females to full oviposition, while a ratio of 4 or more males per female reduced oviposition rates. Neither extreme affected egg fertility. Males were the aggressors in the mating act and had a capacity of mating about once a day through the first 2 weeks as adults. Females remained fairly passive and did not refuse the advances of the males. The duration of single copulations varied from less than 1 minute to 3 or 4 hours, and averaged 36 minutes. Mating took place at all hours but most frequently in the early afternoon when it was warmest and brightest. To produce fertile eggs at full capacity a female had to mate at least once every 10 days. Mating with the same male, compared with mating with a different male each time, resulted in no significant difference in frequency or duration of mating and no difference in oviposition rate of females or egg-fertility. When females were allowed to mate freely, oviposition reached a peak of 12-14 eggs per day by the third week. A decline in oviposition rate began after about 39 days, nearing 0 in 12 weeks, when most psylla were dead. Total eggs laid averaged 664 per female. Fertility level stayed near 100%, dropping slowly the last 2 to 3 weeks to about 75%. When females were restricted to one mating the oviposition rate declined soon after the 19th-day peak, nearing 0 within 11 weeks, when most psylla were dead. Total eggs averaged 315. Fertility level dropped steadily after the third week from near 100% to 0 by 7 weeks. When mating was interrupted after 2 weeks, fertility dropped steadily to 0. returning quickly to near 100% following reintroduction of males 32 days later. Oviposition rate also decreased during the absence of males, increasing again upon reintroduction. Females with mating interrupted continued to lay eggs longer than those with uninterrupted mating, averaging 608 eggs each during 14 weeks. In most cases females died before the males. Females from the single mating group generally died sooner than females from the other groups. In all groups the sex ratio of the progeny was nearly 1:1. Males matured faster than females; thus. from eggs deposited at any given time there were at first more males followed by a preponderance of females among the emerging adults.
Capturing diversity and interspecific variability in allometries: A hierarchical approach

There is growing recognition of the role of mechanistic scaling laws in shaping ecological pattern and process. While such theoretical relationships explain much of the variation across large scales, at any particular scale there is important residual variation that is left unexplained among species, among individuals within a species, and within individuals themselves. Key questions remain on what explains this variability and how we can apply this information in practice, in particular to produce estimates in high-diversity systems with many rare and under-sampled species. We apply hierarchical Bayes statistical techniques to data on crown geometry from diverse temperate forests in order to simultaneously model the differences within and among species. We find that tree height, canopy depth, and canopy radius are affected by both successional stage and wood mechanical strength, while tree height conforms to the predicted 2/3 power relationship. Furthermore, we show that hierarchical modeling allows us to constrain the allometries of rare species much more than traditional methods. Finally, crown radius was shown to vary substantially more within individuals than among individuals or species, suggesting that the capacity for local light foraging and crown plasticity exerts the dominant control on tree crowns.
Finite difference time-domain technique and the PML absorbing boundary condition

In this paper, the FDTD technique is applied to the common mode radiation analysis of a printed circuit board. In the past, the FDTD technique had limitations in its applications to such problems due to poor absorbing boundary condition performance. A highly efficient implementation of an extended PML absorbing boundary condition is formulated and applied to the PCB in this paper. Results are given for some common PCB geometries which demonstrate various common mode current phenomena as well as the accuracy of this technique.
Report of an obstructive goiter and its surgical treatment during delivery

Abstract We report a case of a morbidly obese young woman in her third trimester of pregnancy presenting with a history of goiter and respiratory disease. The recent history of this patient was significant for worsening respiratory symptoms over a period of 2 weeks, and, on presentation at 36 weeks gestation, she was stridorous, dyspneic at rest, and had a hoarse voice. Evaluation revealed a morbidly obese individual with a large goiter. She was biochemically euthyroid. Fiberoptic laryngoscopy revealed a left true vocal cord paresis, and ultrasound evaluation was significant for diffuse multinodular enlargement, with each lobe measuring greater than 10 cm and the isthmus measuring 5. Pulmonary function testing revealed a significant degree of upper airway obstruction without significant lower airway disease. Given the patient’s clinical signs and symptoms, her tenuous airway, poor candidacy for urgent tracheotomy, and her proximity to delivery, it was agreed that the patient should undergo elective cesarean section and at its completion undergo subtotal thyroidectomy for the obstructive goiter.
Rural-urban differences in employment-related health insurance.

Context Rural residents are disproportionately represented among the uninsured in the United States. Purpose We compared nonelderly adult residents in 3 types of nonmetropolitan areas with metropolitan workers to evaluate which characteristics contribute to lack of employment-related insurance. RESEARCH DESIGN AND ANALYSIS: Data were obtained from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, pooled across 3 panels (1996--1998) to enhance the rural sample size. Econometric decomposition was used to quantify the contribution of employment structure to differences in the probability of being offered employment-related health insurance. Findings The most rural workers are 10.4 percentage points less likely to be offered insurance compared with urban workers; the difference is smaller for residents of other rural areas. In rural counties not adjacent to urban areas, lower wages and smaller employers each account for about one-third of the total difference. Conclusions Health insurance disparities associated with rural residence are related to the structure of employment. Major factors include smaller employers, lower wages, greater prevalence of self-employment, and sociodemographic characteristics.
Learning to reason the non monotonic case

We suggest a new approach for the study of the non monotonicity of human commonsense reasoning. The two main premises that underlie this work are that commonsense reasoning is an inductive phenomenon and that missing information in the interaction of the agent with the environment may be as informative for future interactions as observed information. This intuition is normalized and the problem of reasoning from incomplete information is presented as a problem of learning attribute functions over a generalized domain. We consider examples that illustrate various aspects of the non monotonic reasoning phenomena which have been used over the years as bench marks for various formalisms and translate them into Learning to Reason problems. We demonstrate that these have concise representations over the generalized domain and prove that these representations can be learned efficiently. The framework developed suggests an operational approach to studying reasoning that is nevertheless rigorous and amenable to analysis. We show that this approach efficiently supports reasoning with incomplete information and at the same lime matches our expectations of plausible patterns of reasoning in cases where other theories do not. This work continues previous works in the Learning to Reason framework and supports the thesis that in order to develop a computational account for commonsense reasoning one should study the phenomena of learning and reasoning together.
Ambipolar spin diffusion and D'yakonov-Perel' spin relaxation in GaAs quantum wells

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Fatty Acid Hydroperoxides Support Cytochrome P450 2S1- Mediated Bioactivation of Benzo(a)pyrene-7,8-dihydrodiol

In the accompanying report (p. 1031), we showed that a novel dioxin-inducible cytochrome P450, CYP2S1, efficiently metabolizes benzo[a]pyrene-trans-7,8-dihydrodiol (BaP-7,8-diol) into the highly mutagenic and carcinogenic benzo[a]pyrene-r-7,t-8-dihydrodiol-t-9,10-epoxide (BaP-diol-t-epoxide), using cumene hydroperoxide in lieu of NADPH/O2. Lipid hydroperoxide-supported P450 oxidation has been reported in several cases. However, it has not yet been described for the bioactivation of BaP-7,8-diol. In this report, we demonstrate that CYP2S1 can use various fatty acid hydroperoxides to support epoxidation of BaP-7,8-diol at a much higher rate than with cumene hydroperoxide. Kinetic analyses with several fatty acid hydroperoxides revealed that 13S-hydroperoxy-9Z,11E-octadecadienoic acid (13-HpODE) was the most potent oxidant tested (Km, 3.4 ± 0.8 μM; turnover, 4.51 ± 0.13 min−1), followed by 12S-hydroperoxy-5Z,8Z,10E,14Z-eicosatetraenoic acid (Km, 2.8 ± 0.7 μM; turnover, 3.7 ± 0.1 min−1), 5S-hydroperoxy-6E,8Z,11Z,14Z-eicosatetraenoic acid (Km, 2.7 ± 0.8 μM; turnover, 3.69 ± 0.09 min−1), and 15S-hydroperoxy-5Z,8Z,10E,14Z-eicosatetraenoic acid (Km, 11.6 ± 0.3 μM; turnover, 0.578 ± 0.030 min−1). The antioxidant butylated hydroxyanisole inhibited CYP2S1-catalyzed epoxidation by 100%, suggesting that epoxidation proceeds by a free radical mechanism. Other cytochromes P450, including CYP1A1, CYP1B1, CYP1A2, and CYP3A4, were also able to epoxidize BaP-7,8-diol using various fatty acid hydroperoxides, although at slower rates than CYP2S1. The cytotoxicity of BaP-7,8-diol significantly increased in mammalian cells overexpressing CYP2S1, and BaP-diol-t-epoxide formation in these cells also increased in the presence of 13-HpODE. Together, these results suggest that fatty acid hydroperoxides can serve as physiological cofactors in supporting in vivo CYP2S1-catalyzed oxidation of BaP-7,8-diol, and that fatty acid hydroperoxides and CYP2S1 may play important roles in benzo[a]pyrene-induced carcinogenesis.
TCIQ: An identification by intensity and frequency of potent testing cues in science

Everyone experiences some anxiety while taking an examination. High-test-anxious (HTA) and low-test-anxious (LTA) students are described by two characteristic differences: frequency and intensity of anxious responses and attentional direction to testing cues. The purposes of this study were threefold: (1) to report “potent” testing cues (i.e., 90% response agreement for both intensity and frequency) that were identified by HTA and LTA students; (2) to report differences between HTA and LTA students for frequencies and intensities of responses to testing cues; and (3) to report differences between HTA and LTA students of attentional direction to testing cues. A pool of 396 males and females who were enrolled in physical geology completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. A random sample consisting of 93 HTA and 40 LTA subjects completed the Test Cues Identification Questionnaire (TCIQ). The TCIQ consists of 28 disruptive items and 27 helpful items. Subjects responded with both frequency and intensity ratings for all of the 55 items in the TCIQ. Results revealed that 22 items were viewed by subjects as “potent” testing cues. Empirical evidence obtained did not support previous theoretical reports of differences between HTA and LTA students for either frequency and intensity of anxious responses or attentional direction to the set of disruptive and helpful testing cues. Although test anxiousness did not appear to be associated with those two characteristics differences, a discriminant analysis revealed 24 items in the TCIQ which significantly, χ2 (24) = 47.59, p < 0.004, separated HTA and LTA subjects responses. Apparently, HTA and LTA students differ in their responses to specific disruptive and helpful cues but not in their responses to the set of testing cues as was previously postulated.
The impact of thiazolidinedione use on outcomes in ambulatory patients with diabetes mellitus and heart failure.

Objectives This study sought to examine the relationship between thiazolidinedione (TZD) use and outcomes in ambulatory patients with diabetes and heart failure (HF). Background Thiazolidinediones have been relatively contraindicated in diabetic patients with HF. Methods We conducted a retrospective study of a national cohort of veterans with HF and diabetes treated in ambulatory clinics at Veterans Affairs medical centers. Patients were classified into those using TZDs and those not using insulin-sensitizing medication based on prescriptions filled 90 days before or 30 days after the index outpatient visit. The outcomes were time to hospitalization for HF and time to death. Results Of 7,147 ambulatory HF patients receiving diabetic therapy, 818 (11.4%) were receiving a TZD and 4,700 (65.8%) were not receiving insulin sensitizers. Over 2 years of follow-up, 134 (16.4%) patients receiving TZDs and 741 (15.8%) patients not receiving insulin-sensitizing medications required HF hospitalization (adjusted hazard ratio 1.00, 95% confidence interval 0.81 to 1.24, p = 0.97). A total of 168 (20.5%) patients receiving TZDs and 1,192 (25.4%) patients not receiving insulin-sensitizing medications died (adjusted hazard ratio 0.98, 95% confidence interval 0.81 to 1.17, p = 0.80). Conclusions In ambulatory patients with established HF and diabetes, the use of TZDs was not associated with an increased risk of HF hospitalization or total mortality when compared with those not receiving insulin-sensitizing medications.
Theories of Artificial Intelligence — Meta-theoretical considerations

This chapter addresses several central meta-theoretical issues of AI and AGI. After analyzing the nature of the field, three criteria for desired theories are proposed: correctness, concreteness, and compactness. The criteria are clarified in the AI context, and using them, the current situation in the field is evaluated.
Acute Stress Disorder and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Brief Overview and Guide to Assessment

In summary, the assessment of posttraumatic symptomatology involves a set of complicated but extremely important methodological issues. Given the fact that virtually all medical professionals and mental health providers will encounter clients who have been exposed to PTEs, it is important that the clinician know how to assess both the stressful event experienced and the possible symptoms related to that event in a manner least likely to lead to either underor overendorsement of symptoms. The use of a multimethod assessment package, integrating standardized interviews and questionnaires discussed in the current chapter and reviewed in more detail in Chapter 19 is highly recommended.