cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Induction of p53-Independent Apoptosis by Simian Virus 40 Small t Antigen

Simian virus 40 small t antigen (st) is required for optimal transformation and replication properties of the virus. We find that in certain cell types, such as the human osteosarcoma cell line U2OS, st is capable of inducing apoptosis, as evidenced by a fragmented nuclear morphology and positive terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling staining of transfected cells. The cell death can be p53 independent, since it also occurs in p53-deficient H1299 cells. Genetic analysis indicates that two specific mutants affect apoptosis induction. One of these (C103S) has been frequently used as a PP2A binding mutant. The second mutant (TR4) lacks the final four amino acids of st, which have been reported to be unimportant for PP2A binding in vitro. However, TR4 unexpectedly fails to bind PP2A in vivo. Furthermore, a long-term colony assay reveals a potent colony inhibition upon st expression, and the behavior of st mutants in this assay reflects the relative frequency of nuclear fragmentation observed in transfections using the same mutants. Notably, either Bcl-2 coexpression or broad caspase inhibitor treatment could restore normal nuclear morphology. Finally, fluorescence-activated cell sorting analysis suggests a correlation between the ability of st to modulate cell cycle progression and apoptosis. Taken together, these observations underscore that st does not always promote proliferation but may, depending on conditions and cell type, effect a cell death response.
The analytical form of the length distribution function for computer interconnection

An analysis of a hierarchical computer interconnection model that yields the analytical form of the interconnection distribution function is presented. It is shown that this function is consistent with the previously derived equation for the average interconnection length and that the distribution function accurately describes the distribution of interconnections within previously constructed computer systems. The distribution function is then used to investigate the proposed relationship between the exponent of the Rent equation and the gradient of the length distribution function. It is confirmed that the pin-limited partitioning of computer systems results in an approximate power-law length distribution function, and for large numbers of gates the characteristic exponent of the length distribution function gamma is related to the Rent exponent by gamma approximately=3-2 p. In addition, it is shown that the theoretical equations are a good approximation to experimentally observed interconnection distributions. >
Comparison of intracranial self-administration of ethanol within the posterior ventral tegmental area between alcohol-preferring and Wistar rats.

Background: A previous study indicated that selectively bred alcohol-preferring (P) rats self-administered ethanol (EtOH) directly into the ventral tegmental area (VTA), whereas the alcohol-nonpreferring line did not. Wistar rats will also self-administer EtOH directly into the posterior VTA. Because Wistar rats also have a low preference for EtOH solutions but self-inject EtOH into the VTA, this study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that there is an association between EtOH preference and sensitivity of the VTA to the reinforcing effects of EtOH. Methods: Adult P and Wistar rats were assigned to groups that received one of the following concentrations of EtOH: 0, 50, 75, 100, 150, or 200 mg/100 ml. Rats were connected to the microinjection system, placed into two-lever (active and inactive) experimental chambers, and given EtOH for the first four sessions (acquisition), artificial cerebrospinal fluid for sessions 5 and 6 (extinction), and EtOH again in session 7 (reinstatement). Responding on the active lever produced a 100-nl injection of the infusate. Results: P rats self-infused 75 to 200 mg/100 ml EtOH and demonstrated lever discrimination, whereas Wistar rats reliably self-infused only 150 and 200 mg/100 ml EtOH. Both P and Wistar rats reduced responding on the active lever when artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF) was substituted for EtOH and reinstated responding in session 7 when EtOH was restored, although P rats demonstrated a very robust enhancement of responding for 100 and 150 mg/100 ml EtOH, and this was not found for Wistar rats. Conclusions: These results suggest that, compared with Wistar rats, the posterior VTA of P rats was more sensitive to the reinforcing effects of EtOH. Furthermore, the reinstatement data suggest that the posterior VTA of P rats underwent neuronal alterations as a result of prior EtOH exposure and extinction that changed the reinforcing effects of EtOH within this region.
Review of the perciform fish genus Symphysanodon Bleeker (Symphysanodontidae), with descriptions of three new species, S. mona, S. parini, and S. rhax

Symphysanodon mona, a new species of perciform fish, is described from a single specimen collected in Mona Passage off the west coast of Puerto Rico. It differs from all other species of Symphysanodon in having fewer gillrakers on the first gill arch (4 or 5 + 19–21 = 24 or 25 total vs. 8–14 + 20–29 = 28–42 total) and, additionally, from the other two Atlantic species of the genus (S. berryi and S. octoactinus) in two other features of gill-arch morphology, viz., in having a ventral branch of the obliquus dorsalis 3 muscle (vs. its absence in the other two species) and in having a posteriorly projecting extension of the cartilaginous lateral end of ceratobranchial 4 (vs. its absence in the other two species; S. berryi has a small accessory cartilage associated with the lateral end of ceratobranchial 4 which may also be present in S. octoactinus). Symphysanodon parini, new species, known from 10 specimens collected over Sala y Gomez Ridge in the eastern South Pacific, can be distinguished from all other species of Symphysanodon, except S. maunaloae from the central and western Pacific, by the following combination of characters: segmented anal-fin rays 7, tubed lateral-line scales 45–50, total gillrakers on first gill arch 31– 34 (9 or 10 + 22–24), sum of lateral-line scales and gillrakers on individual specimens 77–84, depth of body 22.5–24.7 % SL (4.0–4.4 times in SL), length of depressed anal fin 24.8–26.4 % SL, hypurals 1 & 2 autogenous, hypurals 3 & 4 represented by a single plate, and first caudal vertebra without parapophyses. It is distinguished from S. maunaloae by differences in mean numbers of tubed lateral-line scales (mean = 47.89 for S. parini vs. mean = 44.94 for S. maunaloae) and pectoral-fin rays (mean = 16.90 for S. parini vs. mean = 16.13 for S. maunaloae) and by differences in a few morphometric characters. Symphysanodon rhax, new species, known from specimens collected off the Maldive Islands, northern Indian Ocean, is separable from all other species of Symphysanodon, except S. berryi from the Atlantic, by the following combination of characters: segmented rays in the anal fin 7, tubed lateral-line scales 50, gillrakers on the first gill arch 35–38 (10 or 11 + 25–27), sum of lateral-line scales and gillrakers on individual specimens 85–88, depth of body 20.6–24.8 % SL (4.0–4.9 times in SL), length of depressed anal fin 21.8–23.9 % SL, hypurals 1 & 2 autogenous, hypurals 3 & 4 represented by a single plate, and first caudal vertebra without parapophyses. It can be distinguished from S. berryi by its shorter second anal-fin spine and a suite of other morphometric characters. A key to Symphysanodon and a review of the other species of the genus are also presented.
A genetic mouse model to investigate hyperoxic acute lung injury survival

Acute lung injury (ALI) is a devastating disease that maintains a high mortality rate, despite decades of research. Hyperoxia, a universal treatment for ALI and other critically ill patients, can i...
Psychological traumas and depression in a sample of Vietnamese people in the United States

This article investigates the relationships among premigration stresses, nightmares, acculturation stresses, personal efficacy, and depression in a sample of 147 adult Vietnamese Americans. The analysis revealed that premigration stresses, nightmares, and acculturation stresses had significant indirect effects on depression. Acculturation stresses diminish personal efficacy, and a weakness of personal efficacy leads to higher depression. Age, gender, marital status, and English language ability also exert differential effects on premigration stresses, nightmares, acculturation stresses, personal efficacy, and depression. Health care professionals, social workers, health care organizations, and social work researchers who work with Vietnamese clients should be more culturally sensitive when planning and implementing services and developing research instruments.
Lifelong Yearly Prostate Specific Antigen Surveillance is Not Necessary for Low Risk Prostate Cancer Treated With Radical Prostatectomy

Purpose: Many patients undergoing radical prostatectomy in the prostate specific antigen era have a low risk of recurrence. Aggressive postoperative prostate specific antigen surveillance is costly and anxiety provoking. In this study we investigate the need for yearly prostate specific antigen measurements in patients with surgically treated low risk prostate cancer.Materials and Methods: We identified 2,219 patients who underwent radical prostatectomy between 1994 and 2004 for low risk localized prostate cancer. Low risk was defined as prostate specific antigen less than 10 ng/ml, pathological stage pT2c or less, Gleason score 6 or less, negative lymph nodes and negative surgical margins. Patients who underwent neoadjuvant or adjuvant therapy were excluded from analysis. Biochemical failure was defined as a prostate specific antigen greater than 0.4 ng/ml and prostate specific antigen values less than 0.15 ng/ml were considered undetectable. Biochemical failure rates were calculated according to the dur...
Kinetics and Thermodynamics of the Reaction of Molecular Oxygen with YBa3Cu3Ox

The sensitivity of the properties of RBa2Cu3Ox materials to oxygen stoichiometry has been widely reported.1 This is a serious problem in the synthesis and processing of these compounds since many operations must be carried out at temperatures and oxygen partial pressures where bulk oxygen is in dynamic equilibrium with gas phase molecular oxygen. Therefore it is crucial for the rational design of processing strategies to understand how the equilibria and kinetics of oxygen stoichiometry in this material vary with temperature and pressure. In this paper we report work on two problems in this area: first, we describe the development of accurate methods for the determination of oxygen stoichiometry in experimental samples, and second, the use of these methods to investigate and analyze equilibrium oxygen contents over a range of temperatures and oxygen partial pressures. Equilibrium oxygen contents from 350 – 900°C at oxygen pressures of. 05, .21, and 1.00 atmospheres have been determined. The pressure dependence has also been examined over a wider range at selected temperatures. Most of this data can be adequately fit to a model which assumes that a single chemical equilibrium constant can describe the entire stoichiometry range from x=6 to 7. However, kinetic data suggests that the detailed mechanism must be more complex, and that the overall thermochemistry may reflect contributions from a number of interacting processes rather than any single elementary step. In concurrent work we have used these methods to develop sample series that can be used to examine magnetic properties2 and far IR spectra3 of these materials as a systematic function of oxygen content.
Cartography of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Commitment Dependent upon a Reporter for Transcription Factor Activation

: A hierarchical hematopoietic developmental tree has been proposed based on the result of prospective purification of lineage-restricted progenitors. For more detailed mapping for hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) commitment, we tracked the expression of PU.1, a major granulocyte/monocyte (GM)- and lymphoid-related transcription factor, from the HSC to the myelolymphoid progenitor stages by using a mouse line harboring a knockin reporter for PU.1. This approach enabled us to find a new progenitor population committed to GM and lymphoid lineages within the HSC fraction. This result suggests that there should be another developmental pathway independent of the conventional one with myeloid versus lymphoid bifurcation, represented by common myeloid progenitors and common lymphoid progenitors, respectively. The utilization of the transcription factor expression as a functional marker might be useful to obtain cartography of the hematopoietic development at a higher resolution.
Simultaneous Radioimmunoassay for Luteinizing Hormone and Prolactin

A combined radioimmunoassay (RIA) for the measurement of the anterior pituitary proteins luteinizing hormone (LH) and prolactin (PRL) is described and compared with individual RIAs for these hormones. The standard curves and the sample values for LH and PRL were identical when determined in a combined or in an individual RIA. This technique may prove useful to a number of laboratories where it is desirable to determine levels of more than one hormone in limited sample volumes.
Following and interpreting narrated guided tours

We describe a robotic tour-taking capability enabling a robot to acquire local knowledge of a human-occupied environment. A tour-taking robot autonomously follows a human guide through an environment, interpreting the guide's spoken utterances and the shared spatiotemporal context in order to acquire a spatially segmented and semantically labeled metrical-topological representation of the environment. The described tour-taking capability enables scalable deployment of mobile robots into human-occupied environments, and natural human-robot interaction for commanded mobility. Our primary contributions are an efficient, socially acceptable autonomous tour-following behavior and a tour interpretation algorithm that partitions a map into spaces labeled according to the guide's utterances. The tour-taking behavior is demonstrated in a multi-floor office building and evaluated by assessing the comfort of the tour guides, and by comparing the robot's map partitions to those produced by humans.
A comprehensive prebiological screen for ecotoxicologic effects

Simple properties of chemicals—the octanol-water partition coefficient (Kow), Henry's Law constant (Hc) and biodegradability half-life (t1/2) — provide a means of evaluating ecotoxicologic testing requirements prior to direct screening using various organisms. Based on potential for exposure, arrays of properties portending ecotoxicologic concern are suggested for bioaccumulation and chronic effects, multispecies-multimedia involvement, inhalation toxicology and abiotic atmospheric effects.
Imagining the Law and the Constitution of Societal Order in Los Angeles Police Chief William Parker’s 1965 'Crime and the Great Society' Address

Legal scholar and theorist James Boyd White has challenged both lawyers and rhetoricians to imagine the law as a rhetorical and literary process (“Imagining the Law” from the 1997 anthology, The Rhetoric of Law). White contends that members of the legal profession should see law as an activity of speech and imagination that occurs in a social world (“Imagining the Law,” p. 35). He encourages members of the legal profession to look at law in its social context; in other words, instead of thinking of law as a social machine or technical system of regulations and applying its rules in a mechanical way, lawyers should engage the legal profession as an interaction of authoritative texts and as a process of legal thought and argument (“Imagining the Law,” p. 55). By asking members of the legal professional to see law as rhetoric, White encourages them to recognize the socially constitutive nature of language, which runs contrary to a perspective of law as machine or, rather, the law as only a system of rules and regulations.My paper will extend White’s notion of imagining law as rhetorical and literary process. White has analyzed specific court cases as instances of lawyers and judges imagining the law in particular ways. In addition, scholars, particularly from communication and rhetoric, have taken inspiration from his ideas and applied them to the rhetoric of the courtroom (e.g., court testimony, judicial opinions, and narrative in legal discourse). However, I intend to take White’s concept of imagining the law and to apply it to a public address concerning constitutionality and the legal system (as opposed to analyzing transcripts from court cases). The specific case for my paper, the “Crime and the Great Society” (1965) speech from former Los Angeles Police Chief William Parker, reflects Parker’s imagining of the law and of constitutional rights – particularly the rights of the accused. (Based on my research, the speech itself represents an artifact no one has seriously studied.) My paper will show how his speech reflects a vision for the City of Los Angeles; Parker, himself, imagines the law by referencing several authoritative texts and literary works to advance his agenda for societal order in Los Angeles. In the end, Parker asks his audience, the city’s leaders and citizens, to share his vision and his imagination, and, moreover, he constitutes a societal order through his use of language. Such imaginings, however, can adversely affect the very society a rhetorician intends to strengthen if the rhetorician’s words result in negative consequences for citizens’ constitutional rights.
Epidemiology of smoking related diseases which physicians encounter in their office practice.

T he practicing physician can no more ignore the smoking habits of his patients than he can avoid the process of diagnosing the illness that brings that patient to him. Even if there were no associations, causal or contributory, between smoking and disease, the average practitioner would find that over half (51.0 per cent) of his men patients and one-third (33.2 per cent) of his women patients aged 17 years and over are regular cigarette smokers.’ This may be compared with the prevalence of cigarette smoking in the United States as derived from the Current Population Survey for February 1955.2 In that year, 49.8 per cent of men and 23.6 per cent of women aged 18 years and over were regular cigarette smokers. Thus, in one decade, women smokers increased approximately 50 per cent with but a slight increase for the men. The women can thus be seen to be rapidly approaching the men in prevalence of the cigarette smoking habit, and for both sexes, this habit constitutes one of the most common exposures to an environmental hazard. These smoking prevalence data represent the patterns for the population irrespective of illness. When one considers the high degrees of association between cigarette smoking and mortality and morbidity from such diseases as lung cancer, chronic bronchitis and emphysema, cancer of the larynx, coronary heart disease, cancer of the bladder and esophagus, and cerebrovascular disease and between other forms of tobacco use and cancer of the buccal cavity, it is logical to conclude that an even greater proportion of all patients seen by the practicing physician will present a history of current regular smoking. The gravity of the situation which we now face can be expressed in several ways. In 1965, of the 1,828,136 deaths from all causes, 866,340 (47 per cent) were from diseases associated with tobacco
Sensory Characteristics of Cottage Cheese Whey and Grapefruit Juice Blends and Changes During Processing

Studies were conducted to determine the sensory characteristics of pasteurized blends of cottage cheese whey and grapefruit juice (0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% whey), and the effects of processing alternatives and storage at 3°C. A trained sensory panel rated six attributes (grapefruit, sweetness, sourness, astringency, cheesiness, saltiness). Cheesiness and saltiness increased, while sourness, astringency, sweetness, and grapefruit flavor decreased as the percentage of whey increased. Protein removal did not affect the sensory characteristics, but vacuum stripping reduced cheesiness and increased grapefruit flavor and sweetness. Lactose hydrolysis increased sweetness and decreased cheesiness in blends with more than 50% whey. The flavor of most blends was stable for 14 wk at 3°C.
Parallel domain decomposition for simulation of large-scale power grids

This paper presents fully parallel domain decomposition (DD) techniques for efficient simulation of large-scale linear circuits such as power grids. DD techniques that use non-overlapping and overlapping partitioning of power grids are described in this paper. Simulation results show that with the proposed parallel DD framework, existing linear circuit simulators can be extended to handle large-scale power grids. Results for circuits with more than four million nodes indicate that parallel DD with LU factorization is most suitable for power grid simulation. However, for densely connected power grids, parallel DD with additive Schwarz preconditioning offers maximum scalability and best performance.
Whose Budget? Our Budget? Broadening Political Stakeholdership via Participatory Budgeting

In this thought piece, I attempt to contextualize New York City’s inaugural participatory budgeting (PB) process in the larger landscape of American political participation. I discuss how the bottom-up way in which stakeholders wrote the process’s rules in the first place, alongside the core role played by the two lead organizations, helped to broaden notions of stakeholdership among constituents. Ultimately, the first year’s primary achievement regarding political participation was not a specific set of outcomes, but a debut as an unfinished form of governance—one that began to engage traditionally marginalized constituents, to trigger their political imagination, and to prompt them to demand more.
Taxonomy and Physiology of Filamentous Anoxygenic Phototrophs

The filamentous anoxygenic phototrophs are a diverse group of photosynthetic bacteria that are of particular evolutionary significance. The best known species is the thermophilic Chloroflexus aurantiacus. This organism is a prominent member of hot spring microbial mat communities. Because it forms a deep division in the eubacterial line of descent and because it has an interesting combination of characteristics found in very different and diverse groups of phototrophic prokaryotes, it is of particular significance in addressing questions of evolutionary importance.
Managing Emerging Contaminants: Status, Impacts, and Watershed-Wide Strategies

Widespread occurrence of emerging contaminants (ECs) in water bodies is a major health concern worldwide, both in developing and developed countries. Contaminants from pharmaceutical, personal care products, pest control, and animal operations enter water bodies and can exceed acceptable levels. ECs can cause harmful impacts on aquatic and terrestrial wildlife and human communities. Endocrine disrupting chemicals cause a number of reproductive and sexual abnormalities in wildlife and humans. During prenatal and/or early postnatal life, exposure to these chemicals can impair the development of the endocrine system and of the organs that respond to endocrine signals in organisms. The effects during development are permanent and sometimes irreversible. Managing ECs in water resources is a critical issue that requires attention especially in sensitive ecosystems and in rapidly developing areas. There is a need for a comprehensive framework that aims at system-wide abatement (source-transfer-fate levels) using both structural and non-structural approaches. In this study, we review the state of this problem in developing and developed countries, nature of their impacts on aquatic organisms, terrestrial animals, and on public health. A comprehensive, innovative, and novel approach with multi-level strategies at source, transfer, and sink level is proposed for effective removal of ECs. Some structural approaches at source level for abatement of ECs include the use of best management practices like buffer strips, riparian management, natural, and constructed wetlands. Since these strategies have multi-level applicability, they are cost-effective alternatives to include in wastewater treatment. Among structural approaches at sink level, powdered activated carbon, nanofiltration, and reverse osmosis can remove most of the emerging organic. However, the cost of treatment by these methods is high and it is inevitable for treating drinking water. Besides structural approaches, non-structural approaches play a major role and need to use targeted strategies in dissemination of information, outreach to modify human behavior, incentives for controlling contaminant loads, and improved and updated policy mechanism for compliance to pollutant standards.
Robust static and fixed‐order dynamic output feedback control of discrete‐time parametric uncertain Luré systems: Sequential SDP relaxation approaches

Summary Design methods are proposed for static and fixed-order dynamic output feedback controllers for discrete-time Lure systems with sector-bounded nonlinearities in the presence of parametric uncertainties described by polytopes. The derived design conditions are represented in terms of bilinear matrix inequalities, which are nonconvex. By using convex relaxation methods, controller design equations are derived for systems with multiple states, outputs, and nonlinearities in terms of linear matrix inequalities (LMIs) and iterative LMIs, which are associated with semidefinite programs. The proposed design methods are developed from stability conditions using parameter-dependent Lyapunov functions, and existing iterative numerical methods are adapted to solve certain classes of nonconvex optimization problems for controller design. Several numerical examples are provided to illustrate and verify the proposed design methods. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Detecting bacteria contamination on medical device surfaces using an integrated fiber-optic mid-infrared spectroscopy sensing method

Abstract Bacterial contamination on medical device surfaces is a critical public health concern. In order to detect bacteria on medical device surface, alternative methods for quantitative, accurate, easy-to-use, and real-time detection and identification of microorganism contamination are needed. We have recently presented a novel proof-of-concept platform for non-contact, label-free and real-time detection of surface contamination employing a fiber-optic Fourier transform infrared (FO-FTIR) spectroscopy sensing methodology in the mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectral range of 1.6–12 μm. In the present study, we demonstrate the detection capability and sensitivity of the integrated FO-FTIR approach using four species of commonly encountered bacteria: Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Streptococcus pneumoniae. FO-FTIR combined with multivariate approaches such as hierarchical clustering and principal component analysis provided specific mid-IR spectral differentiation of the four microorganisms including when the sample contained mixtures of bacteria types. To assess the sensitivity of the FO-FTIR platform, bacteria samples were prepared at 109 colony forming unit (CFU)/μL and then serially diluted 1:10 eight times. The salient findings of this investigation showed that the integrated FO-FTIR based sensor can detect the presence of the bacteria at concentrations between 103 and 104 CFU/2 μL, producing unique bacteria signatures with high reproducibility. The advanced features of this sensing method in terms of sensitivity, specificity and repeatability employing non-contact, label-free, and real-time approaches, demonstrate its potential use as an alternative effective screening tool for routine monitoring of bacterial contaminated surfaces.
Competing for consumer memory in television advertising An empirical examination of the impacts of non-editorial clutter on brand memory in mega-event broadcasts

The purpose of this study is to examine how brand recall and recognition are affected by non-editorial clutter in mega-event broadcasting. Using longitudinal data collected during four years of Sup...
A Storm Runoff Simulator to Evaluate Grass Filter Strips and Other Storm Water Management Systems

A storm runoff simulator is needed to evaluate flow hydraulics, sediment trapping and water quality benefits of grass filter strips, small hydraulic structures such as storm drains, other stormwater management practices and similar bioretention systems. Based on an engineering analysis using MUSLE and HEC2, it was determined that a simulator could be developed for a 1 x 9 m grass filter plot, with resource constraints of 7,580 L stored water, 7.3 L s peak water flow rate and 0.71 metric tons of soil, for field to buffer area ratios (BAR) greater than 30:1, the maximum design criteria specified for grass filter strips by the Natural Resources Conservation Service. A runoff simulator water output control device operating under gravity flow conditions and using a feedback control system between and a flow meter and an actuated valve was designed, built and tested. A timecompressed 10yr-2hr SCS design hydrograph with a 7.3 L s peak flow rate was used to calibrate the simulator for optimal performance with large changes in flow rate and for compatibility with a variety of hydrograph shapes. When reproducing the compressed SCS hydrograph, the simulator maintained comparable efficiencies among repetitions; with a 2% error between root means square error and the total flow range. Hydrographs with step changes in flow rate, flow rate plateaus, multiple peaks and flow rates up to 9.8 L s could be simulated with comparable efficiencies and 4 to 6% error.
Economic Operation Optimization of a Stand-alone Microgrid System Considering Characteristics of Energy Storage System

Application of stand-alone wind-solar-diesel-battery microgrid systems in remote islands has received increasing attention.In order to achieve stable,reliable,and economical operation of a stand-alone microgrid system,not only the full use of renewable energy must be considered,but also the constraints and influencing factors of energy storage systems should be combined.In view of the stand-alone wind-solar-diesel-battery microgrid system,the paper establishes the microgrid economic operation optimization model taking into account the depreciation cost,operation and maintenance cost,fuel cost,and environmental cost.The paper gives full consideration to the usage principles and influencing factors of lead-acid battery.Under the multi-objective of costs and lead-acid battery usage,the optimal scheme is obtained using the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm(NSGA-Ⅱ).The results show that the method presented can fully evaluate the economics of distributed generation and the life losses of lead-acid battery,meet the diverse needs of users and help determine the system economic operation scheme.
Computer-assisted study of diurnal variation in corneal topography after penetrating keratoplasty.

Diurnal changes in corneal topography have been documented to be greater in eyes following radial keratotomy that in normal eyes. To determine whether substantial changes of this nature result from corneal incisions in general or are a specific complication of radial keratotomy, we examined 12 corneas (10 patients) after penetrating keratoplasty for diurnal changes, using a computerized corneal topographic analysis system. Diurnal changes in keratometry readings, central corneal thickness, intraocular pressure, and refraction also were analyzed. From morning to evening, central corneal curvature flattened by an average of 0.74 +/- 0.18 diopters in eight eyes (67%), and steepened by an average of 2.00 +/- 0.53 D in four eyes (33%). Diurnal changes in central corneal thickness were correlated with diurnal changes in central corneal curvature (r = 0.63, P less than .05). These data suggest that changes in corneal thickness over the course of the day may partially account for the changes in corneal curvature demonstrated to occur following penetrating keratoplasty.
Animal bite wounds.

A wide variety of bite wounds are discussed, from dogs and cats to marine animals and snakes. The type of wound each animal can inflict is shown, along with a thorough description of the proper treatment techniques.
Lower leg compensatory strategies during performance of a step up and over task in patient six-months after total knee arthroplasty

The purpose of this study was to assess the ankle, knee, and hip joint contributions to the total support moment (TSM) and the activation patterns of muscles in the lower leg in patients after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and healthy older adults during the step up and over task. Moreover, the relationship between quadriceps strength and knee contribution to TSM was measured. Twenty patients six-months after TKA and twenty healthy controls were recruited for this study. Motion and surface electromyographic (EMG) analyses were performed during a step up and over task. Biomechanics and EMG variables were compared between groups using ANCOVA models with movement speed as covariate. Patients after TKA had reduced contribution to the TSM from the knee joint, and greater contribution from the hip and ankle joints, possibly to compensate for the reduced contribution at the knee. No consistent differences of EMG activation or co-contraction were found between groups. Patients with stronger quadriceps had significantly higher knee contribution to TSM during the lowering phase of the task. The results of this study suggest that patients after TKA may use compensatory strategies at the hip and ankle joints to safely perform the step up and over task. Patients may rely on the force generating ability of the quadriceps during the lowering phase as they are not able to compensate with other joints of the lower extremity during this phase of the task.
Introduction: Darkness Visible

In December 2011, a report appeared concerning the discovery of a new form of deadly flu virus. The H5N1 virus was first identified in Hong Kong in 1997 in poultry, and was so contagious that the government ordered the destruction of over a million birds in order to limit the outbreak. Though few humans were infected as a result of contact — only 18 within the first 12 months — that number grew to 600 in the ten years that followed, with a fatality rate of around 50 per cent.
The Role of TOR Signaling in Aging

The target of rapamycin (TOR) kinase defines a highly conserved nutrient-response pathway that is known to modulate longevity in invertebrate organisms. Multiple mutations in this pathway that reduce TOR signaling have been reported to increase life span in different organisms, as has pharmacological inhibition of TOR. Multiple TOR-regulated processes are also known to play a role in longevity control, including autophagy, mRNA translation initiation, and mitochondrial metabolism. TOR signaling interacts with insulin/IGF-1 signaling via Akt kinase and maps genetically to the same longevity pathway as dietary restriction. Studies are underway to determine whether inhibition of TOR is sufficient to increase life span in mammals. TOR-inhibitors are clinically useful in humans and may prove beneficial against multiple age-associated diseases.
Patient, Provider, and Combined Interventions for Managing Osteoarthritis in Primary Care: A Cluster Randomized Trial.

Background A single-site study showed that a combined patient and provider intervention improved outcomes for patients with knee osteoarthritis, but it did not assess separate effects of the interventions. Objective To examine whether patient-based, provider-based, and patient-provider interventions improve osteoarthritis outcomes. Design Cluster randomized trial with assignment to patient, provider, and patient-provider interventions or usual care. (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01435109). Setting 10 Duke University Health System community-based primary care clinics. Participants 537 outpatients with symptomatic hip or knee osteoarthritis. Intervention The telephone-based patient intervention focused on weight management, physical activity, and cognitive behavioral pain management. The provider intervention involved electronic delivery of patient-specific osteoarthritis treatment recommendations to providers. Measurements The primary outcome was the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) total score at 12 months. Secondary outcomes were objective physical function (Short Physical Performance Battery) and depressive symptoms (Patient Health Questionnaire). Linear mixed models assessed the difference in improvement among groups. Results No difference was observed in WOMAC score changes from baseline to 12 months in the patient (-1.5 [95% CI, -5.1 to 2.0]; P = 0.40), provider (2.5 [CI, -0.9 to 5.9]; P = 0.152), or patient-provider (-0.7 [CI, -4.2 to 2.8]; P = 0.69) intervention groups compared with usual care. All groups had improvements in WOMAC scores at 12 months (range, -3.7 to -7.7). In addition, no differences were seen in objective physical function or depressive symptoms at 12 months in any of the intervention groups compared with usual care. Limitations The study involved 1 health care network. Data on provider referrals were not collected. Conclusion Contrary to a previous study of a combined patient and provider intervention for osteoarthritis in a Department of Veterans Affairs medical center, this study found no statistically significant improvements in the osteoarthritis intervention groups compared with usual care. Primary funding source National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.
Mad Men: A Cultural History

It was recently announced that the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin is the official repository for the Mad Men archive. The show’s creator and executive producer, Matthew We...
Tackling Bullying: Grounds for Encouragement and Sustained Focus

With the growing recognition over the past 2 decades regarding the harm caused by school bullying on a child’s physical and emotional health, a variety of measures to reduce bullying has been put in place. Given all these efforts, is school bullying trending upward (as many might fear) or downward (as we hope)? What are the current rates of bullying? And, beyond a singular focus on the occurrence of bullying episodes, is the climate in schools improving? The large-sample, 10-year longitudinal study of school bullying by Waasdorp et al1 in this issue of Pediatrics addresses these questions, and does so with commendable rigor. For instance, they used a standard definition of bullying, specifying the attributes of intention, repetition, and power imbalance; the use of this standard definition is not always routine in studies of bullying, making comparisons across studies usually problematic. They also examined a broader age range of students than in other research, improving the generalizability of the findings. Finally, they used a sophisticated longitudinal design that takes into account a number of covariates to better understand trends in bullying and related behaviors over this 10-year period. The good news from the Waasdorp et al … Address correspondence to Stephen S. Leff, PhD, Violence Prevention Initiative, Department of Pediatrics, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Roberts Center for Pediatric Research, 2716 South St, Floor 8, #8323, Philadelphia, PA 19104. E-mail: leff{at}email.chop.edu
Costs of Water Quality Goals under Climate Change in Urbanizing Watersheds: Difficult Run, Virginia

AbstractReducing nutrient loadings in urban areas is important for water quality improvement programs in many watersheds. Urban nutrient loadings are expected to increase and become more variable u...
Bioluminescent Probes for Imaging Biology beyond the Culture Dish

Bioluminescence with luciferase–luciferin pairs is an attractive method for surveying cells in live tissues and whole organisms. Recent advances in luciferin chemistry and luciferase engineering are further expanding the scope of the technology. It is now possible to spy on cells in a variety of deep tissues and visualize multicellular interactions, feats that are enabling new questions to be asked and new ideas to be explored. This perspective piece highlights recent successes in bioluminescent probe development and their applications to imaging in live cells, tissues, and animals.
EEG-Annotate: Automated identification and labeling of events in continuous signals with applications to EEG.

Abstract Background In controlled laboratory EEG experiments, researchers carefully mark events and analyze subject responses time-locked to these events. Unfortunately, such markers may not be available or may come with poor timing resolution for experiments conducted in less-controlled naturalistic environments. New method We present an integrated event-identification method for identifying particular responses that occur in unlabeled continuously recorded EEG signals based on information from recordings of other subjects potentially performing related tasks. We introduce the idea of timing slack and timing-tolerant performance measures to deal with jitter inherent in such non-time-locked systems. We have developed an implementation available as an open-source MATLAB toolbox ( http://github.com/VisLab/EEG-Annotate ) and have made test data available in a separate data note. Results We applied the method to identify visual presentation events (both target and non-target) in data from an unlabeled subject using labeled data from other subjects with good sensitivity and specificity. The method also identified actual visual presentation events in the data that were not previously marked in the experiment. Comparison with existing methods Although the method uses traditional classifiers for initial stages, the problem of identifying events based on the presence of stereotypical EEG responses is the converse of the traditional stimulus-response paradigm and has not been addressed in its current form. Conclusions In addition to identifying potential events in unlabeled or incompletely labeled EEG, these methods also allow researchers to investigate whether particular stereotypical neural responses are present in other circumstances. Timing-tolerance has the added benefit of accommodating inter- and intra- subject timing variations.
Non-traumatic splenic rupture in a patient with human granulocytic anaplasmosis and focused review of the literature

Abstract We report a rare case of a 53-year-old man with no significant past medical history who reported multiple tick bites within a 2-month period. The patient reported not “feeling well” for the 2 ½ weeks. He complained of generalized body aches, pains, and chills. He did not report nausea, vomiting, or yellowish discoloration of the eyes or skin. He presented to the emergency room with syncope preceded by severe abdominal pain. Upon presentation, he was pale and hypotensive. He had not experienced any trauma. Computed tomography revealed a splenic rupture, hemoperitoneum, and active extravasation of contrast material. The estimated amount of hemoperitoneum was 1.5 liters of blood. Subsequently, an infectious disease work-up revealed a positive Anaplasma phagocytophilum polymerase reaction in blood. The patient was aggressively resuscitated, and a splenectomy was performed followed by doxycycline therapy. He successfully recovered.
Dams and Flows: Immersing in Western Meaning Systems in Search of Ecocultural Reflexivity

In this unprecedented era of anthropogenic ecological destruction, this study illustrates inadequacies in conceptual language available in Western settings to think deeply and holistically about “n...
Tissue and Capillary Force Changes During the Formation of Intra-Alveolar Edema

The Starling forces, capillary pressure (Pc) plasma colloid osmotic pressure (Лc), tissue colloid osmotic pressure (Лt) and tissue fluid pressure (Pt) are related to the volume movement (JV) across any capillary system by the relationship: $$J_v = K_{FC} \left[ {\left( {P_c - P_t } \right) - \sigma _c \left( {\pi _c - \pi _t } \right)} \right]$$ where KF, C is the filtration coefficient of the capillary bed (ml/min-mm Hg-100 gm) and σ is the Staverman reflection coefficient of the plasma proteins (σ of the protein is equal to 1 if the membrane is impermeable to the protein and is equal to 0 if the protein is as permeable as water in the membrane i.e. velocity of solute/velocity of water = 1). Obviously there is not just one σ but a σ for each of the various protein fractions in the body fluids (α1, α2. and β globulins, albumin and γ globulins); however, for practical purposes we can assume that σ =1 for all plasma proteins and calculate total ΔЛ by the use of the Landis and Pappenheimer equation (1,2).
Vibration-Based Energy-Harvesting Integrated Circuits

Wireless microsensors that monitor and detect activity in factories, farms, military camps, vehicles, hospitals, and the human body can save money, energy, and lives. Unfortunately, miniaturized batteries exhaust easily, so deploying these tiny devices outside a few niche markets is difficult. Luckily, harnessing ambient energy, especially of the kinetic kind, offers hope because environmental motion is often abundant and consistent. The challenge is that tiny transducers convert only a small fraction of the available energy into the electrical domain, and the circuits that transfer and condition power dissipate some if not most of that energy. As a result, increasing the power drawn from the transducer and reducing the energy losses in the system are of paramount importance. This chapter therefore begins by evaluating how circuits transfer and consume power. Then, because electrostatic and piezoelectric transducers normally derive considerably more power per unit volume than their electromagnetic counterparts, the chapter focuses on how the former two technologies harness ambient kinetic energy. The ensuing discussion details how transducers, integrated circuits, and sample prototype integrated-circuit (IC) implementations of these circuits draw energy from ambient vibration to generate power with which to continually replenish a small on-board battery.
Leucovorin in combination chemotherapy of breast cancer

Abstract Cyclophosphamide, 5-fluorouracil, methotrexate, and prednisone were administered for 165, 28-day cycles to 33 patients with metastatic breast cancer. Because of serious infections (fever larger than or equal to 101 degrees F. granulocytes less than 1,000/mm, 3 and hospitalization) and 1 drug death in the first 4 patients, oral calcium leucovorin, 20 to 30 mg/m2 orally, was given 2 days after methotrexate in subsequent treatment cycles. There were 26 cycles without calcium leucovorin and 6 serious infections; 139 cycles with calcium leucovorin and 5 serious infections (p = 0.002). Objective response was seen in 13 of 18 evaluable patients with no previous treatment and in only 2 of 11 patients with previous treatment (p = 0.0065). Equivalent doses were given to all subsets of patients. It is concluded that leucovorin added to the above combination of drugs can preserve antitumor activity while decreasing serious infections and that prior therapy significantly decreases the response rate to this combination.