cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Metabolic characteristics of Appalachian children.

Summary Purpose The purpose of this investigation is to assess the physiological characteristics and the resting metabolic rates of a representative population of children in Buchanan County in order to identify those factors that may be contributing to the predisposition for being overweight or obese and provide nutritional and physical activity guidance for prevention. Methods Twenty-three volunteers from grades 5, 6 and 7 from Buchannan County, VA underwent parametric and metabolic testing over three consecutive years in order to determine their height, weight, BMI, percent body fat, resting oxygen consumption (VO2), resting energy expenditure (REE), respiratory exchange ratio (RER) and daily energy expenditure (DEE) and consumption. Results Over the 3 year study period, subjects' BMI increased significantly over time (p = 0.001) while there were no changes in their, REE, RER, VO2, percent fat and DEE. However, there was a moderate negative correlation between VO2 and BMI in grade 5 (r = −0.578, p = 0.002), grade 6 (r = −0.477, p = 0.015) and grade 7 (r = −0.438, p = 0.023). Gender specific differences in percent body fat were evident among subjects during the last two measurement cycles and were strongly correlated with BMI (r = 0.907, r = 0.959, p = 0.000). Conclusions The use of resting VO2, REE, and RER values as a screening tool for identifying those children or adolescents at risk for becoming overweight or obese is most likely cost and time prohibitive due to the need for several repeated measures to ensure accurate results. However increased VO2 is correlated with decreased BMI.
Teaching Across Disciplines: Victorian Literature and Science

Science was everywhere in Victorian culture, and it can often be found right on the surface of some of the period’s most frequently taught novels and poems. Using a range of examples, from “Dover Beach” to Dracula, this chapter describes a variety of methods for introducing students to interdisciplinary approaches to the study of literature and science, giving special attention to the topics of Darwinian evolution, representational technologies, and scientific racism. Suggested activities include close analysis of scientific texts, images, and artifacts; a trip to the library where students can explore popularizations of science in nineteenth-century periodicals; and an interdisciplinary research project connecting analysis of Victorian literature and science to broader critical conversations of continuing importance to our twenty-first-century world.
One species, two species, red species, lead species? Phylogenetics and species concepts with Plethodon salamanders

This lab introduces students to species concepts and basic computer-based tree-building methods using published nuclear and mitochondrial sequence data for Plethodon salamanders.
Revolução no processo penal latino-americano: difusão de ideias jurídicas a partir da periferia

Durante os ultimos 15 anos, 14 paises latino-americanos e um numero substancial de provincias e estados latino-americanos introduziram novos codigos de processo penal. Essas reformas sao possivelmente as maiores transformacoes as quais os procedimentos criminais latino-americanos foram submetidos em quase dois seculos. Este artigo mostra como uma rede de advogados latino-americanos que trabalharam na elaboracao e implementacao dos novos codigos tiveram um papel crucial nessa onda de reformas. Essa rede de empreendedores juridicos latino-americanos - que este artigo caracteriza como uma rede de especialistas ativistas do sul - propuseram os novos codigos de processo penal para resolver problemas como a falta do devido processo legal e transparencia e ineficiencia, e enquadraram as reformas como uma conversao de processos criminais de inquisitoriais para acusatorios.
Patterns in colored circular permutations

Pattern containment and avoidance have been extensively studied in permutations. Recently, analogous questions have been examined for colored permutations and circular permutations. In this note, we explore these problems in colored circular permutations. We present some interesting observations, some of which are direct generalizations of previously established results. We also raise some questions and propose directions for future study.
AN INVESTIGATION OF THERMOVISCOELASTIC PROPERTIES BY IMAGE MOIRE

ABSTRACT The Image Moire method is employed to determine the Poisson’ ratio for PMMA at different temperatures. Simultaneous recording of the tensile stress yields the Young's modulus in relaxation and the corresponding Poisson effect. The constant temperature ranges from room temperature to 125° C. Master curves for relaxation Young's modulus and Poisson's Ratio are obtained. The Relaxation bulk modulus is calculated from the experimental data.
Slow, Moderate, Fast: Urban Adaptation and Change

The ecology of the city encompasses both the built (grey) and vegetative (green) infrastructure of the city. This chapter looks at how human actors adapt and change the built environment of the city and how these socio-cultural decisions affect urban metabolism. Three case studies are examined: Rome (slow), New York (moderate) and Bangkok (fast).
Fetal Bovine Compliance Changes

The elastic nature of the urinary bladder allows for the accumulation of urine without a marked increased in intravesical pressure. Indirectly, the elasticity of the bladder can be measured by calculating compliance using pressure volume measurements. Changes in bladder compliance are clinically relevant because of the direct association of a poorly compliant bladder with urinary tract infections, vesico-ureteral reflux, calculi, hydronephrosis, renal scarring and urinary incontinence. To date bladder compliance in normal fetal development has not been defined. In this study, we have characterized the elastic properties (compliance) of the normal bovine bladder throughout fetal life, the newborn period and into adulthood using a novel circularly clamped bladder testing system. We hypothesize that the mechanical strength of the bovine bladder changes during these periods, with early changes triggered by developmental events such as the initial production of urine and later changes due to the normal aging process.
Strict Criminal Liability in the Grading of Offenses: Forfeiture, Change of Normative Position, or Moral Luck?

Notwithstanding the demands of retributive desert, strict criminal liability is sometimes defensible when the strict liability pertains, not to whether conduct is to be criminalized at all, but to the seriousness of the actor’s crime. Suppose an actor commits an intentional assault or rape, and accidentally brings about a death. Punishing the actor more seriously because the death resulted is sometimes justifiable, even absent proof of his independent culpability as to the death. But what punishment is proportionate for such an actor? Should he be punished as harshly as an intentional or knowing killer?This paper offers a framework for analyzing these difficult questions. After rejecting a broad forfeiture justification for strict liability in grading, it articulates a more promising set of arguments, premised on the actor’s “change of normative position” by choosing to commit a crime. Three principles of culpability sometimes justify strict liability in grading: holistic culpability, attention to the degree of unjustifiability of the risk, and rough comparability in culpability. Strict liability in grading can be appropriate when the risk of committing the more serious crime (a) is a risk intrinsic to the less serious crime or (b) is minimally foreseeable. The article also addresses the relevance of moral luck, i.e. the principle that the fortuitous occurrence of a result or circumstance increases the actor’s just deserts. Even if moral luck is recognized, it cannot fully justify strict liability in grading.This is an electronic version of an article the final version of which is published in Oxford Journal of Legal Studies.
For the Salvation of the Cosmos: The Church’s Mission of Ecojustice

The Christian ecojustice mission is grounded in the intimate relationship between creation, redemption, and incarnation. Failure to adequately integrate this truth in its mission praxis has obscure...
The effects of substituent position and orientation on the structures and dipole moments of the cyanocyclohexanes using density functional theory calculations

Abstract The effects of position and orientation (axial/equatorial) on the structures and dipole moments of all possible cyano-substituted cyclohexanes were examined using B3LYP/6-311++G**. All optimized molecules exhibited the chair conformation; molecules exhibiting dipole moments ≥6.00 D were examined to determine the effect of substituent position and orientation on the dipole moment. Axial substituents had a greater effect than did equatorial on the dipole moment. For conformer pairs, axial substituents produced higher energy conformers, indicating that equatorial substituents lowered steric interference. Intramolecular non-bonded distances between co-facial axial/axial and vicinal axial/equatorial cyano-groups did not support the idea of greater axial steric demand. The ranges, but not the magnitudes, of ring C-C-C angles were influenced the atoms vicinal to the central carbon atom of the angle. Patterns in the highest occupied and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital energies may provide a basis from which specific cyanocyclohexanes may be “tuned” for electron-acceptor properties.
Hybrid Positron Emission Tomography/Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Arrhythmic Mitral Valve Prolapse

Importance Myocardial replacement fibrosis has been reported to occur in one-third of patients with mitral valve prolapse (MVP) and significant mitral regurgitation (MR). However, it remains unknown whether there are detectable changes in myocardial metabolism suggestive of inflammation or ischemia that accompany the development of fibrosis. Objectives To characterize the burden and distribution of fluorine 18–labeled (18F) fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake and late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) in patients with degenerative MVP and ventricular ectopy. Design, Setting, and Participants Prospective observational study of 20 patients with MVP and significant primary degenerative MR who were referred for mitral valve repair and underwent hybrid positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MRI). Ventricular arrhythmias were categorized as either complex (n = 12) or minor (n = 8). Coregistered hybrid18F FDG-PET and MRI LGE images were assessed and categorized. Recruitment occurred in the new patient clinic of a mitral valve repair reference center. This study was conducted from January 11, 2018, to June 26, 2019. Exposures Simultaneous cardiac18F FDG-PET and MRI with LGE imaging on a hybrid PET/MRI system and ambulatory rhythm monitoring. Main Outcomes and Measures Patients were categorized by the presence and pattern of FDG uptake and LGE, the severity of ventricular arrhythmias, and the indication for mitral valve surgery. Results In the cohort of 20 patients, the median age was 59.5 years (interquartile range, 52.5-63.2 years). Focal, or focal-on-diffuse uptake, of18F-FDG (PET positive) was detected in 17 of 20 patients (85%). The FDG uptake coexisted with areas of LGE (PET/MRI positive) in 14 patients (70%). Of the 5 asymptomatic patients with normal ventricular indices and absence of any surgical indications, all were PET/MRI positive. Conclusions and Relevance In this pilot study, we demonstrate a novel association between degenerative MVP and FDG uptake, a surrogate for myocardial inflammation and/or ischemia. Such evidence of myocardial injury, even in asymptomatic patients, suggests an ongoing subclinical disease process. These findings warrant further investigation into whether imaging for myocardial inflammation, ischemia, and scar has a role in arrhythmic risk stratification and whether it provides incremental prognostic value in patients with chronic severe mitral regurgitation undergoing active surveillance.
The Plot of the Mental Object Capacity

In this final chapter, I return to the inspiration that led to the present work: Piaget’s object concept. After explaining its original meaning I argue for its expansion into a societal frame. In fact, I propose that Piaget’s mental object is this social frame. Other developmental achievements presuppose this frame. In this sense this final analysis is another summary of the argument pursued throughout this book, that there is an endogenous and developmental origin to society.
“I Realized that I couldn’t Act Normal”: a Qualitative Study of Sexual Assault Survivors’ Experiences of Workplace Disclosure

Sexual assault results in psychological, physical, and financial consequences for survivors. The distress caused by sexual assault can lead to work-related consequences such as loss of productivity, lost wages, or a decline in job performance. Work-related consequences or other assault-related factors may lead survivors to disclose to someone in their workplace. Research has examined help-seeking, disclosure, and social reactions, but has neglected to study disclosure and social reactions in survivors’ places of employment as well as the impact of workplace social reactions on survivor recovery. Using a community sample of interviews with 28 sexual assault survivors, we explored the experiences of workplace disclosure among a subsample of 6 survivors who disclosed in the workplace. Specifically, we explored survivors’ reasons for disclosure, the social reactions received, and how this affected their recovery using thematic analysis. Results reveal that workplace disclosure is driven by feeling like they had no choice but to disclose or lose their job, akin to the concept of compelled disclosure. Survivors received positive and negative social reactions that affected their recovery and employment status. We conclude with a discussion of implications for research, workplace policy, and employer practices based on our findings. With preliminary findings suggesting that compelled disclosure may apply to the workplace context, we make recommendations for further research on workplace disclosure with a more diverse sample of survivors from a variety of workplaces. Future research should also consider the role of institutional betrayal when examining workplace responses to survivors.
Comment on N-acetylcysteine as a treatment for amatoxin poisoning.

To the Editor Optimal treatment of amatoxin-related mushroom poisoning is limited by a paucity of high quality evidence. Despite this, various combinations of medications are used to avoid fulminan...
Endoscopic Suturing for the Prevention and Treatment of Complications Associated with Endoscopic Mucosal Resection of Large Duodenal Adenomas.

Background/aims Endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) is the primary treatment for duodenal adenomas; however, it is associated with a high risk of perforation and bleeding, especially with larger lesions. The goal of this study was to demonstrate the feasibility and safety of endoscopic suturing (ES) for the closure of mucosal defects after duodenal EMR. Methods Consecutive adult patients who underwent ES of large mucosal defects after EMR of large (>2 cm) duodenal adenomas were retrospectively enrolled. The OverStitch ES system was employed for closing mucosal defects after EMR. Clinical outcomes and complications, including delayed bleeding and perforation, were documented. Results During the study period, ES of mucosal defects was performed in seven patients in eight sessions (six for prophylaxis and two for the treatment of perforation). All ES sessions were technically successful. No early or delayed post-EMR bleeding was recorded. In addition, no clinically obvious duodenal stricture or recurrence was encountered on endoscopic follow-up evaluation, and no patients required subsequent surgical intervention. Conclusions ES for the prevention and treatment of duodenal perforation after EMR is technically feasible, safe, and effective. ES should be considered an option for preventing or treating perforations associated with EMR of large duodenal adenomas.
Changes in Pain Self-Efficacy, Coping Skills and Fear Avoidance Beliefs in a Randomized Controlled Trial of Yoga, Physical Therapy, and Education for Chronic Low Back Pain.

OBJECTIVE We evaluated exercise interventions for cognitive appraisal of chronic low-back pain (cLBP) in an underserved population. METHODS We conducted a secondary analysis of the Back to Health Trial, showing yoga to be non-inferior to physical therapy (PT) for pain and function outcomes among adults with cLBP (n = 320) recruited from primary care clinics with predominantly low-income patients. Participants were randomized to 12 weeks of yoga, PT, or education. Cognitive appraisal was assessed using the Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (PSEQ), Coping Strategies Questionnaire (CSQ) and Fear Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire (FABQ). Using multiple imputation and linear regression, we estimated within- and between-group changes in cognitive appraisal at 12 and 52 weeks, with baseline and the education group as references. RESULTS Participants (mean age = 46) were mostly female (64%), black (57%), and 54% had an annual household income <$30,000. All three groups showed improvements in PSEQ (range 0-60) at 12 weeks (yoga, mean difference [MD]=7.0, 95%CI: 4.9, 9.0; PT, MD = 6.9, 95%CI: 4.7, 9.1; and education, MD = 3.4, 95%CI: 0.54, 6.3), with yoga and PT improvements being clinically meaningful. At 12 weeks, improvements in catastrophizing (CSQ, range 0-36) were largest among yoga and PT groups (MD=-3.0, 95%CI: -4.4, -1.6; MD=-2.7, 95%CI: -4.2, -1.2, respectively). Changes in FABQ were small. No statistically significant between-group differences were observed on PSEQ, CSQ, or FABQ at either time point. Many of the changes observed at 12 weeks were sustained at 52 weeks. CONCLUSION All three interventions were associated with improvements in self-efficacy and catastrophizing among low-income racially-diverse adults with cLBP. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT01343927.
Simultaneous Hermaphroditism in Caridean Shrimps: a Unique and Puzzling Sexual System in the Decapoda

The sexual system of the caridean genus Lysmata has been described until recently as protandric hermaphroditism, in which individuals change sex from male to female with increasing size. However, recent studies by Bauer and Holt (1998) and Fiedler (1998) have shown that female-phase individuals of at least two species are outcrossing simultaneous hermaphrodites, a sexual system described here as protandric simultaneous hermaphroditism (PSH). There is considerable variation in the ontogeny of protandric carideans, revealing an underlying flexibility in sex determination and development which has made PSH possible in at least some Lysmata spp. Possible costs and benefits of retention of male reproductive function in female-phase hermaphrodites are proposed. The PSH appears to be unique (to date) within the Decapoda and other Malacostraca to the caridean genus Lysmata and perhaps the related genus Exhippolysmata. It is puzzling that PSH has evolved in a group with such considerable variation in socio-ecological attributes: some Lysmata species are warm temperate, highly aggregated, with unspecialized (facultative) fish-cleaning behavior while others are tropical species, occur at low density in hermaphrodite pairs associated with sea anemones, and are specialized fish cleaners. Description of sexual systems, costs/benefits of PSH, and socioecological attributes of Lysmata, considered in the context of a phylogeny of the group, will be necessary to understand how PSH evolved in Lysmata and why it has not evolved in other groups of protandric carideans.
Educating physicians in evidence based medicine: current practices and curricular strategies.

Introduction Evidence-based medicine (EBM) is an expectation of professional healthcare and a requisite component of medical school curricula. However, upon graduation medical students’ EBM skills have been found lacking suggesting a need to examine EBM training.
Decentralized model reference robust control

Model reference robust control (MRRC) is extended to decentralized output control of interconnected systems. First, a brief review of MRRC is given. Second, a class of interconnected systems to which decentralized MRRC can be applied is established, and it is shown that the tracking error for each subsystem can be made arbitrarily small. Two examples are given which illustrate the implementation of decentralized MRRC and show improved performance results compared to existing techniques. >
Racial/ethnic patterns of care for cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, sinuses, and salivary glands.

Background Among Americans, both incidence and mortality from cancers of the larynx, oral cavity, and pharynx are higher for African Americans than whites and for men than women. In addition, the 5-year survival rates for these sites are significantly lower for African Americans than whites for each disease stage, particularly among African American males. We examine racial/ethnic variation in tumor characteristics, treatment practices, and their relationship to survival for cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, nasal cavity and salivary glands. Methods Eligible individuals were age 20 or older and newly diagnosed with a primary invasive cancer of the oral cavity (excluding the lip), pharynx, larynx, sinuses or salivary glands in 1997 reported to one of nine National Cancer Institute's Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results Registries (SEER). Persons meeting the eligibility criteria for each registry were first stratified by race/ethnic group and stage then selected by random sampling within strata. Results We found racial/ethnic differences in diagnoses at specific anatomic sites, disease stage and treatment. African Americans less frequently received a cancer directed treatment than both whites and Hispanics and when treated were generally less likely to receive cancer-directed surgery. In multivariate analysis, the receipt of any cancer directed treatment was significantly associated with race and age group. African Americans and Hispanics had poorer, but not significantly so, overall, but not cancer-specific, survival. Conclusion We found racial differences in the receipt of cancer treatment among patients diagnosed with selected head and neck cancers. We also found a less favorable distribution of stage for African Americans and Hispanics when compared with whites. The differences in stage we noted and the lower rates of oral cancer screening previously reported for these populations suggests that differential rates of early detection may contribute to racial differences in survival and mortality from cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx. Therefore, we conclude that more equitable receipt of cancer treatment along with preventive measures and earlier detection will help reduce racial/ethnic disparities in survival and mortality from cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx and larynx.
Head and Neck Cancer

The most recent statistics from the American Cancer Society project that 28,900 Americans will be diagnosed in 2002 with cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx …
Grief Therapy Across Cultures

Grief therapy (as distinct from grief counseling) is the application of specific techniques that focus on helping grieving persons identify and resolve conflicts with separation that interfere with resolution of abnormal or complicated grief reactions that continue unresolved through time. Grief counseling, on the other hand, uses focused techniques that facilitate the process of normal or uncomplicated grieving, alleviate suffering, and help the griever to move on to adjustment within a reasonable amount of time. Keywords: depression; empathy
Efficient light propagation for multiple anisotropic volume scattering

Realistic rendering of participating media like clouds requires multiple anisotropic light scattering. This paper presents a propagation approximation for light scattered into M direction bins, which reduces the “ray effect” problem in the traditional “discrete ordinates” method. For a regular grid volume of n 3 elements, it takes O(Mn 3 log n + M 2 n 3) time and 0(Mn 3 + M 2) space.
Use of technetium ( 99m Tc) as a bacterial label in lung clearance studies.

The suitability of technetium (99mTc), a gamma emitter, for labeling of Diplococcus pneumoniae in studies of lung bacterial clearance was examined. A killed bacterial slurry with high specific activity was obtained with a ferric ascorbate reducing system. Approximately 5.5% of radioactive counts dissociated from labeled bacteria in 6 h. Rats were exposed to a uniformly mixed aerosol of untagged, viable pneumococci and killed, 99mTc-tagged pneumococci. The aerodynamic behavior of labeled and unlabeled pneumococci was similar. Viable bacterial counts and radioactive counts were determined in lung homogenates at intervals following exposure, and rates of bacterial killing and disappearance of radioactive counts were plotted. Radioactive counts did not increase in the liver during the period of observation, suggesting that the decrease in lung radioactivity represents mucociliary clearance and not release of isotope to the systemic circulation. The use of 99mTc for bacterial labeling provides advantages of technical simplicity and personnel safety compared to the use of beta-emitting isotopes.
Lester R. Dragstedt and his role in the evolution of therapeutic vagotomy in the United States

The date October 22, 1993, marks the centenary of the birth of Lester R. Dragstedt. He emerged from humble roots of Swedish immigrant parents to become one of the pre-eminent surgical innovators of the twentieth century. Early in his scientific career, Dragstedt was profoundly influenced by another Swede, A. J. Carlson, who was initially employed as a Lutheran minister in Dragstedt's hometown of Anaconda, Montana. Carlson left the ministry for graduate school and later became chairman of The Department of Physiology at the University of Chicago. When Dragstedt finished his schooling, Carlson convinced him to attend the University of Chicago. In addition to Carlson, Dragstedt's research was influenced by many prominent physiologists and surgeons, including Pavlov and Latarjet. Their work, along with his own investigations, helped him both to formulate his hypotheses on the regulation of gastric acid secretion and to formalize the operation of truncal vagotomy. In 1943, Dragstedt initiated the clinical use of this procedure in North America. Although he studied his patients carefully and documented his results meticulously, the operation initially met with considerable resistance from both his medical and surgical colleagues. Over time, many other surgeons accepted vagotomy as a viable procedure and further modified his technique. The unique ability of Dragstedt to transfer his research studies to the development and implementation of rational surgical therapy remains an enduring example for the surgical profession.
Distinguishing shape details of buried nonmetallic minelike objects with GPR

The finite difference frequency domain is used to study the scattering of buried non-metallic mine-like targets to determine the feasibility of identifying mines form shape features. It is shown that for constant cross-sectional target area - approximately 100 cm2 - the scattered fields of targets with roughly the same height-to-width aspect ratio at 500 MHz are virtually indistinguishable regardless of burial depth. A comparison of the field obtained for mine-like targets of different aspect ratios, but with constant area, buried at a depth of 5 cm, shows marked differences, as does scattered field for GPR frequencies above 700 MHz. The conclusion of this study is that while low GPR sensing frequencies may help to detect shallow anomalies, they do not supply any useful information about the shape details - particularly the edges - of the buried non-metallic mine-like targets.© (1999) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Juan Diaz Covarrubias: Mexico´s martyr-novelist.

ON APRIL 11, 1859, during the Mexican War of the Reform, the liberal forces of Santos Degollado were defeated at Tacubaya by the conservative forces under the command of General Marquez. Among the prisoners taken by the conservatives were several young physicians who were ordered shot by the conservative command. One of the physicians was Juan Diaz Covarrubias. The specific source of the command is obscure, but its infamy is clear; it has lived as a shameful chapter in Mexican history, and it has granted Diaz Covarrubias the glory of the man who might have been.
Study of Turbulent Natural Convection in Vertical Storage Tubes for Supercritical Thermal Storage System

The effect of turbulent natural convection in vertical storage tubes containing a supercritical fluid is investigated computationally. In a supercritical thermal storage system, thermal energy is transferred to the storage fluid and is stored as the internal energy of the fluid in supercritical state. The heat is conducted from the heat transfer fluid to the storage fluid through the storage tube wall. Unlike phase-change systems, the heat transfer mechanism within the storage tubes of supercritical thermal storage system is dominantly affected by rigorous turbulent natural convection. The natural convection enhances the heat transfer and compensates for the low thermal conductivity of the storage fluid. The turbulent buoyancy-driven flow field in vertical storage tubes with different aspect ratios is investigated in this paper and the effect of vertical orientation of storage tubes on the characteristics of the flow field is explored. A standard k-epsilon method is utilized to model the Reynolds stresses in turbulent natural convection flow. The results of this study show that the turbulent buoyancy-driven flow and natural convection play an important role in charge and discharge of the supercritical thermal storage system. The charge time of the system is a function of Rayleigh number and aspect ratio of the storage tube.Copyright © 2013 by ASME
Serratia marcescens rpr gene sensitizes Escherichia coli wild-type, xth, and nfo strains to methyl methanesulphonate.

Summary It is reported here that the rpr DNA repair gene of Serratia marcescens does not complement an Escherichia coli xth nfo AP endonuclease mutation for resistance to methyl methanesulphonate (MMS). Rather, rpr sensitized Escherichia coli wild-type, xth, and nfo strains to MMS. Also, it was found that rpr could not complement a triple tag alkA recA mutation in E. coli, indicating that there are limits to rpr complementing capabilities. It was determined that rpr gene dosage was not a factor in recA complementation. MMS sensitization of an E. coli wild-type strain, however, was directly related to rpr copy number. These data indicate that Rpr does not have an associated AP endonuclease activity, and that it is incapable of substituting for Tag I, Tag II, and RecA in a tag alkA recA background.
Sleeping through the night: are extended-release formulations the answer?

Purpose: To provide an overview of insomnia, including identification and current treatments, as well as review the efficacy and safety of extended-release sleep medication. Data sources: Published clinical research and review articles, DSM-IV criteria, and clinical trials. Conclusions: Insomnia is a highly prevalent and debilitating sleep disorder, which may present with one or more of the following symptoms: difficulty initiating sleep, difficulty maintaining sleep, or waking too early without being able to return to sleep. Difficulty maintaining sleep throughout the night is the most common symptom of insomnia. The recently approved nonbenzodiazepine hypnotic, zolpidem extended-release, can be taken as long as medically necessary to improve sleep-onset and reduce sleep-maintenance difficulties in insomnia patients, without negatively affecting next-day functioning. Implications for practice: Insomnia continues to be an underdiagnosed and undertreated disorder. The nurse practitioner, through routine inquiry about patient sleep habits and consideration of the appropriate treatment of insomnia, can help restore the quality of life of patients experiencing the negative consequences of insomnia.
Photoperiodic, Induction of Senescence in Xanthium Plants

Xanthium plants placed under photoinductive conditions were accelerated in their senescence whether or not the plants had a capacity to produce flowers and fruits. Thus, the role of the mobilization influence of these organs on the senescence of certain monocarpic plants can be questioned.
Oberflächenschutzschichten für metallische Hochtemperatur‐Werkstoffe. Teil 1: Entwicklungstendenzen, Prüfung und Herstellung von Schutzschichten

Ein Vergleich der chemischen Zusammensetzungen der in den letzten Jahren industriell verwendeten Hochtemperaturlegierungen auf Co- und Ni-Basis wird gegeben. Infolge der relativ geringen Al- und Cr-Gehalte der heute verwendeten Legierungen benotigen diese einen zusatzlichen Oxydationsschutz. Die theoretischen Einsatztemperaturen von hochschmelzenden Metallen liegen wesentlich uber den heute ublichen Werten der Superlegierungen. Diese Legierungen bedurfen jedoch eines schr hochwertigen Oxydationsschutzes. Ein kurzer Uberblick uber die Verfahren zur Prufung und Herstellung entsprechender Schutzschichten wird gegeben. Im zweiten Teil dieses Aufsatzes werden spezielle Schutzschichten auf Superlegierungen und hochschmelzenden Metallen behandelt. Protection of High Temperature Metallic Materials against Oxidation. Part 1: Development Trends, Testing and Preparation of Protective Layers. A comparison is given of the chemical compositions of industrial Co- and Ni- high-temperature alloys used in the past years. Due to their relatively low Cr and Al contents the more recent super-alloys require additional oxidation protection. Theoretically, the refractory metals would allow much higher working temperatures than the super-alloys, but alloys based on such metals need a much more perfect oxidation protection. The fabrication testing and methods for such protective layers are briefly reviewed. The second part of this paper will describe some specific protective layers for super-alloys and refractory metals.
Beckwith-Wiedemann's syndrome--a report of an autopsied case--.

The case presented here is a three-month-old male infant with the Beck-with-Wiedemann's syndrome. Clinically, the patient was characterized by macroglossia, visceromegaly, umbilical hernia, microcephalus and other multiple malformations such as facial flame nevus or ear lobe grooves. The patient died of bronchopneumonia at the age of three months, and an autopsy was performed. Morphological examination revealed adrenal cytomegaly, hyperplasia and hypertrophy of the pancreatic islets, adrenal rest tissue in the right testis or hypertrophy of muscle fibers of the tongue associated with fibrous degenerative change, in addition to bronchopneumonia of the lung, causing his death. On electron microscopical examination, the cytomegalic cell of the adrenal was characteristic of large pleomorphic nucleus and granular substances with high density in the cytoplasm. In this case, thorough histologic search revealed no evidence of tumorous growth in the organs, though the exomphalos-macroglossia-gigantism syndrome has been of interest in its relationship to the occasional occurrence of Wilms tumor, adrenal carcinoma or other tumors.
Linear and Nonlinear Computations of the 1992 Nicaragua Earthquake Tsunami

Numerical computations of tsunamis are made for the 1992 Nicaragua earthquake using different governing equations, bottom frictional values and bathymetry data. The results are compared with each other as well as with the observations, both tide gauge records and runup heights. Comparison of the observed and computed tsunami waveforms indicates that the use of detailed bathymetry data with a smalI grid size is more effective than to include nonlinear terms in tsunami computation. Linear computation overestimates the amplitude for the later phase than the first arrival, particularly when the amplitude becomes large. The computed amplitudes along the coast from nonlinear computation are much smaller than the observed tsunami runup heights; the average ratio, or the amplification factor, is estimated to be 3 in the present case when the grid size of 1 minute is used. The factor however may depend on the grid size for the computation.
Ethnicity & the boundaries of race: rereading Directive 15

gories current in American life can be traced to an obscure government edict: Statistical Policy Directive No. 15, promulgated by the Of1⁄2ce of Management and Budget (omb) on May 12, 1977.1 Although the directive was of1⁄2cially limited to federal statistics and administrative reporting, its categories quickly became the de facto standard for American society at large, setting the terms ever since for racial and ethnic classi1⁄2cation in the United States. The omb categories–speci1⁄2cally the Census Bureau’s use of them–are currently being renegotiated. Stripped of important particulars, the question on the table is whether Hispanics, to use the Census Bureau term, will continue to be classi1⁄2ed as an ethnic group and not as a race. Ethnicity has long served to establish the boundaries of race by marking the dividing line between black and white. Where that line is drawn, who is designated as an ethnic, establishes the terms within which racial politics is waged in the United States.2 To comprehend the political choices at hand, we need to recover the somewhat arcane history of Directive 15. Retracing the omb race categories is no simple antiquarian delight; it is required currency for following contemporary debates over racial classi1⁄2cation and politics in the twenty-1⁄2rst-century United States. Directive 15 was initially created as a means of standardizing the racial and ethnic categories used in government statistics. These data took on new political import after the passage of several civil rights laws. The Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the Fair Housing Act of 1968, the Equal
Evidence of correlations between nuclear decay rates and Earth–Sun distance

Abstract Unexplained periodic fluctuations in the decay rates of 32 Si and 226 Ra have been reported by groups at Brookhaven National Laboratory ( 32 Si), and at the Physikalisch–Technische–Bundesanstalt in Germany ( 226 Ra). We show from an analysis of the raw data in these experiments that the observed fluctuations are strongly correlated in time, not only with each other, but also with the time of year. We discuss both the possibility that these correlations arise from seasonal influences on the detection system, as well as the suggestion of an annual modulation of the decay rates themselves which vary with Earth–Sun distance.
Global whole-cell FTICR mass spectrometric proteomics analysis of the heat shock response in the radioresistant bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans.

The results of previous studies indicated that D. radiodurans mounts a regulated protective response to heat shock, and that expression of more than 130 genes, including classical chaperones such a...
Characterization of gunpowder samples using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS)

Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) was utilized to obtain characteristic mass spectra from three different smokeless powders and six different black powder samples. In these mass spectra, peaks indicative of both the organic and inorganic additive constituents in the gunpowders were observed. TOF-SIMS was able to successfully differentiate between the different black and smokeless gunpowder samples analyzed with the aid of principal components analysis (PCA), a multivariate statistical analysis approach often used to reduce the dimensionality of complex data. TOF-SIMS was also used to obtain information about the spatial distribution of the various additives contained within the gunpowder samples. SIMS imaging demonstrated that that the samples could potentially be characterized by their 2-D structure, which varied from sample to sample. These results clearly demonstrate the feasibility of utilizing TOF-SIMS as a tool for the characterization and differentiation of gunpowder samples for general forensic applications.
Breast cancer threat appraisal: design and psychometric analysis of a new scale for older women.

Background The prospect of being diagnosed with breast cancer generates emotional responses associated with a high degree of health threat. When considering screening, older women are faced with physical and psychological consequences inherent in considering the threat of disease. Aims and objectives To describe the development and evaluate initial reliability and validity of the Breast Cancer Threat Appraisal Scale (BCTAS), a self-report instrument measuring psychosocial and situational factors related to breast cancer threat appraisal in older women. Design and methods Preliminary survey items for the Breast Cancer Threat Appraisal Scale (BCTAS) were designed using content experts and focus groups and subsequently tested by a sample of older women. Two hundred forty-three (n = 243) complete data sets were submitted to principal components analysis (PCA). Internal consistency reliability and construct validity of resulting factors were measured. Results PCA with orthogonal rotation resulted in four components defined by 34 items with loadings of ≥0.40. Internal consistency reliability was evident in all four components (Component # 1 = 0.87, Component # 2 = 0.81, Component # 3 = 0.70 and Component # 4 = 0.72). Correlations between Breast Cancer Fear and total BCTAS (r = 0.29, P < 0.001) and Component # 3 (r = 0.39, P < 0.001) provided partial construct validity. Conclusions Psychometric analysis provided initial evidence of reliability for four conceptually meaningful scales and partial construct validity for total score and one factor. Implications for Practice Using these empirically derived scales may clarify for health providers how older women perceive personal threat of breast cancer and inform collaborative decision-making to foster screening.
By hand and by voice: performance of royal charters in eleventh- and twelfth-century León

In this article I examine the public granting of royal charters in eleventh- and early twelfth-century Leon as an event that expressed and created ideas of royal kingship and legitimacy. The charter was not merely a record of a royal act; rather, it was a central part of an event, a ritual that engaged all the senses of those assembled at court by the monarch. Scholars have already noted that charter-granting was often accompanied by certain gestures: the laying of the document on a church altar, for example, or the conveyance of an additional object that represented the property or privilege being bestowed. The Leonese context, however, reveals a ritual that is much more complicated, sophisticated, and powerful than might be expected. Central to this ritual is the language of the charter – language that was at this time and place understood by those present. The charter is read aloud and a complex play ensues: a play between formula and innovation, orality and writing, and between the reader's voice and ...
Identifying dimensions of exclusion from a BRT system in a developing country: a content analysis approach

To date, transport exclusion has largely been approached from an accessibility perspective, developing place- and individual-based measures. However, these measures present a weakness in that they typically capture aggregate patterns. To address this disadvantage, in this paper, social-based measures to transport exclusion from a media perspective are explored. The objective is to analyze the content of a transport-related blog initiated by a local newspaper in the city of Cali, Colombia to determine if any potential indicators of social exclusion can be gleaned from this source. A two-step content analysis is performed on the entries to determine if indicators are present that may be a current source of exclusion, or that may potentially cause individuals to exclude themselves from the system. Findings reveal that bloggers made reference to geographic, time, and fear-based exclusionary dimensions, as well as personal and societal. Such a forum thus holds the potential to inform policy makers of enhancements that can be made to the system that help make it more socially inclusive. The study is unique in its developing country setting where public participation in transport planning is rare.
The drunken self: the five-factor model as an organizational framework for characterizing perceptions of one's own drunkenness.

BACKGROUND: Existing literature supports the use of the five-factor model (FFM) personality dimensions (i.e., Neuroticism, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Intellect, and Conscientiousness) as a comprehensive representation of mood, affect, and behavior. This study evaluated the use of the FFM as an organizational framework for understanding self-reported perceptions of drunkenness (i.e., mood, affect, and behavior associated with alcohol intoxication). METHODS: Cross-sectional data were obtained through an online survey of college student drinkers (N = 988; 50% male, 85% white, mean age = 18.2) in an Introductory Psychology course at a large, mid-western university. Participants reported on their perceptions of their sober and drunk "personalities" by rating items from Goldberg's International Personality Item Pool. RESULTS: Confirmatory factor analysis showed that sober and drunk personality structures fit the data equally well. On average, differences between perceived drunken and sober personality were pervasive; each of the 5 factors differed as a function of drunk versus sober state with perceived drunken personality associated with (in order of effect size) less conscientiousness, less intellect, less agreeableness, more extraversion, and less neuroticism. These general patterns varied by sex and drinking pattern. CONCLUSIONS: Findings support the use of the FFM as a framework for organizing self-reported perceptions of global changes in "personality" that occur under intoxication. Language: en
BigCache for big-data systems

Big-data systems are increasingly used in many disciplines for important tasks such as knowledge discovery and decision making by processing large volumes of data. Big-data systems rely on hard-disk drive (HDD) based storage to provide the necessary capacity. However, as big-data applications grow rapidly more diverse and demanding, HDD storage becomes insufficient to satisfy their performance requirements. Emerging solid-state drives (SSDs) promise great IO performance that can be exploited by big-data applications, but they still face serious limitations in capacity, cost, and endurance and therefore must be strategically incorporated into big-data systems. This paper presents BigCache, an SSD-based distributed caching layer for big-data systems. It is designed to be seamlessly integrated with existing big-data systems and transparently accelerate IOs for diverse big-data applications. The management of the distributed SSD caches in BigCache is coordinated with the job management of big-data systems in order to support cache-locality-driven job scheduling. BigCache is prototyped in Hadoop to provide caching upon HDFS for MapReduce applications. It is evaluated using typical MapReduce applications, and the results show that BigCache reduces the runtime of WordCount by 38% and the runtime of TeraSort by 52%. The results also show that BigCache is able to achieve significant speedup by caching only partial input for the benchmarks, owing to its ability to cache partial input and its replacement policy that recognizes application access patterns.
Statistical analysis, a necessity for observational studies

Statistical analysis, a necessity for observational studies. Statistical models can help us to understand mechanisms that underlie associations. An example with Kt/V, gender and weight is provided.