cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Adaptive Device for Increasing Transfer Mobility in a Patient with Multiple Fractures Suggestion from the Field

Achieving independent transfer mobility in patients with multiple extremity fractures can be a challenging problem for physical therapists. Although internal fixation of fractures can establish a condition in which the patient is free from traction, casts, and splints, internal fixation is not always strong enough to allow weight-bearing on the fractured extremities. The purpose of this report is to describe a method by which we successfully taught a patient with multiple fractures to transfer from bed to wheelchair independently. The patient was a 33-year-old man who was involved in a motor vehicle accident and sustained the following injuries: 1) left open patella and supracondylar femur fractures, 2) right comminuted subtrochanteric femur and open tibial tubercle and distal patellar pole fractures, and 3) right Galeazzi's fracture (fracture of the shaft of the radius with dislocation of the distal radioulnar joint). Each fracture was treated with open reduction and internal fixation.…
New insights into the Hendra virus attachment and entry process from structures of the virus G glycoprotein and its complex with Ephrin-B2.

Hendra virus and Nipah virus, comprising the genus Henipavirus, are recently emerged, highly pathogenic and often lethal zoonotic agents against which there are no approved therapeutics. Two surface glycoproteins, the attachment (G) and fusion (F), mediate host cell entry. The crystal structures of the Hendra G glycoprotein alone and in complex with the ephrin-B2 receptor reveal that henipavirus uses Tryptophan 122 on ephrin-B2/B3 as a “latch” to facilitate the G-receptor association. Structural-based mutagenesis of residues in the Hendra G glycoprotein at the receptor binding interface document their importance for viral attachments and entry, and suggest that the stability of the Hendra-G-ephrin attachment complex does not strongly correlate with the efficiency of viral entry. In addition, our data indicates that conformational rearrangements of the G glycoprotein head domain upon receptor binding may be the trigger leading to the activation of the viral F fusion glycoprotein during virus infection.
Optimal fireline generation for wildfire fighting in uncertain and heterogeneous environment

Fire is a natural component of many ecosystems but wildland fires often do pose serious threats to public safety, properties and natural resources. Forest fire acts as a dominant factor in reshaping of terrain and change of the ecosystem of a particular area. The total damage due to wildland fire shows an increasing trend over the past decade. Forest Fire Decision Support Systems (FFDSS) have been developed for the last thirty years all over the world that supplies valuable information on forest fire detection, fire behavior and other aspects of forest fires but lacks in developing intelligent fire suppression strategies. In this paper, an effort has been made to generate intelligent fire suppression strategies with efficient resource allocation using the Genetic Algorithm based optimization tool in a heterogeneous and uncertain scenario. The goal of this research is to perform intelligent resource allocation along with the generation of optimal firelines that minimizes the total burned area due to wildland fire. The solutions generated at each generations of the Genetic Algorithm (GA) are used to build the firelines in a heterogeneous terrain where advanced forest fire propagation model is used to evaluate the fitness values of each generated solutions. The optimal firelines thus obtained through the Simulation-Optimization technique minimizes the total damage due to wildland fire and eliminates the chance of any fire escape i.e., firefront reaching the fireline positions before they are built. Such techniques integrated with the existing FFDSS hold promise in effectively controlling forest fires.
Hypothalamic knife cut obesity in hyper or hypothyroid rats

Recent evidence indicates that the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) contains both neurons that produce thyrotropic releasing hormone (TRH) and neurons that are destroyed or disconnected by the knife cuts that produce hypothalamic hyperphagia and obesity. This, and other evidence, suggested linkage between thyroid regulation and appetite control. As predicted, hyperthyroidism potentiated and hypothyroidism tempered the weight gains of knife cut rats. However, these effects were due entirely to increased and decreased, respectively, linear growth, not to differences in the degree of obesity. Enhanced linear growth and elevated growth hormone levels are a minor component of the enhanced weight gain of hypothalamically knife cut rats. Most of the weight gain is due to fat deposition. Only the enhanced linear growth and growth hormone aspect appear to possibly be mediated via the thyroid. In addition, obesifying knife cuts did not reduce goiterogenesis in PTU treated rats, as would be expected if the elaboration of TRH were blocked by obesifying knife cuts. Thus, neither TRH nor thyroxine is involved in the etiology of hypothalamic obesity.
Regional Differences in Chapter 13 Filings: Southern Legal Culture or Religion?

Chapter 7 is designed for debtors who do not have the ability to pay their existing debts and many times leads to a legal release of most debt. Chapter 13 is designed for debtors who have the ability to pay all or part of their debts in installments over a period of time. Bankruptcy research finds that the southern region of the USA has a significantly higher portion of Chapter 13 filings than the rest of the country, unexplainable by quantifiable demographic, legal, or economic differences. Our results suggest that religion is the driving force behind the abnormally high Chapter 13 filings in the southern USA.
Time-Resolved Electrochemical Spectroscopy of Charge Migration in Molecular Wires: Computational Evidence for Rich Electronic Dynamics

Electrical conduction through a molecule tethered by thiol bridges between two gold clusters is examined from a time-dependent point of view. The shortest electronic time scale for charge migration...
TNF-alpha contributes to spinal cord synaptic plasticity and inflammatory pain: Distinct role of TNF receptor subtypes 1 and 2

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) is a key proinflammatory cytokine. It is generally believed that TNF-α exerts its effects primarily via TNF receptor subtype-1 (TNFR1). We investigated the distinct roles of TNFR1 and TNFR2 in spinal cord synaptic transmission and inflammatory pain. Compared to wild-type (WT) mice, TNFR1- and TNFR2-knockout (KO) mice exhibited normal heat sensitivity and unaltered excitatory synaptic transmission in the spinal cord, as revealed by spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents in lamina II neurons of spinal cord slices. However, heat hyperalgesia after intrathecal TNF-α and the second-phase spontaneous pain in the formalin test were reduced in both TNFR1- and TNFR2-KO mice. In particular, heat hyperalgesia after intraplantar injection of complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) was decreased in the early phase in TNFR2-KO mice but reduced in both the early and later phase in TNFR1-KO mice. Consistently, CFA elicited a transient increase of TNFR2 mRNA levels in the spinal cord on day 1. Notably, TNF-α evoked a drastic increase in spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic current frequency in lamina II neurons, which was abolished in TNFR1-KO mice and reduced in TNFR2-KO mice. TNF-α also increased N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) currents in lamina II neurons, and this increase was abolished in TNFR1-KO mice but retained in TNFR2-KO mice. Finally, intrathecal injection of the NMDA receptor antagonist MK-801 prevented heat hyperalgesia elicited by intrathecal TNF-α. Our findings support a central role of TNF-α in regulating synaptic plasticity (central sensitization) and inflammatory pain via both TNFR1 and TNFR2. Our data also uncover a unique role of TNFR2 in mediating early-phase inflammatory pain. TNF-α is shown to play a critical role in regulating spinal cord synaptic plasticity and central sensitization, and TNFR1 and TNFR2 play a distinct role in regulating different phases of inflammatory pain.
Studies on the synnematuos fungi imperfecti — III. Phaeoisariopsis

The form-genusPhaeoisariopsis, proposed byFerraris in 1909, is recognized. Three new species are proposed for the genus:P. armillata, P. inornata, andP. sawada. A Latin description is included forP. tetrapanacis which was proposed without a Latin diagnosis byK. Sawada in 1943. Seven species have been removed from the genusIsariopsis and placed in the genusPhaeoisariopsis. The new combinations are:P. caespitosa, P. clavata, P. laxa, P. linderae, P. magnoliae, P. neoboutonia, andP. penicillata. The following four species were originally proposed for the genusPhaeoisariopsis byFerraris:P. griseola (type),P. grayana, P. mexicana, andP. pilosa. Phaeoisariopsis griseola is a valid species in the genus.P. grayana is excluded since it does not fit the generic description. No specimens ofP. mexicana have been found.P. pilosa is congeneric withPhragmographium ulmi, the type of the genusPhragmographium and, therefore, becomes the type of the genus.
Food Price Variability and Economic Reform: An ARCH Approach for Ghana

Changes in maize price levels and variability in Ghana are investigated. A model of wholesale price determination is reviewed in which grain stocks are held for speculative storage as well as export to neighboring countries in the Sahel. To test the model, an Autoregressive Conditionally Heteroskedastic (ARCH) regression is applied to monthly maize data for two markets over the period 1978–93. The regression is used to measure changes in maize price volatility in Ghana, and to infer the importance of past prices, domestic and regional production, and commodity storage and trade in explaining these changes.
Nigerian elections and the neopatrimonial paradox: In search of the social contract

Abstract A review of a half century of Nigerian elections demonstrates the inextricable link between the Social Contract and election quality in the country. Ultimately, both must move forward if credible elections are to be sustained over the long term, for without a strong sense of public responsibility, power-holders are inclined to manipulate electoral systems to produce favourable outcomes. Nigeria initially enjoyed an ‘ethnic contract’ under which post-independence elites felt some obligation to care for the public interests of their ethnic constituents, but by the late 1980s the ethnic contract had largely given way to a more personal, neopatrimonial pattern of politics. Consequently, election quality has declined in every general election since 1993. As the 2011 elections fast approach, advocates of election reform must widen their scope to support the development of a viable political opposition that has an interest in credible elections and, ultimately, can help to build a national Social Contract.
Diffusion of plutonium and uranium in irradiated mixed-oxide fuel☆

Interdiffusion coefficients have been measured in two uniquely fabricated slightly hypostoichiometric (U, Pu)O2 fuel rods. The measured results can be expressed as D = 1× 10−5 exp(−61000/RT) and D = 1 × 10−5 exp (− 53 000/RT) for the fuel with burnups of 3.5 and 10 at %, respectively. No radiation enhancement of the diffusion coefficients was observed between ∼ 1000 and ∼ 2000°C. Effects of fission-product impurities and oxygen concentration gradients, which are discussed in terms of the Lidiard model for lattice disorder, are thought to be partially responsible for the observed low activation energies. Effects of diffusion short circuiting are also important. The diffusion measurements were made in fuels irradiated under typical fast-breeder reactor conditions, and the results are directly applicable to a description of processes that affect fast-breeder reactor fuel performance.
Information retrieval techniques for peer-to-peer networks

Peer-to-peer (P2P) systems are application-layer networks that let networked hosts share resources in a distributed environment. An important attribute of P2P networks is the ability to efficiently search the contents of other peers. In this article, the authors survey existing search techniques for information retrieval (IR) in P2P networks, including recent techniques that they propose. They also present a realistic experimental evaluation and comparison of these techniques, using a distributed middleware infrastructure they designed and implemented.
Polyelectrolyte multilayers as a platform for pH-responsive lipid bilayers

A robust and simple method for the preparation of pH-responsive lipid membranes is reported. Polymeric cushions to support a lipid bilayer were obtained by performing layer-by-layer deposition of a polycation (polyethylene imine [PEI]) and a polyanion (polystyrene sulfonate [PSS]) on quartz, with PEI as a capping layer. Subsequently, a model membrane was obtained by depositing a DPPE bilayer using Langmuir–Blodgett and Langmuir–Schafer technique. Structural characterization using Neutron Reflectivity revealed that the separation distance between the polymeric cushion and the DPPE bilayer can be reversibly adjusted by varying the pH of the aqueous environment. These observations were further supported by Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy measurements. Molecular dynamics simulations suggest that coulombic forces play a key role in affecting the separation distances between the polymeric support and the lipid bilayer. Similar pH-dependent behavior was also recorded for a DPPC bilayer. We believe that this novel system offers great potential for fundamental biophysical studies of membrane properties decoupled from the underlying solid support.
Major EEO issues relating to personnel selection decisions

Abstract This paper examines recent EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) case law precedents relating to personnel selection, most notably hiring, training, promotion and downsizing. The statutes referenced include Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) of 1967, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 as amended by the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA), Constitutional claims, the Civil Rights Act of 1991 (CRA-91), and Executive Order 11246 on Affirmative action. Seven topics are featured, including: (I) disparate treatment theory, (II) adverse impact theory in the ADEA, (III) adverse impact theory in Title VII, (IV) affirmative action based on operational needs, (V) key ADA rulings and the ADA amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA), (VI) retaliation, and (VII) mandatory binding arbitration agreements. The case law surveyed reveals costly mistakes employers and HR managers can make, but which can be avoided with proper methods and policies. Some issues may require professional help (e.g., developing and validating selection tests), whereas others (e.g. retaliation), can be addressed in-house with knowledge of policies and procedures recommended by the EEOC to prevent problems from occurring, and to quickly correct them if they occur.
Is Developmental Education Helping Community College Students Persist? A Critical Review of the Literature:

There is considerable debate about the effects and benefits of developmental/basic skills/remediation education in college. Proponents argue that it enables poorly prepared high school students to attain the necessary preparation to succeed in college while critics contend that the benefits of remediation are not clear. The main objective of the article is to provide a critical review of the literature on the impact of developmental math on the educational outcomes and persistence of community college students. The authors first describe three types of summative quantitative evaluations. The authors then review a number of studies that have used these techniques to evaluate the impact of developmental math on a number of educational outcomes of community college students nationwide. In the last section, the authors propose the use of regression discontinuity (RD) design as a feasible evaluation tool that institutional researchers at community colleges can use to identify the level (i.e., number of levels ...
World Wide Web home page design: Patterns and anomalies of higher education library home pages

The World Wide Web (WWW) has become the most visible application of the Internet. Newspapers and popular magazines publish stories on a regular basis about Web sites. The most ubiquitous symbols of the World Wide Web, its Uniform Resource Locator (URL) addresses, are even becoming commonplace on many television commercials. Over the past few years the World Wide Web (along with client applications like Netscape to assist in navigating the Web) has literally brought the Internet to life and to the attention of the general public.
Training Psychiatrists in Nonpsychiatric Medicine: What Do Our Patients and Our Profession Need?

Physicians currently in psychiatric training in the United States are required to spend only 12.5% of their time in residency on rotations devoted exclusively to nonpsychiatric medicine. These rotations can vary widely in terms of subject matter addressed. It is not clear that meeting this minimum requirement adequately integrates residents into the medical profession or prepares them to meet the needs of their future patients. Studies are needed to clarify these issues.
Ammonium thiosulfate effect on herbicide longevity in soil

Soil-applied herbicides often are mixed with liquid fertilizers to reduce application cost and increase time efficiency. Ammonium thiosulfate (ATS, 12-0-0-26S), a common liquid S fertilizer, can reduce microbial reaction rates in soil. The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of ATS on duration of effectiveness of soil-applied, microbially-degraded herbicides. Greenhouse and growth-chamber experiments were conducted using a coarse-loamy Pachic Udic Haploboroll and a coarse-silty Aeric Calciaquoll. The ATS at 0.3 to 0.38 mL kg-1 soil extended the longevity of weed control by 2,4-D [(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)acetic acid], alachlor [2-chloro-N-(2, 6,-diethylphenyl)-N-(methoxymethyl)acetamide], EPTC (S-ethyl dipropylcarbamothioate), cinmethylin [exo-1-methyl-4-(1-methylethyl) -2-[(2-methylphenyl)methoxy]-7-oxabicyclo[2.2.1]heptane], and triallate [S-(2,3,trichloro-2-propenyl)bis(1-methylethyl)carbamothioate]. The ATS had little effect on longevity of weed control by butylate [S-ethyl bis (2-methylpropyl)carbamothioate] or metolachlor [2-chloro-N-(2-methoxy -1-methylethyl)acetamide]. The lowest rate of ATS needed to extend 2,4-D and EPTC efficacy was 0.15 mL kg-1 soil (about 8 gal A-1 or 26 kg S ha-1 assuming a tilled soil bulk density of 1.0 and a 5-cm incorporation depth). This rate of ATS may be too costly for current use, but the concept deserves further evaluation because of the wide use of ATS and the need to extend the longevity of certain soil-applied herbicides
The Perception of Emotional Expression in Music: Evidence from Infants, Children and Adults

Two studies investigated the development of the perception of emotion in music. In Study 1, preschool children and adults matched nine pieces of music to five photographed facial expressions (happy, sad, anger, fear and neutral). While children did not agree with the adult majority interpretation for most pieces, their pattern of responding to the music, both with photograph choices and spontaneous verbal labels, was similar to the adults. Important methodological differences between this and previous research could explain the inconsistencies. Study 2 used happy and sad music along with a dynamic visual display in an intermodal matching experiment with 5- to 9-month-old infants. Infants preferred the affectively concordant happy display but did not look longer to the affectively concordant sad display as predicted. Taken together, these results begin to explore how emotional perception from music may be due to innate perceptual predispositions together with learned associations that develop in childhood.
Emergency Room Visits Despite the Availability of Primary Care: A Study of High Risk Inner City Infants*

Very low birth weight preterm infants randomized to receive comprehensive primary care in an ongoing clinical trial were prospectively evaluated to determine the cause of frequent emergency room use despite the availability of a primary healthcare provider and specific social services. Mothers were interviewed to assess knowledge of available resources, when to seek medical attention, and the perception of problems that limit access to health care. The healthcare provider was not called before 49% of the emergency room visits and mothers often did not recall what infant signs needed medical attention. Seventy-nine percent of emergency room visits were delayed more than 10 hours; and 15 of 62 (24%) emergency room visits resulted in admittance to the hospital. We conclude that in high-risk populations, the mere availability of primary care does not assure that it will be used. New strategies to help parents know when and how to use services are needed to increase the delivery of primary care.
Matrix isolation-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy studies of flash pyrolysis of four coal tars

Abstract Flash pyrolysis of tar molecules from four coals (Illinois No. 6, Pittsburgh bituminous, Rawhide sub-bituminous and Texas lignite) was studied using matrix isolation-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Significant methyl radical formation was observed for the first time as a pyrolysis product of tar thus indicating that it plays an important role in methane formation. Primary products from tar decomposition at 1100° C were C2H4, CH4, HCN, CS2, CS and CH3. The production of HCN is found to vary with organic nitrogen content. CS is shown to be an important sulfur-containing species at high temperature. Trace amounts of small unsaturated hydrocarbons such as benzene, propyne, 1-butyne, allene, propylene and acetylene were also observed. Weight loss measurements show that a major portion of the tar is deposited as a carbonaceous deposit within the pyrolysis reactor.
The Implications of Whole Language for Classroom Management

Abstract Through case studies and classroom critiques, teacher educators can help prospective teachers to fully understand the implications of whole language for classroom management. This article describes a qualitative case study of the total classroom environment created by an exemplary whole language teacher. Methods of the study included biweekly observations and three semistructured interviews. Emergent categories and member checks indicated that the classroom environment was organized according to three major principles: collaboration, student independence, and student self-evaluation. This classroom environment is contrasted with traditional, teacher-controlled approaches to classroom management. The case study serves as an “image of the possible” (Shulman, 1983) that prospective teachers can consider implementing in their own classrooms.
Analytic Modeling of Computer Systems

Deterministic and probabilistic models capable of representing more and more system parameters are being developed One of their primary ractions is low cost.
Dynamic Viscoelastic Behavior of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube–Reinforced Magnetorheological (MR) Nanocomposites

AbstractThis paper introduces a novel class of three-phase magnetorheological (MR) nanocomposites reinforced with multiwalled carbon nanotubes. Microstructures of the nanocomposites are characterized with the scanning electron microscopy. The dynamic viscoelastic responses are investigated under the combined magnetic fields and dynamic mechanical loads in both compression and shear modes. Experimental data demonstrate that the three-phase nanocomposites exhibit not only higher zero-magnetic-field stiffness and damping performance than conventional MR elastomers, but also higher magnetic-field-induced increase in these dynamic properties, which confirms the superiority of the proposed MR nanocomposites over conventional MR elastomers.
Degradation of starch modified polyethylene bags in a compost field study

Abstract The degradation of commercially available leaf bags made of polyethylene compounded with ECOSTAR PLUS®, a starch based additive, was determined after exposure to a passive composting environment during the summer of 1990. The bags were filled with partially composted leaves and yard waste. Half of the bags were buried inside and half on the surface of the pile. One bag from each group plus a control was removed at 14, 28, 42 and 49 days of exposure. The tensile properties, FTIR and UV-vis spectra, differential scanning calorimetry and light microscopy determinations were performed on these samples. The surface bags showed oxidation, loss of starch, lower melting point and embrittleness after 14 days. The buried bags had lower melting points at 14 days and showed oxidation at 28 and 49 days. These results indicate that exposure to daylight had a marked effect in the degradation of the surface bags while the degradation of buried bags may involve other processes.
Flagella-dependent gliding motility in Chlamydomonas

Flagella are generally recognized as organelles of motility responsible for the ability ofChlamydomonas to swim through its environment. However, the same flagella are also responsible for an alternative form of whole cell locomotion, termed gliding. Use of paralyzed flagella mutants demonstrates that gliding is independent of axonemal bend propagation. Gliding motility results from an interaction of the flagellar surface with a solid substrate. Gliding is characterized by bidirectional movements at 1.6±0.3 μm/second and occurs when the cell is in a characteristic gliding configuration, where the two flagella are oriented at 180° to one another. A variety of observations suggest that the leading flagellum is responsible for the force transduction resulting in cell locomotion, although both flagella have the capacity to function as the active flagellum. The characteristics of gliding motility have been compared with theChlamydomonas flagellar surface motility phenomenon defined as surface translocation of polystyrene microspheres.
Radioactive beam facilities of North America

There are several nuclear physics laboratories in North America that have on-going research using energetic and stopped radioactive beams. These include the large ISOL-based programs ISAC at TRIUMF in Canada and HRIBF at Oak Ridge and the in-flight fragmentation program at the NSCL of Michigan State University. There are also smaller, more specialized, programs using a variety of techniques at ATLAS at Argonne, the Cyclotron Institute of Texas A&M University, the Nuclear Structure Laboratory at Notre Dame University, the 88-inch cyclotron of Berkeley, and the Nuclear Structure Laboratory at SUNY/Stony Brook. A major upgrade of the NSCL, the Coupled Cyclotron Project, was recently completed, resulting in driver beams at higher energies and intensities than previously available. A major improvement of the ISAC facility is also in progress. ISAC is being upgraded to provide higher energies and a broader range of masses in the ISAC II project with an ECR charge state booster and a superconducting linac to provide energies of 6.5 MeV/u for masses up to A=150. In the United States the construction of a next-generation facility, the Rare Isotope Accelerator (RIA), is being planned. RIA will have a very high-intensity, up to 400 kW, superconducting heavy-ion driver linac which will provide beams from protons to uranium. This facility utilize both ISOL and in-flight production mechanisms. Many laboratories and universities nation-wide are participating in the R&D program for this future facility.
Closing Keynote: Tradition and Innovation in Design – An archaeologist offers an anthropological view

Ethnography promises a deeper understanding of our relationship with things, with making and consuming, the distribution and exchange of goods, their eventual discard. Ethnography offers significant enhancement of human-centered design. Archaeology, Anthropology's time dimension, has developed a set of ethnographic practices of close documentation of the materiality (and indeed immateriality) of human experience, as well as an understanding of cultural change and innovation over the long term. Archaeology offers unique insights into the pattern and logic of human making, as well as into the genealogy of human being. All these are crucial to truly human-centered design practice. The theme of EPIC2010 – Do and Do – offers a great opportunity to explore some of these archaeological insights. In particular I will explore intimate associations of tradition and innovation through the archaeological concept of “assemblage”– a shorthand term for the distributed, ontologically heterogeneous character of human making. I will show how lasting innovation is often built on a profound reception and engagement with tradition. Examples will be drawn from my expertise in European prehistory and Graeco-Roman antiquity, chosen to compliment the contributions to the conference.
Mechanistic studies of the phosphine-catalyzed homodimerization of ketoketenes

Abstract The mechanism of PBu3-catalyzed homodimerization of ketoketenes has been explored and compared with that of the previously reported trialkylphosphite-mediated reactions. NMR studies of the PBu3-catalyzed reaction implicated the involvement of tetravalent phosphonium intermediates. Phosphonium intermediates in the catalytic cycle were trapped through reaction with trimethylsilyl chloride and 4-chlorobenzaldehyde, and the resulting products were characterized. A method for the stoichiometric generation of phosphonium enolates was developed as a result of these studies. No evidence was obtained for the involvement of pentacovalent phosphorane intermediates in trialkylphosphine-catalyzed ketoketene homodimerization reactions, in contrast with the mechanism of the trialkylphosphite-mediated homodimerization of dimethylketene. An X-ray crystal structure analysis of methylphenylketene dimer showed that it possesses Z-geometry about the exocyclic olefin.
Extended basis set calculations of atomization energies: Comparison of isogyric and direct results

Abstract We describe the results of a series of extended basis set Moller-Plesset perturbation theory calculations on a series of first-row hydrides and several multiply bonded compounds. Analysis of atomization energy predictions obtained employing the isogyric reaction technique demonstrates that third-order perturbation theory results are virtually indistinguishable from the results using a full fourth-order calculation, in the case of the hydrides.
The impact of body mass index on reduction mammaplasty: a multicenter analysis of 2492 patients.

Background: Reduction mammaplasty is commonly performed in women who are considered obese by the body mass index (BMI) classification of the World Health Organization. Objectives: The authors compare complication rates among breast reduction patients, stratified by BMI, across multiple institutions. Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed of all reduction mammaplasties in the database of the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program for 2006 through 2010. Demographic, comorbidity, and BMI data were collected. Data on medical and surgical complications, reoperation, and mortality were collected through 30 days postsurgery. Results: Of 2492 patients, 55% were considered obese (BMI >30). The overall rate of surgical complications was 4.0%, increasing from 2.4% for BMI 45 ( P = .006), with an adjusted odds ratio of 2.97 for BMI >45 versus BMI 45 ( P = .03). The medical complication rate was 0.6%, and the reoperation rate was 2.1%. There were no deaths. A maximal point analysis showed that BMI ≥39 was associated with a significantly higher complication rate, with an odds ratio of 2.38. Conclusions: Reduction mammaplasty is a safe surgical procedure, even when performed on obese patients. However, patients with higher BMI have a greater risk of surgical site complications. This risk should be discussed preoperatively with obese patients. Level of Evidence: 3 ![Graphic][1] [1]: /embed/inline-graphic-1.gif
alpha-Phenyl-tert-butyl-nitrone (PBN) attenuates hydroxyl radical production during ischemia-reperfusion injury of rat brain: an EPR study.

Alpha-phenyl-tert-butyl-nitrone (PBN) a spin adduct forming agent is believed to have a protective action in ischemia-reperfusion injury of brain by forming adducts of oxygen free radicals including .OH radical. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) has been used to both detect and monitor the time course of oxygen free radical formation in the in vivo rat cerebral cortex. Cortical cups were placed over both cerebral hemispheres of methoxyflurane anesthetized rats prepared for four vessel occlusion-evoked cerebral ischemia. Prior to the onset of sample collection, both cups were perfused with artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF) containing the spin trap agent alpha-(4-pyridyl-1-oxide)-N-tert butylnitrone (POBN 100 mM) for 20 min. In addition 50 mg/kg BW of POBN was administered intraperitoneally (IP) 20 min prior to ischemia in order to improve our ability to detect free radical adducts. Cup fluid was subsequently replaced every 15 min during ischemia and every 10 min during reperfusion with fresh POBN containing CSF and the collected cortical superfusates were analyzed for radical adducts by EPR spectroscopy. After a basal 10 min collection, cerebral ischemia was induced for 15 or 30 min (confirmed by EEG flattening) followed by a 90 min reperfusion. .OH radical adducts (characterized by six line EPR spectra) were detected during ischemia and 90 min reperfusion. No adduct was detected in the basal sample or after 90 min of reperfusion. Similar results were obtained when diethylenetriaminepenta-acetic acid (100 microM; DETAPAC) a chelating agent was included in the artificial CSF. Systemic administration of PBN (100 mg/kg BW) produced a significant attenuation of radical adduct during reperfusion. A combination of systemic and topical PBN (100 mM) was required to suppress .OH radical adduct formation during ischemia as well as reperfusion. PBN free radical adducts were detected in EPR spectra of the lipid extracts of PBN treated rat brains subjected to ischemia/reperfusion. Thus this study suggests that PBN's protective action in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury is related to its ability to prevent a cascade of free radical generation by forming spin adducts.
Advantages and disadvantages of three-dimensional computed tomography intraoperative localization for functional endoscopic sinus surgery.

Intraoperative three-dimensional computed tomography (3-D CT) localization has been available for use during functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) for several years, although relatively few otolaryngologists operate in conjunction with this technology. Proponents of intraoperative localization believe that operating with stereotaxis enhances surgical precision and reduces complications. A 1-year review was conducted at the University of Pennsylvania from January 1994 through January 1995. During this period 5% of sinus operations were performed in conjunction with intraoperative localization. The advantages and disadvantages of using intraoperative localization were evaluated for each case. Also examined were type and indication for surgery, anesthesia used, added time, and cost. Overall, intraoperative localization was found to be helpful when anatomy was distorted or obscured. However, selecting patients who may have benefited from localization was often not possible using preoperative data. Ideally, localization should be available for all FESS. Criteria are outlined which will need to be met prior to localization becoming a significant aspect of FESS.
School Sector and Student Achievement in the Era of Standards Based Reforms.

The authors examine whether standards based accountability reforms of the past two decades have closed the achievement gap among public and private high school students. They analyzed data from the Education Longitudinal Study (ELS) to examine sector differences in high school achievement in the era of standards based reforms. The authors found that students in Catholic and private secular schools enjoy greater math gains from 10th to 12th grade than comparable public school students. However, they found that these advantages are largely concentrated among more advanced math skills. Moreover, private school students took more academic math courses than public school students, even after controlling for family background and prior achievement. These differences in course taking accounted for most of the public-private difference in achievement gains.
Estimation of pulmonary/systemic resistance ratios from echocardiographic systolic time intervals in young patients with congenital or acquired heart disease

Abstract Previous work has shown the positive correlation of echocardiographic right ventricular preejection period/right ventricular ejection time ratio ( RPEP RVET ) with pulmonary vascular resistance and pulmonary arterial diastolic pressure obtained at cardiac catheterization. However, the correlation was insufficient to predict pulmonary arterial diastolic pressure or vascular resistance from a given RPEP RVET ratio. In this study the RPEP RVET ratio was compared with left ventricular preejection period/ejection time ratio ( LVEP LVET ) in 25 patients undergoing cardiac catheterization, and a strong correlation was found between the ratio ( RPEP RVET ) ( LPEP LVET ) = R L and the ratio of pulmonary arteriolar resistance/systemic arteriolar resistance ( PAR RS ), especially when R L was correlated with log 10 PAR RS ( r = 0.902). A very high correlation ( r = 0.960) was found between R L and log 10 PAR RS when the group was restricted to patients with a ventricular septal defect or a complete endocardial cushion defect. Regression equations for prediction of PAR RS have been derived for the various groups.
Reassessment of the environmental mechanisms controlling developmental polyphenism in spadefoot toad tadpoles

Identifying the environmental mechanism(s) controlling developmental polyphenism is the first step in gaining a mechanistic and evolutionary understanding of the factors responsible for its expression and evolution. Tadpoles of the spadefoot toad Spea multiplicata can display either a “typical” omnivorous or a carnivorous phenotype. Exogenous thyroxine and feeding on conspecific tadpoles have been accepted as triggers for development of the carnivorous phenotype on the basis of a series of studies in the early 1990s. I repeated the thyroxine and conspecific-feeding assays and demonstrated that neither exogenous thyroxine nor feeding on conspecifics induces the carnivorous phenotype. Previous researchers used simple ratio statistics to argue that field-collected carnivores and thyroxine-treated tadpoles are similar, and my results supported these claims if I used the same simple ratio methodology. However, investigation of trait developmental trajectories and allometries for field-collected carnivores and thyroxine-treated and conspecific-fed tadpoles show that these phenotypes are profoundly different.
Evolution of thermal sensitivity of ectotherm performance.

Most ectothermal animals have variable body temperatures. Because physiological rates are temperature sensitive, an ectotherm's behavioural and ecological performance - even its fitness - can be influenced by body temperature. As a result, the thermal sensitivity of ectotherm performance is relevant to diverse issues in physiology, ecology and evolution. This review formalizes an emerging framework for investigating the evolution of thermal sensitivity, outlines some functional and genetical constraints on that evolution, and summarizes comparative and experimental advances in this field.
Women, Gender, and Religion in the Early Americas

The historical study of women and religion in the early Americas has garnered substantial scholarship in the last 30 years. The influence of women’s history and feminist studies has generated great interest on the topic of gender and religion. Scholars have analyzed women’s religious history using indices of race, class, and gender to produce nuanced histories. This work has shown the complex contours of female spirituality in the early Americas. Female laity both accepted and questioned male religious leadership and sought meaningful spiritual experiences in myriad contexts, such as the sanctuary, household, and community. Studies have been done on a wide range of topics relating to women and religion, such as conversion, preaching, mysticism, speech, healing, domesticity, monasticism, witchcraft, sexuality, and the body. Women in Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish traditions have been examined, as have Native American, African American, and mixed race women in Spanish, French, and British America. Their historical experience reveals an ongoing tension between religious hierarchy and female pursuits of piety. Scholarly literature on ‘women religious’, that is, Catholic nuns, demonstrates that they exercised power, even while working under a male-dominated ecclesiastical authority, in both North and South American settlements from the 16th to the 19th centuries. Female members of radical Protestant groups, such as the Quakers, Shakers, and Moravians, participated in communities that promoted gender ideologies divergent from the dominant culture. The study of women’s religious history will continue to ponder the multiple meanings and interactions of spirituality, gender, and power within early American societies.
Consonance in depiction of violent material in television news

“Consonance” is the tendency for journalists to exhibit uniformity or similarity in reporting. Television news gatekeepers viewed six versions of a story, ranging from one with no violent video to a very violent version. Each chose a version representing his/her perception of an “acceptable” level of violence for broadcast. Most considered the shooting and the victim falling to the floor acceptable, but excluded images of the dead body. This was consistent (consonant) regardless of market size or preference for “neutral” versus “participant” journalism. However, gatekeepers who labeled themselves “objective” cleared a more violent version for air than self‐labeled “interpretive” journalists.
Molecular cloning and characterization of protein phosphatase 2C of vomeronasal sensory epithelium of garter snakes.

Abstract The earthworm-derived chemoattractant ES20 interacts with its G-protein-coupled receptors on the plasma membrane of vomeronasal (VN) sensory neurons of garter snakes, resulting in an increase in inositol trisphosphate [J. Biol. Chem. 269 (1994) 16867] and a rapid phosphorylation of the membrane-bound proteins, p42/44 [Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1450 (1999) 320]. The phosphorylation of p42/44 proteins are countervailingly regulated by a protein kinase and an okadaic acid-insensitive but fluoride-sensitive protein phosphatase (PPase) [J. Liu et al. (loc. cit.)]. The phosphorylation of p42/44 induced by ES20 appears to play a role in the regulation of signal transduction pathways by modulating the GTPase activity [J. Liu et al. (loc. cit.)]. A 564-bp fragment of cDNA was obtained from VN RNA of garter snakes by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction with degenerate primers. The 564-bp fragment was amplified, cloned, and sequenced. Northern blot analysis revealed that both the VN organ (VNO) and brain contained the gene of PPase 2C. A full-length complementary 4119-bp DNA containing an open reading frame of 1146 bp that encodes a protein of 382 amino acids with a molecular mass of 49,123 Da was obtained from the VN cDNA library of garter snakes. The deduced amino acid sequence showed 88% amino acid identity to bovine protein phosphatase 2C alpha and 87% identity to human and rat PP2C alpha and to Mg 2+ -dependent protein phosphatase 1A of rat and rabbit. In situ hybridization revealed that the mRNA of VN protein phosphatase 2C is expressed in the vomeronasal sensory epithelium. This is the first report of the identification of a type 2C serine/threonine protein phosphatase in the VN system.
Formation of primary constriction and heterochromatin in mouse does not require minor satellite DNA

Whereas the major satellite fraction in mouse extends its domain from the centromere to the distal end of the pericentric heterochromatin, the minor satellite DNA is present specifically in the centromere or primary constriction. We hybridized the biotinylated minor satellite sequence to L929 cells of mouse origin. The sequence hybridized to all chromosomes. Whereas hybridization was detected on all active centromeres, the inactive centromeres in certain dicentrics did not show any signal. This satellite, however, was detected in all inactive centromeres in a heptacentric chromosome. The intensity of fluorescence on the inactive centromeres of the heptacentric was similar to that present on the active centromeres. Several heterochromatin blocks, which were not associated with any centromere, were also found to lack hybridization with the minor satellite. The inactive centromeres, whether carrying the minor satellite DNA fraction or not, generally do not react with the antikinetochore antibodies present in the scleroderma serum. These studies are interpreted to show that (1) the primary constriction in mouse can be formed without the participation of minor satellite, (2) heterochromatin in mouse may constitute without this fraction, (3) the major and minor satellite may not be interspersed but are joined at some defined boundary, and (4) the binding of CENP-B does not depend upon the quantity of minor satellite or the number of CENP boxes present in the inactive centromeres.
Time domain design of nonrecursive least mean-square digital filters

A time-domain method is presented for designing nonrecursive digital filters that are optimum in the sense that the output samples are least mean-square estimates of the samples of some desired signal. The method requires that one know the input autocorrelation function and the cross-correlation function between the input and the desired output. Several examples are given of filters designed by the method. The optimum filters can be obtained by sampling the impulse responses of optimum filters for continuous reconstruction of the waveforms from their samples.