cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Ion Mobility-Mass Spectrometry in Metabolomic, Lipidomic, and Proteomic Analyses

Abstract Ion mobility-mass spectrometry (IMS-MS) is rapidly gaining attention for improving metabolomic, lipidomic and proteomic analyses. Through the simultaneous measurement of molecular structures and mass, IMS-MS enables more complete analysis of mixtures, more confident molecular assignments, the construction of multicharacteristic molecular libraries, and the evaluation of unknown features in complex samples. Studies over the last decade have utilized IMS-MS to distinguish and study structurally similar small molecules, such as glycan anomers, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and lipid double bond isomers, leading to the discovery of new compounds with potentially high biological importance. Furthermore, IMS-MS has become an advanced proteomics tool not only for bottom-up peptide identification and quantitation but also for the study of native/intact proteins and their role in structural biology and disease progression. Additionally, recent advances in higher resolution IMS separations and its successful coupling with other preseparation, fragmentation, and characterization illustrate how IMS-MS will allow a more in-depth look into complex systems and further advance omics measurements.
A unique anisotropic R2 of collagen degeneration (ARCADE) mapping as an efficient alternative to composite relaxation metric (R2‐R1ρ) in human knee cartilage study

PURPOSE Anisotropic transverse R2 (1/T2 ) relaxation of water proton is sensitive to cartilage degenerative changes. The purpose is to develop an efficient method to extract this relaxation metric in clinical studies. METHODS Anisotropic R2 can be measured inefficiently by standard R2 mapping after removing an isotropic contribution obtained from R1ρ mapping. In the proposed method, named as a unique anisotropic R2 of collagen degeneration (ARCADE) mapping, an assumed uniform isotropic R2 was estimated at magic angle locations in the deep cartilage, and an anisotropic R2 was thus isolated in a single T2W sagittal image. Five human knees from 4 volunteers were studied with standard R2 and R1ρ mappings at 3T, and anisotropic R2 derived from ARCADE on the T2W (TE = 48.8 ms) image from R2 mapping was compared with the composite relaxation (R2 - R1ρ ) using statistical analysis including Student's t-test and Pearson's correlation coefficient. RESULTS Anisotropic R2 (1/s) from ARCADE was highly positively correlated with but not significantly different from standard R2 - R1ρ (1/s) in the segmented deep (r = 0.83 ± 0.06; 8.3 ± 2.9 vs. 7.3 ± 1.9, P = .50) and the superficial (r = 0.82 ± 0.05; 3.5 ± 2.4 vs. 4.5 ± 1.6, P = .39) zones. However, after eliminating systematic errors by the normalization in terms of zonal contrast, anisotropic R2 was significantly higher (60.2 ± 18.5% vs. 38.4 ± 16.6%, P < .01) than R2 - R1ρ as predicted. CONCLUSION The proposed anisotropic R2 mapping could be an efficient alternative to the conventional approach, holding great promise in providing both high-resolution morphological and more sensitive transverse relaxation imaging from a single T2W scan in a clinical setting.
Reporting Subscore Profiles Using Diagnostic Classification Models in Health Professions Education

Learners and educators in the health professions have called for more fine-grained information (subscores) from assessments, beyond a single overall test score. However, due to concerns over reliability, there have been limited uses of subscores in practice. Recent advances in latent class analysis have made contributions in subscore reporting by using diagnostic classification models (DCMs), which allow reliable classification of examinees into fine-grained proficiency levels (subscore profiles). This study examines the innovative and practical application of DCM framework to health professions educational assessments using retrospective large-scale assessment data from the basic and clinical sciences: National Board of Medical Examiners Subject Examinations in pathology (n = 2,006) and medicine (n = 2,351). DCMs were fit and analyzed to generate subscores and subscore profiles of examinees. Model fit indices, classification (reliability), and parameter estimates indicated that DCMs had good psychometric properties including consistent classification of examinees into subscore profiles. Results showed a range of useful information including varying levels of subscore distributions. The DCM framework can be a promising approach to report subscores in health professions education. Consistency of classification was high, demonstrating reliable results at fine-grained subscore levels, allowing for targeted and specific feedback to learners.
Agreement Establishing The African Continental Free Trade Area

On May 30, 2019, the Agreement Establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) entered into force for the twenty-four countries that had deposited their instruments of ratification. When the remaining thirty-one member states of the African Union ratify it, the AfCFTA will cover a market of 1.2 billion people and a gross domestic product (GDP) of $2.5 trillion. That would make it the world's largest trade agreement since the World Trade Organization (WTO).
NASA’s Role in Gas Turbine Technology Development: Accelerating Technical Progress via Collaboration Between Academia, Industry, and Government Agencies

Given the maturity of the gas turbine engine since its invention and also considering the limited and flattened level of resources expected to be allocated for NASA aeronautics research and development, we ask the question are NASA technology investments still needed to enable future turbine engine-based propulsion systems? If so, what is NASA’s unique role to justify NASA’s investment? To address this topic, we will first review the accomplishments and the impact that NASA Glenn Research Center has made on turbine engine technologies over the last 78 years. Specifically, this paper discusses NASA’s role and contributions to turbine engine development, specific to both 1) NASA’s role in conducting experiments to understand flow physics and provide relevant benchmark validation experiments for Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code development, validation, and assessment; and 2) the impact of technologies resulting from NASA collaborations with industry, academia, and other government agencies. Note that the scope of the discussion is limited to the NASA technology contributions with which the author was intimately associated, and does not represent the entirety of the NASA contributions to turbine engine technology. The specific research, development, and demonstrations discussed herein were selected to both 1) provide a comprehensive review and reference list of the technology and its impact, and 2) identify NASA’s unique role and highlight how NASA’s involvement resulted in additional benefit to the gas turbine engine community. Secondly, we will discuss current NASA collaborations that are in progress and provide a status of the results. Finally, we discuss the challenges anticipated for future turbine engine-based propulsion systems for civil aviation and identify potential opportunities for collaboration where NASA involvement would be beneficial. Ultimately, the gas turbine engine community will decide if NASA involvement is needed to contribute to the development of the design and analysis tools, databases, and technology demonstration programs to meet these challenges for future turbine engine-based propulsion systems.
Modelling Spatial Information Diffusion

This paper develops an open source toolkit SocialNetworkSimulator to model social networks based on a group of tweets with the keyword of ‘Charlotesville’, a topic vividly discussed over Twitter on the movement ‘Unite the Right rally’ occurred in Charlottesville, Virginia from August 11 to August 12, 2017. Both public attention value and geographical distance decay are demonstrated to show how temporal and spatial factors would influence such diffusion across social network.
Use of Sustainable Antimicrobial Aggregates for the In-Situ Inhibition of Biogenic Corrosion on Concrete Sewer Pipes

A new generation of cementitious materials is being engineered to selectively inhibit the growth of Acidithiobacillus, which are a key genera of acid-generating bacteria responsible for microbially induced concrete corrosion (MICC). In this context, the substitution of metal-laden granular activated carbon (GAC) particles and/or steel slag for a fraction of the fine aggregates traditionally used in concrete mixture has proven useful. While the antimicrobial properties of specific heavy metals (i.e. copper and cobalt) have been leveraged to inhibit acid-generating bacteria growth on sewer pipes, few studies have researched how biocidal aggregates may affect the microstructural and mechanical properties of cementitious materials. We report here on the effects that these biocidal aggregates substitutions can have on compressive strength, flowability, and setting times of cement-based formulations. Results showed that increases in compressive strength, regardless of the presence or absence of biocidal metals, resulted from the GAC incorporation where sand replacement was 3% by mass or lower, while flowability decreased when percentages higher than 3% of GAC was incorporated in a cement mix. When substituting fine aggregate with steel slag particles in mass ratios between 5% and 40%, compressive strength was not affected, regardless of the presence or absence of copper. Setting times were not affected by the inclusion of GAC or steel slag particles except when substituting GAC particles at 10% of the fine aggregate mass; under this condition both initial and final setting times were decreased. Results suggest that in order to have enhanced inhibition potential against acidophilic microorganisms and equal or improved mechanical properties, a combination of 1% metal-laden GAC and 40% copper-laden steel slag is an optimum fine aggregate substitution scenario.
Interaction of lignin-derived dimer and eugenol-functionalized silica nanoparticles with supported lipid bilayers.

Abstract The potential to impart surfaces with specific lignin-like properties (i.e. resistance to microbes) remains relatively unexplored due to the lack of well-defined lignin-derived small molecules and corresponding surface functionalization strategies. Here, allyl-modified guaiacyl β-O-4 eugenol (G-eug) lignin-derived dimer is synthesized and attached to mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNPs) via click chemistry. The ability of G-eug lignin-dimer functionalized particles to interact with and disrupt synthetic lipid bilayers is compared to that of eugenol, a known natural antimicrobial. Spherical MSNPs (∼150 nm diameter with 4.5 nm pores) were synthesized using surfactant templating. Post-synthesis thiol (SH) attachment was performed using (3-mercaptopropyl) trimethoxysilane and quantified by Ellman’s test. The resultant SH-MSNPs were conjugated with the G-eug dimers or eugenol by a thiol-ene reaction under ultraviolet light in the presence of a photo initiator. From thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), attachment densities of approximately 0.22 mmol eugenol/g particle and 0.13 mmol G-eug dimer/g particle were achieved. The interaction of the functionalized MSNPs with a phospholipid bilayers of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (representing model cell membranes) supported on gold surface was measured using Quartz Crystal Microbalance with Dissipation monitoring (QCM-D). Eugenol-grafted MSNPs in PBS (up to 1 mg/mL) associated with the bilayer and increased the mass adsorbed on the QCM-D sensor. In contrast, MSNPs functionalized with G-eug dimer show qualitatively different behavior, with more uptake and evidence of bilayer disruption at and above a particle concentration of 0.5 mg/mL. These results suggest that bio-inspired materials with conjugated lignin-derived small molecules can serve as a platform for novel antimicrobial coatings and therapeutic carriers.
Overactive bladder in an integrated delivery system: a longitudinal cohort study

Overactive bladder (OAB) is common and morbid. Medication and diagnosis claims may be specific, but lack sensitivity to identify patients with overactive bladder. We used an “electronic health record (EHR) phenotype” to identify cases and describe treatment choices and anticholinergic burden for OAB. We conducted a retrospective cohort study in a large, integrated health delivery system between July 2011 and June 2012 (2-year follow-up). We examined care from primary care and specialty clinics, medication and procedure use, and anticholinergic burden for each patient. There were 7362 patients with an EHR OAB phenotype; 50% of patients were > 65 years old, 74% were female, and 83% were white. The distribution of care included primary care physician (PCP)/specialty co-management (25% of patients); PCP care only (18%); urology only (13%); or some other combination of specialty care (33%). Only 40% of patients were prescribed at least 1 OAB medication during the study. The mean duration of prescribed medication was 1.5 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.4 to 1.6 months; range, < 1 month to 24 months). Independent predictors of receipt of an OAB medication included increasing age (odds ratio [OR], 1.4 for every 10 years; 95% CI, 1.4 to 1.5), women (OR, 1.6 compared with men; 95% CI, 1.4 to 1.8), diabetes (OR, 1.3; 95% CI, 1.1 to 1.5), and certain sources of care compared with PCP-only care: PCP/specialty co-management (OR, 1.8; 95% CI, 1.5 to 2.0), urology (OR, 2.2; 95% CI, 1.8 to 2.6), and multiple specialists (OR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.2 to 1.8). Very few patients received other treatments: biofeedback (< 1%), onabotulinumtoxinA (2%), or sacral nerve stimulation (1%). Patients who received OAB medications had significantly higher anticholinergic burden than patients who did not (anticholinergic total standardized daily dose, 125 versus 46; P < .001). Although OAB is common and morbid, in a longitudinal study using an EHR OAB phenotype 40% of patients were treated with OAB medication and only briefly.
Editorial Comment on “Percutaneous Microwave Ablation of Category T1a Renal Cell Carcinoma: Intermediate Results on Safety, Technical Feasibility, and Clinical Outcomes of 119 Tumors”

This Editorial Comment discusses the following AJR article: Percutaneous Microwave Ablation of Stage T1a Renal Cell Carcinoma: Intermediate Results on Safety, Technical Feasibility and Clinical Out...
Repeated mild traumatic brain injuries impair visual discrimination learning in adolescent mice.

Abstract Cognitive deficits following a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) are common and are associated with learning deficits in school-age children. Some of these deficits include problems with long-term memory, working memory, processing speeds, attention, mental fatigue, and executive function. Processing speed deficits have been associated with alterations in white matter, but the underlying mechanisms of many of the other deficits are unclear. Without a clear understanding of the underlying mechanisms we cannot effectively treat these injuries. The goal of these studies is to validate a translatable touchscreen discrimination/reversal task to identify deficits in executive function following a single or repeated mTBIs. Using a mild closed skull injury model in adolescent mice we were able to identify clear deficits in discrimination learning following repeated injuries that were not present from a single mTBI. The repeated injuries were not associated with any deficits in motor-based behavior but did induce a robust increase in astrocyte activation. These studies provide an essential platform to interrogate the underlying neurological dysfunction associated with these injuries.
Q 2 -free Families in the Boolean Lattice

For a family \({{\cal F}}\) of subsets of [n] = {1, 2, ..., n} ordered by inclusion, and a partially ordered set P, we say that \({{\cal F}}\) is P-free if it does not contain a subposet isomorphic to P. Let ex(n, P) be the largest size of a P-free family of subsets of [n]. Let Q2 be the poset with distinct elements a, b, c, d, a < b,c < d; i.e., the 2-dimensional Boolean lattice. We show that 2N − o(N) ≤ ex(n, Q2) ≤ 2.283261N + o(N), where \(N = \binom{n}{\lfloor n/2 \rfloor}\). We also prove that the largest Q2-free family of subsets of [n] having at most three different sizes has at most 2.20711N members.
Laparoscopic correction of sliding hiatal hernia in eight dogs: Description of technique, complications, and short-term outcome.

Objective To describe a novel laparoscopic technique to treat sliding hiatal hernia in dogs. Study design Retrospective case series. Animals Eight dogs with sliding hiatal hernia treated with laparoscopy. Methods Surgery reports were reviewed for technique description and animal outcomes. Results Six dogs were brachycephalic. Dogs were placed in right lateral oblique recumbency. Four dogs were placed in a reverse Trendelenburg position to visualize the esophageal hiatus. A single port was placed 2 cm caudal to the last rib on the left side. An extra cannula was added in four dogs. A large-bore orogastric tube was introduced in five dogs and used in four dogs to reduce the hernia. A unidirectional nonabsorbable barbed suture was used for the closure of the esophageal hiatus and the esophagopexy. A left-sided gastropexy was performed for all the cases. The gastropexy was performed with a gastrostomy tube to bypass the esophagus in four dogs. Intraoperative complications included pneumothorax in three dogs. Conversion was elective in three cases and emergent in one case. Clinical signs were recorded as improved in each dog. The median follow-up time was 16.5 days (range, 9-264). Conclusion Hiatal hernia repair was performed laparoscopically in this population. Repair included a combination of esophageal plication, esophagopexy, and left-sided gastropexy. Reverse Trendelenburg animal positioning and orogastric tube placement facilitated the reduction of the hernia. Clinical significance Laparoscopy is an option for the treatment of sliding hiatal hernia in dogs.
Classification of Fatigue Phases in Healthy and Diabetic Adults Using Wearable Sensor

Fatigue is defined as "a loss of force-generating capacity" in a muscle that can intensify tremor. Tremor quantification can facilitate early detection of fatigue onset so that preventative or corrective controls can be taken to minimize work-related injuries and improve the performance of tasks that require high-levels of accuracy. We focused on developing a system that recognizes and classifies voluntary effort and detects phases of fatigue. The experiment was designed to extract and evaluate hand-tremor data during the performance of both rest and effort tasks. The data were collected from the wrist and finger of the participant's dominant hand. To investigate tremor, time, frequency domain features were extracted from the accelerometer signal for segments of 45 and 90 samples/window. Analysis using advanced signal processing and machine-learning techniques such as decision tree, k-nearest neighbor, support vector machine, and ensemble classifiers were applied to discover models to classify rest and effort tasks and the phases of fatigue. Evaluation of the classifier's performance was assessed based on various metrics using 5-fold cross-validation. The recognition of rest and effort tasks using an ensemble classifier based on the random subspace and window length of 45 samples was deemed to be the most accurate (96.1%). The highest accuracy (~98%) that distinguished between early and late fatigue phases was achieved using the same classifier and window length.
Classification of Officers’ Driving Situations Based on Eye-Tracking and Driver Performance Measures

Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of police officers’ deaths in the line of duty. These crashes are mainly attributed to officers’ use of in-vehicle technologies while driving, distraction, fatigue, and high-speed driving conditions. The objective of this study is to classify officers’ driving situations using a combination of driver behavior and eye-tracking measures. The study compared three algorithms, including random forest (RF), support vector machine (SVM), and random Fourier features (RFF) to classify officers’ driving situations (i.e., normal vs. pursuit driving) and in-vehicle technology use. The results suggested that driver behavior measures, combined with RF or SVM methods, are most promising for classifying officers’ driving condition (accuracy of about 90%). However, it might be more efficient to apply RFF with driver behavior measures to classify officers’ use of in-vehicle technologies while driving due to the time cost reduction of RFF as compared to SVM and RF algorithms. The findings can be applied to improve future police vehicles, training protocols, and to provide adaptive technology solutions to reduce officers’ driving distraction and workload.
Extending keyboard adaptability: An investigation

One common typing error is the overlap error, in which two keys are pressed at once. The existing keyboard accessibility filters do not directly address overlap errors. Several techniques for automatic correction of overlap errors are compared in an offline analysis. Leveraging keystroke timing characteristics is shown to achieve a 50% to 75% reduction in errors for study participants with relatively high error rates. A simple heuristic for estimating the accuracy improvement for an individual using this filter is presented and considerations for live implementation and further work are discussed.
Persistent Spin Currents in Nanostructures

The opportunity of exploring truly quantum mechanical effects beyond the atomic realm is one of the most remarkable and exciting aspects of nanoscale physics. Prominent amongst such mesoscopic effects is the phenomenon of persistent currents which flow around normal metal rings threaded by magnetic flux (Buttiker et al, 1983; Landauer and Buttiker, 1985; Bloch, 1965; Washburn and Webb, 1986; Levy et al., 1990; Leggett, 1990).
Temperature dependence of an abiotic glucose/air alkaline fuel cell

Abstract The temperature dependence of a previously developed glucose fuel cell is explored. This cell uses a small molecule dye mediator to transport oxidizable electrons from glucose to a carbon felt anode. This reaction is driven by an air breathing MnO2 cathode. This research investigates how the temperature of the system affects the power production of the fuel cell. Cell performance is observed using either methyl viologen, indigo carmine, trypan blue, or hydroquinone as a mediator at temperatures of 15, 19, 27, 32, 37, 42, and 49 °C. Cyclic voltammetry of the cell anode at the given temperatures with the individual dyes is also presented. The highest power production amongst all of the cells occurs at 32 °C. This occurs with the mediator indigo carmine or with the mediator methyl viologen. These sustained powers are 2.31 mW cm−2 and 2.39 mW cm−2, respectively. This is approximately a 350% increase for these cells compared to their power produced at room temperature. This dramatic increase is likely due to increased solubility of the mediator dye at higher temperatures.
Higher Dimensional Wave Equation

In this chapter we will discuss the initial-boundary value problems that control the wave propagation in two and three dimensional spaces. The methods that will be applied are the Adomian decomposition method [1] and the method of separation of variables [2, 3, 4, 5]. The two methods have been outlined before and were applied to the one dimensional wave equation in Chapter 5.
GCF2 interacts with Dishevelled and regulates activation of Rho A

Proc Amer Assoc Cancer Res, Volume 47, 2006 1745 GC-binding factor 2 (GCF2) is known as a transcriptional repressor that decreases activity of several genes. GCF2 can directly bind to the GC-rich sequence of the EGFR promoter and repress the transcriptional activity of EGFR. GCF2 mRNA is differentially expressed in many human tissues and cell lines. GCF2 mRNA is expressed as a 4.2 kb mRNA in most human tissues with the highest expression level in peripheral blood leukocytes. Additional transcripts of 2.9 and 2.4 kb are found in skeletal muscles and smooth muscles. The only transcript detected in cancer cell lines was 4.2 kb with high levels found in Burkitts’ lymphoma cell lines. GCF2 is found in both nuclear and cytoplasmic compartments in cells. In addition to its function as a transcriptional repressor of several genes, we now show that the GCF2 can directly interact with other proteins such as flightless-1 (Fli-1). Viable mutations of the Drosophila Fli-1 locus cause ultrastructural defects in the indirect flight muscles. Fli-1 has highly conserved homologues in human. The human Fli-1 protein consists of leucine-rich repeat domain and a gelsolin-like domain that is known to bind with actin. Many findings on the function of Fli-1 are consistent with a role for fli-1 in providing a direct link between molecules involved in signal transduction pathways and the actin cytoskeleton. We hypothesized that GCF2, together with Fli-1, plays a role in regulating cytoskeleton, cell migration, and/or morphology. In this study, we found that GCF2 represses the activation of small GTPase, RhoA, which is known as a key molecule in the regulation of the actin cytoskeleton. The expression of GCF2 in MCF-7 cells was transiently knocked down using the siRNA technique. Activated RhoA was detected with the GST-RBD pull-down assay. RhoA was markedly activated by repression of GCF2. To further investigate the mechanism for this repressive function, co-immunoprecipitation experiments were performed. We were able to identify dishevelled (Dvl), which is the key mediator for the Wnt-noncanonical pathway, as a binding partner with GCF2. Additionally, we found that all of the human Dvl family members; Dvl-1, Dvl-2, and Dvl-3, could bind to GCF2. Thus, we have found that GCF2 interacts with Dvl protein and regulates the activation of small GTPase, RhoA. These results strongly suggest that GCF2 plays a role in the Wnt-noncanonical planar cell polarity (PCP) signaling pathway. Consequently, GCF2 may regulate the cytoskeleton or migration via Dvl and RhoA.
Cytochrome c oxidase subunit VIIa liver isoform: Characterization and identification of promoter elements in the bovine gene

Cytochrome c oxidase subunit VIIa is specified by two nuclear genes, one (COX7AH) producing a heart/muscle-specific isoform and the other (COX7AL) a form expressed in all tissues. We have isolated both genes to examine their transcriptional regulation. Here, we characterize the core promoter of COX7AL and show that a 92-base pair region flanking the 5′-end promotes most of the activity of this gene. The 92-bp basal promoter contains sites for the nuclear respiratory factors NRF-1 and NRF-2, which have been shown to contribute to the transcription of a number of nuclear genes involved in mitochondrial respiratory activity, and also at least four Sp1 motifs. We show that both the NRF-1 and NRF-2 binding sites are functional in COX7AL and present evidence suggesting that interaction between the NRF-1 site and an upstream element contributes to expression.
Electron microscopic observations of bronchial epithelium: II. Filosomes

Abstract Moderately electron-dense bodies without a limiting membrane and having a diameter of approximately 700A were observed in the cytoplasm of ciliated columnar cells in the bronchial epithelium of man. They seem to consist of aggregates of coiled filaments about 25A thick and have been termed “filosomes.” Filosomes, singly, in small groups, or in larger clusters, were found randomly distributed throughout the cytoplasm between the nucleus and the cell apex and were sometimes associated with structures resembling components of cilia. By site, the filosomes were associated with many cell organelles, especially the nucleus, and their consistont occurrence with annulate lamellae was specifically noted. The similarity of the material of the filosomes to that of structures which have been shown by others to be involved in ciliogenesis suggests a similar role for filosomes.
Collaborative filtering CAPTCHAs

Current CAPTCHAs require users to solve objective questions such as text recognition or image recognition. We propose a class of CAPTCHAs based on collaborative filtering. Collaborative filtering CAPTCHAs allow us to ask questions that have no absolute answer; instead, the CAPTCHAs are graded by comparison to other people’s answers. We analyze the security requirements of collaborative filtering CAPTCHAs and find that although they are not ready to use now, collaborative filtering CAPTCHAs are worthy of further investigation.
Texture-Based Shadow Removal from a Single Color Image

Shadows can often be found in images and videos acquired under strong directional lighting, such as those taken outdoors on a sunny day. Shadows can cause many difficulties in image processing and vision-related tasks, such as image segmentation and object recognition. Therefore, shadow removal is needed for improving the performance of these image understanding tasks. We present a new shadow removal algorithm for a singe texture color image. Intra-image textures are popular and frequently influenced by shadow. Through intra-image texture matching and deconvolution on derivative maps of original image with zero values set in shadow edge positions, we can recover shadow free images. The experimental results on real-world data show good performance of this algorithm.
Living the academic life: A model for work-family conflict

Background: Work-family conflict (WFC) is an inter-role conflict, which suggests that fulfilling expectations of family roles makes it difficult to satisfy expectations of work roles, and vice versa. Living an academic life includes balancing multiple work demands and family responsibilities, which may generate WFC for many faculty members. Researchers have emphasized the need for further studies of how faculty integrate work and family demands. Objective: this study explores WFC among Iranian faculty. We examine relationships among work hours, time spent with family, work-interference with family (WIF), family-interference with work (FIW), and job satisfaction. Methods: faculty members from 25 Iranian public universities completed a questionnaire. Structural equation modeling was used to test hypotheses in a single model. Results: findings suggest a positive relationship between faculty weekly work hours and WIF, and between time spent with family and FIW. WIF correlated negatively with job satisfaction, and work hours correlated positively with job satisfaction. Time spent with family and FIW had no influence on job satisfaction, and spouse employment moderated the relationship between WIF and job satisfaction. Conclusions: findings have implications for human resources and organizational development professionals seeking insight into how faculty members and other knowledge workers experience work-family interrelationships.
Effect of Chemoattractants on Chemiluminescence

Upon ingestion of particulate matter, polymorphonuclear leukocytes produce a chemiluminescence that can be measured in a liquid scintillation counter. In the experiments reported here, the influence of three chemoattractants and three chemotactic modulators upon the chemiluminescence induced by opsonized zymosan was studied. The chemoattractants investigated (including bacterial factor derived from Escherichia coli, the simple peptide formylmethionylalanine, and activated human complement), which initiate directed movement when presented to cells in a concentration gradient, significantly enhanced zymosan-induced chemiluminescence. In the absence of opsonized zymosan, however, they had no effect on the chemiluminescence response. In contrast, the chemotactic modulators studied (including carbamylcholine, phenylephrine, and cyclic guanosine 5′-monophosphate, which are not chemotactic by themselves but can enhance or depress the movement of polymorphonuclear leukocytes initiated by chemoattractants) produced no enhancement of chemiluminescence. Other experiments were carried out in which neutrophils were pretreated with cytochalasin D, a compound that inhibits phagocytosis by interacting with microfilaments. Under these conditions, the chemiluminescence induced by opsonized zymosan was markedly reduced, but the response resulting from the addition of a chemoattractant to the leukocyte/zymosan mixture was not. This indicates that the chemiluminescence in response to chemoattractants is not dependent on phagocytosis per se. Neutrophils were also pretreated with dinitrofluorobenzene, a compound that binds amino groups and can be expected to react with proteins on the cell membrane. In these experiments, the chemiluminescence induced by opsonized zymosan and the pronounced spike of activity produced by the addition of a chemoattractant were completely abolished. These results suggest that the polymorphonuclear leukocyte chemiluminescence response to chemoattractants is mediated by cell surface proteins. Thus, chemoattractants may have a dual role in the acute inflammatory response: (i) the initiation and maintenance of directed cell movement, and (ii) enhancement of metabolic steps mediated at the cell membrane, resulting in microbicidal activity.
Blind Intuitions: Modernism's Critique of Idealism

Adorno contends that something of what we think of knowing and rational agency operate in ways that obscure and deform unique, singular presentations by relegating them to survival-driven interests and needs; hence, in accordance with the presumptions of transcendental idealism, we have come to mistake what are, in effect, historically contingent, species-subjective ways of viewing the world for an objective understanding of the world. And further, this interested understanding of the world is deforming in a more radical way than just obscuring what is there for the sake of interested needs and purposes; these instrumental ways of knowing and acting, are broadly self-interested, in the interest of survival, without effective concern for the well-being and worth of others; by becoming generalized and exclusive, hegemonic, by driving out modes of encountering things and persons that support their differences and independence, their needs and interests, these instrumental practices are the deepest cause of t...
Predictors and correlates of collective action

Social identity theory suggests that feminist identity should predict engagement in collective action on behalf of women. We examined predictors of collective action by asking female college students (N = 215) to complete a set of questionnaires that measure life experiences, beliefs about feminism and collective action, feminist self-labeling, and involvement in women-focused collective activities. Life experiences (i.e., having a feminist mother, having taken a women's studies class, and having experienced sex discrimination), feminist attitudes and beliefs, feminist self-labeling, and belief in collective action were positively correlated with collective action, whereas conservatism was negatively correlated with collective action. A logistic stepwise regression revealed that the Synthesis stage of feminist identity development was the only variable that uniquely contributed to predicting feminist activism.
1980 Awards nominations

ASSP Society for the 1980 awards to be presented at the 1981 ICASSP in Atlanta, Georgia. The awards and their associated criteria follow. Nominations are solicited from members of the ASSP Society Award: To honor a person who has made outstanding technical contributions in a field within the scope of the Society and who has provided outstanding leadership in that field. Technical Achievement Award: To honor a person who, over a period of years, has made outstanding technical contributions within the scope of the Society as documented by publications or patents. Senior Award: To honor a person who is an author of a paper (published i n the year ending June 1980) of exceptional merit dealing with a subject related t o the Society's technical scope, and appearing Sn the Society's TRANSACTIONS, irrespective of the author's age. ASSP Paper Award: To honor a person who is the author of an especially meritorious paper (published in the year ending June 1980) dealing with a subject related-to the Society's technical scope appearing in the Society's TRANSACTIONS; and who upon date of submission of the paper was less than 30 years of age. Meritorious Service Award: To honor a person on the basis of significant contributions to the Society's efforts.
Spectroscopy of hydrothermal reactions, 19: pH and salt dependence of decarboxylation of α-alanine at 280–330°C in an FT-IR spectroscopy flow reactor

The spontaneous decarboxylation of 0.5 m aqueous α-alanine solutions as a function of pH (1–9 at 320°C, where neutrality is approximately 6) was determined with a flow reactor at 280–330°C and 275 bar by FT-IR spectroscopy. The kinetics for the cationic and anionic forms have not been previously reported. The rate constants for the cationic form [CH3(NH3+)CHCO2H], the anionic form [CH3(NH2)CHCO2−], and the zwitterion form [CH3(NH3+)CHCO2−] were obtained and followed the first-order rate law. The rate of decarboxylation of the zwitterion is three times greater than that of the cationic and anionic forms in the temperature and pH ranges of study. The corresponding Arrhenius parameters were determined and compared with previously reported data. The addition of KCl (1 and 2 m) at the natural pH of α-alanine resulted in a reduction of the decarboxylation rate, suggesting that the transition state is less polar than the zwitterion and/or that the activity of the zwitterion has been reduced. The α-alanine solution is therefore somewhat more robust in solutions of high ionic strength, such as seawater, than it is in pure water. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 34: 271–277, 2002
Intralymphatic 5-fluorouracil and radioactive gold as an adjuvant to surgical operation for colorectal carcinoma.

Administration of 5-FU and198Au directly to regional lymphatics was utilized as an adjuvant to surgical operation in patients with potentially curable carcinomas of the colon and rectum. The five-year survival rates in 107 patients receiving 5-FU and 58 patients receiving198Au were compared with that in 136 patients treated by surgical resection alone.
Experimental models of urinary bladder outlet obstruction

Urinary bladder obstruction has been the subject of numerous clinical and experimental studies. The most common experimental model for outlet obstruction requires the surgical creation of a bladder outlet obstruction and then determining the effects after specific periods of time. These studies have demonstrated that the bladder responds to obstruction with rapid and significant changes in bladder structure and function. Although much important information comes from experimental surgical obstruction, this model is not appropriate for the study of the initial effects of outlet obstruction. The in-vitro whole bladder model (rabbit) can be utilized to study the initial effects of outlet obstruction on the physical characteristics of bladder emptying. This model has the advantage of one being able to have complete control of the type and magnitude of obstruction.
Adversarial safety analysis: borrowing the methods of security vulnerability assessments

Abstract Introduction: Safety and security share numerous attributes. The author, who heads the (Security) Vulnerability Assessment Team at Los Alamos National Laboratory, therefore argues that techniques used to optimize security might be useful for optimizing safety. Optimizing Security: There are three main ways to attempt to improve security—security surveys, risk assessment (or “design basis threat”), and vulnerability assessments. The latter is usually the most effective. Safety Analogs: Vulnerability assessment techniques used to improve security can be applied to safety analysis—even though safety is not ordinarily viewed as having malicious adversaries (other than hazards involving deliberate sabotage). Thinking like a malicious adversary can nevertheless have benefits in identifying safety vulnerabilities. Suggestions: The attributes of an effective safety vulnerability assessment are discussed, and recommendations are offered for how such an adversarial assessment might work. Conclusion: A safety vulnerability assessment can potentially provide new insights, a fresh and vivid perspective on safety hazards, and increased safety awareness.
Markers of endothelial dysfunction, coagulation and tissue fibrosis independently predict venous thromboembolism in HIV.

Objective HIV infection is associated with coagulation abnormalities and significantly increased risk of venous thrombosis. It has been shown that higher plasma levels of coagulation and inflammatory biomarkers predicted mortality in HIV. We investigated the relationship between venous thrombosis and HIV-related characteristics, traditional risk factors of hypercoagulability, and pre-event levels of biomarkers. Design A retrospective case-control study of 23 HIV-infected individuals who experienced an incident venous thromboembolic event while enrolled in National Institutes of Health studies from 1995 to 2010 and 69 age-matched and sex-matched HIV-infected individuals without known venous thromboembolism (VTE). Methods Biomarkers of inflammation, endothelial dysfunction, coagulation, tissue fibrosis, and cytomegalovirus (CMV) reactivation were assessed by ELISA-based assays and PCR using plasma obtained prior to the event. Results VTE events were related to nadir CD4 cell count, lifetime history of multiple opportunistic infections, CMV disease, CMV viremia, immunological AIDS, active infection, and provocation (i.e., recent hospitalization, surgery, or trauma). VTE events were independently associated with increased plasma levels of P-selectin (P = 0.002), D-dimer (P = 0.01), and hyaluronic acid (P = 0.009) in a multivariate analysis. No significant differences in antiretroviral or interleukin-2 exposures, plasma HIV viremia, or other traditional risk factors were observed. Conclusion Severe immunodeficiency, active infection, and provocation are associated with venous thromboembolic disease in HIV. Biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction, coagulation, and tissue fibrosis may help identify HIV-infected patients at elevated risk of VTE.
Trapping-desorption and direct-inelastic scattering of HCl from MgO(100)

Abstract A molecular beam of hyperthermal HCl ( J =0) impinges on a MgO(100) surface and the scattered HCl is probed state-selectively by using multiphoton ionization. Two regimes are identified. At incident energies of 0.54 and 0.90 eV, scattering is predominantly direct-inelastic, whereas at an incident energy of 0.11 eV, HCl is predominantly trapped and subsequently desorbs. For example, at 0.11 eV, the angular distribution of the HCl product is cosine-like, whereas at 0.54 and 0.90 eV, the scattered HCl is observed to peak near the specular angle.
Assessing symptom burden using the M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory in patients with chemotherapy-induced anemia: Results of a multicenter, open-label study (SURPASS) of patients treated with darbepoetin-α at a dose of 200 μg every 2 weeks

BACKGROUND. Patients with cancer who are receiving chemotherapy often experience chemotherapy-induced anemia (CIA), which is associated with symptoms that reduce quality of life. The M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory (MDASI) is a brief, self-rating assessment scale that measures the severity of core symptoms and symptom interference with function. The current study used the MDASI to prospectively assess the correlation between hemoglobin and self-perceived cancer-related symptoms in a large patient population with CIA who were receiving darbepoetin-α at a dose of 200 μg every 2 weeks. METHODS. Eligible patients enrolled in this multicenter, open-label study were age ≥18 years, had a nonmyeloid malignancy, were receiving multicycle chemotherapy, and were anemic (hemoglobin ≤11 g/dL). Hemoglobin was measured every 2 weeks; the MDASI was administered weekly. For hemoglobin-based endpoints, patients were stratified by baseline hemoglobin (< 10 g/dL or ≥10 g/dL). RESULTS. Of 2422 enrolled patients, 2401 received ≥1 dose of darbepoetin-α. Eighty percent of patients (95% confidence limit, 78–82 patients) achieved target hemoglobin levels (≥11 g/dL) during the study. Patients with a baseline hemoglobin < 10 g/dL had a greater increase in hemoglobin, took longer to achieve the target hemoglobin, and received more red blood cell transfusions than patients with a baseline hemoglobin ≥10 g/dL. The percentage of patients with moderate to severe MDASI scores (≥5 points) for fatigue, distress, loss of appetite, disturbed sleep, and interference with function was reduced during the study. Improvement in symptom burden was associated with an increase in hemoglobin concentration. CONCLUSIONS. Treatment with darbepoetin-α at a dose of 200 μg every 2 weeks is associated with improvement in symptom burden as measured by the MDASI, a simple tool that may improve symptom management for cancer patients with CIA. Cancer 2007. © 2007 American Cancer Society.
Tris(ethylenediamine)chromium(III) chloride as a relaxation reagent in carbon-13 NMR and an aid for structure determination in aqueous solution

Abstract The carbon-13 relaxation times of a number of amino acids and small peptides have been studied in the presence and absence of the paramagnetic, substitutionally inert complex tris(ethylenediamine)chromium(III) chloride. A metal-complex induced dipolar relaxation pathway is observed, uncomplicated by contact effects. The relaxation time ( T 1e ) for this process can be readily measured. In neutral or basic solution the complex interacts preferentially with the carboxylate or carbonyl moiety. Relaxation times of other carbon nuclei reflect a greater average distance from the complex, providing a basis of distinguishing conformations in aqueous solution. Studies of T 1e of the d or l isomers of a given amino acid with either the d or the l isomer of the chromium complex were also carried out and identical T 1e values were observed in the cases studied. The use of tris(ethylenediamine)chromium(III) chloride as a relaxation reagent for carbon-13 magnetic resonance spectroscopy in aqueous solution is illustrated and discussed.
Real-time trace gas sensing of fluorocarbons using a swept-wavelength external cavity quantum cascade laser

We present results demonstrating real-time sensing of four different fluorocarbons at low part-per billion (ppb) concentrations using an external cavity quantum cascade laser (ECQCL) designed for infrared vibrational spectroscopy of molecules with broad absorption features. The ECQCL was repeatedly swept at 20 Hz over its full tuning range of 1145–1265 cm−1 providing a scan rate of 3535 cm−1 s−1, and a detailed characterization of the ECQCL scan stability and repeatability is presented. The ECQCL was combined with a 100 meter path length multi-pass cell for direct absorption spectroscopy. A portable sensor system is described, which was deployed on a mobile automotive platform to provide spatially-resolved detection of fluorocarbons in outdoor experiments. Noise-equivalent detection limits of 800–1000 parts-per-trillion (ppt) are demonstrated for 1 s integration times.