cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Penile Prosthesis Implantation and Timing Disparities After Radical Prostatectomy: Results From a Statewide Claims Database

Abstract Background Many patients with erectile dysfunction (ED) after radical prostatectomy (RP) improve with conservative therapy but some do not; penile prosthesis implantation rates have been sparsely reported, and have used nonrepresentative data sets. Aim To characterize rates and timing of penile prosthesis implantation after RP and to identify predictors of implantation using a more representative data set. Methods The Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project State Inpatient and State Ambulatory Surgery databases for Florida from 2006 to 2015 were used. Patients undergoing RP (2006–2012) were tracked longitudinally for penile prosthesis implantation. Patient and clinical data were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression. Outcomes The primary outcome was risk-adjusted predictors of prosthesis implantation, and the secondary outcome was predictors of the highest quartile of time between RP and penile prosthesis. Results Of 29,288 men who had RP, 1,449 (4.9%) patients underwent subsequent prosthesis. The mean time from RP to prosthesis was 2.6 years (median: 2.1; interquartile range [IQR]: 1.2–3.5). Adjusted predictors of prosthesis implantation included open RP (odds ratio [OR]: 1.5, P 70 years; OR: 0.7, P Clinical Implications These findings suggest ED treatment healthcare disparities meriting further investigation; upfront counseling on all ED treatment modalities and close monitoring for conservative treatment failure may reduce lost quality of life years. Strengths & Limitations This study is limited by its use of administrative data, which relies on accurate coding and lacks data on ED questionnaires/prior treatments, patient-level cost, and oncologic outcomes. Quartile-based analysis of income and time between RP and prosthesis limits the conclusions that can be drawn. Conclusion Less than 5% of post-RP patients undergo penile prosthesis implantation, with open RP, Medicare, African American race, and Hispanic ethnicity predicting post-RP implantation; living in the wealthiest residential areas predicts lower likelihood of implantation compared to the least wealthy areas. Patients with the longest time between RP and prosthesis are more likely to live in the wealthiest areas or have undergone open/laparoscopic RP relative to robotic RP. Bajic P, Patel PM, Nelson MH, et al. Penile Prosthesis Implantation and Timing Disparities After Radical Prostatectomy: Results From a Statewide Claims Database. J Sex Med 2020;17:1175–1181.
Utilization of B12 for the treatment of chronic migraine

Chronic migraine is a particular classification of a headache that is typically unilateral and pulsatile and lasts for at least 3 months. Owing to its high prevalence and detrimental impact on personal, social, and economic aspects of patient lives, much desire has gone into fully understanding the pathogenesis of migraine, and to search for therapeutic agents. In addition to current therapeutics such as triptans, ergotamine, and monoclonal antibodies targeting calcitonin gene-related peptide receptors, vitamin B12 has been investigated for its possible use as a prophylactic agent for migraines. Specifically, the observed effects of vitamin B12 on nitric oxide and homocysteine prompt further investigation of its underlying mechanisms in migraine pathophysiology. In this comprehensive review, we provide a brief overview of migraines and current therapies while focusing on the promising role of vitamin B12 as a possible treatment option for chronic migraine management.
Ionizing radiation-induced risks to the central nervous system and countermeasures in cellular and rodent models.

Harmful effects of ionizing radiation on the Central Nervous System (CNS) are a concerning outcome in the field of cancer radiotherapy and form a major risk for deep space exploration. Both acute a...
Material loss of silicon nitride thin films in a simulated ocular environment

The dissolution behavior of silicon nitride in a simulated eye environment is studied as a function of temperature and ion concentration. Thin films of silicon nitride were manufactured using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) and low-pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD), respectively. The thickness of the films was measured as a function of time under various conditions. The experimental results showed that the films dissolve in saline solution over time. For the case of a thin membrane of 500 µm diameter and 200 nm thickness, typical dissolution rates are 1 nm/day for PECVD and 0.3 nm/day for LPCVD films. Dissolution of silicon nitride was found to be reduced using sputtered titanium oxide as protective overcoat.
The Health of Newcomers: Immigration, Health Policy, and the Case for Global Solidarity

Immigration and health are two of the most contentious issues facing policy makers today. Laws and policies that relate to both issues — to the health of newcomers — often reflect misimpressions about immigrants, their health, their impact on health care systems, and the ethical duties owed to them. Although immigrants are typically younger and healthier than native-born residents, and many newcomers play a vital role in providing care in their new lands, many nations are reluctant to extend basic health care to immigrants. Likewise, many nations turn against immigrants when epidemics strike, falsely believing that native populations can be kept well by keeping immigrants out. The book explores laws and policies pertaining to the intersections of health and migration, both in the U.S. and in other developed countries, and argues that because health is a global public good and people benefit from the health of neighbor and stranger alike, it is in everyone’s interest to ensure the health of all. Reviewing issues in the U.S. and globally as diverse as health-related immigration restrictions, medical repatriation, epidemic controls, access to health, the right to health, the medical brain drain, organ tourism, and global climate change, the book shows why solidarity between natives and newcomers is ethically required and in the service of health for all.
Using Economic Optimization to Derive Site-Specific Treatment Objectives

A procedure to estimate the economically efficient site- or system-specific treatment objective for enteric viruses in drinking water is presented. The health benefits of treatment are estimated us...
Leucyl-tRNA synthetase 1 is required for proliferation of TSC-null cells

Uncontrolled cell proliferation associated with cancer depends on the functional abrogation of at least one of tumor suppressor. In response to nutrient cue, tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) works as a tumor suppressor which inhibits cell growth via negative regulation of the mammalian target of rapamycin complex (mTORC1). However, the regulation mechanism of nutrient-dependent cell proliferation in TSC-null cells remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate that leucine is required for cell proliferation through the activation of leucyl-tRNA synthetase (LARS1)-mTORC1 pathway in TSC-null cells. Cell proliferation and survival were attenuated by LARS1 knock-down or inhibitors in TSC-null cells. In addition, either rapamycin or LARS1 inhibitors significantly decreased colony formation ability while their combined treatment drastically attenuated it. Taken together, we suggest that LARS1 inhibitors might considered as novel tools for the regression of tumor growth and proliferation in TSC-null tumor cells which regrow upon discontinuation of the mTORC1 inhibition.
Evaluation of Solid-Solid Bonds Nondestructively Using Ultrasound

The need for quantitative nondestructive characterization of solid-solid bonds has grown in response to the increasing industrial demand for production. The work to be reported here is restricted to diffusion bonds in metallic systems and is devoted to a correlation of the bond strength with ultrasonic results. Bond strength is defined as the ultimate stress in a uniaxial tensile test at slow strain rate. Reductions in strength are assumed to occur due to a lack of bonding over a fraction of the surfaces due to non-optimum bonding conditions. The voids produced in the unbonded areas are considered to be crack-like, containing a vacuum or at most a low-pressure gas. Diffusion of the species from the two sides to be bonded is the only process considered, thus neglecting for the moment such effects as precipitate reactions, phase transformations and grain growth. The initial work was performed using identical materials on either side, thus considering only the ultrasonic response of the voids produced at the bonded interface. This paper reports on initial studies using dissimilar materials, necessitating inclusion of the effect of the acoustic impedance mismatch. During the work on dissimilar materials, production of a brittle layer at the bond interface was examined. This brittle layer was caused by a thin layer of carbon present at the bond interface. The challenge of detection of this brittle layer is posed for the nondestructive evaluation community.
EGF as a New Therapeutic Target for Medulloblastoma Metastasis

Medulloblastoma (MB) is a malignant pediatric brain tumor known for its aggressive metastatic potential. Despite the well-documented migration of MB cells to other parts of the brain and spinal column, MB chemotaxis is poorly understood. Herein, we examined the in vitro migratory and cellular responses of MB-derived cells to external signaling of Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF), hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF-BB), and the stromal cell-derived factors 1-alpha (SDF-1). Experiments utilized transwell assays and immunocytochemistry to identify receptor activation in MB migration, and used a microfluidic platform to examine directionality, trajectory, and gradient-dependence of motile cells. Data illustrates that MB-derived cells respond strongly to EGF in a dosage and gradient-dependent manner with increased EGF-R activation, and show that high EGF gradient fields cause an increased number of cells to migrate longer directed distances. Our results provide evidence that EGF and its receptor play an important role than previously documented in MB chemotactic migration than previously documented and should be considered for developing migration-target therapies against MB metastasis.
Compassion, Acts of Contrition, and Forgiveness in Middle and Late Life

The purpose of this study is to assess social and psychological factors that have not been examined frequently in studies on forgiving others. A latent variable model is developed that contains the following core relationships: (1) people who attend worship services more often will receive more informal spiritual support from fellow church members; (2) individuals who get more spiritual support will be more compassionate; (3) people who are more compassionate will be less likely to require transgressors to perform acts of contrition; and (4) individuals who do not require transgressors to perform acts of contrition will find it easier to forgive. Data from a nationwide survey of middle-aged and older adults provides support for each of these relationships.
The imperative for controlled mechanical stresses in unraveling cellular mechanisms of mechanotransduction

In vitro mechanotransduction studies are designed to elucidate cell behavior in response to a well-defined mechanical signal that is imparted to cultured cells, e.g. through fluid flow. Typically, flow rates are calculated based on a parallel plate flow assumption, to achieve a targeted cellular shear stress. This study evaluates the performance of specific flow/perfusion chambers in imparting the targeted stress at the cellular level. To evaluate how well actual flow chambers meet their target stresses (set for 1 and 10 dyn/cm2 for this study) at a cellular level, computational models were developed to calculate flow velocity components and imparted shear stresses for a given pressure gradient. Computational predictions were validated with micro-particle image velocimetry (μ PIV) experiments. Based on these computational and experimental studies, as few as 66% of cells seeded along the midplane of commonly implemented flow/perfusion chambers are subjected to stresses within ±10% of the target stress. In addition, flow velocities and shear stresses imparted through fluid drag vary as a function of location within each chamber. Hence, not only a limited number of cells are exposed to target stress levels within each chamber, but also neighboring cells may experience different flow regimes. Finally, flow regimes are highly dependent on flow chamber geometry, resulting in significant variation in magnitudes and spatial distributions of stress between chambers. The results of this study challenge the basic premise of in vitro mechanotransduction studies, i.e. that a controlled flow regime is applied to impart a defined mechanical stimulus to cells. These results also underscore the fact that data from studies in which different chambers are utilized can not be compared, even if the target stress regimes are comparable.
Chapter 9. Pulmonary and Antiallergy Agents.

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews recent developments in chronic obstructive lung disease. Recently, some important differences have been substantiated between bronchial asthma, chronic bronchitis, and pulmonary emphysema, which are the presently recognized major categories of chronic obstructive lung disease. While it is obvious that these diseases have many common features and that methods of treatment is likely to continue to overlap substantially, such distinctions are significant because they are an essential first step in identifying new approaches that can be logically pursued with specific methodology. Thus, bronchial asthma is viewed as an allergic phenomenon associated with bronchial and tracheal hypersensitivity to challenge from a variety of stimuli—a view that is consistent with the fact that corticosteroids continue to occupy a predominant position in its treatment. It follows that the emergence of significant improvements in the primary treatment of bronchial asthma should continue to depend on the realization of a clearer understanding of allergy. Chronic bronchitis, on the other hand, is believed to be associated with airways obstruction arising from abnormalities in mucous secretions.
Technology as Pharmakon: The Promise and Perils of the Internet for Foreign Language Education

Globalization and networking technologies have transformed the contexts, means, and uses of foreign language learning. The Internet offers a vast array of texts, films, music, news, information, pedagogical resources, sounds, and images from around the world as well as unprecedented opportunities for direct communication with native speakers in real time. However, the very technology that delivers these materials and interactions can produce subtle mediational effects that can influence how learners evaluate and interpret them. Focusing first on technological mediation broadly, and then on the specific context of desktop videoconferencing in a telecollaboration project, this article outlines the benefits and the potential pitfalls that computer mediation presents for the learning of languages and cultures. Specific attention is given to the question of what it means to mediate the foreign culture through interfaces that are familiar from one's home culture. The principal argument is that the dynamics of online language learning call for a relational pedagogy that focuses on how medium and context interact with language use. The goal of such an approach is to expose students to a broader scope of symbolic inquiry, to connect present text-making practices with those of the past, and to foster a critical perspective that will prepare young people to understand and shape future language and literacy practices.
The Indebtedness of Minoan Religion to Egyptian Solar Religion: Was Sir Arthur Evans Right?

Sir Arthur Evans believed that Minoan religion was highly indebted to Egyptian thought. He saw that the two cultures shared a solar theology expressed via similar iconographical schemes, such as the heraldic arrangement of lions on either side of a column and the astral associations of the goddess known to the Egyptians as Taweret and transmuted by the Minoans into leonine “genii.” Evans’ solar theory was not systematically developed and has scarcely been considered since. Yet it is worth reviving in view of recent finds, especially the excavations of Manfred Bietak at Tell el Dab’a, which prove that contact between the royal courts of Egypt and Crete was close indeed. DOI:10.2458/azu_jaei_v01i1_marinatos
Nonlinear Hebbian rule: a statistical interpretation

Recently, the extension of Hebbian learning to nonlinear units has received increased attention. Some successful applications of this learning rule have been reported as well; however, a fundamental understanding of the capability of this learning rule is still lacking. In this paper, we pursue a better understanding of what the network is actually doing by exploring the statistical characteristics of the criterion function and interpreting the nonlinear unit as a probability integral transformation. To improve the capability of the nonlinear units, data preprocessing is suggested. A better data preprocessing leads to the development of a two-layer network which consists of linear units in the first layer and nonlinear units in the second layer. The linear units capture and filter the linear aspect of the data and the nonlinear units discover the nonlinear effects, such as clustering and other general nonlinear associations among the variables. Several potential applications are demonstrated through the simulation results given throughout this paper. >
System MgO-SiO2

The two oxides, MgO and SiO2, account for 85 % of the Earth’s mantle. Thus, the phase relations in the system MgO-SiO2 (MS), shown in Figs. 2.1 and 2.2, are fundamental for understanding the mineral composition of the mantle. There are five enstatite polymorphs (Mg2Si2O6): protoenstatite, orthoenstatite, low clinoenstatite, high-T clinoenstatite, and high-P clinoenstatite, which can coexist in silica undersaturated compositions with forsterite, wadsleyite, or ringwoodite (Mg2SiO4). At high pressures, high-P clinoenstatite breaks down to majorite at the temperatures above 1,600 °C, and to wadsleyite + stishovite or ringwoodite + stishovite at lower temperatures. Akimotoite and MgSiO3 perovskite appear at progressively still higher pressures. The MgSiO3 perovskite can coexist with periclase (MgO) in the lower mantle.
Posttranscriptional regulation of Id1 activity in cardiac muscle. Alternative splicing of novel Id1 transcript permits homodimerization.

Abstract The transcriptional regulatory protein Id, a negatively trans-acting protein with a helix-loop-helix motif that is expressed in many proliferating tissues early in development, continues to be expressed in postmitotic adult cardiac myocytes and vascular smooth muscle. Following the observation of a "doublet" band of 1.1 and 1.25 kilobases on Northern hybridizations of Id1 cDNA with mRNA isolated from both cardiac muscle and vascular smooth muscle cells, we identified and sequenced an alternatively spliced Id1 gene product containing an insert of 214 base pairs within the coding domain of the original Id1 cDNA. A protein with a molecular mass corresponding to that predicted by the Id1.25-kilobase mRNA sequence could be identified on immunoblots of cell lysates from neonatal and adult rat ventricular myocytes. The insert appears to be a "coding intron," based on the presence of intron-exon consensus sequences at the insert boundaries and the presence of the originally described Id1 carboxyl-terminal coding sequence immediately downstream from, and out of frame with, this insert. In contrast to Id1 and Id2, which do not form homodimers, the carboxyl-terminal sequence of this alternatively spliced Id1 transcript, termed Id1.25, permits homodimerization. Thus, alternative splicing of Id1 may allow for tissue-specific expression of Id1, while formation of homodimers could provide a post-translational mechanism to regulate the ability of Id1.25 to bind and inactivate E2A gene products.
Effects of Course and Instructor Characteristics on Student Evaluation of Teaching across a College of Engineering

Background Student evaluations of teaching (SETs) are a widely used metric to evaluate instructor effectiveness and are used to make promotion, tenure, and retention decisions for faculty. There is also growing interest by those outside the university community to use these metrics to evaluate faculty and broader academic performance. Purpose (Hypothesis) This study seeks to understand if and how course and instructor characteristics affect SETs and thereby to improve the usefulness of these metrics. This article aims to statistically examine the relationship between course and instructor characteristics and SETs. Design/Method SETs from a large engineering college at a major public university were evaluated over a seven-semester period that covered 3938 courses taught by 549 unique engineering instructors. Course and instructor demographic data were statistically evaluated for their effects on SETs. Results Course characteristics such as class size, course level, and whether a course was an elective or required had statistically significant effects on SETs. Instructor characteristics of gender and academic rank affected SETs and average course grades, respectively. Average course grades were positively correlated with SETs. Conclusions Data analysis showed that course characteristics, faculty demographics, and average course grades had statistically significant effects on SETs; however, in some cases the effect sizes of these variables were small. Administrators and senior faculty members should be cognizant of these relevant factors and their effects when assigning faculty to certain courses and evaluating their teaching effectiveness using SETs.
Fast matching methods for inversion with underwater sound

Matched-field processing approaches are powerful tools for source localization and environmental parameter estimation in the ocean. Requiring multiple replica field calculations, however, matched-field processing can have significant computational demands. This work investigates the potential for using matched-field techniques that match only select "features" of the acoustic fields, attempting to reduce the computational requirements for successful inversion. The features this paper focuses on are arrival times of select paths. A "matching" technique for inversion using only arrival times is discussed and results are shown. A new process for the efficient selection of arrival times is also proposed.
Developing a Virtual Nurses’ Station for Community-Based Nurses

Nurses who work throughout the community need a nurses' station, just as nurses who work in a hospital. The nurses' station is the area where communication, information sharing, and documentation occur. This article describes how a virtual nurses' station was created using Blackboard technology to meet the needs of nurses who are scattered throughout a geographic area. These nurses work in several urban neighborhoods to conduct the outreach services offered through an academic nurse-managed wellness center to community-dwelling older adults. Results have been positive as the virtual nurses' station provides the nurses an area to exchange data and information, print patient health care information, and access nursing policies. Satisfaction surveys from the nurses give valuable input on the design and use of the virtual nurses' station.
Demonstrating Failure To Discharge Plaintiffs Duty To Mitigate In A Wrongful Termination Case: An Empirical Approach

In a wrongful termination case, the defendant has the burden of proving that the plaintiff did not adequately discharge his or her duty to mitigate damages. The defendant may satisfy its burden by proving that the claimant failed to exercise “reasonable care and diligence” in seeking a job; and it must do so by a preponderance of the evidence. On the other hand, the amount of any award turns on the difference between the plaintiff’s pre- and post-termination earnings. Thus, there is a conflict between the potential increased damages award made possible by remaining jobless and the legal duty to mitigate. It is reasonable to assume that a plaintiff may perceive an incentive to stay out of the workforce to enhance the damage award. In this paper we empirically establish the expected joblessness duration period for a plaintiff’s population cohort in a wrongful termination lawsuit; we also calculated the estimated duration period’s associated standard error. To illustrate the procedure we discuss a hypothetical case study and use uncensored data on joblessness duration from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Displaced Workers Survey. This process enables us structure a hypothesis test examining whether the plaintiff’s period of joblessness is statistically significantly different from the predicted test statistic in a manner consistent with case law. Succinctly, we are able to empirically assess the soundness of the duration of a plaintiff’s job search and thereby enhance the robustness of present-day approaches.
Traffic Flow and Capacity

The design of highways, runways, ports or any transportation facility is guided by knowledge and theory of the traffic streams they serve. A facility’s scale, its geometry and its control measures are selected to affect certain properties of its traffic, such as the travel delay, the separation between vehicles, etc. In the case of highway traffic, the emphasis of this chapter, these are usually properties that are collected from, or averaged over, some number of vehicles. This is because the behavior of one driver differs from that of another, sometimes in complicated or even unexpected ways, and the traffic engineer typically seeks properties that are reproducible or predictable; i.e., properties that are not sensitive to driver variations.
TNF-α Is Critical to Facilitate Hemopoietic Stem Cell Engraftment and Function

The use of tolerogenic cells as an approach to induce tolerance to solid organ allografts is being aggressively pursued. A major limitation to the clinical application of cell-based therapies has been the ability to obtain sufficient numbers and also preserve their tolerogenic state. We previously reported that small numbers of bone marrow-derived CD8+/TCR- graft facilitating cells (FC) significantly enhance hemopoietic stem cell (HSC) engraftment in allogeneic and syngeneic recipients. Although the majority of FC resemble precursor plasmacytoid dendritic cells (p-preDC), p-preDC do not replace FC in facilitating function. In the present studies, we investigated the mechanism of FC function. We show for the first time that FC significantly enhance HSC clonogenicity, increase the proportion of multipotent progenitors, and prevent apoptosis of HSC. These effects require direct cell:cell contact between FC and HSC. Separation of FC from HSC by transwell membranes completely abrogates the FC effect on HSC. p-preDC FC do not replace FC total in these effects on HSC function. FC produce TNF-alpha, and FC from TNF-alpha-deficient mice exhibit impaired facilitation in vivo and loss of the in vitro effects on HSC. Neutralizing TNF-alpha in FC similarly blocks the FC effect. The antiapoptotic effect of FC is associated with up-regulation of Bcl-3 transcripts in HSC and blocking of TNF-alpha is associated with abrogation of up-regulation of Bcl-3 transcripts. These data demonstrate a critical role for TNF-alpha in mediating FC function. FC may have a significant impact upon the safe use of chimerism to establish tolerance to transplanted organs and tissue.
Microstructures of beta-silicon carbide after irradiation creep deformation at elevated temperatures

Abstract Microstructures of silicon carbide were examined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) after creep deformation under neutron irradiation. Thin strip specimens of polycrystalline and monocrystalline, chemically vapor-deposited, beta-phase silicon carbide were irradiated in the high flux isotope reactor to 0.7–4.2 dpa at nominal temperatures of 640–1080 °C in an elastically pre-strained bend stress relaxation configuration with the initial stress of ∼100 MPa. Irradiation creep caused permanent strains of 0.6 to 2.3 × 10 −4 . Tensile-loaded near-surface portions of the crept specimens were examined by TEM. The main microstructural features observed were dislocation loops in all samples, and appeared similar to those observed in samples irradiated in non-stressed conditions. Slight but statistically significant anisotropy in dislocation loop microstructure was observed in one irradiation condition, and accounted for at least a fraction of the creep strain derived from the stress relaxation. The estimated total volume of loops accounted for 10–45% of the estimated total swelling. The results imply that the early irradiation creep deformation of SiC observed in this work was driven by anisotropic evolutions of extrinsic dislocation loops and matrix defects with undetectable sizes.
Some observations on the EEG in hepatic coma.

Abstract Review of 53 patients with impending or actual hepatic coma reaffirms the appearance of characteristic wave forms which are best descirbed as “pseudo-paroxysmal” and the existence of an electrical continuum from normal to theta to pseudo-paroxysmal and to delta activity which corresponds crudely to progressively lowered states of consciousness. No precise relationships were found between the EEG and the blood constituents studied, including ammonia. The EEG should pay an important role in the further study of hepatic coma.
The Capitalist Peace

It is widely accepted that democracies are less conflict prone, if only with other democracies. Debate persists, however, about the causes underlying liberal peace. This article offers a contrarian account based on liberal political economy. Economic development, free markets, and similar interstate interests all anticipate a lessening of militarized disputes or wars. This “capitalist peace” also accounts for the effect commonly attributed to regime type in standard statistical tests of the democratic peace.
STCP2: Short-time certificate-based privacy protection for vehicular ad hoc networks

This paper investigates the critical privacy implications of short-time certificates to vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs). A short-time certificate-based privacy protection scheme, STCP2, is proposed to address such privacy implications. STCP2 features a progressive roadside unit (RSU) deployment algorithm to optimize RSU deployment with cost and application constraints, while providing a minimal privacy assurance to vehicular nodes against the power abuse of VANET authorities. Besides, secure and privacy-preserving pseudonym change procedures enable each node to protect its privacy against both external and internal observers. As such, STCP2 properly protects the privacy of nodes with short-time certificates, as shown by theoretical analysis and simulations.
Forty-one years of surgical experience with congenital supravalvular aortic stenosis.

Objective: Several techniques for symmetric reconstruction of the aortic root in congenital supravalvular aortic stenosis have been developed, but it remains unclear whether these prove superior to patch enlargement of the noncoronary sinus alone. We reviewed our experience with surgical treatment of supravalvular aortic stenosis and investigated the impact of the surgical technique on long-term results. Methods and results: Seventy-five patients underwent operations to treat congenital supravalvular aortic stenosis at our institution between 1957 and 1998. Surgical procedures included patch enlargement of the noncoronary sinus only (n = 34), inverted bifurcated patch plasty (n = 35), and 3-sinus reconstruction of the aortic root (n = 6). There were 7 early deaths. Among those who survived the operation, 100% were alive at 5 years, 96% were alive at 10 years, and 77% were alive at 20 years. According to time-related analysis diffuse stenosis of the ascending aorta proved a risk factor for both survival and reoperation (P < .01 for each). Patients with multiple-sinus reconstructions of the aortic root accounted for only 2 of the 14 reoperations and none of the late deaths (both P < .001). Residual gradients were lower after multiple-sinus reconstruction of the aortic root (median 10 mm Hg vs 20 mm Hg for patch enlargement of the noncoronary sinus only, P = .008), as was the prevalence of moderate aortic regurgitation at follow-up (3% vs 22%, P = .05). Conclusions: Results of operations for supravalvular aortic stenosis improved greatly after the introduction of more symmetric reconstructions of the aortic root. Multiple-sinus reconstructions (inverted bifurcated patch plasty and 3-sinus reconstruction) resulted in superior hemodynamics and were associated with reductions in both mortality rate and need for reoperation. (J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 1999;118:874-85)
A comparison of contexts for assessing joint attention in toddlers on the autism spectrum

Children on the autism spectrum often demonstrate atypical joint attention, leading some researchers to consider joint attention defecits a core feature of the autism spectrum. Structured measures, such as the Early Social Communication Scales (ESCS), are commonly used to provide a metric of joint attention. To explore the assessment of joint attention in multiple contexts, we implemented an alternative system for coding joint attention behaviors. We compared initiation of joint attention (IJA) and response to joint attention (RJA) behaviors coded from naturalistic examiner—child play samples with similar IJA and RJA behaviors elicited within the structured ESCS protocol. Participants were 20 toddlers on the autism spectrum. Levels of IJA and RJA within the two assessment contexts were significantly and positively correlated, providing support for the use of naturalistic sampling of joint attention skills as a viable alternative, or supplement, to structured measures.
Two dimensions and two States in DNA nanotechnology.

Abstract The construction of periodic matter and nanomechanical devices are central goals of DNA nanotechnology. The minimal requirements for components of designed crystals are [1] programmable interactions, [2] predictable local intermolecular structures and [3] rigidity. The sticky-ended association of DNA molecules fulfills the first two criteria, because it is specific and diverse, and it results in the formation of B-DNA. Stable branched DNA molecules permit the formation of networks, but individual single branches are too flexible. Antiparallel DNA double crossover (DX) molecules can provide the necessary rigidity, so we use these components to tile the plane. It is possible to include DNA hairpins that act as topographic labels for this 2-D crystalline array, because they protrude from its plane. By altering sticky ends, it is possible to change the topographic features formed by these hairpins, and to detect these changes by means of AFM. We can modify arrays by restricting hairpins or by adding them to sticking ends protruding from the array. Although individual branched junctions are unsuitable for use as crystalline components, parallelograms of four 4-arm junction molecules are sufficiently rigid that they can be used to produce 2D arrays. The arrays contain cavities whose dimensions are readily tuned by changing the edges of their parallelogram components. We have used these arrays to measure directly the angle between the helices of the Holliday junction. The rigidity of the DX motif can also be exploited to produce a nanomechanical device predicated on the B-Z transition. Two DNA double crossover molecules have been joined by a segment of DNAcapable of undergoing the B-Z transition. In the B-conformation, the unconnected helices of the two molecules are on the same side of the connecting helix, whereas in the Z conformation they are on opposite sides, leading to movements of as much as 60A. This effect is shown by fluorescence resonance energy transfer, because dyes attached to the unconnected helices have different separations in the two states.
Cultivating settings for community health nursing research.

Linkages between community health nurses and voluntary health associations provide rich research opportunities. Developing and nurturing collaborative research requires a significant investment of time and effort from people with diverse interests, backgrounds, and talents. Specifically, successful collaboration requires that each participant demonstrate commitment to the project by making a contribution of time and talent. Open, honest communication and compatibility among team members is essential if research questions and methodology are to be developed and if data are to be collected, analyzed and communicated. Proper credit is important, since people who contribute to a project expect appropriate recognition. Collaborative research between community health nurses and voluntary agencies is certainly not new. Both nurses and the associations benefit since all participants can attain individual and mutually agreed upon goals.
In-channel amperometric detection for microchip electrophoresis using a wireless isolated potentiostat.

The combination of microchip electrophoresis (ME) with amperometric detection leads to a number of analytical challenges that are associated with isolating the detector from the high voltages used for the separation. While methods such as end-channel alignment and the use of decouplers have been employed, they have limitations. A less common method has been to utilize an electrically isolated potentiostat. This approach allows placement of the working electrode directly in the separation channel without using a decoupler. This paper explores the use of microchip electrophoresis and electrochemical detection (ME-EC) with an electrically isolated potentiostat for the separation and in-channel detection of several biologically important anions. The separation employed negative polarity voltages and tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide (TTAB, as a buffer modifier) for the separation of nitrite (NO2-), glutathione (GSH), ascorbic acid (AA), and tyrosine (Tyr). A half-wave potential (E½) shift of approximately negative 500 mV was observed for NO2- and H2O2 standards in the in-channel configuration compared to end channel. Higher separation efficiencies were observed for both NO2- and H2O2 with the in-channel detection configuration. The limits of detection were approximately two-fold lower and the sensitivity was approximately two-fold higher for in-channel detection of nitrite when compared to end-channel. The application of this microfluidic device for the separation and detection of biomarkers related to oxidative stress is described.
Hypotonicity-induced Exocytosis of the Skate Anion Exchanger skAE1: ROLE OF LIPID RAFT REGIONS *

Upon hypotonic volume expansion, skate erythrocytes lose solutes via a pathway that requires participation of anion exchangers (AEs). Three skate AE isoforms (skAEs) are expressed, and at least skAE1 has been shown to mediate this effect when expressed in oocytes. Under isoosmotic conditions, only a small fraction of skAE1 is expressed on the external plasma membrane. Under these conditions, a portion of skAE1 may be found in non-ionic detergent-insoluble regions. However, the detergent-insoluble material is found intracellularly. Cellular volume expansion by hypoosmotic volume expansion but not volume expansion by isoosmotic medium by permeant solutes (ethylene glycol, diethyl urea, or ammonium chloride) stimulates the appearance of skAE1 in the external plasma membrane, and a significant portion of this is found in detergent-insoluble regions. Upon hypoosmotic volume expansion nearly half of the skAE1 is found as oligomers. SkAE1 in these detergent-insoluble fractions is highly tyrosine phosphorylated. These data suggest that volume expansion by hypoosmotic medium stimulates movement of skAE1 from an intracellular pool contained in detergent-insoluble lipid rafts to the plasma membrane. This skAE1 associates to form oligomers that could be involved in the solute efflux that occurs upon volume expansion.
Three-dimensional treatment planning for para-aortic node irradiation in patients with cervical cancer.

Abstract Three-dimensional treatment planning has been used by four cooperating centers to prepare and analyze multiple treatment plans on two cervix cancer patients. One patient had biopsy-proven and CT-demonstrable metastasis to the para-aortic nodes, while the other was at high risk for metastatic involvement of para-aortic nodes. Volume dose distributions were analyzed, and an attempt was made to define the role of 3-D treatment planning to the para-aortic region, where moderate to high doses (50–66 Gy) are required to sterilize microscopic and gross metastasis. Plans were prepared using the 3-D capabilities for tailoring fields to the target volumes, but using standard field arrangements (3-D standard), and with full utilization of the 3-D capabilities (3-D unconstrained). In some but not all 3-D unconstrained plans, higher doses were delivered to the large nodal volume and to the volume containing gross nodal disease than in plans analyzed but not prepared with full 3-D capability (3-D standard). The small bowel was the major dose limiting organ. Its tolerance would have been exceeded in all plans which prescribed 66 Gy to the gross nodal mass, although some reduction in small bowel near-maximum dose was achieved in the 3-D unconstrained plans. All plans were able to limit doses to other normal organs to tolerance levels or less, with significant reductions seen in doses to spinal cord, kidneys, and large bowel in the 3-D unconstrained plans, as compared to the 3-D standard plans. A high probability of small bowel injury was detected in one of four 3-D standard plans prescribed to receive 50 Gy to the large para-aortic nodal volume; the small bowel dose was reduced to an acceptable level in the corresponding 3-D unconstrained plan. An optimum beam energy for treating this site was not identified, with plans using 4, 6, 10, 15, 18, and 25 MV photons all being equally acceptable. Attempts to deliver moderate or high doses (50–66 Gy) to this region should be made only after careful analysis of the plan with techniques similar to those employed in this study.
The ideas of conditional confidence in the simplest setting

A recently developed framework for comparing the properties of various conditional procedures is studied in detail in the setting of testing between two simple hypotheses, where the ideas are most transparent. In that setting, possible goodness criteria are considered, and illustrations are given. The conditional confidence methodology, unlike the Bayes, fiducial, and likelihood techniques, presents a measure of conclusiveness which has frequentist interpretability; and, unlike traditional Neyman-Pearson procedures, the measure is highly data-dependent.
NMR Imaging of Elastomers and Porous Media

NMR imaging has been applied to some elastomeric materials of industrial interest. The T2s of common elastomers, Particularly after filling and curing, are sufficiently short that spin-echo sequences at submillisecond echo times cannot Produce T2-independent images. The sensitivity to T2 Potentially makes spin echo imaging a good probe of elastomer blend composition, as demonstrated for a series of filled and cured cis-polybutadiene, styrene-butadiene rubber blends. The Technique can be used to distinguish good and bad carbon black dispersion in actual tire tread samples. The configuration of Polyester tire cord, voids, rubber layer boundaries, differences of molecular mobility and composition, and other inhomogeneities can be detected in end-product tire samples. The value of isotropic voxels at 80–100 um and the effect of resolution relative to pore size are demonstrated on a model, H2O-saturated porous glass disk of 200-um average pore size. The feasibility of multinuclear NMR imaging for fluid-specific characterization of porous materials such as oil cores is demonstrated for 7Li and 19F.
Mass accommodation coefficients from penetration measurements in laminar tube flow

Abstract The theory for penetration of ‘sticky’ gaseous molecules through cylindrical tubes in laminar flow is presented and implications of the theory for measurements of mass accommodation coefficients are discussed. For the case where the inner tube walls are coated with a liquid, a criterion is developed which can be used to determine whether re-evaporation is likely to contribute significantly to measured penetration values. This criterion can be useful in designing experiments. It is concluded that laminar flow penetration measurements can be useful for measuring very small mass accommodation coefficients ( −4 ). The theory can also be used to design diffusion denuders when accommodation coefficients are known.
Korea's exchange rate policy in a changing economic environment

Abstract The main purpose of this paper is to analyze Korea's past exchange rate experiences and to consider the appropriate exchange rate policy for Korea in the future. The won-$ exchange rate is shown to have been undervalued to improve the trade account and to be affected by Korea's external debt position and the relative prices of Korean goods. Using a framework for adjusting the exchange rate, the effects of a rise in the current account surplus and yen appreciation on the exchange rate and trade balance are estimated. After discussing one possible exchange rate adjustment to reduce the US deficit with Korea, this paper argues that more scope will be given for the exchange rate to be determined by market conditions. This arises from greater complexity and diversification of the economy in terms of the activities and interests of different economic agents expected to prevail in the future.
Writing-To-Teach: A New Pedagogical Approach To Elicit Explanative Writing from Undergraduate Chemistry Students

Contemporary strategies in STEM education focus on developing pedagogies that more actively engage students in their own learning. A method that has proven effective to this end has been peer instruction and discussion, particularly those in which participating students must organize information in such a way as to be able to verbally articulate it to others. The success of peer learning raises the question of what other communicative activities could lead to similar learning gains. Writing is a reasonable choice for such an activity, as there is strong historical evidence of the value of writing in facilitating student learning. Presented here is “writing-to-teach”; a fusion of writing and peer instruction that is rooted in the theories of meaningful learning and situated cognition as well as research on student-generated explanatory knowledge. Writing-to-teach activities were designed and implemented in an introductory physical chemistry course and evaluated using student surveys. In addition, a novel e...
Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Of Aqueous Solutions Of Proteins

Aqueous solutions of the major blood proteins were studied using FT-IR in transmission and ATR mode. Studies concerning the spectral effects of concentration, pH, time and flow rate on individual proteins and mixtures of model proteins will be discussed. Conformational and structural changes demonstrated in the transmission spectra have been related to variations seen in adsorbed species studied by ATR of flowing systems. By various data manipulation techniques such as deconvolution, spectral subtraction and derivative spectra, components of a mixture can be identified.© (1981) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.