cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Relationship between Electromyographically Documented Peripheral Neuropatny and Falls

Objective: To determine if the presence of an electromyographically demonstrated peripheral polyneuropathy involving the lower extremities is associated with falls. Design: Case control study. Setting: A University-based referral center. Patients: Twenty-five patients with an axonal peripheral polyneuropathy affecting the lower extremities, demonstrated by electromyography more than 8 and less than 16 months before, and 25 age- and sex-matched controls who had normal electromyographic studies of the lower extremities during the same time period, were identified from a computer record of all electromyography results during the year prior to the study, using diagnostic codes and demographic data. Twenty-eight pairs were identified, 25 of whom completed the study. Main Outcome Measures: Number of falls and resultant injuries during the year before the interview, and number of previously identified risk factors for falling, based on interview. Results: Peripheral neuropathy was found to be significantly associated with falling (14/25, 56% vs 2/25, 8% - odds ratio 23.0, 95% confidence interval 2.5, > 100) and repetitive falling (10/25, 40% vs 1/25, 4% - odds ratio, 95% confidence interval 1.4, > 100). There was a trend toward increased injury requiring medical attention (5/25, 20% vs 0/25, 0%), but it did not reach statistical significance. Previously identified risk factors were not significantly more common in the peripheral neuropathy group. Conclusion: An electromyographically identified peripheral neuropathy is strongly associated with and may be a risk factor for falls. J Am Geriatr Soc 40:1008–1012, 1992
Connective tissue disease-associated pulmonary arterial hypertension: “Beijing style”

Patients with connective tissue disease (CTD)-associated pulmonary arterial hypertension (APAH) experience poorer outcomes than those with idiopathic PAH (IPAH) [1–6]. In the USA, patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) are most commonly affected by CTD-APAH and have the worst survival [1]. Similarly, 74% of a large cohort with CTD-APAH in the UK had SSc, and these patients had poorer survival than those with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or polymyositis/dermatomyositis [7]. Few published studies have described the clinical features and outcomes of patients with CTD-APAH in Asia. Chung et al. [8] found that Korean patients with SLE-pulmonary hypertension had much worse survival than those with IPAH, with 1- and 5-year survival rates of 51% and 17% for SLE-pulmonary hypertension compared with 77% and 68% for IPAH. A more recent study of 70 Japanese patients with CTD-APAH found that mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD) was the most common underlying CTD (43%), followed by SLE (29%), SSc (19%) and primary Sjogren’s syndrome (10%) [9]. This study found no significant difference in survival among the different CTD-APAH subgroups, but did find improved survival rates in those diagnosed more recently. In this issue of the European Respiratory Journal , Hao et al. [10] describe the clinical features and outcomes of 129 Chinese patients with CTD-APAH confirmed by right heart catheterisation between July 2006 and May 2011. It is known that the prevalence of SLE in the Chinese population is much higher than in Caucasians [11, 12], while SSc is more common in Caucasians than in the Chinese population [13]. Consistent with this epidemiology, SLE was the …
Reconstitution of 50S ribosomal subunits from dissociated molecular components.

50S ribosomal subunits of Bacillus stearothermophilus have been reconstituted by incubating their RNA and protein components at high temperatures.
Crystal Structures of Escherichia coli RecA in Complex with MgADP and MnAMP-PNP(,).

RecA catalyzes the DNA pairing and strand-exchange steps of homologous recombination, an important mechanism for repair of double-stranded DNA breaks. The binding of RecA to DNA is modulated by adenosine nucleotides. ATP increases the affinity of RecA for DNA, while ADP decreases the affinity. Previously, the crystal structures of E. coli RecA and its complex with ADP have been determined to resolutions of 2.3 and 3.0 A, respectively, but the model for the RecA-ADP complex did not include magnesium ion or side chains. Here, we have determined the crystal structures of RecA in complex with MgADP and MnAMP-PNP, a nonhydrolyzable analogue of ATP, at resolutions of 1.9 and 2.1 A, respectively. Both crystals grow in the same conditions and have RecA in a right-handed helical form with a pitch of 82 A. The crystal structures show the detailed interactions of RecA with the nucleotide cofactors, including the metal ion and the A phosphate of AMP-PNP. There are very few conformational differences between the structures of RecA bound to ADP and AMP-PNP, which differ from uncomplexed RecA only in a slight opening of the P-loop residues 66-73 upon nucleotide binding. To interpret the functional significance of the structure of the MnAMP-PNP complex, a coprotease assay was used to compare the ability of different nucleotides to promote the active, extended conformation of RecA. Whereas ATPAS and ADP-AlF4 facilitate a robust coprotease activity, ADP and AMP-PNP do not activate RecA at all. We conclude that the crystal structure of the RecA-MnAMP-PNP complex represents a preisomerization state of the RecA protein that exists after ATP has bound but before the conformational transition to the active state.
Taking and Developing Pictures in the Head: Assessing the Physical Stereotypes of Eight Gender Types1

This paper examines college students' mental images, or pictures in the head, of 4 female types (housewife, whore, career woman, feminist) and 4 male types (business executive, ladies' man, homosexual, nerd). Consensual stereotypes of the gender types were extracted from the reported images through a content analysis. There was considerable agreement in the descriptions of the images, suggesting that American college students have shared pictures in the head of these 8 consensual gender types. As predicted, the physical stereotypes of each type followed from the gender-role variant each represents (e. g., the whore, whose “sub-role” and goals require catching males' attention and interest, was imaged as wearing sexually alluring clothing). We suggest that these physical stereotypes may serve a critical role in gender categorization and stereotyping processes.
Cognitive deficits and CNS damage after a 4-day binge ethanol exposure in rats

Impairments of learning and memory are common neuropsychological sequelae of chronic alcohol abuse. Alcoholics often have impairments of anterograde memory, including spatial memory dysfunction, and a tendency toward response perseveration. This study was designed to assess the effects of binge ethanol exposure on neurodegeneration and cognitive function. Rats were given ethanol three times daily for 4 days. Silver staining revealed neurodegeneration in the olfactory bulb, piriform cortex, perirhinal cortex, entorhinal cortex, and dentate gyrus. After withdrawal, behavioral testing in the Morris water maze revealed significant differences in reversal learning between treatment groups. Ethanol-treated animals required more trials to learn the reversal task, entered the previously trained quadrant more often, and spent more time there than controls. [3H]PK-11195 binding, an index of CNS damage, was elevated in the piriform cortex of ethanol-treated animals. Thus, binge ethanol exposure resulted in neurodegeneration of a corticolimbic circuit with common excitatory inputs from the olfactory bulb and was associated with perseverative responding on a spatial learning task. These studies suggest that a single binge drinking episode could cause neurodegeneration and cognitive dysfunction in humans. The perseverative nature of the behavioral deficit could be related to both cognitive dysfunction and the behavioral components of the addiction process.
Aliphatic urethanes. Effect of chain length on some physical properties

During a study of the thixotropic behavior of certain fatty materials a series of alkyl esters of substituted carbamic acids was prepared, and some of the physical properties were examined. Highly purified fatty aleohols and fatty isocyanates were reacted to give urethanes with from 8 to 22 carbon atoms in both the O-alkyl and N-alkyl groups.
Local rerouting and channel recovery for robust multi-hop cognitive radio networks

Due to the dynamic interruptions from the primary users (PUs), the secondary user (SU) (i.e., cognitive radio) network is highly dynamic with fast varying radio resources. Once a PU requests to occupy the licensed spectrum, all of affected SUs (i.e., those SUs who opportunistically access the licensed spectrum) are mandated to immediately terminate the spectrum usage and switch their data transmissions to other unoccupied spectra to avoid interference with PUs. During the spectrum transition phase, the severe throughput degradation may occur in SU networks. In this paper, we proposed a local rerouting and channel recovery (LRCR) scheme to dynamically search the rerouting paths and available channels for those affected SUs. When a channel is occupied due to the request of a PU, the SUs who use the same spectrum as the PU instantly perform the proposed LRCR scheme to find an unoccupied path for data rerouting. The proposed LRCR scheme can be combined with the existing robust topology control approach. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed scheme can be effectively applied to the existing robust topology control approach and efficiently enhance robustness and network throughput.
Feasibility study of the spin wave quantum network

We propose an implementation of the spin waves for massively parallel quantum network. A spin wave based quantum network offers an advantage of random access to any qubit in the network and, consequently, the ability to recognize two qubit gates and performance gate operation between any two distant qubits. Using model simulations we illustrate the process of the two distant qubit entanglement via spin waves exchange. The utilization of spin waves allows us to avoid the most difficult single electron spin measurements procedure. Instead, qubit state recognition is accomplished by measurement of spin wave excited in a ferromagnetic layer. By estimate the proposed scheme has as high as 104 ratio between quantum system coherence time and the time of a single computational step.© (2002) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Inhibition by lipoperoxidation of amino acid incorporation by rough microsomal membranes in vitro and its partial reversibility

Abstract Amino acid incorporation in vitro by rough microsomes is inhibited by concurrent lipoperoxidation of the membranes. Disjunction of polysomes from their binding sites was not demonstrable. During the lipoperoxidative inhibition, membrane alteration was indicated by (i) a decline in activity of glucose-6-phosphatase and N-ethylmorphine demethylase, (ii) increased permeability, gauged by the release of radioactively labeled intravesicular protein and glycoprotein, and (iii) the generation of malonyldialdehyde. Despite these effects on the membrane, the lipoperoxidation-associated inhibition of incorporation was found to be transient and restricted to the early minutes of incubation. An accumulation of unidentified lipoperoxidative intermediates early in incubation is indicated as the source of inhibition. Apparently, inhibitory intermediates can escape the membrane since incorporation by free as well as bound polysomes was demonstrated.
Flux quantization in tricrystal cuprate rings : a new probe of pairing symmetry

Abstract Based on macroscopic quantum coherence effects, flux quantization and pair tunneling, a tricrystal experiment has been designed and carried out to study the microscopic phase of the pair wavefunction in high T c cuprate superconductors. Using a high-resolution scanning SQUID microscope, we have made the first direct observation of spontaneously generated half integer flux quanta in controlled-orientation tricrystal rings. By varying the grain misorientation and the grain boundary angles in the tricrystal, we have proved that the order parameter in YBCO has nodes and lobes consistent with d-wave, but not with the g-wave pairing symmetry. The results of this work demonstrate that the half-integer flux quantum effect in superconducting systems containing multi-grains with deliberately designed grain orientation can be used as a general technique for probing the pairing symmetry.
Vibrational Stark Spectroscopy of NO Bound to Heme: Effects of Protein Electrostatic Fields on the NO Stretch Frequency

The vibrational Stark effect measures the effect of an external electric field on the vibrational (IR) spectrum of a molecule. This technique gives quantitative information on the sensitivity of a vibrational peak position to an electric field. This calibration can be used to evaluate shifts in the vibrational frequency caused by changes in the local electric field in the organized electrostatic matrix of a protein, for example, by mutating amino acid residues near the vibration whose frequency is probed. We report vibrational Stark effect measurements for NO bound to several distal pocket mutants of myoglobin, (Val68Asp, Val68Asn, Val68Glu, and His64Val). These mutations were designed to perturb the electrostatic field near the NO bound to the heme iron. The magnitude of the change in dipole moment, |Δμ|, for the vibration of NO bound to heme is found to be approximately 0.12 D/f, that is, the Stark tuning rate is 2.0/f cm-1/(MV/cm) (where f is the local field correction) for a series of distal pocket mu...
Finding New Treatments for Diabetes — How Many, How Fast . . . How Good?

Pressure to develop new drugs for type 2 diabetes has been stimulated by the remarkable worldwide increase in the incidence of this disease. However, Dr. David Nathan writes that the newer medications are generally no more potent, and often less effective in lowering glycemia, than the three oldest classes.
Neuroimmune mechanisms in fetal alcohol spectrum disorder

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is a major health concern worldwide and results from maternal consumption of alcohol during pregnancy. It produces tremendous individual, social, and economic losses. This review will first summarize the structural, functional, and behavior changes seen in FASD. The development of the neuroimmune system will be then be described with particular emphasis on the role of microglial cells in the normal regulation of homeostatic function in the central nervous system (CNS) including synaptic transmission. The impact of alcohol on the neuroimmune system in the developing CNS will be discussed in the context of several key immune molecules and signaling pathways involved in neuroimmune mechanisms that contribute to FASD. This review concludes with a summary of the development of early therapeutic approaches utilizing immunosuppressive drugs to target alcohol-induced pathologies. The significant role played by neuroimmune mechanisms in alcohol addiction and pathology provides a focus for future research aimed at understanding and treating the consequences of FASD.
An Orally Administered Microcapsule System for Treating Chronic Renal Failure Patients

Ingestible adsorbents for the removal of uremic metabolites are being investigated as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of chronic uremia. In particular, a microcapsule product containing urease and zirconium phosphate (UZP) has been investigated for removing urea. A dog model, simulating chronic uremia, was developed to investigate: (1) the concentration of various nitrogenous metabolites (urea, creatinine, and uric acid) in the GI tract, (2) flux rates of H2O and various nitrogenous metabolites in the GI tract, and (3) the efficacy of the microcapsule product. The results of these perfusion studies suggest that urea and creatinine can be removed from the GI tract via ingestible adsorbents. In addition, the model may be useful in investigating suspect uremic toxins, e.g., guanidinosuccinic acid (GSA). The reduction of blood urea nitrogen levels in the dog model when the animal was fed the microcapsule product was limited by the capacity of the zirconium phosphate to bind ammonium ion. Preliminary clinical studies with the microcapsule product indicate that it may be of potential adjunctive therapy in patients suffering from chronic renal failure.
Fatigue reliability assessment of retrofitted steel bridges integrating monitored data

This paper focuses on fatigue reliability assessment of retrofitting distortion-induced cracking in steel bridges integrating monitored data. The fatigue reliability assessment of the connection details is based on the approach used in the AASHTO standard design specifications with all necessary information from finite element modeling (FEM) and structural health monitoring (SHM). Both in-plane traffic loading and out-of-plane relative displacements are considered along with different connection boundary conditions. The primary cause of the observed fatigue cracks before retrofitting is identified as the out-of-plane relative displacements, while the potential fatigue cracking re-initiation after retrofitting depends on the boundary conditions and critical locations that can be identified from the validated FEM. When the identified critical locations are different from the SHM sensor locations, the original monitored data may be modified by using a spatial adjustment factor (SAF). The proposed approach is illustrated by using an actual bridge monitored by the Advanced Technology for Large Structural Systems (ATLSS) Center, a National Engineering Research Center at Lehigh University.
Arthropod Succession and Decomposition of Buried Pigs

THE decomposition of animals after death is of limited aesthetic appeal but very important. Several recent papers1–5 have described aspects of the ecology of carrion on the soil surface or other exposed locations. With the exception of a few medico-legal papers6–8 that discuss arthropods of tombs and graves, little or nothing is known concerning the processes of decomposition of animal bodies beneath the soil.
CCD observations of distant comets from Palomar and Steward Observatories

Abstract We are conducting a ground-based observational study of distant cometary nuclei with the aim of increasing the current database of physical parameters of individual objects, and to estimate the overall distributions of size, rotation period, axial ratio, and color indices. Additionally, we are obtaining CCD spectroscopy and photometry of established and potential targets of current and future spacecraft missions. The results presented here are derived from CCD imaging obtained using the 2.3-m Bok telescope of Steward Observatory (Arizona), obtained in May 2001, and the 5-m Hale telescope at Palomar Observatory (California), obtained in May 2000 and March 2001. Comets observed include 4P/Faye, 6P/d'Arrest, 22P/Kopff, 36P/Whipple, 50P/Arend, 78P/Gehrels 2, 92P/Sanguin, 107P/Wilson–Harrington, and 128P/Shoemaker–Holt 1-A. Of the nine comets observed, only Comets 4P/Faye and 50P/Arend displayed visible coma activity. We have performed either single R filter or multi-filter ( BVRI ) measurements on these comets, from which we obtain radius and broadband color estimates as well as Afρ values for the active comets. For selected objects we have performed time-series R filter imaging from which we have derived the rotation period and lower limits on the nuclear axial ratio and density. The radius results obtained are included in the cometary nucleus size distribution estimate by Weissman and Lowry (2003).
Building Better Search Engines by Measuring Search Quality

Search engines help users locate information within large stores of content developed for human consumption. For example, users expect Web search engines to direct searchers to websites based on the content of the site rather than the site address, and future video search engines to return video clips based on the actions recorded in the clip rather than filenames and donor tags. Search engines are developed using standard sets of realistic test cases that allow developers to measure the relative effectiveness of alternative approaches. The NIST Text Retrieval Conference (TREC) project has been instrumental in creating the necessary infrastructure to measure the quality of search results for more than 20 years, and has thus helped fuel the recent explosive growth in search-related technologies. This article is part of a special issue on NIST contributions to IT.
Effect of diet and stress on the thiamin and pyramin excretion of normal young men maintained on controlled intakes of thiamin

Abstract Thiamin excretion of young men adapts rapidly (t 1/2 = 1 day) to increases or decreases in thiamin intake, but is independent of the amount of carbohydrate (38–80% of energy), protein (75–200g), riboflavin (2.5–3.5 mg), water (2-fold range), and energy (in range 3200–4700 kcal/day) present in the diet. The thiamin RDA should be expressed in terms of mg/day rather than in terms of mg of thiamin per 1000 kcal of total energy or carbohydrate energy in the diet. Most stresses had little or no effect on thiamin excretion. Pyramin excretion was strongly influenced by dietary pyrimidines.
Fatty acid composition and interrelationships among eight retail cuts of grass-feed beef

Abstract The aim of this research was to evaluate: 1) fatty acid (FA) profile of eight retail cuts (eye of round, ribeye, top round, striploin, tenderloin, top-sirloin, underblade, ground beef) from grass-fed steers, 2) the association between striploin ( longissimus muscle) FA profile and that from the other retail cuts, and 3) the changes in FA profile associated with retail cut total FA content. All of the retail cuts, except underblade and ground beef, would be considered lean ( cis -9, trans -11. Striploin trans -11 C18:1 and CLA cis -9, trans -11 proportions, and n-6:n-3 ratio were positive and highly correlated with those in the other retail cuts.
Determination of blood oxygenation in the brain by time-resolved reflectance spectroscopy: influence of the skin, skull, and meninges

Near infrared light has been used for the determination of blood oxygenation in the brain but little attention has been paid to the fact that the states of blood oxygenation in arteries, veins, and capillaries differ substantially. In this study, Monte Carlo simulations for a heterogeneous system were conducted, and near infrared time-resolved reflectance measurements were performed on a heterogeneous tissue phantom model. The model was made of a solid polyester resin, which simulates the tissue background. A network of tubes was distributed uniformly through the resin to simulate the blood vessels. The time-resolved reflectance spectra were taken with different absorbing solutions filled in the network. Based on the simulation and experimental results, we investigated the dependence of the absorption coefficient obtained from the heterogeneous system on the absorption of the actual absorbing solution filled in the tubes. We show that light absorption by the brain should result from the combination of blood and blood-free tissue background.© (1994) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Metabolic interrelationships of placenta and fetus

Abstract Placental fetal metabolic relationships are complex and dynamic. For example, the placenta consumes glucose as well as transports it to the fetus, thus regulating fetal glucose supply and fetal plasma glucose concentration. In turn, fetal plasma glucose concentration, which is also regulated by the relative rates of fetal glucose utilization and production (both also regulated by glucose-induced insulin secretion), regulates placental glucose consumption and the partition of uterine glucose uptake into placental glucose consumption and glucose transfer to the fetus. For amino acids, unique placental transport and metabolic processes determine the quality as well as the quantity of amino acids that enter the fetal circulation. In turn, this unique qualitative and quantitative supply of amino acids provides a variety of regulatory controls over a diverse set of developmental metabolic processes as well as fetal protein turnover and growth. Similarly, complex placental lipid metabolism and transport affect the quality and quantity of lipids delivered to the fetus and thus the composition and amount of lipids in fetal tissues. Clearly, placental and fetal metabolic interrelationships represent vital and unique processes that control and determine many aspects of fetal development.
Cementsome, a new interpretation of the membrane-coating granule.

Small cytoplasmic granules, which have been found in various keratinizing epithelia and called the membrane-coating granules or keratinosomes, were found to be amenable to phospholipase C digestion. Granules discharged into the intercellular spaces could also be digested with phospholipase C. Since it is believed that phospholipids are part of the intercellular cement not only in the skin but in other tightly junctioned epithelia, the name “cement granule” or “cementsome” was proposed for these granules.
Occupation and oral cancer among women in the South

A case-control interview study among 232 North Carolina women with oral or pharyngeal cancer and 410 matched controls evaluated the contribution of occupation to the high risk of this cancer among females in the South. Review of detailed occupational histories found no overall elevated odds ratios for employment in the textile, apparel, or hosiery industry, the major employer of women in the area. Risks also did not increase with years worked in the industry. The findings thus fail to confirm an association reported in surveys in the United States and Great Britain. A new clue to occupational factors was suggested by the excess risk associated with the electronics industry in coastal North Carolina, independent of the participants' tobacco habits.
Butler Modules Over Prüfer Domains

If R is an integral domain, let  be the class of torsion free completely decomposable R-modules of finite rank. Denote by  the class of those torsion-free R-modules A such that A is a homomorphic image of some C ∊ , and let &#x1d4ab; be the class of R-modules K such that K is a pure submodule of some C ∊ . Further, let Q  and Q &#x1d4ab; be the respective closures of  and &#x1d4ab; under quasi-isomorphism. In this article, it is shown that if R is a Prufer domain, then Q  = Q &#x1d4ab;, and  = &#x1d4ab; in the special case when R is h-local. Also, if R is an h-local Prufer domain and if C ∊  has a linearly ordered typeset, it is established that all pure submodules and all torsion-free homomorphic images of C are themselves completely decomposable. Finally, as an application of these results, we prove that if R is an h-local Prufer domain, then  = Q  = Q &#x1d4ab; = &#x1d4ab; if and only if R is almost maximal.
Detection of oxidative species for 4-phenoxyphenol derivatives during the electrospray ionization process.

Analyses by flow injection as well as liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) and liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) were performed with four 4-phenoxyphenol derivatives. When ambient temperature nitrogen gas was used to facilitate solvent evaporation, [M + H]+, [M + NH4]+, and [2M + NH4]+ ions were observed as the major ions. As the nitrogen gas temperature increased from ambient to 250 and 450 °C, [M]+., [M − 1]+ and [M + 15]+ ions were the predominant ions. Heat-induced oxidation was found to be the primary source for the formation of oxidative species. Aqueous solvents were found to be essential for the formation of the [M + 15]+ ions. The [M]+. and [M + 15]+ ions were further characterized by tandem mass spectrometry. Based on the MS/MS data, it was proposed that the [M + 15]+ ions were the in-source generated 1,2-quinone ions. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Altered low density lipoproteins in peripheral vascular disease patients

Abstract Several studies have shown that peripheral vascular disease (PVD) patients have abnormal lipoproteins. The mechanism whereby this abnormal lipid metabolism influences arterial occlusive disease in these PVD patients is not known. In the present study we found that low density lipoproteins (LDL) obtained from PVD patients have lower affinity to B receptor of normal fibroblasts compared to LDL obtained from control subjects. The nanograms of 125I LDL bound per milligram of B receptor was 254 ± 19 for LDL from control subjects, 152 ± 12 for LDL from PVD without diabetes, and 108 ± 8 for PVD with diabetes (P 0.5), thereby suggesting that the number of receptor sites may be the same in both types of fibroblasts. From these results it can be concluded that defect in the metabolism of LDL may promote arterial occlusive disease seen in the PVD patients.
Superior mesenteric artery stenosis: cause of recurrent ischemic bowel syndrome in an infant.

Our patient demonstrates a very rare complication of virilization of the external genitalia in females with congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Because of the fusion of the labia and an extremely small urogenital sinus orifice at the perineum, urine refluxed into the vagina and into the miillerian ducts. For unexplained reasons, the path of least resistance for urine flow was through the uterus and into the left fallopian tube, leading to massive dilation of the fallopian tube. Because of reports of increased tumor risk in congenital adrenal hyperplasia, this mass was originally believed to represent an ovarian teratoma. 3,4 When urine reaccumulated after the initial surgery, despite catheterization of the vagina, separation of the labial fusion and distal vaginoplasty was performed to relieve urinary obstruction. A more complete vaginoplasty may be required later. Children with congenital adrenal hyperplasia who have small urogenital sinus openings with near total labial fusion should be evaluated for the need for "prophylactic" separation of the labia. Periodic ultrasound examinations for evidence of urinary reflux into the vagina and mfillerian ducts should also be considered. We recommend consideration of early surgery to relieve urinary obstruction.
Accountants' Third Party Liability: A History of Applied Sociological Jurisprudence

The liability that accountants, and others who offer professional opinions, have to third parties is a matter of international concern. That internationalism is reflected in the legal experiences of accountants in the United Stales. These experiences are significantly similar to those of members of the skilled profession in the United Kingdom. An analysis of both past and present legal decisions will help to discern the doctrines that in the future will control the professional's experiences.
Models of counselor development or training models for supervision? Rejoinder to Stoltenberg and Delworth.

L'auteur repond a un article ayant conteste sa critique de l'utilisation de modeles developpementaux de la supervision en psychotherapie
Disparities in counseling for lifestyle modification among obese adults: insights from the Dallas Heart Study.

Clinician counseling is a catalyst for lifestyle modification in obesity. Unfortunately, clinicians do not appropriately counsel all obese patients about lifestyle modification. The extent of disparities in clinician counseling is not well understood. Obese participants (BMI ≥30 kg/m2, N = 2097) in the Dallas Heart Study (DHS), a probability-based sample of Dallas County residents ages 18–65, were surveyed regarding health-care utilization and lifestyle counseling over the year prior to DHS enrollment. Health-care utilization and counseling were compared between obese participants across three categories based on the presence of 0, 1, or 2+ of the following cardiovascular (CV) risk factors: hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, or diabetes. Logistic regression modeling was used to determine likelihood of counseling in those with 0 vs. 1+ CV risk factors, stratified by race, adjusting for age, sex, insurance status, and education. Among obese subjects who sought medical care, those with 0 CV risk factors, compared to those with 1 or 2+ CV risk factors, were less likely to report counseling about losing weight (41% vs. 67% vs. 87%, P trend <0.001), dietary changes (44% vs. 71% vs. 85%, P trend <0.001), and physical activity (46% vs. 71% vs. 86%, P trend <0.001). Blacks and Hispanics without CV risk factors had a lower odds of receiving counseling than whites without risk factors on weight loss (adjusted odds ratio (OR), 95% confidence interval (CI) for nonwhites 0.19, [0.13–0.28], whites 0.48, [0.26–0.87]); dietary changes (nonwhites 0.19, [0.13–0.27], whites 0.37, [0.21–0.64]); and physical activity (nonwhites 0.22, [0.16–0.32], whites 0.32, [0.18–0.57]). Lifestyle counseling rates by clinicians are suboptimal among obese patients without CV risk factors, especially blacks and Hispanics. Systematic education about and application of lifestyle interventions could capitalize on opportunities for primary CV risk prevention.
Improving generalization for temporal difference learning: The successor representation

Estimation of returns over time, the focus of temporal difference (TD) algorithms, imposes particular constraints on good function approximators or representations. Appropriate generalization between states is determined by how similar their successors are, and representations should follow suit. This paper shows how TD machinery can be used to learn such representations, and illustrates, using a navigation task, the appropriately distributed nature of the result.
An Analog Computer to Simulate Systems of Coupled Bimolecular Reactions

An analog computer has been constructed to simulate, as nearly as possible, the flux of material in systems of coupled chemical reactions. Concentrations of various reactants, intermediates, and products are represented by the potentials at the outputs of electronic integrators. Rates of turnover of materials are represented by charges flowing to and from the integrators. The charges are caused to circulate by means of a "pump" mechanism that transfers charge at a rate proportional to the triple product of three voltages, two of which are derived from integrators and represent the concentrations of reactants. The third represents a rate constant. One voltage controls the frequency of an oscillator, the second, the duration of a triangular waveform, which is triggered by the oscillator, and the third, its rate of rise. By suitable interconnection of a number of integrators and pumps, a wide variety of reaction schemes can be simulated.
Traumatic Superior Mesenteric Artery—Portal Vein Fistula

An interesting and rare case of traumatic superior mesenteric artery-to-portal vein arteriovenous fistula is presented. Initial operative control of the bleeding superior mesenteric artery injury required ligation of the superior mesenteric artery at its origin to prevent exsanguination in an extremely unstable patient with multiple injuries. Early postoperative visceral arteriography documented ligation of the superior mesenteric artery with a proximal superior mesenteric artery-to-portal vein arteriovenous fistula. Percutaneous catheter embolization of the arteriovenous fistula was undertaken successfully at this time. Superior mesenteric artery ligation was surprisingly well tolerated. Major arterioportal fistulas require treatment to prevent long-term complications of intestinal ischemia, portal hypertension, and cirrhosis. Although traditional treatment involves ligation of the arteriovenous fistula and arterial bypass, percutaneous embolization is becoming a viable alternative. Arteriography remains the cornerstone of diagnosis and treatment planning.
Mixed-species primate groups in the kibale forest: Ecological constraints on association

Five species of diurnal primates in the Kibale Forest of western Uganda— red colobus (Colobus badius),black- and- white colobus (Colobus guereza),redtail monkeys (Cercopithecus ascanius),blue monkeys (Cercopithecus mitis),mangabeys (Cercocebus albigena)-often associate in mixed- species groups that vary in size and composition from day to day. Across this range of species, we found no consistent effect of association on feeding rate. In addition, there is no systematic difference between the species- specific individual feeding rates when animals were in mixed- species groups feeding in a specific tree on one day and when individuals of one of the same species were feeding in the same individual tree on a subsequent day. If associating in a mixed- species group lowers the risk of predation, one might expect that the number of vigilant events would decrease in mixed- species groups. However, the only species to exhibit a consistent decrease in vigilant behavior when in association was the red colobus. Redtail monkeys were more vigilant when in association. We predicted that the density and distribution of food resources would both constrain the frequency of association and the size of mixed- species groups. Based on 22 months of data on food resources and bimonthly censuses, we found no relationship between the frequency of association (except mangabeys) or mean mixed- species group size and the density and distribution of food resources for all species. Finally, we examined the behavior of the monkeys in and out of association before and after the playback of a crowned hawk eagle call (Spizaetus coronatus),a known predator. When more species were in association, the amount of time they spent being vigilant following the playback was greater and the response more intense than when fewer species were in association or when the group was alone. The results of this study illustrate that the nature of the costs and benefits of polyspecific associations for these different monkey species are complex and vary from species to species.
The effect of chloride on the thermal inactivation of oxygen evolution

The effect of Cl depletion on the sensitivity of the oxygen-evolving complex of Photosystem II (PS II) to heat treatment was examined by a parallel study of the Hill activity (H2O→2,6-dichlorophenolindophenol), Cl- binding (by 35Cl-NMR) and Mn release (by EPR). The extent of thermal inactivation in spinach thylakoids was found to depend on the degree of Cl- depletion in the sample. In partially Cl--depleted thylakoids, mild heating (38°C, 3 min) was found to eliminate inflections in plots of both Hill activity versus [Cl-] (at low light intensity) and excess 35Cl-NMR linewidth versus [Cl-] (in the dark). In PS II membranes, the same treatment reduced the differences between the linewidth maxima and minima, particularly in the region of 0.3 mM and 7.0 mM Cl-, as compared to unheated membranes. These results indicate that mild heating affects the Cl--binding domains within the oxygen-evolving complex, OEC, EPR measurements of the temperature dependence of Mn release from heated thylakoids show that Mn release begins to correlate with the loss of Hill activity only at higher temperatures, where the OEC is already substantially inactivated. We conclude from these studies that the Cl--binding domains of the OEC constitute a principal site of damage by heat treatment.
Robust tensor factorization using R 1 norm

Over the years, many tensor based algorithms, e.g. two dimensional principle component analysis (2DPCA), two dimensional singular value decomposition (2DSVD), high order SVD, have been proposed for the study of high dimensional data in a large variety of computer vision applications. An intrinsic limitation of previous tensor reduction methods is the sensitivity to the presence of outliers, because they minimize the sum of squares errors (L2 norm). In this paper, we propose a novel robust tensor factorization method using R1 norm for error accumulation function using robust covariance matrices, allowing the method to be efficiently implemented instead of resorting to quadratic programming software packages as in other L1 norm approaches. Experimental results on face representation and reconstruction show that our new robust tensor factorization method can effectively handle outliers compared to previous tensor based PCA methods.
Frequency‐domain photon migration measurements for quantitative assessment of powder absorbance: A novel sensor of blend homogeneity†

The measurement and analysis of frequency-domain photon migration (FDPM) measurements of powder absorbance in pharmaceutical powders is described in the context of other optical techniques. FDPM consists of launching intensity-modulated light into a powder and detecting the phase delay and amplitude modulation of the re-emitted light as a function of the modulation frequency. From analysis of the data using the diffusion approximation to the radiative transport equation, the absorption coefficient can be obtained. Absorption coefficient measurements of riboflavin in lactose mixtures are presented at concentrations of 0.1 to 1% (w/w) at near-infrared wavelengths where solution absorption cross sections are difficult to accurately measure using traditional transmission measurements in nonscattering solutions. FDPM measurements in powders enabled determinations of absorption coefficients that increase linearly with concentration (w/w) according to Beer-Lambert relationship. The extension of FDPM for monitoring absorbance of low-dose and ultralow-dose powder blending operations is presented.
Harnessing Globalization: Rio Grande Do Sul’s Successful Effort to Attract Dell Computer Corporation

Dell Computer Corporation’s recent site selection process for its manufacturing plant in Brazil involved bargaining with five of Brazil’s 26 states. The state government of Rio Grande do Sul (RS), ...
Comparative effectiveness of platinum-based chemotherapy versus taxane and other regimens for ovarian cancer

The aim was to compare the two most commonly recommended chemotherapy regimens (platinum-based chemotherapy and platinum-taxane combination) with non-platinum-based chemotherapy and those with no chemotherapy in a large nationwide and population-based cohort of patients with ovarian cancer with up to 17 years of follow-up. We studied 12,181 patients diagnosed with stages I-IV ovarian cancer at age ≥ 65 in 1991-2005 from the 16 areas of the United States. We also performed matched cohort analyses based on conditional probability of receiving platinum chemotherapy in 3,428 patients. In patients with early stage ovarian cancer, those who received platinum-taxane combination had the highest 5-year all-cause (62.5 %) and cancer-specific (65.1 %) survival rates, as compared to 51.5 and 63.7 % in those without chemotherapy. After adjusting for potential confounders, hazard ratios of all-cause mortality (0.66, 95 % CI 0.55-0.79) and cancer-specific mortality (0.74, 0.61-0.90) were significantly lower in patients receiving platinum-taxane combination as compared to those without chemotherapy. Among patients with late-stage ovarian cancer, risks of mortality were significantly reduced in patients who received both platinum and taxane (0.38, 0.36-0.41 for all-cause mortality; 0.40, 0.37-0.42 for cancer-specific mortality). Dose-response relationship appeared strong within each of the three chemotherapy regimens. These results and trends were almost identical in the matched cohort. Platinum-taxane combination chemotherapy and platinum-based chemotherapy without taxane were effective in prolonging survival with a significant dose-response relationship among patients with late-stage ovarian cancer. Among those with early stage tumors, platinum-taxane combination appeared more effective than other chemotherapy regimens.
Effect of different sources of protein on reproduction in the hen.

Abstract STUDIES on specific nutrients necessitate the use of specially formulated diets. This often presents a problem for the nutritionist in that some diets may lack palatability, bulk, or even a nutritional factors(s) not under investigation. Several different purified diets have been used in our studies on the metabolism of fats and fatty acids in poultry. Since the protein and fiber component of these diets were extracted exhaustively with methanol to remove lipid material, the low-fat diets were of a dry, powdery consistency and possibly of poor palatability. Hens given these diets supplemented with linoleic acid-containing oils responded with significantly increased reproductive performance. The responses, however, were not of the same magnitude as those observed with hens receiving a corn-soy diet containing oil. This posed the question as to whether the low-fat purified diet was deficient only in linoleic acid, or was the deficiency of a multiple nature. Miller et al. . . .
Accelerating Cosmological Data Analysis with FPGAs

We present an implementation of a common cosmological data analysis algorithm in DIME-C for the Nallatech H101 FPGA accelerator board. We apply the Reconfigurable Computing Amenability test to investigate the suitability of FPGAs for accelerating this algorithm. We present a parallelization strategy for the FPGA implementation of the algorithm and discuss its realization in DIME-C. The performance improvements of our FPGA implementation are shown to be in a good agreement with the predictions of the Reconfigurable Computing Amenability test.
A Green's function analysis of Schottky barrier diodes in strip-coupled transversal signal processing architectures

Theoretical and experimental results on Schottky barrier diodes in strip-coupled transversal signal processing architectures are presented. The need for a semiinsulating substrate for efficient SAW (surface acoustic wave) transduction and effective isolation of active circuit elements from one another, together with the need for high spatial sampling rates, is discussed. In ACT (acoustic charge transport) devices, the SAW used for transport of charge biases these Schottky diodes such that the diodes are laterally isolated from one another. This results in a strong dependence of nonlinear efficiency on both frequency and diode length. Substantial effects of DC bias on diode efficiency, and hence on convolver efficiency, are observed in ACT-based architectures, due to the bias induced by the clocking signal(s) present in such devices. >
Development of a Chromium-Free Consumable for Austenitic Stainless Steels—Part 1: Monel (Alloy 400) Filler Metal

Abstract During fusion welding of stainless steels and other high-Cr alloys, evaporation and oxidation of Cr from the molten weld pool result in the generation of carcinogenic hexavalent chromium (Cr[VI]) in the welding fume. Stringent new exposure limits from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) might limit the environment in which the welding of stainless steel will be possible in the future. Therefore, a Cr-free filler metal is needed to reduce the release of Cr(VI) during the welding of stainless steel. From the galvanic series, the corrosion potential of the Ni-Cu alloy K400 (UNS N04400) is located in the same potential range as Type 304 (UNS S30400) and Type 316 (UNS S31600) stainless steels. In this study, the applicability of the Monel-type filler metals for the welding of austenitic stainless steel is examined. Type 304L (UNS S30403) stainless steel plate was successfully welded with Monel filler wire, resulting in high-quality welds with no cracks. The welds survived long-ter...