cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Motivating Struggling Learners: 10 Ways to Build Student Success

Every day, teachers face the challenge of motivating struggling learners. In this must-have book, Barbara R. Blackburn, author of the bestseller Rigor Is Not a Four-Letter Word, shares how you can finally solve this problem and make your classroom a rigorous place where all students want to succeed. You’ll learn practical strategies for... understanding extrinsic and intrinsic motivation; building a trusting relationship with students; using praise and positive feedback effectively; empowering students and helping them own their learning; moving students toward a growth mindset; communicating high expectations for students; engaging all students in your lessons; scaffolding so all students will want to improve; helping students be resilient and not fear failure; and celebrating diverse groups of students. Each chapter is filled with a variety of examples and tools that you can use immediately. Bonus: Many of the tools are also available as free eResources on our website, www.routledge.com/9781138792432, so you can easily download and print them for classroom use.
The Explosive Characteristics of the Aurora: The Electric Current Line Approach

The aurora shows explosive activities a few times in 24 hours on a moderately active day. This specific phenomenon is called the auroral substorm, which consists of the growth, expansion and recovery phases; the explosive activities occur during the expansion phase. As an introduction, the explosive activities of the aurora are morphologically described first on the basis of ground-based all-sky and satellite images. In terms of theoretical understanding, the processes for the explosive activities have been considered almost exclusively in terms of “the magnetic field line approach” in the past, including the process of magnetic reconnection. Instead, in this paper, we consider the processes in terms of “the electric current line approach”. This approach requires that the whole process of auroral substorms should be considered as a chain of processes, which consists of power supply (dynamo), transmission (currents/circuits) and dissipation (auroral substorms). An increased power of the solar wind-magnetosphere dynamo (≈ 5x1018 erg/s or 1011w) intensifies the electric currents mainly in the main body (just outside of the ring current) of the magnetosphere, resulting in accumulating energy in its inductive circuit and inflation of the magnetosphere. When the accumulated energy reaches about 5x1022 ergs (5x1015 J), the magnetosphere tends to become unstable (because of current instabilities). As the current intensity is reduced as a result, the magnetosphere is deflated. It is suggested that it is in this deflation process, during which the accumulated energy is unloaded, and an earthward electric field (5-50 mV/m) is produced on the equatorial plane, establishing the current system (the UL current system), which is responsible for the expansion phase, including the most characteristic features of the expansion phase, such as the poleward advance of the aurora and the development of the auroral electrojet. The electric current approach is rather new and needs much more effort to develop.
There Is No “Stem Cell Mess”

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can be used as therapeutic agents or as starting cells for tissue-engineered skeletal tissues such as cartilage. In vitro tissue engineering requires that optimal cond...
An Autonomous Vehicle Based Open Ocean Lagrangian Observatory

One of the greatest challenges to understanding ecosystem dynamics in the open ocean is predicting where and when hot spots of biological activity exist and then observing and sampling those features for days to weeks, as they move in a complicated trajectory. It is difficult to apply traditional research vessel-based techniques at the relevant temporal and spatial scales when the biological features could be spinning in an eddy, rising and falling on internal waves, or even actively migrating. To address this challenge the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) is developing an observing system based on a collaborating group of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) and an Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV). Building on the capabilities of the Long Range AUV (LRAUV) and a Liquid Robotics SV-3 Wave Glider, MBARI has begun deploying arrays of LRAUVs configured with complementary sensors that work together as an Open Ocean, Autonomous Vehicle-based Lagrangian Observatory.
The Impact of Avatar Tracking Errors on User Experience in VR

There is evidence that adding motion-tracked avatars to virtual environments increases users' sense of presence. High quality motion capture systems are cost sensitive for the average user and low cost resource-constrained systems introduce various forms of error to the tracking. Much research has looked at the impact of particular kinds of error, primarily latency, on factors such as body ownership, but it is still not known what level of tracking error is permissible in these systems to afford compelling social interaction. This paper presents a series of experiments employing a sizable subject pool (n=96) that study the impact of motion tracking errors on user experience for activities including social interaction and virtual object manipulation. Diverse forms of error that arise in tracking are examined, including latency, popping (jumps in position), stuttering (positions held in time) and constant noise. The focus is on error on a person's own avatar, but some conditions also include error on an interlocutor, which appears underexplored. The picture that emerges is complex. Certain forms of error impact performance, a person's sense of embodiment’ enjoyment and perceived usability, while others do not. Notably, evidence was not found that tracking errors impact social presence, even when those errors are severe.
Serial Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) in Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Complex Deficiency.

Objectives:To report 2 additional cases of pyruvate dehydrogenase complex deficiency with reversible deep gray matter lesions following initiation of ketogenic diet and to perform a literature revi...
TranspoScope: interactive visualization of retrotransposon insertions.

Motivation Retrotransposition is an important force in shaping the human genome and is involved in prenatal development, disease and aging. Current genome browsers are not optimized for visualizing the experimental evidence for retrotransposon insertions. Results We have developed a specialized browser to visualize the evidence for retrotransposon insertions for both targeted and whole-genome sequencing data. Availability and implementation TranspoScope's source code, as well as installation instructions, are available at https://github.com/FenyoLab/transposcope.
Semismooth Newton methods with a shooting-like technique for solving a constrained free-boundary HJB equation

Abstract This paper describes novel numerical methods for solving a constrained free-boundary Hamilton–Jacobi–Bellman (HJB) equation. The equation comes from an optimal dividend problem within financial insurance and has a classical solution under strict assumptions. However the numerical approach is significant since the problem can be classified as a constrained variational inequality with free boundary, for which numerical methods are few. We combine the semismooth Newton method with a shooting-like method to treat the non-smoothness and free boundary of the problem, respectively. We introduce two algorithms, differing only in their treatment of the inequality constraints; the first applies a sweeping method, the second utilizes projected Newton. For the latter, the associated convergence analysis is discussed. In the end, we show that the local convergence rate for this method is at least superlinear. The contribution of this paper is a numerical approach that can be applied to more general free boundary problems with first or second derivative constraints for which analytical solutions are not known.
Evidence for the Possible Information Loss of Conforming Book Income and Taxable Income

Abstract Recent corporate accounting reporting scandals and aggressive corporate tax shelters have led for calls for regulatory reform. One such call is to conform (or reduce the gap between) the calculation of book and taxable income. Proponents of conformity focus on perceived benefits while ignoring possible costs. We examine one possible cost: the loss in information content to investors if one measure is removed from the information set. We provide evidence for this possible loss by examining the relative and incremental information content over the past 20 years of book and (estimated) taxable income for a large sample of firms. We find that book income exhibits significantly greater relative explanatory power, while both exhibit significant incremental explanatory power. Conforming the two measures at a minimum results in the loss of incremental explanatory power and, if book income is conformed to the tax rules, a 50 percent loss in the explanatory power of earnings.
Influence of Corticosteroid Injections on Postoperative Infections in Carpal Tunnel Release

Purpose Corticosteroid injections (CSIs) are commonly used in carpal tunnel syndrome ; however, recent literature has demonstrated risk of postoperative infection associated with preoperative CSIs in other orthopedic fields. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship of CSIs and postoperative infection following carpal tunnel release (CTR). Methods A single-center retrospective review was conducted from 2010 to 2019 to identify patients who underwent CTR with subsequent antibiotic prescription for chart-documented wound infection. A demographically-matched cohort of 100 patients was identified for comparison. Information on patient demographics, comorbidities, injection history, and presence of postoperative infection was collected. Results Thirty-nine patients (0.67% of all CTR patients) were identified with postoperative infections, 3 of which (0.05% of all CTR patients) were deep infections. In the infection cohort, 16 of 39 (41%) patients received an injection prior to surgery, whereas 16 of 100 (16%) patients in the control cohort received an injection. History of CSI was significantly more common in patients with postoperative infection, and patients in the infection cohort had a significantly shorter average time from injection to surgery by approximately 55 days. Conclusions Corticosteroid injections in the preoperative period are associated with postoperative infection after CTR. Proximity of injection to time of surgery plays a role, although comorbidities, the corticosteroid dose, and frequency of injection require further study to determine risk contribution. Type of study/level of evidence Prognostic III.
Comparison of in vitro assays for detecting subpopulations of P388 leukemic cells resistant to AraC.

The kinetics of cytosine arabinoside (AraC) were studiedin vitro using P388 murine leukemia lines sensitive (P388-S) and resistant (P388-R) to the drug. Using P388-S cells, the3H-thymidine index (L.I.) was paralleled by the3H-AraC index, i.e. any cell in the S-phase of the cycle also incorporated the3H-AraC into DNA. With the resistant line, the3H-AraC index was zero in spite of high L.I. This discrepancy between, the L.I. and3H-AraC index could be used to predict the percentage of resistant cells when known mixtures of sensitive and resistant populations were used. The reason for lack of incorporation into DNA by the resistant cells was shown to be the presence of very low levels of the enzyme deoxycytidine kinase in P388-R cells resulting in an inability to phosphorylate AraC to its active form AraCTP. Immediate inhibition of DNA synthesis caused by AraC was directly proportional to the number of sensitive cells present in the population, but was not as accurate a predictor of sensitivity as the3H-AraC index. Cloning in methylcellulose was found to be the least sensitive predictor of the percentage of sensitive and resistant cells, most likely related to the difference in cloning efficiency of the sensitive and resistant lines.
Clock Period Constraints: Single Stage Systems

The basis for any design methodology must be a firm theoretical foundation. A designer must be able to determine, given a proposed circuit, what the limits of performance are and how design parameters affect the performance. The next two chapters of this monograph investigate the theoretical performance limits of the wave pipelining design methodology and the effect of various circuit design parameters on the circuit clock period. It will be shown that, in contrast to conventional design techniques, performance is not limited by the longest absolute delay but is instead limited by differences in delay. In addition to presenting a rigorous theoretical formulation, it is a goal of this work to present intuitive insights into how various timing parameters interact.
Field Clusters Online

SUMMARY Social Work education relies heavily on agency-based field instruction to assist students in developing skills, and in integrating theory, practice, and research. Web-based components of field instruction may offer advantages in the integrative process, which relies on reflection, responsive communication, and feedback. Using an online format for the integrative field seminar, a new MSW advanced genera-list program in a large metropolitan area implemented an experimental model for delivery of field seminars. Results indicate high student satisfaction, greater depth of discussion, improved student involvement, and integration of learning in field.
Race, Genetics and Cardiovascular Disease

Significant strides from personalized medicine hold great promise to improve early detection, guide targeted therapies, and enhance disease monitoring while simultaneously incorporating specific contributions from race and ethnicity in disease pathogenesis. Hypertension underscores complex gene–environment interactions related to salt sensitivity. Genetic disorders in which certain candidate genes result in a loss of function and the aberrant expression of an abnormal gene product might give rise to either autosomal dominant or recessive inheritance patters. For example, impaired vascular function has been reported in both healthy and hypertensive African Americans. To account for ethnic differences in cardiovascular disease prevalence and outcome, however, the bioavailability of nitric oxide has been proposed as one mechanism to explain difference in vascular function. Alteration of nitric oxide production has been linked to olymorphisms in the gene encoding the endothelial nitric oxide synthase (ecNOS) in African Americans.
Automatic Activation of Linguistic Information in Chinese Character Recognition

Publisher Summary This chapter presents an experiment that examinee fluent Chinese readers' character recognition performance with a modified Stroop interference paradigm (that is, picture-character interference) to see the cues that were effective and the ways in which they were integrated during reading. Depending on the relationship between the object depicted in each picture and the printed character, seven experimental conditions were created. Several interesting results were observed. First, the subjects' picture-naming performance was disrupted more when the printed character and the character representing the name of the picture shared neither graphic nor phonological information. Second, little disruption was observed when the distracting symbol was a pseudo-character, suggesting that its non-lexical status prevented the activation of other linguistic information (for example, phonological and graphic clues) embedded in the stimulus. Third, when the disrupting symbol was a real character, the magnitude of interference was the same for lack of graphic similarity as for lack of phonological similarity, supporting the notion that both graphic and phonological information were automatically activated in Chinese character recognition. Moreover, the integration of these two types of information was found to be additive in nature.
Lushootseed Texts. An Introduction to Puget Salish Narrative Aesthetics.; Northern Haida Song.; Our Tellings. Interior Salish Stories of the Nlha7kápmx People.; Tales from the Dena: Indian Stories from the Tanana, Koyukuk, and Yukon Rivers.; The Epic of Qayak: The Longest Story Ever Told by My People.; The Maidu Indian Myths and Stories of Hánc'ibyjim.

Lushootseed Texts. An Introduction to Puget Salish Narrative Aesthetics. Crisca Bierwert. ed. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1996. 325 pp. Northern Haida Song. John Enrico and Wendy Bross Stuart. eds. University of Nebraska Studies in the Anthropology of North American Indians. Lincoln and London: University of Nebraska Press; Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1996. 519 pp. Our Tellings. Interior Salish Stories of the Nlha7kapmx People. Darwin Hanna and Mamie Henry. eds. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 1995. 217 pp. Tales from the Dena: Indian Stories from the Tanana, Koyukuk, and Yukon Rivers. Frederica de Laguna. ed. Seattle and London: University of Washington Press, 1995. 352 pp. The Epic of Qayak: The Longest Story Ever Told by My People. Lela Kiana Oman. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1996. 144 pp. The Maidu Indian Myths and Stories of Hanc'ibyjim. William Shipley. ed.Berkeley: Heyday Books, 1991.181 pp.
The Political Incorporation of Taiwanese Americans in Comparative Perspective

This paper reviews theories of immigrant political incorporation and compares the social and political adaptation of two very different ethnic groups in American history and contemporary politics. Immigrants and their descendants from Ireland are now considered a symbol of success in social integration and political incorporation by becoming "white" in US racial politics. Taiwanese Americans, on the other hand, are considered part of the migrant population from Asia who has been paradoxically characterized as a “yellow peril,” a “model minority,” and the “perpetual foreigner” throughout US history. What explains the paradoxical gaps in social and political incorporation among Taiwanese Americans? What accounts for the differences in political incorporation between Irish and Taiwanese Americans? And how can the Irish American experience help explain the prospect of political incorporation for Taiwanese (and other Asian) immigrants as well as the role of ethnic homeland politics in the process? We take stock of historical, institutional, and behavioral evidences related to the evolution of the two ethnic groups to challenge the validity of the conventional pluralist framework and liberalism’s assumptions of immigrant incorporation for an emergent, nonwhite, and majority-immigrant community.
A Review of “Web 2.0 and Libraries: Impacts, Technologies and Trends”

Brought to us from the United Kingdom, Web 2.0 and Libraries: Impacts, Technologies and Trends is part of the new Chandos Information Professional Series. This series is specifically designed to pr...
Are we targeting the right outcome for sexual health after prostate cancer treatment

Satisfaction with sex life is a patient-centered, attainable sexual health outcome after prostate cancer treatment. Its achievement combines the necessary components of erectile dysfunction prevention and treatment and reliance on patients' and partners' psychosocial strengths, regardless of either partner's sexual function.
DO TRANSATRIAL SEPTAL DOPPLER VELOCITIES (TASV) PREDICT QP:QS RATIOS?

Although large atrial septal defects (ASD) can usually be visualized by two-dimensional echocardiography (2DE), and QP:QS ratio can be measured by comparison of pulmonary and aortic flows by Doppler, a problem still exists when ASD's are not visualized, or coexist with valve stenoses or complex heart disease. Measurements of TASV might solve this problem. This study was designed to measure TASV's and compare them with QP:QS measured by Doppler, cath and nuclear studies in patients with proven ASD. Normal infants and children served as controls. Mean TASV were measured from subcostal views and were corrected for beam-flow intercept angle when necessary. Doppler QP:QS was measured in the PA and AO. Tricuspid outflow tract flow was substituted for PA flow when pulmonary stenosis existed. In ASD, Doppler QP:QS was compared to cath or nuclear data. Sixteen subjects, 7 with ASD (mean age 29.7± 27.7 mo), and 9 normals (mean age 24.7±26.9 mo, p=ns), were evaluated. In ASD, mean Doppler QP: QS ratio was 1.7±.43(SD) and by cath or nuclear study was 1.6 ±.29 (p=ns). Mean TASV was 36.5 ±9.0 cm/sec/sec (range 28 to 52) in ASD and was 17.8±4.0 cm/sec/ sec (range 13 to 24) in controls (p<.001). When mean TASV was compared to QP:QS, good correlation was found, r=.80, SEE=6.8 cm/ sec. TASV is an easily performed evaluation which provides considerable clinical utility for separation of patients with left-to-right shunts through ASD's from those with intact atrial septum, and mean TASV also provides information concerning shunt size.
The effect of cholesterol feeding on primate serum lipoproteins. I. Low density lipoprotein characterization from rhesus monkeys with high serum cholesterol.

Abstract The effect of dietary cholesterol on the serum low density lipoproteins (LDL 2 ) of the rhesus monkey ( Macaca mulatta ) was studied by comparison of monkeys on a standard commercial monkey chow diet to those on a high cholesterol, high fat diet. The serum lipoproteins were fractionated by ultracentrifugation. Monkeys ingesting the control diet had 2% of the serum cholesterol in VLDL and an equal amount in the LDL 1 (1.006–1.019 g/ml) fraction. Upon ingesting the high cholesterol, high fat diet, the percentage in the VLDL and the LDL 1 fractions increased to 34–40% of the total. There was little change in the percentage of the serum cholesterol in the LDL 2 fraction except the absolute amount was higher in the cholesterol-fed animals. A 50% reduction in the percentage of serum cholesterol in the HDL was found upon cholesterol feeding (60% for controls vs 30% for cholesterol fed). A comparison of the LDL 2 composition of the control and cholesterolfed monkeys showed that the cholesteryl esters increased while protein and triglyceride decreased. The cholesterol/phospholipid ratio increased from 1.34 to 1.69 after cholesterol feeding. Cholesterol feeding had little effect on the phospholipid composition other than a twofold increase in phosphatidylethanolamine of LDL 2 . The percentage of unsaturated fatty acids in LDL 2 increased in the triglycerides, decreased in the phospholipids, and were unchanged in the cholesteryl esters after cholesterol-fat feeding. However, individual changes in unsaturated fatty acids seemed unrelated. In the LDL 2 phospholipid, arachidonic acid rose eightfold to 23% of the total while other unsaturated fatty acids showed little change. In the LDL 2 triglycerides, linoleic acid fell 73%, oleic 37%, and palmitoleic doubled upon cholesterol feeding. These changes were not a reflection of the dietary fatty acid composition except that four times as much fat was available to the cholesterol-fed animals. The amino acid composition of the apo-LDL 2 was not affected by cholesterol feeding. Determination of the molecular weights on the native LDL 2 showed that cholesterol feeding resulted in an increase of about 12% (3.1 to 3.5 million).
Analysis of central-axis doses for high-energy x rays

The purpose of this study was to improve on the analytical expressions used to describe central‐axis doses for high‐energy x‐ray beams, in particular, the component due to phantom‐scattered photons. The beams were characterized by quantities related to the physical processes, namely, transmission, head‐scatter, and phantom‐scatter factors, which were described separately with mathematical functions. Transmission in water was measured in a narrow beam and head scatter with a small phantom in air. The phantom‐scatter factors, i.e., the ratios between total and primary dose, were deduced from measured central‐axis doses per monitor unit. Based on previous work, it was assumed that this scatter factor is proportional to the depth d if the ratio between the depth and the field sizes is constant. The proportionality constant was examined as a function of this ratio d/s and the effective linear attenuation coefficient μ. Two quality‐dependent parameters were extracted. One expresses the probability of scatter and was numerically close to μ. The other, which has not previously been studied, reflects the directional distribution of the scatteredphotons and was also found to be a linear function of μ. Thus the scatter factors can be estimated if μ is known. Central‐axis doses were described by these formulas with 2.5% maximum error at 6 MV, 0.8% at 25 MV. To achieve this result, only a few measurements were needed for selected d and s, which indicates that the model used for the scatter factor is realistic. When the method was applied to 10‐MV and 15‐MV x‐ray beam data measured by another institution, about ±2% accuracy resulted.
Postmodern Disaster Theory

Legal preparedness for disaster consists of implementing the optimal portfolio of rules for managing catastrophic risks. This article extends the simpler model of modern disaster theory, http://ssrn.com/abstract=1910669, into a more ambitious model of postmodern disaster theory. A complete account of disaster law and policy based on an extended analogy to quantitative finance must address all aspects of that discipline, from the beautiful symmetries of modern portfolio theory to the disturbing behavioral insights and the vastly expanded mathematical arsenal of the postmodern critique.Postmodern disaster theory represents a comprehensive account of catastrophic risk management. It organizes its postmodern agenda for legal management of risk and uncertainty according to higher statistical moments. Skewness has inspired alternative ways to measure risk-adjusted performance. To illustrate how the problem of fat tails and excess kurtosis confounds the measurement and management of risk, this article conducts parametric value-at-risk (VaR) analysis with the logistic distribution, a leptokurtic analog of the Gaussian distribution. Incomplete statistical models of risk dangerously blind the law to certain sources of financial or environmental peril.Risk management through quantitatively informed legal tools is the unifying principle that harmonizes disaster policy in all domains, from the regulation of systemically important financial institutions to the prevention and mitigation of natural disasters. Postmodern disaster theory exploits the full range of sophisticated methods analogous to those used in quantitative finance. Comprehensive quantitative understanding promises to place disaster law on the efficient frontier of legal preparedness.
Is surveillance for stage 1 germ cell tumours of the testis appropriate outside a specialist centre

Objective To assess the results of treatment for stage 1 germ cell tumours of the testis, outside a specialist centre. Patients and methods From May 1984 until March 1996, 123 patients with stage 1 disease were treated at our institution. Sixty patients with seminoma and 31 with teratoma were treated with orchidectomy only and surveillance; 32 patients with stage 1 seminoma elected for orchidectomy and adjuvant radiotherapy. The mean ages were 40, 31 and 35 years, and the median follow-up 52, 47 and 49 months, respectively. Results There were no disease- or treatment-related deaths. However, 18 (30%) patients with seminoma treated by orchidectomy only relapsed (median time 8 months, range 3–19); 14 of these responded to radiotherapy, three to radiotherapy and chemotherapy for second relapses outside the irradiated fields, and one to chemotherapy initially, for large-volume relapse. Fifteen (48%) patients with teratoma relapsed (median time 3 months, range 1–12); all responded to 4–6 courses of bleomycin/etoposide/cisplatin chemotherapy. One patient had a second relapse and is currently disease-free 3 years after surgical excision of a lung metastasis. Conclusion These results show that stage 1 testis tumours can be managed successfully in a district general hospital. However, we are concerned about the high relapse rates and are now attempting to identify patients at greater risk of recurrence, to consider adjuvant therapy in this group.
Model Finding In Semantically Guided Instance-Based Theorem Proving

Semantic hyper-linking has recently been proposed as a way to use semantics in an instance-based theorem prover. The basic procedure is to use semantics to help generate ground instances of the input clauses until the ground clause set is unsatisfiable. If the ground set is satisfiable, models are constructed periodically to guide generation of new ground instances and change the models, until no model can be constructed and a proof is found. In this paper we discuss some model finding strategies that can generate useful ground instances, without using semantics, to change the ground models. We show that such strategies are helpful and will not increase the search space of semantic hyper-linking. They also retain the completeness of semantic hyper-linking. In addition, since using semantics is often expensive and semantics is not used in those model finding strategies, they help to find proofs earlier and faster.
Stress and Coping

1 Introduction 2 Characteristics of Homeostatic Systems 3 Historical Note on the Concept of Stress 4 From Animal Models to the Human Brain 5 Summary Keywords: Walter Cannon; Hans Selye; stress; allostasis; allostatic load; allostatic state; non-linearity; epigenetics; lifestyle; exercise; social support; government policies; early life experiences; adverse childhood experiences; depression; cardiovascular disease; diabetes; hippocampus; prefrontal cortex; amygdala
A very special Osler inscription.

In the Rare Books Room of the Mayo Clinic Library is a book, Sir Thomas Browne9s Religio Medici, which may contain the earliest extant book inscription penned by Sir William Osler. Dr. John Graner reports that Osler gave the book to one of his closest friends when he attended McGill medical school in 1870. Not only does the book possess great historic value, says Graner, but also it symbolizes a unique friendship.
Effects of Recombinant Erythropoietin on Breast Cancer-Initiating Cells

Abstract BACKGROUND: Cancer anemia causes fatigue and correlates with poor treatment outcome. Erythropoietin has been introduced in an attempt to correct these defects. However, five recent clinical trials reported a negative impact of erythropoietin on survival and/or tumor control, indicating that experimental evaluation of a possible direct effect of erythropoietin on cancer cells is required. Cancer recurrence is thought to rely on the proliferation of cancer initiating cells (CICs). In breast cancer, CICs can be identified by phenotypic markers and their fate is controlled by the Notch pathway. METHODS: In this study, we investigated the effect of erythropoietin on CICs in breast cancer cell lines. Levels of erythropoietin receptor (EpoR), CD24, CD44, Jagged-1 expression, activation of Notch-1 were assessed by flow cytometry. Self-renewing capacity of CICs was investigated in sphere formation assays. RESULTS: EpoR expression was found on the surface of CICs. Recombinant human Epo (rhEpo) increased the numbers of CICs and self-renewing capacity in a Notch-dependent fashion by induction of Jagged-1. Inhibitors of the Notch pathway and P13-kinase blocked both effects. CONCLUSIONS: Erythropoietin functionally affects CICs directly. Our observation may explain the negative impact of recombinant Epo on local control and survival of cancer patients with EpoR-positive tumors.
Cytotoxicity of lymphoid cells induced by Maclura pomifera (MP) lectin.

Abstract The cytotoxic activity of lymphoid cells stimulated with Maclura pomifera (MP) lectin was investigated. Spleen cells of Lewis (LEW) or Brown Norway (BN) rats induced a cell-dependent release of 51 Cr from syngeneic, allogeneic, and xenogeneic erythrocytes when incubated with MP for 4–16 hr. The activity of MP differed from that of concanavalin A (Con A). MP exhibited a greater activity with spleen cells while Con A was more active when bone marrow cells were tested. Activity induced by MP required the presence of the lectin for at least 4 hr and was inhibited by melibiose, an inhibitor of MP binding. MP also stimulated phagocytosis by peritoneal macrophages of LEW rats, but phagocytosis was not responsible for the cytotoxic effect measured by 51 Cr release. The ability of aggressor cells to bind MP did not correlate with their cytotoxic activity. The cytotoxic activity of spleen cells from athymic nude mice was equivalent to that of cells from euthymic littermates when stimulated with MP.
A genetic algorithm based inverse band structure method for semiconductor alloys

We present an efficient and accurate method for searching for atomic configurations with target band structure properties. Our approach to this inverse problem is to search the atomic configuration space by repeatedly applying a forward solver, guiding the search toward the optimal configuration using a genetic algorithm. For the forward solver, we relax the atomic positions, then solve the Schrodinger equation using a fast empirical pseudopotential method. We employ a hierarchical parallelism for the combined forward solver and genetic algorithm. This enables the optimization process to run on many more processors than would otherwise be possible. We have optimized AlGaAs alloys for maximum bandgap and minimum bandgap for several given compositions and discuss the results. This approach can be generalized to a wide range of applications in material design.
Critical Incidents in Multicultural Supervision: Exploring Supervisees' and Supervisors' Experiences

Reports of supervisors' and supervisees' critical incidents in multicultural supervision were used to (a) explore events in supervision that influenced supervisees' multicultural competence, (b) explore how supervision was experienced differently by supervisors and supervisees, and (c) identify recommendations for improving multicultural supervision. Implications for training and research are discussed. Los reportes de incidentes criticos en la supervision multicultural fueron utilizados para (a) explorar los acontecimientos en la supervision que influyeron la competencia multicultural de los supervisados (b) explorar como la supervision fue experimentada diferentemente por los supervisores y los supervisados e (c) identificar recomendaciones para mejorar la supervision multicultural. Se discuten las implicaciones para la instruccion e investigacion en esta area.
Attitudes toward the vaginal ring and transdermal patch among adolescents and young women.

Abstract Purpose The vaginal ring and the transdermal patch offer important contraceptive options for women at high risk for unintended pregnancy. Little is known about what adolescents and young women think about these methods and why use of the ring has been relatively low compared with the patch. We sought to examine young women's attitudes and perceptions about the ring and the patch to better understand the relationship between perceptions of these methods and decisions to use them. Methods Sixteen focus groups of young women aged 15–26 years (n=113) from family planning clinics in the San Francisco Bay Area were convened. Data from the focus groups were analyzed using standard content analysis. Results Although young women expressed apprehension and doubt about both methods, for the most part women expressed more positive attitudes about the patch. Two related themes for the ring and the patch were identified: "lack of trust in effectiveness," and "method use concerns". Two themes unique to the ring ("concerns regarding vaginal insertion" and "sexual partner perceptions") and three themes unique to the patch ("ease of remembering," "visibility issues," and "perceived health risk") were identified. Conclusions Increased provider education about apprehensions related to the ring and the patch may lead to increased use of the ring and may counter recent declines in use of the patch. It would be unfortunate if these safe and effective options for young women were to be underused because negative attitudes and perceptions about these methods acted as barriers to adoption.
Degradation of 3-chlorobenzoate by thermophilic micro-organisms

Thermophilic (75 degrees C), anaerobic biodegradation of chlorobenzoates was investigated using different inocula from geothermal and non-geothermal environments. Microbial dehalogenation of 3-chlorobenzoate (0.5 mmol l-1 was achieved by two mixed cultures growing anaerobically at 75 degrees C. One culture consisted of a facultative anaerobe and two obligate anaerobes, one of which was a methanogen, isolated from terrestrial sediments from hot springs in New Zealand. The other culture, derived from a non-geothermal environment, consisted of a Clostridium spp. and a non-spore-forming obligate anaerobe. No degradation of either 2-chlorobenzoate or 4-chlorobenzoate was achieved by these thermophilic cultures over the same time period. This is the first reported biotransformation of this chlorinated aromatic at a temperature of 75 degrees C.
Oral L-citrulline supplementation attenuates blood pressure response to cold pressor test in young men.

BACKGROUND Oral L-citrulline is efficiently converted to L-arginine, which has been shown to decrease brachial blood pressure (BP) at rest and during the cold pressor test (CPT). However, aortic BP may better reflect cardiovascular risk than brachial BP. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that oral L-citrulline supplementation attenuates brachial BP and aortic hemodynamic responses to CPT. METHODS Brachial BP, aortic BP, stroke volume (SV), and wave reflection at rest and during CPT were evaluated in 17 young (21.6 +/- 0.9 years) normotensive men. Subjects were randomly assigned to 4 weeks of oral L-citrulline (6 g/day) or placebo in a crossover design. Hemodynamic responses to CPT were reevaluated after each treatment. RESULTS During CPT, there were significant (P < 0.05) increases in brachial and aortic BP [systolic (SBP), diastolic (DBP), and pulse pressure (PP)], augmentation index (AIx), SV, and a decrease in transit time of the reflected wave (Tr) from baseline. Compared to placebo, oral L-citrulline treatment decreased (P < 0.05) brachial SBP (-6 +/- 11 mm Hg), aortic SBP (-4 +/- 10 mm Hg), and aortic PP (-3 +/- 6 mm Hg) during CPT but not at rest. There was an inverse correlation (r = -0.40, P < 0.05) between changes in aortic SBP and Tr during CPT after L-citrulline supplementation. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that oral L-citrulline supplementation attenuates the brachial SBP, aortic SBP, and aortic PP responses to CPT in young normotensive men. Increased wave reflection time contributes to the reduction in aortic SBP response to CPT.
Impact of edible coatings on nutritional and physiological changes in lightly-processed carrots

Abstract The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of two edible coatings (EC) of varying pH (2.7 and 4.6) on carotene retention and other physiological changes in lightly-processed (LP) carrots during storage. Carrots were treated with cellulose-based EC, packaged and stored at 1°C for 28 days. Samples were taken at regular intervals for analysis. Our results showed that carotene retention was 15% greater in the EC treatments versus control treatment throughout the 28 days. Samples treated with the lower pH EC had the highest CO2 and lowest O2 concentrations in the headspace. Whiteness index (WI) scores were significantly lower in both coated samples. Ethylene production was greatest in carrots treated with the lower pH coating on removal from sealed bags to air after each storage period. ECs improved carotene retention and retarded surface whitening in LP carrots during postharvest storage.
BAR the door: cancer suppression by amphiphysin-like genes.

Abstract The evolutionarily conserved amphiphysin-like genes Bin1 and Bin3 function in membrane and actin dynamics, cell polarity, and stress signaling. Recent genetic studies in mice discriminate non-essential roles in endocytic processes commonly ascribed to amphiphysins from essential roles in cancer suppression. Bin1 acts in default pathways of apoptosis and senescence that are triggered by the Myc and Raf oncogenes in primary cells, and Bin1 gene products display a ‘moonlighting function’ in the nucleus where a variety of other ‘endocytic’ proteins are also found. Together, genetic investigations in yeast, flies, and mice suggest that amphiphysin-like adapter proteins may suppress cancer by helping integrate cell polarity signals generated by actin and vesicle dynamics with central regulators of cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, and immune surveillance.
Fragmentation dynamics of gas-phase furan following K-shell ionization

A multicoincidence velocity-map-imaging technique was employed to study the fragmentation of inner-shell excited furan molecules for the photon energies encompassing the C and O $K$ edges. We have analyzed the kinetic energy distributions and the momentum correlations of detected ionic fragments. Comparisons of our experimental observations with predictions of a Coulomb explosion model elucidate possible fragmentation pathways.
A randomized controlled trial of prophylactic maneuvers to reduce head-to-body delivery time in patients at risk for shoulder dystocia ☆

Abstract Objective To assess whether prophylactic use of the McRoberts maneuver and suprapubic pressure decreased the head-to-body time, as a proxy for shoulder dystocia, in at-risk patients. Methods Patients with estimated fetal weights over 3800 g were randomized to undergo the McRoberts maneuver and suprapubic pressure before delivery of the fetal head (prophylactic maneuvers) or to undergo maneuvers only after delivery of the head, if necessary (controls). A total of 185 patients were enrolled in the study. After exclusions (eg, abdominal delivery), there were 128 evaluable vaginal deliveries. The study had the power to detect a 30% difference in head-to-body time between groups. Results Head-to-body delivery times did not differ between the prophylactic and control patients (24 ± 18 seconds versus 27 ± 20 seconds, P = .38). In addition, the two groups did not differ in rates of admission of the infant to the special care nursery or in birth injuries. There was a significant increase in the risk of delivering by cesarean for patients randomized to the use of prophylactic maneuvers. Conclusion This study does not support the hypothesis that prophylactic use of the McRoberts maneuver and suprapubic pressure speeds delivery in a population of patients at increased risk for shoulder dystocia.
The Accidental Tide Gauge: A GPS Reflection Case Study From Kachemak Bay, Alaska

For the last decade, it has been known that reflected GPS signals observed with specialized instruments could be used to measure sea level. In this letter, data from an existing geodetic-quality GPS site near Kachemak Bay, Alaska, are analyzed for a one-year time period. Daily sea-level variations are more than 7 m. Tidal coefficients have been estimated and compared with coefficients estimated from records from a traditional tide gauge at Seldovia Harbor, ~ 30 km away. The GPS and Seldovia estimates of M2 and S2 coefficients agree to better than 2%; much of this residual can be attributed to true differences in the tide over 30 km as it propagates up Kachemak Bay. For daily mean sea levels the agreement is 2.3 cm. Because a standard geodetic GPS receiver/antenna is used, this GPS instrument can measure long-term sea-level changes in a stable terrestrial reference frame.
A phase I/II trial and pharmacokinetic study of ixabepilone in adult patients with recurrent high-grade gliomas

Ixabepilone is an epothilone, a novel class of non-taxane microtubule stabilizing agents. A phase I/II and pharmacokinetic trial of ixabepilone was conducted in patients with recurrent high-grade gliomas. Adult patients received ixabepilone as a 1-h infusion daily for 5 days every 3 weeks. A modified continual reassessment method was used to escalate doses, beginning at 5.0 mg/m2, in patients stratified by use or non-use of enzyme inducing antiepileptic drugs (EIAED). In the phase I study, the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) and pharmacokinetics of ixabepilone were determined for each group. The phase II study used a two-stage design to evaluate response rate. Secondary endpoints were survival and 6-month progression free survival. In the phase I trial, 38 patients (median age 54 years) were enrolled. The MTD was 6.8 mg/m2 for patients not taking EIAEDs and 9.6 mg/m2 for those taking EIAEDs. The dose limiting toxicities in both groups were hematologic. Twenty-three patients (median age 54 years) were enrolled in the first stage of the phase II trial. No objective responses were observed. Median overall survival was 5.8 (95% CI, 5.0–8.6) months and 6-month PFS rate was 4% (95% CI, 0–22%). The overall mean total body clearance for ixabepilone was significantly higher (P = 0.003) in patients receiving EIAEDs (36 ± 11 l/h/m2) than those not (24 ± 9.2 l/h/m2). Patients on EIAEDs had a substantially higher MTD likely due to induction of cytochrome P450. Ixabepilone had no activity in patients with recurrent high-grade gliomas.
Troubles with the neighbours: Africa's problem, Africa's opportunity

There is systematic contagion across national borders. Favorable or unfavorable growth performance of one's neighbors tends to influence one's own long-run growth rate. Policy choices are also contagious across borders. While improving policies alone boosts growth substantially, the growth effects are much larger if neighboring countries act together. Copyright 1998 by Oxford University Press.