cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Estimating Field Populations of Tobacco Budworm Moths from Pheromone Trap Catches

A method is presented for estimating the relative density of tobacco budworm, Heliothis Virescens (F.), field populations from pheromone trap catches. Pheromone traps were found to be sensitive to low densities of tobacco budworm males. Early-season catches from these traps can be used to estimate field populations. Increasing densities of native females late in the season cause difficulty in estimating density accurately because of competition between native females and traps.
Orthostatic Hypotension in the Patient with Diabetes: A Broad Review of Pharmacologic Treatment Options:

Objective:To provide an evidence-based broad review of the pharmacologic management of orthostatic hypotension (OH) in the patient with diabetes.Data Sources:A search of PubMed, MD Consult, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, and the Cochrane Register of Clinical Trials and Systematic Reviews was performed using the key words diabetes, autonomic neuropathy, orthostatic hypotension, midodrine, fludrocortisone, pyridostigmine, xamoterol, octreotide, pindolol, dihydroergotamine, erythropoietin, clonidine, acarbose, desmopressin, and droxidopa. Literature published between 1976 and August 2012 was included.Study Selection and Data Extraction:All articles in English and studies in humans including clinical trials, meta-analyses, practice guidelines, randomized controlled trials, and review articles were identified and evaluated. Studies not including patients with diabetes were excluded. The selection of materials was focused on those that would aid the pharmacist in caring for patients with orthostatic hy...
Euripides, Medea 1–17

The text and apparatus below are Diggle's. At the end of the article I give, for the sake of the curious, an expanded version, for 11ff., of Wecklein's ‘Appendix coniecturas minus probabiles continens’, with references where they are known to me.
Productive, Scale And Scope Efficiencies In U.S. Hospital-Based Nursing Homes

AbstractExcessive costs may be attributable to inefficiencies in production, non-optimal scale and diseconomies of scope. This paper calculates these three components of excess costs for a sample of U.S. hospital-based nursing homes using non-parametric methods. After adjusting for interstate regulatory and wage differences, we find evidence in support of all three sources of cost savings. Productive inefficiency is the most important, followed by non-optimal scale and diseconomies of scope.
HIV Pathogenesis and Activation of CD4 Cells

Selective upregulation of the transcription of nef and tat genes before integration into the human genome allows HIV to activate CD4 cells and increase viral replication.
The second generation prototype of a Duct Climbing Tensegrity robot, DuCTTv2

Duct exploration and maintenance is a task well suited for small agile robots, which must be capable of navigating complex and irregular systems of ducts. Previously, we presented a tensegrity robot, DuCTT (Duct Climbing Tetrahedral Tensegrity), which demonstrated the plausibility of such a robot for duct exploration but was never able to successfully demonstrate climbing. Here we present DuCTTv2, redesigned from the ground up to address issues with actuator power, cable routing, compliance and synchronized control present in our first prototype. These improvements allow the prototype to be the first tensegrity robot to demonstrate duct climbing, and does so with an average climb speed of 1.4 cm/s. We also demonstrate initial tests of the prototypes ability to bend and translate its two segments relative to one another, which will allow it to navigate T-junctions and sharp corners commonly found in duct systems. Testing of the prototype is conducted to demonstrate the new faster and more robust control of motion, and analysis of dynamic simulations is presented.
Abstract 3492: Differential sensitivity of normal liver and hepatocarcinoma tissues to tBid induced apoptosis is determined by the abundance of VDAC2

A conserved step in extrinsic apoptosis is the outer mitochondrial membrane (OMM) permeabilization by truncated Bid (tBid) that is generated from Bid upon cleavage by Caspase-8 activated at death receptors. tBid directly or indirectly activate proapoptotic proteins i.e. Bak in OMM and/ or Bax in cytosol which is followed by a change in their conformation and oligomerization, leading to a pore formation in the OMM. To better understand the mitochondrial phase of this pathway we applied tBid to semi-permeabilized cells and isolated mitochondria. We monitored cytochrome c release, and the ensuing mitochondrial membrane potential collapse, using immunoblotting and fluorimetry as the markers for mitochondrial cell death. We found that normal liver tissue and normal hepatocytes (Rat, Mouse or Human) are unexpectedly resistant to tBid, whereas hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues and cell lines (e.g. PLC, Huh7) are greatly sensitized. Considering that the effect of tBid is most effectively mediated through Bak, its abundance in the mitochondria was tested. Bak level is significantly higher in tumor tissue/cell lines, whereas OMM-bound tBid and Bax levels are similar in both cancerous and normal tissue. Since we have recently found that voltage dependent anion channel 2 (V2), a pore forming OMM protein, is specifically required for Bak targeting to OMM, the abundance of V2 was also measured. V2 showed significant upregulation in HCC tissue/cell lines. Rescue studies using V2 sensitized normal hepatocytes and liver mitochondria to tBid. We propose that V2 might be the main regulator for the differential tBid sensitivity in normal liver and hepatocellular carcinoma. Citation Format: Shamim Naghdi, Soumya Sinha Roy, Ludivine Walter, Gyorgy Hajnoczky. Differential sensitivity of normal liver and hepatocarcinoma tissues to tBid induced apoptosis is determined by the abundance of VDAC2. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 3492.
Economic implications of incorporating emission controls to mitigate air pollutants emitted from a modeled hydrocarbon‐fuel biorefinery in the United States

The implementation of the US Renewable Fuel Standard is expected to increase the construction and operation of new biofuel facilities. Allowing this industry to grow without adversely affecting air quality is an important sustainability goal sought by multiple stakeholders. However, little is known about how the emission controls potentially required to comply with air quality regulations might impact biorefinery cost and deployment strategies such as siting and sizing. In this study, we use a baseline design for a lignocellulosic hydrocarbon biofuel production process to assess how the integration of emission controls impacts the minimum fuel selling price (MFSP) of the biofuel produced. We evaluate the change in MFSP for two cases as compared to the baseline design by incorporating (i) emission controls that ensure compliance with applicable federal air regulations and (ii) advanced control options that could be used to achieve potential best available control technology (BACT) emission limits. Our results indicate that compliance with federal air regulations can be achieved with minimal impact on biofuel cost (~$0.02 per gasoline gallon equivalent (GGE) higher than the baseline price of $5.10 GGE−1). However, if air emissions must be further reduced to meet potential BACT emission limits, the cost could increase nontrivially. For example, the MFSP could increase to $5.50 GGE−1 by adopting advanced emission controls to meet potential boiler BACT limits. Given tradeoffs among emission control costs, permitting requirements, and economies of scale, these results could help inform decisions about biorefinery siting and sizing and mitigate risks associated with air permitting. Published 2016. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA. Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining published by Society of Industrial Chemistry and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Fluidized-bed measurements of carefully-characterized, mildly-cohesive (Group A) particles

Abstract Fluidization is sensitive to mild cohesion levels, as evidenced by the different flow behaviors of Geldart Group A and Group B particles. Additionally, cohesion is extremely sensitive to surface roughness. Here, mildly cohesive (Group A) spherical particles were carefully characterized and used in high-fidelity experiments of defluidization, bed expansion, and bubble characterization. The experiments were conducted such that van der Waals forces were the only source of cohesion, and thus the results presented can be used for validating Discrete Element Method (DEM) and/or continuum models. Particle characterization includes surface roughness and adhesion (pull-off) force, which can be used for modeling the van der Waals force. Additionally, the particle friction coefficient, coefficient of restitution, shape (sphericity), and diameter were measured via a suite of simple experiments. This level of particle characterization, which is critical for the validation of cohesive models (DEM and continuum), has not been reported in previous fluidization studies. Accordingly, the characterization experiments employed here are described in sufficient detail for straightforward adaption elsewhere.
Conversion-to-open in laparoscopic appendectomy: A cohort analysis of risk factors and outcomes.

Abstract Background Identifying risk factors for conversion from laparoscopic to open appendectomy could select patients who may benefit from primary open appendectomy. We aimed to develop a predictive scoring model for conversion from laparoscopic to open based on pre-operative patient characteristics. Methods A retrospective review of the State Inpatient Database (2007–2011) was performed using derivation (N = 71,617) and validation (N = 143,235) cohorts of adults ≥ 18 years with acute appendicitis treated by laparoscopic-only (LA), conversion from laparoscopic to open (CA), or primary open (OA) appendectomy. Pre-operative variables independently associated with CA were identified and reported as odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). A weighted integer-based scoring model to predict CA was designed based on pre-operative variable ORs, and complications between operative subgroups were compared. Results Independent predictors of CA in the derivation cohort were age ≥40 (OR 1.67; CI 1.55–1.80), male sex (OR 1.25; CI 1.17–1.34), black race (OR 1.46; CI 1.28–1.66), diabetes (OR 1.47; CI 1.31–1.65), obesity (OR 1.56; CI 1.40–1.74), and acute appendicitis with abscess or peritonitis (OR 7.00; CI 6.51–7.53). In the validation cohort, the CA predictive scoring model had an optimal cutoff score of 4 (range 0–9). The risk of conversion-to-open was ≤5% for a score Conclusions CA patients have an unfavorable complication profile compared to OA. The predictors identified in this scoring model could help select for patients who may benefit from primary open appendectomy.
An Overview of Periodic Time Series With Examples

Abstract Two environmental examples are used to demonstrate modeling with periodic autoregressive moving average (PARMA) processes. These two examples - average monthly temperatures in Big Timber, Montana, USA, and carbon dioxide exchange rates of flowering plants in a growth chamber - are clearly periodic in their first and second moments, and highlight the necessity as well as the pitfalls of PARMA modeling.
Sexual Partner Concurrency Among Partners Reported by MSM with Recent HIV Infection.

We examined concurrency among sexual partners reported by men who have sex with men (MSM) with recent (acute or early) HIV infection in San Diego, California (2002–2015). Partners overlapping in time in the past 3 months were considered concurrent. Logistic generalized linear mixed models were used to identify factors associated with concurrency at the partner-level. 56% (388/699) of partners were concurrent to ≥1 other partner. The odds of concurrency were higher among partners >10 years younger than the participant (vs. within 10 years of age) [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 2.22, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.09–4.52], longer term partners (AOR per month = 1.02, 95% CI 1.01–1.03), and partners met online (AOR = 1.56, 95% CI 0.98–2.48). Concurrency is common among partners of recently HIV-infected MSM. Tailored HIV prevention strategies for MSM with older partners, longer term partners, and partners met online may help minimize the potential impact of concurrency on HIV transmission.
HOW SOCIAL COMMUNITY AND SOCIAL PUBLISHING INFLUENCE NEW PRODUCT LAUNCH: THE CASE OF TWITTER DURING THE PLAYSTATION 4 AND XBOX ONE LAUNCHES

While the traditional marketing literature typically illustrates consumers as passive recipients of products and services, social media enables consumers to actively participate in cocreation durin...
Integration of RAM-SCB into the Space Weather Modeling Framework

Abstract Numerical simulations of the ring current are a challenging endeavor. They require a large set of inputs, including electric and magnetic fields and plasma sheet fluxes. Because the ring current broadly affects the magnetosphere-ionosphere system, the input set is dependent on the ring current region itself. This makes obtaining a set of inputs that are self-consistent with the ring current difficult. To overcome this challenge, researchers have begun coupling ring current models to global models of the magnetosphere-ionosphere system. This paper describes the coupling between the Ring current Atmosphere interaction Model with Self-Consistent Magnetic field (RAM-SCB) to the models within the Space Weather Modeling Framework. Full details on both previously introduced and new coupling mechanisms are defined. The impact of self-consistently including the ring current on the magnetosphere-ionosphere system is illustrated via a set of example simulations.
The Delta Function

The delta function plays a central role in circuits and signals. It is very attractive to use for many reasons, including simplicity, flexibility, and constant spectrum. The delta function is a very localized pulse of very narrow pulse width (ideally zero) and very large pulse height (ideally infinite). While pulse width and height can be moved around, to some extent, they must be tied via the relation of unity pulse area! Typically we don’t need to play with zero and infinite pulse widths and heights; we can approximate a delta function by using a relatively narrow and high pulse, depending on the exact circuit at hand, but again subject to the unit area requirement. The delta function—ideally—also has a constant spectrum; that is the magnitude of its Fourier transform in frequency is 1 (and the phase zero). This means that any multiplication in the frequency domain yields the function being multiplied with; and this will be used to advantage when dealing with transfer functions of circuit. In this chapter we derive the pulse from various functions, such as from the unit step function, the negative exponential, and the sinc function. We illustrate the derivation process visually. Next we move to the sampling property of the delta function and wrap the chapter with the sampling property of the derivative of the delta function. The importance of the delta (impulse) function lies in system response which will be discussed in next chapter.
Effects of sugars and sugar alcohols on the gelatinization temperature of wheat starch

Abstract The effects of nineteen sugars and sugar alcohols on the gelatinization temperature (Tgel) of wheat starch were investigated. Starch Tgels in sweetener solutions were determined using differential scanning calorimetry; the solution and intrinsic properties of the sweeteners were then compared to the measured Tgels. The Tgel increased as sweetener concentration increased, but significant differences in Tgel were found between different sweetener types, even those containing the same number of carbons. On a molar basis, trisaccharides most increased the Tgel, while on a percent-solids basis disaccharides most increased the Tgel. Significant correlations existed between the Tgel and increasing sweetener solution water activities, solids contents, and viscosities, but these correlations were weaker when compared within similar sweetener concentrations. The amount of sweetener entering the starch granule depended on the solution solids content. The glass transition temperature of the amorphous water-sweetener-starch fraction did not have a direct effect on the starch Tgel. Sweeteners with more equatorial and exocyclic hydroxyl groups tended to increase the Tgel more, indicating that sweetener stereochemistry could be important. It was theorized that sweeteners increased the Tgel by forming sweetener-starch intermolecular interactions in the starch amorphous regions, with supporting evidence including how sweeteners affected starch annealing and how pH affected starch-glucuronic acid interactions and measured Tgels. A machine-learning model was developed that could predict the starch Tgel in a sweetener solution within 1.6%. To date this study is the most comprehensive investigation of the effects of a broad variety of sweeteners on the gelatinization temperature of wheat starch.
The wooden breast condition results in surface discoloration of cooked broiler pectoralis major.

ABSTRACT Published studies have shown that the wooden breast (WB) condition affects the macroscopic appearance, quality, and functionality of raw broiler breast fillets (pectoralis major) as well as the texture of both raw and cooked fillets. In this study, we demonstrated for the first time that the WB condition also significantly affects the color and appearance of cooked breast fillets. Fresh broiler breast fillets (deboned at 3 h post-mortem) were collected from a commercial plant and sorted into normal (no WB) and severe WB condition categories based on palpable hardness and rigidity throughout the breast fillets. The fillets were either cooked directly from a fresh state, after marination with a target concentration of 0.75% NaCl and 0.45% phosphate at the end, or after storage at –20°C. Samples were cooked to 76°C in individual cooking bags in a combi-steam oven. Color measurements (CIEL*a*b*) on both the ventral and dorsal surfaces of cooked fillets were assessed using a Minolta spectrophotometer CM-700d. There were no significant CIE color value differences on the dorsal surfaces (bone side) of cooked fillets (P > 0.01). However, on the cooked ventral surfaces (skin side), the WB condition caused increases (P
Prosthetic Choice in Laparoscopic Inguinal Hernia Repair

Inguinal hernia repair is one of the most common procedures performed by a general surgeon. The management of inguinal hernias has undergone many changes in the last five decades. The advent of prosthetic materials has decreased the recurrence rate compared to primary repair. The age of laparoscopy has brought new techniques with well-defined benefits including a reduction in pain, lower wound infection rates, and a shortened return to normal activities. With all these advances have come many choices for the practitioner today regarding prosthetic materials that differ in terms weight, burst strength, material composition, and inflammatory response. This chapter aims to examine the different prosthetics available and delineate their benefits and shortcomings, specifically relating to laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair.
Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Techniques for Patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a relentlessly progressive disease that has no known cure. Physicians often equate a diagnosis of ALS with a death sentence, and frequently no therapy is applied.
Interactive Haptic Virtual Collaborative Training Simulator to Retain CPR Skills

This paper provides a novel approach for training in collaborative environment by integrating collaborative virtual environment (CVE) and haptic joystick. Active World is used as the CVE and Novint Falcon is the preferred haptic device to send force back to the user(s). As our test scenario, we consider cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skills training simulator for re-training purpose. CPR is not just a compress-and-release procedure - it is a collaborative work and is affected by the performance of each team member. This study also explains the transferability of the CPR skills from this system to the real world case. The data collected from 12 participants verify that this simulator helps users to improve the accuracy of compression rate, and also to retain the skill afterwards.
Instrument Mounted Liquid-Pressure Sensor System for Biomedical Applications

Pressurized liquids are utilized during surgeries to inflate or clean bodily cavities. There are certain injuries associated with over-pressurization. A pressure-monitoring device with allows a physician to monitor pressure as a physiological measurement will help to reduce post-surgical complications. This paper discusses a system that is designed for use by physicians to monitor fluid pressures in the body. A flexible, piezoresistive sensor is affixed to the exterior of a surgical instrument for data collection. The pressure measurements are displayed to the physician in real-time, and saved for later inspection. The physician can then opt to receive alerts when an excessive pressure has been reached. The sensors had a sensitivity of S = 0.05994 ± 0.004 kPa−1. Repeatability of the measurements was found to be within 0.00762 kPa−1 when tested using three separate sensors, an error of 24%.
The effect of adaptation of Lactobacillus amylovorus to increasing concentrations of sweet potato starch on the production of lactic acid for its potential use in the treatment of cannery waste.

AbstractLactobacillus amylovorus, an amylolytic species, was cultured in increasing concentrations of sweet potato starch to test the effect of this progressive acclimation on lactic acid production. This research is part of a project on the use of the waste stream from a sweet potato cannery to produce lactic acid. The media used for this acclimation was a modified version of the de Man, Rogosa and Sharpe medium, in which glucose was partially or totally substituted with sweet potato starch. The process was done in five steps, starting with 100% glucose in the first step and ending with 100% sweet potato starch in the last one. At each step, the effectiveness of the acclimation was tested by running fermentations with and without pH control for 62 h. The effect of the overall adaptation process was tested by comparing the growth and activity of the acclimated vs non-acclimated bacteria using sweet potato starch as the only source of carbohydrates. Growth and activity assessments indicated that L. amylovo...
Evolution of supernovae-driven superbubbles with conduction and cooling

We use spherically symmetric hydrodynamic simulations to study the dynamical evolution and internal structure of superbubbles (SBs) driven by clustered supernovae (SNe), focusing on the effects of thermal conduction and cooling in the interface between the hot bubble interior and cooled shell. Our simulations employ an effective diffusivity to account for turbulent mixing from nonlinear instabilities that are not captured in 1D. The conductive heat flux into the shell is balanced by a combination of cooling in the interface and evaporation of shell gas into the bubble interior. This evaporation increases the density, and decreases the temperature, of the SB interior by more than an order of magnitude relative to simulations without conduction. However, most of the energy conducted into the interface is immediately lost to cooling, reducing the evaporative mass flux required to balance conduction. As a result, the evaporation rate is typically a factor of $\sim$3-30 lower than predicted by the classical similarity solution of Weaver et al. (1977), which neglects cooling. Blast waves from the first $\sim$30 SNe remain supersonic in the SB interior because reduced evaporation from the interface lowers the mass they sweep up in the hot interior. Updating the Weaver solution to include cooling, we construct a new analytic model to predict the cooling rate, evaporation rate, and temporal evolution of SBs. The cooling rate, and hence the hot gas mass, momentum, and energy delivered by SBs, is set by the ambient ISM density and the efficiency of nonlinear mixing at the bubble/shell interface.
Ringed Small Bodies

The field of ringed small bodies was born in 2013 by the serendipitous discovery of two narrow rings around the Centaur Chariklo, which orbits between Saturn and Uranus. Since then, rings have been detected around the TNO Haumea, and may exist around the Centaur Chiron. The existence of these ringed small bodies naturally raises several questions such as: how did the rings form? Are ringed small bodies commonplace? And what is the longevity of such rings?
Perioperative Medical and Surgical Coronavirus Disease 2019 Issues: Keeping Surgeons, Operating Room Teams, and Patients Safe.

Abstract Background Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has infected over 22 million people in the United States (US) and has had a devastating impact on the US economy and healthcare system. In order to help slow the spread of the virus and save hospital resources, nonessential businesses were forced to close and elective surgeries have been postponed. Methods As we reach the peak of the pandemic and the COVID-19 vaccine gets distributed, healthcare systems must develop plans to safely resume elective surgeries. This article outlines a single center academic medical center’s perioperative COVID-19 protocol to help keep surgeons, operating room teams, and patients safe. Results While testing protocols can help minimize the transmission of the virus, there is still the potential for COVID+ patients to undergo surgery undetected, due to potential false negative tests and the long incubation period before seroconversion and symptom development. Conclusions An effective institutional strategy not only includes clear perioperative testing protocols, but also education regarding clinical manifestations and exposure control.
Vegetation Optical Depth Retrieval from CYGNSS Data

The Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) observation received the Global Positioning System (GPS) signals with a revisit time in the range of 2.8 to 7.2 hours and have about a few kilometers of spatial resolution for coherent reflection and ∼25 km for incoherent reflection [1]. The CYGNSS datasets have a great potential to provide the vegetation optical depth (VOD) by combining the soil moisture data from SMAP. In this paper, we developed a physical-based model to retrieve the VOD. The retrieved VOD has been compared with SMAP VOD in both regional and global scale.
Victorian Literature and the Anorexic Body: Hunger and repression in Shirley and Villette

Although they wrote as contemporaries, Charlotte Bronte and Charles Dickens never met, nor did they hold high opinions of each other's work. Bronte enjoyed David Copperfield, but she criticized those portions of Bleak House narrated by Esther as “too often weak and twaddling.” Even her compliments of Dickens are noticeably strained. When commenting on David Copperfield, she only commends Dickens for his “varied knowledge of men and things,” tepid praise when juxtaposed with her summation of Goethe, in the same paragraph, as “Great, powerful, giant-souled” ( Correspondence III: 20). Dickens was even less enthusiastic about Bronte, reportedly announcing in 1860 that “he had not read Jane Eyre and … never would as he disapproved of the whole school.” Probably, like so many other Victorian readers, Dickens would have found the character of Jane coarse and vulgar and would have distinguished his own more rarefied and conventional heroines from those of Bronte's “school.” Despite the many differences between Dickens's and Bronte's novels, however, the two authors share a proclivity for slender female heroines that runs throughout both of their works: Jane Eyre, Frances Henri, Caroline Helston, and Lucy Snowe have the same slim, contourless bodies as do Agnes Copperfield, Rose Maylie, Mary Graham, and Amy Dorritt, to name only a few. Dickens typically employs the slender female body as a marker of his heroines' selflessness and lack of sensuality, going so far as to sentimentalize hunger and starvation.
Using Small-Angle Light Scattering to Discriminate Among Single Fibers Subjected to Consumer-Like Uses

Small-angle light scattering (SALS) patterns and scanning electron photomicrographs (SEM) of single fibers were recorded for five different types of polyester fibers when new as well as after being laundered by either of two different methods or after being exposed to outdoor weather. SALS was a sensitive tool for discriminating among the fiber types when new as well as after each of the three treatments. In addition, SALS was able to discriminate among fibers from the same yarn bobbin in each of the four different conditions examined. SALS was more sensitive in detecting some types of physical changes than was SEM.
Pseudohypoglycemia Manifesting as Complex Partial Seizures in a Patient with Type III Glycogen Storage Disease

Publisher Summary This chapter illustrates the case of a man diagnosed with complex partial seizures, pseudohypoglycemia and asymptomatic type III glycogen storage disease. The diagnosis of type III glycogen storage disease distracted his physicians from the diagnosis of seizures. Although some of his symptoms were potentially compatible with hypoglycemia, he had no biochemical evidence of hypoglycemia associated with spells, his symptoms were unaffected by eating, and his spells were too sudden in onset and too brief to be attributable to hypoglycemia. He was initially treated with levetiracetam at a dosage titrated up to 500 mg po BID. After 5 months of no seizures, the patient reduced his dosage of levetiracetam to 250 mg po BID. He has remained free of seizures for an additional 7 months. Establishing the diagnosis of partial seizures is often a diagnostic challenge for physicians, particularly when the seizures occur infrequently. A careful history is essential for establishing the possibility of partial seizures, but patients often are unable to provide sufficient details. Additional history obtained from family members and friends can provide a more complete description of the spells, as it did in this case.
The Need for More Descriptive and Meaningful Physical Data on Plastic Materials

During the past few years, plastics have become the major structural materials for most of the new small electrical appliance products. Thus, when the decision is made to develop a new product, a plastics material screening process will be followed, where a ist of material performance requirements (processing included) will be generated, based on the expected product performance, and then matched with currently available commercial grades of plastics. Unfortunately the plastic material physical data furnished by the supplier are not adequate. They are either too general, use wrong sample preparation method, or do not give a meaningful description of the plastic material properties from processing to end-product performance. The new General Electric plastic iron and drip coffeemaker products are two typical examples which are used to illustrate that there is a definite need for making available to the end user more descriptive and meaningful physical performance data.
The impact of hormonal contraceptive therapy on a community and effects on cytopathology of the cervix

Abstract The use of oral contraceptive therapy (OCT) in an urban-suburban, predominantly Caucasian, middle-class Connecticut community of 83,170 is reviewed. The acceptance ranges from 26.1 per cent in the 25 to 34 age group to 4.2 per cent in the 45 to 49 age group. The average duration of therapy ranged from 54.2 months for those in the 35 to 44 age bracket to 37.5 months in the 45 to 49 age bracket. From 1960 to 1970 the birth rate dropped from 22.8 to 16.6 per thousand population. In this study of cervical cytology no differences were observed in the incidence of mild atypia (Class 2), suspicious for malignancy (Class 3), or malignancy (Class 4) between those on therapy and the control group. Some of the problems of evaluating the long-term effect of hormonal contraceptives are discussed.
LEHD INFRASTRUCTURE FILES IN THE CENSUS RDC: OVERVIEW OF S2004 SNAPSHOT

The Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics (LEHD) Program at the U.S. Census Bureau, with the support of several national research agencies, has built a set of infrastructure files using administrative data provided by state agencies, enhanced with information from other administrative data sources, demographic and economic (business) surveys and censuses. The LEHD Infrastructure Files provide a detailed and comprehensive picture of workers, employers, and their interaction in the U.S. economy. This document describes the structure and content of the 2004 Snapshot of the LEHD Infrastructure files as they are made available in the Census Bureau's Research Data Center network.
Membrane protein stability can be compromised by detergent interactions with the extramembranous soluble domains

Detergent interaction with extramembranous soluble domains (ESDs) is not commonly considered an important determinant of integral membrane protein (IMP) behavior during purification and crystallization, even though ESDs contribute to the stability of many IMPs. Here we demonstrate that some generally nondenaturing detergents critically destabilize a model ESD, the first nucleotide-binding domain (NBD1) from the human cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), a model IMP. Notably, the detergents show equivalent trends in their influence on the stability of isolated NBD1 and full-length CFTR. We used differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy to monitor changes in NBD1 stability and secondary structure, respectively, during titration with a series of detergents. Their effective harshness in these assays mirrors that widely accepted for their interaction with IMPs, i.e., anionic > zwitterionic > nonionic. It is noteworthy that including lipids or nonionic detergents is shown to mitigate detergent harshness, as will limiting contact time. We infer three thermodynamic mechanisms from the observed thermal destabilization by monomer or micelle: (i) binding to the unfolded state with no change in the native structure (all detergent classes); (ii) native state binding that alters thermodynamic properties and perhaps conformation (nonionic detergents); and (iii) detergent binding that directly leads to denaturation of the native state (anionic and zwitterionic). These results demonstrate that the accepted model for the harshness of detergents applies to their interaction with an ESD. It is concluded that destabilization of extramembranous soluble domains by specific detergents will influence the stability of some IMPs during purification.
CO2 source inversions using satellite observations of the upper troposphere

Satellite observations of CO2 abundance in the upper troposphere can provide a major constraint for deriving the net carbon fluxes from tropical landmasses that is unavailable from current surface observations. Such global CO2 profiling with an uncertainty of about 1% (3 ppm) contains key longitudinal information needed to derive surface fluxes in a standard Bayesian inversion. Upper-tropospheric data available from flight-proven FTIR solar occultation measurements could provide comparable information to that from yet-to-be-demonstrated column CO2 observations, which have heretofore been the focus of carbon cycle studies. A strategy for improving CO2 source inversions with either type of satellite data should focus on tropical observations and on careful evaluation of possible sampling biases affecting the observational uncertainties.
Effect of carbon dioxide, temperature, and relative humidity on production of aflatoxin in peanuts

Effects of carbon dioxide (CO2) in combination with reduced relative humidities (RH) and temperatures on growth and aflatoxin production byAspergillus flavus in peanuts were investigated. Sound mature kernels of Early Runner peanuts were surface disinfested, inoculated withA. flavus, and incubated at various temperatures, RH, and CO2 concentrations. Visible growth, aflatoxin production, and free fatty acid (FFA) formation byA. flavus was inhibited at approximately 86% RH by 20% CO2 at 17C and by 60 and 40% CO2 at 25C. Aflatoxin and FFA levels decreased as RH decreased from approximately 99% to 92% to 86%. At a constant temperature, an increase in CO2 concentration caused a decrease in aflatoxin and percentage FFA; and, at a given CO2 concentration, lowering the temperature resulted in a decrease in aflatoxin and percentage FFA.
Parameters of Adherence to a Yearlong Daily Report Card Intervention for Students With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Given that attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a chronic disorder, which is likely to require sustained treatment, investigations of the adherence to long-term treatments are clearly needed. The current project is the first analysis examining the parameters of adherence to a daily report card (DRC) intervention over the course of an academic school year. To gain a greater understanding of the complexities inherent in long-term treatment implementation, parameters of adherence with respect to specific, setting-related criteria (i.e., month of the school year, day of the week, and consultant contact) were examined. Participants were 33 children enrolled in first through sixth grade. All participants were diagnosed with ADHD (85% were diagnosed with comorbid oppositional defiant disorder or conduct disorder), received special education services, and were assigned to an intervention condition wherein behavioral consultants worked with the teacher and parent to construct and implement a DRC inte...
The Mapping from Sound Structure to the Lexicon in Aphasia: Evidence from Rhyme and Repetition Priming

Abstract Two studies were conducted to explore the hypothesis that Broca's and Wernicke's aphasics have deficits arising from the processes involved in activating the lexicon from phonological form. The first study explored whether phonologically similar lexical entries differing only in their initial consonants show “rhyme priming.” Results revealed that Broca's aphasics failed to show facilitation when the target was identical to the prime (i.e. identity priming) and they showed significant inhibition when targets were preceded by rhyming words. Wernicke's aphasics showed a pattern of results similar to that of normal subjects, i.e., identity priming and rhyme priming as well as significantly slower reaction-times in the rhyming condition compared to the identity condition. The second study investigated form-based repetition priming in aphasic patients at a number of intervals including when no other stimuli intervened between repeated stimuli (0 lag) or when 4, 8, or 12 stimuli intervened. Results showed that, unlike old normal subjects who showed repetition priming for both words and nonwords, both Broca's and Wernicke's aphasics showed repetition priming for word targets only. Moreover, in contrast to old normal subjects who showed a greater magnitude of priming at 0 lag for word targets, neither Broca's aphasics or Wernicke's aphasics showed priming at 0 lag. Implications of these findings are considered with respect to the hypotheses that Broca's and Wernicke's aphasics have deficits in the nature of the activation patterns within the lexicon itself and in auditory (working) memory.
Foraminiferal Variation in Sediment Layers of Santa Barbara Basin, California: ABSTRACT

Quantitative variations in foraminiferal assemblages characterize the three different sediment types found in cores from the Santa Barbara basin. Gray turbidity sediments contain low foraminiferal numbers and usually a high percentage of benthonic Foraminifera. Laminated sediments are typified by very few specimens of Bolivina argentea and by variable foraminiferal numbers. Homogeneous sediment layers also have highly variable foraminiferal numbers, but contain a diverse fauna and a large number of Bolivina argentea. No arenaceous and very few porcellaneous foraminifera are present in the basin. The number of benthonic specimens present appears to be directly proportional to the number of planktonic specimens present. The frequency at which Foraminifera are added to the sediment was determined by using rates of sediment deposition. Solution effects on Foraminifera were especially noted in the upper 100 cm. of the cores studied. End_of_Article - Last_Page 132------------
Interaction of calcium ion with sodium triphosphate determined by potentiometric and calorimetric techniques

Abstract The stoichiometry of the interaction of Ca2+ with sodium triphosphate was determined using a Ca2+ sensitive electrode, divalent ion sensitive electrode, a glass electrode and by titration calorimetry, A 2:1 and 1:1 complex of Ca2+ and P3O5−10 is found when titrating calcium chloride with sodium triphosphate by the calcium ion sensitive electrode and tritation calorimetry. However, only by titration calorimetry is the 2:1 and 1:1 complex found when titrating sodium triphosphate with calcium chloride. Thermodynamic value (log K, ΔH and ΔS) are reported for the formation of CaP(in3)O−310 and Ca2P3O−10 in aqueous solution.
Generation of killer lymphocytes in vitro against human autologous leukemia cells with soluble bacterial extraxts

Ten patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) were studied to determine the ability of their remission lymphocytes to kill autologous leukemic blasts (ALB) following in vitro exposure to soluble extracts (SE) of BCG, Staphylococcus aureus (SA) or Listeria monocytogenes (LM). Remission lymphocytes from some patients became markedly cytotoxic to ALB after stimulation with BCG-SE, LM-SE, or SA-SE. These bacterially stimulated lymphocytes, although specifically lytic for ALB, were usually not cytotoxic to autologous remission lymphocytes. Bacterial extracts were able to generate killer lymphocytes at low concentrations. Generally, large amounts either had no stimulatant effect or were less stimulating. Bacteria-stimulated lymphocytes of ALL patients were cytotoxic not only to their leukemia cells, but also to leukemia cells from ALL and AML patients who were allogeneic to stimulated lymphocytes.
The effect of labels on short-term memory for colors with nursery school children

Studies of short-term memory for non-verbal material with young children have yielded results qualitatively different from similar studies with adults. Introduction of labels, however, makes the children’s performance very nearly like that of adults.
RIGHT VENTRICULAR SYSTOLIC FUNCTION PREDICTED FROM RIGHT BUNDLE BRANCH BLOCK: VALIDATED BY CARDIAC MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING

Association of right ventricular (RV) systolic dysfunction using echocardiography and electrocardiographic (ECG) features of right bundle branch (RBBB) and QRS duration was reported. The purpose of the study was to determine the correlation of ECG features of complete RBBB with parameters of RV
Polycomb Proteins Targeted by a Short Repeat RNA to the Mouse X Chromosome

To equalize X-chromosome dosages between the sexes, the female mammal inactivates one of her two X chromosomes. X-chromosome inactivation (XCI) is initiated by expression of Xist, a 17-kb noncoding RNA (ncRNA) that accumulates on the X in cis. Because interacting factors have not been isolated, the mechanism by which Xist induces silencing remains unknown. We discovered a 1.6-kilobase ncRNA (RepA) within Xist and identified the Polycomb complex, PRC2, as its direct target. PRC2 is initially recruited to the X by RepA RNA, with Ezh2 serving as the RNA binding subunit. The antisense Tsix RNA inhibits this interaction. RepA depletion abolishes full-length Xist induction and trimethylation on lysine 27 of histone H3 of the X. Likewise, PRC2 deficiency compromises Xist up-regulation. Therefore, RepA, together with PRC2, is required for the initiation and spread of XCI. We conclude that a ncRNA cofactor recruits Polycomb complexes to their target locus.
Encouraging developments in incubator design.

We would like to acknowledge and applaud the efforts of Goossens and Willemsen1 as well as BabyBloom Healthcare for the design and development of their neonatal incubator, which has recently become available on the European market. Similar to our recent incubation system research and design project,2 BabyBloom’s incubator was designed using a ‘human-centered’ approach, as detailed in Willemsen’s master thesis.3 While the data collection and analysis methods differed somewhat between our independent efforts, both efforts followed a design philosophy that focused on supporting the needs of select user groups, as opposed to the more traditional design approaches that tend to be driven by the technical capabilities of existing technologies (i.e., a ‘technology-centered’ approach). Both efforts also emphasized that the needs of not only the neonatal patient but also of family members and medical personnel should be considered in the design process in order to support a well-functioning ‘incubation system’.2
Input data quality control for NDNQI national comparative statistics and quarterly reports: a contrast of three robust scale estimators for multiple outlier detection

To evaluate institutional nursing care performance in the context of national comparative statistics (benchmarks), approximately one in every three major healthcare institutions (over 1,800 hospitals) across the United States, have joined the National Database for Nursing Quality Indicators® (NDNQI®). With over 18,000 hospital units contributing data for nearly 200 quantitative measures at present, a reliable and efficient input data screening for all quantitative measures for data quality control is critical to the integrity, validity, and on-time delivery of NDNQI reports. With Monte Carlo simulation and quantitative NDNQI indicator examples, we compared two ad-hoc methods using robust scale estimators, Inter Quartile Range (IQR) and Median Absolute Deviation from the Median (MAD), to the classic, theoretically-based Minimum Covariance Determinant (FAST-MCD) approach, for initial univariate outlier detection. While the theoretically based FAST-MCD used in one dimension can be sensitive and is better suited for identifying groups of outliers because of its high breakdown point, the ad-hoc IQR and MAD approaches are fast, easy to implement, and could be more robust and efficient, depending on the distributional property of the underlying measure of interest. With highly skewed distributions for most NDNQI indicators within a short data screen window, the FAST-MCD approach, when used in one dimensional raw data setting, could overestimate the false alarm rates for potential outliers than the IQR and MAD with the same pre-set of critical value, thus, overburden data quality control at both the data entry and administrative ends in our setting.
Density functional theory Studies of condensed Phases of 6d super heavy elements

Abstract The solid state properties of 6 d Super Heavy Elements (SHEs) was probed using all-electron relativistic density functional theory calculations at different levels of theory. The trends in the equilibrium crystal volumes, bulk moduli, and cohesive energies of Lr–Rg (atomic numbers Z =103–111) bear close resemblance to their 5 d homologs. However the last element in the 6 d series, Cn, is predicted to be an insulating HCP crystal with a band gap of 1.5–4.4 eV, while its 5 d homologue, Hg, is metallic with rhombohedral crystal symmetry. The effects of spin–orbit coupling are discussed.
Periodic Solutions of Second-order Nonlinear Difference Equations Containing a Small Parameter—III. Perturbation Theory

A technique to construct a uniformly valid perturbation series solution to a particular class of nonlinear difference equations is shown. The method allows the determination of approximations to the periodic solutions to these equations. An example illustrating the technique is presented.