cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Palliative Care of Older Patients

In 1948, Cicely Saunders cared for a young man dying of a cancer in a hospital in Europe. The man was so touched by her attention to all aspects of his suffering—psychological, physical, and spiritual—that he left her a relatively small amount of money in his will to be a “window in your house” (1). At that time, Saunders was a nurse turned social worker. She had strong ideas about the best way to care for patients at the end of life, but no formal program to deliver this care and limited support from the doctors with whom she worked. To gain the respect of incredulous colleagues, she enrolled in medical school. With the training and experience of a self-contained intradisciplinary team, Dr. Saunders built the foundations of hospice care with the creation of St. Christopher’s hospice in 1967.
Oxidation of Solder Coatings

Solder coatings are widely used to protect copper printed wiring board (PWB) circuitry and electronic component leads from oxidation that can lead to loss of solderability. The coating is usually eutectic Sn-Pb that is either applied directly by hot dipping or electroplated and then densified by reflowing (melting). Numerous studies and ample practical experience have shown that, when properly applied and sufficiently thick, such coatings remain solderable even after several years of normal storage. In practice, however, the coating composition/morphology and storage conditions may not be optimum, allowing solderability degradation to occur. In addition, molten solder tends to flow away from curved areas in the substrate, resulting in localized thinning during solder dipping or reflow. Exposure of the underlying Cu-Sn intermetallic layer in the thinned region can lead to loss of solderability. Thinned solder is a particular problem at PWB through-hole rims and is commonly referred to as “weak knees.”
Usability Engineering and Research on Shopping Portals

A business-to-consumer (B2C) electronic marketplace (emarketplace) portal helps online shoppers in searching for desired products and services, customizing a user’s shopping experience, and identifying reputable merchants and service providers. These shopping portals provide the ability for a shopper to specify personal preferences, compare prices from multiple vendors, obtain merchant ratings and feedback from other customers, read reviews of products, find featured products and promotion, and create his or her own wish list in a online profile, among others. From an economics perspective, these portals reduce a buyer’s search cost (Bailey & Bakos, 1997). Web sites falling into this category include Yahoo! Shopping, bizrate.com, shopzilla.com, and nextag.com, among others. Interest in e-marketplaces has significantly increased due to the structural changes in online business brought about by these markets (Ratnasingam, Gefen, & Pavlou, 2005). This article reviews current literature and explores avenues of future research, so as to provide both marketing practitioners and system designers an understanding of the factors contributing to the success of a shopping portal from multiple aspects of usability engineering in e-commerce.
Abstract 2502: Role of TMEM97/σ2 receptor in breast cancer cell proliferation and responses to chemotherapy

Introduction: Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer for women both in the developed and the developing countries. In 2017, about 40,610 women are expected to die from breast cancer in the U.S. The sigma receptors (σRs) are transmembrane receptors with two subtypes, termed sigma-1 receptor and sigma-2 receptor. Sigma-2 receptor has been found overexpressed in numerous human cancer tissues, and compound targeting it are now in clinical trials for breast cancer diagnosis. But it9s biological role in breast cancer is unknown because the encoded gene has not been clearly identified. Recently, it has been demonstrated that TMEM97, not progesterone Receptor Membrane Component 1 (PGRMC1), is a bona fide sigma-2 receptor. The identification of sigma-2 (σ2) receptor will make it possible to define its biological functions in breast cancer and develop modulator of σ2 receptor as potential cancer therapeutics. Methods: The expression of TMEM97/σ2 receptor in multiple cancer cells was evaluated by RT-qPCR. Regulation of P53 on TMEM97/σ2 receptor was determined by Western Blot after 48 hours Doxorubicin treatment of MCF7 cell and HCT116 wild type and P53-/- cells. PB28, an agonist of σ2 receptor and an antagonist of σ1 receptor, was used (0, 1μM, 10μM and 20μM for 4 days) to test its effects on MCF7 cell growth and colony formation. TMEM97/σ2 receptor was cloned and sequenced. We overexpressed TMEM97/σ2 receptor in MCF7 cells to characterize its role in cell proliferation, survival, and colony formation, with or without treatment of its agonist PB28. Results and conclusion: TMEM97/σ2 receptor is expressed in various cancer cell lines including lung, breast and prostate cancer, albeit at different levels. TMEM97 expression was reduced in MCF7 cells when p53 expression was stimulated by doxorubicin. PB28 reduced the number of viable cells and also reduced colony formation of MCF7 cells in a dose dependent manner. Meanwhile overexpression of TMEM97/σ2 receptor retarded cell growth in MCF7 cells and sensitized them to PB28 as evidenced by reduced IC50 when compared with control cells. The data suggest that TMEM97/σ2 receptor is expressed in breast cancer cells, with its expression suppressed by p53, and activation of this receptor led to reduced tumor cell proliferation. Citation Format: Yuanqin Zhang, Jiuhui Wang, Daotai Nie. Role of TMEM97/σ2 receptor in breast cancer cell proliferation and responses to chemotherapy [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 2502.
Interplay of the Spin Density Wave and a Possible Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov State in CeCoIn 5 in Rotating Magnetic Field

The $d$-wave superconductor ${\mathrm{CeCoIn}}_{5}$ has been proposed as a strong candidate for supporting the Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) state near the low-temperature boundary of its upper critical field. Neutron diffraction, however, finds spin-density-wave (SDW) order in this part of the phase diagram for field in the $a\text{\ensuremath{-}}b$ plane, and evidence for the SDW disappears as the applied field is rotated toward the tetragonal $c$ axis. It is important to understand the interplay between the SDW and a possible FFLO state in ${\mathrm{CeCoIn}}_{5}$, as the mere existence of an SDW does not necessarily exclude an FFLO state. Here, based on a model constructed on the basis of available experiments, we show that an FFLO state competes with an SDW phase. The SDW state in ${\mathrm{CeCoIn}}_{5}$ is stabilized when the field is directed close to the $a\text{\ensuremath{-}}b$ plane. When the field is rotated toward the $c$ axis, the FFLO state emerges, and the SDW phase disappears. In the FFLO state, the nodal planes with extra quasiparticles (where the superconducting order parameter is zero) are perpendicular to the field, and in the SDW phase, the quasiparticle density of states is reduced. We test this model prediction by measuring heat transported by normal quasiparticles in the superconducting state. As a function of field, we observe a reduction of thermal conductivity for field close to the $a\text{\ensuremath{-}}b$ plane and an enhancement of thermal conductivity when field is close to the $c$ axis, consistent with theoretical expectations. Our modeling and experiments, therefore, indicate the existence of the FFLO state when field is parallel to the $c$ axis.
Mechanism and regulation of ferrous heme-nitric oxide (NO) oxidation in NO synthases

Nitric oxide (NO) synthases (NOSs) catalyze the formation of NO from l-arginine. We have shown previously that the NOS enzyme catalytic cycle involves a large number of reactions but can be characterized by a global model with three main rate-limiting steps. These are the rate of heme reduction by the flavin domain (kr), of dissociation of NO from the ferric heme-NO complex (kd), and of oxidation of the ferrous heme-NO complex (kox). The reaction of oxygen with the ferrous heme-NO species is part of a futile cycle that does not directly contribute to NO synthesis but allows a population of inactive enzyme molecules to return to the catalytic cycle, and thus, enables a steady-state NO synthesis rate. Previously, we have reported that this reaction does involve the reaction of oxygen with the NO-bound ferrous heme complex, but the mechanistic details of the reaction, that could proceed via either an inner-sphere or an outer-sphere mechanism, remained unclear. Here, we present additional experiments with neuronal NOS (nNOS) and inducible NOS (iNOS) variants (nNOS W409F and iNOS K82A and V346I) and computational methods to study how changes in heme access and electronics affect the reaction. Our results support an inner-sphere mechanism and indicate that the particular heme-thiolate environment of the NOS enzymes can stabilize an N-bound FeIII-N(O)OO− intermediate species and thereby catalyze this reaction, which otherwise is not observed or favorable in proteins like globins that contain a histidine-coordinated heme.
Self-Reported Job Stress and Personality in Teachers of Students with Emotional or Behavioral Disorders:

This study examined self-reported stressors for teachers of students with emotional or behavioral disorders (E/BD) using a questionnaire developed specifically for the study. The study examined (a)...
Structural and environmental predictors of presence and abundance of tri-colored bats in Texas culverts

The tri-colored bat (Perimyotis subflavus) is being reviewed for listing under the Endangered Species Act by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. It is also listed as a species of greatest conservation need by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department due to its susceptibility to white-nose syndrome (WNS) in other states. Several colonies of hibernating tri-colored bats have been documented roosting in culverts. Culverts are widespread in Texas as part of roadway infrastructure; thus, our objective was to understand and quantify which structural and environmental factors best explain culvert use and abundance of hibernating tri-colored bats in Texas. We selected and surveyed 207 culverts for presence of tri-colored bats using the Generalized Random Tessellation Stratified (GRTS) design and opportunistic sampling across 10 of 12 Texas level III ecoregions during the winters of 2016–2017 and 2017–2018. We recorded environmental and structural features of culverts at each site. We used a zero-inflated Poisson regression to identify which culvert features best explained presence and abundance of hibernating tri-colored bats. We found that number of culvert sections predicted presence of tri-colored bats. We also found that abundance of tri-colored bats was influenced by length of culvert, elevation, number of sections, portal height, portal obstruction, aspect, external VPD, external temperature, and NDVI. With the current threats to tri-colored bat populations, there is a need to consider management of culvert roosts. In addition, it is imperative to further investigate the potential susceptibility to WNS of culvert-roosting bats at more southern latitudes for local and regional planning efforts.
Cataclastic deformation and metasomatism in the subduction zone of mafic blocks-in-mélange, San Simeon, California

Abstract The primary origin of shale-matrix melange forming the Central Belt of the Franciscan Complex is still debated. The seacliff exposures near San Simeon display numerous lensoidal blocks of graywacke, greenstone, lesser layered chert, and blueschist that are encased in a matrix of scaly shale. The boudinaging of mafic greenstone and blueschist blocks was accommodated by cataclasis and varied amounts of metamorphic reconstitution that is particularly intense along block margins, zones of necking, and intra-block shear zones. Cataclastic zones in blueschists are greenish where chlorite and pumpellyite have formed. The mineralogic assemblage produced during cataclasis in greenstones is the same as that replacing the interior of the block: albite + chlorite + pumpellyite. The cataclastic margins of many (7 of 12) greenstones gained K, Rb, Cs, and Ba. In contrast, the cataclastic margins of all blueschist blocks lost Na, several (3 of 9) with substantial decreases, and some (3 of 9) had significant increases in K, Rb, Cs, and Ba. This metasomatic alteration is indicative of fluid-rock interaction between mafic blocks and sediments. Alteration of the mafic rocks with the growth of pumpellyite and chlorite occurred when blocks were encased in the shale matrix of the melange, which was dynamically deforming and heated to temperatures of ~150 °C. As synsubduction temperature/depth gradients were ~10 °C/km, burial of mafic blocks while encased in the melange matrix to depths approaching 15 km is apparent. Surficial olistostromal movements alone do not account for the incorporation, deformation, and retrograde metasomatic alteration of the exotic blueschist blocks and the metamorphism of the shale matrix at such inferred depths. These attributes indicate chemical exchange with shale and smearing displacement of the margins of mafic blocks occurred in the subduction zone as the shale matrix flowed and exerted shear tractions.
Women’s healthcare providers: Work factors, personality, and stress

We assessed neuroticism, perceived stress, and work-related factors among obstetrician-gynecologists (ob-gyns), and examined the relationships between these variables. Surveys were sent to 500 physician members of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and we received 287 (57.4%) completed responses. Analyses included descriptive statistics and linear regressions. Ob-gyns reported high levels of perceived stress. After controlling for neuroticism, variables that significantly predicted stress levels included average hours worked, perception of working too many hours, colleague support for work–home balance, isolation due to gender/cultural differences, and perception of workplace control. Because these work-related factors are linked to stress even when controlling for neuroticism, administrators and physicians may consider whether any of these factors are modifiable to mitigate physician stress. This in turn may affect physicians’ own health and the quality of care patients receive.
Quantifying Intrinsic, Extrinsic, Dielectric, and Secondary Pyroelectric Responses in PbZr1-xTixO3 Thin Films.

Applications such as solid-state waste-heat energy conversion, infrared sensing, and thermally-driven electron emission rely on pyroelectric materials (a subclass of dielectric piezoelectrics) which exhibit temperature-dependent changes in polarization. Although enhanced dielectric and piezoelectric responses are typically found at polarization instabilities such as temperature- and chemically induced phase boundaries, large pyroelectric effects have been primarily limited in study to temperature-induced phase boundaries. Here, we directly identify the magnitude and sign of the intrinsic, extrinsic, dielectric, and secondary pyroelectric contributions to the total pyroelectric response as a function of chemistry in thin films of the canonical ferroelectric PbZr1-xTixO3 (x = 0.40, 0.48, 0.60, and 0.80) across the morphotropic phase boundary. Using phase-sensitive frequency and applied dc-bias methods, the various pyroelectric contributions were measured. It is found that the total pyroelectric response decreases systematically as one moves from higher to lower titanium contents. This arises from a combination of decreasing intrinsic response (-232 to -97 μC m-2 K-1) and a sign inversion (+33 to -17 μC m-2 K-1) of the extrinsic contribution upon crossing the morphotropic phase boundary. Additionally, the measured secondary and dielectric contributions span between -70 and -29 and 10-115 μC m-2 K-1 under applied fields, respectively, following closely trends in the piezoelectric and dielectric susceptibility. These findings and methodologies provide novel insights into the understudied realm of pyroelectric response.
Land rights, agricultural productivity, and deforestation

Abstract This paper studies the relationship between land tenure for smallholder agriculture and deforestation. We combine high resolution satellite data on deforestation with rich household and commune-level, biannual panel data from Vietnam. We study two margins of tenure security, whether a household has any land title (extensive) and the share of a household’s land held in title (intensive). Using a household-fixed effects model, we find the increases in crop production and land investment associated with holding land title are driven by the intensive margin. We then aggregate the survey data to the commune-level and find evidence that marginal increases in extensive tenure (share of households with any land title) increase deforestation holding constant the average intensive tenure (average share of land held in tenure among those with land title). We find some evidence that increasing the intensive margin of tenure (holding constant the extensive tenure) decreases deforestation. These results present a more nuanced view of the tenure-deforestation relationship than is prevalent in the existing literature.
Assessing Viability of Soybean Oils to Remove Hydrogen Sulfide from Natural Gas

A combination of in silico and benchtop experiments was implemented to assess how soybean oils could remove hydrogen sulfide (H₂S)—a corrosive and toxic impurity—from natural gas. The development of hydraulic fracturing (i.e., fracking) in the United States has increased both the use of and interest in natural gas, but natural gas extracted via fracking is often highly concentrated with H₂S. The present work is a proof-of-concept study to evaluate the viability of conventional and high-oleic soybean oils to extract H₂S. The conductor-like screening model for real solvents (COSMO-RS) was used to predict the partition coefficient (Kₘₒd) of the target molecule (H₂S) between the liquid (soybean oil) and gas phases. These predicted Kₘₒd values were below 0.0005 at temperatures ranging from 10 to 100 °C at atmospheric pressure; Kₘₒd values approaching 0 are indicative of near-complete removal of the H₂S from the gas. Experiments showed Kₑₓₚ values below 0.2 in biphasic gas/oil systems at residence times <15 min. Isotherm models demonstrated the saturation limits of the soybean oils as compared with water and heptane. This proof-of-concept study employs a novel use of soybean oils as biosolvents for sweetening natural gas, and they have potential for high-impact application in soybean and natural gas industries.
Learning Optimized Human Motion via Phase Space Analysis

This paper proposes a dynamic system based learning from demonstration approach to teach a robot activities of daily living. The approach takes inspiration from human movement literature to formulate trajectory learning as an optimal control problem. We assume a weighted combination of basis objective functions is the true objective function for a demonstrated motion. We derive basis objective functions analogous to those in human movement literature to optimize the robot's motion. This method aims to naturally adapt the learned motion in different situations. To validate our approach, we learn motions from two categories: 1) commonly prescribed therapeutic exercises and 2) tea making. We show the reproduction accuracy of our method and compare torque requirements to the dynamic motion primitive for each motion, with and without an added load.
PENet: Object Detection Using Points Estimation in High Definition Aerial Images

Aerial imagery has been increasingly adopted in mission-critical tasks, such as traffic surveillance, smart cities, and disaster assistance. However, identifying objects from aerial images faces the following challenges: 1) objects of interests are often too small and too dense relative to the images; 2) objects of interests are often in different relative sizes; and 3) the number of objects in each category is imbalanced. A novel network structure, Points Estimated Network (PENet), is proposed in this work to answer these challenges. PENet uses a Mask Resampling Module (MRM) to augment the imbalanced datasets, a coarse anchor-free detector (CPEN) to effectively predict the center points of the small object clusters, and a fine anchor-free detector FPEN to locate the precise positions of the small objects. An adaptive merge algorithm Non-maximum Merge (NMM) is implemented in CPEN to address the issue of detecting dense small objects, and a hierarchical loss is defined in FPEN to further improve the classification accuracy. Our extensive experiments on aerial datasets visDrone [1] and UAVDT [2] showed that PENet achieved higher precision results than existing state-of-the-art approaches. Our best model achieved 8.7% improvement on visDrone and 20.3% on UAVDT.
Barriers and facilitators of germline genetic evaluation for prostate cancer.

28Background: Genetic counseling and germline testing have an increasingly important role for patients with prostate cancer, with the recent approval of precision therapeutic options and implicatio...
Low-Molecular-Weight Carboxylic Acids in the Southeastern U.S.: Formation, Partitioning, and Implications for Organic Aerosol Aging

While carboxylic acids are important components in both particle and gas phases in the atmosphere, their sources and partitioning are not fully understood. In this study, we present real-time measurements of both particle- and gas-phase concentrations for five of the most common and abundant low-molecular-weight carboxylic acids (LMWCA) in a rural region in the southeastern U.S. in Fall 2016. Through comparison with secondary organic aerosol (SOA) tracers, we find that isoprene was the most important local precursor for all five LMWCA but via different pathways. We propose that monocarboxylic acids (formic and acetic acids) were mainly formed through gas-phase photochemical reactions, while dicarboxylic acids (oxalic, malonic, and succinic acids) were predominantly from aqueous processing. Unexpectedly high concentrations of particle-phase formic and acetic acids (in the form of formate and acetate, respectively) were observed and likely the components of long-range transport organic aerosol (OA), decoupled from their gas-phase counterparts. In addition, an extraordinarily strong correlation (R2 = 0.90) was observed between a particulate LMWCA and aged SOA, which we tentatively attribute to boundary layer dynamics.
Safety and effectiveness of 1-stage conversion of adjustable gastric band-to-sleeve gastrectomy: a single-institution case-control study.

Abstract Background Patients are increasingly referred for conversion of laparoscopic adjustable gastric band (LAGB) to laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) or sleeve gastrectomy (SG). The safety of a 1- versus 2-stage approach to this revision is debated. Objectives We examined the safety and efficacy of 1-stage conversion of LAGB to SG at our institution. Setting University hospital. Methods An institutional database was used to retrospectively identify patients who underwent single-stage LAGB-to-SG conversion between 2010 and 2018. Patients were matched 1:1 for age, sex, and body mass index with primary SG patients during this same period. Primary endpoints were operative time, complication rate, length of hospital say, and weight loss 12 months from surgery. Results Two-hundred and twenty-nine patients undergoing conversion of LAGB to SG were identified. Median postoperative length of hospital stay was 2 days. Two patients (.8%) developed surgical site infection. One patient (.4%) developed a postoperative myocardial infarction. There were 4 total readmissions (1.7%) and 1 reoperation within 30 days (.4%). There were no statistically significant differences in 30-day complication rates between groups. Weight loss at 12 months was significantly different: Median body mass index loss for conversion patients was 5.1 kg/m2 compared with 8.85 kg/m2 for patients in the primary SG group (P Conclusion Single-stage conversion of LAGB to SG is safe and effective. Patients may not experience the same extent of weight loss as those with primary SG. Our findings represent the largest single-institutional experience to date and support a 1-stage approach whenever feasible.
Guanylyl cyclase-A phosphorylation decreases cardiac hypertrophy and improves systolic function in male, but not female, mice.

Atrial natriuretic peptide (NP) and BNP increase cGMP, which reduces blood pressure and cardiac hypertrophy by activating guanylyl cyclase (GC)-A, also known as NPR-A or Npr1. Although GC-A is highly phosphorylated, and dephosphorylation inactivates the enzyme, the significance of GC-A phosphorylation to heart structure and function remains unknown. To identify in vivo processes that are regulated by GC-A phosphorylation, we substituted glutamates for known phosphorylation sites to make GC-A8E/8E mice that express an enzyme that cannot be inactivated by dephosphorylation. GC-A activity, but not protein, was increased in heart and kidney membranes from GC-A8E/8E mice. Activities were threefold higher in female compared to male cardiac ventricles. Plasma cGMP and testosterone were elevated in male and female GC-A8E/8E mice, but aldosterone was only increased in mutant male mice. Plasma and urinary creatinine concentrations were decreased and increased, respectively, but blood pressure and heart rate were unchanged in male GC-A8E/8E mice. Heart weight to body weight ratios for GC-A8E/8E male, but not female, mice were 12% lower with a 14% reduction in cardiomyocyte cross-sectional area. Subcutaneous injection of fsANP, a long-lived ANP analog, increased plasma cGMP and decreased aldosterone in male GC-AWT/WT and GC-A8E/8E mice at 15 min, but only GC-A8E/8E mice had elevated levels of plasma cGMP and aldosterone at 60 min. fsANP reduced ventricular ERK1/2 phosphorylation to a greater extent and for a longer time in the male mutant compared to WT mice. Finally, ejection fractions were increased in male but not female hearts from GC-A8E/8E mice. We conclude that increased phosphorylation-dependent GC-A activity decreases cardiac ERK activity, which results in smaller male hearts with improved systolic function.
Life in space

The scope of space life sciences and current research on the physiology of man in space are reviewed by examining Spacelab SLS-1. Milestones of space life sciences are discussed, with emphasis on the Skylab facility, the Space Shuttle program, and the Soviet Mir space station. Attention is given to the topic of the origins of life as it relates to space life sciences. The discovery of amino acids in meteorites and the question of whether the earth was seeded with life from space are discussed. A brief overview of efforts in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence is presented. Consideration is also given to the effects of gravity on cells, the effects of radiation, plant biology, CELSS, and the effects of gravity on humans.
Cytochrome b5 and Cytochrome b5 Reductase from a Chemical and X-Ray Diffraction Viewpoint

The endoplasmic reticulum of mammalian liver cells contains two major electron-transport enzyme systems. One of these is the NADH-linked cytochrome b 5 system which catalyzes the desaturation of fatty acids. The other is the NADPH-linked cytochrome P-450 system which catalyzes the hydroxylation of steroids, drugs, carcinogens, and other lipid-soluble substances. Although there is some interaction between these two systems (Lu et al., 1974), the following discussion will limit itself to the cytochrome b 5 system.
Voltage-Gated K+ Channels

This chapter gives an overview on voltage-gated K+ channels. The introduction of molecular biology into the channel field, coupled with the ability to use patch-clamping techniques to precisely analyze properties of channels from many different types of cells, revitalized ion channel biophysics. The structure of the pore-forming domain formed by segments S5-P-S6 of the crystal structure of the full-length voltage-gated K+ channel Aeropyrum pernix (KvAP) protein was similar to that of the MthK crystal, suggesting that it was in an open conformation. The chapter discusses experiments performed on Shaker that are most informative about the structure and voltage-sensing domain. Three types of crevasse models can be envisioned. The first model implies that the transmembrane movement of S4 is relatively large and that the rest of the protein remains relatively static. The second model depicts the opposite extreme in which there is little transmembrane movement of S4, but the location of the barrier and the structures of the crevasses change. The third model is a hybrid of the other two; S4 charges move outward during activation, but this movement is accompanied by an inward movement of the transition barrier and a change in the structures of the crevasses. The first and largest category of 6-TM KK+ channel sequences has the same length of S2-S3 linkers as most eukaryotic Kv channels; this category is the most similar to eukaryotic Kv channels. According to the authors, the most closely related sequence to that of KvAP is the KvCA sequence from Clostridium acetobutylicum.
Novel fibers for soliton communications

Summary form only given. Solitons continue to be an active area of research for high-capacity transmission and high-speed all-optical processing. In conjunction with proposed system architectures and optical processing configurations are fiber designs with new radial refractive-index profiles and introducing axial variation. This talk reviews recent developments in fiber design and fabrication that may enable the commercial deployment of soliton networks. Fibers with high nonlinearity, dispersion tapering and built-in dispersion management will be discussed in detail.
The investigation of redox reactions with a scanning tunneling microscope: Experimental and theoretical aspects

Abstract The tunneling current between the tip and a sample in a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) can be enhanced by the presence of an electroactive adsorbate on the sample. We have used the transfer Hamiltonian mechanism to determine the dependence of this current on various system parameters like the bias voltage, the energy of reorganization, and electronic coupling of the redox centre to the tip and the substrate. We estimate that a fast redox couple would rise give to currents in the pA to nA range; furthermore, the adsorbate density of states will be reflected in d j /d V . We also discuss experimental considerations in examining electron transfer via a redox adsorbate using an STM.
The Effect of Social Capital on Technology Adoption: Evidence from Rural Tanzania

This paper develops and tests a model of technology adoption which predicts that the probability of adoption is increasing in household-level human capital and land endowments and village-level adoption patterns and social capital. The results of implementing the model with data from the plateau zone of Tanzania suggest that the probability of adoption of improved fertilizer is increasing in land endowments, the cumulative proportion of adopters, the presence of tribally-based social affiliations, and the village distance from a local market. When adoption patterns are omitted from the implementation of the model, it is shown that the probability of adoption remains increasing in land endowments and ethnic affiliations, and is also positively associated with consultative norms, the adoption of improved seeds, the availability of credit and extension services, and the average number of years that households have resided in the village. The results are robust with different sub-samples of the available data and after testing for multicollinearity, omitted variables, and simultaneity, where indices of ethnic fractionalization and land inequality are used as exogenous instruments. Overall, these results support the finding that tribally-based social affiliations act as a form of social capital in the adoption decision and provide an economic justification, during the design of extension programs, for investments in social assessments in order to analyze characteristics of local social structures.
The laryngeal mask airway in the difficult paediatric airway: an assessment of positioning and use in fibreoptic intubation

The laryngeal mask airway (LMA) was used in 34 children who presented with difficult airways and difficulty in intubation. All 34 children were a grade 3 or grade 4 Cormack and Leehane view at conventional laryngoscopy. The laryngeal mask airway was used as part of the anaesthetic technique. It was either used as the method of airway maintenance during a short procedure or as an aid to fibreoptic intubation. The results of its use in this group of patients showed that overall a good airway was obtained in 73% of patients and an adequate airway in 27%, and in no patient was a poor airway obtained. The fibreoptic positioning of the LMA, taken from the distal aperture of the laryngeal mask airway showed that, overall, in 29.5% of patients a full view of the glottis (grade 1) was obtained, in 29.5% of patients a partial view of the glottis (grade 2) was obtained and in 41% a view of the epiglottis only (grade 3) was obtained. In no patient was a view excluding the epiglottis obtained. In children with a mucopolysaccharide disorder, the number of children who had a grade 3 view increased to 54%. Children with a disorder other than mucopolysaccharidosis had a grade 3 view in only 17% of cases. Children with mucopolysaccharidoses had a grade 1 view in only 14% of cases compared with 58% in the group with other disorders. Of the 34 patients, 21 patients were intubated on 31 separate occasions. There were no failures. The complications of the fibreoptic intubation technique described are outlined.
High-performance computing tools for modeling evolution in epidemics

We describe a series of stepwise refinements of a biological model resulting in a high-performance simulation system for individual-based models of the co-evolutionary dynamics associated with spatially explicit epidemic processes. Our model includes two competing host species, a macroparasite capable of serving as a vector, and the vector-borne microparasite. Genetic algorithms are used to simulate genetic change; we are particularly interested in the evolution of pathogen virulence. The simulation system employs cellular automata to track individual organisms distributed over a two-dimensional lattice. Our models are able to identify each individual's parentage, and to account for both biotic and abiotic spatial heterogeneity. Using the developed system we conducted a series of experiments to demonstrate how individual-based modeling and explicit representation of space, although computationally expensive, can produce qualitatively new biological results.
More Data on ORI Variables

The effects of selected fuel additivies, engine operating conditions, and driving modes on ORI have been investigated for the 1975 Ford 400 CID engine. Reduced coolant temperatures significantly lowered ORI. Methanol appears to reduce ORI. Variables which do not produce strong trends are increased air-fuel ratio, a driving cycle with wide open throttle accelerations, a fuel with a carrier oil additive, and heavier fuels. An inverse relationship between initial octane requirements and ORI was observed. /GMRL/
Solid-solid interactions—IV: Thorium nitrate-urea complexes

Abstract Using the technique of solid-solid interaction and from solution the following series of complexes were obtained: [Th(NO 3 ) 4 (Urea) 2 (H 2 O) 2 ], [Th(NO 3 ) 4 (urea) 3 (H 2 O) 1 ], [Th(Urea) 6 (H 2 O) 2 ](NO 3 ) 4 , [Th(NO 3 ) 2 (Urea) 6 ](NO 3 ) 2 , [Th(NO 3 ) 4 (Urea) 2 (H 2 O) 1 ] and [Th(Urea) 8 ](NO 3 ) 4 . In all cases urea exhibited oxygen-to-thorium bonding. A reasonable argument for octacoordination could be made for all of the complexes except [Th(NO 3 ) 4 (Urea) 2 (H 2 O) 1 ]. Finally, the deleterious effects upon the infra-red spectra are noted owing to KBr-complex interactions occurring in the solid state in KBr pellets.
Cleavage of nonphenolic β-1 diarylpropane lignin model dimers by manganese peroxidase from Phanerochaete chrysosporium

Purified manganese peroxidase (MnP) from Phanerochaete chrysosporium oxidizes nonphenolic β-1 diarylpropane lignin model compounds in the presence of Tween 80, and in three- to fourfold lower yield in its absence. In the presence of Tween 80, 1-(3′,4′-diethoxyphenyl)-1-hydroxy-2-(4′-methoxyphenyl)propane (I) was oxidized to 3,4-diethoxybenzaldehyde (II), 4-methoxyacetophenone (III) and 1-(3′,4′-diethoxyphenyl)-1-oxo-2-(4′-methoxyphenyl)propane (IV), while only 3,4-diethoxybenzaldehyde (II) and 4-methoxyacetophenone (III) were detected when the reaction was conducted in the absence of Tween 80. In contrast to the oxidation of this substrate by lignin peroxidase (LiP), oxidation of substrates by MnP did not proceed under anaerobic conditions. When the dimer (I) was deuterated at the α position and subsequently oxidized by MnP in the presence of Tween 80, yields of 3,4-diethoxybenzaldehyde, 4-methoxyacetophenone remained constant, while the yield of the α-keto dimeric product (IV) decreased by approximately sixfold, suggesting the involvement of a hydrogen abstraction mechanism. MnP also oxidized the α-keto dimeric product (IV) to yield 3,4-diethoxybenzoic acid (V) and 4-methoxyacetophenone (III), in the presence and, in lower yield, in the absence of Tween 80. When the reaction was performed in the presence of 18O2, both products, 3,4-diethoxybenzoic acid and 4-methoxyacetophenone, contained one atom of 18O. Finally, MnP oxidized the substrate 1-(3′,5′-dimethoxyphenyl)-1-hydroxy-2-(4′-methoxyphenyl)propane (IX) to yield 3,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde (XI), 4-methoxyacetophenone (III) and 1-(3′,5′-dimethoxyphenyl)-1-oxo-2-(4′-methoxyphenyl)propane (X). In sharp contrast, LiP was not able to oxidize IX. Based on these results, we propose a mechanism for the MnP-catalyzed oxidation of these dimers, involving hydrogen abstraction at a benzylic carbon, rather than electron abstraction from an aromatic ring.
Latent Image Formation

Three basic types of silver halide, silver bromide, silver iodide and silver chloride are used in photographic film and paper. In some applications, combinations, for example, silver-bromo-iodide, are used.
Peripheral inflammatory root resorption. A review of the literature with case reports.

Abstract External resorptions associated with inflammation in marginal tissues are many times misdiagnosed and confused with caries and internal resorptions. A lack of uniformity in nomenclature has added to the confusion. This paper reviews the literature and presents cases to illustrate a rational approach to diagnosis and treatment. A new name is suggested to better reflect the features of this type of root resorption: peripheral inflammatory root resorption.
Some results for multidimensional stationary independent increment processes

The characteristic function, cumulants and moments of vector-valued multidimensional processes, satisfying properties similar to stationary independent increments, are derived. By considering a set of additional postulates for such processes, it is shown that the marginal distribution of such processes is multivariate Poisson. Some of the results in this paper are extensions of the properties of the first two moments of a univariate one-dimensional process with stationary independent increments.
Effects of lidocaine and procainamide on normal and abnormal intraventricular electrograms during sinus rhythm.

The effect of lidocaine (n = 6) and procainamide (n = 12) on electrogram characteristics from electrically normal right ventricular and electrically abnormal left ventricular endocardial sites was determined in 18 patients with prior myocardial infarction. Bipolar electrograms were recorded during sinus rhythm with No. 6F catheters positioned at a left ventricular abnormal site (electrograms fulfilling two of the following criteria: amplitude less than 3 mV, duration greater than 70 msec, or an amplitude to duration ratio less than .046) and normal sites at the right ventricular apex (RVA) and right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT). All electrograms were recorded from the same location before and after intravenous lidocaine or procainamide administered to obtain mean serum concentrations of 4.2 +/- 0.6 and 9.42 +/- 2 micrograms/ml respectively. Lidocaine and procainamide had no significant effect on sinus cycle length or electrogram amplitude. After lidocaine, no significant change in QRS width (112 +/- 23 vs 114 +/- 24 msec), left ventricular electrogram duration (76 +/- 21 vs 78 +/- 15 msec), or right ventricular electrogram duration (RVA 33 +/- 9 vs 33 +/- 10 msec, RVOT 31 +/- 9 vs 33 +/- 11 msec) was noted during sinus rhythm. At a paced cycle length of 600 msec, there was also no change in the paced QRS duration (197 vs 198 msec), the RVA electrogram duration (30 vs 32 msec), the RVOT electrogram duration (49 vs 52 msec), or the left ventricular electrogram duration (102 vs 108 msec).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
And Then There Were Three

Consolidation in the search engine industry poses a serious threat to the quality of information available to citizens and scientists and to the ability of individuals and organizations to exercise the right of free speech. It makes little difference whether there is a monopoly of one or an oligopoly of three search engine companies. In either case, there is a need for oversight or regulation, or for increased search engine competition. If a "natural monopoly" on searches exists, the public interest would best be served by government oversight; if a monopoly or oligopoly is not natural to the provisioning of search technology, competition should be stimulated and nurtured. However, if market forces do not work to inhibit monopoly or oligopoly, controls should be imposed on the dominant firms. Such control could take the form of regular performance testing to ensure unbiased search results and the absence of impediments to the exercise of free speech.
Distribution of Bidrin in the Foliage of Treated Trees

A 4-year study was made of the distribution patterns of Bidrin®. (3-hydroxy-N-N-dimethyl-cis-crotonamide dimethyl phosphate) and/or its metabolites in the foliage of trees treated by different methods. Thirteen species of nursery-grown trees were used: sugar maple, Acer saccharinum L.; gray birch, Betula lutea Michx.; flowering dogwood, Cornus florida L..; Washington hawthorn, Crataegus Phaenobyrum Mel.; “Moraine Ash,” Fraxinus holotricha “Moraine”; green ash, F. pennsylvanica L..; “Moraine Locust,” Gleditsia triacanthos “Moraine”; American sycamore, Platanus occidentatis L..; eastern red oak, Quercus borealis Michx.; black locust, Robinia pseudoacacia L..; common lilac, Syringa vulgaris L..; American basswood, Tilia americana L.; and an ornamental variety of elm, Ulmus americana var. ascendens Slavin. Leaf samples were taken from various sectors of the tree crown and were used for bioassays with Daphnia pulex DeGeer. Distribution patterns were significantly better following root implants than following trunk implants.
The Causes of Hostile Media Judgments

This research investigated the mechanisms involved in the hostile media effect, in which partisans tend to judge news coverage as biased against their own side. Subjects on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the abortion issue were shown television news coverage of both issues. They were then tested for memory of program content and judgments of bias and imbalance in coverage. Mideast partisans judged coverage to be biased against their own side, replicating previous findings; abortion partisans showed a much less consistent pattern of hostile media judgments. Prior beliefs about media bias, together with issue attitudes, were found to account for hostile media judgments. Subjects also tended to selectively categorize specific items in a direction favorable to their attitude, a process tending to inhibit hostile media judgments.
Higher-order anisotropic flows and dihadron correlations in Pb-Pb collisions at sNN=2.76 TeV in a multiphase transport model

Using a multiphase transport model that includes both initial partonic and final hadronic scatterings, we have studied higher-order anisotropic flows as well as dihadron correlations as functions of pseudorapidity and azimuthal angular differences between trigger and associated particles in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{{s}_{NN}}=2.76$ TeV. With parameters in the model determined previously from fitting the measured multiplicity density of mid-pseudorapidity charged particles in central collisions and their elliptic flow in midcentral collisions, the calculated higher-order anisotropic flows from the two-particle cumulant method reproduce approximately those measured by the ALICE Collaboration, except at small centralities where they are slightly overestimated. Similar to experimental results, the two-dimensional dihadron correlations at most central collisions show a ridge structure at the near side and a broad structure at the away side. The short- and long-range dihadron azimuthal correlations, corresponding to small and large pseudorapidity differences, respectively, are studied for triggering particles with different transverse momenta and are found to be qualitatively consistent with experimental results from the CMS Collaboration. The relation between the short-range and long-range dihadron correlations with that induced by back-to-back jet pairs produced from initial hard collisions is also discussed.
Validation of an enhanced knowledge-based method for segmentation and quantitative analysis of intrathoracic airway trees from three-dimensional CT images

Accurate assessment of airway physiology, evaluated in terms of geometric changes, is critically dependent upon the accurate imaging and image segmentation of the 3D airway tree structure. We have previously reported a knowledge-based method for 3D airway tree segmentation from high resolution CT (HRCT) images. Here we report a substantially improved version of our method. In the current implementation, the method consists of several stages. First, the lung borders are automatically determined in the 3D set of HRCT data. The primary airway tree is semi-automatically identified. In the next stage, potential airways are determined in individual CT slices using a rule- based system that uses contextual information and a priori knowledge about pulmonary anatomy. Using 3D connectivity properties of the pulmonary airway tree, the 3D tree is constructed from the set of adjacent slices. The method's performance and accuracy were assessed in five 3D HRCT canine images. Computer-identified airways matched 226/258 observer-defined airways (87.6%); the computer method failed to detect the airways in the remaining 32 locations. By visual assessment of rendered airway trees, the experienced observers judged the computer-detected airway trees as highly realistic.
CO 2 lidar backscatter profiles over Hawaii during fall 1988

Aerosol and cloud backscatter data, obtained over a 24-day period in fall 1988 with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Doppler lidar at 10.59-micron wavelength, are analyzed by using a new technique to lessen biases that are due to dropouts. Typical backscatter cross sections were significantly lower than those routinely observed over the continental United States, although episodic backscatter enhancements caused by cirrus and mineral dust also occurred. Implications of these data on the proposed Laser Atmospheric Wind Sounder wind profiling satellite sensor are discussed.