cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Ikaros and aiolos undergo different post-transcriptional regulation in mice and humans (HEM4P.249)

The Ikaros family of transcription factors is important for T cell development and leukemogenesis. In mice, homozygous expression of an Ikaros isoform that is unable to bind DNA leads to a complete block in T cell development, while heterozygous expression of the same Ikaros isoform results in leukemogenesis. To better understand the roles of Ikaros family members in human and murine T cell development, we used quantitative RT-PCR and Western blot analysis to determine the mRNA and protein levels of Ikaros family members in FACS-purified murine and human thymocytes. As thymocytes mature from the double negative (DN) to double positive (DP) stages, Ikaros mRNA levels increase 3.0±1.8 fold (p
An Annotated Bibliography of Law Review Articles Addressing Feminist Perspectives in 'Law in Literature'

Ms. Pettinato provides a selective annotated bibliography covering law review articles that address the topic of "law in literature" from a feminist perspective. She includes an essay that explains the motivation for the bibliography, the working definitions of law in literature and feminism used in its construction, and the methodology for finding and selecting articles for inclusion.
Image retrieval with relevance feedback: from heuristic weight adjustment to optimal learning methods

Various relevance feedback algorithms have been proposed in recent years in the area of content-based image retrieval. This paper gives a brief review and analysis on existing techniques-from early heuristic-based feature weighting schemes to recently proposed optimal learning algorithms. In addition, the kernel-based biased discriminant analysis (KBDA) is proposed to fit the unique nature of relevance feedback as a biased classification problem. As a novel variant of traditional discriminant analysis, the proposed algorithm provides a trade-off between discriminant transform and regression. The kernel form is derived to deal with non-linearity in an elegant way. Experimental results indicate that significant improvement in retrieval performance is achieved by the new scheme.
Idiopathic Hyperlipemia and Primary Hypercholesteremic Xanthomatosis1

Because heparin when administered intravenously is known to decrease the turbidity existing in normal plasma during postalimentary hyperlipemia (1, 2) it was thought of interest to study the effect of intravenously administered heparin on the turbidity, the electrophoretic pattern and the various lipids of the plasma of patients with primary hypercholesteremic xanthomatosis and idiopathic hyperlipemia. Since significant changes in the electrophoretic pattern occurred in both groups of patients and since electrophoretic analyses of the plasma of normal individuals after the intravenous injection of heparin have been reported so far in only one case the findings in a group of healthy persons are included in this report.
Mediastinal Emphysema Resulting from Extraction of an Impacted Mandibular Third Molar

An air-turbine handpiece was used to section an impacted mandibular third molar in an extraction procedure. While the handpiece was being used, a sudden swelling of regions of the patient’s neck was noticed; he had difficulty breathing. After the operation, the patient was admitted to a hospital for observation. Chest radiographs showed air in the mediastinal space.
Hardening mechanisms in a dynamic strain aging alloy, Hastelloy X, during isothermal and thermomechanical cyclic deformation

Isothermal cyclic deformation tests were conducted on HASTELLOY X with a total strain range of ±0.3 pct at several temperatures and strain rates. Cyclic hardening exhibited a broad peak between about 200 °C and 700 °C, with a maximum near 500 °C of about 80 pct increase in stress amplitude, Δσ/2, at failure. The present work examines the mechanisms contributing to this marked cyclic hardening. Cr23C6 precipitation on dislocations contributed to hardening, but only with sufficient time above about 500 °C. The substantial hardening rate at lower temperatures or shorter times was attributed to solute drag. The contribution of solute drag was evidenced in tests at both 400 °C and 600 °C by a continually decreasing strain rate sensitivity of the AcrJ2. Solute drag alone produced very considerable cyclic hardening. The increase in AcrJ2 after 1000 cycles at 427 °C was 75 pct of the maximum observed at higher temperatures where carbides did precipitate. Additionally, thermomechanical tests were conducted between various temperature limits, but with the same ±0.3 pct mechanical strain range. Hardening was bounded by isothermal behavior at the temperature limits of the thermomechanical cycles, except for tests between 400 °C and 600 °C which exhibited extreme hardening. However, microstructural examination did not suggest a cause. Specimens subjected to thermomechanical cycles appeared similar to those isothermally cycled at the maximum temperature of the thermomechanical cycle, including those from the 400 °C to 600 °C tests.
Breath-by-breath radioabsorptiometric assay of stable xenon in expired air.

A measurement technique based upon gamma-ray absorptiometry is described. A narrow, monoenergetic beam is transmitted through a fixed distance of gas. The design of the Xe gas detector system developed is shown. Overall the analyser represents a low-cost alternative to existing techniques for the analysis of high atomic number gases in expired air.
An Introduction to this Special Issue: Neuroimaging in the Chemical Senses

This special issue of Chemosensory Perception is devoted to neuroimaging investigations of the chemical senses. While there were early efforts by Lord Adrian and R.W. Moncrieff to image chemosensory responses in the brain, and later investigations by others using EEG, the modern era of chemosensory neuroimaging really began in 1992 with the publication of “Functional localization and lateralization of human olfactory cortex” by Zatorre, Jones-Gotman, Evans, and Meyer in the journal Nature. In that study, long-handled cotton swamps saturated with odorant were waved in front of the nose and, to use the vernacular of the day, the piriform cortex “lit up.” Since that landmark study, some 20 years ago, the field has expanded dramatically. PET has largely been replaced with functional magnetic resonance imaging and advanced electroand magneto-encephalographic techniques. Cotton wands have been replaced with fMRI compatible olfactometers equipped to measure sniffs, temperature, and humidity. Collectively, these techniques are providing unprecedented information about the location, timing, and interaction of brain networks that underlie our chemosensations. This special issue contains a collection of new findings, reviews, and theoretical expositions that highlight these advances. However, we begin with a retrospective from two of the authors who ushered in this new era. Marilyn Jones-Gotman and Robert Zatorre provide an engaging account of how their interests in the chemical senses developed and ultimately how the 1992 Nature paper came to be. Fourteen invited papers from 42 authors then follow the retrospective. We wish to offer our sincere gratitude to the authors for their excellent papers, their patience, and their help in compiling this special issue. We also wish to thank the editor of Chemosensory Perception Jeanine Delwiche and the editorial board for their confidence and enthusiasm in this project.
Neurotoxin-modulated uptake of sodium by highly purified preparations of the electroplax tetrodotoxin-binding glycopeptide reconstituted into lipid vesicles.

Using the dialysable detergent CHAPS (3-[(3-cholamidopropyl)-dimethylammonio]-1-propane sulfonate), the tetrodotoxin-binding protein from the electroplax of the electric eel has been purified to a high degree of both chemical homogeneity and toxin-binding activity. On sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the best preparations showed only a single microheterogeneous band atMr approximately 260,000, despite attempts to visualize smaller bands by sample overloading. Upon dialysis, this material became incorporated into the membranes of small unilamellar vesicles, and in this form the purified protein exhibited tetrodotoxin-binding properties similar to the component in the original electroplax membrane. Furthermore, in the presence of activator neurotoxins the vesicles were able to accumulate isotopic sodium in a manner similar to that previously described for less active or less pure preparations of vesicles containing either mammalian or eel electroplax toxinbinding proteins. Quantitative consideration of the isotopic transport activity of this pure material, along with the high degree of purity of the protein, strongly suggests that the 260-kDa glycopeptide from electroplax is necessary and sufficient to account for the sodium channel function seen in these studies, and eliminates the possible involvement of smaller peptides in the channel phenomena observed.
Effect of hypothalamic and peripheral fluoxetine injection on natural patterns of macronutrient intake in the rat.

The effect of the serotonin (5-HT) reuptake inhibitor, fluoxetine (FLU), on nutrient intake was examined in rats given free access to three pure macronutrient diets (protein, carbohydrate and fat). Fluoxetine was administered either peripherally or directly into the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) at three different times of the rats' nocturnal cycle. Using a range of doses for IP (0.6–10 mg/kg) and PVN injection (3.2–100 nmol), FLU exerted a selective, dose-dependent suppression (−20% to −60%) of carbohydrate intake only during the first hour of the dark. No change in the consumption of protein or fat was observed. This suppressive effect in the early dark period was not observed during the late dark phase, after either IP or PVN administration. In animals with brain cannulae aimed at different hypothalamic nuclei, the nutrient-suppressive effect of FLU was found to be localized to the medial hypothalamic nuclei, namely, the ventromedial, dorsomedial and suprachiasmatic nuclei, in addition to the PVN. These results, along with other published work, support a role for hypothalamic 5-HT systems in the control of nutrient intake in a circadian-related manner and in mediating the central action of the anorectic compound FLU.
SPARC: a security and privacy aware virtual machinecheckpointing mechanism

Virtual Machine (VM) checkpointing enables a user to capture a snapshot of a running VM on persistent storage. VM checkpoints can be used to roll back the VM to a previous "good" state in order to recover from a VM crash or to undo a previous VM activity. Although VM checkpointing eases systems administration and improves usability, it can also increase the risks of exposing sensitive information. This is because the checkpoint may store VM's physical memory pages that contain confidential information such as clear text passwords, credit card numbers, patients' health records, tax returns, etc.This paper presents the design and implementation of SPARC, a security and privacy aware checkpointing mechanism. SPARC enables users to selectively exclude processes and terminal applications that contain sensitive data from being checkpointed. Selective exclusion is performed by the hypervisor by sanitizing memory pages in the checkpoint file that belong to the excluded applications. We describe the design challenges in effectively tracking and excluding process-specific memory contents from the checkpoint file in a VM running the commodity Linux operating system. Our preliminary results show that SPARC imposes only 1% - 5.3% of overhead if most pages are dirty before checkpointing is performed.
Sediment toxicity and community composition of benthos and colonized periphyton in the Everglades-Florida Bay transitional zone.

This survey provides information on sediment toxicity and structural characteristics of the macrobenthic and periphytic algal communities at 10 locations in northeast Florida Bay. Whole sediments were not acutely toxic to Mysidopsis bahia (marine invertebrate) and Hyalella azteca (freshwater invertebrate) relative to reference sediment. Survival was between 80% and 100%. Community structure of the macrobenthos and algal-periphyton varied spatially. A total of 116 benthic species were identified at the 10 locations; mean density was greater in Shell Creek (10,017 organisms/m2) and least in Canal C-103 (441 organisms/m2). Tubificids and the crustacean Halmyrapseudes bahamensis (Family: Apseudidae) dominated the benthos at 4 of 10 locations. One hundred and six species of periphytic algae representing 52 genera were identified on substrates colonized for 21days. Mean algal density was greater in Florida Bay (19,440 cells/cm2) and least in Long Sound (10cells/cm2). Diatoms and blue green algae dominated the algal-periphyton. Major diatom genera were Navicula,Brachysira and Nitzschia. The more abundant and widely occurring blue–green taxa were species of Oscillatoria,Polycystis and Lyngbya. Ash free dry weight and chlorophyll a were significantly greater for periphyton colonized in Canal C-111 and Florida Bay and the least in Long Sound. Spatial variation and the availability of reference areas are important issues that need consideration in future biomonitoring efforts conducted in this region to ensure relevancy of results.
A DsRed fluorescent protein marker under polyubiquitin promoter regulation allows visual and amplified gene detection of transgenic Caribbean fruit flies in field traps

Field population surveillance of a targeted insect pest species is critical in evaluating management programs such as the sterile insect technique. Fluorescent powder dyes currently used to distinguish released tephritids from the field population are not optimal in terms of reliability and human health issues. Genetically transformed tephritid species present the possibility of using fluorescent transgenes for marking. Here we studied the stability of DsRed fluorescence in transgenic flies maintained in aqueous torula yeast borax and propylene glycol. DsRed was stable in both solutions for three weeks by visual microscopic observations and could be used to unambiguously distinguish them from non-fluorescent wild type flies. To compensate for any potential ambiguity in visual identification a diagnostic PCR was developed that could specifically amplify the exotic heterologous marker gene. Therefore, the use of sterile transgenic insect strains carrying stably integrated fluorescent protein marker genes in biologically-based control programs could greatly improve released fly identification in pest management programs.
Ability of Sextant Biopsies to Predict Radical Prostatectomy Stage

Objectives. There are few studies evaluating multiple variables on sextant biopsies with the intent to predict stage in radical prostatectomy specimens. Methods. We studied 113 sextant biopsies with corresponding totally submitted radical prostatectomy specimens. Variables evaluated on sextant biopsies included total length and percent of cancer; maximum length and percent of cancer on one core; location (apex, mid, base); bilaterality; Gleason grade; number of cores involved; serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level; and serum PSA density (PSAD). Radical prostatectomy stage was classified as organ versus non-organ confined. Results. The following variables individually correlated with radical prostatectomy stage: total cancer measured in millimeters (P <0.0001) or percent (P <0.0005); biopsy Gleason score (P <0.0001); number of involved cores (P <0.0001); maximum cancer on one core measured in millimeters (P = 0.0001); maximum percent of cancer on one core (P = 0.01); bilaterality (P = 0.01); PSA level (P = 0.03), and PSAD (P = 0.001). The most predictive sets of two variables that correlated with stage included high Gleason score (P <0.0001) combined with numbers of cores involved (P = 0.002). When biopsies had Gleason scores of 6 or less, two or fewer positive cores, and serum PSA of 0 to 4 ng/mL, 89% were organ confined. When biopsies had Gleason scores of 6 or less with two unilaterally positive cores, 87% were organ confined. In biopsies with Gleason scores of 7 or more and more than one positive core, only 10% were organ confined. Conclusions. The most important predictors of stage by sextant needle biopsy evaluation are numbers of cores involved with carcinoma and high Gleason score. Bilaterality and serum PSA values improved prediction in two small subgroups. In 37% of our population we were able to predict with a greater than 87% probability the organ-confined versus non-organ-confined status.
The Left and Minority Representation: The Labour Party, Muslim Candidates, and Inclusion Tradeoffs.

As ethnic diversity rises across Europe, the Left faces a trade-off between incorporating new minorities while retaining support from settled, working-class voters. Focusing on the Labour Party’s selection of Muslims and employing a dataset containing over 42,000 local election candidates in England, this article argues that inclusion is less likely where core voters are most concerned about the representation of Muslims’ material and religious interests: economically deprived areas with sizable Muslim populations. It shows that in these areas Muslim candidates underperform at the polls and Labour Parties are less likely to choose Muslim candidates here as a result. Selection thus varies based on the economic and cultural threats that Muslim representation poses to the Left’s core constituency. These findings contribute to our understanding of the forces that shape ethnic minority political incorporation across contexts.
Case of maternal and infantile choriocarcinoma following normal pregnancy

► 33 years old woman diagnosed with choriocarcinoma after delivery, her newborn son with the same diagnosis. ► Case of transplasental dissemination of choriacarcinoma. ► Advanced disease both in the mother and the infant.
Gas-phase oxirane addition to acylium ions on reaction with 1,3-dioxolanes elucidated by tandem and triple stage mass spectrometric experiments

Acylium ions containing a variety of substituents all undergo an unprecedented reaction with 1,3-dioxolanes which gives rise to a cyclic, resonance-stabilized oxonium ion, formally the product of oxirane (C2H4O) addition to the reagent ion. The structure for the ion–molecule product is supported by multiple-stage mass spectrometric experiments, performed in a pentaquadrupole mass spectrometer, which show the expected fragmentation by C2H4O loss to yield the original reactant acylium ions. The oxonium ions are formed in relatively high abundance in many cases and are observed even when proton-transfer reactions would be expected to occur competitively owing to the acidity of some of the acylium ions studied. This ion–molecule reaction is proposed to serve as a general method for identification and/or trapping of ions of the whole acylium ion class and also for the gas-phase generation of the oxonium ions. The reaction with 1,3-dioxolane is also useful in distinguishing the most stable C2H3O+ ion, the acetyl cation, from its two stable isomers, O-protonated ketene and the oxiranyl cation. The thioacetyl cation, the only sulfur analog investigated, also reacts with dioxolane to form the corresponding oxirane addition product, indicating that the C2H4O addition reaction occurs and that it may be useful for identification of the thioacylium class and for the gas-phase generation of sulfur analogs of oxonium ions.
Wild-type and innate immune-deficient mice are not susceptible to the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus

The Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is a newly emerging highly pathogenic virus causing almost 50 % lethality in infected individuals. The development of a small-animal model is critical for the understanding of this virus and to aid in development of countermeasures against MERS-CoV. We found that BALB/c, 129/SvEv and 129/SvEv STAT1 knockout mice are not permissive to MERS-CoV infection. The lack of infection may be due to the low level of mRNA and protein for the MERS-CoV receptor, dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4), in the lungs of mice. The low level of DPP4 in the lungs likely contributes to the lack of viral replication in these mouse models and suggests that a transgenic mouse model expressing DPP4 to higher levels is necessary to create a mouse model for MERS-CoV.
A Northward-propagating Earthquake Sequence in Coastal Southern California?

The devastating 1999 M 7.4 Izmit, Turkey earthquake was “no surprise” (Reilinger et al. , 2000) because it occurred as part of a sequence of earthquakes that have ruptured nearly the entire length of the strike-slip North Anatolian Fault zone (> 1,000 km) since 1912. The 1999 rupture occurred on a segment previously identified as a seismic gap (Toksoz et al. , 1979) and recently studied to understand mechanisms of stress transfer and earthquake triggering along strike-slip faults (Stein et al. , 1997). We suggest that an analogous rupture sequence spanning the last few centuries may be in its later stages along southern California coastal faults. As we will discuss, recently published fault investigations in the northern Baja California peninsula (Mexico) and coastal southern California (USA) reveal evidence for geologically contemporaneous or sequential earthquakes along a > 300-km-length, predominantly strike-slip seismic zone. This coastal fault zone includes structures previously mapped as the Agua Blanca, Rose Canyon, San Joaquin Hills, and southern Newport-Inglewood Fault zones (Figures 1 and 2). Radiocarbon dating and the historic record indicate that moderate to large earthquakes occurred after A.D. 1640 ± 160, 1523 to 1769, and 1635 to 1855 on the Agua Blanca Fault (Rockwell et al. , 1993), on the Rose Canyon Fault (Rockwell and Murbach, 1999), and in the San Joaquin Hills (Grant et al. , 2002), respectively. Additionally, a moderate to large ( M ≥ 6.5) earthquake is interpreted for the near offshore region in A.D. 1800 based on historical accounts (Toppozada et al. , 1981). Finally, a Mw 6.4 earthquake on the southern Newport-Inglewood Fault zone (NIFZ) followed in 1933 (Barrows, 1974; Hauksson and Gross, 1991) and increased the Coulomb stress on the northern NIFZ in Los Angeles (Stein et al. , 1994). The date of last surface rupture of the …
A headholder for stereotaxic operations of small laboratory animals

Abstract A headholder for small laboratory animals is described in which the head is kept in position by two needles tightened onto the posterior part of the occipital bone on both sides. The head is oriented in the horizontal plane with the help of a removable bridge fixed at three points. Consequently this apparatus offers the advantage of: (1) not damaging the eardrums with subsequent impairment of hearing: (2) easily placing the head in the correct position; and, (3) giving free access to the lateral aspect of the head.
Blocking hedgehog signaling after ablation of the dorsal neural tube allows regeneration of the cardiac neural crest and rescue of outflow tract septation.

Cardiac neural crest cells (CNCC) migrate into the caudal pharynx and arterial pole of the heart to form the outflow septum. Ablation of the CNCC results in arterial pole malalignment and failure of outflow septation, resulting in a common trunk overriding the right ventricle. Unlike preotic cranial crest, the postotic CNCC do not normally regenerate. We applied the hedgehog signaling inhibitor, cyclopamine (Cyc), to chick embryos after CNCC ablation and found normal heart development at day 9 suggesting that the CNCC population was reconstituted. We ablated the CNCC, and labeled the remaining neural tube with DiI/CSRE and applied cyclopamine. Cells migrated from the neural tube in the CNCC-ablated, cyclopamine-treated embryos but not in untreated CNCC-ablated embryos. The newly generated cells followed the CNCC migration pathways, expressed neural crest markers and supported normal heart development. Finally, we tested whether reducing hedgehog signaling caused redeployment of the dorsal–ventral axis of the injured neural tube, allowing generation of new neural crest-like cells. The dorsal neural tube marker, Pax7, was maintained 12 h after CNCC ablation with Cyc treatment but not in the CNCC-ablated alone. This disruption of dorsal–ventral neural patterning permits a new wave of migratory cardiac neural crest-like cells.
The metamorphosis from LCEP to UCEP in the metastable three-phase region in type V phase-diagrams

Abstract The three-phase line in a type V phase diagram starts with a lower critical end point (LCEP), where the two liquid phases merge, and ends with a upper critical end point (UCEP), where the vapor and liquid phases merge. Along the phase line no indication is seen as to why the situation is so different at the end points. If however one considers the complete set of V(x) or p(x) plots, i.e., including all the unstable and metastable binodal lines, it can be seen that a `dramatic' rearrangement takes place somewhere between the ends of the three phase line at the `plait point' transformation. I unearthed many figures showing this transformation and although one obtains the impression that van der Waals and Korteweg were aware of this behavior, no explanation was given in their work. Korteweg described the general rules for special points on the binodals, but no thorough calculation of the plait point transformation seems to exist. This paper is confined to the description of this transformation; the full mathematical treatment will be given in a later publication.
A new and distinct species in the genus Caulimovirus exists as an endogenous plant pararetroviral sequence in its host, Dahlia variabilis

Viruses in certain genera in family Caulimoviridae were shown to integrate their genomic sequences into their host genomes and exist as endogenous pararetroviral sequences (EPRV). However, members of the genus Caulimovirus remained to be the exception and are known to exist only as episomal elements in the infected cell. We present evidence that the DNA genome of a new and distinct Caulimovirus species, associated with dahlia mosaic, is integrated into its host genome, dahlia (Dahlia variabilis). Using cloned viral genes as probes, Southern blot hybridization of total plant DNA from dahlia seedlings showed the presence of viral DNA in the host DNA. Fluorescent in situ hybridization using labeled DNA probes from the D10 genome localized the viral sequences in dahlia chromosomes. The natural integration of a Caulimovirus genome into its host and its existence as an EPRV suggests the co-evolution of this plant-virus pathosystem.
Guatemala's Ladino and Maya Migra Landscapes: The Tangible and Intangible Outcomes of Migration

International migration reorganizes livelihoods in the developing world. As globalization and transnational processes increase, these phenomena penetrate and affect peoples' lives and places in myriad forms. Using ethnographic material, this cross-cultural and cross-regional study examines the impact of social and economic remittances in Guatemalan sending communities. The article reveals the divergent ways—tangible and intangible—in which migra landscapes (the landscapes of migration) unfold in Ladino and Maya townships in Guatemala's Oriente (East) and Occidente (West).
Perceptual accuracy as a variable in marital adjustment.

Abstract This study investigated the ability of maritally-adjusted couples, couples attaining a divorce, and couples in counseling to predict the rewarding effects of their behavior on their spouse. Twenty-six couples, five obtaining a divorce, nine in counseling, and twelve adjusted couples completed a Marital Interaction Questionnaire in which they rated how rewarding each of the behaviors depicted was to them. Then each member predicted how rewarding it was to their spouse. Behaviors depicting six areas of marital interaction were included in the questionnaire. The computed perceptual accuracy scores were analyzed by a three-way classification–Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)–for unequal n's. This analysis yielded a significant main effect of marital status and a significant interaction between marital status by sex of spouse and between marital status by area of interaction. The maritally-adjusted group was always more accurate than the other two groups in their predictions, however, they were significant...
Intracerebral metastatic melanoma: CT evaluation

Abstract Malignant melanoma is the third most common metastatic lesion of the brain. There are features which may be useful in its differentiation from other metastatic or primary tumors.
Data-oriented content query system: searching for data into text on the web

As the Web provides rich data embedded in the immense contents inside pages, we witness many ad-hoc efforts for exploiting fine granularity information across Web text, such as Web information extraction, typed-entity search, and question answering. To unify and generalize these efforts, this paper proposes a general search system--Data-oriented Content Query System(DoCQS)--to search directly into document contents for finding relevant values of desired data types. Motivated by the current limitations, we start by distilling the essential capabilities needed by such content querying. The capabilities call for a conceptually relational model, upon which we design a powerful Content Query Language (CQL). For efficient processing, we design novel index structures and query processing algorithms. We evaluate our proposal over two concrete domains of realistic Web corpora, demonstrating that our query language is rather flexible and expressive, and our query processing is efficient with reasonable index overhead.
TU-C-204B-07: A Comparative Study for Daily Localization with 3D Ultrasound, Cone Beam CT, Implanted Prostate Fiducial Markers and Calypso 4D Localization System for Patients Undergoing IGRT for Prostate Cancer

Purpose: To assess the accuracy and dosimetric implications of multi‐modality, online image‐guided localization methods, including intra‐modality 3D prostate ultrasound, cone beam CT(CBCT), implanted prostate markers and Calypso 4D localization for patients undergoing external beam radiation treatment with IMRT for prostate carcinoma.Materials and methods: Fifteen prostate cancer patients were imaged using IGRT techniques using the following daily imaging sequence: CBCT, kV orthogonal x‐rays of implanted fiducial markers using the On Board Imager (OBI) on a Varian Trilogy TX linac (Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto CA), perform patient shifts based on ClarityTM intramodality 3D U/S‐IGRT system (Resonant Medical Inc., Montreal, Canada) per an IRB‐approved protocol, kV x‐rays (post patient‐shift), and Calypso 4D Localization System (Calypso Medical, Seattle, Washington) for intrafraction motion monitoring, finally treat patient. Residual motion was assessed from differences between kV images of marker positions performed prior to and after U/S‐based shifts. Dosimetric differences were evaluated by computing treatment plans using the average shift values generated by the image‐guided localization methods. Results: The anterior — posterior direction had the largest recorded average shifts, overall being less than 7 mm. Most (65%) of the average shifts calculated between the various IGRT modalities were within 3 mm of each other, and the rest within 3 – 7 mm. Changes in inter‐fiducial distances between simulation and treatment were found to be on average 1.5 mm (maximum of 5.8 mm). Possible causes are rotations, migration and/or prostate size/shape changes. DVHs for the rectum, and bladder show in some instances significant increases in dose received when measured setup shifts were included. Conclusion: The comparison of multi‐modality IGRT techniques is subject to many uncertainties, including prostate intrafraction motion (89% within 3 mm range), changes in the prostate position due to bladder/rectal filling during the time between image acquisitions, and migration of fiducial markers.
Detection and estimation of demagnetization faults in permanent magnet synchronous motors

Abstract This paper presents a symbolic dynamic method for health monitoring of permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSMs), which involves abstraction of a qualitative description from a dynamical system representation of the PMSM. The underlying algorithms rely on state-space embedding of the PMSM's output line current and discretization of the resultant pseudo-state and input spaces. System identification is achieved through inference of the PMSM's dynamical system behavior, and the deviation of the system's output behavior from the nominal expected behavior yields a measure of the estimated fault. A special-purpose test bed has been designed and fabricated for experimental validation of the health monitoring algorithm via controlled accelerated deterioration of magnetization in the PMSM. The performance of the proposed algorithm has been compared with that of a classical motor current signature analysis (MCSA) procedure as well as with a benchmark particle filter for fault detection in PMSMs.
Silent-noisy marksmanship contest with random termination

We consider a marksmanship contest in which Player I has one silent bullet, whereas Player II has one noisy bullet, the first contestant to hit his target wins, and the contest is to be terminated at a random timeT with cdfH(t). The model is a silent-noisy version of our previous paper (Ref. 8), and an extension of silent-noisy duel to nonzero-sum games of timing under an uncertain environment. It is shown that the uncertainty on the termination of the contest has influence on the equilibrium strategies and the equilibrium values, but the silent player has no advantages over the noisy one, in such a nonzero-sum model.
Academic publishing in marketing: best and worst practices

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to offer observations regarding best and weak practices with respect to academic publishing in marketing.Design/methodology/approach – The approach takes the form of personal reflections based on the experience of the author as an editor of the Journal of Marketing and Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science.Findings – Interesting and novel work is most likely to be published in academic journals even when such work has methodological flaws. Research that is methodologically correct but of limited contribution is less likely to be published. Venue‐driven research, replications, most extensions of prior research and data fitting exercises are unlikely to be published in the “better” marketing journals.Practical implications – The paper offers practical advice about how to publish in the better marketing journals and how an author should manage the publication process.Originality/value – The paper offers observations regarding best and weak practices with respect t...
Effects of atmospheric turbulence on the laser cross-beam velocimeter

We have derived an expression for the photocurrent-correlation function for a cross-beam laser velocimeter, taking into account the effects of atmospheric turbulence on the amplitude and phase of the incident beams. The fringe model is used, and the scattering particles are assumed to have a well-defined velocity V. As long as the atmospheric disturbances do not greatly damp out the sinusoidal variations of the photocurrent-correlation function in the time it takes a particle to travel the fringe-separation distance, the disturbances do not hinder the determination of the velocity of the particles from the correlation function. This is well satisfied under typical atmospheric conditions.
Précis of Lack of Character

The contemporary virtue ethics movement has sundered the Utilitarianism/Kantianism gridlock that structured normative ethics for much of the twentieth century; the dyadic menu of orthodox positions has become triadic, and new paths of exploration are now visible to moral philosophers of all theoretical persuasions. This insurgency is substantially due to an appearance of psychological plausibility: Virtue ethicists proffer conceptions of character that are widely considered indispensable to ethical theory's foundations in moral psychology (see Anscombe 1958: 1,15; Williams 1985: 206; Flanagan 1991: 182; Hursthouse 1999: 19-20). The appearance, I argue in Lack of Character (23),2 is largely chimerical. In familiar variants, such as those associated with Aristotelianism, the characterological moral psychology typical of virtue ethics is empirically inadequate: Systematic observation does not reveal the patterns of human behavior such accounts lead one to expect. My argument is based on experimental social psychology, augmented, in the spirit of methodological pluralism, by observations drawn from literature, history, anthropology, and elsewhere, from Survival in Auschwitz to Lord Jim.
Effect of maternal presence on the fear response to an unfamiliar environment as measured by heart rate in rats as a function of age

Rats 16 to 60 days of age were placed in an unfamiliar environment either alone or in the presence of an anesthetized lactating dam. Rats of all ages show a dramatic increase in fear, as measured by heart rate (HR), when placed alone in an unfamiliar environment. Adult rats, however, show a rapid decline in heart rate during the course of a 90-min session, whereas 16-day-old rats show no significant decrease in HR during the same period. These results suggest that the adult rats become less fearful of the test environment over time, but that the 16-day-olds maintain a high level of fear throughout the 90-min test period. Twenty-three- and 30-day-old rats show an adultlike pattern of adaptation to the unfamiliar environment, i.e., their heart rates return partially but not completely to baseline levels within the 90-min session. When an anesthetized lactating dam is present in the test environment, a strikingly different pattern of results is obtained. Heart rate in the 16-day-old rat is immediately reduced to near baseline levels whereas in the young adult (60-day-old) rat the presence of the anesthetized dam has no effect on either initial HR or rate of adaptation. Again the 23- and 30-day-old rats showed an intermediate pattern of adaptation. In two follow-up experiments the effects of adding (Expt. 2) or removing (Expt. 3) an anesthetized dam on the 16-day-old rats' response to an unfamiliar environment was examined. Both experiments showed that animals were more fearful when the dam was absent from the environment than when it was present.
The origin of polarized blackbody radiation from resistively heated multiwalled carbon nanotubes

We observed very pronounced polarization of light emitted by highly aligned free-standing multiwall carbon nanotube (MWNT) sheet in axial direction which is turned to the perpendicular polarization when a number of layers are increased. The radiation spectrum of resistively heated MWNT sheet closely follows to the Plank's blackbody radiation distribution. The obtained polarization features can be described by a classical dielectric cylindrical shell model, taking into consideration the contribution of delocalized π-electrons (π surface plasmons). In absorption (emission) the optical transverse polarizability, which is much smaller than longitudinal one, is substantially suppressed by depolarization effect due to screening by induced charges. This phenomenon suggests very simple and precise method to estimate the alignment of nanotubes in bundles or large assemblies.
Utilizing Peptidic Ordering in the Design of Hierarchical Polyurethane/Ureas

One of the key design components of nature is the utilization of hierarchical arrangements to fabricate materials with outstanding mechanical properties. Employing the concept of hierarchy, a new class of segmented polyurethane/ureas (PUUs) was synthesized containing either a peptidic, triblock soft segment, or an amorphous, nonpeptidic homoblock block soft segment with either an amorphous or a crystalline hard segment to investigate the effects of bioinspired, multiple levels of organization on thermal and mechanical properties. The peptidic soft segment was composed of poly(benzyl-l-glutamate)-block-poly(dimethylsiloxane)-block-poly(benzyl-l-glutamate) (PBLG-b-PDMS-b-PBLG), restricted to the β-sheet conformation by limiting the peptide segment length to <10 residues, whereas the amorphous soft segment was poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS). The hard segment consisted of either 1,6-hexamethylene diisocyanate (crystalline) or isophorone diisocyanate (amorphous) and chain extended with 1,4-butanediol. Thermal a...
Comparison of bacterial and algal utilization of orthophosphate in an estuarine environment

Bacterial utilization of orthophosphate in an estuarine environment has been differentiated from algal utilization by using flow-filters of 5.0, 1.2 and 0.45 μm poresize. Examination by light microscopy showed that most of the bacterial population passed through a 5.0-μm filter, whereas most algae were retained. In all experiments, bacterial and algal cell numbers and biomass were estimated. P-uptake by algae and bacteria was closely correlated with cell biomass. P-uptake by algae was high only in the summer months, whereas P-uptake by bacteria was high throughout the year. Neither algal nor bacterial P-uptake, however, was correlated with temperature or dissolved orthophosphate, total organic phosphate or total phosphate concentrations. Cell biomass of algae at a given time had a high correlation with dissolved organic phosphate levels in 2 weeks prior to sampling (r=0.830) and a low correlation in the 2 weeks following sampling (r=0.0005). Algal cell numbers had a high correlation with bacterial cell numbers (r=0.950). The biomass of algae and bacteria also had a high correlation (r=0.902). The rate of P-uptake from the water by algae and bacteria varied with season and with the species composition of the natural population.
Community Crime Prevention: A Review Essay On Program Evaluations And Policy Implications:

Rising crime rates through the 1980s suggest that traditional methods of policing society (i.e., police patrol and arrest) are not fully effective in controlling criminal victimizations. Analysis of community crime prevention programs suggests that while such programs tend to be favorably received by the public and the police, they only infrequently reduce crime. Evaluation research in this area tends to suggest that the apparent failures of crime prevention programs do not result from inappropriate conceptualization, but rather stem from inadequate program implementation and subsequent monitoring. This article examines the evaluation studies usually done as part of community crime prevention programs and addresses the methodological and substantive problems associated with them. Policy guidelines for implementing future crime prevention programs are discussed. Finally, the paper concludes with a discussion of two common themes implicit in the community crime prevention literature which could provide a so...
Portal Hypertensive gastropathy.

Abstract Portal hypertensive gastropathy (PHG), a term used to describe the endoscopic appearance of gastric mucosa with a characteristic mosaic-like pattern with or without red spots, is a common finding in patients with portal hypertension. Current classification systems that describe the severity of PHG have many limitations, but it appears that simple grading systems have better inter- and intraobserver agreement. The wide variation in the reported prevalence of PHG is probably related to selection bias, absence of uniform criteria and classification, and more importantly, the differences in inter- and intraobserver variation. Pathogenesis of PHG is not clearly defined, but there is a very close relationship between portal hypertension and development of PHG. GAVE is a separate entity from PHG, but patients with severe PHG may have a GAVE-like appearance in the gastric antrum. Acute bleeding from PHG, seen usually in the presence of severe PHG, is often mild and self-limiting. Currently, the only treatment that could be recommended for prophylaxis of bleeding from PHG is nonselective s-blockers.
Simple detubularization technique forconstruction of continent colonic urinary reservoirs

Abstract Objectives. Despite the advantages offered by continent urinary diversiontechniques, wide acceptance of the procedure has been hampered by the length of time required to detubularize and suture the reconfigured bowel. With the purpose of simplifying the procedure, a linear stapler loaded with absorbable staples was used to accomplish simultaneous detubularization and closure of the reservoirs. Methods. Six patients, 4 men and 2 women received a stapled detubularized reservoirfollowing radical cystectomy. The male patients all had construction of a neobladder, whereas in the females a catheterizable continent stoma was designed. Results. Operative time was shortened by an average of 30 to 45 minutes withouttechnical difficulties. No postoperative complications related to the staple line occurred and with a follow-up of 6 months good functional results have been achieved, with no patient experiencing diurnal incontinence. Conclusions. This simple mechanical detubularization technique offers results similar to the hand suture method while at the same time shortening and simplifying the procedure.
A Convection Heat Transfer Correlation for a Binary Air-Helium Mixture at Low Reynolds Number

The results of experiments investigating heat transfer from a hot wire in a binary mixture of air and helium are reported. The measurements were made with a constant temperature anemometer at low Reynolds numbers (0.25<Re< 1.2) and correlated by treating the data in terms of a suitably defined Reynolds and Nusselt numbers based on the wire diameter. The correlation was obtained by taking into account the temperature dependency of gas properties, properties of binary gas mixtures, and the fluid slip at the probe surfaces as well as gas accommodation effects. The correlation has been used to measure velocity and velocity-density statistics across a buoyancy driven Rayleigh-Taylor mixing layer with a hot wire. The measured values obtained with the correlation agree well with measurements obtained with a more rigorous and extensive calibration technique (at two different overheat ratios). The reported correlation technique can be used as a faster and less expensive method for calibrating hot wires in binary gas mixtures.
Semi-empirical LCAO band structures

Abstract Recently we have used a semi-empirical LCAO molecular orbital method (Extended Huckel Theory) on a molecular cluster to investigate the nature of some deep defect levels in diamond. Here we shall use this same MO procedure to obtain the band structure of the infinite lattice. The results agree well with other band structure calculations, providing a partial explanation for the success of the cluster calculations, and the possibility of a wider utility of LCAO methods in solids.
Trailers Transporting Oranges to Processing Plants Move Asian Citrus Psyllids

ABSTRACT Huanglongbing (citrus greening) is one of the most serious diseases of citrus. Movement of the disease occurs as a result of natural transmission by the insect vector and by movement of infected plant material. We demonstrate here that Diaphorina citri Kuwayama, the vector of citrus greening pathogens, can be transported in trailers of unprocessed fruit. Several samples of D. citri collected from trailers of oranges were positive for citrus greening pathogens, indicating that the disease can spread widely with the movement of the mature fruit as a result of moving the vectors. While movement of disease and the vector through plant materials into new areas has been recognized, our findings emphasize the need to evaluate the importance of long distance movement of psyllids on unprocessed fruit, even in the absence of vegetative tissue.