cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Using SoC FPAA and integrated simulator for implementation of circuits and systems in education

An openly available simulator is presented here, which can be used to design, characterize and simulate circuits including floating gate (FG) components and larger systems building upon these elements, while measuring the silicon data too from the Field Programmable Analog Array (FPAA), incorporated within the same tool infrastructure. A single system for simulation as well as obtaining experimental measurements from reconfigurable hardware is significantly useful especially in classroom environments. The efficiency of our simulator is shown through the comparison in performance to that of conventional simulators and its close overlap with the data measured for the same experiments from the FPAA fabricated in a 350nm process.
Transcranial cavitation-mediated ultrasound therapy at sub-MHz frequency via temporal interference modulation

Sub-megahertz transmission is not usually adopted in pre-clinical small animal experiments for focused ultrasound (FUS) brain therapy due to the large focal size. However, low frequency FUS is vital for preclinical evaluations due to the frequency-dependence of cavitation behavior. To maximize clinical relevance, a dual-aperture FUS system was designed for low-frequency (274.3 kHz) cavitation-mediated FUS therapy. Combining two spherically curved transducers provides significantly improved focusing in the axial direction while yielding an interference pattern with strong side lobes, leading to inhomogeneously distributed cavitation activities. By operating the two transducers at slightly offset frequencies to modulate this interference pattern over the period of sonication, the acoustic energy was redistributed and resulted in a spatially homogenous treatment profile. Simulation and pressure field measurements in water were performed to assess the beam profiles. In addition, the system performance was dem...
Hotspot Thermal Management via Thin-Film Evaporation—Part I: Experimental Characterization

The presence of hotspots with extreme heat fluxes and temperatures in high-performance electronics has led to severe thermal management challenges in the semiconductor industry. Our work experimentally investigates the potential of capillary-fed thin-film evaporation as a thermal management solution for devices where hotspots are superposed with mild background heating. The front side of our test device incorporates well-defined silicon micropillar arrays for passive fluidic transport via capillary wicking, and the backside is patterned with thin-film resistive heaters to emulate $640 \times 620~\mu \text{m}^{2}$ hotspots and $1 \times 1$ cm2 uniform background heating. Our micropillar wick design facilitates efficient fluidic and thermal transport and dissipated ${\approx} 6$ kW/cm2 from a single hotspot without background heating beyond which viscous losses exceeded the capillary pressure and dryout occurred due to insufficient liquid supply. While the capillary-limited hotspot dryout heat flux decreased by creating concurrent hotspots as well as by superposing a hotspot with mild uniform background heating, it was unaltered (within the measurement error) when the location of the hotspot was varied within the $1 \times 1$ cm2 microstructured area. The ultrahigh heat fluxes in our experiments were achieved by suppressing boiling by judiciously designing the fluidic transport where the microstructured surface maintains a thin liquid film and syphons only the required amount of liquid to sustain evaporation. Our experimental results show that thin-film evaporation is a viable thermal management solution for the next-generation high-performance power electronics, among others, where hotspots pose a significant challenge.
A simple and highly sensitive UPLC-ESI-MS/MS method for the simultaneous quantification of nicotine, cotinine, and the tobacco-specific carcinogens N'-nitrosonornicotine and 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone in serum samples

According to the World Health Organization, the consumption of tobacco products is the single largest cause of preventable deaths in the world, exceeding the total aggregated number of deaths caused by diseases such as AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. An important element in the evaluation of the health risks associated with the consumption of tobacco products is the assessment of the internal exposure to the tobacco constituents responsible for their addictive (e.g. nicotine) and carcinogenic (e.g. N-nitrosamines such as NNN and NNK) properties. However, the assessment of the serum levels of these compounds is often challenging from an analytical standpoint, in particular when limited sample volumes are available and low detection limits are required. Currently available analytical methods often rely on complex multi-step sample preparation procedures, which are prone to low analyte recoveries and ex-vivo contamination due to the ubiquitous nature of these compounds as background contaminants. In order to circumvent these problems, we report a facile and highly sensitive method for the simultaneous quantification of nicotine, cotinine, NNN, and NNK in serum samples. The method relies on a simple "one pot" liquid-liquid extraction procedure and isotope dilution ultra-high pressure (UPLC) hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. The method requires only 10μL of serum and presents a limit of quantification of 0.02nmol (3000pg/mL) nicotine, 0.6pmol (100pg/mL) cotinine, 0.05pmol NNK (10pg/mL), and 0.06pmol NNN (10pg/mL), making it appropriate for pharmacokinetic evaluations.
Photobiology of Carotenoid Protection

When Sistrom, Griffiths, and Stanier (1) reported that carotenoid pigments protect cells against light under aerobic conditions in the purple-sulfur bacterium Rhodopseudomonas spheroides, they proposed that these pigments acted as “chemical buffers” and were oxidized during the process. They suggested that carotenoid epoxides might be the product of this chemical buffering effect. Carotenoid epoxides, however, although widely distributed in nature, have never been observed in bacteria (2). The function of carotenoid epoxides is still unknown but is under active investigation (3).
Who Gets Vocal about Hyperlocal: Neighborhood Involvement and Socioeconomics in the Sharing of Hyperlocal News

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Journalism Practice on January 9. 2018, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/17512786.2017.1419827.
Ordered Sets in Geometry

Partial orderings play a major role in geometry, especially in combinatorial settings. Most of these partial orderings involve lattices, and a rich profusion of lattices arise in this way. A brief review will be given of many old results, and some new ones, about lattices arising in this way.
Limitations of P-Values and R-squared for Stepwise Regression Building: A Fairness Demonstration in Health Policy Risk Adjustment

Stepwise regression building procedures are commonly used applied statistical tools, despite their well-known drawbacks. While many of their limitations have been widely discussed in the literature...
Safety and operational impacts of setting speed limits below engineering recommendations.

This study quantifies the operational and safety impacts of setting posted speed limits below engineering recommendations using field data from rural roads in Montana. Vehicle operating speeds and historical crash data were collected at multiple sites with posted speed limits set equal to engineering recommendations and sites with posted speed limits set lower than engineering recommendations. Linear, quantile and logistic regression models were estimated to predict mean operating speed, 85th percentile operating speed and speed limit compliance, respectively, as a function of various roadway characteristics and level of speed enforcement. The Empirical-Bayes before-after approach was also used to develop crash modification factors (CMFs) that describe the expected change in total and fatal + injury crash frequency when setting posted speed limits lower than engineering recommendations. Because safety data were collected over a long time period, temporal adjustments were incorporated to account for yearly changes in crash reporting, traffic characteristics and other variables. The results revealed that speed limit compliance worsened as the difference between the engineering recommended and posted speed limits increased. The presence of verified heavy police enforcement reduced both mean and 85th-percentile operating speeds by approximately 4 mph and increased speed limit compliance. The safety analysis found a statistically significant reduction in total, fatal + injury, and property damage only (PDO) crash frequency at locations with posted speed limits set 5 mph lower than engineering recommendations. Locations with posted speed limits set 10 mph lower than engineering recommendations experienced a decrease in total and PDO crash frequency, but an increase in fatal + injury crash frequency. The safety effects of setting speed limits 15 to 25 mph lower than engineering recommendations were less clear, as the results were not statistically significant, likely due to the small sample of sites included in the evaluation. Overall, the results suggest that setting posted speed limits 5 mph lower than the engineering recommended practice may result in operating speeds that are more consistent with the posted speed limits and overall safety benefits.
The role of heat transfer on the feasibility of a packed-bed membrane reactor for propane dehydrogenation

Abstract The review of published experimental work reveals that per-pass conversion and productivity of membrane reactors for propane dehydrogenation (PDH) with in-situ H2 separation could not improve over conventional commercial technologies. Reported conversion figures were, if at all higher than without hydrogen permeation, achieved with the help of high propane dilution or low space velocity. Slow hydrogen permeation is often blamed for disappointing results in membrane reactor research, but not the fastest hydrogen-permeable membrane have been tested in PDH so far. All reported experimental work deals with lab-scale test reactors with mostly tubular membranes of up to 8 mm diameter, in which heat transfer limitations do not play a dominant role. None of the published general and PDH-specific work did systematically study the combined effect of heat transfer and hydrogen permeation, and the design problem of integrating the catalytic bed with sufficient area for heat transfer and permeation of hydrogen. Parameter studies over a wide range of the dimensionless mass- and heat-Stanton numbers with a packed-bed membrane reactor model show that sufficient heat supply is decisive for exploiting the effect of hydrogen removal on propane conversion. Fast enough membranes are in principle available, but additionally require enough heat transfer area for a feasible membrane reactor design. Higher productivity than in conventional PDH processes cannot be achieved within the kinetic limits of catalytic reaction, hydrogen permeation and heat transfer in scalable membrane reactor designs. Low space velocity and high pressure, both proven to drive the conversion of other H2-producing equilibrium reactions (cyclohexane dehydrogenation and steam reforming) to completion, lead to low selectivity in PDH because of the low thermal stability of the product propylene.
How Transporters Have Changed Basic Pharmacokinetic Understanding.

The emergence and continued evolution of the transporter field has caused re-evaluation and refinement of the original principles surrounding drug disposition. In this paper, we emphasize the impact that transporters can have on volume of distribution and how this can affect the other major pharmacokinetic parameters. When metabolic drug–drug interactions or pharmacogenomic variance changes the metabolism of a drug, the volume of distribution appears to be unchanged while clearance, bioavailability, and half-life are changed. When transporters are involved in the drug–drug interactions or pharmacogenomic variance, the volume of distribution can be markedly affected causing counterintuitive changes in half-life. Cases are examined where a volume of distribution change is significant enough that although clearance decreases, half-life decreases. Thus, drug dosing decisions must be made based on CL/F changes, not half-life changes, as such volume of distribution alterations will also influence the half-life results.
Rewarding and aversive doses of caffeine alter activity but not conditioned place preference induced by ethanol in DBA/2J mice.

Abstract Increases in the consumption of ethanol and caffeine have been attributed to increased subjective feelings of intoxication and pleasure from the combination. Previous studies have shown that caffeine can be rewarding at low doses and aversive at high doses, although these findings are at times inconsistent between studies using comparable doses. Similarly, studies investigating the rewarding effects of ethanol and caffeine combinations have yielded mixed results. To address this issue, the present experiments were designed to investigate the rewarding effects of caffeine, as well as of caffeine + ethanol combinations. Male DBA/2J mice were exposed to an unbiased conditioned place preference (CPP) procedure with various doses of caffeine (1, 3, 10, 30 mg/kg) and ethanol (1, 2 g/kg), as well as various conditioning trial durations (5, 30, 60 min). Caffeine dose-dependently increased locomotor activity during conditioning, and produced a biphasic effect on place conditioning. Specifically, a low dose of caffeine (3 mg/kg) produced place preference, while a high dose (30 mg/kg) produced place aversion. When combined with alcohol, caffeine dose-dependently increased ethanol's stimulatory effect. However, the addition of caffeine had no effect on ethanol place preference, as there were no differences in the strength of place preference between mice conditioned with ethanol alone, and mice conditioned with any combination of ethanol and caffeine. These studies add evidence for caffeine's biphasic effects while also emphasizing the importance of considering temporal and methodological parameters when using Pavlovian conditioning procedures to study drug combinations.
On ambitious higher-order theories of consciousness

Ambitious Higher-order theories of consciousness – Higher-order theories that purport to give an account of phenomenal consciousness – face a well-known objection from the possibility of radical mi...
Exploring priming effects of social and non-social attention getters on older infants' preferences for infant-directed speech.

Abstract In infant research, various auditory/visual events are often used as attention getters to orient infants to a screen and alert them to upcoming information for their detection, discrimination, and/or recognition. Importantly, the influence of attention-getters on infants’ performance has rarely been systematically evaluated, even though these attention cues could be affecting subsequent information processing. This study investigated whether specific attention-getters could prime infants’ preferences for infant-directed speech (IDS) compared to adult-directed speech (ADS). Both a non-social and a social prime were chosen with the prediction that the social prime would strengthen infants' attention to IDS on a subsequent trial, but the non-social prime would have no differential effect on subsequent attention to either speech type. A total of 20 12- to 18-month old infants were presented with either a nonsocial (rotating form + chimes) or social (smiling female + voice) prime in an infant-controlled, speech preference procedure with both IDS and ADS speech types. Given previous research, we predicted that infants would show significantly more attention on trials during which looking produced IDS, but that this preference would be significantly augmented for infants in the condition receiving a social attention-getter before each trial. Results did not bear out this prediction, although we found a consistent, robust preference for IDS. The results will be discussed in terms of why these attention getters did not affect subsequent processing of two very different speech types, and what future modifications may be necessary in order to examine roles of attention getters in affecting experimental outcomes in infancy research. A secondary benefit of the findings is that we empirically established a growing preference for IDS in infants as old as 18-months of age.
Surgical resection of macrocystic lymphatic malformations of the head and neck: Short and long-term outcomes.

Abstract Background Controversy exists on management of lymphatic malformations, with schools of thought advocating for observation, surgery or sclerotherapy. This study sought to examine outcomes after surgical resection of pediatric cervicofacial macrocystic lymphatic malformations (MLM). Methods Case series with planned data collection on pediatric patients with cervicofacial MLM who underwent surgical resection at a tertiary referral center for vascular anomalies from January 1995 to June 2016. For consistency in patient population analysis, patients who had pre-surgical sclerotherapy or had mixed or microcystic disease were excluded. The main outcome was complete response rate (CR) and long-term recurrence-free survival (RFS). Results Sixty-three patients who underwent excision of MLM were included, 52.4% were female, 77.8% Caucasian. The majority had de Serres stage I-III (96.8%) affecting the neck (71.4%). Patients were discharged the same day (28.6%), or had a 1 day median length-of-stay (interquartile range (IQR) = 2). Surgical complications included seroma/hematoma (9.5%), transient nerve weakness (facial nerve, sympathetic chain, or phrenic nerve, 6.3%), and infection (1.6%). On long-term follow-up (median: 12 months, IQR 1–43 months), a single surgery achieved CR in 90.5% of patients. RFS was achieved in 86% of patients in our observation period of up to 15 years. Most patients requiring a second intervention failed within 6-months of initial procedure (4/5 patients, 90%); associated factors included bilaterality, advanced staging, and partial response at first-follow-up (p = 0.0051, 0.0051, and Conclusions Surgery is safe and effective as first line treatment for selected MLM. For stage I-III MLM CR and long-term RFS can be achieved with a single surgery. A direct and randomized comparison of treatment modalities is needed.
Into the Field With Foundations: Social Foundations of Education and University/Public School Partnerships

Historically, the knowledge, critical skills, and dispositions to be learned in educational foundations courses are explored within the confines of university classrooms, disconnected from the mess...
METABOLIC RESPONSES OF A SEA ANEMONE TO HYPOXIA AND AIR EXPOSURE

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses metabolic responses of a sea anemone to hypoxia and air exposure. The sea anemone Haliplanella luciae is a euryhaline, eurythermal species occupying a variety of habitat types including the upper intertidal zone. This particular habitat poses problems with respect to gas exchange during occasional air exposure or entrapment in hypoxic tide pools at low tides. Exposure to hypoxic conditions cause increases in the tissue levels of alanine, glutamate, and succinate. In the case of alanine, the posthypoxic level is seven times greater than the control value. Air exposure does not result in significant changes in the levels of any of the metabolites except for a small increase in glutamate. These studies indicate that exposure to hypoxic conditions results in an alteration of metabolism in Haliplanella luciae . These changes do not appear to take place when the organism is temporarily exposed to water-saturated air.
Laparoscopic approach for intermittent hydronephrosis caused by primary ureteral fibroepithelial polyps in children

Objective To summarize the diagnosis and treatment experience of children with intermittent hydronephrosis caused by ureteral fibroepithelial polyp (UFP). Methods From 2017 to 2020, cases of hydronephrosis caused by ureteral polyp in Anhui Provincial Children’s Hospital were retrospectively enrolled for investigation. Demographic data, clinical manifestations, operation details, pathology and outcomes were collected from patients’ medical data for analysis. Results All seven cases of UFP were boys, including six cases on the left side of the ureter and one case on the right side, at the median age of 7.1 years (3–14 years), with abdominal intermittent pain as the first symptom. All cases underwent laparoscopic pyeloureteroplasty. All the operations were completed successfully; postoperative pathology indicated the presence of primary UFP. Postoperative follow-ups of 1–30 months showed satisfactory recovery and relief from hydronephrosis. Conclusions Laparoscopic pyeloureteroplasty or ureteroureterostomy is one of the optimal treatments for ureteral polyp at present. The surgical method should be determined according to the number of polyps, the length and the diameter of the affected ureter, and also the status of renal function of the patients.
Changes in amygdalar functional connectivity following the water load symptom provocation task (WL-SPT) in youth with functional abdominal pain disorders

Pediatric functional abdominal pain disorders (FAPD) are highly prevalent, difficult to diagnose and challenging to treat. The brain mechanisms supporting FAPD remain poorly understood. This investigation examined the neuromechanisms of FAPD during a well-tolerated visceral pain induction task, the water load symptom provocation task (WL-SPT). Youth between the ages of 11 and 17 years participated. Functional connectivity (FC) was examined via the Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent (BOLD) effect using the left and right amygdala (AMY) as seed regions. Relationships of the time courses within these seeds with voxels across the whole brain were evaluated. Arterial spin labeling (ASL) was used to assess regional brain activation by examining cerebral blood flow. Increased FC between the left AMY with regions associated with nociceptive processing (e.g., thalamus), and right AMY FC changes with areas associated with cognitive functioning (dorsolateral prefrontal cortex) and the default mode network (DMN; parietal lobe) were observed in youth with FAPD following the WL-SPT. These changes were related to changes in pain unpleasantness. AMY FC changes post WL-SPT were also related to changes in pain intensity. AMY FC with the DMN in youth with FAPD also differed from healthy controls. Global CBF changes were also noted between FAPD and controls, but no significant differences in grey matter were detected either between groups or during the WL-SPT in youth with FAPD. Findings confirm youth with FAPD have changes in brain connectivity that could support the development of biomarkers to enhance understanding of the mechanisms of pain and treatment response.
Semantic Text Classification of Emergent Disease Reports

Traditional text classification studied in the information retrieval and machine learning literature is mainly based on topics. That is, each class represents a particular topic, e.g., sports and politics. However, many real-world problems require more refined classification based on some semantic perspectives. For example, in a set of sentences about a disease, some may report outbreaks of the disease, some may describe how to cure the disease, and yet some may discuss how to prevent the disease. To classify sentences at this semantic level, the traditional bag-of-words model is no longer sufficient. In this paper, we study semantic sentence classification of disease reporting. We show that both keywords and sentence semantic features are useful. Our results demonstrated that this integrated approach is highly effective.
From the Fields to the University: Charting Educational Access and Success for Farmworker Students Using a Community Cultural Wealth Framework

In 2002, the New Mexico State University College Assistance Migrant Program (NMSU CAMP) was created to increase the number of baccalaureate degrees held by students from farmworker backgrounds by mediating structural impediments that typically normalize post-secondary inequities for this population. Migrant and seasonal farmworker students are significantly marginalized and underserved in the United States. There is also a notable lack of research exploring their success in higher education. This article addresses this gap through an exploratory analysis of quantitative and qualitative data spanning years 2006-2011 that include 130 self- administered questionnaires, six key informant interviews, and numerous observations. A “community cultural wealth” framework [CCW] (Yosso, 2005) is utilized to explore factors contributing to students’ entrance into the university and their persistence thereafter. The findings suggest that farmworker students utilized the notions of familia and ‘pedagogies of the home’ (Delgado Bernal, 2001) to navigate their transition inside an unfamiliar terrain, while the CAMP program itself utilized similar notions of familia to break the practice of ‘manufacturing sameness’ typically experienced by students in the freshmen year.
AFTER THE GREAT RECESSION: THE FUTURE OF CASINO GAMING IN AMERICA AND EUROPE

The economic recession of 2007–09 had dramatic effects on spending on gambling and, therefore, on a number of major gaming companies, resulting in situations where cash flows were increasingly inadequate to service debt obligations. The recession thus interrupted growth trends in various segments of casino industries in America and Europe, which undermined future growth expectations and potential. This analysis examines economic events and other factors that have affected the casino industry in the last few years, and examines their implications for the future of casino and gaming markets in America and Europe.
A wireless solution for intraoperative monitoring

Intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring (IONM) is a useful tool for monitoring the human nervous system during surgery. Current IONM systems use wired electrodes to record neural signals. However, these wires subject IONM waveforms to electromagnetic interference (EMI) from operating room (OR) equipment, which distorts recorded signals. A recording system that can be placed near the electrodes would reduce EMI significantly, and clear obstructions due to wires in the OR. In this work, we developed a wireless module for recording IONM signals, and demonstrated that the wireless system has improved resilience to EMI over traditional wired recording systems.
Performance analysis of metallic carbon nanotubes as nanotechnology circuit interconnects

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have emerged as a potential nanoelectronic material that can replace traditional copper as the material for very large scale integrated circuits (VLSI) interconnects.In this article, we have quantified the performance expected out of CNTs-based interconnect systems based on realistic characterization of their Tomonaga Luttinger theory-based transmission line model. We have presented performance estimates for bus systems consisted of single-walled nanotubes and crystalline bundles of CNTs. Results indicate that the bundles offer at leasta 10 times performance advantage over isolated nanotubes. However, this is at the expense of larger signal damping associated with them. Published 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 53:2505–2508, 2011; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary.com. DOI 10.1002/mop.26314
A STATE‐SPACE MODEL FOR UNIVARIATE ORDINAL‐VALUED TIME SERIES

A state-space model was developed to analyze a univariate time series of ordinal-valued flower phenology data. Flower abundance, recorded as either “none,”“some,” or “much,” was observed each month on trees in a lowland Costa Rican rain forest to investigate flowering patterns of different species. Data from a single Capparis pittieri and daily rain measurements are used to demonstrate the model. A method to obtain maximum likelihood estimates of the parameters and the use of predicted probability differences to assess goodness of fit are described. Opportunities for improving the model are also discussed.
Learning style versus time spent studying and career choice: Which is associated with success in a combined undergraduate anatomy and physiology course?

The VARK learning style is a pedagogical focus in health care education. This study examines relationships of course performance vs. VARK learning preference, study time, and career plan among students enrolled in an undergraduate anatomy and physiology course at a large urban university. Students (n = 492) from the fall semester course completed a survey consisting of the VARK questionnaire, gender, academic year, career plans, and estimated hours spent per week in combined classroom and study time. Seventy-eight percent of students reported spending 15 or fewer hours per week studying. Study time and overall course score correlated significantly for the class as a whole (r = 0.111, P = 0.013), which was mainly due to lecture (r = 0.118, P = 0.009) performance. No significant differences were found among students grouped by learning styles. When corrected for academic year, overall course scores (mean ± SEM) for students planning to enter dentistry, medicine, optometry or pharmacy (79.89 ± 0.88%) were significantly higher than those of students planning to enter physical or occupational therapies (74.53 ± 1.15%; P = 0.033), as well as nurse/physician assistant programs (73.60 ± 1.3%; P = 0.040). Time spent studying was not significantly associated with either learning style or career choice. Our findings suggest that specific career goals and study time, not learning preferences, are associated with better performance among a diverse group of students in an undergraduate anatomy and physiology course. However, the extent to which prior academic preparation, cultural norms, and socioeconomic factors influenced these results requires further investigation. Anat Sci Educ 9: 121–131. © 2015 American Association of Anatomists.
Interaction of bovine factor XIIa with an inhibitor from bovine plasma.

Abstract An inhibitor of factor XIIa has been purified from bovine plasma and characterized (Thornton, R.D. and Kirby, E.P. (1987) J. Biol. Chem. 262, 12714–14721). This inhibitor interacts with XIIa to form a very stable complex with a 1:1 stoichiometry. The active site of XIIa, located on the light chain, is directly involved in the interaction, and complex formation between factor XIIa inhibitor and XIIa can be blocked by diisopropyl fluorophosphate, corn trypsin inhibitor, or the chromogenic substrate S2302. Incubation of the complex with excess XIIa does not result in cleavage of the complex. The complex does not spontaneously dissociate and is stable to boiling, SDS, thiocyanate, acid, and hydroxylamine or Tris at pH 7–10. In addition to complex formation, a cleaved form of factor XIIa inhibitor can be observed. We suggest that the inhibitor is acting as a mechanism-based inactivator, using the criteria of time-dependent inactivation under pseudo-first-order conditions, 1:1 stoichiometry, active site involvement, kinetic protection by substrate or by an active site inhibitor, and partitioning between cleavage of factor XIIa inhibitor and inactivation by complex formation.
Methamphetamine Use and Child Welfare: Review and Research Agenda

ABSTRACT Methamphetamine use among parents has received considerable attention in recent years. Child welfare officials have reported unique and especially severe consequences to children exposed to parental methamphetamine use. In response, polices and practices addressing parental methamphetamine use are being formed throughout the country. This review summarizes the state of knowledge on prevalence of parental methamphetamine use, its effects on children, and its effects on the child welfare system. The review identifies knowledge gaps and describes research needed to inform policy and practice.
A grid-based multilevel incomplete LU factorization preconditioning technique for general sparse matrices

We design a grid-based multilevel incomplete LU preconditioner (GILUM) for solving general sparse matrices. This preconditioner combines a high accuracy ILU factorization with an algebraic multilevel recursive reduction. The GILUM preconditioner is a compliment to the domain-based multilevel block ILUT preconditioner. A major difference between these two preconditioners is the way that the coarse level nodes are chosen. The approach of GILUM is analogous to that of algebraic multigrid method. The GILUM approach avoids some controversial issues in algebraic multigrid method such as how to construct the interlevel transfer operators and how to compute the coarse level operator. Numerical experiments are conducted to compare GILUM with other ILU preconditioners.
Understanding appraisal processes underlying the thentest: a mixed methods investigation.

Mixed methods investigated the cognitive processes reflected in retrospective pretest (thentest) discrepancy scores [i.e., recalibration response shift (RS)]. People with human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune disease syndrome (HIV/AIDS) (n = 521) were interviewed at baseline and 6 months using the Quality of Life (QOL) Appraisal Profile, the Rand-36, General Health thentest, and recall items. Open-ended appraisal questions were coded, and factor analyses reduced the data. Ipsative (based on the then-minus-pretest) and normative (based on regression residuals) discrepancy scores were compared. Hypothesis testing related to recall bias and relationships among appraisal parameters and ipsative discrepancies, after covariate adjustment. Coded frame of reference themes were distinct from experience sampling, standards of comparison, and combinatory algorithm. There was convergence between the ipsative and normative discrepancy scores (r = 0.30), but the former were associated with more appraisal changes and goal-related appraisals than the latter. Thentest effect sizes (ES) were larger than standard change scores, even controlling for recall bias. Multivariate models including appraisal parameters explained 9% more variance over the standard (unadjusted for RS) model. Ipsative and normative discrepancy scores measure distinct constructs, represent different configurations of appraisal change, and are not invalidated or explained by recall bias. The thentest does not imply recalibration alone but rather a host of health- and self-care-related concerns.
Stress experienced by women doctoral students, need for support, and occupational sex typing: An interactional view

The present study was concerned with emotional stress experienced by women doctoral students as an interactive function of type of department and personal need for support. Subjects were women registered as doctoral students at a large state university in the fall semester of 1975. Of the total, 86 were from female minority departments, 177 from egalitarian departments, and 114 from female majority departments. Stress from time pressures, marital pressures, and overall stress were all found to be interactive functions of need for support and type of department. The female minority group showed the strongest relationship between need for support and each of the three significant stress variables. Implications of these findings for women in graduate school are discussed.
Seasonality of planktonic ciliated protozoa in 20 subtropical Florida lakes of varying trophic state

The planktonic ciliate populations of 20 Florida lakes ranging from oligotrophic to hypereutrophic were examined monthly for one year. Oligotrophic lakes displayed abundance peaks during fall mixis and biomass peaks in late winter and fall. Mesotrophic systems exhibited a spring-fall bimodality in ciliate abundance with a biomass maxima occurring during fall. Eutrophic/hypereutrophic lakes had pronounced abundance and biomass maxima during summer, with the large ciliates Plagiopyla nasuta and Paramecium trichium often contributing heavily to the midsummer biomass peak. Members of the Oligotrichida numerically dominated abundance and biomass peaks in oligotrophic lakes while the Scuticociliatida dominated the communities of higher trophic states. Total ciliate abundance and biomass were strongly correlated with chlorophyll a concentrations as were various ciliate taxonomic groups. The relationship between ciliate seasonal distribution in these subtropical lakes with lake thermal regimes and trophic state is discussed.
Maneuverability and smoke emission constraints in marine diesel propulsion

Abstract A multivariable control scheme is designed that reduces smoke generation on an experimental marine diesel engine equipped with a variable geometry turbocharger. The variable geometry turbocharger allows the improvement of the steady-state ship hydrodynamic and propulsion characteristics and requires coordination with the injected mass fuel to achieve a good transient performance.
MeshMan: A management framework for wireless mesh networks

As wireless mesh networks become more popular, there exists a need to provide centralized management solutions, which facilitate network administrators to control, troubleshoot and collect statistics from their networks. Managing wireless mesh networks poses unique challenges due to limited bandwidth resources and dynamic channel quality. A robust management solution should function despite network layer failure. In this paper, we propose MeshMan, a network layer agnostic, low overhead solution to network management to cope with unreliable wireless channels, link and network level dynamics in wireless mesh networks. It combines the concepts of source routing with hierarchical addressing, and provides a native efficient query interface. A prototype of MeshMan has been implemented as a user space daemon on Linux and evaluated using a 12-node wireless mesh network testbed. Experimental studies demonstrate that MeshMan has comparable or better performance than the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) in management overhead and response times when the network is stable while having much better performance in presence network dynamics.
Techniques for Reconstructing Circular Skin Defects in Dogs

The development of dog-ears of redundant skin or removal of large areas of additional skin are problems often encountered when closing circular skin defects. Defects 3 cm in diameter were created along the backs of dogs. Eight techniques of reconstruction were evaluated by measuring the area of additional skin removed and length of final suture line and by counting the number of dog-ears produced. The eight techniques were linear, fusiform, double S, three point, four point, pin wheel, bow tie, and combined V closures. Based on the results of this study, the linear, combined V, and bow tie techniques provide the best closure. In general, the linear technique should be used when skin edges can be apposed without the formation of dog-ears (e.g., smaller defects). When skin edge apposition results in dog-ear formation and when there is limited skin for reconstruction surrounding the defect, the combined V technique should be used. When larger dog-ears form as the skin edges are apposed and when there is an abundance of skin surrounding the defect, the bow tie technique could be considered for closure. One-half of the bow tie technique can be used to approximate wound edges where one edge is long and curved.
Dynamic localization in spin systems

A dilute collection of spins, when driven coherently by crossed magnetic fields of arbitrary and controllable time dependences along the three Cartesian directions, is shown to exhibit a striking phenomenon in which the azimuthal quantum number remains unchanged for certain resonant combinations of the field intensities and field frequencies. The formalism of dynamic localization available for the area of charge transport in crystals is shown to provide an approximate but highly efficient analytic method for the study of this phenomenon. The effect on scattering of probe particles is elucidated. (c) 2000 The American Physical Society.
Dismantling the Factory Model of Assessment.

The Factory Models of the 1900's had a significant and lasting impact on the educational curriculum and testing frameworks developed in America's public schools. The child was viewed as a product, the school was designed as an educational factory, and standardized testing became the quality control mechanism for measuring educational progress. The effects of these structures can still be seen in today's public school organizations. Breaking free of the limiting effects of standardized testing requires changes in teacher education, school organization, curriculum frameworks, and especially, the methods of assessment currently used in public schools. Viewing assessment as 'reflective inquiry' rather than the measurement of accumulated facts, requires time, a new perspective, and dialogue among educators.
Resistance to Onion Thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) in Onion Cultivars does not Prevent Infection by Iris Yellow Spot Virus Following Vector-Mediated Transmission

ABSTRACT Onion thrips, Thrips tabaci Lindeman (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), is a global pest of onion, Allium cepa L., and the principal vector of Iris yellow spot virus (IYSV) that can cause 100% crop losses. The purpose of this study was to evaluate onion cultivars resistant to T. tabaci feeding damage for their reaction to IYSV following exposure to viruliferous T. tabaci in both laboratory and field experiments. In the laboratory experiment, virus-free onion cultivars grown in pots were infested with 32 T. tabaci second instars collected from onions in an IYSV-infected field. In the complementary field experiment, virus-free onion plants in pots were moved to an onion field where IYSV was present. In both laboratory and field trials, plants were tested for IYSV by DAS-ELISA after 2 and 3 wk, respectively. Although plants were exposed to T. tabaci for a short period, IYSV was detected in all onion cultivars with the percentage of infected plants varying from 3 to 25% and 37 to 70% in the laboratory and fi...
Multisensory plasticity in adulthood: cross-modal experience enhances neuronal excitability and exposes silent inputs

Multisensory superior colliculus neurons in cats were found to retain substantial plasticity to short-term, site-specific experience with cross-modal stimuli well into adulthood. Following cross-mo...
CT of extraarachnoid metrizamide instillation.

Because CT of spinal extraarachnoid metrizamide collections may be misleading, we reviewed the postmetrizamide CT scans of 425 patients in order to characterize the appearance of subdural or epidural metrizamide. Eight patients were found to have extraarachnoid metrizamide contrast collections. In all patients, both the subarachnoid space and the extraarachnoid collection were opacified with metrizamide. In seven patients, a subdural collection of metrizamide created a mass upon the opacified subarachnoid space. Three of these subdural collections were less dense than the opacified subarachnoid compartment and simulated soft-tissue disease, including tumor and an arteriovenous malformation. The hypodense collections are probably a result of leakage of metrizamide and cerebrospinal fluid through the spinal needle defect. CT clues for diagnosing these potentially misleading subdural collections include preservation of the normal dural and epidural interface, identification of small islands of metrizamide wi...
Dysphagia and Respiratory Care in Individuals with Tetraplegia: Incidence, Associated Factors, and Preventable Complications

Dysphagia occurs in a significant number of individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) presenting to acute care and inpatient rehabilitation. This prospective study has found dysphagia in nearly 40% of individuals with tetraplegia. Tracheostomy, mechanical ventilation, nasogastric tube, and age are significant risk factors. The detrimental complications of dysphagia in SCI can cause significant morbidity and delays in rehabilitation. Thus, early and accurate diagnosis of dysphagia is imperative to reduce the risk of developing life-threatening complications. Incidence and risk factors of dysphagia and the use of the bedside swallow evaluation (BSE) and videofluoroscopy swallow study (VFSS) to diagnose dysphagia are presented. The often underappreciated role of respiratory therapists, including assist cough, high tidal volume ventilation, and the use of Passy-Muir valve, in the care of individuals with SCI who have dysphagia is discussed. Improved secretion management and respiratory stabilization enable the individuals with dysphagia to be evaluated sooner and safely by a speech pathologist. Early evaluation and intervention could improve upon morbidity and delayed rehabilitation, thus improving overall clinical outcomes.
Strategies for enhancing routing security in protocols for mobile ad hoc networks

Mobile ad hoc network (MANET) is a new emerging field with its potential applications in extremely unpredictable and dynamic environments. These characteristics require the networks to have much harder security requirements than the contemporary networks. While current routing protocols do seem to adjust well to dynamically changing conditions, they offer either no security mechanisms at all or have only partial solutions for ensuring the correct routing. It is hard to simultaneously achieve both security and robustness in the routing protocols. In this paper, we analyze various possible threats to the routing protocols and introduce strategies to address the same. On one hand, routing protocol can be disrupted due to attacks from intruder nodes that do not belong to the network. On the other hand, routing is severely affected by the presence of compromised nodes that inflict unpredictable and undetectable Byzantine failure. We have addressed the issue of attacks from intruders by means of authentication techniques that rely on mutual trust between nodes. We also study the behavioral patterns of the nodes and isolate compromised nodes using a distributed approach. The effectiveness of our schemes is illustrated by means of extensive simulations using ns-2 simulator. The routing protocol chosen for the study is AODV. We have observed the performance of the network with and without our secured routing scheme.
Receptor-regulated Smads in TGF-beta signaling.

Abstract Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) and related polypeptides, including activins and bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), constitute the largest cytokine family, possessing fascinating features. TGF-beta and related peptides are multifunctional growth factors and they regulate many aspects of cellular processes such as proliferation, differentiation, adhesion and apoptosis. These evolutionarily conserved cytokines play an essential role in the development and homeostasis of virtually every tissue in organisms ranging from fruit flies to humans. Accordingly, inactivating mutations in several components of the TGF-beta signaling pathways have been found to cause a number of human disorders. The TGF-beta family members signal through cell surface serine/threonine kinase receptors. A family of proteins, designated as Smads (mammalian homologues of Drosophila Mad and C. elegans Sma), transduces the TGF-beta signal from cell surface to the nucleus. Upon activation, the TGF-beta type I receptor phosphorylates Smad2 and Smad3, which then form complexes with Smad4 and accumulate in the nucleus to regulate transcription of a variety of genes that encode crucial determinants of cell fate, such as cell cycle components, differentiation factors and cell adhesion molecules. Although Smad2 and Smad3 are highly homologous and share some overlapping activities, they have distinct functions and are regulated differentially. This review is primarily focused on our understanding of the similar as well as distinct function and regulation of Smad2 and Smad3 in TGF-beta signaling, their physiological roles revealed by knockout studies and their tumor suppressive functions.