cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Spinal Catheter Size and Hyperbaric Lidocaine Dosing: A Retrospective Review

Background and Objectives. The use of micro-bore spinal catheters for catheter spinal anesthesia (CSA) has been associated with untoward neurologic events. Eleven cases of Cauda Equina syndrome have been reported after CSA was performed using smaller catheters and in which large amounts of hyperbaric lidocaine (5% in glucose) were infused. To evaluate if smaller catheters necessitate larger amounts of hyperbaric lidocaine to successfully achieve surgical anesthesia, the use of this agent in both macro-and micro-bore catheters for 12 months was reviewed. Methods. Only those CSA that used hyperbaric lidocaine as the sole anesthetic were analyzed. Patient characteristics, initial and total dosing of lidocaine, and the type and duration of surgical procedures were evaluated. Available records were reviewed to ascertain the occurrence of newonset neurologic deficits. Results. Out of a total of 134 CSA cases, 95 were performed using hyperbaric lidocaine alone. Forty-four of these cases were performed with micro-bore and 51 with macro-bore catheters. There were no significant differences noted in patient characteristics or dosing requirements when comparing the two groups. One patient developed an isolated L5 motor root dysfunction that was felt not to have resulted from his (micro-catheter) CSA. Conclusions. This review failed to support the hypothesis that catheter size necessitates different doses of hyperbaric lidocaine. Further, the results suggest that a much lower dose than those used for single shot spinal anesthesia can be used with CSA, to further improve the safety of the technique.
25 Gb/s Few-Mode Transmission at ~850 nm over 1.5 km Graded-index Single-Mode Fiber using SM VCSEL

We report a graded-index single-mode fiber with a few-mode bandwidth of 48.3 GHz•km at 850 nm. We demonstrated 25 Gb/s SM VCSEL transmission over 1.5 km of such fiber around 850 nm.
RACIAL-ETHNIC DISPARITIES IN HEALTHCARE SATISFACTION

This paper explores how perceptions of unfair treatment shape healthcare satisfaction across race/ethnicity. We investigate the overall impact of life course exposure to healthcare discrimination on current healthcare satisfaction across race/ethnicity among a sample of midlife and older Black, Latinx, and White Americans age 50+ in the Health and Retirement Study. We then test whether everyday healthcare discrimination mediates the impact of major medical discrimination on healthcare satisfaction, controlling for sociodemographic factors, mental and physical health characteristics, functional status, life course stress exposure, and lifetime and everyday discrimination in contexts beyond healthcare settings. Black Americans had poorer healthcare satisfaction than White Americans. Everyday discrimination in healthcare settings mediated a modest amount of the relationship between lifetime healthcare discrimination and healthcare satisfaction, and this association varied in strength across White, Black, and Latinx Americans. Results underscore the need for future work identifying and addressing mechanisms shaping healthcare satisfaction.
Association of adverse events and associated cost with efficacy for approved relapsed and/or refractory multiple myeloma regimens: A Bayesian network meta‐analysis of phase 3 randomized controlled trials

Background Several new treatment options have been approved for relapsed and/or refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM). In this systematic review, associations of the efficacy of each approved regimen with adverse events (AEs) and the total cost per cycle were compared with a Bayesian network meta-analysis (NMA) of phase 3 randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Methods Scopus, Cochrane, PubMed Publisher, and Web of Science were searched from January 1999 to July 2018 for phase 3 RCTs of regimens (approved by the US Food and Drug Administration) used in RRMM. The relative ranking of agents was assessed with surface under the cumulative ranking (SUCRA) probabilities. The primary efficacy, safety, and cost outcomes were progression-free survival with the regimen, grade 3 to 4 AEs, and the total cost per cycle (regimen cost plus average cost of managing AEs). Results Fifteen studies including 7718 patients and evaluating 14 different regimens were identified. Daratumumab, lenalidomide, and dexamethasone were ranked highest for reducing progression (hazard ratio, 0.13; 95% credible interval, 0.09-0.19; SUCRA, 1) but carried the highest probability of total cost per cycle ($41,420; 95% Credible Interval [CrCl], $58,665-$78,041; SUCRA, 0.02). Panobinostat, bortezomib, and dexamethasone were the least effective and least safe (SUCRA, 0.24), whereas bortezomib, thalidomide, and dexamethasone emerged as least effective with the highest total cost per cycle (SUCRA, 0.33). Carfilzomib and dexamethasone emerged as the winner when this regimen was considered in terms of efficacy and safety (SUCRA, 0.61) and efficacy and total cost per cycle (SUCRA, 0.60). Conclusions The results of this NMA can provide additional guidance for the decision-making process when one is choosing the most appropriate regimen for RRMM.
Adult diffuse glioma GWAS by molecular subtype identifies variants in D2HGDH and FAM20C.

BACKGROUND Twenty-five germline variants are associated with adult diffuse glioma, and some of these variants have been shown to be associated with particular subtypes of glioma. We hypothesized that additional germline variants could be identified if a genome-wide association study (GWAS) were performed by molecular subtype. METHODS A total of 1320 glioma cases and 1889 controls were used in the discovery set and 799 glioma cases and 808 controls in the validation set. Glioma cases were classified into molecular subtypes based on combinations of isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) mutation, telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) promoter mutation, and 1p/19q codeletion. Logistic regression was applied to the discovery and validation sets to test for associations of variants with each of the subtypes. A meta-analysis was subsequently performed using a genome-wide P-value threshold of 5 × 10-8. RESULTS Nine variants in or near D-2-hydroxyglutarate dehydrogenase (D2HGDH) on chromosome 2 were genome-wide significant in IDH-mutated glioma (most significant was rs5839764, meta P = 2.82 × 10-10). Further stratifying by 1p/19q codeletion status, one variant in D2HGDH was genome-wide significant in IDH-mutated non-codeleted glioma (rs1106639, meta P = 4.96 × 10-8). Further stratifying by TERT mutation, one variant near FAM20C (family with sequence similarity 20, member C) on chromosome 7 was genome-wide significant in gliomas that have IDH mutation, TERT mutation, and 1p/19q codeletion (rs111976262, meta P = 9.56 × 10-9). Thirty-six variants in or near GMEB2 on chromosome 20 near regulator of telomere elongation helicase 1 (RTEL1) were genome-wide significant in IDH wild-type glioma (most significant was rs4809313, meta P = 2.60 × 10-10). CONCLUSIONS Performing a GWAS by molecular subtype identified 2 new regions and a candidate independent region near RTEL1, which were associated with specific glioma molecular subtypes.
The bicuspid aortic valve: Still a toothy problem

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is an acceptable treatment alternative to surgical aortic valve replacement in selected patients with a bicuspid aortic valve. TAVR appears to have acceptable mid-term outcomes in patients with bicuspid aortic stenosis. A large-scale, randomized, clinical trial is necessary to better define the role of TAVR for patients with bicuspid aortic stenosis.
Dimensional compatibility of balloon-tipped bronchial blockers with the pediatric airway anatomy using different recommendations for age-related size selection

Background Age-related recommendations for size selection of bronchial blocker devices are based on a few dated anatomical autopsy and radiological studies determining lower airway dimensions in children. These recommendations are based on anterior-posterior internal bronchial diameters, which are smaller than the more relevant lateral internal bronchial diameters. Methods Outer diameters of bronchial blocker balloons inflated with the maximum recommended volume of air were compared to age-related lateral internal bronchial diameters of left and right proximal mainstem bronchi using five different recommendations for age-related size selection of bronchial blocker equipment in children published in the literature. Results The ratio of outer bronchial blocker diameters inflated with the maximal recommended volume of air to the median lateral internal diameters of the proximal mainstem bronchus ranged from 71.4% to 181.8% for the left side and from 61.7% to 162.6% for the right side. There were many settings where the blocker diameters did not reach the median lateral internal diameters of the proximal mainstem bronchus. This was more often observed for the right than for the left side (37 vs 22 settings). Conclusion This analysis demonstrates that irrespective of the recommendation for size selection used, neither the two balloon-tipped vascular catheters included nor the Arndt endobronchial blockers are ideal for lung isolation in children are compared with the age-related relevant dimensions of pediatric airway anatomy. A redesign of bronchial blocker equipment with age-related anatomically based high-volume, low-pressure blocker balloons made from ultrathin membranes and with smaller catheters would be desirable.
The Experience of Being a Childfree Woman

One-fifth of women in Britain reach 45 without having children, yet much of the literature around this age group views women as primarily mothers and biological specimens whose psychological health is affected by the menopause. This chapter is based upon qualitative research that asked how the decade between 45 and 55 is experienced by women who have chosen to remain childless. The concepts of choice, freedom, maternal instinct, temporality, selflessness and selfishness are deconstructed and explored from an existential perspective in order to shed new light on the often misunderstood phenomenon of being childfree.
Capturing individual differences in social motivation using a novel interactive task

Abstract Extensive brain and behavioral research indicates that humans are motivated to interact socially. Most research on social reward, however, employs decontextualized social stimuli (e.g., photographs of faces), leaving open questions about which components of interaction are most rewarding and whether their relative value differs across people. We designed a novel text-based chat paradigm to quantify preferences to self-disclose versus learn about a social partner. Crucially, although participants believed they were interacting with a real person, the chat partner was simulated, allowing for rigorous experimental control. Across a series of trials, participants chose between sharing about themselves, learning about their partner, or learning a non-social trivia fact. Each choice was paired with a monetary value to precisely titrate the subjective reward of each option. At the group level, participants preferred learning about their partner. Additionally, participants who showed the greatest motivation for social learning had higher perspective taking and social cognitive skills, lower levels of narcissism, and lower levels of social media dependence. Overall, results suggest that individual differences in the reward value of particular components of social interaction may correlate with real-world traits and behaviors, with implications for measuring and understanding variability in human social experience.
Modelling spatial processes in quantitative human geography

We discuss the nature of processes relating to human behaviour and how to model such processes when they vary over space. In so doing, we describe the role of local modelling and how the bandwidth ...
Reoperative Partial Nephrectomy-Does Previous Surgical Footprint Impact Outcomes?

Purpose:Historically, open techniques have been favored over minimally invasive approaches for complex surgeries. We aimed to identify differences in perioperative outcomes, surgical footprints, an...
Impact of Foliar Application of Acibenzolar S-Methyl on Rose Rosette Disease and Rose Plant Quality.

Rose rosette disease (RRD) caused by rose rosette emaravirus (RRV) is a major issue in the U.S. rose industry with no effective method for its management. This study evaluated the effect of foliar application of Acibenzolar S-methyl (ASM), a plant systemic acquired resistance inducer in reducing RRD disease severity on Rosa species cv. Radtkopink (Pink Double Knock Out®) under greenhouse condition, and the effect of ASM on plant growth under commercial nursery production conditions. ASM at 50 or 100 mg/L at weekly intervals significantly reduced RRD severity compared to the untreated control in two of the three greenhouse trials (P < 0.05). The plants in these trials were subsequently pruned and observed for symptoms, which further indicated that application of ASM at 50 or 100 mg/L lowered disease severity compared to the untreated control (P < 0.05) in these two trials. Plants treated with ASM at 50 or 100 mg/L had delayed incidence of RRD compared to the non-treated controls. Plants treated with ASM at 50 or 100 mg/L rate in all three trials either did not have RRV present or the virus was present in fewer leaf samples than untreated controls as indicated by RT-qPCR analysis. Overall, plants treated with ASM at 50 mg/L had 36-43% reduced RRD incidence compared to the water control. The treatment of two cultivars of rose, 'Radtkopink' and 'Meijocos' (Pink Drift®), with weekly foliar applications of ASM at three rates (0.5, 0.75 and 1.0 oz/A) indicated that ASM had no negative effect on flowering or plant growth at even the highest rate.
Sarcopenia in Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH)

Sarcopenia is the progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass and functionality that is typically associated with older age. Recent literature has noted a high prevalence of sarcopenia in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). This review seeks to compile the current understanding of the pathophysiology, diagnosis, outcomes, and management of sarcopenia in the setting of NAFLD and NASH. Patients with advanced fibrosis from NASH and NASH-related cirrhosis have been found to have significantly higher risks of developing sarcopenia. Recent evidence suggests that sarcopenia does not adversely affect liver transplant waitlist survival in patients with NASH cirrhosis. One-year post-liver transplant survival was also found to not differ significantly in individuals with NASH cirrhosis and pretransplant sarcopenia when compared to those without sarcopenia. While the association between the two pathologies has been well-established, additional investigation is necessary to elucidate the outcomes and novel treatment options for patients with sarcopenia and NASH.
Hydraulic Transport of Solids In A Sloped Pipe

The effects of heterogeneously suspended solids in a pressure flow of liquid on head losses or energy gradients for various pipe slopes, solid concentrations, and flow rates were investigated. Wooden balls, having an average specific gravity slightly larger than unity, were mixed with water in a heterogeneous suspension and transported through a lucite pipe in the experiments. Through proper choice of dimensionless parameters, the data were analyzed and presented in as general a form as possible. The results show that an increase of pipe slope, which does not affect the energy gradient of a clear water stream, evidently causes a rise of head loss from that in a horizontal pipe at a given solid concentration and flow rate. Also, the increase of solid concentration and flow rate raise the energy gradient in the pipe flow of solid-liquid mixtures.
AceTree: a tool for visual analysis of Caenorhabditis elegans embryogenesis

The invariant lineage of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has potential as a powerful tool for the description of mutant phenotypes and gene expression patterns. We previously described procedures for the imaging and automatic extraction of the cell lineage from C. elegans embryos. That method uses time-lapse confocal imaging of a strain expressing histone-GFP fusions and a software package, StarryNite, processes the thousands of images and produces output files that describe the location and lineage relationship of each nucleus at each time point. We have developed a companion software package, AceTree, which links the images and the annotations using tree representations of the lineage. This facilitates curation and editing of the lineage. AceTree also contains powerful visualization and interpretive tools, such as space filling models and tree-based expression patterning, that can be used to extract biological significance from the data. By pairing a fast lineaging program written in C with a user interface program written in Java we have produced a powerful software suite for exploring embryonic development.
Heterogeneity and Dynamics in China's Emerging Housing Market

China's emerging housing market, as a critical element of ongoing economic reforms, has drawn increasing attention. The complete abandonment of the socialist housing allocation system in the late 1990s has led to profound changes in housing distribution and consumption in urban China. This article, through analysis of Chinese Census 2000 data and other comparable datasets, examines housing dynamics in China and in its four autonomous municipalities in the late 1990s. It is found that urban housing conditions have improved by almost all accounts, while housing gaps were rapidly widening. Meanwhile, the mechanisms of housing distribution were shifting. Occupational status and educational level have become much more decisive factors. Regional disparities are also evident, due in part to differences in the reform measures undertaken. The drastic changes in the housing sector manifest the phenomenal socioeconomic changes due to twenty years' economic reforms. Reform is successful in increasing distributional inequality as a way to introduce market-based incentives and improve productivity. However, those who were in power have maintained and extended their advantages in the new system. Therefore, while the market is in the making, demographic and institutional factors instead of economic factors are more relevant in housing distribution and residential behavior.
Fast electron-correlation methods for molecular crystals: An application to the α, β1, and β2 modifications of solid formic acid

A method for the routine first-principles determination of energies, structures, and phonons of molecular crystals by high-accuracy electron-correlation theories has been proposed. It approximates the energy per unit cell of a crystal by a sum of monomer and dimer energies in an embedding field of self-consistent (and, therefore, polarizable) atomic charges and dipole moments. First and second energy derivatives with respect to atom positions and lattice constants (useful for characterizing structures and phonons) have also been computed efficiently with a long-range electrostatic correction. The method has been applied to solid formic acid modeled as infinite one-dimensional hydrogen-bonded chains. Accurate energies (with corrections for basis-set superposition errors), structural parameters, and frequencies have been obtained for three polymorphic structures (β1, β2, and α) with second-order perturbation theory or higher. On this basis, reliable assignments of their infrared, Raman, and inelastic neutro...
Off-line permutation scheduling on circuit-switched fixed routing networks

The problem of offline permutation scheduling on linear arrays, rings, hypercubes, and two-dimensional arrays, assuming the CSFR (circuit-switched fixed routing) model, is examined. Optimal permutation scheduling involves finding a minimum number of subsets of nonconflicting source-destination paths. Every subset of paths can be established to run in one pass. Optimal permutation scheduling on linear arrays is shown to be linear and on rings NP-complete. On hypercubes, the problem is NP-complete. However, the author discusses an O(N log N) algorithm that routes any permutation in two passes if the model is relaxed to allow for two routing rules, the e-cube rule and the e/sup -1/-cube rule. This complexity is reduced to O(N) hypercube-parallel time. An O(N log/sup 2/ N) bipartite-matching-based algorithm designed to schedule any permutation on p*q meshes/tori in q passes is considered. >
The case for secularity in Islam

The dominant view holds that Islam is a comprehensive way of life that does not differentiate between religion (din) and state (dawlah). This article argues, however, that it is possible to carve out a space for secularity based upon the Islamic tradition, one that does not compromise either its integrity or its coherence. The oft-repeated claim that Islamic culture does not distinguish between religion and politics, which inherently lends itself to an undemocratic and authoritarian system of governance, can be challenged from three fronts. First, in practice and even during Prophet's Muhammad's lifetime, there was an explicit separation between ritual acts of worship (‘ibadat) and creed (‘aqidah), on the one hand, and interpersonal relations and social affairs (mu‘amalat), on the other. The former are static and immutable, whereas the latter consists of rules of conduct and behavior that are open to public negotiation. Second, a distinction is made between religion's moral authority, which demands human ...
Molecular design of biologically active biodegradable polymers for biomedical applications

The objective of this research is to synthesize synthetic biodegradable polymers that would have biological functions similar to nitric oxide. Polyglycolide (PGA) was the synthetic biodegradable polymer and 4-amino-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxy (Tempamine) was chosen as the source of nitroxyl radicals. Tempamine nitroxyl radicals were chemically incorporated into the carboxylic acid chain ends of PGA macromolecules via amide linkage. The kinetics of in vitro hydrolytic release of Tempamine nitroxyl radicals from the host PGA in buffered media at 37°C was studied. Tempamine nitroxyl radicals were released into the media via cleavage of either ester linkages in the PGA segments or/and the amide linkage between Tempamine and the PGA segments. The duration of hydrolysis would determine the type of degradation products that were different in the segmental length of the PGA component. A preliminary in vitro cell culture study of this new generation of biologically active biodegradable polymers indicated that it was able to retard the proliferation of smooth muscle cells as pure nitric oxide does.
Gas-Assisted Thin-Film Evaporation from Confined Spaces for Dissipation of High Heat Fluxes

A new cooling scheme utilizing evaporation from an ultrathin, spatially confined liquid film is described and analyzed for thermal management of hot spots with local heat fluxes in excess of 600 W/cm2. This is achieved by a stable monolayer of liquid maintained on the surface and using fully dry sweeping gas (e.g., air) blown at high velocity (50–100 m/s) above this liquid monolayer. We also demonstrate how dielectric coolants like FC72 can outperform water as an evaporative coolant for this scheme. This work presents the conceptual system design, the results of performance analysis supporting the feasibility of the proposed cooling scheme, and experimental results that demonstrate the idea as well as validate the computational results. The analysis allows one to elucidate the salient physical features of evaporative cooling from spatially confined thin films subjected to a sweeping gas and to identify the key parameters resulting enhanced performance. The simplified model provides results in a form suita...
Laboratory host range of Parapoynx diminutalis (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), an Asian aquatic moth adventive in Florida and Panama on Hydrilla verticillata (Hydrocharitaceae)

Parapoynx diminutalis Snellen has been accidentally introduced from Asia into Panama and Florida where the aquatic larvae feed on leaves of Hydrtlla verticillata (L.fil.) Royle, an important submersed weed from Asia. Larvae developed in the laboratory on 14 plant species in 13 genera and on three combinations of species that included an additional three species. Hydrilla was usually preferred by larvae when paired with a test plant, but it was not preferred by ovipositing females in small-cage tests. The tests indicated that Cabombo caroliniana A. Gray, Ceratophyllum demersum L., Egeria densa Planchon, Myriophyllum spicatum L., and Najas guadalupensis (Sprengel) Magnus might be at risk for larval attack in the field.
The Production of Modulus Gradients at Interfaces

We have developed a range of “antiplasticizing” additives for epoxy and polyimide resins which can increase the modulus of the cured polymers by > 40%, increase their tensile and shear strengths, modify their fracture behavior, and decrease their water uptake. These additives may be used alone or in conjunction with rubber modifiers. The optimum additive formulations are complex mixtures, but we describe here two relatively pure model systems. The epoxy additive is the reaction product of 4-hydroxyacetanilide (HAA) and vinylcyclohexene dioxide (VCD), while the polyimide additive is the reaction product of epoxyphenoxypropane (EPP) and HAA. These additives are mixed with the epoxy resin and curing agent (or polyamic acid solution in the case of polyimides), before curing, and the mixture is then cured in the conventional fashion. We describe here some physical properties of the modified epoxies and polyimides and their use in adhesive formulations. These materials offer the potential for constructing modulus gradients at interfaces through their use as primers, so as to allow testing of the many hypotheses concerning desirable interphase properties. Some initial experiments in this area are described.
Multiaxial Mechanical Behavior of Human Saccular Aneurysms

Intracranial saccular aneurysms are focal dilatations of the arterial wall that usually occur in or near the circle of Willis. Two-to-five percent of the population in the western world likely harbors such an aneurysm, rupture of which is the leading cause of nontraumatic subarachnoid hemorrhage. It is widely thought that these lesions rupture when wall stress exceeds wall strength. Given that aneurysms experience multiaxial stress and strain fields in vivo, there is a pressing need for data on their multiaxial mechanical properties. In this paper, we report the first multiaxial data on human saccular aneurysms. Lesions were obtained at autopsy, cannulated, and subjected to cyclic pressurization using a triplane video-based experimental system. The latter recorded the pressures and associated motions of multiple markers that were affixed to the surface of the lesion. Finally, a new sub-domain inverse finite element method was used to estimate the best-fit material parameters in a Fung-type pseudostrain en...
Long-lasting rebound cue effects following single doses of nicotine and amphetamine: implications for understanding tolerance

Rationale: Previous drug-discrimination studies have, with the exception of nicotine (NIC), demonstrated tolerance to the cue effects of a broad range of drugs of abuse. Barrett et al. have shown that tolerance to a drug's cue properties reflects drug-induced rebound shifts in the discrimination baseline and not a weakened or less salient cue. Objectives: The objective of the present study was to use a discrimination task sensitive to bidirectional cue changes to characterize the interoceptive cues associated with both the primary and rebound cues produced by nicotine in an attempt to understand why a recent study by Shoaib et al. failed to observe tolerance to the nicotine cue. Methods: Since dopamine (DA) has been implicated in mediating the NIC cue, rats were trained to discriminate between 0.25 mg/kg amphetamine (AMPH), an indirect DA agonist, and 0.033 mg/kg haloperidol (HAL), a DA antagonist at the D2 receptor site. Training doses were chosen so that rats responded about equally on both levers when tested on saline (SAL) following acquisition. This procedure provided a behavioral baseline to assess NIC-related changes along a presumed continuum of DA-mediated cues. Following acquisition of the discrimination: (i) NIC substitution tests were conducted, (ii) rats were tested for lever choice at intervals from 2 h to 48 h following treatment with single doses of 0.25 mg/kg and 0.50 mg/kg NIC, and (iii) rats were challenged with test doses of NIC during a period of NIC rebound. Results: (i) NIC substituted for AMPH in a dose- dependent manner. (ii) At short intervals after treatment with 0.25 mg/kg and 0.50 mg/kg NIC, rats responded primarily on the AMPH lever followed by a shift to predominant responding on the HAL lever 16–24 h post-treatment, before returning to predrug levels. (iii) No evidence was observed for acute tolerance to NIC. Conclusions: The robust and long-lasting rebound cues associated with training level doses of NIC suggest that maximal tolerance would likely develop to the NIC cue during the acquisition phase of the conventional NIC–saline discrimination study.
Probing the chain and crystal lattice orientation in polyethylene thin films by near edge x-ray absorption fine structure (nexafs) spectroscopy

The chain and the crystal unit cell orientation of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) were measured with near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy. A strongly attractive substrate, silicon, and a weakly attractive substrate, mica, were used. For a 100 nm thick LLDPE film on the silicon substrate, the crystals exhibit an edge-on lamellar morphology, with the chains predominantly parallel to the substrate, and the orthorhombic unit cell ⟨a, b, c⟩ in the following approximate orientation: b and c are in the film plane with b along the crystal fibril direction and c perpendicular to the fibril direction and a perpendicular to the film plane. On the mica substrates, LLDPE films with thickness below 180 nm completely dewet the surface and form isolated droplets, while a film 366 nm thick crystallizes as spherulites with most of the chains perpendicular to the substrate before annealing and with a twisted lamellar structure after isothermal crystallization at 60 °C. The results demonst...
Quantum transport theory of electrons in solids: A single-particle approach

The electronic transport theory of semiconductors is not, from a first-principles point of view, as well understood as is that of metals, where the degeneracy of the Fermi system leads to a simplified but comprehensive theory. In the case of semiconductors, degeneracy usually plays no simplifying role at all. However, in many transport problems of current interest one is effectively dealing with the equivalent of a single particle interacting with an environment, e.g., a heat bath or a random potential. In view of this, the author presents a simple formalism for the quantum dynamics of a single continuous degree of freedom. The quantum-statistical description is in terms of the density matrix, and the Feynman rules for a standard treatment of the density matrix are presented and illustrated by applications to problems of current interest. It is shown that such an effect as, for example, the intracollisional field effect, which in the past has been dealt with using complicated formalisms, in the present treatment is described in an elementary way. The single-particle approach conveniently displays the interference aspect of quantum-mechanical transport, as is discussed in a treatment of the weak localization effect in disordered conductors. The real-space representation of quantum transport is stressed, as is appropriate for a proper discussion of mesoscopic physics. The author treats the connection between the linear-response formalism and the Landauer approach by expressing the conductance in terms of the scattering properties of a sample. He also discusses the conductance fluctuations of mesoscopic samples.
A High Throughput No-Stall Golomb-Rice Hardware Decoder

Integer compression techniques can generally be classified as bit-wise and byte-wise approaches. Though at the cost of a larger processing time, bit-wise techniques typically result in a better compression ratio. The Golomb-Rice (GR) method is a bit-wise lossless technique applied to the compression of images, audio files and lists of inverted indices. However, since GR is a serial algorithm, decompression is regarded as a very slow process; to the best of our knowledge, all existing software and hardware native (non-modified) GR decoding engines operate bit-serially on the encoded stream. In this paper, we present (1) the first no-stall hardware architecture, capable of decompressing streams of integers compressed using the GR method, at a rate of several bytes (multiple integers) per hardware cycle; (2) a novel GR decoder based on the latter architecture is further detailed, operating at a peak rate of one integer per cycle. A thorough design space exploration study on the resulting resource utilization and throughput of the aforementioned approaches is presented. Furthermore, a performance study is provided, comparing software approaches to implementations of the novel hardware decoders. While occupying 10% of a Xilinx V6LX240T FPGA, the no-stall architecture core achieves a sustained throughput of over 7 Gbps.
Integrating hospitalists into the pediatric intensive care unit.

Abstract The role of the pediatric hospitalist has an extremely bright future in many facets of the pediatric healthcare spectrum. The role of the hospitalist in the PICU is only one of many that shows great promise and will likely change our current models of care for children. The greatest challenge will be the education of healthcare providers who may see these changes as erosion in care, rather than as an important asset in providing quality care for children.
Efficient incorporation of unsaturated methionine analogues into proteins in vivo

A set of eight methionine analogues was assayed for translational activity in Escherichia coli. Norvaline and norleucine, which are commercially available, were assayed along with 2-amino-5-hexenoic acid (2), 2-amino-5-hexynoic acid (3), cis-2-amino-4-hexenoic acid (4), trans-2-amino-4-hexenoic acid (5), 6,6,6-trifluoro-2-aminohexanoic acid (6), and 2-aminoheptanoic acid (7), each of which was prepared by alkylation of diethyl acetamidomalonate with the appropriate tosylate, followed by hydrolysis. The E. coli methionine auxotroph CAG18491, transformed with plasmids pREP4 and pQE15, was used as the expression host, and translational activity was assayed by determination of the capacity of the analogue to support synthesis of the test protein dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) in the absence of added methionine. The importance of amino acid side chain length was illustrated by the fact that neither norvaline (8) nor 7 showed translational activity, in contrast to norleucine (9), which does support protein synthesis under the assay conditions. The internal alkene functions of 4 and 5 prevented incorporation of these analogues into test protein, and the fluorinated analogue 6 yielded no evidence of translational activity. The terminally unsaturated compounds 2 and 3, however, proved to be excellent methionine surrogates: ^1H NMR spectroscopy, amino acid analysis, and N-terminal sequencing indicated ∼85% substitution of methionine by 2, while 3 showed 90−100% replacement. Both analogues also function efficiently in the initiation step of protein synthesis, as shown by their near-quantitative occupancy of the N-terminal amino acid site in DHFR. Enzyme kinetics assays were conducted to determine the rate of activation of each of the methionine analogues by methionyl tRNA synthetase (MetRS); results of the in vitro assays corroborate the in vivo incorporation results, suggesting that success or failure of analogue incorporation in vivo is controlled by MetRS.
Stone-Age Art “Venuses” as Heuristic Clues for Types of Obesity: Contribution to “Iconodiagnosis”

Two types of obesity (gluteal and abdominal) depicted quite consistently in prehistoric art of different European locations suggests the potential cross-fertilization for physiological inquiry by medical interpretation of prehistoric art, called iconodiagnosis.
Genetic Influence on Human Psychological Traits A Survey

There is now a large body of evidence that supports the conclusion that individual differences in most, if not all, reliably measured psychological traits, normal and abnormal, are substantively influenced by genetic factors. This fact has important implications for research and theory building in psychology, as evidence of genetic influence unleashes a cascade of questions regarding the sources of variance in such traits. A brief list of those questions is provided, and representative findings regarding genetic and environmental influences are presented for the domains of personality, intelligence, psycho- logical interests, psychiatric illnesses, and social attitudes. These findings are consistent with those reported for the traits of other species and for many human physical traits, suggesting that they may represent a general biological phenomenon. KEYWORDS—behavior genetics; heritability; individual differ- ences
821 THE ROLE OF EXCHANGE TRANSFUSION (ET) IN THE TREATMENT OF SEVERE SEPTICEMIA AND SCLEREMA NEONATORUM

Septicemia is the most frequent cause of sclerema neonatorum. With few exceptions, patients with this condition have a rapidly fatal course. Since Sept., 1976, we have been using specific antibiotics & multiple ET for our patients with severe septicemia and sclerema. We did 3-4 ET at 8-12 hr. intervals using fresh whole blood, 160 cc./kg. Eight newborn infants were treated in this way. The most frequently identified etiologic agents were E. Coli & Group B Streptococcus. The birth weights ranged between 1120 & 3160 g. with a mean of 2061 g. Five infants survived and 3 died. All the fatal cases had DIC and possible intracranial bleeding by the time the first ET was started. The clinical course of the 5 surviving infants markedly improved immediately after the first ET. The prognosis of the very low birth weight infants improves with the use of routine ET if done in the first 12 hrs. of life, (M.D. Papadopoulos, J. Peds. 89: 273, 1976). Prod'hom speculates that increased levels of IgM & IgA, enhancement of other defense mechanisms, removal of bacterial toxins, and improvement of circulation & oxygen transport may be the mechanisms of action of ET in severe septicemia, (Pediatrics 53:170, 1974). We believe that multiple ET could play an important role in the management of rapidly deteriorating newborn infants with septicemia and sclerema. However, a controlled study is necessary.
Risk sharing and quasi-credit

Recent empirical evidence indicates that rural households in the Third World smooth consumption through reciprocal gifts and informal credit but fail to achieve Pareto efficiency in risk sharing. Extending previous models of informal contracts as repeated games, this paper shows that several often-described features of informal risk sharing arrangements can be understood as limitations imposed by their self-enforcing nature. We argue that informal credit between friends and relatives is a hybrid transaction, halfway between market exchange and gift giving, whose purpose is to overcome enforcement problems present in pure income pooling arrangements.
Population trapping in short-pulse multiphoton ionization

We have studied population trapping in a one-dimensional model atom interacting with a short-pulse high-intensity laser, using Floquet analysis and direct numerical integration of the time-dependent Schrodinger equation for a range of peak pulse intensities. We find that photoelectrons are efficiently produced only by pulses whose peak intensities lie in a narrow range around the resonant intensity for a given intermediate state. Excited-state populations, however, are generated with comparable efficiencies for all pulses whose peak intensities exceed the resonant intensity. This implies that, for a realistic laser pulse with an inhomogeneous spatial distribution of intensity, excited atoms are generated throughout a larger volume than are photoelectrons. Interpretations of recent experiments are reexamined in light of this result.
Verifying correct usage of atomic blocks and typestate

The atomic block, a synchronization primitive provided to programmers in transactional memory systems, has the potential to greatly ease the development of concurrent software. However, atomic blocks can still be used incorrectly, and race conditions can still occur at the level of application logic. In this paper, we present a intraprocedural static analysis, formalized as a type system and proven sound, that helps programmers use atomic blocks correctly. Using access permissions, which describe how objects are aliased and modified, our system statically prevents race conditions and enforces typestate properties in concurrent programs. We have implemented a prototype static analysis for the Java language based on our system and have used it to verify several realistic examples.
Effects of perfluorochemical on phagocytic function of leukocytes

Oxygen-carrying perfluorochemical emulsions may become useful for transfusions when red cells cannot be used. Since accumulation of perfluorochemicals in reticuloendothelial cells has been demonstrated, we tested the phagocytic function of monocytes and neutrophils in rabbit and human blood exposed in vivo and in vitro, respectively, to perfluorotributylamine (Oxypherol) a perfluorochemical blood substitute. Neutrophil and monocyte phagocytosis was assessed by determining the uptake of serum-coated fluorescent beads by monocytes and neutrophils in whole blood. Morphologic changes were assessed by electron microscopy. The phagocytic activity of monocytes and neutrophils in the blood of four rabbits injected 4 hours earlier with 70 to 85 ml of Oxypherol (28 ml/kg) was depressed by 87 +/- 1.0 percent. Neutrophils in this blood showed morphological alterations characterized by swelling and extensive vacuole formation. Similar changes were found in neutrophils and monocytes of human blood incubated with Oxypherol (10-50%, V/V) at 37 degrees C for 1 hour. The phagocytic activity of human neutrophils and monocytes exposed to 20 percent, V/V Oxypherol was depressed by 35 +/- 9.9 percent. We conclude that caution should be exercised when administering perfluorochemical blood substitutes in patients exposed or at risk of infection.
Experience and Responding

This article responds to the critiques by O’Brien and Prawat of my article, “Dewey and Vygotsky: Society, Experience, and Inquiry in Educational Practice.” The central point made by both authors concerns the relationship of process and product in Dewey’s educational philosophy. The authors argue that Dewey did not promote process over product in the classroom and that Dewey and Vygotsky are more similar in spirit and substance than my article suggests. However, when Dewey’s educational philosophy is viewed within the larger framework of instrumental pragmatism, there are clear reasons why Dewey would want to emphasize process (while not disregarding product) in day-to-day education. This article also responds to criticisms involving the relative emphasis Dewey and Vygotsky gave to issues of diversity and individual variance and to the development of ideas of the two theorists.
The study of associative learning: Mapping from psychological to neural levels of analysis

One of the major achievements of the last century of research in experimental psychology is the identification of a coherent set of theories and principles to characterize the nature of simple forms of associative learning. Major advances are also currently being made at a rapid pace in the neurobiology of associative learning, and, interestingly, we are beginning to see how a mapping from a psychological level of analysis to underlying neurobiological mechanisms is possible. This collection of papers honors the illustrative careers of four major learning theorists from the experimental psychology tradition (Robert Rescorla, Allan Wagner, Nicholas Mackintosh, Anthony Dickinson) who have helped shape our understanding of behavioral principles. The collection of works in this special issue reflects common interests among researchers working at both psychological and neurobiological levels of analysis towards a more comprehensive understanding of basic associative learning processes as they relate to several key issues identified and intensively studied by these influential learning theorists. These consist of the questions regarding (1) the critical conditions enabling learning, (2) the contents of learning, and (3) the rules that translate learning into performance. In one way or another, the separate contributions in this issue address these fundamental questions as they relate to a wide variety of currently exciting topics in the study of the neurobiology of learning and memory.
Recombinant sea urchin flagellar adenylate kinase

Adenylate kinase (AK) is localized in sea urchin sperm flagella and embryonic cilia. To investigate sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus AK (SpAK) enzymatic characteristics, the full-length recombinant protein of 130 kDa (SpAKr) and each of its three catalytic domains were expressed in Escherichia coli. Although the full-length SpAK had high enzymatic activity, each of the three catalytic domains had no activity. The Km for ATP synthesis from ADP was 0.23 mM and the Vmax was 4.51 mumol ATP formed per minute per milligram of protein. The specific AK inhibitor, Ap5A, blocks SpAKr enzymatic activity with an IC50 of 0.53 microM. The pH optimum for SpAKr is 8.1, as compared to 7.7 for the natural SpAK. Calcium inhibits SpAKr activity in a dose-dependent manner. Although SpAKr has three cAMP-dependent protein kinase phosphorylation sites, and can be phosphorylated in vitro, the enzymatic kinetics after phosphorylation are not significantly altered. SpAK and Chlamydomonas flagellar AKs are the only AKs with three catalytic sites. Further study of the SpAKr will aid in understanding the active site of this interesting and important ATP synthase.
Dysregulation of endogenous carbon monoxide and nitric oxide production in patients with advanced ischemic or nonischemic cardiomyopathy.

Carbon monoxide (CO) and nitric oxide (NO) are endogenous vasoregulatory molecules whose role in heart failure is not fully known. Exhaled CO and NO measurement provide novel noninvasive assessment of their endogenous production. We compared exhaled CO and NO in 24 patients with advanced ischemic and nonischemic cardiomyopathy and in 13 control subjects without known cardiac disease at rest and at 1 and 5 minutes after exercise testing. Exhaled CO was lower in patients with cardiomyopathy at rest (1.66 ± 0.2 vs 1.80 ± 0.5 ppm, p = 0.02) and 1 minute after exercise (1.35 ± 0.2 vs 1.81 ± 0.5 ppm, p = 0.009), with a similar trend at 5 minutes after exercise (1.45 ± 0.3 vs 1.81 ± 0.5 ppm, p = 0.14). Exhaled CO decreased in patients with cardiomyopathy after exercise (p <0.001 and p = 0.02 at rest vs 1 and 5 minutes after exercise, respectively) but was maintained in controls. Exhaled NO did not differ between patients with cardiomyopathy and controls at rest (9.48 ± 1.4 vs 9.68 ± 1.5 ppb, p = NS) and after exercise (1 minute: 10.91 ± 1.8 vs 9.19 ± 1.2 ppb; 5 minutes: 10.52 ± 1.5 vs 8.90 ± 1.2 ppb, p = NS). Exhaled NO increased after exercise in patients with cardiomyopathy (p = 0.01 and p = 0.04 rest vs exercise at 1 and 5 minutes, respectively), but was maintained in controls. Exhaled CO and NO were not correlated with peak oxygen consumption in patients with cardiomyopathy. The differential responses in exhaled CO and NO at rest or with exercise between patients with cardiomyopathy and normal controls may point to dysregulation in endogenous CO and NO production.