cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Involutional Lower Eyelid Entropion

This chapter describes various options for managing involutional entropion. There are three lower eyelid aging changes responsible for involutional lower eyelid entropion: increased horizontal eyelid laxity, partial or complete dehiscence of the lower eyelid retractors, and unopposed overaction of the lower eyelid pretarsal and preseptal orbicularis muscle. Involutional entropion can be constant or recurrent as well as unilateral or bilateral. Patient complaints include ocular irritation, redness, and tearing. Nonsurgical management options for this problem include artificial tear ointments, lid taping, and botulinum toxin injections. Rotation sutures are a temporary surgical option. Surgical options have included plication of the lower lid retractors combined with a tarsal strip or a full-thickness wedge resection of the lower lid. Entropion recurrence has been a problem with all of these interventions. A transconjunctival entropion repair, which combines a tarsal strip, retractor plication, and excision of overacting orbicularis muscle, corrects the three anatomic defects associated with an involutional entropion and permanently corrects involutional entropion.
How Stressful Is the Transition to Adolescence for Girls

The stress experienced by the young adolescent is defined here in terms of the potentially stressful life events that characterize the transition from childhood to adolescence. Many researchers often focused on the fact that many aspects of the adolescent transition were not particularly stressful, at least for the majority of girls. In a vast literature on adults, the occurrence of stressful life events has been associated with physical illness as well as negative emotional states. As girls mature, they demand more independence from their parents. In some cases, they seek out girlfriends who are similar in pubertal maturation. Storminess, as evidenced by intense, negative, and labile moods, is believed to characterize the young adolescent's emotional landscape. Given the young adolescent is experiencing a number of events, the cumulative load of events may be triggering conflictual interactions via low impulse control and depressive and aggressive symptomatology.
Microscale cell stretcher to generate spatially uniform equi-biaxial strain using an elastomeric membrane with a contoured thickness profile

Abstract Cellular response to mechanical signals is an intriguing research topic that is central to numerous fundamental questions in cell biology and has attracted extraordinary research interests. Delivering in-plane equi-biaxial strain towards adherent cells is a critical step for studying cellular mechanical responses. Mechanical straining is often performed by pushing a circular elastomeric membrane against a post or an O-ring or applying in-plane strain via through perforations on the membrane. Such methods, however, are not well compatible with miniaturization because the difficulties of device assembly and operation increase dramatically as the dimension of the membrane reduces. In this paper, we report a post-less elastomeric membrane with a contoured thickness profile for delivering in-plane equi-biaxial strain with significantly improved spatial uniformity. The easy assembly and operation allow for miniaturization of individual cellular mechanical stimulation sites to support parallel operation. The improvement of the spatial uniformity of the in-plane strain was experimentally validated with different membrane deformations. Cell reorientation and reorganization of actin filaments in fibroblasts under dynamic loading were examined using such elastomeric membranes. This work is expected to hasten the next-generation high throughput cellular mechanical stimulators for a broad range of cellular mechanobiological studies.
Performativity and representation in transnational blackface: Mammy (USA), Zwarte Piet (Netherlands), and Haji Firuz (Iran)

ABSTRACTOriginating in the 1820s minstrelsy entertainment shows, blackface in American cultural history was the wearing of black theatrical makeup by white actors who portrayed African-American fic...
Unusual case of levamisole-induced dual-positive ANCA vasculitis and crescentic glomerulonephritis.

Cocaine adulterated levamisole is an increasingly reported cause of skin necrosis, arthralgia and systemic vasculitis, but renal involvement is uncommon. We present a case of a 40-year-old Hispanic man with a history of cocaine abuse who presented with acute kidney injury to the rheumatology clinic where he was being treated for chronic inflammatory arthritis. He was found to have a serum creatinine of 2.5 mg/dL, microscopic haematuria and subnephrotic proteinuria, along with positive proteinase 3, myeloperoxidase, anticardiolipin antibodies and an elevated antinuclear antibody titre. The renal pathology revealed focal necrotising glomerulonephritis with crescentic features and mild immune type deposition. The patient was treated with cocaine abstinence, pulse dose steroids followed by maintenance prednisone, rituximab and cyclophosphamide. His renal function subsequently improved but did not normalise. We believe that his incomplete improvement was due to the degree of kidney injury on presentation as well as recidivism with cocaine use.
Improved Perinatal and Postpartum Human Immunodeficiency Virus Outcomes After Use of a Perinatal Care Coordination Team

In a high-volume clinic in the Southeastern United States, pregnant women living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) had improved HIV outcomes up to 6 months after delivery following the introduction of a multidisciplinary perinatal care coordination team.
Understanding Pain in Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant worldwide public health problem. TBI is usually caused by an external blunt or penetrating trauma to the head, skull, dura, or brain. Acceleration-deceleration injuries (i.e., whiplash) or coup-contrecoup injuries can also cause damage. The annual incidence of TBI in the United States has been cited as 1.7 million cases, but this is likely an underestimate due to underreporting and misdiagnosis, and does not take into account the increasing number of military patients with TBI. The public’s interest in concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy among professional football players has led to increased awareness about concussion and TBI in the United States.
Sex differences in the associations of placental epigenetic aging with fetal growth

Identifying factors that influence fetal growth in a sex-specific manner can help unravel mechanisms that explain sex differences in adverse neonatal outcomes and in-utero origins of cardiovascular disease disparities. Premature aging of the placenta, a tissue that supports fetal growth and exhibits sex-specific epigenetic changes, is associated with pregnancy complications. Using DNA methylation-based age estimator, we investigated the sex-specific relationship of placental epigenetic aging with fetal growth across 13-40 weeks gestation, neonatal size, and risk of low birth weight. Placental epigenetic age acceleration (PAA), the difference between DNA methylation age and gestational age, was associated with reduced fetal weight among males but with increased fetal weight among females. PAA was inversely associated with fetal weight, abdominal circumference, and biparietal diameter at 32-40 weeks among males but was positively associated with all growth measures among females across 13-40 weeks. A 1-week increase in PAA was associated with 2-fold (95% CI 1.2, 3.2) increased odds for low birth weight and 1.5-fold (95% CI 1.1, 2.0) increased odds for small-for-gestational age among males. In all, fetal growth was significantly reduced in males but not females exposed to a rapidly aging placenta. Epigenetic aging of the placenta may underlie sex differences in neonatal outcomes.
Antibiotic-resistant Salmonella in swine wastes and farm surface waters

Hog production takes place mostly in large concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) where waste is managed by storing in lagoons prior to land application of lagoon liquid. Salmonella, including antibiotic-resistant Salmonella, have been found in the farm environment and lagoons. The objective of this research was to determine whether Salmonella resistant to clinically relevant antibiotics were present in wastewaters and surface waters from hog CAFOs. Samples of hog waste and on farm environmental waters were analysed for Salmonella, which were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility. The highest percentage of resistant isolates were found in raw waste flushed from hog houses and in lagoon wastewater; few resistant isolates were found in on-farm surface water. Resistance to sulphamethoxazole was most common, mostly in waste samples and less commonly in surface water, followed by chloramphenicol and ampicillin. No resistance to cephalosporin or fluoroquinolones was found. Resistance to clinically relevant antibiotics was commonly found in Salmonella from hog waste but was less extensive in farm surface waters. Management of wastes from hog CAFOs should be designed to further reduce the risk of human exposures resulting from environmental contamination with Salmonella. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This study suggests antibiotic-resistant Salmonella were common in hog wastes and present in environmental waters associated with hog CAFOs. Low levels of antibiotic-resistant Salmonella in on-farm stream waters suggest surface waters could have been contaminated, potentially serving as a mechanism of off-farm transport. Since the study, there have been multiple economic, regulatory and practice changes at the federal, state and industry level. These include regulation of antibiotic use and animal waste treatment, vertical integration in the industry and changes in antibiotic use practice. This study is a useful historical baseline against which current antibiotic resistance trends can be measured.
Conservative, Liberal, Perverted Liberal

Conservative thought is structurally different from liberal. Conservative thought defines actions that all individuals must take, and therefore is absolutist. Liberal thought focuses on individuals, their desires and motives, and therefore is relativist, allowing many valid courses of action. Liberalism, which defines the modern Western state, is like a credenza that allows many cubbyholes, each of which can be filled by a conservatism. Conservatism is intolerant of other conservatisms, so only liberalism can serve as the overstructure of many; any conservatism can threaten to expand outwards to take over the whole. Yet another current threat to the liberal over-structure is Perverted Liberalism (PL), which uses the vocabulary of liberalism but attempts to take over its relativist structure like a conservatism. The goal of PL is however not to change the world, it is to force expressions of guilt and contrition on the part of those its adepts see as the more powerful. Because the victories of PL are victories of words only, it has taken root in the temple of words, academia.
Early Modern Child Abduction in the Name of Religion

This chapter explores the physical removal and attempted indoctrination of European children during the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries. Despite prohibitions on mixed marriages by the religious authorities of all confessions, interfaith unions continued to be common throughout the early modern period. The confessional identity of the offspring of such marriages remained a hotly contested issue, subject to a variety of customary, statutory and contractual norms. Contrary to conventional narratives of the development of religious toleration, abduction of children on confessional grounds—whether by parents, relatives, clerics or state authorities—actually increased in frequency during the so-called Enlightenment era. This chapter argues that new state attempts at enforcing religious homogeneity during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries played a key role in this intensification of confessional conflict.
Diagonal Preconditioning: Theory and Algorithms

Diagonal preconditioning has been a staple technique in optimization and machine learning. It often reduces the condition number of the design or Hessian matrix it is applied to, thereby speeding up convergence. However, rigorous analyses of how well various diagonal preconditioning procedures improve the condition number of the preconditioned matrix and how that translates into improvements in optimization are rare. In this paper, we first provide an analysis of a popular diagonal preconditioning technique based on column standard deviation and its effect on the condition number using random matrix theory. Then we identify a class of design matrices whose condition numbers can be reduced significantly by this procedure. We then study the problem of optimal diagonal preconditioning to improve the condition number of any full-rank matrix and provide a bisection algorithm and a potential reduction algorithm with $O(\log(\frac{1}{\epsilon}))$ iteration complexity, where each iteration consists of an SDP feasibility problem and a Newton update using the Nesterov-Todd direction, respectively. Finally, we extend the optimal diagonal preconditioning algorithm to an adaptive setting and compare its empirical performance at reducing the condition number and speeding up convergence for regression and classification problems with that of another adaptive preconditioning technique, namely batch normalization, that is essential in training machine learning models.
Structure of fish Toll-like receptors (TLR) and NOD-like receptors (NLR)

Innate immunity driven by pattern recognition receptor (PRR) protects the host from invading pathogens. Aquatic animals like fish where the adaptive immunity is poorly developed majorly rely on their innate immunity modulated by PRRs like toll-like receptors (TLR) and NOD-like receptors (NLR). However, current development to improve the fish immunity via TLR/NLR signaling is affected by a poor understanding of its mechanistic and structural features. This review discusses the structure of fish TLRs/NLRs and its interaction with pathogen associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) and downstream signaling molecules. Over the past one decade, significant progress has been done in studying the structure of TLRs/NLRs in higher eukaryotes; however, structural studies on fish innate immune receptors are undermined. Several novel TLR genes are identified in fish that are absent in higher eukaryotes, but the function is still poorly understood. Unlike the fundamental progress achieved in developing antagonist/agonist to modulate human innate immunity, analogous studies in fish are nearly lacking due to structural inadequacy. This underlies the importance of exploring the structural and mechanistic details of fish TLRs/NLRs at an atomic and molecular level. This review outlined the mechanistic and structural basis of fish TLR and NLR activation.
Preliminary Evidence That Cortical Amyloid Burden Predicts Poor Response to Antidepressant Medication Treatment in Cognitively Intact Individuals With Late-Life Depression.

ABSTRACT Objective Amyloid accumulation, the pathological hallmark of Alzheimer's disease, may predispose some older adults to depression and cognitive decline. Deposition of amyloid also occurs prior to the development of cognitive decline. It is unclear whether amyloid influences antidepressant outcomes in cognitively intact depressed elders. Design A pharmacoimaging trial utilizing florbetapir (18F) PET scanning followed by 2 sequential 8-week antidepressant medication trials. Participants Twenty-seven depressed elders who were cognitively intact on screening. Measurements and Interventions After screening, diagnostic testing, assessment of depression severity and neuropsychological assessment, participants completed florbetapir (18F) PET scanning. They were then randomized to receive escitalopram or placebo for 8 weeks in a double-blinded two-to-one allocation rate. Individuals who did not respond to initial treatment transitioned to a second open-label trial of bupropion for another 8 weeks. Results Compared with 22 amyloid-negative participants, 5 amyloid-positive participants exhibited significantly less change in depression severity and a lower likelihood of remission. In the initial blinded trial, 4 of 5 amyloid-positive participants were nonremitters (80%), while only 18% (4 of 22) of amyloid-negative participants did not remit (p = 0.017; Fisher's Exact test). In separate models adjusting for key covariates, both positive amyloid status (t = 3.07, 21 df, p = 0.003) and higher cortical amyloid binding by standard uptake value ratio (t = 2.62, 21 df, p = 0.010) were associated with less improvement in depression severity. Similar findings were observed when examining change in depression status across both antidepressant trials. Conclusions In this preliminary study, amyloid status predicted poor antidepressant response to sequential antidepressant treatment. Alternative treatment approaches may be needed for amyloid-positive depressed elders.
The kinetics of carbon monoxide reduction of magnetite concentrate particles through CFD modelling

The kinetics of CO reduction of magnetite concentrate particles was investigated in drop-tube reactors (DTR) to obtain a rate equation for the design and analysis of a flash ironmaking reactor. The...
Lumbar Puncture and Drainage

This chapter outlines the safe execution of lumbar puncture with or without drain placement by skilled advanced providers. The authors delve into common indications, contraindications, complications, and anatomical review with a focus on the step by step procedure. An overview of basic cerebral spinal fluid interpretation is discussed with special attention to antibiotic coverage. Additionally, procedure codes, tips from skilled proceduralists, and further video references to aid the novice advanced provider are included.
Segmentation of the urothelium in optical coherence tomography images with dynamic contrast.

Significance: Speckle variation induced by intracellular motion (IM) in the urothelium was observed in optical coherence tomography (OCT) images. IM can be used as a dynamic contrast to segment the urothelium by comparing two sequential OCT images. This method opens the possibility of specifically tracking the distribution of urothelial cancerous cells for identifying the microinvasion of bladder tumors. Approach: OCT images were acquired ex vivo with fresh porcine bladder tissue. IM was analyzed by tracking speckle variation using autocorrelation function, then quantified with constrained regularization method for inverting data (CONTIN method) to identify the decorrelation time (DT) of the speckle variations. Variance analysis was also conducted to show IM amplitude and distribution in the urothelium. The segmentation of the urothelium was demonstrated with OCT images with a visible urothelial layer and OCT images with an invisible urothelial layer. Results: Significant speckle variation induced by IM was observed in the urothelium. However, the distribution of the IM is heterogeneous. The DTs are mostly concentrated between 1 and 30 ms. With the IM as a dynamic contrast, the urothelium can be accurately and exclusively segmented, even the urothelial layer is invisible in normal OCT images. Conclusions: IM can be used as a dynamic contrast to exclusively track urothelial cell distribution. This contrast may provide a new mechanism for OCT to image the invasion depth and pattern of urothelial cancerous cells for accurately substaging of bladder cancer.
Disconfirmed Expectancy: A Time-Impact Analysis

This study focuses on how consumers deal with differences between expectations about an unidentified product’s performance and disconfirmed evaluations after using it for a period of time. Results suggest that given sufficient time to use the product, consumer evaluations adjust toward the product’s actual performance.
Spin-Up and Spin-Down Induced Magnetic Field Changes in Neutron Stars

Because of a neutron star’s particular quantum fluid interior, spin-up and spin-down cause predictable crust movement and magnetic field changes. Consequences include the formation of weak dipole moment millisecond pulsars by the accretion induced spin-up of strong field neutron stars, the absence of observable spin modulation of the thermal X-ray emission from the surfaces of neutron stars in accreting low mass X-ray binaries (LMXB’s), pulsar period “glitches”, and gamma-ray bursts from glitches in old radio-dead pulsars.
Process variable implications for residual solvent removal and polymer morphology in the formation of gentamycin-loaded poly (L-lactide) microparticles.

Purpose. The purpose was to determine the influence of process parameters in the precipitation with a compressed antisolvent (PCA) process on the morphology and residual dichloromethane (DCM) levels in gentamycin-loaded PLA microparticles.
Isolation and Characterization of Marine Caulobacters and Assessment of Their Potential for Genetic Experimentation.

Abstract A total of 25 marine caulobacters were isolated from littoral marine sources. Several aspects of their physiology and morphology were examined, as well as their suitability for genetic manipulation in laboratory cultivation. Caulobacters were readily isolated from all sources, including samples from areas containing pollution-related organic compounds. All isolates grew best in media containing seawater, but eight strains grew if sea salts were replaced with NaCl alone, three strains grew at 1/10 the normal sea salt concentration, and one isolate grew, albeit poorly, in freshwater medium. Of the marine isolates, 12 strains grew under anaerobic conditions, indicating that some caulobacters are not obligately aerobic bacteria, as they are currently categorized. Although some freshwater caulobacters are able to oxidize manganese, this capability was not found in these marine caulobacters. Of the marine isolates, 10 strains were resistant to mercury chloride concentrations 10- to 20-fold greater than that tolerated by sensitive bacteria. However, a mercury reductase gene comparable with that found in R100-type plasmids was not detected by gene hybridization. With respect to the potential for genetic experimentation, most strains grew rapidly (3- to 4-h generation time at 30°C), producing colonies on solid media in 2 to 3 days. The isolates were sensitive to antibiotics commonly used in recombinant DNA experiments, and spontaneous drug-resistant mutants were selectable. Conjugal transfer of plasmids from Escherichia coli to several marine caulobacters was demonstrated for four broad-host-range plasmid incompatibility groups, by using both self-transmissible plasmids and cloning-oriented plasmids that require a helper plasmid. Conjugal transfer of broad-host-range plasmids between freshwater and marine caulobacters was also demonstrated in both directions. Native plasmids of approximately 100- to 150-kilobase sizes were found in 2 of the 25 marine Caulobacter strains. The native plasmids were present in relatively high copy number and appeared stable in laboratory culture. In short, the marine caulobacters appeared appropriate as candidates for genetic manipulation and the expression of selected genes in the marine environment.
Some quotient Hopf algebras of the dual Steenrod algebra

Fix a prime p, and let A be the polynomial part of the dual Steen- rod algebra. The Frobenius map on A induces the Steenrod operation f P 0 on cohomology, and in this paper, we investigate this operation. We point out that if p = 2, then for any element in the cohomology of A, if one applies f P 0 enough times, the resulting element is nilpotent. We conjecture that the same is true at odd primes, and that \enough times" should be \once." The bulk of the paper is a study of some quotients of A in which the Frobenius is an isomorphism of order n. We show that these quotients are dual to group algebras, the resulting groups are torsion-free, and hence every element in Ext over these quotients is nilpotent. We also try to relate these results to the questions about f P 0 . The dual complete Steenrod algebra makes an appearance.
Computational analysis of energy distribution of coupled blood flow and arterial deformation

The present study analyzes the distribution and dissipation of the energy delivered to arteries. A computational model of blood flow and arterial deformation is used to examine the behavior of different constitutive models of arterial wall. In particular, we consider poroelastic and viscoelastic descriptions of the artery. Energy estimates are derived for each constitutive model of the arterial wall from the weak formulation of the fluid/solid coupled problem and are applied to assess energy exchange between different compartments of the model. The objective of this work is to determine new criteria, based on energy distribution, for the assessment of constitutive models of the arterial wall. Two-dimensional numerical experiments are presented to illustrate the energy distribution within the fluid and solid model compartments. Results highlight the importance of including both poroelasticity and viscoelasticity in modeling fluid-structure interaction in large arteries. Our results show that both viscoelastic and poroelastic models for the arterial walls absorb part of the input energy flowing to the artery, but the underlying mechanisms are substantially different.
On broken symmetries and classical systems

Abstract Baker (2011) argues that broken symmetries pose a number of puzzles for the interpretation of quantum theories—puzzles which he claims do not arise in classical theories. I provide examples of classical cases of symmetry breaking and show that they have precisely the same features that Baker finds puzzling in quantum theories. To the extent that Baker is correct that the classical cases pose no puzzles, the features of the quantum case that Baker highlights should not be puzzling either.
In Memoriam: Wayne Katon, MD (1950–2015)

The following is a memorial of Dr. Wayne J. Katon, MD, FAPM, the former editor-in-chief of General Hospital Psychiatry. He passed away on March 1, 2015.
Growing Pains: The Debate Begins

A profession, field, discipline—the debate continues. In its adolescence, bioethics appears to be growing but has not quite figured out what it wants to be when it grows up. Baker (2005) calls for ...
A new rock mass failure criterion for biaxial loading conditions

To simulate brittle rocks, a mixture of glastone, sand and water was used as a model material. Thin galvanized sheets of thickness 0.254 mm were used to create joints in blocks made out of the model material. To investigate the failure modes and strength, both the intact material blocks as well as jointed model material blocks of size 35.6 × 17.8 × 2.5 cm having different joint geometry configurations were subjected to uniaxial and biaxial compressive loadings. A new intact rock failure criterion is proposed at the 3-D level. This criterion is validated for biaxial loading through laboratory experimental results obtained on intact model material blocks. Results obtained from both the intact and jointed model material blocks are used to develop a strongly non-linear new rock mass failure criterion for biaxial loading. In this failure criterion, the fracture tensor component is used to incorporate the directional effect of fracture geometry system on jointed block strength. The failure criterion shows the important role, the intermediate principal stress plays on rock mass strength.
Accumulation of Metals and Minerals from Phosphate Binders

Metals and minerals that depend on renal clearance may accumulate to toxic levels in patients with marginal kidney function. Toxicities of aluminum-based phosphate binders became apparent ∼25 years ago. Nephrologists now recognize cardiovascular calcification may follow use of calcium-based phosphate binders. Five lessons can be learned: (1)safety must not be assumed in absence of data; (2) all evidence for causal linkage of toxicities from therapeutics must be considered, including animal data; (3) clinical trials are unlikely to reveal the spectrum of problems from long-term drug exposure; (4) complications can remain unrecognized until late in post-introduction surveillance; (5) minerals important for normal function can be toxic with excess accumulation. Introduction of new agents necessitates caution – it is difficult to change practice once a therapeutic is commonplace. Lessons learned about hazards of past phosphate binders must be applied judiciously when evaluating long-term risks/safety of novel metal-based binders such as lanthanum carbonate.
The newer anticholinergic agents: II. Effectiveness as antisialogogues

Quantitative collection of human parotid saliva by capping Stenson's duct and of canine saliva by Wharton duct cannulation before and after drug administration is shown to be a good objective indicator of the side effects of the newer anticholinergic agents. Antrenyl®, Pamine®, Pro-Banthine®, Banthine®, Prantal®, and Darstine® are compared by these means. The correlation between the antisialogogue action and side effects of these agents is discussed.
Osteonecrosis of the distal pole of the carpal scaphoid following fracture--a rare complication.

A case of carpal scaphoid fracture followed by osteonecrosis of the distal fragment alone is presented.
Proteomics for the identification of new prostate cancer biomarkers

Molecular profiling studies of human prostate cancer provide great opportunities to identify new prostate cancer biomarkers to improve prostate cancer detection and treatment. Proteomics has distinct advantages over genomic and ribonucleic acid expression studies because it is the proteins that are ultimately responsible for the malignant phenotype. The goal of traditional proteomic studies is to identify disease-specific biomarkers. Two-dimensional (2-D) gel electrophoresis (polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis; PAGE) coupled with mass spectrometry is the most widely used experimental strategy and, to date, has yielded several potentially relevant prostate cancer biomarkers. A promising prostate cancer biomarker identified by 2-D PAGE and mass spectrometry is annexin I. Studies have already confirmed that annexin I is underexpressed in a majority of early stage prostate cancers. Other non-gel-based proteomic technologies that may have improved sensitivity as compared to 2-D PAGE have recently been developed. An example of this is the ProteomeLab PF 2-D (Beckman Coulter, Inc., Fullerton, CA). The goal of most proteomic studies is to identify biomarkers that can be measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay or immunohistochemistry. Improvements in proteomic technology may be changing this paradigm because there are now efforts to develop proteomic technologies directly into clinical diagnostic tests. An example of this technology is surface-enhanced laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Using this technology combined with a pattern recognition based bioinformatics tool, discriminatory spectrum proteomic profiles were generated that could help discriminate men with prostate cancer from those with benign prostates. If several technologic hurdles can be overcome, it is possible that methodology will improve the specificity and sensitivity of prostate cancer detection.
Fungal species numbers and decomposition of rabbit faeces

Evidence is presented that additions of fungal species to herbivore dung result in a decreased ability of competing microflora to utilize available substrate. When two or more species of coprophilous fungi were combined in rabbit faeces, faecal decomposition rates were limited to the slower of the rates recorded when the same species were incubated separately. A reduced decomposition rate could enable slower-growing and later-appearing species to secure the substrate resources necessary for mycelial growth and sporulation.
Body-turbulence interaction

The paper reviews the area of body-turbulence interaction with particular emphasis upon the influence of the body upon an incident turublent field. Cases considered include two-dimensional (high and low fineness ratio, porous, and impervious) and three-dimensional bodies in-stream, adjacent to, and attached to walls. Particular physics common to several geometric and incident flow configurations include (1) eddy severing at relatively sharp leading edges, (2) production of vorticity of the opposite sense on bluff bodies, and (3) body region production of control vortices which affect the incident turbulence field for the order of 100 boundary-layer thicknesses downstream. The major local effects of the body upon the incident turbulent field include (1) a blocking effect, (2) influence of the body momentum deficit/near wake, (3) distortion due to the body time-averaged flow field, and (4) unsteady body circulation. The review may be of particular interest for turbulence alteration/control using fixed geometry in applications such as drag reduction, separation control, noise reduction, and augmentor optimization.
Excellence in Education: The Opportunity for School Superintendents to become Ambitious?:

This article briefly discusses the nature of the recent calls for educational reform and highlights difficulties researchers have had in explaining why earlier educational innovation strategies hav...
A Convergent Reconstruction Method for an Elliptic Operator in Potential Form

Abstract We investigate the problem of recovering a potential q(x) in the equation −Δu + q(x)u = 0 from overspecified boundary data on the unit square in R2. The potential is characterized as a fixed point of a nonlinear operator, which is shown to be a contraction on a ball in Cα. Uniqueness of q(x) follows, as does convergence of the resulting recovery scheme. Numerical examples, demonstrating the performance of the algorithm, are presented.
Vapour pressures of arsenic over InAs(c) and GaAs(c). The enthalpies of formation of InAs(c) and GaAs(c)

Abstract The equilibrium vapour pressures of arsenic over InAs(c) and GaAs(c) have been studied using the Knudsen-cell mass-spectrometric technique. Appropriate corrections were made for the solubility of arsenic in the liquid metals Ga and In which were produced in the decomposition. The following enthalpies of decomposition were derived: 2 GaAs(c)=2Ga(c)+As 2 (g); δH°(298.15 K)=(89.7±1.2) kcal th mol −1 ; 2 InAs(c)=2In(c)+As 2 (g); δH°(298.15 K)=(77.7±1.2) kcal th mol −1 ; The errors assigned are estimates of total error. Enthalpies of formation of GaAs(c) and InAs(c) were also derived. From measurements of the partial pressures of both As2 and As4 over InAs(c), the enthalpy of dissociation of As4 was also determined. As 1 (g)=2As 2 (g); δH°(298.15 K)=(54.4±1.5) kcal th mol −1 . This is in excellent agreement with the result obtained previously when MoAs2(c) and Mo2As3(c) were used as sources.
Graduate Programs in Instructional Technology: Their Characteristics and Involvement in Public Education.

Graduate programs in Instructional Technology (IT) were surveyed to determine (1) the similarities and differences among programs and (2) their involvement in teacher education and school systems.
Association of Obestatin, Ghrelin, and Inflammatory Cytokines in Obese Patients with Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Background Three protein products of ghrelin gene (acylated ghrelin, des-acylated ghrelin, and obestatin) are involved in appetite stimulation and suppression. Additionally, there is some evidence suggesting their involvement in metabolic and inflammatory pathways which may be implicated in the pathogenesis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The aim of this study was to examine the relationships of ghrelin gene products in patients with NAFLD.
Role of Steroidogenic Factor 1 and Aromatase in Temperature-Dependent Sex Determination in the Red-Eared Slider Turtle

Red-eared slider turtles are genetically bipotential for sex determination. In this species, as in many other reptiles, incubation temperature of the egg determines gonadal sex. At higher incubation temperatures females are produced and increasing temperature appears to in- crease estrogen production in the embryonic brain. Treatment of eggs incubating at a male-pro- ducing temperature with exogenous estrogen causes ovaries to form. At a female-biased incubation temperature, prevention of estrogen biosynthesis or administration of nonaromatizable androgens results in the development of testes. In mammals, steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1) regulates most genes required for estrogen biosynthesis, including aromatase. In both mammals and red-eared sliders, SF-1 is differentially expressed in males and females during gonadogenesis. We have ex- amined both SF-1 gene expression and aromatase activity in embryos incubating at different tem- peratures and after manipulation to change the course of gonadal development. Our findings indicate a central role for SF-1 in enacting the effect of estrogen. Estrogen treatment directly or indirectly downregulates SF-1 and, ultimately, causes development of females. The inhibition of estrogen results in upregulation of SF-1 and male hatchlings. Thus, SF-1 may lie at the center of one molecular crossroad in male versus female differentiation of the red-eared slider. J. Exp. Zool. 290:597-606, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Understanding user intentions in Pervasive Computing Environment

The advent of Pervasive Computing Environment (PCE) in everyday life is a big step for users and for application developers. The well defined user interfaces are being replaced by more intuitive ways of interaction. The challenge for pervasive system developers here is to detect and model the user intention so as to remove any lack of clarity in the user's expression of a pervasive action. Understanding user intentions can be achieved by detecting the user status and the environment status. The attention data and context data thus obtained can be connected using appropriate task models to give us the intention data. The user intention data can be helpful in enabling PCE to provide pro-active and situation-specific user support.
Engine Torque Control Based on Discrete Event Model and Disturbance Observer

This paper presents a novel control method for torque generation in four-stroke spark ignition (SI) engines. A model-based approach is employed to control engine torque output by adjusting throttle air intake with considerations of robust stability and performance. Discrete event engine model (DEM) is adopted with an addition of torque generation dynamics. Disturbance observer (DOB) techniques are utilized to achieve robust stability and performance by regarding the discrepancy between the actual plant and the nominal plant with desired plant characteristics as an equivalent disturbance input, which is estimated and cancelled. The desired plant behavior is stably realized by the DOB up to a bandwidth which is sufficient for a torque control application discussed in authors’ previous work. A switching scheme for desired nominal plant is proposed to further enhance robust performance and stability. Numerical results show the effectiveness of the proposed schem.Copyright © 2007 by ASME
Oxygen consumption by Sphaerium simile

Abstract 1. 1. Oxygen consumption by Sphaerium simile was determined as a function of temperature and oxygen tension in both whole organism and excised gill and mantle tissue. 2. 2. The whole organism appears to have a homeostatic mechanism that resists environmental fluctuations, within limits; excised tissue exhibits no regulation of oxygen consumption.
Associations between depressive symptoms and obesity during puberty

Abstract Background Adolescent depression has been shown to be associated with later development of obesity. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between depressive symptoms and obesity with progressive pubertal development. Methods We conducted an analysis of the association between depressive symptoms and obesity using data from a cross-sectional study of 3101 youth aged 11–17 years. Logistic regression analyses were used to control for maternal education level, race and age. Analyses were stratified by pubertal status and sex to examine how the relationship between depressive symptoms and obesity varies with pubertal development. Results Depressive symptoms increased with pubertal development for both boys and girls, but the increase was larger for girls. Obesity prevalence was similar for all categories of pubertal development in boys and girls. After controlling for age, pubertal development, parental education and race, an association was noted between depressive symptoms and obesity among both males and females. Youth above the 90th percentile in the depressive symptom score had two times the odds of being obese [males: odds ratio (OR)=1.95, 95% confidence interval (95% CI)=1.19–3.18; females: OR=2.17, 95% CI=1.25–3.77]. With the exception of males in late puberty (OR=0.91, 95% CI=0.29–2.87), the magnitude of this association between depressive symptoms and obesity was similar for all levels of pubertal development, with no apparent increase in later puberty among girls. Conclusion Depressive symptoms and obesity were associated during adolescence, and this association did not increase with advancing pubertal development.
Rb-Sr Whole-Rock Age of the Siloam Granite, Georgia: A Permian Intrusive in the Southern Appalachians

The Siloam granite crops out in the southern half of Greene County, Georgia, within the Outer Piedmont. The granite is similar to the coarsely porphyritic postmetamorphic granites of the Charlotte Belt of North Carolina and South Carolina. The Rb-Sr whole-rock date of the Siloam granite is 269 ± 3 m.y., making this intrusive the youngest of the southern Appalachian region. Its low initial 87Sr/86Sr ratio of 0.7052 ± 0.0001 suggests an upper mantle affinity with no appreciable crustal contamination during emplacement.
Effects of prenatal cocaine and genotype on intermale agonistic behavior in Mus musculus

We exposed the pups of three F1 genotypes of mice to a daily regime of cocaine by injecting their mothers (all C57BL/10J strain) on days 7–18 of gestation with 20 mg/kg subcutaneously. Pups of the cocaine and control groups did not differ on measures of maternal and pup health or size. Male pups were weaned and isolated at 21 days of age and their behaviors measured in an intermale aggression situation at about 80 days of age. Treated and untreated males of each F1 genotype were paired in dyads with either a C3H/HeJ (hawk-like) or AKR/J (retaliator-like) standard tester male. Standard tester males were not exposed to cocaine. Cocaine treatment alone reduced the overall level of aggression in dyads, and in interaction with genotype or the standard tester it altered the behavior of dyads in all phases of social interaction: the initiation, content, and outcome. Standard testers used as behavioral probes, differentiated cocaine and control males with respect to their stimulus and behavioral qualities. Aggr. Behav. 23:183–196, 1997.© 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Enterococcus faecalis endocarditis presenting as meningitis

Although Enterococcus faecalis is a relatively common cause of infective endocarditis, it rarely causes meningitis. A case of Enterococcus faecalis endocarditis presenting as meningitis in a 74-year-old diabetic man on chronic hemodialysis is reported. A review of the literature showed that the association of enterococcal meningitis and endocarditis has rarely been reported. This clinical association may be more common than previously recognized and it is suggested that echocardiography be considered for all patients with enterococcal hematogenous meningitis in order to rule out endocarditis.
Christian Marabout, Soldier Monk: Charles de Foucauld between the French and the Tuareg

The life of Pere Charles de Foucauld (1858–1916) epitomized many of the motifs and contradictions of French colonialism in North Africa: a cavalry officer turned incognito explorer of Morocco, he eventually renounced his worldly life and became a deeply ascetic Catholic monk, spending the last fifteen years of his life in the Algerian Sahara, primarily among the Muslim Tuareg population of the Ahaggar region. Foucauld remained close to the French military, but his approach to Christian–Muslim relations changed and matured over his time in Algeria. The present study examines Foucauld's complex relationship with colonialism and with the Tuareg during his lifetime, as well as his unexpected legacies in the present. In the Maghreb today, he is remembered for his work as a lexicographer and grammarian of the Tuareg language and its unique tifinagh alphabet – a contribution that was taken up and expanded upon by later Amazigh cultural revivalists. In addition, the Vatican in recent years has held Foucauld up as...
Toward better drug repositioning: Prioritizing and integrating existing methods into efficient pipelines

Recycling old drugs, rescuing shelved drugs and extending patents' lives make drug repositioning an attractive form of drug discovery. Drug repositioning accounts for approximately 30% of the newly US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs and vaccines in recent years. The prevalence of drug-repositioning studies has resulted in a variety of innovative computational methods for the identification of new opportunities for the use of old drugs. Questions often arise from customizing or optimizing these methods into efficient drug-repositioning pipelines for alternative applications. It requires a comprehensive understanding of the available methods gained by evaluating both biological and pharmaceutical knowledge and the elucidated mechanism-of-action of drugs. Here, we provide guidance for prioritizing and integrating drug-repositioning methods for specific drug-repositioning pipelines.
Federal sources for the study of collective communities

Abstract Although communitarian movements have been a part of American history since the colonial period, the Federal government, with a few exceptions, has tended to leave them alone. Although Congress has been interested from time to time in some forms of semi-socialism, and was heavily involved in suppression of some aspects of the Mormon state Deseret, there are relatively few Congressional papers useful for the study of communes. The most useful sources for the student of “community” are the publications and documents of the Department of Labor and the Library of Congress. The general state of government sources for a study of the subject is discussed, and the most useful items are described in some detail.
Photography of submerged vertical structures

A device is illustrated and described with which photographs of the vertical walls of the La Jolla Submarine Canyon were obtained to a depth of 625 ft. Brief description of a number of the photographs is given, and photographs are reproduced. It is concluded that such an apparatus can provide pictures of sheer underwater scarps, reef faces, and, with suitable modifications, of dams, breakwaters, and bridge supports.
Guidelines for Conducting Socially Valid Systematic Preference Assessments

Systematic preference assessment is the process of presenting sampling trials and observing the person's response. The response to those items is then interpreted as an indicator of preference. The empirical research on systematic preference assessment has greatly advanced the field's understanding of how to identify the preferences of individuals with nonsymbolic and limited symbolic communication skills. The purpose of this paper is to translate this research into guidelines for planning systematic preference assessments that strive to reduce the risk of missing or misinterpreting the person's preferences, as well as increase the social validity of the process and outcomes. We present four guiding questions for practitioners to plan preference assessments: (a) What will be offered? (b) When and where will sampling opportunities take place? (c) Who will present the sampling options? and (d) How will sampling options be presented?