cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Support vector machine classification of uncertain and imbalanced data using robust optimization

In this paper, we have developed a robust Support Vector Machines (SVM) scheme of classifying imbalanced and noisy data using the principles of Robust Optimization. Uncertainty is prevalent in almost all datasets and has not been addressed efficiently by most data mining techniques, as these are based on deterministic mathematical tools. Imbalanced datasets exist while performing analysis of rare events, and for such datasets elements in the minority class become critical. Our method tries to address both issues lacking in traditional SVM classifications. At present, we provide solutions for linear classification of data having bounded uncertainties. This can be extended to non-linear classification schemes for any types of uncertainties that are convex. Our results in predicting the importance of the minority class are better than the traditional SVM soft-margin classification. Preliminary computational results are presented.
Imaging Evaluation of Silicone Within the Breast

With the increased use of silicone gel prostheses since their acceptance by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, interest in recognizing signs and symptoms of implant failure is likely to reemerge. Rupture of the silicone elastomer shell surrounding saline implants usually results in rapid decompression of the implant consequent to the rapid resorption of saline. When the silicone envelope or shell fails, it permits the escape of the less solid silicone “gel” beyond the confines of the elastomer solid shell or “envelope,” which defines intracapsular rupture. If the silicone also extends beyond the physiologic fibrous capsule that is formed in response to the foreign body implant, extracapsular rupture is defined. Extracapsular silicone will often be identified, which, in the absence of a history of prior “reimplantation,” necessarily indicates concomitant intracapsular rupture. Imaging is usually employed to identify these conditions as well as problem-solve dilemmas in patients who have silicone within their breasts.
Moyamoya Syndrome Secondary to Vasculopathy in Down Syndrome: A Case Report and Literature Review (P3.071)

Objective: We report a case of vasculopathy associated with Down syndrome presenting as Moyamoya syndrome. We describe the clinical course and imaging findings and contrast that with idiopathic Moyamoya disease. Background: Moyamoya disease is an idiopathic intracranial vasculopathy characterized by progressive bilateral stenosis or occlusion of the terminal internal carotid arteries and their main branches with compensatory collateral angiogenesis. It is more prevalent among Asian populations and has a typical angiographic appearance. A similar angiographic pattern is associated with vasculopathy due to several medical conditions including Down syndrome and is termed Moyamoya syndrome. Adults with Moyamoya syndrome typically present with ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attacks. Design/Methods: A retrospective chart and literature review. Results: A 29-year-old woman with Down syndrome, presented with acute headache, transient visual loss and transient confusion 2 days prior to admission. MRI confirmed acute infarction in the left middle cerebral artery (MCA) territory, mainly in the left parietal lobe. CT angiography suggested bilateral MCA stenosis and occlusion, and asymmetric vascular blush. Diagnostic cerebral angiography confirmed Moyamoya syndrome pattern with high grade focal stenosis of M1 segment of left MCA and occlusion of proximal M1 segment of right MCA with reconstitution via collateral arteries. There was sparing of the terminal internal carotid arteries, the external carotid artery branches and posterior circulation suggesting early disease. At 4 month follow up there was no recurrence after 3 months of dual antiplatelet therapy following by single antiplatelet. Conclusions: Our case suggests the angiographic pattern in Moyamoya syndrome due to Down syndrome vasculopathy may begin in the middle cerebral artery as it occasionally can in idiopathic Moyamoya disease with sparing of the supraclinoid internal carotid artery. Further studies are warranted to compare the angiographic and clinical course of Moyamoya syndrome due to Down syndrome vasculopathy with that of idiopathic Moyamoya disease. Disclosure: Dr. Shehabeldin has nothing to disclose. Dr. Ruthirago has nothing to disclose. Dr. Alderazi has nothing to disclose.
Optimization of powerplant component size on board a fuel cell/battery hybrid bus for fuel economy and system durability

Abstract The size of the individual powerplant components on board a fuel cell/battery hybrid vehicle affects the power management strategy which determines both the fuel economy and the durability of the fuel cell and the battery, and thus the average lifetime cost of the vehicle. Cost is one of the major barriers to the commercialization of fuel cell vehicles, therefore it is important to study how the sizing configuration affects overall vehicle cost. In this paper, degradation models for the fuel cell and the battery on board a fuel cell/battery hybrid bus are incorporated into the power management system to extend their lifetimes. Different sizing configurations were studied and the results reveal that the optimal size with highest lifetime and lowest average cost is highly dependent on the drive cycle. The vehicle equipped with a small fuel cell stack serving as a range extender will fail earlier and consume more fuel under drive cycles with high average power demand resulting in higher overall cost. However, the same configuration gives optimal results under a standard bus cycle with lower average power demand. At the other end of the spectrum, a fuel cell-dominant bus does not guarantee longer lifetime since the fuel cell operates mostly under low-load conditions which correspond to higher potentials reducing lifetime. Such a configuration also incurs a higher initial capital cost of the fuel cell stack resulting in a high average cost. The best configuration is a battery-dominated system with moderately-sized fuel cell stack which achieves the longest lifetime combined with the lowest average running cost throughout the lifetime of the vehicle.
Imperial Endnotes: The First Filipino and Boricua Historians

The Philippines and Puerto Rico, often overlooked in studies of Latin American literature and history, are endnotes to Spain’s colonial saga. These island regions continued under imperial rule long after nearly all other former Spanish territories had achieved independence. Two late 19th-century intellectuals, Jose Julian Acosta of Puerto Rico and Jose Rizal of the Philippines, dust off 17th- and 18th-century tomes of official Spanish colonial history furnished by European archives. Acosta and Rizal publish critical editions of these histories, and through the annotations, they sneak their voices into discussions over the history and future of their colonies. While scholarship about 19th-century Latin America traditionally affirms that the work of literature is to facilitate the forgetting of differences in the service of community consolidation, I argue that these works constitute a contentious and continual revisiting of difference at the root of the authors’ assertion of their own authority. This article probes the problem of authority at the heart of these notes, examining three processes of authorization: appropriation, racialization, and historiography. The resonances and dissonances between the projects of annotation expose the racialized nature of the colonial intellectuals’ ambivalence toward authority on both ends of Spain’s late empire. Acosta’s and Rizal’s republications show why we have to pay attention to the notes; they destabilize certainties and dare to pursue contentious and divergent truths.
Postinfectious Irritable Bowel Syndrome After Campylobacter Infection.

Objectives Postinfectious irritable bowel syndrome (PI-IBS) is an important sequela of Campylobacter infection. Our goal is to estimate the incidence of Campylobacter-associated PI-IBS in the United States. Methods Data from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2014, were obtained from the MarketScan Research Commercial Claims and Encounters Database. We identified patients with an encounter that included an International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification diagnosis code for "intestinal infection due to Campylobacter" (008.43) and individually matched them (on age group, sex, and length of enrollment) to a group of persons without a diagnosed Campylobacter infection (non-cases). The primary outcome of interest was a new diagnosis of IBS (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification 564.1). Results Our final matched cohort included 4,143 cases and 20,491 non-cases. At 1 year, the incidence rate of IBS was 33.1 and 5.9 per 1,000 among cases and non-cases, respectively, with an unadjusted risk ratio of 5.6 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.3-7.3). After adjusting for healthcare utilization, the Cox proportional hazard ratio was 4.6 (95% CI: 3.5-6.1). Excluding those who received an IBS diagnosis within 90 days, the 1-year incidence rate of IBS was 16.7 and 3.9 per 1,000 among cases and non-cases, respectively, with an unadjusted risk ratio of 4.3 (95% CI: 3.0-6.2). Discussion Persons with a Campylobacter infection have a much higher risk of developing IBS compared with those not diagnosed with Campylobacter infection. The burden of Campylobacter-associated PI-IBS should be considered when assessing the overall impact of Campylobacter infections.
Buffer-Aided Relaying With Direct Link Transmission and Spectrum Sharing

Cognitive relay networks are designed to increase access to under-utilized spectrum. The direct link communication can be exploited to decrease the outage probability with a buffer-aided relaying network. To this end, a novel transmission policy is proposed to combine the benefits of direct communication and buffer-aided relaying. In addition, a modification to the hybrid interweave-underlay spectrum access policy is presented to restrict the amount of interference caused due to a miss-detection event. Assuming independent and not necessarily identical fading channels, the analytical outage probability and the end-to-end average packet delay for the secondary system are derived. Monte-Carlo simulations show that adopting the proposed policy, compared to the conventional link selection techniques, results in a significantly larger outage gain, a lower average packet delay, a higher empty buffer probability, and a lower full buffer probability. Also, the theoretical and Monte-Carlo results coincide in the provided simulation examples which verifies correctness of the theoretical analysis.
Strengthening Online Dispute Resolution Justice

This paper adopts a systems-design approach to focus courts and lawyers on the hitherto unexamined question of how involving lawyers in the design, development, and implementation of online dispute resolution (ODR) programs, will strengthen ODR justice outcomes and court-delivered justice overall. Behind the scenes of every courthouse in the United States today, justice system professionals are grappling with the same set of basic questions: how to get by on fewer resources, how to cope with the access to justice crisis, and how to provide better justice outcomes. To help solve these justice problems, courts have begun to appreciate technology’s potential to streamline processes, increase access, and reduce costs. Indeed, over the course of the past few years, courts across the United States have been designing and piloting online dispute resolution (ODR) systems. We are currently at a tipping point, at which court ODR, at once a new approach to caseflow management and a court-implemented alternative to litigation, is poised to become the default justice process in an increasing number of jurisdictions. While court administrators, judges, ODR experts and the public have all been involved in the process of conceptualizing, designing, and implementing ODR systems in courts, one key stakeholder in the justice system has been conspicuously absent from the table: the legal profession. In the development of some ODR systems, lawyers have been excluded; in the design of other ODR systems, the lawyers, themselves have chosen to be absent from the design process. The result of this lack of lawyer involvement is that many of these court-annexed ODR systems effectively design lawyers out of the legal process itself. This has deep implications for the very nature of the procedural and substantive justice disputants will experience and receive in the ODR-infused court system. In this paper, we show how constructive engagement by and with the legal profession, with an eye towards justice rather than professional protectionism, can improve justice in Court ODR.
Factors Predicting Type II Histology in Endometrial Biopsies Among Postmenopausal Minority Women at a Safety-Net Hospital.

Background: Rates of type II endometrial cancers (EC) are increasing in the United States, especially in minority women. The purpose of this project was to examine a primarily minority and low soci...
Information Exposure From Relational Background Knowledge on Social Media

While some users share large amounts of information, others share very little. However, even with limited amounts of sharing, users may still have high levels of exposure. Previous research has shown that for certain attributes like gender, adversaries can determine a target’s hidden attribute value by taking a majority vote of its community or by finding others in the site population with similar profiles. However, for some attributes, these attacks fail because of the diversity of the attribute value in the community. In this paper, we present a new privacy attack - a relational background attack (RBA), where an adversary builds inference models for a hidden attribute of the target by using the target’s relational background set. Doing this allows the adversary to build a "biased" model that captures the significant local features for inferring the hidden attribute. We empirically demonstrate the effectiveness of this attack on a special case of the relational background set (a local community) using a Twitter data set. We then consider the case when an adversary only has access to different subsets of the target’s local community, and show that the attack can still be conducted effectively with certain approximations of the target’s local community.
Interventions to Address the Opioid Crisis-Modeling Predictions and Consequences of Inaction

Invited commentary: The scale of the opioid crisis in the United States highlights the need to identify and implement the most effective approaches to prevent overdose fatalities. Over the last 15 years, deaths due to opioid overdoses have exceeded 500 000,1 and declines in overall US life expectancy are partly explained by this increase in overdose mortality. The Healing Communities Study (HCS), part of the National Institutes of Health Healing Addiction Long-Term initiative to address the opioid crisis, is testing whether an integrated set of evidence-based prevention and treatment interventions can reduce overdose mortality by 40% over a 3-year period (the first year to select interventions and train personnel and 2 years of implementation).....
Java application for cytoskeleton filament characterization (JACFC).

Abstract JACFC is a Java web application ( http://neuronanobiophysics.utsa.edu/ ) that provides both experts and non-experts in the field suitable tools for elucidating the molecular mechanisms modulating the electrical signal propagation, stability, and bundle formation of microtubules and actin filaments under different molecular (wild type, isoforms, mutants) and environmental (physiological and pathological) conditions. This acknowledgment might reveal the potential role of cytoskeleton filaments in neuronal activities, including molecular-level processing of information and neural regeneration. Molecular understanding of the polyelectrolyte properties of bionanowires, is also crucial for development of reliability, highly functioning small devices with biotechnological applications such as bionanosensors and computing bionanoprocessors.
Contrast-free percutaneous pulmonary valve replacement: a safe approach for valve-in-valve procedures.

Introduction Percutaneous pulmonary valve replacement (PPVI) continues to gather pace in pediatric and adult congenital practice. This is fueled by an expanding repertoire of devices, techniques and equipment to suit the heterogenous anatomical landscape of patients with lesions of the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT). Contrast-induced nephropathy is a real risk for teenagers and adults with congenital heart disease (CHD). Aim To present a series of patients who underwent PPVI without formal RVOT angiography and propose case selection criteria for patients who may safely benefit from this approach. Material and methods We retrospectively collected PPVI data from the preceding 2 years at our institution identifying patients who had been listed as suitable for consideration for contrast-free PPVI from our multidisciplinary team (MDT) meeting based on predefined criteria. Demographic, clinical, imaging and hemodynamic data were collected. Data were analyzed using SPSS. Results Twenty-one patients were identified. All patients had a technically successful implantation with improvements seen in invasive and echocardiographic hemodynamic measurements. 90% of patients had a bio-prosthetic valve (BPV) in situ prior to PPVI. One patient had a complication which may have been recognized earlier with post-intervention RVOT contrast injection. Conclusions Zero-contrast PPVI is technically feasible and the suitability criteria for those who might benefit are potentially straightforward. The advent of fusion and 3D imaging in cardiac catheterization laboratories is likely to expand our capacity to perform more procedures with less contrast. Patients with bio-prosthetic valves in the pulmonary position may benefit from contrast-free percutaneous pulmonary valve implantation.
Hydrologic Evaluations in Bridge Pier Scour Design

Several hydrologic evaluations are important for the design of bridge piers to protect them against stream bed scour: (1) prediction of the local stage versus discharge relation; (2) determination of appropriate design floods, their recurrence intervals, and their stages; (3) selection of suitable stream bed reference elevations; (4) assessment of hydrograph influences on channel stability with respect to channel alignment, stream bed configuration, and stream bed degradation; (5) evaluation of the effects of dams, dredging, and sand-and-gravel operations upon sediment transport near bridge piers; (6) evaluation of the effects of scour protection measures; and (7) anticipation of the magnitude of debris transport during floods as related to river stage and to watershed conditions. Method and difficulties in making these hydrologic evaluations are examined. The techniques considered rely mainly upon the development and analysis of stream gaging records and the analysis of aerial photographs.
Introduction to Tech Act

In this issue we bring you six articles on Tech Act Projects. The Technology Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Act, Public Law 101-407, 103-218, was first passed in 1988 and re-authorized in 1994. It has generated a wide variety of activities directed towards changing the systems through which assistive technology is provided, with the goals of increasing access to assistive technology and making these systems more consumer responsive. The articles in this section provide a chance to visit Tech Act activities in the areas of awareness training, empowerment training, rural outreach, loan fund development, and legal advocacy. Rachel Wobschall provides an overview of the Tech Act in her interview with Carol Cohen, Program Manager for the Tech Act Projects at the US Department of Education, National Institute of Disability and Rehabilitation Research. Cohen's responses offer a candid and refreshing perspective on the pioneering characteristics of this legislation and the challenges of implementing consumer-responsive, systems change projects in 56 states and territories. Cohen shares with us some of the accomplishments she has observed through her involvement with the Tech Act Projects. 'Empowerment, Advocacy and Self-Advocacy for Assistive Technology' takes a hard look at
Immunomagnetic separation of tumor necrosis factor α: II. In situ procedure for the human gingival space

Abstract An in situ procedure has been developed for the separation of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) α directly from the fluid in the human gingival space. Paramagnetic beads coated with anti-TNF monoclonal antibodies were introduced into the gingival space of the subject with a polypropylene-tipped calibrated delivery system and retrieved using a permanent magnet designed to fit into the space. After retrieval, the amount of immunoadsorbed TNF was quantified using an immunochemical assay called the “cluster assay”. The results indicate that following the appropriate preparation of the site, over 95% of the beads could be recovered. With this method we found that 62% of those cavities sampled contained TNF and that the values ranged from 0.10 to 13.0 ng/ml with a mean value of 1.7 ng/ml. A comparison of these values with those obtained from the same space using other methods suggests that the immunomagnetic method was more effective in retrieval of TNF. Because the separation is performed in situ we have named the procedure “chromatobiosis”.
Anatomical Development of the Visual System

The initial events in the development of the visual system, which occur before the connections are formed, are under genetic and molecular control. These include the generation and migration of cells, the projection of their axons to their targets, the formation of topographic projections, the general organization of the terminals within the targets, the crossing of fibers in the chiasm, the position of areas within the cerebral cortex, and the formation of cytochrome oxidase blobs in the cortex. Most of these take place before birth. Later events, occurring after the connections are formed, and in most cases after the eyes open, are under the control of electrical activity. This includes the refinement of maps within a nucleus, the refinement of columns within the cortex, and the formation of layers within the lateral geniculate nucleus. Some development is affected by both molecular cues and electrical activity. This includes the specificity of layers within the cortex, including the specificity of afferent connections, efferent connections, and connections within the cortex, also the formation of pinwheels around the cytochrome oxidase blobs. Given the complexity of the system, it is amazing that the various cues work together to produce such a specific and well organized system of connections.
Desert Island Books

Growing up in England, I was fortunate to be able to listen to Desert Island Disks on BBC radio each week. That is the program which inspired this column, of course, and it remains very popular. I often made up my own list of records, and it is a great pleasure to be able to write this column and reflect upon the books that I would like to have with me on a desert island. It is quite an eclectic collection, but these are the books I would want with me--I have not used this opportunity to discuss books that I think others should read.
Quantifying heterogeneity and dynamics of clonal fitness in response to perturbation

The dynamics of heterogeneous clonal lineages within a cell population, in aggregate, shape both normal and pathological biological processes. Studies of clonality typically relate the fitness of clones to their relative abundance, thus requiring long-term experiments and limiting conclusions about the heterogeneity of clonal fitness in response to perturbation. We present, for the first time, a method that enables a dynamic, global picture of clonal fitness within a mammalian cell population. This novel assay allows facile comparison of the structure of clonal fitness in a cell population across many perturbations. By utilizing high-throughput imaging, our methodology provides ample statistical power to define clonal fitness dynamically and to visualize the structure of perturbation-induced clonal fitness within a cell population. We envision that this technique will be a powerful tool to investigate heterogeneity in biological processes involving cell proliferation, including development and drug response.
Synthesis and characterization of chalcogenoic aminophosphines: X-ray structures of But2P(E)NHPrn (E = Se, Te), Ph2P(Se)NHPrn and {Et2P(Se))2NPrn

Abstract The four title compounds have been synthesized and characterized by 1 H, 13 C and 31 P NMR spectroscopy and their identities confirmed by elemental analysis and X-ray crystallography. Bu t 2 P(E)NHPr n [E=Se ( 1 ); E=Te ( 2 )] and Ph 2 P(E)NHPr n [E=Se ( 3 )] were prepared by the metathesis reaction of LiNHPr n with the appropriate chlorophosphine in diethylether at −78 °C, followed by reaction with elemental selenium or tellurium at reflux temperatures. ( 1 ) and ( 2 ) are isostructural with PSe 2.1163(14) A and PTe 2.3642(13) A. In ( 3 ) a PSe bond length of 2.1159(10) A is observed. ( 4 ) was prepared by the additional of two equivalents of diethylchlorophosphine to the dilithium salt of n -propylamine.
Understanding police use of force: Rethinking the link between conceptualization and measurement

Purpose – The study of police use of force remains a primary concern of policing scholars; however, over the course of the last several decades, the focus has shifted from deadly and excessive force to a broader range of police behaviors that are coercive in nature, but not necessarily lethal, violent, or physical. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the critical disjuncture between the conceptualization of police use of force and operationalizations of the construct throughout policing literature. Design/methodology/approach – The current study provides a thorough, systematic review of 53 police use of force studies published in peer-reviewed outlets. These manuscripts were reviewed to determine whether authors cited a conceptualization of use of force and explained how the construct was operationalized, as well as the police behaviors captured in measures of force across studies, and how the data were collected. Findings – The findings suggest that police use of force is conceptually ambiguous, as...
Learning to Be Bad: How Autocratic Leaders Adopt Strategies from Abroad to Maintain Power

Although the specific details vary, democracy and the process of democratization involve common practices and strategies, such as elections, constitutions, and political parties. In contrast, the implementation and structure of authoritarian regimes have long been seen as more diverse. Surprisingly, we have seen in the last decade the spread of common practices for how to establish a more authoritarian government. These are often cases of more “sophisticated” authoritarianism, where the state uses limited repression to maintain control and instead manipulates the political realm in subtle ways to prevent any challenges to its rule. For example, leaders in Russia, Venezuela, and Nicaragua have all gained control over the media through a combination of state ownership of major television networks and political ties with the owners of private media. Leaders can choose strategies from a “menu of manipulation” and as this paper will show, we see leaders choosing similar options across regions. This development suggests that there are cross-country influences on these choices.In this paper, I demonstrate how elites learn strategies for maintaining power from autocratic leaders in other states. The adoption of these strategies from abroad help these leaders maintain power and partially explain the persistence of their authoritarian regime. There are three potential mechanisms through which elites learn about strategies from abroad: demonstration effects, purposive and collaborative action by external “change agents,” and pressure by external actors to maintain authoritarian regimes. Although the role of demonstration effects and networks may be more visible in cases of democratic diffusion, there are also networks among authoritarian leaders, where they can actively and deliberately share ideas and policies about how to manipulate elections, prevent dissent, or eliminate term limits. In order to investigate the use of these mechanisms, I examine post-Soviet states, a category of states that appear to be immune from the recent wave of democratization. Specifically, I consider the cases of Belarus and Ukraine. Cross-border learning has aided autocratic leaders in these cases.
Outcome of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty in subsets of unstable angina pectoris: A report of the 1985–1986 National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty registry

Abstract Objectives. The purpose of this study was to characterize the outcome of coronary angioplasty according to the various presentations of unstable angina pectoris. Background. Although unstable angina is a mosaic of clinical manifestations, a comprehensive analysis of short- and long-term outcome of coronary angioplasty in subsets of unstable angina is not available. Methods. Data from 15 clinical centers for the 857 patients with unstable angina in the 1985–1986 National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty registry were analyzed. Five-year follow-up was available in > 96.5%. Patients were first classified as those with (679 [79%]) or without (178 [21%]) rest angina. Patients were also allocated to five mutually exclusive categories of decreasing unstable angina severity: postinfarction angina, acute coronary insufficiency, plain rest angina, accelerating angina and new onset angina. Results. The group with rest angina had more older patients (p Conclusions. Analysis of the diverse clinical presentations of unstable angina supports underlying pathogenetic differences. Coronary angioplasty is safe and effective in all subsets of unstable angina. Long-term survival is good in general but is related to the baseline status of left ventricular function.
Wrapping up Basic Concepts

We have seen that each of the three orthogonal gradients does a completely different job: the z gradient defines the slice; the x gradient imposes a frequency change; and the y gradient produces a phase change. It is important to realize that each gradient is the same physical phenomenon: a change in the magnetic field from one point in space to another. Also, each gradient produces the same basic effect on protons: the vector precession frequencies are changed. Therefore, the particular task each gradient performs is determined by essentially one thing: when in the pulse cycle the gradient is applied.
Accommodation, age and presbyopia

Static and dynamic aspects of accommodation were investigated with regard to age and the development of presbyopia in two relatively large populations. The majority of accommodative parameters were invariant with age, which in most cases suggested normalcy of neuromotor control. For those parameters which decreased, this decline was attributed to age-related crystalline lens saturation effects. These results are discussed in relation to current theories of presbyopia.
Young Adults Who are Hearing and Deaf in a Transition Study: Did They and Their Parents Supply Similar Data?

We surveyed young adults who are deaf and a comparison sample of peers without hearing loss—and the parents of both groups—about school-to-community transition experiences. We were interested in whether parents and their hearing or deaf children provided similar responses to the same questions on the survey. Agreement between the parent's and their son or daughter's responses to questions on selected transition variables was examined through different agreement indexes. Findings and procedures that should be employed when studying the transition experiences of persons who are deaf are discussed.
Using Transdermal Alcohol Monitoring to Detect Low-Level Drinking.

Background Several studies demonstrate the utility of Alcohol Monitoring Systems’ (AMS) transdermal alcohol concentration (TAC) monitor to objectively quantify drinking. AMS standard criteria (i.e., TAC >0.02 g/dl) used for drinking detection are deliberately conservative, but consequently only detect drinking equivalent to 5 or more standard drinks. Our study sought to characterize the sensitivity of TAC measurement to detect low-level drinking defined as the consumption of 1 to 3 beers. Methods Data were pooled from 3 studies giving controlled doses of 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 Corona© beers (12 oz = 0.92 standard units) to 32 male and 29 female research volunteers wearing TAC monitors under controlled conditions. Analyses describe the sensitivity to detect drinking at various peak TAC thresholds beginning with any positive reading >0 g/dl, and then using TAC thresholds of 0.02 and 0.03 g/dl. Results Nearly 40% of participants drinking 1 beer did not have a positive TAC reading. However, positive TAC readings were observed in more than 95 and in 100% of participants drinking 2 and 3 or more beers, respectively. The probability of peak TAC detection was a positive function of the number of beers consumed and a negative function of the minimum TAC threshold for detection. Drinking was somewhat more likely to be detected in females than males drinking 2 to 5 beers, but not after 1 beer. Use of AMS standard criteria only reliably detected the consumption of 5 beers, and 45.9% of all occasions of drinking 1 to 3 beers were undetected using 0.02 g/dl as a threshold. Conclusions Peak TAC levels between 0 and 0.02 g/dl must be considered to detect the low-level drinking of 1 to 3 standard drinks, and such thresholds are necessary when researchers and clinicians want to detect low-level drinking.
Existing Regulation of Exempt Wells in the United States

: Exempt domestic water well provisions exist in sixteen states and allow landowners to use water wells producing relatively small amounts of water or water wells used for domestic or other specific purposes to avoid certain regulatory requirements. Exempt wells provisions apply mainly in the west, where most states use the prior appropriation rule (“first in time, first in right”) for ground water rights. Critics voice concerns over implications ranging from land use planning to water supply. This article explores existing state regulation and finds that the term “exempt well” is a misnomer. The vast majority of states impose numerous restrictions on exempt wells. Existing regulations include limitations on the quantity, location, and amount of irrigation use. Other provisions address construction standards, required filing of information and other practices. The review of regulations suggests that many steps to mitigate the impact of exempt wells are already in place.
Evaluation of Estimation Methods for High Unsteady Heat Fluxes from Surface Measurements

Shock interactions such as those that occur during atmospheric re-entry can produce extreme thermal loads on aerospace structures. These interactions are reproduced experimentally in hypersonic wind tunnels to study how the flow structures relate to the deleterious heat fluxes. In these studies, the fluid jets created by shock interactions impinge on a test cylinder, where the temperature resulting from the heat flux is measured. These measurements are used to estimate the heat flux on the surface as a result of the shock interactions. Finding the boundary flux from discrete unsteady temperature measurements is characterized by instabilities in the solution. The purpose of this work is to evaluate existing methodologies for the determination of the unsteady heat flux and to introduce a new approach based on an inverse technique. The performance of these methods is measured in terms of accuracy and their ability to handle inherently unstable or highly dynamic data such as step fluxes and high-frequency oscillating fluxes. The inverse methods proved to be the most accurate and stable of the methods examined.
Effects of lovastatin on breast cancer cells: a proteo-metabonomic study

Introduction Statins are cholesterol-lowering drugs with pleiotropic activities including inhibition of isoprenylation and reduction of signals driving cell proliferation and survival responses.
Protein Hydrolysis in Coho and Sockeye Salmon During Partially Frozen Storage

Coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch) and sockeye salmon (O. nerka) were held at O°, −1°, −2°, −3°, and −20°C for up to 25 days. Hydrolysis of individual soluble proteins was analyzed by SDS-PAGE. The highest rates of Hydrolysis were in fish held at −2° and −3°C. Several proteins were present in nearly constant ratios. Significant changes were observed in nine other protein bands. A 35,000 dalton protein was present only in coho salmon. This protein appeared with a half-time of five days and then disappeared. Major changes were observed in 34,000 and 36,000 dalton proteins; half of which were hydrolysed in 7 to 20 days. A 32,000 dalton protein was half-hydrolyzed in 14–23 days in sockeye but very slowly in coho salmon.
Isolation of Ribosome Bound Nascent Polypeptides in vitro to Identify Translational Pause Sites Along mRNA

The rate of translational elongation is non-uniform. mRNA secondary structure, codon usage and mRNA associated proteins may alter ribosome movement on the messagefor review see 1. However, it's now widely accepted that synonymous codon usage is the primary cause of non-uniform translational elongation rates1. Synonymous codons are not used with identical frequency. A bias exists in the use of synonymous codons with some codons used more frequently than others2. Codon bias is organism as well as tissue specific2,3. Moreover, frequency of codon usage is directly proportional to the concentrations of cognate tRNAs4. Thus, a frequently used codon will have higher multitude of corresponding tRNAs, which further implies that a frequent codon will be translated faster than an infrequent one. Thus, regions on mRNA enriched in rare codons (potential pause sites) will as a rule slow down ribosome movement on the message and cause accumulation of nascent peptides of the respective sizes5-8. These pause sites can have functional impact on the protein expression, mRNA stability and protein foldingfor review see 9. Indeed, it was shown that alleviation of such pause sites can alter ribosome movement on mRNA and subsequently may affect the efficiency of co-translational (in vivo) protein folding1,7,10,11. To understand the process of protein folding in vivo, in the cell, that is ultimately coupled to the process of protein synthesis it is essential to gain comprehensive insights into the impact of codon usage/tRNA content on the movement of ribosomes along mRNA during translational elongation. Here we describe a simple technique that can be used to locate major translation pause sites for a given mRNA translated in various cell-free systems6-8. This procedure is based on isolation of nascent polypeptides accumulating on ribosomes during in vitro translation of a target mRNA. The rationale is that at low-frequency codons, the increase in the residence time of the ribosomes results in increased amounts of nascent peptides of the corresponding sizes. In vitro transcribed mRNA is used for in vitro translational reactions in the presence of radioactively labeled amino acids to allow the detection of the nascent chains. In order to isolate ribosome bound nascent polypeptide complexes the translation reaction is layered on top of 30% glycerol solution followed by centrifugation. Nascent polypeptides in polysomal pellet are further treated with ribonuclease A and resolved by SDS PAGE. This technique can be potentially used for any protein and allows analysis of ribosome movement along mRNA and the detection of the major pause sites. Additionally, this protocol can be adapted to study factors and conditions that can alter ribosome movement and thus potentially can also alter the function/conformation of the protein.
Interferon-γ Inducible Protein (IP-10) Expression Is Mediated by CD8+ T Cells and Is Regulated by CD4+ T Cells During the Elicitation of Contact Hypersensitivity

To investigate the potential roles of CD4 + and CD8 + T cells during contact hypersensitivity, we examined the T-cell-dependent expression of proinflammatory cytokine genes in the responses to dinitrofluorobenzene and oxazolone. Whole cell RNA was isolated from challenged ear tissue and analyzed for level of cytokine gene expression by Northern blot and densitometry analysis. Expression of interleukin 1 β and the three chemokine genes (IP-10, JE, and KC) examined was dependent on the hapten dose used for sensitization and correlated with the immune response, i.e., ear swelling, elicited. Antibody-mediated depletion of CD8 + T cells before sensitization resulted in the absence of IP-10 expression following hapten challenge, indicating the ability of immune CD8 + T cells to mediate IP-10 expression. Depletion of CD4 + T cells resulted in higher levels of IP-10 and KC expression during elicitation of contact sensitivity, suggesting CD4 + T cells inhibit the expression of these proinflammatory genes. Depletion of CD4 + T cells resulted in contact hypersensitivity responses of higher magnitude and depletion of CD8 + T cells resulted in responses of lower magnitude. Transfer of CD8 + T-cell-depleted immune cells resulted in low, but detectable levels of IP-10 expression, indicating the ability of some oxazolone-immune CD4 + T cells to mediate IP-10 expression. These results indicate the differential induction of proinflammatory cytokine gene expression during elicitation of contact hypersensitivity in which expression of IP-10 is primarily mediated by immune CD8 + T cells and inhibited by immune CD4 + T cells.
Interstitial space — The forgotten organ

Abstract The interstitial space (ISS) can be thought of as an organ of translocation. Defined in this way the concentration of any substance in the ISS is equal to the ratio of an input to a clearance function. When substances accumulate, there is a disturbance of one or both functions. The three phase anatomy of the ISS give it unique properties including a high resistance to bulk flow, normal or even augmented diffusion of small ions, marked restriction to macromolecular transport, and some specificity for binding certain substances. Depositional disease in the interstitium can be approached in terms of minimizing the input function or maximizing the clearance function of the deposited substance. In the near future the clinician will have access to important physical parameters of the ISS.
Sigma-1 receptors modulate functional activity of rat splenocytes

Neuroleptics, opiates, and cocaine are commonly prescribed for or abused by humans. Although primarily used for their actions at other receptors in brain, these compounds also act at sigma receptors. We have previously identified sigma-1 receptors on human peripheral blood leukocytes and rat spleen, and in the present study we demonstrate a correlation between the pharmacology of these receptors and the ability of drugs to suppress concanavalin A-induced splenocyte proliferation. These results support the hypothesis that sigma-1 receptors regulate functional activities of immune cells, and suggest that sigma agonists may cause changes in immune competence in vivo.
Africa in the Political Science Curriculum

In the summer of 2005 I was developing a course entitled, “Comparative International Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity.” I was familiar with the theoretical literature on which the comparative stu...
An evaluation model for a digital library services tool

This paper describes an evaluation model for a digital library tool, the Instructional Architect, which enables users to discover, select, reuse, sequence, and annotate digital library learning objects. By documenting our rapid-prototyping, iterative, and user-centered approach for evaluating a digital library service, we provide a model and set of methods that other developers may wish to employ. In addition, we provide preliminary results from our studies.
Three-dimensional image reconstruction from in vivo consecutive transverse axial sections.

Abstract The three-dimensional reconstruction from a series of in vivo transverse axial sections demonstrates another important clinical application of the ACTA-Scanner. From a series of consecutive transverse sections, a complete three-dimensional anatomical feature or pathology can be reconstructed. Different oblique planes or projections of this reconstruction can be displayed at will to facilitate the medical diagnosis.
Temperature‐dependence of the diffusion constants of rigid, closed‐cell foams

Temperature dependence of diffusion coefficient for carbon dioxide filled rigid polyurethane foam, using Fick law
Far-field vortex structures in mountain wakes

Laboratory experiments on scaled mountain wakes have provided the first demonstration that indicates the existence of two distinct mechanisms for the formation of the long-lived vortex structures that have been frequently observed in satellite imagery. In a series of laboratory experiments the well-known von Karman vortex shedding mechanism has been observed at low values of Froude number (corresponding to low speed flow and strong stratification). At high Froude numbers the initial highly turbulent wake evolves into a vortex pattern similar to the far-wake dipole eddies previously observed in laboratory studies of submerged stratified wakes. In satellite imagery vortex structures have been observed to persist for hundreds of kilometers. In the present laboratory experiments far-wake dipole eddies were observed to persist for at least 200 diameters downstream, which corresponds to ~4,000 km when scaled to actual mountains. When generated at multiple sites along a continental mountain chain, these eddy structures could play a significant role in the development and variability of multi-scale weather and climate patterns.
Effects of hypophysectomy and several hormone replacement therapies upon patterns of nucleic acid and protein synthesis and enzyme levels in lactating rat mammary glands.

Abstract The effects of hypophysectomy and various hormone replacement therapies upon rates of ribonucleic acid (RNA), deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), casein and cytoplasmic protein synthesis, and enzyme activities in lactating rat mammary glands were studied to gain information regarding the functions of cortisol and prolactin in maintaining lactation. Hypophysectomy resulted in decreases in gland weight as well as RNA and DNA levels and rates of synthesis. Administration of cortisol partially maintained gland weight, RNA and DNA levels, and RNA synthesis but not DNA synthesis. The maintenance of RNA synthesis by cortisol appeared to be specific in that only the synthesis of one of the two RNA fractions studied was maintained. Deoxyribonucleic acid levels and rates of synthesis were maintained by administration of prolactin which also partially maintained gland weights. Administration of prolactin and cortisol together resulted in the maintenance of apparently normal gland weights and RNA and DNA levels and rates of synthesis. Rates of casein and cytoplasmic protein synthesis were decreased by hypophysectomy, partially maintained by cortisol, and apparently maintained at normal levels by administration of prolactin and cortisol plus prolactin. Enzyme levels were reduced in hypophysectomized rats receiving oxytocin alone, oxytocin plus cortisol, or oxytocin plus prolactin. The levels of several enzymes, most notably glucose-6-P dehydrogenase, were maintained by treatment with cortisol plus prolactin, while the activities of several others were not maintained.