cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Necessary Thread of Mindfulness Intervention Fidelity Assurance: Enabling an Organizational Strategy to Promote Health Care Professional Well-Being.

Purpose: A growing waitlist for Mindfulness in Motion (MIM), an evidence-based worksite mindfulness-based intervention, necessitated a training system with built in fidelity assurance to meet program demand. MIM was delivered as part of an organizational strategy in a large academic health center to enhance Health Care Professional (HCP) well-being. In order to ensure that the intervention was being delivered the same way to each cohort, a process to ensure intervention fidelity was developed for MIM. Method: The core components of MIM informed the development of a detailed fidelity monitoring system to ensure consistent intervention delivery. Each MIM cohort was conducted with both trained facilitators and trained intervention fidelity monitors. Results: Across 11 cohort offerings of MIM, each 8 weeks in length, there was a mean adherence rate of 0.9886, SD = 0.0012. Conclusion: The fidelity monitoring system allowed for a reliable expansion of MIM offerings to HCPs and for a seamless pivot to fully virtual MIM delivery, necessitated by COVID-19.
Aspiration of gastric bacteria in antacid-treated patients: a frequent cause of postoperative colonisation of the airway.

Abstract The gastric and upper-airway flora of 60 consecutive patients treated with antacids or cimetidine in a respiratory/surgical intensive-therapy unit were studied. In 52 (87 ·0%) patients one or more organisms were cultured simultaneously from both upper airway and stomach. A sequence of transmission was clear in 17 of these patients. Pneumonia due to gram-negative bacilli developed in 31 patients; in most cases the causative organisms were of gastric origin. No pneumonia developed in the 8 patients whose gastric and upper-airway flora were different. The number of gram-negative bacilli in gastric aspirates correlated positively with the pH of the gastric aspirate. Treatment of seriously ill patients with antacids or cimetidine may encourage airway colonisation and predispose the patients to pneumonia caused by gram-negative bacilli.
The Purification and Physical Properties of Glutamate Dehydrogenase from Rat Liver

Abstract Glutamate dehydrogenase has been purified and crystallized from rat liver mitochondria and from whole rat liver preparations. No differences in the enzyme prepared by the two different methods have been observed and there is no evidence that more than one glutamate dehydrogenase occurs in rat liver. The pure enzyme has a molecular weight of 350,000 ± 20,000 and consists of six to eight subunits. In contrast to the bovine liver enzyme, rat liver glutamate dehydrogenase does not polymerize to higher molecular weight forms as the enzyme concentration is raised, even in the presence of nucleotides which promote the association of the bovine liver enzyme. Also in contrast to the bovine liver enzyme, the rat liver glutamate dehydrogenase is rather unstable during the assay at low enzyme concentrations. The amino acid composition and peptide maps of the rat and bovine liver enzymes are quite similar, indicating only a few amino acid replacements. The fact that the polymerization of the bovine liver enzyme may be important in the regulation of activity by purine nucleotides in vivo indicates that the rat liver enzyme must differ with respect to such control since polymerization is lacking.
Multiresolution models for object detection

Most current approaches to recognition aim to be scale-invariant. However, the cues available for recognizing a 300 pixel tall object are qualitatively different from those for recognizing a 3 pixel tall object. We argue that for sensors with finite resolution, one should instead use scale-variant, or multiresolution representations that adapt in complexity to the size of a putative detection window. We describe a multiresolution model that acts as a deformable part-based model when scoring large instances and a rigid template with scoring small instances. We also examine the interplay of resolution and context, and demonstrate that context is most helpful for detecting low-resolution instances when local models are limited in discriminative power. We demonstrate impressive results on the Caltech Pedestrian benchmark, which contains object instances at a wide range of scales. Whereas recent state-of-the-art methods demonstrate missed detection rates of 86%-37% at 1 false-positive-per-image, our multiresolution model reduces the rate to 29%.
Language and Social Relations

Language is closely linked to our social relationships and is the medium through which we participate in a variety of social activities. This fascinating study explores the important role of language in various aspects of our social life, such as identity, gender relations, class, kinship, status, and hierarchies. Drawing on data from over thirty different languages and societies, it shows how language is more than simply a form of social action; it is also an effective tool with which we formulate models of social life and conduct. These models - or particular forms of social behaviour - are linked to the classification of 'types' of action or actor, and are passed 'reflexively' from person to person, and from generation to generation. Providing a unified way of accounting for a variety of social phenomena, this book will be welcomed by all those interested in the interaction between language, culture, and society.
Rape on the Railway: Women, Safety, and Moral Panic in Victorian Newspapers

In the Victorian press, the railway carriage was painted as a site of particular danger for women travelling alone. As a hybrid public and private space, the carriage placed strangers together in an intimate, quasi-domestic setting for which there were few established norms of behaviour. When male and female solo travellers found themselves confined together, it set the scene both for sexual assault and for false charges of assault, which the newspapers played upon; solo female travellers were depicted as either potential victims or potential Potiphar's wives. These representations were prominent in two moral panics that attempted to regulate women's movement. In this article, I examine accounts of sexual assault from the Lancet, The Times, the English Leader, and the People's Advocate from the 1860s and 1870s and consider newspaper reports as a source of erotic stimulation in a late-century pornographic novel, Raped on the Railway. I argue that the newspapers' fascination with sexual violence on trains, ...
Surgical Considerations and Choices in the Management of Velopharyngeal Dysfunction

Determining the type of secondary surgical management to treat velopharyngeal dysfunction requires the incorporation of surgical indications and principles to the perceptual, acoustic/airflow, and ...
Mind the gap: Assessing impairment among children affected by proposed revisions to the diagnostic criteria for oppositional defiant disorder

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) workgroup for disruptive behavior disorders is considering adopting a frequency threshold for symptoms of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD). In the present study, the impact of substituting the term "often" with a specific age-based frequency on impairment and prognosis among preschool children was tested in a longitudinal design. Mutually exclusive groups were created to identify children who met criteria for ODD based on a symptom threshold of "often," as in Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-4), and those that met criteria for ODD based on a threshold of "1-2 times per day," which approximated the proposal for DSM-5. Comparisons of these groups to each other and to nondiagnosed peers determined the impact of changing the symptom threshold on impairment and prognosis. Close to one-third of children who met DSM-4 criteria for ODD did not meet criteria under the alternative diagnosis; African American children were overrepresented in this group. Preschoolers who met DSM-4, but not the alternative criteria, had higher rates of ODD, conduct disorder (CD), and were more impaired than their nondiagnosed peers at baseline and follow-up. Preschoolers meeting DSM-4 criteria were less impaired than children meeting the alternative ODD criteria at baseline according to parent, but not according to teacher report. No differences could be detected between those meeting DSM-4 and those meeting the alternative criteria in rate of ODD, CD, or impairment at follow-up. Among clinically referred preschool children, changing the symptom threshold for ODD could result in a sizable group of children who would no longer meet diagnostic criteria, despite demonstrating significant morbidity concurrently and prospectively.
Maximum penetration of aerosol particles in granular bed filters

Abstract The size of the aerosol particles that most effectively penetrate a granular bed, and the corresponding minimum collection efficiency have been predicted by considering Brownian diffusion, particle interception and gravitational sedimentation as controlling aerosol deposition mechanisms. The results show that the most penetrating particle size for a granular bed filter exists as a result of either the Brownian diffusion mechanism combined with gravitation or Brownian diffusion with the interceptional mechanism. In the former case, the most penetrating particle size shifts to the larger size range as either air velocity or granule size increases. In the latter case, that size is found to shift to the smaller size range under the identical conditions. Where all these three mechanisms are operative to about equal extent, the most penetrating particle size reaches a maximum. Regardless of such shifts of the most penetrating particle size, the corresponding minimum efficiency of a granule bed filter is found to decrease with increasing air velocity or granule size. The calculated results have been compared with existing experimental data and excellent agreement has been obtained.
Sources of dissatisfaction in end-user support: an empirical study

Organizations are investing in information technology for an ever-increasing number of end-user tasks. Extracting benefits from these investments increasingly depends on supporting effective use of information technology and satisfying information technology users. This research explores the end-user support factors that correlate with user satisfaction. This survey of 484 end-users examines 21 potential end-user computing support factors, such as system response time and user training in terms of their perceived importance to the end-user and the performance of IS staff in supporting each. Service quality, the gap between perceived importance and performance for each support factor, is computed. The relationships between these service quality gaps and user satisfaction are tested across different user groups (faculty, non-IS staff and students). Larger service quality gaps in the following support factors were correlated with lower user satisfaction in at least one of the three user groups: IS staff response time, IS staff technical competence, software upgrades, ease of access, cost effectiveness of the system, user understanding, documentation to support training, and data security/privacy. These results are compared to the support factors identified as significant in previous empirical studies.
Determination of relative signs of neutron and proton transition matrix elements: Strong cancellation observed for the /sup 34/S(0/sup +/. -->. 2/sub 2//sup +/) transition

Hadron scattering is shown to be sensitive to the relative sign of neutron and proton transition matrix elements. The relative signs for the 2/sub 2//sup +/ states are determined to be positive for /sup 26/Mg, /sup 30/Si, and /sup 42/Ca, and negative for /sup 34/S on the basis of proton differential cross-section measurements at 650 and 800 MeV. Suppression of the one-step amplitude in the /sup 34/S 2/sub 2//sup +/ state causes the interference of one-step and multistep reactions to be experimentally apparent.
Lasing action in organic semiconductor thin films

Lasing action in optically pumped thin films of organic semiconductors has recently been demonstrated in a variety of materials employing a variety of cavity configurations. The excitation intensities required for lasing in optically pumped films are comparable to the electrical current densities achievable in light emitting devices based on these materials, opening the door to the possible realization of organic diode lasers. However, the design of diode laser structures is complicated by the relatively low charge carrier mobilities of organics. It has also been shown that the optical properties of organic films under electrical excitation are affected by the formation of polarons, imposing yet another obstacle for realization of these devices. The continuing research on organic diode lasers is motivated by the unique properties of these devices, such as narrow spectral emission linewidth and the temperature independence of laser output power and emission wavelength, which may be advantageous in a number of applications.
Learning and rhythmic human EMG in ecological perspective

Previous evidence of strong interactions between learning and human treadmill locomotion led to a simplified system for studying learned rhythms in a framework of behavioral ecology. Motor control combined with instrumental conditioning in a rhythmic hand task with repeating trials, blocks, and complete regimens. Regimen contexts differed with respect to the pattern of stimulation before and after an electromyographic (EMG) response. Both an antecedent stimulus (a light flash) and a consequent stimulus (a tone indicating success or failure) were necessary for conditioning. Arguments were given for defining reinforcement as a composite of interdependent and size-scaled processes, some including knowledge of results, instead of as a single event after a response.
Nanometer scale chemistry and microstructure of CrN/AlN multilayer films

a b s t r a c t Nanometerscale multilayer CrN/AlN thin films were deposited by pulsed DC magnetron sputtering. Nanoscale resolution chemistry and microstructure of CrN/AlN films with modulation periods (� ) of 4 nm and 18 nm were studied using advanced microscopy and diffraction. At the nanometer level, the interface between the CrN and AlN nanolayers contains a concentration gradient of Al and Cr. Inter- diffusion of Cr and Al atoms into the AlN and CrN layers was identified. Microstructural characterization revealed the CrN nanolayers epitaxially stabilize the AlN layers (2 nm) to a cubic structure for the � = 4 nm film. The rapid repetition of the interfacial energy across the AlN nanolayers is critical for the coherent epitaxial growth. The film at � = 4 nm exhibited a superhardness of 42 GPa. In contrast, the AlN layers (12.5 nm) exhibited a hexagonal structure in the � = 18 nm film as the bulk energy becomes dominating, in which misorientated and incoherent interfaces were found. The hardness of the film dropped down to 23 GPa. Published by Elsevier B.V.
Learning classifier systems for single and multiple mobile robots in unstructured environments

The learning classifier system (LCS) is a learning production system that generates behavioral rules via an underlying discovery mechanism. The LCS architecture operates similarly to a blackboard architecture; i.e., by posted-message communications. But in the LCS, the message board is wiped clean at every time interval, thereby requiring no persistent shared resource. In this paper, we adapt the LCS to the problem of mobile robot navigation in completely unstructured environments. We consider the model of the robot itself, including its sensor and actuator structures, to be part of this environment, in addition to the world-model that includes a goal and obstacles at unknown locations. This requires a robot to learn its own I/O characteristics in addition to solving its navigation problem, but results in a learning controller that is equally applicable, unaltered, in robots with a wide variety of kinematic structures and sensing capabilities. We show the effectiveness of this LCS-based controller through both simulation and experimental trials with a small robot. We then propose a new architecture, the Distributed Learning Classifier System (DLCS), which generalizes the message-passing behavior of the LCS from internal messages within a single agent to broadcast massages among multiple agents. This communications mode requires little bandwidth and is easily implemented with inexpensive, off-the-shelf hardware. The DLCS is shown to have potential application as a learning controller for multiple intelligent agents.
State of the field: Transient underdetermination and values in science

Abstract This paper examines the state of the field of “science and values”—particularly regarding the implications of the thesis of transient underdetermination for the ideal of value-free science, or what I call the “ideal of epistemic purity.” I do this by discussing some of the main arguments in the literature, both for and against the ideal. I examine a preliminary argument from transient underdetermination against the ideal of epistemic purity, and I discuss two different formulations of an objection to this argument—an objection that requires the strict separation of the epistemic from the practical. A secondary aim of the paper is to suggest some future directions for the field, one of which is to replace the vocabulary of values that is often employed in the literature with a more precise one.
Dynamics of a linked supercritical extraction-biodegradation process for organic wastes

The feasibility of combining two technologies with different advantages and operating dynamics for the removal and destruction of organic contaminants from solid wastes has been investigated. Supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) is efficient for separating and concentrating contaminants and biodegradation is efficient at destroying contaminants. Through a linked approach, we hope to capture the advantages of both processes. This paper presents results on the use of a combined SFE/absorption system to control the concentration of contaminant in an aqueous feed stream to a bioreactor as well as results on the response of the bacterium Pseudomonas Putida to gradient increases in phenol concentration in the feed. Finally, an experimental demonstration of the linked system is reported.
Optimal patterns of glider dynamic soaring

This paper presents optimal patterns of glider dynamic soaring utilizing wind gradients. A set of three-dimensional point-mass equations of motion is used and basic glider performance parameters are identified through normalizations of these equations. In particular, a single parameter is defined that represents the combined effects of air density, glider wing loading, and wind gradient slope. Glider dynamic soaring flights are formulated as non-linear optimal control problems and three performance indices are considered. In the first formulation, the completion time of one cycle of dynamic soaring is minimized subject to glider equations of motion, limitations on glider flights, and appropriate terminal constraints that enforce a periodic dynamic soaring flight. In the second formulation, the final altitude after one cycle of dynamic soaring is maximized subject to similar constraints. In the third formulation, the least required wind gradient slope that can sustain an energy-neutral dynamic soaring flight is determined. Different terminal constraints are used to produce basic, travelling, and loiter dynamic soaring patterns. These optimal control problems are converted into parameter optimization via a collocation approach and solved numerically with the software NPSOL. Different patterns of glider dynamic soaring are compared in terms of cycle completion time and altitude-increasing capability. Effects of wind gradient slope and wind profile non-linearity on dynamic soaring patterns are examined. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Behavioral effects of AMI-193, a 5-HT2A- and dopamine D2-receptor antagonist, in the squirrel monkey

Abstract 8-[3-(4-Fluorophenoxy) propyl]-1-phenyl-1,3,8-triazaspiro[4,5]decan-4-one (AMI-193) was developed as a 5-HT 2A -selective antagonist with in vivo activity suitable for behavioral studies. However, AMI-193 is a potent dopamine D 2 -receptor antagonist with low nanomolar affinity. Accordingly, D 2 -actions may contribute to its behavioral pharmacology. In the present study, the effects of AMI-193 on operant behavior were characterized in squirrel monkeys. In subjects trained under a fixed-interval (FI) schedule of stimulus termination, AMI-193 (0.003–0.01 mg/kg) dose-dependently decreased response rate. When administered in combination with cocaine (0.03–3.0 mg/kg) or the selective dopamine uptake inhibitor, GBR 12909 (0.03–3.0 mg/kg), the rate-decreasing effects of AMI-193 were reversed by both dopamine indirect agonists. In drug-discrimination experiments, AMI-193 (0.003 and 0.01 mg/kg) attenuated the discriminative-stimulus effects of cocaine. AMI-193 (0.003 and 0.01 mg/kg) also reduced response rate under a second-order schedule of i.v. self-administration of cocaine (0.1 mg/infusion). The profile of behavioral effects and drug interactions observed in the present study, in conjunction with the relatively high affinity of AMI-193 for dopamine D 2 receptors, suggests that its D 2 -antagonist effects play a prominent role in the behavioral pharmacology of AMI-193.
Variational Treatment of Electron-Hydrogen Atom Elastic Scattering

The Hulthen-Kohn variational method was applied to the elastic scattering of electrons by hydrogen atoms. The trial function used was of a nonseparable form. which allowed for the virtual excitation of the 2s and 3s states. and contained a scaling parameter which was allowed to vary. The resulting scattering lengths and S. P, and D singlet and triplet phase shifts were compared with the results of other calculations, and reasons were given for expecting them to be of improved accuracy. (auth)
Nuclear dynamics in a fungal chimera

A fungal colony is a syncytium composed of a branched and interconnected network of cells. Chimerism endows colonies with increased virulence and ability to exploit nutritionally complex substrates. Moreover, chimera formation may be a driver for diversification at the species level by allowing lateral gene transfer between strains that are too distantly related to hybridize sexually. However, the processes by which genomic diversity develops and is maintained within a single colony are little understood. In particular, both theory and experiments show that genetically diverse colonies may be unstable and spontaneously segregate into genetically homogenous sectors. By directly measuring patterns of nuclear movement in the model ascomycete fungus Neurospora crassa, we show that genetic diversity is maintained by complex mixing flows of nuclei at all length scales within the hyphal network. Mathematical modeling and experiments in a morphological mutant reveal some of the exquisite hydraulic engineering necessary to create the mixing flows. In addition to illuminating multinucleate and multigenomic lifestyles, the adaptation of a hyphal network for mixing nuclear material provides a previously unexamined organizing principle for understanding morphological diversity in the more-than-a-million species of filamentous fungi.
Direction of electron transfer in FeNi alloy surface

Abstract The direction of electron transfer in FeNi alloys was studied by an infrared technique comparing CO interaction with CuNi and CoNi alloy systems. The results were interpreted by the d-hole relationship of the metals and the saturation magnetization of alloy systems. An electron transfer from Fe to Ni in the FeNi alloy system is proposed, whereas no electron transfer between alloying components is believed to occur in the CoNi alloy system. A critical point for the FeCO interaction on the FeNi alloy surface was observed at 75 Fe25 Ni atom percent; a critical point for CuCO interaction on the CaNi alloy surface was previously found at 85 Cu15 Ni atom percent. No similar critical composition was found on the CONi alloy surfaces. Some of Uhlig's corrosion theory of surface passivity was applied to the calculation of critical composition. Infrared band shifts on the alloy surfaces are shown. Infrared absorption bands for CO on silica-supported metal alloy surfaces were determined in the region from 2200 cm −1 to 1600 cm −1 .
Receiver-driven bandwidth adaptation for light-weight sessions

Current Internet multicast conferencing tools treat all sources with equal importance in that they either statically allocate a fixed bandwidth to each source in a session, or they automatically adapt each source’s transmission rate independently of all other sources. But not all sources are of equal interest to all receivers. We believe that to effectively support human to human communication, this disparity in receiver interest should be reflected in the rate-adaptation process. To this end, we propose a protocol called “SCUBA” that enables media sources to intelligently account for receiver interest in their rate-adjustment algorithms. SCUBA is orthogonal to and complements existing rate-adaptation schemes and can interoperate with either senderor receiverdirected control systems. To scale the SCUBA protocol with multicast session size, we decouple the receiver-feedback process from the session size through sampling. This approach introduces a “tunable” tradeoff between convergence time and sampling accuracy that for large sessions is solely dependent on the control traffic bandwidth. In addition to its applicability in video conferencing, our control scheme can be combined with media transcoders to intelligently manage a bottleneck link at a well-known and fixed location in the network. We implemented SCUBA within our video conferencing tool vie and our media gateway rtpgw and feedback from their preliminary deployment indicates that the efficacy of the overall multimedia communication system has been greatly enhanced.
Epidemiology of vancomycin-resistant enterococci among patients on an adult stem cell transplant unit: observations from an active surveillance program.

Objective. To use the findings of an active surveillance program to delineate the unique epidemiology of vancomycin‐resistant enterococci (VRE) in a mixed population of transplant and nontransplant patients hospitalized on a single patient care unit. Design. Surveillance survey and case‐control analysis. Setting. A 19‐bed adult bone marrow and stem cell transplant unit at a referral and primary‐care center. Patients. The study included patients undergoing transplantation, patients who had previously received bone marrow or stem cell transplants, and patients with other malignancies and hematological disorders who were admitted to the study unit. Methods. Patients not previously identified as colonized with VRE had perirectal swab specimens collected at admission and once weekly while hospitalized on the unit. The prevalence of VRE colonization at admission and the incidence throughout the hospital stay, genotypes of VRE specimens as determined by pulsed field gel electrophoresis, and risk factors related ...
Wild-type LRRK2 but not its mutant attenuates stress-induced cell death via ERK pathway

Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) is a recently identified gene that, when mutated at specific locations, results in the onset of parkinsonian symptoms with clinical features indistinguishable from idiopathic Parkinson's disease. Based on structural and domain analysis, LRRK2 is predicted to function as a stress-responsive protein scaffold mediating the regulation of mitogen activating protein kinase (MAPK) pathways. Consistent with this notion, our results supported the notion that expression of wild-type LRRK2 but not Y1699C or G2019S mutants enhanced the tolerance of HEK293 and SH-SY5Y cells towards H(2)O(2)-induced oxidative stress. This increase in stress tolerance was dependent on the presence of the kinase domain of the LRRK2 gene and manifested through the activation of the ERK pathway. Collectively, our results indicated that cells expressing LRRK2 mutants suffer a loss of protection normally derived from wild-type LRRK2, making them more vulnerable to oxidative stress.
Comparison of multiple-description coding and layered coding based on network simulations

Layered coding has been proposed as a method of 'quality adaptation' for the Internet's best effort service model. The disadvantage of layered coding is that if the base layer packets are lost, the enhancement layers are rendered useless. To achieve error free transmission of the base layer, ARQ could be used, but this limits the performance of LC, due to the strict timing constraints of real time transmission. In this paper we compare Multiple Description Coding, an alternative scalable scheme, without retransmission to Layered Coding with retransmission for a wide range of scenarios. These scenarios include network with no feedback support, networks with long RTTs (WANs) and applications with low latency requirements.© (2000) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The dissociation of bovine hemoglobin at acid pH

The association equilibria of bovine hemoglobin in the pH range of 4.4–7.1 have been examined ultracentrifugally in an effort to ascertain why this particular hemoglobin fails to hybridize. The changes in molecular weight with pH at a fixed concentration of this protein resemble the changes observed in human hemoglobin (a species which does hybridize) under similar conditions. The dimer-tetramer association constant, K2, evaluated from sedimentation equilibrium data on bovine hemoglobin falls from approx. 4·106l/mole at pH 7 to 1·103l/mole at pH 4.4. At pH 7 and pH 5.5, K2 is an order of magnitude greater than that reported for human. The value of K2 for bovine hemoglobin at pH 4.6 results in adequate concentrations of dimer molecules (αβ complexes) under the hybridization conditions normally employed. An estimate of the monomer-dimer association constant, K1, at this pH, however, reveals that it is still very large, being 5·105. With this combination of K1 and K2, the fraction of monomers (free α and β polypeptide chains) is only approx. 0.02% for each polypeptide chain. The failure of bovine hemoglobin to hybridize with other species may be due, in part, to a low concentration of monomers available for exchange under the conditions of the hybridization experiments. In addition, the higher value of K2 for bovine hemoglobin may reflect changes in the conformation of the subunit contact surfaces of such a nature as to render them non-complementary to those of other species of hemoglobin. This suggests that hybrid molecules may be too unstable to exist in any significant and detectable quantities.
A Quick Guide to Accounting for Software and Web Sites

In today's competitive environment, investing in technology is one of your firm's key strategies. But what do the latest accounting rules require? © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Pyruvate carboxylase from chicken liver: Effects of sulfate and other anions on catalytic activity and structural parameters

Sulfate ion acts as a competitive inhibitor of pyruvate carboxylase purified from chicken liver with respect to CoASAc. The Ki for SO42− is obtained as 1.0–1.3 mm at pH 7.8 and 5.4 mm at pH 7.1. The extent of cooperativity in the relationship between initial rate and SO42− concentration is minimal at very low CoASAc concentration but increases as the activator concentration is raised. However, the presence of SO42− does not alter the extent of cooperativity in the relationship between initial rate and CoASAc concentration. Inhibition by SO42− is either uncompetitive (pyruvate) or noncompetitive (MgATP2−, HCO3−, phosphate) with respect to the substrates of the pyruvate carboxylase reaction. Sulfate decreases the rate of inactivation observed when pyruvate carboxylase is incubated at 2 °C and increases the rate of inactivation caused by incubation of this biotin-enzyme with avidin. Dissociation constants calculated from these data are in reasonable agreement with the Ki obtained from initial rate studies conducted at the same pH. Several other divalent and monovalent anions also act as competitive inhibitors with respect to CoASAc and cause similar alterations in the rates of inactivation resulting from incubation at 2 °C or in the presence of avidin. The data indicate that inhibition of this pyruvate carboxylase by anions such as SO42− may be due to interaction of these ions at the CoASAc site.
The cosmic ray composition between 1014 and 1016 eV

Abstract The mass composition of cosmic rays with primary energies between 1014 eV and 1016 eV has been studied using the surface and buried scintillators of the CASA-MIA air shower array. Near 1014 eV, the composition of cosmic rays is in agreement with direct measurements, roughly half light elements (protons and helium) and half heavier elements. The average mass increases with energy, becoming heavier above 1015 eV. The mass changes coincide with the spectral steepening of the energy spectrum known as the knee. There is evidence for rigidity dependence in the spectral change. A method of calculating the primary cosmic ray energy which is insensitive to the composition is employed to achieve these results.
The role of intraoperative parathyroid hormone testing in patients with tertiary hyperparathyroidism after renal transplantation.

Background Intraoperative parathyroid hormone (PTH) testing has been shown to accurately define adequacy of parathyroid resection in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) and alters the operative management in 10% to 15% of cases. However, the benefit of this technique in patients with tertiary HPT after renal transplantation undergoing parathyroidectomy is unclear. Methods Intraoperative PTH was measured in 32 consecutive patients undergoing parathyroidectomy for tertiary HPT after renal transplantation between March 2001 and November 2004 by using the Elecsys assay at baseline and, subsequently, 5, 10, and 15 minutes after curative resection. The outcomes of these patients were evaluated. Results All patients were cured after surgery. Of the 32 patients, 29 were found to have parathyroid hyperplasia, while 1 had a single adenoma and 2 had double adenomas. The average drop in intraoperative PTH levels after curative resection was 69 ± 3.5% at 5 min., 77 ± 2.3% at 10 minutes, and 83 ± 3.4% at 15 minutes. PTH testing changed the intraoperative management in 5 (16%) patients. One patient with a single adenoma and 2 patients with double adenomas had a >50% drop at 10 minutes. after excision; therefore, the operation was terminated without further resection. Two patients did not have a >50% drop at 10 minutes. after 3.5 gland resection. These patients were explored further, and additional supernumerary parathyroid glands were identified and resected. After resection of these additional glands, the PTH fell by >50%, indicating cure. Conclusions In patients undergoing parathyroidectomy for tertiary HPT after renal transplantation, a decrease in intraoperative PTH levels >50% at 10 minutes after completion of the operation indicated adequate resection. Furthermore, intraoperative PTH testing altered the operative management in 16% of patients. Therefore, similar to its role in patients with primary HPT, intraoperative PTH testing appears to play an equally important role in the management of patients with tertiary HPT undergoing parathyroidectomy.
Nitric oxide induces airway smooth muscle cell relaxation by decreasing the frequency of agonist-induced Ca2+ oscillations.

Nitric oxide (NO) induces airway smooth muscle cell (SMC) relaxation, but the underlying mechanism is not well understood. Consequently, we investigated the effects of NO on airway SMC contraction, Ca2+ signaling, and Ca2+ sensitivity in mouse lung slices with phase-contrast and confocal microscopy. Airways that were contracted in response to the agonist 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) transiently relaxed in response to the NO donor, NOC-5. This NO-induced relaxation was enhanced by zaprinast or vardenafil, two selective inhibitors of cGMP-specific phosphodiesterase-5, but blocked by ODQ, an inhibitor of soluble guanylyl cyclase, and by Rp-8-pCPT-cGMPS, an inhibitor of protein kinase G (PKG). Simultaneous measurements of airway caliber and SMC [Ca2+]i revealed that airway contraction induced by 5-HT correlated with the occurrence of Ca2+ oscillations in the airway SMCs. Airway relaxation induced by NOC-5 was accompanied by a decrease in the frequency of these Ca2+ oscillations. The cGMP analogues and selective PKG activators 8Br-cGMP and 8pCPT-cGMP also induced airway relaxation and decreased the frequency of the Ca2+ oscillations. NOC-5 inhibited the increase of [Ca2+]i and contraction induced by the photolytic release of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) in airway SMCs. The effect of NO on the Ca2+ sensitivity of the airway SMCs was examined in lung slices permeabilized to Ca2+ by treatment with caffeine and ryanodine. Neither NOC-5 nor 8pCPT-cGMP induced relaxation in agonist-contracted Ca2+-permeabilized airways. Consequently, we conclude that NO, acting via the cGMP–PKG pathway, induced airway SMC relaxation by predominately inhibiting the release of Ca2+ via the IP3 receptor to decrease the frequency of agonist-induced Ca2+ oscillations.
Active Vibration Control of a Single Mass Rotor on Flexible Supports

Abstract This paper considers vibration control of a single mass flexible rotor on damped flexible supports with active feedback control. Both proportional and derivative feedback control are utilized. Free vibrations and unbalance response of the rotor-control system are determined. The effect of proportional control is to increase the critical speed of rotating machinery while the effect of derivative control is to reduce the amplitude of vibration. Generally larger ratios of support stiffness to shaft stiffness require larger values of control parameters to produce given amplitudes of vibration.
Discontinuous Galerkin error estimation for hyperbolic problems on unstructured triangular meshes

We extend the error analysis of Adjerid and Baccouch [1,2] for the discontinuous Galerkin discretization error to variable-coefficient linear hyperbolic problems as well as nonlinear hyperbolic problems on unstructured meshes. We further extend this analysis to transient hyperbolic problems and prove that the local superconvergence results presented in [1] still hold for both steady and transient variable-coefficient linear and nonlinear problems. This local error analysis allows us to construct asymptotically correct a posteriori error estimates by solving local hyperbolic problems with no boundary conditions on each element of general unstructured meshes. We illustrate the superconvergence and the efficiency of our a posteriori error estimates by showing computational results for several linear and nonlinear numerical examples.
Intelligence As a Unifying Theme for Teaching Cognitive Psychology

Teachers often seek unifying themes that help students develop an integrated and coherent mental representation of the course material. Without such themes, material that seems integrated to the teacher often can be disparate and incoherent to the student. In the study of cognitive psychology, the theme of intelligence provides a powerful way of unifying the disparate material of a wide-ranging course.
When it is more than a job: close relationships between home health aides and older clients.

Objectives:A qualitative study was conducted to investigate the types of relationships that were formed between older clients and their home health aides and to identify structural characteristics and interactive processes that facilitated various types of relationships. Methods:Using semistructured interviews, members of 16 families and their home health aides described the relationships that developed between clients and aides and the conditions and contexts that facilitated or inhibited close relationship development. Data were coded and analyzed using a multistage process. Results:Most relationships between aides and older clients were described as friendship or like one of the family, with friendship occurring most often. Several structural conditions and numerous interactive friendship processes were identified. The cognitive process of boundary setting discriminated between friendships and family-like relationships. Discussion:Results show support for socioemotional selectivity theory and highlight...
A study on the conversion of trona to sodium bicarbonate

Abstract The deactivation model was used to explain kinetics underlying the conversion reaction of trona to NaHCO3 (sodium bicarbonate). The model showed good agreement with the experimental data obtained from the conversion reaction of trona to NaHCO3. It gave the value of 0.94 as an average correlation coefficient with the experimental data. However, at lower temperature, the model was in poor agreement with the data. This would be related to the structural variation of trona particles at the lower temperature. A trona particle is initially nonporous and then it begins to crack. This structural variation creates more surface area for the reaction with CO2 and water vapor. However, at the lower temperature, the fissures on the surface of the particles are not fully developed during the beginning of the reaction. As a consequence, the level of the conversion of trona at the lower temperature is low during the beginning of the reaction and the time to approach the complete conversion is shorter as temperature increases. However, since the deactivation model does not include the term articulating the degree of the structural variation during the reaction, it does not fit well to the experimental data at the lower temperature. The deactivation rate constant, kd is strongly temperature dependent and the change of the slope suggests the reaction mechanism changes as the reaction temperature increases.
Planar InGaAsP/InP photoelastic waveguides with low propagation loss

Abstract Planar, low-loss double heterostructure InGaAsP/InP waveguides have been fabricated employing the photoelastic effect induced by metal stressor stripes deposited on the surface of the semiconductor structure. Single-mode guiding is observed in regions beneath a window stripe in an otherwise continuous Ni film deposited on the waveguide structure (type A), or in regions beneath a narrow stripe of W film sputtered on the waveguide structure (type B). The lowest measured propagation loss is 2.0 dB/cm for the type A and 3.5 dB/cm for type B waveguides at the 1.52 μm optical wavelength. The lateral waveguiding depends on both the annealing temperature and the semiconductor layer structure beneath the metal. Both types of waveguides on InP/InGaAs/InP maintain low loss, single mode guiding for temperature ≤ 300°C. Preliminary planar photoelastic optical devices such as splitters and couplers have also been demonstrated.
Phonon populations during pulsed laser annealing

Abstract A summary is presented of pulsed Raman and several other time-resolved experiments and the information they provide on the dynamics of electron-phonon and phonon-phonon interactions under pulsed laser annelaing (PLA) conditions. A number of recent cw Raman studies provide a much improved basis for understanding the consequences on Raman spectra of temperature-dependent resonance effects, high carrier density effects, phonon anharmonicity, and strain effects. New pulsed Raman studies, under PLA conditions, of the shift and shape of the first-order line and of the full first- and second-order spectra are discussed. Emphasis is placed on explaining the results of time-resolved Raman experiments in a framework consistent with other types of experiments. The Raman data appear to be compatible with the existence of a fluid phase followed by a hot solid near the normal melting point of Si. The data, however, indicate the presence of additional broadening of the first-order Raman line probably due to carrier-phonon interactions, and cooling rates which appear to be higher than predicted by thermal models.
Factors associated with nicotine dependence among African American women cigarette smokers

Cigarette smoking contributes to disproportionate morbidity and mortality among African Americans. Purposes of the study were to describe smoking behavior and test a model of nicotine dependence among African American women. Participants (n = 187) smoked a low rate of high nicotine mentholated cigarettes and had a mean salivary cotinine of 402 ng/mL. The proposed model predicted 48% of variance in nicotine dependence with smoking to cope, number of cigarettes/day, positive outcome expectancies about smoking, and interest in quitting, as significant contributors. Suggested interventions include developing alternative coping skills, cognitive restructuring, and techniques focused on the precontemplation stage of smoking cessation. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Randomized distributed access to mutually exclusive resources

Many systems consist of a set of agents which must acquire exclusive access to resources from a shared pool. Coordination of agents in such systems is often implemented in the form of a centralized mechanism. The intervention of this type of mechanism, however, typically introduces significant computational overhead and reduces the amount of concurrent activity. Alternatives to centralized mechanisms exist, but they generally suffer from the need for extensive interagent communication. In this paper, we develop a randomized approach to make multiagent resource-allocation decisions with the objective of maximizing expected concurrency measured by the number of the active agents. This approach does not assume a centralized mechanism and has no need for interagent communication. Compared to existing autonomous-decentralized-decision-making (ADDM)-based approaches for resource-allocation, our work emphasizes achieving the highest degree of agent autonomy and is able to handle more general resource requirements.
The Balanced Company: A Theory of Corporate Integrity

The article presents a review of the book “The Balanced Company: A Theory of Corporate Integrity,” by Muel Kaptein and Johan Wempe.
The potential of cervical primary afferents to sprout in the spinal nucleus of V following long term trigeminal denervation.

Abstract Because of the intimate structural and functional relationships between cervical and trigeminal primary afferents in the caudalmost portion of the subnucleus caudalis of the trigeminal nerve, the possibility that cervical afferents might sprout to occupy vacated synaptic sites when the trigeminal afferents degenerated was investigated. Four adult cats were kept for periods of 11.5–24 months after trigeminal rhizotomy at which time symmetrical upper cervical spinal ganglionectomies were done. The ensuing degeneration was studied by the Nauta-Gygax and Fink-Heimer I methods at 6–13 days postoperatively. No evidence could be found that sprouting of cervical primary afferents had occurred at any level on the chronically denervated side. The significance of these findings is discussed in the light of past and recent observations on the problem of plasticity of connections in the mammalian central nervous system.