cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Utility of the Mayo End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score in assessing prognosis of patients with alcoholic hepatitis

Alcoholic hepatitis is characterized by acute, or acute-on-chronic hepatic failure and associated with a high mortality. Specific therapies should be considered for those at high risk of mortality. The Mayo End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score is a marker of disease severity and mortality in persons with chronic alcoholic liver disease. Our aims were to assess the utility of the MELD score as a predictor of short-term mortality in persons with alcoholic hepatitis. We assessed the utility of the MELD score and compared it with the Discriminant Function (DF) as a predictor of mortality in 34 patients hospitalized with alcoholic hepatitis. The area under the curve of a receiver operating characteristic curve for the MELD score was 0.82 (confidence intervals 0.65–0.98), and for the DF was 0.86 (confidence intervals 0.70–1.00). However, the sensitivity and specificity in predicting 30-day mortality for a MELD score of greater than 11 was 86% and 81%, but for a DF greater than 32 was 86% and 48% respectively. The presence of ascites and bilirubin greater than 8 mg/dL were also highly predictive of mortality with a sensitivity of 71% and a specificity of 96%. Alcoholic hepatitis remains associated with a high mortality in hospitalized patients. The MELD score performs as well as the DF in predicting mortality at 30 days. A MELD score of greater than 11, or the presence of both ascites and an elevated bilirubin greater than 8 mg/dL should prompt consideration of specific therapeutic interventions to reduce mortality.
Frequency and Duration of Nursing Care Related to Older Patient Mobility

Purpose To evaluate the frequency and duration of nursing care activity related to mobilizing older patients in acute care settings and determining who initiates the mobility event (patient or nurse). Methods This was an observation study using time and motion. Observers shadowed 15 registered nurses (RNs) each for two to three 8-hr periods using hand-held computer tablets to collect data on frequency and duration of six mobility events (standing, transferring, walking to and from the patient bathroom, walking in the patient room, and walking in the hallway) that occurred in the nurse's presence. Chart reviews were conducted on 47 adult patients (> 65 years of age) who were cared for by the nurses during the observation periods. Descriptive statistics (mean, median, standard deviation, frequency, and proportion) were used to describe the occurrence of mobility events among all 47 patients and among a subgroup of 16 patients identified as dependent (needing human assistance of another to ambulate) at the time of admission. Results Thirty-two percent of older patients were not engaged by an RN in any mobility event during an 8-hr period. For all patients, standing and transferring were the most frequent mobility activity. Mean duration for ambulation was less than 2 min per observation period. Patients who were dependent had fewer mobility events with no events related to ambulation initiated by nurses. The majority of mobility events were initiated by patients. Conclusions Nurses infrequently initiated mobility events for hospitalized older patients and most often engaged patients in low-level activity (standing and transferring). Clinical Relevance Limited mobility (standing and transferring only) is an independent predictor of negative outcomes for hospitalized older patients. Nurses are in a key position to improve outcomes for hospitalized older patients by engaging them in mobility activity, particularly ambulation, but further research is needed to determine how best to engage nurses in these activities.
AOA-based localization and tracking in multi-element VLC systems

Visible light communication (VLC) is an emerging technology that is expected to be widely used for indoor wireless communications. Accurate localization of VLC equipment has a wide variety of applications in indoor scenarios, where GPS receivers do not work. This paper proposes a new and effective method for localization of VLC devices based solely on the connectivity information. Due to narrow field of view characteristics of connected LEDs, angle of arrival to an access point can be estimated accurately. Exploiting such features, a least square estimator is developed for location estimation, and a Kalman filter is utilized for improving the tracking performance of a mobile device. Simulation results show that average localization accuracies on the order 0.2 meters can be achieved in various different access point topologies.
Global Marketing Strategy

This article makes a concise statement of what a global marketing strategy involves, including sections on organizational context, market segmentation and positioning, product standardization and global branding, pricing and distribution with special attention to gray trade, and global promotional strategy, including global advertising. The strategic implications of global versus multidomestic markets are explored and competitive strengths and weaknesses against local competitors are discussed. The principles are illustrated throughout with illustrations of actual companies. Keywords: global branding; product standardization; gray trade; global advertising; pricing corridors; local competition
Noncompliant oligopolistic firms and marketable pollution permits: Statics and dynamics

In this paper, we consider the modeling, analysis, and computation of solutions to both static and dynamic models of multiproduct, multipollutant noncompliant oligopolistic firms who engage in a market for pollution permits. In the case of the static model, we utilize variational inequality theory for the formulation of the governing equilibrium conditions as well as the qualitative analysis of the equilibrium pattern, including sensitivity analysis. We then propose a dynamic model, using the theory of projected dynamical systems, whose set of stationary points coincides with the set of solutions to the variational inequality problem. We propose an algorithm, which is a discretization in time of the dynamic adjustment process, and provide convergence results using the stability analysis results that are also provided herein. Finally, we apply the algorithm to several numerical examples to compute the profit-maximized quantities of the oligopolistic firms' products and the quantities of emissions, along with the equilibrium allocation of licenses and their prices, as well as the possible noncompliant overflows and underflows. This is the first time that these methodologies have been utilized in conjunction to study a problem drawn from environmental policy modeling and analysis.
The neuroenergetics of stress hormones in the hippocampus and implications for memory

Acute stress causes rapid release of norepinephrine (NE) and glucocorticoids (GCs), both of which bind to hippocampal receptors. This release continues, at varying concentrations, for several hours following the stressful event, and has powerful effects on hippocampally-dependent memory that generally promote acquisition and consolidation while impairing retrieval. Several studies have characterized the brain's energy usage both at baseline and during memory processing, but there are few data on energy requirements of memory processes under stressful conditions. Because memory is enhanced by emotional arousal such as during stress, it is likely that molecular memory processes under these conditions differ from those under non-stressful conditions that do not activate the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Mobilization of peripheral and central energy stores during stress may increase hippocampal glucose metabolism that enhances salience and detail to facilitate memory enhancement. Several pathways activated by the HPA axis affect neural energy supply and metabolism, and may also prevent detrimental damage associated with chronic stress. We hypothesize that alterations in hippocampal metabolism during stress are key to understanding the effects of stress hormones on hippocampally-dependent memory formation. Second, we suggest that the effects of stress on hippocampal metabolism are bi-directional: within minutes, NE promotes glucose metabolism, while hours into the stress response GCs act to suppress metabolism. These bi-directional effects of NE and GCs on glucose metabolism may occur at least in part through direct modulation of glucose transporter-4. In contrast, chronic stress and prolonged elevation of hippocampal GCs cause chronically suppressed glucose metabolism, excitotoxicity and subsequent memory deficits.
Spoiler States and Sanctions Regimes: Explaining Sanctions-Busting on Cuba's Behalf

The United States has had economic sanctions in place against Cuba for over fifty years. During that time, Fidel Castro’s regime in Cuba has received substantial amounts of trade and assistance from a diverse array of third parties, including: the Soviet Union, China, Spain, Canada, Great Britain, Japan, and Venezuela. Despite all the works that have addressed to the issue of sanctions efficacy, few have examined why spoiler states emerge and the role they play in affecting sanctions’ outcomes. Thus, no explanation really exists for why all these states deliberately undermined the United States’ sanctions against Cuba. This study conducts a comparative analysis of the more than ten states that engaged in extensive sanctions-busting trade on Cuba’s behalf from 1960-1974 and 1991-2006. It seeks to uncover why some sanctions busters were profit-driven, while others provided Cuba with costly assistance. The analysis indicates that states’ political ideology can motivate them to engage in costly sanctions-busting, which constitutes a causally distinct explanation for sanctions-busting than the profit-driven account. The study also reveals major shortcomings with how previous analyses have accounted for the effects of third party assistance and how third party behaviors change over time. The results suggest that U.S. policymakers should abandon their sanctions against Cuba, as they are unlikely to ever obtain their objectives.
Thermodynamic properties of undercooled liquid metals

Abstract In the form of a droplet emulsion, a number of liquid metals and alloys have been undercooled by substantial amounts (0.3–0.4 T m ) before crystallization. For example, pure Hg, In, Sn, and Bi can be undercooled by 90°C, 110°C, 187°C and 227°C respectively. Differential scanning calorimetry has been applied to determine the heat capacity difference, ∪Cp, between the undercooled liquid and crystalline solid. With decreasing temperature an increasing value of ∪Cp is observed which implies a reduction in configurational entropy of the liquid. In addition the heat capacity measurements allow for the determination of the free energy and the onset of the hypercooled regime which are useful in the evaluation of the crystallization kinetics.
Laminar Newtonian jets at high Reynolds number and high surface tension

Etude theorique par la methode des differences finie et par la methode de Newton pour le cas de jets planaires et axisymetrique
The role of the proteasome in heart disease.

Intensive investigations into the pathophysiological significance of the proteasome in the heart did not start until the beginning of the past decade but exciting progresses have been made and are summarized here as two fronts. First, strong evidence continues to emerge to support a novel hypothesis that proteasome functional insufficiency represents a common pathological phenomenon in a large subset of heart disease, compromises protein quality control in heart muscle cells, and thereby acts as a major pathogenic factor promoting the progression of the subset of heart disease to congestive heart failure. This front is represented by the studies on the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) in cardiac proteinopathy, which have taken advantage of a transgenic mouse model expressing a fluorescence reporter for UPS proteolytic function. Second, pharmacological inhibition of the proteasome has been explored experimentally as a potential therapeutic strategy to intervene some forms of heart disease, such as pressure overload cardiac hypertrophy, viral myocarditis, and myocardial ischemic injury. Not only between the two fronts but also within each one, a multitude of inconsistency and controversy remain to be explained and clarified. At present, the controversy perhaps reflects the sophistication of cardiac proteasomes in terms of the composition, assembly, and regulation, as well as the intricacy and diversity of heart disease in terms of its etiology and pathogenesis. A definitive role of altered proteasome function in the development of various forms of heart disease remains to be established.
An inductively derived model of the motivation to shop

The purpose of this article is to inductively determine the relationships which underlie the motivation to shop. Specifically, a variety of exploratory analyses which have been widely used to construct theory are sequentially applied to the relationships of 10 motivational variables. The outcome of the article is the development of a model of shopping motivation which appears to have been derived through a systematic series of inductive assessment analyses.
Responses of continuous, inertialess beams to traversing mass—A generalization of Stokes' problem

Abstract A mass at high speed traversing a uniform, horizontal, continuous beam resting on discrete supports gives rise to critical beam deflection and bending moment responses greater than those for the mass traversing at crawl speed. It is shown herein that these responses are significantly reduced by the choice of optimal support spacing parameters, characterized by a set of N span length multipliers for an N -span beam. By definition, the optimal spacings are those for which the critical static span moments are all equal. With the Stokes assumption that the beam is inertialess, the problem of finding the responses is reduced to a pseudostatic one where the trajectory of the traversing mass is described by a set of N ordinary differential equations with variable coefficients. Numerical solutions for simple span responses ( N = 1) are identical to Stokes' solutions. For N up to six, critical nondimensional responses are compared for beams with even and optimal support spacings, using a single load-speed parameter.
Preliminary study of transverse bars

Abstract Transverse bars (finger bars) are extremely common along sandy beaches in low-to-moderate wave energy regimes. They are typically oriented normal or nearly normal to the beach toe. Each transverse bar acts as a “focusing lens” for advancing waves, controlling wave refraction in such a way that: (1) the transverse bar is maintained; (2) sediment is transported along the long axis of the bar; and (3) a subtle but nevertheless effective circulation pattern is established, whereby water is transported seaward from the surf, without rip currents. In areas where transverse bars are numerous and well developed, the onshore or offshore transport of sand along the bar axes may be more important than littoral drift. Field experiments delineated a subtle nearshore current pattern, caused by unequal distribution of wave energy over the foreshore. Currents of this type were studied also in model wave tanks. These studies indicate that a transverse bar causes shallow waves to be refracted so that wave energy increases over the bar and decreases between the bars. Bottom friction reduces the wave energy more rapidly over the crest than in the adjacent deeper water. If the bars are relatively short this loss of energy through bottom friction has little effect. The wave energy concentrated over the crest results in an onshore current along the axis. The onshore current divides near the breaker zone and returns seaward slowly between the bars. The currents form two meshed gyres of horizontal circulation, one on each side of each relatively short transverse bar. Over relatively long transverse bars, the greater loss of wave energy through bottom friction over the crests, compared with the deeper wave between the bars, results in a reduced amount of wave energy over the shoreward portions. The areas between these bars provide a greater capacity for onshore movement of water caused by the mass transport associated with shallow water waves. The seaward return of this water takes place over the crests of relatively long transverse bars. These bars produce four meshed horizontally circulating gyres with an offshore current over the shoreward portions and an onshore current at their seaward ends. Preliminary data indicate that current strength is a direct function of the depth of water over the bars and an exponential function of the initial wave height. Additional work is in progress.
Measurements of Particle Deposition Rates Inside Southern California Museums

Rates of deposition of submicrometer particles were measured inside five Southern California museums using an automated particle-counting technique on a scanning electron microscope equipped with an energy-dispersive X-ray detector combined with bulk chemical analysis. Deposition velocities to vertical and upward-facing horizontal surfaces were determined as a function of particle size for each site by analysis of indoor suspended particles sampled onto filters and particles deposited on vertically and horizontally oriented deposition plates. Measured deposition velocities to vertical indoor surfaces were in the range of 10^(−6) to 10^(−5) m/s at all sites but varied from site to site in terms of their dependence upon particle size. Deposition velocities to horizontal surfaces were in the range of 10^(−6) to 10^(−3) m/s and showed the expected increase with particle size due to gravitational settling. The deposition velocities measured by single-particle analysis are compared to deposition velocities determined by bulk chemical analysis of deposition plates and indoor ambient filter samples for several chemical species. Advantages and drawbacks of the automated particle counting technique are discussed.
An incremental algorithm for software analysis

In programming environments aimed at “industrial strength” software development, there is a need for software tools which facilitate both design and maintenance. These tools should encourage experimentation with different system configurations which enable designers to a priori estimate the associated system complexity and judge the ease of accommodating enhancements. Maintainers should be able to check straightforwardly the ramifications of system changes due to enhancements or “bug fixes”. With interprocedural data flow information about the definition and use of global variables and parameters in a software system, tools can be built to perform these tasks.For large, complex systems, efficient methods for interprocedural analysis are necessarily incremental, as a software system is a dynamically evolving entity. Incremental algorithms update current information about a system in response to a change rather than re-calculating the information by re-analyzing the entire system. This paper reports our development of a general purpose incremental data flow analysis algorithm, which is applicable to both intraprocedural and interprocedural domains. It is based on interval analysis, a technique whose observed performance is linear for most programs; under reasonable assumptions about program flow graphs this linearity can be verified [20].
Tesol Tutor Time Homework Center: A Collaboration of Volunteer Preservice Teachers in the Public Elementary Schools

Bilingual parents who struggle with language acquisition themselves cannot assist their children with homework and need academic support. This report describes the inception and progress of a university/public school collaboration where preservice teachers, who are working toward endorsement in teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL), volunteer to teach English as a second language (ESL) students. The preservice teachers provide academic support, homework help, language practice, and comprehensive explanations for children who are struggling to either learn English or to keep up with academic assignments. The TESOL Tutor Time Homework Center provides Florida Atlantic University's students the opportunity to apply current TESOL methodologies and approaches, thus enhancing the ESL student's ability to master the English language and achieve curriculum competencies.
HPLC analysis of gonadotropin-releasing hormone and its analogues using benzoin as a fluorogenic reagent

Benzoin, which reacts specifically with arginine-containing peptides, was used as a pre-column fluorogenic reagent in the HPLC analysis of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and its synthetic analogues in an attempt to improve their detection sensitivity. The reaction kinetics of benzoin with GnRH and its structurally-related analogues, which all contain an arginine residue in the peptide chain, were investigated in this study. A fluorescence detector (ex 325 nm/em 435 nm) was used to detect benzoin-arginine derivatives. Another set of excitation and emission wavelengths (289 nm/344 nm), where fluorescent activity results from the aromatic amino acid residues, such as Tyrosine and Tryptophan, was used for comparison. The derivatization reaction and the fluorescent derivative product were highly affected by peptide concentration and heating time. The reactivity of arginine at position 8 was found to depend on the primary structure of GnRH and its analogues. However, it was observed that GnRH and its ana...
The Suicide of Western Capitalistic Democracy: Can it happen? Is it happening?

Abstract The nature of the field theory of evolving societal systems is briefly summarized, working definitions of “democracy” and “suicide” provided, and a number of failing subsystems identified. The nature of field theory is then expanded to examine dynamics at three levels. Special attention is paid to micro‐macrointerrelations, Kondratiev cycles/ structures, hegemonic cycles/structures, and the generation of unstable macroscopic behavior from local, seemingly rational microscopic behavior. The evolution of sociotechnical and macropsychological cognitive structures is discussed in some detail. Considerable attention is then paid to the changing meaning of rationality in science. Next policy implications are discussed. It is concluded that Western Capitalistic democracy can commit suicide and is doing so.
The Denver city and county building and the dimensions of planning

Denver's neoclassical City and County Building opened in 1932 only after major municipal battles involving the aesthetic, political and legal dimensions of city planning in the United States. The building now resting serenely on the tapis vert of the Denver Civic Centre, and closing its western vista, gives no hint of the struggles over neoclassicism versus modernism, electoral and professional politics, and legal interpretation once swirling about it. Mayor Robert W. Speer (1904–12, 1916–8) created the political atmosphere making the Civic Centre possible. For aesthetic advice over the years he relied on the sculptor Frederick MacMonnies, his own Art Commission, Edward H. Bennett, the successful architect‐planner, and others. By 1921 the original Civic Centre was complete except for the building planned to house the offices of the merged City and County of Denver. The Centre followed the baroque pattern, with its axis stretching east‐to‐west, its cross axis running north‐to‐south. Beginning on the east a...
Functional versus quantitative comparison of IL-1β from monocytes/macrophages on biomedical polymers

Studies utilizing a quantitative assay, radioimmunoassay, and a biological activity assay, the murine thymocyte proliferation assay, to analyze IL-1 beta cytokine production by monocytes/macrophages on biomedical polymers have been carried out. Results indicate that the quantitative analysis of IL-1 beta on biomedical polymers and protein-adsorbed biomedical polymers is not indicative of and does not correlate with the results of the biological activity assay. IL-1 beta secreted from human monocytes/macrophages on Biomer, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), Dacron, polyethylene, expanded polytetrafluoroethylene, and control polystyrene with and without the preadsorption of physiological concentrations of human IgG, fibrinogen, and/or fibronectin was assayed. Quantitative levels of IL-1 beta suggest a greater functional response than that observed in the biological thymocyte proliferation assay when the polymers were studied directly or preadsorbed with IgG. On the other hand, preadsorption with fibrinogen or fibronectin resulted in high functional activity for IL-1 beta with low quantitative levels of IL-1 beta. The lack of correlation between the functional and biological activity assays suggests the presence of other cytokines or antagonists which modulate the biological activity of IL-1 beta.
The Rising of the Women: Feminist Solidarity and Class Conflict, 1880-1917

Focusing on the socialist housewives, settlement workers, and left-wing feminists who were the main allies of working women between the 1880s and World War I, "The Rising of the Women" explores the successes and failures of the " united fronts" within which middle- and working-class American women worked together to improve social and economic conditions for female laborers. Through detailed studies of the Woman's Trade Union League, the Illinois Women's Alliance, the New York shirtwaist makers strike of 1909-10, and the 1912 textile workers strike in Lawrence, Massachusetts, Meredith Tax uncovers the circumstances that helped and hindered cross-class and cross-gender cooperation on behalf of women of the working class. In a new introduction to this first Illinois paperback edition, Tax assesses the progress of women's solidarity since the book's original publication."
A new temperature relay for use with resistance temperature detectors

A wattmetric induction unit, similar in construction to a watthour meter, is the sensitive relay element of this temperature measuring circuit, which provides protection to electric equipment so that maximum-temperature limits are not exceeded. Advantages of the relay include simplified design, accuracy, and reliability.
Foreign inclusions in stony meteorites - III. Rare gases and oxygen isotopes in a carbonaceous chondritic xenolith in the Plainview gas-rich chondrite

Foreign inclusions in stony meteorites. II - Rare gases and oxygen isotopes in a carbonaceous chondritic xenolith in the Plainview gas-rich chondrite
The Dichotic Rhyme Task - Results In Split-brain Patients

Monosyllabic rhyme words were dichotically presented to normal and complete split-brain subjects. In the normal adult population, only one of the words in the dichotic condition was identified. Hence, normal performance was about 50%, with a small but significant right-ear advantage. The split-brain patients yielded the expected marked left deficit, as seen on other dichotic speech tests, and demonstrated a right-ear enhancement, producing a large interear difference. This right-ear enhancement on the dichotic rhyme task (DRT) may suggest a release from central auditory competition in the left hemisphere. The dichotic rhyme task's normative data results and sensitivity to lack of callosal transmission make it worthy of further clinical and basic research.
Automated energy dispersive spectrometer modal analysis applied to the diogenites

— We have analyzed the modal abundances of 23 of the known 24 diogenites in 31 thin sections using an energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) and automated phase distribution analysis software. Orthopyroxene is predictably the most abundant phase, ranging from 27.7 vol% to 99.8 vol% in these samples. The grand average mode of all the analyzed diogenites includes the “olivine diogenites” but not ALH 85015, a probable howardite, and ALHA81208, a sample with an abundant silica phase. The grand average of these 21 diogenites is: orthopyroxene 92.2 vol%, olivine 4.2 vol%, clinopyroxene 1.2 vol%, chromite 0.9 vol%, plagioclase 0.4 vol%, FeNi metal 0.1 vol%, troilite 0.6 vol%, and silica phase 0.4 vol%. Plagioclase feldspar is extremely depleted in all samples, with modal abundance from none detected to 4.6 vol% in range. Such a low volume of plagioclase may indicate that the diogenite parental melts originated in a source region depleted in Al (Warren, 1985; Stolper, 1975), which is consistent with crystallization from a melt derived from material that had previously experienced extraction of a eucrite-type melt.
Effect of EDTA, HCl, and Citric Acid on Ca Salt Removal from Asian (Silver) Carp Scales Prior to Gelatin Extraction

Pretreatments with different chemicals at different concentrations to remove Ca compounds were studied to determine their effects on gelatin extraction from silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) scales. During Ca removal with HCl, citric acid, and EDTA, all 3 chemicals were able to decalcify (>90%) scales; however, protein losses with EDTA were lower than with HCl and citric acid (P < 0.05), and protein losses with citric acid were lower than with HCl (P < 0.05). Ca removal with HCl yielded a solution where 4% to 5% of the protein was Hyp, with estimated gelatin losses from 0.9% to 2.5%. After 0.20 mol/L HCl was used for Ca removal, the extracted gelatin solution was 15.4% of the initial scales weight and gave a gel strength of 128 g. After using 1.2 g/L citric acid for Ca removal, the extracted gelatin solution was only 9% of the scales and the gel strength was 97 g. Using 0.20 mol/L EDTA for Ca removal gave a yield of 22% and a gel strength of 152 g. These data suggest that EDTA at 0.20 mol/L provides the best Ca removal with minimal collagen/gelatin removal (estimated gelatin loss was less than 0.013%) during the Ca removal step, and subsequently gave a high gelatin yield and gel strength. Fish gelatin has generally been extracted from fish skins and occasionally fish bones. This article focuses on removing the Ca compounds in fish scales and then producing fish gelatin with a good gel strength and yield. With further studies, this study may help the fish industry to have a new source of fish gelatin for food and pharmaceutical applications.
Characterization of Multilayer-enhanced Surface-enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) Substrates and Their Potential for SERS Nanoimaging

Multilayer gold surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates, which consist of continuous gold films that are separated by self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) and cast over 430-nm diameter silica nanospheres on a glass slide, have been evaluated as a means of further enhancing the SERS signals produced from conventional metal film over nanostructure substrates. Evaluation of the effect of various SAMs, with different terminal functional groups, on the SERS enhancement factor were measured and compared to conventional single-layer gold film over nanostructure substrates, revealing relative enhancements as great as 22.4-fold in the case of 2-mercapto-ethanol spacer layers. In addition to evaluation of the effect of different terminal functionalities, the effect of spacer length was also investigated, revealing that the shorter chain length alcohols provided the greatest signals. Employing the optimal SERS multilayer geometry, SERS nanoimaging probes were fabricated and the SERS enhancement factor and variability in enhancement factor were measured over the SERS active imaging area, providing absolute enhancements similar to previous silver-based SERS nanoimaging probes (i.e., 1.2×108). Varying the size of the multilayer gold islands that were deposited on the tip of the SERS active nanoimaging probe, it is possible to tune the optimal SERS excitation wavelength accurately and predictably over the range of approximately 450 to 600 nm, without coating the entire surface of the probe and significantly reducing the transmission and resulting signal-to-noise ratio of the images obtained.
Sphingomonas mucosissima sp. nov. and Sphingomonas desiccabilis sp. nov., from biological soil crusts in the Colorado Plateau, USA.

Two bacterial strains, CP173-2T and CP1DT, were isolated from biological soil crusts (BSCs) collected in the Colorado Plateau, USA. Both strains were pigmented, Gram-negative, non-motile rods and produced abundant mucus. They contained C16 : 0, C18 : 1 ω7c and C14 : 0 2-OH as the predominant cellular fatty acids, ubiquinone-10 as the isoprenoid quinone and sphingoglycolipid. Based on the above characteristics, the isolates were assigned to the family Sphingomonadaceae; 16 rRNA gene signature nucleotides placed them within the genus Sphingomonas. Strains CP173-2T and CP1DT had a 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity of 96.7 % with each other and 91.6–98.9 % sequence similarity with other species in the genus, indicating that they represent two separate, and possibly novel, species. The closest species to strains CP173-2T and CP1DT were, respectively, Sphingomonas dokdonensis (98.9 % gene sequence similarity) and Sphingomonas panni (97.9 %). However, strain CP173-2T exhibited a DNA–DNA relatedness of only 32.5 % with the type strain of S. dokdonensis. Similarly, the DNA–DNA relatedness between strain CP1DT and the type strain of S. panni was only 18 %. Phenotypic characterization supported this low relatedness. On the basis of this evidence, we propose that the new strains represent two novel species, for which the names Sphingomonas mucosissima sp. nov. (with type strain CP173-2T=ATCC BAA-1239T=DSM 17494T) and Sphingomonas desiccabilis sp. nov. (with type strain CP1DT=ATCC BAA-1041T=DSM 16792T) are proposed.
Development of Collapse Indicators for Risk Assessment of Older-Type Reinforced Concrete Buildings

This study examines the seismic collapse safety of older, non-ductile reinforced concrete building frames designed and constructed prior to the 1980s. The study considered idealized buildings with ...
The appeal of the PDC program

In 2006, I gave a series of lectures in Paris arguing for a set of rather general strategies governing language production. I was inspired to do this largely by the work of John A. Hawkins (especially his 2004 book), which argues that many morphosyntactic properties of languages can be explained in terms of how they facilitate processing. Hawkins's thesis is that language users favor structures that are easy to parse; that many languages grammaticalize these parsing preferences over time; and that this can explain facts about linguistic typology and language change. This idea is deeply insightful and has been influential among typologists, syntacticians, and psycholinguists. But I have always felt uncomfortable about a number of the particular processing strategies Hawkins proposed, because they struck me as too focused on the problem of parsing—that is, on comprehension. The form that an utterance takes is determined by the speaker, not the listener. A theory that relies too heavily on comprehension-based considerations to explain properties of languages must assume that speakers design their utterances primarily to accommodate their audience's needs, rather than their own. Given the inherent difficulty of the task of articulating thoughts as fast as people do in ordinary speech, more production-oriented explanations in the Hawkinsian style would seem more convincing.
Evaluating the fate of metals in air pollution control residues from coal-fired power plants.

Changes in emissions control at U.S. coal-fired power plants will shift metals content from the flue gas to the air pollution control (APC) residues. To determine the potential fate of metals that are captured through use of enhanced APC practices, the leaching behavior of 73 APC residues was characterized following the approach of the Leaching Environmental Assessment Framework. Materials were tested over pH conditions and liquid−solid ratios expected during management via land disposal or beneficial use. Leachate concentrations for most metals were highly variable over a range of coal rank, facility configurations, and APC residue types. Liquid−solid partitioning (equilibrium) as a function of pH showed significantly different leaching behavior for similar residue types and facility configurations. Within a facility, the leaching behavior of blended residues was shown to follow one of four characteristic patterns. Variability in metals leaching was greater than the variability in totals concentrations b...
A simulation-based methodology and tool for automating the modeling and analysis of voice-over-IP perceptual quality

A simulation-based methodology is developed for analyzing the perceptual quality of voice-over-IP calls as a function of network quality-of-service (QoS) parameters and choices in configuration and implementation. The proposed method combines the use of existing objective voice-quality measurement algorithms, such as the ITU-T P.861 PSQM and P.862 PESQ, and pre-recorded natural or artificial voice reference signals, such as the ITU-T P.50, with the discrete-event simulation of a network QoS model. A significant advantage of the method is that it does not involve the use of human subjects in evaluating subjective voice quality. This enables one to entirely automate the process of quantifying call quality as a function of network QoS and implementation choices such as packet size and codec type. Such automation enables one to realize significant time and cost savings in obtaining experimental results. A tool implementation is described that includes basic network packet loss, delay jitter, and call multiplexing models. Example numerical results are presented. The generalization of the method to the automated perceptual quality evaluation of audio, video, and multimedia signals is also described.
Relative rate constants for the reactions of OH with methane and methyl chloroform

Atmospheric lifetimes of methane and methyl chloroform are largely determined by the rates of their reactions with hydroxyl radical. The relative lifetimes for this loss path are inversely proportional to the ratio of the corresponding rate coefficients. The relative rate constants were measured in a slow-flow, temperature-controlled photochemical reactor, and were based on rates of disappearance of the parent compounds as measured by FTIR spectroscopy. The temperature range was 277-356 K. Hydroxyl radicals were generated by 254 nm photolysis of O3 in the presence of water vapor. The preferred Arrhenius expression for the results is k(CH3CCl3)/k(CH4) = 0.62 exp (291/T), corresponding to a value of 1.65 at 298 K and 1.77 at 277 K. The respective uncertainties are 5 and 7 percent.
Apprehensions of coping incompetence and responses to fear in old age.

Fear is defined as a state of mind characterized by desperation and anxiousness stemming from personal incompetence in coping with events of everyday life. Expressions of fear in old age are descri...
Anti-basement membrane antibodies and antigen--antibody complexes in rabbits injected with mercuric chloride.

Abstract New Zealand rabbits were injected three times a week with 2 mg of mercuric chloride (HgCl2) (MC) to test the hypothesis that toxic agents release autologous antigens, generating antibody response and tissue injury. After 2 weeks of injections the rabbits developed anti-basement membrane antibodies binding to renal and extrarenal basement membranes and to the peri- and endo-mysium of skeletal muscles. Glomerular histology appeared normal. Membranous glomerulonephritis developed 1–2 months later with granular subepithelial deposits containing rabbit IgG and C3. Similar deposits were present in the basement membranes of other organs. Raji cell tests for immune complexes in the sera were negative in the initial stages and positive in the late stages of the disease. Radioactive MC was found in the cytoplasm of renal tubular, intestinal, and hepatic epithelial cells but not in glomerular deposits. Renal eluates and selected sera reacted with the basement membranes and the collagen matrix in normal or collagenase-digested sections of renal or extrarenal normal rabbit tissues. This reactivity was reduced or abolished by washing tissue sections in PBS or by absorption of renal eluates with whole kidney homogenates. The findings are consistent with the hypothesis that MC induces a biphasic disease characterized first by the production of antibodies to basement membranes and the extracellular collagen matrix and subsequently by antigen-antibody complexes formed in situ and in the circulation and presumably containing soluble polysaccharide components of the collagen matrix.
The molecular basis of vascular disorders.

Cardiovascular malformations occur in a large numberof hereditary or sporadic diseases. Here, we review thegeneral pathway by which the vasculature develops,andwe discuss the etiology of several groups of diseases inwhich cardiovascular development or maintenance goawry. Many such abnormalities are also observed in an-imals, including mice and zebraﬁsh, the latter being anemerging model genetic organism that has alreadyproved useful in the study of the development of thecirculatory system. In many respects, morphogenesis inthe heart and the vasculature presents challenges thatare similar to corresponding events elsewhere in thebody.Indeed,manyofthediseasesdiscussedherepresentwith a range of effects in other tissues, suggesting thatsome of the regulatory pathways are shared. Still, bloodﬂow is a unique feature of the heart and the vessels, andwe will consider genetic and physiological evidence thatblood ﬂow helps shape these organs during develop-ment.
The Political Implications of Psychoanalytic Theory

The political implications of psychoanalytic theory seem, at first glance, to be as various and dissimilar as the political and social philosophies of its leading spokesmen. Not infrequently, however, as a recent writer has demonstrated for the related field of social casework,' the formal statements of therapists and behavioral scientists are in some conflict with the attitudes and presuppositions which underlie their practice. A critical examination of these assumptions may be found relevant not only to political science but to the sciences of psychiatry and psychotherapy in their efforts to reach consensus on values and objectives. As a prominent psychoanalytic theorist, Erich Fromm, has written:
Some touching situations: The relationship between gender and contextual variables in cardiovascular responses to human touch

This study examined how cardiovascular reactivity to human touch is affected by the social context of the situation. Context for a ten-second touch was manipulated for 61 male and 64 female undergraduate participants in three ways: professional touch, where participants were touched on the wrist to have their pulse taken; social touch, an unexplained touch to the same area of the arm; and a no-touch control, where participants were told their pulse was being taken automatically without being touched. Social context was also manipulated by employing both same-sex and opposite-sex touch experimenters. In the professional touch and no-touch conditions, participants' heart rate and blood pressure decreased overall; however, in the social touch condition initial increases were observed for both measures. Female experimenters produced greater heart rate decreases than male experimenters. The greatest cardiovascular increases were found with women being touched by men in the social condition. These data suggest that both context and gender are important contextual factors in determining cardiovascular reactivity.
A Critical Analysis of the MND Criteria for Feigned Cognitive Impairment: Implications for Forensic Practice and Research

Forensic neuropsychology continues to grapple with critical determinations of response styles, including the assessment of malingering. The development of the Malingered Neurocognitive Dysfunction (MND) model has been highly influential for both feigning research and neuropsychological practice. In striving to be a comprehensive model of malingering, MND proposes complex criteria for ascertaining possible, probable, and definite levels. In its critical review, this article suggests the possibility of an MND bias towards the over-classification of malingering. It also examines the limits of MND research to adequately test the MND model. The conceptual and empirical limitations of MND are discussed with reference to theory and neuropsychological practice.
Imaging the Knee in the Setting of Metal Hardware

Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is an established modality for the evaluation of musculoskeletal structures, including the knee. Metallic implants are increasingly used and techniques to minimize artifacts are continuously improving. This article reviews the general principles behind the effects of metal on MR imaging, various MR imaging techniques that are available or have been recently described in the literature, and abnormalities that can be encountered during MR imaging of patients related to knee arthroplasty, hardware after internal fixation, or hardware used for soft tissue fixation.
Social anxiety and the ironic effects of positive interviewer feedback

Background and Objectives: Positive interviewer feedback should encourage positive experiences and outcomes for interviewees. Yet, positive feedback is inconsistent with socially anxious interviewees' negative self-views. Socially anxious interviewees might experience increased self-focus while attempting to reconcile the inconsistency between their self-perceptions and that feedback. This could interfere with successful interview performance. Design: This study used a 3 (feedback: positive, negative, no) × 2 (social anxiety: high, low) between-subjects design. Method: Undergraduate students (N = 88) completed a measure of dispositional social anxiety. They then engaged in a simulated interview with a White confederate trained to adhere to a standardized script. Interviewees received positive, negative, or no interviewer feedback. Each interview was video recorded to code anxiety displays, impression management tactics, and interview success. Results: Following positive feedback, socially anxious intervie...
WHAT'S NEW IN NEUROEMBRYOLOGY? Cajal–Retzius and subplate neurons: their role in cortical development

Abstract Cajal–Retzius (C-R) neurons and their processes form a synaptic network in the marginal zone of the early telencephalon prior to the arrival of the first wave of radial migration of neuroblasts from the subventricular zone. Their origin is not yet proved but may be either the medial ganglionic eminence or the mesencephalic neuromere. These bipolar or multipolar neurons populate the molecular layers of both the fetus and the adult, though sparse in the adult. Their thick axon emits collaterals that make synaptic contact with pyramidal neurons initially in layer 6 and later within all layers. C-R neurons produce GABA, possibly ACh, several calcium-binding proteins (e.g. calmodulin; parvalbumin; possibly calretinin), several neuropeptides and are rich in ribosomes. Subplate neurons, beneath the cortical plate, emit pioneer axons in the incipient formation of the internal capsule and also commissural fibres of the early hippocampus. C-R cells express products of the genes reelin , LIS1 and DS-CAM , that mediate radial neuroblast migration and lamination of the cortical plate and are important in the pathogenesis of lissencephaly. In addition to forming the first intrinsic synaptic circuits of the cortical plate and its first afferent and efferent connections with subcortical structures, they may play additional roles in the formation of ocular dominance columns, in regulating neuronogenesis and in cortical repair. They do not later disappear by apoptosis as we previously thought, but their functional role in the mature brain is unknown.