cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Test-Item Tendencies: Curiosity and Caution

Standardized achievement tests have attracted the favor, or flak, of citizens in our society for many years. Educators have used information from them for both summative and formative evaluation purposes. Summatively, standardizedtest results may be used to judge the degree to which a student, class, or school system has achieved desired learnings in a particular area of study. The objectivity of standardized tests further allows comparisons with other students, classes, or school systems. Today, millions of dollars are dispensed annually by governmental agencies based on standardized-test performance of students. Formati vely, these test results may be used by teachers or curriculum workers in determining program directions and emphases. Whether for formative or summative purposes, caution has always been urged in interpreting standardized-test performance of students. These urgings are not always heeded. One reason why caution is not always used in interpreting test results may be because of the routine nature of the annual testing program in many school systems. The routine may go something like this: (1) early in the fall, teachers receive notice of testing dates; (2) shortly before those dates the package of test materials arrive, usually with a covering memo regarding preparation procedures and instruction for test administration; (3) schedules for monitors to help in the administration are posted; (4) test day arrives, and the schedule for test administration is followed; (5) tests are collected on the last day, response sheets are given a cursory glance to make sure directions were followed, and they are then bundled up and sent away for scoring and analysis; (6) teachers wait . . .; (7) computer printouts ultimately arrive with various levels of sophisticated analysis presented. Much emphasis is given to these testing routines; much less emphasis is placed on consideration of test-item composition and the response tendencies of students to these items. This lack of awareness could contribute to a lack of a healthy caution in interpreting test results. The following observations on performance tendencies of forty-eight first-graders on particular items from a standardized achievement test in mathematics are meant as a reminder of the caution needed in making formative or summative judgments on the basis of such a test. It is not meant to condemn the use of standardized achievement tests; it is only an attempt to underscore caution and common sense in the interpretation of results.
Where are All the Happy Stories? The Role of Positive Stories in Teaching and Curriculum Design

ABSTRACTAs a discipline, sociology focuses more on pathology than success. Happiness was a key component of early theorists’ work yet dropped out of mainstream sociology as C. Wright Mills’ underst...
Outcomes with sequential FLT3-inhibitor-based therapies in patients with AML

Second-generation FLT3-inhibitors (FLT3i) demonstrated single-agent composite CR rates (CRc) of 45–55% in patients with relapsed/refractory (R/R) FLT3-mutated AML in phase II/III trials. However, > 85% of patients treated were prior FLT3i naive. The response rates to sequential FLT3i exposure remain poorly defined. We retrospectively reviewed patients with FLT3-mutated AML between November 2006 and December 2019. In frontline patients treated with a FLT3i (cohort 1), the CRc rates and median overall survival (OS) with the first (n = 56), second (n = 32), and third FLT3i-based (n = 8) therapy were 77%, 31%, and 25%, and 16.7 months, 6.0 months, and 1.4 months, respectively. In patients receiving a FLT3i-based therapy for the first time in a R/R AML setting (cohort 2), the CRc rates and median OS were 45%, 21%, and 10%, and 7.9 months, 4.0 months, and 4.1 months with the first (n = 183), second (n = 89), and third/fourth (n = 29) FLT3i-based therapy, respectively. In cohort 1, CRc rates with single-agent FLT3i (n = 21) versus FLT3i-based combinations (n = 19) in second/third sequential FLT3i exposures were 19% versus 42%, respectively. In cohort 2, the CRc rates with single-agent FLT3i (n = 82) versus FLT3i-based combinations (n = 101) in first FLT3i exposure were 34% versus 53%, respectively, and those with single-agent FLT3i (n = 63) versus FLT3i-based combinations (n = 55) in second/third/fourth sequential FLT3i exposures were 13% versus 25%, respectively. CRc rates drop progressively with sequential exposure to FLT3i’s in FLT3-mutated AML. In all settings, CRc rates were higher with FLT3i-based combinations compared with single-agent FLT3i therapy in similar FLT3i exposure settings.
The Religious and Spiritual Struggles (RSS) Scale: Stability Over One Year

The Religious and Spiritual Struggles Scale (RSS) measures important psychological constructs involved in the complex relationship between religion and well-being. Religious/spiritual struggles are distinct from religiousness, distress, and each other, but the RSS’ internal discriminant validity has not been tested longitudinally. Previously, we published three alternative measurement models with a large sample of undergraduates in the USA (N = 3851), including two bifactor models with unidentified general factors. We reused this sample as our baseline measurement, and tested each measurement model’s ability to predict new measurements collected a year later (n = 583). Both general factors predicted themselves best over time with strength and specificity similar to the original six group factors, all of which also predicted themselves strongly and specifically in all three models. Correlations one year after baseline weakened slightly but remained positive, continuing to reflect both the general and group factors’ mutual influence. All group and general factors appear valid and meaningfully different as independent psychological constructs. Significant evidence that certain RSS factors independently predict certain others only emerged in the restricted bifactor model, where we least expected it. These effects did not diminish discriminant validity, but suggested subtle ways that some R/S struggles could predict changes in others, pending replication of these results. Overall, the RSS appears to measure distinct phases that are more stable than states, yet more transitory than traits. The RSS is well-suited to longitudinal research into many important questions about the dynamics of R/S struggles, which we discuss within.
Introduction and History

After Rahn and Fenn published A Graphical Analysis of the Respiratory Gas Exchange in 1955, understanding of the importance of ventilation-perfusion matching to pulmonary gas exchange grew rapidly. Rahn and Fenn highlighted that alveolar gas concentrations were intimately related to the associated ventilation-perfusion (\( {\dot{V}}_A/\dot{Q} \)) ratio. Riley and Cournand expanded this into the three-compartment lung model with shunt, ideal, and deadspace compartments. This early work was important since the multiple inert gas technique (MIGET) uses the same principles of mass conservation. MIGET also built on the work of Kety, who showed that the fractional retention of an inert gas in arterial blood was function of solubility and \( {\dot{V}}_A/\dot{Q} \) ratio. Later, Farhi and Yokoyama devised a method for measuring retention of inert gases during washout, from which a two-compartment model of \( {\dot{V}}_A/\dot{Q} \) inequality was derived. Lenfant and Okubo exploited the fact that arterial partial pressure of oxygen (\( {P}_{{\mathrm{O}}_2} \)) response to inspired O2 depended on the \( {\dot{V}}_A/\dot{Q} \) ratio and modeled a continuous distribution of \( {\dot{V}}_A/\dot{Q} \) ratios to compute the underlying \( {\dot{V}}_A/\dot{Q} \) ratios explaining the response. Using computer algorithms to solve the gas exchange equations of these pioneering investigators and to quantify the O2 and CO2 dissociation curves, Kelman, Olszowka, and West studied complex gas exchange behavior by taking theoretical \( {\dot{V}}_A/\dot{Q} \) distributions and evaluating the effect on O2 and CO2 exchange. Wagner and West working with Saltzman realized that by using the inert gas approach of Farhi and Yokoyama, and measuring the elimination, simultaneously, of several inert gases of widely varying solubility, continuous distributions of \( {\dot{V}}_A/\dot{Q} \) could be measured. This is what gave rise to the multiple inert gas elimination technique.
How the Information Technology Firms Can Grow and Perform Through Capital Allocation

Taking revenue growth in four SIC 737 information technology (IT) industries as an outcome of their capital allocations, we study how firms can achieve optimal revenue growth, while simultaneously assessing its effect on certain targeted performance measures that include the cost of revenue, earnings before interest and taxes, profit, gross profit margin, cash flow, and the times interest earned. We employ multivariate data analysis techniques to identify and confirm the management decisions that could become the growth drivers, such as the allocations for research & development, capital expenditure, selling, general and administrative expenses, and property, plant and equipment. With these as the capital allocation strategies, we arrive at the industry by industry processes for selecting a strategy. We find that R&D is not the most efficient way to grow and perform for all the industries. We give guidelines for achieving revenue growth and selected performance for the IT firms by their industry. Some directions for further research are provided.
Onset of metabolic acidosis (Anaerobic Threshold) as a criterion measure of submaximum fitness

Abstract The purpose of the present study was to investigate use of the onset of metabolic acidosis (anaerobic threshold) as a criterion measure of submaximum fitness. [Vdot]O2 max and the onset of metabolic acidosis (using gas exchange variables;) were determined. Twenty-eight subjects completed, without work decrement, a submaximum work task of 300 kgm·min−1 for an 8-minute duration. Matching individuals with respect to [Vdot]O2 max (within 30 ml·min−1) yielded 11 matched pairs. These pairs were divided with respect to [Vdot]O2 uptake at the point of metabolic acidosis ([Vdot]O2-AT). This resulted in significant differences in [Vdot]O2-AT (X difference = 254 ml, p < .05) between the equal [Vdot]O2 max groups. Examining submaximum exercise responses revealed that the group with higher [Vdot]O2-AT values took up oxygen to steady state at a faster rate (p < .05), exhibited a slightly lower steady state [Vdot]O2 value, and showed a tendency for a faster rate of [Vdot]O2 uptake during recovery to baseline va...
Museum Texts: Communication Frameworks

Reviewed Medium: book Authors: Louise J. Ravelli Year: 2006 Pages: 185 Publisher: Routledge ISBN: 0-415-28430-9 (hard cover).
Differential Role of Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase in Three Distinct Phases of Memory for Sensitization in Aplysia

The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway has been implicated recently in synaptic plasticity and memory. Here we used tail shock-induced sensitization of the tail-elicited siphon withdrawal reflex in Aplysia to examine the role of MAPK in three different phases of memory. We show that a specific pattern of serotonin (5-HT) application that produces intermediate-term and long-term synaptic facilitation (ITF and LTF, respectively) of the sensory-motor (SN-MN) synapses in Aplysia leads to sustained activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase in the ventrocaudal cluster sensory neurons (SNs), which include the tail SNs. Furthermore, repeated tail shocks that induce intermediate-term and long-term memory (ITM and LTM, respectively) for sensitization also lead to sustained MAPK activation in the SNs. Given these results, we next examined the requirement of MAPK activity in (1) SN-MN synaptic facilitation and (2) memory for sensitization in Aplysia, by inhibiting MEK, the upstream kinase that phosphorylates and activates MAPK. In cellular experiments, we show that MAPK activity is required for ITF of tail SN-tail MN synapses, and, in parallel behavioral experiments, we show that ITM requires MAPK activity for its induction but not its expression. In contrast, short-term memory for sensitization does not require MAPK activity. Finally, 5-HT-induced LTF has been shown previously to require MAPK activity. Here we show that LTM for sensitization also requires MAPK activity. These results provide evidence that MAPK plays important roles specifically in long-lasting phases of synaptic plasticity and memory.
Primary and backup protection for fault current limited MVDC shipboard power systems

Robust management of short-circuit faults in MVDC systems must rely on a combination of communication-dependent and communication-independent methods. In one approach, an MVDC system is designed to operate without breakers [1], so both methods rely on coordinated control of power converters and non-fault-breaking mechanical disconnect switches to effect the fault clearance process-fault detection and localization, complete de-energizing of the system, isolation of faulted branch and re-energizing of the system. The Centralized Fault Management (CFM) method depends on communication between distributed sensors and a central decision-making authority to achieve fastest primary protection. It is backed up by a local response function, Localized Fault Management (LFM), that takes over in case of failure in the primary method. To validate not only that the CFM and LFM can work independently but also that they can perfectly integrate and are compatible with each other, an overall shipboard power system was first modeled and simulated within a MATLAB-Simulink environment and partially implemented in a Hardware in Loop (HIL) environment.
Intramedullary spinal tumors of disordered embryogenesis.

Abnormal spinal embryogenesis is quite commonplace. While greater than 90 percent of these errors of embryogenesis leads to occult spinal dysraphism with minimal neurologic or orthopedic sequelae, there is a significant minority of these anomalies which leads to the formation of the so-called ‘congentital tumors of disordered embryogenesis’. The purpose of this article is to discuss the embryology, presentation, diagnosis and management of the spinal dysraphic states with particular emphasis on those errors which lead to mass lesions in the spinal canal such as dermoids, epidermoids, lipoma/lipomyelomeningocoele and neurenteric cysts. We also include lesions such as dermal sinus tracts and thickened filum terminale in our discussion with particular emphasis on their relationship to the tethered cord syndrome. Proper surgical management of these various conditions necessitates a thorough understanding of their embryologic etiology and the anatomic/physiologic ramifications that such lesions have on the developing spinal cord.
Progesterone-binding Components of Chick Oviduct III. CHROMATIN ACCEPTOR SITES

Abstract The interaction of 3H-progesterone in vitro with the chromatins from several chick tissues was investigated. Progesterone, complexed with an oviduct cytosol protein (the receptor for progesterone), binds more extensively (about 10-fold) with oviduct chromatin than does the free hormone. However, progesterone in combination with cytosol from liver or spleen or with chick serum shows very little binding to oviduct chromatin. Part of the hormone-receptor complex can be reextracted intact from the chromatin by treatment with high salt. The association of the labeled progesterone in oviduct cytosol with the oviduct chromatin in vitro is sensitive to conditions of temperature, ionic strength, and pH. Furthermore, under optimal conditions, the progesterone-oviduct receptor complex displays more extensive binding to oviduct chromatin than to the chromatins of chick spleen, heart, mature erythrocytes, or liver. Thus, the target tissue chromatin may contain acceptor sites for the steroid hormone-receptor complex. This extensive binding is maintained in chromatins which have been dissociated and reconstituted in high salt and urea. "Hybrid" chromatins composed of histones from chromatin of one tissue and the DNA with associated acidic proteins from the chromatin of another tissue were reconstituted. The association of the progesterone-oviduct cytosol complex with these hybrid chromatins demonstrates that the acidic proteins of oviduct chromatin are responsible for the extensive association of progesterone with the oviduct chromatin. Furthermore, chromatin reconstituted without the acidic protein fraction from oviduct is not extensively bound by progesterone. Finally, studies with dehistonized chromatin as well as with pure DNA support the concept that it is the acidic protein in association with DNA, and not the histone, which enhances chromatin binding of the steroid hormone-receptor complex.
Global Knowledge and Local Inequality - Industry Level Evidence

This paper attempts to ascertain if skill-biased technologies developed in R&D-active countries diffuse to the rest of the world. First, using a model of international trade, I show the effects of skill-bias knowledge diffusion. The theory suggests that skill-biased technological diffusion need not increase skill premia, as sectoral biases can exert countervailing forces. Second, I test implications from the theory using United Nations industry data. Skill-biased knowledge diffusion tends to be associated with rising local skill-premia more in skill-intensive industries than unskill-intensive ones. Thus sectoral biases can help us see the extent of such technological spillovers.
Active transport by customized β-barrels

The crystal structures of two bacterial outer membrane transport proteins — FepA and FhuA — put the field on a solid molecular foundation and suggest an exciting and novel active transport mechanism.
A Novel Technique to Evaluate the Corrosion Behavior of Magnesium Alloys

A novel technique for measuring the intrinsic corrosion rate of magnesium alloys has been developed. As a magnesium alloy sample dissolves in a 5% NaCl solution, the dissolution rate is determined by measuring the amount of HCl added to the NaCl solution to control the pH between 5 and 7. The corrosion rate is determined from the slope of the curve where the dissolution rate reaches a steady state. The technique was used to compare the corrosion behavior of newly developed creep resistant Mg-Al-Ca (AC) alloys with several known magnesium alloys. It was shown that the corrosion rate of AC52 (Mg-5%Al-2%Ca) is comparable to AZ91, meeting one of the several design criteria for new, creep-resistant alloys. This technique provides a fast way to screen the effect of small composition changes on corrosion behavior of Mg alloys. Because of the short test time, this technique provides a powerful tool to accelerate alloy and product development with Mg alloys.
Associations Between Caregiver Health Literacy and Preschool Children’s Secondhand Smoke Exposure

OBJECTIVE Examine the associations between caregiver health literacy (HL) and smoking-related outcome expectancies, implementation of home/car smoking bans (H/CSBs), and child secondhand smoke exposure (SHSe). METHODS Caregivers of Head Start children residing with a smoker(s) completed measures assessing HL, outcome expectancies, and H/CSB implementation. Biomarkers of child SHSe included home air nicotine monitors and child salivary cotinine. RESULTS Caregivers with lower HL had higher levels of home air nicotine and child salivary cotinine in the full sample and among smokers. After controlling for child age and number of smokers in the home, lower HL was associated with higher endorsement of negative smoking expectancies in the full sample and in smokers. HL was not associated with H/CSB implementation across groups. CONCLUSIONS Caregiver HL is associated with child SHSe and is important in shaping smoking-related beliefs. HL is not directly related to adoption of SHSe-reduction behaviors such as H/CSBs.
Tracheal prosthesis: an experimental study with Marlex.

Abstract In most cases heavy Marlex mesh will serve as a satisfactory air-way following one-stage replacement of a seven-ring circumferential portion of cervical trachea in the dog. Respiratory epithelium does not regenerate to completely line the prostheses. The mucosa consists of granulation tissue and varying degrees of epithelial regeneration. With time, there is no resolution of the chronic inflammatory reaction; rather, occasionally it becomes more severe.
Effects of eye position on saccadic eye movements and on the neuronal responses to auditory and visual stimuli in cat superior colliculus

Many neurons in the deeper layers of the superior colliculus (SC) respond to multiple sensory inputs — visual, auditory, and somatic — as well as provide signals essential for saccadic eye movements to targets in different modalities. When the eyes and pinnae are in primary position, the neural map of auditory space is in rough topographic alignment with the map of visual space, and if the auditory map is based solely on head-pinna coordinates, any changes in eye position in the orbit will cause misalignment of the maps. We investigated the effects of eye position on the response of sound-sensitive neurons in the SC of cats because previous work on cats and on monkeys had suggested the possibility of species differences in the representation of auditory signals in the SC. We also investigated the effects of eye position on the accuracy of saccades to auditory, visual, and bimodal stimuli. All studies were conducted in alert, trained cats with the head restrained in a fixed position. Neuronal and behavioral responses were studied during periods when the eyes were steadily directed to different positions relative to the position of the sound. Cats showed partial compensation for eye position in making saccades, regardless of the modality of the target, and they showed similar patterns of error in saccades to auditory and visual targets. These behavioral data are consistent with coding the location of visual and auditory targets in the same coordinate system. In the vast majority of intermediate-layer neurons, eye position significantly affected the number of spikes evoked by sound stimuli. For most of these neurons, changes in eye position produced significant shifts in the speaker location producing maximal response. In some neurons, eye position significantly facilitated the magnitude of neuronal response evoked by sounds from a variety of speaker locations. Because few pinna movements could be detected, it is unlikely that these changes in neuronal response could be due to changes in the position of the pinnae. Our results indicate that the deep layers of the SC contain an eye-centered representation of sound location. Because eye position did not affect the percentage of neurons exhibiting multimodal integration, visual and auditory maps appear to remain integrated in the SC even when the eyes are directed eccentrically. Examination of the effects of eye position on neuronal responses to visual stimuli revealed that a substantial minority of neurons showed quantitative changes in the magnitude of response to visual stimuli when the retinal locus of stimulation was held constant.
On the elastic interactions of a Broberg crack with vacancies and solute atoms

Abstract Elastic interactions (dilatation and inhomogeneity) of vacancies and solute atoms with a uniformly moving crack were analyzed on the basis of Broberg's moving crack model. In the region sufficiently near the crack tip, vacancies, substitutional solute atoms with smaller radii, and soft inclusions are attracted to the singularity, while interstitials, substitutional solutes with larger radii, and hard inclusions are repelled from it. The potential for flow of vacancies or solute atoms decreases initially with increasing crack propagation velocity and then increases in the high velocity range. Comparison of the present results with those based on Yoffe's model indicates a distinct difference between the dynamic effects on the elastic interactions predicted by these models. The dynamic effects predicted by both theories, however, are small in the low velocity range (say less than 10 percent of the shear wave velocity in the medium), and are not expected to be important for environment-assisted subcritical crack growth.
Devotion to the Prophet and His Family in Egyptian Sufism

Scholary works on Sufism have been almost entirely concerned with the classical textual tradition and have given scant attention to the contemporary practice of Sufism. Such Studies as have been done in Egypt inadequately reflect actual popular beliefs and practices by exhibiting tendencies either to interpret contemporary sufism in light of classical Sufism,to dismiss popular Sufism as a degradation of “true” Sufism,or to conclude, in light of the presentation of Sufism propagated by the Supreme Council of Sufi Orders, that there is nothing that distinguishes contemporary Sufism from any other branch of Islam.Contemporary Sufism must be studied as a complete system, not merely a degradation of another system. It developed from classical Sufism but is not identical with it, and offers a world view and rituals that distinguish it from other Islamic currents. The centrality of devotion to the Prophet and his family is one aspect of Egyptian Sufi religious life that distinguishes it from that of other Egyptian Muslims, and bears interesting parallels to Shicism, perhaps providing evidence for what Marshall Hodgson called "the moulding of Islam as a whole in a ShiStic direction."4 This article will document and analyze devotion to the Prophet and the ahl al-bayt and its associated beliefs in Egyptian Sufism, and compare them with their analogues in ShiSsrn.
Styles of mantle convection and their influence on planetary evolution

Mantle convection is the method of heat elimination for silicate mantles in terrestrial bodies, provided they are not too small or too hot. Bodies that are small (∼Moon or smaller, possibly even Mercury) may rely largely on conduction or melt migration, and bodies that are very hot (Io, very early Earth) may use massive melt migration (magma oceans) and heat pipes. In the standard, simple picture, we can use scaling laws to determine the secular cooling of a planet, likelihood and form of volcanism, and the possibility of a core dynamo. Contrary to popular belief, small planets do not cool faster than larger planets (provided they convect) but they do tend to have a slightly lower internal temperature at all times and thus may cease to be volcanically active at an earlier epoch. On the other hand, a larger volume fraction of a small planet may be involved in melt generation. However, our understanding of heat transfer by mantle convection is limited by three very important, largely unsolved problems: The complexities of rheology, the effects of compositional gradients, and the effects of phase transitions, especially melting. The most striking manifestation of the role of rheology lies in the difference between a mobile lid mode (plate tectonics for Earth) and a stagnant lid mode (other large terrestrial bodies). This difference may arise because of the role of water, but perhaps also because of melting, or size (gravity), or the vagaries of history. It has profound effects for the differences in history of Earth, Venus and Mars, including their surface geology, volatile reservoirs and magnetic fields. Since thermal convection is driven by small density differences, it can also be greatly altered or limited by compositional or phase effects. Melt migration introduces additional complications to the heat transport as well as being a source for the irreversible differentiation that might promote layering. Our limited understanding and ability to model these processes continues to limit the development of a predictive framework for the differences among the terrestrial planets.
Varieties of Transgender/Transsexual Lives and Their Relationship with Transphobia

The conceptualization of gender variant populations within studies have consisted of imposed labels and a diversity of individual identities that preclude any attempt at examining the variations found among gender variant populations, while at the same time creating artificial distinctions between groups that may not actually exist. Data were collected from 90 transgender/transsexual people using confidential, self-administered questionnaires. Factors like age of transition, being out to others, and participant's race and class were associated with experiences of transphobic life events. Discrimination can have profound impact on transgender/transsexual people's lives, but different factors can influence one's experience of transphobia. Further studies are needed to examine how transphobia manifests, and how gender characteristics impact people's lives.
Presentation of data on broad-band and pulse transformer cores

ADEQUATE information concerning the characteristics of available core materials is an essential tool of the transformer engineer. Not only must the information be accurate and complete but it should be presented in a form convenient for use. Present standard methods of presenting such information for use in designing pulse transformers are reviewed herein, and an improved method is proposed; this proposed method can also be employed, with slight modifications, for presenting data to be used in designing broad-band units. The new method is derived from an accurate equivalent circuit representation of a test core and coil, and enables the transformer engineer to predict the response and loss characteristics of a design with much greater accuracy and greater ease than is possible with data as now commonly presented.
Deterministic replay for MCAPI programs

The Multicore Communications API (MCAPI) is a new message passing API that was released by the Multicore Association. MCAPI provides an interface designed for closely distributed embedded systems with multiple cores on a chip and/or chips on a board. Similar to concurrent programs in other domains, debugging MCAPI programs is a challenging task due to their non-deterministic behavior. In this paper we present a tool that is able to deterministically replay the executions of MCAPI programs, which provides valuable insight for MCAPI developers in case of failure.
Cost overruns will affect Galileo mission

Recent news of the cost overruns in the development of the shuttle's upper stages that will affect launching of the proposed Galileo mission prompted the following statement from Robert A. Frosch, on the eve of his resignation from the post of NASA Administrator: You know that we have been carrying out a concentrated study of Shuttle upper stages for 2 1/2 months now. This study was initiated in early November when we became concerned with the continued rapid escalation of estimated costs for the three-stage IUS (inertial upper stage). We have decided on the best course of action for the future, and I want to outline for you how I believe the nation should proceed.
Multiobjective topology optimization of energy absorbing materials

A method for the multiobjective optimization of local-scale material topology is presented. The topology optimization scheme is based on a constructive solid geometry-like representation, in which convex polygons--defined as the convex hull of arbitrary-length lists of points--are combined using an overlapping function. This data structure is tree-shaped and so genetic programming is used as the optimizer. The forward problem is solved with a multiscale finite element method with automatic cohesive zone insertion to model damage. As a multiscale method, loads and boundary conditions are applied and objective functions measured at a global scale, while the local scale material structure is optimized. The global scale geometry is assumed fixed. Pareto optimal designs are generated, representing optimal tradeoffs between conflicting goals: quasi-static displacement and dynamic strain energy. Results demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed algorithm.
Zirconocene catalysis in the synthesis of 1,4-dimagnesium reagents: using competitive inhibition to suppress β-hydrogen abstraction

Substituted 1,4-dimagnesium reagents were synthesized by the zirconocene-catalyzed reaction of alkenes with ethylmagnesium reagents in the presence of a methylmagnesium containing additive. Improved selectivity for formation of dimagnesium reagents over monomagnesium reagents was obtained in the presence of the methylmagnesium containing additive. The ratio of mono- to dimagnesiated products was extrapolated from the ratio of alkene to diene in the products formed when the reaction was quenched with allyl bromide. The extent of the increase in the alkene/diene ratio was dependent on the type of organomagnesium halide, with greatest increases (59%) for the alkylmagnesium chlorides. A mechanism for improved selectivity by suppression of β-hydrogen abstraction in the catalytic cycle is presented. Quenching the 1,4-dimagnesium reagents with allyl bromide yielded decadienes.
Novel FISH probes designed to detect IGK-MYC and IGL-MYC rearrangements in B-cell lineage malignancy identify a new breakpoint cluster region designated BVR2

Detection of translocations involving MYC at 8q24.1 in B-cell lineage malignancies (BCL) is important for diagnostic and prognostic purposes. However, routine detection of MYC translocations is often hampered by the wide variation in breakpoint location within the MYC region, particularly when a gene other than IGH, such as IGK or IGL, is involved. To address this issue, we developed and validated four fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) probes: two break apart probes to detect IGK and IGL translocations, and two dual-color, dual-fusion FISH (D-FISH) probes to detect IGK-MYC and IGL-MYC. MYC rearrangements (four IGK-MYC, 12 IGL-MYC and four unknown partner gene-MYC) were correctly identified in 20 of 20 archival BCL specimens known to have MYC rearrangements not involving IGH. Seven specimens, all of which lacked MYC rearrangements using a commercial IGH/MYC D-FISH probe, were found to have 8q24 breakpoints within a cluster region >350-645 kb 3' from MYC, provisionally designated as Burkitt variant rearrangement region 2 (BVR2). FISH is a useful ancillary tool in identifying MYC rearrangements. In light of the discovery of the distally located BVR2 breakpoint cluster region, it is important to use MYC FISH probes that cover a breakpoint region at least 1.0 Mb 3' of MYC.
Loss, grief, and spiritual struggle: The quest for meaning in bereavement

“[R]eligion,” write Paloutzian and Park (2013, pp. 6–7): should be conceived in terms of religious meaning systems, that is, as a subset of meaning systems in general. Meaning systems, as we unders...
Effects of heart rate on vulnerability to fibrillation in a computer model

Effects of heart rate on refractory period (RP) duration and disparity have opposing actions on vulnerability to fibrillation. Both bradycardia and tachycardia have been reported to increase vulnerability to fibrillation, and the role of their effects on RP duration and disparity in producing that effect is uncertain. That role has been investigated with a computer model of propagated excitation having nonuniform, cycle length-dependent refractoriness and slow propagation during incomplete recovery of excitability. Vulnerability was assessed as fibrillation threshold (FT), defined as the duration of train stimulation required to initiate simulated fibrillation. When measured as a function of train onset time during a cycle, FT initially decreased to a minimum and then increased to the original level. Slower rates shifted that curve upward and to the right, so that the FT was higher during early portions of the cycle but lower in later portions. Longer mean duration of RPs increased FT during all portions of the cycle, increased the difference of FT at various rates during early portions of the cycle, and decreased differences later in the cycle. Greater RP range reduced the FT and decreased the difference of FT with varied rate in early portions of the cycle, while increasing the difference in later portions. Accelerating rate had additional effects on FT-related to nonuniform propagation of responses prior to train stimulation. The findings defined mechanisms based on established effects of rate on RP, by which either tachycardia or bradycardia could increase vulnerability to fibrillation, and demonstrated the effects of RP range and duration on the mechanisms.
Renal glucose reabsorption during hypertonic glucose infusion in female streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

Information regarding the renal glucose transport capacity in diabetes mellitus is limited. These data are needed because two weeks following injection of streptozotocin (STZ), mRNA and protein levels of the glucose transporter, GLUT2, are upregulated in the proximal tubule of the rat. Therefore, we measured renal glucose transport and GLUT2 protein levels in female control rats, and in rats one (STZ-1), two (STZ-2), and three weeks (STZ-3) after STZ injection (65 mg kg−1, ip). Progressive amounts of glucose were infused into anesthetized rats via the femoral vein and renal clearances collected. The amount of glucose reabsorbed, factored by the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was significantly greater in STZ-3 rats compared with all other groups. In addition, the amount of glucose reabsorbed factored by the amount of glucose filtered was decreased in STZ-1 and STZ-2 compared with controls but was increased in STZ-3. By contrast, renal GLUT2 levels were elevated in all the STZ-treated rats. These data suggest that other factors, functioning either in conjunction with or independent of GLUT2, are required to support an elevated renal glucose transport capacity.
Comparison of the reaction mechanisms of electrocatalytic oxygen reduction using transition metal thiospinels and chelates

Abstract The cathode process of oxygen reduction on thiospinels and other sulphides was examined by potentiodynamic, galvanostatic and rotating ring-disc electrode measurements. The highest activity was found with the sulphur compounds of cobalt and iron. The results are compared with those obtained with iron and cobalt melt chelates of the macrocyclic N4 type (phthalocyanines, dibenzotetraazaannulenes) because knowledge is required about the reaction itself and the mechanism of the reduction of activity of the non-precious metal catalysts. The reaction scheme for the oxygen reduction is discussed and values of the rate constants of the electrochemical reactions are given.
DOES RIBAVIRIN (R) HAVE A ROLE IN THE TREATMENT OF FORMER PREMATURE INFANTS REQUIRING MECHANICAL VENTILATION (MV) FOR RESPIRATORY SYNCYTIAL VIRAL (RSV) INFECTION. † 306

DOES RIBAVIRIN (R) HAVE A ROLE IN THE TREATMENT OF FORMER PREMATURE INFANTS REQUIRING MECHANICAL VENTILATION (MV) FOR RESPIRATORY SYNCYTIAL VIRAL (RSV) INFECTION. † 306
Probabilistic sensitivity measures applied to numerical models of flow and transport

First- and second-order reliability algorithms (FORM AND SORM) have been adapted for use in modeling uncertainty and sensitivity related to flow in porous media. They are called reliability algorithms because they were developed originally for analysis of reliability of structures. FORM and SORM utilize a general joint probability model, the Nataf model, as a basis for transforming the original problem formulation into uncorrelated standard normal space, where a first-order or second-order estimate of the probability related to some failure criterion can easily be made. Sensitivity measures that incorporate the probabilistic nature of the uncertain variables in the problem are also evaluated, and are quite useful in indicating which uncertain variables contribute the most to the probabilistic outcome. In this paper the reliability approach is reviewed and the advantages and disadvantages compared to other typical probabilistic techniques used for modeling flow and transport. Some example applications of F...
Further analysis of a doctor-patient nonverbal communication instrument

This study examines the reliability and validity of the relational communication scale for observational measurement (RCS-O) using a random sample of 80 videotaped interactions of medical students interviewing standardized patients (SPs). The RCS-O is a 34-item instrument designed to measure the nonverbal communication of physicians interacting with patients. The instrument was applied and examined in two different interview scenarios. In the first scenario (year 1), the medical student's interview objective is to demonstrate patient-centered interviewing skills as the SP presents with a psychosocial concern. In the second scenario (year 3), the student's interview objective is to demonstrate both doctor-centered and patient-centered skills as the SP presents with a case common in primary care. In the year 1 scenario, 19 of the 34 RCS-O items met acceptable levels of inter-rater agreement and reliability. In the year 3 scenario, 26 items met acceptable levels of inter-rater agreement and reliability. Factor analysis indicated that in both scenarios each of the four primary relational communication dimensions was salient: intimacy, composure, formality, and dominance. Measures of correlation and differences involving the RCS-O dimensions and structural features of the interviews (e.g., number of questions asked by the medical student) are examined.
Synthesis and Structure−Activity Relationships of β- and α-Piperidine Sulfone Hydroxamic Acid Matrix Metalloproteinase Inhibitors with Oral Antitumor Efficacy

α-Piperidine-β-sulfone hydroxamate derivatives were explored that are potent for matrix metalloproteinases (MMP)-2, -9, and -13 and are sparing of MMP-1. The investigation of the β-sulfones subsequently led to the discovery of hitherto unknown α-sulfone hydroxamates that are superior to the corresponding β-sulfones in potency for target MMPs, selectivity vs MMP-1, and exposure when dosed orally. α-Piperidine-α-sulfone hydroxamate 35f (SC-276) was advanced through antitumor and antiangiogenesis assays and was selected for development. Compound 35f demonstrates excellent antitumor activity vs MX-1 breast tumor in mice when dosed orally as monotherapy or in combination with paclitaxel.
Performance characterization of vision algorithms

In order to design vision systems which work, a sound engineering methodology must be utilized. In the systems engineering approach, a complex system is divided into simple subsystems and from the input/output characteristics of each subsystem, the input/output characteristics of the total system can be determined. Machine vision systems are complex, and they are composed of different algorithms applied in sequence. Determination of the performance of a total machine vision system is possible if the performance of each of the subpieces, i.e. the algorithms, is given. The problem, however, is that for most algorithms, there is no performance characterization which has been established and published in the research literature. Performance characterization has to do with establishing the correspondence of the random variations and imperfections which the algorithm produces on the output data caused by the random variations and imperfections of the input data. This paper illustrates how random perturbation models and propagation of random errors can be set up for a vision algorithm involving edge detection, edge linking, arc segmentation, and line fitting. The paper also discusses important dimensions that must be included in the performance characterization of any vision module performing a parametric estimation such as object pose, curve fit, or edge orientation estimation. Finally, we outline a general parametric model having three components: a relational model; a noise model; and a computational estimation model.
Environmental Justice and Risk Assessment: The Uneasy Relationship

ABSTRACT Allegations that disproportionate environmental risks fall on low-income and minority communities promote calls for “environmental justice.” A related claim suggests that higher rates of some diseases stem from unequal risks. The empirical evidence supporting these claims remains weak, but uncertainty and controversy are unlikely to abate in the near future. The environmental justice movement has successfully mobilized its constituents, and captured the attention of policymakers, with a politically potent rhetoric of “risk and racism.” Ironically, the movement remains largely uninterested in, or even hostile to, formal risk assessment even while ostensibly calling for more of it.
The uniqueness of the adjoint operation. II

Abstract Let H be a complex, finite-dimensional Hilbert space, and let L( H ) denote the set of linear transformations mapping H into itself. For certain interesting subsets A ( H ) of L( H ) [nonsingular transformations and L( H ) are examples], the functions h : A ( H ) → L( H ) which have the properties h ( ST ) = h ( T ) h ( S ) and h ( S ) S ⩾ 0 are characterized.
Penicillin-binding proteins and ampicillin resistance in Haemophilus influenzae

Ampicillin-resistant, non-beta-lactamase-producing isolates of Haemophilus influenzae contain a variety of penicillin-binding protein (PBP) patterns that differ from the single pattern of eight PBPs characteristic of susceptible strains. During genetic transformation of resistance, only some of the anomalies in PBP pattern were transformed, specifically those relating to the penicillin-binding capacities of PBPs 4 (Mr of 62,000) and 5 (Mr of 59,000) and, in some transformations, PBP 3 (Mr of 71,000). Comparison of the binding of penicillin by PBPs 4 and 5 of three resistant transformants (derived with DNA from different donors) revealed a decrease in the rate of PBP acylation and no appreciable change in the rate of deacylation as compared to the susceptible recipient. Thus, rapid turnover of these PBPs does not play a role. Retransformation studies confirm that altered PBPs 3, 4, and 5 are associated with resistance and suggest that these PBPs are major targets for the beta-lactam antibiotics in H. influenzae.
Growth of the bay scallop, Argopecten irradians, in a waste recycling aquaculture system

Abstract Growth of the bay scallop Argopecten irradians in a pilot scale waste recycling aquaculture system was examined over a 32-week-period at 14°C. A. irradians increased from initial live and dry meat weights of 1.15 g and 0.043 g, respectively, to terminal values of 9.08 g and 0.599 g, respectively. This corresponds to instantaneous growth rates for live weight (G) and dry meat weight (M) of 0.009 and 0.013, respectively. High mortalities were evident towards the end of the experiment with a terminal value of 33% giving an instantaneous mortality rate (Z) value of 0.0016. In laboratory experiments of 12 weeks duration at, 12, 15, 18 and 21°C juvenile A. irradians gave values of 0.01, 0.013, 0.018 and 0.016 for G; 0.015, 0.015, 0.016 and 0.013 for M; and 0.038, 0.038, 0.037 and 0.040 for Z at the respective temperatures. Shell deformities were evident in laboratory grown individuals. A. irradians exhibits specific growth rates comparable to or higher than those previously recorded for other bivalve species cultured in waste recycling systems; however, a considerable reduction in the presently high mortality rate will be required to make A. irradians a prime candidate for practical application.