cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Assessment of Sit-to-Stand Transfers during Daily Life Using an Accelerometer on the Lower Back.

The ability to perform sit-to-stand (STS) transfers has a significant impact on the functional mobility of an individual. Wearable technology has the potential to enable the objective, long-term monitoring of STS transfers during daily life. However, despite several recent efforts, most algorithms for detecting STS transfers rely on multiple sensing modalities or device locations and have predominantly been used for assessment during the performance of prescribed tasks in a lab setting. A novel wavelet-based algorithm for detecting STS transfers from data recorded using an accelerometer on the lower back is presented herein. The proposed algorithm is independent of device orientation and was validated on data captured in the lab from younger and older healthy adults as well as in people with Parkinson’s disease (PwPD). The algorithm was then used for processing data captured in free-living conditions to assess the ability of multiple features extracted from STS transfers to detect age-related group differences and assess the impact of monitoring duration on the reliability of measurements. The results show that performance of the proposed algorithm was comparable or significantly better than that of a commercially available system (precision: 0.990 vs. 0.868 in healthy adults) and a previously published algorithm (precision: 0.988 vs. 0.643 in persons with Parkinson’s disease). Moreover, features extracted from STS transfers at home were able to detect age-related group differences at a higher level of significance compared to data captured in the lab during the performance of prescribed tasks. Finally, simulation results showed that a monitoring duration of 3 days was sufficient to achieve good reliability for measurement of STS features. These results point towards the feasibility of using a single accelerometer on the lower back for detection and assessment of STS transfers during daily life. Future work in different patient populations is needed to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm, as well as assess the sensitivity and reliability of the STS features.
Melchizedek and the Eucharist? Rediscovering Eucharistic interpretations of the bread and wine in Genesis 14

The strange Melchizedek pericope in Gen 14:18–20 garners much attention from scholars seeking the function of the enigmatic priest of the Most-High God. Most scholars brush past the mention of the ...
Street-Level Organizations at the Front Lines of Crises

When crises strike, street-level organizations (SLOs) form the frontline response, providing essential services on which society depends. Yet the role of SLOs as crisis responders has received litt...
Measuring Benefits of Rural and Small Urban Transit in Greater Minnesota

The objective of this research was to measure the benefits of rural and small urban transit services in Minnesota. The study accomplished this by first identifying, describing, and classifying the ...
Moving Toward a Basic Science of Prognostic Communication

In this issue of Pediatrics , Kaye et al1 explore longitudinal patterns of prognostic disclosure in pediatric oncology. Disclosing a prognosis to parents and children was once considered antithetical to good clinical practice.2 Today, a large body of evidence supports transparent disclosure in pediatric oncology, especially with parents and adolescent and young adult patients. Parents and adolescent and young adult patients largely desire transparency, and truthful disclosure of a prognosis has been associated with increased hope.3–5 Lack of prognostic disclosure has been linked to increased regret for bereaved family members and delayed palliative care.6 Yet some parents and patients report unmet information needs and provide overly optimistic estimates of a prognosis.7–11 Despite this body of evidence, our understanding of prognostic disclosure practices is limited mostly to (1) whether clinicians have … Address correspondence to Bryan A. Sisk, MD, MSCI, Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Washington University in St Louis, 4523 Clayton Ave, Campus Box 8005, St Louis, MO 63110. E-mail: siskb{at}wustl.edu
Caregivers’ Perspectives of Pharmacist Intervention in Children’s Antibiotic Prescriptions for Upper Respiratory Tract Infections:

Background: Community pharmacists can help fight antimicrobial resistance by intervening in children’s antibiotic prescriptions for upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs). However, caregivers’ ...
Learning through International Strategic Alliances: Processes and Factors that Enhance Marketing Strategy Effectiveness

Intensified competitive, technological, and market pressures have made organizational learning a critical imperative in global strategy effectiveness. Firms can learn through experience and from three processes that involve other firms: imitation, grafting, and synergism. Interpartner learning has become critical, since experiential learning is insufficient for most firms. Responds to calls for a broadened role of marketing and synthesizes and extends research from organization behaviour and strategic management to the field of marketing to fuel further academic inquiry. Based on an extension of Chandler′s strategy‐structure‐performance paradigm, develops propositions on how the environment, organizational culture, strategy, and structure can affect a company′s use of interpartner learning and its effectiveness in learning through strategic alliances. Provides several managerial implications to help improve marketers′ abilities to compete effectively in today′s dynamic, global business environment.
Predicting Fraction Dose Absorbed in Humans Using a Macroscopic Mass Balance Approach

A theoretical approach for estimating fraction dose absorbed in humans has been developed based on a macroscopic mass balance that incorporates membrane permeability and solubility considerations. The macroscopic mass balance approach (MMBA) is a flow model approach that utilizes fundamental mass transfer theory for estimating the extent of absorption for passively as well as nonpassively absorbed drugs. The mass balance on a tube with steady input and a wall flux of J w = P w C b results in the following expression for fraction dose absorbed, F: F = 2 An ∫0 1 C*b dz* where the absorption number, An = L/R · P w/v z >;, L and R are the intestinal length and radius, P w is the unbiased drug wall permeability, 〈v z 〉 is the axial fluid velocity, C*b = C b/Co and is the dimension-less bulk or lumen drug concentration, C b and C o are the bulk and initial drug concentrations, respectively, and z* is the fractional intestinal length and is equal to z/L. Three theoretical cases are considered: (I) C o ≤ S, C m ≤ S, (II) C o > S, C m ≤ S, and (III) C o > S, C m > S, where S is the drug solubility and C m is the outlet drug concentration. Solving the general steady-state mass balance result for fraction dose absorbed using the mixing tank (MT) and complete radial mixing (CRM) models results in the expressions for the fraction dose absorbed in humans. Two previously published empirical correlations for estimating fraction dose absorbed in humans are discussed and shown to follow as special cases of this theoretical approach. The MMBA is also applied to amoxicillin, a commonly prescribed orally absorbed β-lactam antibiotic for several doses. The parameters used in the correlation were determined from in situ or in vitro experiments along with a calculated system scaling parameter. The fraction dose absorbed calculated using the MMBA is compared to human amoxicillin pharmacokinetic results from the literature with initial doses approximated to be both above and below its solubility. The results of the MMBA correlation are discussed with respect to the nonpassive absorption mechanism and solubility limitation of amoxicillin. The MMBA is shown to be a fundamental, theoretically based model for estimating fraction dose absorbed in humans from in situ and in vitro parameters from which previously published empirical correlations follow as special cases.
Around the tangent cone theorem

A cornerstone of the theory of cohomology jump loci is the Tangent Cone theorem, which relates the behavior around the origin of the characteristic and resonance varieties of a space. We revisit this theorem, in both the algebraic setting provided by cdga models, and in the topological setting provided by fundamental groups and cohomology rings. The general theory is illustrated with several classes of examples from geometry and topology: smooth quasi-projective varieties, complex hyperplane arrangements and their Milnor fibers, configuration spaces, and elliptic arrangements.
A statistical appearance model based on intensity quantile histograms

We present a novel histogram method for statistically characterizing the appearance of deformable models. In deformable model segmentation, appearance models measure the likelihood of an object given a target image. To determine this likelihood we compute pixel intensity quantile histograms of object-relative image regions from a weighted 3D image volume near the object boundary. We use a Gaussian model to statistically characterize the variation of histograms understood in Euclidean space via the Mallows distance. The probability of gas and bone tissue intensities are separately modeled to leverage a priori information on their expected distributions. The method is illustrated and evaluated in a segmentation study on CT images of the human left kidney. Results show improvement over a profile based appearance model and that the global maximum of the MAP estimate gives clinically acceptable segmentations in almost all of the cases studied.
Multibeam Mapping of the Uncertainty of the Seafloor in the Southern East China Sea

Abstract : The long-term goal of the Quantifying, Predicting and Exploiting Uncertainty DRI is to understand and exploit (if possible) the fundamental acoustic, oceanographic, bathymetric and geoacoustic uncertainties of the tactical naval environment, and demonstrate how they may be exploited tactically or strategically in an Exercise Area. Focussing on the seabed, our goals are to understand the fundamental tactical and strategic uncertainty of the bathymetric and geoacoustic environment, and develop methods for their representation, visualization, computation and manipulation in a manner consistent with models of sonar performance estimation and prediction.
Comparing Traditions: Parallels Between Eastern Mysticism and Western Science

Introduction The Fall 2002 issue of the Comparative Civilizations Review (No. 47) carried an article by Benesch and Wilner entitled "Traditions and Civilizations: Another Approach to Understanding Human History." The thesis of the article was that "traditions" broadly defined might prove more useful in comparing actual and practical aspects of dynamic societies and cultures than the static classifications of "civilizations." Tradition entails processes and patterns of thinking so basic that the underlying assumptions can be considered axiomatic. These presuppositions frame the worldviews upon which a tradition relies. They explain and separate mental events from natural events, or conceptions from perceptions within different experience/language continua. In the following article, I propose to continue the idea of comparing traditions, rather than civilizations, by examining parallels, both actual and imagined, between Eastern Mysticism (EM) and Western Science (WS). I believe that this approach will facilitate a clearer understanding of both contemporary EM and WS. Many modern physical scientists and philosophers of science have emphasized the similarities between modern physics and certain aspects of Eastern mysticism (e.g. Bohr, Hayward, Zukav, Leshan and Margenau, and Goswami). These similarities, especially as they relate to Eastern philosophical systems and Eastern epistemological and logical approaches, have been discussed by Benesch," Benesch and Wilner, Capra, Siu,' and Shriman & Benesch who have argued that today's WS seems to be disclosing a universe that fits EM better than (to follow Benesch's terminology)" a "thingist," Greek/Judeo-Christian worldview. In Capra's words:
The psychology of information modeling

Information modeling is the cornerstone of information systems analysis and design. Information models, the products of information modeling, not only provide the abstractions required to facilitate communication between the analysts and end-users, but they also provide a formal basis for developing tools and techniques used in information systems development. The process of designing, constructing, and adapting information modeling methods for information systems development is known as method engineering. Despite the pivotal role of modeling methods in successful information systems development, most modeling methods are designed based on common sense and intuition of the method designers with little or no theoretical foundation or empirical evidence. Systematic scientific approach is missing! This chapter proposes the use of cognitive psychology as a reference discipline for information modeling and method engineering. Theories in cognitive psychology are reviewed in this chapter and their application to information modeling and method engineering is discussed.
Impact of Citizen Relationship Management (CRM) on Government: Evidence from U.S. Local Governments

This paper examines the impact of Citizen Relationship Management (CRM) technology adoption on local governments in the United States. The purpose of the paper is to determine whether this technology has influenced organizational change. From the literature six factors appear to be important in the adoption of CRM, and these factors are examined through a survey of Chief Administrative Officers (CAO) in cities and counties that have adopted CRM systems. The results of the survey show that CRM had a strong impact on creating a more efficient, effective, and transparent governments. What was especially noteworthy from the survey results was that CAOs believed that CRM greatly improved communication with citizens. The challenges of CRM for local government were lack of funding and the difficulty of departments to relinquish control of their customer support systems. More basic technology is viewed as being the most effective in CRM systems. There is lack of integration of different service channels for most local governments such as the Website and phone. The implications of this survey are that CRM is having a broad impact on organizational change, but there is much more research that needs to be done on this understudied area of public administration.
Space-efficient structures for detecting port scans

Port scans aim to detect the services running on a computer to find vulnerabilities of a computer. Although detecting port scans using a database system is possible, it requires too much space and computational overhead and is not feasible under high load. In this paper, we propose space-efficient structures to detect parameterized versions of port scans. We investigate both exact and approximate structures for the problems. Proposed schemes are lightweight, require low space overhead, low computational overhead and can handle high load.
Lines of investigation

Scaling: Why is Animal Size so Important? By Knut Schmidt-Nielsen. Cambridge University Press: 1984. Pp.241. Hbk £20, $29.95; pbk £7.95, $9.95. Size, Function, and Life History. By William A. Calder III. Harvard University Press: 1984. Pp.431. $32.50, £26.
Time-dependent beltrami fields in material continua: The Beltrami-Maxwell postulates

Time-dependent Beltrami fields in free space follow very naturally from the Maxwell postulates. In this paper, a comprehensive but elementary treatment of time-dependent Beltrami fields inmaterial continua is enunciated. Field equations in free space have been derived and solved, and a scheme for the general representation of Beltrami fields has been given. Field relations in material continua have been set up in the form ofBeltrami-Maxwell postulates, along with appropriate constitutive relations for linear materials. Monochromatic Beltrami field formulation in free space as well as in linear materials has been accomplished. The Mossotti-Clausius model, to enable the transition from the microscopic to the macroscopic length scales, has been given entirely in terms of Beltrami fields.
Cicerone receives 2002 Roger Revelle Medal

Ralph J. Cicerone was awarded the Revelle Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, which was held on 8 December 2002, in San Francisco, California. The medal is given for outstanding accomplishments or contributions toward the understanding of the Earth's atmospheric processes, including its dynamics, chemistry, and radiationsemi; and toward the role of the atmosphere, atmosphere-ocean coupling, or atmosphere-land coupling in determining the climate, biogeochemical cycles, or other key elements of the climate system.
Echinacea alkylamides inhibit interleukin-2 production by Jurkat T cells.

Alkylamides present in Echinacea species have reported immunomodulatory actions, yet their direct effects on T lymphocytes, key mediators of antiviral immunity, are poorly understood. We hypothesized that constituents present in ethanolic extracts of Echinacea species exert direct immunomodulatory effects on human Jurkat T cells. Modulation of IL-2 production by submaximally stimulated Jurkat cells was determined in response to treatment with extracts prepared from dried aerial parts of Echinacea purpurea. Cells were treated with the extracts, with alkylamides or caffeic acid derivatives isolated from Echinacea species, or with corresponding ethanol vehicle, in the absence or presence of phytohemagglutinin and phorbal ester. E. purpurea extracted in a solvent mixture of 95:5 ethanol/water dose-dependently inhibited IL-2 production. This IL-2 inhibitory activity correlated with the presence of alkylamides but not caffeic acid derivatives, as determined by high performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry analysis. Simultaneous measurement of secreted IL-2 by ELISA and cell viability by the XTT assay showed that the 95:5 ethanol/water extract of E. purpurea was both IL-2 suppressive and cytotoxic at 50 and 100 μg/mL. Lower concentrations from 6.25 to 25 μg/mL significantly decreased IL-2 production but not cell viability. Alkylamides at concentrations found in a 50 μg/mL extract decreased IL-2 production by approximately 50%. Two Echinacea-derived alkylamides significantly depressed IL-2 production but not cell viability in a dose-dependent manner. Thus, alkylamides present in E. purpurea suppress the ability of activated Jurkat T cells to produce IL-2 independently of direct, cytotoxic effects.
A Survey of Unequal Crossover Systems and their Mathematical Properties

We present a model of gene duplication by means of unequal crossover (UCO) where the probability of any given pairing between homologous sequences scales as a penalty factor pz ≤ 1, with z the number of mismatches due to asymmetric sequence alignment. From this general representation, we derive several limiting case models of UCO, some of which have been treated elsewhere in the literature. One limiting case is random unequal crossover (RUCO), obtained by setting p = 1 (corresponding to equiprobable pairings at each site). Another limiting case scenario (the ‘Krueger-Vogel’ model) proposes an optimal ‘endpoint’ alignment which strongly penalizes both overhang and deviations from endpoint matching positions. For both of these scenarios, we make use of the symmetry properties of the transition operator (together with the more general UCO properties of copy number conservation and equal parent-offspring mean copy number) to derive the stationary distribution of gene copy number generated by UCO. For RUCO, the stationary distribution of genotypes is shown to be a negative binomial, or alternatively, a convolution of geometric distributions on ‘haplotype’ frequencies. A different type of model derived from the general representation only allows recombination without overhang (internal UCO or IntUCO). This process has the special property of converging to a single copy length or a distribution on a pair of copy lengths in the absence of any other evolutionary forces. For UCO systems in general, we also show that selection can readily act on gene copy number in all of the UCO systems we investigate due to the perfect heritability (h2 = 1) imposed by conservation of copy number. Finally, some preliminary work is presented which suggests that the more general models based on misalignment probabilities seem to also converge to stationary distributions, which are most likely functions of parameter value p.
A decision framework for restaurant revenue management

An increasingly complex and dynamic operating environment demands that restaurant operators leverage the wealth of data available to them to drive decisions that support sustained profitability. The goal of this article is to integrate academic research with developments in the field to provide restaurant operators with a comprehensive decision-making framework for restaurant revenue management (RRM). The framework promotes the systematic application of internally and externally generated data to support RRM-related decisions. This framework reflects a broad vision of RRM that is concerned with driving long-term demand and sustained profitability in addition to supporting short-term revenue generation.
Pressure-induced amorphization of Gd 2 (MoO 4 ) 3 : A high pressure Raman investigation

High pressure Raman spectroscopic studies on Gd2(MoO4)3(GMO) have been carried out at ambient temperature in the diamond cell to 10 GPa hydrostatic pressure. These experiments have revealed pressure-induced phase transitions in GMO near 2 GPa and 6.0 GPa. The first transition is from Pba2(β′) phase to another undetermined crystalline phase, designated as phase II, and the second transition is to an amorphized state. On releasing pressure there is a partial reversion to the crystalline state. The Raman data indicate that the amorphization is due to disordering of the MoO4 tetrahedral units. Further, it is inferred from the nature of the Raman bands in the amorphized material that the Mo-O bond lengths and bond angles have a range of values, instead of a few set values. The results of the present study as well as previous high pressure-high temperature quenching experiments strongly support that pressure-induced amorphization in GMO is a consequence of the kinetically impededβ toα phase transition. The system in frustration becomes disordered. The rare earth trimolybdates crystallizing in theβ′ structure are all expected to undergo similar pressure-induced amorphization.
Simulation of double-stranded branch point migration

A structural and dynamic model has been developed for the branch point formed when two DNA double helices exchange strands during genetic recombination. This model, which generalizes most previous structural models, maintains the twofold symmetry inherent in the covalent and hydrogen bonded structure, yet has three degrees of freedom about virtual bonds, constituting a simplified junction. Using this structural model, a three-step dynamic model for branch point migration has been developed: longitudinal diffusion about the virtual bonds to achieve a structure in which the helix axes are approximately parallel; opening of the base pairs; and rotary diffusion about the helix axis to effect a migratory event. The model, which includes the possible role of electrostatic interactions, solves problems inherent in previous treatments. We find that no significant electrostatic torques arise that promote branch point migration. The absence of a kinetic mechanism to circumvent thermodynamic barriers due to mispairing suggests that an energy source is used for those situations in living systems.
A model for evaluating the three-dimensional groundwater dividing pathline between a contaminant source and a partially penetrating water-supply well

Abstract Effluent from septic tank-drainfields can degrade groundwater quality and contaminate nearby water-supply wells. Such groundwater contamination is a problem in the unsewered subdivisions of the sand plain of central Wisconsin, for example. To help planners minimize the risk of direct contamination of a water-supply well by a septic system, a model was developed to estimate the location of the critical dividing pathline between a rectangular contaminant source (the septic tank drainfield) and a partially penetrating pumping well. The model is capable of handling three-dimensional, transient flow in an unconfined, homogeneous, anisotropic aquifer of infinite areal extent, under a regional horizontal hydraulic gradient. Model results are in very good agreement with several other numerical and analytical models. Examples are given for which the safe, horizontal and vertical separation distances to avoid well water contamination are determined for typical central Wisconsin sand plain conditions. A companion paper (Harmsen et al., 1991) describes the application of this model, using a Monte-Carlo analysis, to study the variation of these separation distances in the Wisconsin sand plain. The model can also be applied to larger scale problems and, therefore, could be useful in implementing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's new well head protection program.
Synchrotron Radiation Sources

As a result of the exponential growth of the utilization of synchrotron radiation for research in the domain of the material sciences, atomic and molecular physics, biology and technology, a major construction activity has been generated towards new dedicated electron storage rings, designed optimally for synchrotron radiation applications, also, expansion programs are underway at the existing facilities, such as DORIS, SPEAR, and VEPP. In this report the basic properties of synchrotron radiation will be discussed, a short overview will be given of the existing and new facilities, some aspects of the optimization of a structure for a synchrotron radiation source will be discussed and the addition of wigglers and undulators for spectrum enhancement will be described. Finally, some parameters of an optimized synchrotron radiation source will be given.
Claiming the Moral High Ground: NGOs as Stakeholders

Globalization and NGOs: Transforming Business, Government and Society. Edited by Jonathan P. Doh, Hildy Teegen. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2003. 256 pp., $55.95 (ISBN: 1-56720-499-6). Jonathan Doh and Hildy Teegen—the editors of Globalization and NGOs: Transforming Business, Government and Society —state what many social scientists have argued for the past decade: that nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) matter, and that decision makers consider them important. The result of an Academy of Management meeting held in Washington, DC, in 2001, Globalization and NGOs consists of ten distinct empirical and theoretical contributions aimed at understanding how NGOs (defined loosely as nonstate organizations devoted to social change) have emerged as important stakeholders in discussions over the terms and conditions under which business, government, and multilateral institutions manage the processes of globalization. The management scholars who contributed to the volume realize that NGOs are developing more creative and innovative tactics, which are becoming more difficult for businesses to counter. Readers of this book, they insist, will be better able to recognize, leverage, and respond constructively to the power and unique resources that NGOs now contribute to society. Thus, Globalization and NGOs is aimed at predicting the situations in which NGOs are likely to be influential, assessing the different responses of businesses and governments to the growing influence of NGOs, and reevaluating the relevance of existing models, theories, and frameworks of strategic management in light of these factors. The contributors draw variously upon management, corporate political strategy, and public policy approaches, including Edward Freeman's (1984) strategic management paradigm of stakeholder analysis. Doh and Teegen extend Freeman's framework to include two additional characterizations: stakegiver and staketaker. According to this perspective, NGOs can become stakegivers when they provide such resources as prestige, legitimacy, and the aura of neutrality and moral authority. The NGOs can also provide information and serve as mediators of potential conflicts with other constituents. On the other hand, ignoring them as stakeholders, the contributors warn, will expose corporations to the risk …
Decentering the teacher: a practitioner's acccount

This article is an account of an action research project conducted in a first grade classroom. The practitioner-researcher describes a process of “decentering.” Realizing that centering learners necessarily means decentering the practitioner, the author collaborates with his first grade class to identify and clarify the problems associated with teacher centeredness. This article describes the groups' development and implementation of strategies and includes reflections upon understandings and project-derived assertions. The account presents students' perspectives and interpretations and the practitioner's emergent theories as they evolved throughout this collaborative endeavor. The author asserts that the research has potential relevancy to a variety of other teaching contexts.
Chk2 leaves the PML depot

The Chk2 checkpoint kinase is implicated in radiation-induced apoptosis. New findings suggest that radiation induces dissociation of Chk2 from the promyelocytic leukemia gene product (PML). Thus, PML nuclear bodies may function as regulated storage depots, releasing specific proteins in response to specific types of cellular stress.
New studies of non-photochemical holes of dyes and rare-earth ions in polymers. I. Spontaneous hole filling

Abstract Spontaneous hole-filling data for rhodamine 640, Nd3+ and Pr3+ in poly(vinyl alcohol) films are reported. Over the time regimes studied the time dependence of the filling can be understood in terms of a dispersive first-order kinetic model based on some single two-level system tunnelling coordinate. Alternatively, the filling can be explained equally well in terms of a model which invokes two “chemically distinct” two-level system coordinates. The time dependence and the fact that the filling for all three dopants is not accompanied by spectral diffusion (e.g., broadening) of the hole appear to be connected. A theoretical model for this “uniform” filling is developed and based on feed-back from the anti-hole sites into the zero-phonon hole region. The conditions for uniform filling are that the site excitation energies of the hole and anti-hole are correlated and that the probability for relaxation of anti-hole sites is slowly varying over the frequency profile of the anti-hole.
Southern corn leaf blight: ultrastructure of host-pathogen association

Abstract An intercellular matrix was observed to develop in normal cytoplasmic male-fertile corn lines infected by either race O or race T of Helminthosporium maydis. It usually occurred at the junction of necrotic and healthy cells but did not develop in infected Texas cytoplasmic male-sterile corn lines. Cytochemical tests indicated that the matrix was proteinaceous and ultrastructural examination showed that it was fibrous.
Influence of N on growth and tissue N concentration in Leucophyllum candium (violet silverleaf, cenizo)

Abstract In greenhouse studies, M application up to 100 ppm increased growth of L. candi dum. Tissue nitrogen concentrations for optimum growth were > 1.5% for whole plants and > 2.3% for plant tips.
Selective recognition of metal ions by metalloregulatory proteins

Significant advances have been made over the past decade on illustrating structural and functional features underneath the selective metal ion recognition by various proteins in nature. These efforts led to fruitful information regarding mechanisms that bacteria employed on the regulation, transportation, and utilization of main group and essential transition metal ions, and the detoxification of hazardous heavy metal ions. Here we summarize the recent advancement on the understanding of selective recognition of transition and heavy metal ions by metalloregulatory proteins. An emphasis is placed on demonstrating the molecular level mechanism of selective metal ion recognition in bacteria. Other types of metal sensory proteins will also be briefly reviewed.
Thermal boundary resistance for thin-film high-Tc superconductors at varying interfacial temperature drops

Abstract High-temperature thin-film superconducting devices are becoming commonplace for applications such as Josephson junctions, superconducting quantum interference devices, interconnects and radiation bolometers. The thermal stability of these devices is critical and for effective heat transfer it is required to know the thermal boundary resistance at the interface of the high- T c thin films and their substrates. Many measurements of thermal contact resistance for bulk samples and metallic thin films have been reported, but only a few measurements have been made for high- T c films. In the present study, the thermal boundary resistance between Er-Ba-Cu-O films on MgO and SrTiO 3 substrates is measured as a function of both temperature and the applied heat flux, and for the first time at temperatures as low as 19 K. The boundary resistance shows a decrease with increasing heat flux. Possible explanations for this trend are given by three proposed hypotheses.
Untangling Teacher–Child Play Interactions: Do Teacher Education and Experience Influence “Good-Fit” Responses to Children's Play?

The purpose of this study was to determine if levels of teacher education and experience would influence how teachers respond to children's play needs in a preschool classroom. The interactions of eight teachers—three of whom were categorized as high education/high experience, three as low education/high experience, and two as low education/low experience—were videotaped and analyzed over a 6-month period. Specific levels of child play need and teacher guidance were first coded. The degree to which there was a good fit between the amount of child need and teacher support was examined. Differences in these good- (and poor-)fit interactions across the three groups of teachers were studied. Four interviews with adult participants were conducted to elucidate quantitative findings. Findings show that teachers with high levels of education and experience were more likely to perform good-fit play interactions. In interviews, teachers from this group identified specific elements of teacher education that enhanced...
Breast cancer diagnosis using neutron stimulated emission computed tomography: dose and count requirements

Neutron Stimulated Emission Computed Tomography (NSECT) was evaluated as a potential technique for breast cancer diagnosis. NSECT can form a 3D tomographic image with an elemental (isotopic) spectrum provided at each reconstructed voxel. The target is illuminated (in vivo) by a neutron beam that scatters in-elastically producing characteristic gamma emission that is acquired tomographically with a spectrograph. Images are reconstructed of each element in the acquired spectrum. NSECT imaging was simulated for benign and malignant breast masses. A range of the number of incident neutrons was simulated from 19 million to 500k neutrons. Simulation included all known primary and secondary physical interactions in both the breast as well as in the spectrometer. Characteristic energy spectra were acquired by simulation and were analyzed for statistically significant differences between benign and malignant breasts. For 1 million incident neutrons, there were 61 differences in the spectra that were statistically significant (p < 0.05). Of these, 23 matched known characteristic emission from 6 elements that have been found in the breast (Br, Cs, K, Mn, Rb, Zn). The dose to two breasts was less than 3% of the dose of a 4 view screening mammogram. Increasing the dose to 52% of the mammogram (19 million neutrons) provided 89 significant spectral differences that matched 30 known emissions from 7 elements that have been found in the breast (Br, Co, Cs, K, Mn, Rb, Zn). Decreasing the dose to 1.4% (500K neutrons) eliminated all statistically significant matches to known elements. This study suggests that NSECT may be a viable technique for detecting human breast cancer in vivo at a reduced dose compared to 4 view screening mammography.
Bronchoesophagopleural fistula after photodynamic therapy for malignant mesothelioma

A 66-year-old woman presented with a bronchoesophagopleural fistula 10 weeks after thoracic photodynamic therapy for malignant mesothelioma. This is the third reported case of an esophagopleural fistula developing subsequent to photodynamic therapy for mesothelioma. We review the literature on this topic and report our successful management of this complication.
Behavioral stress impairs long-term potentiation in rodent hippocampus

A number of hormones secreted from the pituitary-adrenal system during stress affect learning and memory processes. The phenomenon of hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP) is viewed by many as a putative mechanism of memory storage and has proved a most valuable model for study of neuronal plasticity at the cellular level. The present study was conducted to investigate the possibility that stressful events which occur prior (in vivo) to the preparation of brain slices may influence the electrophysiology of the in vitro hippocampal explant when tested for LTP. Adult male rats (Long-Evans male X Sprague-Dawley female) were pair-housed 1 week prior to testing. One animal in each pair was either placed in a restraining tube for 30 min and received no tail shocks (Restraint) or placed in a restraining tube and received tail shocks (1 microA, 1 s) every minute for 30 min (Restraint + Shock). The other animal in each pair was taken directly from the home cage and received no restraint or tail shock (Control). In vitro hippocampal slices were then prepared immediately from these animals according to standard methods. Our results demonstrate a marked impairment of LTP in hippocampal explants taken from rats exposed to stress. The significance of this result with respect to cellular mechanisms underlying the relationship between stress, cognition, and learning is discussed.
Optimal transportation meshfree approximation schemes for fluid and plastic flows

We develop an optimal transportation meshfree (OTM) method for simulating general solid and fluid flows, including fluid–structure interaction. The method combines concepts from optimal transportation theory with material-point sampling and max-ent meshfree interpolation. The proposed OTM method generalizes the Benamou–Brenier differential formulation of optimal mass transportation problems to problems including arbitrary geometries and constitutive behavior. The OTM method enforces mass transport and essential boundary conditions exactly and is free from tension instabilities. The OTM method exactly conserves linear and angular momentum and its convergence characteristics are verified in standard benchmark problems. We illustrate the range and scope of the method by means of two examples of application: the bouncing of a gas-filled balloon off a rigid wall; and the classical Taylor-anvil benchmark test extended to the hypervelocity range.
CARBON MONOXIDE EXCRETION AS AN INDEX OF BILIRUBIN PRODUCTION IN NEWBORN INFANTS

The excretion rate of endogenously produced carbon monoxide (Veco) was measured as an index of bilirubin production in human newborns. Using a simplified measurement technique, over 300 studies have been performed on infants of various gestational ages (GA) and risks for hyperbilirubinemia. Studies performed on 60 full term infants < 5 days of age resulted in a mean value for Veco of 18.0 ± 4.1 (SD) μl/kg/hr. Infants of GA < 33 weeks, 33-34 weeks, and 35-36 weeks had Veco values of 17.7 ± 5.2, 18.1 ± 5.9, and 16.2 ± 3.7 μl/kg/hr, respectively, over the first 10 days of life. No difference in Veco was noted between Caucasian newborns and those of Spanish surname. In 14 infants with ABO or Rh hemolytic disease, Veco ranged from 17.3 to 71.5 μl/kg/hr. Serial determination performed on 2 pf these infants showed Veco to be elevated for 30 days following birth. No infant with Veco less than 50 μl/kg/hr required exchange transfusion. Eight infants of insulin-dependent diabetic mothers (IDM) were studied on 13 occasions and found to have a mean Veco of 17.5 μl/kg/hr. However 2 premature newborns of this group who were also hypoglyeemic exhibited increased Veco levels of 28.7 and 29.2 μl/kg/hr. It has been shown that 1) measurement of Veco by this method is a quick, non-invasive procedure; 2) Veco seems independent of GA; 3) Ve provides valuable information concerning the rate of bilirubin production in isoimmune hemolytic disease; 4) non-hypoglycemic, full term IDM do not have elevated Veco.
Stereospecific activation of cardiac ATP-sensitive K(+) channels by epoxyeicosatrienoic acids: a structural determinant study.

The heart is richly endowed with KATP channels, which function as biological sensors, regulating membrane potentials and electrical excitability in response to metabolic alterations. We recently reported that the cytochrome P450 metabolites of arachidonic acid, epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs), potently activate cardiac KATP channels by reducing channel sensitivity to ATP. In the present study, we further demonstrate that 11(S),12(R)-EET activated the cardiac KATP channels with an EC50 of 39.5 nM, whereas 11(R),12(S)-EET was totally inactive. In addition, 11(S),12(R)-EET but not 11(R),12(S)-EET hyperpolarized the resting membrane potentials and shortened the duration of cardiomyocyte action potentials. By studying homologs and analogs of 11,12-EET, we also found that all four EET regioisomers are equipotent activators of the KATP channels, reducing the ATP sensitivity by more than 10-fold; however, neither altered chain length, double bond number, epoxide position, nor methylation of the carboxyl group affected channel inhibitions by ATP. All the fatty epoxides studied are potent KATP channel activators, but the ω-3 homolog was particularly potent, reducing ATP sensitivity 27-fold. Together, the results indicate that the presence of an epoxide group in a particular three-dimensional configuration is a critical determinant for KATP channel activation, and its effect is augmented by a double bond at ω-3 position. The results also suggest that fatty epoxides are important modulators of cardiac electrical excitability.
The influence of gravity levels on the horizontal Bridgman crystal growth of an alloy

Abstract The solidification of a dilute alloy under Bridgman crystal growth conditions in a reduced-gravity environment is investigated. The simulation consists of fully transient calculations of the species concentration, temperature and flow field, as well as conduction in the ampoule. Results are obtained at gravity levels of 1, 10 and 50 μg for a Bi-1.0 at.% Sn alloy to determine the influence of gravity level on thermosolutal convection, and consequently, on the concentration in the solid. A primary convective cell driven by thermal gradients forms in the bulk of the domain, while a secondary convective cell driven by solutal gradients forms near the interface. The magnitude of the velocities in the secondary cell increases with time, causing increasing solute segregation at the interface. For a gravity level of 1 μg, convection-induced radial segregation in the solidified material is minimal and the process is diffusion-controlled. In contrast, at the highest gravity level of 50 μg, very large levels of segregation are observed and the high levels of convective transport in the melt lead to a breakdown in the phenomena normally associated with diffusion-controlled solidification.
An optical spectrograph design for a new-generation multiple object Doppler instrument

This paper describes an optical spectrograph design for the W.M. Keck Exoplanet Tracker (ET) multi-object Doppler radial velocity instrument. The Keck ET is currently installed at the Sloan 2.5m telescope (Ge et al. this proceedings), and is capable of simultaneously monitoring 60 stars with high precision for a planet survey. The spectrograph consists of an entrance slit, collimator optics, a Volume Phase Holographic (VPH) grating, camera optics and a 4kx4k CCD camera, and provides a spectral resolution of R =5000, with a 180 mm diameter collimated beam. The collimator and camera optics (300 mm largest diameter) are made of two standard optical grade glasses: BK7 and F2, respectively. The spectrograph is transmissive and optimized for delivering high throughput and high image quality over the entire operation bandwidth: 500-590 nm. The f/4 input beams from the Keck ET interferometer are converted to f/1.5 beams on the detector by this spectrograph, and form 60 stellar fringe spectra.
Alanine aminotransferase decreases with age: the Rancho Bernardo Study.

Background Serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) is a marker of liver injury. The 2005 American Gastroenterology Association Future Trends Committee report states that serum ALT levels remain constant with age. This study examines the association between serum ALT and age in a community-dwelling cohort in the United States. Methods A cross-sectional study of 2,364 (54% female) participants aged 30–93 years from the Rancho Bernardo Study cohort who attended a research clinic visit in 1984–87. Demographic, metabolic co-variates, ALT, bilirubin, gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT), albumin, and adiposity signaling biomarkers (leptin, IL-6, adiponectin, ghrelin) were measured. Participants were divided into four-groups based upon age quartile, and multivariable-adjusted least squares of means (LSM) were examined (p for trend <0.05). Results ALT decreased with increasing age, with mean ALT levels (IU/L) of 23, 21, 20, and 17 for those between quartile ages 30–62, 63–71, 72–77, and 78–93 years (p<0.0001). Trends of decreasing LSM ALT with age and the decreasing prevalence of categorically defined elevated serum ALT with age remained robust after adjusting for sex, alcohol use, metabolic syndrome components, and biomarkers of adiposity (p-value <0.0001), and was not materially changed after adjusting for bilirubin, GGT, and albumin. Conclusions ALT levels decrease with age in both men and women independent of metabolic syndrome components, adiposity signaling biomarkers, and other commonly used liver function tests. Further studies are needed to understand the mechanisms responsible for a decline in ALT with age, and to establish the optimal cut-point of normal ALT in the elderly.