cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Memory-T-cell-derived interferon-γ instructs potent innate cell activation for protective immunity.

Summary Cells of the innate immune system are essential for host defenses against primary microbial pathogen infections, yet their involvement in effective memory responses of vaccinated individuals has been poorly investigated. Here we show that memory T cells instruct innate cells to become potent effector cells in a systemic and a mucosal model of infection. Memory T cells controlled phagocyte, dendritic cell, and NK or NK T cell mobilization and induction of a strong program of differentiation, which included their expression of effector cytokines and microbicidal pathways, all of which were delayed in nonvaccinated hosts. Disruption of IFN-γ signaling in Ly6C + monocytes, dendritic cells, and macrophages impaired these processes and the control of pathogen growth. These results reveal how memory T cells, through rapid secretion of IFN-γ, orchestrate extensive modifications of host innate immune responses that are essential for effective protection of vaccinated hosts.
Investigation of Transport- and Sorption-Related Factors on the Removal of Hydrophobic Organic Compounds in Heterogeneous Soils Using a Hierarchical Modeling Approach

Hydrophobic organic compounds (HOCs) represent a class of generally highly persistent contaminants in groundwater. Factors influencing the transport of HOCs are evaluated through a hierarchical modeling approach, which incorporates particle scale sorption/diffusion with pore scale flow and transport models. The relative contributions of transport- and sorption-related factors on HOCs transport are first elucidated in a simplified single particle system. The comparative roles of different soil organic matter contents and compositions on the fate and transport of HOCs are further investigated by simulation of phenanthrene transport in porous media. This effort represents a proof-of-concept demonstration of bridging comprehensive representations of fluid-flow with mechanistic sorption/desorption processes.
A Receptor-Binding Optical Agent for In Vivo Measurement of Receptor Biochemistry

an important obstacle to the development of OI for diagnostic application and by providing insights into solving the problem. By using relatively lower but readily detectable concentrations of NIR fluorescing contrast media, quantification seems possible, with the requirement that the contrast medium be at the surface of the imaged object, as for the in vitro test solutions. Clearly one or more confounding factors occur in vivo. Determining the depth of origin for the fluorescent signal and thus, the position of the contrast medium molecule appears to be essential and is currently being addressed by OI tomographic and mathematical modeling techniques. The results highlight the critical importance of distinguishing signal arising from different tissues or structures. Near infrared light originating from a highly emissive structure such as contrast enhanced tumor, blood, or liver, can travel relatively great distances in tissue to emerge in a location that is less emissive, such as soft tissue. This influences the measured parameters of interest. We call this the “light bulb” effect.
Polymer dynamics and diffusive properties in ultrathin photoresist films

A series of experiments are presented to demonstrate thin film confinement effects on the diffusive properties in poly(tert-butoxycarboxystyrene) (PBOCSt). Bilayer diffusion couple measurements reveal that as the thickness of a PBOCSt film is decreased, the kinetics of the deprotection reaction-front propagation (a process involving both the diffusion and reaction of photochemically activated acidic protons) are dramatically hindered. Incoherent neutron scattering measurements suggest that this retardation can be traced to a suppression of local fast relaxations (200 MHz or faster) native to the PBOCSt polymer. The reduced mobility in the thin PBOCSt films is further confirmed with moisture vapor uptake studies performed on a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). As the film thickness drops below 500 Angstrom there is a strong reduction in the diffusivity of water in the film. In total, these are the first evidences suggesting that the deviations in lithographic performance with decreasing film thickness observed with the bilayer experiments can are due to changes in mobility, not reactivity, within a chemically amplified resist.
Genes that induce apoptosis: transcriptional regulation in identified, doomed neurons of the Drosophila CNS.

Hormones and trophic factors provide cues that control neuronal death during development. These developmental cues in some way regulate activation of apoptosis, the mechanism by which most, if not all, developmentally programmed cell deaths occur. In Drosophila, apoptosis can be induced by the expression of the genes reaper, grim, or head involution defective. We demonstrate that prior to the death of a set of identifiable doomed neurons, these neurons accumulate transcripts of the reaper and grim genes, but do not accumulate transcripts of the head involution defective gene. Death of these doomed neurons can be suppressed by two manipulations: by increasing the levels of the steroid hormone 20-hydroxyecdysone or by decapitation. We have investigated the impact that these two manipulations have on reaper expression. Steroid treatment prevents the accumulation of reaper transcripts, whereas decapitation results in the accumulation of lower levels of reaper transcripts that are not sufficient to activate apoptosis. These data demonstrate that in vivo, reaper, and grim transcripts accumulate coordinately in a set of identified doomed neurons prior to the onset of apoptosis. These observations raise the possibility that products of the reaper and grim genes act in concert in postembryonic neurons to induce apoptosis. That reaper transcript accumulation is regulated by the steroid hormone titer and by the presence of the head is evidence that developmental factors control programmed cell death by regulating the expression of genes that induce apoptosis.
Soluble tin(II) macroinitiator adducts for the controlled ring-opening polymerization of lactones and cyclic carbonates

Polyesters and poly(ester carbonates) were synthesized via ring-opening polymerization with new tin(II) macroinitiator adducts containing oligomeric L-lactide (LLA), rac-lactide (rac-LA), and ϵ-caprolactone (CL). The novel initiating species were synthesized by the reaction of LLA, rac-LA, or CL with Sn(OEt)2 (monomer concentration/initiator concentration ≤20) and then were dissolved in methylene chloride or toluene and stored in a stoppered flask for the subsequent ring-opening polymerization of cyclic esters and carbonates. The soluble tin alkoxide macroinitiators yielded predictable and quantitative initiation of polymerization for up to 1 month of storage time at room temperature. The resulting polymers displayed low polydispersity (≤1.5), and a high monomer conversion (>95%) was obtained within relatively short polymerization times (≤2 h). Adjusting the monomer/macroinitiator ratio effectively controlled the molecular weights of the polymers. NMR was used to characterize the initiating species and polymer microstructure, and size exclusion chromatography was used to determine the molecular weight properties of the polymers. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 3434–3442, 2002
Prognostic factors and clinical trials of new agents in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma

Metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) remains a disease highly resistant to systemic therapy. Results of recent reports in the literature on prognostic factors and clinical trials for patients with metastatic RCC were reviewed. Small numbers of patients exhibit complete or partial responses to interferon and/or interleukin-2, but most patients do not respond and there are few long-term survivors. Therefore, the identification of new agents with better antitumor activity against metastases remains the highest priority of clinical investigation in this refractory tumor. Prospective identification of patients more likely to benefit from cytokine therapy could be used as a stratification factor in Phase III trials, and in risk-directed therapy.
The Effect of an Intentionally Interfering Signal on the Performance of an Adaptively Matched Filter

This paper shows that, for a power-limited noise jammer, the best jammer strategy for degrading the signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio at the output of a matched filter is for the jammer to transmit a power spectrum proportional to |F(?)| where |F(?)|2 is the observed power spectrum of the desired signal. The receiver processing filter is presumed to match adaptively at all times for maximum S/N ratio at its output by considering the spectra of both the desired and jammer signals. If the matched filter is not adaptive, but only maximizes the S/N ratio for a desired signal in white noise, the jammer strategy should be different. In this case, the jammer should transmit a CW signal at a frequency where the power spectrum of the desired signal reaches a peak. For band-limited signals, it is also shown that the best signal design to counter the jammer strategy is to spread the energy spectrum uniformly across the band. Likewise, the jammer strategy for this case is to spread its power spectrum uniformly across the band.
Spin systems on k-regular graphs with complex edge functions

Let k>=1 be an integer and let h=[h(0,0)h(0,1)h(1,0)h(1,1)] be a complex-valued symmetric function on domain {0,1} (i.e., where h(0,1)=h(1,0)). We introduce a new technique, called a syzygy, and prove a dichotomy theorem for the following class of problems, specified by k and h: given an arbitrary k-regular graph G=(V,E), where the function h is attached to each edge, compute Z(G)[email protected]?"@s":"V"->"{"0","1"}@?"{"u","v"}"@?"Eh(@s(u),@s(v)). Z(@?) is known as the partition function of the spin system, also known as counting graph homomorphisms on domain size two, and is a special case of Holant problems. The dichotomy theorem gives a complete classification of the computational complexity of this problem, depending on k and h. The dependence on k and h is explicit.
Teacher Perceptions of the Practicality and Effectiveness of Immersive Ecological Simulations as Classroom Curricula

Recent research with Multi-User Virtual Environments (MUVEs) in education has shown that these platforms can be effective and engaging for students; however, educators and administrators have practical concerns about the adoption of MUVE-based curricula. This study looks at implementations of EcoMUVE, a MUVEbased curriculum designed to support middle school learning of ecosystem concepts and processes. Research questions looked at teacher perceptions of the curriculum’s implementation feasibility, alignment with curricular objectives and standards, and perceived value. Results showed that EcoMUVE was very well-received, and technical issues were manageable. Teachers felt the curriculum was effective, aligned well with standards, and compared favorably with a non-MUVE alternative. Particular technological and curriculum features that contributed to EcoMUVE’s perceived value included student-directed learning, an inquiry, role-based pedagogy, immersion in the virtual environment, and the ease of collecting and comparing data with graphs. Teacher Perceptions of the Practicality and Effectiveness of Immersive Ecological Simulations as Classroom Curricula
Pyrethroid toxicology in the frog

Abstract Adult Rana pipiens pipiens (Shreber) are highly sensitive to insecticidal α-cyano-3-phenoxybenzyl esters administered subcutaneously, i.e., LD50 0.13–0.35 mg/kg for deltamethrin and the most potent isomer of each of cis-cypermethrin, fenpropathrin, and fenvalerate and 0.65 mg/kg for (1R,αS)-trans-cypermethrin. Pyrethroids lacking the α-cyano substituent [pyrethrins, S-bioallethrin, kadethrin, and the Cis- and trans-isomers of (1R)-tetramethrin, (1RS)-resmethrin, (1R)-phenothrin, and (1R)-permethrin] vary greatly in their toxicity (LD50 0.14 to > 60 mg/kg) and the trans isomers are much less toxic than the corresponding cis isomers. The trans/cis specificity is due in large part to relative detoxification rates based on synergism studies with the resmethrin and permethrin isomers and liver pyrethroid esterase assays with the permethrin and cypermethrin isomers. Poisoning by the noncyano compounds involves hyperactivity and tremors whereas by the cyanophenoxybenzyl esters involves tonic seizures and choreoathetosis, i.e., types I and II syndromes, respectively. Picrotoxinin, t-butylbicyclophosphate, and five other small cage compounds give a third type of syndrome with clonic seizures. Diazepam and its 2′-fluoro-4-methyl-4,5-dihydro analog (RO 5-3636) are more effective than 23 other compounds tested in protecting against deltamethrin toxicity. Diazepam is most effective in alleviating the Type II syndrome, intermediate with the type I syndrome, and is not active with picrotoxinin.
Rise in serum PSA of 1.5 ng/mL above 24-month nadir after external beam radiotherapy is predictive of biochemical failure.

Abstract Objectives To determine whether a rise in the serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) concentration 24 months or later after completion of external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) for prostate cancer could predict for biochemical failure. Methods We evaluated the records of 1006 patients who had undergone full-dose EBRT alone as primary treatment for T1-T4NxM0 prostate cancer at our institution between April 1987 and January 1998. Patients who had biochemical failure—as determined by the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) definition—prior to 24 months after EBRT were excluded. PSA increases of four different magnitudes (0.5, 0.8, 1.0, and 1.5 ng/mL above the 24-month nadir) were evaluated for their ability to predict ASTRO-defined biochemical failure. Results A total of 745 patients met the analysis criteria. The rate of ASTRO-defined biochemical failure in patients with a PSA increase of 0.5, 0.8, 1.0, and 1.5 ng/mL above the 24-month nadir was 56%, 64%, 66%, and 71%, respectively. An increase of 1.5 ng/mL or more had a sensitivity of 80% and a specificity of 88% in the prediction of biochemical failure, with an accuracy of 86%. Conclusions A PSA increase of 1.5 ng/mL or more above the 24-month nadir can be used to predict for ASTRO-defined failure after EBRT and may be used to identify patients at risk early-on.
Transfer Characteristics and Mu Factor of Picture Tubes

An attempt is made to explain, analytically, the observed shape of the characteristic of kinescopes, which seems to follow a simple power law with an exponent between 2 and 2.5. The difference from Langmuir-Childs law is due to the fact that the active-cathode area varies with grid voltage according to another power law. The theory is applied to the modulator section of a conventional TV picture tube and also to various structural modifications thereof. As to the emission characteristic, gamma is consistently found to lie between 2.4 and 2.5 and seems to be little affected by structural alterations. The mu factor, on the other hand, is strongly influenced by any one of the changes in the four system parameters. An experimental tube was built to check some of the predictions of the above theory. For the cathode current, a gamma value of 2.43 was observed. The useful screen current followed a power law with an exponent of 1.9. The mu factor of this tube was found to fall within two per cent of the value computed from (15) of this paper.
Multimedia in the radiology environment

ABSTRACT Accessibility of multimedia information related to radiology in a timely manner is a key to success in practicing radiology in the future. In this paper we described the concept of multimedia in the radiology environment and its implementation in our department at UCSF. This paper will emphasize thevarious types of databases related to radiology including HIS, RIS, PACS image database, digital voice dictation system, electronic mail and library information system. A method to interconnect these databases is through a comprehensive network architecture which will also be described. As an application, we introduce the concept of a departmental image file server, for any of the 150 Macintoshusers in the department to access this multimedia information.1. BACKGROUNDThe Radiology department at UCSF has taken on the challenge of developing a second generation Picture Archiving and Communication system (PACS). This new system has many new features compared to the first generation PACS2. The main feature is the Open Architecture and standardization.
Solvent Effects on the Heterogeneous Adsorption and Reactions of (2-Chloroethyl)ethyl Sulfide on Nanocrystalline Magnesium Oxide

The noncatalytic destructive adsorption of (2-chloroethyl)ethyl sulfide (2-CEES), a mimic of bis(2-chloroethyl) sulfide (“HD” or Mustard Gas), on nanocrystalline magnesium oxide (AP-MgO) was studied in several solvents from pentane to methanol. The decomposition products formed in these reactions were vinylethyl sulfide and (2-hydroxyethyl)ethyl sulfide. Reactions in pentane allowed the highest reaction rates, while tetrahydrofuran (THF) and methanol gave results quite different from those for the hydrocarbon solvent. Reactions in methanol yielded (methoxyethyl)ethyl sulfide and not the vinylethyl sulfide and (2-hydroxyethyl)ethyl sulfide compounds. These studies showed that the MgO-2-CEES reaction chemistry is significantly affected by the solvent present and can be enhanced by choice of solvent and the addition of small amounts of water. Interestingly, the least polar, least reactive solvent (pentane) allowed the most rapid 2-CEES reactions, indicating that the solvent simply aided material transfer to ...
Automatically generating object models from natural language analysis

Our goal is to enable rapid production of static and dynamic object models from natural language description of problems. Rapid modeling is achieved through automation of analysis tasks. This automation captures the cognitive schemes analysts use to build their models of the world through the use of a precise methodology. The methodology is based on the use of proposed technique called role posets, and a semi-natural language (called 4W). Original problem statements are automatically translated to 4W language. The produced sentences then, are analyzed with role posets to produce static model views. Finally the 4W sentences are used to generate dynamic views of the problem. This set of methods maximizes analysis process agility, promotes reusability and constitutes a valuable tool in the learning process of object thinking.
Model based restoration of the RF data for high resolution vascular ultrasound imaging

High resolution ultrasound imaging of vascular structures such as carotid artery is of major importance in evaluating cardiovascular diseases. However, due to the bandlimited nature of the interrogating pulse the resolution of B-scan images is often insufficient to show fine vascular details. Recently, a new class of deconvolution algorithms from the compressive sensing (CS) field has been used in ultrasound imaging for resolution improvement. Compared to the classical deconvolution methods, these CS methods (CSMs) robustly exploit the sparsity of tissue reflectivity (TR) and provide significant resolution gains. However, CSMs generally assume the ultrasound pulse is invariant throughout the propagation path which is not realistic due to frequency dependent absorption and scattering in biological tissues. As such, pulse variance severely compromises the performance of CSMs in recovering the TR with high fidelity. We propose a new technique that performs sparse deconvolution and accounts for pulse variance that occurs during wave propagation. Our method uses the Model-Based Estimation Pursuit (MBEP) to restore the RF signal in terms of Gaussian Chirplets whose delay and amplitude parameters are related to the location and strength of scatterers (i.e, TR) and its spectral parameters are sensitive to dispersion characteristics of the tissue. MBEP successively extracts GCs from RF data via partitioning, parameter estimation, and removal of the estimated echo. MBEP is highly adaptive to the varying pulses at the tissue-vessel interfaces. MBEP and a CSM (l1-regularized Least Squares Deconvolution, l1-LSD) were tested on ultrasound RF data acquired from a blood vessel tissue-mimicking phantom. Our analysis show that, compared to the l1-LSD, MBEP offers a higher fidelity restoration of the TR as well as marked improvement in resolution gain and processing times.
Paroxysmal auricular tachycardia with digitalis-induced atrioventricular block under observation for thirteen years.

Abstract A case with innumerable paroxysms of auricular tachycardia during the past eleven years is reported. The attacks have lasted from several minutes up to 498 days. Digitalis, by producing atrioventricular block and slowing the ventricular rate, was found to be the only drug of therapeutic value.
“Lo, Heer the Fourme”: Hoccleve's Series, Formulary, and Bureaucratic Textuality

AbstractCritical focus on the Series's depiction of madness and self-reflexivity has often downplayed Hoccleve's innovative formal strategies. This essay argues that the Series's narrative of social rehabilitation is part of a larger project to theorize secular poetic authority. Drawing upon the bureaucratic textual techniques that he employed in the Formulary, Hoccleve explores a “documentary poetic” based on the notion of citationality. The Compleinte and Dialogue pursue an analogy between madness and the absence of intentionality implied by the textual objectification of human relationships. Then, the Dialogue shows how authority may be both instantiated and undermined by the citation of such textual forms. By utilizing the bureaucratic apparatus of contract, oath, and witness as a solution to the problem of rumor faced by his narrator, Hoccleve proposes an innovative solution to the problem of grounding secular poetic agency in a bureaucratic environment.
Competition and Insurance Twenty Years Later

We are honored to address the European Group of Risk and Insurance Economists and will take the opportunity to make some reflections on the rather uneasy relationship between insurance and competition. Economists generally prescribe competition as a solution for mailcets that do not work well. Competition allocates resources efficiently and encourages innovation and attention to what customers want. Insurance markets differ from most other markets because in insurance markets competition can destroy the market rather than make it work better. One ofthe dimensions along which insurance companies compete is underwriting—trying to ensure that the hsks covered are "good" risks or that if a high risk is insured, the premium charged is at least conunensurate with the potential cost. The resulting partitioning of risk limits the amount of insurance that potential insurance customers can buy. In the extreme case, such competitive behavior will destroy the insurance market altogether. A simple model illustrates.
Limits to the efficiency of beam combination by stimulated Brillouin scattering

The probability distribution function of the phase difference between two thermal-noise-initiated stimulated Brillouin scattering beams was calculated and measured as a function of the correlation between the noise sources. This correlation is determined by the spatial overlap of the two pump beams. Perfect phase locking of every pair of Brillouin-scattered pulses is shown to be impossible.
EFFECT OF GLUCOSE AND FRUCTOSE ON INCUBATION GLYCOGENIC CAPACITY IN TISSUE FROM MICE PREVIOUSLY CONSUMING VARIOUS CARBOHYDRATES

The effect of various carbohydrates upon liver glycogen production was investigated. Fructose enhanced in vitro glycogen production when having been given previously as a pretreatment in the drinking water of the mice. This enhancement was not increased when fructose was the in vitro substrate for liver slices. Response to a sucrose solution varied but generally was similar to that for fructose. Dietary studies were also carried out to eliminate uncertainty caused by the carbohydrate content of the laboratory chow fed while the mice were drinking the sweetened solutions. In these studies, the livers from mice consuming the sucrose-based diet did not differ greatly from those of mice consuming the starch-based diet. Addition of cellulose to these diets heightened the glycogen levels found in vitro, however.
The kinetics of exchange between a lanthanide ion and the gadolinium complex of N,N″-bis(2-methoxyethylamide-carbamoylmethyl)-diethylenetriamine-N,N′,N″-triacetate

The exchange kinetics of Gd(DTPA-BMEA) with the radioactive tracer Eu(III) have been studied in aqueous solution of 0.15 M ionic strength and 25°C. The exchange is a first-order reaction with the rate expression containing both acid-dependent and acid-independent terms. At pH>6, the exchange is governed by direct reaction of Eu(III) ions with Gd(DTPA-BMEA), while below pH 6, the rate determining step is proton-catalyzed dissociation of the complex with a first-order dependence on [H+]. The relatively slow association and dissociation of the Ln(DTPA-BMEA) complexes can be attributed to steric effects related to the binding of the two methoxyethylamide groups.
Self-efficacy and activity level following cardiac surgery.

Self-efficacy expectations were measured in 149 recovering cardiac surgery patients to determine whether in-patient education and telephone monitoring during convalescence enhanced perceptions of cardiac efficacy and reported activity Significant differences were found for experimental patients in self-efficacy expectations for walking between 4 and 8 weeks (P=0 02) and between 8 and 24 weeks (P= 0 05) following surgery Experimental patients also reported higher levels of general activity at 4 weeks (P= 0.05) and 8 weeks (P=0.02) as well as more walking and lifting at 8 weeks (P= 0 01 and P= 0.0008, respechvely) By 12 weeks, treatment differences were no longer significant except for continued higher general activity levels (P=0.03) for experimental patients Self-efficacy expectations, summed for all physical activities, at 8 weeks were found to be a significant predictor of self-reported activity at 12 weeks, contributing 14 8% of the 34 8% explained variance (R2 change = 0 1479, F= 26 58, P < 0 0001) Self-efficacy expectations summed for all physical activity at 8 weeks were also significant predictors of self-reported activities at 24 weeks, contributing 8 5% of the variance (R2 change = 0 0847, F= 14 48, P=0 0002) A New York Heart Association functional class at 4 and 8 weeks was an independent predictor of self-reported activity at 12 weeks, as was 8 week functional class for self-reported activity at 24 weeks Mood state did not contribute to explained variance in the regression models These findings suggest that efficacy expectahons in the recovering cardiac surgery patient (a) can be influenced by in-pahent education and further enhanced by out-patient coaching by telephone during home recovery, (b) are correlated with activity and mood state and are predictive of subsequent activity, (c) change rapidly in the first weeks after discharge, and (d) may be influenced by cardiac functional class following surgery, in that cardiac class is also predictive of activity
WS2 thin films by metal organic chemical vapor deposition

The metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) of WS2 by reaction of H2S with W(CO)6 was determined to be thermodynamically favored over a wide range of deposition conditions. Various degrees of crystalline WS2 films were obtained on Si(1 0 0), and the crystalline orientation, structure and morphology of WS2 thin films in relation to the deposition conditions were studied. Microstructure for MOCVD-grown WS2 thin films is generally characterized by the formation of crystallites with basal planes parallel to the interface (c(=)) for the first few tens of nanometers, followed by the formation of crystallites with their basal planes nonparallel to the substrate (c(‖)). Formation of the c(=)–WS2, and transition of the microstructure from c(=) to c(‖) were studied in detail by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. Effects of the preferred orientation on the overall crystallinity of thin films and the state of stress were also investigated by Raman spectroscopy.
Integrated backscatter and digital acquisition during myocardial contrast echocardiography: Is there an advantage over conventional echocardiography for intracoronary injections?

This study was designed to answer the question of whether, despite their theoretic superiority, integrated backscatter imaging (IBS) and digital data acquisition (DA) offer any advantage over conventional echocardiography (CE) during quantitative myocardial contrast echocardiography. In vitro experiments were performed (1) to determine the microbubble concentration versus videointensity relationships for CE and IBS and (2) to define the relationship between flow through and microbubble transit rates for CE and IBS. These data were stored on videotape. In vivo experiments were performed whereby microbubbles were injected into the left anterior descending artery at different flow rates in 14 dogs and IBS and CE data were stored both in difital format and on videotape. Although the level of compression did not affect the microbubble concentration versus videointensity plots during IBS compared with CE, in practical terms the mean transit rate, peak intensity, and area under the curve were not affected by the level of compression for both forms of imaging as long as the postprocessing used for CE imaging was linear and the microbubble dose was small. In addition, although DA resulted in higher peak intensity and area under the curve compared with storage on videotape because of its broader dynamic range, the correlation between these measurements was excellent with both forms of image storage. We conclude that, although differences exist between CE and IBS and between DA and analog acquisition, these differences do not significantly affect the derivation of parameters from time-intensity plots during myocardial contrast echocardiography when contrast material is injected into a coronary artery.
A Bibliography of Writings Contributory to the Study of Chinese Folk Religion

y the term "folk religion," I refer to the eclectic religious beliefs, practices, and institutions that have been found in varying forms and degrees all over China and among nearly all Chinese. It is the entire "Little Tradition" of religion in China and overlaps with folk Buddhism, folk Taoism, ancestor worship, the worship of deities and demons, and so forth. I do not deal with the "Great Tradition" of Chinese philosophy, ethics, or political thought, although I have included writings on moral, social, and religious values when they appear to be relevant to the theological aspects of folk religion. Since folk religion covers a broad spectrum of beliefs, practices, and institutions, information on the many aspects of this subject can be found among works on Chinese folklore, mythology, literature, philology, anthropology, art, and history as well as in writings on the obvious features of folk religion. Therefore I have included a few items on folklore and mythology as well as on the ritual and cultic features of Buddhism and Taoism, the state sacrifices to Heaven and Earth or to the deities, the Tay-shan' cults, and the veneration of Confucius and other semi-divine masters or heroes. The books and articles listed here are all secondary materials written in English, French, or German. Their scholarly value is very uneven ranging through missionary diatribes, journalistic curiosities, and observations of "old China hands," to the researches of well-trained scholars. In fact, some of these works can tell us more about the viewpoints and values of the foreigners in China than about Chinese folk religion. I have tried to verify the bibliographic data for
Autoantigen Ro52 directly interacts with human IgG heavy chain in vivo in mammalian cells

Previously, when we used in vivo yeast two-hybrid and in vitro protein-protein interaction analyses, we demonstrated a direct interaction between autoantigen Ro52 and the human IgG heavy chain. This interaction occurred in the absence of antibody-antigen specific interaction. Here, by employing a novel strategy, we further demonstrated that Ro52 co-localized with IgG in transfected mammalian cells. The co-localization was specific to IgG1 but not IgG3. Co-immunoprecipitating IgG with Ro52 from transfected cell lysates suggested that protein complex containing Ro52 and IgG contributed to the in vivo co-localization. In addition, IgG from normal human serum was shown to bind to the surface of apoptotic keratinocytes and the binding could be competitively blocked by 50-fold excesses of IgG1, not IgG3. With a direct binding study, we also demonstrated that IgG1 could bind to the surface of apoptotic cells while IgG3 bound barely. This binding was not competed by Fcgamma fragments indicating a non-Fcgamma receptor mediated interaction. Finally, in a competition analysis the addition of GST-RFP could reduce the IgG binding to the cell surface. Thus, we suggested that the binding of IgG to the apoptotic keratinocytes might be mediated through the interactions with the surface exposed Ro52. The potential role of forming this protein complex on the apoptotic cells will be discussed.
Cardiac Tamponade With Fibrin Strands Leading to the Diagnosis of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

A 59-year-old male with an unremarkable past medical history presented with worsening dyspnea and a history of chest tightness for 2 weeks. He had arthritis of multiple hand and foot joints bilaterally. Muffled heart sounds and pulsus paradoxus of 15 mm Hg were noted on examination. Laboratory findings were remarkable for anemia, with a hemoglobin level …
Circadian organization in Aplysia : internal desynchronization and amplitude of locomotor rhythm

We have tested the hypothesis that the circadian oscillators in the eyes ofAplysia are coequal driver oscillators for the circadian locomotor rhythm. Three predictions based on this hypothesis were tested. Prediction 1: at a time when the phase difference between the eye rhythms is small, the amplitude of the locomotor rhythm in two eyed animals will be as great or greater than the amplitude in one eyed animals. Prediction 2: the amplitude of the locomotor rhythm of two eyed animals will decline under conditions in which the two eye rhythms become out of phase with each other. Prediction 3: the form of the locomotor rhythm will broaden or become biphasic in two eyed animals when the two eye rhythms become out of phase with each other. None of the predictions was confirmed. One eyedAplysia had higher amplitude locomotor rhythms than two eyedAplysia, even under conditions in which the two eye rhythms were probably not far out of phase with each other. There was no tendency for the amplitude of the locomotor rhythm of two eyed animals to decline under circumstances in which the phase difference between the two eye rhythms changes from less than 4 h to as much as 11.5 h. There was no tendency in two eyed animals for the locomotor rhythm to broaden or become biphasic as the eye rhythms became more out of phase with each other. The results led us to reject the hypothesis that the eyes are co-equal drivers for the locomotor rhythm. The ocular influence on locomotion is more likely to be mediated via mechanisms in the central nervous system that do not faithfully conserve the phase of the eye rhythms. One possibility is that the driver is a third circadian oscillator that interacts with the two eye oscillators.
Seasalt and pollution inputs over the continental United States

The average deposition rate of sea salt chloride over the world continents is about 10 meq m−2 yr−1. Only about 14 ± 1% of chloride in the pollution-corrected world average river is contributed by seasalt aerosols and the rest from the dissolution of evaporites. The significant increase of the ion concentrations in the Mississippi river from the year 1905 to 1987 was caused by anthropogenic inputs such as fossil fuel burning, common salt consumption, and dissolution of carbonate and silicate rocks by acids derived from acid precipitation.
Abuse during pregnancy and femicide: urgent implications for women's health.

Abstract OBJECTIVE: To describe the odds of femicide (homicide of females) for women abused during pregnancy. METHODS: A ten-city case-control design was used with attempted and completed femicides as cases (n = 437) and randomly identified abused women living in the same metropolitan area as controls (n = 384). The attempted and completed femicide cases were identified from police and medical examiner records. Interviews of attempted femicide victims and a proxy for the femicide victim were compared with data from abused controls, identified via random digit dialing in the same ten cities. RESULTS: Abuse during pregnancy was reported by 7.8% of the abused controls, 25.8% of the attempted femicides, and 22.7% of the completed femicides. Five percent of the femicide victims were murdered while pregnant. After adjusting for significant demographic factors, such as age, ethnicity, education, and relationship status, the risk of becoming an attempted/completed femicide victim was three-fold higher (adjusted odds ratio 3.08, 95% adjusted confidence interval 1.86, 5.10) for women abused during pregnancy. Black women had more than a three-fold increase in risk (adjusted odds ratio 3.6, 95% adjusted confidence interval 2.4, 5.5) as compared with white women. Compared with women not abused during pregnancy, controls and attempted/completed femicide victims abused during pregnancy reported significantly higher levels of violence. CONCLUSION: Femicide is an important, but often unreported, cause of maternal mortality. This is the first report of a definite link between abuse during pregnancy and attempted/completed femicide. This research documents the immediate need for universal abuse assessment of all pregnant women.
The PVT1-MYC duet in cancer

Gain of 8q24, harboring the avian myelocytomatosis viral oncogene homolog (MYC), is a frequent mutation in cancers. Although MYC is the usual suspect in these cancers, the role of other co-gained loci remains mostly unknown. We have recently found that MYC partners with the adjacent long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) plasmacytoma variant translocation 1 (PVT1), which stabilizes MYC protein and potentiates its activity.
Fastest Time to Cancer by Loss of Tumor Suppressor Genes

Genetic instability promotes cancer progression (by increasing the probability of cancerous mutations) as well as hinders it (by imposing a higher cell death rate for cells susceptible to cancerous mutation). With the loss of tumor suppressor gene function known to be responsible for a high percentage of breast and colorectal cancer (and a good fraction of lung cancer and other types as well), it is important to understand how genetic instability can be orchestrated toward carcinogenesis. In this context, this paper gives a complete characterization of the optimal (time-varying) cell mutation rate for the fastest time to a target cancerous cell population through the loss of both copies of a tumor suppressor gene. Similar to the (one-step) oncogene activation model previously analyzed, the optimal mutation rate of the present two-step model changes qualitatively with the convexity of the (mutation rate-dependent) cell death rate. However, the structure of the Hamiltonian for the new model differs significantly and intrinsically from that of the one-step model, and a completely new approach is needed for the solution of the present two-step problem. Considerable insight into the biology of optimal switching (between corner controls) is extracted from numerical results for cases with nonconvex death rates.
Sympatric sibling species from three phenotypically distinct Asteromyia (Diptera : Cecidomyiidae) galls on the same host plant species

Morphological data show three phenotypically distinct gall morphs produced by what was previously thought to be a single gallmaker, Asteromyia carbonifera (Osten Sacken). Protein gel electrophoresis was used to determine if the variants were produced by a single polymorphic species or by distinct races or species of gallmakers. Electrophoretic data support the hypothesis that the three gall morphs are produced by three different species of gallmakers. Near-fixation of alternate alleles in larvae from different gall morphs suggests very limited gene flow among the three sympatric populations. Models of sympatric and allopatric speciation are considered.
Interplay between order-parameter and system parameter dynamics: considerations on perceptual-cognitive-behavioral mode-mode transitions exhibiting positive and negative hysteresis and on response times

A mathematical model is presented for the emergence of perceptual-cognitive-behavioral modes in psychophysical experiments in which participants are confronted with two alternatives. The model is based on the theory of self-organization and, in particular, the order parameter concept such that the emergence of a mode is conceptualized as an instability leading to the emergence of an appropriately defined order parameter. The order parameter model is merged with a second model that describes adaptation in terms of a system parameter dynamics. It is shown that the two-component model predicts hysteretic mode-mode transitions when control parameters are increased or decreased beyond critical values. The two-component model can account for both positive and negative hysteresis effects due to the interaction between order parameter and system parameter dynamics. Moreover, the model-based analysis reveals that response time curves look rather flat when response times are relatively decoupled from the mode-mode transition phenomenon. In general, response time curves exhibit a peaked close to the mode-mode transition point. In this context, the possibility is discussed that such peaked response time curves belong to the class of critical phenomena of self-organizing systems. In order to illustrate the relevance of peaked response time curves for future research and research reported in the past, results from a perceptual judgment experiment are reported, in which participants judged their ability to stand on a tilted slope for various angles of inclination. Response time curves were found that exhibited a peak around the mode-mode-transition points between “yes” and “no” responses.
Timestamping messages and events in a distributed system using synchronous communication

Determining order relationship between events of a distributed computation is a fundamental problem in distributed systems which has applications in many areas including debugging, visualization, checkpointing and recovery. Fidge/Mattern’s vector-clock mechanism captures the order relationship using a vector of size N in a system consisting of N processes. As a result, it incurs message and space overhead of N integers. Many distributed applications use synchronous messages for communication. It is therefore natural to ask whether it is possible to reduce the timestamping overhead for such applications. In this paper, we present a new approach for timestamping messages and events of a synchronously ordered computation, that is, when processes communicate using synchronous messages. Our approach depends on decomposing edges in the communication topology into mutually disjoint edge groups such that each edge group either forms a star or a triangle. We show that, to accurately capture the order relationship between synchronous messages, it is sufficient to use one component per edge group in the vector instead of one component per process. Timestamps for events are only slightly bigger than timestamps for messages. Many common communication topologies such as ring, grid and hypercube can be decomposed into $${\lceil N/2 \rceil}$$ edge groups, resulting in almost 50% improvement in both space and communication overheads. We prove that the problem of computing an optimal edge decomposition of a communication topology is NP-complete in general. We also present a heuristic algorithm for computing an edge decomposition whose size is within a factor of two of the optimal. We prove that, in the worst case, it is not possible to timestamp messages of a synchronously ordered computation using a vector containing fewer than $${2 \lfloor N/6 \rfloor}$$ components when N ≥ 2. Finally, we show that messages in a synchronously ordered computation can always be timestamped in an offline manner using a vector of size at most $${\lfloor N/2 \rfloor}$$ .
Estimating fertilizer demand and output supply for Malawi's smallholder agriculture

Abstract Implementing both a two-step procedure to separate substitution and expansion effects and a single equation method, the demand for fertilizer and output (maize and tobacco) response for Malawi's smallholder farmers have been estimated. The own-price elasticities for fertilizer, maize and tobacco are −0·82,1·08 and 0·46 from the two-step procedure compared with −1·08, 1·60 and 0·60, respectively, using the single equation procedure derived from the indirect profit function. Even though the expansion effects are not of the same order of magnitude as the substitution effects, the results demonstrate that, indeed, some adjustment in input or output occurs through expansion effects. The econometric analysis also reveals that the response of fertilizer demand and output supply to own prices is much higher than cross-price responses. This study finds insignificant statistical effect of fertilizer price on maize and tobacco outputs. However, the prices of these products significantly influence fertilizer consumption.
Laboratory diagnosis of herpes simplex

Summary Isolation and identification of HSV types are becoming increasingly important for oral and genital infections and are necessary for effective management of HSV encephalitis, neonatal infection, and infections in immunosuppressed patients. Herpes viruses are the most frequently isolated viruses in most clinical virology laboratories. Therefore the use of RK cells is recommended for several reasons: 1) they are commercially available and can be maintained for 2 to 3 weeks; 2) they will decrease the incidence of false-negative results which may exceed 15%; 3) they will decrease the time to virus isolation and the reporting of results; and 4) laboratory time to virus identification will be lessened because HSV strains are the only human viruses that will cause the characteristic rounding and rapid development of cytopathic effects typical of herpes viruses in RK cells. The two easiest methods for typing HSV isolates are the selective cell culture system and the BVDU sensitivity assay. Clear cut results are obtained with either system.
A failure-tolerant mobile traversal scheme based on triangulation coverage

A triangulation-based coverage scheme using mobile sensor nodes (MSNs) has several applications in localization, 3D imaging and coordinated search operation. In this work, we introduce an efficient failure-tolerant mobile traversal algorithm (FTMTA) that provides a triangulation-based coverage of a field. FTMTA employs N MSNs such that, upto N -- 3 node failures can be tolerated to complete the coverage. FTMTA achieves three objectives: (a) as N increases, the total time to cover the field decreases in the absence of a failure; (b) each MSN travels a minimum distance; (c) upon a failure, the remaining MSNs efficiently complete the coverage of the field.