cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
“I’m not going to Vietnam to fight; I’m going there to be a nurse”: Joining the Army Nurse Corps

In this chapter, Tanner offers a brief history of the Army Nurse Corps and women’s participation in war since the American Revolution. Also included in this chapter is a discussion focusing on United States foreign policy, the Cold War, and the early beginnings of United States involvement in the Vietnam War. This chapter describes Army Nurse Corps (ANC) recruitment strategies and women’s rationale for joining the ANC. Quotations from their oral histories reflect women’s knowledge of the war in Vietnam and the antiwar movement before they joined the ANC. This chapter includes a description of basic training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, the women’s reaction to military training, their expectations as wartime nurses, and finally, their response to being sent to Vietnam.
Dendritic osmosensors modulate activity-induced calcium influx in oxytocinergic magnocellular neurons of the mouse PVN.

Oxytocin is often referred to as a ‘love hormone’ because it can be released during activities such as hugging, snuggling, or sex. Reality, of course, can be a bit more complicated. In the brain, oxytocin can have powerful and diverse effects on mood, stress, anxiety, and social interactions. In the body it helps regulate fluid balance, promotes contractions during childbirth, and stimulates the letdown of milk during breastfeeding. Much of the oxytocin produced in both humans and rodents comes from oxytocin-synthetizing magnocellular neurons located in an area of the brain called the hypothalamus. These very specialized neurons have separate, but overlapping, mechanisms for releasing oxytocin into the brain and into the rest of the body. This means that while certain signals cause the neurons to release oxytocin into the body and the brain at the same time, others can cause them to release the hormone preferentially into the body or the brain. Sheng et al. wanted to better understand how these different release mechanisms work, and, in particular, to learn more about how release of oxytocin into the brain is regulated. This is important, because when oxytocin is given as a medicine, much of it fails to reach the brain. A lot of the oxytocin that acts in the brain is released from a specific part of the oxytocin-synthesizing magnocellular neurons called the dendrites. When these neurons are stimulated, calcium enters the dendrites, triggering the release of oxytocin directly into the brain. Sheng et al. used electrical and optical tools on brain tissue extracted from mice to measure how different signals change the amount of calcium that enters the dendrites of oxytocin-synthesizing magnocellular neurons in response to a consistent stimulus. The results showed that increasing the osmolarity, the amount of water-soluble particles that cannot spontaneously cross the cell membrane, in the liquid surrounding the neurons reduced the amount of calcium that flowed into the dendrites during stimulation. Meanwhile, decreasing osmolarity had the opposite effect. Sheng et al. also found that the influx of calcium induced by stimulating the neurons can be strongly regulated by activating receptors in the dendrites that detect a common molecule in the brain called GABA. This occurs even absent a change in osmolarity. These results shed light on some of the physiological processes that control the release of oxytocin into the brain. Understanding these processes is a necessary step towards developing new drugs intended to regulate levels of oxytocin in the brain. Such drugs could be useful in the treatment of several types of mental health disorders.
At the intersection of research and practice: Constructing guidelines for a hybrid model of community supervision

Abstract Probation and parole officers must carefully balance law enforcement and rehabilitation goals to deliver effective treatments and behavioral controls. The tension between these two goals can create uncertainty regarding appropriate supervision practices. The present study summarizes results from an effort to construct community supervision practice guidelines by integrating scientific research and clinical expertise from supervision stakeholders (officers and individuals involved in the criminal legal system). Using consensus-building methods and practice frameworks, we assembled perspectives from these stakeholders via a survey. Results indicate that, while stakeholders endorse rehabilitative supervision strategies, they face several implementation challenges. Specifically, officers report that their organizations prioritize hierarchy and consistency over innovation and adaptation, which may make it difficult to move away from the longstanding use of punitive controls. Additional challenges are indicated by stakeholders' lack of discrimination between different client subpopulations and general disagreement among officers as to appropriate treatments and controls for clients classified as low risk. Further research and translation efforts are needed to help the field understand the clinical differences of subpopulations, to clarify appropriate treatments and controls for those classified as low risk, and to incorporate the perspectives of people involved in the criminal legal system into supervision practices.
Alexander the Great: Victory and Frustration in India (327 to 326 BC)

After Alexander killed Cleitus, things got worse: his Macedonians and Greeks were increasingly hostile to the changes he made. It galled them to see barbarians, defeated barbarians, sitting on seats of power and basking in the king's favor. Tension grew when Alexander attempted another innovation in the protocol at court. The new step was to expand the use of the Persian custom of prostration; this decision perhaps reflected Alexander's growing sense of his own nature, mixing the human and the divine. In observing this custom, Persians were not worshipping a king as a god. Their religion saw the Great King as an earthly agent of the god Ahura Mazda, but the agent was not himself divine. Greeks saw this custom differently. For them prostration was a posture of adoration and worship practiced in the temples of the gods, before the statues of divinities; it served as a concrete sign in the human world recognizing the deities’ supernatural existence. If Macedonians or Greeks prostrated themselves before Alexander, they would have been implying, at the very least, that their leader was more than human. In the months after Cleitus’ murder, Alexander conducted an experiment to see if prostration could be accepted as normal protocol in his court, at least when non-Europeans were present in the audience. He discussed his plan ahead of time with a select group of Macedonians and Greeks in his inner circle. They agreed to observe the custom at a carefully orchestrated occasion. Alexander purposely did not order non-Persians to prostrate themselves before him; they would voluntarily follow the lead of his inner circle. The historian Callisthenes was one of those who promised to set the example, as was the philosopher Anaxarchus.
Quality and Significance of Irrigation Return Flow

A study of irrigation return flow in the Yakima River Basin showed that return flow was the major factor influencing Yakima River water quality. The increase in the quantity and composition of salts in the return flow is due more to leaching than to evapo-transpiration. Water quality changes occurring during irrigation are examined together with techniques and objectives for return flow quality studies. Data are presented on water and salt budgets together with the ion concentrations in the applied water, the subsurface, and the surface drainage water. Salts leached and exchanged from the soil and released to the parent river in the irrigation and nonirrigation seasons are reported on a weight-per-acre basis. The impact of domestic sewage and industrial effluents on river chemical quality is shown to be but a small fraction of that due to return flow. Sixty-one percent of the lower river salt content by weight was contributed by return flow in the irrigation season and 49% in the nonirrigation season.
Time-resolved orbital angular momentum spectroscopy

We introduce pump-probe magneto-orbital spectroscopy, wherein Laguerre-Gauss optical pump pulses impart orbital angular momentum to the electronic states of a material and subsequent dynamics are studied with 100 fs time resolution. The excitation uses vortex modes that distribute angular momentum over a macroscopic area determined by the spot size, and the optical probe studies the chiral imbalance of vortex modes reflected off the sample. First observations in bulk GaAs yield transients that evolve on time scales distinctly different from population and spin relaxation, as expected, but with surprisingly large lifetimes.
Marriage, Biology, and Federal Benefits

This Article approaches the topic of same-sex marriage from a novel perspective by scrutinizing the historical accuracy of primary defense proffered by same-sex marriage opponents – “responsible procreation.” In the context of challenges to Section 3 of DOMA, responsible procreation posits that the federal government’s historic purpose in extending marital benefits is to single out and specially support families with biologically-related children. Because same-sex couples cannot fulfill this long-standing purpose, it is permissible to deny them all federal marital rights and obligations. While advocates disagree about whether and to what extent DOMA furthers this alleged federal interest, to date, all sides have accepted this historical account.This Article is the first to interrogate the accuracy of this account. To do so, the Article examines two of the largest and most important federal benefits programs – Social Security benefits and benefits for active and retired members of the U.S. military. This analysis demonstrates that Congress has not and does not condition the receipt of federal family-based benefits on biological parent-child relationships. To the contrary, Congress long has implicitly and explicitly extended such benefits to families with children known to be biologically unrelated to one or both of their parents. This Article thus reveals that responsible procreation is based on myth, not history and tradition.
Photosynthesis in the Higher Plant Vicia faba I. ANOMALOUS DISTRIBUTIONS OF 14CO2-ISOTOPE IN CITRATE AND GLUTAMATE

Abstract After 1 hour of photosynthesis in 14CO2 by leaves of the higher plant, Vicia faba, an anomalous 41% of the 14C in glutamate was located in carbon atom 5. Citrate synthase and aconitase stereospecificities were classical, and intramolecular isotope distributions indicated citrate to be the singular precursor of glutamate. The anomalous behavior of the cited tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates was a function of the enantiomeric acetate residue of citrate, which is classically derived from the oxidative decarboxylation of pyruvate. This residue possessed an isotope distribution dissimilar to the distinctive pattern observed for the 3-carbon intermediates of the photosynthetic carbon reduction cycle.
Synchronous performance and reliability improvement in pipelined ASICs

The clock frequency of a synchronous circuit can be increased at the expense of increased system latency, area, and power using synchronous optimization techniques such as pipelining and retiming. Pipelining is well developed methodology, having been applied to almost every computer architecture from microprocessors to supercomputers. Retiming, on the other hand, has only recently become popular and practical application areas currently being developed. Both pipelining and retiming are reviewed in this paper. In order to make retiming more generally useful, low-level circuit delay components inherent to IC must be incorporated into the retiming process. These include variable register delay, clock skew, and interconnect delay. An algorithm is presented by the authors for incorporating variable register delays, interconnect delay, and the clock skew into retiming. The algorithm identifies and eliminates path-dependant race conditions in synchronous circuits. The results of applying the algorithm to MCNC benchmarks is presented and both performance and reliability improvements are observed. >
Pigeons, facebook and the birthday problem

The unexpectedness of the birthday problem has long been used by teachers of statistics in discussing basic probability calculation. An activity is described that engages students in understanding probability and sampling using the popular Facebook social networking site.
Control of Separated Flow on a Symmetric Airfoil

On a stationary NACA 0012 airfoil, the separated flow and its control were examined in an unsteady free stream. The experiment was carried out in an unsteady water channel. Desired acceleration and deceleration histories were obtained by controlling the free stream velocity of the channel. The initial separation process and the downstream development were studied in detail. Based upon this information, control devices were placed on the airfoil and significant modifications on the flow were observed.
NFIL3/E4BP4 controls type 2 T helper cell cytokine expression

Type 2 T helper (TH2) cells are critical for the development of allergic immune responses; however, the molecular mechanism controlling their effector function is still largely unclear. Here, we report that the transcription factor NFIL3/E4BP4 regulates cytokine production and effector function by TH2 cells. NFIL3 is highly expressed in TH2 cells but much less in TH1 cells. Production of interleukin (IL)-13 and IL-5 is significantly increased in Nfil3−/− TH2 cells and is decreased by expression of NFIL3 in wild-type TH2 cells. NFIL3 directly binds to and negatively regulates the Il13 gene. In contrast, IL-4 production is decreased in Nfil3−/− TH2 cells. Increased IL-13 and IL-5 together with decreased IL-4 production by antigen-stimulated splenocytes from the immunized Nfil3−/− mice was also observed. The ability of NFIL3 to alter TH2 cytokine production is a T-cell intrinsic effect. Taken together, these data indicate that NFIL3 is a key regulator of TH2 responses.
Genetic variants in the renin-angiotensin system genes are associated with cardiovascular-renal-related risk factors in Mexican Americans

The aim of this study is to examine whether the ACE-I/D, AGT-M235T, and AT1R-A1166C polymorphisms of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) genes are associated with cardiovascular and renal-related risk factors in Mexican Americans. Study participants (N = 848) were genotyped by Taqman assays. Association analyses were performed by measured genotype approach. Of the phenotypes examined, the ACE-I/D, AGT-M235T, and AT1R-A1166C polymorphisms exhibited significant association with systolic blood pressure, glomerular filtration rate and body mass index, respectively. The data suggest that the polymorphisms examined in the RAS may modulate the risk factors associated with cardiovascular-renal disease.
Crystal Structure of a SIR2 Homolog–NAD Complex

The SIR2 protein family comprises a novel class of nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide (NAD)-dependent protein deacetylases that function in transcriptional silencing, DNA repair, and life-span extension in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Two crystal structures of a SIR2 homolog from Archaeoglobus fulgidus complexed with NAD have been determined at 2.1 A and 2.4 A resolutions. The structures reveal that the protein consists of a large domain having a Rossmann fold and a small domain containing a three-stranded zinc ribbon motif. NAD is bound in a pocket between the two domains. A distinct mode of NAD binding and an unusual configuration of the zinc ribbon motif are observed. The structures also provide important insights into the catalytic mechanism of NAD-dependent protein deacetylation by this family of enzymes.
SOUTHERN COSMOLOGY SURVEY. III. QSOs FROM COMBINED GALEX AND OPTICAL PHOTOMETRY

We present catalogs of QSO candidates selected using photometry from Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) combined with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) in the Stripe 82 region and Blanco Cosmology Survey (BCS) near declination ?55?. The SDSS region contains 700 objects with magnitude i < 20 and 3600 objects with i < 21.5 in a 60 deg2 sky region, while the BCS region contains 280 objects with magnitude i < 20 and ~2000 objects with i < 21.5 for a 11 deg2 sky region that is being observed by three current microwave Sunyaev-Zeldovich surveys. Our QSO catalog is the first one in the BCS region. Deep GALEX exposures (2000 s in F UV and N UV, except in three fields) provide high signal-to-noise photometry in the GALEX bands (F UV, N UV < 24.5 mag). From this data, we select QSO candidates using only GALEX and optical r-band photometry, using the method given by Atlee & Gould. In the Stripe 82 field, 60% (30%) of the GALEX-selected QSOs with optical magnitude i < 20 (i < 21.5) also appear in the Richards et?al. QSO catalog constructed using five-band optical SDSS photometry. Comparison with the same catalog by Richards et?al. shows that the completeness of the sample is approximately 40% (25%). However, for regions of the sky with very low dust extinction, like the BCS 23-hr field and the Stripe 82 between 0? and 10? in R.A., our completeness is close to 95%, demonstrating that deep GALEX observations are almost as efficient as multiwavelength observations at finding QSOs. GALEX observations thus provide a viable alternate route to QSO catalogs in sky regions where u-band optical photometry is not available. The full catalog is available at http://www.ice.csic.es/personal/jimenez/PHOTOZ.
Lizard bites of the head and neck.

Abstract Background As the ownership of lizards becomes more prevalent in the United States, injuries from these exotic pets will increase. Emergency and primary care physicians must be familiar with the proper management of lizard bites to the head and neck. Objectives The aim of this case report is to discuss the potential complications and proper management of lizard bites to the head and neck. Case Report A 47-year-old man presented to the emergency department 3 h after his 5-foot iguana bit his face. The wounds were irrigated and primarily closed. Tetanus prophylaxis was administered. He was given oral amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium for 7 days. Sutures were removed 1 week after the repair. Conclusions Topical antiseptic care, verification of tetanus status, primary wound closure, and careful monitoring of non-venomous lizard bites is recommended for lizard bites to the head and neck. Wounds at risk for infection should be treated with a quinolone or other antibiotics covering Salmonella as well as human skin flora. Venomous lizard (e.g., Gila monster and Mexican Beaded Lizard) bites require prompt attention due to potentially significant morbidities including anaphylaxis, disseminated intravascular coagulation, and acute myocardial infarction.
Ranking scientific publications using a model of network traffic

To account for strong ageing characteristics of citation networks, we modify the PageRank algorithm by initially distributing random surfers exponentially with age, in favour of more recent publications. The output of this algorithm, which we call CiteRank, is interpreted as approximate traffic to individual publications in a simple model of how researchers find new information. We optimize parameters of our algorithm to achieve the best performance. The results are compared for two rather different citation networks: all American Physical Society publications between 1893 and 2003 and the set of high-energy physics theory (hep-th) preprints. Despite major differences between these two networks, we find that their optimal parameters for the CiteRank algorithm are remarkably similar. The advantages and performance of CiteRank over more conventional methods of ranking publications are discussed.
Performance quality, gender, and professional role. A study of physicians and nonphysicians in 16 ambulatory care practices.

The quality of medical care has rarely been evaluated in relation to practitioner or patient gender. Moreover, comparisons between physicians and nonphysicians typically are confounded by practitioner gender. In this study gender and professional role effects were analyzed separately for 162 male an
Synchronized reference updating technique for electronic speckle interferometry

In this paper, a video-based speckle interferometric method using a continuous reference updating technique is presented. Unlike conventional ESPI techniques, this methodsynchronizes the optical interferometric detection system with the acoustic stressing of the test object, and includes continuous renewal of the reference image. It is shown that the susceptibility of the method to environmental noise caused by vibration, temperature gradients, or thermal currents is substantially lower than that of conventional techniques. The application of this technique to the detection of defects in adhesively bonded structures is demonstrated.
Melanotic neuroectodermal tumor of infancy: An ultrastructural study, literature review, and reevaluation

Two cases of melanotic neuroectodermal tumor of infancy were examined by electron microscopy and an extensive review of the literature was performed. Ultrastructural examination revealed several features not previously described for this lesion. Three different types of melanin granule formation were observed, many cells had a single cilium, and cell junctions of the "close" or "modified-tight" type were seen, but no desmosomes were found. The morphologic data were consistent with the concept that the tumor arises from neural crest cells. The review of the literature indicated that there have been 158 reported cases of this lesion, including the two reported here. There were five cases of malignant tumor reported for a rate of 3.2%. This rate of malignancy is very high in view of the fact that the tumor has been described as universally benign. The significance of this finding is discussed with regard to melanin-producing lesions of the oral cavity.
Calculation of the Probability of Multiplicities in Two Cell-Occupancy Models: Implications for Spontaneous Reporting Systems

Using Maxwell-Boltzmann and Bose-Einstein models, we derive formulae for the exact probability that an adverse event (AE) report series will present with additional (ie, second, third, etc.) reports from a single geographical reporting region, under the assumption that each region has an equal probability of report generation. These formulae are used to calculate critical values for the number of regions beyond which the probability of additional same-region reporting falls below a predefined level. The results using either model suggest that for widely distributed drugs, the presence of even a single additional same-region AE report is extremely unlikely and provides reasonable evidence for differential reporting rates between regions with multiple versus single reports. Multiple same-region reports, therefore, provide evidence against the validity of report-based tests for a generalized increase in frequency, and evidence for the presence of a localized increase in frequency. These calculations imply th...
A queueing network approach to health care planning with an application to burn care in New York State.

Abstract Treatment of severe thermal burns is a medical care problem which has not previously received the support and attention required on both the national and state level. With the advent of the Health Systems Agencies and the Systems Perspective to Health Care Planning, there will be a need for analytical planning and evaluation models which produce results with respect to controlling health care costs. A descriptive planning model has been developed based on the theory of finite capacity multiserver queues and continuous-time Markov chains, which can be used to describe the operations of a system of burn care facilities linked together by a referral policy to accommodate patient overflow. This model has been combined with a heuristic optimization procedure to answer the relevant questions for burn care in New York State.
013 Gene Expression Profiling of Cultured Skin Substitutes

Cultured skin substitutes (CSS) are used as an adjunctive treatment for closure of massive burn wounds. CSS are prepared with keratinocytes and fibroblasts combined with a collagen-based matrix. A cDNA microarray analysis was performed to characterize CSS at a molecular level. We hypothesized that combination of keratinocytes and fibroblasts in a three-dimensional organo typic culture system would result in changes in gene expression compared with cells grown in monolayer culture. Human skin samples were obtained from breast and abdominal tissue of healthy adult females. Fibroblasts and kera tinocytes were isolated and grown in monolayer cultures; CSS, prepared with cells from four independent donors, were cultured for 2 weeks in vitro. Microarray analysis was performed on RNA from fibroblasts, keratinocytes, and CSS using the Affymetrix Human Genome U133A gene chip representing over 22,000 human genes. Cluster analysis was performed to identify gene expression “signatures” for each group, and further analysis was performed to identify genes that were significantly increased or decreased in CSS compared with either cell type. Microarray analysis revealed significant changes in gene expression upon combination of fibroblasts and keratinocytes in organotypic culture. Genes belonging to several classes were significantly increased in CSS compared with fibroblasts and keratinocytes. For example, genes associated with epidermal differentiation, including fillagrin, corneodesmosin, involucrin, and multiple keratins (1, 10, 13, 16, 23), were increased in CSS. Several genes that are overexpressed in psoriasis (S100A7, SERPINB3, PSORS1C1), as well as cytokines IL- 6 and IL-8, were also increased in CSS. Further, multiple MMP genes were up-regulated in CSS. The results suggest that epithelial-mesenchymal interactions contribute to morphogenesis of CSS, including the remodeling of the dermal layer and stratification and differentiation of the epidermal layer. This analysis reveals that CSS exhibit many characteristics of normal or inflamed human skin.
Solubilization of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase from lyophilized rat liver microsomes: lack of evidence for cold lability in this soluble enzyme preparation.

Summary This paper describes a simple and reliable method for the solubilization of rat liver 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase by extracting lyophilized microsomes with buffer. This procedure is suitable for the preparation of large quantities of soluble enzyme and does not require the use of organic solvents, detergents or other stringent conditions which might alter the properties of the enzyme. A test of cold lability in 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase solutions is described. No substantial cold lability was observed. These results indicate that the sensitivity to cold reported by other investigators probably is not an inherent property of the enzyme.
Dissolved and particulate organic carbon in the North Inlet estuary, South Carolina: what controls their concentrations

Water samples have been taken daily at 1030 EST from three locations within North Inlet (South Carolina) since June of 1980 in order to evaluate the tidal, seasonal, and eventually annual variability in carbon concentrations within this system and generate hypotheses explaining the observed trends. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations within North Inlet (South Carolina) vary inversely with salinity (r2=0.65), suggesting the main source of DOC in North Inlet is freshwater entering from the adjacent forested watershed. This assertion is supported by an observed decrease of tidal water salinity with the onset of streamflow. DOC variability is also associated with (1) groundwater advection and/or runoff and seepage from the marsh surface; (2) removal from tidal water via either physical sorption or biological uptake; (3) sampling location; and (4) origin of water mass. Particulate organic carbon (POC) concentrations vary seasonally, higher values found during the summer. POC variability is controlled by a series of physical and biological factors. Evidence suggests that in the smaller tidal creeks, POC concentrations are associated with (1) rain events scouring the marsh surface, (2) phytoplankton concentrations varying as a function of tidal stage, and (3) removal of particulate material from the marsh surface on the ebb tide. In the larger tidal creeks tidal water velocity appears to be the main factor influencing POC values.
Discrimination of time intervals bounded by tone bursts.

Trained listeners had to discriminate, in a four-level 2AFC paradigm, the duration of a time interval bounded by pairs of brief tone bursts. The time intervals ranged from 10 to 100 msec. When the tone-burst markers were similar in their intensity (86 dB SPL) and frequency (1 kHz), the just noticeable time difference was found to be monotonically related to the base interval. On the other hand, when the intensity of the first marker was severely attenuated (by 50 dB) or when a large (2-octave) difference was introduced between the frequencies of the two markers, the time discrimination functions became nonmonotonic. A similar, albeit slight, departure from monotonicity was also achieved by making the second marker much longer than the first (300 msec vs. 10 msec). The nonmonotonicity of these time discrimination functions is compared to the well-documented nonmonotonicity that may be observed for voice onset time (VOT) discrimination functions.
InP/InGaAs double heterojunction bipolar transistors incorporating carbon-doped bases and superlattice graded base-collector junctions

High performance InP/InGaAs double heterojunction bipolar transistors (DHBTs) incorporating carbon-doped bases and graded base-collector junctions implemented using a short period superlattice were grown by gas source MBE (GSMBE). Base hole concentrations up to 1.6*10/sup 19/ cm/sup -3/ were obtained, using CCl/sub 4/ as the dopant source. Transistors with 2*10 mu m/sup 2/ emitters achieved f/sub t/ and f/sub max/ values up to 76 and 82 GHz, respectively. These devices demonstrate state of the art values of f/sub max/. >
Factors influencing financial strain on elderly people who live alone in the U.S.A.

The purpose of this study is to investigate factors influencing financial strain experienced by elderly persons living alone. Data for this study were drawn from a national survey conducted by Louis Harris and Associates, Inc. in 1986 at the request of The Commonwealth Fund Commission on Elderly People Living Alone to obtain a picture of the resources, problems, needs and preferences of elderly Americans who live alone. For this study, a path model was tested by using multiple regressions. Demographic factors (gender, age and race) were statistically significant factors indirectly influencing financial strain through one economic factor (income) and one health-related factor (physical limitations). Economic factors (income and health insurance coverage) and one health-related factor (physical limitations) were statistically significant factors directly influencing financial strain.
Bureaucratic Accommodation of Congress and the President: Elections and the Distribution of Federal Assistance:

This article investigates whether elections provide bureaucrats with a means for accommodating political pressure from Congress and the White House. Specifically the article tests: (1) whether bure...
Outcomes and Risk Factors for Mortality in Premature Neonates With Critical Congenital Heart Disease

We sought to describe contemporary outcomes and identify risk factors for hospital mortality in premature neonates with critical congenital heart disease who were referred for early intervention. Neonates who were born before 37 weeks' gestation with critical congenital heart disease and admitted to our institution from 2002 to 2008 were included in this retrospective cohort study. Critical congenital heart disease was defined as a defect requiring surgical or transcatheter cardiac intervention or a defect resulting in death within the first 28 days of life. Logistic regression analyses were performed to identify risk factors for mortality before hospital discharge. The study included 180 premature neonates, of whom 37 (21%) died during their initial hospitalization, including 6 (4%) before cardiac intervention and 31 (17%) after cardiac intervention. For the 174 patients undergoing cardiac intervention, independent risk factors for mortality were a 5 min Apgar score ≤ 7, need for preintervention mechanical ventilation, and Risk Adjustment in Congenital Heart Surgery category ≥ 4 or not assignable. Mortality for premature infants with critical congenital heart disease who are referred for early intervention remains high. Patients with lower Apgar scores who receive preintervention mechanical ventilation and undergo more complex procedures are at greatest risk.
Global implications of rising rates of cesarean sections and late preterm births.

The study by Almeida et al., is a well-designed prospective cohort study aimed at identifying modifiable risk factors associated with the need for resuscitative procedures in late preterm infants. Although the participating centers were not randomly selected, the investigators made a special effort to include a study sample as representative, as possible, of the population of late-preterm infants in Brazil. Because cesarean section (CS) and late-preterm infant birth rates have been increasing worldwide, and recent studies from both developed and developing countries suggest an increase in associated morbidity,1, 2 the present study is timely and of significant importance.
Thyroid Cancer Risk from Exposure to Ionizing Radiation: A Case Study in the Comparative Potency Model

Considerable controversy exists about the relative risk of thyroid cancer following exposure to external radiation compared to the risk after exposure to internally deposited 131I. The human epidemiological data are equivocal, and studies are not directly comparable owing to differing ages at exposure, dose ranges, and periods of follow-up. Limited experimental data at low dose ranges support the hypothesis of equal potency in animals. This report utilizes a relative potency model to reconcile data from different sources, and to provide an estimate of thyroid cancer risk following human exposure to 131I. We utilize data from epidemiological studies of external radiation and 131I exposure in humans and data from an experimental animal study. This analysis shows that the data provide no compelling evidence to suggest that the risks accompanying external radiation or 131I exposure are different.
Hydrolysis of whey permeate lactose in a continuous stirred tank membrane reactor

Abstract Lactose in reconstituted cheese whey permeate was hydrolyzed using β-galactosidase in a continuous stirred tank membrane reactor (CSTMR). The effect of operating variables such as flow rate, substrate and enzyme concentration, and residence time on reactor performance were studied. High conversion (90%) of the lactose could be achieved with 1 h residence time at 40°C and pH 6·5 at a substrate/enzyme ratio of 2·5 or less. The performance of the CSTMR could be modelled by combining the Michaelis-Menten kinetics equation with a reactor mass balance equation. The operating stability of the reactor was a function of temperature, with the most stable operation at 15°C. Productivity of the CSTMR (weight of monosaccharides per unit weight of enzyme) was at least 6 times higher than a comparable batch process, even after just 10 h of operation.
Priority setting in complex problems

There are three principles which one can recognize in problem solving. They are the principles of decomposition, comparative judgments, and synthesis of priorities. The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) provides a comprehensive framework to cope with the intuitive, the rational, and the irrational in us all at the same time when we make decisions. It is a method we can use to integrate our perceptions and purposes into an overall synthesis. The AHP does not require that judgments be consistent or even transitive. The degree of consistency (or inconsistency) of the judgments is revealed at the end of the AHP process.
SURVIVAL IN NECROTIZING ENTEROCOLITIS: A COOPERATIVE APPROACH

Prior reports of survival in neonates with NEC have contrasted results of operative versus nonoperative management. In the belief that a cooperative interdisciplinary approach would yield greater survival, we studied prospectively all neonates with NEC over a 24 month interval. All suspect neonates were evaluated by both neonatology and surgery. NEC was documented by ileus, bloody stools and pneumatosis and/or pathology in 73 cases. Twenty three additional survivors lacking pneumatosis were excluded. All were treated initially nonoperatively. Operation was performed only for complications of NEC using predetermined clinical criteria. The criteria differ somewhat from those previously reported. Of 41 treated nonoperatively, 30(73%) survived. In 8 of the 11 deaths, operation was refused because of irreverslble brain, cardiac or renal disease raising medical mortality inordinately. Of 32 operated cases, 26(81%) survived. In 2 of 6 deaths no attempt at salvage was made. Survival of all infants with NEC was 77%. The important measure of management protocols is survival of all infants with NEC rather than a comparison of medical and surgical results. This sizable series demonstrates that improved survival can result from use of predetermined protocols.
Pack & Cap: adaptive DVFS and thread packing under power caps

The ability to cap peak power consumption is a desirable feature in modern data centers for energy budgeting, cost management, and efficient power delivery. Dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS) is a traditional control knob in the tradeoff between server power and performance. Multi-core processors and the parallel applications that take advantage of them introduce new possibilities for control, wherein workload threads are packed onto a variable number of cores and idle cores enter low-power sleep states. This paper proposes Pack & Cap, a control technique designed to make optimal DVFS and thread packing control decisions in order to maximize performance within a power budget. In order to capture the workload dependence of the performance-power Pareto frontier, a multinomial logistic regression (MLR) classifier is built using a large volume of performance counter, temperature, and power characterization data. When queried during runtime, the classifier is capable of accurately selecting the optimal operating point. We implement and validate this method on a real quad-core system running the PARSEC parallel benchmark suite. When varying the power budget during runtime, Pack & Cap meets power constraints 82% of the time even in the absence of a power measuring device. The addition of thread packing to DVFS as a control knob increases the range of feasible power constraints by an average of 21% when compared to DVFS alone and reduces workload energy consumption by an average of 51.6% compared to existing control techniques that achieve the same power range.
Effects of acute intravenous cocaine on cardiovascular function, human learning, and performance in cocaine addicts.

Continuous non-invasive cardiovascular monitoring in eight healthy cocaine addicts receiving intravenous cocaine (0.325 mg/kg or 0.650 mg/kg) or placebo in double-blind, randomized, cross-over fashion demonstrated significant dose-dependent increases in pulse and mean arterial pressure following cocaine. Pulse and mean arterial pressure peaked 5 min post-cocaine injection and maximal response was sustained for a further 15 min and 35 min afterwards, respectively. Cocaine administration had no significant effect on peripheral oxygen saturation, and no clinically significant abnormalities of rhythm or conduction were seen on the electrocardiogram. These doses and method of single-dose intravenous cocaine administration, and our procedures for cardiovascular monitoring, appear relatively safe for laboratory studies of healthy cocaine addicts with no pre-existing cardiovascular disease. In addition, cocaine-taking (0.325 mg/kg i.v. and 0.650 mg/kg i.v.) was associated with enhanced attention (i.e. increased numbers of correct responses on the Rapid Visual Information Processing Task), but the trend towards reduced reaction time did not achieve statistical significance. Cocaine-taking resulted in a small but statistically insignificant improvement in learning on the Digit Symbol Substitution Task. These results suggest that cocaine-taking in rested subjects is associated with some cognitive enhancement.
Characterization of the time-dependent fracture at elevated temperatures by optical caustics

Abstract In the current work, a new experimental technique based on reflection caustics is introduced to characterize time-dependent fracture at elevated temperatures. Experiments performed on a 2219-T3511 aluminum alloy have demonstrated the feasibility of the proposed technique. Possible future research is also suggested to refine the technique for accurate quantitative evaluation of the high temperature crack tip loading parameter.
Optimal strategies for gravitational wave stochastic background searches in pulsar timing data

A low frequency stochastic background of gravitational waves may be detected by pulsar timing experiments in the next 5 to 10 yr. Using methods developed to analyze interferometric gravitational wave data, in this paper we lay out the optimal techniques to detect a background of gravitational waves using a pulsar timing array. We show that for pulsar distances and gravitational wave frequencies typical of pulsar timing experiments, neglecting the effect of the metric perturbation at the pulsar does not result in a significant deviation from optimality. We discuss methods for setting upper limits using the optimal statistic, show how to construct skymaps using the pulsar timing array, and consider several issues associated with realistic analysis of pulsar timing data.
Long-term follow-up of left ventricular systolic function and functional status following Bentall procedure

Background Data are scarce on long-term effects of Bentall procedure on left ventricular systolic function and functional status. Aim was to assess long-term effects of Bentall procedure on left ventricular (LV) systolic function and functional status. Methods Study group consisted of 90 consecutive patients who were operated using elective Bentall procedure for the aneurysm of the ascending aorta and aortic valve disease from 1997 to 2003 in a single tertiary care center. Patients were followed for eight years for mortality, LV ejection fraction and volume indices, as well as functional capacity as assessed by NYHA class. Echocardiographic measurements were made according to the recommendations given by the American Society of Echocardiography. Results Study group consisted of 71 male and 19 female patients, mean age 54+/-10 years. There were no operative deaths. Survival rate was 73.3% during eight-year follow-up (11 cardiac and 13 non-cardiac deaths). Echocardiography was performed before index procedure and after 96 +/-9 months. Statistically significant improvement in the LV ejection fraction was noted at follow-up examinations as compared to preoperative values (49.4+/-10.2% vs 42.5 +/-10.9%, respectively, p<0.0001). Similarly, statistically significant reduction in the LV end-systolic (36.4+/-8 ml vs 59.2+/-29.1 ml, respectively, p<0.0001) and end-diastolic volumes (70.7+/-18.1 ml vs 101.4+/-32.1 ml, respectively, p<0.0001) were observed. NYHA class improved from baseline during the follow-up (3.1+/-0.8 vs 1.7+/-1.1, respectively, p<0.0001). Univariate analysis identified ejection fraction on admission and the presence of postoperative complications as predictors of long-term LV ejection fraction. Conclusion Bentall procedure significantly improves long-term LV systolic function and functional status.
Introduction to the Special Forum on Monetization of User-Generated Content: Marx Revisited

The identification of core characteristics of labor and value creation in the information society is complicated, specifically in regard to user-generated content in social media websites and networks of audience labor. The issues related to user-generated content raise a number of definitional questions that are fundamental for theory development. Core elements of this debate include the definitions and significance of user-generated content, labor, value, price, production, commodities, exploitation, and class, all of which are challenging to define in the context of information and knowledge activities. Each perspective article in this special issue brings something unique to questions about labor in the information society, contributing both to clarification of concepts and to theory-building regarding labor and value creation.
Fabrication and characterization of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) field-effect transistors

Abstract The organic field-effect transistors with poly(styrenesulfonate)-doped poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDT/PSS) as p-type semiconductor are fabricated on heavily doped silicon substrate working as the gate. Dielectric layer, semiconductor, and source/drain layer are deposited by spin coating and then patterned with UV lithography and RIE techniques using aluminum thin film as the mask. The electrical characteristics of the device have been investigated in the atmosphere at room temperature. The devices have field-effect mobility as high as 0.8 cm 2 /V S, on/off current ratio larger than 10 5 , threshold voltage of 9.3 V, and subthreshold slope of 4.5 V/decade.
Randomness in the heparin polymer: Computer simulations of alternative action patterns of heparin lyase

Heparin is a mixture of linear polysaccharides of undetermined sequence. Both biosynthetic data and computer simulation studies have established that each heparin polymer chain is comprised of oligosaccharides of defined sequence, representing ordered domains. One such ordered domian is a pentasaccharide corresponding to heparin's antithrombin III binding site. Previous computer simulation studies, performed under the assumption that heparin lyase (heparinase, EC 4.2.2.7), has a random endolytic action pattern, suggested that certain of these ordered oligosaccharide domains may themselves be nonrandomly arranged in the heparin polymer. The present work presents computer simulations of alternative action patterns for heparin lyase while assuming a random distribution of these oligosaccharide units within the heparin polymer. We consider action patterns that are determined solely by the primary structure of the substrate molecules. Results of the simulations are compared to (1) the experimental measurements of product chains formed throughout the reaction and (2) the change in weight average molecular weight Mw as a function of reaction completion as determined by absorbance at 232 nm. From the simulation of 60 action patterns for heparin lyase, we infer that one of the following statements concerning heparin and heparin lyase is true: (1) Heparin is a random arrangement of a small number of structurally defined oligosaccharide units. Heparin lyase changes its action pattern during the depolymerization of heparin (perhaps influenced by the secondary structure of substrate). (2) Heparin contain clusters of oligosaccharide sequences that are present in low concentrations (overall) in the polymer. Heparin lyase has a specificity for cleaving glycosidic linkages either exolytically at the nonreducing terminus of a chain or (endolytically) at the reducing side of these rare oligosaccharide sequence.