cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Inhibition of barnacle larval settlement and crustacean toxicity of some hoplonemertine pyridyl alkaloids.

Abstract Hoplonemertines are carnivorous marine worms, which prey upon crustaceans and annelids. They paralyze their prey by injecting alkaloids with a stylet-bearing proboscis. The dermis of these animals also secretes alkaloids to repel predators. Besides affecting central and peripheral nervous system nicotinic receptors, some pyridyl alkaloids also activate certain chemoreceptor neurons in crustacean walking legs, which sense environmental chemicals. Anabaseine (2-[3-pyridyl]-3,4,5,6-tetrahydropyridyl) and 2,3′-bipyridyl (2,3′-BP) are two nemertine alkaloids, which potently paralyze crustaceans. Anabaseine is an agonist of vertebrate as well as invertebrate nicotinic receptors. While 2,3′-BP is non-toxic to mice, it is toxic to crustaceans. We tested a variety of nemertine pyridyl alkaloids for inhibition of barnacle ( Balanus amphitrite ) larval settlement and for crustacean toxicity in order to determine whether toxicity could be dissociated from inhibition of larval settlement. We prepared eight C-methylated 2,3′-BP isomers to determine where substitution is permitted without loss of activity. Anti-settlement and toxicity activities were not always related. For instance, 4′-methyl-2,3′-BP displayed only 3% of the crayfish paralytic activity of 2,3′-BP, but inhibited settlement almost 2-fold more effectively. Two other isomers displaying exceptional anti-settlement activity were the 4- and 5-methyl-2,3′-BPs; these also displayed high crustacean toxicity. Nemertelline inhibited barnacle settlement at concentrations similar to 2,3′-BP but was 136-fold less toxic when injected into crayfish. Thus, certain bipyridyls and tetrapyridyls may be useful anti-fouling additives.
31P NMR study of cerebral metabolism during prolonged seizures in the neonatal dog

The effects of prolonged bicuculline-induced seizures on cerebral blood flow and metabolism were determined in paralyzed, mechanically ventilated neonatal dogs. Transient changes occurring early in the course of status epilepticus included significant arterial hypertension, hypocarbia, elevation of plasma norepinephrine levels, and decline in brain glucose concentration. Cerebral blood flow remained elevated throughout the 45 minutes of seizure. Determination of cerebral metabolite values by in vivo phosphorus 31 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and by in vitro enzymatic analysis of frozen brain samples showed significant decreases in the level of phosphocreatine and relatively less change in ATP values. Progressive intracellular acidosis occurred, coincident with elevation of brain lactate concentrations. We conclude that the physiological and metabolic alterations that occur during prolonged seizures are not uniform, but change with time. Any hypothesis advanced to explain the mechanism of neuronal injury during prolonged seizures must take into account these temporally related changes.
Origin and epeirogenic history of the Williston Basin: Evidence from fission-track analysis of apatite

We have tested the hypothesis that the lithosphere beneath the Williston Basin was heated, uplifted, and eroded prior to basin subsidence; this was accomplished by fission-track dating of apatite from samples of basement rock beneath and adjacent to the basin. Apatite fission-track ages of basement rocks beneath the basin range from about 4 Ma near the center to 554 Ma near the eastern edge. Combined with stratigraphic evidence, the ages suggest that at least 3 km of basement were eroded prior to subsidence of the Williston Basin. Rates of apparent uplift and erosion were on the order of 0.10 to 0.15 km/m.y. Apatite fission-track ages of basement outcrop samples on the eastern flank of the basin range from about 572 Ma to 441 Ma. These ages suggest that erosion of the flank occurred from the Early Cambrian to the Late Ordovician. We conclude that timing of uplift of the basement prior to subsidence of the Williston Basin is consistent with the thermal-origin hypothesis of basin formation.
A statistical test of the two reservoir model for helium isotopes

A common hypothesis is that helium isotopes in mantle-derived materials represent two distinct populations, the midocean ridge (MORB) reservoir and the oceanic island (OIB) reservoir. We ask the question ‘Can we disprove the null hypothesis that OIB and MORB samples are drawn from the same population distribution function?’ The answer is no, meaning that the datasets could be drawn from the same population. Previous studies have reached the opposite conclusion by comparing extreme values in one population with the mean value, or range, of the other population after the extreme values are removed. The variance of the ^3He/^4He distribution for various ridge segments decreases with the spreading rate and the high variance of individual OIB datasets is consistent with slow spreading, small sampled volume, or low degrees of melting or degassing.
Adaptive Optics for Improved Mode-Coupling Efficiencies

We have demonstrated improved free-space to single-mode fiber coupling via wavefront correction based upon an adaptive-optic mirror (AOM). By introducing AOM-correction paired with genetic-algorithm optimization, we have obtained 97.3±0.3% of the Fresnel-reflection-limited mode-coupling efficiency.
Cyclodextrin cavity polarity and chromatographic implications

Abstract The Py values for aqueous cyclodextrins are reported and compared to those of organic solvents. The data indicates that the cavities of the cyclodextrins have about the same polarity as n-octanol for Pyrene, and fluorescence intensity data confirms that pyrene does not completely fit into the cavity of the smaller cyclodextrins. The combined fluorescence and Py data indicates that marked sensitivity improvements in fluorescence chromatographic detection may result from using cyclodextrin aqueous mobile phase modifiers which allow moderate inclusion of the analytes (presumably other polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, etc.).
Belatacept for Maintenance Immunosuppression in Lung Transplantation

Belatacept is a novel immunosuppressant that blocks a T-cell costimulation pathway and is approved for use in adult kidney transplant recipients. Its safety and efficacy have not been established after lung transplantation. We present a case of a lung transplant recipient treated with belatacept. A 56-year-old man underwent bilateral lung retransplantation for bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS). In the third year posttransplant, he developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) attributed to tacrolimus. Tacrolimus was changed to sirolimus. One month later, he presented with worsening renal function and HUS attributed to sirolimus. Plasmapheresis and steroid pulse were initiated with clinical improvement, and sirolimus was switched to belatacept. He experienced no episodes of cellular rejection but developed recurrent BOS. Complications during treatment included anemia and recurrent pneumonias. The safety and efficacy of belatacept in lung transplantation remains unclear; further studies are needed.
Incidence of Testicular Cancer in the United States, 1999-2004:

Testicular cancer is rare but primarily affects young men. To characterize the current incidence of testicular cancer in the United States, U.S. Cancer Statistics data from 1999 through 2004 were examined. Age-adjusted (2000 U.S. standard) incidence rates were calculated for seminoma and nonseminoma testicular germ cell tumors (TGCTs). Hispanic men had the largest increase in incidence rates for nonseminomas, followed by non-Hispanic White men (annual percentage change of 3.2% and 1.9%, respectively, p < .05). Nonseminomas peaked at a younger age for Hispanic, American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN), and Asian/Pacific Islander (API) men. Whereas 9.6% of TGCTs were diagnosed at a distant stage in non-Hispanic White men, more Hispanic (16.1%), Black (13.8%), AIAN (16.8%), and API (14.9%) men with TGCTs were diagnosed with distant stage. Monitoring incidence rates for rare cancers by race/ethnicity has improved with national population-based cancer registry coverage. Disparities in diagnosis stage have implications for effective treatment of TGCTs.
Chambered nautilus (Nautilus pompilius pompilius) responds to underwater vibrations

The deep-water cephalopod Nautilus pompilius pompilius Linnaeus, 1758 may benefit from detecting potential signals such as mechanical and acoustical stimuli in its dark habitat where visual information is often limited. Here we examined whether specimens of chambered nautilus are capable of responding to waterborne vibration—a sensory mechanism that has yet to be investigated. We measured the ventilation rate of animals responding to a vibrating bead that produced a range of displacements and velocities. We found that nautiluses do indeed respond to underwater acoustical stimuli, decreasing their ventilation in the presence of a vibratory stimulus. Vibrations resulting from large-bead displacements and high source-velocities caused the animals to decrease their ventilation the most. Stimuli <20 cm from the animals caused a further reduction in their ventilation rates than those at greater distances. These nocturnal animals, living in dark conditions where visual information is often limited, may benefit f...
Collaborative health care plan support

This paper envisions a multi-agent system that assists patients and their health care providers. This system would support a diverse, evolving team in formulating, monitoring and revising a shared "care plan" that operates on multiple time scales in uncertain environments. It would also enhance communication of health information within this planning framework. The coordination of care for children with complex conditions (CCC), which is a compelling societal need, is presented as a model environment in which to develop and assess such systems. The design of algorithms and techniques needed to realize this vision would yield agents capable of being collaborative partners in health care delivery broadly as well as in other environments with similar properties such as rescue and rebuilding after natural disasters. This paper describes the key characteristics of collaborative health care plan support, defines a set of essential capabilities for autonomous "care-augmenting software agents", and discusses three major multi-agents systems research challenges that building such agents raises: evolving long-term plan management, enhancing team interactions, and leveraging human computation for care plan customization.
Compressive sampling of EMG bio-signals

Sub-Nyquist analog pre-processing of sparse signals is achieved using the emerging compressed sensing (CS) signal processing paradigm. Electrocardiogram (ECG) signals have been shown previously to have significant time-domain sparsity. It is shown herein that electromyogram (EMG) signals exhibit both time- and frequency-domain sparsity. Hence, CS techniques are advantageous in either domain in reducing the energy consumption in an adaptive data acquisition front-end that is part of a body area network (BAN). A measurement matrix of random values is central to CS computation. Signal-to-quantization-noise ratio (SQNR) results with EMG signals show that 6-bit (including sign) Gaussian random coefficients are sufficient for compression factors up to 18X. It is also shown that 6-bit uniform random coefficients are preferred for some EMG bio-signals.
Polymer latexes for cell-resistant and cell-interactive surfaces.

Novel polymer latexes were prepared that can be applied in several ways for the control and study of cell behavior on surfaces. Acrylic latexes with glass transitions ranging from -30 to 100 degrees C were synthesized by dispersion polymerization in a water and alcohol solution using an amphiphilic comb copolymer as a stabilizing agent. The comb had a poly(methyl methacrylate) backbone and hydrophilic poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) side chains, which served to stabilize the dispersion and create a robust hydrophilic coating on the final latex particles. The end groups of the comb stabilizer can be selectively functionalized to obtain latex particles with a controlled density of ligands tethered to their surfaces. Latexes were prepared with adhesion peptides (RGD) linked to the surface of the acrylic beads to induce attachment and spreading of cells. Coalesced films obtained from the RGD-bearing latex particles promoted attachment of WT NR6 fibroblasts, while films from unmodified latex particles were resistant to these cells. Additionally, RGD-linked beads were embedded in cell-resistant comb polymer films to create cell-interactive surfaces with discrete clustered-ligand domains. Cell attachment and morphology were seen to vary with the surface density of the RGD-bearing latex beads.
Vulnerability and Resilience in Adolescence: Views from the Family

In this paper we consider family aspects of adolescent resilience. It has long been known that there are children who, despite exposure to significant risk factors, show few or no signs of developmental impairment. These children are referred to as "invulnerable' or resilient. A rapidly expanding literature deals with these unexpectedly favorable developmental outcomes. We explore linkages between adolescent development, an important stressor (chronic illness in adolescence), and a key psychosocial environment (the family). Following a broad review of resiliency research, we focus upon what is known about the varying impacts of a specific chronic illness, diabetes, upon adolescent development. In addition, we consider how the family magnifies, diminishes, or otherwise transforms the impact of this illness upon the adolescent patient. Finally, we describe an ongoing research program investigating diabetic adolescent development within the family.
Characterization of β-lactoglobulin–sodium alginate interactions in aqueous solutions: A calorimetry, light scattering, electrophoretic mobility and solubility study

Abstract The influence of pH (3–7) on the properties of sodium alginate (NaA), β-lactoglobulin (β-Lg) and their mixtures in aqueous solutions was studied at 30 °C using isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), dynamic light scattering, turbidity, ζ-potential and soluble protein measurements. The electrical charge of isolated β-Lg went from positive to negative as the pH increased from 3 to 7 with the isoelectric point being around pH 4.8. The electrical charge of isolated sodium alginate was negative at all pH values, but was appreciably lower in magnitude from pH 3 to 4 due to partial protonation of carboxyl groups (pKa≈3.5). Light scattering measurements indicated that isolated sodium alginate was completely soluble from pH 3 to 7, but isolated β-Lg formed large complexes (dV>200 nm) that scattered light at pH 4 and 5. When β-Lg and sodium alginate were mixed together at pH 3 and 4 they formed large complexes (dV>1000 nm) due to electrostatic attraction between the oppositely charged molecules. At pH 5, β-Lg and sodium alginate formed fairly soluble complexes due to electrostatic attraction between the anionic polysaccharide and cationic patches on the protein surface. At pH 6 and 7, β-Lg and sodium alginate did not form complexes due to electrostatic repulsion between the similarly charged molecules. The knowledge gained in this study could be used to facilitate the rational design of food ingredients and products with desirable functional properties.
Towards characterization of DNA structure under physiological conditions in vivo at the single-molecule level using single-pair FRET

Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) under in vivo conditions is a well-established technique for the evaluation of populations of protein bound/ unbound nucleic acid (NA) molecules or NA hybridization kinetics. However, in vivo FRET has not been applied to in vivo quantitative conformational analysis of NA thus far. Here we explored parameters critical for characterization of NA structure using single-pair (sp)FRET in the complex cellular environment of al ivingEscherichia coli cell. Our measurements showed that the fluorophore properties in the cellular environment differed from those acquired under in vitro conditions. The precision for the interprobe distance determination from FRET efficiency values acquired in vivo was found lower (� 31%) compared to that acquired in diluted buffers (13%). Our numerical simulations suggest that despite its low precision, the in-cell FRET measurements can be successfully applied to discriminate among various structural models. The main advantage of the in-cell spFRET setup presented here over other established techniques allowing conformational analysis in vivo is that it allows investigation of NA structure in various cell types and in a native cellular environment, which is not disturbed by either introduced bulk NA or by the use of chemical transfectants.
Patient Mix in Outpatient Surgery Settings and Implications for Medicare Payment Policy

In 2008, Medicare implemented a new payment policy for ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs), which aligns the ASC payment system with that used for hospital outpatient departments and reimburses ASCs approximately 65% of what hospitals receive for the same outpatient surgery. The authors assess patient selection across ASCs and hospital outpatient departments for four common surgeries (colonoscopy, hernia repair, knee arthroscopy, cataract repair), using data on procedures performed in Florida from 2004 to 2008. The authors construct measures of patient illness severity and cost risk and find that ASCs benefit from positive selection. Nonetheless, the degree of selection varies by surgery type and patient population. While similar studies in other states are needed, the findings suggest that modifications to the Medicare outpatient payment system may be appropriate to account for the different populations that each setting attracts.
Capital account liberalization and financial globalization, 1890–1999: a synoptic view

An indicator of financial openness spanning the period 1890–1999 is used to evaluate policies towards the capital account of the balance of payments. Findings include that: financial globalization was deeper in 1890–1913 than subsequently; countries with liberal capital account policies recovered more quickly from the Great Depression than countries that restricted capital account transactions; the correlation between democracy and capital account openness was negative or zero during the gold standard era, in contrast to subsequent periods, when it has tended to be positive; and countries in geographic proximity to one another have tended to behave similarly in their policies towards the capital account. Copyright # 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Eloquent Zen: Daito and Early Japanese Zen

Zen master Daito (1282-1337) played a leading role in the transmission of Zen (Ch'an) from China to Japan. He founded Daitokuji, a major monastery that has been influential for centuries, and he provided interpretations of Chinese texts. Daito's traditional biography is full of vivid episodes, including his years among the beggars of Kyoto and ending with his dramatic death in the meditation posture. Despite his importance, however, Daito has remained virtually unknown in the West. With the publication of Eloquent Zen Kenneth Kraft offers the first comprehensive account of the life and teachings of one of the greatest of Japan's Zen masters. Dr. Kraft begins with the foundations of medieval Japanese Zen. He shows that Daito's predecessors were concerned with clarifying the essentials of Zen as it began to take root in Japan. During this formative phase, the Zen pioneers embraced varied conceptions of enlightenment and divergent notions of authenticity. Kraft places Daito's contributions within this context, offering new insights about early Japanese Zen and about Zen itself. Throughout this study, Kraft looks closely at the complex role of language in Zen--a tradition supposedly distrustful of words. Daito wrote haiku-like poetry, participated in brilliant dialogues, and delivered powerful sermons. His virtuosity in articulating the way of Zen, "beyond words, beyond silence, " is nowhere more apparent than in his use of the capping phrase, an interpretive and commentarial device unique to Zen. Analyzing Daito's use of this device, Kraft elucidates the significance of the literary and aesthetic dimensions of the Zen tradition. Eloquent Zen includes valuable translations of Daito's poetryand other writings. Illustrations include three classic portraits of Daito and rare examples of his calligraphy. This lucid and engaging study will interest scholars and nonspecialists interested in Zen, Japanese culture, and Asian philosophy, poetry, and related fields.
Macaque sperm fusion with zona-free hamster oocytes

: Semen from six cynomolgus macaques was washed twice by centrifugation in BWW media and resuspended in 1:2 (vol:vol) of Tes-Tris-buffered eggyolk extract (EXT) diluent and BWW (EXT-BWW). Caffeine and dbcAMP were added to induce capacitation. Sperm were treated with calcium ionophore, A23187, followed by the addition of EXT to recover motility, then washed into BWW. The percent motile sperm was similar in ionophore-treated and control sperm suspensions, but motility of treated sperm decreased significantly by 20 min after treatment. The percentage of viable, acrosome-reacted sperm was 56.3% following ionophore treatment versus 4.0% in control suspensions. When ionophore-treated sperm were coincubated with zona-free hamster oocytes, 51 % of oocytes had evidence of sperm fusion and no oocytes were penetrated after incubation with control sperm. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that macaque sperm are capable of fusion with zona-free hamster oocytes if sperm are viable and acrosome-reacted.
What's more dangerous, your aspirin or your car? Thinking rationally about drug risks (and benefits).

We compare mortality risks of several common drugs with risks related to work, transportation, and recreation. Comparing risks can provide a more intuitive sense of the magnitude of drug risks than...
A 16-bit 4'th order noise-shaping D/A converter

A 16-bit oversampling D/A (digital-to-analog) converter has been designed using a fourth-order all-digital noise-shaping loop followed by a 3-bit D/A converter. The 3-bit D/A converter, which uses a novel form of dynamic element matching achieves high accuracy and long-term stability without requiring precision matching of components. The harmonic distortion of the untrimmed monolithic CMOS prototype D/A converter is less than -90 dB. This converter achieves performance comparable to that of a 1-bit noise-shaping D/A that operates at nearly four times its clock rate. >
Reconciling lithospheric deformation and lower crustal flow beneath central Tibet: COMMENT and REPLY: REPLY

Foremost in response to Dr. [Klemperer's Comment (2008)][1], we wish to emphasize that neither the position nor the origin of a rigid indenter beneath Tibet is the primary object of our research. Rather, the general nature of mechanical layering through the Tibetan lithosphere, and the implications
Role of Home Blood Pressure Monitoring in Overcoming Therapeutic Inertia and Improving Hypertension Control A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Hypertension remains the most common modifiable cardiovascular risk factor, yet hypertension control rates remain dismal. Home blood pressure (BP) monitoring has the potential to improve hypertension control. The purpose of this review was to quantify both the magnitude and mechanisms of benefit of home BP monitoring on BP reduction. Using a structured review, studies were selected if they reported either changes in BP or percentage of participants achieving a pre-established BP goal between randomized groups using home-based and office-based BP measurements. A random-effects model was used to estimate the magnitude of benefit and relative risk. The search yielded 37 randomized controlled trials with 9446 participants that contributed data for this meta-analysis. Compared with clinic-based measurements (control group), systolic BP improved with home-based BP monitoring (-2.63 mm Hg; 95% CI, -4.24, -1.02); diastolic BP also showed improvement (-1.68 mm Hg; 95% CI, -2.58, -0.79). Reductions in home BP monitoring-based therapy were greater when telemonitoring was used. Home BP monitoring led to more frequent antihypertensive medication reductions (relative risk, 2.02 [95% CI, 1.32 to 3.11]) and was associated with less therapeutic inertia defined as unchanged medication despite elevated BP (relative risk for unchanged medication, 0.82 [95% CI, 0.68 to 0.99]). Compared with clinic BP monitoring alone, home BP monitoring has the potential to overcome therapeutic inertia and lead to a small but significant reduction in systolic and diastolic BP. Hypertension control with home BP monitoring can be enhanced further when accompanied by plans to monitor and treat elevated BP such as through telemonitoring.
Forensic Age‐at‐Death Estimation from the Human Sacrum*

A new method is described here that incorporates seven developmental and degenerative changes for estimating chronological age from morphological features of the human sacrum. The construction of this method involved multiple stages of trait identification, character-state definition and age correlation, rank-order phase development, and percent-correct sample testing with phase and sample aggregation, all of which resulted in a six-phase component system for application on modern individuals. This phase system was first developed on European American male and female samples from the Hamann-Todd collection; then tested on African American male and female Hamann-Todd samples as well as European American male and females from the WM Bass collection to examine possible sex and/or ancestry differences. Variation in age estimates due to sex and ancestry was negligible; thus, the multiple samples were all pooled creating a robust method with a large sample size. Overall age ranges increase in width at two standard deviations as is expected from degenerative age-related processes but retain utility in forensic situations.
Structure of a Midtropospheric Vortex Induced by a Mesoscale Convective System

On 9 June 1988 a mesoscale (;200-km diameter) convectively generated vortex (MCV) passed through the Colorado wind-profiling network. The generating convective system, which was too small to meet Maddox’s mesoscale convective complex criteria, developed beneath a high-amplitude mid- and upper-level ridge axis. Profiler winds obtained within the stratiform region of the convective system and near the center of the ensuing MCV form the basis of this study. With the addition of satellite (including rapid scan) images and conventional and Doppler radar data, this vortex was well observed over its entire life cycle. The slowly moving vortex was observed by the Flagler 50-MHz profiler for more than 16 h. For a portion of this period the circulation was quasi-steady; hence, the spatial structure of the vortex was depicted by timeto-space conversion of the profiler data. The results show a strong, coherent circulation with maximum tangential speeds greater than 16 m s21 at 6 km above mean sea level (MSL) and at radii of 50‐70 km; corresponding relative vorticity was more than three times as large as the local Coriolis parameter. The long duration and the apparent dominance of vorticity over divergence suggest that the flow in the vortex was in a quasi-balanced state. Hence, the temperature perturbation necessary to support the tangential velocity distribution was computed assuming gradient balance in the radial direction. The resulting estimated temperature structure showed a warm core with a magnitude of 2.38C at 7.3 km MSL and a cold core below 6.3 km MSL. The associated potential vorticity (PV) structure at the vortex center consisted of a lens of high PV with a maximum at 6.3 km MSL and relative minima above and below this height.
Experimental Validation of a Detailed Phase Change Model on a Hardware Testbed

Continued CMOS scaling accompanied with a stall in the voltage scaling has led to high on-chip power densities. High on-chip power densities elevate the temperatures, substantially limiting the performance and reliability of computing systems. The use of Phase Change Materials (PCMs)1 has been explored as a passive cooling method to manage excessive chip temperatures. The thermal properties of PCMs allow a large amount of heat to be stored at near-constant temperature during the phase transition. This heat storage capability of PCM can be leveraged during periods of intense computation. For systems with PCM, development of new management strategies is essential to maximize the benefits of PCM. In order to design and evaluate these management strategies, it is necessary to have an accurate PCM thermal model. In our recent work, we proposed a detailed phase change thermal model, which we integrated into a compact thermal simulation tool, HotSpot. In this paper, we build a hardware testbed incorporating a PCM unit on top of the chip package. We then validate the accuracy of our previously proposed thermal model by comparing the HotSpot simulation results against the measurements on the testbed. We observe that the error between the measured and simulated temperatures is less than 4°C with 0.65 probability. Finally, we implement a soft PCM capacity sensor that monitors the remaining PCM latent heat capacity to be used for development of thermal management policies. We evaluate a set of thermal management policies on the testbed. We compare policies that adjust the sprinting frequency based on current temperature against the policies that take action based on the remaining PCM capacity.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
Punching Below its Weight: The U.S. Government Approach to Education in the Developing World

Global education plays an important role in contributing to U.S. foreign policy objectives. In a recent speech, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton highlighted education, along with health, agriculture, security, and local governance as the core areas for U.S. international development investment. She emphasized the importance of education, particularly of girls and youth, in improving global stability, speeding economic growth, and helping global health, all of which advance U.S. interests in the world.But how effective has the U.S. government been in supporting global education? Unfortunately, its many good education activities and programs are not leveraged for maximum impact on the ground, especially in situations of armed conflict and state fragility. Challenges of U.S. foreign assistance – for example, fragmentation across multiple agencies, lack of policy coherence, diminished multilateral engagement – generally affects its work in education. Luckily some of the core strengths of U.S. assistance have an impact as well, specifically the large amount of resources (in total terms, if not relative terms) devoted to education and the vast breadth and depth of American academic, philanthropic and NGO partners engaged in pioneering work on education in the developing world.This report analyzes the effectiveness of U.S. government education work specifically in relation to conflict-affected and fragile states. Findings across five domains – global reach, resources, technical expertise, policy and multilateral partnerships – show that U.S. education aid falls critically short of what it is capable of achieving. The U.S. government has substantial strengths in this area, especially in global reach, resources, and technical expertise, demonstrating a real comparative advantage in the field of education in situations of conflict and fragility. However, its fragmented policy across agencies and its limited multilateral engagement prevent it from maximizing its strengths, leaving it punching below its weight on this important issue. In this sense, the U.S. government is a classic underachiever, failing to efficiently deploy its many capabilities and potential for maximum impact.
Toward Improved Software Engineering Education

The study of software engineering involves the application of principles in computer science to the design and construction of real software systems. In that regard, education in software engineering is fundamentally different from education in computer science, for several reasons: 1. There are few underlying theoretical principles; 2. There is a need to be concerned with managerial and economic issues involved in software production; 3. There is increased need for interpersonal communications, both in documenting software systems and in working with groups of people; 4. The emphasis is on overall software development at the production level rather than just upon coding skills. Education in software engineering must force the student to synthesize computer science principles with available tools for program development and with techniques for managing human and financial resources associated with software development projects.
Conjugation of Antibodies with Fluorescein and Rhodamine

Labeled antibodies provide one of the most indispensable tools for the localization of antigens in tissue sections, in smears, or in microbial preparations. The rather high specificity of the antigen-antibody reaction permits discovering antigens in situ without isolating them from the surrounding components. For these purposes, the antibody produced in vivo against those sought for antigenic macromolecules has to be labeled with a tracer.
FURTHER EVALUATION OF THE EFFECTS OF TEMPERATURE AND RELATIVE HUMIDITY ON LEAF QUALITY WHEN CURING BURLEY TOBACCO1

Forty-two years of daily temperature and dew point data (1959–2000) for Lexington, KY, along with the yearly crop grade percentages from burley sales data, were used to determine the effects of tem...
OPIATES AND SOCIAL DEPENDENCE

Evidence for the possibility that brain opiates mediate social emotions is summarized. Opiate agonists have been found to reduce isolation-induced crying and to reduce social proximity-maintenance time, while naloxone can increase spontaneous crying and decrease maternal behavior. Also, the capacity of brief social isolation to increase pain sensitivity and to reduce morphine analgesia suggests that the social environment of an animal may activate endogenous brain opiate systems.
Biogeographic Patterns and Conservation in the South American Cerrado: A Tropical Savanna Hotspot

)ofthe land surface in SouthAmerica,Africa,and Asia.Most people know these savannasbecause oftheir unique assemblages ofabundant and exquisitewildlife;however,they have only recently begun to receive thekind ofattention from a conservation viewpoint that hasbeen given to tropical rain forests (Myers et al.2000).Thelargest,richest,and possibly most threatened tropical sa-vanna in the world is the Cerrado,a large region that occu-pies the center ofSouth America.In an effort to identify theworld’s most important biodiversity hotspots,Myers andcolleagues (2000) ranked the Cerrado among the 25 most im-portant terrestrial hotspots.It is the only region on their listdominated by tropical savannas.The biodiversity ofthe Cer-rado is impressive;in an area of1.86 million km
Short-term analysis for estimating physical parameters of speakers

Conventional approaches to estimating speakers' physiometric parameters such as height, age, weight etc. from their voice analyze the speech signal at relatively coarse time resolutions, typically with analysis windows of 25ms or longer. At these resolutions the analysis effectively captures the structure of the supra-glottal vocal tract. In this paper we hypothesize that by analyzing the signal at a finer temporal resolution that is lower than a pitch period, it may be possible to analyze segments of the speech signal that are obtained entirely when the glottis is open, and thereby capture some of the sub-glottal structure that may be represented in the voice. To explore this hypothesis we propose an analysis approach that combines signal analysis techniques suited to fine-temporal-resolution analysis and well-known regression models. We test it on the prediction of heights and ages of speakers from a standard speech database. Our findings show that the higher-resolution analysis does provide benefits over conventional analysis for estimating speaker height, although it is less useful in predicting age.
Online collision prediction among 2D polygonal and articulated obstacles

Collision prediction is a fundamental operation for planning motion in dynamic environments. Existing methods usually exploit complex behavior models or use dynamic constraints in collision prediction. However, these methods all assume simple geometry, such as a disc, which significantly limits their applicability. This paper proposes a new approach that advances collision prediction beyond disc robots and handles arbitrary polygons and articulated objects. Our new tool predicts collision by assuming that obstacles are adversarial. Comparing to an online motion planner that replans periodically at fixed time intervals and a planner that approximates obstacle with discs, our experimental results provide strong evidence that the new method significantly reduces the number of replans while maintaining a higher success rate of finding a valid path. Our geometric-based collision prediction method provides a tool for handling highly complex shapes and provides an approach complementary to those methods that consider behavior and dynamic constraints of objects with simple shapes.
994 Non-Invasive Ventilation (NIV) in Children - Establishment of a Pediatric NIV Scoring System

Objectives Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) is being increasingly used in children with respiratory failure in order to avoid intubation and associated problems. We analyzed the efficiency of NIV in children and the outcome of our patients. Methods In a retrospective study children who received NIV over the last 7 years were analyzed. Included were all children that had at least more than one hour of NIV and a cardiological disease or an infection of the airway. Patients were divided in subgroups according to their underlying disease. The following parameters were analysed: age, gender, weight, mode of NIV, hemodynamic and ventilatory status, blood gas analysis, days of hospitalisation and mortality rate. Results 70 patients between the age of 1 day to 28 years that received NIV were analyzed. The study population consisted of: 35 cardiological patients (50%) and 35 patient with an infection of the airway (50%). Children that had to be intubated because of a respiratory failure were classified as nonresponders. The overall rate of responders was at least 79%. Response correlated significantly with the Positive End-Expiratory Pressure (PEEP) values, pCO 2 and FiO 2 at 6 hours after initiation of NIV. Conclusion NIV offers an effective and successful alternative to conventional mechanical ventilation of children with respiratory failure. Due to advances in the currently available equipment and NIV algorithms we could significantly improve the rate of responders. Based on our findings we established a pediatric NIV score helping to predict NIV success.
Comparative study of vacuum and fractional distillation using pyrolytic microalgae (Nannochloropsis oculata) bio-oil

Abstract Pyrolytic microalgae bio-oil requires upgrading to be used as an alternative transportation fuel. The microalgae bio-oil was physically upgraded through two distillation techniques: atmospheric fractional distillation and vacuum distillation. The separated distillates were analyzed for energy and mass yields, elemental, and chemical compositions, TAN (total acid number), etc. to evaluate their suitability as transportation fuel by comparing them to petro-based fuels. A cleaner separation from vacuum distillation was obtained than from fractional distillation, while a higher mass yield was recovered from fractional distillation. The physical and chemical characteristics from both distillation methods showed a similar tendency in regard to each fraction. The middle fraction showed close to 41.2 MJ/kg of heating value and less than 1.25% moisture content, while the TAN was very high (> 17–25 mg KOH/g) compared to the light fraction of less than 0.12 mg KOH/g. The lowest viscosity of 0.61 cSt was obtained which is equivalent to that of gasoline fuel. The largest chemical composition in the light fraction were olefins (26–31%) and aromatics (14–17%), while paraffins (43–49%) and alcohols (4–5%) were predominant in the middle fraction. The largest amount of nitriles (25–42%) were in the heavy fraction. The mass and energy distribution through drying, pyrolysis and distillation has been evaluated. The distillation, as a physical separation of bio-oil, effectively improved the properties of distillates to be used as transportation fuel after blending or a further upgrading of the materials.
Analysis of power-line communication channel characteristics of the network with mesh topology

In the intelligent power distribution network, there are not only tree-topology but also ring-topology, mesh-topology and so on. To establish the power line channel models of the distribution networks with these special topologies and analyse the factors that influence the channel characteristics is the premise and the important basis in application of the PLC in smart distribution network. Based on a universal channel modeling method that is based on information nodes, this paper analyses the influence laws of multiple factors on channel transmission characteristics of the network with mesh topology through simulation, such as the front and rear trunk length, the mesh trunk length, the branch length and the load impedance. The correctness and general applicability of the proposed approach and the conclusions are verified through lab measurements. The proposed analysis method and the conclusions can be used as necessary theoretical basis and technical means to power-line communication modulation method.
Implications of late morphology of Braunwald-Cutter mitral heart valve prostheses

Interrelationships among silicone poppet wear, cloth wear, and tissue ingrowth were investigated in 14 retrieved Braunwald-Cutter heart valve prostheses following implantation of 37 to 118 (mean 83) months. Six aortic valves (mean 81 months) had severe cloth and poppet wear. In three the poppet had escaped. The lesser wear of the strut covering on the eight mitral valves (mean 84, range 37 to 108 months) was generally functionally insignificant Mean decrease in mitral poppet diameter was 0.4% (range 0% to 1.5%), in contrast to a mean of 5.8% for aortic poppets. Histologic examination of the cloth/tissue complex demonstrated well-collagenized tissue ingrowth in areas of intact fabric with focal endothelial lining. Functionally trivial calcific deposits were often noted deep in the tissue coating, adjacent to cloth fibers or the strut metal. These results suggest that the mitral Braunwald-Cutter prosthesis need not be electively replaced without specific indication. A model is presented which explains the favorable clinical course demonstrated for mitral recipients and provides a rationale for the disparate clinicopathological behavior of mitral and aortic Braunwald-Cutter prostheses. Although inconsequential in this setting, the focal microcalcification noted in all mitral prostheses implanted for more than 72 months may have implications for the development of clinical cardiac assist devices for long-term application.
Grief work of HIV positive persons and their survivors

Grief and bereavement following the death of a loved one present clients with significant challenges to the physical, emotional, and spiritual health and well-being. The grieving process for the person with HIV infection may be compounded by shame, stigma, and lack of social support. For communities with the highest prevalence of HIV infection, AIDS-related losses have resulted in mounting, and often overlapping, bereavements. Addressing the impact of these bereavements on the physical and emotional health of clients and their survivors is imperative to designing appropriate interventions to alleviate the potential adverse health outcomes associated with epidemic loss. Facilitating the grief work of HIV positive persons and their loved ones serves to assuage unhealthy sequelae, promote effective coping skills, and provide opportunities for personal growth.
Suicidal Ideation among Women Court-Referred to Batterer Intervention Programs.

Identifying the prevalence and correlates of suicidal ideation in women mandated to batterer intervention programs is necessary to prevent suicide in this greatly understudied population. This stud...
Open chromatin landscapes of human CD8 T cell subsets reveal transcription factors associated with differentiation and aging

The epigenomic changes in differentiation and aging in T cells have broad impact on the efficacy of the adaptive immune system. Using the assay for transposase-accessible chromatin (ATAC-seq), we generated genome-wide chromatin accessibility maps in CD8 T cell subsets from age-segregated human donors. We find that distinct transcription factor families maintain the naive and memory T cell states, including ETS and bZIP. In aging, we observe that differentiation-associated factors become more prominent. Additionally, a general shift in chromatin openness from promoters to enhancers is evident, with promoter-binding factors like NRF1 implicated as the drivers. Our results describe immune aging in T cells as the erosion of accessibility at promoters and predisposition toward a differentiated state.
Characteristics of breathing rate control mediated by a subregion within the pontine parabrachial complex.

A circumscribed subregion of the pontine medial parabrachial nucleus plays a key role in the control of breathing frequency primarily via changes in expiratory duration. Excitation of this subregio...
Register and Forms of Address in Costa Rica: Sociolinguistic Realities and Pedagogical Implications

This article reports the findings of sociolinguistic research investigating the use of second-person singular pronouns in Costa Rica. The study was carried out onsite and involved 132 interviewees from all seven provinces of the country. These subjects reacted to scenarios in which they had to choose their preferred pronoun of use (usted, vos, or tu) when engaging with a variety of categories of interlocutors. Subjects then commented on the reasons for their preference/usage. The pronoun usted (Ud.) was overwhelmingly in evidence throughout the country, and the vos was also noticeably present in many cases. With both pronouns, context as well as other variables played a role in Spanish speakers’ pronoun selection. The pronoun tu was an extremely distant third and did not appear at all in the speech for many interlocutors. Given the prevalent paradigm of teaching tu in U.S. Spanish language classrooms and the near absence of vos, this study has important ramifications for Spanish instructors. Informing students of these patterns of pronoun use and including vos in the curriculum to some degree, particularly at higher levels, is recommended.