cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Hurdle-jump responding in the rat as a function of conspecific odor of reward and nonreward

A hurdle-jump escape response was employed to assess the laboratory rat’s aversion or attraction to different types of conspecific odor. Odorant donor subjects received 112 runway acquisition trials on a continuous reward schedule followed by 32 extinction trials, 112 acquisition trials on a 50% schedule of reward and nonreward followed by 32 extinction trials, or 144 “neutral” trials with no reward in the alley. Different groups of test subjects escaped from odor excreted by odorant subjects on (a) nonrewarded acquisition and extinction trials, (b) rewarded trials during continuous reinforcement, (c) rewarded trials during partial reinforcement, or (d) neutral trials; others escaped from a clean box. The principal findings were: (1) significant aversion to “odor of nonreward” appeared after the donor odorants had received 12 exposures to reward; (2) production of odor of nonreward by odorant subjects changed as a function of training experience with reward; (3) after repeated exposure to odor of nonreward, the escape response habituated; (4) greater or different odor excretion in extinction resulted from subjects trained on a continuous reward schedule than on a partial reward schedule. Relationships of the data to frustration theory were discussed, assuming that inferred differences in production of odor reflect differences in frustration reaction.
Gestational modulation of myometrial proteins in the timed-pregnant Sprague-Dawley rat

These studies sought to test the hypothesis that the expression of myometrial proteins is modulated as the onset of parturition approaches. Myometrial proteins from timed-pregnant rats were analyzed utilizing sodium dodecylsulfate polyacrylamide gel and 2-dimensional electrophoresis, and Western blot techniques. SDS-PAGE gels demonstrated increased expression of at least 10 protein bands from 17 to 200+ KD. 2-dimensional gels confirmed the presence of at least five groups of gestationally modulated proteins. Western blots for phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C demonstrated significant modulation of the expression of three isozymes. These studies have confirmed differential expression of myometrial proteins near term in the timed-pregnant rat; some of which play an important role in intracellular signal transduction in response to hormones and pharmacologic agents.
Pride in Modesty: Modernist Architecture and the Vernacular Tradition in Italy

Michelangelo Sabatino (2010) Pride in Modesty: Modernist Architecture and the Vernacular Tradition in Italy (Toronto: University of Toronto Press), 336 pp., ISBN 9780802097057, $70.00, hard cover T...
Energy relaxation at a hot-electron vortex instability

At high dissipation levels, vortex motion in a superconducting film has been observed to become unstable at a certain critical vortex velocity v*. At substrate temperatures substantially below Tc, the observed behavior can be accounted for by a model in which the electrons reach an elevated temperature relative to the phonons and the substrate. Here we examine the underlying assumptions concerning energy flow and relaxation times in this model. A calculation of the rate of energy transfer from the electron gas to the lattice finds that at the instability, the electronic temperature reaches a very high value close to the critical temperature. Our calculated energy relaxation times are consistent with those deduced from the experiments. We also estimate the phonon mean free path and assess its effect on the flow of energy in the film.
Gas chromatographic determination of vinylidene chloride monomer in packaging films and in foods

Headspace electron-capture-gas chromatographic methods are described for the quantification of vinylidene chloride monomer in poly(vinylidene chloride) containing films and in film-packaged foodstuffs. Quantification of vinylidene chloride was possible at levels down to 0.001 mg/m2 in the films and 0.005 ppm in the foodstuffs. The results of a small survey of the amounts of this compound in packaging films and foodstuffs purchased from retail outlets are reported.
Planting Depth Influences Potato Plant Morphology and Economic Value

The effects of planting depth on potato cultivars grown in the Columbia Basin of Washington State have gone unreported. The response of potato (Solanum tuberosum) cultivars ‘Russet Burbank’ and ‘Umatilla Russet’ to planting depth was evaluated during 2000, 2001, and 2002. The objectives were to determine how planting depth affected potato plant morphology, tuber greening, yield, and economic value in the Columbia Basin. Ten- and 20-cm planting depths were used all three years; 15- and 25-cm depths were added in 2002. Soil temperature extremes and heat-unit accumulation typically increased as seed pieces were planted closer to the soil surface. Plant emergence was occasionally delayed with an increase in planting depth for both cultivars. Node, stolon, and tuber number per stem increased as planting depth increased, but tuber number per plant did not. Russet Burbank stem number increased as seed pieces were planted closer to the soil surface; Umatilla stem number was not affected by planting depth. Despite differences in the emergence rate due to planting depth, total yield was not affected. However, marketable yield and gross income typically declined when seed pieces were planted shallow (10 cm). The largest impact to marketable yield and gross income came from green tubers. Tuber greening was reduced as seed pieces were planted deeper.
Diagnostic and dynamical analyses of two outstanding aspects of storm tracks

Abstract This paper reports diagnostic and dynamical analyses about two aspects of winter storm tracks in Northern Hemisphere. It is first established with NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data that the Atlantic storm track is distinctly more intense than the Pacific storm track in 30 out of 40 winters even though the Atlantic jet is considerably weaker and that the intensity of the two storm tracks are positively correlated. It is hypothesized that the continent–ocean configuration, in conjunction with the related differential friction, could be a significant contributing factor to such relative intensity. Supporting evidence for this hypothesis is presented in the context of a quasi-geostrophic two-level model analysis. We also establish that the intensity of the Pacific storm track is a minimum in mid-winter (MWMIN) in 21 of 40 winters, whereas in contrast the Atlantic storm track is most intense in mid-winter (MWMAX) in 25 of 40 winters. The structural characteristics of the composite mean flows as well as the energetics in MWMIN and MWMAX are compared. It is hypothesized that a significant enhancement of barotropic damping relative to the baroclinic growth in mid-winter is a major contributing factor to the occurrence of MWMIN. Supporting evidence for this hypothesis is presented from another idealized model analysis. Successful simulation of MWMIN can be made in a global spherical multi-level primitive equation model only if the proxy forcing is enhanced in early winter. However, the model still captures the difference between MWMIN and MWMAX even without using such enhanced forcing. The major caveat of this study is that moist dynamics has not been taken into consideration.
Absorbing boundary conditions for acoustic media

By decomposing the acoustic wave equation into incoming and outgoing components, an absorbing boundary condition can be derived to eliminate reflections from plane waves according to their direction of propagation. This boundary condition is characterized by a first‐order differential operator. The differential operator, or absorbing boundary operator, is the basic element from which more complicated boundary conditions can be constructed. The absorbing boundary operator can be designed to absorb perfectly plane waves traveling in any two directions. By combining two or more absorption operators, boundary conditions can be created which absorb plane waves propagating in any number of directions. Absorbing boundary operators simplify the task of designing boundary conditions to reduce the detrimental effects of outgoing waves in many wave propagation problems.
Polypoid Menetrier's disease associated with acromegaly

There are two forms of Menetrier's disease. The common form involves thickened gastric rugae, while the rare form involves discrete gastric polyps. The clinical literature suggests an association between Menetrier's disease and acromegaly, as well as other neuroendocrine neoplasms; the radiological literature has not addressed the issue. We describe a patient with acromegaly who developed the rare polypoidal form of Menetrier's disease.
Apportionment of ambient primary and secondary fine particulate matter during a 2001 summer intensive study at the CMU Supersite and NETL Pittsburgh site.

Abstract Gaseous and particulate pollutant concentrations associated with five samples per day collected during a July 2001 summer intensive study at the Pittsburgh Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) Supersite were used to apportion fine particulate matter (PM2.5) into primary and secondary contributions using PMF2. Input to the PMF2 analysis included the concentrations of PM2.5 nonvolatile and semivolatile organic material, elemental carbon (EC), ammonium sulfate, trace element components, gas-phase organic material, and NOx, NO2, and O3 concentrations. A total of 10 factors were identified. These factors are associated with emissions from various sources and facilities including crustal material, gasoline combustion, diesel combustion, and three nearby sources high in trace metals. In addition, four secondary sources were identified, three of which were associated with secondary products of local emissions and were dominated by organic material and one of which was dominated by secondary ammonium sulfate ...
Scoping Studies for a Small Modular Lead-Cooled Fast Reactor

A scoping design study has been carried out of the feasibility of a small, 25 MWt (∼10 MWe), modular lead-cooled fast reactor coupled to an advanced power converter consisting of a gas turbine Brayton cycle that utilizes supercritical carbon dioxide as the working fluid. Major constraints of the study are an ultralong 20 year core lifetime, near zero reactivity burnup swing over the core lifetime, Pb primary coolant natural circulation heat transport, road transportability of plant modular assemblies including the reactor and guard vessels, and high Brayton cycle power conversion efficiency. It is found that the goal of a near zero reactivity burnup swing implies a low core power density that results in an unacceptably low discharge burnup.Copyright © 2004 by ASME
Orange/lemon-scented beetles: opposite enantiomers of limonene as major constituents in the defensive secretion of related carabids

The major constituent in the pygidial gland defensive fluid of the carabid beetle Ardistomis schaumii is (R)-(+)-limonene, whereas that of Semiardistomis puncticollis is (S)-(−)-limonene. This was an unanticipated result, since it is not very common to find the opposite enantiomers of the same compound among the secondary metabolites of related species. Moreover, the glandular liquid of A. schaumii contains 1,8-cineole, and that of S. puncticollis has β-pinene, β-phellandrene, sabinene, and p-cymene. Of about 500 carabid species that have been chemically investigated, this is the first report of the presence of such complex mixtures of monoterpenes in their defensive secretions.
ARRIpede: An assembled die-scale microcrawler

The combination of three-dimensional microassembly and bulk micromachining allows manufacturing robots that are small, precise, dexterous and that have a large payload carrying capacity. In this paper, we present a mobile micropositioner, or a microcrawler robot constructed by microassembly, that can carry more than twice its own weight. The 'ARRIpede' spans a volume of 1.2 cm × 1.2 cm × 1 cm consisting of a multi-legged micromechanical module packaged with an electronic backpack. The micromechanical module consists of high-stiffness microassembled joints powered by electrothermal actuators. The backpack consists of a Li-polymer battery and power electronics boards designed to power the electrothermal actuators. The robot has been designed using a stick–slip simulation model to carry a payload up to 9 g and reach linear velocities up to 3 mm/s. The micromanufacturing sequences covering fabrication, microassembly and packaging are detailed in this paper. Packaged prototypes are evaluated experimentally to ...
The Relationship between Microteaching and Student Teacher Classroom Performance 1

AbstractThe assumption that laboratory training in specific teaching skills is directly related to classroom performance was tested for a sample of 32 elementary student teachers. Eight to 20 weeks after laboratory training of experimental groups and testing to verify initial training effect" samples of teaching performance of all Ss were recorded in the student teaching classrooms. These recordings were coded for exhibition of target skills by application of a low-inference category instrument which yielded scores representing rates of occurrence of the target skills per minute of teacher talk. Using a two-way analysis of variance, a statistical comparison of the rates of exhibition of the target skills by the experimental and control groups revealed no significant differences. These results are discussed in terms of the possible causes of such a lack of significant relationships between groups.
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and substance use risk behaviors among tri-ethnic adolescents of Florida.

Previous research documents the co-occurrence of substance use and HIV risk behaviors, but most studies examined these behaviors among adults and White adolescents. The diversity of Florida’s adolescents presents a unique setting for examining the variations in these risk behaviors. An in-depth analysis of HIV and substance use behaviors among White, African American, and Hispanic adolescents in Florida was conducted. Results suggest that significant ethnic variations exist in lifetime alcohol and illicit drug use and HIV risk. Compared with Hispanics, African Americans were less likely and Whites were more likely to be frequent alcohol and illicit drug users. White and African American adolescents were 1.3 and 1.5 times, respectively, at higher risk of at least one HIV risk behavior compared with their Hispanic counterparts. Future research should seek to identify sources and consequences of such variations in risk behavior and design culturally appropriate prevention programs for adolescents.
Reaction of analyte ions with neutral chemical ionization gas.

Analytical Chemistry Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA Ion-molecule reactions of neutral methane with analyte ions under normal methane chemical ionization conditions are discussed. Reactant ions can be generated by direct electron ionization (EI) fragmentation, chemical ionization (CI) fragmentation, or collision-induced dissociation (CID). Examples in which products of such reactions appear in mass spectra in both conventional CI sources in “beam” instruments and low pressure CI in a quadrupole ion trap are presented. Also shown is an example in which MS/MS product ions react with neutral methane used for CI in an ion trap. It is shown that it is relatively straightforward to recognize such reactions in a quadrupole ion trap and in certain cases to minimize or preclude them. Effects of various operating parameters have been investigated and are discussed.
One-Way Stimulation in Mixed Leukocyte Cultures

We have developed an improved method for the mixed leukocyte culture test. Control values, as determined by rates of incorporation of thymidine, are very low, allowing evaluation of low levels of stimulation in homologous cell mixtures. One-way stimulation is assayed by treating the cells of one individual with mitomycin C; treated cells cannot respond (incorporate thymidine) but can still stimulate homologous untreated cells to do so.
Determining nitrogen fractions in swine slurry

Nutrient management plans are used to reduce non-point source pollution from animal operations. These plans require manure analysis and use indices to determine nutrient availability. This study evaluated a modified method for determining nitrogen fractions in swine slurry stored under slatted floors, calculating plant available nitrogen, and characterizing nitrogen fractions by holding pit depth. Manure samples were collected from gestating sow and finishing pig holding pits at discrete depths. Ammonium, amino acid, and amino sugar concentrations were significantly different for gestation holding pits by depth, but finishing pig holding pit values were not significantly different by depth. Plant available nitrogen was approximately 74% for gestation and 67% for finishing barn manures. Nitrogen fraction analysis suggests land application of swine manure for crop growth should be managed based on type of nitrogen present in the manure, which can be highly correlated to animal growth stage.
Adaptive finite element-boundary integral analysis for electromagnetic fields in 3-D

This paper presents a complete adaptive finite element-boundary integral (FE-BI) analysis scheme for the time-harmonic, electromagnetic analysis of three-dimensional inhomogeneous scatterers/radiators in free-space. The adaptive scheme is based on an FE-BI formulation which yields electric and magnetic field solutions simultaneously. It employs a posteriori error estimates which exploit the availability of both field solutions and estimates error distributions and global solution quality for the electric and magnetic fields separately. It automatically determines which elements should be refined in order to equi-distribute the estimated error, based on the type of refinement requested (h,p or hp). This automatic determination is based on extrapolating the elemental error estimates. The algorithm terminates when specified tolerance levels are reached by the electric and/or magnetic field global solution quality estimates. The only required user specifications within the algorithm are the termination tolerances and the types of refinements to effect. Results are presented which show that within the scope of the presented error measures significant reductions in computational cost may be achieved. The proposed scheme could be used with other types of error estimates and it could be adapted to other FE or FE-BI formulations.
Katrina revisited: recovery strategies – redevelopment vs. relocation

This paper assesses the policy choice to redevelop all the neighbourhoods of New Orleans Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina. This choice was a political choice made against the recommendations of some of the city's development consultants. The research at the time on recovery from major disasters showed the difficulties of cities, like New Orleans, that were losing population before the event, were poor, had large minority populations, experienced long term utility disruption, and had residents relocated to distant locations. A multiple regression analysis that compares 2000 and 2010 census data on race, poverty, and flooding supports the significance of these variables in explaining the dramatic population losses in many New Orleans neighbourhoods. A discussion of the conflict between aspects of resident participation and recovery research concludes the paper.
CÆNOCEPHUS IN AMERICA

Heretofore the genus Canocephus , Konow, has been known only from Siberia, and by a single species. Two undescribed species from western Unitd States occur in Dr. Alex D. MacGillvray's collection (Cornell University), one of them also in the collection of the American Entomological Society, and at the request of Dr. MacGillivray I here describe them.
Correlation of Antiarrhythmic Effects of Diphenylhydantoin with Digoxin-Induced Changes in Myocardial Contractility, Sodium-Potassium Adenosine Triphosphatase Activity, and Potassium Efflux

To clarify the suppressant action of diphenylhydantoin (DPH) on digitalis-induced arrhythmias we studied effects of DPH and digoxin, alone and in combination, on contractile force, sodium-potassium adenosinetriphosphatase (Na+-K+ ATPase) activity, and potassium (K+) balance in dog hearts perfused with Krebs-Ringer's solution. Neither control perfusion nor DPH alone (3 x 10-5M) altered Na+-K+ ATPase activity or produced K+ loss; DPH alone depressed contractile force. Digoxin alone (10-6M) caused a 59% rise in contractile force at the onset of arrhythmia along with a net rate of K+ loss (K+ efflux) of 50 ± 12, µmoles/min and a decrease in Na+-K + ATPase activity from 13.8 to 5.2 µmoles phosphorus/mg protein hour-1 (P< 0.001). Perfusion with combined DPH and digoxin delayed toxicity by 13 minutes (or 82%), at which time contractile force was higher (92% above base line, P<0.05), K+ efflux was greater (87 ± 20 µmoles/min), and Na + -K+ ATPase activity was lower (2.6 µmoles/mg hour-1, P<0.05) than they were wi...
Taylored Citizenship: State Institutions and Subjectivity. By Char Roone Miller. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers, 2001. 224p. $66.00.

Few political scientists would recognize the name Frederick Winslow Taylor. Yet by Char Roone Miller's analysis, Taylor's early-twentieth-century “scientific” reforms in management and administrative practices play out in a ubiquitous and subtle process that shapes citizenship in modern America. The application of Taylor-inspired techniques to the reform of the military in the mid-twentieth century and their curiously parallel application in educational reforms receive Miller's closest attention. Much in the spirit of Michel Foucault's (1975) Discipline and Punish , Miller is concerned with demonstrating that ostensibly progressive efforts at efficient organization effectively routinize the production of consciousness, desire, and even the body.
Molecular Basis of Electrophilic and Oxidative Defense: Promises and Perils of Nrf2

Induction of drug-metabolizing enzymes through the antioxidant response element (ARE)-dependent transcription was initially implicated in chemoprevention against cancer by antioxidants. Recent progress in understanding the biology and mechanism of induction revealed a critical role of induction in cellular defense against electrophilic and oxidative stress. Induction is mediated through a novel signaling pathway via two regulatory proteins, the nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and the Kelch-like erythroid cell-derived protein with CNC homology-associated protein 1 (Keap1). Nrf2 binds to Keap1 at a two site-binding interface and is ubiquitinated by the Keap1/cullin 3/ring box protein-1-ubiquitin ligase, resulting in a rapid turnover of Nrf2 protein. Electrophiles and oxidants modify critical cysteine thiols of Keap1 and Nrf2 to inhibit Nrf2 ubiquitination, leading to Nrf2 activation and induction. Induction increases stress resistance critical for cell survival, because knockout of Nrf2 in mice increased susceptibility to a variety of toxicity and disease processes. Collateral to diverse functions of Nrf2, genome-wide search has led to the identification of a plethora of ARE-dependent genes regulated by Nrf2 in an inducer-, tissue-, and disease-dependent manner to control drug metabolism, antioxidant defense, stress response, proteasomal degradation, and cell proliferation. The protective nature of Nrf2 could also be hijacked in a number of pathological conditions by means of somatic mutation, epigenetic alteration, and accumulation of disruptor proteins, promoting drug resistance in cancer and pathologic liver features in autophagy deficiency. The repertoire of ARE inducers has expanded enormously; the therapeutic potential of the inducers has been examined beyond cancer prevention. Developing potent and specific ARE inducers and Nrf2 inhibitors holds certain new promise for the prevention and therapy against cancer, chronic disease, and toxicity.
A conserved bulged adenosine in a peripheral duplex of the antigenomic HDV self-cleaving RNA reduces kinetic trapping of inactive conformations

In the ribozyme of hepatitis delta virus antigenomic RNA, two short duplexes, P2 and P2a, stabilize the active self-cleaving structure. However, P2a also promotes kinetic trapping of non-native structures. A bulged adenosine (A14) separates P2a and P2; this bulged A is conserved in clinical isolates of HDV but is unlikely to be physically close to the cleavage site phosphate in the ribozyme structure. Removing the bulge did not significantly slow the rate of cleavage but slowed the conversion of inactive to active conformations. In the absence of the bulged A, inactive conformations required higher urea concentrations or higher temperatures to be activated. Thus, the bulged-nucleotide in the P2-P2a duplex did not provide an essential kink or hinge between P2 and P2a that was required for cleavage activity but, rather, increased the rate of refolding from an inactive to an active ribozyme structure. These data also suggest a model in which P2 and P2a form a coaxial stacked helix of 9 bp, the most likely arrangement being one in which P2-P2a is roughly parallel to P1.
Diamond current amplifier for spatially-distributed beam generation

A diamond current amplifier is being developed to provide high-current-density electron beams needed for sheet beam generation. Thin single-crystal CVD diamond films are being grown and optimized with respect to crystal purity, film thickness, and surface quality. Electron emission measurements taken from fabricated amplifiers will be used to characterize and optimize the emission gain, emitted electron energy spread, and spatial uniformity of the emitted beam.
Dye-sensitized solar cell redox shuttles

In this Perspective article we describe how the processes involving the redox shuttle—dye regeneration, recombination, and diffusion—affect the photovoltaic performance of dye-sensitized solar cells, DSSCs. Key literature on the mechanistically complicated, but ubiquitously employed, triiodide/iodide electrolyte is reviewed. Literature examples and recent results from our laboratory in utilizing one-electron outersphere redox shuttles in place of triiodide/iodide are then presented.
DIVINING “DIVINE ACTION” IN THEOLOGY‐AND‐SCIENCE: A REVIEW ESSAY

. The topic of divine action has been central to the theology-and-science discussion over the last twenty years. Some tentative conclusions are currently being drawn in light of research initiatives that have been engaged on this topic. I review three recent books that have responded in some way to the ongoing discussion. These responses show that, notwithstanding the advances made in the conversation, much work remains to be done before a plausible theory of divine action emerges at the interface of theology and science.
An experimental assessment of buffer width: Implications for salamander migratory behavior

Upland buffer zones are the primary proposed management tool for vernal-pool-breeding amphibians; however, experimental validation of the utility of buffers is lacking. We used clear cutting to experimentally manipulate upland buffer widths at 11 vernal pools in east-central Maine. Each pool was randomly assigned to one of three possible treatments: >1000-m buffer, 100-m buffer, or 30-m buffer. We radiotracked 40 adult spotted salamanders at these pools and modeled their migratory behavior with mixed-effects regression. Mean maximum distance salamanders moved from their breeding pool was 106.0 ± 15.4 m (range = 1.6–427.6 m). Salamanders were able to enter and cross clear cuts. We observed differences in migratory behavior between the 100-m buffer and reference treatments and between forest and clear-cut habitat; however, weather conditions and a salamander’s distance from the vernal pool strongly mediated the impact of buffer treatment on migration behavior. Our findings indicate that clear cuts are semi-permeable to adult spotted salamanders, but that degree of permeability and the effects of buffer treatment largely depend on weather conditions.
Recurrent network activity drives striatal synaptogenesis

Neural activity during development critically shapes postnatal wiring of the mammalian brain. This is best illustrated by the sensory systems, in which the patterned feed-forward excitation provided by sensory organs and experience drives the formation of mature topographic circuits capable of extracting specific features of sensory stimuli. In contrast, little is known about the role of early activity in the development of the basal ganglia, a phylogenetically ancient group of nuclei fundamentally important for complex motor action and reward-based learning. These nuclei lack direct sensory input and are only loosely topographically organized, forming interlocking feed-forward and feed-back inhibitory circuits without laminar structure. Here we use transgenic mice and viral gene transfer methods to modulate neurotransmitter release and neuronal activity in vivo in the developing striatum. We find that the balance of activity between the two inhibitory and antagonist pathways in the striatum regulates excitatory innervation of the basal ganglia during development. These effects indicate that the propagation of activity through a multi-stage network regulates the wiring of the basal ganglia, revealing an important role of positive feedback in driving network maturation.
Immune alterations in untreated and treated myelodysplastic syndrome

Introduction: Current literature suggests a variety of immune abnormalities are present in myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) patients. However, they have not been comprehensively characterized or systematized to date. As a result, their clinical implications remain largely unknown. In addition, an increased incidence of various autoimmune conditions has been documented in MDS patients. Areas covered: The authors offer a comprehensive review of the existing literature on immune mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of MDS, various immune abnormalities documented in its course, their link with the clonal evolution of MDS as well as immune alterations induced by the existing MDS therapies. Expert opinion: The course of MDS is accompanied by complex immune alterations, including T-cell and NK-cell defects, decreased functional abilities of neutrophils and antigen-presenting cells, altered antibody and cytokine production. While contemporary MDS therapies are shown to possess some immunomodulatory properties, a...
Prediction Scores After Myocardial Infarction: Value, Limitations, and Future Directions

How many times do we hear from our patients, “Doctor, what is going to happen to me?” Patients, physicians, and other providers would like to be able to predict what will happen after a major event to more rationally plan future care. Few health-related events are as dramatic and have as much impact on a patient as an acute myocardial infarction. There have been a number of algorithms for the prediction of outcomes after an acute myocardial infarction, including Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction (TIMI), Global Utilization of Streptokinase and tPA for Occluded arteries (GUSTO), Platelet glycoprotein IIb/IIIa in Unstable angina: Receptor Suppression Using Integrilin Therapy (PURSUIT), Predicting Risk of Death in Cardiac Disease Tool (PREDICT), and the Cooperative Cardiovascular Project (CCP).1–6⇓⇓⇓⇓⇓ See p 2309 In the present issue of Circulation , Singh et al7 assessed outcomes of myocardial infarctions occurring in Olmsted County, Minn, between 1983 and 1994. The outcome measures were death and the composite of death plus recurrent myocardial infarction at 1 month and 1 year. The total number of incident myocardial infarctions was 1279, with 562 ST-segment elevation myocardial infarctions (STEMI) and 717 non–ST-elevation (NSTEMI). The MIs were found by searching for ICD-9 codes in the Olmsted County epidemiological database, and were confirmed by chart abstraction. The electrocardiograms were read according to the Minnesota code. Deaths are routinely tracked in Olmsted County, and recurrent MIs were diagnosed from admissions to Mayo Clinic or Olmsted Medical Center. The prediction scores compared were PURSUIT and TIMI (see Table 1 in the article by Singh et al7). For STEMI, the TIMI score is based on 8 clinical indicators available on admission, with scores ranging from 0 to 14. For NSTEMI, the …
Meeting basic needs in Asia, Part I: Government capacity and performance

Questions concerning the distribution of income and wealth, and access to services have attracted increased attention during the 1970s to complement the earlier emphasis on the promotion of macro-economic development. This article provides a comparative review of service needs in Asia. It presents an inventory of the types of services provided by, or through, government, and assesses their adequacy for rural development. It explores problems with mobilizing resources and delivering services, and it identifies arrangements that appear most effective. The article emphasizes the problem of extending the coverage, and increasing the quality, of social and productive support services for vast rural populations and it stresses that more appropriate ways must be found of delivering services that are needed. A second article, to appear in the next number of Public Administration and Development, reviews ways of improving the capacity of governments and local communities to provide services needed by rural populations.
Studies in Neotropical paleobotany. XIII. An Oligo-Miocene palynoflora from Simojovel (Chiapas, Mexico).

A plant microfossil assemblage of 24 identified and five unknown pollen and spore types is reported from the early Miocene La Quinta Formation near Simojovel, Chiapas, Mexico. The taxa group into seven paleocommunities representing versions of the modern mangroves (Pelliciera, Rhizophora), swamp and lowland riparian forest (Ceratopteris, Crudia, Pachira), tropical rain forest ( Selaginella, cf. Antrophyum, Pteris, Sphaeropteris /Trichipteris, cf. Aguiaria, Crudia, Guarea, Pachira), lower montane rain forest (Alfaroa/Oreomunnea, possibly Eugenia), evergreen cloud forest [Picea, Pinus, Podocarpus, Ericaceae (possibly Cavendishia/Vaccinium)], evergreen seasonal forest (Hymenaea, Ilex, possibly Eugenia), and tropical deciduous forest (Cedrela). Elements of arid and high-elevation habitats were absent or few, and northern temperate elements (Picea, Pinus?) were few or rare. Paleoelevations are estimated at 1000‐1200 m (present average 2000 m, maximum 3004 m), MAT (mean annual temperature) at least as warm as the present 24 8C, and annual rainfall near the present ;2500 mm but more evenly distributed. The La Quinta (Simojovel) and other Tertiary floras from the region reflect a trend toward higher altitudes, more seasonal rainfall, cooling tempertures, increased introduction of cool-temperate elements from the north after ;15 Ma (million years), and increased introduction of tropical elements from the south after completion of the isthmian land bridge ;3.5 Ma ago.
Rapid and sensitive biosensor for Salmonella

The rapid and sensitive detection of Salmonella typhymurium based on the use of a polyclonal antibody immobilized by the Langmuir‐Blodgett method on the surface of a quartz crystal acoustic wave device was demonstrated. The binding of bacteria to the surface changed the crystal resonance parameters; these were quantified by the output voltage of the sensor instrumentation. The sensor had a lower detection limit of a few hundred cells:ml, and a response time of B 100 s over the range of 10 2 ‐10 10 cells:ml. The sensor response was linear between bacterial concentrations of 10 2 ‐10 7 cells:ml, with a sensitivity of 18 mV:decade. The binding of bacteria was specific with two binding sites needed to bind a single cell. The sensors preserve 75% of their sensitivity over a period of 32 days. © 2000 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.
Coupled temporal scoping of relational facts

Recent research has made significant advances in automatically constructing knowledge bases by extracting relational facts (e.g., Bill Clinton-presidentOf-US) from large text corpora. Temporally scoping such relational facts in the knowledge base (i.e., determining that Bill Clinton-presidentOf-US is true only during the period 1993 - 2001) is an important, but relatively unexplored problem. In this paper, we propose a joint inference framework for this task, which leverages fact-specific temporal constraints, and weak supervision in the form of a few labeled examples. Our proposed framework, CoTS (Coupled Temporal Scoping), exploits temporal containment, alignment, succession, and mutual exclusion constraints among facts from within and across relations. Our contribution is multi-fold. Firstly, while most previous research has focused on micro-reading approaches for temporal scoping, we pose it in a macro-reading fashion, as a change detection in a time series of facts' features computed from a large number of documents. Secondly, to the best of our knowledge, there is no other work that has used joint inference for temporal scoping. We show that joint inference is effective compared to doing temporal scoping of individual facts independently. We conduct our experiments on large scale open-domain publicly available time-stamped datasets, such as English Gigaword Corpus and Google Books Ngrams, demonstrating CoTS's effectiveness.
Spindle Model Responsive to Mixed Fusimotor Inputs and Testable Predictions of β Feedback Effects

Skeletofusimotor (β) motoneurons innervate both extrafusal muscle units and muscle fibers within muscle spindle stretch receptors. By receiving excitation from group Ia muscle spindle afferents and...
Pelvic organ prolapse, constipation, and dietary fiber intake in women: A case-control study

Objective This study was undertaken to determine whether there is an association among pelvic organ prolapse, constipation, and dietary fiber intake. Study design Sixty consecutive women with prolapse were compared with 30 control women without prolapse. All women completed 2 validated questionnaires to assess constipation and dietary fiber intake. Multivariate analysis was performed. Results The risk for constipation was greater in women with prolapse than controls (odds ratio 4.03, 95% CI 1.5-11.4). Median insoluble fiber intake was significantly lower in women with prolapse (2.4 g) than controls (5.8 g, P Conclusion Women with pelvic organ prolapse are at a higher risk for constipation than controls. This increased risk for constipation is partially explained by lower intake of dietary insoluble fiber by women with prolapse than controls.
Large Classroom Experience with an Interactive Tiled Display Mural

This paper presents work on an advanced multimedia lecture hall exploiting large tiled displays and student laptops, the software supporting their combined use, and the initial validation of this environment in enhancing learning and student-instructor interaction. Large resolution tiled displays allow multiple students with laptops or tablet pc's to present their work and collaborate with the instructor and other students during a lecture. In the system implementation, real time presentation of material to the tiled display is from the laptop's frame buffer, sent over the local area network, supporting presentation and interaction - and collaboration - independent of any software application. This provides a much more interactive classroom environment, far beyond the traditional chalkboard setting. We present evaluations of this classroom from an introductory computer networking class. Student feedback supports our hypothesis that this system will help enhance student participation, and the utilization of their personal laptop computers to capture better notes allows them to more actively participate in the class.
Viturbo: a reconfigurable architecture for Viterbi and turbo decoding

A runtime reconfigurable architecture for high speed Viterbi and turbo decoding is designed and implemented on an FPGA. The architecture can be reconfigured to decode a range of convolutionally coded data with constraint lengths varying from 3 to 9, rates 1/2 and 1/3, and various generator polynomials. It can also be reconfigured to decode turbo coded data with constraint length 4 and rate 1/3. Reconfiguration of the architecture requires a single clock cycle and does not require FPGA reprogramming. The proposed architecture can deliver data rates up to 60.5 Mbit/s for Viterbi decoding and 3.54 Mbit/s for turbo decoding, making it suitable for a range of wireless communication standards like IEEE 802.11a, 3GPP, GSM, GPRS, and many others.
Offering results to participants in a diabetes survey: effects on survey response rates.

Background: There are many reasons why an investigator may choose to share results with survey respondents; however, the practice is not universal. Moreover, while there is some evidence that the practice increases response rates, it is of limited generalizability.
Human milk pumping rates of mothers of singletons and mothers of multiples.

Rates of breastfeeding are increasing, but the methods by which human milk is fed to infants is not well described. Using a retrospective survey design, the authors collected information about infant feeding from mothers of term, preterm, singleton, and multiple-gestation infants (n = 346). Human milk feeding methods were characterized as solely at the breast, pumped only, or a combination. Sixty-eight percent of mothers in the study fed their infants at least some human milk; 77% of these mothers reported pumping milk. There was no difference in the percentage of pumping based on multiple gestation or length of pregnancy. Feeding human milk solely at the breast at early postpartum time points was associated with longer durations of human milk feeding overall. More research is needed to better understand why mothers choose pumping over direct human milk feedings and to evaluate the health outcomes associated with this practice. J Hum Lact. 21(4):413-420.
Feature-assisted threshold selection for all-zero block detection and its application to video coding optimization in H.264

All-zero blocks (AZB) denote blocks with all zero DCT coefficients after quantization. Early determination of AZB can avoid unnecessary DCT/Q/IQ/IDCT computation. Existing techniques in the literature primarily address more efficient thresholds for early determination of AZB. This paper deals with the selection of such thresholds based on low level features including motion activity and texture information. This aspect is then utilized to avoid any: (1) unnecessary quarter accuracy motion estimation, (2) unnecessary multiple reference frame motion estimation, and (3) unnecessary DCT/Q/IQ/IDCT computation. The developed approach has been applied to two different format video sequences CIF and QCIF. The results show that the computational complexity is significantly reduced while the video quality is maintained at a tolerable loss level.
Culturally constrained contention: Mapping the meaning structure of the repertoire of contention

While social network analysis (SNA) has traditionally been used to study actor networks, it can also reveal "meaning structures" (Mohr 1998), the relationships connecting cultural elements such as ideas and practices. We argue that the repertoire of contention represents a meaning structure, analyzable using SNA of tactical co-deployments at protests. We use data from over 7,000 protest events in New York State from 1960 to 1995. Our analyses suggest that co-deployed tactics are not chosen independently or combined randomly but rather cluster into sets with distinct roles. These roles reveal cultural affinities among the tactics and are largely stable over time, although some variation related to the protest cycle and tactical form can be detected. We also examine the position of a specific theoretical category of tactics, radical tactics, within the larger tactical repertoire.
Lexical Categories: Legacy, Lacuna, and Opportunity for Functionalists and Formalists

The fundamental importance of lexical categories is uncontroversial within both formal and functional approaches to grammatical analysis. But despite the familiarity of this topic and its foundational nature for grammatical description and analysis, it is paradoxically not among the best-studied or -understood topics from either the functionalist or formalist perspective. Both schools of linguistic theory have inherited their basic assumptions and instincts about lexical categories from the structuralist practice of distributional analysis. We briefly survey approaches to the various lexical categories. We then comment on a few issues of strategic value that arise from these approaches, including the importance of clearly distinguishing roots, stems, words, and syntactic units when it comes to issues of lexical categories; the importance of recognizing when distributional tests are similar across languages in principled ways; and the need for the choice of distributional tests to be informed by theoretica...
Examining National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) Data: Perspectives From a Quarter Century of Analysis Efforts

The National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) has been a repository for crime data for almost 25 years. This work explores the uses and applications of these data to shed light on a variety ...
Effects of Step Excrescences on Swept-Wing Transition

An in-flight test article mounted on a Cessna O-2A Skymaster studying the effect of forwardand aft-facing steps on swept-wing boundary-layer transition is described. An accurate instrumentation suite, consisting of a five-hole probe, static pressure ports, and an infrared camera is presented. Pressure coefficient profiles compare favorably with a computational validation. Infrared thermography is used as a global transition detection technique. Step height and transition location based Reynolds numbers are computed and compared with unswept transition studies. Based on the current data, the addition of the crossflow instability is believed to reduce the critical step height Reynolds number for both forwardand aft-facing steps.