cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influence of microampere current flow on tooth enamel porosity

Abstract A reflectance method has been developed for measuring subsurface changes of enamel during slow decalcification. Sugar-treated dental plaque was able to cause such changes in vitro. The method was used to explore the influence of electrical potential on dental enamel during decalcification and remineralization. In both instances a current flow of 0.5 μA favoured decalcification when the enamel surface was positive.
112-Gb/s transmission over 100m of graded-index plastic optical fiber for optical data center applications

100G transmission over GI-POF is demonstrated by using 112-Gb/s PolMux-QPSK modulation and digital coherent detection. The transmission distance over 100m and simplified coupling method is suitable for optical data-center applications.
Heart block apparently caused by trauma; report of case.

A case of heart block and Adams-Stokes disease apparently resulting from nonpenetrating trauma to the thorax is reported. It is recommended that electrocardiography be employed more frequently as a part of the examination following thoracic injury so that damage to the heart may be detected early.
Age of menarche in Bolivian girls of European and Aymara ancestry

Median age of menarche was determined in children of European and Aymara ancestry residing in La Paz, Bolivia (3600 m) and in children of European ancestry residing in Santa Cruz, Bolivia (400 m). Median age of menarche in European and Aymara highland natives was younger than reported by previous researchers, thus broadening the range of variation in age of menarche in high-altitude populations. Comparisons between La Paz and Santa Cruz European children suggested that growth and development at high altitudes results in a delay in median age of menarche of about 0.8 years.
Formulation of Spray-Dried Phenytoin Loaded Poly(ε-Caprolactone) Microcarrier Intended for Brain Delivery to Treat Epilepsy

This study evaluates the efficacy of the spray-drying technique in the bioengineering of phenytoin (PHT) containing poly(-caprolactone) (PCL) microcarrier intended for brain delivery for long-term treatment of epilepsy. Through orthogonally designed experiments, the optimal formulation and process variables for the preparation of PCL-microcarriers containing PHT were obtained. The produced microcarriers were characterized by coulter counter, scanning electron, scanning transmission electron microscopies, differential scanning calorimetry, powder X-ray diffraction, and in vitro release. The results showed that the produced microcarriers have a spherical structure, uniform size distribution, and a particle mean diameter of about 4.0 µm, which is suitable for brain delivery. The PHT was loaded as dispersed microcrystals within the PCL-microcarriers. From this system, PHT was released slowly into a buffer solution for approximately 14 days without any burst effect. These data suggested that PHT containing spray-dried PCL-microcarrier may be a promising drug delivery system for local brain delivery and long-term treatment of pharmacoresistant epilepsy. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association J Pharm Sci 96: 1018-1030, 2007
Analysis of CD154 and CD40 expression in native coronary atherosclerosis and transplant associated coronary artery disease

T cells have roles in the pathogenesis of native coronary atherosclerosis (CA) and transplant-associated coronary artery disease (TCAD). The mechanisms by which T cells interact with other cells in these lesions are not fully known. CD154 is an activation-induced CD4+ T cell surface molecule that interacts with CD40+ target cells, including macrophages and endothelial cells, and induces the production of pro-inflammatory molecules, including CD54 (ICAM-1) and CD106 (VCAM-1). To investigate whether CD154-CD40 interactions might be involved in the pathogenesis of CA or TCAD we performed immunohistochemical studies of CD154 and CD40 expression on frozen sections of coronary arteries obtained from cardiac allograft recipients with CA (n=10) or TCAD (n=9). Utilizing four different anti-CD154 mAb we found that CD154 expression was restricted to infiltrating lymphocytes in CA and TCAD. CD40 expression was markedly up-regulated on intimal endothelial cells, foam cells, macrophages and smooth muscle cells in both diseases. Dual immunolabeling demonstrated many CD40+ cells co-expressed CD54 and CD106. The extent of CD40, CD54 and CD106 expression showed statistical significant correlation with the severity of disease and the amount of intimal lymphocytes. Together these studies demonstrate the presence of activated CD154+ and CD40+ cells in both CA and TCAD lesions and suggest that CD154-mediated interactions with CD40+ macrophages, foam cells, smooth muscle cells and/or endothelial cells may contribute to the pathogenesis of these diseases.
Sporulation of Clostridium putrefaciens and the resistance of the spores to heat, gamma-radiation and curing salts.

Clostridium putrefaciens grew well in most media used routinely for culturing anaerobes, but produced spores only on lactose-egg yolk agar. The D80° was 8–14 min, z value was 4°–6° and Dγ, 0.16 Mrad. The inhibitory interactions of pH, NaCl, NaNO2 and incubation temperature are described.
Analytic contributions to the g factor of the electron

The analytic value of seven more graphs contributing to the g factor of the electron in sixth order is computed. After comparing with other numerical and analytic evaluations, an updated ''best'' theoretical estimate of the g factor is given, and compared to the experimental value. (AIP)
Damage control for torso trauma.

In the late 1980s, high-powered weaponry and multiple trajectories became common causes of injury in urban American trauma centres. Definitive injury repair often took many hours. Although surgery was technically successful, these patients often died of a lethal triad of hypothermia, acidosis and coagulopathy.
Automated analysis and prediction of accuracy and performance in ATR algorithms: II. Experimental results and system performance analysis

Automated target recognition (ATh) algorithm performance is often degraded by the propagation of sensor noise and input error through an algorithm's computational operations. In lieu of a detailed error analysis, algorithm perfonnance estimates are usually couched in terms of probability of hits (Ph) or rate of false alarms (Rfa). Although such measures may be useful to an algorithm's end users, they may not be meaningful mathematically to a designer or theoretician. That is, deficits in nonstandardized measures such as Ph and Rfa cannot usually be related analytically, in closed form, to noise and error at an algorithm's input. In Part 1 of this series of two papers [1], we discussed requirements for theory and software systems that support automated error analysis. We showed how the dataflow graph of an algorithm can be relabelled with error functions of each constituent operation. The resultant dataflow graph describes the error function of the algorithm. In this paper, we demonstrate the application of our novel error estimation software (called ERSIA -- ErrorReduction and Synthesis in Image Algorithms) to several practical image/signal processing (ISP) and ATh algorithms that were successfully employed in the detection of small targets in cluttered multispectral imagery [2]. For example, we analyze (a) the Adaptive Double-Gated Filter, (b) a statistical texture detector, and (c) gradient-based edge-enhancement algorithms. By perturbing the input with various types and degrees of noise (i.e., Gaussian, Lorentzian, and Poisson distributions), we show that ERSIA can accurately predict the output noise in each algorithm, and that these predictions agree with theory. We analyze the computational cost associated with each algorithm and with the automated error analysis, in terms of sequential (von Neumann) and SIMD-parallel computational paradigms. We also discuss the computational cost associated with the application of ERSIA to a given algorithm. Occasionally, this cost can be high, since ERSIA can be programmed to compute a two-dimensional error distribution for each image operand and scalar variable. Planned implementations of ERSIA on SIMD- and MIMD-parallel processors are discussed in terms of computational accuracy, cost, and portability.
SOLAR: A storage and on-line automatic retrieval system

SOLAR is an interactive Storage and On-Line Automatic Retrieval system which is operational at Washington State University. It can run continuously with virtually any mix of tasks in a general purpose computing environment. Complete document abstracts may be interactively reviewed on-line or printed offline at the searcher's request. SOLAR simultaneously supports up to 37 data bases and multiple users in an interactive search environment without a dedicated computer or even a large dedicated region of core.
Thalamic neuron hyperexcitability and enlarged receptive fields in the STZ model of diabetic pain

Abstract Distal limb pain in diabetes mellitus is frequently attributed to hyperexcitability of primary afferents associated with peripheral neuropathy. However, prior studies have demonstrated that, after traumatic nerve injury, hyperexcitability develops not only within primary afferents but also within pain-signalling neurons of the spinal cord dorsal horn and thalamic ventral posterolateral (VPL) nucleus, establishing a basis for tiered central pain generators or amplifiers. In this study we asked whether hyperexcitability develops within thalamic neurons in experimental painful diabetes. Diabetes was induced in adult male Sprague-Dawley rats with streptozotocin (STZ). Behavioral testing for tactile allodynia, performed one week prior to STZ injection and weekly thereafter, indicated that, by six weeks after STZ injection, mechanical allodynia had developed (mechanical withdrawal threshold
Gender-specific effect of overexpression of sFlt-1 in pregnant mice on fetal programming of blood pressure in the offspring later in life

Objective The purpose of this study was to determine whether fetal programming of adult blood pressure is altered in a previously characterized mouse model of preeclampsia that was induced by sFlt-1. Study Design CD-1 mouse mothers at day 8 of gestation were injected with an adenovirus carrying Flt 1-3 (10 9 plaque-forming units) or with an adenovirus carrying mFc as control (10 9 plaque-forming units). The resulting pups were followed until 6 months of age, at which time blood pressure (BP) was recorded continuously for 6 days. The offspring weight was also recorded from weaning until adulthood. Results BP was significantly higher in the male offspring that were born to sFlt-1–treated mothers compared with the controls. Male offspring from sFlt-1–treated mothers were significantly smaller from weaning until adulthood. However, there were no significant differences in BP and postweaning weight in female offspring between the 2 groups. Conclusion Our findings highlight the role of the intrauterine environment in the developmental origin of adult disease.
Stereospecific return in the methanolysis of propargylic halides. Remote phenyl directive effect on the stereoselection of carbonium ion capture

Abstract Product analysis in the methanolysis of an epimerie pair of propargyl chlorides shows that the solvolysis products arise from a common intermediate. The carbonium ion preferentially captures methanol on the Z -side by a 3:1 margin. The return products (the allenic isomers) are formed with complete retention.
Incumbency as a source of spillover effects in mixed electoral systems: Evidence from a regression-discontinuity design

Abstract In this paper we demonstrate empirically that incumbency is a source of spillover effects in Germany's mixed electoral system. Using a quasi-experimental research design that allows for causal inferences under a weaker set of assumptions than the regression models commonly used in the electoral systems literature, we find that incumbency causes a gain of 1.4–1.7 percentage points in PR vote shares. We also present simulations of Bundestag seat distributions to show that spillover effects caused by incumbency are sufficiently large to trigger significant shifts in parliamentary majorities.
Hormones and substrates in the regulation of gluconeogenesis in fasting man

Abstract Attenuation of hepatic gluconeogenesis in prolonged-fasted man as a mechanism of protein conservation is achieved by diminished presentation of precursor substrate (mainly alanine). This has been shown to result from decreased release of amino acids from their stores in skeletal muscle. Exogenous growth hormone fails to enhance conservation of body protein. Inasmuch as the endogenous levels of growth hormone are not changed, the data presented suggest that it is not the prime agent minimizing protein breakdown. Glucagon lowers plasma amino acids and though hepatic gluconeogenesis is augmented an influence on muscle amino acid release is not exclued. Synergism between normal or elevated endogenous glucagon and low insulin may determine the proportion of substrate extracted by the liver.
Neurobiological mechanisms in addictive and psychiatric disorders

Drug dependence is a psychiatric disorder characterized by compulsive drug use [1] and the appearance of negative affective symptoms when the drug is no longer self-administered [2]. The positive reinforcing effects of drugs of abuse are important for establishing self-administration behavior and habit formation [3]. In addition, it has been suggested that selfmedication of symptoms associated with psychiatric disorders provides another source of motivation for the initiation of self-administration of drugs of abuse [4]. Habitual drug use induces adaptations in brain systems associated with the acute rewarding effects of drugs such as the mesolimbic dopaminergic system. Cessation of drug self-administration induces changes in monoamine levels in brain reward circuits opposite to those after the administration of drugs of abuse [5–7]. For example, the acute administration of drugs of abuse elevates accumbal dopamine and serotonin levels, and dopamine and serotonin levels decrease below baseline levels after the termination of drug use [8,9]. Drugs of abuse also induce adaptations in different neuronal substrates than those involved in the acute reinforcing effects of drugs of abuse. There is evidence that cessation of drug use leads to the recruitment of the brain stress systems associated with behavioral and physiological responses to stressors [10,11]. Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) is a neuropeptide that induces behavioral and physiological responses resembling those observed during exposure to stress. Withdrawal from drugs of abuse such as cocaine, amphetamine, alcohol, and cannabinoids induces
Induction of pro-inflammatory cytokines by human T-cell leukemia virus type-1 Tax protein as determined by multiplexed cytokine protein array analyses of human dendritic cells.

Human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1)-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) is characterized by a hyperstimulated immune response, including elevated levels of inflammatory cytokines/chemokines and oligoclonal expansion of virus-specific CD8(+) T cells in the cerebrospinal fluid. Studies have shown that the HTLV-1 transactivator protein Tax is available for immune recognition by antigen presenting cells (APCs), such as dendritic cells (DCs). DCs are relevant to the pathogenesis of HAM/TSP because the presentation of Tax peptides by activated DCs to naive CD8(+) T cells may play an important role in the induction of the Tax-specific immune response that is observed in HAM/TSP. In this study, a human cytokine protein array was used to study the secretion of cytokines by monocyte-derived DCs (MDDCs) exposed to Tax. Of the 16 cytokines analyzed, 6 cytokines were secreted in significantly high amounts (> or =2-fold), including Th1 cytokines (IFN-gamma, IL-12, and TNF-alpha) and C-C chemokines (Eotaxin, MCP-1, and MCP-3). Selected cytokines were further examined at two concentrations of Tax and at two time periods. Furthermore, a transient exposure to Tax did not result in any cytokine production when examined at three different time points after exposure, indicating that a prolonged presence of Tax is required for its activity. Finally, inhibition of the NF-kappaB signaling pathway by specific inhibitors, abrogated Tax-mediated cytokine secretion. Collectively, these findings suggest a role for Tax-induced cytokine secretion from MDDCs, which may be critical for the cellular activation and tissue damage that has been observed in HAM/TSP.
Socioecological Perspectives on Cervical Cancer and Cervical Cancer Screening Among Asian American Women

Although cervical cancer is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers among Vietnamese American women (VAW) and Korean American women (KAW), both groups consistently report much lower rates of cervical cancer screening compared with other Asian ethnic subgroups and non-Hispanic Whites. This study aimed to explore multilevel factors that may underlie low screening rates among VAW and KAW living in a city where their ethnic communities are relatively small. The socioecological model was used as a conceptual framework. Thirty participants were conveniently recruited from ethnic beauty salons run by VA and KA cosmetologists in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The participants' average age was 44.6 years (SD = .50; range = 21-60). Most participants were married (80 %) and employed (73.3 %), and had health insurance (83.3 %). A qualitative interview was conducted in Vietnamese or Korean and transcribed verbatim. A thematic content analysis was used to identify major codes, categories, and patterns across the transcripts. The study identified several factors at the individual (e.g., pregnancy, poverty, personality), interpersonal (e.g., family responsibility, mother as influential referent), and community (e.g., lack of availability, community size) levels. The study sheds light on four major areas that must be taken into consideration in the development of culturally appropriate, community-based interventions aimed to reduce disparities in cervical cancer screening among ethnic minority women in the United States: (1) ethnic community size and geographic location; (2) cross-cultural similarities and dissimilarities; (3) targeting of not only unmarried young women, but also close referents; and (4) utilization of trusted resources within social networks.
Vrms/T quantitation: usefulness in patients with neuropathies.

This study evaluates the sensitivity of root mean square voltage (Vrms)/turns (T) ratios in neuropathies. Data were recorded with concentric needle electrodes from the biceps brachii, first dorsal interosseous, tibialis anterior, and calf muscles. Recordings were analyzed from 35 normal subjects as well as 24 consecutive patients referred for evaluation of neuropathic disorders. Direct tension measurements were not required. Reasoning from studies in normal subjects in which Vrms/T values were related to measurements of relative tension, the data were recorded during strong muscle contractions of less than 80% of maximum tension as monitored by mean amplitude values. For all 5 muscles, mean Vrms/T values ≥1.0 claculated from four separate needle sites were significantly more frequent in the patients than controls (p < 0.012–0.0001). There were 13 muscles in which relevant conduction studies were abnormal and Vrms/T ≥1.0 were the only abnormality of the needle EMG examination. In addition, a Vrms/T of ≥1.0 was present in 10/14 muscles in which abnormalities might have been expected but where other needle EMG parameters were unremarkable and relevant nerve conductions normal. This study indicates that Vrms/T measurements can add meaningfully to the electrodiagnostic evaluation of neurogenic dysfunction. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
A Mössbauer spectrometer

BS>The detector and velocity transducer components of a Mossbauer spectrometer are described. The energy resolution of the detecting system and the velocity resolution of the spectrometer are discussed in terms of the 14-kev line of Fe/sup 57/. Special techniques used in conjunction with studies of the 35-kev transition of Te/sup 125/ are described. The hyperfine splittirgs of the ground and first excited states of Fe/sup 57/ are reported as an indication of the possible utility of the spectrometer in the study of narrow line resonances. (auth)
The Policies And Politics Of Creating A Comparative Clinical Effectiveness Research Center

As part of the early efforts of the Obama administration to begin health care reform, $1.1 billion for comparative effectiveness research was included in the stimulus bill. Although this amount can be considered as an initial down payment, difficult issues such as where to place an ongoing effort, the role of such research in informing clinical decision making or reducing health care spending, and the governance to ensure full involvement by stakeholders have not yet been resolved. Legislation proposed over the past two years offers some insights into the options available going forward.
Conditional games: A framework for coordination

Game theory is often proposed as a framework within which to model coordination. Neoclassical game theory, however, focuses exclusively on individual preferences, whereas coordination requires a concept of group preference as well as individual preferences. Conditional game theory differs from classical theory in two fundamental ways. First, it involves a utility structure that permits agents to define their preferences conditioned on the preferences of other agents, and second, it accommodates a notion of group rationality as well as individual rationality. The resulting framework permits a notion of group preferences to be defined, and leads to the development of a metric to characterize the intrinsic ability of the members of a group to coordinate.
Characterization of the Arabidopsis Augmin Complex Uncovers Its Critical Function in the Assembly of the Acentrosomal Spindle and Phragmoplast Microtubule Arrays

Plant cells assemble the bipolar spindle and phragmoplast microtubule (MT) arrays in the absence of the centrosome structure. Our recent findings in Arabidopsis thaliana indicated that AUGMIN subunit3 (AUG3), a homolog of animal dim γ-tubulin 3, plays a critical role in γ-tubulin–dependent MT nucleation and amplification during mitosis. Here, we report the isolation of the entire plant augmin complex that contains eight subunits. Among them, AUG1 to AUG6 share low sequence similarity with their animal counterparts, but AUG7 and AUG8 share homology only with proteins of plant origin. Genetic analyses indicate that the AUG1, AUG2, AUG4, and AUG5 genes are essential, as stable mutations in these genes could only be transmitted to heterozygous plants. The sterile aug7-1 homozygous mutant in which AUG7 expression is significantly reduced exhibited pleiotropic phenotypes of seriously retarded vegetative and reproductive growth. The aug7-1 mutation caused delocalization of γ-tubulin in the mitotic spindle and phragmoplast. Consequently, spindles were abnormally elongated, and their poles failed to converge, as MTs were splayed to discrete positions rendering deformed arrays. In addition, the mutant phragmoplasts often had disorganized MT bundles with uneven edges. We conclude that assembly of MT arrays during plant mitosis depends on the augmin complex, which includes two plant-specific subunits.
An Immersed Boundary Method Enabling Large-Eddy Simulations of Flow over Complex Terrain in the WRF Model

AbstractThis paper describes a three-dimensional immersed boundary method (IBM) that facilitates the explicit resolution of complex terrain within the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. Two interpolation methods—trilinear and inverse distance weighting (IDW)—are used at the core of the IBM algorithm. This work expands on the previous two-dimensional IBM algorithm of Lundquist et al., which uses bilinear interpolation. Simulations of flow over a three-dimensional hill are performed with WRF’s native terrain-following coordinate and with both IB methods. Comparisons of flow fields from the three simulations show excellent agreement, indicating that both IB methods produce accurate results. IDW proves more adept at handling highly complex urban terrain, where the trilinear interpolation algorithm fails. This capability is demonstrated by using the IDW core to model flow in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, from intensive observation period 3 (IOP3) of the Joint Urban 2003 field campaign. Flow in Oklahoma C...
The Treatment of Relapsed Refractory Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

Despite the widespread use of highly effective chemoimmunotherapy (CIT), fludarabine-refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) remains a challenging clinical problem associated with poor overall survival (OS). The traditional definition, which includes those patients with no response or relapse within 6 months of fludarabine, is evolving with the recognition that even patients with longer remissions of up to several years after CIT have poor subsequent treatment response and survival. Approved therapeutic options for these patients remain limited, and the goal of therapy for physically fit patients is often to achieve adequate cytoreduction to proceed to allogeneic stem cell transplantation (alloSCT). Fortunately, several novel targeted therapeutics in clinical trials hold promise of significant benefit for this patient population. This review discusses the activity of available and novel therapeutics in fludarabine-refractory or fludarabine-resistant CLL as well as recently updated data on alloSCT in CLL.
Towards practical minimum-entropy universal decoding

Minimum-entropy decoding is a universal decoding algorithm used in decoding block compression of discrete memoryless sources as well as block transmission of information across discrete memoryless channels. Extensions can also be applied for multiterminal decoding problems, such as the Slepian-Wolf source coding problem. The 'method of types' has been used to show that there exist linear codes for which minimum-entropy decoders achieve the same error exponent as maximum-likelihood decoders. Since minimum-entropy decoding is NP-hard in general, minimum-entropy decoders have existed primarily in the theory literature. We introduce practical approximation algorithms for minimum-entropy decoding. Our approach, which relies on ideas from linear programming, exploits two key observations. First, the 'method of types' shows that that the number of distinct types grows polynomially in n. Second, recent results in the optimization literature have illustrated polytope projection algorithms with complexity that is a function of the number of vertices of the projected polytope. Combining these two ideas, we leverage recent results on linear programming relaxations for error correcting codes to construct polynomial complexity algorithms for this setting. In the binary case, we explicitly demonstrate linear code constructions that admit provably good performance.
Talking and reading science: Longitudinal data on sex differences in mother–child conversations in low-income families

Abstract This longitudinal study investigated sex and age differences and the short- and long-term effects of low-income mothers' talk to their children. Twenty-four girls and twenty-four boys were audiotaped playing with magnets with their mothers at the ages of 5 and 9 years. When children were in sixth grade, they completed a test of reading comprehension. Mothers' science-related talk and their social pretend-play talk at ages 5 and 9 were examined as predictors of children's sixth grade reading comprehension with a science and a narrative text. Mothers were found to use a higher proportion of both science process and social pretend play talk with boys than girls, and with older than with younger children. After controlling for children's mean length of utterance at age 3, maternal education, and children's proportion of science process talk at ages 5 and 9, mothers' proportion of science talk when children were 9 years old predicted children's reading comprehension for science text 2 years later when children were in the sixth grade. Results suggest the long-term impact of parent–child interaction on literacy outcomes, and also note the existence of sex differences in opportunities to learn about science at home.
Do you know where your cloud files are

Clients of storage-as-a-service systems such as Amazon's S3 want to be sure that the files they have entrusted to the cloud are available now and will be available in the future.Using protocols from previous work on proofs of retriev-ability and on provable data possession, clients can verify that their files are available now. But these protocols do not guarantee that the files are replicated onto multiple drives or multiple datacenters. Such tests are crucial if cloud storage is to provide resilience to natural disasters and power outages as well as improving the network latency to different parts of the world.In this paper, we study the problem of verifying that a cloud storage provider replicates the data in diverse geolocations. We provide a theoretical framework for verifying this property. Our model accurately determines which Amazon CloudFront location serves content for Planetlab nodes across the continental US.Our work is complementary to the recent paper of Bowers et al., which uses different techniques to verify that files are replicated across multiple drives in a single datacenter.
Trophic Effects of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Blockade in an Androgen-Sensitive Neuromuscular System

In adult male rats, androgens are necessary for the maintenance of the motoneurons and their target muscles of the sexually dimorphic, steroid-sensitive spinal nucleus of the bulbocavernosus (SNB) neuromuscular system, regulating motoneuron and muscle morphology, function, and expression of trophic factors. Castration of males results in somal, dendritic, and muscle atrophy as well as increases in brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the target musculature. Because BDNF can have either facilitative or inhibitory effects in other systems, we examined SNB neuromuscular morphology after BDNF blockade using a fusion protein (tyrosine kinase receptor type B IgG). Blockade of BDNF in gonadally intact males resulted in hypertrophy of SNB motoneuron dendrites and target musculature, suggesting that normal levels of BDNF are inhibitory in SNB neuromuscular system. BDNF blockade in castrated males prevented SNB motoneuron atrophy and attenuated target muscle weight loss. This is the first demonstration that the highly androgen-sensitive SNB motoneuron dendrites and target muscles can be maintained in the absence of gonadal hormones and, furthermore, that blocking BDNF can have trophic effects on skeletal muscle. These results suggest that whereas BDNF is involved in the signaling cascade mediating the androgenic support of SNB neuromuscular morphology, its action can be inhibitory. Furthermore, the elevations in BDNF after castration may be responsible for the castration-induced atrophy in SNB motoneurons and target muscles, and the trophic effects of androgens may be mediated in part through a suppression of BDNF. These results may have relevance to therapeutic approaches to the treatment of neurodegenerative disease or myopathies.
Experimental evaluation of passive radar approach for homeland security applications

By using the transmitters of opportunity, passive radar systems allow target detection and tracking without transmitting any RF energy. This approach ensures covert operation of the radar thus decreasing the risks of enemy detection and electronic countermeasures. In a nutshell, the passive radar utilizes the existing broadcast signals from multiple FM radio and TV transmitters, detects backscattered signals from targets, and employs advanced DSP algorithms to provide real time target position/speed estimation and tracking. In the first part of this work, the problem of estimating the true target position from three bi-static ranges is formulated and its solution is implemented using non-linear optimization tools. In the second part, the feasibility of using the passive radar approach for accurate target position detection is experimentally evaluated at 2.4 GHz. It is shown that the target range can be estimated with 50 feet resolution when a 6 MHz wide broadcast signal is used.
Diarrhea Etiology in a Children's Hospital Emergency Department: A Prospective Cohort Study

Background We evaluated the frequency of recovery of pathogens from children with diarrhea who presented to a pediatric emergency department and characterized the associated illnesses, to develop guidelines for performing a bacterial enteric culture. Methods We conducted a prospective cohort study of all patients with diarrhea who presented to a large regional pediatric emergency department during the period from November 1998 through October 2001. A thorough microbiologic evaluation was performed on stool specimens, and the findings were correlated with case, physician, and laboratory data. Results A total of 1626 stool specimens were studied to detect diarrheagenic bacteria and, if there was a sufficient amount of stool, Clostridium difficile toxin (688 specimens), parasites (656 specimens), and viruses (417 specimens). One hundred seventy-six (47%) of 372 specimens that underwent complete testing yielded a bacterial pathogen (Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli, 39 specimens [of which 28 were serotype O157:H7]; Salmonella species, 39; Campylobacter species, 25; Shigella species, 14; and Yersinia enterocolitica, 2), a viral pathogen (rotavirus, 85 specimens; astrovirus, 27; adenovirus, 18; or rotavirus and astrovirus, 8), a diarrheagenic parasite (5 specimens); or C. difficile toxin (46 specimens). Samples from 2 patients yielded both bacterial and viral pathogens. A model to identify predictors of bacterial infection found that international travel, fever, and the passing of >10 stools in the prior 24 h were associated with the presence of a bacterial pathogen. Physician judgment regarding the need to perform a stool culture was almost as accurate as the model in predicting bacterial pathogens. Conclusions Nearly one-half of the patients who presented to the emergency department with diarrhea had a definite or plausible pathogen in their stool specimens. We were unable to develop a model that was substantially better than physician judgment in identifying patients for whom bacterial culture would yield positive results. The unexpectedly high rate of C. difficile toxin warrants further examination.
Identifying isometric recruitment curves of electrically stimulated muscle

Two methods for estimating isometric recruitment curves of electrically stimulated muscles were tested on isolated muscles of anesthetized cats. The new, ramp deconvolution method results in estimates similar to the more traditional step response method but offers a higher resolution curve in less time. Changes in threshold and of the isometric recruitment curves with time are also demonstrated. >
Evolutionary hypotheses of risk-sensitive choice: Age differences and perspective change

Abstract This study tested specific predictions of risk preference in human choice derived from evolutionary hypotheses. The overall choice pattern revealed that subjects receiving a life-death decision problem described in a family context favored a risky probabilistic outcome over a statistically equivalent deterministic outcome. As predicted, the degree of such risk proneness varied as a function of sociobiologically important variables: the subject's age, their perspective, and the age cues about the hypothetical relatives saved in the deterministic outcome. Compared to young subjects, middle-aged subjects were much more prone to the deterministic outcome when it implied saving their younger family members but were extremely risk-seeking in favor of the probabilistic outcome when the deterministic choice resulted in the survival of older relatives. In contrast, the young subjects equally valued the younger and older hypothetical relatives and indistinguishably favored the probabilistic outcome under both saving-young and saving-old conditions. However, by changing the perspective of the young subjects from their own family to someone else's family, the saving-young deterministic outcome became more attractive than the saving-old deterministic outcome, resulting in differentiated risk-preference patterns. These results indicate an evolutionary origin of human reasoning and decision mechanisms that are sensitive to the biological characteristics of both decision makers and decision recipients.
THE EFFECTS OF TEACHING PRECURRENT BEHAVIORS ON CHILDREN'S SOLUTION OF MULTIPLICATION AND DIVISION WORD PROBLEMS

We examined the effects of teaching overt precurrent behaviors on the current operant of solving multiplication and division word problems. Two students were taught four precurrent behaviors (identification of label, operation, larger numbers, and smaller numbers) in a different order, in the context of a multiple baseline design. After meeting criterion on three of the four precurrent skills, the students demonstrated the current operant of correct problem solutions. These skills generalized to novel problems. Correct current operant responses (solutions that matched answers revealed by coloring over the space with a special marker) maintained the precurrent behaviors in the absence of any other programmed reinforcement.
The effects of altering environmental and instrumental context on the performance of memorized music

Three experiments investigated whether musical memory was context dependent. Instrumental musicians memorized music in one context and recalled in either the same or a different context. Contexts included atypical performing environments (Experiment 1: lobby/conference room) or commonly encountered environments (Experiment 2: practice room, professor's studio, stage). Experiment 3 extended the definition of `context' to include instrument. Pianists memorized and recalled on either a grand piano or an upright. In Experiment 2, memory was not significantly different when the learning environment was altered; however, significant context effects were found in Experiments 1 and 3. A memory preference for the one context was discovered in Experiment 1, while in Experiment 3, musicians who memorized and performed on the same piano recalled significantly more than musicians who changed pianos. Some evidence exists for context effects in music; altering the environment at performance may lead to retrieval failure.
Fixed Demand Traffic Equilibrium

Fixed demand traffic network equilibrium problems, in contrast to elastic demand traffic network equilibrium problems, which were the topic of Chapter 7, assume that there is a fixed and known travel demand associated with traveling between each origin/destination (0/D) pair in the network.
Seeking population-level solutions to obesity.

![Figure][1] Department of Population Health at NYU School of Medicine No one disputes that obesity is a large and growing problem. We see the manifestations in increased morbidity and mortality, decreased quality of life, increased medical costs, and real losses to productivity with
Sports and Identity: New Agendas in Communication

Sports and Identity: New Agendas in Communication offers a much-needed addition to the growing field of communication and sport research. It is the product of the New Agendas in Communication: Spor...
Colloquium : Fractional calculus view of complexity: A tutorial

The fractional calculus has been part of the mathematics and science literature for 310 years. However, it is only in the past decade or so that it has drawn the attention of mainstream science as a way to describe the dynamics of complex phenomena with long-term memory, spatial heterogeneity, along with nonstationary and nonergodic statistics. The most recent application encompasses complex networks, which require new ways of thinking about the world. Part of the new cognition is provided by the fractional calculus description of temporal and topological complexity. Consequently, this Colloquium is not so much a tutorial on the mathematics of the fractional calculus as it is an exploration of how complex phenomena in the physical, social, and life sciences that have eluded traditional mathematical modeling become less mysterious when certain historical assumptions such as differentiability are discarded and the ordinary calculus is replaced with the fractional calculus. Exemplars considered include the fractional differential equations describing the dynamics of viscoelastic materials, turbulence, foraging, and phase transitions in complex social networks.
GPC Analysis of Rubber in Guayule and Five Species of Parthenium (Asteraceae)

Abstract The genus Parthenium includes one species, guayule (P. argentatum Gray), that produces large amounts of good quality rubber. At present, guayule is the subject of research to determine if it can be developed as an alternative crop for the arid areas of the United States and other countries. Interspecific hybridization between guayule and other species of Parthenium can be accomplished without major difficulties, and there are several desirable agronomic traits that can be transferred from these species to guayule. These other species have not been reported to have large amounts of rubber. Rollins reported that some biotypes of Parthenium incanum H.B.K. contain small amounts of rubber. Taylor and Benedict reported that P. tomentosum D.C. var. stramonium (Greene) Rollins contained 0.02% rubber. Angulo-Sanchez examined 21 guayule plants from native stands near Saltillo and found Mw values varied between 6.10×104, 6.10×105, and 1.13×106; Mn values varies between 6.10×104 and 6.10×105 (Reference 7). T...
Heat Retention During Incubation in Nests of the Alfalfa Leafcutting Bee (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae)

Temperatures within polystyrene, paper, and wooden nests of the alfalfa leafcutting bee, Megachile rotundata (F.), were monitored during incubation at 30.0 °C. In the polystyrene and paper nests, temperatures began to increase 10 d after the start of incubation and continued to rise until adults emerged. Temperatures reached 35.1 °C In the polystyrene and 37.2 °C in the paper, while the wood nests never exceeded 30.6 °C. Compared with air temperature degree-days, cells in the center of the polystyrene nests accumulated up to 28 more degree-days after 20 d, whereas those in the paper accumulated 32 more degree-days. In polystyrene nests, heat units increased toward the center holes, reaching a maximum at the fifth row toward the center. Emergence was also monitored from polystyrene blocks, wooden boards, and loose cells. Females emerged 2.1 d later from polystyrene blocks compared with wooden boards and the emergence period was lengthened by 2.5 d. Because of the increased temperatures and the prolonged emergence period experienced with these materials, we recommend that filled polystyrene and paper nests not be incubated but be stripped of their cocoons as they were designed.
Trends in the Burden of Adult Congenital Heart Disease in US Emergency Departments.

Background We assessed trends in incidence, in-hospital mortality, and admission among patients with adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) presenting to the emergency department (ED) from 2006 to 2012. Hypothesis There is a considerable burden of ACHD in the US EDs. Methods We used the 2006–2012 US Nationwide Emergency Department Sample. All ED visits with ACHD were identified using standard International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Edition, Clinical Modification codes. Results The number of patients presenting to the ED with simple (40.6%) as well as complex (37.6%) ACHD across 2006–2012 increased significantly. Also, there was a considerable increase in prevalence of traditional cardiovascular risk factors among ACHD patients, including hypertension, diabetes, smoking, obesity, and chronic kidney disease. Besides miscellaneous noncardiovascular conditions, nonspecific chest pain (15.9%) and respiratory disorders (15.0%) were the most common reasons for ED visits among patients with simple and complex ACHD, respectively. Although there was a trend toward decrease in admissions across 2006–2012 (Ptrend < 0.001), the proportion of patients with ACHD presenting to ED requiring admission remained substantial (63.4%). Finally, there was significant variation in admission trends across different geographic locations, hospital types, insurance status, and ED volume among ACHD patients presenting to the ED. Conclusions There has been a progressive increase in number of ED visits among ACHD patients across 2006–2012 in the United States. Moreover, the cardiovascular risk-factor profile of ACHD patients has changed, adding to complexity in management. Current health care delivery to ACHD patients also shows significant geographical, hospital-based, and insurance status–based disparities.
Give and you shall receive: investing in the careers of women professionals

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore what organizations can do to facilitate the retention and advancement of women professionals into top leadership positions. A social exchange framework is applied to examine ways organizations can signal support for and investment in the careers of women professionals, and ultimately the long-term work relationship. Design/methodology/approach – This paper employed a qualitative methodology; specifically, semi-structured interviews with 20 women executives, in primarily the US hospitality industry, were conducted. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and content analyzed. Findings – Organizations are likely to strengthen the retention of their female professionals if they signal support through purposeful, long-term career development that provides a sightline to the top, and ultimately creates more female role models in senior-level positions. Organizations can also signal support through offering autonomy over how work is completed, and designing i...
Increasing Student Confidence in Engineering Sketching via a Software Coach

Sketching is an important skill for engineering design students. A serious problem found by Northwestern instructors is that students are afraid to sketch. We are tackling this problem by developing the Design Coach, which enables students to practice explaining their designs via a combination of sketching and language, to reduce their anxiety about communicating via sketching. This paper summarizes the overall operation of the Design Coach and reports on a classroom experiment providing evidence that that the Design Coach does in fact reduce student anxiety, compared to a control group that did not use it.
Static detection of C++ vtable escape vulnerabilities in binary code.

Static binary code analysis is a longstanding technique used to find security defects in deployed proprietary software. The complexities of binary code compiled from object-oriented source languages (e.g. C++) has limited the utility of binary analysis to basic applications using simpler coding constructs, so vulnerabilities in object-oriented code remain undetected. In this paper, we present vtable escape bugs—a class of type confusion errors specific to C++ code present in real, deployed software including Adobe Reader, Microsoft Office, and the Windows subsystem DLLs. We developed automated binary code analyses able to statically detect vtable escape bugs by reconstructing high-level objects and analyzing the safety of their use. We implemented our analysis in our own general object code decompilation framework to demonstrate that classes of object-oriented vulnerabilities can be uncovered from compiled binaries. We successfully found vtable escape bugs in a collection of test samples that mimic publicly disclosed vulnerabilities in Adobe Reader and Microsoft Excel. With these new analyses, security analysts gain the ability to find common flaws introduced by applications compiled from C++.