cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
MODELING THE EFFECT OF MICROSTRUCTURAL FEATURES ON THE NUCLEATION OF CREEP CAVITIES

A crystal plasticity based finite element model has been applied to study the deformation of metals at the microstructural length scale, in order to determine the effect of various microstructural features on the nucleation of creep cavities. The deformation model captures the non-uniform distributions of the equivalent plastic strain and the hydrostatic stress within the different grains of the microstructure when subjected to cyclic loading conditions. The influence of various microstructural features such as grain boundaries, triple junctions, and second-phase particles, on the strain and stress fields is examined through the simulations. The results indicate that the various microstructural parameters, such as grain orientation, presence of the precipitates and their shape, and alignment of the boundaries with respect to the loading direction influence the strain and stress distributions, and therefore, the conditions that favor the nucleation and growth of creep cavities.
The role of imagination in the disease process: post-Cartesian history.

A previous paper traced the pre-Cartesian history of the concept of imagination as a causal variable in physiopathology. The present paper continues that history, showing the prohibitive impact of mind-body dualism and sampling the views of some eighteenth- and nineteenth-century supporters of the theory. Contemporary research has produced abundant evidence supporting the historic belief that imagination has an arousal function and a direct link to physiopathology. This literature is surveyed and possible therapeutic applications are discussed.
Can computers discover ideal knots

We discuss the relationship between polygonal knot energies and smooth knot energies, concentrating on ropelength. We show that a smooth knot can be inscribed in a polygonal knot in such a way that the ropelength values are close. For a given knot type, we show that polygonal ropelength minima exist and that the minimal polygonal ropelengths converge to the minimal ropelength of the smooth knot type. A subsequence of these polygons converges to a smooth ropelength minimum. Thus, ropelength minimizations performed on polygonal knots do, in fact, approximate ropelength minimizations for smooth knots.
A Social Media Practicum: An Action-Learning Approach to Social Media Marketing and Analytics

To prepare students for the rapidly evolving field of digital marketing, which requires more and more technical skills every year, a social media practicum creates a learning environment in which students can apply marketing principles and become ready for collaborative work in social media marketing and analytics. Using student newspapers as examples, the practicum adopts an action-learning approach to enhance student knowledge and skills in social media. This paper describes the structure, process, and tools that support this practical experience in a marketing course. The extent to which the practicum helps in preparing students is assessed and reported.
Nonoxidative ethanol metabolism in human leukocytes: detection of fatty acid ethyl ester synthase activity.

Oxidative pathways of alcohol metabolism such as alcohol dehydrogenase usually are not present in human blood and therefore clinical studies correlating ethanol metabolism with alcohol abuse syndromes have not been performed. To assess the activity of nonoxidative ethanol metabolism in blood, we assayed for the activity of fatty acid ethyl ester synthase, a pathway recently described as abundant in the human organs most commonly damaged by alcohol. Indeed, peripheral human leukocytes contain detectable fatty acid ethyl ester synthase activity: 1.2 × 106 leukocytes from 10 ml blood catalyze the synthesis of ethyl oleate at 1.4 nmol/4 hr. The reaction is linear with respect to cell number and expended time; Kmoleate = 600 μM, Kmethanol = 600 mM. DEAE cellulose chromatography partially purifies synthase activity into a minor and major form (activity ratio = 101. Thus, gene products exist in human blood that recognize ethanol and whose biological activity is conveniently assayable for clinical investigations of alcohol metabolism and abuse.
The role of exenteration

Abstract The selection of women for an exenteration procedure depends initially on the pattern of referral to a centre of excellence. The majority of these operations are carried out on women with central recurrent disease in the pelvis following primary treatment with radiotherapy. A smaller number of cases are operated on for carcinoma of the vulva or vagina. Exenteration is intended as a curative operation although occasionally it is done as a palliative procedure when a fistula is present. The assessment and counselling of patients is vital to the success of the procedure. The final decision to proceed will often only be made after a detailed intra-operative review of the upper abdomen and frozen section of all of the pelvic lymph nodes. Only if the findings are negative is it justified to proceed. The reconstructive procedures include the formation of an ileal conduit and colostomy and in some cases the formation of a neo-vagina. It is recommended that there is a team approach for assessment, operation and postoperative care by a gynaecologist, a urologist and a colorectal surgeon. Strict observation of these criteria should produce a cure rate approaching or even exceeding 50%.
Effect of Metoclopramide on the Secretion and Metabolism of Aldosterone in Man

We performed this study to determine whether metoclopramide increasesthe concentration of plasma aldosterone in normal man by increasing the secretion rate of aldosterone or by decreasing aldosterone metabolic clearance. On the firstday that metoclopramide was administered orally to sevennormal subjects, the secretion rate of aldosterone increased significantly (P < 0.05) from the rate during the preceding placebo period. By the fourth day of treatment, the secretion rate had returned to control values and remained there during an ensuing placebo period. The excretion rate of aldosterone followed a similar pattern. The increasein aldosterone secretion was accompanied by a transient but significant decrease in urinary sodium excretion. Metoclopramide administered iv had no effect on the metabolic clearance of aldosterone. Metoclopramide stimulated aldosterone-producing adenomas and nodular hyperplastic adrenal tissue resected from patients with primary aldosteronism to produce aldosterone in vitro. We conc...
An analysis of approximate versus exact discrimination values

Abstract Term discrimination values have been used to characterize and select potential index terms for use during automatic indexing. Two basic approaches to the calculation of discrimination values have been suggested. These approaches differ in their calculation of space density; one method uses the average document-pair similarity for the collection and the other constructs an artificial, “average” document, the centroid, and computes the sum of the similarities of each document with the centroid. The former method has been said to produce “exact” discrimination values and the latter “approximate” values. This article investigates the differences between the algorithms associated with these two approaches (as well as several modified versions of the algorithms) in terms of their impact on the discrimination value model by determining the differences that exist between the rankings of the exact and approximate discrimination values. The experimental results show that the rankings produced by the exact approach and by a centroid-based algorithm suggested by the author are highly compatible. These results indicate that a previously suggested method involving the calculation of exact discrimination values cannot be recommended in view of the excessive cost associated with such an approach; the approximate (i.e., “exact centroid”) approach discussed in this article yields a comparable result at a cost that makes its use feasible for any of the experimental document collections currently in use.
Continuous breathing circuit flow and tracheal tube cuff leak: sources of error during pediatric indirect calorimetry.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether continuous gas flow in the breathing circuit or an airleak around the tracheal tube cuff will introduce errors into the measurement of oxygen consumption (VO2) with indirect calorimetry. DESIGN Nonrandomized, controlled trial. SETTING Experimental laboratory. SUBJECTS Ten healthy, anesthetized mongrel dogs, weighing 8 to 12 kg. INTERVENTIONS Data were recorded at seven levels of flow, from 0 to 12 L/min in excess of minute ventilation, through a continuous breathing circuit. Data were recorded at five levels of tracheal tube cuff leak from 0% to 40% of inspiratory minute volume. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS VO2 was measured using an indirect calorimeter with constant internal gas flow and calculated from results of blood gas analysis, cooximetry, and thermodilution cardiac output determinations at all levels of continuous breathing circuit flow and cuff leak. BP, heart rate, respiratory rate, arterial and mixed venous blood gases, and body temperature were measured to assess stability of cardiopulmonary function. Continuous breathing circuit flow did not affect the accuracy of indirect calorimetry until the total flow reached a critical value (11.5 L/min) that was slightly below the internal flow constant of the metabolic monitor (12.4 L/min). At higher circuit flows, measured VO2 decreased in a linear fashion, while calculated VO2 remained unchanged. Above the critical flow, the error of indirect calorimetry correlated significantly only with the total circuit flow (r2 = .64), not with the exhaled concentration of CO2 (r2 = .005) or the inspiratory-expiratory oxygen difference (r2 = .004). The continuous flow rate at the critical circuit flow was 66 +/- 15% of the subjects' peak inspiratory flow. Increasing tracheal tube cuff leak produced a progressive decrease in measured VO2 but not in calculated VO2. The difference between measured and calculated VO2 was linearly related to the magnitude of the leak (r2 = .56), and was statistically significantly larger at all levels of cuff leak, when compared with measurements during complete cuff seal. CONCLUSIONS An indirect calorimeter in which measurement of VO2 is based on internal constant flow rather than spirometry can be used to accurately measure VO2 from a continuous-flow breathing circuit, if the total circuit flow is less than the internal flow. This limitation may restrict the use of continuous flow to a level below the subject's peak inspiratory flow. The accuracy of indirect calorimetry cannot be guaranteed for any amount of tracheal tube cuff leak.
Critical Role of PDE4D in β2-Adrenoceptor-dependent cAMP Signaling in Mouse Embryonic Fibroblasts

One of the defining properties of beta2-adrenergic receptor (beta(2)AR) signaling is the transient and rapidly reversed accumulation of cAMP. Here we have investigated the contribution of different PDE4 proteins to the generation of this transient response. To this aim, mouse embryonic fibroblasts deficient in PDE4A, PDE4B, or PDE4D were generated, and the regulation of PDE activity, the accumulation of cAMP, and CREB phosphorylation in response to isoproterenol were monitored. Ablation of PDE4D, but not PDE4A or PDE4B, had a major effect on the beta-agonist-induced PDE activation, with only a minimal increase in PDE activity being retained in PDE4D knock-out (KO) cells. Accumulation of cAMP was markedly enhanced, and the kinetics of cAMP accumulation were altered in their properties in PDE4DKO but not PDE4BKO cells. Modest effects were observed in PDE4AKO mouse embryonic fibroblasts. The return to basal levels of both cAMP accumulation and CREB phosphorylation was greatly delayed in the PDE4DKO cells, suggesting that PDE4D is critical for dissipation of the beta2AR stimulus. This effect of PDE4D ablation was in large part due to inactivation of a negative feedback mechanism consisting of the PKA-mediated activation of PDE4D in response to elevated cAMP levels, as indicated by experiments using the cAMP-dependent protein kinase inhibitors H89 and PKI. Finally, PDE4D ablation affected the kinetics of beta2AR desensitization as well as the interaction of the receptor with Galphai. These findings demonstrate that PDE4D plays a major role in shaping the beta2AR signal.
cis- and trans-dichloro(3,6-dihydro-1,2-oxazine-N)(dimethyl sulfoxide-S)- platinum(II).

Both the cis, (I), and trans, (II), isomers of the title complex, [PtCl2(C4H7NO)(C2H6OS)], possess relatively undistorted square-planar geometries about the Pt atoms. For (I), cis L—Pt—L angles are in the range 88.8 (2)–91.08 (8)°, while trans angles are 178.61 (8) and 179.4 (2)°. For (II), cis L—Pt—L 86.1 (3)–93.7 (1)°, and trans L—Pt—L 175.5 (1) and 179.1 (3)°. The di­methyl sulfoxide (dmso) ligand adopts a normal pyramidal geometry in both complexes. In (I), the S=O bond essentially eclipses the adjacent Pt—N bond, while the oxazine ligand in (I) is twisted so as to avoid steric interactions with the adjacent chloride ligand. By contrast, the dmso ligand in (II) is rotated such that the S=O bond is approximately perpendicular to the square plane, while the oxazine ligand is once again twisted out of the plane by a similar amount as in (I). These are the first structural examples of square-planar platinum(II) complexes containing a 1,2-oxazine ligand.
Genomic analysis of hepatic farnesoid X receptor binding sites reveals altered binding in obesity and direct gene repression by farnesoid X receptor in mice

The nuclear bile acid receptor, farnesoid X receptor (FXR), is an important transcriptional regulator of liver metabolism. Despite recent advances in understanding its functions, how FXR regulates genomic targets and whether the transcriptional regulation by FXR is altered in obesity remain largely unknown. Here, we analyzed hepatic genome-wide binding sites of FXR in healthy and dietary obese mice by chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-seq) analysis. A total of 15,263 and 5,272 FXR binding sites were identified in livers of healthy and obese mice, respectively, after a short 1-hour treatment with the synthetic FXR agonist, GW4064. Of these sites, 7,440 and 2,344 were detected uniquely in healthy and obese mice. FXR-binding sites were localized mostly in intergenic and intron regions at an inverted repeat 1 motif in both groups, but also clustered within 1 kilobase of transcription start sites. FXR-binding sites were detected near previously unknown target genes with novel functions, including diverse cellular signaling pathways, apoptosis, autophagy, hypoxia, inflammation, RNA processing, metabolism of amino acids, and transcriptional regulators. Further analyses of randomly selected genes from both healthy and obese mice suggested that more FXR-binding sites are likely functionally inactive in obesity. Surprisingly, occupancies of FXR, retinoid X receptor alpha, RNA polymerase II, and epigenetic gene activation and repression histone marks, and messenger RNA levels of genes examined, suggested that direct gene repression by agonist-activated FXR is common. Conclusion: Comparison of genomic FXR-binding sites in healthy and obese mice suggested that FXR transcriptional signaling is altered in dietary obese mice, which may underlie aberrant metabolism and liver function in obesity. (HEPATOLOGY 2012;56:108–117)
Lethal response of C57BL mice to 10 MeV x-rays and to 60Co gamma-rays.

SummaryThe LD50/30 of female and male C57BL mice was used as an end-point to estimate the r.b.e. of 10 MeV X-rays at a dose-rate of 35 rads/min, and the r.b.e. of 60Co gamma-rays at a dose-rate of 6 rads/min, using the LD50/30 of 60Co gamma-rays at a dose-rate of 35 rads/min as the base-line. The r.b.e. of 10 MeV X-rays at 35 rads/min and that of 60Co gamma-rays at 6 rads/min were found to be 1·00 ± 0·03 and 0·72 ± 0·4 respectively.
Comparison of the Structures and Vibrational Modes of Carboxybiotin and N-Carboxy-2-imidazolidone

The spontaneous decarboxylation of N-carboxy-2-imidazolidone (a model for carboxybiotin) and N(1‘)-carboxybiotin can be followed at high pH by Raman and FTIR spectroscopies. The major bands associa...
Site-Selective Cu Deposition on Pt Dendrimer-Encapsulated Nanoparticles: Correlation of Theory and Experiment

The voltammetry of Cu underpotential deposition (UPD) onto Pt dendrimer-encapsulated nanoparticles (DENs) containing an average of 147 Pt atoms (Pt147) is correlated to density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Specifically, the voltammetric peak positions are in good agreement with the calculated energies for Cu deposition and stripping on the Pt(100) and Pt(111) facets of the DENs. Partial Cu shells on Pt147 are more stable on the Pt(100) facets, compared to the Pt(111) facets, and therefore, Cu UPD occurs on the 4-fold hollow sites of Pt(100) first. Finally, the structures of Pt DENs having full and partial monolayers of Cu were characterized in situ by X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). The results of XAS studies are also in good agreement with the DFT-optimized models.
Comparative study of emerging 100-Mbps LAN standards

The advances in computing and applications have contributed to migration of networking speeds from the 10 Megabits per second (Mbps) ubiquitous Ethernet networks to 100 Megabits per second (Mbps). In the 100 Mbps fornt-end networking arena, there are several competing standards vying for a reasonable share of the market, the chief amongst them being 100baseTX, 100baseT4 and 100VG-AnyLAN. This paper will provide a brief summary of each of the three competing standards, their applications, and topology.© (1995) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Women as Leaders

Development of organizational leaders has long been the subject of inquiry. Professional socialization has recently become an area of extensive research. The purpose of this research involved organ...
Indexing the invisible web: a survey

Purpose – The existence and continued growth of the invisible web creates a major challenge for search engines that are attempting to organize all of the material on the web into a form that is easily retrieved by all users. The purpose of this paper is to identify the challenges and problems underlying existing work in this area.Design/methodology/approach – A discussion based on a short survey of prior work, including automated discovery of invisible web site search interfaces, automated classification of invisible web sites, label assignment and form filling, information extraction from the resulting pages, learning the query language of the search interface, building content summary for an invisible web site, selecting proper databases, integrating invisible web‐search interfaces, and accessing the performance of an invisible web site.Findings – Existing technologies and tools for indexing the invisible web follow one of two strategies: indexing the web site interface or examining a portion of the con...
Stoichiometry and Assembly of Olfactory Cyclic Nucleotide-Gated Channels

Native ion channels are precisely tuned to their physiological role in neuronal signaling. This tuning frequently involves the controlled assembly of heteromeric channels comprising multiple types of subunits. Cyclic nucleotide-gated (CNG) channels of olfactory neurons are tetramers and require three types of subunits, CNGA2, CNGA4, and CNGB1b, to exhibit properties necessary for olfactory transduction. Using fluorescently tagged subunits and fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), we find the subunit composition of heteromeric olfactory channels in the surface membrane is fixed, with 2:1:1 CNGA2:CNGA4:CNGB1b. Furthermore, when expressed individually with CNGA2, CNGA4 and CNGB1b subunits were still present in only a single copy and, when expressed alone, did not self-assemble. These results suggest that the precise assembly of heteromeric olfactory channels results from a mechanism where CNGA4 and CNGB1b subunits have a high affinity for CNGA2 but not for self-assembly, precluding more than one CNGA4 or CNGB1b subunit in the channel complex.
Demonstrating Classical Conditioning in Introductory Psychology: Needles Do Not Always Make Balloons Pop!

Explaining classical conditioning to introductory, psychology classes is sometimes difficult. This article describes u demonstration of u classically conditioned response that occurs when a needle pierces, but does not pop, a balloon.
Does germanium interact with radular morphogenesis and biomineralization in the limpet Lottia gigantea

1. 1. Specimens of Lottia gigantea were incubated in germanium enriched seawater ([Ge][Si] = 0.2–783) for 1–8 days. The siliceous radulae were examined histologically. 2. 2. No visible changes, degenerations or deformations were found in all 62 experimental radulae, although germanium is known to be a competitive inhibitor of silicon. 3. 3. In high concentrations, germanium was toxic to the limpets and killed them. 4. 4. Germanium was incorporated into the radular teeth in a distribution similar to silicon. 5. 5. Two suggestions are discussed for the apparent noninhibitory result.
Further observations on water oxidation catalyzed by mononuclear Ru(II) complexes.

A family of 28 mononuclear Ru(II) complexes have been prepared and characterized by 1H NMR, electronic absorption, and cyclic voltammetry. These complexes are studied as catalysts for water oxidation. All the catalysts possess one tridentate ligand, closely related to 2,2′;6,2″-terpyridine (tpy) and may be divided into two basic types. In the type-1 catalyst, the three remaining coordination sites are occupied by a bidentate closely related to 2,2′-bipyridine (bpy) and a monodentate halogen (Br, Cl, or I) or water molecule. In the type-2 catalyst, the three remaining coordination sites are occupied by two axial 4-picoline molecules and an equatorial halogen or water. In general the type-2 catalysts are more reactive than the type-1. The type-2 iodo-catalyst shows first-order behavior and, unlike the bromo- and chloro-catalysts, does not require water–halogen exchange to show good activity. The importance of steric strain and hindrance around the metal center is examined. The introduction of three t-butyl ...
Stress responses and sexing of wild Kemp's ridley sea turtles (Lepidochelys kempii) in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico.

Abstract Plasma corticosterone, glucose, and testosterone concentrations were measured in wild, immature specimens of the highly endangered Kemp's ridley sea turtle ( Lepidochelys kempii ) to determine effects of acute handling stress. Thirty-nine free-ranging turtles were captured by entanglement net near the Cedar Keys, Florida. Blood samples were collected immediately after retrieval from the net, and at 30 min ( n = 15) and at 60 min ( n = 29) thereafter. Mean plasma corticosterone and glucose concentrations increased significantly with time. No significant difference was observed over time for mean testosterone concentrations. Approximately half of the turtles demonstrated an increase in plasma testosterone after 60 min of captivity while the others demonstrated a decrease. Initial testosterone concentrations were used to determine the sex of individual turtles. Fifty-nine percent of turtles were classified as female, 33% as male, and 8% as indeterminant. The results of this study demonstrate a responsive hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and hyperglycemia in immature Kemp's ridley turtles during acute handling stress
A Sex Attractant for the Great Dart, Eurois occulta : a Mixture of (Z)-9-Tetradecen-1-ol Acetate and (Z)-11-Hexadecen-1-ol Acetate

(Z)-9-tetradecenyl acetate admixed with (Z)-11-hexadecenyl acetate was found to be a powerful attractant for ♂ Eurois occulta moths. Mixtures containing 20–30% of the 2nd compound gave best capture rates in the field trapping experiments. Twenty-four compounds tested for synergism and inhibition revealed 3 inhibitors: (Z)-11-hexadecenol, (Z)-9-tetradecenol and (Z)-9-tetradecenal. Electroantennogram analysis and field test results correlated well for this species. A survey of the presence of this somewhat rare moth was carried out at several points in western Canada.
Accuracy and reliability of the endoscopic classification of portal hypertensive gastropathy.

Abstract Background: There is no consensus regarding the endoscopic classification of the severity of portal hypertensive gastropathy. This study compared the accuracy and reproducibility of the 2-category classification system (2-CCS) with the 3-category classification system (3-CCS). Methods: Ninety-eight endoscopic pictures of portal hypertensive gastropathy and 22 of nonspecific gastritis were selected. Eight duplicate sets were generated, each in a different random order. These were shown to 6 experienced endoscopists during 2 sessions 1 week apart with 4 slide sets at each session. Each picture was scored by using either the 2-CCS or 3-CCS. Kappa statistics and percent agreement were used to estimate the reproducibility and agreement. Results: The mean percentage agreement among the 4 separate readings for each observer was significantly lower for the 3-CCS compared with the 2-CCS (mean [standard deviation] = 33.5% [8.9%] vs. 64.9% [9.1%]; p = 0.0001). The mean (SD) interobserver kappa values were 0.44 (0.03) for the 3-CCS and 0.52 (0.04) for the 2-CCS ( p = 0.02), and the respective intraobserver kappa values were 0.43 (0.1) and 0.63 (0.06) ( p = 0.002). Conclusions: Even though both the 2-CCS and 3-CCS have substantial limitations with regard to specificity and reliability, there were better agreement and reproducibility with the simpler classification system for portal hypertensive gastropathy. (Gastrointest Endosc 2002;56:675-80.)
Mössbauer measurements of magnetite below the Verwey transition

Abstract Above the Verwey transition ( T v = 119°K) Fe 3 O 4 is a cubic inverse spinel. Below T v it exists in a multiply twinned orthorhombic state. The lines in the Mossbauer spectrum below T v are broadened due to the distribution of angles between the magnetic field and the electric field gradient. This angular ambiguity can be removed by measuring untwinned single crystals in a magnetic field. Twinning is elimenated by cooling the crystal through T v in a magnetic field directed along [100]. The single crystal spectrum could then be resolved into five individual components corresponding to a tetrahedral Fe +3 , two octahedral Fe +3 and two octahedral Fe +2 sites. The hyperfine fields, quadrupole shifts and isomer shifts are given for the five spectral components. To explain the observed five spectra, the unit cell proposed by Verwey must be at least doubled in size.
Vaginal birth after cesarean delivery: An historic cohort cost analysis☆

Abstract Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relative cost-effectiveness of attempted vaginal birth after cesarean delivery compared with elective repeat cesarean delivery. Study Design: We performed an historic cohort analysis of women with a single prior cesarean delivery who were delivered at our institution during 1999. Inclusion criteria were ≥36 weeks' gestation and carrying a live, singleton fetus with no antenatally diagnosed anomalies. The primary outcome variable was mean cost of hospital care for mother-infant pairs, as obtained from the hospital's Clinical Resources Department. Results: The cohort consisted of 204 mother-infant pairs, 65 in the elective repeat cesarean group and 139 in the attempted vaginal birth group. Mean cost of care was higher for mothers ($4155 vs $3675; P P =.03), and mother-infant pairs ($5949 vs $4863; P =.001) for the elective repeat cesarean group compared with the attempted vaginal delivery group. Conclusion: In women with a single prior cesarean delivery, a trial of labor is more cost-effective than an elective repeat cesarean delivery. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2002;186:890-2)
How should libertarians conceive of the location and role of indeterminism

Libertarianism has, seemingly, always been in disrepute among philosophers. While throughout history philosophers have offered different reasons for their dissatisfaction with libertarianism, one worry is recurring: namely a worry about luck. To many, it seems that if our choices and actions are undetermined, then we cannot control them in a way that allows for freedom and responsibility. My fundamental aim in this paper is to place libertarians on a more promising track for formulating a defensible libertarian theory. I begin by arguing that Robert Kane's influential formulation of libertarianism actually generates an acute worry about luck, showing specifically that Kane's recipe for solving the problem of luck and his attendant conception of the location and role of indeterminism derived from it are deeply problematic. I then offer a reformulation of libertarianism – particularly a new conception of the location and role of indeterminism – that is capable of avoiding the problems that beset Kane's theo...
Preparing new extremely difficult-to-form crystal structures

Abstract Simple ways have been found to prepare CaTi 3 Al 8 O 19 and LaTi 2 Al 9 O 19 as prototypes of difficult-to-prepare compounds. The structures are monoclinic with very large unit cells. The new technique has been successfully tried on Na 1 2 Ca 1 2 Al 11.5 Ti 1 2 O 19 .
Structural Classification of Bacterial Response Regulators: Diversity of Output Domains and Domain Combinations

CheY-like phosphoacceptor (or receiver [REC]) domain is a common module in a variety of response regulators of the bacterial signal transduction systems. In this work, 4,610 response regulators, encoded in complete genomes of 200 bacterial and archaeal species, were identified and classified by their domain architectures. Previously uncharacterized output domains were analyzed and, in some cases, assigned to known domain families. Transcriptional regulators of the OmpR, NarL, and NtrC families were found to comprise almost 60% of all response regulators; transcriptional regulators with other DNA-binding domains (LytTR, AraC, Spo0A, Fis, YcbB, RpoE, and MerR) account for an additional 6%. The remaining one-third is represented by the stand-alone REC domain (∼14%) and its combinations with a variety of enzymatic (GGDEF, EAL, HD-GYP, CheB, CheC, PP2C, and HisK), RNA-binding (ANTAR and CsrA), protein- or ligand-binding (PAS, GAF, TPR, CAP_ED, and HPt) domains, or newly described domains of unknown function. The diversity of domain architectures and the abundance of alternative domain combinations suggest that fusions between the REC domain and various output domains is a widespread evolutionary mechanism that allows bacterial cells to regulate transcription, enzyme activity, and/or protein-protein interactions in response to environmental challenges. The complete list of response regulators encoded in each of the 200 analyzed genomes is available online at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Complete_Genomes/RRcensus.html.
Effects of wafer temperature on plasma charging induced damage to MOS gate oxide

The effect of wafer temperature on damage to thin MOS gate oxide from plasma has been investigated for the first time. As the wafer surface temperature during an O/sub 2/ plasma exposure increases from 145/spl deg/C to 340/spl deg/C, the damage measured from charge-to-breakdown (Q/sub bd/) increases dramatically. This result agrees with Fowler-Nordheim tunneling current mechanism for plasma charging and the temperature activated damage model. The increase of damage at higher wafer processing temperature indicates that elevated temperature plasma processes, such as plasma enhanced CVD and Cu etching, can be expected to be more susceptible to charging damage than low temperature plasma processes.
What is wireless health

Recent advances in the electronics industry and wireless communication have enabled innovative domains of applications to evolve. Embedded processors and systems have become widely used in people's everyday life in various applications ranging from mobile communication to automotive industries to medical applications. The groundswell of wellness healthcare programs and patient management emphasize more involvement by patients themselves. This paradigm largely requires that patient information be readily available at the point of care, regardless of which physician the patient sees. The current proliferation of broadband wireless services, along with more powerful and convenient handheld devices, is helping introduce real-time monitoring and guidance for a wide array of patients. Low-cost sensors and wireless systems can now create a constantly vigilant and pervasive monitoring capability at home, at work, and in conventional point-of-care environments [4][5] (e.g., primary care physician offices, outpatient clinics, rehabilitation centers). Indeed, a large research community and a nascent industry is beginning to connect medical care with technology developers, vendors of wireless and sensing hardware systems [1], network service providers, and enterprise data management communities. Wearable devices focusing on personal health, rehabilitation, and early disease detection are now being prototyped. All these have led us to the new notion of "Wireless Health"
Optimal Modified Two‐Beam Representation of Dynamical X‐Ray Diffraction near a Three‐Beam Point

The conventional modified 2-beam treatment of dynamical X-ray diffraction near a 3-beam point is generalized by systematically including σ-π mixing in the normal modes. This generates an infinite set of first order modified 2-beam solutions. The optimal among these removes most of the degeneracy that in the conventional formulation led to divergences in next order perturbation. Simultaneously, it also achieves a partial diagonalization that minimizes the remaining coupling between the new 2-beam normal modes in the central region of the 2-beam Bragg reflection. The σ-π contribution of the new modes varies with the angular distance of approach to the 3-beam point. It yields an improved description of the effective 2-beam dispersion surface, and it clarifies that even σ- or π-polarized incident beams excite both normal modes within the crystal. The theory is compared with various earlier first order results, for both centric and non-centrosymmetric structures, and is applied to new possibilities of invariant phase determination using multiple beam interactions.
Transport of lipopolysaccharide across the cell envelope: the long road of discovery

Intracellular lipid transport is poorly understood. Genetic studies to identify lipid-transport factors are complicated by the essentiality of many lipids, whereas biochemical and cell biology approaches aiming to determine localization and mechanisms of lipid transport are often challenged by the lack of adequate technology. Here, we review the epic history of how different approaches, technological advances and ingenuity contributed to the recent discovery of a multi-protein pathway that transports lipopolysaccharide across the envelope of Gram-negative bacteria.
Medical care for the poor: no magic bullets.

LESS than a quarter of a century ago, at the time of the Great Society programs of President Lyndon Johnson, many believed that with the passage of Medicare and Medicaid a single standard of superior medical care for all Americans was at hand. Governmentally funded entitlement for the elderly and the poor, the two major groups that lacked private health insurance, promised that the problem of access would soon be history. Clearly, that expectation has not been fulfilled. Rather, developments in the 1980s suggest that the numbers at risk because of lack of insurance coverage for health care are increasing. It should be noted that the United States is unique among the developed economies in having based its general health insurance system on employer benefits, while providing coverage for the elderly and the poor as extensions of the Social Security system. What lies back of the serious miscalculation, what can
Short-Term dermal absorption and penetration of chemicals from aqueous solutions: theory and experiment.

Dermal penetration of organic chemical-contaminated water from showering and bathing scenarios is a concern of regulatory agencies that have been tasked with determining safe exposure levels. During household showering and bathing, nearly the entire surface area of the body is exposed for short periods of time (5 – 15 minutes). The primary means of predicting body burden during brief exposures is to estimate total chemical penetrated from the steady-state penetration rate using a skin permeability coefficient. A variety of approaches has been recommended to estimate “body burden.” The purpose of this investigation was to collect experimental data from short-term exposures to an organic chemical (dibromomethane [DBM]) in aqueous solution so that methods for estimating body burden could be compared. Rat skins were exposed in vitro to saturated aqueous solutions of DBM for 20 minutes and the amount of chemical in the receptor solution and the skin was analyzed. The total DBM mass in the receptor solution and the skin was taken to represent an in vivo body burden. These results were compared with the estimates of penetration from steady-state calculations, square root of time calculations, and a biologically based mathematical model. Results indicated that the amount of chemical in the skin and its fate during short exposures is important. The square root of time approach predicted total amount of chemical absorbed and penetrated better than did the steady-state approach. The biologically based mathematical model accurately predicted total body burden and could be used to distinguish between the amount of chemical in the skin and the amount of chemical that penetrated through the skin, which would be useful for understanding local toxicity.
A direct 15 N NMR study of erbium(III)-nitrate complexation in aqueous solvent mixtures

The extent of inner-shell ion-pair formation of Er3+ with nitrate ion in aqueous mixtures has been studied by nitrogen-15 (15N) NMR spectroscopy. At low temperature, exchange is slow enough to permit the direct observation of15N signals for nitrate ions in the Er3+ solvation shell and in bulk medium. In water-acetone mixtures,15N NMR signals for the mono-and bis complexes are observed at low nitrate to Er3+ mole ratios, but only the bis complex is evident at higher anion concentrations. No spectral evidence for the tris complex was seen at any nitrate concentration. In water-methanol-acetone mixtures, signals for the mono and bis complexes persist even at higher nitrate concentrations, indicating a reduced tendency to ion-pair with increasing dielectric constant. Preliminary15N NMR results are presented for the nitrate complexes of other paramagnetic lanthanide ions.
Ultrastructure of Akinete Development in a Blue-green Alga, Cylindrospermum sp

The structure and development of the akinete of a blue-green algae, Cylindrospermum sp., was investigated with the light and electron microscopes. Only the sub-terminal cell which appears to divide immediately before the onset of development becomes an akinete. There is first an elongation and then a rounding out of the sub-terminal cell. The akinete that develops is larger than a vegetative cell, but it has the same cell wall components and the same kinds of inclusions. There are an unusually large number of structured granules and ribosomes present. The akinete, in contrast to the vegetative cell, has a heavy fibrous coat outside the inner investment, and an electron dense substance accumulates within the fibrous coat. The fibrous coat is of medium electron density. The electron dense substance is drawn outward into rays, and the fibrous coat and the inner investment are separated by an electron transparent layer in the mature akinete.
No Change in the Age of Diagnosis for Fragile X Syndrome: Findings From a National Parent Survey

OBJECTIVE: To determine recent trends in the diagnosis of children with fragile X syndrome (FXS) and identify factors associated with the timing of diagnosis. METHODS: More than 1000 families of children with FXS participated in a national survey. Of these, 249 had their first child (213 boys, 36 girls) diagnosed between 2001 and 2007 and did not know about FXS in their family before diagnosis. These parents answered questions about the average age of first concerns, developmental delays, early intervention, and the FXS diagnosis. They also provided other information about their child and family, reported who made the diagnosis, and described ramifications for other children and extended family members. RESULTS: The average age of FXS diagnosis of boys remained relatively stable across the 7-year period at ∼35 to 37 months. The 36 girls with full mutation were given the diagnosis at an average age of 41.6 months. A trend was noted in earlier diagnosis of developmental delay for boys in more recent years. Approximately 25% of the families of male children had a second child with the full mutation before the diagnosis was given to the first child; 14 (39%) of the 36 families of female children had a second child with the full mutation before the diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: Despite patient advocacy, professional recommendations regarding prompt referral for genetic testing, and increased exposure to information about FXS in the pediatric literature, no changes were detected in the age of diagnosis of FXS during the time period studied. Earlier identification in the absence of systematic screening will likely continue to be a challenge.
Spontaneous otoacoustic emissions in chinchilla ear canals: correlation with histopathology and suppression by external tones

Two cases of spontaneous otoacoustic emissions (SOAEs) have been found among a sample of 28 chinchilla ears after noise exposure, and no cases of SOAEs have been found among 28 unexposed ears. Further observations of the characteristics of SOAEs recorded in the ear canals of two chinchillas after noise exposure are described. These signals were tonal, robust, and could be suppressed by presenting external tones to the ear. Histopathological evaluation of the cochlea of emitting ears revealed discrete basal-turn lesions near the positions corresponding to the frequencies of the emissions. Behavioral threshold shifts measured in one animal after noise exposure and acoustic intermodulation distortion product behavior in the other both suggest a region of increased vibratory response of the cochlear partition near the location of the SOAE. Results from these emitting ears support a hypothesis that a punctate loss of the organ of Corti (OC) may facilitate the occurrence of an SOAE. We further hypothesize that the following conditions are both necessary and sufficient for an SOAE to occur: (1) functional disruption of a normally present biomechanical control mechanism in a region of the OC; (2) presence of functionally active OC (especially outer hair cells) adjacent to the region. The observations from ears possessing SOAEs provide strong, though indirect support for active and nonlinear models in interpreting cochlear biomechanical phenomena.
A Coulomb gauge analysis of a wire scatterer

The Lorentz gauge is the preferred gauge when problems in electromagnetic scattering and diffraction are solved by a classical Maxwell equation potential function approach. The free space magnetic vector and scalar potentials subject to the Coulomb gauge are obtained in the paper. It is shown that the Coulomb gauge vector potential dyadic Green's function can be extracted from the well known Lorentz gauge free space vector potential Green's function. The electric field mixed potential integral equation (MPIE) for a straight, circular, finite-length, narrow conducting cylinder scatterer is formulated and solved in both the Lorentz and Coulomb gauges and results are presented in terms of the cylinder surface current. The merits and drawbacks of the Coulomb gauge formulation are discussed.
Efficient Marginalization to Compute Protein Posterior Probabilities from Shotgun Mass Spectrometry Data

The problem of identifying proteins from a shotgun proteomics experiment has not been definitively solved. Identifying the proteins in a sample requires ranking them, ideally with interpretable sco...
PUBERTAS PRAECOX (MACROGENITOSOMIA)

Lisser (1) gives th following dascription of hypergenitalism in preadolescent males: “The most significant symptoms are premature and excessive development of the genitals, premature change of voice, and rapid excessive development of the body in general. Erections and ejaculations may occur in the first year of life. It is stated that the mental development, though perhaps somewhat precocious, does not keep pace with the generalized precocity; in fact the demeanor of the child may appear to be more childish than is actually the case, because of his nearly adult appearance. The skeleton is influenced in an interesting manner; at first and for several years the boy is large for his age, as if he were becoming a giant, but the excessive output of testicular incretions hastens epiphyseal unification and the premature closure of the latter transposes a misleading and transitory gigantism into a final height which is not excessive and which may indeed incline toward a mild dwarfism. Roentgenograms of such boys...
Applying the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm to the Creation of an Accounting Ethics Course

This article explains how and why the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm (IPP), a 450-year-old approach to education, can serve as a framework for a modern principles-based ethics course in accounting. The IPP takes a holistic view of the world, combining five elements: context, experience, reflection, action, and evaluation. We describe the components of the IPP and discuss how they align with suggestions from prior research for providing principles-based ethics instruction in accounting. We conclude by describing how we used the IPP as a framework to create a graduate-level accounting ethics course.
Predicting Potential Radiation-Associated Cardiac Risks for Left-Breast Cancer Patients Treated With Postmastectomy or Breast and Regional Nodal Radiation Therapy

(newly trained technician) and 1.990 0.37 mm by operator C (1 year experience) (p Z 0.515) of the normal breast. Patient age, race, and proportion of left or right breast examined were not significantly different between scans assessed by the three operators (Table). Among the three sets of scans performed by the one operator, the mean skin thickness percent difference between baseline and week 6 was 2.98% 6.60% (p Z 0.174), between baseline andweek 12was 1.45% 3.34% (pZ 0.358) and between week 6 and week 12 was 1.55% 9.71% (p Z 0.437). The Pearson correlation coefficient ranged from 0.845-0.908 and the ICC was 0.871 (95% CI Z 0.771-0.935, p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Interand intra-operator reproducibility of skin thickness measurements remained high over time. Quantitative ultrasound for assessing cutaneous toxicity in breast cancer patients is reliable and may be readily used in large clinical studies involving many operators and institutions.
Progressive thermal desorption of vapor mixtures from a preconcentrator with a porous metal foam internal architecture and variable thermal ramp rates.

A vapor preconcentrator has been designed with the porous polymer (Tenax) packed into a highly porous metal foam to facilitate thermal conductivity and temperature uniformity throughout the bed of the preconcentrator during heating. Vapors were desorbed using linear temperature programming from room temperature to a maximum temperature of 170 or 200 °C; the programmed duration of the thermal ramp was varied from 10 to 180 s. The partial separation of vapor mixtures that are thermally desorbed from the preconcentrator has been examined in terms of a metric for resolution, using methyl ethyl ketone, toluene, and dimethyl methylphosphonate as a test mixture. Vapors desorbed as a sequence of partially separated overlapping peaks, as observed with a polymer-coated flexural plate wave sensor. It was shown that vapor mixture resolution improved as the total time of the thermal ramp was extended from 30 to 120 s. In this way, the preconcentrator serves to act as a preseparator in addition to its usual functions f...