cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Auto Cameraman Via Collaborative Sensing Agents

In this paper, we propose a new multiple sensing agent based scheme for an automated cameraman. It is capable of 1) constantly monitoring the visual events in a global surrounding, 2) dynamically, based on the detected visual events, determining the monitoring strategy. These heterogeneous agents are coupled in a unique way to work not only asynchronously but also collaboratively via a facilitator. Such collaborative behavior leads to more effective solutions to some of the very difficult problems such as occlusion.
Toward Optimal Observer Performance of Detection and Discrimination Tasks on Reconstructions from Sparse Data

It is well known that image assessment is task dependent. This is demonstrated in the context of images reconstructed from sparse data using MEM- SYS3. We demonstrate that the problem of determining the regularization- or hy- perparameter α has a task-dependent character independent of whether the images are viewed by human observers or by classical or neural-net classifiers. This issue is not addressed by Bayesian image analysts. We suggest, however, that knowledge of the task, or the use to which the images are to be put, is a form of prior knowledge that should be incorporated into a Bayesian analysis. We sketch a frequent ist approach that may serve as a guide to a Bayesian solution.
Positional Astronomy and Stellar Masses

In this paper are surveyed the combinations of data needed for mass determinations, the impact of radial-velocity and speckle observations, the 1983 catalog of visual-binary orbits, the current material for main-sequence and red-dwarf masses and the controversial methods and results on low mass objects.
The Prediction of the Vapor-Liquid Equilibrium Thermo-Dynamic Properties of N2-Ar-O2 Mixtures Including Air

An extended corresponding states model for calculating the vapor-liquid equilibrium (VLE) thermodynamic properties for mixtures of nitrogen, argon, and oxygen has been developed. The model is based on four reference fluids: nitrogen, argon, oxygen, and air as a pseudo-pure fluid. The use of air as one of the reference fluids assures that mixture properties default to those for air when the mixture composition is that of air. Mixture Helmholtz energies are predicted using a Lagrangian interpolation method involving the acentric factors of the component. Modified van der Waals mixing rules containing empirical, mole fraction dependent, binary and ternary interaction parameters are used to determine the pseudo-critical properties of the mixture.
Micromachined viscosity sensor for real-time polymerization monitoring

This paper reports on low-frequency micromachined viscosity sensors intended for real-time polymerization monitoring. The viscosity sensors consist of micromachined membrane resonators featuring electrothermal excitation and piezoresistive detection of transverse membrane vibrations. In contrast to high frequency (above 1 MHz) sensors, e.g. thickness-shear mode sensors or Lamb wave sensors, the use of low-frequency (1-20 kHz) resonators for viscosity sensing, which more closely mimics conventional resonant viscometers, is investigated in this work. The viscous fluid loads the membrane resonator and changes the quality factor of its fundamental resonance. The change in the Q-factor is most pronounced in the viscosity range from 10/sup -3/ Pa/spl middot/s to 1 Pa/spl middot/s.
Suitability of different host plants for oviposition and development of Homalodisca vitripennis (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) and its implication on mass rearing.

ABSTRACT The glassy-winged sharpshooter, Homalodisca vitripennis (Germar) (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), is a major pest of grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) in Texas and California. It is a known vector of Pierce's disease and is considered the most significant insect pest threatening the grape industry in the United States. We evaluated the preference of four host plants for feeding and oviposition by H. vitripennis adult females. We also measured the suitability of nine host plants for the growth and development of eggs and nymphs under greenhouse and laboratory conditions, respectively. Embryonic survival exceeded 85% on all tested host plants, with the exception of sweet potato, Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam. More than 80% of the nymphs successfully reached adulthood on sweet potato, black-eyed pea [Vigna unguiculata unguiculata (L.) Walp.], and eggplant (Solanum melongena L). Developmental time of immature H. vitripennis nymphs was significantly affected by the plants on which they fed. The nymphs were more like...
Gastrointestinal uptake of liposomes. II. In vivo studies

The effect of liposomal entrapment on oral absorption of drugs was deter~ned from the excretion profiles of entrapped markers after oral administration to rats. Liposomal entrapment does not facilitate the uptake of PEG-4000, a non-absorbable, water-soluble marker. The excretion patterns of hydrocortisone and salicylic acid, when entrapped in L-a-phosphatidylcholine distearoyl/cholesterol or egg lecithin/cholesterol multilamellar or unilamellar liposomes, were not significantly different from the excretion patterns of the unencapsulated drugs. These results are in agreement with in vitro and in situ studies which suggest that liposomal entrapment does not influence the intestinal absorption of drugs and, moreover. does not even protect entrapped drugs from the environment of the gastrointestinal tract, The combined in vitro, in situ and in vivo results strongly indicate that liposomes show littk promise as a drug delivery system for oral ad~~stration. The increased oral b~oavailabi~ity of liposomally inco~orated drugs occasionally reported in the literature may be due to factors other than liposomal uptake.
The acute intravenous toxicity of biological stains, dyes, and other fluorescent substances.

Abstract Sodium fluorescein and indocyanine green are currently used as indicators for angiography of the retinal and choroidal vasculatures. This study was conducted to suggest additional indicator substances for this technique. Fifty-three dyes and biological stains were evaluated by the following criteria: intravenous LD50, histopathological damage from intravenous administration, binding properties in blood, in vivo metabolism of the substances, fluorescent and absorption spectra, and impurities detected with thin-layer chromatography. Male Swiss-Webster mice were used for the intravenous toxicity studies and for the metabolism and LD50 determinations. Several cyanines were modified by recrystallization with sodium iodide and an oxazine was sulfonated to improve their solubility and biocompatibility. Both techniques were successful in improving the intravenous toxicity and the solubility of the dyes in water. Iodination was not successful on the merocyanines. Patent blue VF and 8-hydroxy-1,3,6-pyrene trisulfonic acid trisodium salt were promising since both had impurities yet their LD50s exceeded 1000 mg/kg. Fluorones with two salt sites (NaO and COONa) were soluble at 10% or more in water. Nonhalogenated fluorones were excreted totally in the urine, while those with eight halogen atoms were removed via the biliary system. Those fluorones with six or less halogen atoms were excreted by both systems. Twenty-three of the fifty-three dyes were tolerated well enough for use in angiography of the ocular fundus. The majority of the substances had at least one impurity. In general, the cationic dyes were poorly tolerated; only 2 of the 23 acceptable substances were cationic. Those dyes that were anionic or dipolar were the best tolerated, with the dipolar molecules being cleared, at least partially, by the liver.
Dyslipidemia in chronic kidney disease: managing a high-risk combination.

AbstractCardiovascular disease (CVD) is the single largest cause of mortality in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), with those patients having a 10-year CVD-related morbidity and mortality of > 20%. This has led to the inclusion of CKD as a CVD equivalent, and justifies the aggressive treatment of modifiable risk factors such as dyslipidemia. Primary care physicians (PCP) often manage patients with CKD in the early stages of the disease and have a pivotal role in affecting long-term outcomes in CKD patients related to cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. Therefore, treatment of dyslipidemia often becomes the responsibility of the PCP and comes with its own set of challenges because of CKD-related issues (eg, the dose adjustments required). Exacerbating this problem is the fact that current guidelines are lengthy and complex. This article discusses the current guidelines for treating dyslipidemia in patients with CKD. Few studies have examined the safety and efficacy of pharmacotherapy for trea...
Blocking macrophage leukotriene b4 prevents endothelial injury and reverses pulmonary hypertension.

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a serious condition that affects mainly young and middle-aged women, and its etiology is poorly understood. A prominent pathological feature of PH is accumulation of macrophages near the arterioles of the lung. In both clinical tissue and the SU5416 (SU)/athymic rat model of severe PH, we found that the accumulated macrophages expressed high levels of leukotriene A4 hydrolase (LTA4H), the biosynthetic enzyme for leukotriene B4 (LTB4). Moreover, macrophage-derived LTB4 directly induced apoptosis in pulmonary artery endothelial cells (PAECs). Further, LTB4 induced proliferation and hypertrophy of human pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells. We found that LTB4 acted through its receptor, BLT1, to induce PAEC apoptosis by inhibiting the protective endothelial sphingosine kinase 1 (Sphk1)–endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) pathway. Blocking LTA4H decreased in vivo LTB4 levels, prevented PAEC apoptosis, restored Sphk1-eNOS signaling, and reversed fulminant PH in the SU/athymic rat model of PH. Antagonizing BLT1 similarly reversed established PH. Inhibition of LTB4 biosynthesis or signal transduction in SU-treated athymic rats with established disease also improved cardiac function and reopened obstructed arterioles; this approach was also effective in the monocrotaline model of severe PH. Human plexiform lesions, one hallmark of PH, showed increased numbers of macrophages, which expressed LTA4H, and patients with connective tissue disease–associated pulmonary arterial hypertension exhibited significantly higher LTB4 concentrations in the systemic circulation than did healthy subjects. These results uncover a possible role for macrophage-derived LTB4 in PH pathogenesis and identify a pathway that may be amenable to therapeutic targeting.
Relationships among prenatal aeroallergen exposure and maternal and cord blood IgE: Project ACCESS

Background Whereas some evidence suggests that antigen sensitization may begin prenatally, the influence of maternal allergen exposure during pregnancy has not been fully elucidated. Objectives We examined the relationship between prenatal maternal aeroallergen exposure and cord blood total IgE and the potential mediating/indirect effect of maternal immune response. Methods This study was performed in 301 mother-infant pairs enrolled in the Asthma Coalition on Community, Environment, and Social Stress (ACCESS) project, a study examining the effects of prenatal and early life social and physical environmental exposures on urban asthma risk. Dust samples collected prenatally from mothers' bedrooms were analyzed for cockroach and dust mite allergens. Cord blood was analyzed for total IgE, and maternal serum collected during pregnancy for total and specific IgE. We assessed the relationship between prenatal exposure and cord blood total IgE and the potential mediation effect adjusting for maternal age, race, education, smoking status, and dust collection season; and child's sex and season of birth. Results In multivariate models, elevated prenatal dust mite levels (>0.2 μg/g) increased cord blood IgE concentrations by 29% ( P = .08), and continuous dust mite concentration was associated with a significant nonlinear increase in cord blood IgE ( P = .02). Elevated prenatal exposure to cockroach allergen (>2 U/g) was not associated with cord blood IgE, but showed a significant indirect relationship through maternal total IgE (β = 0.23; 95% CI, 0.08–0.41). Conclusion These results demonstrate that maternal prenatal exposure to household allergens may affect cord blood IgE, albeit the underlying mechanism may be allergen-specific.
Implications of silent strokes

“Silent strokes” or “subclinical strokes” refer to incidental findings of strokes on neuroimaging studies, such as computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging/diffusion-weighted imaging, that are asymptomatic. These include lacunar and other ischemic strokes and minor hemorrhages, particularly in “silent areas” of the brain, but also include leukoaraiosis due to small vessel pathology of a variety of origins. Clinicians need to appreciate their significance because with certain conditions, such as atrial fibrillation and significant carotid stenosis, follow-up of these patients shows an increased incidence of strokes, impaired cognitive function, and dementia. These serious consequences of subclinical strokes require the clinician to be vigilant and institute preventive strategies to avert these untoward outcomes.
Delayed follicular development and ovulation following inhibition of FSH with equine follicular fluid in the mare.

In two experiments, PGF2α was given to all mares on Day 10 (ovulation = Day 0). In experiment 1, mares received either whole follicular fluid or saline i.v. every 12 hours on Days 10 to 14. Experiment 2 was similar to experiment 1, except the follicular fluid was extracted with charcoal to remove steroids. Analysis of the FSH data for Days 10 to 21 indicated an effect of treatment (P<0.08) with whole follicular fluid, but not with charcoal-extracted follicular fluid. However, there was an effect of day (P<0.05) and an interaction (P<0.01) of treatment with day for both experiments. The interaction of treatment with day seemed primarily due to a marked post-treatment increase in FSH concentrations between Days 15 and 17 for mares treated with either whole follicular fluid or charcoal-extracted follicular fluid. Analysis of the diameter of the largest follicle for Days 10 to 18 indicated a main effect of treatment (P<0.05) and day (P<0.05) and an interaction (P<0.05) of treatment with day for both experiments. The interaction of treatment with day was attributable to the inhibition of follicular growth by Day 14 for mares treated with whole follicular fluid and by Day 15 for mares treated with charcoal-extracted follicular fluid. The length of the interovulatory interval was longer (P<0.05) in the treated group than in controls for both experiments. Results indicated that equine follicular fluid contained a proteinaceous substance that suppressed circulating concentration of FSH. The inhibited follicular growth and the delay in ovulation were attributed to the reduced concentrations of circulating FSH.
Effects of a weakly 3-D equilibrium on ideal magnetohydrodynamic instabilities

The effect of a small three-dimensional equilibrium distortion on an otherwise axisymmetric configuration is shown to be destabilizing to ideal magnetohydrodynamic modes. The calculations assume that the 3-D fields are weak and that shielding physics is present so that no islands appear in the resulting equilibrium. An eigenfunction that has coupled harmonics of different toroidal mode number is constructed using a perturbation approach. The theory is applied to the case of tokamak H-modes with shielded resonant magnetic perturbations (RMPs) present indicating RMPs can be destabilizing to intermediate-n peeling-ballooning modes.
Migration of electrode components during ohmic heating of foods in retort pouches

Abstract During space missions, life support technologies must satisfy mission constraints, including maximizing safety and acceptability of food and minimizing crew time, storage volume, power, water usage, and maintenance down-time. Ohmic heating appears to be a feasible potential solution to meet food reheating and waste sterilization requirements; however, it is necessary to verify if electrochemical reactions such as gas generation and electrode corrosion occur. A pulsed ohmic heating system and reusable pouch were tested to ensure the food safety and quality by minimizing the undesired electrochemical reactions. Results of gas generation during ohmic heating show that stainless steel is far superior to aluminum since there were no noticeable gas bubbles even at the temperature of 70 °C. A study of migration of the major key metal ions from stainless steel, such as Fe, Cr, Ni, Mn, and Mo, measured by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) shows that pulsed ohmic heating produced comparable or lower migration of most targeted metal ions, compared to the conventional retorting when electrodes were present. The intakes of individual metal contaminants evaluated with respect to a typical meal (8 oz) after ohmic treatment were, as a maximum, 13.5% of recently published upper-level daily dietary exposure estimates. Consequently, pouches with stainless steel electrodes powered by a pulsed ohmic heater shows promise as a potential reheating and sterilization technology for space missions. Industrial relevance Ohmic heating has been used for many years in different industries and proved to be a promising food processing technology due to its rapid, yet uniform and high energy efficient heating capability. This paper demonstrates the potential of direct ohmic heating for foods in retort pouches at the household level as well as the mass production level, ensuring food safety by suppressing the metal ions migration far less than the dietary exposure estimates.
Machine-vision techniques for inspection of printed wiring boards and thick-film circuits

In this paper, a review of machine-vision methods for microelectronic production and related unsolved problems is given, based on research paradigms and manufacturing needs that are seldom addressed in the literature. Although the importance of many industrial machine-vision applications has been identified, this paper will cover only a subset of these problems because of space limitations. Specifically, the automated visual inspection of printed circuit boards and thick-film circuits will be reviewed. Different aspects of these problems will be surveyed, including manufacturing considerations, contributions to sensing techniques, and, more importantly, digital image processing and analysis methods. For printed wiring boards, several production stages are addressed in which automated visual inspection plays a key role, from artwork to lamination of multiple layers and plated-through holes. In addition, the main inspection problems arising in populated boards will be reviewed, such as solder joint integrity and top-surface component placement. Finally, some machine-vision approaches used for thick-film and hybrid circuit inspection are considered.
Divergent thinking is not a general trait: A multidomain training experiment

Abstract: Twenty‐one second‐grade subjects received divergent‐thinking training and 20 matched subjects received training in solving mathematical word problems. All subjects were then given five tasks: telling stories, writing stories, writing poems, writing mathematical word problems, and making collages. Experts evaluated the creativity of each product. The divergent‐thinking groups scored significantly higher than controls on the story‐telling, story‐writing, and poetry‐writing tasks. The lack of correlations among scores on the five tasks, however, suggests that several task‐specific factors, rather than one general factor, led to observed group differences. This is consistent with previous research using subjects untrained in divergent thinking in showing that divergent thinking is not a general trait.
Phonological codes are early sources of constraint in visual semantic categorization.

Two experiments were directed at early phonological activation in the semantic categorization task. In Experiment 1, briefly exposed targets homophonic to category exemplars (rows for the categorya flower), and their graphemic controls (robs), were judged for category membership with and without a backward pattern mask False positives were greater for rows than robs to the same degree under both unmasked and masked conditions. In Experiment 2, false positives were examined in the semantic categorization task under backward dichoptic masking by pseudowords that were, in turn, masked monoptically by a pattern mask. Briefly exposed homophones (e.g.,weak), masked by a phonologically similar pseudoword (“feek”), a graphemic control (“felk”), or an unrelated pseudoword (“furt”), were categorized as category exemplars (a unit of time). The difference in false positives was significant forweak-feek versusweak-furt, but not forweak-felk versusweak-furt. It was suggested that the persistence of the homophonic effects under the pattern masking of Experiment 1 and their amplification under the phonological masking of Experiment 2 were because phonological codes cohere rapidly and provide, thereby, immediately available constraints on semantic processing.
Efficient procedure mapping using cache line coloring

As the gap between memory and processor performance continues to widen, it becomes increasingly important to exploit cache memory eflectively. Both hardware and aoftware approaches can be explored to optimize cache performance. Hardware designers focus on cache organization issues, including replacement policy, associativity, line size and the resulting cache access time. Software writers use various optimization techniques, including software prefetching, data scheduling and code reordering. Our focus is on improving memory usage through code reordering compiler techniques.In this paper we present a link-time procedure mapping algorithm which can significantly improve the eflectiveness of the instruction cache. Our algorithm produces an improved program layout by performing a color mapping of procedures to cache lines, taking into consideration the procedure size, cache size, cache line size, and call graph. We use cache line coloring to guide the procedure mapping, indicating which cache lines to avoid when placing a procedure in the program layout. Our algorithm reduces on average the instruction cache miss rate by 40% over the original mapping and by 17% over the mapping algorithm of Pettis and Hansen [12].
Systolic Finite Impulse Response - Median Hybrid Filters For Image Processing

An optical implementation of a new class of nonlinear filters known as the finite impulse response - median (FIR-M) hybrid filters is proposed. These filters preserve both details and edges better and are computationally more efficient than conventional median filters.
Quality and productivity: the linkage

Abstract Contrary to traditional assumptions, there does not neet to be tradeoff between quality and productivity. In fact they are complementary, and programs that exploit this insight and attempt to improve both simultaneously are the most successful. The positive linkages between quality and productivity are explored and types of joint improvement programs discussed. The applicability of these concepts and methods to services is also considered.
Analysis of primary extent algorithms for ray tracing

Ray tracing renders realistic images of scenes but requires a relatively large amount of time. Ray tracing is so named because it traces backward along the rays of light reaching an observer's eye, through each pixel of the computer screen, to determine which object in a scene is the source of the light for that ray. To do this, a minimum intersection time, if any, for the ray and each object in the scene is found to determine which object is intersected first. To reduce the calculation time, extents are formed around the objects in the scene; these are bounding rectangles determined in screen coordinates. A ray-extent intersection calculation is fast when compared with that of a ray and a more complex object, such as a sphere, cylinder, cone, or torus. An analysis suggested by earlier work in hidden-surface elimination is carried out here with respect to extent algorithms. The intent is to methodically characterize different methods and orderings in which extents can be used and determine which, if any, performs well consistently. One of the algorithms arrived at will be shown to be particularly effective.
Increased injection number enhances adenoviral genetic radiotherapy.

Intratumoral injection of an adenoviral vector containing radiation-inducible DNA sequences of the early growth response gene (Egr-1) promoter ligated to a cDNA encoding tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha; Ad.Egr-TNF) increases the radiation killing of a human radioresistant xenograft (SQ-20B). Viral dose-escalation experiments demonstrated that SQ-20B growth inhibition correlated with viral titer. Injection of 5 x 10(8) PFU Ad.Egr-TNF produced regression to a mean volume of 22 +/- 13% of the original tumor volume, 1 x 10(8) PFU to a mean of 62 +/- 24%, and 5 x 10(7) PFU to a mean of 67 +/- 27%. No regression was observed when tumors were injected with 1 x 10(7) PFU Ad.Egr-TNF or with the null viral vector (Ad.null). When two injections of vector (2 x 10(8) PFU Ad.Egr-TNF) were combined with 50 Gy, a significant increase in tumor regression was observed compared with injection of buffer, Ad.Egr-TNF, or 50 Gy. The interactive killing between TNF and radiation was enhanced significantly (P = 0.05) when the number of injections was increased from two to five while maintaining a constant viral titer (2 x 10(8) PFU Ad.Egr-TNF) and a constant radiation dose (50 Gy). Significant TNF-alpha levels were present in irradiated vs. unirradiated tumors following injection with Ad.Egr-TNF. Taken together, these data suggest that the volumetric reduction produced by the combined effects of Ad.Egr-TNF and radiation is enhanced with increasing vector concentration and the number of vector injections.
Nuclear location and the control of developmental progression

It is now well established that the mammalian genome is highly organized. Chromosomes are structured as territories that only sporadically intermingle. Chromosome territories themselves are segregated into distinct environments, that is, the transcriptionally inert/repressive (heterochromatic) and permissive (euchromatic) compartments. The transcriptionally permissive compartment is organized into domains (∼0.5-3 Mb) that consist of bundles of loops, are gene-rich and closely associated by activating epigenetic marks. During ontogeny and developmental progression chromatin states are highly dynamic. Recent studies have shown that loci and domains readily switch compartments. Switching nuclear neighborhoods is closely associated with changes in transcriptional activity and extensive chromatin reorganization. Here we discuss the implications of a dynamic genome and how it relates to the control of developmental progression.
Becoming an Academic Clinician: Learning fromClayton E. Wheeler Jr.

I was absolutely thrilled to have been given the opportunity by Lowell Goldsmith, MD, to comment on my hero, Clayton E. Wheeler, MD, in the context of becoming an academic clinician educator.
The end of war as we knew it? Insurgency, counterinsurgency and lessons from the forgotten history of early terror networks

Abstract The growing potency of networked organisations has manifested itself over the past decade in the fresh energy evident among terrorists and insurgents—most notably al-Qaida and Hezbollah. Networks have even shown a capacity to wage war toe-to-toe against nation-states—with some success, as can be seen in the outcome of the First Russo-Chechen War (1994 – 96). The range of choices available to networks thus covers an entire spectrum of conflict, posing the prospect of a significant blurring of the lines between insurgency, terror and war. While history provides some useful examples to stimulate strategic thought about such problems, coping with networks that can fight in so many different ways—sparking myriad, hybrid forms of conflict—is going to require some innovative thinking to go along with more traditional introspection about the relevant lessons of history.
Intensive Livestock Farming: Global Trends, Increased Environmental Concerns, and Ethical Solutions

By 2050, global livestock production is expected to double—growing faster than any other agricultural sub-sector—with most of this increase taking place in the developing world. As the United Nation’s four-hundred-page report, Livestock’s Long Shadow: Environmental Issues and Options, documents, livestock production is now one of three most significant contributors to environmental problems, leading to increased greenhouse gas emissions, land degradation, water pollution, and increased health problems. The paper draws on the UN report as well as a flurry of other recently published studies in order to demonstrate the effect of intensive livestock production on global warming and on people’s health. The paper’s goal is to outline the problems caused by intensive livestock farming and analyze a number of possible solutions, including legislative changes and stricter regulations, community mobilizing, and consumers choosing to decrease their demand for animal products.
The Net Effect

Streeter, T. (2011). The Net Effect: Romanticism, capitalism, and the Internet. New York, NY: New York University Press. 221 pages. ISBN-13: 978-0814741160 Thomas Streeter, a leading figure in stud...
Ventilation-Perfusion Scanning in Carcinoma of the Bronchus

Ventilation · perfusion studies were performed on 26 patients with known or suspected carcinoma of the bronchus. Regional figures for relative perfusion, ventilation and ventilation-perfusion ratios were obtained using a small digital computer interfaced to a gamma scintillation camera. All the patients who had a successful resection had a relative perfusion of their affected lung of more than 33 percent. All the patients who were bronchoscopically inoperable and three of four patients found unresectable at thoracotomy had a relative perfusion of less than 33 percent. Relative ventilation did not produce such a separation. Ventilation-perfusion ratios outside the normal range for a zone were also an indication of inoperability. Perfusion defects were seen in 48 percent of the contralateral lungs and ventilation defects in 78 percent. It is suggested that ventilation-perfusion studies can: supplement routine spirometry test by giving an estimation of regional lung function, provide an indication of unresectability, occasionally reveal the site of an occult carcinoma of the bronchus.
Factors associated with improved short term survival in obese end stage renal disease patients.

PURPOSE: In contrast to its role in the general population, obesity, defined as body mass index (BMI) ⩾ 30 kg/m2, has been associated with improved survival in patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD). This apparent benefit has not been explained. METHODS: Using the United States Renal Data System (USRDS), we performed an historical cohort study on 151,027 patients initiated on ESRD therapy between January 1, 1995 and June 30, 1997, who never received renal transplants, and who had information sufficient to calculate BMI. We explored the association of various comorbidities present at the time of dialysis initiation (from HCFA Form 2728) with the presence of obesity by logistic regression, and the association of obesity with patient survival, including specific causes of death, by Cox regression adjusting for factors known to be associated with survival in this population. RESULTS: Obese patients had an unadjusted two-year survival of 68% compared with 58% for non obese patients. Obesity was independently associated with a reduced risk of mortality among chronic dialysis patients (adjusted hazard ratio (AHR) 0.75, 95% confidence interval, 0.72–0.78), after controlling for all comorbidities and risk factors. However, there were significantly adverse interactions among whites (AHR 1.22, 1.14–1.30, across all causes of death) and females (AHR 1.12, 1.04–1.20, entirely due to an increased risk of infectious death). CONCLUSIONS: Obesity in patients presenting with ESRD is associated independently with reduced all cause mortality; however, the relationship is complex and is stronger in African Americans. In addition, subgroup analysis suggests that obesity is associated with increased risk of infectious death in females.
The use of linearized-aerodynamics and vortex-flow methods in aircraft design /invited paper/

This paper deals with selected linearized-aerodynamic and vortex-flow methods as applied to aircraft design problems at high subsonic speeds. In particular, the NASA Vortex Lattice and Modified Multhopp methods are the linearized techniques employed, and the suction analogy is used to provide estimates associated with vortex-flow aerodynamics. Many examples are given as to how researchers at Langley have used these methods to design the high subsonic, wing-mean-camber shapes for various configurations such as a supersonic transport, high-aspect-ratio transport, trapezoidal fighter wing, strake wing, tandem wing, joined wing, delta wing, and slender cranked wing. Many of these have been built, tested, and have had their data compared with theory. In addition, a technique for defining efficiently performing strake planforms for use in strake-wing combinations is discussed, and further improvements in wing design are outlined. The latter may be obtained by using higher-ordered linear panel methods as well as nonlinear-transonic methods.
Solving the Stochastic Growth Model by Linear-Quadratic Approximation

I describe a method that can be used to approximate the solution of the stochastic growth model. The method relies on approximating the return and transition functions of the original problem by taking second-order and first-order Taylor expansions around the steady state of the system. The result is the optimal linear regulator problem.
An integrated top-down and bottom-up strategy for broadly characterizing protein isoforms and modifications.

We present an integrated top-down and bottom-up approach that is facilitated by concurrent liquid chromatography−mass spectrometry (LC-MS) analysis and fraction collection for comprehensive high-throughput intact protein profiling. The approach employs high-resolution, reversed-phase (RP) LC separations coupled on-line with a 12 T Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FTICR) mass spectrometer to profile and tentatively identify modified proteins, using detected intact protein masses in conjunction with bare protein identifications from the bottom-up analysis of the corresponding LC fractions. Selected identifications are incorporated into a target ion list for subsequent off-line gas-phase fragmentation that uses an aliquot of the original fraction used for bottom-up analysis. In a proof-of-principle demonstration, this comprehensive strategy was applied to identify protein isoforms arising from various amino acid modifications (e.g., acetylation, phosphorylation) and genetic variants (e.g., single n...
Proton beam scattering system optimization for clinical and research applications

Purpose: To develop and test a method for optimizing and constructing a dual scattering system in passively scattered proton therapy. Methods: A beam optics optimization algorithm was developed to optimize the thickness of the first scatterer (S1) and the profile (of both the high-Z material and Lexan) of the second scatterer (S2) to deliver a proton beam matching a given set of parameters, including field diameter, fluence, flatness, and symmetry. A new manufacturing process was also tested that allows the contoured second scattering foil to be created much more economically and quickly using Cerrobend casting. Two application-specific scattering systems were developed and tested using both experimental and Monte Carlo techniques to validate the optimization process described. Results: A scattering system was optimized and constructed to deliver large uniform irradiations of radiobiology samples at low dose rates. This system was successfully built and tested using film and ionization chambers. The system delivered a uniform radiation field of 50 cm diameter (to a dose of {+-}7% of the central axis) while the depth dose profile could be tuned to match the specifications of the particular investigator using modulator wheels and range shifters. A second scattering system for intermediate field size (4 cmmore » < diameter < 10 cm) stereotactic radiosurgery and radiation therapy (SRS and SRT) treatments was also developed and tested using GEANT4. This system improved beam efficiency by over 70% compared with existing scattering systems while maintaining field flatness and depth dose profile. In both cases the proton range uniformity across the radiation field was maintained, further indicating the accuracy of the energy loss formalism in the optimization algorithm. Conclusions: The methods described allow for rapid prototyping of scattering foils to meet the demands of both research and clinical beam delivery applications in proton therapy.« less
Self-Stabilizing Algorithms for Maximal 2-packing and General k-packing (k ≥ 2) with Safe Convergence in an Arbitrary Graph

In a graph or a networkÂ G =( V,E ), a setÂ SâS† V is a 2-packing ifÂ âˆ€ i âˆˆ V : | N [ i ] âˆ©S|â‰¤ 1, where N [ i ] denotes the closed neighborhood of node i . A 2-packing is maximal if no proper superset of S is a 2-packing. This paper presents a safely converging self-stabilizing algorithm for maximal 2-packing problem. Under a synchronous daemon, it quickly converges to a 2- packing (a safe state, not necessarily the legitimate state) in three synchronous steps, and then terminates in a maximal one (the legitimate state) in O ( n ) steps without breaking safety during the convergence interval, where n is the number of nodes. Space requirement at each node is O (log n ) bits. This is a significant improvement over the most recent self-stabilizing algorithm for maximal 2-packing that uses O ( n 2 ) synchronous steps with same space complexity and that does not have safe convergence property. We then generalize the technique to design a self- stabilizing algorithm for maximal k -packing, k â‰¥ 2, with safe convergence that stabilizes in O ( kn 2 ) steps under synchronous daemon; the algorithm has space complexity of O ( kn log n ) bits at each node; existing algorithms for k -packing stabilize in exponential time under a central daemon with O (log n ) space complexity.Â
The power of poop: patients getting ahead of their doctors using self-administered fecal transplants.

The Power of Poop: Patients Getting Ahead of Their Doctors Using Self-Administered Fecal Transplants
Characteristics of primary care safety-net providers and their quality improvement attitudes and activities: results of a national survey of physician professionalism.

No current national data exist to characterize safety-net physicians and their attitudes toward and participation in quality improvement activities compared with non–safety-net physicians. The authors conducted a national random sample survey of internal medicine, family practice, and pediatrics primary care physicians (PCPs) and used weighted multivariable regression models to assess attitudes and participation in quality improvement activities. After multivariable adjustment, there were no significant differences in provider attitudes about or participation in quality improvement activities between safety-net and non–safety-net physicians. However, safety-net providers were almost twice as likely to look for racial/ethnic disparities in care within their practices and are as likely to be involved in quality improvement activities as non–safety-net providers; their attitudes are consistent with providing equitable and universal care. Increasing access by expanding Medicaid eligibility will require contin...
Adaptive multidimensional outlier analysis for analog and mixed signal circuits

Outlier devices behave differently from the majority of the devices and are considered to be potentially defective. Identifying outliers has many applications in test, including defect filters for alternate test, and setting pass/fail limits for automotive domain. In previous work, outliers have been identified using single dimensional and/or static methods which does not exploit information efficiently. In this work, we propose an adaptive multidimensional outlier analysis method that combines the information of multiple measurement parameters and judiciously selects only information rich parameters to maximize detection probability. Furthermore, the proposed method continously updates to track process shift to enable adaptation to the evolving processes. The proposed method can be integrated within an existing test framework to improve test quality with little or no additional test time cost. In this context, we integrate our technique with an adaptive test framework and show that the method enables improved test quality.
Perspectives in the theory of nuclear collective motion

This report discusses three different subjects. The first is the development of a generalized version of the VMI (variable moment of inertia) model that ties it to the original form of the IBM (interacting boson model) and provides a possibility of fitting vibrational spectra with generalized vibrational formulas. The second is a suggestion for fitting band crossing calculations of the phenomenological type more completely than has hitherto been done into the framework of the VMI method. The third, which is the most important and far reaching, is the description f a complete mathematical method for the microscopic derivation of the IBM from a conventional shell-model Hamiltonian. In addition to elements already foreseen by previous authors, there is proposed a solution for the most important problem outstanding, not only within the framework of the IBM, but also in all previous work on boson expansion. This is the problem of actually selecting, in a general fashion, the most collective excitations. A criterion is introduced that the subspace constructed from these excitations should possess an average energy that is lower than the rest of the shell model space; the actual implementation of this criterion is explained. 8 tables, 62 references.
Impacts of new environmental standards on mining industry: The case of Peru

Abstract This study offers a simple methodology to analyze the impacts of proposed environmental standards on the mining industry and applies it to Peruvian data. The impacts are estimated with two alternative approaches, the discounted cash flow (DCF) and option pricing (OPM) methods, and their results are compared. The findings show that the new standards would cause large reductions in the values of mines under consideration. Environmental expenditures which are prescribed by the two standards are examined in the context of optimal timing of investment (A. Dixit, Investment and Hysteresis, Journal of Economics Perspective , Vol. 6 no. 1, 1992, pp. 107–132); the sensitivity of option values with respect to the duration of postponement period are calculated. The results indicate that even though allowing for a postponement option keeps the mines open, it does not lead the mines to actually undertake the necessary investments without any subsidies. Finally, the effectiveness of two alternative subsidy schemes are analyzed; it is found that conditional (state-specific) subsidies are not as effective as unconditional subsidies.
Prenatal and postnatal development of lamina IX neurons in the rat thoracic spinal cord.

Abstract The maturation of lamina IX neurons in the thoracic spinal cord of the rat was studied from day 13 of gestation until adulthood using a modified Golgi-Cox stain. The large multipolar neurons developed in an orderly and progressive manner. At day G-13, the round or stellate perikarya were smooth. Primary and secondary dendrites were adult in number with numerous irregular expansions and growth cones. Tertiary dendrites were beginning to form. Between day G-18 and postnatal day 5 the irregular surface of the perikarya and all portions of the dendrites had numerous long spines and filopodia. Growth cones were present at the end of terminal dendrites and also along the shafts of secondary and tertiary dendrites. By postnatal day 11 there was a decrease in the number of spines on the perikarya and proximal dendrites but spines remained prominent on secondary and tertiary dendrites. Between postnatal days 18 and 31 the adult morphology was attained. The perikarya and dendrites of adult neurons were devoid of spines except for occasional spines on the distal half of the dendritic tree. Elongated smooth varcosities were present except for the distal half of terminal dendrites where these expansions were more beaded. Although these morphologic changes were, in certain respects, the reciprocal of the regressive changes seen in these neurons after spinal hemisection in the adult rat (3), a major difference was the apparent absence of a “spiny stage” in the denervated lamina IX neurons of the adult.
An Epidemiological Model for Examining Marijuana Use over the Life Course

Trajectories of drug use are usually studied empirically by following over time persons sampled from either the general population (most often youth and young adults) or from heavy or problematic users (e.g., arrestees or those in treatment). The former, population-based samples, describe early career development, but miss the years of use that generate the greatest social costs. The latter, selected populations, help to summarize the most problematic use, but cannot easily explain how people become problem users nor are they representative of the population as a whole. This paper shows how microsimulation can synthesize both sorts of data within a single analytical framework, while retaining heterogeneous influences that can impact drug use decisions over the life course. The RAND Marijuana Microsimulation Model is constructed for marijuana use, validated, and then used to demonstrate how such models can be used to evaluate alternative policy options aimed at reducing use over the life course.
Subnuclear organization of the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus nerve in the pigeon, Columba livia

The present study is the first of two papers describing the cytoarchitec-tural and functional organization of the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus nerve (DMN complex) in the pigeon. This paper describes the distribution of vagal motoneurons within the pigeon brainstem, and the cytoarchitectural organization of the DMN complex. Our description is based on studies of Nissl-stained tissue from normal animals and on experimental studies using retrograde tracing techniques. Cells within the DMN complex were classified according to size, morphology, location, and staining characteristics. These studies demonstrate that vagal motoneurons are localized to (1) the DMN complex, (2) the region of the nucleus ambiguus, and (3) the region of the reticular formation extending between the dorsal motor nucleus and the nucleus ambiguus. Our cytoarchitectural studies indicate that the DMN complex is composed of at least 11 cytoarchitecturally distinct subnuclei. These subnuclei are evident in normal tissue and are especially prominent in cases where HRP backfilling produces a Golgi-like staining of the motoneu-rons. The subnuclei can be distinguished by their positions within the DMN complex and by the size, shape, and staining chracteristics of their constituent neurons. Comparison of these data with studies in other species indicates similar patterns of cytoarchitectural organization in the DMN com-plex of some mammals. The diversity of nuclear subgroups within the DMN complex may be related to the heterogeneity of target organs innervated by these cells.