Quality Improvement Project: Replacing the Numeric Rating Scale with a Clinically Aligned Pain Assessment (CAPA) Tool.

PubMed

Topham, Debra; Drew, Debra

2017-12-01

CAPA is a multifaceted pain assessment tool that was adopted at a large tertiary Midwest hospital to replace the numeric scale for adult patients who could self-report their pain experience. This article describes the process of implementation and the effect on patient satisfaction scores. Use of the tool is supported by the premise that pain assessment entails more than just pain intensity and that assessment is an exchange of meaning between patients and clinicians dependent on internal and external factors. Implementation of the tool was a transformative process resulting in modest increases in patient satisfaction scores with pain management. Patient reports that "staff did everything to manage pain" had the biggest gains and were sustained for more than 2 years. The CAPA tool meets regulatory requirements for pain assessment. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Pain Management Nursing. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dynamics of film. [two dimensional continua theory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zak, M.

1979-01-01

The general theory of films as two-dimensional continua are elaborated upon. As physical realizations of such a model this paper examines: inextensible films, elastic films, and nets. The suggested dynamic equations have enabled us to find out the characteristic speeds of wave propagation of the invariants of external and internal geometry and formulate the criteria of instability of their shape. Also included herein is a detailed account of the equation describing the film motions beyond the limits of the shape stability accompanied by the formation of wrinkles. The theory is illustrated by examples.

Finite elements of nonlinear continua.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Oden, J. T.

1972-01-01

The finite element method is extended to a broad class of practical nonlinear problems, treating both theory and applications from a general and unifying point of view. The thermomechanical principles of continuous media and the properties of the finite element method are outlined, and are brought together to produce discrete physical models of nonlinear continua. The mathematical properties of the models are analyzed, and the numerical solution of the equations governing the discrete models is examined. The application of the models to nonlinear problems in finite elasticity, viscoelasticity, heat conduction, and thermoviscoelasticity is discussed. Other specific topics include the topological properties of finite element models, applications to linear and nonlinear boundary value problems, convergence, continuum thermodynamics, finite elasticity, solutions to nonlinear partial differential equations, and discrete models of the nonlinear thermomechanical behavior of dissipative media.

Assimilation of radar quantitative precipitation estimations in the Canadian Precipitation Analysis (CaPA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fortin, Vincent; Roy, Guy; Donaldson, Norman; Mahidjiba, Ahmed

2015-12-01

The Canadian Precipitation Analysis (CaPA) is a data analysis system used operationally at the Canadian Meteorological Center (CMC) since April 2011 to produce gridded 6-h and 24-h precipitation accumulations in near real-time on a regular grid covering all of North America. The current resolution of the product is 10-km. Due to the low density of the observational network in most of Canada, the system relies on a background field provided by the Regional Deterministic Prediction System (RDPS) of Environment Canada, which is a short-term weather forecasting system for North America. For this reason, the North American configuration of CaPA is known as the Regional Deterministic Precipitation Analysis (RDPA). Early in the development of the CaPA system, weather radar reflectivity was identified as a very promising additional data source for the precipitation analysis, but necessary quality control procedures and bias-correction algorithms were lacking for the radar data. After three years of development and testing, a new version of CaPA-RDPA system was implemented in November 2014 at CMC. This version is able to assimilate radar quantitative precipitation estimates (QPEs) from all 31 operational Canadian weather radars. The radar QPE is used as an observation source and not as a background field, and is subject to a strict quality control procedure, like any other observation source. The November 2014 upgrade to CaPA-RDPA was implemented at the same time as an upgrade to the RDPS system, which brought minor changes to the skill and bias of CaPA-RDPA. This paper uses the frequency bias indicator (FBI), the equitable threat score (ETS) and the departure from the partial mean (DPM) in order to assess the improvements to CaPA-RDPA brought by the assimilation of radar QPE. Verification focuses on the 6-h accumulations, and is done against a network of 65 synoptic stations (approximately two stations per radar) that were withheld from the station data assimilated by Ca

Multilingual Language Policies and the Continua of Biliteracy: An Ecological Approach.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hornberger, Nancy H.

2002-01-01

Uses the metaphor of ecology of language to explore ideologies underlying multilingual language policies, and the continua of biliteracy framework as ecological heuristic for situating the challenges faced in implementing them. Considers community and classroom challenges inherent in implementing these new ideologies, as evident in Bolivia and…

Hemicrania Continua: A Clinical Study of 39 Patients with Diagnostic Implications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cittadini, Elisabetta; Goadsby, Peter J.

2010-01-01

Hemicrania continua is an uncommon primary headache disorder, characterized by continuous unilateral pain, where pain exacerbations are associated with cranial autonomic features. The hallmark of this condition is the absolute response to indometacin. We describe the phenotype of this condition in a large series of patients. Thirty-six (92%)…

Hemicrania continua and symptomatic medication overuse.

PubMed

Young, W B; Silberstein, S D

1993-10-01

Hemicrania continua (HC) is a rare, strictly unilateral, nonparoxysmal headache disorder characterized by its absolute responsiveness to indomethacin. The pain is usually moderate in intensity and frequently associated with a superimposed "jabs and jolts" headache. We report two cases of HC which presented as chronic daily headache (CDH) with abortive medication overuse. CDH can be due to transformed migraine (TM), new daily persistent headache (NDPH), chronic tension-type headache, and HC. All can be unilateral, and all can be associated with medication overuse. Our two cases meet the criteria for HC based on indomethacin responsiveness. One meets the criteria for TM, the other NDPH. Is HC a distinct disorder, or a subset of these other disorders? CDH with medication overuse includes in its differential diagnosis HC.

CAPA-Gene Products in the Haematophagous Sandfly Phlebotomus papatasi (Scopoli) - Vector for Leishmaniasis Disease

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-01-01

121 glass capillary and the tissues were air-dried. For peptide analysis, 122 a limited amount of matrix solution (-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic 123 acid ...genomic sequence of P. papatasi was screened with 143 the amino acid sequence RSGNMGLFPFPRVGR using TBLASTN. 144 The genomic data were produced by The...250 have the N-terminus of CAPA-PVK-2 blocked by pyroglutamate 251 (see Table 1). Pyroglutamate may prevent rapid degradation of this 252 peptide

Status and methodology of publicly available national HIV care continua and 90-90-90 targets: A systematic review.

PubMed

Granich, Reuben; Gupta, Somya; Hall, Irene; Aberle-Grasse, John; Hader, Shannon; Mermin, Jonathan

2017-04-01

In 2014, the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) issued treatment goals for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The 90-90-90 target specifies that by 2020, 90% of individuals living with HIV will know their HIV status, 90% of people with diagnosed HIV infection will receive antiretroviral treatment (ART), and 90% of those taking ART will be virally suppressed. Consistent methods and routine reporting in the public domain will be necessary for tracking progress towards the 90-90-90 target. For the period 2010-2016, we searched PubMed, UNAIDS country progress reports, World Health Organization (WHO), UNAIDS reports, national surveillance and program reports, United States President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) Country Operational Plans, and conference presentations and/or abstracts for the latest available national HIV care continuum in the public domain. Continua of care included the number and proportion of people living with HIV (PLHIV) who are diagnosed, on ART, and virally suppressed out of the estimated number of PLHIV. We ranked the described methods for indicators to derive high-, medium-, and low-quality continuum. For 2010-2016, we identified 53 national care continua with viral suppression estimates representing 19.7 million (54%) of the 2015 global estimate of PLHIV. Of the 53, 6 (with 2% of global burden) were high quality, using standard surveillance methods to derive an overall denominator and program data from national cohorts for estimating steps in the continuum. Only nine countries in sub-Saharan Africa had care continua with viral suppression estimates. Of the 53 countries, the average proportion of the aggregate of PLHIV from all countries on ART was 48%, and the proportion of PLHIV who were virally suppressed was 40%. Seven countries (Sweden, Cambodia, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Denmark, Rwanda, and Namibia) were within 12% and 10% of achieving the 90-90-90 target for "on ART" and for "viral suppression

Alexander Disease: A Novel Mutation in GFAP Leading to Epilepsia Partialis Continua.

PubMed

Bonthius, Daniel J; Karacay, Bahri

2016-06-01

Alexander disease is a genetically induced leukodystrophy, due to dominant mutations in the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP ) gene, causing dysfunction of astrocytes. We have identified a novel GFAP mutation, associated with a novel phenotype for Alexander disease. A boy with global developmental delay and hypertonia was found to have a leukodystrophy. Genetic analysis revealed a heterozygous point mutation in exon 6 of the GFAP gene. The guanine-to-adenine change causes substitution of the normal glutamic acid codon (GAG) with a mutant lysine codon (AAG) at position 312 (E312 K mutation). At the age of 4 years, the child developed epilepsia partialis continua, consisting of unabating motor seizures involving the unilateral perioral muscles. Epilepsia partialis continua has not previously been reported in association with Alexander disease. Whether and how the E312 K mutation produces pathologic changes and clinical signs that are unique from other Alexander disease-inducing mutations in GFAP remain to be determined. © The Author(s) 2015.

Deforestation of Peano continua and minimal deformation retracts☆

PubMed Central

Conner, G.; Meilstrup, M.

2012-01-01

Every Peano continuum has a strong deformation retract to a deforested continuum, that is, one with no strongly contractible subsets attached at a single point. In a deforested continuum, each point with a one-dimensional neighborhood is either fixed by every self-homotopy of the space, or has a neighborhood which is a locally finite graph. A minimal deformation retract of a continuum (if it exists) is called its core. Every one-dimensional Peano continuum has a unique core, which can be obtained by deforestation. We give examples of planar Peano continua that contain no core but are deforested. PMID:23471120

Modal cost analysis for simple continua

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hu, A.; Skelton, R. E.; Yang, T. Y.

1988-01-01

The most popular finite element codes are based upon appealing theories of convergence of modal frequencies. For example, the popularity of cubic elements for beam-like structures is due to the rapid convergence of modal frequencies and stiffness properties. However, for those problems in which the primary consideration is the accuracy of response of the structure at specified locations, it is more important to obtain accuracy in the modal costs than in the modal frequencies. The modal cost represents the contribution of a mode in the norm of the response vector. This paper provides a complete modal cost analysis for simple continua such as beam-like structures. Upper bounds are developed for mode truncation errors in the model reduction process and modal cost analysis dictates which modes to retain in order to reduce the model for control design purposes.

On magnetoelectric coupling at equilibrium in continua with microstructure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Romeo, Maurizio

2017-10-01

A theory of micromorphic continua, applied to electromagnetic solids, is exploited to study magnetoelectric effects at equilibrium. Microcurrents are modeled by the microgyration tensor of stationary micromotions, compatibly with the balance equations for null microdeformation. The equilibrium of the continuum subject to electric and magnetic fields is reformulated accounting for electric multipoles which are related to microdeformation by evolution equations. Polarization and magnetization are derived for uniform fields under the micropolar reduction in terms of microstrain and octupole structural parameters. Nonlinear dependance on the electromagnetic fields is evidenced, compatibly with known theoretical and experimental results on magnetoelectric coupling.

Design of a real-time and continua-based framework for care guideline recommendations.

PubMed

Lin, Yu-Feng; Shie, Hsin-Han; Yang, Yi-Ching; Tseng, Vincent S

2014-04-16

Telehealth is an important issue in the medical and healthcare domains. Although a number of systems have been developed to meet the demands of emerging telehealth services, the following problems still remain to be addressed: (1) most systems do not monitor/predict the vital signs states so that they are able to send alarms to caregivers in real-time; (2) most systems do not focus on reducing the amount of work that caregivers need to do, and provide patients with remote care; and (3) most systems do not recommend guidelines for caregivers. This study thus proposes a framework for a real-time and Continua-based Care Guideline Recommendation System (Cagurs) which utilizes mobile device platforms to provide caregivers of chronic patients with real-time care guideline recommendations, and that enables vital signs data to be transmitted between different devices automatically, using the Continua standard. Moreover, the proposed system adopts the episode mining approach to monitor/predict anomalous conditions of patients, and then offers related recommended care guidelines to caregivers so that they can offer preventive care in a timely manner.

Design of a Real-Time and Continua-Based Framework for Care Guideline Recommendations

PubMed Central

Lin, Yu-Feng; Shie, Hsin-Han; Yang, Yi-Ching; Tseng, Vincent S.

2014-01-01

Telehealth is an important issue in the medical and healthcare domains. Although a number of systems have been developed to meet the demands of emerging telehealth services, the following problems still remain to be addressed: (1) most systems do not monitor/predict the vital signs states so that they are able to send alarms to caregivers in real-time; (2) most systems do not focus on reducing the amount of work that caregivers need to do, and provide patients with remote care; and (3) most systems do not recommend guidelines for caregivers. This study thus proposes a framework for a real-time and Continua-based Care Guideline Recommendation System (Cagurs) which utilizes mobile device platforms to provide caregivers of chronic patients with real-time care guideline recommendations, and that enables vital signs data to be transmitted between different devices automatically, using the Continua standard. Moreover, the proposed system adopts the episode mining approach to monitor/predict anomalous conditions of patients, and then offers related recommended care guidelines to caregivers so that they can offer preventive care in a timely manner. PMID:24743843

Resource sharing of online teaching materials: The lon-capa project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bauer, Wolfgang

2004-03-01

The use of information technology resources in conventional lecture-based courses, in distance-learning offerings, as well as hybrid courses, is increasing. But this may put additional burden on faculty, who are now asked to deliver this new content. Additionally, it may require the installation of commercial courseware systems, putting the colleges and universities in new financial licensing dependencies. To address exactly these two problems, the lon-capa system was invented to provide an open-source, gnu public license based, courseware system that allows for sharing of educational resources across institutional and disciplinary boundaries. This presentation will focus on both aspects of the system, the courseware capabilities that allow for customized environments for individual students, and the educational resources library that enables teachers to take full advantages of the work of their colleagues. Research results on learning effectiveness, resource and system usage patterns, and customization for different learning styles will be shown. Institutional perceptions of and responses to open source courseware systems will be discussed.

Different processing of CAPA and pyrokinin precursors in the giant mealworm beetle Zophobas atratus (Tenebrionidae) and the boll weevil Anthonomus grandis grandis (Curculionidae)

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Capa and pyrokinin (pk) genes in hexapods share a common evolutionary origin. Using transcriptomics and peptidomics, we analyzed products of these genes in two beetles, the giant mealworm beetle (Zophobas atratus; Tenebrionidae) and the boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis grandis; Curculionidae). Our ...

More Than a Feeling? An Empirical Analysis of the Dual-Continua Model on a National Sample of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Identified Canadians.

PubMed

Peter, Tracey

2017-08-11

The goal of the study is to investigate whether positive mental health complements mental illness within a theoretically informed (the dual-continua model) and psychometrically tested (the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form) framework. National-level, population-based data from the 2012 Canadian Community Health Survey on Mental Health (CCHS-MH) was used, with comparisons between sexual minority and heterosexual adults. Results show that gay, lesbian, and bisexual Canadians have substantially lower rates of positive mental health and are more likely to have been diagnosed with a mental illness, with the disparities between health and illness being the most pronounced among lesbians and bisexual females. Results show considerable support for the dual-continua model, which posits that the absence of health does not automatically translate into the presence of illness, and vice versa. Suggestions are made for practitioners and researchers toward the use of the dual-continua model as a surveillance tool, especially among sexual minority individuals.

PREFACE: The 7th International Seminar on Geometry, Continua and Microstructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burton, David A.

2007-04-01

It gives me great pleasure to present the proceedings of the 7th International Seminar on Geometry, Continua and Microstructures (GCM 7). The conference took place on 25-27 September 2006 at Lancaster University and the local organisers were Robin Tucker, Tim Walton, myself and Jonathan Gratus of the Lancaster University Mathematical Physics Group. Modern field theories of mechanically and electrically responsive continua have a wealth of interesting applications in physics. Such theories provide effective macroscopic models of complex systems, such as living tissue and material with dynamical defects, that capture macroscopic consequences of microscopic phenomena. GCM is an interdisciplinary conference series, initiated by the Eringen medallist Gérard A Maugin, that brings together physicists and applied mathematicians who have interests in continuum mechanics and differential geometry and who aim to develop new and powerful methods for analysing the behaviour of complex mechanical systems. The earlier conferences in the series were held in Paris, Madrid, Mannheim, Turin, Sinaia and Belgrade. This volume addresses a variety of topics including the physics of saturated porous media, the relationship between growth in living tissue and molecular transport, the mechanics of polymer bonds, the macroscopic properties of damaged elastomers, the mechanics of carbon nanotubes, the geometry of balance systems in Continuum Thermodynamics and wave propagation in the material manifold. I would like to warmly thank the rest of the organising committee and the conference participants for making GCM 7 an enjoyable and rewarding occasion. Photographs may be found at http://www.lancs.ac.uk/depts/spc/conf/gcm7/wss/index.htm David A Burton Editor

A proteomic approach for studying insect phylogeny: CAPA peptides of ancient insect taxa (Dictyoptera, Blattoptera) as a test case

PubMed Central

Roth, Steffen; Fromm, Bastian; Gäde, Gerd; Predel, Reinhard

2009-01-01

Background Neuropeptide ligands have to fit exactly into their respective receptors and thus the evolution of the coding regions of their genes is constrained and may be strongly conserved. As such, they may be suitable for the reconstruction of phylogenetic relationships within higher taxa. CAPA peptides of major lineages of cockroaches (Blaberidae, Blattellidae, Blattidae, Polyphagidae, Cryptocercidae) and of the termite Mastotermes darwiniensis were chosen to test the above hypothesis. The phylogenetic relationships within various groups of the taxon Dictyoptera (praying mantids, termites and cockroaches) are still highly disputed. Results Tandem mass spectrometry of neuropeptides from perisympathetic organs was used to obtain sequence data of CAPA peptides from single specimens; the data were analysed by Maximum Parsimony and Bayesian Interference. The resulting cladograms, taking 61 species into account, show a topology which is in general agreement with recent molecular and morphological phylogenetic analyses, including the recent phylogenetic arrangement placing termites within the cockroaches. When sequence data sets from other neuropeptides, viz. adipokinetic hormones and sulfakinins, were included, the general topology of the cladogram did not change but bootstrap values increased considerably. Conclusion This study represents the first comprehensive survey of neuropeptides of insects for solely phylogenetic purposes and concludes that sequences of short neuropeptides are suitable to complement molecular biological and morphological data for the reconstruction of phylogenetic relationships. PMID:19257902

Compact scheme for systems of equations applied to fundamental problems of mechanics of continua

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Klimkowski, Jerzy Z.

1990-01-01

Compact scheme formulation was used in the treatment of boundary conditions for a system of coupled diffusion and Poisson equations. Models and practical solutions of specific engineering problems arising in solid mechanics, chemical engineering, heat transfer and fuid mechanics are described and analyzed for efficiency and accuracy. Only 2-D cases are discussed and a new method of numerical treatment of boundary conditions common in the fundamental problems of mechanics of continua is presented.

Electrostatics of proteins in dielectric solvent continua. I. An accurate and efficient reaction field description

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bauer, Sebastian; Mathias, Gerald; Tavan, Paul

2014-03-01

We present a reaction field (RF) method which accurately solves the Poisson equation for proteins embedded in dielectric solvent continua at a computational effort comparable to that of an electrostatics calculation with polarizable molecular mechanics (MM) force fields. The method combines an approach originally suggested by Egwolf and Tavan [J. Chem. Phys. 118, 2039 (2003)] with concepts generalizing the Born solution [Z. Phys. 1, 45 (1920)] for a solvated ion. First, we derive an exact representation according to which the sources of the RF potential and energy are inducible atomic anti-polarization densities and atomic shielding charge distributions. Modeling these atomic densities by Gaussians leads to an approximate representation. Here, the strengths of the Gaussian shielding charge distributions are directly given in terms of the static partial charges as defined, e.g., by standard MM force fields for the various atom types, whereas the strengths of the Gaussian anti-polarization densities are calculated by a self-consistency iteration. The atomic volumes are also described by Gaussians. To account for covalently overlapping atoms, their effective volumes are calculated by another self-consistency procedure, which guarantees that the dielectric function ɛ(r) is close to one everywhere inside the protein. The Gaussian widths σi of the atoms i are parameters of the RF approximation. The remarkable accuracy of the method is demonstrated by comparison with Kirkwood's analytical solution for a spherical protein [J. Chem. Phys. 2, 351 (1934)] and with computationally expensive grid-based numerical solutions for simple model systems in dielectric continua including a di-peptide (Ac-Ala-NHMe) as modeled by a standard MM force field. The latter example shows how weakly the RF conformational free energy landscape depends on the parameters σi. A summarizing discussion highlights the achievements of the new theory and of its approximate solution particularly by

Electrostatics of proteins in dielectric solvent continua. I. An accurate and efficient reaction field description.

PubMed

Bauer, Sebastian; Mathias, Gerald; Tavan, Paul

2014-03-14

We present a reaction field (RF) method which accurately solves the Poisson equation for proteins embedded in dielectric solvent continua at a computational effort comparable to that of an electrostatics calculation with polarizable molecular mechanics (MM) force fields. The method combines an approach originally suggested by Egwolf and Tavan [J. Chem. Phys. 118, 2039 (2003)] with concepts generalizing the Born solution [Z. Phys. 1, 45 (1920)] for a solvated ion. First, we derive an exact representation according to which the sources of the RF potential and energy are inducible atomic anti-polarization densities and atomic shielding charge distributions. Modeling these atomic densities by Gaussians leads to an approximate representation. Here, the strengths of the Gaussian shielding charge distributions are directly given in terms of the static partial charges as defined, e.g., by standard MM force fields for the various atom types, whereas the strengths of the Gaussian anti-polarization densities are calculated by a self-consistency iteration. The atomic volumes are also described by Gaussians. To account for covalently overlapping atoms, their effective volumes are calculated by another self-consistency procedure, which guarantees that the dielectric function ε(r) is close to one everywhere inside the protein. The Gaussian widths σ(i) of the atoms i are parameters of the RF approximation. The remarkable accuracy of the method is demonstrated by comparison with Kirkwood's analytical solution for a spherical protein [J. Chem. Phys. 2, 351 (1934)] and with computationally expensive grid-based numerical solutions for simple model systems in dielectric continua including a di-peptide (Ac-Ala-NHMe) as modeled by a standard MM force field. The latter example shows how weakly the RF conformational free energy landscape depends on the parameters σ(i). A summarizing discussion highlights the achievements of the new theory and of its approximate solution particularly by

On the mechanics of continua with boundary energies and growing surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Papastavrou, Areti; Steinmann, Paul; Kuhl, Ellen

2013-06-01

Many biological systems are coated by thin films for protection, selective absorption, or transmembrane transport. A typical example is the mucous membrane covering the airways, the esophagus, and the intestine. Biological surfaces typically display a distinct mechanical behavior from the bulk; in particular, they may grow at different rates. Growth, morphological instabilities, and buckling of biological surfaces have been studied intensely by approximating the surface as a layer of finite thickness; however, growth has never been attributed to the surface itself. Here, we establish a theory of continua with boundary energies and growing surfaces of zero thickness in which the surface is equipped with its own potential energy and is allowed to grow independently of the bulk. In complete analogy to the kinematic equations, the balance equations, and the constitutive equations of a growing solid body, we derive the governing equations for a growing surface. We illustrate their spatial discretization using the finite element method, and discuss their consistent algorithmic linearization. To demonstrate the conceptual differences between volume and surface growth, we simulate the constrained growth of the inner layer of a cylindrical tube. Our novel approach toward continua with growing surfaces is capable of predicting extreme growth of the inner cylindrical surface, which more than doubles its initial area. The underlying algorithmic framework is robust and stable; it allows to predict morphological changes due to surface growth during the onset of buckling and beyond. The modeling of surface growth has immediate biomedical applications in the diagnosis and treatment of asthma, gastritis, obstructive sleep apnoea, and tumor invasion. Beyond biomedical applications, the scientific understanding of growth-induced morphological instabilities and surface wrinkling has important implications in material sciences, manufacturing, and microfabrication, with applications in

Web Based Homework for CAPA in General Education Astronomy Courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Robertson, T. H.

2002-12-01

Qualitative questions in astronomy have been developed to operate under the CAPA web-based homework system. Multiple versions of similar questions and software randomization are used to create different homework sets for each student. The questions are grouped by concept and subject to create more challenging activities from relatively simple questions. These questions have been used for three semesters in five sections of ASTRO 100 which enrolled a total of 500 students over the past two years. Student surveys consistently indicate that they like the system and believe that it helps them to learn. Cognitive measures in the form of exam and course grades do not demonstrate statistically significant improvement in sections which have used the new homework system. This is due in part to a conscious effort to create exam questions which focus on content understanding and not memorization and the persistent student habit of studying for exams by memorizing homework. Differences have been identified between female and male students in terms of completion rates and performance on homework, quiz and exam scores. This work was supported in part by funding from the George and Frances Ball Fund for Academic Excellence and the 21st Century Fund for Faculty Development.

Synthesis of a Series of Caffeic Acid Phenethyl Amide (CAPA) Fluorinated Derivatives: Comparison of Cytoprotective Effects to Caffeic Acid Phenethyl Ester (CAPE)

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-06-11

the cinnamic acid phenyl ring. Although compound 4c proved to be very cytotoxic in HUVEC over a 24 h period, the toxicity is less apparent over a 5 h...drug development process, as it determines how much of the initial dose actually reaches the target site. Cinnamic acid -derived amides are known to...Synthesis of a series of caffeic acid phenethyl amide (CAPA) fluorinated derivatives: Comparison of cytoprotective effects to caffeic acid phenethyl

One Size Doesn't Fit All: New Continua of Figure Drawings and Their Relation to Ideal Body Image

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Novella, Jocelyn; Gosselin, Jennifer T.; Danowski, Debbie

2015-01-01

Objective: This study introduces a new figure drawing measure, the Presentation of Images on a Continuum Scale (PICS), which includes continua of bodies from thin to obese and thin to muscular for both men and women. Participants: Participants were undergraduate students from a private, Catholic university in Connecticut. The data were collected…

Continuous involuntary hand movements and schizencephaly: epilepsia partialis continua or dystonia?

PubMed

Marinelli, Lucio; Bonzano, Laura; Saitta, Laura; Trompetto, Carlo; Abbruzzese, Giovanni

2012-04-01

Schizencephaly is regarded as a malformation of cortical development (due to abnormal neuronal organization) and may be associated with continuous involuntary hand movements. The mechanisms underlying these movements are not clear and both dystonia and epilepsia partialis continua have been considered in previously reported cases. We describe a young patient affected by schizencephaly and continuous involuntary movements of the contralateral hand. Functional MRI showed bilateral cerebral activation, while the subject performed tapping movements with the affected hand and no significant difference in the activation pattern after diazepam infusion. Standard and back-averaged EEG showed no alterations. The results obtained from these investigations and the clinical features of the involuntary movements are not in favor of an epileptic genesis, while support the diagnosis of secondary dystonia.

Applicability of IHE/Continua components for PHR systems: learning from experiences.

PubMed

Urbauer, Philipp; Sauermann, Stefan; Frohner, Matthias; Forjan, Mathias; Pohn, Birgit; Mense, Alexander

2015-04-01

Capturing personal health data using smartphones, PCs or other devices, and the reuse of the data in personal health records (PHR) is becoming more and more attractive for modern health-conscious populations. This paper analyses interoperability specifications targeting standards-based communication of computer systems and personal health devices (e.g. blood pressure monitor) in healthcare from initiatives like Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE) and Continua Health Alliance driven by industry and healthcare professionals. Furthermore it identifies certain contradictions and gaps in the specifications and suggests possible solutions. Despite these shortcomings, the specifications allow fully functional implementations of PHR systems. Henceforth, both big business and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can actively contribute to the widespread use of large-scale interoperable PHR systems. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The importance of Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical couplings and microstructure to strain localization in 3D continua with application to seismic faults. Part I: Theory and linear stability analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rattez, Hadrien; Stefanou, Ioannis; Sulem, Jean

2018-06-01

A Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical (THM) model for Cosserat continua is developed to explore the influence of frictional heating and thermal pore fluid pressurization on the strain localization phenomenon. A general framework is presented to conduct a bifurcation analysis for elasto-plastic Cosserat continua with THM couplings and predict the onset of instability. The presence of internal lengths in Cosserat continua enables to estimate the thickness of the localization zone. This is done by performing a linear stability analysis of the system and looking for the selected wavelength corresponding to the instability mode with fastest finite growth coefficient. These concepts are applied to the study of fault zones under fast shearing. For doing so, we consider a model of a sheared saturated infinite granular layer. The influence of THM couplings on the bifurcation state and the shear band width is investigated. Taking representative parameters for a centroidal fault gouge, the evolution of the thickness of the localized zone under continuous shear is studied. Furthermore, the effect of grain crushing inside the shear band is explored by varying the internal length of the constitutive law.

Sub-50-as isolated extreme ultraviolet continua generated by 1.6-cycle near-infrared pulse combined with double optical gating scheme

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oguri, Katsuya; Mashiko, Hiroki; Ogawa, Tatsuya; Hanada, Yasutaka; Nakano, Hidetoshi; Gotoh, Hideki

2018-04-01

We demonstrate the generation of ultrabroad bandwidth attosecond continua extending to sub-50-as duration in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) region based on a 1.6-cycle Ti:sapphire laser pulse. The combination of the amplitude gating scheme with a sub-two-cycle driver pulse and the double optical gating scheme achieves the continuum generation with a bandwidth of 70 eV at the full width at half maximum near the peak photon energy of 140 eV, which supports a Fourier-transform-limited pulse duration as short as 32 as. The carrier-envelope-phase (CEP) dependence of the attosecond continua shows a single-peak structure originating from the half-cycle cut-off at appropriate CEP values, which strongly indicates the generation of a single burst of an isolated attosecond pulse. Our approach suggests a possibility for isolated sub-50-as pulse generation in the EUV region by compensating for the intrinsic attosecond chirp with a Zr filter.

Epilepsia partialis continua responsive to neocortical electrical stimulation.

PubMed

Valentin, Antonio; Ughratdar, Ismail; Cheserem, Beverly; Morris, Robert; Selway, Richard; Alarcon, Gonzalo

2015-08-01

Epilepsia partialis continua (EPC), defined as a syndrome of continuous focal jerking, is a rare form of focal status epilepticus that usually affects a distal limb, and when prolonged, can produce long-lasting deficits in limb function. Substantial electrophysiologic evidence links the origin of EPC to the motor cortex; thus surgical resection carries the risk of significant handicap. We present two patients with focal, drug-resistant EPC, who were admitted for intracranial video-electroencephalography monitoring to elucidate the location of the epileptogenic focus and identification of eloquent motor cortex with functional mapping. In both cases, the focus resided at or near eloquent motor cortex and therefore precluded resective surgery. Chronic cortical stimulation delivered through subdural strips at the seizure focus (continuous stimulation at 60-130 Hz, 2-3 mA) resulted in >90% reduction in seizures and abolition of the EPC after a follow-up of 22 months in both patients. Following permanent implantation of cortical stimulators, no adverse effects were noted. EPC restarted when intensity was reduced or batteries depleted. Battery replacement restored previous improvement. This two-case report opens up avenues for the treatment of this debilitating condition. Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2015 International League Against Epilepsy.

Euromech 579 Arpino 3-8 April 2017: Generalized and microstructured continua: new ideas in modeling and/or applications to structures with (nearly)inextensible fibers—a review of presentations and discussions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laudato, Marco; Di Cosmo, Fabio

2018-04-01

In the present paper, a rational report on Euromech 579, Generalized and Microstructured Continua: New ideas in modeling and/or Applications to Structures with (nearly)inextensible fibers (Arpino 3-8 April 2017), is provided. The main aim of the colloquium was to provide a forum for experts in generalized and microstructured continua with inextensible fibers to exchange ideas and get informed about the latest research trends in the domain. The interested reader will find more details about the colloquium at the dedicated web page http://www.memocsevents.eu/euromech579.

Low Level Light Could Work on Skin Inflammatory Disease: A Case Report on Refractory Acrodermatitis Continua

PubMed Central

Choi, Mira; Na, Se Young; Cho, Soyun

2011-01-01

Low level laser or light treatment on the various clinical condition is getting considerable attention now. However, there has been no report about the clinical effect of low level polarized polychromatic noncoherent light (LPPL) on the inflammatory skin disease. We experienced a case of acrodermatitis continua in a pregnant woman refractory to any conventional treatment including the most potent topical steroid. She was successfully treated with LPPL. LPPL could be a possible treatment modality producing substantial clinical result in inflammatory skin condition without any side-effect. PMID:21394319

OBSERVATIONS OF ENHANCED EXTREME ULTRAVIOLET CONTINUA DURING AN X-CLASS SOLAR FLARE USING SDO/EVE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Milligan, Ryan O.; Mathioudakis, Mihalis; Keenan, Francis P.

2012-03-20

Observations of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) emission from an X-class solar flare that occurred on 2011 February 15 at 01:44 UT are presented, obtained using the EUV Variability Experiment (EVE) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory. The complete EVE spectral range covers the free-bound continua of H I (Lyman continuum), He I, and He II, with recombination edges at 91.2, 50.4, and 22.8 nm, respectively. By fitting the wavelength ranges blueward of each recombination edge with an exponential function, light curves of each of the integrated continua were generated over the course of the flare, as was emission from the free-freemore » continuum (6.5-37 nm). The He II 30.4 nm and Ly{alpha} 121.6 nm lines, and soft X-ray (SXR; 0.1-0.8 nm) emission from GOES are also included for comparison. Each free-bound continuum was found to have a rapid rise phase at the flare onset similar to that seen in the 25-50 keV light curves from RHESSI, suggesting that they were formed by recombination with free electrons in the chromosphere. However, the free-free emission exhibited a slower rise phase seen also in the SXR emission from GOES, implying a predominantly coronal origin. By integrating over the entire flare the total energy emitted via each process was determined. We find that the flare energy in the EVE spectral range amounts to at most a few percent of the total flare energy, but EVE gives us a first comprehensive look at these diagnostically important continuum components.« less

Proposal of a critical test of the Navier-Stokes-Fourier paradigm for compressible fluid continua.

PubMed

Brenner, Howard

2013-01-01

A critical, albeit simple experimental and/or molecular-dynamic (MD) simulation test is proposed whose outcome would, in principle, establish the viability of the Navier-Stokes-Fourier (NSF) equations for compressible fluid continua. The latter equation set, despite its longevity as constituting the fundamental paradigm of continuum fluid mechanics, has recently been criticized on the basis of its failure to properly incorporate volume transport phenomena-as embodied in the proposed bivelocity paradigm [H. Brenner, Int. J. Eng. Sci. 54, 67 (2012)]-into its formulation. Were the experimental or simulation results found to accord, even only qualitatively, with bivelocity predictions, the temperature distribution in a gas-filled, thermodynamically and mechanically isolated circular cylinder undergoing steady rigid-body rotation in an inertial reference frame would not be uniform; rather, the temperature would be higher at the cylinder wall than along the axis of rotation. This radial temperature nonuniformity contrasts with the uniformity of the temperature predicted by the NSF paradigm for these same circumstances. Easily attainable rates of rotation in centrifuges and readily available tools for measuring the expected temperature differences render experimental execution of the proposed scheme straightforward in principle. As such, measurement-via experiment or MD simulation-of, say, the temperature difference ΔT between the gas at the wall and along the axis of rotation would provide quantitative tests of both the NSF and bivelocity hydrodynamic models, whose respective solutions for the stated set of circumstances are derived in this paper. Independently of the correctness of the bivelocity model, any temperature difference observed during the proposed experiment or simulation, irrespective of magnitude, would preclude the possibility of the NSF paradigm being correct for fluid continua, except for incompressible flows.

Comment on "Proposal of a critical test of the Navier-Stokes-Fourier paradigm for compressible fluid continua".

PubMed

Felderhof, B U

2013-08-01

Recently, a critical test of the Navier-Stokes-Fourier equations for compressible fluid continua was proposed [H. Brenner, Phys. Rev. E 87, 013014 (2013)]. It was shown that the equations of bivelocity hydrodynamics imply that a compressible fluid in an isolated rotating circular cylinder attains a nonequilibrium steady state with a nonuniform temperature increasing radially with distance from the axis. We demonstrate that statistical mechanical arguments, involving Hamiltonian dynamics and ergodicity due to irregularity of the wall, lead instead to a thermal equilibrium state with uniform temperature. This is the situation to be expected in experiment.

Correlates of Mental Illness and Health Categories among Older Adults in China: An Empirical Study Based on the Two Continua Model.

PubMed

Jiang, Nan; Lu, Nan

2018-04-30

Keyes' two continua model is a useful concept in which mental health and mental illness exist on two separate axes. Based on this model, this study examined the prevalence and correlates of three mental health categories among older adults in China. Cross-sectional data were derived from Wave 1 of the Study on Global AGEing and Adult Health. Participants were categorized into complete mental health (CMH), complete mental illness (CMI), and moderate mental health (MMH) groups. Multinomial logistic regressions were used. The prevalence of CMH, CMI, and MMH in China was 18%, 16%, and 66%, respectively. Being female, unmarried, younger, and feeling unhealthy were more likely to result in placement in the CMI category. Employment, education, and cognitive function were identified as important protective factors of CMH. Age, income, urban or rural residence, and physical function difficulty were associated with all three categories. We demonstrated the utility of the two continua model in identifying mental health needs in Chinese contexts. The findings suggest that future policy reforms and clinical interventions should establish a more comprehensive mental health category as a screening tool nationwide. The promotion of social engagement could play an important role in treating mental illness and improving positive mental health.

A case of schizencephaly has a normal surface EEG but abnormal intracranial EEG: epilepsia partialis continua or dystonia?

PubMed

Lv, Yudan; Ma, Dihui; Meng, Hongmei; Zan, Wang; Li, Cui

2013-10-01

Schizencephaly is a congenital malformation of the cerebral hemispheres, with communication between the lateral ventricle and the subarachnoid space. Marinelli reported that schizencephaly may be associated with continuous involuntary hand movements, such as dystonia or epilepsia partialis continua (EPC). We describe a young Chinese patient with continuous involuntary movements of the contralateral hand affected by schizencephaly. He has a normal scalp electroencephalogram (EEG) but abnormal intracranial EEG, with synchronized periodic lateralized epileptiform discharges. The results obtained from these EEG investigations and the clinical features of the involuntary movements are in favor of a diagnosis of secondary EPC.

Focus on therapy: hemicrania continua and new daily persistent headache.

PubMed

Rossi, Paolo; Tassorelli, Cristina; Allena, Marta; Ferrante, Enrico; Lisotto, Carlo; Nappi, Giuseppe

2010-06-01

Hemicrania continua (HC) and new daily-persistent headache (NDPH) represent the only two forms of chronic daily headache in Chap. IV "Other Primary Headaches" of the second edition of the International Classification of Headache Disorders. HC and NDPH are rare and poorly defined from a pathophysiological point of view; as a consequence, their management is largely empirical. Indeed, there is a lack of prospective, controlled trials in this field, and treatment effectiveness is basically inferred from the results of sparse open-label trials, retrospective case series, clinical experience and expert opinions. In this narrative review we have summarised the information collected from an extensive analysis of the literature on the treatment of HC and NDPH in order to provide the best available and up-to-date evidence for the management of these two rare forms of primary headache. Indomethacin is the mainstay of HC management. The reported effective dose of indomethacin ranges from 50 to 300 mg/day. Gabapentin 600-3,600 mg tid, topiramate 100 mg bid, and celecoxib 200-400 mg represent the most interesting alternative choices in the patients who do not tolerate indomethacin or who have contraindications to its use. NDPH is very difficult to treat and it responds poorly only to first-line options used for migraine or tension-type headache.

Quasi-stationary mechanics of elastic continua with bending stiffness wrapping on a pulley system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaczmarczyk, S.; Mirhadizadeh, S.

2016-05-01

In many engineering applications elastic continua such as ropes and belts often are subject to bending when they pass over pulleys / sheaves. In this paper the quasi-stationary mechanics of a cable-pulley system is studied. The cable is modelled as a moving Euler- Bernoulli beam. The distribution of tension is non-uniform along its span and due to the bending stiffness the contact points at the pulley-beam boundaries are not unknown. The system is described by a set of nonlinear ordinary differential equations with undetermined boundary conditions. The resulting nonlinear Boundary Value Problem (BVP) with unknown boundaries is solved by converting the problem into the ‘standard’ form defined over a fixed interval. Numerical results obtained for a range of typical configurations with relevant boundary conditions applied demonstrate that due to the effects of bending stiffness the angels of wrap are reduced and the span tensions are increased.

Hemicrania Continua: Beneficial Effect of Non-Invasive Vagus Nerve Stimulation in a Patient With a Contraindication for Indomethacin.

PubMed

Eren, Ozan; Straube, Andreas; Schöberl, Florian; Schankin, Christoph

2017-02-01

Hemicrania continua (HC) is a primary chronic headache disorder, characterized by a continuous and strictly unilateral headache, with possible cranial autonomic symptoms during episodes of pain exacerbation. The unilateral headache generally responds well to indomethacin; however, continuous indomethacin intake is often not tolerated due to severe adverse effects, like hypertension, gastrointestinal discomfort (especially if combined with aspirin), slightly increased risk of vascular events, and bronchial spasms. Therefore, alternative treatment options are desperately needed. Non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation (nVNS) has been shown to be effective in patients with cluster headache, another trigeminal autonomic cephalalgia (TAC), with cranial parasympathetic autonomic activation during the attacks. © 2016 American Headache Society.

Hemicrania continua: Case series presenting in an orofacial pain clinic.

PubMed

Hryvenko, Iryna; Cervantes-Chavarría, Andrés R; Law, Alan S; Nixdorf, Donald R

2018-01-01

Aim of investigation Hemicrania continua (HC) is an uncommon primary headache and little is known of the characteristics of such patients managed in an orofacial pain setting. This study provides clinical features of HC, its association with other disorders, and treatment outcomes of patients managed in the TMD and Orofacial Pain Clinic at the University of Minnesota. Methods A retrospective review of patient records was undertaken. Inclusion criteria were a diagnosis of HC and confirmation at follow-up. Results Six of the 1617 new patients seen between 2015 and 2017 met the selection criteria. Four patients presented with "facial pain", one with "toothache" and one with "jaw pain". All were female with mean age 55 ± 10.5 years (range = 41-69). Headache characteristics included unilateral (R:L = 1:1) pain of moderate intensity with severe exacerbations in the distribution of V 1 (1/6), V 1  + V 2 (3/6) and V 1  + V 2  + V 3 (2/6). Lacrimation and photophobia were the most common associated symptoms. Patient presentations were complicated by multiple medical and comorbid diagnoses. All were diagnosed with temporomandibular disorder (TMD). Indomethacin alone was sufficient for adequate headache control in 2/6 patients with several add-on medications providing sustained pain relief. Conclusions Comorbid pain conditions can be expected in patients with HC presenting to orofacial pain clinics. Symptom presentation varies, and multimodal treatment approach is necessary for success.

Mapping soil landscape as spatial continua: The Neural Network Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, A.-Xing

2000-03-01

A neural network approach was developed to populate a soil similarity model that was designed to represent soil landscape as spatial continua for hydroecological modeling at watersheds of mesoscale size. The approach employs multilayer feed forward neural networks. The input to the network was data on a set of soil formative environmental factors; the output from the network was a set of similarity values to a set of prescribed soil classes. The network was trained using a conjugate gradient algorithm in combination with a simulated annealing technique to learn the relationships between a set of prescribed soils and their environmental factors. Once trained, the network was used to compute for every location in an area the similarity values of the soil to the set of prescribed soil classes. The similarity values were then used to produce detailed soil spatial information. The approach also included a Geographic Information System procedure for selecting representative training and testing samples and a process of determining the network internal structure. The approach was applied to soil mapping in a watershed, the Lubrecht Experimental Forest, in western Montana. The case study showed that the soil spatial information derived using the neural network approach reveals much greater spatial detail and has a higher quality than that derived from the conventional soil map. Implications of this detailed soil spatial information for hydroecological modeling at the watershed scale are also discussed.

Nonhost resistance to rust pathogens - a continuation of continua.

PubMed

Bettgenhaeuser, Jan; Gilbert, Brian; Ayliffe, Michael; Moscou, Matthew J

2014-01-01

The rust fungi (order: Pucciniales) are a group of widely distributed fungal plant pathogens, which can infect representatives of all vascular plant groups. Rust diseases significantly impact several crop species and considerable research focuses on understanding the basis of host specificity and nonhost resistance. Like many pathogens, rust fungi vary considerably in the number of hosts they can infect, such as wheat leaf rust (Puccinia triticina), which can only infect species in the genera Triticum and Aegilops, whereas Asian soybean rust (Phakopsora pachyrhizi) is known to infect over 95 species from over 42 genera. A greater understanding of the genetic basis determining host range has the potential to identify sources of durable resistance for agronomically important crops. Delimiting the boundary between host and nonhost has been complicated by the quantitative nature of phenotypes in the transition between these two states. Plant-pathogen interactions in this intermediate state are characterized either by (1) the majority of accessions of a species being resistant to the rust or (2) the rust only being able to partially complete key components of its life cycle. This leads to a continuum of disease phenotypes in the interaction with different plant species, observed as a range from compatibility (host) to complete immunity within a species (nonhost). In this review we will highlight how the quantitative nature of disease resistance in these intermediate interactions is caused by a continuum of defense barriers, which a pathogen needs to overcome for successfully establishing itself in the host. To illustrate continua as this underlying principle, we will discuss the advances that have been made in studying nonhost resistance towards rust pathogens, particularly cereal rust pathogens.

Wave propagation in relaxed micromorphic continua: modeling metamaterials with frequency band-gaps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Madeo, A.; Neff, P.; Ghiba, I. D.; Placidi, L.; Rosi, G.

2015-09-01

In this paper, the relaxed micromorphic model proposed in Ghiba et al. (Math Mech Solids, 2013), Neff et al. (Contin Mech Thermodyn, 2013) has been used to study wave propagation in unbounded continua with microstructure. By studying dispersion relations for the considered relaxed medium, we are able to disclose precise frequency ranges (band-gaps) for which propagation of waves cannot occur. These dispersion relations are strongly nonlinear so giving rise to a macroscopic dispersive behavior of the considered medium. We prove that the presence of band-gaps is related to a unique elastic coefficient, the so-called Cosserat couple modulus μ c , which is also responsible for the loss of symmetry of the Cauchy force stress tensor. This parameter can be seen as the trigger of a bifurcation phenomenon since the fact of slightly changing its value around a given threshold drastically changes the observed response of the material with respect to wave propagation. We finally show that band-gaps cannot be accounted for by classical micromorphic models as well as by Cosserat and second gradient ones. The potential fields of application of the proposed relaxed model are manifold, above all for what concerns the conception of new engineering materials to be used for vibration control and stealth technology.

Nonhost resistance to rust pathogens – a continuation of continua

PubMed Central

Bettgenhaeuser, Jan; Gilbert, Brian; Ayliffe, Michael; Moscou, Matthew J.

2014-01-01

The rust fungi (order: Pucciniales) are a group of widely distributed fungal plant pathogens, which can infect representatives of all vascular plant groups. Rust diseases significantly impact several crop species and considerable research focuses on understanding the basis of host specificity and nonhost resistance. Like many pathogens, rust fungi vary considerably in the number of hosts they can infect, such as wheat leaf rust (Puccinia triticina), which can only infect species in the genera Triticum and Aegilops, whereas Asian soybean rust (Phakopsora pachyrhizi) is known to infect over 95 species from over 42 genera. A greater understanding of the genetic basis determining host range has the potential to identify sources of durable resistance for agronomically important crops. Delimiting the boundary between host and nonhost has been complicated by the quantitative nature of phenotypes in the transition between these two states. Plant–pathogen interactions in this intermediate state are characterized either by (1) the majority of accessions of a species being resistant to the rust or (2) the rust only being able to partially complete key components of its life cycle. This leads to a continuum of disease phenotypes in the interaction with different plant species, observed as a range from compatibility (host) to complete immunity within a species (nonhost). In this review we will highlight how the quantitative nature of disease resistance in these intermediate interactions is caused by a continuum of defense barriers, which a pathogen needs to overcome for successfully establishing itself in the host. To illustrate continua as this underlying principle, we will discuss the advances that have been made in studying nonhost resistance towards rust pathogens, particularly cereal rust pathogens. PMID:25566270

Electrostatics of proteins in dielectric solvent continua. II. Hamiltonian reaction field dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bauer, Sebastian; Tavan, Paul; Mathias, Gerald

2014-03-01

In Paper I of this work [S. Bauer, G. Mathias, and P. Tavan, J. Chem. Phys. 140, 104102 (2014)] we have presented a reaction field (RF) method, which accurately solves the Poisson equation for proteins embedded in dielectric solvent continua at a computational effort comparable to that of polarizable molecular mechanics (MM) force fields. Building upon these results, here we suggest a method for linearly scaling Hamiltonian RF/MM molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, which we call "Hamiltonian dielectric solvent" (HADES). First, we derive analytical expressions for the RF forces acting on the solute atoms. These forces properly account for all those conditions, which have to be self-consistently fulfilled by RF quantities introduced in Paper I. Next we provide details on the implementation, i.e., we show how our RF approach is combined with a fast multipole method and how the self-consistency iterations are accelerated by the use of the so-called direct inversion in the iterative subspace. Finally we demonstrate that the method and its implementation enable Hamiltonian, i.e., energy and momentum conserving HADES-MD, and compare in a sample application on Ac-Ala-NHMe the HADES-MD free energy landscape at 300 K with that obtained in Paper I by scanning of configurations and with one obtained from an explicit solvent simulation.

Special Topic Interoperability and EHR: Combining openEHR, SNOMED, IHE, and Continua as approaches to interoperability on national eHealth.

PubMed

Beštek, Mate; Stanimirović, Dalibor

2017-08-09

The main aims of the paper comprise the characterization and examination of the potential approaches regarding interoperability. This includes openEHR, SNOMED, IHE, and Continua as combined interoperability approaches, possibilities for their incorporation into the eHealth environment, and identification of the main success factors in the field, which are necessary for achieving required interoperability, and consequently, for the successful implementation of eHealth projects in general. The paper represents an in-depth analysis regarding the potential application of openEHR, SNOMED, IHE and Continua approaches in the development and implementation process of eHealth in Slovenia. The research method used is both exploratory and deductive in nature. The methodological framework is grounded on information retrieval with a special focus on research and charting of existing experience in the field, and sources, both electronic and written, which include interoperability concepts and related implementation issues. The paper will try to answer the following inquiries that are complementing each other: 1. Scrutiny of the potential approaches, which could alleviate the pertinent interoperability issues in the Slovenian eHealth context. 2. Analyzing the possibilities (requirements) for their inclusion in the construction process for individual eHealth solutions. 3. Identification and charting the main success factors in the interoperability field that critically influence development and implementation of eHealth projects in an efficient manner. Provided insights and identified success factors could serve as a constituent of the strategic starting points for continuous integration of interoperability principles into the healthcare domain. Moreover, the general implementation of the identified success factors could facilitate better penetration of ICT into the healthcare environment and enable the eHealth-based transformation of the health system especially in the countries

Energy-momentum conserving higher-order time integration of nonlinear dynamics of finite elastic fiber-reinforced continua

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erler, Norbert; Groß, Michael

2015-05-01

Since many years the relevance of fibre-reinforced polymers is steadily increasing in fields of engineering, especially in aircraft and automotive industry. Due to the high strength in fibre direction, but the possibility of lightweight construction, these composites replace more and more traditional materials as metals. Fibre-reinforced polymers are often manufactured from glass or carbon fibres as attachment parts or from steel or nylon cord as force transmission parts. Attachment parts are mostly subjected to small strains, but force transmission parts usually suffer large deformations in at least one direction. Here, a geometrically nonlinear formulation is necessary. Typical examples are helicopter rotor blades, where the fibres have the function to stabilize the structure in order to counteract large centrifugal forces. For long-run analyses of rotor blade deformations, we have to apply numerically stable time integrators for anisotropic materials. This paper presents higher-order accurate and numerically stable time stepping schemes for nonlinear elastic fibre-reinforced continua with anisotropic stress behaviour.

Characterizing the HIV Prevention and Care Continua in a Sample of Transgender Youth in the U.S

PubMed Central

Jadwin-Cakmak, Laura; White Hughto, Jaclyn M.; Martinez, Miguel; Salomon, Liz

2017-01-01

In the U.S., transgender and other gender minority (TG) youth are an at-risk group understudied in HIV prevention and treatment. This study sought to characterize the HIV prevention and care continua in a diverse sample of 181 sexually-active TG ages 16–24 years (mean age = 20.7 years; 76.8% trans feminine; 69.1% youth of color) recruited July–December 2015 in 14 U.S. cities. Overall, 30.9% reported living with HIV, of which 71.4% were on antiretroviral therapy (ART) and 55.0% were medication adherent; 65.6% were known to be virally suppressed. In multivariable models, medical gender affirmation was associated with lower odds of viral suppression. Medical gender affirmation and stigma in HIV care were each independently associated with elevated odds of having missed HIV care appointments. Among at-risk TG youth not living with HIV, only 8.2% had accessed pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Early biobehavioral prevention and treatment interventions are needed for TG youth. PMID:29138982

Computational Modeling of Cultural Dimensions in Adversary Organizations

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-01-01

Nodes”, In the Proceedings of the 9th Conference on Uncertainty in Artificial Intelli - gence, 1993. [8] Pearl, J. Probabilistic Reasoning in...the artificial life simulations; in con- trast, models with only a few agents typically employ quite sophisticated cognitive agents capa- ble of...Model Construction 45 cisions as to how to allocate scarce ISR assets (two Unmanned Air Systems, UAS ) among the two Red activities while at the same

Categories and continua of destructive and constructive marital conflict tactics from the perspective of U.S. and Welsh children.

PubMed

Goeke-Morey, Marcie C; Cummings, E Mark; Harold, Gordon T; Shelton, Katherine H

2003-09-01

Categories and continua of parents' marital conflict tactics based on multiple, conceptually grounded criteria were tested. Participants were 175 U.S. children, ages 8-16 years (88 boys, 87 girls) and 327 Welsh children, ages 11-12 years (159 boys, 168 girls). Children's responses (affective, cognitive, behavioral) to analog presentations of 10 everyday marital conflict tactics enacted by fathers or mothers showed substantial variation as a function of tactic used. Orderings of conflict tactics on the various response criteria varied as a function of moderators, particularly the gender of the parent expressing the conflict tactic. Conflict tactics were classified as either constructive or destructive according to criteria derived from the emotional security hypothesis. Except for calm discussion, classifications did not change regardless of cultural group, parent gender, or child age or gender. Recommendations for negotiating everyday marital conflict for the children's sake are discussed.

Electrostatics of proteins in dielectric solvent continua. II. First applications in molecular dynamics simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stork, Martina; Tavan, Paul

2007-04-01

In the preceding paper by Stork and Tavan, [J. Chem. Phys. 126, 165105 (2007)], the authors have reformulated an electrostatic theory which treats proteins surrounded by dielectric solvent continua and approximately solves the associated Poisson equation [B. Egwolf and P. Tavan, J. Chem. Phys. 118, 2039 (2003)]. The resulting solution comprises analytical expressions for the electrostatic reaction field (RF) and potential, which are generated within the protein by the polarization of the surrounding continuum. Here the field and potential are represented in terms of Gaussian RF dipole densities localized at the protein atoms. Quite like in a polarizable force field, also the RF dipole at a given protein atom is induced by the partial charges and RF dipoles at the other atoms. Based on the reformulated theory, the authors have suggested expressions for the RF forces, which obey Newton's third law. Previous continuum approaches, which were also built on solutions of the Poisson equation, used to violate the reactio principle required by this law, and thus were inapplicable to molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. In this paper, the authors suggest a set of techniques by which one can surmount the few remaining hurdles still hampering the application of the theory to MD simulations of soluble proteins and peptides. These techniques comprise the treatment of the RF dipoles within an extended Lagrangian approach and the optimization of the atomic RF polarizabilities. Using the well-studied conformational dynamics of alanine dipeptide as the simplest example, the authors demonstrate the remarkable accuracy and efficiency of the resulting RF-MD approach.

Development of a Protocol for Automated Glucose Measurement Transmission Used in Clinical Decision Support Systems Based on the Continua Design Guidelines.

PubMed

Meyer, Markus; Donsa, Klaus; Truskaller, Thomas; Frohner, Matthias; Pohn, Birgit; Felfernig, Alexander; Sinner, Frank; Pieber, Thomas

2018-01-01

A fast and accurate data transmission from glucose meter to clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) is crucial for the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus since almost all therapeutic interventions are derived from glucose measurements. Aim was to develop a prototype of an automated glucose measurement transmission protocol based on the Continua Design Guidelines and to embed the protocol into a CDSS used by healthcare professionals. A literature and market research was performed to analyze the state-of-the-art and thereupon develop, integrate and validate an automated glucose measurement transmission protocol in an iterative process. Findings from literature and market research guided towards the development of a standardized glucose measurement transmission protocol using a middleware. The interface description to communicate with the glucose meter was illustrated and embedded into a CDSS. A prototype of an interoperable transmission of glucose measurements was developed and implemented in a CDSS presenting a promising way to reduce medication errors and improve user satisfaction.

Neuropeptides in Heteroptera: Identification of allatotropin-related peptide and tachykinin-related peptides using MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Recently, the peptidomic analysis of neuropeptides from the retrocerebral complex and abdominal perisympathetic organs of polyphagous stinkbugs (Pentatomidae) revealed the group-specific sequences of pyrokinins, CAPA peptides (CAPA-periviscerokinins/PVKs and CAPA-pyrokinin), myosuppressin, corazonin...

Joint Bayesian Estimation of Quasar Continua and the Lyα Forest Flux Probability Distribution Function

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eilers, Anna-Christina; Hennawi, Joseph F.; Lee, Khee-Gan

2017-08-01

We present a new Bayesian algorithm making use of Markov Chain Monte Carlo sampling that allows us to simultaneously estimate the unknown continuum level of each quasar in an ensemble of high-resolution spectra, as well as their common probability distribution function (PDF) for the transmitted Lyα forest flux. This fully automated PDF regulated continuum fitting method models the unknown quasar continuum with a linear principal component analysis (PCA) basis, with the PCA coefficients treated as nuisance parameters. The method allows one to estimate parameters governing the thermal state of the intergalactic medium (IGM), such as the slope of the temperature-density relation γ -1, while marginalizing out continuum uncertainties in a fully Bayesian way. Using realistic mock quasar spectra created from a simplified semi-numerical model of the IGM, we show that this method recovers the underlying quasar continua to a precision of ≃ 7 % and ≃ 10 % at z = 3 and z = 5, respectively. Given the number of principal component spectra, this is comparable to the underlying accuracy of the PCA model itself. Most importantly, we show that we can achieve a nearly unbiased estimate of the slope γ -1 of the IGM temperature-density relation with a precision of +/- 8.6 % at z = 3 and +/- 6.1 % at z = 5, for an ensemble of ten mock high-resolution quasar spectra. Applying this method to real quasar spectra and comparing to a more realistic IGM model from hydrodynamical simulations would enable precise measurements of the thermal and cosmological parameters governing the IGM, albeit with somewhat larger uncertainties, given the increased flexibility of the model.

Como Lo Hago Yo: Defectos Del Cierre Del Tubo Neural En Nicaragua

PubMed Central

Gonzalez, Juan Bosco

2014-01-01

En Nicaragua no hay un plan de forltificación de alimentos con ácido fólico. Las madres son muy jóvenes. En La Mascota operamos mas de cuarenta niños por año. Derivación tardía es un problema. La infección preoperatoria tiene que ser descartada. Vancomicina y Ceftriaxone estan indicadas. Estricta regla de asepsia operatoria. Suturamos la plaqueta para asemejar su forma al cilindro normal de la médula. No ceramos la capa de músculo. PMID:24791221

The Pros and Cons of Army Automation

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-11-13

The Pros and Cons of Army Automation 1 Running Head: THE PROS AND CONS OF ARMY AUTOMATION The Pros and Cons of Army Automation SGM...TITLE AND SUBTITLE The Pros and Cons of Army Automation 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S) 5d. PROJECT...Prescribed by ANSI Std Z39-18 The Pros and Cons of Army Automation 2 Outline I. Introduction (MSG (P) Dostie) II. Manual skills (MSG (P

Experimental and Computational Studies of Carbonyl Diazide (CON6) as a Precursor to Diazirinone (CON2)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Esselman, Brian J.; Amberger, Brent K.; Nolan, Alex M.; Woods, R. Claude; McMahon, R. J.

2011-10-01

Intrigued by the reported 2005 synthesis of diazirinone (1), we carried out further experimental and theoretical studies aimed at the detailed matrix-isolation and millimeter-wave spectroscopic characterizations of 1. Diazirinone (1) is a peculiar isoconjugate of two very stable molecules and may be of astrochemical interest. Unfortunately, the original reported methods of diazirinone (1) generation did not yield this species, rather its decomposition products. Inspired by a more recent gas phase pyrolysis of CON6 (2) to yield CON2 (1), we proposed a new method of generating CON6 (2) in solution as a precursor of diazirinone (1). This new synthesis may allow us to generate larger quantities of both CON6 and CON2 for investigation by millimeter-wave spectroscopy. We are able to safely generate carbonyl diazide (2) in sufficient yield from the reaction of triphosgene (3) and tetrabutylammonium azide in diethyl ether. This has allowed us to obtain both matrix-isolation and gas phase IR spectra of carbonyl diazide (2). After purification, it has a gas-phase lifetime that allows samples to be useable for up to several weeks. However, it is a shock-sensitive material that must be handled with care to prevent violent decomposition. In order to provide better mechanistic insight into the decomposition of carbonyl diazide (2) to diazirinone (1), we have engaged in a DFT and ab initio computational study. We have found a pathway between the two species via the triplet acylnitrene, CON4, and an oxaziridine CON2 species, but not at sufficiently low energies to allow for the trapping and detection of diazirinone (1). Preliminary millimeter-wave spectra have been obtained from several synthesized and purified samples of CON6 (2). However, the assignment of the spectra lines has been unexpectedly problematic. We have placed several CON6 (2) samples, confirmed by IR spectroscopy at the time of sample loading, into our instrument and obtained two different sets of rotational lines

Modeling plant composition as community continua in a forest landscape with LiDAR and hyperspectral remote sensing.

PubMed

Hakkenberg, C R; Peet, R K; Urban, D L; Song, C

2018-01-01

In light of the need to operationalize the mapping of forest composition at landscape scales, this study uses multi-scale nested vegetation sampling in conjunction with LiDAR-hyperspectral remotely sensed data from the G-LiHT airborne sensor to map vascular plant compositional turnover in a compositionally and structurally complex North Carolina Piedmont forest. Reflecting a shift in emphasis from remotely sensing individual crowns to detecting aggregate optical-structural properties of forest stands, predictive maps reflect the composition of entire vascular plant communities, inclusive of those species smaller than the resolution of the remotely sensed imagery, intertwined with proximate taxa, or otherwise obscured from optical sensors by dense upper canopies. Stand-scale vascular plant composition is modeled as community continua: where discrete community-unit classes at different compositional resolutions provide interpretable context for continuous gradient maps that depict n-dimensional compositional complexity as a single, consistent RGB color combination. In total, derived remotely sensed predictors explain 71%, 54%, and 48% of the variation in the first three components of vascular plant composition, respectively. Among all remotely sensed environmental gradients, topography derived from LiDAR ground returns, forest structure estimated from LiDAR all returns, and morphological-biochemical traits determined from hyperspectral imagery each significantly correspond to the three primary axes of floristic composition in the study site. Results confirm the complementarity of LiDAR and hyperspectral sensors for modeling the environmental gradients constraining landscape turnover in vascular plant composition and hold promise for predictive mapping applications spanning local land management to global ecosystem modeling. © 2017 by the Ecological Society of America.

Power adaptive multi-filter carrierless amplitude and phase access scheme for visible light communication network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Wei; Huang, Zhitong; Li, Haoyue; Ji, Yuefeng

2018-04-01

Visible light communication (VLC) is a promising candidate for short-range broadband access due to its integration of advantages for both optical communication and wireless communication, whereas multi-user access is a key problem because of the intra-cell and inter-cell interferences. In addition, the non-flat channel effect results in higher losses for users in high frequency bands, which leads to unfair qualities. To solve those issues, we propose a power adaptive multi-filter carrierless amplitude and phase access (PA-MF-CAPA) scheme, and in the first step of this scheme, the MF-CAPA scheme utilizing multiple filters as different CAP dimensions is used to realize multi-user access. The character of orthogonality among the filters in different dimensions can mitigate the effect of intra-cell and inter-cell interferences. Moreover, the MF-CAPA scheme provides different channels modulated on the same frequency bands, which further increases the transmission rate. Then, the power adaptive procedure based on MF-CAPA scheme is presented to realize quality fairness. As demonstrated in our experiments, the MF-CAPA scheme yields an improved throughput compared with multi-band CAP access scheme, and the PA-MF-CAPA scheme enhances the quality fairness and further improves the throughput compared with the MF-CAPA scheme.

9 CFR 319.300 - Chili con carne.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 2 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Chili con carne. 319.300 Section 319.300 Animals and Animal Products FOOD SAFETY AND INSPECTION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AGENCY... Products § 319.300 Chili con carne. “Chili con carne” shall contain not less than 40 percent of meat...

Mincle Signaling Promotes Con-A Hepatitis

PubMed Central

Greco, Stephanie H.; Torres-Hernandez, Alejandro; Kalabin, Aleksandr; Whiteman, Clint; Rokosh, Rae; Ravirala, Sushma; Ochi, Atsuo; Gutierrez, Johana; Salyana, Muhammad Atif; Mani, Vishnu R.; Nagaraj, Savitha V.; Deutsch, Michael; Seifert, Lena; Daley, Donnele; Barilla, Rocky; Hundeyin, Mautin; Nikifrov, Yuriy; Tejada, Karla; Gelb, Bruce E.; Katz, Steven C.; Miller, George

2016-01-01

Concanavalin-A (Con-A) hepatitis is regarded as a T cell-mediated model of acute liver injury. Mincle is a C-type lectin receptor (CLR) that is critical in the immune response to mycobacteria and fungi, but does not have a well-defined role in pre-clinical models of non-pathogen mediated inflammation. Since Mincle can ligate the cell death ligand SAP130, we postulated that Mincle signaling drives intrahepatic inflammation and liver injury in Con-A hepatitis. Acute liver injury was assessed in the murine Con-A hepatitis model using C57BL/6, Mincle−/−, and Dectin-1−/− mice. The role of C/EBPβ and HIF-1α signaling was assessed using selective inhibitors. We found that Mincle was highly expressed in hepatic innate inflammatory cells and endothelial cells in both mice and humans. Furthermore, sterile Mincle ligands and Mincle signaling intermediates were increased in the murine liver in Con-A hepatitis. Most significantly, Mincle deletion or blockade protected against Con-A hepatitis whereas Mincle ligation exacerbated disease. Bone marrow chimeric and adoptive transfer experiments suggested that Mincle signaling in infiltrating myeloid cells dictates disease phenotype. Conversely, signaling via other CLRs did not alter disease course. Mechanistically, we found that Mincle blockade decreased the NF-κβ related signaling intermediates, C/EBPβ and HIF-1α, both of which are necessary in macrophage-mediated inflammatory responses. Accordingly, Mincle deletion lowered production of nitrites in Con-A hepatitis and inhibition of both C/EBPβ and HIF1-α reduced the severity of liver disease. Our work implicates a novel innate immune driver of Con-A hepatitis and, more broadly, suggests a potential role for Mincle in diseases governed by sterile inflammation. PMID:27559045

Mincle Signaling Promotes Con A Hepatitis.

PubMed

Greco, Stephanie H; Torres-Hernandez, Alejandro; Kalabin, Aleksandr; Whiteman, Clint; Rokosh, Rae; Ravirala, Sushma; Ochi, Atsuo; Gutierrez, Johana; Salyana, Muhammad Atif; Mani, Vishnu R; Nagaraj, Savitha V; Deutsch, Michael; Seifert, Lena; Daley, Donnele; Barilla, Rocky; Hundeyin, Mautin; Nikifrov, Yuriy; Tejada, Karla; Gelb, Bruce E; Katz, Steven C; Miller, George

2016-10-01

Con A hepatitis is regarded as a T cell-mediated model of acute liver injury. Mincle is a C-type lectin receptor that is critical in the immune response to mycobacteria and fungi but does not have a well-defined role in preclinical models of non-pathogen-mediated inflammation. Because Mincle can ligate the cell death ligand SAP130, we postulated that Mincle signaling drives intrahepatic inflammation and liver injury in Con A hepatitis. Acute liver injury was assessed in the murine Con A hepatitis model using C57BL/6, Mincle(-/-), and Dectin-1(-/-) mice. The role of C/EBPβ and hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) signaling was assessed using selective inhibitors. We found that Mincle was highly expressed in hepatic innate inflammatory cells and endothelial cells in both mice and humans. Furthermore, sterile Mincle ligands and Mincle signaling intermediates were increased in the murine liver in Con A hepatitis. Most significantly, Mincle deletion or blockade protected against Con A hepatitis, whereas Mincle ligation exacerbated disease. Bone marrow chimeric and adoptive transfer experiments suggested that Mincle signaling in infiltrating myeloid cells dictates disease phenotype. Conversely, signaling via other C-type lectin receptors did not alter disease course. Mechanistically, we found that Mincle blockade decreased the NF-κβ-related signaling intermediates C/EBPβ and HIF-1α, both of which are necessary in macrophage-mediated inflammatory responses. Accordingly, Mincle deletion lowered production of nitrites in Con A hepatitis and inhibition of both C/EBPβ and HIF-1α reduced the severity of liver disease. Our work implicates a novel innate immune driver of Con A hepatitis and, more broadly, suggests a potential role for Mincle in diseases governed by sterile inflammation. Copyright © 2016 by The American Association of Immunologists, Inc.

Women in Combat Pros and Cons

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-04-01

and Cons . Major Thomas H. Cecil 88-0490 "--"insights into tomorrou,"’ ..v- A A 0 PtY-i f(.> i’I,-:::x:’~ --pcr~ j.~ ~~* --. -- iiV • DISCLAIMER The...k. r- r,’ I’. REPORT NUMBER 88-0490 TITLE WOMEN IN COMBAT-PROS AND CONS AUTHOR(S) MAJOR THOMAS H. CEC-IL, USAF -% FACULTY ADVISOR CH, LT COL DAVID W...NUMBERS 11 TITLE (include Security Classification) WOMEN IN COMBAT--PROS AND CONS 12. PERSON4AL AUTHOR(S) Cecil, Thomas H1., Major, USAF 9a YýOF REPORT

Dust extinction of the stellar continua in starburst galaxies: The ultraviolet and optical extinction law

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calzetti, Daniela; Kinney, Anne L.; Storchi-Bergmann, Thaisa

1994-01-01

We analyze the International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE) UV and the optical spectra of 39 starburst and blue compact galaxies in order to study the average properties of dust extinction in extended regions of galaxies. The optical spectra have been obtained using an aperture which matches that of IUE, so comparable regions within each galaxy are sampled. The data from the 39 galaxies are compared with five models for the geometrical distribution of dust, adopting as extinction laws both the Milky Way and the Large Magellanic Cloud laws. The commonly used uniform dust screen is included among the models. We find that none of the five models is in satisfactory agreement with the data. In order to understand the discrepancy between the data and the models, we have derived an extinction law directly from the data in the UV and optical wavelength range. The resulting curve is characterized by an overall slope which is more gray than the Milky Way extinction law's slope, and by the absence of the 2175 A dust feature. Remarkably, the difference in optical depth between the Balmer emission lines H(sub alpha) and H(sub beta) is about a factor of 2 larger than the difference in the optical depth between the continuum underlying the two Balmer lines. We interpret this discrepancy as a consequence of the fact that the hot ionizing stars are associated with dustier regions than the cold stellar population is. The absence of the 2175 A dust feature can be due either to the effects of the scattering and clumpiness of the dust or to a chemical composition different from that of the Milky Way dust grains. Disentangling the two interpretations is not easy because of the complexity of the spatial distribution of the emitting regions. The extinction law of the UV and optical spectral continua of extended regions can be applied to the spectra of medium- and high-redshift galaxies, where extended regions of a galaxy are, by necessity, sampled.

Electrostatics of proteins in dielectric solvent continua. I. Newton's third law marries qE forces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stork, Martina; Tavan, Paul

2007-04-01

The authors reformulate and revise an electrostatic theory treating proteins surrounded by dielectric solvent continua [B. Egwolf and P. Tavan, J. Chem. Phys. 118, 2039 (2003)] to make the resulting reaction field (RF) forces compatible with Newton's third law. Such a compatibility is required for their use in molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, in which the proteins are modeled by all-atom molecular mechanics force fields. According to the original theory the RF forces, which are due to the electric field generated by the solvent polarization and act on the partial charges of a protein, i.e., the so-called qE forces, can be quite accurately computed from Gaussian RF dipoles localized at the protein atoms. Using a slightly different approximation scheme also the RF energies of given protein configurations are obtained. However, because the qE forces do not account for the dielectric boundary pressure exerted by the solvent continuum on the protein, they do not obey the principle that actio equals reactio as required by Newton's third law. Therefore, their use in MD simulations is severely hampered. An analysis of the original theory has led the authors now to a reformulation removing the main difficulties. By considering the RF energy, which represents the dominant electrostatic contribution to the free energy of solvation for a given protein configuration, they show that its negative configurational gradient yields mean RF forces obeying the reactio principle. Because the evaluation of these mean forces is computationally much more demanding than that of the qE forces, they derive a suggestion how the qE forces can be modified to obey Newton's third law. Various properties of the thus established theory, particularly issues of accuracy and of computational efficiency, are discussed. A sample application to a MD simulation of a peptide in solution is described in the following paper [M. Stork and P. Tavan, J. Chem. Phys., 126, 165106 (2007).

EL PROTEOMA DEL TEJIDO ADIPOSO SUBCUTÁNEO MUESTRA HETEROGENEIDAD ANATÓMICA

PubMed Central

Martos-Moreno, G.A.; Sackmann-Sala, L.; Berryman, D.E.; Blome, D.W.; Argente, J.; Kopchick, y J.J.

2015-01-01

Introducción El tejido adiposo blanco (TAB) subcutáneo (Sc) humano podría variar dependiendo de su localización anatómica, con diferencias en su perfil proteómico. Pacientes y métodos Se obtuvieron aspirados de TAB-Sc de seis mujeres con IMC >25 kg/m2, sometidas a liposucción. Dicho TAB-Sc se obtuvo de seis localizaciones anatómicas: abdominal superior e inferior, muslo, dorsal, flanco y cadera, analizándose su perfil proteómico mediante electroforesis bidimensional. En muslo y abdomen superior se compararon, además, las muestras obtenidas de las dos capas del TAB-Sc (profunda y superficial). Resultados Se detectaron 21 proteínas que mostraban una intensidad de expresión diferente entre las seis localizaciones anatómicas y 14 entre las capas superficial y profunda de una misma región. Entre las proteínas identificadas se incluyen: vimentina (proteína estructural); proteínas “heat-shock” (HSPs), superóxido-dismutasa, (estrés/chaperoninas); proteína fijadora de ácidos grasos 4 (FABP-4) y alfa-enolasa (metabolismo lipídico y de los hidratos de carbono, respectivamente) y ATP-sintetasa (producción de energía). Entre las regiones estudiadas, el TAB-Sc dorsal mostraba un perfil proteómico particular, con menor expresión de proteínas implicadas en la producción de energía y metabolismo (ATP-sintetasa, alfa-enolasa, HSPs y FABP-4) que el resto de regiones. Conclusiones Los niveles de expresión de diversas proteínas en el TAB-Sc humano no son homogéneos, difiriendo entre localizaciones anatómicas. Esto sugiere la existencia de diferencias funcionales en el TAB-Sc de acuerdo con su localización anatómica, lo que debe considerarse antes de asumir la extrapolación de los datos derivados del TAB-Sc de una determinada localización al de otras partes de la anatomía. PMID:23228439

Estudio de la fotoabsorción y fotoionización de la molécula de alta relevancia atmosférica no a través de los estados Rydberg con la metodología MQDO

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bustos, E.; Velasco, A. M.; Martín, I.; Lavín, C.

Los procesos de fotoionización son de una importancia fundamental [1] y encuentran aplicación en un gran número de contextos científicos: Astrofísica [2], química de las radiaciones, biología. Los investigadores de dichos campos, necesitan de valores de fiables de secciones eficaces para la fotoionización parcial, la Fotoabsorción, así como para los procesos de fotofragmentación en amplios intervalos espectrales, particularmente en estudios de modelización [3-5]. En este trabajo se ha centrado la atención sobre el oxido nítrico, que se ha considerado apropiado y relevante por varios motivos: por el trascendental papel que representa en la física y química de la alta atmosfera [6], aparte de por estar íntimamente relacionado con los problemas de contaminación. Los procesos de recombinación disociativa [7] del NO, donde los estados Rydberg se encuentran directamente implicados, son relevantes, por ejemplo, en las regiones E y F de la ionosfera [7]. En este trabajo se estudia la fotoionización del NO desde el estado fundamental con la versión molecular del método del orbital de defecto cuántico (MQDO). Para ello se calcula el diferencial de las fuerzas de oscilador parciales que constituyen los canales de fotoionización del NO desde el estado fundamental. La continuidad del diferencial de fuerza de oscilador calculada a través del umbral de fotoionización, esto es, en las regiones del espectro discreta y del continua, se adopta como criterio de calidad la escasez de datos comparativos [8].

An Observing System Simulation Experiment Approach to Meteorological Network Assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abbasnezhadi, K.; Rasmussen, P. F.; Stadnyk, T.; Boluwade, A.

2016-12-01

A proper knowledge of the spatiotemporal distribution of rainfall is important in order to conduct a mindful investigation of water movement and storage throughout a catchment. Currently, the most accurate precipitation information available for the remote Boreal ecozones of northern Manitoba is coming from the Canadian Precipitation Analysis (CaPA) data assimilation system. Throughout the Churchill River Basin (CRB), CaPA still does not have the proper skill due to the limited number of weather stations. A new approach to experimental network design was investigated based on the concept of Observing System Simulation Experiment (OSSE). The OSSE-based network assessment procedure which simulates the CaPA system provides a scientific and hydrologically significant tool to assess the sensitivity of CaPA precipitation analysis to observation network density throughout the CRB. To simulate CaPA system, synthetic background and station data were simulated, respectively, by adding spatially uncorrelated and correlated Gaussian noises to an assumingly true daily weather field synthesized by a gridded precipitation generator which simulates CaPA data. Given the true reference field on one hand, and a set of pseudo-CaPA analyses associated with different network realizations on the other hand, a WATFLOOD hydrological model was employed to compare the modeled runoff. The simulations showed that as network density increases, the accuracy of CaPA precipitation products improves up to a certain limit beyond which adding more stations to the network does not result in further accuracy.

Isolation, Expression Analysis, and Functional Characterization of the First Antidiuretic Hormone Receptor in Insects

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-06-01

fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster and the honey bee Apis mellifera . Prog Neurobiol 80:1–19. 28. Larkin MA, et al. (2007) Clustal W and Clustal X version...receptors predicted or annotated in the Acyrthosiphon pisum, Pediculus humanus corporis, andApis mellifera genomes. The CAPA-related peptides in insects...prolixus CAPA Receptor Gene. CAPA receptor protein sequences identified or predicted in D. melanogaster (AAS65092) (13, 14), A. mellifera (NP_001091702

Ependimoma myxopapilar sacro gigante con osteolisis

PubMed Central

Ajler, Pablo; Landriel, Federico; Goldschmidt, Ezequiel; Campero, Álvaro; Yampolsky, Claudio

2014-01-01

Objetivo: la presentación de un caso de una paciente con un ependimoma sacro con extensa infiltración y destrucción ósea local. Descripción del caso: una mujer de 53 años acudió a la consulta por dolor lumbosacro y alteraciones sensitivas perineales y esfinterianas. La imágenes por Resonancia Magnética (IRM) y la Tomografía Axial Computada (TAC) mostraron una lesión expansiva gigante a nivel S2-S4 con extensa osteólisis e invasión de tejidos adyacentes. Se realizó una exéresis tumoral completa con mejoría del estatus funcional. La anatomía patológica informó ependimoma mixopapilar. Discusión: la extensión de la resección quirúrgica es el mejor predictor de buen pronóstico. El tratamiento radiante se reserva como opción adyuvante para las resecciones incompletas y recidiva tumoral. La quimioterapia sólo debería utilizarse en casos en que la cirugía y la radioterapia estén contraindicadas. Conclusión: Los ependimomas mixopapilares sacros con destrucción ósea y presentación intra y extradural son muy infrecuentes y deben ser tenidos en cuenta entre los diagnósticos diferenciales preoperatorios. Su resección total, siempre que sea posible, es la mejor alternativa terapéutica. PMID:25165615

Planificación Neuroquirúrgica con Software Osirix

PubMed Central

Jaimovich, Sebastián Gastón; Guevara, Martin; Pampin, Sergio; Jaimovich, Roberto; Gardella, Javier Luis

2014-01-01

Introducción: La individualidad anatómica es clave para reducir el trauma quirúrgico y obtener un mejor resultado. Actualmente, el avance en las neuroimágenes ha permitido objetivar esa individualidad anatómica, permitiendo planificar la intervención quirúrgica. Con este objetivo, presentamos nuestra experiencia con el software Osirix. Descripción de la técnica: Se presentan 3 casos ejemplificadores de 40 realizados. Caso 1: Paciente con meningioma de la convexidad parasagital izquierda en área premotora; Caso 2: Paciente con macroadenoma hipofisario, operada previamente por vía transeptoesfenoidal en otra institución con una resección parcial; Caso 3: Paciente con lesiones en pedúnculo cerebeloso medio bilateral. Se realizó la planificación prequirúrgica con el software OsiriX, fusionando y reconstruyendo en 3D las imágenes de TC e IRM, para analizar relaciones anatómicas, medir distancias, coordenadas y trayectorias, entre otras funciones. Discusión: El software OsiriX de acceso libre y gratuito permite al cirujano, mediante la fusión y reconstrucción en 3D de imágenes, analizar la anatomía individual del paciente y planificar de forma rápida, simple, segura y económica cirugías de alta complejidad. En el Caso 1 se pudo analizar las relaciones del tumor con las estructuras adyacentes para minimizar el abordaje. En el Caso 2 permitió comprender la anatomía post-operatoria previa del paciente, para determinar la trayectoria del abordaje transnasal endoscópico y la necesidad de ampliar su exposición, logrando la resección tumoral completa. En el Caso 3 permitió obtener las coordenadas estereotáxicas y trayectoria de una lesión sin representación tomográfica. Conclusión: En casos de no contar con costosos sistemas de neuronavegación o estereotáxia el software OsiriX es una alternativa a la hora de planificar la cirugía, con el objetivo de disminuir el trauma y la morbilidad operatoria. PMID:25165617

Pros and Cons of International Weapons Procurement Collaboration.

DTIC Science & Technology

1995-01-01

ad- vanced U.S. industry. Greater risk of cost growth and schedule slippage. Pro: U.S. and partners share common equip- ment. Con : U.S. require...Mark A., 1947- Pros and cons of international weapons procurement collaboration / Mark Lorell, Julia Lowell, p. cm "Prepared for the Office...one/ Cons of International Weapons Procurement Collaboration Mark Lorell Julia Lowell National Defense Research Institute Prepared for the

9 CFR 319.301 - Chili con carne with beans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 2 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Chili con carne with beans. 319.301 Section 319.301 Animals and Animal Products FOOD SAFETY AND INSPECTION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE... Dehydrated Meat Food Products § 319.301 Chili con carne with beans. Chili con carne with beans shall contain...

9 CFR 319.301 - Chili con carne with beans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 2 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Chili con carne with beans. 319.301 Section 319.301 Animals and Animal Products FOOD SAFETY AND INSPECTION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE... Dehydrated Meat Food Products § 319.301 Chili con carne with beans. Chili con carne with beans shall contain...

9 CFR 319.301 - Chili con carne with beans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 2 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Chili con carne with beans. 319.301 Section 319.301 Animals and Animal Products FOOD SAFETY AND INSPECTION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE... Dehydrated Meat Food Products § 319.301 Chili con carne with beans. Chili con carne with beans shall contain...

9 CFR 319.301 - Chili con carne with beans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 2 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Chili con carne with beans. 319.301 Section 319.301 Animals and Animal Products FOOD SAFETY AND INSPECTION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE... Dehydrated Meat Food Products § 319.301 Chili con carne with beans. Chili con carne with beans shall contain...

9 CFR 319.301 - Chili con carne with beans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Chili con carne with beans. 319.301 Section 319.301 Animals and Animal Products FOOD SAFETY AND INSPECTION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE... Dehydrated Meat Food Products § 319.301 Chili con carne with beans. Chili con carne with beans shall contain...

Hemicrania Continua

MedlinePlus

... Supplements Peer Review Process Review Committees Application Support Library Clinical Research Next Steps Pre-Funding: After Review Terms of ... Supplements Peer Review Process Review Committees Application Support Library Clinical Research Next Steps Pre-Funding: After Review Terms of ...

Galaxias australes con núcleo doble

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gimeno, G.; Díaz, R.; Carranza, G.

Se estudia una muestra de galaxias australes con núcleo doble a partir de una búsqueda extensiva en la literatura. Se analizan las características morfológicas, fotométricas y espectroscópicas de la muestra. Para algunas galaxias se han realizado observaciones con el espectrógrafo multifunción (EMF) de la Estación Astrofísica de Bosque Alegre a partir de las cuales se determinaron parámetros cinemáticos.

77 FR 51773 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-27

... from a launch, such as a hand-held pistol, and could include bird bombs, CAPA charges, screamers, and... bombs are expected to explode with a 100-dB report down range from the launch location. CAPA charges...

Improvement in Retinal Capillary Rarefaction After Valsartan Treatment in Hypertensive Patients.

PubMed

Jumar, Agnes; Harazny, Joanna M; Ott, Christian; Kistner, Iris; Friedrich, Stefanie; Schmieder, Roland E

2016-11-01

Decreased capillary density influences vascular resistance and perfusion. The authors aimed to investigate the influence of the renin-angiotensin receptor blocker valsartan on retinal capillary rarefaction in hypertensive patients. Retinal vascular parameters were measured noninvasively and in vivo by scanning laser Doppler flowmetry before and after 4 weeks of treatment with valsartan in 95 patients with hypertension stage 1 or 2 and compared with 55 healthy individuals. Retinal capillary rarefaction was determined with the parameters intercapillary distance (ICD) and capillary area (CapA). In hypertensive patients, ICD decreased (23.4±5.5 μm vs 21.5±5.6 μm, P<.001) and CapA increased (1564±621 vs 1776±795, P=.001) after valsartan treatment compared with baseline. Compared with healthy normotensive controls (ICD 20.2±4.2 μm, CapA 1821±652), untreated hypertensive patients showed greater ICD (P<.001) and smaller CapA (P=.019), whereas treated hypertensive patients showed no difference in ICD (P=.126) and CapA (P=.728). Therapy with valsartan for 4 weeks diminished capillary rarefaction in hypertensive patients. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Procurement of Non Developmental Items: Pros and Cons

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-09-01

commercial way of procurement will bring more advantages than disadvantages to DOD. The list of the pros greatly outweighs the cons . There is practically...AD-A285 009 MH PROCUREMENT OF NON DEVELOPMENTAL ITEMS: PROS AND CONS THES IS Giorgio Scappaticci. Lt. Col., Italian Air Force AFIT/GLMILALj94S-3 I...PROS AND CONS U;narmou,.ced 0 Justification THESIS Giorgio Scappaticci, Lt. Col., Italian Air Force Dist’ibution f Availability Codes AFIT/GLM/LAL

The self- and foreign-absorption continua of water vapor by cavity ring-down spectroscopy near 2.35 μm.

PubMed

Mondelain, D; Vasilchenko, S; Čermák, P; Kassi, S; Campargue, A

2015-07-21

The room temperature self- and foreign-continua of water vapor have been measured near 4250 cm(-1) with a newly developed high sensitivity cavity ring down spectrometer (CRDS). The typical sensitivity of the recordings is αmin≈ 6 × 10(-10) cm(-1) which is two orders of magnitude better than previous Fourier transform spectroscopy (FTS) measurements in the spectral region. The investigated spectral interval is located in the low energy range of the important 2.1 μm atmospheric transparency window. Self-continuum cross-sections, CS, were retrieved from the quadratic dependence of the spectrum base line level measured for different water vapor pressures between 0 and 15 Torr, after subtraction of the local water monomer lines contribution calculated using HITRAN2012 line parameters. The CS values were determined with 5% accuracy for four spectral points between 4249.2 and 4257.3 cm(-1). Their values of about 3.2 × 10(-23) cm(2) molecule(-1) atm(-1) are found 20% higher than predicted by the MT_CKD V2.5 model but two times weaker than reported in the literature using FTS. The foreign-continuum was evaluated by injecting various amounts of synthetic air in the CRDS cell while keeping the initial water vapor partial pressure constant. The foreign-continuum cross-section, CF, was retrieved from a linear fit of the spectrum base line level versus the air pressure. The obtained CF values are larger by a factor of 4.5 compared to the MT_CKD values and smaller by a factor of 1.7 compared to previous FTS values. As a result, for an atmosphere at room temperature with 60% relative humidity, the foreign-continuum contribution to the water continuum near 4250 cm(-1) is found to be on the same order as the self-continuum contribution.

ConKit: a python interface to contact predictions.

PubMed

Simkovic, Felix; Thomas, Jens M H; Rigden, Daniel J

2017-07-15

Recent advances in protein residue contact prediction algorithms have led to the emergence of many new methods and a variety of file formats. We present ConKit , an open source, modular and extensible Python interface which allows facile conversion between formats and provides an interface to analyses of sequence alignments and sets of contact predictions. ConKit is available via the Python Package Index. The documentation can be found at http://www.conkit.org . ConKit is licensed under the BSD 3-Clause. hlfsimko@liverpool.ac.uk or drigden@liverpool.ac.uk. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

ComSciCon: The Communicating Science Workshop for Graduate Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sanders, Nathan; Drout, Maria; Kohler, Susanna; Cook, Ben; ComSciCon Leadership Team

2018-01-01

ComSciCon (comscicon.com) is a national workshop series organized by graduate students, for graduate students, focused on leadership and training in science communication. Our goal is to empower young scientists to become leaders in their field, propagating appreciation and understanding of research results to broad and diverse audiences. ComSciCon attendees meet and interact with professional communicators, build lasting networks with graduate students in all fields of science and engineering from around the country, and write and publish original works. ComSciCon consists of both a flagship national conference series run annually for future leaders in science communication, and a series of regional and specialized workshops organized by ComSciCon alumni nationwide. We routinely receive over 1000 applications for 50 spots in our national workshop. Since its founding in 2012, over 300 STEM graduate students have participated in the national workshop, and 23 local spin-off workshops have been organized in 10 different locations throughout the country. This year, ComSciCon is working to grow as a self-sustaining organization by launching as an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit. In this poster we will discuss the ComSciCon program and methods, our results to date, potential future collaborations between ComSciCon and AAS, and how you can become involved.

Trazando la materia oscura con cúmulos globulares

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Forte, J. C.

Se describe la estrategia adoptada para mapear la distribución de materia oscura y bariónica en galaxias elípticas cuyos cúmulos globulares están siendo observados con los telescopios VLT y Gemini. Se ejemplifican los resultados con los datos obtenidos en el cúmulo de Fornax.

Protein Supplements: Pros and Cons.

PubMed

Samal, Jay Rabindra Kumar; Samal, Indira R

2018-05-04

To provide a comprehensive analysis of the literature examining the pros and cons of protein supplementation, various articles on protein supplementation were obtained from Google Scholar, PubMed, and National Center for Biotechnology Information. Over the past few years, protein supplementation has become commonplace for gym-goers as well as for the public. A large segment of the general population relies on protein supplementation for meal replacement, weight reduction, and purported health benefits. These protein supplements have varying pros and cons associated with them, which are often overlooked by the public. This review aims to assimilate existing studies and form a consensus regarding the benefits and disadvantages of protein supplementation. The purported health benefits of protein supplementation have led to overuse by both adults and adolescents. Although the pros and cons of protein supplementation is a widely debated topic, not many studies have been conducted regarding the same. The few studies that exist either provide insufficient evidence or have not employed proper conditions for the conduct of the tests. It should be considered that protein supplements are processed materials and often do not contain other essential nutrients required for the sustenance of a healthy lifestyle. It is suggested that the required protein intake should be obtained from natural food sources and protein supplementation should be resorted to only if sufficient protein is not available in the normal diet.

ConSpeciFix: Classifying prokaryotic species based on gene flow.

PubMed

Bobay, Louis-Marie; Ellis, Brian Shin-Hua; Ochman, Howard

2018-05-16

Classification of prokaryotic species is usually based on sequence similarity thresholds, which are easy to apply but lack a biologically-relevant foundation. Here, we present ConSpeciFix, a program that classifies prokaryotes into species using criteria set forth by the Biological Species Concept, thereby unifying species definition in all domains of life. ConSpeciFix's webserver is freely available at www.conspecifix.com. The local version of the program can be freely downloaded from https://github.com/Bobay-Ochman/ConSpeciFix. ConSpeciFix is written in Python 2.7 and requires the following dependencies: Usearch, MCL, MAFFT and RAxML. ljbobay@uncg.edu.

Games Con Men Play: The Semiosis of Deceptive Interaction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hankiss, Agnes

1980-01-01

Analyzes some of the most frequent deceptive interactions as rendered through case histories of male con artists and their victims taken from police records. Discusses the recurrent elements in both the con-games strategies and victims' way of interpreting those strategies. (JMF)

Breath Analysis Science at PittCon 2012, Orlando, Florida

EPA Science Inventory

Breath analysis science was featured in three organized sessions at this year’s Pittsburgh Conference and Exposition, or ‘PittCon 2012’ (http://www.pittcon.org/). As described in previous meeting reports, PittCon is one of the largest international conferences for analytical chem...

A Computer-Assisted Personalized Approach in an Undergraduate Plant Physiology Class1

PubMed Central

Artus, Nancy N.; Nadler, Kenneth D.

1999-01-01

We used Computer-Assisted Personalized Approach (CAPA), a networked teaching and learning tool that generates computer individualized homework problem sets, in our large-enrollment introductory plant physiology course. We saw significant improvement in student examination performance with regular homework assignments, with CAPA being an effective and efficient substitute for hand-graded homework. Using CAPA, each student received a printed set of similar but individualized problems of a conceptual (qualitative) and/or quantitative nature with quality graphics. Because each set of problems is unique, students were encouraged to work together to clarify concepts but were required to do their own work for credit. Students could enter answers multiple times without penalty, and they were able to obtain immediate feedback and hints until the due date. These features increased student time on task, allowing higher course standards and student achievement in a diverse student population. CAPA handles routine tasks such as grading, recording, summarizing, and posting grades. In anonymous surveys, students indicated an overwhelming preference for homework in CAPA format, citing several features such as immediate feedback, multiple tries, and on-line accessibility as reasons for their preference. We wrote and used more than 170 problems on 17 topics in introductory plant physiology, cataloging them in a computer library for general access. Representative problems are compared and discussed. PMID:10198076

[Trattamento farmacologico del disturbo da uso di alcol. Evidenze scientifiche].

PubMed

Attilia, Fabio; Perciballi, Roberta; Rotondo, Claudia; Capriglione, Ida; Iannuzzi, Silvia; Attilia, Maria Luisa; Vitali, Mario; Alessandrini, Giovanni; Scamporrino, Maria Concetta Marcella; Fiore, Marco; Ceccanti, Mauro

2018-01-01

RIASSUNTO. La terapia farmacologica nei pazienti con disturbo da uso di alcol riveste un ruolo centrale nel progetto terapeutico, altamente contestualizzato in un approccio multidisciplinare. Sebbene i trattamenti non farmacologici per la dipendenza da alcol risultino ben strutturati e in continua evoluzione, dal punto di vista medico le possibilità di intervento sono realmente ristrette, con poche molecole a disposizione approvate per il disturbo da uso di alcol: nello specifico, l'acamprostato, il naltrexone e, più recentemente, il nalmefene tra gli anticraving; il disulfiram tra gli avversivanti. Nuovi approcci sperimentali stanno cercando di ampliare tale gamma attraverso l'utilizzo di farmaci off-label. Evidenze scientifiche devono supportare l'indicazione terapeutica, quest'ultima deve dimostrarsi "cucita" sulle esigenze del paziente e sulle comorbilità presenti tenendo conto del profilo bio-psico-sociale individuale. Fondamentale risulta il follow-up per valutare la ritenzione in trattamento e il monitoraggio degli outcome alcologici.

Improving the Canadian Precipitation Analysis Estimates through an Observing System Simulation Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abbasnezhadi, K.; Rasmussen, P. F.; Stadnyk, T.

2014-12-01

To gain a better understanding of the spatiotemporal distribution of rainfall over the Churchill River basin, this study was undertaken. The research incorporates gridded precipitation data from the Canadian Precipitation Analysis (CaPA) system. CaPA has been developed by Environment Canada and provides near real-time precipitation estimates on a 10 km by 10 km grid over North America at a temporal resolution of 6 hours. The spatial fields are generated by combining forecasts from the Global Environmental Multiscale (GEM) model with precipitation observations from the network of synoptic weather stations. CaPA's skill is highly influenced by the number of weather stations in the region of interest as well as by the quality of the observations. In an attempt to evaluate the performance of CaPA as a function of the density of the weather station network, a dual-stage design algorithm to simulate CaPA is proposed which incorporates generated weather fields. More specifically, we are adopting a controlled design algorithm which is generally known as Observing System Simulation Experiment (OSSE). The advantage of using the experiment is that one can define reference precipitation fields assumed to represent the true state of rainfall over the region of interest. In the first stage of the defined OSSE, a coupled stochastic model of precipitation and temperature gridded fields is calibrated and validated. The performance of the generator is then validated by comparing model statistics with observed statistics and by using the generated samples as input to the WATFLOOD™ hydrologic model. In the second stage of the experiment, in order to account for the systematic error of station observations and GEM fields, representative errors are to be added to the reference field using by-products of CaPA's variographic analysis. These by-products explain the variance of station observations and background errors.

Microencapsulation of caffeic acid phenethyl ester and caffeic acid phenethyl amide by inclusion in hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin.

PubMed

Garrido, E Manuela P J; Cerqueira, Ana S; Chavarria, Daniel; Silva, Tiago; Borges, Fernanda; Garrido, Jorge M P J

2018-07-15

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) is a bioactive polyphenolic compound obtained from propolis extract. Although it has a broad therapeutic potential, the bioavailability of CAPE is limited, due to reduced solubility and poor plasmatic stability. Efforts to reduce these pharmacokinetic drawbacks resulted in the synthesis of caffeic acid phenethyl amide (CAPA). Cyclodextrins have been proved as promising excipients for the formulation of active ingredients. Herein, we report the inclusion complexation behavior and binding ability of CAPE and CAPA with hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD). The supramolecular interactions were examined through UV and FTIR spectroscopy, DSC, 1 H NMR and 2D ROESY. The CAPE/HP-β-CD and CAPA/HP-β-CD inclusion complexes stability constants were determined to be, respectively, 2911.6 and 584.6 M -1 in water and 2866.2 and 700.1 M -1 at physiological pH. The aqueous solubility increased notably, proving that HP-β-CD can be potentially useful to improve the biological, chemical and physical properties of CAPE and CAPA. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Using Computer-Assisted Personalized Assignment System in a Large-Enrollment General Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gok, Tolga

2010-01-01

The on-line tutoring system, LON-CAPA, was implemented in Introductory Calculus-Based Physics-II course at Colorado School of Mines in fall 2008 and spring 2009. In this paper, the features and the case study of the LON-CAPA implementation were described. The performance data obtained from the scores of students enrolled in the course represented…

[Not Available].

PubMed

Latorre-Román, Pedro Ángel; Martínez-López, Emilio José; Ruiz-Ariza, Alberto; Izquierdo-Rus, Tomás; Salas-Sánchez, Jesús; García-Pinillos, Felipe

2016-06-30

Objetivo: el objetivo de este estudio es evaluar las propiedades psicométricas del cuestionario de disfrute por el ejercicio físico (PACES) en adolescentes con sobrepeso y obesidad.Métodos: participaron 139 adolescentes con sobrepeso y obesidad: 91 niñas (edad = 13,85 ± 1,92 años; índice de masa corporal [IMC] = 26,83 ± 3,16 kg/m2) y 48 niños (edad = 14,29 ± 1,62 años; IMC = 28,31 ± 3,74 kg/m2). Para analizar el disfrute por la actividad física se empleó el cuestionario Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES).Resultados: los resultados del análisis factorial exploratorio y confirmatorio han mostrado una estructura de dos factores; a su vez el PACES presenta una consistencia interna muy alta (alfa de Cronbach = 0,908). La fiabilidad test-retest indica una buena concordancia temporal (Spearman rho = 0,815, p < 0,001). Por último, el PACES en adolescentes con sobrepeso y obesidad manifiesta una validez convergente adecuada con la intencionalidad de ser activo (MIFA), la atracción por la actividad física (CAPA), la resistencia cardiorrespiratoria y los pliegues suprailiacoy subescapular.Conclusión: los resultados confirman que el PACES es una medida válida y fiable del disfrute por la actividad física en adolescentes con sobrepeso y obesidad. El disfrute por la actividad física puede ser relevante en la participación de los adolescentes con sobrepeso y obesidad en estas actividades.

Improving quality of a rural CAMHS service using the Choice and Partnership Approach.

PubMed

Naughton, Jonine; Basu, Soumya; O'Dowd, Frank; Carroll, Matthew; Maybery, Darryl

2015-10-01

This study outlines the service issues and adjustments associated with the implementation of Choice and Partnership Approach (CAPA) into a rural Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS). A mixed-methods approach examined the impacts of the CAPA implementation. A qualitative review of the minutes from team and implementation group meetings illustrated themes according to 11 key CAPA components. Quantitative internal audit data illustrated waiting list times. Findings showed that inclusive language has replaced the traditional, pathology-driven psychiatric discourse, though this has been met with mixed response from CAMHS clinicians, service users and referrers. Data also showed that a waiting list for clinician allocation has been eliminated, and the waiting time between the referral date and the first face-to-face contact has decreased from 63.9 days to 10.7 days. A modified CAPA Choice appointment system has allowed quick access without a waiting list, in line with government guidelines. A full-booking system and focussed, goal-oriented interventions has led to lower caseloads and optimum use of CAMHS clinician skillsets. © The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists 2015.

ConsPred: a rule-based (re-)annotation framework for prokaryotic genomes.

PubMed

Weinmaier, Thomas; Platzer, Alexander; Frank, Jeroen; Hellinger, Hans-Jörg; Tischler, Patrick; Rattei, Thomas

2016-11-01

The rapidly growing number of available prokaryotic genome sequences requires fully automated and high-quality software solutions for their initial and re-annotation. Here we present ConsPred, a prokaryotic genome annotation framework that performs intrinsic gene predictions, homology searches, predictions of non-coding genes as well as CRISPR repeats and integrates all evidence into a consensus annotation. ConsPred achieves comprehensive, high-quality annotations based on rules and priorities, similar to decision-making in manual curation and avoids conflicting predictions. Parameters controlling the annotation process are configurable by the user. ConsPred has been used in the institutions of the authors for longer than 5 years and can easily be extended and adapted to specific needs. The ConsPred algorithm for producing a consensus from the varying scores of multiple gene prediction programs approaches manual curation in accuracy. Its rule-based approach for choosing final predictions avoids overriding previous manual curations. ConsPred is implemented in Java, Perl and Shell and is freely available under the Creative Commons license as a stand-alone in-house pipeline or as an Amazon Machine Image for cloud computing, see https://sourceforge.net/projects/conspred/. thomas.rattei@univie.ac.atSupplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

InterCon Travel Health: Case B

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Truman, Gregory E.; Pachamanova, Dessislava A.; Goldstein, Michael A.

2010-01-01

InterCon provides services to health insurers of foreign tourists who travel to the United States and Canada. Management wants to implement a new information system that will deal with several operational problems, but it is having difficulty securing the capital resources to fund the system's development. After an initial failure, the chief…

Impact of the ConRed program on different cyberbulling roles.

PubMed

Del Rey, Rosario; Casas, José A; Ortega, Rosario

2016-01-01

This article presents results from an evaluation of the ConRed cyberbullying intervention program. The program's impacts were separately determined for the different roles within cyberbullying that students can take, i.e., cyber-victims, cyber-bullies, cyber-bully/victims, and bystanders. The ConRed program is a theory-driven program designed to prevent cyberbullying and improve cyberbullying coping skills. It involves students, teachers, and families. During a 3-month period, external experts conducted eight training sessions with students, two with teachers and one with families. ConRed was evaluated through a quasi-experimental design, in which students from three secondary schools were separated into experimental and control groups. The sample comprised 875 students, aged between 11 and 19 years. More students (n = 586) were allocated to the experimental groups at the specific insistence of the management of all schools; the remainder (n = 289) formed the control. Repeated measures MANOVA showed that cyber victims, cyber aggressors and cyberbully/victims reduced their involvement in cyberbullying. Moreover, cyber-victims and bystanders adjusted their perceptions about their control of personal information on the Internet, and cyber aggressors and bystanders reduced their Internet dependence. The ConRed program had stronger effects on male participants, especially in heightening their affective empathy. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

El efecto de la panfotocoagulación con láser en edema macular diabético con el fotocoagulador Pascal® versus el láser de argón convencional.

PubMed

Mahgoub, Mohamed M; Macky, Tamer A

2017-07-11

Objetivo: El objetivo de este estudio fue comparar el efecto de la panfotocoagulación (PFC) en el edema macular diabético (EMD) en pacientes con retinopatía diabética proliferativa (RDP) con el fotocoagulador Pascal® (FP) vs. un fotocoagulador con láser de argón convencional (FLAC). Métodos: Se aleatorizó el uso de FP o FLAC en ochenta ojos con RDP y EMD con afectación central de la mácula. Ambos grupos tuvieron una evaluación de base de mejor agudeza visual corregida y fueron examinados con tomografía de coherencia óptica y angiografía con fluoresceína. Resultados: El número medio de disparos de láser en los grupos de FP y FLAC fue 1.726,10 y 752,00 en la sesión 1 y 1.589,00 y 830,00 (p < 0,001) en la sesión 2, respectivamente. El grosor foveal central (GFC) medio antes de comenzar el estudio fue 306 ± 100 y 314 ± 98 en los grupos de FP y FLAC, respectivamente. A las 8 semanas, el GFC medio fue 332 ± 116 y 347 ± 111 en los grupos de FP y FLAC, respectivamente (p > 0,05). La MAVC media fue similar durante el periodo de estudio y no hubo ninguna diferencia significativa entre los grupos (p > 0,05). Conclusiones: El FP y el FLAC mostraron efectos similares en el EMD en ojos con RDP y fueron igualmente seguros sin un aumento significativo del GFC. © 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Meeting Report: Breath Biomarkers Networking Sessions at PittCon 2010, Orlando, Florida

EPA Science Inventory

The Pittsburgh Conference and Exposition, or "PittCon" (www.pittcon.org/), is one of the largest international conferences for analytical chemistry and instrumentation typically attracting about 25,000 attendees and 1,000 commercial exhibitors. PittCon began in 1950 as a small sp...

ConA-based glucose sensing using the long-lifetime azadioxatriangulenium fluorophore

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cummins, Brian; Simpson, Jonathan; Gryczynski, Zygmunt; Sørensen, Thomas Just; Laursen, Bo W.; Graham, Duncan; Birch, David; Coté, Gerard

2014-02-01

Fluorescent glucose sensing technologies have been identified as possible alternatives to current continuous glucose monitoring approaches. We have recently introduced a new, smart fluorescent ligand to overcome the traditional problems of ConA-based glucose sensors. For this assay to be translated into a continuous glucose monitoring device where both components are free in solution, the molecular weight of the smart fluorescent ligand must be increased. We have identified ovalbumin as a naturally-occurring glycoprotein that could serve as the core-component of a 2nd generation smart fluorescent ligand. It has a single asparagine residue that is capable of displaying an N-linked glycan and a similar isoelectric point to ConA. Thus, binding between ConA and ovalbumin can potentially be monovalent and sugar specific. This work is the preliminary implementation of fluorescently-labeled ovalbumin in the ConA-based assay. We conjugate the red-emitting, long-lifetime azadioxatriangulenium (ADOTA+) dye to ovalbumin, as ADOTA have many advantageous properties to track the equilibrium binding of the assay. The ADOTA-labeled ovalbumin is paired with Alexa Fluor 647-labeled ConA to create a Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) assay that is glucose dependent. The assay responds across the physiologically relevant glucose range (0-500 mg/dL) with increasing intensity from the ADOTA-ovalbumin, showing that the strategy may allow for the translation of the smart fluorescent ligand concept into a continuous glucose monitoring device.

ConTour: Data-Driven Exploration of Multi-Relational Datasets for Drug Discovery.

PubMed

Partl, Christian; Lex, Alexander; Streit, Marc; Strobelt, Hendrik; Wassermann, Anne-Mai; Pfister, Hanspeter; Schmalstieg, Dieter

2014-12-01

Large scale data analysis is nowadays a crucial part of drug discovery. Biologists and chemists need to quickly explore and evaluate potentially effective yet safe compounds based on many datasets that are in relationship with each other. However, there is a lack of tools that support them in these processes. To remedy this, we developed ConTour, an interactive visual analytics technique that enables the exploration of these complex, multi-relational datasets. At its core ConTour lists all items of each dataset in a column. Relationships between the columns are revealed through interaction: selecting one or multiple items in one column highlights and re-sorts the items in other columns. Filters based on relationships enable drilling down into the large data space. To identify interesting items in the first place, ConTour employs advanced sorting strategies, including strategies based on connectivity strength and uniqueness, as well as sorting based on item attributes. ConTour also introduces interactive nesting of columns, a powerful method to show the related items of a child column for each item in the parent column. Within the columns, ConTour shows rich attribute data about the items as well as information about the connection strengths to other datasets. Finally, ConTour provides a number of detail views, which can show items from multiple datasets and their associated data at the same time. We demonstrate the utility of our system in case studies conducted with a team of chemical biologists, who investigate the effects of chemical compounds on cells and need to understand the underlying mechanisms.

SLUDGE PARTICLE SEPAPATION EFFICIENCIES DURING SETTLER TANK RETRIEVAL INTO SCS-CON-230

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

DEARING JI; EPSTEIN M; PLYS MG

2009-07-16

The purpose of this document is to release, into the Hanford Document Control System, FA1/0991, Sludge Particle Separation Efficiencies for the Rectangular SCS-CON-230 Container, by M. Epstein and M. G. Plys, Fauske & Associates, LLC, June 2009. The Sludge Treatment Project (STP) will retrieve sludge from the 105-K West Integrated Water Treatment System (IWTS) Settler Tanks and transfer it to container SCS-CON-230 using the Settler Tank Retrieval System (STRS). The sludge will enter the container through two distributors. The container will have a filtration system that is designed to minimize the overflow of sludge fines from the container to themore » basin. FAI/09-91 was performed to quantify the effect of the STRS on sludge distribution inside of and overflow out of SCS-CON-230. Selected results of the analysis and a system description are discussed. The principal result of the analysis is that the STRS filtration system reduces the overflow of sludge from SCS-CON-230 to the basin by roughly a factor of 10. Some turbidity can be expected in the center bay where the container is located. The exact amount of overflow and subsequent turbidity is dependent on the density of the sludge (which will vary with location in the Settler Tanks) and the thermal gradient between the SCS-CON-230 and the basin. Attachment A presents the full analytical results. These results are applicable specifically to SCS-CON-230 and the STRS filtration system's expected operating duty cycles.« less

Virulence, Speciation and Antibiotic Susceptibility of Ocular Coagualase Negative Staphylococci (CoNS)

PubMed Central

Priya, Ravindran; Mythili, Arumugam; Singh, Yendremban Randhir Babu; Sreekumar, Haridas; Manikandan, Palanisamy; Panneerselvam, Kanesan

2014-01-01

Background: Coagulase negative Staphylococci (CoNS) are common inhabitants of human skin and mucous membranes. With the emergence of these organisms as prominent pathogens in patients with ocular infections, investigation has intensified in an effort to identify important virulence factors and to inform new approaches to treatment and prevention. Aim: To isolate CoNS from ocular specimens; to study the possible virulence factors; speciation of coagulase negative staphylococci (CoNS) which were isolated from ocular complications; antibiotic susceptibility testing of ocular CoNS. Materials and Methods: The specimens were collected from the target patients who attended the Microbiology Laboratory of a tertiary care eye hospital in Coimbatore, Tamilnadu state, India. The isolates were subjected to tube and slide coagulase tests for the identification of CoNS. All the isolates were subjected to screening for lipase and protease activities. Screening for other virulence factors viz., slime production on Congo red agar medium and haemagglutination assay with use of 96-well microtitre plates. These isolates were identified upto species level by performing biochemical tests such as phosphatase test, arginine test, maltose and trehalose fermentation tests and novobiocin sensitivity test. The isolates were subjected to antibiotic susceptibility studies, based on the revised standards of Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institutes (CLSI). Results: During the one year of study, among the total 260 individuals who were screened, 100 isolates of CoNS were obtained. Lipolytic activity was seen in all the isolates, whereas 38 isolates showed a positive result for protease. A total of 63 isolates showed slime production. Of 100 isolates, 30 isolates were analyzed for haemagglutination, where 4 isolates showed the capacity to agglutinate the erythrocytes. The results of the biochemical analysis revealed that of the 100 isolates of CoNS, 43% were Staphylococcus epidermidis. The other

Enrichment of Glycoproteins using Nano-scale Chelating Con A Monolithic Capillary Chromatography

PubMed Central

Feng, Shun; Yang, Na; Pennathur, Subramaniam; Goodison, Steve; Lubman, David M.

2009-01-01

Immobilized lectin chromatography can be employed for glycoprotein enrichment, but commonly used columns have limitations of yield and resolution. In order to improve efficiency and to make the technique applicable to minimal sample material, we have developed a nano-scale chelating Concanavalin A (Con A) monolithic capillary prepared using GMA-EDMA (glycidyl methacrylate–co-ethylene dimethacrylate) as polymeric support. Con A was immobilized on Cu(II)-charged iminodiacetic acid (IDA) regenerable sorbents by forming a IDA:Cu(II):Con A sandwich affinity structure that has high column capacity as well as stability. When compared with conventional Con A lectin chromatography, the monolithic capillary enabled the better reproducible detection of over double the number of unique N-glycoproteins in human urine samples. Utility for analysis of minimal biological samples was confirmed by the successful elucidation of glycoprotein profiles in mouse urine samples at the microliter scale. The improved efficiency of the nano-scale monolithic capillary will impact the analysis of glycoproteins in complex biological samples, especially where only limited material may be available. PMID:19366252

9 CFR 319.300 - Chili con carne.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... CERTIFICATION DEFINITIONS AND STANDARDS OF IDENTITY OR COMPOSITION Canned, Frozen, or Dehydrated Meat Food... 9 Animals and Animal Products 2 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Chili con carne. 319.300 Section 319.300 Animals and Animal Products FOOD SAFETY AND INSPECTION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AGENCY...

9 CFR 319.300 - Chili con carne.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... CERTIFICATION DEFINITIONS AND STANDARDS OF IDENTITY OR COMPOSITION Canned, Frozen, or Dehydrated Meat Food... 9 Animals and Animal Products 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Chili con carne. 319.300 Section 319.300 Animals and Animal Products FOOD SAFETY AND INSPECTION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AGENCY...

Optimizing Electrospray Interfaces Using Slowly Diverging Conical Duct (ConDuct) Electrodes

PubMed Central

Krutchinsky, Andrew N.; Padovan, Júlio C.; Cohen, Herbert; Chait, Brian T.

2015-01-01

We demonstrate that the efficiency of ion transmission from atmosphere to vacuum through stainless steel electrodes that contain slowly divergent conical duct (ConDuct) channels can be close to 100%. Here, we explore the properties of 2.5 cm long electrodes with angles of divergence of 0°, 1°, 2°, 3°, 5°, 8°, 13°, and 21°, respectively. The ion transmission efficiency was observed to jump from 10–20% for the 0° (straight) channels to 90–95% for channels with an angle of divergence as small as 1°. Furthermore, the 2–3° ConDuct electrodes produced extraordinarily low divergence ion beams that propagated in a laser-like fashion over long distances in vacuum. To take advantage of these newly discovered properties, we constructed a novel atmosphere-to-vacuum ion interface utilizing a 2° ConDuct as an inlet electrode and compared its ion transmission efficiency with that of the interface used in the commercial (Thermo) Velos Orbitrap and Q Exactive mass spectrometers. We observed that the ConDuct interface transmitted up to 17 times more ions than the commercial reference interface and also yielded improved signal-to-noise mass spectra of peptides. We infer from these results that the performance of many current atmosphere-tovacuum interfaces utilizing metal capillaries can be substantially improved by replacing them with 1° or 2° metal ConDuct electrodes, which should preserve the convenience of supplying ion desolvation energy by heating the electrode while greatly increasing the efficiency of ion transmission into the mass spectrometer. PMID:25667060

Optimizing Electrospray Interfaces Using Slowly Diverging Conical Duct (ConDuct) Electrodes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krutchinsky, Andrew N.; Padovan, Júlio C.; Cohen, Herbert; Chait, Brian T.

2015-04-01

We demonstrate that the efficiency of ion transmission from atmosphere to vacuum through stainless steel electrodes that contain slowly divergent conical duct (ConDuct) channels can be close to 100%. Here, we explore the properties of 2.5-cm-long electrodes with angles of divergence of 0°, 1°, 2°, 3°, 5°, 8°, 13°, and 21°, respectively. The ion transmission efficiency was observed to jump from 10-20% for the 0° (straight) channels to 90-95% for channels with an angle of divergence as small as 1°. Furthermore, the 2-3° ConDuct electrodes produced extraordinarily low divergence ion beams that propagated in a laser-like fashion over long distances in vacuum. To take advantage of these newly discovered properties, we constructed a novel atmosphere-to-vacuum ion interface utilizing a 2° ConDuct as an inlet electrode and compared its ion transmission efficiency with that of the interface used in the commercial (Thermo Fisher Scientific, San Jose, CA, USA) Velos Orbitrap and Q Exactive mass spectrometers. We observed that the ConDuct interface transmitted up to 17 times more ions than the commercial reference interface and also yielded improved signal-to-noise mass spectra of peptides. We infer from these results that the performance of many current atmosphere-to-vacuum interfaces utilizing metal capillaries can be substantially improved by replacing them with 1° or 2° metal ConDuct electrodes, which should preserve the convenience of supplying ion desolvation energy by heating the electrode while greatly increasing the efficiency of ion transmission into the mass spectrometer.

Como Lo Hago Yo: Myelomeningocele

PubMed Central

Lazareff, Jorge

2014-01-01

Fortificación con ádico fólico es efectiva, pero aún falta conciencia en los jóvenes. La legalidad del aborto aumenta la importancia de la consulta prenatal. Realizo la cirugía bajo microcoscopio por razones didácticas. Irrigación continua para reducir la temperatura del tejido. Trato a la plaqueta como tejido viable. No suturo la plaqueta. No cierro músculo. ATB por una semana después de cirugía. Hidrocefalia: Válvula en todos los casos de ventriculomegalia. Médula anclada: Desanclar una sola vez. Chiari II: Revisar la válvula. Incluir en el seguimiento rendimiento escolar, puede indicar obstrucción de la válvula o médula anclada. PMID:24791217

SeleCon: Scalable IoT Device Selection and Control Using Hand Gestures.

PubMed

Alanwar, Amr; Alzantot, Moustafa; Ho, Bo-Jhang; Martin, Paul; Srivastava, Mani

2017-04-01

Although different interaction modalities have been proposed in the field of human-computer interface (HCI), only a few of these techniques could reach the end users because of scalability and usability issues. Given the popularity and the growing number of IoT devices, selecting one out of many devices becomes a hurdle in a typical smarthome environment. Therefore, an easy-to-learn, scalable, and non-intrusive interaction modality has to be explored. In this paper, we propose a pointing approach to interact with devices, as pointing is arguably a natural way for device selection. We introduce SeleCon for device selection and control which uses an ultra-wideband (UWB) equipped smartwatch. To interact with a device in our system, people can point to the device to select it then draw a hand gesture in the air to specify a control action. To this end, SeleCon employs inertial sensors for pointing gesture detection and a UWB transceiver for identifying the selected device from ranging measurements. Furthermore, SeleCon supports an alphabet of gestures that can be used for controlling the selected devices. We performed our experiment in a 9 m -by-10 m lab space with eight deployed devices. The results demonstrate that SeleCon can achieve 84.5% accuracy for device selection and 97% accuracy for hand gesture recognition. We also show that SeleCon is power efficient to sustain daily use by turning off the UWB transceiver, when a user's wrist is stationary.

Propiedades biomecánicas de la membrana limitante interna tras recibir tratamiento intravítreo con ocriplasmina.

PubMed

Vielmuth, Franziska; Schumann, Ricarda G; Spindler, Volker; Wolf, Armin; Scheler, Renate; Mayer, Wolfgang J; Henrich, Paul B; Haritoglou, Christos

2017-01-01

Objetivo: Evaluar la rigidez de la membrana limitante interna (MLI) humana y evaluar los posibles cambios de las propiedades mecánicas tras administrar una inyección intravítrea de ocriplasmina para tratar la tracción vitreomacular. Métodos: Este estudio se compone de una serie de casos intervencionales y comparativos de 12 muestras de MLI extraídas mediante cirugía y obtenidas de forma consecutiva de 9 ojos de 9 pacientes después de someterse sin éxito a vitreólisis farmacológica con ocriplasmina. Durante el mismo periodo de tiempo, 16 muestras de otros 13 ojos sin tratamiento con ocriplasmina se obtuvieron mediante vitrectomía y sirvieron como controles. Todos los pacientes presentaron agujeros maculares o tracción vitreomacular y se sometieron a vitrectomía con disección de la MLI tanto con tinción con azul brillante (AB) como sin ella. Todas las muestras se analizaron con un microscopio de fuerza atómica con imágenes de las regiones de 25 × 25 μm. En todas las muestras, se analizaron tanto la parte de la retina como la del vítreo de la MLI. Resultados: La microscopia de fuerza atómica no reveló diferencias significativas en cuanto a elasticidad de las muestras de MLI extraídas de ojos con o sin tratamiento con ocriplasmina. Las áreas onduladas de la parte de la retina presentaron una mayor rigidez que la parte del vítreo de la MLI. La cartografía topográfica tanto de la parte del vítreo como de la retina de la MLI no mostró ninguna alteración aparente de la morfología en ojos tratados con ocriplasmina en comparación con los ojos no tratados. La tinción con azul brillante conllevó un aumento de la rigidez tisular. Conclusiones: Las inyecciones intravítreas de ocriplasmina no varían las propiedades biomecánicas de la MLI humana. No existen pruebas de un posible efecto enzimático que interfiera con la rigidez de esta membrana basal. © 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel.

B cells as accessory cells in a Con A response of a T cell clone.

PubMed

Takeuchi, M; Kakiuchi, T; Taira, S; Nariuchi, H

1987-12-01

Accessory cell (AC) function of B cells was examined in Con A response of a cloned T cell line, 22-9D, which is Thy 1+,L3T4+,Lyt2-,H-2KbDb+ and I-Ab-.22-9D cells produced IL 2 in the presence of Con A without participation of AC. For the initiation of a proliferative response to Con A, the addition of spleen cells or spleen adherent cells was required. B cells as AC were unable to induce the proliferative response. In the presence of culture supernatant of spleen cells stimulated with Con A (CAS), 22-9D cells showed proliferative response to Con A with B cell AC. The response was inhibited by a relevant monoclonal anti-I-A antibody. Although irradiated spleen cells as AC induced IL 2 receptor expression of 22-9D cells in the presence of Con A, B cells were shown to require the addition of unknown factor(s) in CAS, which was suggested to be different from IL 1, IL 2, IL 3, or IFN-gamma, for the induction of the receptor expression on 22-9D cells.

Wildland Fire Induced Heating of Dome 375 Perma-Con®

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Flores, Eugene Michael

AET-1 was tasked by ADEM with determining the temperature rise in the drum contents of drums stored in the Dome 375 Perma-Con® at TA-54 given a wildland fire. The wildland fire causes radiative and convective heating on the Perma-Con® exterior. The wildland fire time histories for the radiative and convective heating environment were provided to AET-1 by EES-16. If the calculated temperature rise results in a drum content temperature over 40 °C, then ADEM desires a design solution to ensure the peak temperature remains below 40 °C. An axi-symmetric FE simulation was completed to determine the peak temperature of themore » contents of a drum stored in the Dome 375 Perma-Con® during a wildland fire event. Three wildland fire time histories for the radiative and convective heat transfer were provided by EES-16 and were inputs for the FE simulation. The maximum drum content temperature reached was found to be 110 °C while using inputs from the SiteG_2ms_4ign_wind_from_west.xlsx time history input and not including the SWB in the model. Including the SWB in the results in a peak drum content temperature of 61 °C for the SiteG_2ms_4ign_wind_from_west.xlsx inputs. EES-16 decided that by using fuel mitigation efforts, such as mowing the grass and shrubs near the Perma-Con® they could reduce the shrub/grass fuel loading near the Perma-Con® from 1.46 kg/m 2 to 0.146 kg/m 2 and by using a less conservative fuel loading for the debris field inside the Dome 375 perimeter, reducing it from 0.58 kg/m2 to 0.058 kg/m 2 in their model. They also greatly increased the resolution of their radiation model and increased the accuracy of their model’s required convergence value. Using this refined input the maximum drum content temperature was found to be 28 °C with no SWB present in the model. Additionally, this refined input model was modified to include worst case emissivity values for the concrete, drum and Perma-Con® interior, along with adding a 91 second long

La salud en personas con discapacidad intelectual en España: estudio europeo POMONA-II

PubMed Central

Martínez-Leal, Rafael; Salvador-Carulla, Luis; Gutiérrez-Colosía, Mencía Ruiz; Nadal, Margarida; Novell-Alsina, Ramón; Martorell, Almudena; González-Gordón, Rodrigo G.; Mérida-Gutiérrez, M. Reyes; Ángel, Silvia; Milagrosa-Tejonero, Luisa; Rodríguez, Alicia; García-Gutiérrez, Juan C.; Pérez-Vicente, Amado; García-Ibáñez, José; Aguilera-Inés, Francisco

2011-01-01

Introducción Estudios internacionales demuestran que existe un patrón diferenciado de salud y una disparidad en la atención sanitaria entre personas con discapacidad intelectual (DI) y población general. Objetivo Obtener datos sobre el estado de salud de las personas con DI y compararlos con datos de población general. Pacientes y métodos Se utilizó el conjunto de indicadores de salud P15 en una muestra de 111 sujetos con DI. Los datos de salud encontrados se compararon según el tipo de residencia de los sujetos y se utilizó la Encuesta Nacional de Salud 2006 para comparar estos datos con los de la población general. Resultados La muestra con DI presentó 25 veces más casos de epilepsia y el doble de obesidad. Un 20% presentó dolor bucal, y existió una alta presencia de problemas sensoriales, de movilidad y psicosis. Sin embargo, encontramos una baja presencia de patologías como la diabetes, la hipertensión, la osteoartritis y la osteoporosis. También presentaron una menor participación en programas de prevención y promoción de la salud, un mayor número de ingresos hospitalarios y un uso menor de los servicios de urgencia. Conclusiones El patrón de salud de las personas con DI difiere del de la población general, y éstas realizan un uso distinto de los servicios sanitarios. Es importante el desarrollo de programas de promoción de salud y de formación profesional específicamente diseñados para la atención de personas con DI, así como la implementación de encuestas de salud que incluyan datos sobre esta población. PMID:21948011

Energy Star program benefits Con Edison

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

Impressed with savings in energy costs achieved after upgrading the lighting and air conditioning systems at its Manhattan headquarters, Home Box Office (HBO) wanted to do more, James Flock, vice president for computer and office systems, contacted Con Edison Co. of New York in March 1991 to determine what the company could do to save money by reducing energy consumed by personal computers. Arthur Kressner, Con Edison Research and Development manager contacted industry organizations and manufacturers for advice, but was told only to shut off computers at night and on weekends. Kressner arranged a series of meetings with IBM andmore » the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) to discuss the issue, then approached the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which was designing a program to promote the introduction and use of energy-efficient office equipment. In 1992, the EPA announced the Energy Star program for PCs, enabling manufacturers to display the Energy Star logo on machines meeting program criteria, including the ability to enter a sleep mode in which neither the computer nor monitor consume more than 30 W or electricity. Industry experts estimate national energy consumption by office equipment could double by the year 2000, but Energy Star equipment is expected to improve efficiency and help maintain electric loads.« less

SeleCon: Scalable IoT Device Selection and Control Using Hand Gestures

PubMed Central

Alanwar, Amr; Alzantot, Moustafa; Ho, Bo-Jhang; Martin, Paul; Srivastava, Mani

2018-01-01

Although different interaction modalities have been proposed in the field of human-computer interface (HCI), only a few of these techniques could reach the end users because of scalability and usability issues. Given the popularity and the growing number of IoT devices, selecting one out of many devices becomes a hurdle in a typical smarthome environment. Therefore, an easy-to-learn, scalable, and non-intrusive interaction modality has to be explored. In this paper, we propose a pointing approach to interact with devices, as pointing is arguably a natural way for device selection. We introduce SeleCon for device selection and control which uses an ultra-wideband (UWB) equipped smartwatch. To interact with a device in our system, people can point to the device to select it then draw a hand gesture in the air to specify a control action. To this end, SeleCon employs inertial sensors for pointing gesture detection and a UWB transceiver for identifying the selected device from ranging measurements. Furthermore, SeleCon supports an alphabet of gestures that can be used for controlling the selected devices. We performed our experiment in a 9m-by-10m lab space with eight deployed devices. The results demonstrate that SeleCon can achieve 84.5% accuracy for device selection and 97% accuracy for hand gesture recognition. We also show that SeleCon is power efficient to sustain daily use by turning off the UWB transceiver, when a user’s wrist is stationary. PMID:29683151

Sport Concussion Management Using Facebook: A Feasibility Study of an Innovative Adjunct "iCon".

PubMed

Ahmed, Osman Hassan; Schneiders, Anthony G; McCrory, Paul R; Sullivan, S John

2017-04-01

  Sport concussion is currently the focus of much international attention. Innovative methods to assist athletic trainers in facilitating management after this injury need to be investigated.   To investigate the feasibility of using a Facebook concussion-management program termed iCon (interactive concussion management) to facilitate the safe return to play (RTP) of young persons after sport concussion.   Observational study.   Facebook group containing interactive elements, with moderation and support from trained health care professionals.   Eleven participants (n = 9 men, n = 2 women; range, 18 to 28 years old) completed the study.   The study was conducted over a 3-month period, with participant questionnaires administered preintervention and postintervention. The primary focus was on the qualitative experiences of the participants and the effect of iCon on their RTP. Usage data were also collected.   At the completion of the study, all participants (100%) stated that they would recommend an intervention such as iCon to others. Their supporting quotes all indicated that iCon has the potential to improve the management of concussion among this cohort. Most participants (n = 9, 82%) stated they were better informed with regard to their RTP due to participating in iCon.   This interactive adjunct to traditional concussion management was appreciated among this participant group, which indicates the feasibility of a future, larger study of iCon. Athletic trainers should consider the role that multimedia technologies may play in assisting with the management of sport concussion.

Influence of protic ionic liquids on the structure and stability of succinylated Con A.

PubMed

Attri, Pankaj; Venkatesu, Pannuru

2012-01-01

We report the synthesis of a series of ionic liquids (ILs) from various ions having different kosmotropicity including dihydrogen phosphate (H(2)PO(4)(-)), hydrogen sulfate (HSO(4)(-)) and acetate (CH(3)COO(-)) as anions and chaotropic cation such as trialkylammonium cation. To characterize the biomolecular interactions of ILs with protein, we have explored the stability of succinylated Con A (S Con A) in the presence of these aqueous ILs, which are varied combinations of kosmotropic anion with chaotropic cation such as triethylammonium dihydrogen phosphate [(CH(3)CH(2))(3)NH][H(2)PO(4)] (TEAP), trimethylammonium acetate [(CH(3))(3)NH][CH(3)COO] (TMAA), trimethylammonium dihydrogen phosphate [(CH(3))(3)NH][H(2)PO(4)] (TMAP) and trimethylammonium hydrogen sulfate [(CH(3))(3)NH][HSO(4)] (TMAS). Circular dichroism (CD) and fluorescence experiments have been used to characterize the stability of S Con A by ILs. Our data distinctly demonstrate that the long alkyl chain IL TEAP is a strong stabilizer for S Con A. Further, our experimental results reveal that TEAP is an effective refolding enhancer for S Con A from a thermally denatured protein structure. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Apoyo a Estudios Geodinamicos con GPS en Guatemala

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Robles, V. R.

2013-05-01

El Instituto Geografico Nacional de Guatemala implemento 17 estaciones GNSS en el año 2009, como un proyecto de credito mixto de donacion de equipamiento del Gobierno de Suiza, el cual, este equipamiento de estaciones CORS GNSS es un sistema de recepción y transmisión de datos crudos GPS RInex que utiliza la tecnologia Spider Web de Leica, asi mismo este sistema esta sirviendo para el espablecimiento de un marco geodesico nacional de coordenadas geodesicas oficiales, el cual se calculan u obtienen las velocidades en tiempos temporales programados de las 17 Estaciones CORS. La infraestructura del marco geodesico de Guatemala esta sirviendo de base para las aplicaciones de estudios geodinamicos como el monitoreo de del desplazamiento de las placas tectonicas por medio de un estudio que se inicio en el año de 1999, llamado medicion con GPS el sistema de Fallas de los rios Polochic Motagua de Guatemala, tambien para un estudio que se implemento para deformación de corteza terrestre local en un Volcan Activo de Guatemala llamado Pacaya. Para el estudio de medicion con GPS en el sistema de falla de los Rios del polochic Motagua se implementaron 16 puntos para medir con GPS de dos frecuencias en el año de 1999, el cual, tres puntos son estaciones geodesicas CORS IGS llamados GUAT, ELEN y HUEH, despues en el año de 2003 se hizo otra medicion en un total de 20 puntos, que permitió calcular las velocidades de desplazamieinto de los puntos en mención, usando como referencia el modelo NUVEL 1A de DeMets de la placa de Norteamerica. Este estudio fue en cooperación internacional por la universidad de Nice de Francia y el IGNde Francia. Para el estudio del monitoreo con GPS del volcan activo de Guatemala, se implementaron cuatro puntos al rededor del volcan, el cual, se realizan cuatro mediciones al año, que permiten determinar axialmente la distancias entre los puntos, y rebisar estadisticamente cual es el comportamiento de las distancias en funcion del tiempo, si

A Review of Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome mec (SCCmec) Types in Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci (CoNS) Species.

PubMed

Saber, Huda; Jasni, Azmiza Syawani; Jamaluddin, Tengku Zetty Maztura Tengku; Ibrahim, Rosni

2017-10-01

Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) are considered low pathogenic organisms. However, they are progressively causing more serious infections with time because they have adapted well to various antibiotics owing to their ability to form biofilms. Few studies have been conducted on CoNS in both, hospital and community-acquired settings, especially in Malaysia. Thus, it is important to study their species and gene distributions. A mobile genetic element, staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCC mec ), plays an important role in staphylococci pathogenesis. Among CoNS, SCC mec has been studied less frequently than Staphylococcus aureus (coagulase-positive staphylococci). A recent study (8) conducted in Malaysia successfully detected SCC mec type I to VIII as well as several new combination patterns in CoNS species, particularly Staphylococcus epidermidis . However, data are still limited, and further research is warranted. This paper provides a review on SCC mec types among CoNS species.

Connected vehicle pilot deployment program phase 1, concept of operations (ConOps) – Tampa (THEA).

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-02-01

This document describes the Concept of Operations (ConOps) for the Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority (THEA) Connected Vehicle (CV) Pilot Deployment. This ConOps describes the current state of operations, establishes the reasons for change, and ...

Connected vehicle pilot deployment program phase 1, concept of operations (ConOps) - New York City.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-04-08

This document describes the Concept of Operations (ConOps) for the New York City Department of Transportation (NYC) Connected Vehicle Pilot Deployment (CVPD) Project. This ConOps describes the current state of operations, establishes the reasons for ...

Inclusion: The Pros and Cons--A Critical Review

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Savich, Carl

2008-01-01

The purpose of this paper was to review, analyze, and critique the pros and cons, the advantages and disadvantages, of inclusion. The methodology consisted in analyzing and comparing research findings on the benefits and costs of inclusion. Federal legislation and regulations on inclusion were examined, analyzed, and discussed. The results showed…

Precisión de las velocidades radiales obtenidas con el REOSC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

González, J. F.; Lapasset, E.

Complementando una línea de trabajo iniciada con anterioridad discutimos la estabilidad del espectrógrafo REOSC de CASLEO en DC para la medición de velocidades radiales en base al análisis de observaciones realizadas en enero y abril de 1997. En esas oportunidades obtuvimos 26 espectros de estrellas patrones y 27 espectros de 3 estrellas usadas como estrellas de referencia en nuestro programa de cúmulos abiertos. Además tomamos 26 espectros de crepúsculo con el telescopio en posiciones cubriendo el rango H=-4,+4 y δ =-90,+30. Mediante correlaciones cruzadas derivamos la velocidad de 19 órdenes en cada uno de estos espectros. En base a un análisis estadístico de los datos obtenidos discutimos la contribución de los distintos factores que afectan a la dispersión de lectura observada. En particular, la flexión del instrumento no introduciría errores significativos cuando se observa con masas de aire menores que 2.0. La dispersión de los valores de velocidad medidos para espectros de alta relación S/N de una misma estrella resultó del orden de 0.5 km/s. La comparación con los valores de velocidad publicados por distintos autores para las estrellas patrones no permite distinguir ninguna diferencia sistemática apreciable de las velocidades de CASLEO, siendo la media cuadrática de los residuos del orden de 1.0 km/s.

Tailoring a ConOps for NASA LSP Integrated Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Owens, Skip Clark V., III

2017-01-01

An integral part of the Systems Engineering process is the creation of a Concept of Operations (ConOps) for a given system, with the ConOps initially established early in the system design process and evolved as the system definition and design matures. As Integration Engineers in NASA's Launch Services Program (LSP) at Kennedy Space Center (KSC), our job is to manage the interface requirements for all the robotic space missions that come to our Program for a Launch Service. LSP procures and manages a launch service from one of our many commercial Launch Vehicle Contractors (LVCs) and these commercial companies are then responsible for developing the Interface Control Document (ICD), the verification of the requirements in that document, and all the services pertaining to integrating the spacecraft and launching it into orbit. However, one of the systems engineering tools that have not been employed within LSP to date is a Concept of Operations. The goal of this paper is to research the format and content that goes into these various aerospace industry ConOps and tailor the format and content into template form, so the template may be used as an engineering tool for spacecraft integration with future LSP procured launch services. This tailoring effort was performed as the authors final Masters Project in the Spring of 2016 for the Stevens Institute of Technology and modified for publication with INCOSE (Owens, 2016).

Canceling Some d-CON Mouse and Rat Control Products

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

EPA has reached agreement with the manufacturer, to cancel 12 d-CON products that do not meet our testing protocols that better protect children, pets and non-target wildlife from accidental exposure to the pesticide. These products will be phased out.

The ConSurf-DB: pre-calculated evolutionary conservation profiles of protein structures.

PubMed

Goldenberg, Ofir; Erez, Elana; Nimrod, Guy; Ben-Tal, Nir

2009-01-01

ConSurf-DB is a repository for evolutionary conservation analysis of the proteins of known structures in the Protein Data Bank (PDB). Sequence homologues of each of the PDB entries were collected and aligned using standard methods. The evolutionary conservation of each amino acid position in the alignment was calculated using the Rate4Site algorithm, implemented in the ConSurf web server. The algorithm takes into account the phylogenetic relations between the aligned proteins and the stochastic nature of the evolutionary process explicitly. Rate4Site assigns a conservation level for each position in the multiple sequence alignment using an empirical Bayesian inference. Visual inspection of the conservation patterns on the 3D structure often enables the identification of key residues that comprise the functionally important regions of the protein. The repository is updated with the latest PDB entries on a monthly basis and will be rebuilt annually. ConSurf-DB is available online at http://consurfdb.tau.ac.il/

The ConSurf-DB: pre-calculated evolutionary conservation profiles of protein structures

PubMed Central

Goldenberg, Ofir; Erez, Elana; Nimrod, Guy; Ben-Tal, Nir

2009-01-01

ConSurf-DB is a repository for evolutionary conservation analysis of the proteins of known structures in the Protein Data Bank (PDB). Sequence homologues of each of the PDB entries were collected and aligned using standard methods. The evolutionary conservation of each amino acid position in the alignment was calculated using the Rate4Site algorithm, implemented in the ConSurf web server. The algorithm takes into account the phylogenetic relations between the aligned proteins and the stochastic nature of the evolutionary process explicitly. Rate4Site assigns a conservation level for each position in the multiple sequence alignment using an empirical Bayesian inference. Visual inspection of the conservation patterns on the 3D structure often enables the identification of key residues that comprise the functionally important regions of the protein. The repository is updated with the latest PDB entries on a monthly basis and will be rebuilt annually. ConSurf-DB is available online at http://consurfdb.tau.ac.il/ PMID:18971256

A Randomized Phase 2 Study of Long-Acting TransCon GH vs Daily GH in Childhood GH Deficiency.

PubMed

Chatelain, Pierre; Malievskiy, Oleg; Radziuk, Klaudziya; Senatorova, Ganna; Abdou, Magdy O; Vlachopapadopoulou, Elpis; Skorodok, Yulia; Peterkova, Valentina; Leff, Jonathan A; Beckert, Michael

2017-05-01

TransCon Growth Hormone (GH) (Ascendis Pharma) is a long-acting recombinant sustained-release human GH prodrug in development for children with GH deficiency (GHD). To compare the pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, safety, and efficacy of weekly TransCon GH to that of daily GH in prepubertal children with GHD. Randomized, open-label, active-controlled study of three doses of weekly TransCon GH versus daily Genotropin (Pfizer). Thirty-eight centers in 14 European countries and Egypt. Prepubertal male and female treatment-naïve children with GHD (n = 53). Subjects received one of three TransCon GH doses (0.14, 0.21, or 0.30 mg GH/kg/wk) or Genotropin 0.03 mg GH/kg/d for 26 weeks. GH and insulinlike growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels, growth, adverse events, and immunogenicity. Both GH maximum concentration and area under the curve were similar following TransCon GH or Genotropin administration at comparable doses. A dose response was observed, with IGF-1 standard deviation scores increasing into the normal range for all three TransCon GH doses. Annualized mean height velocity for the three TransCon GH doses ranged from 11.9 cm to 13.9 cm, which was not statistically different from 11.6 cm for Genotropin. Adverse events were mild to moderate, and most were unrelated to the study drug. Injection site tolerance was good. One TransCon GH subject developed a low-titer, nonneutralizing antibody response to GH. The results suggest that long-acting TransCon GH is comparable to daily Genotropin for GH (pharmacokinetics) and IGF-1 (pharmacodynamics) levels, safety, and efficacy and support advancement into phase 3 development. Copyright © 2017 Endocrine Society

Teaching after Retirement: The Pros and the Cons

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sommer, Robert

2014-01-01

Having enjoyed teaching during my active career, I continued to teach summer school following retirement. Self-observed sensory and cognitive impairments, although not mentioned by students in their evaluations, induced me to consider the pros and cons of continuing to teach. My hope is that this list of benefits and problems will be of assistance…

40 CFR 180.1213 - Coniothyrium minitans strain CON/M/91-08; exemption from the requirement of a tolerance.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 23 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Coniothyrium minitans strain CON/M/91... PESTICIDE CHEMICAL RESIDUES IN FOOD Exemptions From Tolerances § 180.1213 Coniothyrium minitans strain CON/M... tolerance is established for residues of the microbial pesticide Coniothyrium minitans strain CON/M/91-08...

40 CFR 180.1213 - Coniothyrium minitans strain CON/M/91-08; exemption from the requirement of a tolerance.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 24 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Coniothyrium minitans strain CON/M/91... PESTICIDE CHEMICAL RESIDUES IN FOOD Exemptions From Tolerances § 180.1213 Coniothyrium minitans strain CON/M... tolerance is established for residues of the microbial pesticide Coniothyrium minitans strain CON/M/91-08...

The SubCons webserver: A user friendly web interface for state-of-the-art subcellular localization prediction.

PubMed

Salvatore, M; Shu, N; Elofsson, A

2018-01-01

SubCons is a recently developed method that predicts the subcellular localization of a protein. It combines predictions from four predictors using a Random Forest classifier. Here, we present the user-friendly web-interface implementation of SubCons. Starting from a protein sequence, the server rapidly predicts the subcellular localizations of an individual protein. In addition, the server accepts the submission of sets of proteins either by uploading the files or programmatically by using command line WSDL API scripts. This makes SubCons ideal for proteome wide analyses allowing the user to scan a whole proteome in few days. From the web page, it is also possible to download precalculated predictions for several eukaryotic organisms. To evaluate the performance of SubCons we present a benchmark of LocTree3 and SubCons using two recent mass-spectrometry based datasets of mouse and drosophila proteins. The server is available at http://subcons.bioinfo.se/. © 2017 The Protein Society.

Somatic cell nuclear transfer: pros and cons.

PubMed

Sumer, Huseyin; Liu, Jun; Tat, Pollyanna; Heffernan, Corey; Jones, Karen L; Verma, Paul J

2009-01-01

Even though the technique of mammalian SCNT is just over a decade old it has already resulted in numerous significant advances. Despite the recent advances in the reprogramming field, SCNT remains the bench-mark for the generation of both genetically unmodified autologous pluripotent stem cells for transplantation and for the production of cloned animals. In this review we will discuss the pros and cons of SCNT, drawing comparisons with other reprogramming methods.

Conserva a Puerto Rico con bosques maderables

Treesearch

Frank H. Wadsworth

2009-01-01

[article in Spanish] Puerto Rico consume muchos productos forestales costosos de importar. También tiene bosques extensos con maderas explotables. Además, existen condiciones físicas favorables para la producción de madera útil. No obstante, hoy día no se utiliza la madera de los bosques actuales ocurre la deforestación para cualquier fin. Los Bosques productivos de...

Incidence of all-cause adult community-acquired pneumonia in primary care settings in France.

PubMed

Partouche, H; Lepoutre, A; Vaure, C Buffel du; Poisson, T; Toubiana, L; Gilberg, S

2018-04-12

To estimate the incidence of all-cause outpatient community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in adults in France from a national prospective observational study of CAP management in general practice (CAPA). Patients aged over 18 years presenting with signs or symptoms indicative of CAP associated with recent onset of unilateral crackles on auscultation and/or a new opacity on chest X-ray were included in the CAPA study. An ancillary survey (AIMSIS) aiming at identifying family physicians' difficulties in including patients and at collecting their opinion on the use of an electronic case report form, determined the number of non-included eligible patients. A three-step analysis was then performed, including computation of the total number of eligible patients, adjustment for seasonality, and extrapolation to the French FP population using indirect standardization to adjust for differences in characteristics between CAPA FPs and French FPs. Between September 2011 and July 2012, 267 (63%) CAPA investigators included 886 CAP patients. Most patients presented with mild CAP. The rates of hospitalization and one-month case fatality were 7% and 0.3%, respectively. Data from 336 (79%) AIMSIS investigators identified 641 additional patients and estimated at 234,023 the number of CAP patients per year (incidence of 4.7 per 1000 persons per year). Using a pragmatic case definition of CAP patients, this study estimated an incidence of 4.7 per 1000 persons per year that is in the lower half of the range of estimated incidences reported in primary care settings in industrialized countries. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

DESAFÍOS ÉTICOS DE LA INVESTIGACIÓN CON ANIMALES, MANIPULACIÓN GENÉTICA

PubMed Central

Yunta, Eduardo Rodríguez

2012-01-01

En la investigación con animales existen cuestionamientos éticos tanto en el uso como modelos de enfermedades humanas y requisito previo para ensayos en humanos como en la introducción de modificaciones genéticas. Algunos de estos cuestionamientos son: no representar exactamente la condición humana como modelos, realizar pruebas de toxicidad con grave daño para los animales, alterar su naturaleza mediante modificaciones genéticas, riesgos de la introducción de organismos genéticamente modificados. El uso de animales en investigación para beneficio humano, impone al ser humano la responsabilidad moral de respetarlo, no haciéndoles sufrir innecesariamente, al estar trabajando con seres vivientes y sentientes. PMID:23338641

Unveiling aerosol-cloud interactions - Part 2: Minimising the effects of aerosol swelling and wet scavenging in ECHAM6-HAM2 for comparison to satellite data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neubauer, David; Christensen, Matthew W.; Poulsen, Caroline A.; Lohmann, Ulrike

2017-11-01

Aerosol-cloud interactions (ACIs) are uncertain and the estimates of the ACI effective radiative forcing (ERFaci) magnitude show a large variability. Within the Aerosol_cci project the susceptibility of cloud properties to changes in aerosol properties is derived from the high-resolution AATSR (Advanced Along-Track Scanning Radiometer) data set using the Cloud-Aerosol Pairing Algorithm (CAPA) (as described in our companion paper) and compared to susceptibilities from the global aerosol climate model ECHAM6-HAM2 and MODIS-CERES (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer - Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System) data. For ECHAM6-HAM2 the dry aerosol is analysed to mimic the effect of CAPA. Furthermore the analysis is done for different environmental regimes. The aerosol-liquid water path relationship in ECHAM6-HAM2 is systematically stronger than in AATSR-CAPA data and cannot be explained by an overestimation of autoconversion when using diagnostic precipitation but rather by aerosol swelling in regions where humidity is high and clouds are present. When aerosol water is removed from the analysis in ECHAM6-HAM2 the strength of the susceptibilities of liquid water path, cloud droplet number concentration and cloud albedo as well as ERFaci agree much better with those of AATSR-CAPA or MODIS-CERES. When comparing satellite-derived to model-derived susceptibilities, this study finds it more appropriate to use dry aerosol in the computation of model susceptibilities. We further find that the statistical relationships inferred from different satellite sensors (AATSR-CAPA vs. MODIS-CERES) as well as from ECHAM6-HAM2 are not always of the same sign for the tested environmental conditions. In particular the susceptibility of the liquid water path is negative in non-raining scenes for MODIS-CERES but positive for AATSR-CAPA and ECHAM6-HAM2. Feedback processes like cloud-top entrainment that are missing or not well represented in the model are therefore not well

Con Edison power failure of July 13 and 14, 1977. Final staff report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

1978-06-01

On July 13, 1977 the entire electric load of the Con Edison system was lost, plunging New York City and Westchester County into darkness. The collapse resulted from a combination of natural events, equipment malfunctions, questionable system-design features, and operating errors. An attempt is made in this report to answer the following: what were the specific causes of the failure; if equipment malfunctions and operator errors contributed, could they have been prevented; to what extent was Con Edison prepared to handle such an emergency; and did Con Edison plan prudently reserve generation, for reserve transmission capability, for automatic equipment tomore » protect its system, and for proper operator response to a critical situation. Following the introductory and summary section, additional sections include: the Consolidated Edison system; prevention of bulk power-supply interruptions; the sequence of failure and restoration; analysis of the July 1977 power failure; restoration sequence and equipment damage assessment; and other investigations of the blackout. (MCW)« less

Reconexión magnética en una región activa en decaimiento

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mandrini, C. H.; Démoulin, P.; van Driel-Gesztelyi, L.; Schmieder, B.; Bagalá, L. G.; Rovira, M. G.

Se han obtenido observaciones desde Tierra (Hα y magnetogramas) coordinadas con el Soft X-ray Telescope (SXT), a bordo del satélite japonés Yohkoh, de una región activa bipolar en decaimiento. Estos datos constituyen la base para el estudio de un punto brillante en rayos X (PBX) y de la actividad relacionada con el mismo en distintas capas de la atmósfera solar. Las observaciones muestran que el PBX está relacionado con la aparición de un bipolo menor (~ 1020 Mx) y que su abrillantamiento continuo, así como sus aumentos de brillo esporádicos (``fulguraciones"), son el resultado de la reconexión entre el pequeño arco emergente (visto en Hα como un sistema de filamentos arqueados, SFA) y arcos mayores asociados al campo facular preexistente. Se ha extrapolado el campo magnético observado en la aproximación libre de fuerzas lineal y se ha seguido su evolución a lo largo de la vida del PBX. Se ha calculado la posición de las cuasiseparatrices (CSs) a partir del campo modelado. Las líneas de campo extrapoladas, cuyas bases fotosféricas se encuentran a ambos lados de las CSs, están de acuerdo con las estructuras cromosféricas y coronales observadas. Se ha calculado el espesor de la CD ubicada a lo largo de la polaridad negativa emergente, encontrándose que su variación está de acuerdo con la evolución de la intensidad del PBX; la CS es muy delgada durante la vida del PBX (~ 100 m), mientras que su espesor aumenta considerablemente (>= 10^4 m) cuando el PBX desaparece de las imágenes del SXT. Estos resultados señalan que el abrillantamiento y las ``fulguraciones" de este PBX se deben al proceso de reconexión en 3D que tiene lugar en las CSs.

Providers debate pros and cons of pneumonia vaccination at discharge.

PubMed

2001-02-01

When to vaccinate against pneumonia? Does it makes sense when patients are in the hospital? Or should patients wait for the first post-op visit with the PCP? Office-based and hospital-based physicians weigh the pros and cons of each.

Cue-based assertion classification for Swedish clinical text – developing a lexicon for pyConTextSwe

PubMed Central

Velupillai, Sumithra; Skeppstedt, Maria; Kvist, Maria; Mowery, Danielle; Chapman, Brian E.; Dalianis, Hercules; Chapman, Wendy W.

2014-01-01

Objective The ability of a cue-based system to accurately assert whether a disorder is affirmed, negated, or uncertain is dependent, in part, on its cue lexicon. In this paper, we continue our study of porting an assertion system (pyConTextNLP) from English to Swedish (pyConTextSwe) by creating an optimized assertion lexicon for clinical Swedish. Methods and material We integrated cues from four external lexicons, along with generated inflections and combinations. We used subsets of a clinical corpus in Swedish. We applied four assertion classes (definite existence, probable existence, probable negated existence and definite negated existence) and two binary classes (existence yes/no and uncertainty yes/no) to pyConTextSwe. We compared pyConTextSwe’s performance with and without the added cues on a development set, and improved the lexicon further after an error analysis. On a separate evaluation set, we calculated the system’s final performance. Results Following integration steps, we added 454 cues to pyConTextSwe. The optimized lexicon developed after an error analysis resulted in statistically significant improvements on the development set (83% F-score, overall). The system’s final F-scores on an evaluation set were 81% (overall). For the individual assertion classes, F-score results were 88% (definite existence), 81% (probable existence), 55% (probable negated existence), and 63% (definite negated existence). For the binary classifications existence yes/no and uncertainty yes/no, final system performance was 97%/87% and 78%/86% F-score, respectively. Conclusions We have successfully ported pyConTextNLP to Swedish (pyConTextSwe). We have created an extensive and useful assertion lexicon for Swedish clinical text, which could form a valuable resource for similar studies, and which is publicly available. PMID:24556644

An Application of Con-Resistant Trust to Improve the Reliability of Special Protection Systems within the Smart Grid

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-06-01

in an effort to be more reliable and efficient. However, with the benefits of this new technology comes added risk . This research utilizes a con ...AN APPLICATION OF CON -RESISTANT TRUST TO IMPROVE THE RELIABILITY OF SPECIAL PROTECTION SYSTEMS WITHIN THE SMART GRID THESIS Crystal M. Shipman...Government and is not subject to copyright protection in the United States AFIT/GCO/ENG/12-22 AN APPLICATION OF CON -RESISTANT TRUST TO IMPROVE THE

Gestational surrogacy: could be a way to be a way to reproduction? Pros and cons.

PubMed

Clementina, Peris

2011-06-01

The aim of this article was to address pros and cons of gestational surrogacy, the social and psychological issues involved in surrogate motherhood triads. Pros and cons of surrogacy, the possible insurgence of a hematologic disease in the fetus, hemolytic disease of the newborn, naturally acquired microchimerism in surrogacy cases, ethical, medical, psychologic, legal and religious issues of a problem are discussed.

Young women's perspective of the pros and cons to seeking screening for chlamydia and gonorrhea: an exploratory study.

PubMed

Chacko, Mariam R; von Sternberg, Kirk; Velasquez, Mary M; Wiemann, Constance M; Smith, Peggy B; DiClemente, Ralph

2008-08-01

To identify young women's pros and cons (decisional balance) to seeking chlamydia (CT) and gonorrhea (NGC) screening. Prospective, cross sectional study Community-based reproductive health clinic 192 young women (66% African American; mean age 18.9 years). Content analysis of responses obtained during a decisional balance exercise (pros and cons) promoting CT and NGC screening was conducted. Thematic categories were developed through a coding process, and each response was assigned to one thematic category. The frequency of pros and cons responses for each category and the frequency of participants endorsing each category were calculated. Ten thematic categories in relation to pros and cons of seeking CT and NGC screening were: being healthy; awareness of the body; systemic factors around the clinic visit and testing procedures; benefits and aversions around treatment; partner trust issues; confidentiality; prevention of long term adverse effects, protection of the body; concern for others; fear of results/aversion to testing; and logistical barriers. The three most often cited pros were awareness of the body, being healthy and treatment issues; and the three most often cited cons were logistical barriers (time/transportation), fear/aversion to testing, and systemic factors. A variety of pros and cons to seeking CT and NGC screening were identified at a community-based clinic. Providers in clinical settings can utilize this information when encouraging patients to seek regular STI screening by elucidating and emphasizing those pros and cons that have the most influence on a young woman's decision-making to seek screening.

Utilice en forma segura los productos con cebo para roedores

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Si se usan de manera inadecuada, los productos con veneno para ratas y ratones podrían hacerle daño a usted, a sus hijos o a sus mascotas. Siempre que use pesticidas lea la etiqueta del producto y siga todas las indicaciones.

Single step purification of concanavalin A (Con A) and bio-sugar production from jack bean using glucosylated magnetic nano matrix.

PubMed

Kim, Ho Myeong; Cho, Eun Jin; Bae, Hyeun-Jong

2016-08-01

Jack bean (JB, Canavalia ensiformis) is the source of bio-based products, such as proteins and bio-sugars that contribute to modern molecular biology and biomedical research. In this study, the use of jack bean was evaluated as a source for concanavalin A (Con A) and bio-sugar production. A novel method for purifying Con A from JBs was successfully developed using a glucosylated magnetic nano matrix (GMNM) as a physical support, which facilitated easy separation and purification of Con A. In addition, the enzymatic conversion rate of 2% (w/v) Con A extracted residue to bio-sugar was 98.4%. Therefore, this new approach for the production of Con A and bio-sugar is potentially useful for obtaining bio-based products from jack bean. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The role of the 2H4 molecule in the generation of suppressor function in Con A-activated T cells.

PubMed

Morimoto, C; Letvin, N L; Rudd, C E; Hagan, M; Takeuchi, T; Schlossman, S F

1986-11-15

The molecular basis for the suppression generated in a concanavalin A (Con A)-activated T cell culture remains unknown. In this study, we have attempted to determine whether the 2H4 and 4B4 molecules on Con A-activated T cells play some role in the generation of suppression by such cells. We have shown that Con A-activated suppressor cells belong to the 2H4+ subset of T cells but not the 4B4+ (2H4-) subset. Con A-activated T cells exerted their optimal suppressor function on day 2 in culture, a time at which the expression of 2H4 on such cells was maximal and 4B4 was minimal. Furthermore, the stimulation of T cells with the higher concentration of Con A generated the stronger suppressor function. At the same time, both 2H4 expression and density were increased and 4B4 expression and density were decreased on such Con A-activated T cells. More importantly, the treatment of Con A-activated T cells with anti-2H4 antibody but not with anti-4B4, anti-TQ1, or anti-T4 antibodies can block the suppressor function of such cells. Taken together, the above results strongly suggest that the 2H4 molecule itself may be involved in the generation of suppressor function in Con A-activated T cells. The 2H4 antigen on such cells was shown to be comprised of 220,000 and 200,000 m.w. glycoproteins. Thus this study indicates that the 220,000 and 200,000 m.w. structure of the 2H4 molecule may itself play a crucial role in the generation of suppressor signals of Con A-activated cells.

Hacia el consumo informado de tabaco en México: efecto de las advertencias con pictogramas en población fumadora

PubMed Central

Thrasher, James F; Pérez-Hernández, Rosaura; Arillo-Santillán, Edna; Barrientos-Gutiérrez, Inti

2015-01-01

Resumen Objetivo Evaluar el efecto de las advertencias sanitarias (AS) con pictogramas en las cajetillas de tabaco en adultos fumadores. Material y métodos Cohorte de fumadores con representatividad poblacional de siete ciudades mexi canas, antes (2010) y después (2011) de la implementación de AS con pictogramas (ASP). Para determinar el cambio en las variables sobre el impacto cognitivo y conductual de las advertencias, se estimaron modelos bivariados y ajustados de ecuaciones de estimación generalizada. En el Segundo levantamiento (2011), se estimaron modelos para determiner los factores que se asocian con el reporte de recordar cada advertencia que había entrado al mercado, además de los factores asociados con el autorreporte del impacto de cada advertencia vigente. Resultados Se observaron incrementos importantes de 2010 a 2011 en los conocimientos sobre los riesgos de fumar, los componentes tóxicos del tabaco y el número telefónico para recibir consejos sobre dejar de fumar. La recordación e impacto de las primeras advertencias con pictogramas parecen ser amplios y equitativos a través de la población fumadora. En comparación con 2010, un mayor nivel de ex fumadores entrevistados en 2011 reportaron que las advertencias habían influido mucho en dejar de fumar (RM=2.44, 95% IC 1.27–4.72). Conclusiones Las AS con pictogramas han logrado un impacto importante en el conocimiento y conducta, información relevante para la población y en tomadores de decisiones. PMID:22689162

Self-efficacy, pros, and cons as variables associated with adjacent stages of change for regular exercise in Japanese college students.

PubMed

Horiuchi, Satoshi; Tsuda, Akira; Kobayashi, Hisanori; Fallon, Elizabeth A; Sakano, Yuji

2017-07-01

This study examined self-efficacy (confidence to exercise), pros (exercise's advantages), and cons (exercise's disadvantages) as variables associated across the transtheoretical model's six stages of change in 403 Japanese college students. A series of logistic regression analyses were conducted. Results showed that higher pros and lower cons were associated with being in contemplation compared to precontemplation. Lower cons were associated with being in preparation compared to contemplation. Higher self-efficacy was associated with being in action compared to preparation as well as being in maintenance compared to action. Lower cons were associated with being in termination compared to maintenance.

Changes to perceptions of the pros and cons of genetic susceptibility testing after APOE genotyping for Alzheimer disease risk

PubMed Central

Christensen, Kurt D.; Roberts, J. Scott; Uhlmann, Wendy R.; Green, Robert C.

2011-01-01

Purpose Perceptions about the pros and cons of genetic susceptibility testing are among the best predictors of test utilization. How actual testing changes such perceptions has yet to be examined. Methods In a clinical trial, first-degree relatives of patients with Alzheimer disease received genetic risk assessments for Alzheimer disease including APOE disclosure. Participants rated 11 possible benefits associated with genetic testing (pros) and 10 risks or limitations (cons) before genetic risk disclosure and again 12 months afterward. Results Pros were rated higher than cons at baseline (3.53 vs. 1.83, P < 0.001) and at 12 months after risk disclosure (3.33 vs. 1.88, P < 0.001). Ratings of pros decreased during the 12-month period (3.33 vs. 3.53, P < 0.001). Ratings of cons did not change (1.88 vs. 1.83, P = 0.199) except for a three-item discrimination subscale which increased (2.07 vs. 1.92, P = 0.012). Among specific pros and cons, three items related to prevention and treatment changed the most. Conclusion The process of APOE genetic risk assessment for Alzheimer disease sensitizes some to its limitations and the risks of discrimination; however, 1-year after disclosure, test recipients still consider the pros to strongly outweigh the cons. PMID:21270636

Perceived pros and cons of smoking and quitting in hard-core smokers: a focus group study

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background In the last decade, so-called hard-core smokers have received increasing interest in research literature. For smokers in general, the study of perceived costs and benefits (or ‘pros and cons’) of smoking and quitting is of particular importance in predicting motivation to quit and actual quitting attempts. Therefore, this study aims to gain insight into the perceived pros and cons of smoking and quitting in hard-core smokers. Methods We conducted 11 focus group interviews among current hard-core smokers (n = 32) and former hard-core smokers (n = 31) in the Netherlands. Subsequently, each participant listed his or her main pros and cons in a questionnaire. We used a structural procedure to analyse the data obtained from the group interviews and from the questionnaires. Results Using the qualitative data of both the questionnaires and the transcripts, the perceived pros and cons of smoking and smoking cessation were grouped into 6 main categories: Finance, Health, Intrapersonal Processes, Social Environment, Physical Environment and Food and Weight. Conclusions Although the perceived pros and cons of smoking in hard-core smokers largely mirror the perceived pros and cons of quitting, there are some major differences with respect to weight, social integration, health of children and stress reduction, that should be taken into account in clinical settings and when developing interventions. Based on these findings we propose the ‘Distorted Mirror Hypothesis’. PMID:24548463

YOUNG WOMEN’S PERSPECTIVE OF THE PROS AND CONS TO SEEKING SCREENING FOR CHLAMYDIA AND GONORRHEA: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY

PubMed Central

Chacko, Mariam R.; von Sternberg, Kirk; Velasquez, Mary M.; Wiemann, Constance M.; Smith, Peggy B.; DiClemente, Ralph

2008-01-01

Study Objective To identify young women’s pros and cons (decisional balance) to seeking chlamydia (CT) and gonorrhea (NGC) screening. Design Prospective, cross sectional study Setting Community-based reproductive health clinic Participants 192 young women (66% African American; mean age 18.9 years). Main Outcome Measure(s) Content analysis of responses obtained during a decisional balance exercise (pros and cons) promoting CT and NGC screening was conducted. Thematic categories were developed through a coding process, and each response was assigned to one thematic category. The frequency of pros and cons responses for each category and the frequency of participants endorsing each category were calculated. Results Ten thematic categories in relation to pros and cons of seeking CT and NGC screening were: being healthy; awareness of knowing the body; systemic factors around the clinic visit and testing procedures; benefits and aversions around treatment; partner relationship issues; confidentiality; prevention of long term adverse effects, protection of the body; concern for others; fear of results/aversion to testing; and logistical barriers. The three most often cited pros were awareness, healthy and treatment issues; and the three most often cited cons were logistical barriers (time/transportation), fear/aversion to testing, and systemic issues. Conclusions A variety of pros and cons to seeking CT and NGC screening were identified at a community-based clinic. Providers in clinical settings can utilize this information when encouraging patients to seek regular STI screening by elucidating and emphasizing those pros and cons that have the most influence on a young woman’s decision-making to seek screening. PMID:18656072

CHILES Con Pol: An ultra-deep JVLA survey probing galaxy evolution and cosmic magnetism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hales, Christopher A.; Momjian, Emmanuel; van Gorkom, Jacqueline; Rupen, Michael P.; Greiner, Maksim; Ensslin, Torsten A.; Bonzini, Margherita; Padovani, Paolo; Harrison, Ian; Brown, Michael L.; Gim, Hansung; Yun, Min S.; Maddox, Natasha; Stewart, Adam; Fender, Rob P.; Tremou, Evangelia; Chomiuk, Laura; Peters, Charee; Wilcots, Eric M.; Lazio, Joseph

2015-08-01

We are undertaking a 1000 hour campaign with the Karl G. Jansky VLA to survey 0.2 square degrees of the COSMOS field in full polarization continuum at 1.4 GHz. Our observations are part of a joint program with the spectral line COSMOS HI Large Extragalactic Survey (CHILES). When complete, we expect our CHILES Continuum Polarization (CHILES Con Pol) survey to reach an SKA-era sensitivity of 500 nJy per 4 arcsecond resolving beam, the deepest view of the radio sky yet. CHILES Con Pol will open new and fertile parameter space, with sensitivity to star formation rates of 10 Msun per year out to an unprecedented redshift of z=2, and ultra-luminous infrared galaxies and sub-millimeter galaxies out to redshifts of z=8 and beyond. This rich resource will extend the utility of radio band studies beyond the usual radio quasar and radio galaxy populations, opening sensitivity to the starforming and radio-quiet AGN populations that form the bulk of extragalactic sources detected in the optical, X-ray, and infrared bands. In this talk I will outline the key science of CHILES Con Pol, including galaxy evolution and novel measurements of intergalactic magnetic fields. I will present initial results from the first 180 hours of the survey and describe our forthcoming Data Release 1. I invite the astronomical community to consider unique science that can be pursued with CHILES Con Pol radio data.

NREL, NYSERDA, and Con Edison Partner on Home Energy Management Systems |

Science.gov Websites

at large scale, the overall impact could be a win-win for both homeowners and utilities, which could sources. Founded in 1823, Con Edison provides electric, gas, and steam service to 10 million people who

The International Consortium for the Investigation of Renal Malignancies (I-ConFIRM)

Cancer.gov

The International Consortium for the Investigation of Renal Malignancies (I-ConFIRM) was formed to promote international, multidisciplinary collaborations to advance our understanding of the etiology and outcomes of kidney cancer.

Detail of conning tower atop the submarine. Note the wire ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Detail of conning tower atop the submarine. Note the wire rope wrapped around the base of the tower, which may have been used in an attempt to pull the submarine offshore. - Sub Marine Explorer, Located along the beach of Isla San Telmo, Pearl Islands, Isla San Telmo, Former Panama Canal Zone, CZ

Co-extrusion as a processing technique to manufacture a dual sustained release fixed-dose combination product.

PubMed

Vynckier, An-Katrien; Voorspoels, Jody; Remon, Jean Paul; Vervaet, Chris

2016-05-01

This study aimed to design a fixed-dose combination dosage form which provides a sustained release profile for both the freely water-soluble metformin HCl and the poorly soluble gliclazide, two antidiabetic compounds used to treat diabetes mellitus. Hot-melt co-extrusion was used as an innovative manufacturing technique for a pharmaceutical fixed-dose combination product. In this way, a matrix formulation that sustained metformin release could be developed, despite the high drug load in the formulation and the freely soluble nature of the drug. It was clear that co-extrusion was perfectly suited to produce a fixed-dose combination product with adequate properties for each of the incorporated APIs. A coat layer, containing at least 30% CAPA(®) 6506 as a hydrophobic polymer, was necessary to adequately sustain the release of the highly dosed freely soluble drug from the 70% metformin HCl-loaded CAPA(®) 6506 core of the co-extrudate. To obtain a complete gliclazide release over 24-h solubilization in Kollidon(®) VA, added as a second polymer to the CAPA(®) 6506 in the coat, was needed. Both active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), which have different physicochemical characteristics, were formulated in a single dosage form, using co-extrusion. © 2016 Royal Pharmaceutical Society, Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology.

End-User Use of Data Base Query Language: Pros and Cons.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nicholes, Walter

1988-01-01

Man-machine interface, the concept of a computer "query," a review of database technology, and a description of the use of query languages at Brigham Young University are discussed. The pros and cons of end-user use of database query languages are explored. (Author/MLW)

Papiloma invertido sinunasal con invasión intracraneal: Reporte de caso y revisión bibliográfica

PubMed Central

Di Pietrantonio, Andrés; Asmus, Humberto; Ingratta, Christian; Brennan, Walter; Schulz, Javier; Carballo, Leandro

2018-01-01

Resumen IntroducciÓn: El papiloma invertido es una neoplasia benigna de los senos paranasales localmente agresiva con alto potencial de recurrencia y de malignización. La extensión intracraneal es infrecuente y más aún, la penetración dural, asociándose a menudo a la recurrencia de la enfermedad o a su degeneración en carcinoma de células escamosas. Caso clínico: Presentamos el caso de una paciente de 32 años que consultó por lesión exofítica en fosa nasal derecha y exoftalmos, asociada a cefalea, anosmia y disgeusia. Se estudió con TC cerebro, macizo facial y RM de encéfalo que evidencian lesión en fosa nasal derecha con ocupación de senos aéreos, osteólisis de pared medial orbitaria y base de cráneo anterior e invasión intracraneal frontal derecha, con efecto de masa y compresión del parénquima encefálico adyacente. Intervención: Se realizó una nasofibroscopía en primer tiempo con diagnóstico anatomopatológico de papiloma invertido y posteriormente resección de la lesión mediante doble abordaje más reconstrucción de la fosa craneal anterior. Se obtuvo diagnóstico definitivo de papiloma invertido de tipo Schneideriano con áreas de transformación atípica in situ. La paciente evolucionó de forma favorable y sin complicaciones, con permeabilidad de vía aérea superior, sin signos de recidiva lesional luego de 4 años de seguimiento. Conclusión: La invasión intracraneal de esta patología es sumamente infrecuente. Cuando existe, es indicador de agresividad y potencial recidiva, por lo que la exéresis completa de la misma define el pronóstico de la enfermedad. PMID:29430328

Prevalencia y tamizaje del Trastorno por Déficit de Atención con Hiperactividad en Costa Rica

PubMed Central

Weiss, Nicholas T.; Schuler, Jovita; Monge, Silvia; McGough, James J.; Chavira, Denise; Bagnarello, Monica; Herrera, Luis Diego; Mathews, Carol A.

2015-01-01

Resumen La investigación tuvo como propósito estimar la prevalencia del Trastorno por Déficit de Atención con Hiperactividad (TDAH) en Costa Rica y determinar si la versión en español del cuestionario Swanson Nolan and Pelham Scale IV (SNAP-IV) es un instrumento de tamizaje útil en una población de niños y niñas escolares costarricenses. El instrumento fue entregado a padres y maestros de 425 niños entre 5 y 13 años de edad (promedio = 8.8). Todos fueron evaluados con el instrumento Swanson, Kotkin, Agler, M-Flynn and Pelham Scale (SKAMP). Su diagnóstico fue confirmado con una entrevista clínica. La sensibilidad y la especificidad del SNAP-IV fueron evaluadas como predictores de criterios de diagnóstico según el DSM-IV. La prevalencia puntual en la muestra del TDAH fue del 5%. El tamizaje más preciso lo hizo el SNAP-IV completado por el maestro en un corte de 20%, con una sensibilidad de 96% y una especificidad de un 82%. La sensibilidad de los instrumentos completados por los padres fue más baja que aquella de los maestros. El SNAP-IV completado por las maestras con un corte aislando el 20% de los mayores puntajes categorizó correctamente a un 87% de los sujetos. PMID:22432094

Nuevas observaciones de 3C10 con el VLA*: estudio de la expansión

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reynoso, E. M.; Moffett, D. A.:; Dubner, G. M.; Giacani, E. B.; Reynolds, S. P.; Goss, W. M.; Dickel, J.

Se presentan nuevos resultados sobre la expansión del remanente de la supernova de Tycho a lo largo de un intervalo de 10.9 años, comparando nuevas observaciones tomadas con el VLA a 1375 y 1635 MHz durante 1994 y 1995, con observaciones previas realizadas entre 1983 y 1984 (Dickel y col. ~1991 AJ 101, 2151), usando las mismas configuraciones, anchos de banda, calibradores y tiempos de integración. El coeficiente de expansión se calcula para sectores radiales de 4o de ancho cada uno, ajustando la correlación cruzada de las derivadas de los perfiles promedio para cada época. A partir de la expansión medida, se estima el índice (parámetro de expansión) de la ley potencial R∝ tm como m≡ d ln R/d ln t . Este valor se compara con coeficientes teóricos para diferentes fases evolutivas de remanentes de supernova.

Soluciones analiticas AL problema de jets con velocidad de eyeccion variable EN EL tiempo.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Canto, J.; Raga, A. C.; D'Alessio, P.

1998-11-01

Se presenta un nuevo metodo que permite resolver de manera exacta y analitica las ecuaciones que describen un jet hipersonico con velocidad de eyeccion variable en el tiempo. El metodo se basa en consideraciones sencillas de conservacion de momento para las superficies de trabajo que se forman en el interior del jet. Como ejemplo, se presentan soluciones para jets con variacion sinusoidal en la velocidad de eyeccion, y tambien para el caso de un incremento lineal en el tiempo. Estas soluciones analiticas tienen una clara aplicacion en la interpretacion de las observaciones de jets asociados a objetos Herbig-Haro.

Air Traffic Management Technology Demonstration-1 Concept of Operations (ATD-1 ConOps)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baxley, Brian T.; Johnson, William C.; Swenson, Harry; Robinson, John E.; Prevot, Thomas; Callantine, Todd; Scardina, John; Greene, Michael

2012-01-01

The operational goal of the ATD-1 ConOps is to enable aircraft, using their onboard FMS capabilities, to fly Optimized Profile Descents (OPDs) from cruise to the runway threshold at a high-density airport, at a high throughput rate, using primarily speed control to maintain in-trail separation and the arrival schedule. The three technologies in the ATD-1 ConOps achieve this by calculating a precise arrival schedule, using controller decision support tools to provide terminal controllers with speeds for aircraft to fly to meet times at a particular meter points, and onboard software providing flight crews with speeds for the aircraft to fly to achieve a particular spacing behind preceding aircraft.

Existing con el Lobo, Traversing la Frontera con Mis Nepantla Coyotes, y Buscando la Vida del Zorro: An Autoethnographic Exploration of a Chicano in Academia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ramirez, Ernesto Fidel

2017-01-01

This dissertation is the experience of my life, an evolution of platicas I have had con mis coyotes, my Nepantlero guides. I am one Chicano navigating through the mechanisms of a coercive and hegemonic system which limits our advancement in the academy. My ontology, epistemology, and axiology stem from my cultural and family foundations which I…

Astronomy Teaching and Teachers Continuing Education: the Interdisciplinarity during a Total Lunar Eclipse. (Spanish Title: Enseñanza de la Astronomía y la Formación Continua de Profesores: la Interdisciplinariedad Durante un Eclipse Total de Luna.) Educação EM Astronomia E Formação Continuada de Professores: a Interdisciplinaridade Durante um Eclipse Lunar TOTAL

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Langhi, Rodolfo

2009-07-01

This paper describes how 67 teachers from 23 cities, could awaken, in students, the scientific interest, using a natural astronomical phenomenon: a total lunar eclipse. Before and after of eclipse, meetings for continuing education were characterized by interdisciplinarity of astronomy and the importance of these observations. Working groups were formed by teachers and students, who organized the survey data, mobilizing the people in their cities. The results point ways about how to provide the scientific culture and the motivation to learn science in students, using approaches between the following communities: scientific, amateur and school. En este artículo se describe cómo 67 profesores de 23 ciudades, despertó el interés científico en los estudiantes mediante un fenómeno astronómico: un eclipse total de Luna. Antes y después del eclipse, reuniones para la formación continua se centraron en la interdisciplinariedad de la astronomía, y la importancia de las observaciones de este tipo de fenómeno. Profesores y estudiantes formaron grupos de trabajo para investigar datos durante el eclipse, con el participación de la comunidad en sus ciudades. Los resultados apuntan a las opciones que conducen a la cultura científica y la motivación para aprender la ciencia, utilizando las relaciones de los siguientes grupos: científicos, aficionados y la escuela. Este texto relata como 67 professores, provenientes de 23 cidades, puderam despertar, nos alunos, o interesse científico utilizando um fenômeno natural astronômico: um eclipse lunar total. O evento foi precedido e procedido por encontros de formação continuada, onde se caracterizou a interdisciplinaridade da astronomia e a importância das observações de fenômenos como estes. Grupos de trabalho foram formados por professores e alunos, que se organizaram para o levantamento conjunto de dados durante o fenômeno, além do envolvimento da comunidade em suas respectivas cidades. Os resultados apontam

Thymic lymphocytes. III. Cooperative phenomenon in the proliferation of thymocytes under Con A stimulation.

PubMed

Papiernik, M; Jacobson, J B

1986-01-01

In the present paper, the response of thymocytes to Con A is analyzed in terms of a cooperative phenomenon between medullary thymocytes, cortical thymocytes, thymic accessory cells, and interleukin 2. Medullary thymocytes respond spontaneously to Con A and produce IL-2. The addition of exogenously produced IL-2 enhances their proliferation. Small numbers of cortical (PNA+) thymocytes do not respond to Con A, even in the presence of IL-2-containing supernatant. By increasing the number of PNA+ cells per well, sensitivity to Con A and IL-2 appears. This response may be linked either to the increase in a minor PNA+-responding population and/or to the enhanced contamination by medullary thymocytes and macrophages in non-responding PNA+ thymocyte population. In this hypothesis, either the contaminating cells respond by themselves and/or cooperate with PNA+ cells to induce their proliferation. Coculture of non-responding low numbers of PNA+ thymocytes with Con A- and IL-2-containing supernatant in the presence of PNA- cells containing thymic medullary thymocytes and macrophages always produces a higher response than that of each individual population. These results show that a cooperative phenomenon occurs in the cocultures of PNA+ and PNA- thymic cells. We can show using PNA+ and PNA- thymocytes with different Thy 1 alleles, that indeed both PNA+ and populations participate PNA-thymocytes with different Thy 1 alleles, that indeed both PNA+ and PNA- populations participate in the generation of proliferating cells. We can demonstrate, by lysis experiments with monoclonal antibodies and complement that at the end of coculture, most of the proliferating cells are Lyt 1+, and part are Lyt 2+ or L3T4+. We discuss the fact that the phenotype of the cells after activation does not allow us to deduce the phenotype of their precursors. Lysis of Ia+ cells prior to coculture, reduces the level of the proliferative response but does not modify the percentage of cooperation produced

Oxacilin-resistant Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) bacteremia in a general hospital at São Paulo city, Brasil

PubMed Central

d’Azevedo, P.A.; Secchi, C.; Antunes, A.L.S.; Sales, T.; Silva, F.M.; Tranchesi, R.; Pignatari, A.C.C.

2008-01-01

In the last decades, coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS), especially Staphylococcus epidermidis have become an important cause of bloodstream infections. In addition, rates of methicillin-resistance among CoNS have increased substantially, leading to the use of glicopeptides for therapy. The objective of this study was to evaluate eleven consecutives clinically relevant cases of oxacillin-resistant CoNS bacteremia in a general hospital localized in São Paulo city, Brazil. Five different species were identified by different phenotypic methods, including S. epidermidis (5), S. haemolyticus (3), S. hominis (1), S. warneri (1) and S. cohnii subsp urealyticus (1). A variety of Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis profiles was observed by macrorestriction DNA analysis in S. epidermidis isolates, but two of three S. haemolyticus isolates presented the same profile. These data indicated the heterogeneity of the CoNS isolates, suggesting that horizontal dissemination of these microorganisms in the investigated hospital was not frequent. One S. epidermidis and one S. haemolyticus isolates were resistant to teicoplanin and susceptible to vancomycin. The selective pressure due to the use of teicoplanin in this hospital is relevant. PMID:24031279

40 CFR 227.27 - Limiting permissible con-cen-tra-tion (LPC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 26 2012-07-01 2011-07-01 true Limiting permissible con-cen-tra-tion... scientific literature or accepted by EPA as being reliable test organisms to determine the anticipated impact... for each type they represent, and that are documented in the scientific literature and accepted by EPA...

Salud mental en desastres naturales: estrategias interventivas con adultos mayores en sectores rurales de Chile.

PubMed

Osorio-Parraguez, Paulina; Espinoza, Adriana

2016-06-01

En el presente artículo se da a conocer una estrategia de intervención llevada a cabo con adultos mayores en la comuna de Paredones, sexta región de Chile, con posterioridad al terremoto y tsunami del 27 de febrero 2010 en Chile, en el contexto de una investigación sobre fortalezas y vulnerabilidades desplegadas por este grupo etario, con posterioridad a un desastre natural. Se presenta una descripción del desarrollo metodológico de la intervención y de los sustentos teóricos y conceptuales en los que se basa. Como resultado de este proceso, se propone una estrategia que trabaje a través de la identificación de las propias experiencias y fortalezas de los sujetos. De tal forma se minimizan los efectos negativos de los determinantes sociales de la salud (como la edad y el lugar de residencia) en contexto de crisis; permitiendo a los adultos mayores fortalecer sus recursos individuales y colectivos, en pro de su bienestar psicosocial. © The Author(s) 2015.

Catálogo de Radio-Fuentes Opticas con Astrolabio Fotoeléctrico PAII

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manrique, W. T.; Podestá, R. C.; Alonso, E.; Actis, E. V.; Pacheco, A. M.; Bustos, G.; Lizhi, L.; Zezhi, W.; Fanmiao, Z.; Hongqi, W.; Perdomo, R.

Usando los datos observados en San Juan con el Astrolabio Fotoeléctrico PAII desde Febrero de 1992 hasta Marzo de 1997, se ha realizado el Catálogo de Radio-Fuentes Opticas de San Juan conteniendo 69 estrellas. Las observaciones de las posiciones de las radio-fuentes están realizadas para la época y equinoccio J2000,0 y en un sistema cercano al del FK5. Las precisiones medias son ± 2,2 ms y ± 0,"035 en ascensión recta y declinación respectivamente. Las magnitudes de las estrellas son desde 0,9 a 10,7 . Las declinaciones son desde --2,5 grados a --60 grados. La época media es 1995,1. Se muestran también los resultados comparados con el Catálogo Hiparcos.

ConSurf 2016: an improved methodology to estimate and visualize evolutionary conservation in macromolecules

PubMed Central

Ashkenazy, Haim; Abadi, Shiran; Martz, Eric; Chay, Ofer; Mayrose, Itay; Pupko, Tal; Ben-Tal, Nir

2016-01-01

The degree of evolutionary conservation of an amino acid in a protein or a nucleic acid in DNA/RNA reflects a balance between its natural tendency to mutate and the overall need to retain the structural integrity and function of the macromolecule. The ConSurf web server (http://consurf.tau.ac.il), established over 15 years ago, analyses the evolutionary pattern of the amino/nucleic acids of the macromolecule to reveal regions that are important for structure and/or function. Starting from a query sequence or structure, the server automatically collects homologues, infers their multiple sequence alignment and reconstructs a phylogenetic tree that reflects their evolutionary relations. These data are then used, within a probabilistic framework, to estimate the evolutionary rates of each sequence position. Here we introduce several new features into ConSurf, including automatic selection of the best evolutionary model used to infer the rates, the ability to homology-model query proteins, prediction of the secondary structure of query RNA molecules from sequence, the ability to view the biological assembly of a query (in addition to the single chain), mapping of the conservation grades onto 2D RNA models and an advanced view of the phylogenetic tree that enables interactively rerunning ConSurf with the taxa of a sub-tree. PMID:27166375

A National Look at Postmodernism's Pros and Cons in Educational Leadership

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Townsell, Rhodena

2007-01-01

The purpose of this article is to take a look at the pros and cons of postmodernism. It is imperative for administrators to closely examine educational theories and practices prior to instituting changes. The ability to read and digest challenging material keeps one informed and prepared to lead effectively. This paper will list the pros and cons…

Cervical disc arthroplasty: Pros and cons

PubMed Central

Moatz, Bradley; Tortolani, P. Justin

2012-01-01

Background: Cervical disc arthroplasty has emerged as a promising potential alternative to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) in appropriately selected patients. Despite a history of excellent outcomes after ACDF, the question as to whether a fusion leads to adjacent segment degeneration remains unanswered. Numerous US investigational device exemption trials comparing cervical arthroplasty to fusion have been conducted to answer this question. Methods: This study reviews the current research regarding cervical athroplasty, and emphasizes both the pros and cons of arthroplasty as compared with ACDF. Results: Early clinical outcomes show that cervical arthroplasty is as effective as the standard ACDF. However, this new technology is also associated with an expanding list of novel complications. Conclusion: Although there is no definitive evidence that cervical disc replacement reduces the incidence of adjacent segment degeneration, it does show other advantages; for example, faster return to work, and reduced need for postoperative bracing. PMID:22905327

Cervical disc arthroplasty: Pros and cons.

PubMed

Moatz, Bradley; Tortolani, P Justin

2012-01-01

Cervical disc arthroplasty has emerged as a promising potential alternative to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) in appropriately selected patients. Despite a history of excellent outcomes after ACDF, the question as to whether a fusion leads to adjacent segment degeneration remains unanswered. Numerous US investigational device exemption trials comparing cervical arthroplasty to fusion have been conducted to answer this question. This study reviews the current research regarding cervical athroplasty, and emphasizes both the pros and cons of arthroplasty as compared with ACDF. Early clinical outcomes show that cervical arthroplasty is as effective as the standard ACDF. However, this new technology is also associated with an expanding list of novel complications. Although there is no definitive evidence that cervical disc replacement reduces the incidence of adjacent segment degeneration, it does show other advantages; for example, faster return to work, and reduced need for postoperative bracing.

Conning the conmen: Intelligence and female desire in Dedh Ishqiya.

PubMed

Singh, Shailendra Kumar

2018-01-02

This article investigates the ostensibly paradoxical relationship that exists between the theme of excessive love, as suggested by the title of Abhishek Chaubey's film Dedh Ishqiya (2014), and the actual representation of it in the movie, which is not only restrained and disproportionate, but is also looked at with suspicion and contempt. It examines the logic of this seeming contradiction through the other two related themes that Chaubey's chef-d'œuvre foregrounds, namely that of intelligence and female desire. The quest for financial autonomy that the female protagonists of the movie are involved in-a necessary pre-condition for leading independent lives-is so inextricably intertwined with manipulation, dexterity, and subterfuge, that any overt expression of homoerotic female desire can only jeopardize their existing possibilities of self-aggrandizement. The heteronormative arrangements of Begum Para's palace thus constitute the elaborate mise en scène, behind which female desire is enacted through a politics of intelligence, resourcefulness, discretion, and anonymity. Through this strategic negotiation, which is also a tactical necessity, the female protagonists are not only able to con the con men in the movie, but also imagine alternative subject positions that recognize the need for both pragmatism and expediency as well as deconstructing heteropatriarchal economies of desire.

Implementing GPS into Pave-IR.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-03-01

To further enhance the capabilities of the Pave-IR thermal segregation detection system developed at the Texas Transportation Institute, researchers incorporated global positioning system (GPS) data collection into the thermal profiles. This GPS capa...

Pros and cons of prognostic disclosure to Japanese cancer patients and their families from the family's point of view.

PubMed

Yoshida, Saran; Shiozaki, Mariko; Sanjo, Makiko; Morita, Tatsuya; Hirai, Kei; Tsuneto, Satoru; Shima, Yasuo

2012-12-01

The primary goals of this analysis were to explore the pros and cons of prognostic disclosure to patients and their families from the bereaved family's point of view. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 60 bereaved family members of patients with cancer in Japan. There were eight categories of influence related to the disclosure of prognosis to the family, including pros (e.g., "Enabling mental preparedness for the patient's death") and cons (e.g., "Being distressed by acknowledging the patient's prognosis"); and seven categories of influence of not disclosing the prognosis to family, including pros (e.g., "Being able to maintain hope") and cons (e.g., "Being prevented from providing adequate care for the patient"). There were also nine categories of influence related to the disclosure of prognosis to patients (e.g., "Enabling various discussions regarding death with the patient"), and eight categories of influence related to not disclosing the prognosis to patients (e.g., "Maintaining the patient's hope"). Although prognostic disclosure to family members can contribute to psychological distress and hopelessness, at the same time, it has the potential to prepare them for the future both emotionally and practically, and also to make the time until the patient's death as meaningful as possible. It is useful for physicians to introduce pros and cons of prognostic disclosure to family members at the time of decision making, to understand the family members' psychological state, and to provide support considering pros and cons whether or not they disclosed prognosis.

Public mental hospital work: pros and cons for psychiatrists.

PubMed

Miller, R D

1984-09-01

The extensive literature concerning public mental hospitals has largely been written from the perspective of administrators and systems analysts; most of the reports emphasize the frustrations and problems of working in public mental hospitals and the continued exodus of psychiatrists from these facilities. The author addresses the pros and cons of such a career choice from the viewpoint of one who has been an "Indian" rather than a "chief" for a decade. He suggests that the current financial situation in both private practice and academia makes work in public mental hospitals increasingly attractive.

Silence, Metaperformance, and Communication in Pedro Almodóvar's "Hable con ella"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fellie, Maria C.

2016-01-01

Many scenes in Pedro Almodóvar's "Hable con ella" (2002) include shots of metaperformances such as silent films, dances, television shows, concerts, and bullfights. Spectators often observe passive characters who are in turn observing. By presenting these performances within cinematic performance, Almodóvar highlights our role as viewers…

U.S. Exploration EVA: ConOps, Interfaces and Test Objectives for Airlocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buffington, J.

2017-01-01

NASA is moving forward on defining the xEVA System Architecture and its implications to the spacecraft that host exploration EVA systems. This presentation provides an overview of the latest information for NASA's Concept of Operations (ConOps), Interfaces and corresponding Test Objectives for Airlocks hosting the xEVA System.

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization : an overview of legislative action in the 111th Congress

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-10-08

This report tracks the status of ongoing legislative action and debate related to FAA : reauthorization. It is organized into six major program areas: aviation system finance; airport : financing; FAA management and organizational issues; system capa...

Evaluation of ConPrim: A three-part model for continuing education in primary health care.

PubMed

Berggren, Erika; Strang, Peter; Orrevall, Ylva; Ödlund Olin, Ann; Sandelowsky, Hanna; Törnkvist, Lena

2016-11-01

To overcome the gap between existing knowledge and the application of this knowledge in practice, a three-part continuing educational model for primary health care professionals (ConPrim) was developed. It includes a web-based program, a practical exercise and a case seminar. To evaluate professionals' perceptions of the design, pedagogy and adaptation to primary health care of the ConPrim continuing educational model as applied in a subject-specific intervention. A total of 67 professionals (nurses and physicians) completed a computer-based questionnaire evaluating the model's design, pedagogy and adaptation to primary health care one week after the intervention. Descriptive statistics were used. Over 90% found the design of the web-based program and case seminar attractive; 86% found the design of the practical exercise attractive. The professionals agreed that the time spent on two of the three parts was acceptable. The exception was the practical exercise: 32% did not fully agree. Approximately 90% agreed that the contents of all parts were relevant to their work and promoted interactive and interprofessional learning. In response to the statements about the intervention as whole, approximately 90% agreed that the intervention was suitable to primary health care, that it had increased their competence in the subject area, and that they would be able to use what they had learned in their work. ConPrim is a promising model for continuing educational interventions in primary health care. However, the time spent on the practical exercise should be adjusted and the instructions for the exercise clarified. ConPrim should be tested in other subject-specific interventions and its influence on clinical practice should be evaluated. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Advocacy in the Public Forum: The Pro/Con Program at Ohio State.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stegman, John D.

The Pro/Con Campus Debate and Community Forum program at The Ohio State University serves the educational mission of the department of communication and contributes to the intellectual life of the student body and the larger community by emphasizing the needs of the audience. Eschewing jargon and rhetorical tricks, the program encourages the…

Evaluation of a new automated microscopy urine sediment analyser - sediMAX conTRUST®.

PubMed

Bogaert, Laura; Peeters, Bart; Billen, Jaak

2017-04-01

This study evaluated the performance of the stand-alone sediMAX conTRUST (77Elektronika, Budapest, Hungary) analyser as an alternative to microscopic analysis of urine. The validation included a precision, carry-over, categorical correlation and diagnostic performance study with manual phase-contrast microscopy as reference method. A total of 260 routine urine samples were assessed. The within-run precision was much better at higher concentrations than at very low concentrations. The precision met our predefined limits for all the elements at the different concentrations, with the exception of the lowest RBC, the WBC, pathological casts and crystals count. There was no sample carry-over. The analyser showed good categorical agreement with manual microscopy for RBC and WBC counts, moderate agreement for yeast cells, crystals and squamous epithelial cells and bad agreement for non-squamous epithelial cells, bacteria and casts. Diagnostic performance was satisfying only for RBC, WBC and yeast cells. The number of false negative results was acceptable (≤4%) for all elements after connecting the sediMAX conTRUST with an automatic strip reader (AutionMAX) and after implementation of review rules. We conclude that the sediMAX conTRUST should be used as a screening tool in combination with an automatic strip reader, for the identification of normal samples. Therefore, adequate review rules should be defined. Manual microscopy is still required in 'flagged' pathological samples. Despite the poor analytical performance on pathological samples, the images on the screen can be used for interpretation without the microscope and can be stored as PDF-documents for archiving the results.

The global regulator of pathogenesis PnCon7 positively regulates Tox3 effector gene expression through direct interaction in the wheat pathogen Parastagonospora nodorum.

PubMed

Lin, Shao-Yu; Chooi, Yit-Heng; Solomon, Peter S

2018-05-03

To investigate effector gene regulation in the wheat pathogenic fungus Parastagonospora nodorum, the promoter and expression of Tox3 was characterised through a series of complementary approaches. Promoter deletion and DNase I footprinting experiments identified a 25 bp region in the Tox3 promoter as being required for transcription. Subsequent yeast one-hybrid analysis using the DNA sequence as bait identified that interacting partner as the C2H2 zinc finger transcription factor PnCon7, a putative master regulator of pathogenesis. Silencing of PnCon7 resulted in the down-regulation of Tox3 demonstrating that the transcription factor has a positive regulatory role on gene expression. Analysis of Tox3 expression in the PnCon7 silenced strains revealed a strong correlation with PnCon7 transcript levels, supportive of a direct regulatory role. Subsequent pathogenicity assays using PnCon7-silenced isolates revealed that the transcription factor was required for Tox3-mediated disease. The expression of two other necrotrophic effectors (ToxA and Tox1) was also affected but in a non-dose dependent manner suggesting that the regulatory role of PnCon7 on these genes was indirect. Collectively, these data have advanced our fundamental understanding of the Con7 master regulator of pathogenesis by demonstrating its positive regulatory role on the Tox3 effector in P. nodorum through direct interaction. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Pro/con a precessional geodynamo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vanyo, J.

2003-04-01

The modest amount of research that exists on the ability, or lack of ability, of mantle precession to power a geodynamo developed mostly during the last half of the 1900s. Papers by Roberts and Stewartson (1965) and by Busse (1968) studied precession generally without a pro/con conclusion. Malkus in the late 1960s attempted to advance a positive role for precession through experiments and analysis. His experiments have survived criticism, but his analyses were discounted, especially by Rochester, Jacobs, Smylie, and Chong (1975) and by Loper (1975). Rochester, et al. critiqued existing analyses of precession, including those of Malkus, but did not reach a strong position either pro or con a precessional geodynamo. Loper argued emphatically that precession was not capable of powering the geodynamo. Explicit analyses that either critique or support Loper’s arguments have yet to appear in the literature. During the 1970s, Vanyo and associates studied energy dissipation during precession of satellite liquid fuels and its effect on satellite attitude stability. Engineers and scientists in every country that has launched satellites completed similar research. Some is published in the aerospace literature, more is available in company and government reports. Beginning in 1981, Vanyo and associates applied this knowledge to the very similar problem of energy dissipation and flow patterns in precessing mechanical models scaled geometrically and dynamically to the Earth’s liquid core. Energy experiments indicate massive amounts of mechanical energy are dissipated at the CMB, and flow experiments show complex motions within the boundary layer and axial flows with helicity throughout the interior. Analysis of Earth core precession also advanced, especially in several papers by Kerswell and by Tilgner in the late 1990s. Detail numerical models have yet to appear. Although progress in understanding the role of precession in Earth core motions has advanced, there remains a

Modelo de accesibilidad de conceptos matematicos aplicados en el curso de Astronomia Descriptiva para estudiantes con impedimentos visuales en la UPR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Isidro Villamizar, Gloria Maria

Este estudio utiliza metodologia de investigacion cualitativa, con el proposito de describir, analizar y evaluar los procesos de diseno y desarrollo de un modelo de accesibilidad que consiste en estrategias de ensenanza de las matematicas para estudiantes con impedimentos visuales matriculados en el curso de Astronomia Descriptiva en la UPR. Se utilizaron las siguientes estrategias para recopilar la informacion, 1) reflexiones de la investigadora en el proceso de diseno y desarrollo de las lecciones adaptadas, que se registraron en un diario reflexivo. 2) entrevista semiestructurada luego de haber trabajado las lecciones de aprendizaje adaptadas con los participantes. 3) observaciones y notas de la investigadora del trabajo de los participantes. Para obtener la informacion de los participantes se obtuvo los permisos institucionales necesarios; se seleccionaron los participantes y se validaron los instrumentos; se realizo el desarrollo de las lecciones adaptadas con los participantes; y finalmente, se analizo la informacion obtenida. El diseno de las lecciones de aprendizaje adaptadas se hizo siguiendo las recomendaciones curriculares de los temas de matematicas aplicados en el curso de Astronomia Descriptiva realizado por la investigadora durante su semestre de internado. El testimonio de las voces de los participantes se obtuvo del proceso de desarrollo de las lecciones de aprendizaje adaptadas de temas seleccionados de conceptos matematicos requeridos en el curso de Astronomia Descriptiva y de la entrevista semiestructurada con los participantes, luego de haber trabajado las lecciones de aprendizaje. Para el desarrollo de las lecciones de aprendizaje, se utilizaron materiales tactiles adaptados, materiales tactiles disenados y materiales disponibles comercialmente. Los textos de las lecciones se imprimieron en tinta y en Braille. Se exhorta a disenar y desarrollar estrategias de ensenanza accesibles, considerando como recursos para evaluar su efectividad a

Development and evaluation of devices designed to minimize deer-vehicle collisions : phase II.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-12-01

We evaluated behavioral responses of captive white-tailed deer to visual and physical barriers designed to minimize deer-vehicle collisions, determined effects of exclusion fencing on movements of free-ranging deer, and further tested the visual capa...

Accurate macromolecular crystallographic refinement: incorporation of the linear scaling, semiempirical quantum-mechanics program DivCon into the PHENIX refinement package

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Borbulevych, Oleg Y.; Plumley, Joshua A.; Martin, Roger I.

2014-05-01

Semiempirical quantum-chemical X-ray macromolecular refinement using the program DivCon integrated with PHENIX is described. Macromolecular crystallographic refinement relies on sometimes dubious stereochemical restraints and rudimentary energy functionals to ensure the correct geometry of the model of the macromolecule and any covalently bound ligand(s). The ligand stereochemical restraint file (CIF) requires a priori understanding of the ligand geometry within the active site, and creation of the CIF is often an error-prone process owing to the great variety of potential ligand chemistry and structure. Stereochemical restraints have been replaced with more robust functionals through the integration of the linear-scaling, semiempirical quantum-mechanics (SE-QM)more » program DivCon with the PHENIX X-ray refinement engine. The PHENIX/DivCon package has been thoroughly validated on a population of 50 protein–ligand Protein Data Bank (PDB) structures with a range of resolutions and chemistry. The PDB structures used for the validation were originally refined utilizing various refinement packages and were published within the past five years. PHENIX/DivCon does not utilize CIF(s), link restraints and other parameters for refinement and hence it does not make as many a priori assumptions about the model. Across the entire population, the method results in reasonable ligand geometries and low ligand strains, even when the original refinement exhibited difficulties, indicating that PHENIX/DivCon is applicable to both single-structure and high-throughput crystallography.« less

Topical Oxygen for Chronic Wounds: A PRO/CON Debate

PubMed Central

Mutluoglu, Mesut; Cakkalkurt, Aslican; Uzun, Gunalp; Aktas, Samil

2014-01-01

The role of oxygen in wound healing is universally accepted and does not require any further evidence; however the controversy as to whether oxygen delivery systems have the potential to improve wound healing remains to be concluded. Topical oxygen treatment (TOT) involves the delivery of 100% oxygen for a mean of 90 min, once a day at an atmospheric pressure slightly above 1 atm abs. The use of TOT gained increasing interest recently. The current manuscript will summarize the pros and cons of TOT in the view of the available literature. PMID:26199891

Blood circulation in the lower limbs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pen'kovskiy, V. I.; Korsakova, N. K.

2018-03-01

Blood circulation process in inferior limbs is considered in the terms of the previously proposed mathematical model of sanguimotion in living organism tissues. The model includes the equations of homogeneous fluid flower in heterogeneous medium that consists of two or more interpenetrating continua. The continua (distributing net of arteries and collecting net of veins) interact through ramified capillary net. A volume of blood flowering from arterial net to venous one is proportional to pressure (head) difference in the nets. Some analytical solutions and numerical results are given.

Non Invasive Biomedical Analysis - Breath Networking Session at PittCon 2011, Atlanta, Georgia

EPA Science Inventory

This was the second year that our breath colleagues organized a networking session at the Pittsburgh Conference and Exposition or ''PittCon'' (http://www.pincon.org/).This time it was called "Non-invasive Biomedical Analysis" to broaden the scope a bit, but the primary focus rema...

Gradient Optimization for Analytic conTrols - GOAT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Assémat, Elie; Machnes, Shai; Tannor, David; Wilhelm-Mauch, Frank

Quantum optimal control becomes a necessary step in a number of studies in the quantum realm. Recent experimental advances showed that superconducting qubits can be controlled with an impressive accuracy. However, most of the standard optimal control algorithms are not designed to manage such high accuracy. To tackle this issue, a novel quantum optimal control algorithm have been introduced: the Gradient Optimization for Analytic conTrols (GOAT). It avoids the piecewise constant approximation of the control pulse used by standard algorithms. This allows an efficient implementation of very high accuracy optimization. It also includes a novel method to compute the gradient that provides many advantages, e.g. the absence of backpropagation or the natural route to optimize the robustness of the control pulses. This talk will present the GOAT algorithm and a few applications to transmons systems.

Segundo Catálogo Estelar del Hemisferio Sur con Astrolabio Fotoeléctrico PAII

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manrique, W. T.; Podestá, R. C.; Alonso, E.; Actis, E. V.; Pacheco, A. M.; Bustos, G.; Lizhi, L.; Zezhi, W.; Fanmiao, Z.; Hongqi, W.; Perdomo, R.

Recordamos que entre el Observatorio Astronómico ``Félix Aguilar'', el Observatorio Astronómico de Beijing y el Observatorio Astronómico de La Plata, se ha convenido en desarrollar un Proyecto de Investigación conjunto, para la observación sistemática de estrellas en el Hemisferio Sur, con el objeto de la elaboración de un Catálogo Estelar Global utilizando un Astrolabio Fotoeléctrico PAII del Observatorio de Beijing, que ha sido usado con éxito en la República de China. En este trabajo se presenta el Segundo Catálogo Estelar del Hemisferio Sur, derivado de las observaciones realizadas con el PAII instalado en el OAFA, durante el períiodo Febrero de 1992 a Marzo de 1997. En este lapso se han observado mas de 400000 pasajes estelares, obteniéndose las correcciones Δ α y Δ δ de 5241 estrellas del FK4, FK5, FK5 Ext., SRS, CAMC y GC. Las precisiones medias son del orden de ± 3,2 ms en ascensión recta y ±0."057 en declinación. Rango de magnitudes : 2,0 a 11,5 Rango de declinaciones : -3o a -60o Epoca Media : 1994.9 Se analizan los residuos en función de la magnitud y tipo espectral, correcciones de grupo y frecuencia de distribución Δ α y Δ δ.

When students can choose easy, medium, or hard homework problems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teodorescu, Raluca E.; Seaton, Daniel T.; Cardamone, Caroline N.; Rayyan, Saif; Abbott, Jonathan E.; Barrantes, Analia; Pawl, Andrew; Pritchard, David E.

2012-02-01

We investigate student-chosen, multi-level homework in our Integrated Learning Environment for Mechanics [1] built using the LON-CAPA [2] open-source learning system. Multi-level refers to problems categorized as easy, medium, and hard. Problem levels were determined a priori based on the knowledge needed to solve them [3]. We analyze these problems using three measures: time-per-problem, LON-CAPA difficulty, and item difficulty measured by item response theory. Our analysis of student behavior in this environment suggests that time-per-problem is strongly dependent on problem category, unlike either score-based measures. We also found trends in student choice of problems, overall effort, and efficiency across the student population. Allowing students choice in problem solving seems to improve their motivation; 70% of students worked additional problems for which no credit was given.

Wilderness for science: pros and cons of using wilderness areas for biological research

Treesearch

Diana L. Six; Paul Alaback; Robert A. Winfree; Delia Snyder; Anne Hagele

2000-01-01

Research is one of the intended purposes of wilderness. The Wilderness Act states that “wilderness may contain ecological, geological, or other features of scientific, educational, scenic, or historical value.” This session specifically focuses on the pros and cons of conducting research in wilderness.

ConsDock: A new program for the consensus analysis of protein-ligand interactions.

PubMed

Paul, Nicodème; Rognan, Didier

2002-06-01

Protein-based virtual screening of chemical libraries is a powerful technique for identifying new molecules that may interact with a macromolecular target of interest. Because of docking and scoring limitations, it is more difficult to apply as a lead optimization method because it requires that the docking/scoring tool is able to propose as few solutions as possible and all of them with a very good accuracy for both the protein-bound orientation and the conformation of the ligand. In the present study, we present a consensus docking approach (ConsDock) that takes advantage of three widely used docking tools (Dock, FlexX, and Gold). The consensus analysis of all possible poses generated by several docking tools is performed sequentially in four steps: (i) hierarchical clustering of all poses generated by a docking tool into families represented by a leader; (ii) definition of all consensus pairs from leaders generated by different docking programs; (iii) clustering of consensus pairs into classes, represented by a mean structure; and (iv) ranking the different means starting from the most populated class of consensus pairs. When applied to a test set of 100 protein-ligand complexes from the Protein Data Bank, ConsDock significantly outperforms single docking with respect to the docking accuracy of the top-ranked pose. In 60% of the cases investigated here, ConsDock was able to rank as top solution a pose within 2 A RMSD of the X-ray structure. It can be applied as a postprocessing filter to either single- or multiple-docking programs to prioritize three-dimensional guided lead optimization from the most likely docking solution. Copyright 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Change in Brooklyn and Queens: How New York?s Reforming the Energy Vision Program and Con Edison Are Reshaping Electric Distribution Planning

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Coddington, Michael; Sciano, Damian; Fuller, Jason

In response to this tremendous growth in both population and electricity demand, Con Edison estimates that its cost to expand the “traditional” Brooklyn-Queens grid will be in the neighborhood of US$1.2 billion—a relatively high number, even for New York City and Con Edison. The complexity of the city’s underground electrical system along with the difficulties of construction in a highly congested urban environment with infrastructure both above and below ground mean that the costs for transmission, substations, and secondary networks are significantly higher than those of a typical electric utility. The New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) is inmore » the process revising its approach to acquiring and serving energy throughout the state of New York, and traditional expansion for this rather costly project was not likely to be approved. Instead, the PSC asked Con Edison to evaluate numerous alternatives. The PSC and Con Edison are now considering and adopting strategies that include renewable energy generation, demand response (DR), battery energy storage systems, fuel-cell distributed generation, combined heat and power, volt-volt ampere reactive (VAR) optimization (VVO), and a host of other innovative solutions that would both reduce electricity demand and transform how and when Con Edison’s consumers use electricity.« less

CONTROLLING MULTIPLE EMISSIONS FROM COAL-FIRED POWER PLANTS

EPA Science Inventory

The paper presents and analyzes nine existing and novel control technologies designed to achieve multipollutant emissions reductions. It provides an evaluation of multipollutant emission control technologies that are potentially available for coal-fired power plants of 25 MW capa...

Rasmussen's encephalitis presenting as focal cortical dysplasia

PubMed Central

O'Rourke, D.J.; Bergin, A.; Rotenberg, A.; Peters, J.; Gorman, M.; Poduri, A.; Cryan, J.; Lidov, H.; Madsen, J.; Harini, C.

2014-01-01

Rasmussen's encephalitis is a rare syndrome characterized by intractable seizures, often associated with epilepsia partialis continua and symptoms of progressive hemispheric dysfunction. Seizures are usually the hallmark of presentation, but antiepileptic drug treatment fails in most patients and is ineffective against epilepsia partialis continua, which often requires surgical intervention. Co-occurrence of focal cortical dysplasia has only rarely been described and may have implications regarding pathophysiology and management. We describe a rare case of dual pathology of Rasmussen's encephalitis presenting as a focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) and discuss the literature on this topic. PMID:25667877

Far-infrared spectrophotometer for astronomical observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moseley, H.; Silverberg, R. F.

1981-01-01

A liquid-helium-cooled far infrared spectrophotometer was built and used to make low resolution observations of the continua of several kinds of astronomical objects using the Kuiper Airborne Observatory. This instrument fills a gap in both sensitivity to continuum sources and spectral resolution between the broadband photometers with lambda/Delta lambda approximately 1 and spectrometers with lambda/Delta lambda greater than 50. While designed primarily to study planetary nebulae, the instrument permits study of the shape of the continua of many weak sources which cannot easily be observed with high resolution systems.

Neogene sequence stratigraphy, Nam Con Son Basin, offshore Vietnam

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McMillen, K.J.; Do Van Luu; Lee, E.K.

1996-12-31

An integrated well log, biostratigraphic, and seismic stratigraphic study of Miocene to Recent deltaic sediments deposited in the Nam Con Son Basin offshore from southern Vietnam shows the influence of eustacy and tectonics on sequence development. Sediments consist of Oligocene non-marine rift-basin fill (Cau Formation), early to middle Miocene tide-dominated delta plain to delta front sediments (TB 1.5 to TB 2.5, Due and Thong Formations), and late Miocene to Recent marine shelf sediments (TB. 2.6 to TB 3.1 0, Mang Cau, Nam Con Son, and Bien Dong Formations). Eustacy controlled the timing of key surfaces and sand distribution in themore » tectonically-quiet early Miocene. Tectonic effects on middle to late Miocene sequence development consist of thick transgressive systems tracts due to basin-wide subsidence and transgression, sand distribution in the basin center, and carbonate sedimentation on isolated fault blocks within the basin. Third-order sequence boundaries (SB) are identified by spore peaks, sand stacking patterns, and channel incision. In the basin center, widespread shale beds with coal occur above sequence boundaries followed by transgressive sandstone units. These TST sandstones merge toward the basin margin where they lie on older HST sandstones. Maximum flooding surfaces (MFS) have abundant marine microfossils and mangrove pollen, a change in sand stacking pattern, and often a strong seismic reflection with downlap. Fourth-order genetic-type sequences are also interpreted. The MFS is the easiest marker to identify and correlate on well logs. Fourth-order SB occur within these genetic units but are harder to identify and correlate.« less

Neogene sequence stratigraphy, Nam Con Son Basin, offshore Vietnam

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McMillen, K.J.; Do Van Luu; Lee, E.K.

1996-01-01

An integrated well log, biostratigraphic, and seismic stratigraphic study of Miocene to Recent deltaic sediments deposited in the Nam Con Son Basin offshore from southern Vietnam shows the influence of eustacy and tectonics on sequence development. Sediments consist of Oligocene non-marine rift-basin fill (Cau Formation), early to middle Miocene tide-dominated delta plain to delta front sediments (TB 1.5 to TB 2.5, Due and Thong Formations), and late Miocene to Recent marine shelf sediments (TB. 2.6 to TB 3.1 0, Mang Cau, Nam Con Son, and Bien Dong Formations). Eustacy controlled the timing of key surfaces and sand distribution in themore » tectonically-quiet early Miocene. Tectonic effects on middle to late Miocene sequence development consist of thick transgressive systems tracts due to basin-wide subsidence and transgression, sand distribution in the basin center, and carbonate sedimentation on isolated fault blocks within the basin. Third-order sequence boundaries (SB) are identified by spore peaks, sand stacking patterns, and channel incision. In the basin center, widespread shale beds with coal occur above sequence boundaries followed by transgressive sandstone units. These TST sandstones merge toward the basin margin where they lie on older HST sandstones. Maximum flooding surfaces (MFS) have abundant marine microfossils and mangrove pollen, a change in sand stacking pattern, and often a strong seismic reflection with downlap. Fourth-order genetic-type sequences are also interpreted. The MFS is the easiest marker to identify and correlate on well logs. Fourth-order SB occur within these genetic units but are harder to identify and correlate.« less

HOMOLOGY MODELING OF THE ESTROGEN RECEPTOR SUBTYPE BETA (ER-BETA) AND CALCULATION OF LIGAND BINDING AFFINITIES. (R826133)

EPA Science Inventory

Abstract

Estrogen is a steroid hormone playing critical roles in physiological processes such as sexual differentiation and development, female and male reproductive processes, and bone health. Numerous natural and synthetic environmental compounds have been shown capa...

General aviation avionics statistics : 1977.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1980-06-01

This report presents avionics statistics for the 1977 general aviation (GA) aircraft fleet and is the fourth in a series. The statistics are presented in a capability group framework which enables one to relate airborne avionics equipment to the capa...

The Limits of Special Operations Forces

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-12-07

counterin- surgency operations as well as the projection of discrete and discriminate force.2 Yet, despite the current enthusiasm, special operations...terms of signaling commitment and capa- bility through discrete operations. But absent other supporting elements—whether military, diplomatic, or

Are You Ready to Go Digital?: The Pros and Cons of Electronic Portfolio Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heath, Marilyn

2005-01-01

There is an increasing need for educators to have professional portfolios, which are considered to be authentic tools for evaluating the knowledge, skill, beliefs and attitudes of prospective educators. Electronic portfolios are gaining in popularity and their relative pros and cons are examined.

RETOS EN LA INTERVENCIÓN CON ADOLESCENTES PUERTORRIQUEÑOS/AS QUE MANIFIESTAN COMPORTAMIENTO SUICIDA*

PubMed Central

Vélez, Yovanska Duarté; Dávila, Paloma Torres; Hernández, Samariz Laboy

2015-01-01

Presentamos un estudio de caso de una adolescente puertorriqueña con comportamiento suicida. Esta comenzó una Terapia Socio Cognitivo-Conductual para el Comportamiento Suicida (TSCC-CS) de tipo ambulatorio luego de una hospitalización por intento suicida. La TSCC-CS incorpora una perspectiva ecológica y de desarrollo a la terapia cognitivo-conductual. Inicialmente mostró baja autoestima y severos síntomas depresivos y de ansiedad. Al finalizar el tratamiento, manifestó un cambio significativo en su sintomatología clínica y evidenció una mejoría en sus destrezas de manejo. No presentó ideas suicidas durante meses previos, ni durante el seguimiento. El análisis de este caso permitió realizar cambios en el protocolo de tratamiento, particularmente en las sesiones de familia y de comunicación con el fin de aumentar la viabilidad del tratamiento. PMID:26702337

Use of a GnRH vaccine, GonaCon, for prevention and treatment of adrenocortical disease (ACD) in domestic ferrets.

PubMed

Miller, Lowell A; Fagerstone, Kathleen A; Wagner, Robert A; Finkler, Mark

2013-09-23

Adrenocortical disease (ACD) is a common problem in surgically sterilized, middle-aged to old ferrets (Mustela putorius furo). The adrenal tissues of these ferrets develop hyperplasia, adenomas, or adenocarcinomas, which produce steroid hormones including estradiol, 17-hydroxyprogesterone, and androstenedione. Major clinical signs attributable to overproduction of these hormones are alopecia (hair loss) in both sexes and a swollen vulva in females. Pruritus, muscle atrophy, hind limb weakness, and sexual activity or aggression are also observed in both sexes. Males can develop prostatic cysts, prostatitis, and urethral obstruction. ACD is thought to be linked to continuous and increased LH secretion, due to lack of gonadal hormone feedback in neutered ferrets. This continuous elevated LH acts on adrenal cortex LH receptors, resulting in adrenal hyperplasia or adrenal tumor. This study investigated whether the immunocontraceptive vaccine GonaCon, a GnRH vaccine developed to reduce the fertility of wildlife species and the spread of disease, could prevent or delay onset of ACD and treat alopecia in ferrets with existing ACD. Results showed that GonaCon provided relief from ACD by causing production of antibodies to GnRH, probably suppressing production and/or release of LH. Treatment caused many ACD symptoms to disappear, allowing the ferrets to return to a normal life. The study also found that the probability of developing ACD was significantly reduced in ferrets treated with GonaCon when young (1-3 years old) compared to untreated control animals. GonaCon caused injection site reaction in some animals when administered as an intramuscular injection but caused few side effects when administered subcutaneously. Both intramuscular and subcutaneous vaccination resulted in similar levels of GnRH antibody titers. Subcutaneous vaccination with GonaCon is thus recommended to prevent the onset of ACD and as a possible treatment for ACD-signs in domestic ferrets. Published

Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120 conR contains a LytR-CpsA-Psr domain, is developmentally regulated, and is essential for diazotrophic growth and heterocyst morphogenesis.

PubMed

Mella-Herrera, Rodrigo A; Neunuebel, M Ramona; Golden, James W

2011-03-01

The conR (all0187) gene of the filamentous cyanobacterium Anabaena (Nostoc) sp. strain PCC 7120 is predicted to be part of a family of proteins that contain the LytR-CpsA-Psr domain associated with septum formation and cell wall maintenance. The conR gene was originally misannotated as a transcription regulator. Northern RNA blot analysis showed that conR expression was upregulated 8 h after nitrogen step-down. Fluorescence microscopy of a P(conR)-gfp reporter strain revealed increased GFP fluorescence in proheterocysts and heterocysts beginning 9 h after nitrogen step-down. Insertional inactivation of conR caused a septum-formation defect of vegetative cells grown in nitrate-containing medium. In nitrate-free medium, mutant filaments formed abnormally long heterocysts and were defective for diazotrophic growth. Septum formation between heterocysts and adjacent vegetative cells was abnormal, often with one or both poles of the heterocysts appearing partially open. In a conR mutant, expression of nifH was delayed after nitrogen step-down and nitrogenase activity was approximately 70 % of wild-type activity, indicating that heterocysts of the conR mutant strain are partially functional. We hypothesize that the diazotrophic growth defect is caused by an inability of the heterocysts to transport fixed nitrogen to the neighbouring vegetative cells.

"Con todo mi corazón": Mentoring Latinas in Educational Leadership Doctoral Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodríguez, Mariela A.

2016-01-01

Personal narrative essays were used to analyze the experiences of four Latina doctoral students who completed their first year in an educational leadership doctoral program in a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) in the southwestern U.S. Four themes emerged from their "testimonios" 1) "Con todo el corazón"; 2) "Somos como…

Contaminación por mercurio de leche materna de madres lactantes de municipios de Antioquia con explotación minera de oro.

PubMed

Molina, Carlos Federico; Arango, Catalina María; Sepúlveda, Hernán

2018-05-01

Introducción. La leche materna es esencial para el desarrollo del ser humano, pero puede contener sustancias tóxicas provenientes de la contaminación ambiental, especialmente en las áreas mineras.Objetivo. Determinar la prevalencia de la contaminación con mercurio de la leche materna de mujeres lactantes residentes en los municipios con explotación minera de oro.Materiales y métodos. Se hizo un estudio transversal de 150 madres lactantes de cuatro municipios mineros de Antioquia (El Bagre, Segovia, Remedios y Zaragoza), a quienes se les hizo una encuesta sobre factores sociodemográficos, ocupacionales y ambientales relacionados con el mercurio, y se les tomaron muestras de leche materna, de orina y de cabello. Se calculó el promedio de la concentración de mercurio y las prevalencias municipales de contaminación.Resultados. El promedio de la concentración de mercurio en la leche materna fue de 2,5 (± desviación estándar 9,2) μg/L. La prevalencia de muestras de leche materna con niveles altos de mercurio fue de 11,7 %.Conclusión. En este estudio se evidencia un grave problema en las regiones mineras auríferas de Antioquia por el efecto de la contaminación con mercurio en sectores de la población más vulnerable.

The Con Edison Emergency Child Care Plan for Management Employees: Summary Plan Description.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Consolidated Edison Co., Brooklyn, NY.

This summary plan description offers guidelines for participation in a pilot program that provides short-term emergency care for children of Con Edison managers who are under 13 years old. The plan offers professional, in-home child care that can be used when usual arrangements have collapsed. The summary plan description addresses the following…

Pros & Cons of Using Blackboard Collaborate for Blended Learning on Students' Learning Outcomes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamad, Mona M.

2017-01-01

Blackboard Collaborate was introduced to King Khalid University recently in the last decade; instructors and students were trained to use it in an effective way. The objective of this study is to find pros and cons of using Blackboard Collaborate for Blended Learning and its effect on students' learning outcomes. The researcher used the…

Aspergilosis cervical con diseminación al sistema nervioso central. Presentación de un caso y revisión de bibliografía

PubMed Central

Vergara, Guillermo Enrique; Roura, Natalia; del Castillo, Marcelo; Mora, Andrea; Alcorta, Santiago Condomi; Mormandi, Rubén; Cervio, Andrés; Salvat, Jorge

2015-01-01

Introducción: la Aspergilosis Invasiva (AI) del Sistema Nervioso Central (SNC) es infrecuente y ocurre generalmente en pacientes inmunocomprometidos. Puede presentarse con cuadros de meningitis, aneurismas micóticos, infartos o abscesos. Es una infección con pronóstico reservado y puede afectar el SNC de forma primaria o secundaria a partir de un foco que se disemina por vía hematógena. Presentamos el caso de un paciente con AI con invasión primaria a nivel óseo y diseminación posterior al cerebro. Caso clínico: Paciente masculino de 25 años con diagnóstico de leucemia linfática aguda en tratamiento quimioterápico que presentó neumonitis por metotrexate por lo que inicia tratamiento con corticoides. Posteriormente agregó cervicalgia y con el diagnóstico de osteomielitis cervical se realiza punción bajo tomografía computada (TC) sin aislarse gérmenes. Se colocó Halo Vest e inició tratamiento antibiótico empírico. Posteriormente presentó afasia de expresión secundaria a lesión frontal izquierda. Se realizó evacuación de absceso cerebral aislando A. fumigatus. El tratamiento antibiótico específico posterior permitió una buena respuesta clínica y radiológica. Conclusión: La presencia de lesiones en el SNC de pacientes inmunocomprometidos debe incluir a las micosis como diagnóstico diferencial. La evacuación quirúrgica permite llegar rápidamente al diagnóstico mejorando la respuesta posterior al tratamiento antibiótico. Para evaluar la respuesta terapéutica y posibles recaídas se debe realizar un seguimiento periódico clínico radiológico. Palabras clave: Aspergilosis cerebral; Aspergilosis cervical; Aspergilosis invasiva; Voriconazol. PMID:26600985

Resistance of Listeria monocytogenes biofilms to sanitizing agents

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Listeria monocytogenes is notorious for its capacity to colonize the environment and equipment of food processing facilities and to persist in the processing plant ecosystem, sometimes for decades. Such persistence is mediated by multiple attributes of L. monocytogenes, including the pathogen’s capa...

Structure, stratigraphy and petroleum geology of the south east Nam Con Son Basin, offshore Vietnam

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fraser, A.J.; Matthews, S.J.; Lowe, S.

1996-12-31

Recent exploration of the south east Nam Con Son Basin, offshore Vietnam, by BP in alliance with Statoil has involved acquisition of new seismic and well data. These new data have allowed re-evaluation of the tectono-stratigraphic development and petroleum geology, and have provided additional constraints on the regional tectonic evolution. The offshore Vietnamese basins have evolved in response to the complex relative motions of Indochina, Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo and the South China Sea during the Cenozoic. On the regional scale these motions have been accommodated by strike-slip fault development, rifting and contraction. In the Nam Con Son Basin these motionsmore » have interacted in different ways from the Palaeogene to recent. Two rifting episodes are recognized; a Palaeogene phase dominated by E-W trending extensional faults, and a Miocene phase dominated by N-S to NE-SW trending faults. The structural evolution is complicated by a pulse of mild contraction during the Middle Miocene. The sedimentary fill of the basin evolves from continental fluvio-lacustrine in the Palaeogene through to fully marine following the second phase of rifting in the Miocene. This pulsed structural and stratigraphic evolution has resulted in basinwide deposition of source, reservoir and seal facies, and produced a variety of potential trapping styles. This paper describes the hydrocarbon habitat of the south east Nam Con Son Basin within the context of the regional tectono-stratigraphic model.« less

Structure, stratigraphy and petroleum geology of the south east Nam Con Son Basin, offshore Vietnam

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fraser, A.J.; Matthews, S.J.; Lowe, S.

1996-01-01

Recent exploration of the south east Nam Con Son Basin, offshore Vietnam, by BP in alliance with Statoil has involved acquisition of new seismic and well data. These new data have allowed re-evaluation of the tectono-stratigraphic development and petroleum geology, and have provided additional constraints on the regional tectonic evolution. The offshore Vietnamese basins have evolved in response to the complex relative motions of Indochina, Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo and the South China Sea during the Cenozoic. On the regional scale these motions have been accommodated by strike-slip fault development, rifting and contraction. In the Nam Con Son Basin these motionsmore » have interacted in different ways from the Palaeogene to recent. Two rifting episodes are recognized; a Palaeogene phase dominated by E-W trending extensional faults, and a Miocene phase dominated by N-S to NE-SW trending faults. The structural evolution is complicated by a pulse of mild contraction during the Middle Miocene. The sedimentary fill of the basin evolves from continental fluvio-lacustrine in the Palaeogene through to fully marine following the second phase of rifting in the Miocene. This pulsed structural and stratigraphic evolution has resulted in basinwide deposition of source, reservoir and seal facies, and produced a variety of potential trapping styles. This paper describes the hydrocarbon habitat of the south east Nam Con Son Basin within the context of the regional tectono-stratigraphic model.« less

NASA KSC/AFRL Reusable Booster System (RBS) Concept of Operations (ConOps)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zeno, Dnany; Mosteller, Ted; McCleskey, Carey; Jhnson, Robert; Hopkins, Jason; Miller, Thomas

2010-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the study and findings of the study on the Concept of Operations (ConOps) for Reusable Booster System (RBS) centering on rapid turnaround and launch of a two-stage partially reusable payload delivery system (i.e., 8 hours between launches). The study was to develop rapid ground processing (aircraft like concepts) and identify areas for follow-on study, technology needs, and proof-of-concept demonstrations.

Pros and cons of phage therapy

PubMed Central

Loc-Carrillo, Catherine

2011-01-01

Many publications list advantages and disadvantages associated with phage therapy, which is the use of bacterial viruses to combat populations of nuisance or pathogenic bacteria. The goal of this commentary is to discuss many of those issues in a single location. In terms of “Pros,” for example, phages can be bactericidal, can increase in number over the course of treatment, tend to only minimally disrupt normal flora, are equally effective against antibiotic-sensitive and antibiotic-resistant bacteria, often are easily discovered, seem to be capable of disrupting bacterial biofilms, and can have low inherent toxicities. In addition to these assets, we consider aspects of phage therapy that can contribute to its safety, economics, or convenience, but in ways that are perhaps less essential to the phage potential to combat bacteria. For example, autonomous phage transfer between animals during veterinary application could provide convenience or economic advantages by decreasing the need for repeated phage application, but is not necessarily crucial to therapeutic success. We also consider possible disadvantages to phage use as antibacterial agents. These “Cons,” however, tend to be relatively minor. PMID:22334867

Genes del receptor variable beta de células T en células circulantes de pacientes con lupus eritematoso generalizado y sus familiares sanos.

PubMed

Jakez-Ocampo, Juan; Paulín-Vera, Carmen María; Rivadeneyra-Espinoza, Liliana; Gómez-Martín, Diana; Carrillo-Maravilla, Eduardo; Lima, Guadalupe; Vargas-Rojas, María Inés; Pérez-Romano, Beatriz; Calva-Cevenini, Gabriella; García-Carrasco, Mario; Ruiz-Argüelles, Alejandro; Llorente, Luis

Se investigó la proporción de la expresión génica del receptor variable beta de células T (Vβ TCR) en linfocitos periféricos CD3+ en pacientes con lupus eritematoso generalizado (LEG) familiar y no familiar. El repertorio de Vβ TCR se estudió en 14 familias que presentaban más de un miembro con LEG. El uso de Vβ TCR en pacientes con LEG (n = 27) se comparó con el de los miembros sanos de estas familias (n = 47), con 37 pacientes con LEG esporádico y con 15 controles sanos. La expresión del repertorio de Vβ TCR se estudió por citometría de flujo multiparamétrica utilizando un arreglo de 24 diferentes anticuerpos monoclonales específicos de genes familiares para Vβ TCR. Se encontró el mismo perfil de expresión en las comparaciones entre los casos de LEG esporádico y familiar, así como en los consanguíneos sanos de las familias multicasos, que incluía una expresión incrementada de Vβ 5.2, Vβ 11 y Vβ 16, y una menor expresión de Vβ 3, Vβ4, Vβ 7.1 y Vβ 7. De manera interesante, solo Vβ 17 se expresó de modo diferente entre casos familiares y esporádicos de LEG. Igualmente, la expresión incrementada de Vβ 9 fue el distintivo entre los casos de LEG familiar (casos y consanguíneos sanos) y los controles sanos. Estos resultados refuerzan la noción de que el perfil final del repertorio Vβ TCR observado en LEG familiar y no familiar parece surgir de la interacción de factores genéticos, ambientales e inmunorreguladores, además de que pueden explicar las alteraciones inmunitarias que se observan en los consanguíneos sanos de pacientes con LEG. Copyright: © 2018 SecretarÍa de Salud

[Modern tribology in total hip arthroplasty: pros and cons].

PubMed

Gómez-García, F

2014-01-01

The wear products and adverse reactions that occur on bearing surfaces represent one of the greatest challenges in prosthetic replacements, as the latter experience increasing demands due to the large number of young and older adult patients that have a long life expectancy and remarkable activity. The purpose of this review is to analyze the pros and cons of the new advances in the bearing components of the articular surfaces of current total hip arthroplasties. We also discuss the strategies used historically, their problems, results and the surgeon's role in prescribing the tribologic couple that best fits each patient's needs. We conclude with practical recommendations for the prescription and management of the latest articular couples for total hip arthroplasty.

ConMap: Investigating New Computer-Based Approaches to Assessing Conceptual Knowledge Structure in Physics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beatty, Ian D.

There is a growing consensus among educational researchers that traditional problem-based assessments are not effective tools for diagnosing a student's knowledge state and for guiding pedagogical intervention, and that new tools grounded in the results of cognitive science research are needed. The ConMap ("Conceptual Mapping") project, described…

Phosphorylation-mediated regulation of the Staphylococcus aureus secreted tyrosine phosphatase PtpA.

PubMed

Brelle, Solène; Baronian, Grégory; Huc-Brandt, Sylvaine; Zaki, Laila Gannoun; Cohen-Gonsaud, Martin; Bischoff, Markus; Molle, Virginie

2016-01-15

Due to the emergence of methicillin-resistant strains, Staphylococcus aureus has become as major public-health threat. Studies aimed at deciphering the molecular mechanism of virulence are thus required to identify new targets and develop efficient therapeutic agents. Protein phosphorylations are known to play key regulatory functions and their roles in pathogenesis are under intense scrutiny. Here we analyzed the protein tyrosine phosphatase PtpA of S. aureus, a member of the family of low molecular weight protein tyrosine phosphatases that are often secreted by pathogenic bacteria. We report for the first time that PtpA is phosphorylated in vitro by the S. aureus tyrosine kinase CapA1B2. A mass spectrometry approach allowed determining that Tyr122 and Tyr123 were the only two residues phosphorylated by this kinase. This result was confirmed by analysis of a double PtpA_Y122A/Y123A mutant that showed no phosphorylation by CapA1B2. Interestingly, PtpA phosphatase activity was abrogated in this mutant, suggesting a key regulatory function for these two tyrosine residues. This was further reinforced by the observation that CapA1B2-mediated phosphorylation significantly increased PtpA phosphatase activity. Moreover, we provide evidence that PtpA is secreted during growth of S. aureus. Together our results suggest that PtpA is an exported S. aureus signaling molecule controlled by tyrosine phosphorylation which may interfere with host cell signaling. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Protective Effects of Astaxanthin on ConA-Induced Autoimmune Hepatitis by the JNK/p-JNK Pathway-Mediated Inhibition of Autophagy and Apoptosis

PubMed Central

Liu, Tong; Wang, Junshan; Dai, Weiqi; Wang, Fan; Zheng, Yuanyuan; Chen, Kan; Li, Sainan; Abudumijiti, Huerxidan; Zhou, Zheng; Wang, Jianrong; Lu, Wenxia; Zhu, Rong; Yang, Jing; Zhang, Huawei; Yin, Qin; Wang, Chengfen; Zhou, Yuqing; Lu, Jie; Zhou, Yingqun; Guo, Chuanyong

2015-01-01

Objective Astaxanthin, a potent antioxidant, exhibits a wide range of biological activities, including antioxidant, atherosclerosis and antitumor activities. However, its effect on concanavalin A (ConA)-induced autoimmune hepatitis remains unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effects of astaxanthin on ConA-induced hepatitis in mice, and to elucidate the mechanisms of regulation. Materials and Methods Autoimmune hepatitis was induced in in Balb/C mice using ConA (25 mg/kg), and astaxanthin was orally administered daily at two doses (20 mg/kg and 40 mg/kg) for 14 days before ConA injection. Levels of serum liver enzymes and the histopathology of inflammatory cytokines and other maker proteins were determined at three time points (2, 8 and 24 h). Primary hepatocytes were pretreated with astaxanthin (80 μM) in vitro 24 h before stimulation with TNF-α (10 ng/ml). The apoptosis rate and related protein expression were determined 24 h after the administration of TNF-α. Results Astaxanthin attenuated serum liver enzymes and pathological damage by reducing the release of inflammatory factors. It performed anti-apoptotic effects via the descending phosphorylation of Bcl-2 through the down-regulation of the JNK/p-JNK pathway. Conclusion This research firstly expounded that astaxanthin reduced immune liver injury in ConA-induced autoimmune hepatitis. The mode of action appears to be downregulation of JNK/p-JNK-mediated apoptosis and autophagy. PMID:25761053

Integrated Concentration in Science (iCons): Undergraduate Education Through Interdisciplinary, Team-Based, Real-World Problem Solving

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tuominen, Mark

2013-03-01

Attitude, Skills, Knowledge (ASK) - In this order, these are fundamental characteristics of scientific innovators. Through first-hand practice in using science to unpack and solve complex real-world problems, students can become self-motivated scientific leaders. This presentation describes the pedagogy of a recently developed interdisciplinary undergraduate science education program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst focused on addressing global challenges with scientific solutions. Integrated Concentration in Science (iCons) is an overarching concentration program that supplements the curricula provided within each student's chosen major. iCons is a platform for students to perform student-led research in interdisciplinary collaborative teams. With a schedule of one course per year over four years, the cohort of students move through case studies, analysis of real-world problems, development of potential solutions, integrative communication, laboratory practice, and capstone research projects. In this presentation, a track emphasizing renewable energy science is used to illustrate the iCons pedagogical methods. This includes discussion of a third-year laboratory course in renewable energy that is educationally scaffolded: beginning with a boot camp in laboratory techniques and culminating with student-designed research projects. Among other objectives, this course emphasizes the practice of using reflection and redesign, as a means of generating better solutions and embedding learning for the long term. This work is supported in part by NSF grant DUE-1140805.

Psychiatric Diagnostic Interviews for Children and Adolescents: A Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Angold, Adrian; Erkanli, Alaattin; Copeland, William; Goodman, Robert; Fisher, Prudence W.; Costello, E. Jane

2012-01-01

Objective: To compare examples of three styles of psychiatric interviews for youth: the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children (DISC) ("respondent-based"), the Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Assessment (CAPA) ("interviewer-based"), and the Development and Well-Being Assessment (DAWBA) ("expert judgment"). Method: Roughly equal numbers of…

Supplementing Introductory Biology with On-Line Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGroarty, Estelle; Parker, Joyce; Heidemann, Merle; Lim, Heejun; Olson, Mark; Long, Tammy; Merrill, John; Riffell, Samuel; Smith, James; Batzli, Janet; Kirschtel, David

2004-01-01

We developed web-based modules addressing fundamental concepts of introductory biology delivered through the LON-CAPA course management system. These modules were designed and used to supplement large, lecture-based introductory biology classes. Incorporating educational principles and the strength of web-based instructional technology, choices…

Absolute spectrophotometry of Wolf-Rayet stars from 1200 to 7000 A - A cautionary tale

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garmany, C. D.; Conti, P. S.; Massey, P.

1984-01-01

It is demonstrated that absolute spectrophotometry of the continua of Wolf-Rayet stars may be obtained over the wavelength range 1200-7000 A using IUE and optical measurements. It is shown that the application of a 'standard' reddening law to the observed data gives spurious results in many cases. Additional UV extinction is apparently necessary and may well be circumstellar in origin. In such hot stars, the long-wavelength 'tail' of the emergent stellar continuum are measured. The inadequacy of previous attempts to determine intrinsic continua and effective temperatures of Wolf-Rayet stars is pointed out.

Accurate macromolecular crystallographic refinement: incorporation of the linear scaling, semiempirical quantum-mechanics program DivCon into the PHENIX refinement package.

PubMed

Borbulevych, Oleg Y; Plumley, Joshua A; Martin, Roger I; Merz, Kenneth M; Westerhoff, Lance M

2014-05-01

Macromolecular crystallographic refinement relies on sometimes dubious stereochemical restraints and rudimentary energy functionals to ensure the correct geometry of the model of the macromolecule and any covalently bound ligand(s). The ligand stereochemical restraint file (CIF) requires a priori understanding of the ligand geometry within the active site, and creation of the CIF is often an error-prone process owing to the great variety of potential ligand chemistry and structure. Stereochemical restraints have been replaced with more robust functionals through the integration of the linear-scaling, semiempirical quantum-mechanics (SE-QM) program DivCon with the PHENIX X-ray refinement engine. The PHENIX/DivCon package has been thoroughly validated on a population of 50 protein-ligand Protein Data Bank (PDB) structures with a range of resolutions and chemistry. The PDB structures used for the validation were originally refined utilizing various refinement packages and were published within the past five years. PHENIX/DivCon does not utilize CIF(s), link restraints and other parameters for refinement and hence it does not make as many a priori assumptions about the model. Across the entire population, the method results in reasonable ligand geometries and low ligand strains, even when the original refinement exhibited difficulties, indicating that PHENIX/DivCon is applicable to both single-structure and high-throughput crystallography.

Forms of Appropriation of Tools for the Astronomy Education in Continuous Training of Teachers. (Spanish Title: Formas de Apropriación de Herramientas Para la Enseñanza de la Astronomía en la Formación Docente Continua.) Formas de Apropriação de Instrumentos Para o Ensino de Astronomia na Formação Continuada de Professores

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marques Soares, Leonardo; Sousa Nascimento, Silvania

2012-07-01

The main focus of this article is to present some impressions about the way some teachers appropriated of the tools from the ASTRONOMY TEACHING KIT (KITPEA). The subjects of this research were teachers that took part in the astronomy teaching specialization course offered by the Continuing Education Project (FOCO) at Math and Science Teaching Center (CECIMIG) from the School of Education of Federal University of Minas Gerais (FaE/UFMG). The data was collected with the use of a questionnaire and of an interview applied to these teachers. The analysis of the data was structured with the aid of the Activity Theory and the Mediated Action Theory. We interpret the teachers' speech using the constitutive aspects of the activity system and the concepts of appropriation and domain as an analytical device. It was possible to recognize the appropriation of the tools in 7 narratives among the 11 individuals who took part in the research. El objetivo principal de ese artículo es presentar indicaciones sobre la manera como algunos maestros se apropiaron de las herramientas del KIT PARA LA ENSEÑANZA DE LA ASTRONOMÍA (KITPEA). Los sujetos de esa investigación son docentes que participaron del curso de especialización en enseñanza de astronomía ofrecido por el Proyecto de Formación Continua (Foco) en el Centro de Enseñanza de Ciencias y Matemática (CECIMIG) de la Facultad de Educación de la Universidad Federal de Minas Gerais (FaE/UFMG). Recogimos las informaciones a través de un cuestionario y de una encuesta, aplicados a esos docentes. Estructuramos el análisis de esas informaciones con la ayuda de la Teoría de la Actividad y de la Teoría de la Acción Mediada. Interpretamos os discursos de los docentes usando como dispositivo analítico los elementos constitutivos del sistema de actividad y los conceptos apropiación y dominio. Entre los 11 sujetos que participaron de la investigación, fue posible interpretar con claridad la apropiación de las herramientas en

ProCon - PROteomics CONversion tool.

PubMed

Mayer, Gerhard; Stephan, Christian; Meyer, Helmut E; Kohl, Michael; Marcus, Katrin; Eisenacher, Martin

2015-11-03

With the growing amount of experimental data produced in proteomics experiments and the requirements/recommendations of journals in the proteomics field to publicly make available data described in papers, a need for long-term storage of proteomics data in public repositories arises. For such an upload one needs proteomics data in a standardized format. Therefore, it is desirable, that the proprietary vendor's software will integrate in the future such an export functionality using the standard formats for proteomics results defined by the HUPO-PSI group. Currently not all search engines and analysis tools support these standard formats. In the meantime there is a need to provide user-friendly free-to-use conversion tools that can convert the data into such standard formats in order to support wet-lab scientists in creating proteomics data files ready for upload into the public repositories. ProCon is such a conversion tool written in Java for conversion of proteomics identification data into standard formats mzIdentML and Pride XML. It allows the conversion of Sequest™/Comet .out files, of search results from the popular and often used ProteomeDiscoverer® 1.x (x=versions 1.1 to1.4) software and search results stored in the LIMS systems ProteinScape® 1.3 and 2.1 into mzIdentML and PRIDE XML. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Computational Proteomics. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Desarrollo de la Escala sobre el Estigma Relacionado con el VIH/SIDA para Profesionales de la Salud mediante el uso de métodos mixtos123

PubMed Central

Varas-Díaz, Nelson; Neilands, Torsten B.; Guilamo-Ramos, Vincent; Cintrón Bou, Francheska N.

2009-01-01

El estigma relacionado con el VIH/SIDA continúa siendo un obstáculo para la prevención primaria y secundaria del VIH. Las consecuencias para las personas que viven con la enfermedad han sido muy documentadas y continúan siendo una gran preocupación para las personas que proveen servicios de salud y para aquellas que investigan el tema. Estas consecuencias son preocupantes cuando el estigma emana de profesionales de la salud porque se puede limitar el acceso a los servicios. Uno de los principales obstáculos para la investigación del estigma relacionado con el VIH en Puerto Rico es la falta de instrumentos cuantitativos para evaluar las manifestaciones del estigma entre profesionales de la salud. El objetivo principal de este estudio fue desarrollar y probar las propiedades psicométricas de una escala sobre el estigma relacionado con el VIH/SIDA culturalmente apropiada para personas que proveen servicios de salud puertorriqueñas y desarrollar una versión corta de la escala que pudiera usarse en escenarios clínicos con tiempo limitado. El instrumento desarrollado estuvo basado en evidencia cualitativa recopilada entre profesionales y estudiantes de profesiones de la salud puertorriqueños/as (n=80) y administrado a una muestra de 421 profesionales de la salud en adiestramiento. La escala contenía 12 dimensiones del estigma relacionado con el VIH/SIDA. El análisis cuantitativo corroboró 11 de ellas, teniendo como resultado un instrumento con validez y confiabilidad satisfactoria. Estas dimensiones, a su vez, fueron subcomponentes de un factor de estigma general superior. PMID:20333258

Regular series of doubly excited states inside two-electron continua: Application to 2s2-hole states in neon above the Ne2+1s22s22p4 and 1s22s2p5 thresholds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Komninos, Yannis; Mercouris, Theodoros; Nicolaides, Cleanthes A.

2011-02-01

We report results of many-electron calculations that predict the presence of a regular series of autoionizing doubly excited states (DESs) of 1Posymmetry embedded inside one- as well as two-electron continua of neon, in the range of excitation 105.9-121.9 eV above the ground state. The limit of 121.9 eV represents the two-electron ionization threshold (TEIT) labeled by Ne2+ 1s22p6 1S. The wave functions of these unstable states and their properties are computed according to the theoretical framework, which is explained and justified in the text. Their formal structure is (ψcore)1S⊗Φ(r1→,r2→)1Po, where both ψcore and Φ(r⃗1,r⃗2) are correlated wave functions, the latter being represented reasonably accurately by a self-consistently obtained superposition of nsnp and np(n+1)d configurations n=3-7. By fitting the calculated lowest energies at each value of n, (five states), an effective hydrogenic formula is obtained, which gives the whole energy spectrum up to the TEIT. The autoionization widths are small and decrease with excitation energy. Oscillator strengths for the excitation of these narrow resonance states by absorption of one photon are also small. Because of their electronic structure, these states are compared to 1Po DESs in He, which were found in the 1980s to constitute a regular ladder with wave-function characteristics that tend to those of the so-called Wannier state at threshold. In the present case, the presence of the core and the concomitant interactions do not permit the emergence of such geometrical features.

Fragilidad y su asociación con mortalidad, hospitalizaciones y dependencia funcional en mexicanos de 60 años o más

PubMed Central

de León González, Enrique Díaz; Pérez, Héctor Eloy Tamez; Hermosillo, Hugo Gutiérrez; Rodríguez, Javier Armando Cedillo; Torres, Gabriela

2016-01-01

Fundamento y objetivo Determinar la asociación entre fragilidad y mortalidad, dependencia funcional, caídas y hospitalizaciones en el Estudio Nacional de Salud y Envejecimiento en México (ENASEM). Sujetos y métodos Estudio prospectivo poblacional en México en el que se seleccionaron sujetos de 60 años o más, que fueron evaluados en las variables de fragilidad durante la primera vuelta del estudio en el año 2001 y que incluyó: dificultad para levantarse de una silla después de haber estado sentado(a) durante largo tiempo, pérdida de peso de 5 kilogramos o más en los últimos dos años y falta de energía. Los sujetos fueron catalogados como robustos, prefrágiles y frágiles cuando tenían cero, una o dos de las características anteriores, respectivamente. La mortalidad, hospitalizaciones, caídas y dependencia funcional fueron evaluadas en la segunda vuelta del estudio en el año 2003. Se calculó el riesgo relativo para cada una de las complicaciones, así como análisis multivariado con regresión de Cox para el caso de mortalidad y regresión logística para el resto. Resultados Los estados de prefragilidad y fragilidad se asociaron independientemente con mortalidad, con índices de riesgo ajustados de 1,61 (intervalo de confianza del 95% [IC 95%] 1,01-2,55) y 1,94 (IC 95% 1,20-3,13), respectivamente. Sólo el estado de fragilidad se asoció independientemente con hospitalización y dependencia funcional, con una razón de momios ajustada de 1,53 (IC 95% 1,13-2,07) y 3,07 (IC 95% 1,76-5,34), respectivamente. No hubo asociación entre los estados de prefragilidad y fragilidad con caídas. Conclusión El estado de fragilidad se asocia independientemente con mortalidad, hospitalizaciones y disfuncionalidad en actividades básicas de la vida diaria en los siguientes dos años en población mexicana. PMID:21612803

Land subsidence caused by groundwater exploitation in Suzhou City, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Chongxi; Pei, Shunping; Jiao, Jiu Jimmy

2002-09-01

dans l'aquifère captif profond, puisque la recharge à partir des aquifères superficiels au travers de la couche de limon est la seule alimentation de l'aquifère profond. Une analyse des distributions spatiales de l'abaissement du niveau piézométrique et des tassements du sol montre que la région soumise à l'abaissement maximal de piézométrie n'est pas nécessairement celle des tassements maximaux du sol liés à la présence de la couche de limon non consolidé. Une simple révision des débits de pompage basée sur la distribution spatiale de la couche de limon épaisse peut réduire significativement les tassements du sol. Resumen. La ciudad de Suzhou, situada en el tramo inferior del Río Yangtze, al sudeste de la provincia de Jiangsu, es una de las pocas ciudades chinas que padece problemas serios de subsidencia. Esto ha motivado la realización de un proyecto de investigación en la zona. Estudios geológicos e hidrogeológicos apuntan a un modelo de acuífero multicapa, con tres niveles distintos de lodos blandos de orígenes marino y lacustre. Examinando los registros históricos de extracciones de agua subterránea, así como de nivel piezométrico y de subsidencia, se observa que ésta se halla asociada al bombeo cada vez mayor del acuífero confinado profundo. La hipótesis es que las capas de lodos blandos se van consolidando, si bien la que más contribuye a ello es la tercera, potente y próxima al acuífero más explotado. Se ha realizado un modelo numérico tridimensional en diferencias finitas que representa el sistema acuífero multicapa, con lo que se puede estudiar el efecto de la extracción de agua subterránea en la subsidencia. Calibrando el modelo con niveles piezométricos medidos y con datos de subsidencia, se ha podido estimar los parámetros del acuífero. Los resultados del modelo ajustan de forma razonable con los datos medidos, por lo que el modelo numérico es capaz de reproducir los procesos dinámicos de flujo de aguas

La interacción de estrellas WN con el medio circundante

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arnal, M.; Cappa, C.; Rizzo, J. R.; Cichovolski, S.

Se presentan resultados preliminares de un estudio de la distribución del hidrógeno neutro en los alrededores de estrellas WR de la serie del nitrógeno. Los datos observacionales de la línea de 21 cm provienen de un relevamineto de baja resolución angular (36'), así como de observaciones de resolución angular intermedia (9') tomadas con el radiotelescopio de Effelsberg. Este análisis ha permitido detectar cavidades y envolturas de H I en expansión vinculadas a las estrellas que componen la muestra.

Impacto metabólico e inflamatorio de una comida rica en grasas saturadas y su relación con la obesidad abdominal.

PubMed

Alayón, Alicia Norma; Rivadeneira, Ana Patricia; Herrera, Carlos; Guzmán, Heidy; Arellano, Dioneris; Echeverri, Isabella

2018-05-01

Introducción. La etapa posprandial se asocia con el incremento de marcadores relacionados con el riesgo cardiovascular, cuya intensidad depende del estado metabólico.Objetivo. Determinar el impacto de la ingestión de una comida rica en grasas saturadas sobre el perfil metabólico e inflamatorio y su relación con la obesidad abdominal.Materiales y métodos. Se hizo un ensayo clínico en 42 individuos (21 con obesidad abdominal). Se midieron, en sangre, la glucosa, la insulina, el perfil lipídico, la proteína C reactiva, los lipopolisacáridos y la interleucina 6, en ayunas y después de la ingestión.Resultados. Además de la obesidad, se registró la presencia de resistencia a la insulina y de niveles elevados de triacilglicéridos y proteína C reactiva en ayunas. Asimismo, se detectaron niveles posprandiales más elevados de glucosa, insulina y triacilglicéridos. La interleucina 6 disminuyó en el grupo de personas sin obesidad y los lipopolisacáridos aumentaron en ambos grupos.Conclusión. La ingestión de una comida rica en grasas saturadas produjo un mayor impacto en las variables glucémicas en el grupo con obesidad y, aunque afectó de forma similar los lípidos en ambos grupos, el incremento de triacilglicéridos fue mayor en presencia de una concentración basal elevada y promovió el aumento de lipopolisacáridos. El estado inflamatorio basal y posprandial afectó en mayor medida al grupo con obesidad. El momento posprandial reflejó el estado más frecuente de los individuos en un día normal y permitió evidenciar la capacidad de respuesta metabólica frente a la ingestión de alimentos, así como los estados tempranos de riesgo metabólico.

A con-focal setup for micro-XRF experiments using diamond anvil cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilke, Max; Rickers, Karen; Vincze, Laszlo; Schmidt, Christian; Borchert, Manuela; Pascarelli, Sakura

2010-05-01

In this contribution we introduce an experimental setup to perform con-focal micro X-ray fluorescence measurements in situ in samples at high temperatures and pressures in diamond anvil cells (DAC) (e.g. Schmidt et al. 2007). The con-focal arrangement is used to suppress the background in X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectra that stems from elastic and inelastic scattering of the diamond anvils. The setup is based on a focusing optic in the incident beam that reaches a spot of 5-10 μm and a focusing poly-capillary in front of an energy-dispersive solid-state detector. The detector poly-capillary is designed to work at a very long working distance of 50 mm in order to collect the radiation from the center of the DAC at 90° to the incident beam. The probing volume is defined by the two foci and has a size of ca. 300 μm at 8 keV and 150 μm at 19 keV as measured by scans through thin metal foils. Comparison of XRF spectra acquired with a usual detector collimator and spectra recorded with the detector capillary shows a strong suppression of XRF signal generated outside the probed volume, i.e. XRF from the gasket material and signal from elastic and Compton scattering by the diamond anvils. The ratio of the Zr K-alpha fluorescence peak to the peak of the Compton scattering changes from 0.5 (collimator) to 1.26 (detector capillary) for a ca. 1000 ppm Zr standard solution and an incident beam energy of 20 keV. For a standard solution containing ca. 1000 ppm Hf, the ratio of the L-alpha to the Compton signal increases to 6 using the detector capillary and an incident beam energy of 9.7 keV. Thus, the con-focal setup substantially improves the fluorescence to background ratio. This will result in higher sensitivities for dilute elements in the sample chamber of the DAC. Furthermore, the possibilities of interference of the sample's signal with signal from the sample environment are greatly reduced. In a broader sense, the setup can also be applied to other confined samples

Review of X-33 Hypersonic Aerodynamic and Aerothermodynamic Development

DTIC Science & Technology

2000-09-01

proposed development of a fully reusable, rocket pow- ered, single-stage-to-orbit ( SSTO ) vehicle capa- ble of delivering 25,000 lbs (including crew...space at greatly reduced cost. The “Access-to-Space” study identified critical technologies that required development before a SSTO reusable launch

Research on Potential Environmental Impacts of Oxy-fuel Combustion at EPA

EPA Science Inventory

An existing 35kW laboratory-scale combustor located at the U.S. EPA’s National Risk Management Research Laboratory, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, has been modified for performing oxy-natural gas and oxy-coal experiments by adding O2 operation and flue gas recycling capa...

Real-Time Dispatch of Petroleum Tank Trucks.

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-12-01

dispatches for each bulk terminal from which loads are hauled. The dispatchers, located at a central national order processing facility, must each...of an order processor and new capa- bilities to, for instance, trace orders. Also, uniform control of thef order processing function is desirable, if

Caffe con Troll: Shallow Ideas to Speed Up Deep Learning

PubMed Central

Hadjis, Stefan; Abuzaid, Firas; Zhang, Ce; Ré, Christopher

2016-01-01

We present Caffe con Troll (CcT), a fully compatible end-to-end version of the popular framework Caffe with rebuilt internals. We built CcT to examine the performance characteristics of training and deploying general-purpose convolutional neural networks across different hardware architectures. We find that, by employing standard batching optimizations for CPU training, we achieve a 4.5× throughput improvement over Caffe on popular networks like CaffeNet. Moreover, with these improvements, the end-to-end training time for CNNs is directly proportional to the FLOPS delivered by the CPU, which enables us to efficiently train hybrid CPU-GPU systems for CNNs. PMID:27314106

Caffe con Troll: Shallow Ideas to Speed Up Deep Learning.

PubMed

Hadjis, Stefan; Abuzaid, Firas; Zhang, Ce; Ré, Christopher

2015-01-01

We present Caffe con Troll (CcT), a fully compatible end-to-end version of the popular framework Caffe with rebuilt internals. We built CcT to examine the performance characteristics of training and deploying general-purpose convolutional neural networks across different hardware architectures. We find that, by employing standard batching optimizations for CPU training, we achieve a 4.5× throughput improvement over Caffe on popular networks like CaffeNet. Moreover, with these improvements, the end-to-end training time for CNNs is directly proportional to the FLOPS delivered by the CPU, which enables us to efficiently train hybrid CPU-GPU systems for CNNs.

Moderator's view: High-volume plasma exchange: pro, con and consensus.

PubMed

Kaplan, Andre A

2017-09-01

I have been asked to comment on the pro and con opinions regarding high-volume plasma exchange. The authors of both positions have provided cogent arguments and a reasonable approach to choosing the exchange volume for any given therapeutic plasma exchange. The major issue of relevance in this discussion is the nature of the toxins targeted for removal. These parameters include molecular weight, the apparent volume of distribution, the degree of protein binding, the biologic and chemical half-life, and the severity and rapidity of its toxicity. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of ERA-EDTA. All rights reserved.

Nano anti-cancer drugs: pros and cons and future perspectives.

PubMed

Ali, Imran

2011-02-01

For last one decade, scientists are working for developing nano anti-cancer drugs with claim of ideal ones due to their targeted chemotherapic nature. These drugs have many beneficial properties such as targeted drug delivery and gene therapy modalities with minimum side effects. This article describes pros and cons and future perspectives of nano anti-cancer drugs. Efforts have been made to address importance, special features, toxicities (general, blood identities, immune system and environmental) and future perspectives of nano anti-cancer drugs. It was concluded that nano anti-cancer drugs may be magic bullet drugs for cancer treatment leading to bright future of the whole world.

Balancing Ethical Pros and Cons of Stem Cell Derived Gametes.

PubMed

Segers, Seppe; Mertes, Heidi; de Wert, Guido; Dondorp, Wybo; Pennings, Guido

2017-07-01

In this review we aim to provide an overview of the most important ethical pros and cons of stem cell derived gametes (SCD-gametes), as a contribution to the debate about reproductive tissue engineering. Derivation of gametes from stem cells holds promising applications both for research and for clinical use in assisted reproduction. We explore the ethical issues connected to gametes derived from embryonic stem cells (both patient specific and non-patient specific) as well as those related to gametes derived from induced pluripotent stem cells. The technology of SCD-gametes raises moral concerns of how reproductive autonomy relates to issues of embryo destruction, safety, access, and applications beyond clinical infertility.

What are the pros and cons of electronically monitoring inhaler use in asthma? A multistakeholder perspective.

PubMed

Howard, Sam; Lang, Alexandra; Sharples, Sarah; Shaw, Dominick

2016-01-01

Electronic monitoring devices (EMDs) are the optimal method for collecting objective data on inhaler use in asthma. Recent research has investigated the attitudes of patients with asthma towards these devices. However, no research to date has formally considered the opinions of stakeholders and decision-makers in asthma care. These individuals have important clinical requirements that need to be taken into account if EMDs are to be successfully provisioned, making collecting their opinions on the key barriers facing these devices a valuable process. Three rounds of surveys in a Delphi format were used to assess the most important pros and cons of EMDs for asthma care in a sample of 31 stakeholders which included healthcare professionals and members of clinical commissioning groups. The respondents identified 29 pros and 32 cons. Pros that were rated as most important included new visual evidence to aid clinical discussions with a patient and an increase in patient involvement and motivation. The cons that were rated as most important included a need for more clinical evidence of the effectiveness of EMDs, as well as better clarity over who has responsibilities in managing, interpreting and discussing data with a patient. The research provides a guide for EMD developers by highlighting where these devices may provide the most benefit as well as prioritising the key issues that need addressing if they are to be used effectively in everyday asthma care.

What are the pros and cons of electronically monitoring inhaler use in asthma? A multistakeholder perspective

PubMed Central

Howard, Sam; Lang, Alexandra; Sharples, Sarah; Shaw, Dominick

2016-01-01

Introduction Electronic monitoring devices (EMDs) are the optimal method for collecting objective data on inhaler use in asthma. Recent research has investigated the attitudes of patients with asthma towards these devices. However, no research to date has formally considered the opinions of stakeholders and decision-makers in asthma care. These individuals have important clinical requirements that need to be taken into account if EMDs are to be successfully provisioned, making collecting their opinions on the key barriers facing these devices a valuable process. Methods Three rounds of surveys in a Delphi format were used to assess the most important pros and cons of EMDs for asthma care in a sample of 31 stakeholders which included healthcare professionals and members of clinical commissioning groups. Results The respondents identified 29 pros and 32 cons. Pros that were rated as most important included new visual evidence to aid clinical discussions with a patient and an increase in patient involvement and motivation. The cons that were rated as most important included a need for more clinical evidence of the effectiveness of EMDs, as well as better clarity over who has responsibilities in managing, interpreting and discussing data with a patient. Conclusions The research provides a guide for EMD developers by highlighting where these devices may provide the most benefit as well as prioritising the key issues that need addressing if they are to be used effectively in everyday asthma care. PMID:27933181

Magnetic Phase Transition in Ion-Irradiated Ultrathin CoN Films via Magneto-Optic Faraday Effect.

PubMed

Su, Chiung-Wu; Chang, Yen-Chu; Chang, Sheng-Chi

2013-11-15

The magnetic properties of 1 nm thick in-plane anisotropic Co ultrathin film on ZnO(0001) were investigated through successive 500 eV nitrogen-ion sputtering. Magneto-optical Faraday effects were used to observe the evolution of the ion-irradiated sample in longitudinal and perpendicular magnetic fields. The ferromagnetic phase of the initial in-plane anisotropic fcc β-Co phase transformation to β-Co(N) phase was terminated at paramagnetic CoN x phase. In-plane anisotropy with weak out-of-plane anisotropy of the Co/ZnO sample was initially observed in the as-grown condition. In the sputtering process, the N⁺ ions induced simultaneous sputtering and doping. An abrupt spin reorientation behavior from in-plane to out-of-plane was found under prolonged sputtering condition. The existence of perpendicular anisotropy measured from the out-of-plane Faraday effect may be attributed to the co-existence of residual β-Co and Co₄N exchange bonding force by the gradual depletion of Co-N thickness.

Mandated Mental Health Insurance: A Complex Case of Pros and Cons. Human Resources Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paterson, Andrea

1986-01-01

The pros and cons of state laws mandating mental health insurance are discussed in this report. The history of a 1985 Supreme Court case which held that states could mandate mental health benefits introduces the report. In an overview of the issue, the long-standing argument between the insurance industry and the mental health establishment is…

The clinician's dilemma: two dimensions of ethical care.

PubMed

Gillett, Grant; Chamberlain, Joshua

2013-01-01

There is a continuing intense medico-ethico-legal debate around legalized euthanasia and physician assisted suicide such that ethically informed clinicians often agree with the arguments but feel hesitant about the conclusion, especially when it may bring about a change in law. We argue that this confusion results from the convergence of two continua that underpin the conduct of a clinician and are especially prominent in psychiatry. The two continua concern the duty of care and the importance of patient autonomy and they do not quite map into traditional divides in debates about sanctity of life, paternalism, and autonomy. As ethical dimensions, they come into sharp focus in the psychological complexities of end-of-life care and they form two key factors in most ethical and legal or disciplinary deliberations about a clinician's actions. Whereas both dimensions are important when a clinician reflects on what s/he has done or should do, they need careful balancing in a request for euthanasia or physician assisted suicide where the patient wants to take a decisive role in his or her own end-of-life care. However, end-of-life is also a situation where clinicians often encounter 'cries for help' so that both continua are importantly in play. Balancing these two continua without using blunt legal instruments is often required in psychiatric care in such a way as to problematize the idea that patient decisions should dominate the care options available. A simplistic approach to that issue arguably plays into what has been called an 'impoverished construction of life and death' and, some would say, devalues the basic commitments fundamental to medical care. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Voice-onset time and buzz-onset time identification: A ROC analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lopez-Bascuas, Luis E.; Rosner, Burton S.; Garcia-Albea, Jose E.

2004-05-01

Previous studies have employed signal detection theory to analyze data from speech and nonspeech experiments. Typically, signal distributions were assumed to be Gaussian. Schouten and van Hessen [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 104, 2980-2990 (1998)] explicitly tested this assumption for an intensity continuum and a speech continuum. They measured response distributions directly and, assuming an interval scale, concluded that the Gaussian assumption held for both continua. However, Pastore and Macmillan [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 111, 2432 (2002)] applied ROC analysis to Schouten and van Hessen's data, assuming only an ordinal scale. Their ROC curves suppported the Gaussian assumption for the nonspeech signals only. Previously, Lopez-Bascuas [Proc. Audit. Bas. Speech Percept., 158-161 (1997)] found evidence with a rating scale procedure that the Gaussian model was inadequate for a voice-onset time continuum but not for a noise-buzz continuum. Both continua contained ten stimuli with asynchronies ranging from -35 ms to +55 ms. ROC curves (double-probability plots) are now reported for each pair of adjacent stimuli on the two continua. Both speech and nonspeech ROCs often appeared nonlinear, indicating non-Gaussian signal distributions under the usual zero-variance assumption for response criteria.

Steady-state heat conduction in quiescent fluids: Incompleteness of the Navier-Stokes-Fourier equations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brenner, Howard

2011-10-01

Linear irreversible thermodynamic principles are used to demonstrate, by counterexample, the existence of a fundamental incompleteness in the basic pre-constitutive mass, momentum, and energy equations governing fluid mechanics and transport phenomena in continua. The demonstration is effected by addressing the elementary case of steady-state heat conduction (and transport processes in general) occurring in quiescent fluids. The counterexample questions the universal assumption of equality of the four physically different velocities entering into the basic pre-constitutive mass, momentum, and energy conservation equations. Explicitly, it is argued that such equality is an implicit constitutive assumption rather than an established empirical fact of unquestioned authority. Such equality, if indeed true, would require formal proof of its validity, currently absent from the literature. In fact, our counterexample shows the assumption of equality to be false. As the current set of pre-constitutive conservation equations appearing in textbooks are regarded as applicable both to continua and noncontinua (e.g., rarefied gases), our elementary counterexample negating belief in the equality of all four velocities impacts on all aspects of fluid mechanics and transport processes, continua and noncontinua alike.

Completed Beltrami-Michell Formulation for Analyzing Radially Symmetrical Bodies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kaljevic, Igor; Saigal, Sunil; Hopkins, Dale A.; Patnaik, Surya N.

1994-01-01

A force method formulation, the completed Beltrami-Michell formulation (CBMF), has been developed for analyzing boundary value problems in elastic continua. The CBMF is obtained by augmenting the classical Beltrami-Michell formulation with novel boundary compatibility conditions. It can analyze general elastic continua with stress, displacement, or mixed boundary conditions. The CBMF alleviates the limitations of the classical formulation, which can solve stress boundary value problems only. In this report, the CBMF is specialized for plates and shells. All equations of the CBMF, including the boundary compatibility conditions, are derived from the variational formulation of the integrated force method (IFM). These equations are defined only in terms of stresses. Their solution for kinematically stable elastic continua provides stress fields without any reference to displacements. In addition, a stress function formulation for plates and shells is developed by augmenting the classical Airy's formulation with boundary compatibility conditions expressed in terms of the stress function. The versatility of the CBMF and the augmented stress function formulation is demonstrated through analytical solutions of several mixed boundary value problems. The example problems include a composite circular plate and a composite circular cylindrical shell under the simultaneous actions of mechanical and thermal loads.

Chemical P recovery from dairy manure using the Quick Wash process and use of low-P washed manure solids as soil amendments.

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Large volumes of manure generated by intensive dairy production and their final land disposal is a significant environmental problem. Due to the imbalance of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) (4:1), emendation of soils with dairy manure entails a raise in available soil P levels beyond the crops' capa...

Career Self-Efficacy and Personality: Linking Career Confidence and the Healthy Personality

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Borgen, Fred H.; Betz, Nancy E.

2008-01-01

This article extends recent work on the relationship between personality and career self-efficacy by examining relationships across two new inventories with scales for identifying human strengths. The Healthy Personality Inventory (HPI) has 17 content scales tapping an array of positive personality measures. The CAPA Confidence Inventory (CCI) has…

Efectos de la radiación UV en la salud

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

La reducción de la capa de ozono disminuye la protección natural que ofrece nuestra atmósfera contra la radiación ultravioleta (UV) perjudicial del sol. Esta página web proporciona una descripción general de los principales problemas de salud relacionados

Air Traffic Management Technology Demonstration-1 Concept of Operations (ATD-1 ConOps), Version 3.0

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baxley, Brian T.; Johnson, William C.; Scardina, John; Shay, Richard F.

2016-01-01

This document describes the goals, benefits, technologies, and procedures of the Concept of Operations (ConOps) for the Air Traffic Management (ATM) Technology Demonstration #1 (ATD-1), and provides an update to the previous versions of the document [ref 1 and ref 2].

Infrared/optical energy distributions of high redshifted quasars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Soifer, B. T.; Neugebauer, G.; Oke, J. B.; Matthews, K.; Lacy, J. H.

1982-01-01

Measurements at 1.2, 1.6 and 2.2 microns were combined with visual spectrophotometry of 21 quasars having redshifts z or = 2.66. The primary result is that the rest frame visual/ultraviolet continua of the high redshift quasars are well described by a sum of a power law continuum with slope of approximately -0.4 and a 3000 A bump. The rest frame visual/ultraviolet continua of these quasars are quite similar to that of 3C273, the archetype of low redshift quasars. There does not appear to be any visual/ultraviolet properties distinguishing high redshift quasars selected via visual or radio techniques.

Low resolution ultraviolet and optical spectrophotometry of symbiotic stars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Slovak, M. H.

1982-01-01

Low resolution International Ultraviolet Explorer spectra combined with optical spectrophotometry provide absolute flux distributions for seven symbiotic variables from 1200 to 6450 A. For five stars (EG And, BF Cyg, CI Cyg, AG Peg, and Z And) the data are representative of the quiescent/out-of-eclipse energy distributions; for CH Cyg and AX Per, the observations were obtained following their atest outburst in 1977 and 1978, respectively. The de-reddened distributions reveal a remarkable diversity of both line spectra and continua. While the optical and near infrared regions lambda = 5500 A) are well represented by single component stellar models, multicomponent flux distributions are required to reproduce the ultraviolet continua.

Shrunken Pore Syndrome is associated with a sharp rise in mortality in patients undergoing elective coronary artery bypass grafting.

PubMed

Dardashti, Alain; Nozohoor, Shahab; Grubb, Anders; Bjursten, Henrik

2016-01-01

Shrunken Pore Syndrome was recently suggested for the pathophysiologic state in patients characterized by an estimation of their glomerular filtration rate (GFR) based upon cystatin  C, which is lower or equal to 60% of their estimated GFR based upon creatinine, i.e. when eGFR cystatin  C ≤ 60% of eGFR creatinine. Not only the cystatin C level, but also the levels of other low molecular mass proteins are increased in this condition. The preoperative plasma levels of cystatin C and creatinine were measured in 1638 patients undergoing elective coronary artery bypass grafting. eGFR cystatin C and eGFR creatinine were calculated using two pairs of estimating equations, CAPA and LMrev, and CKD-EPI cystatin  C and CKD-EPI creatinine, respectively. The Shrunken Pore Syndrome was present in 2.1% of the patients as defined by the CAPA and LMrev equations and in 5.7% of the patients as defined by the CKD-EPI cystatin C and CKD-EPI creatinine equations. The patients were studied over a median follow-up time of 3.5 years (2.0-5.0 years) and the mortality determined. Shrunken Pore Syndrome defined by both pairs of equations was a strong, independent, predictor of long-term mortality as evaluated by Cox analysis and as illustrated by Kaplan-Meier curves. Increased mortality was observed also for the subgroups of patients with GFR above or below 60 mL/min/1.73 m(2). Changing the cut-off level from 60 to 70% for the CAPA and LMrev equations increased the number of patients with Shrunken Pore Syndrome to 6.5%, still displaying increased mortality.

Understanding the pros and cons of organ donation decision-making: Decisional balance and expressing donation intentions among African Americans.

PubMed

Flemming, Shauna St Clair; Redmond, Nakeva; Williamson, Dana Hz; Thompson, Nancy J; Perryman, Jennie P; Patzer, Rachel E; Arriola, Kimberly Jacob

2018-04-01

Increasing public commitment to organ donation is critical to improving donor kidney availability for end-stage renal disease patients desiring transplant. This study surveyed ( N = 1339) African Americans, measuring perceived pros relative to cons of organ donation, to evaluate an existing Transtheoretical Model decisional balance scale and associations between decisional balance and expressing donation intentions. Findings supported the existing scale structure. More positive decisional balance ratios were associated with 1.76 times the odds of expressing intentions (95% confidence interval = 1.52-2.04). Pros were more strongly linked to donation intentions than cons. Greater understanding of organ donation decision-making is valuable for informing interventions that encourage donation.

Cannabinoids and cancer: pros and cons of an antitumour strategy

PubMed Central

Bifulco, Maurizio; Laezza, Chiara; Pisanti, Simona; Gazzerro, Patrizia

2006-01-01

In the last two decades, research has dramatically increased the knowledge of cannabinoids biology and pharmacology. In mammals, compounds with properties similar to active components of Cannabis sativa, the so called ‘endocannabinoids', have been shown to modulate key cell-signalling pathways involved in cancer cell growth, invasion and metastasis. To date, cannabinoids have been licensed for clinical use as palliative treatment of chemotherapy, but increased evidences showed direct antiproliferative actions of cannabinoid agonists on several tumour cells in vitro and in animal models. In this article, we will review the principal molecular pathways modulated by cannabinoids on cancer and summarize pros and cons evidence on the possible future use of endocannabinoid-based drugs in cancer therapy. PMID:16501583

La mortalidad en adolescentes con cáncer: características clinicoepidemiológicas de muerte y aspectos éticos emergentes.

PubMed

Cicero-Oneto, Carlo Egysto; Mata-Valderrama, Guadalupe; Valdez-Martínez, Edith

Describir los aspectos epidemiológicos, clínicos y éticos de la mortalidad de los adolescentes con cáncer en -México. Se revisaron 63 expedientes clínicos de adolescentes (de 14 a 18 años de edad) con cáncer, fallecidos entre 2011 y 2014, para obtener información clínica y epidemiológica de su muerte. Los sitios de estudio fueron tres hospitales de concentración en la Ciudad de México. De los 40 adolescentes con criterios de fase terminal, 16 (40%) continuaron recibiendo tratamiento con fines curativos. De los 51 cuyo lugar de muerte era conocido, 45 (88%) murieron en hospital. De los 41 que murieron dentro de los 30 días de su última hospitalización, las muertes fueron principalmente debidas a complicaciones (51%), a progresión de la enfermedad (41%) o bien fueron muertes en tratamiento paliativo (7%, 3/41). La práctica oncológica descansa en lo que es conocido como modelo biomédico. Los resultados del estudio sugieren y apoyan la urgente necesidad de implementar verdaderos servicios de cuidados paliativos, pero más importante que eso, está el ímpetu de poner la ética de la práctica clínica en acción, y de ese modo reforzar la buena práctica de la medicina. Copyright: © 2018 SecretarÍa de Salud

Online Grading of Calculations in General Chemistry Laboratory Write-Ups

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Silva, Alexsandra; Gonzales, Robert; Brennan, Daniel P.

2010-01-01

In the past, there were frequently complaints about the grading of laboratory reports in our laboratory chemistry courses. This article discussed the implementation of an online submission of laboratory acquired data using LON-CAPA (The Learning Online Network with Computer-Assisted Personalized Approach), which is an open source management and…

Examination of Campylobacter jejuni putative adhesins leads to the identification of a new protein, designated FlpA, required for chicken colonization

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Campylobacter jejuni colonization of chickens is dependent upon surface exposed proteins termed adhesins. Putative C. jejuni adhesins include CadF, CapA, JlpA, MOMP, PEB1, Cj1279c, and Cj1349c. We examined the genetic relatedness of ninety-seven C. jejuni isolates recovered from human, poultry, bo...

Performance in Basic Mathematics of Indigenous Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sicat, Lolita V.; David, Ma. Elena D.

2016-01-01

This analytical study analyzed the performance in Basic Mathematics of the indigenous students, the Aeta students (Grade 6) of Sta. Juliana Elementary School, Capas, Tarlac, and the APC students of Malaybalay City, Bukidnon. Results were compared with regular students in rural, urban, private, and public schools to analyze indigenous students'…

Quick fix or long-term cure? Pros and cons of bariatric surgery

PubMed Central

Madura, James A.

2012-01-01

The past decade has seen an enormous increase in the number of bariatric, or weight loss, operations performed. This trend is likely to continue, mirroring the epidemic of obesity around the world and its rising prevalence among children. Bariatric surgery is considered by many to be the most effective treatment for obesity in terms of maintenance of long-term weight loss and improvement in obesity-related comorbid conditions. Although overly simplified, the primary mechanisms of the surgical interventions currently utilized to treat obesity are the creation of a restrictive or malabsorptive bowel anatomy. Operations based on these mechanisms include the laparoscopic adjustable gastric band and laparoscopic vertical sleeve gastrectomy (considered primarily restrictive operations), the laparoscopic biliopancreatic diversion with or without a duodenal switch (primarily malabsorptive operation), and the laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (considered a combination restrictive and selective malabsorptive procedure). Each operation has pros and cons. Important considerations, for the patient and surgeon alike, in the decision to proceed with bariatric surgery include the technical aspects of the operation, postoperative complications including long-term nutritional problems, magnitude of initial and sustained weight loss desired, and correction of obesity-related comorbidities. Herein, the pros and cons of the contemporary laparoscopic bariatric operations are reviewed and ongoing controversies relating to bariatric surgery are discussed: appropriate patient selection, appropriate operation selection for an individual patient, surgeon selection, and how to measure success after surgery. PMID:23091563

Pros and cons of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI).

PubMed

Terré, Juan A; George, Isaac; Smith, Craig R

2017-09-01

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) or replacement (TAVR) was recently approved by the FDA for intermediate risk patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS). This technique was already worldwide adopted for inoperable and high-risk patients. Improved device technology, imaging analysis and operator expertise has reduced the initial worrisome higher complications rate associated with TAVR, making it comparable to surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR). However, many answers need to be addressed before adoption in lower risk patients. This paper highlights the pros and cons of TAVI based mostly on randomized clinical trials involving the two device platforms approved in the United States. We focused our analysis on metrics that will play a key role in expanding TAVR indication in healthier individuals. We review the significance and gave a perspective on paravalvular leak (PVL), valve performance, valve durability, leaflet thrombosis, stroke and pacemaker requirement.

Encefalitis por anticuerpos contra el receptor de NMDA: experiencia con seis pacientes pediátricos. Potencial eficacia del metotrexato

PubMed Central

Bravo-Oro, Antonio; Abud-Mendoza, Carlos; Quezada-Corona, Arturo; Dalmau, Josep; Campos-Guevara, Verónica

2016-01-01

Introducción La encefalitis por anticuerpos contra el receptor de N-metil-D-aspartato (NMDA) es una entidad cada vez más diagnosticada en edad pediátrica. A diferencia de los adultos, en muchos casos no se asocia a tumores y las manifestaciones iniciales en niños más frecuentes son crisis convulsivas y trastornos del movimiento, mientras que en los adultos predominan las alteraciones psiquiátricas. Casos clínicos Presentamos seis casos pediátricos confirmados con anticuerpos contra la subunidad NR1 del receptor de NMDA en suero y líquido cefalorraquídeo. Cinco de los casos comenzaron con crisis convulsivas como manifestación clínica inicial antes de desarrollar el cuadro clásico de esta entidad. En todos los casos se utilizaron esteroides como primera línea de tratamiento, con los que sólo se observó control de las manifestaciones en uno, por lo que el resto de los pacientes requirió inmunomoduladores de segunda línea. Todos los pacientes recibieron metotrexato como tratamiento inmunomodulador para evitar recaídas y la evolución fue a la mejoría en todos ellos. Conclusiones En nuestra serie de pacientes con encefalitis por anticuerpos contra el receptor de NMDA, ninguno se asoció a tumores. Todos los casos recibieron metotrexato por lo menos durante un año, no observamos eventos adversos clínicos ni por laboratorio, ni hubo secuelas neurológicas ni recaídas durante el tratamiento. Aunque es una serie pequeña y es deseable incrementar el número y tiempo de evolución, consideramos el metotrexato una excelente alternativa como tratamiento inmunomodulador para esta patología. PMID:24150952

Confrontando teorías físicas con la Cosmología

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vucetich, H.

Hay numerosas teorías físicas que no pueden contrastarse con el experimento en laboratorio y eso las hace poco interesantes como descripción de la naturaleza. Sin embargo, algunas de estas teorías tienen consecuencias cosmológicas observables y se abre la posibilidad de contrastación a través de la observación. Se discuten las observaciones capaces de poner a prueba tales teorías y se examinan ejemplos de teorías limitadas por la observación.

X-Ray Continua of Broad Absorption Line Quasars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mathur, S.

1999-01-01

The targets for this program, PG1416-129 and LBQS 2212-1759 were known to be Broad Absorption Line Quasars (BALQSOs). BALQSOs are highly absorbed in soft X-rays. Good high energy response of Rossi-XTE made them ideal targets for observation. We observed LBQS 2212-1759 with PCA. We have now analyzed the data and found that the source was not detected. Since our target was expected to be faint, reliable estimate of background was very important. With the release of new FTOOLS (version 4.1) we were able to do so. We also analyzed a well known bright object and verified our results with the published data. This gave us confidence in the non-detection of our target LBQS 2212-1759. We are currently investigating the implications of this non-detection. Due to some scheduling problems, our second target PG1416-129 was not observed in A01. It was observed on 06/26/98. This target was detected with RXTE. We are now working on the spectral analysis with XSPEC.

Deformation in Metallic Glass: Connecting Atoms to Continua

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hinkle, Adam R.; Falk, Michael L.; Rycroft, Chris H.; Shields, Michael D.

Metallic glasses like other amorphous solids experience strain localization as the primary mode of failure. However, the development of continuum constitutive laws which provide a quantitative description of disorder and mechanical deformation remains an open challenge. Recent progress has shown the necessity of accurately capturing fluctuations in material structure, in particular the statistical changes in potential energy of the atomic constituents during the non-equilibrium process of applied shear. Here we directly cross-compare molecular dynamics shear simulations of a ZrCu glass with continuum shear transformation zone (STZ) theory representations. We present preliminary results for a methodology to coarse-grain detailed molecular dynamics data with the goal of initializing a continuum representation in the STZ theory. NSF Grants Awards 1107838, 1408685, and 0801471.

Trajectories of Youthful Antisocial Behavior: Categories or Continua?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walters, Glenn D.; Ruscio, John

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether qualitatively distinct trajectories of antisocial behavior could be identified in 1,708 children (843 boys, 865 girls) from the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth-Child Data (NLSY-C). Repeated ratings were made on the Behavior Problems Index (BPI: Peterson and Zill "Journal of Marriage and…

Hable con Ella (Talk to Her) through the lens of gender.

PubMed

Yanof, Judith A

2008-04-01

In the 2002 film Hable con Ella (Talk to Her), Spanish writer-director Pedro Almodóvar plays with the ambiguity of gender, transcending conventional assumptions about "masculinity" and "femininity." Each of the four main characters holds complex, varied, and, in some cases, gender-bending gender identifications. The theme of gender plasticity is a prominent motif in this film. However, underlying the narrative, there is also a perverse subtext that relies on rigidly binary gender stereotypes to define relationships between men and women. Both these views of gender which operate dialectically, create a complex tapestry through which Almodóvar explores his characters' problems in attaining intimacy.

The Relationship between Chemistry Self-Efficacy of South African First Year University Students and Their Academic Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ramnarain, Umesh; Ramaila, Sam

2018-01-01

This study investigated the self-efficacy of first-year Chemistry students at a South African university. The research involved a quantitative survey of 333 students using the College Chemistry Self-Efficacy Scale (CCSS) developed by Uzuntiryaki and Capa Aydin (2009). Descriptive statistics on data for the CCSS scales suggested that students have…

Fairfax County and the Commonwealth of Virginia Public Safety and Transportation Operations Center : concept of cooperation (ConCoop)

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2005-01-01

The Public Safety and Transportation Operations Centers (PSTOCs) Concept of Cooperation (ConCoop) enables partner agencies to lay out and reach consensus on: : their intentions in co-locating; : joint functions and systems needed to mee...

To Bind or Not To Bind: Pros & Cons of Maintaining Paper Periodicals in the Library's Collection.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, Iris W.

1999-01-01

Explores controversial questions related to libraries' decision-making on paper journals and electronic journals. Notes that the critical mass of scholarly publishing is still in print. Discusses benefits and drawbacks of electronic journals and paper journals. Presents comments on the pros and cons to binding paper periodicals gathered from an…

Control of flexible beams using a free-free active truss

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clark, W. W.; Kimiavi, B.; Robertshaw, H. H.

1989-01-01

An analytical and experimental study involving controlling flexible beams using a free-free active truss is presented. This work extends previous work in controlling flexible continua with active trusses which were configured with fixed-free boundary conditions. The following describes the Lagrangian approach used to derive the equations of motion for the active truss and the beams attached to it. A partial-state feedback control law is derived for this system based on a full-state feedback Linear Quadratic Regulator method. The analytical model is examined via numerical simulations and the results are compared to a similar experimental apparatus described herein. The results show that control of a flexible continua is possible with a free-free active truss.

Pros and Cons of the Acceleration Scheme (NF-IDS)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bogacz, Alex; Bogacz, Slawomir

The overall goal of the acceleration systems: large acceptance acceleration to 25 GeV and beam shaping can be accomplished by various fixed field accelerators at different stages. They involve three superconducting linacs: a single pass linear Pre-accelerator followed by a pair of multi-pass Recirculating Linear Accelerators (RLA) and finally a nonâ scaling FFAG ring. The present baseline acceleration scenario has been optimized to take maximum advantage of appropriate acceleration scheme at a given stage. Pros and cons of various stages are discussed here in detail. The solenoid based Pre-accelerator offers very large acceptance and facilitates correction of energy gain acrossmore » the bunch and significant longitudinal compression trough induced synchrotron motion. However, far off-crest acceleration reduces the effective acceleration gradient and adds complexity through the requirement of individual RF phase control for each cavity. Close proximity of strong solenoids and superc« less

Pros and cons of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI)

PubMed Central

Terré, Juan A.; George, Isaac

2017-01-01

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) or replacement (TAVR) was recently approved by the FDA for intermediate risk patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS). This technique was already worldwide adopted for inoperable and high-risk patients. Improved device technology, imaging analysis and operator expertise has reduced the initial worrisome higher complications rate associated with TAVR, making it comparable to surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR). However, many answers need to be addressed before adoption in lower risk patients. This paper highlights the pros and cons of TAVI based mostly on randomized clinical trials involving the two device platforms approved in the United States. We focused our analysis on metrics that will play a key role in expanding TAVR indication in healthier individuals. We review the significance and gave a perspective on paravalvular leak (PVL), valve performance, valve durability, leaflet thrombosis, stroke and pacemaker requirement. PMID:29062739

Pulsation, Mass Loss and the Upper Mass Limit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klapp, J.; Corona-Galindo, M. G.

1990-11-01

RESUMEN. La existencia de estrellas con masas en exceso de 100 M0 ha sido cuestionada por mucho tiempo. Lfmites superiores para la masa de 100 M0 han sido obtenidos de teorfas de pulsaci6n y formaci6n estelar. En este trabajo nosotros primero investigamos la estabilidad radial de estrellas masivas utilizando la aproximaci6n clasica cuasiadiabatica de Ledoux, la aproximaci6n cuasiadiabatica de Castor y un calculo completamente no-adiabatico. Hemos encontrado que los tres metodos de calculo dan resultados similares siempre y cuando una pequefia regi6n de las capas externas de la estrella sea despreciada para la aproximaci6n clasica. La masa crftica para estabilidad de estrellas masivas ha sido encontrada en acuerdo a trabajos anteriores. Explicamos Ia discrepancia entre este y trabajos anteriores por uno de los autores. Discunmos calculos no-lineales y perdida de masa con respecto a) lfmite superior de masa. The existence of stars with masses in excess of 100 M0 has been questioned for a very long time. Upper mass limits of 100 Me have been obtained from pulsation and star formation theories. In this work we first investigate the radial stability of massive stars using the classical Ledoux's quasiadiabatic approximation. the Castor quasiadiabatic approximation and a fully nonadiabatic calculation. We have found that the three methods of calculation give similar results provided that a small region in outer layers of the star be neglected for the classical approximation. The critical mass for stability of massive stars is found to be in agreement with previous work. We explain the reason for the discrepancy between this and previous work by one of the authors. We discuss non-linear calculations and mass loss with regard to the upper mass limit. Key words: STARS-MASS FUNCTION - STARS-MASS LOSS - STARS-PULSATION

On deformation of complex continuum immersed in a plane space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kovalev, V. A.; Murashkin, E. V.; Radayev, Y. N.

2018-05-01

The present paper is devoted to mathematical modelling of complex continua deformations considered as immersed in an external plane space. The complex continuum is defined as a differential manifold supplied with metrics induced by the external space. A systematic derivation of strain tensors by notion of isometric immersion of the complex continuum into a plane space of a higher dimension is proposed. Problem of establishing complete systems of irreducible objective strain and extrastrain tensors for complex continuum immersed in an external plane space is resolved. The solution to the problem is obtained by methods of the field theory and the theory of rational algebraic invariants. Strain tensors of the complex continuum are derived as irreducible algebraic invariants of contravariant vectors of the external space emerging as functional arguments in the complex continuum action density. Present analysis is restricted to rational algebraic invariants. Completeness of the considered systems of rational algebraic invariants is established for micropolar elastic continua. Rational syzygies for non-quadratic invariants are discussed. Objective strain tensors (indifferent to frame rotations in the external plane space) for micropolar continuum are alternatively obtained by properly combining multipliers of polar decompositions of deformation and extra-deformation gradients. The latter is realized only for continua immersed in a plane space of the equal mathematical dimension.

Pros and cons of healthcare information technology implementation: the pros win.

PubMed

Maffei, Roxana

2006-01-01

Countless studies and investigations have been performed siding either for or against the implementation of technology in the healthcare setting. This article presents both sides of this debate, with an obvious conclusion that the pros of this debate win. The practice of information technology in the medical domain lags behind its knowledge and discovery by at least 7 years. The key to closing this gap is to show, through various studies, how information technology systems provide decision support to users at the point in time when decisions are needed. What the reader will obtain from this article is that the pros for information technology implementation in healthcare settings weigh much more and have a greater effect than the cons.

The ConNECT Framework: a model for advancing behavioral medicine science and practice to foster health equity

PubMed Central

Alcaraz, Kassandra I.; Sly, Jamilia; Ashing, Kimlin; Fleisher, Linda; Gil-Rivas, Virginia; Ford, Sabrina; Yi, Jean C.; Lu, Qian; Meade, Cathy D.; Menon, Usha; Gwede, Clement K.

2017-01-01

Health disparities persist despite ongoing efforts. Given the United States’ rapidly changing demography and socio-cultural diversity, a paradigm shift in behavioral medicine is needed to advance research and interventions focused on health equity. This paper introduces the Con-NECT Framework as a model to link the sciences of behavioral medicine and health equity with the goal of achieving equitable health and outcomes in the twenty-first century. We first evaluate the state of health equity efforts in behavioral medicine science and identify key opportunities to advance the field. We then discuss and present actionable recommendations related to ConNECT’s five broad and synergistic principles: (1) Integrating Context; (2) Fostering a Norm of Inclusion; (3) Ensuring Equitable Diffusion of Innovations; (4) Harnessing Communication Technology; and (5) Prioritizing Specialized Training. The framework holds significant promise for furthering health equity and ushering in a new and refreshing era of behavioral medicine science and practice. PMID:27509892

The ConNECT Framework: a model for advancing behavioral medicine science and practice to foster health equity.

PubMed

Alcaraz, Kassandra I; Sly, Jamilia; Ashing, Kimlin; Fleisher, Linda; Gil-Rivas, Virginia; Ford, Sabrina; Yi, Jean C; Lu, Qian; Meade, Cathy D; Menon, Usha; Gwede, Clement K

2017-02-01

Health disparities persist despite ongoing efforts. Given the United States' rapidly changing demography and socio-cultural diversity, a paradigm shift in behavioral medicine is needed to advance research and interventions focused on health equity. This paper introduces the ConNECT Framework as a model to link the sciences of behavioral medicine and health equity with the goal of achieving equitable health and outcomes in the twenty-first century. We first evaluate the state of health equity efforts in behavioral medicine science and identify key opportunities to advance the field. We then discuss and present actionable recommendations related to ConNECT's five broad and synergistic principles: (1) Integrating Context; (2) Fostering a Norm of Inclusion; (3) Ensuring Equitable Diffusion of Innovations; (4) Harnessing Communication Technology; and (5) Prioritizing Specialized Training. The framework holds significant promise for furthering health equity and ushering in a new and refreshing era of behavioral medicine science and practice.

The Protective Effect of Intrasplenic Transplantation of Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4 Gene-Modified Fetal Hepatocytes on ConA-Induced Hepatitis in Mice

PubMed Central

Xu, Chenhuai; Hong, Bo; Xu, Wanhong; Shen, Ling; Jin, Changzhong; Wu, Zhigang; Tong, Xiangmin; Yao, Hangping

2013-01-01

Background Concanavalin A (ConA)-induced hepatitis is an experimental murine model mirroring the pathology of human autoimmune hepatitis. Aim To investigate the effects of intrasplenically transplanted fetal hepatocytes (BNL.CL2) transfected with recombinant adenovirus vector expressing the IL-18 binding protein (IL-18BP) and IL-4 fusion protein on ConA-induced hepatitis in mice. Methods Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4 was used to infect BNL.CL2 cells. IL-4 and IL-18BP fusion protein expression were detected by ELISA and Western blotting. BNL.CL2 cells infected with Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4 were intrasplenically transplanted into mice. After 10 days, mice were injected with ConA (15 mg/kg), and sacrificed 18 hours later. Liver injury was assessed by serum transaminase and liver histology. TNF-α, IL-18, IL-4, IL-10, IL-12p70 and monocyte-chemoattracting protein (MCP)-1 levels in serum and liver homogenates were detected by ELISA. Signaling molecules in liver homogenates were analyzed by Western blotting. Results Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4 effectively expressed the IL-18BP/IL-4 fusion protein for more than 14 days in BNL.CL12 cells. Treatment of mice with Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4-BNL.CL2 before ConA injection significantly reduced the elevated plasma levels of transaminases compared with ConA control groups. TNF-α, IL-18, IL-12p70 and MCP-1 levels in serum and liver homogenates from mice transplanted with Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4-BNL.CL2 were lower and IL-4 and IL-10 levels were higher than control groups. Phosphorylation levels of NF-κB p65, AKT, p38 and JNK1/2 in liver homogenates were markedly suppressed by Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4. Conclusions Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4 was effectively transfected into mouse BNL.CL2 cells. Intrasplenic transplantation of Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4-BNL.CL12 cells alleviated the severity of inflammation in ConA-induced experimental hepatitis and provides a useful basis for the targeted gene therapy of liver disease. PMID:23516562

The protective effect of intrasplenic transplantation of Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4 gene-modified fetal hepatocytes on ConA-induced hepatitis in mice.

PubMed

Shao, Xueting; Qian, Yun; Xu, Chenhuai; Hong, Bo; Xu, Wanhong; Shen, Ling; Jin, Changzhong; Wu, Zhigang; Tong, Xiangmin; Yao, Hangping

2013-01-01

Concanavalin A (ConA)-induced hepatitis is an experimental murine model mirroring the pathology of human autoimmune hepatitis. To investigate the effects of intrasplenically transplanted fetal hepatocytes (BNL.CL2) transfected with recombinant adenovirus vector expressing the IL-18 binding protein (IL-18BP) and IL-4 fusion protein on ConA-induced hepatitis in mice. Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4 was used to infect BNL.CL2 cells. IL-4 and IL-18BP fusion protein expression were detected by ELISA and Western blotting. BNL.CL2 cells infected with Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4 were intrasplenically transplanted into mice. After 10 days, mice were injected with ConA (15 mg/kg), and sacrificed 18 hours later. Liver injury was assessed by serum transaminase and liver histology. TNF-α, IL-18, IL-4, IL-10, IL-12p70 and monocyte-chemoattracting protein (MCP)-1 levels in serum and liver homogenates were detected by ELISA. Signaling molecules in liver homogenates were analyzed by Western blotting. Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4 effectively expressed the IL-18BP/IL-4 fusion protein for more than 14 days in BNL.CL12 cells. Treatment of mice with Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4-BNL.CL2 before ConA injection significantly reduced the elevated plasma levels of transaminases compared with ConA control groups. TNF-α, IL-18, IL-12p70 and MCP-1 levels in serum and liver homogenates from mice transplanted with Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4-BNL.CL2 were lower and IL-4 and IL-10 levels were higher than control groups. Phosphorylation levels of NF-κB p65, AKT, p38 and JNK1/2 in liver homogenates were markedly suppressed by Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4. Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4 was effectively transfected into mouse BNL.CL2 cells. Intrasplenic transplantation of Ad-IL-18BP/IL-4-BNL.CL12 cells alleviated the severity of inflammation in ConA-induced experimental hepatitis and provides a useful basis for the targeted gene therapy of liver disease.

Nanoparticulas basadas en complejos de Fe(II) con transicion de espin: sintesis, caracterizacion y aplicaciones en electronica molecular

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Monrabal Capilla, Maria

Esta tesis doctoral esta organizada en 5 capitulos y esta destinada al estudio de sistemas de Fe (II) que presentan el fenomeno de la transicion de espin a escala nanometrica. El capitulo 1 contiene una introduccion general sobre materiales moleculares multifuncionales, destacando aquellos ejemplos mas importantes. Por otro lado, se explicara el fenomeno de la transicion de espin, tratando aspectos conceptuales, los antecedentes mas importantes y la situacion actual. En el capitulo 2 se describen los diferentes procesos existentes para la obtencion de diferentes tipos de nanoparticulas. Ademas, se presenta la sintesis y caracterizacion de nanoparticulas del polimero de coordinacion unidimensional [Fe(Htrz)2(trz)]BF4, obtenidas mediante el metodo de micelas inversas. Estas nanoparticulas, con una estrecha distribucion de tamanos centrada alrededor de los 11 nm, presentan una transicion de espin muy abrupta, con un ancho ciclo de histeresis termica de unos 40K. En el capitulo 3 se describe el proceso de modificacion del tamano de las nanoparticulas descritas en el capitulo anterior, llevado a cabo variando la proporcion de surfactante/H2O en el medio. Ademas, con el objetivo de modificar las propiedades magneticas de las nanoparticulas obtenidas en el capitulo 2, se lleva a cabo la sintesis de nanoparticulas de polimeros de la misma familia del [Fe(Htrz)2(trz)]BF4. En concreto se sintetizaron 3 nuevos tipos de nanoparticulas basadas en el polimero [Fe(Htrz)1-x(NH2trz)x](ClO4)2, siendo x = 0.05, 0.15 y 0.3, en cada caso. Estas nanoparticulas siguen presentando una estrecha distribucion de tamanos y una transicion de espin muy abrupta y con un ancho ciclo de histeresis. Ademas, se observa que este ciclo se desplaza a temperaturas mas proximas a la temperatura ambiente a medida que se aumenta el porcentaje de 4-amino-1, 2, 4- triazol en la muestra. Pero al mismo tiempo se produce una disminucion de la anchura de este ciclo. Por ultimo, en este capitulo se presenta la

Establishing confidence in the output of qualitative research synthesis: the ConQual approach.

PubMed

Munn, Zachary; Porritt, Kylie; Lockwood, Craig; Aromataris, Edoardo; Pearson, Alan

2014-09-20

The importance of findings derived from syntheses of qualitative research has been increasingly acknowledged. Findings that arise from qualitative syntheses inform questions of practice and policy in their own right and are commonly used to complement findings from quantitative research syntheses. The GRADE approach has been widely adopted by international organisations to rate the quality and confidence of the findings of quantitative systematic reviews. To date, there has been no widely accepted corresponding approach to assist health care professionals and policy makers in establishing confidence in the synthesised findings of qualitative systematic reviews. A methodological group was formed develop a process to assess the confidence in synthesised qualitative research findings and develop a Summary of Findings tables for meta-aggregative qualitative systematic reviews. Dependability and credibility are two elements considered by the methodological group to influence the confidence of qualitative synthesised findings. A set of critical appraisal questions are proposed to establish dependability, whilst credibility can be ranked according to the goodness of fit between the author's interpretation and the original data. By following the processes outlined in this article, an overall ranking can be assigned to rate the confidence of synthesised qualitative findings, a system we have labelled ConQual. The development and use of the ConQual approach will assist users of qualitative systematic reviews to establish confidence in the evidence produced in these types of reviews and can serve as a practical tool to assist in decision making.

Chronic Daily Headaches

MedlinePlus

... headache New daily persistent headache Hemicrania continua Chronic migraine This type typically occurs in people with a history of episodic migraines. Chronic migraines tend to: Affect one side or ...

Conflict and Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific Region: A Strategic Net Assessment

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-01-01

in particular—succeeded in eroding the government’s regulatory capa- bilities in favor of a financial environment that was more laissez - faire but less...largely unpredictable or unknowable factors (such as leadership personalities and political calculations, humanitarian disasters, and internal...from historical memories and leadership outlooks to structural economic and demo- graphic factors. Significantly, the policy positions and actions

Radiative property data for Venusian entry: A compendium

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, J. J.; Boughner, R. E.; Haggard, K. V.; Nealy, J. E.; Schryer, D. R.; Zoby, E. V.

1974-01-01

A compilation of experimental and calculated data on the radiative properties of species important in Venusian entry is presented. Molecular band systems, atomic lines, free-bound continua, and free-free continua are considered for the principal radiating species of shock-heated carbon dioxide. Data pertinent to the species in the ablation layer are included. The Venus atmosphere so closely approximates pure carbon dioxide (CO2) that the inviscid layer radiation is due almost entirely to thermally excited CO2. Data are included on the violet band system of the cyanogen radical CN. Recommendations are made as to best property values for radiative heating calculations. A review of the basic equations and the relationships of the various emission-absorption gas properties is included.

Does the Sun Have a Full-Time Chromosphere?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kalkofen, Wolfgang; Ulmschneider, Peter; Avrett, Eugene H.

1999-08-01

The successful modeling of the dynamics of H2v bright points in the nonmagnetic chromosphere by Carlsson & Stein gave as a by-product a part-time chromosphere lacking the persistent outward temperature increase of time-average empirical models, which is needed to explain observations of UV emission lines and continua. We discuss the failure of the dynamical model to account for most of the observed chromospheric emission, arguing that their model uses only about 1% of the acoustic energy supplied to the medium. Chromospheric heating requires an additional source of energy in the form of acoustic waves of short period (P<2 minutes), which form shocks and produce the persistent outward temperature increase that can account for the UV emission lines and continua.

Soy-Based Therapeutic Baby Formulas: Testable Hypotheses Regarding the Pros and Cons.

PubMed

Westmark, Cara J

2016-01-01

Soy-based infant formulas have been consumed in the United States since 1909, and currently constitute a significant portion of the infant formula market. There are efforts underway to generate genetically modified soybeans that produce therapeutic agents of interest with the intent to deliver those agents in a soy-based infant formula platform. The threefold purpose of this review article is to first discuss the pros and cons of soy-based infant formulas, then present testable hypotheses to discern the suitability of a soy platform for drug delivery in babies, and finally start a discussion to inform public policy on this important area of infant nutrition.

Soy-Based Therapeutic Baby Formulas: Testable Hypotheses Regarding the Pros and Cons

PubMed Central

Westmark, Cara J.

2017-01-01

Soy-based infant formulas have been consumed in the United States since 1909, and currently constitute a significant portion of the infant formula market. There are efforts underway to generate genetically modified soybeans that produce therapeutic agents of interest with the intent to deliver those agents in a soy-based infant formula platform. The threefold purpose of this review article is to first discuss the pros and cons of soy-based infant formulas, then present testable hypotheses to discern the suitability of a soy platform for drug delivery in babies, and finally start a discussion to inform public policy on this important area of infant nutrition. PMID:28149839

CHILES Con Pol: Probing galaxy evolution, the dark Universe, and cosmic magnetism with a deep 1000 hour Jansky VLA survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hales, Christopher A.; Chiles Con Pol Collaboration

2014-04-01

We recently started a 1000 hour campaign to observe 0.2 square degrees of the COSMOS field in full polarization continuum at 1.4 GHz with the Jansky VLA, as part of a joint program with the spectral line COSMOS HI Large Extragalactic Survey (CHILES). When complete, we expect our CHILES Continuum Polarization (CHILES Con Pol) survey to reach an unprecedented SKA-era sensitivity of 0.7 uJy per 4 arcsecond FWHM beam. Here we present the key goals of CHILES Con Pol, which are to (i) produce a source catalog of legacy value to the astronomical community, (ii) measure differential source counts in total intensity, linear polarization, and circular polarization in order to constrain the redshift and luminosity distributions of source populations, (iii) perform a novel weak lensing study using radio polarization as an indicator of intrinsic alignment to better study dark energy and dark matter, and (iv) probe the unknown origin of cosmic magnetism by measuring the strength and structure of intergalactic magnetic fields in the filaments of large scale structure. The CHILES Con Pol source catalog will be a useful resource for upcoming wide-field surveys by acting as a training set for machine learning algorithms, which can then be used to identify and classify radio sources in regions lacking deep multiwavelength coverage.

Flight Deck Surface Trajectory-based Operations (STBO): Results of Piloted Simulations and Implications for Concepts of Operation (ConOps)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Foyle, David C.; Hooey, Becky L.; Bakowski, Deborah L.

2013-01-01

The results offour piloted medium-fidelity simulations investigating flight deck surface trajectory-based operations (STBO) will be reviewed. In these flight deck STBO simulations, commercial transport pilots were given taxi clearances with time and/or speed components and required to taxi to the departing runway or an intermediate traffic intersection. Under a variety of concept of operations (ConOps) and flight deck information conditions, pilots' ability to taxi in compliance with the required time of arrival (RTA) at the designated airport location was measured. ConOps and flight deck information conditions explored included: Availability of taxi clearance speed and elapsed time information; Intermediate RTAs at intermediate time constraint points (e.g., intersection traffic flow points); STBO taxi clearances via ATC voice speed commands or datal ink; and, Availability of flight deck display algorithms to reduce STBO RTA error. Flight Deck Implications. Pilot RTA conformance for STBO clearances, in the form of ATC taxi clearances with associated speed requirements, was found to be relatively poor, unless the pilot is required to follow a precise speed and acceleration/deceleration profile. However, following such a precise speed profile results in inordinate head-down tracking of current ground speed, leading to potentially unsafe operations. Mitigating these results, and providing good taxi RTA performance without the associated safety issues, is a flight deck avionics or electronic flight bag (EFB) solution. Such a solution enables pilots to meet the taxi route RTA without moment-by-moment tracking of ground speed. An avionics or EFB "error-nulling" algorithm allows the pilot to view the STBO information when the pilot determines it is necessary and when workload alloys, thus enabling the pilot to spread his/her attention appropriately and strategically on aircraft separation airport navigation, and the many other flight deck tasks concurrently required

Ontogeny of con A and PHA responses of chicken blood cells in MHC-compatible lines 6(3) and 7(2).

PubMed

Fredericksen, T L; Gilmour, D G

1983-06-01

The development of T cell responsiveness to Con A and PHA was examined in two MHC-compatible inbred chicken lines, RPRL 6(3) and 7(2), at ages 2 to 118 days posthatching. These lines are respectively resistant or susceptible to Marek's disease, a naturally occurring, virally induced T cell lymphoma. Between-line comparisons were made of optimal in vitro responses of diluted serum-free blood cells to each mitogen in two groups of chicks tested over ages 2 to 63 and 41 to 118 days. Over 2 to 63 days, Con A responses increased with age at the same rate in each line, but 7(2) responses averaged 2.3 times higher than 6(3). The increase with age was dependent on blood lymphocyte counts, which also increased with age in parallel in both lines. In contrast, the between-line difference in responsiveness was dependent on intrinsic reactivity of cells as well as lymphocyte counts. Covariance analysis was used to estimate that line 7(2) was 1.4 times higher than 6(3) in intrinsic cell reactivity, after accounting for the effect of the twofold higher blood lymphocyte counts in 7(2), and that this intrinsic difference contributed almost one-half the total difference. Over 41 to 118 days Con A responses no longer increased with age, although lymphocyte counts were still increasing, and the line difference (2.6 times) was now almost entirely contributed by a 2.3-fold superiority of 7(2) blood cells in intrinsic reactivity. The line difference in PHA responses was the reverse of the above in young chicks, with 6(3) responses greater than 7(2) in spite of lower lymphocyte counts. In additional chicks tested over 5 to 26 days, intrinsic reactivity of 6(3) cells to PHA averaged 4.5 times higher than 7(2). There was an abrupt decline in intrinsic reactivity of line 6(3) blood cells between 26 and 41 days to a level equal with 7(2). After this age, line 7(2) responses were 1.8 times greater than those of 6(3), and this difference was dependent solely on lymphocyte count differences. The

The InterCon network: a program for education partnerships at the University of Texas-Houston Health Science Center.

PubMed

Castro, G A; Bouldin, P A; Farver, D W; Maugans, L A; Sanders, L C; Booker, J

1999-04-01

The University of Texas-Houston Health Science Center (UT-Houston) has created programs and activities to address the state's pressing needs in minority education. Through InterCon, a network of universities and K-12 schools, UT-Houston works with its partners to identify competitive candidates in the current pool of minority graduates with bachelor's degrees and to help them--along with their non-minority counterparts--progress in their education. Another objective is to expand the pool of minorities underrepresented in medicine who complete high school and go to college. In 1994 UT-Houston and Prairie View A&M University created a collaborative venture to provide new educational opportunities at UT-Houston for Prairie View's predominantly African American students. A three-track summer internship program--a result of that collaboration--has since been expanded to partnerships with other minority and majority universities throughout Texas. In 1998, for example, 108 undergraduate students from these universities (and 40 other universities nationwide) participated in research, professional, and administrative summer internships at UT-Houston. The InterCon network also has partnerships with K-12 schools. UT-Houston works with inner-city, suburban, and rural school districts to develop education models that can be transferred throughout the state. The partnerships deal with helping to teach basic academic skills and computer literacy, improve science-related instruction, meet demands for health promotion materials and information for school-initiated health and wellness programs, and develop distance-learning paradigms. UT-Houston views InterCon as a program helping Texas institutions to engage and adapt to the socioeconomic factors, demographic changes, and technology explosion that currently challenge public education.

Support for the 21st-Century Reserve Force: Insights on Facilitating Successful Reintegration for Citizen Warriors and their Families

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-01-01

outside the continental United States PTSD post-traumatic stress disorder TAMP Transitional Assistance Management Program USERRA Uniformed Services...had a positive impact on family communication, 29 percent reported that it had a positive impact on resiliency and stress management skills, Table...the benefits of MMIC™ (Multimode Interviewing Capa- bility), which we used to field the web survey. Rena Rudavsky helped manage the survey

Categorical perception of facial expressions in individuals with non-clinical social anxiety.

PubMed

Qiu, Fanghui; Han, Mingxiu; Zhai, Yu; Jia, Shiwei

2018-03-01

According to the well-established categorical perception (CP) of facial expressions, we decode complicated expression signals into simplified categories to facilitate expression processing. Expression processing deficits have been widely described in social anxiety (SA), but it remains to be investigated whether CP of expressions are affected by SA. The present study examined whether individuals with SA had an interpretation bias when processing ambiguous expressions and whether the sensitivity of their CP was affected by their SA. Sixty-four participants (high SA, 30; low SA, 34) were selected from 658 undergraduates using the Interaction Anxiousness Scale (IAS). With the CP paradigm, specifically with the analysis method of the logistic function model, we derived the categorical boundaries (reflecting interpretation bias) and slopes (reflecting sensitivity of CP) of both high- and low-SA groups while recognizing angry-fearful, happy-angry, and happy-fearful expression continua. Based on a comparison of the categorical boundaries and slopes between the high- and low-SA groups, the results showed that the categorical boundaries between the two groups were not different for any of the three continua, which means that the SA does not affect the interpretation bias for any of the three continua. The slopes for the high-SA group were flatter than those for the low-SA group for both the angry-fearful and happy-angry continua, indicating that the high-SA group is insensitive to the subtle changes that occur from angry to fearful faces and from happy to angry faces. Since participants were selected from a sample of undergraduates based on their IAS scores, the results cannot be directly generalized to individuals with clinical SA disorder. The study indicates that SA does not affect interpretation biases in the processing of anger, fear, and happiness, but does modulate the sensitivity of individuals' CP when anger appears. High-SA individuals perceive angry expressions

Non-classical continuum theory for fluids incorporating internal and Cosserat rotation rates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Surana, K. S.; Joy, A. D.; Reddy, J. N.

2017-11-01

This paper presents a non-classical continuum theory for fluent continua in which the conservation and balance laws are derived by incorporating both internal rotation rates arising from the velocity gradient tensor and the rotation rates of the Cosserats. Specifically, in this non-classical continuum theory we have (1) the usual velocities (\\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{v }}}), (2) the three internal rotation rates ({}_i^t\\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{Θ }}}) about the axes of a fixed triad whose axes are parallel to the x-frame arising from the velocity gradient tensor (\\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{L }}}) that are completely defined by the antisymmetric part of the velocity gradient tensor, and (3) three additional rotation rates ({}_e^t\\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{Θ }}}) about the axes of the same triad located at each material point as additional three unknown degrees of freedom, referred to as Cosserat rotation rates. This gives rise to \\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{v }}} and {}_e^t\\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{Θ }}} as six degrees of freedom at a material point. The internal rotation rates {}_i^t\\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{Θ }}}, often neglected in classical fluid mechanics, exist in all deforming fluent continua as these are due to velocity gradient tensor. When the internal rotation rates {}_i^t\\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{Θ }}} are resisted by deforming fluent continua, conjugate moment tensor arises that together with {}_i^t\\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{Θ }}} may result in energy storage and/or dissipation, which must be considered in the conservation and balance laws. The Cosserat rotation rations {}_e^t\\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{Θ }}} also result in conjugate moment tensor that together with {}_e^t\\bar{ ±b {\\varvec{Θ }}} may also result in energy storage and/or dissipation. The main focus of this paper is a consistent derivation of conservation and balance laws for fluent continua that incorporate the aforementioned physics and associated constitutive theories for thermofluids using the conditions resulting from the entropy

"Estudio tribologico de aceros para moldes. Aplicacion al moldeo por inyeccion de polibutilentereftalato reforzado con fibra de vidrio"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martinez Mateo, Isidoro Jose

fabricacion del molde, tienen una gran influencia sobre su comportamiento en servicio a lo largo de la vida util del molde. En la primera parte del presente estudio, a partir de ensayos punzon sobre disco, se ha determinado la relacion entre la resistencia al desgaste y la dureza de aceros para moldes obtenidos a partir de bloques de gran espesor, estudiando los principales mecanismos de desgaste que tienen lugar. A continuacion, con el fin de determinar el dano superficial que sufren los aceros para moldes en condiciones reales de inyeccion, se han estudiado distintos tipos de aceros utilizados comercialmente en moldes de inyeccion de polimeros y materiales compuestos, seleccionando las condiciones de operacion para determinar la variacion de la rugosidad superficial del acero en funcion del material inyectado, del numero de operaciones sucesivas de inyeccion y de la orientacion del flujo de inyeccion, mediante tecnicas de perfilometria optica y microscopia electronica de barrido. Ademas del dano superficial sufrido por el acero con el numero de piezas inyectadas, tambien se ha determinado la evolucion de la rugosidad superficial de los materiales inyectados, polibutilentereftalato (PBT) puro y materiales compuestos derivados de PBT por adicion de un 20 o un 50% en peso de fibra de vidrio. En el caso de las piezas inyectadas, se ha caracterizado su microestructura en funcion del flujo de inyeccion y de la densidad de fibra, se han determinado sus propiedades termicas y dinamico-mecanicas, asi como la variacion de la rugosidad superficial de las piezas inyectadas con el numero de operaciones de inyeccion y con la geometria de las distintas secciones de las piezas. Finalmente, se ha evaluado la resistencia a la abrasion de PBT reforzado con un 50% de fibra, en funcion del numero de piezas inyectadas y de la direccion de rayado con respecto a la orientacion del flujo de inyeccion.

Laparoscopy for inflammatory bowel disease: pros and cons.

PubMed

Sardinha, T C; Wexner, S D

1998-04-01

The role of laparoscopic surgery in the treatment of colorectal malignancies is still under investigation, although it can offer significant benefits to many patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The aim of this study was to assess the pros and cons of the laparoscopic management of IBD. Data were obtained from a review of the literature published since 1992, when the first report of laparoscopic surgery for IBD appeared in print. From 1992 to 1997 several series of laparoscopic colorectal surgery for the management of IBD have been reported. A close evaluation of these studies revealed that laparoscopy in patients with terminal ileal Crohn's disease or anal Crohn's disease in need of fecal diversion offers significant advantages compared to laparotomy, including decreased pain, length of hospitalization, and disability. An additional bonus is improved cosmesis and a reduction in symptomatic postoperative adhesions. These many benefits can be achieved without any increase in morbidity or expense. Conversely, the use of this technology for restorative proctocolectomy in patients with mucosal ulcerative colitis is associated with a longer operative time and an increased incidence of both intra- and postoperative complications compared to laparotomy. Laparoscopic colorectal surgery can thus be advantageous for treatment of terminal ileal Crohn's disease but cannot be routinely justified for the treatment of mucosal ulcerative colitis.

A study of ten quasars with redshifts greater than four

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schneider, Donald P.; Schmidt, Maarten; Gunn, James E.

1989-01-01

Four quasars with redshifts greater than four were detected in a low-resolution CCD grism survey. CCD photometry and high S/N, moderate resolution spectra are presented for these quasars and the six other known quasars with redshifts above 4. The M sub B values of nine of the objects are between -27.5 and -25, with the tenth quasar having an M sub B value of -29. The emission lines and shapes of the continua of these ten quasars are similar to those of lower-redshift quasars. The results suggest that the C IV emission lines in high-redshift quasars may be weaker than those in lower-redshift quasars. The continua of all of the high-redshift quasars display strong depressions blueward of the Ly-alpha emission line.

Reprocessing of Soft X-ray Emission Lines in Black Hole Accretion Disks

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mauche, C W; Liedahl, D A; Mathiesen, B F

By means of a Monte Carlo code that accounts for Compton scattering and photoabsorption followed by recombination, we have investigated the radiation transfer of Ly{alpha}, He{alpha}, and recombination continua photons of H- and He-like C, N, O, and Ne produced in the photoionized atmosphere of a relativistic black hole accretion disk. We find that photoelectric opacity causes significant attenuation of photons with energies above the O VIII K-edge; that the conversion efficiencies of these photons into lower-energy lines and recombination continua are high; and that accounting for this reprocessing significantly (by factors of 21% to 105%) increases the flux ofmore » the Ly{alpha} and He{alpha} emission lines of H- and He-like C and O escaping the disk atmosphere.« less

Uso de Sustancias en Mujeres con Desventaja Social: Riesgo para el Contagio de VIH/SIDA

PubMed Central

Cianelli, R.; Ferrer, L; Bernales, M.; Miner, S.; Irarrázabal, L.; Molina, Y.

2009-01-01

Antecedentes La caracterización epidemiológica en Chile apunta a feminización, pauperización y heterosexualización de la epidemia del VIH, lo que implica un mayor riesgo para las mujeres en desventaja social. Si a esto se suma la utilización de sustancias, la vulnerabilidad de este grupo frente al VIH/SIDA aumenta. Objetivo Describir el uso de sustancias en mujeres con desventaja social e identificar factores de riesgo de contagio de VIH, asociados a este consumo. Material y Método 52 mujeres fueron entrevistadas como parte del proyecto “Testeando una intervención en prevención de VIH/SIDA en mujeres chilenas” GRANT # RO1 TW 006977. Se describen variables sociodemográficas y de consumo de sustancias a través de estadísticas descriptivas y se analiza la relación entre variables a través de pruebas de correlación. Resultados Los resultados indican un perfil sociodemográfico que sitúa a las mujeres en situación de vulnerabilidad frente al contagio de VIH/SIDA, con alto índice de uso de sustancias que acentúa el riesgo. Conclusiones Los hallazgos apuntan a la necesidad de considerar intervenciones que se enfoquen en la prevención de VIH en mujeres, abordando los riesgos asociados al consumo de sustancias. PMID:21197380

Investigation of transient dynamics of capillary assisted particle assembly yield

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Virganavičius, D.; Juodėnas, M.; Tamulevičius, T.; Schift, H.; Tamulevičius, S.

2017-06-01

In this paper, the transient behavior of the particle assembly yield dynamics when switching from low yield to high yield deposition at different velocity and thermal regimes is investigated. Capillary force assisted particle assembly (CAPA) using colloidal suspension of green fluorescent 270 nm diameter polystyrene beads was performed on patterned poly (dimethyl siloxane) substrates using a custom-built deposition setup. Two types of patterns with different trapping site densities were used to assess CAPA process dynamics and the influence of pattern density and geometry on the deposition yield transitions. Closely packed 300 nm diameter circular pits ordered in hexagonal arrangement with 300 nm pitch, and 2 × 2 mm2 square pits with 2 μm spacing were used. 2-D regular structures of the deposited particles were investigated by means of optical fluorescence and scanning electron microscopy. The fluorescence micrographs were analyzed using a custom algorithm enabling to identify particles and calculate efficiency of the deposition performed at different regimes. Relationship between the spatial distribution of particles in transition zone and ambient conditions was evaluated and quantified by approximation of the yield profile with a logistic function.

Genes for seed longevity in barley identified by genomic analysis on Near Isogenic Lines.

PubMed

Wozny, Dorothee; Kramer, Katharina; Finkemeier, Iris; Acosta, Ivan F; Koornneef, Maarten

2018-05-09

Genes controlling differences in seed longevity between two barley (Hordeum vulgare) accessions were identified by combining quantitative genetics 'omics' technologies in Near Isogenic Lines (NILs). The NILs were derived from crosses between the spring barley landraces L94 from Ethiopia and Cebada Capa from Argentina. A combined transcriptome and proteome analysis on mature, non-aged seeds of the two parental lines and the L94 NILs by RNA-sequencing and total seed proteomic profiling identified the UDP-glycosyltransferase MLOC_11661.1 as candidate gene for the QTL on 2H, and the NADP-dependent malic enzyme (NADP-ME) MLOC_35785.1 as possible downstream target gene. To validate these candidates, they were expressed in Arabidopsis under the control of constitutive promoters to attempt complementing the T-DNA knock-out line nadp-me1. Both the NADP-ME MLOC_35785.1 and the UDP-glycosyltransferase MLOC_11661.1 were able to rescue the nadp-me1 seed longevity phenotype. In the case of the UDP-glycosyltransferase, with high accumulation in NILs, only the coding sequence of Cebada Capa had a rescue effect. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Green's Function and Stress Fields in Stochastic Heterogeneous Continua

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Negi, Vineet

Many engineering materials used today are heterogenous in composition e.g. Composites - Polymer Matrix Composites, Metal Matrix Composites. Even, conventional engineering materials - metals, plastics, alloys etc. - may develop heterogeneities, like inclusions and residual stresses, during the manufacturing process. Moreover, these materials may also have intrinsic heterogeneities at a nanoscale in the form of grain boundaries in metals, crystallinity in amorphous polymers etc. While, the homogenized constitutive models for these materials may be satisfactory at a macroscale, recent studies of phenomena like fatigue failure, void nucleation, size-dependent brittle-ductile transition in polymeric nanofibers reveal a major play of micro/nanoscale physics in these phenomena. At this scale, heterogeneities in a material may no longer be ignored. Thus, this demands a study into the effects of various material heterogeneities. In this work, spatial heterogeneities in two material properties - elastic modulus and yield stress - have been investigated separately. The heterogeneity in the elastic modulus is studied in the context of Green's function. The Stochastic Finite Element method is adopted to get the mean statistics of the Green's function defined on a stochastic heterogeneous 2D infinite space. A study of the elastic-plastic transition in a domain having stochastic heterogenous yield stress was done using Mont-Carlo methods. The statistics for various stress and strain fields during the transition were obtained. Further, the effects of size of the domain and the strain-hardening rate on the stress fields during the heterogeneous elastic-plastic transition were investigated. Finally, a case is made for the role of the heterogenous elastic-plastic transition in damage nucleation and growth.

[Fever of unknown origin (febris continua e causa ignota)].

PubMed

Hansen, T H; Seidenfaden-Lassen, M

1992-02-10

Fever can be recognized as a higher set-point of the normal temperature regulation which is controlled by the center in the anterior part of hypothalamus. The change in this set-point is induced by interleukin-1 (IL-1) which is the common mediator of exogenic and endogenic pyrogenic factors. IL-1 is believed to act through an induction of a prostaglandin E cascade. The normal diurnal variation in temperature can often be recognized in infectious diseases but not always in non-infectious conditions. Four different fever curves can be defined but are without differential diagnostic importance, however, septic fever curves are more likely to occur in bacteremic patients. Comparison of the most important investigations about PUO since 1960 shows that the follow-up investigations revealed a high percentage of undiagnosed cases and that the mortality due to conditions related to PUO was 6-8%. Among the other investigations, a total of 83% were diagnosed: 23% had cancer, 33% had infections, 11% had collagenic diseases, 17% had other causes and 16% were undiagnosed. To establish the diagnosis in cases of PUO, liver biopsy can be of diagnostic value especially in patients with hepatomegaly. Abdominal CT-scan, ultrasonography and Gallium 67 scintigraphy are equal in sensitivity and specificity and can supplement each other with diagnostic information. Leucocyte scintigraphy can detect local inflammatory processes. Laparotomy or laparoscopy have high diagnostic values and can be considered in patients with signs of involvement of abdominal organs if no diagnosis has been established after noninvasive investigations. Lymphography gives only limited diagnostic information in cases of PUO.

The Intrinsic Far-infrared Continua of Type-1 Quasars

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lyu, Jianwei; Rieke, George H., E-mail: jianwei@email.arizona.edu

2017-06-01

The range of currently proposed active galactic nucleus (AGN) far-infrared templates results in uncertainties in retrieving host galaxy information from infrared observations and also undermines constraints on the outer part of the AGN torus. We discuss how to test and reconcile these templates. Physically, the fraction of the intrinsic AGN IR-processed luminosity compared with that from the central engine should be consistent with the dust-covering factor. In addition, besides reproducing the composite spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of quasars, a correct AGN IR template combined with an accurate library of star-forming galaxy templates should be able to reproduce the IR propertiesmore » of the host galaxies, such as the luminosity-dependent SED shapes and aromatic feature strengths. We develop tests based on these expected behaviors and find that the shape of the AGN intrinsic far-IR emission drops off rapidly starting at ∼20 μ m and can be matched by an Elvis et al.-like template with a minor modification. Despite the variations in the near- to mid-IR bands, AGNs in quasars and Seyfert galaxies have remarkably similar intrinsic far-IR SEDs at λ ∼ 20–100 μ m, suggesting a similar emission character of the outermost region of the circumnuclear torus. The variations of the intrinsic AGN IR SEDs among the type-1 quasar population can be explained by the changing relative strengths of four major dust components with similar characteristic temperatures, and there is evidence for compact AGN-heated dusty structures at sub-kiloparsec scales in the far-IR.« less

0.5-keV Soft X-ray attosecond continua

PubMed Central

Teichmann, S. M.; Silva, F.; Cousin, S. L.; Hemmer, M.; Biegert, J.

2016-01-01

Attosecond light pulses in the extreme ultraviolet have drawn a great deal of attention due to their ability to interrogate electronic dynamics in real time. Nevertheless, to follow charge dynamics and excitations in materials, element selectivity is a prerequisite, which demands such pulses in the soft X-ray region, above 200 eV, to simultaneously cover several fundamental absorption edges of the constituents of the materials. Here, we experimentally demonstrate the exploitation of a transient phase matching regime to generate carrier envelope controlled soft X-ray supercontinua with pulse energies up to 2.9±0.1 pJ and a flux of (7.3±0.1) × 107 photons per second across the entire water window and attosecond pulses with 13 as transform limit. Our results herald attosecond science at the fundamental absorption edges of matter by bridging the gap between ultrafast temporal resolution and element specific probing. PMID:27167525

Medición de placas astrométricas obtenidas con el telescopio Astrográfico de La Plata

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

di Sisto, R. P.; Orellana, R.

El Observatorio de La Plata cuenta con un gran número de placas de asteroides y cometas obtenidas con el telescopio astrográfico, que cubren gran parte del cielo del hemisferio sur. En 1996 se recopilaron y clasificaron 2187 placas (Beca para estudiantes de la AAA 1996) de las cuales 2031 corresponden a asteroides. Los datos de cada placa se volcaron en una base de datos creada para facilitar su manejo y preservar la información. A partir de este trabajo se revisaron los MPC electrónicos y se identificaron aquellas placas de asteroides pertenecientes a nuestra base de datos cuyos resultados no fueron publicados en los mismos. De un total de 400 placas que no aparecían publicadas sobresalía un paquete constituído por 40 placas obtenidas en 1977. Estas últimas fueron reducidas utilizando las posiciones y movimientos propios de las estrellas de referencia obtenidas del catálogo SAO 2000 dadas para el sistema FK5. Las posiciones calculadas fueron enviadas y publicadas en los Minor Planet Circulars (MPC).

Violación del Principio de Equivalencia en Teorías con Dilatón de Cuerdas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Landau, S. J.; Sisterna, P. D.; Vucetich, H.

Se estudian las violaciones al Principio de Equivalencia en Teorías con Dilatón de Cuerdas. En estos modelos, algunas de las constantes fundamentales dependen del espacio y del tiempo. Se muestra que los experimentos de caída libre no tienen aún precisión como para poner límites a los parámetros de la teoría.

USSR Local War Doctrine as Rationale for the Development of the Soviet CTOL Aircraft Carrier.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-06-01

Soviet Union. [Ref. 11: p. 252] The peacetime Red naval mission is not entirely one of blissful exchanges of pleasantries. Its utility during distant...expended toward gift presentation and the exchange of pleasantries. Such visits were designed as feelers to divine Russian acceptance by the developing...How- * ever, the presence of military forces displaying the capa- * bilities to intervene may have affected the perceptions of * Soviet clinets

Enhancing Military-Civilian Medical Synergies: The Role of Army Medical Practice in Civilian Facilities

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-01-01

medical service (such as obstetric delivery), or a specific technology (such as robotic surgery apparatus), is not available at the MTF. All 13...operating theaters and lack of robotic surgery capabilities at WBAMC. We found three relevant agreements in the MEDCOM central repository...civilian facilities offer was superior to what was available (and justifiable) at the MTF—notably, robotic surgery capa- bility. Not only do these

Presentación del estudio "Links" de hombres que tienes sexo con hombres en Buenos Aires, Argentina.

PubMed

Carballo-Diéguez, Alex; Avila, María M; Balán, Iván C; Marone, Rubén; Pando, María A; Barreda, Victoria

2011-03-01

Estudios previos en Buenos Aires reportaron altas prevalencias de HIV entre HSH, con valores que oscilan entre 9 y 14% durante casi 10 años de continuo testeo. El objetivo principal de este estudio fue la evaluación de factores relacionados al comportamiento de alto riesgo para transmisión del HIV entre HSH entre los que se incluyen el conocimiento y factores emocionales, socioculturales y ambientales. Por otro lado se realizó la estimación de prevalencia e incidencia de HIV utilizando RDS (Respondent Driven Sampling), así como la presencia de otras infecciones de transmisión sexual. Por último se evaluaron los hábitos de testeo para HIV indagando que factores facilitan o impiden su realización. El estudio constó de dos fases, en primer lugar una fase cualitativa y posteriormente una fase cuantitativa con una duración total de 4 años y medio. Durante la fase cualitativa se realizaron 44 entrevistas individuales en profundidad, 8 grupos focales y 10 observaciones etnográficas (hoteles, baños públicos ("teteras"), cines pornográficos, fiestas privadas, dark rooms y discotecas). Durante la fase cuantitativa del estudio se realizó el reclutamiento de 500 participantes que provinieron de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, así como del Gran Buenos Aires. El reclutamiento se comenzó con 16 participantes llamados semillas. Se realizó el diagnóstico de infección por HIV, hepatitis B y C (HBV y HCV), Treponema pallidum, Virus Papiloma Humano (HPV) y Chlamidias. La colaboración establecida entre los grupos de trabajo enfocados en áreas diversas posibilitó el abordaje conjunto de nuevas estrategias de investigación antes no exploradas en nuestro país. Los resultados más relevantes de esta investigación serán progresivamente publicados en sucesivos números de Actualizaciones en SIDA.

Identification of nucleotides in the 5'UTR and amino acids substitutions that are essential for the infectivity of 5'UTR-NS5A recombinant of hepatitis C virus genotype 1b (strain Con1).

PubMed

Li, Jinqian; Feng, Shengjun; Liu, Xi; Guo, Mingzhe; Chen, Mingxiao; Chen, Yiyi; Rong, Liang; Xia, Jinyu; Zhou, Yuanping; Zhong, Jin; Li, Yi-Ping

2018-05-01

Genotype 1b strain Con1 represents an important reference in the study of hepatitis C virus (HCV). Here, we aimed to develop an advanced infectious Con1 recombinant. We found that previously identified mutations A1226G/F1464L/A1672S/Q1773H permitted culture adaption of Con1 Core-NS5A (C-5A) recombinant containing 5'UTR and NS5B-3'UTR from JFH1 (genotype 2a), thus acquired additional mutations L725H/F886L/D2415G. C-5A containing all seven mutations (C-5A_7m) replicated efficiently in Huh7.5 and Huh7.5.1 cells and had an increased infectivity in SEC14L2-expressing Huh7.5.1 cells. Incorporation of Con1 NS5B was deleterious to C-5A_7m, however Con1 5'UTR was permissive but attenuated the virus. Nucleotides G1, A4, and G35 primarily accounted for the viral attenuation without affecting RNA translation. C-5A_7m was inhibited dose-dependently by simeprevir and daclatasvir, and substitutions at A4, A29, A34, and G35 conferred resistance to miR-122 antagonism. The novel Con1 5'UTR-NS5A recombinant, adaptive mutations, and critical nucleotides described here will facilitate future studies of HCV culture systems and virus-host interaction. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Preparation of stimulus responsive multiple emulsions by membrane emulsification using con a as biochemical sensor.

PubMed

Piacentini, Emma; Drioli, Enrico; Giorno, Lidietta

2011-04-01

In this work, a novel strategy for the controlled fabrication of biomolecular stimulus responsive water-in-oil-in-water (W/O/W) multiple emulsion using the membrane emulsification process was investigated. The emulsions interface was functionalized with a biomolecule able to function as a receptor for a target compound. The interaction between the biomolecular receptor and target stimulus activated the release of bioactive molecules contained within the structured emulsion. A glucose sensitive emulsion was investigated as a model study case. Concanavalin A (Con A) was used as the biomolecular glucose sensor. Various physicochemical strategies for stimulus responsive materials formulation are available in literature, but the preparation of biomolecule-responsive emulsions has been explored for the first time in this paper. The development of novel drug delivery systems requires advanced and highly precise techniques to obtain their particular properties and targeting requirements. The present study has proven the flexibility and suitability of membrane emulsification for the preparation of stable and functional multiple emulsions containing Con A as interfacial biomolecular receptor able to activate the release of a bioactive molecule as a consequence of interaction with the glucose target molecule. The influence of emulsion interfacial composition and membrane emulsification operating conditions on droplets stability and functional properties have been investigated. The release of the bioactive molecule as a function of glucose stimulus and its concentration has been demonstrated. Copyright © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Physical properties of the ionized gas and brightness distribution in NGC4736

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodrigues, I.; Dottori, H.; Cepa, J.; Vilchez, J.

1998-03-01

In this work we study the galaxy NGC4736, using narrow band interference filters imaging centered at the emission lines {Oii} {3727+3729}, Hβ, {Oiii} {5007}, Hα, {Sii} {6716+6730} and {Siii} {9070} and nearby continua. We have obtained sizes, positions, emission line absolute fluxes, and continua intensities for 90 Hii regions, mainly distributed in a ring-like structure of 3.2kpc in diameter. The Hα luminosities are in the range 37.3 <= log L_Hα <= 39.4 ergs(-1) . The Hii regions size distribution presents a characteristic diameter D_0 = 115pc and verifies the relation log (L_Hα ) ~D(3) . The temperature of the ionizing sources and the metallicity of the Hii regions are respectively in the ranges 3.410(4) <~T_⋆ <~ 4.010(4) K and 8.5 <~12 + log (O/H) <~9.3. The masses of the ionizing clusters are in the range 510(3) <~M_T/M_sun <~210(5) . The continua radial surface brightness distribution is better fitted by the superposition of a de Vaucouleurs', a thin and a thick exponential disk laws. The monochromatic colors show that outside the star forming ring the disk presents a younger stellar population than inside it. Tables 3 and 4 are only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html

Is ACPA positivity the main driver for rheumatoid arthritis treatment? Pros and cons.

PubMed

Alivernini, Stefano; Galeazzi, Mauro; Peleg, Hagit; Tolusso, Barbara; Gremese, Elisa; Ferraccioli, Gianfranco; Naparstek, Yaakov

2017-11-01

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune chronic disease that is characterized by the positivity of various antibodies, the most specific being autoantibodies against citrullinated antigens (ACPA). Despite ACPA are not arthritogenic by themselves, ACPA positive individuals have high risk of RA development and ACPA positivity is associated with severe erosive phenotype and higher mortality rate compared to seronegative RA. Moreover, ACPA status is associated with favorable response to biologics targeting pathways involving autoantibody producing cells as B lymphocytes. In the current review we have discussed the pros and cons on the available scientific evidences, regarding the diagnostic, prognostic and management implications of ACPAs in RA. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Gabapentina a dosis de 300 vs. 450 mg como premedicación anestésica para hipertensión reactiva, ansiedad y analgesia.

PubMed

Rascón-Martínez, Dulce María; Guzmán-Sánchez, Joaquín Antonio; Corral-Urdapilleta, Nora Paulina; Arguelles-Uribe, Gema Damaris; Velázquez-Loeza, Jazmín; Soto-Palma, Gustavo; Carrillo-Torres, Orlando

Observar el comportamiento de la gabapentina para aminorar la hipertensión reactiva secundaria a ansiedad y dolor en pacientes sometidos a cirugía oftálmica, así como el consumo de opiáceos entre los grupos. Ensayo clínico controlado aleatorizado y doble ciego que analizó a 125 pacientes divididos en tres grupos: grupo A, gabapentina 300 mg; grupo B, gabapentina 450 mg; grupo C, amaranto en grageas como control 2 horas antes del procedimiento quirúrgico. Se utilizó la prueba de ji al cuadrado para variables sociodemográficas y ANOVA de un factor para variables numéricas continuas. Se consideró como significativo un valor de p < 0.05 para un estudio de dos colas con un poder beta del 80%. La ansiedad y la analgesia transoperatoria y posoperatoria tuvieron diferencias significativas entre los grupos. Se encontró menor consumo de opiáceos en los grupos que usaron gabapentina. La gabapentina por vía oral, 300 o 450 mg, 2 horas antes de la cirugía, reduce el dolor, la ansiedad y el consumo de opiáceos durante el posoperatorio en pacientes sometidos a cirugía oftalmológica. Copyright: © 2018 SecretarÍa de Salud

What to consider when regulating electronic cigarettes: Pros, cons and unintended consequences.

PubMed

Caponnetto, Pasquale; Saitta, Daniela; Sweanor, David; Polosa, Riccardo

2015-06-01

Many public health experts, medical research societies, large health organizations and policy makers have expressed concerns about the increased popularity of electronic cigarettes and have pushed for more restrictive measures ranging from complete bans to tight regulations of these products either as medicines or as tobacco products. But these concerns have never been adequately qualified nor quantified. Without judicious assessment and thorough evaluation, regulations may have unintended consequences that can do more damage than good in public health terms. In this article, we will appraise the existing prominent regulatory frameworks for e-cigarettes, namely, general consumer product, medicinal product and tobacco product regulation, to highlight their pros and cons. Moreover, we provide concrete examples of the unintended consequences which may arise from inappropriate regulatory action. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The pros and cons about the digital recording of Intangible Cultural Heritage and some strategies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, H.

2015-08-01

Intangible Cultural Heritage (referred to as ICH), whose fundamental nature different from the tangible cultural heritage is "Intangible", and the related physical presence of the heritage is not the core content. Digital means have irreplaceable advantages in recording intangible and dynamic ICH resources, while it also needs flexible and rigorous recording means as a support, thus striving to maximize resources recording and protection. This article will focus on the pros and cons about the digital recording of ICH, and preliminarily discuss some strategies used in the process of recording.

Lesiones subcutáneas dolorosas en paciente con melanoma metastásico: un caso de paniculitis linfocítica asociado a vemurafenib.

PubMed

Benavente-Villegas, Felipe; Ferrando-Roca, Francisco; Dolz-Gaitón, Raquel; Royo-Peiró, María

2017-10-15

Vemurafenib ha probado ser una herramienta útil en el tratamiento de melanoma metastásico con mutación BRAF-V600E. Los efectos adversos incluyen artralgias, fatiga y toxicidad cutánea, siendo infrecuente la paniculitis. Presentamos el caso de una paciente de 43 años con melanoma metastásico que desarrolla lesiones subcutáneas dolorosas en miembros inferiores y superiores, asociadas a clínica sistémica después de 2 semanas de inicio de tratamiento con Vemurafenib + Cobimetinib. La histología demostró paniculitis linfocitaria septal y lobulillar. La paciente tuvo mala tolerancia al tratamiento anti diana a dosis plenas, requiriendo su ajuste, generando una corticodependencia para controlar sintomatología, y que finalmente obligó a la descontinuación de la terapia dirigida contra melanoma.  A la fecha, se han descrito 29 casos en la literatura de paniculitis asociada a vemurafenib, siendo la mayoría paniculitis neutrofílicas con adecuado control de sintomatología asociando antiinflamatorios no esteroidales y/o corticoides orales sin requerir en su mayoría modificación de la terapia contra melanoma; sin embargo hay que tener presente que pueden haber casos con mala evolución que obligan a la reducción de dosis de vemurafenib y descontinuar el tratamiento, como ha ocurrido en nuestro reporte.Vemurafenib has proven to be a useful tool in the treatment of metastatic melanoma with BRAF-V600E mutation. Adverse effects include arthralgia, fatigue, and skin toxicity; panniculitis is a rare complication. We present the case of a 43-year-old patient with metastatic melanoma who developed painful subcutaneous nodules of the lower and upper limbs and associated systemic clinical symptoms after 2 weeks of treatment with vemurafenib plus cobimetinib. Histology showed a septal and lobular lymphocytic panniculitis.The patient had poor tolerance of the full-dose treatment, requiring its adjustment. Systemic corticosteroids were required to control symptomatology

To share or not to share? Expected pros and cons of data sharing in radiological research.

PubMed

Sardanelli, Francesco; Alì, Marco; Hunink, Myriam G; Houssami, Nehmat; Sconfienza, Luca M; Di Leo, Giovanni

2018-06-01

The aims of this paper are to illustrate the trend towards data sharing, i.e. the regulated availability of the original patient-level data obtained during a study, and to discuss the expected advantages (pros) and disadvantages (cons) of data sharing in radiological research. Expected pros include the potential for verification of original results with alternative or supplementary analyses (including estimation of reproducibility), advancement of knowledge by providing new results by testing new hypotheses (not explored by the original authors) on pre-existing databases, larger scale analyses based on individual-patient data, enhanced multidisciplinary cooperation, reduced publication of false studies, improved clinical practice, and reduced cost and time for clinical research. Expected cons are outlined as the risk that the original authors could not exploit the entire potential of the data they obtained, possible failures in patients' privacy protection, technical barriers such as the lack of standard formats, and possible data misinterpretation. Finally, open issues regarding data ownership, the role of individual patients, advocacy groups and funding institutions in decision making about sharing of data and images are discussed. • Regulated availability of patient-level data of published clinical studies (data-sharing) is expected. • Expected benefits include verification/advancement of knowledge, reduced cost/time of research, clinical improvement. • Potential drawbacks include faults in patients' identity protection and data misinterpretation.

Pros and cons of vaccination against serogroup B meningococcal disease.

PubMed

Delgado Rodríguez, Miguel; Domínguez García, Ángela

2018-02-09

A vaccine has recently been approved in the EU against meningococcal serogroup B, the main cause of meningococcal disease. There is a fierce debate about the decision regarding a universal vaccination in infants older than 2 months, as recommended by the majority of scientific societies. In western Europe the only country to have included the universal vaccination is the United Kingdom, with a lower incidence of the disease than Ireland. Other countries have also adopted it, such as the Czech Republic, Cuba and certain regions of Italy. Numerous cost-effectiveness studies have been published regarding the vaccination with different assumptions, which have supported the decision not to implant the universal vaccination because it exceeds the will to pay for a health benefit. We discuss the pros and cons of the universal vaccination against meningococcal B, recommended by the Sociedad Española de Pediatría (Spanish Society of Paediatrics), which as yet has not been implemented. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Assessment of Response to Lithium Maintenance Treatment in Bipolar Disorder: A Consortium on Lithium Genetics (ConLiGen) Report

PubMed Central

Manchia, Mirko; Adli, Mazda; Akula, Nirmala; Ardau, Raffaella; Aubry, Jean-Michel; Backlund, Lena; Banzato, Claudio EM.; Baune, Bernhard T.; Bellivier, Frank; Bengesser, Susanne; Biernacka, Joanna M.; Brichant-Petitjean, Clara; Bui, Elise; Calkin, Cynthia V.; Cheng, Andrew Tai Ann; Chillotti, Caterina; Cichon, Sven; Clark, Scott; Czerski, Piotr M.; Dantas, Clarissa; Zompo, Maria Del; DePaulo, J. Raymond; Detera-Wadleigh, Sevilla D.; Etain, Bruno; Falkai, Peter; Frisén, Louise; Frye, Mark A.; Fullerton, Jan; Gard, Sébastien; Garnham, Julie; Goes, Fernando S.; Grof, Paul; Gruber, Oliver; Hashimoto, Ryota; Hauser, Joanna; Heilbronner, Urs; Hoban, Rebecca; Hou, Liping; Jamain, Stéphane; Kahn, Jean-Pierre; Kassem, Layla; Kato, Tadafumi; Kelsoe, John R.; Kittel-Schneider, Sarah; Kliwicki, Sebastian; Kuo, Po-Hsiu; Kusumi, Ichiro; Laje, Gonzalo; Lavebratt, Catharina; Leboyer, Marion; Leckband, Susan G.; López Jaramillo, Carlos A.; Maj, Mario; Malafosse, Alain; Martinsson, Lina; Masui, Takuya; Mitchell, Philip B.; Mondimore, Frank; Monteleone, Palmiero; Nallet, Audrey; Neuner, Maria; Novák, Tomás; O’Donovan, Claire; Ösby, Urban; Ozaki, Norio; Perlis, Roy H.; Pfennig, Andrea; Potash, James B.; Reich-Erkelenz, Daniela; Reif, Andreas; Reininghaus, Eva; Richardson, Sara; Rouleau, Guy A.; Rybakowski, Janusz K.; Schalling, Martin; Schofield, Peter R.; Schubert, Oliver K.; Schweizer, Barbara; Seemüller, Florian; Grigoroiu-Serbanescu, Maria; Severino, Giovanni; Seymour, Lisa R.; Slaney, Claire; Smoller, Jordan W.; Squassina, Alessio; Stamm, Thomas; Steele, Jo; Stopkova, Pavla; Tighe, Sarah K.; Tortorella, Alfonso; Turecki, Gustavo; Wray, Naomi R.; Wright, Adam; Zandi, Peter P.; Zilles, David; Bauer, Michael; Rietschel, Marcella; McMahon, Francis J.

2013-01-01

Objective The assessment of response to lithium maintenance treatment in bipolar disorder (BD) is complicated by variable length of treatment, unpredictable clinical course, and often inconsistent compliance. Prospective and retrospective methods of assessment of lithium response have been proposed in the literature. In this study we report the key phenotypic measures of the “Retrospective Criteria of Long-Term Treatment Response in Research Subjects with Bipolar Disorder” scale currently used in the Consortium on Lithium Genetics (ConLiGen) study. Materials and Methods Twenty-nine ConLiGen sites took part in a two-stage case-vignette rating procedure to examine inter-rater agreement [Kappa (κ)] and reliability [intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC)] of lithium response. Annotated first-round vignettes and rating guidelines were circulated to expert research clinicians for training purposes between the two stages. Further, we analyzed the distributional properties of the treatment response scores available for 1,308 patients using mixture modeling. Results Substantial and moderate agreement was shown across sites in the first and second sets of vignettes (κ = 0.66 and κ = 0.54, respectively), without significant improvement from training. However, definition of response using the A score as a quantitative trait and selecting cases with B criteria of 4 or less showed an improvement between the two stages (ICC1 = 0.71 and ICC2 = 0.75, respectively). Mixture modeling of score distribution indicated three subpopulations (full responders, partial responders, non responders). Conclusions We identified two definitions of lithium response, one dichotomous and the other continuous, with moderate to substantial inter-rater agreement and reliability. Accurate phenotypic measurement of lithium response is crucial for the ongoing ConLiGen pharmacogenomic study. PMID:23840348

Actitudes Éticas de los estudiantes y egresados en carrera de medicina con metodologías activas

PubMed Central

Novaes, Maria Rita Carvalho Garbi; Novaes, Luiz Carlos Garcez; Guilhem, Dirce; Stepke, Fernando Lolas; Silveira, Carla Cristina Costa; Komatsu, Ricardo Shoiti; Trindade, Eliane Mendonça Vilar; Guiotti, Murilo Galvão

2010-01-01

El presente estudio tiene por objeto desarrollar un diagnostico de la inserción integrada de la ética en la carrera de medicina brasileña con una metodología de aprendizaje basada en problemas y describir las percepciones de actitudes éticas de los estudiantes y egresados. El diseño metodológico es un estudio de caso, descriptivo y documental, con abordaje cualitativo y cuantitativo. La muestra de esta investigación ha sido constituida por 120 estudiantes y 40 egresados de dos promociones del Curso de Medicina de la ESCS. Este proyecto fue aprobado por el Comité de Ética en Investigación - SES/DF. Los estudiantes y egresados de la ESCS demostraron un buen manejo en el abordaje de los conflictos éticos y respeto a los pacientes. Sin embargo, el análisis de sensibilidad ética mostró una fragilidad en las percepciones y aptitudes inapropiadas de los estudiantes de la carrera de medicina, identificada básicamente en los años iniciales, que necesitan más discusiones sistematizadas sobre los aspectos éticos y bioéticos integrados a las actividades prácticas para estimular y fortalecer la reflexión ética de los estudiantes. PMID:20981242

In-Transit Visibility Systems for an Expeditionary Force

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-11-01

November–December 2015 Army Sustainment42 In September 2014, the outbreak of Ebola virus disease in West Africa overwhelmed the region’s...of system failures in theater, the MCB developed procedures to ensure that ITV was captured and maintained for all cargo entering Liberia . The...II during redeployment. All the systems were reimaged prior to arriving in Liberia and were capa- ble of operating alone or through a very small

Building Future Transatlantic Interoperability Around a Robust NATO Response Force

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-10-01

than already traveled . However, this accrued wealth of interoperable capa- bility may be at its apogee, soon to decline as the result of two looming...and Bydgo- szcz, Poland, as well as major national training centers such as the bilateral U.S.- Romanian Joint Task Force– East at Kogalniceanu...operations. Increase U.S. and Allied Exchange Students at National and NATO military schools. Austerity measures may eventually affect the investment

The Analysis of Soviet Military Manpower

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-12-01

and civilian populations and its consecutive results related to the preparedness to the conventio.:ial and nuclear wars. Ever existing images of...and of the branches of service. One direct result was the formation of a fifth service in 1959, the Strategic Rocket Forces. Ac the present time the...overall strategic nuclear capa- bilities perspective. Therefore, it is mentioned first iin Soviet references. The SRF was established as an independent

Neuropeptidomics of the Mosquito Aedes Aegypti

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-01-01

translational processing ( pyroglutamate formation) was detected for AST-C and CAPA-PVK-2. For the first time in insects, we succeeded in the direct...hormones, trace DNA sequences generated by TIGR and the Broad Institute were first searched by TBLASTN24 using amino acid sequences of candidate peptides...previously described.1 TBLASTN searches, using the amino acid sequences of putative Ae. aegypti neuropeptide and peptide hormone orthologs identified in

Selective Laser Sintering of Polycaprolactone Bone Tissue Engineering Scaffolds

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-01-01

of patients in need of organ transplants die while waiting for a suitable donor [I] and over 1.3 million surgical procedures are conducted every year...donor organs , risk of rejection, and potential disease transmission have led to the investigation for alternative methods of treatment. Tissue...CAPA 6501 (Solvay Caprolactones, Warrington, UK) was used in this study. It is a semicrystalline (56%) aliphatic thermoplastic having a melting point

For and from Cyberspace: Conceptualizing Cyber Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-12-01

intelligence. Cyber ISR, there- fore, “requires the development of algorithms and visualizations capa- bilities to make activities in the cyber domain... Pentagon , 19 January 2012), https://www.intelink.gov/inteldocs/action.php?kt_path_info=ktcore.actions.docu- ment.view&fDocumentId=1517681, defines...selected proxy servers, with successive levels of encryption and then de- cryption, before delivery to their final destination as plain text. W. Earl

Design and Development of Basic Physical Layer WiMAX Network Simulation Models

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-01

Wide Web . The third software version was developed during the period of 22 August to 4 November, 2008. The software version developed during the...researched on the Web . The mathematics of some fundamental concepts such as Fourier transforms, convolutional coding techniques were also reviewed...Mathworks Matlab users’ website. A simulation model was found, entitled Estudio y Simulacion de la capa Jisica de la norma 802.16 ( Sistema WiMAX) developed

Journal of Special Operations Medicine. Volume 9, Edition 4, Fall 2009

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-01

Other concepts to be reconsidered are the use of nerve blocks for extremity injuries, fracture care, procedures, and wound care. Fracture reduction and...balanced proteins, carbohydrates, and fats is justified. Several thousand calories per day di- vided into small feedings every four to six hours would be...confidence information. In non-emergent situa- tions, US can also provide previously unknown capa- bilities as well such as confirming fractures without X

DLA Energy Biofuel Feedstock Metrics Study

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-12-11

mission is to “provide the Depart- ment of Defense [DoD] and other government agencies with comprehensive ener- gy solutions in the most effective and...strategic imperative to consider energy security and climate change because of their potential effect on national security and mission readiness.8 For...mobility fuel costs have an adverse effect on military service programs and capa- bilities, particularly when combined with a tough appropriations

The National Shipbuilding Research Program, Proceedings of the REAPS Technical Symposium (2nd) held in Palm Beach Shores, Florida, on 24-25 Jun 1975: Full Proceedings

DTIC Science & Technology

1975-06-01

AUTOKON-71 System. Her major tasks include processing Analysis Requests, releasing new system versions, and coordinating program modifications. Some past...for deformed meshes; improvement of crane boom analysis test data and a post-pro- cessing program. I. BACKGROUND 1. What is the AUTOKON System n? a...updates to either enhance or correct the capa- bilities has been generated. Two major sources contribute these updates: the REAPS Analysis Request (AR

Control Demonstration of a Thin Deformable In-Plane Actuated Mirror

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-03-01

where a four-quadrant electrode grid sitting behind a pre-shaped membrane mirror uses electrostatic forces to deform the surface. Any manufacturing...to receive the Wavescope data due to its MATLAB and Simulink capa- bilities. The dSPACE computer system is stocked with a UART (Universal Asynchronous...cations,” SPIE Smart Structures and Materials Symposium, EAPAD Conference, Vol. 5051-45 (2003). 6. Bennet, H. E. and others, . “Development of

Toward Affordable Systems III: Portfolio Management for Army Engineering and Manufacturing Development Programs

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-02-01

a public service of the RAND Corporation. CHILDREN AND FAMILIES EDUCATION AND THE ARTS ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT HEALTH AND HEALTH CARE INFRASTRUCTURE...agencies use capability portfolio management to optimize capa- bility investments and minimize risk in meeting the DoD needs across the defense...broadly expose potential problem areas—that is, which requirements (or areas of demand) are at risk of not being met by that particular portfolio

Presentación del estudio “Links” de hombres que tienes sexo con hombres en Buenos Aires, Argentina

PubMed Central

Carballo-Diéguez, Alex; Ávila, María M; Balán, Iván C.; Marone, Rubén; Pando, María A.; Barreda, Victoria

2011-01-01

Resumen Estudios previos en Buenos Aires reportaron altas prevalencias de HIV entre HSH, con valores que oscilan entre 9 y 14% durante casi 10 años de continuo testeo. El objetivo principal de este estudio fue la evaluación de factores relacionados al comportamiento de alto riesgo para transmisión del HIV entre HSH entre los que se incluyen el conocimiento y factores emocionales, socioculturales y ambientales. Por otro lado se realizó la estimación de prevalencia e incidencia de HIV utilizando RDS (Respondent Driven Sampling), así como la presencia de otras infecciones de transmisión sexual. Por último se evaluaron los hábitos de testeo para HIV indagando que factores facilitan o impiden su realización. El estudio constó de dos fases, en primer lugar una fase cualitativa y posteriormente una fase cuantitativa con una duración total de 4 años y medio. Durante la fase cualitativa se realizaron 44 entrevistas individuales en profundidad, 8 grupos focales y 10 observaciones etnográficas (hoteles, baños públicos (“teteras”), cines pornográficos, fiestas privadas, dark rooms y discotecas). Durante la fase cuantitativa del estudio se realizó el reclutamiento de 500 participantes que provinieron de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, así como del Gran Buenos Aires. El reclutamiento se comenzó con 16 participantes llamados semillas. Se realizó el diagnóstico de infección por HIV, hepatitis B y C (HBV y HCV), Treponema pallidum, Virus Papiloma Humano (HPV) y Chlamidias. La colaboración establecida entre los grupos de trabajo enfocados en áreas diversas posibilitó el abordaje conjunto de nuevas estrategias de investigación antes no exploradas en nuestro país. Los resultados más relevantes de esta investigación serán progresivamente publicados en sucesivos números de Actualizaciones en SIDA. PMID:25264397

Predicting the continuum between corridors and barriers to animal movements using Step Selection Functions and Randomized Shortest Paths.

PubMed

Panzacchi, Manuela; Van Moorter, Bram; Strand, Olav; Saerens, Marco; Kivimäki, Ilkka; St Clair, Colleen C; Herfindal, Ivar; Boitani, Luigi

2016-01-01

The loss, fragmentation and degradation of habitat everywhere on Earth prompts increasing attention to identifying landscape features that support animal movement (corridors) or impedes it (barriers). Most algorithms used to predict corridors assume that animals move through preferred habitat either optimally (e.g. least cost path) or as random walkers (e.g. current models), but neither extreme is realistic. We propose that corridors and barriers are two sides of the same coin and that animals experience landscapes as spatiotemporally dynamic corridor-barrier continua connecting (separating) functional areas where individuals fulfil specific ecological processes. Based on this conceptual framework, we propose a novel methodological approach that uses high-resolution individual-based movement data to predict corridor-barrier continua with increased realism. Our approach consists of two innovations. First, we use step selection functions (SSF) to predict friction maps quantifying corridor-barrier continua for tactical steps between consecutive locations. Secondly, we introduce to movement ecology the randomized shortest path algorithm (RSP) which operates on friction maps to predict the corridor-barrier continuum for strategic movements between functional areas. By modulating the parameter Ѳ, which controls the trade-off between exploration and optimal exploitation of the environment, RSP bridges the gap between algorithms assuming optimal movements (when Ѳ approaches infinity, RSP is equivalent to LCP) or random walk (when Ѳ → 0, RSP → current models). Using this approach, we identify migration corridors for GPS-monitored wild reindeer (Rangifer t. tarandus) in Norway. We demonstrate that reindeer movement is best predicted by an intermediate value of Ѳ, indicative of a movement trade-off between optimization and exploration. Model calibration allows identification of a corridor-barrier continuum that closely fits empirical data and demonstrates that RSP

Overlap corrections for emissivity calculations of H2O-CO2-CO-N2 mixtures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alberti, Michael; Weber, Roman; Mancini, Marco

2018-01-01

Calculations of total gas emissivities of gas mixtures containing several radiatively active species require corrections for band overlapping. In this paper, we generate such overlap correction charts for H2O-CO2-N2, H2O-CO-N2, and CO2-CO-N2 mixtures. These charts are applicable in the 0.1-40 bar total pressure range and in the 500 K-2500 K temperature range. For H2O-CO2-N2 mixtures, differences between our charts and Hottel's graphs as well as models of Leckner and Modak are highlighted and analyzed.

Lesbian (in)visibility in Italian Renaissance culture: Diana and other cases of donna con donna.

PubMed

Simons, P

1994-01-01

Current conceptualizations of sexual identity in the West are not necessarily useful to an historian investigating "lesbianism" in the social history and visual representations of different periods. After an overview of Renaissance documents treating donna con donna relations which examines the potentially positive effects of condemnation and silence, the paper focuses on Diana, the goddess of chastity, who bathed with her nymphs as an exemplar of female bodies preserved for heterosexual, reproductive pleasures. Yet the self-sufficiency and bodily contact sometimes represented in images of this secluded all-female gathering might suggest "deviant" responses from their viewers.

Unschoolers of the World, Unwork! Grassroots Lessons and Strategies against 21st Century Capitalism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jandric, Petar; Taylor, Astra

2016-01-01

This conversation explores unschooling through theory and personal experience of Astra Taylor, who examines deschooling alongside the continua of Freedom/Oppression, Personal Control/Personal Autonomy, Solitude/Boredom, Privilege/Social Reproduction, Socialisation/Democracy. Taylor reveals complex relationships between the main strands of her…

Synthesis, growth, structural, spectral, thermal, chemical etching, linear and nonlinear optical and mechanical studies of an organic single crystal 4-chloro 4-nitrostilbene (CONS): a potential NLO material.

PubMed

Dinakaran, Paul M; Kalainathan, S

2013-07-01

4-Chloro 4-nitrostilbene (CONS) a new organic nonlinear optical material has been synthesized. Employing slow evaporation method, good optical quality single crystals (dimensions up to 6×2×3 mm(3)) have been grown using ethyl methyl ketone (EMK) as a solvent. The grown crystals have been subjected to various characterizations such as single crystal X-ray diffraction, powder XRD, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), proton NMR, solid UV absorption, SHG studies. Single crystal X-ray diffraction reveals that the crystal system belongs to monoclinic with noncentrosymmetric space group P21. The UV-Vis absorption spectrum has been recorded and found that the cut off wavelength is 380 nm. Functional groups and the structure of the title compound have been confirmed by FTIR and (1)H NMR spectroscopic analyses respectively. Molecular mass of the CONS confirmed by the high resolution mass spectral analysis .The thermal behavior of the grown crystal has been studied by TG/DTA analysis and it shows the melting point is at 188.66 °C. Dislocations and growth pattern present in the grown crystal revealed by the etching study. The mechanical strength of the CONS crystal has been studied by Vicker's hardness measurement. The SHG efficiency of the grown crystal has been determined by Kurtz and Perry powder test which revealed that the CONS crystal (327 mV) has 15 times greater efficiency than that of KDP (21.7 mV). Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Transient suppression of seizures by repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in a case of Rasmussen's encephalitis.

PubMed

Rotenberg, Alexander; Depositario-Cabacar, Dewi; Bae, Erica Hyunji; Harini, Chellamani; Pascual-Leone, Alvaro; Takeoka, Masanori

2008-07-01

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has been applied with variable success to terminate the seizures of epilepsia partialis continua. The rationale for using this technique to suppress ongoing seizures is the capacity of rTMS to interrupt ongoing neuronal activity, and to produce a lasting decrease in cortical excitability with low-frequency (1 Hz) stimulation. We report a case of epilepsia partialis continua in a child with Rasmussen's encephalitis, in whom seizures were transiently suppressed by 1-Hz rTMS delivered in nine daily 30-minute sessions. In this case, total ictal time was significantly reduced during stimulation, but the daily baseline seizure rate remained unchanged. Notably, the detection and quantification of this short-lived improvement were enabled by recording EEG continuously during the rTMS session. Thus, we present this case to illustrate a potential utility of combined continuous EEG recording and rTMS in seizure treatment.

Continuous and line spectra of granules and intergranular lanes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suemoto, Z.; Hiei, E.; Nakagomi, Y.

1990-05-01

Temperature and velocity structures above granules and intergranular lanes were studied on spectrograms covering Ca II H and K lines. In agreement with earlier results, it was confirmed more quantitatively that there appear two kinds of bright continua, one in the outer wings (granular continuum) and the other in the inner wings (temporarily called K0-continuum) of Ca II H and K lines, and that these two kinds of bright continua are located more or less in a complementary fashion. Further, it was found that the bright K0-continuum is well associated with higher central residual intensity of absorption lines. These facts suggest that, in the upper photosphere, there are high temperature regions in the intergranular lanes. Motions above granular regions are essentially upwards, whereas those of intergranular regions are predominantly downwards, and in the uppermost photosphere the motions become more random.

Multiresolution comparison of precipitation datasets for large-scale models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chun, K. P.; Sapriza Azuri, G.; Davison, B.; DeBeer, C. M.; Wheater, H. S.

2014-12-01

Gridded precipitation datasets are crucial for driving large-scale models which are related to weather forecast and climate research. However, the quality of precipitation products is usually validated individually. Comparisons between gridded precipitation products along with ground observations provide another avenue for investigating how the precipitation uncertainty would affect the performance of large-scale models. In this study, using data from a set of precipitation gauges over British Columbia and Alberta, we evaluate several widely used North America gridded products including the Canadian Gridded Precipitation Anomalies (CANGRD), the National Center for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) reanalysis, the Water and Global Change (WATCH) project, the thin plate spline smoothing algorithms (ANUSPLIN) and Canadian Precipitation Analysis (CaPA). Based on verification criteria for various temporal and spatial scales, results provide an assessment of possible applications for various precipitation datasets. For long-term climate variation studies (~100 years), CANGRD, NCEP, WATCH and ANUSPLIN have different comparative advantages in terms of their resolution and accuracy. For synoptic and mesoscale precipitation patterns, CaPA provides appealing performance of spatial coherence. In addition to the products comparison, various downscaling methods are also surveyed to explore new verification and bias-reduction methods for improving gridded precipitation outputs for large-scale models.

Stk1-mediated phosphorylation stimulates the DNA-binding properties of the Staphylococcus aureus SpoVG transcriptional factor.

PubMed

Bischoff, Markus; Brelle, Solène; Minatelli, Sabrina; Molle, Virginie

2016-05-13

The stage V sporulation protein G (SpoVG) homolog of Staphylococcus aureus is a modulator of virulence factor synthesis and antibiotic resistance in this clinically important gram-positive pathogen. Here we demonstrate that SpoVG can be phosphorylated by the staphylococcal Ser/Thr protein kinase Stk1 and that phosphorylation positively affects its DNA-binding properties. Mass spectrometric analyses and site directed mutagenesis identified Thr4, Thr13, Thr24 and Ser41 as phospho-acceptors. Stk1-mediated phosphorylation markedly enhanced the DNA binding activity of SpoVG towards the promoter regions of target genes such as capA, lip, and nuc1. Similarly, trans-complementation of the S. aureus ΔyabJ-spoVG mutant SM148 with a SpoVG derivative that mimics constitutive phosphorylation, SpoVG_Asp, exhibited capA, lip, and nuc1 transcript levels that were comparable to the levels seen with the wild-type, whereas trans-complementation with a phosphoablative variant of SpoVG (SpoVG_Ala) produced transcript levels similar to the ones seen in SM148. Our data suggest that the expression/activity of this transcription factor is tightly controlled in S. aureus by transcriptional, post-transcriptional and post-translational mechanisms. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

CON4EI: Selection of the reference chemicals for hazard identification and labelling of eye irritating chemicals.

PubMed

Adriaens, E; Alépée, N; Kandarova, H; Drzewieckac, A; Gruszka, K; Guest, R; Willoughby, J A; Verstraelen, S; Van Rompay, A R

2017-10-01

Assessment of the acute eye irritation potential is part of the international regulatory requirements for testing of chemicals. In the past, several prospective and retrospective validation studies have taken place in the area of serious eye damage/eye irritation testing. Success in terms of complete replacement of the regulatory in vivo Draize rabbit eye test has not yet been achieved. A very important aspect to ensure development of successful alternative test methods and/or strategies for serious eye damage/eye irritation testing is the selection of appropriate reference chemicals. A set of 80 reference chemicals was selected for the CEFIC-LRI-AIMT6-VITO CON4EI (CONsortium for in vitro Eye Irritation testing strategy) project, in collaboration with Cosmetics Europe, from the Draize Reference Database published by Cosmetics Europe based on key criteria that were set in their paper (e.g. balanced by important driver of classification and physical state). The most important goals of the CON4EI project were to identify the performance of eight in vitro alternative tests in terms of driver of classification and to identify similarities/differences between the methods in order the build a successful testing strategy that can discriminate between all UN GHS categories. This paper provides background on selection of the test chemicals. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Falling Corona Model for the Anomalous Behavior of the Broad Emission Lines in NGC 5548

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Mouyuan; Xue, Yongquan; Cai, Zhenyi; Guo, Hengxiao

2018-04-01

NGC 5548 has been intensively monitored by the AGN Space Telescope and Optical Reverberation Mapping collaboration. Approximately after half of the light curves, the correlation between the broad emission lines and the lag-corrected ultraviolet (UV) continua becomes weak. This anomalous behavior is accompanied by an increase of soft X-ray emission. We propose a simple model to understand this anomalous behavior, i.e., the corona might fall down, thereby increasing the covering fraction of the inner disk. Therefore, X-ray and extreme-UV emission suffer from spectral variations. The UV continua variations are driven by both X-ray and extreme-UV variations. Consequently, the spectral variability induced by the falling corona would dilute the correlation between the broad emission lines and the UV continua. Our model can explain many additional observational facts, including the dependence of the anomalous behavior on velocity and ionization energy. We also show that the time lag and correlation between the X-ray and the UV variations change as NGC 5548 displays the anomalous behavior. The time lag is dramatically longer than the expectation from disk reprocessing if the anomalous behavior is properly excluded. During the anomalous state, the time lag approaches the light-travel timescale of disk reprocessing albeit with a much weaker correlation. We speculate that the time lag in the normal state is caused by reprocessing of the broad line region gas. As NGC 5548 enters the abnormal state, the contribution of the broad line region gas is smaller; the time lag reflects disk reprocessing. We also discuss alternative scenarios.

Unilateral photophobia or phonophobia in migraine compared with trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias.

PubMed

Irimia, P; Cittadini, E; Paemeleire, K; Cohen, A S; Goadsby, P J

2008-06-01

Our objective was to compare the presence of self-reported unilateral photophobia or phonophobia, or both, during headache attacks comparing patients with trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias (TACs)--including cluster headache, short-lasting unilateral neuralgiform headache attacks with conjunctival injection and tearing (SUNCT) and paroxysmal hemicrania--or hemicrania continua, and other headache types. We conducted a prospective study in patients attending a referral out-patient clinic over 5 months and those admitted for an intramuscular indomethacin test. Two hundred and six patients were included. In episodic migraine patients, two of 54 (4%) reported unilateral photophobia or phonophobia, or both. In chronic migraine patients, six of 48 (13%) complained of unilateral photophobia or phonophobia, or both, whereas none of the 24 patients with medication-overuse headache reported these unilateral symptoms, although these patients all had clinical symptoms suggesting the diagnosis of migraine. Only three of 22 patients (14%) suffering from new daily persistent headache (NDPH) experienced unilateral photophobia or phonophobia. In chronic cluster headache 10 of 21 patients (48%) had unilateral photophobia or phonophobia, or both, and this symptom appeared in four of five patients (80%) with episodic cluster headache. Unilateral photophobia or phonophobia, or both, were reported by six of 11 patients (55%) with hemicrania continua, five of nine (56%) with SUNCT, and four of six (67%) with chronic paroxysmal hemicrania. Unilateral phonophobia or photophobia, or both, are more frequent in TACs and hemicrania continua than in migraine and NDPH. The presence of these unilateral symptoms may be clinically useful in the differential diagnosis of primary headaches.

Moléculas orgánicas obtenidas en simulaciones experimentales del medio interestelar.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muñoz-Caro, Guillermo Manuel

Las nubes moleculares son regiones de formación de estrellas, con temperaturas cinéticas entre 10-50 K y densidades de 103-106 átomos cm-3. Su materia está formada por gas y polvo interestelar. Estas partículas de polvo están cubiertas por una fina capa de hielo, de unos 0.01 μm, que contiene H2O y a menudo CO, CO2, CH3OH y NH3. El hielo es presumiblemente irradiado por fotones ultravioleta y rayos cósmicos en las zonas poco profundas de las nubes moleculares y las regiones circunestelares. En un sistema de vacío, P ˜ 10-7 mbar, simulamos la deposición de hielo a partir de 10 K y la irradiación ultravioleta por medio de una lámpara de descarga de hidrógeno activada con microondas. La evolución del hielo se observa por medio de un espectrómetro infrarrojo. De este modo es posible determinar la composición del hielo observado en el medio interestelar y predecir la presencia de moléculas aún no detectadas en el espacio, que han sido producto del procesamiento del hielo en nuestros experimentos. También es posible calentar el sistema hasta temperatura ambiente para sublimar el hielo depositado. Cuando el hielo ha sido previamente irradiado, se observa un residuo compuesto por moléculas orgánicas complejas, algunas prebióticas, como varios ácidos carboxílicos, aminas, amidas, ésteres y en menor proporción moléculas heterocíclicas y aminoácidos. Algunas de estas moléculas podrían detectarse en estado gaseoso por medio de observaciones milimétricas y de radio. También podrían estar presentes en el polvo cometario, cuyo análisis químico está planeado por las misiones Stardust y Rosetta. Mientras tanto, nuestro grupo está llevando a cabo el análisis de partículas de polvo interplanetario (IDPs), algunas de las cuales pueden ser de origen cometario. Al igual que ocurre con los productos obtenidos por irradiación del hielo en nuestros experimentos, algunas IDPs son ricas en material orgánico que contiene oxígeno.

Research in Biological and Medical Sciences, Including Biochemistry, Communicable Disease and Immunology Internal Medicine, Nuclear Medicine, Physiology, Psychiatry, Surgery, and Veterinary Medicine

DTIC Science & Technology

1976-07-01

aversive stimuli, and activity in a variety of physiological systems implicated in psychosomatic dis- orders. The focus is on arrangement of consequences... activity are held to be linked cen- trally under most conditions. Changes in response to the pre-food stimulus in these DRL animals were less pronounced...individual differences both in autonomic activity and lever-pressing behavior. The to bolst increasi some of the latt the capa with the blood pr

CrossTalk: The Journal of Defense Software Engineering. Volume 20, Number 12

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-12-01

Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be...Information System 11% Training and Support 34% Vehicle Systems 9% Prognostics and Health Management 2% Offboard Mission Support 4% Lab Ground/Non- De ...Information Integra- tion. “Net-Enabled Command Capa- bility Milestone A Acquisition De - cision Memorandum.” Washington: DoD, 2006. 5. Menascé, Daniel A., and

Exploring Terrorist Targeting Preferences

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-01-01

of dramatic size, scale, and impact . Indeed, al Qaeda may well conclude that any attack capa- ble of awing its own members will also inspire...likely). Coordinated attack can be considered a sig- nature trait of al Qaeda operations: in Kenya ; Tanzania; New York; Washington, D.C.; Istanbul...1998, simultaneous bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania killed over 200 people—twelve of them U.S. citi- zens—and wounded more than

Silicon and Civilization,

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-11-04

less form, or so-called amorphous, as strata of diatomaceous earth , or also in the form of the precious stone--opal. As mentioned, silicon dioxide...skeletons and those of water creatures, which after mortification fall to the bottom of the waters creating strata of diatomaceous earth are also built of...reactions. Likewise, diatomaceous earth has a well developed surface and great adsorptive capa- bility, among others it can absorb a triple excess of

Uncoordinated MAC for Adaptive Multi-Beam Directional Networks: Analysis and Evaluation

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-04-10

transmission times, hence traditional CSMA approaches are not appropriate. We first present our model of these multi-beamforming capa- bilities and the...resulting wireless interference. We then derive an upper bound on multi-access performance for an idealized version of this physical layer. We then present... transmissions and receptions in a mobile ad-hoc network has in practice led to very constrained topologies. As mentioned, one approach for system design is to de

Centripetal/Centrifugal Family Style of Families with Aggressive and Non-Aggressive Boys.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hurst, Duane F.; And Others

Research on family interaction has characterized family style on centripetal and centrifugal dimensions, representing opposing natures with their own continua. Centripetal forces produce binding, or a prolonged process of separation of parent and child; centrifugal forces preciptate expelling, or hastened separation and premature autonomy. To…

Pros, Cons, and Alternatives to Weight Based Cost Estimating

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Joyner, Claude R.; Lauriem, Jonathan R.; Levack, Daniel H.; Zapata, Edgar

2011-01-01

Many cost estimating tools use weight as a major parameter in projecting the cost. This is often combined with modifying factors such as complexity, technical maturity of design, environment of operation, etc. to increase the fidelity of the estimate. For a set of conceptual designs, all meeting the same requirements, increased weight can be a major driver in increased cost. However, once a design is fixed, increased weight generally decreases cost, while decreased weight generally increases cost - and the relationship is not linear. Alternative approaches to estimating cost without using weight (except perhaps for materials costs) have been attempted to try to produce a tool usable throughout the design process - from concept studies through development. This paper will address the pros and cons of using weight based models for cost estimating, using liquid rocket engines as the example. It will then examine approaches that minimize the impct of weight based cost estimating. The Rocket Engine- Cost Model (RECM) is an attribute based model developed internally by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne for NASA. RECM will be presented primarily to show a successful method to use design and programmatic parameters instead of weight to estimate both design and development costs and production costs. An operations model developed by KSC, the Launch and Landing Effects Ground Operations model (LLEGO), will also be discussed.

Con-Text: Text Detection for Fine-grained Object Classification.

PubMed

Karaoglu, Sezer; Tao, Ran; van Gemert, Jan C; Gevers, Theo

2017-05-24

This work focuses on fine-grained object classification using recognized scene text in natural images. While the state-of-the-art relies on visual cues only, this paper is the first work which proposes to combine textual and visual cues. Another novelty is the textual cue extraction. Unlike the state-of-the-art text detection methods, we focus more on the background instead of text regions. Once text regions are detected, they are further processed by two methods to perform text recognition i.e. ABBYY commercial OCR engine and a state-of-the-art character recognition algorithm. Then, to perform textual cue encoding, bi- and trigrams are formed between the recognized characters by considering the proposed spatial pairwise constraints. Finally, extracted visual and textual cues are combined for fine-grained classification. The proposed method is validated on four publicly available datasets: ICDAR03, ICDAR13, Con-Text and Flickr-logo. We improve the state-of-the-art end-to-end character recognition by a large margin of 15% on ICDAR03. We show that textual cues are useful in addition to visual cues for fine-grained classification. We show that textual cues are also useful for logo retrieval. Adding textual cues outperforms visual- and textual-only in fine-grained classification (70.7% to 60.3%) and logo retrieval (57.4% to 54.8%).

Multiple Continua of Writing Development in a First Grade Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eitelgeorge, Janice S.; Barrett, Robin

2004-01-01

The purpose of this yearlong study was to understand the complexities of the writing process and to specifically attend to progressions in textual development with first-grade writers. The inquiry focused for a macroview on all the children during writing workshop and for a microview on six case studies that displayed the range of literacy…

Variational formulation for dissipative continua and an incremental J-integral

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahaman, Md. Masiur; Dhas, Bensingh; Roy, D.; Reddy, J. N.

2018-01-01

Our aim is to rationally formulate a proper variational principle for dissipative (viscoplastic) solids in the presence of inertia forces. As a first step, a consistent linearization of the governing nonlinear partial differential equations (PDEs) is carried out. An additional set of complementary (adjoint) equations is then formed to recover an underlying variational structure for the augmented system of linearized balance laws. This makes it possible to introduce an incremental Lagrangian such that the linearized PDEs, including the complementary equations, become the Euler-Lagrange equations. Continuous groups of symmetries of the linearized PDEs are computed and an analysis is undertaken to identify the variational groups of symmetries of the linearized dissipative system. Application of Noether's theorem leads to the conservation laws (conserved currents) of motion corresponding to the variational symmetries. As a specific outcome, we exploit translational symmetries of the functional in the material space and recover, via Noether's theorem, an incremental J-integral for viscoplastic solids in the presence of inertia forces. Numerical demonstrations are provided through a two-dimensional plane strain numerical simulation of a compact tension specimen of annealed mild steel under dynamic loading.

Development of a heptaplex PCR assay for identification of Staphylococcus aureus and CoNS with simultaneous detection of virulence and antibiotic resistance genes.

PubMed

Okolie, Charles Emeka; Wooldridge, Karl G; Turner, David P J; Cockayne, Alan; James, Richard

2015-08-05

Staphylococcal toxicity and antibiotic resistance (STAAR) have been menacing public health. Although vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) is currently not as widespread as methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), genome evolution of MRSA into VRSA, including strains engineered within the same patient under anti-staphylococcal therapy, may build up to future public health concern. To further complicate diagnosis, infection control and anti-microbial chemotherapy, non-sterile sites such as the nares and the skin could contain both S. aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS), either of which could harbour mecA the gene driving staphylococcal methicillin-resistance and required for MRSA-VRSA evolution. A new heptaplex PCR assay has been developed which simultaneously detects seven markers for: i) eubacteria (16S rRNA), ii) Staphylococcus genus (tuf), iii) Staphylococcus aureus (spa), iv) CoNS (cns), v) Panton-Valentine leukocidin (pvl), vi) methicillin resistance (mecA), and vii) vancomycin resistance (vanA). Following successful validation using 255 reference bacterial strains, applicability to analyse clinical samples was evaluated by direct amplification in spiked blood cultures (n = 89) which returned 100 % specificity, negative and positive predictive values. The new assay has LoD of 1.0x10(3) CFU/mL for the 16S rRNA marker and 1.0x10(4) CFU/mL for six other markers and completes cycling in less than one hour. The speed, sensitivity (100 %), NPV (100 %) and PPV (100 %) suggest the new heptaplex PCR assay could be easily integrated into a routine diagnostic microbiology workflow. Detection of the cns marker allows for unique identification of CoNS in mono-microbial and in poly-microbial samples containing mixtures of CoNS and S. aureus without recourse to the conventional elimination approach which is ambiguous. In addition to the SA-CoNS differential diagnostic essence of the new assay, inclusion of vanA primers will allow

The new human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine: pros and cons for pediatric and adolescent health.

PubMed

Thomas, Tami L

2008-01-01

The new human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is a research breakthrough for pediatric/adolescent health to prevent cervical cancer and related morbidity. The annual heath care cost for the treatment of cervical cancer and genital warts is estimated to be more than three billion dollars a year. The new HPV vaccine has incredible potential to improve reproductive health promotion, reduce health care costs, and close health care disparity gaps. However, issues both for and against the new HPV vaccine, including mandating vaccination, high cost of the vaccine, the short duration of protection offered, and the perceived promotion of sexual activity, cause confusion. Pediatric nurses, including those in advanced practice, benefit by understanding the pros and cons of these issues in advocating for their patients.

Centralization and Decentralization: An International Viewpoint on an American Dilemma. A Special CASEA Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, William G.

This report outlines the history of the centralization-decentralization dilemma in the goverance of organizations, discusses two types of centralization-decentralization continua, and suggests further research. The first type of continuum discussed -- the traditional American -- refers to decisionmaking in the areas of public debate and partisan…

Classification and Identification of Reading and Math Disabilities: The Special Case of Comorbidity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Branum-Martin, Lee; Fletcher, Jack M.; Stuebing, Karla K.

2013-01-01

Much of learning disabilities research relies on categorical classification frameworks that use psychometric tests and cut points to identify children with reading or math difficulties. However, there is increasing evidence that the attributes of reading and math learning disabilities are dimensional, representing correlated continua of severity.…

Does Stevens's Power Law for Brightness Extend to Perceptual Brightness Averaging?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bauer, Ben

2009-01-01

Stevens's power law ([Psi][infinity][Phi][beta]) captures the relationship between physical ([Phi]) and perceived ([Psi]) magnitude for many stimulus continua (e.g., luminance and brightness, weight and heaviness, area and size). The exponent ([beta]) indicates whether perceptual magnitude grows more slowly than physical magnitude ([beta] less…

Job Satisfaction: A Possible Integration of Two Theories

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hazer, John T.

1976-01-01

The author proposes an integration of Herzberg's two-factor theory of job satisfaction (job satisfaction/dissatisfaction as two separate, parallel continua) and traditional theory (job satisfaction/dissatisfaction sharing the same continuum) and a rationale for deciding which motivation methods to use for employees with differeing levels of…

Putting Herzberg's Two Factor Theory of Motivation in Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

May, Charles R.; Decker, Robert H.

1988-01-01

Explores challenges to Frederick Herzberg's Two Factor Theory of Motivation--a required concept in many administrator preparation programs. Herzberg used modified critical incident (or self-reporting) techniques to illustrate that job satisfaction and dissatisfaction occupied different continua and were not opposed to each other. Criticisms, study…

A Biliteracy Dialogue Approach to One-on-One Writing Instruction with Bilingual, Mexican, Immigrant Writers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stegemoller, W. Jason

2013-01-01

This interpretive study explores the writing and writing experiences of 2 bilingual, Mexican, immigrant undergraduates at a US university. Hornberger and Skilton-Sylvester's (2003) continua model of biliteracy situates writing interactions to understand how students explore and draw on their bilingual and bicultural resources as they develop…

Collision-induced Absorption in the Infrared: A Data Base for Modelling Planetary and Stellar Atmospheres

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Borysow, Aleksandra

1998-01-01

Accurate knowledge of certain collision-induced absorption continua of molecular pairs such as H2-H2, H2-He, H2-CH4, CO2-CO2, etc., is a prerequisite for most spectral analyses and modelling attempts of atmospheres of planets and cold stars. We collect and regularly update simple, state of the art computer programs for the calculation of the absorption coefficient of such molecular pairs over a broad range of temperatures and frequencies, for the various rotovibrational bands. The computational results are in agreement with the existing laboratory measurements of such absorption continua, recorded with a spectral resolution of a few wavenumbers, but reliable computational results may be expected even in the far wings, and at temperatures for which laboratory measurements do not exist. Detailed information is given concerning the systems thus studied, the temperature and frequency ranges considered, the rotovibrational bands thus modelled, and how one may obtain copies of the FORTRAN77 computer programs by e-mail.

Boomerang sign: Clinical significance of transient lesion in splenium of corpus callosum.

PubMed

Malhotra, Hardeep Singh; Garg, Ravindra Kumar; Vidhate, Mukund R; Sharma, Pawan Kumar

2012-04-01

Transient signal abnormality in the splenium of corpus callosum on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is occasionally encountered in clinical practice. It has been reported in various clinical conditions apart from patients with epilepsy. We describe 4 patients with different etiologies presenting with signal changes in the splenium of corpus callosum. They were diagnosed as having progressive myoclonic epilepsy (case 1), localization-related epilepsy (case 2), hemicrania continua (case 3), and postinfectious parkinsonism (case 4). While three patients had complete involvement of the splenium on diffusion-weighted image ("boomerang sign"), the patient having hemicrania continua showed semilunar involvement ("mini-boomerang") on T2-weighted and FLAIR image. All the cases had noncontiguous involvement of the splenium. We herein, discuss these cases with transient splenial involvement and stress that such patients do not need aggressive diagnostic and therapeutic interventions. An attempt has been made to review the literature regarding the pathophysiology, etiology, and outcome of such lesions.

Boomerang sign: Clinical significance of transient lesion in splenium of corpus callosum

PubMed Central

Malhotra, Hardeep Singh; Garg, Ravindra Kumar; Vidhate, Mukund R.; Sharma, Pawan Kumar

2012-01-01

Transient signal abnormality in the splenium of corpus callosum on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is occasionally encountered in clinical practice. It has been reported in various clinical conditions apart from patients with epilepsy. We describe 4 patients with different etiologies presenting with signal changes in the splenium of corpus callosum. They were diagnosed as having progressive myoclonic epilepsy (case 1), localization-related epilepsy (case 2), hemicrania continua (case 3), and postinfectious parkinsonism (case 4). While three patients had complete involvement of the splenium on diffusion-weighted image (“boomerang sign”), the patient having hemicrania continua showed semilunar involvement (“mini-boomerang”) on T2-weighted and FLAIR image. All the cases had noncontiguous involvement of the splenium. We herein, discuss these cases with transient splenial involvement and stress that such patients do not need aggressive diagnostic and therapeutic interventions. An attempt has been made to review the literature regarding the pathophysiology, etiology, and outcome of such lesions. PMID:22566735

Models of the quiet and active solar atmosphere from Harvard OSO data.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Noyes, R. W.

1971-01-01

Review of some Harvard Observatory programs aimed at defining the physical conditions in quiet and active solar regions on the basis of data obtained from the OSO-IV and OSO-VI spacecraft. The spectral range covered is from 300 A to 1400 A. This spectral range consists of emission lines and continua from abundant elements such as hydrogen, helium, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, silicon, magnesium, aluminum, neon, iron, and calcium in various ionization states ranging from neutral to 15 times ionized. The structure is discussed of the quiet solar atmosphere as deduced from center-to-limb behavior of spectral lines and continua formed in the chromosphere and corona. In reviewing investigations of solar active regions, it is shown that the structure of these regions varies in a complicated manner from point to point. The local structure is influenced by factors such as the magnetic field configuration within the active region and the age or evolutionary state of the region.

Characterizing the motivational orientation of students in higher education: a naturalistic study in three Hong Kong universities.

PubMed

Kember, David; Hong, Celina; Ho, Amber

2008-06-01

Consideration of motivation in higher education has often been drawn upon theories and research that were based upon school or workplace studies. This paper reports an open naturalistic study to better characterize the motivational orientation of students in higher education. Open semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with 36 students from three universities in Hong Kong. The analysis used an exploratory grounded theory approach. Motivation was characterized as a framework with six continua with positive and negative poles. On enrolment, students had positions on the six facets of motivation, which shifted as they progressed through their degree, according to perceptions of their teaching and learning environment. The positive poles of the six continua were given labels: compliance, individual goal setting, interest, career, sense of belonging and university lifestyle. The formulation of motivational orientation is consistent with contemporary social cognitive theories of motivation in that it has been characterized as a multifaceted phenomenon, with students expressing context-dependent multiple motives.

Synthesis and Characterization of YB4 Ceramics

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-06-24

capa bility at temperatures above 2000°C1 with adequate mechani cal properties and oxidation resistance. Refractory metal borides based on HfB2 and ZrB2...increase in the oxidation resistance was accomplished by the addition of the Group IV VI transition metal borides , which was the result of phase...metal borides for use as materials for ultra high temper ature (UHT) applications. However, for instance, yttrium tet raboride, YB4, appears promising as

America Promises to Come Back: A New National Strategy

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-12-26

plants, and other government capa- bilities, should be studied by a Blue-Ribbon Panel assisted by 61 industria .. and proressional associations. This ertort...Conference of the International Institute for Strate- gic Studies (IISS) on September 6th, explained that the new strategic concepts would form the basis of...Reserve forces which could be returned within a reasonable period. This may not be the case , and America’s promise to return may indeed be within the

Development of a High Energy Density Capacitor for Plasma Thrusters.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-10-01

AD-A091 839 MAXWELL LAOS INC SAN DIEGO CA FIG 81/3 DEVELOPMENT OF A HIGH ENERGY DENSITY CAPACITOR FOR PLASMA THRUS--ETC(U) OCT 80 A RAMRUS FO*611-77...of the program was the investigation of certain capacitor impregnants and their influence on high energy density capacitors which are employed in...PERIOD 1704,60~ 13 DEVELOPMENT OF A HIGH ENERGY DENSITY CAPA- Final Technical Report CITOR FOR PLASMA THRUSTERS July 1977 - May 1980 6 PERFORMING

The Use of the Air Arm During Operation Change of Direction

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-01

football stadium.56 Aircraft of the IAF for the first time raid targets in the predominantly Christian area to the north of Beirut. These attacks are...launching capa- bility, the organisation managed to fire a large number of Katyusha missiles from the border area into Israel on a daily basis. Of the...caused by budgetary restrictions. In its turn, Hezbollah was very much aware of the capability of the GSS and managed to keep strict secrecy by hiding

The Validity of Conventional Assumptions Concerning Flexible Response

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-01-01

could hold until reinforcements arrive. A Soviet attack on NATO would be met by a NATO covering force, consisting largely of armoured cavalry forma...inter- diction of the follow-on forces. Air Defense Under [.resent NATO operational concepts, most aircraft capa- ble of fighting alr-to-air will be...existing Nike and Hercules units by 1990--two years early to save money. The result is critical gaps in defense of English Channel ports. (29:36) Follow-on

Probabilidad de colisión de cometas periódicos con partículas interplanetarias

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gil Hutton, R.

Se presentan resultados sobre la probabilidad de colisión de cometas de corto período con la población de partículas interplanetarias presentes en la región del cinturón de asteroides. Se encuentra que este proceso colisional afecta la evolución física de los cometas de manera no despreciable y puede ser el responsable de variaciones de brillo de tipo ``outburst". Se presentan resultados para algunos cometas en particular y se obtiene un límite inferior para el tamaño de los núcleos en función de la distribución de radios del cinturón de asteroides.

Economic and Ethical Consequences of Natural Hazards in Alpine Valleys (EE-Con)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ortner, Florian; Brantl, Dirk; Meyer, Lukas; Steininger, Karl; Sass, Oliver

2015-04-01

The Alps and their population are particularly vulnerable to geomorphological and hydrological hazards and this problem might be amplified by ongoing climate change. Natural disasters cause severe monetary damage which often leads to the difficult question whether it socially pays to protect settlements at high costs or whether alternatively settlement areas should better be abandoned. By investigations in the Johnsbachtal and the Kleinsölktal (Styria), the interdisciplinary project "Economic and Ethical Consequences of Natural Hazards in Alpine Valleys" (EE-Con), funded by the Austrian Academy of Sciences, seeks to answer the following questions: (1) Are natural hazards and associated damages in fact increasing, and is this due to meteorological triggers, to anthropogenic factors or to internal process dynamics? (2) What is the perception and knowledge of local people, how is risk and risk prevention communicated? (3) What is the respective cost ratio between protection infrastructure, soft measures of adaptation and other options (e.g. reduction of settlement area)? (4) What legitimate claims to compensation do people have, how far does societal responsibility go and where does individual responsibility start if parts of the settlement area had to be abandoned? These questions will be tackled in an interdisciplinary cooperation between geography, economics and normative theory (philosophy). EE-Con will follow broadly the path of risk analysis and risk assessment, focusing on the temporal dimension (past - present - future) with the aim to unravel the history of natural hazards in the areas and to analyse the economic values involved. In the following, natural hazard scenarios for the future (2050 and 2100) will be developed considering the economic consequences. Besides this, the project deals with local knowledge, risk perception and risk communication, which will be investigated via group interviews and stakeholder workshops and be integrated into a human

Re-Awakening the Learner: Creating Learner-Centric, Standards-Driven Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stoll, Copper; Giddings, Gene

2012-01-01

Transformation of public education requires the reawakening of the sleeping giant in the room: the learners. Students, teachers, and principals must develop a learner-centric, standards-driven school. "Reawakening the Learner" is a guide to creating just such an environment. Continua describe the journey of teachers, teacher leaders, and…

Color Categories: Evidence for the Cultural Relativity Hypothesis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roberson, D.; Davidoff, J.; Davies, I.R.L.; Shapiro, L.R.

2005-01-01

The question of whether language affects our categorization of perceptual continua is of particular interest for the domain of color where constraints on categorization have been proposed both within the visual system and in the visual environment. Recent research (Roberson, Davies, & Davidoff, 2000; Roberson et al., in press) found…

Multilingual Learners in Language Assessment: Assessment Design for Linguistically Diverse Communities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schissel, Jamie L.; Leung, Constant; López-Gopar, Mario; Davis, James R.

2018-01-01

The assessments designed for and analyzed in this study used a task-based language design template rooted in theories of language reflecting heteroglossic language practices and funds of knowledge learning theories, which were understood as transforming classroom teaching, learning, and assessment through continua of biliteracy lenses. Using a…

Informe: Están en riesgo más de $774 millones en Fondos rotativos estatales de Puerto Rico

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Informe #17-P-0186, 26 de abril de 2017 (puesto a disposición en español: 3 de augosto de 2017). Están en riesgo más de $774 millones en Fondos rotativos estatales debido a la continua crisis financiera que azota a Puerto Rico.

Future of clip-on weapon sights: pros and cons from an applications perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knight, C. Reed; Greenslade, Ken; Francisco, Glen

2015-05-01

US Domestic, International, allied Foreign National Warfighters and Para-Military First Responders (Police, SWAT, Special Operations, Law Enforcement, Government, Security and more) are put in harm's way all the time. To successfully complete their missions and return home safely are the primary goals of these professionals. Tactical product improvements that affect mission effectiveness and solider survivability are pivotal to understanding the past, present and future of Clip-On in-line weapon sights. Clip-On Weapon Sight (WS) technology was deemed an interim solution by the US Government for use until integrated and fused (day/night multi-sensor) Weapon Sights (WSs) were developed/fielded. Clip-On has now become the solution of choice by Users, Warriors, Soldiers and the US Government. SWaP-C (size, weight and power -cost) has been improved through progressive advances in Clip-On Image Intensified (I2), passive thermal, LL-CMOS and fused technology. Clip-On Weapon Sights are now no longer mounting position sensitive. Now they maintain aim point boresight, so they can be used for longer ranges with increased capabilities while utilizing the existing zeroed weapon and daysight optic. Active illuminated low-light level (both analog I2 and digital LL-CMOS) imaging is rightfully a real-world technology, proven to deliver daytime and low-light level identification confidence. Passive thermal imaging is also a real-world technology, proven to deliver daytime, nighttime and all-weather (including dirty battlefield) target detection confidence. Image processing detection algorithms with intelligent analytics provide documented promise to improve confidence by reducing Users, Warriors and Soldiers' work-loads and improving overall system engagement solution outcomes. In order to understand the future of Clip-On in-line weapon sights, addressing pros and cons, this paper starts with an overview of historical weapon sight applications, technologies and stakeholder decisions

Fuentes de variabilidad en el diagnóstico de gastritis atrófica multifocal asociada con la infección por Helicobacter pylori1

PubMed Central

Bravo, Luis Eduardo; Bravo, Juan Carlos; Realpe, José Luis; Zarama, Guillermo; Piazuelo, MarÍa Blanca; Correa, Pelayo

2014-01-01

RESUMEN Introducción El mapeo de las diferentes regiones del estómago y el número de fragmentos de mucosa gástrica disponibles para evaluación histopatológica son fuentes importantes de variación en el momento de clasificar y hacer la gradación de la gastritis crónica. Objetivos Estimar la sensibilidad del número de fragmentos de mucosa gástrica necesarios para establecer los diagnósticos de gastritis atrófica con metaplasia intestinal (MI), displasia y estado de infección por Helicobacter pylori. Además evaluar la variabilidad intra-observador en la clasificación de estas lesiones precursoras del cáncer gástrico. Materiales y métodos En una cohorte de 6 años de seguimiento se evaluaron 1,958 procedimientos de endoscopia realizados por dos gastroenterólogos. En cada procedimiento y de cada participante se obtuvieron 5 biopsias de mucosa gástrica que representaban antro, incisura angularis y cuerpo. Un único patólogo hizo la interpretación histológica de las 5 biopsias y proporcionó un diagnóstico definitivo global que se utilizó como patrón de referencia. Cada fragmento de mucosa gástrica examinado condujo a un diagnóstico individual para cada biopsia que se comparó con el patrón de referencia. La variabilidad intra-observador se evaluó en 127 personas que corresponden a una muestra aleatoria de 20% del total de endoscopias hechas a los 72 meses de seguimiento. Resultados La sensibilidad del diagnóstico de MI y displasia gástrica aumentó de manera significativa con el número de fragmentos de mucosa gástrica evaluados El sitio anatómico de mayor sensibilidad para el diagnóstico de MI y displasia fue la incisura angularis. Para descubrir H. pylori se logró alta sensibilidad con el estudio de un solo fragmento de mucosa gástrica (95.9%) y fue independiente del sitio de obtención de la biopsia. El acuerdo intra-observador para el diagnóstico de gastritis crónica fue 86.1% con valor kappa de 0.79 IC 95% (0.76-0.85). Las

Health, well-being, and psychopathology in a clinical population: Structure and discriminant validity of Mental Health Continuum Short Form (MHC-SF).

PubMed

van Erp Taalman Kip, Rogier M; Hutschemaekers, Giel J M

2018-03-30

The literature suggests a distinction between illness (negative health) and the ability to cope with challenges such as illness (positive health). The two continua model of mental health distinguishes psychiatric symptoms (illness) from well-being (positive health). Well-being consists of hedonic, eudaimonic, and social well-being, constituting one factor that is moderately correlated with psychopathology in the general population. In a mental health care population, we examined whether the three dimensions of well-being are distinguishable and whether well-being is also moderately correlated with symptoms. A representative sample of 1,069 patients (63% female, 47% male; mean age: 42 years) voluntarily completed the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF), a 14-item test that assesses three components of well-being. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a model with strong correlations between the three subscales of the MHC-SF, indicating poor discriminant validity. Furthermore, the MHC-SF was strongly correlated (r = -.71) with the symptomatic distress scale of the OQ-45. Exploratory factor analysis permitted a two-factor solution, providing support for the two continua model of mental health. However, the explained variance of the second factor (well-being) was meager in comparison with the first factor (psychopathology). The results of a canonic correlation did not confirm the two continua model, and only a model with one common canonical factor was significant. For patients with clinical levels of psychopathology, the level of well-being and psychopathology correlate much higher than in the general population. Well-being and psychopathology are so entwined that the supposed distinction should be seriously questioned. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Dependence on Tobacco and Nicotine Products: A Case for Product-Specific Assessment

PubMed Central

Eissenberg, Thomas

2012-01-01

The International Classification of Diseases and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for diagnosing tobacco/nicotine dependence emphasize the dependence-producing drug nicotine. These diagnostic tools have been challenged on grounds of poor predictive validity, and they do not differentiate across various forms of nicotine-containing products. In fact, nicotine-containing products (e.g., tobacco cigarettes, smokeless tobacco [ST], waterpipe, electronic cigarettes [ECIGs], and nicotine replacement [NR] products) have very different characteristics both in terms of sensory and behavioral involvement and also in pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic effects. For example, a cigarette and a nicotine patch are very different on almost every one of these dimensions. When ability to stop using a nicotine/tobacco product is used as a criterion for dependence, success rates vary considerably across products: Tobacco cigarette cessation is more difficult than ST cessation that in turn is more difficult than NR product cessation. Based on these results, we hypothesize that there is a continuum of dependence as much as there is a continuum of harm, with tobacco cigarettes and NR products on opposite ends of both continua and other products (waterpipe and ECIGs) somewhere in between. In order to capture more precisely the dependence produced by both nicotine and its administration forms, product-specific instruments may be required. The pros and cons of this approach are discussed. PMID:22459798

Nest destruction elicits indiscriminate con- versus heterospecific brood parasitism in a captive bird.

PubMed

Shaw, Rachael C; Feeney, William E; Hauber, Mark E

2014-12-01

Following nest destruction, the laying of physiologically committed eggs (eggs that are ovulated, yolked, and making their way through the oviduct) in the nests of other birds is considered a viable pathway for the evolution of obligate interspecific brood parasitism. While intraspecific brood parasitism in response to nest predation has been experimentally demonstrated, this pathway has yet to be evaluated in an interspecific context. We studied patterns of egg laying following experimental nest destruction in captive zebra finches, Taeniopygia guttata, a frequent intraspecific brood parasite. We found that zebra finches laid physiologically committed eggs indiscriminately between nests containing conspecific eggs and nests containing heterospecific eggs (of Bengalese finches, Lonchura striata vars. domestica), despite the con- and heterospecific eggs differing in both size and coloration. This is the first experimental evidence that nest destruction may provide a pathway for the evolution of interspecific brood parasitism in birds.

Renal neuroendocrine control of desiccation and cold tolerance by Drosophila suzukii

PubMed Central

Alford, Lucy; Yeoh, Joseph GC; Marley, Richard; Dornan, Anthony J; Dow, Julian AT; Davies, Shireen A

2017-01-01

Abstract BACKGROUND Neuropeptides are central to the regulation of physiological and behavioural processes in insects, directly impacting cold and desiccation survival. However, little is known about the control mechanisms governing these responses in Drosophila suzukii. The close phylogenetic relationship of D. suzukii with Drosophila melanogaster allows, through genomic and functional studies, an insight into the mechanisms directing stress tolerance in D. suzukii. RESULTS Capability (Capa), leucokinin (LK), diuretic hormone 44 (DH44) and DH31 neuropeptides demonstrated a high level of conservation between D. suzukii and D. melanogaster with respect to peptide sequences, neuronal expression, receptor localisation, and diuretic function in the Malpighian tubules. Despite D. suzukii's ability to populate cold environments, it proved sensitive to both cold and desiccation. Furthermore, in D. suzukii, Capa acts as a desiccation‐ and cold stress‐responsive gene, while DH 44 gene expression is increased only after desiccation exposure, and the LK gene after nonlethal cold stress recovery. CONCLUSION This study provides a comparative investigation into stress tolerance mediation by neuroendocrine signalling in two Drosophila species, providing evidence that similar signalling pathways control fluid secretion in the Malpighian tubules. Identifying processes governing specific environmental stresses affecting D. suzukii could lead to the development of targeted integrated management strategies to control insect pest populations. © 2017 The Authors. Pest Management Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry. PMID:28714258

Promoting and Protecting Mental Health as Flourishing: A Complementary Strategy for Improving National Mental Health

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keyes, Corey L. M.

2007-01-01

This article summarizes the conception and diagnosis of the mental health continuum, the findings supporting the two continua model of mental health and illness, and the benefits of flourishing to individuals and society. Completely mentally healthy adults--individuals free of a 12-month mental disorder and flourishing--reported the fewest missed…

Gradient Sensitivity to Within-Category Variation in Words and Syllables

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McMurray, Bob; Aslin, Richard N.; Tanenhaus, Michael K.; Spivey, Michael J.; Subik, Dana

2008-01-01

Five experiments monitored eye movements in phoneme and lexical identification tasks to examine the effect of within-category subphonetic variation on the perception of stop consonants. Experiment 1 demonstrated gradient effects along voice-onset time (VOT) continua made from natural speech, replicating results with synthetic speech (B. McMurray,…

ELE: An Ontology-Based System Integrating Semantic Search and E-Learning Technologies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barbagallo, A.; Formica, A.

2017-01-01

ELSE (E-Learning for the Semantic ECM) is an ontology-based system which integrates semantic search methodologies and e-learning technologies. It has been developed within a project of the CME (Continuing Medical Education) program--ECM (Educazione Continua nella Medicina) for Italian participants. ELSE allows the creation of e-learning courses…

Repertory Grid As a Means to Compare and Contrast Developmental Theorists

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mayo, Joseph A.

2004-01-01

This article reports on the use of a repertory grid as a tool for studying conceptual systems in line with Kelly's (1955) personal construct theory. Using 7-point construct continua, students rated the positions of major developmental theorists on various bipolar constructs (e.g., nature-nurture, continuity-discontinuity) representing salient…

The Effects of Differential Learning and Traditional Learning Trainings on Technical Development of Football Players

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bozkurt, Sinan

2018-01-01

There are several different methods of learning motor skills, like traditional (linear) and differential (nonlinear) learning training. The traditional motor learning approach proposes that learners improve a skill just by repeating it. According to the teaching principles, exercises are selected along continua from easy to hard and from simple to…

Models of Sexual and Relational Orientation: A Critical Review and Synthesis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moe, Jeffry L.; Reicherzer, Stacee; Dupuy, Paula J.

2011-01-01

Many frameworks exist to explain and describe the phenomenon of same-sex sexuality as it applies to human development. This conceptual article provides a critical overview and synthesis of previous models to serve as a theoretical bridge for the suggested multiple continua model of sexual and relational orientations. Recommendations for how…

"Figuring" Bidirectional Home and School Connections along the Biliteracy Continuum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fránquiz, María E.; Leija, María G.; Garza, Irene

2015-01-01

This article centers on the significant practices identified by bilingual teachers who participated in Proyecto Bilingüe, a specialized master's degree program. The notion of bidirectional theory of bilingual pedagogy and the theoretical construct of the continua of biliteracy are utilized to illustrate how the teachers centered home and school…

Cámara CCD Directa con el Telescopio de 2.15 m del CASLEO: algunos diagnósticos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cellone, S. A.

Se efectuaron algunas pruebas con la cámara CCD (+ Reductor Focal) instalada en el foco Cassegrain del Telescopio de 2.15 m del Complejo Astronómico El Leoncito (CASLEO). Las conclusiones más significativas son: Los tiempos de exposición efectivos difieren de los nominales en una fracción apreciable de segundo. En exposiciones de menos de 3 segundos, la iluminación no es pareja en todo el detector. En consecuencia, se recomiendan los pasos a seguir por los astrónomos tanto durante la observación como en la reducción de sus datos.

Inversor Resonante de Tres Elementos L-LC con Caracteristica Cortocircuitable para Aplicaciones de Calentamiento por Induccion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Espi Huerta, Jose Miguel

Los generadores de calentamiento por induccion son puentes inversores con carga resonante, cuya mision es basicamente crear una corriente sinusoidal de gran amplitud sobre la "bobina de caldeo", que forma parte del tanque resonante. En el interior de esta bobina se introduce la pieza que se desea calentar. EI campo magnetico creado induce corrientes superficiales (corrientes de Foucault) sobre la pieza, que producen su calentamiento. Los tanques resonantes (tambien llamados osciladores) utilizados en la actualidad son el resonante serie y el resonante paralelo. Aunque ya desde hace algun tiempo se vienen construyendo generadores de alta potencia basados en estos dos osciladores, el exito nunca ha. sido completo en ninguno de los dos casos. Tal y como se explica en la introduccion de esta memoria, los puentes inversores utilizados deben operar sobre una carga inductiva (corriente retrasada) para evitar el fenomeno de la recuperacion inversa de sus diodos y la consiguiente ruptura de los transistores. De la restriccion topologica anterior se deduce que el generador paralelo debe conmutar a frecuencias inferiores a la resonancia, y el serie a frecuencias superiores. A esta restriccion topologica hay que unir otra que es exclusiva del calentamiento por induccion: La corriente por la bobina de caldeo debe ser sinusoidal. De no ser asi, resultaria imposible disponer toda la potencia de calentamiento sobre la pieza en el espesor requerido por la aplicacion. Como consecuencia, los inversores no pueden operar por debajo de la frecuencia de resonancia del oscilador, pues en ese caso se amplifican los armonicos de orden superior de la tension/corriente de entrada situados sobre la resonancia, con la consiguiente distorsion de la corriente de salida. La conjuncion de las dos restricciones anteriores obligan al inversor paralelo a funcionar a la frecuencia de resonancia del oscilador. Esto imposibilita un control por variacion de frecuencia, regulandose la potencia desde la

Aplicación de la metodología Molecular de Orbitales de Defecto Cuántico (MQDO) al cálculo de intensidades vibrónicas y vidas medias de niveles vibracionales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

María Velasco Sanz, Ana

Desde que se formuló, en 1996, la metodología Molecular de Orbitales de Defecto Cuántico (MQDO) [1], se han obtenido datos de calidad relativos a intensidades de bandas electrónicas que implican estados Rydberg para una gran variedad de sistemas moleculares [2]. Animados por los buenos resultados obtenidos, recientemente hemos abordado el estudio de transiciones vibrónicas, es decir aquellas que ocurren entre estados vibracionales que pertenecen a distintos estados Rydberg electrónicos. Como prototipo adecuado para nuestros propósitos hemos elegido la molécula de NO, importante en la química de la atmósfera, y para la cual existen en la bibliografía datos experimentales de calidad suficiente para contrastar la validez de nuestros resultados. En concreto, hemos calculado las fuerzas de oscilador y coeficientes de Einstein para transiciones electrónicas y vibrónicas de las principales bandas del NO, al igual que vidas medias radiativas de niveles vibracionales de dicha molécula. Las propiedades estudiadas son esenciales para la comprensión de los aspectos teóricos de los procesos físicos básicos relativos a la dispersión electrónica en moléculas heteronucleares con capas abiertas. Además, valores fiables de probabilidades de transición moleculares tienen importantes aplicaciones en Astrofísica, en la modelización de procesos fotodinámicos moleculares, etc., al igual que para evaluar más profundamente la validez de nuestra metodología teórica.

Potential pros and cons of external healthcare performance evaluation systems: real-life perspectives on Iranian hospital evaluation and accreditation program

PubMed Central

Jaafaripooyan, Ebrahim

2014-01-01

Background: Performance evaluation is essential to quality improvement in healthcare. The current study has identified the potential pros and cons of external healthcare evaluation programs, utilizing them subsequently to look into the merits of a similar case in a developing country. Methods: A mixed method study employing both qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis techniques was adopted to achieve the study end. Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) and professionals were approached for two-stage process of data collection. Results: Potential advantages included greater attractiveness of high accreditation rank healthcare organizations to their customers/purchasers and boosted morale of their personnel. Downsides, as such, comprised the programs’ over-reliance on value judgment of surveyors, routinization and incurring undue cost on the organizations. In addition, the improved, standardized care processes as well as the judgmental nature of program survey were associated, as pros and cons, to the program investigated by the professionals. Conclusion: Besides rendering a tentative assessment of Iranian hospital evaluation program, the study provides those running external performance evaluations with a lens to scrutinize the virtues of their own evaluation systems through identifying the potential advantages and drawbacks of such programs. Moreover, the approach followed could be utilized for performance assessment of similar evaluation programs. PMID:25279381

Potential pros and cons of external healthcare performance evaluation systems: real-life perspectives on Iranian hospital evaluation and accreditation program.

PubMed

Jaafaripooyan, Ebrahim

2014-09-01

Performance evaluation is essential to quality improvement in healthcare. The current study has identified the potential pros and cons of external healthcare evaluation programs, utilizing them subsequently to look into the merits of a similar case in a developing country. A mixed method study employing both qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis techniques was adopted to achieve the study end. Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) and professionals were approached for two-stage process of data collection. Potential advantages included greater attractiveness of high accreditation rank healthcare organizations to their customers/purchasers and boosted morale of their personnel. Downsides, as such, comprised the programs' over-reliance on value judgment of surveyors, routinization and incurring undue cost on the organizations. In addition, the improved, standardized care processes as well as the judgmental nature of program survey were associated, as pros and cons, to the program investigated by the professionals. Besides rendering a tentative assessment of Iranian hospital evaluation program, the study provides those running external performance evaluations with a lens to scrutinize the virtues of their own evaluation systems through identifying the potential advantages and drawbacks of such programs. Moreover, the approach followed could be utilized for performance assessment of similar evaluation programs.

Reprint of "CON4EI: Selection of the reference chemicals for hazard identification and labelling of eye irritating chemicals".

PubMed

Adriaens, E; Alépée, N; Kandarova, H; Drzewieckac, A; Gruszka, K; Guest, R; Willoughby, J A; Verstraelen, S; Van Rompay, A R

2018-06-01

Assessment of the acute eye irritation potential is part of the international regulatory requirements for testing of chemicals. In the past, several prospective and retrospective validation studies have taken place in the area of serious eye damage/eye irritation testing. Success in terms of complete replacement of the regulatory in vivo Draize rabbit eye test has not yet been achieved. A very important aspect to ensure development of successful alternative test methods and/or strategies for serious eye damage/eye irritation testing is the selection of appropriate reference chemicals. A set of 80 reference chemicals was selected for the CEFIC-LRI-AIMT6-VITO CON4EI (CONsortium for in vitro Eye Irritation testing strategy) project, in collaboration with Cosmetics Europe, from the Draize Reference Database published by Cosmetics Europe based on key criteria that were set in their paper (e.g. balanced by important driver of classification and physical state). The most important goals of the CON4EI project were to identify the performance of eight in vitro alternative tests in terms of driver of classification and to identify similarities/differences between the methods in order the build a successful testing strategy that can discriminate between all UN GHS categories. This paper provides background on selection of the test chemicals. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Automatic Vehicle Scheduling (AVS) Programmer’s Instruction Manual for the Burroughs B3500 Computers.

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-02-01

N E. Of CAPA:;hINTRK) INCAP AV; TNJ73 170 GO t) 3000 A V.; T NI 1 7 3100 NT=I A V’ NI 17 SUBROUTINE AVSlN 74./74 OPTzg ROUND-*/ YRACE FTN N.lj# 4bD ...bSTOP FRR 6 tD ERR 7 SUFRUUTIKE LNCF(ICEVI ENflF 2 INiTLt.Ei% DATL.02.IPARK.REGPI53l.EPAL1501 ENDF 3 ,RLAL ISHFT ENnF 1 ALPHA INAIIEI5C ).0§IG(501

Genetic and Physiological Studies of Bacillus anthracis Related to Development of an Improved Vaccine

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-07-01

demonstrated that plasmid pLS20 of B. subtilis ( natto ) is capa le of promoting the transfer of pBC16 from B. subtilis to a variety of Bacillus s ecies...anthracis. Hofetver, results of recent experiments demonstrate that pL320, a 34-megadalton plasmid of B. subtilis ( natto ), is capable of promoting the...plasmid in Bacillus subtilis ( natto ).20 IV. Determination of the size of pX02 by restriction analysis-....... 24 V. Transfer of pXO1 by the B

The Continuity/Discontinuity Models of Eating Disorders: A Review of the Literature and Implications for Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gleaves, David H.; Brown, Joshua D.; Warren, Cortney S.

2004-01-01

Are the eating disorders discrete diagnostic entities or do they fall along one or more continua ranging from normal body weight, eating behavior, and weight concerns to severely disturbed patterns? Researchers have debated this question for at least 30 years and have used numerous creative strategies to examine this and related questions. This…

Methodological Choices in Rating Speech Samples

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Brien, Mary Grantham

2016-01-01

Much pronunciation research critically relies upon listeners' judgments of speech samples, but researchers have rarely examined the impact of methodological choices. In the current study, 30 German native listeners and 42 German L2 learners (L1 English) rated speech samples produced by English-German L2 learners along three continua: accentedness,…

"No One Cares about This Community More Than Us": The Role of Listening, Participation, and Trust in a Small Urban District

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schultz, Katherine; McGinn, Kathryn C.

2013-01-01

In this research, situated in a small urban district with a state-imposed school board, we analyze participation of community members during a three-year effort to improve schools. Through a qualitative analysis of forms of community engagement, this article offers a framework for understanding participation. We present two overlapping continua of…

The beliefs about pros and cons of drinking and intention to change among hazardous and moderate alcohol users: a population-based cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Ansker, Fredrik G; Helgason, Asgeir R; Ahacic, Kozma

2014-08-01

Fundamental to supporting hazardous alcohol users are the rationales for reducing alcohol intake highlighted by the users themselves. This study analyses the relative importance of beliefs about pros and cons of drinking in relation to having an intention to reduce intake among both hazardous and moderate alcohol users. Intention to change was assessed in a representative sample of Stockholm's population (n = 4278, response rate 56.5%). Alcohol use was assessed using the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test measure. A decisional balance inventory was used to examine various beliefs about the pros and cons of drinking, which covered affect changes, social gains and losses, and possible adverse effects. Independent correlations were determined by logistic regression using a backward exclusion procedure (P > 0.05). Higher ratings of importance were generally related to intent, whether or not the contrast was with having no intent or already having made a reduction. This was especially true for hazardous users. Only two beliefs were independently correlated with change among hazardous users: 'Drinking could get me addicted' and 'Drinking makes me more relaxed/less tense' (pseudo-R2 < 0.1). Among moderate users, there was no uniform pattern in the relationships. Unexpectedly, hazardous users with an intent to change rated pro arguments as more important than those with no intent to change. Of the investigated pros and cons, only a few were independently related to intention to change drinking behaviour. These arguments provide interesting topics in consultations. Little support was found for any rational decision making behind the intention to reduce alcohol intake. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association.

Pros and cons of the liposome platform in cancer drug targeting.

PubMed

Gabizon, Alberto A; Shmeeda, Hilary; Zalipsky, Samuel

2006-01-01

Coating of liposomes with polyethylene-glycol (PEG) by incorporation in the liposome bilayer of PEG-derivatized lipids results in inhibition of liposome uptake by the reticulo-endothelial system and significant prolongation of liposome residence time in the blood stream. Parallel developments in drug loading technology have improved the efficiency and stability of drug entrapment in liposomes, particularly with regard to cationic amphiphiles such as anthracyclines. An example of this new generation of liposomes is a formulation of pegylated liposomal doxorubicin known as Doxil or Caelyx, whose clinical pharmacokinetic profile is characterized by slow plasma clearance and small volume of distribution. A hallmark of these long-circulating liposomal drug carriers is their enhanced accumulation in tumors. The mechanism underlying this passive targeting effect is the phenomenon known as enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) which has been described in a broad variety of experimental tumor types. Further to the passive targeting effect, the liposome drug delivery platform offers the possibility of grafting tumor-specific ligands on the liposome membrane for active targeting to tumor cells, and potentially intracellular drug delivery. The pros and cons of the liposome platform in cancer targeting are discussed vis-à-vis nontargeted drugs, using as an example a liposome drug delivery system targeted to the folate receptor.

Stimulus-category competition, inhibition, and affective devaluation: a novel account of the uncanny valley

PubMed Central

Ferrey, Anne E.; Burleigh, Tyler J.; Fenske, Mark J.

2015-01-01

Stimuli that resemble humans, but are not perfectly human-like, are disliked compared to distinctly human and non-human stimuli. Accounts of this “Uncanny Valley” effect often focus on how changes in human resemblance can evoke different emotional responses. We present an alternate account based on the novel hypothesis that the Uncanny Valley is not directly related to ‘human-likeness’ per se, but instead reflects a more general form of stimulus devaluation that occurs when inhibition is triggered to resolve conflict between competing stimulus-related representations. We consider existing support for this inhibitory-devaluation hypothesis and further assess its feasibility through tests of two corresponding predictions that arise from the link between conflict-resolving inhibition and aversive response: (1) that the pronounced disliking of Uncanny-type stimuli will occur for any image that strongly activates multiple competing stimulus representations, even in the absence of any human-likeness, and (2) that the negative peak of an ‘Uncanny Valley’ should occur at the point of greatest stimulus-related conflict and not (in the presence of human-likeness) always closer to the ‘human’ end of a perceptual continuum. We measured affective responses to a set of line drawings representing non-human animal–animal morphs, in which each continuum midpoint was a bistable image (Experiment 1), as well as to sets of human-robot and human-animal computer-generated morphs (Experiment 2). Affective trends depicting classic Uncanny Valley functions occurred for all continua, including the non-human stimuli. Images at continua midpoints elicited significantly more negative affect than images at endpoints, even when the continua included a human endpoint. This illustrates the feasibility of the inhibitory-devaluation hypothesis and the need for further research into the possibility that the strong dislike of Uncanny-type stimuli reflects the negative affective

Stimulus-category competition, inhibition, and affective devaluation: a novel account of the uncanny valley.

PubMed

Ferrey, Anne E; Burleigh, Tyler J; Fenske, Mark J

2015-01-01

Stimuli that resemble humans, but are not perfectly human-like, are disliked compared to distinctly human and non-human stimuli. Accounts of this "Uncanny Valley" effect often focus on how changes in human resemblance can evoke different emotional responses. We present an alternate account based on the novel hypothesis that the Uncanny Valley is not directly related to 'human-likeness' per se, but instead reflects a more general form of stimulus devaluation that occurs when inhibition is triggered to resolve conflict between competing stimulus-related representations. We consider existing support for this inhibitory-devaluation hypothesis and further assess its feasibility through tests of two corresponding predictions that arise from the link between conflict-resolving inhibition and aversive response: (1) that the pronounced disliking of Uncanny-type stimuli will occur for any image that strongly activates multiple competing stimulus representations, even in the absence of any human-likeness, and (2) that the negative peak of an 'Uncanny Valley' should occur at the point of greatest stimulus-related conflict and not (in the presence of human-likeness) always closer to the 'human' end of a perceptual continuum. We measured affective responses to a set of line drawings representing non-human animal-animal morphs, in which each continuum midpoint was a bistable image (Experiment 1), as well as to sets of human-robot and human-animal computer-generated morphs (Experiment 2). Affective trends depicting classic Uncanny Valley functions occurred for all continua, including the non-human stimuli. Images at continua midpoints elicited significantly more negative affect than images at endpoints, even when the continua included a human endpoint. This illustrates the feasibility of the inhibitory-devaluation hypothesis and the need for further research into the possibility that the strong dislike of Uncanny-type stimuli reflects the negative affective consequences of

SiNOI and AlGaAs-on-SOI nonlinear circuits for continuum generation in Si photonics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

El Dirani, Houssein; Monat, Christelle; Brision, Stéphane; Olivier, Nicolas; Jany, Christophe; Letartre, Xavier; Pu, Minhao; Girouard, Peter D.; Hagedorn Frandsen, Lars; Semenova, Elizaveta; Katsuo Oxenløwe, Leif; Yvind, Kresten; Sciancalepore, Corrado

2018-02-01

In this communication, we report on the design, fabrication, and testing of Silicon Nitride on Insulator (SiNOI) and Aluminum-Gallium-Arsenide (AlGaAs) on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) nonlinear photonic circuits for continuum generation in Silicon (Si) photonics. As recently demonstrated, the generation of frequency continua and supercontinua can be used to overcome the intrinsic limitations of nowadays silicon photonics notably concerning the heterogeneous integration of III-V on SOI lasers for datacom and telecom applications. By using the Kerr nonlinearity of monolithic silicon nitride and heterointegrated GaAs-based alloys on SOI, the generation of tens or even hundreds of new optical frequencies can be obtained in dispersion tailored waveguides, thus providing an all-optical alternative to the heterointegration of hundreds of standalone III-V on Si lasers. In our work, we present paths to energy-efficient continua generation on silicon photonics circuits. Notably, we demonstrate spectral broadening covering the full C-band via Kerrbased self-phase modulation in SiNOI nanowires featuring full process compatibility with Si photonic devices. Moreover, AlGaAs waveguides are heterointegrated on SOI in order to dramatically reduce (x1/10) thresholds in optical parametric oscillation and in the power required for supercontinuum generation under pulsed pumping. The manufacturing techniques allowing the monolithic co-integration of nonlinear functionalities on existing CMOS-compatible Si photonics for both active and passive components will be shown. Experimental evidence based on self-phase modulation show SiNOI and AlGaAs nanowires capable of generating wide-spanning frequency continua in the C-Band. This will pave the way for low-threshold power-efficient Kerr-based comb- and continuum- sources featuring compatibility with Si photonic integrated circuits (Si-PICs).

Dynamics of basaltic glass dissolution - Capturing microscopic effects in continuum scale models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aradóttir, E. S. P.; Sigfússon, B.; Sonnenthal, E. L.; Björnsson, G.; Jónsson, H.

2013-11-01

The method of 'multiple interacting continua' (MINC) was applied to include microscopic rate-limiting processes in continuum scale reactive transport models of basaltic glass dissolution. The MINC method involves dividing the system up to ambient fluid and grains, using a specific surface area to describe the interface between the two. The various grains and regions within grains can then be described by dividing them into continua separated by dividing surfaces. Millions of grains can thus be considered within the method without the need to explicity discretizing them. Four continua were used for describing a dissolving basaltic glass grain; the first one describes the ambient fluid around the grain, while the second, third and fourth continuum refer to a diffusive leached layer, the dissolving part of the grain and the inert part of the grain, respectively. The model was validated using the TOUGHREACT simulator and data from column flow through experiments of basaltic glass dissolution at low, neutral and high pH values. Successful reactive transport simulations of the experiments and overall adequate agreement between measured and simulated values provides validation that the MINC approach can be applied for incorporating microscopic effects in continuum scale basaltic glass dissolution models. Equivalent models can be used when simulating dissolution and alteration of other minerals. The study provides an example of how numerical modeling and experimental work can be combined to enhance understanding of mechanisms associated with basaltic glass dissolution. Column outlet concentrations indicated basaltic glass to dissolve stoichiometrically at pH 3. Predictive simulations with the developed MINC model indicated significant precipitation of secondary minerals within the column at neutral and high pH, explaining observed non-stoichiometric outlet concentrations at these pH levels. Clay, zeolite and hydroxide precipitation was predicted to be most abundant within

Worldwide Survey of Nonmedical Drug Use and Alcohol Use among Military Personnel: 1980.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-11-14

unlimited IS SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES Prepared with assistance of: Yukiko Carnies and Edward Farley 19. KEY WORDS (Continua on rovers* side It necea" and IdentIy...158 IV. ALCOHOL USE ................................. 161 Prevalence of Alcohol Use ..................... 161 Adverse Physiological Effects of...FURTHER RESEARCH REQUIRED ................... 276 Determine the Proportion of Servicemembers with Impaired Military Effectiveness ....... 276

An Alternative Grading Tool for Enhancing Assessment Practice and Quality Assurance in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grainger, Peter; Weir, Katie

2016-01-01

Assessing student learning in university courses is commonly done using a rubric that arranges the assessment criteria and standards descriptors in a matrix style or grid format. This paper introduces an alternative style of grading tool known as the continua model of a guide to making judgements, which arranges assessment criteria based on a…

Two-fluid models of turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spalding, D. B.

1985-01-01

The defects of turbulence models are summarized and the importance of so-called nongradient diffusion in turbulent fluxes is discussed. The mathematical theory of the flow of two interpenetrating continua is reviewed, and the mathematical formulation of the two fluid model is outlined. Results from plane wake, axisymmetric jet, and combustion studies are shown.

Surgical animal models of neuropathic pain: Pros and Cons.

PubMed

Challa, Siva Reddy

2015-03-01

One of the biggest challenges for discovering more efficacious drugs for the control of neuropathic pain has been the diversity of chronic pain states in humans. It is now acceptable that different mechanisms contribute to normal physiologic pain, pain arising from tissue damage and pain arising from injury to the nervous system. To study pain transmission, spot novel pain targets and characterize the potential analgesic profile of new chemical entities, numerous experimental animal pain models have been developed that attempt to simulate the many human pain conditions. Among the neuropathic pain models, surgical models have paramount importance in the induction of pain states. Many surgical animal models exist, like the chronic constriction injury (CCI) to the sciatic nerve, partial sciatic nerve ligation (pSNL), spinal nerve ligation (SNL), spared nerve injury (SNI), brachial plexus avulsion (BPA), sciatic nerve transaction (SNT) and sciatic nerve trisection. Most of these models induce responses similar to those found in causalgia, a syndrome of sustained burning pain often seen in the distal extremity after partial peripheral nerve injury in humans. Researchers most commonly use these surgical models in both rats and mice during drug discovery to screen new chemical entities for efficacy in the area of neuropathic pain. However, there is scant literature that provides a comparative discussion of all these surgical models. Each surgical model has its own benefits and limitations. It is very difficult for a researcher to choose a suitable surgical animal model to suit their experimental set-up. Therefore, particular attention has been given in this review to comparatively provide the pros and cons of each model of surgically induced neuropathic pain.

Pros and cons of circumcision: an evidence-based overview.

PubMed

Friedman, B; Khoury, J; Petersiel, N; Yahalomi, T; Paul, M; Neuberger, A

2016-09-01

Based on three large randomized controlled trials (RCTs) conducted in Africa, it can clearly be stated that circumcision lowers the risk of infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and some sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among males in settings of high HIV and STI endemicity. Similar effects on STI risk may exist for females, although this may result from an indirect effect of decreasing risk of infection among male partners. It is unknown whether circumcision prevents HIV acquisition in men who have sex with men (MSM), although there might be a protective effect for men who engage mainly in insertive anal intercourse. When the effects of adult circumcision on sexual function and satisfaction of men are examined, high-quality evidence strongly supports lack of harm. Whether circumcision alters sexual satisfaction of female partners is not known as fewer and smaller studies reported conflicting results. Circumcision rarely causes serious complications if practiced by trained practitioners, in a sterile setting, and with a proper follow-up. These conclusions are limited by the lack of high-quality data from areas outside of Africa. RCTs have not been conducted to assess the effects of circumcising infants or MSM. Circumcision has well-proven benefits for people residing in areas with high prevalence of STIs, including HIV, and is not unethical for those who choose to be circumcised or have their children circumcised on religious, social, or cultural grounds. For many others, a definite pro or con recommendation, based on a risk-benefit ratio, cannot be made. Copyright © 2016 European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Do maladaptive behaviors exist at one or both ends of personality traits?

PubMed

Pettersson, Erik; Mendle, Jane; Turkheimer, Eric; Horn, Erin E; Ford, Derek C; Simms, Leonard J; Clark, Lee Anna

2014-06-01

In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; American Psychiatric Association, 2013) personality disorder trait model, maladaptive behavior is located at one end of continuous scales. Widiger and colleagues, however, have argued that maladaptive behavior exists at both ends of trait continua. We propose that the role of evaluative variance differentiates these two perspectives and that once evaluation is isolated, maladaptive behaviors emerge at both ends of nonevaluative trait dimensions. In Study 1, we argue that evaluative variance is worthwhile to measure separately from descriptive content because it clusters items by valence regardless of content (e.g., lazy and workaholic; apathetic and anxious; gullible and paranoid; timid and hostile, etc.), which is unlikely to describe a consistent behavioral style. We isolate evaluation statistically (Study 2) and at the time of measurement (Study 3) to show that factors unrelated to valence evidence maladaptive behavior at both ends. We argue that nonevaluative factors, which display maladaptive behavior at both ends of continua, may better approximate ways in which individuals actually behave.

Complex I deficiency related to T10158C mutation ND3 gene: A further definition of the clinical spectrum.

PubMed

Grosso, Salvatore; Carluccio, Maria Alessandra; Cardaioli, Elena; Cerase, Alfonso; Malandrini, Alessandro; Romano, Chiara; Federico, Antonio; Dotti, Maria Teresa

2017-03-01

Complex I deficiency is the most common energy generation disorder which may clinically present at any age with a wide spectrum of symptoms and signs. The T10158C mutation ND3 gene is rare and occurs in patients showing an early rapid neurological deterioration invariably leading to death after a few months. We report a 9year-old boy with a mtDNA T10158C mutation showing a mild MELAS-like phenotype and brain MRI features congruent with both MELAS and Leigh syndrome. Epilepsia partialis continua also occurred in the clinical course and related to a mild cortical atrophy of the left perisylvian area. The present case confirms that the clinical spectrum of Complex I deficiency related to T10158C mutation ND3 gene is wider than previously described. Our observation further suggests that testing mutation in the MT-ND3 gene should be included in the diagnostic work-up of patients presenting with epilepsia partialis continua accompanied by suspicion of mitochondrial disorder. Copyright © 2016 The Japanese Society of Child Neurology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The dynamics of folding instability in a constrained Cosserat medium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gourgiotis, Panos A.; Bigoni, Davide

2017-04-01

Different from Cauchy elastic materials, generalized continua, and in particular constrained Cosserat materials, can be designed to possess extreme (near a failure of ellipticity) orthotropy properties and in this way to model folding in a three-dimensional solid. Following this approach, folding, which is a narrow zone of highly localized bending, spontaneously emerges as a deformation pattern occurring in a strongly anisotropic solid. How this peculiar pattern interacts with wave propagation in the time-harmonic domain is revealed through the derivation of an antiplane, infinite-body Green's function, which opens the way to integral techniques for anisotropic constrained Cosserat continua. Viewed as a perturbing agent, the Green's function shows that folding, emerging near a steadily pulsating source in the limit of failure of ellipticity, is transformed into a disturbance with wavefronts parallel to the folding itself. The results of the presented study introduce the possibility of exploiting constrained Cosserat solids for propagating waves in materials displaying origami patterns of deformation. This article is part of the themed issue 'Patterning through instabilities in complex media: theory and applications.'

Auditory phase and frequency discrimination: a comparison of nine procedures.

PubMed

Creelman, C D; Macmillan, N A

1979-02-01

Two auditory discrimination tasks were thoroughly investigated: discrimination of frequency differences from a sinusoidal signal of 200 Hz and discrimination of differences in relative phase of mixed sinusoids of 200 Hz and 400 Hz. For each task psychometric functions were constructed for three observers, using nine different psychophysical measurement procedures. These procedures included yes-no, two-interval forced-choice, and various fixed- and variable-standard designs that investigators have used in recent years. The data showed wide ranges of apparent sensitivity. For frequency discrimination, models derived from signal detection theory for each psychophysical procedure seem to account for the performance differences. For phase discrimination the models do not account for the data. We conclude that for some discriminative continua the assumptions of signal detection theory are appropriate, and underlying sensitivity may be derived from raw data by appropriate transformations. For other continua the models of signal detection theory are probably inappropriate; we speculate that phase might be discriminable only on the basis of comparison or change and suggest some tests of our hypothesis.

Military Compensation Alternatives for Retention of Officers in the Republic of Korea Army

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-06-01

Instunment Identification Number( if applicable) 8c Address ( city , state, and ZIP code) 10 Source of Funding Numbers Program Element No P roject Ne ITask...Strategic Studies, "The Military Balance 19S7 - 1988", London, IISS, 1988. pp. 162-165. North Korea persists in its efforts to modernize its large Armed...0.80 (2.34) 1983 5.780 (1.92) 5.443 (4.41) 0.94 (2.19) * Source : Charles Wolf, Jr., "The Changing Balance : South and North Korean Capa- bilities for

Molecular continua for polymeric liquids in large-amplitude oscillatory shear flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giacomin, A. Jeffrey; Saengow, Chaimongkol

2018-05-01

In this paper, we connect a molecular description of the rheology of a polymeric liquid to a continuum description, and then test this connection for large-amplitude oscillatory shear (LAOS) flow. Specifically, for the continuum description, we use the 6-constant Oldroyd framework, and for the molecular, we use the simplest relevant molecular model, the suspension of rigid dumbbells. By relevant, we mean predicting at least higher harmonics in the shear stress response in LAOS. We call this connection a molecular continuum, and we examine two ways of arriving at this connection. The first goes through the retarded motion expansion, and the second expands each of a set of specific material functions (complex, steady shear, and steady uniaxial extensional viscosities). Both ways involve in comparing the coefficients of expansions and then solve for the six constants of the continuum framework in terms of the two constants of the rigid dumbbell suspension. The purpose of a molecular continuum is that many well-known results for rigid dumbbell suspensions in other flow fields can also be easily obtained, without having to firstly find the orientation distribution function. In this paper, we focus on the recent result for the rigid dumbbell suspension in LAOS. We compare the accuracies of the retarded motion molecular continuum (RMMC) with the material function molecular continuum (MFMC). We find the RMMC to be the most accurate for LAOS.

Arab-American Hookah Smokers: Initiation, and Pros and Cons of Hookah Use.

PubMed

Kassem, Nada O F; Kassem, Noura O; Jackson, Sheila R; Daffa, Reem M; Liles, Sandy; Hovell, Melbourne F

2015-09-01

To examine initiation, pros and cons of hookah tobacco smoking among Arab Americans. In this descriptive cross-sectional study, we recruited a community-based convenience sample of 458 adult Arab-American hookah smokers, mean age 28.4 years, who completed self-administered questionnaires. Irrespective of sex, most participants initiated hookah tobacco use by young adulthood in private homes or hookah lounges influenced by friends and family. Women initiated hookah use later than men. Ever dual smokers (hookah smokers who ever smoked a cigarette) initiated hookah use later than cigarettes; however, early hookah initiators < 18 years initiated hookah and cigarettes concurrently. Participants enjoyed the flavors of hookah tobacco, and complained about coughing, dizziness, and headaches. Early and late initiation of hookah tobacco use warrant prevention programs targeting the youth and older adults in communities, colleges, and middle and high schools that include health education campaigns, and encouragement of voluntary smokefree home rules. Tobacco control policies aimed to prevent initiation of hookah use should include regulation of hookah tobacco flavors, and should target the physical environments in neighborhoods, especially around schools and colleges, to reduce the proliferation of hookah lounges. Dual hookah tobacco and cigarette use warrant continuous monitoring.

In vitro evolution of chemically-modified nucleic acid aptamers: Pros and cons, and comprehensive selection strategies.

PubMed

Lipi, Farhana; Chen, Suxiang; Chakravarthy, Madhuri; Rakesh, Shilpa; Veedu, Rakesh N

2016-12-01

Nucleic acid aptamers are single-stranded DNA or RNA oligonucleotide sequences that bind to a specific target molecule with high affinity and specificity through their ability to adopt 3-dimensional structure in solution. Aptamers have huge potential as targeted therapeutics, diagnostics, delivery agents and as biosensors. However, aptamers composed of natural nucleotide monomers are quickly degraded in vivo and show poor pharmacodynamic properties. To overcome this, chemically-modified nucleic acid aptamers are developed by incorporating modified nucleotides after or during the selection process by Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment (SELEX). This review will discuss the development of chemically-modified aptamers and provide the pros and cons, and new insights on in vitro aptamer selection strategies by using chemically-modified nucleic acid libraries.

In vitro evolution of chemically-modified nucleic acid aptamers: Pros and cons, and comprehensive selection strategies

PubMed Central

Chen, Suxiang; Chakravarthy, Madhuri; Rakesh, Shilpa; Veedu, Rakesh N.

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT Nucleic acid aptamers are single-stranded DNA or RNA oligonucleotide sequences that bind to a specific target molecule with high affinity and specificity through their ability to adopt 3-dimensional structure in solution. Aptamers have huge potential as targeted therapeutics, diagnostics, delivery agents and as biosensors. However, aptamers composed of natural nucleotide monomers are quickly degraded in vivo and show poor pharmacodynamic properties. To overcome this, chemically-modified nucleic acid aptamers are developed by incorporating modified nucleotides after or during the selection process by Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment (SELEX). This review will discuss the development of chemically-modified aptamers and provide the pros and cons, and new insights on in vitro aptamer selection strategies by using chemically-modified nucleic acid libraries. PMID:27715478

IRAS observations of radio-quiet and radio-loud quasars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neugebauer, G.; Soifer, B. T.; Miley, G.; Habing, H. J.; Young, E.; Low, F. J.; Beichman, C. A.; Clegg, P. E.; Harris, S.; Rowan-Robinson, M.

1984-01-01

Observations from 12 to 100 microns are presented of two radio-quiet and three radio-loud quasars. Over this wavelength range, all five have grossly similar continuum energy distributions. The continua of the radio-loud quasars are consistent with synchrotron radiation. There is an indication, however, of excess 100 micron emission in the two radio-quiet quasars.

Developmental Role of Static, Dynamic, and Contextual Cues in Speech Perception

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hicks, Candace Bourland; Ohde, Ralph N.

2005-01-01

The purpose of the current study was to examine the role of syllable duration context as well as static and dynamic acoustic properties in child and adult speech perception. Ten adults and eleven 4?5-year-old children identified a syllable as [ba] or [wa] (stop-glide contrast) in 3 conditions differing in synthetic continua. The 1st condition…

Simple Shear Response of a Hyperelastic Dielectric Media Revisited

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-09-01

of continua. 2nd ed. New York: Krieger ; 1980. 2. Ani W, Maugin GA. Basic equations for shocks in nonlinear electroelastic materials. J Acoust. Soc...US ARMY ARDEC E BAKER 3 (PDF) US ARMY RSRCH OFC R ANTHENIEN J MYERS D STEPP 1 (PDF) UNIV OF MD COLLEGE PARK P CHUNG 4 (PDF) JOHNS HOPKINS UNIV L

Pros and cons of BCG vaccination in countries with low incidence of tuberculosis.

PubMed

Tala, E O; Tala-Heikkilä, M M

1994-07-01

Preventive bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination, together with case finding and effective chemotherapy, has formed an integral part of the tuberculosis (TB) control program in most countries. In some low-incidence countries the balance of prevention has been more on the side of chemoprophylaxis than of BCG vaccination. The time clearly has come when the strategy of mass BCG vaccination no longer is indicated medically, nor is it cost-effective. The pros and cons of the programs need to be critically evaluated against the present epidemiological background, taking into account the facts that TB, the killer disease, is recovering strength, human immunodeficiency virus infection is on the increase, and multidrug-resistant TB has changed the outcome of this previously fully curable disease. Although no longer appropriate for mass programs, BCG vaccination still should be considered for the protection of selected risk groups in low-incidence countries. The overall efficacy may be of the order 50% to 80%, but the variation is great. Therefore, further research urgently is needed on the effectiveness of BCG as an intervention in local TB programs.

Unveiling aerosol-cloud interactions - Part 1: Cloud contamination in satellite products enhances the aerosol indirect forcing estimate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Christensen, Matthew W.; Neubauer, David; Poulsen, Caroline A.; Thomas, Gareth E.; McGarragh, Gregory R.; Povey, Adam C.; Proud, Simon R.; Grainger, Roy G.

2017-11-01

Increased concentrations of aerosol can enhance the albedo of warm low-level cloud. Accurately quantifying this relationship from space is challenging due in part to contamination of aerosol statistics near clouds. Aerosol retrievals near clouds can be influenced by stray cloud particles in areas assumed to be cloud-free, particle swelling by humidification, shadows and enhanced scattering into the aerosol field from (3-D radiative transfer) clouds. To screen for this contamination we have developed a new cloud-aerosol pairing algorithm (CAPA) to link cloud observations to the nearest aerosol retrieval within the satellite image. The distance between each aerosol retrieval and nearest cloud is also computed in CAPA. Results from two independent satellite imagers, the Advanced Along-Track Scanning Radiometer (AATSR) and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), show a marked reduction in the strength of the intrinsic aerosol indirect radiative forcing when selecting aerosol pairs that are located farther away from the clouds (-0.28±0.26 W m-2) compared to those including pairs that are within 15 km of the nearest cloud (-0.49±0.18 W m-2). The larger aerosol optical depths in closer proximity to cloud artificially enhance the relationship between aerosol-loading, cloud albedo, and cloud fraction. These results suggest that previous satellite-based radiative forcing estimates represented in key climate reports may be exaggerated due to the inclusion of retrieval artefacts in the aerosol located near clouds.

Estudio de la influencia de la refrigeracion con aire de forma natural e inducida en el comportamiento de instalaciones fotovoltaicas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mazon Hernandez, Rocio

panels are analysed to compare and select the best configuration. The presented research provides a deep knowledge of how they work as well as information and results for an improvement in future designs of building integrated photovoltaic systems. Este estudio se centra en analizar la influencia negativa de la temperatura en la produccion electrica de paneles fotovoltaicos al estar emplazados sobre cubierta de acero, como sucede en naves industriales y sobre un invernadero. Se estudian diferentes configuraciones que permitan refrigerar los paneles, reduciendo su temperatura y mejorar su rendimiento. Para abordar este problema, se han construido dos instalaciones experimentales, fieles a plantas solares en funcionamiento. Una instalacion engloba dos paneles fotovoltaicos sobre estructura fija al suelo. Uno de los paneles esta integrado sobre una superficie paralela y metalica. Entre ambas superficies existe un espacio que posibilita circular aire, permitiendo refrigerar el panel por conveccion natural, o conveccion forzada impulsando el aire con un ventilador. El otro panel, libre por su cara posterior y se ha considerado de referencia. Se ha estudiado el comportamiento del panel integrado sobre cubierta para diferentes secciones de aire y velocidades inducidas, comparandolo con el panel de referencia. Se ha desarrollado un modelo experimental que nos permite determinar la temperatura del panel en funcion de las variables que influyen en su refrigeracion. Adicionalmente, se han analizado los datos de una planta solar en funcionamiento, con paneles de igual caracteristicas, obteniendo correlaciones entre la temperatura del panel y las variables electricas y comparandolos con las obtenidas en la instalacion experimental. La segunda instalacion experimental reproduce parte de una instalacion solar sobre un invernadero, formada por cuatro paneles fotovoltaicos colocados sobre el plastico del invernadero, existiendo un canal divergente entre ambas superficies. Se estudia la

The soil-water balance simulations of a grassland in response to CO2, rainfall, and biodiversity manipulations at BioCON

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flinker, R. H.; Cardenas, M.; Caldwell, T. G.; Rich, R.; Reich, P.

2013-12-01

The BioCON (Biodiversity, CO2 and N) experiment has been continuously running since 1997. Operated by the University of Minnesota and located within the Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve in Minnesota, USA, BioCON is a Free-Air CO2 Enrichment (FACE) experiment that investigates plant community response to three key environmental variables: nitrogen, atmospheric CO2 and biodiversity. More recently rainfall exclusion and temperature manipulation were added to the experiment which amounts to 371 plots. The site attempts to replicate predicted average temperature increases and a northern shift of plant species and any associated consequences. FACE experiments have been conducted for a number of years in different countries, but the focus has generally been on how plant communities, soil respiration and microbes respond. Minimal work has been focused on the hydrologic aspects of these experiments which are potentially valuable for investigating global warming effects on local and plot-scale ecohydrology. Thus, the objective of this work is to characterize and model unsaturated flow for different CO2 and rainfall treatments in order to see how they affect soil moisture dynamics and groundwater recharge on grasslands of central Minnesota. Our study focuses on simulating soil moisture dynamics in eighteen of the BioCON plots: six bare plots with regular rainfall regimes (zero plant species, three plots with elevated atmospheric CO2 levels), six regular rainfall regimes (nine plant species, three plots with elevated atmospheric CO2 levels) and six reduced rainfall regimes (nine plant species, three plots with elevated atmospheric CO2 levels). The Simultaneous Heat and Water (SHAW) model, which solves the Richards equation for unsaturated zone water flow coupled to a comprehensive energy balance model, was parameterized with a combination of field and lab estimates of soil properties. Field estimates of saturated hydraulic conductivity using tension infiltrometers ranged

Very High Speed Integrated Circuits - VHSIC - Final Program Repoort

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-09-30

emphasis ill ordeFr to (U hieci’ the i/ urease (I mIliitdF capa)(bility L’XI)L’t(’d /)1omn its resiuIh x.’ -Ricluard J). [)ehaitr. Undicer Sec reta/vy...Many new and difficult fabrication problems had to be solved, especially in the areas of silicon substrate material, fine-line lithography, multi- layer ...toward submicron geometries, even in the commercial world ." "Among the technical breakthrou hs spawned by VHSIC is the use of multiple layers of wetal

A Study of the Failure of Joints in Composite Material Fuel Cells Due to Hydraulic Ram Loading

DTIC Science & Technology

1976-06-01

H co PSw Z QW <H W CO 33 PS4 o CO O CM \\ Q> 00 vO m CO CM N ra Figure VI.B.l THICKNESS MODEL 55 it acts upon on the membrane, gives the force to be...ability of the joint to carry the loads created by hydraulic ram loading. It would also make the manufacturing procedure easier, less time consuming , and...70 less expensive. Cutting holes and channels in a composite plate not only alters the behavior and load carrying capa- bility of the plate, but it is

Responses of urban crows to con- and hetero-specific alarm calls in predator and non-predator zoo enclosures.

PubMed

Bílá, Kateřina; Beránková, Jana; Veselý, Petr; Bugnyar, Thomas; Schwab, Christine

2017-01-01

Urban animals and birds in particular are able to cope with diverse novel threats in a city environment such as avoiding novel, unfamiliar predators. Predator avoidance often includes alarm signals that can be used also by hetero-specifics, which is mainly the case in mixed-species flocks. It can also occur when species do not form flocks but co-occur together. In this study we tested whether urban crows use alarm calls of conspecifics and hetero-specifics (jackdaws, Corvus monedula) differently in a predator and a non-predator context with partly novel and unfamiliar zoo animal species. Birds were tested at the Tiergarten Schönbrunn in the city of Vienna by playing back con- and hetero-specific alarm calls and control stimuli (great tit song and no stimuli) at predator (wolf, polar bear) and non-predator (eland antelope and cranes, peccaries) enclosures. We recorded responses of crows as the percentage of birds flying away after hearing the playback (out of those present before the playback) and as the number of vocalizations given by the present birds. A significantly higher percentage of crows flew away after hearing either con- or hetero-specific alarm calls, but it did not significantly differ between the predator and the non-predator context. Crows treated jackdaw calls just as crow calls, indicating that they make proper use of hetero-specific alarm calls. Responding similarly in both contexts may suggest that the crows were uncertain about the threat a particular zoo animal represents and were generally cautious. In the predator context, however, a high percentage of crows also flew away upon hearing the great tit control song which suggests that they may still evaluate those species which occasionally killed crows as more dangerous and respond to any conspicuous sound.

The Pros And Cons Of Various Optical Media For The Soldier's Interfacility Radiographic Record (SIRR) In The Combat Casualty Care System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kerlin, Barbara D.; Johnson, William P.

1989-05-01

Ongoing research and evaluation projects sponsored by the Army Medical Research and Development Command are leading towards filmless radiography in the combat casualty care system of the 1990s. With the elimination of film, the question arises as to the most appropriate medium for archiving and transporting x-ray images and related patient data with the wounded between facilities. This paper considers the pros and cons of the various candidate media in relation to their specifications, availability, and appropriateness under simulated combat casualty care conditions.

Project "Convective Wind Gusts" (ConWinG)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mohr, Susanna; Richter, Alexandra; Kunz, Michael; Ruck, Bodo

2017-04-01

Convectively-driven strong winds usually associated with thunderstorms frequently cause substantial damage to buildings and other structures in many parts of the world. Decisive for the high damage potential are the short-term wind speed maxima with duration of a few seconds, termed as gusts. Several studies have shown that convectively-driven gusts can reach even higher wind speeds compared to turbulent gusts associated with synoptic-scale weather systems. Due to the small-scale and non-stationary nature of convective wind gusts, there is a considerable lack of knowledge regarding their characteristics and statistics. Furthermore, their interaction with urban structures and their influence on buildings is not yet fully understood. For these two reasons, convective wind events are not included in the present wind load standards of buildings and structures, which so far have been based solely on the characteristics of synoptically-driven wind gusts in the near-surface boundary layer (e. g., DIN EN 1991-1-4:2010-12; ASCE7). However, convective and turbulent gusts differ considerably, e.g. concerning vertical wind-speed profiles, gust factors (i.e., maximum to mean wind speed), or exceedance probability curves. In an effort to remedy this situation, the overarching objective of the DFG-project "Convective Wind Gusts" (ConWinG) is to investigate the characteristics and statistics of convective gusts as well as their interaction with urban structures. Based on a set of 110 climate stations of the German Weather Service (DWD) between 1992 and 2014, we analyzed the temporal and spatial distribution, intensity, and occurrence probability of convective gusts. Similar to thunderstorm activity, the frequency of convective gusts decreases gradually from South to North Germany. A relation between gust intensity/probability to orography or climate conditions cannot be identified. Rather, high wind speeds, e.g., above 30 m/s, can be expected everywhere in Germany with almost

Food for thought: a pilot study of the pros and cons of changing eating patterns within cognitive-behavioural therapy for the eating disorders.

PubMed

Waller, Glenn; Evans, Jane; Pugh, Matthew

2013-09-01

Evidence-based cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) for the eating disorders has an early focus on behavioural changes around food intake. However, patients' anxiety around such change might account for why they often seem unmotivated in treatment. In order to determine the impact of changing intake, this pilot study of patients with bulimic disorders (N = 19) or anorexia nervosa (N = 9) used a mixed quantitative and qualitative design to retrospectively examine their perspectives of the short- and long-term pros and cons of such change. As expected, change was seen negatively in the short-term (with particularly high numbers reporting anxiety), but there were few reports of long-term negative outcomes. In contrast, there were both short- and long-term benefits of changing eating. The patients described what was helpful in making changes and what they had learned as a result. In both cases, their descriptions mapped closely onto the content and process of evidence-based CBT for the eating disorders. Although there is a need for more extensive research, these findings suggest that patients (and therapists) might benefit from being aware of the contrast between the short- and the long-term pros and cons of changing eating within CBT for the eating disorders. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

FACTORES SOCIO-ESTRUCTURALES Y EL ESTIGMA HACIA EL VIH/SIDA: EXPERIENCIAS DE PUERTORRIQUEÑOS/AS CON VIH/SIDA AL ACCEDER SERVICIOS DE SALUD

PubMed Central

RIVERA-DIAZ, MARINILDA; VARAS-DIAZ, NELSON; REYES-ESTRADA, MARCOS; SURO, BEATRIZ; CORIANO, DORALIS

2013-01-01

RESUMEN El estigma relacionado al VIH/SIDA continúa afectando la prestación de servicios de salud y el bienestar físico y mental de las personas con VIH/SIDA (PVS). Recientemente la literatura científica ha señalado la importancia de comprender las manifestaciones de estigma más allá de las interacciones individuales. Por tal razón, investigaciones recientes en y fuera de Puerto Rico enfatizan la importancia de entender cómo factores socio-estructurales (FSE) influyen en los procesos de estigmatización social. Con el propósito de examinar los FSE que influyen en las manifestaciones de estigma relacionado al VIH/SIDA, realizamos y analizamos nueve grupos focales compuestos por hombres y mujeres en tratamiento para el VIH/SIDA que habían tenido experiencias estigmatizantes. Los participantes identificaron FSE relacionados a las manifestaciones de estigma, tales como el uso de viviendas especializadas, descentralización de los servicios de salud y el desarrollo de protocolos administrativos excluyentes en los servicios de salud. Los resultados demuestran la importancia de considerar los FSE en el desarrollo e implementación de intervenciones dirigidas a la población. PMID:24639599

Sequías Hidrológicas en la República Argentina y su relación con Variables Macroclimáticas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Díaz, Erica Betiana

2016-07-01

Una adecuada planificación y gestión requiere un conocimiento de la distribución temporal y espacial de los recursos hídricos. Una amenaza que afecta al desarrollo y aprovechamiento de los recursos hídricos, y para las cuales la ingeniería debe dar soluciones, son las situaciones de extremos hidrológicos como inundaciones o sequías. Siendo estas últimas un fenómeno hidrológico extremo de gran complejidad del cual aún se conoce poco. Con el objetivo de identificar y caracterizar temporal y espacialmente las sequías hidrológicas en Argentina, esta tesis abordó en primera instancia, la identificación y caracterización de sequías desde el punto de vista hidrológico, abarcando el mayor período de tiempo y espacio, en función de los datos de caudales disponibles. Con el fin de predecir eventos plurianuales de sequías hidrológicas en el mediano y largo plazo se generaron, a través del análisis espectral y armónico de las series históricas de caudales observados, series sintéticas que reproducen las componentes periódicas plurianuales más significativas de las series observadas. Además, para lograr un avance en el conocimiento de los fenómenos climáticos que conducen a las sequías hidrológicas, se identificaron las variables macroclimáticas que tienen una mayor correlación con los caudales escurridos en las distintas cuencas. Esta tesis comprende el estudio de 14 cuencas hidrográficas argentinas, pertenecientes a los ríos Colorado, Mendoza, San Juan, Atuel, Ctalamochita, Anizacate, Xanaes, Suquía, Dulce, Juramento, Salado, Paraná, Bermejo y Pilcomayo. Los resultados a los que se abordaron en esta tesis son de relevancia para la gestión de los recursos hídricos ya que usos tales como el abastecimiento humano, el riego y la producción energética, entre otros, pueden ser seriamente afectados por la ocurrencia de manera simultánea de sequías severas en cuencas que aportan a una región y zonas vecinas.

Himasthla escamosa n. sp. (Digenea: Echinostomatidae) from the kelp gull, Larus dominicanus (Charadriiformes: Laridae), on the Patagonian coast, Argentina.

PubMed

Diaz, Julia I; Cremonte, Florencia

2004-04-01

In this article, we describe a new species of Himasthla Dietz, 1909 (Digenea: Echinostomatidae) from Larus dominicanus Lichtenstein (Aves: Laridae) in northern Patagonia, Argentina. We also describe the hosts, localities, and key diagnostic features and the measurements of the so far 25 described species. Of these species. Himasthla militaris, H. leptosoma, H. elongata, H. secunda, H. megacotyla, H. multilecithosa, H. piscicola, H. compacta, H. schachtachtinskoi, H. littorinae, H. continua, H. avosettae, and H. interrupta are similar to H. escamosa n. sp. in having 29 head collar spines. Himasthla leptosoma, H. piscicola, H. multilecithosa, H. interrupta, H. continua, and H. militaris can be differentiated from the new species mainly by the extension of the vitellaria. Himasthla avosettae, H. megacotyla, H. elongata, H. compacta, and H. littorinae have a different size or arrangement (or both) of head collar spines compared with H. escamosa. Himasthla secunda can be distinguished from H. escamosa n. sp. in having a larger body, testes, and ovary and a different position of the ovary. The comparison with H. schachtachtinskoi could not be done because the bibliography was not available. This is the first record of the genus in Argentina and from L. dominicanus.

Electron-ion continuum-continuum mixing in dissociative recombination

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Guberman, Steven L.

1993-01-01

In recent calculations on the dissociative recombination (DR) of the v=1 vibrational level of the ground state of N2(+), N2(+)(v=1) + e(-) yields N + N, we have observed an important continuun-continuum mixing process involving the open channels on both sides of N2(+)(v=1) + e(-) yields N2(+)(v=0) + e(-). In vibrational relaxation by electron impact (immediately above) the magnitude of the cross section depends upon the strength of the interaction between these continua. In DR of the v=1 ion level, these continua can also interact in the entrance channel, and the mixing can have a profound effect upon the DR cross section from v=1, as we illustrate in this paper. In our theoretical calculations of N2(+) DR using multichannel quantum defect theory (MQDT), the reactants and products in the two above equations are described simultaneously. This allows us to calculate vibrational relaxation and excitation cross sections as well as DR cross sections. In order to understand the mixing described above, we first present a brief review of the prior results for DR of the v=0 level of N2(+).

Information technology as a tool for the Italian Institute of Social Security (INPS) in the management of social security and civil disability: Pro and cons.

PubMed

Sammicheli, Michele; Scaglione, Marcella

2018-01-01

We examine, from a medical-legal perspective, the pro and cons of the information technology procedures that the Italian Institute of Social Security (INPS) has implemented to manage the provision of social disability assistance, meaning that separate from the payment of pension contributions, being welfare, anchored to an administrative requirement by way of the compulsory payment of a minimum social security contribution.

CAPA-gene products in the haematophagous sandfly Phlebotomus papatasi (Scopoli) - Vector for leishmaniasis disease

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sandflies (Phlebotominae, Nematocera, Diptera) are responsible for transmission of leishmaniasis and other protozoan-borne diseases in humans, and these insects depend on the regulation of water balance to cope with the sudden and enormous intake of blood over a very short time period. The sandfly ...

Breast feeding basic competence in primary care: Development and validation of the CAPA questionnaire.

PubMed

Pol-Pons Rn Ibclc, Anna; Aubanell-Serra ScB, Mercè; Vidal Rn, Mireia; Ojeda-Ciurana Rn, Imma; Martí-Lluch PhD, Ruth; Ponjoan PhD, Anna

2016-11-01

validated and reliable tools measuring the level of competence about breastfeeding amongst health professionals who attend mothers in primary care are scarce. to develop and validate a self-administered online questionnaire to assess basic competence about breastfeeding in the full range of health professionals attending lactating mothers in primary care. methodological study. the study was conducted in 33 primary care centers administered by the Catalan Health Institute (Institut Català de la Salut) in the Girona Region (northeast Spain). the questionnaire was sent to 398 health professionals who were likely to be in contact with breast feeding mothers. We included midwives, general practitioners, pediatric nurses (who provide care for children from birth to 14 years old), non-pediatric nurses (who provide care for patients older than 14 year), pediatricians, and gynecologists. The random sampling was stratified by discipline to ensure representativeness. the development and validation of the self-administered online questionnaire had five phases: (1) literature review, preparation of a draft for evaluation by an expert panel and pilot study; (2) design of a questionnaire based on observations from Phase 1; (3) questionnaire administration to a random sample of 398 health professionals, stratified by discipline; (4) re-testing after four weeks; and (5) assessment of construct validity using factor analysis and hypothesis-testing, comparing scores between professional groups and estimating effect size. Internal consistency was assessed by Cronbach alpha and reproducibility by the intraclass correlation coefficient. The response rate was 69.3%. The final version of the questionnaire has 24 items. The uni-dimensionality of the questionnaire was confirmed by the factor analysis. The score differed significantly between professional groups (F=12.904; p<0.001), among whom midwives achieved the highest score (129±10 points) and non-pediatric nurses the lowest (111±14 points).The effect sized values ranged from 0.6 and 1.5. Cronbach alpha was 0.870 (95% CI: 0.847, 0.891) and intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.856 (95%CI: 0.817, 0.888). this is a valid and reliable questionnaire to assess a basic level of competence about breast feeding among primary care professionals involved in supporting breast-feeding mothers. This questionnaire may help to identify health professionals who require support to improve their capability to manage women who are breast feeding. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Shared governance: time to consider the cons as well as the pros.

PubMed

Gavin, M; Ash, D; Wakefield, S; Wroe, C

1999-07-01

This paper aims to provide a critical appraisal of an approach to the management and organization of nursing work known as shared governance (SG). This approach has its origins in the USA, where, during the past 20 years it has become increasingly influential. The advocates of SG claim that it can, inter alia, improve recruitment and retention rates, boost morale, and help raise clinical skills. Little wonder that SG in now beginning to make significant inroads into the NHS. ORIGIN OF INFORMATION: However, a trawl through the extensive US literature, using printed and online (e.g. BIDS, CINHAL, MEDLINE, etc.) bibliographical sources, suggests that the claimed benefits of SG should be treated with caution. Much of the existing published research appears to be both methodologically flawed and lacking in any critical edge. While many researchers and commentators appear only too willing to highlight what they see as the promise of SG, they shy away from exploring any potential pitfalls. One consequence of this is that many of the putative benefits SG is said to confer, may in fact be more apparent than real. Nurses and nurse managers need to be apprised of and consider seriously, the possible cons as well as the potential pros of SG, if any promise it may have is to be realized.

Spectrophotometry of Peculiar B-Stars and A-Stars - Part Nine - HD5797 HD12288 9-TAURI HD81009 HD111133 33-LIBRAE and HD216533

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adelman, S. J.

1981-02-01

Optical region spectrophotometry of λλ3300-7100 is presented for seven sharp-lined peculiar A stars: HD 5797, HD 12288, 9 Tauri, HD 81009, HD 111133, 33 Librae, and HD 216533. Many of proposed periods in the literature are questioned. Some of the deviations from the predictions of normal stellar atmospheres suggest that such continua are only remotely related to those of peculiar A stars.

Events at blood collection area due to nonconforming blood bags and plateletpheresis kits: need for timely corrective and preventive actions.

PubMed

Verma, Anupam; Sachan, Deepti; Elhence, Priti; Pandey, Hem; Dubey, Anju

2012-07-01

Good blood banking practice requires that every effort should be made to detect any deviation or defect in blood bank products and to identify any potential risk to blood donor or recipient(s). We report the findings of an exercise that provide an insight into why feedback from the user side is crucial. Various events involving blood bags and plateletpheresis kits and the corresponding appropriate actions instituted for remedial measures were recorded. These scattered events were recorded for 6 months following the use of a new batch of improved blood bags with add-on features. Several events related to plateletpheresis kits from three different manufacturers were also recorded for 1 year. The affected blood bags were utilized with no untoward incident. The complaint was closed following satisfactory response from the blood bag manufacturing company that acted in a timely manner in addressing the root causes of the problems. However, corrective and preventive actions (CAPA) could not be implemented for plateletpheresis kits. The rate of undesirable events was higher with plateletpheresis kits as compared with whole blood bags (1.75% vs. 0.06%). As defects or deviations that trigger the need for CAPA can stem from numerous sources, it is important to clearly identify and document the problems and level of risk so that appropriate investigations can be instituted and remedial actions can be taken in a timely manner. This study demonstrates the usefulness of a quality initiative to collate and analyze blood product faults in conjunction with blood product manufacturers. © 2012 American Association of Blood Banks.

The shrunken pore syndrome is associated with declined right ventricular systolic function in a heart failure population - the HARVEST study.

PubMed

Christensson, Anders; Grubb, Anders; Molvin, John; Holm, Hannes; Gransbo, Klas; Tasevska-Dinevska, Gordana; Bachus, Erasmus; Jujic, Amra; Magnusson, Martin

2016-11-01

The close relationship between heart and kidney diseases was studied with respect to the 'Shrunken pore syndrome' that is characterized by a difference in renal filtration between cystatin C and creatinine. Patients were retrieved from the HeARt and brain failure inVESTigation trail (HARVEST) which is an ongoing study undertaken in individuals hospitalized for the diagnosis of heart failure. Ninety-five of 116 patients who underwent transthoracic echocardiograms (TTE) were eligible for this study. We used four different formulas for estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR); CKD-EPI creatinine , CKD-EPI cystatin C , LMrev and CAPA. Presence of the syndrome was defined as eGFR cystatin C  ≤ 60% of eGFR creatinine and absence of the syndrome as eGFR cystatin C  >90% and <110% of eGFR creatinine . In a linear regression model, adjusted for age and sex, and the 'Shrunken pore syndrome' defined by the equation pair CAPA and LMrev and the equation pair CKD-EPI cystatin C and CKD-EPI creatinine, echocardiographic parameters were studied. The 'Shrunken pore syndrome' showed statistically significant associations with measurements of right ventricular (RV) systolic function; (TAPSE and RV S') (according to the equation pair CKD-EPI cystatin C and CKD-EPI creatinine ). In conclusion, heart failure patients with the 'Shrunken pore syndrome' are at increased risk of having RV systolic dysfunction whilst heart failure patients without 'Shrunken pore syndrome' seem protected. These findings may indicate common pathophysiological events in the kidneys and the heart explaining the observed increased risk of mortality in subjects with the 'Shrunken pore syndrome'.

An astrophysics data program investigation of a synoptic study of quasar continua

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Elvis, Martin

1991-01-01

A summary of the program is presented. The major product of the program, an atlas of quasar energy distributions, is presented in the appendices along with papers written as a result of this research. The topics covered in the papers include: (1) accurate galactic N(sub h) values toward quasars and active galactic nuclei (AGN); (2) weak bump quasars; (3) millimeter measurements of hard x ray selected active galaxies- implications for the nature of the continuous spectrum; (3) persistence and change in the soft x ray spectrum of the quasar PG1211+143; (4) the soft x ray excess in einstein quasar spectra; and (5) EXOSAT x ray spectra of quasars.

Magnons and continua in a magnetized and dimerized spin - 1 2 chain

DOE PAGES

Stone, M. B.; Chen, Y.; Reich, D. H.; ...

2014-09-29

We examine the magnetic field dependent excitations of the dimerized spin -1/2 chain, copper nitrate, with antiferromagnetic intra-dimer exchangemore » $$J_1=0.44$$ (1) meV and exchange alternation $$\\alpha=J_2/J_1=0.26$$ (2). Magnetic excitations in three distinct regimes of magnetization are probed through inelastic neutron scattering at low temperatures. At low and high fields there are three and two long-lived magnon-like modes, respectively. The number of modes and the anti-phase relationship between the wave-vector dependent energy and intensity of magnon scattering reflect the distinct ground states: A singlet ground state at low fields $$\\mu_0H < \\mu_0H_{c1} = 2.8$$ T and an $$S_z=1/2$$ product state at high fields $$\\mu_0H > \\mu_0H_{c2} = 4.2$$ T. Lastly, in the intermediate field regime, a continuum of scattering for $$\\hbar\\omega\\approx J_1$$ is indicative of a strongly correlated gapless quantum state without coherent magnons.« less

Autophagic Mechanism in Anti-Cancer Immunity: Its Pros and Cons for Cancer Therapy

PubMed Central

Li, Ying-Ying; Feun, Lynn G.; Thongkum, Angkana; Tu, Chiao-Hui; Chen, Shu-Mei; Wangpaichitr, Medhi; Wu, Chunjing; Kuo, Macus T.; Savaraj, Niramol

2017-01-01

Autophagy, a self-eating machinery, has been reported as an adaptive response to maintain metabolic homeostasis when cancer cells encounter stress. It has been appreciated that autophagy acts as a double-edge sword to decide the fate of cancer cells upon stress factors, molecular subtypes, and microenvironmental conditions. Currently, the majority of evidence support that autophagy in cancer cells is a vital mechanism bringing on resistance to current and prospective treatments, yet whether autophagy affects the anticancer immune response remains unclear and controversial. Accumulated studies have demonstrated that triggering autophagy is able to facilitate anticancer immunity due to an increase in immunogenicity, whereas other studies suggested that autophagy is likely to disarm anticancer immunity mediated by cytotoxic T cells and nature killer (NK) cells. Hence, this contradiction needs to be elucidated. In this review, we discuss the role of autophagy in cancer cells per se and in cancer microenvironment as well as its dual regulatory roles in immune surveillance through modulating presentation of tumor antigens, development of immune cells, and expression of immune checkpoints. We further focus on emerging roles of autophagy induced by current treatments and its impact on anticancer immune response, and illustrate the pros and cons of utilizing autophagy in cancer immunotherapy based on preclinical references. PMID:28629173

Peritoneal culture alters Streptococcus pneumoniae protein profiles and virulence properties

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Orihuela, C. J.; Janssen, R.; Robb, C. W.; Watson, D. A.; Niesel, D. W.

2000-01-01

We have examined the properties of Streptococcus pneumoniae cultured in the murine peritoneal cavity and compared its virulence-associated characteristics to those of cultures grown in vitro. Analysis of mRNA levels for specific virulence factors demonstrated a 2.8-fold increase in ply expression and a 2.2-fold increase in capA3 expression during murine peritoneal culture (MPC). Two-dimensional gels and immunoblots using convalescent-phase patient sera and murine sera revealed distinct differences in protein production in vivo (MPC). MPC-grown pneumococci adhered to A549 epithelial cell lines at levels 10-fold greater than those cultured in vitro.

Effect of PGE2 on thymocyte proliferation induced by Con A or IL-4 + PMA.

PubMed

Daculsi, R; Vaillier, D; Bezian, J H; Gualde, N

1993-02-01

Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) is known to inhibit peripheral T-lymphocyte and thymocyte proliferation activated by antigens, mitogens or anti-CD3 antibodies. In this study, we have investigated, the effect of PGE2 on thymocyte proliferation induced by the combination of IL-4 plus PMA. PGE2 inhibits the proliferation of thymocytes activated by ConA, whatever the culture period; in contrast PGE2 shifts the kinetics of thymocyte proliferation after stimulation by IL-4 plus PMA, but does not sustain the proliferation beyond day 3. This effect depends upon cell density, IL-4 concentration and on the time that PGE2 is added to the culture. By use of the cAMP inducer, forskolin, or a cAMP analog, db-cAMP, we observed the same results, PGE2 increases the proliferation of CD8+ corticoresistant thymocytes (CRT) activated by IL-4 plus PMA, but inhibits that of CD4+ CRT. These results suggest that PGE2 can regulate thymocyte proliferation differently according to the activation pathway and the thymic subpopulations.

Halving the Volume of AnaConDa: Evaluation of a New Small-Volume Anesthetic Reflector in a Test Lung Model.

PubMed

Bomberg, Hagen; Meiser, Franziska; Daume, Philipp; Bellgardt, Martin; Volk, Thomas; Sessler, Daniel I; Groesdonk, Heinrich V; Meiser, Andreas

2018-05-21

Volatile anesthetics are increasingly used for sedation in intensive care units. The most common administration system is AnaConDa-100 mL (ACD-100; Sedana Medical, Uppsala, Sweden), which reflects volatile anesthetics in open ventilation circuits. AnaConDa-50 mL (ACD-50) is a new device with half the volumetric dead space. Carbon dioxide (CO2) can be retained with both devices. We therefore compared the CO2 elimination and isoflurane reflection efficiency of both devices. A test lung constantly insufflated with CO2 was ventilated with a tidal volume of 500 mL at 10 breaths/min. End-tidal CO2 (EtCO2) partial pressure was measured using 3 different devices: a heat-and-moisture exchanger (HME, 35 mL), ACD-100, and ACD-50 under 4 different experimental conditions: ambient temperature pressure (ATP), body temperature pressure saturated (BTPS) conditions, BTPS with 0.4 Vol% isoflurane (ISO-0.4), and BTPS with 1.2 Vol% isoflurane. Fifty breaths were recorded at 3 time points (n = 150) for each device and each condition. To determine device dead space, we adjusted the tidal volume to maintain normocapnia (n = 3), for each device. Thereafter, we determined reflection efficiency by measuring isoflurane concentrations at infusion rates varying from 0.5 to 20 mL/h (n = 3), for each device. EtCO2 was consistently greater with ACD-100 than with ACD-50 and HME (ISO-0.4, mean ± standard deviations: ACD-100, 52.4 ± 0.8; ACD-50, 44.4 ± 0.8; HME, 40.1 ± 0.4 mm Hg; differences of means of EtCO2 [respective 95% confidence intervals]: ACD-100 - ACD-50, 8.0 [7.9-8.1] mm Hg, P < .001; ACD-100 - HME, 12.3 [12.2-12.4] mm Hg, P < .001; ACD-50 - HME, 4.3 [4.2-4.3] mm Hg, P < .001). It was greatest under ATP, less under BTPS, and least with ISO-0.4 and BTPS with 1.2 Vol% isoflurane. In addition to the 100 or 50 mL "volumetric dead space" of each AnaConDa, "reflective dead space" was 40 mL with ACD-100 and 25 mL with ACD-50 when using isoflurane. Isoflurane reflection was highest under ATP

Derivation of Rigid Body Analysis Models from Vehicle Architecture Abstractions

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-06-17

models of every type have their basis in some type of physical representation of the design domain. Rather than describing three-dimensional continua of...arrangement, while capturing just enough physical detail to be used as the basis for a meaningful representation of the design , and eventually, analyses that...permit architecture assessment. The design information captured by the abstractions is available at the very earliest stages of the vehicle

JPRS Report, Near East & South Asia, Iraq

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-08-20

and half of whom would be elected by direct, lected medicine and milk for children and told the world secret balloting, about the killing of civilians...the continua- nomic siege on Iraq and banning milk from reaching the tion of campaigns of pressure and the blockade. Conser- children and elderly...organizations, which are characterized by ment. falsehood, falsification of facts, the shirking of responsi- bility, insistence on pushing for the

Cálculos ab initio con correlación electrónica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merchán Bonete, M.

Estamos entrando en una era donde la ortogonalidad entre las investigaciones de carácter experimental y de naturaleza teórica se irá difuminando progresivamente y la problemática a resolver quedará en escena como el único actor principal de la obra. Como premisa para una cooperación teórico-experimental de igual a igual, la metodología químico-cuántica utilizada debe ser capaz de ofrecer resultados de carácter predictivo. Sin duda, esta madurez en la metodología químico-cuántica ya la hemos alcanzado hace algunos años, tal y como muestra entre otras muchas, la labor que nuestro grupo ha realizado en el transcurso de la última década, dentro del campo de la Espectroscopía Teórica. Los estudios realizados comprenden una amplia gama de sistemas, variando tanto en tamaño como en complejidad, abordando problemáticas espectroscópicas consideradas tradicionalmente como especialmente controvertidas. Nuestra contribución científica más relevante reside en el carácter cuantitativo de las asignaciones espectroscópicas que hemos propuesto en base a resultados ab initio. Recordemos que en los años noventa los resultados ab initio solían presentar para las energías de excitación de sistemas de tamaño molecular moderado, como el benceno, errores de más de 1 eV. En comparación con el éxito relativo de los métodos semiempíricos, la frustración de la metodología ab initio quedaba todavía más patente. Los estudios que hemos presentado representan una comprensión profunda de los espectros electrónicos en sistemas orgánicos claves, mostrando el camino a seguir para obtener asignaciones espectroscópicas precisas (entre 0.1-0.2 eV). La naturaleza del método CASPT2 junto al diseño de estrategias computacionales nos ha permitido alcanzar el carácter cuantitativo con el que se caracterizan nuestras contribuciones[1,2]. Por todo ello, algunos de los trabajos publicados se consideran clásicos dentro del campo, pues en cierto modo definen el

Effects of frequency shifts and visual gender information on vowel category judgments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glidden, Catherine; Assmann, Peter F.

2003-10-01

Visual morphing techniques were used together with a high-quality vocoder to study the audiovisual contribution of talker gender to the identification of frequency-shifted vowels. A nine-step continuum ranging from ``bit'' to ``bet'' was constructed from natural recorded syllables spoken by an adult female talker. Upward and downward frequency shifts in spectral envelope (scale factors of 0.85 and 1.0) were applied in combination with shifts in fundamental frequency, F0 (scale factors of 0.5 and 1.0). Downward frequency shifts generally resulted in malelike voices whereas upward shifts were perceived as femalelike. Two separate nine-step visual continua from ``bit'' to ``bet'' were also constructed, one from a male face and the other a female face, each producing the end-point words. Each step along the two visual continua was paired with the corresponding step on the acoustic continuum, creating natural audiovisual utterances. Category boundary shifts were found for both acoustic cues (F0 and formant frequency shifts) and visual cues (visual gender). The visual gender effect was larger when acoustic and visual information were matched appropriately. These results suggest that visual information provided by the speech signal plays an important supplemental role in talker normalization.

Effects of syllable-initial voicing and speaking rate on the temporal characteristics of monosyllabic words.

PubMed

Allen, J S; Miller, J L

1999-10-01

Two speech production experiments tested the validity of the traditional method of creating voice-onset-time (VOT) continua for perceptual studies in which the systematic increase in VOT across the continuum is accompanied by a concomitant decrease in the duration of the following vowel. In experiment 1, segmental durations were measured for matched monosyllabic words beginning with either a voiced stop (e.g., big, duck, gap) or a voiceless stop (e.g., pig, tuck, cap). Results from four talkers showed that the change from voiced to voiceless stop produced not only an increase in VOT, but also a decrease in vowel duration. However, the decrease in vowel duration was consistently less than the increase in VOT. In experiment 2, results from four new talkers replicated these findings at two rates of speech, as well as highlighted the contrasting temporal effects on vowel duration of an increase in VOT due to a change in syllable-initial voicing versus a change in speaking rate. It was concluded that the traditional method of creating VOT continua for perceptual experiments, although not perfect, approximates natural speech by capturing the basic trade-off between VOT and vowel duration in syllable-initial voiced versus voiceless stop consonants.

All Cues Are Not Created Equal: The Case for Facilitating the Acquisition of Typical Weighting Strategies in Children With Hearing Loss

PubMed Central

Nittrouer, Susan

2015-01-01

Purpose One task of childhood involves learning to optimally weight acoustic cues in the speech signal in order to recover phonemic categories. This study examined the extent to which spectral degradation, as associated with cochlear implants, might interfere. The 3 goals were to measure, for adults and children, (a) cue weighting with spectrally degraded signals, (b) sensitivity to degraded cues, and (c) word recognition for degraded signals. Method Twenty-three adults and 36 children (10 and 8 years old) labeled spectrally degraded stimuli from /bɑ/-to-/wɑ/ continua varying in formant and amplitude rise time (FRT and ART). They also discriminated degraded stimuli from FRT and ART continua, and recognized words. Results A developmental increase in the weight assigned to FRT in labeling was clearly observed, with a slight decrease in weight assigned to ART. Sensitivity to these degraded cues measured by the discrimination task could not explain variability in cue weighting. FRT cue weighting explained significant variability in word recognition; ART cue weighting did not. Conclusion Spectral degradation affects children more than adults, but that degradation cannot explain the greater diminishment in children's weighting of FRT. It is suggested that auditory training could strengthen the weighting of spectral cues for implant recipients. PMID:25611214

Dynamics and energetics of the solar chromosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carlsson, Mats; Stein, Robert F.

2002-06-01

We present a summary of results from a number of observational programs carried out with the SUMER instrument on board SOHO. Most datasets show clear quasi-periodic dynamic behavior ("grains") in contiunuum intensities with frequencies 3-10 mHz. Corresponding grains are seen in intensities and velocities in neutral lines, normally with phase differences consistent with upward propagating sound-waves. We compare the observations with 1D radiation hydrodynamic simulations using MDI Doppler-shifts to set the lower boundary. For continua formed in the mid-chromosphere we find that the simulations give a good match to the intensity fluctuations but that the minimum intensity is too low. We find that high frequency acoustic waves (missing from the current simulations) are unlikely to give the extra heating necessary because of the strong radiative damping (90-99%) of such waves in the photosphere. In continua formed in the low chromosphere the mean intensity is similar in the simulations and the observations but the simulated fluctuations are too large. The reported findings are consistent with a picture where a basic intensity level is set by a magnetic heating process even in the darkest internetwork areas with superimposed intensity variations caused by acoustic waves.