A longitudinal study of the social and academic competence of economically disadvantaged bilingual preschool children.

This longitudinal study was conducted to gain understanding of the social–emotional and academic development of economically disadvantaged bilingual preschool children. In Study 1, the authors combined cognitive, psychosocial, and cultural-linguistic factors to determine profiles of social competence as measured by peer play. A person-centered analysis of 207 Hispanic American preschoolers (ages 4 and 5 years) yielded 6 distinct profiles, 2 of which were socially competent and 1 of which was vulnerable. Findings revealed profile differences in social competence and a significant relationship between bilingualism and social–emotional development. In Study 2, the authors determined which profiles were associated with later academic achievement and growth of English proficiency. Findings indicated a significant relationship of early social–emotional development to later academic success and English acquisition, highlighting the role of bilingualism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Micromorphology,composition and origin of the orange patina on the marble surfaces of Propylaea (Acropolis,Athens)

This paper is an attempt to contribute to the discussion started in the 1980s and continuing until today, on the origin of orange-brown patinas observed on marble surfaces. SEM and XRD were used in the study of the orange-brown patina growing at the east stoa of Propylaea, at the Acropolis of Athens. The patina consists of an extremely compact, homogenous, 500-microm-thick layer, mainly of hydroxyapatite. The outer part (50 microm) of the layer presents an orange colour attributed to iron in clay particles, which were deposited on the surface of the patina and have gradually been diffused in the bulk. The interface between the phosphatic layer and the marble is very uneven and full of cavities colonised by microorganisms. The phosphatic layer penetrates into the grain boundaries and fills the empty space between the grains. The presence of biological attack at the interface causes progressive erosion and detachment of both the patina and the marble. The minimum presence of oxalates, the absence of microorganisms or remnants of them in the phosphatic layer, the homogeneity and compactness of the patina, give evidence against the theory of biogenic origin. It is suggested that the layer originates from an artificial coating deliberately applied onto the marble surface for protective or aesthetic reasons, when the marble had already been weathered. Possible manmade pastes are suggested.     

Radiation doses to patients from enteroclysis

The purpose of this study was to determine the patient doses during enteroclysis and compare them with the available bibliographical data. For 14 enteroclysis examinations, the dose-area product (DAP) meter readings, fluoroscopy time, number of radiographs and exposure data were recorded. From these data, the fluoroscopy and radiography contributions to DAP, the entrance surface dose (ESD) and the effective dose (E) for each examination were estimated. The mean DAP was 81 Gy cm(2) and the mean fluoroscopy time was 19.5 min. The fluoroscopy contribution to DAP was 77% and 8.7 films were acquired in each examination on average. The mean ESD and E were estimated to be 428 mGy and 21 mSv, respectively. The mean DAP and fluoroscopy time calculated in this study are quite high when compared with those reported in the literature, suggesting that the examination technique should be reviewed and the ways to reduce patient exposure without compromising the diagnostic quality should be acquired.     

Three-Dimensional Diffraction Tomography Using Filtered Backpropagation and Multiple Illumination Planes

In this paper, a three-dimensional (3-D) extension of the well-known filtered-backpropagation (FBP) algorithm is presented with the aim of taking into account scattered-field-data measurements obtained using incident directions not restricted in a single plane. The FBP algorithm has been extensively used to solve the two-dimensional inverse-scattering problem under the first-order Born and Rytov approximations for weak scatterers. The extension of this algorithm in three dimensions is not straightforward, because the task of collecting the data needed to obtain a low-pass filtered version of the scattering object, taking into account all spatial frequencies within a radius of radic2k₀, and of incorporating these data to the FBP algorithm, needs to be addressed. A simple extension using incident field directions restricted to a single plane (illumination plane) leaves a region of spatial frequencies of the sphere of radius radic2k ₀ undetermined. The locus of these spatial frequencies may be crucial for the accurate reconstruction of objects which do not vary slowly along the axis perpendicular to the illumination plane. The proposed 3-D FBP algorithm presented here is able to incorporate the data collected from more than one illumination plane and to ensure the reliability of the reconstruction results     

Serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-4 (IL-4) in patients with multiple myeloma (MM)

In this study we determined, in patients with multiple myeloma (MM), serum levels of IL-4 and IL-6 at diagnosis and during the course of the disease, seeking a correlation with disease activity and prognosis. We studied 54 MM patients, 41 of whom responded to chemotherapy whilst 11 were resistant. At diagnosis, IL-6 was increased in 66% of patients (median 35.5 pg/ml) whereas IL-4 was low (median 4 pg/ml) in 75% of patients. In responding patients, IL-4 increased in remission (median 25 pg/ml), whereas IL-6 decreased (median 4 pg/ml). In chemotherapy-resistant patients, IL-6 and IL-4 values remained stable during the course of the disease.     

Wireless Convergence Architecture: A Case Study Using GSM and Wireless LAN

The evolution of wireless networks has motivated the expansion of the static business environment to a mobile and wireless one. However, current and forthcoming wireless technologies are characterized by different attributes, regarding coverage area, offered bandwidth and delay. The transparent conjunction of various wireless technologies into a single mobile terminal can further boost the wireless explosion. This paper presents the Wireless Convergence Architecture (WCA) that incorporates different wireless interfaces under the same mobile terminal. Depending on the location and the availability of the underlying wireless network, automatic and seamless switching is performed to the most appropriate wireless network interface. Special care is taken to maintain continuous connectivity at the transport layer (TCP). WCA introduces software components both at the terminal and network side. A specific implementation is presented, based on two complementary wireless technologies – in terms of coverage area – an IEEE 802.11-compliant in the short local and a GSM in the wide area. To demonstrate the operational correctness of the architecture, experiments were performed using standard and proprietary networking applications.     

End-to-end QoS specification issues in the converged all-IP wired and wireless environment

The emerging next-generation networking environment presents an IP-based core interconnecting many wireless radio access networks, providing ubiquitous access to end users through a vast variety of wireless devices. Although the IP protocol is the common denominator, the new environment brings together many different interconnecting domains, each following different QoS models, complicating the overall end-to-end QoS process. This article discusses the need to standardize an end-to-end QoS protocol. It does not, however, focus on the signaling mechanism, since there is currently a relevant ongoing activity in IETF. Instead, it concentrates on the formulation of the QoS information describing the QoS requirements of the session to be established. It presents the generic service specification framework that not only enables the QoS requirements of a specific session to be captured (like a generic QoS template), but also the QoS classes of each IP domain can be described according to it. Through the systematic specification of a domain's QoS classes, an intelligent automatic mapping algorithm can be applied during an end-to-end QoS request, in order to select the most appropriate service class in each domain, as well as to extract the required traffic-related parameters to perform traffic control operations, such as admission control, policing, and scheduling.     

The mechanism of transcriptional synergy of an in vitro assembled interferon-beta enhanceosome

The objectives of this study were (a) to determine errors in wrist angle measurements from a commercially available biaxial electrogoniometer and (b) to develop a calibration routine in order to correct for these errors. Goniometric measurements were collected simultaneously with true angular data using a fixture that allowed wrist movement in one plane while restricting motion in the orthogonal plane. These data were collected in two sets of trials: flexion/extension with radial/ulnar deviation restricted, and radial/ulnar deviation with flexion/extension restricted. During these trials, we studied discrete 30 degrees increments of forearm rotation. The results showed the expected cross talk and zero drift errors during forearm rotation. The application of mathematical equations that describe the effect of goniometer twist resulted in significant error reduction for most forearm rotations. The calibration technique employs both a slope and a displacement transformation to improve the accuracy of angular data. The calibration technique may be used on data collected in the field if forearm rotation is measured simultaneously with the goniometer data.     

The splicing factor U2AF35 mediates critical protein-protein interactions in constitutive and enhancer-dependent splicing

The splicing factor U2AF (U2 snRNP auxiliary factor) is a heterodimer with subunits of 65 and 35 kD (U2AF65 and U2AF35). U2AF65 binds specifically to 3' splice sites, but previous studies failed to demonstrate a function for U2AF35. Here, we report that U2AF35 is required for constitutive splicing and also functions as a mediator of enhancer-dependent splicing. Nuclear extracts deficient in U2AF35 were inactive; however, both constitutive and enhancer-dependent splicing could be restored by the addition of purified recombinant U2AF35. In vitro protein-RNA interaction studies with pre-mRNAs containing either a constitutive or regulated splicing enhancer revealed that U2AF35 directly mediates interactions between U2AF65 and proteins bound to the enhancers. Thus, U2AF35 functions as a bridge between U2AF65 and the enhancer complex to recruit U2AF65 to the adjacent intron.