Nuclear gas core propulsion research program

Viewgraphs on the nuclear gas core propulsion research program are presented. The objectives of this research are to develop models and experiments, systems, and fuel elements for advanced nuclear thermal propulsion rockets. The fuel elements under investigation are suitable for gas/vapor and multiphase fuel reactors. Topics covered include advanced nuclear propulsion studies, nuclear vapor thermal rocket (NVTR) studies, and ultrahigh temperature nuclear fuels and materials studies

Modeling Member Responses to the Farmer Owned Cooperative's Alternative Capital Management Strategies

Agricultural Finance, Agribusiness,

Mexican Immigration Scenarios based on the South African Experience of ending Apartheid

How can we ameliorate the current immigration policies toward Mexican people immigrating to the United States? This study re-examines how the development of scenarios assisted South Africa to dismantle apartheid without engaging in a bloody civil war. Following the scenario approach, we articulate positions taken by different interest groups involved in the debate concerning immigration from Mexico. Next, we formulate a set of scenarios which are evaluated as to how well each contributes to the well-being of the populace both of Mexico and of the United States. The South African scenario model has proven to be an effective tool in times of political disagreement. It fosters a common language among competing groups, non-hierarchal communication among groups, and acknowledgement of the concerns of each group involved

The Philosophical Foundations of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Stoicism, Buddhism, Taoism, and Existentialism

In this study, we examine the philosophical bases of one of the leading clinical psychological methods of therapy for anxiety, anger, and depression, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). We trace this method back to its philosophical roots in the Stoic, Buddhist, Taoist, and Existentialist philosophical traditions. We start by discussing the tenets of CBT, and then we expand on the philosophical traditions that ground this approach. Given that CBT has had a clinically measured positive effect on the psychological well-being of individuals, it becomes important to study the philosophical foundations on which this therapy is based

Complete response of skull base inverted papilloma to chemotherapy: Case report.

BackgroundInverted papilloma (IP) is the most common benign sinonasal neoplasm. Endoscopic techniques, improved understanding of pathophysiology, and novel surgical approaches have allowed rhinologists to treat IPs more effectively, with surgery being the mainstay of therapy. Frontal sinus IP poses a challenge for surgical therapy due to complex anatomy and potentially difficult surgical access.ObjectivesWe reported a unique case of a massive frontal sinus IP that presented with intracranial and orbital extension, with near resolution after chemotherapy.MethodsA retrospective case review of a patient with a frontal sinus IP treated at a tertiary academic medical center.ResultsA 75-year-old male patient presented with nasal obstruction, purulent nasal discharge, and a growing left supraorbital mass. Endoscopy demonstrated a mass that filled both frontal and ethmoid sinuses, with orbital invasion. There also was substantial erosion of the posterior table, which measured 1.73 × 1.40 cm. A biopsy specimen demonstrated IP with carcinoma in situ. The patient was deemed unresectable on initial evaluation and, subsequently, underwent chemotherapy (carboplatin and paclitaxel). The tumor had a dramatic response to chemotherapy, and the patient elected for definitive surgery to remove any residual disease. During surgery, only a small focus of IP was found along the superior wall of the frontal sinus. No tumor was found elsewhere, including at the site of skull base erosion. The final pathology was IP without carcinoma in situ or dysplasia.ConclusionThis was the first reported case of chemotherapeutic "debulking" of IP, which facilitated surgical resection, despite substantial intracranial and orbital involvement. Although nearly all IPs can be treated surgically, rare cases, such as unresectable tumors, may benefit from systemic chemotherapy

Asterias: a parallelized web-based suite for the analysis of expression and aCGH data

Asterias (\url{http://www.asterias.info}) is an integrated collection of freely-accessible web tools for the analysis of gene expression and aCGH data. Most of the tools use parallel computing (via MPI). Most of our applications allow the user to obtain additional information for user-selected genes by using clickable links in tables and/or figures. Our tools include: normalization of expression and aCGH data; converting between different types of gene/clone and protein identifiers; filtering and imputation; finding differentially expressed genes related to patient class and survival data; searching for models of class prediction; using random forests to search for minimal models for class prediction or for large subsets of genes with predictive capacity; searching for molecular signatures and predictive genes with survival data; detecting regions of genomic DNA gain or loss. The capability to send results between different applications, access to additional functional information, and parallelized computation make our suite unique and exploit features only available to web-based applications.Comment: web based application; 3 figure

Incidental finding of lymphoma after septoplasty.

IntroductionSeptoplasty, or surgical correction of the deviated septum, is an elective, routinely performed rhinologic procedure to address nasal airway obstruction. In many cases, resected septal cartilage and bone fragments are sent for pathologic review, although there is no consensus on this practice. We reported two cases of incidentally diagnosed lymphoma after elective septoplasty and discussed clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management.MethodsRetrospective chart review of two patients who underwent septoplasty at a tertiary academic medical center and found to have incidental lymphoma based on histopathology.ResultsTwo patients who underwent septoplasty had an incidental diagnosis of lymphoma on pathologic analysis. One patient was noted to have an S-shaped septal deviation that produced bilateral nasal obstruction. She underwent a difficult septoplasty, in which the mucoperichondrial flap was firmly adherent to the underlying septum and bone. Final pathology demonstrated diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. She was treated with chemoradiation and remained free of disease at 59 months. The other patient had a history of nasal trauma, which produced left septal deviation. He underwent an uncomplicated septoplasty, with pathology that demonstrated low-grade B-cell lymphoma. Because there was no evidence of active disease, the decision was made to not treat and to observe the patient clinically.ConclusionsThis is the first reported series of septal lymphoma incidentally diagnosed on routine septoplasty. Although histopathologic review of specimens from routine nasal and sinus surgery is not routinely performed, this report highlighted the importance of this process, on a case-by-case basis, in detecting unexpected malignancies that otherwise were clinically silent