Transhiatal esophagectomy with primary anastomosis to the stomach (gastric pull-up) is an attractive surgical alternative to colic interposition in patients with cancer of the esophagus and hypopharynx. However, the lack of intrinsic gastric peristalsis and complaints by patients of postprandial regurgitation prompted us to measure the effect of body posture on the rates of gastric emptying in these patients. The rates of solid and liquid gastric emptying were measured in 14 patients who had undergone gastric interposition for esophageal and hypopharyngeal carcinoma. Rates of emptying were measured in both the supine and upright position using a dual-isotope radiolabeling technique. In these patients, the rate of gastric emptying of both solids and liquids was significantly slower in the supine position than in the upright position. Emptying in supine patients was also prolonged when compared with supine normal volunteers. Conversely, the upright rate of solid and liquid emptying in the patients was accelerated when compared with published values for upright normal volunteers. We conclude that gastric emptying after gastric interposition is dependent on upright posture after meals.

In this paper we present an improved method for computing the electron density of virus structures; it uses O(N2) less work and is based on piecewise constant approximation of the Discrete Fourier Transform of the electron density. In these algorithms, the computations to determine the values of the 3D Discrete Fourier Transforms of the density of an asymmetric object can be naturally distributed over the nodes of a parallel system. Some computational results, pertaining to the accuracy, are also given.

In this paper we report on three parallel algorithms used for 3D reconstruction of asymmetric objects from their 2D projections. We discuss their computational, communication, I/O, and space requirements and present some performance data.

Recently we proposed a 3D reconstruction algorithm based on Fourier analysis using Cartesian coordinates. In this algorithm the computations to determine the values of the 3D Discrete Fourier Transform of the density of an asymmetric object could be naturally distributed over the nodes of a parallel system. Now we present an improvement of this algorithm which, for reconstruction at points of an N × N × N grid, uses O(N3) arithmetic operations instead of O(N5). The algorithm is general and can be used for 3D reconstruction of asymmetric objects for applications other than structural biology.

Somatometric parameters, renal size, and systolic blood pressure (SBP) were studied in 406 patients referred to pediatric nephrology and urology clinics. These patients included 269 females (66%), 67 African Americans (17%), and 87 patients with essential hypertension (21%). Z scores for the study population were comparable to published standards for height, kidney length, and SBP. Weight and body mass index scores were significantly greater than predicted from the standards, especially in the subset of patients with essential hypertension. Age, height, weight, body mass index, kidney length, and SBP all correlated with one another; however, on multiple regression analysis of SBP with the other five independent variables, only weight proved to have a significant correlation. Furthermore, the relationship of kidney length with SBP was positive and hypertensive patients had greater kidney size than published standards. These data do not support reduced kidney size in the population with essential hypertension, nor is there support for a convincing correlation between kidney length and SBP in the general pediatric population. Body weight correlates best with blood pressure. These findings warrant further study in a less-select population. Prevention and treatment of obesity may thus be of prime importance in addressing hypertension in children.

1. Introduction. Cryo-electron microscopy and 3D image reconstruction are the methods of choice for 3D atomic structme determination of many non-crystalline biological macromolecules.

This is a report of work in progress. In it, I summarize the status of the research and development of the Aviation Performance Measuring System (APMS) for managing, processing, and analyzing digital flight-recorded data. The objectives of the NASA-FAA APMS research project are to establish a sound scientific and technological basis for flight-data analysis, to define an open and flexible architecture for flight-data-analysis systems, and to articulate guidelines for a standardized database structure on which to continue to build future flight-data-analysis extensions. APMS will offer to the air transport community an open, voluntary standard for flight-data-analysis software, a standard that will help to ensure suitable functionality, and data interchangeability, among competing software programs. APMS will develop and document the methodologies, algorithms, and procedures for data management and analyses to enable users to easily interpret the implications regarding safety and efficiency of operations. APMS does not entail the implementation of a nationwide flight-data-collection system. It is intended to provide technical tools to ease the large-scale implementation of flight-data analyses at both the air-carrier and the national-airspace levels in support of their Flight Operations and Quality Assurance (FOQA) Programs and Advanced Qualifications Programs (AQP). APMS cannot meet its objectives unless it develops tools that go substantially beyond the capabilities of the current commercially available software and supporting analytic methods that are mainly designed to count special events. These existing capabilities, while of proven value, were created primarily with the needs of air crews in mind. APMS tools must serve the needs of the government and air carriers, as well as air crews, to fully support the FOQA and AQP programs. They must be able to derive knowledge not only through the analysis of single flights (special-event detection), but through statistical evaluation of the performance of large groups of flights. This paper describes the integrated suite of tools that will assist analysts in evaluating the operational performance and safety of the national air transport system, the air carrier, and the air crew.

Abstract The fungicides chlorothalonil, tebuconazole, and propiconazole commonly used for control of peanut diseases were evaluated for activity against the corn earworm [Helicoverpa zea (Boddie)], fall armyworm [Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith)], and velvetbean caterpillar (Anticarsia gemmatalis Hübner). Chlorothalonil most adversely affected early establishment and survival of neonates of all three insect species on peanut terminal buds. Chlorothalonil also decreased the weight of larvae of all three species at 10 d and extended the time to pupation for fall armyworm and velvetbean caterpillar larvae. Similarly, tebuconazole adversely affected early survival and establishment, decreased 10-d weight and extended time to pupation of corn earworm and velvetbean caterpillar larvae, but had little effect on fall armyworm larvae. Propiconazole had no effect on establishment and survival of corn earworm and fall armyworm larvae on peanut terminals, and actually increased the weight of 10-d-old larvae for all three insects over that recorded for the untreated control. Orthogonal comparisons of the activity of five chlorothalonil-based fungicides against the fall army-worm showed that the activity was due to chlorothalonil rather than to formulation. At equivalent concentrations used in the field, Bravo Ultrex® was significantly more active against larvae of the fall armyworm than was a comparable concentration of Bravo 72®. However, regression lines did not differ for the two fungicides for any of the developmental parameters measured when larvae of all three species were fed different concentrations of Bravo 720® and Bravo Ultrex® in their meridic diet.