Vascular stents are small tubular scaffolds used in the treatment of arterial stenosis (narrowing of the vessel). Most vascular stents are metallic and are deployed either by balloon expansion or by self-expansion. A shape memory polymer (SMP) stent may enhance flexibility, compliance, and drug elution compared to its current metallic counterparts. The purpose of this study was to describe the fabrication of a laser-activated SMP stent and demonstrate photothermal expansion of the stent in an in vitro artery model. A novel SMP stent was fabricated from thermoplastic polyurethane. A solid SMP tube formed by dip coating a stainless steel pin was laser-etched to create the mesh pattern of the finished stent. The stent was crimped over a fiber-optic cylindrical light diffuser coupled to an infrared diode laser. Photothermal actuation of the stent was performed in a water-filled mock artery. At a physiological flow rate, the stent did not fully expand at the maximum laser power (8.6 W) due to convective cooling. However, under zero flow, simulating the technique of endovascular flow occlusion, complete laser actuation was achieved in the mock artery at a laser power of {approx}8 W. We have shown the design and fabrication of an SMP stent and …

Abstract Soil carbon contents were measured on a short-rotation woody crop study located on the US Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site outside Aiken, SC. This study included fertilization and irrigation treatments on five tree genotypes (sweetgum, loblolly pine, sycamore and two eastern cottonwood clones). Prior to study installation, the previous pine stand was harvested and the remaining slash and stumps were pulverized and incorporated 30 cm into the soil. One year after harvest soil carbon levels were consistent with preharvest levels but dropped in the third year below pre-harvest levels. Tillage increased soil carbon contents, after three years, as compared with adjacent plots that were not part of the study but where harvested, but not tilled, at the same time. When the soil response to the individual treatments for each genotype was examined, one cottonwood clone (ST66), when irrigated and fertilized, had higher total soil carbon and mineral associated carbon in the upper 30 cm compared with the other tree genotypes. This suggests that root development in ST66 may have been stimulated by the irrigation plus fertilization treatment.

Notes and Documents column including an article honoring the individuals who were inducted into the annual Oklahoma Historians Hall of Fame in 2007. The Oklahoma Historical Society selects recipients based on their contributions to the preservation, collection, interpretation, and dissemination of Oklahoma history. The honorees in 2007 were W. David Baird and Guy W. Logsdon.

For the Record section including the minutes from the regular quarterly meeting of the Board of Directors of the Oklahoma Historical Society that was called to order by the president, Leonard Logan, at 1:30pm., on Wednesday October 25, 2006.

Notes and Documents column including the "Oklahoma Historians Hall of Fame: Pendleton Woods and Martin A. Hagerstrand" which honors Pendleton Woods and Martin A. Hagerstrand's inductions into the Oklahoma Historian Hall of Fame in April 2007. It also includes Dianna Everett's "1950s Oklahoma in the Hillerman Photographs" which details the Barney Hillerman Collection of photographs that is held by the Oklahoma Historical Society and includes a selection of the digitized photographs that capture the essence of the 1950s era in Oklahoma history.

For the Record section including the minutes from the regular quarterly meeting of the Board of Directors of the Oklahoma Historical Society that was called to order by the president, Leonard Logan, at 1:30pm on Wednesday, January 24, 2007.

Notes and Documents column including excerpts from the unfinished manuscript entitled "Cushion of Confidence," by Theresa Galloway Holman, wife of Oklahoma Senator H. H. Holman, who served in the first Oklahoma Senate from 1907-1909. In her manuscript, Mrs. Holman speaks about the early politics of Oklahoma including the adoption of a constitution, celebrating statehood in 1907, and general comments as a wife of the first legislature.

For the Record section including quarterly board meeting minutes from the regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the Oklahoma Historical Society that took place on April 12, 2007, and the minutes of the annual meeting of the membership that took place on April 13, 2007.

Notes and Documents column including a short biographical sketch remembering Anton "Tony" Goetz, director of Muskogee Central High School Marching Band.

For the Record section including the Oklahoma Historical Society quarterly board meeting minutes for the meeting that took place on July 25, 2007.