Abstract: The present invention is a scanning method and system in which the colored information as well as the black & white information appearing on the individual page or upon multiple pages of a document are initially scanned in a full color, 24-bit per pixel, mode; after which, the black & white wording and/or images are then selectively identified and electronically downsized to a single bit per pixel value. This sequence of selective identification and electronic downsizing of the black & white scanned contents effectively preserves the original printed information, while retaining the accuracy and integrity of the characters forming the colored written text and illustration portions of the scanned page or document in their original 24-bit per pixel format. Via this method and system, the entirety of the scanned image is maintained as a single electronic file of markedly reduced size.

Abstract: The present invention is an energy enhanced drumstick which provides substantially more kinetic energy per strike and produces a more vibrant sound and desired quality of resonance from a drumstick, all while still maintaining the most desirable features of the traditional drumstick design. This kinetic energy enhanced drumstick is the hybrid structural product of using two or more distinct materials having markedly differing densities which are permanently joined together to form a single unified construct. This hybrid structural product yields a kinetic energy enhanced drumstick comprised of at least one primary material having a first density at its tip end, and has at least one secondary substance having a second density which is greater than the first density of the primary material adjacent the butt end of the drumstick.

Abstract: The present invention is an electromagnetic controller assembly for use in ion implantation apparatus, and provides a structural construct and methodology which can be employed for three recognizably separate and distinct functions: (i) To adjust the trajectory of charged particles carried within any type of traveling ion beam which is targeted at a plane of implantation or a work surface for the placement of charged ions into a prepared workpiece (such as a silicon wafer or flat glass panel); (ii) concurrently, to alter and change the degree of parallelism of the ions in the traveling beam; and (iii) concurrently, to control the uniformity of the current density along the transverse direction of traveling ion beams, regardless of whether the beams are high-aspect, continuous ribbon ion beams or alternatively are scanned ribbon ion beams.

Abstract: The present invention is a cap covering for a punch-key tab rotably attached to the top of a preformed can, wherein the punch-key tab is to be utilized by a person to punch out a prepared flap seal in the can top along a predefined scored boundary. The cap covering includes an attachable and detachable hollow casing which can be fitted on-demand onto the handle of a punch-key tab. The invention will distinguish individual ownership among identical cans of beverage; will serve as a closure to aid in keeping the carbonation (if any) in the beverage; will aid in maintaining the beverage at the desired drinking temperature; and will act in minimizing spillage, keep bugs and debris out, and in keeping the beverage in an unadulterated state.

Abstract: The present invention provides a medical needle assembly which has a removable at will needle hub for a spinal needle, which can be used to access the epidural or subarachnoid space of the spinal cord. This improvement in spinal needle design allows and facilitates the use of the medical needle for the purposeful creation of a subcutaneous tunnel and the placement of a catheter, or drain, or electrical wire lead which extends to an anatomic location remote from the original surgical incision site. The medical needle assembly has unique features and capabilities: a removable at will needle hub, which not only allows the surgeon to use the epidural/spinal needle initially to access the epidural or subarachnoid space of the spinal cord; but also permits the surgeon to use the same medical needle assembly again as a tunneling instrument. This allows the surgeon to perform the process of subcutaneous tunneling safely and in a manner previously considered to be surgically improbable.

Abstract: The present invention provides a bioactive, small-diameter (typically less than 6 mm in internal diameter) vascular graft prosthesis, and is a textile conduit preferably manufactured using a novel electrospinning perfusion methodology. One preferred embodiment is a nanofibrous biocomposite textile conduit which comprises a prepared liquid admixture of polyester (Dacron), a biodurable implantable synthetic polymer, and Type IV collagen, an extracellular matrix protein. This prepared admixture and blending of diverse fibrous matter is utilized in a novel electrospinning perfusion process to form a small-diameter (less than 6 mm) fabricated textile conduit, a discrete article of manufacture, which then serves as an antecedent tangible workpiece for a subsequently-made prosthetic vascular graft construct.

Abstract: The present invention provides both a method and means for regulating I?B? degradation, NF?B activity, and NF?B-dependent gene expression within living cells, tissues, and organs in-situ. The selective regulation is performed using native PR-39 peptide or one of its shorter-length homologs, for interaction with such I?B? and proteasomes as are present in the cytoplasm of viable cells. The result of PR-39 peptide interaction with I?B? is a selective alteration in the intracellular proteolytic activity of proteasomes, which in turn, causes a reduction of I?B?, a decrease of NF?B activity, and a down-regulation of NF?B-dependent gene expression.