cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Plant response to utility right of way construction in the Mojave Desert

Disturbance of flora from utility construction tends to generate new plant growth. This growth changes productivity, diversity, and stability. Although the enhancement of vegetation may balance out the biomass destroyed by the original disturbance, it often adversely affects the quality of the vegetation. Percentage composition of the dominant long-lived perennials combined with quantitative measures are used to assess longterm effects of utility corridor construction. Differential effects of enhancement of vegetation are found along road edges, enhancement under wires of powerlines, and over trenches dug for pipelines. Areas under powerline pylons seem to receive the greatest damage and also show the most variable recovery of vegetation. Significant recovery rates are noticeable where the time span between year of construction has allowed for considerable regrowth of the older corridor. Recovery rates depend on soil type, landform, and other physical features of the disturbed sites. Drastic disturbance in one area or transect site may impede vegetation recovery, whereas slight disturbance might enhance vegetation in another, tending to offset the effect of the drastic disturbance. Disturbed areas and control areas may appear to have similar vegetation covers, biomasses, and densities, but these similarities often vanish when one examines qualitative aspects, such as proportion of long-lived species and presence of characteristic dominants.
The data-document distinction revisited

The Data Retrieval and Document Retrieval models have a number of differences which influence their design, use and management. This paper discusses the most prominent of these differences and shows that they all arise from the more fundamental problem of representational indeterminacy. Representational indeterminacy is a result of the effects of semantic ambiguity and system size. If the differences between the Data Retrieval and Document Retrieval models arise from the same problem then the models are not as distinct as they may have appeared. The Data Retrieval and Document Retrieval models are better seen as examples of information systems with lower and higher levels of representational indeterminacy. The paper concludes with a proposal for an operational definition of representational indeterminacy and a discussion of the role of context and system size in reducing high levels of indeterminacy.
On the Heat Balance of the Walker Circulation

Abstract The heat budget of the Walker circulation near 10°S is studied. The primary drive for the circulation is the heating due to zonal variations in condensation. The relative heating and cooling at different longitudes is balanced approximately by adiabatic cooling and heating due to rising and sinking motions. In the region where the condensation heating is a maximum two different analyses indicate that the evaporation is a minimum, even though the sea surface temperature is a maximum. This is because the surface heating is dominated by the insolation, which is a minimum in the region of enhanced condensation where the cloud cover is a maximum. This implies that the region of enhanced condensation is associated with a region of moisture convergence rather than with a region of enhanced evaporation, and that the sea surface temperature gradients only play a secondary role in forcing the Walker circulation.
Rehabilitating Time: Multiple Temporalities among Military Clinicians and Patients

In this article I explore the different orientations to time experienced by clinicians and patients in the US Armed Forces Amputee Patient Care Program at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington DC. In structuring, describing, and working with patients, clinicians rely on a rehabilitative program that is embedded in a narrative notion of time. This approach seeks to embed the grievous wounds patients have sustained along a trajectory of injured to well. Patients are often eager to adopt this approach to their injury but in many cases find that the linear flow of time, upon which this clinical approach relies, is not matched by their experience. Instead the past, the present, and the future can flow together so that patients are simultaneously experiencing these three time orientations. This can create the potential for misunderstanding and conflict between clinicians over adherence and the meaning of a good rehabilitative outcome.
Classification of chronic myeloid disorders: from Dameshek towards a semi-molecular system

Hematological malignancies are phenotypically organized into lymphoid and myeloid disorders, although such a distinction might not be precise from the standpoint of lineage clonality. In turn, myeloid malignancies are broadly categorized into either acute myeloid leukemia (AML) or chronic myeloid disorder (CMD), depending on the presence or absence, respectively, of AML-defining cytomorphologic and cytogenetic features. The CMD are traditionally classified by their morphologic appearances into discrete clinicopathologic entities based primarily on subjective technologies. It has now become evident that most CMD represent clonal stem cell processes where the primary oncogenic event has been characterized in certain instances; Bcr/Abl in chronic myeloid leukemia, FIP1L1-PDGFRA or c-kit(D816V) in systemic mastocytosis, rearrangements of PDGFRB in chronic eosinophilic leukemia, and rearrangements of FGFR1 in stem cell leukemia/lymphoma syndrome. In addition, Bcr/Abl-negative classic myeloproliferative disorders are characterized by recurrent JAK2(V617F) mutations, whereas other mutations affecting the RAS signaling pathway molecules have been associated with juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia. Such progress is paving the way for a transition from a histologic to a semi-molecular classification system that preserves conventional terminology, while incorporating new information on molecular pathogenesis.
Identification and treatment of infected total hip arthroplasty

Periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) in the hip following prosthetic joint placement is a devastating outcome of an otherwise often successful surgical treatment (total-hip arthroplasty). Management of PJI is dependent upon accurate diagnosis and successful treatment, both of which are challenging. Recently, great strides have been made in improving the diagnosis of PJI, which has no 'gold standard' diagnostic tool. Proper diagnosis is essential as untreated or undetected PJI can quickly lead to biofilm formation on the implant surface depending upon the infecting organism. Upon complete biofilm formation, successful treatment requires prosthetic resection with immediate or delayed reimplantation. Even with the most aggressive surgical treatment, PJI eradication currently has a success rate of approximately 80%. Unfortunately, technologies to improve the local delivery of antibiotics are not expected to be available in the near future.
The human extensor digitorum profundus muscle with comments on the evolution of the primate hand

Forelimb dissections on 14 genera of anthropoids including humans and 17 cases of human aneuploids has revealed a high incidence of “atavistic” musculature (Barash et al., 1970;Aziz, 1981a) in the aneuploids. The phenotypic specificity of this aneuploid musculature clearly manifests developmental retardation and instability (Shapiro, 1983) revealing not only the likely course of embryonic myogenesis in chromosomally normal humans (Cihak, 1972, 1977) but also information relevant to ontogenetic and evolutionary changes. The extensor digitorum profundus proprius complex is particularly illustrative of these characteristics of aneuploid musculature. Our examination of the variation of this muscle complex in human aneuploids and between primate genera reveals how normal ontogeny may proceed, as well as the morphological basis for the evolutionary changes in hand structure and function amongst Primates. We also consider the phylogenetic and functional significance of changes in the extensor digitorum profundus proprius with reference to the divergent locomotory and manipulative capabilities and behavior of Primates.
Cyclic fatigue of brittle materials with an indentation-induced flaw system

The ratio of static to cyclic fatigue life, or 'h ratio', was obtained numerically for an indentation flaw system subjected to sinusoidal loading conditions. Emphasis was placed on developing a simple, quick lifetime prediction tool. The solution for the h ratio was compared with experimental static and cyclic fatigue data obtained from as-indented 96 wt.% alumina specimens tested in room-temperature distilled water.
Getting Pumped about Heart Failure

Heart failure is a clinical syndrome caused by dysregulated calcium handling and abnormal cardiac pumping capacity. Wahlquist et al. (2014) show that upregulation of microRNA-25 impairs calcium handling leading to pump dysfunction and that targeting microRNA-25 using antisense oligonucleotides reverses pump dysfunction and improves survival in mice with heart failure.
Uncooled MEMS IR imagers with optical readout and image processing

MEMS thermal transducers offer a promising technological platform for uncooled IR imaging. We report on the fabrication and performance of a 256x256 MEMS IR FPA based on bimaterial microcantilever. The FPA readout is performed using a simple and efficient optical readout scheme. The response time of the bimaterial microcantilever was <15 ms and the thermal isolation was calculated to be < 4x10 -7 W/K. Using these FPAs we obtained IR images of room temperature objects. Image quality is improved by automatic post-processing of artifacts arising from noise and non-responsive pixels. An iterative Curvelet denoising and inpainting procedure is successfully applied to image output. We present our results and discuss the factors that determine the ultimate performance of the FPA. One of the unique advantages of the present approach is the scalability to larger imaging arrays.
Pollen-tube hypertrophy in ovules of Solanum and Lycopersicon following interspecific crosses

The failure of pollen-tube dissolution in the synergid region, with subsequent pollen-tube overgrowth well into the central cell, was observed within embryo sacs following interspecific crosses between Solanum melongena and S. sisymbriifolium and between Lycopersicon esculentum and L. peruvianum. Such pollen-tube hypertrophy (PTH) was examined under fluorescence using both light and confocal microscopy in order to characterize this anomalous pollen-tube behavior and to verify its occurrence within the embryo sac central cell. Three genetically unrelated L. esculentum cultivars (‘Peto 95’, ‘Apex 1000’, ‘Nagcarlang’) were utilized as the female parents in interspecific pollinations with L. peruvianum accession LA 1708, and seed set was obtained from all crosses. It was observed that PTH was not a rare event in these crosses, with the proportion of PTH ranging from 2.6% to 6.5% of all ovules examined. Self-pollinated controls revealed zero (e.g., ‘Nagcarlang’) to extremely low (<0.01%) frequencies (‘Apex 1000’ and ‘Peto 95’). The differences in frequencies suggests that the specific genotypes of the parents has an affect on the occurrence of successful pollen-tube dissolution and sperm-nuclei transfer. Pollen-tube hypertrophy represents a poorly understood, though easily identified, form of fertilization failure occurring within the ovule. Its conspicuous nature, along with a relatively high frequency of occurrence in certain crossing combinations, should provide a valuable opportunity to better study the nature of such fertilization failures in angiosperms.
The Effect of Negation on Deductive Inferences

Research shows that negation can suppress the activation of propositions presented explicitly in text, but does negation have a similar effect on propositions that can be inferred? That is, does negation inhibit the inference process? Four experiments investigated whether a deductive inference that produces a negated conclusion (therefore not a) is made as readily as a similar inference form that yields an affirmative conclusion (therefore a). A combination of naming latencies, verification times, and reading times indicate that negation does not affect the deductive inference process itself, although it may inhibit the activation of inferred concepts.
Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha, Interleukin 1 and Related Cytokines in Brain Development: Normal and Pathological

Microglia and astrocytes produce several cytokines including interleukin 1 (IL1) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα), which have pleiotropic effects in the immune and nervous systems. Recent eviden
Toward an empirical definition of pediatric PTSD: The phenomenology of PTSD symptoms in youth

ABSTRACT Objective To examine the frequency and intensity of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and their relation to clinical impairment, to examine the requirement of meeting all DSM-IV symptom cluster criteria (i.e., criteria B, C, D), and to examine the aggregation of PTSD symptom clusters across developmental stages. Method Fifty-nine children between the ages of 7 and 14 years with a history of trauma and PTSD symptoms were assessed with the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for Children and Adolescents. Results Data support the utility of distinguishing between the frequency and the intensity of symptoms in the investigation of the phenomenology of pediatric PTSD. Children fulfilling requirements for two symptom clusters did not differ significantly from children meeting all three cluster criteria with regard to impairment and distress. Reexperience (cluster B) showed increased aggregation with avoidance and numbing (cluster C) and hyperarousal (cluster D) in the later stages of puberty. Conclusions Frequency and intensity of symptoms may both contribute to the phenomenology of pediatric PTSD. Children with subthreshold criteria for PTSD demonstrate substantial functional impairment and distress.
Apoptosis and Sphingomyelin Hydrolysis: The Flip Side

Apoptosis, a form of cell death that is coordinated by a set of defined biochemical pathways, exists throughout the animal kingdom. Its critically important roles in development, homeostasis, and disease have made this a topic of intensive research and sometimes even more intensive controversy. One
An Experimental Study of Cooperation and Competition in West Africa

Abstract Pour etudier l'influence de l'occupation (traditionnelle ou moderne) et de l'instruction sur le comportement de choix, l'auteur utilise deux jeux a motivation mixte pout deux personnes, un jeu du type Dilemme du Prisonnier et un jeu du type difference a maximiser, avec des sujets appartenant a la tribu des Kpelle du Liberia. Dans le second jeu, les membres d'une dyade s'influencent l'un l'autre sans qu'on observe de difference selon les types de sujets; dans le Dilemme du Prisonnier, les sujets scolarises et les sujets salaries se montrent moins cooperatifs que les sujets traditionnels.
Bayesian estimation of the expected time of first arrival past a truncated time T: the case of NHPP with power law intensity

Non-homogenous Poisson process, $$\{N(t), t > 0\}$$ under time-truncated sampling scheme is often used in practice. $$E[S_{N(T)+1}$$ ], the expected time of arrival of the first event after a truncated time $$T$$ , is expressed as a function of intensity. A non-informative prior as well as gamma priors for Power Law intensity function are used to obtain Bayes estimates of the expected time.
Conductive Elastomers as Sensor for Industrial Parts Handling Equipment

Conductive elastomers are flexible materials whose electrical conductivity varies as a function of the pressure on the material. A sensor has been developed which uses this material to provide a sense of "touch" for computer controlled parts handling equipment. The material has been studied and its dynamic response characterized. Fatigue is identified as a significant obstacle to potential industrial use. The computer interface hardware is described and software which allows the computer to identify types of surfaces is discussed.
Influences of Ambient Temperature on Ground Squirrel Activity

Detailed observations of the locomotor activities of antelope ground squirrels reveal what may be an important avenue for thermoregulation. Four squirrels in an indoor enclosure were exposed to temperature cycles of various amplitudes with upper limits from 28° to 37°C. By monitoring properties of the volitional running performance in an activity wheel, sensitive behavioral responses to the temperature changes were detected. The time spent running, the average duration of running bouts, and the speed of running were affected–the first two properties to a much greater extent than the third. In one test the time decreased over 11% per degree rise; in another the length of the running bouts decreased over 8% per degree rise. These behavioral responses are interpreted along thermoregulatory lines. The responses were undetected in previous studies, for the animals either were unable to run or were forced to run continuously at fixed speeds. Since one can determine both behavioral and physiological responses of animals running voliationally, and many mammals will run wheels, this technique has promise for comparative studies for thermoregulation.
Effects of Temperature and Mixing Time on Molecular Mobility in Wheat Dough

Abstract For wheat flour dough samples mixed for different times, the storage modulus (G′), NMR relaxation times (T 1 , T 2 , and T * 2 ) and dielectric properties (κ′ and κ″) were measured as temperature increased from 30 to 100°C. All data showed a transition between 55°C and 85°C, which was attributed to the gelatinization of starch. During gelatinization, swollen and distorted starch granules promoted more interactions among macromolecules and water molecules, which induced a rapidly increasing G′. The more interactions among macromolecules and water in dough samples mixed for longer times caused a delay of the gelatinization onset temperature. The changes in internal structure and molecular mobility were monitored in the evolution of the NMR relaxation times and dielectric properties over temperature. The decrease of T 2 , T * 2 , κ′, and the slope of T 1 and κ″ with increasing temperature reflected the mobility decrease during gelatinization. The decrease of intermolecular spacing and molecular mobility due to mixing were also indicated. However, the onset temperatures of transition observed from the different methods used were not comparable with each other, indicating that the mobility attribute is specific to a particular technique and frequency.
Antibacterial Efficacy of Calcium Hydroxide and Chlorhexidine Gluconate Irrigants at 37°C and 46°C

This study investigated the ability of two endodontic irrigants to eliminate Enterococcus faecalis from dentinal tubules, and whether their antimicrobial action was enhanced by heat. The lumens of disks prepared from extracted bovine roots were infected with E. faecalis and incubated for 72 h. Specimens were then filled with saline, 10% calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2), or 0.12% chlorhexidine gluconate (CHX) at 24 degrees C or 46 degrees C and incubated at 37 degrees C or 46 degrees C. The samples were then pulverized and plated to quantify residual bacteria. No statistical difference (p > 0.05) in bacterial growth was seen between the two saline groups, or between the two medication groups at a given temperature. CHX and Ca(OH)2 at either temperature produced significantly less growth than either saline group, and CHX or Ca(OH)2 at 46 degrees C produced significantly less growth than either group at 37 degrees C. Heat enhanced the antibacterial action of both experimental irrigants against E. faecalis, but heating saline produced no increase in bactericidal effect.
Barbiturates Protect Retinal Cells from Hypoxia in Cell Culture

• A culture system was used to screen for drugs that can protect mammalian retinal cells from damage induced by hypoxia. Using a special incubator, cultures could be made hypoxic for defined periods. Phase contrast photomicroscopy facilitated comparison of retinal cells before hypoxia and 1 to 2 days after hypoxia. Using 2- to 3-week-old cultures, certain glutamate antagonists, anesthetics, calcium blockers, and thiopental sodium were screened for their effect in protecting cells from hypoxia. The most remarkable effect was noted with thiopental. Quantitative measurements showed a significant increase in the percent of cells surviving after exposure to hypoxia in the presence of 100 μmol/L of thiopental sodium compared with control hypoxic cultures—82% vs 59% at 48 hours. A dose-response curve demonstrated maximal effect at 50 μmol/L of thiopental sodium, with toxic effects noted at 200 μmol/L of thiopental sodium. Our results show that thiopental reduces hypoxia-induced damage to retinal cells in culture.
Structural and Observational Uncertainty in Environmental and Natural Resource Management

Structural uncertainty arises when key features of the behavior of a system are not well understood. Observational uncertainty arises when key variables in a system are not directly observed. Both types of uncertainty lead to problems for standard dynamic optimization approaches. The replacement of uncertainties by belief distributions over those uncertainties is one approach to addressing the problem. The use of this and other approaches are reviewed, with an emphasis on applications to environmental and resource management problems.
Fabrication and properties of a carbon/polypyrrole three-dimensional microbattery

The carbon-microelectromechanical systems (C-MEMS) microfabrication process offers a promising method for fabricating three-dimensional (3D) battery architectures. In the current study, this approach was extended to the fabrication of positive electrode arrays and their assembly in a 3D lithium-ion microbattery. The positive electrode array was fabricated by electrochemical deposition of dodecylbenzenesulfonate-doped polypyrrole (PPYDBS) on an array of carbon rods. Electrochemical measurements show that the electrodeposited PPYDBS electrode array reversibly intercalates lithium with better gravimetric capacity than that of 2D electrodeposited films. The prototype carbon/PPYDBS 3D battery was based on an interdigitated electrode array configuration. It functioned as a secondary battery but the performance was limited because of electrical shorting. These initial results with the 3D interdigitated battery help to identify the needs associated with different electrode fabrication approaches and specific 3D designs.
Specific in situ hepatitis B viral double mutation (HBVDM) detection in urine with 60 copies ml(-1) analytical sensitivity in a background of 250-fold wild type without DNA isolation and amplification.

We have examined in situ detection of hepatitis B virus 1762T/1764A double mutation (HBVDM) in urine using a (Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3)0.65(PbTiO3)0.35 (PMN-PT) piezoelectric plate sensor (PEPS) coated with a 16-nucleotide (nt) probe DNA (pDNA) complementary to the HBVDM. The in situ mutation (MT) detection was carried out in a flow with the PEPS vertically situated at the center of the flow in a background of wild type (WT). For validation, this detection was followed by detection in the mixture of MT fluorescent reporter microspheres (FRMs) (MT FRMs) and WT FRMs that emitted different fluorescence colours and were designed to specifically bind to MT and WT, respectively. At 30 °C and 4 ml min−1, a PEPS was shown to specifically detect HBVDM in situ with 60 copies ml−1 analytical sensitivity in a background of clinically-relevant 250-fold more WT in 30 min without DNA isolation, amplification, or labelling as validated by the visualization of the captured MT FRMs and WT FRMs following FRM detection where the captured MT FRMs outnumbered the WT FRMs by a factor of 5 to 1.
Formation of linear and parabolic dunes on the eastern Snake River Plain, Idaho in the nineteenth century

Abstract Geomorphic and stratigraphic evidence show periods of distinct hydrologic excess and deficit sometime in the past 500 years on the eastern Snake River Plain. Natural exposures at the current shore of Mud Lake contain a lacustrine silty sand beneath eolian sands; the latter deposit is expressed at the surface as hairpin parabolic and linear dunes. These dunes can be traced into and across lakes, a clear sign of recent aridity. Two shallow-water gastropods and two wood fragments from the lacustrine silty sand yield the respective AMS 14 C ages of ca. 705 and 988 year BP, and 195 and 305 year BP. The offset in ages indicates a lake hard-water effect of aquatic gastropods, with the wood ages providing the closest age constraint. Optically stimulated luminescence single aliquot regeneration ages of 150±30 and 120±20 year BP on quartz grains from the overlying eolian sands further constrains a drop in lake level and subsequent aridity to the 19th century. This lacustrine–dune sequence is probably the geomorphic expression of a distinct wet period followed by a severe drought between AD 1845 and 1856, which has been documented in the dendroclimatic records for the Rocky Mountains and the western Great Plains. Lake fluctuations and dune formation is associated with greater subdecadal variability in spring precipitation, than recorded in the past 100 years.
Modeling of Immiscible, Two-Phase Flows in a Natural Rock Fracture

One potential method of geologically sequestering carbon dioxide (CO2 ) is to inject the gas into brine-filled, subsurface formations. Within these low-permeability rocks, fractures exist that can act as natural fluid conduits. Understanding how a less viscous fluid moves when injected into an initially saturated rock fracture is important for the prediction of CO2 transport within fractured rocks. Our study examined experimentally and numerically the motion of immiscible fluids as they were transported through models of a fracture in Berea sandstone. The natural fracture geometry was initially scanned using micro-computerized tomography (CT) at a fine volume-pixel (voxel) resolution by Karpyn et al. [1]. This CT scanned fracture was converted into a numerical mesh for two-phase flow calculations using the finite-volume solver FLUENT® and the volume-of-fluid method. Additionally, a translucent experimental model was constructed using stereolithography. The numerical model was shown to agree well with experiments for the case of a constant rate injection of air into the initially water-saturated fracture. The invading air moved intermittently, quickly invading large-aperture regions of the fracture. Relative permeability curves were developed to describe the fluid motion. These permeability curves can be used in reservoir-scale discrete fracture models for predictions of fluid motion within fractured geological formations. The numerical model was then changed to better mimic the subsurface conditions at which CO2 will move into brine saturated fractures. The different fluid properties of the modeled subsurface fluids were shown to increase the amount of volume the less-viscous invading gas would occupy while traversing the fracture.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
State Taxation of Intangibles: the Problem of Evasion

Seven states in the United States are identified as having significant intangibles taxes. The characteristics of these taxes are surveyed, and the degree of tax evasion is estimated. It is found that evasion is a major problem in all states. In fact, in all but one state the revenue generated does not even equal the revenue predicted, assuming full compliance, from just the portion of the tax levied on corporate stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Various policy alternatives are evaluated.
Distributions of hallucinations in the population.

Hallucinations are often manifestations of severe psychiatric conditions seen clinically. However, unde is known about the distribution of incident hallucinations in the community, nor whether there has been a change over the past century. Data from the NIMH Epidemiologic Catchment Area Program is used here to provide descriptive information on the community distribution, and data from the Sidgewick study from a century earlier provides comparative information. In the ECA data, the incidence of visual hallucinations was slightly higher in males (about 20 per 1000 per year) than females (about 13 per 1000 per year) across the age span from 18 to 80 years old, with a subsequent increase in the rate for females (up to about 40 per 1000 per year) after age 80. For auditory hallucinations there was an age 25–30 peak in males with a trough for females, and a later age 40–50 peak for females. Overall, there were substantial gender differences, and the effect of aging to increase the incidence of hatlucinations was the most consistent and prominent. The Sidgewick study showed a much higher proportion of visual hallucinations than the ECA program. This might be due to factors affecting brain function as well as social and psychological changes over time, although methodological weaknesses in both studies might also be responable
Effect on Breathing of an Electric Shock Applied to the Extremities

Electric shock frequently causes the arrest of breathing. This paper reports on an experimental investigation of this phenomenon. A convulsion is a likely consequence of a high voltage shock applied to the extremities. It is suggested that this convulsion may be reponsible for breathing failure.
Novel K+ Channel Blocker Induces Apoptosis Via Ca2+ Release From ER Stores

In search of novel K+ channel modulators we have undertaken HTS of chemical libraries. The primary screen using yeast whose growth in low [K+] medium depends on expression of the inwardly rectifying K+ channel Kir2.1 was followed by K+ current measurements in mammalian cells. One of the identified compounds, 22G ({1-[3-(4-chloro-phenyl)-adamantan-1-yl]-ethyl}-(1-ethyl-piperidin-4-yl)-amine), inhibits Kir2.1-dependent yeast growth, decreases 86Rb+ flux via Kir2.1 and acutely blocks the whole-cell Kir2.1 current (EC50=25 μM) in transfected HEK293 cells. As a part of specificity characterization of 22G, we examined its effect on 86Rb+ efflux via recombinant and native Ca2+-activated K+ channel (IKCa) in HEK293 cells and IEC-6 enterocytes, respectively. Surprisingly, 22G induced rapid K+ efflux via IKCa. Because previously we have established that IKCa-dependent K+ efflux is essential for apoptosis, we tested whether 22G is capable of inducing apoptosis. When applied at 25 μM for 10 min, 22G caused activation of caspases in 90% of IEC-6 cells, as determined by staining with the fluorescent pan-caspase inhibitor FAM-VAD-FMK. Blockade of 22G-induced K+ current by the IKCa inhibitor clotrimazole prevented the induction of apoptosis. Thus, 22G is a potent inducer of IKCa-mediated apoptosis. To test whether 22G activates pro-apoptotic IKCa current by elevating the cytosolic [Ca2+], we measured Ca2+ levels in 22G-treated HEK293, CHO and IEC-6 cells loaded with the Ca2+ indicator fluo-4. At 50 μM, 22G induced increase in cytosolic Ca2+ in Ca2+-free solution in all three cell lines. Depletion of ER Ca2+ stores with thapsigargin and cyclopiazonic acid abolished 22G-induced surge of cytosolic [Ca2+] and IKCa current. Therefore, 22G activates IKCa current via Ca2+ release from ER stores. We suggest using compound 22G as a reliable apoptogen, a tool for modulation of intracellular [Ca2+] and inhibitor of Kir2.1 current in patch-clamp experiments.
Rubber latex agglomeration by acid anhydride addition

Abstract A method was developed for the agglomeration of synthetic rubber latices from an initial particle size of 0.05–0.10 μm to sizes of about 1.0 μm. Hydrolysis of the fatty acid soap used during the emulsion polymerization is accomplished by adding an acid anhydride. This technique avoids coagulum formation which would occur if the weak acid were added directly. After the latex and anhydride are well mixed, no further agitation is employed. Agglomeration, which proceeds through Brownian motion-induced collisions of the destabilized particles, occurs within 30 min. The latex is then stabilized by either adding a base to regenerate the fatty acid soap or by adding a surfactant that is effective at lower pH values. The final particle size distributions, while not absolutely monodisperse, were monomodal and relatively sharp. At a constant anhydride level, the average agglomerated size increased with latex solids, salt level, and time (over the first 30 min). The use of a styrene as a comonomer had little effect but acrylonitrile at the 5–10% level greatly increased the tendency to agglomerate.
Irreversibility and metastability in spin-glasses. I. Ising model

By studying the evolution (with field $H$ and temperature $T$) of the free-energy surface, we numerically calculate various history-dependent magnetizations. The interactions are assumed to be of short range with a Gaussian probability distribution. In this paper, only Ising spin-glasses are discussed. In a companion paper, we treat vector spins. Only the simplest mean-field (MF) approximation to the free-energy functional $F[{{m}_{i}}]$ (where ${m}_{i}$ is the thermally averaged spin at the ith site) is studied. For finite-size systems, it is difficult to include the reaction corrections to $F$ within a self-consistent formalism. Good qualitative agreement with experiment is found for the $T$ and $H$ dependence of the field-cooled and zero-field-cooled, and thermal and isothermal remanent magnetizations. Our hysteresis loops are qualitatively similar to those observed in AuFe spin-glasses. The characteristic changes in the shape of the loop as the Fe concentration increases can also be reproduced theoretically. At $T=0$, the corrections to MF theory are negligible and it is shown that the ground states generated iteratively by cooling solutions of the MF equations are obtained much more rapidly and are of lower energy than those found in Monte Carlo simulations. It is demonstrated that the field-cooled state, which is obtained by a series of reversible procedures, is one for which linear-response theory (properly interpreted) and Maxwell's relations all hold. The close correspondence between our theory and experiment supports the hypothesis that on intermediate-time scales the behavior of spin-glasses is primarily determined by the properties of the free-energy surface: Irreversibility occurs when minima of $F$ are destroyed with changing $H$ or $T$.
Melanoma growth stimulatory activity in primary malignant melanoma: prognostic significance.

Malignant melanoma (MM) cells do not require all exogenous growth factors of normal melanocytes. It is hypothesized that they make their own growth factors including melanoma growth stimulatory activity (MGSA). Cultured melanoma cells respond to MGSA with increased growth and angiogenesis suggesting a role for MGSA in MM proliferation, differentiation, and progression. We assessed the prognostic significance of MGSA expression in 37 primary MM immunostained for MGSA. Immunostains were graded for intensity (0–3+), percentage of cells immunostained, and location of immunostain (intraepidermal, junctional, or dermal). In addition, 31 melanocytic and 23 dysplastic nevi were similarly studied for MGSA expression. All MM showed the presence of immunostain, 6 (16%) 1+, 12 (32%) 2+, and 19 (51%) 3+. Six (16%) had immunostain in ≤50% tumor cells, 31 (84%) in >50%. A significant number of MM showed >50% tumor cells staining at the dermal–epidermal junction compared with intraepidermal staining (P < .0001). Intensity and amount of immunostain did not correlate with Clark's or Breslow's level. During a mean follow-up of 60 months (range: 5–101) on 27 patients, there were 4 local recurrences, 6 distant metastases, and 10 deaths. MGSA expression was not of prognostic significance with regard to survival (overall, disease free), or local recurrence or distant metastasis in primary MM. MGSA expression was similar in benign melanocytic and dysplastic nevi. Strong diffuse expression was noted in the junctional component of all junctional and most compound nevi. The dermal component consistently expressed less or no (in 45% of intradermal nevi) MGSA. MGSA expression does not correlate with prognosis in MM. Increased expression of MGSA at the dermal–epidermal junction in nevi and MM may indicate a role for MGSA in early local growth, before development of atypia.
Electron Paramagnetic Resonance and Optical Study of Radiation-Induced Defect Centers in Doped Silica Glasses

Gamma- and UV-induced defect centers in germanium and fluorine doped silica have been studied by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. The complex spectrum at g≃2 in γ-irradiated germanium doped glass corresponds to a superposition of resonances from several germanium E′-centers. In UV-irradiated samples, however, the EPR spectrum is dominated by only one type of germanium E′-center. Significant spectral simplification of γ-irradiated germanium doped silica can be achieved by heating or broadband photoirradiation. Similar results are observed in multimode germanium doped core optical fibers. UV-induced optical loss spectra in the 0.5–1.5 µm wavelength range were also measured in these core fibers as well as the growth kinetics of the UL-induced absorption. Gamma-irradiation of fluorine doped silica generated two different types of silicon E′-centers, E′a1 and E′a2. At lower radiation dose one sees a mixture of E′a1 and E′a2, but at higher radiation dose E′a2 dominates. A spectrum dominated by the E′a2 variant is also observed in UV-irradiated samples and in photobleached low gamma dose samples.
The reliability-quality relationship for quality systems and quality risk management.

Engineering reliability typically refers to the probability that a system, or any of its components, will perform a required function for a stated period of time and under specified operating conditions. As such, reliability is inextricably linked with time-dependent quality concepts, such as maintaining a state of control and predicting the chances of losses from failures for quality risk management. Two popular current good manufacturing practice (cGMP) and quality risk management tools, failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) and root cause analysis (RCA) are examples of engineering reliability evaluations that link reliability with quality and risk. Current concepts in pharmaceutical quality and quality management systems call for more predictive systems for maintaining quality; yet, the current pharmaceutical manufacturing literature and guidelines are curiously silent on engineering quality. This commentary discusses the meaning of engineering reliability while linking the concept to quality systems and quality risk management. The essay also discusses the difference between engineering reliability and statistical (assay) reliability. Lay abstract The assurance of quality in a pharmaceutical product is no longer measured only "after the fact" of manufacturing. Rather, concepts of quality systems and quality risk management call for designing quality assurance into all stages of the pharmaceutical product life cycle. Interestingly, most assays for quality are essentially static and inform product quality over the life cycle only by being repeated over time. Engineering process reliability is the fundamental concept that is meant to anticipate quality failures over the life cycle of the product. Reliability is a well-developed theory and practice for other types of manufactured products and manufacturing processes. Thus, it is well known to be an appropriate index of manufactured product quality. This essay discusses the meaning of reliability and its linkages with quality systems and quality risk management.
Tacrolimus dosing requirements and concentrations in adult living donor liver transplant recipients

Living donor liver transplantation in adult recipients is becoming increasingly common. The liver metabolizes most drugs, including immunosuppressive agents. Right-lobe grafts used in adult living donor liver transplantation consist of only 50% to 60% of the total liver. The purpose of this study is to determine whether there is a difference between tacrolimus doses and concentrations in patients who received a partial liver transplant from a living donor (LRD) versus those who received a whole-liver transplant from a cadaveric donor (CAD). Thirteen LRD recipients and 13 CAD recipients who underwent transplantation between April 1998 and July 2000 were included in this analysis. A CAD control group matched for age, sex, and race was used for comparison. Tacrolimus doses and concentrations were analyzed weekly for the first 4 weeks, then monthly for 6 months posttransplantation. There was no difference in acute rejection rates, renal and liver function test results, or number of potentially interacting medications administered between groups. LRD recipients required significantly lower doses of tacrolimus compared with CAD recipients at 2 weeks (0.058 v 0.110 mg/kg/d; P 15 ng/mL; 22.1% v 9.2%; P <.01). In conclusion, LRD recipients have significantly decreased tacrolimus dosing requirements compared with CAD recipients during the first 3 months posttransplantation despite having similar tacrolimus concentrations.
Reputation building in a monetary policy game

Abstract This paper examines the notion of reputation building on the part of the central bank as a means of eliminating socially suboptimal inflation rates that arise in monetary policy games. The framework developed here explicitly models the behavior of wage setters, and it is shown that in the Nash equilibrium these private agents do not attain their desired outcome. Hence, wage setters have an incentive for engaging in a reputation-building game with the central bank. In this game, wage setters are allowed to select “optimally” a reputation based wage strategy, thereby making the strategy choice endogenous. This framework thus lays the groundwork for models in which the private sector behaves as a strategic player. It is shown that there exists a wage contract resembling an indexing arrangement which eliminates the suboptimal inflation rate. Finally, a discussion on the ways of restricting the number of permissible solutions to this game is presented.
Lipid Phosphate Phosphatases Regulate Lysophosphatidic Acid Production and Signaling in Platelets STUDIES USING CHEMICAL INHIBITORS OF LIPID PHOSPHATE PHOSPHATASE ACTIVITY

Blood platelets play an essential role in ischemic heart disease and stroke contributing to acute thrombotic events by release of potent inflammatory agents within the vasculature. Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) is a bioactive lipid mediator produced by platelets and found in the blood and atherosclerotic plaques. LPA receptors on platelets, leukocytes, endothelial cells, and smooth muscle cells regulate growth, differentiation, survival, motility, and contractile activity. Definition of the opposing pathways of synthesis and degradation that control extracellular LPA levels is critical to understanding how LPA bioactivity is regulated. We show that intact platelets and platelet membranes actively dephosphorylate LPA and identify the major enzyme responsible as lipid phosphate phosphatase 1 (LPP1). Localization of LPP1 to the platelet surface is increased by exposure to LPA. A novel receptor-inactive sn-3-substituted difluoromethylenephosphonate analog of phosphatidic acid that is a potent competitive inhibitor of LPP1 activity potentiates platelet aggregation and shape change responses to LPA and amplifies LPA production by agonist-stimulated platelets. Our results identify LPP1 as a pivotal regulator of LPA signaling in the cardiovascular system. These findings are consistent with genetic and cell biological evidence implicating LPPs as negative regulators of lysophospholipid signaling and suggest that the mechanisms involve both attenuation of lysophospholipid actions at cell surface receptors and opposition of lysophospholipid production.
Inappropriate usage of the Brunner–Munzel test in recent voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping studies

Voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping (VLSM) techniques have been important in elucidating structure-function relationships in the human brain. Rorden, Karnath, and Bonilha (2007) introduced the non-parametric Brunner-Munzel rank order test as an alternative to parametric tests often used in VLSM analyses. However, the Brunner-Munzel statistic produces inflated z scores when used at any voxel where there are less than 10 subjects in either the lesion or no lesion groups. Unfortunately, a number of recently published VLSM studies using this statistic include relatively small patient populations, such that most (if not all) examined voxels do not meet the necessary criteria. We demonstrate the effects of inappropriate usage of the Brunner-Munzel test using a dataset included with MRIcron, and find large Type I errors. To correct for this we suggest that researchers use a permutation derived correction as implemented in current versions of MRIcron when using the Brunner-Munzel test.
Why Media Matter: Toward a Richer Understanding of Consumers' Relationships with Advertising and Mass Media

Abstract We propose that consumers' relationships to nonadvertising forms of mass media are an essential aspect of the perceived meanings they derive from advertisements. After presenting a multidisciplinary theoretical framework, we discuss the results of an in-depth grounded theory investigation that identifies three key interpretive relationships between consumers and mass media vehicles.
A Heuristic to Determine Low Leakage Sleep State Vectors for CMOS Combinational Circuits

Input vector control has been used to minimize the leakage power consumption of a circuit in sleep state. In this paper, we present a novel heuristic for determining a low leakage vector to be applied to a circuit in sleep state. The heuristic is a greedy search based on the controllability of nodes in the circuit and uses the functional dependencies among cells in the circuit to guide the search. Results on a set of ISCAS and MCNC benchmark circuits show that in all cases our heuristic returns a vector having a leakage within 5% of that of the vector obtained using an extensive random search, with orders of magnitude improvement in computational speed.
120 Influence of time of day of vaccination on immune response in mature Quarter Horse mares

Agriculture/Environmental Science (The Ohio State University Denman Undergraduate Research Forum)
Lipids of maturing grain of corn (Zea mays L.)

The polar lipids of a standard corn inbred, H51, were analyzed as the kernels developed. The concentrations of the glycolipids and phospholipids were highest at 30–45 days after pollination and then decreased. Digalactosyl diglyceride was the dominant glycolipid in the maturing grain. Monogalactosyl diglyceride and sulfolipid were also major sugar-containing lipids, but steryl glycoside ester, steryl glycoside and cerebrosides were relatively minor components. Phosphatidyl choline accounted for over 50% of the total phosphorus of the phospholipids at all stages of kernel development. Phosphatidyl ethanolamine and phosphatidyl inositol ranked second and third. Each individual lipid had its own characteristic fatty acid pattern, but the changes in fatty acid composition during development of the corn kernels were similar for all the lipids. The percentages of palmitic acid and linolenic acid decreased while those of oleic acid increased.