cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Projective ranks of Hermitian symmetric spaces

For many mathematicians, the lure of mathematics began with a gradual recognition of the beauty of Euclidean geometry. It attracts us with its simplicity and clarity. Later, with the discovery of Cartesian coordinates, we see the power and precision of algebra in describfng geometric ideas. Such seeds having been sown, I have found myself deeply enthralled for many years now with algebraic geometry. Recently, however, a yearning for a return to a more concrete geometry overcame me. It was a desire to understand the "geometry" in algebraic geometry which has led to a study of those classical examples which seem to be well understood by the old masters. With a background in algebraic groups, I found the symmetric spaces of Cartan to be a good starting point. Currently, the "geometry" in algebraic geometry is represented most effectively by the theory of complex manifolds, many of the most popular of which are projective algebraic varieties. (For one who thought theorems should be proved in a characteristic-free environment, this represents a significant shift in perspective.) The compact Hermitian symmetric spaces can be represented as homogeneous spaces for reductive algebraic groups (so are objects of study in algebraic geometry) and also as homogeneous spaces for compact Lie groups (so are objects of study in Riemannian geometry). Among these spaces are the complex projective spaces and the Grassmann manifolds which play a fundamental role in the study of algebraic manifolds and the geometry on them. This article is concerned with recent characterizations of the Hermitian symmetric spaces using the curvature of the natural K~ihler metrics on each. In particular, the only ones with everywhere positive biholmorphic sectional curvature are the complex projective spaces. A motivating problem for what follows is: Find a similar characterization of Grassmann manifolds in terms of their curvature.
381 NEDNATAL ABSTINENCE, PHARMACOTHERAPY, AND DEVELOPMENTAL OUTCOME

The majority of infants born to drug-dependent women undergo neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) and often require pharmocotherapy for the treatment of withdrawal symptoms. Phenobarbitol, paregoric, and diazepam have been recommended for the treatment of the syndrome. While some investigators have examined the efficacy of these agents in treating NAS, there are no data regarding the use of specific pharmacologic agents and developmental outcome. This study evaluated 85 infants bom to drug-dependent women who were maintained on methadone during pregnancy. Severity of infant withdrawal was assessed with the Neonatal Abstinence Scoring system (Pediatric Research 7:319, 1973). Infants who required pharmacotherapy were randomly assigned to one of four treatment regimens: paregoric, phenobarbitol (titration), phenobarbitol (loading), and diazepam. When treatment was not successful with the assigned agent, one of the other agent(s) was used. At 6 months of age, the developmental status of infants was assessed with the Bayley Scales of Mental Development. Based on NAS treatment, four groups were delineated: I) paregoric (n=21); II) phenobarbitol (n=17); III) more than one agent (n=31); and IV) no treatment. (Data for the phenobarbitol loading and titration groups were combined since analysis revealed no differences between groups. All infants who initially received diazepam were included in Group III since diazepam as a single agent was not successful). Results of one way analysis of variance revealed no differences in developmental status between groups (p = <.10, f=.25). Scores for all groups were well within the normal range of development. Implications of these findings include, 1) the severity of withdrawal is not related to developmental outcome when appropriately managed with pharmacotherapy, and 2) the use of pharmacotherapy does not adversely effect the developmental outcome and may help ameloriate the consequences of NAS.
Ovulation triggering in clomiphene citrate-stimulated cycles: human chorionic gonadotropin versus a gonadotropin releasing hormone agonist.

To compare the use of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) to a gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) agonist, nafarelin, in initiating ovulation and supporting the luteal phase after priming with clomiphene. In 26 infertile women 50 mg clomiphene citrate produced a preovulatory-size follicle. Then, 11 women were randomized to receive two 400-μg doses of nafarelin intranasally 16 h apart, and 15 women were injected intramuscularly with 5000 IU of hCG (luteal day 0 = LD0). Starting on LD6, 7 more 400-μg doses of nafarelin were repeated on an every 16-h schedule or a single 2500 IU dose of hCG was given, respectively. Serum levels of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), estradiol (E2), progesterone (P), and hCG were measured. On LD13, endometrium was evaluated with ultrasonography and biopsy in 19 nonpregnant women. As judged by a threefold rise in serum LH, an LH surge was detected on LD1 in all 11 nafarelin patients, but in only 8 hCG patients (P = 0.01). LH and FSH levels were significantly higher on LD1, 7, and 8 and were significantly suppressed on LD13 in the nafarelin group. All patients had mid-luteal P levels greater than 10 ng/ml and luteal phases longer than 13 days. Significantly different luteal E2 or P levels were noted only on LD13, with lower values in the nafarelin group. Pregnancies were achieved in 3 of 11 nafarelin cycles and 2 of 15 hCG cycles. Luteal phase defects were also similar: 4 of 8 nafarelin patients and 7 of 11 hCG patients. Nafarelin or hCG in conjunction with clomiphene can result in viable pregnancies, but is associated with low pregnancy rates and a high incidence of luteal phase defects.
Equilibrium structure and dynamics of the California Current System

This paper addresses the structure and dynamical mechanisms of regional and mesoscale physical variability in the subtropical northeast Pacific Ocean using the Regional Oceanic Modeling System (ROMS). The model is configured with a U.S. West Coast domain that spans the California Current System (CCS) with a mesoscale horizontal resolution up to as fine as 3.5 km. Its mean-seasonal forcing is by momentum, heat, and water fluxes at the surface and adaptive nudging to gyre-scale fields at the open water boundaries. Its equilibrium solutions show realistic mean and seasonal states and vigorous mesoscale eddies, fronts, and filaments. The level of eddy kinetic energy (EKE) in the model is comparable to drifter and altimeter estimates in the solutions with sufficiently fine resolution. Because the model lacks nonseasonal transient forcing, the authors conclude that the dominant mesoscale variability in the CCS is intrinsic rather than transiently forced. The primary eddy generation mechanism is the baroclinic instability of upwelling, alongshore currents. There is progressive movement of meanseasonal currents and eddy energy offshore and downward into the oceanic interior in an annually recurrent cycle. The associated offshore eddy heat fluxes provide the principal balance against nearshore cooling by mean Ekman transport and upwelling. The currents are highly nonuniform along the coast, with important influences by capes and ridges in both maintaining mean standing eddies and launching transient filaments and fronts.
A data efficient method for characterization of chameleon tongue motion using Doppler radar

A new technique is described for study of the study of high velocity animal movements using a continuous wave Doppler radar operating at 24 GHz. The movement studied was tongue projection kinematics during prey capture by the lizard Chamaeleo Jacksonii. The measurements were verified with a high speed video reference, recorded at 1000 frames per second. The limitations and advantages of both the methodologies are compared and tongue speeds of 3:65 m/s were observed. These results show a useful application of radar to augment visual sensing of biological motion and enable the use of monitoring in a wider range of situations.
Exchange of an occluded nasojejunal tube facilitated by angioplasty balloon-induced rupture

We describe a method of exchanging a blocked nasojejunal (NJ) tube involving the use of a percutaneous transluminal angioplasty balloon to rupture the tube, followed by insertion of a guidewire through this rupture to create a guide for subsequent placement of a modified NJ tube. We used this technique in a child with a critical need for an NJ tube, in whom routine guidewire exchange was not feasible because of tube obstruction as well as the patient’s anatomic abnormalities. This technique might also be useful for other patients in whom standard techniques are ineffective.
Development of a framework to evaluate human risk in a complex problem domain

Although there are various techniques such as cost-benefit analysis that risk managers can use to place a monetary value on human life, these techniques have met with only varying levels of success even when applied to problems that have direct relationships among entities. Furthermore, these techniques have not enjoyed even this level of success when applied to problems that have ambiguous, uncertain and dynamic relationships among the entities. This paper proposes a three-phased framework that will attempt to guide decision makers beyond traditional thinking toward a more systemic (holistic) perspective to addressing human risk. The correct implementation of this emerging framework can help risk managers to: 1) better understand the nature of complex systems problems; 2) gain additional knowledge with which to assess human risks; 3) shift away from the traditional way of thinking and toward applying a holistic perspective based on systems theory in conjunction with systems thinking.
IXTOC I OIL SPILL—THE DAMAGE ASSESSMENT PROGRAM AND ECOLOGICAL IMPACT

ABSTRACT On June 3, 1979, the Ixtoc I well blew out in the Bay of Campeche, Mexico. Before the well was capped on March 23, 1980, approximately 3.3 million of the estimated 140 million barrels (bbl) of spilled oil impacted the South Texas coast. This event activated U.S. response and cleanup activities that are authorized and organized under the National Contingency Plan (NCP). A formal plan to assess damage from waterborne pollutants did not exist before this spill. Therefore, an ad hoc committee with representatives from private institutions, industries, universities, and state and federal agencies with primary responsibilities or interest in resource protection was formed to develop the scientific approach and management structure for the damage assessment plan that was developed during this crisis situation. The purpose of this paper is to describe the formation of an ad hoc interagency damage assessment organization, to outline the concept and goal of the comprehensive Ixtoc I Damage Assessment Progr...
Case report: the spectrum of autoimmune thyroid disease with urticaria.

ABSTRACT Urticaria has many known etiologies. An association with autoimmune thyroid disease is described. One individual had the triad of urticaria, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, and rheumatoid arthritis, whereas the other individual had urticaria preceding Graves’ disease by over 1 year.
PRESERVATION OF MICROBORINGS AS FLUID INCLUSIONS

In this study, we identify endolithic microbial borings preserved as fluid inclusions in Pennsylvanian and Permian brachiopods from the subsurface of western Kansas. Endolithic microbial boring is a new biologically controlled mode of formation for inclusion vacuoles. The microborings are preserved as three types of linear, curved, and branched arrays of tubular fluid inclusions, each with a distinct diameter. Each of the thousands of microborings observed in 60 brachiopod fragments has changed shape by forming calcite partitions that have divided the original tubules into separate aligned fluid inclusions. On average, only 35% of the original lengths of the microborings are preserved as fluid inclusions; values range from less than 5% to about 85%. Enlarged diameters of inclusions, variable vapor-to-liquid ratio in paired inclusions, and low salinities of inclusions indicate that closed-system necking down is one of the mechanisms responsible for alteration of the microborings. Preservation of parallel walls, fillings with luminescent calcite and high salinity of included fluid indicate that open-system cementation is the other mechanism responsible for alteration of the microborings. As most inclusions have leaked and refilled or stretched during thermal re-equilibration, these fluid inclusions are not particularly reliable as records of diagenetic history. The linear arrays of fluid inclusions that remain after alteration of the original microboring are excellent as trace fossils of microbial activity. The record preserved here indicates how fluid-inclusion techniques can be applied to identify and determine the timing of entrapment of microbial trace fossils in ancient Earth and extraterrestrial materials.
The Monte Carlo method and the evaluation of retrieval system performance

The ability to distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable levels of retrieval performance and the ability to distinguish between significant and non-significant differences between retrieval results are important to traditional information retrieval experiments. The Monte Carlo method is shown to represent an attractive alternative to the hypergeometric model for identifying the levels at which random retrieval performance is exceeded in retrieval test collections and for overcoming some of the limitations of the hypergeometric model. The Monte Carlo method produces low performance thresholds for the individual test collections that are very similar to the thresholds derived by the hypergeometric model, both at the test collection level and at the individual query level. In addition, the Monte Carlo method is much less computer-intensive than the hypergeometric model, can be used with measures of retrieval effectiveness that take the rank order of the retrieved documents into consideration, can be used to derive the probability of obtained results, and can be used to determine the statistical significance of difference between two or more retrieval results. The ability to use the Monte Carlo method to derive the probability of obtained results and to compare two or more retrieval results makes it possible to determine more accurately how well retrieval systems operate under specific conditions and, in conjunction with the presentation of individual query results, makes it possible to determine whether relationships between query characteristics and retrieval system performance exist. Understanding these relationships should lead to improvements in the effectiveness of retrieval systems.
A Model for Identifying Cytomegalovirus in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Background & Aims The presentation of cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) can be similar to that of idiopathic IBD. It is a challenge to identify patients at highest risk for CMV. We investigated risk factors and generated a clinical score to identify patients with IBD at highest risk for CMV disease. Methods We performed a retrospective case-control study of 68 patients with IBD (66% with ulcerative colitis, 31% with Crohn's disease, and 3% with unclassified IBD) diagnosed with CMV disease on the basis of tissue analysis from January 2005 through December 2011 at Mayo Clinic, Rochester. The patients were each matched with 3 patients with IBD and suspected CMV disease (controls). An a priori set of the most objective variables was used to create a model to identify those with CMV disease. Scores were assigned to each significant factor from the multivariable analysis. Cutoff values that identified patients with CMV with ≥85% sensitivity and specificity were selected. Results Patients with medically refractory IBD (odds ratio [OR], 3.69; P P P P = .030) but not tumor necrosis factor antagonists (OR, 1.30; P = .376) were more likely to have CMV disease than patients with IBD without these features. In a multivariable model, refractory disease, treatment with immunomodulators, and age older than 30 years were independently associated with CMV disease. Use of tumor necrosis factor antagonists was an insignificant factor even after adjustment. Conclusions Clinical features can identify patients with IBD at risk for CMV disease. This model may help clinicians stratify patients on the basis of risk when CMV disease is suspected.
Storied numbers: supporting media-rich data storytelling for television

The digital convergence of broadcast television, usergenerated content from online and mobile sources, and interactive surfaces brings an opportunity for the development of platforms to support media-rich data storytelling for television audiences. In this paper, we report on a production model and system featuring a multi-touch interactive table with tangibles in the broadcast studio, on which performers use information visualizations to access and present media-rich content from viewers. The system uses content generated from a mobile application that couples close-ended survey items with rich media, such as video. The app is designed to increase opportunities for public debate on civic issues, but is also suitable for pure entertainment topics, such as sports and lifestyle. We present the results of an evaluation of our production model and the studio prototype in a lab setting with television production experts and on-air talent. Our results indicate that such systems must be designed with a flexible user profile in mind to accommodate performer capabilities and preferences, operational variations, program formats, and changing conventions in touch interaction.
On mapping an irregular boundary by means of reflected-wave measurements

A method, using seismic data, is presented for the mapping of the irregular boundary of an elastic half-space. It furnishes the shape of the corrugations in terms of the measured displacement field generated by plane dilatational or shear waves reflected from the boundary.
Feeding Tests with Several Species of Mites on Different Kinds of Blood and Blood Components

Adults and nymphs of both the tropical rat mite, Ornithonyssus bacoti (Hirst, 1913) and the tropical fowl mite, o. barsa (Berlese, 1888), were given opportunities to feed through silk membranes on the whole bloods of rat and chick, and on the red blood cells, plasma, and serum of each, at 95°F and 28%–73% RH. The mites did not show a preference for whole blood of the natural or that of the unnatural host, but the rat mites fed less on the plasma and the bird mites fed less on the red cells. Three laelaptid species, Echinolaelaps echidninus (Berlese, 1887), Laelaps nuttalli (Hirst, 1915), and Haemolaelaps glasgowi (Ewing, 1925), also were subjected to feeding tests on whole blood of rat, mouse, and chick, and on components of each. They did not demonstrate a significant trend in feeding.
Acid blocking medication usage pre and post liver transplantation

BACKGROUND: Terminal liver disease is associated with upper gastrointestinal (GI) pathology. Following liver transplantation (LT), some immunosuppressive agents can cause GI complications. METHODS: We investigated the use of acid blocking medication (ABM) pre and post transplant in a series of 467 consecutive LTs in 402 individuals, which were performed from 1998 to 2001 at our center. RESULTS: A total of 41% of patients were given ABM pretransplant. All patients received proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) for 100 days per protocol. After a median follow up of 5 (range 1–8.1) years for 339 evaluate transplants, 64% of patients received ABM for peptic ulcer disease (n = 28), GERD (n = 50), dyspepsia/gastritis (n = 30), recurrent liver cirrhosis (n = 15) and prophylaxis if patients were maintained on steroids (n = 21), MMF (n = 17), Sirolimus (n = 9) or received biphosphonates for osteoporosis (n = 22). In a minority of cases no clear indication could be found. CONCLUSIONS: Upper GI diseases are common complications after LT and many LT recipients require long term ABM.
A screening and counseling program for prevention of osteoporosis.

Prevention of osteoporosis is an increasingly salient public health concern as our society ages. This report describes the procedures used at an osteoporosis center to which people come for screening and counseling. The patients on whom this report is based were 53 non-smoking women, 1–10 years postmenopausal at the time of their first visit to the center, who chose not to undertake estrogen therapy, and who returned for a second visit in 12–18 months. They were classified as to adequacy of calcium intake (at least 750 mg/day) and exercise (at least 3 h/week of weight-bearing exercise) at both visits; complete data on calcium intake and exercise were available on 46 of the women. Bone densities were measured at the femoral neck and lumbar spine with dual energy X-ray absorptiometry, and at the distal radius with single photon absorptiometry. At the first visit, 67% of the women reported adequate exercise and 43% reported adequate calcium intake. At the second visit, the percentages in the adequate categories had increased to 74% for exercise (p=0.06) and 70% for calcium intake (p=0.02). Age at the first visit was inversely correlated with femoral (r=−0.40,p=0.003) and spinal (r=−0.36,p=0.009) bone densities; the correlation with radial bone density did not achieve significance (r=−0.27,p=0.55). Rather than declining, as would be expected in early postmenopausal women, bone density rose slightly, but not significantly, between visits for all three sites. Neither the first visit values nor the changes between visits were significantly different between groups divided on the basis of adequacy of calcium intake or exercise. These data suggest that bone density is related to age, that a visit to an osteoporosis center may help early postmenopausal women to maintain and improve healthy exercise and eating behaviors, and that bone density does not necessarily decline over a 12–18 month period in women who maintain such behaviors.
US nuclear energy policy Provision of funds for decommissioning

Abstract The five recognized methods of decommissioning nuclear power plants are reviewed, and are linked with US nuclear regulatory policy. Although over 60 US nuclear reactors have been decommissioned since 1960, none have been large-scale commercial facilities. Costs of the decommissioning alternatives are estimated, but are acknowledged to be highly tentative and uncertain. Five methods of providing funds for decommissioning and the actual practices of US electric utilities are analysed in terms of the policy issues they present. Revenue bonding and sinking fund approaches are argued to be the soundest means to recover decomissioning uncertainties surrounding decommissioning are considered.
Topological Evolution of a Fast Magnetic Breakout CME in Three Dimensions

W present the extension of the magnetic breakout model for CME initiation to a fully 3-dimensional, spherical geometry. Given the increased complexity of the dynamic magnetic field interactions in 3-dimensions, we first present a summary of the well known axisymmetric breakout scenario in terms of the topological evolution associated with the various phases of the eruptive process. In this context, we discuss the completely analogous topological evolution during the magnetic breakout CME initiation process in the simplest 3-dimensional multipolar system. We show that an extended bipolar active region embedded in an oppositely directed background dipole field has all the necessary topological features required for magnetic breakout, i.e. a fan separatrix surface between the two distinct flux systems, a pair of spine fieldlines, and a true 3-dimensional coronal null point at their intersection. We then present the results of a numerical MHD simulation of this 3-dimensional system where boundary shearing flows introduce free magnetic energy, eventually leading to a fast magnetic breakout CME. The eruptive flare reconnection facilitates the rapid conversion of this stored free magnetic energy into kinetic energy and the associated acceleration causes the erupting field and plasma structure to reach an asymptotic eruption velocity of greater than or approx. equal to 1100 km/s over an approx.15 minute time period. The simulation results are discussed using the topological insight developed to interpret the various phases of the eruption and the complex, dynamic, and interacting magnetic field structures.
Sintering and deformation of nano-grained materials

Nano-grained ceramics and intermetallic alloys were produced by inert gas condensation methods. Rates of densification and grain growth were measured on both pure and impurity-doped ceramic materials during conventional sintering, and sintering under an applied isostatic or uniaxial loading. Deformation studies were performed on intermetallic nano-grained TiAl. Initial studies of nano-amorphous alloys are also presented.
Robust method for estimating the Lindblad operators of a dissipative quantum process from measurements of the density operator at multiple time points

We present a robust method for quantum process tomography, which yields a set of Lindblad operators that optimally fit the density operators measured at a sequence of time points. The benefits of this method are illustrated using a set of liquid-state nuclear magnetic resonance measurements on a molecule containing two coupled hydrogen nuclei which are sufficient to fully determine its relaxation superoperator. It was found that the complete positivity constraint, which is necessary for the existence of the Lindblad operators, was also essential for obtaining a robust fit to the measurements. The general approach taken here promises to be broadly useful in studying dissipative quantum processes in many of the diverse experimental systems currently being developed for quantum-information processing purposes.
1 ECHOCARDIOGRAPHIC ASSESSMENT OF LEFT VENTRICULAR (LV) FUNCTION IN HEALTHY ADOLESCENTS FOLLOWING MAXIMAL SUPINE EXERCISE

1 ECHOCARDIOGRAPHIC ASSESSMENT OF LEFT VENTRICULAR (LV) FUNCTION IN HEALTHY ADOLESCENTS FOLLOWING MAXIMAL SUPINE EXERCISE
A note on plastic expansion of irradiated spherical shells

Abstract Finite plastic expansion of a thick-walled spherical vessel is studied in presence of neutron radiation. Due to irradiation the yield stress and the hardening modulus vary across the shell wall. The pressure-expansion relation is obtained in case of combined linear hardening and linear attenuation.
Ultrastructure of spontaneous vaginal keratinization in hanging-drop organ culture (Balb/cCrgl MICE)

The vaginal epithelium of castrate 8.5 week old mice undergoes spontaneous keratinization in the absence of estrogen when placed in hanging-drop organ cultures using chemically defined medium 199. The early stages of in vivo and in vitro keratinization have been shown to be similar and are characterized by marked increases in cytoplasmic ribosomes and filaments which correspond to known biochemical changes induced by estrogen in cells of the female genital tract. Similarly, there are early changes in nuclear chromatin and nucleoli in vitro indicative of active messenger-RNA and ribosomal-RNA synthesis. In the later stages of in vitro keratinization, however, there is, by electron microscopy, a failure of keratohyaline granule formation and incomplete filament aggregation. Thus, estrogen induced in vivo and spontaneous in vitro keratinization are not truly comparable. The changes occurring in the organ culture system used have, however, been shown to be reproducible and, at the light microscopic level, comparable to those previously described in other in vitro studies. The culture vessel used in the present study should offer certain advantages over other organ culture systems.
Study of the Solid-Matrix Phosphorescence Properties of a Heterocyclic Aromatic Amine and the Heat Capacities of Glucose Glasses as the Temperature Decreases

The heat capacities were obtained from 294 to 133 K for four glucose-glass systems. Two of the glasses were prepared from crystalline glucose. One of the glasses contained the heavy-atom salt NaI and the other glass did not contain NaI. The other two glasses were similar, but they were prepared from glucose melts. Correlations were developed between the solid-matrix phosphorescence (SMP) lifetimes and intensities of 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP) in the glucose glasses and the heat capacities of the glucose sugar glasses as the temperature was lowered. Several plots of reciprocal SMP lifetime versus reciprocal temperature and reciprocal SMP lifetime versus reciprocal heat capacity were compared. Also, the reciprocal SMP intensity versus reciprocal temperature plots were compared with the corresponding reciprocal SMP intensity versus reciprocal heat capacity plots. In addition, basic photo-physical equations were used to develop relationships among the lifetime data, the intensity data, and the heat capacity data. The heat capacity data and SMP lifetime data, obtained as the temperature was lowered, were discussed in relationship to low-frequency vibrational modes and βrelaxation phenomena in the glucose glasses. The discussion of these phenomena offered explanations for some of the loss of the excited triplet-state energy of PhIP in the glucose sugar glasses.
New agents for the medical treatment of interstitial cystitis

Interstitial cystitis (IC) is a painful, sterile, disorder of the urinary bladder characterised by urgency, frequency, nocturia and pain. IC occurs primarily in women but also in men with recent findings indicating that chronic, abacterial prostatitis may be a variant of this condition. The prevalence of IC has ranged from about 8 - 60 cases/100,000 female patients depending on the population evaluated. About 10% of patients have severe symptoms that are associated with Hunner's ulcers on bladder biopsy; the rest could be grouped in those with or without bladder inflammation. Symptoms of IC are exacerbated by stress, certain foods and ovulatory hormones. Many patients also experience allergies, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and migraines. There have been various reports indicating dysfunction of the bladder glycosaminoglycan (GAG) protective layer and many publications showing a high number of activated bladder mast cells. Increasing evidence suggests that neurogenic inflammation and/or neuropathic pain is a major component of IC pathophysiology. Approved treatments so far include intravesical administration of dimethylsulphoxide (DMSO) or oral pentosanpolysulphate (PPS). New treatments focus on the combined use of drugs that modulate bladder sensory nerve stimulation (neurolytic agents), inhibit neurogenic activation of mast cells, or provide urothelial cytoprotection, together with new drugs with anti-inflammatory activity.
Conformity, rebellion, and learning: confrontation of youth with society.

This paper describes clinical experience related to the confrontation of youth with society. Its thesis is that in our society the pleasure and satisfaction associated with early successful learning, in all areas of everyday living, is much reduced and distorted during each developmental phase, so that subsequent and continued learning is similarly affected. The inevitable frustration may be expressed by youth in the context of rebellion, alienation, and over-conformity.
Ultrastructure and behavior of the achiasmatic, telosynaptic XY pair of the sand rat ( Psammomys obesus )

The behavior of the X and Y chromosomes in somatic and testicular cells of the sand rat (P. obesus) has been investigated with light and electron-microscope procedures. The Y chromosome has been identified as the fourth longest of the complement, both by C-banding and by its meiotic behavior. The X chromosome is the longest of the complement and carries two major C-heterochromatic blocks, one in the distal part of the long arm and the other forming most of the short arm. During presynaptic stages in spermatocytes, separate C-heterochromatic blocks, representing the sex chromosomes, are observed in the nuclei. An XY body is regularly formed at pachytene. During first meiotic metaphase the X and Y chromosomes show variable associations, none of them chiasmatic. Second meiotic metaphases contain, as in other mammals, a single sex chromosome, suggesting normal segregation between the X and the Y. — Electron microscopic observations of the autosomal synaptonemal complexes (SCs) and the single axes of the X and Y chromosomes during pachytene permit accurate, statistically significant identification of each of the largest chromosomes of the complement and determination of the mean arm ratios of the X and Y axes. The X and Y axes always lie close to each other but do not form a SC. The ends of the X and Y axes are attached to the nuclear envelope and associate with each other in variable ways, both autologously (X with X or Y with Y) and heterologously (X with Y), with a tendency to form a maximum number (four) of associated ends. Analysis of 36 XY pairs showed no significant preference for any single specific attachment between arm ends. The eighth longest autosomal bivalent is frequently partially asynaptic during early pachytene, and only at that time is often near or touching one end of the X axis. — It is concluded that while axis formation and migration of the axes along the plane of the nuclear envelope proceed normally in the X and Y chromosomes, true synapsis (with SC formation) does not occur because the pairing region of the X chromosome has probably been relocated far from the chromosome termini by the insertion of distal C-heterochromatic blocks.
Optimal trajectories of mobile remote sensors for parameter estimation in distributed Cyber-Physical Systems

In this paper, we present a method to obtain the optimal trajectories of a team of robots monitoring a distributed parameter system located in a different domain. The mobile robots are equipped with remote sensors capable of measuring the considered system's state from a separate space. The purpose of trajectory planning of the team of robots is to obtain measurements so as to estimate the parameters of the considered system. From a given set of partial differential equation the dynamics of the distributed system's behavior, the optimal path and steering of the team of mobile nodes is obtained by minimizing the D-optimality criteria associated with the expected accuracy of the obtained parameter values. From this original problem, an optimal control problem is derived with the advantage of being solvable by readily available commercial softwares. The method is illustrated on a diffusive distributed syste.
R-F Hybrids Used for Paralleling Terminal Equipment for Closely Spaced Carrier-Current Channels [includes discussion]

Itwouldbepossible touseafilter ofthe proper bandwidth intheoutput ofeach transmitter toafford thedesired isolation;however, wherethechannels are spaced only1/2percentinfrequency, as arecrystal-controlled frequency-shift controlchannels, these filters becomevery expensive andhaveahighinsertion loss whichwoulduseupalarge portion ofthe useful operating rangeofthechannel equipment. Radio-frequency (r-f) hybrid units have beendesigned asamoreeconomical, less bulkysolution tothisproblem.The principal ofoperation issimilar tothatof themorefamiliar audiohybrids4 which areusedtoform4-wire to2-wire audio connections. Inthislater casevarious bridge orbalance circuits havebeenused topermit tying a2-wire telephone line to anincoming andoutgoing amplifier withoutcoupling theamplifiers together and causing singing. Asimilar balance circuit applied tocarrier-current linecoupling permits coupling twocircuits tothepower line withaminimumofcoupling between thetwocircuits. Whentransmitters are coupled totheline through anetwork of these hybrid units apowerloss ofabout l/nresults (nagainisthenumberof transmitters). Thismeanstheloss indecibels duetocoupling ofntransmitters is onlyhalf that imposed bystraight parallel operation. Hybrid-A Multiterminal Network Theideal circuit solution tothis problemwouldbeacomplex hybrid withmany pairs ofinputterminals' andonlyone balance andoneloadpair. Suchanideal network wouldhaveonlya3-decibel loss perchannel because oftheequal division ofenergy between theloadandbalance.
An interference phenomenon caused by Pasteurella pestis.

An interference phenomenon was produced by the intraperitoneal injection of broth culture dilutions of Pasteurella pestis grown at 28° C. into small white rats. At a critical level of approximately 10 6 Past. pestis L37 marked interference was produced. Doses of 10 4 or 10 7 killed rats readily. Interference was produced by the addition of killed organisms, a cell-free vaccine or a live vaccine, to small lethal doses of L37. Non-specific interference was produced by the intravenous injection of Indian ink prior to the intraperitoneal challenge with Past. pestis L37.
Molecular diagnostics for plant nematodes

Plant parasitic nematodes are a source of considerable economic loss to arable farmers. However, the cost of nematode control is also escalating, both in financial and environmental terms. Nevertheless, there are alternative methods of control in current use. As Tom Powers emphasizes in this article, to be effective, crop rotation and the use of resistant strains of host plant need to be accompanied by sensitive methods for parasite strain identification. Morphologically, there is little by which to separate nematode pothotypes and consequently technologies are being introduced to tackle these problems at the level of their genes.
Analysis of Patching Scheme from a Practical Perspective

Most previous researches on patching scheme mainly focused on efficient patch stream generation to minimize the required bandwidth by proposing the optimum patching window. Another typical aspect is that they assumed that all the streaming speed is playback speed without deeply analyzing the effects of streaming speed. However, higher streaming speed, especially higher multicast streaming speed, may give better results in some aspects. Therefore, in this study, we analyze the effects of multicast streaming speed in the aspect of bandwidth usage, when VCR function is supported. First, we reanalyze the previous optimum patching window and total required bandwidth of the patching scheme, since the previous result is too approximate and give inaccurate results in some cases. So, we propose a modified optimum patching window to generate more accurate results when the speed of multicast streams is playback speed. Second, we calculate the optimum patching window and required bandwidth when the multicast streaming speed is multiple times the playback speed. The result shows that optimum patching window size reduces and required bandwidth increases when the speed of multicast stream increases. Finally, we show that the performance patching scheme degrades when VCR action is generated. The playback speed streaming of multicast streams gives good performance in bandwidth usage if VCR function is not considered. However, our analysis shows that the required bandwidth sharply increases when we consider VCR function support. The streaming speed of the multicast stream, which is equal to Fast Search (FS) streaming speed, gives the upper bound for the required bandwidth when FS function is considered.
An experimental study of soft errors in microprocessors

The issue of soft errors is an important emerging concern in the design and implementation of future microprocessors. The authors examine the impact of soft errors on two different microarchitectures: a DLX processor for embedded applications and a high-performance alpha processor. The results contrast impact of soft errors on combinational and sequential logic, identify the most vulnerable units, and assess soft error impact on the application.
Two-dimensional computational framework of meso-scale rigid and line interface elements for masonry structures

Abstract In this paper, rigid elements along with nonlinear line interface elements are utilized to model masonry structures. The modeling approach focuses on two dimensions (2D) whereby the in-plane behavior of components is represented by rigid elements and nonlinear line interfaces instead of modeling by a traditional finite element method. In this approach, the component will be allowed to crack in predefined paths which have more likelihood for propagation. The paper discusses the model derivation and implementation. Moreover, the mesh sensitivity of this method is assessed by using different mesh sizes, and it is shown that the model captures response obtained by the experimental tests. The traditional finite element method is indeed capable of predicting the behavior of large scale masonry component, but the computational time is very high. In this study it has been shown that using rigid elements along with nonlinear line interfaces leads to a reduced number of degrees-of-freedom, which consequently reduces the computational time. The material model is implemented in a user-defined subroutine that is compiled with DIANA. The algorithms and material models are validated with well-documented experimental studies, and results clearly show the capabilities of the proposed procedures.
Structure and dynamics correlations of photoinduced charge separation in rigid conjugated linear donor-acceptor dyads towards photovoltaic applications

The rates of photoinduced charge separation (CS) and charge recombination (CR) of four rigidly linked donor (D)–acceptor (A) dyads that were synthesized as intramolecular p/n junctions were obtained by optical transient absorption spectroscopy in solutions and self-assembled films. The CS processes were much more efficient than CR processes for all dyads in both solutions and films, which is preferable for photovoltaic applications. The rates of CR processes in covalently linked dyad films were slower than those in non-covalently linked D (i.e. oligothiophene (OTH)) and A (i.e.perylenediimide (PDI)) mixtures, demonstrating that the covalent linker may have reduced the probability of geminate recombination of charges due to direct face-to-face packing between D and A. Although both the CS and CR rates of the four dyads were similar with respect to one another in solution, they differed from one another in films, with the slowest CR rate observed in the dyad connected to a bulky alkyl group that hindered packing. After annealing, the CR rates of all films increased non-uniformly, and the extent of increase was correlated to structural changes as evidenced by the grazing-incident X-ray scattering (GIXS).
Run-Time Reconfiguration to Tolerate Core Failures for Real-Time Embedded Applications on NoC Manycore Platforms

In this paper, we study run-time reconfiguration problem for tolerating core failures on NoC many core platforms with following three objectives:(1) maintaining the maximal timing similarity between real-time embedded application' timing properties before and after the system reconfiguration, (2) guaranteeing to meet real-time embedded application's deadline requirements after system reconfiguration, and (3)minimizing the task migration time delay. Two approaches, i.e. mixed integer quadratic programming (MIQP) based approach and a heuristic largest influence core first (LICF) approach, are developed to derive a reconfiguration strategy that meets the three objectives. The MIQP approach is able to obtain the optimal solution and can be used at run-time if extra memory is available. For memory limited systems, the LICF approach can be used to obtain a solution in polynomial time that is near optimal.
Growth phase related variation in the radiation sensitivity of human colon adenocarcinoma cells.

Abstract Changes in radiation sensitivity with length of time in culture are described for an early passage human colon adenocarcinoma cell line (WiDr). The cells were most radioresistant at the end of lag-phase, 2 days after subculture (Do = 1.7 Gy; n=10). Radiation sensitivity then increased with time reaching a maximum during plateauphase, between days 8 and 10 (Do = 1.0 Gy; n=13). The oxygen enhancement ratio remained constant across the different growth phases of the culture. Cell volume decreased with time in culture as did the proportion of S- and G 2 M-phase cells. Flow cytometric analyses revealed an increase in the proportion of G, type cells with a plateau between days 8 and 12 of around 75%. The cell age response measured from synchronized cells following 8 Gy showed that WiDr cells were most radiation resistant in mid S-phase with maximal sensitivity during G 1 . These cells did not show repair of potentially-lethal radiation damage but were efficient in the repair of sub-lethal damage. The ability to repair sub-lethal damage did not change with culture age.
Cooling Evokes Redistribution of α2C-Adrenoceptors from Golgi to Plasma Membrane in Transfected Human Embryonic Kidney 293 Cells

Cold-induced vasoconstriction in cutaneous blood vessels is mediated by increased constrictor activity of vascular α2-adrenoceptors (α2-ARs). In mouse cutaneous arteries, α2-AR constriction at 37°C is mediated by α2A-ARs, whereas after cold exposure (28°C), α2C-ARs are no longer silent and mediate the remarkable cold-induced augmentation of α2-AR responsiveness. The goals of the present study were to develop a cell model of cutaneous thermoregulation and to determine the mechanisms underlying the thermosensitivity of α2C-ARs. Human embryonic kidney 293 cells were transiently transfected with the mouse α2A- or α2C-AR. In cells expressing α2A-ARs, UK-14,304 (5-bromo-N-(4,5-dihydro-1H-imidazol-2-yl)-6-quinoxalinamine), an α2-AR agonist, inhibited (10 pM) and stimulated (1–10 nM) the accumulation of cAMP evoked by forskolin. Similar responses were obtained at 37°C and 28°C. In contrast, in cells expressing α2C-ARs, UK-14,304 did not affect forskolin-stimulated cAMP accumulation at 37°C but did cause a concentration-dependent inhibitory effect at 28°C. Subcellular fractionation revealed that at 37°C α2C-ARs were localized predominantly to Golgi compartments, whereas α2A-ARs localized predominantly to the plasma membrane. After cooling (28°C), α2C-ARs relocated from Golgi compartments to the plasma membrane, whereas the α2A-AR remained at the plasma membrane. Immunofluorescence microscopy confirmed that, at 37°C, α2A-ARs were localized to the cell surface, whereas α2C-ARs colocalized with a trans-Golgi marker. Cooling did not affect localization of α2A-ARs, but shifted α2C-ARs to the cell surface. Moderate cooling, therefore, caused a selective redistribution of α2C-ARs from the Golgi compartments to the cell surface, allowing the rescue of the α2C-adrenergic functional response. This mechanism may explain the role of α2-ARs in thermoregulation of the cutaneous circulation.
Neuropsychological Dysfunction Due to Liver Disease

Among all organs, the liver ranks first in both size and the variety of its functional accomplishments. Located between the intestine and systemic circulation, the liver is, in effect, both a filter and a metabolic factory. Through mechanisms regulated by the level of available energy substrate and the two hormones, insulin and glucagon, the liver is the organ that is responsible for determining whether ingested and absorbed nutrients in the form of chemical energy are to be either utilized immediately or to be stored for later use. The liver is also the primary site for the activation, storage, and release of several vitamins. It is additionally a major site of protein synthesis, glycogen synthesis and storage, and is the primary regulator of the plasma level of cholesterol and other fats. An additional important function performed by hepatocytes is the manufacture of bile, a unique biologic detergent containing, among many other components, bile salts and cholesterol. Thus the liver plays an integral role in maintaining the nutritional and metabolic well-being of the organism.