cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Gait Sequence Analysis Using Frieze Patterns

We analyze walking people using a gait sequence representation that bypasses the need for frame-to-frame tracking of body parts. The gait representation maps a video sequence of silhouettes into a pair of two-dimensional spatio-temporal patterns that are near-periodic along the time axis. Mathematically, such patterns are called "frieze" patterns and associated symmetry groups "frieze groups". With the help of a walking humanoid avatar, we explore variation in gait frieze patterns with respect to viewing angle, and find that the frieze groups of the gait patterns and their canonical tiles enable us to estimate viewing direction of human walking videos. In addition, analysis of periodic patterns allows us to determine the dynamic time warping and affine scaling that aligns two gait sequences from similar viewpoints. We also show how gait alignment can be used to perform human identification and model-based body part segmentation.
Role of Bivalent Cations in the Phosphoglucomutase System II. METAL ION BINDING AND THE STRUCTURE OF BINARY ENZYME-METAL COMPLEXES

Abstract Ultraviolet difference spectra are produced by the binding of bivalent metal ions to "metal-free" phosphoglucomutase. The changes in extinction at 286 and 293 mµ thus produced involve a 1:1 metal-binding stoichiometry. Solvent perturbation studies indicate that the conformation change produced by metal ion binding is relatively minor in magnitude. Thus only 90% D2O perturbs more residues in the free enzyme than in the binary enzyme·Zn complex, while 20% solutions of dimethylsulfoxide, ethylene glycol, or 1,2-propanediol perturb the same number of residues in both forms of the enzyme. A comparison of the ultraviolet difference spectra generated by the addition of various bivalent cations, viz. Mg2+, Mn2+, Co2+, Ni2+, Zn2+, and Cd2+, reveals no metal-specific differences in the structure of the various binary enzyme·metal complexes and thus suggests that all of these metal ions produce the same structural alteration on binding to the enzyme. This observation is supported by a comparison of solvent perturbation spectra of several of the binary enzyme·metal complexes with a variety of perturbants. Phosphoglucomutase contains 14 to 15 tyrosines and four to five tryptophans as deduced by a comparison of the ultraviolet spectra of native enzyme with that of a solution of enzyme in 6 M guanidine·HCl.
Octreotide ameliorates vasodilatation and Na+ retention in portal hypertensive rats

Abstract Background: Whether long-term octreotide treatment given to portal hypertensive rats could prevent or ameliorate peripheral vasodilatation and thereby modify sodium retention was investigated. Methods: Starting at the time of partial portal vein ligation or sham operation, rats received a 4-day course of either octreotide (15 μg/kg in 5% dextrose in water) or placebo (5% dextrose in water) subcutaneously every 8 hours. Results: In portal hypertensive rats, octreotide induced a 13% increase in mean arterial pressure ( P P 22 Na injection) (34.2 ± 0.5 vs. 36.7 ± 0.4 mL/100 g; P Conclusions: Long-term octreotide treatment ameliorated peripheral vasodilatation and sodium retention only in portal hypertensive rats. These findings suggest that in portal hypertension sodium retention can be modified by pharmacological agents that affect peripheral vasodilatation. The specificity of octreotide's effect sheds additional light into the vasodilatory syndrome associated with portal hypertension in liver diseases.
Cerebrovascular Complications of Cancer

A wide variety of cerebrovascular disorders can complicate the clinical course of cancer patients and, in rare instances, can be the presenting sign of cancer. Central nervous system (CNS) hemorrhage and ischemic events are typically symptomatic. Hemorrhage can occur into the parenchymal, subdural, epidural, or subarachnoid compartments and usually presents with symptoms typical for those sites. Cerebral infarction may cause focal signs, presenting as a transient ischemic attack (TIA) or infarction, or may cause encephalopathy when there are multiple and progressive small infarctions. The most common mechanisms of cerebrovascular disease in cancer patients are related to the presence of CNS tumor, either primary or metastatic, and coagulopathy. The coagulopathy in many instances is a direct effect of the neoplasm; in other cases it develops from cancer treatment. Cancer treatment can also result in blood vessel injury. Radiation therapy directed to the neck or brain can result in vessel stenosis, thrombosis and other vascular pathologies. Chemotherapy and molecularly-targeted agents can lead to vascular injury or thrombosis resulting in hemorrhage or infarction. Infection is a less common cause of stroke. It is important to identify cerebrovascular disease as the cause of neurologic symptoms in the cancer patient in order to determine appropriate evaluation and treatment. This is usually possible by a careful review of the cancer histology and sites of disease, types of antineoplastic therapy administered, and associated comorbidities. Laboratory studies of coagulation function and CNS imaging techniques are useful in identifying the precise etiology of the cerebrovascular disorder. Prompt diagnosis leads to appropriate therapy that, in certain patients, can improve the quality of life and survival as well as prevent additional vascular episodes.
Inhibition of human telomerase by a retrovirus expressing telomeric antisense RNA

Human telomerase, the RNA-dependent DNA polymerase that adds TTAGGG repeats to chromosome ends, is selectively expressed in immortalised cells and most tumours, suggesting a potential role for telomerase inhibitors in cancer therapy. Replication-deficient retroviruses were used to determine whether mRNA containing UUAGGG, the complementary sequence to the template region of the hTR telomerase RNA, is sufficient to inhibit telomerase activity. Telomerase activities measured by the telomeric repeat amplification protocol (TRAP) assay in extracts prepared from immortalised mouse fibroblasts, human HeLa cells and human kidney carcinoma cells were inhibited by 75% or greater in 26 of 56 cell clones expressing UUAGGG. Telomerase activity was not inhibited by expression of mRNA containing a transposed sequence, GGGAUU. Telomerase activities in vivo were inferred from changes in cellular morphology, proliferation capacity, growth rate and measurement of the content of telomere DNA. Giant senescent-like cells emerged shortly after cloning mouse PA317 and human HeLa cells expressing UUAGGG. The fraction of giant cells varied from 100% at the fifth population doubling (PD) in one culture to 2-6% at 50 PD in several other cultures. Giant cells were absent in all parental cells and clones expressing GGGAUU. The average cellular content of telomere DNA was independent of telomerase activity over 50 PD. The results indicate that expression of RNA complementary to the template region of hTR is sufficient to inhibit telomerase in vitro and in vivo, but that the effect of inhibition on individual cells is highly variable.
Mechanism for giant Cl− and F− enhancements in electron-induced dissociation of CF2Cl2 coadsorbed with water or ammonia ices

Abstract We have observed giant Cl − and F − enhancements by factors of 10 2 –10 4 in electron-induced dissociation of a fractional monolayer of CF 2 Cl 2 when CF 2 Cl 2 is coadsorbed with water ice or ammonia ice on a surface. The enhancement of Cl − is much stronger than that of F − , and the enhancements for both ion species by NH 3 coadsorbate are stronger than those by H 2 O. Moreover, the magnitudes of enhancement increase strongly with decreasing CF 2 Cl 2 concentration. Only small negative-ion enhancements are observed for coadsorption with nonpolar CH 4 molecules. It is proposed that giant negative-ion enhancements are due to dissociation of CF 2 Cl 2 by capture of electrons self-trapped in polar water or ammonia molecules. This process may have far-reaching implications for the ozone-hole creation in the polar stratosphere.
Polychlorinated biphenyls, mercury, and potential endocrine disruption in fish from the Hudson River, New York, USA

Tissue residues of total mercury (Hg), total polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and lipid-based PCBs; plasma concentrations of endocrine biomarkers; and reproductive and histologic biomarkers were assessed in 460 carp (Cyprinus carpio), bass (Micropterus salmoides and Micropterus dolomieui), and bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus) collected from eight sites across the Hudson River Basin in the spring of 1998 to determine if endocrine disruption was evident in resident fish species and to evaluate contaminant-biomarker interrelations. Total PCBs in bed sediments (maximum 2,500 μg kg−1) could explain 64 to 90% of the variability in lipidbased PCB residues in tissues (maximum 1,250 μg PCB g-lipid−1) of the four species. The 17β-estradiol to 11-ketotestosterone ratio, typically less than 1.0 in male fish and greater than 1.0 in females, exceeded 1.4 in all male largemouth bass and 35% of male carp and bullhead at one site 21 km downstream from a major PCB source. Endocrine biomarkers were significantly correlated with total Hg in female smallmouth bass and carp, and with lipid-based PCBs in males of all four species. Empirical evidence of endocrine modulation in blood plasma of male and female fish from sites with and without high PCB residues in bed sediments and fish tissues suggest that PCBs, Hg, or other contaminants may disrupt normal endocrine function in fish of the Hudson River.
Calculated optical properties of 64 trinucleoside diphosphates

The optical rotatory dispersion and ultraviolet absorption spectra of the 64 trinucleoside diphosphates containing the bases A, U, C, and G have been calculated by using a simple semiempirical approach. These calculations accurately predict the optical properties of the nine trimers for which extensive experimental results are available. The computed optical data should be useful in the identification of oligonucleotides obtained in the course of sequence determination of ribonucleic acids and should simplify the determination of the concentration of oligonucleotides in aqueous solution. Additional calculations indicate that it should be possible to analyze most, mixtures of sequence isomers of trinucleoside diphosphates by direct, measurement of the ORD of the mixture at neutral pH.
Automatic Test System For Infrared Detector And Charge-Coupled Device (CCD) Multiplexer Control And Data Acquisition

Automatic test of IR detectors and CCD devices is accomplished by connecting programmable test equipment to a minicomputer. Digital signals from a timing generator are converted to analog levels and applied to the CCD. Video output from the CCD is digitized and transferred via a buffer memory into the computer for analysis. The device temperature, IR irradiance level and applied voltages are variable under program control. Measured device parameters are printed on paper and saved in machine-readable form as data base files. The device under test can be a packaged die mounted in a dewar or be in wafer form on the wafer prober.© (1982) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Framing the first-price auction

We revisit the result that, in laboratory independent private values auction, the first-price sealed bid and descending clock (or Dutch) implementations are not isomorphic. We investigate the hypothesis that this arises from framing and presentation effects. Our design focuses on a careful construction of subject interfaces that present the two environments as similarly as possible. Our sessions also consist of more auction periods to test whether any initial framing effects subsequently decrease over time. We find the difference between the implementations persists. To further investigate the difference, we report on an intermediate implementation which operates like the Dutch auction, but in which the clock continues to tick to the lowest price without informing bidders when others have bid on the object.
Learning to Live with Variable Ratio Scheduling: The Career of a Horse Player*

Although adaptations to variable ratio scheduling are an inevitable aspect of sustained gambling, the long term significance of this phenomena has not been researched adequately. Linking ethnographic data collection and social learning analysis, the author presents a career portrayal of regular horse race gamblers that describes how they deal with differential reinforcement. Over time, most horse players develop strategies that allow them to continue their gambling careers despite the low probability of financial success. The career portrayal also identifies reward factors that help explain the persistence at gambling demonstrated by inveterate horse players.
The Moderating Effects from Corporate Governance Characteristics on the Relationship Between Available Slack and Community-Based Firm Performance.

Recent perspectives on community investments suggest that they are opportunities for firms to create value for shareholders and other stakeholders. However, many corporate managers are still influenced by a widely held belief that such investments erode profits and are therefore unjustifiable from an agency perspective. In this paper, we refine and test theory regarding countervailing forces that influence community-based firm performance. We hypothesize that high levels of available slack will be associated with higher community-based performance, but that this relationship will be moderated by three important governance variables: board independence, investment fund ownership, and CEO ownership. We find support for our hypotheses in longitudinal study of a large sample of U.S. corporations.
In situ Evidence of Defect Cluster Absorption by Grain Boundaries in Kr Ion Irradiated Nanocrystalline Ni

Significant microstructural damage, in the form of defect clusters, typically occurs in metals subjected to heavy ion irradiation. High angle grain boundaries (GBs) have long been postulated as sinks for defect clusters, like dislocation loops. Here, we provide direct evidence, via in situ Kr ion irradiation within a transmission electron microscope, that high angle GBs in nanocrystalline (NC) Ni, with an average grain size of ~55 nm, can effectively absorb irradiation-induced dislocation loops and segments. These high angle GBs significantly reduce the density and size of irradiation-induced defect clusters in NC Ni compared to their bulk counterparts, and thus NC Ni achieves significant enhancement of irradiation tolerance.
Designated case managers as facilitators of medical and psychosocial service delivery in addiction treatment programs

This study examines whether having designated case management staff facilitates delivery of comprehensive medical and psychosocial services in substance abuse treatment programs. A multilevel, prospective cohort study of 2829 clients admitted to selected substance abuse treatment programs was used to study clients from long-term residential, outpatient, and methadone treatment modalities. Program directors reported whether the program had staff designated as case managers. After treatment discharge, clients reported their receipt of 9 supplemental services during the treatment episode. In multivariate models controlling for multiple program-level and client-level factors, program-level availability of designated case managers increased client-level receipt of only 2 of 9 services, and exerted no effect on service comprehensiveness, compared to programs that did not have designated case managers. These findings do not support the common practice of designating case management staff as a means to facilitate comprehensive services delivery in addiction treatment programs.
Presentation format, relevant experience and task performance

On every engagement, auditors are required to obtain a sufficient understanding of the internal control structure to plan the audit and determine the nature, timing and extent of audit tests. The evaluation of control weaknesses is important for error and fraud detection and for the avoidance of audit failure. To document their understanding of client internal control systems, auditors have relied upon two common formats – internal control narratives and flowcharts. The choice of format is important because it can affect the use and interpretation of information. The purpose of this study is to examine if documentation format affects performance. Results suggest that, while documentation format did not affect performance, internal auditing experience was important, regardless of the documentation format used.
Argumentativeness in the workplace: A trait by situation study

Trait argumentativeness and argumentativeness in the workplace, a particular situation, were examined with regard to gender of the respondent, rank/status of the respondent in the organization, and existence of a formal employee participation program. A main effect for gender showed men displayed the trait to a greater degree than women. There was a strong correlation between general trait argumentativeness and workplace argumentativeness, measured at a two‐week interval, which adds strength and validity to the trait measure of argumentativeness. The influence of the cross‐situaiional consistency nature of the trait was evidenced in this study.
A windswept cometary tail on the Galactic center supergiant IRS 7

High-resolution VLA observations provide evidence of optically thick radio emission from IRS 7, a cool red supergiant star, located at a projected distance of roughly 1 1t-yr from the Galactic center. IRS 7 shows a remarkable tail of ionized gas pointing directly away from the compact nonthermal radio source at the Galactic center, Sgr A(asterisk). Given previous evidence for a strong source of UV emission and for a strong circumnuclear wind emanating from the Galactic center, the free-free emission from IRS 7 and its associated tail are interpreted in terms of the ionization and removal of the circumstellar envelope of the red supergiant either by the ram pressure of the nuclear wind or by the pressure of radiation arising from the immediate vicinity of Sgr A(asterisk). The wind mechanism is preferred because: (1) the force it can potentially exert is much greater; and (2) Sgr A(asterisk) is clearly not a known source of luminous energy in the near-IR, whereas it remains a plausible source of a hot, high-velocity wind. Also considered is the potential effect of a nuclear wind upon the atmospheres of red giants in the inner parsec.
Development and characterization of cellulose/clay nanocomposites

Abstract Cotton is the most important textile fiber for apparel use and is preferred to synthetic fibers for reasons such as comfort and feel. A major drawback of cellulosic fibers is flammability. The development of cellulose/clay nanocomposites for use as flame-retardant materials based on cotton is reported in this paper. Novel nanocomposite materials have been produced from cellulose with layered silicate clays used as the nanofiller material. Three different methods were attempted in producing these organic–inorganic hybrids. The nanocomposites show significant improvements in thermal properties when compared with cellulose control sources. The degradation temperature of the nanocomposites increased by 45 °C and the char yields for some compositions doubled those of the controls. The crystalline melt of the materials decreased by 15 °C. Tensile testing revealed an increase of approximately 80% in the ultimate stress of the cellulose/clay nanocomposites.
Agonistic interventions in wild mountain gorilla groups

Data on a large sample of interventions that individuals in two mountain gorilla (Gorilla gorilla beringei) groups made in agonistic interactions between others corroborate and extend earlier analyses in several ways. Related females supported each other as often as those in some female-bonded primates and maintained alliances while they resided together. Most unrelated females rarely supported each other, but some developed alliances. Females mostly supported other females with whom they had affinitive relationships against those they often engaged in dyadic aggression. They showed reciprocity in support, and often intervened against individuals who, in turn, often intervened against them. But even female coalitions that outnumbered their opponents by more than two-to-one had limited effectiveness, largely because males intervened in many female contests to control aggression. By rendering coalitions ineffective, males contribute to a combination of factors (e.g. low potential to gain from cooperation in contest feeding competition) that limit the benefits of female philopatry. Male curtailment of female aggression may influence female mate choice. Co-resident mature males in the study groups competed to control female aggression. High-ranking males curtailed aggression to females by subordinates, although two males formed an alliance against two others in their group. Immature animals mostly received defensive support against larger individuals and did not receive support from adults that could lead to a nepotistic dominance system.
Selective self-presentation in computer-mediated communication: Hyperpersonal dimensions of technology, language, and cognition

The hyperpersonal model of computer-mediated communication (CMC) posits that users exploit the technological aspects of CMC in order to enhance the messages they construct to manage impressions and facilitate desired relationships. This research examined how CMC users managed message composing time, editing behaviors, personal language, sentence complexity, and relational tone in their initial messages to different presumed targets, and the cognitive awareness related to these processes. Effects on several of these processes and outcomes were obtained in response to different targets, partially supporting the hyperpersonal perspective of CMC, with unanticipated gender and status interaction effects suggesting behavioral compensation through CMC, or overcompensation when addressing presumably undesirable partners.
Experimental Argon Laser Photocoagulation: III. Relative Dangers of Immediate vs Delayed Retreatment

• Monkey retinas were studied histopathologically to assess the relative effects of immediate versus delayed repetitive photocoagulation with the argon laser. Immediate retreatment adds relatively little damage to that created in the retinal nerve fiber layer by the initial photocoagulation. Delayed retreatment increases destruction of all retinal layers, including the nerve fiber layer, and also increases the chance of inducing hemorrhage. When argon laser retreatment of a retinal locus is necessary, it is much safer to do so immediately (within a few hours) rather than after days or weeks.
Game-theoretic analyses of coalition behavior

Coalitions are frequently more visible than payoffs. The theory of n-person games seeks primarily to identify stable allocations of valued resources; consequently, it gives inadequate attention to predicting which coalitions form. This paper explores a way of correcting this deficiency of game-theoretic reasoning by extending the theory of two-person cooperative games to predict both coalitions and payoffs in a three-person ‘game of status’ in which each player seeks to maximize the rank of his total score. Martin Shubik, ‘Games of Status’, (1971), 117–129. To accomplish this, we analyze the negotiations within each potential two-person coalition from the perspective of Nash's procedure for arbitrating two-person bargaining games, R. Duncan Luce and Howard Raiffa, , John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1958, pp. 121–143. then assume that players expect to achieve the arbitrated outcome selected by this procedure and use these expectations to predict achieved ranks and to identify players' preferences between alternative coalition partners in order to predict the probability that each coalition forms. This work is supported by Research Grant SOC72-05245, awarded to the second author by the National Science Foundation. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the annual meetings of the American Political Science Association, Chicago, Ill., August 29 – September 2, 1974. We thank Peter C. Ordeshook for suggesting that Nash's arbitration model might be applied to this game, and David Deutsch for assisting us in this research. We test these payoff and coalition predictions with data from three laboratory studies, and compare the results with those attained in the same data by von Neumann and Morgenstern's solution of two-person cooperative games, Luce and Raiffa, , pp. 115–119. Aumann and Maschler's bargaining set solution for cooperative n-person games, R. J. Aumann and Michael Maschler, ‘The Bargaining Set for Cooperative Games’, in M. Dresher, L. S. Shapley, and A. W. Tucker (eds.), , Annals Math. Studies, No. 52, Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 1964, pp. 443–476. and an alternative model of coalition behavior in three-person sequential games of status. For an extension and application of the bargaining set to three-person games of status and a comparison of the bargaining set with our alternative model of coalition behavior in the three laboratory studies reported in this paper, see Richard J. Morrison's Ph.D. thesis, ‘Rational Choice Models of Coalition Formation in the Triad’, Graduate School of Industrial Administration, Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1974 (this dissertation is available from University Microfilms, Ann Arbor, Michigan); and the paper by Laing and Morrison, ‘Sequential Games of Status’, (1974), 177–197. The coalition model is developed more extensively by Laning and Morrison in “Coalitions and Payoffs in Three-Person Sequential Games: Initial Tests of Two Formal Models”, (1973), 3–26 (hereinafter cited as ‘Initial Tests of Two Formal Models’).
Low frequency random excitation of water-loaded rectangular plates

Abstract The response to random excitation of a thin rectangular plate inserted in an infinite baffle is considered. The infinite half space on one side of the baffle is filled with water. Only low frequency (that is, when the wavelength in the acoustic medium is greater than the plate dimensions) excitation is discussed. The analysis is based on the in vacuo modes or characteristic functions of the plate. The inter-modal coupling coefficients are evaluated. An approximate solution of the resulting infinite set of linear simultaneous equations for the plate modal velocity amplitudes is obtained in terms of modal admittances of the plate-fluid system. These admittances describe the important modal coupling due to both fluid inertia and radiation damping effects. The effective coupling depends on both wave-number matching and resonance frequency proximity, and hence on the relative magnitudes of the widths of the resonance peaks and the frequency spacing of the resonances. Expressions are obtained for the spectral density of radiated acoustic power for the particular case of excitation by a turbulent boundary layer.
Mechanical properties of neutron irradiated nanostructured ferritic alloy 14YWT

Abstract Advanced nanostructured ferritic alloys (NFAs) containing a high density of ultra-fine (2–5 nm) nanoclusters (NCs) enriched in Y, Ti, and O are considered promising candidates for structural components in future nuclear systems. The superior tensile strengths of NFAs relative to conventional oxide dispersion strengthened ferritic alloys are attributed to the high number density of NCs, which may provide effective trapping centers for point defects and transmutation products produced during neutron irradiation. This paper summarizes preliminary tensile and fracture toughness data for an advanced NFA, designated 14YWT, currently being developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. For this study, an alloy designated 14WT was manufactured using the same production parameters used to produce 14YWT but without the Y 2 O 3 addition during ball milling required for NC formation in order to quantify the effect of the NCs on mechanical properties. Tensile specimens produced from both alloys were irradiated at 300, 580, and 670 °C to 1.5 displacements per atom (dpa), while 14YWT fracture toughness specimens were irradiated at 300 °C to 1.5 dpa. Tensile strengths for 14YWT were found to be about two times greater than 14WT for both irradiated and unirradiated conditions, with yield strength for 14YWT decreasing from ∼1450 MPa at 26 °C to ∼700 MPa at 600 °C. Moderate radiation-induced hardening (50–200 MPa) and reduction in ductility was observed for 14YWT for all irradiation conditions and test temperatures. In contrast, 14WT exhibited significant hardening (∼250 MPa) for the 300 °C irradiated specimens, while almost no hardening was observed for the 580 and 670 °C irradiated specimens. Fracture toughness results showed 14YWT in the unirradiated condition had a fracture toughness transition temperature (FTTT) around −150 °C and upper-shelf K JIc values around 175 MPa√m. Results from irradiated 14YWT fracture toughness tests were found to closely mirror the unirradiated data and no shift in FTTT or decrease in K JIc values were observed following neutron irradiation to 1.5 dpa at 300 °C.
Habitat Modeling for Amaranthus pumilus: An Application of Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) Data

Abstract Anthropogenic management of dynamic ecosystems has led to decline of species dependent on processes that maintain suitable habitat, particularly on barrier islands. By evaluating environmental variables over large geographic areas, remote-sensing data and geographic information systems (GIS) hold increasing promise for management of these unique habitats and their species associates. We used light detection and ranging (LIDAR) data to extract habitat variables for Amaranthus pumilus, a federally threatened flowering annual of the Atlantic barrier islands. We asked: (1) can habitat variables for A. pumilus be extracted from remote-sensing data, and (2) can these variables be used to model suitable habitat? We extracted topographic habitat variables for naturally occurring plants and evaluated habitat using multiple statistical techniques and other published model performance measures. We found that elevation was the most limiting topographic variable controlling the occurrence of Amaranthus pumilu...
Synthesis and characterization of isosorbide-based polyphosphonates as biobased flame-retardants

A new isosorbide-based polyphosphate was synthesized and applied as a flame-retardant for polylactic acid (PLA). The storage modulus and glass transition temperature of PLA/polyphosphonate blends was unaffected by the inclusion of polyphosphonate, but moderate depressions of PLA's tensile strength (16%, 28%, and 45% reduction from PLA at a polyphosphonate mass percentage of 5%, 10%, and 15%, respectively) and strain-at-break (0%, 17%, and 30% reduction from PLA at a polyphosphonate mass percentage of 5%, 10%, and 15%, respectively) were observed. Modified UL-94 flammability testing indicated that isosorbide-based polyphosphonates are effective flame retardants for PLA and are able to self-extinguish flames in less than 2 s to achieve V2 and V0 ratings at polyphosphonate mass percentage of 5% and 15%, respectively. Fire test data indicates a gas phase mechanism that can quench the flame when no external radiant heat flux is present (e.g., in modified UL-94 testing) but does not affect the material's heat release rate in forced combustion (e.g., in cone calorimetry). Use of the biobased flame retardants described herein yields flame retardant PLA containing up to 97% by mass of bio-derived content.
Molecular and cellular radiobiology of heavy ions

Abstract Quantitative studies at the BEVALAC have demonstrated some of the physical and radiobiological factors that promise to make accelerated heavy ions important for the therapy of cancer. The measured physical dose-biological effect relationships allow the safe and effective delivery of therapeutic schedules of heavy ions. Among the charged particle beams available, carbon, neon and helium ions in the “extended Bragg peak mode” have optimal physical and biological effectiveness for delivery of therapy to deep seated tumors. The depth-dose profiles of these beams protect intervening and adjacent tissues as well as tissues beyond the range of the particles. For the treatment of hypoxic tumors, silicon and argon beams are being considered because they significantly depress the radiobiological oxygen effect in the region of the extended Bragg ionization peak. The depth-effectiveness of the argon beam is somewhat limited, however, because of primary particle fragmentation. Silicon beams have a depth-dose profile which is intermediate between that of neon and argon, and are candidates to become the particle of choice for maximizing high LET particle effects. Heavy accelerated ions depress enzymatic repair mechanisms, decrease variations of radiosensitivity during the cell division cycle, cause greater than expected delays in cell division, and decrease the protective effects of neighboring cells in organized systems. Near the Bragg peak, enhancement of heavy particle effects are observed in split dose schedules. Late and carcinogenic effects are being studied. With the newly developed Repair-Misrepair theory we can quantitatively model most observations.
A moral defense of Oregon's physician-assisted suicide law

Since 1998, physician-assisted suicide has been legal in the American state of Oregon. In this paper, I defend Oregon's physician-assisted suicide (PAS) law against two of the most common objection...
LIDAR optical rugosity of coral reefs in Biscayne National Park, Florida

The NASA Experimental Advanced Airborne Research Lidar (EAARL), a temporal waveform-resolving, airborne, green wavelength LIDAR (light detection and ranging), is designed to measure the submeter-scale topography of shallow reef substrates. Topographic variability is a prime component of habitat complexity, an ecological factor that both expresses and controls the abundance and distribution of many reef organisms. Following the acquisition of EAARL coverage over both mid-platform patch reefs and shelf-margin bank reefs within Biscayne National Park in August 2002, EAARL-based optical indices of topographic variability were evaluated at 15 patch reef and bank reef sites. Several sites were selected to match reefs previously evaluated in situ along underwater video and belt transects. The analysis used large populations of submarine topographic transects derived from the examination of closely spaced laser spot reflections along LIDAR raster scans. At all 15 sites, each LIDAR transect was evaluated separately to determine optical rugosity (Rotran), and the average elevation difference between adjacent points (Av(δEap)). Further, the whole-site mean and maximum values of Rotran and Av(δEap) for the entire population of transects at each analysis site, along with their standard deviations, were calculated. This study revealed that the greater habitat complexity of inshore patch reefs versus outer bank reefs results in relative differences in topographic complexity that can be discerned in the laser returns. Accordingly, LIDAR sensing of optical rugosity is proposed as a complementary new technique for the rapid assessment of shallow coral reefs.
Generating Hebrew Verb Morphology by Default Inheritance Hierarchies

We apply default inheritance hierarchies to generating the morphology of Hebrew verbs. Instead of lexically listing each of a word form's various parts, this strategy represents inflectional exponents as markings associated with the application of rules by which complex word forms are deduced from simpler roots or stems. The high degree of similarity among verbs of different binyanim allows us to formulate general rules; these general rules are, however, sometimes overridden by binyan-specific rules. Similarly, a verb's form within a particular binyan is determined both by default rules and by overriding rules specific to individual verbs. Our result is a concise set of rules defining the morphology of all strong verbs in all binyanim. We express these rules in KATR, both a formalism for default inheritance hierarchies and associated software for computing the forms specified by those rules. As we describe the rules, we point out general strategies for expressing morphology in KATR and we discuss KATR's advantages over ordinary DATR for the representation of morphological systems.
Absence of lysine from the DNP-lysine binding site of protein 315; Designation of lysine 52 of the heavy chain as a peripheral residue

Protein 315 from the mouse plasmacytoma, MOPC-316, has been shown by Haimovich et al. (1970) to be affinity labeled by α,N-bromoacetyl-ϵ-N-dinitrophenyl-l-lysine (BADL). Lysine 52 of the heavy chain was shown to be the residue involved in covalent bond formation with this label. On the basis of this reaction, Haimovich et al. (1972) designated the peptide containing this residue as a “site peptide” and assigned this lysine to the antigen-binding region of the protein. In this communication we report studies on the chemical modification of lysyl residues of protein 315 with maleic anhydride in the presence and absence of the protecting hapten, ϵ-N-dinitrophenyl-aminocaproate, which lead us to conclude that there does not appear to be a protectable lysine in the combining site of this protein. Thus maleylated preparations of protein 315, having essentially every lysyl residue modified, still contain combining sites able to bind hapten with a binding constant identical to that of the unmodified protein. There is essentially no difference between the number of sites remaining in preparations maleylated either in the presence or absence of protecting hapten. In addition, preparations of MOPC-315 protein, maleylated either protected or unprotected, while capbale of binding hapten, do n ot readily incorporate the affinity label BADL, both in terms of rate and extent of incorporation, indicating that lysine 52 of the heavy chain was indeed maleylated. These data indicate that lysine 52, which is involved in affinity labeling with BADL, must be peripheral to the site, since its maleylation does not affect the ability of the site to bind ligand. Further, it cannot be protected against maleytation by ligand.
Deriving the Time Course of Glutamate Clearance with a Deconvolution Analysis of Astrocytic Transporter Currents

The highest density of glutamate transporters in the brain is found in astrocytes. Glutamate transporters couple the movement of glutamate across the membrane with the co-transport of 3 Na+ and 1 H+ and the counter-transport of 1 K+. The stoichiometric current generated by the transport process can be monitored with whole-cell patch-clamp recordings from astrocytes. The time course of the recorded current is shaped by the time course of the glutamate concentration profile to which astrocytes are exposed, the kinetics of glutamate transporters, and the passive electrotonic properties of astrocytic membranes. Here we describe the experimental and analytical methods that can be used to record glutamate transporter currents in astrocytes and isolate the time course of glutamate clearance from all other factors that shape the waveform of astrocytic transporter currents. The methods described here can be used to estimate the lifetime of flash-uncaged and synaptically-released glutamate at astrocytic membranes in any region of the central nervous system during health and disease.
An efficient green element formulation for the Graetz problem

We propose an efficient Green element method (GEM) technique for the solution of the generalized Graetz problem. The main point is to illustrate how GEM concepts can be adapted to handle heat or mass transport in tube flow; with axial conduction first ignored but later included. Several numerical examples are tested to demonstrate this numerical approach; for all cases, it is seen that GEM offers an elegant and in comparison with the problem difficulty, a reliable and straightforward approach.
Object categories and expertise: Is the basic level in the eye of the beholder?

Classic research on conceptual hierarchies has shown that the interaction be- tween the human perceiver and objects in the environment specifies one level of abstraction for categorizing objects, called the basic level, which plays a primary role in cognition. The question of whether the special psychological status of the basic level can be modified by experience was addressed in three experiments comparing the performance of subjects in expert and novice domains. The main findings were that in the domain of expertise (a) subordinate-level categories were as differentiated as the basic-level categories, (b) subordinate-level names were used as frequently as basic-level names for identifying objects, and(c) subordinate- level categorizations were as fast as basic-level categorizations. Taken together, these results demonstrate that individual differences in domain-specific knowl- edge affect the extent that the basic level is central to categorization. 8 1991 Ara&mir Prccr. Inr
Electrocapillary Action of Corrosion Inhibitors

Indelli and Pancaldi1 and I2 have compared some characteristic phenomena occurring at the interface of a dropping mercury microelectrode and electrolyte solutions with phenomena encountered in corrosion inhibition2. It was found2 that the effectiveness of numerous corrosion inhibitors is reflected in their ability to suppress various polarographic maxima (abnormal current peaks in the current-voltage curves of the mercury microelectrode). In particular, it was shown that the order of relative inhibiting effectiveness of a number of amine inhibitors (for the iron – sulphuric acid system) is the same as that of their effectiveness in suppressing certain polarographic maxima. These amines (both aliphatic and aromatic) were most effective in suppressing maxima corresponding to the negative branch of the electrocapillary curve at which mercury is negatively charged with respect to the solution. This is consistent with Mann's3 conclusion that amines inhibit the corrosion of iron in sulphuric acid by becoming adsorbed on the cathodic areas of this metal. It was thus demonstrated that significant similarities exist between the processes involved in polarographic maxima and their suppression, on one hand, and in metallic corrosion and its inhibition, on the other4. Campbell5 has also employed polarographic techniques in detecting corrosion inhibitors.
DIRAQ: scalable in situ data- and resource-aware indexing for optimized query performance

Scientific data analytics in high-performance computing environments has been evolving along with the advancement of computing capabilities. With the onset of exascale computing, the increasing gap between compute performance and I/O bandwidth has rendered the traditional post-simulation processing a tedious process. Despite the challenges due to increased data production, there exists an opportunity to benefit from "cheap" computing power to perform query-driven exploration and visualization during simulation time. To accelerate such analyses, applications traditionally augment, post-simulation, raw data with large indexes, which are then repeatedly utilized for data exploration. However, the generation of current state-of-the-art indexes involves a compute- and memory-intensive processing, thus rendering them inapplicable in an in situ context. In this paper we propose DIRAQ, a parallel in situ, in network data encoding and reorganization technique that enables the transformation of simulation output into a query-efficient form, with negligible runtime overhead to the simulation run. DIRAQ's effective core-local, precision-based encoding approach incorporates an embedded compressed index that is 3---6 $$\times $$ × smaller than current state-of-the-art indexing schemes. Its data-aware index adjustmentation improves performance of group-level index layout creation by up to 35 % and reduces the size of the generated index by up to 27 %. Moreover, DIRAQ's in network index merging strategy enables the creation of aggregated indexes that speed up spatial-context query responses by up to $$10\times $$ 10 × versus alternative techniques. DIRAQ's topology-, data-, and memory-aware aggregation strategy results in efficient I/O and yields overall end-to-end encoding and I/O time that is less than that required to write the raw data with MPI collective I/O.
A low-jitter phase-locked resonant clock generation and distribution scheme

Clock distribution networks have traditionally been optimized to minimize end-to-end delay of the distribution network. However, since most digital ICs have an on-chip PLL, a more relevant design goal is to minimize cycle-to-cycle jitter. In this paper, we present a novel low-jitter phase-locked clock generation and distribution methodology which uses resonant standing wave oscillators (SWOs). In contrast to traveling wave oscillator rings (TWOs or “rotary” clocks), our SWO achieves the same phase at every point in the ring, making it amenable to a synchronous design methodology. The standing wave oscillator is controlled by coarse as well as fine tuning. Coarse tuning is achieved by varying the ring inductance, while fine tuning is accomplished by varying the ring capacitance. Clock distribution is done by routing the resonant ring chip-wide in a “comb” like manner. Experimental results demonstrate that the cycle-to-cycle jitter and skew of our approach is dramatically lower than existing schemes, while the power consumption is significantly lower as well. These benefits occur due to the resonant nature of our SWO-based clock generation and distribution approach.
Intraoperative determinants of unresectability for patients with colorectal hepatic metastases

BACKGROUND Intrahepatic and extrahepatic factors are utilized by the surgeon in the decision-making process for the performance of hepatic resection for patients with colorectal metastases. Accurate preoperative and intraoperative staging are mandatory to avoid unnecessary surgery. In this report the intraoperative determinants of hepatic unresectability were evaluated. METHODS This was a retrospective review of medical records from January 1985 to March 1996 of 62 patients with colorectal hepatic metastases who at the time of exploratory laparotomy were deemed to have unresectable disease based on intrahepatic or extrahepatic factors. The stage of the primary tumor, disease free interval, preoperative carcinoembryonic antigen, computed tomography portography, intraoperative ultrasound, and assessment of intrahepatic and extrahepatic tumor extension were evaluated. RESULTS Intraoperative determination of the extent of required hepatic resection, including trisegmentectomy (9 patients; 15%) and total hepatectomy (10 patients; 16%), accounted for the majority of unresectable patients. Patients with > 4 metastases (8 patients; 13%) and satellitosis (6 patients; 10%) accounted for 23% of unresectable patients. Four patients had extensive nonmalignant hepatic parenchymal disease precluding resection. Thorough abdominal exploration revealed extrahepatic disease in 13 of 62 patients (21%). Routine periportal/celiac lymph node biopsies revealed metastases in an additional 12 patients (19%), 7 of whom (11%) had only periportal/celiac lymph node metastases. CONCLUSIONS A meticulous abdominal exploration prior to hepatic resection for patients with colorectal metastases is essential to identify those patients with extrahepatic disease. Periportal and celiac lymph nodes commonly are involved by tumor. Therefore, routine periportal/celiac lymph node biopsies should be performed in the absence of other extrahepatic disease. Cancer 1998;82:1244-9. © 1998 American Cancer Society.