cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Geriatric Patients, Firearms, and Physicians

In the U.S. debate about gun control, concern has centered on the safety of people, particularly children, who live in homes with guns. However, gun safety is also an issue in homes in which elderl...
Time course of nerve growth factor modulation of ethanol inhibition of Ca2+ currents in PC12 cells

Abstract The effects of 25 mM ethanol on high voltage-activated (HVA) L-type Ca 2+ channels in nerve growth factor (NGF)-treated, dibutyryl cyclic AMP (dbcAMP)-treated and undifferentiated (UND) PC12 cells were examined. Channels in NGF-treated cells became less sensitive to the effects of ethanol. The time course of the NGF-induced reduction in ethanol inhibition occurred in two phases. The first phase of reduced inhibition was observed after 2 h of NGF exposure and was complete after 5 h. The second phase of reduced inhibition developed over a period of 10–96 h and was reversible after removal of NGF. Exposure to dbcAMP for 2 h also caused a transient drop in ethanol inhibition, but the second phase of decreased ethanol sensitivity was absent. Thus, increased levels of cAMP do not appear to be involved in the longer-term effects of NGF on the decrease in ethanol inhibition of Ca 2+ channels, whereas the effects observed at 2 h may involve cAMP.
Better estimation of protein-DNA interaction parameters improve prediction of functional sites.

Background Characterizing transcription factor binding motifs is a common bioinformatics task. For transcription factors with variable binding sites, we need to get many suboptimal binding sites in our training dataset to get accurate estimates of free energy penalties for deviating from the consensus DNA sequence. One procedure to do that involves a modified SELEX (Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment) method designed to produce many such sequences.
A Versatile Electrode Holder for Use with the Hilger Steeloscope

An electrode holder for use with the Hilger Steeloscope is described. The holder may be set up with the Steeloscope as a portable unit for the spectroscopic examination of bulk metal stock of any size or shape. Unique design features are the rotatable mount for the jaw assembly and the hinged counter-electrode jaws.
Particle image velocimetry study of the shock-induced single mode Richtmyer–Meshkov instability

Full field particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements are obtained for the first time in Richtmyer–Meshkov instability shock tube experiments. The experiments are carried out in a vertical shock tube in which the light gas (air) and the heavy gas (SF6) flow from opposite ends of the shock tube driven section and exit through narrow slots at the interface location. A sinusoidal perturbation is given to the interface by oscillating the shock tube in the horizontal direction. Richtmyer–Meshkov instability is then produced by the interaction with a weak shock wave (Ms = 1.21). PIV measurements are obtained by seeding the flow with 0.30 μm polystyrene Latex spheres which are illuminated using a double-pulsed Nd:YAG laser. PIV measurements indicate the vorticity to be distributed in a sheet-like distribution on the interface immediately after shock interaction and that this distribution quickly rolls up into compact vortices. The integration of the vorticity distribution over one half wave length shows the circulation to increase with time in qualitative agreement with the numerical study of Peng et al. (Phys. Fluids, 15, 3730–3744, 2003).
Joint session computer science and engineering education

The discussion centered on the needs of engineering students in the field of computer science. It was generally agreed that their curriculum should include an introduction to a higher level language such as Fortran taught with an algorithmetic approach, and an introduction to numerical methods with emphasis on proper use of subroutines. It was strongly recommended by the group that simulation and mathematical modeling, statistics, and analog computation be included. Many felt that some basic concepts of an assembler language as related to mini-computers was important. The group was unanimous in the opinion that computer science subject matter should be taught by those trained in the field, but in all cases the courses should be structured so as to be user oriented. It was strongly recommended that CoED form a committee to study this need and make recommendations to the engineering and computer science educators.
Copulatory behaviors and body condition predict post-mating female hormone concentrations, fertilization success, and primary sex ratios in Japanese quail

Environmental cues and social interactions are known to influence reproductive physiology and behavior in vertebrates. In female birds, male courtship displays can result in the growth of ovarian follicles, the production of reproductive hormones, and stimulation of oviduct development, all of which have the potential to influence maternal investment. Male Japanese quail follow a typical sequence of copulatory behaviors during a mating interaction and often force copulations with unreceptive females. We hypothesized that female Japanese quail could adjust maternal investment in response to male copulatory behaviors during a single mating interaction. We investigated the relationships between 1) male copulatory behaviors and post-mating concentrations of steroids in the female, 2) female steroid concentrations and fertilization success of inseminations and 3) female steroid concentrations and the offspring sex ratio. We found that male condition and copulatory behaviors predicted female steroid concentrations and maternal investment in eggs laid after a mating trial. The body condition of one or both mates was a significant predictor of the changes in female corticosterone and testosterone concentrations after mating, whereas specific male copulatory behaviors significantly predicted changes in female progesterone concentrations. Male and female body condition, male neck grabs and post-mating concentrations of female corticosterone, progesterone, and testosterone were all significant predictors of egg fertilization rates. Female body condition, male copulation efficiency, and female testosterone concentrations were significant predictors of offspring sex ratios. Our results show that phenotypic and behavioral characteristics of male Japanese quail modulate female steroid concentrations and result in changes in maternal investment.
Gatifloxacin and Prolonged QT Interval

We report the case of a 54-year-old woman who, while being treated for acute sinusitis with gatifloxacin, presented with syncope and was found to have a markedly prolonged QT interval. After stopping gatifloxacin, the QT interval normalized. We speculate that her episode of syncope was caused by a ventricular arrhythmia that resulted from an increased QT interval.
Dynamic light microscopy

We developed dynamic light microscopy as a new technique that combines inverted microscopy and dynamic light scattering for measuring high-numerical aperture light scattering from biological structures in both static and dynamic conditions.
Swirling flow through a convergent funnel

The work that follows considers the velocity profiles within the boundary layer at the wall of an arbitrarily converging funnel. The occurrence of super-velocities, i.e. components of velocity within the boundary layer exceeding their corresponding free stream component, is investigated and the relevance of such a phenomenon to the efficiency of discharge discussed.
The Anthropology of Food and Body: Gender, Meaning, and Power

The Anthropology of Food and Body: Gender, Meaning, and Power. Carole M. Counihan. London: Routledge, 1999. vii. 256 pp., photographs, notes, bibliography, recipes, index.
Escherichia coli DNA adenine methyltransferase: the structural basis of processive catalysis and indirect read-out.

We have investigated the structural basis of processive GATC methylation by the Escherichia coli DNA adenine methyltransferase, which is critical in chromosome replication and mismatch repair. We determined the contribution of the orthologically conserved phosphate interactions involving residues Arg95, Asn126, Asn132, Arg116, and Lys139, which directly contact the DNA outside the cognate recognition site (GATC) to processive catalysis, and that of residue Arg137, which is not conserved and contacts the DNA backbone within the GATC sequence. Alanine substitutions at the conserved positions have large impacts on processivity yet do not impact kcat/KmDNA or DNA affinity (KDDNA). However, these mutants cause large preferences for GATC sites varying in flanking sequences when considering the pre-steady state efficiency constant kchem/KDDNA. These changes occur mainly at the level of the methylation rate constant, which results in the observed decreases in processive catalysis. Thus, processivity and catalytic efficiency (kcat/KmDNA) are uncoupled in these mutants. These results reveal that the binding energy involved in DNA recognition contributes to the assembly of the active site rather than tight binding. Furthermore, the conserved residues (Arg95, Asn126, Asn132, and Arg116) repress the modulation of the response of the enzyme to flanking sequence effects. Processivity impacted mutants do not show substrate-induced dimerization as is observed for the wild type enzyme. This study describes the structural means by which an enzyme that does not completely enclose its substrate has evolved to achieve processive catalysis, and how interactions with DNA flanking the recognition site alter this processivity.
Modified Augmented-Plane-Wave Method for Calculating Energy Bands

The orthogonalized-plane-wave (OPW) expansion converges poorly for ionic crystals and also for $d$-bands in transition metals even when modified by the addition of an atomiclike $d$ function to the basis set. The augmented-plane-wave (APW) expansion converges rapidly, but requires the crystal potential to be approximated by an unphysical spherical muffin-tin potential. We here develop a modified APW expansion and compare its convergence with the other methods. The modified APW converges with the rapidity of the usual APW but, like the OPW, is applicable to nonspherical potentials.
Acceptor Specificity of the Pasteurella Hyaluronan and Chondroitin Synthases and Production of Chimeric Glycosaminoglycans

The hyaluronan (HA) synthase, PmHAS, and the chondroitin synthase, PmCS, from the Gram-negative bacterium Pasteurella multocida polymerize the glycosaminoglycan (GAG) sugar chains HA or chondroitin, respectively. The recombinant Escherichia coli-derived enzymes were shown previously to elongate exogenously supplied oligosaccharides of their cognate GAG (e.g. HA elongated by PmHAS). Here we show that oligosaccharides and polysaccharides of certain noncognate GAGs (including sulfated and iduronic acid-containing forms) are elongated by PmHAS (e.g. chondroitin elongated by PmHAS) or PmCS. Various acceptors were tested in assays where the synthase extended the molecule with either a single monosaccharide or a long chain (approximately 10(2-4) sugars). Certain GAGs were very poor acceptors in comparison to the cognate molecules, but elongated products were detected nonetheless. Overall, these findings suggest that for the interaction between the acceptor and the enzyme (a) the orientation of the hydroxyl at the C-4 position of the hexosamine is not critical, (b) the conformation of C-5 of the hexuronic acid (glucuronic versus iduronic) is not crucial, and (c) additional negative sulfate groups are well tolerated in certain cases, such as on C-6 of the hexosamine, but others, including C-4 sulfates, were not or were poorly tolerated. In vivo, the bacterial enzymes only process unsulfated polymers; thus it is not expected that the PmCS and PmHAS catalysts would exhibit such relative relaxed sugar specificity by acting on a variety of animal-derived sulfated or epimerized GAGs. However, this feature allows the chemoenzymatic synthesis of a variety of chimeric GAG polymers, including mimics of proteoglycan complexes.
Isolation of the cDNA for human prostaglandin H synthase.

Abstract Prostaglandin H Synthase (PGHS, cyclooxygenase) is a 67 kd protein which catalyzes the first step in prostaglandin systhesis. The primary amino acid sequence and the molecular mechanisms regulating expression are unknown. We report here isolation of a cDNA clone for the enzyme from human vascular endothelial cells for use in such studies. High titre, polyclonal antiserum against PGHS was developed in rabbits. The antiserum was monospecific, reacted with cyclooxygenase on Western blots at a limiting dilution of 1:500, 000 and immunoprecipitated cyclooxygenase synthesized by in vitro translation of PGHS messenger RNA. It was used to screen a lambda gt11 cDNA expression library from human endothelial cells. Three positive clones wre isolated. Following plaque purification, one clone reacted strongly with two other polyclonal antisera independently raised against highly purified cyclooxygenase and the aspirin-acetylated enzyme. Western blot analysis confirmed production of a large 180 kd fusion protein of cyclooxygenase and beta-galactosidase. The cDNA insert of approximately 2.2 kilo base pairs was excised and subcloned into plasmid pUC8. A 24 nucleotide DNA probe, synthesized according to the amino acid sequence of the aspirin-acetylation site of cyclooxygenase, hybridized strongly with the 2.2 kbp cDNA insert. It is concluded that the 2.2 kbp cDNA insert represents a cDNA clone for human cyclooxygenate, which also expresses the aspirin-acetylation site. This is the first reported isolation of the cDNA for this enzyme, and will facilitate further studies on the primary sequence and on the regulation of the enzyme at the molecular level.
Determining the refractive index of liquids using a modified Michelson interferometer

Abstract An accurate method for measuring the refractive index of liquids is proposed, modeled, and experimentally verified. The experimental setup is a modified Michelson interferometer employing a novel liquid chamber that allows the optical pathlength to be continuously varied without moving a mirror. This experiment allows determining the refractive index of a given liquid to high precision, with an accuracy limited only by the normal random variables encountered in interferometric measurements and ultimately the accuracy to which the wavelength of the laser light is known.
Role of metabolism in the immediate effects and pneumotoxicity of 3-methylindole in goats.

Abstract Rapid infusion of 3-methylindole (3-MI) dissolved in 10% Cremophor EL in water was immediately followed by pulmonary arterial hypertension, systemic arterial hypotension, decreased minute volume and periods of apnoea in goats. Rapid intravenous infusion of Cremophor EL/water alone caused similar immediate effects to those of Cremophor EL plus 3-MI in various dosages. Pretreatment of goats with piperonyl butoxide or phenobarbitone did not significantly alter these immediate cardiopulmonary responses. But pretreatment with piperonyl butoxide prevented clinical signs and pulmonary lesions of 3-MI toxicity, whereas phenobarbitone pretreatment shortened survival time and enhanced pulmonary pathology. Cremophor EL and 3-MI dissolved in Cremophor EL caused severe in vitro haemolysis of caprine and bovine erythrocytes. There was no relationship between the immediate effects of 3-MI and the subsequent development of 3-MI-induced pneumotoxicity and deaths in control goats or in goats pretreated with piperonyl butoxide or phenobarbitone. Induction or inhibition of mixed function oxidase activity had no influence on immediate responses to 3-MI but did change the severity of clinical and pathological responses. It is concluded that there is no apparent relationship between the immediate and the pneumotoxic effects of 3-MI. It is possible that the immediate effects are the result of intravascular haemolysis.
RODENT-BORNE HEMORRHAGIC FEVER VIRUSES: A SPECIAL RISK FOR MAMMALOGISTS?

We review two groups of taxonomically unrelated viruses that share similarities in host preference and transmission routes to humans and pose a risk for mammalogists working with rodents. The rodent-borne hemorrhagic fever viruses in the Arenaviridae and Bunyaviridae are widely distributed on most continents where rodents occur. Their geographic distribution usually exceeds the distribution of the recognized human diseases they cause and has resulted from either natural coevolutionary events or the dissemination of viral passengers traveling with introduced mammalian hosts. Diseases of humans caused by these agents are among the most severe and most frequently fatal of zoonotic diseases. These viruses show remarkable specialization in the limited number of rodent species in which they naturally occur and frequently establish persistent infections in individual hosts that can result in variable effects on growth, reproduction, and survival of hosts. Our knowledge of these viruses, their hosts and geographical range, and the pathophysiological consequences of infection are incompletely understood and offer a rich area of study for naturalists interested in host-parasite coevolution.
Disability as Moral Experience: Epilepsy and Self in Routine Relationships

This paper draws on depth interview data from an availability sample of 80 people with epilepsy to examine the moral experience of disability (cf. E. Goffman, 1959, “The Moral Career of the Mental Patient,” Psychiatry, 22, 123–135). This concept directs attention to how those who live in the social world of epilepsy, and of disability more generally, define themselves and others in both positive and negative ways. Most discussions of the moral aspects of disability turn on the concept of stigma, and epilepsy certainly is a prime area for such study. This paper, however, focuses on the consequences of disability for the distribution of work and responsibility in routine, everyday relationships and how, in turn, this affects the way people see, think about, and feel about themselves. Particular attention is given to family, parental, and employment relationships. The paper raises the question, If disability is a social construction and has such costs, how can we best construct it for all concerned?
On-die termination resistors with analog impedance control for standard CMOS technology

In this paper, we have designed a new voltage-controlled resistor for the purpose of on-die termination in standard CMOS technology. Current-voltage (I-V) characteristics show that this on-die termination resistor has good linearity across a wide range of gate bias, and is suitable for an analog impedance control technique using a feedback loop. The analog impedance control technique has the advantage of continuous impedance adjustment without interfering with normal data transmission and receiving operations. Experimental I-V characteristics show excellent linearity and are in good agreement with simulations. Measured resistance values are within /spl plusmn/5% over process, temperature, and across die variations.
Values, Practices, and the Utilization of Empirical Critiques in the Clinical Triad

Empirical science is composed of a set of mutually reinforcing values and practices. A potential difficulty arises when empirical knowledge products are disseminated to other groups with an interest in research findings. The danger is that researchers’ values and practices will be deemed superior to those of other parties, and codified across different contexts without consideration of their effectiveness in achieving broader goals of science (e.g., sharing important knowledge about treating problems in living). Alternatively, understanding and respecting how the values and practices of different groups are situated in local decision-making contexts can open up creative ways for enhancing collaboration between different members of the research and clinical practice community. Taking Scheel's (this issue) thorough and well-crafted critique of research on dialectical behavior therapy as an example, we explore the way values, practices, and local decision-making contexts affect researchers', practitioners', and clinical administrators' reactions to empirical knowledge products.
Assessing functional connectivity in the human brain by fMRI

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is widely used to detect and delineate regions of the brain that change their level of activation in response to specific stimuli and tasks. Simple activation maps depict only the average level of engagement of different regions within distributed systems. FMRI potentially can reveal additional information about the degree to which components of large-scale neural systems are functionally coupled together to achieve specific tasks. In order to better understand how brain regions contribute to functionally connected circuits, it is necessary to record activation maps either as a function of different conditions, at different times or in different subjects. Data obtained under different conditions may then be analyzed by a variety of techniques to infer correlations and couplings between nodes in networks. Several multivariate statistical methods have been adapted and applied to analyze variations within such data. An approach of particular interest that is suited to studies of connectivity within single subjects makes use of acquisitions of runs of MRI images obtained while the brain is in a so-called steady state, either at rest (i.e., without any specific stimulus or task) or in a condition of continuous activation. Interregional correlations between fluctuations of MRI signal potentially reveal functional connectivity. Recent studies have established that interregional correlations between different components of circuits in each of the visual, language, motor and working memory systems can be detected in the resting state. Correlations at baseline are changed during the performance of a continuous task. In this review, various methods available for assessing connectivity are described and evaluated.
Optimal demand-side response to electricity spot prices for storage-type customers

The customer response to spot prices is discussed. The factors that allow flexible customer response without service curtailments are identified. An overview of a fast, optimal, nonsimplex algorithm applicable to single storage electricity consuming processes is presented. A case study involving an air compression company demonstrates the application of the algorithm and shows the economic effects of industrial customer response to the spot pricing of electricity. >
Analysis of ambient, precipitation-weighted, and lake sulfate concentrations in the Adirondack region of New York.

Abstract It is well known that many ecosystems in the eastern United States, including the Adirondack Mountain region of New York, are particularly sensitive to acidic deposition because the soils and lakes in the region tend to have low values of base saturation and acid neutralizing capacity, respectively [e.g. Environ Sci Policy, 1 (1998), 185]. To facilitate tracking the impacts of anthropogenic emissions on air quality, acidic deposition, and surface water quality, the National Atmospheric Deposition Program, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, and Adirondack Lake Survey Corporation have been monitoring ambient sulfur dioxide and aerosol sulfate levels, and anion and cation concentrations in wet deposition and lake water over the past few decades. In this paper, we discuss the seasonality and year-to-year variability, and illustrate some of the complexities in estimating temporal trends in these data. The periods of analysis extended through 2000, beginning in 1991 for the ambient air quality data, 1978 for the wet deposition data, and 1982 for the lake water quality data. While the lake water SO 4 2− concentrations appear to be decreasing gradually, the air concentration data appear to have changed abruptly in the 1990s and the precipitation-weighted concentrations exhibited both gradual and sharp decreases during the same period.
The Future of Innovation Studies in Less Economically Developed Countries

In this paper, we argue that there are patterns of innovation occurring in less economically developed countries (LEDCs) that have been historically overlooked by the innovation studies literature, including the literature on innovation systems and the triple helix. This paper briefly surveys cases in agriculture, banking, biomedicine and information and communications technologies that demonstrate organizational, scientific and technological innovation in Africa, South Asia, and Brazil. In particular, we track new developments in two distinctive patterns within LEDCs: (1) civil society as a site of innovation and; (2) innovation through appropriation. By systematically uncovering patterns of innovation in LEDCs, science and technology policy scholars may make new theoretical gains in innovation studies that can potentially contribute to innovation policies in the global South.
Complexity reduction in geometric selective disassembly using the wave propagation abstraction

Disassembling a subset of components from an assembly, defined as selective disassembly, often occurs during product de-manufacturing (recycling, reuse and maintenance). Selective disassembly analysis of a product enables quick assessment of the design for de-manufacturing. This paper presents an approach to solve the following selective disassembly problem: given an assembly of n components and s (<n) selected components, automatically determine a disassembly sequence for s components with minimal component removals. In general, this analysis is computationally expensive, and typically exponential. In order to reduce the complexity for optimal sequencing, we propose a wave propagation (WP) approach of computational complexity O(sn/sup 2/). The WP approach defines: (i) disassembly waves, to topologically arrange the components and (ii) intersection events between the waves, to determine the selective disassembly sequences. The intersection events are prioritized and an optimal sequence is determined in polynomial time by evaluating only the candidate events for optimal sequencing, and in the order in which the events occur. The WP approach analyzes selective disassembly from the geometric perspective and is applicable for both 2D and 3D assemblies.
Mandated to Learn, Guided to Reflect: Pre-Service Teachers' Evolving Understanding of English Language Learners.

The purpose of this study was to investigate preservice teachers’ beliefs and understandings regarding English language learners (ELLs). Using a teacher-researcher methodology, this study describes the ideas of students in a state-mandated course about ELLs. I illustrate how students’ beginning understandings of ELLs, rooted in their life experiences, were narrow and race-based. I discuss how students’ previously limited understandings expanded as the course progressed. The process of identifying beliefs and then using those ideas as a reflective tool throughout the course allowed students to build on their understandings and reflect on their thinking at the same time. Findings show that students broadened their previously narrow definitions and became conscious of the changes in their thinking about ELLs.
Schizophrenia and social networks: ex-patients in the inner city.

Beginning with Freud's (1958) formulation of the Schreber case, impairment in object relationships has been conceptually linked to serious psychopathology. Subsequent work by Federn (1952), Bak (1965), Fairbairn (1954), Jacobson (1954), Mahler (1968), and Bellak (1969), in particular, detailed the role of disturbance of object relations in schizophrenia . Social scientists using census tract data uncovered evidence of atomistic life styles within geographic areas producing the highest incidence of hospitalized schizophrenics. It was postulated that isolation was a key to etiologic factors in the disease (Faris and Dunham 1939; Jaco 1954; Ware 1956). Subsequent refutations of isolation as the primary causal element in schizophrenia (Kohn and Clausen 1955) resulted in a temporary waning of interest in the relationship between sociability and psychopathology. More recently, Budson (1977), after reviewing a variety of community maintenance studies, concluded that the presence of a strong "psychosocial kinship system" (comprised of friends, neighbors, and close associates as well as family) was the "crucial factor" in determining program success. Similarly, Strauss and Carpenter (1977) found a high correlation between 5-year outcome scores and previous levels of social contact. They considered prehospital levels of social contact to be one of the three main predictors of outcome in schizophrenia.
Significant Life Events and their Impact on Alcohol and Drug Use: A Qualitative Study

This study used a life-course perspective to identify and understand life events related to long-term alcohol and other drug (AOD) use trajectories across the life span. Using a purposive sample, we conducted semi-structured telephone interviews with 48 participants (n = 30 abstinent and 18 non-abstinent) from a longitudinal study of AOD outcomes 15 years following outpatient AOD treatment. A content analysis was conducted using ATLAS.ti software to identify events and salient themes. Caregiving for an ill or dependent family member was related to better AOD outcomes by reinforcing abstinence and reduced drinking, and contributing to alcohol cessation in most individuals who cited caregiving as a pivotal event. Grandparenting and parenting an adult child were motivational for sustaining abstinence and reduced drinking. Findings were mixed on death of a loved one, which was related to abstinence in some and relapse in others. Redemption and mutual fulfillment as caregivers, reconciliations with adult children, and legacy-building as grandparents were themes associated with maintaining abstinence and reduced drinking. AOD treatment has the opportunity to employ motivational interventions for relapse prevention that address the meaning and lifelong reach of intimate relationships for individuals and their AOD use across the life span.
Density Gradients and Sintered Dimensional Tolerance in Compacts Formed from Spray-Dried Alumina

This study proves that initial density gradients have lasting detrimental effects on final dimensional tolerances. X-ray computed tomography has been used to quantify changes in density following sintering; associated dimensional changes have been monitored using a laser micrometer. Nonuniformities present in the green state are still present at an overall relative density of ∼73%; in fact, these nonuniformities are exaggerated. Major losses of dimensional tolerance are triggered by the initial density gradients.
EFFECTS OF SOIL WATERLOGGING ON THE ENERGY STATUS AND DISTRIBUTION OF SALIX NIGRA AND S. EXIGUA (SALICACEAE) IN THE ATCHAFALAYA RIVER BASIN OF LOUISIANA

The influence of soil waterlogging on the distribution and energy status of Salix nigra and S. exigua were studied in the field and laboratory. Differential flooding in natural stands of Salix spp. and under controlled conditions in the greenhouse demonstrated that S. nigra was more tolerant of waterlogged soil conditions than was S. exigua. Salix nigra exhibited a significantly higher leaf energy status and greater ability to oxidize waterlogged soil when flooded than did S. exigua. However, S. exigua appeared to be more tolerant of moisture stress than S. nigra as indicated by the significantly higher leaf resistances to water vapor exchange and higher leaf water potentials of S. exigua. These data support the theory that the reason S. nigra inhabits lower elevation sites than S. exigua in the Atchafalaya River Basin may be the differential tolerance of these two species to soil waterlogging on one extreme and moisture deficiencies on
A vision of hope for US domestic and international health policy

‘The time has come – this year, in this new Administration – to modernize our health care system for the twenty-first century; to reduce costs for families and businesses; and to finally provide affordable, accessible health care for every American.’ Barack Obama, President-elect of the United States, 11 December 2008 ‘It's time we once again put science at the top of our agenda and worked to restore America's place as the world leader in science and technology.’ Barack Obama, President-elect of the United States, 20 December 2008 With the election of a youthful, inspirational and first-ever African American to the Presidency of the United States, voters in this robust democracy asserted a collective intention to change the way government responds to their needs. These changes signal the end of an incompetent administration that presided over an unwinnable war; permitted ill-advised economic policies that led to recession; allowed environmental policies that ignored global warming; supported foreign policies that alienated US friends and foes alike; fought against science policies that could stimulate innovation; blurred the boundaries of state and church with ‘faith-based initiatives’; and failed to reform a healthcare system that left us with 47 million uninsured and an unmanaged health budget. With the January inauguration, Americans recaptured a moral compass for their governance. This compass is even more important given the concurrent, horrendous global economic downturn. Even with the economic crisis and war in Iraq, health reform was on the minds of US voters last November, and it is now squarely on the agenda of the new administration. This article frames a few of the issues germane to the health and science agenda for this administration, and it will summarize some of the major recommendations now being made to President Obama. With a large sigh of relief from the scientific community, …
Factor Structure of the Psychopathic Personality Inventory (PPI): Findings from a Large Incarcerated Sample.

Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) of the Psychopathic Personality Inventory (PPI; S. O. Lilienfeld, 1990; S. O. Lilienfeld & B. P. Andrews, 1996) with a community sample has suggested that the PPI subscales may comprise 2 higher order factors (S. D. Benning, C. J. Patrick, B. M. Hicks, D. M. Blonigen, & R. F. Krueger, 2003). However, substantive and structural evidence raises concerns about the viability of this 2-factor model, particularly in offender populations. The authors attempted to replicate the S. D. Benning et al. 2-factor solution using a large (N = 1,224) incarcerated male sample. Confirmatory factor analysis of this model resulted in poor model fit. Similarly, using the same EFA procedures as did S. D. Benning et al., the authors found little evidence for a 2-factor model. When they followed the recommendations of J.-W. van Prooijen and W. A. van der Kloot (2001) for recovering EFA solutions, model fit results provided some evidence that a 3-factor EFA solution could be recovered via confirmatory factor analysis.
Variable-frequency trains offset low-frequency fatigue in human skeletal muscle.

Variable-frequency trains that exploit the catchlike property of skeletal muscle can augment force production in fatigued skeletal muscle. The present study is the first to examine the effect of such trains during recovery. The quadriceps femoris muscles of 12 healthy individuals were fatigued using six-pulse, 14.3-Hz trains delivered at a rate of 1/s for 3 min. The force-generating ability of the muscle was tested with several constant-frequency trains (8.3-100 Hz) and a variable-frequency train before and after fatigue and at 2, approximately 13, and approximately 38 min of recovery. The variable-frequency train produced significant augmentation of force versus the best constant-frequency train (12.5 Hz) in acute fatigue and during recovery. The fatiguing protocol also induced low-frequency fatigue (LFF); the time courses of the degree of LFF and the amount of variable-frequency train force augmentation were inversely related (r = 0.629; F = 38.024; P </= 0.001), suggesting a common mechanism between the two phenomena. These results suggest that clinical use of variable-frequency trains (e.g., functional electrical stimulation) will enable the muscle to generate more force during acute fatigue and offset, at least partially, the long-term effects of LFF.
The Effect of Inter-Implant Distance on the Height of Inter-Implant Bone Crest

Background: The biologic width around implants has been well documented in the literature. Once an implant is uncovered, vertical bone loss of 1.5 to 2 mm is evidenced apical to the newly established implant-abutment interface. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the lateral dimension of the bone loss at the implant-abutment interface and to determine if this lateral dimension has an effect on the height of the crest of bone between adjacent implants separated by different distances. Methods: Radiographic measurements were taken in 36 patients who had 2 adjacent implants present. Lateral bone loss was measured from the crest of bone to the implant surface. In addition, the crestal bone loss was also measured from a line drawn between the tops of the adjacent implants. The data were divided into 2 groups, based on the inter-implant distance at the implant shoulder. Results: The results demonstrated that the lateral bone loss was 1.34 mm from the mesial implant shoulder and 1.40 mm from the distal imp...
Neural probes integrated with optical mixer/splitter waveguides and multiple stimulation sites

This paper reports new neural probe schemes incorporating various optical waveguides for optogenetic applications. A photodefinable polymer (SU-8) has been patterned to form optical mixer and splitter waveguides for advanced optical functions with multiple light sources and easy delivery of light to multiple shanks, respectively. Also, multiple stimulation sites have been implemented by step-wise patterning in a single waveguide. In addition to SU-8 waveguides, iridium electrodes have been integrated for recording of neural signals from optically stimulated neurons with light of specific wavelengths. Single mode optical fibers have been coupled in grooves etched in the probe body. We have successfully demonstrated transmissions of blue light, 473 nm in wavelength, through the waveguides that are integrated on the fabricated devices.
Enabling unimodular transformations

The development of a unimodular transformation theory and associated algorithms has renewed interest in Fortran do loops that are not perfectly (or tightly) nested. In this paper we summarize a number of techniques that convert imperfectly nested loops into perfectly nested loops. We examined over 25,000 lines of scientific Fortran kernels and benchmarks. Statistics are reported on how often imperfect loops occur and how effective two transformations (scalar forward substitution and loop distribution) are at converting imperfectly nested loops into perfectly nested loops. Further, we describe a compiler that integrates scalar forward substitution, loop distribution, and unimodular transformations while maintaining the basic philosophy of unimodular transformation theory. While our data indicate that imperfectly nested loops still present a problem, the compiler we describe is no more limited by perfectly nested loops than other restructuring compilers available today.
Management of Mandibular Fractures

The complex physiology of the masticatory system is extremely sensitive to its intricate anatomic relationships. With the ever-increasing number of patients admitted to our institution with traumatic facial injuries, it seemed an appropriate time to evaluate the most widely employed treatment modalities available for the management of mandibular fractures. Maxillomandibular fixation remains the mainstay of mandible fracture stabilization. Within recent years, rigid internal fixation with miniplates and screws has become popular. This study compares the results of the most commonly used treatment modalities available for the repair of acute mandibular fractures. (Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 1994;120:44-48)
Lightning-Initiation Locations as a Remote Sensing Tool of Large Thunderstorm Electric Field Vectors

The lightning data that are recorded with a three-dimensional lightning mapping array (LMA) are compared with data from an electric field change sensor (in this case a flat-plate antenna operated both as a “slow” and a “fast” antenna). The goal of these comparisons is to quantify any time difference that may exist between the initial responses of the two instruments to a lightning flash. The data consist of 136 flashes from two New Mexico thunderstorms. It is found that the initial radiation source detected by the LMA usually precedes the initial response of both the slow and fast antennas. In a small number of cases, the flat-plate antenna response precedes the initial LMA source, but by no more than 2 ms. The observations of such a close time coincidence suggest that the first LMA radiation source of each flash was located at or very near the flash-initiation point. Thus, the first LMA radiation source and the initial sequence of sources from a lightning flash can be used as remote sensing tools to give information about the magnitude of the electric field (relative to lightning-initiation thresholds) and the direction of the electric field at the initiation location.
Abundant Intergenic TAACTGA Direct Repeats and Putative Alternate RNA Polymerase β' Subunits in Marine Beggiatoaceae Genomes: Possible Regulatory Roles and Origins.

The genome sequences of several giant marine sulfur-oxidizing bacteria present evidence of a possible post-transcriptional regulatory network that may have been transmitted to or from two distantly related bacteria lineages. The draft genome of a Cand. “Maribeggiatoa” filament from the Guaymas Basin (Gulf of California, Mexico) seafloor contains 169 sets of TAACTGA direct repeats and one indirect repeat, with two to six copies per set. Related heptamers are rarely or never found as direct repeats. TAACTGA direct repeats are also found in some other Beggiatoaceae, Thiocystis violascens, a range of Cyanobacteria, and five Bacteroidetes. This phylogenetic distribution suggests they may have been transmitted horizontally, but no mechanism is evident. There is no correlation between total TAACTGA occurrences and repeats per genome. In most species the repeat units are relatively short, but longer arrays of up to 43 copies are found in several Bacteroidetes and Cyanobacteria. The majority of TAACTGA repeats in the Cand. “Maribeggiatoa” Orange Guaymas (BOGUAY) genome are within several nucleotides upstream of a putative start codon, suggesting they may be binding sites for a post-transcriptional regulator. Candidates include members of the ribosomal protein S1, Csp (cold shock protein), and Csr (carbon storage regulator) families. No pattern was evident in the predicted functions of the open reading frames (ORFs) downstream of repeats, but some encode presumably essential products such as ribosomal proteins. Among these is an ORF encoding a possible alternate or modified RNA polymerase beta prime subunit, predicted to have the expected subunit interaction domains but lacking most catalytic residues. A similar ORF was found in the Thioploca ingrica draft genome, but in no others. In both species they are immediately upstream of putative sensor kinase genes with nearly identical domain structures. In the marine Beggiatoaceae, a role for the TAACTGA repeats in translational regulation is suggested. More speculatively, the putative alternate RNA polymerase subunit could be a negative transcriptional regulator.
An English Reading Tool as a NLP Showcase

We introduce -SmartReaderan English reading tool for non-native English readers to overcome language related hindrances while reading a text. It makes extensive use of widely-available NLP tools and resources. SmartReader is a web-based application that can be accessed from standard browsers running on PCs or tablets. A user can choose a text document from the system’s library they want to read or can upload a new document of their own and the system will display an interactive version of such text, that provides the reader with an intelligent e-book functionality.
Antitumor activity of MDV3100 in a phase I/II study of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC)

5011 Background: MDV3100 is a novel AR antagonist selected for activity in prostate cancer model systems with overexpressed AR. In contrast to bicalutamide, MDV3100 blocks nuclear translocation of AR and DNA binding, and has no known agonist activity when AR is overexpressed. Antitumor activity of MDV3100 in a Phase I/II trial was assessed by prostate-specific antigen (PSA), soft tissue and osseous disease, circulating tumor cells (CTC), and time on treatment. Methods: Patients (pts) with progressive CRPC were enrolled in sequential cohorts of 3–6 pts at 30, 60, 150, 240, 360, 480 and 600 mg/day. Once the safety of a dose was established, enrollment was expanded at doses >60 mg/day to include 12 chemotherapy-naive (naive) and 12 post-chemotherapy pts per cohort. Results: 140 pts were enrolled. 114 pts at 30–360 mg/day have been followed for >12 weeks. PSA declines (>50% from baseline) were observed at week 12 in 57% (37/65) of naive and 45% (22/49) of post-chemo pts. Data suggest a dose-response trend par...
Malathion Resistance in Some Populations of the Indian Meal Moth Infesting Dried Fruits and Tree Nuts in California

Three of 5 native populations and a laboratory strain of Plodia interpunctella (Hubner) were found resistant to malathion. A susceptible population stressed with malathion showed a 110-fold increase in resistance in 5 generations. Reciprocal crosses of malathion-resistant and malathion-susceptible Indian meal moths showed that transport of resistant insects into an area where only susceptible moths are found may cause an increase in resistant moths in that area.
The use of an expert system in the clinical laboratory as an aid in the diagnosis of anemia.

Experience with an expert system developed for the purpose of classification of anemias is presented. Input for this system consists of limited demographic information on each patient and the results of the complete blood count, with the incorporation of the results of further chemical testing (serum iron/total iron binding capacity/ferritin and serum B12/serum folate/red blood cell folate), if indicated. Performance of this system is demonstrated using data from 84 patients seen in the authors’ laboratory selected either because of a request for evaluation by the attending physician or because of significant anemias. Using this limited input, the system was able to accurately classify 74 of 84 (88%) of cases according to previously established criteria. The output from the system is overread by a pathologist. Future directions are also discussed.
Study on the Current Training Situation and Training Strategy of Pediatric Radiologists

Digital imaging era has brought convenience for the development of imaging; accordingly, the requirement for radiologists is higher than ever. As an important branch of imaging, pediatric radiology plays a very important role in pediatric medical cause. At present, standardized training of clinicians has been carried out widely in our country, but there is still no professional standardized training for the pediatric radiologists. Therefore, we put forward the basic requirements that pediatric radiologists should possess in the digital era and related training strategies to facilitate the training of higher specialized pediatric radiologists.
Generation of Transgenic Mouse Fluorescent Reporter Lines for Studying Hematopoietic Development

During the development of the hematopoietic system, at least eight distinct lineages are generated in the mouse embryo. Transgenic mice expressing fluorescent proteins at various points in the hematopoietic hierarchy, from hematopoietic stem cell to multipotent progenitors to each of the final differentiated cell types, have provided valuable tools for tagging, tracking, and isolating these cells. In this chapter, we discuss general considerations in designing a transgene and survey available fluorescent probes and methods for confirming and analyzing transgene expression in the hematopoietic systems of the embryo, fetus, and postnatal/adult animal.