cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Ultrasonically assisted compounding of CNT with polypropylenes of different molecular weights

Abstract Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were compounded with four polypropylenes (PPs) of different molecular weights and viscosities without and with ultrasonically assisted twin-screw extrusion. The dispersion of CNT and the effect of viscosity on ultrasonically induced polymer degradation at different amplitudes were studied. Three preparation methods, differing in the sequence of ultrasonic treatment application, were applied to prepare PP/CNT composites and investigate the bubble cavitation mechanism inside and outside of CNT agglomerates in composites. In Method 1, the ultrasonic treatment was applied in the masterbatch dilution step, while in Method 2 it was applied in the masterbatch preparation step. In Method 3, direct ultrasonic compounding method was applied. Ultrasonic power consumption, small amplitude oscillatory shear (SAOS), creep and recovery, electrical conductivity were measured and morphological analysis was carried out to evaluate the dispersion of CNT in PP. The ultrasonic treatment was found to have the most prominent effect on improving the dispersion of CNT using Method 2. The ultrasonic treatment using Method 3 was more efficient than that using Method 1. Moreover, it was found that ultrasonic treatment had more notable effect on improving the dispersion of CNT in the higher viscosity PP matrix. The rheological and electrical percolation threshold was significantly reduced with ultrasonic treatment in higher viscosity PP/CNT composites. The bubble cavitation mechanism inside of CNT agglomerates was found to be dominant in breakage of the agglomerates during the ultrasonic treatment.
Geology of Utah Lake: implications for resource management

Utah Lake is a remnant of Lake Bonneville, from which it originated about 8,000 years ago. Analysis of sediment cores reveals significant variations in lake salinity and sedimentation rates. Notable examples are a very dry, high-salinity period between 5000 and 6000 years ago; a major freshening, wet period between 2700 and 3000 years ago; and a very dry, high-salinity period between 1400 and 2600 years ago, smaller variations are interspersed through the lake's history. Long-term sedimentation rates are estimated at about 1 mm (0.039 in) per year in most of the lake, but post-colonization rates appear to be about 2 mm (0.079 in) per year. Faults in the lake appear to be lowering the lake bottom at about the same rate as sediment has been filling it. Bottom sediments consist of about 60 to 80 percent calcite in the lake proper, much of which precipitates from the lake water itself. The lake-bed faults are similar in character to those of the Wasatch Fault that bound the valley and mountains a few miles to the east. Lake bottom springs and seeds are localized, in the most part, along the eastern and northern lake margins where all major tributaries occur and groundwater recharge is largest. Only limited spring activity appears to be associated with the faults. In a geological sense, Utah is an old lake-shallow, turbid, and slightly saline-and has been since its "birth" with the demise of Lake Bonneville approximately 8,000 years ago.
Labour Standards of International Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives and the Perspectives of Asian Employers—With Reference to a Survey of Asian Employers’ Organisations in 2011

For the last few decades, the issue of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and labour standards has been one of the most popular business topics not only in the business world but also among academics and educational institutions such as universities and business schools. Academia has been critical about unilateral links between labour standards and free trade agreements and has analysed the multidisciplinary issues. From the aspect of business education, the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME) initiative is a prominent example of educational relationships for responsible business between the United Nations and business schools.
A Unified Measure of Media Brand Personality: Developing A Media Brand Personality Scale for Multiple Media

ABSTRACTThe macro versus micro debate in the brand personality literature has yielded a variety of micro approach brand personality scales for different media, with both differences and parallels in personality dimensions uncovered. The observed parallels in media brand personality dimensions and the varying media contexts under which empirical tests of selective exposure theories have been conducted suggest some common ground in the way that media product brands of different formats are perceived by individuals prior to selection and that the optimal method of measuring brand personality for media products may be neither broad macro inventories nor highly context-specific micro measures but somewhere in between. This article discusses the construction of a unified scale of media brand personality that can measure the personality of movie, TV show, pop song, news, and video game brands. The results of a two-step study consisting of free-association task (N = 1,440) and factor structure formation survey of...
Arab American Adolescents’ Bullying Experiences And Effects On Their Perceived Stress And Health

Arab American Adolescents’ Bullying Experiences and effects on their Perceived Stress and Health Purpose and Background/Significance This study is intended to examine the bullying experience among Arab American adolescents and effects on their perceived stress and health. Adolescents who are vulnerable or marginalised might be at higher risk for bullying. Arab American adolescents have not been included in research studies examining bullying and described as the invisible population. Method Utilising a community-based approach and cross- sectional, correlational descriptive design, a convenient sample of 150 Arab American adolescents ages12 to 16 were recruited from two community centres, located at southeastern Michigan. Adolescents completed a survey about their bullying experience, their stress levels and if they experience any physical or psychological symptoms in the last year. Measurements included are the Adolescents Peer Relation Instrument (APRI), the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), the Children’s Somatization Inventory (CSI-24) and Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10). Multiple regression and correlation statistics were used to examine the relationships between the study variables. Results Initial results shows that adolescents who were victims of bullying experienced high stress levels, increased somatic complaints and psychological distress. In contrast, bullies did not reported high stress levels but indicated significant somatic complaints and psychological distress. Conclusions Bullying experience was associated with negative physical and psychological health outcomes as well as increased levels of stress among victims. Nurses and other primary health care providers can screen adolescents for physical symptoms and stress related to bullying. In addition providing culturally tailored prevention and intervention strategies may help to promote the overall health of adolescents who experience bullying by increasing their resistance to stress and developing supportive coping mechanisms.
A molecular dynamics investigation of the surface tension of water nanodroplets and a new technique for local pressure determination through density correlation.

The surface tension of nanoscale droplets of water was studied with molecular dynamics simulations using the BLYPSP-4F water potential. The internal pressure of the droplet was measured using an empirical correlation between the pressure and density, established through a series of bulk simulations performed at pressures from 1 to 1000 bars. Such a procedure allows for reliable determination of internal pressure without the need to calculate the local virial. The surface tension, estimated with the Young-Laplace relation, shows good agreement with the Tolman equation with a Tolman length of −0.48 A. The interface of a liquid water droplet is shown to be around 1.1–1.3 nm thick depending on radii. The fairly thick interface region puts a lower limit on the size of droplets that still have a bulk-like interior.
Development of cardiac autonomic balance in infancy and early childhood: A possible pathway to mental and physical health outcomes

Abstract Cardiac autonomic balance (CAB), defined as the relative influences of the sympathetic (SNS) and parasympathetic (PNS) nervous systems on the heart at rest, is a well-established biomarker of mental and physical health in adulthood (Kemp & Quintana, 2013). SNS and PNS functioning that, jointly, determine CAB, mature and stabilize between gestation and age five (Alkon, Boyce, Davis, & Eskenazi, 2011), co-developing with capacity to regulate distress during challenge and social engagement (Porges & Furman, 2011). This review integrates existing work in developmental, clinical, and medical sciences to propose a theoretical model of CAB development from gestation through early childhood and its putative relations with later functioning. By age five, CAB may reflect biological embedding of regulatory strategies that lay the groundwork for risk or resilience: The same profiles of SNS and PNS functioning associated with limited regulatory support in infancy and exposure to early adversity predict poor mental and physical health problems in adulthood (e.g., Beauchaine, 2001; Oosterman et al., 2010; Suurland, van der Heijden, Smaling, et al., 2017). In three key questions, we identify areas of consensus and remaining gaps in existing work to guide the next generation of research on early CAB development as a possible pathway from early experiences to mental and physical health outcomes.
Image Restoration: Fundamentals of Image Restoration

Abstract Image restoration is the process of recovering an image from a degraded version—usually a blurred and noisy image. Image restoration is a fundamental problem in image processing, and it also provides a testbed for more general inverse problems. Key issues that must be addressed are the quality of the restored image, the computational efficiency of the algorithm, and the estimation of necessary parameters such as the point-spread function (PSF). Basic image restoration techniques are surveyed to provide insight into the nature of the problem. These techniques also provide solutions that are effective in deblurring blurry images with reasonable computational complexity.
Cooperative Effects of AMP, ATP and Fructose 1,6-P2 on the Specific Elution of Fructose 1,6-Diphosphatase from Cellulose Phosphate

In 1963 Mendicino and Vasarhely (1) first observed that fructose 1,6-diphosphatases from kidney and liver were specifically bound to cellulose phosphate and carboxymethylcellulose. These studies further clearly demonstrated that AMP and high concentrations of fructose 1,6-P2 inhibited the activity of the enzyme (1). Since this time a number of other workers have utilized the specific binding of this enzyme to anion exchange columns as the principal purification step in the isolation of the enzyme from a large number of different tissues (2,3,4,5).
Imágenes melancólicas. El cine de las revoluciones vencidas (Traducción de Marianela Santoveña)

En este articulo se explora aquello que Antoine de Baecque llamo la historia-camara, es decir, "una forma cinematografica de la historia". Observaremos lo que el cine nos desvela, mas alla de los datos duros y las fuentes verificables de la historiografia, acerca del fin de la esperanza comunista, a partir de peliculas que considero barometros de la conciencia de izquierda, como reveladores de sus dilemas y sus cambios
Using trajectory models to assess the effect of hydrocodone upscheduling among chronic hydrocodone users.

PURPOSE In October 2014, the US Drug Enforcement Agency moved hydrocodone combination products (HCPs) from schedule III to II of the Controlled Substances Act, further restricting their access. The aim of the study is to quantify the effect of hydrocodone's "upscheduling" on the use of opioid and nonopioid analgesics among chronic users. METHODS Using IQVIA LRx LifeLink anonymized pharmacy data 2013 to 2015, we performed interrupted time series analysis and group-based trajectory modeling to characterize the effect of rescheduling on 316 731 long-term hydrocodone users. Main measures were the number of prescriptions, patients, tablets, and morphine milligram equivalents of opioids and nonopioid analgesics pre and post the policy change. We used logistic regression to assess the relationship between sociodemographic characteristics and these measures. RESULTS The schedule change was associated with significant declines in opioid prescriptions (20.9%, from 421 798 to 333 627) and the number of patients using opioids (11.4%, from 307 974 to 272 804). Majority of hydrocodone users filled prescriptions for nonopioid analgesics with some declines in the number of users after the schedule change (5.2%, from 181 085 to 171 758). Based on group-based trajectory models, majority of patients continued to fill HCP prescriptions consistently after the policy change, while 15.4% showed large declines in HCP use, accounting for two-thirds of the decrease in opioid volume. There was no evidence that the policy change was associated with significant increases in the use of alternative analgesics. CONCLUSIONS The upscheduling of hydrocodone led to reductions in opioid use, which were concentrated among a small subset of chronic hydrocodone users, without evidence of commensurate increases in the use of alternative pharmacologic pain treatments.
Uncertainty Quantification in Global Modeling of Plasma Assisted Combustion

Global models are ubiquitous in the study of combustion and plasma chemistry systems, largely due to computational efficiency conducive to exploring large parameter spaces. This mathematical simplicity depends strongly on accurate data and assumptions. With functional assumptions based in theory, the reaction mechanism required for plasma assisted combustion (PAC) relies on a mix of gas and plasma phase reaction data. These measured and calculated data describe extremely non-linear systems benefiting from uncertainty quantification (UQ), beyond standard sensitivity analysis, for uncertainty driven result fluctuation estimates and reaction mechanism optimization.
Erratum to: Heme Oxygenase-2 Is Neuroprotective in Cerebral Ischemia

Sylvain Dore, Kenji Sampei, Shozo Goto, Nabil J Alkayed, Daniel Guastella, Seth Blackshaw, Michela Gallagher, Richard J Traystman, Patricia D Hurn, Raymond C Koehler, and Solomon H Snyder. (1999) Heme Oxygenase-2 Is Neuroprotective in Cerebral Ischemia. Mol. Med. 1999 Oct;5(10):656–663.
The natural history of a monogamous coral-reef fish, Valenciennea strigata (Gobiidae): 1. abundance, growth, survival and predation

The population dynamics of a monogamous coral-reef fish were examined to test hypotheses of recruitment limitation, predation, and postrecruitment processes, and to determine their affects on the mating system. Valenciennea strigata are monogamous gobies that live in sand and rubble zones throughout the Indo-Pacific. Seasonal abundance was recorded in the summer and winter over 2.5 years. A subset of this population was tagged (n = 256) and followed to determine mortality and mobility. Valenciennea strigata were more abundant in summer than in winter, suggesting that a pulse of recruitment in the spring set the maximum population density. Growth rates derived from tagged fish support the hypothesis that recruitment peaked in the spring. Tagged fish experienced 88% mortality within six months; the annual mortality rate approached 100%. Evidence of predation, antipredatory behavior and strong site fidelity implicate predation as the primary source of mortality. Competition for space was not observed between adults, but may affect settlement and recruitment. Despite the lack of adult competition for space, both sexes guarded their mates and courted individuals of the opposite sex. Thus, although population size appears to be determined by nonequilibrium processes, the mating system is affected by competition for mates. Successful mate guarding by both sexes enforced monogamy.
Not “My Territory:” How Gender Role Socialization Impacts Father Involvement in Caring for a Child with an Eating Disorder

This study aimed to explore the experiences of clinicians working with fathers caring for a child experiencing an eating disorder. A phenomenological qualitative method was used to answer the quest...
Elevated temperatures cause loss of seed set in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) potentially through the disruption of source-sink relationships

Climate change models predict more frequent incidents of heat stress worldwide. This trend will contribute to food insecurity, particularly for some of the most vulnerable regions, by limiting the productivity of crops. Despite its great importance, there is a limited understanding of the underlying mechanisms of variation in heat tolerance within plant species. Common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris, is relatively susceptible to heat stress, which is of concern given its critical role in global food security. Here, we evaluated three genotypes of P. vulgaris belonging to kidney market class under heat and control conditions. The Sacramento and NY-105 genotypes were previously reported to be heat tolerant, while Redhawk is heat susceptible. We quantified several morpho-physiological traits for leaves and found that photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, and leaf area all increased under elevated temperatures. Leaf area expansion under heat stress was greatest for the most susceptible genotype, Redhawk. To understand gene regulatory responses among the genotypes, total RNA was extracted from the fourth trifoliate leaves for RNA-sequencing. Several genes involved in the protection of PSII (HSP21, ABA4, and LHCB4.3) exhibited increased expression under heat stress, indicating the importance of photoprotection of PSII. Furthermore, expression of the gene SUT2 was reduced in heat. SUT2 is involved in the phloem loading of sucrose and its distal translocation to sinks. We also detected an almost four-fold reduction in the concentration of free hexoses in heat-treated beans. This reduction was more drastic in the susceptible genotype. Overall, our data suggests that while moderate heat stress does not negatively affect photosynthesis, it likely interrupts intricate source-sink relationships. These results collectively suggest a physiological mechanism for why pollen fertility and seed set are negatively impacted by elevated temperatures. Identifying the physiological and transcriptome dynamics of bean genotypes in response to heat stress will likely facilitate the development of varieties that can better tolerate a future of elevated temperatures.
Strategies for choosing an uncertainty budget in log-robust portfolio management

This paper proposes six strategies for deciding upon “budget of uncertainty” parameters as input to a sequence of robust (portfolio) optimization problems over time, the solutions of which are a se...
Assessment of Professional Development Systems: Improving Rural Special Education Services

The ability to measure the results of professional development programs and activities remains an elusive goal for most educators in rural settings. While students in classrooms continue to face ex...
From Mass Incarceration to a Culture of Control

The restriction of accused and convicted individuals’ liberty and freedom through incarceration, in the effort to protect public safety, has been at the foundation of United States penal practice for centuries. Changing patterns of crime, significant historical events, dominant political ideologies, technological advances, and perceived increasing threats to public safety have resulted in an ever-changing and ever-expanding criminal justice system in the United States. These circumstances have also resulted in the expanded control over the general public in the form of continuous monitoring, searches, and data gathering. No longer are only the accused and convicted closely monitored in the name of public safety. This chapter will describe how the United States has become a culture of control in which all citizens are subject to new and more far-reaching elements of prison-like surveillance, regulation, and control. Focus will be given to the ways technological advances have provided an infrastructure for a system of control that has significant intrusive and punitive capabilities while simultaneously seeking to protect public safety. The chapter closes with a discussion of the role of citizens in democratic societies in confronting the culture of control.
Deficits by Tier: Payback of the 2017 Tax Act by Wealth

In his American Economic Association Presidential Address Olivier Blanchard argued that the deficits caused by the 2017 Tax Cut are welfare enhancing. Growth of the economy is greater than interest costs, both currently and usually and that indicates we are borrowing when we are relatively poor and will repay when richer. But the 2017 Act gave a tax cut as incentives to capital shared pro rata to wealth, when capital was in glut. Pure capital did not have a positive net present value because risk-free interest rates were negative and now hovering around zero. Now we are told the borrowing must be repaid by cuts to Medicaid, social security and regressive sales tax. That sets up a pattern that maximizes the damage to welfare. We cut rates so that Uncle Scrooge can have another dollar to swim in in his vaults with repayment by those near destitution. One cannot judge welfare without analysis of who is getting the benefit of the deficit and who will repay. Beyond the article, Blanchard has both conceded the point and clarified his position: “In my American Economic Association piece, I said debt is probably bad on net, but can be used for good purposes, so benefits exceed the costs: closing an unemployment gap, or doing public investment. This was not the case for the 2017 tax cuts and the resulting deficits. And, indeed the deficits might be used for a starve the beast strategy, making things worse.” The Article then inventories ideas that will both increase efficiency and also reach wealth, including ending step up in basis at death, “fire sale” tax rates on capital gain, negative tax from combination of expensing of costs and interest deduction, capital gain rate and step up in basis, repealing the section 199A passthrough deductions, and acheiving better valuation for the estate tax.
A Comparison of Grass Carp Population Characteristics Upstream and Downstream of Lock and Dam 19 of the Upper Mississippi River

Grass Carp Ctenopharyngodon idella have been intentionally stocked for aquatic vegetation control across the Midwestern United States for several decades. During the 1970s, escapement of Grass Carp...
Multi-class Classification of Motor Execution Tasks using fNIRS

This paper investigates the problem of classification of multi-class movement execution tasks from signals obtained via functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). fNIRS data is acquired from five healthy subjects while performing four types of motor execution tasks as well as a non-movement task (five classes in total). Various feature sets are extracted based on the mean of changes in the concentration of oxygenated hemoglobin ([ΔHbO]) signals computed across the [0 – 2], [1 – 3], and [2 – 4] sec intervals. A multi-class support vector machine classifier with a quadratic polynomial kernel (QSVM) is utilized to classify movement and non-movement classes (total of 5 classes) using the data from the three time intervals. Classification results revealed that the average accuracy obtained for data using [2 – 4] sec interval is higher than the other two (78.55%). In addition, a comparison between the classification results of the data obtained from only the motor cortex vs from multiple regions of the brain is done. Our results demonstrate that by using fNIRS data from different regions of the brain, the classification accuracy is improved by 10 – 12% as compared to the case when the data is used only from the motor region.
Development and evaluation of patient reported outcomes-based performance measures during chemotherapy.

e19175Background: As value-based oncology care models become increasingly common, there is need for reliable and valid patient-reported outcome performance measures (PRO-PMs) to assess quality of s...
Sex Differences in Systemic Bone and Muscle Loss Following Femur Fracture in Mice.

Fracture induces systemic bone loss in mice and humans, and a first (index) fracture increases the risk of future fracture at any skeletal site more in men than women. The etiology of this sex difference is unknown, but fracture may induces a greater systemic bone loss response in males. Also sex differences in systemic muscle loss after fracture have not been examined. We investigated sex differences in systemic bone and muscle loss after transverse femur fracture in 3-month-old male and female C57BL/6J mice. Whole-body and regional bone mineral content and density (BMC and BMD), trabecular and cortical bone microstructure, muscle contractile force, muscle mass, and muscle fiber size were quantified at multiple time points post-fracture. Serum concentrations of inflammatory cytokines (IL-1s, IL-6, and TNF-α) were measured 1-day post-fracture. One day post-fracture, IL-6 and Il-1B were elevated in fracture mice of both sexes, but TNF-α was only elevated in male fracture mice. Fracture reduced BMC, BMD, and trabecular bone microstructural properties in both sexes 2 weeks post-fracture, but declines were greater in males. Muscle contractile force, mass, and fiber size decreased primarily in the fractured limb at 2 weeks post-fracture and females showed a trend towards greater muscle loss. Bone and muscle properties recovered by 6 weeks post-fracture. Overall, post-fracture systemic bone loss is greater in males, which may contribute to sex differences in subsequent fracture risk. In both sexes, muscle loss is primarily confined to the injured limb and fracture may induce greater inflammation in males. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Anti-GD2 antibody therapy alters the neuroblastoma tumor microenvironment and extends survival in TH-MYCN mice

ABSTRACT Background Neuroblastoma is a commonly lethal solid tumor of childhood and intensive chemoradiotherapy treatment cures ~50% of children with high-risk disease. The addition of immunotherapy using dinutuximab, a monoclonal antibody directed against the GD2 disialoganglioside expressed on neuroblasts, improves survival when incorporated into front-line therapy and shows robust activity in regressing relapsed disease when combined with chemotherapy. Still, many children succumb to neuroblastoma despite receiving dinutuximab-based immunotherapy, and efforts to counteract the immune suppressive signals responsible are warranted. Animal models of human cancers provide useful platforms to study immunotherapies. TH-MYCN transgenic mice are immunocompetent and develop neuroblastomas at autochthonous sites due to enforced MYCN expression in developing neural crest tissues. However, GD2-directed immunotherapy in this model has been underutilized due to the prevailing notion that TH-MYCN neuroblasts express insufficient GD2 to be targeted. Methods TH-MYCN mice were treated with 14G2a (anti-GD2 antibody), isotype antibody, or phosphate buffered saline from day 14 of life until day 100 or signs of morbidity. Survival was recorded, and tumors were isolated in terminal surgeries for analysis of GD2 expression and immune cell frequencies. Tumors from untreated mice were explanted for generation into cell lines, and GD2 expression was recorded with serial passage in tissue culture. Immunocytology and immunoblotting were performed to evaluate for adrenergic and mesenchymal markers of neuroblasts. Survival curves compared using Kaplan-Meier method with a log-rank test for significance. Unpaired two-tailed Student’s t-tests used for comparison of groups in flow cytometry analysis. Results 14G2a markedly extends survival in such TH-MYCN mice. Additionally, neuroblasts in 14G2a-treated mice have reduced GD2 expression and fewer macrophage and myeloid-derived suppressor cells in their tumor microenvironments. Neuroblasts in TH-MYCN-driven tumors express GD2 at levels comparable to human neuroblastomas but rapidly lose GD2 expression when explanted ex vivo to establish tumor cell lines. The loss of GD2 expression ex vivo is associated with a transition from an adrenergic to mesenchymal state that is maintained when reimplanted in vivo. Conclusions Our findings support the utility of the TH-MYCN model to inform GD2-directed immunotherapy approaches for neuroblastoma as well as opportunities to investigate drivers of adrenergic to mesenchymal fate decisions.
Weimar e Roma

L’articolo si concentra sull’influenza della Costituzione di Weimar sulla quella della Repubblica italiana, e sui loro caratteri comuni; fra l’altro sul ruolo dei giuristi nella preparazione della carta, in particolare di Preus in Germania e di Mortati in Italia, sul meccanismo di autorizzazione popolare, sul carattere rigido della stessa, e inoltre sul ruolo dei referendum.
Cost-Sharing For Pollution Abatement

This paper presents a method of ameliorating externality problems when polluters and sufferers would like to take a cooperative approach, sharing costs of abatement and jointly deciding expenditure for abatement and environmental goals. The method for solving this joint problem uses decentralized messages among the involved participants concerning willingness to pay and proposals about environmental quality. The iterative process starts from exogenously specified cost shares that are then adjusted through personalized prices (which can be taxes or subsidies). The process arrives at equilibrium through price adjustment rules. The equilibrium of the process satisfies social efficiency by design. A simulated example shows that the method can solve a complex problem in a relatively few iterations.
An extended nonlinear transform domain adaptive filter

The concept of nonlinear transform domain adaptive filtering is extended to handle general inputs. Two solutions are proposed and a local temporal relationship is established between them. Layered implementation is shown to achieve performance comparable to the linear embedding solution with considerably reduced computations. Computer simulation shows improved learning performance compared to the LMS based structure driven with a non-Gaussian input. >
Gene-scrambling mutagenesis: Generation and analysis of insertional mutations in the alginate regulatory region of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Abstract A novel method for random mutagenesis of targeted chromosomal regions in Pseudomona aeruginosa was developed. This method can be used with a cloned DNA fragment of indefinite size that contains a putative gene of interest. Cloned DNA is digested to produce small fragments that are then randomly reassembled into long DNA inserts by using cosmid vectors and lambda packaging reaction. This DNA is then transferred into P. aeruginosa and forced into the chromosome via homologous recombination, producing in a single step a random set of insertional mutants along a desired region of the chromosome. Application of this method to extend the analysis of the alginate regulatory region, using a cloned 6.2-kb fragment with the algR gene and the previously uncharacterized flanking regions, produced several insertional mutations. One mutation was obtained in algR, a known transcriptional regulatory of mucoidy in P. aeruginosa. The null mutation of algR was generated in a mucoid derivative of the standard genetic strain PAO responsive to different environmental factors. This mutation was used to demonstrate that the algR gene product was not essential for the regulation of its promoters. Additional insertions were obtained in regions downstream and upstream of algR. A mutation that did not affect mucoidy was generated in a gene located 1 kb upstream of algR. This gene was transcribed in the direction opposite that of algR transcription and encoded a polypeptide of 47 kDa. Partial nucleotide sequence analysis revealed strong homology of its predicted gene product with the human and yeast argininosuccinate lyases. An insertion downstream of algR produced a strain showing reduced induction of mucoidy in response to growth on nitrate as the nitrogen source.
Aerogel Synthesis of Yttria-Stabilized Zirconia by a Non-Alkoxide Sol−Gel Route

Homogeneous, nanocrystalline powders of yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) were prepared using a non-alkoxide sol−gel method. Monolithic gels, free of precipitation, were prepared by addition of propylene oxide to aqueous solutions of Zr4+ and Y3+ chlorides at room temperature. The gels were dried with supercritical CO2(l), resulting in amorphous aerogels that crystallized into stabilized ZrO2 following calcination at 500 °C. The aerogels and resulting crystalline products were characterized using in situ temperature profile X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, thermal analysis, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), nitrogen adsorption/desorption analysis, and elemental analysis by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy. TEM and N2 adsorption/desorption analysis of an aerogel prepared by this method indicated a porous network structure with a high surface area (409 m2/g). The crystallized YSZ maintained high surface area (159 m2/g) upon formation of h...
Assembly and Linkage

Assembly is the final step in the translation to machine code. Instruction specifications are converted into the actual patterns recognized by the control unit of the computer, and these patterns are placed into a memory image. Some of the instruction specifications normally contain references to other items in the program; during assembly, these references are replaced by the addresses in the memory image of the referenced items.
On the current sheets surrounding dipolarizing flux bundles in the magnetotail: The case for wedgelets

[1] Using Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms observations from four tail seasons, we study the three-dimensional structure of the dipolarization front current sheet (DFCS), which demarcates the magnetic boundary of a dipolarizing flux bundle (DFB, the strong magnetic field region led by a dipolarization front) in Earth's magnetotail. An equatorial cross section of the DFCS is convex; a meridional cross section is consistent with a dipolarized field line. The equatorial flow pattern in the ambient plasma ahead of the DFCS exhibits diversions of opposite sense on its evening and morning sides. The magnetic field perturbations are consistent with local field-aligned current generation of region-2 sense ahead of the front and region-1 sense at the front. The median thickness of the DFCS increases from 800 to 2000 km with increasing distance from the neutral sheet, indicating bundle compression near the neutral sheet. On a meridional cross section, DFCS's linear current density (1.2–1.8 nA/m) peaks ~±0.55 l from the neutral sheet (where l is the ambient cross-tail current sheet half-thickness, l ~1.5 RE in our database). This peak, reminiscent of active-time cross-tail current sheet bifurcation noted in past studies, suggests that the intense but thin DFCS (10 to 20 nA/m2) may be produced by redistribution (diversion) of the extended but weaker cross-tail current (~1 nA/m2). Near the neutral sheet, the average DFCS current over the dipolarization front (DF) thickness is perpendicular to both the magnetic field interior to the DFB and the average field direction over the DF thickness. Away from the neutral sheet, the average current becomes progressively parallel to the internal field and the average field direction. The average current directions are indicative of region-1-sense field-aligned current on the DF. As few as approximately three DFBs can carry sufficient total current that, if redirected into the auroral ionosphere, can account for the substorm current wedge's peak current for a sizable substorm (~1 MA). A collapsing DFB could thus be an elemental substorm current wedge, or “wedgelet,” that can divert a sizable portion of the cross-tail current into the auroral ionosphere.
Joint Bayesian Treatment of Poisson and Gaussian Experiments in a Chi-squared Statistic

Bayesian Poisson probability distributions for the average n can be analytically converted into equivalent chi-squared distributions. These can then be combined with other Gaussian or Bayesian Poisson distributions to make a total chi-squared distribution. This allows the usual treatment of chi-squared contours but now with both Poisson and Gaussian statistics experiments. This is illustrated with the case of neutrino oscillations.
Approaching Camera-based Real-World Navigation Using Object Recognition

Abstract Traditional autonomous navigation systems for transportation use laser range scanners to con- struct 3D driving scenes in terms of open and occupied voxels. Active laser range scanners suffer from a series of failures, such as inability to detect wet road surfaces, dark surfaces and objects at large distances. In contrast, passive video cameras are immune from these failures but processing is challenging. High dimensionality of the input image requires efficient Big Data analytic methods for the system to perform in real-time. In this paper we argue that object recognition is essential for a navigation system to generalize learned landmarks to new driving scenes, which is a requirement for practical driving. To overcome this difficulty we present an online learning neural network for indoor navigation using only stereo cameras. The network can learn a Finite Automaton (FA) for the driving problem. Transition of the FA depends on several information sources: sensory input (stereo camera images) and motor input (i.e. object, action, GPS, and attention). Our agent simulates the transition of the FA by developing internal representation using the Developmental Network (DN) without handcrafting states or transi- tion rules. Although the proposed network is meant for both indoor and outdoor navigation, it has been only tested in indoor environments in current work. Our experiments demonstrate the agent learned to recognize landmarks and the corresponding actions (e.g. follow the GPS input, correct current direction, and avoid obstacles). Our future work includes training and learning in outdoor driving scenarios.
Nonlinear Filtering of Stochastic Navier-Stokes Equation

We describe an infinite dimensional nonlinear analog of the Kalman filter for turbulent fields. Nonlinear filtering theory of Stochastic Navier-Stokes equation is described using measure-valued solutions to the infinite dimensional, Fujisaki-Kallianpur-Kunita and the Zakai equations.
Can Short Restrictions Result in More Informed Short Selling? Evidence from the 2008 Regulations

We use the 2008 short selling regulations to conduct the first test of Diamond and Verrecchia’s (1987) counterintuitive prediction that short sale constraints can actually increase the information content of short sales. The emergency order made it difficult and costly for short sellers without strong broker relationships to borrow shares; borrowing fees increased by over 500%. Similarly, the short selling ban prohibited short selling in the spot market, but sophisticated traders could still short synthetically via the options market. As such, there is good reason to expect that both regulations increased the proportion of informed short sellers. Consistent with this notion, we find that the price reaction to announcements of unexpectedly high levels of short interest became more negative when the regulations were in effect. We also find that the price impact of short sales increased during the ban for affected stocks. Our results confirm the counterintuitive and previously untested prediction that short selling restrictions may actually increase the information content of short selling.
A Strategy for Students with Moderate Disabilities When Lost in the Community

This study examined the acquisition of cell phone use by middle school students with moderate cognitive disabilities. While in school and community settings, students were taught to identify when t...
The product formula algorithm applied to linear and radiation diffusion

We extend an unconditionally stable, explicit algorithm due to DeRaedt and Richardson, Farrell, and Long to include various linear and radiation diffusion problems in one and two dimensions with open and/or reflecting boundary conditions. We consider the ramifications of the ordering ambiguity problem (a feature that arises in the product formula scheme). In order to improve accuracy, we introduce a new type of subcycling based on the Lie-Trotter product formula. We consider a one-dimensional test problem which consists of a slab of material with a constant driving temperature source on one side. We compare the analytic and numerical results for the time evolution of the temperature profile in the linear and radiation diffusion problems as a function of Courant factor ({alpha}). We find excellent agreement except when {alpha} {much_gt} 1. For large {alpha}, the transient temperature profiles exhibit a {open_quotes}staircase{close_quote} like behavior. However, we show (albeit, not rigorously) that all solutions regardless of {alpha} approximately converge to the correct steady state solution. We also present results for a two-dimensional problem consisting of a constant driving temperature source on one side of a slab of material with an optically thick region interior to the slab.
From the Scientific Revolution to Evidence-Based Practice: Teaching the Short History with a Long Past

This article concerns the introduction of evidence-based practice (EBP) in foundation research. Five suggestions are discussed: (a) EBP relative to other epistemologies, (b) EBP in the context of the history of science, (c) research designs and levels of EBP, (d) EBP and measurement, and (e) systematic reviews as a review topic of the content of the research course.
Metropolitan Growth and the Local Role in Surface Water Resource Protection in the Lake Erie Basin

Local governments can play an important role in protecting surface water resources through their compliance with federal and state regulations and through their own land use planning and management practices. Despite 30 years of water quality initiatives in the Lake Erie basin, nonpoint source runoff from urban and urbanizing lands remains a problem. Loss of riparian corridor integrity is increasing as urban areas in the Lake Erie basin experience areal growth. The use and management of land, predominantly a local responsibility, directly affects surface water resources. The role that local governments play in protecting surface water resources was studied in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, the core of the greater Cleveland area. Zoning, building, subdivision, and health ordinances of local governments were reviewed and analyzed. Local governments were then asked to indicate their current planning and management techniques for surface water protection. Overall, protection of surface water resources in the county is inadequate. Local jurisdictions infrequently use the innovative planning mechanisms and water resource management practices suggested by state and federal water resource agencies and organizations. The uneven and fragmented land management system, if replicated in adjacent counties that are now urbanizing, bodes ill for Lake Erie's near-shore water quality.
Kinetic and Thermodynamic Study of the Reduction of 1,1‐Diphenylethylene by a Thermally Frustrated Diethyl Ether‐BCF Lewis Pair

The reaction enthalpy and rate of reduction of 1,1-diphenylethylene (DPE) by the Frustrated Lewis pair formed between tris-pentafluorophenylborane (BCF) and diethyl ether (Et₂O) in dichloromethane have been determined by mixing calorimetry. At 50 °C and 13.6 atm hydrogen a 0.08 M solution of DPE is reduced to 1,1-diphenylethane in the presence of 1 equivalent BCF and 0.8 equivalents Et₂O in 40 minutes. NMR spectroscopy showed >99% conversion to the reduced product. The rate of conversion of the olefin to the alkane as monitored by the time dependent heat flow showed a linear dependence on the free Et₂O and BCF concentration. Integration of the heat flux provides a measure of the reaction enthalpy of ΔH ca. -116±4 kJ/mol for the reaction Ph₂C=CH₂+H2→Ph₂CHCH₃. The equilibrium constant for dative adduct formation, Et₂O+BCF↔Et₂O—BCF, was determined as a function of temperature by ¹⁹F NMR spectroscopy and provided an experimental measure of the enthalpy, ΔH = -54.6±3.3 kJ/mol⁻¹ and entropy, ΔS=-154±13 Jmol⁻¹ K⁻¹, for dative bond formation in DCM. Extrapolation of the van’t Hoff plot to 50 oC provides Keq that is used to estimate the concentration of free BCF and Et₂O available to activate hydrogen. This work was supported by the US Department of Energy,more » Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Division of Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is a multiprogram national laboratory operated for DOE by Battelle.« less
The relation of lipogenesis to reduced triphosphopyridine nucleotide generation and to certain enzyme activities in the liver of the "totally" depancreatized rat.

Abstract 1. 1. Evidence that the depressed lipogenesis observed in the liver of the diabetic animal is not the result of decreased TPNH generation via the hexose monophosphate oxidative pathway is provided by experiments carried out with rats 24 h after they were depancreatized by a procedure that ensured removal of more than 99.5% of the pancreas. For three days before pancreatectomy, these rats were fed a diet containing 60% glucose. The presence of diabetes at this early interval after pancreatectomy was indicated by the blood-sugar response, the presence of glucose and ketone bodies in the urine, and by increased amounts of fat in the liver. For controls we used normal rats and rats that had been subjected to laparotomy and manipulation of the abdominal viscera. 2. 2. Fatty acid synthesis from acetate was studied in a system consisting of a supernatant fraction plus microsomes prepared from homogenates of the livers. Lipogenesis from acetate was severely depressed at the 24-h interval after “total” pancreatectomy, but at that time the levels of activities of the two dehydrogenases concerned with glucose 6-phosphate and gluconic acid 6-phosphate were not depressed. 3. 3. Actual measurements of the TPNH produced from glucose 6-phosphate and citrate by the supernatant-microsomal system prepared from the livers of normal, sham-operated and “totally” depancreatized rats were made. TPNH generation by the diabetic system was well within the normal range. 4. 4. The levels of activities of isocitric dehydrogenase and aconitase, enzymes concerned with TPNH production from citrate, were about the same in the livers of normal controls and depancreatized rats. 5. 5. The existence of a powerful system for the reoxidation of TPNH, other than that concerned with fatty acid synthesis, and its effect upon TPN-dependent substrate oxidations are discussed.