cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Dyson Dots: Changing the solar constant to a variable with photovoltaic lightsails

Abstract No study of coping with climate change is complete without considering geoengineering. Leveraging Tsiolkovsky's and Tsander's 1920s idea to use mirrors for space propulsion, Fuller's 1940s Dymaxion Grid, Glaser's 1970s study of solar power satellites, and Forward's 1970–90s concepts of “statites” and “Starwisps”, we propose placing one or more large (Σarea=700 K km2) lightsail(s) in a radiation-levitated non-Keplerian orbit(s) just sunward of the Sun–Earth Lagrange-1 point. The purpose of this syncretic concept is twofold: (I) As a parasol, it would reduce insolation on Earth by at least one-quarter of a percent, same as that which caused 1.8 °C drop during the “Little Ice Age” (∼1550–1850), and same as the IPCC Third Report's mid-range value for global warming by 2050. Lowering temperature will reduce the atmosphere's water vapor content, which should reverse the increasing frequency and severity of storms, likewise reducing the damage accompanying climate change. It transforms the “solar constant” to a controlled solar variable. The sail would utilize the very photons it diverts from us to maintain its position without expensive fuel. (II) As a ∼100+ K km2 photovoltaic power station, the parasol could displace over 300 EJ/a (∼100 trillion kWh/yr) of fossil-fired electricity for its creators, roughly the entire global demand forecast by 2050, in turn displacing most carbon burners from the terrestrial grid, providing US$trillions in revenue from clean energy sales to amortize the scheme. This approach to geoengineering is not precluded by international treaty, but it is not a panacea either because it does not fix the other consequences of exponentially growing combustion of fossil fuels. However, it would buy time because it is self-funding (“pay-as-you-go”); furthermore it is linear, scalable, minimally intrusive, and above all, reversible. If Tellurian spacefaring civilization bootstraps its exponential growth with lightsails, there might eventually be enough of them to have a detectable effect on Sol's apparent luminosity as seen from far away, similar to the eponymous Dyson Sphere. So we tagged our concept with the moniker “Dyson Dot”.
Gatekeeping strategies for clinical trials that do not require all primary effects to be significant.

In this paper we describe methods for addressing multiplicity issues arising in the analysis of clinical trials with multiple endpoints and/or multiple dose levels. Efficient 'gatekeeping strategies' for multiplicity problems of this kind are developed. One family of hypotheses (comprising the primary objectives) is treated as a 'gatekeeper', and the other family or families (comprising secondary and tertiary objectives) are tested only if one or more gatekeeper hypotheses have been rejected. We discuss methods for constructing gatekeeping testing procedures using weighted Bonferroni tests, weighted Simes tests, and weighted resampling-based tests, all within the closed testing framework. The new strategies are illustrated using an example from a clinical trial with co-primary endpoints, and using an example from a dose-finding study with multiple endpoints. Power comparisons with competing methods show the gatekeeping methods are more powerful when the primary objective of the trial must be met.
Nonverbal indicators of malicious intent: affective components for interrogative virtual reality training

Models of affective behavior are critical for the development of training systems that are designed to exercise social interactions. Potential applications include various security-oriented operations such as police interrogation, airport security, border crossings, and military peacekeeping. Aside from speech, humans also communicate through vocalizations and inflections, as well as with body language. Such nonverbal communication can convey affect such as anger or nervousness that is important in identifying deception. In this research, a trainee is asked to perform checkpoint duty and question drivers of vehicles about their identity and reasons for entering a secured area. Most of the encounters are routine and innocuous, but occasionally a scenario unfolds that requires additional interrogation and rapid decision-making the part of the trainee. These special scenarios require the individual to draw upon his/her knowledge of social interactions in order to make the proper decisions and act appropriately. Virtual environments that address this form of training are few. Accordingly, the present paper describes an ongoing program of research designed to generate affective states for intelligent agents, create affective component behaviors to convey cues for anger, nervousness, and deception, and provide a complex interrogative training environment to exercise judgment-based decision-making.
Sparse estimation of a covariance matrix

We suggest a method for estimating a covariance matrix on the basis of a sample of vectors drawn from a multivariate normal distribution. In particular, we penalize the likelihood with a lasso penalty on the entries of the covariance matrix. This penalty plays two important roles: it reduces the effective number of parameters, which is important even when the dimension of the vectors is smaller than the sample size since the number of parameters grows quadratically in the number of variables, and it produces an estimate which is sparse. In contrast to sparse inverse covariance estimation, our method’s close relative, the sparsity attained here is in the covariance matrix itself rather than in the inverse matrix. Zeros in the covariance matrix correspond to marginal independencies; thus, our method performs model selection while providing a positive definite estimate of the covariance. The proposed penalized maximum likelihood problem is not convex, so we use a majorize-minimize approach in which we iteratively solve convex approximations to the original nonconvex problem. We discuss tuning parameter selection and demonstrate on a flow-cytometry dataset how our method produces an interpretable graphical display of the relationship between variables. We perform simulations that suggest that simple elementwise thresholding of the empirical covariance matrix is competitive with our method for identifying the sparsity structure. Additionally, we show how our method can be used to solve a previously studied special case in which a desired sparsity pattern is prespecified.
Identification and genetic mapping of differentially expressed genes in mice differing at the If1 interferon regulatory locus.

A subtractive cDNA library was used to identify differentially expressed genes in mouse strains that differ at If1, a locus that regulates response to interferon induction by Newcastle Disease Virus infection. Among the isolated clones, sequence analysis identified the ribosomal proteins L37a and S8 as well as cDNAs for thymosine β4, the QM transcriptional factor, and a novel genetic sequence. Analysis of two multilocus mouse crosses showed that the thymosine β4 gene, Ptmb4, is present as a single-copy gene that maps to distal Chr X. The L37a, S8, and QM clones are all members of large multilocus families. These five clones were used to determine the map locations for 37 loci, of which 31 had not previously been described. The novel genetic sequence, D3Ppr1, mapped to distal Chr 3 near the position of the If1 locus, suggesting it may be a candidate for this regulatory gene.
Giant magnetoresistance of magnetically soft sandwiches: Dependence on temperature and on layer thicknesses.

We present comprehensive results on the magnetoresistive properties of spin-valve sandwiches comprising glass/M(1)/Cu/${\mathrm{Ni}}_{80}$${\mathrm{Fe}}_{20}$/${\mathrm{Fe}}_{50}$${\mathrm{Mn}}_{50}$/Cu, where M(1) is a ferromagnetic transition metal or alloy (Co,Ni,${\mathrm{Ni}}_{80}$${\mathrm{Fe}}_{20}$). We discuss the thermal variation of the magnetoresistance (\ensuremath{\Delta}R/R) and its dependence on the thicknesses of the layers constituting the active part of the spin-value sandwich [i.e., M(1)/Cu/NiFe]. An almost linear decrease of \ensuremath{\Delta}R/R is observed between 77 and 320 K. For a given ferromagnetic material, \ensuremath{\Delta}R/R extrapolates to zero at a temperature ${\mathit{T}}_{0\mathrm{S}\mathrm{V}}$ significantly lower than the Curie temperature, and independent of the ferromagnetic layer thickness. We have identified spin-\ensuremath{\uparrow} and spin-\ensuremath{\downarrow} intermixing by spin-wave scattering as responsible for the thermal decrease of the magnetoresistance. We show that the magnetoresistance arises within the ``active'' parts of the ferromagnetic layers of thickness of about 90 \AA{} located next to the M/Cu interfaces. We give a phenomenological expression relating \ensuremath{\Delta}R/R to the longer of the two spin-dependent mean free paths, and to current shunting in the inactive part of the sandwich. The thickness of the active region is independent of temperature.
Acetone Chemistry on Oxidized and Reduced TiO2(110)

The chemistry of acetone on the oxidized and reduced surfaces of TiO2(110) was examined using temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) and high-resolution electron energy-loss spectroscopy (HREELS). The reduced surface was prepared with about 7% oxygen vacancy sites by annealing in ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) at 850 K, and the oxidized surface was prepared by exposure of the reduced surface to molecular oxygen at 95 K followed by heating the surface to a variety of temperatures between 200 and 500 K. Acetone adsorbs molecularly on the reduced surface with no evidence for either decomposition or preferential binding at vacancy sites. On the basis of HREELS, the majority of acetone molecules adsorbed in an η1 configuration at Ti4+ sites through interaction of lone-pair electrons on the carbonyl oxygen atom. Repulsive acetone−acetone interactions shift the desorption peak from 345 K at low coverage to 175 K as the first layer saturates with a coverage of ∼1 ML. In contrast, about 7% of the acetone adlayer decompos...
Diffraction patterns from stained and unstained helices: Consistency or contradiction?

Abstract Addressing the issue of how best to integrate negative staining electron microscopy with X-ray fiber diffraction of macromolecular helices, we investigated staining properties of helical models using computational simulations. We compared diffraction patterns of stained and unstained representations of F-actin, myosin S1-decorated actin, and microtubules, to test the reliability of selecting well preserved specimens as those whose optical diffraction patterns most closely match the X-ray patterns of hydrated fibers. We conclude that if the stain layer is considerably thicker than the outer diameter of the specimen, this criterion is likely to be reliable. However, specimens in such thick stain layers may be resolution-limited by dynamic scattering effects such as beam-broadening. With relatively thin staining (the more practically relevant situation) “edge effects” in the stain distributions result in differences between diffraction patterns of stained and unstained specimens. Diffraction pattern changes due to molecular distortions such as shrinkage or flattening were similarly modeled. Since differences between diffraction patterns of stained and unstained helices may be due to either “edge effects” or molecular distortions, it does not appear possible a priori to distinguish between these effects. Comparison of experimental data for the (2.3nm)-1 layer-line of tobacco mosaic virus (as model system) reveals major differences between the X-ray diffraction pattern of hydrated sols and the Fourier transform of HREM images of negatively stained specimens.
Ionic currents flow through Micrasterias and Closterium cells during expansion of the primary cell wall

The results of studies of Micrasterias rotata (Grev.) Ralfs, M. thomasiana Archer (biradiate and uniradiate forms) and Closterium sp. using one- and two-dimensional vibrating probes show that transcellular ionic currents are detectable only around cells undergoing expansion of the primary cell wall (half-cell); current enters local regions of expansion and exits over both the rigid surface of the secondary wall and regions of the primary wall where hardening of the wall prevents further expansion. Current densities remain at steady levels until expansion stops with maturation of the primary wall, whereupon currents are no longer detectable. The temporal and spatial correlation between the currents and regions of wall expansion is particularly evident because morphogenesis of the half-cell is a determinate process. Measurements of inward currents ranged from 0.1 to 5.4 μA · cm−2, and outward currents ranged from-0.05 to -1.5 μA · cm−2 measured at 18 μ from the cell surface. The results of ion substitution and channel-blocker studies indicate that the currents may be carried at least in part by Ca2+, Cl−, H+ and K+ ions. The possible role of a Ca2+ influx during tip growth in desmids is discussed.
Laparoscopic surgery in renal transplant recipients.

Laparoscopic surgery is rapidly becoming the standard of care for a variety of urological conditions, including those affecting the renal transplant recipient. This article presents the general considerations in performing laparoscopic procedures in the transplant recipient, followed by various specific applications including their indications, technical considerations and a review of the results.
Do tobacco countermarketing campaigns increase adolescent under-reporting of smoking?

This study assesses whether a national anti-tobacco campaign for youth could create a social context that would elevate social desirability response bias on surveys, as measured by an increase in under-reporting of smoking. This could give rise to data that falsely suggest a campaign-induced decline in youth smoking, or it could exaggerate campaign effects. Data were obtained from a national sample of 5511 students from 48 high schools that were matched to schools sampled for the 2002 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS). Self-reported smoking was compared with biochemical indicators of smoking, measured using saliva cotinine. The rate of under-reporting detected was 1.3%. Level of truth® exposure was not related to under-reporting. This study suggests that for high school students, anti-tobacco campaigns are not an important cause of social desirability responses on surveys, and that in general under-reporting smoking is not a major source of error in school-based surveys.
Clinicians’ Preferences and Practices in Conducting Clinical/Bedside and Videofluoroscopic Swallowing Examinations in an Adult, Neurogenic Population

The purposes of this investigation were: (a) to determine which clinical/bedside and videofluoroscopic (VFS) examination methods and measures clinicians believe should be employed to assess swallow...
Fate of codling moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in harvested apples held under short photoperiod.

Codling moth, Cydia pomonella L., is a cosmopolitan pest of pome and stone fruits. It has been identified as a quarantine pest of concern in a number of countries where it is not known to occur, most of them tropical or subtropical countries. Although considerable work has been done on the basic biology and physiology of this temperate pest, little is known on its potential to develop and establish in tropical environments with short photoperiods and few to no days below 10°C. Apples were harvested over three field seasons (2007–2009) from unmanaged orchards in central Washington State and subjected to simulated commercial cold storage at 1.1 ± 2°C for up to 119 d. After cold storage, infested fruits were held at 20°C under a 12:12 L:D photoperiod for up to 6 mo. Over the entire experiment only 27% of the larvae collected exited the fruit and cocooned. Of those 27%, only 1.06% of larvae held under a 12:12 L:D photoperiod successfully emerged as moths. No moths emerged when host fruit would be available in a representative importing country in the tropics over the 3 yr of testing. These results indicate that codling moth in apples from the Pacific Northwest pose little threat of surviving and establishing in tropical regions where daylength is insufficient to break diapause and the chilling requirement is not met.
Bending‐beam study of water sorption by thin poly(methyl methacrylate) films

A bending-beam technique has been employed to study the effects of film thickness (7–55 μm) and rate of cooling during film preparation (∼ 6°C/h to a dry ice quench) on sorption characteristics of water by poly(methyl methacrylate) films coated on thin fused quartz beams (˜ 84 μm thick). In each experiment, the curvature of a polymer coated beam exposed to liquid water was monitored as a function of time by a low power laser pointer. With the use of a transport model which considers the sorption process as the linear superposition of contributions from Fickian diffusion and a first-order polymer molecular relaxation process, the beam curvature data were analyzed to determine the governing transport kinetics and associated transport parameters such as water diffusion coefficient and relaxation rate constant. From curvature analysis for thin films (7–13 μm in thickness), it was found that water diffusion proceeds at early times in a Fickian-like manner with a diffusion constant of 2–4 × 10−9 cm2/s. At later times, significant relaxation contributions lead to non-Fickian diffusion behavior, an effect that is more pronounced as the film thickness or sample cooling rate decreases. In addition, sorption of water was found to reduce the film stress (initially tensile at ˜ 108 dyn/cm2) at a rate that increases with sample cooling rate. The high initial film stress not present in free-standing films may account for the relatively higher diffusion coefficient (∼ 2 × 10−8 cm2/s) found here for very thick (55 μm) PMMA coatings. Because the bending-beam technique uses coated samples, it is especially well suited for studying penetrant transport into polymer coatings.
Signaling downstream of Eph receptors and ephrin ligands.

Following the enormous progress that has been made in identifying guidance receptors and their ligands, recent studies have begun to focus on signal transduction mechanisms linking receptors to cytoskeletal dynamics and cross-talk between receptor signaling pathways. These studies have underscored the importance of the cytoplasmic tails of receptors in mediating attraction and repulsion and interactions between the cytoplasmic tails of different receptors have been shown to play a key role in regulating the response of a growth cone to specific guidance signals or combinations of them. It has been proposed that cytoplasmic domains of these receptors will nucleate formation of signaling complexes that regulate cytoskeletal dynamics. The discovery of Ephexin and PDZ-RGS3 provide important steps toward dissecting the signaling pathways acting directly downstream from EphA and ephrin-B. These studies allude to the regulatory complexities that must exist within the cytoplasm which enable migrating cells and growth cones to interpret the complex and dynamic environment they encounter as they migrate through the developing embryo. Indeed, we envision that future work will lead to the detailed understanding of the “Eph-ector” mechanisms that regulate motility and their interactions with other receptor signaling pathways.
Review: Hydrologic connectivity between geographically isolated wetlands and surface water systems: A review of select modeling methods

Geographically isolated wetlands (GIW), depressional landscape features entirely surrounded by upland areas, provide a wide range of ecological functions and ecosystem services for human well-being. Current and future ecosystem management and decision-making rely on a solid scientific understanding of how hydrologic processes affect these important GIW services and functions, and in turn on how GIWs affect downstream surface water systems. Consequently, quantifying the hydrologic connectivity of GIWs to other surface water systems (including streams, rivers, lakes, and other navigable waters) and the processes governing hydrologic connectivity of GIWs at a variety of watershed scales has become an important topic for the scientific and decision-making communities. We review examples of potential mechanistic modeling tools that could be applied to further advance scientific understanding concerning: (1) The extent to which hydrologic connections between GIWs and other surface waters exist, and (2) How these connections affect downstream hydrology at the scale of watersheds. Different modeling approaches involve a variety of domain and process conceptualizations, and numerical approximations for GIW-related questions. We describe select models that require only limited modifications to model the interaction of GIWs and other surface waters. We suggest that coupled surface-subsurface approaches exhibit the most promise for characterizing GIW connectivity under a variety of flow conditions, though we note their complexity and the high level of modeling expertise required to produce reasonable results. We also highlight empirical techniques that will inform mechanistic models that estimate hydrologic connectivity of GIWs for research, policy, and management purposes. Developments in the related disciplines of remote sensing, hillslope and wetland hydrology, empirical modeling, and tracer studies will assist in advancing current mechanistic modeling approaches to most accurately elucidate connectivity of GIWs to other surface waters and the effects of GIWs on downstream systems at the watershed scale. Hydrologic connectivity of isolated wetlands is an emerging focus for research.We review models for simulating hydrologic connectivity of isolated wetlands.Model selection for connectivity research depends upon location and model structure.Coupled surface water-groundwater models are complex yet often appropriate.Watershed and groundwater models are appropriate for specific flow regimes.
A mathematical model of glioma growth: the effect of chemotherapy on spatio-temporal growth

During the past two decades computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have permitted the detection of tumours at much earlier stages in their development than was previously possible. In spite of this earlier diagnosis the effects of earlier and more extensive treatments have been difficult to document. This failure has led to an increasing awareness of the importance of infiltration of glioma cells into surrounding grossly normal brain tissue such that recurrence still occurs. In this paper a simple mathematical model for the proliferation and infiltration of such tumours is introduced, based in part on quantitative image analysis of histological sections of a human brain glioma and especially on cross-sectional area/volume measurements of serial CT images while the patient was undergoing chemotherapy. The model parameters were estimated using optimization techniques to give the best fit of the simulated tumour area to the CT scan data. Numerical solution of the model on a two-dimensional domain, which took into account the geometry of the brain and its natural barriers to diffusion, was used to determine the effect of chemotherapy on the spatio-temporal growth of the tumour.
Analysis of the interaction of naltrexone with eating following adrenergic and cholinergic stimulation of the hypothalamus

Abstract The anoretic potency of the narcotic antagonist drug, nalthrexone, was investigated against eating elicited by the perifornical hypothalamic injection of 24.0 nmol of norepinephrine or 6.0 nmol of carbachol. Although eating following administration of norepinephrine was not significantly affected by pretreatment with naltrexone, carbachol-induced eating and drinking were dramatically attenuated by doses of naltrexone as small as 0.25 mg/kg. These data suggest the existence of an opiate link in these cholinergically-mediated behaviors.
Top quark production from black holes at the CERN LHC

LHC is expected to be a top quark factory. If the fundamental Planck scale is near a TeV, then we also expect the top quarks to be produced from black holes via Hawking radiation. In this Letter we calculate the cross sections for top quark production from black holes at the LHC and compare it with the direct top quark cross section via parton fusion processes at next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO). We find that the top quark production from black holes can be larger or smaller than the pQCD predictions at NNLO depending upon the Planck mass and black hole mass. Hence the observation of very high rates for massive particle production (top quarks, Higgs or supersymmetry) at the LHC may be an useful signature for black hole production.
Direct Observation of Electronic Relaxation Dynamics in Adenine via Time-Resolved Photoelectron Spectroscopy

We present femtosecond time-resolved photoelectron spectra of adenine in a molecular beam, recorded at pump wavelengths of 250, 267, and 277 nm. This leads to initial excitation of the bright S2(ππ*). Close to the band origin (277 nm), the lifetime is several picoseconds. Higher vibronic levels (267 and 250 nm excitation) show much shorter lifetimes of t < 50 fs, and we observe strong coupling between S2(ππ*) and S1(nπ*). Rapid internal conversion (t < 50 fs) populates the lower lying S1(nπ*) state which has a lifetime of 750 fs. At 267 nm, we found evidence for an additional channel which is consistent with the dissociative S3(πσ*) state, previously proposed as an ultrafast relaxation pathway from S2(ππ*).
Effect of anodization voltage on the formation of phase pure anatase nanotubes with doped carbon

Carbon doped titania nanotubes were prepared by anodization of titanium in a fluoride containing ethylene glycol based electrolyte. Anatase crystallization temperature of the nanotubes varied with respect to anodization voltage. A detailed characterization study and mechanistic analysis of formation and stability of anatase phase of the nanotubes is reported. The findings suggest useful heat treatment parameters for obtaining pure anatase phases of the carbon doped titania nanotubes synthesized by anodization at 40 and 60 V.
An Inventory Model with Planned Shortages and Price Dependent Demand

Previous research has yielded a procedure for a retailer to determine the optimal lot size and selling price when a supplier offers all-unit quantity discounts and demand is a decreasing function of price. In this paper, we extend that research by allowing for shortages. An algorithm is presented that determines the optimal lot size, order level, and selling price for a class of demand functions, including the constant price-elasticity and linear demand functions.
Silver Ions in the Treatment of Local Infections

A study of the use of free silver ions as an antibacterial and antifungal agent administered to infected local wounds has been conducted over the past two decades. A variety of iontophoretic techniques has been employed utilizing either pure silver wires or several types of silvered nylon fabrics as anodes in a direct current electrical circuit. A new type of silver nylon has recently been evaluated for the same use without iontophoretic current. In vitro studies of both techniques have demonstrated an effective, broad spectrum antibiotic effect including most silver-resistant strains. Over 100 cases of recalcitrant osteomyelitis have been treated with an overall success rate of approximately 65% and no evidence of argyria.
Profiles of US farm households adopting conservation-compatible practices

In recent years, the United States (US) government has put increasing emphasis on conservation programs geared toward rewarding good stewardship on working farmland. And, while the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) farmland retirement programs continue to command the lion's share of the conservation budget, roughly 80 percent of current land retirement contracts are due to expire before the end of the decade. With the 2007 US farm bill debate underway, policy makers will be making decisions about the future direction of farm conservation efforts. This paper examines the business, operator, and household characteristics of farms that have chosen to adopt conservation-compatible practices, with and without financial assistance from conservation programs. It sheds light on the relationship between adoption of conservation-compatible practices and conservation behavior, and how this relationship varies between farm business, operator, and household characteristics. Findings indicate that farm operator and household attributes, and farm business characteristics, affect the likelihood that a farmer adopts certain kinds of conservation-compatible practices.
Colchicine and cytochalasin B: Effects on pigment granule translocation in melanophores of Uca pugilator (crustacea: decapoda)

Abstract 1. 1. Cytochalasin B inhibits pigment granule translocation in melanophores of Uca pugilator both when these chromatophores are stimulated to disperse and when stimulated to aggregate pigment. 2. 2. Colchicine inhibits pigment aggregation, but has no detectable effect on pigment dispersion.
Integrating multispectral reflectance and fluorescence imaging for defect detection on apples

This research investigated multispectral imaging to detect various defects on apples. An integrated approach using multispectral imaging in reflectance and fluorescence modes was used to acquire images of three varieties of apples. Eighteen images from a combination of filters ranging from the visible region through the NIR region and from three different imaging modes (reflectance, visible light induced fluorescence, and UV induced fluorescence) were acquired for each apple as a basis for pixel-level classification into normal or disorder tissue. Artificial neural network classification models were developed for two classification schemes, a two-class and a multiple-class. In the two-class scheme, pixels were categorized into normal or disordered tissue, whereas in the multiple-class scheme, pixels were categorized into normal, bitter pit, black rot, decay, soft scald, and superficial scald tissues. A 10-fold cross validation technique was used to assess the performance of the neural network models. The integrated imaging model of reflectance and fluorescence was effective on Honeycrisp variety, whereas single imaging models of reflectance or fluorescence was effective on Redcort and Red Delicious. The technique is promising for accurate recognition of different types of disorder on apple.
A Numerical Study of the Effect of a Coastal Irregularity on the Sea Breeze

Abstract The modification of the sea breeze circulation by irregular coastlines is examined by integrating a three-dimensional nonlinear numerical sea breeze model with a large bay incorporated into the surface boundary conditions. The results show that the presence of a bay produces a landward distortion of the sea breeze convergence zone and that within the zone there develop definite extrema of vertical motion, the positions of which are closely related to the bay. Furthermore, the intensity of convergence and upward motion within the zone are distributed asymmetrically with respect to the bay. This is a result of the Coriolis acceleration and the bay-induced component of the pressure-gradient force acting in concert on one side of the bay and in opposition on the other.
The instability of sheared liquid layers

The critical values of the Reynolds number (Rc) above which unstable travelling waves exist in a steady shear flow are calculated with the inclusion of a term in the normal stress boundary condition omitted by Miles (1960). Results show a value of Rc = 34.2, compared to Miles' value of 203, for the case of a zero-surface tension interface. The critical wavenumber, critical phase speed, and Rc are calculated as functions of a nondimensional surface tension, and the mechanism of the instability is investigated by examining the disturbance energy equation. A long wave instability is found at small values of the Reynolds number when the shear flow has a parabolic velocity profile. In addition, these results are extended to larger values of the wavenumber by numerical methods, and the relation between this long wave instability and the profile curvature is examined.
Lunabotics Mining Competition: Inspiration through Accomplishment

Space Mining for resources such as water ice, and regolith, which contain many elements in the form of metals, minerals, volatiles and other compounds, is a necessary step in Space Resource Utilization. One of the primary goals is to extract propellants from the regolith such as oxygen and hydrogen which could then be used for in-space transportation. In addition, the space mining system can be used for various construction tasks that can benefit human and robotic exploration as well as scientific investigations based on the exposed topography. The National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) Lunabotics Mining Competition is a university-level competition designed to engage and retain students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). NASA will directly benefit from the competition by encouraging the development of innovative lunar excavation concepts from universities which may result in clever ideas and solutions which could be applied to an actual lunar excavation device or payload. The challenge is for students to design and build a remote controlled or autonomous excavator, called a lunabot, that can collect and deposit a minimum of 10 kilograms of lunar simulant within 15 minutes. The complexities of the challenge include the abrasive characteristics of the lunar simulant, the weight and size limitations of the lunabot, and the ability to control the lunabot from a remote control center or operate autonomously. This paper will present an update of the results and lessons learned during the first and second annual Lunabotics Mining Competitions held in May 2010 and May 2011. It will also preview the 2012 competition with a review of the revised rules. In 2010,22 United States (US) universities competed, and in May 2011 the competition was opened to international participation. In 2011, 36 teams actually competed from 26 USA states and 4 foreign countries (India, Bangladesh, Colombia and Canada). This combined total directly inspired an estimated 653 university students. In 2012 more students and the public will be engaged via internet broadcasting and social networking media. The various designs will be cataloged and categorized to provide information to future Lunabotics mining robot designers and competitors. It is also expected to be of value for actual future space missions, as knowledge is gained from testing many innovative prototypes in simulated lunar regolith.
Epigenetic mechanisms in memory formation

Discoveries concerning the molecular mechanisms of cell differentiation and development have dictated the definition of a new sub-discipline of genetics known as epigenetics. Epigenetics refers to a set of self-perpetuating, post-translational modifications of DNA and nuclear proteins that produce lasting alterations in chromatin structure as a direct consequence, and lasting alterations in patterns of gene expression as an indirect consequence. The area of epigenetics is a burgeoning subfield of genetics in which there is considerable enthusiasm driving new discoveries. Neurobiologists have only recently begun to investigate the possible roles of epigenetic mechanisms in behaviour, physiology and neuropathology. Strikingly, the relevant data from the few extant neurobiology-related studies have already indicated a theme — epigenetic mechanisms probably have an important role in synaptic plasticity and memory formation.
Effect of sound and Lenzites-decayed wood on the amino acid composition of Reticulitermes flavipes

Abstract In hydrolysates of the eastern subterranean termite, Reticulitermes flavipes, the most abundant protein amino acids (μmoles) were glycine, alanine, and glutamic acid; the least abundant were methionine and histidine. Sawdust from both sound and Lenzites trabea-decayed sapwood blocks of sugar maple, loblolly pine, and slash pine was force-fed to termites. A diet of decayed rather than sound wood had little effect on protein amino acid composition of the termites; glycine content varied the most. In contrast, diet affected the free amino acid composition. Except for glutamic acid, the major protein amino acids of the termites were not the predominant free amino acids. Tyrosine and histidine were relatively more abundant as free than as protein amino acids. Greatest differences in protein amino acid compositions of sound and decayed wood were in contents of glycine, leucine, lysine, and arginine.
Disrupting Myosin Relay-Converter Domain Communication Impairs Drosophila Muscle Mechanical Performance and Flight Ability

We evaluated the mechanical properties of Drosophila indirect flight muscle (IFM) fibers expressing a myosin converter domain R759E mutation. The interaction of R759 with relay loop residue I508 is thought to be critical for relay-converter inter domain communication. By changing the charge on residue 759, we are testing if this inter domain interaction is important for the mechanical performance of muscle fibers. Electron microscopic examination of muscle fibers from young adult R759E flies indicates normal myofibril assembly. Using the work loop analysis technique we found that the maximum power (Pmax) generated by the mutant R759E fibers from two day old flies was significantly reduced by 50% compared to control fibers while the frequency at which maximum power is generated (fmax) was reduced to 67%. Maximum power occurred at peak-to-peak strain amplitude of 2% resting muscle fiber length. Varying ATP concentration at 15°C revealed no significant difference in Km for Pmax or fmax between control and mutant R759E fibers, suggesting that the mutation does not affect ATP affinity. Small amplitude sinusoidal analysis revealed a significant reduction in complex stiffness by 48% compared to control fibers, with elastic modulus, Ee, reduced by 31% and viscous modulus, Ev, reduced by 45%. This reduction in power and mechanical performance of the flight muscle fibers led to a decrease in wing beat frequency from 140 ± 2 Hz for control flies to 127 ± 2 Hz. The reduction in wing beat frequency contributed to a decrease in flight index from 2.31 ± 0.1 for control flies to 1.25 ± 0.1 at 15°C. Thus, this study suggests that the interaction between relay loop I508 and converter domain R759 is critical for myosin inter domain communication, muscle fiber power generation and Drosophila flight performance.
Analytical Solution for the Amplitude Ratio Method for Determining Mean High Water in Tidal Regions

In areas that are subject to tidal waters, projects such as bridge construction and property boundary location require the determination of the water level or water datum. Of the different water data that can be established, the mean high water (MHW) is of prime importance. To establish the MHW line at a project site, it is necessary to either make long-term (19 years) continuous tide observations or to perform simultaneous short-term tide observations at points in the vicinity of the project and at a tidal control station. Of the three short-term observation and computation methods for determining the MHW, the amplitude ratio method is applicable in most general circumstances. The current computation procedure of the amplitude ratio method utilizes graphic means to determine the tide amplitude. A new analytical solution for this method was developed using least squares principles. The advantages of the proposed solution are simplicity of computation, suitability for automatic data processing, and usability even with incomplete observation data sets.
Binding of Exosite Ligands to Human Thrombin: RE-EVALUATION OF ALLOSTERIC LINKAGE BETWEEN THROMBIN EXOSITES I AND II *

The substrate specificity of thrombin is regulated by binding of macromolecular substrates and effectors to exosites I and II. Exosites I and II have been reported to be extremely linked allosterically, such that binding of a ligand to one exosite results in near-total loss of affinity for ligands at the alternative exosite, whereas other studies support the independence of the interactions. An array of fluorescent thrombin derivatives and fluorescein-labeled hirudin(54-65) ([5F]Hir(54-65)(SO(3)(-))) were used as probes in quantitative equilibrium binding studies to resolve whether the affinities of the exosite I-specific ligands, Hir(54-65)(SO(3)(-)) and fibrinogen, and of the exosite II-specific ligands, prothrombin fragment 2 and a monoclonal antibody, were affected by alternate exosite occupation. Hir(54-65)(SO(3)(-)) and fibrinogen bound to exosite I with dissociation constants of 16-28 nm and 5-7 microm, respectively, which were changed < or =2-fold by fragment 2 binding. Native thrombin and four thrombin derivatives labeled with different probes bound fragment 2 and the antibody with dissociation constants of 3-12 microm and 1.8 nm, respectively, unaffected by Hir(54-65)(SO(3)(-)). The results support a ternary complex binding model in which exosites I and II can be occupied simultaneously. The thrombin catalytic site senses individual and simultaneous binding of exosite I and II ligands differently, resulting in unique active site environments for each thrombin complex. The results indicate significant, ligand-specific allosteric coupling between thrombin exosites I and II and catalytic site perturbations but insignificant inter-exosite thermodynamic linkage.
A new method for estimating the level of natural fertility in populations practicing birth control.

The natural fertility schedule of a population is the schedule of age-specific marital fertility we would observe if no birth control were being practiced. In natural fertility (no birth control) populations we can observe the natural fertility schedule directly, but in populations practicing birth control the natural fertility schedule is disguised by the marital fertility rates in those age intervals in which control is exercised, the marital fertility rates being below the natural rates. This paper elaborates a method for estimating the natural fertility schedules of populations practicing birth control. Two alternative models are presented, one nonlinear and one linear. The use of these models is then illustrated with reference to the Old Order Amish population of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is shown that for Amish women born between 1860 and 1900 both the nonlinear and linear models yield an estimate of .843 as the ratio between Amish and Hutterite natural fertility schedules.
The timing and effectiveness of sequential pollinations in Hibiscus moscheutos.

In many species with animal-pollinated flowers, pollen arrives on the stigma in pulses and late-arriving pollen may be precluded from fertilizing ovules. When seed set per fruit is not pollen limited, the fate of pollen from later cohorts is affected by the time between pollinator visits, variation in pollen tube growth rates, and the amounts of pollen deposited relative to the availability of stigmatic area and unfertilized ovules. In a natural population of Hibiscus moscheutos, we found that consecutive pollinator visits to individual flowers occurred within 15 min of each other in more than half of our observations. We then conducted hand-pollination experiments using equal doses of early and late pollen bearing unique allozyme markers for paternity analysis (each dose was more than sufficient to result in full seed set). When pollen was applied 15 or 30 min after an earlier pollen load, the proportions of seeds sired by late-arriving pollen were reduced by 13–30% and 21–57%, respecitively. A few pollen-tubes from the late pollen load sired seeds even when a large dose of pollen was applied 1–2 h earlier, suggesting that the performance of pollen grains within each cohort was highly variable. The advantage of arriving early was greater when the first pollen load was applied at 0930 hours as compared with 1130 hours. We found no effect of previous pollination on the growth rates of late-arriving pollen-tubes. Taken together, these results demonstrate that pollen from later visits can compete with pollen from earlier visits, but the success of late-arriving pollen typically declines to very low levels after an interval of about 2 h. Given that “surplus” pollen often arrives on stigmas by mid-morning, we conclude that male reproductive success is more likely to be affected by the timing of pollen dispersal and pollen-tube competitive ability than by the total amount of pollen that is exported from flowers.
Mortality as a Context for Multicultural Practice: Awareness of Death and Relating With Diverse Clients

The effect of subtle death reminders (mortality salience) on multicultural counseling competence (MCC) was examined using a quasi-experimental design. One hundred forty-one counseling students were recruited and randomly assigned to an experimental or control group. Results of a one-way analysis of variance indicated that counseling students in the experimental group (the group exposed to subtle death reminders prior to rating their MCC), self-rated their MCC lower than did participants in the control group. Implications and limitations of these findings are explored.
Chest Wall Resection for Ewing's Sarcoma of the Rib: An Unnecessary Procedure

Approximately 10% of all cases of Ewing's sarcoma arise from a rib. Conventional management has included chest wall resection (3 or more ribs) and radiation therapy. These forms of therapy have led to complications such as scoliosis and local deformity. The addition of radiation therapy can result in damage to the lung and adjacent viscera and also potentiate pulmonary restrictive disease. Between 1971 and 1978, 9 patients were treated with surgery, radiation therapy, and combination chemotherapy (three- or four-drug regimen). Only 2 patients (22%) survive. Since 1979, 14 patients were entered into a new protocol consisting of sequential induction chemotherapy, followed by delayed surgical resection whenever feasible. Three patients had complete resection of their primary lesion at onset. Initially, 7 patients had either biopsy (N = 4) or incomplete chest wall resection N = 3). All 4 patients with biopsy only at diagnosis had excellent responses to induction chemotherapy, allowing delayed resection of the involved rib without chest wall resection. Overall, 12 of 14 patients (86%) treated since 1979 survive, with only 2 receiving radiation therapy for residual disease in the primary rib site.
ON A CALCULUS FOR 2-KNOTS AND SURFACES IN 4-SPACE

In this paper, we use knots with bands ("kwb") to define a calculus for smoothly embedded surfaces in 4-space. This approach has its roots in the classical method of moving pictures of hyperplane slices, and thus shares its simplicity and naturality. Unlike moving pictures, however, kwb are combinatorial knotlike objects in 3-space (which can, in turn, be represented by planar diagrams), and a set of three simple combinatorial moves is sufficient to connect the kwb representing isotopic surfaces. Thus we obtain a one-to-one correspondence between isotopy classes of embedded surfaces and certain kwb modulo these moves, answering a question first posed in 1994 by Katsuyuki Yoshikawa.