cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A chromosome study of four species and a hybrid of the killifish genus Fundulus (Cyprinodontidae).

The chromosomes of four killifish species (F. diaphanus, F. heteroclitus, F. majalis and F. parvipinnis) and a hybrid (F. diaphanus × F. heteroclitus) were studied. The karyotype studies were based on observations from both squash and air-dry preparations, the latter of which were prepared from in vitro primary cell cultures from ovaries. The consistent presence of one to several pairs of species-specific marker chromosomes, and the differential expression of acrocentric short arms in karyotypes of different species were useful in determining interspecific relationships. These characters did not show any noticeable variation interand intra-individually, and retained their original forms even in the hybrid complement which was the composite of chromosome complements of both parental species. Male heterogamety was confirmed in F. diaphanus and F. parvipinnis in which the X chromosomes resemble each other being submetacentric and having an identifiable secondary constriction. The occurrence of the cytological heterogamety in fishes is briefly discussed.
Environmentally Conscious Wing Design for the Medium Altitude Long Endurance Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

The use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) has become widespread and is ever increasing. There are plans for utilizing the UAVs for the military as well as the humanitarian and law enforcement missions such as flood and hurricane relief, firefighting, drug trafficking control, and so on. The number of UAVs is likely to continue to grow exponentially in the near future and there is a great need for the environmentally conscious design and manufacturing efforts in the UAV market. The authors are developing an integrated approach to bring the high fidelity Computer Aided Design and Engineering (CAD/E) tools to the preliminary design phase for designing new aircraft. In this paper, this approach is extended to include the environmentally conscious material selection when designing a UAV wing for the medium altitude long endurance mission. Finite Element Analysis is used to determine the material needed for the wing and the computed weights are supplied to the spreadsheet for calculating environmental impacts of different materials selected for the wing design. This spreadsheet has been developed based on the data in the Lifecycle Assessment software package SimaPro/Ecoinvent. The study demonstrates how to integrate environmental considerations into the preliminary UAV design using high fidelity models.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
Neural control of dopamine β-hydroxylase in vivo: acute and chronic effects

Reserpine treatment was used to examine whether short- and long-term neural stimulation regulates rat adrenal medullary dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DBH, EC 1.14.17.1) through transcriptional activation and to examine the extent of coordinate control of DBH and phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PNMT, EC 2.1.1.28). A single dose of reserpine (10 mg/kg i.p.) elevates DBH mRNA 1.5-fold by 6 h post-injection. Chronic treatment (10 mg/kg i.p., 4 alternate day injections) continues the rise in DBH mRNA, with a peak of 3.4-fold control values after 2 doses of reserpine and a plateau at this level thereafter. Even though DBH mRNA is elevated 6 h after a single injection of reserpine, DBH activity does not change in parallel. A 1.3-fold rise in activity occurs at 24 h post-injection. In contrast, chronic reserpine treatment concomitantly increases DBH activity and mRNA. As observed for DBH mRNA, enzyme activity peaks and plateaus after 2 injections on alternate days. However, the rise in enzymatic activity is less than the rise in mRNA (2.4-fold versus 3.4-fold). Ribosomal loading experiments demonstrate that the DBH mRNA pool is fully utilized for protein synthesis with an apparent decrease in the number of ribosomes loaded per molecule of mRNA. Western analysis and thermal denaturation studies indicate that an altered form of DBH may be expressed. With a single dose of reserpine, the enzyme shows a decline in specific activity while repeated treatment leads to an enzyme with higher specific activity. In both cases, the protein appears to be more stable. Reserpine treatment also markedly elevates adrenal glucocorticoids. A 1.5-fold increment in glucocorticoid receptor mRNA accompanies the corticosteroid rise, with the receptor mRNA peaking at 6 h and remaining at this level thereafter. The up-regulation of glucocorticoid receptor mRNA expression, together with the presence of a putative glucocorticoid response element in the 5' flanking region of the DBH gene, suggests that neural and hormonal regulatory mechanisms may work in concert to control DBH gene transcription. Finally, by comparison to PNMT, activation of DBH appears to require sustained stimulation of the neural axis, since acute changes in mRNA lead to only minor changes in enzyme expression. Similar to PNMT, continuous neural stimulation increases both DBH mRNA and enzymatic activity. However, the discordance in the magnitude of these indices suggests that other regulatory controls may be important in setting the ultimate limits on DBH expression, glucocorticoids perhaps being one such influence.
Barrett's esophagus can and does regress after antireflux surgery: a study of prevalence and predictive features.

Abstract Background To investigate the factors leading to histologic regression of metaplastic and dysplastic Barrett's esophagus (BE). Study design The study sample consisted of 91 consecutive patients with symptomatic Barrett's esophagus. Pre- and posttreatment endoscopic biopsies from 77 Barrett's patients treated surgically and 14 treated with proton pump inhibitors (PPI) were reviewed. An expert pathologist confirmed the presence of intestinal metaplasia (IM) with or without dysplasia. Posttreatment histology was classified as having regressed if two consecutive biopsies taken more than 6 months apart plus all subsequent biopsies showed loss of IM or loss of dysplasia. Clinical factors associated with regression were studied by multivariate analysis, as was the time course of its occurrence. Results Histopathologic regression occurred in 28 of 77 patients (36.4%) after antireflux surgery and in 1 of 14 patients (7.1%) treated with PPIs alone (p 3 cm) segment Barrett's esophagus; 19 of 33 (58%) and 9 of 44 (20%) patients, respectively (p = 0.0016). Eight patients progressed, five from IM alone to low-grade dysplasia and three from low- to high-grade dysplasia. All those who progressed had long segment BE. On multivariate analysis, presence of short segment Barrett's and type of treatment were significantly associated with regression; age, gender, surgical procedure, and preoperative lower esophageal sphincter and pH characteristics were not. The median time of biopsy-proved regression was 18.5 months after surgery, with 95% occurring within 5 years. Conclusions This study refutes the widely held assumption that once established, Barrett's esophagus does not change. More than one-third of patients with visible segments of Barrett's esophagus undergo histologic regression after antireflux surgery. Regression is dependent on the length of the columnar-lined esophagus and time of followup after antireflux surgery.
Alarm allocation for event-based process alarm systems

Abstract The ability to monitor large numbers of variables and the flexibility to assign alarms to each variable led to a substantial increase in the numbers of alarms in industrial plants. This, in turn, increased the numbers of false and redundant alarms. In plant operations, the numbers of annunciated alarms regularly exceed the acceptable rates that operators can handle. To reduce the number of assigned alarms, a risk-based alarm system has been proposed in the literature (Ahmed et al. (2011); Chang et al. (2011)) where alarms are assigned to groups of variables instead of individual variables. This articles explores the options for grouping variables for alarm allocation. Several grouping methods are discussed and an event-based grouping procedure is detailed. Selection of the key variables for a group is performed using the information that the variables can have to distinguish between an abnormal and a normal condition. The concept of mutual information is used to quantify the information. Variables with high information gain are grouped together for each respective abnormal event. To identify the redundant variables within the groups to further reduce the number of variables to be monitored, the maximum cross-correlation between pairs of key variables are used. A case study using the example of a continuous stirred tank reactor is used to demonstrate the methodology.
Extraction of Bis(2,9-Dimethyl-4,7-Diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline)Cu(1) Perchlorate and Bis(1, 10-phenanthroline)Cu(1) Perchlorates into Nitrobenzene and Chloroform: Role of Water

Abstract The number of molecules of water associated with the bis(l,10-phenan-throline)Cu(I) perchlorate extracted into nitrobenzene was found to be 12 ± 3 and for the bis(2,9-dimethyl-4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline)Cu(I) perchlorate in chloroform, 0 ± 3.
Acute Kidney Injury After Liver, Heart, and Lung Transplants: Dialysis Modality, Predictors of Renal Function Recovery, and Impact on Survival

Recipients of nonrenal organ transplants including the liver, heart, and lung are at risk for developing acute kidney injury (AKI) and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Underlying hepatic or cardiopulmonary failure, prolonged intraoperative hemodynamic instability, and the use of calcineurin inhibitors and nephrotoxic medications have all been suggested to be contributory. The incidence of perioperative AKI has been reported to occur in 17% to 95% in liver transplant recipients, 5% to 30% in heart transplant recipients, and 5% to 60% in recipients of lung transplants. Among those who develop AKI, renal replacement therapy is required in 5% to 35%, 5% to 15%, and 8% to 10% in liver, heart, and lung transplant recipients, respectively. The current article presents an overview of the literature on the choice of dialysis modality and its associated advantages and disadvantages in the management of AKI after liver, heart, and lung transplants. Predictive factors for renal function recovery and the impact of AKI and CKD on survival will also be discussed.
Solitary idiopathic choroiditis: the Richard B. Weaver lecture.

Objective To report the clinical characteristics of solitary idiopathic choroiditis and the features that differentiate it from tumors and other inflammatory lesions. Design Retrospective medical record review. Patients Sixty consecutive patients with solitary idiopathic choroiditis. Main Outcome Measures Clinical features, natural course, and follow-up. Results The mean and median ages of the patients were 35 and 36 years, respectively, 56 (93%) of the 60 patients were white, 38 (63%) were female, and 22 (37%) were male. No patient had a history, clinical findings, or laboratory study results to support a specific cause of uveitis. All were referred to us because of a suspected intraocular tumor. The patient was asymptomatic in 21 cases(35%); the patient had mild visual loss in 36 cases (60%). The lesion was posterior to the equator in 56 cases (93%), was yellow in 58 cases (97%), and had distinct margins in 38 cases (63%). The lesion showed signs of active inflammation in 20 cases (33%) and no inflammation in 40 cases (67%). Fluorescein angiography disclosed that all lesions had early hypofluorescence and late hyperfluorescence. In the late-phase angiograms inactive lesions had distinct margins and active lesions had ill-defined margins. Lesions with active inflammation appeared to show a favorable response to the administration of systemic corticosteroids but generally improved with or without treatment. Most of the inactive lesions remained stable on long-term follow-up. Overall, the condition remained stable in 36 patients (60%), improved in 22 (37%), and recurred in 2 (3%). The clinical and angiographic features and clinical course of solitary idiopathic choroiditis were generally different from known intraocular tumors. Conclusions Solitary idiopathic choroiditis is a distinct clinical entity that can simulate an intraocular neoplasm. Recognition of its typical clinical features can assist in differentiating it from tumors and other inflammatory lesions of the ocular fundus.
The evolution of the environmental movement in Belarus: from Chernobyl to global climate change

The environmental movement in Belarus has experienced a significant transformation since its emergence in the 1960s when it was part of Soviet environmentalism. The nature of that movement and the factors that influenced its dynamic were, however, very different from those in open societies. Even though the Chernobyl disaster of 1986 shaped the environmental agenda and, therefore, the scope of environmentalism in that country, the most important factors in the evolution of the environmental movement in Belarus were the political and social transformations of the Belarusian society. The state has affected the development of the environmental movement not only directly through its capacity to repress civil society and close the policymaking system to non-state actors, but also indirectly through the deliberate shaping of public values.
Cellular fibronectin is decreased in preeclamptic women who smoke

ROBERT POWERS, JAMES ROBERTS, University of Pittsburgh, Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania OBJECTIVE: Cellular fibronectin (cFN), an endothelial cell derived fibronectin isoform, is increased in conditions of endothelial activation including preeclampsia. We hypothesized that cFN concentrations increase with the addition of clinical components of the preeclampsia syndrome. STUDY DESIGN: This nested case-control study included 968 women enrolled in a longitudinal study of preeclampsia. Components of the preeclampsia syndrome, gestational hypertension (H), proteinuria (P), and hyperuricemia (U), were known for all women. Preeclampsia was defined by the presence of all three components (HPU), and clinical categories were defined by the number of components present (0, 1, 2, or 3). Plasma cFN concentrations were measured by ELISA from delivery samples. RESULTS: cFN was increased in women with preeclampsia (HPU) compared to other women (P ! .001), and increased with increasing number of abnormal components of the syndrome (P ! .001). Significance remained (P = .001) after controlling for confounding. Women with cFN in the upper quartile were 6 times more likely (adjusted OR 6.0, 95%CI 2.5,14.5) to have preeclampsia (HPU). Also, women with cFN in the upper quartile had an increased risk of having 2 (OR 5.6, 95%CI 2.9,10.6) or 3 (OR 11.2, 95%CI 5.9,21.2) clinical components. CONCLUSION: These data support the association of cFN and preeclampsia. In addition, cFN concentrations increase with number of clinical components. These findings suggest that endothelial activation is quantitative and may have a role in women who have subsets of the preeclampsia syndrome.
Properties of poly(lactic acid) blends with various starches as affected by physical aging

Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and starch are both biodegradable and renewable polymers derived from agricultural feedstock. A previous study showed that a small amount (0.5%) of methylenediphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) could enhance the mechanical properties of starch and PLA blends by improving the interfacial interaction. In this study, blends of PLA (1/1, w/w) and starch with or without MDI were evaluated for thermal and mechanical properties as well as morphology, as affected by physical aging when stored up to 12 months at 25 °C and 50% relative humidity. The blends were prepared by thermally blending PLA with wheat starch, corn starch, and/or high amylose corn starch, with or without MDI. All samples exhibited phenomena of physical aging. The samples with MDI aged more slowly, showing a slower reduction rate of excess enthalpy relaxation, than those without MDI. The mechanical properties decreased slowly as aging proceeded. Microstructure showed a reduced interaction between starch and PLA around the interface with aging. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 90: 3683–3689, 2003
The Effect of Gravity Modulation on Solutal Convection During Directional Solidification

Abstract During directional solidification of a binary alloy at constant velocity, thermosolutal convection may occur due to the temperature and solute gradients associated with the solidification process. For vertical growth in an ideal furnace (lacking horizontal gradients) a quiescent state is possible. For a range of processing conditions, the thermal Rayleigh number is sufficiently small that the stabilizing role of the thermal field during growth vertically upwards may be neglected, and only solutal convection need be considered. The effect of a time-periodic vertical gravitational acceleration (or equivalently vibration) on the onset of solutal convection is calculated based on linear stability using Floquet theory. We find that a stable base state can be destabilized due to modulation, while an unstable state can be stabilized. The flow and solute disturbance fields show both synchronous and subharmonic temporal response to the driving sinusoidal modulation.
Cloning the Fisher rat thyroid cell line (FRTL-5): variability in clonal growth and 3,'5'-cyclic adenosine monophosphate response to thyrotropin.

To investigate the stability of FRTL-5 cells we cloned stock cells by limiting dilution in a 6-hormone medium with bovine TSH (bTSH) (10 mU/ml) (6H medium). One third of the wells with irradiated fibroblast feeder cells developed FRTL-5 colonies. One hundred and twenty clones were obtained, of which 29 (8%) developed sufficiently for functional analysis. Clones were tested for growth responses to bTSH stimulation as evidenced by 72–h [3H]thymidine uptake and TSH receptor activation by cAMP generation. Clonal growth responses to bTSH were of three types: 1) dose-related growth increase, 2) absence of growth stimulation, and 3) stimulation by bTSH in concentrations up to 100 μU/ml and inhibition of growth above 100 μU/m\. All clones tested showed evidence of extracellular cAMP accumulation in response to bTSH. However, sensitivity to bTSH varied from 1 to 100 fi\J/m\ and maximum cAMP secretion with 1 mU/ml bTSH varied from 2 to 13 pmol/ml. Whereas certain clones showed high sensitivity to bTSH with respect ...
Solution NMR studies of iron(II) spin-crossover complexes.

The 1H NMR spectra of a series of mono- and dinuclear pyridine complexes [FeL1(R1/R2)(py)2] and [Fe2L2(R1/R2)(py)4] have been investigated in a mixed toluene-d8/pyridine-d5 solution. The equatorial tetradentade Schiff base like ligands L1(R1/R2) and L2(R1/R2) with a N2O22- coordination sphere for each metal center have been obtained by condensation of a substituted malonodialdehyde (R1/R2 are Me/COOEt, Me/COMe, or OEt/COOEt) with o-phenylenediamine (L1(R1/R2)) or 1,2,4,5-tetraaminobenzene (L2(R1/R2)). The 1H NMR resonances were assigned by comparison of differently substituted complexes in combination with a line-width comparison. The 1H NMR shifts from 188 to 358 K show a strong influence of the spin state of the iron center. The behavior of the pure high-spin iron(II) complexes is close to ideal Curie behavior. Analysis of the resonance shifts of the spin-transition complexes can be used for determining the high-spin mole fraction of the complex in solution at different temperatures. Magnetic susceptibi...
A resource utilization based instruction fetch policy for SMT processors

Abstract Simultaneous Multithreading (SMT) architectures are proposed to better explore on-chip parallelism, which capture the essence of performance improvement in modern processors. SMT overcomes the limits in a single thread by fetching and executing from multiple of them in a shared fashion. The long-latency operations, however, still cause inefficiency in SMT processors. When instructions have to wait for data from lower-level memory hierarchy, the dependent instructions cannot proceed, hence continue occupying the shared resources on the chip for an extended number of clock cycles. This introduces undesired inter-thread interference in SMT processors, which further leads to negative impacts on overall system throughput and average thread performance. In practice, instruction fetch policies take the responsibility of assigning thread priority at the fetch stage, in an effort to better distribute the shared resources among threads in the same core to cope with the long-latency operations and other runtime behavior from the thread for better performance. In this paper we propose an instruction fetch policy RUCOUNT, which considers resource utilization of individual thread in the prioritization process. The proposed policy observes instructions in the front-end stages of the pipeline as well as low-level data misses to summarize the resource utilization for thread management. Higher priority is granted to the thread(s) with less utilized resources, such that overall resources are distributed more efficiently in SMT processors. As a result, it has two unique features compared to other policies: one is to observe the hardware resource comprehensively and the other is to monitor limited resource entries. Our experimental results demonstrate that RUCOUNT is 20% better than ICOUNT, 10% than Stall, 8% than DG and 3% than DWarn, in terms of averaged performance. Considering its hardware overhead is at the similar level as ICOUNT and DWarn, our proposed instruction fetch policy RUCOUNT is superior among the studied policies.
Some properties of seryl-tRNA synthetase from rat liver.

Abstract Seryl-tRNA synthetase (L-serine:tRNA ligase (AMP), EC 6.1.1.11) from rat liver was studied using tRNAs from rat liver and brewer's yeast. Values observed brewer's yeast tRNA. Using rat liver tRNA the following Michaelis constants were for serine acceptance were 100pmoles/A260 for rat liver tRNA and 50pmoles/A260 for found: 17 μM serine, 12 μM ATP, and 0.21 A260/ml tRNA (about 21 nM tRNASer). Using yeast tRNA, there was a sharp upward break in the Eadie plot for variable serine. The two components had slopes of 3 μM and 37 μM serine. The Km for ATP using yeast tRNA was 15 μM. Methylated albumin chromatography of labeled rat liver seryl-tRNA resolved four radioactive peaks, while yeast seryl-tRNA contained only two resolvable peaks. About 50% inhibition of the aminoacyclation reaction was produced by each of the following compounds, at the stated concentration: 0.3 mM AMP, 0.1 mM pyrophosphate, 0.1 M NaCl, or 2.5 mM ATP. The optimum concentration of ATP was 0.5–0.7 mM. The inhibition by pyrophosphate was non-competitive with respect to ATP; the estimated Ki for pyrophosphate was 71 μM.
Identification of the Galactose Binding Domain of the Adeno-Associated Virus Serotype 9 Capsid

Adeno-associated virus serotype 9 (AAV9) vectors show promise for gene therapy of a variety of diseases due to their ability to transduce multiple tissues, including heart, skeletal muscle, and the alveolar epithelium of the lung. In addition, AAV9 is unique compared to other AAV serotypes in that it is capable of surpassing the blood-brain barrier and transducing neurons in the brain and spinal cord. It has recently been shown that AAV9 uses galactose as a receptor to transduce many different cell types in vitro, as well as cells of the mouse airway in vivo. In this study, we sought to identify the specific amino acids of the AAV9 capsid necessary for binding to galactose. By site-directed mutagenesis and cell binding assays, plus computational ligand docking studies, we discovered five amino acids, including N470, D271, N272, Y446, and W503, which are required for galactose binding that form a pocket at the base of the protrusions around the icosahedral 3-fold axes of symmetry. The importance of these amino acids for tissue tropism was also confirmed by in vivo studies in the mouse lung. Identifying the interactions necessary for AAV9 binding to galactose may lead to advances in vector engineering.
A quantitative formulation of resistance and strain gauge factor expressions for discontinuous films

Abstract Discontinuous metal film strain gauges have gauge factors of the order of 100–200. This high sensitivity, together with the potential for miniaturization, makes their development worthwhile. A principal problem is their increase in resistance with time. The standard theory of conduction and strain sensitivity ascribed to electron tunneling between grains is given a quantitative formulation, which will make evaluation of experimental data more meaningful than is possible with previous formulations.
Fast‐responding bulk hydrogels with microstructure

A new method was used for the production of fast-responding bulk hydrogels with microstructure (BHMs) with a high swelling ratio. These BHMs were synthesized first by the formation of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-acrylic acid) (NIPAAm–AA) microgel particles and then by the crosslinking of the particles with N-isopropylacrylamide monomer. The polymer obtained had the desired microstructure but was bulk (monolithic), so it could be used in a variety of applications. The NIPAAm–AA microgel particles were characterized with transmission electron microscopy, and the formed BHMs were characterized with scanning electron microscopy. Compared with conventional bulk hydrogels, the BHMs had very high swelling ratios and much faster swelling rates attributable to the collaboration of the ionized microgel particles and bulk hydrogels. An increase in the microgel particles embedded in the BHMs provided faster hydrogel swelling. The number of ionic acrylic acid groups in the hydrogels affected their swelling behavior. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 83: 169–178, 2002
Dynamics of two-dimensional ordering: oxygen chemisorbed on the W(112) surface

Low-energy electron diffraction has been used to study the dynamics of formation of oxygen $p(2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}1)$ superlattice structure on a W(112) surface at a half-monolayer coverage. The ground state of the $p(2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}1)$ structure is twofold degenerate and the nonconserved long-range order associated with this structure was found to grow linearly with time in the earlier stages. This behavior is interpreted with use of the domain-growth theory proposed by Lifshitz and by Allen and Cahn. The temperature dependence of the growth rate obeyed an Arrhenius law for $\frac{T}{{T}_{c}}l~0.4$.
Serine carboxypeptidases: a new and versatile family of enzymes

Several structural and biochemical studies in the past year have revealed the potential application of a new family of serine proteinase, the serine carboxypeptidases, in peptide synthesis, carboxy-terminal peptide sequencing and the production of biologically active carboxy-terminal peptide amides. The recent determination of the high-resolution crystal structures for two members of the family, CPDW-II and CPDY, should permit protein engineering to further increase their utility.
Systemic immunoglobulin (AL) amyloidosis in a cat: complete primary structure of a feline lambda light chain

A tarsal mass removed from a ten year old cat proved to be an extramedullary plasmacytoma largely composed of amyloid. Systemic amyloidosis was indicated when histological examination at necropsy identified amyloid also in the lymph nodes, spleen, and liver. The amyloid subunit protein was isolated by molecular sieve chromatography of reduced and alkylated fibrils extracted from the mass, and its amino acid sequence was determined by sequence analysis of peptides isolated after digestion with trypsin or Staphylococcus protease. The sequence of the C-terminal half of the protein was homologous to the constant region of immunoglobulin lambda light chains of other species establishing the immunoglobulin origin of the amyloid. The N-terminal half of the protein was homologous to the variable region of human lambda light chains and contained several rare residues in the framework regions. To our knowledge, this is the first complete sequence determination of a feline immunoglobulin light chain, and the first c...
Disciplinary schisms: Subspecialty “drift” and the fragmentation of sociology

One component of the often discussed malaise in sociology has been the problem of subspecialty “drift” — applied specialties given birth originally within the field now forming separate departments or programs. The historical and ideological origins of this problem are discussed, focusing primarily on the schism early on in sociology between pure and applied work. Anecdotal evidence presented from interviews with faculty in social work and criminal justice programs suggests sociology has in many cases facilitated development of new programs. In order to evaluate the relative position of applied programs within departments of sociology, a comparative analysis of the 1986 and 1996 Guide to Graduate Departments of Sociology “special program” and department titles is undertaken. Contrary to the perception that applied programs are leaving sociology, results indicate an overall increase in special programs with an applied or practice component. Furthermore, masters programs are significantly more likely to have changed department names and to be in combined departments than doctoral programs. We suggest that while sociology has lost ground in the applied arena to more practice and policy-oriented disciplines, program changes within departments in the past decade may help to stem further subspecialty drift. The article concludes by suggesting that state sociological associations are particularly well suited to play a leadership role in addressing these issues.
The polyphenol epigallocatechin-3-gallate affects lipid rafts to block activation of the c-Met receptor in prostate cancer cells.

The HGF/c-Met pathway is an important regulator of signaling pathways responsible for invasion and metastasis of most human cancers, including prostate cancer. Exposure of DU145 prostate tumor cells to HGF stimulates the PI3-kinase and MAPK pathways, leading to increased scattering, motility, and invasion, which was prevented by the addition of EGCG. EGCG acted at the level of preventing phosphorylation of tyrosines 1234/1235 in the kinase domain of the c-Met receptor without effecting dimerization. HGF-induced changes were independent of the formation of reactive oxygen species, suggesting that EGCG functioned independent of its antioxidant ability. ECG, another tea polyphenol, was as effective as EGCG, while EGC and EC were less effective. EGCG added up to 4 h after the addition of HGF still blocked cell scattering and reduced the HGF-induced phosphorylation of c-Met, Akt, and Erk, suggesting that EGCG could act both by preventing activation of c-Met by HGF and by attenuating the activity of pathways already induced by HGF. HGF did not activate the MAPK and PI3-K pathways in cells treated with methyl-β-cyclodextrin (mCD) to remove cholesterol. Furthermore, subcellular fractionation approaches demonstrated that only phosphorylated c-Met accumulated in Triton X-100 membrane insoluble fractions, supporting a role for lipid rafts in regulating c-Met signaling. Finally, EGCG treatment inhibited DiIC16 incorporation into membrane lipid ordered domains, and cholesterol partially inhibited the EGCG effects on signaling. Together, these results suggest that green tea polyphenols with the R1 galloyl group prevent activation of the c-Met receptor by altering the structure or function of lipid rafts. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Selfishness in mesh networks: wired multihop MANETs

A wireless mesh network is a wired extension of a multihop ad hoc network that defines a new paradigm for broadband wireless Internet access. A packet originating from a mesh client is relayed collaboratively in a multihop fashion by the intermediate mesh routers toward an Internet gateway. All existing mesh routing protocols assume that each MR honestly participates in packet forwarding. This is valid only in a network managed by a single trusted authority. However, a community-based WMN can be formed by a group of independent MRs operated by different service providers. It is a real challenge to establish a priori trust in a multi-operator WMN. In such a situation, a selfish MR might be motivated to monopolize the wireless channel for itself by intentionally dropping others' packets. This results in severe performance degradation. Thus, enforcing collaboration is a determinant aspect in designing a secure and reliable WMN. In this article we analyze selfishness of MRs in a multi-operator WMN and explore its overall negative impact on network performance. We finally present a summary of various existing schemes with respect to detecting selfishness, analyze their usefulness in WMNs, and highlight their relative advantages and deficiencies.
Information assimilation and distribution challenges and goals for real and virtual journals.

Abstract: The distribution of biomedical information was transfigured over three centuries ago with the introduction of scientific journals. This enabled the widespread dissemination of data to global audiences and greatly facilitated not only the advance of science but amplified the interaction between investigators despite their different locations. This process continued to expand in a linear fashion prior to the emergence of the Internet. The latter system has prompted a phenomenal augmentation of information accessibility, and its ever-expanding use has resulted in an exponential increase in the demand for digital technology and online resources. This technology has achieved unprecedented acceptance in the scientific domain and enabled publishers to expeditiously produce and distribute journal contents online. Such unparalleled access to information has sparked incendiary debate within the scientific community and among journal publishers in regard to numerous issues. It is thus much debated as to who has the right to “own” or control intellectual property, whether information should be made freely available to the online global community, how to gauge the legitimacy and authenticity of published research, and the need to reexamine the feasibility and profitability of paper journals in consideration of the digital, online formats that continue to gain popularity. To assess the current status of the situation, a meeting of journal editors, research scientists, and publishing executives was held in Constance, Germany, on June 26, 2004, to discuss these issues and formulate strategies and recommendations for the future of biomedical publishing. Herewith we provide a summation (manifesto) of the meeting's proceedings and provide a consensus opinion with the aim of illuminating the subject and also proposing some putative solutions for the major challenges that currently confront the scientific and publishing community.
The absolute amplitude of the de Haas van Alphen effect in nickel

Abstract Measurements are reported for the absolute amplitude of the de Haas-van Alphen effect due to the neck in the FS of nickel along [111] using the field modulation technique. The results show that the amplitude can be adequately calculated using the Lifshitz-Kosevich theory, independent of the conduction electron g-factor.
Impact of Moisture Distribution Within the Sensing Depth on L- and C-Band Emission in Sandy Soils

The performances of the soil moisture retrieval and assimilation algorithms using microwave observations rely on realistic estimates of brightness temperatures (TB) from microwave emission models. This study identifies circumstances when current models fail to reliably relate near-surface soil moisture to an observed TB at L-band; offers a plausible explanation of the physical cause of these failures; and recommends improvements needed so that L-band observations can provide reliable estimates of soil moisture, more universally. Physically consistent soil parameters and moisture at the surface were estimated by using dual-polarized C-band observations during an intensive field experiment, for an irrigation event and subsequent drydown. These derived parameters were used in conjunction with the in situ moisture in deeper layers and different moisture profiles within the moisture sensing depth to obtain estimates of H-pol TB at L-band, that provided best matches with the observed TB. The general assumptions of linear moisture distribution, with uniform or exponentially decaying weighting functions provided realistic TB during the later stages of the drydown. However, the RMSDs of the TBs were up to 10.37 K during the wet period. In addition, the use of one value of moisture representing the entire moisture sensing depth during this highly dynamic stage of the drydown provides unrealistic estimates of emissivity, and hence, TB at L-band. This study recommends use of a hydrological model to provide dynamic, realistic soil moisture profiles within the sensing depth and also an improved emissivity model that utilizes these detailed profiles for estimating TB.
COMPARISON OF YIELDS OF SEVERAL CULTIVARS OF FIELD-GROWN SOYBEANS EXPOSED TO SIMULATED ACIDIC RAINFALLS

SUMMARY Rainfall acidity response functions for crop yield and growth are necessary to predict the overall impacts on crop yields of ambient and/or anticipated levels of acidic rain. The experiment described herein was performed at Brookhaven National Laboratory to determine the effects of simulated rainfalls of pH 5-6, 4-4, 4-1 and 3-3 on seed yields of four cultivars of field grown soybeans. (Glycine max Merrill). Soybeans were chosen because previous results suggested that certain varieties of this crop are sensitive to rainfall acidity and because they are an economically important crop in the United States. Sixteen plots per treatment were used. Plants were grown using standard agronomic practices under automatically moveable rainfall exclusion shelters which minimized changes in the plants' microclimate. Soybeans of cv. Amsoy shielded from ambient rainfalls and exposed to simulated rainfalls of pH 4*4, 4 1 and 3 3 exhibited yields that were 11.5, 10-4 and 11-7 %, respectively, below those of plants exposed to rain of pH 56. The comparable figures for other cultivars were as follows: Asgrow 3127 - 145, 122 and 90 %; Corsoy - 13 7, 12-7 and 7-8 %; Hobbit - 9-2, 6-2 and 16-6 %. Most of the observed decreases in seed mass per plant and per unit area for these four cultivars appear to have resulted from a corresponding decrease in pod number per plant.
Inhibition of Endothelial Cell Migration, Intercellular Communication, and Vascular Tube Formation by Thromboxane A2

The eicosanoid thromboxane A(2) (TXA(2)) is released by activated platelets, monocytes, and the vessel wall and interacts with high affinity receptors expressed in several tissues including endothelium. Whether TXA(2) might alter endothelial migration and tube formation, two determinants of angiogenesis, is unknown. Thus, we investigated the effect of the TXA(2) mimetic [1S-(1alpha, 2beta(5Z),3alpha(1E,3R), 4alpha]-7-[3-(3-hydroxy-4-(4'-iodophenoxy)-1-butenyl)-7-o xab icyclo- [2.2.1]heptan-2-yl]-5'-heptenoic acid (IBOP) on human endothelial cell (HEC) migration and angiogenesis in vitro. IBOP stimulation inhibited HEC migration by 50% and in vitro capillary formation by 75%. These effects of IBOP were time- and concentration-dependent with an IC(50) of 25 nM. IBOP did not affect integrin expression or cytoskeletal morphology of HEC. Since gap junction-mediated intercellular communication increases in migrating HEC, we determined whether IBOP might inhibit coupling or connexin expression in HEC. IBOP reduced the passage of microinjected dyes between HEC by 50%, and the effects of IBOP on migration and tube formation were mimicked by the gap junction inhibitor 18beta-glycyrrhetinic acid (1 microM) with a similar time course and efficacy. IBOP (24 h) did not affect the expression or phosphorylation of connexin 43 in whole HEC lysates. Immunohistologic examination of HEC suggested that IBOP may impair functional coupling by altering the cellular distribution of gap junctions, leading to increased connexin 43 internalization. Thus, this finding that TXA(2) mimetics can prevent HEC migration and tube formation, possibly by impairing intercellular communication, suggests that antagonizing TXA(2) signaling might enhance vascularization of ischemic tissue.
Storage Size Determination for Grid-Connected Photovoltaic Systems

In this paper, we study the problem of determining the size of battery storage used in grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) systems. In our setting, electricity is generated from PV and is used to supply the demand from loads. Excess electricity generated from the PV can be either sold back to the grid or stored in a battery, and electricity must be purchased from the electric grid if the PV generation and battery discharging cannot meet the demand. Due to the time-of-use electricity pricing and net metered PV systems, electricity can also be purchased from the grid when the price is low, and be sold back to the grid when the price is high. The objective is to minimize the cost associated with net power purchase from the electric grid and the battery capacity loss while at the same time satisfying the load and reducing the peak electricity purchase from the grid. Essentially, the objective function depends on the chosen battery size. We want to find a unique critical value (denoted as Crefc ) of the battery size such that the total cost remains the same if the battery size is larger than or equal to Crefc, and the cost is strictly larger if the battery size is smaller than Crefc. We obtain a criterion for evaluating the economic value of batteries compared to purchasing electricity from the grid, propose lower and upper bounds on Crefc, and introduce an efficient algorithm for calculating its value; these results are validated via simulations.
Informativeness of experiments for meu

Abstract The celebrated Blackwell’s theorem demonstrates the equivalence of a notion of statistical informativeness and economic valuableness for the class of preferences that are represented by the subjective expected utility. This note shows that this equivalence holds for a larger class of preferences, namely max min expected utility.
A Comparison of Bt Transgene, Hybrid Background, Water Stress, and Insect Stress Effects on Corn Leaf and Ear Injury and Subsequent Yield

Experimentally manipulated water and insect stresses were applied to field-grown corn with different Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) transgenes and no Bt transgenes, and different nontransgenic hybrid backgrounds (2011 and 2012, Corpus Christi, TX). Differences in leaf injury, ear injury, and yield were detected among experimental factors and their interactions. Under high and low water stress, injury from noctuid larvae (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) on leaves during vegetative growth (primarily from fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda J.E. Smith) and on developing ears (primarily from corn earworm, Helicoverpa zea [Boddie]) was lowest on more recent releases of Bt hybrids (newer Bt hybrids) expressing Cry1A.105+Cry2Ab2 and Cry 3Bb1, compared with earlier Bt hybrids (older Bt hybrids) expressing Cry1Ab and Cry3Bb1 and non-Bt hybrids. High water stress led to increased leaf injury under substantial fall armyworm feeding pressure in 2011 (as high as 8.7 on a 1-9 scale of increasing injury). In contrast, ear injury by corn earworm (as high as 20 cm(2) of surface area of injury) was greater in low water stress conditions. Six hybrid backgrounds did not influence leaf injury, while ear injury differences across hybrid backgrounds were detected for non-Bt and older Bt hybrid versions. While newer Bt hybrids expressing Cry1A.105+Cry2Ab2 and Cry 3Bb1 had consistent low leaf injury and high yield and low but less consistent ear injury across six hybrid backgrounds, water stress was a key factor that influenced yield. Bt transgenes played a more variable and lesser role when interacting with water stress to affect yield. These results exemplify the interplay of water and insect stress with plant injury and yield, their interactions with Bt transgenes, and the importance of these interactions in considering strategies for Bt transgene use where water stress is common.
Estimated optimal drug law enforcement expenditures based on U.S. annual data

Abstract This research develops and implements a simple model for the determination of optimal national expenditures on drug law enforcement. The key components of the model are an econometrically estimated linear drug violations equation relating drug violations to drug enforcement expenditures and other factors, a parameter measuring per capita costs of drug violations, and a Cobb-Douglas function relating social welfare to: (1) net consumption after drug costs and drug enforcement expenditures, and (2) benefits to users of illegal drugs. The parameters of the model are estimated from annual time series data for the United States from 1981 through 2007. It is determined that if the parameters of the social welfare function are such that the elasticity of social welfare with respect to net consumption ( α ) is near to unity and the elasticity of social welfare with respect to user benefits ( β ) is near to zero, the estimated optimal expenditures on drug law enforcement are in the vicinity of the actual expenditures. However, comparative statics analysis of the optimum demonstrates two situations in which significantly reduced expenditures might be indicated: (1) if the α parameter in the social welfare function is significantly below unity and/or the β parameter is significantly above zero; (2) if the drug cost parameter δ is in fact significantly less than estimates based on 1992–2002 data. The latter possibility might be the more relevant, because it seems more likely that society might be incorrectly estimating the costs of drug use (a positive issue) than that society is misperceiving its social welfare values (a normative issue).
Temporal patterns and transport processes in recruitment of spiny lobster (Panulirus argus postlarvae to south Florida

We used time-series analysis to identify weekly and annual patterns in the supply of spiny lobster, Panulirus argus (Latreille, 1804), postlarvae to the Florida Keys, USA, over an 8 yr period. We also investigated the relationship between postlarval influx and wind forcing as a transport mechanism using the complex vector-scalar correlation analysis. Postlarval supply had a lunar phase periodicity at 4.5 wk intervals, with postlarval abundance peaking between the new moon and first-quarter lunar phases. A distinct annual cycle of postlarval supply with two peak periods was also apparent. Cross-correlation analysis between relative postlarval abundance and a 12 mo cycle showed that the annual peak occurs in spring, centered around March. With the 12 mo periodicity removed, a smaller peak at 5 mo intervals was also well defined. Wind-forcing for 7 d prior to the time of postlarval collection was marginally correlated with postlarval abundance through the entire time-series; the association was strongest during the late fall to early spring months. The analysis indicated that postlarval supply was correlated with winds from the northeast (ca. 45°), which are associated with winter atmospheric fronts. In contrast to results reported for other spiny lobster populations, these patterns suggest that recruitment of lobster postlarvae to south Florida is predictable only at a gross level and is presumably affected by the temporally inconsistent structure of regional oceanic gyres and variability in the timing of lobster spawning in the Caribbean.