cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Generational differences in attitudes toward abortion.

Although scholars who focus on generational change generally portray the youngest cohorts as most liberal, this need not be so. Evidence is provided that among whites but not blacks, those who reac...
Historicizing Singapore cinema: questions of colonial influence and spatiality

Films produced since the 1990s revival of Singapore cinema have been interpreted through a historical backdrop consisting of the nation's rapid development, participation in the global economy and authoritarian one-party governance. Film historians have described these texts by relying on discourses associated with globalization and postmodernism. This paper finds the perspective of Singaporean films to have overlooked colonialism as a significant part of Singapore's cultural identity and argues that greater consideration of that history can not only illuminate contemporary films, but also expand film scholarship to include understudied films from Singapore's ‘golden age’ of filmmaking from the 1950s to early 1970s. The history of Singapore cinema should thus be re-periodized. By analyzing the heuristic function of colonial urbanity in films from both eras, this paper explores how spatiality provides a common thread that runs through local experience, identity, culture and cinema.
Network design for information networks

We define a new class of network design problems motivated by designing information networks. In our model, the cost of transporting flow for a set of users (or servicing them by a facility) depends on the amount of information requested by the set of users. We assume that the aggregation cost follows economies of scale, that is, the incremental cost of a new user is less if the set of users already served is larger. Naturally, information requested by some sets of users might aggregate better than that of others, so our cost is now a function of the actual set of users. not just their total demand.We provide constant-factor approximation algorithms to two important problems in this general model. In the Group Facility Location problem, each user needs information about a resource. and the cost is a linear function of the number of resources involved (instead of the number of clients served). The Dependent Maybecast Problem extends the Karger-Minkoff maybecast model to probabilities with limited correlation and also contains the 2-stage stochastic optimization problem as a special case. We also give an O(ln n)-approximation algorithm for the Single Sink Information Network Design problem.We show that the Stochastic Steiner Tree problem can be approximated by dependent maybecast, and using this we obtain an O(1)-approximation algorithm for the k-stage stochastic Steiner tree problem for any fixed k. This is the first approximation algorithm for multi-stage stochastic optimization. Our algorithm allows scenarios to have different inflation factors, and works for any distribution provided that we can sample the distribution.
Non-collinear spin DFT for lanthanide ions in doped hexagonal NaYF 4

Trivalent lanthanide ions (Ln3+) doped in hexagonal (β)-NaYF4 nanocrystals (Na24Y23Ln1F96, Ln = La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Pm, Sm, Eu, Gd) were systematically studied by density functional theory (DFT) with a perturbative account for spin–orbit coupling. The simulated results, including the optimised molecular structures, electronic and magnetic properties, are compared to previous spin-polarised DFT studies in the same system. The spin–orbit coupling effects become significant with the increase in the number of unpaired 4f electrons in the doped lanthanide ions, particularly for the Sm3+-, Eu3+- and Gd3+-doped nanocrystals. Abnormal behaviour of Eu3+-doped nanocrystals was observed due to the Wybourne–Downer mechanism. A ‘sandwich-like’ 2p–4f–4d,5d electronic structure for Na24Y23Ln1F96 and the energies of the highest occupied 4f electrons from Ce3+ to Gd3+ are consistent with Dorenbos's relationship. The energy difference between the first and second Russell–Saunders terms (2S+1L) of the lanthanide dopant is consi...
Visualizing digestive organ morphology and function using differential fatty acid metabolism in live zebrafish

Lipids are essential for cellular function as sources of fuel, critical signaling molecules and membrane components. Deficiencies in lipid processing and transport underlie many metabolic diseases. To better understand metabolic function as it relates to disease etiology, a whole animal approach is advantageous, one in which multiple organs and cell types can be assessed simultaneously in vivo. Towards this end, we have developed an assay to visualize fatty acid (FA) metabolism in larval zebrafish (Danio rerio). The method utilizes egg yolk liposomes to deliver different chain length FA analogs (BODIPY-FL) to six day-old larvae. Following liposome incubation, larvae accumulate the analogs throughout their digestive organs, providing a comprehensive readout of organ structure and physiology. Using this assay we have observed that different chain length FAs are differentially transported and metabolized by the larval digestive system. We show that this assay can also reveal structural and metabolic defects in digestive mutants. Because this labeling technique can be used to investigate digestive organ morphology and function, we foresee its application in diverse studies of organ development and physiology.
Dipolar waves as NMR maps of protein structure.

The anisotropy of nuclear spin interactions results in a unique mapping of structure to the resonance frequencies and split tings observed in NMR spectra, however, the determination of molecular structure from experimentally measured spectral parameters is complicated by angular ambiguities resulting from the symmetry properties of dipole−dipole and chemical shift interactions. This issue can be addressed through the periodicity inherent in secondary structure elements, which can be used as an index of topology. Distinctive wheel-like patterns are observed in two-dimensional 1H−15N heteronuclear dipolar/15N chemical shift PISEMA (polarization inversion spin-exchange at the magic angle) spectra of helical membrane proteins in highly aligned lipid bilayer samples. One-dimensional dipolar waves are an extension of two-dimensional PISA (polarity index slant angle) wheels to map protein structure in NMR spectra of both highly and weakly aligned samples. Dipolar waves describe the periodic wavelike variations o...
Residents' perspectives on violence and personal safety in the emergency department

Study objective: To assess emergency medicine residents' perspectives on violence and personal safety in the emergency department. Design and participants: Survey of all 461 current emergency medicine residents and 1992 graduates in the 13 emergency medicine residency programs in California. Results: Eighty-five percent of residents responded to the survey questionnaire. Sixty-two percent of respondents worry about their own safety while working in the ED. The majority of these respondents (72%), however, most fear a needlestick injury from an HIV-positive patient. Fifty percent of the respondents believe that their hospital/residency programs do not provide adequate security in the ED. Respondents overwhelmingly favor some form of gun control legislation. Conclusion: Violence and personal safety in the ED are major concerns of emergency medicine residents.
Radioprotection of mice by dietary squalene

Male C3H mice were fed a diet containing 2% squalene for 14 d prior to and 30 d subsequent to exposure to 6, 7 or 8 Gy of whole body γ-irradiation (Cesium-137). After 14 d on squalene-supplemented diet, plasma and jejunal tissue squalene levels were 2X and 15X that of controls. Seven days after irradiation, total white cell counts and total lymphocyte counts were substantially depressed in a radiation dose-dependent manner. Although counts in the squalene group were consistently (18–119%) higher than those in the corresponding dietary control group, the differences between dietary groups at any single dose were not significant. Nuclear area of villus cells in the jejunum of both dietary groups was significantly reduced (20%) by day 11 post-irradiation but the nuclear area in squalene-fed mice was significantly greater (15%) than in controls, before and after irradiation. There were no differences in body weight as a function of either diet or radiation dose prior to the first observations of animal lethality. Animal survival was decreased from 100 to 0% at 30 d post-irradiation by radiation doses of 6–8 Gy, with the greatest difference between dietary groups being observed at 7 Gy (median survival times of 12 and 16 d for control and squalene groups, respectively). Overall, survival of squalene-fed mice was significantly prolonged compared with control-fed mice (P=0.0054 by censored multiple regression analysis). It is concluded that squalene conferred some cellular and systemic radioprotection to mice receiving these lethal whole-body radiation doses.
Altitude and growth: A study of the patterns of physical growth of a high altitude Peruvian Quechua population

Data on physical growth were obtained for a sample of 1202 Quechua subjects, aged 2 to 35 years from the district of Nunoa, Puno, located in the southern highlands (altitude 4000–5500m) of Peru. These data were supplemented by a three-year longitudinal study of 300 subjects, aged 1 to 22 years. The patterns of physical growth of members of the indigenous population of Nunoa are characterized by (1) late sexual dimorphism, (2) slow and prolonged growth in body size, (3) late and poorly defined adolescent stature spurt in both males and females, and (4) accelerated development in chest size. The socio-economic factors associated with urban-rural and altitude differences appear to be reflected in greater deposition of subcutaneous fat and increased weight but do not seem to influence the development of stature. We suggest the pattern of growth of this population is related to the hypoxic effects of high altitude, and/or reflects a genetic adaptation to such stress. The anthropometric and physiological studies conducted during this and previous studies and the comparative data from Peruvian populations situated at lower altitudes document the specific adaptive response of the chest wall to the hypoxic effects of high altitude.
Cover Picture: Weaving Genetically Engineered Functionality into Mechanically Robust Virus Fibers (Adv. Mater. 6/2007)

The desired functionality of a virus fiber (such as gold-binding ability) can be programmed by manipulating the M13 virus genome, report Angela Belcher, Krystyn Van Vliet, and co-workers on p. 826. The background picture is an illustration of a virus fiber that is conjugated with cadmium selenide quantum dots and emits red light when excited by UV irradiation. The genetically tunable functionality on the virus fiber offers a convenient designing process and will bring a variety of new applications to antimicrobial, catalytic, optical, medical, and electronic fibers.
REVIEW ESSAY, THE 2006 WORLD DEVELOPMENT REPORT: EQUITY AND DEVELOPMENT

The 2006 World Development Report, issued by the World Bank and entitled“Equity and Development,” marks a major step forward in the discussion of povertyand development, and it is a signiﬁcant event that this step has been taken by soaugust an institution as the Bank. For many years, economic development has beenviewed as co-extensive with the growth rate of GDP per capita; that view has beenincreasinglychallenged,ascontemporarypoliticalphilosophyandwelfareeconomicshave been brought to bear on the analysis of development. Notably, the UNDPinitiated, some years ago, an annual report in which a ‘human development index(HDI)’ was calculated for a large panel of countries, an index in which GDP percapita is averaged with measures of education and health. The political philosophywhich motivated the HDI was Amartya Sen’s idea of functionings and capability [14,15]. In contrast, the political philosophy upon which the 2006 WDR draws has, at itsroot, the idea of equal opportunity, as it was ﬁrst outlined by Ronald Dworkin [6]in his theory of resource egalitarianism, amended and modiﬁed by Richard Arneson[1] and G.A. Cohen [4], and reduced to an economic algorithm by John Roemer [11,12]. The 2006 WDR is by far the most thorough application of these modern ideas inpolitical philosophy, and welfare economics, to evaluating economic development.Because I believe that economic development must be conceived of in terms ofthe development of human welfare (I do not here wish to take on the more subtlequestionwhetherthewelfareofallsentientbeingsshouldbemadetocount,asSinger[16], for example, advocates), and because the deep questions of how to conceive ofhuman welfare are most seriously addressed by philosophers, I think the Report ismoving in just the right direction.In this review, I will ﬁrst give a brief presentation of the theory of equal opportu-nity; then a very brief outline of what “Equity and development” covers; and thenspend the majority of my space on some critical reﬂections on the Report. That
Locating basic bio-entities in genome-scale reconstructed metabolic networks

The numbers and use of Genome-Scale Reconstructed Metabolic Networks (GSRMN) have been increasing in recent years. Comparing and identifying matching metabolites, reactions, and compartments in GSRMNs can be difficult due to inconsistent naming in GSRMNs. In this paper, we propose metabolite & reaction identification techniques for GSRMNs (by matching metabolites & reactions to corresponding metabolites & reactions in different models). We employ a variety of techniques that include approximate string matching, similarity score functions and filtering techniques, all enhanced by a set of rules based on the underlying metabolic biochemistry. The proposed techniques are evaluated by an empirical study on four pairs of GSRMNs, and significant accuracy gains are achieved using the proposed metabolite & reaction identification techniques.
Moderate sedation for MRI in young children with autism.

Autism is a pervasive neurodevelopmental disorder. Because of the deficits associated with the condition, sedation of children with autism has been considered more challenging than sedation of other children. Objective: To test this hypothesis, we compared children with autism against clinical controls to determine differences in requirements for moderate sedation for MRI. Materials and methods: Children ages 18–36 months with autism (group 1, n = 41) and children with no autistic behavior (group 2, n = 42) were sedated with a combination of pentobarbital and fentanyl per sedation service protocol. The sedation nurse was consistent for all patients, and all were sedated to achieve a Modified Ramsay Score of 4. Demographics and doses of sedatives were recorded and compared. Results: There were no sedation failures in either group. Children in group 1 (autism) were significantly older than group 2 (32.02±3.6 months vs 28.16±6.7 months) and weighed significantly more (14.87±2.1 kg vs 13.42±2.2 kg). When compared on a per-kilogram basis, however, group 1 had a significantly lower fentanyl requirement than group 2 (1.25±0.55 mcg/kg vs 1.57±0.81 mcg/kg), but no significant difference was found in pentobarbital dosing between groups 1 and 2, respectively (4.92±0.92 mg/kg vs 5.21±1.6 mg/kg). Conclusion: Autistic children in this age range are not more difficult to sedate and do not require higher doses of sedative agents for noninvasive imaging studies.
A comparison of diversity, frequency, and severity self-reported offending scores among female offending youth.

Despite general consensus over the value of measuring self-reported offending, discrepancies exist in methods of scoring self-reported offending and the length of the reference period over which offending is assessed. This analysis compared the concurrent interassociations and longitudinal predictive strength of diversity, frequency, and severity offending scores measured over the past 6 months and diversity and severity scores measured "ever" between assessments. For violent offending, different scorings were highly correlated and equally predictive of adulthood offending. For nonviolent offending, there was significant continuity in diversity and severity-weighted diversity scores over the transition to adulthood but not in nonviolent frequency or severity-weighted frequency scores. Results support the use of offending diversity scores rather than offending frequency scores and highlight the importance of examining nonviolent and violent offending as separate constructs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved). Language: en
Population synchrony within and among Lepidoptera species in relation to weather, phylogeny, and larval phenology

The population dynamics of native herbivore species in central Appalachian deciduous forests were studied by analysing patterns of synchrony among intra- and interspecific populations and weather. 2. Spatial synchrony of 10 Lepidoptera species and three weather variables (minimum temperature, maximum temperature, precipitation) from 12 sites was measured using cross-correlation functions relating levels of synchrony to the distance separating each set of populations. Based on both the pattern of syn- chrony and the region-wide cross-correlation coefficients, Lepidoptera species appear to be synchronised, at least in part, by local weather conditions. 3. Interspecific cross-correlations were calculated for all sympatric species pairs and trends in interspecific synchrony were related to phylogenetic relatedness, life- history timing, and weather. Interspecific synchrony was highest among species whose larvae were present during the same time of the season, but there was no relationship between interspecific synchrony and phylogenetic affinity. 4. Spatial synchrony of weather variables was significantly related to both species of some interspecific pairs, indicating weather as a potential mechanism involved in synchronising populations of different species.
Viewing Adolescent Mothers on Their Own Terms: Linking Self-Conceptualization and Adolescent Motherhood.

Abstract Understanding the relations between adolescent mothers and their children may be promoted by viewing them in terms of psychosocial factors in the context of Western adolescence with its emphasis on the multifaceted nature of self-conceptualization and role evaluation. Focusing on these developmental factors highlights the broader social context and the psychosocial issues that shape adolescent mothers′ views and experiences of their circumstances. This paper focuses on adolescent mothers′ varying identity struggles regarding the maternal role. These struggles contribute to adolescent mothers′ attitudes toward mothering and how they approach their relationships with their children. Implications of this conceptualization of adolescent motherhood for research and applied settings are discussed.
Gene Expression Profiling of Mouse Articular and Growth Plate Cartilage

Articular cartilage is recalcitrant to repair and regeneration. Tissue engineering and regenerative medicine are potential strategies to treat the damage to articular cartilage. A thorough understanding of the gene expression profiles in articular cartilage and growth plate chondrocytes will be an important prerequisite for tissue engineering of cartilage. Regeneration is a recapitulation of embryonic development and morphogenesis. We used laser capture microdissection to capture the surface articular chondrocytes and the resting zone chondrocytes of growth plate from 14-day-old C57BL/6J mice. Total RNA was individually purified, pooled, and amplified by two rounds of in vitro transcription. Labeled cRNA probes were analyzed using the Affymetrix GeneChip Mouse Genome 430 2.0 Array. We identified 107 genes that were highly expressed by the surface articular chondrocytes and 130 genes that were highly expressed by the resting zone chondrocytes of growth plate (> or = fivefold). The expression of major matrix proteins aggrecan and collagen II were similar, while several morphogens and growth factors were differentially expressed by the surface articular chondrocytes and the resting zone chondrocytes of growth plate. The results of this investigation will be of use in the evaluation of tissue engineered cartilage.
Plasma-Saturating intakes of vitamin C confer maximal antioxidant protection to plasma.

Objective: Supplemental vitamin C has been shown to reduce oxidative damage in vivo, yet the dose-response relationship between vitamin C intake and antioxidant protection is not known. This report examined blood indicators of oxidative stress in subjects consuming graded doses of vitamin C, from 75 to 2000 mg/day.Methods: Ten healthy, non-smoking men and women (26.1 ± 2.1 years) were recruited from a campus population. During the ten-week study, subjects limited fruit and vegetable consumption (≤3 servings/day) and consumed a multivitamin and mineral pill daily. Beginning at week 3, subjects ingested either a vitamin C (n = 8) or placebo (n = 2) capsule, which were identical in appearance and taste. The content of the vitamin C capsule increased every two weeks (from 250 mg at weeks 3–4 to 500 mg, 1000 mg, and 2000 mg at weeks 5–6, 7–8, 9–10, respectively). Fasting blood samples were collected at two-week intervals and analyzed for vitamin C, total lipid hydroperoxides and Heinz bodies in packed erythroc...
Frozen-solution MALDI mass spectrometry studies of DNA

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) in conjunction with time-of-flight mass spectrometry is an effective technique for analysis of DNA oligomers. However, with increasing oligomer length, mass resolution and sensitivity degrade as the effects of prompt and metastable decay, adduct formation, and ion kinetic energy spreads become increasingly dominant. Attempts to reduce these factors have focused on the use of volatile liquids as matrices because these molecules have lower binding energies both to themselves and to the DNA and theoretically require less energy for desorption. We have investigated thin films of DNA in liquid matrices frozen on a liquid nitrogen-cooled sample stage. Several solvent systems have resulted in reproducible mass spectra of single-stranded DNA oligomers.
Phase Coexistence Curves for Off-Lattice Polymer−Solvent Mixtures: Gibbs-Ensemble Simulations

We present a simple and effective strategy for simulating the phase coexistence of off-lattice polymer−solvent mixtures when the solvent-rich phase contains negligible polymer. Under conditions sufficiently far from the solution critical point, an osmotic equilibrium is established between a pure solvent phase and a polymer-rich phase that produces a polymer-rich phase indistinguishable from the corresponding phase of the full binary mixture. Evaluation of the accuracy and reliability of the method is tested on a simple bead−spring model under both constant-pressure and constant-temperature conditions. A key advantage of the method over currently available techniques is that the insertion and deletion of chain molecules are not required. Though the method is illustrated for short, linear chains, it has even wider applicability for long, linear chains as well as for branched and networked chains. For many engineering applications, the method alone may suffice for simulating the relevant portion of the coex...
A dynamic pricing scheme for e-content at multiple levels-of-service

Businesses selling multimedia rich software or e-content are growing in the Internet. The e-content can be downloaded or streamed immediately after an on-line transaction. Since Internet connection speeds are variable, ranging from dial-up access speeds to broadband speeds, a content provider may provide content at different speeds or levels-of-service. Providers offering content at different service levels face two major challenges: (1) revenue maximization, and (2) resource provisioning. In this article, we discuss how these challenges are inter-related, and develop a formal model for pricing and resource provisioning in content delivery systems. We use simulations to study price and resource utilization dynamics in systems implementing our model. We present simulation results in a variety of scenarios that illustrate the scalability and robustness of our model.
Conceptualizing sovereignty in Russian foreign policy: Realist and constructivist perspectives

Russia's approach to sovereignty reflects a close linkage between the recentralizing project domestically, and reassertion of Russia's position as a great power on the international scene. This article assesses the relative utility of constructivist and realist approaches in Russian readings of sovereignty. A constructivist approach is found to be more useful in treating sovereignty – it directs our attention toward the problem of developing a new post-Soviet identity, the role of culture and historical interpretation in foreign policy, Russian concepts of the hostile Other and domestic ideas linked to Russian concepts of federalism – all critical factors in understanding Russian foreign policy behavior. The major ideological construct of the post-communist period – sovereign democracy – insists that both sovereignty and democracy are socially and culturally determined, and therefore clash with Western interpretations of these concepts. The emergence of a new, post-modern and Western-dominated set of global norms limiting sovereignty is closely linked to continued tensions between Russia and the West.
Cadmium accumulation and effects on progesterone release by cultured human trophoblast cells

This study was designed to examine the characteristics of cadmium bioaccumulation by human trophoblast cells in culture and the subsequent effect of cadmium exposure on progesterone production and syncytial formation. The accumulation of cadmium suggested a time- and dose-dependent relationship, although it was not significant. The rate of metal accumulation was similar in all cadmium-treated groups. After 72 h of continuous exposure to cadmium concentrations of 5, 10, and 20 microM, progesterone release was diminished to 69, 51, and 38% of control values (P < 0.05), respectively. When cells were exposed to cadmium from 72 to 96 h (after syncytial development), progesterone release exhibited the same pattern of decline in response to increasing cadmium concentrations. Histologic evaluation of whole mounts of trophoblast cells exposed to 20 microM CdCl2 for 96 h revealed that syncytial formation seemed to be uninhibited. The pattern of cadmium-accumulation by normal cultured human trophoblast cells suggests a time- and dose-relationship with a concomitant decrease in progesterone release that occurs without apparent inhibition of syncytial development.
Spinor equivalence of quadratic forms

Let f be an integral quadratic form in three or more variables and g any form in the genus of f. There exist an effectively determinable prime p and a form g′, belonging to the proper spinor genus of g, such that g′ is a p-neighbor of f in the graph of f. Using this, an alternative decision procedure for the spinor equivalence of quadratic forms is given.
Distribution and properties of CDP-diglyceride:inositol transferase from brain.

— CDP-diglyceride is converted to phosphatidyl inositol by several particulate subcellular fractions of guinea pig brain, with highest specific activity in the microsomal fraction. Optimal conditions with respect to pH, metal ion concentration, and substrate concentrations have been determined. The reaction was stimulated by the addition of bovine serum albumin and by Tween 80. Of several dl-CDP-diglycerides synthesized and used as substrates in a spectrophoto-metric assay for the enzyme, dl-CDP-didecanoin was the most active. The enzyme showed a high selectivity for myo-inositol. Of a number of compounds tested, only scyllo-inosose and epi-inosose served as substrates. Three inositol isomers and three myo-inositol monophosphates inhibited the reaction slightly. The most potent inhibitor found was galactinol, a myo-inositol galactoside.
Improved theory of cyclical electrical field flow fractionation.

Previously reported theories for cyclical electrical field flow fractionation (CyElFFF) are severely limited in that they do not account for diffusion, steric, or electric double layer effects. Experiments have shown that these theories overpredict the retention of particles in CyElFFF. In this work, we present a model for prediction of steric, diffusion, and electrical effects. The electrical double layer effects are treated using a lumped electrical circuit model that accounts for the field shielding by the electrical double layer formed at the electrode–carrier interface. The electrical effects are shown to dominate retention times and outweigh the contributions of diffusion and particle size. Detailed results from the simulations are presented in this work, and a comparison between the theoretical and experimental results obtained from the retentions of polystyrene particle standards is presented in this paper. The models are shown to correctly predict the retention of the polystyrene standards in CyElFFF with a reasonable error, while existing models are shown to have significant failings.
Query-driven approach to entity resolution

This paper explores "on-the-fly" data cleaning in the context of a user query. A novel Query-Driven Approach (QDA) is developed that performs a minimal number of cleaning steps that are only necessary to answer a given selection query correctly. The comprehensive empirical evaluation of the proposed approach demonstrates its significant advantage in terms of efficiency over traditional techniques for query-driven applications.
Outsiders within: isolation of international faculty in an American university

As the internationalisation of higher education has become an important element in university global competitiveness, universities are engaged in initiatives to internationalise their curricula. Among the strategies employed to internationalise the campuses is the recruitment of highly skilled international faculty. The recruitment of such faculty is fraught with challenges of integrating and socialising the faculty into the academic ethos and social fabric of the university and community. This study presents the findings of a qualitative case study conducted on international faculty in a Southwestern university engaged in an ambitious programme of transformation into a global campus. Using embedded intergroup theory and boundary heightening as theoretical constructs, the study identifies the isolation of the faculty through excessive intrinsic careerism, collegial and community isolation, minimal professional development opportunities, and exclusionary politics of teaching and scholarship that occasional...
Three-Dimensional Digital Line Segments

Digital arcs in 3-D digital pictures are defined. The digital image of an arc is also defined. A digital arc is defined to be a digital line segment if it is the digital image of a line segment. It is shown that a digital line segment may be characterized by the chord property holding for its projections onto the coordinate planes. It is also shown that a digital line segment may not be characterized by its own chord property. A linear time algorithm is presented that determines whether or not a digital arc is a digital line segment.
The shifting and diverging White working class in U.S. presidential elections, 1972–2004☆

Abstract Recent studies have sparked lively debates about White working class voting in the U.S. On one hand, there is evidence that the White working class has shifted to vote Republican, and on the other hand, there is evidence that the White working class continues to vote Democratic. Using the American National Elections Studies (ANES), we examine 32 years of presidential election results (1972–2004). We utilize theoretically justifiable measures of routine white collar, skilled and unskilled workers, which we then combine into broad and restricted measures of the White working class. Also, we distinguish between the male and female White working class and consider a variety of other predictors of vote choice. We scrutinize the entire period as a whole, each election year individually, and then concentrate on the 1996–2004 elections. In the entire period, the odds that White working class men voted Republican were greater by a factor of about 1.35. By contrast, White working class women were not significantly different from the electorate. Yet, this conceals temporal variation. Although the White working class was more Republican than the general electorate in 1972 and 1984, and more Democratic in 1976, the White working class generally was consistent with the electorate through 1992. Since 1996, there has been a sharp divergence between the male and female White working class. Men very strongly supported Republicans 1996–2004, while there is some evidence women supported Democrats in 1996 and 2004 (but not 2000). From 1996–2004, the odds White working class men voted Republican were greater by a factor of about 2.0. These patterns are not confined to the South and hold despite controls for a variety of predictors of vote choice.
Thiram-Induced Changes in the Expression of Genes Relating to Vascularization and Tibial Dyschondroplasia

Tibial dyschondroplasia (TD), a major metabolic cartilage disease in poultry, is characterized by the distension of proximal growth plates of tibia that fail to form bone, lack blood vessels, and contain nonviable cells. Thiram, a carbamate pesticide, when fed to young broiler chicks induces TD with high regularity and precision. We used this experimental model to understand the cause of the defects associated with TD by determining the expression of selective candidate genes associated with vascularization and cell survival. Week-old broiler chickens were fed 100 ppm thiram for 48 h between d 8 and 10 posthatch and the expression of the genes for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), its receptors (VEGFR1 and VEGFR2), and an antiapoptotic protein (Bcl-2) were determined in the growth plate cartilage at 48 and 166 h after feeding thiram. Reverse transcription PCR and capillary electrophoresis were used to determine the expression of these genes relative to the 18S gene as an internal standard. There was an increase in the expression of the VEGF gene by thiram at 48 h, which remained elevated above the control level at 166 h. A suppression of genes encoding both VEGF receptors and Bcl-2 was evident at 48 h in thiram-fed chickens when there was no visible distension of growth plate indicative of TD. At 166 h, however, there was a significant distension of growth plates in thiram-treated birds, with a high percentage of cells derived from these tissues exhibiting characteristics of dead cells. Although the expressions of VEGF receptors were low at 166 h in thiram-treated birds, they were not statistically different from controls; the Bcl-2 gene expression, however, remained significantly downregulated in those birds. It appears that some of the early effects of thiram on the growth plate may be the failure of genes encoding VEGF receptors and Bcl-2 resulting from endothelial cell death, which compromise vascularization, cartilage remodeling, and the removal of dead chondrocytes leading to TD lesions.
Surface conformed linear mesh and data subdivision technique for large-scale flow simulation and visualization in Variable Intensity Computational Environment

Abstract In this paper, we report the development of a parallel program to isotropically subdivide a 3-D hybrid unstructured coarse base mesh to generate a finer computational mesh without user interaction. Our Variable Intensity Computational Environment enables scientific computations using very large mesh yet allows users to interact with more manageable smaller mesh. The main motivation behind this study is to overcome the bottleneck in generating and processing of the computational meshes with billions of elements. First, we generate a coarse mesh using any unstructured mesh generator. Then, we subdivide the coarse mesh to the level of resolution needed for the simulations. Finally, we conform mesh nodes on solid surfaces to the original geometry since linear subdivision ignores surface curvatures. We use K–D tree search algorithm in the surface mapping. To deform interior mesh nodes due to the surface correction, we use the spring analogy method since deformations are very small. Surface correction is implemented in parallel using the Message Passing Interface. The new mesh obtained from the isotropic subdivision preserves mesh density distribution of the original coarse mesh. The mesh subdivision with surface correction is integral part of our Variable Intensity Computational Environment. Three test cases are used to demonstrate applicability of this method: a generic reentry vehicle, an Army projectile, and a sphere. Flow solutions are obtained using our compressible and incompressible Navier–Stokes CaMEL flow solvers with the Detached Eddy Simulation turbulence model. Flow solutions and mesh subdivisions are performed in a parallel cluster at the Jackson State University.
The relationship between “Normal” transesophageal color-flow doppler-defined tricuspid regurgitation and thermodilution right ventricular ejection fraction measurements

Abstract Twenty coronary artery revascularization patients, aged 58 ± 15 years, were studied intraoperatively to define the impact of Doppler-defined tricuspid regurgitation on measurement of thermodilution right ventricular ejection fraction (50 msec response pulmonary artery catheter). Right ventricular function was also estimated using a measurement technique independent of flow patterns across the tricuspid valve (transesophageal two-dimensional echocardiographic 5.0 MHz phased-array transducer). Measurements included transverse plane long- and short-axis planimetered area ratio, respectively, and tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion ratio (ratio = end-diastolic minus end-systolic value divided by end-diastolic value). Data were expressed as thermodilution-echocardiographic gradients, ie, thermodilution ejection fraction minus long-axis planimetered area ratio, short-axis planimetered area ratio, and tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion ratio, respectively. Tricuspid regurgitation was quantified by color-flow Doppler perimetry of maximal regurgitation jet area and analysis of transduced right atrial pressure waveform. Doppler estimates were expressed as absolute values and as a function of corresponding atrial area (tricuspid regurgitation index = planimetered jet area divided by right atrial area). Data were obtained following endotracheal intubation, sternotomy, pericardiotomy, cardiopulmonary bypass, and chest closure. Data were evaluated by regression analysis, with separate analyses performed for each time period. Profiles were unassociated with right atrial pressure waveform abnormalities. There was no significant relationship between thermodilution ejection fraction variance values and tricuspid regurgitation jet area or regurgitation index, respectively. In each measurement period, thermodilution-echocardiographic gradients were also unrelated to the tricuspid regurgitation estimates. These findings suggest that transesophageal color-flow Doppler evidence of tricuspid regurgitation, without atrial pressure waveform abnormalities, does not invalidate thermodilution right ventricular ejection fraction data.
The Saccharomyces cerevisiae FAT1 Gene Encodes an Acyl-CoA Synthetase That Is Required for Maintenance of Very Long Chain Fatty Acid Levels *

The Saccharomyces cerevisiae FAT1 gene appears to encode an acyl-CoA synthetase that is involved in the regulation of very long chain (C20–C26) fatty acids. Fat1p, has homology to a rat peroxisomal very long chain fatty acyl-CoA synthetase. Very long chain acyl-CoA synthetase activity is reduced in strains containing a disrupted FAT1 gene and is increased when FAT1is expressed in insect cells under control of a baculovirus promoter. Fat1p accounts for approximately 90% of the C24-specific acyl-CoA synthetase activity in glucose-grown cells and approximately 66% of the total activity in cells grown under peroxisomal induction conditions. Localization of functional Fat1p:green fluorescent protein gene fusions and subcellular fractionation of C24 acyl-CoA synthetase activities indicate that the majority of Fat1p is located in internal cellular locations. Disruption of the FAT1 gene results in the accumulation of very long chain fatty acids in the sphingolipid and phospholipid fractions. This includes a 10-fold increase in C24 acids and a 6-fold increase in C22 acids. These abnormal accumulations are further increased by perturbation of very long chain fatty acid synthesis. Overexpression of Elo2p, a component of the fatty acid elongation system, in fat1Δ cells causes C20–C26 levels to rise to approximately 20% of the total fatty acids. These data suggest that Fat1p is involved in the maintenance of cellular very long chain fatty acid levels, apparently by facilitating β-oxidation of excess intermediate length (C20–C24) species. Althoughfat1Δ cells were reported to grow poorly in oleic acid-supplemented medium when fatty acid synthase activity is inactivated by cerulenin, fatty acid import is not significantly affected in cells containing disrupted alleles of FAT1 andFAS2 (a subunit of fatty acid synthase). These results suggest that the primary cause of the growth-defective phenotype is a failure to metabolize the incorporated fatty acid rather than a defect in fatty acid transport. Certain fatty acyl-CoA synthetase activities, however, do appear to be essential for bulk fatty acid transport inSaccharomyces. Simultaneous disruption of FAA1and FAA4, which encode long chain (C14–C18) fatty acyl-CoA synthetases, effectively blocks the import of long chain saturated and unsaturated fatty acids.
An Alternative Method for Measuring Plant Available Water in Inorganic Amendments

Inorganic amendments (IA) added to the root-zone of turfgrass are used to increase plant available water (PAW), however conflicting amounts of PAW contents have been reported for some of these amendments. The concept of PAW and the common technique used to estimate PAW in IAs have been reviewed. We hypothesized that hydraulic nonequilibrium in pressure-plate measurements results in an underestimation of PAW. An alternative standardized method of measuring PAW in coarse-textured inorganic amendments is proposed using a combination of pressure plates, saturated salt solutions and a dew-point potentiometer. Water release curves were measured for four IAs (calcined clay, calcined diatomaceous earth, calcined volcanic ash mixed with diatomaceous earth, and zeolite) and their PAW contents determined. Results show that the proposed method provides a more accurate -1500 J kg -1 water content measurement than the pressure-plate method. Pressure-plate hydraulic nonequilibrium at -1500 J kg -1 resulted in a 0.002 to 0.012 m 3 m -3 underestimation of PAW. The IAs examined in this study did not release appreciable amounts of internally held water until they were exposed to matric potentials more negative than usual in turfgrass management (<-300 J kg -1 ). The use of a standardized methodology for estimating PAW in IAs, such as the one described in this paper, will help to provide needed consistency and accuracy in information to practitioners.
User education for a computerized environment

Business organizations control the information systems development process through three mechanisms - steering committees, project leaders and user representatives. These roles serve to guide an experiential approach to the education of MBA students.Computer technology has had a major effect on the way people work. It has changed the economics of paperwork, the nature of the data flow in organizations, and the relationships between people on the job. This impact is also recognized in College and University curricula. Elements of computer literacy are required in almost all schools of business. These courses usually require the student to learn a programming language such as Basic or Fortran. But knowledge of one programming language is not sufficient to prepare people for successful roles in an increasingly computerized environment. They need familiarity with these roles prior to entry to the organization.Organizations have evolved strategies for allocating and controlling the computer resource. Since universities intend to prepare students for this technical world, it is necessary to look at these processes. These organizational processes can serve to guide instructors in the classroom setting.In the next few paragraphs, we will explain the organizational setting. Then the various roles are described. Finally, we place it within the framework of a MIS course and discuss the parallels between a course and an organization.
Measurement methods for the position errors of a multi-axis machine. Part 1 : principles and sensitivity analysis

Accurate measurement of errors is an essential part of error compensation. By using telescoping ball-bars, two measurement methods, characterized by low cost, simplicity of setup, and quick measurements are developed to directly identify the total position errors at the tip of the tool of a multi-axis machine tool without the use of an error model. The first method uses the well known triangulation principle that requires three reference points. The second, referred to as the single socket method, utilizes a single reference point, offering thereby a higher degree of dexterity and flexibility. In addition, sensitivity analysis is used to investigate the accuracy of the two methods with respect to two error factors: errors of the ball-bar system, and location errors of the reference point.
A PRELIMINARY COMMUNICATION ON THE SLEEP-PRODUCING EFFECT OF INTRAMUSCULAR METHOHEXITONE SODIUM IN THE PAEDIATRIC PATIENT

A new method of using methohexitone is presented. When given by intramuscular injection in a dose of 3 mg/lb (6.6 mg/kg) it is safe, rapid and pleasant in the introduction of sleep in the paediatric patient. There are apparently no limitations in the use of intramuscular methohexitone sodium other than those limitations placed on the use of any barbiturate.
Candidate Equilibrium and the Behavioral Model of the Vote

Most applications of spatial modeling to the problem of electoral competition are pessimistic regarding the prospects for candidate equilibrium in more than one policy dimension. Probabilistic models of the vote, however, increase the likelihood of equilibrium. We expand the probabilistic model to include measured nonissue variables, thereby representing the general multivariate model of behavioral research. For this model we offer a general candidate equilibrium solution and illustrate with some simulations based on 1988 National Election Study data. The more complicated one's model of voters' motivations, the greater appears to be the chance of locating a candidate equilibrium position in policy space.
Relationship Between Grade Span Configuration and Academic Achievement

In an effort to address the NCLB-mandated testing process, one of the issues to be considered is how best to configure student populations to maximize all aspects of the educational setting while simultaneously maximizing student achievement; one aspect is grade span configuration. We examined the relationship between the grade span configuration of all schools in Arkansas attended by sixth-grade students and the academic achievement of the combined population of students as measured by the Arkansas Benchmark Examination. We found no relationship between grade span configuration and academic achievement as measured by the Arkansas Benchmark Examination for sixth-grade students. However, the nonsignificant findings do not negate the importance of the study. The results imply that there are other factors that are affecting scores in the middles grades. The results of the study also revealed that over the time span examined, mathematics Benchmark achievement rose but the results for literacy were stagnant. T...