cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Gene expression in the desert tortoise, Gopherus agassizi; tissue sources and buffer optima for the gene products of 73 loci

The tissue distribution of products of 73 enzymatic loci (49 enzyme systems) was examined with eight di⁄erent bu⁄er systems to identify optimal electrophoretic conditions for allozymic and isozymic studies of the desert tortoise, Gopherus agassizi. Relative levels of enzyme activity are reported for extracts prepared from eye, brain, heart, muscle, liver, stomach, kidney, gonad, and blood. Given the paucity of comparative data, an assessment of the systematic utility of isozyme characters involving this species is limited. The greatest potential lies in the tissue distribution of some gene products and in the number of genes that control some enzyme systems, which di⁄er when compared to that in somewhat distantly related chelid turtles. A restriction of asymmetrical heterotetramer assembly is noted in the L-lactate dehydrogenase system in G. agassizi, although this condition may be widespread among turtles. ( 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Interpopulation variation in fluctuating asymmetry of the palmar A-B ridge-count

Fluctuating asymmetry was measured by the Pearson correlation coefficient between a-b ridge-counts of the right and left hands. Such data were available for 38 samples, which were grouped by major geographical regions. Significant heterogeneity exists within some of the geographical groups but the between geographical group component is highly significant in both sexes. Our results show that a sizable fraction of variation in fluctuating asymmetry is related to geographical race. There is no evidence that it follows environmental or ecological lines. The variation between geographical races suggests that there is a genetic component in the magnitude of fluctuating asymmetry.
Global models of networked organization, the positional power of nations and economic development

ABSTRACTInterdisciplinary literature on global commodity chains (GCCs)/global value chains (GVCs) and global production networks (GPNs) contends that inter-firm power differentials within globally networked forms of economic organization have implications for the developmental trajectories of nation-states. In this article, I advance these literatures in three ways. First, I bridge the two approaches by elaborating an exchange-theoretic conceptualization of inter-firm power that is latent in the two literatures. This conceptualization focuses narrowly on the determinants of inter-firm power asymmetries and is useful for explaining why actual production networks vary in terms of the relative power of buyers and producers. Second, I develop an empirical framework to advance basic research on the link between globally networked forms of economic organization and national economic development. In particular, I derive cross-nationally and temporally comparable country-level measurements of the average bargaini...
Racial Identity and Body Image Among Black Female College Students Attending Predominately White Colleges

This study examined attitudes about body image and racial identity among Black women at a predominately White college in the United States. We conducted in-depth qualitative interviews with 34 women about their school experiences, family, racial identity, self-esteem, and body image. We found that early childhood influences including family and school environment had profound impacts on their racial identity and body image. Through a qualitative analysis based in grounded theory, we found that participants’ identification with White and/or Black culture produced levels of body satisfaction and a set of beauty ideals that generally corresponded to four racial identity groups: identification with White or Black culture, floating between both, or having a diverse self-identity.
Close-up analysis of aircraft ice accretion

Various types of ice formation have been studied by analysis of high magnification video observations. All testing was conducted in the NASA Lewis Icing Research Tunnel (IRT). A faired 8.9 cm (3.5 in.) diameter metal-clad cylinder and a 5.1 (2 in.) aluminum cylinder were observed by close-up and overview video cameras for several wind tunnel conditions. These included close-up grazing angle, close-up side view, as well as overhead and side overview cameras. Still photographs were taken at the end of each spray along with tracings of the subsequent ice shape. While in earlier tests only the stagnation region was observed, the entire area from the stagnation line to the horn region of glaze ice shapes was observed in this test. The modes or horn formation have been identified within the range of conditions observed. In the horn region, Horn Type A ice is formed by 'dry' feather growth into the flow direction and Horn Type B is formed by a 'wet' growth normal to the surface. The feather growth occurs when the freezing fraction is near unity and roughness elements exist to provide an initial growth site.
Validation of Stress Corrosion Cracking Model for High Level Radioactive-Waste Packages

A stress corrosion cracking (SCC) model has been adapted for performance prediction of high level radioactive-waste packages to be emplaced in the proposed Yucca Mountain radioactive-waste repository. SCC is one form of environmentally assisted cracking resulting from the presence of three factors: metallurgical susceptibility, critical environment, and tensile stresses. For waste packages of the proposed Yucca Mountain repository, the outer barrier material is the highly corrosion-resistant Alloy UNS-N06022, the environment is represented by the water film present on the surface of the waste package from dripping or deliquescence of soluble salts present in any surface deposits, and the stress is principally the weld induced residual stress. SCC has historically been separated into 'initiation' and 'propagation' phases. Initiation of SCC will not occur on a smooth surface if the surface stress is below a threshold value defined as the threshold stress. Cracks can also initiate at and propagate from flaws (or defects) resulting from manufacturing processes (such as welding). To account for crack propagation, the slip dissolution/film rupture (SDFR) model is adopted to provide mathematical formulae for prediction of the crack growth rate. Once the crack growth rate at an initiated SCC is determined, it can be used by the performancemore » assessment (not in the scope of this paper) to determine the time to through-wall penetration for the waste package. This paper presents the development and validation of the SDFR crack growth rate model based on technical information in the literature as well as experimentally determined crack growth rates developed specifically for Alloy UNS- N06022 in environments relevant to high level radioactive-waste packages of the proposed Yucca Mountain radioactive-waste repository.« less
Clinicians' perceptions about how they are valued by the academic medical center.

p a w m p f Academic health centers have multiple distinct yet interrelated missions related to advancing research and discovery, educating the next generation of physicians, and caring for patients with expertise and humanism. The reverence directed toward accomplishment in research at our academic health center exceeds the value directed toward clinical and educational successes, as reflected in both the culture and the promotion processes. Because promotion decisions and academic rank are heavily influenced by research success and not clinical accomplishments, distinction in the clinical care of patients is thought to be “under-rewarded and taken for granted.” Some academic health centers have established multiple tracks for promotion in an effort to balance the appreciation for all 3 parts of the tripartite mission, but even at those academic health centers, clinicians or clinician-educators who are part of these alternate tracks may feel as though they are members of a “second class.” Clinical care is critical to an academic health center’s bottom line and financial viability, generating ap-
Triggering the LBL Time Projection Chamber

We have built a fast digital trigger for the LBL Time Projection Chamber (TPC) installed in the PEP-4 detector at SLAC. The TPC is an innovative High Energy Physics detector which will provide particle identification from dE/dx information within the tracking volume. The TPC trigger uses discriminator signals from 2,220 dE/dx wire channels to require a track of ionization in the TPC which originates from the colliding beam intersection region. The trigger processing is performed as the ionization drifts onto the proportional wires and is completed 17 ?s after beam crossing. In this report, we describe the basic operation of the TPC detector and its trigger; a pretrigger which uses prompt TPC information from the endcap region; and the electronic implementation. The trigger can be tested with realistic simulated patterns of ionization deposits in the TPC which are stored in local memories. We show test results from electronic simulations and first results of a test with cosmic rays.
Israel’s J14 Social Protest Movement and Its Imaginings of ‘Home’: On Music, Politics and Social Justice

The J14 social protest movement in Israel (2011) began as a protest against the high cost of living, and most prominently, the inflated cost of housing. However, it quickly became the site of an emerging public discourse regarding the relationship between power and one’s home, whether material dwelling or the universe of meanings associated with home, homeland, citizenship, nationality and ethnicity. This article explores the ways in which expressive culture—musical, visual and discursive—provided the engine for envisioning and contesting new imaginaries of home and contextualizing political action within the protest. A focus on Jaffa, a mixed Jewish-Palestinian city, highlights the ways in which expressive culture negotiated inherent tensions surrounding the meanings of ‘home’ that were brought into the open in Israel’s marginalized peripheries.
Simulating biophysical and human factors that affect detection probability of cattle-fever ticks (Boophilus spp.) in semi-arid thornshrublands of South Texas

We modified an existing simulation model to evaluate detection of cattle-fever ticks (Boophilus annulatus and Boophilus microplus) infesting rangeland in the semi-arid thornshrublands of south Texas. This model contained submodels representing (1) tick development in a pasture and (2) tick development on one cow; we added a third submodel that calculated the probability of tick detection on a herd of cattle by human inspectors. This detection submodel randomly distributed ticks to each cow in the herd from a normal distribution with a mean equal to the number of ticks of detectable size predicted by the submodel of tick development on one cow. We controlled biophysical factors such as habitat type, starting season, number of ticks initially infesting the system, number of cows examined, and a human factor, ability of inspectors to detect ticks on individual cows. We simulated all combinations of factors to estimate their combined effect on the probability of detection over a 2-year period under continuous grazing. Results showed the predominant influence of biophysical factors: season of initiation had the largest influence on tick populations (and hence, subsequent detection probabilities), followed by habitat type and level of initial tick infestation. Detectable populations of ticks occurred in fall-initiated simulations in grass only at infestations beginning with ≥250 larvae per animal, while in mesquite detectable populations occurred with initial infestations ≥50 larvae per animal. In contrast, detectable populations occurred in spring-initiated simulations initiated with as few as 10 larvae per animal in both grass- and mesquite-dominated pastures. Mean percentage of potential detection days in which simulated inspectors successfully detected ticks ranged from 0 to 99.9% depending on the number of animals inspected and level of detection probability evaluated. The distribution of days in which ticks remained detectable varied with the dynamics of each combination of factors and illustrated that opportunities for detection are not evenly distributed in time. Variation of the human factor, the curve used to estimate ability of inspectors to detect ticks on individual cows, suggest that human detection abilities usually have a relatively minor influence on detection probabilities. Human detection ability, however, becomes more important when on-host tick populations reach low levels or when few cattle are inspected. At these times, increased detection abilities yield windows of detection that otherwise would not exist. These simulations provide the first analysis of tick detection in scenarios under U.S. conditions, and results confirm the concerns regulatory agencies express regarding early detection of cattle-fever ticks.
Intra-pixel sensitivity in NIR detectors for NGST

Intra-Pixel Sensitivity (IPS) is defined as the spatially varying response of the pixel to incoming flux. IPS plays a crucial role when the Point-Spread Function (PSF) is critically, or under-, sampled. Variations in IPS lead to photometric and astrometric errors. The Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST) requires high quality photometry and astrometry, so an accurate estimation of the IPS function is necessary for a successful NGST mission. Photo-electrons generated in a pixel may be detected in the depletion region (detection of the flux) of the same pixel, or might diffuse and end up in the microstructure of the detector, the electric field distribution therein, wavelength of the incident radiation, and diffusion processes of the excess charge carriers generated determines the IPS function of a pixel that can vary from pixel to pixel. The total detected flux is proportional to the convolution of the PSF and the IPS function. If we approximate the profile of the PSF, then the problem of determining the IPS function reduces to deconvolving using the experimentally obtained Sensitivity variation profile and the calculated PSF. We aim to obtain a highly undersampled PSF, scan it over a single pixel on a grid of 10 x 10 points, and retrieving IPS function using deconvolution. We present our results, experiment design, and the scope of further work, using an NGST detector, to estimate the IPS function at various wavelengths.
Surgery for heart failure

As heart failure may appear in myriad forms and different stages in different patients, there is no single surgical solution. Surgical treatment may have electrical, mechanical or biologic or a combined approach to the problem of CHF. In the management of heart failure, surgical therapy is most effective when applied in its proper window. It may be possible to restore anatomic and physiologic normalcy in some patients while partial recovery by arrest of remodelling process may be all that can be achieved in some. A holistic philosophy entailing both medical and surgical modalities would be needed to contain the scourage of CHF.
On the computational solution of an equation arising in chemotherapy using numerical inversion of the Laplace transform.

Abstract It is shown how a combination of the Laplace transform plus a numerical inversion technique yields a quick numerical solution of a set of linear functional equations arising in chemotherapy.
Stacking Neutral Analytes in Capillary Electrokinetic Chromatography with High-Salt Sample Matrixes

We recently described a method to stack neutral analytes in electrokinetic chromatography dependent upon using high-salt sample matrixes (Palmer et al. Anal. Chem. 1999, 71, 1679−1687) The use of a high-mobility co-ion in the sample matrix at a higher concentration than the like-charged electrokinetic vector (e.g., charged micelle) in the separation buffer as we previously suggested induces a single-boundary, discontinuous buffer system which subsequently stacks neutral analytes. Under these conditions, it is possible to electrokinetically inject neutral analytes directly from a high-salt sample matrix via electroosmotic flow, with stacking initiated simultaneously with injection. The correspondence by Quirino et al. (Anal. Chem., previous paper in this issue) suggests the effects of the high-salt sample matrix on stacking of micelles is obviated by a destacking of the micelle zone as it exits the sample zone. They reevaluate the high-salt stacking mode in terms of the γ function. Based on the present dat...
Wavelets, Period Doubling, and Time–Frequency Localization with Application to Organization of Convection over the Tropical Western Pacific

In this paper, preliminary results in using orthogonal and continuous wavelet transform (WT) to identify period doubling and time-frequency localization in both synthetic and real data are presented. First, the Haar WT is applied to synthetic time series derived from a simple nonlinear dynamical system- a first-order quadratic difference equation. Second, the complex Morlet WT is used to study the time-frequency localization of tropical convection based on a high-resolution Japanese Geostationary Meteorological Satellite infrared (IR) radiance dataset. The Haar WT of the synthetic time series indicates the presence and distinct separation of multiple frequencies in a period-doubling sequence. The period-doubling process generates a multiplicity of intermediate frequencies, which are manifested in the nonuniformity in time with respect to the phase of oscillations in the lower frequencies. Wavelet transform also enables the detection of extremely weak signals in high-order subharmonics resulting from the period-doubling bifurcations. These signals are either undetected or considered statistically insignificant by traditional Fourier analysis. The Morlet WT of the IR radiance dataset indicates the presence of multiple timescales, which are localized in both frequency and time. There are two regimes in the variation of IR radiance, corresponding to the wet and dry periods. Multiple timescales, ranging from semidiurnal, diurnal, synoptic, to intraseasonal with embedding structures, are active in the wet regime. In particular, synoptic variability is more prominent during the wet phase of an intensive intraseasonal cycle. These are not only consistent with, but also show more details than, previous findings by using other techniques. The phase-locking relationships among the oscillations with different time-scales suggest that both synoptic and intraseasonal variations may be mixed oscillations due to the interaction of self-excited oscillations in the tropical atmosphere and external forcings such as annual and diurnal solar radiation variations. Both examples show that WT is a powerful tool for analysis of phenomena involving multiscale interactions that exhibit localization in both frequency and time. A discussion on the caveats in the use of WT in geophysical data analysis is also presented.
THE BIANCHI TYPE I MODEL WITH TWO INTERACTING SCALAR FIELDS

The flat anisotropic model of the early Universe is considered. Two interacting scalar fields with a special form of potential energy are a source of matter fields. Analytic solutions for stages of inflation and preheating are found. It is shown that the solutions tend asymptotically to an isotropic Friedmann model.
Electron velocity overshoot at room and liquid nitrogen temperatures in silicon inversion layers

Effective electron velocities in silicon MOSFETs exceeding the bulk saturation values of 10/sup 7/ cm/s at room temperature and 1.3*10/sup 7/ cm/s at liquid-nitrogen temperature are inferred. This conclusion suggests that electron velocity overshoot occurs over a large portion of the device channel length. To infer this phenomenon, submicrometer-channel-length Si MOSFETs with lightly doped inversion layers were fabricated. These devices have low field mobility of 450 cm/sup 2//V-s and showed only slight short-channel effects. Effective carrier velocities are calculated from the saturated transconductance g/sub m/ at V/sub DS/=1.5 V after correction for parasitic resistances of source and drain. >
Obesity: Paternal obesity--a risk factor for autism?

The aetiology of autism-spectrum disorders is partly explained by genetic factors, but a substantial component is attributed to environmental exposures. New evidence suggests that paternal obesity increases the risk of having a child with autism, which raises the possibility that obesity-driven, autism-related shifts in epigenetic reprogramming occur during spermatogenesis.
Failure of self-licking of nipples to alter pituitary prolactin concentration in lactating rats*1

Abstract Primiparous lactating rats were separated from their litters of 6 pups each for 8 hr on postpartum Day 14. The pups then were replaced for 30 min under their mother so they could be seen, smelled, and heard but not touched. In this situation, the mother licked her nonnipple areas more often, but was not stimulated to lick her nipples more often or to lick a greater number of nipples. Prolactin concentration in the pituitary glands of the mothers was significantly reduced by 30 min exposure to their pups in respect to that in pituitaries of mothers not exposed to their pups but killed at the end of the 8-hr isolation period. The painting of the nipples of another group of rats with a nonalcoholic orange-flavored syrup at the end of the 8-hr isolation period markedly increased self-licking of the nipples and the number of nipples licked. The intensified licking of the nipples, however, did not provoke any alteration in the pituitary concentration of prolactin. We conclude that the fall in pituitary prolactin concentration which occurs in response to the presence of the pups and without suckling is not the result of self-licking of the nipples, but is due to exteroceptive cues emanating from the pups.
Factor analysis of the WISC-R and the Adaptive Behavior Scale-School Edition for a referral sample

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine if a common factor structure was evident in the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) and the Adaptive Behavior Scale-School Edition (ABS-SE) for a sample of 171 children referred for evaluation of learning and behavior problems. The WISC-R subtests (excluding Mazes) and the ABS-SE factor domain scores (Personal Self-Sufficiency, Community Self-Sufficiency, Personal-Social Responsibility, Social Adjustment, and Personal Adjustment) were subjected to an exploratory principal-components factor analysis with varimax rotation. ANOVAs were conducted on each of the derived factors to determine race and sex effects. The results indicated no common factor structure in the instruments, the Verbal Comprehension, Perceptual Organization, Independent Functioning, Maladaptive Behavior, and Freedom From Distractibility factors being extracted. The derived factors were very similar to those identified in standardization data and other studies. Perceptual Organization and Social Adjustment showed sex and race effects, respectively, although each model accounted for only about 7% of the variance.
Reverse-Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction Detection of Citrus Tristeza Virus in Aphids

A rapid and simple reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method was developed for the detection of citrus tristeza virus (CTV) in three aphid species. Seven CTV isolates from a worldwide isolate collection were used for aphid acquisition feeding by three aphid species. These included the most efficient CTV vector, the brown citrus aphid, Toxoptera citricida; the melon aphid, Aphis gossypii; and the green peach aphid, Myzus persicae, a non-vector for CTV. A short procedure for nucleic acid extraction from single or groups of aphids was developed. Nucleic acid extracts from 1, 3, 5, and 10 aphids with acquisition-access periods of 24 and 48 h were reverse transcribed and amplified using primers for the coat protein gene of the Florida B3 (T-36) isolate of CTV. PCR-amplified fragments of approximately 670 bp were obtained from all the isolates tested and the amplified product from the aphids fed on citrus infected with isolate B3 was confirmed as the CTV coat protein gene by digesting with various restriction enzymes. This technique will be useful in investigations of CTV-vector-plant interactions and CTV epidemiology.
Genitourinary oncology: current status and future challenges.

Significant advances in therapeutic approaches to the various GU malignancies have occurred over the past 10–15 years. Tools such as genomic analysis, various molecular biologic techniques, and biochemistry, are providing additional insights. Personalized approaches to GU tumors are not yet a reality, but certainly are a likely outcome of current research.
Review: Sumatriptan plus naproxen improves acute migraine more than placebo, sumatriptan, or naproxen

Source Citation Law S, Derry S, Moore RA. Sumatriptan plus naproxen for acute migraine attacks in adults. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2013;(10):CD008541. 24142431
Nicotinic receptors concentrated in the subsynaptic membrane do not contribute significantly to synaptic currents at an embryonic synapse in the chicken ciliary ganglion.

Rapid synaptic transmission at the calyciform synapse in the embryonic chicken ciliary ganglion is mediated by two classes of nicotinic receptors: those containing α3 subunits [α3-nicotinic ACh receptors (nAChRs)] and those containing α7 subunits (α7-nAChRs). α3-nAChRs and α7-nAChRs are differentially distributed on the cell surface; α3-nAChRs are concentrated at postsynaptic densities, whereas both α7-nAChRs and α3-nAChRs are found extrasynaptically on somatic spines. I explored the contribution of α3-nAChRs and α7-nAChRs to uniquantal responses, measured as mEPSCs, or as evoked responses under low release probability conditions. The contribution that each nAChR makes to uniquantal response shape was determined by blocking one nAChR type; pharmacologically isolated α7-nAChR responses were kinetically fast (rise time, 0.32 ± 0.02 ms; decay time, 1.66 ± 0.18 ms; mean ± SD; n = 6 cells), whereas pharmacologically isolated α3-nAChR responses were slow (rise time, 1.28 ± 0.35 ms; decay time, 6.71 ± 1.46 ms; n = 8 cells). In the absence of antagonists, most cells (11 of 14) showed heterogeneity in the kinetics of uniquantal responses, with ∼25% of events exhibiting fast, α7-nAChR-like kinetics and ∼75% of events exhibiting the kinetics expected of coactivation of α7-nAChRs and α3-nAChRs. Cells rarely showed significant numbers of uniquantal responses with slow, α3-nAChR-like kinetics, which was unexpected given that α3-nAChRs alone are concentrated at postsynaptic densities. The only site where ACh quanta can activate both α3-nAChRs and α7-nAChRs readily is on the somatic spines, where α7-nAChRs and α3-nAChRs are present extrasynaptically. At the calyciform synapse, rapid synaptic transmission is mediated apparently without participation of ionotropic receptors concentrated at postsynaptic densities.
Application of scenario reduction to LDC and risk based generation expansion planning

Two-stage stochastic mixed-integer programming models are formulated for minimizing expected cost or Conditional Value-at-Risk (CVaR) of a long-term power generation expansion planning problem incorporating load duration curves. The multivariate stochastic processes, such as electricity demands and fuel prices, are modeled as geometric Brownian motion (GBM) processes. Scenario paths for their future evolution are generated by statistical extrapolation of long-term historical trends. The size of the scenario set is controlled by using increasing length time periods in a tree structure. Nevertheless, some method of scenario thinning is necessary to achieve manageable solution times. To mitigate the computational complexity of the forward selection heuristic for scenario reduction, a combined heuristic scenario reduction method named Forward Selection in Wait-and-see Clusters (FSWC) is applied to the large scenario set. Numerical results for a twenty year generation expansion planning case study indicate substantial computational savings to achieve similar solutions as those obtained by forward selection alone.
Variations in mode shape for sensor placement in health monitoring systems

A generalization for a two-tier approach to damage identification based on structural performance and levels or magnitude of damage is presented. The two tiers are defined as health or damage monitoring and situation assessment. Damage monitoring involves the inspection of a structure for continual degradation caused by accumulated damage. Situation assessment results from a known incident with a high probably of damage. Initial work on damage monitoring of structural components examines the response of a flat plate as the first step in a series of analyses that will address more complex structures. Damage is included in the computational study in the form of damage to joints such as weld lines. Trends in local and global responses have been evaluated in order to develop an understanding of the implications of varying amounts of damage in the joints on structural response. Numerical based visualization techniques are used to isolate regions of mode shape variation with increasing damage. Implications and use of the developed techniques for monitoring and sensor placement requirements are noted.
Monoclonal Antibody Therapy for Genitourinary Oncology: Promise for the Future

Purpose: Metastatic or recurrent cancer continues to be the bane of the urological oncologist. Despite recent improvements in therapeutic strategies and outcomes for clinically localized disease overall survival in patients with the majority of metastatic and recurrent genitourinary malignancies remains relatively unchanged. Modern advances in the field of immunotherapy hold the promise of providing the clinical urologist/oncologist with new tools to fight urological cancer. In this review we discuss the various mAb based strategies currently under investigation for urological oncology as well as the lessons learned from similar approaches in other fields.Materials and Methods: We reviewed the literature on mAb based immunotherapy with a particular emphasis on target antigens, mAb design and potential applications in the field of urology.Results: Early trials with mAb therapy for solid tumor oncology met with limited success due to difficulty with mAb design and production, the development of host immunol...
Impedance spectroscopy of PEO-lithium triflate confined in nanopores of alumina membranes

Polymeric electrolytes are very useful for their technological applications in different electrochemical devices such as batteries, electrochromic devices, smart windows, etc. One of the most studied solid electrolyte system is PEO (poly-ethylene oxide) complexed with various lithium salts. A limitation of this polymer electrolyte is low ionic conductivity. However, nanoscale manipulation of the solid polymer electrolyte has the potential to address this issue. This work discusses how it is possible to increase the PEO conductivity when this polymer is contained in nanostructures, specifically nanopores. The nanostructures used are alumina filtration membranes (thickness=6 µm, diameter=13 mm) with three different pore sizes 0.02 µm, 0.1 µm and 0.2 µm. Electrochemical characterization has been performed with an HP4194A Impedance/Gain phase analyser and Solartron 1260 Impedance/Gain phase analyser. The former instrument tests these films at a high frequency (from 100 Hz to 40 MHz) while the later at low frequency (from 1 Hz to 1 MHz). From these experiments, it has been determined that two regions of ion conduction exit. One is conduction through the bulk polymer electrolyte in the pores while the other is an interfacial conduction at the interface between the pore walls and the PEO electrolyte. The conductivity of the PEO is increased when confined in these nanostructures.
Factors affecting the outcome of sperm competition in thirteen-lined ground squirrels

Abstract Thirteen-lined ground squirrels, Spermophilus tridecemlineatus , show a first-male advantage in sperm competition under field conditions. The hypothesis that this advantage is related to the delay between male matings was tested in a laboratory experiment using individuals of known allozyme genotype. The interval between first and second male matings was varied across a range extending from 0·38 to 3·83 h; observational data on male copulatory behaviour were also examined for the effects of copulation duration on fertilization success. The results indicated that paternity in this standardized situation was best predicted by a combination of two variables: the delay between the males' matings, and the duration of the longest copulation achieved by the second male.
Facing FGM/C through Intercultural Education: A Methodology for Secondary School Communities

Through this article we argue for the incorporation of methodologies and materials developed in the field of in tercultural education into the school curricula that will serve to develop knowledge, generate debate and, u ltimately, promote the acquisition of documented and structured opin ions/ideas about such a controversial issue as Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C). Dealing with FGM/C merely by waving t he flag of Human Rights can bring more discrimination and stigmatiza tion to those women subjected to this cultural practice. In order to av oid these kinds of oversimplifications, we propose dialogic literary gatherings as an educational action for the an alysis and understanding of FGM/C in secondary school communities. © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. Selection and peer-review under responsibility of Encarnacion Soria no, Christine Sleeter and Maria Antonia Casanova.
Potential significance of free taurine in the diet.

IN previous investigations it has been shown that free taurine is present in the tissues of both invertebrate and vertebrate species1,2. However, published taurine analyses of specific food items or animal tissues, used as food, have been extremely limited3,4. Various reasons may be put forward to account for this lack of information. First, in man, taurine has not been shown to have an active function, other than that of conjugation with bile-acids5. Secondly, more than forty years ago, Schmidt showed that the oral administration of taurine to human subjects resulted in the prompt urinary excretion of 60–87 per cent of the taurine sulphur in the organic form. It was presumed that the organic sulphur-containing constituent in the urine was free taurine6. Thirdly, until this investigation, the only reported toxic effect of taurine occurred in rabbits; while in man and other animals it has been shown to be non-toxic even in high dosage7,8.
Raman and Vibronic Spectra of the Nitrite Ion in Alkali Halides

Raman and vibronic absorption spectra associated with N$\mathrm{O}_{2}^{}{}_{}{}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ substitutional impurity in KCl, KBr, KI, and NaBr at 6 \ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}K are reported. The equilibrium orientation of the nitrite ion at low temperatures is determined from the stress-induced dichroism or splitting of the vibronic lines. Rotational fine structure on these lines is analyzed in terms of hindered rotation of the nitrite ion. Structure at higher frequencies in the vibronic and Raman spectra is assigned to perturbed lattice modes.
Imaging the Sun at 21 cm: Budgetting the S-component

On fourteen days in July and August 1992 and June 1993, we used the 7-element synthesis radio telescope at the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory to make full-disc, arc-min resolution images of the Sun at 21 cm, with the objective of budgetting the contributions to the slowly-varying component of solar radio emission. This instrument has the advantage that the mapping field at this wavelength is about 2.5° wide. However, it has also the severe disadvantage that with only 12 hours to record each image, the brightness distribution is severely undersampled. This difficulty, along with solar rotation and declination motion during each observation, required development of special image correction procedures.
Emotional Disclosure Through Journal Writing: Telehealth Intervention for Maternal Stress and Mother–Child Relationships

This study examines emotional disclosure through the activity of journaling as a means of coping with maternal stress associated with parenting a child with disruptive behaviors. Through a randomized control and pre-test post-test study design of an online journal writing intervention, change to maternal stress and quality of mother-child relationship for children with ASD, ADHD and SPD was addressed. Behavioral symptoms were found to be the primary source of parenting stress for mothers and a significant relationship between child characteristics and maternal stress was identified. Emotional disclosure through the online journal writing program (especially in the presence of high disclosure of negative emotions) was shown to reduce maternal stress and improve the quality of mother-child relationship. These findings suggest cost-effective telehealth interventions may support maternal health. Important clinical implications are discussed.
Early patency of the infarct-related artery after myocardial infarction preserves diastolic filling.

A patent infarct-related artery (IRA) following myocardial infarction has been associated with lower mortality, increased systolic function, decreased left ventricular remodeling, and electrical stability. The purpose of this study was to determine whether coronary artery patency early after myocardial infarction is associated with greater early diastolic filling than a closed artery. Radionuclide ventriculograms were performed at a central laboratory on 167 patients who received alteplase for an acute myocardial infarction and had infarct artery patency determined by cardiac catheterization. The peak early filling rate (PEFR) was assessed by 4 different methods: (1) PEFR (EDV/s)—normalized to the end-diastolic volume; (2) PEFR (SV/s)—normalized to the stroke volume; (3) PEFR (ml/s/m 2 )—an absolute diastolic filling rate; and (4) PEFR (PER)—normalized to the peak ejection rate. Patients with a closed IRA (n 5 16, Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction [TIMI] 0 or 1 flow) and patients with an open IRA (n 5 151, TIMI 2 or 3 flow) had similar ages, ejection fractions, and cardiac volumes. However, among patients with an occluded IRA, the PEFR was decreased by 12% to 18% by the 4 measures of diastolic filling (3 of 4 methods, p <0.05). PEFR (EDV/s) was 1.69 6 0.9 in the occluded group versus 2.06 6 0.4 EDV/s in the open artery group (p 5 0.005). By multivariate analysis, IRA patency was an independent predictor of the PEFR by all 4 methods. Early coronary artery patency after an acute myocardial infarction preserves diastolic filling. Improved diastolic function may in part explain part of the long-term benefits of a patent IRA after thrombolytic therapy when there is no documented improvement in the ejection fraction. Q2001 by Excerpta Medica, Inc. (Am J Cardiol 2001;87:955‐958)
Fetal pulmonary hypertension prolongs the endothelin-1 induced increase in pulmonary artery smooth muscle cell cytosolic calcium concentration

Introduction: At birth, pulmonary artery (PA) blood flow increases 8–10 fold and PA pressure falls by 50% within 24 hours. The mechanisms responsible for postnatal adaptation of the pulmonary circulation remain incompletely understood. High serum endothelin-1 (ET-1) levels are found in infants with persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn. We hypothesized that chronic intrauterine pulmonary hypertension (PHT) potentiates agonist induced increase of cytosolic calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i) in fetal PA smooth muscle cells(SMC). Methods: Chronic intrauterine pulmonary hypertension was induced by intrauterine ligation of the ductus arteriosus (DA) in late-gestation fetal lambs. 7–10 days following DA ligation, animals were euthanized. Distal PAs (>4th generation) were removed from the lung and PA SMC were isolated and maintained in normoxic (95%O2) primary culture. Age-matched non-PHT controls were sacrificed at ∼132 days gestation and cells were cultured in the same manner. Fluorescence microscopy using fura-2 was used to determine the effect of ET-1 (10−6 -10−8 M) on PA SMC [Ca2+]i from PHT and control animals. To determine the effect of PHT on endothelin A and B (ETA and ETB) receptor mRNA expression, quantitative, internally controlled RT-PCR was performed on distal PAs and SMC in culture. Results: ET-1 (10−8 M) caused a monophasic increase in [Ca2+]i (206 +/- 47%, p < 0.01 vs baseline) above baseline in controls (n = 25), while PHT SMC [Ca2+]i did not increase significantly. When PHT SMC were treated with 10−6M ET-1, in those cells that responded, [Ca2+]i increased 174 +/- 81% above baseline(p < 0.01 vs baseline). Only 3/33 (9%) of PHT SMC responded to ET-1 compared to 90% of controls. Additionally, the duration of the increase in [Ca2+]i was longer in the PHT SMC: PHT SMC [Ca2+]i fell to baseline after 328 +/- 16 sec, where control [Ca2+]i fell to baseline after 117 sec. ETA and ETB receptor mRNA expression are both increased in PHT. Conclusions: PHT decreases PA SMC sensitivity to ET-1 by ∼100 fold, however, PHT increases the duration of the ET-1 induced increase in [Ca2+]i. We conclude that PHT prolongs the response of PA SMC to ET-1. This prolongation may lead to significant increases in PA SMC [Ca2+]i that results in attenuated postnatal adaptation of the pulmonary circulation.
Effect of nordihydroguaiaretic acid on cerebral blood flow and metabolism during hypoxia in Newborn piglets

Nordihydroguaiaretic acid (NDGA), a lipoxygenase inhibitor, was investigated for its effect on cerebral blood flow (CBF) and cortical oxygen consumption during hypoxia in 9 anesthetized, ventilated newborn piglets. CBF was measured by radioactive microspheres while brain cortical metabolism was evaluated by continuous 31P-NMR spectroscopy. Five piglets were treated with NDGA (3 mg/kg i.v. in 50% ethanol as vehicle) prior to hypoxia and had CBF measured before NDGA (control), 15 min after NDGA (baseline) and then after 15 and 45 min of hypoxia following NDGA. Another 4 piglets were treated with vehicle (2 ml/kg 50% ethanol) under the same protocol. In the NDGA-treated piglets, cerebral cortical O2 consumption for a given PCr/Pi was significantly increased (p < 0.05) compared to non-NDGA. Since NDGA inhibits production of vasoconstricting leukotrienes during hypoxia, cortical capillary beds otherwise constricted may be perfused following NDGA, thus increasing the O2-consuming tissue area.
Effect of particulate matter on mass transfer through microporous hollow fiber membranes

Inner walls of microporous hollow fibers were exposed to a particle-laden gas stream for 80 h. The gas stream contained 0.25-μm diameter particles, typical of fly ash particles found in flue gas streams, that were generated by a wet-particle technique. During the deposition period, the pressure drop across the length of the fibers increased slowly at the start of the experiment and then more rapidly later, reaching 100 in. of water in 30 h. Particle interception by fibers at the feed inlet may be the chief reason for the rise in the pressure drop. The mass transfer coefficient (MTC) for SO2 absorption into water dropped by 20% during this time. Particles coating the inside fiber walls may be the chief reason for the reduction in MTC. While the pressure drop could be reversed to its original value by the backflow of a pressurized air-jet, the MTC could not.
Using the Four-Questions Technique to Enhance Learning

To assess the effect of a 4-question reflective learning technique on quiz performance, students engaged in an interactive activity, responded to 4 questions to encourage analyzing (i.e., what was learned), reflecting (i.e., why it is important), relating (i.e., how the material related to their personal lives), and generating (i.e., what questions they now have about the material), and took a quiz on the studied material. Quiz performance was better for students who responded to the 4 questions prior to the quiz than for those who did so after the quiz. Students also perceived the 4-question technique to be enjoyable and successful in meeting its objectives. We discuss how this simple technique effectively promotes students' understanding and memory.
Mapping of the distal boundary of the X-inactivation center in a rearranged X chromosome from a female expressing XIST

A female patient with primary amenorrhea, immature secondary sexual characteristics, and tall stature was found to have a normal X chromosome and a rearranged X [rea(X)] chromosome that resembled an 'isochromosome' Xp, but retained the proximal portion of Xq. The rea(X) was interpreted as rec(X)dup p,inv(X)(p11.4q13). Replication studies demonstrated that the rea(X) was always the late-replicating and, therefore, presumably inactive X chromosome, which must contain the X-inactivation center. Consistent with this interpretation, fluorescence in situ hybridization demonstrated that the rea(X) retained the XIST gene, and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction analysis showed that XIST was expressed in the patient's cells. By fluorescence in situ hybridization with previously mapped probes, the breakpoint of the rea(X) was located within an approximately 500-kb region located approximately 200 to 700 kb distal to the XIST locus. This is the closest breakpoint distal to XIST in an inactivated X chromosome and, therefore, defines a new distal boundary for the X-inactivation center in humans.
SHARED COMPONENTS IN STUDENTS' RATINGS OF INSTRUCTORS' EFFECTIVENESS AND NEED FOR IMPROVEMENT

Summary.-The study determined the best predictors of instructors' effectiveness and need for improvement ratings by 2,012 college students. Ratings were more useful in predicting effectiveness (R = .86) than in predicting need for improvement (R = .71). Interest/Attention Value and Clarity of Explanation were major predictors in both stepwise regression analyses. Meredith (3, p. 993) reported an inverse relationship between students' ratings of instructors' effectiveness and perceived need for improvement (s = -.62, df > 1000, p < ,001). A simple model of correlation based on the sharing of common elements suggests that subjects are applying somewhat similar and equally weighted components in both ratings tasks. The negatlve sign of the relationship is attributable to the direction of the scaling categories. An alternative and more complex model suggests that the underlying components may differ between judgment tasks and that these components may be weighted differently. The purposes of the study were to (a) replicate the previously reported relationship between instructor's effectiveness and need for improvement, (b) determine the best predictors of each of these ratings, and (c) identify areas of consensus and difference in the judgment tasks. Subjects were 2,012 students enrolled in 90 lecture-format courses and sections at the University of Hawaii. The UHM Instructor-Course Evaluation Scale of 16 5-point ratings was administered during the last week of instruction (Fall semester 1986). Two criterion ratings were identified, (a) Instructor's effectiveness ("Compared with other instructors that you've taken at the university, how would you evaluate this instructor?" (1 = Poor, 5 = Excellent), and (b) Need for Improvement ("Based on your observations this semester, indicate the extent to which you feel that your instructor needs
Abnormalities in ureter and kidney development in mice given acetazolamide-amiloride or dimethadione (DMO) during embryogenesis.

These experiments more accurately define the effects of the combination acetazolamide-amiloride or a single dose of dimethadione (DMO), the active metabolite of trimethadione, on the development of the ureter. When acetazolamide-amiloride was administered in C57BL/6NCrlBR mice on day 9, 9.5, or 10 of gestation (plug=day 0) a second ureter was formed, anterior to the original ureter, inducing a second kidney. The second ureter then fails to make a connection with the developing bladder and remains attached to the mesonephric duct