cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Fast Multipole Boundary Element Method for 3-D Full- and Half-Space Acoustic Wave Problems

In this paper, the fast multipole boundary element method (BEM) for modeling acoustic wave problems in both 3-D full- and half-space domains will be discussed. First, the fast multipole BEM formulations will be presented and then improvements to the formulations and algorithms will be discussed. Examples with large-scale acoustic BEM models, with the DOFs above 2 millions and solved on desktop PCs, will be presented to demonstrate the potential of the fast multipole BEM for modeling large-scale structural acoustic problems.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
Alkyl nitrate formation from the reaction of a series of branched RO2 radicals with NO as a function of temperature and pressure

Alkyl nitrate yields from the NOx photooxidations of neopentane, 2-methylbutane and 3-methylpentane have been determined over the temperature and pressure ranges 281–323 K and 54–740 torr, respectively. The formation of the alkyl nitrates is attributed to the reaction pathway $${\text{RO}}_{\text{2}} + {\text{NO}}^{{\text{ }}\underrightarrow {\text{M}}} {\text{ RONO}}_{\text{2}}$$ (1b) and rate constant ratios k1b/(k1a+k1b) are estimated, where (1a) is the reaction pathway $${\text{RO}}_{\text{2}} + {\text{NO}} \to {\text{RONO}}_{\text{2}} .$$ (1a)
Improving patient flow at an outpatient clinic: study of sources of variability and improvement factors.

This paper focuses on analyzing and improving patient flow at an outpatient clinic of the Indiana University Medical Group. A structured process analysis and improvement approach was used to identify sources of variability and improvement factors. A process map, that matched the flow process at the clinic, was developed and validated. Key sources of variability that had potential to contribute to congestion in flow were identified. Data on task times were collected by observing the process with stopwatch or from historical records. A simulation model corresponding to the process map was developed, and the output was validated. Several ideas to modify clinic operations were tested on the validated simulation model. The overall result was an improvement in both the mean and the standard deviation of patient wait time, as well as higher utilization of physicians’ time. The clinic has implemented several of our recommendations and experienced significant improvements.
Assessing past climate changes from proxy records: an iterative process between discovery and observations

Abstract The past state of the atmosphere is obtained from the analyses of diverse ‘proxy samples’. Progress has been made in the last few decades due to: (1) discovery of new proxy matrices; (2) discovery of new methods of characterizing and reading the proxies, and (3) synthesis of information obtained from diverse proxy records from different parts of the globe. The science of reading multiple records in a proxy matrix is a synergistic activity, which leads to both validation, and growth of knowledge. This field is now emerging as an artful field where the scientist has gained uncanny skills in reading the evolutionary history of the earth's atmosphere over a wide range of time scales from decades to millions of years. There is no scarcity of proxy records. As matter evolves, it continually leaves behind proxies of great variety. Our capability to use them depends primarily on technological abilities to determine the nature and veracity of the recording matrix. Examples are presented of important climatic information that is currently available about the environment of the atmosphere, using the techniques available to date. These include recently developed methods of determination of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations to several hundred millions of years in the past, and cosmogenic methods for studying climate, atmospheric aridity and solar activity in the past several thousand to millions of years.
“I'm Still Blessed”: The Assets and Needs of HIV-Affected Caregivers over 50:

This article describes assets and needs of seven older HIV-affected family caregivers in the Boston area who participated in qualitative interviews in 1998. The study invited caregivers' unstructured narratives, hearing what they had to teach informal and formal caregivers, and documenting a broad range of concerns. When invited to describe their realities, these seven caregivers showed great resilience and were able to find blessings in their lives of caregiving. However, they also experienced stress that was at times overwhelming. This exploratory study suggests that older HIV-affected caregivers may feel stressed and blessed by the same elements in their lives: their own emotional reactions, their relationships with the care recipients, and their sense of social justice. As practitioners seek out and encounter older HIV-affected caregivers, it would be useful to keep in mind that they are likely to have emotional pluses and minuses; they experience both benefits and deficits in the care relationship; a...
Fibronectin adsorpton kinetics on phase segregated polyurethaneureas.

The kinetics of fibronectin (FN) adsorption upon three polyurethaneureas (PUU) were measured by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The three polymers had soft blocks composed of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), polytetramethyleneoxide (PTMO), and polyethyleneoxide (PEO). On each polymer, the amount of adsorbate increased proportional to the square root of time, but the rates were less than that predicted for purely diffusion controlled adsorption. Adsorption rate constants and sticking coefficients (the fraction of encounters with the surface which result in adsorption) were calculated from the data. The adsorption rate constants are 4.8 x 10-4, 1.3 × 10-4, and 2.5 x 10-5 cm/s on PDMS-PUU, PTMO-PUU and PEO-PUU respectively. The rate constants and sticking coefficients fall within the range of previously reported values for other protein/polymer systems. The sticking coefficients correlate in general with the amount of FN adsorbed at 120 min, and with the extent of conformational change of the adsorbed p...
Color-naming of M-cone incremental flashes

To study which hues are associated with brief excitations of foveal middle-wavelength (M) cones, two highly practiced color-normal observers (the authors) gave basic color names to 500 and 530 nm increments. The test spots were presented to the fovea and foveola in conditions that included M-cone isolation. 1° and 3.6 min arc tests were flashed for 200 ms on steady 8.6′, 1°, or 10° monochromatic adapting fields (481, 530, 610, and 630 nm), or on mixtures of these fields, or on a dark field. Tests were flashed at 1, 2, 4, and 8 × thresholds. Field hue had little overall effect. Yellow, green, blue-green, and blue color-names were elicited, both for the foveal 1° tests and for 3.6 min tests confined to the S-cone free foveola. These data add to previous research by showing a contribution of M-cones to blueness on monochromatic fields, as well as on achromatic fields. Because the 500 and 530 nm tests appear green when presented steadily on these same fields, the M-cone contribution to blue may well be transitory. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Col Res Appl, 26, 132–140, 2001
ACM transactions on database systems: aim and scope

Record-keeping and decision-making in industry and government are increasingly based on data stored in computer processable databases. Thus the need for improved computer technology for building, managing, and using these databases is clearly evident. This need is particularly acute in a complex society where the interrelationships among various aspects of the society must be identified and represented. The data which must be used to represent these relationships are growing more complex in nature and becoming greater in size. Furthermore, the increasing on-line use of computer systems and the proliferation and mass introduction of multilevel secondary storage suggests that future computer systems will be primarily oriented toward database management. The large size of future on-line databases will require the computer system to manage local as well as physical resources. The management of logical resources is concerned with the organization, access, update, storage, and sharing of the data and programs in the database. In addition, the sharing of data means that the database system must be capable of providing privacy protection and of controlling access to the users' data. The term data is interpreted broadly to include textual, numeric, and signal data as well as data found in structured records.The aim of ACM Transactions on Database Systems (TODS) is to serve as a focal point for an integrated dissemination of database research and development on storage and processor hardware, system software, applications, information science, information analysis, and file management. These areas are particularly relevant to the following ACM Special Interest Groups: Business Data Processing (SIGBDP), Information Retrieval (SIGIR), and Management of Data (SIGMOD). TODS will also embrace parts of the Management/Database Systems and the Information Retrieval and Language Processing sections of Communications of the ACM.High quality papers on all aspects of computer database systems will be published in TODS. The scope of TODS emphasizes data structures; storage organization; data collection and dissemination; search and retrieval strategies; update strategies; access control techniques; data integrity; security and protection; design and implementation of database software; database related languages including data description languages, query languages, and procedural and nonprocedural data manipulation languages; language processing; analysis and classification of data; database utilities; data translation techniques; distributed database problems and techniques; database recovery and restart; database restructuring; adaptive data structures; concurrent access techniques; database computer hardware architecture; performance and evaluation; intelligent front ends; and related subjects such as privacy and economic issues.
The mechanism of C- and G-banding of chromosomes

Abstract A series of biochemical, staining and electron microscopy techniques were utilized to investigate the mechanisms of C- and G-banding. These led to the following conclusions. 1. 1. The treatment of fixed chromosomes with 0.07 N NaOH for 30 to 180 sec removes from 16 to 81% of the DNA from the chromosomes. 2. 2. On average, the complete C-band technique removes 60% of the DNA. 3. 3. This DNA is preferentially extracted from the non-C-band regions. 4. 4. In marked contrast to this, all G-band techniques (except 1) removed less than 9% of the chromosomal DNA. 5. 5. Most of the G-band techniques, including those using trypsin, remove very little protein from the chromosomes. 6. 6. Feulgen staining indicated that neither C- nor G-banding can be explained on the basis of different amounts of DNA along the length of the chromatid. 7. 7. Treatment of chromosomes with alkali or prolonged treatment with trypsin tends to destroy G-bands, while C-bands remain. 8. 8. The combined use of acridine orange and Giemsa staining indicate that, (a) repetitious DNA in situ renatures in seconds while non-repetitious DNA renatures in minutes; (b) Neither C- nor G-banding depends upon the differential renaturation of DNA for its effect. 9. 9. G-banding is more delicate and relatively mild conditions allow staining of both C- and G-bands. To obtain only C-bands the chromosome must be treated more harshly to disrupt or destroy the G-bands. 10. 10. DNA-non histone protein interactions probably play an important role in the production of both C- and G-banding.
A Preliminary Investigation on the Grip Force Applied on a Cylindrical Handle

Hand grip force is an important factor for risk assessment of hand musculoskeletal disorders. Grip strength is also one of the important indices for the diagnosis of hand disorders such as hand-arm vibration syndrome and carpel tunnel syndrome. Therefore, a considerable number of studies on grip force or strength have been reported. However, it remains an important issue how to quantify the grip force or strength. Conventionally, the grip force is measured using a handle that measures the applied force in two opposite directions in the grip action. However, it has been demonstrated that the grip force applied on a cylindrical handle is not uniformly distributed in each orientation of the hand [1]. Therefore, the grip force measured in a specific direction may not be an accurate measure of the grip effort. Alternatively, the total grip force has been proposed to serve as the grip measure [2]. The major objectives of this study are as follows: (i) to develop a cylindrical instrumented handle that can be used to perform the measurement of the total grip force and to characterize its distribution around the handle; (ii) to estimate the principle grip force and direction; and (iii) to investigate the relationship between the total grip force and that measured on a Jamar handle.
Modeling radar reflections from randomly moving scatterers

The reflected signal from the randomly moving scatterers on a target is a sinusoidal with a random phase and random amplitude. The scattering function is derived. This model can be used to discriminate different targets as well as modeling clutter echoes.
238 - Two opposing theories of the cellular electrical potential: a quarter of a century of experimental testing☆

Abstract The fundamental differences between the Hodgkin-Katz ionic theory of cellular electric potential and the surface adsorption theory of cellular electric potential (an integral part of the association-induction hypothesis) were summarized and compared with results of experiments designed to test these theories that had accumulated over a period of more than a quarter of a century.
Detection and Electrical Properties of Cd1-xZnxTe Detectors at Elevated Temperatures.

We have studied the behavior of Cd1−xZnxTe detectors in the temperature range 24–70°C. The detector count rate stability and leakage currents are presented as a function of voltage, time, and temperature. Detector polarization due to bulk and surface effects leading to a decreased leakage current was observed. At 70°C, the position of the 32 keV photopeak of133Ba was stable with time. The peak position varies within only 3 keV, and the peak quality factor varied between 0.31 and 0.41, for a 24 h period of operation at a 60 V bias. The net count to total count ratio was also stable, with values varying between 0.56 and 0.59. The net count to total count ratio decreased from 0.78 at 25°C to 0.71 at 60°C. The conclusion is that Cd1−xZnxTe is a promising material for gamma ray detection at temperatures above room temperature.
Essential issues in the design of shared document/image libraries

We consider what is needed to create electronic document libraries which mimic physical collections of books, papers, and other media. The quantitative measures of merit for personal workstations-cost, speed, size of volatile and persistent storage-will improve by at least an order ofmagnitude in the next decade. Every professional worker will be able to afford a very powerful machine, but databases and libraries are not really economical and useful unless they are shared. We therefore see a two-tier world emerging, in which custodians of information make it available to network-attached workstations. A client-server model is the natural description of this world. In collaboration with several state governments, we have considered what would be needed to replace paper-based record management for a dozen different applications. We find that a professional worker can anticipate most data needs and that (s)he is interested in each clump of data for a period of days to months. We further find that only a small fraction of any collection will be used in any period. Given expected bandwidths, data sizes, search times and costs, and other such parameters, an effective strategy to support user interaction is to bring large clumps from their sources, to transform them into convenient representations, and only then start whatever investigation is intended. A system-managed hierarchy of caches and archives is indicated. Each library is a combination of a catalog and a collection, and each stored item has a primary instance which is the standard by which the correctness of any copy is judged. Catalog records mostly refer to 1 to 3 stored items. Weighted by the number of bytes to be stored, immutable data dominate collections. These characteristics affect how consistency, currency, and access control of replicas distributed in the network should be managed. We present the large features of a design for network docun1ent/image library services. A prototype is being built for State of California pilot applications. The design allows library servers in any environment with an ANSI SQL database; clients execute in any environment; conimunications are with either TCP/IP or SNA LU 6.2.© (1990) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Structural differences in solutions derived from polymorphic modifications of aspirin

Differences in the structure of solutions derived from two polymorphic modifications of aspirin were demonstrated through differences in apparent pKa values. The apparent pKa's were determined in dimethylformamide using tetrabutyl-ammonium hydroxide as the titrant. The pKa differences were ascribed to differences in intra- and intermolecular hydrogen bonding of the solute.
Philip R. White (1901–1968)—a tribute

The groundbreaking research carried out by Philip R. White in the 1930s and 1940s played a critical early role in the development of modern plant biotechnology and the production of biotech crops. He gained instant fame and became a historical figure early in his career by becoming the first person to attain unlimited growth of cultured plant tissues. White was one of the best known and most influential figures of his generation in plant cell culture research. His tireless and lifelong efforts to promote the use of plant cell culture systems inspired a generation of scientists and stimulated much scientific activity. White was not only a brilliant and visionary scientist but also a highly principled man who spoke courageously about the great moral and political issues of his day. He was admired as much for his science as for his humanity. His belief that plant cell culture research was not well represented at national and international meetings, and his deeply held conviction that science had to be international and without borders in order to be of service to humankind led to the founding of the International Association for Plant Biotechnology in 1963, currently the largest forum for the international plant biotechnology community. This tribute honors and celebrates Philip R. White for his inspiring science, for his kind and generous mentoring of young scientists, for his advocacy of plant cell culture research and its applications, for his promotion of international scientific exchange and cooperation, and for his leadership in the founding of the International Association for Plant Biotechnology.
Fault-Tolerant Operation of Multiphase Permanent-Magnet Machines Using Iterative Learning Control

Fault-tolerant control (FTC) techniques for multiphase permanent magnet (PM) motors are usually designed to achieve maximum ripple-free torque under fault conditions with minimum ohmic losses. A widely accepted approach is based on flux distribution or back EMF (BEM) model of the machine to calculate healthy phase currents. This is essentially an open-loop technique where currents are determined (based on motor fault models) for each fault scenario. Therefore, it is highly model dependent. Since torque pulsation due to open-circuit faults and short-circuit faults are periodic, learning and repetitive control algorithms are excellent choices to minimize torque ripple. In this paper, iterative learning control (ILC) is applied as a current control technique for recovering performance in multiphase PM motor drives under fault conditions. The ILC-based FTC needs torque measurement or estimation, but avoids the need for complicated fault detection and fault diagnosis algorithms. Furthermore, BEM-based FTC and ILC-based FTC are proposed that initiates the learning from a model-based approximate guess (from the BEM method). Therefore, this method combines the advantages of both model information as well as robustness to model uncertainty through learning. Hence, the proposed method is well suited for high-performance safety critical applications. Finite element analysis and experimental results on a five-phase PM machine are presented for verification of the proposed control schemes.
Field projects and the dilemma of distance

The challenges of online teaching are many and difficult. An important challenge for an applied anthropology graduate program is how to provide the students with a valid, team, field experience. In this article the authors discuss the many issues they are finding in constructing a virtual ethnographic field experience. Both authors teach a course in the online program which requires such a field experience, and both have taught their courses in the face-to-face environment. Henry teaches the Qualitative Methods course, which obviously benefits from a field project working for a specific client. Jordan teaches an Organizational Anthropology course which includes a field project wherein the students conduct an organizational evaluation for a client. Both authors are committed to the need for a field project in their courses. They feel strongly that professional training for applied anthropologists must include hands on experiences in projects with clients who are outside the academy. Not only are these vita...
Safety of Gardening on Lead- and Arsenic-Contaminated Urban Brownfields

Elevated levels of lead (Pb) and arsenic (As) are not uncommon for urban soils. Test plots were established at urban gardens in Tacoma and Seattle, WA. The Tacoma site was contaminated with Pb (51–312 mg kg -1 ) and As (39–146 mg kg -1 ), and the Seattle site had high Pb soil concentrations ranging from 506 to 2022 mg kg -1 and As concentrations of carrot > tomato. Food-chain transfer of Pb and As in vegetables grown in contaminated urban soils were reduced by laboratory cleaning.
Determination of initial reaction rates using wilkinson's relation

Uncertainty sometimes exists in determining initial reaction rates from experimental data. A method, originally proposed by Wilkinson [9] for estimating orders and rate constants for simple batch nth order reactions, has been generalized to complex kinetic systems. This method yields very accurate initial rates for all systems and extends the conversion range of experimental investigation of initial rates well beyond the “zero-order” region. Accurate initial rates are required in analytical methods used for screening alternate reaction mechanisms.
Nuclear quadrupole interaction in liquid gallium

Abstract The spin relaxation time (T 1 ) in several liquid metals fits the Korringa relation, if correction are made for electron-electron interaction. In gallium there is evidence for an additional relaxation mechanism due to quadrupole interaction. Its magnitude suggests that the environment of an atom in liquid gallium is about as anisotropic as in the solid phase.
Federal politics and market reform in the developing world

Prior research on the politics of market reform in developing nations has generally ignored the significant role of federal political and economic arrangements in shaping adjustment processes. In contrast, this research develops a model of macroeconomic reform that accounts for the significance of subnational economic policy in the developing world’s nine major federations. I examine five hypotheses which are expected to influence the capacity of developing federations to conduct polity consistent with the exigencies of market pressures. With the use of a cross-sectional time-series analysis of fiscal and monetary policies, I show that the policy divergence between levels of government shrinks when provincial governments have greater fiscal power and there are high degrees of party centralization across levels of government. These findings have important implications for the political economy of market reform, the widespread move toward fiscal decentralization, and the design of regional supranational institutions.
Spontaneous motor seizures of rats with kainate-induced epilepsy: effect of time of day and activity state.

Kainate treatment in rats can result in a chronic behavioral state that is similar to human temporal lobe epilepsy. We tested the hypothesis that, like some humans with epilepsy, rat with kainate-induced epilepsy have more spontaneous motor seizures during inactivity (i.e. little to no volitional movement, including apparent sleep) than during activity (i.e. apparent volitional movement, as in walking, grooming, eating, etc.). Rats were given intraperitoneal (i.p.) injections of kainate (5 mg/kg) every hour so that class III/IV/V seizures were elicited for > or = 3 h. Seizure behavior was video-monitored (24 h for 5-6 days, n = 32 rats at 3 months and n = 23 rats at 4 months after treatment) to examine the occurrence of seizures as a function of light versus dark (12-12-h light-dark cycle) and inactivity versus activity. Significantly more spontaneous motor seizures occurred during inactive versus active states (82% vs. 18%, P = 0.0001). Although more seizures occurred during the light period than the dark, the difference was not significant (62% vs. 38%, P > 0. 1). These data suggest that the frequency of spontaneous motor seizures in the rat with kainate-induced epilepsy depends primarily on activity state rather than time of day (i.e. time during the light-dark cycle). The effect of inactivity on the occurrence of seizures in the rat with kainate-induced epilepsy appears similar to some forms of human epilepsy.
Shifting Perspectives on American Exceptionalism: Recent Literature on American Labor Relations and Labor Politics

Nearly a decade ago, historian Alan Dawley proclaimed the idea of American exceptionalism to be dead and buried. Dawley's pronouncement proved premature given the subsequent publication of books by Byron Shafer and Seymour Martin Lipset reaffirming the concept, as well as studies by Ian Tyrell, George Fredrickson, and others addressing the issue. However, the motion of American uniqueness so widely accepted a generation ago has come under serious challenge, and new conceptions of American “distinctiveness” or “variability” have emerged in recent scholarship.
Alzheimer Disease With Psychosis: Excess Cognitive Impairment Is Restricted to the Misidentification Subtype

Objective Psychotic symptoms occur in 30%–60% of individuals with Alzheimer disease (AD) with psychosis (AD+P). AD+P identifies a distinct AD phenotype, with increased severity of cognitive impairment and a more rapid cognitive decline. Using factor and cluster analysis, we previously proposed two subtypes of patients with AD+P, one characterized by misidentifications and hallucinations (Misidentification), the other by persecutory delusions (Paranoid). We hypothesized that these two groups differed in their patterns of cognitive impairment, compared with AD subjects without psychosis. Methods Subjects (N=119) with possible or probable AD were assessed with a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery at the time of initial presentation. Psychotic symptoms were ascertained with the CERAD Behavioral Rating Scale. Cognitive test scores were compared among groups by use of general linear-regression models, with age, education, and duration of illness entered as covariates. All results were corrected for multiple comparisons. Results The Misidentification group was significantly more impaired than the Non-Psychotic group on tests of verbal fluency and visuospatial function. The Paranoid group did not differ from the Non-Psychotic group on any test. Conclusions These results support the identification of the Misidentification and Paranoid groups as distinct subgroups of AD+P. The ability to detect meaningful biologic associations of AD+P in future studies would be enhanced by separate analysis of the Misidentification and Paranoid phenotypes.
A novel Euglena gracilis chloroplast operon encoding four ATP synthase subunits and two ribosomal proteins contains 17 introns

The structure of a Euglena gracilis chloroplast operon encoding four subunits of the chloroplast ATP synthase complex and two ribosomal proteins has been determined. These six genes contain 17 introns. This operon is transcribed as a hexacistronic primary transcript which is subsequently processed to monocistronic mRNAs. The linear order of these genes, 5′-rps2-atpI-atpH-atpF-atpA-rps18-3′, encoding ribosomal protein S2, chloroplast ATP synthase subunits CF0IV, CF0III, CF0I, CF1α and ribosomal protein S18, respectively, is similar to the equivalent operons of prokaryotes, cyanelles and land-plant chloroplasts. This operon differs from those of these other organisms in the co-transcription of rps18 and in intron content.
Evidence of an Excited State in the Alpha-Particle

It has been shown (1) that lithium bombarded with protons gives rise to a gamma-ray of about 12 m.e.v. and probably a second gamma-ray of about 4 m.e.v. energy. The 12 m.e.v. component we ascribe to the process 3Li7+1H1→2 2He4 because this appears to be the only reaction involving lithium and protons in which sufficient energy is released.
Contiguous scalp, skull, and epidural hodgkin's disease

A patient with Hodgkin's disease of the nodular sclerosing subtype presented with recurrent disease at the site of a previous blunt trauma to the head. The tumor involved the scalp and subjacent skull and epidural space. This particular presentation of Hodgkin's disease is probably unique, and involvement of the skull and cranial cavity by this subtype of Hodgkin's disease is rare.
Rays and time dispersion in multimode graded core fibres

The propagation of a bundle of rays in a multimode graded core fibre is investigated. The analytical conditions for minimizing time dispersion for the bundle of rays are found and tested on a number of profiles including the so called alpha profile. Finally an estimate of the width of the impulse response is given and applied to different profiles.
Successful Nonoperative Management of Acute Intraperitoneal Hemorrhage Due to Undiagnosed Polyarteritis Nodosa

We present a rare case of polyarteritis nodosa (PAN), where the initial presentation was intraperitoneal hemorrhage. The diagnosis was confirmed on angiography, and the patient was managed medically without laparotomy. PAN is an extremely rare cause of spontaneous intraperitoneal bleeding but must be carefully considered in the differential diagnosis in order to insure appropriate management of this group of patients.
Utility of in vitro culture to the study of plant mitochondrial genome configuration and its dynamic features

Recombination activity plays an important role in the heteroplasmic and stoichiometric variation of plant mitochondrial genomes. Recent studies show that the nuclear gene MSH1 functions to suppress asymmetric recombination at 47 repeat pairs within the Arabidopsis mitochondrial genome. Two additional nuclear genes, RECA3 and OSB1, have also been shown to participate in the control of mitochondrial DNA exchange in Arabidopsis. Here, we demonstrate that repeat-mediated de novo recombination is enhanced in Arabidopsis and tobacco mitochondrial genomes following passage through tissue culture, which conditions the MSH1 and RECA3 suppressions. The mitochondrial DNA changes arising through in vitro culture in tobacco were reversible by plant regeneration, with correspondingly restored MSH1 transcript levels. For a growing number of plant species, mitochondrial genome sequence assembly has been complicated by insufficient information about recombinationally active repeat content. Our data suggest that passage through cell culture provides a rapid and effective means to decipher the dynamic features of a mitochondrial genome by comparative analysis of passaged and non-passaged mitochondrial DNA samples following next-generation sequencing and assembly.
Validation of key behaviourally based mental health diagnoses in administrative data: suicide attempt, alcohol abuse, illicit drug abuse and tobacco use

Observational research frequently uses administrative codes for mental health or substance use diagnoses and for important behaviours such as suicide attempts. We sought to validate codes (International Classification of Diseases, 9 th edition, clinical modification diagnostic and E-codes) entered in Veterans Health Administration administrative data for patients with depression versus a gold standard of electronic medical record text ("chart notation"). Three random samples of patients were selected, each stratified by geographic region, gender, and year of cohort entry, from a VHA depression treatment cohort from April 1, 1999 to September 30, 2004. The first sample was selected from patients who died by suicide, the second from patients who remained alive on the date of death of suicide cases, and the third from patients with a new start of a commonly used antidepressant medication. Four variables were assessed using administrative codes in the year prior to the index date: suicide attempt, alcohol abuse/dependence, drug abuse/dependence and tobacco use. Specificity was high (≥ 90%) for all four administrative codes, regardless of the sample. Sensitivity was ≤75% and was particularly low for suicide attempt (≤ 17%). Positive predictive values for alcohol dependence/abuse and tobacco use were high, but barely better than flipping a coin for illicit drug abuse/dependence. Sensitivity differed across the three samples, but was highest in the suicide death sample. Administrative data-based diagnoses among VHA records have high specificity, but low sensitivity. The accuracy level varies by different diagnosis and by different patient subgroup.
Reasoning about uncertain contexts in pervasive computing environments

Context-aware systems can't always identify the current context precisely, so they need support for handling uncertainty. A prototype pervasive computing infrastructure, Gaia, allows applications and services to reason about uncertainty using mechanisms such as probabilistic logic, fuzzy logic, and Bayesian networks.
Evidence of ubisemiquinone radicals in electron transfer at the cytochromes b and c1 region of the cardiac respiratory chain

Abstract A highly purified reduced ubiquinone-cytochrome c reductase preparation (the b - c 1 III complex) has been made. The b - c 1 III complex is not reconstitutively active with succinate dehydrogenase. When the complex at about 10 mg/ml is reduced by succinate in the presence of catalytic (nanomolar) amounts of SDH and a ubiquinone protein (required in the succinate dehydrogenase region i.e, OP-S), a ubisemiquinone radical(s) has been detected using EPR measurements. The formation of the radical(s) is concurrent with the reduction of cytochrome b after the complete reduction of cytochrome c 1 . All these rates are dependent on the amounts of succinate dehydrogenase and QP-S used. The maximal concentration of the radical formed is independent of the amounts of succinate dehydrogenase and QP-S added but dependent on the amount of succinate present. The formation of the radical and the reduction of b and c 1 by succinate requires the presence of phospholipids. Addition of thenoyltrifluoroacetone not only prevents the formation of the ubisemiquinone but also abolishes the prior formed radical and causes the reoxidation of b . Antimycin A also diminishes the radical intensity but causes only slight reoxidation of prior reduced cytochrome b . Treatment of the b - c 1 III complex with α-chymotrypsin results in the diminishing of the radical formation. Consideration of all these results presented collectively indicates the existence of a ubiquinone binding protein in the b - c 1 III complex preparation.
Coal dust explosibility

This paper reports US Bureau of Mines (USBM) research on the explosibility of coal dusts. The purpose of this work is to improve safety in mining and other industries that process or use coal. Most of the tests were conducted in the USBM 20 litre laboratory explosibility chamber. The laboratory data show relatively good agreement with those from full-scale experimental mine tests. The parameters measured included minimum explosible concentrations, maximum explosion pressures, maximum rates of pressure rise, minimum oxygen concentrations, and amounts of limestone rock dust required to inert the coals. The effects of coal volatility and particle size were evaluated, and particle size was determined to be at least as important as volatility in determining the explosion hazard. For all coals tested, the finest sizes were the most hazardous. The coal dust explosibility data are compared to those of other hydrocarbons, such as polyethylene dust and methane gas, in an attempt to understand better the basics of coal combustion.
Monofactorial inheritance of early sexual receptivity in the mosquito, Aedes atropalpus.

Summary 1. Aedes atropalpus, a rockpool breeding mosquito, shows at least two distinct behaviour types with regard to the time of onset of receptivity to insemination. 2. The autogenous strain shows an early onset of receptivity with a mean insemination time of 38 hr. The anautogenous strain shows a prolonged refractory period with a mean insemination time of 120 hr (5 days). 3. Analysis of hybrids and backcrosses indicate that early receptivity is under the control of a single, autosoma, semi-dominant gene. 4. The sexual behaviour of the two strains appears to differ as a result of differential rates of hormone production by the corpora allata. The autogenous strain, with a more rapid rate of hormone production and a consequently high juvenile hormone titre soon after emergence, becomes receptive early. The anautogenous strain with a slower rate of hormone production exhibits a significantly delayed receptivity. The hybrids are intermediate but more closely resemble the autogenous line. 5. Application of a juvenile hormone analogue to the anautogenous strain, homozygous for late receptivity, produced sexually precocious females which were inseminated as early as autogenous strain females.
Fibronectin-associated transforming growth factor

We have studied the ability of fibronectins to induce anchorage-independent growth of NRK-49F cells in serum-free medium. Cells were seeded in soft agar in the presence of various concentrations of plasma fibronectins, and colonies were counted after 10 days. It was found that, with some exceptions, human plasma fibronectins induced anchorage-independent growth at concentrations in 20-100 micrograms/ml range. The ability of exogenously supplied fibronectins to promote anchorage-independent growth of NRK cells is attributed to a transforming growth factor (TGF) activity associated with gelatin-agarose affinity purified plasma fibronectins. This TGF activity required epidermal growth factor (EGF) in our serum-free assay system. The TGF-like activity appears to either co-purify or to be associated with fibronectin at neutral pH during molecular sieve chromatography and during ultracentrifugation through sucrose density gradients. The TGF activity "dissociates" from fibronectin at extremes of pH, however, and can be separated from fibronectin by molecular sieve chromatography in 1 M acetic acid. Under these conditions, the TGF-like activity chromatographed as a single peak with an apparent molecular weight of approximately 30 kDa. The physical-chemical properties, chromatographic behavior, and biological activity of this TGF suggest that it is type-beta transforming growth factor/growth inhibitor (beta-TGF/GI). The TGF activity has been observed in fibronectin isolated from fresh human plasma as well as in fibronectins from several other species obtained from commercial suppliers. Our results would suggest that caution be applied in the interpretation of experiments in which gelatin affinity purified fibronectins are used at micrograms/ml concentrations.
Sympathetic Block with Botulinum Toxin to Treat Complex Regional Pain Syndrome

Complex regional pain syndrome is a refractory pain condition with few tested therapies. We hypothesized that botulinum toxin A (BTA) would prolong analgesia after sympathetic blocks in patients with complex regional pain syndrome. We compared the duration of standard lumbar sympathetic block (LSB) with bupivacaine to LSB with bupivacaine and BTA in nine patients with refractory complex regional pain syndrome. Median time to analgesic failure was 71 (95% confidence interval, 12–253) days after LSB with BTA compared with fewer than 10 days (95% confidence interval, 0–12) after standard LSB (log-rank, p < 0.02). BTA profoundly prolonged the analgesia from sympathetic block in this preliminary study.
The spectral diameter as a function of the diagonal entries

For certain specified real symmetric matrices A the spectral diameter of A – diag (A) is less than or equal to the spectral diameter of A. Included are irreducible matrices whose undirected graphs have no cycles. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Data Quality Monitoring Display for ATLAS experiment at the LHC

The start of collisions at the LHC brings a new era of particle physics and much improved potential to observe signatures of new physics. Some of these may be evident already from the very beginning of collisions. It's essential at this point in the experiment to be prepared to quickly and efficiently determine the quality of the incoming data. Easy visualization of data for the shift crew and experts is one of the key factors in the data quality assessment process. This paper describes the design and implementation of the Data Quality Monitoring Display and discusses experience from its usage and performance during ATLAS commissioning with cosmic ray and single beam data.
Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) Risk Index predicts long-term mortality and heart failure in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction in the TIMI 2 clinical trial.

Background TIMI (Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction) Risk Index (TRI) is a simple bedside score that predicts 30-day mortality in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (MI). We sought to evaluate whether TRI was predictive of long-term mortality and clinical events. Methods In the TIMI 2 trial, 3,153 patients (mean age 57 ± 10 years, 82% men) were randomized to invasive (n = 1,583) versus conservative (n = 1,570) strategy postfibrinolysis with median follow-up of 3 years. TIMI Risk Index was divided into 5 groups. The primary end point was all-cause mortality. Secondary analyses included recurrent MI, congestive heart failure (CHF), and combined end points. Results When compared with group 1, mortality in group 5 was more than 5-fold higher (hazard ratio [HR] 5.83, P P P = .002) (c statistic 0.69). No difference was seen between groups 1 and 2 ( P = .74). A similar increasing gradient effect was seen across TRI strata with group 5 having the highest risk for CHF (HR 4.13, P P P = .22). After controlling for other risk indicators, the relationship between TRI and mortality remained significant: group 5, HR 4.11, P P = .0009; group 3, HR 1.69, P = .02. When stratified by TRI groups, no differences in mortality or composite death/MI were found between treatment strategies. Conclusions The simple TRI can predict increased long-term mortality, CHF, and composite death/CHF.
Serotonin Syndrome Induced by Venlafaxine and Fluoxetine: A Case Study in Polypharmacy and Potential Pharmacodynamic and Pharmacokinetic Mechanisms

OBJECTIVE:To document a case of serotonin syndrome associated with venlafaxine and fluoxetine that did not involve a monoamine oxidase inhibitor, and to examine the multiple factors, including pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic interactions, that likely caused this adverse drug reaction (ADR).CASE SUMMARY:A 39-year-old white woman with depression and panic attacks was being treated with fluoxetine, trazodone, clonazepam, and cimetidine. After fluoxetine and clonazepam were abruptly discontinued, venlafaxine and lorazepam were started. Within 24 hours, she developed diaphoresis, tremors, slurred speech, myoclonus, restlessness, impaired thinking, and diarrhea. This constellation meets Sternbach's criteria for serotonin syndrome.DISCUSSION:The possible contributors to this ADR are discussed, including a single drug effect (e.g., an idiosyncratic reaction to venlafaxine), a pharmacokinetic interaction, a pharmacodynamic interaction, a combined pharmacokinetic–pharmacodynamic interaction, and the patient's p...
A Multiple Leader Stackelberg Model and Analysis

This paper presents a new multiple leader-follower model that is a consistent extension of Stackelberg's leader-follower duopoly. The development contrasts with other existing extensions by demonstrating how the leader-firms can utilize the true reaction curve of the follower-firms; it also provides sufficient conditions for some useful convexity and differentiability properties of this function. For the proposed model, we conduct a static analysis and discuss the existence, uniqueness, and computation of an equilibrium solution, as well as study certain issues regarding the relative profits of leader and follower-firms. Since the Cournot oligopoly and the Stackelberg leader-follower models are special cases of this model, the analysis in this paper hopefully provides some further insights about these types of models.
Parents’ Conceptions of School Readiness, Transition Practices, and Children's Academic Achievement Trajectories

ABSTRACTThe author empirically tests the conceptual model of academic socialization, which suggests that parental cognitions about schooling influence parenting practices and child outcomes during the transition to school (Taylor, Clayton, & Rowley, 2004). More specifically, the author examines associations among parents’ conceptions of school readiness, transition practices, and children's academic achievement in reading and mathematics from kindergarten through Grade 1 using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort (N = 12,622). A latent growth curve model was estimated, and results show that parents’ school readiness beliefs were positively associated with children's beginning achievement and growth. Parents’ transition practices were positively associated with children's achievement at the onset of kindergarten. Parents’ beliefs also positively predicted their use of transition practices. The analysis largely confirmed the conceptual model of academic socialization. Further...
Design of a High-Speed Asynchronous Turbo Decoder

This paper explores the advantages of high performance asynchronous circuits in a semi-custom standard cell environment for high-throughput turbo coding. Turbo codes are high-performance error correction codes used in applications where maximal information transfer is needed over a limited-bandwidth communication link in the presence of data corrupting noise. Specifically we designed an asynchronous high-speed turbo decoder that can be potentially used for new wireless communications protocols with close to OC-12 throughputs. The design has been implemented using a new static single-track-full-buffer (SSTFB) standard cell library in IBM 0.18 mum technology that provides low latency, fast cycle-time, and more robustness to noise than previously studied single-track full-buffer technology (STFB). A high-speed synchronous counterpart using the same high-speed architecture is designed in the same technology for comparison. The results demonstrate that for a variety of network constraints, the asynchronous design provides advantages in throughput per area. Moreover, the asynchronous design can support very low-latency network constraints not achievable with the synchronous alternative.