cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Perceived discrimination predicts elevated biological markers of inflammation among sexual minority adults

Sexual minority (SM) adults (those who are lesbian, gay, or bisexual) consistently report more health problems compared to heterosexuals, and they tend to experience excess social stress. Although numerous studies have established links between social stress and clinical outcomes in SM adults, few studies have examined biological factors that may help explain how social stress leads to health disparities among SM adults. We used data from the Midlife in the United States Study (MIDUS) to examine whether two inflammatory markers that have been commonly associated with social stress—C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6)—differed by sexual orientation and whether any differences were explained by perceptions of discrimination. Participants self-identified as heterosexual (n = 1956) or lesbian, gay, or bisexual (n = 81). After controlling for age, gender, race, and education, SM individuals had higher CRP and IL-6 than heterosexuals on average and these differences were partially explained by perceptions of discrimination. Implications for inflammatory pathways as mechanisms related to SM health disparities and discrimination are discussed.
Tensile Response and the Associated Post: Yield Heating of Polycarbonate

It is well known that amorphous polymers, such as polycarbonate (PC), will exhibit adiabatic heating due to the large plastic work that occurs when undergoing significant plastic deformation. However the extent of adiabatic heating has not been investigated with respect to strain rate, with full-field temperature measurements performed on the specimen during deformation. In this study, ASTM tensile dog bone PC specimens were used to investigate the rate-dependent mechanical response from quasi-static to intermediate (~10 s−1) strain rates using a traditional servo-hydraulic load frame. To determine the variations in yield and post-yield response at different locations of the gage area of the specimen, digital image correlation was used to measure the full-field surface strains. In addition, an InSb thermal camera was used concurrently to measure the full-field temperature distribution in the gage area during the deformation. The material experienced non-uniform heating as high as 50–70 °C, and showed significant rate sensitive mechanical response. In this paper, the experimental techniques and results are discussed.
An evolving user-oriented model of Internet health information seeking.

This paper presents an evolving user-oriented model of Internet health information seeking (IS) based on qualitative data collected from 22 lung cancer (LC) patients and caregivers. This evolving model represents information search behavior as more highly individualized, complex, and dynamic than previous models, including pre-search psychological activity, use of multiple heuristics throughout the process, and cost-benefit evaluation of search results. This study’s findings suggest that IS occurs in four distinct phases: search initiation/continuation, selective exposure, message processing, and message evaluation. The identification of these phases and the heuristics used within them suggests a higher order of complexity in the decision-making processes that underlie IS, which could lead to the development of a conceptual framework that more closely reflects the complex nature of contextualized IS. It also illustrates the advantages of using qualitative methods to extract more subtle details of the IS process and fill in the gaps in existing models.
SnTox5-Snn5: a novel Stagonospora nodorum effector-wheat gene interaction and its relationship with the SnToxA-Tsn1 and SnTox3-Snn3-B1 interactions.

The Stagonospora nodorum-wheat interaction consists of multiple pathogen - produced necrotrophic effectors that interact directly or indirectly with specific host gene products to induce the disease Stagonospora nodorum blotch (SNB). Here, we used a tetraploid wheat mapping population to identify and characterize a sixth effector-host gene interaction in the wheat-S. nodorum system. Initial characterization of the effector, designated SnTox5, indicated that it is a proteinaceous necrotrophic effector that induces necrosis on host lines harboring the Snn5 sensitivity gene, which we mapped to the long arm of wheat chromosome 4B. Based on ultra-filtration, SnTox5 is likely in the size range of 10 to 30 kDa. Analysis of SNB development in the mapping population indicated that the SnTox5-Snn5 interaction explained from 37 to 63% of the variation, demonstrating that this interaction plays a significant role in disease development. The effects of a compatible SnTox5-Snn5 interaction were additive with those of a compatible SnToxA-Tsn1 interaction, and when the two interactions occurred together the level of SNB was significantly increased. However, the effects of SnTox5-Snn5 were epistatic to the SnTox3-Snn3-B1 interaction. Similar to several other interactions in this system, the SnTox5-Snn5 interaction is light dependent suggesting that multiple interactions may exploit the same pathways to cause disease.
On ground state phases of quantum spin systems

In this short note, I review some recent results about gapped ground state phases of quantum spin systems and discuss the notion of topological order.
Synthesis of current mode building blocks for fuzzy logic control circuits

Since the introduction of the first digital-based fuzzy logic controller chip, efficient hardware design of fuzzy logic control systems (FLCS) has drawn substantial attention. The interest in fuzzy logic hardware systems is motivated by the desperate need to provide fast fuzzy logic-based systems capable of operating in real time process control conditions. Fuzzy logic hardware implementation problems can be classified into two basic categories: the digital approach and the analog approach. The digital approach was originated by Togai and Watanabe who developed the first digital fuzzy logic-based inference engine chip. However, the digital approach to the fuzzy logic hardware implementation seems to be less efficient in contrast to analog, especially when the complexity and speed of a control problem are crucial. The transformation of a real-world fuzzy data into a binary format requires tremendous processing power that must be provided in the real time. Therefore, the analog solution offers a sufficient strategy to solve fuzzy logic control problems in dedicated hardware. Recently, successful implementation of current mode fuzzy logic controller developed in CMOS technology was reported. This approach starts with the theoretic framework for fuzzy set operations that leads to the coherent representation of the fuzzy inference operations, including fuzzification and defuzzification. The proposed approach, utilizing the control strategy proposed by Mamdani, concentrates on the algebraic correctness and elegance. It is algebraically effective but it lacks the current mode circuit implementation insight. This drawback motivated the presented research. This paper presents a graph-oriented approach to the synthesis of fuzzy logic building blocks. The framework for synthesis of current-mode fuzzy logic circuits is derived and the graph representations of basic building blocks are developed. These blocks comprise the bounded difference circuit, the absolute difference circuit, the minimum circuit, the maximum circuit, and the membership function circuit. Thereafter, the circuit implementations are analyzed and the circuit implementation issues related to the accuracy of the fuzzy operations are discussed. >
Assessing the benefits of FEIBA prophylaxis in haemophilia patients with inhibitors.

Summary. Prophylaxis with concentrates of factor VIII has become the standard of care for patients with severe haemophilia A because of its ability to prevent joint and other bleeding events. Recent evidence suggests that the prophylactic use of bypassing therapy – activated prothrombin complex concentrate (aPCC) and recombinant activated factor VII (rFVIIa) – provides similar benefits to haemophilia patients with inhibitors. To assess the efficacy and safety of prophylaxis with the aPCC FEIBA, a meta-analysis was conducted of six studies and a total of 34 inhibitor patients. The mean prophylactic dose was 78.5 U kg−1, typically infused three to four times weekly. A total of 31 of 33 patients (94%) for whom bleeding data were available prior to prophylaxis experienced a decrease in the rate of haemorrhage, albeit minor in some patients, and, regardless of the type of haemorrhage measured, had on average a 63.9% reduction in bleeding episodes during FEIBA prophylaxis. In the three studies that specifically assessed all joint bleeding, the 18 patients evaluated experienced an average reduction in annual joint bleeding of 74% while on prophylactic regimens. Among the four patients in this group who received concurrent immune tolerance induction and the 14 patients treated with prophylaxis only, annual joint bleeding decreased by an average of 79% and 78%, respectively. Anamnesis following FEIBA exposure was observed in some patients but had no impact on prophylactic efficacy. No thrombotic or other complications were reported. These results suggest that the prophylactic administration of FEIBA can be an effective and safe method for reducing bleeding events in patients with haemophilia A and inhibitors.
Chapter 46 Unit roots, structural breaks and trends

Abstract This chapter reviews inference about large autoregressive or moving average roots in univariate time series, and structural change in multivariate time series regression. The “problem” of unit roots is cast more broadly as determining the order of integration of a series; estimation, inference, and confidence intervals are discussed. The discussion of structural change focuses on tests for parameter stability. Much emphasis is on asymptotic distributions in these nonstandard settings, and one theme is the general applicability of functional central limit theory. The quality of the asymptotic approximations to finite-sample distributions and implications for empirical work are critically reviewed.
A new CMOS circuit representation for timing verification

A structured logical circuit expression (SLICE) is proposed to unify the representation of restoring logic gate and path transistor logic, which are two major logic styles in CMOS circuit design. The SLICE representation provides a systematic way to describe signal flow in CMOS transistor networks. Timing verification can be easily performed by the SLICE representation due to its natural capacity for path enumeration and critical path analysis. Moreover, signal paths and logic stages of a CMOS circuit can be identified to facilitate efficient timing verification. >
Effect of agitation and terminal subcultures on yield and speed of detection of the oxoid signal blood culture system versus the BACTEC radiometric system

In an initial evaluation, we found the Oxoid Signal blood culture system inferior to the BACTEC radiometric system for detection of some microorganisms causing septicemia (M. P. Weinstein, S. Mirrett, and L. B. Reller, J. Clin. Microbiol. 26:962-964, 1988). To determine whether modified processing of the Oxoid Signal blood culture system could improve its yield and speed of detecting positive cultures relative to the BACTEC radiometric system, we agitated all Oxoid bottles during the first 24 to 48 h of incubation and performed aerobic and anaerobic subcultures of all Oxoid bottles negative after 7 days of incubation. These modifications improved the overall performance of the Oxoid system, particularly with regard to the yield of streptococci, members of the family Enterobacteriaceae, and Haemophilus, Neisseria, and Acinetobacter spp. The speed of detecting positive cultures also was improved, especially within the first 24 h of incubation. However, the BACTEC system still detected more positive cultures (P less than 0.005), especially of obligate aerobes such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P less than 0.05) and yeasts (P less than 0.005). The BACTEC system also detected positive cultures earlier than the Oxoid system (e.g., at 24 h of incubation, 70.5% of BACTEC positive cultures detected versus 62.1% of Oxoid positive cultures detected). Further modifications of the Oxoid system which might include a revised medium, additional processing modifications, altered headspace atmosphere, or a complementary second broth medium should be considered, since the system is attractive in concept and is easy to use in the clinical laboratory.
The Effects Of Experience And Data Presentation Format On An Auditing Judgment

Prior research has examined the effects of information presentation format on decision outcomes in various settings, but has led to inconclusive results as to whether a tabular or graphical format is superior for decision making. An important methodological difference in these studies is the use of inexperienced versus experienced participants. This study examines the interaction of experience with presentation format in the application of auditing judgments (specifically, analytical review judgments) and finds that participant experience does matter. In particular, where tabular information was most extensively used (i.e., in the task of correlation assessment), the performance advantage from using graphs was not as great for practitioners as for students, perhaps because of the experience practitioners possess with the use of tables. Implications of this study for the interpretation of prior findings are discussed as well as directions for future research.
Measurements of tumor vascular leakiness using DCE in brain tumors: clinical applications

Various imaging techniques have been employed to evaluate blood–brain-barrier leakiness in brain tumors, as higher tumor vascular leakiness is known to be associated with higher grade and malignant potential of the tumor, and hence can help provide additional diagnostic and prognostic information. These imaging techniques range from routine post-contrast T1-weighted images that highlight degree of contrast enhancement to absolute measurement of quantitative metrics of vascular leakiness employing complex pharmacokinetic modeling. The purpose of this article is to discuss the clinical applications of available imaging techniques, and in particular dynamic contrast-enhanced T1-weighted MR imaging (DCE-MRI), to evaluate tumor vascular leakiness. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Androgens drive divergent responses to salt stress in male versus female rat kidneys.

Dahl-Iwai (DI) salt-sensitive rats were studied using microarrays to identify sex-specific differences in the kidney, both basal differences and differences in responses to a high-salt diet. In DI rat kidneys, gene expression profiles demonstrated inflammatory and fibrotic responses selectively in females. Gonadectomy of DI rats abrogated sex differences in gene expression. Gonadectomized female and gonadectomized male DI rats both responded to high salt with the same spectrum of gene expression changes as intact female DI rats. Androgens dominated the sex-selective responses to salt. Several androgen-responsive genes with roles potentiating the differential responses to salt were identified, including increased male expression of angiotensin-vasopressin receptor and prolactin receptor, decreased 5α-reductase, and mixed increases and decreases in expression of Cyp4a genes that can produce eicosanoid hormones. These sex differences potentiate sodium retention by males and increase kidney function during gestation in females.
A Review of Ceramics from Tanzania, Malawi, and Northern Mozambique, with Implications for Swahili Archaeology

Typological approaches to locally produced ceramics have played an important role in the archaeology of Eastern Africa. This paper engages with that history as it contextualizes the ceramic material recently recovered from the region around the site of Mikindani on the southern Tanzanian coast with known traditions from the Kenyan and Tanzanian coast, Malawi, and Mozambique. That comparison reveals the shifting connections and interregional relationships the inhabitants of the Mikindani region forged over the past two millennia with other communities in the Indian Ocean world and the African interior. Mikindani's ceramics are shown to provide important evidence of the deep connections between the region and the African interior to the southwest during the early second millennium, at the expense of connections with coastal Swahili sites further north. This pattern is unusual for a coastal site during the florescence of Swahili society and the typical expansion of Swahili involvement in the Indian Ocean world at that time. The typological comparison of the Mikindani material and other regional traditions thus allows us to consider the strengths and weaknesses of the typological enterprise, in terms of what information is brought to light and what information is obscured.
An antibody-like material in systemic lupus erythematosus directed toward a thermolabile serum macroprotein.

An antibody-like material directed toward a thermolabile macroprotein present in all normal human sera has been identified in the sera of some patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The antigen disappears from the serum when the antibody appears and the phenomenon is associated with hypocomplementemia and marked disease activity. The complex formed by the antigen and its antibody is intensely anticomplementary. Successful treatment of the SLE is associated with disappearance of this antibody and, over periods ranging from 1 to 9 months, reappearance of free antigen. This new antigen-antibody system appearing during the active hypocomplementemic phase of some patients with SLE may be a factor in the pathogenesis of this immune complex disease.
Development and flight testing of quantitative feedback theory pitch rate stability augmentation system

The design of a quantitative feedback theory control system to improve the flight handling qualities of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) at relaxed stabilities is illustrated. Aircraft flown at low static margins are significantly more efficient than conventional designs, but without stability augmentation they are difficult if not impossible to control. Longitudinal stability augmentation is achieved by using an onboard computer system to calculate control surface deflection based on the sensed pitch rate of the aircraft and pilot elevator commands. The quantitative feedback theory controller was implemented on this computer system to provide acceptable handling characteristics for a large portion of the UAV's flight envelope. The flight tests of the UAV, which resulted in the successful completion of an entire flight at a 2.5% static margin, are also described.
Does Technology Enhance Actual Student Learning? The Case of Online Discussion Boards

Despite widespread acceptance of technology in the classroom, there is little empirical research on the effectiveness of students' use of technology in enhancing their learning. To date, studies suggest that students perceive technology to be a useful learning tool; however, research has not linked the use of technology to actual student performance measures. In this study, the authors examined the degree to which technology enhanced actual student learning and whether individual characteristics of the student population moderated this relationship. The results suggest that the incorporation of technology in the classroom does enhance actual student learning and that this relationship is moderated by student characteristics.
131. Social isolation and gene expression tumor profiles in breast cancer patients

Psychosocial stress has long been hypothesized to play a role in breast cancer growth and progression. However, the association between stress and disease-relevant biological processes, particularly tumor characteristics, has not been examined in breast cancer patients. The current study examined the association between social isolation and gene expression tumor profiles in women with early-stage breast cancer. Ninety women were recruited from the UCLA tumor registry who had their tumors resected within the past 5 years and showed no current evidence of disease. Participants completed measures of stress and social isolation (Social Provisions Scale – Attachment Subscale) and consented to gene expression profiling of their banked tumors. Gene expression analyses comparing women reporting high vs. low social attachment identified >250 genes showing differential transcription between these groups (228 genes up-regulated in low social attachment group and 46 down-regulated). GOstat analyses of gene ontology annotations indicated upregulation of genes associated with translation/gene expression, metabolism, cell proliferation, stress response, cell differentiation, extracellular matrix, and wound response. Further, transcript origin analyses indicated up-regulation of gene expression profiles associated with M2 macrophages and mesenchymal cells in the low social attachment group (all ps
Cooperative Effects in Solvent Swelling of a Bituminous Coal

The relative abilities of mixtures of nonspecifically and specifically interacting solvents to swell a Utah Blind Canyon bituminous coal have been explored. The results are consistent with published reports of the efficacy of such mixed solvent systems but show sensitivity to the choice of specifically interacting solvent. The dynamics of swelling in such systems also serve to confirm the general nature of the process.
Light scattering study of the glass transition in salol.

We have performed photon correlation spectroscopy experiments to measure the lifetimes of density fluctuations in liquid salol in both the normal and supercooled regimes down to its glass transition at -55 \ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}C. Two modes were found to exist: a temperature-independent, hydrodynamic mode which we ascribed to entropy fluctuations and called the heat mode, and a strongly temperature-dependent, nonhydrodynamic mode due to internal, structural relaxations. We find that the internal relaxations suppress the heat mode when the heat-mode relaxation time is comparable to or less than the internal-mode relaxation time. This suppression occurs in the same temperature regime as a loss of power-law behavior for the viscosity as predicted by mode-coupling theory. We argue that the phenomena of the glass transition are a consequence of this suppression of the hydrodynamic heat mode by the internal relaxation mode as the temperature falls.
Scalable Evolutionary Computation for Efficient Information Extraction from Remote Sensed Imagery

Evolutionary computation, in the form of genetic programming, is used to aid information extraction process from high-resolution satellite imagery in a semi-automatic fashion. Distributing and parallelizing the task of evaluating all candidate solutions during the evolutionary process could significantly reduce the inherent computational cost of evolving solutions that are composed of multichannel large images. In this study, we present the design and implementation of a system that leverages cloud-computing technology to expedite supervised solution development in a centralized evolutionary framework. The system uses the MapReduce programming model to implement a distributed version of the existing framework in a cloud-computing platform. The proposed system has two major subsystems; (i) data preparation: the generation of random spectral indices; and (ii) distributed processing: the distributed implementation of genetic programming, which is used to spectrally distinguish the features of interest from the remaining image background in the cloud computing environment in order to improve scalability. The proposed system reduces response time by leveraging the vast computational and storage resources in a cloud computing environment. The results demonstrate that distributing the candidate solutions reduces the execution time by 91.58%. These findings indicate that such technology could be applied to more complex problems that involve a larger population size and number of generations.
Effects of Step-Wise Increases in Dietary Carbohydrate on Circulating Saturated Fatty Acids and Palmitoleic Acid in Adults with Metabolic Syndrome

Recent meta-analyses have found no association between heart disease and dietary saturated fat; however, higher proportions of plasma saturated fatty acids (SFA) predict greater risk for developing type-2 diabetes and heart disease. These observations suggest a disconnect between dietary saturated fat and plasma SFA, but few controlled feeding studies have specifically examined how varying saturated fat intake across a broad range affects circulating SFA levels. Sixteen adults with metabolic syndrome (age 44.9±9.9 yr, BMI 37.9±6.3 kg/m2) were fed six 3-wk diets that progressively increased carbohydrate (from 47 to 346 g/day) with concomitant decreases in total and saturated fat. Despite a distinct increase in saturated fat intake from baseline to the low-carbohydrate diet (46 to 84 g/day), and then a gradual decrease in saturated fat to 32 g/day at the highest carbohydrate phase, there were no significant changes in the proportion of total SFA in any plasma lipid fractions. Whereas plasma saturated fat remained relatively stable, the proportion of palmitoleic acid in plasma triglyceride and cholesteryl ester was significantly and uniformly reduced as carbohydrate intake decreased, and then gradually increased as dietary carbohydrate was re-introduced. The results show that dietary and plasma saturated fat are not related, and that increasing dietary carbohydrate across a range of intakes promotes incremental increases in plasma palmitoleic acid, a biomarker consistently associated with adverse health outcomes.
The dialogic potential of weblogs in relationship building

Abstract A gap exists between the relationship-building potential of traditional Web sites, the objectives of public relations practitioners, and the actual design of organizational Web sites. This study extends the investigation of online relationship building through a content analysis of 50 environmental weblogs. A comparison of weblogs to traditional Web sites suggests that weblogs incorporate dialogic communication principles to a greater degree than traditional Web sites, potentially making them better suited for online relationship building.
Finiteness results for lattices in certain Lie groups

In this note we establish some general finiteness results concerning lattices Γ in connected Lie groups G which possess certain “density” properties (see Moskowitz, M., On the density theorems of Borel and Furstenberg, Ark. Mat. 16 (1978), 11–27, and Moskowitz, M., Some results on automorphisms of bounded displacement and bounded cocycles, Monatsh. Math. 85 (1978), 323–336). For such groups we show that Γ always has finite index in its normalizer N G (Γ). We then investigate analogous questions for the automorphism group Aut(G) proving, under appropriate conditions, that StabAut(G)(Γ) is discrete. Finally we show, under appropriate conditions, that the subgroup $\tilde{\Gamma}=\{i_{\gamma}:\gamma \in \Gamma \},\ i_{\gamma}(x)=\gamma x\gamma^{-1}$ , of Aut(G) has finite index in StabAut(G)(Γ). We test the limits of our results with various examples and counterexamples.
Measurement of Outcomes in Virtual Environments

Virtual human resource development (VHRD) creates a virtual environment (Bennett, 2009). As virtual environments become pervasive as instructional and learning spaces, evidence of their effectiveness is still in the early stages of development. As these learning spaces gain acceptance and adoption in HRD practice, more comprehensive and strategic approaches to evaluation are needed. Through a study of literature and qualitative case study, the authors investigate evaluation practices used in virtual worlds, and discuss how they are relevant to VHRD. Although many traditional forms of assessment are still being utilized, findings indicate that virtual worlds offer the opportunity to incorporate richer and more authentic forms of assessment, particularly, when evaluating learning artifacts.
The Cation-π Interaction Between Lys53 and the Flavin of Fructosamine Oxidase (FAOX-II) is Critical for Activity

Fructosamine oxidases (FAOXs) are flavin-containing enzymes that catalyze the oxidative deglycation of low molecular weight fructosamines or Amadori products. The fructosamine substrate is oxidized by the flavin in the reductive half-reaction, and the reduced flavin is then oxidized by molecular oxygen in the oxidative half-reaction. The crystal structure of FAOX-II from Aspergillus fumigatus reveals a unique interaction between Lys53 and the isoalloxazine. The ammonium nitrogen of the lysine is in contact with and nearly centered over the aromatic ring of the flavin on the si-face. Here, we investigate the importance of this unique interaction on the reactions catalyzed by FAOX by studying both half-reactions of the wild-type and Lys53 mutant enzymes. The positive charge of Lys53 is critical for flavin reduction but plays very little role in the reaction with molecular oxygen. The conservative mutation of Lys53 to arginine had minor effects on catalysis. However, removing the charge by replacing Lys53 wi...
Heat in history Heat Transfer Research in General Electric, 1910-1960: Examples of the Product-Driven Innovation Cycle

General Electric has a long and varied history of doing research on heat transfer, and using the results in its products and processes. Lessons it has learned during the half-century from 1910 to 1950 suggest a need for revision in the standard models used by economists to describe the way industry generates new technology and uses it to achieve innovations. The generation of new technology or the better use of old technology begins, not with a demand from the marketplace or a push from research, but from consideration of an already existing product. Problems or opportunities involving that product drive engineers or scientists to search for new knowledge. That knowledge proves useful in the development of a product, perhaps the one that initiated the search for knowledge, or perhaps a very different one. The important point is that however esoteric or mundane is the research in the middle of the cycle, the beginning and end are always products (or the processes used to make products), not scientists' ideas or customers demands.
Abundance, Growth, Survival, and Maturation of Channel Catfish in Lake Sharpe, South Dakota

Abstract Channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus (Rafinesque), from Lake Sharpe, a 22,600-ha reservoir on the Missouri River in South Dakota, showed little change in abundance during the first 8 yr of impoundment, 1964–1971. All year classes from 1953 through 1969 were represented in gill net catches. Mean lengths of fish at a given age averaged 20% less in 1971 than in 1964. Average annual survival rate was calculated to be 69% from age VI to XVI. Some females attained sexual maturity at age VII, but only 50% were mature at age XIV. Less than 10% of the females 437 to 489 mm total length were mature; all females over 593 mm were mature.
THERMAL DECONTAMINATION IN A STAGED FLUIDIZED BED CONTACTOR

Thermal detoxification of conlaminated soils requires heating the soil to the destruction temperature for an adequate period of time. The process is expensive, partially due to the heat wasted by e...
STIMULATION OF FUNDULUS BY OXALIC AND MALONIC ACIDS AND BREATHING RHYTHM AS FUNCTIONS OF TEMPERATURE.

1. Chemical stimulation as a function of temperature was studied by using oxalic acid in fresh and salt water and malonic acid in salt water as stimulating agents on Fundulus. According to the Arrhenius equation the following micro values were obtained for the various acid solutions between 0 and 29 degrees C.: for 0.002N oxalic in fresh water-15,800; 33,000; for 0.0008N oxalic in fresh water-15,800; 33,000; 48,000; for 0.002N oxalic in salt water-19,400; 24,100; 56,500; for 0.004N and 0.002N malonic in salt water-20,600; 65,000. At a critical temperature there is a sharp transition from one thermal increment to another. 2. The chemical processes controlling stimulation do not change with concentration, for different normalities of a single acid yield the same micro values. Distinctly different temperature characteristics were obtained for stimulation by oxalic in salt and fresh water. Likewise stimulation by oxalic and malonic in salt water yielded very different increments. This temperature study indicates that the controlling chemical reactions determining rate of response are different for the same acid in two different environments, or for two dibasic acids in the same environment. Other work indicates, however, that the fundamental stimulation system is the same for all the adds in both environments. Chemical rather than physical processes limit the rate of response since all the values are above 15,000. Stimulation depends upon a series of interrelated chemical reactions, each with its own temperature characteristic. Under varying conditions (e.g. change of temperature, environment, or acid) different chemical reactions may become the slowest or controlling process which determines the rate of response. 3. The variation of response, as measured by the probable error of the mean response time of the fish, is the same function of temperature as reaction time itself. Hence variability is not independent of reaction time and is controlled by the same catenary series of events which determine rate of response to stimulation. 4. Breathing rhythm of Fundulus as related to temperature was studied in both salt and fresh water. In salt water the temperature characteristic is 8,400 while in fresh water it is 16,400 below 9.5 degrees C., and 11,300 above this critical temperature. These micro values are typical of those which have been reported by other workers for respiratory and oxidative biological phenomena. A change in thermal increment with an alteration in environment indicates that different chemical reactions with characteristic velocity constants are controlling the breathing rhythm in salt and fresh water.
Kharitonov’s Theorem and Bezoutians

Abstract An elementary proof of the Kharitonov theorem is presented. The proof is based on the concept of a Bezoutian matrix. Generally, exploiting the special structure of such matrices (e.g., Bezoutians, Toeplitz, Hankel or Vandermonde matrices, etc.) can be interesting, e.g., leading to unified approaches in different cases, as well as to further generalizations. Here the concept of the Bezoutian matrix is used to provide a unified derivation of the Kharitonov-like theorems for the continuous-time and discrete-time settings. Finally, the (block) Anderson–Jury Bezoutians are used to propose a possible technique to attack an difficult open problem related to the robust stability in the MIMO case.
Sequence-dependent thymine dimer formation and photoreversal rates in double-stranded DNA

The kinetics of thymine–thymine cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer (TT-CPD) formation was studied at 23 thymine–thymine base steps in two 247-base pair DNA sequences irradiated at 254 nm. Damage was assayed site-specifically and simultaneously on both the forward and reverse strands by detecting emission from distinguishable fluorescent labels at the 5′-termini of fragments cleaved at CPD sites by T4 pyrimidine dimer glycosylase and separated by gel electrophoresis. The total DNA strand length of nearly 1000 bases made it possible to monitor damage at all 9 tetrads of the type XTTY, where X and Y are non-thymine bases. TT-CPD yields for different tetrads were found to vary by as much as an order of magnitude, but similar yields were observed at all instances of a given tetrad. Kinetic analysis of CPD formation at 23 distinct sites reveals that both the formation and reversal photoreactions depend sensitively on the identity of the nearest-neighbour bases on the 5′ and the 3′ side of a photoreactive TT base step. The lowest formation and reversal rates occur when two purine bases flank a TT step, while the highest formation and reversal rates are observed for tetrads with at least one flanking C. Overall, the results show that the probabilities of CPD formation and photoreversal depend principally on interactions with nearest-neighbour bases.
A recurrence template for several parameters in series-parallel graphs

Abstract We present a single set of recurrence parameters and a single set of recurrence relations which can be used to provide a linear algorithm for evaluating a wide class of graph theoretic parameters for series–parallel graphs. The set of recurrences presented here is no larger than has been necessary in solving any one of the parameters. Problems that can be solved using our template of recurrence relations include those involving the concepts of domination, packing, redundance, and independence.
Is there a need for PGxceptionalism

In a recent commentary in Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Altman1 declares that the implementation of pharmacogenomics (PGx) “requires that we separate it from other elements of genomic medicine.” He argues that PGx tests “need only reach reasonable expectations of noninferiority (compared with current prescribing practices) to merit use.” In his view, the implementation of PGx is less challenging than the use of genomics for estimating disease risk and prognosis, because genetic tests for drug response phenotypes offer better explanatory power and less risk for discrimination or misinterpretation. He also believes that cost-benefit analyses for PGx are not necessary because “genotyping is asymptotically approaching no cost” and positive test results are unlikely to lead to “spiraling follow-up test costs.”
Evaluation of Automated Work Zone Information Systems

Motorists traveling through work zones are faced with both routine and unexpected tasks of driving coupled with additional distractions provided by the work zone. This can create conflicts despite significant applications of work zone traffic-control devices. When one or more through-traffic lanes are closed and traffic volumes exceed the capacity of merge points or of the reduced number of lanes, congestion can lead to the formation of queues, which result in delays and increased potential for crashes. An automated work zone information system (AWIS) may be implemented at a work zone to notify approaching motorists of changing traffic conditions, such as slowdowns or backups. Research was conducted at rural work zones in Arkansas on I-40, where two lanes of traffic in a direction were reduced to one lane. The objectives were to compare the displays of an AWIS with field observations of traffic conditions and to determine at what volume backups were forming. AWIS was compared with field observations for t...
An Efficient Method for the Conversion of Phenolic Mannich Bases to C-Methylated Phenols. Synthesis of 3,6-Dimethylcatechol

Abstract In connection with our synthesis of analogs of serotonin neurotoxins1 we needed access to 3,6-dimethylcatechol (1) in quantities. This deceptively simple compound is not available commercially and is extremely inaccessible by the existing methods.2–5 One of these methods5 involves conversion of catechol (2) to 3,6-bis(morpholinomethyl)catechol (3) followed by hydrogenolysis using Pd/C as the catalyst. The latter step required high temperature, long reaction time and a very high catalyst (10% Pd/C) to substrate ratio (1:3 by wt.). In addition, this procedure of hydrogenolysis gave highly variable results in our hands. The difficulty encountered in the conversion of 3 to 1 is not an isolated case. Resistance of phenolic Mannich bases to direct hydrogenolysis is a general6–10 phenomenon although the exact reason for such resistance is not known and no general solution for this problem has been developed. It has been suggested8 that intramolecular hydrogen bonding between phenolic OH and the nitrogen...
Effects of secreted factors in culture medium of annulus fibrosus cells on microvascular endothelial cells: elucidating the possible pathomechanisms of matrix degradation and nerve in-growth in disc degeneration.

Summary Objective To test whether the interaction between annulus fibrosus cells (AFCs) and endothelial cells (ECs) disrupts matrix homeostasis and stimulates production of innervation mediators. Methods Human microvascular ECs were cultured in the conditioned media of AF cell culture derived from degenerated human surgical specimen. Matrix-metalloproteinases (MMPs) and platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) of ECs of this culture were analyzed by qRT-PCR, Western, and immunofluorescence. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), Interleukin-8 (IL-8), and nerve growth factor (NGF) in the media of this cell culture were assayed by ELISA. To determine the effects of ECs on AFCs, qRT-PCR was performed to determine mRNA levels of collagen I, II and aggrecan in AFCs cultured in EC conditioned media. Results Compared to ECs cultured in naive media, ECs exposed to AFC conditioned media expressed higher mRNA and protein levels of key biomarkers of invasive EC phenotype, MMP-2 (2×), MMP-13 (4×), and PDGF-B (1.5–2×), and NGF (24.9 ± 15.2 pg/mL vs 0 in naive media). Treatment of AF cells with EC culture conditioned media decreased collagen type II expression two fold. Considerable quantities of pro-angiogenic factors IL-8 (396.7 ± 302.0 pg/mL) and VEGF (756.2 ± 375.9 pg/mL) were also detected in the conditioned media of untreated AF cell culture. Discussion AFCs from degenerated discs secreted factors which stimulated EC production of factors known to induce matrix degradation, angiogenesis, and innervation. IL-8 and VEGF maybe the secreted factors from AFCs which mediate a pro-angiogenic stimulus often implicated in the development of disc degeneration.
Results of carotid endarterectomy with pericardial patch angioplasty: rate and predictors of restenosis.

Routine patch angioplasty after carotid endarterectomy (CEA) is believed to decrease the incidence of recurrent stenosis. The results of autogenous vein, Dacron, and PTFE used as a patch material have been described. Bovine pericardium has more recently been introduced as a patch material. We studied 61 of 73 consecutive patients who underwent isolated CEA with pericardial patch angioplasty to determine the incidence of restenosis and variables associated with restenosis. All patients had intraoperative completion duplex examination performed, and no patient had residual stenosis or anatomic defects at the end of the procedure. All procedures were performed under general anesthesia with the use of a Javid shunt. Mean age was 72.8 ± 7.8 years, 41% were female, and 62% were asymptomatic. Hypertension was present in 72%, elevated cholesterol in 80%, and history of coronary artery disease in 44%. Recurrent stenosis of >50% was considered to be significant. Our study focuses on 61 of 73 patients who had follow-up duplex ultrasound data available. There were no perioperative neurologic events, reoperations for bleeding, or deaths. Mean duplex follow-up available in 61 patients was 13.1 ± 5.1 months. Thirty-six patients had 1-15% stenosis, 15 patients had 16-49%, and 10 patients had 50-79%. In the 50-79% group, the mean systolic velocity was 154 ± 25 cm/sec and the mean end diastolic velocity (EDV) was 36 ± 16 cm/sec. The highest EDV in the 50-79% group was 56 cm/sec. No patients had stenosis in the 80-99% range. There were no late neurologic events and no late reinterventions. Kaplan-Meier restenosis-free survival at 1 year was 95.6%. Significant univariate predictors of recurrent stenosis of >50% were younger age (68 vs. 74 years, p = 0.04) and presence of preoperative symptomatic disease (35% vs. 5%, p = 0.004). Stepwise multiple logistic regression indicated the most significant predictor of restenosis was the presence of preoperative symptoms (p = 0.008). Stepwise Cox regression analysis also showed preoperative symptomatic status was the only significant factor for restenosis (p = 0.019), with a relative risk of 6.65 and a 95% confidence interval of 1.36-32.4. In conclusion, pericardial patch angioplasty is associated with minimal early adverse events. Restenosis with pericardial patch angioplasty is not uncommon, but high-grade restenosis did not occur in this study. The presence of preoperative symptoms and younger age were the most significant predictors of restenosis.
Evaluation of infrared thermography as a diagnostic tool in CVD applications

Abstract This research is focused on the feasibility of using infrared temperature measurements on the exterior of a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) reactor to ascertain both real-time information on the operating characteristics of a CVD system and provide data which could be post-processed to provide quantitative information for research and development on CVD processes. Infrared thermography techniques were used to measure temperatures on a horizontal CVD reactor of rectangular cross section which were correlated with the internal gas flow field, as measured with the laser velocimetry (LV) techniques. For the reactor tested, thermal profiles were well correlated with the gas flow field inside the reactor. Correlations are presented for nitrogen and hydrogen carrier gas flows. The infrared data were available to the operators in real time with sufficient sensitivity to the internal flow field so that small variations such as misalignment of the reactor inlet could be observed. The same data were post-processed to yield temperature measurements at known locations on the reactor surface. For the experiments described herein, temperatures associated with approximately 3.3 mm 2 areas on the reactor surface were obtained with a precision of ±2°C. These temperature measurements were well suited for monitoring a CVD production reactor, development of improved thermal boundary conditions for use in CFD models of reactors, and for verification of expected thermal conditions.
Empirical Analysis of High-Inflation Episodes in Argentina, Brazil, and Israel

Although accommodative policies and widespread indexation may account for the persistence of high inflation, they cannot explain changes in the inflation rate. The causes of such changes for the high-inflation episodes immediately preceding the recent "heterodox" attempts at stabilization in Argentina, Brazil, and Israel are examined by computing historical decompositions of these episodes based on vector autoregressions, distinguishing between the "fiscal" and "balance of payments" views of their causes. In all three cases, nominal exchange rate shocks played the dominant role in triggering an acceleration of inflation.
Endowed Chairs in Marketing: Status and Assessment

This research looks at the status of endowed chairs in marketing. A survey of both accredited and nonaccredited AACSB schools was conducted to assess the numbers of such chairs and to determine the characteristics of institutions with them. Approximately one-sixth of the schools responding to the survey had endowed chairs in marketing. No relationship was found between the presence or absence of chairs and whether the institution was public or private. However, chairs were more likely to be found in accredited institutions and those granting doctorates. Institution size and other business school endowments were also linked to marketing faculties with endowed chairs.
Occurrence of common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) in cropland and adjacent areas

Abstract Interest in the population dynamics and geographic distribution of common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca L.) has recently increased due to the importance of common milkweed in the life cycle of the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus). A survey of common milkweed occurrence in various habitats was conducted in Iowa in June and July of 1999. Common milkweed was found in 71% of the roadsides and approximately 50% of the corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max L. Merr.) fields. Corn and soybean fields had 85% fewer patches than roadsides. Conservation reserve program fields had the greatest average area infested. While common milkweed was frequently found in corn and soybean fields, average frequency and patch sizes were much greater in noncrop areas.