cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Mechanistic Insights into TiO2 and ZnO Nanoparticle-Induced Metabolic Changes in Escherichia coli Under Solar Simulated Light Irradiation

This study investigated the metabolic response of E. coli after exposure to TiO2 and ZnO NPs under solar simulated irradiation. A total of 14 altered metabolites involved in two metabolic pathways were recognized using multivariate analysis. Polyamine, putrescine was elevated in ZnO-treated group, as an adaptation to oxidative stress in cells, whereas it was significantly reduced in TiO2-treated group. Glycine levels also were elevated in both the treatment groups, showing cellular protection in cells after exposure. In addition, glycine, serine, and threonine metabolism and arginine and proline metabolism were altered in ZnO and TiO2-treated groups respectively.
Impacts of ozone and climate change on yields of perennial crops in California

Changes in temperature and air pollution affect agricultural productivity, but most relevant research has focused on major annual crops (for example, wheat, maize, soy and rice). In contrast, relatively little is known about the effects of climate change and air quality on perennial crops such as fruits and nuts, which are important to dietary diversity and nutrition, and represent ~38% of California’s agriculture by economic value. Moreover, the adaptive capacity of perennial crops may be limited by their long lifespans and sometimes large establishment costs. Here, on the basis of statistical modelling of historical data and downscaled climate model projections, we jointly assess the impacts of climate and ozone levels on historical and future yields of perennial crops in California. Although the effects of warming to date are not statistically significant for many perennial crops, the yields of most perennials show a significant negative response to ambient ozone, ranging from −2% for strawberries to −22% for table grapes, implying total losses of roughly US$1 billion per year. This suggests that historical improvements in California’s air quality that reduced ozone exposures may have had large, unaccounted co-benefits for the state’s perennial crop yields, and further pollution reduction could create additional gains. Indeed, the co-location of regions with high production and high ozone damage indicates that opportunities to improve crop yields through pollution mitigation are large. Perennial crops such as fruits and nuts, important to dietary diversity and nutrition, represent almost 40% of California’s agriculture by economic value. Here, the impacts of climate change and ozone on historical and future yields of perennial crops in California are assessed.
Cooperative Extension as a Force for Healthy, Rural Communities: Historical Perspectives and Future Directions.

Cooperative Extension (Extension), part of the land-grant university system, has been engaged in rural communities for more than a century. While the focus of Extension’s efforts has largely center...
Prefiguration, Apocalypse, Tragedy: Three Trajectories of Patristic Interpretation of the Adamic Fall:

This essay examines three major (and to some degree overlapping) trajectories of patristic interpretation of the Adamic Fall in Genesis 3, all of which have considerable representation in early Chr...
Was ist Bewusstsein

Was haben der kostliche Geschmack der Lieblingsspeise, stechende Zahnschmerzen, das Vollegefuhl nach einem schweren Essen, das Dahinkriechen der Zeit beim Warten, das Wollen einer willkurlichen Handlung und die Mischung aus Angeregtheit und einer Prise Angst vor einem Wettbewerb gemeinsam?
Rheumatology and COVID-19 at 1 year: facing the unknowns.

This issue of the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases includes the freshly minted European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) points to consider on the pathophysiology and use of immunomodulatory therapies in COVID-19.1 This publication adds to the formidable extant literature on COVID-19, which is of particular interest to rheumatology as the field has become an important stakeholder in the investigation of immune-based therapies targeting the inflammatory phase of SARS-CoV-2 infection. From the outset, we believe these authors recognised that their mission to provide real-time analysis in a timely and reflective manner was a Sisyphean task, as at the time of this writing, over 113 635 publications have been posted on PubMed and MedRxiv alone, largely in the past 12 months (search date 14 February 2021). To their credit, the systematic review process in the accompanying literature search2 even included a ‘hand search’ of the ever increasingly quoted ‘grey literature’ consisting of the torrent of press releases on new drugs and therapies. These types of sources in the COVID-19 field are of particular importance as they are often amplified by social media, creating what some may refer to as ‘epistemic chaos’, and posing an increasing threat to the iterative method of science (eg, the early embrace of hydroxychloroquine). Thus, these points to consider should be viewed as ephemeral and will need ongoing curation to maximise their value in the months ahead. To poise ourselves to best meet this challenge, we thought it logical to not focus on what has already happened but rather to attempt to selectively gaze ahead and consider some key areas of interest to the field of rheumatology which will likely impact our profession and our patients. We now have strong efficacy data reported for three different vaccine constructs: 90%–95% for mRNA vaccines from Pfizer3 …
Home Economics: Family Matters

This chapter describes studies of marriage and family. There is understandably a great deal of interest in these topics among many of my 20-year-old students. Family issues are deeply connected with economic questions addressed in earlier chapters, including migration, labor supply, and entrepreneurship. We’ll see how the ACS can be used to describe the rise of the gig economy, the difficulty of studying the causal effect of children on a family’s outcomes, and a possible way to measure the causal effect of the business cycle on fertility.
Parametric Analysis of mm Wave 5G Cellular Antenna

Broadband millimeter wave inset feed microstrip array antenna is designed and simulated for fifth generation wireless technology using a high-frequency structure simulator. The antenna design is made on Flame Retardant 4 fiberglass epoxy substrate with dielectric constant 4.4 and thickness 1.5 mm using inset feeding. millimeter Wave 5G Cellular antenna is operated (S11) form 28 GHz to 33 GHz with -30 dB reflection coefficients. Four antenna elements have been used for enhanced antenna specifications and its simulated outputs show better execution in terms of various antenna specifications. The millimeter wave band will play a vital role in the digital cellular network. The design of proposed a rectangular microstrip printed patch antenna is simulated on HFSS software
Nonprofit Board Membership and the Gender Gap

According to a study conducted by BoardSource and reported in, Leading with Intent: 2017 National Index of Nonprofit Board Practices (Board-Source, 2017), 72% of nonprofit CEO/Executive Director positions are held by females, while only 48% are Executive Board Members and 42% are Board Chairs. The discrepancy between the number of board positions held by women versus staff leadership positions has been the subject of many recent publications. Reviewing academic and industry literature, this paper explores the relationship between an allmale board’s choice of self-assessment tools and its decision-making processes related to creating a gender inclusive board. This paper provides additional insight by applying communication theoretical frameworks to analyze allmale board decision-making processes which ultimately affect recruitment outcomes.
Cortical Excitability Changes after Repetitive Self-regulated vs. Tracking Movements of the Hand

In stroke rehabilitation, the optimal training parameters for re-gaining impaired hand function are unknown. Examining cortical reorganization in normals during different training paradigms could aid in developing these optimal parameters. Previous work using imaging techniques has shown differences in brain activation between self-regulated movements (i.e. movement timing and amplitude determined by the subject) and tracking movements (i.e. movement timing and amplitude goals specified) of the index finger in both normals and stroke patients. The goal of this study is to use TMS to compare single session modulation of corticospinal excitability and short-interval intracortical inhibition (ICI) induced by two different training methods: repetitive self-regulated and repetitive tracking movements in a finger flexion/extension task that mimics a functional grasp and release. No significant changes in resting motor threshold (RMT) or recruitment curve were found. In the extensor digitorum communis (EDC) muscle, there tended to be a decrease in ICI after self-regulated practice and increase after tracking practice when ICI was measured using a conditioning stimulus (CS) intensity of 60% RMT. At CS intensity of 80% RMT, there tended to be a decrease in EDC ICI after both types of tasks. In the flexor digitorum superficialis (FDS) muscle, there was a significant interaction effect as FDS ICI remained stable or slightly increased after self-regulated practice and decreased after tracking practice at CS intensities of 60 and 80% RMT. The training seems to have an opposite effect on the FDS and EDC, perhaps because the EDC is a prime mover. This implies that precision training could produce an increase in inhibition in the primary muscle and a decrease in the antagonist.
A Pedagogical Model of the Relative Income Hypothesis

Duesenberry's (1949) relative income hypothesis holds substantial empirical credibility, as well as a rich set of implications. Though familiar to the pages of leading economics journals, the hypothesis is all but foreign to the blackboards of economics classrooms. With the intention of introducing the concept to undergraduate economics students, this paper constructs a simple pedagogical model of the relative income hypothesis. The model extends upon the standard consumer choice problem to help students understand how positional considerations might influence a representative consumer's utility maximizing behavior. Properties and implications of the hypothesis, including negative spending externalities, wasteful spending races, the effect of forced retirement savings programs upon wasteful spending races, and the Pareto implications of universal income growth, are illustrated within a two-good consumption space.
Tracking, Observation, and Synchronization for the Lorenz System

This paper will demonstrate that systematic classical methods are available for solving the problem of synchronization in two Lorenz systems. It is also shown that the synchronization problem can be equivalent to the creation of robust observers, and equivalencly. tracking controllers for chaotic systems.
Secondary equilibrium isotope effects on acidity

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews secondary equilibrium isotope effects (IEs) on acidity—primarily on the comparison of protium with deuterium—and addresses the IEs of 13 C, 14 C, 15 N, and 18 O. IEs provide a discriminating insight into molecular structure and reactivity. They involve only a minimum perturbation and can be directed at specific positions within a molecule. An alternative that focuses on molecular structure rather than vibrational frequencies is the nuclear–electronic orbital approach, which calculates equilibrium IEs by treating some or all nuclei quantum mechanically on the same basis as the electrons. The 18 O IEs on the acidities of carboxylic and phosphoric acids are a combination of primary and secondary. They are primary to the extent that it is an 18 O–H bond that is broken and secondary to the extent that an 18 O remains in the carbonyl or phosphoryl bond. By generating proton-bound dimers and measuring their mode of dissociation, it is possible to measure secondary deuterium IEs on proton affinity. The protonated 2-pentanone is favored 2.1-fold over protonated 2-pentanone-3,3-d 2 , corresponding to a 0.16 kcal mol -1 greater proton affinity for the undeuterated isotopologue. IEs on acidity or basicity—including the secondary ones—must also affect the strength of hydrogen bonding, and IEs on hydrogen bonding reflect IEs on acidity or basicity.
Recent Advances in Dengue: Relevance to Puerto Rico.

Dengue represents an increasingly important public health challenge in Puerto Rico, with recent epidemics in 2007, 2010, and 2012–2013. Although recent advances in dengue vaccine development offer hope for primary prevention, the role of health professionals in the diagnosis and management of dengue patients is paramount. Case definitions for dengue, dengue with warning signs, and severe dengue provide a framework to guide clinical decision-making. Furthermore, the differentiation between dengue and other acute febrile illnesses, such as leptospirosis and chikungunya, is necessary for the appropriate diagnosis and management of cases. An understanding of dengue epidemiology and surveillance in Puerto Rico provides context for clinicians in epidemic and non-epidemic periods. This review aims to improve health professionals’ ability to diagnose dengue, and as highlight the relevance of recent advances in dengue prevention and management in Puerto Rico.
Globalization and Strategic Planning

Globalization has created environmental uncertainty for several of the organizations. It likewise more and more market becomes global, the number of factors organizations must consider taking whatever decision has become a lot more complex. Doubt in the environment presents a threat to strategic planning, management because it obstructed their ability to develop plans Long-term and strategic decision to defend the society in the case of a proportion with its environment Foreign Affairs.
A new approach for asymptotic stability analysis in the case of discontinuous Lyapunov function derivative

This paper considers the asymptotic stability analysis of nonlinear systems with discontinuous right hand side and/or the Lyapunov function candidate has bounded but discontinuous partial derivatives. It provides a new approach for the analysis of asymptotic stability in the normal sense instead of the sense of Fillipov.
Globalization and the Question of Social Justice

Previous conceptions of social justice presupposed a closed political community in which nation-states were to be in full control of policy instruments that reinforced mechanisms of social justice. States’ governing capacity to deliver social justice to their citizens has been challenged in the face of deepening transnational interactions and interdependencies in economic, political, and cultural realms, as these interactions and interdependencies directly affect the lives of millions of people. This paper revisits an ongoing debate on Global Social Justice and aims to introduce two clashing views – namely, Minimalist and Cosmopolitan approaches – on whether or not people in affluent societies have distinctive duties of concern for people in less developed countries. After outlining the main contours of the arguments on both sides, the paper concludes by suggesting that the debate can inform different areas of sociological inquiry that are directly related to issues such as power, inequality, and social exclusion.
Effects of carbon monoxide or low oxygen gas mixture inhalation on regional oxygenation, blood flow, and small vessel blood content of the rabbit heart.

The effects of lowering arterial O2 content, approximately 30%, by inspiration of low O2 or CO gas mixtures on regional myocardial relative tissue\(P_{O_2 } \), perfusion and small vessel blood content were studied in anesthetized, thoracotomized New Zealand white rabbits. Relative tissue\(P_{O_2 } \) and perfusion were determined polarographically.59FeCl3 was used to determine small vessel blood content. In control, relative tissue\(P_{O_2 } \), perfusion and small vessel blood content averaged 33.1 mm Hg, 64.9 ml/min/100 g and 4.3 ml/100 g respectively in the subepicardium (EPI) and 22.7, 53.6 and 4.2 in the subendocardium (ENDO) of the left ventricle. Both hypoxic conditions increased regional blood flow, but to a lesser extent in the ENDO. Relative ENDO tissue\(P_{O_2 } \) fell more markedly than EPI in both conditions. Small vessel blood content increased more with CO than low O2. Regional O2 consumption, calculated by Krogh analysis, increased under both conditions. The response to lowered O2 content is thus an increase in flow, metabolic rate and the number of open capillaries with a lowered driving pressure for O2. The effects of these types of hypoxia appear more severe in the ENDO.
Exchange reactions and phosphoglyceric acid in photosynthesis.

Abstract Experiments have been described in which total fixation of carbon dioxide in short periods of photosynthesis has been studied simultaneously with the fixation in the carboxyl of phosphoglyceric acid. These kinetic studies have shown that the labeling of phosphoglyceric acid represents a step in the photosynthetic process and is not due to an exchange reaction apart from the photosynthetic sequence. They have also provided further support for the assertion that the carboxyl of phosphoglyceric acid is the first stable site of CO2 fixation in photosynthesis.
Low-frequency electrical resistance of iron, cobalt, and nickel in the vicinity of their Curie temperatures

Alternating-current electrical resistance measurements between 17 Hz and 100 kHz were made on high purity Fe, Co, and Ni wires in the vicinity of their Curie temperatures (Tc). The electrical resistance was independent of frequency for temperatures (T) aboveTc. As the temperature was lowered, however, there was an abrupt jump in the electrical resistance atTc followed by a gradual decrease toward its dc value. The magnitude of the electrical resistance jump atTc increased as the square root of the frequency. The enhancement of the electrical resistance forT≦Tc is produced by an abrupt decrease of the skin depth atTc which, in turn, is due to the sudden increase in the initial magnetic permeability atTc. Measurements of the ac electrical resistance in the vicinity of the Curie temperature of certain ferromagnetic metals can be utilized to 1) accurately determine the Curie temperature using frequencies as low as 17 Hz, and 2) quantitatively determine the initial magnetic permeability as a function of temperature and heat treatment.
Plane deformations of nets with bending stiffness

The theory of nets with bending stiffness is meant to model some aspects of the mechanical behavior of cloth and cable networks. We use this theory to study the effect of small bending stiffness in plane deformations. It is shown that the theory of perfectly flexible networks gives an adequate approximation except at places where that theory predicts discontinuous changes in fiber directions, and at boundaries along fibers. In such regions singular perturbation methods can be used to analyze the stress and deformation.
Measurement of the translational diffusion constant of G-actin by photon correlation spectroscopy

Photon correlation spectroscopic measurements on monomeric actin have yielded a translational diffusion constant of 8.13×10−7 cm2 s−1 after correction for the contribution of the back-reflections of the main beam. This value corresponds to a sphere with a radius of 2.6 nm and 50% hydration, or to a prolate ellipsoid with axes 2.0 and 4.0 nm and 30% hydration.
Process technology implications for FPGAs (Invited Paper)

This paper presents aspects of process technology applicable to FPGAs. Overdrive of transistors for routing pass gates is an important performance and reliability factor. Random variation effects are significant for small arrays of configuration RAM, but small impact on performance. We discuss challenges for CRAM and switch replacement using novel technologies.
Between the ‘RNA World’ and the ‘Protein World’

Although it covers diverse topics, the book certainly seems too specialized for an undergraduate course. Even in a graduate level course, the broader scope of The RNA World [4xGesteland, R. and Atkins, J. (Eds.). See all References[4] would make it more suitable in most cases. The real impact of RNA–Protein Interactions is likely to be felt in the research arena. And given that almost every RNA being studied interacts with one or more proteins, everyone in the RNA research community would benefit from having a copy close at hand.
Integrating Foreign Languages into the College Curriculum

probably all discern unique problems in their respective attempts to make relevant and respected contributions to the undergraduate curriculum. Nevertheless, we feel that foreign language departments deal with one predicament not duplicated anywhere else in the academy: the tension between skill-getting and skillusing. This phrase does not refer to Wilga Rivers' admonition that the foreign language classroom must include ample opportunity to apply the skills being developed.' Instead we are trying to pinpoint a fundamental problem associated with foreign language teaching and learning: after completing an introductory language sequence, students have very limited possibilities to use the skills they have developed in our classes. Purposeful application of foreign languages is usually limited to additional courses in culture or literature within the for-
Doping and p-n function formation in InAs 1-x Sb x /InSb SLS's by MOCVD

Diethylzinc, dimethylcadmium, hydrogen selenide, silane, dimethyltellurium, and di-ethyltellurium were investigated as dopants for InSb and InAs1-xSbx. Carrier concentrations between 5 x 103 and 5 x 1019 cm-3 have been achieved for bothn- and p-type dopants by using dilute mixtures, 10 to 50 ppm, of dimethylcadmium and dimethyltellurium in hydrogen. The 77 K Hall mobilities of p-type InSb ranged from 7000 to 200 cm2/Vs and of n-type from 55,000 to 1700 cm2/Vs. An InAs0.17Sbo0.83/InSb SLS infrared photodiode has been fabricated with a wavelength response cutoff of 10.2 μm at 77 K. The zero bias, external current responsivity and infrared absorption of this device were measured. The predicted optical transitions using a type II heterojunction band offset closely match the observed absorption. The minority carrier diffusion length, perpendicular to the growth planes, is approximately 0.5 μm
Surge Testing of Interlaminar Insulation of Magnetic Cores

This paper describes a simple method that has been devised for testing lamination insulation in magnetic cores. Where adequate technical and economic data are available for each specific application results are sufficiently accurate to determine whether a core is in condition suitable for rewinding, or whether it should be scrapped. The test requires only a few minutes, and the same technique and equipment are applicable to a wide variety of cores.
Urease-catalyzed urea synthesis.

Abstract The equilibrium of hydrolytic reactions can be shifted toward condensation by carrying out the reaction at low water concentration. The rate and yield of urease-catalyzed urea synthesis from (NH 4 ) 2 CO 3 or NH 4 HCO 3 has been examined as a function of water concentration (in mixtures with organic solvents), substrate and H + concentration, and polarity of the nonaqueous component of the solvent. Similar effects of organic solvents are observed on the reaction rate in both directions; the results suggest that at least in some conditions the reaction proceeds through nonenzymically formed carbamate. The equilibrium concentration of urea, in 50% ( v v ) water, varies over 10-fold, depending on the nature of the nonaqueous component of the solvent; nonhydroxylic solvents such as acetone given the highest yield. Solubility measurements suggest that the interactions of the solvent mixtures with (NH 4 ) 2 CO 3 (or carbamate), rather than urea, are responsible for the variations in urea yield. Activities of water and the ionic components of the equilibrium are strongly influenced by the nature of the nonaqueous component of the solvent, as well as its concentration.
Retinal Artery Pressure and Cerebral Artery Perfusion Pressure in Cerebrovascular Occlusive Disease

The objectives of the investigation were to measure the retinal artery pressure (RAP) and cortical artery pressure (CAP) in patients undergoing superficial temporal artery to middle cerebral artery (STA-MCA) bypass, to study the relationship between these pressures, and to evaluate our ability to predict CAP on the basis of RAP. The 44 patients undergoing bypass surgery included 26 with ipsilateral internal carotid artery (ICA) occlusion (Group I), 5 with bilateral ICA occlusion (Group II), 4 with inaccessible ICA stenosis proximal to the ophthalmic artery (OA) (Group III), 2 with ICA stenosis distal to the OA (Group IV), 3 with ICA occlusion distal to the OA (Group V), 2 with MCA stenosis (Group VI), and 2 with MCA occlusion (Group VII). Five patients undergoing craniotomy for an asymptomatic saccular aneurysm were used as controls. Mean RAP (MRAP) was measured by ophthalmodynamometry (ODM) and was expressed as a ratio of the mean systemic arterial blood pressure (i.e., MRAP/MSAP). The mean MRAP/MSAP for combined Groups I, II, and III with ICA occlusion proximal to the OA was significantly lower than both the control group (P = 0.0001) and the combined Groups IV, V, VI, and VII with occlusive lesions distal to the OA (P = 0.0001). Six patients in Groups I and II with venous stasis retinopathy had a mean MRAP/MSAP of 0.18 +/- 0.11. Mean cortical artery pressure (MCAP) was measured by inserting a 26 gauge needle into a small cortical artery and was expressed as the MCAP/MSAP ratio. Mean MCAP/MSAP was less than 0.50 for all groups except Group III.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Neurotransmitter basis of the behavioral effects of hallucinogens

Abstract Indole and phenethylamine-type hallucinogenic drugs were studied in an FR-40 operant behavioral procedure programmed to quantify “pausing,”·a behavioral disruption somewhat specific to hallucinatory drug effects. LSD, DOM, DMT and mescaline showed a potency ratio to produce pausing that is well correlated with the hallucinatory potencies of these agents in man. Furthermore, combinations of the hallucinogens interact with potentiation to cause FR-40 pausing, whereas a variety of non-hallucinogenic psychoactive drugs failed to shift the dose-response patterns of pausing for DOM or LSD. Depletion of brain catecholamines by pretreatment with intraventricular 6-OHDA reduced baseline FR-40 rates and attenuated the disruptive effects of d -amphetamine, but failed to modify the dose-response patterns of indole and phenethylamine hallucinogens. On the other hand, pretreatment with intraventricular 5,7-DHT to deplete brain 5-HT potentiated the pause-producing effects of the hallucinogens, although the disruptive effects of phenobarbital were not altered by this pretreatment. Injection of 5,7-DHT into the medial forebrain bundle at the hypothalamic level slightly potentiated LSD, attenuated DOM, and did not affect the pausing produced by mescaline. Metergoline pretreatment shifted the LSD and DMT dose-response curves for pausing to the right by a factor of 2–3, but shifted the DOM and mescaline dose-response patterns to a much greater extent. Metergoline alone slightly increased FR-40 response rates and decreased pausing from baseline levels. The patterns of impaired FR-40 performance induced by d -amphetamine and phenobarbital were unaltered by pretreatment with metergoline. The indole and phenethylamine classes of hallucinogens appear to disrupt this behavior by an agonistic effect at central 5-HT receptors. However, the two classes of drugs may interact with brain 5-HT systems by somewhat different mechanisms.
Complete pairing not needed

Gene expression can be silenced in eukaryotic cells by small noncoding RNAs that target mRNAs and prevent their translation into protein. These microRNAs (miRNAs) recruit a ribonucleoprotein complex called the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) and guide it to target mRNA, where miRNA-mRNA annealing allows RISC to execute translational repression (see the first figure, panel A). Argonaute (Ago) protein, a key component of RISC, is highly conserved from prokaryotes to eukaryotes and is essential for gene silencing ( 1 ). The mechanistic basis underlying the silencing initially emerged from x-ray crystallographic studies of prokaryotic Ago proteins bound as binary complexes to guide strands (DNA) and as ternary complexes with added target strands (RNA or DNA). These structural studies focused on small interfering RNA (siRNA)–mediated cleavage of target mRNA, whereas more recent studies of the same complexes in eukaryotes have focused on miRNA-mediated translational repression ( 2 – 4 ). On page 608 of this issue, major mechanistic insights are gleaned from structural studies by Schirle et al. ( 5 ) on binary and ternary complexes of human Argonaute 2 (hAgo2).
Inhibition of epidermal metabolism and DNA-binding of benzo[a]pyrene by ellagic acid

Abstract Ellagic acid, a common plant phenol, was shown to be a potent inhibitor of epidermal microsomal aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase (AHH) activity in , vitro , and of benzo[a]pyrene (BP)-binding to both calf thymus DNA in , vitro and to epidermal DNA in , vivo . The in , vitro addition of ellagic acid (0.25-2.0 μM) resulted in a dose-dependent inhibition of AHH activity in epidermal microsomes prepared from control or carcinogen-treated animals. The I50 of ellagic acid for epidermal AHH was 1.0 μM making it the most potent inhibitor of epidermal AHH yet identified. In , vitro addition of ellagic acid to microsomal suspensions prepared from control or coal tar-treated animals resulted in 90% inhibition of BP-binding to calf thymus DNA. Application of ellagic acid to the skin (0.5–10.0 μmol/10 gm body wt) caused a dose-dependent inhibition of BP-binding to epidermal DNA. Our results suggest that phenolic compounds such as ellagic acid may prove useful in modulating the risk of cutaneous cancer from environmental chemicals.
Surgical outcomes of long spinal fusions for scoliosis in adult patients with rheumatoid arthritis

OBJECT In this study, the authors compared outcomes and complications in patients with and without rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who underwent surgery for spinal deformity. METHODS The authors searched the Johns Hopkins University database for patients with RA (Group RA) and without RA (Group NoRA) who underwent long spinal fusion for scoliosis by 3 surgeons at 1 institution from 2000 through 2012. Groups RA and NoRA each had 14 patients who were well matched with regard to sex (13 women/1 man and 12 women/2 men, respectively), age (mean 66.3 years [range 40.5–81.9 years] and 67.6 years [range 51–81 years]), follow-up duration (mean 35.4 months [range 1–87 months] and 44 months [range 24–51 months]), and number of primary (8 and 8) and revision (6 and 6) surgeries. Surgical outcomes, invasiveness scores, and complications were compared between the groups using the nonpaired Student t-test (p < 0.05). RESULTS For Groups RA and NoRA, there were no significant differences in the average number of levels fused (1...
Peroxyoxalate chemiluminescence detection with packed column supercritical fluid chromatography

A detection scheme based upon peroxyoxalate chemiluminescence, which utilizes two post-column pumps and two stages of depressurization is investigated. The chemiluminescent detection limit for perylene is 23 times lower than determined by fluorescence, and is in the attomole range. This detection technique is investigated for packed column supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC). Due to the interface design used and the chemical band narrowing effects of chemiluminescence, an apparent increase in efficiency is observed. The interface design affords a wide range of pressures to be used for a separation. During pressure programming the column effluent changes flow rate. Because of a back-pressure regulator, the reaction and detection take place at nearly constant pressure. Therefore pressure gradient work is possible without concern for post-column reagent solubility (which is a concern for high-performance liquid chromatography). The effects of the expanded CO2 from the SFC on the chemiluminescence signal and background are studied. The post-column detection is optimized for pH, photomultiplier voltage, concentrations and flow rates of the peroxide and oxalate ester.
Cross-Racial Comparison of the WAIS and WAIS-R

This research involved a cross-racial comparison of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) with the revised version, the WAIS-R. Three groups of 25 Anglo, 25 Black, and 25 Mexican-American ma...
Accurate modeling of benchmark x-ray spectra from highly charged ions of tungsten

We present detailed collisional-radiative modeling for a benchmark x-ray spectrum of highly charged tungsten ions in the range between 3 and $10\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{\AA{}}$ produced in an electron beam ion trap (EBIT) with a beam energy of $4.08\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{keV}$. Remarkably good agreement between calculated and measured spectra was obtained without adjustable parameters, highlighting the well-controlled experimental conditions and the sophistication of the kinetic simulation of the non-Maxwellian tungsten plasma. This agreement permitted the identification of spectral lines from Cu-like ${\mathrm{W}}^{45+}$ and Ni-like ${\mathrm{W}}^{46+}$ ions, led to the reinterpretation of a previously known line in Ni-like ion as an overlap of electric-quadrupole and magnetic-octupole lines, and revealed subtle features in the x-ray spectrum arising from the dominance of forbidden transitions between excited states. The importance of level population mechanisms specific to the EBIT plasma is discussed as well.
Thermal modeling in cavity-enhanced photothermal spectroscopy

The quality-factor dependent enhancement of the field of a weak probe laser beam inside a resonant optical cavity is used to measure the minute optical absorption of liquid films, metallic and high reflectivity dielectric coatings. The measurement is not affected by the presence of the surface reflections and the scattering from the strong pump laser beam, which is focussed onto the sample placed inside the cavity. Laser surface heating calculations were performed and account qualitatively for both the spatial and temporal behavior of the observed signals.
Continuous self-monitoring of discomfort in the dental chair and feedback to the dentist

The purpose of this study was to examine a continuous measurement of discomfort given by patients during aversive and nonaversive dental activities. To demonstrate the sensitivity of the measurement, the degree of feedback to the dentist about discomfort and the belief in that feedback were varied during oral examination, topical application, and injection of anesthesia. Patients operated buttons which were connected to a recorder and to light which signaled levels of discomfort to the dentist. The lights were operating during the dental activities for the Actual Feedback Group but not for the Belief in Feedback or the No Feedback Group. Subjective ratings of discomfort were also taken after each dental activity. The behaviorally based self-monitoring measure was more sensitive to variations in dental activities than were self-ratings. It showed differences across groups during the aversive, but not the nonaversive, events; showed differences in the delay of discomfort across groups; and suggested a decay in the belief in feedback effect with noncontingent dental response to discomfort responses.
Multichannel Raman spectroscopy of unroughened noble metal and non-noble metal films and tunnel junctions

Abstract We demonstrate that multichannel optical detectors provide the capability of observing Raman Scattering from molecular monolayers in solid-air and solid-solid interfaces in the absence of the conditions considered essential for surface enhanced Raman scattering. We present spectra of adsorbates on smooth Ag films, airoxidized smooth Al films and Al gratings. Finally, we demonstrate a new configuration for surface enhanced Raman scattering which need not involve noble metals. Raman scattering from a doped Al/AlOx/Sn tunnel junction provides a specific example of such a configuration.
Molecular organization of DNA in chromosomes

Metaphase chromosomes of Chinese hamster and lampbrush chromosomes of Triturus viridescens were studied for DNA arrangement by polarized fluorescence microscopy and by linear dichroic ratio measurements. Intact chromosomes showed a small but negative polarization (−8%) of fluorescence, while the dichroic ratio was negative and quite appreciable (0.85). On treatment with trypsin or RNase the polarization value increased to about −34% with no change in the polarization direction. The dichroic ratio on the other hand remained unchanged on such enzyme treatments. These results, along with the data of form dichroism and the change in fluorescence color following any enzyme action, suggest that basically the preexisting DNA arrangement was revealed by these enzymes. The fully enzyme-treated chromosome–dye complexes showed cross-bands. Quantitatively, the highest degree of DNA orientation across the above two chromosomes was in the range of 15–34%. This orientation fits well with a coiled coil-DNA, which is mostly longitudinal in these chromosomes. It is suggested that this longitudinal coil may have occasional defects in DNA structure. Alternatively, this coil may terminate into regions of random DNA and unsupercoiled DNA showing lateral projections, such as loops. This alternating feature of the DNA arrangement would tandemly repeat in either metaphase and lampbrush chromosomes.
The mathematical theory of learning algorithms for Boltzmann machines

The author analyzes a version of a well-known learning algorithm for Boltzmann machines, based on the usual alternation between learning and hallucinating phases. He outlines the rigorous proof that, for suitable choices of the parameters, the evolution of the weights follows very closely, with very high probability, an integral trajectory of the gradient of the likelihood function whose global maxima are exactly the desired weight patterns. >
Aneuploidy as an early mechanistic event in metal carcinogenesis

Aneuploidy has recently been proposed as an initiating event for carcinogenesis. There is significant evidence that carcinogenic metals induce aneuploidy. Here we review the mechanisms for how carcinogenic metals may induce aneuploidy and the evidence that carcinogenic metals induce an aneugenic effect which can destabilize the genome leading to genomic instability and cancer.
Creep Deformation in Multilayered and Microlaminate Materials

Multilayered and microlaminate foils offer a convenient specimen geometry for studying creep deformation in fine-grained materials. Multilayered foils can have large total thicknesses, allowing for ease of handling and testing, while being composed of very small grains that can be controlled and maintained in the individual layers. Uniaxial creep studies have been performed on two model systems, metal/metal multilayers and metal/intermetallic multilayers, revealing both conventional and non-conventional behavior in these materials. These two studies demonstrate the benefits of studying creep deformation of multilayer materials through uniaxial tensile tests of free-standing specimens, specifically the ability independently to vary temperature, applied stress, strain and grain size. Such techniques can be applied to a variety of metal/metal and metal/intermetallic systems and enable investigation into the high-temperature deformation of fine-grained materials.
Numerical Approach to the Low-Energy π − π Bootstrap

The $\ensuremath{\pi}\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\pi}$ amplitude in the low-energy region is parametrized in a crossing-symmetric way as the sum of the $\ensuremath{\rho}$ and ${f}^{0}$ resonance poles plus a polynomial background. The parametrization is flexible and capable of producing amplitudes having quite different features in the energy region below 1 GeV. The parameters are then varied so as to minimize the deviation from elastic unitarity on a set of closely spaced points. In addition, negative-moment finite-energy sum rules are used to connect the low-energy region with assumed Regge asymptotic behavior in the $I=1, 2$ amplitudes. With the mass and width of the ${f}^{0}$, the mass of the $\ensuremath{\rho}$, and the slope of the $\ensuremath{\rho}$ trajectory fixed, an approximate solution satisfying the constraints is found, yielding a $\ensuremath{\rho}$ width of 80\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 30 MeV. The solution displays the usual characteristics of the low-energy $\ensuremath{\pi}\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\pi}$ amplitudes suggested by other analyses, namely, small scattering lengths and a large $I=0$ $S$-wave phase shift near the mass of the $\ensuremath{\rho}$. This resonantlike behavior is found without introducing an $S$-wave pole in the parametrization, while the small scattering lengths are obtained as results of the numerical bootstrap, although no current-algebra constraints are included. Our proposed solution is also found to satisfy various inequalities proposed by Martin for the ${\ensuremath{\pi}}^{0}\ensuremath{-}{\ensuremath{\pi}}^{0}$ scattering amplitude.
Race, culture, and history: Charles Wagley and the anthropology of the African Diaspora in the Americas

When I came to the University of Florida in 1981, I was informed that Charles Wagley was not accepting new graduate students. After my first class with Wagley, he agreed to be my advisor and mentor and I became the last student he accepted. Though better known for his sensitive and pioneering ethnography of indigenous and peasant populations and his influential anthropological/historical overviews of Brazil and Latin America, Wagley and his students' contributions to the study of Afro-American cultures and race relations in the Americas are considerable. Among the important concepts that Wagley articulated were 'social race', 'Plantation America', and the 'amorphous and weakly organized local community without clear boundaries in space or membership'. Wagley guided my dissertation research in Haiti. In it I developed his concept by proposing 'cultural amorphousness' as a 'total cultural style' (following Kroeber) of African Diaspora cultures in the Plantation American cultural sphere: a primary organizing principle that has proved to be an effective adaptation to plantation and its successor societies.
Integrated DNA Copy Number and Gene Expression Regulatory Network Analysis of Non-small Cell Lung Cancer Metastasis

Integrative analysis of multi-level molecular profiles can distinguish interactions that cannot be revealed based on one kind of data in the analysis of cancer susceptibility and metastasis. DNA copy number variations (CNVs) are common in cancer cells, and their role in cell behaviors and relationship to gene expression (GE) is poorly understood. An integrative analysis of CNV and genome-wide mRNA expression can discover copy number alterations and their possible regulatory effects on GE. This study presents a novel framework to identify important genes and construct potential regulatory networks based on these genes. Using this approach, DNA copy number aberrations and their effects on GE in lung cancer progression were revealed. Specifically, this approach contains the following steps: (1) select a pool of candidate driver genes, which have significant CNV in lung cancer patient tumors or have a significant association with the clinical outcome at the transcriptional level; (2) rank important driver genes in lung cancer patients with good prognosis and poor prognosis, respectively, and use top-ranked driver genes to construct regulatory networks with the COpy Number and EXpression In Cancer (CONEXIC) method; (3) identify experimentally confirmed molecular interactions in the constructed regulatory networks using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA); and (4) visualize the refined regulatory networks with the software package Genatomy. The constructed CNV/mRNA regulatory networks provide important insights into potential CNV-regulated transcriptional mechanisms in lung cancer metastasis.
Inversion formula for the internucleus potential using sub-barrier fusion cross sections

Subject to the assumption that sub-barrier fusion is described by an effective one-dimensional energy-independent local potential barrier, the Jeffreys-Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin approximation for the fusion cross sections is inverted to determine this effective potential. Potential barriers, with their associated experimental errors, are presented for ^(13)C+^(13)C and ^(40)Ca+^(40)Ca, and the assumption of a local effective potential is shown to be inadequate for ^(64)Ni+^(64)Ni.
Disease-free intervals after partial ileal bypass in patients with coronary heart disease and hypercholesterolemia: report from the Program on the Surgical Control of the Hyperlipidemias (POSCH).

Objectives. We sought to analyze the disease-free intervals and calculate the freedom from atherosclerosis events in the Program on the Surgical Control of the Hyperlipidemias (POSCH). Background. The POSCH study was a randomized, secondary lipid/atherosclerosis intervention trial that provided strong evidence for reduction in atherosclerosis progression as demonstrated by clinical and arteriographic end points. The 417 control group patients received American Heart Association phase II diet instruction, and the 421 intervention group patients received identical dietary instruction and underwent a partial ileal bypass operation. Methods. Four outcome measures were determined: 1) overall mortality, 2) coronary heart disease mortality, 3) coronary heart disease mortality and confirmed nonfatal myocardial infarction, and 4) coronary/cardiac interventions. Results. An overall mortality rate of 10% occurred at 6.7 years in the control group and 9.4 years in the intervention group, for a gain in disease-free interval of 2.7 years in the intervention group (p = 0.032). A coronary heart disease mortality rate of 8% occurred at 7.2 years in the control group and 11 years in the intervention group, for a gain of 3.8 years (p = 0.046). Twenty percent of patients demonstrated the combined end point of coronary heart disease mortality and confirmed nonfatal myocardial infarction at 5.9 years in the control group and 11.4 years in the intervention group, for a gain of 5.5 years (p < 0.001). Twenty-five percent of patients underwent either coronary artery bypass graft surgery, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty or heart transplantation at 5.4 years in the control group and 12.4 years in the intervention group, for a gain of 7 years (p < 0.001). Conclusions. The marked lipid modification achieved by partial ileal bypass in the POSCH trial led to demonstrable increases in the disease-free intervals for overall mortality, coronary heart disease mortality, coronary heart disease mortality and confirmed nonfatal myocardial infarction, and coronary intervention procedures. For the clinician and the patient, estimation of disease-free intervals may be more relevant than assessment of differences in incidence rates and risk ratios.