cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The effects of seasonal variation on hazardous chemical releases

Abstract Scope Accidental and intentional chemical releases are an increasing threat to our society. These events occur year around under different seasonal circumstances. A number of papers using the Hazardous Substances Emergency Events database (HSEES) have found some evidence that season may be an important variable affecting the number of hazardous chemical releases (HCRs). To the authors’ knowledge, no analyses specifically focused on seasonal variation of HCRs. Significant effects of season are useful to further HCR prevention efforts and improve preparation and training of first responders, community evacuation, and hospital preparedness. Results Seasonal variation is a factor in transportation HCRs, but not fixed facility HCRs. There is an overall seasonal effect for the cause of the event. There is also seasonal variation of HCRs with respect to geographical area, with more incidents in the South. The substances released also demonstrate seasonal variation with summer having more incidents involving acids, ammonia, chlorine, pesticides, paints and dyes. The number of victims treated at hospitals resulting from HCRs did not display seasonal variation. Conclusions This new additional information involving seasonal changes of HCRs adds to the literature on HCRs and may indirectly have implications for the prevention of incidents, training of personnel responding to HCRs, community planning, and local hazard vulnerability analyses and finally hospital preparedness.
Effects of surface stress on the elastic moduli of thin films and superlattices.

A thermodynamic model which predicts a significant sample-size effect on the elastic properties of very thin films and small-period superlattices is presented. Compressive surface stresses cause the in-plane interatomic distances in a thin metal film to decrease as the thickness decreases. For copper films with a thickness of 0.75 nm, a 1% in-plane biaxial compressive strain is obtained which gives rise to a 50% increase in the biaxial modulus. This model also predicts a similar modulus enhancement (supermodulus effect) in multilayered thin films due to strains caused by incoherent interfacial stress.
Low molecular weight nuclear RNA in phytohemagglutinin-treated and untreated human lymphocytes☆

Abstract At least six species of low molecular weight nuclear RNA (LMN RNA) can be identified in non-dividing human lymphocytes at early culture times. These were designated A (4S) B, B′, C (5S), D and E. After treatment with phytohemagglutinin (PHA) for approx. 48 h, an additional species F, was detected in the nucleus. Furthermore, the proportion of label in species B and B′ was markedly reduced. These results suggest that specific alterations in the metabolism of certain LMN RNAs may occur during the PHA-induced transformation of human lymphocytes.
Gapless superconductivity and string theory

Abstract Coexistence of superconducting and normal components in nanowires at currents below the critical (a “mixed” state) would have important consequences for the nature and range of potential applications of these systems. For clean samples, it represents a genuine interaction effect, not seen in the mean-field theory. Here we consider properties of such a state in the gravity dual of a strongly coupled superconductor constructed from D3 and D5 branes. We find numerically uniform gapless solutions containing both components but argue that they are unstable against phase separation, as their free energies are not convex. We speculate on the possible nature of the resulting non-uniform sate (“emulsion”) and draw analogies between that state and the familiar mixed state of a type II superconductor in a magnetic field.
A lifecourse study on education and health: The relationship between childhood psychosocial resources and outcomes in adolescence and young adulthood

Abstract Lifecourse models have been popular in several disciplines as a way to study health. Such models view health as the product of long-term influences that begin in early-life and continue their direct and indirect effects over time, beginning in gestation and following through childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and late-life. This paper uses a lifecourse framework to examine the effects of childhood psychosocial development on young adult health and education outcomes, with special interest paid to potential pathway effects of health and education outcomes in adolescence. Child psychosocial development is measured by constructs of locus of control and self-esteem. Both locus of control and self-esteem exhibit significant yet modest associations with young adult health, net of adolescent outcomes. Only locus of control is significantly associated with education outcomes. These results are discussed in the context of previous lifecourse research and implications for policy.
Scaling properties in photocatalysis

Abstract In this paper we will try to demonstrate that in nanostructured materials the scaling of many of the material properties that are important for catalytic activity diverges as one approaches nanosize dimensions. We will discuss size-induced critical properties that include transport, polarizability and adsorption properties. The macroscopic context will be demonstrated in terms of three main applications of nanocrystalline, semiconducting, photocatalytic materials with particular emphasis on nanocrystalline TiO2. These applications include: liquid-junction photovoltaic solar cells; photodecomposition of organic compounds with nanocrystalline photocatalysts and light-induced wetting properties.
Phosphatidylethanolamine as a prion cofactor: Potential implications for disease pathogenesis

Mammalian prions with significant levels of specific infectivity can be formed in vitro from mixtures of prion protein (PrP) and cofactor molecules, but not from PrP alone. We recently isolated and identified the essential membrane phospholipid phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) as an endogenous cofactor for prion propagation in vitro.1 In this article, we discuss the potential role of PE and other essential cofactor molecules as a molecular link between the processes of prion formation and prion-induced neurodegeneration.
STUDIES OF WAMPUM1

M OST of the literature on wampum states that the form of wampum and its uses are a result of Western European influence. This paper will attempt to demonstrate that: (1) wampum was definitely used by the Indians before the coming of the white man; (2) wampum was a repository of value among the Indians before white contact, but its use as money is probably the result of the diffusion of the Western European idea of money as part of the acculturation process between Indians and whites.
International currency substitution and the income velocity of money

Abstract This paper presents new empirical evidence on the degree to which international currency substitution destabilizes domestic money demand. It also provides an explanation of some apparent discrepancies among previous empirical studies of currency substitution. This explanation hinges on the distinction between the elasticity of currency substitution and the cross-elasticity of money demand. A large (small) value of one elasticity does not imply a large (small) value of the other. A large cross-elasticity is required for currency substitution to destabilize domestic money demand. The empirical evidence presented here is consistent with the view that these cross-elasticities are typically small.
Item-Cued Directed Forgetting of Related Words and Pictures in Children and Adults: Selective Rehearsal Versus Cognitive Inhibition

The main purpose of this study was to compare the relative importance of selective rehearsal and cognitive inhibition in accounting for developmental changes in the directed-forgetting paradigm developed by R. A. Bjork (1972). In two experiments, children in Grades 2 and 5 and college students were asked to remember some words or pictures and to forget others when items were categorically related. Their memory for both items and the associated remember or forget cues was then tested with recall and recognition. Fifth graders recognized more of the forget-cued words than college students did. The pattern of results suggested that age differences in rehearsal and source monitoring (i.e., remembering whether a word had been cued remember or forget) were better explanatory mechanisms for children's forgetting inefficiencies than retrieval inhibition was. The results are discussed in terms of a multiple process view of inhibition.
Spectral slope and Kolmogorov constant of MHD turbulence.

The spectral slope of strong MHD turbulence has recently been a matter of controversy. While the Goldreich-Sridhar model predicts a -5/3 slope, shallower slopes have been observed in numerics. We argue that earlier numerics were affected by driving due to a diffuse locality of energy transfer. Our highest-resolution simulation (3072{sup 2}x1024) exhibited the asymptotic -5/3 scaling. We also discover that the dynamic alignment, proposed in models with -3/2 slope, saturates and cannot modify the asymptotic, high Reynolds number slope. From the observed -5/3 scaling we measure the Kolmogorov constant C{sub KA}=3.27{+-}0.07 for Alfvenic turbulence and C{sub K}=4.2{+-}0.2 for full MHD turbulence, which is higher than the hydrodynamic value of 1.64. This larger C{sub K} indicates inefficient energy transfer in MHD turbulence, which is in agreement with diffuse locality.
Effects of partitioning operations on the electrical activity of the human stomach.

Abstract To identify the effects that various gastric partitioning procedures have on the electrical activity of the stomach, pairs of bipolar Teflon-coated electrode wires were placed in selected sites of the stomach of 18 patients. Recordings from the proximal gastric fundus above the staple line, from the distal fundus below the staple line, and from the distal gastric antrum were obtained using differential preamplifiers, an oscilloscope, and a dual-channel tape recorder. Oscilloscopic displays were photographed and the electrical signals were recorded for subsequent analysis. The total number of readings at each recording site were: proximal fundus, 79; distal fundus, 59; and antrum, 96. Control electrical rhythm (CER) was found in all the 96 antral recordings. The mean period was 21.6 ± 0.22 sec (SEM). The frequency was 2.8 ± 0.03/min. Only in 4 of the 138 recordings from the gastric fundus, could a low-amplitude CER be identified. Although partitioning of the stomach by stapling produces some degree of crushing injury to the gastric wall, no abnormalities of the CER were noted in the antrum, supporting the concept that the gastric pacemaker of the slow-wave electrical activity (CER) in the human stomach is located below the gastric fundus. Furthermore, in contrast to cardiac muscle, localized mechanical injury to the gastric wall did not result in ectopic foci of electrical activity.
Measuring Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus Vaccine Response: Using a Commercially Available ELISA as a Surrogate for Serum Neutralization Assays

Genetic selection in livestock offers the opportunity to improve bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) vaccine response, but first we must define how vaccine response should be measured. For measuring humoral vaccine response, serum neutralization (SN) measures antibodies that can neutralize BVDV, but relative to enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is time consuming, technically demanding, and expensive. The ELISA, however, measures total BVDV-specific antibodies, regardless of whether the antibodies can neutralize BVDV. Our objective was to test whether a commercially available BVDV antibody ELISA could be used as a surrogate (or indicator trait) for neutralizing antibodies as measured by SN. Angus and Angus-cross calves (n=193) from two South Dakota research herds were vaccinated for BVDV-1 and BVDV-2. Sera and plasma samples (n=406) were collected from these calves at the time of vaccination and post-vaccination (20-72 days post-vaccination). The BVDV-specific antibody concentration was measured on each serum and plasma sample by (1) a commercially available total antibody ELISA, (2) BVDV-1 SN, and (3) BVDV-2 SN. Correlation between the ELISA and SN tests was estimated with a Spearman correlation coefficient. Higher BVDV ELISA sample-to-positive (S/P) ratios were positively correlated with higher BVDV-1 (ρ=0.809) and BVDV-2 (ρ=0.638) SN titers (P<0.0001), although the relationship was weaker when SN titers were <1:64. Higher BVDV-1 SN titers were also positively correlated with higher BVDV-2 SN titers (ρ=0.708; P<0.0001). The correlation between ELISA S/P ratios and SN titers was lower when calves were ≤2 months of age (ρ=0.344-0.566). Our results suggest that increased ELISA S/P ratios were associated with higher SN titers. We conclude that this BVDV antibody ELISA can be used as a surrogate for BVDV-1 and -2 SN titers when investigating genetic determinants of vaccine response, as long as samples are collected at 2 months of age or older.
The break-up of a heteroclinic connection in a volume preserving mapping

Abstract We consider a family of three-dimensional, volume preserving maps depending on a small parameter e. As e→0+ these maps asymptote to flows which attain a heteroclinic connection. We show that for small e the heteroclinic connection breaks up and that the splitting between its components scales with e like eγ exp(-β/e). We estimate β using the singularities of the e→0+ heteroclinic orbit in the complex plane. We then estimate γ using linearization about orbits in the complex plane. While these estimates are not proven, they are well supported by our numerical calculations. The work described here is a special case of the theory derived by Amick et al. which applies to q-dimensional volume preserving mappings.
Cobalt hexammine inhibition of the hammerhead ribozyme.

The effects of Co(NH3)63+ on the hammerhead ribozyme are analyzed using several techniques, including activity measurements, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopies and thermal denaturation studies. Co(NH3)63+ efficiently displaces Mn2+ bound to the ribozyme with an apparent dissociation constant of Kd app = 22 ± 4.2 μM in 500 μM Mn2+ (0.1 M NaCl). Displacement of Mn2+ coincides with Co(NH3)63+ inhibition of hammerhead activity in 500 μM Mn2+, reducing the activity of the WT hammerhead by ∼15-fold with an inhibition constant of Ki = 30.9 ± 2.3 μM. A residual ‘slow' activity is observed in the presence of Co(NH3)63+ and low concentrations of Mn2+. Under these conditions, a single Mn2+ ion remains bound and has a low-temperature EPR spectrum identical to that observed previously for the highest affinity Mn2+ site in the hammerhead ribozyme in 1 M NaCl, tentatively attributed to the A9/G10.1 site [Morrissey, S. R., Horton, T. E., and DeRose, V. J. (2000) J. Am. Chem....
Identification of germ cell-specific genes in mammalian meiotic prophase

Background Mammalian germ cells undergo meiosis to produce sperm or eggs, haploid cells that are primed to meet and propagate life. Meiosis is initiated by retinoic acid and meiotic prophase is the first and most complex stage of meiosis when homologous chromosomes pair to exchange genetic information. Errors in meiosis can lead to infertility and birth defects. However, despite the importance of this process, germ cell-specific gene expression patterns during meiosis remain undefined due to difficulty in obtaining pure germ cell samples, especially in females, where prophase occurs in the embryonic ovary. Indeed, mixed signals from both germ cells and somatic cells complicate gonadal transcriptome studies.
NATURE OF INFANTILE SHOCK TRAUMATIZATION, STRAIN DIFFERENCES, AND ADAPTABILITY TO STRESS

Infant rats of two strains were exposed to two types of shock traumatization in infancy: escapable and inescapable. The strains included Sprague-Dawley rats and Long-Evans hooded rats. Animals were tested in adulthood on open-field test, avoidance conditioning, and water escape maze. Statistical analysis yielded several significant Strain × Treatment interactions which suggest that strain of the animal and type of traumatization are potential influencing variables in the nature and direction of the effect produced by early traumatization. Such genetic and ontogenetic interaction complicates the issue of the nature of the effect produced by early experience.
Mating patterns of woolly spider monkeys, Brachyteles arachnoides: implications for female choice

Woolly spider monkeys show a promiscuous, polygynous mating system in which a receptive female mates with several males, often in rapid succession. Copulation is prolonged with an average duration of 4.1±1.5 (SD) min. Coitus consists of a stationary phase with the male in intromission, followed by stercotypic behaviours of the female which appear to cue and/or accompany male climax and ejaculation. Subadult and adult males show different association patterns with individual females. Subadult males form long-term consortships with particular females while adult males appear strongly attracted to a particular female only when the is receptive. These different behavior patterns of males are viewed as age-specific mating tactics. Males in a mating aggregation show little intermale aggression for sexual access to a receptive female. Large testis size in this species suggests that much intermale competition for reproductive success may be carried out at a postcopulatory level, perhaps by sperm competition. The copulatory pattern of woolly spider monkeys may function primarily as a mechanism of female choice, aiding a female in assessing the quality of males in hei mating aggregation while helping to ensure that maximal high quality spermatozoa will be available at the proper time for fertilization.
On single integral equations for the transmission problem of acoustics

The transmission problem, namely scattering of time-harmonic waves in a compressible fluid by a fluid inclusion with different material properties, is usually formulated as a pair of coupled boundary integral equations over the interface S between the inclusion and the exterior fluid. In this paper, however,we consider methods for solving the transmission problem using a single integral equation over S for a single unknown function. In fact, we derive four different integral equations, using a hybrid of the direct (Green’s theorem) and indirect (layer ansatz) methods, and give conditions for the unique-solvability of each and for the subsequent construction of the solution to the transmission problem. Some of our single integral equations are Fredholm integral equations of the second kind with weakly-singular kernels. Thus, these equations, all of which appear to be new, are attractive computationally.
Histopathologic studies of abnormal enamel formation in human teeth

Abstract Histologic studies were made of the developing teeth of eleven infants and human fetuses. Definite changes were observed in the ameloblasts and organic enamel matrix of the deciduous and permanent teeth in five of the cases. From the material presented, the writer believes it possible to trace the histogenesis of enamel hypoplasia from its earliest manifestations to the end result of clinically demonstrable defects. The earliest changes are marked by an abnormal formation or secretion of enamel substance subjacent to and within the cell cytoplasm. There is little or no further evidence of ameloblastic change. It is likely that this stage is reversible, the cells retaining an ability to return to normal function. A prominent incremental line would be the only subsequent indication of such temporary dysfunction. A later and more severe stage is recognized by the beginning of cystic change in the ameloblasts. Vacuolization begins first in the portion of the cell proximating the stratum intermedium and gradually progresses inferiorly to involve a larger part of the cell structure. Streaks and globules of enamel-like material project inferiorly from such injured cells and are continuous with the abnormal enamel layer. Complete cystic destruction of ameloblasts marks the final stage in the pathogenesis of enamel defects. Such cells can no longer function in amelogenesis and clinical hypoplasia results. It is apparent that abnormal enamel formation is nonspecific in nature and cannot, in the presented material, be definitely associated with a particular disease process or injury. That a variety of disturbances may be the causative agent in such abnormalities is accepted. Any of these, dependent upon their severity and the degree of tissue response, may result in the so-called hypoplastic enamel defects.
Facile construction of C10 modified prostaglandin precursors. diyl trapping reactions using phenyl vinyl sulfoxide and phenyl vinyl sulfone.

Abstract The application of 1,3-diyl trapping reactions to the synthesis of commonly used prostanoid precursors is described.
Processing and properties of (1 − x)Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3·xPbTiO3 solid solutions from PbO- and MgO-excess compositions

Abstract Perovskite solid solutions (1 − x)Pb(Mg 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 ·xPbTiO 3 with x between 0.06 and 0.14 were prepared by heat treatment followed by acid treatment of mixtures containing both PbO and MgO in amounts greater than in the perovskite composition. For example, heat treatment of 4PbO + 1.5MgO + 0.9Nb 2 O 5 + 0.3TiO 2 mixture at 900°C for 1 h produced the perovskite with x = 0.1 without the formation of pyrochlore phase. The Pb(Mg 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 –PbTiO 3 (PMN–PT) solid solutions were crystallized into discrete cubes several micrometers in size. After sintering these particles at 1290°C for 2 h in a PbO atmosphere, the relative density of the ceramics was 93% or more. The ceramics with x = 0.08–0.1 showed a large electric field–induced strain near room temperature.
Alpha-Synuclein Induces Lysosomal Rupture and Cathepsin Dependent Reactive Oxygen Species Following Endocytosis

α-synuclein dysregulation is a critical aspect of Parkinson's disease pathology. Recent studies have observed that α-synuclein aggregates are cytotoxic to cells in culture and that this toxicity can be spread between cells. However, the molecular mechanisms governing this cytotoxicity and spread are poorly characterized. Recent studies of viruses and bacteria, which achieve their cytoplasmic entry by rupturing intracellular vesicles, have utilized the redistribution of galectin proteins as a tool to measure vesicle rupture by these organisms. Using this approach, we demonstrate that α-synuclein aggregates can induce the rupture of lysosomes following their endocytosis in neuronal cell lines. This rupture can be induced by the addition of α-synuclein aggregates directly into cells as well as by cell-to-cell transfer of α-synuclein. We also observe that lysosomal rupture by α-synuclein induces a cathepsin B dependent increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS) in target cells. Finally, we observe that α-synuclein aggregates can induce inflammasome activation in THP-1 cells. Lysosomal rupture is known to induce mitochondrial dysfunction and inflammation, both of which are well established aspects of Parkinson's disease, thus connecting these aspects of Parkinson's disease to the propagation of α-synuclein pathology in cells.
The functions of presidential campaigning

This essay describes a set of instrumental and consummatory functions served by presidential campaigning, and analyzes the objects and acts which manifest those functions.
The half-life of bovine and chicken insulin in chicken plasma.

Abstract The half-life of both chicken and bovine insulin in chicken blood was found by radioimmunoassay to be 4.5 min. Hence differences in insulin action on chickens as compared with mammals cannot be accounted for by the different rates of destruction of insulins in chicken plasma.
Immune stimulating properties of a novel polysaccharide from the medicinal plant Tinospora cordifolia

An alpha-D-glucan (RR1) composed of (1-->4) linked back bone and (1-->6) linked branches with a molecular mass of >550 kDa and exhibiting unique immune stimulating properties is isolated and characterized from the medicinal plant Tinospora cordifolia. This novel polysaccharide is noncytotoxic and nonproliferating to normal lymphocytes as well as tumor cell lines at 0-1000 microg/ml. It activated different subsets of the lymphocytes such as natural killer (NK) cells (331%), T cells (102%), and B cells (39%) at 100 microg/ml concentration. The significant activation of NK cells is associated with the dose-dependent killing of tumor cells by activated normal lymphocytes in a functional assay. Immune activation by RR1 in normal lymphocytes elicited the synthesis of interleukin (IL)-1beta (1080 pg/ml), IL-6 (21,833 pg/ml), IL-12 p70 (50.19 pg/ml), IL-12 p40 (918.23 pg/ml), IL-18 (27.47 pg/ml), IFN- gamma (90.16 pg/ml), tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha (2225 pg/ml) and monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1 (2307 pg/ml) at 100 microg/ml concentration, while it did not induce the production of IL-2, IL-4, IL-10, interferon (IFN)-alpha and TNF-beta. The cytokine profile clearly demonstrates the Th1 pathway of T helper cell differentiation essential for cell mediated immunity, with a self-regulatory mechanism for the control of its overproduction. RR1 also activated the complements in the alternate pathway, demonstrated by a stepwise increase in C3a des Arg components. Incidentally, RR1 stimulation did not produce any oxidative stress or inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in the lymphocytes or any significant increase in nitric oxide production. The water solubility, high molecular mass, activation of lymphocytes especially NK cells, complement activation, Th1 pathway-associated cytokine profile, together with a low level of nitric oxide synthesis and absence of oxidative stress confer important immunoprotective potential to this novel alpha-D-glucan.
Pore-scale analysis of effects of electrode morphology and electrolyte flow conditions on performance of vanadium redox flow batteries

Abstract A 3D pore-scale transport resolved model is used to study the performance characteristics of a vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) with various electrode morphologies under different operating conditions. Three electrode structures are reconstructed from X-ray computed tomography (XCT) images of porous carbon felt electrode materials. The local vanadium concentration, overpotential, current density and overall cell voltage for the positive half cell are examined. The results indicate that the cell voltage increases with increasing electrolyte flow rate due to decreasing concentration gradients of vanadium species within the porous electrode. However, the marginal gain in cell voltage diminishes once the concentration field approaches uniformity under convection-dominated mass transport conditions at sufficiently high electrolyte flow rates. The model also predicts that electrode structures with low porosity (high surface area) result in more uniform and lower absolute current density and overpotential fields at the expense of increased pressure drop. Finally, poor cell performance is observed for simulations operated at low electrolyte flow rates and low states of charge due to the fuel starvation (i.e., insufficient amount of reactant in the cell).
Learning, Analyzing and Predicting Object Roles on Dynamic Networks

Dynamic networks are structures with objects and links between the objects that vary in time. Temporal information in dynamic networks can be used to reveal many important phenomena such as bursts of activities in social networks and human communication patterns in email networks. In this area, one very important problem is to understand dynamic patterns of object roles. For instance, will a user become a peripheral node in a social network? Could a website become a hub on the Internet? Will a gene be highly expressed in gene-gene interaction networks in the later stage of a cancer? In this paper, we propose a novel approach that identifies the role of each object, tracks the changes of object roles over time, and predicts the evolving patterns of the object roles in dynamic networks. In particular, a probability model is proposed to extract latent features of object roles from dynamic networks. The extracted latent features are discriminative in learning object roles and are capable of characterizing network structures. The probability model is then extended to learn the dynamic patterns and make predictions on object roles. We assess our method on two data sets on the tasks of exploring how users' importance and political interests evolve as time progresses on dynamic networks. Overall, the extensive experimental evaluations confirm the effectiveness of our approach for identifying, analyzing and predicting object roles on dynamic networks.
Inclusion size and sintering of composite powders

Ceramic powders containing dispersed inert particulates often exhibit dramatically lower densification rates than the pure powder. This decrease results from the shrinkage incompatibilities of the matrix and the inclusion during densification. The analyses of this phenomenon all predict that the shrinkage rate is only dependent on the overall volume fraction of the inert second phase, and not on the particle size. Experiments on ZnO containing dispersed SiC particles of different size showed that the retarding effect of the second phase increases significantly with decreasing particle size, at constant SiC volume fraction.
Comparison of methods to treat nonuniform illumination in images

The effects of removing illumination gradients on the spatial distribution characteristics of visible fat within beef longissimus dorsi muscle were investigated. Gradients were assumed to be slowly varying and were removed by subtracting a smoothed version of the image from the original. Two types of filters were used to smooth the images: a linear lowpass filter and a greyscale morphological opening. The effects of the two filters on the binary images after thresholding using a Boolean random set model were investigated. Results showed that the choice of filter significantly influenced model parameter estimates. It was concluded that the morphological filter provided the most consistent means of eliminating adverse effects of illumination gradients. 1.
Resistant cross- age smoothing of age-specific percentiles for growth reference data.

Resistant delineation, a technique adapted from exploratory data analysis (Tukey, Exploratory Data Analysis, 1977), was applied to smooth age-specific percentiles for triceps skinfold thickness across ages from 1 to 20 years. Row percentiles were transformed to logarithms to promote symmetry and to render variability more nearly homogeneous across ages. The delineation involved smoothing resistantly the sequences of age-specific log medians and the sequence of age-specific positive differences between the "4253H, twice" (Velleman, J. Am. Statist. Assoc., 75:609-615, 1980). The delineation concluded by recombining these smoothed sequences to obtain smoothed percentiles in the log scale. Finally, the logarithmic transformation was reversed, yielding the smoothed age-specific percentiles. Comparisons of smoothed results from resistant, delineation with the original data indicated a satisfactory fit. Comparisons with published smoothed percentiles, obtained from the same data by a cubic-spline procedure, showed that the resistant delineation captured the structure of the raw data better than the cubic-spline procedure. The resistant delineation procedure makes few assumptions of the underlying data, it ensures a proper order relationship among the smoothed percentiles, it is relatively insensitive to isolated unusual data, and it is available in a common software package.
A modified genetic algorithm for matching building sets with the histograms of forces

This paper presents an approach to the task of locating a group of buildings based solely on their relative spatial relationships. This situation can occur in the problem of conflation of a hand or machine drafted map to a satellite image or in matching of two images taken under different viewing conditions (the correspondence problem). Of importance to us is the general text-to-sketch problem where a sketch of building locations must be matched to actual satellite imagery. Information about the nature of these relative positions is captured by the histograms of forces. In this paper, we consider a modified genetic algorithm that allows us to search for a specific group of buildings within a large geospatial database using the histograms of forces in the matching process. A novel mutation operator is introduced to adapt the standard GA to this environment.
Boundary states and black hole entropy

A formal derivation of black hole entropy is given as a sum over boundary states. The boundary states are labeled by energy and momentum surface densities, and parametrized by the boundary metric. The sum over state labels is expressed as a functional integral with measure determined by the density of states. The sum over metrics is expressed as a functional integral with measure determined by the universal expression for the inverse temperature gradient at the horizon. The analysis applies to any stationary, nonextreme black hole in any theory of gravitational and matter fields.
Almost nonparametric inference for repeated measures in mixture models

Summary. We consider ways to estimate the mixing proportions in a finite mixture distribution or to estimate the number of components of the mixture distribution without making parametric assumptions about the component distributions. We require a vector of observations on each subject. This vector is mapped into a vector of Os and 1 s and summed. The resulting distribution of sums can be modelled as a mixture of binomials. We then work with the binomial mixture. The efficiency and robustness of this method are compared with the strategy of assuming multivariate normal mixtures when, typically, the true underlying mixture distribution is different. It is shown that in many cases the approach based on simple binomial mixtures is superior. Let pi (x) and p2(x) be probability distributions with AI and A2 positive real numbers that sum to 1. Then p(x) = Al Pi (x) ? A2 p2(x) defines a two-component mixture distribution with com- ponents pl(x) and p2(x) and mixture weights Al and A2. Mixture distributions arise when observations come from different populations, each with a different distribution, and the population sampled is unobserved. Interesting examples include those in the social sciences in which important variables are latent and unobserved. As an example, consider the problem of trying to infer the solution strategies which young children employ in solving a cognitive task when different solution strategies can be employed. A group of same-age children can be considered a sample from a mixture distribution in which the components correspond to the various strategies; see Thomas and Horton (1997). Recently, there has been an expanding interest in mixtures and there is now a large literature. Examples and theory may be found in many sources including Lindsay (1995), McLachlan and Basford (1988), Titterington et al. (1985) and Everitt and Hand (1981). Computational issues in estimating the model parameters rely mainly on the EM algorithm; see McLachlan and Krishnan (1997) for a detailed account. Two main issues remain unresolved in applications of mixtures. One is the specification of the number of components. Although there may sometimes be substantive theory to guide this specification, in exploratory settings
Fractals in elastic-hardening plastic materials

Plastic grains are found to form fractal patterns in elastic-hardening plastic materials in two dimensions, made of locally isotropic grains with random fluctuations in plastic limits or elastic/plastic moduli. The spatial assignment of randomness follows a strict-white-noise random field on a square lattice aggregate of square-shaped grains, whereby the flow rule of each grain follows associated plasticity. Square-shaped domains (comprising 256×256 grains) are loaded through either one of three macroscopically uniform boundary conditions admitted by the Hill–Mandel condition. Following an evolution of a set of grains that have become plastic, we find that it is monotonically plane filling with an increasing macroscopic load. The set’s fractal dimension increases from 0 to 2, with the response under kinematic loading being stiffer than that under mixed-orthogonal loading, which, in turn, is stiffer than the traction controlled one. All these responses display smooth transitions but, as the randomness decreases to zero, they turn into the sharp response of an idealized homogeneous material. The randomness in yield limits has a stronger effect than that in elastic/plastic moduli. On the practical side, the curves of fractal dimension versus applied stress—which indeed display a universal character for a range of different materials—offer a simple method of assessing the inelastic state of the material. A qualitative explanation of the morphogenesis of fractal patterns is given from the standpoint of a correlated percolation on a Markov field on a graph network of grains.
Therapeutic Hypothermia for Treatment of Intractable Intracranial Hypertension After Liver Transplantation

A comatose 23-year-old woman with acute liver failure due to an overdose of acetaminophen had indications of intracranial hypertension and underwent liver transplantation. Her level of arousal did not improve, and on postoperative day 1, clinical signs of cerebral herniation became apparent. An intracranial pressure monitor was placed, and intracranial hypertension was documented. Elevations in intracranial pressure persisted despite maximal osmotherapy, and therapeutic hypothermia was started. Normalization of intracranial pressure was rapid. Findings on neurological examination improved and the patient was discharged from the hospital with no neurological impairment.
Structural insight into activity enhancement and inhibition of H64A carbonic anhydrase II by imidazoles.

Human carbonic anhydrases (CAs) are zinc metalloenzymes that catalyze the hydration and dehydration of CO2 and HCO3−, respectively. The reaction follows a ping-pong mechanism, in which the rate-limiting step is the transfer of a proton from the zinc-bound solvent (OH−/H2O) in/out of the active site via His64, which is widely believed to be the proton-shuttling residue. The decreased catalytic activity (∼20-fold lower with respect to the wild type) of a variant of CA II in which His64 is replaced with Ala (H64A CA II) can be enhanced by exogenous proton donors/acceptors, usually derivatives of imidazoles and pyridines, to almost the wild-type level. X-ray crystal structures of H64A CA II in complex with four imidazole derivatives (imidazole, 1-­methylimidazole, 2-­methylimidazole and 4-methylimidazole) have been determined and reveal multiple binding sites. Two of these imidazole binding sites have been identified that mimic the positions of the `in' and `out' rotamers of His64 in wild-type CA II, while another directly inhibits catalysis by displacing the zinc-bound solvent. The data presented here not only corroborate the importance of the imidazole side chain of His64 in proton transfer during CA catalysis, but also provide a complete structural understanding of the mechanism by which imidazoles enhance (and inhibit when used at higher concentrations) the activity of H64A CA II.
Indicators of developmental toxicity following prenatal administration of hormonally active compounds in the rat. II. Pattern of maternal weight gain.

Chronic prenatal exposure of rats to diethylstilbestrol, zeranol, or 3,4,3′,4′-tetrachlorobiphenyl produced quantitative and qualitative differences in the cumulative pattern of weight gain during pregnancy. Each of the three compounds, however, exhibited unique characteristics with respect to the effect of increased dose on this response, as well as in the relationship of reduced weight gain to perinatal mortality. The weight deficit after diethylstilbestrol treatment was found to reside in the dam herself, not in any compartment of the gravid uterus. The pattern of maternal weight gain is a useful indicator of developmental toxicity permitting discrimination among structurally diverse chemical agents.
TRAF6 inhibits Th17 differentiation and TGF-β–mediated suppression of IL-2

Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) has an essential role in the generation of inducible regulatory T (iTreg) and T helper 17 (Th17) cells. However, little is known about the TGF-beta-triggered pathways that drive the early differentiation of these cell populations. Here, we report that CD4(+) T cells lacking the molecular adaptor tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6) exhibit a specific increase in Th17 differentiation in vivo and in vitro. We show that TRAF6 deficiency renders T cells more sensitive to TGF-beta-induced Smad2/3 activation and proliferation arrest. Consistent with this, in TRAF6-deficient T cells, TGF-beta more effectively down-regulates interleukin-2 (IL-2), a known inhibitor of Th17 differentiation. Remarkably, TRAF6-deficient cells generate normal numbers of Foxp3-expressing cells in iTreg differentiation conditions where exogenous IL-2 is supplied. These findings show an unexpected role for the adaptor molecule TRAF6 in Smad-mediated TGF-beta signaling and Th17 differentiation. Importantly, the data also suggest that a main function of TGF-beta in early Th17 differentiation may be the inhibition of autocrine and paracrine IL-2-mediated suppression of Th17 cell generation.
High Photoconductive Responsivity in Solution-Processed Polycrystalline Organic Composite Films

We demonstrate a novel approach for enhancing photoconductive responsivity (R) using a solution-based organic semiconductor composite that yields R approaching 25 AW−1, which is two to three orders of magnitude higher than the R in films comprising a single molecular component. We present extensive studies of photoconductivity, photoluminescence, and crystalline structural order that elucidate the mechanisms underlying this high photoconductive responsivity. The high R is found to arise from high photoconductive gain (82) due to a long mobile hole lifetime stemming from a prolonged occupation of electrons in deep traps generated at interfacial regions between the molecular crystallites.
var1 Gene on the mitochondrial genome of Torulopsis glabrata.

We have cloned and sequenced a region of the Torulopsis glabrata mitochondrial genome homologous to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae var1 gene (var1Sc). An open reading frame that could encode a protein of 339 amino acids was found with 72·7% amino acid and 85·3% nucleotide sequence homology to the S. cerevisiae var1 gene. The T. glabrata gene (var1Tg) is transcribed yielding two stable RNAs, a more abundant 13·5 S RNA and a less abundant 18 S species. We have also identified a candidate for a T. glabrata var1 protein among mitochondrial translation products labeled in isolated mitochondria. The var1Tg gene is even more A + T-rich (93%) than var1Sc (89·6%) and has conserved the strong codon bias of var1Si. Major differences between the two sequences were found. Significant among these are that no GC clusters are found in var1Tg and the sequences surrounding each of the sites where known polymorphisms exist in var1Sc have deletions at the corresponding sites in var1Tg. These data are discussed with respect to possible origins of these var1 genes and translocation of GC clusters in S. cerevisiae mitochondrial DNA.
Image-based tracking with Particle Swarms and Probabilistic Data Association

The process of automatically tracking people within video sequences is currently receiving a great deal of interest within the computer vision research community. In this paper we contrast the performance of the popular Mean-Shift algorithmpsilas gradient descent based search strategy with a more advanced swarm intelligence technique. Towards this end, we propose the use of a Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm to replace the gradient descent search, and also combine the swarm based search strategy with a Probabilistic Data Association Filter (PDAF) state estimator to perform the track association and maintenance stages. Performance is shown against a variety of data sets, ranging from easy to complex. The PSO-PDAF approach is seen to outperform both the Mean-Shift + Kalman filter and the single-measurement PSO + Kalman filter approach. However, PSOpsilas robustness to low contrast and occlusion comes at the cost of higher computational requirements.
Predictors of Depression in Battered Women

The sample for this study consisted of 164 women recruited from newspaper advertisements and bulletin board postings asking for volunteers with serious problems in intimate relationships with men. Women were screened for battering using the Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS). Of 164 battered women, 28% were moderately to severely depressed and 11% were severely depressed on the Beck Depression Inventory. Significant predictors of depression (accounting for 44% of variance) by multivariate analysis were childhood physical abuse, self-care agency, physical abuse by partner, and daily hassles. In addition to these analyses, the influence of self in relationship on depression was examined. The findings from this study suggest that physical abuse is an important part of the etiology of depression in battered women and that the abuse in combination with daily hassles supports a stress explanation of depression, with a woman's ability to take care of herself a protective factor.
Pharmacokinetics and Safety of a Single Dose of Stavudine (d4T) in Patients with Severe Hepatic Impairment

This open-label study enrolled five subjects with biopsy-proven cirrhosis and moderate to severe hepatic impairment (Child-Pugh classification grade B or C) and five age- and gender-matched controls. All subjects received a single 40-mg oral dose of stavudine (d4T). Stavudine pharmacokinetics in subjects with hepatic impairment were similar to those in age- and gender-matched control subjects and were not substantially different from those previously observed in human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients. Based on these findings, stavudine use does not require modification of the dose or dosing interval for patients with liver disease.
Depth-dependent variations in Achilles tendon deformations with age are associated with reduced plantarflexor performance during walking

The anatomical arrangement of the Achilles tendon (AT), with distinct fascicle bundles arising from the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles, may facilitate relatively independent behavior of the trice...
Descriptions of the Egg and Mature Larva of the Bee Chelostoma (Prochelostoma) philadelphi with Additional Notes on Nesting Biology (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae: Megachilinae: Osmiini)

ABSTRACT The egg of Chelostoma (Prochelostoma) philadelphi (Robertson) and its last larval instar, which had been preserved while defecating, are described and illustrated. The egg was collected from nests constructed in frass-filled burrows of the beetle Xylobiops basilaris (Say) in a dead branch of Ficus carica L. Nests consisting of a short linear arrangement of cells are described as is the provisioning behavior of the bee. Although distinguishable, the last stage larva is similar to that of another species belonging to a different subgenus of Chelostoma. The two larvae will be compared in a subsequent publication.