cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Disintegrin-like and Metalloprotease (Reprolysin-type) with Thrombospondin Type 1 Motif (ADAMTS) Superfamily: Functions and Mechanisms

Together with seven ADAMTS-like proteins, the 19 mammalian ADAMTS proteases constitute a superfamily. ADAMTS proteases are secreted zinc metalloproteases whose hallmark is an ancillary domain containing one or more thrombospondin type 1 repeats. ADAMTS-like proteins resemble ADAMTS ancillary domains and lack proteolytic activity. Vertebrate expansion of the superfamily reflects emergence of new substrates, duplication of proteolytic activities in new contexts, and cooperative functions of the duplicated genes. ADAMTS proteases are involved in maturation of procollagen and von Willebrand factor, as well as in extracellular matrix proteolysis relating to morphogenesis, angiogenesis, ovulation, cancer, and arthritis. New insights into ADAMTS mechanisms indicate significant regulatory roles for ADAMTS ancillary domains, propeptide processing, and glycosylation. ADAMTS-like proteins appear to have regulatory roles in the extracellular matrix.
Bison-Net a CAMAC High Speed Block Data Ccmmunication Channel

A high speed network communications station has been developed to serve to interconnect a variety of computers in a multiplexed star network. Each station consists of one control module and two memory modules embodied as CAMAC modules. Transmission is over coaxial lines with typical distances between stations of from 1 to 2 miles.
Individual Muscle Contributions to Whole-Body Angular Momentum During Normal Walking

Walking is a complex dynamic task that requires the generation of whole-body angular momentum to maintain dynamic balance and perform a wide range of locomotor tasks. Previous studies have shown that controlling angular momentum is essential to maintaining dynamic balance and preventing falls during walking [1] and recovering from a trip [2]. Others have suggested that angular momentum is highly regulated by the central nervous system [3] and that control synergies may be used to provide this regulation [4].Copyright © 2010 by ASME
Advances in Computation, Statistical Methods, and Testing of Discrete Choice Models

This paper gives a brief overview of recent developments in computation, estimation, and statistical testing of choice models, with marketing applications. Topics include statistical models for discrete panel data with heterogeneous decision-makers, simulation methods for estimation of high-dimension multinomial probit models, specification tests for model structure and for brand and purchase clustering, and innovations in numerical analysis for estimation and forecasting.
Translating Gender Justice in Southeast Asia: Situated Ethics, NGOs, and Bio-Welfare

This essay shows that regardless of existing laws and prominent female leaders, gender justice as a value must be attuned to the situated ethics of the majority populations in order to gain social legitimacy. Since the 1980s, NGO movements for reformasi, or reform, and democrasi have intervened on women’s behalf in a variety of areas—Muslim feminism, political violence, and the abuse of maids, sex workers, and migrants. They have had to modify rights-based strategies in accordance with religious, legal, and economic conditions. Universalizing gender rights articulate situated fields of power that contest or qualify imposed regulatory systems of humanitarian values. It is important to acknowledge that gender justice intervenes in webs of power that can thwart its regulation as well as form new alliances of solidarity. Gender justice and rights cannot be unilaterally imposed, but are transmitted and translated through negotiations with situated religious and citizenship norms. In postcolonial milieus, ideals of gender justice interact with diverse ethical regimes to shape the conditions of possibility for problematizing gender and possible solutions to gender inequality that cannot be predetermined.
Control of Photosystem Formation in Rhodobacter sphaeroides

Rhodobacter sphaeroides has the capacity to grow by aerobic and anaerobic respiration and photosynthetically in the light under anaerobic conditions, as well as fermentatively. It can fix atmospheric nitrogen and carbon dioxide. It resembles other gram-negative members of the class Proteobacteria when growing aerobically, but a reduction in oxygen tension induces an intracellular differentiation of the inner membrane, leading to the formation of the intracytoplasmic membrane system (ICM). The ICM houses the integral membrane pigment-protein complexes constituting the photosystem (PS), comprised of the reaction center (RC) and two light-harvesting (LH) complexes. For an early review of ICM biosynthesis, see reference 44. The LH complexes are designated B800-850 (LHII) and B875 (LHI), based on their respective absorption maxima. The ratio of LHI to RC is fixed at approximately 15:1, whereas the ratio of LHII to the LHI-RC unit is variable, changing in a manner inverse to the incident light intensity. These three pigment-protein complexes are the spectral complexes (SC) of the R. sphaeroides PS. Detailed structural information about these complexes in several species of Rhodobacter is emerging (72). The LH complexes capture light energy and direct that energy to the RC, where conversion of the excitation energy takes place and is intrinsically coupled with a cyclic flow of electrons, ultimately to the periplasmically localized cytochrome c2, which serves to rereduce the RC to allow a new cycle of electron flow (for further details, see references 42, 44, and 72). Bacteriochlorophyll (Bchl) absorbs most of the light energy within the SCs and is critical to the assembly and final structure of the SCs (44, 84, 87). The carotenoids (Crt) have a minor role in absorbing light energy (15), but they function to protect the complexes against photo-oxidative damage, dissipate excess radiant energy, and help to maintain the structure and relative abundance of each SC (35, 50, 53). A reduction in oxygen tension is both necessary and sufficient to induce synthesis of the ICM (reviewed in references 42 and 44), which is gratuitously produced under anaerobic dark growth conditions, in the presence of an alternate electron acceptor such as dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). Oxygen tension is the major environmental stimulus controlling PS induction, with variations in light intensity determining the cellular level of the ICM and the abundance of the different SCs. PS formation is tightly regulated, with checkpoints at all levels of information flow, from transcriptional through posttranslational. In the following sections, we will describe what we currently know about the regulatory processes controlling the formation and abundance of SCs in R. sphaeroides. We will present a working model for the regulation of PS formation in R. sphaeroides 2.4.1 which is based on the critical role of cellular redox carriers. For clarity, we will, throughout this review, define aerobic growth as that which occurs under highly oxygenic conditions, under which there are no detectable SCs present in wild-type membranes.
Representational Trajectories in Connectionist Learning

The paper considers the problems involved in getting neural networks to learn about highly structured task domains. A central problem concerns the tendency of networks to learn only a set of shallow (non-generalizable) representations for the task, i.e., to ‘miss’ the deep organizing features of the domain. Various solutions are examined, including task specific network configuration and incremental learning. The latter strategy is the more attractive, since it holds out the promise of a task-independent solution to the problem. Once we see exactly how the solution works, however, it becomes clear that it is limited to a special class of cases in which (1) statistically driven undersampling is (luckily) equivalent to task decomposition, and (2) the dangers of unlearning are somehow being minimized. The technique is suggestive nonetheless, for a variety of developmental factors may yield the functional equivalent of both statistical AND ‘informed’ undersampling in early learning.
SEX-STEREOTYPING IN FOUR-YEAR-OLDS' OCCUPATIONAL ASPIRATIONS

68 4-yr.-olds were interviewed about their occupational aspirations and whether they would accept three male- and three female-typical jobs. Boys aspired to traditionally male-sex-typed occupations. Contrary to previous research, girls showed a wider range of occupational aspirations than boys, and girls’ aspirations were significantly higher in educational status than boys. The boys were significantly more likely to accept three male-stereotyped occupations than three female-stereotyped occupations. Girls were significantly more likely to choose female-stereotyped occupations than male occupations.
Design and Evaluation of a Passive Ankle Prosthesis With Rotational Power Generation by a Compliant Coupling Between Leg Deflection and Ankle Rotation

This paper presents the design and simulation results of a passive prosthetic ankle prosthesis that has mechanical behavior similar to a natural ankle. The presented design achieves active behavior with powered push-off to propel the body forward. The design contains a conventional compression spring network that allows coupling between two degrees of freedom. There is a translational degree of freedom along the leg and a rotational degree of freedom about the ankle joint. During a standard gait cycle, potential energy from the person’s weight is stored in the spring network from deflection along the leg. The energy is released by the spring network as rotation of the foot. With this design, capping the allowable leg deflection at 15 millimeters produces 45% of the rotational work that a natural ankle will produce. This is based on simulation using published average kinetic and kinematic data from gait analyses.Copyright © 2014 by ASME
X-ray images of hollow heart potatoes in water

Hollow heart is a defect which can cause serious problems in marketing potatoes. X-ray inspection is recognized as one of the most reliable non-destructive techniques for detecting hollow heart in white potatoes. Tests were conducted on potatoes having various degrees of severity of hollow heart and also on normal tubers. X-ray pictures were effective in exposing the hollow heart condition. The radiographic contrast between normal and defective tubers was enhanced by examining the tubers submerged under water. The x-ray image of sound potatoes was masked entirely while the hollow heart areas appeared as a bright spot under water. Results suggest that automatic sorting of potatoes for hollow heart may be simplified considerably if the tubers are x-rayed in a stream of water rather than in air.
Waves In Piezoelectric Crystals For Frequency Control And Signal Processing

We give a brief survey of the types of acoustic waves that propagate in piezoelectric crystals, touching upon some of the most useful crystal cuts, and some of the practical structures currently used. Materials that may substitute for quartz are considered. Equivalent network structures are dealt with for the characterization of devices, and examples of typical responses achieved for bulk, surface, and shallow bulk configurations are given.© (1981) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
DEMOCRACY IN REFORMING COLLAPSED COMMUNIST ECONOMIES: BLESSING OR CURSE?

From a political standpoint, post-communists systems include both democratic and non-democratic nations. From an economic standpoint, they include both collapsing and expanding economies. All four logical possibilities exist for post-communist political and economic systems. The Czech Republic is an example of a democratic political system and an expanding economic system. Russia is an example of a democratic political system and a collapsing economic system. China is an example of a non-democratic political system and an expanding economic system. North Korea is an example of a non-democratic political system and a collapsing economic system. The fact that all four logical possibilities exist suggests that democracy is neither necessary nor sufficient for good economic performance. However, democracy is certainly a value in itself that requires certain basic institutions, including free and fair elections, the orderly transfer of power to those elected, the rule of law and the separation of powers, and the protection of individual freedoms and basic liberties, including those of speech, press, religion, assembly, property, and economic opportunity. Economic policies, rather than the form of government, determine the results for an economy. Russia and China, the two largest socialist economies, followed very different economic policies and experienced radically different outcomes. The failure of “shock therapy” economic policies for transition to a market economy in Russia is related to its use of the Washington Consensus SLP package of stabilization, liberalization, and privatization, as recommended by the World Bank and the IMF. The success of Deng's economic policies for transition to a market economy in China is related to its rejection of the SLP in favor of the ICG approach of institutions, competition, and government. Other interesting cases are those of the Czech Republic and North Korea. Those nations in which both political and economic reforms have been simultaneously successful, such as the Czech Republic, are generally small, homogeneous European nations with a historic work ethic, with a relatively short period of socialism, and with support from neighboring advanced industrialized nations. There is great difficulty in simultaneously establishing both democracy and a market economy without a very special set of circumstances. Thus, it is necessary to determine a sequence for political and economic reform. Ultimately, however, the ideal of both democracy and a market economy may be attained even in nations without special circumstances and external assistance, with Russia eventually turning its economy around and with China eventually reforming politically into a democratic nation.
Repression of the Id2 (inhibitor of differentiation) gene promoter during exit from the cell cycle.

The Id2 gene is one of several “Id-like” genes which encode helix-loop-helix proteins which dimerize with basic helix-loop-helix proteins and inhibit binding to the DNA enhancer element known as an E box. By repressing the DNA binding activity of basic helix-loop-helix proteins, Id proteins inhibit transcription of tissue-specific genes in myoblasts, hematopoietic precursor cells, and other types of undifferentiated cells. Serum starvation results in the disappearance of Id gene transcripts in most types of cultured cells, and often induces differentiation of these cells. In order to gain some insight into this process, we have analyzed Id2 promoter function in the glioma cell line U87Y. We have isolated 300 base pairs of Id2 promoter sequence which is sufficient to repress the activity of a reporter gene in serum-starved U87Y cells, but induces the activity of the reporter gene when the cells are stimulated with fresh serum. Two regions within this 300 base pair sequence contain repressor elements; deletion of either region results in increased promoter activity. Both repressor regions serve as binding sites for a protein in extracts from serum-starved U87Y cells but not in serum-stimulated cells. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Integrated microring tuning in deep-trench bulk CMOS

An all-digital ΔΣ-based heater driver and a 6-μm diameter microring resonator are monolithically-integrated in deep-trench bulk CMOS. With clock scaling and 2.5V supply voltage, the system demonstrates a 350GHz tuning range and 10-15μW/GHz tuning efficiencies.
Using nonlinearity to enhance micro/nanosensor performance

Resonant microelectromechanical systems are key building blocks for many microsensor applications, including mass detection, inertial detection and RF filters and timing oscillators. Especially in systems with low damping, amplitudes are such that nonlinearities are present. In many applications, these nonlinearities can be significant, and need to be accounted for. In this paper, mass sensing of DNT will be discussed in the context of an application where understanding and cleverly utilizing nonlinearity results in improved sensor performance.
Corrosion–fatigue studies of the Zr-based Vitreloy 105 bulk metallic glass

The purpose of this study was to characterize the stress-life behavior of the Vitreloy 105 BMG alloy in the four-point bending configuration in a 0.6 M NaCl electrolyte. At high stress amplitudes, the corrosion-fatigue life was similar to the fatigue lives observed in air. The environment became increasingly detrimental with decreases in stress, and the corrosion-fatigue endurance limit decreased to about 50 MPa, an 88% decrease relative to testing in air. Similar to the tests conducted in air, oxide particles were found on the fracture surfaces but did not appear to significantly affect the corrosion-fatigue lives. However, wear and the resultant corrosion at the outer loading pins resulted in crack initiation in most of the samples. Thus, these results are considered conservative estimates of the corrosion-fatigue behavior of this BMG alloy. Monitoring of the samples and the open-circuit potentials revealed that the onset of significant crack growth occurred at an average of 92% of the total fatigue life. The mechanism of corrosion-fatigue degradation was found to be anodic dissolution.
Disturbance Response of Two-Link Underactuated Serial-Link Chains

In an attempt to improve the performance of underactuated robotic hands in grasping, we investigate the influence of the underlying coupling mechanism on the robustness of underactuated hands to external disturbance. The coupling mechanisms used in underactuated mechanisms can be divided into two main classes based on the self-adaptive transmission used to route actuation to the degrees of freedom, namely single-acting and double-acting transmissions. The kinematic coupling constraint is always active in double-acting mechanisms, while there are specific combinations of external disturbances and mechanism parameters that render the constraint inactive in single-acting mechanisms. This paper identifies unique behaviors in terms of mechanism reconfiguration and variation in grasping contact forces that result from the underactuated hand’s response to external disturbance forces and show that these behaviors are a function of the coupling mechanism, actuation mode, and contact constraints. We then present an analysis of how these behaviors influence grasping ability of the hand and discuss implications for underactuated hand design and operation. [DOI: 10.1115/1.4006279]
Testing capital account liberalization without forward rates Another look at Chile 1979–1982

Abstract The paper offers a way to test the impact of capital account liberalization on domestic interest rates when proxies for expectations of depreciation are unavailable. The model is tested on the well-understood Japanese experience in 1979–1980 and then applied to the Chilean liberalization from 1979–1982. The evidence points to Chilean monetary authorities retaining significant control over interest rates across the period and offers support to an evolving interpretation of the period that stresses the excessive optimism about the reforms, rather than their lack of credibility, as the source of their ultimate collapse.
Prevalence of secondary hematologic disorders in the antiphospholipid syndrome: Impact on coagulation risk

Hematologic abnormalities may occur in antiphospholipid antibody syndrome. The most common of these abnormalities is thrombocytopenia. The mechanism by which low platelet counts occur is not known but studies continue to elucidate the potential role of autoantibodies and cell surface markers. The risk for thrombosis in patients with thrombocytopenia does not appear to be related to the presence of thrombocytopenia itself. Innovative treatment with anti-CD20 antibodies may be of benefit in reversing thrombocytopenia and treatment with splenectomy does not appear to increase the risk for subsequent thrombosis. Hemolytic anemia is associated with antiphospholipid antibodies as well, but the risk for thrombosis in patients with hemolytic anemia is not clearly elevated. Diagnostic features of disseminated intravascular coagulation may co-occur with the antiphospholipid syndrome and may be associated with a catastrophic clinical presentation.
Trefftz indirect method applied to nonlinear potential problems

Boundary type solution methodologies for linear elliptic boundary value problems (BVPs) are now well established. Unfortunately, this class of problems represents very few realistic practical situations due to the presence of nonlinearities in either boundary conditions or material properties. In this paper, we demonstrate an indirect formulation of the Trefftz method for solution of nonlinear BVPs arising in potential problems. While the concept of Trefftz method itself is fairly established, its application to nonlinear BVPs has been quite limited. Past experience indicates that Trefftz complete functions often give rise to polynomial type of nonlinearities and the resulting equations that govern the unknowns are almost always poorly conditioned, for which numerical solutions are difficult to obtain from standard procedures. For the solution of such nonlinear equations, we adopt a highly robust stabilized continuation method with inherent numerical error attenuation properties. Our numerical examples demonstrate this methodology when applied to 2D heat conduction problems with material and boundary condition nonlinearities, and the results indicate good potential for the use of indirect Trefftz method for nonlinear problems.
Diagenesis in a sequence-stratigraphic setting: porosity evolution in periplatform carbonate reservoirs, Permian Basin, Texas and New Mexico

Abstract Sequence stratigraphy provides a predictive approach to potential porosity occurrence in subsurface carbonate rocks. This model predicts that most porosity within platform portions of depositional sequences results from meteoric dissolution accompanying subaerial exposure during sea-level lowstands. Porosity that may develop as a consequence of dolomitization during either sea-level highstands or lowstands, and preservation of primary depositional porosity, also are predicted by sequence stratigraphic concepts. To test the limitations of this model, the diagenesis of hydrocarbon reservoirs in Lower Permian periplatform carbonates in the Permian Basin is described in terms of porosity evolution within the framework of their burial depth histories. In some cases, porosity development in these carbonates was inherently related to sequence stratigraphy in that: (1) in limestones, it was inherited from meteoric dissolution on the platform prior to redeposition, or (2) it developed during dolomitization soon after sediment redeposition into periplatform settings. However, porosity formation via dissolution in both periplatform limestone and dolomite reservoirs also is a common mesogenetic (intermediate and deep-burial) phenomenon which operates long after redeposition. Dissolution in these cases is believed to record the expulsion of acidic fluids from hydrocarbon source rocks. Hence, porosity formation is neither temporally nor spatially related to sequence stratigraphy, and can not be predicted by this model.
Diagnosis of an aortic valvular lesion

From the question on page 719 A 59-year-old woman with hypertension presented with right-sided weakness and vision loss. Her vital signs were normal; cardiopulmonary exam was significant for a systolic and diastolic murmur. MRI of the brain showed multiple chronic bilateral infarctions, and Doppler ultrasound revealed acute left lower extremity deep vein thrombosis. Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) to determine cardioembolic source of stroke was significant only for severe aortic valve regurgitation. To assess for cardiac vegetations, transoesophageal echocardiography (TEE) was performed (figure 1). Thrombophilic workup revealed positive antinuclear antibody (titre 1:640) and lupus anticoagulant; the remaining …
Influence of subjective intoxication, breath alcohol concentration, and expectancies on the alcohol-aggression relation.

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of subjective intoxication, alcohol-aggression expectancies, and breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) on intoxicated aggression in men and women while controlling for dispositional aggressivity. Methods: Subjects were 328 (163 men and 165 women) healthy social drinkers between 21 and 35 years of age. Following the consumption of either an alcohol or an active placebo beverage, subjects were tested on a modified version of the Taylor Aggression Paradigm in which mild electric shocks were received from, and administered to, a fictitious opponent during a competitive task. Levels of subjective intoxication and BrAC were measured immediately before subjects began the aggression task. Aggressive behavior was operationalized as the shock intensities administered to the fictitious opponent under conditions of low and high provocation. Results: Subjective intoxication ratings were not related to aggressive behavior for either men or women. Alcohol-aggression expectancies were related to aggression for men, but this effect was rendered nonsignificant when controlling for dispositional aggressivity, which in turn, was significantly related to the dependent variables for both men and women. Finally, BrAC was also related to aggression above and beyond the effects of dispositional aggressivity, yet only for men. Conclusions: Taken as a whole, this study suggests that intoxicated aggression is primarily the result of alcohol's pharmacological properties in conjunction with an aggressive disposition.
Mining patterns in persistent surveillance systems with smart query and visual analytics

In Persistent Surveillance Systems (PSS) the ability to detect and characterize events geospatially help take pre-emptive steps to counter adversary’s actions. Interactive Visual Analytic (VA) model offers this platform for pattern investigation and reasoning to comprehend and/or predict such occurrences. The need for identifying and offsetting these threats requires collecting information from diverse sources, which brings with it increasingly abstract data. These abstract semantic data have a degree of inherent uncertainty and imprecision, and require a method for their filtration before being processed further. In this paper, we have introduced an approach based on Vector Space Modeling (VSM) technique for classification of spatiotemporal sequential patterns of group activities. The feature vectors consist of an array of attributes extracted from generated sensors semantic annotated messages. To facilitate proper similarity matching and detection of time-varying spatiotemporal patterns, a Temporal-Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) method with Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) for Expectation Maximization (EM) is introduced. DTW is intended for detection of event patterns from neighborhood-proximity semantic frames derived from established ontology. GMM with EM, on the other hand, is employed as a Bayesian probabilistic model to estimated probability of events associated with a detected spatiotemporal pattern. In this paper, we present a new visual analytic tool for testing and evaluation group activities detected under this control scheme. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of proposed approach for discovery and matching of subsequences within sequentially generated patterns space of our experiments.
Ultrafast Reaction Dynamics

A decade ago this magazine devoted a special issue to laser chemistry (see PHYSICS TODAY, November 1980). One of the articles emphasized the importance of time scales in chemical reactions and the possible use of ultrashort lasser pulses to induce chemistry. Over the past 10 years new laser techniques, and gas‐phase and molecular‐beam experiments, have revealed much about the fundamental steps of elementary chemical reactions. These approaches and the tremendous detail they have exposed about the dynamics of chemical reactions are the subject of the present article. With new laser techniques and with gas phase and molecular beam experiments, it is now possible to determine the ultrafast motion in isolated chemical reactions—chemistry on the 10^(−13)‐second time scale.
Pion Production from a Classical Source: Transport and Hydrodynamical Properties

We discuss how to determine the hydrodynamic and transport properties of a pion field produced in a high-energy collision. It is shown that a Boltzmann-type equation can be obtained for a relativistic generalization of the Wigner distribution function. In simple models, one can construct the expectation value of the normal-ordered energy-momentum tensor from the second moments of this distribution function. For a $\ensuremath{\lambda}{\ensuremath{\varphi}}^{4}$ theory, treated in the Hartree approximation, we show that the transport equation for the pion field is similar, in the limit $\ensuremath{\hbar}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}0$, to that for a single specie plasma, treated in the Vlasov approximation. We show that if pions are produced in a coherent state, the hydrodynamic properties of the field are those of an ideal fluid. In particular, pion production by a $c$-number source provides a realization in field theory of Landau's hydrodynamical model.
Borane-ammonia complexes stabilized by hydrogen bonding.

Novel boron−ammonia complexes, wherein an NH3 molecule is tightly bound through all four of its atoms, have been prepared and studied. The solid-state structure of ortho MOM-phenyllithium is reported.
Disclosure of Sexual Orientation and Behavior in the Nurses' Health Study II: Results from a Pilot Study

SUMMARY Objective: To examine disclosure of sexual orientation and response rates in a pilot study of questions on sexual orientation and gender of sexual partners in the Nurses' Health Study II. Methods: A pilot questionnaire was mailed to random samples of 350 women from each of three marital status strata: never married, previously married, and currently married. We estimated prevalence of each category of sexual orientation in the pilot study. Response rates to the sexual orientation question for the pilot questionnaire and the 1995 cohort questionnaire were compared. Results: The overall response rate to the pilot study was 78%. In the pilot study, 98% of women reported a sexual orientation of heterosexual, 0.1% bisexual, and 0.9% lesbian, with 0.7% either declining to answer, leaving the question blank, or categorizing themselves as none of the above, weighted for stratified sampling by marital status. The distribution of sexual orientation in the cohort study (N = 91,654) was similar. Asking women ...
Familial pulmonary hypertension in association with an abnormal hemoglobin. Insights into the pathogenesis of primary pulmonary hypertension.

A kindred with a familial hemoglobinopathy and familial primary pulmonary hypertension with autosomal dominant transmission has been identified. Affected family members were obvious from their cyanosis due to a reduced affinity for oxygen by the hemoglobin variant. The mother and one child had clinical pulmonary hypertension, whereas two siblings had cyanosis and preclinical pulmonary vascular disease as evidenced by abnormal perfusion lung scans and elevated levels of fibrinopeptide A in the face of normal pulmonary hemodynamics. In one, pulmonary hypertension could be induced with exercise. The studies on this family support the hypothesis that primary pulmonary hypertension may be initiated by abnormalities of the pulmonary vascular bed that predispose to in situ thrombosis. The possible common genetic transmission of the two diseases offers the speculation that the gene that confers predisposition to pulmonary hypertension may be located near the gene responsible for beta globulin. (Chest 1991; 99:1208-10)
Synthesis, thermal stability, and structure of (V.13Mo.87)O2.935 : a new oxide with the open hexagonal MoO3 structure

New oxides with the stoichiometry (Li[sub x]H[sub .13[minus]x])(V[sub .13]Mo[sub .87])O[sub 3][center dot]0.26H[sub 2]O and the structure of [open quotes]hexagonal MoO[sub 3][close quotes] have been precipitated directly from Li-V-Mo aqueous solutions. At room temperature in dilute HCl, these precipitates undergo a rapid ion-exchange reaction to give the pure protonic form of vanadium-stabilized hexagonal MoO[sub 3], H[sub .13](V[sub .13]Mo[sub .87])O[sub 3][center dot]0.26H[sub 2]O. Complete dehydration of this solid acid yields a new oxide (V[sub .13]Mo[sub .87])O[sub 2.935] which retains the structure of hexagonal MoO[sub 3] up to 460[degrees]C. Whereas all the previously reported compounds with the hexagonal MoO[sub 3] framework have contained large stabilizing cations in the one dimensional channels of the structure, (V[sub .13]Mo[sub .87])O[sub 2.935] represents the open form of hexagonal MoO[sub 3] and has empty channels with free diameters approaching 3.3 [angstrom]. Powder neutron diffraction was used to confirm the structure of (V[sub .13]Mo[sub .87])O[sub 2.935] which was refined in space group P6[sub 3] with final lattice parameters of a = 10.593(1), c = 3.6944(4) [angstrom]; V = 359.01 [angstrom][sup 3]. The [open quotes]porosity[close quotes] of this structure is significantly, [approx] 12-18%, greater than the [alpha], [beta], and [beta][prime] polymorphs of MoO[sub 3].
Stigma or Sympathy? Attributions of Fault to Hate Crime Victims and Offenders.

This study investigates the influence of social status on attributions of blame in specific instances of hate crime. Two theoretical explanations for the impact of offender's and victim's social status characteristics on evaluations of hate crimes are examined. The stigma perspective suggests that the public will deride minority-status individuals, whereas the sympathy perspective implies that the public will be sympathetic to members of minorities. Results from a factorial survey reveal mixed support for both perspectives, depending on the victim's status (race, gender, or sexual orientation). Respondents appear especially sensitive to racial status asymmetry, blaming white offenders more than black offenders and black victims less than white victims, but sympathy is not evident for gay and lesbian victims. Results also suggest that gay and lesbian victims are held more accountable for their actions than heterosexual victims and that respondent's attitudes shape attributions of blame.
Transcatheter embolization in management of hemorrhage from duodenal ulcer: long-term results and complications.

Effectiveness of transcatheter embolization for treatment of bleeding duodenal ulcers was evaluated in 57 patients followed up for at least 5 years. Terminal muscular branch vessel embolization was effective for initial control of bleeding in 27 of 28 cases, and gastroduodenal artery embolization was effective in 25 of 29 (P = .371). Terminal vessel embolization was more effective in attaining long-term control of bleeding (15 of 28 patients) than was gastroduodenal artery embolization (eight of 29) (P = .084). Occlusion of terminal vessels with 6-cyanoacrylate resulted in long-term control of bleeding in nine of 10 patients. With selective embolization of terminal vessels, late complications of duodenal stenosis occurred in seven of 28 patients; when occlusion was at the level of the gastroduodenal artery (P = .131), this developed in only two of 29. Occlusion of the proximal gastroduodenal artery by means of epsilon-aminocaproic acid-induced autologous clot was the most innocuous technique. Retrograde p...
Ultrathin Films of Poly(ethylene oxides) on Oxidized Silicon. 2. In Situ Study of Crystallization and Melting by Hot Stage AFM

We report on the isothermal crystallization behavior of thin (film thickness d < 500 nm) and ultrathin (d < 100 nm) films of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), as well as pyrene end-labeled PEO, on native...
Spectrum of a Vlasov-Fokker-Planck operator

Abstract Using spectral techniques, we show that it is possible for collisions to stabilize a plasma which is (linearly) marginally unstable when collisions are ignored. A grossly simplified linearized Fokker-Planck model is used to describe the collisions.
Correspondence: Structure of polyethylene

Abstract Absolute X-ray and neutron diffraction measurements on the same sample of deuterated polyethylene permitted a determination of the absolute scattering factor of the (110) peak. The observed value differs considerably from that corresponding to a superposition of free atoms. Absolute X-ray measurements of the (110) reflection and the so-called amorphous peak on various samples of paraffin and polyethylene raise doubts as to whether the amorphous and crystalline phases can be treated as separate entities.
1-Bit compressive sensing

Compressive sensing is a new signal acquisition technology with the potential to reduce the number of measurements required to acquire signals that are sparse or compressible in some basis. Rather than uniformly sampling the signal, compressive sensing computes inner products with a randomized dictionary of test functions. The signal is then recovered by a convex optimization that ensures the recovered signal is both consistent with the measurements and sparse. Compressive sensing reconstruction has been shown to be robust to multi-level quantization of the measurements, in which the reconstruction algorithm is modified to recover a sparse signal consistent to the quantization measurements. In this paper we consider the limiting case of 1-bit measurements, which preserve only the sign information of the random measurements. Although it is possible to reconstruct using the classical compressive sensing approach by treating the 1-bit measurements as plusmn 1 measurement values, in this paper we reformulate the problem by treating the 1-bit measurements as sign constraints and further constraining the optimization to recover a signal on the unit sphere. Thus the sparse signal is recovered within a scaling factor. We demonstrate that this approach performs significantly better compared to the classical compressive sensing reconstruction methods, even as the signal becomes less sparse and as the number of measurements increases.
Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers in the Sediments of the Great Lakes. 3. Lakes Ontario and Erie

Sediment cores were taken in 2002 in Lakes Ontario and Erie at four locations. A total of 48 sediment samples were characterized, dated using 210Pb, and analyzed for 10 congeners of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) including BDE209 as well as 39 congeners of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The surficial concentrations of nine tri- through hepta-BDE congeners (Σ9PBDE) are 4.85 and 6.33 ng g-1, at sampling sites ON40 and ON30 in Lake Ontario, and 1.83 and 1.95 ng g-1 at ER37 and ER09 in Lake Erie, respectively, based on dry sediment weight. The surficial BDE209 concentrations are 242 and 211 ng g-1 at ON40 and ON30 and 50 and 55 ng g-1 at ER37 and ER09. The Σ9PBDEs fluxes to the sediment around 2002 are 147 and 195 pg cm-2 year-1 at ON40 and ON30 and 136 and 314 pg cm-2 year-1 at ER37 and ER09, respectively. The fluxes of BDE209 are 6.5 and 7.3 ng cm-2 year-1 at ON30 and ON40 and 3.7 and 8.9 ng cm-2 year-1 at ER37 and ER09, respectively. Dramatic increases in PBDE concentrations and fluxes upward to...
Extremity Fracture Pain After Emergency Department Reduction and Casting: Predictors of Pain After Discharge

Study objective The aims of this study are to determine the prevalence of pediatric extremity fracture pain after emergency department (ED) discharge, compare pain severity between fractures requiring simple casting versus sedated reduction and casting, and explore predictors of postdischarge pain. Methods This is a prospective observational study of children aged 4 to younger than 18 years and presenting to the ED with extremity fracture from May 2010 to February 2011. The Parents' Postoperative Pain Measure, which scores pain according to 15 behavior-related questions, was completed 48 to 72 hours after discharge. A score greater than or equal to 6 of 15 indicates clinically meaningful pain. Univariate tests and multivariable regression analyses were used to compare Parents' Postoperative Pain Measure scores between cohorts. Results Two hundred fifty-seven patients were enrolled; 202 (79%) had Parents' Postoperative Pain Measure scores for analysis. Pain scores greater than or equal to 6 were reported by 37 of 102 (36%) of the simple casted and 44 of 100 (44%) of the reduced casted children. There was no difference in scores between the simple (median 4.0) and reduced casted (median 5.0) cohorts (difference 16.7%; 95% confidence interval [CI] −3.0% to 40%). In the multivariate analysis, ED narcotic administration was associated with 24% higher Parents' Postoperative Pain Measure scores (95% CI 0.95% to 53.6%). Children receiving ED narcotics had more than 2 times increased odds of pain scores greater than or equal to 6 after discharge (95% CI 1.24 to 5.39). Conclusion Children in both simple casted and reduced casted groups had clinically meaningful pain after ED discharge. Identifying these children is important to improving pain management and discharge care.
Hypercoagulable states: molecular genetics to clinical practice.

Abstract Summary Several physiological antithrombotic proteins—including antithrombin, protein C, protein S, tissue factor pathway inhibitor, and components of the fibrinolytic system—act as inhibitors at strategic sites in the coagulation cascade to maintain normal blood fluidity under normal circumstances. The molecular basis of specific inherited hypercoagulable states has been recently elucidated. With the description of resistance to activated protein C, which is the commonest coagulation defect associated with thrombophilia, a specific primary hypercoagulable state can be identified in over 50% of patients with thrombophilia. Although the prevalence in the normal population of some "prothrombotic" mutations is remarkably high, most affected individuals do not have clinical thrombotic complications, so it is likely that clinically apparent hypercoagulable states result from multigene interactions, and that clinical episodes of thrombosis are precipitated by acquired prothrombotic insults in patients with an inherited predisposition to thrombosis.
Poultry carcass inspection by a fast line-scan imaging system: Results from in-plant testing

During in-plant testing of a hyperspectral line-scan imaging system, images were acquired of wholesome and systemically diseased chickens on a commercial processing line moving at a speed 70 birds per minute. A fuzzy logic based algorithm using four key wavelengths, 468 nm, 501 nm, 582 nm, 629 nm, was developed using image data from the validation set of images of 543 wholesome and 66 systemically diseased chickens. A classification method using the fuzzy logic based algorithm was then tested on the testing set of images of 457 wholesome and 37 systemically diseased chickens, as well as 80 systemically diseased chickens that were imaged off-shift during breaks between normal processing shifts of the chicken plant. The classification method correctly identified 89.7% of wholesome chicken images and 98.5% of systemically diseased chicken images in the validation set. For the testing data set, the method correctly classified 96.7 % of 457 wholesome chicken images and 100% of 37 systemically diseased chicken images. The 80 images acquired off-shift were also 100% correctly identified.
Geogrid-Aggregate Interlock Mechanism Investigated through Aggregate Imaging-Based Discrete Element Modeling Approach

Geogrids are commonly used in road construction for stabilization and reinforcement purposes. Factors affecting the interaction or interlock mechanisms between geogrids and aggregates may include, but are not limited to, aggregate size and shape and geogrid types and properties. To better quantify these effects, an aggregate image aided discrete element method (DEM) modeling approach is introduced in this paper. DEM simulations of laboratory direct shear tests carried out on both unreinforced and geogrid-reinforced aggregate shear box samples indicate that the aggregate imaging aided DEM can accurately predict both unreinforced and geogrid-reinforced aggregate strength properties. The use of geogrids increased the shear strength of the aggregate assembly by constraining the movement of the aggregates in the shear zone, which is often referred to as the geogrid’s stiffening effect in this aggregate-geogrid composite system. Preliminary findings on the effects of geogrids with various opening shapes and geometries on the mechanical interlock are also presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the aggregate image aided DEM model and its potential for quantifying the individual effects of geogrid aperture size and shape relative to aggregate size and shape, gradation, and density, as well as the shape and stiffness of the ribs and the stiffness of the junction between the ribs of various geogrid products.
Mycorrhiza and Repeated Drought Exposure Affect Drought Resistance and Extraradical Hyphae Development of Pepper Plants Independent of Plant Size and Nutrient Content

Summary Pepper ( Capsicum annuum L.) plants with and without VA-mycorrhiza (formed by the fungus Glomus deserticola Trappe, Bloss & Menge), VAM, and NVAM, respectively, were drought acclimated (DA) by four drought cycles or kept well watered (NDA). All plants were then subjected to an additional drought cycle. Similar shoot mass and leaf area were achieved in all treatments by giving more P fertilizer to NVAM than VAM plants. With few exceptions, leaf nutrient concentrations of 12 elements, including P, were either equal or higher in NVAM than VAM plants. During peak drought stress, plants with the combination of VAM-DA treatments had the greatest drought resistance, as indicated by the highest leaf water potential, turgor, relative water content and frequency of non-wilted plants. Some drought resistance, as indicated by intermediate frequency of wilting, occurred when VAM or DA were applied singly. Nutrition and plant size were not associated with this drought resistance. Extraradical hyphae development and soil aggregation of VAM plants were enhanced by drought acclimation, suggesting that these hyphae improved drought resistance by facilitating soil water uptake.
Characterization of the temperature oscillation technique to measure the thermal conductivity of fluids

Abstract The temperature oscillation technique to measure the thermal diffusivity of a fluid consists of filling a cylindrical volume with the fluid, applying an oscillating temperature boundary condition at the two ends of the cylinder, measuring the amplitude and phase of the temperature oscillation at any point inside the cylinder, and finally calculating the fluid thermal diffusivity from the amplitude and phase values of the temperature oscillations at the ends and at the point inside the cylinder. Although this experimental technique was introduced by Santucci and co-workers nearly two decades ago, its application is still limited, perhaps because of the perceived difficulties in obtaining accurate results. Here, we attempt to clarify this approach by first estimating the maximum size of the liquid’s cylindrical volume, performing a systematic series of experiments to find the allowable amplitude and frequency of the imposed temperature oscillations, and then validating our experimental setup and the characterization method by measuring the thermal conductivity of pure water at different temperatures and comparing our results with previously published work.