cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Human α2-HS-glycoprotein/bovine fetuin homologue in mice: identification and developmental regulation of the gene

Abstract Human α 2 -HS-glycoprotein (AHSG) is a plasma protein synthesized in liver and selectively concentrated in bone matrix. It has been reported to be involved in bone formation and resorption as well as immune responses. Recently, AHSG was found to be the species equivalent protein of fetuin, the major fetal serum protein in cattle and sheep. The function and regulation of AHSG/fetuin in different species are not understood. We have isolated a liver cDNA clone that encodes the human AHSG/bovine fetuin homologue in the mouse. The AHSG/fetuin gene may have a role in differentiation since it is expressed in mouse limb buds and brain only at certain stages during development. Mouse liver AHSG/fetuin mRNA was present at low level at 12 days gestation but its level increased during the late part of gestation and peaked between 1 to 3 months after birth. The regulation of mouse AHSG/fetuin synthesis during development was found to be significantly different from that of sheep and bovine fetuin. Compared to fetuin, which is reduced in adult to 1 to 2% of the fetal level, mouse AHSG synthesis subsides only 50% 4 months after birth.
Electron transport and chloroplast ultrastructure of a chlorophyll deficient mutant of wheat

A non-lethal chlorophyll deficient mutation was induced by use of the chemical mutagen ethyl methanesulfonate. Chloroplasts from the control and mutant plants were found to be very similar ultrastructurally. Thylakoid membrane volume was only slightly greater in plastids from the control as compared with plastids from the mutant. The chlorophyll content of the mutant was reduced by over 60%. This decrease in chlorophyll was not accompanied by a similar decrease in electron transport. Uncoupled electron transport rate based on a unit chlorophyll basis was nearly twice as great for mutant chloroplasts as for control plastids. However, electron transport rate based on a unit membrane volume was similar in mutant and control plants. At high irradiance the relative quantum requirement of the control and mutant was similar when expressed on membrane volume.
Design of a 360 mm focal length, f/3.6 spectrograph objective.

The design of a 360 mm focal length, f/3.6 camera objective to be installed on a Cassegrain spectrograph is described. The system, which is a four-eleMent, all-quartz arrangement with no aspheric surfaces, has a useful Spectral range from 350 to 1000 nm and an equivalent field of view of 4°.
Distribution of Progesterone to the Uterus and Associated Vasculature of Cattle

Multiparous dairy cows were sampled to study the concentrations of progesterone in tissue of the uterus and associated vasculature and to determine whether progesterone was delivered to the uterus locally. In study 1, progesterone was greater (p less than or equal to 0.05) in the first venous branch draining the cranial portion of the uterine cornu adjacent to the vary with a corpus luteum than in jugular blood or in the same vein draining the opposite uterine cornu on day 11 postestrus. Concentrations of progesterone were also greater (p less than or equal to 0.05) in the cranial than in the caudal half of the uterine cornu adjacent to the luteal-bearing ovary or in the cranial and caudal halves of the opposite uterine cornu. Concentrations of progesterone were also greater (p less than or equal to 0.05) in the uterine or ovarian arterial tissue adjacent to the ovary with the corpus luteum than in those same vessels on the contralateral side. In a second study, progesterone at 0 h on day 11 postestrus was greater (p less than or equal to 0.05) in the first venous branch draining the cranial portion of the uterine horn adjacent to the luteal-bearing ovary than in jugular blood, the same vein in the contralateral uterine cornu or in the same uterine vein 48 h after ligation and resection of the oviductal vein adjacent to the ovary with the corpus luteum. It is concluded that progesterone is delivered locally to the uterus and associated vasculature and the route of local delivery appears to be via the oviductal vein.
Examining the Relationship Between Female Parents with Low Perceived Control and Adolescent Child Stress

Adolescence is a stressful time for many children. Changes in their environment or changes in social situations are some typical stressors that an adolescent child might encounter. Interactions with parents can also be stressors for a child. Previous research has shown that a risk factor for a parent using harsh parenting techniques is perceived control. Parents who have low perceived control are at a higher risk to engage in physical parenting techniques or child abuse. This study included 198 middle school students and their female parent or guardian pairs (296 total participants), with the adolescent participants ranging in age from 10- to 14-years-old. The adult participants were evaluated for their level of perceived control and the adolescent participants were evaluated for their level of perceived stress. Parents who perceived themselves as having a low amount of control over their child’s behavior (low ACF), were linked with their child having a high level of perceived stress. This effect was found only for the 14-year-old participants. Implications of results and areas of further research are suggested. It is possible that as a child gets older and enters puberty, the parent of the child feels as if they are losing control over their child and, as a result, resort to more forceful parenting techniques to regain control.
Differences in the distribution of gray and white matter in human cerebral hemispheres

The distribution of gray matter in the two cerebral hemispheres was determined by the xenon-133 inhalation method. There was more gray matter relative to white matter in the left hemisphere than in the right, particularly in the frontal and precentral regions. This finding suggests that the organization of the left hemisphere, relative to that of the right, emphasizes processing or transfer within regions, or both, rather than transfer across regions.
The proportional solution for rights problems

Abstract Recently there have been several studies to provide axiomatic characterizations of solutions to rights problems. However, these studies do not give a satisfactory answer to the question why the proportional solution is the most widely used. This is the question addressed in this paper. To that purpose, we adopt the axiomatic approach; we suggest a set of axioms which a desirable solution should satisfy and we show that the proportional solution is the only solution to satisfy these axioms. Our main axioms are no advantageous reallocation and additivity . A solution satisfies no advantageous reallocation if no subgroup of claimants ever benefits by transferring parts of their claims between themselves. A solution satisfies additivity if it yields the same allocation whether the total estate is divided at once or in several steps.
Quantitative Measurements of Cryobiological Characteristics of Mouse Dendritic Cells and Its Evaluation Using Commercialized Coulter Counter

Quantitative measurements of cell osmotic behavior and membrane transport properties is critical for the development of cell-type-specific, optimal cryopreservation conditions. A microfluidic perfusion system has been developed here to measure the kinetic changes of cell volume under various extracellular conditions, in order to determine cell osmotic behavior and membrane transport properties. The system is fabricated using soft lithographic techniques and is composed of inlets, outlets, micchannels and a perfusion chamber for trapping cells. In this study Dendritic cells (DCs) are using as a model to validate our microfluidic system with a commercialized Beckham Coulter Counter (Multisizer 3). DCs are antigen presenting cells that have been increasingly used in immunotherapy for the treatment of various diseases. Cryopreservation and banking of DCs is critical to facilitate flexible and effective immunotherapy treatment. Using mouse DCs (MDC), membrane transport properties were first investigated using our microfluidic perfusion system. Cells in the microfluidic system were perfused with 3x phosphate buffer solution. The kinetics of cell volume changes under the specific extracellular conditions were monitored by a digital camera and analyzed using a biophysical model to determine water and cryoprotectant transport properties of the cell membrane. DCs were later tested using Beckman Coulter Counter, where the kinetic osmotic behaviors of cells were quantified through the correlation between electric pulses and their corresponding cell sizes. It was shown from this study that the cryobiological characteristics of DCs determined using microfluidic perfusion system and Coulter Counter agreed well.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
The Variation of Ice Strength Within and Between Multiyear Pressure Ridges in the Beaufort Sea

A recent series of tests on the uniaxial compressive strength of ice samples taken from multiyear pressure ridges allows the testing of several hypotheses concerning the variation in strength within and between ridges. The data set consists of 218 strength tests performed at two temperatures (−5° and −20°C) and two strain rates (10−3 and 10−5 s−1 ). There was no significant difference between the strength of the ice from the ridge sails and the ice from the ridge keels when tested under identical conditions. As the total porosity of the ice from the sails is higher by 40 percent than the ice from the keels, the lack of a significant difference is believed to result from the large variations in the structure of the ice which occur randomly throughout the cores. A three-level analysis of variance model was used to study the variations in strength between 10 different ridges, between cores located side by side in a given ridge, and between samples from the same core. In all cases the main factor contributing to the observed variance was the differences within cores. This is not surprising considering the rather extreme local variability in the structure of ice in such ridges. There was no reason at the 5 percent level of significance to doubt the hypothesis that the different cores at the same site and the different ridges have equal strength means.
STAT5‐induced Id‐1 transcription involves recruitment of HDAC1 and deacetylation of C/EBPβ

Transcriptional activation is associated commonly with recruitment of histone acetylases, while repression involves histone deacetylases (HDACs). Here, we provide evidence to suggest that STAT5 activates gene expression by recruiting HDAC. The interleukin-3 (IL-3)-dependent expression of the Id-1 gene, encoding a helix–loop–helix (HLH) transcriptional inhibitor, is activated by both C/EBPβ and STAT5 transcription factors bound to its pro-B-cell enhancer (PBE), but is inhibited by HDAC inhibitors in Ba/F3 cells. STAT5 interacts with HDAC1 in the PBE region, resulting in deacetylation of histones, as well as C/EBPβ, whose acetylation diminishes its DNA-binding activity. Consistently, expression of an acetylation-resistant mutant of C/EBPβ results in IL-3-independent expression of the Id-1 gene. Thus, we propose a novel mechanism by which STAT5 mediates the deacetylation of C/EBPβ, allowing transcriptional activation.
Using Situs for the registration of protein structures with low-resolution bead models from X-ray solution scattering

Three-dimensional bead models of proteins in solution are routinely determined from one-dimensional small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) data. The Situs software provides a novel set of visualization and registration procedures to facilitate the localization of protein structures in low-resolution SAXS bead models. The docking algorithm takes advantage of a reduced representation of the input data sets by means of topology-representing neural networks to expedite the rigid-body search. The precision of the docking was tested on ten different simulated bead models: for >100 beads typically arising in SAXS models, a docking precision of the order of an angstrom can be achieved. The shape-matching score captured the correct solutions in all ten trial cases and was sufficiently stringent to yield unique matches in seven systems. A size-invariant shape descriptor of `sphericity' is proposed to assess the onset of ambiguity in the matching of globular molecules. The software, a tutorial and supplementary data are available at http://situs.scripps.edu/saxs.
Social readjustment and illness patterns: Comparisons between first, second and third generation Italian-Americans living in the same community

Abstract After about 80 yr as a fairly stable society Roseto, over the past seven to ten years, has been undergoing a rapid acculturation into the conventional American pattern. Formerly close family and community ties have been weakened and the self-contained, self-sufficient character of the society has been eroded as the oldest inhabitants have died and the youngsters of ten years ago have come into a position of social influence. To document the changes as they have affected individuals, the Holmes Social Readjustment Rating Questionnaire was given to 204 Italian-Americans living in Roseto, Pennsylvania to ascertain what differences, if any, existed in the Life Charge Unit scores of first, second and third generation groups and to determine the degree of association between LCU scores and illness experience in these three groups. The LCU scores were found to increase with acculturation, i.e. the first generation had the lowest and the third generation had the highest LCU scores. The generational groups also differed with respect to the type of life change they experienced. The first generation reported more changes in family life, the second generation experienced more change in their personal lives and third generation reported more changes with respect to work and financial matters. LCU was found to be significantly related to illness experience. The majority of the first generation reported no illnesses, while the second and third generation were more similar than different both the number and types of illness experienced. The results were discussed in terms of the social and cultural changes that have occured in the community during the past ten years it has been undergoing study by our group.
Asymmetric adaptation in human walking using the Tethered Pelvic Assist Device (TPAD)

Human nervous system is capable of modifying motor commands in response to alterations in walking conditions. Previous research has shown that external perturbations that induce gait asymmetry can lead to adaptation in gait parameters. Such strategies have also been shown to temporarily restore gait symmetry in subjects with post stroke hemiparesis. This work aims to develop an experimental paradigm to induce gait asymmetry in human subjects by applying external asymmetric forces on the pelvis through the Tethered Pelvic Assist Device (TPAD). These external forces on the pelvis have the potential to influence the swing and the stance phases of both legs. Eight healthy subjects participated in the experiment where a higher resistive force was applied on the pelvis during the swing phase of the left leg as compared to the right leg. We hypothesized that such asymmetrically applied forces on the pelvis will lead to asymmetric adaptation in the human walking.
Thermoelectric-hydraulic performance of a multistage integrated thermoelectric power generator

A thermoelectric element made of p- and n-type semiconductor plates bonded onto a highly thermal and electrical conducting inter-connector material with an integrated flow channel can be treated as an integrated thermoelectric device (iTED). The performance of an iTED with multiple elements connected electrically in series and thermally in parallel has been investigated using numerical simulations. The top and bottom surfaces of the device are subjected to a constant cold temperature while the inter-connector channel walls are exposed to a hot fluid. The thermoelectric-hydraulic behavior of an iTED is analyzed in terms of heat input, power output, conversion efficiency, produced electric current, Ohmic and Seebeck voltages, and pressure drops for various hot fluid flow rates Re and inlet temperatures Tin, thermoelectric material sizes d, and number of modules N. For a single module iTED with fixed d and Tin values, the power output and efficiency are increased five- and twofold, respectively at Re = 500 when compared with the values of Re = 100. For given Re and d values, increasing Tin resulted in enhanced device performance. Furthermore, increasing d increased internal resistance and resulted in a decrease of heat input. The influence of d on power output is phenomenal; for a given set of geometric and thermal boundary conditions, there exists an optimum d where a maximum power output is achieved. The addition of modules N resulted in a significant improvement in power output and a reduction in produced electric current and efficiency. For instance, device with N = 5 showed more than a twofold increase in power output and nearly a 33% reduction in both efficiency and electric current when compared to N = 1 values.
Quasi-adiabatic propagator path integral methods. Exact quantum rate constants for condensed phase reactions

Abstract We describe an exact quantum-mechanical methodology for calculating Boltzmann-averaged rate constants for a system coupled to a harmonic bath of arbitrary dimensionality. Reactive flux correlation functions are evaluated using the quasi-adiabatic propagator path integral (QUAPI) method. Extremely rapid convergence is achieved: i.e. exact results are obtained with three to five time slices even at temperatures as low as 100 K, and the numerical effort required is essentially independent of the number of bath degrees of freedom. Thus, the proposed method provides an accurate and efficient scheme for studying quantum effects in the low-temperature kinetics of condensed phase reactions.
Trappin-2/Elafin: a novel innate anti-human immunodeficiency virus-1 molecule of the human female reproductive tract

Trappin-2/Elafin is a serine protease inhibitor that plays a major role as an anti-inflammatory mediator at mucosal surfaces. In addition, Trappin-2/Elafin has antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial and fungal pathogens. In this study we examined the production of Trappin-2/Elafin by epithelial cells from the human upper and lower female reproductive tract as well as its activity as an anti-human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 molecule. We found that primary uterine, Fallopian tube, cervical and ectocervical epithelial cells produce Trappin-2/Elafin constitutively and that production of Trappin-2/Elafin is enhanced following stimulation with Poly(I:C), especially by the uterine cells. Given the presence of Trappin-2/Elafin in the reproductive tract, we tested the ability of recombinant Trappin-2/Elafin to inhibit HIV-1, an important sexually transmitted pathogen. We found that recombinant Trappin-2/Elafin was able to inhibit both T-cell-tropic X4/IIIB and macrophage-tropic R5/BaL HIV-1 in a dose-dependent manner. The inhibitory activity was observed when virus was incubated with Trappin-2/Elafin but not when Trappin-2/Elafin was added to cells either before infection or after infection. This suggests that the mechanism of inhibition is likely to be a direct interaction between HIV-1 and Trappin-2/Elafin. Additionally, we measured the levels of secreted Trappin-2/Elafin in cervico-vaginal lavages (CVL) from both HIV-positive and HIV-negative women and found that average levels of secreted Trappin-2/Elafin were higher in the CVL from HIV-negative women, although the values did not reach statistical significance. We also found that women at the secretory phase of the menstrual cycle produced more Trappin-2/Elafin in CVL relative to women at the proliferative phase of the menstrual cycle. Our data suggest that Trappin-2/Elafin might be an important endogenous microbicide of the female reproductive tract that is protective against HIV-1.
Purification and partial characterization of a collagenolytic enzyme from Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Abstract A proteinase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa exhibiting collagenolytic activity was purified 1575-fold with a recovery of 24% by use of chemical and chromatographic technics. The enzyme preparation appeared to be homogeneous when subjected to chromatographic, electrophoretic and ultracentrifugational analyses. A standard state sedimentation coefficient of 2.10 S was calculated and further analyses indicated that the enzyme had a molecular weight of 17 500 and dimerizes under certain conditions to yield an apparent molecular weight of 34 000. In addition to insoluble collagen, the enzyme catalyzed the hydrolysis of congocoll, azocoll, soluble collagen and casein, but did not attach orcein-elastin, azoalbumin, p-toluene solfonyl- l -arginine methyl ester, benzoyl- l -tyrosine ethyl ester, and the hexapeptide N- benzyloxycarbonyl-glycyl- l -prolyglycylglycyl- l -prolyl- l -alanine . Enzymatic activity against congocoll was 6-fold greater at pH 7.5 in Tris · HCl than in phosphate buffer at the same ionic strength. Cobalt, and to a lesser extent, Zn2+ appeared to activate the enzyme, especially in phosphate buffer. NaCN and p-chloromercuribenzoate did not appreciably inhibit enzyme activity, while (NH4)2SO4. EDTA and cysteine displayed a significant inhibitory effect under certain conditions.
Adsorption of surfactants at the gas/solution interface of cavitation bubbles: An ultrasound intensity-independent frequency effect in sonochemistry

A major limitation in determining the effects of ultrasound frequency in sonochemistry in relation to cavitation is that no reliable relationship exists between the energy supplied to the system and the energy converted by the cavitation process in producing a sonochemical effect. However, the current study presents a frequency effect that is independent of the energy supplied to the system. Spin-trapping of secondary carbon radicals with 3,5-dibromo-4-nitrosobenzenesulfonic acid-d2 (DBNBS-d2) and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) have been used to determine the relative ability of two nonvolatile surfactants [sodium 1-pentanesulfonic acid (SPSo) and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)] to scavenge •H atoms and •OH radicals at the gas/solution interface of cavitation bubbles. The results obtained at 354 and 1057 kHz are compared to those observed previously at 47 kHz (Sostaric, J. Z.; Riesz, P. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2001, 123, 11010−11019). At particular bulk surfactant concentrations, both surfactants reached a...
Effects of approximations on the static and dynamic response of a cantilever with a tip mass

Abstract The problem of determining the equilibrium deflections of a beam with a tip mass, and the frequency of infinitesimally small oscillations about the beam's equilibrium state, E , is analyzed. The beam is able to experience flexure along two normal directions in space (thus, flexure in any direction) and torsion. Numerical solutions of the full, nonlinear beam static equilibrium equations are obtained by direct integration of a two-point boundary value problem. The results obtained are compared with an approximate perturbation expansion solution, E*, for the equilibrium state E . The frequencies associated with the small oscillations about the equilibrium state arc determind by linearizing the equations of motion about the equilibrium state, and by using a transfer matrix technique on the resulting equations. The effect on the calculated frequencies of using the approximate solution E*, obtained by a perturbation method (instead of the more exact numerical solution E mentioned above) in the linearized equations, is assessed. The use of an alternative way to determine an approximation for the natural frequencies of the system is also assessed. For this, small motions are assumed and the equations of motion are first expanded about the undeformed state of the beam. The undeformed state is not a static equilibrium state if gravity is considered. The resulting equations, which contain only polynomial nonlinearities, are then used to analyze the motion. After the equilibrium solution to these equations, E* is determined by a perturbation expansion ; these same equations are then linearized about E* and the natural frequencies are also determined by a transfer matrix technique. It is shown that the approximation so obtained for the natural frequencies can be unsatisfactory for large values of the tip mass. All the results obtained in this paper are compared with published unite elements und with experimental results.
Infusing Architectural Thinking into Organizations

As an architectural consultant, the author spends a great deal of time helping organizations fully utilize software architecture to create better products and be more competitive. Here, he explains some of the mistakes he's made and the key lessons learned over the past 10 years working with architects primarily in the consumer electronics and embedded software industries.
Unique neuromyelitis optica pathology produced in naïve rats by intracerebral administration of NMO-IgG

Animal models of neuromyelitis optica (NMO) are needed for elucidation of disease mechanisms and for testing new therapeutics. Prior animal models of NMO involved administration of human anti-aquaporin-4 immunoglobulin G antibody (NMO-IgG) to rats with pre-existing neuroinflammation, or to naive mice supplemented with human complement. We report here the development of NMO pathology following passive transfer of NMO-IgG to naive rats. A single intracerebral infusion of NMO-IgG to adult Lewis rats produced robust lesions around the needle track in 100 % of rats; at 5 days there was marked loss of aquaporin-4 (AQP4), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and myelin, granulocyte and macrophage infiltration, vasculocentric complement deposition, blood–brain barrier disruption, microglial activation and neuron death. Remarkably, a distinct ‘penumbra’ was seen around lesions, with loss of AQP4 but not of GFAP or myelin. No lesions or penumbra were seen in rats receiving control IgG. The size of the main lesion with loss of myelin was greatly reduced in rats made complement-deficient by cobra venom factor or administered NMO-IgG lacking complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) effector function. However, the penumbra was seen under these conditions, suggesting a complement-independent pathogenesis mechanism. The penumbra was absent with NMO-IgG lacking both CDC and antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) effector functions. Finally, lesion size was significantly reduced after macrophage depletion with clodronate liposomes. These results: (i) establish a robust, passive-transfer model of NMO in rats that does not require pre-existing neuroinflammation or complement administration; (ii) implicate ADCC as responsible for a unique type of pathology also seen in human NMO; and (iii) support a pathogenic role of macrophages in NMO.
Monte Carlo simulations of dilute magnetic semiconductors for high concentrations of the magnetic component

Abstract A model of dilute magnetic semiconductors has been studied by Monte Carlo methods in the concentration range 0.7≤ x ≤1. Results obtained for x =0.7 and x =1 are compared with experimental data for Cd 0.3 Mn 0.7 Te and β-MnS. For concentrations 0.85 ≤ x ≤1 the system is found to exhibit a type of “antiferromagnetic reentrant behavior”.
Dynamic Behavior of Semivolatile Organic Compounds in Indoor Air. 1. Nicotine in a Stainless Steel Chamber

The dynamic behavior of gaseous nicotine was studied in a 20-m3 stainless steel chamber. Nicotine (10−40 mg) was emitted into the sealed chamber by cigarette combustion or flash evaporation of pure liquid. After 3 h, during which time the airborne concentration was monitored, the chamber was ventilated for 2 h and then resealed to investigate re-emission of sorbed nicotine. Gas-phase, airborne particle-phase, and wall-sorbed nicotine were measured to achieve mass balance closure. More than 80% of the nicotine in the chamber was accounted for by thermally desorbing and collecting sorbed-phase nicotine. More than 99% of the measured nicotine was sorbed to chamber surfaces at equilibrium at 25 °C. The gas-phase data were interpreted using reversible sorption models. A model based on linear partitioning between the gas and sorbed phases could not be accurately fit to the time-dependent data, so equilibrium partitioning was measured separately to test the linear model assumption. The equilibrium data are well ...
Potentiometric–spectroscopic evaluation of metal-ion complexes by humic fractions extracted from corn tissue ☆

Humic fraction (HF) functional group-type and content are expected to depend on molecular size, which in turn, is expected to influence formation of heavy-metal complexes. In this study, corn (Zea mays L.) stalks and leaves were decomposed for an 8-month period to produce water-soluble humic substances. These substances were separated into three water-soluble fractions, HF1, HF2 and HF3, from highest to lowest relative molecular size. Functional group determination showed that carboxylic, and phenolic OH acidity increased as relative molecular size of humic fractions decreased. We also observed decreasing C/O ratios from larger to smaller corn tissue-derived humic fractions, whereas N/C and H/C ratios remained relatively unaffected. Furthermore, using potentiometric titration and FTIR spectroscopy we studied formation of Ca2+-, Cd2+-, and Cu2+-humic fraction complexes and how they were affected by pH and molecular size. We determined that metal–humic complexes exhibited at least two types of functional group-sites with respect to Ca2+, Cd2+, and Cu2+ complexation. Strength of metal-ion humic complexes followed the order Cu2+>Cd2+>Ca2+ and was affected by pH, especially for low affinity sites. Carboxylic groups were most likely the dominant group-sites involved in complex formation. Magnitude of the metal–humic formation constants in the logarithmic form at the lowest equilibrium metal-ion concentration, under the various pH values tested, varied from 5.39 to 5.90 for Ca2+, 5.36 to 6.01 for Cd2+, and 6.93 to 7.71 for Cu2+. Furthermore, the formation constants appeared to be positively influenced by decreasing molecular size of water-soluble humic fraction, and increasing pH. However, our molecular spectra showed that the pKa of corn humic fractions increased with decreasing relative molecular size and that Cu2+ was more covalently bonded by humic fractions than were Ca2+ and Cd2+, and the nature of the covalent bond character was independent of pH.
Gender and racial stereotypes in impression formation and social decision-making processes

Subjects who differed on relevant measures of prejudice examined photographs and trait descriptions of job candidates. Gender or racial stereotypes were cued by the photographs of the applicants, and to assess the impact of individuating information on stereotype use, the trait description concerning the applicants were manipulated so that they were either primarily stereotype-consistent, stereotype-inconsistent, or neutral. After forming an impression of each applicant, subjects completed a number of evaluative trait ratings, a liking measure, and two process-oriented measures — an information search task and a recall measure. The counter-stereotypic hiring recommendations were not mediated by the impression formed of the candidate, suggesting self-presentational concerns influenced these judgments; hiring choices were based solely on the photograph in the gender case, and on both the photograph and traits in the race case. On the evaluative trait ratings, subjects appeared relatively uninfluenced by the stereotype, although the more subtle process-oriented measures showed effects that are consistent with stereotype-guided processing. Based on the results, a model of the role of stereotypes in social decision-making is presented.
Reaction rates for hypergolic propellants using chemical delay times

It has been demonstrated that the simultaneous use of mechanical shutter and narrow-bandpass interference filters can resolve overexposure problems associated with PIV diagnostics in flames, in particular luminous flames that feature high background flame radiation. The PIV system discussed here is capable of detecting fuel droplets, particles, or seed particles under a variety of flow conditions. The diagnostics allow one for the first time to obtain detailed and comprehensive information on flow dynamics associated with complex flows, including swirling flows, jets, and various kinds of practical systems under reacting and combustion conditions can be generated.
Pharmacology of Leukotriene Receptor Antagonists

Preclinical pharmacological studies have demonstrated that cysLT1 receptor antagonists, such as zafirlukast, montelukast, and pobilukast, are potent and selective antagonists of cysteinyl leukotriene (cysLT) activity. In vitro, these agents compete with [3H]LTD4 for binding to cysLT1 receptors present on guinea pig and human lung cell membranes. Both zafirlukast and montelukast have affinities that are approximately two times greater than that of the natural ligand, LTD4. These agents block LTD4- and LTE4-induced contractions of isolated guinea pig trachea, but do not antagonize LTC4-induced contractions, which are putatively mediated by a different LT receptor, cysLT2. The cysLT2 receptor, however, has not yet been found in human airway smooth muscle. In animal models, these drugs inhibit LTD4-, LTE4-, and antigen-induced bronchoconstriction, reduce inflammatory markers in models of pulmonary inflammation, and inhibit antigen-induced late-phase bronchoconstriction. This preclinical profile suggests that cysLT1 receptor antagonists may be useful in treating inflammatory conditions of the respiratory system, such as asthma and allergic rhinitis. Aharony D. Pharmacology of leukotriene receptor antagonists.
Semantic Representation and Recognition of Continued and Recursive Human Activities

This paper describes a methodology for automated recognition of complex human activities. The paper proposes a general framework which reliably recognizes high-level human actions and human-human interactions. Our approach is a description-based approach, which enables a user to encode the structure of a high-level human activity as a formal representation. Recognition of human activities is done by semantically matching constructed representations with actual observations. The methodology uses a context-free grammar (CFG) based representation scheme as a formal syntax for representing composite activities. Our CFG-based representation enables us to define complex human activities based on simpler activities or movements. Our system takes advantage of both statistical recognition techniques from computer vision and knowledge representation concepts from traditional artificial intelligence. In the low-level of the system, image sequences are processed to extract poses and gestures. Based on the recognition of gestures, the high-level of the system hierarchically recognizes composite actions and interactions occurring in a sequence of image frames. The concept of hallucinations and a probabilistic semantic-level recognition algorithm is introduced to cope with imperfect lower-layers. As a result, the system recognizes human activities including `fighting' and `assault', which are high-level activities that previous systems had difficulties. The experimental results show that our system reliably recognizes sequences of complex human activities with a high recognition rate.
A randomized comparison of melphalan versus melphalan plus hexamethylmelamine versus adriamycin plus cyclophosphamide in ovarian carcinoma

A prospective randomized study was conducted in women with suboptimal (greater than or equal to 3 cm residual) Stage III, Stage IV, and recurrent ovarian adenocarcinoma to determine if combination chemotherapy is more effective than melphalan alone in achieving remission and improving survival. Of 233 evaluable patients with measurable disease, there were 64 treated with melphalan alone, of whom 20% achieved a clinical complete response and 17%, a partial response. Of the 97 patients receiving melphalan plus hexamethylmelamine, 28% achieved complete response compared with 32% of 72 patients given Adriamycin plus cyclophosphamide. The partial response rates for the combinations were 24% and 17%, respectively. The effect of these treatments was assessed in an additional 136 evaluable patients without measurable disease by progression-free interval and duration of survival. After statistically adjusting for distribution of cell type and grade, the clinical complete response rate for Adriamycin and cyclophosphamide (32%) in measurable cases was significantly higher (P = 0.04) than for melphalan alone. However, this combination did not improve median survival (12.3, 13.5, and 14.2 months, respectively, for M, M + H, and A + C). None of the other parameters showed a statistically significant advantage for combination chemotherapy, but the combinations caused more hematologic and gastrointestinal toxicity.
Dynamic instability in tropospheric photochemistry: An excitability threshold

Dynamic equations describing photoxidation of tropospheric chemical pollutants are nonlinear, containing complex feedback loops. Such nonlinearity is known to give rise to various dynamical instabilities including multiple steady states, oscillation, and even chaos. A related type of instability, excitability, is demonstrated here using a two-variable (reduced from six) model of CH4 photoxidation in which perturbation of a stable but excitable steady state beyond a threshold is dramatically amplified before the steady state is reapproached. Such switching/amplification responses may have important implications for atmospheric/climatic modeling. A phase-plane analysis describes the origin of this excitability and suggests that it may be a relatively common phenomenon in environmental models.
Solid Renal Tumors: An Analysis of Pathological Features Related to Tumor Size

ABSTRACTPurpose: We examined the relationship between tumor size and malignancy among solid renal tumors, and the relationship between tumor size and RCC subtype within tumors with renal cell carcinoma (RCC).Materials and Methods: We identified 2,770 adult patients who underwent radical nephrectomy or nephron sparing surgery for sporadic unilateral nonmetastatic solid renal tumors between 1970 and 2000. All pathology specimens were reviewed by a urological pathologist for diagnosis, and in RCC tumors, for histological subtype and nuclear grade.Results: There were 376 benign (12.8%) and 2,559 (87.2%) malignant tumors. The percentage of benign tumors decreased from 46.3% for those less than 1 cm to 6.3% for those 7 cm or greater. Among RCC tumors the percentage that were clear cell increased from 25.6% for those less than 1 cm to 83.0% for tumors 7 cm or greater, while the percentage that were papillary decreased from 74.4% for those less than 1 cm to 10.0% for tumors 7 cm or greater. No RCC tumors less tha...
Gaussians Versus Back-to-Back Exponentials: A Numerical Study

Abstract The underlying magnetic field distribution in many samples studied by the μSR technique is asymmetric. Despite this, quite often fit functions assuming symmetric (Gaussian) distributions are used. Here, a back-to-back exponential function, which can be made asymmetric with fit parameters, is studied numerically alongside a Gaussian function to see how well each fits symmetric and asymmetric simulated data. Both fit symmetric data well, but the back-to-back exponential is found to be superior for fitting asymmetric data.
Chinese hamster ovary cell mitosis and its response to ionizing radiation: a morphological analysis of the living cell.

Repeated microscopic observations of exponentially growing Chinese hamster ovary cells were made and the times and mitotic stages were recorded in control and irradiated cultures at 37 degrees C. As determined by autoradiography, the time from the end of S phase to early prophase (the G2 phase) was 46 min, to breakdown of the nuclear envelope was 91 min, and to restoration of the nuclear envelope was 116 min. The time spent in morphologically distinguishable phases of mitosis and the effects of 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, and 4.0 Gy of gamma or X radiation on cells at each phase were determined. Affected cells were found to be delayed without or with reversion to an earlier mitotic stage before recovering and advancing through mitosis. Cells were timed in the five steps comprising delay with reversion: inertia, cessation I, regression, cessation II, and reprogression. No cells treated in late prophase, i.e., within 8-10 min of nuclear envelope breakdown, were delayed by the doses used; therefore the critical or transition point must be situated in middle prophase. Cells irradiated in this stage were not delayed by 0.5 or 1.0 Gy, but suffered a dose-dependent delay with or without reversion after 1.5, 2.0, and 4.0 Gy. Cells irradiated in early prophase and very late interphase responded similarly, but a greater percentage of the latter reverted.
Transversely-pumped nonlinear conversion: theory and numerical results

A transversely-pumped nonlinear conversion structure is examined. The existing scalar theory is extended to include the vector nature of the electromagnetic fields. Based on these results, detailed simulation of proposed structures is performed.
LATERAL-DIRECTIONAL FLYING QUALITIES FOR POWER APPROACH.

Abstract : Simulated carrier approaches were flown by Navy carrier pilots in a variable stability Navion airplane. The approaches were visual, in daylight, at a closure speed of 105 knots. Moderate natural turbulence and the carrier turbulence wake were simulated. Lateral-directional handling qualities data in the form of Cooper rating number and pilot commentary were obtained for variations in control sensitivity, roll damping, dihedral effect, numerator transfer function characteristics, Dutch roll damping, and magnitude of turbulence. The data are presented as iso-opinion maps of the parameters. Turbulence was found to be a factor of commanding importance in the handling qualities of a configuration. The poor handling qualities normally associated with large values of Dutch roll bank to sideslip ratio were found to be chargeable to the large value of the dihedral effect and the associated sensitivity to turbulence. Very low values of dihedral effect were objectionable because of the yawing motions excited by turbulence. (Author)
Load-independent equivalent circuit model for transverse waveguide slots

An LCT equivalent circuit model for waveguide slots was proposed and results obtained from the circuit analysis exhibited very good agreement with the full-wave solution over the entire frequency band of interest. The use of this model to solve a variety of waveguide coupling and radiation problems was illustrated by the analysis and design of a number of waveguide slot-based structures. Problems involving slot arrays were also considered, where the formulas for the slot parameters were employed to facilitate the synthesis problem.
Technicolor with a 125 GeV Higgs boson

Bosonic technicolor models accommodate fermion masses via a Higgs doublet that acquires a vacuum expectation value when technifermions condense. We point out that these models are severely constrained by vacuum stability if the Higgs boson mass is near 125 GeV, the value suggested by LHC data. The Higgs quartic coupling in bosonic technicolor is typically smaller at the weak scale than in the standard model, while the top quark Yukawa coupling is larger. We find that the running quartic coupling remains positive below a reasonably defined cutoff only in a narrow region of the model's parameter space. This region is only slightly enlarged if one allows a metastable vacuum with a lifetime longer than the age of the universe.
Beyond age at first sex: Patterns of emerging sexual behavior in adolescence and young adulthood

Abstract Purpose Although the emergence of sexual expression during adolescence and early adulthood is nearly universal, little is known about patterns of initiation. Methods We used latent class analysis to group 12,194 respondents from waves I and IV of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) into one of five classes based on variety, timing, spacing, and sequencing of oral-genital, anal, and vaginal sex. Multinomial logistic regression models, stratified by biological sex, examined associations between sociodemographic characteristics and class membership. Results Approximately half of respondents followed a pattern characterized predominately by initiation of vaginal sex first, average age of initiation of approximately 16 years, and spacing of >1 year between initiation of the first and second behaviors; almost one-third initiated sexual activity slightly later but reported first experiences of oral-genital and vaginal sex within the same year. Classes characterized by postponement of sexual activity, initiation of only one type of behavior, or adolescent initiation of anal sex were substantially less common. Compared with white respondents, black respondents were more likely to appear in classes characterized by initiation of vaginal sex first. Respondents from lower socioeconomic backgrounds were more likely to be in classes distinguished by early/atypical patterns of initiation. Conclusions A small number of typical and atypical patterns capture the emergence of sexual behavior during adolescence, but these patterns reveal complex associations among different elements of emerging sexuality that should be considered in future research.
How Multi-stakeholder is Global Policy?

The global financial crisis revealed not only the need for greater oversight of the private sector, but also the co-dependence of governments and those firms. From national economic governance to transnational regulations such as the Basel III regulations, the continued strong influence of the private sector in negotiating, setting standards and implementing them through private bodies such as the US Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) remains undeniable. The global financial crisis thus illustrates how even amidst valid claims that ‘the state is back’, global policy making is increasingly multi-stakeholder in character. This article provides a snapshot of the increasing extensiveness of multi-stakeholder processes through a conceptual overview and an empirical survey, highlighting instances in which various actor pillars (governments, intergovernmental organisations, civil society organisations, corporations, etc.) have begun to expand their membership and participation to include other stakeholders. It demonstrates that even as the main actor groups that serve as the foundation of global policy processes remain mostly unchanged, the extent to which each pursues multi-stakeholder approaches has increased.