cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Contribution of the Adenosine 2A Receptor to Behavioral Effects of Tetrahydrocannabinol, Cannabidiol and PECS-101

The cannabis-derived molecules, ∆9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), are both of considerable therapeutic interest for a variety of purposes, including to reduce pain and anxiety and increase sleep. In addition to their other pharmacological targets, both THC and CBD are competitive inhibitors of the equilibrative nucleoside transporter-1 (ENT-1), a primary inactivation mechanism for adenosine, and thereby increase adenosine signaling. The goal of this study was to examine the role of adenosine A2A receptor activation in the effects of intraperitoneally administered THC alone and in combination with CBD or PECS-101, a 4′-fluorinated derivative of CBD, in the cannabinoid tetrad, elevated plus maze (EPM) and marble bury assays. Comparisons between wild-type (WT) and A2AR knock out (A2AR-KO) mice were made. The cataleptic effects of THC were diminished in A2AR-KO; no other THC behaviors were affected by A2AR deletion. CBD (5 mg/kg) potentiated the cataleptic response to THC (5 mg/kg) in WT but not A2AR-KO. Neither CBD nor THC alone affected EPM behavior; their combination produced a significant increase in open/closed arm time in WT but not A2AR-KO. Both THC and CBD reduced the number of marbles buried in A2AR-KO but not WT mice. Like CBD, PECS-101 potentiated the cataleptic response to THC in WT but not A2AR-KO mice. PECS-101 also reduced exploratory behavior in the EPM in both genotypes. These results support the hypothesis that CBD and PECS-101 can potentiate the cataleptic effects of THC in a manner consistent with increased endogenous adenosine signaling.
Investigation of an injectable gold nanoparticle extracellular matrix.

Post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA) is a progressive articular degenerative disease that degrades articular cartilage and stimulates apoptosis in chondrocyte cells. An injectable decellularized, e...
Security in Relational Databases

A majority of enterprises across many industries store most of their sensitive information in relational databases. This confidential information includes data on supply chain, manufacturing, finance, customers, and personnel. A 2002 Computer Crime and Security Survey revealed that more than half of the enterprise databases in use have some kind of security breach every year. These security breaches can cost an enterprise nearly four billion dollars a year in losses, not to mention the loss of personal and confidential information, such as social security numbers and credit card numbers of millions of people.
Decomposability and the cyclic behavior of parabolic composition operators

This paper establishes decomposability for composition operators induced on the Hardy spaces Hp (1 ≤ p < ∞) by parabolic linear fractional self-maps of the unit disc that are not automorphisms. This result, along with a recent theorem of Miller and Miller [15], shows that no such composition operator is supercyclic. The work here completes part of a previous investigation [1] where the author and Paul Bourdon showed that among linear fractional maps of the disc with no interior fixed point, only the parabolic non-automorphisms induce non-hypercyclic composition operators. Additionally it complements results of Robert Smith [19], who proved decomposability in the case of parabolic automorphisms, and it extends recent work of Gallardo and Montes [6] who used different methods to establish the desired non-supercyclicity for the case p = 2.
The uintah framework: a unified heterogeneous task scheduling and runtime system

The development of a new unified, multi-threaded runtime system for the execution of asynchronous tasks on heterogeneous systems is described in this work. These asynchronous tasks arise from the Uintah framework, which was developed to provide an environment for solving a broad class of fluid-structure interaction problems on structured adaptive grids. Uintah has a clear separation between its MPI-free user-coded tasks and its runtime system that ensures these tasks execute efficiently. This separation also allows for complete isolation of the application developer from the complexities involved with the parallelism Uintah provides. While we have designed scalable runtime systems for large CPU core counts, the emergence of heterogeneous systems, with additional on-node accelerators and co-processors presents additional design challenges in terms of effectively utilizing all computational resources on-node and managing multiple levels of parallelism. Our work addresses these challenges for Uintah by the development of new hybrid runtime system and Unified multi-threaded MPI task scheduler, enabling Uintah to fully exploit current and emerging architectures with support for asynchronous, out-of-order scheduling of both CPU and GPU computational tasks. This design coupled with an approach that uses MPI to communicate between nodes, a shared memory model on-node and the use of novel lock-free data structures, has made it possible for Uintah to achieve excellent scalability for challenging fluid-structure problems using adaptive mesh refinement on as many as 256K cores on the DoE Jaguar XK6 system. This design has also demonstrated an ability to run capability jobs on the heterogeneous systems, Keeneland and TitanDev. In this work, the evolution of Uintah and its runtime system is examined in the context of our new Unified multi-threaded scheduler design. The performance of the Unified scheduler is also tested against previous Uintah scheduler and runtime designs over a range of processor core and GPU counts.
In situ confocal laser scanning microscopy of AA2024-T3 corrosion metrology III. Underfilm corrosion of epoxy-coated AA2024-T3

Epoxy-coated AA2024-T3 samples were exposed to solutions of specific chloride concentration and pH. Underfilm corrosion processes were monitored in situ with confocal laser scanning microscopy. In near-neutral solutions, pitting at both intermetallic compounds and within the alloy matrix was observed during coating blister formation and growth. Evidence for anodic undermining/corrosion product wedging was obtained. In addition, general corrosion of the matrix led to a strong roughening of the surface. In acidic NaCI solutions, localized corrosion was observed at the original blister site. Thereafter, general attack on the Al-matrix near the original blister was more important than intermetallic particle corrosion. In acidic sulfate solutions, the coating started to fail at many locations on the sample at the same time due to attack of the coating and loss of adhesion at the interface. This more global failure is in agreement with electrochemical impedance measurements and the observation of numerous blisters on large-area panels.
Adaptive control of underwater vehicle-manipulator systems subject to joint limits

The control of underwater vehicle-manipulator system (UVMS) is a challenging task because the dynamics of such a system is highly nonlinear, coupled, time-varying, and subject to hydrodynamic uncertainties and external disturbances. The paper presents a non-regressor based adaptive control for UVMS where centralized and coordinated trajectory planning is followed by decentralized control-one for the slower subsystem (vehicle) and other for the faster subsystem (manipulator). To avoid joint limits, kinematic redundancy of the system is resolved using the weighted pseudoinverse of the Jacobian matrix. The results from computer simulations demonstrate the effectiveness of this proposed method.
Probing Density Fluctuations Using the First Radio Survey

for decades, the clustering of luminous objects has been used as an indirect probe of the density fluctuations in the universe. Although the relationship between luminous objects and mass in the universe is not fully understood, it has been hoped that the observed evolution of clustering of different luminous populations might constrain many cosmological unknowns — the geometry of the universe, the nature of any non-luminous matter, the nature of density fluctuations in the early universe and hence the physics of the early universe. Indeed, models for structure formation which are based on variants of the ‘cold dark matter’ (CDM) model have received much attention largely because they have been fairly successful at predicting the clustering of luminous objects.
Management of Pancreatitis

Acute pancreatitis can be mild or severe. Identifying causes helps in preventing recurrent episodes, management of complications, treatment of the underlying disorder, and/ or removal of an etiologic agent. Supportive care, pain control, nutrition, and antibiotic use are discussed. Overall, the goal is to prevent and minimize complications and reduce mortality. Chronic pancreatitis is complex, and the etiology of the abdominal pain is multifactorial. The goal is to eliminate causes and treat underlying disorders that may contribute to the inflammatory process. Management of pain, pancreatic insufficiency, and complications is essential. If medical management is not successful, surgical options should be considered.
Applied Intermediate Macroeconomics: The National Accounts and the Structure of the Economy

Before we can understand the economy, we need to know how to describe and measure it. In this chapter we focus on gross domestic product (GDP), the most central quantity in macroeconomics. What is it? How is it created? How do we measure it? What is its relationship to other important quantities? How does it change over time? How Big Is the Economy? Since ancient days, bad times have followed good, and good times have followed bad. Since ancient days, people have looked to their leaders to promote the good times and soften the bad. In the Bible, Joseph predicts seven fat years to be followed by seven lean years, and advises Pharaoh to store grain against the coming famine. When agriculture dominated economies, the cycle of good and bad times mostly reflected the cycle between fair weather and drought or flood. In modern industrial economies, the causes of the cycle are not so readily visible. An important object of macroeconomics is to help us to understand these causes and to learn what policies might promote the good times and soften the bad. Economists may start with theories, but to apply those theories to actual economies and to judge whether they are really working as intended, we need some method of keeping score: how rich is the country (or how large is the economy)? How fast is it growing? The news media constantly quote statistics that aim to answer these questions: The U.S. economy (i.e., the gross domestic product or GDP) fell by 5.4 percent per year in the first quarter of 2008. The U.S. economy in 2008 was 3.3 times larger than the Japanese economy (i.e., U.S. GDP was $14,260 billion and Japanese GDP was $4,329 billion). Most people understand that GDP and its growth rate report the economic score, yet few actually understand what they really mean. They are, in fact, the central quantities in macroeconomics. Almost every other quantity that might interest us is either a component of GDP (such as consumption, investment, wages, or profits) or connected to it through important economic relationships (such as unemployment or inflation).
Brannan's conjecture for initial coefficients

In 1973, D. A. Brannan conjectured that odd Maclaurin coefficients A n (y, α, β) of the function (1 + yz)α/(1 − z)β satisfy the inequality |A n (y, α, β)| ≤ |A n (1, α, β)| for all y, α and β such that |y| = 1, α > 0, β > 0. He verified that this is true when n = 3 and showed that this inequality is not true for even coefficients in general. This article deals with the special case of Brannan's conjecture when β = 1. The case n = 5 with β = 1 was settled by J.G. Milcetich in 1989. For n = 7 and β = 1, Brannan's conjecture was proved to be true by R.G. Barnard, K. Pearce and W. Wheeler in 1997. In this work we introduce a squaring procedure which allows us to reduce the proof of Brannan's conjecture to the verification of positivity of polynomials of much smaller degree than A n (y, α, 1) which, in addition, have integer coefficients. In this case the positivity of polynomials can be verified using the Sturm sequence method. We wrote a short program in Mathematica code and used it to prove Brannan's conjec...
Modified static equations for the Kπ-interaction

The Cini-Fubini approximate version of the double dispersion representation is reduced to an integral equation in one variable for the Kπ-interaction. The resulting equation has the structure of a static theory equation but incorporates the effect of the π+π→K+ $$\bar K$$ channel on Kπ-scattering and satisfies the condition at the symmetry point precribed by the relativistic theory. A slight distortion of the crossing matrix renders possible an exact solution to the equation. The nature of the solution is discussed. Construction of the approximate unitary amplitudes for the Kπ-interaction which satisfy the crossing relations is discussed in the Appendix.
Reflectance Spectra of Thermochromic Asphalt Binder: Characterization and Optical Mixing Model

AbstractAsphalt pavement constructed with traditional asphalt binder, which features high solar absorbance, is characterized by high surface temperatures during summer. This causes undesirable performance degradation (i.e., due to accelerated rutting, bleeding, etc.) and environmental consequences (i.e., urban heat island effects and volatile gas emission). Thermochromic asphalt binder, which is asphalt binder mixed with thermochromic materials, has been developed by the authors to dynamically control the solar reflectance and modulate the surface temperature of asphalt pavement. The goal is to improve its long-term durability and environmental friendliness. Thermochromic materials are substances that can reversibly change their colors in response to temperature. The binary thermochromic asphalt binder mixture is produced by incorporating thermochromic powders into a conventional asphalt binder. Measurements of spectral reflectance of thermochromic powders indicate that thermochromic materials feature hig...
A VLSI bipolar metallization design with three-level wiring and area array solder connections

The ability to interconnect large numbers of integrated silicon devices on a single chip has been greatly aided by a three-level wiring capability and large numbers of solderable input/output terminals on the face of the chip. This paper describes the design and process used to fabricate the interconnections on IBM's most advanced bipolar devices. Among the subjects discussed are thin film metallurgy and contacts, e-beam lithography and associated resist technology, a high temperature lift-off stencil for metal pattern definition, planarized rf sputtered SiO 2 insulation/passivation, the “zero-overlap” via hole innovation, in situ rf sputter cleaning of vias prior to metallization, and area array solder terminals.
Upregulation of the EP1 receptor for prostaglandin E2 promotes skin tumor progression.

Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) has been shown to promote the development of murine skin tumors. EP1 is 1 of the 4 PGE2 G-protein-coupled membrane receptors expressed by murine keratinocytes. EP1 mRNA levels were increased ∼2-fold after topical treatment with 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) or exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light, as well as increased ∼3- to 12-fold in tumors induced by 7,12-dimethyl-benz[a]anthracene (DMBA) initiation/TPA promotion or by UV exposure. To determine the effect of EP1 levels on tumor development, we generated BK5.EP1 transgenic mice that overexpress EP1 in the basal layer of the epidermis. Skins of these mice were histologically indistinguishable from wild type (WT) mice and had similar levels of proliferation after TPA treatment. Using a DMBA/TPA carcinogenesis protocol, BK5.EP1 mice had a reduced tumor multiplicity compared to WT mice, likely due to the observed down-regulation of protein kinase C (PKC). However, the BK5.EP1 mice had an ∼8-fold higher papilloma to carcinoma conversion rate. When DMBA/anthralin was used, BK5.EP1 mice produced more tumors than WT mice, as well as a ninefold increase in carcinomas, indicating that the tumor response is dependent on the type of tumor promoter agent used. Additionally, although almost undetectable in WT mice, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) was expressed in the untreated epidermis of BK5.EP1 mice. While TPA highly induced COX-2 in WT mice, COX-2 expression in the BK5.EP1 mice did not change after TPA treatment; PGE2 levels were likewise affected. These data indicate that EP1 is more important in tumor progression than in tumor promotion and that it indirectly regulates COX-2 expression. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Production of large screen-mounted aluminium neutralizer foils

Abstract In order to convert large-diameter beams of H − to neutral H atoms, aluminum foils having a diameter of 90 cm or more and an areal density of typically 8–12 μg/cm 2 have been proposed. Production of such foils, uniform in thickness to ±20% or better and mounted on thin wire grids, has been accomplished by careful control of substrate preparation, parting-agent application, spatial location of coating filaments, floating speed and temperature, and pickup procedure. Lexan (TM) polycarbonate substrates have been used, because of their uniformity of surface quality. Evaporated NaCl has been used as the parting agent, and an alloy containing 1% silicon rather than pure aluminum has been used as the foil material for greater strength and reliability. To obtain coated areas sufficiently large and uniform, substrates having dimensions of 1.2 m × 1.2 m have been used. A specially configured water tank having a volume of 3.2 m 3 has been built to accept such large substrates. Floating has been done in chilled water to improve its stability, minimize variations in surface tension, and to prevent the development of air bubbles on immersed surfaces. Fractional coverage of better than 95% on meshes having unsupported diameters of greater than 90 cm can now be obtained on a routine basis.
EUS-guided fine-needle aspiration of a renal mass: An alternative method for diagnosis of malignancy

A 71-year-old man was hospitalized for evaluation of painless macroscopic hematuria and weight loss. CT revealed a 9 cm 7 cm 5 cm right middle renal pole mass suggestive of a renal cell carcinoma (Fig. 1), as well as multiple small 6-mm renal cysts bilaterally. Multiple cystic lesions were also noted throughout the pancreas, suggestive of cystadenomas or intraductal papillary mucinous tumor (IPMT). The medical history included atrial fibrillation, noninsulin-dependent diabetes, and a prior hemorrhagic embolic cerebrovascular accident. Endosonographic evaluation of the pancreas was requested. The patient consented to possible pancreatic and renal EUS-FNA. EUS with a 5-MHz linear array echoendoscope (EG36UX, Pentax Precision Instruments, Orangeburg, N.Y.) revealed multicompartmental, 5to 10-mm diameter thinly septated cysts throughout the pancreas, suggestive of IPMT (Fig. 2). There was no evidence of any solid component. Several representative cysts were aspirated for cytology and tumor markers. Although there was no evidence of malignancy on cytologic evaluation of the pancreatic cyst fluid, staining with mucicarmine and alcin blue was suggestive of a mucinous tumor. With the echoendoscope transducer in the duodenum, the large right renal mass was easily identified. Because the patient was scheduled to undergo a CT-guided biopsy of the mass, a decision was made to perform EUS-FNA. The linear array echoendoscope was aligned in the duodenum in close approximation to the renal mass. There were no visible structures between the duodenal wall and the renal mass. Color Doppler US confirmed the absence of any intervening vascular structures. Two passes into the renal mass were made with a 22-gauge needle (Mediglobe, Tempe, Ariz.) and tissue aspirated according to a standard protocol (Fig. 3). Slides were prepared immediately with the collected aspirate and fixed in alcohol. The postaspiration site was observed for 5 minutes during which there was no evidence of bleeding. Cytologic evaluation revealed malignant cells consistent with renal cell carcinoma (Fig. 4). Hence, the planned CT-guided renal biopsy was canceled. The patient was closely monitored for 24 hours for evidence of blood loss or hemodynamic instability; there was no evidence of bleeding or infection. The patient subsequently underwent a right nephrectomy without complication. There was no evidence of renal or duodenal trauma at surgery. Histopathologic evaluation of the resection specimen confirmed a 7-cm renal cell carcinoma.
Dietary α-linolenic acid increases TNF-α, and decreases IL-6, IL-10 in response to LPS: effects of sesamin on the Δ-5 desaturation of ω6 and ω3 fatty acids in mice

Sesamin (a non-fat portion of sesame seed oil) inhibits delta-5 desaturase activity resulting in an accumulation of dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid (DGLA) which can displace arachidonic acid (AA) and decrease the formation of pro-inflammatory mediators. We investigated the effects of consumption of diets containing 0.25wt% sesamin and 15 wt% safflower oil (SO) (providing 12% of the added fat as linoleic acid) or a 15 wt% 2:1 mixture of linseed oil and SO (LOSO) (providing 6% alpha-linolenic acid and 6% linoleic acid) for 3 weeks on the liver membrane fatty acid composition and on the production of prostaglandin (PG) E2, TNF-alpha, IL-6 and IL10 in mice. Consumption of sesamin-supplemented SO and LOSO diets resulted in a significant increase in the levels of 20:3omega6 (DGLA), suggesting that sesamin inhibited delta-5 desaturation of omega6 fatty acids. In animals fed LOSO diets, the levels of alpha-linolenic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) were elevated with a concomitant decrease of arachidonic acid (AA) in the liver membrane phospholipids. Further, in animals fed LOSO diets with or without sesamin, an increase in the circulating levels of TNF-alpha was associated with a concomitant decrease in PGE2. Despite a lack of differences in the levels of AA, the PGE2 levels were significantly lower in mice fed sesamin-supplemented SO compared to those fed SO alone. Thus, these data suggest that irrespective of the availability of a specific fatty acid as a substrate, through regulating the PGE2 synthesis, the production of TNF-alpha could be modulated.
Synthesis of TlBaCaCuO superconducting thin films by sequential evaporation and annealing in the absence of an additional thallium source

Abstract Although Tl-based superconductors show higher critical temperatures than other compounds, they suffer some disadvantages, such as surface roughness, non-uniform chemical composition, and the need for excess Tl from a separate source during post-deposition annealing. This paper reports a post-deposition annealing process (in the absence of a separate Tl source) of sequentially deposited metallic layers of Tl:Ba:Ca:Cu with excess amount of thallium in the multilayer. The films show uniform chemical composition and smooth surfaces. Critical temperatures as high as 101 K and critical current densities as high as 1.5 × 10 4 A/ cm 2 at 77 K in zero magnetic field have been achieved.
Integration of bronchomotor and ventilatory responses to chemoreceptor stimulation in developing sheep

We analyzed the changes induced by central chemoreceptor stimulation on the lung resistances and phrenic neurogram of anesthetized newborn (3-6 days, n = 9) and 9 week old lambs (n = 3). Starting from hypocapneic apnea, 5% CO2 inhalation evoked a reversible increase in total lung resistance in both newborn and 9 week old lambs (median = 112%). The resistance increase preceded phrenic breathing and was greater for the peripheral (233%) than for the central airways (57%), independent of age. Increases in lung and airway resistance caused by CO2 were reversed totally by atropine and only partially by apnea-producing doses of fentanyl. Our results demonstrate that parasympathetic outflow to the sheep airways is already driven by central chemoreceptor inputs during the newborn period. Even at this early age, bronchomotor responses to central chemoreceptor stimulation are more prominent in the peripheral than in the central airways and exhibit a lower threshold for activation and less sensitivity to opioid inhibition than phrenic responses.
Advanced programming language design in enterprise software: a lambda-calculus theorist wanders into a datacenter

Enterprise software systems automate the business processes of most nontrivial organizations in the world economy. These systems are immensely complex, and their function is critical to our living standards and everyday lives. Their design, implementation, and maintenance occupies many thousands of programmers and engineers, who work in what are aptly called the "COBOL dungeons"1 of the IT sector. These systems have persisted, growing by accretion -- some for decades; there are enterprise systems in existence today whose original and even subsequent authors are retired or deceased. Such extraordinarly old, multi-layered systems might appear to be the last place to apply avante-garde techniques, but in fact, they are extremely promising candidates, and for reasons directly connected to their history and structure.In this talk we take a tour of several deployed enterprise software systems, and demonstrate that the appropriate application of methods from functional programming can and does in fact yield dramatic performance improvements and thus commercial advan-tage in the design and implementation of enterprise software. This concrete application is an instance of a general plan for the application of advanced programming language design and analysis methods, to the problem of improving enterprise software. It is the thesis of this talk that to a great extent, it is in enterprise software that advanced PL techniques can find their most advantageous application. This talk literally breaks no new ground in PL research: every technique discussed is nearly two decades old, and our goal is to introduce PL researchers to what we feel is an ideal target for their work.
The TRAF3 adaptor protein drives proliferation of anaplastic large cell lymphoma cells by regulating multiple signaling pathways

T cells devoid of tumor necrosis factor receptor associated factor-3 (Traf3) exhibit decreased proliferation, sensitivity to apoptosis, and an improper response to antigen challenge. We therefore hypothesized that TRAF3 is critical to the growth of malignant T cells. By suppressing TRAF3 protein in different cancerous T cells, we found that anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) cells require TRAF3 for proliferation. Since reducing TRAF3 results in aberrant activation of the noncanonical nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathway, we prevented noncanonical NF-κB signaling by suppressing RelB together with TRAF3. This revealed that TRAF3 regulates proliferation independent of the noncanonical NF-κB pathway. However, suppression of NF-κB-inducing kinase (NIK) along with TRAF3 showed that high levels of NIK have a partial role in blocking cell cycle progression. Further investigation into the mechanism by which TRAF3 regulates cell division demonstrated that TRAF3 is essential for continued PI3K/AKT and JAK/STAT signaling. In addition, we found that while NIK is dispensable for controlling JAK/STAT activity, NIK is critical to regulating the PI3K/AKT pathway. Analysis of the phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) showed that NIK modulates PI3K/AKT signaling by altering the localization of PTEN. Together our findings implicate TRAF3 as a positive regulator of the PI3K/AKT and JAK/STAT pathways and reveal a novel function for NIK in controlling PI3K/AKT activity. These results provide further insight into the role of TRAF3 and NIK in T cell malignancies and indicate that TRAF3 differentially governs the growth of B and T cell cancers.
Unfurlable folded-dipole UWB antenna for Mars explorer subsurface sensing

A novel but intuitive antenna design to achieve both broad frequency bandwidth as well as good efficiency is presented. This design utilizes unfurlable folded-dipole with its length mechanically tuned to specified operational frequency. Such antenna has been proposed for subsurface sensing on Mars surface and its prototype was built and tested. The test results verified the desired bandwidth and efficiency feature.
“Affenmensch” defect defined

Porphyria cutanea tarda (PCT) is the most common form of the porphyria and occurs both in inherited and acquired forms. Uroporphyrinogen decarboxylase (URO-D) deficiency is responsible for all PCT. Adult patients are often called “Affenmensch,” and younger patients, “monkey children,”
Clinical interactions between pacemakers and automatic implantable cardioverter-defibrillators

Concomitant use of a pacemaker and an automatic implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (AICD) is common. Seventeen percent of patients receiving an AICD at The Johns Hopkins Hospital also had a permanent pacemaker implanted before (16 patients), at the same time as (2 patients) or after (12 patients) AICD implantation. Four types of interactions were noted: 1) transient failure to sense or capture immediately after AICD discharge (seven patients); 2) oversensing of the pacemaker stimulus by the AICD, leading to double counting (one patient); 3) AICD failure to sense ventricular fibrillation resulting from pacemaker stimulus oversensing (three patients, one only at high asynchronous output); and 4) pacemaker reprogramming caused by AICD discharge (three patients). No clinical sequelae of these interactions were noted during follow-up study. Thus, potentially adverse clinical interactions are common and routine screening is recommended. With proper attention to lead placements and programming of the devices, clinical consequences of these interactions can be avoided.
Quantum Convolutional Codes Derived from Generalized Reed-Solomon Codes

Convolutional stabilizer codes promise to make quantum communication more reliable with attractive online encoding and decoding algorithms. This paper introduces a new approach to convolutional stabilizer codes based on direct limit constructions. A quantum Singleton bound for pure convolutional stabilizer codes is given. A familiy of quantum convolutional codes is derived from generalized Reed-Solomon codes. These codes are shown to be optimal with respect to the (quantum) Singleton bound.
The 3540-Å electronic transition of malonaldehyde, a tunneling hydrogen-bonded molecule

Abstract Revised and more complete vibrational assignments are made for the 3540-A π ∗ ← n band system of malonaldehyde. The 0 + 0 − tunneling splitting is found to be 19 ± 11 cm−1 for the nπ ∗ state and this represents a 7-cm−1 decrease relative to the ground electronic state. The tunneling splitting and the Franck-Condon envelope of intensities in the 185-cm−1 upper-state progression suggest that the 1 B 1 (nπ ∗ ) state is significantly less tightly hydrogen-bonded than the ground 1A1 state.
Using information gain to build meaningful decision forests for multilabel classification

“Gain-Based Separation” is a novel heuristic that modifies the standard multiclass decision tree learning algorithm to produce forests that can describe an example or object with multiple classifications. When the information gain at a node would be higher if all examples of a particular classification were removed, those examples are reserved for another tree. In this way, the algorithm performs some automated separation of classes into categories; classes are mutually exclusive within trees but not across trees. The algorithm was tested on naive subjects' descriptions of objects to a robot, using YUV color space and basic size and distance features. The new method outperforms the common strategy of separating multilabel problems into L binary outcome decision trees, and also outperforms RAkEL [1], a recent method for producing random multilabel forests.
A Fluid-Thermo-Electric Coupled Field Analysis of a Novel Integrated Thermoelectric Device

Abstract Thermoelectric elements made of semiconductor plates laminated with a highly electrically and thermally conducting inter-connector with a flow channel configuration can be treated as integrated Thermoelectric Device (TED). Elements with constructed bulk crystalline n-type and p-type (Bismuth-Telluride-Selenium) semiconducting materials and copper as a conducting material are considered. In this study, the thermoelectric performance of such an element using fluid-thermo-electric coupled field numerical methods has been investigated. The TED is subjected to constant cold temperature at the bottom and top surfaces while the inter-connector channel walls are exposed to hot fluid flow; the remaining surfaces are kept adiabatic. The performance of the integrated TED element is studied in terms of power output P 0 , heat input, Q h conversion efficiency η and produced electric voltage V for different load resistances, RL inlet hot fluid temperatures T in and flow rates ReDh . For a fixed Tin , optimum η is shown at a load resistance RL which is slightly lesser than total internal resistance Rin value. An increase in Tin results in an enhancement in P 0 and η, however, it has a minimal effect on the variation of optimum load resistance R optmL . At higher Tin values, the increment in RL showed a significant change in the heat input Qh values. The ReDh had a prominent effect on TED performance predictions. The P 0 increased nearly three-fold at ReDh =500 in comparison to ReDh =100. It is recommended that for an accurate modeling, design and optimization of state-of-the-art TED with flow channels to be carried out using fluid-thermo-electrical coupling field simulations.
A Model of the Joint Distribution of Purchase Quantity and Timing

Prediction of purchase timing and quantity decisions of a household is an important element for success of any retailer. This is especially so for an online retailer, as the traditional brick-and-mortar retailer would be more concerned with total sales. A number of statistical models have been developed in the marketing literature to aid traditional retailers in predicting sales and analyzing the impact of various marketing activities on sales. However, there are two important differences between traditional retail outlets and the increasingly important online retail/delivery companies, differences that prevent these firms from using models developed for the traditional retailers: (1) the profits of the online retailer/delivery company depend on purchase frequency and on purchase quantity, whereas the profits of traditional retailers are simply tied to total sales, and (2) customers in the tails of the frequency distribution are more important to the delivery company than to the retail outlet. Both of the...
Human sleep during chronic morphine intoxication.

The sleep of 6 opiate addicts was studied for 11 nights during 3 phases of a chronic morphine cycle. The control phase consisted of 5 consecutive nights before morphine administration. The induction phase consisted of 1 night at 21–36 days after the onset of morphine administration, when the daily dose was 140–220 mg. The stable dose phase consisted of 5 consecutive nights after the subjects had received 240 mg of morphine daily for 8–19 weeks. No sleep could be studied during the withdrawal phase. Sleep was continuously monitored with EEG, EMG and EOG.
SPONTANEOUS ACTIVATION OF ENDOTHELIAL CELLS : A CENTRAL ROLE FOR ENDOGENOUS IL-1ALPHA

Endothelial cells assume divergent physiologic postures, from a ‘quiescent’ to an ‘activated’ state, and this ability is thought to critically regulate homeostasis of the vascular milieu. While establishing endothelial cell lines, we observed that most of the endothelial cells exhibited ‘spontaneous’ activation with morphological changes once the cells surpassed confluence. In the present study, we investigated whether accumulation and subsequent availability of certain factors in the cells might induce morphologic changes indicating activated phenotype in confluent endothelial cells. Cell lysate from nonactivated confluent endothelial cells activated autologous target cells, whereas culture supernatants did not. Stimulatory activity of the cell lysate was dependent on the concentration of cell lysate, i.e., nonactivated endothelial cell lysate at 25% concentration induced a substantial level of morphologic change. The ‘spontaneous’ as well as the cell lysate-induced change in morphology of endothelial cells was inhibited by neutralization of interleukin (IL)-1α with anti-IL-1α antibody. Correspondingly, cell lysate from confluent non-IL-1-expressing endothelial cells did not alter the morphology of autologous confluent cells even at a higher concentration. Cells that spontaneously changed their morphology correspondingly upregulated IL-1α and IL-8 transcripts. The results indicate that the accumulation and availability of endogenous IL-1α is responsible for the ‘spontaneous’ activation of endothelial cells in culture. Ultimately, through this property, endothelial cells may facilitate normal in vivo host responses, including the regulation of leukocyte trafficking.
Eigenfunction methods and nonlinear hyperbolic boundary value problems at resonance

The abstract boundary value problem Lu + Gu = f, u ϵ dom(L) ⊂ H, is considered. Here H is used to denote a real separable Hilbert space, L a closed symmetric linear operator, and G a nonlinear operator assumed to be Lipschitz continuous and strongly monotone. In addition L is assumed to have a complete set of eigenfunctions in H, and is allowed to have an infinite dimensional null space. The existence of unique solutions, depending continuously on f, is established by a constructive approach. Galerkin approximations are considered and error estimates are given. As an application of the main result, the existence of time periodic weak solutions of the n-dimensional wave equation is shown.
Pareto Optimal Setpoints for HVAC Networks via Iterative Nearest Neighbor Communication

HVAC systems in large buildings frequently feature a network topology wherein the outputs of each dynamic subsystem act as disturbances to other subsystems in a well-defined local neighborhood. The distributed optimization technique presented in this paper leverages this topology without requiring a centralized optimizer or widespread knowledge of the interaction dynamics between subsystems. Each subsystem’s optimizer communicates to its neighbors its calculated optimum setpoint, as well as the costs imposed by the neighbor’s calculated set-points. By judicious construction of the cost functions, all of the cost information is propagated through the network, allowing a Pareto optimal solution to be reached. The novelty of this approach is that communication between all plants is not necessary to achieve a global optimum, and that changes in one controller do not require changes to all controllers in the network. Proofs of Pareto optimality are presented, and convergence under the approach is demonstrated with a numerical and experimental example.Copyright © 2013 by ASME
Convection heat transfer from discrete heat sources in a rectangular channel

Abstract Experiments have been performed to determine convection heat transfer from a single heat source and an in-line, four-row array of 12 heat sources which are flush mounted to one wall of a horizontal, rectangular channel. The experiments were performed with water and FC-77 for channel Reynolds numbers ranging from approximately 1000 to 14,000. Results for a single heat source are in good agreement with those obtained for the first row of the array but exceed predictions based on conventional forced-convection correlations. The average convection coefficient for the rows of the array decreases by approximately 25% from the first to the second row and by less than 5% from the third to the fourth row. The data are in good agreement with model predictions for turbulent flow but are underpredicted for laminar flow.
Heat Transfer and Film Cooling Effectiveness in a Linear Airfoil Cascade

A warm (315°C) wind tunnel test facility equipped with a linear cascade of film cooled vane airfoils was used in the simultaneous determination of the local gas side heat transfer coefficients and the adiabatic film cooling effectiveness. The test rig can be operated in either a steady-state or a transient mode. The steady-state operation provides adiabatic film cooling effectiveness values while the transient mode generates data for the determination of the local heat transfer coefficients from the temperature-time variations and of the film effectiveness from the steady wall temperatures within the same aerothermal environment. The linear cascade consists of five airfoils. The 14 percent cascade inlet free-stream turbulence intensity is generated by a perforated plate, positioned upstream of the airfoil leading edge. For the first transient tests, five cylinders having roughly the same blockage as the initial 20 percent axial chord of the airfoils were used. The cylinder stagnation point heat transfer coefficients compare well with values calculated from correlations. Static pressure distributions measured over an instrumented airfoil agree with inviscid predictions. Heat transfer coefficients and adiabatic film cooling effectiveness results were obtained with a smooth airfoil having three separate film injection locations, two along the suction side, and the third one covering the leading edge showerhead region. Near the film injection locations, the heat transfer coefficients increase with the blowing film. At the termination of the film cooled airfoil tests, the film holes were plugged and heat transfer tests were conducted with non-film cooled airfoils. These results agree with boundary layer code predictions.
History of the cholesterol hypothesis in Britain.

Sir, ‘ The statins trials resolved the controversy ’1 is an error of scientific thought, and it is sad that so many respected clinical scientists such as Prof. G.R. Thompson fail to appreciate this. Yes, there has been a controversy concerning cholesterol, which is clearly a risk indicator, not for just coronary heart disease (CHD) but for all deaths, but only in men of working age.2,3 We know from Framingham studies that cholesterol is neutral in women and older men4 and we know from other studies that a high blood cholesterol is a survival advantage in elderly people.5,6 The question following the MRFIT2 and Whitehall3 studies is whether the elevated level of cholesterol is a risk indicator on a causative pathway or whether it is a reflection of existing sub-clinical CHD. Subsequent studies have shown that it matches the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein …
Malignant melanoma in organ allograft recipients.

Three groups of tumors were studied. The first group was melanomas inadvertently transmitted from donors. Brain metastases from melanoma were often misdiagnosed in the donors as primary brain tumors or cerebral hemorrhage. Eleven donors provided organs to 20 recipients of whom 3 never manifested evidence of melanoma, 1 showed local spread of tumor beyond the allograft, and 16 had metastases. Of the last group 11 died from melanoma, but 4 patients had complete remissions following transplant nephrectomy and discontinuation of immunosuppressive therapy. The second group was melanomas treated pretransplantation. Thirty patients had cutaneous melanomas and one an ocular melanoma. Six patients (19%) had recurrences posttransplantation. Three were treated 0.76 mm by Breslow's technique). Lymph node metastases occurred in 32 patients (20%) with cutaneous melanomas. Fifty patients (30%) with cutaneous melanomas died of their malignancies, as did 5 with melanomas of unknown origin, and 1 with ocular melanoma. The risks of melanoma may be reduced by stringent selection of donors ; by waiting at least 5 years between treatment of melanoma and undertaking transplantation ; and, perhaps, by reducing sunlight exposure and by early excision of suspicious dysplastic lesions.
Expression of Kunitz Protease Inhibitor–Containing Forms of Amyloid β-Protein Precursor Within Vascular Thrombi

Background The presence of patent neovessels within vascular occlusions in chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension suggests that local mechanisms exist to regulate the coagulation system. This study investigated the expression of a potent inhibitor of Factor IXa and Factor XIa (ie, protease nexin-2/amyloid β-protein precursor, AβPP) in the organized vascular occlusions harvested from patients with this disease. Methods and Results Immunohistochemical analysis revealed intense immunoreactivity for AβPP in the single layer of cells that line the neovessels. A positive signal was also detected by in situ hybridization analysis with the use of a 35S-UTP–labeled antisense riboprobe that recognizes the various alternatively spliced mRNA forms of this molecule. To identify the forms of AβPP produced within the thrombi, total RNA was extracted from the thrombi, reverse transcribed, and subjected to amplification with the use of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and primers that flank the region encoding t...
Response of steel disks to explosive loading

The response of unsupported 4340 steel disks to coaxially aligned, cylindrical Octol charges is studied using hydrocode DYNA2D. Two flow stress representations for the steel are used. One includes linear strain hardening. The other is the Johnson-Cook model, which contains power law strain hardening, logarithmic strain rate hardening, and power law thermal softening.Each problem displays an initial period of large acceleration and plastic bending. The plastic bending decreases with an increase in strain hardening, and can be placed in substantial agreement with radiographs from associated experiments by judicious assignment of the strain hardening parameter in the first flow stress representation. The bending is overestimated by the Johnson-Cook representation using parameter values recommended by its authors. Evidence is given that the logarithmic representation for strain rate hardening is unsuitable at the observed strain rates in excess of 104 sec-1.A steady-state pattern develops, which consists of constant-velocity rigid-body translation and elastic flexural vibrations. The rigid-body velocity is insensitive to flow stress representation and is in reasonable agreement with estimates from radiographs. The amplitude of the vibrations increases and their frequency decreases with increasing strain hardening.
Human Rights Education Standards for Teachers and Teacher Education.

This article proposes a set of human rights education standards for classroom teachers and, by implication, outcomes for teacher preparation programs. The discussion includes a brief description of human rights education and concludes with recommendations for teacher preparation programs.
Derivation of Stochastic Partial Differential Equations for Reaction-Diffusion Processes

Stochastic partial differential equations are derived for the reaction-diffusion process in one, two, and three dimensions. Specifically, stochastic partial differential equations are derived for the random dynamics of particles that are reacting and diffusing in a medium. In the derivation, a discrete stochastic reaction-diffusion equation is first constructed from basic principles, that is, from the changes that occur in a small time interval. As the time interval goes to zero, the discrete stochastic model leads to a system of It stochastic differential equation. As the spatial intervals approach zero, a stochastic partial differential equation is derived for the reaction-diffusion process. The stochastic reaction-diffusion equation can be solved computationally using numerical methods for systems of It stochastic differential equations. Comparisons between numerical solutions of stochastic reaction-diffusion equations and independently formulated Monte Carlo calculations support the accuracy of the de...