cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Regulation of metallothionein–thymidine kinase fusion plasmids injected into mouse eggs

A plasmid was constructed with the promoter/regulatory region of the mouse metallothionein-I gene fused to the structural gene of herpesvirus thymidine kinase. When mouse eggs were microinjected with this plasmid and incubated with cadmium (a natural inducer of metallothionein gene transcription) thymidine kinase activity increased approximately 10-fold compared with control eggs not exposed to cadmium. Analysis of a set of deletion mutants revealed that the minimum sequence required for cadmium regulation lies within 90 nucleotides of the transcription start site.
Psychometric properties of the psychopathology instrument for mentally retarded adults

One hundred and ten adults, from borderline to severe levels of mental retardation, were assessed through the outpatient clinic of a university-affiliated mental health center and a large state psychiatric hospital. These patients were included only after they had demonstrated the ability to respond to questions of similar difficulty to those presented in the Psychopathology Instrument for Mentally Retarded Adults. This measure was designed by the authors based on DSM III criteria, and covered seven types of psychopathology including schizophrenia, depression, psychosexual disorders, adjustment disorder, anxiety, somatoform disorders, and personality problems. In the present study the psychometric properties of the scale were reviewed and/or evaluated including internal consistency of items and test-retest reliability, and factor analysis.
Paralytic shellfish poison in Spisula solidissima: Anatomical location and ozone detoxification

The surf clam Spisula solidissima, when exposed to a northern bloom of the toxic dinoflagellate Gonyaulax tamarensis, concentrates paralytic shellfish poison (PSP) and retains it for periods of over 1 year. The purpose of this investigation was to identify those tissues in which S. solidissima concentrates PSP and to examine the efficacy of ozone gas in PSP detoxification. Various levels of the toxin were found in every untreated tissue examined: the mantle and gill containing high concentrations (>1600 μg/100 g tissue); the visceral mass, siphon, and foot showing less toxicity (1100 to 200 μg/100 g tissue); and the adductor muscle yielding a level of toxin considered safe for human consumption (<60 μg/100 g tissue). Toxic clams exposed to ozonized seawater for 2 weeks exhibited rapid detoxification in all tissues examined.
Boards of Directors and Shark Repellents:Assessing the Value of an Agency Theory Perspective

Because shark repellents decrease the vulnerability of firms (and their incumbent managers) to the market for corporate control, the decision to adopt these devices represents an excellent test of agency theory. In this empirical study, we examined the relationships between the adoption of shark repellents and several mechanisms that, according to agency theory, should align the interests of corporate board members and shareholders and/or make directors more effective monitors of management behaviour. Of the variables included, only board stock ownership (especially by employee directors) was linked to a reduced propensity to adopt shark repellents in the predicted manner. Two variables not immediately as- sociated with agency theory — the proportion of inside directors appointed by the incumbent chief executive officer (CEO) and a lower ratio of CEO compensation to the compensation of other top executives — were linked to higher rates of shark repellent adoption. Given that agency theory explains relatively little of the variance in shark repellent adoption, we advocate serious consideration of other theoretical formulations for corporate governance, including two approaches — stewardship theory and agent morality — that take the moral (‘other regarding’) obligations of directors seriously.
Mucuna pruriens proves more effective than L‐DOPA in Parkinson's disease animal model

Seeds of the Mucuna pruriens plant, now known to contain L-DOPA, have long been used for the treatment of Parkinson's disease patients in ancient Eastern Indian ethnotherapeutics. Following validation of the intrastraital 6-OHDA injection with amphetamine in the parkinsonian rat model, the animals were fed synthetic L-DOPA (125 or 250 mg/kg) or Mucuna pruriens endocarp (MPE, 2.5 or 5.0 g/kg) mixed with rat chow (n =6, for each dose and drug). Controls received no drug. An additional dose of L-DOPA or MPE in the same doses plus carbidopa (50 mg/kg) were administered via gavage (controls received only carbidopa 50 mg/kg) 1 h prior to testing with rotometer. Contralateral rotation (to the side of the 6-OHDA lesion) (CLR) was recorded for 240 min as a measure of antiparkinsonian activity. Results indicated that dose for dose, MPE showed twice the antiparkinsonian activity compared with synthetic L-DOPA in inducing CLR in the parkinsonian animal model. This study suggests that MPE may contain unidentified antiparkinsonian compounds in addition to L-DOPA, or it may have adjuvants that enhance the efficacy of L-DOPA. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Agri-food Biotechnology Discourse in India

Introduction of biotechnologies, particularly genetically modified (GM) technologies, have led to varying public responses from the government, general public and concerned farmers who use the technological products at the field level. Introduction of Bt cotton in India over the last five years generated considerable debate from the time open field testing of Bt cotton commenced towards the late 1990s. This paper is a modest attempt to map the contours of this debate and analyse it from a sociological perspective of the actors. Most significantly, actors in government and industries express trust in the ar rangements governing biotechnology, while actors in civil society point out problems with the functioning of the relevant governing bodies. We first present a brief overview of the events of the controversy, and then proceed with the body of our study.
Emx2 Stimulates Odorant Receptor Gene Expression

The mechanisms selecting a single odorant receptor (OR) gene for expression in each olfactory sensory neuron (OSN) establish an OR expression pattern critical for odor discrimination. These mechanisms are largely unknown, but putative OR promoters contain homeodomain-like sites, implicating homeobox transcription factors such as Emx2. At embryonic day 18.5, expression of 49–76% of ORs was decreased in mice lacking Emx2, depending on the metric used. The decreases were due to fewer OSNs expressing each OR. Affected ORs showed changes that were disproportionately greater than the 42% reduction in mature neurons and similar decreases in unrelated olfactory neuron-enriched messenger RNAs in Emx2 / mice. Both Class I and Class II ORs decreased, as did ORs expressed in both the dorsal and ventral regions of the epithelium. Conversely, 7% of Class II ORs tested were expressed more frequently, suggesting that some ORs are independent of Emx2. Emx2 helps stimulate transcription for many OR genes, which we hypothesize is through direct action at OR promoters, but Emx2 appears to have no significant role in regulating other aspects of OR gene expression, including the zonal patterns, OR gene cluster selection mechanisms, and singularity of OR gene choice.
Modeling and bounding low cost inertial sensor errors

This paper presents a methodology for developing models for the post-calibration residual errors of inexpensive inertial sensors in the class normally referred to as ldquoautomotiverdquo or ldquoconsumerrdquo grade. These sensors are increasingly being used in real-time vehicle navigation and guidance systems. However, manufacturer supplied specification sheets for these sensors seldom provide enough detail to allow constructing the type of error models required for analyzing the performance or assessing the risk associated with navigation and guidance systems. A methodology for generating error models that are accurate and usable in navigation and guidance systemspsila sensor fusion and risk analysis algorithms is developed and validated. Use of the error models is demonstrated by a simulation in which the performance of an automotive navigation and guidance system is analyzed.
The computation of optimal singular bang‐bang control I: Linear systems

A general algorithm for the computation of singular/bang-bang control, previously applied to linear systems, is extended to nonlinear systems. The minimum time control of a two-stage CSTR is demonstrated.
Modeling the synchronization of yeast respiratory oscillations

The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae exhibits autonomous oscillations when grown aerobically in continuous culture with ethanol as the primary carbon source. A single cell model that includes the sulfate assimilation and ethanol degradation pathways recently has been developed to study these respiratory oscillations. We utilize an extended version of this single cell model to construct large cell ensembles for investigation of a proposed synchronization mechanism involving hydrogen sulfide. Ensembles with as many as 10,000 cells are used to simulate population synchronization and to compute transient number distributions from asynchronous initial cell states. Random perturbations in intracellular kinetic parameters are introduced to study the synchronization of single cells with small variations in their unsynchronized oscillation periods. The cell population model is shown to be consistent with available experimental data and to provide insights into the regulatory mechanisms responsible for the synchronization of yeast metabolic oscillations.
Programmable traffic generator with configurable stochastic distributions

Our aim in this paper is to present a field programmable gate array-based traffic generator using a dedicated microprocessor within a configurable device (Stratixcopy from Altera). The traffic consists of fixed-size packets at a bit rate of 50 Mbps and three different patterns of network traffic in order to emulate the non-stationarity and bursty nature of real network traffic. The design makes use of the features offered by the Nios board, Stratix Edition, chosen as development platform, and the advantages of system on a programmable chip (SOPC) builder provided by Altera. The applications of this module are numerous, especially in the performance testing of the new generation of high-speed network switching module (e.g. layer 2 switches)
The Difficult Reconciliation of Conservation and Development Objectives: The Case of the Malagasy Environmental Action Plan

Environmental conservation and poverty alleviation are paramount challenges of our time, but are frequently in conflict. This article analyzes this tension in the case of Madagascar. It is based on a review of the literature concerning the Malagasy Environmental Action Plan and on four years the author spent in Madagascar, including two years working for the implementation of this plan. It will show that even though this plan was framed within the sustainable development paradigm, it failed to solve the conflict between development and conservation objectives. This failure is explained by the framing of the plan within a global environmental agenda that fails to answer to the needs of peasant communities; by the reluctance of the international community to recognize the mistakes of ill-designed projects; and by the dissolution of the Malagasy state within a governance state that flatters the promoters of environmental conservation, and a shadow state that controls the natural resources economy and runs it...
What does the prefrontal cortex “do” in affect: perspectives on frontal EEG asymmetry research

This commentary provides reflections on the current state of affairs in research on EEG frontal asymmetries associated with affect. Although considerable progress has occurred since the first report on this topic 25 years ago, research on frontal EEG asymmetries associated with affect has largely evolved in the absence of any serious connection with neuroscience research on the structure and function of the primate prefrontal cortex (PFC). Such integration is important as this work progresses since the neuroscience literature can help to understand what the prefrontal cortex is "doing" in affective processing. Data from the neuroscience literature on the heterogeneity of different sectors of the PFC are introduced and more specific hypotheses are offered about what different sectors of the PFC might be doing in affect. A number of methodological issues associated with EEG measures of functional prefrontal asymmetries are also considered.
Intracranial Arterial Duplex Doppler Waveform Analysis in Infants

Several factors influence cerebral arterial velocity waveforms as measured by duplex Doppler ultrasound. In addition to alterations in the cardiovascular system such as pulse rate and patent ductus arteriosus, pathology causing increased resistance of the cerebral vasculature such as hemorrhage, hydrocephaly, and hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy appear to cause an increase in pulsatility of the velocity waveform.
Local impact of temperature and precipitation on West Nile virus infection in Culex species mosquitoes in northeast Illinois, USA

Background: Models of the effects of environmental factors on West Nile virus disease risk have yielded conflicting outcomes. The role of precipitation has been especially difficult to discern from existing studies, due in part to habitat and behavior characteristics of specific vector species and because of differences in the temporal and spatial scales of the published studies. We used spatial and statistical modeling techniques to analyze and forecast fine scale spatial (2000 m grid) and temporal (weekly) patterns of West Nile virus mosquito infection relative to changing weather conditions in the urban landscape of the greater Chicago, Illinois, region for the years from 2004 to 2008. Results: Increased air temperature was the strongest temporal predictor of increased infection in Culex pipiens and Culex restuans mosquitoes, with cumulative high temperature differences being a key factor distinguishing years with higher mosquito infection and higher human illness rates from those with lower rates. Drier conditions in the spring followed by wetter conditions just prior to an increase in infection were factors in some but not all years. Overall, 80% of the weekly variation in mosquito infection was explained by prior weather conditions. Spatially, lower precipitation was the most important variable predicting stronger mosquito infection; precipitation and temperature alone could explain the pattern of spatial variability better than could other environmental variables (79% explained in the best model). Variables related to impervious surfaces and elevation differences were of modest importance in the spatial model. Conclusion: Finely grained temporal and spatial patterns of precipitation and air temperature have a consistent and significant impact on the timing and location of increased mosquito infection in the northeastern Illinois study area. The use of local weather data at multiple monitoring locations and the integration of mosquito infection data from numerous sources across several years are important to the strength of the models presented. The other spatial environmental factors that tended to be important, including impervious surfaces and elevation measures, would mediate the effect of rainfall on soils and in urban catch basins. Changes in weather patterns with global climate change make it especially important to improve our ability to predict how inter-related local weather and environmental factors affect vectors and vector-borne disease risk. Local impact of temperature and precipitation on West Nile virus infection in Culex species mosquitoes in northeast Illinois, USA.
The Role of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Receptors in the Mature Hippocampus: Modulation of Long-Term Potentiation through a Presynaptic Mechanism involving TrkB

The neurotrophin BDNF has been shown to modulate long-term potentiation (LTP) at Schaffer collateral-CA1 hippocampal synapses. Mutants in the BDNF receptor gene trkB and antibodies to its second receptor p75NTR have been used to determine the receptors and cells involved in this response. Inhibition of p75NTR does not detectably reduce LTP or affect presynaptic function, but analyses of newly generated trkB mutants implicate TrkB. One mutant has reduced expression in a normal pattern of TrkB throughout the brain. The second mutant was created by cre-loxP-mediated removal of TrkB in CA1 pyramidal neurons of this mouse. Neither mutant detectably impacts survival or morphology of hippocampal neurons. TrkB reduction, however, affects presynaptic function and reduces the ability of tetanic stimulation to induce LTP. Postsynaptic glutamate receptors are not affected by TrkB reduction, indicating that BDNF does not modulate plasticity through postsynaptic TrkB. Consistent with this, elimination of TrkB in postsynaptic neurons does not affect LTP. Moreover, normal LTP is generated in the mutant with reduced TrkB by a depolarization–low-frequency stimulation pairing protocol that puts minimal demands on presynaptic terminal function. Thus, BDNF appears to act through TrkB presynaptically, but not postsynaptically, to modulate LTP.
Blood Studies of Strains of the Domestic Fowl, Differing in Resistance to Pullorum Disease

Abstract AS a part of a study of the possible causes of the difference between chickens in their resistance to infection by Salmonella pullorum, counts of the erythrocytes, leucocytes, and polymorphonuclear neutrophiles of the blood of susceptible and resistant strains were made. Table 1 gives the results for susceptible Rhode Island Reds and resistant White Leghorns at 3, 6, 7, and 9 days after hatching for three different hatches. Only the averages for the different groups are given. In six out of seven cases the number of erythrocytes is greater for the resistant than it is for the susceptible strain. In every case the leucocyte count is lower for the resistant than for the susceptible strain. Also the percentage of neutrophiles is lower in the resistant birds in six out of seven cases. The same studies were made on blood from in oculated chicks, the results of which are given in . . .
Positive definiteness of a quadratic functional

In a 1975 paper, Molinari [1] proved that under certain continuity and controllability hypotheses, the infinum of a quadratic linear functional subject to linear differential equations constraints and a linear terminal constraint, is a quadratic function of the initial state. We show here how to constructively find this quadratic form under the addition of a positivity assumption. We also show that if a strengthened generalized Legendre-Clebsch condition holds then there is a linear optimal feedback control law.
Dorothea's Boudoir: Dream-Work and Ethical Perception in Middlemarch

In chapter 9 of George Eliot’s Middlemarch (1871), Dorothea, Celia, and Mr. Brooke ride out on a gray November morning for a tour of Lowick, soon to be Dorothea’s new home after she marries Mr. Casaubon, or as she thinks of it at the time, “the home of her wife-hood”: Mr. Casaubon’s home was the manor-house . . . It had a small park, with a fine old oak here and there, and an avenue of limes towards the southwest front, with a sunk fence between park and pleasureground, so that from the drawing-room windows the glance swept uninterruptedly along a slope of greensward till the limes ended in a level of corn and pastures, which often seemed to melt into a lake under the setting sun. This was the happy side of the house, for the south and east looked rather melancholy even under the brightest morning. The grounds here were more confined, the flower-beds showed no very careful tendance, and large clumps of trees, chiefly of sombre yews, had risen high, not ten yards from the windows. (46–47) On a floor above, there is another room, also with a bow window, possessed of the same sweeping western view of the avenue of lime trees, the park, and the distant fields of wheat. The narrator tells us that this is a plainly furnished room, rather faded—in fact, it was Mr. Casaubon’s mother’s room. There are miniatures on the wall, which Dorothea examines with interest, but what is important is the room itself. This will be Dorothea’s boudoir when she is Mrs. Casaubon, and her pleasure in it reflects her inclination for austerity in decor and exertion in life: The bow window looked down the avenue of limes; the furniture was all of a faded blue, and there were miniatures of ladies and gentlemen with powdered hair hanging in a group. A piece of tapestry over a door also showed a blue-green world with a pale stag in it. The chairs
Deposition of GaN by Remote Plasma-Enhanced Chemical-Vapor Deposition (Remote PECVD)

Films of GaN have been grown on silicon by remote plasma-enhanced chemical-vapor deposition using trimethyl gallium and ammonia. The ammonia is rf plasma excited along with He, and the trimethyl gallium is introduced downstream from the plasma generation zone. The activation energy for the growth of GaN is 0.95±0.05 eV. This is tentatively assigned to the activation of NH groups, extracted from the plasma as primary precursors for the surface reaction with trimethyl gallium (TMG), or adsorbed fragments of this molecule. At high He flow rates, an abrupt increase in the growth rate is observed corresponding to a change in the reaction mechanism which is attributed to the formation of atomic nitrogen.
Better Hadronic Top Quark Polarimetry

Observables sensitive to top-quark polarization are important for characterizing or even discovering new physics. The most powerful spin analyzer in top decay is the down-type fermion from the $W$, which in the case of leptonic decay allows for very clean measurements. However, in many applications it is useful to measure the polarization of hadronically decaying top quarks. Usually it is assumed that at most 50% of the spin analyzing power can be recovered in this case. This paper introduces a simple and truly optimal hadronic spin analyzer, with a power of 64% at leading order (LO). The improvement is demonstrated to be robust at next-to-leading order, and in a handful of simulated measurements including the spins and spin correlations of boosted top quarks from multi-TeV $t\overline{t}$ resonances, the spins of semi-boosted tops from chiral top-squark decays, and the potentially $CP$-violating spin correlations induced in continuum $t\overline{t}$ by color-dipole operators. For the boosted studies, we explore jet substructure techniques that exhibit improved mapping between subjets and quarks.
Processing and Properties of Ti(C,N)–WC‐Based Materials

Two Ti(C,N)–WC powder mixtures, one containing 0.88 wt% Co and the other 6.2 wt% Ni + 2.9 wt% Co, were fabricated by different routes: pressureless and gas-pressure sintering in argon and nitrogen, and hot-pressing under vacuum. The microstructures of all the sintered samples consisted of grains with a core/rim structure, the core being Ti(C,N) and the rim (Ti,W)(C,N). An inner rim also was present at the core/rim interface. The more highly doped materials also had an intergranular Ni-Co-Ti-W binder phase. The compositions and cell parameters of the hard phases, as well as of the binder, were analyzed. The nitrogen partial pressure in the sintering furnace was the main factor that influenced grain growth and phase composition. In fact, sintering under argon enhanced grain growth and was accompanied by a lower tungsten content in the rim. The influence of the microstructure on some mechanical properties (hardness, flexural strength, toughness, and Young's modulus) also was investigated. Flexural-strength values up to 1550 MPa at room temperature and 1200 MPa at 800°C, and fracture-toughness values up to 8 MPa·m1/2 were measured, depending on the starting composition and processing conditions.
Human heart, heavenly heart : Mystical dimensions of Chu Hsi's neo-confucianism

L'article est consacre au philosophe chinois neo-confuceen Chu Hsi (XIIeme siecle) habituellement tenu pour rationaliste. L'A. etudie l'aspect mystique de ses ecrits a propos de l'identification faite entre le coeur et l'esprit avec le coeur du ciel et de la terre et le coeur du sage, et mene une reflexion sur la maniere dont le terme mysticisme peut etre employe.
Identification and classification of conserved RNA secondary structures in the human genome

The discoveries of microRNAs and riboswitches, among others, have shown functional RNAs to be biologically more important and genomically more prevalent than previously anticipated. We have developed a general comparative genomics method based on phylogenetic stochastic context-free grammars for identifying functional RNAs encoded in the human genome and used it to survey an eight-way genome-wide alignment of the human, chimpanzee, mouse, rat, dog, chicken, zebra-fish, and puffer-fish genomes for deeply conserved functional RNAs. At a loose threshold for acceptance, this search resulted in a set of 48,479 candidate RNA structures. This screen finds a large number of known functional RNAs, including 195 miRNAs, 62 histone 3'UTR stem loops, and various types of known genetic recoding elements. Among the highest-scoring new predictions are 169 new miRNA candidates, as well as new candidate selenocysteine insertion sites, RNA editing hairpins, RNAs involved in transcript auto regulation, and many folds that form singletons or small functional RNA families of completely unknown function. While the rate of false positives in the overall set is difficult to estimate and is likely to be substantial, the results nevertheless provide evidence for many new human functional RNAs and present specific predictions to facilitate their further characterization.
The role of trust and moral obligation in beef cattle feed-lot veterinarians' contingent adoption of antibiotic metaphylaxis recommendations.

In light of concern over possible public health consequences arising from the use of antibiotics in the animal industries, we examine the willingness of beef-cattle feed-lot veterinarians to forgo the recommendation of antibiotic mass treatment to their beef-feed-lot clients as a contingency based on the dem- onstration of a definite harm to human health. We explore this contingency as an example of the negotiation by health professionals of conflicting obligations to public health, animal well-being, and the economic pressures of feed-lot medi- cine. We base our study on survey data (n=103) collected from a national sample of U.S. feed-lot veterinary practitioners. Factors that predict willingness are pri- marily psycho-social, including social influence, moral duty, and trust or distrust, characterized as competency. We define the dimensions of trust across an array of salient others determined by the structural and regulatory context of the Ameri- can cattle feeding industry.
Logic circuit design with the aid of an automated reasoning program

As an example of a logic circuit design problem, we consider the two-inverter puzzle [1] which may be stated as follows:Using any number of AND, OR gates but no more than two NOT gates (inverters), design a logic circuit with three inputs i1, i2, i3 and three outputs o1, o2, 03 such that o1=NOT (il), o2=NOT (i2), o3=NOT (i3).
BCR-ABL and v-abl oncogenes induce distinct patterns of thymic lymphoma involving different lymphocyte subsets.

Abstract The human BCR-ABL oncogenes encoded by the Philadelphia chromosome (Ph) affect the pathogenesis of diverse types of leukemia and yet are rarely associated with T-lymphoid leukemia. To determine whether BCR-ABL kinases are inefficient in transforming T lymphocytes, BCR-ABL-expressing retroviruses were injected intrathymically into mice. Thymomas that expressed BCR-ABL kinase developed after a relatively long latent period. In most thymomas, deletion of 3' proviral sequences resulted in loss of tk-neo and occasionally caused expression of kinase-active carboxy-terminally truncated BCR-ABL oncoprotein. In contrast, deletion of 3' proviral sequences was not observed in thymomas induced with Abelson murine leukemia virus (A-MuLV). BCR-ABL viruses induced distinct patterns of disease and involved different thymocyte subsets than A-MuLV and Moloney murine leukemia virus (Mo-MuLV). While Mo-MuLV only induced Thy-1+ thymomas, v-abl- and BCR-ABL-induced thymomas often contained mixed populations of B220+ and Thy-1+ lymphocytes in the same tumor. In most v-abl and BCR-ABL tumors, Thy-1+ lymphoid cells expressed CD8 and a continuum of CD4 ranging from negative to positive. Conversely, Mo-MuLV thymomas contained distinct populations of CD4+ cells that were either CD8+ or CD8-. A-MuLV-transformed T-lymphoid cells did not express the CD3/T-cell receptor complex, while BCR-ABL tumors were CD3+. Thus, BCR-ABL viruses preferentially induce somewhat more differentiated T lymphocytes than are transformed by A-MuLV. Furthermore, rare B220+ lymphocytes may represent preferred v-abl and BCR-ABL transformation targets in the thymus.
The Impact of Smoke-Free Laws on Asthma Discharges: A Multistate Analysis

Objectives. This is the first, to my knowledge, multistate, county-level analysis of Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project state inpatient data to examine the relationship between smoke-free laws and asthma discharges.Methods. I used treatment and control groups to examine the effects of state and county or city smoke-free laws separately and together (2002–2009). I compared quarterly county-level discharge rates before and after the implementation of 12 state smoke-free laws, accounting for counties with preexisting county or city smoke-free laws and using the data from 5 states without state smoke-free laws as a control group. I used difference-in-differences models, controlling for year and state fixed effects, state cigarette taxes, seasonality, and numerous county-level factors.Results. I observed statistically significant reductions in asthma discharges after the implementation of county smoke-free laws but no statistically significant effect of state laws besides the effect of county laws or of s...
Observations of the von Karman constant over open-ocean waves

Forty-six open-ocean observations of the von Karman constant k, estimated from the momentum flux, wind velocity, and air temperature differences observed at the Argus Island tower, yielded an average value of 0.40+or-0.18 for mod Ri mod >
Room-Temperature Aging of Laminate Composites of Alumina/3-mol%-Yttria-Stablilized Tetragonal Zirconia Polycrystals

The stresses of laminate structures obtained by joining single layers of pure alumina (A), pure yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia, 3Y-TZP (Z), and an intimate mixture of alumina and zirconia (AZ) have been determined by fluorescence (in alumina) and Raman (in zirconia) piezospectroscopy. Three symmetrical stacking sequences were examined, namely, A/Z/A, A/AZ/A, and AZ/Z/AZ, with the aim of designing structures where the higher coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of zirconia could be used to induce compressive stress in the external layers (and ensuing tensile stress in the central layer). Two experimental sessions, 6 years apart, were conducted on the same samples, also taking care to record the spectra from the same locations; during the time elapsed between the two sessions, the samples were kept at room temperature and humidity. The stress values in alumina obtained during the more recent session were markedly different from those observed in the first session. Monoclinic zirconia (m-zirconia) was absent in all samples in the first session, whereas up to 25 vol% zirconia could be observed during the second session. m-Zirconia could only be observed in AZ layers and not in Z layers, irrespective of the position in the stacking sequence. It was concluded that 3Y-TZP underwent spontaneous tetragonal-to-monoclinic (t–m) transformation, that is, “aging,” when mixed with alumina at the grain-size level. Aging occurred only where pristine t-zirconia was subject to tensile stresses larger than ∼400 MPa.
“Cut‐and‐Paste” Manufacture of Multiparametric Epidermal Sensor Systems

Multifunctional epidermal sensor systems (ESS) are manufactured with a highly cost and time effective, benchtop, and large-area "cut-and-paste" method. The ESS made out of thin and stretchable metal and conductive polymer ribbons can be noninvasively laminated onto the skin surface to sense electrophysiological signals, skin temperature, skin hydration, and respiratory rate.
Stratosphere-troposphere evolution during polar vortex intensification

Stratosphere-troposphere evolution associated with polar vortex intensification (VI) events is examined during the Northern Hemisphere winter. The incipient stage of a VI event is marked by anomalously low wave activity and descending westerly anomalies over the depth of the polar stratosphere. Reduced poleward planetary wave heat flux occurs as the circumpolar wind becomes strongest and pressure anomalies penetrate toward the surface. Descending pressure patterns project strongly onto the positive state of the Northern Hemisphere Annular Mode (NAM). Concurrently, anomalous poleward momentum flux develops in the upper troposphere, and the related tropospheric mean meridional circulation maintains the attendant wind and temperature anomalies against surface drag. The gross behavior of the composite VI event is similar in shape but opposite in sign to that associated with sudden stratospheric warming events (SSWs). However, the descent of the wind and temperature anomalies over the VI life cycle is generally weaker and slower than its SSW counterpart preceding the maximum vortex anomaly. Similarly, after the maximum wind event, the weakening of the winds is faster than the strengthening of the winds after a SSW. This is because stratospheric wind reduction anomalies are produced by wave driving, which can be rapid, and increases in wind speed are associated with the radiative cooling of the polar cap, which happens more gradually. While the contributions of the anomalous momentum fluxes by the quasi-stationary and synoptic eddies are similar to SSWs, the much stronger anomalous momentum flux observed during VI can be attributed to the larger role of eddies with timescales between 15 and 40 days and of wave number 2 scale. Notable differences between VI and SSW appear in the tropical region. In particular, anomalous vortex intensification seems to occur preferentially during La Nina conditions.
Homeland security initiatives and background checks in higher education

This chapter addresses the issue of higher education institution policies and procedures in regard to background checks for students, staff, and faculty in light of homeland security concerns.
Playing Fields and Rare Plants: A Winning Combination

With declining availability of funds for recreational-related construction, communities are searching for innovative ways to receive funding. To have a better chance of receiving funding for the construction of a sports complex and to create a sanctuary for the federally endangered plant, the Texas poppy-mallow (TPM), a partnership was formed among city, county, state, and federal agencies, and private landowners. As a result, Mitchell County was awarded $441,000 from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Outdoor Recreation Matching Grant Program and Partners for Fish and Wildlife to build a 20-acre sports and recreation complex. Funds were awarded, in large part, because Mitchell County created a sanctuary for the TPM. This partnership also represents the first endeavor to restore the TPM.
PD-1 blockade upregulate TIM-3 expression as a compensatory regulation of immune check point receptors in HNSCC TIL.

Programmed Death 1 (PD-1) and T cell Ig and mucin domain-3 protein (Tim-3) are immune check point receptors that are upregulated on tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) in tumor-bearing mice and humans. As anti-PD-1 single agent response rates are still relatively low (20%) in HNC patients, it is important to learn how different inhibitory check point receptors work together to maintain the suppressive status of immune system. We observed that PD-1 and Tim-3 co-expression is associated with an exhausted phenotype of HNSCC TIL of patients, demonstrating the highest PD-1 levels in Tim-3 double positive TIL. We also observed that PD-1+/Tim-3+ TIL manifest dampened in Akt/p-S6 activation upon TCR stimulation, leading us to infer the potential for signaling cross-talk between PD-1 and Tim-3 downstream signaling pathways. Indeed, in freshly isolated HNSCC TIL, PD-1-/TIM-3+ T cells showed higher baseline expression of p-SHP-2 (p < 0.01) which is triggered upon PD-1 ligation. In addition, PD-1 blockade using nivolumab of human HNSCC TIL led to upregulation of Tim-3 expression, suggesting a circuit of compensatory, cross-talk signaling and permitting escape from anti-PD-1 blockade during TCR stimulation. In a murine HNC tumor model, anti-PD-1 treatment modestly suppressed tumor growth, but in TIL from persistent tumors in these mice, Tim-3 expression was dramatically upregulated after PD-1 blockade. Taken together, in response to PD-1 blockade, the most exhausted TIL appear to upregulate Tim-3 as a compensatory mechanism, supporting dual targeting, which may provide new therapeutic strategy for cancer immunotherapy. Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4
A Computational Bayesian Approach to Dependency Assessment in System Reliability

Abstract Due to the increasing complexity of engineered products, it is of great importance to develop a tool to assess reliability dependencies among components and systems under the uncertainty of system reliability structure. In this paper, a Bayesian network approach is proposed for evaluating the conditional probability of failure within a complex system, using a multilevel system configuration. Coupling with Bayesian inference, the posterior distributions of these conditional probabilities can be estimated by combining failure information and expert opinions at both system and component levels. Three data scenarios are considered in this study, and they demonstrate that, with the quantification of the stochastic relationship of reliability within a system, the dependency structure in system reliability can be gradually revealed by the data collected at different system levels.
Analysis of micro-Doppler signatures for vital sign detection using UWB impulse Doppler radar

The joined range-time-frequency representation of ultra-wideband (UWB) Doppler radar signatures from a walking human subject is processed with a state space method (SSM) in which micro-Doppler (m-D) features are extracted for vital sign analysis. To clearly distinguish respiration rates from moving subjects, the SSM, originally developed for radar target identification and sensor fusion, is applied in a sliding short-time window for enhanced resolution in vital sign detection. This application of SSM to sliding short-time data, termed hereafter as short-time SSM (STSSM), is validated with a full-wave electromagnetic simulation of a walking subject using the Boulic model to represent the kinematics. The scattering model is utilized to calibrate the state space system parameters before it is applied to experimental UWB radar data. The cross correlation and weight functions are utilized to cancel the random motions attributed by walking from a human subject, prior to the application of STSSM to UWB signal. The results show that STSSM can be successfully utilized to accurately measure vital signs in real experimental data, thus demonstrating the capability to positively identify respiration rates even in a low signal-to-noise ratio environment.
Remembering Kym Thorne (and Alexander Kouzmin): Reform, Revolution, or Mission Impossible?

If I could capture in a sentence the purpose of Kym Thorne’s body of work, I would have to say that he sought to keep ever in our sights the manner in which public administration is complicit in st...
Chimerism Testing in Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is a well-established treatment option for a variety of malignant and nonmalignant diseases. Each year, more than 28,000 patients undergo allogeneic HSCT worldwide. Molecular analysis of chimerism levels is used to monitor the proportions of donor and recipient hematopoietic cells in patients after HSCT. Chimerism studies can help identify the source of hematopoiesis after engraftment, identify graft rejection in patients with poor hematologic recovery, and assist in the diagnosis and prediction of relapse and clinical graft-vs-host disease (GVHD). The most commonly applied method is PCR amplification of short tandem repeats (STR), a type of genetic polymorphism. The interpretation of chimerism results depends on the context in which the testing was done, i.e., the type of transplant, conditioning intensity, timing of testing post-transplant and results of concurrent blood counts and bone marrow morphology. While the methodology is technically straightforward, the implementation, analysis, and interpretation of results can be complicated. The clinical importance of chimerism results warrants the effort required by the laboratory for validation and performance of the test. In this chapter we review the clinical utility of chimerism analysis and laboratory aspects of testing, including methods, reagents, approaches to pre- and post-transplant testing, analysis and interpretation, pitfalls and limitations, reporting, and data management.
Belohnung: Theorie und Anwendungsformen

In Kap. 2 haben wir die Kontiguitat — den zeitlichen Zusammenhang zwischen CS und UCS — als Grundprinzip des klassichen Kon-ditionierens genannt. Beim instrumenteilen Konditionieren hingegen (Kap. 3) war die Belohnung der ausschlaggebende Faktor. Die Art und Weise, in der Belohnung wirksam wird — ihr eigentlicher Wirkmechanismus also — ist bislang nicht spezifiziert worden.
Higher Rank Varieties

In this chapter we investigate the higher rank varieties. They are the analogues of determinantal varieties for more complicated representations L λ E . They were first considered in the paper [Po] of Porras. In section 7.1 we look at the general case. We prove that higher determinantal varieties have rational singularities, and we find equations defining them set-theoretically. We also classify the rank varieties whose defining ideals are Gorenstein. In section 7.2 we investigate the rank varieties for symmetric tensors of degree bigger than two. We prove that in this case the defining equations described in section 7.1 generate the radical ideal. We also analyze the cases of tensors of rank one, which correspond to the cones over multiple embeddings of projective spaces. In section 7.3 we look at rank varieties for skew symmetric tensors of degree bigger than two. An interesting feature is that the normality of these rank varieties depends on the characteristic of the base field. We pay particular attention to the special case of syzygies of Plucker ideals defining the cones over Grassmannians embedded into projective space by Plucker embeddings. Basic Properties Let λ be a partition. Let E be a vector space of dimension n over K . Consider the representation X = K λ′ E * as an affine space over K .
Surgery for Frontal Sinus Disease

Frontal sinus surgery remains a considerable surgical challenge, given the narrow confines of the frontal recess, need for angled scopes and instruments, and proximity to critical structures. As a result, the surgical management of frontal sinus disease has engendered significant controversy. Successful execution of frontal techniques requires an intimate understanding of frontal sinus anatomy and physiology. This chapter discusses these principles and reviews the central tenets that guide the choice of surgical approach when disease is considered refractory to maximal medical management. Moreover, the current surgical options available for the treatment of frontal sinus disease, including balloon catheter dilation, endoscopic frontal sinusotomy, frontal trephination, endoscopic modified Lothrop procedure, and osteoplastic flap with/without obliteration, are elaborated along with discussion of indications, technique, and outcomes based on current evidence.
An Empirical Evaluation of Visuo-Haptic Feedback on Physical Reaching Behaviors During 3D Interaction in Real and Immersive Virtual Environments

In an initial study, we characterized the properties of human reach motion in the presence or absence of visuo-haptic feedback in real and Immersive Virtual Environments (IVEs) or virtual reality within a participant’s maximum arm reach. Our goal is to understand how physical reaching actions to the perceived location of targets in the presence or absence of visuo-haptic feedback are different between real and virtual viewing conditions. Typically, participants reach to the perceived location of objects in the three-dimensional (3D) environment to perform selection and manipulation actions during 3D interaction in applications such as virtual assembly or rehabilitation. In these tasks, participants typically have distorted perceptual information in the IVE as compared to the real world, in part due to technological limitations such as minimal visual field of view, resolution, latency, and jitter. In an empirical evaluation, we asked the following questions: (i) how do the perceptual differences between virtual and real world affect our ability to accurately reach to the locations of 3D objects, and (ii) how do the motor responses of participants differ between the presence or absence of visual and haptic feedback? We examined factors such as velocity and distance of physical reaching behavior between the real world and IVE, both in the presence or absence of visuo-haptic information. The results suggest that physical reach responses vary systematically between real and virtual environments, especially in situations involving the presence or absence of visuo-haptic feedback. The implications of our study provide a methodological framework for the analysis of reaching motions for selection and manipulation with novel 3D interaction metaphors and to successfully characterize visuo-haptic versus non-visuo-haptic physical reaches in virtual and real-world situations.
Turning outsiders to insiders: A study of job and community embeddedness on voluntary turnover

We unite research on migration patterns and job and community embeddedness to examine how the distance an employee has relocated to take a job plays into his or her turnover decision and how that decision is impacted by both on-the-job and off-the-job factors. We test these relationships in a longitudinal field study of 2297 engineers. We found support for the idea that distance leads to voluntary turnover, and that one form of embeddedness (educational reimbursement) moderates the distance / voluntary turnover relationship. As well, we found direct effects of other types of embeddedness variables that reduced the likelihood of voluntary turnover (assimilation programs and employee contributions to local non-profits). Suggestions for future research and implications for practitioners are provided.
Estimated Cost at Completion: Integrating Risk into Earned Value Management

AbstractEarned value management (EVM) is an industry standard for monitoring the performance of ongoing projects. The performance baseline is set up in the planning phase to measure any time and cost deviations during project execution. Based on the current progress, an estimate at completion (EAC) is forecasted. Traditionally, EVM only focuses on the project schedule (SPI) and cost (CPI), and does not address other important aspects of health and safety, stakeholder satisfaction, and quality. Despite its superior formulation, EVM forecasts are still influenced by project risks and uncertainties, leading to inconsistency between EAC results obtained through standard formulae. In order to estimate better EAC, a framework is developed that incorporates various key performance indicators into the risk performance index (RPI). Using SPI, CPI, and RPI, an integrated model is developed and a number of case studies are run to validate it. The findings indicate a better EAC when compared to traditional methods. I...