cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A highly sensitive microbioassay for the molluscan neuropeptide FMRFamide

Abstract 1. An organ bath of very small volume (100 μl) has been designed for the superfusion of long thin molluscan muscles. The plan of this microbath is presented in detail. 2. Isolated in the microbath, radula protractor muscles from small specimens of the lightning whelk ( Busycon contrarium ) can be used to assay as little as 0.1 pmols of the molluscan neuropeptide FMRFamide.
Oscillations in the rate of disappearance of labeled triiodothyronine from human plasma and the minimum sampling rate for their observation

Oscillations in the rate of disappearance of labeled-T3 have been observed in this experiment. A 4-h sampling period is insufficient to demonstrate this behavior; and sampling every 2 h appears to be an approximate upper limit on the sampling period. A more detailed knowledge of the character of these oscillations may be obtained by sampling more often than every 2 h during time intervals when the variations are largest. Curve A in Figure 2 suggests that sampling every hour during the mid-day would be desirable.
Factors Associated With Vascular Complications in Patients Undergoing Balloon-Expandable Transfemoral Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement via Open Versus Percutaneous Approaches

Background—Vascular complications after transfemoral transcatheter aortic valve replacement are common and associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Little is known about the effect of access approach on vascular complications. Methods and Results—Between 2007 and 2013, 331 patients underwent transfemoral transcatheter aortic valve replacement via open surgical (OS) or fully percutaneous (PC) approaches. Patient data and clinical outcomes were collected. Valve Academic Research Consortium–defined vascular complications were noted. Multivariable analysis with propensity matching was performed, and vascular complications, mortality, and length of stay were assessed. One hundred twenty patients were treated with the OS approach and 211 patients via the PC approach. There were fewer major vascular complications (11% versus 20%; P=0.03) and shorter length of stay (7.5 versus 9.9 days; P=0.003) in the PC group when compared with those in the OS group. In multivariable analysis, vascular complications...
Towards background flow based AUV localization

Underwater localization faces many constrains and long-term persistent global localization for autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) is very difficult. In this paper, we propose a novel AUV localization method taking advantage of the recent progress in ocean general circulation models (OGCMs). During navigation, the AUV performs intermittent local background flow velocity measurements or estimates using on-board sensors. A series of preloaded flow velocity forecast maps generated by OGCMs are referred by a particle filter in updating particle weights based on resemblance between forecasts and local estimation. A rigorous derivation of the problem in probability theory is presented to reveal the recursive structure of the target distribution function. Simulations in a simple double-gyre velocity field exhibit satisfactory converging localization error. Further simulations in a flow field with local flow fluctuations that are not resolved by OGCMs show similar convergent localization error with a slower converging rate. As a first step towards a new set of underwater localization methods, this work presents promising results and reveals the possibility of realizing converging global underwater localization through partial utilization of the background flow information that is easily accessible.
Structural Transition between the Inward- and Outward-Facing States of the Glutamate Transporter in Different Lipid Environments

Excitatory amino acid transporters (EAATs) are membrane proteins responsible for the reuptake of glutamate from the synaptic cleft in the central nervous system. Crystallographic data of a bacterial EAAT homologue, GltPh, have provided structural information for this trimeric secondary active transporter in different states. Nevertheless, in contrast to other membrane proteins, such as GPCRs, little is known about the structural or functional coupling between EAATs and their membrane environment. In this context, we investigated the effect of lipid environment on the structure and dynamics of GltPh, using all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of both the outward- and inward-facing conformations of GltPh in either POPC or POPE lipid membranes. The transition between the two states was explored with a variant of targeted MD simulations (sTMD) combining stepwise targeted motion and equilibration. Both the end conformations and the transition pathways were found to be robust to the choice of lipid bilayer type (pairwise trajectory RMSDs<2.5A), implying constant contributions from the energetics of membrane deformation and hydrophobic mismatch computed with 3D-CTMD. The transition pathways connecting the end states agree substantially with the structural intermediates of a path identified recently using the method of motion planning (MP) coupled with MD (minimum RMSDs<3A). Importantly, the agreement includes the prediction that the transport-trimerization domain interface changes continuously during the transition, exhibiting in the middle a significantly reduced contact area and significantly increased solvent-accessibility compared to the end states. This remarkable consistency between simple MP and the new sTMD modeling approaches indicates that the computationally economical MP calculations provide a useful initial modeling tool for major conformational transitions in membrane proteins.
Disinhibition of oocyte growth in adult, virgin Periplaneta americana by corpus allatum denervation: age dependency and relatedness to mating

Unilateral section of the nervi corporis allati I (NCA-1) of isolated, starved, adult, virgin Periplaneta americana disinhibited oocyte growth during a specific period following their adult emergence. The effect required that the corpus allatum (CA) be free of NCA-1 innervation for 4 days beyond the time the females were 7–8 days old. The onset of this sensitive period corresponds to when most isolated, starved virgins become sexually receptive. The results suggest that NCA-1 inhibition of CA activity, initiated about 7 days, is relieved by mating. When done on sexually receptive, starved virgins, unilateral NCA-1 section was as effective as insemination for stimulating growth and chorionation of the first generation of oocytes. Neural inhibition of juvenile hormone (JH) secretion by the CA may also explain diminished production of oocytes by isolated, fed virgins, for during 30 days following unilateral NCA-1 section they produced 2.6 to 5 times more oothecae than did controls with a single CA removed or after the sham operation. The number of oothecae deposited by fed virgins was similarly increased after bilateral NCA-1 section, but to a lesser extent than when the operation was done on fed, inseminated females of the same age. Specificity of the response of the CA to denervation was substantiated by experiments in which the CA were extirpated and reimplanted, by topically applying C16JH, and by experiments in which the nervus corporis cardiaci 1 and 2 on the right or left side were severed.
A WKB asymptotic analysis of baroclinic instability

A modest extension of conventional WKB methods of solving second-order differential equations asymptotically is developed and applied to the problem of baroclinic instability. Accurate results are obtained for the Charney problem using simple expressions. More important, the present expressions can be used immediately for a wide variety of basic velocity profiles.
Diffusion mechanism of hydrocarbons in zeolites—I. Theory

Abstract The properties of single-component diffusion of hydrocarbons in zeolites, especially its dependence on temperature and concentration, are studied theoretically by modeling the molecule-zeolite interactions and the molecule-molecule interactions. The molecule-zeolite interactions determine the orders of magnitude of the diffusivity, whereas the molecule-molecule interactions could alter the concentration dependence of a diffusivity. A unified diffusion theory is developed to describe gaseous diffusion, liquid diffusion, Knudsen diffusion, solid diffusion and configurational diffusion. Based upon the zeolite structure and molecular properties, an estimate of the order of magnitude of the diffusivity can be made for small organic molecules with no fitting parameters. Repulsion between molecules in the zeolites can lower the activation energy for diffusion, which results in a rising trend of apparent diffusivity and a decreasing trend of the Langmuir parameter at high concentration. Diffusion in zeolites takes place in the Knudsen diffusion regime or in the configurational diffusion regime. Transition from Knudsen diffusion to configurational diffusion depends on the properties of molecules and those of zeolites, such as the ratio of molecular diameter to channel diameter, molecular length, zeolite structures, and temperature. For ZSM-5, transition from Knudsen regime to configurational regime may occur for roughly spherical molecules when the ratio of molecular diameter to channel diameter, λ, is greater than approximately 0.6–0.8.
Self-fertilization in the white-lipped land snail Triodopsis Albolabris

The breeding system of the polygyrid land snail Triodopsis albolabris was studied in laboratory colonies through the use of allozyme-genetic markers. Isolated virgin individuals self-fertilized only after several months of apparent self-sterility. Isolated pairs appeared to reproduce solely by outcrossing. Overall, the normalized reproductive success of paired individuals was about 86 times greater than that of isolates. Nine natural populations of this snail were surveyed at eight allozyme loci. All populations were highly polymorphic, and heterozygosity was high and agreed with Hardy-Weinberg expectations. This indicates that selfing is not common in established populations. We conclude that T. albolabris avoid inbreeding by selfing if at all possible. However, if the probability of finding a mate is low (assessed by several months without finding one), lone individuals self-fertilize.
Health information systems in small practices. Improving the delivery of clinical preventive services.

Background Despite strong evidence that clinical preventive services (CPS) reduce morbidity and mortality, CPS performance has not improved in adult primary care. In addition to implementing electronic health records (EHRs), key factors for improving CPS include providing actionable information at the point of care, technical support staff, and quality-improvement assistance. These resources are not typically available in small practices. Purpose Estimate the impact on CPS delivery after a software upgrade to embed a clinical decision support system and practice-level quality-improvement support services. Methods Practices were recruited from the Primary Care Information Project, a citywide initiative assisting practices adopt health information technology. Data were collected in 2009 and 2010, and analyses were conducted in 2010 and 2011. Across two time periods, receipt of CPS was calculated for 56 practices. Period 1 measured CPS delivery 2–37 months following implementation of an EHR. Period 2 measured CPS delivery within the first 6 months after an EHR software upgrade. Results Substantial increases in the delivery of selected CPS were observed after the EHR software upgrades. Blood pressure control for patients with hypertension increased from 46.0% to 54.8%. Breast cancer screening, recorded BMI, and HbA1c testing for patients with diabetes also increased. More than half of the practices increased their patients' blood pressure control, recorded BMI, breast cancer screening, and HbA1c screening by ≥5 percentage points. Conclusions Delivery of CPS can increase in small primary care practices that implement an EHR that includes comprehensive quality-improvement support.
Learning presence as a moderator in the community of inquiry model

This study of over 2000 US college students examines the Community of Inquiry framework (CoI) in its capacity to describe and explain differences in learning outcomes in hybrid and fully online learning environments. We hypothesize that the CoI model's theoretical constructs of presence reflect educational effectiveness in a variety of environments, and that online learner self-regulation, a construct that we label ''learning presence'' moderates relationships of the other components within the CoI model. Consistent with previous research (e.g., Means, Toyama, Murphy, Bakia, & Jones, 2009; Shea & Bidjerano, 2011) we found evidence that students in online and blended courses rank the modalities differently with regard to quality of teaching, social, and cognitive presence. Differences in help seeking behavior, an important component of self-regulated learning, were found as well. In addition, results suggest teaching presence and social presence have a differential effect on cognitive presence, depending upon learner's online self-regulatory cognitions and behaviors, i.e. their learning presence. These results also suggest a compensation effect in which greater self-regulation is required to attain cognitive presence in the absence of sufficient teaching and social presence. Recommendations for future research and practice are included.
AES and LEED studies correlating desorption energies with surface structures and coverages for Ga on Si(100)

Abstract Gallium interactions with silicon (100) are studied with Auger electron spectroscopy and LEED to correlate the desorption energies with surface coverages and structures in isothermal desorption experiments. Some evidence for a temperature-induced change from a Stranski-Karstanov to a Volmer-Weber growth mode between 600 and 700 K is presented. In the temperature range 800–900 K, three different kinetic regimes are observed. Between 0 and 0.5 monolayers (ML), first-order desorption is observed from a well-ordered Ga overlayer (Si : Ga 2 × 2), with a desorption energy of 2.9 ± 0.2 eV and a pre-exponential factor of 3 × 10 16 ± 1 s −1 Between 0.5 and 1 ML, first-order desorption is also observed from a well-ordered Ga layer (Si : Ga 8 × 1), but the desorption energy decreases to 2.3 ± 0.2 eV with a pre-exponential factor of to 8 × 10 12 ± 1.2 s −1 . Above 1 ML, zeroth-order desorption from Ga islands on top of an ordered Ga monolayer is observed, and the desorption energy of the combination of surface species is 2.61 ± 0.07 eV with a pre-exponential factor equal to (4±3) × 10 13 ML s −1 . It is suggested that atoms from the islands and the ordered layer are kinetically coupled, and that the islands cover too little of the surface to exhibit the bulk heat of vaporization of liquid Ga, 2.9 eV. The observed kinetic regimes are correlated with the surface structures proposed in the preceding paper.
Advances in the Reliability and Validity of the North Carolina Family Assessment Scale

SUMMARY Objective: Psychometric properties of the North Carolina Family Assessment Scale (NCFAS) are examined in relation to placement and prediction of future placement within the context of Intensive Family Preservation Services (IFPS). Method: IFPS workers recorded NCFAS intake and closure ratings for 1,279 families. The categorical rating data and change-scores are analyzed in relation to treatment outcomes and future placements. Results: Domain scores of the NCFAS remain highly reliable. Closure ratings are significantly related to placements and future placements of children, and change-scores are related to placements. Conclusion: The NCFAS is shown to be an instrument that helps practitioners assess areas needing service (i.e., parental capabilities, environment), documents changes, and relates the reported findings to placement and future placement.
Epidemic Neuromyasthenia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Epidemiological Importance of a Cluster Definition

Outbreaks of illness variously identified by a number of terms, including epidemic neuromyasthenia, myalgic encephalomyelitis, Iceland disease, and atypical poliomyelitis, have been reported from many countries during the past 45 years. Since the first well-described outbreak occurring in 1934, > 60 outbreaks have been reported, but few of these have been described in considerable detail. These outbreaks are usually cited in historical reports of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) since each of these outbreaks appears to contain a number of cases meeting the current case definition of CFS. There has been inadequate attention given to the fact that epidemic neuromyasthenia and related clusters characterized by various complaints, including fatigue, do not have an accepted epidemiological or clinical definition, and only rarely have descriptions of these clusters included a specific case definition. When such case definitions have been applied, the occurrence of cases meeting the current case definition for CFS appears to be both variable and infrequent. This report utilizes examples of several well-documented outbreaks to emphasize specific aspects that should be considered in the investigation of future clusters.
A Multi-scale Formulation for Predicting Non-linear Thermo-electro-mechanical Response in Heterogeneous Bodies:

This study presents a multi-scale formulation for analyzing coupled heat conduction and thermo-electro-mechanical deformation in heterogeneous bodies, namely active composites. The studied active composite comprises ferroelectric inclusions dispersed in polymer matrix. The multi-scale framework is derived based on an integrated simplified micromechanical and finite element model. A non-linear thermo-electro-elastic constitutive model of materials undergoing large electric driving fields and small strains is used for the polarized ferroelectric inclusions. An integration algorithm with predictor and corrector schemes is developed to obtain approximate solutions of field variables: temperature, displacement, strain, stress, electric field, and electric displacement. The multi-scale model is capable of determining field variables at multiple length scales which is important when non-linear behaviors in the constituents of heterogeneous bodies are considered. We examine the effect of mismatches in the propert...
Marginal leakage and penetration of basic fuchsin dye in anterior restorative materials

Using bovine teeth and dye tracer, the effects of storage time in water, temperature cycling, design and depth of cavity preparation, and pin retention on marginal leakage of several anterior restorative materials were evaluated—Sevriton, Bonfil, Addent-35, Dakor, and silicate cement.
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Infections

(1972). Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Infections. CRC Critical Reviews in Clinical Laboratory Sciences: Vol. 3, No. 3, pp. 291-347.
MRI-Based Three Dimensional Modeling of Blast Traumatic Brain Injury (bTBI)

Blast induced traumatic brain injury (bTBI) is signature injury in recent combat scenarios involving improvised explosive devices (IEDs). The exact mechanisms of bTBI are still unclear and protective role of helmet and body armor is often questioned [1–3]. High Fidelity finite element models involving fluid structure interaction are built in order to understand effectiveness of helmet in mitigating early time blast induced mild traumatic brain injury.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
Stem cell in the rough: repair quotient mined out of a bone marrow niche.

Regenerative medicine aims to repair, replace, or restore diseased, damaged, or missing tissues. Cardiovascular indications account for over a quarter of all cell-based regenerative medicine products currently in development.1 Indeed, during the past decade, translation of stem cell technology has been increasingly realized, formulating an emergent body of clinical trial experience that defines the prospect of cardiovascular regenerative medicine.2 Article, see p 867 In the setting of ischemic heart disease, regenerative approaches are deployed as protective and restorative strategies, designed to complement standard-of-care algorithms.3 Early postinfarction, the aim of cell-based interventions is to limit the extent of damage and prevent organ failure by altering the myocardial response to injury. In advanced heart failure, the goal of regenerative therapy becomes restorative in nature, aimed at re-establishing normative function and structure through direct cell-mediated or indirect paracrine-mediated repair mechanisms. Tested in phase I and phase II trials, within diverse patient populations and across healthcare systems, clinical-grade stem cell platforms demonstrate encouraging feasibility and safety profiles.4,5 Experience to date has helped establish scalable standard operating procedures for isolation, expansion, and formulation of cell-based biotherapeutics amenable for broader human use. However, initial indicators of benefit, in either acute or chronic disease, have not been consistently reproduced in follow-up studies dictating careful evaluation of cell therapy practices.6, …
Electrochemical and spectroscopic studies of metal hexacyanometalate films—III. Equilibrium and kinetics studies of cupric hexacyanoferrate

Abstract The potential response of cupric hexacyanoferrate (CuHCF) thin films on glassy carbon substrate was studied by cyclic voltammetry in potassium and ammonium ions. The shift in potential with ammonium ion concentration is Nernstian with a difference of +0.70 V in 1 M NH + 4 with respect to 1 M K + . Equilibrium spectroelectrochemical studies have shown that the mole fraction of CuHCF is a reflection of film activity. Kinetic studies have indicated that the redox reaction is faster in ammonium ion than in potassium ion. Similarities and differences in the equilibrium and kinetic response of the film in both electrolytes are discussed.
Coherent transport of excitons in quantum-dot chains: role of retardation

A model for the coherent transport of excitons along linear, one-dimensional arrays of quantum dots accounting for spontaneous emission is presented. The interdot coupling is made by means of the coherent emission and reabsorption of photons. The long-range nature of the coupling leads to nontrivial dynamics in the polarization and in the exciton population with qualitatively different behaviors for chains with periods just less than or just greater than integer multiples of half the wavelength of the optical transition. Biexponential radiative decay of an initially well-localized population is predicted.
Should catheter ablation be the first line of treatment for atrial fibrillation

Antiarrhythmic drugs should remain the first line of treatment until trials prove otherwise.
Frictional anisotropy under boundary lubrication: Effect of surface texture

The friction coefficient was measured under boundary lubrication with a ball-on-flat contact configuration in unidirectional sliding. The ball was smooth and hardened 52100 steel. Discs were made from case-carburized and hardened 4620, annealed 1080, and 1018 steels with directionally ground surfaces. A synthetic lubricant of stock polyalphaolefin was used for testing. During testing with each material, a frictional spike was observed whenever the ball slid parallel to the grinding ridge on the disc surface. The average friction coefficient for all tests was about 0.1, which is typical for the boundary lubrication regime. The magnitude of the frictional spikes, which reached as high as a friction coefficient of 0.25, and their persistence depended on the hardness of the disc surface. On the basis of elastohydrodynamic theory, coupled with the observation of severe plastic deformation on the ridges parallel to the sliding direction, the frictional spike could be due to localized plastic deformation on the disc surface at locations of minimal thickness for the lubricant fluid film. This hypothesis was further supported by lack of frictional spikes in tests using discs coated with a thin film of diamond-like carbon, in which plastic deformation is minimal.
Membrane fusion mutants of Semliki Forest virus

Previous reports have indicated that the entry of Semliki Forest virus (SFV) into cells depends on a membrane fusion reaction catalyzed by the viral spike glycoproteins and triggered by the low pH prevailing in the endosomal compartment. In this study the in vitro pH-dependent fusion of SFV with nuclease-filled liposomes has been used to select for a new class of virus mutants that have a pH-conditional defect. The mutants obtained had a threshold for fusion of pH 5.5 as compared with the wild-type threshold of 6.2, when assayed by polykaryon formation, fusion with liposomes, or fusion at the plasma membrane. They were fully capable of infecting cells under standard infection conditions but were more sensitive to lysosomotropic agents that increase the pH in acidic vacuoles of the endocytic pathway. The mutants were, moreover, able to penetrate and infect baby hamster kidney-21 cells at 20 degrees C, indicating that the endosomes have a pH below 5.5. The results confirm the involvement of pH-triggered fusion in SFV entry, emphasize the central role played by acidic endosomal vacuoles in this reaction, shed further light on the mechanism of SFV inhibition by lysosomotropic weak bases, and demonstrate the usefulness of mutant viruses as biological pH probes of the endocytic pathway.
APT a next generation QM-based reactive force field model

Modelling reactivity at the nanoscale is a major computational challenge. Both reactive force field and combined QM–MM methodologies have been and are being developed to study reactivity at this boundary between molecules and the solid state. There have been more than 1500 publications since the mid-1990s, on combined QM–MM methodologies. Limitations in current models include the distortional characteristics of force field potential terms, the smooth transit from one potential surface to another, rather than surface hopping, and the blending of electrostatics between QM and MM portions of a QM–MM model. Functional forms, potential surface coupling terms, and parameterization strategies for the Approximate Pair Theory (APT), a next generation reactive force field model, are described. The APT model has been developed to correct a number of limitations in current reactive force field models as well as providing a foundation for a next generation QM–MM model. Chemical bonding concepts are used to develop ful...
Proteolytic activity in human skin fibroblasts harvested with trypsin and its effect on measurements of collagen hydroxylase activities.

Abstract Lysates of human skin fibroblasts harvested without the use of trypsin do not contain detectable proteolytic activity, but when trypsin is used, lysates may contain activity equal to 10 ng of trypsin/10 7 cells. The amount of cell lysate ordinarily examined for collagen prolyl and lysyl hydroxylase activity is sufficiently small that such amounts of trypsin have no observable effect on the unhydroxylated collagen substrate. Larger amounts of trypsin cause proteolysis of the unhydroxylated collagen substrate and a reduction of both prolyl and lysyl hydroxylation with lysyl hydroxylation more affected at low trypsin concentration than prolyl hydroxylation.
SU‐EE‐A4‐01: Abdominal CT Scan Technique Variability within a Radiology Department

Purpose: To investigate variations in scan technique for patients undergoing abdominal CT examinations within a Radiology Department.Method and Materials: We reviewed data of all 302 routine non‐contrast abdominal pelvis scans performed at MUSC in one month on five CTscanners (two Definitions; one LS 16; one Sensation 16; one Sensation 64) located at three separate facilities. Data were obtained on the radiation used to perform these CT examination (CTDIvol and Dose Length Product), as well as the scan length and the patient AP dimension. CTDIvol data and scan length were compared for patients with similar AP dimensions for all five CTscanners. Variation between scanners for a given parameter was quantified as the coefficient of variation (COV), which was defined as the standard deviation divided by the mean and expressed as a percentage. Results: The middle quintile of AP dimension ranged from 23.8 cm to 26.5 cm. Patients with AP dimensions 30.1 cm were in the top quintile. CTDIvol increased from 15.7 mGy for patients in the bottom quintile to 26.6 mGy for patients in the top quintile. COV values for CTDIvol were generally 13%, but increased to 25% for the patients in the largest quintile. Patient scan length increased from 52.3 cm for patients in the bottom quintile to 57.4 cm for patients in the top quintile. COV values for patient scan length were about 10%. Conclusion: When normalized by patient size, variations in techniques used to perform abdominal CT scans at our institution are relatively modest for normal sized patients but increase by a factor of two for the largest patients.
Brief paper: Vulnerabilities in Chen and Deng's RFID mutual authentication and privacy protection protocol

As incorporation of RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) tags in a wide variety of applications increase, there is a need to ensure the security and privacy of the entity to which these tags are attached. Not surprisingly, this is a very active area as attested by the large number of related published research literature. Recently, the journal engineering applications of artificial intelligence published a paper by Chen and Deng (2009) where the authors propose a mutual authentication protocol for RFID. This protocol has fundamental flaws that can be readily taken advantage by a resourceful adversary. We identify and discuss these vulnerabilities and point out the characteristics of this protocol that exposes it to these vulnerabilities.
DETERMINATION OF RECONSTRUCTION FAMILIES

Abstract This paper is concerned with the determination of probabilistic reconstruction families. A method for obtaining the equations for the reconstruction hypothesis in linearly independent form is presented, and the resultant matrix is in triangular form. The procedure greatly reduces the size of the reconstruction hypothesis matrix, and the solution of the matrix equation is rendered trivial.
In-situ deposition of silica layers during the operation of a micro-gas turbine and their effect on the oxidation of superalloy blades

Silica-based oxide layers were deposited in-situ on turbine blades made from Inconel 713 during the operation of a 13 kgf-class gas turbine, and their effect on the ex-situ oxidation behavior of the blades at 1050 °C was examined. The two turbines were driven by burning liquid petroleum gas (LPG), one turbine at a rotation speed of 35,000 rpm for 4 h (TB04), and the other at 42,000 rpm for 8 h (TB08). For deposition, tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) was sprayed into the fuel line immediately ahead of the combustion chamber. The TEOS-to-LPG ratio for TB04 and TB08 was maintained at 5.4 wt. % and 2.3 wt. %, respectively. Directly after operation, the turbine blades were coated with silica layers to a thickness of ∼10 μm, independent of the operating conditions. These oxide layers on the blades provided excellent protection against oxidation during both operation and the ex-situ isothermal oxidation test.
Electronic properties of stable icosahedral alloys.

We report specific-heat and resistivity results on icosahedral (i) Ga-Mg-Zn, Al-Cu-Fe, and Al-Cu-V alloys. The electronic densities of states at the Fermi level obtained for the stable i phases of Ga-Mg-Zn and Al-Cu-Fe are substantially less than those found in metastable i phases (Al-Cu-V, Al-Cu-Mg, and Al-Mg-Zn), as small as one-sixth of their free-electron values. Implications for the structural stability of i phases will be discussed. Magnetic-susceptibility and specific-heat measurements on Al-Cu-Fe i phases prepared by rapid quenching and from annealing of the conventionally cast sample show an increased magnetic behavior in the melt-spun sample with respect to the annealed sample. Also, similar to earlier results on Al-Cu-Li i alloys, the Debye temperature of the melt-spun sample is found to be reduced in comparison with the annealed one. These differences in physical properties are attributed to structural differences in the samples. The electronic diffusivities in the stable i phases of Ga-Mg-Zn and Al-Cu-Li are an order of magnitude greater than those observed in previously reported icosahedral alloys, suggesting that the transport properties of some i phases resemble those of crystalline, rather than glassy, alloys.
Influence of Nonlinear Viscoelastic Material Characterization on Performance of Constrained Layer Damping Treatment

The influence of nonlinear viscoelastic material behavior on the performance of a passive constrained layer damping treatment is examined. For numerical simulations, a finite element model of a beam, simply supported at both ends, and with symmetric constrained layer damping treatments on the top and bottom surfaces, is considered. Results indicate that, if the viscoelastic material is relatively compliant, the damping provided by the treatment will decrease for increasing excitation levels, due primarily to the reduction in the viscoelastic material shear loss modulus. However, if the viscoelastic material is is relatively stiff, the damping provided by the treatment will increase for increasing excitation levels, due primarily to increased shear in the viscoelastic layer associated with the decrease in its shear storage modulus. The benefits obtained by segmentation of the constrained layer damping treatment were seen to reduce substantially when the nonlinear behavior of the viscoelastic material was considered.
NDE capabilities within the national laboratories

the role of the National Laboratory in technology transfer is to help industry implement the latest technology. The National laboratory must have a unique capability that does not compete with tax paying companies. Typically a National Laboratory will demonstrate the benefit of applying NDE to a company's production line. The company then contracts with a vendor to supply a production inspection system based on the laboratory's demonstration. Both the company and the vendor benefit from the participation with the National Laboratory. The company improves the quality of its products and the vendor has a new product to market. The purpose of this paper is twofold: (1) to present a brief overview of NDE capabilities and application activities within the National Laboratory System and (2) to identify NDE point-of- contacts at each laboratory.© (1995) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Elevated serum ALT in children presenting to the emergency unit: Relationship with NAFLD.

Abstract Background Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, ranging from hepatic steatosis to necro-inflammation with or without fibrosis (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis), is a growing clinical liver disorder in children. Aim The goals of this study were to characterize liver disorders associated with elevated aminotransferases and establish the non-alcoholic fatty liver disease/non-alcoholic steatohepatitis prevalence in hypertransaminasemic children admitted to the emergency room. Methods The medical records of 3280 children (2–17 years of age) admitted to the emergency room of Bambino Gesu Children's Hospital of Rome, and presenting with hypertransaminasemia were analysed retrospectively. Results Elevation of serum alanine aminotransferases was present in 897 patients. Of these, 520 (58%) spontaneously normalized alanine aminotransferases, and 179/897 (20%) maintained persistently elevated alanine aminotransferases levels. Twenty-one patients were excluded because of medication or alcohol use. In the remaining 157 patients with elevated alanine aminotransferases, obesity was found in 87 (55%), viral infections in 52 (33%) and genetic diseases in 14 (9%). Obesity-related alanine aminotransferases elevation was associated with a histological diagnosis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in 85% of patients. In particular, steatosis was histologically confirmed in 74 patients; 43/74 (58%) had steatohepatitis, and 12/74 (16%) had fibrosis. Conclusions Twenty percent of children with elevated aminotransferases on routine testing may hide non-alcoholic fatty liver disease/non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. A careful diagnostic workup of persistent hypertransaminasemia in all obese subjects is warranted in the paediatric setting.
Integrating social and natural resource information to improve planning for motorized recreation

Throughout the United States and other countries, motorized recreation has become a dominant recreation use of the landscape. In response, social scientists worked to understand who off-highway vehicle (OHV) riders were, while natural resource scientists worked to document and mitigate natural resource impacts that were resulting from unmanaged OHV recreation. The purpose of this study was to examine both social and natural resource aspects of landscape planning as it relates to OHV management. Specifically, this study sought to expand the current knowledge base of who OHV riders were by examining the potential for conflict between all-terrain vehicle riders, off-highway motorcycle riders, and four-wheel drive operators. In addition, the potential for conflict between rider groups was examined spatially based on riders stated resource preferences. The outcome of this process provides managers with a set of maps that can be used within the planning process to help reduce potential conflict between riders, increase rider enjoyment, and meet conservation goals of an agency.
L1. Asymptomatic Carotid Stenosis Impairs Cognitive Function: Preliminary Results of the ACCOF Study

Asymptomatic Carotid Stenosis Impairs Cognitive Function: Preliminary Results of the ACCOF Study Brajesh K. Lal, Moira C. Dux, Siddhartha Sikdar, Limin Zhao, Khalid AlMuhanna, Gregory Kowalewski, Md Murad Hossian. Vascular Surgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Md; Vascular Surgery, VA Medical Center, Baltimore, Md; Bioengineering, George Mason University, Fairfax, Va; Neuropsychology, VA Medical Center, Baltimore, Md
Museum collections and conservation efforts.

The views about biodiversity databases discussed in the Bioinformatics for Biodiversity special issue (29 Sept., pp. 2305-2314) and subsequently in the 15 December Letters section emphasize that the range of such catalogs must be broad to be of maximum utility for taxonomists as well as
Warm-Water Strain of Leucothrix mucor

Abstract The physiological properties and temperature responses of the first strain of Leucothrix mucor ever to be isolated from a warm, tropical seacoast area are described.
Surface Fronts in Estuaries: A Review

Recent advances in the understanding of the physics of estuarine fronts (small-scale regions of significant changes in hydrographic variables) are reviewed. These fronts may be classified in three groups—tidal mixing fronts, plume fronts, and shear fronts—on the basis of the mechanism dominating the local rate of change in the horizontal density gradient. These classes are not independent, however, since it appears that both tidal mixing fronts and shear fronts can produce buoyancy-driven flow structures that propagate away from the generation region as plume fronts. Field observations of typical examples of each class are presented and laboratory experiments and theoretical models which isolate the important physical processes are summarized. Some important unresolved questions are identified and suggestions for further research are offered.
First Report of Bacterial Wilt of Annual Bluegrass Caused by Xanthomonas translucens pv. poae in Montana.

During August 2003, a golf course putting green sample composed of Poa annua from the Buffalo Hill Country Club in Kalispell, MT exhibiting symptoms of general decline, wilting, and necrosis was submitted to the University of Rhode Island Turfgrass Disease Diagnostic Laboratory. No pathogenic fungi were observed or cultured from affected plants. Bacterial streaming was observed from cut leaves. Cut leaves were surface disinfested for 5 min in a 0.6% sodium hypochlorite solution and plated on yeast dextrose calcium carbonate (YDC) agar media. A single yellow, mucoid colony type composed of rod-shaped bacteria was isolated from all leaves. Bacteria were gram negative, lacked anaerobic growth, did not fluorescence on King's medium B, and were able to grow at 33°C on YDC. Colonies were transferred to YDC for 10 days, DNA was extracted and a 2,190-bp region encompassing the 16S rRNA, ITS, and 5′ end of the 23S rRNA was amplified via polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using previously published protocols (1). Sequ...
Transformative Narratives: From Victimic to Agentic Life Plots

Basic to occupational engagement is a person's personal power to author choices. Impairment in functioning moves some clients from an agentic identity of self to a victimic identity. The change in identity causes previously self-directed clients to adopt a passive and acquiescent stance toward their lives. The recovery of occupational functioning includes the restoration of the person's sense of agency. Recent developments in self theory emphasize the self as a process rather than a substance or thing. Narrative is the discourse mode most able to express identity as a process. Victimic identity is manifest in a self-story in which protagonists have lost power to affect change in their lives; agentic identity is manifest in self-stories of active agency. A study of clients' rehabilitation by Cochran and Laub found that clients' change from victimic to agentic identity moves through four phases: incompleteness, positioning, actualizing, and completion.
Human Cytomegalovirus: Coordinating Cellular Stress, Signaling, and Metabolic Pathways

Viruses face a multitude of challenges when they infect a host cell. Cells have evolved innate defenses to protect against pathogens, and an infecting virus may induce a stress response that antagonizes viral replication. Further, the metabolic, oxidative, and cell cycle state may not be conducive to the viral infection. But viruses are fabulous manipulators, inducing host cells to use their own characteristic mechanisms and pathways to provide what the virus needs. This article centers on the manipulation of host cell metabolism by human cytomegalovirus (HCMV). We review the features of the metabolic program instituted by the virus, discuss the mechanisms underlying these dramatic metabolic changes, and consider how the altered program creates a synthetic milieu that favors efficient HCMV replication and spread.
Buffer Management for Lossless Service in Network Processors

Fair scheduling and buffer management are two typical approaches to providing differentiated service. Fair scheduling algorithms usually need to keep a separate queue and maintain associated state variables for each incoming flow, which make them difficult to operate and scale in high speed networks. On the contrary, buffer management and FIFO scheduling need only a constant amount of state information and processing, and can be efficiently implemented. In this paper, we consider using buffer management to provide lossless service for guaranteed performance flows in network processors. We investigate the buffer size requirement and buffer allocation strategies by starting with the single output network processor and then extending the analytical results to the general multiple output network processor. A universally applicable buffer allocation method for assuring lossless service is obtained, and the correctness of the theoretical results is verified through simulations.
Measurements on a Delta Wing in Unsteady Flow

Low-speed wind-tunnel tests were undertaken to determine the vortex location, vortex burst location, and upper surface pressure distribution on a delta wing (aspect ratio = 2) in an oscillatory airstream. In steady flow an axisymmetric "tulip"-type burst was observed at all angles of attack, whereas in unsteady flow the vortex core gradually dissipated into turbulence for increasing angles of attack but formed a "helical''-type burst for decreasing angles. The pressure distributions showed that in unsteady flow there were considerable phase lags in the suction peaks associated with the vortices but virtually no lags elsewhere on the wing.
Detection of tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-6 in exhaled breath condensate of rats with pneumonia due to staphylococcal enterotoxin B

ABSTRACTExhaled breath condensate (EBC) may contain mediators of acute lung injury. The objectives were to determine if EBC could be collected in a mechanically ventilated rat, to measure tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the EBC after staphylococcal enterotoxin B administration (SEB) and to find out if the concentrations of TNF-α and IL-6 correlated with those in lung lavage. Four hours after SEB instillation, rats were placed on mechanical ventilation and EBC was collected over 90 minutes. Lung lavage was collected and white cell count was determined. TNF-α and IL-6 were measured in the EBC and lavage. EBC was available in a sufficient quantity (250–400 μL) for the measurement of cytokines. The rats that received SEB had an inflammatory response when compared to control rats as shown by an increase in white cell count. TNF-α and IL-6 were detected in the EBC. Concentration of TNF-α correlated with that in the lavage (r = .497, P = .021), whereas IL-6 did not. EBC can be collect...
Power Constrained Distributed Estimation With Correlated Sensor Data

We consider distributed estimation of a random scalar parameter in a power constrained wireless sensor network (WSN), where the measurements are sent from the sensors to the fusion center (FC) over noisy wireless channels by employing an analog transmission scheme. We study the power allocation problem with generally correlated sensor observations that can accommodate nonlinear measurement models and spatially correlated observation noise. An effective solution is developed by utilizing a tractable lower bound of the objective function. The proposed algorithm is also extended for random field estimation. Simulation results are presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.
Nonlinear Control of a Belt Driven Two-Axis Positioning System

XY-positioning is an important task in industrial applications. The improvement of the speed of positioning while keeping good accuracy can increase productivity and is therefore highly desirable. The studied H-frame system is a parallel XY-positioning device that uses a timing belt to transmit motion from two stationary motors. As a result, the system is capable of fast acceleration due to lower number of moving parts. However, the flexibility of the timing belts poses a problem when trying to move the positioning system at high speed. A dynamic model of the H-Frame system that accounts for the non-linear friction present in the system was developed and verified experimentally. This model was further used in simulation to develop a controller for the system. A collocated PD controller with friction compensation was designed and implemented experimentally on the system. Furthermore, results of the previous controller were compared to an adaptive PD controller. The adaptation algorithm involves changing the controller gains as a function of the tracking error without sacrificing the stability of the system. It was found that the adaptive PD controller is more suitable for positioning applications.Copyright © 2008 by ASME