cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
What Thinking About Antitrust Law Can Tell Us About Net Neutrality

The goal of net neutrality regulation—to encourage flourishing and variety among edge providers—seems unquestionably desirable. Less clear, however, is whether net neutrality regulation is, on balance, desirable in light of alternative methods of preventing such harmful behavior by broadband providers. Net neutrality regulation is intended to prevent commercial conduct that might harm firms or exclude them altogether. The existing antitrust laws are also intended to prevent certain types of harm to (or exclusion of) firms, and those laws are the most obvious alternative to net neutrality regulation. A crucial step to understanding the implications of net neutrality regulation, therefore, is to ask what the Internet world would look like if we relied entirely on antitrust law, and to compare that world to one with net neutrality regulation.
Adjudication of Transient Ischemic Attack and Stroke in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Background: To describe adjudication of transient ischemic attack (TIA) and stroke in an observational study. Methods: We detail the process used to adjudicate TIA and stroke in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), a large longitudinal cohort study. Two of three vascular neurologists adjudicated each event using specific protocols. We examined the initial agreement, effect of imaging on diagnosis of TIA versus ischemic stroke, and effect of strict and less strict criteria on the number of ischemic stroke subtypes classified as undetermined. Results: Of 573 adjudicated events over 13.5 years of follow-up, 95 (16.5%) had TIA and 269 (47.0%) had stroke: 211 (78.4%) ischemic, 43 (16.0%) hemorrhagic, and 15 (5.6%) other. Disagreements occurred on 16% of initial adjudication of events. Using results from imaging, the number with TIA decreased by 8.6% and with ischemic stroke increased by 4.1%. Using less strict criteria to classify ischemic stroke subtypes reduced the number classified as undetermined, from 137 to 59, and numbers classified as cardioembolic and small vessel doubled. Conclusions: We hope that this work will motivate and facilitate investigators to use MESA data to investigate issues concerning TIA and stroke and will inform investigators seeking to adjudicate TIA and stroke in other studies.
A VISUAL RESOLUTION OF CARDIOTOXICITY: DIGOXIN INDUCED BIDIRECTIONAL VENTRICULAR TACHYCARDIA

The use of digoxin is declining in current medical practice. As a result, digoxin toxicity is becoming increasingly rare, with an increasingly unfamiliar presentation. A 78-year-old African-American woman presented with complaints of epigastric and substernal chest discomfort, nausea and vomiting.
Effects of excess carriers on charged defect concentrations in wide bandgap semiconductors

Unintentional doping and doping limits in semiconductors are typically caused by compensating defects with low formation energies. Since the formation enthalpy of a charged defect depends linearly on the Fermi level, doping limits can be especially pronounced in wide bandgap semiconductors where the Fermi level can vary substantially. Introduction of non-equilibrium carrier concentrations during growth or processing alters the chemical potentials of band carriers and allows populations of charged defects to be modified in ways impossible at thermal equilibrium. We demonstrate that in the presence of excess carriers, the rates of carrier capture and emission involving a defect charge transition level determine the admixture of electron and hole quasi-Fermi levels involved in the formation enthalpy of non-zero charge defect states. To understand the range of possible responses, we investigate the behavior of a single donor-like defect as functions of extrinsic doping and charge transition level energy. We find that that excess carriers will increase the formation enthalpy of compensating defects for most values of the charge transition level in the bandgap. Thus, it may be possible to use non-equilibrium carrier concentrations to overcome limitations on doping imposed by native defects. Cases also exist in which the concentration of defects with the same charge polarity as the majority dopant is either left unchanged or actually increases. This surprising effect arises when emission rates are suppressed relative to the capture rates and is most pronounced in wide bandgap semiconductors. We provide guidelines for carrying out experimental tests of this model.
Functional MR angiography with 7.0 T Is direct observation of arterial response during neural activity possible

We propose a new type of functional imaging in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), a functional MR angiography (fMRA). As it is known, arterial responses during neural activities have been studied in animals, but little is known about the human brain in-vivo. Proposed fMRA at ultra-high field strength, 7.0 Tesla (T), has a potential for a direct visualization of vascular responses of those blood vessels related to the neural activity during the tasks, such as the hand movement or checker board stimulation, that is, fMRA. The results of this paper clearly indicate that there is the possibility that one can directly observe the vascular changes in individual blood vessels related to the tasks in human brain in-vivo, similar to fMRI.
Advancing HIV Biomedical Prevention Research for At-Risk Adolescents

Despite significant additions to the HIV prevention toolbox, infection rates across the United States continue to rise among vulnerable adolescents and young adults. Access to these interventions by youth at risk for HIV is limited by the lack of data about their safety and use, compounding the myriad contextual barriers to effectively preventing HIV in this group. The NIH-funded Adolescent Trials Network implemented an innovative approach to the inclusion of adolescents at risk for HIV infection who consented for their own participation in the first adolescent study of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). This model of mature minor consent was supported by state-based adolescent treatment statutes that extend an adolescent's ability to consent to participation in research with a sufficient prospect of clinical benefit from the intervention to justify the potential risks, and a balance of benefits and risks that is at least as favorable as available evidence-based alternatives. Important data on the safety and patterns of PrEP use by at-risk adolescents prompted the FDA to revise the label. The expanded indication of PrEP for HIV prevention in adolescents is hoped to inform clinical guidelines and provides a powerful tool to reduce new infections in the United States among vulnerable at-risk adolescents. Lessons learned from this years-long iterative endeavor have implications for improving access to the rapidly evolving landscape of HIV prevention modalities, including recently implemented studies of long-acting PrEP formulations designed to reduce the burden of daily adherence required by oral PrEP, a major clinical pitfall for adolescent clinicians and their patients.
Skin in the Game

Abstract A 23-year-old man with a history of migraine and focal seizures, developed painless visual loss in the left eye associated with optic disc edema. There was no recent history of cat exposure except for a cat that lives outside. Initial laboratory studies were negative. MRI brain and orbits without and with fat suppression and intravenous contrast was normal. The patient admitted to routinely skinning, processing and consuming deer while not wearing gloves and he also frequently had cuts on his hands while doing so. The serum Toxoplasma gondii IgG antibody returned at > 400 (0-7.1 IU/mL) with the IgM at 10.4 (0-7.9 AU/mL).
Deep-Learning-Based Resource Allocation for Multi-Band Communications in CubeSat Networks

CubeSats, a type of miniaturized satellites with the benefits of low cost and short deployment cycle, are envisioned as a promising solution for future satellite communication networks. Currently, CubeSats communicate only with ground stations under limited spectrum resources and at low data rates, whereas with growing launches of CubeSats and more diverse services expected every year, novel communication techniques and resource allocation schemes should be investigated. In this paper, a multi-objective resource allocation strategy is designed based on deep learning algorithms for autonomous operation in CubeSats across millimeter wave (60&#x2013;300 GHz) and Terahertz band (300 GHz-1 THz) frequencies with the utilization of reconfigurable plasmonic reflectarrays. Simulation results demonstrate the inter-satellite links can achieve multi-gigabits-per-second throughput and ground-to-satellite links with more than 10 times of capacity enhancements in realistic channel conditions.
LQM: Localized Quality Measure for Fingerprint Image Enhancement

Fingerprint is one of the most widely used biometric in law enforcement. However, low-quality fingerprint images can drastically degrade the performance of automated fingerprint identification systems (AFIS). AFIS can be substantially advanced by: 1) establishing a metric to evaluate the image quality accurately and 2) utilizing this metric to enable an automated enhancement process. This paper offers a novel localized quality measure (LQM) to evaluate the quality of fingerprint images, and a genetic localized quality measure enhancement (LQME) algorithm, which is tailored to iteratively enhance poor-quality fingerprint images. In addition, a method is introduced to automatically choose the enhancement algorithm's parameters based on the proposed measure such that it yields the best enhancement result. The presented LQM measure uses fingerprint image characteristics, which include sharpness, contrast, orientation certainty level, symmetry features, and imprints of friction ridge structure (minutiae) information. The FVC2004 Set B database containing fingerprint images from four different sensors and a total of 240 images (80 from each sensor) is used to evaluate the performance of the presented algorithms and methods. The computer simulations demonstrate that the LQM measure is useful in predicting the quality of the fingerprint images captured from various devices. Furthermore, the experiments show that LQME can recover retrievable-corrupt fingerprint regions.
Emerging market innovations: unique and differential drivers, practitioner implications, and research agenda

Growth in emerging markets is critical as it leads global economic growth. Emerging market innovations, which we define as innovations created in an emerging market for use by consumers or customers in that market and possibly other markets, form the engine for such growth and continue to rise in importance for various stakeholders. These innovations fundamentally differ from developed market innovations, and impact consumers, firms, governments, and the society at large. Conceptual research on emerging market innovation has not focused on the differential drivers of emerging and developed market innovations. Most empirical studies have also focused on only one emerging market, not offering generalizable conclusions across emerging markets. Thus, while prior research offers a limited understanding of factors specific to emerging market innovations, not much is known about the unique and differential drivers of emerging market innovations relative to developed market innovations. Our study offers a broader framework highlighting the unique aspects of emerging market innovations, their unique and differential (relative to developed market innovations) drivers, and related practitioner takeaways. Our framework and propositions suggest that different drivers impact the demand and supply for innovations, and, in turn, the number of innovations differently in emerging and developed markets. We outline an agenda for future research.
Using a two-part mixed-effects model for understanding daily, individual-level media behavior

This study supports a strategic analytics proposal, namely that there is conceptual and practical utility in applying a two-part mixed-effects model for understanding individual differences in daily media use. Individual-level daily diary measures of media use typically contain information about a person’s likeliness to use media, extent of usage, and variation in use across days that, taken together, can provide data for evaluating media behavior that is otherwise masked by using aggregate measures. The statistical framework developed and demonstrated here focuses on these three metrics. The approach, applied to daily diary measures of television use in a large, representative U.S. sample, yields results that add value when weighing media strategies centered on the twin tactics of reach and frequency. The implications for the proposed analytic strategy are discussed.
Electrochemically induced crystallization of amorphous materials in molten MgCl2: boron nitride and hard carbon

A novel and versatile strategy for the amorphous-to-crystalline transformation of boron nitride (BN) with the capability to control the degree of crystallization was developed through an electrochemical pathway using MgCl2 at low temperature (750 °C). This procedure can be extended to the transformation of amorphous carbon to graphite, which significantly reduces the energy and cost, accelerates the synthesis process and could potentially replace industrial graphite synthesis globally. Thus, the synthesized graphite exhibits much enhanced electrochemical performance at high charge-discharge rates (5C) compared to commercial synthetic graphite.
1-D manganese(ii)-terpyridine coordination polymers as precatalysts for hydrofunctionalisation of carbonyl compounds.

Reductive catalysis with earth-abundant metals is currently of increasing importance and shows potential in replacing precious metal catalysis. In this work, we revealed catalytic hydroboration and hydrosilylation of ketones and aldehydes achieved by a structurally defined manganese(II) coordination polymer (CP) as a precatalyst under mild conditions. The manganese-catalysed methodology can be applied to a range of functionalized aldehydes and ketones with turnover numbers (TON) of up to 990. Preliminary results on the regioselective catalytic hydrofunctionalization of styrenes by the Mn-CP catalyst are also presented.
The Potential for Redox-Active Metabolites To Enhance or Unlock Anaerobic Survival Metabolisms in Aerobes.

Classifying microorganisms as “obligate” aerobes has colloquially implied death without air, leading to the erroneous assumption that without oxygen they are unable to survive. However, over the past few decades, more than a few obligate aerobes have been found to possess anaerobic energy conservation strategies that sustain metabolic activity in the absence of growth or at very slow growth rates. Similarly, studies emphasizing the aerobic prowess of certain facultative aerobes have sometimes led to under-recognition of their anaerobic capabilities. Yet an inescapable consequence of the affinity both obligate and facultative aerobes have for oxygen is that the metabolism of these organisms may drive this substrate to scarcity, making anoxic survival an essential skill. To illustrate this, we highlight the importance of anaerobic survival strategies for Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Streptomyces coelicolor, representative facultative and obligate aerobes, respectively. Included amongst these strategies we describe a role for redox-active secondary metabolites (RAMs), such as phenazines made by P. aeruginosa, in enhancing substrate-level phosphorylation. Importantly, RAMs are made by diverse bacteria, often during stationary phase in the absence of oxygen, and can sustain anoxic survival. We present a hypothesis for how RAMs may enhance or even unlock energy conservation pathways that facilitate the anaerobic survival of both RAM-producers and non-producers.
Negative financial shock increases loneliness in older adults, 2006-2016: Reduced effect during the Great Recession (2008-2010).

•In older adults, a large loss of income leads to greater loneliness net of covariates.•Loneliness decreased in those who experienced income shock during the Great Recession.•Changes in health and social experiences did not explain the income shock effect.•Reducing financial difficulties may reduce loneliness in older adults.
TREATMENT OF BILATERAL DIFFUSE UVEAL MELANOCYTIC PROLIFERATION WITH INTRAVITREAL STEROID IMPLANTS.

Background/purpose To report a case of bilateral diffuse uveal melanocytic proliferation (BDUMP) treated with intravitreal steroid implants. Method Bilateral diffuse uveal melanocytic proliferation was diagnosed and treated with intravitreal steroid implants (both dexamethasone 0.7 mg [intravitreal dexamethasone implants] and fluocinolone acetonide 0.18 mg [intravitreal fluocinolone acetonide implants]) and monitored every 2 weeks to 4 weeks with optical coherence tomography. Results Intravitreal dexamethasone implants improved visual acuity and central retinal thickness for 10 weeks, was best from 4 to 6 weeks, and recurred by 14 weeks after treatment. Intravitreal fluocinolone acetonide implants improved visual acuity and central retinal thickness for 20 weeks after treatment without edema recurrence. No retinal detachments were observed over 1 year of treatment. Conclusion Intravitreal steroid implants resulted in visual acuity improvement and central retinal thickness reduction for up to 20 weeks and may protect against retinal detachments in patients with bilateral diffuse uveal melanocytic proliferation.
Analysis of palliative care treatment among head and neck patients with cancer: National perspective.

BACKGROUND To analyze the characteristics and survival patterns of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) who received palliative treatment during their first course of treatment. METHODS Cohort analysis utilizing the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) of patients with a diagnosis of oral cavity/oropharyngeal, hypopharyngeal, and laryngeal SCC. Statistical analysis included multivariate logistic regression and Cox Hazard ratio modeling, and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. RESULTS 165 081 patients were included, of which 2747 patients received palliative treatment. Patients who received palliative treatment tended to be ≥65 years old, black, Charlson/Deyo score ≥3, hypopharyngeal cancer, stage (III-IV), with Medicaid insurance (P < .05). Patients were more likely to be treated with palliative intent if they underwent chemotherapy/radiotherapy and declined surgery (P < .001) compared to patients who underwent surgery and declined chemotherapy/radiotherapy (P = .006). CONCLUSIONS Palliative care use in head and neck oncology is associated with older patients, non-whites, Medicaid patients, and nonsurgically treated patients.
Investigation of a two-year cycle pressurized water reactor core design with increased enrichment and extended burnup limits

Abstract Increasing the burnup limit from 62 GWd/MTU to 75 GWd/MTU can help increase the cycle length of a typical pressurized water reactor from 18 months to two years or longer. To meet this goal, the fuel enrichment limit must also be increased from 5.0 w/o to 6.0 w/o, however, this causes the excess reactivity to be unacceptably high near the beginning of a cycle. Previous attempts at solving this problem have examined using a single neutron poison to reduce the excess reactivity within the current burnup limit. This paper examines combining two separate neutron poisons (integrated fuel burnable absorbers, B2Zr, and gadolinia doped fuel rods, Gd2O3) to reduce the initial excess reactivity associated with higher enriched fuel and prevent fuel cladding rupture during a loss-of-coolant accident. Through a limited optimization, four unique cores were found. While no core was able to fulfill all the operational constraints, they were able to produce a longer core life while reducing core loading, which could provide utilities flexibility in their operational schedules. Along with this, additional optimization could yield practical two-year cycle lengths with the aforementioned benefits.
Black Travel Movement: Systemic racism informing tourism

Abstract The Black Travel Movement, a collective of Black travelers in the United States, continues to emerge and empower Black travelers to share authentic counter-narratives. Many of these travelers made the transition and began companies that now make up the movement. However, the tourism industry continues to perpetuate a landscape steeped in systemic racism. Adopting a critical race theory storytelling method and informed by whiteness studies, nine interviews with leaders of the movement, material from predominately White workshop participants, and lived experiences were used to create a collective story of how race and ontological views influence the tourism landscape. As evident from the collective story, discrimination and racism continues to create inhospitable experiences for Black travel leaders within the tourism industry.
Range-based Collision Prediction for Dynamic Motion

Real-time proximity and collision detection via radio distance measurements has application in smart-helmets, drones, autonomous vehicles, and social distancing. In this paper we present a range-based, infrastructure-free, distributed algorithm that utilizes inter-robot range data and intra-robot acceleration data to estimate each robot's recent positions. As the next step, a collision prediction scheme is proposed that uses the derived relative kinematics of each robot to predict an impending collision between any pair of robot. The algorithm is tested and validated with the help of measurement trace-based simulation of motion involving acceleration.
THE USE OF EPHEDRINE TO TREAT ANESTHESIA-ASSOCIATED HYPOTENSION IN PINNIPEDS.

Hypotension is a common adverse effect of general anesthesia that has historically been difficult to measure in pinniped species due to technical challenges. A retrospective case review found seven pinniped cases that demonstrated anesthesia-associated hypotension diagnosed by direct blood pressure measurements during general anesthesia at The Marine Mammal Center (Sausalito, CA) between 2017 and 2019. Cases included five California sea lions (CSL: Zalophus californianus), one Hawaiian monk seal (HMS: Neomonachus schauinslandi), and one northern elephant seal (NES: Mirounga angustirostris). Patients were induced using injectable opioids, benzodiazepines, and anesthetics including propofol and alfaxalone. Excluding the HMS, all patients required supplemental isoflurane with a mask to achieve an anesthetic plane allowing for intubation. Each patient was maintained with inhalant isoflurane in oxygen for the duration of the anesthetic event. Each patient was concurrently administered continuous IV fluids and four patients received fluid boluses prior to administration of ephedrine. All hypotensive anesthetized patients were treated with IV ephedrine (0.05–0.2 mg/kg). The average initial systolic (SAP) and mean (MAP) arterial blood pressures for the CSL prior to ephedrine administration were 71 ± 14 mmHg and 48 ± 12 mmHg respectively. The average SAP and MAP for the CSL increased to 119 ± 32 mmHg and 90 ± 34 mmHg respectively within 5 m of ephedrine administration. The NES initial blood pressure measurement was 59/43 (50) (SAP/diastolic [MAP]) mmHg and increased to 80/51 (62) mmHg within 5 m. The initial HMS blood pressure was 79/68 (73) mmHg and increased to 99/78 (85) mmHg within 5 m following ephedrine administration. All patients recovered from anesthesia. These results support the efficacy of IV ephedrine for the treatment of anesthesia-associated hypotension in pinnipeds.
Effects of clofibric acid on porcine hepatocytes: a new model for the study of peroxisomal metabolism

Porcine hepatocyte organelles were separated by isopycnic sucrose gradient centrifugation from livers of 6-month-oId Yorkshire pigs. The presence of a peroxisomal palmityl-CoA oxidizing system and a peroxisomal NAD:aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) with high for acetaldehyde was demonstrated. Peroxisomal palmitate oxidizing capacity was found to be equal to that of the surviving mitochondria. The high isozyme of ALDH was located mainly in the mitochondria (54%), with a significant portion in the peroxisome. Remaining activity was distributed among the microsomes (8.3%) and cytosol (4.6%). The low isozyme was confined almost exclusively to the mitochondria. ALDH may exist in the peroxisome as a detoxification mechanism and contribute to shorter half-lives of reactive aldehydes in the cell. Species differences are discussed.
What Measurement Problem

IN BOHM’S VERSION OF QUANTUM MECHANICS, there simply is no measurement problem since there is no “collapse” of the wave function. That is, Bohm’s theory does not solve the measurement problem because it does not exist there in the first place. Of course, Bohm’s theory is nonlocal (although this nonlocality is of a fairly benign variety). At first sight, it might seem as though nonlocality would make Bohm’s theory incompatible with the special theory of relativity (STR). However, I shall argue this is true only if STR is taken as some metaprinciple that transcends its own empirical basis. If one simply requires that STR provides constraints on what we are, in fact, able to observe, then a theory that has a preferred frame need not make predictions that lack empirical adequacy. Hence, for Bohm’s theory, consideration of the “measurement problem” of relativistic quantum mechanics becomes a discussion about the possibility of superluminal signaling with instantaneous action at a distance and about the empirical covariance of the predictions of such a theory. I shall argue that quantum equilibrium (P = ∣Ψ∣ 2), rather than locality, is the decisive factor.
A new methodology for human metal model characterization

A new methodology for characterizing product-level failures due to the human metal model (HMM) stress is proposed and developed. This characterization framework is superior to the conventional leakage current-based approach, and it enables early wafer-level assessment of integrated circuits (ICs) HMM robustness. The new method is demonstrated in two amplifiers and is benchmarked versus the conventional leakage current method and the industry standard system-level IEC gun testing.
Algorithms for Local Alignment with Length Constraints

The local sequence alignment problem is the detection of similar subsequences in two given sequences of lengths n = m. Unfortunately the common notion of local alignment suffers from some wellknown anomalies which result from not taking into account the lengths of the aligned subsequences. We introduce the length restricted local alignment problem which includes as a constraint an upper limit T on the length of one of the subsequences to be aligned. We propose an efficient approximation algorithm, which finds a solution satisfying the length bound, and whose score is within difference ? of the optimum score for any given positive integer ?. The algorithm runs in time O(nmT/?) using O(mT/?) space. We also introduce the cyclic local alignment problem and show how our idea can be applied to this case as well. This is a dual approach to the well-known cyclic edit distance problem.
Methylation of protein by calf spleen methylase. A new protein methylation reaction.

Abstract A purified enzyme from calf spleen has been found to methylate, in the presence of S-adenosyl-l-methionine-14CH3, a number of added crystalline proteins such as ovalbumin, pepsin, or human serum albumin. Before purification, the enzyme is capable of methylating endogenous protein present in spleen extracts. Incubation of crystalline ovalbumin and purified spleen methylase in the presence of S-adenosyl-l-ethionine-ethyl-1-C14 results in an incorporation of ethyl groups which is less than 3% of the incorporation of methyl groups. Acid or alkaline hydrolysis of radioactive enzymatically methylated ovalbumin yields a steam-distillable, radioactive compound which has been identified as methanol. Chemical studies have revealed that spleen protein methylase, unlike other known protein methylases, methylates an amino acid residue other than lysine or arginine, and, therefore, it represents a new enzymatic protein methylation reaction.
The Size of Adenylate Cyclase

Abstract Adenylate cyclase from the rat renal medulla has been solubilized with the nonionic detergents Triton X-100 and Lubrol PX. The enzyme activity in a 100,000 x g Lubrol PX supernatant is resolved into three peaks by gel filtration on Sepharose 4B: Peak A in the void volume; Peak B, the major form, with a Stokes radius of 64 A; and Peak C with a Stokes radius of 34 A. When Triton X-100 is used to solubilize the enzyme activity is only found at the positions of Peaks B and C and the Stokes radii are 62 A and 28 A, respectively. The sedimentation coefficients for the two smaller forms have been determined by centrifugation in 5 to 20 % sucrose gradients. By comparing sedimentation of activity in sucrose gradients made up in H2O and D2O, the partial specific volume (v) of the predominant form (Peak B) was estimated. The molecular properties of the predominant form of adenylate cyclase in Triton X-100 are: s20,w, 5.9 S; v, 0.74 ml per g; mass, 159,000 daltons; f:f0, 1.6. For the minor form, the values are: s20,w, 3.0 S; mass, 38,000 daltons, f:f0, 1.2. The partial specific volume of the smaller species was assumed to be the same as the larger. The corresponding values determined in Lubrol PX are similar. The low value for v obtained in these studies suggests that adenylate cyclase binds very little detergent, less than 0.2 mg of detergent per mg of protein. Since interactions with detergents probably substitute for interactions with lipids and hydrophobic amino acid side chains, these findings suggest that no more than 5 % of the surface of adenylate cyclase is involved in hydrophobic interactions with other membrane components.
Chronic Physical Stress Does Not Interact with Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV)-Encoded Dutpase to Alter the Sickness Response

Most adult humans have been infected with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which is thought to contribute to the development of chronic fatigue syndrome. Stress is known to influence the immune system and can exacerbate the sickness response. Although a role for psychological stress in the sickness response, particularly in combination with EBV-encoded deoxyuridine triphosphate nucleotidohydrolase (dUTPase) has been established, and the role of physical stressors in these interactions remains unspecified. In this study, we seek to determine the interaction of chronic physical (swim) stress and EBV-encoded dUTPase injection. We hypothesize that a chronic physical stressor will exacerbate the sickness response following EBV-encoded dUTPase injection. To test this hypothesis mice receive daily injections of EBV-encoded dUTPase or vehicle and are subjected to 15 min of swim stress each day for 14 days or left unmanipulated. On the final evening of injections mice undergo behavioral testing. EBV-encoded dUTPase injection alone produces some sickness behaviors. The physical swimming stress does not alter the sickness response.
Microfilaments and Cytoplasmic Streaming: Inhibition of Streaming with Cytochalasin

Cytochalasin B reversibly inhibits cytoplasmic streaming in both Nitella and Avena cells. Colchicine, on the other hand, has no effect on streaming in either plant; nor does colchicine prevent the recovery of streaming after cytochalasin is withdrawn. The inhibition of protein synthesis by cycloheximide has no effect on either streaming itself or on the recovery of streaming after cytochalasin withdrawal. All this suggests that microfilaments may provide one component of the structure that generates the streaming force and that microtubules play little, if any,role in the process. Ultrastructural studies of Nitella demonstrate that microfilaments are localized at the boundary of the streaming endoplasm and the stationary ectoplasm. Microfilaments are organized in discrete bundles, with possible cross-bridges between individual filaments in each bundle. These bundles are closely associated with the extensive endoplasmic reticulum. Cytochalasin B does not cause ultrastructural changes in Nitella microfilaments as it does in some animal-cell filaments. Since the molecular mechanism of cytochalasin9s action is unknown, there may be no necessary correlation between functional inhibition by the drug and altered microfilament morphology. A model is advanced which proposes that streaming is generated by an interaction between microfilaments and the endoplasmic reticulum.
The role of the Golgi complex in sulfate metabolism.

This investigation was designed to determine if sulfate metabolism is the function of a particular cell organelle, or whether the site of sulfation varies, depending upon the type of cell and the class of sulfated compound. Rats and mice were injected intravenously with inorganic sulfate labeled with 35S (H235SO4), and were then killed by vascular perfusion of fixative 5–30 min later. Several tissues were prepared for electron microscope autoradiography. 14 different types of specialized cells which incorporated the labeled sulfate were analyzed. In every case, the sulfate was initially detected in the smooth membranes and vesicles of the Golgi complex. Available evidence indicates that these cells were engaged in the synthesis of several different sulfated compounds, including mucopolysaccharides, glycoproteins, lipids, and steroids. These results lead to the generalization that the enzymes required for the transfer of inorganic sulfate to a variety of acceptor molecules are located in the Golgi complex.
Evaluating the performance and energy efficiency of n-body codes on multi-core CPUs and GPUs

N-body simulations are computation-intensive applications that calculate the motion of a large number of bodies under pair-wise forces. Although different versions of n-body codes have been widely used in many scientific fields, the performance and energy efficiency of various n-body codes have not been comprehensively studied, especially when they are running on newly released multi-core CPUs and GPUs (e.g., Tesla K20). In this paper, we evaluate the performance and energy efficiency of five parallel n-body implementations on two different multi-core CPU systems and on two different types of GPUs. Our experimental results show that up to 71% of the energy can be saved by using all cores of a Xeon E5620 CPU instead of only one. We find hyper-threading to be able to further reduce the energy usage and runtime, but not by as much as adding more cores does. Finally, our experiments illustrate that GPU-based acceleration using a Tesla K20c can boost the performance and energy efficiency by orders of magnitude.
A numerical analysis of fracture and high temperature creep characteristics of brittle matrix composites with discontinuous ductile reinforcements

Abstract The role of the material parameters and interface characteristics in the fracture and creep behavior of discontinuous ductile fiber-reinforced brittle matrix composite systems was investigated numerically. To simulate the fracture behavior, the ductile fibers were modelled using a constitutive relationship that accounts for strength degradation resulting from the nucleation and growth of voids. The matrix was assumed to be elastic and fails according to requirements of a stress criterion. The debonding behavior at the fiber interfaces was simulated in terms of a cohesive zone model which describes the decohesion by both normal and tangential separation. Results indicate that for rigid interfaces between the ductile reinforcing phase and the matrix the contribution of the ductile reinforcement to the work-of-fracture value (toughness) of the composite increases with less exhaustion of its work-hardening capacity before the onset of matrix failure. Therefore the failure strength and elastic modulus values of the matrix become important material parameters. In the case of interfacial debonding the load transfer to the discontinuous reinforcements after matrix failure should be somehow maintained for utilization to full capacity of the reinforcement and interfacial behavior. In the creep regime, for rigidly bonded interfaces the creep rate of the composite is not significantly influenced by the material properties and geometric parameters of the ductile reinforcing phase owing to the development of triaxial stress state and constrained deformation in the reinforcement. For debonding interfaces the geometric parameters of the reinforcing phase become important; however, even with very weak interfacial behavior, low composite creep rates can be achieved by suitable selection of the geometric parameters of the ductile reinforcing phase. Significant increases in room temperature fracture toughness can be achieved without extensively sacrificing the creep strength by ductile discontinuous reinforcements.
Through the Arc of the Rain Forest.

Through the Arc of the Rain Forest. KAREN TEI YAMASHITA. Minneapolis: Coffee House Press, 1990. 212 pp. $9.95 (paper). ISBN 0-918273-X.
Human Vocal Tract Modeling and Geometric Parameterization

This investigation uses a multi disciplinary approach to standardize a non-invasive method for measuring human vocal tract morphology. A series of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans are performed on the subject’s vocal tract and a detailed three-dimensional model is created through image processing and computer modeling. This information is compared with the vocal tract measurements obtained with Eccovision Acoustic Pharyngometer, in order to establish the accuracy of the instrument. The model is then used to develop other specific models through parametric modeling. This method is useful in creating solid models with limited geometrical information and helps researchers study the human vocal tract changes due to aging and degenerative diseases.Copyright © 2004 by ASME
Tube transfer using the sampling arm for Mars sample caching

A sample acquisition and caching architecture has been developed for the proposed Mars 2020 mission that acquires samples directly into sample tubes in coring bits. Sample tubes are inserted and removed from the bits, seals are inserted into the tubes, and the tubes are placed in the sample canister. This paper describes initial algorithms, implementation, and test results where sample tube transfer operations are performed using the sampling arm where the tube gripper is on the arm turret with the sampling tool. The testbed utilizes a robotic arm with harmonic drives in the actuators which then provide an arm with low backlash and high resolution of motion. A six-axis force-torque sensor provides force feedback for the tube transfer operations. The results show that the tube transfer operations can be done robustly using the existing testbed robotic arm and caching hardware. Future work is described which will investigate the effects on robustness of the tube transfer with reduced capability robotic arm and force sensing.
A further insight into the sialome of the tropical bont tick, Amblyomma variegatum

Ticks--vectors of medical and veterinary importance--are themselves also significant pests. Tick salivary proteins are the result of adaptation to blood feeding and contain inhibitors of blood clotting, platelet aggregation, and angiogenesis, as well as vasodilators and immunomodulators. A previous analysis of the sialotranscriptome (from the Greek sialo, saliva) of Amblyomma variegatum is revisited in light of recent advances in tick sialomes and provides a database to perform a proteomic study. The clusterized data set has been expertly curated in light of recent reviews on tick salivary proteins, identifying many new families of tick-exclusive proteins. A proteome study using salivary gland homogenates identified 19 putative secreted proteins within a total of 211 matches. The annotated sialome of A. variegatum allows its comparison to other tick sialomes, helping to consolidate an emerging pattern in the salivary composition of metastriate ticks; novel protein families were also identified. Because most of these proteins have no known function, the task of functional analysis of these proteins and the discovery of novel pharmacologically active compounds becomes possible.
The Spoken Word as Arts-Based Adult Education.

Arts-based adult education has been embraced by a growing number of adult educators. These educators have explored its potential in the workplace, in the community and in academia. This article con...
Interstellar grains in meteorites: II. SiC and its noble gases

Abstract We have analyzed He, Ne, Ar, Kr, and Xe in fourteen size fractions of interstellar SiC, isolated from the Murchison C2 chondrite. All are mixtures of a highly anomalous component bearing the isotopic signature of the astrophysical s-process and a more normal component, generally solar-like but with anomalies of up to 30% in the heavy isotopes. As these two components strikingly resemble predictions for the He-burning shells and envelopes of red giant carbon stars, it appears that the SiC grains are pristine circumstellar condensates from such stars. A number of elemental and isotopic ratios (such as K 80 K 82 and K 86 Kr 82 ) vary with grain size, suggesting that the SiC comes from carbon stars representing a range of masses, metallicities, temperatures, and neutron densities. The Ne 21 -content of the SiC suggests a presolar cosmic-ray irradiation of up to 130 Ma, representing the interval between formation of the grains in a circumstellar shell and arrival in the solar system 4.6 Ga ago. Actually there is evidence that most of the Ne 21 (and Ne 22 ) is in ≤ 10% of the grains, suggesting that much of the SiC was degassed during or shortly before formation of the solar system. Thus the true cosmic-ray ages may be 7 to 18 × longer. Apparently the gas-rich SiC grains predate the solar system by at least 130 Ma and possibly up to 2000 Ma.
Dangerousness or Diminished Capacity? Exploring the Association of Gender and Mental Illness with Violent Offense Sentence Length

The presence of mental illness within criminal sentencing can be conceptualized both as a mitigating factor based on the diminished capacity argument and as an aggravating factor stemming from the perceived dangerousness stigma associated with mental illness. The current study tests these hypotheses for violent offenses using data from the 2004 Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities within a weighted negative binomial regression framework. Separate analyses were conducted for male and female offenders to isolate gender effects in relation to the sentence length of offenders with a mental illness. The findings reveal that the presence of a mental illness tended to increase violent conviction sentence length reported by male offenders and decrease sentence length reported by female offenders, suggesting mental illness in the context of a violent conviction may be interpreted as evidence of diminished capacity for females and future dangerousness for males.
What research says about career maturity …: A response to Crites, Wallbrown, and Blaha (1985)

Abstract Career maturity will not be taken seriously by scientists and practitioners unless they can see that well-designed studies carried out by independent researchers other than the test authors are consistently producing results that are consistent with theoretical expectations. Further, we need to focus our attention on what I think is the real issue, that is, the relationship between career maturity measures and career-mature behavior? It is necessary, but not sufficient, to show that our scales are reliable. It is necessary, but not sufficient, to show that our scales are not duplicating the measurement of scholastic aptitude and achievement. It would be of scientific value to know whether or not a set of career maturity scales is measuring different factors, but such data are not sufficient to establish validity. However, it is mandatory to show that our career maturity scales are correlated significantly with each other and with relevant indicators of career-mature behavior. It is not a fatal blow to validity if our career maturity scales are significantly correlated with scholastic aptitude or scholastic achievement. But if we cannot show that our career maturity scales are contributing something unique to the prediction of career-mature behavior, then our scales will not have credibility among the scientific community, and we had better rethink our concepts as well as our measures.
Somatotopic organization of mechanoreceptor units in the trigeminal nuclear complex of the macaque.

The properties of neurons in the sensory trigeminal nuclear complex of macaque monkeys have been investigated by a systematic exploration of the principal sub-divisions in an attempt to define somatotopic organization, modality representation, receptive field size and adaptive properties. Particular attention was paid to several discrepancies in the literature on the cat trigeminal complex. The results suggest that each cutaneous locus is represented by a rostro-caudally oriented column of neurons possessing comparable properties and receptive field sizes at all levels examined in deeply anesthetized animals. A consistent somatotopic pattern with minor variations, was evident at all rostro-caudal levels. Criteria for distinguishing “spinothalmic” and “lemniscal” neuron properties in appropriate portions of the sensory complex (inferred from human data) could not be identified. Neurons in adjacent structures may respond to crude stimuli and lack distinct receptive fields, but it is unlikely that these are related to an afferent “pain” pathway.
Stoichiometry and Adhesion of Al/WC

We examine the relative stability and adhesion of nonstoichiometric (polar) Al/WC interfaces and WC(0001) surfaces using Density Functional Theory as implemented in a planewave, pseudopo- tential formalism. Relaxed atomic geometries and the ideal work of adhesion were calculated for six different interfacial structures, taking into account both W- and C-terminations of the carbide. Based on the surface and interfacial free energies, we find that both the clean surface and the optimal interface geometry are W-terminated. However, the largest adhesion energies are obtained with the C-termination, consistent with an argument based on surface reactivity.
A survey by HEAO 1 of clusters of galaxies. III - The complete Abell catalog

A catalog of 128 X-ray emitting clusters, including the Virgo Cluster, is presented. Ninety-one of these are new identifications. The catalog was obtained by searching the HEAO 1 survey observations for coincidences of X-ray sources with Abell clusters. The distribution of these sources in the sky has been examined in search of associations with other Abell clusters, with a null result. The X-ray luminosity has been correlated with cluster richness, but no association with Bautz-Morgan class has been found. The cluster luminosity function has been evaluated, and using this function the contribution of clusters to the diffuse X-ray background radiation has been estimated. It amounts to less than 15% at 2 keV and 3% at 6 keV.
Noise excess on fractals and percolating systems

Determination du spectre de bruit F(ω) des fluctuations de tension d'un reseau self-similaire de resistances. Proposition d'une fonction d'echelle, avec effet de taille finie, valable en toute dimension, pour un milieu desordonne exhibant une diffusion anormale (frequence aleatoire de saut, desordre de site)