cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
All NbN tunnel junction fabrication

The development of SIS tunnel junctions based on NbN for mixer applications in the submillimeter range is reported. The unique technological challenges inherent in the development of all refractory-compound superconductor-based tunnel junctions are highlighted. Current deposition and fabrication techniques are discussed, and the current status of all-NbN tunnel junctions is reported.
The theoretical transition probabilities between the B 3Πg and the A 3Σu+, W 3Δu, B′ 3Σu− states of N2

Abstract The electronic transition moment functions between the B 3 Π g state and the A 3 Σ u + , W 3 Δ u , B′ 3 Σ u − states of N 2 are studied using the internally contracted multireference configuration interaction method based upon complete active space SCF reference wavefunctions. The dependence of the moments on both the one and n -particle basis sets has been investigated in detail. The calculated radiative lifetimes for the vibrational levels of the B 3 Π g state are in excellent agreement with the most recent data published for υ ′ = 5 to 12, measured by laser induced fluorescence, and for υ ′ = 0, measured by electron impact induced fluorescence.
Dual-mode infrared and radar hardware-in-the-loop test assets at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory

Several next-generation air defense missiles will use dual- mode guidance systems that simultaneously employ RF and IR sensors to obtain significant improvements in guidance performance. These missiles will require sophisticated hardware-in-the-loop test facilities to provide controlled signal environments to each sensor. Such test facilities allow accurate characterization of RF and IR sensors as well as the development and validation of guidance algorithms. Two approaches for dual-mode hardware-in-the-loop testing used at The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) are `electrically connected' and `collocated.' Each uses a common central computer to precisely coordinate RF and IR environment generators. The electrically connected approach requires disassembly of the guidance section and locating RF and IR seekers in different rooms. Extended electrical interfaces couple the seekers to the missile's guidance computer. This arrangement is well suited for development testing where flexibility is the primary concern. In the collocated configuration, disassembly of the guidance system is not needed since the RF and IR test environment generators are built into a common facility. This noninvasive configuration is useful in identifying and resolving performance issues associated with an integrated guidance system. This paper describes the capabilities and status of the collocated dual-mode Guidance System Evaluation Laboratory developed at APL.© (1996) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Solving the process of hysteresis without determining the optimal thresholds

Hysteresis is an important edge detection technique, but the unsupervised determination of hysteresis thresholds is a difficult problem. Thus, hysteresis has limited practical applicability. Unimodal thresholding techniques are another edge detection method. They are useful, because the histogram of a feature image (usually the feature image is an approximation of the gradient image) is unimodal, and there are many unsupervised methods to solve this problem. But such techniques do not use spatial information to detect edge points, so their performance is worse than that of the hysteresis. In this paper, we show how to formulate the hysteresis process as a unimodal thresholding problem without determining the optimal hysteresis thresholds. Using similar steps of the Canny edge detector to obtain an approximation of the gradient image we compare the performance of our method against that of a method that determines the best parameters of an edge detector and show that our method performs relatively well. Additionally, our method can adjust its sensitivity by using different unimodal thresholding techniques.
Research on fiber-optic etching method for evanescent wave sensors

Abstract In order to make high sensitive optical fiber evanescent wave sensors, it is necessary to accurately control the etching process of optical fiber. Traditional methods used time as a parameter to control fiber etching process, corresponding to different fiber diameter. It was easy to be influenced by surrounding temperature and corrosive reagent density. In this paper, fiber spectrometer is used to monitor fiber etching process. Fiber diameter corresponding different absorbance is obtained at different temperature and corrosive reagent density and these results are almost accordant. According to this conclusion, a simple solution to monitor fiber etching process based on single waveband laser response is proposed. Through utilizing this method accurate control of the optical fiber etching process is realized.
The effect of carbonate cementation on permeability heterogeneity in fluvial aquifers: An outcrop analog study

Abstract Spatial variations in permeability have been widely recognized as a dominant control on solute transport and petroleum migration. Outcrop studies are one means of improving our understanding of the nature of permeability heterogeneity and the underlying geologic controls. To date, these studies have either neglected the importance of cementation or investigated only the modern cemented permeability without explicitly considering how cementation has affected permeability. Two outcrops of channel sand deposits in the Plio-Pleistocene Sierra Ladrones Formation, New Mexico are investigated to quantify (1) the effect of cementation on permeability at a given location, and (2) the patterns of cementation and their impact on permeability heterogeneity. We analyzed approximately 400 spatially located samples (∼ 10 cm 3 each) from the two outcrops. Cementation is typically weak to moderate, filling less than 60% of the original pore space. Permeability and cement content are bimodally distributed and negatively correlated. Permeability reduction is investigated by measuring modern permeability, minus-cement permeability, minus-cement porosity, and volumetric cement content. Permeability is reduced locally by up to three orders of magnitude. By combining models of permeability for uncemented sediments and cemented sediments, we derive a model of cemented permeability ( k c ) that depends primarily on three factors: uncemented permeability ( k u ), original porosity, and cement fraction. Our results suggest that accounting for porosity reduction only may result in an overestimation of k c . Conversely, accounting for porosity reduction, increased specific surface area, and increased tortuosity appears to result in an underestimation of k c . Accounting for porosity reduction and increased specific surface area provide the best estimate of k c . Cementation is highly variable spatially and is poorly correlated with lithofacies. Variogram analysis of cementation and permeability indicates that the spatial distribution of cementation is the dominant control on the permeability correlation structure. The spatially variable cementation also results in an order-of-magnitude increase in the variance of log-permeability. Applying stochastic models of effective flow and transport properties to the results of this study suggest that cementation has a relatively small effect on effective permeability but can potentially increase dispersivity by two orders of magnitude.
Independent development of presynaptic specializations in olfactory cortex of the fetal rat

Electron microscopy was used to study synaptogenesis in prepyriform cortex of fetal rat pups during early stages of synapse formation. Of special interest is the frequent occurrence of unapposed, developing synaptic specializations in axon and growth cone profiles. The location and morphology of the unapposed specializations suggests that thay are presynaptic in nature. These presumably immature presynaptic specializations are found in the lateral olfactory tract and subjacent cortex. Intermediate forms between uncontacted presynaptic specializations and definitive synapses suggest a synaptogenic sequence in which initial development of an immature presynaptic specialization begins without apposition of a postsynaptic element at that location. This implies that initiation of presynaptic development is not dependent upon postsynaptic contact and also raises the question of whether synaptic contacts could be established via presynaptic induction of postsynaptic formation.
Compartment-resolved imaging of cortical functional hyperemia with OCT angiography.

Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) angiography was applied to image functional hyperemia in different vascular compartments in the rat somatosensory cortex. Dynamic backscattering changes, indicative of changes in dynamic red blood cell (dRBC) content, were used to monitor the hemodynamic response. Three-dimensional movies depicting the microvascular response to neuronal activation were created for the first time. An increase in the attenuation coefficient during activation was identified, and a simple normalization procedure was proposed to correct for it. This procedure was applied to determine compartment-resolved backscattering changes caused by dRBC content changes during functional activation. Increases in dRBC content were observed in all vascular compartments (arterial, arteriolar, capillary, and venular), with the largest responses found in the arterial and arteriolar compartments. dRBC content increased with dilation in arteries but with barely detectable dilation in veins. dRBC content increased in capillaries without significant “all or none” capillary recruitment.
500-nm Optical Gain Anisotropy of Semipolar (1122) InGaN Quantum Wells

We studied the effect of carrier population on light emission polarization of green InGaN quantum wells (QWs) on the semipolar (1122) plane. The 3 nm thick QWs emitting light at about 540 nm at low pumping power have electrical field (E) component E∥[1123] stronger than that E∥[1100]. However, we found that increasing the pumping power changed the sign of the polarization ratio. Using the varied stripe length (VSL) method, we measured the optical gain for light propagating ∥[1123] direction to be ~2 times that of light propagating ∥[1100] direction. We explain this behavior by inhomogeneous QW state filling.
Detecting transient signals with incomplete observations

The problem of detecting transient signals in noise under missing signal observations (samples) is considered. Specifically, a fusion center tries to detect the presence of a decaying signal in additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) by collecting samples from distributed sensors through erasure channels, during which some of the samples may be lost. Under Neyman-Pearson detection, it is shown that missing samples cause performance degradation by reducing the signal energy received at the fusion center. Based on the assumption that the fusion center can control the sampling procedure through a feedback channel, an adaptive sampling policy is proposed with the goal of achieving accurate and timely detection with the minimum communication cost. The proposed policy is efficient and flexible in that it can be configured to yield a range of performance-cost combinations, where approximated closed-form solutions are derived for the configuration. Simulations show that compared with fixed-rate sampling, the proposed policy achieves significantly better tradeoff between detection performance and communication cost.
Estimating Onset and Offset Asynchronies in Polyphonic Score-Audio Alignment

In order to use score-audio alignment to study expressive performance or guide signal processing algorithms, it is necessary to identify the onsets and offsets of all of the notes in sounded simultaneities (e.g. chords). This paper describes an algorithm to improve the accuracy of dynamic time warping-based score-audio alignment for monaural polyphonic recordings. The algorithm uses a multi-pass approach, where an initial dynamic time warping alignment is refined by a hidden Markov model to allow the identification of asynchronies between musical events that are notated as simultaneities in the score. By providing estimates of individual onsets and offsets in notated simultaneities, the multi-pass algorithm improves the median accuracy of the DTW alignment for individual onsets by 41 ms on average, from 118 to 77 ms, and for individual offsets by 6 ms on average, from 75 to 69 ms.
Dynamics of conflict interaction between systems with internal structure

We investigate a dynamical system of conflict between two systems each of which, in turn, has an internal conflict. The external conflict and the internal one have different natures. The external conflict is described by an alternative interaction between nonannihilating adversaries. The internal conflict is similar to a conflict between interrelated populations of different biological nature (“predator-prey” model). We construct a computer model of this system and describe a typical behavior, illustrated by diagrams, which can be interpreted, in particular, as a migration of labor and investments between countries.
Trickles: a stateless network stack for improved scalability, resilience, and flexibility

Traditional operating system interfaces and network protocol implementations force system state to be kept on both sides of a connection. Such state ties the connection to an endpoint, impedes transparent failover, permits denial-of-service attacks, and limits scalability. This paper introduces a novel TCP-like transport protocol and a new interface to replace sockets that together enable all state to be kept on one endpoint, allowing the other endpoint, typically the server, to operate without any per-connection state. Called Trickles, this approach enables servers to scale well with increasing numbers of clients, consume fewer resources, and better resist denial-of-service attacks. Measurements on a full implementation in Linux indicate that Trickles achieves performance comparable to TCP/IP, interacts well with other flows, and scales well. Trickles also enables qualitatively different kinds of networked services. Services can be geographically replicated and contacted through an anycast primitive for improved availability and performance. Widely-deployed practices that currently have client-observable side effects, such as periodic server reboots, connection redirection, and failover, can be made transparent, and perform well, under Trickles. The protocol is secure against tampering and replay attacks, and the client interface is backwards-compatible, requiring no changes to sockets-based client applications.
Gay Organizations, NGOs, and the Globalization of Sexual Identity: The Case of Bolivia

This paper combines an ethnography of sexual activities, personal identities and social relations of men-who-have-sex-with-men in Bolivia with an analysis of attempts by government and international development agencies to create a demographically identifiable population of "gay" Bolivians. A first person account of attempts to establish gay identity through a gay community center in Santa Cruz reveals failure to attract all but a select group of the broadly diverse actors potentially involved. In short, men-who-have-sex-with-men who were too rich or too poor or too masculine or too effeminate were unlikely to be attracted to the gay center or welcomed as members of the emerging "gay community."
Clinical research in pediatric nephrology: state of the art.

The goals of clinical research include comparing new and standard treatments, establishing treatment efficacy, defining risk factors for disease, elucidating pathophysiologic mechanisms of disease, and establishing causation. Although the randomized clinical trial has been the “gold standard” in clinical research and is the strongest study design to establish causation for many clinical research questions, an interventional study or “experiment” such as a randomized trial is often not possible. Observational study designs also demonstrate associations between exposures and outcome. To determine whether these associations are likely to be causal, one can assess a number of qualities, first outlined by the British epidemiologist Sir Austin Bradford Hill. These qualities include analogy to what is known; the plausibility, strength and specificity of the association; consistency and coherence across studies; the temporality of the putative cause and effect; and the presence of a biological gradient. The presence of these factors adds weight to the probability that a given association is causal. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses use these factors in combining studies to assess whether associations are cause and effect. Additionally, new methods in the analysis of longitudinal data collected in observational studies can help to determine causation. In this review, we will use recent literature and contemporary topics in pediatric nephrology to illustrate state-of-the-art research methods using classic epidemiological elements needed to establish causation.
Hospitalizations for coronary artery disease among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective Although patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have an increased risk of coronary artery disease (CAD) compared with persons without SLE, the burden of CAD among SLE patients is unknown. This study was undertaken to estimate this burden. Methods We used the Nationwide Inpatient Sample of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project to estimate the number of hospitalizations for CAD among patients with SLE in the US in 1998. CAD diagnoses included acute myocardial infarction (MI), unstable angina, cardiac catheterization, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, or coronary artery bypass grafting as the primary reason for hospitalization. We compared these estimates with the frequency of hospitalization for other reasons. Results There were an estimated 98,217 hospitalizations among patients with SLE in 1998. Of these, 11,947 (12%) were among men, 43,674 (44%) were among women <50 years of age, and 42,596 (43%) were among women ≥50 years of age. There were 4,951 hospitalizations for CAD, with 1,763 of these for acute MI. In women <50 years old, there were an estimated 311 hospitalizations for MI. Hospitalizations for CAD were less common than hospitalizations for SLE itself or for infections, and in young women, were less common than hospitalizations for complications of chronic renal failure. Conclusion CAD is an important comorbid condition in patients with SLE, but is not as common a reason for hospitalization as SLE itself, infections, and, in some patient subgroups, chronic renal failure.
Antibody-based therapies for emerging infectious diseases.

centrated anti-pneumococcus sera prepared in the Connaught Laboratories, and supplies of these sera are now being made available in four containers as follows: In the 19th century, it was discovered that immune sera were useful in treating infectious diseases. Serum therapy was largely abandoned in the 1940s because of the toxicity associated with the administration of heterologous sera and the introduction of effective antimicrobial chemotherapy. Recent advances in the technology of monoclonal antibody production provide the means to generate human antibody reagents and reintroduce antibody therapies, while avoiding the toxicities associated with serum therapy. Because of the versatility of antibodies, antibody-based therapies could, in theory, be developed against any existing pathogen. The advantages of antibody-based therapies include versatility, low toxicity, pathogen specificity, enhancement of immune function, and favorable pharmacokinetics; the disadvantages include high cost, limited usefulness against mixed infections, and the need for early and precise microbiologic diagnosis. The potential of antibodies as antiinfective agents has not been fully tapped. Antibody-based therapies constitute a potentially useful option against newly emergent pathogens. In the mid-1990s, successful implementation of antiinfective therapy has become increasingly difficult because of widespread antimicrobial resistance, the emergence of new pathogens, and the occurrence of many infections in immunocompromised patients in whom antimicrobial drugs are less effective. Infections caused by some new pathogens (e.g., human immunodefficiency virus [HIV] and Cryptosporidium parvum) cannot be cured with existing antimicrobial drugs. Regaining the upper hand in the struggle against microbes requires multidisciplinary efforts which include developing new antimicrobial agents (1), improving surveillance for emerging microbial threats (2), teaching the correct use of antimicrobial therapy (3), expanding the use of vaccines to prevent infection (4), developing adjunctive immunotherapies (5), and conducting new basic research on the mechanisms of pathogenesis and drug resistance. In this article, the potential of antibody therapy in confronting the threat of emergent infections will be explored.
Noncompaction of the Ventricular Myocardium

Case Presentation: A 42-year-old woman was referred to the Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Clinic. A diagnosis of apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy had been given 16 years earlier on the basis of echocardiographic findings. Left ventricular systolic function was reportedly at the lower limit of normal 5 years earlier. The patient gave a 6-month history of mild dyspnea occurring during exertion. Although still active, her exercise tolerance had decreased. She also complained of more frequent and sustained episodes of rapid palpitations associated with shortness of breath. She had occasional episodes of heavy, burning discomfort in the chest during activity and while at rest. There was no family history of cardiomyopathy, although first degree relatives had not been screened. Her heart rate was 74. Blood pressure was 110/70. Jugular venous pressure was normal. Carotid pulse volume and contour were normal. The first and second heart sounds were normal. There was a presystolic apical impulse and a prominent S4 gallop. There was no S3 gallop. A grade III/VI, harsh, midsystolic murmur was heard best at the upper left sternal border. There was no diastolic murmur. The ECG showed sinus rhythm, normal QRS duration, and left ventricular hypertrophy with repolarization changes. An echocardiogram demonstrated marked thickening and heavy trabeculation of the apical half of the left ventricle. Color Doppler displayed flow within the deep intertrabecular recesses. The left ventricle was not dilated. There was diffuse left ventricular hypokinesis with an ejection fraction of 20% to 25%. The right ventricle appeared to be more heavily trabeculated than usual. No additional abnormalities were present. The findings were consistent with isolated noncompaction of the ventricular myocardium. Noncompaction of the ventricular myocardium is a cardiomyopathy thought to be caused by arrest of normal embryogenesis of the endocardium and myocardium. This abnormality is often associated with other congenital cardiac defects, but it …
Biochemical purification of detergent-solubilized H-2 alloantigens.

Abstract A multistep Chromatographic fractionation scheme is described for purifying the H-2Kb and H-2Db major histocompatibility antigens as isolated from the murine lymphoblastoid cell line EL4 (H-2b haplotype). The membrane-integrated antigen molecules were solubilized with the non-ionic detergent NP-40 and were purified by gel filtration chromatography, ion exchange chromatography and affinity chromatography with lentil lectin conjugated to Sepharose. During the latter procedure, use of a linear gradient monosaccharide elution effected partial separation of the H-2Kb and H-2Db antigens. At this stage the H-2 glycoproteins were highly purified based on several criteria. Upon polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in SDS the major band migrates with a mol. wt of approximately 45,000 daltons corresponding to the mol. wt of antigens obtained by immunoprecipitation. Moreover, near identity of the profiles of the arginine-containing tryptic peptides from chromatographically-purified and immunoprecipitated H-2Kb preparations suggests that a high degree of homogeneity has been achieved in the Chromatographic purification. As is demonstrated, mg quantities of the H-2Kb and the H-2Db antigens can be isolated and partially separated from each other by this purification scheme thereby opening the way for structural studies of the H-2K and H-2D molecules by a variety of biochemical methods.
Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol Acts as a Partial Agonist to Modulate Glutamatergic Synaptic Transmission between Rat Hippocampal Neurons in Culture

Δ 9 -Tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ 9 -THC) is the principal psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. We examined the effects of Δ 9 -THC on glutamatergic synaptic transmission. Reducing the extracellular Mg ++ concentration bathing rat hippocampal neurons in culture to 0.1 mM elicited a repetitive pattern of glutamatergic synaptic activity that produced intracellular Ca ++ concentration spikes that were measured by indo-1-based microfluorimetry. Δ 9 -THC produced a concentration-dependent inhibition of spike frequency with an EC 50 of 20 ± 4 nM and a maximal inhibition of 41 ± 3%. Thus, Δ 9 -THC was potent, but had low intrinsic activity. Δ 9 -THC (100 nM) inhibition of spiking was reversed by 300 nM N -piperidino-5-(4-chlorophenyl)-1-(2,4-dichlorophenyl)-4-methyl-3-pyrazole-carboxamide (SR 141716), indicating that the inhibition was mediated by CB1 cannabinoid receptors. Δ 9 -THC attenuated the inhibition produced by a full cannabinoid receptor agonist, (+)-[2,3-dihydro-5-methyl-3-[(4-morpholinyl)methyl]pyrrolo-[1,2,3-de]-1,4-benzoxazin-6-yl](1-napthalenyl)methanone monomethanesulfonate (Win 55212-2), indicating that Δ 9 -THC is a partial agonist. The effect of Δ 9 -THC on synaptic currents was also studied. 6-Cyano-2,3-dihydroxy-7-niroquiinoxaline (CNQX)-sensitive excitatory postsynaptic currents were recorded from cells held at −70 mV in the whole-cell configuration of the patch-clamp and elicited by presynaptic stimulation with an extracellular electrode. Win 55212-2 and Δ 9 -THC inhibited excitatory postsynaptic current (EPSC) amplitude by 96 ± 2% and 57 ± 4%, respectively. Excitatory postsynaptic current amplitude was reduced to 75 ± 5% in the presence of both drugs, demonstrating that Δ 9 -THC is a partial agonist. The psychotropic effects of Δ 9 -THC may result from inhibition of glutamatergic synaptic transmission. The modest physical dependence produced by Δ 9 -THC as well as its lack of acute toxicity may be due to the ability of the drug to reduce, but not block, excitatory neurotransmission.
Metabolic Activation of Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids Leading to Phototoxicity and Photogenotoxicity in Human HaCaT Keratinocytes

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids, produced by a large number of poisonous plants with wide global distribution, are associated with genotoxicity, tumorigenicity, and hepatotoxicity in animals and humans. Mammalian metabolism converts pyrrolizidine alkaloids to reactive pyrrolic metabolites (dehydropyrrolizidine alkaloids) that form covalent protein and DNA adducts. Although a mechanistic understanding is currently unclear, pyrrolizidine alkaloids can cause secondary (hepatogenous) photosensitization and induce skin cancer. In this study, the phototoxicity of monocrotaline, riddelliine, dehydromonocrotaline, dehydroriddelliine, and dehydroretronecine (DHR) in human HaCaT keratinocytes under ultraviolet A (UVA) irradiation was determined. UVA irradiation of HaCaT cells treated with dehydromonocrotaline, dehydroriddelline, and DHR resulted in increased release of lactate dehydrogenase and enhanced photocytotoxicity proportional to the UVA doses. UVA-induced photochemical DNA damage also increased proportionally with ...
Leveraging CS capstone project and green smart energy computing with WSN in a box

This paper describes an innovative product-oriented and software engineering process-guided Computer Science (CS) capstone project model for green smart energy application with aportable and inexpensive Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) kit in a Box (WinBox). The project is infused with ZigBee wireless technology and requires a wide range of CS and Software Engineering knowledge elements. Students will gain experience to tie their knowledge and skills learned in the CS discipline to analyze, design, and develop deliverable real world oriented product prototypes, and will be motivated to catch up with emerging technologies in "learning by doing" and be promoted for creativity and life-long learning.
Hydrophobic carboxy-terminal residues dramatically reduce protein levels in the haloarchaeon Haloferax volcanii

Proteolysis is important not only to cell physiology but also to the successful development of biocatalysts. While a wide-variety of signals are known to trigger protein degradation in bacteria and eukaryotes, these mechanisms are poorly understood in archaea, known for their ability to withstand harsh conditions. Here we present a systematic study in which single C-terminal amino acid residues were added to a reporter protein and shown to influence its levels in an archaeal cell. All 20 amino acid residues were examined for their impact on protein levels, using the reporter protein soluble modified red-shifted GFP (smRS-GFP) expressed in the haloarchaeon Haloferax volcanii as a model system. Addition of hydrophobic residues, including Leu, Cys, Met, Phe, Ala, Tyr, Ile and Val, gave the most pronounced reduction in smRS-GFP levels compared with the addition of either neutral or charged hydrophilic residues. In contrast to the altered protein levels, the C-terminal alterations had no influence on smRS-GFP-specific transcript levels, thus revealing that the effect is post-transcriptional.
Experiments to assess structural loads during solid armature contact transition

The objective of the work is to characterize the force developed at the rail-armature interface during contact transition. Solid armatures were accelerated up to 2.5 km/s, with peak currents on the order of 1 MA. The armature contacts were allowed to naturally transition, an event that typically occurred on the decaying portion of the current pulse. Deflections of unsupported steel rods launched with an armature were measured from flash X-ray images taken at muzzle exit. In-bore X-rays were used on a few tests to refine the time at which the maximum rod deflection occurred. The highest velocity tests provided further data on armature deformation. In addition to the experiments, a coupled electromagnetic-structural dynamics code was used to compute the rod and armature deformations based on a range of assumed pressure profiles at the rail-armature interface and under a variety of boundary conditions. Reasonable agreement between the calculations and experiment was obtained with an interface pressure of approximately 550 MPa (80 ksi) applied over the smallest mesh area available at the leading edge of the front contact (25 kN). In future work, this load can then be used as input to structural mechanics calculations to further increase the survivability of hypervelocity long-rod penetrators.
South Asians have adverse cerebrovascular haemodynamics, despite equivalent blood pressure, compared with Europeans. This is due to their greater hyperglycaemia

Background South Asians have a 1.5-fold increased stroke mortality compared with Europeans, despite similar blood pressures (BP). We hypothesized that it is the greater hyperglycaemia in South Asians that increases stroke risk, by adversely affecting cerebrovascular haemodynamics. Methods A population-based sample of 149 Europeans and 151 South Asians underwent metabolic profiling and concurrent measurement of finger BP using a Finapres and middle cerebral artery (MCA) blood flow velocity using transcranial Doppler ultrasound. Cerebrovascular autoregulation, cerebrovascular resistance [resistive index (RI) and pulsatility index (PI)] were calculated. Means of cerebrovascular haemodynamic measures were compared by ethnicity, with the introduction of explanatory variables to a regression model to determine which variable could best account for ethnic differences. Results Cerebrovascular resistance (RI) was 12.9?×?103 (0.9–24.8, P?=?0.04) greater in South Asians than Europeans. Systolic, diastolic and mean MCA velocities were also higher in South Asians (mean velocity 41.4?±?8.0?cm/s vs 38.0?±?8.0?cm/s, respectively, P?=?0.001). Low frequency gain, a measure of autoregulation, was worse in South Asians compared with Europeans (0.50?±?0.01?cm/s mm/Hg vs 0.45?±?0.01?cm/s mm/Hg, P?=?0.01). RI positively correlated with HbA1c (r?=?0.184; P?
Development of Phase Change Heat Spreader for Treatment of Intractable Neocortical Epilepsy

A combined analytical and experimental investigation was conducted to develop a flat, phase change heat spreader to enable focal thermoelectric cooling as a treatment for intractable neocortical epilepsy. The design parameters required minimum transport capacity of 5 W with an associated temperature drop of less than 0.5°C. A one-dimensional steady-state model was developed and the predicted performance characteristics compared with the results obtained from the experimental evaluation of three conceptual designs of varying complexity. These designs varied in terms of the materials used, but all three used water as the working fluid. The experimental results indicate that the minimum transport limit of 5 W can be achieved by one of the three concepts evaluated with a maximum overall temperature drop of 0.36°C at 5 W, well below the 0.5°C limit and within the experimental uncertainty of the temperature measurement technique used. A simple model was used to aid in the selection of an appropriate heat pipe. ...
On a decentralized active sensing strategy using mobile sensor platforms in a network

In this paper, we consider the problem of active sensing using mobile nodes as a sensor network to estimate the state of a dynamic target. We propose a gradient-search-based decentralized algorithm that demonstrates the benefits of distributed sensing. We then examine the task of tracking multiple targets, and address it via a simple extension to our algorithm. Simulation results show that our simple decentralized approach performs quite well and leads to interesting cooperative behavior.
Relationship between In Vitro Digestibility of Casein and its Content of Lysinoalanine and D‐Amino Acids

Alkali and heat induce changes in proteins. These include racemization of L- to D-amino acids and crosslinking via lysinoalanine. Since high-quality proteins are presumably well-digested, possible effects of D-amino acid and lysinoalanine contents on food casein digestibility was examined. The following variables, which were expected to influence all three parameters, were evaluated: (a) pH (8-14); (b) temperature (25-75°C); and (c) time of treatment (10 min to 24 hr). An approximately inverse relationship was observed between D-ammo acid and lysinoalanine content and the extent of proteolysis. Such changes may lower the quality and safety of foods.
How sensory-motor systems impact the neural organization for language: direct contrasts between spoken and signed language.

To investigate the impact of sensory-motor systems on the neural organization for language, we conducted an H215O-PET study of sign and spoken word production (picture-naming) and an fMRI study of sign and audio-visual spoken language comprehension (detection of a semantically anomalous sentence) with hearing bilinguals who are native users of American Sign Language (ASL) and English. Directly contrasting speech and sign production revealed greater activation in bilateral parietal cortex for signing, while speaking resulted in greater activation in bilateral superior temporal cortex (STC) and right frontal cortex, likely reflecting auditory feedback control. Surprisingly, the language production contrast revealed a relative increase in activation in bilateral occipital cortex for speaking. We speculate that greater activation in visual cortex for speaking may actually reflect cortical attenuation when signing, which functions to distinguish self-produced from externally generated visual input. Directly contrasting speech and sign comprehension revealed greater activation in bilateral STC for speech and greater activation in bilateral occipital-temporal cortex for sign. Sign comprehension, like sign production, engaged bilateral parietal cortex to a greater extent than spoken language. We hypothesize that posterior parietal activation in part reflects processing related to spatial classifier constructions in ASL and that anterior parietal activation may reflect covert imitation that functions as a predictive model during sign comprehension. The conjunction analysis for comprehension revealed that both speech and sign bilaterally engaged the inferior frontal gyrus (with more extensive activation on the left) and the superior temporal sulcus, suggesting an invariant bilateral perisylvian language system. We conclude that surface level differences between sign and spoken languages should not be dismissed and are critical for understanding the neurobiology of language.
Color-Function Categories that Prime Infants to Use Color Information in an Object Individuation Task

There is evidence for developmental hierarchies in the type of information to which infants attend when reasoning about objects. Investigators have questioned the origin of these hierarchies and how infants come to identify new sources of information when reasoning about objects. The goal of the present experiments was to shed light on this debate by identifying conditions under which infants' sensitivity to color information, which is slow to emerge, could be enhanced in an object individuation task. The outcome of Experiment 1 confirmed and extended previous reports that 9.5-month-olds can be primed, through exposure to events in which the color of an object predicts its function, to attend to color differences in a subsequent individuation task. The outcomes of Experiments 2-4 revealed age-related changes in the nature of the representations that support color priming. This is exemplified by three main findings. First, the representations that are formed during the color-function events are relatively specific. That is, infants are primed to use the color difference seen in the color-function events to individuate objects in the test events, but not other color differences. Second, 9.5-month-olds can be led to form more abstract event representations, and then generalize to other colors in the test events if they are shown multiple pairs of colors in the color-function events. Third, slightly younger 9-month-olds also can be led to form more inclusive categories with multiple color pairs, but only when they are allowed to directly compare the exemplars in each color pair during the present events. These results shed light on the development of categorization abilities, cognitive mechanisms that support color-function priming, and the kinds of experiences that can increase infants' sensitivity to color information.
RNA regulation of the immune system.

This volume of Immunological Reviews focuses on RNA regulation of the immune system, with a heavy dose of microRNAs (miRNAs) and a sampling of other key processes, including alternative splicing, RNA-binding proteins that control messenger RNA (mRNA) stability and translation, and attempts to harness the miRNA machinery for therapeutic ends through RNA interference (RNAi). Conspicuously and intentionally underrepresented due to space constraints are two topics that deserve issues of their own: Mechanisms of transcriptional regulation and immune recognition of RNA and its role in genome defense, host defense, and autoimmunity. The authors have all made important contributions to our understanding of RNA regulation of the immune system, and in some cases have pioneered and defined whole sectors of the field. Major topics of their reviews are indicated using the initials of each corresponding author in Fig. 1. The figure also provides a simplified schematic overview of RNA regulation of gene expression within a cell and its effects on cell biology and emergent properties of the immune system. Fig. 1 Schematic overview of RNA biogenesis and regulation in the immune system, and pictorial table of contents for this issue of Immunological Reviews
Wavelets and Path Integrals

The matrix elements between wavelets of the quantum propagator for a large class of Hamiltonians on the half-line are given in terms of path integral. It is a sum over path defined on the upper half plane with a Wiener measure associated to the hyperbolic Laplacian in the limit where the diffusion constant diverges. The construction in the case of the circle is sketched.
Dr. Franklin H. Branin, Jr. (1919–1982)

Dr. Franklin H. Branin, Jr., an IEEE Fellow since 1973, died on November 29, 1982 after a brief illness. He was a member of the IEEE Circuits and Systems Society. Dr. Branin lived in Woodstock, NY, and was employed as a senior engineer at the IBM Development Laboratory in Kingston, NY. He was 62 years old at the time of his death.
Toward an Understanding of the Reproductive Biology of Fossil Plants

During the last several years there has been an increased emphasis in several areas of paleobotany that have focused on the reproductive biology of fossil plants. Several factors have played an important role in stimulating research along these lines. The present paper demonstrates several examples by which the reproductive parameters of fossil plants may be investigated. The total analysis of fossil plant reproductive systems not only provides an additional dimension for comparative studies with closely related extant forms, but moreover allows an opportunity to investigate and more accurately define heretofore abstract concepts concerning the evolution of certain reproductive systems.
Investigation of the atmospheric oxidation pathways of bromoform and dibromomethane: Initiation via UV photolysis and hydrogen abstraction

A computational study of the oxidation of CH2Br2 and CHBr3 initiated via both UV photolysis and abstraction of an H atom by OH/Cl radicals has been performed. We have calculated the energetics associated with the addition of O2 to the substituted bromomethyl radicals and the subsequent addition of NO to the peroxy radicals to form energized peroxy nitrite molecules. The peroxy nitrite molecules are predicted to dissociate rapidly to form alkoxy radicals (CH2BrO and CHBr2O) and NO2, and the kinetics of these reactions have been determined using Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus/master equation calculations. We additionally find that the reaction of the peroxy radicals with HO2 may directly lead to significant production of alkoxy radicals, a pathway that is unimportant in nonbrominated analogues. We predict that the alkoxy radicals will dissociate rapidly via C-Br bond cleavage. The atmospheric implications of these results will be discussed.
Mutational definition of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Rev activation domain.

Abstract Replication of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 requires the functional expression of the virally encoded Rev protein. The binding of this nuclear trans activator to its viral target sequence, the Rev-response element, induces the cytoplasmic expression of unspliced viral mRNAs. Mutation of the activation domain of Rev generates inactive proteins with normal RNA binding capabilities that inhibit wild-type Rev function in a trans-dominant manner. Here, we report that the activation domain comprises a minimum of nine amino acids, four of which are critically spaced leucines. The preservation of this essential sequence in other primate and nonprimate lentivirus Rev proteins indicates that this leucine-rich motif has been highly conserved during evolution. This conclusion, taken together with the observed permissiveness of a variety of eukaryotic cell types for Rev function, suggests that the target for the activation domain of Rev is likely to be a highly conserved cellular protein(s) intrinsic to nuclear mRNA transport or splicing.
Inventory Models with Forecasting and Dependent Demand

In general, the single-product inventory model in which demands in successive periods are not independent is difficult to treat. This paper defines a large class of such problems, when there is a positive lead time for delivery, which can be treated by the classical formulation with a single state variable. All results which hold for inventory models with a constant delivery lag can be shown to hold also for this model. An application is made to a system in which demands are generated by part failure and in which a portion of these failures are repaired after a given constant or probabilistic time.
Evidence-Based Tobacco Control Mobile Apps Based on Federally Funded Research Projects

Tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke remain worldwide public health problems. We report results from three studies. Project ASPIRE and Project CASA are for bilingual participants (English and Spanish) utilizing interactive-computer-technologies and printed fotonovelas. Project Team utilized a continuing education training for physicians’ and pharmacists’ tobacco cessation counseling. Once a health-related research project is complete one of the challenges is to find a way to successfully disseminate this health information to the general public. The increasing popularity of health-related apps and the successful results of our research studies encouraged us to develop a group of evidence-based mobile apps. We developed three mobile apps corresponding to these studies: Tobacco Free Teens, Tobacco Free Family, and QuitMedKit. A fourth mobile app, Vaper Chase, was developed from evidence based data from various sources reflecting the increasing use of e-cigarettes and hookah in the USA and worldwide.
Older Is Not Wiser, Immunologically Speaking: Effect of Aging on Host Response to Clostridium difficile Infections

Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is the most common cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea and a significant burden on the health care system. Aging has been identified in the literature as a risk factor for CDI as well as adverse outcome from CDI. Although this effect of advanced age on CDI could be partially explained by clinical factors associated with aging, biologic factors are important. Innate immune system, responsible for immediate response to acute infections, plays a major role in CDI pathogenesis. Impairment in function of innate immunity with aging, demonstrated in other infection models, may lead to worse outcome with CDI. C. difficile toxin-specific antibody response protects the host against initial and recurrent infections as shown in observational studies and clinical trial. Effect of aging on antibody response to CDI has not been demonstrated, but the results from vaccine studies in other infections suggest a negative effect on humoral immunity from aging. Although intestinal microbiota from healthy people confers resistance to CDI by preventing C. difficile colonization, changes in composition of microbiota with aging may affect that resistance and increase risk for CDI. There are also age-associated changes in physiology, especially of the gastrointestinal tract, that may play a role in CDI risk and outcomes. In this review, we will first discuss the epidemiology of CDI in the elderly people, then the alteration in innate immunity, humoral response, and microbiota that increases susceptibility to CDI and severe disease and lastly, the physiological and functional changes that may modify outcomes of infection.