cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Radioactivity in mushrooms from selected locations in the Bohemian Forest, Czech Republic

137Cs is one of the most important radionuclides released in the course of atmospheric nuclear weapon tests and during accidents in nuclear power plants such as that in Chernobyl, Ukraine, or Fukushima, Japan. The aim of this study was to compare 137Cs and 40K concentrations in particular species of mushrooms from selected locations in the Bohemian Forest (Czech: Sumava), Czech Republic, where a considerable contamination from the Chernobyl accident had been measured in 1986. Samples were collected between June and October 2014. Activities of 137Cs and 40K per dry mass were measured by means of a semiconductor gamma spectrometer. The 137Cs values measured range from below detection limit to 4300 ± 20 Bq kg−1, in the case of 40K from 910 ± 80 to 4300 ± 230 Bq kg−1. Differences were found between individual locations, due to uneven precipitation in the course of the movement of the radioactive cloud after the Chernobyl accident. There are, however, also differences between individual species of mushrooms from identical locations, which inter alia result from different characteristics of the soil and depths of mycelia. The values measured are compared with established limits and exposures from other radiation sources present in the environment. In general, it can be stated that the values measured are relatively low and the effects on the health of the population are negligible compared to other sources of ionizing radiation.
Energy Based Representation of 6-DOF Shaker Shock Low-Cycle Fatigue Tests.

Materials subject to cyclic loading have been studied extensively and experimentally determined comparisons of stress to number of cycles are used to estimate fatigue life under various loading scenarios. Fatigue data are traditionally presented in the form of S-N curves. Normally, S-N data are derived from cyclic loading but the S-N results are also applicable to random vibration loading and, to some extent, shock. This paper presents an alternate presentation of fatigue data in terms of input energy and number of cycles to failure. In conjunction with this study, a series of shock tests was conducted on 3D printed cantilever beams using a 6-DOF shaker table. All of the beams were tested to failure at shock levels in the low-cycle fatigue regime. From these data, a nominal fatigue curve in terms of input energy and number of shocks to failure was generated and compared with the theoretical developments.
Autonomous UAV control: Balancing target tracking and persistent surveillance

Persistent surveillance and target tracking are often accomplished through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). In many scenarios both tasks are concurrently required, but are disparate in their area investigation techniques; surveillance requires global exploration, whereas tracking takes a local target-centric view. Thus, the two tend to require different actions when controlling UAVs tasked with their respective objectives. We propose formulating the UAV control problem for concurrent surveillance and target tracking as a partially observable Markov decision process (POMDP) applying a Q-value approximation technique called nominal belief-state optimization (NBO). Using the Probability Hypothesis Density (PHD) filter as the tracking algorithm, we are able to exploit the birth-intensity components combined with non-myopic action selection inspiring the desired accompanying surveillance behaviors.
Influence of High-Pressure Processing at Low Temperature and Nisin on Listeria innocua Survival and Sensory Preference of Dry-Cured Cold-Smoked Salmon.

Abstract Cold-smoked salmon (CSS) production lacks a validated kill step for Listeria monocytogenes. Although Listeria spp. are reduced by nisin or high-pressure processing (HPP), CSS muscle discoloration is often observed after HPP. Effects of nisin and low-temperature HPP on L. innocua survival (nonpathogenic surrogate for L. monocytogenes), spoilage organism growth, color, and sensory preference and peelability of CSS were studied. Cold-smoked sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) fillets ± nisin (10 μg/g) were inoculated with a 3-strain L. innocua cocktail, vacuum-packaged, frozen at – 30 °C, and high-pressure processed in an ice slurry within an insulated sleeve. Initial experiments indicated that nisin and HPP for 120 s at 450 MPa (N450) and 600 MPa (N600) were most effective against L. innocua, and thus were selected for further storage studies. L. innocua in N450 and N600-treated CSS was reduced 2.63 ± 0.15 and 3.99 ± 0.34 Log CFU/g, respectively, immediately after HPP. L. innocua and spoilage growth were not observed in HPP-treated CSS during 36 d storage at 4 °C. Low-temperature HPP showed a smaller increase in lightness of CSS compared to ambient-temperature HPP performed in previous studies. Sensory evaluation indicated that overall liking of CSS treated with N450 and N600 were preferred over the control by 61% and 62% of panelists, respectively (P < 0.05). Peelability of sliced CSS was reduced by HPP (P < 0.05). Nisin in combination with low-temperature HPP was effective in controlling L. innocua in CSS while maintaining consumer acceptability. Practical Application Cold-smoked salmon is a high-risk ready-to-eat product that may be contaminated with L. monocytogenes. Results showed that nisin combined with high-pressure processing at low temperature, reduced the population of Listeria and controlled the spoilage organisms during storage. As an added benefit, high-pressure processing at low temperature may reduce lightening of the salmon flesh, leading to enhanced consumer preference.
Heterogeneous Cytoskeletal Force Distribution Delineates the Onset Ca2+ Influx Under Fluid Shear Stress in Astrocytes

Mechanical perturbations increase intracellular Ca2+ in cells, but the coupling of mechanical forces to the Ca2+ influx is not well understood. We used a microfluidic chamber driven with a high-speed pressure servo to generate defined fluid shear stress to cultured astrocytes, and simultaneously measured cytoskeletal forces using a force sensitive actinin optical sensor and intracellular Ca2+. Fluid shear generated non-uniform forces in actinin that critically depended on the stimulus rise time emphasizing the presence of viscoelasticity in the activating sequence. A short (ms) shear pulse with fast rise time (2 ms) produced an immediate increase in actinin tension at the upstream end of the cell with minimal changes at the downstream end. The onset of Ca2+ rise began at highly strained areas. In contrast to stimulus steps, slow ramp stimuli produced uniform forces throughout the cells and only a small Ca2+ response. The heterogeneity of force distribution is exaggerated in cells having fewer stress fibers and lower pre-tension in actinin. Disruption of cytoskeleton with cytochalasin-D (Cyt-D) eliminated force gradients, and in those cells Ca2+ elevation started from the soma. Thus, Ca2+ influx with a mechanical stimulus depends on local stress within the cell and that is time dependent due to viscoelastic mechanics.
Superconductivity and Structural Conversion with Na and K Doping of the Narrow-Gap Semiconductor CsBi4Te6

The monoclinic narrow-gap (∼0.08 eV) semiconductor CsBi4Te6 is a unique layered system which can be doped to achieve high thermoelectric performance as well as superconductivity. Here, we report superconductivity and structure change induced by alloying CsBi4Te6 single crystals with Na and K. Substitution of Na in CsBi4Te6 with doping levels ≥0.39 and of K with ≥0.63 transforms the original monoclinic structure (p-type) to the orthorhombic RbBi3.67Te6-type structure (n-type). When the K level is ≤0.18, the monoclinic structure type of CsBi4Te6 is retained. Transport and magnetic measurements on all as-synthesized doped single crystals demonstrate type-II, bulk superconductivity. A maximal superconducting transition at 5.07 K, which is the highest temperature in bismuth chalcogenide-based superconductors, was obtained in Cs0.82K0.18Bi4Te6 with a high upper critical field of ∼15 T. These findings suggest superconductivity may be induced by proper doping in narrow-gap semiconductors.
In Praise of Paradox

The thesis of this chapter is that the most important and interesting aspects of community life are by their very nature paradoxical; and that our task as researchers, scholars, and professionals should be to “unpack” and influence contemporary resolutions of paradox. Within this general theme I will argue that in order to do so we will need to be more a social movement than profession, regain our sense of urgency, and avoid the tendency to become “one-sided.” I will suggest that the paradoxical issue that demands our attention in the foreseeable future is a conflict between “rights” and “needs” models for viewing people in trouble.
Endogenous Schumpeterian Growth, the Productivity Slowdown, and Entrepreneurial Dynamics

This paper used concepts from chaotical dynamic systems, information theory, and cybernetics to develop a model that depicts a Schumpeterian process through which entrepreneurs search for new combinations of both products and production processes that result in increased productivity and growth. The model provides the basis for an alternative conceptual framework for conducting research into the causes of the productivity slowdown that began in the United States in the early 1970s and continued until recently.
The impact of a mixed reality display configuration on user behavior with a virtual human

Understanding the human-computer interface factors that influence users' behavior with virtual humans will enable more effective human-virtual human encounters. This paper presents experimental evidence that using a mixed reality display configuration can result in significantly different behavior with a virtual human along important social dimensions. The social dimensions we focused on were engagement, empathy, pleasantness, and naturalness. To understand how these social constructs could be influenced by display configuration, we video recorded the verbal and non-verbal response behavior to stimuli from a virtual human under two fundamentally different display configurations. One configuration presented the virtual human at life-size and was embedded into the environment, and the other presented the virtual human using a typical desktop configuration. We took multiple independent measures of participant response behavior using a video coding instrument. Analysis of these measures demonstrates that display configuration was a statistically significant multivariate factor along all dimensions.
Blood Pressure, Sexual Activity, and Erectile Function in Hypertensive Men: Baseline Findings from the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT).

Abstract Introduction Erectile function, an important aspect of quality of life, is gaining increased research and clinical attention in older men with hypertension. Aim To assess the cross-sectional association between blood pressure measures (systolic blood pressure [SBP]; diastolic blood pressure [DBP]; and pulse pressure [PP]) and (i) sexual activity and (ii) erectile function in hypertensive men. Methods We performed analyses of 1,255 male participants in a larger randomized clinical trial of 9,361 men and women with hypertension aged ≥50 years. Main Outcome Measures The main outcome measures were self-reported sexual activity (yes/no) and erectile function using the 5-item International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5). Results 857 participants (68.3%) reported being sexually active during the previous 4 weeks. The mean (SD) IIEF-5 score for sexually active participants was 18.0 (5.8), and 59.9% of the sample reported an IIEF-5 score Clinical Implications Blood pressure is an important consideration in the assessment of erectile function in men with hypertension. Strengths & Limitations Assessments of blood pressure and clinical and psychosocial variables were performed using rigorous methods in this multi-ethnic and geographically diverse sample. However, these cross-sectional analyses did not include assessment of androgen or testosterone levels. Conclusions Erectile dysfunction was highly prevalent in this sample of men with hypertension, and SBP, DBP, and PP were associated with erectile function in this sample. Foy CG, Newman JC, Berlowitz DR, et al. Blood Pressure, Sexual Activity, and Erectile Function in Hypertensive Men: Baseline Findings from the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT). J Sex Med 2019;16:235–247.
Developments in Illinois and Indiana in 1948

In all, 3,571 wells were drilled for oil and gas in Illinois and Indiana in 1948 as compared with 2,727 in 1947, an increase of 31 per cent. Total oil production decreased a fraction of 1 per cent from 72,901,000 barrels in 1947 to 72,480,000 barrels in 1948. Wildcat drilling increased from 792 completions in 1947 to 955 completions in 1948. Fifty-one new pools, 63 extensions, and 48 new producing zones were discovered in the two states in 1948. Most of the discoveries in 1948 were in Mississippian formations but the Devonian limestone produced oil in five new pools, three in Indiana (Spring Hill in vigo County and Wilfred and Marts in Sullivan County), and two in Illinois (Assumption and Assumption North, both in Christian County).
Banner -- An Image Sensor Reconfiguration Framework for Seamless Resolution-based Tradeoffs (video)

Mobile vision systems would benefit from the ability to situationally sacrifice image resolution to save system energy when imaging detail is unnecessary. Unfortunately, any change in sensor resolution leads to a substantial pause in frame delivery -- as much as 280 ms. Frame delivery is bottlenecked by a sequence of reconfiguration procedures and memory management in current operating systems before it resumes at the new resolution. This latency from reconfiguration impedes the adoption of otherwise beneficial resolution-energy tradeoff mechanisms. We propose Banner as a media framework that provides a rapid sensor resolution reconfiguration service as a modification to common media frameworks, e.g., V4L2. Banner completely eliminates the frame-to-frame reconfiguration latency (226 ms to 33 ms), i.e., removing the frame drop during sensor resolution reconfiguration. Banner also halves the end-to-end resolution reconfiguration latency (226 ms to 105 ms). This enables a more than 49% reduction of system power consumption by allowing continuous vision applications to reconfigure the sensor resolution to 480p compared with downsampling from 1080p to 480p, as measured in a cloud-based offloading workload running on a Jetson TX2 board. As a result, Banner unlocks unprecedented capabilities for mobile vision applications to dynamically reconfigure sensor resolutions to balance the energy efficiency and task accuracy tradeoff.
A simple magnetite nanoparticle immobilized thermoresponsive polymer synthesis for heavy metal ion recovery

Abstract In order to develop environmentally friendly heavy metal ion recovery processes, a facile synthesis for magnetite nanoparticles with immobilized straight-chained thermoresponsive copolymers with high chelating group content was established by modifying the coprecipitation method. As the thermoresponsive copolymer, poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-acrylic acid) (poly(NIPAM-co-AA)) was used in this study. Cu(II) was used as a model heavy metal and the Cu(II) ion recovery performance based on temperature swing was evaluated. Generally, conventional methods for immobilizing polymers on nanoparticles have the disadvantages of being complex and time consuming. The results in this study show that the developed approach is not only simple and easy compared with the conventional method—4 steps can be reduced to 1 step—but also results in well dispersed magnetite nanoparticles, with high immobilized polymer loading; a maximum of 0.760 g/g-magnetite was achieved. The experimental results show the successful control of Cu(II) adsorption and desorption based on temperature swing between 60 °C and 20 °C, and the amount of recycled Cu(II) ions reached a maximum of 0.13 mmol/(g-adsorbent). Despite the simplicity of the procedure, the adsorbent prepared using our method shows higher recycled amounts than those for previously reported thermoresponsive adsorbents. In addition, waste generation throughout the process is also limited since the adsorbent preparation step does not require organic solvent, and the heavy metal ion recovery does not require acid. The developed process is therefore an environmentally friendly one. These findings demonstrate the effectiveness of our adsorbent and its synthesis.
Hybrid Dot-Product Design for FP-Enabled FPGAs

FPGAs are becoming interesting solutions for neural network training acceleration. Efficient implementation of dot-products, as part of matrix-matrix multiply engines, plays a key role towards this. The now de facto standard involves the matrix multiplication on bfloat16 inputs, with all reductions be performed in single-precision arithmetic. We present here a generic hybrid dot-product implementation that: (1) has a user-defined accuracy knob and (2) targets a user-defined logic/DSP ratio. Since our architecture is very specialized to a given target device, we discuss the challenges in generating this architecture automatically.
Exposure to Violence, Psychosocial Stress, and Asthma.

Over the last two decades, a growing body of evidence has linked chronic psychosocial stress to asthma. Exposure to violence can lead to chronic stress and has received recent attention in the asthma literature, as is a common exposure for people living in urban settings, particularly in the U.S. Improving our understanding of whether and how exposure to chronic stressors causes or worsens asthma could help us gain insights into disease pathogenesis, design public health policies, and develop new interventions. In this essay, the evidence linking violence or stress to asthma is explored, including recent insights on potential mechanisms, and a discussion on current challenges and future directions. To date, experimental and observational studies support a causal association between chronic stress and worse asthma control, and increasing evidence suggests that pre- or post-natal chronic stress may lead to new-onset asthma. Such evidence supports conducting randomized controlled trials of stress-reduction interventions to improve asthma control in subjects with high chronic stress. On the other hand, more experimental and longitudinal studies are needed to better understand if violence exposure leads to asthma or worse asthma outcomes. Longitudinal studies with assessment of co-exposures and coping mechanisms are key to not only better understand the independent effects of violence or stress on asthma but also to identify factors that could ameliorate or worsen such effects.
Alterations in Macrophage Phagocytosis and Inflammatory Tone Following Exposure to the Organochlorine Compounds Oxychlordane and Trans-Nonachlor

The role of macrophages in the innate immune response cannot be underscored however recent studies have demonstrated that both resident and recruited macrophages have critical roles in the pathogenesis of metabolic dysfunction. Given the recent data implicating exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the pathogenesis of metabolic diseases, the current study was designed to examine the effects of the highly implicated organochlorine (OC) compounds oxychlordane and trans-nonachlor on overall macrophage function. Murine J774A.1 macrophages were exposed to trans-nonachlor or oxychlordane (0 - 20 µM) for 24 hours then phagocytosis, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, mitochondrial membrane potential, caspase activities, pro-inflammatory cytokine production, and macrophage plasticity were assessed. Overall, exposure to oxychlordane significantly decreased macrophage phagocytosis while both OC compounds significantly increased ROS generation. Exposure to trans-nonachlor significantly increased secretion of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) and interleukin-6 whereas oxychlordane had a biphasic effect on TNFα secretion. However, both oxychlordane and trans-nonachlor decreased basal expression of the M1 pro-inflammatory marker cyclooxygenase 2. Taken together, these data indicate that exposure to these two OC compounds have both compound and concentration dependent effects on macrophage function which may alter both the innate immune response and impact metabolic function of key organs involved in metabolic diseases.
Picosecond Dynamics of Unimolecular Ion Pair Formation

The ultimate understanding of a complex process like electron transfer in solution depends on our knowledge of more elemental steps such as solvent stabilization of charge and diffusional motion of oppositely charged ions. We report additional work on a molecular system [1] that allows a kinetic analysis of these two effects. Malachite green leucocyanide (MGCN) can be photoexcited to create MG+ and CN− ions in some solvents. Fig.1 shows the MGCN tetrahedral structure and the MG+ planar structure. The lowest excited singlet state of MGCN is localized in the dimethylaniline groups with absorption and fluorescence maxima at 270 and 350 nm, respectively. The MG+ cation absorbs strongly at 620 nm and this absorption was used to follow the MG+ concentration following photoexcitation of MGCN.
Evolution: Symbiotic Microbes Mediate Host Range of Herbivorous Beetles

A new study characterizes the evolution of metabolic interactions between herbivorous tortoise beetles and their obligate bacterial symbionts. Expansion of symbiont metabolic range is shown to alter beetle metabolism of plant tissues and is implicated in broadening the diversity of plants eaten.
Solitary fibrous tumor (SFT) of paratesticular origin; sonographic and histological pictures

Abstract Solitary fibrous tumors (SFTs) are fibroblastic mesenchymal tumors, commonly benign but rarely can be malignant. We present a 36 years old male who had a painless right testicular mass, slowly growing over four years. On physical examination, he had a firm, warm right testicular mass of 11x9x5 cm. There was no inguinal lymphadenopathy or gynecomastia. Testicular ultrasound showed a large extratesticular, heterogeneous, and hypoechoic mass anterolateral to the right testicle with increased internal vascularity. Serum level for Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), beta HCG were within normal limits. A contrast-enhanced CT scan of the abdomen, pelvis, and chest was negative for a metastatic disease process. The patient underwent right radical orchiectomy. Tumor cells were diffusely reactive with CD-34, STAT-6, and negative for calretinin, desmin, smooth muscle actin, cytokeratin, epithelial membrane antigen, and S-100, supporting the diagnosis of SFT of paratesticular origin. SFTs are usually benign but a study suggested that 10–15% SFTs can be malignant. So, a regular follow up and documenting the non-malignant nature of the disease is necessary.
Impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on plant purchasing in Southeastern United States

Abstract The Coronavirus pandemic has resulted in firms and consumers quickly adjusting their shopping strategies to facilitate sales while maintaining safety recommendations Two strategies frequently employed by plant retailers include curbside pickup and online sales/delivery Using an online survey of Southeastern U S consumers, this study assessed the relationship between consumers' concerns related to the pandemic, stay-at-home orders, purchasing behaviors, and perceived future shopping habits Interestingly, 57% of respondents indicated they were going to revert back to their prepandemic shopping habits after the pandemic Respondents who had adopted online plant-purchasing habits were less likely to revert back to their prepandemic habits, whereas respondents currently participating in the curbside pickup were more likely to go back to their prepandemic habits Population density, income, and COVID-19 concerns (index) also impacted postpandemic shopping habits or behavior [EconLit Citations: Q13]
Sufism and Challenges of Modern and Secular Philosophy: Nasr’s Perspective

Sufism is a broad and diverse movement within the history of Islam. Anatolia, among the other Muslim lands, has been home to many Sufi orders such as Alevi-Bektashi, Rufā’ī, Khalwatī, and others. All the mentioned order played significant roles during the Ottoman Empire and up to the modern era. It is clear that facing the Modern and secular world view, at least epistemologically challenged all Sufi orders. Considering such a considerable shaking encounter raises questions such as the relationships between Sufi creeds and modern science in the viewpoint of Sufism. Sufism maintains that “knowledge” (ʿilm) is an essential foundation in the Spiritual path. If the universe is defined as a manifestation of the Divine in the Alevi-Bektashi and other Sufi thoughts, what are their responses to modern dominant philosophy and science that is fundamentally secular and leaves no space for the Sacred? This paper will study the question of philosophical assessment of modern science and technology from a Sufi perspective. In particular, it will examine the phenomenon of modern science and technology from the perspective of the Sufi and traditionalist school of Islam. It mainly focuses on the claim of the rediscovery of Sacred Science and assesses the way how Sayyed Hossein Nasr (b.1933) – a Shādhīlī Sufi- suggests reviving it. Furthermore, this paper investigates Nasr’s critiques of modern science’s fundamental philosophical principles as determining its secular nature in opposition to the notion of sacred science and world view in Sufism.
Electric Light: An Architectural History —Sandy Isenstadt (Cambridge, MA, USA: MIT Press, 2018, 292 pp.)

One should probably not spend a lot of time trying to parse the title of this appealing book: it is neither a work focused on the built environment nor a history of the electric light. Instead, one might consider the author’s words that his intention is to study cases that “suggest an architectural history of spaces that have been generated or extensively reconstituted by electric light.” His thesis is “the electric light changes the underlying nature of a space.”
Navigation in Virtual Space: Psychological and Neural Aspects

This article is a revision of the previous edition article by N. Burgess, volume 15, pp. 10417–10422, © 2001, Elsevier Ltd.
Earth-crossing asteroids - New discoveries

A total of 43 Earth-crossing asteroids are now known. Twenty-five were discovered or recovered in the last decade. There were only six numbered Earth-crossing asteroids prior to 1970. Since then, twenty-one have been numbered. The Aten asteroids, a new group of Earth-crossing asteroids, have orbits smaller than that of the Earth. The largest Earth crosser, Hephaistos, has C-type UBV colors and is probably about 10 km in diameter. The smallest, Hathor, has unusual UBV colors and a probable diameter of about 200 m.
Second Generation TEOM Filters-Diesel Particulate Mass Comparisons between TEOM and Conventional Filtration Techniques

A tapered element oscillating microbalance (TEOM), using second generation diesel particulate filters, was subjected to calibration and response testing, and was also used in direct comparison tests with conventional filtration techniques. Non-volatile masses placed on the TEOM filter demonstrated a 1:1 correspondence between TEOM mass response and gravimetric mass determinations. The TEOM mass response to dilute diesel exhaust particulate for a vehicle at idle was typically 23% lower than conventional filtration gravimetric results when both TEOM and conventional filters collected particulate at the same temperature and on the same filter media type. The effects of varying filter temperature and particulate extractable content were consistent with the premise that the retention of volatile species on the TEOM filter was lower than on conventional filters due to the relatively high TEOM vacuum downstream of the TEOM filter. Differences in mass determinations were, therefore, attributed primarily to differences in volatile species retained by the filter-particulate matrix. TEOM measuremnts are suggested to be equivalent to conventional filtration mass determinations at filter temperatures several degrees higher than TEOM filter temperatures.
The search for a GPIB replacement

This paper discusses motivations for replacing replacement and then looks at the attributes of three candidate GPIB replacements: USB, network I/O, and IEEE 1394. The paper then summarizes the Instrumentation & Industrial Control protocol (IICP) for IEEE 1394.
Window length effect on cross frequency coupling in an EEG processing circuit

This paper examines the window size selection used for measuring cross frequency coupling (CFC) in digitized electroencephalograph (EEG) signals. As with many signal processing algorithms, a larger time window results in more accurate and less noisy results but at the cost of a lower temporal resolution. In this paper, a range of window sizes (in samples per second) is examined using a synthetic test signal and, based on this analysis, the window size selection is made for a hardware implementation of the modulation index CFC algorithm. We found the optimized window length is 512 samples/second for EEG signals. An ASIC has been created from this design using the IBM 0.18 micron process with a chip size of 3mm × 3mm with 191mW power consumption and is currently being tested.
Stability of Anti-Candida Precipitating Antibody in Stored Sera as Determined by Counterimmunoelectrophoresis

Prolonged storage of sera at −20°C did not significantly affect anti-Candida precipitin titers measured by counterimmunoelectrophoresis when compared with the original determinations.
A new genus and species of scalpellomorph cirriped from the Fairport Member, Carlile Shale (middle Turonian) of Kansas

A proposed new genus of scalpellomorph cirriped, Tetrinis n. gen., based on T. serenuportus n. sp., is known from three Kansas localities in the middle part of the Fairport Member of the Carlile Shale where it is epizoic on the bivalve Inoceramus cuvieri. The stalked cirriped Stramentum elegans coexisted with T. serenuportus and the bryozoan Proboscina sp. was epizoic on S. elegans but not on T. serenuportus. The genus is readily distinguished from all other scalpellomorph cirripeds in the character of the capitulum, which comprises 28 slightly overlapping plates arranged in four whorls. Tetrinis serenuportus displays a large rostrum and an upper latus that is situated low in the capitulum between the scutum and tergum, allowing the two latter plates to touch. All umbos are apical except for that of the scutum, which is subapical and closer to the apex than to the base. The new form apparently has a narrow stratigraphic range and has potential as a biostratigraphic marker.
STANDARD CHEMICAL THERMODYNAMIC PROPERTIES OF MULTICHLORO ALKANES AND ALKENES : A MODIFIED GROUP ADDITIVITY SCHEME

Chlorinated hydrocarbon groups plus non-next-nearest-neighbor interaction terms, which combine with the Benson group additivity method for estimation of thermodynamic properties (ΔHf°, S° and Cp(T)(300−1500 K) on multichloro alkanes and alkenes, are developed. New chlorocarbon alkane and alkene Benson-type group values are derived from molecule systems where no chlorines are on the carbon adjacent to the carbon atom bonded to chlorine(s). A set of interaction terms for ΔHf°, S°, and Cp(T)(300−1500 K) is derived to account for non-next-nearest-neighbor chlorine−chlorine interactions. These are derived from the experimental thermodynamic property data on 28 chlorinated hydrocarbons species and current hydrocarbon groups. Thermodynamic properties for representative multichloro alkanes and alkenes determined using this modified group additivity scheme are compared with literature data and show good agreement (ΔHf°,298 = ±0.29 kcal/mol, S°298 = ±0.68 cal/mol·K, and Cp(T) = ±0.23 cal/mol·K). The use of a limite...
Current perspectives on the link between neuroinflammation and neurogenesis

The link between neuroinflammation and neurogenesis is an area of intensive research in contemporary neuroscience. The burgeoning amount of evidence accumulated over the past decade has been incredible, and now there remains the figuring out of minutia to give us a more complete picture of what individual, synergistic, and antagonistic events are occurring between neurogenesis and neuroinflammation. An intricate study of the inflammatory microenvironment influenced by the presence of the various inflammatory components like cytokines, chemokines, and immune cells is essential for: 1) understanding how neurogenesis can be affected in such a specialized niche and 2) applying the knowledge gained for the treatment of cognitive and/or motor deficits arising from inflammation-associated diseases like stroke, traumatic brain injury, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson's disease. This review is written to provide the reader with up-to-date information explaining how these inflammatory components are effecting changes on neurogenesis.
A progress report on women's education in post‐Taliban Afghanistan

This article examines the relative progress and major setbacks in the education of Afghan women from the end of the Taliban regime until the present, focusing on government and NGO reconstruction e...
The crystal structure of dichloro-(acetonethiosemicarbazone)zinc(II)

Abstract The crystal structure of dichloro(acetonethiosemicarbazone)zinc(II) has been determined from three dimensional X-ray diffraction data collected on a General Electric XRD-6 automatic diffractometer using Cu- Kα radiation and the stationary crystal-stationary counter technique. The monoclinic cell has dimensions of a=7.823(2) A, c=8.691(2) A, and β=100.32(2)°. The space group is P21/n and, with 4 molecules per unit cell, Dc is 1.855 g/cm3 and Dm is 1.85 g/cm3. The structure was determined by the heavy atom method and refined by full matrix least-squares techniques to a final R of 0.045 for the 1322 observed reflections used in the analysis. The zinc atom is in the center of a distorted tetrahedron with Zn-Cl distances of 2.203(2) and 2.252(2) A. The Zn-S distance of 2.303(2) and the Zn-N distance of 2.116(4) A complete the tetrahedron. The difference in the two Zn-Cl distance appears to result from hydrogen bonding to only one Cl atom.
Neutrophils are stimulated by syncytiotrophoblast microvillous membranes to generate superoxide radicals in women with preeclampsia

Abstract Objective This study was undertaken to determine whether syncytiotrophoblast microvillous membranes (STBMs) stimulate maternal neutrophils to produce superoxide radicals in women with preeclampsia. Study design Serum levels of tissue polypeptide antigen (TPA), which is a marker for STBM, were measured in 25 nulliparous women (10 with mild preeclampsia, 6 with severe preeclampsia, and 9 controls). Superoxide production by maternal neutrophils from cases and controls and by donor neutrophils cocultured with the STBMs from cases and controls was measured spectrophotometrically by reduction of ferricytochrome C. Results Maternal TPA levels were significantly greater among cases than controls (P = .005). Superoxide production by maternal neutrophils and donor neutrophils cultured with STBM from cases of preeclampsia was greater than controls (P values .006 and .019, respectively), and dose-response relationships were observed. Superoxide production by maternal leukocytes was correlated with superoxide induction by STBMs in culture (P = .007). Conclusion STBMs in maternal blood induce neutrophils to generate superoxide radicals that may cause endothelial dysfunction in women with preeclampsia.
Electronic structure of layered compounds ZrCl, ZrBr, ScCl and PtTe

Abstract The crystal of ZrCl consists of repititions of the four-layer unit Cl-Zr-Zr-Cl, with hexagonal arrangement in each layer. The structure of PtTe is the same as ZrCl, but ZrBr and ScCl have a slightly different stacking arrangement of the four-layer units. The halides have the physical properties of graphite, while PtTe appears to be a more isotropic metal. A self-consistent band calculation on ZrCl gives a substantial charge transfer away from the region between halogen layers to the region between metal layers, which results in weak bonding between the halogen layers. The bands near the Fermi level have predominantly metal d character. Non-self-consistent calculations on ZrBr and ScCl yield similar results. In PtTe the d bands of Pt are completely occupied so that the bands near the Fermi level have the p character of Te. This explains the isotropic metallic nature of this compound. There is good agreement between the density of states and the photoemission spectra for all four compounds.
Investigation of Pressure-Induced Changes in the Chromatographic Selectivity of Methyl and Ethyl Orange on Silica Gel

Abstract With water as the solvent and two azo dyes as the exemplary solutes, the modification of selectivity through pressure-induced changes in column equilibria has been shown to be significant using a chromatograph capable of going to 4000 kg/cm2. Data from high-pressure conductance, spectroscopy, adsorption chromatography, and steric-exclusion chromatography indicated that the primary contribution to the pressure shifts in selectivity was occurring in the bulk solution. An explanation correlating the various experimental observations is offered.
Flow and sediment dynamics in a low sinuosity, braided river: Calamus River, Nebraska Sandhills

The interaction between channel geometry, flow, sediment transport and deposition associated with a midstream island was studied in a braided to meandering reach of the Calamus River, Nebraska Sandhills. Hydraulic and sediment transport measurements were made over a large discharge range using equipment operated from catwalk bridges. The relatively low sinuosity channel on the right-hand side of the island carries over 70% of the water discharge at high flow stages and 50–60% at low flow stages. As a result, mean velocity, depth, bed shear stress and sediment transport rate tend to be greater here than in the more strongly curved left-hand channel. The loci of maximum flow velocity, depth and bed shear stress are near the centre of the channel upstream of the island, but then split and move towards the outer banks of both channels downstream. Variations in these loci depend on the flow stage. Topographically induced across-stream flows are generally stronger than the weak, curvature-induced secondary circulations. Water surface topography is controlled mainly by centrifugal accelerations and local changes in downstream flow velocity. The averaged water surface slope of the study reach varies very little with discharge, having values between 0·00075 and 0·00090. As bed shear stress generally varies in a similar way to mean velocity, friction coefficients vary little, normally being in the range 0·07–0·13. These values are similar to those in straight channels with sandy dune-covered beds. Bedload is moved mainly as dunes at all flow stages. Grain size is mainly medium sand with coarse sand moved in thalwegs adjacent to the cut banks, and with fine sand at the downstream end of the island. These patterns of flow velocity, depth, water surface topography, bed shear stress, bedload transport rate and mean grain size can be accurately predicted using theoretical models of flow, bed topography and sediment transport rate in single river bends, applied separately to the left and right channels. During high flow stages deposition occurs persistently near the downstream end of the island, and cut banks are eroded. Otherwise, erosion and deposition occurs only locally within the channel as discharge varies. Abandonment and filling of a strongly curved channel segment may occur by migration of an upstream bar into the channel entrance at a high flow stage.
Evaluator Preconceptions About Organizational Decision Making: Rational Versus Incremental Perspectives

Evaluators have various preconceptions, usually implicit, about how decisions are made in social programs and how the results of evaluation research will be used in that process. This article demonstrates how an evaluator's choice of a decision-making model has significant impact on the conduct and fate of the research. This focus adds a new dimension to the understanding of the ways political and organizational processes influence evalua tion research.
Modelling rate for change of speed in calculus proposal of inductive inquiry

Research has shown that students have difficulties with understanding the process of determining whether an object is speeding up or slowing down, especially when it is applied to the analysis of motion in the negative direction. As inductively organized learning through its scaffolding sequencing supports the process of knowledge acquisition using scientific inquiry, this study hypothesized that this type of reasoning would help learners develop a deeper understanding of this concept and provide a better gateway for applying this understanding to real-life situations. Such a constructed lesson was conducted with a group of calculus students (N = 22), and a computerized simulation was used as a medium of instruction. The post-test results evidenced that the students’ perception of object rate of speed was enriched, as the majority of students correctly described the process applied to conclude the object's speed rate of change and displayed correct insight into the underlying principles of distilling rate...
Polyphenolic antioxidants inhibit peptide presentation by antigen-presenting cells

Antigen-presenting cells (APC) provide two essential signals, e.g., antigenic peptides as well as costimulatory molecules for T-cell activation. Small molecules of smoke tobacco extracts (SM-STE) inhibited antigen presentation of A20 to OVAp-specific T-cell hybridomas. Pretreatment of A20 but not T hybridomas abrogates the APC function. Viability of APC and levels of MHCII, CD40 and B7 of APC were not affected by this treatment. The active principle, inhibiting APC was reproduced with pure tobacco polyphenols, quercetin and its glycoside, rutin. Antioxidant activity of rutin is relevant since rutin downregulated levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in phorbol ester-stimulated A20; moreover, another antioxidant, N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) also inhibited antigen presentation, albeit at a higher concentration. Other types of APC, such as bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMC), MHCII-transfected fibroblast, and splenocytes are affected by tobacco polyphenols. We propose that polyphenols may affect redox-sensitive signal transduction pathway since APC function of PD 98059, MEK inhibitor-pretreated A20 were similarly abrogated. Taken together, we propose that maintaining appropriate intracellular redox of APC is crucial for its antigen-presenting function.
Dynamic Optimization with a Non-Convex Technology: The Case of a Linear Objective Function

The paper studies the problem of optimal intertemporal allocation in an aggregative model with a non-convex technology set and a discounted sum of consumptions as the objective function. The study demonstrates the existence of a threshold initial stock such that the long-run behaviour of optimal programmes depends critically on whether the initial stock is, above or below the threshold. This is in contrast with the standard turnpike theory of convex models in which the long-run behaviour of optimal programmes is independent of the initial stock.
Effect of temperature change on the sealing properties of Cavit and Cavit G

Sixty recently extracted intact anterior teeth were filled with Cavit G or Cavit. They were examined for dye penetration at room temperature and subjected to temperature change. Under the test conditions Cavit G and Cavit were resistant to penetration by aqueous methylene blue dye.
Use of methergine for the prevention of postoperative endometritis in non‐elective cesarean section patients

OBJECTIVE: Methergine increases constriction of uterine musculature which may facilitate sloughing of endometrial debris, close uterine vessels, and prevent post-cesarean endometritis. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of methergine in preventing endometritis in patients undergoing non-elective cesarean section delivery. METHODS: Eighty patients undergoing non-elective cesarean section were enrolled in a prospective randomized clinical trial of methergine (41) versus no methergine (39) administration during the postpartum period. The hospital records were abstracted after discharge to compare the postpartum course. RESULTS: There were no significant demographic differences between the two groups. The women receiving methergine had a significant reduction in the rate of postoperative endometritis (10% vs. 36%, P < 0.005). In addition, the mean postoperative hemoglobin was significantly higher in the methergine treated group (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The use of methergine postpartum in women undergoing non-elective cesarean sections significantly reduces the incidence of postoperative endometritis and blood loss.
An in vitro assay for assessing the effects of dietary components such as fiber on lipase-catalyzed hydrolysis of long-chain triacylglycerols

An in vitro method to determine rates of pancreatic lipase-catalyzed hydrolysis of long-chain triacylglycerols is reported. This assay is designed to simulate more closely than do existing in vitro assays, conditions that prevail in the human duodenum. This assay is potentially useful for rapidly determining rates of lipolysis as influenced by lipid type and by various dietary components such as fiber. Included in the assay mixture are olive oil, lipase, colipase, emulsifiers (Span 60TM, Tween 60TM), buffer solution (2-[N-morpholino]ethanesulfonic acid), pH 6.5, four bile salts, calcium and sodium. The reaction is conducted at 37d`C and 150 rpm. Appropriate emulsion stability and particle size are achieved by sonification. The assay procedure was validated with respect to stopping the reaction, recovery of known amounts of added oleic acid and precision.
Verifying dynamic power management schemes using statistical model checking

Dynamic power management (DPM) schemes, such as power gating, are important runtime strategies for saving power in multicore architectures. Safety and efficiency are probabilistic properties which need to be verified in order to evaluate a DPM scheme. In this work, we employ statistical model checking to verify probabilistic properties on Register Transfer Level (RTL) descriptions of multicores. Statistical model checking performs a system-level verification of the DPM scheme by simulating several sample paths of the entire RTL design until the verification results lie within tolerable bounds of error. We illustrate our approach on the RTL of OpenSPARC T2, a publicly available industry-strength multicore processor. We verify the safety and efficiency properties of several power gating schemes by considering the power manageable blocks in the floating-point graphics unit
Feedback control of an azimuthal oscillation in the E × B discharge of Hall thrusters

Feedback control of a low-frequency azimuthal wave known as a “rotating spoke” in the E × B discharge of a cylindrical Hall thruster was demonstrated. The rotating spoke is an m = 1 azimuthal variation in density, electron temperature, and potential that rotates at about 10% of the local E × B electron rotation speed. It causes increased electron transport across the magnetic field and is suspected to be an ionization wave. Feedback control of this wave required special consideration because, although it causes a rotating azimuthal variation in the current density to the anode, it does not show up as a signal in the total thruster discharge current. Therefore, an extra source of information was needed to track the oscillation, which was addressed by using a special anode that was split azimuthally into four segments. The current to each segment oscillates as the rotating spoke passes over it, and feedback is accomplished by resistors connected in series with each anode segment which causes the voltage on a segment to decrease in proportion to the current through that segment. The feedback resulted in the disappearance of a coherent azimuthal wave and a decrease in the time-averaged total discharge current by up to 13.2%.