cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effect of methadone addiction on glucose metabolism in rats

Female albino rats were exposed to methadone over a 35-day period by addition of the drug in their drinking water. The final dose of the drug was 1.8 mg/kg body weight per day. After this period, the drug was withdrawn from some animals for 30 days (postexposure). Compared to unexposed controls, serum glucose levels rose during exposure and returned to control levels postexposure. Oral glucose tolerance tests showed impairment in 35-day drug-exposed animals compared to controls and postexposure. The activities of three key enzymes of glycolysis and three key enzymes of gluconeogenesis were measured in liver during and at the end of the exposure period, as well as postexposure. Compared to unexposed controls and postexposure, specific activities of two glycolytic enzymes in livers of exposed animals-hexokinase and phosphofructokinase 1-were significantly reduced, whereas the activity of a third glycolytic enzyme-pyruvate kinase-was unchanged. The specific activities of two gluconeogenic enzymes-glucose-6-phosphatase and fructose-1,6-biphosphatase-were significantly elevated in the drug-exposed animals compared to controls, whereas the activity of a third enzyme-phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase-was unchanged. These data indicate that methadone addiction produces a metabolic state similar to insulin-resistant diabetes.
Nature of trapped free radicals in γ-irradiated poly(vinyl alcohol) films

Abstract The radicals trapped in γ-irradiated poly(vinyl alcohol) films were examined by e.s.r. spectroscopy, with respect to their thermal stability and the effects of foreign materials occluded in the polymer. Two different radicals are observed and their identity discussed.
Concentration-dependent effects of dentin phosphophoryn in the regulation of in vitro hydroxyapatite formation and growth.

Abstract The effect of dentin phosphophoryn on hydroxyapatite formation and growth was studied in an in vitro gelatin gel diffusion system. Phosphophoryn, in low concentrations (0.010–1 μg/ml) promoted de novo hydroxyapatite formation; at a higher concentration (100 μg/ml) in the same system, the dentin matrix protein inhibited hydroxyapatite growth. Similar inhibition of hydroxyapatite growth was seen in solution. The intact phosphophoryn was not essential for either inhibition of seeded growth or promotion of mineralization, since the formic acid degraded protein was comparably effective. Transmission electron microscopy of the precipitates formed at 7 days showed no significant differences in crystallite size distribution in the presence and absence of phosphophoryn. However there was a dose-dependent decrease in the number of mineral clusters formed in the presence of increasing amounts of phosphophoryn, suggesting inhibition of secondary nucleation. These data provide support for the postulated ‘multifunctional’ role of the dentin phosphoprotein in the mineralization process.
Bridging Science and Journalism Identifying the Role of Public Relations in the Construction and Circulation of Stem Cell Research Among Laypeople

Journalism has been a key site for communicating science, and public relations departments at universities and research hospitals are a vital institutional link between science and journalism. Loca...
Foucault’s Rhetorical Theory and U.S. Intelligence Affairs

In 2003, the U.S. Air University published “The Role of Rhetorical Theory in Military Intelligence Analysis: A Soldier’s Guide to Rhetorical Theory” written by Air Force Major Gary H. Mills. In this essay, Mills argues that the rhetorical theory of French historian and philosopher Michel Foucault “serves as a powerful military-intelligence force multiplier.” Foucault is described by Mills as a “reluctant, unintentional military tactician.” Likening Foucault’s rhetorical theory to a weapon used by a combat force might strike rhetorical and critical scholars as bizarre given Foucault’s theoretical and political project. Therefore, in this essay, I attempt to understand the meaning and accuracy of Major Mills’s claim, as well as consider the broader implications of Foucault’s rhetorical theory in relation to U.S. intelligence and national security organizing.
Comparative Effects of Urapidil, Prazosin, and Clonidine on Ligand Binding to Central Nervous System Receptors, Arterial Pressure, and Heart Rate in Experimental Animals

We studied the effects of urapidil, clonidine, and prazosin on ligand binding to central nervous system receptors in rats and on arterial pressure and heart rate in chloralose-anesthetized cats. Ligand binding studies indicated that urapidil had 90 times greater affinity for alpha 1 than for alpha 2 adrenergic receptors. Administration of urapidil (129 μg) into the cerebroventricles of cats revealed no effect after lateral ventricle injection, a decrease of 9.7 ± 3.0 mm Hg after fourth ventricle injection, and an increase of 10.8 ± 2.2 mm Hg after restriction of the drug in the forebrain ventricles. Clonidine (30 μg) produced hypotension and bradycardia after injection into the lateral ventricle. Prazosin was ineffective after cerebroventricular injection. Intravenous administration of 0.22, 0.67, and 2.00 mg/kg urapidil produced dose-dependent decreases in arterial pressure that were associated with blockade of alpha 1 adrenergic receptors. Intravenous administration of prazosin elicited the same response. Clonidine (10 μg/kg, intravenously produced an initial increase in arterial pressure that was unaffected by pretreatment with urapidil or prazosin. These results suggest that urapidil produces hypotension by an action on the peripheral vasculature and in the hindbrain. The peripheral effect involves blockade of alpha 1 adrenoceptors.
Priming the Historian in All Planners

This article advocates bringing historical analysis methods—thinking like a historian—and primary sources into the planning classroom. It reviews recent literature on teaching history and on how the general public uses the past. It offers an introduction and guide to historical methods and provides specific teaching examples that I have tested in my planning history course. Introducing students to historical analysis methods and primary sources, in addition to livening up the delivery of historical content, can assist students to understand the importance of context for planning solutions, the complexity of planning issues, and the possibility for change that contingency brings.
Carotid Artery Disease and Stroke: Assessing Risk with Vessel Wall MRI

Although MRI is widely used to diagnose stenotic carotid arteries, it also detects characteristics of the atherosclerotic plaque itself, including its size, composition, and activity. These features are emerging as additional risk factors for stroke that can be feasibly acquired clinically. This paper summarizes the state of evidence for a clinical role for MRI of carotid atherosclerosis.
New Synthesis/Processing Routes to Materials Exhibiting Large Optical Nonlinearity

Abstract : Synthesis/processing schemes for the preparation of optical quality thin films of 7E-electron containing organic and organometallic materials are discussed. Fabrication approaches range from preparation of molecular/polymer composites, to preparation of copolymers containing pendant electroactive moieties, to preparation of copolymers with electroactive units incorporated into the polymer backbone, to the preparation of polymer/polymer composites. Such fabrication methodologies (particularly the latter three approaches) have the advantage of facilitating control over polymer solubility and of avoiding aggregation of electroactive units. The synthetic schemes discussed here yield materials with well-defined electroactive units; thus, diffuse bandedges associated with a distribution of n-electron conjugation lengths are avoided. Degenerate four wave mixing (DFWM) measurements at 532, 579-600, and 1064 nm are used to determine third order susceptibilities. Investigation of the frequency dependence Of X(3)/alpha established that resonance contributions dominate non-linear optical activity near the pi-pi* bandedge. A variety of electroactive moieties have been investigated with the largest values of X(3)/alpha (= 10(-12) esu cm) being observed for triphenodioxazine, metal phthalocyanine, metal tetraazaannulene, 6,6'-dimethoxy-quinolidine cyanine units.
Psychological obstacles to administrative responsibility: Lessons of the MOVE disaster

Investigative bodies and other observers have attributed much of the blame for the 1985 MOVE catastrophe in Philadelphia to ineffective management by the city's previously successful mayor, W. Wilson Goode. Goode's behavior toward the disruptive extremist group followed two patterns, both paradoxical: protracted delay followed by excessive haste, and arms-length action that contrasted sharply with his usual hands-on management style. Drawing on the theory of decisionmaking developed by Irving Janis and Leon Mann, this paper suggests that both paradoxes resulted from unresolved decisional conflicts that impeded responsible and rational handling of the problem. The case points to the value of devoting more attention to the psychology of decision-making in educating present and future public managers.
Temporal dynamics of host‐marking in the tropical tephritid fly, Anastrepha ludens

. The temporal dynamics of host-marking behaviour in the tropical tephritid fly, Anastrepha ludens (Loew), is described and used to formulate a model of control of marking behaviour. The following temporal patterns in host-marking behaviour were observed. Time spent marking increased as Aludens females deposited clutches in a given fruit previously marked zero, one, two or three times. This trend was paralleled by an increase in the number of pauses in marking behaviour within the host-marking bout (and hence an increase in the number of sub-bouts separated by such pauses). Finally, within any given marking bout, the length of a sub-bout diminished progressively. The length of a pause, by contrast, showed no significant trend. Based on these results, we propose that host-marking pheromone, or HMP, while deterrent to females prior to egg-laying, actually stimulates continued host-marking behaviour after egg-laying. We argue that host-marking is regulated by sensory adaptation or habituation to HMP in conjunction with a dosage-dependent restoration of inhibition of the motor pattern. Functional aspects of this pattern of motor control are discussed.
Picosecond Time-Resolved Coherent Anti-Stokes Raman Spectroscopy of the Artificial Bacteriorhodopsin Pigment, BR6.11†

The picosecond molecular dynamics in an artificial bacteriorhodopsin (BR) pigment, BR6.11, are measured by picosecond time-resolved coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (PTR/CARS) and picosecond transient absorption (PTA). The BR6.11 pigment contains a structurally modified retinal chromophore with a six-membered carbon ring bridging the C11C12−C13 bonds, which both locks the C11C12 bond in the trans configuration and prevents rotation about the C12−C13 bond. The changes in the vibrational degrees of freedom of the retinal attributable to the six-membered carbon ring are found in the picosecond resonance CARS (PR/CARS) spectrum of ground-state BR6.11. Normal mode assignments for more than forty BR6.11 vibrational features are made through comparisons with the PR/CARS data from native BR-570 (previously analyzed in terms of the selective isotopic substitution of the retinal). PTR/CARS spectra from two intermediates (J6.11 and K6.11), observed by PTA to appear during the initial 200 ps of the BR6.11 phot...
Comparison of Two Means of Two Log-Normal Distributions When Data is Singly Censored

It is common in environmental and biomedical data analysis to dealwith censored data that are log-normally distributed. This paperis concerned with the statistical analysis for comparing the meansof two independent log-normal distributions from censored datawith a single detection limit. The method of maximum likelihoodwill be used to obtain closed form estimates for populationparameters under different hypotheses. A test procedure forcomparing the means of two independent log-normal populations inthe presence of censored data is also introduced and evaluated.Asymptotic chi-square test is used in the proposed test procedure.Worked example is given illustrating the use of the methodsprovided utilizing a computer program written in the R language.A simulation study was performed to examine the power of the proposed test procedure introduced in this article.
Evidence that the entire length of a kinetoplast DNA minicircle is transcribed in Trypanosoma cruzi

A 1.3 kb cDNA (cDNA52) was derived from Trypanosoma cruzi trypomastigote mRNA. Using single stranded probes in Northern blots, we identified the putative coding strand of cDNA52. In addition, a minor band was detected in RNA from epimastigotes that was absent in RNA from trypomastigotes. Nucleotide sequence analysis revealed that cDNA52 was highly homologous to T. cruzi kinetoplast DNA minicircle sequences. All four conserved regions of T. cruzi minicircles were identified in cDNA52. Using several criteria, we demonstrated that the hybridization signals were not caused by contaminating minicircle DNA in the RNA preparations. The data provide direct evidence for the unprecedented finding that the entire length of a kDNA minicircle is transcribed in T. cruzi.
“I and thou”: Another barrier to societal change?

The purpose of this study was to examine cognitive barriers to the incorporation of information about societal discrimination against groups of which the individual is a member. Information about discrimination, personal efficacy, and the control of reality was presented to comparable groups of students enrolled in courses on women. Items were phrased either in terms of the self (first-person singular) or generically (in the third person). The results showed that individuals are more aware of discrimination against others than against themselves, and are more likely to attribute personal efficacy and control to themselves than to others. It is suggested that the differential use of identical information when applied to the self vs others is a cognitive mechanism that leads people to ignore evidence about sociostructural biases that affect themselves.
Life Cycle Cost Before, During and After the Design of Aircraft Propulsion Systems

Military engine manufacturers have been given a new set of ground rules by the Department of Defense and Congress when they vie for engine contracts. The manufacturers must establish that their engines are Life Cycle Cost (LCC) effective. This directive has resulted in engine manufacturers developing life cycle cost models, including airframes, to account for an overall weapons system. Once the model has been developed, it can be expanded allowing parametric studies of the engine/airframe system thereby developing a cost effective system. The Aircraft Engine Group of General Electric has developed such an LCC computerized model. This paper discusses various applications of the subject model as applied to an engine program before the design is finalized, during the detail design phase, and after the engine has been placed in production. The paper also includes examples of these applications of the model.Copyright © 1981 by ASME
Gli/Zic factors pattern the neural plate by defining domains of cell differentiation

Three cell types differentiate in the early frog neural plate: neural crest at the lateral edges, floorplate at the midline and primary neurons in three bilateral stripes. Floorplate cells and ventral neurons are induced by Sonic hedgehog (Shh) and neural crest and dorsal neurons are induced by epidermal factors such as bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs). Neurogenesis in a subset of cells within the stripes involves lateral inhibition. However, the process by which pools of precursors are defined in stereotypic domains in response to inductive signals is unknown. Here we show that frog Zic2 encodes a zinc-finger transcription factor of the Gli superfamily which is expressed in stripes that alternate with those in which primary neurons differentiate and overlap the domains of floorplate and neural crest progenitors. Zic2 inhibits neurogenesis and induces neural crest differentiation. Conversely, Gli proteins are widely expressed, induce neurogenesis and inhibit neural crest differentiation. Zic2 is therefore a vertebrate pre-pattern gene, encoding anti-neurogenic and crest-inducing functions that counteract the neurogenic but not the floorplate-inducing activity of Gli proteins. We propose that the combined function of Gli/Zic genes responds to inductive signals and induces patterned neural cell differentiation.
No Evidence for a Global Male-Specific Lethal Complex-Mediated Dosage Compensation Contribution to the Demasculinization of the Drosophila melanogaster X Chromosome

In Drosophila melanogaster males, the expression of X-linked genes is regulated by mechanisms that operate on a chromosomal scale. One such mechanism, male-specific lethal complex-dependent X-linked dosage compensation, is thought to broadly enhance the expression of male X-linked genes through two-fold transcriptional upregulation. The evolutionary consequences of this form of dosage compensation are not well understood, particularly with regard to genes more highly expressed in males. It has been observed the X chromosome arrangement of these male-biased genes is non-random, consistent with what one might expect if there is a selective advantage for male-biased genes to avoid dosage compensation. Separately, it has been noted that the male-specific lethal complex and its dosage compensation mechanism appear absent in some male tissues, thus providing a control for the selection hypothesis. Here we utilized publicly available datasets to reassess the arrangement of X-linked male-biased expressed genes after accounting for expression in tissues not dosage compensated by the male-specific lethal complex. Our results do not corroborate previous observations supporting organismal-wide detrimental effects by dosage compensation on X-linked male-biased expressed genes. We instead find no evidence that dosage compensation has played a role in the arrangement of dosage compensated male-biased genes on the X chromosome.
Hydraulic Conductances of the Soil, the Root-Soil Air Gap, and the Root: Changes for Desert Succulents in Drying Soil

Water movement to and from a root depends on the soil hydraulic conductivity coefficient (Lsoii), the distance across any root soil air gap, and the hydraulic conductivity coefficient of the root (LP). After analytical equations for the effective conductance of each part of the pathway are developed, the influences of soil drying on the soil water potential and LsoiI are described during a 30 d period for a loamy sand in the field. The influences of soil drying on LP for three desert succulents, Agave deserti, Ferocactus acanthodes, and Opuntia ficus-indica, are also described for a 30 d period. To quantify the effects of soil drying on the development of a root-soil air gap, diameters of 6-week-old roots of the three species were determined at constant water vapour potentials of — 10 MPa and — 10 MPa as well as with the water vapour potential decreasing at the same rate as soil drying during a 30 d period. The shrinkage observed for roots initially 2 0 mm in diameter averaged 19% during the 30 d period. The predominant limiting factor for water movement was Lv of the root for the first 7 d of soil drying, the root-soil air gap for the next 13 d, and Lsojl thereafter. Compared with the ease of water uptake from a wet soil, the decrease in conductances during soil drying, especially the decrease in Lsoil, caused the overall conductance to decrease by 3 x 103-fold during the 30 d period for the three species considered, so relatively little water was lost to the dry soil. Such rectifier-like behaviour of water movement in the soil-root system resulted primarily from changes in Lsoil and, presumably, is a general phenomenon among plants, preventing water loss during drought but facilitating water uptake after rainfall.
Gravitational collapse of an infinite, cylindrical dust shell.

The evolution of an infinitely long, cylindrical shell of pressureless matter, which collapses because of its own gravitational pull, is studied analytically at late times and numerically for all times. The shell starts from rest and collapses in finite time, as seen by all observers, to form a naked singularity. The singularity is strong in the sense that observers riding on the shell experience, as they reach the singularity, an infinite net stretch parallel to the symmetry axis and an infinite net squeeze in the azimuthal direction. A strong burst of gravitational radiation, which is emitted just before the singularity forms, creates stretches and squeezes in opposite directions to those of the singularity itself: a squeeze along the symmetry axis and a stretch in the azimuthal direction. The numerical analysis gives a complete picture of the shell's motion during the collapse and of the evolution of the spacetime geometry and the emission and propagation of the gravitational wave burst.
Medicaid prescription drug utilization and expenditures following Part D

Objectives. Although much attention has been paid to examining the impact of Medicare Part D on Medicare, few studies have examined its influence on Medicaid. This study uses an interrupted time series design to examine the impact of Part D on prescrip- tion drug expenditures and utilization among different therapeutic classes of medication across 44 Medicaid programs. In overall reductions in Medicaid prescription expenditures and utilization, our study finds evidence of greater reductions among medications used to treat chronic conditions. Our results provide a glimpse of the impact of Part D on long- term growth in the Medicaid prescription drug benefit.
Chromosomal location and expression of a herbicide safener-regulated glutathione S-transferase gene in Triticum aestivum and linkage relations in Hordeum vulgare

The chomosomal location of a glutathione S-transferase (GST) gene was determined in both hexaploid wheat (Triticum aestivum) and barley (Hordeum vulgare). The GST cDNA used to map the gene was cloned from the diploid wheat Triticum tauschii. GST loci were located on the short arms of chromosomes 6A, 6B, and 6D in T. aestivum and also on the short arm of chromosome 6H in H. vulgare. The GST locus in barley was absolutely linked to the RFLP marker E148A and was located 0.8 cM proximal to the RFLP marker ABC169B on barley chromosome 6H. At least two copies of the GST gene were present in each of the T. aestivum A, B, and D genomes, and a homologous GST gene was present as a single-copy gene in the barley genome. GST mRNA transcripts were not detected in RNA isolated from shoots of control (unsafened) seedlings of T. tauschii or T. aestivum. It was determined that the expression of the GST gene was regulated by herbicide safener treatment in T. tauschii and T. aestivum by detecting safener-increased GST mRNA ...
An ontology for tactical behaviors derived from verb frames

We present an initial ontology for tactical behaviors conducted by unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs). We focus on activities, which are the denotations of verbs, notably 'move' but also 'look (for)' and several others. These take collective subjects, allowing activities to be attributed to units at various hierarchical levels. The semantics of verbs must consider the denotations of their grammatical complements; that is, we must consider entire verb frames. The thematic relations of the noun-phrase complements are critical, but prepositions also play an important role. FrameNet is an online lexical database of frames derived from text corpora. Our other major resource is Levin's classification of verbs according to how changes in their frames affect their meanings. Although natural languages have a large variety of words for aspects of tactical behaviors, there is motivation to get by with as few basic verbs as possible. A variety of meanings can often be associated with a verb by altering its frame, and we can impose co-reference constraints on combinations of frames to generate structures denoting more complex activities. A simple grammar is developed for the verbs of interest. Protege-Frames ontologies include classes that inherit from linguistically inspired classes but capture domain-specific notions.
Refined Fortran: an update

Refined Languages (Refined Fortran, Refined C, etc.) are extensions of their parent languages in which it is possible to express parallelism, but impossible to create races or deadlocks. Where strictly deterministic behavior is desired, multiple executions of a Refined Fortran program with the same input data can be guaranteed to either compute the same results or terminate with the same run-time errors regardless of differences in scheduling. Where asynchronous behavior is desired, freedom from races can be guaranteed. The Refined Languages approach achieves its goal by extending sequential imperative programming languages with data- (rather than control-) oriented constructs, and by viewing the expression of parallelism in data- (rather than control-) oriented terms. Earlier versions of Refined Fortran are discussed in [1]-[2]; the present work supersedes and extends work reported in these earlier publications.
Sensory Cortical Population Dynamics Uniquely Track Behavior across Learning and Extinction

Neural responses in many cortical regions encode information relevant to behavior: information that necessarily changes as that behavior changes with learning. Although such responses are reasonably theorized to be related to behavior causation, the true nature of that relationship cannot be clarified by simple learning studies, which show primarily that responses change with experience. Neural activity that truly tracks behavior (as opposed to simply changing with experience) will not only change with learning but also change back when that learning is extinguished. Here, we directly probed for this pattern, recording the activity of ensembles of gustatory cortical single neurons as rats that normally consumed sucrose avidly were trained first to reject it (i.e., conditioned taste aversion learning) and then to enjoy it again (i.e., extinction), all within 49 h. Both learning and extinction altered cortical responses, consistent with the suggestion (based on indirect evidence) that extinction is a novel form of learning. But despite the fact that, as expected, postextinction single-neuron responses did not resemble “naive responses,” ensemble response dynamics changed with learning and reverted with extinction: both the speed of stimulus processing and the relationships among ensemble responses to the different stimuli tracked behavioral relevance. These data suggest that population coding is linked to behavior with a fidelity that single-neuron coding is not.
Comparative analysis of the in vitro growth of the hyphal body and mycelial stage of the entomopathogenic fungus, Nomuraea rileyi

Abstract Nomuraea rileyi (UF178-6) conidia isolated from larval cadavers of Anticarsia gemmatalis and from an attenuated culture (UF178-6a) were used to establish separate hyphal body and mycelial cultures in liquid media, respectively. Studies on the growth of each strain were performed under submerged liquid fermentation conditions. Analysis of the respective utilization of carbohydrates and amino acids from the media, production of extracellular polysaccharide, and alterations in pH of the media demonstrated differences between the mycelial and hyphal body cultures. Using an enzyme mixture of β-glucuronidase and chitinase, protoplasts were produced from hyphal bodies and mycelia throughout each fermentation. Maximum yields of protoplasts were isolated from each strain midway through their vegetative growth phases.
Future of interconnect fabric: a contrarian view

This paper discusses the state of the art in the interconnect fabric, identifies energy as the primary barrier in the future, and provides possible solutions.
Minimum-distortion data embedding in video streams

We investigate the problem of embedding data in raw video sequences with minimum video mean-square distortion for any required data recovery error rate. In particular, for any given video frame sequence and any (block) transform domain of interest, we find the optimal carrier and scalar parametrized linear operator on the video data that maximize the output signalto-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) of the maximum-SINR data receiver filter or, equivalently, minimize the average embedding distortion for any target message extraction error rate. The procedure is extended from single-carrier to multi-carrier (multiple messages) embedding. As a practical consideration, a sub-optimal computationally efficient embedding algorithm is also proposed. Extensive experimental results demonstrate that sub-optimal embedding as described has video distortion versus data extraction error rate performance comparable to optimal embedding. Our studies also demonstrate the robustness of the optimal (and sub-optimal) embedding schemes to H.264 compliant encoding.
Soft lithography-mediated microscale patterning of silica on diverse substrates

We have developed a soft lithography-based process to create microscale patterns of silica on a diverse array of substrates. A sacrificial polymer layer was first patterned using a micromolding technique. A peptide was adsorbed on the substrate and the sacrificial layer was removed. The patterned peptide template then catalyzed the deposition of silica from a silicic acid solution. With this procedure, we have created both continuous and discontinuous silica patterns on metallic, ceramic, and polymer substrates.
Residual Stress and Microstructural Evolution in Environmental Barrier Coatings of Tantalum Oxide Alloyed with Aluminum Oxide and Lanthanum Oxide

Pure Ta_2O_5 has been investigated as a possible environmental barrier coating (EBC) material for silicon nitride-based ceramics, but was found to be inadequate because of localized buckling and the formation of microcracks. To address these issues, alloying additions were explored to improve some of the properties of Ta_2O_5 for this application. Aluminum oxide (Al_2O_3) was investigated to stabilize the low-temperature β-Ta_2O_5 phase and reduce grain growth in the coating through the formation of a solid solution. Lanthanum oxide (La_2O_3) was investigated as a second phase former designed to pin grain-boundaries and reduce grain growth. High-brilliance X-rays at the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory were used to evaluate residual stress and phase evolution in the alloyed coatings. Scanning electron microscopy was used to study microstructural changes and grain growth. Al_2O_3 was successful at stabilizing β-Ta_2O_5 and the Al_2O_3 and La_2O_3 significantly reduced grain growth in the coatings. Significant microcracking was observed in the coatings alloyed with Al_2O_3 after thermal cycling in air. Coatings alloyed with Al_2O_3 and La_2O_3 showed no evidence of microcracking. However, some of the alloyed coatings which were first thermally cycled in air and subsequently exposed to high-temperature steam completely delaminated from the AS800 silicon nitride substrates, a highly undesirable result for an EBC.
Mapping of surface plasmon polaritons on nanostructured thin film disks using cathodoluminescence imaging

In this paper we report investigations on mapping of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) on nanostructured thin film disks using electron-beam excitation. Square and circular disks with sub-micron characteristic dimensions were patterned using electron-beam lithography. Two-dimensional confinement of SPPs resulted into standing wave patterns that were imaged using cathodoluminescence spectroscopy. Several modes of the disks were identified and were found to be dependent on disk geometry as well as position of the electron beam. Detailed analysis of specific modes is provided using panchromatic imaging of the disks. SPP wavelengths as small as 100 nm are predicted from the dispersion curves of 15 nm thick Ag films. Extremely small mode volumes on disks as small as 65 nm are mapped. Our investigations enhance understanding of light-matter interaction at nanoscale with potential applications in various areas including photonics, optoelectronics, chemical and biological sensing, and next generation optical communication.
Expression and mutagenesis of the dpsA gene of Synechococcus sp. PCC7942, encoding a DNA-binding protein involved in oxidative stress protection

The Dps family of proteins are a diverse group of bacterial stress-inducible polypeptides that bind DNA and likely confer resistance to peroxide damage during periods of oxidative stress and long-term nutrient limitation. Some members of the Dps protein family have been shown to form abundant, large (∼150 kD) hexameric complexes that bind chromosomal DNA with little sequence specificity. Previous work from this lab has demonstrated that the Dps proteins are divergent members of the bacterioferritin/bacterioferritin superfamily, and that the Synechococcus sp. PCC7942 Dps homolog, named DpsA, is a DNA-binding hemoprotein having heme-dependent catalytic activity. We speculated that this protein may yield a peroxide-consuming mechanism located on the chromosomal DNA, and we also suggested that this activity may be a necessary feature to handle the endogenous oxidative stresses associated with oxygenic photosynthesis. Current work has examined the expression of dpsA both under nutrient stress and during the growth phase; whereas dpsA mRNA is detectable in the exponential phase, transition to stationary phase yields a 20-fold increase in steady-state mRNA levels. Mapping the promoter region identifies a TAGAAT −10 sequence likely recognized by a cyanobacterial RpoS homolog. Lastly, site-directed mutants lacking dpsA function exhibit a severe phenotype impaired under all conditions yielding photooxidative stress; these include high light and treatment with paraquat. This supports our contention that the DpsA protein serves an important protective function in an obligate photoautotroph.
Improved production of Epstein-Barr virus DNA for nucleic acid hybridization studies.

Abstract Large quantities of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA were prepared by superinfection of Raji cells with EBV. Virus DNA thus prepared showed a single symmetrical peak at 1.718 g/cm3 in CsCl analytical centrifugation and served as a good template for preparation of cRNA specific to EBV DNA. The virus DNA was also highly labeled in vivo with [3H]thymidine or 32PO4 for DNA-DNA reassociation studies. The yield of viral DNA from Raji cells, superinfected with EBV prepared from supernatant fluid of HRI cell culture, was 100- to 570-fold higher than that of viral DNA directly extracted from the same virus preparation.
It's Just That Much Harder Multilayered Hardship Experiences of Low-Income Mothers With Disabilities

This article reports on a focus-group study that examined the experiences and perspectives of low-income mothers with disabilities who were receiving disability income transfers. The women faced severe deprivation and multilayered hardships. Their impairments were not their central problem, but they intersected with the challenges associated with the women's poverty and single-parent status. The women coped with or resisted their hardships by serving as advocates for their and their children's needs, accessing resources from safety-net services and their families, and relying on their religious beliefs. The women's aspirations included setting a moral example for their children, securing a better life for their children, and wanting to work. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.
Pilot scale SO2 control by dry sodium bicarbonate injection and an electrostatic precipitator

A 500 actual cubic feet gas per minute (acfm) pilot-scale SO2 control study was undertaken to investigate flue gas desulfurization (FGD) by dry sodium sorbents in 400°F (204.5°C) flue gases emitted from a coal fired boiler with flue gas concentrations between 350 and 2500 ppm SO2. Powdered sodium alkaline reagents were injected into the hot flue gas downstream of the air preheater and the spent reagents were collected using an electrostatic precipitator. Three different sorbents were used: processed sodium bicarbonate of two particle sizes; solution mined sodium bicarbonate, and processed sodium sesquicarbonate. SO2 concentrations were measured upstream of the reagent injection, 25-ft (7.62 m) downstream of the injection point, and downstream of the electrostatic precipitator. SO2 collection efficiencies ranged from 40 to 80% using sodium bicarbonate stoichiometric ratios from 0.5 to 3.0. Much of the in-duct SO2 removal occurred during the first second of reagent reaction time, indicating that the sulfur dioxide–sodium reaction rates may be faster than have been measured for fixed bed measurements reported in the literature. © 2007 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 2007
SRAM Array Yield Estimation under Spatially-Correlated Process Variation

In this paper we propose a systematic method to estimate SRAM array yield considering spatially-correlated process variation. Although many parameter variations have been shown to be spatially-correlated, this phenomenon has been neglected in SRAM yield estimation due to its small impact for small SRAMs. However, its impact on array yield is significant for SRAM arrays of realistic sizes. In this paper we show that three ways in which the spatially-correlated term can be simplified to use existing approaches all lead to high levels of inaccuracy. In particular even the closest yield estimate for 32KB SRAM has more than 20% error. To rectify this we develop a new two-stage SRAM array yield estimation framework that accurately considers spatial correlation. In our approach, first the correlated variation terms are sampled at the array level to remove cell-to-cell dependency. Then we estimate cell yield using our innovative simulation-reusing scheme which dramatically decreases the number of SPICE-like circuit simulations. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first method that can efficiently and accurately estimate SRAM array yield considering spatial correlation.
Demonstration of a lack of racial difference in secretion of growth hormone despite a racial difference in bone mineral density in premenopausal women--a Clinical Research Center study

We previously found GH secretion to be higher in black than white men. Therefore, we performed studies to determine whether this racial difference in GH secretion also occurs in women. Measurements of GH were obtained at 20-min intervals over 24 h and analyzed by deconvolution in 12 healthy black and 12 healthy white premenopausal women. Bone mineral density (BMD) was determined by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry, and GM allotypes were measured as a genetic marker for race. Racial distribution of the groups, as determined by analysis of GM haplotypes, were typical for black and white American populations. Twenty-four-hour integrated GH concentration, GH secretory burst amplitude, burst frequency, half-duration, mass, and half-life were not different in the two groups. Serum testosterone was modestly, but significantly, greater in the black than in the white women (1.1 +/- 0.1 vs. 0.9 +/- 0.1 nmol/L; P < 0.05). Serum 17 beta-estradiol and insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-binding protein-3 were not differe...
Herbivore Adaptations to a Low-Nutrient Food: Weed Biological Control Specialist Spodoptera pectinicornis (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Fed the Floating Aquatic Plant Pistia stratiotes

Performance of the specialist herbivore Spodoptera pectinicornis (Hampson) was studied when fed the floating aquatic plant waterlettuce, Pistia stratiotes L. (Araceae). Plants were either collected from 6 populations in southern Florida or from plants grown with low or high fertilizer levels. Consumption of leaves with increasing toughness resulted in increased larval mortality (>80%); most mortality occurred during the first 2 instars. Larvae compensated for low-nitrogen leaves by increasing fresh weight consumption 3-fold. Both developmental time and biomass gain were effected by the source of the plants but these performance parameters were not directly related to either leaf toughness or nitrogen levels. These results are useful in understanding the adaptations and limitations of specialist herbivores to low-nutrient foods. Additionally, they assist in the selection of suitable release sites for this weed biological control agent. Finally, they improve our mass-rearing techniques for augmentative releases of this biological control species.
Practical server privacy with secure coprocessors

What does it take to implement a server that provides access to records in a large database, in a way that ensures that this access is completely private--even to the operator of this server? In this paper, we examine the question: Using current commercially available technology, is it practical to build such a server, for real databases of realistic size, that offers reasonable performance--scaling well, parallelizing well, working with the current client infrastructure, and enabling server operators of otherwise unknown credibility to prove their service has these privacy properties? We consider this problem in the light of commercially available secure coprocessors--whose internal memory is still much, much smaller than the typical database size--and construct an algorithm that both provides asymptotically optimal performance and also promises reasonable performance in real implementations. Preliminary prototypes support this analysis, but leave many areas for further work.
Environmental issues and economic decisions in developing countries

Abstract This paper explains the key role of environmental economics in incorporating environmental concerns into decision making and in facilitating the more efficient management of natural resources as a step toward sustainable development. It reviews concepts and techniques for valuation of environmental impacts for use in conventional cost-benefits analysis, as well as key related aspects including environmental impacts of economywide policies, multicriteria analysis, risk and uncertainty, and discount rate issues. Several developing country case studies are summarized which cover a range of practical valuation methods. The evidence presented suggests that the valuation techniques for determining “use values” may be applied successfully in appropriate cases, but examples involving “nonuse values” are rare. The use of multiobjective desicion methods also needs to be explored, where economic valuation is not feasible.
Hyperexcitability in organotypic mouse hippocampal explants.

Abstract 1. We have developed an organotypic hippocampal tissue culture model for analyses of sustained hyperexcitability in which repetitive electric stimulation of the dentate area enhances the amplitude and complexity of evoked normal and epileptiform field potentials recorded extracellularly from CA3/2 areas of neonatal mouse hippocampal explants. 2. In explants where spontaneous field potentials are not detectable at the onset of the experiment, brief repetitive electric stimulation elicits self-sustained epileptiform discharges that continue for the duration of the recorded period (2–10 hours). 3. Lowering the extracellular Ca ++ level to 0.1–0.2 mM markedly attenuates these discharges and repetitive stimulation during a 2–4 hr period fails to elicit hyperexcitability. When tested after return to normal media repetitive stimulation can elicit hyperexcitability. 4. Raising the extracellular K + levels to 8–9 mM enhances the complexity of evoked as well as spontaneous field potentials and, in some cases, elicits self-sustained epileptiform discharges in the absence of repetitive electric stimulation.
End‐user training in the service industry

This survey research explores the key variables of top management involvement for an effective end‐user training program. Out of the seven variables: top management belief, a discussion of operating functions, a discussion of the development of the training program, funding commitment, the setting of priorities, a written plan, and progress monitoring, only three (funding commitment, a written plan, and progress monitoring) were statistically significant. The research results provide guidelines for top management of organizations with end‐user training programs and recommendations for further study in top management involvement in end‐user training programs.
Adult Degree Programs: How Money Talks, and What It Tells.

Multiple factors are changing the underlying financial structure of higher education in America to a form much like the structure now used for adult degree programs. This change is likely to have profound effects on institutional behavior and public policy.
Interrater Reliability of the Original and a Revised Scoring System for the Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration.

This study investigated the interrater reliability of teachers' and school psychology ex-terns' scoring of protocols for the Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration (VMI). Previous studies suggest that the scoring criteria of the VMI are ambiguous, which when coupled with raters' lack of scoring experience, as well as limited knowledge of testing issues, contributes to low rater reliability. The original manual scoring system was used by four trained teachers with no VMI experience and by four experienced raters. A VMI scoring system, revised to eliminate ambiguous scoring criteria, was used by an additional four teachers inexperienced with the VMI and by four experienced raters. High reliability coefficients (>.90) were found for all raters, regardless of the scoring system employed. The influence on interrater reliability of factors such as training, nature of the training setting, characteristics of the raters, and ambiguity of scoring criteria is discussed.
Effect of steroids on edema and sodium uptake of the brain during focal ischemia in rats.

Steroids reduce permeability of the blood-brain barrier and inhibit active sodium transport by brain capillaries in vitro. Since the rate of edema formation during the early stages of ischemia is related to the rate of sodium transport from blood to brain, this study was designed to determine whether steroids reduce ischemic edema formation by inhibiting blood-brain barrier sodium transport. Dexamethasone was compared with progesterone since the latter is a more potent inhibitor of sodium transport in isolated capillaries. Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with vehicle (n = 22) or 2 mg/kg of either dexamethasone (n = 22) or progesterone (n = 17) 1 hour before occlusion of the middle cerebral artery. After 4 hours of ischemia, brain water content and blood-brain barrier permeability to [3H] alpha-aminoisobutyric acid and sodium-22 were determined. In controls, mean +/- SEM water content of tissue in the center of the ischemic zone was 82.4 +/- 0.2%. Brain edema was significantly reduced following pretreatment with either dexamethasone (80.6 +/- 0.1%, p less than 0.001) or progesterone (81.5 +/- 0.3%, p less than 0.05). There was also a significant reduction in blood-brain barrier permeability to alpha-aminoisobutyric acid in normal brain following either treatment (e.g., 2.21 +/- 0.19 and 1.37 +/- 0.10 microliters/g/min, p less than 0.001, for control and dexamethasone treatments, respectively), but no effect on the permeability to sodium (e.g., 1.19 +/- 0.05 and 1.12 +/- 0.11 microliters/g/min for control and dexamethasone treatments, respectively).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Usable Pasts: Traditions and Group Expressions in North America

Usable Pasts: Traditions and Group Expressions in North America. Tad Tuleja. ed. Logan: Utah State University Press, 1997.336 pp.