cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Nesting Behavior of Osculating Circles and the Fresnel Integrals

In this note I will recall some definitions and background material leading to a proof of Theorem 1, give a computer plot of r = 0 with its osculating circles, and apply Theorem 1 to prove the convergence of the Fresnel integrals f sin t2 dt and f 'cos t2 dt. For any regular curve in the plane there is a parametrization, a(s), by arc length, s, so that the speed I &(s)j is 1, where the dot means differentiation with respect to s. The unit tangent vector is T(s) = ti(s) and the unit normal vector, N(s), is defined by insisting that T(s) and N(s) form a right-handed system. The Frenet equations give the derivatives of this "moving"9 basis:
Effect of Season of Birth on Achievement of College Students

CEEB Verbal and Mathematical scores of college students and the cumulative grade point average of college graduates were compared according to the season of their birth. No seasonal effects were in...
"We find a way": challenges and facilitators for health care access among immigrants and refugees with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Background:Immigrant and refugee populations and people with disabilities are known to have inequitable access to a range of health services. Very little study has been undertaken, however, about immigrants who have disabilities and their experience of the American health care system.Research Design
Imaging the Urinary Tract: Fundamentals of Ultrasound, Computed Tomography, and Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Ultrasound is a type of mechanical energy that produces vibrations as it traverses any given medium. These vibrations create varying areas of pressure. The alternations between areas of high and low pressure are measurable against time and termed the wave frequency with Hertz used as the unit of measurement. By convention, it is generally accepted that the speed of sound propagation is 1540 m/s, which represents the average speed at which sound travels in soft tissues. The unit of time of a cycle of the wave is called the period, and the distance between wave crests is termed wavelength.
Uniquely Mobile

In this edition of GetMobile, we focus on three papers from MobiSys 2014 that embody the goal of enabling new services and using mobile systems in unique ways.
Twin pregnancies. Review of 203 cases.

Abstract Two hundred and three twin pregnancies were encountered at the Mayo Clinic over a 10 year period during which the ratio of twin pregnancies to all pregnancies encountered was 1:73. The presence of twins was not diagnosed before the time of delivery in 17.7 per cent of the pregnancies. Toxemia occurred in 10.8 per cent and postpartum eclampsia in 1.0 per cent (2 cases). Cesarean section was done in 5 cases (2.5 per cent). Postpartum hemorrhage occurred in 12 cases (5.9 per cent); it was much more frequent in primiparas than in multiparas, with uterine atony being the leading cause. The rare complication of collision or interlocking occurred in 3 cases. Approximately 10 per cent of the infants were lost. The risk for Twin B was no greater than that for Twin A, and the judicious use of operative delivery of Twin B to facilitate the delivery within a reasonable time was not associated with an increased mortality for Twin B. No maternal deaths occurred.
In the Tsar’s Service

In July 1658, Jan Janszoon Struys wed twenty-four-year-old Trijntje Pietersdochter in Amsterdam; whereas Reysen does not mention Trijntje’s name, the occasion of the wedding is referred to in the book.1 The Struys of the text can thereby be equated with the Dutch sailor Jan Struys, about whose life between 1657 and 1668 Reysen is otherwise silent. Some records in Amsterdam’s municipal archives give us a glimpse of Struys’s life during this decade, although most of the details remain beyond our grasp. His movements become much clearer once archival records and Reysen’s narrative reinforce each other, beginning in September 1668.
Threat of numbers, realpolitik, and ethnic cleansing

In this part, cynical and imprudent realpolitik are explored in their consequences for ethnic cleansing and genocide. Realpolitik alone as management of threats to the state (or preserving and strengthening the state) in whatever form will seldom, if ever, result in genocide. When constrained by loss, however, as suggested in the preceding chapter, the probability of genocide is vastly increased. Effectively, a single component of figure 5.1, the one with the most widespread political applicability, is now being examined, to be followed in the three succeeding chapters by an exploration of the entire model. In this chapter, then, the consequences of realpolitik will be examined in three cases: the Irish famine of 1845–52, Polish ethnic cleansing policy of the interwar period, and ethnic cleansing in Bosnia with a genocidal incident embedded within it in 1995. I choose these cases because they are among the closest to genocide itself without reaching that level, thereby allowing for the possibility of one or two key variables distinguishing between ethnic cleansing and genocide. Certainly the accusation of genocide had been repeatedly leveled against the British as early as 1868 (see also chapter 17). At the local level, the Poles did engage in genocidal behavior during World War II, as at Jedwabne, discussed in chapter 1. And, to this day, Serbs have been accused of committing genocide in Bosnia.
Supercritical Fluids: Their Properties and Applications

This introductory chapter is intended to acquaint the reader with the unusual properties of supercritical fluids, and with the ways these properties are exploited for a variety of applications in the chemical process industry. The presentation is closely tied to the program of this Advanced Study Institute (ASI), and points to chapters to follow in various subject areas. The behavior of thermodynamic and transport properties near a critical point is described, with water as an example. The structure of the supercritical fluid is discussed. The unusual solvent properties of supercritical fluids are explained within the framework of binary fluid phase diagrams, including a solid solute. Tunable solvent properties and environmental compatibility make supercritical fluids desirable agents in the chemical process industry. This ASI will focus on their role as extractants of food and other products, as carriers in chromatography, and as media for chemical reactions and for materials processing; moreover, virtually all aspects of polymer processing may involve the use of supercritical solvents. In this chapter, the basic knowledge and terminology required for an understanding of the chapters to follow will be introduced at an elementary level. For more advanced treatments, see [1], [2].
Invariant tori for the Nosé thermostat near the high-temperature limit

Let be a 1-degree of freedom mechanical Hamiltonian with a C r periodic potential V where r > 4. The Nose-thermostated system associated to H is shown to have invariant tori near the infinite temperature limit. This is shown to be true for all thermostats similar to Nose's. These results complement the result of Legoll, Luskin and Moeckel who proved the existence of such tori near the decoupling limit (Frederic et al 2007 Arch. Ration. Mech. Anal. 184 449–63, Frederic L et al 2009 Nonlinearity 22 1673–94).
FMAP: Functional Mapping and Analysis Pipeline for metagenomics and metatranscriptomics studies

Given the lack of a complete and comprehensive library of microbial reference genomes, determining the functional profile of diverse microbial communities is challenging. The available functional analysis pipelines lack several key features: (i) an integrated alignment tool, (ii) operon-level analysis, and (iii) the ability to process large datasets. Here we introduce our open-sourced, stand-alone functional analysis pipeline for analyzing whole metagenomic and metatranscriptomic sequencing data, FMAP (Functional Mapping and Analysis Pipeline). FMAP performs alignment, gene family abundance calculations, and statistical analysis (three levels of analyses are provided: differentially-abundant genes, operons and pathways). The resulting output can be easily visualized with heatmaps and functional pathway diagrams. FMAP functional predictions are consistent with currently available functional analysis pipelines. FMAP is a comprehensive tool for providing functional analysis of metagenomic/metatranscriptomic sequencing data. With the added features of integrated alignment, operon-level analysis, and the ability to process large datasets, FMAP will be a valuable addition to the currently available functional analysis toolbox. We believe that this software will be of great value to the wider biology and bioinformatics communities.
Uptake of Dietary Selenium by Laboratory and Field Feeding Podisus maculiventris (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae)

Summary Podisus maculiventris (Say) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) is a generalist predator commercially available for augmentative biological control of pest insects in a variety of crop and orchard systems. It is exposed to a wide variety of micronutrients based on the soil type, plant, and insect prey items consumed. Bioaccumulation of selenium by adult females of P. maculiventris fed insectary-reared Trichoplusia ni Hubner (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) larval prey was not statistically significant. However, adult females of P. maculiventris collected from the field that had been feeding primarily on alfalfa weevils (Hypera postica Gyllenhal; Coleoptera: Curculionidae), and those fed an artificial diet, showed significant bioaccumulation of selenium. This is the first report of biomagnification of a trace element across 3 trophic levels involving P. maculiventris.
India at the WTO: From Uruguay to Doha and Beyond

The following sections are included:IntroductionIndia in World TradeThe Legacy of Uruguay and Implications for DohaThe Doha Round and India’s Role in Ongoing NegotiationsToday’s Multilateral Landscape and India’s Role Going ForwardEndnotesAcknowledgmentsReferences
Intervention on Surgical Systemic-to-Pulmonary Artery Shunts: Carotid Versus Femoral Access

Abstract Objectives The purpose of this study was to compare results between the femoral arterial (FA) and carotid arterial (CA) approaches in catheter-based interventions on Blalock-Taussig shunts (BTS). Background Transcatheter intervention on BTS is often performed in shunt-dependent, hypoxemic infants. The approach to BTS intervention likely has an impact on timeliness and overall success. Methods The authors reviewed all cases of catheter intervention for BTS obstruction between 2012 and 2017 for their institution. They sought to compare procedural success rates and time, sheath time, time to arterial access, and time from access to stent implantation between FA and CA approaches. Results There were 42 BTS interventions between 34 patients. BTS intervention was more successful from the CA approach (p = 0.035). Among the FA cohort, BTS intervention was unsuccessful in 8 cases (25%), 5 of which were converted to CA with subsequent success. The CA cohort had lower procedure time (62 min vs. 104 min; p = 0.01) and anesthesia time (119 min vs. 151 min; p = 0.01). Additionally, CA access was associated with shorter time to arterial access (4.0 min vs. 9.3 min; p Conclusions Operators should consider the route of access to the BTS deliberately. The authors’ approach has been the carotid artery as an alternative access site—associated with greater procedural success, shorter procedural time, and shorter time to stent implantation.
Late sequelae and long-term outcomes of vascular anomalies

Vascular anomalies are classified as tumors and malformations depending on their clinical characteristics, pathological diagnosis and recent genomic information. Diagnosis can still be challenging because of the heterogeneity of clinical presentation. Thus, the best care is provided by an interdisciplinary team of specialists. An updated classification system has helped provide more consistent terminology with the addition of new diagnoses and genomic discovery. Historically, treatment of vascular anomalies was primarily surgical and or interventional with limited medical therapies. The field of vascular anomalies lacked prospective clinical trials in both medical treatments as well as surgical and interventional therapeutic options. Recent interdisciplinary collaboration has led to collaborative studies in which short- and long-term outcomes are being prospectively evaluated. Specifically, discoveries of pharmacologic agents effective in treating vascular anomalies have broadened our medical therapeutic options, which has led to innovative approaches in combined treatment of vascular anomalies and has stressed the need to prospectively assess long-term outcomes and sequelae for these patients which has been lacking in this field.
CEO Regulatory Focus and Corporate Social Responsibility: How Does Regulatory Fit Play a Role

This paper sheds light on the effect of CEO regulatory focus on organizational corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities based on regulatory fit. It is proposed that CEOs with different regu...
Preterm birth with placental evidence of malperfusion is associated with cardiovascular risk factors after pregnancy: a prospective cohort study.

Objective Preterm birth (PTB) is associated with excess maternal cardiovascular disease risk. We considered that women with PTB and placental evidence of maternal malperfusion would be particularly affected. Design Pregnancy cohort study. Setting Pittsburgh, PA, USA. Population Women with PTB (n = 115) and term births (n = 210) evaluated 4–12 years after pregnancy. Methods Cardiometabolic risk markers were compared in women with prior PTB versus term births; pre-eclampsia and growth restriction cases were excluded. Placental evidence of maternal vascular malperfusion (vasculopathy, infarct, advanced villous maturation, perivillous fibrin, intervillous fibrin deposition), acute infection/inflammation (chorioamnionitis, funisitis, deciduitus) and villitis of unknown aetiology (chronic inflammation) was used to classify PTBs. Main outcome measures Carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT), fasting lipids, blood pressure (BP) and inflammatory markers measured after delivery. Results Women with PTB and malperfusion lesions had higher total cholesterol (+13.5 mg/dl) and systolic BP (+4.0 mmHg) at follow up compared with women with term births, accounting for age, race, pre-pregnancy BMI, and smoking (P < 0.05). Women with PTB and malperfusion accompanied by inflammatory lesions had the most atherogenic profile after pregnancy (cholesterol +18.7, apolipoprotein B + 12.7 mg/dl; all P < 0.05), adjusted for pre-pregnancy features. Carotid IMT was higher in this group (+0.037 cm, P = 0.031) accounting for pre-pregnancy factors; differences were attenuated after adjusting for BP and atherogenic lipids at follow up (+0.027, P = 0.095). Conclusion PTBs with placental malperfusion were associated with an excess maternal cardiometabolic risk burden in the decade after pregnancy. The placenta may offer insight into subtypes of PTB related to maternal cardiovascular disease. Tweetable abstract Preterm births with placental malperfusion may mark women at higher cardiovascular disease risk.
Emerging data on improving response to hormone therapy: the role of novel targeted agents

Introduction: Hormone receptor positive (HR+) breast cancer represents the most common subtype of breast cancer. Metastatic HR+ breast cancer may develop resistance to standard hormone therapies, arising from genomic alterations in the estrogen receptor and/or upregulation of other signal transduction pathways.Areas covered: In this review, we discuss hormone resistance and strategies to overcome it, from the pre-clinical and clinical perspectives. This review includes a discussion of inhibition of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR, CDK 4/6, histone deacetylation, fibroblast growth factor receptor, and immune pathways, based on review of relevant literature.Expert commentary: Several emerging novel therapies to improve the response to hormone therapy are approved or are in development. The most promising agents at present are inhibitors of CDK 4/6 and mTOR, which have already been incorporated into treatment in the advanced stage setting and are under study for early stage disease.
Historical Fragments; Methods; Some Terminology

Lysosomes are cytoplasmic organelles, each delimited by a single lipoprotein membrane. Typically, they contain several dozen different enzymes (Table 1.1) mostly of the variety called acid hydrolases; these catalyze reactions of the type A-B + H2O → A-H + B-OH and have acid pH optima. Collectively, the enzymes are capable of degrading virtually all large cellular molecules—nucleic acids, proteins, polysaccharides, and lipids—to low-molecular-weight products (Fig. 1.1).
MEASURING PEDIATRIC CARDIAC INTENSIVE CARE UNIT QUALITY IN MEDICAL ADMISSIONS

Pediatric cardiac intensive care units (CICU) must be adept at treating critical medical conditions in addition to providing postoperative care, however specific methods to measure quality of care in CICU medical admissions do not exist. With increasingly frequent complex admissions for conditions
Overview: Selective Removal of Aggregates and Organelles

Cellular homeostasis depends upon appropriately regulated autophagy. Our understanding of the process of autophagy has evolved far beyond a process of indiscriminately harvesting cellular contents for lysosomal degradation to meet metabolic requirements of the cell during episodes of nutrient limitation. Our understanding is now far more nuanced, with the growing recognition that there are specific adaptor proteins used for tagging selected cargo for engulfment and removal. This process is regulated differentially according to the stimulus, cargo, cell type, and concurrent intracellular and extracellular cues. In this introductory chapter we will provide a general overview of autophagy, and will introduce the concept of selective autophagy, and present examples that illustrate the diverse roles this homeostatic process can play.
Zwitterionic copolymer additive architecture affects membrane performance: fouling resistance and surface rearrangement in saline solutions

Membrane separations are simple to operate, scalable, versatile, and energy efficient, but their broader use is curtailed by fouling or performance decline due to feed component depositing on the membrane surface. Surface functionalization with groups such as zwitterions can mitigate the adsorption of organic compounds, thus limiting fouling. This can be achieved by using surface-segregating copolymer additives during membrane manufacture, but there is a need for better understanding of how the polymer structure and architecture affect the effectiveness of these additives in improving membrane performance. In this study, we aim to explore the impact of the architecture of zwitterionic copolymer additives for polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)-based membranes in fouling mitigation and ionic strength response. We prepared membranes from blends of PVDF with zwitterionic (ZI) copolymers with two different architectures, random and comb-shaped. As the random copolymer, we used poly(methyl methacrylate-random-sulfobetaine-2-vinyl pyridine) (PMMA-r-SB2VP) synthesized by free radical polymerization. The comb-shaped copolymer was synthesized by grafting SB2VP side-chains from a PVDF backbone by controlled radical polymerization. Membranes were fabricated from PVDF-copolymer blends containing up to 5 wt% ZI copolymer. Compared to the additive-free PVDF membrane, water permeance increased five-fold with 5 wt% addition of either copolymer. The comb copolymer additive led to better resistance to fouling by a saline oil-in-water emulsion and to simulated protein adsorption in Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) force measurements. The additive architecture had a significant influence on how membranes respond to changes in feed salinity, which is known to affect intra- and inter-molecular interactions in zwitterionic polymers. The random copolymer containing membrane showed a small and mostly reversible decrease in its permeance with salinity. In contrast, the comb copolymer-containing membrane underwent a conformational reorganization in saline solutions that leads to an irreversible permeance decrease, increased zwitterionic group content on the membrane surface, and smoother surface topography. The higher mobility of the zwitterionic groups in the comb-shaped architecture facilitates reorganization of the zwitterionic side-chains in response to ionic strength. Overall, this study establishes a new approach for developing highly fouling resistant membranes and defines how the architecture of a zwitterionic copolymer additive impacts the ionic strength response and fouling resistance of the membrane.
Social Movement Learning and Social Innovation: Empathy, Agency, and the Design of Solutions to Unmet Social Needs:

The ProblemSocial innovation (SI) is integral to productive outcomes that resolve unmet social needs in various social movements throughout history, and it has become a movement of its own. SI prov...
Surgery for Cushing’s Disease

Transsphenoidal surgery is considered a first-line therapy for Cushing’s disease in children. Preoperative evaluation includes appropriate biochemical testing, MRI imaging, and inferior petrosal sinus sampling, to confirm a pituitary source. Remission rates between 50% and 95% have been reported in various series, depending on the size and invasiveness of the tumor, with acceptably low surgical morbidity. Recurrence remains an issue despite initial indications of remission, and adjunctive therapy, including radiosurgery, medical treatment, and adrenalectomy, is sometimes required.
Evaluating the Board of Trustees' Role in the Management of New Urban Communities

AbstractEgypt's new urban communities are unique in their cities' managing style compared to existing ones. The boards of trustees of new urban communities are managed by the participation of all stakeholders in the decision-making process of the city, its residents and investors. While actually this type of management has highlighted a range of objections as well as having the privilege of participatory planning style.The researcher has experimented with personal experience within the new urban communities as a resident of Sheikh Zayed City for nearly 55 years in addition to being a member of the Board of Trustees of Sheikh Zayed City as a representative of women between mid-1055 and now, which qualified the researcher to set conclusions and recommendations related to this management style. The study aims at presenting and analyzing mechanisms of the boards of trustees' work and showing the obstacles facing these processes, in addition to presenting the most prominent aspects of comparison with the local government system, which is subject to development in the local administration law in the parliament. Legislative amendments to new urban communities will be presented in the current draft law. All this work lead as an attempt to devise the legislative aspects to be modified to contribute to a more efficient management of the urban community. The research also examines the experience of the specialized committees in the boards of trustees as a mechanism to increase interaction with the city's inhabitants.
Genetics: The New Genetics

This article explores what is new about contemporary genetic research. The article examines the everyday work of genetic research and clinical practices in and beyond the laboratory; understandings of human biological variation, including race and ancestry; and the intersections of science, citizenship, and subjectivity. In examining these aspects of contemporary scientific knowledge production, the article demonstrates the deeply social nature of every aspect of contemporary genomics.
Drifting into Labour Market Insecurity? Labour Market Reforms in Europe after 2010

This working paper examines the impact of fiscal austerity on EU labour market policies. Using a case study approach, it examines: the extent of change in unemployment benefit levels and policies; the effect of this on groups of workers; and whether the logic of activation policies has shifted. Overall, the broad direction of policy has not altered greatly under austerity. However, risks remain that an underlying move towards greater flexibility may lock in ‘low road’ growth strategies that will make it harder to bring down debt and unemployment in future. By providing a detailed map of developments in labour markets after 2010 in 11 country case studies, the working paper tackles broad questions of welfare state change under conditions of austerity. It finds that, rather than following strategies of either retrenchment or expansion in welfare systems, the countries under examination have combined several elements in what can therefore be termed ‘mixed’ reform programmes. As a result, divergence across and within labour market regimes are much in evidence. Overall, however, the reforms amount to a move towards more flexibility and activation, and less security and protection. The paper also notes that, while labour market policies remain a national competence, the indirect pressure for reform from the EU has increased substantially.
The Space Between Us: Social Geography and Politics: Ryan D. Enos. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2017. xv and 302 pp., acknowledgments, bibliography, figures, index, notes, preface. $24.99 paper (ISBN 978-110-843-0715); $39.99 cloth (ISBN 978-1-1084-2064-8).

What would you think if someone told you that you could become exclusionary toward a different group of people after just a few interactions with them? If newcomers moved into your neighborhood, wo...
The secret lives of single cells.

Looking back fondly on the first 15 years of Microbial Biotechnology, a trend is emerging that biotechnology is moving from studies that focus on whole-cell populations, where heterogeneity exists even during robust growth, to those with an emphasis on single cells. This instils optimism that insights will be made into myriad aspects of bacterial growth in communities.
Belowground allocation and dynamics of recently fixed plant carbon in a California annual grassland soil

Plant roots and the organisms that surround them are a primary source for stabilized organic C, particularly in grassland soils, which have a large capacity to store organic carbon belowground. To quantify the flow and fate of plant fixed carbon (C) in a Northern California annual grassland, we tracked plant carbon from a five-day 13CO2 pulse field labeling for the following two years. Soil and plant samples were collected immediately after the pulse labeling, and again at three days, four weeks, six months, one year, and two years. Soil organic matter was fractionated using a sodium polytungstate density gradient to separate the free-light fraction (FLF), occluded-light fraction (OLF), and heavy fraction (HF). Using isotope ratio mass spectrometry, we measured 13C enrichment and total C content for plant shoots, roots, soil, soil dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and the FLF, OLF, and HF. The HF was further analyzed by solid state 13C NMR spectroscopy. At the end of the labeling period, the largest amount of 13C was recovered in plant shoots (60%), but a substantial amount (40%) was already found belowground in roots, soil, and soil DOC. Density fractionation of 4-week soil samples (from which living roots were removed) indicated that the highest isotope enrichment was in the mineral-rich heavy fraction, with similar enrichment of the FLF and OLF. At the 6-month sampling, after the dry summer period during which plants senesced and died, the amount of label in the FLF increased such that it was equal to that in the HF. By the 1-year sampling, 13C in the FLF had declined substantially and continued to decline by the 2-year sampling. 13C recovery in the OLF and HF, however, was qualitatively stable between sampling times. By the end of the 2-year experiment, 69% of remaining label was in the HF, 18% in the FLF and 13% in the OLF. While the total 13C content of the HF did not change significantly from the 4-week to the 2-year sample time, 13C NMR spectroscopic analysis of spring HF samples from 2018, 2019, and 2020 suggests that the relative proportion of aliphatic/alkyl functional groups declined in the newly formed SOC over the 2-year period. Simultaneously, aromatic and carbonyl functional groups increased, and the proportion of carbohydrate groups remained relatively constant. In summary, our results indicate that initial associations between minerals and root-derived organic matter are significant and form rapidly; by 4 weeks, a substantial amount (17%) of the total plant-derived 13C had become associated with the heavy fraction (HF) of soil. While the majority of annual C input cycles rapidly (<2-year timescale), a sizeable proportion ([~]12% of the original inputs) persisted for 2 years.
Addressing Pediatric Developmental and Mental Health in Primary Care Using Tele-Education.

This study evaluates the effectiveness of an early childhood tele-education program in preparing community pediatric clinicians to manage developmental and mental health disorders in young children...
Deriving Two-Dimensional Ocean Wave Spectra and Surface Height Maps from the Shuttle Imaging Radar (SIR-B)

Directional ocean wave spectra were derived from Shuttle Imaging Radar (SIR-B) imagery in regions where nearly simultaneous aircraft-based measurements of the wave spectra were also available as part of the NASA Shuttle Mission 41G experiments. The SIR-B response to a coherently speckled scene is used to estimate the stationary system transfer function in the 15 even terms of an eighth-order two-dimensional polynomial. Surface elevation contours are assigned to SIR-B ocean scenes Fourier filtered using a empirical model of the modulation transfer function calibrated with independent measurements of wave height. The empirical measurements of the wave height distribution are illustrated for a variety of sea states.
Genomics and the World's Economy

The World9s largest industrial corporations are entering unprecedented mergers to generate a Life Science industry. Chemical, medical, pharmaceutical, agribusiness, health and nutrition, cosmetics, energy, and environmental companies are restructuring and merging because of the molecular-genomics revolution. As science drives massive changes in the global economy, there is a much greater need to address the public9s lack of knowledge and potential market distortions.
Sequence learning in infancy: The independent contributions of conditional probability and pair frequency information

The ability to perceive sequences is fundamental to cognition. Previous studies have shown that infants can learn visual sequences as early as 2 months of age and it has been suggested that this ability is mediated by sensitivity to conditional probability information. Typically, conditional probability information has covaried with frequency information in these studies, raising the possibility that each type of information may have contributed independently to sequence learning. The current study explicitly investigated the independent contribution of each type of information. We habituated 2.5-, 4.5-, and 8.5-month-old infants to a sequence of looming visual shapes whose ordering was defined independently by specific conditional probability relations among pair elements and by the frequency of occurrence of such pairs. During test trials, we tested infants' sensitivity to each type of information and found that both types of information independently influenced sequence learning by 4.5 months of age.
Persistent primacy and the future of the American era

Arguments are widely expressed that America is in decline, both at home and abroad. These admonitions extend not only to economic, diplomatic and geopolitical realms, but even to the cultural arena. The United States does face real and even serious problems, but there is an unmistakable echo of the past in current arguments. Antecedents of these views were evident in the 1970s, ‘80s and ‘90s, and on occasion even in identical language. Indeed, declinist proclamations have appeared on and off not only throughout the 20th Century, but also during the 18th and 19th Centuries. Moreover, periodic crises in US history have included challenges more daunting than those of today. It can thus be instructive to compare the arguments and prescriptions of the new declinism with those of earlier eras. The evidence suggests a pattern of over-reaction, a historicism, and a lack of appreciation for the robustness, adaptability and staying power of the United States.
Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor increases stimulus-evoked dopamine release and motor speed in aged rhesus monkeys.

Changes in the functional dynamics of dopamine release and regulation in the basal ganglia have been posited to contribute to age-related slowing of motor functions. Here, we report the effects of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) on the stimulus-evoked release of dopamine and motor speed in aged monkeys (21–27 years of age; n = 10). Although no changes were observed in the vehicle controls ( n = 5), chronic infusions of 7.5 μg of GDNF per day for 2 months into the right lateral ventricle initially increased hand movement speed up to 40% on an automated hand-reach task. These effects were maintained for at least 2 months after replacing GDNF with vehicle, and increased up to another 10% after the reinstatement of GDNF treatment for 1 month. In addition, upper-limb motor performance times of the aged GDNF-treated animals ( n = 5) recorded at the end of the study were similar to those of five young adult monkeys (8–12 years of age). The stimulus-evoked release of dopamine was significantly increased, up to 130% in the right caudate nucleus and putamen and up to 116% in both the right and left substantia nigra of the aged GDNF recipients compared with vehicle controls. Also, basal extracellular levels of dopamine were bilaterally increased, up to 163% in the substantia nigra of the aged GDNF-treated animals. The data suggest that the effects of GDNF on the release of dopamine in the basal ganglia may be responsible for the improvements in motor functions and support the hypothesis that functional changes in dopamine release may contribute to motor dysfunctions characterizing senescence.
Time-dependent cosmological constant

Within the framework of the gauge covariant theory of gravitation it is showed that a time-dependent cosmological constant arises quite naturally as a result of Weyl conformai symmetry broken by quantum effects.
Phase I clinical study with pharmacokinetic analysis of 2-β-D-ribofuranosylthiazole-4-carboxamide (NSC 286193) administered as a five-day infusion

A Phase I trial of 2-β-d-ribofuranosylthiazole-4-carboxamide (NSC 286193, tiazofurin) was conducted using a 5-day continuous infusion schedule. Twenty-four patients with advanced cancer were entered on this trial. Dose levels ranged from 360 to 2350 mg/sq m/day for 5 days. Neurotoxicity was dose limiting and occurred in six patients. Neurotoxicity was expressed as confusion, lethargy, or obtundation and was associated with focal neurological deficits in four of six patients: hemiparesis, three; cortical blindness and bilateral upper extremity weakness, one. Neurotoxicity was not clearly dose related, occurring at 900 mg/sq m/day for 5 days (two patients), 1100 mg/sq m/day for 5 days (two patients), 1850 mg/sq m/day for 5 days, and 2350 mg/sq m/day for 5 days (one patient each). Other toxicities seen were myelosuppression, desquamation of palms and soles, malar erythema, and hyperpigmentation, stomatitis, chest pain, drug fever, and increased serum creatine phosphokinase. Administered drug [71.5 ± 11.2% (SE)] was recovered intact in the urine within 24 h of administration. Terminal-phase mean harmonic half-life was 8.0 h. The unpredictable neurotoxicity seen following continuous infusion therapy with tiazofurin suggests that Phase II trials of this schedule are not indicated until better understanding of the biochemical effects of tiazofuring is achieved.
Isolation gowns in health care settings: Laboratory studies, regulations and standards, and potential barriers of gown selection and use

Although they play an important role in infection prevention and control, textile materials and personal protective equipment (PPE) used in health care settings are known to be one of the sources of cross-infection. Gowns are recommended to prevent transmission of infectious diseases in certain settings; however, laboratory and field studies have produced mixed results of their efficacy. PPE used in health care is regulated as either class I (low risk) or class II (intermediate risk) devices in the United States. Many organizations have published guidelines for the use of PPE, including isolation gowns, in health care settings. In addition, the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation published a guidance document on the selection of gowns and a classification standard on liquid barrier performance for both surgical and isolation gowns. However, there is currently no existing standard specific to isolation gowns that considers not only the barrier resistance but also a wide array of end user desired attributes. As a result, infection preventionists and purchasing agents face several difficulties in the selection process, and end users have limited or no information on the levels of protection provided by isolation gowns. Lack of knowledge about the performance of protective clothing used in health care became more apparent during the 2014 Ebola epidemic. This article reviews laboratory studies, regulations, guidelines and standards pertaining to isolation gowns, characterization problems, and other potential barriers of isolation gown selection and use.
Light Guide Concentrating Photovoltaics System

Optical systems with microlenses, a guiding material and micro air prisms with “air bypass” prisms have been designed and fabricated. Optical efficiencies greater than 72% with 55x concentration have been tested.
Inactivation of quercetin mutagenicity

Combinations of oxygen and alkaline pH were found to inactivate irreversibly the mutagenicity of quercetin towards Salmonella typhimurium strain TA98. Exposure time, quercetin concentration and polyphenol oxidase were also important variables determining the extent of quercetin inactivation. Temperature had a relatively weak influence on the extent of inactivation. The metal salts, ferrous, ferric and copper sulphates also brought about inactivation but this effect was partially reversed when the pH of the incubation medium was reduced from 7 to 2. Ferric sulphate had a much smaller effect than did the ferrous salt except in the presence of tyrosinase and oxygen at pH 7. Zinc sulphate impaired quercetin mutagenicity only very slightly in the presence of tyrosinase and oxygen. When an oxygen-saturated solution of quercetin was exposed to tyrosinase at various pH values, the ultraviolet absorption maximum of quercetin near 370 nm decreased to an extent that correlated with the mutagenicity of quercetin under those conditions.
Cellular Basis for the Negative Dromotropic Effect of Adenosine on Rabbit Single Atrioventricular Nodal Cells

The effects of adenosine on action potentials, rate-dependent activation failure (the cellular basis for second-degree atrioventricular [AV] block), and the recovery of excitability in rabbit isolated single AV nodal cells were studied using the whole-cell patch-clamp technique. Adenosine (1 micromol/L) shortened the duration, depressed the amplitude, and reduced the rate of rise of the AV nodal cell action potential. Adenosine (10 micromol/L) caused a significant hyperpolarization (7 +/- 1 mV) of AV nodal cells. Adenosine increased the occurrence and the rate dependence of activation failure (Wenckebach periodicity) of AV nodal cells: this effect was concentration dependent and mediated by A1 adenosine receptors. The rate-dependent activation failure caused by adenosine was associated with a prolongation of the effective refractory period by 18 +/- 2 ms (P < .05), an increase in the duration of activation delay, and an elevation (from 0.22 +/- 0.04 to 0.30 +/- 0.03 nA, P < .05) of the threshold current amplitude required to activate AV nodal cells. The results suggest that the slowed recovery of excitability of AV nodal cells caused by adenosine forms the cellular basis for adenosine-induced second-degree AV block. Adenosine decreased ICa,L and activated IK,ADO of AV nodal cells. These actions of adenosine on ion currents may contribute to the effect of this nucleoside to depress excitability of AV nodal cells. The enhancement by adenosine of rate-dependent activation failure of AV nodal cells implies that the negative dromotropic effect of adenosine should be more pronounced during an episode of supraventricular tachycardia than during normal rhythm.
The rate of metmyoglobin formation in beef, pork, and turkey meat as influenced by pH, sodium chloride, and sodium tripolyphosphate.

Abstract This study investigated the effects of pH (5·5 to 7·0), sodium chloride concentration (0·0–3·0%), and sodium tripolyphosphate concentration (0·0 and 0·5%) on the rate of metmyoglobin formation in ground beef, pork and turkey meat during refrigerated storage. Increasing the sodium chloride concentration produced a progressive increase in the rate of metmyoglobin formation in ground beef. Increasing the pH between pH 5·5 and 6·5 had no effect on the rate of metmyoglobin formation with ground beef and turkey meat, but produced a marked decrease between pH 6·5 and 7·0. In contrast pH had no consistent effect on the rate of metmyoglobin formation of ground pork and the rate of formation remained low at all pH levels. When ground beef contained 0·5% sodium tripolyphosphate, the effect of pH was reversed and the rate of metmyoglobin formation was lowest at pH 5·5, increased as the pH increased to 6·5 and then plateaued.
196Hg and202Hg isotopic ratios in chondrites: revisited

Additional evidence for an isotopically anomalous Hg fraction in unequilibrated meteorites has been obtained using neutron activation to produce196Hg and202Hg followed by stepwise heating to extract the Hg. In the latest experiments Allende matrix samples released the anomalous Hg but various high-temperature inclusions did not. Nucleogenetic processes are suggested as the probable cause of the anomaly.
Membrane Mediated Attraction and Ordered Aggregation of Colloidal Particles Bound to Giant Phospholipid Vesicles

We report a light microscopy study of interactions between colloidal particles either chemically bound or physisorbed onto flexible giant vesicle fluid membranes. The particles induce pinched shape deformations of the membrane and are driven to negative curvature regions on nonspherical vesicles. The membrane distortions were found to induce interparticle attraction with a range approximately equal to the particle diameter. Multiple particles decorating fluid membranes aggregate into finitesized two-dimensional close packed aggregates or, unexpectedly, one-dimensional ringlike aggregates. [S0031-9007(99)08522-1] PACS numbers: 87.16. ‐ b, 64.60.Cn, 68.10.Et, 83.70.Hq Lipid bilayer membranes provide a unique structural environment for integral and peripheral membrane proteins [1]. Macromolecules or nanoparticles may be embedded or attached to membranes, while they are free to diffuse laterally. The physical forces that act between such membrane inclusions are believed to play an important role in the aggregation behavior of some naturally occurring transmembrane proteins. For example, gap junctions consist of ordered protein channel arrays which allow intercellular molecular transport, and bacteriorhodopsin forms hexagonal crystals within the archaebacterial membrane. Aside from the protein-specific short-range interactions, recent theoretical work has suggested that membrane mediated forces should be important. These may be caused by a spontaneous splay deformation of the lipid bilayer [2], by a thickness mismatch of the hydrophobic transmembrane protein part and the lipid bilayer chain length [3], or by variation of the local lipid composition [4]. Recently, it has been pointed out that thermal membrane shape fluctuations can cause long-range attractive interactions between rigid inclusions [5]. However, there are few experimental data available that allow measurements of the membrane mediated interactions between inclusions or absorbed proteins. Membrane inclusions can be mimicked in model experiments by microscopic colloidal particles bound to lipid membranes. Because of their extreme softness, giant unilamellar lipid vesicles are sensitive transducers for membrane interactions. Recent optical microscopy studies on giant vesicles allowed close comparison of their observed shapes with theoretical predictions derived from elastic continuum models [6], providing a good understanding of the “ground state” vesicles with no inclusions. Here, we directly demonstrate that both chemically attached and electrostatically physisorbed particles can cause elastic deformations of flexible giant vesicles and experience membrane mediated attraction.
Structural Characterization of Molecular Beam Epitaxy Grown GaInNAs and GaInNAsSb Quantum Wells by Transmission Electron Microscopy

In the past decade, the quaternary GaInNAs alloy has emerged as a very promising material for lasers in the 1.2-1.6 μm range with application in telecommunication fiber-optic networks. While most of the challenges in growing high quality laser material with emission wavelength out to 1.3 μm have been successfully resolved, extending the emission beyond 1.3 μm has proven to be quite difficult. Achieving emission out to 1.5 μm requires higher In (up to 40%) and N (up to 2%) compositions. This makes the growth of this thermodynamically unstable alloy quite difficult with phase segregation occurring even at lower growth temperatures. Recently, adding small amounts of antimony has dramatically improved the quality of the material and high luminescence has been demonstrated at wavelengths beyond 1.5 μm. In this study, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) was used in a novel way in conjunction with dark-field (DF) TEM to elucidate the role of antimony in improving the material quality. The results show that antimony improves the material uniformity via reduction of the local compositional fluctuations of indium.
Luteinizing response to human chorionic gonadotropin does not predict outcome in gonadotropin releasing hormone agonist-suppressed/human menopausal gonadotropin-stimulated in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles.

The purpose of this study was to determine if early luteinizing potential in gonadotropin releasing hormone agonist (GnRH-a)-suppressed/human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG)-stimulated IVF cycles is predictive of cycle outcome.
STRUCTURAL FIELD TESTING OF FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT LAYERS WITH SEISMIC METHODS FOR QUALITY CONTROL

Current mechanistic procedures for structural design of flexible pavements consider the modulus and Poisson's ratio of each layer. Unfortunately, the construction specifications are not based on these engineering properties. The acceptance criteria typically are based on adequate density of the placed and compacted materials. To successfully implement any mechanistic pavement design procedure, and to move toward performance-based specifications, it is essential to develop tools that can measure the modulus and Poisson's ratio of each layer. Presented is an approach to such a program based on seismic testing. Field protocols and test equipment, which in a rational manner combine the results from laboratory and field tests with those used for quality control during construction, are discussed. A series of simplified laboratory tests that are compatible with the field tests also can be used; these methods are discussed. Several case studies are included to present some results that can be obtained with the methodology. Several issues that remain to be addressed are included.