cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Resist deposition without spinning by using novel inkjet technology and direct lithography for MEMS

This article presents a technique for resist deposition using a novel fluid ejection method. An ejector has been developed to deposit photoresist on silicon wafers without spinning. Drop-on-demand coating of the wafer reduces waste and the cost of coating wafers. The novel piezoelectric fluid ejector is based on a variation of the design of a flextensional transducer that excites axisymmetric resonant modes in a clamped circular membrane. The ejector is made by bonding a thin piezoelectric ring to a thin, fully supported, circular membrane. The ejector design is optimized for maximum flexure at the lowest order resonant frequency using finite element modeling. The resist is placed behind one face of the membrane which has a small orifice (50 - 150 micrometers diameter) in its center. By applying an ac signal across the piezoelectric element, continuous or drop-on-demand ejection of the resist is achieved. Shipley 1400-21, 1400-27, 1805, and 1813 resists were used to coat sample 3' wafers. Later, these wafers were exposed and developed. The deposited resist films was 3.5 micrometers thick and had a surface roughness of about 0.2 micrometers . The ultimate goal is to deposit resist films with a thickness of the order of 0.5 micrometers , and a surface roughness of the order of 30 A o . Such goals can be attained by using micromachined multiple ejectors presently under development, or with better control over the deposition environment. In the micromachined configuration, thousands of ejectors will be made into a silicon die and thus allow for full coating of a wafer in a few seconds. Coating in a clean environment will allow the lithography of circuits for microelectronic applications.
Immunocytochemical localization of sphingolipid activator protein-1, the sulfatide/GM1 ganglioside activator, to lysosomes in human liver and colon

Sphingolipid activator proteins (SAP) stimulate the enzymatic hydrolysis of sphingolipids. The results of biochemical studies have suggested that SAP are located within lysosomes. In this study we sought immunocytochemical verification of the lysosomal location of SAP-1, a SAP that stimulates the hydrolysis of sulfatide and GM1 ganglioside. We stained adjacent sections of normal adult liver and colon for either SAP-1, by peroxidase-labeled antibodies, or acid phosphatase, by enzyme histochemistry. At the light microscopic level, SAP-1 and acid phosphatase were present in similar cells of the colonic lamina propria and hepatic sinusoids, and in similar supranuclear sites of colonic epithelial cells. By electron microscopy, SAP-1 was present in vesicular structures morphologically similar to those containing acid phosphatase. Thus, SAP-1 is present in lysosomes of several different kinds of cells in the normal human liver and colon.
Population Anisotropy in Area MT Explains a Perceptual Difference Between Near and Far Disparity Motion Segmentation

Segmentation of the visual scene into relevant object components is a fundamental process for successfully interacting with our surroundings. Many visual cues, including motion and binocular dispar...
Temperature dependence of scattering in the inversion layer

Abstract Electron mobility has been measured in the silicon inversion layers of devices whose gate oxides were deliberately contaminated with Na+ ions. The mobility was measured as a function of inversion layer carrier density (1.0 × 1012 ⩽ NINV ⩽ 1.2 × 1013 cm−2), interfacial Na+ ion density (8.3 × 1010 ⩽ NOX ⩽ 2.02 × 1012 cm−2), substrate bias voltage (−15 ⩽ Vsub ⩽ +0.5 V) and temperature (4.2 ⩽ T ⩽ 80 K). From the data it is possible to separate the contributions to the mobility arising from ionized impurity scattering, surface roughness scattering and phonon scattering. The surface roughness scattering was found to be independent of temperature. The ionized impurity scattering was found to have components due to both single and multiple scattering processes, each of which were temperature dependent. Below 32 K there was no measureable phonon scattering.
In Search of Woodrow Wilson: Beliefs and Behavior

Years of Preparation Academic Apprenticeship Princeton Professor President of Princeton Entrance Into Politics Political Power Broker Modern Mediator The Nobility of War Mobilizing for War Crisis and Control Stewardship and National Interests: Wilson Goes to the Peace Conference Stewardship and National Interests: Wilson and the League Stewardship and National Interests: Procedural Problems, Publicity, Pacifying Germany, Placating Clemenceau, Preliminary Peace Terms, Perils of Bolshevism Nationalism and Stewardship Compromise and United States Decision The Quest for Hegemony Nationalism Return The Western Speaking Tour: Eighteenth Century Values in the Twentieth Century From Stroke to Frustrated Candidate: Ambition and the Common good Depression, Determination, Disinterestedness, Demise Bibliography Index
Biases in the Perception and Cognition of the Actions of Enemies

Several studies have demonstrated that once people perceive an individual or group as hostile or threatening, i.e., as an “enemy,” biases enter their processing of information in regard to the actions of that individual or group. These biases may affect any phase of social information processing, including attention, encoding, memory, assessment of credibility, evaluation of hostility, expectation of future action, and attribution. In this paper, we use data from published reports as well as previously unpublished studies to demonstrate that such biases affect how individual citizens of the United States and the U.S. media process information regarding the actions of the Soviet Union. This bias reinforces and exaggerates the U.S. enemy image of the Soviet Union.
Impact of an online analytic skills course.

This article describes the effect of an online analytic skills training course on professional development and practice and discusses recommendations for using this training modality in the public health workforce. The Enhancing Data Utilization Skills Through Information Technology initiative trained professionals in maternal and child health from 13 Southerntier state and local health departments to collect, analyze, and interpret data via a yearlong Web-based course. The evaluation of this initiative was based on a model of change for health professionals that holds that training influences behavior by increasing knowledge, influencing beliefs related to the behavior, enhancing self-efficacy, and improving skills. Participants’ knowledge, beliefs, and selfefficacy all increased significantly during the course. Participants’ self-assessed skill levels increased significantly for each of 12 selected skills and overall for all skills combined. Distance learning is potentially an effective means for professionals to advance their skills while continuing to fulfill their work-related responsibilities.
Opioid modulation of attention-related responses: peripheral-to-central progression and development of mu influence as learning occurs.

Endogenous opioids modulate attention-related bradycardiac responses evoked by novel stimuli and Pavlovian conditioned signals, and these effects are distinct from those of endogenous opioids on memory. We investigated the role of peripheral opioid receptors in modulating attention and Pavlovian learning, in rabbits tested for bradycardiac orienting responses to novel tones, and for Pavlovian conditioning and extinction of cardiac discrimination. Pretraining, IV treatment with the opiate antagonist naloxone-HCl (0.1–0.5 mg/kg) facilitated initial development of Pavlovian conditioned discrimination and delayed its later extinction, compared to saline vehicle, as previously observed. Pretraining treatment with its peripherally acting analog, quaternary naloxone-methiodide (1.29–6.47 mg/kg), also promoted initial development, but not extinction, of discrimination, and it reduced the magnitude of bradycardiac orienting responses and of tachycardiac unconditioned responses. Treatment with the selective μ-antagonist peptide CTOP (10–30 μg/kg) facilitated conditioned responses and reduced unconditioned responses, somewhat later during training, but it did not reliably affect extinction or orienting responses. These results confirm an important role of peripheral opioids in regulating attentional and associative functions involved in orienting and the earliest stage of Pavlovian learning, prior to development of central opioid regulation of later associative, hedonic and mnemonic functions. These findings also suggest that cardiovascular opioid receptors might mediate peripheral opioid influences on attention and early association formation, via modulation of cardiac responses to stimuli and autonomic sensory feedback to the brain.
High-performance liquid chromatography-based protease detection at the picogram level

Highly sensitive detection of proteolytic activity canbe achieved by means of ﬂuorophore-tagged artiﬁcialsubstrates. Protease-catalyzed cleavage of the substrateleads to a quantitative release of an uncoupled ﬂuoro-phore and a corresponding increase in ﬂuorescence [1–7]. Typically, the protease/substrate mixture in an assaybuﬀer solution is incubated at 25–37 C with ﬂuores-cence intensity of the reaction product measured in asuitable ﬂuorometer. The procedure, however, can be-come quite tedious when protease detection requires alarge number of samples and prolonged incubation time.In addition, the ﬂuorescent intensity parameter alonemay not be signiﬁcant enough to provide statisticallyvalid and reproducible data in the lower, close to thebackground, detection range.In this report we describe a new procedure for pro-tease detection utilizing a semiautomated, HPLC-basedtechnique.Trypsinservedasamodelproteolyticenzyme.The rhodamine-conjugated substrate was chosen for itsstability, low ﬂuorescence background, and high sensi-tivity[5,6].Thedevelopedprocedurerequiredonlyabout5min per analysis and minimal labor and allowed de-tection ofa protease concentration at the picogram level.Reagents and solvents were of the highest availablepurity. The rhodamine 110, bis-(Cbz)-
The Effects of Early Childhood Education Student Teaching on Program Preference, Beliefs, and Behaviors

AbstractFour theoreticaliy-based early childhood education programs were studied to determine their effects on student teachers training in each program. Fifty-five beginning and 25 advanced level undergraduate female student teachers were assigned for their practicum to one of the four university-sponsored preschool programs. Beliefs and preferences of these student teachers were assessed at the beginning and at the completion of the practicum. Behavioral observations were made in each of the four programs during the last four weeks of the practicum. Analyses of the data suggested that preferences and behaviors did change in favor of the particular program to which the student teacher was assigned. Beliefs in the instructional implications of two of the theoretical models were also observed to change. The implications of these findings for teacher training programs are discussed.
The case of the submaximal minors: A finishing touch

Let F,, and G, be any two finitely generated free modules over the commutative ring R,, of ranks m and n, respectively (m 2 n, say). Let R denote the symmetric algebra S,,,(F,,@G,); R is a polynomial ring R,[X,] with 1 6 i < m, 1 <j < n. Each X, corresponds to fi@gj, where {j;} and {g,} denote bases of F, and G,, respectively. Take the modules F = R 0 R,, F, and G = R OR0 G,, finitely generated and free over R, and let {h} and { gj} also denote, by abuse of notation, the obvious R-bases of F and G. A distinguished element in Hom,(FO G, R) is the map cp defined by cp(fi@g,) = X,. Let q also denote the corresponding map G + F* obtained via the canonical isomorphism
Oxygen isotope constraints on the petrogenesis of volcanic arc magmas from Martinique, Lesser Antilles

Abstract Volcanic rocks from the island of Martinique in the Lesser Antilles island arc are highly diverse isotopically. Values of δ18O (‰ SMOW) in lavas erupted over the last 5 Ma from five stratigraphically discrete and geochemically distinct volcanic centers are: Morne Jacob= +7.5to+7.9‰;Pitons du Carbet= +8.0to+8.9‰;Diamant= +6.3to+7.4‰;Piton Mt. Conil, +7.2to+7.3‰, andMt. Pelee= +6.5to+7.4‰. 13 of the 27 samples have been corrected for variable amounts of secondary alteration and low-temperature hydration. The least18O-rich andesites on Martinique have δ18O values similar to those of the northern Lesser Antilles (δ18O = +6.0 to +7.3‰) and other intra-oceanic arcs like the Marianas (δ18O = +5.5 to +6.8‰). O-isotope ratios are compositionally dependent; correlations between δ18O and radiogenic isotope ratios (87Sr/86Sr, 143Nd/144Nd, 206Pb/204Pb) and indices of fractionation, show that modification of isotopic compositions occurred during magmatic differentiation rather than at source. A two-stage model is proposed for the origin and differentiation of magmas on Martinique. Primary basaltic melts, which are broadly similar in composition to primitive island-arc magmas elsewhere (e.g. Marianas, Aleutians, South Sandwich Islands), are generated from the subduction-modified asthenospheric mantle wedge. These magmas ascend into the arc crust and differentiate. On Martinique, crystal fractionation is accompanied by contamination with isotopically distinct crust, including a component of terrigenous sediments. Thus, subduction-zone processes at the Lesser Antilles and other island arcs are similar, involving only a small (albeit significant isotopically) volumetric contribution from subducted sediment.
A selection-migration model in population genetics

We consider a model with two types of genes (alleles) A1 A2. The population lives in a bounded habitat R, contained in r-dimensional space (r= 1, 2, 3). Let u (t, x) denote the frequency of A1 at time t and place x ɛ R. Then u (t, x) is assumed to obey a nonlinear parabolic partial differential equation, describing the effects of population dispersal within R and selective advantages among the three possible genotypes A1A1, A1A2, A2A2. It is assumed that the selection coefficients vary over R, so that a selective advantage at some points x becomes a disadvantage at others. The results concern the existence, stability properties, and bifurcation phenomena for equilibrium solutions.
Robust and adaptive boundary control of a stretched string

Suppression of vibration is an important engineering problem. In this paper, control problem of a flexible system that includes a stretched string supported on a transporter is defined and solved. Such a system may be encountered in device manufacturing and process automation. Robust and adaptive control is designed to damp out transverse oscillation of the string via compensating for possible uncertainties in string dynamics and transporter motion. Standard robust control design based on a straightforward Lyapunov argument commonly seen in control design for rigid-body systems is extended to the flexible system. Asymptotically/exponentially and robustly stabilizing controls are found.
Induction of Micronuclei in Human TK6 Lymphoblasts by 2‐Dodecylcyclobutanone, a Unique Radiolytic Product of Palmitic Acid

Palmitic acid, the most abundant fatty acid in the human diet, causes oxidative DNA damage, DNA strand breakage, necrosis, and apoptosis in human and rodent cells in vitro, while excess fatty acids in the diet increase the risk of colon cancer in vivo. Irradiation of palmitic acid leads to the formation of 2-dodecylcyclobutanone (2-DCB), a unique radiolytic product formed at part-per-million levels in fats. Recent research has raised the possibility that, like palmitic acid, 2-DCB can also cause DNA strand breaks in human and rodent cells. In order to more fully understand the clastogenic potential of 2-DCB, it was tested for the ability to induce the formation of micronuclei (MN) in human TK6 lymphoblasts. TK6 lymphoblasts were exposed to 13.3, 26.5, and 53 μM of 2-DCB for 24 h, both with and without exogenous metabolic activation (EMA). The number of MN per 1000 binucleated cells was induced 2.65-fold without EMA, and 2.85-fold in the presence of EMA at the highest 2-DCB concentration of 53 μM. Cytotoxicity of the TK6 lymphoblasts treated with 53 μM 2-DCB was 51.7% in the absence of EMA, and 61.7% in the presence of EMA. Thus, like palmitic acid, 2-DCB may be weakly clastogenic against human cells in vitro. Given the amount of 2-DCB that would be consumed when compared with that of its clastogenic parent fatty acid, 2-DCB is unlikely to have any significant impact on human health.
Two- and Three-Dimensional Mixed-Valence Cu(I)–Cu(II) Coordination Polymers: Syntheses and Characterization of α-, β-[Cu2X(C5H3N2O2)2(H2O)] (X=Cl, Br)

Abstract Novel mixed valence compounds with the formula α-[Cu2X(C5H3N2O2)2(H2O)]n [X=Cl(1), Br(3), C5H3N2O2=2-pyrazinecarboxylate] and their isomers β-[Cu2X(C5H3N2O2)2 (H2O)]n [X=Cl(2), Br(4)] have been synthesized and structurally characterized. Crystal data: 1, orthorhombic, Pbca, a=12.8040(7), b=7.7323(4), c=26.104(1) A, V=2584.4(2) A3, Z=8, R1=0.0559; 2, triclinic, P 1 , a=6.1908(7), b=7.7246(8), c=13.968(2) A, α=78.853(2), β=81.455(2), γ=78.036(2)°, V=637.0(1) A3, Z=2, R1=0.0592; 3, orthorhombic, Pbca, a=12.7082(6), b=7.7676(4), c=26.1548(12) A, V=2581.8(2) A3, Z=8, R1=0.0257; 4, triclinic, P 1 , a=6.2462(5), b=7.7568(6), c=14.1121(10) A, α=78.082(1), β=81.702(1), γ=79.096(1)°, V=652.97(9) A3, Z=2, R1=0.0290. The α-isomers 1 and 3 have two-dimensional layer structures which are composed of mixed valence chains of [CuICuII(C5H3N2O2)2(H2O)] and chains of corner-sharing {CuIN2X2} tetrahedra. The β-isomers 2 and 4, however, have three-dimensional structures with the [CuICuII(C5H3N2O2)2] chains interconnected by an alternative arrangement of {CuIIN2O4} octahedra, {CuIN2OX} tetrahedra and {CuIIN2O2X2} octahedra. The spectroscopic and magnetic properties have been investigated.
The logic of functional explanations

Little has been achieved in the way of providing a satisfactory analysis of functional explanations in biology and the social sciences. Hempel has demonstrated the impossibility of straightforward translation of functional statements in terms of regularity, or contrary to fact conditional statements. To cite his own example, it may be known both that the circulation of blood and the emission of noise are causally related to the pumping action of the heart, that neither effect would occur if the heart failed to pump and both effects, perhaps, may be satisfactorily explained by appeal to covering laws. Yet the biologist, though willing to assert that among other things, the heart functions to circulate blood, is disinclined to state that the heart functions to emit noise.l There are other problems that make difficult the identification of functional statements with statements of causally necessary conditions. Natural hearts may be replaced by artificial devices, thereby blocking such claims as the presence of a heart is a necessary condition for blood circulation. The same set of problems a fortiori afflict the analysis of functional discourse in the social sciences. For often, if not always, the existence of social structures have consequences which serve no apparent function. Thus, a consequence of industrialization may be air pollution or urban population concentration may result in a growing crime rate. And even when it is claimed that functions can be identified as when it is claimed that the function of religious ritual is the enhancement of feelings of group cohesiveness, functional equivalents
A Nonresonant Self-Synchronizing Inductively Coupled 0.18- $\mu $ m CMOS Power Receiver and Charger

While the functionality of emerging wireless microsensors, cellular phones, and biomedical implants, to name a few, is on the rise, their dimensions continue to shrink. This is unfortunate because smaller batteries exhaust quicker. Not surprisingly, recharging batteries wirelessly is becoming increasingly popular today. Still, small pickup coils cannot harness much, so induced EMF voltages ${\textit{v}}_{_{\rm EMF.S}}$ are low. Modern receivers can resonate these low input voltages to rectifiable levels, but only with a finely tuned capacitor that resonates at megahertz when on-chip and at kilohertz when off-chip. In other words, resonant rectifiers are sensitive to frequency and dissipate considerable switching power when integrated on-chip. Unluckily, excluding the resonant capacitor requires a control signal that synchronizes switching events to the transmitter’s operating frequency. The 0.18- $\mu $ m CMOS prototype presented here derives this synchronizing signal from the coupled ${\textit{v}}_{_{\rm EMF.S}}$ by counting the number of pulses of a higher-frequency clock across a half cycle during a calibration phase and using that number to forecast half-cycle crossings. This way, the prototyped IC switches every half cycle to draw up to 557 $\mu $ W from 46.6 to 585-mV $_{\rm PK}$ signals with 38%–84% efficiency across 1.0–5.0 cm.
Hydrodynamic pressure on an accelerating dam and criteria for cavitation

The effect of finite reservoir on the hydrodynamic pressure due to horizontal as well as vertical ground excitations has been studied. It is found that for horizontal accelerations the hydrodynamic pressure force decreases as the size of the reservoir decreases. The effect of vertical acceleration on the pressure force on a dam is simply to adjust the hydrostatic pressure by replacing the gravitational constant by an effective gravitational acceleration and this is true for any arbitrary shapes of the reservoir. A simple criterion has been presented in this paper which would enable dam engineers to determine whether a given earthquake could cause cavitation at the dam-water interface or not.
A framework for collaborative and distributed web-based design

The increasing complexity and geographical separation of design data, tools and teams has created a need for a collaborative and distributed design environment. In this paper we present a framework that enables collaborative and distributed Web-based CAD, in which the designers can collaborate on a design and efficiently utilize existing design tools on the Internet. The framework includes a Java-based hierarchical collaborative schematic/block editor with interfaces to distributed Web tools and cell libraries, infrastructure to store and manipulate design objects, and protocols for tool communication, message passing and collaboration.
Understanding persistent poverty : Social class context in rural communities

Abstract Urban and rural poverty researchers have been paying increased attention to the social context in which the poor are embedded. This paper argues that the scale, familiarity among social actors, and relatively bounded nature of poor rural communities offer unique advantages for understanding why poverty persists across generations in the same places. Rural sociologists can observe the social interaction associated with particular class and race relations, track the evolution of these patterns over time, and uncover the process through which the social class context perpetuates poverty and underdevelopment. Studies of poverty in rural Texas, rural Mississippi, and Appalachia are reviewed to illustrate how political economies that rely on low wages and extreme control over labor generate rigid stratification. This structure of inequality determines social interaction and the allocation of opportunities in rural communities, blocking upward mobility, and undermines investment and trust in social institutions, blocking development.
Exploring the Value of MBA Degrees: Students' Experiences in Full-Time, Part-Time, and Executive MBA Programs.

Critics of the overall value of the MBA have not systematically considered the attitudes of MBA students about the value of their degree. The author used data from a large sample of graduates (N = 16,268) to do so, and to explore predictors of overall degree value. The author developed separate regression models for full-time, part-time, and executive MBA programs. The predictor variables are multi-item scales that measure (a) satisfaction with the MBA degree, and (b) satisfaction with the school or program. Each scale contributes significantly to the prediction of overall value, and there is little difference in their relative importance in the regression models.
TU‐G‐BRB‐01: Investigation of Dose Perturbations and Radiographic Visibility of Potential Fiducials for Proton Radiation Therapy of the Prostate

Purpose: To identify fiducial markers that are good candidates for use in proton therapy of the prostate by evaluating each marker based on three criteria: radiographicvisibility on kV portal images, minimal perturbation of therapeuticdose in a clinical proton beam (<=10% near the middle of the SOBP and <=15% near the end of range), and no streak artifact production in CT treatment planning images. Methods: Twelve total fiducials, one that is routinely used at our institution and eleven prototype, non‐commercially available markers, were evaluated. The radiographicvisibility of each marker was verified by acquiring kV plane radiographicimages of the fiducials in a pelvic RANDO® phantom using an on‐board imager (OBI) kV imaging system. CTimages of the pelvic phantom containing the markers were also acquired and analyzed in order to quantify the CT streak artifacts caused by each marker. To measure the dose perturbations caused by each fiducial, the fiducials were loaded into a PMMA phantom along with radiochromic film and irradiated using a clinical proton beam (225 MeV, 10 cm SOBP). Measurements were taken with the fiducials located at the middle of the SOBP as well as near the end of range. Results: Five prototype fiducials along with the clinical fiducial, met our criteria for clinically acceptable fiducials markers; all of the passing markers were composed of carbon‐coated ZrO2. Conclusions: This work indicates that carbon‐coated ZrO2 is a judicious choice for fiducial markers in proton therapy because this material represents a good compromise between two conflicting requirements, radiographicvisibility and minimal dose perturbations. Furthermore, several general recommendations can be extracted from this study (mid‐Z material, minimize mass thickness while maintaining good radiographicvisibility) that can be applied to the design of more exotic fiducials as well as novel applications of fiducial markers in radiation therapy.
Moving evidence-based interventions to populations: a case study using social workers in primary care

This article describes a study to expand a proven evidence- based practice for depression to a population-based intervention for frail older adults. Problem-Solving Therapy (PST) has been proven effective in reducing depression and other mental health conditions in cognitively intact adults in many studies. The current study employs a randomized controlled trial to test the effectiveness of a social work intervention for frail older adults that uses PST to address depression and other psychosocial issues. The intervention employs Master's trained social workers integrated into a large primary care practice. The study population is comprised of home-dwelling older adults with multiple chronic conditions, a recent history of unnecessary hospitalizations, and no more than mild cognitive impairment.
Determination of a Relationship Between Force-Displacement and Force-Time Compression Curves

A series of experiments were conducted to evaluate and compare force-displacement and force-time compression curves. A Stokes B-2 sixteen station rotary tablet press was instrumented with piezoelec...
Teaching about Islam and women: on pedagogy and the personal

Some years after I began offering ‘Understanding Islam: religion and politics,’ at Ithaca College, I had an opportunity to take part in a roundtable discussion on the challenges of teaching such a ...
Intelligence at the Low End of the Curve: Where Are the Racial Differences?

Countless studies have pointed to the fact that Black- Americans score approximately one standard deviation be low White-Americans, as groups, on standardized tests of intelligence. Certain interpretations of this oft recorded dif ference suggest that the Black race is inherently inferior, genetically, on this dimension of human performance. If this argument were correct, we could expect to see proportion ately more Blacks identified as mentally retarded than Whites (in relation to their total population). This study analyzed data on Black and White population figures for (1) total populations in three Western states and (2) mentally retarded populations in those same states. The results do not uphold the genetic-based assumptions. There was (1) no significant difference between the percentage of Blacks in the total population and the percentage of Blacks in the mentally retarded sample; (2) no difference between the percentage of Whites in the total population and the percen tage of Whites in the mentall...
Familial Heterogeneity in Infantile Autism.

The incidence of autism and cognitive disability was assessed in the biological siblings of 29 autistic probands subdivided on the basis of IQ. A significant clustering of autism and nonspecific intellectual retardation was found in the siblings of severely retarded autistic probands which was not present in the siblings of our higherfunctioning autistic sample. These findings suggest that there may be etiological differences in autism, depending on the degree of associated mental retardation.
Hormonal control of diabetes type 2 after surgery: Clinical and experimental evaluation

Diabetes mellitus (DM) type 2 now afflicts over 170 million people worldwide, a number expected to surpass 220 million by 2010. DM and its associated complications is a significant burden to public health care funding. In 2007, $US174 billion was spent in the United States, according to the American Diabetic Society. The morbidly obese have high serum leptin and insulin levels and low ghrelin levels, which have been associated with altered satiety. Exercise, medical therapy and dieting usually do not result in long-term weight loss or euglycemia. Bariatric surgery yields euglycemia for many patients, but its mechanism has yet to be fully elucidated. Our preliminary studies showed resolution of DM after both gastric bypass (GBP) and sleeve gastrectomy (SG), more so than after gastric banding. GBP significantly reduces ghrelin levels in the morbidly obese, perhaps as a result of exhausting ghrelin production in the stomach. A reduction in serum ghrelin levels would be expected after SG, which extirpates the ghrelin-producing cells by removing the fundus. This question has not, to our knowledge, been fully explored with regard to the relationship between ghrelin and other hormones.
A Randomized Parallel Algorithm for Single-Source Shortest Paths

We give a randomized parallel algorithm for computing single-source shortest paths in weighted digraphs. We show that the exact shortest-path problem can be efficiently reduced to solving a series of approximate shortest-path subproblems. Our algorithm for the approximate shortest-path problem is based on the technique used by Ullman and Yannakakis in a parallel algorithm for breadth-first search.
FROM TEXAS TO ZHEJIANG: THE INTELLECTUAL JOURNEY OF A CHINA SCHOLAR—AN INTERVIEW WITH R. KEITH SCHOPPA

AbstractRobert Keith Schoppa was educated at Valparaiso University and the University of Hawaii. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in 1975, where he studied with Albert Feuerwerker and Ernest Young. The bulk of his research has been on China in the twentieth and nineteenth centuries, with a particular focus on Zhejiang province. While most of his work has related to the great issues of Modern China, he has always been interested in the relationships between grand narratives and particular topics. He has published studies that deal with the daily plight of wartime refugees (Sea of Bitterness), the effect of centuries of change on a particular region (Song Full of Tears) and the choices and fate of a single reformer and politician. The last of these, Blood Road: The Mystery of Shen Dingyi in Revolutionary China, was awarded the Association for Asian Studies’ Joseph Levenson prize as the best book on post-1900 Chinese history in 1997. Professor Schoppa has also published reference works, ...
Restoration of elbow flexion by pectoralis major and pectoralis minor transfer.

Loss of active elbow flexion most commonly results from brachial plexus injury and from generalized muscle dysfunction as seen in arthgryposis or poliomyelitis. Restoration of the function of elbow flexion in the paralytic limb has been previously described by other authors. Elbow flexion, utilizing both pectoralis major and minor muscles, has been restored in four patients. Loss of elbow flexion in all these patients was the result of brachial plexus injury. Preoperative grading of muscle strength and range of motion of all upper extremity muscles were recorded in each patient. No significant active flexion was present preoperatively in any of the patients. The principles of the operative technique are simple. The dissection of the pectoralis major and minor as a single mass protects the neurovascular bundle, which usually perforates through the pectoralis minor. The biceps muscle tendons leverage is kept and activated by a new motor unit that consists of the pectoralis major and minor muscles. This new motor unit is much stronger than previously described. It is rotated on its neurovascular pedicle and is attached proximally to the coracoid process and distally to the biceps tendon. The lateral clavicular attachment of the pectoralis major is retained, which preserves shoulder adduction. Our experience to date with this transfer for elbow flexion has given excellent results as determined by the criteria established by Segal in 1959. Our indications, operative technique, postoperative management, and results are presented.
Sheared continent–ocean margins: an overview

Continent–ocean fracture zones are the fossil transform offsets located along passive rifted continental margins. Kinematic models identify at least two principal stages in their evolution. During the first stage as rifting proceeds, continent–continent shearing dominates a narrow region in which the transform fault will eventually rupture. High-standing continental marginal ridges 50–100 km wide and bounding deep sedimentary basins, are derived in such settings. In stage two as sea-floor spreading proceeds, the younger oceanic block slides along the active transform, heating the older continental block, and possibly induces thermal uplift and accompanying denudation. Magnetic injection into the continental block at depth may also induce an isostatic uplift. After ridge–transform intersection time, mechanical coupling between the continental and oceanic blocks may influence the stratigraphy and structure of these margins.
The effect of humidity on the stability of octadecyltrichlorosilane for the self-assembled monolayer coating applications

Abstract The coating processes involving octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) self-assembled monolayers are known to be highly irreproducible due to the bulk hydrolysis reaction with the release of Cl, forming aggregates of siloxane (Si–O–Si) bonded networks. Factors known to affect deposition include temperature, solvent and most importantly water content of the coating solvents. Bulk silanization reaction of octadecyltrichlorosilane in cyclohexane was investigated at varying relative humidities. In situ FTIR transmission was used to determine OTS converting from silane to silanol along with water content and ion chromatography analysis from the release of Cl gas as a function of extended period of times. Silane to silanol conversion did not occur at less than 18% relative humidity over an 11 days test whereas all silanes converted to silanols after 2 days at a relative humidity of 83%. Based on these results, one may conclude that there is a finite lifetime for silane molecules during coating before converting into silanols.
Tumor Fc receptors and tumor-associated immunoglobulins.

Tissue sections and cell suspensions from ten malignant tumors were tested for Fc receptors using sheep erythrocytes sensitized by rabbit IgG antibodies. Surface bound IgG on cells from the same tumors were estimated using an antiglobulin consumption test with 125I labelled human IgG as reference. The amount of IgG present per 10(6) cells varied from less than 100 ng to approximately 600 ng. When these amounts of IgG were plotted against the Fc receptor activity of corresponding tumors, seven of the tumors were distributed along a line showing an inverse linear relationship; i.e. tumors with large amounts of IgG on their cell surfaces had the lowest Fc reactivity and vice versa. Cells from three of the tumors had lower amounts of IgG on their surface than expected from this relationship. However, the lack of correlation could be explained by the focal distribution of the Fc positive tissue within non-reactive tissue. The cells from these areas presumably carry less IgG on their surface and thereby reduce the quantity of IgG calculated per 10(6) cells. Prolonged washing of tumor sections resulted in stronger Fc receptor activity, and correspondingly washed cells had lower amount of IgG on their surface. Presumably the Fc receptor can bind IgG in vivo.
Safety, health, and well-being of municipal utility and construction workers.

OBJECTIVE: To provide a baseline description of psychosocial workplace stressors and supports along with safety, injury, health, and well-being indicators in a sample of utility and construction workers for a National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health-funded Total Worker Health™ intervention study. METHODS: Survey responses and health assessments were collected from a total of 349 employees in two municipal utility departments. RESULTS: Participants demonstrated poor weight control and body mass index and provided reports of frequent poor health habits, injury, and pain. Although safety climate was good, less desirable levels of psychosocial workplace stressors and supports were observed. These stressors and supports were found to relate with many of the health, injury, and pain indicators. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate the need for workplace interventions to promote and protect construction worker health and the importance of the psychosocial work environment. Language: en
The genetics of hypoplastic left heart syndrome

Hypoplastic left heart syndrome is one of the most therapeutically challenging congenital cardiac defects. It accounts for as many as 1.5% of all congenital heart defects, but is responsible for up to one quarter of deaths in neonates with heart disease.1 The management of hypoplastic left heart syndrome is controversial. Two surgical options exist:2,3 the Norwood procedure, is a three stage repair in which the morphologically right ventricle is converted to function as the systemic ventricle. Alternatively, orthotopic transplantation can be performed. Although both surgical options have had improved outcomes, the prognosis for long-term survival is guarded, with a five year survival for either approach reported to be in the region of 50–60%. In this review, I explore the evidence for a genetic etiology for the “classic” hypoplastic left heart syndrome, defined as mitral and/or aortic atresia with hypoplasia of the left ventricular cavity and the other left-sided structures.
Inclusive pion distributions at present machine energy

Abstract All the features of pion inclusive spectra observed in recent experiments can be reproduced in a model calculation which emphasizes the diffractive excitation of either the target or the projectile. There is practically no freedom in the choice of the model parameters. The model makes definite predictions about the approach to scaling and has direct implications about exclusive experiments.
Construction, operation and evaluation of a rapid-response potentiostat

Abstract Factors involved in construction and utilization of an inexpesive, rapid-response potentiostat with 50 mA current capabilities are discussed. The potentiostat can be used with ancillary units, eg function generators, for a variety of rapid pertubation approaches, eg cyclic voltammetry at scan rates to 4000 V/s or greater, potential-step chronoamperometry with data acquisition after 40 μs or less, pulse polarography at millisecond or shorter discharge times, and phase-selective ac polarography at frequencies to at least 15 kHz. Examination of the Fe(III/II) couple reversibility in oxalate media, the adsorption of adenine, and the dimerization of the NAD free radical are described.
Evolving Anatomic and Electrophysiologic Considerations Associated With Fontan Conversion

The principles of Fontan conversion with arrhythmia surgery are to restore the cardiac anatomy by converting the original atriopulmonary connection to a total cavopulmonary artery extracardiac connection and treat the underlying atrial arrhythmias. Successful outcomes of this procedure are dependent on a thorough understanding of several factors: the patient's fundamental diagnosis of single-ventricle anatomy, the resultant cardiac configuration from the original atriopulmonary Fontan connection, right atrial dilatation that leads to atrial flutter or fibrillation, and associated congenital cardiac anomalies. The purpose of this article is to present some of the more challenging anatomic and electrophysiologic problems we have encountered with Fontan conversion and arrhythmia surgery and the innovative solutions we have used to treat them. The cases reviewed herein include: takedown of a Bjork-Fontan modification, right ventricular hypertension and tricuspid regurgitation after atriopulmonary Fontan for pulmonary atresia and intact ventricular septum, takedown of atrioventricular valve isolation patch for right-sided maze procedure, resultant hemodynamic considerations leading to intraoperative pulmonary vein stenosis after Fontan conversion, unwanted inferior vena cava retraction during the extracardiac connection, right atrial cannulation in the presence of a right atrial clot, distended left superior vena cava causing left pulmonary vein stenosis, dropped atrial septum, and the modified right-sided maze procedure for various single-ventricle pathology. Since 1994 we have performed Fontan conversion with arrhythmia surgery on 109 patients with a 0.9% mortality rate. We attribute our program's success in no small measure to the strong collaborative efforts of the cardiothoracic surgery and cardiology teams.
Respiration During the Life Cycle of the Face Fly

The respiratory pattern during the life cycle of Musca autumnalis De Geer was determined with a conventional Warburg constant-volume respirometer. The results are presented as mm3 O2 consumed per gram of tissue per minute and insect per hour. Rapid respiration was demonstrated in embryonic, larval, prepupal, and adult stages. Pupae exhibited the typical U-shaped curve with Very low-level respiration.
Weak ferromagnetism in BaIrO3

Abstract The monoclinic BaIrO 3 phase was characterized from magnetic measurements between the temperatures 78–300 K using the Faraday method. This compound was found to exhibit weak ferromagnetism with a Curie temperature of 180 ± 3 K and remanence in the magnetization below its transition temperature. A model is proposed for the weak ferromagnetism based on the canting of antiferromagnetically coupled spins.
Attention Stabilizes Representations in the Human Hippocampus

Attention and memory are intricately linked, but how attention modulates brain areas that subserve memory, such as the hippocampus, is unknown. We hypothesized that attention may stabilize patterns of activity in human hippocampus, resulting in distinct but reliable activity patterns for different attentional states. To test this prediction, we utilized high-resolution functional magnetic resonance imaging and a novel "art gallery" task. On each trial, participants viewed a room containing a painting, and searched a stream of rooms for a painting from the same artist (art state) or a room with the same layout (room state). Bottom-up stimulation was the same in both tasks, enabling the isolation of neural effects related to top-down attention. Multivariate analyses revealed greater pattern similarity in all hippocampal subfields for trials from the same, compared with different, attentional state. This stability was greater for the room than art state, was unrelated to univariate activity, and, in CA2/CA3/DG, was correlated with behavior. Attention therefore induces representational stability in the human hippocampus, resulting in distinct activity patterns for different attentional states. Modulation of hippocampal representational stability highlights the far-reaching influence of attention outside of sensory systems.
Text detection and recognition in natural scenes and consumer videos

We propose an end-to-end system for text detection and recognition in natural scenes and consumer videos. Maximally Stable Extremal Regions which are robust to illumination and viewpoint variations are selected as text candidates. Rich shape descriptors such as Histogram of Oriented Gradients, Gabor filter, corners and geometrical features are used to represent the candidates and classified using a support vector machine. Positively labeled candidates serve as anchor regions for word formation. We then group candidate regions based on geometric and color properties to form word boundaries. To speed up the system for practical applications, we use Partial Least Squares approach for dimensionality reduction. The detected words are binarized, filtered and passed to a hidden Markov model based Optical Character Recognition (OCR) system for recognition. We show significant improvement in text detection and recognition tasks over previous approaches on a large consumer video dataset. Furthermore, the event detection system built upon the OCR output of this approach outperformed multiple other OCR-only based submissions in the recently concluded NIST TRECVID 2013 multimedia event detection evaluations.
Enhancement of enzymatic colorimetric response by silver island films on high throughput screening microplates.

Abstract In this study, we report the use of an enzyme-based hybrid platform, which is comprised of silver island films, enzymes (HRP and AP) and high-throughput screening (HTS) microplates, to enhance the colorimetric response of enzymatic reactions. The hybrid platform was designed in a two-step process: (i) deposition of SIFs onto HTS microplates with low, medium, and high loading (refers to the extent of the surface plasmon resonance peak of SIFs at 460 nm) using Tollen's reaction scheme; and (ii) attachment of b-BSA or BEA as linkers for the immobilization of enzymes. The presence of SIFs within the wells of the HTS microplates was confirmed using an optical spectrophotometer and real-color photography. Control experiments, where SIFs were omitted from the surfaces were carried out to confirm the effect of SIFs on the enzymatic colorimetric response. Significant colorimetric signal enhancement was observed for HRP or AP on SIFs (high loading) deposited HTS microplates using b-BSA (up to ~ 3-fold for AP and ~ 6-fold HRP) or BEA (up to ~ 7-fold for both HRP and AP), as compared to our control samples. The observed increase in colorimetric response can be attributed to the nature of BEA, which exposes surface-bound enzymes to the substrate present in bulk more efficiently than b-BSA. This study proves that SIFs can serve as a valuable tool to improve the signal output of existing bioassays carried out in HTS microplates, which can be applicable to the field biosensors and plasmonics.