cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Wavelet variance analysis for gappy time series

The wavelet variance is a scale-based decomposition of the process variance for a time series and has been used to analyze, for example, time deviations in atomic clocks, variations in soil properties in agricultural plots, accumulation of snow fields in the polar regions and marine atmospheric boundary layer turbulence. We propose two new unbiased estimators of the wavelet variance when the observed time series is ‘gappy,’ i.e., is sampled at regular intervals, but certain observations are missing. We deduce the large sample properties of these estimators and discuss methods for determining an approximate confidence interval for the wavelet variance. We apply our proposed methodology to series of gappy observations related to atmospheric pressure data and Nile River minima.
Numerical Simulation of Flow and Heat Transfer Inside a Micro-Channel With One Dimpled Surface

Steady, laminar flow and heat transfer, inside a rectangular microchannel with a dimpled bottom surface, are numerically studied using FLUENT 5.5. The microchannel is 50 μm deep and 200 μm wide. The dimples are placed in a single row of along the bottom wall with a pitch of 150 μm. The dimple depth is 20 μm, and the dimple print diameter is 98 μm. Fully developed periodic velocity and temperature boundary conditions are used at the inlet and outlet of one unit cell of the dimpled micro-channel. The numerically predicted, laminar, micro-scale flow characteristics are compared to results from macro-scale studies with turbulent flow. Some of the secondary flows into and out of the dimple, and the recirculating flow within the dimple are similar for both situations. However, the type and number of vortex structures shed from the dimples are significantly different for the laminar-micro-scale flow and turbulent-macro-scale flow. Heat transfer enhancements are present for both situations, but they are somewhat smaller in the laminar-micro-scale flow. In the latter case, these augmentations (relative to a channel with smooth walls) are present both on the bottom-dimpled surface, and on the sidewalls of the channel, and are mostly due to shear layer reattachment, secondary flows produced near the edges of the dimples, and thermal boundary layer thinning. The pressure drop penalties in the laminar-micro-scale flow are either equivalent to, or less than values produced in smooth channels with no dimples.Copyright © 2002 by ASME
Familial dilated cardiomyopathy associated with congenital defects in the setting of a novel VCL mutation (Lys815Arg) in conjunction with a known MYPBC3 variant.

Idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a primary myocardial disorder characterized by ventricular chamber enlargement and systolic dysfunction. Twenty to fifty percent of idiopathic DCM cases are thought to have a genetic cause. Of more than 30 genes known to be associated with DCM, rare variants in the VCL and MYBPC3 genes have been reported in several cases of DCM. In this report, we describe a family with DCM and congenital abnormalities who carry a novel missense mutation in the VCL gene. More severely affected family members also possess a second missense variant in MYBPC3, raising the possibility that this variant may be a disease modifier. Intere - stingly, many of the affected individuals also have congenital defects, including two with bicuspid aortic valve with aortic regurgitation. We discuss the implications of the family history and genetic information on management of at-risk individuals with aortic regurgitation.
The profunda femoris artery: Variations and clinical applications

Percutaneous femoral artery cannulation can cause pseudoaneurysms. When this occurs, the puncture site is frequently in the profunda femoris artery (PFA) or femoral artery (FA) distal to the PFA origin, where anatomic relationships make hemostasis difficult to achieve. Two such complications prompted a study of the relations of this arterial complex to palpable landmarks. Four measurements were made on 101 cadaver extremities (61 males, 40 females; 45 left, 56 right). The measurements and results (mean ± S.D.) are: (1) horizontal distance from pubic tubercle (PT) to perpendicular extending inferiorly from anterior superior iliac spine (ASIS), 9.44 ± 1.34 cm; (2) horizontal distance from PT to middle of FA, 5.15 ± 0.87 cm; (3) distance from inguinal ligament to origin of PFA, 5.31 ± 1.46 cm; (4) distance from level of PT to origin of PFA, 2.37 ± 1.40 cm. When males and females were compared, significant differences were found between means of measurements 3 and 4; likewise, the means for measurement 1 were significantly different between left and right sides. The PFA originated superior to the level of PT in only three extremities, but the distance was never more than 0.5 cm. These data indicate that (1) the FA is typically located about 5 cm lateral to PT, (2) the origin of PFA is usually inferior to the level of PT, and (3) the frequency of complications of percutaneous FA cannulation can be diminished by insertion of the needle or cannula 1 cm or more superior to the level of PT.
Velocity measurement using the phase shift of a laser-induced grating.

We have developed a simple and general technique for measuring the flow velocity over a wide range of values. It involves creating a cw light-induced grating and measuring the velocity-induced phase shift occurring in a known time period. It uses polarization spectroscopy and optical heterodyne detection with two beams from a single cw laser. Measurements are made of the two spatial phase components of the induced steady-state grating, and their ratio determines the velocity. Because a ratio is computed, the effects of many possible error sources cancel out. We have demonstrated this method for an ~1-m/sec flow of ethanol seeded with an absorbing, nonfluorescing dye.
Laboratory evaluation of warm mix asphalt ageing characteristics

Since warm asphalt technology is relatively new, there are no old pavements to study the ageing behaviour of warm mix asphalt (WMA). While several studies have been conducted to study the properties of WMA, its ageing characteristics are yet to be evaluated in detail. This paper presents the results of a laboratory study conducted to evaluate the ageing characteristics of WMA. Laboratory-prepared samples were aged artificially in the oven to simulate long-term ageing and then compared with unaged samples. Results of this study indicate that the warm asphalt additives improved the moisture susceptibility of the mixes and the mixes containing Sasobit® exhibited lowered rutting. Also, Aspha-min® lowered the resilient modulus (M R) values of the mixes at 25 and 40°C. The additives did not seem to have any significant effect on the moisture susceptibility or the rutting resistance of the mixes as they aged, but significantly increased the M R values of the mixes as they aged.
Dysfunctional Uterine Bleeding in Adolescent and Teenage Girls

Abstract Dysfunctional uterine bleeding in adolescent girls is a common problem that faces many gynecologists in their practice. The underlying etiology is hypothalamic pituitary dysfunction leading to anovulatory cycles. The endometrium is under unopposed estrogen effect that stimulates proliferative changes and increases its thickness. This eventually leads to disintegration of the endometrium in certain areas with bleeding episodes. It is essential to reach the correct diagnosis by proper history, physical examination, and hematologic and endocrine studies. The treating physician has to rule out pregnancy, liver disease, kidney disease, pelvic tumors, and endocrine problems including thyroid disease, hyperprolactinemia, and hyperandrogenism. Furthermore, coagulation studies should be included to rule out defects in coagulation factors such as idiopathic thrombocytopenia and von Willebrand's disease. Dysfunctional uterine bleeding is usually treated hormonally with progestins in cyclic fashion. This treatment is effective in patients with chronic bleeding episodes. In patients with heavy bleeding, intravenous estrogen treatment has been effective in controlling the acute episode of bleeding followed by progestin treatment. If hormonal treatment fails, these patients should have hysteroscopic evaluation of the uterine cavity to rule out intrauterine lesions such as polyps, submucous fibroids, and arteriovenous malformations.
An interactive/graphics general-purpose NDE laboratory tool

A minicomputer-based laboratory test system at Sandia Laboratories, which acts interactively to control experiments and to apply graphic display techniques to the acquired data, is described. A short description of the hardware is included to emphasize its flexibility and general application in the nondestructive evaluation laboratory. The greater part of the paper covers examples of acquisition and data analysis using the interactive features of the system.
Adaptive estimation of phoneme boundaries and selective adaptation for speech

Previous studies have estimated the boundary between two phoneme categories from identification data. This procedure is time consuming, especially in studies of selective adaptation, in which it is necessary to test identification twice, before and during adaptation. We adapted a simple up-down adaptive procedure to estimate the phoneme boundary. The stimulus to be presented on a given trial is determined from the subjects’ past responses. Two stimulus continua were synthesized: a voicing continuum (13 stimuli changing from /ba/ to /pa/) and a place continuum (13 stimuli changing from /ba/ to /da /and /ga/). Twenty-two normal listeners were given an identification test with each set of stimuli. A logistic curve was fit to the obtained identification function from each subject. Next, phoneme boundaries were directly estimated with the adaptive procedure. The 50% points on the curves from the identification procedure were highly correlated with those estimated by the adaptive procedure. Phoneme boundaries were also measured before and during selective adaptation fusing all end-point stimuli as adaptors in separate sessions). Boundary shifts were obtained in the expected directions and magnitudes. The adaptive procedure is faster than the identification test and exhibits high test-retest reliability.
Diode array versus photomultiplier for measuring the UV-excited resonance Raman spectra of enzyme-substrate transients

The construction of a multiplex system for recording the resonance Raman (RR) spectra of enzyme-substrate complexes in the near-UV region is described. The instrument is based on commercially available components consisting of a 2 W UV krypton ion laser, a triple spectrograph (in which the first two monochromators act as a zero dispersion, variable bandpass filter) and an intensified diode array. The performance of this system is compared with that of a double monochromator with a photomultiplier as a detector. The enzyme-substrate systems chosen as examples for the comparison offer a difficult experimental challenge because they evolve rapidly and have poor optical homogeneity. In addition, a simple apparatus is described for recording the RR spectra of enzyme-substrate complexes in cryosolvents at temperatures as low as −50 °C.
Fine structure of the chromophobe in the pars distalis of the common snapping turtle, Chelydra serpentina

Chromophobes of the pars distalis in young Chelydra serpentina have sparse cytoplasm with no specific granules; however, many cytoplasmic filaments are present. The chromophobes are connected to the other cell types by desmosomes, while different types of junctional specializations occur between adjacent chromophobes. Cytoplasmic filaments traverse the cytoplasm in a random manner and terminate on both the junctional complexes and the nuclear envelope. It is proposed that, in addition to providing a structural framework, the chromophobes may be involved in integrating cellular responses of the parenchyma to changes in the endocrine milieu.
Correlations in Chromatin Movement in Diploid Yeast Revealed by Two-Color Three-Dimensional Single-Particle Tracking using the Double-Helix Point Spread Function (DH-PSF) Microscope

It is known that gene regulation in eukaryotes is intimately tied to the three-dimensional (3D) organization of chromatin within the nucleus, and the exact structure and dynamics of this organization is a current topic of intense investigation. In order to examine whether the activation of two alleles in a diploid genome is coordinated we performed fast (10 Hz), 3D, simultaneous tracking of the two alleles of the GAL locus in diploid budding yeast cells. We did so by labeling one copy of the locus with LacO/LacI-GFP and the other with TetO/TetR-mCherry and recording the resulting fluorescence images in parallel using the DH-PSF microscope, which enabled precise sub-diffraction 3D localization in each channel ( = [14,13,27] nm for GFP and [25,29,46] nm for mCherry). The simultaneously recorded tracks were then registered to within sub-diffraction distances. We then examined the statistics of allele velocity cross-correlation and colocalization in both the transcriptionally active (cells grown in galactose) and repressed (grown in dextrose) states. As a control we labeled and tracked a single allele with both colors of fluorescent proteins integrated ∼12-18 kb apart. The dual-allele cases showed significant subpopulations of positive correlations that were larger than the 90th percentile value of the single-allele case (0.11), comprising 51% (26/51) in dextrose and 40% (34/86) in galactose. The presence of positive correlations indicates that gene copies are often closely associated in space and time, which may be consistent, for instance, with intertwined polymers or a mutual association with external protein machinery. Interestingly, we find both correlated and uncorrelated examples which appear peripherally confined, as the GAL genes are known to preferentially associate with the nuclear periphery upon activation.
Synthesis of deuterium-labelled drugs of abuse for use as internal standards in quantification by selected ion monitoring. I. Methamphetamine; 2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylamphetamine (DOM); phencyclidine (PCP); and methaqualone

Four deuterium-labelled compounds were prepared for use as internal standards in the quantification of methamphetamine, DOM, PCP, and methaqualone at low levels in body fluids by selected ion monitoring. The need for standards containing more than three deuterium atoms per molecule and having high isotopic purity is discussed.
HER2 status in elderly women with breast cancer

Abstract Objectives HER2 (human epidermal growth factor receptor 2) is an important biomarker in breast cancer, but its prevalence in elderly women is not well established. Previous studies reported HER2 status based on either immunohistochemistry (IHC) or fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) interchangeably. However, the tests may give discordant results. We report the prevalence of HER2 amplification in elderly women using only FISH. Materials and Methods We retrospectively identified women 65years and older undergoing core biopsy, lumpectomy or mastectomy for primary breast malignancy at a single institution between 2009 and 2011. Data collected included age, histopathological type, hormone receptor status, and HER2 status. Descriptive statistics were performed using SAS Software, Version 9.2. Results One hundred fifty-eight women were included in the study. Most had invasive ductal carcinoma (74.7%), and were positive for either estrogen (ER) or progesterone (PgR) receptors (82.3% and 70.0%, respectively). Only 17% were negative for both ER and PgR; 11.4% were triple negative. Nineteen samples (12.0%) were positive for HER2. In univariate analyses, hormone receptor and HER2 status did not vary with age. When stratified by age, 60% of women with hormone receptor/HER2 positive tumors were younger than 70years, compared with 22.2–33.3% of women in other subgroups. The difference was not statistically significant (p=0.20). Conclusion This study adds to the knowledge of the biology of breast cancer in elderly women. Triple negative tumor incidence was similar to that previously reported for women under 70years old, but HER2 positive tumors were less common. Additional prospective studies are needed to confirm our findings.
Mutual Holding Companies: Evidence of Conflicts of Interest through Disparate Dividends

Abstract The mutual holding company (MHC) structure establishes a dual-class stock that creates a unique opportunity to transfer wealth from thrift depositor–owners to new minority shareholders through the disparate payment of dividends. We show that MHCs are priced higher than comparable non-MHCs and dividend policy is a significant component of this valuation. We also show that MHC thrifts pay significantly higher dividends than non-MHC thrifts and that an Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) ruling reducing the potential for disparate dividends between the two classes of shareholders resulted in lower dividends. These results have policy implications of special significance given that the OTS reversed its position in 2000 and because of the current controversy over the use of the MHC structure in the financial service industry.
Isolation of the two components of Condylactis toxin.

Abstract The two toxic components from the sea anemone Condylactis gigantea have been isolated and purified using gel filtration, ion-exchange chromatography, and preparative isoelectric focusing. The molecular weight of both components is estimated by gel filtration to be 4500. The isoelectric points of the two toxins were determined to be 4.8 and 5.8 with LD 50 values of 19 and 58 μg/kg, respectively, when injected into Armadillidium vulgare , a terrestrial crustacean. Low-level labeling with 125 I using lactoperoxidase was effected for the purpose of estimating homogeneity.
SPECTROPHOTOMETRIC DETERMINATION OF TRACE AMOUNTS OF FLUORIDE IN PLUTONIUM

Abstract A simple and rapid spectrophotometric method for the determination of 10 to 70 μg of fluoride with Eriochrome Cyanine R in up to 10 mg of plutonium has been developed. In this method interference from the plutonium is eliminated by reduction of this element to the tripositive oxidation state with mercaptoacetic acid.
Monolithic GaAs and InP based frequency multiplier arrays

Monolithic GaAs and InP based frequency multiplier arrays containing thousands of devices have been successfully fabricated for use in quasi-optical millimeter-wave systems. Monolithic frequency multiplier arrays have produced frequency doubled power levels of 2.1 W at 66 GHz, and frequency tripled power levels of 5.0 W at 99 GHz, with high efficiencies. New approaches for increasing the efficiency and power handling capabilities of the arrays are described. >
Mobile Assisted Language Learning: Review of the Recent Applications of Emerging Mobile Technologies

As mobile computing technologies have been more powerful and inclusive in people’s daily life, the issue of mobile assisted language learning (MALL) has also been widely explored in CALL research. Many researches on MALL consider the emerging mobile technologies have considerable potentials for the effective language learning. This review study focuses on the investigation of newly emerging mobile technologies and their pedagogical applications for language teachers and learners. Recent research or review on mobile assisted language learning tends to focus on more detailed applications of newly emerging mobile technology, rather than has given a broader point focusing on types of mobile device itself. In this paper, I thus reviewed recent research and conference papers for the last decade, which utilized newly emerging and integrated mobile technology. Its pedagogical benefits and challenges are discussed.
The spectrum of resistive MHD modes in cylindrical plasmas

A numerical study of the normal modes of a compressible resistive MHD fluid in cylindrical geometry is presented. Resistivity resolves the shear Alfven and slow magnetosonic continua of ideal MHD into discrete spectra and gives rise to heavily damped modes whose frequencies lie on specific lines in the complex plane. Fast magnetosonic waves are less affected but are also damped. Overstable modes arise from the shear Alfven spectrum. The stabilizing effect of favourable average curvature is shown. Eigenfunctions illustrating the nature of typical normal modes are displayed.
Accuracy of Transcranial Doppler for the Diagnosis of Intracardiac Right-to-Left Shunt: A Bivariate Meta-Analysis of Prospective Studies

Objectives The aim of this meta-analysis was to determine the accuracy of transcranial Doppler (TCD) compared with transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) as the reference. Background Right-to-left shunting (RLS), usually through a patent foramen ovale (PFO), has been associated with migraine, cryptogenic stroke, and hypoxemia. With emerging observational studies and clinical trials on the subject of PFO, there is a need for accurate diagnosis of PFO in patients with these conditions, and those being considered for transcatheter closure. Although a TEE bubble study is the current standard reference for diagnosing PFO, the TCD bubble study may be a preferable alternative test for RLS because of its high sensitivity and specificity, noninvasive nature, and low cost. Methods A systematic review of Medline, the Cochrane Library, and Embase was done to look for all the prospective studies assessing intracardiac RLS using TCD compared with TEE as the reference; both tests were performed with a contrast agent and a maneuver to provoke RLS in all studies. Results A total of 27 studies (29 comparisons) with 1,968 patients (mean age 47.8 ± 5.7 years; 51% male) fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The weighted mean sensitivity and specificity for TCD were 97% and 93%, respectively. Likewise, the positive and negative likelihood ratios were 13.51 and 0.04, respectively. When 10 microbubbles was used as the embolic cutoff for a positive TCD study, TCD produced a higher specificity compared with when 1 microbubble was used as the cutoff (p = 0.04); there was, however, no significant change in sensitivity (p = 0.29). Conclusions TCD is a reliable, noninvasive test with excellent diagnostic accuracies, making it a proficient test for detecting RLS. TCD can be used as a part of the stroke workup and for patients being considered for PFO closure. If knowledge of the precise anatomy is required, then TEE can be obtained before scheduling a patient for transcatheter PFO closure.
Rotation of plasma membrane proteins measured by polarized fluorescence depletion

We have implemented a new laser microscopic method, polarized fluorescence depletion (PFD), for measuring the rotational dynamics of functional membrane proteins on individual, microscopically selected cells under physiological conditions. This method combines the long lifetimes of triplet-state probes with the sensitivity of fluorescence detection to measure macromolecular rotational correlation times from 10 microsec to > 1 ms. As examples, the rotational correlation time of Fc receptors (FcR) on the surface of 2H3 rat basophilic leukemia cells is 79.9 4.4 microsec at 4°C when labeled with eosin conjugates of IgE. This value is consistent with the known 100 kDa receptor size. When labeled with intact F4 anti-FcR monoclonal antibody, the rotational correlation time for FcER is increased about 2-fold to 170.8 +/- 6.5 microsec, consistent with receptor dimer formation on the plasma membrane and with the ability of this antibody to form FcER dimers on 2H3 cell surfaces. We have also examined the rotational diffusion of the luteinizing hormone receptor on plasma membranes of small ovine luteal cells. Luteinizing hormone receptors (LHR), when occupied by ovine luteinizing hormone (oLH), have a rotational correlation time of 20.5 +/- 0.1 microsec at 4°C. When occupied by human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), LHR have a rotational correlation time of 46.2 +/- 0.4 microsec suggesting that binding of hCG triggers additional LHR interactions with plasma membrane proteins. Together these studies suggest the utility of PFD measurements in assessing molecular size and molecular association of membrane proteins on individual cells. Relative advantages of time- and frequency-domain implementations of PFD are also discussed.
Efficient feedback methods for MIMO channels based on parameterization

In this paper, we propose two efficient low-complexity quantization methods for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems with finite-rate feedback based on proper parameterization of the information to be fed back followed by quantization in the new parameter domain. For a MIMO channel which has multiple orthonormal vectors as channel spatial information, we exploit the geometrical structure of orthonormality while quantizing the spatial information matrix. The parameterization is of two types: one is in terms of a set of unit-norm vectors with different lengths, and the other is in terms of a minimal number of scalar parameters. These parameters are shown to be independent for the i.i.d. flat-fading Rayleigh channel, facilitating efficient quantization. In the first scheme, each of the unit-norm vectors is independently quantized with a finite number of bits using an optimal vector quantization (VQ) technique. Bit allocation is needed between the vectors, and the optimum bit allocation depends on the operating SNR of the system. In the second scheme, the scalar parameters are quantized. In slowly time-varying channels, the scalar parameters are also found to be smoothly changing over time, leading to the development of a simple quantization and feedback method using adaptive delta modulation. The results show that the proposed feedback scheme has a channel tracking feature and achieves a capacity very close to perfect feedback with a reasonable feedback rate
Granularity in the design of interactive illustrations

We describe some issues in designing and building educational Java applets for an introductory computer graphics course. The design problem involves balancing educational goals of building intuition about fundamental concepts in a domain against heterogeneity both in subject material and in student backgrounds. We present our design approach for resolving these forces --- fine-grained units addressing small concepts --- and discuss its effects on other areas including hypertext structure, interface design, and software engineering.
Interfacial reactions of a MAX phase/superalloy hybrid

Oxidation resistant, strain tolerant MAX phase coatings are of general interest for high temperature applications. Accordingly, Cr2AlC MAX phase coupons were vacuum diffusion bonded to an advanced turbine disk alloy at 1100 °C for compatibility studies. The interface revealed an inner diffusion zone consisting of ~10 µm of β-Ni(Co)Al, decorated with various γ′ (Ni,Co)3Al, Ta(Ti,Nb)C, and W(Cr,Mo)3B2 precipitates. On the Cr2AlC side, an additional ~40-µm Al-depletion zone of Cr7C3 formed an interconnected network with the β-Ni(Co)Al. On the superalloy side, enhanced carbide precipitation developed over a depth of ~80 µm. Subsequent annealing for 100 h and 1000 h at 800 °C coarsened some features, enhanced TCP precipitation in the superalloy, but only enlarged the diffusion layers by ~5 µm at most. Because of Al depletion from the MAX phase and corresponding Al enrichment of the alloy, the reaction zone displayed similarities to an oxidized Cr2AlC surface and an aluminized superalloy, respectively. Published 2015. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.
An expert system approach for water management in case of drought

The reservoirs designed for the purpose of flood control have to face operational problems during periods of drought. Based on the drought monitoring method using the five indicators, streamflow, precipitation, temperature, groundwater and lake levels, the study developed an expert system for the water management of the four flood control reservoirs in case of drought. The developed system was based on the combination of the rules and heuristic knowledge from expert opinions, the control manuals of reservoirs involved, and a developed optimization model. Daily drought conditions were evaluated by the monitoring method and the recommendations of water release from each reservoir were then made by the developed system. The comparisons between the recommended water releases and their counterparts of the optimization model and the actual operation of reservoirs were made. It was found that the developed expert system has the advantage of flexibility, making water release recommendations over a strictly mathematical model.
Adaptive Online Program Analysis

Analyzing a program run can provide important insights about its correctness. Dynamic analysis of complex correctness properties, however, usually results in significant run-time overhead and, consequently, it is rarely used in practice. In this paper, we present an approach for exploiting properties of stateful program specifications to reduce the cost of their dynamic analysis. With our approach, analysis results are guaranteed to be identical to those of a traditional expensive dynamic analyses, while analysis cost is very low -- between 23% and 33% more than the un-instrumented program for the analyses we studied. We describe the principles behind our adaptive online program analysis technique, extensions to our Java run-time analysis framework that support such analyses, and report on the performance and capabilities of two different families of adaptive online program analyses.
Reproductive characteristics in relation to ovarian cancer risk by histologic pathways

STUDY QUESTION Do reproductive risk factor associations differ across subgroups of invasive epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) defined by the dualistic model (type I/II) or a histologic pathway-based classification?
A deficit in the ability to form new human memories without sleep

Evidence indicates that sleep after learning is critical for the subsequent consolidation of human memory. Whether sleep before learning is equally essential for the initial formation of new memories, however, remains an open question. We report that a single night of sleep deprivation produces a significant deficit in hippocampal activity during episodic memory encoding, resulting in worse subsequent retention. Furthermore, these hippocampal impairments instantiate a different pattern of functional connectivity in basic alertness networks of the brainstem and thalamus. We also find that unique prefrontal regions predict the success of encoding for sleep-deprived individuals relative to those who have slept normally. These results demonstrate that an absence of prior sleep substantially compromises the neural and behavioral capacity for committing new experiences to memory. It therefore appears that sleep before learning is critical in preparing the human brain for next-day memory formation—a worrying finding considering society's increasing erosion of sleep time.
Registration of high-dimensional remote sensing data based on a new dimensionality reduction rule

Registration of remote sensing data often involves dimensionality reduction of high-dimensional data to yield an image from each data set followed by pairwise image registration. We develop a new rule for dimensionality reduction such that the the Cramer-Rao lower bound (CRLB) for the estimation of the transformation parameters is minimized. A hyperspectral data set and a multispectral data set are used to evaluate our proposed rule. The experimental results using Mutual Information (MI) based pairwise registration technique demonstrate that our proposed rule can select the image pair with more texture, resulting in improved image registration results.
Synchronized exocytotic bursts from gonadotropin-releasing hormone-expressing cells: dual control by intrinsic cellular pulsatility and gap junctional communication.

Periodic secretion of GnRH from the hypothalamus is the driving force for the release of gonadotropic hormones from the pituitary, but the roles of individual neurons in the context of this pulse generator are not known. In this study we used FM1–43 to monitor the membrane turnover associated with exocytosis in single GT1–7 neurons and found an intrinsic secretory pulsatility (frequency, 1.4 ± 0.1/h; pulse duration, 17.3 ± 0.6 min) that, during time in culture, became progressively synchronized among neighboring cells. Voltage-gated calcium channels and gap junctional communication each played a major role in synchronized pulsatility. An L-type calcium channel inhibitor, nimodipine, abolished synchronized pulsatility. In addition, functional gap junction communication among adjacent cells was detected, but only under conditions where pulsatile synchronization was also observed, and the gap junction inhibitor octanol abolished both without affecting pulse frequency or duration. Our results, therefore, prov...
The role of macrophages in defense against neoplastic disease.

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews the role of macrophages in defense against neoplastic disease. Macrophages do exert both natural and adjuvant-stimulated, afferent and efferent antineoplastic activities. Macrophages appear to be essential for the uptake and processing of tumor antigens preceding the initiation of an effective immune response. Additionally, the macrophage alteration of antigen may promote successful immunization as opposed to the induction of tolerance or production of enhancing or blocking factors. The macrophage might further enhance the immune response by stimulating the proliferation of immunocompetent cells through the production of lymphocyte-activating factor (LAF) or the delivery of macrophage-contained adjuvant. Aided by cytophilic antibody, specific macrophage arming factor (SMAF), macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), interferon, nonspecific opsonins, or nonspecific activation, macrophages, either alone or in concert with other immune cells, can exert both immune and nonimmune cytotoxicity toward neoplastic cells. This antitumor activity is most likely mediated through a nonphagocytic, contact-dependent mechanism, associated in only a few systems with the release of soluble toxic substances. Such direct macrophage-mediated antitumor activity, as well as macrophage-mediated induction and the amplification of antitumor immune responses, appear to contribute significantly to host survival and deserve careful consideration in both the experimental and clinical study of animal and human neoplastic disease.
Piping Plovers Nesting Amongst Cottonwood Saplings

Abstract Piping Plovers (Charadrius melodus) typically nest on unvegetated sand or gravel substrates throughout their breeding range. We report on the atypical habitat characteristics of four Piping Plover nests that we found amongst young cottonwood (Populus deltoides) saplings on a sandbar island in the Missouri River along the South Dakota-Nebraska border. Atypical habitat use could have implications for estimating demographic parameters and management of this protected species. It is important to explore the extent to which Piping Plovers use atypical breeding habitat throughout their range and the quality of this potentially poor habitat.
Finite difference diagonalization to simulate nuclear magnetic resonance diffusion experiments in porous media

A finite difference approach for computing Laplacian eigenvalues and eigenvectors in discrete porous media is derived and used to approximately solve the Bloch–Torrey equations. Neumann, Dirichlet, and Robin boundary conditions are considered and applications to simulate nuclear magnetic resonance diffusion experiments are shown. The method is illustrated with MATLAB examples and computational tests in one and two dimensions and the extension to three dimensions is outlined. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Concepts Magn Reson Part A 44A: 160–180, 2015.
Aprendizaje y evolución en teoría del equilibrio

Entendemos por equilibrio o convencion un patron de comportamiento que es esperado y que se ratifica por si solo. Es decir, todos los agentes se conforman con el equilibrio, todos esperan que los otros se conformen con ese equilibrio y todos se conforman con el equilibrio, dado que los otros lo hacen. En nuestra vida cotidiana tenemos diversos ejemplos, manejar del lado derecho de la calle cuando otros 10 hacen, aceptar papel moneda si otros lo hacen, ser poco corteses en el cond ucir cuando otros tambien 10 son etc
The place of videogames in the digital humanities

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe how videogames can be worked into various courses in a digital humanities curriculum. Design/methodology/approach – The concepts included are drawn from media studies, game studies, and game-based learning. Findings – The Digital Humanities and Social Sciences (DHSS) BS degree will begin enrolling students in the academic year 2016-2017, at which time findings will be available. Originality/value – The DHSS BS degree is among the first of its kind, and will be a model for other programs to follow.
Organismic-Scale Remote Sensing of Canopy Foliar Traits in Lowland Tropical Forests

Airborne high fidelity imaging spectroscopy (HiFIS) holds great promise for bridging the gap between field studies of functional diversity, which are spatially limited, and satellite detection of ecosystem properties, which lacks resolution to understand within landscape dynamics. We use Carnegie Airborne Observatory HiFIS data combined with field collected foliar trait data to develop quantitative prediction models of foliar traits at the tree-crown level across over 1000 ha of humid tropical forest. We predicted foliar leaf mass per area (LMA) as well as foliar concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium and potassium for canopy emergent trees (R2: 0.45–0.67, relative RMSE: 11%–14%). Correlations between remotely sensed model coefficients for these foliar traits are similar to those found in laboratory studies, suggesting that the detection of these mineral nutrients is possible through their biochemical stoichiometry. Maps derived from HiFIS provide quantitative foliar trait information across a tropical forest landscape at fine spatial resolution, and along environmental gradients. Multi-nutrient maps implemented at the fine organismic scale will subsequently provide new insight to the functional biogeography and biological diversity of tropical forest ecosystems.
Forecasts for the 21st Century

The population of the world is increasing, mainly in the developing world, and is projected to saturate within about 100 years at up to twice the present population of 6 billion people [1]. Studies [2,3,4] show that, historically, the population growth rate has varied inversely as the annual per capita energy use in most parts of the developing world, where per capita energy use is typically less than 1 tonne of oil equivalent energy per year. However, in areas with more than 2 to 3 tonnes of oil equivalent of energy per year per person the growth rate is around zero. If this trend continues, a stable world population will require, allowing for energy efficiency improvements, some 2 to 3 times the present annual energy use. There is an abundance of energy in the world both exploited and potential to meet this need—fossil, fission, and renewables—but it is not evenly distributed, some is costly, and there are issues of environmental pollution in present use, that may limit use. Fusion energy is a potential longer-term source with attractive environmental features. It is the least developed energy option and still faces a challenging development path, but there are many of areas of the world that would benefit hugely from its deployment from the latter part of the 21st century onward, and it is important to consider how it might be deployed. Most fusion power plant options considered today show an economy of scale, owing to the fixed distance needed for shielding fusion neutrons, tritium breeding and handling the heat loads. One interesting approach is to use the power plant to co-produce electricity and hydrogen to facilitate the introduction of lower cost-of-electricity, multi-gigawatt power plants [5].
The influence of surface tension depressants on the growth of streptococci: VI. Studies of the streptococci

Bacteria, being single cell organisms capable of existence independent of other cells, offer an attractive field for the study of physiologic activities. The effect of certain substances on these activities may indicate fundamental differences which are of practical value even though the mechanism of the action may be obscure. Interest in the relation of surface tension to the activity of living cells was stimulated by the work of Butschli1 in 1876, in which he tried to connect surface tension with cell division. Those who are particularly interested in the relation of surface tension to vital phenomena will find a good review of the literature up to 1912 in a paper by Macallum.2
Contribution to the chemico-pharmacodynamic relationship of atropine and homatropine

The classical researches of Ladenburg on the structure of atropine and the synthesis of various tropeins led almost immediately to a wide therapeutic application of homatropine as a mydriatic. Inasmuch as the mydriatic action of atropine is known to be through the parasympathetic nerve-mechanism of the eye, namely, the paralysis of the parasympathetic endings of the oculomotor nerve, it has been generally assumed that the mydriatic action of homatropine or tropin-mandelate was of exactly the same nature. An examination of experimental data on the subject, however, gives no proof to support this assumption. In the present investigation, the author became interested in the pharmacology of homatropine in connection with a study of mandelic acid. This acid is closely related to benzaldehyde and indeed can be readily prepared from the latter by treatment with hydrocyanic acid and water. Inasmuch as the author has already shown that benzaldehyde possesses the antispasmodic or relaxant properties on smooth muscl...
EXTRACTION OF ALUMINUM OXIDE AND IRON OXIDE FROM BAUXITE ORE BY ROASTING WITH AMMONIUM SULFATE

Using bauxite ore and ammonium sulfate as raw materials,Al2O3 and Fe2O3were extracted from bauxite ore by the method of ammonium sulfate roasting. The optimum conditions,which could guarantee the extraction rate of Al2O3 more than 98% and the extraction rate of Fe2O3 more than 88%,were figure out through single-factor experiment as follows: molar ratio of ammonium sulfate-to-bauxite 4,low temperature reaction at 300 ℃,reaction time 60 min; high temperature reaction at 450 ℃,reaction time 60 min. The components of aluminum,iron and silicon in the bauxite has been separated effectively.
The Bowing of Solid Breeder Rods in a Pin-Type Fusion Reactor

The bowing of circular solid breeder pins is studied using standard beam theory. Deformations caused by thermal gradients, swelling gradients, and gravitational forces are included in the investigation and swelling is found to cause the most severe pin bowing. The bowing of Be multiplier rods is found to be insignificant when swelling is not considered. In all cases it is found that adding internal supports can reduce the rod deflections to acceptable levels without increasing the stresses beyond design limits.
Quantitative structure parameters from the NMR spectroscopy of quadrupolar nuclei

Here, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is one of the most important characterization tools in chemistry, however, 3/4 of the NMR active nuclei are underutilized due to their quadrupolar nature. This short review centers on the development of methods that use solid-state NMR of quadrupolar nuclei for obtaining quantitative structural information. Namely, techniques using dipolar recoupling as well as the resolution afforded by double-rotation are presented for the measurement of spin–spin coupling between quadrupoles, enabling the measurement of internuclear distances and connectivities.
Persistent alterations in immune cell populations and function from a single dose of perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) in C57Bl/6 mice

Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) is a perfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) that is structurally related to perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS). Whereas PFOA and PFOS are known immunotoxicants, PFNA is less well characterized. Our previous study showed that PFNA has immunomodulatory effects on leukocyte populations and immune function. The present studies sought to determine whether, and to what degree, the immune system recovered 28 days after PFNA exposure. None of the parameters measured had fully recovered. A few parameters had partially recovered, including decreased spleen size and the decreased ratio of the CD4+/CD8+ double-positive population in thymus. The majority of effects of PFNA remained unchanged 28 days after exposure, including decreased proportion of intact thymocytes (as determined by FSC vs SSC), alterations in the ratios of immune cell populations in spleen and the CD4+, CD8+ and double-negative populations in thymus. Notably, PFNA markedly increased the TNFα response to LPS in vivo, and no recovery was evident 28 days after exposure. The effect of PFNA on CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells and CD19+ cells was more pronounced in females. The current study demonstrates that a single high dose exposure to PFNA (e.g. as might occur accidentally in an occupational setting) has long-lasting effects on the immune system.
Noncommutative fiber products and lattice models

Abstract We establish a connection between the representation theory of certain noncommutative singular varieties and two-dimensional lattice models. Specifically, we consider noncommutative biparametric deformations of the fiber product of two Kleinian singularities of type A. Special examples are closely related to the Schrodinger algebra S ( 1 ) , the affine Lie algebra A 1 ( 1 ) , and a finite W-algebra associated to sl 4 . The algebras depend on two scalars and two polynomials that must satisfy the Mazorchuk–Turowska Equation (MTE), which we re-interpret as a quantization of the ice rule (local current conservation) in statistical mechanics. Solutions to the MTE, previously classified by the author and D. Rosso, can accordingly be expressed in terms of multisets of higher spin vertex configurations on a twisted cylinder. We first reduce the problem of describing the category of weight modules to the case of a single configuration L . Secondly, we classify all simple weight modules over the corresponding algebras A ( L ) , in terms of the connected components of the cylinder minus L . Lastly, we prove that A ( L ) are crystalline graded rings (as defined by Nauwelaerts and Van Oystaeyen), and describe the center of A ( L ) explicitly in terms of L . Along the way we prove several new results about twisted generalized Weyl algebras and their simple weight modules.
An autonomous integrated system for 3-D underwater terrain map reconstruction

This paper presents a novel integrated approach of creating a 3-D surface map of seabed terrain using an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) equipped with various sensors such as multi-beam sonar sensors, DVL, and IMU. The underwater terrain map is useful for various applications like fishery, search and rescue operations, underwater surveillance, mine hunting, etc. The acoustic sensors mounted on the AUV overcome the unfavorable underwater conditions like nonuniform illumination and restricted visibility. In the proposed methodology, the AUV is autonomously navigated using a navigation controller on a flat 2-D surface at a certain depth, to cover an a priori unknown area using an adaptive path planning algorithm. The terrain data is captured by the down-facing multi-beam sonar sensors. The Long Baseline (LBL) localization system and PID controllers are used to drive the AUV to the set-points given by the navigation controller. The collected data is then used offline to construct a 3-D map of seabed using alpha shapes. The performance of this method is tested and validated using a high-fidelity underwater simulator UWSim based on Robot Operating System (ROS). In the simulation runs, the proposed methodology is shown to reconstruct accurate 3-D maps of the seabed.