cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Low-background infrared hybrid focal plane array characterization

Exploiting hybrid focal plane array methodology and a flexible multiplexing readout, 128 X 128 FPAs were made and directly compared using several short wavelength infrared (SWIR) and long wavelength (LWIR) detector technologies. The detector types include two GaAs/AlGaAs quantum well infrared photodetectors (QWIP), 1.7 micrometers InGaAs/InP, and 2.5 micrometers PV HgCdTe. The tests were performed at operating temperatures ranging from 35 K for the LWIR devices to as high as 175 K for the SWIR FPAs. Highlights include the first FPA demonstrations (to the best of our knowledge) of BLIP-limited detectivity (D*) for both LWIR GaAs/AlGaAs QWIP and 1.7 micrometers PV InGaAs/Inp. The 9 micrometers QWIP peak detectivity is near the theoretical background limit at 1.2 X 10 10 photons/cm 2 -s background and 35 K operating temperature. The mean D* of 4.5 X 10 13 Jones at 8.3 micrometers peak wavelength is 75% of BLIP. A maximum peak D* of 5.7 X 10 14 Jones was achieved with the PV InGaAs/InP device at 200 K. This is also believed to be the highest reported FPA-level D* for a staring mosaic array operated at TV-type frame rate and integration time.
User acceptance of Intelligence and Security Informatics technology: A study of COPLINK

The importance of Intelligence and Security Informatics (ISI) has significantly increased with the rapid and large-scale migration of local/national security information from physical media to electronic platforms, including the Internet and information systems. Motivated by the significance of ISI in law enforcement (particularly in the digital government context) and the limited investigations of officers' technology-acceptance decision-making, we developed and empirically tested a factor model for explaining law-enforcement officers' technology acceptance. Specifically, our empirical examination targeted the COPLINK technology and involved more than 280 police officers. Overall, our model shows a good fit to the data collected and exhibits satisfactory power for explaining law-enforcement officers' technology acceptance decisions. Our findings have several implications for research and technology management practices in law enforcement, which are also discussed.
Topology and Functions of Large-Scale PV Power Station Monitoring and Control System

According to the development status of large-scale PV power station, this paper expatiates the topology and functions of the monitoring and control system of large-scale PV power station, The system consists of monitoring center, fiber optic ring network and control subnet, and the main functions are SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition), AGC (automatic generation control), AVC (automatic voltage control), system state assessment, equipment maintenance, and power generation benefit analysis. The system is flexible and reliable, and will promote the efficiency of operation and maintenance of large-scale PV power station.
Effects of remote sensing pixel resolution on modeled energy flux variability of croplands in Iowa

Abstract With increased availability of satellite data products used in mapping surface energy balance and evapotranspiration (ET), routine ET monitoring at large scales is becoming more feasible. Daily satellite coverage is available, but an essential model input, surface temperature, is at 1 km or greater pixel resolution. At such coarse spatial resolutions, the capability to monitor the impact of land cover change and disturbances on ET or to evaluate ET from different crop covers is severely hampered. The effect of sensor resolution on model output for an agricultural region in central Iowa is examined using Landsat data collected during the Soil Moisture Atmosphere Coupling Experiment (SMACEX). This study was conducted in concert with the Soil Moisture Experiment 2002 (SMEX02). Two images collected during a rapid growth period in soybean and corn crops are used with a two-source (soil+vegetation) energy balance model, which explicitly evaluates soil and vegetation contributions to the radiative temperature and to the net turbulent exchange/surface energy balance. The pixel resolution of the remote sensing inputs are varied from 60 m to 120, 240, and 960 m. Model output at high resolution are first validated with tower and aircraft-based flux measurements to assure reliability of model computations. Histograms of the flux distributions and resulting statistics at the different pixel resolutions are compared and contrasted. Results indicate that when the input resolution is on the order of 1000 m, variation in fluxes, particularly ET, between corn and soybean fields is not feasible. However, results also suggest that thermal sharpening techniques for estimating surface temperature at higher resolutions (∼250 m) using the visible/near infrared waveband resolutions could provide enough spatial detail for discriminating ET from individual corn and soybean fields. Additional support for this nominal resolution requirement is deduced from a geostatistical analysis of the vegetation index and surface temperature images.
RIGHTS, GOALS AND FAIRNESS

Critics of utilitarianism frequently call attention to the abhorrent policies that unrestricted aggregative reasoning might justify under certain possible, or even actual, circumstances. They invite the conclusion that to do justice to the firm intuition that such horrors are clearly unjustifiable one must adopt a deontological moral framework that places limits on what appeals to maximum aggregate well-being can justify. As one who has often argued in this way, however, I am compelled to recognize that this position has its own weaknesses. In attacking utilitarianism one is inclined to appeal to individual rights, which mere considerations of social utility cannot justify us in overriding. But rights themselves need to be justified somehow, and how other than by appeal to the human interests their recognition promotes and protects? This seems to be the incontrovertible insight of the classical utilitarians. Further, unless rights are to be taken as defined by rather implausible rigid formulae, it seems that we must invoke what looks very much like the consideration of consequences in order to determine what they rule out and what they allow. Thus, for example, in order to determine whether a given policy violates the right of freedom of expression it is not enough to know merely that it restricts speech. We may need to consider also its effects: how it would affect access to the means of expression and what the consequences would be of granting to government the kind of regulatory powers it confers.
Inadvertent Polychlorinated Biphenyls in Commercial Paint Pigments

A polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) that was not produced as part of the Aroclor mixtures banned in the 1980s was recently reported in air samples collected in Chicago, Philadelphia, the Arctic, and several sites around the Great Lakes. In Chicago, the congener 3,3′-dichlorobiphenyl or PCB11 was found to be the fifth most concentrated congener and ubiquitous throughout the city. The congener exhibited strong seasonal concentration trends that suggest volatilization of this compound from common outdoor surfaces. Due to these findings and also the compound’s presence in waters that received waste from paint manufacturing facilities, we hypothesized that PCB11 may be present in current commercial paint. In this study we measured PCBs in paint sold on the current retail market. We tested 33 commercial paint pigments purchased from three local paint stores. The pigment samples were analyzed for all 209 PCB congeners using gas chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS). More than 50 PCB congeners including several dioxin-like PCBs were detected, and the PCB profiles varied due to different types of pigments and different manufacturing processes. PCB congeners were detected in azo and phthalocyanine pigments which are commonly used in paint but also in inks, textiles, paper, cosmetics, leather, plastics, food and other materials. Our findings suggest several possible mechanisms for the inadvertent production of specific PCB congeners during the manufacturing of paint pigments.
Disseminated aspergillosis in an apparently healthy patient.

We describe a previously healthy patient who presented initially with fever and granulomatous lymphadenopathy, who developed eosinophilia and died seven months later of disseminated aspergillosis
Migration of connective tissue-derived cells is mediated by ultra-low concentration gradient fields of EGF

The directed migration of cells towards chemical stimuli incorporates simultaneous changes in both the concentration of a chemotactic agent and its concentration gradient, each of which may influence cell migratory response. In this study, we utilized a microfluidic system to examine the interactions between epidermal growth factor (EGF) concentration and EGF gradient in stimulating the chemotaxis of connective tissue-derived fibroblast cells. Cells seeded within microfluidic devices were exposed to concentration gradients established by EGF concentrations that matched or exceeded those required for maximum chemotactic responses seen in transfilter migration assays. The migration of individual cells within the device was measured optically after steady-state gradients had been experimentally established. Results illustrate that motility was maximal at EGF concentration gradients between .01- and 0.1-ng/(mL.mm) for all concentrations used. In contrast, the number of motile cells continually increased with increasing gradient steepness for all concentrations examined. Microfluidics-based experiments exposed cells to minute changes in EGF concentration and gradient that were in line with the acute EGFR phosphorylation measured. Correlation of experimental data with established mathematical models illustrated that the fibroblasts studied exhibit an unreported chemosensitivity to minute changes in EGF concentration, similar to that reported for highly motile cells, such as macrophages. Our results demonstrate that shallow chemotactic gradients, while previously unexplored, are necessary to induce the rate of directed cellular migration and the number of motile cells in the connective tissue-derived cells examined.
`Off-grid' cellphone towers could save lives

Surplus electricity from rural towers in the developing world could be used to save 5 million lives every year, many of them children
SAFETY ISSUES RELATED TO USE OF TAKE-OUT FOOD

In the US, retail hosts have been considered the newest segment of the food-service industry. In 1988 they represented 16.2% of total foodservice units and 3.4% of food and drink purchases. Convenience stores (c-stores) are one type of retail host that often combines foodservice with grocery and gasoline sales. As early as 1979, 90% of c-stores were marketing take-out foods. Use of a takeout distribution subsystem implies shared control of food quality between the foodservice operator and the consumer. Consumers may obtain fresh prepared foods from self-service units, store and/or reheat foods before consumption. This paper discusses food safety issues related to consumer handling of fresh prepared, take-out foods in c-stores. C-stores typically prepare and sell foods using cook/chill and assembly/serve types of foodservice systems. Food quality problems arise because: microwave ovens are the most commonly used method of reheat; managers and employees seldom have training in foodservice sanitation; and consumers, who share with management control over food quality, probably have not had academic training in food safety. Potential solutions include: precertification (before hire) and frequent retraining in foodservice sanitation for c-store managers and hourly employees; consumer education through labeling on food packages and posters in food handling areas; and update of foodservice regulations to reflect needs of retail hosts who use cook/chill and/or assembly/service systems along with self-service and take-out distribution.
Non-A, non-B viral hepatitis

Non-A, non-B hepatitis is a newly recognized disease entity. Although initially described as a transfusion related viral infection, the disease can occur in sporadic, endemic, and epidemic settings. There are no confirmed, reproducible serologic tests for associated antigens or antibodies, but electron microscopy has revealed virus-like particles of different sizes. Nonspecific laboratory tests of hepatic dysfunction, especially alanine aminotransferase, are currently utilized to diagnose non-A, non-B hepatitis in patients and may be used to implicate blood donor carriers of this virus. The existence of an infectious non-A, non-B hepatitis agent and proof of a chronic carrier state in humans have been documented by transmission studies in chimpanzees. Cross challenge studies in chimpanzees, as well as some epidemiologic data, suggest that more than one agent causes non-A, non-B hepatitis.
The footwork of critique

In this commentary Kiran Asher reflects on the theoretical and ethical implications of the Karatini-Wainwright exchange in the context of development theory, including its postcolonial, postdevelopment, and feminist variants.
The Legionella pneumophila IcmR protein exhibits chaperone activity for IcmQ by preventing its participation in high‐molecular‐weight complexes

A key event in legionellosis is the ability of Legionella pneumophila to survive and proliferate inside alveolar macrophages. The dot/icm genes, which are necessary for intracellular growth, show sequence similarity to genes encoding conjugative transfer systems, and it is believed that they are responsible for the formation of a secretion apparatus. Evidence is provided here that the IcmR and IcmQ proteins participate in a chaperone-substrate relationship similar to that observed for translocated proteins in type III and type IV secretion apparatuses. Immobilized IcmQ was found to bind IcmR from crude bacterial extracts efficiently. Furthermore, purified IcmR and IcmQ bind with high affinity. This interaction was also observed in vivo by co-immunoprecipitation. The presence of IcmR was found to affect the physical state of IcmQ directly. In the absence of IcmR, IcmQ formed high-molecular-weight complexes both in vivo and in vitro, whereas IcmR prevented and reversed the formation of these complexes.
Fixed and unfixed points: Infrared limits in optimized QCD perturbation theory

Abstract Perturbative QCD, when optimized by the principle of minimal sensitivity at fourth order, yields finite results for R e + e − ( Q ) down to Q = 0 . For two massless flavors ( n f = 2 ) this occurs because the couplant “freezes” at a fixed-point of the optimized β function. However, for larger n f ʼs, between 6.7 and 15.2, the infrared limit arises by a novel mechanism in which the evolution of the optimized β function with energy Q is crucial. The evolving β function develops a minimum that, as Q → 0 , just touches the axis at a p (the “pinch point”), while the infrared limit of the optimized couplant is at a larger value, a ⋆ (the “unfixed point”). This phenomenon results in R approaching its infrared limit not as a power law, but as R → R ⋆ − const / | ln Q | 2 . Implications for the phase structure of QCD as a function of n f are briefly considered.
Polymorphic microsatellite loci in Lithophragma maximum (Saxifragaceae), an endemic plant of San Clemente Island

In this paper, we report the isolation of 11 polymorphic microsatellite loci from Lithophragma maximum (Saxifragaceae), a rare species restricted to San Clemente Island, California. We found moderate levels of allelic variation (mean NA= 5.5) and high levels of expected heterozygosity (mean HE= 0.531) across sampled individuals. However, eight loci showed a significant absence of heterozygous individuals, which we attribute to small population size and demographic history of the species.
Separation of PCBs and PAHs in sediment samples using silica gel fractionation chromatography

The aim of this research is to develop a silica gel fractionation procedure for sediment sample extracts, which separates polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) into two groups, while simultaneously eliminating most interfering substances for subsequent instrumental analysis. This is achieved by optimizing the fraction cut-off volume of eluting solvent and the deactivation level of the silica gel. Using fully activated silica gel and cutting off PCB collection after passing 60-65 ml eluting solvent (pentane or hexane) through the column resulted in satisfactory separation of PCBs and PAHs. This procedure tends to have a higher reliability for PCBs and PAHs with higher molecular mass. This approach deviates only slightly from the standard methods of the USEPA, and it is less expensive due to reduced sample pre-treatment time and solvent consumption.
Structure and mechanism in site-specific recombination.

Abstract Three-dimensional structural information on the integrase family of site-specific recombinases has only recently become available, with the crystal structures of catalytic domains, full-length proteins and protein–DNA complexes of this family reported over the past two years. These results have led to a model for the overall architecture and active site stereochemistry of the recombination pathway that addresses a number of interesting mechanistic issues.
Filopodia: The Cellular Quills of Hedgehog Signaling?

Reporting in Nature, Sanders et al. (2013) implicate filopodial projections in Sonic hedgehog (Shh) patterning of the limb. Actin-based filopodia transport Shh from producing cells, while filopodia of responding cells bear Cdon and Boc: coreceptors in the Shh pathway. These findings suggest a new mechanism of ligand movement and transmission.
The Coordination Behavior of Co, Ni, Cu and Zn in a Chelating Ion-Exchange Resin (1)

Recently Jam showed that the thermodynamic properties of ion-exchange resins could be evaluated by consideration of macro- and small-ion interaction in the gel phase (3–5). Good agreement was obtained between the pH values of the basic monomer units and the intrinsic pK values calculated for cross-linked polymethacrylic acid and the acid-form of the cross-linked Dowex Chelating A-l resin, a polystyrene, divinyl benzene copolymer containing iminodiacetic acid functional groups attached to the hydrocarbon matrix. In the calculation it was assumed, without detriment, that interaction between neighboring functional groups was negligible and that the cross-linked polymer was sufficiently homogeneous to support symmetry approximations.
The TRH test in normal subjects: methodological considerations.

Changes in serum TSH, PRL, GH, T3, T4 and FT4-Index after injection of TRH (500 μg i.v.) were measured in 13 normal women and 12 normal men. In both sexes, TSH and PRL concentrations rose significantly over baseline after TRH injection (p < 0.01). The PRL response, but not the TSH response, was significantly lower in men than in women. Although most TSH and PRL peaks occurred about 30 min after TRH injection, a delayed PRL peak was seen in four men. Thyroid hormones also rose significantly after TRH, with T3 peaking earlier (60 min) than T4 and FT4-Index (⩾ 180 min). The TSH area under the curve correlated well with the TSH peak value (p < 0.001), with the TSH value at 30 min (p < 0.001), with the δ max TSH (p < 0.001), and with the Δ TSH measured at 30 min (Δ 30 TSH) (p < 0.001). The PRL area under the curve correlated well with the PRL peak value (p < 0.005) and with Δ max PRL (p < 0.05) in both sexes, but the PRL value at 30 min was significantly correlated with the area under the curve only in women (p < 0.005). These data indicate that in both sexes a baseline sample and a 30-min sample provide an excellent index of the entire TSH secretory response to TRH; the PRL response to TRH is clearly related to sex; and the 30-min value of PRL in women, but not in men, is an adequate measure of the PRL secretory response to TRH.
Barnacle suspension-feeding in variable flow

Suspension-feeding behavior of the adult barnacleSemibalanus balanoides (L.), collected at Woods Hole, USA, in 1987 and 1988, was studied in variable conditions of unidirectional and oscillating water flow. Barnacles growing on rocks were placed in a laboratory flume and exposed to precise patterns of water flow created with a specially designed electronic-circuit controlling a motor-driven propeller submersed in the flume. Laser darkfield and brightfield illumination were used to video-record the movement of suspended particles and dye in the flume and barnacle activity. When water was accelerated unidirectionally past feeding barnacles, they consistently changed feeding behavior from actively sweeping their thoracic appendages (cirri) through the water in slow-flow to passively holding cirri into the current in faster flow. The mean water velocity at which this behavioral switch occurred was 3.10 cm s−1. In slow-flow, each active sweep of the cirri created a feeding vortex that caused suspended particles to swirl into the capture zone of the following sweep. Barnacles in simulated wave-action conditions (oscillatory flow) fed passively, and orientated extended cirri to flow direction. Cirri were rapidly reoriented with the same frequency at which flow direction reversed. Slow-motion analysis of one barnacle feeding in oscillating flow (0.65 Hz) indicated that reversal of the orientation of the cirri began 0.19 s before the water itself started to reverse direction. In additional experiments, barnacles were exposed to a repetitive pattern of accelerating-decelerating flow. During each flow cycle, barnacles switched from active to passive feeding as water accelerated. Repeated exposure of an individual to the same flow-cycle caused a consistent decrease in the water-velocity threshold at which the behavioral switch occurred.
The development of a digital library to support the teaching of computer graphics and visualization

Abstract The ACM SIGGRAPH Education Committee web site is being evolved into a Digital Library that will be a worldwide resource for Graphics and Visualization Education. We discuss the history of the website, including a long-standing partnership with the National Science Foundation, and the current work to evolve it into a Digital Library. Finally, we discuss a proposed vision of the future of the Digital Library and how we are working to achieve that vision.
Statistical model and fluctuation studies of the Al27 (d, α)Mg25 reaction in the energy range 5.50–8.0 MeV

Abstract Angular distributions for seven outgoing alpha groups have been measured at the deuteron energies 5.6, 5.9, 6.2, 6.5, 6.8, 7.4 and 8.0 MeV. Two excitation functions were measured at 80° and 160°, in 40 keV steps, in the energy range 5.46–6.70 MeV. The energy spread of the incoming deuterons was less than 10 keV. By averaging the angular distribution measurements over different outgoing channels and bombarding energies, agreement with the compound nuclear statistical model is obtained. Analysis of the fluctuations in the excitation functions gives qualitative support to the assumption of predominant compound nuclear mechanism in the reaction. The coherence energy Γ is estimated to be 58±8 keV for excitation energies between 23 and 24 MeV of the Si 29 compound nucleus.
ON THE NOTION OF ALGEBRAIC CLOSEDNESS FOR NONCOMMUTATIVE GROUPS AND FIELDS

?1. The notion of algebraic closedness plays an important part in the theory of commutative fields. The corresponding notion in the theory of ordered fields is (not only intuitively but in a sense which can be made precise in a metamathematical framework, compare [4]) that of a real closed ordered field. Several suggestions have been made (see [2] and [8]) for the formulation of corresponding concepts in the theory of groups and in the theory of skew fields (division rings, noncommutative fields). Here we present a concept of this kind, which preserves the principal metamathematical properties of algebraically closed commutative fields and which applies to a wide class of first order theories K, including the theories of commutative and of skew fields and the theories of commutative and of general groups. The precise choice of the vocabularies for these theories is irre, levant. For example, in the case of field theory it may consist of a binary relation, x = y, and of the two ternary relations x + y = z and xy = z, or of the relation x = y and of the two operations x + y and xy. In fact, the definition and some of the principal properties of our concept are based on the sole assumption that the theory K under consideration is inductive, i.e. that the union (inductive limit) of a monotonic set {M,} of models of K is again a model of K. The framework presented here is the outcome of some ongoing research on the forcing method in model theory whose results will be, or have been, published more fully elsewhere [1], [5], [6], [7]. The reader should have no difficulty in adapting the proofs given in those references to the somewhat different situation considered here. However, the formulation of the concepts and results of the present paper does not involve the forcing notion and only a knowledge of the elements of the predicate calculus is required in order to understand it. The title of our paper includes the term closedness rather than closure. Thus, our analysis will not touch upon the question of the existence of a "closed" extension which is in some sense minimal as is the algebraic closure of a commutative field.
Charge density variation with fin width in FinFETs: an application of supersymmetric quantum mechanics

FinFETs have become of great interest since it appears that they will be implemented within the next generation of integrated circuits. One point of interest is the transition from surface inversion on the faces of the fin to bulk inversion as the fin width is reduced. We have found that a good scaling approach can give estimates of this transition, with the scaling theory based upon supersymmetric quantum mechanics. For this, a double well potential is chosen whose supersymmetric partner is the harmonic oscillator potential. The depths and the separation between the wells were varied to simulate the change in fin widths. The fraction of charge residing inside the bulk, calculated as a function of fin width and electron density, was determined by calculating overlap area between the squared wave function magnitude of any state and that of a pure bulk state. More charges reside in the bulk for any electron density as the fin width decreases. On the other hand, for a fixed fin width, increasing electron density moves charge to the surface. It was found that in a Si FinFET, bulk inversion occurs at a fin width of about 8 nm for an inversion density of 3×1012 cm−2.
Defending wireless sensor networks from radio interference through channel adaptation

Radio interference, whether intentional or otherwise, represents a serious threat to assuring the availability of sensor network services. As such, techniques that enhance the reliability of sensor communications in the presence of radio interference are critical. In this article, we propose to cope with this threat through a technique called channel surfing, whereby the sensor nodes in the network adapt their channel assignments to restore network connectivity in the presence of interference. We explore two different approaches to channel surfing: coordinated channel switching, in which the entire sensor network adjusts its channel; and spectral multiplexing, in which nodes in a jammed region switch channels and nodes on the boundary of a jammed region act as radio relays between different spectral zones. For coordinated channel switching, we examine an autonomous strategy where each node detects the loss of its neighbors in order to initiate channel switching. To cope with latency issues in the autonomous strategy, we propose a broadcast-assisted channel switching strategy to more rapidly coordinate channel switching. For spectral multiplexing, we have devised both synchronous and asynchronous strategies to facilitate the scheduling of nodes in order to improve network fidelity when sensor nodes operate on multiple channels. In designing these algorithms, we have taken a system-oriented approach that has focused on exploring actual implementation issues under realistic network settings. We have implemented these proposed methods on a testbed of 30 Mica2 sensor nodes, and the experimental results show that channel surfing, in its various forms, is an effective technique for repairing network connectivity in the presence of radio interference, while not introducing significant performance-overhead.
Angulated needle placement in CT-guided percutaneous needle biopsy of the thorax

Computed tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous needle biopsy is often necessary to evaluate small intrathoracic lesions. Not infrequently, an overlying structure such as a rib or vessel precludes insertion of the biopsy needle within the CT slice containing the lesion. Insertion and angulation of the needle at a site within an adjacent CT slice is then required. In order to determine the optimal skin-entry site and degree of angulation for biopsy needle insertion, we analyzed the geometric relationship between lesion depth, needle length, and needle angulation.
Ultraviolet irradiation induces CYR61/CCN1, a mediator of collagen homeostasis, through activation of transcription factor AP-1 in human skin fibroblasts

UV irradiation from the sun elevates the production of collagen-degrading matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and reduces the production of new collagen. This imbalance of collagen homeostasis impairs the structure and function of the dermal collagenous extracellular matrix (ECM), thereby promoting premature skin aging (photoaging). We report here that aberrant dermal collagen homeostasis in UV-irradiated human skin is mediated in part by a CCN-family member, cysteine-rich protein-61 (CYR61/CCN1). CYR61 is significantly elevated in acutely UV-irradiated human skin in vivo, and UV-irradiated human skin fibroblasts. Knockdown of CYR61 significantly attenuates UV irradiation-induced inhibition of type-I procollagen and upregulation of MMP-1. Determination of CYR61 mRNA and protein indicates that the primary mechanism of CYR61 induction by UV irradiation is transcriptional. Analysis of CYR61 proximal promoter showed that a sequence conforming to the consensus binding site for transcription factor activator protein-1 (AP-1) is required for promoter activity. UV irradiation increased the binding of AP-1-family members c-Jun and c-Fos to this AP-1 site. Furthermore, functional blockade of c-Jun or knockdown of c-Jun significantly reduced the UV irradiation-induced activation of CYR61 promoter and CYR61 gene expression. These data show that CYR61 is transcriptionally regulated by UV irradiation through transcription factor AP-1, and mediates altered collagen homeostasis that occurs in response to UV irradiation in human skin fibroblasts.
Ego involvement as an experimental variable

Experimental studies of ego involvement are reviewed with respect to definitions of the concept, procedures and designs used, and effects of these on retention, perception, motor responses, problem solving, preferences, evaluative judgments, set-shifting tasks, level of aspiration, and test responses. Generalizing from their review, the writers propose the hypothesis that varying reactions to ego involving conditions reflect, at least in part, a continuum of motivation. The relationship between degree of ego involvement and efficacy of response appears to be a curvilinear one, inhibitive or disruptive at the extremes and optimally facilitative near the middle. There also appears to be a common personality dimension which is responsive to ego-involving conditions.
Rho A regulates sustained smooth muscle contraction through cytoskeletal reorganization of HSP27

Theras-related protein Rho p21 regulates various actin-dependent functions, including smooth muscle contraction. However, the precise mechanism of action of Rho p21 is still not clear. We report he...
Defining competition vectors in a temperate alley cropping system in the midwestern USA; 3. Competition for nitrogen and litter decomposition dynamics.

An experiment was conducted in an 11-year-old black walnut (Juglans nigra L.), red oak (Quercus rubra L.), maize (Zea mays L.) alley cropping system in the midwestern USA to examine the extent of tree-crop competition for nitrogen and decomposition dynamics of tree leaves and fine roots. A below-ground polyethylene root barrier (1.2 m deep) isolated black walnut roots from maize alleys in half the number of plots providing two treatments viz. ‘barrier’ and ‘no barrier’. The percentage of N derived from fertilizer (%NDF) and fertilizer use efficiency (%UFN) were determined using 15N enriched fertilizer. Further, maize grain and stover biomass, tree leaf biomass, tissue N concentration, and N content were quantified in both treatments. The ‘barrier’ treatment resulted in a significantly greater grain (67.3% more) and stover (37.2% more) biomass than the ‘no barrier’ treatment. The %NDF in both grain and stover was higher in the ‘no barrier’ treatment as a result of competition from tree roots for water and mineralized N in soil. Maize plants growing in the ‘no barrier’ treatment had a lower %UFN than those in the ‘barrier’ treatment due to their smaller size and inability to take up fertilizer. Analysis of tree leaf and fine root decomposition patterns revealed faster release of N (39% over 15 days for black walnut and 17.7% for red oak) and P (30% over 15 days for both species) from roots compared to the leaves of both species. Following an early release of P (11.3% over 45 days), red oak leaves exhibited significant immobilization for the rest of the incubation period. The data indicate that competition for N from fertilizer is minimal since nutrient acquisition is not simultaneous among black walnut and maize. However, competition for mineralized N in soil can exist between black walnut and maize depending on water availability and competition. Tree leaves and fine roots can enhance soil nutrient pools through the addition of soil carbon and nutrients. Tree fine roots seem to play a more significant role in nutrient cycling within the alley cropping system because of their faster release of both N and P as compared to leaves. Selection of tree species and their phenology will impact the magnitude and rate of nutrient cycling.
Diversification Benefits of REIT Preferred and Common Stock: New Evidence from a Utility based Framework

We study the diversification benefits of REIT preferred and common stock using a utility based framework in which investors segment based on risk aversion. Taking the view of a long run investor, we conduct our analysis using data from 1992 to 2012. We examine optimal mean-variance portfolios of investors with different levels of risk aversion given access to different classes of assets and establish three main results. First, REIT preferred and common stock provides significant diversification benefits to investors. REIT common stock helps low risk aversion investors attain portfolios with higher returns, while REIT preferred stock helps high risk aversion investors by providing a venue for risk reduction. Both asset classes receive material allocations over plausible levels of risk aversion. Second, while REIT preferred stock appears to behave somewhat like a hybrid debt/equity asset, its risk/return profile appears to not easily be replicated by those asset classes. When given the opportunity, investors will reduce allocations to REIT common stock and investment grade bonds and invest in REIT preferred stock. Finally, realistic investor constraints matter empirically. Conclusions drawn from the empirical analysis are markedly different under these constraints compared to the classical unconstrained setting.
Large-image CNN hardware processing using a time multiplexing scheme

The state of the art work in cellular neural networks (CNN) has concentrated on VLSI implementations without really addressing the "systems level". While efficient implementations have been reported, no reports have been presented on the use of these implementations for processing large complex images. The work hereby presented introduces a strategy to process large images using small CNN arrays. The approach, time-multiplexing, is prompted by the need to simulate hardware models and test hardware implementations of CNN. For practical size applications, due to hardware limitations, it is impossible to have a one-on-one mapping between the CNN hardware processors and all the pixels in the image involved. This paper presents a practical solution by processing the input image block by block, with the number of pixels in a block being the same as the number of CNN processors in the hardware. Image processing results obtained from an actual IC test-chip prototype using this scheme are presented.
Melatonin treatment during early life interacts with restraint to alter neuronal morphology and provoke depressive-like responses.

Stressors during early life induce anxiety- and depressive-like responses in adult rodents. Siberian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus) exposed to short days post-weaning also increase adult anxiety- and depressive-like behaviors. To test the hypothesis that melatonin and exposure to stressors early in life interact to alter adult affective responses, we administered melatonin either during the perinatal (gestational day 7 to postnatal day 14) or postnatal (day 15–56) periods and also exposed a subset of dams to restraint during gestation (1 h–2×/day for 4 days). During the final week of injections, depressive-like behaviors were assessed using the sucrose anhedonia and forced swim tests. Hamsters exposed to prenatal restraint and treated with melatonin only during the postnatal period increased depressive-like responses in the forced swim test relative to all other groups. Offspring from restrained dams increased the number of fecal boli produced during the forced swim test, an anxiety-like response. In the present study, prenatal restraint reduced CA1 dendritic branching overall and perinatal melatonin protected hamsters from this restraint-induced reduction. These results suggest that the photoperiodic conditions coincident with birth and early life stressors are important in the development of adult affective responses.
Drying and collapse of hollow latex

Hollow latex particles are used as white pigments for paints and paper coatings. In the coating dispersion, each hollow particle is filled with water. As the coating dries, water vacates the latex, leaving an air-filled void sized to scatter light (~0.5 μm) within each particle. Examinations of dried coatings reveal that hollow particles can collapse, decreasing their light scattering efficiency. Cryogenic scanning electron microscopy (cryoSEM) was used to characterize the microstructure of coatings containing hollow latex during drying. Images suggest latex voids empty after air invades into the coating interstitial space and collapse occurs late in the drying process. The effects of temperature (10–60°C), humidity (20–80%), and binder concentration (0–30 wt%) on particle collapse were also studied through SEM of dried coating surfaces. High drying temperature, high humidity, and low binder concentrations promoted collapse. For hollow latex particles with porous shell walls, temperature and humidity had little effect, whereas binder increased collapse. From these results, a theoretical model is proposed. During drying, diffusion of water from the particle creates a vacuum inside the latex. The vacuum is either relieved by nucleation of a gas bubble from the dissolved air in the water-filled particle or it causes the particle to collapse by buckling.
Geometric and texture cue based depth-map estimation for 2D to 3D image conversion

We present a novel framework for estimating depth-map in a single 2D image. The proposed framework employs both vanishing point and superpixels as geometric and texture cues, respectively. The combination of both cues can generate a feasible perceptual depth-map, which will be applied to 2D to 3D image conversion.
A Relative Tendency Based Stock Market Prediction System

Researchers have known for some time that non-linearity exists in the financial markets and that neural networks can be used to forecast market returns. In this article, we present a novel stock market prediction system which focuses on forecasting the relative tendency growth between different stocks and indices rather than purely predicting their values. This research utilizes artificial neural network models for estimation. The results are examined for their ability to provide an effective forecast of future values. Certain techniques, such as sliding windows and chaos theory, are employed for data preparation and pre-processing. Our system successfully predicted the relative tendency growth of different stocks with up to 99.01% accuracy.
Graph and Semigroup Homomorphisms on Networks of Relations

Abstract The algebraic definitions presented here are motivated by our search for an adequate formalization of the concepts of social roles as regularities in social network patterns. The theorems represent significant homomorphic reductions of social networks which are possible using these definitions to capture the role structure of a network. The concepts build directly on the pioneering work of S.F. Nadel (1957) and the pathbreaking approach to blockmodeling introduced by Lorrain and White (1971) and refined in subsequent years (White, Boorman and Breiger 1976; Boorman and White 1976; Arabie, Boorman and Levitt, 1978; Sailer, 1978 ). Blockmodeling is one of the predominant techniques for deriving structural models of social networks. When a network is represented by a directed multigraph, a blockmodel of the multigraph can be characterized as mapping points and edges onto their images in a reduced multigraph. The relations in a network or multigraph can also be composed to form a semigroup. In the first part of the paper we examine “graph” homomorphisms, or homomorphic mappings of the points or actors in a network. A family of basic concepts of role equivalence are introduced, and theorems presented to show the structure preserving properties of their various induced homomorphisms. This extends the “classic” approach to blockmodeling via the equivalence of positions. Lorrain and White (1971) , Pattison (1980) , Boyd, 1980 , Boyd, 1982 , and most recently Bonacich (1982) have explored the topic taken up in the second part of this paper, namely the homomorphic reduction of the semigroup of relations on a network, and the relation between semigroup and graph homomorphisms. Our approach allows us a significant beginning in reducing the complexity of a multigraph by collapsing relations which play a similar “role” in the network.
Systèmes de personnalité au niveau de l'individu : vers une évaluation de l'architecture sociocognitive de la personnalité

Resume Cet article traite des strategies conceptuelles dans l'evaluation de l'architecture intra-individuelle de la personnalite, y compris l'evaluation des structures et des dynamiques sociocognitives qui contribuent a la coherence de la personnalite. L'article met aussi en rapport les analyses sociocognitives de l'architecture intra-individuelle de la personnalite avec les analyses provenant de la theorie des differences interindividuelles dans la population. Un theme predominant est qu'il faut considerer ces traditions de recherche opposees comme relevant de problemes scientifiques differents. A l'oppose de la tradition « lexicale » de recherche sur la personnalite fondee par exemple sur les « Big Five », les theories sociocognitives traitent principalement des structures et des dynamiques mentales qui contribuent de facon causale au fonctionnement et a la coherence de la personnalite. Elles ont pour but de comprendre comment ces systemes cognitifs et affectifs se developpent et fonctionnent en interaction avec l'environnement social. Tout comme Lamiell (2003) et d'autres l'ont explique, les analyses interindividuelles ne peuvent se substituer a l'etude de la dynamique et des dispositions intra-individuelles de la personnalite.
A continuously variable field of view surface coil

A new type of surface coil is described which allows the user to continuously vary the size of the field of view. This utilizes a modified radiofrequency trombone for size adjustment that results in a stable frequency over a wide range of dimensions. Results show that the coil may be increased in area by as much as 60% while maintaining frequency stability to ca. 1 MHz at 63.5 MHz. Images of the human spine are presented to demonstrate the clinical utility of the new design.
Occupation, Dignity, and Space: The Rise of Dalit Studies

Dalit Studies has emerged as a new field of study in South Asia since the 1990s, helping to reorient scholarship's interest away from the study of untouchability as a phenomenon toward a recognition and recovery of Dalit actors. This review essay identifies three broad themes-occupation, dignity, and space, and uses them to survey the literature on Dalit society over the last hundred years. It suggests that occupation was a prominent organizing category in colonial and early post-colonial ethnographic writing that was used to catalogue and define Dalit religious traditions and socio-economic practices. Struggles for dignity and efforts to eradicate caste inequality have become central concerns in more recent writings. This essay also draws attention to a less recognized theme by focusing on the role of space, particularly the role of jati mohallas, in mediating the experience of caste and shaping Dalit political consciousness.
The Value of Environmental Information without Control of Subsequent Decisions

The standard value of information approach of decision analysis assumes that the individual or agency that collects the information is also in control of the subsequent decisions based on the information. We refer to this situation as the “value of information with control (VOI-C).” This paradigm leads to powerful results, for example, that the value of information cannot be negative and that it is zero, when the information cannot change subsequent decisions. In many real world situations, however, the agency collecting the information is different from the one that makes the decision on the basis of that information. For example, an environmental research group may contemplate to fund a study that can affect an environmental policy decision that is made by a regulatory organization. In this two-agency formulation, the information-acquiring agency has to decide, whether an investment in research is worthwhile, while not being in control of the subsequent decision. We refer to this situation as “value of information without control (VOI-NC).” In this article, we present a framework for the VOI-NC and illustrate it with an example of a specific problem of determining the value of a research program on the health effects of power-frequency electromagnetic fields. We first compare the VOI-C approach with the VOI-NC approach. We show that the VOI-NC can be negative, but that with high-quality research (low probabilities of errors of type I and II) it is positive. We also demonstrate, both in the example and in more general mathematical terms, that the VOI-NC for environmental studies breaks down into a sum of the VOI-NC due to the possible reduction of environmental impacts and the VOI-NC due to the reduction of policy costs, with each component being positive for low environmental impacts and high-quality research. Interesting results include that the environmental and cost components of the VOI-NC move in opposite directions as a function of the probability of environmental impacts and that VOI-NC can be positive, even though the probability of environmental impacts is zero or one.