cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Sparse Canonical Correlation Analysis via Concave Minimization.

A new approach to the sparse Canonical Correlation Analysis (sCCA)is proposed with the aim of discovering interpretable associations in very high-dimensional multi-view, i.e.observations of multiple sets of variables on the same subjects, problems. Inspired by the sparse PCA approach of Journee et al. (2010), we also show that the sparse CCA formulation, while non-convex, is equivalent to a maximization program of a convex objective over a compact set for which we propose a first-order gradient method. This result helps us reduce the search space drastically to the boundaries of the set. Consequently, we propose a two-step algorithm, where we first infer the sparsity pattern of the canonical directions using our fast algorithm, then we shrink each view, i.e. observations of a set of covariates, to contain observations on the sets of covariates selected in the previous step, and compute their canonical directions via any CCA algorithm. We also introduceDirected Sparse CCA, which is able to find associations which are aligned with a specified experiment design, andMulti-View sCCA which is used to discover associations between multiple sets of covariates. Our simulations establish the superior convergence properties and computational efficiency of our algorithm as well as accuracy in terms of the canonical correlation and its ability to recover the supports of the canonical directions. We study the associations between metabolomics, trasncriptomics and microbiomics in a multi-omic study usingMuLe, which is an R-package that implements our approach, in order to form hypotheses on mechanisms of adaptations of Drosophila Melanogaster to high doses of environmental toxicants, specifically Atrazine, which is a commonly used chemical fertilizer.
Rice Production with Restricted Water Usage: A Global Perspective

GLOBAL rice production remains critically import for food security; however, fresh water is an ever-increasingly diminished resource. The objective of this manuscript is to select central and comprehensive research focusing on rice production and diminished water availability to isolate and authenticate emerging initiatives to address continuance of rice production and to ensure water sustainability. Three regions were selected: (i) Asia with an emphasis of China and India, (ii) The United States of America and (iii) The Mediterranean region with an emphasis on Egypt. Each of these regions recognize current or emerging issues associated with water quantity, water quality, urbanization, climate change and other technological, social and policy constraints; however, each region has a different hierarchy of issue importance. China and India recognize climate change, aquifer overdraft and pollution of water resources as central issues, whereas the mid-South region of the United States of America is more focused on irrigation technology to improve farm profitability. Egypt is primarily focused on water quantity and quality limitations, with substantial research addressing desertification and saline soils/water. This review focuses on stated research objectives in compelling, peer-reviewed literature to indicate regional approaches addressing the causes of restricted water availability for rice production and the most-probable approaches for maintaining rice production to safe-guard food security and producer profitability. Thus, unique rice water management approaches are predicated on the region’s water quantity and quality environmental assessment.
Disease characteristics of diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma predicting relapse and survival after autologous stem cell transplantation: A single institution experience

While various tools such as the International Prognostic Index (IPI) and its derivatives exist for risk-stratification of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) at diagnosis, patient and disease characteristics capable of predicting outcome after high-dose chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplantation (HDC/ASCT) are not clearly defined. We retrospectively analyzed medical records of 111 DLBCL patients (78 relapsed and 33 refractory) who underwent HDC/ASCT at our institution from 2010-2015. After a median follow-up time of 4.6 years (interquartile range [IQR] 2.2-8.1), the likelihood of 5-year progression-free survival (PFS) was 62.2% (95% CI, 53.4%-72.4%) and the likelihood of 5-year overall survival (OS) was 68.9% (95% CI, 60.7%-78.2%). More than three chemotherapy regimens prior to ASCT was the only variable associated with lower likelihood of PFS (P = .004) and OS (P = 0.026). Male gender and high IPI score at time of ASCT were also associated with lower likelihood of PFS (P = .043; P = .013). NCCN IPI and age-adjusted IPI at time of ASCT were not predictive of outcome following ASCT. Patients with refractory and relapsed disease had similar outcomes post-ASCT (P = .207 for PFS, P = .073 for OS).
Rational Islamists: Islamism and regime preferences in Bangladesh

Scholars have long studied whether Islam is compatible with democracy. Quantitative analyses of survey data of Muslim polities have drawn from three broad theoretical and epistemological frameworks...
Biological Flora of the Tropical and Subtropical Intertidal Zone: Literature Review for Rhizophora mangle L.

DeYoe, H.; Lonard, R.I.; Judd, F.W.; Stalter, R., and Feller, I., 2020. Biological flora of the tropical and subtropical intertidal zone: Literature review for Rhizophora mangle L. Journal of Coastal Research, 36(4), 857–884. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208.Rhizophora mangle L. is a tropical and subtropical mangrove species that occurs as a dominant tree species in the intertidal zone of low-energy shorelines. Rhizophora mangle plays an important role in coastal zones as habitat for a wide range of organisms of intertidal food webs, as a natural barrier to coastal erosion, and as carbon sequestration. A review of mangrove literature has been performed, but a review specifically on red mangroves has not. The approach was to cover a broad range of topics with a focus on topics that have seen significant work since the 1970s. This review includes a brief introduction to red mangroves and then focuses on the following topics: biogeography, habitats and zonation, geomorphological interactions, taxonomy, histology, anatomy, physiological ecology, productivity, biomass, litter, reproduction, population biology, plant communities, interactions with other species, impacts of storms, reforestation, remote sensing, modelling, and economic importance.
The criminalization of environmental harm: a study of the most serious environmental offenses prosecuted by the U.S. federal government, 1985-2010

Over the past four decades, criminal, as opposed to civil or administrative, prosecutions have assumed an increasingly visible role in US environmental law enforcement. There is little understandin...
A Call for Mental Health Treatment in Incarcerated Settings with Transgender Individuals

The U.S. correctional system has become the epicenter for public health and mental health crisis. This article discusses literature documenting incarcerated transgender individuals’ mental health t...
Aerospace technology can be applied to exploration 'back on earth'

Applications of aerospace technology to petroleum exploration are described. Attention is given to seismic reflection techniques, sea-floor mapping, remote geochemical sensing, improved drilling methods and down-hole acoustic concepts, such as down-hole seismic tomography. The seismic reflection techniques include monitoring of swept-frequency explosive or solid-propellant seismic sources, as well as aerial seismic surveys. Telemetry and processing of seismic data may also be performed through use of aerospace technology. Sea-floor sonor imaging and a computer-aided system of geologic analogies for petroleum exploration are also considered.
Vitamin deficiencies in pediatric eosinophilic esophagitis: A systematic review

Background Nutritional deficiencies are seen in patients with food allergy. Low vitamin D levels have been found in patients with atopic conditions. Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is a chronic immune antigen-mediated disease found to be highly associated in patients with atopic disease and treated with dietary elimination with recommendations to utilize a dietician to prevent nutritional deficiencies. Nonetheless, the relationship between EoE and vitamin deficiency remains unclear. We aimed to systematically review the evidence to support a possible association between vitamin deficiency and eosinophilic esophagitis. Methods Electronic searches were performed with keywords relating to EoE and vitamins among pediatric patients in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and The Cochrane Library. Summary estimates were calculated. Citations were reviewed against pre-defined criteria. (Inclusion: human subjects, aged 0-18, with eosinophilic esophagitis. Exclusion: adults over 18 years, non-English papers). Results The search yielded 1707 studies. Five of these studies with a total of 137 pediatric patients were included in the systematic review. Outcome measures were assessed at different points in EoE treatment across studies. The single common outcome measure across all included studies was vitamin D. Reported prevalence of low vitamin D varied in these studies (0%-52%). Vitamin D levels of children with EoE both pre- and post-intervention were low. Conclusions There is limited published literature on vitamin deficiencies associated with EoE both pre- and post-intervention. The limited data on vitamin D suggest that insufficiency or deficiency may be present in these patients, but it remains unclear whether deficiency is caused by diet. More prospective, well-defined studies, in addition to routine reporting on dietary intake and nutritional status, are needed to make any conclusions or recommendations for screening.
Comparison of algae growth and symbiotic mechanisms in the presence of plant growth promoting bacteria and non-plant growth promoting bacteria

Abstract Culturing algae with bacteria has been explored as a means of promoting algal growth and altering algal biochemical composition. Plant growth promoting bacteria (PGPB) are of particular interest given their ability to produce phytohormones that are bioactive in microalgae. However, many non-plant growth promoting bacteria also promote algal growth. The objective of this study was to test the benefits of a model PGPB versus non-PGPB in a side-by-side study, evaluating improvement in algal growth rates and impacts on biomass composition. Three green microalgae strains were tested with three strains of bacteria: Azospirillum brasilense (a model PGPB), Escherichia coli (a non-PGPB), and Bacillus megaterium (a potential PGPB). A. brasilense produces the auxin phytohormone indole-3-acetic acid. A. brasilense promoted growth in two of the three algae strains by 39–69% but did not promote growth in Chlorella sorokiniana (strain UTEX 2805). E. coli promoted growth in all three algae strains by 16–64%. That the non-PGPB, E. coli, performed as well as the PGPB, A. brasilense, suggests the importance of symbiotic mechanisms that are ubiquitous among many bacteria. One such mechanism, cell-to-cell O2-CO2 exchange, may have been important given significant consumption of algal photosynthate by bacteria. B-vitamin exchange is another widespread mechanism of algal-bacterial symbiosis. The riboflavin metabolite, lumichrome, was detected in low concentrations in co-cultures of A. brasilense (0.4–0.6 ng/mL) and E. coli (5.5–13 ng/mL). These concentrations of lumichrome were found to provide small but statistically significant growth benefits for C. sorokiniana UTEX 2805 and Auxenochlorella protothecoides.
Further Evidence That OPG rs2073618 Is Associated With Increased Risk of Musculoskeletal Symptoms in Patients Receiving Aromatase Inhibitors for Early Breast Cancer.

Background Aromatase inhibitors (AI) reduce recurrence and death in patients with early-stage hormone receptor-positive (HR +) breast cancer. Treatment-related toxicities, including AI-induced musculoskeletal symptoms (AIMSS), are common and may lead to early AI discontinuation. The objective of this study was to replicate previously reported associations for candidate germline genetic polymorphisms with AIMSS. Methods Women with stage 0-III HR + breast cancer initiating adjuvant AI were enrolled in a prospective clinic-based observational cohort. AIMSS were assessed by patient-reported outcomes (PRO) including the PROMIS pain interference and physical function measures plus the FACT-ES joint pain question at baseline and after 3 and 6 months. For the primary analysis, AIMSS were defined as ≥ 4-point increase in the pain interference T-score from baseline. Secondary AIMSS endpoints were defined as ≥ 4-point decrease in the physical function T-score from baseline and as ≥ 1-point increase on the FACT-ES joint pain question from baseline. The primary hypothesis was that TCL1A rs11849538 would be associated with AIMSS. Twelve other germline variants in CYP19A1, VDR, PIRC66, OPG, ESR1, CYP27B1, CYP17A1, and RANKL were also analyzed assuming a dominant genetic effect and prespecified direction of effect on AIMSS using univariate logistic regression with an unadjusted α = 0.05. Significant univariate associations in the expected direction were adjusted for age, race, body mass index (BMI), prior taxane, and the type of AI using multivariable logistic regression. Results A total of 143 participants with PRO and genetic data were included in this analysis, most of whom were treated with anastrozole (78%) or letrozole (20%). On primary analysis, participants carrying TCL1A rs11849538 were not more likely to develop AIMSS (odds ratio = 1.29, 95% confidence interval: 0.55-3.07, p = 0.56). In the statistically uncorrected secondary analysis, OPG rs2073618 was associated with AIMSS defined by worsening on the FACT-ES joint pain question (OR = 3.33, p = 0.004), and this association maintained significance after covariate adjustment (OR = 3.98, p = 0.003). Conclusion Carriers of OPG rs2073618 may be at increased risk of AIMSS. If confirmed in other cohorts, OPG genotyping can be used to identify individuals with HR + early breast cancer in whom alternate endocrine therapy or interventions to enhance symptom detection and implement strategies to reduce musculoskeletal symptoms may be needed.
Correction to: An open-label, single-dose study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of cinacalcet in pediatric subjects aged 28 days to

Background Calcimimetics, shown to control biochemical parameters of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT), have well-established safety and pharmacokinetic profiles in adult end-stage renal disease subjects treated with dialysis; however, such studies are limited in pediatric subjects. Methods In this study, the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics (PK), and pharmacodynamics (PD) of cinacalcet were evaluated in children with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and SHPT receiving dialysis. Twelve subjects received a single dose of cinacalcet (0.25 mg/kg) orally or by nasogastric or gastric tube. Subjects were randomized to one of two parathyroid hormone (PTH) and serum calcium sampling sequences: [(1) 2, 8, 48 h; or (2) 2, 12, 48 h] and assessed for 72 h after dosing. Results Median plasma cinacalcet tmax was 1 h (range 0.5-4.0 h); mean (SD) Cmax and AUClast were 2.83 (1.98) ng/mL and 11.8 (8.74) h*ng/mL, respectively; mean (SD) half-life (t1/2) was 3.70 (2.57) h. Dose adjustments, based upon body weight (mg/kg), minimized the effects of age, body weight, body surface area, and body mass index on cinacalcet PK. Reductions in serum PTH levels from baseline were observed at 2 to 8 h post-dose (median 10.8 and 29.6%, respectively), returned towards baseline by 12-72 h and were inversely related to changes in the plasma cinacalcet PK profile. Single-dose cinacalcet was well-tolerated with no unexpected safety findings and a PK/PD, safety profile similar to adults. Conclusions In conclusion, a single 0.25 mg/kg dose of cinacalcet was evaluated to be a safe starting dose in these children aged
UNIT 6.6 Expression and Purification of GST Fusion Proteins

This unit describes the use of the glutathione-S-transferase (GST) gene fusion system as a method for high-level protein expression and purification from bacterial lysates. Several pGEX vectors are available with multiple cloning sites to allow for unidirectional insertion of the coding-region DNA into the pGEX vector. The GST fusion protein is easily purified by affinity chromatography using a glutathione-Sepharose matrix under mild conditions. Removal of the GST moiety from the protein of interest is accomplished through a specific protease cleavage site located between the GST moiety and the recombinant polypeptide. For solution digestions, GST is easily removed by a second round of chromatography on the glutathione column. Removal of proteases is facilitated by the use of a benzamidine-Sepharose column or a gel-filtration step. Purified protein has been used successfully in structural determinations, immunological studies, vaccine production, and structure-function analysis of protein-protein or DNA-protein interactions. Curr. Protoc. Protein Sci. 52:6.6.1-6.6.26. © 2008 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Keywords: glutathione S-transferase (GST); pGEX; protein expression; protein purification; thrombin; Factor Xa; fusion tags
Pittosporum undulatum Vent. is an invasive tree on Robinson Crusoe Island (Juan Fernández Archipelago), Chile

Se documenta la infestacion del arbol invasor Pittosporum undulatum en la Isla Robinson Crusoe (Mas a Tierra). Se proporciona una comparacion morfologica con otras especies de Pittosporum reportadas de la isla. Debido a que P. undulatum se conoce como una especie de gran influencia negativa en muchas otras islas, se recomienda su erradicacion.
Risk of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Increased in Patients Undergoing Tracheal Surgery During the Same Hospitalization.

BACKGROUND The impact of complex tracheal surgery (TS) on outcomes of children undergoing cardiac surgery has rarely been investigated in large national databases and could impact anticipated outcomes in those patients. METHODS The Pediatric Health Information System database was reviewed from January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2014, for pediatric ( .05. Hospital mortality was 13.8% (n = 39) for CHS + TS and 5.8% (n = 33) for CHS patients with an unadjusted 2.58 hazard ratio of death (95% confidence interval: 1.59-4.20; P < .001). CHS + TS was also associated with a greater length of stay (63 days vs 12 days), a higher cost per hospitalization ($322 402 vs $80 273), and more readmissions (64.3% [n = 182] vs 41.8% [n = 243]), all P < .001. CONCLUSIONS Patients undergoing cardiac and TS in the same hospitalization are at greater risk of in-hospital mortality than patients undergoing similar cardiac surgeries alone and incur higher resource utilization thereafter. The increased risk of mortality is currently underappreciated, but it is important to recognize when discussing expectations with families and providers.
Industry Payments to Foot and Ankle Surgeons and Their Effect on Total Ankle Arthroplasty Outcomes

Background:The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Payments public database provides a means for increased transparency of physicians’ financial relationships with industry. Total a...
Disposing Dictators, Demystifying Voting Paradoxes: Social Choice Analysis

1. Subtle complexity of social choice 2. Dethroning dictators 3. Voting dictionaries 4. Explaining all voting paradoxes 5. Deliver us from plurality vote 6. Appendix.
Phonon Catastrophes and the Kapitza Resistance

In an anisotropic solid, the phase and group velocities of an elastic wave are not collinear. One consequence of this phenomenon is that the energy emitted from a point source may be defocused from some directions and strongly focused into others. Maris1 has quantitatively analyzed this effect by introducing the phonon focusing factor A = (dΩk/dΩV), the ratio of solid angles in k-space and group velocity space; it is implicitly assumed that the acoustic field has a 1/r spatial dependence.
Dna insertional mutagenesis for the elucidation of a Photosystem II repair process in the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

The work outlines the isolation of transformant Chlamydomonas reinhardtii cells that appear to be unable to repair Photosystem II from photoinhibitory damage. A physiological and biochemical characterization of three mutants is presented. The results show differential stability for the D1 reaction center protein in the three mutants compared to the wild type and suggest lesions that affect different aspects of the Photosystem II repair mechanism. In the ag16.2 mutant, significantly greater amounts of D1 accumulate in the thylakoid membrane than in the wild type under steady-state growth conditions, and D1 loss is significantly retarded in the presence of the protein biosynthesis inhibitor chloramphenicol. Moreover, aberrant electrophoretic mobility of D1 in the ag16.2 suggests that this protein is modified to an as yet unknown configuration. These results indicate that the biosynthesis and/or degradation of D1 is altered in this strain. A different type of mutation occurred in the kn66.7 and kn27.4 mutants of C. reinhardtii. The stability of D1 declined much faster as a function of light intensity in these mutants than in the wild type. Thereby, the threshold of photoinhibition in these mutants was significantly lower than that in the wild type. It appears that kn66.7 and kn27.4 are similar conditional mutants, with the only difference between them being the amplitude of the chloroplast response to the mutation and the differential sensitivity they display to the level of irradiance.
Al-Khayyām’s Scientific Revision of Algebra

Geometers in medieval Islam found algebra to be a useful tool in solving problems, but the Greek restriction of “number” to positive integers, adhered to by al-Khayyām (and presumably others), is at odds with the more liberal inclusion of fractions and irrational roots in traditional numerical Arabic algebra. By regarding the known and unknown numbers of traditional algebra as the homogeneous measures of continuous magnitudes (and not as magnitudes themselves), al-Khayyām was able to give a rigorous foundation for the art. This revision helps us understand al-Khayyām’s main work on algebra in the context of geometrical and numerical problem solving, and it leads us to a reassessment of his generalized notion of “number” explained in his commentary on Euclid.
Compositional Dependence of the Elastic Wave Velocities of Mantle Minerals: Implications for Seismic Properties of Mantle Rocks

Using single-crystal elasticity data we constrain the effect of chemical substitutions on the elastic properties of mantle minerals and estimate the consequences for the seismic properties of mantle rocks. At ambient conditions the calculated relative variation of compressional and shear velocities ∂lnv P /∂X Fe and ∂Inv S /∂X Fe due to Fe-Mg substitution, range between -0.05 and -0.46 and between -0.08 and -0.74 respectively in the main mantle minerals. The corresponding heterogeneity ratios R = ∂lnv S /∂lnv P for Fe-Mg substitution range between 0.9 and 1.7 suggesting that the effect of this substitution is very different in different solid solutions systems. More limited experimental results for Ca-Mg substitution and Al enrichment in pyroxenes and garnets were also evaluated. Only Ca-Mg substitution in garnets is found to produce large (>2.0) values of R. Heterogeneity parameters at upper mantle and transition zone conditions can be substantially different from ambient P-T values in some cases. Using a first-order approximation of the effect of Fe-Mg substitution on the elastic properties of the most relevant upper mantle rocks, we find that the sensitivities of seismic velocities to Fe enrichment can vary as much as 2-3 times between the different rock types. We estimate that in the upper mantle the value of ∂lnv S /∂lnv P for pyrolite, piclogite and harzburgite decreases from 1.5 to 1.0 at the base of the transition zone, while it only decreases from 1.5 to 1.3 in mid ocean ridge basalt eclogite, which is enriched in garnet. We also estimate that the seismic effect of lateral changes in lithology from average mantle to subducted slab rocks decreases in intensity at upper mantle and transition zone depths, in agreement with seismic tomographic models. Information about the effects of Ca and Al enrichment are still too incomplete to make predictions of their effects on whole rocks, but they could be relevant based on our limited information.
Distributed Fault Localization in Hierarchically Routed Networks

Probabilistic inference was shown effective in non-deterministic diagnosis of end-to-end service failures. To overcome the exponential complexity of the exact inference algorithms in fault propagation models represented by graphs with undirected loops, Pearl's iterative algorithms for polytrees were used as an approximation schema. The approximation made it possible to diagnose end-to-end service failures in network topologies composed of tens of nodes. This paper proposes a distributed algorithm that increases the admissible network size by an order of magnitude. The algorithm divides the computational effort and system knowledge among multiple, hierarchically organized managers. The cooperation among managers is illustrated with examples, and the results of a preliminary performance study are presented.
Providing administrative control and autonomy in structured peer-to-peer overlays

Structured peer-to-peer (p2p) overlay networks provide a decentralized, self-organizing substrate for distributed applications and support powerful abstractions such as distributed hash tables (DHTs) and group communication. However, in most of these systems, lack of control over key placement and routing paths raises concerns over autonomy, administrative control and accountability of participating organizations. Additionally, structured p2p overlays tend to assume global connectivity while in reality, network address translation and firewalls limit connectivity among hosts in different organizations. In this paper, we present a general technique that ensures content/path locality and administrative autonomy for participating organizations, and provides natural support for NATs and firewalls. Instances of conventional structured overlays are configured to form a hierarchy of identifier spaces that reflects administrative boundaries and respects connectivity constraints among networks.
Busulfan-glutathione conjugation catalyzed by human liver cytosolic glutathione S-transferases.

Abstract We have examined the catalytic activity of glutathione S -transferases (GST) in the conjugation of busulfan with glutathione (GSH) in human liver cytosol, purified human liver GST, and cDNA-expressed GST-α1-1. Human liver microsomes and cytosol were incubated with 40 µm busulfan and 1 mm GSH. Cytosol catalyzed the formation of the GSH-busulfan tetrahydrothiophenium ion (THT + ) in a concentration-dependent manner, whereas microsomes lacked activity. The total and spontaneous rates of THT + formation increased with pH (pH range, 6.50–7.75), with the maximum difference at pH 7.4. Due to the limited aqueous solubility of busulfan, a K m for busulfan was not determined. The intrinsic clearance (V max / K m ) of busulfan conjugation was 0.167 µl/min/mg with 50–1200 µm busulfan and 1 mm GSH. GSH V max and K m for busulfan conjugation were 30.6 pmol/min/mg and 312 µm, respectively. Ethacrynic acid (0.03–15 µm) inhibited cytosolic busulfan-conjugating activity with 40 µm busulfan and 1 mm GSH. Enzyme-mediated THT + formation was decreased 97% by 15 µm ethacrynic acid with no effect on the spontaneous reaction. In incubations with affinity-purified liver GST and GST-α1-1, the intrinsic clearance for busulfan conjugation was 0.87 and 2.92 µl/min/mg, respectively. Busulfan is a GST substrate with a high K m relative to concentrations achieved clinically (1–8 µm).
WOMEN’S PROPERTY AT GORTYN

In two earlier articles (Gagarin 2008, 2012) I argued first, that women could own property in their own right and could manage and dispose of it without the need of a “guardian” (kyrios), such as we find at Athens, that they could appear in court on their own as plaintiffs or defendants, and that they had more rights in choosing a husband than Athenian women. Second, we can infer from the wording of the laws at Gortyn that women’s rights in these respects had only recently been granted or had been expanded, and that resistance to these greater rights led to greater protection for women in the Gortyn Code. Third, the Code suggests, however, that despite these greater rights, most women probably continued to live fairly traditional lives, allowing men to manage their property as they always had. This paper defends these views against objections raised by Alberto Maffi in Maffi 2012 and in this same journal (Dike 15), as well as by two anonymous readers. In due articoli precedenti (Gagarin 2008, 2012) ho sostenuto che le donne potevano essere proprietarie di beni, e potevano amministrarli e disporre di essi senza bisogno dell’intervento di un tutore (kyrios), quale troviamo invece ad Atene; che potevano stare in giudizio per proprio conto sia in veste di attore che di convenuto, e che avevano maggiore liberta di scegliersi un marito rispetto alle donne ateniesi. In secondo luogo possiamo desumere dal testo delle leggi di Gortina che i diritti delle donne riguardo a questi punti sono stati garantiti o addirittura accresciuti solo in tempi recenti, e che la resistenza a questo ampliamento dei loro diritti ha condotto a una protezione accentuata delle donne nel Codice di Gortina. In terzo luogo il Codice induce a ritenere che, nonostante questo accrescimento di diritti, la maggior parte delle donne probabilmente continuava a vivere secondo canoni tradizionali, consentendo agli uomini di amministrare i loro beni come era sempre avvenuto. Questo articolo ribadisce questi punti di vista contro le obiezioni sollevate da Alberto Maffi 2012 e in questo stesso numero della rivista (Dike 15), nonche da due anonimi revisori.
Glomerular permselectivity: barrier function based on discrimination of molecular size and charge

The formation of glomerular ultrafiltrate is dependent on the interplay of glomerular pressures and flows as well as the intrinsic permselectivity properties of the glomerular capillary wall. These intrinsic permeability properties serve to exclude macromolecules from the urinary space, based on size as well as net molecular charge discrimination. Neutral dextrans with molecular radii less than 20 A cross the glomerular wall without measurable restriction, whereas dextrans with radii greater than 42 A are almost completely barred. For any given size, negatively charged macromolecules are restricted to a greater extent than neutral molecules. Additionally, positively charged molecules are enhanced in their ability to cross the glomerular wall compared to similarly sized neutral polymers. The concept of a charge barrier, due to fixed negative charges within the glomerular wall, is also supported by morphological studies. Glomerular injury, leading to proteinuria, has been associated with loss of the charge-selective properties of these capillaries. Loss of glomerular fixed negative charges may also result in the foot process fusion and mesangial cell dysfunction often observed in proteinuric states.
Global satellite communications technology and systems - An overview

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) commissioned a panel of scientists and engineers in 1997 to benchmark the global status of commercial communications satellite technology, markets and regulatory and policy issues. After visiting or interviewing over 60 manufacturing, R&D laboratory, service provider and government institutions in North and South America, Europe and Asia, the review panel concluded as follows: Many European and Asian governments are increasing their satellite communications R&D programs and supporting demonstrations and space marketing efforts, relative to the US. The US is currently the leader in new technology and its insertion into commercial satellite systems, but ambitious foreign efforts threaten this position. Global commercial satellite communications is a large and rapidly growing business. New technology is being inserted into satellites at an increasingly rapid pace with an increasing number of international participants. Aerospace communications companies, worldwide, are consolidating their efforts and are expanding into the end user service business. The Direct-to-End User mass consumer satellite service industry has the potential to be quite large and is changing the way satellites are manufactured and deployed and is creating a potentially large satellite terminal industry. Satellite manufacturing is increasingly becoming a design, assembly and test operation with parts and sub-systems obtained from global suppliers. This increased use of satellites for communications services is creating a shortage of spectrum and orbital slots and is resulting in spectrum utilization conflicts with terrestrial wireless service providers. Future development of commercial satellite communications is dependent on the resolution of key regulatory, trade, spectrum, inter-operability and standards issues and government leadership is vitally needed. There are opportunities for international cooperation to facilitate the development of satellites technologies, systems, standards and protocols. There is concern that unless several issues are addressed, particularly an increase in long term oriented R&D and trade and regulatory issues, the US may experience a deterioration of its leading position in the manufacture of satellites for global service providers and the initiation of new services, much in the way that it lost its leading position in the launch of commercial satellites.
Detection, isolation, and analysis of a released Bordetella pertussis product toxic to cultured tracheal cells.

Cultured hamster trachea epithelial cells were selected as an in vitro model system to study Bordetella pertussis in the respiratory tract. DNA synthesis by serum-stimulated tracheal cells, in contrast to other cell types tested, was inhibited by the supernatant from log-phase B. pertussis broth cultures. A sensitive microassay with these tracheal cells permitted the development of a chromatographic purification scheme based on aggregation of the biological activity under salt-free conditions. The active fraction from this first stage of purification caused a dose-dependent inhibition of DNA synthesis without a similar effect on RNA or protein synthesis. Organ cultures of hamster tracheal rings, when exposed to this partially purified fraction, developed epithelial cytopathology comparable to that seen during B. pertussis infection. Ciliary activity showed and eventually ceased as ciliated cells were extruded from the ring, leaving an intact but mostly nonciliated epithelium. Further purification of this biological activity was achieved with preparative-scale high-voltage paper electrophoresis. Based on ninhydrin staining and the radioactive profile of material purified from radiolabeled B. pertussis cultures, four fractions were eluted from the paper by descending chromatography. Only component B caused a dose-dependent inhibition of cultured tracheal cell DNA synthesis and epithelial cytopathology in tracheal rings. Combination experiments also demonstrated enhanced inhibition by component B in the presence of component G (oxidized glutathione), a copurifying molecule from the growth medium. Amino acid analysis (five residues), glycine (two residues), cysteine (two residues), and diaminopimelic acid (one residue), as well as muramic acid and glucosamine. Images
Molecular Evolution Between Drosophila melanogaster and D. simulans Reduced Codon Bias, Faster Rates of Amino Acid Substitution, and Larger Proteins in D. melanogaster

Both natural selection and mutational biases contribute to variation in codon usage bias within Drosophila species. This study addresses the cause of codon bias differences between the sibling species, Drosophila melanogaster and D. simulans. Under a model of mutation-selection-drift, variation in mutational processes between species predicts greater base composition differences in neutrally evolving regions than in highly biased genes. Variation in selection intensity, however, predicts larger base composition differences in highly biased loci. Greater differences in the G+C content of 34 coding regions than 46 intron sequences between D. melanogaster and D. simulans suggest that D. melanogaster has undergone a reduction in selection intensity for codon bias. Computer simulations suggest at least a fivefold reduction in N(e)s at silent sites in this lineage. Other classes of molecular change show lineage effects between these species. Rates of amino acid substitution are higher in the D. melanogaster lineage than in D. simulans in 14 genes for which outgroup sequences are available. Surprisingly, protein sizes are larger in D. melanogaster than in D. simulans in the 34 genes compared between the two species. A substantial fraction of silent, replacement, and insertion/deletion mutations in coding regions may be weakly selected in Drosophila.
Advances in the Management of Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension

Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH), a potentially curable form of pulmonary hypertension with pulmonary thromboendarterectomy surgery, has been the focus of significant medical advances. In addition to new imaging modalities that are now used to help recognize and diagnose CTEPH, additional treatment options have emerged for inoperable cases. These include a newly approved medical therapy for inoperable disease or persistent/recurrent CTEPH as well as percutaneous balloon angioplasty of the pulmonary arteries. In this article, we summarize these recent advances in the field and review the related literature.
The effects of hydrogen on current gain and emitter resistance of poly emitter bipolar transistors

The effects of hydrogen passivation at the polysilicon grain boundaries and poly/mono-silicon interface on inducing a /spl beta/ increase and R/sub e/ decrease are investigated in poly emitter transistors. Increase of /spl beta/ and decrease of R/sub e/ are attributed to the reduction of effective recombination velocity of minority carriers and the decrease of potential barrier for majority carrier transport in the poly emitters by the passivation of silicon dangling bonds, respectively. The implications of the hydrogen passivation on /spl beta/ and R/sub e/ for devices with a RTA emitter are also discussed.
Reverse engineering of complex surfaces based on a new hierarchical segmentation method

This paper presents a new method capable of segmenting range images into a set of Bezier surface patches directly compatible with most CAD systems. The algorithm is divided into four parts. First, an initial partition of the data set into regions, following a third-order Bezier model, is performed using a robust fitting algorithm constrained by the position of depth and orientation discontinuities. Second, an optimal region growing based on a new Bayesian decision criteria is computed. Third, generalization to a higher-order surface model is performed based on a statistical decision method. Fourth, at the final resolution, an approximation of the surface boundary is computed using a two-dimensional B-spline. The algorithm is fully automatic and does not require adhoc parameter adjustment. Experimental results are presented.
Protein-protein interaction and group testing in bipartite graphs

The interactions between bait proteins and prey proteins are often critical in many biological processes, such as the formation of macromolecular complexes and the transduction of signals in biological pathways. Thus, identifying all protein-protein interactions is an important task in those processes, which can be formulated as a group testing problem in bipartite graphs. In this paper, we take the advantages of the characteristics of bipartite graphs and present two nonadaptive algorithms for this problem. Furthermore, we illustrate a generalisation of our solution in a more general case.
Maximum likelihood sequence detection for intersymbol interference channels: A new upper bound on error probability

Maximum likelihood sequence detection of digital signaling subject to intersymbol interference and additive white Gaussian noise is considered. A new approach to the error probability analysis results in an upper bound which is tighter than the Forney bound. In addition, in the case of infinite-length intersymbol interference a locally convergent bound is shown to hold under fairly general assumptions on the signal autocorrelation.
Distribution functions in elasticity

The formation of a gel or elastomer entails the linking together of molecules to form a contiguous random network that has macroscopic dimensions. Forces are propagated in networks along polymer chains and through junctions to other chains. It is important to understand the structure of the force constant matrix that describes a system as complicated as this, even in the case where the potential energy is approximated by a simple harmonic function. This force constant matrix was first formulated by James, but because it is a large random matrix, very little progress can be made in the analysis of its properties. We have opted to approach this problem with the use of large scale computations that are based upon simulations of the formation of networks. Subsequent evaluation of the eigenvalue spectrum of the matrix lends considerable insight into the equilibrium and dynamic properties of elastomers. For present purposes this analysis is couched in terms of the calculation of the probability distribution of the gyration tensor for a phantom network in which non-bonded interactions are not considered.
Brain stem self-stimulation attenuated by lesions of medial forebrain bundle but not by lesions of locus coeruleus or the caudal ventral norepinephrine bundle.

Abstract Midbrain tegmental intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) was not attenuated by ipsilateral or bilateral locus coeruleus lesions. Certain of these lesions were followed by histochemical confirmation that the majority of locus coeruleus neurons was destroyed, and biochemical evidence that over 80% of the cortical norepinephrine was depleted. To test the possibility that the surviving ICSS was due to stimulation of another norepinephrine system, histochemically verified ipsilateral or bilateral lesions of the ventral norepinephrine bundle were administered to a second group of midbrain tegmental ICSS animals. These lesions resulted in marked loss of body weight, but had no effect on ICSS. In a third experiment, lesions were made in the medial forebrain bundle (MFB) ipsilateral to midbrain tegmental ICSS electrodes. These lesions resulted in attenuation of ICSS which was directly proportional to the extent of MFB damage. On the basis of these data alone, however, it was not possible to identify the critical fibers supporting ICSS. It was concluded that the locus coeruleus does not play a necessary role in midbrain tegmental ICSS.
A polymorphism of the X-linked gene IDS increases the number of females informative for transcriptional clonality assays.

Studies of clonality have been essential for understanding the hierarchy of hematopoiesis and the biology of malignancies. Most clonality assays are based on the X chromosome inactivation phenomenon in females; these assays detect protein polymorphisms, differences in DNA methylation, or transcripts of the active X chromosome. Assays based on protein polymorphisms or DNA methylation have significant shortcomings. The major disadvantage of transcriptional assays is their limited applicability since only approximately half of females are informative for these studies. We have developed a new transcriptional assay based on an exonic polymorphism of the X-chromosome gene IDS. This gene is located in the same X-chromosome region (Xq28) as G6PD and p55, two genes with exonic polymorphisms for which we previously developed transcriptional assays. We developed non-radioactive PCR-based assays for rapid screening of genotype and determination of clonality. We also report reaction conditions for a quantitative ligase detection assay of IDS allelic transcripts. The frequency of the IDS polymorphism is 46% in Caucasian females and 39% in African-American females; in combination with G6PD and p55, 76% of Caucasian females and 62% of African-American females are informative for these assays. While this gene is highly polymorphic in Caucasian and African-American females, it is not informative in Oriental females. We established that the IDS gene is in linkage equilibrium with G6PD and p55. Unlike methylation-based assays, this assay is suitable for studying clonality in non-nucleated cells such as platelets and reticulocytes. With the discovery of exonic polymorphisms of other X-chromosome genes, all females should eventually be suitable for X-chromosome transcriptional clonality analysis.
Damping and vibration control of unidirectional composite laminates using add-on viscoelastic materials

This paper describes the development of an efficient finite element model for dynamic analysis of laminated beams treated by a constrained viscoelastic layer. The finite element model is designed so as to represent the viscoelastic core shear accurately. An offset-beam element which takes shear deformation into account and is specially suited for modeling such laminated beams is developed. The laminated beam and constraining layer are modeled by using the offset beam element. The viscoelastic core is modeled by using plane finite elements which are compatible with the beam elements. System damping and tip displacement are computed and compared with those measured experimentally by using the impulse-frequency response technique. Results show that dynamic response is improved by use of such damping treatments.
Percolation of light through whispering gallery modes in 3D lattices of coupled microspheres.

Using techniques of flow-assisted self-assembly we synthesized three-dimensional (3D) lattices of dye-doped fluorescent (FL) 5 µm polystyrene spheres with 3% size dispersion with well controlled thickness from one monolayer up to 43 monolayers. In FL transmission spectra of such lattices we observed signatures of coupling between multiple spheres with nearly resonant whispering gallery modes (WGMs). These include (i) splitting of the WGM-related peaks with the magnitude 4.0–5.3 nm at the average wavelength 535 nm, (ii) pump dependence of FL transmission showing that the splitting is seen only above the threshold for lasing WGMs, and (iii) anomalously high transmission at the WGM peak wavelengths compared to the background for samples with thickness around 25 µm. We propose a qualitative interpretation of the observed WGM transport based on an analogy with percolation theory where the sites of the lattice (spheres) are connected with optical “bonds” which are present with probability depending on the spheres’ size dispersion. We predict that the WGM percolation threshold should be achievable in close packed 3D lattices formed by cavities with~103 quality factors of WGMs and with ~1% size dispersion. Such systems can be used for developing next generation of resonant sensors and arrayed-resonator light emitting devices.