cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A scalable embedded JPEG2000 architecture

It takes more than a good tool to shorten the time-to-market window: the scalability of a design also plays an important role in rapid prototyping if it needs to satisfy various demands. The design of JPEG2000 belongs to such cases. As the latest compression standard for still images, JPEG2000 is well tuned for diverse applications, raising different throughput requirements on its composed blocks. In this paper, a scalable embedded JPEG2000 encoder architecture is presented and prototyped onto Xilinx FPGA. The system level design presents dynamic profiling outcomes, proving the necessity of the design for scalability.
Animal Models of IgA Nephropathy

IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is a form of immune complex glomerulonephritis that occurs spontaneously in humans. This unit describes the induction of active disease in inbred mice, utilizing inert proteins or a common viral pathogen as the inciting antigen. An alternate protocol is offered for the induction of disease in rats by noninfectious protein antigens. Support protocols are presented for the evaluation of the extent of disease, for preparation of infectious and inactivated suspensions of viral stock, and for quantification of the virus.
Baseline Hearing Measurements in Alaskan Belugas

Abstract : While hearing is the primary sensory modality for odontocetes, there are few data addressing baseline hearing and subsequent variation within a natural population. To determine the effects of noise on marine mammals we need to understand what they hear. This is imperative in the Arctic where there is both an increase in human activity and a concurrent increase in human-produced noise. This work examines the hearing sensivitiy and variability of wild beluga whales in an effort to understand how belugas may be impacted by noise. A standard audiogram was determined from the wild animals, noting the variation between animals and the audiogram of maximal and minimal sensitivity. These novel data were compared to available hearing results from captive belugas, evaluating differences and variation within the two data sets. The hearing curves were appraised relative to basic demographic meta-data from the animals from which the measurements were made. Through these data analyses we sought to: 1) define the natural and baseline hearing abilities and variability in belugas, 2) place the results in the context of potential ecological influences and that of anthropogenic noise, and 3) evaluate the validity of captive-based hearing data in relation to wild animals. This is part of a larger effort to understand variation in the sensory biology and noise susceptibility of diverse odontocete species.
The Plausibility of Personhood

Is a living human embryo or fetus a “person” within the legal meaning of the term, as used in the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution? This article argues that this question is close, difficult, and exceedingly important. Roe v. Wade, of course, answered the question “no,” yet the Court acknowledged that, if the legal personhood of the fetus could be established, the case for a right to abortion “collapses” – “for the fetus’ right to life would then be guaranteed specifically by the Amendment.” The Court nonetheless gave the question only passing attention in Roe, and subsequent scholarship for the most part has not addressed the question in a serious, balanced, systematic fashion. This article examines the issue of the constitutional personhood of the human fetus from the perspectives of the full range of usually-accepted methods of constitutional interpretation – text, structure, evidence of historical intention, precedent or practice, and policy – and concludes that the case for personhood is at least plausible and arguably much stronger than the case for the opposite conclusion that was the essential first premise of Roe.
Molecular and immunological analysis of an ABC transporter complex required for cytochrome c biogenesis

The helABC genes are predicted to encode an ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter necessary for heme export for ligation in bacterial cytochrome c biogenesis. The recent discoveries of homologs of the helB and helC genes in plant mitochondrial genomes suggest this is a highly conserved transporter in prokaryotes and some eukaryotes with the HelB and HelC proteins comprising the transmembrane components. Molecular genetic analysis in the Gram-negative bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus was used to show that the helABC and helDX genes are part of an operon linked to the secDF genes. To facilitate analysis of this transporter, strains with non-polar deletions in each gene, epitope and reporter-tagged HelABCD proteins, and antisera specific to the HelA and HelX proteins were generated. We directly demonstrate that this transporter is present in the cytoplasmic membrane as an HelABCD complex. The HelB and HelC but not HelD proteins are necessary for the binding and stability of the HelA protein, the cytoplasmic subunit containing the ATP-binding region. In addition we show that the HelA protein co-immunoprecipitates with either the HelC or HelD proteins. Thus, the HelABCD heme export complex is distinguished by the presence of four membrane-associated subunits and represents a unique subfamily of ABC transporters.
Significant others’ responses to pain in veterans with chronic pain and clinical levels of post-traumatic stress disorder symptomatology

BACKGROUND: Pain and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are two of the most common health complaints among US veterans. Studies suggest that the co-morbidity of these disorders exacerbates veterans' experiences of chronic pain. Although a limited number of papers have reviewed reasons for this exacerbation, no studies have explored the potential contribution of significant others' responses to veterans' experience of pain in the context of PTSD symptomatology. The purpose of this study was to explore whether significant others' responses to chronic pain differed for veterans with and without clinical levels of PTSD symptoms. It was hypothesized that veterans who presented with higher levels of PTSD symptomatology would report higher levels of 'punishing' responses to their pain from significant others. METHODS: Participants were 184 veterans who completed self-report questionnaires as part of their participation in a Psychology Pain Management program at a Department of Veterans Affairs healthcare facility. RESULTS: Supporting our hypothesis, PTSD symptoms in veterans were associated with higher levels of punishing responses to pain from their significant others. Further, veterans who reported clinically significant levels of PTSD symptoms garnered more punishing responses to pain when compared with veterans with subclinical levels of PTSD symptomatology. Punishing responses to pain were associated with greater pain-related disability among veterans. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of more punishing responses may impact the cognitive-behavioural components of the chronic pain experience. For example, it may worsen negative affect, which can thus impact the fear-avoidance model. Further discussion focuses on the implications of these results, including guidelines for clinical applications. Language: en
Comparison between laparoscopically and ultrasonographically guided transvaginal follicular aspiration methods in an in vitro fertilization program in the same patients using the same stimulation protocol.

Oocyte recovery from 43 patients undergoing ultrasound-guided transvaginal oocyte retrieval was compared to a previous laparoscopic oocyte retrieval cycle from the same patient. Gonadotropin stimulation in both cycles was performed using the same protocol. There were no statistically significant differences in the mean day of oocyte retrieval or the mean daily estradiol level up to the day of oocyte retrieval between laparoscopic and transvaginal cycles. The total number of follicles aspirated per cycle, preovulatory oocytes aspirated per cycle, and number of concepti of preovulatory origin transferred per cycle were not statistically different. The number of immatue oocytes aspirated per cycle was statistically decreased in transvaginal retrieval cycles, which resulted in an increased total number of concepti transferred per transfer in laparascopic retrieval cycles. Twelve pregnancies resulted from the transvaginal retrieval cycles (27.9%), seven of which are ongoing or delivered. Ultrasound-guided transvaginal follicular aspiration yields results comparable to laparascopic retrieval in the same patients and should be the method of choice for oocyte pickup because of its many advantages.
Some Flexible Parametric Models for Partially Adaptive Estimators of Econometric Models

This paper provides a survey of three families of flexible parametric probability density functions (the skewed generalized t, the exponential generalized beta of the second kind, and the inverse hyperbolic sine distributions) which can be used in modeling a wide variety of econometric problems. A figure, which can facilitate model selection, summarizing the admissible combinations of skewness and kurtosis spanned by the three distributional families is included. Applications of these families to estimating regression models demonstrate that they may exhibit significant efficiency gains relative to conventional regression procedures, such as ordinary least squares estimation, when modeling nonnormal errors with skewness and/or leptokurtosis, without suffering large efficiency losses when errors are normally distributed. A second example illustrates the application of flexible parametric density functions as conditional distributions in a GARCH formulation of the distribution of returns on the S&P500. The skewed generalized t can be an important model for econometric analysis.
Heritability of fat accumulation in white adipocytes

Since individual cells from freshly isolated white adipose tissue (WAT) exhibit variable levels of fat accumulation, we attempted to determine which factor(s) cause this variation. We used primary WAT cells from adult mice and the mouse 3T3-L1 cell-line of preadipocytes for these studies. Cells were labeled with BODIPY (boron-dipyrromethene) lipid probe, a marker for fat accumulation in live cells, and sorted on a fluorescence-activated cell sorter into two populations exhibiting low or high BODIPY fluorescence intensity. After more than 12 doublings as dedifferentiated cells in growth medium, the sorted populations were exposed to adipogenic medium for 7 days and analyzed for BODIPY accumulation and mRNA expression of adipogenic markers. WAT-derived cells initially sorted to have low or high BODIPY fluorescence intensity maintained a similar low or high lipid phenotype after redifferentiation. Cell surface TSH receptor expression, which is known to increase when preadipocytes are differentiated, correlated with BODIPY staining in all states. mRNA levels of Pparγ, Srebp1c, aP2, and Pref1, key regulators of adipogenesis, and leptin, Glut4, Fasn, and Tshr, markers of adipocyte differentiation, correlated with the levels of fat accumulation. Overexpression of Pparγ in 3T3-L1 cells, as expected, caused cells from low- and high-BODIPY populations to accumulate more fat. More importantly, prior to differentiation, the endogenous Pparγ promoter exhibited higher levels of acetylated histone H3, an activatory modification, in high-BODIPY- compared with low-BODIPY-derived populations. We conclude that fat accumulation is a heritable trait in WAT and that epigenetic modification on the Pparγ promoter contributes to this heritability.
Risks, advantages, and complications of intercostal vs subcostal approach for percutaneous nephrolithotripsy.

Objectives To establish the efficacy of nephrolithotripsy via intercostal access route vs subcostal access route with respect to attained stone-free status, operating time, and complications. Methods Percutaneous nephrolithotripsies via the upper pole were performed in 142 patients (93 male, 49 female, age 24-78 years) from 1998 to 2005 at our 4 academic medical centers. Selection criteria for nephrolithotripsy via upper pole access were staghorn calculi ≥5.5 cm3, upper pole calyx calculi ≥2.5 cm, and abnormal or high lying kidney, often in combination with obesity. Of 68 staghorn calculi, 49 were accessed via intercostal and 19 via subcostal route. Of 57 upper calyx calculi 38 were accessed via intercostal and 19 via subcostal route; all calculi in the upper ureter considered easily accessible via the intercostal route. Results Of 103 patients with intercostal access, 91 attained a stone-free status. There were 4 major and 6 minor complications. Depending on stone location, mean operating times varied from 42 to 152 minutes. Of 39 patients in whom a subcostal access route was chosen, 29 were made stone-free. There were 3 major and 8 minor complications. The mean operating time varied from 108 to 145 minutes. Conclusions The significantly higher rate of achieving stone-free status, lower rate of complications, and markedly reduced operating time when using intercostal access make this the route of choice for upper pole nephrolithotripsy.
The search for new cardiovascular biomarkers

Despite considerable advances in the treatment of cardiovascular disease, it remains the leading cause of death in developed countries. Assessment of classic cardiovascular risk factors--including high blood pressure, diabetes and smoking--has a central role in disease prevention. However, many individuals with coronary heart disease (a narrowing of the blood vessels that supply the heart) have only one, or none, of the classic risk factors. Thus, new biomarkers are needed to augment the information obtained from traditional indicators and to illuminate disease mechanisms.
Gel electrophoretic studies on ribosomal proteins L7/L12 and the Escherichia coli 50 S subunit.

Abstract Three forms of the 50 S ribosomal subunit of Escherichia coli have been separated by agarose/acrylamide gel electrophoresis. The slowest migrating form, S-50 S, corresponded to native 50 S subunits and contained four copies of proteins L 7 L 12 . Removal of the four copies of this protein produced a more rapidly migrating form, M-50 S. The M-50 S form was then converted to the fastest migrating form, F-50 S, by removal of additional proteins, including L10 and L11. A one-step removal of a pentameric complex of four copies of L 7 L 12 plus L10 converted the S-50 S subunit directly to the F-50 S subunit. These proteins recombined specifically with the appropriate protein-deficient 50 S subunit at 3 °C to reform the S-50 S subunit, i.e. the M-50 S subunit was converted back to the S-50 S form by the addition of purified proteins L 7 L 12 ; and the F-50 S subunit bound the pentameric complex of L 7 L 12 and L10 to form S-50 S. The binding of the pentameric complex, isolated by glycerol gradient centrifugation, supports the model that all four copies of proteins L 7 L 12 are together in one part of the ribosome called the “ L 7 L 12 stalk”. Only the four copies of L 7 L 12 were removed from the 50 S subunit in low salt (0.125 m -NH4Cl) plus 50% ethanol at 0 °C. These ribosomes (in the M-50 S form) had less than 5% of the peptide-synthesizing activity of untreated control ribosomes as measured by a poly(U) translation system in vitro. Peptide-synthesizing activity was restored, upon addition of L 7 L 12 , back to the treated ribosomes to give 50 S subunits (S-50 S) with a full complement of four copies of L 7 L 12 . Antibody to proteins L 7 L 12 bound only to the S-50 S subunits, producing four new bands separated by gel electrophoresis. The bands represented complexes of one, two, three and four antibodies bound to a 50 S subunit. This result was obtained using either 50 S subunits or 70 S tight couples and indicated that all four copies of L 7 L 12 are either located at a single site in the L 7 L 12 stalk or, much less likely, are divided between two symmetrical sites. Proteins L 7 L 12 were not only accessible to their specific antibody but could also be removed from 70 S ribosomes and polyribosomes without causing their dissociation into subunits. The ribosomes and polyribosomes had an increased gel electrophoretic mobility which was reversed by addition of proteins L 7 L 12 .
Cassini RADAR observations of Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea, Iapetus, Hyperion, and Phoebe

Cassini 2.2-cm radar and radiometric observations of seven of Saturn's icy satellites yield properties that apparently are dominated by subsurface volume scattering and are similar to those of the icy Galilean satellites. Average radar albedos decrease in the order Enceladus/Tethys, Hyperion, Rhea, Dione, Iapetus, and Phoebe. This sequence most likely corresponds to increasing contamination of near-surface water ice, which is intrinsically very transparent at radio wavelengths. Plausible candidates for contaminants include ammonia, silicates, metallic oxides, and polar organics (ranging from nitriles like HCN to complex tholins). There is correlation of our targets' radar and optical albedos, probably due to variations in the concentration of optically dark contaminants in near-surface water ice and the resulting variable attenuation of the high-order multiple scattering responsible for high radar albedos. Our highest radar albedos, for Enceladus and Tethys, probably require that at least the uppermost one to several decimeters of the surface be extremely clean water ice regolith that is structurally complex (i.e., mature) enough for there to be high-order multiple scattering within it. At the other extreme, Phoebe has an asteroidal radar reflectivity that may be due to a combination of single and volume scattering. Iapetus' 2.2-cm radar albedo is dramatically higher on the optically bright trailing side than the optically dark leading side, whereas 13-cm results reported by Black et al. [Black, G.J., Campbell, D.B., Carter, L.M., Ostro, S.J., 2004. Science 304, 553] show hardly any hemispheric asymmetry and give a mean radar reflectivity several times lower than the reflectivity measured at 2.2 cm. These Iapetus results are understandable if ammonia is much less abundant on both sides within the upper one to several decimeters than at greater depths, and if the leading side's optically dark contaminant is present to depths of at least one to several decimeters. As argued by Lanzerotti et al. [Lanzerotti, L.J., Brown, W.L., Marcantonio, K.J., Johnson, R.E., 1984. Nature 312, 139–140], a combination of ion erosion and micrometeoroid gardening may have depleted ammonia from the surfaces of Saturn's icy satellites. Given the hypersensitivity of water ice's absorption length to ammonia concentration, an increase in ammonia with depth could allow efficient 2.2-cm scattering from within the top one to several decimeters while attenuating 13-cm echoes, which would require a six-fold thicker scattering layer. If so, we would expect each of the icy satellites' average radar albedos to be higher at 2.2 cm than at 13 cm, as is the case so far with Rhea [Black, G., Campbell, D., 2004. Bull. Am. Astron. Soc. 36, 1123] as well as Iapetus.
Isolation and assay of ovine gastrin.

WE have reported from this laboratory a method for the isolation of crude gastrin from hog antral mucosa1. Now, more fully described3, this (slightly modified) method has given us gastrin from bovine abomasal mucosa. The latter was of interest because we were able to obtain an active secretory stimulant, not only from the antral region, but also in several preparations from the fundal mucosa.
Interest of Major Corporations in Expanded Practice of Occupational Health Nurses

The purpose of this study was to ascertain the interest by executives of major corporations in having occupational health nurses engage in more advanced activities, and to ascertain the available support for advanced educational preparation for nurses. A questionnaire was sent to a systematic sample of 404 of the 808 executives of the Forbes 500 corporations with a 57% return rate. Over 90% of the corporations with health care departments employed registered nurses. Functions nurses currently performed varied by size of the corporation and by type of industry. Activities corporations would like nurses to perform were more advanced, such as conducting research, analyzing trends, and developing special health programs.
Vitamin D Uptake and Metabolism by Perfused Rat Liver: Influences of Carrier Proteins*

Several blood proteins have been associated with the transport of vitamin D sterols. Vitamin D is synthesized in the skin or absorbed from the intestine, and there is evidence for different rates of transfer to the liver from these sources. To evaluate the influences of various plasma proteins on the hepatic accumulation of vitamin D3, human plasma albumin, D-binding protein, chylomicrons, chylomicron remnants, low density lipoprotein (LDL) and high density lipoprotein were isolated and incubated with [3H]vitamin D3 before single-pass perfusions of the isolated, vitamin D-deficient rat liver. Hepatic uptake of sterol was greatest when vitamin D3 was presented on LDL or chylomicron remnants, whereas D-binding protein permitted the least uptake. Silicic acid chromatography revealed greater amounts of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 when substrate was presented on carriers known to have hepatic receptors. After iv administration of tracer amounts of vitamin D3 to fasting rats, gradient gel electrophoretic analyses of p...
Letter Regarding Article by Khan et al, “Prognostic Value of Troponin T and I Among Asymptomatic Patients With End-Stage Renal Disease: A Meta-Analysis”

To the Editor: We read with interest the article by Khan et al1 and agree that cardiac troponin T (cTnT) is a promising biomarker in end-stage renal disease (ESRD), but we are concerned about the following issues. First, the authors state, “overall prognostic usefulness of the troponins remains unclear” and “previous studies, based on retrospective study designs and multiple insensitive assays that cross-react with skeletal troponin, have produced conflicting results” (p 3089).1 To the contrary, the evidence-based literature was clear to the Food and Drug Administration, which …
An infectious agent associated with amebas of the genus Naegleria.

SYNOPSIS A study of amebas of the genera Naegleria, Acanthamoeba, Polysphondylium, and Didymium shows that a cytopathogenic agent that is filterable and passageable is present only in the strains of the Naegleria whether they are obtained free-living from soil samples (N. gruberi) or as pathogens from humans (N. fowleri). The agents obtained from the different Naegleria strains are similar in amount and in their cytopathogenic interaction with chick cultures. The agent has characteristics that distinguish it from the known viruses.
Direct Infrared Spectroscopic Analysis of Reagent Partitioning in Polystyrene Bead Supported Solid Phase Reaction Chemistry

Throughout the evolution of polymer support based combinatorial synthesis, many issues have been raised concerning chemistry at the interior of the support bead. Long standing questions regarding size exclusion, reagent diffusion, and reaction kinetics remain unresolved, largely due to limited analytical capabilities which address chemical activity at the core of the solid phase support bead. A variety of novel infrared spectroscopic techniques for the direct evaluation of intrabead reagent dynamics are presented in this work. Specifically, these spectroscopic tools facilitate analysis and understanding of reagent penetration and intra-bead reagent mobility parameters. Data from these studies downplay size exclusion as a consequential factor in the delivery of small molecule reagents throughout synthesis on polystyrene-based resins. Experiments presented here, however, illustrate the first direct spectroscopic evidence of thermodynamic reagent partitioning between the support bead and surrounding solvent ...
Political norms in rural Russia: Evidence from public attitudes

IN ANY COUNTRY, the citizens who reside in cities, as opposed to towns and villages, are likely to have a disproportionate visibility in public life and in the mass media. This greater visibility translates into greater influence over perceptions (domestic and foreign) about the nature, pace or style of life characterising that country. Yet paying insufficient attention to rural citizens may bias one's understanding of political dynamics. Certainly, that possibility exists for analysts of political change in the former Soviet Union. During much of the Soviet period, few Western scholars had access to the countryside and few rural Soviet residents could travel to the West. Both the Harvard Interview Project and the Soviet Interview Project, which surveyed emigres from the USSR, included predominantly former residents of Soviet cities. Some of the first Western-sponsored direct surveys of Soviet publics were conducted only in Moscow or by telephone, which leaves the small town and rural populace underrepresented. Even now, in post-Soviet Russia, the dramatic changes in the two largest cities of Moscow and St Petersburg-the cities which most Western scholars frequently visit-may convey a misleading impression about the depth of support for market reforms and democratic institutions. Thus great care must be taken to place rural outlooks and behaviours in the proper relationship to urban ones. In a recent article in this journal, Stephen K. Wegren argues for the importance of analysing political values among Russia's rural population.1 We agree with his call for greater scholarly attention to this important segment of the Russian populace. The evidence that Wegren is able to present, however, relates only indirectly to such values. We shed additional light on the state of rural Russian political norms using data from large-scale surveys of randomly selected citizens. We focus on the values of rural Russians (350 were interviewed in 1991 and 284 in 1992) but contrast them with the values of urban Russians as well as with those of respondents in Ukraine and Lithuania.2 The ability to provide these contrasts permits us to assess the particularity of Russian rural outlooks and therefore reexamine several of Wegren's conclusions. We find that, while Russian rural political preferences are not distributed in the same way as among urban dwellers, they actually have shifted in response to changing conditions. In fact, the distributions we find lend little support to Wegren's culturalist approach and much stronger support to theories that stress the varying political
Effects of Temperature, Humidity and Air Flow on Fungal Growth Rate on Loaded Ventilation Filters.

This study compares the fungal growth ratio on loaded ventilation filters under various temperature, relative humidity (RH), and air flow conditions in a controlled laboratory setting. A new full-size commercial building ventilation filter was loaded with malt extract nutrients and conidia of Cladosporium sphaerospermum in an ASHRAE Standard 52.2 filter test facility. Small sections cut from this filter were incubated under the following conditions: constant room temperature and a high RH of 97%; sinusoidal temperature (with an amplitude of 10°C, an average of 23°C, and a period of 24 hr) and a mean RH of 97%; room temperature and step changes between 97% and 75% RH, 97% and 43% RH, and 97% and 11% RH every 12 hr. The biomass on the filter sections was measured using both an elution–culture method and by ergosterol assay immediately after loading and every 2 days up to 10 days after loading. Fungal growth was detected earlier using ergosterol content than with the elution–culture method. A student's t-tes...
Transplantable liver organoids made from only three ingredients.

Liver cell therapies using induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are in development. A recent paper in Nature by Takebe et al. expands the range of liver diseases that could be treated with iPSC-derived hepatocytes by combining them with endothelial and stromal cells to generate organoids that survive and function extrahepatically.
Stratigraphy, petrography, and correlation of late Cenozoic middle Atlantic Coastal Plain deposits: Implications for late-stage passive-margin geologic evolution

Regional chronostratigraphic correlation of middle Atlantic upper Coastal Plain and Fall Zone fluvial deposits, long thought to represent the updip, proximal facies of a well-dated, post-Oligocene marine sequence in the Salisbury Embayment, remains incomplete, in part, because of the paucity of biostratigraphic data. Petrography-based lithostratigraphic correlations provide an opportunity to extend age control present in downdip marine deposits, updip to fluvial deposits, thus establishing the means for a regional chronostratigraphic correlation. Previous stratigraphic studies in New Jersey, Delmarva, southern Maryland, Virginia, and the central Appalachian Piedmont are linked by a crucial sequence of fluvial deposits at the head of Chesapeake Bay. Here petrography-based lithostratigraphic correlations demonstrate (1) late Oligocene-late Miocene, Susquehanna River-dominated, polygenetic, quartzose fluvial aggradation (Bryn Mawr Formation); (2) Pliocene, heterolithic, but quartz-dominated fluvial-terrace and alluvial-fan deposition (Perryville formation); (3) Pliocene-early Pleistocene, paleo-Delaware-Hudson River- dominated, lithic- and feldspathic-rich, fluvial aggradation (Pensauken Formation); and (4) the initiation of estuarine conditions (Turkey Point beds) by early Pleistocene time. These results are synthesized to propose a new late Cenozoic regional chronostratigraphic correlation and depositional history for the Salisbury Embayment. The correlation elucidates a complex interaction between passive margin isostasy, tectonics, eustasy, and sediment source.
Urban and Regional Temperature Trends in Las Vegas and Southern Nevada

Urban and regional temperature trends in southern Nevada, including the rapidly growing Las Vegas metropolitan area, were analyzed over two periods, 1940–2009 and 1977–2009. The data show that minimum temperatures in Las Vegas increased by more than 4°C above the regional trend since 1940 and by approximately 3°C more than the regional average since 1977, which demonstrates that urbanization has significantly altered the nighttime climate of the city and that the changes were most pronounced in the last 30 years. In contrast, regional minimum temperature increases were not widespread and generally limited to spring and summer with a regional annual average minimum temperature increase of about 1°C since 1940 and 0.6°C since 1977. Notably, there is little evidence of winter temperature moderation throughout rural southern Nevada in either time period investigated. The analysis also suggests maximum temperature trends in Las Vegas have been moderated by urbanization, as daytime temperatures across southern Nevada increased by approximately 1°C in the last 30 years, but no increase was observed within the city suggesting that Las Vegas has developed a moderate daytime urban cool island. While no absolute change in Las Vegas dewpoint temperatures was found, a relative increase of up to 3°C was observed when the city was compared to a rural control station. The relative increase in urban dewpoint temperature is significantly correlated to the daytime urban cooling trend, minimum temperature increase, and the significant reduction in diurnal temperature range, suggesting that increased latent heat flux in Las Vegas may be a primary cause of observed urban climate changes.
Systems, Cycles, and Developmental Pathways

The painting ‘Nighthawks’ (1942) shows three people sitting at the counter of a city diner. It must be late at night because no one is on the street except the viewers. We look into the diner at the subjects, incased in plate glass tinted green and yellow. It was one of many paintings in which Edward Hopper probed human loneliness and alienation in postdepression American society. Normal folks would have been home in bed, finding the rest they needed to go to work early or get the kids off to school. Night people didn’t belong in that daylight world. They resisted belonging. It was their choice. The night is for rest and relaxation. Anything else is sinister. There was a time when the moon had evil powers that stirred the loins of animals and awakened animal-human vampires and werewolves. The moon was female. Everyone knew that witches came out at night. In their paper on morningness and eveningness, Cofer, Grice, Sethre-Hofstad, Radi, Zimmerman, Palmer-Seal, and Santa-Maria, provide a convincing explanation for why night people are at odds with the mainstream. Work and school, those places where the First World measures the social worth of its citizens, begin in the early morning. Families often have to get their children awake, fed, dressed, and alert by 7 a.m. Evening types (E-types), when asked to recall their childhood rituals of preparation for the day, reported more conflicts with parents than morning types (M-types). E-types were more likely to be disaffected from school, to engage in night activities that resulted in norm violations and health risks, and to have abused tobacco and alcohol. M-types reported a more propitious developmental trajectory because they fit better with socially normative daily rhythms. M-types were less flexible in their rest and work cycles,
Single Mode Fiber Recirculating Delay Line

Recirculating delay lines have been made using loops of single mode fiber that are closed, without splices, using one or more single mode fiber directional couplers. The use of an all single mode fiber system allows the accurate storage of high frequency analog or digital signals for long delay periods. Such devices can be used as wideband transient or buffer memories. Recirculating fiber loops are also useful as transversal filters that can exhibit uniform notch and bandpass filter characteristics over a wide range of frequencies from 1 MHz to 1.3 GHz.© (1982) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Mass accuracy and sequence requirements for protein database searching.

Abstract To elucidate the role of high mass accuracy in mass spectrometric peptide mapping and database searching, selected proteins were subjected to tryptic digestion and the resulting mixtures were analyzed by electrospray ionization on a 7 Tesla Fourier transform mass spectrometer with a mass accuracy of 1 ppm. Two extreme cases were examined in detail: equine apomyoglobin, which digested easily and gave very few spurious masses, and bovine α-lactalbumin, which under the conditions used, gave many spurious masses. The effectiveness of accurate mass measurements in minimizing false protein matches was examined by varying the mass error allowed in the search over a wide range (2–500 ppm). For the “clean” data obtained from apomyoglobin, very few masses were needed to return valid protein matches, and the mass error allowed in the search had little effect up to 500 ppm. However, in the case of α-lactalbumin more mass values were needed, and low mass errors increased the search specificity. Mass errors below 30 ppm were particularly useful in eliminating false protein matches when few mass values were used in the search. Collision-induced dissociation of an unassigned peak in the α-lactalbumin digest provided sufficient data to unambiguously identify the peak as a fragment from α-lactalbumin and eliminate a large number of spurious proteins found in the peptide mass search. The results show that even with a relatively high mass error (0.8 Da for mass differences between singly charged product ions), collision-induced dissociation can help identify proteins in cases where unfavorable digest conditions or modifications render digest peaks unidentifiable by a simple mass mapping search.
Cell Logic for Dual Coupling of a Single Class of Receptors to Gs and Gi Proteins

Gprotein–coupled receptors mediate transmembrane signal transduction for a variety of hormones, neurotransmitters, chemokines, and synthetic ligands. It had been thought that a given receptor couples only to a single class of heterotrimeric G proteins to achieve signaling selectivity and specificity. As a model system of G protein–coupled receptors, β-adrenergic receptor (βAR) was believed to activate exclusively a Gs-adenylyl cyclase-cAMP-protein kinase A (PKA) signaling cascade. This doctrine, however, has been challenged by recent findings that, although seeming illogical, β2AR dually couples to Gs and Gi proteins in rodent and canine hearts1 2 3 (for review, see Reference 4 ). In this issue of Circulation Research , Kilts et al5 present a solid study that provides additional evidence supporting a dual G protein coupling for β2AR and extended the previous finding to several other Gs-coupled receptors in human heart. Early studies showed that stimulation of β1AR, but not β2AR, induces a relaxant effect,6 7 a hallmark of cAMP-dependent cardiac modulation. Moreover, β2AR-induced augmentations in intracellular Ca2+ transient and contractility are apparently dissociated from cellular cAMP accumulation and PKA-mediated protein phosphorylation in rat ventricular myocytes, whereas the classic linear Gs-adenylyl cyclase-cAMP-PKA signaling cascade is corroborated for β1AR stimulation.8 These findings provided the first clue that there are some substantial differences between β1AR and β2AR signaling pathways. In search for answers to the anomalous behavior of cardiac β2AR stimulation, recent studies have revealed dichotomous G protein coupling for native β2AR under physiological conditions. Disrupting Gi signaling by pertussis toxin (PTX)–mediated ribosylation enhances β2AR-induced contractile response in rat ventricular myocytes1 and unmasks the β2AR positive inotropic …
A concave annular array design, based on phasor summation--Part I: Design methodology.

A detailed method for the design of anular arrays based on phasor summation is developed. The net phase shift across each annulus obtained by phasor summation is a very important factor in the design of an annular array, and determines the strength of the signal received. The method presented in this paper allows the designer to evaluate the trade-offs in parameters such as the strength of the signal from each annulus, the efficiency of each annulus, and the depth of focus that would be achievable. A concave annular array has been fabricated according to this design method. A set of graphs are given for an actual design to illustrate how one may readily evaluate these trade-offs.
Diasporic and marginal crossroads: The films of Frances Negrón-Muntaner

In this article, I highlight Frances Negron-Muntaner's career as an independent filmmaker, and also examine the ongoing pressures that she has endured because of her membership in various marginalized groups. I propose that instead of labeling Negron-Muntaner under the rubric of some of her identities, we situate her and her films as part of what film scholar Hamid Naficy categorizes as accented cinema. By describing Negron-Muntaner as an accented filmmaker, I am interpreting her films not as essential depictions of a particular community or of herself, but as personal journeys that operate through and “play” with her multiple identity positionings.
UNUSUAL FEATURES OBSERVED WITHIN A SERIES OF TORNADO PICTURES

Abstract A 1969 Minnesota tornado was photographed by a number of observers at various points along its track. The pictures show an unusual combination of features that might possibly lend visual evidence to theoretical tornado models and such related phenomena as fire whirlwinds.
Relaxing cosmological constraints on large extra dimensions

We reconsider cosmological constraints on extra dimension theories from the excess production of Kaluza-Klein gravitons. We point out that, if the normalcy temperature is above 1 GeV, then graviton states produced at this temperature will decay early enough that they do not affect the present day dark matter density, or the diffuse gamma ray background. We rederive the relevant cosmological constraints for this scenario.
Towards an intelligent publishing environment

Abstract This paper presents an environment for publishing information on the World-Wide Web (WWW). Previous work has pointed out that the explosive growth of the WWW is in part due to the ease with which information can be made available to Web users [23]. Yet this property can have negative impacts on the ability to find appropriate information as well as on the integrity of the information published. We present a prototype environment that facilitates the publishing of documents on the Web by automatically generating meta-information about the document, communicating this to a local scalable architecture, e.g. WHOIS + +, verifying the document's HTML compliance, maintaining referential integrity within the local database, and placing the document in a Web accessible area. Additionally, maintenance and versioning facilities are provided. This paper first discusses an idealized publishing environment, then describes our implementation, followed by a discussion of salient issues and future research areas.
Effects of inhibitors of RNA and protein synthesis on activation of glyconeogenesis in Tetrahymena

The effects of actinomycin D, puromycin, and p-fluorophenylalanine on the activation of glyconeogenesis in Tetrahymena were studied. The extent of activation of glyconeogenesis in cultures containing inhibitor was as great as or greater than in the controls, as was the uptake of tracer levels of acetate into glycogen. These increases occurred despite a partial or complete inhibition of synthesis of isocitrate lyase, a glyconeogenic enzyme in Tetrahymena. Washed cells from these cultures could convert tracer or substrate levels of acetate to glycogen at enhanced rates. When glyconeogenesis was activated in starved cells in the presence of inhibitor, there was a negligible increase in the amount of isocitrate lyase, but a significant increase in the rate of glyconeogenesis. The data indicate that glyconeogenesis in Tetrahymena can be activated in the absence of enzyme synthesis.
Electrode/organic layer interfaces in organic LEDs

The effects of (i) aquaregia-treatment of the indium tin oxide (ITO) substrate anode and (ii) a controlled Al 2 O 3 buffer between the emitting layer (EML) and the Al cathode layer on the behavior of efficient vacuum evaporated multilayer organic light-emitting diodes (LEDs) is described. The organic layers include hole transporting layers (HTLs) such as '3-armed star' 4,4',4"- tris(N-(3-methoxyphenyl)-N-phenylamine-triphenylamine) and triphenyl diamine, and the EMLs consist either of green- emitting 8-tris-hydroxyquinoline aluminum (Alq 3 ) or blue-emitting amino oxadiazole fluorene. While the aquaregia treatment enhances the performance, the optimized treatment depends on the HTL. This observation implies that the enhancement is due not only to contact area effects. Similarly, an Al 2 O 3 layer of suitable thickness also enhances the current injection and EL output significantly. This enhancement is believed to be due to increased charge carrier density near the HTL/EML interface which results from removal of the intrinsic organic/Al interface gap states which trap injected carriers and quench singlet excitons nonradiatively.
A new system for multicomponent SEISMIC processing

Abstract A new seismic data-processing program package was developed at the Program for Crustal Studies at the University of Wyoming. The new system has a well-developed job-description language similar to that used by some commercial analogs. Unlike commercial systems, our seismic monitor supports a structured multicomponent seismic data stream, which facilitates programming of complex processing algorithms. The monitor employs a unique backpropagation processing strategy, giving additional flexibility to the processing flow. The organization of the system allows parallelizing of the computations in a natural way. Over 60 seismic processing modules have already been developed for our system. Special interfaces allow inclusion of older modules developed for other processing systems. The system was written using C programming language, with some modules using FORTRAN. It operates under the UNIX environment on SUN Sparc and Silicon Graphics Inc. (SGI) Indigo 2 workstations, and on a four-processor SGI Power Challenge L.
PTH-related protein enhances LoVo colon cancer cell proliferation, adhesion, and integrin expression.

Abstract Parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) has been localized in human colon cancer tissue and cell lines. Tumor cell adhesion to extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins plays a major role in the invasion and metastasis of tumor cells, and is mediated via integrin subunits. The LoVo human colon cancer cell line was used as a model system to study the effects of PTHrP on cell proliferation and adhesion to ECM proteins found in normal liver. Clones of LoVo cells engineered to overexpress PTHrP by stable transfection with a PTHrP cDNA showed enhanced cell proliferation vs. control (empty vector-transfected) cells. PTHrP-overexpressing cells also showed significantly higher adhesion to collagen type I, fibronectin, and laminin, and enhanced expression of the ∀2, ∀5, ∀6, ∃1 and ∃4 integrin subunits. These results indicate that PTHrP may play a role in colon cancer invasion and metastasis by increasing cell proliferation and adhesion to the ECM via upregulation of proinvasive integrin expression.
Search for eosinopenia in hospitalized patients with normal blood leukocyte concentration

Hospitalized patients were studied prospectively in an attempt to determine whether idiopathic eosinopenia in the absence of other major changes in blood cells is rare or is more frequent than is commonly recognized. Strict criteria for eosinopenia were used; patients with more than 10.0 X 10(9)/liter total leukocyte count, or less than 4.0, as well as those with any form of hematologic cancer, or those receiving any form of cancer chemotherapy, were excluded from the study. With those criteria and exclusions, only 24 patients with eosinopenia were found among 24,300. Twenty were receiving some form of adrenal glucocorticosteroid (steroid) and of the other four, three had serious organic diseases for which they were receiving various drugs. The remaining patient, whose primary problem was depression, could have had drug-induced eosinopenia. Thus, unexpected eosinopenia appears to be a very rare event or syndrome. A normal range for eosinophils was defined from studies of 740 medical students, which was 0.015 to 0.65 X 10(9)/liter and was quite similar to previously reported values. The effect of acute or chronic steroid administration on eosinophils in normal human subjects was studied. Confirming studies reported for man and many other mammals, eosinopenia developed promptly, but disappeared within hours unless repeated doses were given. Literature on various types of eosinopenia was reviewed.
I-123 Labeled Radiotracers in Cardiovascular Nuclear Medicine

Radiohalogens (particularly 18F, 34mCl, 77Br, 75Br, 123I, 125I and 211At) produced in a cyclotron are nuclides of choice for radiopharmaceuticals. It has long been recognized that I-123 is the most desirable radioisotope of iodine for in vivo applications. I-123 labeled substrates suitable for imaging the myocardium include receptor binding agents, muscarinic antagonists and analogs of fatty acids. Radioiodinated (I-123) fatty acid analogs have gained significiant attention because of the possibility that these might give quantitative information regarding the regional myocardial metabolic activity by noninvasive scintigraphic methods. Incorporation of tellurium hetero into a carbon skeleton or beta methylation of a long chain phenyl fatty acid tends to prolong the retention of radioactivity in the myocardium of experimental animals. It is recognized that the radioiodine needs to be placed on a phenyl ring attached (in the ?-position) to a long chain fatty acid for the in vivo stabilityof the C-I-bond. Among the methods of radioiodination of ?-phenyl fatty acids, a method developed in our laboratory using an organo-thallium intermediate has been found to be simple, efficient, reproducible, and suitable for routine application.