cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Examining the Feasibility of Early Mobilization With Virtual Reality Gaming Using Head-Mounted Display and Adaptive Software With Adolescents in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit: Case Report.

Background: Early rehabilitative mobilization for adolescents is safe and feasible. However, there is a lack of published rehabilitation strategies and treatments that can maximize engagement and outcomes among adolescents in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Virtual reality (VR) gaming using a head-mounted display (HMD) and adaptive software can allow active and nonactive gameplay at the bedside for people with limited arm mobility, making it a potentially inclusive and enjoyable treatment modality for adolescents in the PICU. Objective: The purpose of this brief case study is to report on the preliminary feasibility of incorporating adaptive VR gaming using an HMD with 2 adolescents who received early mobility treatment within the PICU. Methods: This study was a mini-ethnographic investigation of 2 adolescents (a 15-year-old male and a 13-year old male) in the PICU who underwent VR gaming sessions as part of their early mobilization care, using an Oculus Rift HMD and adaptive software (WalkinVR) that promoted full gameplay in bed. The Rift was plugged into a gaming laptop that was set up on a table within the patient’s room before each session. The intervention was delivered by an adapted exercise professional and supervised by a physical therapist. Patients had access to a variety of active games (eg, boxing, rhythmic movement to music, and exploratory adventure) and nonactive games (eg, racing and narrative adventure). Gaming sessions were scheduled between usual care, when tolerable and requested by the participant. The interventionist and therapists took audio-recorded and written notes after completing each gaming session. These data were analyzed and presented in a narrative format from the perspective of the research team. Results: Case 1 participated in 4 gaming sessions, with an average of 18 minutes (SD 11) per session. Case 2 participated in 2 sessions, with an average of 35 minutes (SD 7) per session. Both cases were capable of performing active gaming at a moderate level of exercise intensity, as indicated by their heart rate. However, their health and symptoms fluctuated on a daily basis, which prompted the gameplay of adventure or nonactive games. Gameplay appeared to improve participants’ affect and alertness and motivate them to be more engaged in early mobilization therapy. Gameplay without the WalkinVR software caused several usability issues. There were no serious adverse events, but both cases experienced symptoms based on their condition. Conclusions: The findings of this study suggest that VR gaming with HMDs and adaptive software is likely a feasible supplement to usual care for adolescents within the PICU, and these findings warrant further investigation. Recommendations for future studies aimed at incorporating VR gaming during early mobilization are presented herein.
Packing Rectangles: A Cake Sharing Puzzle

In the quest to solve a mathematical conundrum based on a two-player cake allocation game, apparently unsolved since 2004, this paper presents an in-depth analysis of each player’s challenges and opportunities. At the beginning of the research stands a conjecture about the subgame perfect Nash equilibrium, whose implications are discussed in some depth. Although a full proof cannot be presented here, the work establishes several equilibrium properties and lies the foundation for an algorithmic implementation of the player’s task. Understanding of the game dynamics is further fuelled by the analysis of several game variants, obtained either by slightly altering the game’s objective or by restricting the action space of the opponents. While two of these variants may be solved completely, the third version may be translated into a lower bound for the player’s minimal return.
The Patterns of Coevolution in Clade B HIV Envelope's N-Glycosylation Sites

The co-evolution of the potential N-glycosylation sites of HIV Clade B gp120 was mapped onto the coevolution network of the protein structure using mean field direct coupling analysis (mfDCA). This was possible for 327 positions with suitable entropy and gap content. Indications of pressure to preserve the evolving glycan shield are seen as well as strong dependencies between the majority of the potential N-glycosylation sites and the rest of the structure. These findings indicate that although mainly an adaptation against antibody neutralization, the evolving glycan shield is structurally related to the core polypeptide, which, thus, is also under pressure to reflect the changes in the N-glycosylation. The map we propose fills the gap in previous attempts to tease out sequon evolution by providing a more general molecular context. Thus, it will help design strategies guiding HIV gp120 evolution in a rational way.
A Brief Inquiry into the Origins of St. Elmo, California

IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE PASS. As though God's massive knuckle curled up at the white desert, bore down and scraped its way up the foothills, the track rises high into the mountains and from there, careens downhill, a long natural pass, Jesuit Pass, spilling into a sea of sagebrush. The pass might even have reached the Pacific, except God seemed to lose interest in it, in the St. Elmo valley for that matter. Of course He did. If His aesthetic attention had not so clearly been called elsewhere in California, surely God would have carved out a genuine riverbed here, instead of the broad invisible channel, locally known as Dogsback Ditch, which floods, cruelly, every decade or so. No, face it, instead of a real river, God's forefinger punched holes in the earth's crust, artesian wells, like the St. Elmo valley was just a geological pie and the steam needed to escape. It's certainly true that beneath the earth's crust, this unstable pie continues to cook in the thermal fires, the bubble and boil resulting in frequent earthquakes. Grand quakes send people rushing into the street or crouching under tables, clutching their robes and children. But more often, the quakes are ticklers. That's what the locals call them, not simply for their having jiggled passions long dormant in the earth, but stirring other, long dormant longings, rousing long dormant spouses, lying in dry connubial beds. Many's the St. Elmo child who owes his life to an aftershock. But one day, they say, the Big One will come. The fires inside will erupt, explode along the San Andreas fault. This fault is one of the staples of imagery in the work of California poets. They wax on as though the fault line reflects the flawed thread of human nature. Or, for some, the fault functions as a retribution pageant, Cecil B. DeMillian in scope, that would otherwise be too corny for words. Here, in St. Elmo, it's less cosmic. The city has the dubious honor of sitting squarely atop the San Andreas fault and when the Big One comes, everything west of Jesuit Pass will split, rip, tear off and?with the rest of Western California?become its own island
ACTIVATION AND REGULATION OF THE SPC1 STRESS-ACTIVATED PROTEIN KINASE IN SCHIZOSACCHAROMYCES POMBE

Spc1, an osmotic-stress-stimulated mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) homolog in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, is required for the induction of mitosis and survival in high-osmolarity conditions. Spc1, also known as Sty1, is activated by Wis1 MAPK kinase and inhibited by Pyp1 tyrosine phosphatase. Spc1 is most closely related to Saccharomyces cerevisiae Hog1 and mammalian p38 kinases. Whereas Hog1 is specifically responsive to osmotic stress, we report here that Spc1 is activated by multiple forms of stress, including high temperature and oxidative stress. In this regard Spc1 is more similar to mammalian p38. Activation of Spc1 is crucial for survival of various forms of stress. Spc1 regulates expression of genes encoding stress-related proteins such as glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (gpd1+) and trehalose-6-phosphate synthase (tps1+). Spc1 also promotes expression of pyp2+, which encodes a tyrosine phosphatase postulated as a negative regulator of Spc1. This proposal is supported by the finding that Spc1 associates with Pyp2 in vivo and that the amount of Spc1 tyrosine phosphorylation is lower in a Pyp2-overproducing strain than in the wild type. Moreover, the level of stress-stimulated gpd1+ expression is higher in delta pyp2 mutants than in the wild type. These findings demonstrate that Spc1 promotes expression of genes involved in stress survival and that of regulation may be commonly employed to modulate MAPK signal transduction pathways in eukaryotic species.
Efficient augmented Lagrangian‐type preconditioning for the Oseen problem using Grad‐Div stabilization

SUMMARY Efficient preconditioning for Oseen-type problems is an active research topic. We present a novel approach leveraging stabilization for inf-sup stable discretizations. The Grad-Div stabilization shares the algebraic properties with an augmented Lagrangian-type term. Both simplify the approximation of the Schur complement, especially in the convection-dominated case. We exploit this for the construction of the preconditioner. Solving the discretized Oseen problem with an iterative Krylov-type method shows that the outer iteration numbers are retained independent of mesh size, viscosity, and finite element order. Thus, the preconditioner is very competitive. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Approximation of Haar distributed matrices and limiting distributions of eigenvalues of Jacobi ensembles

We develop a tool to approximate the entries of a large dimensional complex Jacobi ensemble with independent complex Gaussian random variables. Based on this and the author’s earlier work in this direction, we obtain the Tracy–Widom law of the largest singular values of the Jacobi emsemble. Moreover, the circular law, the Marchenko–Pastur law, the central limit theorem, and the laws of large numbers for the spectral norms are also obtained.
Cunningham correction factor and accommodation coefficient: Interpretation of Millikan's data

Abstract A new fit to Millikan's data for the slip correction of spheres is explored, leading to Cunningham constants α, β and γ which differ slightly from those in the literature. Reinterpretation of the old data with some recently developed theoretical expressions yields a value of 0.809 for the momentum accommodation coefficient.
3-D Volume Reconstruction of Skin Lesions for Melanin and Blood Volume Estimation and Lesion Severity Analysis

Subsurface information about skin lesions, such as the blood volume beneath the lesion, is important for the analysis of lesion severity towards early detection of skin cancer such as malignant melanoma. Depth information can be obtained from diffuse reflectance based multispectral transillumination images of the skin. An inverse volume reconstruction method is presented which uses a genetic algorithm optimization procedure with a novel population initialization routine and nudge operator based on the multispectral images to reconstruct the melanin and blood layer volume components. Forward model evaluation for fitness calculation is performed using a parallel processing voxel-based Monte Carlo simulation of light in skin. Reconstruction results for simulated lesions show excellent volume accuracy. Preliminary validation is also done using a set of 14 clinical lesions, categorized into lesion severity by an expert dermatologist. Using two features, the average blood layer thickness and the ratio of blood volume to total lesion volume, the lesions can be classified into mild and moderate/severe classes with 100% accuracy. The method therefore has excellent potential for detection and analysis of pre- malignant lesions.
Modeling and design of waveguide-coupled single-mode microring resonators

We discuss a first-order design tool for waveguide-coupled microring resonators based on an approximate solution of the wave propagation in a microring waveguide with micron-size radius of curvature and a large lateral index contrast. The model makes use of the conformal transformation method and a linear approximation of the refractive index profile, and takes into account the effect of waveguide thickness, dispersion, and diffraction. Based on this model, we develop general design rules for the major physical characteristics of a waveguide-coupled microring resonator, including the resonance wavelength, the free spectral range, the coupling ratio, the bending radiation loss and the substrate leakage loss. In addition, the physical model provides insights into alternative coupling designs that significantly increase the coupling length and reduce or eliminate the dependence on a narrow air gap in the waveguide-coupled microring resonator. We present two examples, one using a phase-matching parallel waveguide with a smaller width than the ring waveguide, and the other using a vertical coupling structure.
The low temperature oxidation of ammonia over a supported ruthenium catalyst

The kinetics of the oxidation of NH3 with 02 over a 0"5 (wt. ~) Ru catalyst supported on 0"318 (cm) cylindrical A1203 pellets has been studied in a stirred flow reactor with rapid recycling of 98 per cent or more of the reacting gas mixture. This experimental approach minimized temperature and concentration gradients along the cayalyst bed, and permitted fine temperature control and rapid mass transport to the catalyst surface. As a result, uniform reaction conditions prevailed over the length of the catalytic reactor. Experimentation was conducted at six temperatures in the range 246-345 (°C). Reaction pressures from 176 to 280 (cm Fig) were used. Feed composition was 5.3, 9-7, or 16.5 (vol. ~o) NH3, the balance in each case being 02. The reactor effluent was analyzed by gas chromatography, and the products of reaction were N2, N20 and H20. Rates of formation of both N2 and N20 were found to depend on PNH3, PO2, andpH20 and to be independent of PN2 and PN20. Increasing PH20 decreased, and increasing P02 increased, both rates. Increasing PNI-I3 and temperature favored the formation of N20. The maximum N20 yield realized in this work was about 45 per cent. Gas phase mass transport did not influence product distribution and did not control the reaction rate. Equations are developed to express the rates of formation of N2 and N20. These rate equations are discussed in terms of a kinetic scheme involving two parallel reactions with 02 as a common reagent. Possible elementary steps, which constitute both oxidation reactions, are analyzed in relation to the experimentally derived rate expressions. The latter are compared with those predicted by absolute rate theory and order-of-magnitude agreement results.
A comparative study of organ models and numerical techniques for the evaluation of capillary permeability from multiple-indicator data

Abstract Alterations in capillary permeability may be important in the pathogenesis of a number of disorders. This quantity may be measured in intact animals or patients by the bolus injection of a group of indicators with varying degrees of permeability through the capillary barrier. This study has reviewed several mathematical models of the flow and transport of such tracers. Relationships among the Krogh cylinder, dispersion, Turner capacitance, and uniform and distributed capillary transit-time models have been studied. In addition, the influence of non-ideal input functions and numerical techniques for the identification of capillary permeability from experimental data have been examined. Equations showing the interrelationships of capillary permeabilities based on various models have been derived. Numerical results indicated that parameter evaluation based on Fourier transforms is generally more efficient than time-domain techniques.
Magnetic viruses via nano-capsid templates

Abstract Biological templating of inorganic nanoparticles provides promising opportunities to address the grand challenge in nanoscience of realizing the full potential of self-assembled materials. We implement such biotemplating to create magnetic nanoparticles by utilizing native protein capsid shells derived in high yield from the T7 bacteriophage virus. The magnetic nanoparticles are grown via bio-mineralization reactions inside of hollowed-out capsids that retain their original chemical recognition properties. The resultant “magnetic viruses” are uniform in geometry, physical properties, and biochemical functionality. We first coax the DNA out of the T7 virus by means of an alkaline treatment, and then grow magnetic cobalt particles inside the remaining hollow capsid shell. Related methods of fabricating bio-functional magnetic nanoparticles have utilized either recombinant, single-protein-type capsids, or involve coating previously synthesized inorganic particles with bio-ligands. Given the richness of the protein types that form the native T7 capsid, our magnetic viruses can be tailored to tune the bio-functionality and/or bio-tagging of a sample. As an example, we consider a nano-biomagnetic sensing scheme that would utilize the T7 capsid to control the magnetic nanoparticle size distribution.
Inter‐familiar differences in sprint speed of hatchling Sceloporus occidentalis (Reptilia: Iguanidae)

Hatchling Sceloporus occidentalis from the same dam had more similar sprint speeds than did hatchlings from different dams. Families (e.g. siblings from the same dam) of hatchlings differ significantly in body size. However, family differences in sprint speed remain significant when the size differences are removed statistically. Genetic differences among the families of lizards may account for most of the family differences in speed, although environmental or maternal effects may also contribute to family differences in sprint speed.
THE FINE STRUCTURE OF THE MEGAKARYOCYTE OF THE BONE MARROW OF THE GUINEA PIG.

The cytoplasm of megakaryocytes frequently exhibits bullate processes which protrude into the lumen of the sinusoids through small apertures in the reticular cells. These bullae differ morphologically from the platelet demarcation zones and are held to have a different function. It is concluded that the bullae detach from the megakaryocyte in a manner comparable to apocrine secretion and enter the blood stream.
A design overview of an eccentric-motion electrostatic microactuator (the wobble motor)

Abstract A description is given of the design, fabrication and analysis of an electrostatically-driven micro-actuator in which a planetary-motion rotor rolls inside a cylindrically shaped stator cavity. The design has four primary advantages: (1) the motor geometry and the rolling motion enable very small gaps to be achieved, which are accurate and stable, and across which electrostatic forces act, leading to high forces on the rotor; (2) relative motion is achieved by rolling rather than sliding, thus obviating the concern over internal friction; (3) higher output torques can be traded for lower rotor speeds, due to immediate planetary reduction; and (4) the power output should be higher than for systems constructed using two-dimensional silicon fabrication approaches, since woble motor lengths are not limited by such fabrication methods. The stator segment recruitment logic can range from simple, open-loop stepping to full servo-controlled commutation using rotor position sensors. Two-dimensional analytical and finite-element simulations that estimate motor torque generated by electrostatic fields have been used to determine the influece of: (1) rotor and stator radii; (2) stator segment angular width and position with respect to the contact point; and (3) dielectric properties and dimensions (e.g., insulator thickness on rotor) of motor materials. Dynamic modelling is being used in the comparison of predicted and observed motor behavior, and for the study of the effects of stator segment recruitment logic. A number of eccentric-motion micromotors constructed via different fabrication techniques, have been operated. Electro-discharge machining (EDM) is the fabrication method of choice for the prototypes presently used for experimental studies. Typical rotor diameters for the EDM motor are about 500 μm, with lengths of 500 μm. Motor operation has been achieved with commutation rates in excess of 120 000 r.p.m.
A Designed Polymer Detects the microRNAs Based on Protein Nanopore

AbstractMicroRNA (miRNA) is a kind of small non-coding RNA, which plays important role in modulating gene expression. And it is a new candidate for some disease diagnosis. However, it is difficult to detect because of the short length, low concentration and mixed with other components in cell. In our work, a synthesized polymer is design to detect miRNA based on protein nanopore. The positively charged polymer has high specificity to given kind of miRNA. Meanwhile, the capture rate in a site-direct mutated nanopore is several hundred folds higher than other kinds of probe from trans side. After binding of probe and miRNA, the complex causes signature event when associating with the pore. As the result, the polymer probe can detect low concentration of miRNA to tens of picomolar. According the side preference of nucleic acid, the unrelated ones in trans side will not interfere the detection. Besides, three members of miRNA family can be distinguished using the same probe by the properties of the signatures, even though there is only one or two bases difference in them.
The Effect of Content Mix on Circulation Penetration for U.S. Daily Newspapers

For a generation, the U.S. newspaper industry has suffered from stagnant circulation performance and declining penetration, but some papers manage to maintain healthy penetration. This project investigated whether content mix could account for the variance in penetration among papers in a national sample, but found content does not have a significant impact on circulation variance after controlling for the influence of market characteristics.
Unilateral strabismus surgery in patients with exotropia results in postoperative lateral incomitance

Purpose To determine whether unilateral strabismus surgery creates lateral incomitance in patients with exotropia. Methods Patients >7 years of age with intermittent or constant exotropia who underwent unilateral horizontal rectus muscle surgery between December 2009 and January 2012 were prospectively evaluated. Prism and alternate cover testing was performed with distance fixation in primary position, right gaze, and left gaze after 1 hour of monocular occlusion. Measurements were obtained within 1 month prior to surgery, within 1 week after surgery, and >3 months after surgery. The surgical procedure varied according to the surgeon's discretion. The change in deviation induced by strabismus surgery in lateral gaze was expressed as a percentage of the change in deviation induced in primary position. Results A total of 12 patients met inclusion criteria. Of the 11 patients with postoperative examinations within 1 week after surgery, 10 (91%) had greater surgical effect with gaze toward the operated eye ( P = 0.007). All 9 patients with >3 months' follow-up had greater surgical effect with gaze toward the operated eye ( P = 0.003). On average, the surgical effect in gaze toward the operated eye was 120% of that achieved in primary position; in gaze away from the operated eye, 75% ( P 6 months after surgery. Conclusions Unilateral strabismus surgery induces lateral incomitance that may cause diplopia >6 months after surgery in patients with exotropia. This should be considered when planning strabismus surgery and counseling patients.
Dynamic air-water exchange of polychlorinated biphenyls in the New York-New Jersey Harbor Estuary.

Simultaneous measurements of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in the air and water over Raritan Bay and New York Harbor were taken in July 1998, allowing the first determinations of air−water exchange fluxes for this heavily impacted system. Average gas-phase concentrations of ∑PCBs were 1.0 ng m-3 above Raritan Bay and 3.1 ng m-3 above New York Harbor. A similar gradient was observed for dissolved water concentrations (1.6 and 3.8 ng L-1, respectively). Shallow slopes of log KOC vs log KOW plots indicated a colloidal contribution to the dissolved concentrations, and a three-phase partitioning model was therefore applied. PCBs associated with colloids ranged from 6% to 93% for trichloro- to nonachlorobiphenyls, respectively. Air−water gas exchange fluxes of ∑PCBs exhibited net volatilization for both Raritan Bay at +400 ng m-2 day-1 and New York Harbor at +2100 ng m-2 day-1. The correction for the colloidal interactions decreased the volatilization flux of ∑PCBs by about 15%. Net air−water exchange fluxes...
Nanosecond UV laser photoionization of aqueous tryptophan: temperature dependence of quantum yield, mechanism, and kinetics of hydrated electron decay

Abstract The 266 nm photoionization of aqueous tryptophan (Trp) solution at natural pH has been studied by laser flash photolysis using 3–18 mJ, 7 ns, 266 nm pulses. The transient absorption method was employed to detect hydrated electrons. The photoionization mechanism is a combination of mono and biphotonic processes. Results from measurements of the power dependence of photoionization and of triplet (T 1 ) state production suggest that both processes involve the same one-photon and two-photon singlet intermediate state. The hydrated electron yield increases with temperature, and this can be attributed primarily to the monophotonic photoionization component. Hydrated electrons decay by a non-exponential rate law that is consistent with a decay mechanism involving their bimolecular scavenging by tryptophan radical cations with a rate constant of (7.2±0.6)×10 10 M −1 s −1 .
CONNECTION BETWEEN BOUND STATES OR RESONANCES OF TWO-PARTICLE AND THREE- PARTICLE SYSTEMS.

The connection between three-particle resonances or bound states and the two-particle resonances or bound states of their component pairs is examined. A simpler and more general derivation is given of the Lovelace equations for isobar or bound-state scattering. As an example, a one-dimensional model of a system of three identical particles, each pair of which interacts only through a single bound or resonant state of energy ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{0}$, is constructed, and the corresponding off-shell scattering integral equation is obtained. By examining the analytic structure as a function of the off-shell momentum at fixed energy, an expression is obtained for the off-shell scattering amplitude involving explicitly known functions and the solution of a much less singular equation. When ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{0}$ is the position of a resonance pole of the two-particle system, the three-particle denominator function has a pole at an energy $4{\ensuremath{\nu}}_{0}$ on the unphysical sheet where denominator zeros are associated with resonances, provided that the two-body resonance has a smooth form factor. This suggests the presence of a three-body resonance in this neighborhood if the two-body resonance is narrow. That is not true for bound states. The relation of this to the expected behavior of more realistic problems is discussed.
Identification of Novel Pigmentation Modulators by Chemical Genetic Screening

There is a continual need for compounds that effectively modulate melanin synthesis. To identify novel pigmentation modulators and their cellular targets, chemical genetic screenings were performed with triazine-based combinatorial libraries that include various linkers as intrinsic components of the small molecules in the library. The linker provides a ready means of attachment to beads, eliminating several common time-consuming downstream steps in the isolation of cellular targets for the small molecules of interest. Twelve compounds were identified as novel pigmentation modulators from various screenings performed in normal and albino murine melanocytes and zebrafish. Target identification by affinity chromatography revealed unexpected roles for prohibitin and mitochondrial F1F0-adenotriphosphatase in the regulation of mammalian pigmentation. The identification of prohibitin, a "scaffold protein", as a propigmentation effector represents a novel mechanism by which propigmentary signals are transduced. Results from our screenings provide potential active agents and targets for the medical and aesthetic treatment of disorders of pigmentation.
Structuring Global Democracy: Political Communities, Universal Human Rights, and Transnational Representation

: The emergence of cross-border communities and transnational associations requires new ways of thinking about the norms involved in democracy in a globalized world. Given the significance of human rights fulfillment, including social and economic rights, I argue here for giving weight to the claims of political communities while also recognizing the need for input by distant others into the decisions of global governance institutions that affect them. I develop two criteria for addressing the scope of democratization in transnational contexts—common activities and impact on basic human rights—and argue for their compatibility. I then consider some practical implications for institutional transformation and design, including new forms of transnational representation.
Picosecond kinetics of excited charge-transfer interactions

Abstract The geometrical requirements and effects of solvent polarity on excited-state charge-transfer processes are investigated using picosecond laser methods. For the model compound anthryl—(CH 2 ) 3 —N,N-dimethylaniline the dynamics of both forward and back electron transfer in polar and nonpolar solvents are presented.
Interaction of apo-cytochrome b5 with cytochromes P4503A4 and P45017A: relevance of heme transfer reactions.

Maximal activity of CYP3A4 is obtained using a reconstitution system consisting of NADPH−P450 reductase (CPR), dioleoylphosphatidylcholine (DOPC), an ionic detergent, and cytochrome b5 (b5). The mechanism by which b5 stimulates the catalytic activity of CYP3A4 is controversial. Recent data report that apo-cytochrome b5 (apo-b5) can substitute for holo-b5 by serving as an allosteric effector. These authors concluded that b5 is not directly involved in electron transfer reactions to CYP3A4. We have studied the effect of apo-b5 on the ability of purified CYP3A4 to catalyze the 6β-hydroxylation of testosterone and horse CYP17A to catalyze the 17,20-lyase reaction. The high molecular weight form of holo-b5 (HMW-holo-b5) stimulates the 6β-hydroxylation of testosterone while the low molecular weight (truncated) form of holo-b5 (LMW-holo-b5) does not. When added to the reconstituted system, HMW-apo-b5 stimulates the activity of CYP3A4 to a level 50−60% of that obtained with HMW-holo-b5. A similar stimulation of 1...
How to measure national stereotypes

Because it is particularly difficult to evaluate the accuracy of national stereotypes, the Report by A. Terracciano et al. (“National character does not reflect mean personality trait levels in 49 cultures,” 7 Oct. 2005, p. 96) examining the relations between ratings of national character and
Space-Based Reconfigurable Software Defined Radio Test Bed Aboard International Space Station

The National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA) recently launched a new software defined radio research test bed to the International Space Station. The test bed, sponsored by the Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) Office within NASA is referred to as the SCaN Testbed. The SCaN Testbed is a highly capable communications system, composed of three software defined radios, integrated into a flight system, and mounted to the truss of the International Space Station. Software defined radios offer the future promise of in-flight reconfigurability, autonomy, and eventually cognitive operation. The adoption of software defined radios offers space missions a new way to develop and operate space transceivers for communications and navigation. Reconfigurable or software defined radios with communications and navigation functions implemented in software or VHDL (Very High Speed Hardware Description Language) provide the capability to change the functionality of the radio during development or after launch. The ability to change the operating characteristics of a radio through software once deployed to space offers the flexibility to adapt to new science opportunities, recover from anomalies within the science payload or communication system, and potentially reduce development cost and risk by adapting generic space platforms to meet specific mission requirements. The software defined radios on the SCaN Testbed are each compliant to NASA's Space Telecommunications Radio System (STRS) Architecture. The STRS Architecture is an open, non-proprietary architecture that defines interfaces for the connections between radio components. It provides an operating environment to abstract the communication waveform application from the underlying platform specific hardware such as digital-to-analog converters, analog-to-digital converters, oscillators, RF attenuators, automatic gain control circuits, FPGAs, general-purpose processors, etc. and the interconnections among different radio components.
Anterior palate sensory impairment after septal surgery.

BackgroundThis study was performed to present a series of patients who experienced anterior palatal sensory impairment after nasal septal surgery. This phenomenon has not been reported in the Engli...
Particle Size Distribution and Inhalation Dose of Shower Water Under Selected Operating Conditions

Showering produces respirable droplets that may serve to deposit pollutants such as trihalomethane decontamination products, heavy metals, inorganic salts, microbes, or cyanoacterial toxins within the respiratory tract. The extent and importance of this route of indoor exposure depend on the physical characteristics of the aerosol as well as the pollutant profile of the source water. The purpose of this study was to characterize shower-generated aerosols as a function of water flow rate, temperature, and bathroom location. Aerosols were generated within a shower stall containing a mannequin to simulate the presence of a human. Using hot water, the mass median diameter (MMD) of the droplets inside the shower and in the bathroom were 6.3-7.5 um and 5.2-6 microm, respectively. Size was independent of water flow rate. The particle concentration inside the shower ranged from 5 to 14 mg/m3. Aerosols generated using cold water were smaller (2.5-3.1 microm) and concentrations were lower (0.02-0.1 mg/m3) inside the shower stall. No aerosols were detected in the bathroom area when cold water was used. The International Commission on Radiological Protection model was used to estimate water deposition in the respiratory tract. For hot water, total deposition ranged from 11 to 14 mg, depending on water flow rate, with approximately 50% of this deposited in the extrathoracic region during assumed mouth breathing, and greater than 86% when nose breathing was assumed. Alveolar deposition was 6-10% and 0.9% assuming oral and nasal breathing, respectively. The consequences deposition of shower water droplets will depend on the nature and extent of any pollutants in the source water.
Feasibility Study of the Effectiveness of Cryogenically Treated Ceramic Inserts for Pocket Milling Maneuvers

Machining is a popular and versatile manufacturing process that is widely used in today’s industry when producing metallic parts; however, limited tool life can make this an expensive and time consuming fabrication technique. Consequently, methods that decrease the rate of tool wear and, thus, increase tool longevity are a vital component when improving the efficiency of machining processes. To this end, cryogenically treating cutting tools (especially high-speed steel tooling) is becoming more commonplace since research has shown that the treated tooling exhibits significantly higher wear resistance. At this point, however, the effect of cryogenic treatments on ceramic tooling has not been established. Considering this, the research herein presents a feasibility study on the effectiveness of using cryogenic treatments to enhance the wear resistance of WG-300 whisker-reinforced ceramic cutting inserts. To begin, the effect of the cryogenic treatment on the insert’s hardness is examined. Subsequently, tool wear tests are conducted at various cutting speeds. Through this study, it is shown that cryogenically treating the ceramic inserts decreases the rate of tool wear at each of the cutting speeds that were tested. However, the degree of wear resistance introduced by cryogenically treating the inserts proved to be highly dependent on the cutting speed, with slower speeds exhibiting greater improvements. Thus, based on this initial study, the cryogenic treatment of ceramic tooling appears to produce beneficial results, potentially increasing the overall efficiency of machining processes.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
Membership no longer has its privileges: The declining informal influence of Board members on IDA lending

This paper examines the ability of Board members of the most important multilateral donor to developing countries, the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank, to influence IDA allocations toward their home countries. I show that a system of Bank staff ratings of individual countries' policies, which has become more important in IDA lending over time, has systematically reduced the informal power of Board members. I show that while IDA Board members received more IDA commitments than their counterparts prior to 1989, this influence has disappeared since, as the importance of the policy index has increased. The findings are robust to the inclusion of fixed effects and a variety of relevant controls. In order to further support my argument, I also investigate the influence of Board membership on the Bank's policy index itself. I am unable to establish any positive relationship between Board membership and the index, either during the Cold War or afterwards. The findings not only shed important light on the internal workings of World Bank allocations to poor countries, but also highlight the ways in which institutional designs can affect the balance of informal power in international institutions.
Unilateral cochlear ablation before hearing onset disrupts the maintenance of dorsal nucleus of the lateral lemniscus projection patterns in the rat inferior colliculus

During postnatal development, ascending and descending auditory inputs converge to form fibrodendritic layers within the central nucleus of the inferior colliculus (IC). Before the onset of hearing, specific combinations of inputs segregate into bands separated by interband spaces. These bands may define functional zones within the IC. Previous studies in our laboratory have shown that unilateral or bilateral cochlear ablation at postnatal day 2 (P2) disrupts the development of afferent bands from the dorsal nucleus of the lateral lemniscus (DNLL) to the IC. These results suggest that spontaneous activity propagated from the cochlea is required for the segregation of afferent bands within the developing IC. To test if spontaneous activity from the cochlea also may be required to maintain segregated bands of DNLL input, we performed cochlear ablations in rat pups at P9, after DNLL bands already are established. All animals were killed at P12 and glass pins coated with carbocyanine dye, DiI (1,1′-dioctodecyl-3,3,3′,3′-tetramethylindocarbocyanine perchlorate), subsequently were placed in the commissure of Probst to label the crossed projections from both DNLLs. When compared with surgical controls, experimental results showed a similar pattern of DNLL bands in the IC contralateral to the ablated cochlea, but a disruption of DNLL bands in the IC ipsilateral to the cochlear ablation. The present results suggest that cochlear ablation after DNLL bands have formed may affect the maintenance of banded DNLL projections within the central nucleus of the IC.
The Active State of the Thin Filament Is Destabilized by an Internal Deletion in Tropomyosin

The function of three of tropomyosin's sequential quasiequivalent regions was studied by deletion from skeletal muscle α-tropomyosin of internal residues 49–167. This deletion mutant tropomyosin spans four instead of the normal seven actins, and most of the tropomyosin region believed to interact with troponin is retained and uninterrupted in the mutant. The mutant tropomyosin was compared with a full-length control molecule that was modified to functionally resemble muscle tropomyosin (Monteiro, P. B., Lataro, R. C., Ferro, J. A., and Reinach, F. C. (1994) J. Biol. Chem.269, 10461–10466). The tropomyosin deletion suppressed the actin-myosin subfragment 1 MgATPase rate and thein vitro sliding of thin filaments over a heavy meromyosin-coated surface. This inhibition was not reversed by troponin plus Ca2+. Comparable tropomyosin affinities for actin, regardless of the deletion, suggest that the deleted region has little interaction with actin in the absence of other proteins. Similarly, the deletion did not weaken binding of the troponin-tropomyosin complex to actin. Furthermore, Ca2+ had a 2-fold effect on troponin-tropomyosin's affinity for actin, regardless of the deletion. Notably, the deletion greatly weakened tropomyosin binding to myosin subfragment 1-decorated actin, with the full-length tropomyosin having a 100-fold greater affinity. The inhibitory properties resulting from the deletion are attributed to defective stabilization of the myosin-induced active state of the thin filament.
A synthetic defect in protein degradation caused by loss of Ufd4 and Rad23

The UFD (ubiquitin fusion degradation) pathway is responsible for multiubiquitination of the fusion proteins that bear a "non-removable" N-terminal ubiquitin moiety. Previous reports have shown that the UFD pathway is conserved from yeast to human. The essential elements of the UFD pathway have also been identified in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. These studies, however, are limited to use of engineered UFD substrates. The biological significance of the UFD pathway remains unknown. Here we demonstrate that Ufd4, the E3 component of the UFD pathway, is involved in controlling the degradation of Rad4, a nucleotide excision repair protein. Moreover, simultaneous loss of Ufd4 and Rad23 exhibits a synthetic inhibitory effect on Rad4 degradation, presenting the first example that a UBA/UBL-domain protein functionally overlaps with a ubiquitin ligase in determining the turnover rate of a protein substrate. The current work also provides a direction for further investigation of the physiological functions of the UFD pathway.
Signed-digit online floating-point arithmetic for FPGAs

ABSTRACT Many potential applications for veconfigurable computing need the dynamic range provided by floating-pointarithmetic. However, doing floating-point on FPGAs is difficult because of the large amount of hardware required,particularly for multipliers. Some limited success has been obtained through digit-serial implementation of IEEEfloating-point multipliers, but the IEEE representation is not easily or efficiently implemented in serial form.Therefore, we have been exploring alternate number representations. Signed-digit representations have shown some promise, since their form lends them to serial computation, which consumes much less hardware thanfully parallel approaches. We show how the signed-digit representation can be used to implement floating-point arithmetic, and we present prototype implementations using Altera FPGAs. Keywords: FPGAs, hardware accelerators, custom computing machines, arithmetic, floating-point arith- metic, signed-digit arithmetic 1 INTRODUCTION Many potential applications for reconfigurable computing need the dynamic range provided by floating-point
Lagrangian mechanics and Lie group variational integrators for spacecraft with imbalanced reaction wheels

This paper presents an analytic dynamic model and a geometric numerical integrator for spacecraft with reaction wheel assemblies. According to Lagrangian mechanics on an abstract Lie group, Euler-Lagrange equations are derived without any restrictive assumptions on the configuration of reaction wheels. This yields the most generalized reaction wheel dynamic model, that can possibly include the effects of arbitrary mass distribution about their spin axes, such as reaction wheel imbalance. The second part is focused on constructing a geometric numerical integrator, referred to as Lie group variational integrator, that provides long-term structural stability in simulating reaction wheel dynamics accurately. These are illustrated by a numerical example.
A new method of measuring frontal plane femoral shaft curvature provides preliminary data on an association between femoral shape, weight, and the difference between anatomic and mechanical alignment in knees with, or at risk of developing osteoarthritis

s / Osteoarthritis and Cartilage 22 (2014) S57–S489 S212 371 A NEW METHOD OF MEASURING FRONTAL PLANE FEMORAL SHAFT CURVATURE PROVIDES PRELIMINARY DATA ON AN ASSOCIATION BETWEEN FEMORAL SHAPE, WEIGHT, AND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ANATOMIC AND MECHANICAL ALIGNMENT IN KNEES WITH, OR AT RISK OF DEVELOPING OSTEOARTHRITIS D. Wu y, F. Liu z, J.A. Lynch z, X. Li z, B.L. Wise x, N.E. Lane x. yUniv. of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; zUniv. of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; xUniv. of California, Davis, Davis, CA,
Cost-Effectiveness of Latent Tuberculosis Screening Before Steroid Therapy for Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome in Children

Background Guidelines differ on screening recommendations for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) prior to immunosuppressive therapy. We aimed to determine the most cost-effective LTBI screening strategy before long-term steroid therapy in a child with new-onset idiopathic nephrotic syndrome. Study Design Markov state-transition model. Setting & Population 5-year-old boy with new-onset idiopathic nephrotic syndrome. Model, Perspective, & Timeframe The Markov model took a societal perspective over a lifetime horizon. Intervention 3 strategies were compared: universal tuberculin skin testing (TST), targeted screening using a risk-factor questionnaire, and no screening. A secondary model included the newer interferon γ release assays (IGRAs), requiring only one visit and having greater specificity than TST. Outcomes Marginal cost-effectiveness ratios (2010 US dollars) with effectiveness measured as quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs). Results At an LTBI prevalence of 1.1% (the average US childhood prevalence in our base case), a no-screening strategy dominated ($2,201; 29.3356 QALYs) targeted screening ($2,218; 29.3356 QALYs) and universal TST ($2,481; 29.3347 QALYs). At a prevalence >10.3%, targeted screening with a risk-factor questionnaire was the most cost-effective option. Higher than a prevalence of 58.5%, universal TST was preferred. In the secondary model, targeted screening with a questionnaire followed by IGRA testing was cost-effective compared with no screening in the base case when the LTBI prevalence was >4.9%. Limitations There is no established gold standard for the diagnosis of LTBI. Results of any modeling task are limited by the accuracy of available data. Conclusions Prior to starting steroid therapy, only patients in areas with a high prevalence of LTBI will benefit from universal TST. As more evidence becomes available about the use of IGRA testing in children, the assay may become a component of cost-effective screening protocols in populations with a higher burden of LTBI.