cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Visual servoing for teleoperation using a tethered UAV

This paper presents a visual servoing approach for robotic teleoperation using a tethered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). When teleoperating a robot, human operator's perception of the remote situation is limited by the robot's onboard camera. This deteriorates situational awareness and poses challenges on operation precision and efficiency. Tele- operated visual assistants are used in practice. For example, in Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster decommissioning, a secondary ground robot is used to follow and watch the primary robot. However, this requires two robots and 2-4 operators to perform one task. Furthermore, it introduces more problems, such as extra teamwork demand, miscommunication risk, suboptimal viewpoints. This work proposes to use a tethered UAV to replace the extra ground robot and human operators. In order to visually assist the primary robot autonomously, a visual servoing algorithm is developed and implemented based on a fiducial marker mounted on the primary robot, representing the operator's point of interest. Visual servoing configuration is controlled using 6 Degrees of Freedom of the fiducial. Servoing performances from physical experiments are analyzed. This paper lays the groundwork for and points out the direction of further visual assisting research.
Antibacterial activity on superhydrophobic titania nanotube arrays

Abstract Bacterial infections are a serious issue for many implanted medical devices. Infections occur when bacteria colonize the surface of an implant and form a biofilm, a barrier which protects the bacterial colony from antibiotic treatments. Further, the anti-bacterial treatments must also be tailored to the specific bacteria that is causing the infection. The inherent protection of bacteria in the biofilm, differences in bacteria species (gram-positive vs. gram-negative), and the rise of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria makes device-acquired infections difficult to treat. Recent research has focused on reducing biofilm formation on medical devices by modifying implant surfaces. Proposed methods have included antibacterial surface coatings, release of antibacterial drugs from surfaces, and materials which promote the adhesion of non-pathogenic bacteria. However, no approach has proven successful in repelling both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. In this study, we have evaluated the ability of superhydrophobic surfaces to reduce bacteria adhesion regardless of whether the bacteria are gram-positive or gram-negative. Although superhydrophobic surfaces did not repel bacteria completely, they had minimal bacteria attached after 24 h and more importantly no biofilm formation was observed.
Rangewide tidewater goby occupancy survey using environmental DNA

Rangewide monitoring of fish species is critical for determining status and trends in distribution; however, implementations of large-scale distribution surveys have generally been constrained by time and cost. This study used environmental DNA (eDNA) to monitor the presence or absence of two endangered tidewater goby species, the northern tidewater goby (Eucyclogobius newberryi) and the southern tidewater goby (Eucyclogobius kristinae), across their combined geographic range that encompasses the entire California coast (1350 km). A total of 197 estuary sites were surveyed in coastal California from Del Norte to San Diego counties between May and September 2016. Among the 197 sites, a total of 430 water samples were collected (one to six per site), filtered, and tested for the presence/absence of northern and southern tidewater goby, using species-specific quantitative PCR assays. Northern tidewater goby were detected at 81 out of 175 sites and southern tidewater goby were detected at 4 out of 22 sites, resulting in a combined naive occupancy of 0.43. In contrast, application of a multi-scale occupancy model that accounted for imperfect detection estimated site occupancy at 0.55 (95% CRI 0.46–0.64), indicating that tidewater goby were present but not detected at 23 additional sites. This study illustrates that eDNA methods represent a reliable and efficient tool for aquatic species monitoring, but highlight the importance of accounting for imperfect detection by use of occupancy models in eDNA surveys. The tidewater goby eDNA distributional snapshot represents a baseline for evaluation of future trends in site occupancy that will inform conservation and management of this endangered species.
Molecular Simulation of Pure Fluid and Binary Mixture Adsorption in Buckytubes and MCM-41

Grand canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) molecular simulation is used to study the adsorption of argon in model buckytubes and an equimolar argon/nitrogen mixture in a model MCM-41 pore. The critical buckytube pore diameter above which argon exhibits first-order condensation at 77 K is determined to be between 1.5 nm and 2.0 nm. At pressures below 0.0002 atm, nitrogen is selectively adsorbed into a 1.9 nm diameter MCM-41 pore at 77 K. At higher pressures an interesting reversal of selectivity is demonstrated and argon is preferentially adsorbed.
Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) for in vivo applications

Abstract: This chapter discusses the application of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology in the development of implantable medical devices. A brief introduction on MEMS technology is followed by a premise for the need of MEMS-based implantable devices. The chapter is structured into MEMS sensors (pressure, stress and strain, inertia) and MEMS actuators (drug delivery, electrical stimulators) and their applications in vivo. Recent research efforts in developing implantable MEMS devices are also discussed for each device described. A brief rundown on the challenges faced due to biocompatibility of materials is presented. Lastly, the chapter summarizes the key challenges associated with developing MEMS devices for in vivo applications.
SVC: selector-based view composition for web frameworks

We present Selector-based View Composition (SVC), a new programming style for web application development. Using SVC, a developer defines a web page as a series of transformations on an initial state. Each transformation consists of a selector (used to select parts of the page) and an action (used to modify content matched by the selector). SVC applies these transformations on either the client or the server to generate the complete web page. Developers gain two advantages by programming in this style. First, SVC can automatically add Ajax support to sites, allowing a developer to write interactive web applications without writing any JavaScript. Second, the developer can reason about the structure of the page and write code to exploit that structure, increasing the power and reducing the complexity of code that manipulates the page's content. We introduce SVC as a stateless, framework-agnostic development style. We also describe the design, implementation and evaluation of a prototype, consisting of a PHP extension using the WebKit browser engine [37] and a plugin to the popular PHP MVC framework Code Igniter [8]. To illustrate the general usefulness of SVC, we describe the implementation of three example applications consisting of common Ajax patterns. Finally, we describe the implementation of three post-processing filters and compare them to currently existing solutions.
The Impacts of the Kyoto Protocol on Full Cost Transportation in the U.S.

The Kyoto Protocol is an important step taken under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to avert the buildup of anthropogenic greenhouse gases in the atmosphere to dangerous levels. Emissions of carbon dioxide from transportation activities are a major source of such greenhouse gases, about one-third in the U.S. and potentially very large globally as developing country economies grow. The use of full social costing of transportation is attractive as a part of U.S. policy to meet, or indeed surpass, its emission reduction obligations under the Kyoto Protocol. For example, fall cost transportation could be reflected instrumentally in a comprehensive ecological tax reform across the entire economy. In this approach transportation and other energy prices would embody taxes that reflect imputed costs of carbon emissions as well as environmental, health and other external costs, while existing taxes (e.g., on business, labor or households) would be reduced.1 This would have the pragmatic advantage of linking climate protection to other health and environmental co-benefits.
Ending the vicious cycle.

Introduction to the February issue of Virtual Mentor on the theme of professional responsibility to prevent violence and abuse. Virtual Mentor is a monthly bioethics journal published by the American Medical Association.
Equivalence-Based Instruction with Nonfood Items to Increase Portion-Size Estimation Accuracy

Stimulus equivalence paradigms are successful interventions for teaching individuals a variety of skills. In particular, researchers have taught individuals how to more accurately estimate portion sizes of foods using equivalence-based instruction (EBI). This area of research lacks information on the effects of using nonfood items during EBI. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate whether nonfood items could be used during training to increase portion-size estimation accuracy. Participants were three adult females. Preferred and nonpreferred foods were used to assess generalization of portion-size estimation accuracy. Foods were identified through an assessment and varied per participant. Two nonfood items were used for training and one novel nonfood item was to assess for generalization. Three classes of stimuli were taught using EBI (i.e., ¼ cup, ½ cup, and 1 cup). The members of each class were represented by portion-size measurement aids, amounts on paper plates, and measuring cups. All participants more accurately estimated each portion size of nonfood items after training sessions. Accurate estimation also generalized to preferred and nonpreferred foods, as well as a novel nonfood item, for all participants.
Creating a pro-survival and anti-inflammatory phenotype by modulation of acetylation in models of hemorrhagic and septic shock.

Shock, regardless of etiology, is characterized by decreased tissue perfusion resulting in cell death, organ dysfunction, and poor survival. Current therapies largely focus on restoring tissue perfusion through resuscitation but have failed to address the specific cellular dysfunction caused by shock. Acetylation is rapidly emerging as a key mechanism that regulates the expression of numerous genes (epigenetic modulation through activation of nuclear histone proteins), as well as functions of multiple cytoplasmic proteins involved in key cellular functions such as cell survival, repair/healing, signaling, and proliferation. Cellular acetylation can be increased immediately through the administration of histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACI). A series of studies have been performed using: (1) cultured cells; (2) single-organ ischemia-reperfusion injury models; (3) rodent models of lethal septic and hemorrhagic shock; (4) swine models of lethal hemorrhagic shock and multi-organ trauma; and (5) tissues from severely injured trauma patients, to fully characterize the changes in acetylation that occur following lethal insults and in response to treatment with HDACI. These data demonstrate that: (1) shock causes a decrease in acetylation of nuclear and cytoplasmic proteins; (2) hypoacetylation can be rapidly reversed through the administration of HDACI; (3) normalization of acetylation prevents cell death, decreases inflammation, attenuates activation of pro-apoptotic pathways, and augments pro-survival pathways; (4) the effect of HDACI significantly improves survival in lethal models of septic shock, hemorrhagic shock, and complex poly-trauma without need for conventional fluid resuscitation or blood transfusion; and (5) improvement in survival is not due to better resuscitation but due to an enhanced ability of cells to tolerate lethal insults.
Business Models: Some Implications for USPS

Designing appropriate policies to reform the United States Postal Service (USPS) requires an understanding of business models: privately-owned competitive firms, different forms of regulated monopolies, labor-owned and publicly-owned enterprises, and government agencies. The most crucial factors in comparing these institutional forms are identifying the residual claimants and assessing the power of the incentives and the ability they have to promote efficient operation. Cross-subsidy, allocative and internal efficiency, externalities, innovation, and market structure are also important. Adequate reform of USPS requires Congressional acceptance that the government agency model should be replaced by more independent or privatized models adopted in other countries.
An Impulse Radar Nondestructive Evaluation System

A microwave impulse radar system for nondestructive evaluation (NDE) and inverse scattering imaging has recently been developed at the University of Illinois [1,2]. This automated time-domain ultra-wideband radar system consists of a Pi cosecond Pulse Lab (PSPL) 4050B step generator, a PSPL 4050RPH remote pulse head, two PSPL 5210 impulse forming networks, a Hewlett-Packard (HP) 54120B digitizing oscilloscope mainframe, an HP 54121A 20 GHz four-channel test set, a broadband Vivaldi antenna [8] array, two ultra-wideband amplifiers and two mi crowave switches. The system is automated and controlled by a computer via the IEEE-488 bus. The performance of this impulse radar NDE system will be eval uated by collecting useful measurement data from different test targets including metallic and dielectric objects. Two iterative nonlinear image reconstruction algo rithms, the distorted Born iterative method (DBIM) [3,4] and the local shape func tion (LSF) method [5,6,7], are used to process the time-domain measurement data to reconstruct the image of the target object. Our goal is to combine the impulse radar system and inverse scattering imaging algorithms to provide an NDE system with high resolution imaging capability for civil structures.
The PqsE and RhlR proteins are an autoinducer synthase–receptor pair that control virulence and biofilm development in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a leading cause of life-threatening nosocomial infections. Many virulence factors produced by P. aeruginosa are controlled by the cell-to-cell communication process called quorum sensing (QS). QS depends on the synthesis, release, and groupwide response to extracellular signaling molecules called autoinducers. P. aeruginosa possesses two canonical LuxI/R-type QS systems, LasI/R and RhlI/R, that produce and detect 3OC12-homoserine lactone and C4-homoserine lactone, respectively. Previously, we discovered that RhlR regulates both RhlI-dependent and RhlI-independent regulons, and we proposed that an alternative ligand functions together with RhlR to control the target genes in the absence of RhlI. Here, we report the identification of an enzyme, PqsE, which is the alternative-ligand synthase. Using biofilm analyses, reporter assays, site-directed mutagenesis, protein biochemistry, and animal infection studies, we show that the PqsE-produced alternative ligand is the key autoinducer that promotes virulence gene expression. Thus, PqsE can be targeted for therapeutic intervention. Furthermore, this work shows that PqsE and RhlR function as a QS-autoinducer synthase-receptor pair that drives group behaviors in P. aeruginosa.
Software multiplexing: share your libraries and statically link them too

We describe a compiler strategy we call “Software Multiplexing” that achieves many benefits of both statically linked and dynamically linked libraries, and adds some additional advantages. Specifically, it achieves the code size benefits of dynamically linked libraries while eliminating the major disadvantages: unexpected failures due to missing dependences, slow startup times, reduced execution performance due to indirect references to globals, and the potential for security vulnerabilities. We design Software Multiplexing so that it works even in the common case where application build systems support only dynamic and not static linking; we have automatically built thousands of Linux software packages in this way. Software Multiplexing combines two ideas: Automatic Multicall, i.e., where multiple independent programs are automatically merged into a single executable, and Static Linking of Shared Libraries, which works by linking an IR-level version of application code and all its libraries, even if the libraries are normally compiled as shared, before native code generation. The benefits are achieved primarily through deduplication of libraries across the multiplexed programs, while using static linking, and secondly through more effective unused code elimination for statically linked shared libraries. Compared with equivalent dynamically linked programs, allmux-optimized programs start more quickly and even have slightly lower memory usage and total disk size. Compared with equivalent statically linked programs, allmux-optimized programs are much smaller in both aggregate size and memory usage, and have similar startup times and execution performance. We have implemented Software Multiplexing in a tool called allmux, part of the open-source ALLVM project. Example results show that when the LLVM Compiler Infrastructure is optimized using allmux, the resulting binaries and libraries are 18.3% smaller and 30% faster than the default production version. For 74 other packages containing 2–166 programs each, multiplexing each package into one static binary reduces the aggregate package size by 39% (geometric mean) compared with dynamic linking.
CS-05 Can systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) disease activity be consistently scored and interpreted with simple, rapid outcome measures?

Background Existing methods for grading lupus flares or improvement in disease activity require definition-based thresholds as increments of change. Visual analogue scales (VAS) allow rapid, continuous scaling of disease severity. We analyzed the performance of two scales, the SELENA SLEDAI Physician’s Global Assessment (SSPGA) and the Lupus Foundation of America-Rapid Evaluation of Activity in Lupus (LFA-REALTM) as measures of progress in SLE. Methods Prospectively, we evaluated the agreement between collected disease activity (SLEDAI, BILAG-2004, CLASI, SSPGA and LFA-REALTM) and response (SRI-4 and BICLA) measures in an ongoing clinical trial. Results 50 patients (47 females, mean age 45±11.6 years) were assessed at 528 consecutive visits (average 10.6±4.1 visits per patient). Changes in disease activity compared to baseline were examined in 478 visit pairs. SSPGA and LFA-REALTM correlated with each other (r=0.936), and with SLEDAI and BILAG [SSPGA: r=0.742 (SLEDAI), r=0.776 (BILAG); LFA-REALTM: r=0.778 (SLEDAI), r=0.813 (BILAG); all p Conclusions SSPGA and LFA-REALTM are reliable surrogates of common SLE trial endpoints and could be used as continuous or dichotomous response measures. Additionally, LFA-REALTM can provide individualized scoring at the symptom or organ level. Acknowledgements We thank the patients for their participation in the study. Clarification of Abatacept Effects in SLE with Integrated Biologic and Clinical Approaches (The ABC Study) is an ongoing, investigator-initiated, clinical trial, conducted at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation (OMRF), with funding from Bristol Myers Squibb (NCT02270957).
Wisconsin Rocks! A Guide to Geologic Sites in the Badger State by Scott Spoolman. Mountain Press, www.mountain-press.com. 160 pages; 2018; $18 (softbound).

Wisconsin Rocks! is another new offering in the state-by-state geologic site series of Mountain Press. Joining other states in the series such as California, Ohio, Washington, and Arizona, Wisconsi...
Initial e-cigarette flavoring and nicotine exposure and e-cigarette uptake among adolescents.

Abstract Objective E-cigarettes are the most prevalent tobacco product used by adolescents. We sought to determine whether the presence of flavoring and/or the presence of nicotine at the first e-cigarette exposure predicted progression to current e-cigarette use (use in past 30 days) as well as escalation in use (number of days in the past 30 days) among adolescents. Methods Adolescents from public high schools outside of Philadelphia, PA completed in-classroom surveys at baseline (9th grade) and at 6-month intervals for the following 18 months (fall 2018, beginning of 11th grade). Adolescents who reported ever having used e-cigarettes at baseline (N = 354) comprised the analytical sample. Results We employed a two-part Latent Growth Curve Model including flavor, nicotine, and other covariates. Initial use of a flavored (vs unflavored) e-cigarette was associated with progression to current e-cigarette use (β = 0.54, z = 2.09, p = 0.04) and escalation in the number of days of e-cigarette use (β = 0.35, z = 2.58, p = 0.01) across the following 18 months. Initial use of an e-cigarette with nicotine (vs without nicotine) was associated with a greater number of days of e-cigarette use at baseline (β = 0.49, z = 2.16, p = 0.03). Conclusions The findings underscore the risk that flavoring and nicotine pose for progression beyond initial e-cigarette use. Regulations addressing flavoring and nicotine in e-cigarettes have the potential to reduce the number of adolescents who become current as well as frequent e-cigarette users.
18 LONG-TERM FOLLOW-UP RESULTS IN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS TREATED WITH RADIOACTIVE IODINE (1311) FOR HYPERTHYROIDISM

The choice of treatment for Graves' disease in children has been controversial in recent years. 131I has been used in a limited number of children in adolescence with thyrotoxicosis. Our last complete report was published in The New England Journal of Medicine in January, 1975 on 87 cases. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the long-term results of 131I therapy in children. Patients younger than age 19 years treated over the last 28 years with a follow-up of 5 and more years were studied. There were 133 such patients who were treated at the Cleveland Clinic between October 1949 and December 1972. All but 2 were last evaluated within 2 years. The reproductive history of all patients was evaluated. Approximately one-half of the patients were married and had children. 108 of these children were examined. There was no difference in the fertility of patients compared with the normal population and their children were normal. The majority of patients were clinically euthyroid but were so because of taking thyroid replacement. Recurrent goiter was due to Hashimoto's thyroiditis. We feel that adequate doses of thyroid hormone replacement should be prescribed for life. In the absence of problems with this therapy, it may be that 1311 will soon be the preferred treatment for children.
Combined Adjuvant Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy Improves Disease-Free Survival for Uterine Serous Cancer.

Abstract Purpose Uterine serous carcinoma (USC) is a rare but aggressive endometrial cancer histology. We reviewed outcomes for patients with USC to identify the best adjuvant treatment strategy. Methods and Materials We retrospectively identified 162 patients with The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage I-IVA USC treated at our institution. Baseline characteristics, treatment details, clinical outcomes, and toxicity data were recorded. Results Median follow-up was 3.4 years (0.3-26 years). A variety of adjuvant therapy strategies were employed: 14% no adjuvant therapy, 28% radiation alone, 15% chemotherapy alone, and 43% combined chemotherapy and radiation. Distant metastasis was the most common type of recurrence (37% at 5 years). For patients with stage I-IVA disease, there were no significant differences in outcomes by treatment type. For patients with stage I-II disease (70% of the cohort), disease-free survival was significantly higher after chemotherapy (alone or with radiation therapy, P = .005) and after combined chemotherapy and radiation compared with all other treatments (P = .025). Toxicity outcomes were favorable, with minimal grade 3 and no grade 4 or 5 events. Conclusions Patients with USC experience high rates of recurrence and mortality. Distant metastasis is the most common pattern of failure for all stages. For patients with early-stage disease, combined chemotherapy and radiation improves 5-year disease-free survival compared with either single adjuvant treatment alone or no adjuvant treatment. The relatively large group of patients with USC included in this study may account for our ability to detect this improvement whereas clinical trials have failed to do so, possibly owing to the relatively small percentages of patients with USC enrolled.
Chemical genetics of regeneration: Contrasting temporal effects of CoCl2 on axolotl tail regeneration.

Background Histone deacetylases (HDACs) regulate transcriptional responses to injury stimuli that are critical for successful tissue regeneration. Previously we showed that HDAC inhibitor romidepsin potently inhibits axolotl tail regeneration when applied for only 1-minute postamputation (MPA). Results Here we tested CoCl2, a chemical that induces hypoxia and cellular stress, for potential to reverse romidepsin inhibition of tail regeneration. Partial rescue of regeneration was observed among embryos co-treated with romidepsin and CoCl2 for 1 MPA, however, extending the CoCl2 dosage window either inhibited regeneration (CoCl2 :0 to 30 MPA) or was lethal (CoCl2 :0 to 24 hours postamputation; HPA). CoCl2 :0 to 30 MPA caused tissue damage, tissue loss, and cell death at the distal tail tip, while CoCl2 treatment of non-amputated embryos or CoCl2 :60 to 90 MPA treatment after re-epithelialization did not inhibit tail regeneration. CoCl2 -romidepsin:1 MPA treatment partially restored expression of transcription factors that are typical of appendage regeneration, while CoCl2 :0 to 30 MPA significantly increased expression of genes associated with cell stress and inflammation. Additional experiments showed that CoCl2 :0 to 1 MPA and CoCl2 :0 to 30 MPA significantly increased levels of glutathione and reactive oxygen species, respectively. Conclusion Our study identifies a temporal window from tail amputation to re-epithelialization, within which injury activated cells are highly sensitive to CoCl2 perturbation of redox homeostasis.
Evaluation of a four-zone indoor exposure model for predicting TCPP concentrations in a low-energy test house

Abstract The Indoor Environmental Concentrations in Buildings with Conditioned and Unconditioned Zones (IECCU) model was developed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency to predict indoor exposures. This study evaluated IECCU by comparing airborne tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCPP) concentrations measured over five years in a test house to IECCU predictions. IECCU inputs included building environment (air zone configuration, airflow rates and temperature), source (spray polyurethane foam (SPF)) and sink (gypsum and wallboard) parameters, and simulation conditions. Simulations were conducted using three sets of inputs. Simulation 1 and 2 differed in using quantified versus design inputs for temperatures and airflows. Simulation 1 and 3 differed in air zone configuration. Given the best available inputs (Simulation 1), IECCU predicted basement concentrations were generally higher but within three times of the measured values. The basement prediction/measurement ratios for all three simulations ranged from 0.5 to 8.3 (average: 2.9), while the predicted living zone concentrations were generally lower but within ten times of the measurements. The design inputs of Simulation 2 resulted in greater discrepancy between and predictions and measurements than the quantified inputs of Simulation 1. Simulation 2 also did not capture diurnal variation as well as Simulation 1. Comparisons of Simulation 1 and 2 demonstrate the importance of modeling with accurate temperatures and airflows. Furthermore, a sensitivity analysis indicates that to improve IECCU prediction for TCPP emission from SPF, efforts are needed to accurately measure SPF mass transfer parameters, especially the SPF/air partition coefficient and the initial TCPP concentration in SPF.
Neural Network Design via Voltage-based Resistive Processing Unit and Diode Activation Function - A New Architecture

In recent years, the architecture based on Resistive Processing Unit (RPU) has become a hot topic due to its potential to accelerate training of a Neural Network (NN). However, attempts to realize the RPU concept based on non-volatile memory technology face a myriad of technological and physical constraints. The theoretical concept of crossbar array is nearly impossible to implement in the real world without certain tweaks. Hence, we propose an Voltage output Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS)-based RPU design VRPU, which is used to build a neural network. We also introduce a novel diode-based circuit to behave as a non-linear activation function, which consists of a single Diode (D) and Diode Pair (DP). The proposed VRPU design when tested with MNIST dataset for hidden layer and output layer combinations of ReLU+Sigmoid, D+Sigmoid, ReLU+DP, D+DP (low temperature) and D+DP (high temperature) resulted in accuracies of 94.29%, 95.90%, 95.53%, 96.75% and 96.57% respectively corroborating the merits of the proposed design.
Isolation and characterization of four major neutral glycosphingolipids from the liver of the English sole (Parophrys vetulus). Presence of a novel branched lacto-ganglio-iso-globo hybrid structure.

Abstract We have previously reported on carbohydrate structures of the major acidic glycosphingolipids from the liver of the English sole, Parophrys vetulus (Ostrander, G. K., Levery, S. B., Hakomori, S., and Holmes, E. H. (1988) J. Biol. Chem. 263, 3103-3110). We have now isolated four major neutral glycosphingolipids from English sole liver. They have been characterized by 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, methylation analysis, and by fast atom bombardment-mass spectrometry. In addition to neutral glycosphingolipids with known structures (CMH, lactosylceramide, and Gg3), a major polar neutral glycosphingolipid was isolated and characterized as having the following novel structure: (formula; see text) The compound represents a novel hybrid of neolacto-, ganglio-, and iso-globo-series glycosphingolipid structures, a combination not previously encountered. Furthermore, the linkage Fuc alpha 1----3GalNac has not been previously reported for a glycosphingolipid. The relationship of these structural elements to known glycoconjugates is discussed.
Bidirectional Kerr-lens modelocked femtosecond ring laser

Our motivation for this work is to demonstrate a solid-state femtosecond (fs) laser gyro, similar to the fs ring dye laser.
The Twitter Archive at the Library of Congress: Challenges for information practice and information policy

In April 2010, the U.S. Library of Congress and the popular micro-blogging company Twitter announced that every public tweet, since Twitter’s inception in March 2006, will be archived digitally at the Library and made available to researchers. The Library of Congress’ planned digital archive of all public tweets holds great promise for the research community, yet, over five years since its announcement, the archive remains unavailable. This paper explores the challenges faced by the Library that have prevented the timely realization of this valuable archive, divided into two categories: challenges involving practice , such as how to organize the tweets, how to provide useful means of retrieval, how to physically store them; and challenges involving policy , such as the creation of access controls to the archive, whether any information should be censored or restricted, and the broader ethical considerations of the very existence of such an archive, especially privacy and user control.
The Cultural Nature of Human Development

1. Orienting concepts and ways of understanding the cultural nature of human development 2. Development as transformation of participation in cultural activities 3. Individuals, generations and dynamic cultural communities 4. Child rearing in families and communities 5. Developmental transitions in individuals' roles in their communities 6. Interdependence and autonomy 7. Thinking with the tools and institutions of culture 8. Learning through guided participation in cultural endeavours 9. Cultural change and relations among communities
A Comparison of Population Differentiation Across Four Classes of Gene Marker in Limber Pine (Pinus flexilis James)

We examined genetic differentiation among seven populations of limber pine using four classes of gene marker. Among-population differentiation was much higher for maternally inherited mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms than for paternally inherited chloroplast DNA, indicating that wind-dispersed pollen is the main agent of gene flow. Chloroplast DNA differentiation is consistent with gene flow estimated in a prior paternity analysis. Using the estimates of seed and pollen flow derived from mtDNA and cpDNA differentiation, we predicted the value of F st expected at nuclear loci. Allelic frequency differentiation at seven allozyme loci was relatively homogeneous across loci and consistent with the level of differentiation predicted from the organellar haplotypes. By contrast four of the nine randomly applied polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers we examined were more strongly differentiated than this prediction, suggesting the action of diversifying selection. However, the differentiated RAPDs and mtDNA were concordant in dividing the populations into two groups, suggesting some historical division. Simulations show that such historical division can increase the interlocus variance in F st but neither a historical nor an equilibrium model could account for the joint distribution of F st estimates across both allozyme and RAPD loci. Thus at least one group of loci appears to be experiencing natural selection.
Linking the problem drinker with treatment

Eileen M. Corrigan, DSW, is Associate Profes sor, Graduate School of Social Work, Rutgers —the State University, New Brunswick, New Jersey. At the time of the study, she was Senior Research Associate, Research Department, Com munity Council of Greater New York. The study on which this article was based was sup ported in part by U.S. Public Health Service grant 15890. This article is a revised version of one presented at the North American Asso ciation of Alcoholism Programs, San Antonio, Texas, September 1970. Some of the issues to be considered in studying the outcome of an information and referral service are similar to those raised about the outcome of treatment. One problem is the variations in service that occur because of social workers' dif
Impact of a Clinical Pharmacist–Managed Medication Refill Clinic

Objective: To evaluate the impact of a clinical pharmacist managed medication refill clinic on physician workload. Methods: A retrospective case study was conducted for patients receiving refill au...
Sex-Related Psychological Characteristics of Medical Students.

Summary Sixty-eight female and 178 male first year medical students were given the Jackson Personality Research Form, a true/false inventory yielding scores on 20 personality traits. The data were collected over two years. There were no significant differences between years, but female students were more achievement oriented, with higher needs for autonomy, dominance, exhibitionism, and order than their male colleagues. The results are in contrast with those reported by others.
A performance evaluation on DCT and wavelet-based compression methods for remote sensing images based on image content

This study compared the performance of DCT (Discrete Cosine Transform) and wavelet-based compression methods over remote sensing images. For the experiment, we collected two sets of test images, consisting of 20 true color remote sensing images each, to explore how DCT and wavelet-based methods perform over the different types of images: natural scenes and urban scenes. Each test image was encoded and decoded with the JPEG and JPEG 2000 codecs at the compression ratios of 2∶1, 5∶1, 10∶1, and 20∶1, and the results were analyzed with the amount of errors introduced from the encoring process. According to the results, the wavelet-based method worked better than the DCT method, and both of the methods appeared to work slightly better for the images of urban scene.
Marburg Virus Glycoprotein GP2: pH-Dependent Stability of the Ectodomain α-Helical Bundle

Marburg virus (MARV) and Ebola virus (EBOV) constitute the family Filoviridae of enveloped viruses (filoviruses) that cause severe hemorrhagic fever. Infection by MARV requires fusion between the host cell and viral membranes, a process that is mediated by the two subunits of the envelope glycoprotein, GP1 (surface subunit) and GP2 (transmembrane subunit). Upon viral attachment and uptake, it is believed that the MARV viral fusion machinery is triggered by host factors and environmental conditions found in the endosome. Next, conformational rearrangements in the GP2 ectodomain result in the formation of a highly stable six-helix bundle; this refolding event provides the energetic driving force for membrane fusion. Both GP1 and GP2 from EBOV have been extensively studied, but there is little information available for the MARV glycoproteins. Here we have expressed two variants of the MARV GP2 ectodomain in Escherichia coli and analyzed their biophysical properties. Circular dichroism indicates that the MARV GP2 ectodomain adopts an α-helical conformation, and one variant sediments as a trimer by equilibrium analytical ultracentrifugation. Denaturation studies indicate the α-helical structure is highly stable at pH 5.3 (unfolding energy, ΔG(unf,H(2)O), of 33.4 ± 2.5 kcal/mol and melting temperature, T(m), of 75.3 ± 2.1 °C for one variant). Furthermore, we found the α-helical stability to be strongly dependent on pH, with higher stability under lower-pH conditions (T(m) values ranging from ~92 °C at pH 4.0 to ~38 °C at pH 8.0). Mutational analysis suggests two glutamic acid residues (E579 and E580) are partially responsible for this pH-dependent behavior. On the basis of these results, we hypothesize that the pH-dependent folding stability of the MARV GP2 ectodomain provides a mechanism for controlling conformational preferences such that the six-helix bundle "postfusion" state is preferred under conditions of appropriately matured endosomes.
The propensity to bribe in international business: the relevance of cultural variables

Purpose – This paper seeks to examine the extent to which national cultural characteristics impact the propensity of firms based in the country to engage in bribery to gain advantages when conducting business overseas.Design/methodology/approach – A set of statistical analyses – bivariate correlations and regression – was performed on data for five cultural variables and one economic variable for 30 countries to ascertain the relationship between these variables on a country's Bribe Payers Index, a measure of bribe giving.Findings – The results indicate that firms from countries low on power distance or long‐term orientation, or high on individualism, are less likely to engage in bribe giving. However, when the level of economic development in the home country as measured by per capita income is included, the impact of cultural factors is muted considerably. Firms from high‐income countries are less likely to give bribes.Research limitations/implications – Richer countries are likely to have certain pract...
On unimodular constitutive expressions

Abstract We consider constitutive expressions which the stress σ(X, t) at a particle X at time t is given by σ (X, t) = F [F[X, τ)] where F [F(X, τ)] denotes a functional of the history of the deformation gradient matrix [F(X, τ)] from time τ = 0 unti τ = t. This expression is restricted by the requirement of invariance under a superposed rotation of the physical system and by the further requirement that the constitutive expression shall be invariant under the group of unimodular transformations, i.e. F [F(X, τ)] = F [F(X, τ) H] must hold for all matrices H such that det H - 1. We employ results from the classical theory of invariants in order to determine the general form of the expression F [F(X, τ)] which is consistent with these restrictions. Special cases are considered where the functional is replaced by a function of the strain, rate of strain, ⋯ matrices. The case of shear flow is briefly discussed.
Minnesota multiphasic personality inventory-rated depression and the incidence of breast cancer

Using data from the Walnut Creek Contraceptive Drug Study (a prospective study begun in 1969 and continuing to the present), Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-(MMPI) measured scores for depression of 8932 women were studied in relation to the incidence of breast cancer. No statistically significant association between MMPI scores for depression and the subsequent development of breast cancer was found. There was neither an association of risk of breast cancer with repression/sensitization as measured on the MMPI nor with scores on the MMPI lie scale. This study is unique because it represents the largest reported prospective cohort in which the association between depression and breast cancer development has been examined.
Facilities layout. A survey of solution procedures

Abstract The main characteristics of the most-used solution procedures for the facility layout problem are summarized. The characteristics include input required, limitations, type of output obtained, and some other general characteristics. Quantitative and computer-based models will sometimes produce odd layout shapes. For this reason, optimization models and computer prorams designed to plan facility layouts, based on optimizing certain objectives, can be useful only for determining some guidelines for the planners. While these models can be used for planning alternative layouts, considerations of qualitative and personnel factors should be given during the layout finalization phase.
Influence of Late Quaternary Climatic Changes on Geomorphic and Pedogenic Processes on a Desert Piedmont, Eastern Mojave Desert, California

Radiocarbon dating of late Quaternary deposits and shorelines of Lake Mojave and cation-ratio numerical age dating of stone pavements (Dorn, 1984) on the adjacent Soda Mountains piedmont provide age constraints for alluvial and eolian deposits. These deposits are associated with climatically controlled stands of Lake Mojave during the past 15,000 yr. Six alluvial fan units and three eolian stratigraphic units were assigned ages based on field relations with dated shorelines and piedmont surfaces, as well as on soil-geomorphic data. All but one of these stratigraphic units were deposited in response to time-transgressive climatic changes beginning approximately 10,000 yr ago. Increased eolian flux rates occurred in response to the lowering of Lake Mojave and a consequent increase in fine-sediment availability. Increased rates of deposition of eolian fines and associated salts influenced pedogenesis, stone-pavement development, and runoff-infiltration relations by (1) enhancing mechanical weathering of fan surfaces and hillslopes and (2) forming clay- and silt-rich surface horizons which decrease infiltration. Changes in alluvial-fan source areas from hillslopes to piedmonts during the Holocene reflect runoff reduction on hillslopes caused by colluvial mantle development and runoff enhancement on piedmonts caused by the development of less-permeable soils. Inferred increased in early to middle Holocene monsoonal activity resulted in high-magnitude paleo-sheetflood events on older fan pavements; this runoff triggered piedmont dissection which, in turn, caused increased sediment availability along channel walls. Thus, runoff-infiltration changes during the late Quaternary have occurred in response to eolian deposition of fines, pedogenesis, increased sheetflood activity in the Holocene, and vegetational changes which are related to many complicated linkages among climatic change, lake fluctuations, and eolian, hillslope, and alluvial-fan processes.
The Medicaid Home and Community-Based Waiver and supported employment

The Medicaid Home and Community-Based (HCB) Waiver is the primary funding source for long-term care for individuals with developmental disabilities. Findings from a national survey of 48 state coordinators regarding waiver-funded supported employment services are presented. Very low utilization for this service was found, primarily due to limits on eligibility. However, respondents in 18 states reported large numbers of waiver participants receiving employment services under other service categories. Eleven states had waiting lists for waiver-funded supported employment, totalling three times those actually receiving services. Low reimbursement rates to provider agencies and disinterest of providers in using waiver funds were significant barriers to expansion of service capacity.
Prediction of sintered density for bimodal powder mixtures

Bimodal mixtures improve the green density of powder systems and are used in processes such as slip casting and powder injection molding. The packing density can be predicted with reasonable accuracy, but there is great uncertainty in the sintered density of a bimodal mixture. The large/small composition effect on packing density and sintered density is treated using the specific volume. For a given composition, the packing density is accurately predicted when four parameters are known: particle size ratio, packing density of the small powder, packing density of the large powder, and mixture homogeneity. Prediction of the sintered density is possible from knowledge of the densification of the large and small powders and mixture homogeneity. The model is applied to bimodal mixtures of molybdenum, stainless steel, iron, and alumina. Certain criteria must be satisfied by the constituent powders for a bimodal mixture to exhibit the highest sintered density. In many situations, the highest sintered density occurs at the 100 pct small powder composition.
Overview of the ICESat Mission

[1] The Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) on the NASA Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) has provided a view of the Earth in three dimensions with unprecedented accuracy. Although the primary objectives focus on polar ice sheet mass balance, the GLAS measurements, distributed in 15 science data products, have interdisciplinary application to land topography, hydrology, vegetation canopy heights, cloud heights and atmospheric aerosol distributions. Early laser life issues have been mitigated with the adoption of 33-day operation periods, three times per year, designed to document intra- and inter-annual polar ice changes in accordance with mission requirements. A variety of calibration/validation experiments have been executed which show that the elevation products, when fully calibrated, have an accuracy that meets the science requirements. The series of papers in this special ICESat issue demonstrate the utility and quality of the ICESat data.
The Ethnicity–Policy Preference Link in Sub-Saharan Africa:

Scholars have begun to investigate the mechanisms that link ethnic diversity to low levels of public goods provision but have paid only minimal attention to the role of preferences for public polic...