cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Clinical genetics evaluation in identifying the etiology of autism spectrum disorders

The autism spectrum disorders are a collection of conditions, which have, in common, impaired socialization and communication in association with stereotypic behaviors. The reported incidence of autism spectrum disorders has increased markedly over the past decade. In addition, a large amount of attention has been paid to these conditions among lay and professional groups. These influences have resulted in a marked increase in the number of referrals to clinical geneticists for evaluation of persons with autism spectrum disorders. The primary role of the geneticist in this process is to define etiology, if possible, and to provide counseling and contribute to case management based on the results of such investigations. In deciding upon the appropriate evaluation scheme for a particular patient, the geneticist must consider a host of different factors. Such considerations would include (1) Assuring an accurate diagnosis of autism before proceeding with any investigation. (2) Discussing testing options, diagnostic yields, and patient investment before proceeding with an evaluation. (3) Communication and coordination with the patient's medical home. (4) Assessing the continuously expanding and evolving list of available laboratory testing modalities in light of evidence-based medicine. (5) Recognizing expanded phenotypes of well-described syndromic and metabolic conditions that encompass autism spectrum disorders. (6) Defining an individualized evaluation scheme based on the unique history and clinical features of a given patient. The guidelines in this article have been developed to assist the clinician in the consideration of these factors.
Three Generations of Color-Blindness

Resume Cet article rapporte des donnees au moyen desquelles on peut comparer les imperfections de la vue des couleurs chez sept membres d'un groupe de meme famille distribues en trois generations. Six personnes du groupe sont mâles et une femelle. Le Test Ishihara du daltonisme appelle les sept daltoniens pour le rouge et le vert, completement daltoniens pour le vert. D'autres tests bien connus (le test Holmgren de laine, les plaques pseudo-isochromatiques de Stilling, le test de Nagel) confirme le diagnostic du manque d'appreciation du vert mais suggere des inegalites dans le degre du manque d'appreciation du rouge. Les sujets pourraient tomber en deux groupes: O, C, S, R et Ki (Oncle, O; neveux, C et S; grands-neveux, R et Ki, provenant de la soeur d'O, E), et K, T (mere et fils, provenant de la soeur d'O, H). Les imperfections de la vue des couleurs chez le premier groupe semblent tres semblables et transmises selon l'expectation Mendelienne. E, la soeur d'E, est evidemment une personne qui transmet le...
SOME REMARKS ON TABACHNIKOV’S INVARIANTS OF PLANE CURVES

We construct a generalization of the “free group valued” Tabachnikov’s invariant of long curves. We characterize Tabachnikov’s polynomial invariant of plane curves via a representation of the twin group. We also show that these invariants are combinations of finite type invariants.
Anatomic success rate after 3-port lens-sparing vitrectomy in stage 4A or 4B retinopathy of prematurity.

Purpose To assess the anatomic success rate after 3-port lens-sparing vitrectomy (LSV) in stage 4A and 4B tractional retinal detachments (TRDs) due to retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Design A chart review and data evaluation of 108 eyes of 102 consecutive patients presenting with stage 4A (32 eyes) or 4B (76 eyes) TRDs that underwent primary LSV from February 1998 to January 2004 were performed. Intervention Three-port LSV was performed on all eyes by the same surgeon (ERH). Main Outcome Measures Retinal reattachment status was reviewed at final follow-up visit, which ranged from 6 to 48 months (mean, 32 months) after LSV. Results Ninety-two of 108 (85.2%) eyes were reattached after a single LSV and 102 of 108 (94.4%) eyes ultimately achieved at least partial posterior pole reattachment at the final follow-up visit. All 4A eyes achieved complete reattachment and 70 of 76 (92.1%) 4B eyes achieved partial or complete reattachment. Reversal or complete arrest of dragging of the macula was noted in all eyes that maintained partial or complete reattachment (94.4%). Six (5.6%) 4B eyes remained detached despite additional vitreoretinal procedures; 4 (66.7%) of these had intraoperative retinal tears. Conclusions Eighty-five percent of eyes with 4A and 4B TRDs secondary to ROP were completely reattached with a single 3-port LSV procedure and nearly 95% were ultimately at least partially reattached at the posterior pole by the final follow-up visit. The development of retinal tears intraoperatively portended a poor prognosis for reattachment.
An opportunistic cross-layer architecture for voice in multi-hop wireless LANs

We propose an opportunistic cross-layer architecture for adaptive support of Voice over IP in multi-hop wireless LANs. As opposed to providing high call quality, we target emergencies where it is important to communicate, even if at low quality, no matter the harshness of the network conditions. With the importance of delay on voice quality in mind, we select adaptation parameters that control the ratio of real-time traffic load to available bandwidth. This is achieved in two ways: minimizing the load and maximizing the bandwidth. The PHY-MAC interaction improves the use of the spectral resources by opportunistically exploiting rate-control and packet bursts, while the MAC-application interaction controls the demand per source through voice compression. The objective is to maximize the number of calls admitted that satisfy the end-to-end delay budget. The performance of the protocol is studied extensively in the ns-2 network simulator. Results indicate that call quality degrades as load increases and overlonger paths, and a larger packet size improves performance. For long paths having low-quality channels, forward error correction, header compression, and relaxing the delay budget of the system are required to maintain call admission and quality. The proposed adaptive protocol achieves high performance improvements over the traditional, non-adaptive approach. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Language features for process interaction

Languages for parallel programming should meet four goals: expressiveness, data integrity, security, and verifiability. This paper presents a set of language features for describing processes and process interaction, gives examples of their use, and briefly discusses their relation to the goals. Two constructs, resources and protected variables, are introduced as the mechanisms for describing interaction. Resources are extensions of the monitor concept of Hoare; protected variables are global variables which can only be accessed by one process at a time. Two types of access control are introduced: restrictions on scope rules for static access, and capabilities for dynamic access. Examples include the interface to machine devices, files and virtual devices, readers/writers, device scheduling, device reservation, and buffer allocation.
Effect of Coriolis interaction on the thermodynamic functions of symmetric top molecules

Abstract The first-order correction to the partition function due to Coriolis interaction (vibrational-rotational angular momentum coupling) is given for symmetric top molecules. The magnitude of the effect on the thermodynamic functions is considered with special reference to the heat capacity of CH 3 D.
n-Order linear state space systems: Computing the transfer function using the DFT

Abstract The discrete Fourier transform is used to determine the coefficients of a transfer function for n-order linear systems: x ( n ) = ∑ i = 1 n A i x ( n - i ) + B u . The algorithm is fast, straight forward and easily can be implemented. Two step-by-step examples, illustrating the application of the algorithm, are presented.
Economic return of purple and yellow nutsedge management in vegetable production of southern California

Abstract The economic return of a standard low desert crop rotation of spring cantaloupe ( Cucumis melo L.)–summer fallow–winter broccoli ( Brassica oleracea L.) infested with purple nutsedge ( Cyperus rotundus L.) or yellow nutsedge ( Cyperus esculentus L.) was compared to alternative rotations that included: cultivation (hand-hoeing), a smother crop of wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) and sudangrass ( Sorghum sudanense L.), a smother crop of wheat followed by solarization, and sweet corn ( Zea mays L.) with halosulfuron application followed by sudangrass in southern California from 2001 to 2003. After two growing seasons, broccoli was planted without any nutsedge control. Purple and yellow nutsedge tubers increased dramatically in the untreated plots and purple nutsedge reduced crop yield and economic returns. Solarization was the most effective treatment for reducing purple nutsedge populations, but had a negative economic return above variable costs. Multiple hand-hoeing also controlled purple nutsedge effectively and resulted in a net return of $3069/ha. The halosulfuron and the smother crop treatments did not control purple nutsedge and had negative economic returns. Yellow nutsedge did not affect crop yield significantly during the course of the experiment. All methods controlled yellow nutsedge effectively, especially when there were no crops growing in the summer. However, the economic return of the treatments varied significantly. The net return of the cultivation treatment in the yellow nutsedge field was $9219/ha, while the net returns of the halosulfuron and smother crop treatments were negative. When the final broccoli crop was grown without nutsedge control from October 2003 to January 2004, solarization was the only treatment to be profitable in the purple nutsedge field. The cultivation and the solarization treatments had the highest economic return in the yellow nutsedge field, while the only treatment with negative economic return in the yellow nutsedge field was the smother crop treatment. For both purple and yellow nutsedge, planting sudangrass in the summer had the lowest broccoli yield and economic return.
Maternal control strategies, maternal language usage and children's language usage at two years

The present study determined whether parenting style, defined by control strategies varying in power-assertion mediated the established relation between maternal language usage (grammar and semantics) and child language (grammar, semantics and pragmatics) during toddlerhood (n=60). Based upon their use of control strategies mothers were categorized into continuum-of-control groups (i.e., high guidance (HG), high control (HC) or high negative control (HNC)). Mothers in the high negative control group, who characteristically used high levels of prohibitions and commands, had children who performed relatively poorly overall on the language measures (i.e., MLU, number of bound morphemes, number of different words and use of language functions). In contrast, children of mothers in the HG and HC groups exhibited more advanced language usage overall. The relation between maternal and child language usage was mediated by parenting style for child pragmatics and partially for child grammar.
Cooling of lava flows on Venus: The coupling of radiative and convective heat transfer

[1] A lava flow extruded on the surface of Venus cools by radiating heat and by advecting heat upward by thermal convection. Unlike on other planetary bodies, these processes are intimately coupled on Venus because the dense CO2-rich atmosphere has strong absorption bands in the infrared. Relative to a transparent atmosphere, absorption (and emission) of radiation within short distances above a lava reduces the radiant heat loss and substantially diminishes the vigor of convection by dampening the thermal gradients within the boundary layer. For these reasons, lavas on Venus cool significantly more slowly (30–40%) than they would if the atmosphere were transparent in the infrared, as assumed in previous calculations. Considering these effects indicates that lavas on Venus cool more slowly than their equivalents on Earth rather than more rapidly as previously estimated. The reduction in cooling rate due to the suppression of convection by radiation extends our understanding of how some lavas on Venus reach extraordinary lengths, on the order of a thousand kilometers, before solidifying.
Fixed point implementation of fast Kalman predictors

In this note we study scaling rules and roundoff noise variances in a fixed-point implementation of the Kalman predictor for an ARMA time series observed noise free. The Kalman predictor is realized in a fast form that uses the so-called fast Kalman gain algorithm. The algorithm for the gain is fixed point. Scaling rules and expressions for rounding error variances are derived. The numerical results show that the fixed-point realization performs very close to the floating point realization for relatively low-order ARMA time series that are not too narrow band. The predictor has been implemented in 16-bit fixed-point arithmetic on an INTEL 8086 microprocessor, and in 16-bit floating-point arithmetic on an INTEL 8080. Fixed-point code was written in Assembly language and floating-point code was written in Fortran. Experimental results were obtained by running the fixed- and floating-point filters on identical data sets. All experiments were carried out on an INTEL MIDS 230 development system.
Congenital encephalocele of the medial skull base

Meningoencephaloceles of the temporal bone are rare. Although most often seen following otologic surgery or trauma, congenital meningoencephaloceles can exist. The clinical presentation, diagnostic evaluation, and surgical management of three patients with congenital meningoencephalocele are presented. Two of the three patients presented to our institution with recurrent episodes of meningitis; one presented with partial complex seizures. Diagnostic evaluation included temporal bone computed tomography with magnetic resonance imaging. In two patients, defects were imaged following high-pressure subarachnoid cisternography with computed tomography. All three patients were found to have congenital defects in the area of Meckel's cave. Early recognition of congenital meningoencephalocele is important to avoid delay of definitive surgical management and neurologic sequelae.
Medication review software to improve the accuracy of outpatient medication histories: protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Medication-prescribing errors generated at interfaces-in-care are the most common cause of preventable health care errors and contribute substantially to adverse patient outcomes. For this reason, standardized medication reconciliation (MR) processes need to be inserted at these interfaces. However, MR is an inherently complex task, and little data exist to inform system-based operationalization. The Portland Informatics Center addressed this challenge by creating an electronic patient-directed multimedia survey to automate the medication history collection. This article describes a research protocol designed to compare the software's medication discrepancy detection rate with traditional history collection strategies. For this randomized, controlled, single-blind trial, participants are randomly allocated into one of two groups: the control group reviews a paper list printed from the electronic record, whereas the intervention group uses a computer-assisted reconciliation survey that includes display of visual data (i.e., medication pictures). © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Social Cognition Is Thinking About Relationships

they may refer to the attributes of individuals, such as their genders, races, ages, and personalities. All of these attributes inhere in per sons, or are socially construed as inhering in them: Whether in nately given or bestowed by a cul ture, whether enduring or change able, these attributes are features of individuals. Some characteris tics, on the other hand, cannot be ascribed to individuals, but only to the relations between them. Whereas individual attributes de
Experimental Verification of Vibration Reduction in Flexible Spacecraft Using Input Shaping

The performance of many spacecraft can be improved by using closed-loop control and command-shaping techniques. However, because little information exists about the operation of controlled structures in zero gravity, it is dife cult for designers to anticipate and place cone dence in the on-orbit performance of their ground-based control designs. To address this issue, the middeck active control experiment was conducted aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor in March of 1995. The results of the command shaping experiments implemented during the mission are presented, and guidelines forusing command shaping to suppress unwanted vibration in e exible space structures are proposed. HE combination of stringent performance specie cations and lightly damped structural modes makes the effective operation of many space systems vulnerable to vibration. To attack this problem, closed-loop control and open-loop command-shaping techniques are often enlisted. However, with only ground-based testing available prior to on-orbit implementation, uncertainty about zerogravity(0-g) behavior can hamper the success of these 0- g control designs. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) middeck activecontrolexperiment (MACE)isaSpaceShuttlee ightexperiment designed to expose critical issues associated with the design of controllers and shaped commands for 0 g. As part of this experiment, data were collected from a e exible structure on-orbit, and results illustrated that both the control and command-shaping strategies employed on the test article could effectively reduce problematic vibration. Additionally, as a result of careful ground-based modeling efforts, predictions of 0- g behavior were accurate enough to achieve high-performance control and command shaping without on-orbit redesign. After introducing the MIT MACE project and the MACEcommand-shaping efforts, this paper presents the results from a specie c subset of the mission experiments: the MACE input shaping tests. Based on these results, key points are summarized and conclusions are drawn.
Effect of CH···O hydrogen bond length on the geometric and spectroscopic features of the peptide unit of proteins

A formamide molecule is allowed to form a CH···O H-bond with a glycine dipeptide in both its C5 and C7 internal conformations. As this intermolecular H-bond is elongated, the contraction of the CH covalent bond is monitored, as is its vibrational stretching frequency and intensity, along with NMR chemical shifts of the atoms involved in the H-bond. The degree of shortening of the CH bond becomes progressively smaller as the proton acceptor is moved further away, as does the blue shift of the CH stretching frequency, and the chemical shift of the bridging proton. These changes are monotonic and regular enough that experimental evaluation of CH bond length or blue shift or proton NMR chemical shift may be used to accurately predict the energetics of the H-bond for any particular geometry. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2010
Comparison of growth of hydrocarbon thin films by molecular-beam and cluster-beam deposition : atomistic simulations

Molecular dynamics simulations have been performed to study the difference in the growth of polyethylene thin films via neutral ethylene molecular-beam and cluster-beam depositions. The collisions occurred at incident energies of 25 and 50 eV/molecule on a hydrogen-terminated diamond (111) surface. A many-body empirical bond order potential for hydrocarbons was used to model the interatomic interactions in the system that allowed for bonds to be broken and formed over the course of the simulations. In contrast to the expectations that the cluster beam would provide significantly enhanced thin-film nucleation, the results indicate few differences in thin-film adhesion that occurs as a result of the deposition. The role of substrate temperature on thin-film nucleation is also investigated and found to be negligible over a 1200° range. Finally, structural relaxation of thin-film fragments is investigated through energy minimization with AM1. The structures of the fragments are found to change slightly from the relaxed structures predicted in the molecular dynamics simulations.
Bond excitations in the pseudogap phase of the Hubbard model

Using the dynamical cluster approximation, we calculate the correlation functions associated with the nearest-neighbor bond operator which measure the $z$ component of the spin exchange in the two-dimensional Hubbard model with $U$ equal to the bandwidth. We find that in the pseudogap region, the local bond susceptibility diverges at $T=0$. This shows the existence of degenerate bond spin excitation and implies quantum criticality and bond order formation when long-range correlations are considered. The strong correlation between excitations on parallel neighboring bonds suggests bond singlet dimerization. The suppression of divergence for $nl\ensuremath{\approx}0.78$ implies that for these model parameters, this is a quantum critical point which separates the unconventional pseudogap region characterized by bond order from a conventional Fermi liquid.
Politics practical logic and primary health care in rural Haiti.

During the 1980s, an ambitious project for health development restructured medical services throughout rural Haiti. The "Rural Health Delivery System" (RHDS) pursued several goals of primary health care, including dispensary-based maternal and child health services and the provision of low-cost drugs. Based on fieldwork in a single village, this article examines how local residents pushed the project in unpredictable and ironic directions. People did not regard dispensary services-which were planned and financed by international health agencies-as essentially foreign elements in the local health-care system. They rather engaged with the dispensary according to long-standing local strategies for prestige and economic advance. Despite the dramatically new shape of biomedicine introduced by the RHDS, the dispensary remained for most people a recognizable arena to gain access to state resources or to contest state control over their lives. The "success" of clinic services, and the "failure" of the project to distribute essential drugs arose more from people's practical routes to symbolic and material power than from the formal plans of health planners or state bureaucrats. This practice-based analysis provides another dimension to both the liberal and neo-Marxist critiques of international health development.
A reciprocal relationship between contents of free ubiquitin and protein A24, its conjugate with histone 2A, in chromatin fractions obtained by the DNase II, Mg++ procedure.

Abstract Ubiquitin was first found in nuclei in protein A24 where its carboxyl terminal is covalently bound to histone 2A by an isopeptide linkage ( Goldknopf, I. L. and Busch, H. (1977) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 74 , 864–868 ). Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the 0.4 N H 2 SO 4 soluble proteins from fractionated rat liver chromatin showed that protein A24 and histones H1, H2A, H2B, H3 and H4 were present in fractions P1 and P2 and markedly diminished in relative amounts in fraction S2. Conversely, a spot designated Ub was found in fraction S2 along with an increased amount and number of non-histone proteins. The Ub spot was not found in chromatin fractions P1 and P2. Ub was identified as ubiquitin by migration on two-dimensional gels and after purification by preparative polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis by its methionine NH 2 -terminal amino acid and its amino acid composition.
Accuracy, Precision, and Stability of a Vibrating‐Wire Transducer Measurement System to Measure Hydraulic Head

A vibrating-wire transducer measurement system was investigated to determine its accuracy, precision, and stability for use in a study of ground water movement in low-permeability material. Twenty transducers with a pressure range of 10 psi were tested for stability over 100 days. half under low pressure (0.256 psi) and half under approximately full-scale pressure (10 psi). Measurement precision and stability were far better than measurement accuracy. Random noise in the data indicates that the transducers were precise to within 0.02 psi. The transducer measurements were generally stable to within 0.05 psi. but most showed a blight decrease in pressure over time. Measurements by transducers under low pressure were within 0.038 psi of actual pressure, and those made by transducers under high pressure were within −0.20 psi. as indicated by the difference between the mean measurement of each transducer and the mean measurement of all transducers. These measurements were within the reported accuracy for transducers under low pressure, but differed by more than the reported accuracy for transducers under high pressure: this indicates that transducer accuracy is largely determined by the pressure coefficient used to convert transducer readings to pressure units. Pressure coefficient calibration of selected transducers by a water filled standpipe and a digital manometer indicate that hysteresis could be the most significant factor affecting the transducer accuracy Standpipe calibrations indicate a pressure coefficient difference of about 13 percent between increasing and decreasing pressure, but deadweight calibrations indicate a difference of only 1.5 percent. The observed measurement and equipment error could affect interpretation of water level measurements; thus, independent water level measurements and rigorous review of the data arc needed to evaluate the accuracy of transducer measurements.
Welfare policies and migration of the poor in the United States: An empirical note

This paper has investigated the impact of geographic welfare benefit differentials upon migration in the United States. Unlike other related studies, which typically focus upon black migration (as a surrogate measure of migration of the poor), the present study focuses directly upon migration of the poor per se. A variety of reduced-form estimates are provided. The evidence strongly suggests that the net in-migration of the poor is positively and significantly influenced by higher nominal AFDC levels and by higher real AFDC levels. These findings support the ‘welfare magnet hypothesis,’ which alleges that relatively high welfare levels act to attract poor migrants. Moreover, given that poor migrants are attracted non only by high nominal welfare levels but also by high real welfare levels, an argument can be made for establishing geographically uniform real welfare benefit levels in the United States. This uniformity presumably should act, over the long run, to eliminate the human resource distortions being caused by the currently prevailing welfare system.
Reactivity toward deamidation of asparagine residues β-turn structures

Mimetics of beta-turn structures in proteins have been used to calibrate the relative reactivities toward deamidation of asparagine residues in the two central positions of a beta-turn and in a random coil. N-Acetyl-Asn-Gly-6-aminocaproic acid, an acyclic analog of a beta-turn mimic undergoes deamidation of the asparaginyl residue through a succinimide intermediate to generate N-acetyl-Asp-N-Gly-6-aminocaproic acid (6-aminocaproic acid, hereafter Aca) and N-acetyl-L-iso-aspartyl (isoAsp)-Gly-Aca (pH 8.8, 37 degrees C) approximately 3-fold faster than does the cyclic beta-turn mimic cyclo-[L-Asn-Gly-Aca] with asparagine at position 2 of the beta-turn. The latter compound, in turn, undergoes deamidation approximately 30-fold faster than its positional isomer cyclo-[Gly-Asn-Aca] with asparagine at position 3 of the beta-turn. Both cyclic peptides assume predominantly beta-turn structures in solution, as demonstrated by NMR and circular dichroism characterization. The open-chain compound and its isomer N-acetyl-Gly-Asn-Aca assume predominantly random coil structures. The latter isomer undergoes deamidation 2-fold slower than the former. Thus the order of reactivity toward deamidation is: asparagine in a random coil approximately 3x(asparagine) in position 2 of a beta-turn approximately 30x (asparagine) in position 3 of a beta-turn.
Photochemistry of irgasan-triflate: A simple conversion of an aromatic hydroxyl group to chlorine in the synthesis of polychlorinated diphenyl ethers and polychlorinated dibenzofurans

Abstract Several chlorophenoxy phenols were converted to their triflates by reaction with trifluoromethanesulfonyl chloride. The trifilates undergo triplet seneltlzed photolytic cyclizations at 300 nm in acetone to give chlorodibenzofurans or singlet state substitution reactions in carbon tetrachloride saturated with chlorine gas to give the corresponding chlorine substituted diphenyl ethers. 2-Chloro-3-hydroxy dlbenzofuran was similarly converted to the 2,3-dichlorodibenzofuran. The mechanism for displacement of triflate by chlorine appears to involve chlorine-arene π complexation.
Hydrogen pressure dependence of the fracture mode transition in nickel

A relationship between fracture mode, grain boundary composition, and hydrogen pressure has been determined for nickel straining electrode samples tested at cathodic potentials. This relationship can be expressed as C /SUB s/ ..cap alpha.. P /SUP -n/ /SUB H2/ where C /SUB s/ is the critical grain boundary sulfur concentration corresponding to 50 pct transgranular and 50 pct intergranular fracture and P /SUB H2/ is the hydrogen pressure. The value of n was found to be between 0.34 and 0.9. This expression was derived by relating C /SUB s/ to th hydrogen overpotential with the Nernst equation. At a cathodic test potential of -0.3 V (SCE). C /SUB s/ was equal to 0.20 monolayers of sulfur and at higher cathodic potentials or higher hydrogen pressures, C /SUB s/ decreased such that at -0.72 V (SCE) C /SUB s/ was equal to 0.045 monolayers of sulfur. The inverse hydrogen pressure dependence observed with cathodic hydrogen is similar to that for the hydrogen permeation rate or a critical hydrogen concentration derived by Gerberich et al. for gaseous hydrogen. This similarity between gaseous and cathodic hydrogen suggests that grain boundary impurities contribute to the hydrogen embrittlement process without altering the embrittlement process althoughmore » this result does not indicate whether decohesion or plasticity dependent processes are responsible for the combined sulfur-hydrogen effect on the intergranular fracture of nickel.« less
Energy conservation policies in Jordan

Abstract Jordan imports almost all the energy required for its social and economic development. During the period 1974–1984, energy consumption grew at an average rate of about 14%/year, due mainly to growth in the national economy; but exacerbated by inefficient use of energy. To alleviate the burden of the energy bill on the economy, the Ministry of Energy has adopted a policy aimed at securing sufficient energy supplies at minimum cost to the economy. This policy has focused on improving the efficiency of energy-use and encouraging energy conservation in order to reduce the effect of oil imports on foreign reserves, reduce the impact of emissions of toxic gases on the environment, and the cost of additional investment in production facilities. The energy conservation programme was put into application in early 1985. The energy income elasticity during the period 1985–1988 has dropped from (1.4) to (1), which indicates a substantial improvement in overall energy utilization.
Relationships between energy balance knowledge and the home environment.

Abstract Certain aspects of the home environment as well as individuals' knowledge of energy balance are believed to be important correlates of various dietary and physical activity behaviors, but no known studies have examined potential relationships between these correlates. This study evaluated cross-sectional associations between characteristics of the home environment and energy balance knowledge among 349 youth/parent pairs recruited from the Minneapolis/St Paul, MN, metropolitan area from September 2006 to June 2007. Linear regression models adjusted for student grade and highest level of parental education were used to compare data from home food, physical activity, and media inventories (parent-reported) with energy balance knowledge scores from youth and parent questionnaires. Paired energy balance knowledge (average of youth and parent knowledge scores) was associated with all home food availability variables. Paired knowledge was also significantly associated with a media equipment availability and accessibility summary score (β=−1.40, P =0.005), as well as an activity-to-media ratio score (β=0.72, P =0.003). Youth and/or parent knowledge alone was not significantly associated with most characteristics of the home environment, supporting the importance of developing intervention strategies that target the family as a whole.
The dipole vortex

We show that the field lines of the Poynting vector of the radiation field of an electric dipole are vortices if the radiation carries angular momentum. When such a dipole is located near the surface of a perfect conductor, it induces a current density on the surface, and it is shown that the field line pattern of this current density consists of infinite spirals. We have identified a Master Spiral to which all field line spirals converge asymptotically. It is also shown that the field lines of the Poynting vector of the radiation field near the surface contain a vortex.
DNA polymerase 4 of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is important for accurate repair of methyl-methanesulfonate-induced DNA damage.

The DNA polymerase 4 protein (Pol4) of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a member of the X family of DNA polymerases whose closest human relative appears to be DNA polymerase λ. Results from previous genetic studies conflict over the role of Pol4 in vivo. Here we show that deletion of Pol4 in a diploid strain of the SK1 genetic background results in sensitivity to methyl methanesulfonate (MMS). However, deletion of Pol4 in other strain backgrounds and in haploid strains does not yield an observable phenotype. The MMS sensitivity of a Pol4-deficient strain can be rescued by deletion of YKu70. We also show that deletion of Pol4 results in a 6- to 14-fold increase in the MMS-induced mutation frequency and in a significant increase in AT-to-TA transversions. Our studies suggest that Pol4 is critical for accurate repair of DNA lesions induced by MMS.
Effectiveness of chlorpyrifos for control of Synanthedon pictipes and S. exitiosa in peach orchard tests of young trees with emphasis on timing applications.

Chlorpyrifos (185 g AI/100 liters), applied to young peach trees (beginning with 2nd leaf) for 3 consective years, substantially reduced infestations of the peachtree borer, Synanthedon exitiosa (Say), when a single application was made on June 15, July 15, or Aug. 15, each year. A similar trend for control at the same application times appeared to be developing for the lesser peachtree borer, S. pictipes (Grote and Robinson). For S. exitiosa , a single application, at half the present recommended rate, per season during the summer was effective. Flexibility in timing of the application during the season, a low rate, and reduced number of applications are advantages that might be incorporated into a pest management program for control of peach borers.
Comparability and Hierarchical Processing in Multialternative Choice

Consumer choice research recently moved beyond brand-based decisions to study the more noncomparable choices consumers often face. Noncomparable choice processing in choices involving multiple products is discussed. In Experiment 1, consumers used attribute-based processing at an abstract level and alternative-based processing at a concrete level to evaluate more noncomparable alternatives independent of choice set size. In Experiment 2, the choices from Experiment 1 were compared with choices within which products varied in comparability. The results suggest that comparability variance within a multialternative choice set facilitates consumers' use of product categories and hierarchical processing to eliminate choice alternatives.
Paradigms, Theories, and Methods in Contemporary Rural Sociology: A Critical Reaction to Critical Questions

Abstract The content analysis by Falk and Zhao (1989) of theoretical orientations shown in Rural Sociology articles during the span 1976–1985 is critically evaluated as to its methodological adequacy and substantive conclusions. The former is shown as suspect and, therefore, the latter become moot. Discussion is particularly focused on the elaboration by Falk and Zhao on the wisdom of the metatheoretical underpinnings of the field in the decade explored. While they are less critical in judgment of rural sociology's performance than was the earlier study being “replicated” (Picou et al. 1978a), the assertion made by Falk and Zhao is still fundamentally misdirected. Until rural sociology faces the issue of data quality, its improvements in “theory” activity will not be substantial.
Phorid fly parasitoids of invasive fire ants indirectly improve the competitive ability of a native ant

. 1. The red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), is an invasive species of south-eastern U.S.A. Since its introduction from South America approximately 70 years ago, this pest has devastated natural biodiversity. 2. Due to such ecological costs, Pseudacteon phorid fly parasitoids (Diptera: Phoridae) from South America are being introduced into the U.S.A. as a potential biological control agent. Here, the indirect effects of these specialised parasitoids on an interspecific native ant competitor, Forelius mccooki (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), are evaluated. 3. Over the course of a 50-day laboratory experiment, the results show that the native ant improved aspects of exploitative, but not interference, competition when S. invicta-attacking flies were present compared with when they were absent. 4. Forelius mccooki colonies from the phorid treatment had approximately twice as many foragers at food baits relative to controls; however, there was no significant difference in interference aspects of competition or native ant colony growth between the two treatments. 5. These results suggest that the S. invicta-specialised parasitoids help shift the competitive balance more in favour of F. mccooki than if these flies were not present; however, this competitive advantage does not translate into increased colony growth after 50 days. These laboratory findings are interpreted with regard to the more complex interactions in the field.
Spatial hole-burning effects in the amplified-spontaneous-emission spectrum of the nonlasing supermode in semiconductor laser arrays

The amplified-spontaneous-emission spectrum of the light field in the nonlasing supermode of two coupled semiconductor lasers is analyzed with linearized Langevin equations. It is shown that the interference between the laser mode and the fluctuating light field in the nonlasing mode causes spatial hole burning. This effect introduces a phase-sensitive coupling between the laser field and the fluctuations of the nonlasing mode. For high laser fields this coupling splits the spectrum of the nonlasing mode into a triplet consisting of two relaxation oscillation sidebands that are in phase with the laser light and a centerline at the lasing frequency with a phase shift of ±π/2 relative to the laser light. As the laser intensity is increased close to threshold, the spectrum shows a continuous transition from the single amplified-spontaneous-emission line at the frequency of the nonlasing mode to the triplet structure. An analytical expression for this transition is derived, and typical features are discussed.
Social Influences on the Arginine Vasotocin System Are Independent of Gonads in a Sex-Changing Fish

Many neuropeptide systems subserving sex-typical behavior are dependent on sex steroids for both their organization early in life and activation during maturity. The arginine vasopressin/vasotocin (AVP/AVT) system is strongly androgen dependent in many species and critically mediates responses to sociosexual stimuli. The bluehead wrasse is a teleost fish that exhibits a female-to-male sex change in response to social cues, and neither the development nor the maintenance of male-typical behavior depends on the presence of gonads. To examine social and gonadal inputs on the AVP/AVT system in the preoptic area (POA) of the hypothalamus, we conducted three field experiments. In the first experiment, we found that AVT mRNA abundance is higher in sex-changing females that attain social dominance and display dominant male behavior than in subordinate females, regardless of whether the dominant females were intact or ovariectomized. However, AVT-immunoreactive (IR) soma size in the gigantocellular POA (gPOA), but not in the magnocellular or parvocellular POA, increased only when females were displaying both dominant male behavior and had developed testes. In the second experiment, castration of dominant terminal-phase males had no effect on AVT mRNA abundance or any behavior we measured but did increase gPOA AVT-IR soma size compared with sham-operated controls. In the third experiment, 11-ketotestosterone implants in socially subordinate, ovariectomized females had no effect on either AVT mRNA abundance or AVT-IR soma size compared with controls. These results demonstrate that the AVT neural phenotype in the bluehead wrasse can be strongly influenced by social status, and that these social influences can be manifested independent of gonads.
Cholesterol inhibition, cancer, and chemotherapy

An important feature of malignant transformation is loss of the cholesterol feedback inhibition mechanism that regulates cholesterol synthesis. Cancer cells seem to require an increase in the concentrations of cholesterol and of cholesterol precursors. Therefore, a reasonable assumption is that prevention of tumour-cell growth can be achieved by restricting either cholesterol availability or cholesterol synthesis. In-vivo and cell-culture experiments have shown that lowering the plasma cholesterol concentration or intervening in the mevalonate pathway with 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl (HMG) CoA reductase inhibitors decreases tumour growth. Currently prescribed doses of HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors given orally or continuously by an implantable infusion pump could achieve tumour therapeutic tissue concentrations of these agents. My hypothesis is that cholesterol inhibition can inhibit tumour cell growth, can act as an adjuvant to cancer chemotherapy, and, possibly, can prevent carcinogenesis.
Media framing biases and political power: Explaining slant in news of Campaign 2008

Although many scholars dismiss allegations of bias in the mainstream US media, careful research on bias can illuminate media effects on political power and public policy. This article refines framing theory to provide a theoretical foundation for systematic studies of bias. It suggests that scholars distinguish framing from other communication by its diachronic nature and its cultural resonance. Despite journalists’ best efforts, framing often favors one side over another in political disputes. Slanted framing results from the interaction of real world developments, cultural norms, and journalistic decision rules with the sometimes proficient and other times maladroit efforts of competing elites to manage the news. A case study of 2008 presidential campaign coverage focusing on Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin illustrates how slanted framing can shift over time with changes in these interactions. The findings imply that, contrary to many critics’ contentions, unbalanced news does not arise...
The maximum determinant of ± 1 matrices

We give a new proof for the bound on the value of the determinant of a _ 1 matrix of dimension n = 1 (mod 4) first given by Barba. Adapting a construction of A. E. Brouwer, we give examples to show that the bound is sharp for infinitely many values of n. This in turn gives an infinite family of examples which attain the bound given by H. Ehlich and by M. Wojtas for the determinant of a + 1 matrix of dimension n -= 2 (mod 4). For n ~ 3 (mod4) we construct an infinite family of 1 examples which attain slightly more than : of the bound given by Ehlich. © Elsevier Science Inc., 1997
The influence of sediment and feeding on the elimination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the freshwater amphipod, Diporeia spp.

The elimination of non-polar organic contaminants from sediment dwelling aquatic invertebrates was thought to be dominated by fecal elimination. This was particularly thought to be the case for the amphipod, Diporeia spp. that encapsulates the fecal material in a peritrophic membrane. The elimination of selected PAH congeners by Diporeia spp. was determined in the presence of three solid substrates and under water only conditions. The elimination was generally enhanced by the presence of a solid substrate whether or not the organism employed the material as a food source. The greater the sorptive capacity of the substrate, the greater its influence on the elimination process. Elimination via the fecal route was generally insignificant except for the elimination of BaP in the presence of sediment. In this case, the fecal elimination accounted for up to 40% of the total elimination, and the extent of elimination via the fecal route increased with the amount of fecal material produced. Thus, it is clear from the above effort that the main mechanism for elimination of contaminants in the presence of a substrate is primarily via passive diffusion from the organism with subsequent sorption to the solid substrate, which maintains the chemical activity gradient between the organism and the water. This effort refutes the earlier hypothesis that fecal elimination is the dominant route of elimination for Diporeia spp., and that the peritrophic membrane plays any substantial role in the elimination process. Published by Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd.
Pain, Coping, and Sleep in Children and Adolescents With Sickle Cell Disease

Purpose The study examined the relationships among pain, pain coping, and sleep, and assessed factors (age, gender, frequency, and intensity of pain) that affect pain, coping, and sleep in children with sickle cell disease (SCD). Methods Participants (66) were 39 children (M = 11.5 years) and 27 adolescents (M = 15.5 years) with SCD who completed an electronic visual analog scale (eVAS), Pain Coping Questionnaire, and Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index. Results About two-thirds of the children reported pain the previous month. No significant differences were found between pain and age, gender, pain intensity, or frequency. Most children coped with pain by seeking information, problem solving, seeking social support, and positive self-statements. There were significant negative correlations in males between worse pain severity and behavioral distraction and internalizing or catastrophizing. The majority (91.2%) had mild to severe sleep disturbances, with 18.2% requiring sleeping medication three or more times a week. There were no significant differences between sleep and age, gender, pain intensity, or frequency. Conclusion Children with SCD experience pain that affects sleep patterns and the way they cope with pain. Nurses need to concurrently assess pain, coping, and sleep and promote sleep hygiene and positive coping strategies during pain episodes.