cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Fermentation kinetics and ethanol production from different sweet sorghum varieties.

Abstract: In recent years bioethanol fuels derived from agricultural biomass resources or waste have been considered the cleanest liquid fuel alternative to fossil fuels. ?Ethanol consumption is expected to reach 11.2 billion gallons by 2012. ?Sweet sorghum, grown in the Southeast and Midwest states in US, contains 14%-20% fermentable sugar and is an ideal feedstock, owing to its ease of fermentation by yeast. ?The objectives of this research were to perform kinetic studies to determine the factors that may affect the rates of sugar consumption and ethanol production during fermentation of two varieties of sweet sorghum juice, Variety 1 (V-1) and Variety 2 (V-2), and to optimize the fermentation efficiency and ethanol production by varying strategies to process the juice before fermentation. ?Kinetic parameters of fermentation provide total sugar consumption rate of 3.4 g/(L
Exploring Social Resilience Among Young Migrants in Old Fadama, an Accra Slum

Multi-faceted and complex factors resulting from the continual changes in our societies are, arguably, negatively impacting the people of the Global South, especially the young ones. These changes, which are characteristically multi-scalar, include ethnic conflicts, decentralization of government structures, poor agricultural yields and food insecurities, and unfavorable environmental issues (Blum 2007). Although these factors, which are felt both on the global and local scales, may lead to genius novelty, they usually bring about social disruption typified by population displacements, refugee situation, urbanization, and general population movements.
Analyses of Mechanical and Thermal Stresses for Loft Densitometer Mounting Lug Assembly

An analysis of mechanical and thermal stresses for LOFT Gamma Densitometer mounting lugs, bolts and pipe to which the lugs are attached is presented in this paper. The analysis does not include the densitometer of the supporting structure. The mechanical loads under consideration include internal pressure, seismic loads and dynamic loads due to blow down. Thermal transients associated with normal and upset operating conditions have been considered. Appropriate finite element models were constructed for obtaining stresses and deflection analyses due to mechanical loads and thermal transients. Existing computer code of SAPIV modified for Large core Memory (LCM) for CDC 7600 and SAASIII were used for the computation of mechanical and thermal stresses. Procedures to analyze the data obtained from computer analyses for ASME code evaluation are outlined. A stress summary is presented.
minedICE: a knowledge discovery platform for neurophysiological artificial intelligence

In this paper we present the minedICE™ computer architecture and network comprised of neurological instruments and artificial intelligence (AI) agents. It's called minedICE because data that is "mined" via IntraCortical Electroencephalography (ICE) located deep inside the human brain procures (mined) knowledge to a Decision Support System (DSS) that is read by a neurosurgeon located either at the bedside of the patient or at a geospatially remote location. The DSS system 1) alerts the neurosurgeon when a severe neurological event is occurring in the patient and 2) identifies the severe neurological event. The neurosurgeon may choose to provide feedback to the AI agent which controls the confidence level of the association rules and thereby teaches the learning component of minedICE.
Silicon-Based Microphotonics for Biosensing Applications

This paper reviews theory and experiments on silicon photonic wire waveguide evanescent field (PWEF) biosensors. Theoretical conside- rations and supporting calculations show that sensor response increases both with increasing core-cladding refractive index contrast, and with decreasing waveguide core thickness until a maximum sensor response is achieved. As a result, appropriately designed Si waveguide sensors can have the largest response to superstrate refractive index shifts, and also to surface molecular adsorption, of any commonly available waveguide system. Measurements of Si waveguide sensor response to fluid index change and biotin-avidin binding reactions confirm the predictions of theory.
Clonostachys rosea, a potential biological control agent for Rhizoctonia solani AG-3 causing black scurf on potato

Rhizoctonia solani AG-3 forms sclerotia on potato tubers, reducing quality and marketability. Potato discs with sclerotia were exposed to saturated soil, and following toothpick baiting, hyphae of ...
Pay to play: what does PISA participation cost in the US?

Much attention has been given to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) and its effects in different education syste...
Detectors for Intent ICC Security Vulnerability with Android IDE

With the time-to-market pressures for mobile app development is increasing, its development cycle is getting shorter and developers have little to no time for security remediation. Many mobile app developers overlook the security quality of the software in the development cycle. Mobile app flaws and security defects could open doors for hackers to easily attack mobile apps. Early elimination of possible security vulnerability will help to secure our software, and mitigate the security risk threats from potential malicious attacking. However, many developers lack awareness of the importance of security vulnerability and the necessary secure software development knowledge and skills. An effective security vulnerability detecting tools integrated with IDE would be very beneficial for software developers. In this paper we explore the Android common ICC vulnerability and present ICC intent flaw detectors with open source FindSecurityBugs integrated in Android Studio IDE.
Distribution of toxic substances in rivers.

A statistical technique was used to determine if hydrophobic organic substances have vertically a uniform distribution in a river. At a river polluted with chlorinated organic pesticides, several water samples were collected at different depths to perform an analysis of variance on a nested design. To check if the data had to be normalized for the analysis of variance and hypothesis testing, the probability distribution of a grab sample was studied. The lognormal distribution gave in most cases a better description of the grab sample distribution than the normal distribution. Water and bottom sediment samples were taken at several points of the polluted river reach. Although statistically no attenuation in the pesticide concentration over distance was observed, upper limits for a first order decay at which decay would have been observed are reported, as well as the observed partition coefficients. The pesticides appeared to be fractioned in three categories; adsorbed on suspended sediments, adsorbed on fine sediments, and in solution.
From steel to slots: casino capitalism in the postindustrial city

Decades ago, I led field trips of students enrolled in a course on the history of work to the great steelworks of the Bethlehem Steel Corporation in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. While modern steel prod...
The effect of inflation targeting and financial openness on currency composition of sovereign international debt

Abstract This paper analyzes the joint effect of inflation targeting and capital account openness in promoting changes to the currency composition of sovereign international debt in developing countries. First, using difference-in-differences in combination with entropy balancing, we offer empirical evidence that the adoption of inflation targeting together with high capital account openness can significantly reduce the reliance on foreign currency denominated sovereign international debt. We find that financially integrated inflation-targeting countries have 11 percentage points lower foreign currency shares in their sovereign debt compared to non-targeting countries. Second, we determine the threshold level of financial openness that countries need to attain before they see the full benefits of inflation targeting. Third, the joint effect of inflation targeting and capital account openness significantly increases three years after the policy implementation. Our results are robust to alternative specifications which include instrumental variables to account for the endogeneity of the policy.
Choice of rat strain: a comparison of the general pathology and the tumour incidence in 2-year old Sprague-Dawley and Long-Evans rats.

As the choice of species and strain of laboratory animal is of considerable importance in carcinogenicity studies, a two-year, spontaneous carcinogenicity study was performed to compare Sprague-Dawley (Crl: Cobs CD(SD)BR) and Long-Evans rats (CRL: Cobs (LE)BR) under the laboratory conditions at Amboise.
Pancreatic Neoplasms With Acinar Differentiation: A Review of Pathologic and Molecular Features.

Context.— Pancreatic acinar lesions encompass a broad spectrum of malignant tumors and benign reactive processes affecting both adults and children, with clinical, pathologic, and molecular feature...
Diagnostics of small plasma discharges using probing in wide range of microwave frequencies

A diagnostic method for small and microcavity plasma discharges is proposed. The method is based on applying a weak variable-frequency probing signal to the same electrodes that are used to create the plasma and measuring the reflected signal's amplitude and phase over a wide frequency range. Thus, the discharge impedance at multiple probing frequencies may be found, and the key plasma discharge parameters, such as the electron density and temperature and the sheath thickness, can be inferred. The method is dubbed SPRIGHT (Small Plasma Reflection Inter-rogation with GigaHertz Transmitter) and is demonstrated for a small (2 mm interelectrode gap) radio frequency capacitively coupled discharge in argon at pressures of 1–5 Torr.
Palliative care, evidence, and ALS: The baby and the bathwater.

In 2009, the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) effectively dropped palliative care from its evidence-based amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) recommendations because measurable benefit from palliative care services in ALS had not been proven.1 From one perspective, humanism and common sense were thus sacrificed at the altar of measurement; the baby was discarded with the bathwater. From another, palliative care had simply not proved its worth. Since that time, neurologic palliative care has burgeoned in both research and clinical practice but remains excluded from the ALS guidelines.
A Pilot Study of Youth With Type 1 Diabetes Initiating Use of a Hybrid Closed-Loop System While Receiving a Behavioral Economics Intervention.

OBJECTIVE Many youth do not use the hybrid closed-loop system for type 1 diabetes effectively. This study evaluated the impact of financial incentives for diabetes-related tasks on use of the 670G hybrid closed-loop system and on glycemia. METHODS At auto mode initiation and for 16 weeks thereafter, participants received a flat rate for wearing and calibrating the sensor ($1/day), administering at least 3 mealtime insulin boluses per day ($1/day), and uploading ($5/week). Weekly bonuses were given for maintaining at least 70% of the time in auto mode, which were increased for persistent auto mode use from $3/week to a maximum of $13/week. If a participant failed to maintain auto mode for a week, the rewards were reset to baseline. Data from 17 participants aged 15.9 years ± 2.5 years (baseline hemoglobin A1c [HbA1c] 8.6% ± 1.1%) were collected at 6, 12, and 16 weeks. The reinforcers were withdrawn at 16 weeks, with a follow-up assessment at 24 weeks. RESULTS With reinforcers, the participants administered an average of at least 3 mealtime insulin boluses per day and wore the sensor over 70% of the time. However, auto mode use waned. HbA1c levels decreased by 0.5% after 6 weeks, and this improvement was maintained at 12 and 16 weeks (P < .05). Upon withdrawal of reinforcers, HbA1c levels increased back to baseline at 24 weeks. CONCLUSION Compensation for diabetes-related tasks was associated with lower HbA1c levels, consistent administration of mealtime insulin boluses, and sustained sensor use. These results support the potential of financial rewards for improving outcomes in youth with type 1 diabetes.
Norman Joseph William Thrower (23 October 1919–2 September 2020)

Norman J. W. Thrower, at the June 1989 meeting of the Society for the History of Discoveries. Photograph by Ed DahlNorman Thrower, who died shortly before his 101st birthday, was among the first an...
Modeling and Design of Vertical Multiphase Coupled Inductors with Inductance Dual Model

This paper presents the modeling and design of multiphase coupled inductors with an inductance dual model. Existing models for multiwinding coupled magnetics are reviewed and compared. These models represent identical physical relationships, but reveal different fundamentals and offer distinct design insights. The inductance dual model is particularly suited to the design of high-density, low-loss coupled inductors for multiphase buck converters. A step-by-step procedure for designing coupled inductors based on the inductance dual model is introduced. This procedure is used to design a baseline coupled inductor for a multiphase buck converter. Starting from the baseline design, an optimal procedure is conducted targeting a revised design with improved performance and reduced size. The two designs are compared by experimental measurements. The optimal design procedure reduces the inductor height from 11.5 mm to 5.25 mm, reduces the core loss from 490 mW to 240 mW, and improves the output current slew rate from 1.04 A/ns to 2.08 A/ns.
Acute Water Intoxication With Resultant Hypo-Osmolar Hyponatremia Complicated by Hypotension Secondary to Diffuse Third-Spacing.

Hypotonic hyponatremia secondary to acute water intoxication is most commonly associated with primary polydipsia in the setting of psychiatric illness. However, in certain circumstances, otherwise healthy individuals can be compelled to consume large enough volumes of water to overwhelm the kidney’s dilutional capacity of urine and cause a potentially life-threatening rapid decline in serum sodium. We present such a case of a 20-year-old basic military trainee with acute symptomatic hypotonic hyponatremia after drinking five to six liters of water prior to urine drug testing. The clinical manifestations of this disorder are non-specific and can be seen with many different pathologic processes, presenting a diagnostic challenge to the emergency clinician. This challenge can be further complicated by unclear or unobtainable history depending on clinical presentation. The authors will discuss key diagnostic and treatment elements of this potentially life-threatening disease to encourage clinicians to utilize social history when evaluating cases of acute water intoxication and resultant symptomatic hypotonic hyponatremia.
Responses of Lactic Acid Bacteria to Acid Stress

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are a diverse group of Gram-positive microbes that ferment carbohydrates to organic acids, primarily lactic acid. LAB include organisms vitally important to the production of foods, bread, and wine, and they include major human pathogens for diseases of the oropharyneal space, lungs, mouth, and skin. For all of these organs, the production of lactic acid rapidly and substantially lowers the pH of their external environments. Because bacterial membranes are essentially porous to protons, these bacteria are at risk of damaging cellular constituents to the extent that growth ceases, and eventually they do not survive. Thus, the LAB have evolved a broad range of mechanisms to protect themselves from acidification, to repair cellular damage, and to use low-pH environments to outcompete other bacteria. In this chapter, we describe the acid-stress-responsive mechanisms of representative LAB, which have provided a framework of how these organisms respond to, and prosper in, acidic environments.
Leading with emotion: An overview of the special issue on leadership and emotions

Abstract This introduction to the special issue on leadership and emotions provides an overview of the topic and articles included in this issue. We discuss the motivation behind this collection of theoretical and empirical articles, how they contribute to the goals of the issue and where we see this domain of leadership research heading in the future. One goal of this issue was to expand the focus of research beyond moods and generalized affect to discrete emotions and mechanisms through which emotions exert influence such as emotional contagion, empathy, and emotional authenticity. Relative to positive and negative affectivity, discrete emotions, mediators, and moderators of leader emotions have been studied far less. A second goal was to highlight the importance and role of emotion regulation strategies, mechanisms, and effects in the dynamic exchanges between leaders and followers. Finally, we wanted to increase the representation of multi-level perspectives and studies with regard to leadership and emotions. The compiled studies achieve these goals drawing on a variety of theoretical perspectives (e.g., Emotions as Social Information (EASI), Affective Events, Transformational leadership) as well as range of methods (qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods) and settings (lab and field). Taken together, the findings from this special issue illuminate some interesting relationships and we hope will inform future research on leadership and emotions in a significant way.
Histopathologie des Endometriumkarzinoms

Das Endometriumkarzinom ist ein haufiger Tumor mit vielen histopathologischen Varianten. Die meisten Falle werden als Typ-I-Tumoren klassifiziert, zeigen eine endometrioide Morphologie, sind von niedrigem Grad und Stadium, und die Funfjahresuberlebensrate ist ausgezeichnet. Typ-II-Tumoren sind viel seltener, es handelt sich hauptsachlich um serose Karzinome, und die Typ-II-Tumoren sind ohne Ausnahme hoch aggressiv. Die klinische Zweiteilung zeigt sich auch anhand der reproduzierbaren molekulargenetischen Alterationen, die fur jeden Typ spezifisch sind. Uber die den Typ-II-Tumoren zugrunde liegenden Genmutationen ist weniger bekannt, und es bleibt abzuwarten, ob die Klarzellkarzinome des Endometriums als Typ I oder II eingestuft werden konnen oder ob sie sich dieser Klassifikation weiterhin entziehen.
Do the OH/IR Stars within 100 PC of the Galactic Center Belong to the Disk Population?

The 135 OH/IR stars within 0.8 deg (∼ 100 pc) of the Galactic Center (GC) identified in a search with the VLA (Lindqvist et al. 1991) are in rapid rotation about the center with a regression line showing a velocity gradient of 1.2±0.1 km s-1, equivalent to 178 km s-1 deg-1 for R0 = 8.5 kpc (Lindqvist et al. 1992). This is of the same order as the inward extrapolation of the Galactic rotation curve derived from the terminal. velocities of H1 for l < 2 deg (Burton and Gordon 1978) and the general. trend of the velocities of the CO clouds in the equatorial. disk mapped by Dame et al. (1987) (Fig. 1b). These OH/IR stars are located along the ridge of highest projected CO density. This spatial. location and the flat configuration argue for assignment to the dis& population, a possibility suggested by Feast (1989). The VLA objects are not in general. supergiants (Blommaert et al. 1992). On a K-band map of an area 1x2 deg around the GC., Catchpole et al. (1990) found a number of stars brighter than (mk)o = 5. On the assumption that BCK = 3.3, (Frogel and Whitford 1987), and Ro = 8.5 kpc, Mbol < — 6.3, i.e., in the supergiant range.
Revocation of Police Officer Certification: A Viable Remedy for Police Misconduct?

We take it as a given that any profession or occupation, which involves interaction with the public, will be regulated by a state agency. Accountants, architects, attorneys, barbers, cosmeticians, dentists, etc. are all required to undergo training, meet selection standards and, if they seriously misbehave, they will have their licenses or certificates revoked by the board or commission which regulates that profession. Until fairly recently, there was no license or professional certificate issued by a state agency for law enforcement officers. That meant that an officer, who had successfully completed his police academy training and received a diploma, could be terminated by one department for cause and be hired by any other department in the state willing to hire him. This article describes the statutes and regulations now in existence in the 44 states that do license and revoke licenses of law enforcement officers for misconduct. There is great variation among the states on what conduct can lead to revocation, e.g., some states require conviction of a crime whereas others permit revocation administratively, after a hearing before an ALJ. There are also differences on what types of officers are subject to having their licenses removed, e.g., in some states, only peace officers, in others, correctional officers are also covered. With the fate of the exclusionary rule uncertain given recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions, strengthening license revocation to ensure that citizens are not subject to continuing abuse by law enforcement officers is more important than ever before.
The use of self-Reiki for stress reduction and relaxation.

Abstract Objective More than one-third of college students reported the desire for stress reduction techniques and education. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a 20-week structured self-Reiki program on stress reduction and relaxation in college students. Methods Students were recruited from Stockton University and sessions were conducted in the privacy of their residence. Twenty students completed the entire study consisting of 20 weeks of self-Reiki done twice weekly. Each participant completed a Reiki Baseline Credibility Scale, a Reiki Expectancy Scale, and a Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) after acceptance into the study. The PSS was completed every four weeks once the interventions were initiated. A global assessment questionnaire was completed at the end of the study. Logs summarizing the outcome of each session were submitted at the end of the study. Results With the exception of three participants, participants believed that Reiki is a credible technique for reducing stress levels. Except for two participants, participants agreed that Reiki would be effective in reducing stress levels. All participants experienced stress within the month prior to completing the initial PSS. There was a significant reduction in stress levels from pre-study to post-study. There was a correlation between self-rating of improvement and final PSS scores. With one exception, stress levels at 20 weeks did not return to pre-study stress levels. Conclusion This study supports the hypothesis that the calming effect of Reiki may be achieved through the use of self-Reiki.
FGF Signaling Is Necessary for Neurogenesis in Young Mice and Sufficient to Reverse Its Decline in Old Mice

The mechanisms regulating hippocampal neurogenesis remain poorly understood. Particularly unclear is the extent to which age-related declines in hippocampal neurogenesis are due to an innate decrease in precursor cell performance or to changes in the environment of these cells. Several extracellular signaling factors that regulate hippocampal neurogenesis have been identified. However, the role of one important family, FGFs, remains uncertain. Although a body of literature suggests that FGFs can promote the proliferation of cultured adult hippocampal precursor cells, their requirement for adult hippocampal neurogenesis in vivo and the cell types within the neurogenic lineage that might depend on FGFs remain unclear. Here, specifically targeting adult neural precursor cells, we conditionally express an activated form of an FGF receptor or delete the FGF receptors that are expressed in these cells. We find that FGF receptors are required for neural stem-cell maintenance and that an activated receptor expressed in all precursors can increase the number of neurons produced. Moreover, in older mice, an activated FGF receptor can rescue the age-related decline in neurogenesis to a level found in young adults. These results suggest that the decrease in neurogenesis with age is not simply due to fewer stem cells, but also to declining signals in their niche. Thus, enhancing FGF signaling in precursors can be used to reverse age-related declines in hippocampal neurogenesis. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Hippocampal deficits can result from trauma, neurodegeneration, or aging and can lead to loss of memory and mood control. The addition of new neurons to the hippocampus facilitates memory formation, but how this process is regulated and how we might manipulate it to reverse hippocampal dysfunction remains unclear. The FGF signaling pathway has been hypothesized to be important, but its role in generating new neurons had been poorly defined. Our study indicates that FGF signaling maintains and expands subsets of neural precursor cells. Moreover, in older mice, increasing FGF signaling is sufficient to reverse the decline in neuron production to levels found in young adults, providing a potential means of reversing age-related hippocampal deficits.
Dental fear, dental attendance, and self-report of dental erosion appear to be altered in women with eating disorders.

Article Title and Bibliographic Information Dental fear, regularity of dental attendance and subjective evaluation of dental erosion in women with eating disorders. Willumsen T, Graugaard PK. Eur J Oral Sci 2005;113(4):297-302. Level of Evidence 2b Purpose/Question To describe the occurrence of dental fear, dental attendance, and self-reported dental erosion in women reporting eating disorders. Source of Funding Information not available Type of Study/Design Cohort study
Contribution of Hydrogen Bonding to Protein Stability Estimated from Isotope Effects

An unresolved issue in structural biology concerns the relative contribution of H bonds to protein stability. We use the small molecules 4-acetamidobenzoic acid and N-acetylanthranilic acid as model compounds to relate the energetic contribution from hydrogen bonds (H bonds) to the deuterium/hydrogen amide isotope effect. N-Acetylanthranilic acid models carbonyl−amide H bonds formed during protein folding; 4-acetamidobenzoic acid models the unfolded state in which the amide H bonds to water. NMR is used to measure shifts in the pKa of the ionizable carboxyl group when the amides of the compounds are either protonated or deuterated. From the pKa shift, we obtain a quantitative scale factor: SF = ∂(ΔGHB)/∂(RT ln Φ), where ΔGHB is the change in free energy of an H bond upon isotope substitution and Φ is the fractionation factor. Isotope effect data also are reported for a small globular protein, λ repressor, using the “Cm experiment”. The protein's isotope effect, which reports on the shape of the energy we...
Haptic concepts in the blind

We investigated and compared the acquisition of haptic concepts by the blind with the acquisition of haptic concepts by sighted controls. Each subject—blind, sighted but blindfolded, sighted and touching, and sighted only-initially classified eight objects into two categories using a study/test format, followed by a recognition/classification test involving old, new, and prototype forms. Each object varied along the dimensions of shape, size, and texture, with each dimension having five values. The categories were linearly separable in three dimensions, but no single dimension permitted 100% accurate classification. The results revealed that blind subjects learned the categories quickly and comparably with sighted controls. On the classification test, all groups performed equivalently, with the category prototype classified more accurately than the old or new stimuli. The blind subjects differed from the other subjects on the recognition test in two ways: They were least likely to false alarm to novel patterns that belonged to the category but most likely to false alarm to the category prototype, which they falsely called “old” 100% of the time. We discuss these results in terms of current views of categorization.
Experimental verification and theoretical prediction of cartilage interstitial fluid pressurization at an impermeable contact interface in confined compression

Interstitial fluid pressurization has long been hypothesized to play a fundamental role in the load support mechanism and frictional response of articular cartilage. However, to date, few experimental studies have been performed to verify this hypothesis from direct measurements. The first objective of this study was to investigate experimentally the hypothesis that cartilage interstitial fluid pressurization does support the great majority of the applied load, in the testing configurations of confined compression creep and stress relaxation. The second objective was to investigate the hypothesis that the experimentally observed interstitial fluid pressurization could also be predicted using the linear biphasic theory of Mow et al. (J. Biomech. Engng ASME, 102, 73-84, 1980). Fourteen bovine cartilage samples were tested in a confined compression chamber fitted with a microchip piezoresistive transducer to measure interstitial fluid pressure, while simultaneously measuring (during stress relaxation) or prescribing (during creep) the total stress. It was found that interstitial fluid pressure supported more than 90% of the total stress for durations as long as 725 +/- 248 s during stress relaxation (mean +/- S.D., n = 7), and 404 +/- 229 s during creep (n = 7). When comparing experimental measurements of the time-varying interstitial fluid pressure against predictions from the linear biphasic theory, nonlinear coefficients of determination r2 = 0.871 +/- 0.086 (stress relaxation) and r2 = 0.941 +/- 0.061 (creep) were found. The results of this study provide some of the most direct evidence to date that interstitial fluid pressurization plays a fundamental role in cartilage mechanics; they also indicate that the mechanism of fluid load support in cartilage can be properly predicted from theory.
Effects of Tricaine Methanesulfonate (MS-222) on Hematocrit: First Field Measurements on Blacknose Dace

Abstract Tricaine methanesulfonate (MS-222) is an anesthetic commonly used to reduce fish stress during transport or sampling. The exposure of blacknose dace Rhinichthys atratulus to MS-222 at concentrations of 300 mg/L or 500 mg/L for 9 min or less did not raise hematocrit levels above those of controls. Hematocrit levels tended to be somewhat lower in experimental groups than in controls; however the only significant difference (P = 0.044) among treatments occurred between the control fish (35% ± 2.3; N = 6) and fish exposed to 500 mg/L for 3 min (30% ± 1.8; N = 7). This difference suggests that initial exposure to MS-222 may cause stress or, less likely, that the anesthetic has some inherent hemodilution effect. Workers who monitor environmental acidification may be concerned with the hematocrit of the acid-sensitive blacknose dace because hematocrit increases during acid stress. The use of MS-222 to ease hematocrit sampling should not elevate measurements.
Poster: Ziria: language for rapid prototyping of wireless PHY

Software-defined radio (SDR) brings the flexibility of software to the domain of wireless protocol design, promising an ideal platform both for research and innovation and rapid deployment of new protocols on existing hardware. However, existing SDR programming platforms require either careful hand-tuning of low-level code, negating many of the advantages of software, or are too slow to be useful in the real world. We present Ziria, the first software-defined radio programming platform that is both easily programmable and performant. Ziria introduces a novel programming model tailored to wireless physical layer tasks and captures the inherent and important distinction between data and control paths in this domain. Ziria provides the capability of implementing a real-time WiFi PHY running at 20 MHz.
Maternal vasodilation in pregnancy: the emerging role of relaxin.

Pregnancy is a unique physiological condition of profound maternal renal and systemic vasodilation. Our goal has been to unveil the reproductive hormones mediating this remarkable vasodilatory stat...
Bone status of children receiving anticonvulsant therapy.

Abstract Bone mineral status was assessed by direct photon absorptiometry on 140 children and adolescent hospital outpatients receiving long-term anticonvulsant drug therapy and on 132 institutionalized mentally retarded subjects, 74 of whom were receiving anticonvulsant drugs. Serum calcium, phosphorus and alkaline phosphatase concentrations were determined for the hospital outpatients. Average deviations of bone mineral content (%BMC) ranged from 8.4–16.2% of normal values predicted from regression analysis. A trend toward increased demineralization was associated with length of anticonvulsant drug therapy. Mentally retarded subjects and hospital subjects with seizures accompanied by other serious disorders showed significantly greater osteopenia than hospital subjects with seizures alone. A lack of association of BMC with presence of anticonvulsant drug therapy in the mentally retarded population suggested that their low %BMC values were due to other factors related to the nature of the sample and the condition of institutionalization. Biochemical values showed a lack of association with osteopenia. A comparison of the present results on compact bone with results of others involving osteoid of trabecular bone suggests that anticonvulsant drug therapy affects these tissues differently and that the chemistry of the blood more closely reflects the osteoid proliferation of the trabecular bone rather than the changes related to the osteopenia of compact bone.
Proteomic approach to studying Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease is a common age-related neurodegenerative disease characterized pathologically by a loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra with resultant depletion of striatal dopamine and presence of Lewy bodies in the remaining neurons. The Lewy body contains numerous functional and structural proteins, including alpha-synuclein and ubiquitin; aggregation of alpha-synuclein is thought to be important in Lewy body formation as well as neurodegeneration, although the detailed mechanisms remain to be defined. Increasing evidence has suggested that mitochondrial dysfunction, increased oxidative stress, and dysfunction of the ubiquitin-proteasome system may be involved in alpha-synuclein aggregation, Lewy body formation, and neurodegeneration. However, how these processes are related to each other is not fully understood, given that there are Parkinsonian animal models as well as human diseases with significant nigral neurodegeneration regardless of whether Lewy bodies form or not. This review summarizes the current related research fields and proposes a proteomic approach to investigate the mechanisms that may dictate alpha-synuclein aggregation, Lewy body formation, and neurodegeneration.
An acoustic backscatter-based method for localization of lesions induced by high-intensity focused ultrasound.

Abstract Ultrasound B-mode visualization of lesions produced in soft tissues using high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) has been shown to be challenging when there is no cavitation activity and, therefore, no hyperechogenecity in the focal region. We investigated a method for the visualization and localization of HIFU-induced lesions after HIFU delivery was complete based on the change in backscattered radio-frequency (RF) signals. A HIFU transducer was used with focal dimension of 8 mm by 2 mm working at 5 MHz. HIFU was applied at different intensities to produce lesions in ex vivo chicken breast, with or without the generation of hyperecho in B-mode images. We compared lesion locations obtained from our RF-processing method, from measurement of physical lesions after exposure and from the B-mode images, if exposures had resulted in hyperecho. The results showed that the RF amplitude decreased as a function of time immediately after stopping the HIFU exposure. The lesions were clearly visualized in two-dimensional (2-D) images of the decay rate of RF amplitude, no matter with or without hyperecho. In experiments with hyperecho, when comparing to physical lesion locations, there was no statistically significant difference in the localization accuracy between the RF-based and the hyperecho-based method ( p = 0.76). In cases without hyperecho, the distance between RF-based locations and measured lesion locations was 3.37 ± 1.59 mm (mean ± standard deviation). The axial and lateral difference were 2.00 ± 2.31 mm and 0.85 ± 2.15 mm, respectively, and no statistically significant difference was found between lesion coordinates (axial: p = 0.37 and lateral: p = 0.15). We demonstrated the feasibility of our proposed RF-based method for the localization of HIFU-induced lesions immediately after HIFU treatment. Using the decay rate in RF amplitude as the signature of lesion formation, our method can detect lesion locations even without the appearance of hyperecho. (E-mail: xlzheng@u.washington.edu )
The progression of the entropy of a five dimensional psychotherapeutic system

This paper presents a study of the deterministic and stochastic behavior of the entropy of a 5-dimensional, 2400 state, system across each of six psychotherapeutic sessions. The growth of entropy was found to be logarithmic in each session. The stochastic behavior of a moving 600 second estimator of entropy revealed a Box-Jenkins model of type (1,1,0) - that is, the first difference of the entropy series was first order autoregressive or prior state sensitive. In addition, the patient and therapist entropy series exhibited no significant cross correlation across lags of -300 to +300 seconds. Yet all such pairs of series exhibited high coherency past the frequency of .06 (on a full range of 0 to .5). Furthermore, all the patients and therapists were attracted to a geometric center of mass in 5-dimensional space which was different from the geometric center of the region where the system lived. The process significance of the findings and the relationship between the deterministic and stochastic results are discussed. The paper is then placed in the broader context of our efforts to provide new and meaningful quantitative dimensions and mathematical models to psychotherapy research. 59 refs.
Francisco de Toledo and His Campaign against the Incas

In 1570, Viceroy Francisco de Toledo traveled from Lima to Cuzco as he began his reform of Spanish colonial administration in the Andes. Along the way, he took steps to deny the legitimacy of the I...
Assessing and teaching diverse learners

Abstract A major challenge for teacher preparation programs and future teachers is learning to work skillfully with the diversity of children in American classrooms. This paper describes a tool developed to address this challenge: the Learning and Teaching Assessment System (LTAS). The LTAS is a performance‐based, curriculum‐embedded assessment tool designed to uncover young children's strengths in different curricular areas as well as their approaches to learning. Developed for use with children 3–8 years of age, the LTAS helps teachers understand what children know in relation to key concepts in the different disciplines as well as how they learn in order to further their learning in subsequent days and weeks of teaching. The development of the LTAS is based primarily on two theoretical frameworks: Leont'ev's activity theory and Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences. To examine the efficacy of the LTAS in its proposed objectives, a pilot study was conducted; results point to the potential of the LT...
Generation of soluble P- and E-selectins in vivo is dependent on expression of P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1.

Summary. Background: Factors contributing to the generation of soluble P- and E-selectins remain unclear. Results: This work demonstrates that mice lacking P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1 (Psgl-1 )/) ) are deficient in soluble P-selectin (sP-sel), which is due to a defective binding interaction between PSGL-1 and P-sel, because mice lacking a(1,3)-fucosyltransferase-VII are also deficient in sP-sel. Psgl-1 )/) mice are also deficient in soluble E-selectin (sE-sel) indicating that leukocyte interactions with endothelial cells lead to the generation of sE-sel. The generation of sE-sel requires an interaction between PSGL-1 and P-sel, as deficiency of sE-sel is observed in both Psgl-1 )/) and P-sel )/) mice. Bone marrow transplantation from Psgl-1 )/) to Psgl-1 +/+ mice leads to deficiency of sP-sel and sE-sel in recipient mice, establishing the importance of bone marrowderived PSGL-1 toward the generation of sP-sel and sE-sel. Bone marrow transplantation from P-sel )/) to P-sel1 +/+ mice does not lead to a significant reduction in sP-sel, confirming the importance of the endothelium toward the liberation of sP-sel. Conclusion: sP-sel and sE-sel reflect an interaction between leukocyte PSGL-1 and endothelial P-sel.
NOTE ON THE ISOTOPIC COMPOSITION OF ARGON IN QUARTZ VEINS.

Abstract Vein quartz from the Monte Antola Nappe (Italy) contains excess 40 Ar in amounts ranging from 9.73 × 10 −7 s.cm 3 /g to 38.89 × 10 −7 s.cm 3 /g, correlating with structural depth within the nappe.
Cardiac remodeling by fibrous tissue after infarction in rats.

Abstract After transmural myocardial infarction (MI), extensive myocardial remodeling by fibrous tissue appears in both infarcted and noninfarcted myocardium, which contributes to ventricular diastolic dysfunction. In the present study we sought to assess the time course of collagen remodeling in the infarcted rat hearts by detecting spatial and time-dependent cellular events related to collagen synthesis and degradation 2 to 28 days after left coronary artery ligation. In infarcted hearts, and compared with findings in sham-operated and unoperated rat hearts, we found the following: (1) macrophages infiltrated into sites of MI and visceral pericardium on day 2 and gradually disappeared after day 14; (2) myofibroblasts (MyoFb) first appeared at these sites of repair on day 3 and remained abundant thereafter at all time points examined; (3) transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) mRNA was enhanced in infarcted and noninfarcted myocardium on day 2 and remained throughout 28 days; (4) type I and III collagen mRNAs began to increase at and remote to MI on day 3 and remained elevated thereafter; (5) matrix metalloproteinase-1 mRNA was significantly increased at and remote to MI on day 3, declined to the control level on day 7, and remained low thereafter; (6) tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase (TIMP)–I, -II, and -III mRNAs were markedly elevated at sites of repair on day 3 and sustained throughout 28 days; (7) fibrillar collagen accumulation that was evident at and remote to MI on day 7 continued to accumulate thereafter at each site over 4 weeks. When compared with findings in unoperated rat heart, pericardial fibrosis was evident in both infarcted and noninfarcted heart, and the temporal response of collagen generation/ degradation in pericardium was similar to that in infarcted myocardium. Thus collagen synthesis is activated in both infarcted and noninfarcted rat myocardium after transmural anterior infarction and is persistent throughout the 28-day period of study, whereas early collagen degradation is short lived and inactivated in the fibrogenic phase. Activated TGF-β1 mRNA expression is accompanied by the appearance of MyoFb and the expression of fibrillar collagens and TIMPs, suggesting that this fibrogenic cytokine may contribute to collagen remodeling in the rat heart after MI. (J Lab Clin Med 2000;135:316-23)
Cross‐hole radar attenuation tomography using a frequency centroid down‐shift method: Consideration of non‐linear frequency dependence of EM wave attenuation

This paper presents a cross-hole radar attenuation tomography method based on analysis of the down-shift in the spectrum centroid frequency, and spectral broadening of the received radar signals. The method uses a parameter that combines centroid frequency down shift and variance increase for the projection function to construct the tomography algorithm. In comparison with other methods for estimating attenuation, the frequency down shift method is relatively insensitive to the effects of geometric spreading, antenna coupling, antenna radiation pattern, and instrument response, but the method requires the data to be broad-band so the frequency shift is easily measured. This method is well suited for difference tomography when electrically conductive tracers are used. The method was tested using cross-hole radar data acquired before and during a saline tracer injection experiment at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Fractured Rock Research Site at Mirror Lake, in Grafton County, New Hampshire. The attenuationdifference tomogram clearly outlines the location of the saline tracer within the tomography plane.
A variational principle for magnetohydrodynamic channel flow

Variational principle for calculating velocity profile and electric potential distribution in magnetohydrodynamic channel flow
Action of human apurinic endonuclease (Ape1) on C1′-oxidized deoxyribose damage in DNA

Abstract Oxidative damage to DNA includes diverse lesions in the sugar-phosphate backbone. The chemical “nuclease” bis(1,10-phenanthroline)copper complex [(OP)2Cu] is believed to generate a mixture of direct oxidative strand breaks and C1′-oxidized abasic sites (2-deoxyribonolactone; dL). We found that, under our conditions, the lesions produced by (OP)2Cu (50 μM) in synthetic duplex DNA were predominantly dL, accompanied by ∼30% direct strand breaks with 3′-phosphates. For enzymatic studies, (OP)2Cu was used to introduce damage with limited sequence-selectivity, while photolysis of a site-specific 2′-deoxyuridine-1′-t-butyl ketone generated dL at a defined position. The results showed that Ape1, the major human abasic endonuclease, catalyzed 5′-incision of dL sites, but acted at least 10-fold less effectively to remove the 3′-phosphates at direct strand breaks. Kinetic analysis of Ape1 incision using the site-specific dL substrate revealed the same kcat for dL and regular (glycosylase-generated) abasic sites, but with Km approximately five-fold higher for dL substrate. The efficiency of Ape1 acting on dL, and the abundance of this enzyme in vivo, indicate that dL sites in vivo would be rapidly processed by the endonuclease. The recent observation that Ape1-cleaved dL sites can covalently trap DNA polymerase β during the abasic excision process suggests that efficient incision of dL by Ape1 may potentiate further problems in DNA repair.
Inactivation of Escherichia coli glutamine synthetase by thiourea trioxide

Abstract Incubation of Escherichia coli glutamine synthetase with thiourea trioxide resulted in partial inactivation of the enzyme. This reagent specifically modifies lysine residues to form homoarginine. By amino acid analysis 2.3 ± 0.3 residues of homoarginine are produced per enzyme subunit after treatment with thiourea trioxide. Previously we determined that thiourea dioxide totally inactivated glutamine synthetase and modified both lysine and histidine residues (J. Colanduoni and J. J. Villafranca (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 15,042–15,050). Thiourea trioxide reacted with the same lysine residues of glutamine synthetase as thiourea dioxide. The Km values for the thiourea trioxide modified enzyme were determined and are 210 ± 30 μ m and 10 ± 1 m m for ATP and glutamate, respectively. Both values are about threefold higher than for native enzyme assayed under the same conditions. Fluorescence titrations of native and thiourea trioxide labeled enzyme showed that ATP binding was virtually unchanged by the modification while glutamate and methionine sulfoximine bound about twofold more weakly to the modified enzyme.