cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Neuromodulation of short-term synaptic dynamics examined in a mechanistic model based on kinetics of calcium currents

Network plasticity arises in large part due to the effects of exogenous neuromodulators. We investigate the neuromodulatory effects on short-term synaptic dynamics. The synapse from the lateral pyloric (LP) to the pyloric dilator (PD) neuron in the pyloric network of the crab C. borealis has both spike-mediated and non-spike-mediated (graded) components. Previous studies have shown that the graded component of this synapse exhibits short-term depression. Recent results from our lab indicate that in the presence of the neuromodulatory peptide proctolin, low-amplitude presynaptic stimuli switch the short-term dynamics of this graded component from depression to facilitation. In this study, we show that this facilitation is correlated with the activation of a presynaptic inward current that is blocked by Mn^2^+, suggesting that it is a slowly accumulating Ca^2^+ current. We modify a mechanistic model of synaptic release by assuming that the low-voltage-activating Ca^2^+ current in our system is composed of two currents with fast (I"C"a"F) and slow (I"C"a"S) kinetics. We show that if proctolin adjusts the activation rate of I"C"a"S, this leads to accumulation of local intracellular Ca^2^+ in response to multiple presynaptic voltage stimuli, which, in turn, results in synaptic facilitation. Additionally, we assume that proctolin increases the maximal conductances of Ca^2^+ currents in the model, consistent with the increased synaptic release found in the experiments. We find that these two presynaptic actions of proctolin in the model are sufficient to describe its actions on the short-term dynamics of the LP to PD synapse.
A theoretical analysis of substituted aromatic compounds

The substituents CH3, F, NO2, OCH3, and CH2CH2 were placed at the ortho, meta, and para positions on the aromatic molecules aniline, benzaldehdye, nitrobenzene, and phenol. MMFF94, AM1, B3LYP, M06, M06-2X, ωB97X, ωB97X-d, and RI-MP2 using cc-pVDZ and cc-pVTZ and CCSD(T) with cc-pVDZ basis sets were used to calculate the geometries and energies of all regiomers of the molecules. Relative energies of the ortho and meta regiomers relative to the para regiomers were calculated and compared to the CCSD(T) values. A good basis set correlation between cc-pVDZ and cc-pVTZ was observed in RI-MP2. Overall, RI-MP2 gave the best correlation with the CCSD(T) results. All of the hybrid functionals showed similar accuracy and could effectively describe the intramolecular hydrogen-bonding interactions of these compounds. The methoxy group at the para position in methoxyaniline, methoxyphenol, methoxynitrobenzene, and methoxybenzaldehyde was rotated around the phenyl-O bond. HF, along with the cc-pVDZ basis with the other methods, generated inaccurate energy profiles for p-methoxyphenol. For the density functional theory methods, it was necessary to use improved grids to get smooth curves. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A search for high-lying levels in the mass A = 5 nuclei

Abstract The reactions 7Li(d, α)5He and 6Li(3He, α)5Li have been studied at 24 MeV and 25.5 MeV respectively in a search for highly excited levels in the A = 5 nuclei. In addition to ground state groups and well-known excited states in the vicinity of 16.6 MeV excitation, evidence has been obtained from the 7Li(d, α)5He reaction for broad energy levels at approximately 20.2 and 23.8 MeV excitation and from the 6Li(5He, α)5Li reaction for broad levels at approximately 19.8 and 22.7 MeV excitation. Excitation functions for the reactions3He(d, d)3He and 3He(d, α)1 H have been obtained at several angles for deuteron energies between 9.4 and 17.8 MeV. There is no clear evidence of resonances corresponding to states in 5Li.
Simulation of Biomass Yield and Soil Organic Carbon under Bioenergy Sorghum Production

Developing sustainable management practices including appropriate residue removal and nitrogen (N) fertilization for bioenergy sorghum is critical. However, the effects of residue removal and N fertilization associated with bioenergy sorghum production on soil organic carbon (SOC) are less studied compared to other crops. The objective of our research was to assess the impacts of residue removal and N fertilization on biomass yield and SOC under biomass sorghum production. Field measurements were used to calibrate the DNDC model, then verified the model by comparing simulated results with measured results using the field management practices as agronomic inputs. Both residue removal and N fertilization affected bioenergy sorghum yields in some years. The average measured SOC at 0–50 cm across the treatments and the time-frame ranged from 47.5 to 78.7 Mg C ha−1, while the simulated SOC was from 56.3 to 67.3 Mg C ha−1. The high correlation coefficients (0.65 to 0.99) and low root mean square error (3 to 18) between measured and simulated values indicate the DNDC model accurately simulated the effects of residue removal with N fertilization on bioenergy sorghum production and SOC. The model predictions revealed that there is, in the long term, a trend for higher SOC under bioenergy sorghum production regardless of residue management.
Observations of ion streaming during substorms

The ion beam phenomenon at the plasma sheet boundary is examined for individually identifiable substorms, and the substorm-associated particle phenomena are evaluated in terms of the energy-angle distributions of the plasma population and three-dimensional energetic ion distributions. In all seven cases studied it is found that ion beams streaming earthward and/or tailward are always present at the edge of the plasma sheet adjacent to the tail lobe. Ion beams penetrating into the plasma sheet region with no detectable density gradient are also observed. Beams at tens to hundreds of eV often stream tailward and are often long lasting, suggesting that they may be related to ionospheric sources. Both tailward and earthward streaming beams are detected for ion beams above 1 keV, consistent with an origin from the distant tail, propagation toward earth, and mirroring back under single particle motions.
Effects of neonatal methamphetamine and thioperamide exposure on spatial memory retention and circadian activity later in life.

Methamphetamine (MA) use increases the likelihood of engaging in risky sexual behavior and most MA-using women are of child-bearing age. Therefore, cognitive effects following MA exposure to the developing brain are concerning. Exposure of mice to MA during hippocampal development causes cognitive impairments in adulthood. These effects are more severe in female than male mice and mimicked by the H3 receptor antagonist thioperamide (THIO). In this study, we assessed whether neonatal exposure to MA or THIO also affects cognition in adolescence. As these effects might be associated with alterations in circadian activity, we also assessed circadian activity in a subgroup of neonatally exposed mice. Sex-dependent treatment effects were seen in the water maze. While THIO-, but not MA-treated female mice showed hippocampus-dependent spatial memory retention in the first probe trial, MA-, but not THIO-treated female mice showed spatial memory retention in the probe trial following reversal training. In contrast, MA- and THIO-treated male mice showed spatial memory retention in both probe trials. When sensorimotor gating was assessed, MA-treated male mice showed greater pre-pulse inhibition than MA-treated female mice. Regardless of sex, THIO-treated mice gained on average more weight each day and showed an enhanced startle response. In addition, MA increased the length of the circadian period, with an intermediate effect following THIO treatment were observed. No treatment effects in exploratory behavior, measures of anxiety, or contextual or cued fear conditioning. Thus, the water maze is particularly sensitive to detect sex-dependent effects of neonatal MA and THIO exposure on spatial memory retention in adolescence.
Food Insufficiency and Health Services Utilization in a National Sample of Homeless Adults

Homeless people have high rates of hospitalization and emergency department (ED) use. Obtaining adequate food is a common concern among homeless people and may influence health care utilization. We tested the hypothesis that food insufficiency is related to higher rates of hospitalization and ED use in a national sample of homeless adults. We analyzed data from the 2003 Health Care for the Homeless (HCH) User Survey. Participants were 966 adults surveyed at 79 HCH clinic sites throughout the US. The study sample was representative of over 436,000 HCH clinic users nationally. We determined the prevalence and characteristics of food insufficiency among respondents. Using multivariable logistic regression, we examined the association between food insufficiency and four past-year acute health services utilization outcomes: (1) hospitalization for any reason, (2) psychiatric hospitalization, (3) any ED use, and (4) high ED use (≥4 visits). Overall, 25% of respondents reported food insufficiency. Among them, 68% went a whole day without eating in the past month. Chronically homeless (p = 0.01) and traumatically victimized (p = 0.001) respondents were more likely to be food insufficient. In multivariable analyses, food insufficiency was associated with significantly greater odds of hospitalization for any reason (AOR 1.59, 95% CI 1.07, 2.36), psychiatric hospitalization (AOR 3.12, 95% CI 1.73, 5.62), and high ED utilization (AOR 2.83, 95% CI 1.32, 6.08). One-fourth of homeless adults in this national survey were food insufficient, and this was associated with increased odds of acute health services utilization. Addressing the adverse health services utilization patterns of homeless adults will require attention to the social circumstances that may contribute to this issue.
Simulation modeling and analysis issues for high-speed combined continuous and discrete food industry manufacturing processes

Many high-speed, minute component, flow oriented manufacturing processes are found in the food industry. These types of operations typically involve the transformation of a product from a fluid state into distinct packages. This transformation requires that these systems be modeled both continuously and discretely with respect to time in order to develop valid models. The complexity associated with these types of combined continuous and discrete simulation models, limits the availability of food processing industry related literature. This paper examines those issues in the context of a typical high-speed food processing facility.
Discrete-time neural network output feedback control of nonlinear systems in non-strict feedback form

An adaptive neural network (NN)-based output feedback controller is proposed to deliver a desired tracking performance for a class of discrete-time nonlinear systems, which is represented in non-strict feedback form. The NN backstepping approach is utilized to design the adaptive output feedback controller consisting of: 1) a NN observer to estimate the system states with the input-output data, and 2) two NNs to generate the virtual and actual control inputs, respectively. The non-causal problem in the discrete-time backstepping design is avoided by using the universal NN approximator. The persistence excitation (PE) condition is relaxed both in the NN observer and NN controller design. The uniformly ultimate boundedness (UUB) of the closed-loop tracking error, the state estimation errors and the NN weight estimates is shown.
Pharmacotherapy Specialty Certification Examination. IV. 1992 Results and Process Modifications, Including Recertification

Certification of pharmacotherapy specialists is proceeding smoothly. Modifications to the examination process, which include reapportioning domains, offering the examination at several sites, and establishing the recertification process, have occurred. The guidelines for petitioners and structure of specialization continue to receive the attention and interest of prospective candidates, pharmacy organizations, and the BPS. To date, 674 specialists have been certified in the approved specialties: 175 nuclear pharmacists, 236 nutrition pharmacists, and 263 pharmacotherapy specialists.
The membrane protein Pannexin1 forms two open-channel conformations depending on the mode of activation

Pannexin1 (Panx1) participates in several signaling events that involve adenosine triphosphate (ATP) release, including the innate immune response, ciliary beat in airway epithelia, and oxygen supply in the vasculature. The view that Panx1 forms a large ATP release channel has been challenged by the association of a low-conductance, small anion-selective channel with the presence of Panx1. We showed that Panx1 membrane channels can function in two distinct modes with different conductances and permeabilities when heterologously expressed in Xenopus oocytes. When stimulated by potassium ions (K + ), Panx1 formed a high-conductance channel of ~500 pS that was permeable to ATP. Various physiological stimuli can induce this ATP-permeable conformation of the channel in several cell types. In contrast, the channel had a low conductance (~50 pS) with no detectable ATP permeability when activated by voltage in the absence of K + . The two channel states were associated with different reactivities of the terminal cysteine of Panx1 to thiol reagents, suggesting different conformations. Single-particle electron microscopic analysis revealed that K + stimulated the formation of channels with a larger pore diameter than those formed in the absence of K + . These data suggest that different stimuli lead to distinct channel structures with distinct biophysical properties.
Global stability for a class of delay differential equations

Abstract The aim of this paper is to study the behaviour of solutions to a class of delay differential equations where the right-hand side depends only on the terms with delay. We study nonnegativity of solutions and global stability of the model.
Multidrug-Resistant Enterococci Lack CRISPR-cas

ABSTRACT Clustered, regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) provide bacteria and archaea with sequence-specific, acquired defense against plasmids and phage. Because mobile elements constitute up to 25% of the genome of multidrug-resistant (MDR) enterococci, it was of interest to examine the codistribution of CRISPR and acquired antibiotic resistance in enterococcal lineages. A database was built from 16 Enterococcus faecalis draft genome sequences to identify commonalities and polymorphisms in the location and content of CRISPR loci. With this data set, we were able to detect identities between CRISPR spacers and sequences from mobile elements, including pheromone-responsive plasmids and phage, suggesting that CRISPR regulates the flux of these elements through the E. faecalis species. Based on conserved locations of CRISPR and CRISPR- cas loci and the discovery of a new CRISPR locus with associated functional genes, CRISPR3- cas , we screened additional E. faecalis strains for CRISPR content, including isolates predating the use of antibiotics. We found a highly significant inverse correlation between the presence of a CRISPR- cas locus and acquired antibiotic resistance in E. faecalis, and examination of an additional eight E. faecium genomes yielded similar results for that species. A mechanism for CRISPR- cas loss in E. faecalis was identified. The inverse relationship between CRISPR- cas and antibiotic resistance suggests that antibiotic use inadvertently selects for enterococcal strains with compromised genome defense. IMPORTANCE For many bacteria, including the opportunistically pathogenic enterococci, antibiotic resistance is mediated by acquisition of new DNA and is frequently encoded on mobile DNA elements such as plasmids and transposons. Certain enterococcal lineages have recently emerged that are characterized by abundant mobile DNA, including numerous viruses (phage), and plasmids and transposons encoding multiple antibiotic resistances. These lineages cause hospital infection outbreaks around the world. The striking influx of mobile DNA into these lineages is in contrast to what would be expected if a self (genome)-defense system was present. Clustered, regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR) defense is a recently discovered mechanism of prokaryotic self-defense that provides a type of acquired immunity. Here, we find that antibiotic resistance and possession of complete CRISPR loci are inversely related and that members of recently emerged high-risk enterococcal lineages lack complete CRISPR loci. Our results suggest that antibiotic therapy inadvertently selects for enterococci with compromised genome defense.
Increased per capita herbivory in the shade: Necessity, feedback, or luxury consumption?

ABSTRACT Leaf chemistry and physiology vary with light environment and are often thought to directly affect herbivory patterns. Biotic (e.g., parasitoids and predators) and abiotic (e.g., temperature, relative humidity) factors known to influence herbivory also co-vary with light environment. Irrespective of mechanism, light-based differences in herbivore damage must be the result of variable herbivore abundance, per capita effects, or both. We examined the effect of light environment on leaf defence and leaf nutritional quality in Lindera benzoin (Lauraceae) and relate this to the abundance and impact of its lepidopteran herbivore Epimecis hortaria (Lepidoptera: Geometridae). In this system we consistently observe greater natural field herbivory in shade habitats relative to high light habitats, despite similar herbivore abundances; differences in herbivory are therefore most likely attributable to different per capita impacts of herbivores across environments. Potential herbivore behaviours responsible ...
New chiral synthon from bromoethylbenzene: Absolute stereochemistry of a biooxidation metabolite

Abstract (2-Bromoethyl)benzene was subjected to biooxidation with whole cells of Pseudomonas putida 39/D to yield (1 S , 2 R ) 3-(2-bromoethyl)-cyclohexa-3,5-diene-1,2-diol 1 with an optical purity of 96%.
Anterior Ocular Infections: An Overview of Pathophysiology and Treatment:

OBJECTIVE:To provide a review of the pathophysiology and treatment of anterior ocular infections.DATA SOURCE:A MEDLINE search (from 1970 to October 1998) as well as a review of the tertiary literature was performed to identify pertinent literature on pathophysiology and treatment of ocular infections.STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION:All articles were considered for possible inclusion in the review. Relevant studies were selected for discussion in the article.DATA SYNTHESIS:Ocular infections are common and vary from self-limiting to sight-threatening. Infections occur in different eye structures; presentation and treatment vary accordingly. Infections can occur when tissues of the eye are exposed to pathogens not normally present, when the eye is damaged, allowing pathogens to overcome the natural defenses of the eye, or in immunosuppressed patients where normal flora may become opportunistic. In deciding on appropriate treatment, both the causative pathogen and the structure(s) affected must be conside...
Wireless Sensor Networks—A Hands-On Modular Experiments Platform for Enhanced Pedagogical Learning

This paper presents the use of wireless sensor net works (WSNs) in educational research as a platform for enhanced pedagogical learning. The aim here with the use of a WSN plat form was to go beyond the implementation stage to the real-life ap plication stage, i.e., linking the implementation to real-life applications, where abstract theory and algorithmic implementations become natural tools for the execution of application itself. Abstract theoretical concepts are illustrated through hands-on modular experiments in a host of diverse electrical and computer engineering courses. The WSN consists of Mica2 motes with on-board sensors, wireless communication antennas, and processors that are programmed using NesC. Three sets of experiments feeding into different courses [on topics such as wireless embedded networks, detection and estimation theory, stochastic processes, probability theory, statistical pattern recognition, and digital signal processing (DSP)] and illustrating different theoretical concepts are presented in detail. These experiments can be used as demos in those courses and/or can be incorporated as hands-on laboratory projects to go hand in hand with the course in which they are introduced. Also presented is the assessment of the experiments as pedagogical tools, made by means of well-designed evaluation questionnaires given to the students. Both the sensor network platform and the novel experiments built on this platform are found to be pedagogically successful tools for learning about and teaching the theoretical concepts introduced in those courses. The assessment survey shows that students who had very little knowledge on average before the demonstrations/experiments gained extensive knowledge and interest in the subject matter after going through them.
A heterogeneous rapid-turnaround visualization package for AUV data

This paper presents a visualization package to address the growing quantity and diversity of AUV data, with an emphasis on rapid-turnaround scenarios such as dive planning. The package renders sensor data, photographs, and bathymetry from an AUV as a single scene in Google Earth. A web-based photo viewer facilitates rapid browsing and annotation of photographs, and allows export to the Google Earth scene.
Antler orogeny and foreland basin: A model

The Antler orogeny occurred in Mississippian time at a passive margin of the sialic North American continent in Nevada and probably in Idaho. Its principal events were the emplacement of an extensive allochthon of oceanic rocks on the continental shelf, subsidence of an elongate foreland basin, and maintenance of highlands in the interior region of the allochthon during and after subsidence of the foreland basin. The orogeny was apparently not accompanied by thermal phenomena or large crustal shortening. We follow earlier models by assuming that the orogeny was initiated by collision of an arc system with North America. Our proposal holds that a large accretionary prism of the probably far-traveled arc system was underthrust by the continental slope and outer shelf and became the Roberts Mountains allochthon. The Antler magmatic arc, now unexposed, thermally contracted after collision and was largely or entirely subducted in a later (Triassic) arc-continent collision. The Antler foreland basin was created by vertical loading and downflexing of the continental shelf by the allochthon, and sediment from subaerial regions of the allochthon ultimately filled and broadened the foreland basin. Quantitative models using the theory of a loaded thin elastic plate above a dense fluid provide reasonable agreement between calculated widths, depths, and asymmetry of plate deflections and the Antler foreland basin. Models predict that a flexural bulge of low amplitude migrated continentward ahead of the foreland basin during arc-continent closure. Certain stratigraphic phenomena in pre-foreland basin strata of central Nevada may record the passage of the bulge.
Ecological and taxonomic studies of shallow-water encrusting Corallinaceae (Rhodophyta) of the boreal northeastern Pacific

Abstract Encrusting coralline algae are a major component of the rocky intertidal and shallow subtidal zones of the boreal northeastern Pacific (the region from northern California to southeast Alaska). We reexamined this coralline flora by comparing field and museum collections with type material in order to revise the taxonomy to conform with current concepts and to provide new, species specific, ecological data. Of the eight species previously recognized for this region, only Pseudolithophyllum neofarlowii, and Lithothamnion (formerly Lithothamnium) phymatodeum were correctly placed as to genus. Phymatolithon muricatum and Mesophyllum whidbeyense are referred here to the genus Pseudolithophyllum. Lithothamnion pacificum is merged into L. phymatodeum and Lithophyllum lichenare is merged into Pseudolithophyllum muricatum. Lithothamnion californicum and Hydrolithon decipiens were shown not to occur in the study area. Plants in this study area formerly identified as H. decipiens were originally and correct...
First report of Phoma exigua on Centaurea solstitialis (Asteraceae) in Russia.

Phoma exigua Desm. (teleomorph Didymella exigua (Niessl) Sacc.) was isolated from wilted Centaurea solstitialis L. (yellow starthistle) plants displaying necrosis of the crown that were found near Krasnodar, Russia. The fungus was identified using morphological and cultural characteristics (1,2) and confirmed by sequencing the complete internal transcribed spacer region of the nuclear rDNA (GenBank Accession No. AY089978). P. exigua is a relatively common soilborne fungus that is weakly pathogenic on a diverse range of primarily dicotyledonous plants throughout the world (1). To our knowledge, it has never been reported previously on members of the genus Centaurea. Yellow starthistle is native to eastern Europe and the Mediterranean Region, and is now a noxious weed in North America for which P. exigua is being investigated as a potential biological control agent. Repeated pathogenicity studies (N = 30) resulted in a mortality of 80 and 93% within 7 days when 1-week-old seedlings were transplanted in soil infested with P. exigua-colonized wheat seed at rates of 6.7 and 10% (vol/vol), respectively. Symptoms of the seedlings included necrosis of the stem and wilting of the seedling. Pycnidia were observed in the roots of dead seedlings. The isolate of P. exigua has been deposited as a dried specimen at the U.S. National Fungus Collections, Beltsville, MD (BPI 841766) and as a living culture at the CBS collection in Utrecht, Netherlands (CBS 110211). References: (1) G. Morgan-Jones and K. B. Burch. Mycotaxon 32:477, 1988. (2) H. A. Van Der Aa et al. Persoonia 17:435, 2000.
Educational Engagement and Early Family Formation: Differences by Ethnicity and Generation

This paper examines how school engagement influences the timing of family formation for youth. We pay particular attention to variation across four racial/ethnic groups and by generation status, variation that reflects the diversification of U.S. society through immigration. Using data from the National Education Longitudinal Study (NELS), we employ discrete-time multinomial logistic regression models examining the likelihood of childbearing or marriage in late adolescence. We find that the delaying effects of school enrollment and engagement vary by race/ethnicity, suggesting that strategies for socioeconomic success that focus on delaying family roles are more important among some groups than others. The results also indicate that controlling for school enrollment and school engagement reduces differences in early marriage and non-marital childbearing by generation status.
Transformational Leadership Skills and Correlates of Prison Warden Job Stress

Job stress is related to poor job performance, dissatisfaction, and turnover for correctional officers in the workplace. Despite parallel implications for correctional administrators, an extension of the correctional officer job stress literature to prison wardens is virtually absent. Yet the dynamic correctional environment includes many added challenges for prison wardens that could lead to a stressful work experience. Similar to those of officers, coping mechanisms for prison wardens may include peer support, but the extent of a warden’s transformational leadership skills could be related to a more positive work experience. Results indicate that wardens who perceived themselves as having higher levels of transformational leadership capacity also experienced less job stress. Peer support was unrelated to job stress, but employee trust was a robust correlate. In addition, although corrections tenure was unrelated, a wider breadth of corrections experience (holding treatment and custody positions) was rel...
Activity of siRNAs with 2-Thio-2′-O-Methyluridine Modification in Mammalian Cells

In a search to identify chemical modifications to improve the properties of siRNA, we have investigated the effect of the 2 ′-O-methyl-2-thiouridine modification on the biological activity of siRNA. Our results indicate that judicious placement of 2 ′-O-methyl-2-thiouridine residues could lead to modified siRNA with activity in mammalian cells.
Vpr Promotes Macrophage-Dependent HIV-1 Infection of CD4 + T Lymphocytes

Vpr is a conserved primate lentiviral protein that promotes infection of T lymphocytes in vivo by an unknown mechanism. Here we demonstrate that Vpr and its cellular co-factor, DCAF1, are necessary for efficient cell-to-cell spread of HIV-1 from macrophages to CD4+ T lymphocytes when there is inadequate cell-free virus to support direct T lymphocyte infection. Remarkably, Vpr functioned to counteract a macrophage-specific intrinsic antiviral pathway that targeted Env-containing virions to LAMP1+ lysosomal compartments. This restriction of Env also impaired virological synapses formed through interactions between HIV-1 Env on infected macrophages and CD4 on T lymphocytes. Treatment of infected macrophages with exogenous interferon-alpha induced virion degradation and blocked synapse formation, overcoming the effects of Vpr. These results provide a mechanism that helps explain the in vivo requirement for Vpr and suggests that a macrophage-dependent stage of HIV-1 infection drives the evolutionary conservation of Vpr.
Congestion control for high performance, stability, and fairness in general networks

This paper is aimed at designing a congestion control system that scales gracefully with network capacity, providing high utilization, low queueing delay, dynamic stability, and fairness among users. The focus is on developing decentralized control laws at end-systems and routers at the level of fluid-flow models, that can provably satisfy such properties in arbitrary networks, and subsequently approximate these features through practical packet-level implementations. Two families of control laws are developed. The first "dual" control law is able to achieve the first three objectives for arbitrary networks and delays, but is forced to constrain the resource allocation policy. We subsequently develop a "primal-dual" law that overcomes this limitation and allows sources to match their steady-state preferences at a slower time-scale, provided a bound on round-trip-times is known. We develop two packet-level implementations of this protocol, using 1) ECN marking, and 2) queueing delay, as means of communicating the congestion measure from links to sources. We demonstrate using ns-2 simulations the stability of the protocol and its equilibrium features in terms of utilization, queueing and fairness, under a variety of scaling parameters.
What do patients really want to know

A 60‐year‐old male patient presents to his primary care physician complaining of recent fatigue. The work‐up reveals iron‐deficiency anaemia due to carcinoma of the ascending colon, which has extensively metastasized to the liver. Had this illness occurred in the early 1960s, when a paternalistic approach to medicine was at its height, the physician might have chosen to tell the patient that he has some inflammation, that he should take oral iron supplements twice a day, and come to see him in 2 months. Today, the physician will likely draw a diagram for the patient indicating the location of the primary tumour and its spread, and tell the patient that the condition is incurable and invariably fatal with a median survival of a few months. He or she will possibly suggest aggressive chemotherapy plus iron—discussing with the patient in detail each potential adverse drug reaction, however rare, as well as the relative futility of these treatments. No doubt the physician will also point out the increased risk of colorectal cancer in his siblings, who should be regularly screened, starting at the age of 40. This approach embodies the current emphasis on patients' autonomy and informed participation in all medical decisions related to their diagnosis or treatment. Could the pendulum from physician's paternalism to full patient …
A diffusion–reaction model for DNA microarray assays

DNA microarrays are extensively used for the quantification of the degree of differential mRNA expression. The assay involves hybridization of mobile DNA strands with immobilized complementary DNA strands to form duplexes. The overall duplex formation rate depends on the rate of transport of strands in solution to the corresponding spot on the surface, and the rate of the hybridization reaction. We present a theoretical model that incorporates both kinetics of the reversible hybridization reaction and diffusional transport of the labeled strands, and analyze DNA microarray hybridization using this model. Simulations are carried out in a geometrically realistic domain for labeled DNA concentrations corresponding to rare and abundant transcripts for typical assay conditions. The rate of strand diffusion in solution is shown to strongly affect the overall hybridization rate. We compute the minimum inter-spot spacing for replicate spots to enhance sensitivity. We also determine the hybridization time for which reliable estimates of the relative mRNA abundance of two species can be obtained using total fluorescence intensities. An analytical solution for the concentration distribution of mobile strands at intermediate hybridization times provides a convenient tool to calculate the mobile strand concentration profiles. This model provides a framework for the process analysis of all microarray assays currently used for genomic transcriptional analysis.
Adverse Metabolic Consequences in Humans of Prolonged Sleep Restriction Combined with Circadian Disruption

Epidemiological studies link short sleep duration and circadian disruption with higher risk of metabolic syndrome and diabetes. We tested the hypotheses that prolonged sleep restriction with concurrent circadian disruption, as can occur in people performing shift work, impairs glucose regulation and metabolism. Healthy adults spent >5 weeks under controlled laboratory conditions in which they experienced an initial baseline segment of optimal sleep, 3 weeks of sleep restriction (5.6 hours of sleep per 24 hours) combined with circadian disruption (recurring 28-hour "days"), followed by 9 days of recovery sleep with circadian re-entrainment. Exposure to prolonged sleep restriction with concurrent circadian disruption, with measurements taken at the same circadian phase, decreased the participants' resting metabolic rate and increased plasma glucose concentrations after a meal, an effect resulting from inadequate pancreatic insulin secretion. These parameters normalized during the 9 days of recovery sleep and stable circadian re-entrainment. Thus, in humans, prolonged sleep restriction with concurrent circadian disruption alters metabolism and could increase the risk of obesity and diabetes.
Capacity Expansion with Lead Times and Autocorrelated Random Demand

The combination of uncertain demand and lead times for installing capacity creates the risk of shortage during the lead time, which may have serious consequences for a service provider. This paper analyzes a model of capacity expansion with autocorrelated random demand and a fixed lead time for adding capacity. To provide a specified level of service, a discrete time expansion timing policy uses a forecast error-adjusted minimum threshold level of excess capacity position to trigger an expansion. Under this timing policy, the expansion cost can be minimized by solving a deterministic dynamic program. We study the effects of demand characteristics and the lead time length on the capacity threshold. Autocorrelation acts similarly to randomness in hastening expansions but has a smaller impact, especially when lead times are short. However, the failure either to recognize autocorrelation or to accurately estimate its extent can cause substantial policy errors. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2003
EEG changes and seizure exacerbation in young children treated with carbamazepine.

Summary: Carbamazepine (CBZ) has been reported to exacerbate some seizure types in children. We studied the correlation between CBZ-associated EEG changes and seizure exacerbation in 59 children aged <6 years treated with CBZ. All patients had EEGs before and after initiation of treatment; initial EEGs were not significantly different among the patients. In 33 children (56%), the subsequent EEGs were either unchanged or improved or demonstrated minor changes (Group I), and excellent to complete seizure control was achieved in 67% of patients. In 26 children (44%), the EEG became significantly more abnormal and was characterized predominantly by new appearance of generalized spikelpolyspike-and-wave discharges (group 11). The majority of these patients (65%) experienced seizure exacerbation (p <0.001). For group I, symptomatic partial epilepsy, idiopathic focal epilepsy, and complex febrile seizures were significantly more common; in group 11, cryptogenic seizure disorders were more common (p < 0.005). Children in group I were more likely to remain on CBZ or to be weaned from medication after successful treatment, whereas children in group II required additional medication(s) or complete discontinuation of CBZ. Our results suggest that new appearance of generalized paroxysmal discharges after treatment is highly correlated with seizure exacerbation or suboptimal control as well as with adverse outcome. Conversely, absence of significant EEG deterioration on CBZ is usually associated with good seizure control.
Further Definition of the Encephalitogenic Region for Guinea Pigs

The effect on encephalitogenicity of using a serinyl substitution for the glutaminyl group in the peptide ser arg phe ser trp gly ala glu gly gin arg is reported. We conclude from these results that the function of the glutaminyl residue in assisting this peptide to produce allergic encephalomyelitis in guinea pigs is as a hydrogen donor-receptor.
Time-Dependence of CIDNP Intensities

By its very nature the phenomenon of CIDNP is a time-dependent or “dynamic” effect. It was appreciated, even before the origin of the effect was correctly understood, that the observed nmr intensities reflect the competition between “pumping” of the nuclear spin states by a chemical reaction and relaxation of the populations to their equilibrium values [1]. It is our purpose here to illustrate and discuss some of the time dependent effects which have been observed in CIDNP, with special emphasis given to some of the distortions due to relaxation which can complicate the comparison between theoretical and experimentally observed spectra. In so doing we shall restrict the discussion as follows.
Coherent light transmission properties of commercial photonic crystal hollow core optical fiber.

Photonic crystal hollow core fiber (PC-HCF) has enabled many exciting new applications in nonlinear optics and spectroscopy. However, to date there has been less impact in coherent applications where preservation of optical phase over long fiber lengths is crucial. This paper presents characteristics of three commercially available PC-HCFs relevant to coherent applications including higher-order mode analysis, birefringence and polarization-dependent loss, and their impact on coherent light transmission in PC-HCF. Multipath interference due to higher-order mode propagation and Fresnel reflection is shown to generate excess intensity noise in transmission, which can be suppressed by up to 20 dB through high frequency phase modulation of the source laser. To demonstrate the potential of PC-HCF in high performance sensing, a Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MZI) incorporating 10 m of PC-HCF in each arm is characterized and demonstrates a phase resolution (59×10−9 rad/Hz1/2 at 30 kHz) close to the shot noise limit, which is better than can be achieved in a MZI made with the same length of single mode solid core fiber because of the limit set by fundamental thermodynamic noise (74×10−9 rad/Hz1/2 at 30 kHz).
The Residual Exception to the Hearsay Rule -- Has It Been Abused -- A Survey Since the 1997 Amendment

In our legal system of trial by jury, a good deal of the law of evidence is given to exploring hearsay and its exceptions. "The factors upon which the value of testimony depends, are: the perception, memory, narration, and sincerity of the witness." In order to encourage witnesses to put forth their best efforts and to expose inaccuracies that might be present with respect to any of these factors, our trial system has developed what is known as the testimonial ideal. That is, witnesses are required to testify under oath, testify in person, and be subject to cross examination. The rule against hearsay is designed to ensure compliance with these ideals. When one of them is absent, a hearsay objection becomes pertinent. Hearsay evidence is often characterized as unreliable and untrustworthy. Nevertheless, courts constantly admit hearsay evidence under the numerous exceptions found in the common law and in latter day statutes. "Hearsay evidence exhibits a wide range of reliability. The effort to adjust the rules of admissibility [of hearsay evidence] to variations in reliability has been a major motivating factor in the movement to liberalize evidence law." The purpose of this article is to survey and analyze the pertinent reported federal and state decisions addressing admission of residual hearsay since the 1997 amendment to the residual exception. Such survey and analysis reveal that there is little likelihood that the hearsay rule will be swallowed by the residual exception. A secondary purpose of this article is to provide examples to civil trial lawyers, defense attorneys, prosecutors, and judges of how the circumstantial guarantees of trustworthiness of the residual exception have been argued and analyzed in federal and state courts in recent years.
Automatic Error Detection in Natural Language Words

An approach for the automatic error detection in natural language words without the use of a dictionary of allowed words is described. Automatically generated tables, which describe allowed syllables and syllable sequences, are used instead. These, on the other hand, are based on allowed initial and terminal consonant and vowel clusters. Therefore, an arbitrary string or erroneous word is tested whether it resembles a natural language word applying the above sequence tables.
Design and Calibration of a 3D High-Resolution Surface Profiling System Using Photometric Stereo

This paper presents the design and calibration of a 3D high-resolution surface profiling system using photometric stereo (PS). This system is mainly composed of a high resolution DSLR camera with a macro lens facing perpendicularly to the target surface, and several LEDs tilting towards the surface constrained by a light fixture. With each LED turned on at a time to create one lighting direction, the camera fixed at the same position captures an image. PS with surface normal integration (SNI) are then performed to reconstruct the surface in 3D. Methods of four calibrations for the developed system are proposed to achieve better accuracy, which are the camera radiometric calibration, the camera geometric calibration, the light direction calibration and the light intensity calibration. Experiments have demonstrated that the developed system with the calibration processes could achieve the accuracy in the order of 10 microns.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
Additions to Lichen Distribution in North America

(1919). Additions to Lichen Distribution in North America. Mycologia: Vol. 11, No. 6, pp. 296-307.
A Resource-Based Approach to Assessing Interseeding Success in Reconstructed Tallgrass Prairies

Interseeding is a common method used to increase species richness within established reconstructed grasslands. This process depends upon the ability of the practitioner to produce resource conditions that facilitate seedling emergence in systems where such emergence is often limited. We tested effects of a mowing disturbance on interseeding success by seeding a mix of 10 common tallgrass prairie species into 1-m2 plots within two warm-season grass dominated grasslands. We clipped the vegetation on a subset of the plots once or repeatedly and measured environmental variables including litter depth, soil surface light, soil moisture, and soil nitrate within the first growing season. While clipping consistently increased soil surface light, seeded species emergence varied in response to measured environmental resources between sites. In the lowland site, emergence over two growing seasons was primarily explained by microsite and early season light availability. In the more recently burned upland site, emergence was primarily limited by later season light conditions associated with clipping. Despite this variation, seed additions increased plot-scale species richness irrespective of clipping effects mainly as a result of high establishment of wild bergamot ( Monarda fistulosa ) in both sites. It appears that effects of season-long defoliation management on seedling emergence depend on microsite conditions at seeding and we conclude that soil surface and established vegetation management are necessary when interseeding to increase grassland species richness.
High Pressure Liquid Chromatographic-Thermal Energy Determination of N-Nitrosodiethanolamine in Cosmetics

Methods for the determination and confirmation of N-nitrosodiethanolamine (NDELA) in cosmetic products were developed. The NDELA fraction was isolated from a cosmetic product by a series of solvent extractions which were designed to concentrate the NDELA and remove ingredients deleterious to the analytical system. The isolated fraction was then analyzed for NDELA using a high pressure liquid chromatograph (HPLC) interfaced with a thermal energy analyzer (TEA). The compound was measured by comparison of detector response with those of known standards. NDELA was verified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of the silyl derivative after preliminary cleanup of the sample by gradient elution HPLC on a Partisil 10 PAC column. The limit of detection of NDELA by TEA is 2-3 ng, which corresponds to 20-30 ppb in the cosmetic product. Analysis of an emulsion cream and a hair grooming gel spiked at 3 and 4 ng concentration levels, respectively, yielded recoveries ranging from 71 to 103% (average 88%).
Hydraulic limitation on maximum height of Pinus strobus trees in northern Minnesota, USA

Key message Using comparisons within and between trees, the authors show evidence for hydraulic limitation of tree height in a humid-climate species that is far from the global maximum tree height.