cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Two decades of mixing tritium into the North Pacific Ocean

Abstract Tritium data collected in the North Pacific Ocean mostly from Long Lines cruises (1983–1985) are compared with GEOSECS data (1973–1974) to characterize the dominant circulation processes in the second decade after the major bomb injection. The total decaycorrected inventory for the North Pacific Ocean remained nearly constant during the decade between GEOSECS and Long Lines, although the spatial distribution changed. Tritium was lost from the subpolar region and was gained by the tropics. Exchange between the subpolar and subtropical regions appears to be occurring at both the extreme eastern and western boundaries. On isopycnals that are not thought to outcrop ≥26.80 σ θ ), the tritium inventory is about 30% higher in the Long Lines data. The GEOSECS tritium data show that the ventilation time scale of the thermocline is rapid; less than 10 years. The GEOSECS tritium distribution is characterized by north-south gradients, which are strongest in the east. The Long Lines tritium data show that the eastern portion of the subtropical gyre is well mixed and has similar values to the subpolar region. We attribute this difference in the data sets to the sharp decrease in the tritium source function after the mid-1960s. Without the addition of tritium at northern outcrops, gradients cannot be maintained in the presence of mixing. Higher tritium values in the eastern, as compared with the western, portion of the basin are consistent with Subtropical Mode Water and shallow salinity minimum water formation. Furthermore, differences between the eastern and western portions of the basin suggest that mixing and/or recirculation may be more important in the west. On non-outcropping isopycnals there is poleward and westward contraction of the subtropical gyre in both data sets. Cross i~opycnal mixing in the subpolar region ventilates isopycnals (as evidenced by the presence of bomb tritium) which do not outcrop. The Long Lines data suggest that after formation in the northwest, intermediate waters may be further ventilated within the Alaskan Gyre. The residence time in the subpolar region is estimated to be less than 14 years for North Pacific Intermediate Water and greater than 20 years for deeper waters. In the Long Lines data tritium penetration reaches at least to the oxygen minimum (27.40 σ θ ) in the subpolar and most of the SUbtropical region. The average increase in vertical tritium penetration in the Long Lines data is approximately 100 m. This is consistent with the small increase (from 12 to 14%) in the volume of the North Pacific Ocean exposed to bomb tritium. Fourteen per cent is a lower bound estimate of the ventilated volume of the North Pacific Ocean
On the Origin of Sphingolipid/Cholesterol-Rich Detergent-Insoluble Cell Membranes: Physiological Concentrations of Cholesterol and Sphingolipid Induce Formation of a Detergent-Insoluble, Liquid-Ordered Lipid Phase in Model Membranes

Detergent-insoluble membrane fragments that are rich in sphingolipid and cholesterol can be isolated from both cell lysates and model membranes. We have proposed that these arise from membranes that are in the liquid-ordered phase both in vivo and in vitro [Schroeder et al. (1994) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 91, 12130−12134]. In order to detect formation of the liquid-ordered phase while avoiding possible detergent artifacts, we have now used fluorescence quenching to examine the phase behavior of mixtures of phosphatidylcholines, sphingolipids, and cholesterol. Phase separation was found in binary mixtures of either dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) or sphingomyelin (SM) and a nitroxide-labeled phosphatidylcholine (12SLPC). A DPPC- or SM-enriched solidlike gel phase coexisted with a 12SLPC-enriched liquid-disordered fluid phase at 23 °C. As expected, phase separation was not seen at low concentrations of DPPC or SM. Instead, only a uniform fluid phase was present. Including 33 mol % cholesterol in ...
Amine nitrosation by sodium nitroprusside

Nitrosamine formation from the reaction of nitroprusside with morpholine was found to be a light-dependent reaction. Maximum nitrosation occurred when the reactants were exposed to UV light (lambda = 275-300 nm). However, considerable nitrosation also occurred with light in the visible spectrum up to 500 nm. No significant nitrosamine formation was observed when the reactants were kept in the dark. Data concerning the effects of other physical and chemical factors such as pH, temperature and reactant concentration on the reaction between morpholine and sodium nitroprusside are also presented.
Immunochemistry of sperm whale myoglobin. VII. Correlation of immunochemical cross-reaction of eight myoglobins with structural similarity and its dependence on conformation.

Structural similarities have been determined by mapping of the peptides of electrophoretically and chromatographically homogeneous myoglobins from human, monkey (Maccacus rhaesus), horse, camel, beef, lamb, goat and sperm whale. The amino acid compositions of myoglobins from monkey, camel, beef, lamb and goat have been carefully determined. Monkey Mb comprised 152 amino acid residues corresponding to a molecular weight of 17 557. Camel Mb had 153 residues and a molecular weight of 17 561. Beef and lamb myoglobins each had 153 residues and their molecular weights were 17 693 and 17 735, respectively. Goat Mb had 152 amino acid residues and its molecular weight was 17 594. Maximum structural similarities were between monkey Mb and human Mb; camel Mb and horse Mb; and lamb and beef Mb resembled goat Mb most closely. The antigenic cross-reactions of all the present eight myoglobins with antisera against human Mb, horse Mb, beef Mb, goat Mb or sperm whale Mb were determined. These results were also supported by absorption experiments on these sera. No cross-reaction was obtained between antisera to sperm whale Mb and the other seven myoglobins. With antisera to human Mb, monkey and camel myoglobins showed the highest and almost identical cross-reactions (75–83%). Horse Mb cross-reacted only partially (25 and 32% with the antisera tested). The other myoglobins did not react. With antisera to horse Mb, monkey and human myoglobins showed equal reactivities (30–33%) and the reactivity of camel Mb was only slightly higher (37 and 40% with the two sera tested). The other myoglobins did not react. With antisera to goat Mb, lamb and beef myoglobins showed equal reactivities (90–91%). The other five myoglobins did not react. With antisera to beef Mb, a stronger cross-reaction (87 and 90%) was obtained with lamb Mb than with goat Mb (76 and 72% with these two sera, respectively). The other five myoglobins did not react. These results together with those from absorption experiments, were discussed in relation to structural similarities of these eight myoglobins. The results show that in globular proteins, similarity in antigenic structure is not necessarily linearly related to similarity in sequence. The anamolies observed can be explained only in terms of the effect of differences in conformation.
A Mobility Adaptive Hybrid Protocol for Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless sensor networks (WSN) are becoming popular in a wide variety of monitoring applications. Though recent MAC protocol designs for sensor networks have focused on energy efficiency as the main criteria, mobility in a WSN presents interesting challenges and requires special algorithms. In this paper, we present a hybrid MAC protocol for mobile sensor networks, using schedule-based slots for static nodes and contention-based slots for mobile nodes. This protocol adapts to the level of mobility in the network by adjusting the ratio of static and mobile slots as well as the frame time. A mobility estimation algorithm based on the received signal strength of a message is used to determine the mobility level of a node. Simulation results show that in static sensor networks the performance of the proposed protocol is comparable to that of existing protocols, whereas in highly mobile scenarios it outperforms them in energy efficiency, packet delivery ratio, and latency.
On Zen, Flow, and Being in the Dance

(2001). On Zen, Flow, and Being in the Dance. Journal of Dance Education: Vol. 1, No. 3, pp. 102-105.
Effects of substance P and neurokinin A (substance K) on motor behavior: unique effect of substance P attributable to its amino-terminal sequence.

Abstract The effects of intraventricular injections of the neuropeptides substance P (SP) and neurokinin A (NK-A; also called substance K) on spontaneous motor behavior were examined in mice. SP and NK-A were essentially equipotent at enhancing grooming and scratching behavior, and at reducing sniffing behavior. However, SP significantly enhanced hindlimb rearing behavior, while NK-A reduced this behavior. The effects of 3 other tachykinins, physalaemin, eledoisin and kassinin, were comparable to those of NK-A, including the reduction in rearing. Thus, SP is unique among tachykinins in its potentiation of rearing behavior. It was further demonstrated that carboxy-terminal SP fragments with tachykinin activity on smooth muscle resemble NK-A, and not SP, in their effects on motor behavior. In contrast, amino-terminal SP fragments, devoid of tachykinin-like activity, reproduced the one motor effect unique to SP, enhanced rearing, while lacking those actions common to all tachykinins. The structural requirements for enhanced rearing behavior by amino-terminal fragments were quite specific, in terms of chain length and sensitivity to d -amino acid substitutions, with the natural amino-terminal hexa- and heptapeptides being most active. The implications of these findings are discussed in light of recent observations that these same amino-terminal SP fragments are produced in vivo as metabolites of SP.
Asymptomatic Synovial Chondromatosis of the Ankle: An Incidental Finding

Synovial chondromatosis is an uncommon, benign lesion of nodular cartilaginous neoplastic development of the synovium that can lead to loose bodies and arthritic degeneration if left untreated. Although very rare, malignant transformation to chondrosarcoma can occur. Primary and secondary forms of synovial chondromatosis also exist, and each has distinct clinical, radiographic, and histologic characteristics. In this article, we describe a case of extensive primary synovial chondromatosis of the ankle that was asymptomatic until just before presentation, and that was treated by means of open synovectomy with excision of the osteochondromatous lesions within the joint.
Weight gain in pregnancy and risk of maternal hyperglycemia

Objective The purpose of this study was to examine associations of weight gain from prepregnancy to glycemic screening with glucose tolerance status. Study Design Main outcomes were failed glycemic screening (1-hour glucose result ≥ 140 mg/dL) with either 1 high value on 3-hour oral glucose tolerance testing (impaired glucose tolerance in pregnancy) or ≥ 2 high values on 3-hour oral glucose tolerance testing (gestational diabetes mellitus). We performed multinomial logistic regression to determine the odds of these glucose intolerance outcomes by quartile of gestational weight gain among 1960 women in Project Viva. Results Mean gestational weight gain was 10.2 ± 4.3 (SD) kg. Compared with the lowest quartile of weight gain, participants in the highest quartile had an increased odds of impaired glucose tolerance in pregnancy (adjusted odds ratio, 2.54; 95% confidence interval, 1.25-5.15), but not gestational diabetes mellitus (odds ratio, 0.93; 95% confidence interval, 0.50-1.70). Conclusion Higher weight gain predicted impaired glucose tolerance in pregnancy, but not gestational diabetes mellitus.
Developmental determinants of recovery after relief of partial ureteral obstruction

Developmental determinants of recovery after relief of partial ureteral obstruction. Although obstructive nephropathy is a major cause of renal insufficiency at all ages, the functional consequences of relief of obstruction on the developing kidney are poorly understood. To evaluate recovery from chronic partial ureteral obstruction (CPUO) in the neonatal period, the left ureter of guinea pigs was constricted within the first 48 hours of life, and the obstruction was relieved 10 days later. At three and eight weeks of age, intraureteral pressure, number of perfused glomeruli (NPG), renal blood flow (RBF), and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) were measured. These animals were compared with sham-operated and unrelieved groups. Two additional groups underwent CPUO at five weeks of age, with persistent obstruction or relief in 10 days, and were also studied at eight weeks. In all animals, intraureteral pressure increased during ipsilateral ureteral obstruction and normalized following its release. Recovery of RBF and GFR after relief of ipsilateral CPUO in the newborns was only partial at eight weeks, with no renal growth or increase in NPG from three to eight weeks of age. In contrast, recovery of RBF in the adult was complete 10 days after relief of obstruction, with significant increase in GFR, and no decrease in renal mass or NPG. We conclude that if delayed, relief of CPUO in the neonate may not restore renal growth and functional maturation which have been impaired by CPUO.
DNA synthesis during early development of Drosophila melanogaster

Abstract The synthesis of DNA in D. melanogaster embryos was followed from preblastoderm to gastrula stages using in vitro radiolabelling techniques. Labelled thymidine was incorporated into main-peak nuclear DNA and into a satellite DNA species with a buoyant density of 1·689 g· cm−3 in CsCl. Mitochondrial DNA was not significantly labelled in pre- or postgastrula embryos. Analyses of changes in size and specific activity of the deoxythymidine triphosphate pool in developing embryos were made by high-pressure liquid chromatography and used for the interpretation of temporal changes in patterns of uptake of labelled thymidine into total and acid-insoluble radioactivity.
Thinking the ‘question’ of religion: The aporia of Buddhism and its democratic heritage in Sri Lanka

Abstract (If an abstract can ever be ‘abstract’?) Buddhism (and, more generally, religion) has never been thought as a question ‐ that is, as a question inseparable from the question of the political. The academic study of Buddhism continues to be dominated by an empiricist, humanist, and even humanitarian project, shackled by modes of knowledge production, within the garrisons of colonialist area studies. No textualizing, anthropologizing, historicizing approach ‐ however, critical it may be ‐ can avoid the trap of humanism. To think the question of religion, one must begin to think it and its heritage as an aporia, an irreducible contradiction. In reading Qadri Ismail's Abiding by Sri Lanka, I argue that reflecting on the aporia of religion ‐ whose legacy is not a ‘problem’ to be solved, inherited, or abandoned ‐ might well enable us to imagine a notion of the political hitherto unheard of.
The genetic control of sea urchin development: A chromatographic study of protein synthesis in the Arbacia punctulata Embryo

An analysis of the problem of embryonic differentiation in terms of protein synthesis was carried out in the embryo of Arbacia punctulata. The problem was approached with the technique of ion-exchange chromatography of the embryonic proteins soluble in 0.5 M sodium chloride. Synthetic activity was measured as the incorporation of radioactive amino acids into protein fractions. It was seen that the complexity of the embryo's protein-synthetic repertoire increases during early development indicating that differentiation at this level can be detected during early development. The antibiotic Actinomycin-D was found to inhibit most of the specific protein syntheses during late development, while inhibiting fewer in early development. This indicates that most of the differential changes in early protein-synthetic profiles occur under control of the readout of the embryo's stable messenger RNA. However, most differential changes associated with later development seem to be under control exerted at the gene level. Both translation-level and transcription-level control mechanisms appear to be active simultaneously at the stages of development analyzed. The inhibition of DNA-dependent RNA synthesis, and of further differentiation beyond blastula, was found to be reversible, even after developmental arrest had occurred. The inhibition of protein synthesis was also reversible on removing embryos from the presence of the antibiotic. Since normal development and normal protein-synthetic profiles are seen following this release of inhibition, it is concluded that there is no stringent requirement for the gene-directed synthesis of any specific protein during the first 18 hours of development, in order for normal larval development to occur.
Disruption of the Saccharomyces Cerevlsiae gene for NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase causes increased sensitivity to ketoconazole

Summary Strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae deleted in the NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase gene by transplacement are 200-fold more sensitive to ketoconazole, an inhibitor of the cytochrome P450 lanosterol 14α-demethylase. Resistance is restored through complementation by the plasmid-borne wild type gene from either S. cerevisiae or Candida tropicalis. Neither Southern hybridization nor Western immunoblot techniques provided evidence for a second NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase gene, suggesting that an alternate pathway may provide for the functions of this reductase in S. cerevisiae.
Lasers, light, and matter

The nature of light can be known and understood only through its interactions with matter. A few of the new ways that lasers can extend our knowledge of these interactions are discussed. They include methods for eliminating Doppler broadening from thermal motions in gases, such as saturated absorption and polarization spectroscopy. A convenient digital wavemeter for measuring wavelengths of tunable lasers is described. Complicated absorption spectra can be simplified by using a laser to modify the population or polarization of the chosen lower level.
Preparation and Characterization of Head-to-Head Polymers. III. Head-to-Head Poly (methyl Crotonate)

Abstract Alternating copolymers of cis-butene-2 and maleic anhydride were esterfied to the methylester which corresponds to head to head (H-H) poly(methyl crotonate). The chemical, physical, and mechanical properties and thermal degradation behavior of H-H poly (methyl crotonate) was studied and compared with the properties of head to tail (H-T) poly(methyl crotonate). This latter polymer was made by a known anionic polymerization technique and was, unlike the amorphous H-H polymer, partially crystalline. The Tg of H-H polymer was found to be higher than that of the H-T polymer. Thermal degradation behavior of H-H and H-T polymer was between the degradation behavior of H-H and H-T poly(methyl cinnamate) and poly (methyl acrylate). Poly (methyl crotonates) degraded to a substantial part to small molecules and char; methyl crotonate was found among the degradation products. H-H Poly (methyl crotonate) gave also butene-2 and a mixture of dimethyl maleate and dimethyl fumarate on pyrolysis.
How Children Learn the Ins and Outs: A Training Study of Toddlers' Categorization of Animals

Young children are able to categorize animals on the basis of unobservable features such as shared biological properties (e.g., bones). For the most part, children learn about these properties through explicit verbalizations from others. The present study examined how such input impacts children's learning about the properties of categories. In a training study with thirty-six 2.5-year-olds (Mage = 2;9), we tested the prediction that a relatively small amount of input highlighting the importance of unobservable properties would lead to a gradual shift in children's use of these properties for categorization. Children with no initial categorization bias were trained to categorize either on the basis of shared unobservable properties or shared observable properties. During 3 days of training, children gradually developed a categorization bias in the direction of the property type for which they received training and sustained this bias more than a week after training. Also, a set of children who exhibited a...
Differential molecular dynamics and transmembrane fluidity gradients in canine myocardial sarcolemma and sarcoplasmic reticulum.

Abstract The molecular dynamics of highly purified preparations of canine myocardial sarcolemma (SL) and sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) were quantified by electron spin resonance spectroscopy (ESR). Canine myocardial SL and SR have substantially different motional regimes in their membrane interiors as demonstrated by alterations in the relative peak height ratios, peak widths and peak splittings in ESR spectra of 16-doxylstearate incorporated into SL and SR. Quantification of the apparent order parameters (S) of 16-doxylstearate in SL and SR by analyses of ESR spectra demonstrated that the interior of the SL membrane was substantially more immobilized than the interior of the SR membrane (e.g. S = 0.168 ± 0.002 for SL and S = 0.128 ± 0.003 for SR). In contrast, only modest differences in membrane dynamics near the hydrophobic-hydrophilic interface were present in SL and SR as ascertained by ESR spectra of the probe 5-doxylstearate incorporated into these membranes. Myocardial sarcolemma contained heretofore unsuspected amounts of cholesterol (1.4 ± 0.1 μmol cholesterol/mg protein) while sarcoplasmic reticulum contained only small amounts of cholesterol (0.17 ± 0.06 μmol cholesterol/mg protein). Model systems employing binary mixtures of plasmenylcholine/cholesterol and phosphatidylcholine/cholesterol demonstrated that the observed alterations in molecular dynamics were due, in large part, to the differential cholesterol content in these two subcellular membrane compartments. Taken together, these results demonstrate that these two functionally distinct myocardial subcellular membranes have markedly disparate molecular dynamics and transmembrane fluidity gradients which may facilitate their performance of specific functional roles during excitation-contraction coupling in myocardium.
The relation of DNA synthesis to RNA synthesis in developing frog embryos.

Abstract Frog embryos (gastrulae, neurulae, and tailbuds) were cut into dorsal ectoderm-mesoderm and endoderm regions and the isolated parts were incubated with uridine-14C. In relation to the size of the acid-soluble pool, the endoderm regions synthesize less total RNA than do dorsal ectoderm and mesoderm cells, while cytosine arabinoside and LiCl inhibit both total RNA and DNA synthesis. The endoderm cells synthesize more RNA in relation to the level of DNA synthesis than do the dorsal ectoderm-mesoderm cells. Unlabeled RNA:DNA ratios were also higher for nuclei and chromatin of the belly cells than for the dorsal axial cells. Embryos in which DNA synthesis was retarded with lithium chloride or cytosine arabinoside synthesized more RNA in relation to the amount of DNA synthesis than did the control embryos. This suggests that there is less inhibition of RNA synthesis, compared to the level of inhibition of DNA synthesis, by cytosine arabinoside and LiCl. LiCl and NaCl (0.25% concentrations) caused an increase in the level of labeled compounds in the acid-soluble pools. The results are discussed in relation to the speculation that the frequency of mitosis can affect the transcription of the DNA of the genome, leading to the synthesis of qualitatively different mRNA molecules which affect the direction of cellular differentiation.
Structure and function of a single-chain, multi-domain long-chain acyl-CoA carboxylase

A novel biotin-dependent carboxylase with a preference for long-chain acyl-CoA substrates and a unique holoenzyme architecture is described. Mutations in biotin-dependent carboxylases have been linked to serious metabolic diseases in humans, and acetyl-CoA carboxylase is a target for drug discovery against diabetes, cancer and other diseases. In this manuscript, the authors identified and characterized an unusual biotin-dependent carboxylase found in bacteria. The enzyme has a preference for long-chain acyl-CoA substrates and a unique holoenzyme architecture. X-ray crystal and cryo-electron microscopy structures reveal a large hexameric enzyme in which the domains of each monomer are extensively swapped within the holoenzyme, suggesting that each cycle of catalysis requires the participation of domains from four different monomers. Functional studies in Pseudomonas aeruginosa suggest that the enzyme is involved in the utilization of specific carbon and nitrogen sources. Biotin-dependent carboxylases are widely distributed in nature and have important functions in the metabolism of fatty acids, amino acids, carbohydrates, cholesterol and other compounds1,2,3,4,5,6. Defective mutations in several of these enzymes have been linked to serious metabolic diseases in humans, and acetyl-CoA carboxylase is a target for drug discovery in the treatment of diabetes, cancer and other diseases7,8,9. Here we report the identification and biochemical, structural and functional characterizations of a novel single-chain (120 kDa), multi-domain biotin-dependent carboxylase in bacteria. It has preference for long-chain acyl-CoA substrates, although it is also active towards short-chain and medium-chain acyl-CoAs, and we have named it long-chain acyl-CoA carboxylase. The holoenzyme is a homo-hexamer with molecular mass of 720 kDa. The 3.0 A crystal structure of the long-chain acyl-CoA carboxylase holoenzyme from Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis revealed an architecture that is strikingly different from those of related biotin-dependent carboxylases10,11. In addition, the domains of each monomer have no direct contact with each other. They are instead extensively swapped in the holoenzyme, such that one cycle of catalysis involves the participation of four monomers. Functional studies in Pseudomonas aeruginosa suggest that the enzyme is involved in the utilization of selected carbon and nitrogen sources.
Initial experience with laparoendoscopic single-site simple nephrectomy using the TransEnterix SPIDER surgical system: assessing feasibility and safety.

Abstract Purpose: The goal of this report is to describe our initial clinical experience performing a simple nephrectomy with the SPIDER (Single Port Instrument Delivery Extended Reach) laparoendoscopic single-site (LESS) surgical system. Patient and Methods: One patient with a nonfunctioning kidney secondary to a ureteropelvic junction obstruction underwent a simple nephrectomy through a single incision performed using the SPIDER surgical system. We assessed the technical feasibility, efficiency, and perioperative outcomes. Results: The SPIDER-LESS nephrectomy was performed successfully without additional skin incisions for laparoscopic ports, instrument clashing, or open conversion. Total operative time was 210 minutes with blood loss of 50 mL. The patient experienced no intraoperative or postoperative complications. Pathologic evaluation confirmed atrophic renal parenchyma. Conclusions: The SPIDER surgical system LESS nephrectomy is feasible and safe. Future refinements of the technology and prospectiv...
A specific CRH antagonist attenuates ACTH-stimulated cortisol secretion in ovine adrenocortical cells.

Corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) has been detected in the adrenal gland of many species and may be involved in regulation of glucocorticoid secretion. In cultured human fetal adrenal definitive/transitional zone cells, CRH upregulates the adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) receptor and steroidogenic enzymes and is blocked by the selective CRH type 1 receptor (CRH1) antagonist, antalarmin. Based on these findings and evidence that antalarmin infusion into sheep suppressed prepartum increases in cortisol, we hypothesized that antalarmin would influence adrenal cortisol secretion. Antalarmin strongly attenuated ACTH and forskolin (FSK)-stimulated cortisol and cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) release from cultured ovine adrenocortical cells but did not prevent ACTH binding to cells or ACTH-induced proliferation in adult cells. Corticotropin releasing hormone was minimally effective as a secretagogue but increased the cortisol response to subsequent ACTH. These results suggest that antalarmin attenuates ACTH-induced cortisol secretion from cultured ovine adrenal cortical cells at a site distal to the ACTH receptor. Although CRH may modulate the secretory response to ACTH, it is probably not a direct cortisol secretagogue in the sheep.
Behavioral effects of CGS 8216 alone, and in combination with diazepam and pentobarbital in dogs.

Abstract Beagle dogs (N=3) responded under a multiple fixed-interval (FI) 300 sec, fixed-ratio (FR) 30 schedule of food presentation. The pyrazoloquinoline derivative CGS 8216, given either intravenously (0.01–3.0 mg/kg) or orally (0.1–30.0 mg/kg) had little effect on either the rate or temporal pattern of responding during either component. Both diazepam (0.3 to 17.5 mg/kg, PO) and pentobarbital (0.1–17.5 mg/kg, PO) produced qualitatively similar effects on behavior. Rates of responding during the FI components first increased, then decreased with increasing doses; both drugs produced only dose-related decreases in the rate of responding during the FR components. CGS 8216 antagonized some of the behavioral effects of diazepam; FI and FR response rates returned to baseline, however the effects of diazepam on quarter-life values were not appreciably altered by CGS 8216. The effects of pentobarbital on schedule-controlled responding were not antagonized by CGS 8216. These results indicate CGS 8216 is a selective benzodiazepine antagonist that does not produce benzodiazepine-like behavioral effects.
Vulnerability assessment of rainfall-induced debris flows in Taiwan

A GIS-based decision support system, which incorporates local topographic and rainfall effects on debris flow vulnerability is developed. Rainfall at a scale compatible with the digital elevation model resolution is obtained using a neural network with a wind-induced topographic effect and rainfall derived from satellite rain estimates and an adaptive inverse distance weight method (WTNN). The technique is tested using data collected during the passage of typhoon Tori-Ji on July 2001 over central Taiwan. Numerous debris flows triggered by the typhoon were used as control for the study. Our results show that the WTNN technique outperforms other interpolation techniques including adaptive inversed distance weight (AIDW), simple kriging (SK), co-kriging, and multiple linear regression using gauge, and topographic parameters. Multiple remotely-sensed, fuzzy-based debris-flow susceptibility parameters are used to describe the characteristics of watersheds. Non-linear, multi-variant regressions using the WTNN derived rainfall and topography factors are derived using self-organizing maps (SOM) for the debris flow vulnerability assessment. An index of vulnerability representing the degrees of hazard is implemented in a GIS-based decision support system by which a decision maker can assess debris flow vulnerability.
Kishi lag times for O2 adsorption onto irradiated poly(bisphenol‐A carbonate) and poly(methyl methacrylate)

Re-examination of some data which were originally taken to determine diffusion coefficients and their variation with applied stress in electron irradiated poly(bisphenol-A carbonate) and poly(methyl methacrylate) has verified the existence of Kishi induction periods ti for the initial stages of O2 sorption by these polymers. The data conform to the relation . Some new gas sorption data for poly(bisphenol-A carbonate) by Norton are utilized in conjunction with data and equations from our previous paper to estimate initial concentrations of the free radicals associated with the visually sharp diffusion boundary which was the major topic of our previous paper. The value G[oxygen-bleached color-centers/h.e.v.] obtained for these radicals is compared with recent viscometric determinations by Golden and Hazell.
Vortices in helium 3: an analog to cosmic strings in the early universe

Abstract Cosmic strings are linear topological defects which are predicted in many “grand unified” models of particle physics, and which are used to construct a promising theory of large-scale structure formation. Cosmic strings share many features with vortices in helium 3. Similarities and differences are reviewed in this paper. A couple of experiments with helium 3 vortices which would yield important information for cosmology are suggested.
Mode Separation in Oscillators with Two Coaxial-Line Resonators

The resonance frequencies of a capacitance-terminated coaxial-line resonator may readily be determined graphically. The graphical analysis shows clearly why separation of the various modes of resonance is possible in oscillators using two resonators. Mode separation is favored by the use of resonators that have a large difference in their products of characteristic impedance and terminating capacitance. Too great a difference in the CZ 0 o products may, however, result in the coincidence of two modes of resonance for certain tuning combinations. Measured tuning curves for a lighthouse-tube oscillator agree with predicted curves in their general aspects. The agreement is improved by considering the tube electrodes and leads as extensions of the coaxial lines, terminated in capacitances smaller than the lumped interelectrode capacitances.
Micromachined electrical field-flow fractionation (/spl mu/-EFFF) system

In this work, micromachining technologies are used in the development of the next generation of precision /spl mu/-EFFF separation systems. Current macromachining techniques are the limiting factor in the development of more effective Electrical Field-Flow Fractionation (EFFF) separation systems. EFFF systems are used to separate particles in colloids such as cells or proteins. In this paper, EFFF systems are compared to other separation systems and a review of past micromachining efforts in the area of separation systems is made. The theory behind the operation and resolution of an EFFF system is surveyed and the advantages to be gained from application of micromachining technologies are discussed. A method of fabrication that relies on micromachining technologies for /spl mu/-EFFF system construction is described. The /spl mu/-EFFF system setup is described, devices are tested, compared to the current macro EFFF systems, and the results reported.
Combination of Symmetric Hash Functions for Secure Fingerprint Matching

Fingerprint based secure biometric authentication systems have received considerable research attention lately, where the major goal is to provide an anonymous, multipliable and easily revocable methodology for fingerprint verification. In our previous work, we have shown that symmetric hash functions are very effective in providing such secure fingerprint representation and matching since they are independent of order of minutiae triplets as well as location of singular points (e.g. core and delta). In this paper, we extend our prior work by generating a combination of symmetric hash functions, which increases the security of fingerprint matching by an exponential factor. Firstly, we extract kplets from each fingerprint image and generate a unique key for combining multiple hash functions up to an order of (k-1). Each of these keys is generated using the features extracted from minutiae k-plets such as bin index of smallest angles in each k-plet. This combination provides us an extra security in the face of brute force attacks, where the compromise of few hash functions as well do not compromise the overall matching. Our experimental results suggest that the EER obtained using the combination of hash functions (4.98%) is comparable with the baseline system (3.0%), with the added advantage of being more secure.
Human Resource Problems and State Management Performance Across Two Decades The Implications for Civil Service Reform

Based on the views of hundreds of managers in 10 states surveyed in 1982 and 2000, this article explores the severity of a range of human resource-related barriers to effective state management. Adequately rewarding outstanding employees, difficulty filling key staff vacancies, retaining experienced staff, disciplining low-performing employees, and—in 2000—uncompetitive pay were among the most serious impediments. Little change in the severity of various human resource-related problems occurred between 1982 and 2000, however. Despite the criticism often leveled at them, variation in civil service coverage and variation in public sector collective bargaining were typically only weakly related to the severity of particular personnel-related problems. In fact, certain problems were less serious in those states with more extensive civil service coverage or more widespread collective bargaining. There was little evidence that deregulating aspects of state human resource systems reduced the severity of personne...
How Effective Are Pedagogical Agents for Learning? A Meta-Analytic Review.

Research on the use of software programs and tools such as pedagogical agents has peaked over the last decade. Pedagogical agents are on-screen characters that facilitate instruction. This meta-analysis examined the effect of using pedagogical agents on learning by reviewing 43 studies involving 3,088 participants. Analysis of the results indicated that pedagogical agents produced a small but significant effect on learning. The overall mean effect size was moderated by the contextual and methodological features of the studies. The findings revealed that the use of pedagogical agents were more beneficial for K-12 students than post-secondary students. Pedagogical agents that communicated with students using on-screen text facilitated learning more effectively than agents that communicated using narration. The findings of this study have implications for advancing theory and practice, as well as highlighting productive future directions for research.
Noisy speech recognition based on HMMs, Wiener filters and re-evaluation of most likely candidates

The effects of noise on observation probability are described in terms of the mean and variance of the disturbance. The observation that in many cases of erroneous speech recognition the correct model is among the few with the highest scores forms the basis for filtering and reevaluation of a few high scoring candidates before making a final decision. The noisy input signal is filtered by state-dependent Wiener filters derived from the most likely state sequence of each HMM (hidden Markov model). A revised score for each candidate model and the filtered signal is calculated. The method based on state-dependent Wiener filters and reevaluation of highest scoring candidates results in substantial improvement in recognition performance. The increase in computational complexity is not prohibitive and depends on the number of candidates reevaluated. >
Do You See What I Am Saying? Exploring Visual Enhancement of Speech Comprehension in Noisy Environments

Viewing a speaker’s articulatory movements substantially improves a listener’s ability to understand spoken words, especially under noisy environmental conditions. It has been claimed that this gain is most pronounced when auditory input is weakest, an effect that has been related to a well-known principle of multisensory integration—‘‘inverse effectiveness.’’ In keeping with the predictions of this principle, the present study showed substantial gain in multisensory speech enhancement at even the lowest signal-tonoise ratios (SNRs) used (224 dB), but it was also evident that there was a ‘‘special zone’’ at a more intermediate SNR of 212 dB where multisensory integration was additionally enhanced beyond the predictions of this principle. As such, we show that inverse effectiveness does not strictly apply to the multisensory enhancements seen during audiovisual speech perception. Rather, the gain from viewing visual articulations is maximal at intermediate SNRs, well above the lowest auditory SNR where the recognition of whole words is significantly different from zero. We contend that the multisensory speech system is maximally tuned for SNRs between extremes, where the system relies on either the visual (speechreading) or the auditory modality alone, forming a window of maximal integration at intermediate SNR levels. At these intermediate levels, the extent of multisensory enhancement of speech recognition is considerable, amounting to more than a 3-fold performance improvement relative to an auditory-alone condition.
ESTIMATING FOOD TEMPERATURES DURING VARIOUS PROCESSING OR HANDLING TREATMENTS

SUMMARY— A procedure was developed for predicting the transient temperature of a solid food exposed to time variable ambient temperatures. Duhamel's theorem was applied to the empirical formulas used for calculating the temperature of a food subjected to a step change in its ambient temperature. The formulas contain two constants: f, the slope index of a heating or cooling curve of a food; and j, the intercept coefficient of the heating or cooling curve. With the procedure developed transient temperature can be estimated without regard to the geometric shape of the food provided the f and j values are known. A table is presented to reduce computations involved in the procedure. Sample calculations are given for a fresh orange, a fresh carrot and a canned food product.
EMBRYONIC PATTERNING OF CONE SUBTYPES IN THE MAMMALIAN RETINA

Vertebrate color vision is mediated by different subtypes of cones whose visual pigments or opsins are maximally sensitive to long (LWS cones), middle (MWS cones), or short (SWS cones) wavelengths of light (Dartnall et al., 1983). Quantitative assessment of the distribution of these wavelength-sensitive cones in several mammalian species has revealed dramatically different arrangements and combinations of cone subtypes across the retinal sheet that coincide with differences in color vision and photopic acuity. For example, in the retina of both rhesus monkey and man, opsin-specific cone subtypes are arranged into reiterative patterns, in which each SWS cone is surrounded by approximately ten L/MWScones (Szel et al., 1988; Curcio et al, 1991; Wikler and Rakic, 1990). In contrast, in the mouse cone subtypes are topographically segregated with ventral retina occupied exclusively by SWS cones and dorsal retina dominated by MWS cones (Szel et al., 1992; Rohlich et al., 1994; Calderone and Jacobs, 1995). Thus, the different adult cone arrangements in murine and primate retina suggest that color vision may be tightly linked to the specification of both the position and the relative ratios of wavelength-sensitive cone subtypes.
Utilization of Below-the-Hairline EEG in Detecting Subclinical Seizures

Nonconvulsive status epilepticus (NCSE) is a serious condition commonly considered when evaluating a patient with altered mental status, and an electroencephalogram (EEG) is necessary for diagnosis...
Adaptive Sensor Fault Detection and Identification Using Particle Filter Algorithms

Sensor fault detection and identification (FDI) is a process of detecting and validating sensor's fault status. Because FDI guarantees system reliable performance, it has received much attention recently. In this paper, we address the problem of online sensor fault identification and validation. For a physical sensor validation system, it contains transitions between sensor normal and faulty states, change of system parameters, and a fusion of noisy readings. A common dynamic state-space model with continuous state variables and observations cannot handle this problem. To circumvent this limitation, we adopt a Markov switch dynamic state-space model to simulate the system: we use discrete-state variables to model sensor states and continuous variables to track the change of the system parameters. Problems in Markov switch dynamic state-space model can be well solved by particle filters, which are popularly used in solving problems in digital communications. Among them, mixture Kalman filter (MKF) and stochastic M-algorithm (SMA) have very good performance, both in accuracy and efficiency. In this paper, we plan to incorporate these two algorithms into the sensor validation problem, and compare the effectiveness and complexity of MKF and SMA methods under different situations in the simulation with an existing algorithm - interactive multiple models.
Are the Mechanisms for NO-Dependent Vascular Remodeling Different From Vasorelaxation In Vivo?

The remodeling of blood vessels, characterized by thickening of the vessel wall attributable to neointima formation or changing of the vessel wall thickness and diameter, occurs after injury, dysfunction, or endothelial denudation, resembling the risk associated with endovascular surgery. Upon vascular injury, activated vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) of local or systemic origin contribute to the remodeling processes which may eventually lead to occlusion of the blood vessel.1 Thus, understanding the molecular aspects of occlusive neointimal proliferation is desirable to promote better therapies for this disease process. See accompanying article on page 1244 There is substantial evidence that endothelial-derived nitric oxide (NO) is a key regulator of vascular remodeling.2,3 Endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS)-derived NO diffuses into the surrounding cell layers of VSMCs to exert various cardiovascular homeostatic functions. eNOS can be stimulated to produce NO by hemodynamic forces, autacoids, hormones, and growth factors. Once NO diffuses into the VSMC layer, NO mediates vasorelaxation but also regulates the balance of VSMC proliferation versus apoptosis, the latter functions governing important aspects of vessel caliber and remodeling.4 Thus, one can envision …
Operation of a nonlinear loop mirror in a laser cavity

A nonlinear loop mirror can be used as a solid state saturable loss element. The transmission characteristics of the different embodiments of this mirror are shown to change significantly when it is used in the soliton-forming wavelength range. The implications for its use in a laser cavity are discussed. >
Evolution of life history and behavior in Hominidae: towards phylogenetic reconstruction of the chimpanzee-human last common ancestor.

Abstract The origin of the fundamental behavioral differences between humans and our closest living relatives is one of the central issues of evolutionary anthropology. The prominent, chimpanzee-based referential model of early hominin behavior has recently been challenged on the basis of broad multispecies comparisons and newly discovered fossil evidence. Here, we argue that while behavioral data on extant great apes are extremely relevant for reconstruction of ancestral behaviors, these behaviors should be reconstructed trait by trait using formal phylogenetic methods. Using the widely accepted hominoid phylogenetic tree, we perform a series of character optimization analyses using 65 selected life-history and behavioral characters for all extant hominid species. This analysis allows us to reconstruct the character states of the last common ancestors of Hominoidea, Hominidae, and the chimpanzee–human last common ancestor. Our analyses demonstrate that many fundamental behavioral and life-history attributes of hominids (including humans) are evidently ancient and likely inherited from the common ancestor of all hominids. However, numerous behaviors present in extant great apes represent their own terminal autapomorphies (both uniquely derived and homoplastic). Any evolutionary model that uses a single extant species to explain behavioral evolution of early hominins is therefore of limited use. In contrast, phylogenetic reconstruction of ancestral states is able to provide a detailed suite of behavioral, ecological and life-history characters for each hypothetical ancestor. The living great apes therefore play an important role for the confident identification of the traits found in the chimpanzee–human last common ancestor, some of which are likely to represent behaviors of the fossil hominins.