cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
O monstro das palabras: Reframing Rosalía de Castro’s Role for Future Generations

Rosalia de Castro’s literary production has been studied in depth by many scholars who have focused on her works as examples of canonical Galician literature, despite the fact that not all of them were written in Galician. She continues to be, nonetheless, a particularly rich subject of study, and in the past few years, there has been an obvious effort to revive interest in her work among school children in Galicia. In this chapter, I will focus on two recent works: the novel O monstro das palabras (2009), by Maria Raimondez and the illustrated poetry collection Rosalia pequenina (2013), by Uxia Senlle and Marina Seoane. Both of these texts represent a novel approach to bringing the nineteenth-century Galician poet closer to the world of twenty-first century-school children. I contend that both examples of children’s literature attempt to rescue the most emblematic author of Galician national literature in order to redefine her legacy at a critical time of post-national discourses.
A Skull’s Tale: From Middle Bronze Age Subject to Teaching Collection “Object”

In 1964, the American Expedition to Hebron began its first of three field seasons of archaeological work at Tell er-Rumeide (ancient Hebron) in the Palestinian territories. One discovery, Tomb 4, was a cave dated to the Middle Bronze Age II that held eight burials. Among these burials was a supine individual associated with a bronze toggle pin and large bronze dagger. Identified by excavators as an aged man, this burial was interpreted to belong to the well-documented Canaanite tradition of “warrior burials.” Approximately four decades later, Dr. William Poe, a participant in the Hebron expedition in 1966, donated a skull to Sonoma State University’s Anthropology Department. This skull is believed to be that of the “warrior” in Tomb 4 at Tell er-Rumeide. Bioarchaeological analysis and accompanying historical and archaeological research, taking place in preparation for the skull’s use in a teaching collection, are recontextualizing these remains. Drawing on multiple lines of evidence from osteology, archaeology, and oral history, the story of this skull can be explored not only from his life to his death but from a subject of Canaanite Hebron to an object of study in modern-day California.
GIFGIF+: Collecting emotional animated GIFs with clustered multi-task learning

Animated GIFs are widely used on the Internet to express emotions, but their automatic analysis is largely unexplored. Existing GIF datasets with emotion labels are too small for training contemporary machine learning models, so we propose a semi-automatic method to collect emotional animated GIFs from the Internet with the least amount of human labor. The method trains weak emotion recognizers on labeled data, and uses them to sort a large quantity of unlabeled GIFs. We found that by exploiting the clustered structure of emotions, the number of GIFs a labeler needs to check can be greatly reduced. Using the proposed method, a dataset called GIFGIF+ with 23,544 GIFs over 17 emotions was created, which provides a promising platform for affective computing research.
Persistent escalation of alcohol consumption by mice exposed to brief episodes of social defeat stress: suppression by CRF-R1 antagonism

Episodic bouts of social stress can precede the initiation, escalation, or relapse to disordered alcohol intake. Social stress may engender neuroadaptations in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and in extrahypothalamic stress circuitry to promote the escalation of alcohol intake. We aimed to (1) confirm a pattern of escalated drinking in socially defeated mice and to (2) test drugs that target distinct aspects of the HPA axis and extrahypothalamic neural substrates for their effectiveness in reducing murine, stress-escalated drinking. Male C57BL/6J (B6) mice were socially defeated by resident Swiss-derived males for ten consecutive days receiving 30 bites/day. Ten days after the final defeat, cohorts of B6 mice received continuous or intermittent access to 20% EtOH (w/v) and water. After 4 weeks of drinking, mice were injected with weekly, systemic doses of the CRF-R1 antagonist, CP376395; the glucocorticoid receptor antagonist, mifepristone; the 11-beta-hydroxylase inhibitor, metyrapone; or the 5-alpha-reductase inhibitor, finasteride. Prior to drug treatments, defeated mice reliably consumed more EtOH than non-defeated controls, and mice given alcohol intermittently consumed more EtOH than those with continuous access. CP376395 (17–30 mg/kg) reduced continuous, but not intermittent EtOH intake (g/kg) in socially defeated mice. Mifepristone (100 mg/kg), however, increased drinking by defeated mice with intermittent access to alcohol while reducing drinking during continuous access. When administered finasteride (100 mg/kg) or metyrapone (50 mg/kg), all mice reduced their EtOH intake while increasing their water consumption. Mice with a history of episodic social defeat stress were selectively sensitive to the effects of CRF-R1 antagonism, suggesting that CRF-R1 may be a potential target for treating alcohol use disorders in individuals who escalate their drinking after exposure to repeated bouts of psychosocial stress. Future studies will clarify how social defeat stress may alter the expression of extrahypothalamic CRF-R1 and glucocorticoid receptors.
Elimination of established tumors with nanodisc-based combination chemoimmunotherapy

Although immune checkpoint blockade has shown initial success for various cancers, only a small subset of patients benefits from this therapy. Some chemotherapeutic drugs have been reported to induce antitumor T cell responses, prompting a number of clinical trials on combination chemoimmunotherapy. However, how to achieve potent immune activation with traditional chemotherapeutics in a manner that is safe, effective, and compatible with immunotherapy remains unclear. We show that high-density lipoprotein-mimicking nanodiscs loaded with doxorubicin (DOX), a widely used chemotherapeutic agent, can potentiate immune checkpoint blockade in murine tumor models. Delivery of DOX via nanodiscs triggered immunogenic cell death of cancer cells and exerted antitumor efficacy without any overt off-target side effects. "Priming" tumors with DOX-carrying nanodiscs elicited robust antitumor CD8+ T cell responses while broadening their epitope recognition to tumor-associated antigens, neoantigens, and intact whole tumor cells. Combination chemoimmunotherapy with nanodiscs plus anti-programmed death 1 therapy induced complete regression of established CT26 and MC38 colon carcinoma tumors in 80 to 88% of animals and protected survivors against tumor recurrence. Our work provides a new, generalizable framework for using nanoparticle-based chemotherapy to initiate antitumor immunity and sensitize tumors to immune checkpoint blockade.
12 – SIGNAL PROCESSING AND PATTERN RECOGNITION FOR PWAS-BASED STRUCTURAL HEALTH MONITORING

This chapter examines two aspects of considerable importance to the structural health monitoring (SHM) process signal processing and damage identification/pattern recognition algorithms. The SHM community is constantly exposed to various aspects of signal processing, spectra collection, data processing and analysis, pattern recognition, and decision making. This chapter will review some of these aspects. Both the state-of-the-art and general principles, on one hand and specific examples, on the other hand, will be presented. However, an exhaustive presentation of these vast topics will not be attempted. since it would be beyond the scope and possibilities of a single chapter.
Whewell and the Scientists: Science and Philosophy of Science in 19th Century Britain

What is the relation between science and philosophy of science? Specifically, does it matter whether a philosopher of science knows much about science or is actually engaged in scientific research? William Whewell is an obvious person to consider in relation to this question. Whewell was actively engaged in science in several important ways, some of which have not been previously noted. He conducted research in a number of scientific fields, he devised new terminology for the new discoveries made by other scientists, and he frequently attempted to guide the experimental work of other scientists. Moreover, he was a philosopher of science who explicitly claimed to be inferring his methodological injunctions from an extensive study of the history of scientific work (the full title of his major work on methodology is Philosophy of the Inductive Sciences, Founded Upon their History). My recent study of his unpublished letters and notebooks indicates that the intimate relation between science and philosophy was always foremost in Whewell’s mind; it was not a theoretical stance adopted after his philosophy was well-developed, as some have suggested. In this paper I will present an examination of the relation between Whewell’s involvement in science and the writing of his philosophy of science as a springboard to consider the more general question (which, of course, cannot be answered in a paper of this length). Further insight into the relation between science and philosophy of science will be gained by contrasting Whewell’s strong involvement in science with the lack of such involvement in the case of his philosophical antagonist, J.S. Mill.
Acquired Velopharyngeal Dysfunction: Survey, Literature Review, and Clinical Recommendations

Purpose The aim of this study was to describe the clinical assessment recommendations for acquired velopharyngeal dysfunction (AVPD) and, through a literature review and online survey, summarize cu...
DNA Preservation Research: The Downside and Upside of an Enigma:

Research leading to a better understanding of the deterioration and preservation processes of DNA could provide a favorable future for natural history collections by reducing unnecessary destructiv...
Young Adults' (Mis)use of Prescription Opioid Drugs: An Exploratory Study.

Based on Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) and the Risk Perception Attitude (RPA) Framework, this study used a survey to examine various factors affecting the risk perception and behavior related to pr...
Proton beam therapy versus stereotactic body radiotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma: practice patterns, outcomes, and the effect of biologically effective dose escalation.

Background Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) and proton beam therapy (PBT) generally are safe and effective for non-operative hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). To date, data comparing the two modalities are limited. We aimed to identify the practice patterns and outcomes of nonsurgical HCC cases treated definitively with either SBRT or PBT. Methods We queried the National Cancer Database for T1-2N0 HCC patients receiving PBT or SBRT from 2004 to 2015. Patients were excluded for any treatment other than non-palliative external beam radiotherapy. A multivariable binomial regression model identified patterns of SBRT/PBT use, and propensity-matched multivariable Cox regression assessed correlates of survival. Results A total of 71 patients received PBT and 918 patients received SBRT (median follow-up 45 months). SBRT was used in 1.8% of nonoperative early stage HCC cases in 2004 and 4.2% of cases in 2015, whereas PBT was used in 0.1-0.2% of cases every year. The median biologically effective dose (BED) for SBRT and PBT was 100 Gy10 and 98 Gy10, respectively (OR =0.70, P=0.17). Factors predictive of receiving PBT included: white race, higher comorbidity score, higher education, metropolitan residence, tumors >5 cm and recent treatment (all P<0.05). Both PBT (HR =0.48, 95% CI: 0.29-0.78) and BED ≥100 Gy10 (HR =0.61, 95% CI: 0.38-0.98) were independent predictors for longer survival. Conclusions Although not implying causation and requiring prospective corroboration, PBT was independently associated with longer survival than SBRT, despite being delivered to HCC patients with multiple poor prognostic factors. PBT may also allow for safer BED escalation, which also independently associated with outcomes.
SMAP Vegetation Optical Depth is Directly Proportional to Crop Water in the US Corn Belt

NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) is a satellite L–band radiometer whose primary mission is to measure soil moisture. However, it also retrieves vegetation optical depth (VOD), the degree to which vegetation attenuates microwave radiation. We believe that VOD has the potential to monitor crop growth in the US Corn Belt. To show its value, we compare SMAP VOD to satellite–scale estimates of crop productivity created using the Agricultural Integrated BIosphere Simulator (Agro– IBIS) and observed weather at the South Fork SMAP Core Validation Site in the Corn Belt state of Iowa. We find that SMAP VOD is directly proportional to crop water, the mass of liquid water in crop tissue. We discovered this relationship by using new empirical models that relate crop water to crop dry mass, the standard output for Agro–IBIS as well as all other crop models, created with in situ data spanning multiple years and stages of crop development. The value of the proportionality constant (or "b–parameter") relating VOD to crop water at the satellite scale is half as large as the SMAP value. Because L–band VOD is directly proportional to crop water at the satellite scale, SMAP has the potential to evaluate the large–scale performance of crop models in the Corn Belt on a near daily basis.
Radiation Effects Testing of Selected Voltage Regulator Microcircuits with Heavy Ions and Protons

We present observations of heavy ion and proton induced radiation effects on selected commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) voltage regulator integrated microcircuits.
Skindex-29 scores indicate poor quality of life in early stage mycosis fungoides

Abstract Background Questionnaire tools are increasingly being used to assess health related quality of life (HRQOL) in mycosis fungoides (MF) patients. However, a thorough understanding of the factors that lead to poor HRQoL in early stage disease and their distribution across patient subgroups is lacking. Objectives To characterize factors affecting HRQoL as assessed by Skindex-29 in subgroups of patients with early stage MF seen at a multidisciplinary cutaneous lymphoma clinic. Methods Skindex-29, a multidimensional survey that evaluates HRQoL (emotions, symptoms, function), was distributed to early stage MF patients. Overall and component scores were analyzed in three groups: no evidence of disease (NED), active disease with limited early stage (AD-T1), and active disease with more extensive early stage (AD-T2). Scores were also compared among patients receiving different treatment modalities. Results 56 patients (9 NED, 36 AD-T1, and 11 AD-T2) were enrolled in the study. Overall Skindex-29 scores and scores for individual dimensions were comparable among the three sub-groups. Similarly, these scores did not significantly differ among treatment groups or after removal of patients with previous staging higher than IB. Analysis of individual questions revealed that NED patients reported higher scores for questions pertaining to anger and fatigue. Conclusions Early stage MF patients enrolled in this study had high overall Skindex-29 scores. Surprisingly, Skindex-29 scores of NED patients were comparable to those of patients with active disease, T1 and T2, mostly due to anger and fatigue. Even when skin involvement is minimal or absent, MF patients continue to report impaired HRQoL.
Physiology and Cardioprotection of the Epicardial Adipose Tissue

Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) is a peculiar visceral fat depot with both protective and detrimental properties. The physiological role of EAT within the heart is complex and not completely understood. EAT functions can be distinguished in (1) nutritional, (2) metabolic, (3) thermogenic, (4) regulatory, and (5) mechanical. Under normal physiological EAT serves as a buffer, absorbing fatty acids and protecting the heart against high fatty acids levels and as pad protecting abnormal curvature of the coronary arteries. EAT is enriched in genes coding for cardioprotective adipokines such as adiponectin and adrenomedullin, both with potential anti-inflammatory and anti-atherogenic properties. EAT could also function as local energy source at times of high demand, channeling fatty acids to the myocardium and as brown fat to defend the myocardium against hypothermia. EAT expresses genes and secretes cytokines actively involved in the thermogenesis and regulation of lipid and glucose metabolism of the adjacent myocardium. EAT may adapt itself to different metabolic circumstances and function as brown-like or beige fat depot as needed.
Phantom structure: A representational account of floating tone association

This paper focuses on the association of floating tones. One type we call "phonological association", where the tone-bearing unit (TBU) the floating tone associates to is determined by the phonological grammar, e.g. to a default position like a stressed syllable or domain edge. We contrast this with another type we call "targeted association", whereby the floating tone targets a numerical position , e.g. a floating H associates to the fourth TBU of the stem. Targeted association is idiosyncratic to the sponsoring morpheme, and does not necessarily target a default position. Such data have been taken as evidence for counting in grammar. Instead, we propose a novel representation we call "phantom structure", without counting. Phantom structure formalizes the observation that certain morphemes require structure to be present in order for their floating tone to be realized, but cannot provide this structure themselves. Under the targeted association type, the floating tone is pre-associated to a specific position in the phantom structure. We show that a simple grammar with two partially overlapping correspondence relations - substantive input and output structureÂ (SubO-CORR) and phantom and output structure (PhO-CORR) - derives the association of the floating tone to the equivalent numerical position in the output as in the phantom plane input.
The experience of outdoor physical activity for skin cancer survivors: understanding the importance of the built and natural environments.

Cancer patients are encouraged to do more physical activity (PA). Exercising in outdoor settings, however, may expose people to UV radiation, which is the main risk factor of melanoma. This study aimed to understand how melanoma diagnoses affect people’s perception of the outdoor environment for PA. In-depth interviews were conducted among 19 individuals (20–85 years) with a history of melanoma at a skin cancer clinic in the Denver metropolitan area. Transcribed interviews were coded for emergent themes. The coding framework included topics related to PA behavior, sun protection, and perceptions of outdoor environment. Respondents reported no change in their level of outdoor activity after the melanoma diagnosis; they tried to reduce the risk of sun exposure by using sunscreen and sun-protective clothing. They also reported seeking shade, trees, and groundcover along urban corridors, in order to avoid sun exposure, reflective surfaces, and heat while being active outdoors. Given the public health significance of UV exposure and extreme heat, further investments should be made to craft streetscape design guidelines and implement sun-proof spaces across public facilities, including parks, schools, and sport fields in order to ameliorate environmental risks for skin cancer survivors, to prevent future cancers among those that are vulnerable to the hazards of excessive UV exposure and extreme heat, and to promote outdoor PA. Skin cancer survivors and other vulnerable population subgroups will benefit from discussions around neighborhood-based design interventions that promote PA while accounting for sun safety.
The constraining power of Coulomb Branch Geometry: lectures on Seiberg-Witten theory

The constraining mathematical structure of the Coulomb branch of four dimensional $\mathcal{N}=2$ supersymmetric theories is discussed. The presentation follows a somewhat different route from other excellent reviews on the subject and it is geared towards using this tool to classify four dimensional $\mathcal{N}=2$ superconformal field theories. This is the writeup of the lectures given at the Winter School "YRISW 2020" to appear in a special issue of JPhysA.
“The Female Artist’s Erotic Gaze in Neo-Victorian Fiction”

This chapter focuses on the work of Victorian female artists and their neo-Victorian fictional counterparts, who challenge the “traditional” idea of the artistic gaze as acquisitive and male, even as they exert themselves as valid artists who have a “genuine aesthetic sensibility,” effectively arguing against philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer’s derisive claim in “On Women” that women lack aesthetic sensibility. More explicitly, these female artists seize the gaze and question its assumptions about who possesses it and to what purpose, while they also seek to redefine the visual erotic. Helen Humphreys’s Afterimage, a novel based on the work of Victorian photographer Julia Margaret Cameron, and Gail Jones’s Sixty Lights, a novel that focuses on a “visionary” Victorian female photographer, serve as the center of Renk’s discussion.
Optimization of skull base exposure using navigation-integrated, virtual reality templates

In many skull base procedures, arriving at the optimal bone exposure is important. Whereas insufficient exposure can jeopardize the operation itself, over-doing the exposure might lead to complications. We developed a new technique, harnessing the strength of Virtual Reality (VR) technology in planning, rehearsal and navigation, to achieve the optimal skull base exposure for resection of tumors. VR models of patient-specific anatomy were used to rehearse the surgical exposure. From the altered models, the one with the ideal exposure was chosen, integrated with the navigation system in the operating suite, and used as a template to achieve the optimal exposure in surgery. The use of these VR templates is demonstrated in two cases involving skull base tumors. In both cases, over-zealous bone removal could have increased the risk of complications, and inadequate exposure would jeopardize the tumor resection. Navigation guided by the VR templates aided the creation of the "ideal" surgical exposure to reach the surgical goals. Complete resections were achieved and neither patient suffered any approach-related complications. In conclusion, virtual reality is a powerful tool to improve the safety and efficacy of neurosurgical procedures. With preoperatively-altered VR templates, the surgeon is no longer navigating just to find bearings, but to duplicate an opening designed to simultaneously provide sufficient exposure while limiting postoperative complications. Intuitively useful and successful in early application, there has been no identifiable disadvantages to date.
Asymmetric semiconductor nanostructures for particle manipulation

We explore how material selection affects the electromagnetic response of closely positioned asymmetric nanostructures. COMSOL Multiphysics is used to model the system, and the materials studied include gold (Au), gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium tin oxide (ITO), and aluminum zinc oxide (AZO). All materials produce average electric field magnitudes on the order of 10 MV/m. We conclude that the ITO and AZO nanostructures produce the most uniform electric field response over the entire domain of incident wavelengths and that GaAs is least thermally stable in a vacuum environment due to its low heat conductivity.
Political Factors that Enable an Internet Kill Switch in Democratic and Non-Democratic Regimes

Authoritarian regimes' efforts to limit access to the Internet have captivated academic and popular attention. After the political process baptized as "Arab Spring," when Egypt (alongside other nation-states) digitally vanished from the global Internet, academics and non-governmental organizations have focused their attention on authoritarian regimes because of their policies' impact on human rights. In this context, one of the policies under study has been the shutdown of the entire Internet, also known as the "Internet kill switch." However, it is less known that there has been an ongoing legal debate in democratic regimes on the authority government leaders should have to execute an Internet shutdown in times of crisis. A historical analysis of the world's telecommunications history shows that one of the factors for governmental control is a national security problem, which is addressed differently in democratic and nondemocratic regimes. When it comes specifically to an Internet shutdown, this paper proposes a non-traditional approach to the current academic path: identifying the political factors that enable democratic and nondemocratic regimes to shut down the Internet. For this purpose, this paper proposes a multiple case study, including three democracies (U.S., U.K., Australia) and two nondemocratic regimes (Russia and Venezuela). This paper will provide an overview of each nation-state under study and the Internet shutdown policy's situation within their territories and the governments' reasoning to adopt this extreme form of government control or consider doing so. This paper will not include any episode of taking down a specific website or applications, as those are considered censorship episodes. This paper only will cover episodes where the entire Internet within a nation-state or a specific local jurisdiction was taken down, and when there was a debate to consider doing it. By including democratic and nondemocratic regimes, we expect to enrich the Internet governance debate and create awareness about this extreme form of government control over the Internet.
A Fuzzy Logic Based Piezoresistive/Piezoelectric Fusion Algorithm for Carbon Nanocomposite Wide Band Strain Sensor

Polymer nanocomposites (PNC) have a great potential for in-situ strain sensing applications in both static and dynamic loading scenarios. These PNCs, having a polymer matrix of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) with a conductive filler of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT), have both piezoelectric and piezoresistive characteristics. Generally, this composite would accurately measure either low frequency dynamic strain using piezoresistive characteristic or high frequency dynamic strains using piezoelectric characteristics of the MWCNT/PVDF film sensor. This limits the frequency bands of the strain sensor to either piezoresistive or piezoelectric ranges. In this study, a novel weighted fusion technique, called piezoresistive/piezoelectric fusion (PPF), is proposed to combine both piezoresistive and piezoelectric characteristics to capture wide frequency bands of strain measurements in real time. This fuzzy logic (FL) based method combines the salient features (i.e. piezoresistive and piezoelectric) of the nanocomposite sensor via reasonably accurate models to extend the frequency range over a wider band. The FL determines the weight of each signal based on the error between the estimate and actual measurements. These weights indicate the contribution of each signal to the final fused measurement. The fuzzy inference system (FIS) was developed using both optimization and data clustering techniques. In addition, type-2 FIS was utilized to overcome the model’s uncertainty limitations. The developed PPF methods were verified with experimental data at different dynamic frequencies that were obtained from existing literature. The fused measurements of the MWCNT/PVDF were found to correlate very well with the actual strain and a high degree of accuracy was achieved by the subtractive clustering PPF’s FISs algorithm.
The wargame commodity course of action automated analysis method

This research presents the wargaming commodity course of action automated analysis method (WCCAAM) – a novel approach to assist wargame commanders in developing and analyzing courses of action (COA...
The Longitudinal Associations Between Paternal Incarceration and Family Well-Being: Implications for Ethnic/Racial Disparities in Health

Objective Ethnic/racial minority children in the United States are more likely to experience father loss to incarceration than White children, and limited research has examined the health implications of these ethnic/racial disparities. Telomere length is a biomarker of chronic stress that is predictive of adverse health outcomes. This study examined whether paternal incarceration predicted telomere length shortening among offspring from childhood to adolescence, whether maternal depression mediated the link, and whether ethnicity/race moderated results. Method Research participants included 2,395 families in the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study, a national and longitudinal cohort study of primarily low-income families from 20 large cities in the United States. Key constructs were measured when children were on average ages 9 (2007–2010) and 15 (2014–2017). Results Children who experienced paternal incarceration exhibited shorter telomere lengths between ages 9 and 15, and changes in maternal depression mediated this finding. Specifically, mothers who experienced a partner’s incarceration were more likely to have depression between children’s ages 9 and 15. In turn, increases in maternal depression between children’s ages 9 and 15 predicted more accelerated telomere length shortening among children during this period. Paternal incarceration was more prevalent and frequent for ethnic/racial minority youth than for White youth. Conclusion Paternal incarceration is associated with a biomarker of chronic stress among children in low-income families. Rates of paternal incarceration were more prevalent and frequent among Black American and multiethnic/multiracial families than among White Americans. As a result, the mass incarceration crisis of the criminal justice system is likely shaping intergenerational ethnic/racial health disparities.
Recent Progress in Barbituric Acid Chemistry

Publisher Summary This chapter provides information on the chemistry and pharmacology and physicochemical properties of barbiturates, along with the tautomerism and solvation of the barbituric acid ring. Barbituric acid exists in the solid state in the trioxo structure. NMR investigation of the oxo-hydroxy equilibrium indicates that only the oxo form is present in a solution in anhydrous DMSO. Several spectral properties of the barbituric acid are discussed using UV spectra, infrared and Raman spectroscopy, 1 H-NMR spectroscopy, 13 C-NMR spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry. In the crystalline state, barbiturates show several modes of intermolecular hydrogen bonding, which differ by the number of hydrogen bonds formed between the NH and CO groups. These hydrogen bonds are responsible for layer packing in the crystal lattice. Weak intermolecular van der Waals interactions of carbonyl groups are also responsible for the three-dimensional packing of the molecules in the crystal structure.
The Sanfilippo A Corrective Factor PURIFICATION AND MODE OF ACTION

Abstract Fibroblasts from patients with the Sanfilippo syndrome fall into two subgroups, each manifesting a deficiency of a specific factor required for normal metabolism of sulfated mucopolysaccharide. The factor deficient in the A subgroup has been purified 850-fold from normal human urine by ammonium sulfate precipitation, successive chromatography on Sephadex G-200, carboxymethylcellulose, and hydroxylapatite, and finally, by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The best preparation, estimated to be about 40% pure, was free of factors specific for other mucopolysaccharidoses, as well as of several lysosomal enzymes found in urine: β-d-galactosidase, N-acetyl-α-d-glucosaminidase and N-acetyl-α-d-galactosaminidase, β-d-glucuronidase, and arylsulfatase B. It was, however, somewhat contaminated with aryl sulfatase A, and markedly so with N-acetyl-β-d-glucosaminidase and N-acetyl-β-d-galactosaminidase. The factor accelerates degradation of stored mucopolysaccharide in Sanfilippo A fibroblasts, as indicated by chase experiments. After the factor is removed from the medium, its effect persists in the cells with a half-life of 2 days. Incubation of stored mucopolysaccharide (tentatively identified as heparan sulfate with a high N-sulfate content) with purified factor resulted in release of inorganic sulfate. It is suggested that the Sanfilippo A factor is a heparan sulfate sulfatase.
Economic aspects of multiple sclerosis. I. A method for classification of income of families of different sizes and compositions and its application in a longitudinal study of multiple sclerosis.

Abstract A method has been described for classification of family income based on the City Worker's Family Budget, the Consumer Price Index, and a scale of equivalent income. The classification permits families of different size and composition to be categorized on a percentage scale which has 99–120 per cent defined as a modest but adequate income to satisfy prevailing standards of what is necessary for health, efficiency, the nurture of children and for participation in social and community activities. The method was developed in order to study the income variable in a longitudinal study of persons with multiple sclerosis. It permits comparison of incomes between families in the study, and within the same family from year to year.
Topology Representing Network in Robotics

We consider the visually guided control of the grasping movements of a highly hysteretic five- joint pneumatic robot arm. For this purpose we apply a modified version of the so-called topology representing network algorithm, a vector quantization algorithm that also learns to represent neighborhood relationships. The notion of neighborhood relationships allowed us to average the behavior of neurons which represent similar tasks, both during the training and in generating control signals in the mature state. Based on visual information provided by two cameras, the robot learns to position and orient its end effector properly for the object to be grasped. For simplicity, we consider the grasping of cylindrical objects only. The control is comprised of two stages. In the first stage, the end effector approaches the side of the cylinder facing the robot base; and in the second stage, the end effector grasps the cylinder. Training of the first stage involves a brief episode of supervised learning to prime the network. The control is achieved through a visual feedback loop: for both stages of the motion the system detects the error to target and applies a linear correction. This correction is achieved through a training that yields a vector-quantized representation of a zero-order signal of joint pressures and a first-order correction through Jacobian tensors which relate the error, expressed in terms of camera coordinates, to correct joint pressures. The network is trained satisfactorily after about 300 trial movements, with a residual average error of 1.35 camera pixels. Besides a demonstration of the technical feasibility of control through topology representing networks, this chapter provides a tutorial for technical applications of such networks. The algorithm behind a topology representing network, its training and employment for task control, is described in complete detail to provide the reader with a comprehensive view of this important class of neural networks in the context of a technical application.
Gas Flow in One Dimension

In this chapter we discuss compressible flow in one dimension. In the first section we develop the geometry of characteristics and in the second we introduce the notion of a weak solution and the entropy condition for shocks. In the third section we discuss the Riemann problem, that is, a flow problem with particular discontinuous initial data. A general construction, due to Glimm, which uses the solution of Riemann problems to produce solutions of arbitrary problems, is then presented. This construction is the basis of both some existence proofs and some methods of numerical computation in gas dynamics. In the final section we generalize the discussion to the flow of a gas that allows chemical energy release, such as occurs in combustion.
Review and Interpretation of Particle Measurements Made by the Vela Satellites in the Magnetotail

The Vela nuclear test detection satellites are in near-circular orbits around the earth at a geocentric distance of about 17R E. This paper discusses data obtained from four of these satellites — Vela 2A and 2B, launched in July 1964, and Vela 3A and 3B, launched in July 1965. The orbits of these four satellites lie in a plane inclined about 60° with respect to the ecliptic plane. The satellites spend roughly $1\over 3$ of their time (about $1{1 \over 2}$ days per orbit) in the magnetotail. The orientation of the orbital plane in inertial space is such that the satellites penetrate the ecliptic plane near the noon and midnight meridians in mid-April and mid-October and near the dawn and dusk meridians in mid-July and mid-January. The satellites are spin-stabilized with their spin axes inclined ∼ 60° to the ecliptic plane and lying approximately in the orbital plane. Each satellite carries, among other instruments, a Geiger counter sensitive to electrons of energy > 45 keV and a hemispherical plate electrostatic analyzer which detects electrons or protons of energy between 200 eV and 20 keV. The apertures of these detectors point at 90° relative to the spin axis. On satellites 2A and 2B the analyzer obtains a complete 14-point energy spectrum of electrons or protons in each of eight directions relative to the sun in 128 sec. Five of these directions lie within ±12° of the sun and the other three are at approximately 90°, 180° and 270° relative to the sun. The analyzer on satellites 3A and 3B obtains a 64-point energy spectrum of electrons or protons in the same eight directions every 256 sec. The Geiger counters on all four satellites make a measurement once per second. More complete descriptions of the instruments on these satellites have been presented by Singer (1965) and by Bame et al. (1967).
Reliability analysis of composite laminates with load sharing

By viewing a composite lamina as a homogeneous solid whose directional strengths are random variables, lamina reliability under multiaxial stresses may be determined using either an interactive or a noninteractive criterion. From the reliability values for the individual laminae comprising a given laminate, Thomas and Wetherhold (1991) have proposed a method for determining bounds for the overall laminate reliability. In this paper, simple physically plausible phenomenological rules are proposed for redistribution of load after a lamina has failed within the confines of a laminate. These rules are illustrated by application to (0/ +/-15)s and (90/ +/-45/0)s graphite/epoxy laminates, and the results are compared to the previously proposed bounds.
Investigating the Physics of Simultaneous Breakdown Events in High-Power-Microwave (HPM) Metamaterials With Multiresonant Unit Cells and Discrete Nonlinear Responses

Electromagnetic metamaterials offer a significant potential to enable new capabilities in many applications. Under high-power illumination, metamaterials and periodic structures experience internal breakdown, altering frequency response, and/or yielding thermal damage. Our prior research observed simultaneous breakdown discharges at two separate sites within a multiresonator metamaterial unit cell, even though the electric field intensities at one of the resonator sites should have been well below the threshold intensity required for breakdown. Here, we investigate three candidate mechanisms for the simultaneous breakdown discharges: energetic electrons, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and vacuum UV (VUV) radiation. Experiments inserting different dielectric barriers between the two resonators of a multiresonator unit cell were able to selectively isolate the coupling influence of the candidate mechanisms. It was established that, VUV radiation from the discharge at the resonator with a lower electric field breakdown threshold causes simultaneous breakdown at the other resonator where the field intensities are otherwise too low to induce breakdown.
An integrated neural network-event-related potentials model of temporal and probability context effects on event categorization

The authors present a neural network that adapts and integrates several preexisting or new modules to categorize events in short-term memory (STM), encode temporal order in working memory, and evaluate timing and probability context in medium- and long-term memory. The model shows how processed contextual information modulates event recognition and categorization, focal attention, and incentive motivation. The model is based on a compendium of event related potentials (ERPs) and behavioral results either collected by the authors or compiled from the classical ERP literature. Its hallmark is, at the functional level, the interplay of memory registers endowed with widely different dynamical ranges, and at the structural level, the attempt to relate the different modules to known anatomical structures. Simulation results are presented. >
Using quantitative image analysis to classify axillary lymph nodes on breast MRI: A new application for the Z 0011 Era

Abstract Purpose To assess the performance of computer extracted feature analysis of dynamic contrast enhanced (DCE) magnetic resonance images (MRI) of axillary lymph nodes. To determine which quantitative features best predict nodal metastasis. Methods This institutional board-approved HIPAA compliant study, in which informed patient consent was waived, collected enhanced T1 images of the axilla from patients with breast cancer. Lesion segmentation and feature analysis were performed on 192 nodes using a laboratory-developed quantitative image analysis (QIA) workstation. The importance of 28 features were assessed. Classification used the features as input to a neural net classifier in a leave-one-case-out cross-validation and evaluated with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Results The area under the ROC curve (AUC) values for features in the task of distinguishing between positive and negative nodes ranged from just over 0.50 to 0.70. Five features yielded AUCs greater than 0.65: two morphological and three textural features. In cross-validation, the neural net classifier obtained an AUC of 0.88 (SE 0.03) for the task of distinguishing between positive and negative nodes. Conclusion QIA of DCE MRI demonstrated promising performance in discriminating between positive and negative axillary nodes.
Hypogonadism and sexual dysfunction in male cancer survivors receiving chronic opioid therapy

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of central hypogonadism and sexual dysfunction in male cancer survivors exposed to chronic high-dose oral opioid therapy. We studied 20 male patients with cancer-related chronic pain who were disease-free for at least one year. All patients consumed at least 200 mg-equivalent of morphine on a daily basis for at least one year. Participants completed the Sexual Desire Inventory questionnaire and serum levels of testosterone, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and luteinizing hormone (LH) were assessed. Serum testosterone levels were reduced in these patients. The median value was 140 ng/dL (normal 241-827). There was no compensatory increase in FSH and LH. The median FSH level was 3.5 mIU/mL (normal 1.4-18.1). The median LH level was 2.1 mIU/mL (normal 1.5-9.3). The mean dyadic sexual desire score was 23.9+/-15.7 (normal value, 42.8+/-8.9). The mean solitary sexual desire score was 1.3+/-1.9 (normal value, 10.6+/-1.9). Our data suggest that chronic exposure to high-dose oral opioid therapy may result in marked central hypogonadism and sexual dysfunction. Given the increasing use of long-term opioid therapy for chronic pain syndromes, further investigation into these findings is warranted.
Intercellular transfer of shed tumor cell gangliosides

Three distinct steps underlie immunosuppression by tumor gangliosides: (i) their shedding by the tumor cell, (ii) binding to target leukocytes in the tumor microenvironment, and (iii) action upon the target cell. While shedding is well documented, cell to cell transfer of shed gangliosides is not. To address this, we employed a dual chamber culture system. In this system, metabolically radiolabeled lymphoma cells shed gangliosides into the conditioned medium of the contralateral chamber, which contained normal fibroblasts as the target cell. The shed lymphoma cell gangliosides bound avidly to the target fibroblasts in a trypsin-resistant manner (1−2×106 and 7×106 molecules/fibroblast in 24 and 48 h). Significantly higher than binding rates of purified lymphoma gangliosides added exogenously, these binding rates in a system which models the in vivo microenvironment suggest that cell to cell ganglioside transfer is a highly efficient process.
Amino acid and glucose fermentation by Treponema denticola.

Treponema denticola was grown in serum-containing media to which 14C-labelled compounds were added. Determinations of radioactivity in the products formed indicated that the organism fermented alanine, cysteine, glycine, serine, and glucose. Fermentation products included acetate, lactate, succinate, formate, pyruvate, ethanol, CO2, H2S, and NH3. The products formed from glucose constituted a small portion of the total products. Assays of enzymatic activities in cell extracts indicated that the organism degraded glucose via the Embden-Meyerhof pathway. T. denticola possessed a coenzyme A-dependent CO2-pyruvate exchange activity associated with a clostridial-type clastic system for pyruvate metabolism. Phosphotransacetylase and acetate kinase activities were present in cell extracts. Acetyl phosphate formation and benzyl viologen reduction were detected when cell extracts were incubated with pyruvate, serine or cysteine. The data indicate that T. denticola is an amino acid fermenter and that it possesses the enzymes needed for the fermentation of glucose. However, glucose does not serve as the primary substrate when the organism grows in media including both this carbohydrate and amino acids.
Forage kochia (Kochia prostrata) for fall and winter grazing

Forage kochia (Kochia prostrata (L.) Schrad.), also known as prostrate kochia, or prostrate summer cypress is a long-lived, perennial, semi-evergreen, half-shrub well adapted to the temperate, semiarid and arid regions of central Asia and the western U.S. In these areas it has proven to be a valuable forage plant for sheep, goats, camels, cattle, and horses. Forage kochia is a C4 plant that is extremely drought and heat tolerant, in part due to a taproot that can extend up to 6.5 m in depth. It is also very salt tolerant and well adapted to some ecosystems dominated by halophytic species. It has been reported to be very productive when grown in soils with salinity electrical conductivity (EC) levels approaching 20 dS/m, and capable of persisting at much higher EC levels. Forage kochia's biomass yield depends upon the subspecies and environment, but reports generally range from 1000 to 1800 kg/ha in environments receiving 100-200 mm annual precipitation. Studies and practical experi- ence have shown that forage kochia is very palatable and nutritious, especially during the late summer through winter period. Its nutritional characteristics include fall and winter crude protein levels above 70 g/kg needed for gestating ruminants. It also has low tannins and oxalates, and has not been reported to be a nitrate accumulator. When fed alone, it has acceptable fiber qualities, but research has shown that it can improve digestion kinetics when in a mixed diet with the low quality grasses as is common during late summer, fall, and winter months. Overall, forage kochia has the potential to improve the sustainabil- ity of small ruminant production in semiarid regions that frequently experience extended drought and saline conditions. Published by Elsevier B.V.