cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A model of inexact reasoning in medicine

Abstract Medical science often suffers from having so few data and so much imperfect knowledge that a rigorous probabilistic analysis, the ideal standard by which to judge the rationality of a physician's decision, is seldom possible. Physicians nevertheless seem to have developed an ill-defined mechanism for reaching decisions despite a lack of formal knowledge regarding the interrelationships of all the variables that they are considering. This report proposes a quantification scheme which attempts to model the inexact reasoning processes of medical experts. The numerical conventions provide what is essentially an approximation to conditional probability, but offer advantages over Bayesian analysis when they are utilized in a rule-based computer diagnostic system. One such system, a clinical consultation program named mycin , is described in the context of the proposed model of inexact reasoning.
Gravitational Model of a p-n Junction

When students first encounter energy bands in semiconductors, and how the properties of simple semiconductor devices such as the p-n junction diode depend on them, the concept can be a bit difficult to grasp. As part of an undergraduate physics course for non-STEM majors that includes semiconductors and simple devices based on the p-n junction, a gravitational analog of the device, using an inclined plane and ball bearings (Fig. 1), has helped students understand the concept. The model has also proved useful in introductory solid-state physics and semiconductor device courses.
Adaptive learning under expected and unexpected uncertainty

The outcome of a decision is often uncertain, and outcomes can vary over repeated decisions. Whether decision outcomes should substantially affect behaviour and learning depends on whether they are representative of a typically experienced range of outcomes or signal a change in the reward environment. Successful learning and decision-making therefore require the ability to estimate expected uncertainty (related to the variability of outcomes) and unexpected uncertainty (related to the variability of the environment). Understanding the bases and effects of these two types of uncertainty and the interactions between them - at the computational and the neural level - is crucial for understanding adaptive learning. Here, we examine computational models and experimental findings to distil computational principles and neural mechanisms for adaptive learning under uncertainty.
Open networks, open books: gender, precarity and solidarity in digital publishing

The nature of work is changing, from secure, full-time jobs to a ‘risk regime’ characterized by alternative work arrangements and a pervasive sense of insecurity [Beck, U. (2000). The brave new wor...
The Interplay of Travelers’ Psychological Distance, Language Abstraction, and Message Appeal Type in Social Media Advertising:

Effectiveness of destination advertising to potential tourists has been enhanced with the use of personalized orientation. After an online search for information about a destination, individuals ar...
Defoliation by a native herbivore, Omphalocera munroei, leads to patch size reduction of a native plant species, Asimina triloba, following small-scale removal of the invasive shrub, Amur honeysuckle, Lonicera maackii

Efforts to reduce the impact of invasive plant species, such as the Amur honeysuckle, Lonicera maackii, often involve the rapid removal of the invasive without any post-removal strategies. This has the potential to stimulate the rapid growth of some native plant species and their herbivores. How this rapid growth may affect plant–insect interactions is not well understood, and unintended consequences may arise. Here we assess how high defoliation rates caused by a native herbivore, Omphalocera munroei, impacted the population of a native understory tree, the common pawpaw, Asimina triloba, following small-scale L. maackii removal. High defoliation rates on A. triloba caused by O. munroei were first detected in two patches of A. triloba that had rapidly expanded following L. maackii removal. Defoliation of A. triloba was estimated throughout a 30-acre site and defoliation, survival, and stem growth were recorded in nine patches (two within the L. maackii removal areas and seven outside) for 6 years. Defoliation peaked during year 2 with near 100% defoliation on > 90% of A. triloba stems and remained higher than reference sites until year 5. Defoliation throughout the site led to > 50% stem mortality, with higher mortality rates observed outside L. maackii removal patches. Stem mortality was high across all age classes, with low recruitment and an unusually high mortality of well-established older plants. These results illustrate the potential for interactions among native species to be destabilized by the rapid colonization and population growth of native species that can occur following removal of an invasive species. Findings from this study highlight the need to consider post-removal restoration strategies following the removal of invasive plant species.
Telepractice for Adult Speech-Language Pathology Services: A Systematic Review

Purpose We conducted a systematic review of the literature regarding adult telepractice services (screening, assessment, and treatment) from approximately 2014 to 2019. Method Thirty-one relevant s...
Opportunistic Network Sharing for Transporting Smart Grid Data Traffic

With the inception of smart grid technologies, electric utilities have been attempting multifarious mechanisms to transport information from data generating entities to their information control centers. One such approach for carrying application data is to lease communication network capacity from Internet service providers (ISPs). Such dedicated capacity reservations on communication networks can be a costly proposition for electric utilities. This work proposes an alternative paradigm that takes advantage of the elastic nature of smart grid data traffic flows to piggyback (with authorization) on ISP networks without impacting the QoS of the primary flows on that network. Such an opportunistic scheme is expected to reduce operational costs for utilities to carry smart grid data traffic while providing guarantees to ISPs that their primary flows will be unaffected. The proposed opportunistic network sharing scheme builds upon a software-defined networking (SDN) approach at an intermediate router to provide QoS guarantees for regular ISP traffic. To mitigate the inevitable throttling of smart grid traffic during times of high network utilization in the shared network, a data granularity management algorithm is proposed that gracefully reduces the data granularity of smart grid (SG) data traffic in preemptive fashion in an attempt to meet application QoS needs.
Use of bowel preparation does not reduce postoperative infectious morbidity following minimally invasive or open hysterectomies.

Background Literature on the use of bowel preparation in gynecologic surgery is scarce and limited to minimally invasive gynecologic surgery. The decision on the use of bowel preparation before benign or malignant hysterectomies is mostly driven by extrapolating data from the colorectal literature. Objective Bowel preparation is a controversial element within enhanced recovery protocols, and literature investigating its efficacy in gynecologic surgery is scarce. Our aim was to determine if mechanical bowel preparation alone, oral antibiotics alone, or a combination are associated with decreased rates of surgical site infections or anastomotic leaks compared to no bowel preparation following benign or malignant hysterectomy. Study Design We identified women who underwent hysterectomy between January 2006 and July 2017 using OptumLabs, a large US commercial health plan database. Inverse propensity score weighting was used separately for benign and malignant groups to balance baseline characteristics. Primary outcomes of 30-day surgical site infection, anastomotic leaks, and major morbidity were assessed using multivariate logistic regression that adjusted for race, census region, household income, diabetes, and other unbalanced variables following propensity score weighting. Results A total of 224,687 hysterectomies (benign, 186,148; malignant, 38,539) were identified. Median age was 45 years for the benign and 54 years for the malignant cohort. Surgical approach was as follows: benign: laparoscopic/robotic, 27.2%; laparotomy, 32.6%; vaginal, 40.2%; malignant: laparoscopic/robotic, 28.8%; laparotomy, 47.7%; vaginal, 23.5%. Bowel resection was performed in 0.4% of the benign and 2.8% of the malignant cohort. Type of bowel preparation was as follows: benign: none, 93.8%; mechanical bowel preparation only, 4.6%; oral antibiotics only, 1.1%; mechanical bowel preparation with oral antibiotics, 0.5%; malignant: none, 87.2%; mechanical bowel preparation only, 9.6%; oral antibiotics only, 1.8%; mechanical bowel preparation with oral antibiotics, 1.4%. Use of bowel preparation did not decrease rates of surgical site infections, anastomotic leaks, or major morbidity following benign or malignant hysterectomy. Among malignant abdominal hysterectomies, there was no difference in the rates of infectious morbidity between mechanical bowel preparation alone, oral antibiotics alone, or mechanical bowel preparation with oral antibiotics, compared to no preparation. Conclusion Bowel preparation does not protect against surgical site infections or major morbidity following benign or malignant hysterectomy, regardless of surgical approach, and may be safely omitted.
LibGuides Groups in practice: Building a partnership between an academic library and an information studies school

The University of California-Los Angeles campus is home to an iSchool and a robust library system, consisting of nine physical locations and even more affiliated library units. It would seem natural that the iSchool would partner with the library to provide library and Information Studies students with opportunities to learn practical skills to enhance their resumes.
Modeling longitudinal amyloid-beta accumulation trajectories using discrete rate sampling

284 Background: Understanding the time course of amyloid-beta (Aβ) aggregation in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is important for understanding the chronological sequence of events in the AD continuum. This work uses serial [11C]Pittsburgh Compound B (PiB) PET imaging data to 1) characterize the relationship between rates of Aβ accumulation and Aβ burden, and 2) estimate the time course of PiB-measure Aβ accumulation by applying a novel algorithm that uses a combination of Euler’s method with discrete sampling. Methods: 181 initially cognitively unimpaired participants from the Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer’s Prevention underwent serial [11C]PiB PET imaging between 2010 and 2019 (baseline age mean±SD = 61.0±6.2, 66% female, median 3 serial scans, follow-up duration mean±SD = 6.2±2.1 years). Aβ burden was quantified for each scan by averaging distribution volume ratios (DVR; reference Logan, cerebellum gray reference) across 8 bi-lateral regions of interest in subject space. Discrete sampling was used for a-priori DVR values to characterize the relationship between ΔDVR/yr and DVR and the proportion of participants with ΔDVR/yr >0 for each DVR value. The average time-course of Aβ accumulation for the sample was estimated using an iterative algorithm. The algorithm calculates the mean ΔDVR/yr for longitudinal scan pairs that cross a DVR query value and then applies Euler’s method with a fixed time interval (0.5 yr) to generate the next query value. The algorithm terminates once too few scan pairs exist for an average or once the maximum number of iterations has been reached and outputs DVR vs time data. The goodness of model fit was assessed by mapping individual observed trajectories onto the modeled DVR vs. time function, and estimating the percentage of observed DVR variance explained by the model for all participants with data in the modeled range. Results: PiB ΔDVR/yr plotted as a function of DVR indicated minimal variability in ΔDVR for DVR 1.6, potentially due to fewer participants in this range (Fig 1). ΔDVR/yr was near 0.0 for DVR 1.2. The iterative algorithm produced an Aβ accumulation curve (PiB DVR vs. time; Fig 2) that was nearly constant for DVR 1.15. The proportion of DVR variance explained by the model was estimated to be R2=0.94 using participants with data represented in the range of the model (1.09
Predicting post-LVAD outcome: Is there a role for cognition?:

Background:Cognition has been found to influence risk of stroke and death for a variety of patient groups but this association has not been examined in heart failure (HF) patients undergoing left v...
Conducting Evaluations Using Multiple Trials

This paper reviews the use of multiple trials, defined as multiple sites or multiple arms in a single evaluation and replications, in evaluating social programs. After defining key terms, the paper...
1% of Bill Goddard

A couple of years ago, we had a party at Caltech for Bill Goddard to celebrate the publication of his 1000th journal paper.
Slides: A Minimal Problem of Marginal Emissions

Slides from panel presentation on battery energy storage, Environmental Law Institute, April 8, 2019.
Context-aware Data Operation Strategies in Edge Systems for High Application Performance

Applications running in edge computing system seamlessly collect data, process data and take actions accordingly. In many cases, the applications need to assist people in real time, and even have life-or-death consequences such as heart attack detection in healthcare and object detection in driving, which requires low job latency. Moreover, power and bandwidth are constrained resources in edge computing systems. Therefore, a challenge is how to handle data efficiently to reduce job latency, and meanwhile reduce power and bandwidth consumption. Previous works mainly focus on where to store collected source data to reduce the communication latency for source data sharing. Noticing that intermediate and final processing results may be shared by many applications, we propose to store intermediate and final results for sharing to avoid the duplicated computation. We also propose data collection that reduces data collection frequency based on context-related factors to achieve an optimal tradeoff between the overhead and decision making accuracy. We further propose data redundancy elimination to reduce the redundant data transmitted between edge and fog nodes. Our combined data operation strategies show significant improvement over the state-of-the-art methods in terms job latency, power and bandwidth consumption for experiments on both simulated and real edge environment.
“It’s Not Just about Listening to the Teacher”

AbstractAdopting an interpretivist perspective grounded in symbolic interactionism, this article explores the types of interactional strategies used by K–5 teachers to develop social and emotional ...
Oct4 promoter activity in stem cells obtained through somatic reprogramming.

Abstract Multiple methods exist that can reprogram differentiated cells to a pluripotent state similar to that of embryonic stem cells (ESCs). These include somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), fusion-mediated reprogramming (FMR) of somatic cells with ESCs, and the production of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). All of these methods yield cells in which the endogenous Oct4 gene is reactivated. We were interested in comparing the activity of the Oct4 promoter in three different classes of pluripotent cells, including normal ESCs, FMR cells (FMRCs), and iPSCs. We prepared cells of all three types that harbor a transgene composed of the mouse Oct4 promoter driving green fluorescent protein (Oct4-GFP). All cell derivations started with a characterized transgenic Oct4-GFP mouse, and from this we derived ESCs, FMRCs, and iPSCs with the Oct4-GFP transgene present in an identical genomic integration site in all three cell types. Using flow cytometry we assessed Oct4 promoter expression, cell cycle behavior...
Videotex Journalism: Teletext Viewdata and the News

Preface 1. Videotex, Teletext, and Viewdata: A Brief Introduction 2. Teletext and Viewdata: A Closer Look 3. The Present Study 4. Findings: Journalists and Their Work 5. Findings: The Flow of News and Information 6. Findings: Videotex and Other Media 7. Conclusions. Appendices
Characterization of the nucleational core complex responsible for mineral induction by growth plate cartilage matrix vesicles

The factors that drive mineralization of matrix vesicles (MV) have proven difficult to elucidate; in the present studies, various detergent, chemical, and enzyme treatments were used to reveal the nature of the nucleational core. Incubation with detergents that permeabilized the membrane enhanced calcification of treated MV incubated in synthetic cartilage lymph. While detergents removed most of the membrane lipid, they left significant amounts of the MV annexins and nearly all of the Ca2+, Pi, and Zn2+. Extraction with 1 M NaCl removed much of the Ca2+ and Pi present in MV, markedly reducing Ca2+ accumulation; these effects could be prevented by low levels of Ca2+ and Pi in the NaCl extractant. Treatment with chymotrypsin appeared to damage proteins required for MV mineralization; further treatment with detergents to bypass the membrane reactivated MV mineralization. Treatment of MV with pH 6 citrate removed Ca2+ and Pi, destroying their ability to mineralize; subsequent treatment with detergents did not reactivate these MV. Incubation of the detergent-resistant core with o-phenanthroline complexed Zn2+ and stimulated mineralization; addition of Zn2+ to synthetic cartilage lymph blocked the ability of the core to mineralize. These studies show that once the nucleational core complex is formed, the membrane-enclosed domain is no longer essential for MV calcification. Our findings indicate that the MV core contains two main components as follows: a smaller membrane-associated complex of Ca2+, Pi, phosphatidylserine, and the annexins that nucleates crystalline mineral formation, and a larger pool of Ca2+ and Pi bound to lumenal proteins. These proteins appear to bind large amounts of mineral ions, stabilize the nucleational complex, and aid its transformation to the first crystalline phase. Once nucleated, the crystalline phase appears to feed on protein-bound mineral ions until external ions enter through the MV ion channels. Zn2+ appears to regulate gating of the ion channels and conversion of the nucleational complex to the crystalline state.
Allgemeine Richtlinien für den Aufbau von Dieselmotoren großer Leistung

Unter Grosmotoren werden hier, um eine konstruktiv einheitliche Linie zu erhalten, nur Motoren der Kreuzkopfbauart verstanden. Der erste von Rudolf Diesel entworfene Viertaktmotor wies die Kreuzkopfbauart auf. Verhaltnismasig bald wurde aber die Kreuzkopfbauart fur kleine und mittlere Motoren verlassen, so das heute nur noch Viertaktmotoren von grosen Zylinderabmessungen mit Kreuzkopf gebaut werden. Eine Ausnahme macht hier der noch in Entwicklung befindliche Kohlenstaubmotor, bei dem aus Grunden besserer Trennung des Verbrennungsraumes vom Triebwerksraum die Kreuzkopfbauart mit Zwischenstopfbuchse gewahlt wurde.
Vortex sheet modeling with higher order curved panels

A numerical technique is presented for modeling the vortex sheet with a deformable surface definition, along which a continuous vortex strength distribution in the spanwise direction is applied, so that by repeatedly modifying its shape, its true configuration is approached, in the proximity of its generating wing. Design problems requiring the inclusion of a realistic configuration of the vortex sheet are numerous. Examples discussed include: control effectiveness and stability derivatives, longitudinal stability, lateral stability, canards, propellers and helicopter rotors, and trailing vortex hazards.
Ultrafast lattice-bonding dynamics of tellurium

Summary form only given. We present a study of the ultrafast bonding dynamics of tellurium in the presence of a symmetry-preserving coherent phonon. The coherent phonon modulates the band structure at THz frequencies. We measure the dielectric function, because it is closely related to the band structure, over a broad frequency range (1.8 eV to 3.4 eV) following excitation by an 800-nm, 50-fs pump pulse. In order to measure the two independent components of the dielectric tensor of a uniaxial material (/spl epsiv//sub ord/(/spl omega/) and /spl epsiv//sub ext/(/spl omega/)), four pump-probe measurements are required. Each component describes the optical properties along certain directions in the crystal: /spl epsiv//sub ord/(/spl omega/) corresponds to the ab-plane and /spl epsiv//sub ext/(/spl omega/) to the c-axis (helical axis). The symmetry-preserving phonon mode excited in Te is confined to the ab-plane, so we expect that the ordinary dielectric function will be most sensitive to these oscillations.
Justice and the Right to Health Care: An Egalitarian Account

This essay is meant to be an account of an egalitarian theory of justice applied to health care. It will in part be a descriptive account of how those who favor some version of a qualified “right to equal health” or a principle of distribution of health care based primarily on need have supported their views. In addition, it will in part be a normative account of the kinds of arguments and assumptions that might best support the egalitarian position and what qualifications might be necessary.
How the Adaptation of Evolving Technology can cope with the ever changing Demand of Consumers

As technology is evolving at a very fast pace, some consideration has to take place in order to meet its customers' demands. Companies in technology industries have to be able to cope with the demand of the consumers as they slowly progress at their stage of advancement. In this study, it is known that the survivability rate of a company in the technology sector would be based on how capable they are in meeting consumers’ demand. Understanding the demand of the consumer allows them to properly sustain in the market or perish as a result of ignorance. What the study seeks is to understand how they would be able to achieve so.
Polyallelic structural variants can provide accurate, highly informative genetic markers focused on diagnosis and therapeutic targets: Accuracy vs. Precision

Structural variants (SVs) include all insertions, deletions, and rearrangements in the genome, with several common types of nucleotide repeats including single sequence repeats, short tandem repeats, and insertion-deletion length variants. Polyallelic SVs provide highly informative markers for association studies with well-phenotyped cohorts. SVs can influence gene regulation by affecting epigenetics, transcription, splicing, and/or translation. Accurate assays of polyallelic SV loci are required to define the range and allele frequency of variable length alleles.
Cognitive Strategy Instruction for Adolescents: What We Know about the Promise, What We Don't Know about the Potential

"Strategy instruction" is quickly becoming one of the most common — and perhaps the most commonly misunderstood — components of adolescent literacy research and practice. In this essay, veteran teacher educator Mark Conley argues that a particular type of strategy instruction known as cognitive strategy instruction holds great promise for improving adolescents' reading, writing, and thinking across content areas. However, he further suggests that we do not yet have the research needed to adequately understand and maximize the potential of cognitive strategy instruction in secondary content-area classrooms. After situating cognitive strategy instruction in the larger context of research on adolescent literacy and school-to-work transitions, Conley provides classroom examples of cognitive strategy instruction, demonstrates the need for meaningful integration of cognitive strategies in teacher education, and recommends specific directions for future research needed to understand and maximize the benefits of ...
Sex differences in cardiovascular reactivity: Influence of the gender relevance of a social task

Sex differences in cardiovascular reactivity to stress are well documented, with some studies showing women having greater heart rate responses than men, and men having greater blood pressure responses than women, while other studies show conflicting evidence. Few studies have attended to the gender relevance of tasks employed in these studies. This study investigated cardiovascular reactivity to two interpersonal stressors consistent with different gender roles to determine whether response differences exist between men and women. A total of 26 men and 31 women were assigned to either a traditional male-oriented task that involved interpersonal conflict (Conflict Task) or a traditional female-oriented task that involved comforting another person (Comfort Task). Results demonstrated that women exhibited greater heart rate reactions than men independent of the task type, and that men did not display a higher reactivity than women on any measure. These findings indicate that sex of participant was more impo...
Breakable charge density waves

Narrow band noise associated with nonlinear electric conduction (E>ET) and hysteresis phenomena below a threshold field (E<ET) in charge density waves indicate the presence of topological defects in charge density waves. We shall review here the role of topological defects in charge density wave transport in quasi-one dimensional systems.
Measurement of X-ray spectra of muonic atoms in the intermediate region

Abstract The energies of the 2p→1s transition and 3d→2p intermediate region of the periodic table were measured with a scintillation spectrometer with an anticoincidence annulus of NaI(Tl). The measurements are capable of achieving greater precision in the determination of nuclear radii than was achieved heretofore by other techniques. The results are in good agreement with similar measurements at CERN and Columbia University.
Evolution of AIDS and AIDS related malignancies in pediatric patients in the United States.

The pediatric AIDS epidemic began in the U.S.A. between 1983 and 1985. Hemophilia patients were among the first victims of this disease with the majority of these patients infected prior to 1984. At the South Texas Hemophilia Center 69 of 108 patients less than 21 years of age demonstrated serologic evidence of infection. Of these patients, 6 subsequently developed malignancies between 1987 and 1994. Between 1992 and 1996 data was subsequently accumulated on the development of malignancy in HIV positive patients through the Pediatric Oncology Group, which to date has enrolled 24 HIV positive children with malignancy. In these studies the majority of patients had B cell, non-Hodgkin's lymphomas, however approximately 20% of the patients were identified with leiomyosarcomas. Histologic studies of tumors of 6 children with AIDS and leiomyosarcomas or leiomyoma identified the EBV receptor or CD 21 in the tumor using immunoperoxidase techniques, whereas similar staining was not seen in smooth muscle tumors from HIV negative children. In situ hybridization techniques identified EBV-EBER probe in the tumors from HIV positive patients. In 2 patients with adequate tumor tissue EBV genome was present in high concentration using PCR techniques and Southern blot studies showed a monoclonal and biclonal proliferation. Other laboratories have reported similar EBV findings in lymphomas from AIDS patients. Thus EBV appears to be an important cofactor in development of malignancy in pediatric AIDS patients.
Environmental risk harmonization: federal/state approaches to risk assessment and management

As environmental laws and regulations have evolved in recent years, disparities have arisen in the assessment and management of similar risks by different governmental units. Such inconsistencies have had several adverse impacts. One is that resources may not be used most effectively to reduce risks and a second is that public confidence in government may be eroded and thus support for environmental protection. This article presents a summary of a conference and workshop that was held to address the sources of these disharmonies in risk assessment and risk management and to make recommendations as to how to improve the situation. It includes international, national, and state perspectives and utilizes a case study to illustrate the variety of issues associated with harmonizing risk assessment and risk management among governmental units. The workshop summaries demonstrate that, while there are presently many areas of disagreement, there are also significant issues upon which agreement can be reached and which can serve as the basis for further harmonization efforts.
The Ion Propulsion System For Dawn

The Dawn Project's mission is to rendezvous and map the two heaviest main belt asteroids Vesta and Ceres. The Ion Propulsion System (IPS) for Dawn will be used for the heliocentric transfer from the Earth to Vesta, orbit capture at Vesta, transfer to a low Vesta orbit, departure and escape from Vesta, the heliocentric transfer from Vesta to Ceres, orbit capture at Ceres, and transfer to a low Ceres orbit.
Amyloid-β(1−42) Rapidly Forms Protofibrils and Oligomers by Distinct Pathways in Low Concentrations of Sodium Dodecylsulfate†

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by large numbers of senile plaques in the brain that consist of fibrillar aggregates of 40- and 42-residue amyloid-beta (Abeta) peptides. However, the degree of dementia in AD correlates better with the concentration of soluble Abeta species assayed biochemically than with histologically determined plaque counts, and several investigators now propose that soluble aggregates of Abeta are the neurotoxic agents that cause memory deficits and neuronal loss. These endogenous aggregates are minor components in brain extracts from AD patients and transgenic mice that express human Abeta, but several species have been detected by gel electrophoresis in sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS) and isolated by size exclusion chromatography (SEC). Endogenous Abeta aggregation is stimulated at cellular interfaces rich in lipid rafts, and anionic micelles that promote Abeta aggregation in vitro may be good models of these interfaces. We previously found that micelles formed in dilute SDS (2 mM) promote Abeta(1-40) fiber formation by supporting peptide interaction on the surface of a single micelle complex. In contrast, here we report that monomeric Abeta(1-42) undergoes an immediate conversion to a predominant beta-structured conformation in 2 mM SDS which does not proceed to amyloid fibrils. The conformational change is instead rapidly followed by the near quantitative conversion of the 4 kDa monomer SDS gel band to 8-14 kDa bands consistent with dimers through tetramers. Removal of SDS by dialysis gave a shift in the predominant SDS gel bands to 30-60 kDa. While these oligomers resemble the endogenous aggregates, they are less stable. In particular, they do not elute as discrete species on SEC, and they are completed disaggregated by boiling in 1% SDS. It appears that endogenous oligomeric Abeta aggregates are stabilized by undefined processes that have not yet been incorporated into in vitro Abeta aggregation procedures.
A simple method for solving inverse scattering problems in the resonance region

This paper is concerned with the development of an inversion scheme for two-dimensional inverse scattering problems in the resonance region which does not use nonlinear optimization methods and is relatively independent of the geometry and physical properties of the scatterer. It is assumed that the far field pattern corresponding to observation angle and plane waves incident at angle is known for all . From this information, the support of the scattering obstacle is obtained by solving the integral equation where k is the wavenumber and is on a rectangular grid containing the scatterer. The support is found by noting that is unbounded as approaches the boundary of the scattering object from inside the scatterer. Numerical examples are given showing the practicality of this method.
Parallel computation for acoustic radiation in a subsonic nonuniform flow with a coupled FEM/BEM formulation

This paper presents a parallel implementation of the coupled finite element method/boundary element method formulation for sound radiation in a subsonic nonuniform flow. The parallelization is based on a cost analysis of the sequential algorithm and is implemented on a heterogeneous computer system using the Parallel Virtual Machine software. A dynamically distributed parallel computation scheme (DDPCS) is developed to improve efficiency and reliability. Our test cases demonstrate that it is possible to get high parallel efficiency and reliability on a virtual parallel machine, although greater heterogeneity decreases efficiency.
The effects of different starch sources and plasticizers on film blowing of thermoplastic starch: Correlation among process, elongational properties and macromolecular structure

Abstract The material compositions and the technological procedures to prepare biodegradable films with the film blowing technology based on thermoplastic starch were studied in this work. The activities were focused on the analysis of the effects of starch source (maize, potato and wheat), supplier (Roquette, Cerestar and Cameo) and the type of plasticizers (glycerol, urea and formamide) and their content on the physical–chemical and mechanical properties. Moreover, in order to develop a film blowing technology, material composition as well as processing condition were optimized. Among 10 varieties of thermoplastic starch prepared, the combination of urea and formamide as plasticizer restrained retrogradation and improved mechanical properties. Extensional rheological properties of the thermoplastic starch films were also investigated: the results showed that the occurrence of strain-hardening behaviour in some of the investigated compositions lead to a positive effect on the film blowing process. In this study we found that the combination of high-amylose (>51%) starch and urea/formamide mixtures as plasticizer produced an homogenous film of a 50 μm thickness and a robust film blowing process due to the good elongational viscosity, high deformability of the melt and strain-hardening behaviour.
The conversion of HCN to NO and N2 in H2−O2−HCN−Ar flames at low pressure

We have investigated the kinetic mechanism for converting HCN to NO and N 2 in low pressure (30 Torr) H 2 −O 2 flames doped with HCN and diluted in argon. Major stable species concentrations were measured by mass spectrometric techniques and CN concentrations and temperature were measured by laser induced fluorescence. The three flames investigated had equivalence ratios of Φ=0.5, 1.0, and 1.5. The experimental results are compared to complete flame structure calculations based on a reaction mechanism developed almost solely from direct measurements of rate coefficients reported in the literature. The agreement is good. From the analysis we deduce that the nitrogen atom in HCN predominantly follows the following route to NO and N 2 , HCN→NCO→NH→N→NO→N 2 . The most important and rate controlling step for HCN removal is the reaction with oxygen atoms, HCN + O ⇄ products. Our results are not sensitive to the products formed: NCO+H or NH+CO. Most important and rate controlling for NO production and conversion of NO to N 2 is the extended Zel'dovich mechanism.
A Disulfide-Linked Collagenous Protein of Nematocyst Capsules

The major protein component present in the capsule and thread of a sea anemone nematocyst consists of monomers of a collagen-like protein linked by disulfide bonds. Purified nematocyst capsules and threads are rich in hydroxyproline, and dissolved by disulfide reducing agents. Electrophoresis of the dissolved component on acrylamide gel results in a single detectable protein band.
Mechanical Overstimulation of Hair Bundles: Suppression and Recovery of Active Motility

We explore the effects of high-amplitude mechanical stimuli on hair bundles of the bullfrog sacculus. Under in vitro conditions, these bundles exhibit spontaneous limit cycle oscillations. Prolonged deflection exerted two effects. First, it induced an offset in the position of the bundle. Recovery to the original position displayed two distinct time scales, suggesting the existence of two adaptive mechanisms. Second, the stimulus suppressed spontaneous oscillations, indicating a change in the hair bundle’s dynamic state. After cessation of the stimulus, active bundle motility recovered with time. Both effects were dependent on the duration of the imposed stimulus. External calcium concentration also affected the recovery to the oscillatory state. Our results indicate that both offset in the bundle position and calcium concentration control the dynamic state of the bundle.
Genetic manipulation of STEP reverses behavioral abnormalities in a fragile X syndrome mouse model

Fragile X syndrome (FXS), the most common inherited form of intellectual disability and prevailing known genetic basis of autism, is caused by an expansion in the Fmr1 gene that prevents transcription and translation of fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP). FMRP binds to and controls translation of mRNAs downstream of metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) activation. Recent work shows that FMRP interacts with the transcript encoding striatal-enriched protein tyrosine phosphatase (STEP; Ptpn5). STEP opposes synaptic strengthening and promotes synaptic weakening by dephosphorylating its substrates, including ERK1/2, p38, Fyn and Pyk2, and subunits of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) and AMPA receptors. Here, we show that basal levels of STEP are elevated and mGluR-dependent STEP synthesis is absent in Fmr1KO mice. We hypothesized that the weakened synaptic strength and behavioral abnormalities reported in FXS may be linked to excess levels of STEP. To test this hypothesis, we reduced or eliminated STEP genetically in Fmr1KO mice and assessed mice in a battery of behavioral tests. In addition to attenuating audiogenic seizures and seizure-induced c-Fos activation in the periaqueductal gray, genetically reducing STEP in Fmr1KO mice reversed characteristic social abnormalities, including approach, investigation and anxiety. Loss of STEP also corrected select nonsocial anxiety-related behaviors in Fmr1KO mice, such as light-side exploration in the light/dark box. Our findings indicate that genetically reducing STEP significantly diminishes seizures and restores select social and nonsocial anxiety-related behaviors in Fmr1KO mice, suggesting that strategies to inhibit STEP activity may be effective for treating patients with FXS.
Energy Losses Related to Automatic Steering of Ships in Waves—Part I: Losses Under Conventional Autopilot Control

Results are presented relating to energy losses due to ship steering in waves. Propulsion losses related to yawing and rudder activity of ships during open-seas course-keeping are evaluated. Two representative tankers of 250,000 and 400,000 dwt, and an 880 ft (268 m) long containership are examined, using hydrodynamic data resulting from captive model tests. The approach presented involves time-domain computer simulation studies of the yaw-sway-surge-rudder coupled motions of the ships. Evaluation of losses due to both yawing of the uncontrolled ship and those resulting from yawing and rudder effects in the automatically steered case are made. On the basis of the results presented it is shown that under the action of waves yawing of a ship results in significant energy losses. It is also shown that a substantial increase in energy losses occurs under automatic steering control with commonly accepted autopilot specifications.
Interactive learning online: challenges and opportunities

Since the early 1990s online education and online learning systems have held the promise of increasing instructional productivity and reducing costs without sacrificing educational quality. There is no evidence to date that such promise has materialized. The impetus of the newest developments with free online courses to hundreds of thousands of students might drastically transform how we teach more and better with less. The innovation that prompted this panel is called Interactive Learning Online (ILO), and has the distinctive feature of highly interactive, machine-guided instruction that can be scaled to accommodate a large number of students who benefit from targeted and personalized learning. The panelists have experimented with online learning in different ways. Their perspectives will address challenges and opportunities with the adoption of ILO systems.
Spatial-spectral-efficiency-enhanced multi-core fiber

A spatial-spectral-efficiency (SSE)-enhanced multi-core fiber (MCF) is designed by considering splicing loss, transmission distance, attenuation, and nonlinearity. Proposed MCF achieves highest SSE ever-fabricated single-mode MCFs with transmission distance up to 4,000 km.
Defending the piggyback principle against Shapiro and Sober’s empirical approach

Jaegwon Kim’s supervenience/exclusion argument attempts to show that non-reductive physicalism is incompatible with mental causation. This influential argument can be seen as relying on the following principle, which I call “the piggyback principle”: If, with respect to an effect, E, an instance of a supervenient property, A, has no causal powers over and above, or in addition to, those had by its supervenience base, B, then the instance of A does not cause E (unless A is identical with B). In their “Epiphenomenalism: The Dos and the Don’ts,” Larry Shapiro and Elliott Sober employ a novel empirical approach to challenge the piggyback principle. Their empirical approach pulls from the experiments of August Weismann regarding the inheritance of acquired characteristics. Through an examination of Weismann’s experiments, Shapiro and Sober extract lessons in reasoning about the epiphenomenalism of a property. And according to these empirically drawn lessons, the piggyback principle is a don’t. My primary aim in this paper is to defend the piggyback principle against Shapiro and Sober’s empirical approach.
Manual Aspiration Technique to Retrieve a Prematurely Detached Coil during Cerebral Aneurysm Embolization

Coil herniation, premature deployment, and fracture are procedure associated complications of endovascular aneurysm embolization that optimally necessitate coil retrieval when feasible. Several published techniques describe different strategies for managing coil complications including various snare retrieval devices, alligator retrieval devices, stent fixation, and open surgical resection of coils when distal blood flow is compromised. We report a novel technique employed to retrieve a prematurely detached coil during an aneurysm embolization using a syringe fixed to the microcatheter to carefully aspirate a loose coil with direct fluoroscopic visualization. This technique can only be utilized in the circumstance where the proximal end of the coil remains in the microcatheter. Conventional techniques of coil retrieval and stenting are discussed and compared to the rational for using the manual aspiration technique.
Novasure as a mechanical endometrial preparation agent in large uteri.

Objective: We evaluated Novasure ablation as a mechanical endometrial preparation agent before Roller Ball endometrial ablation in lieu of GnRH agonists in large uteri. Methods: A retrospective chart review of 20 consecutive patients undergoing Novasure ablation for mechanical endometrial preparation before Roller Ball ablation (RBNovasure group) was conducted and the results compared to that of 23 consecutive patients who received GnRH agonist (Leuprolide acetate) as a medical endometrial preparation before Roller Ball ablation (RB-Lupron group). The postoperative follow-up time frame was divided into immediate (3 mo), intermediate (3 to 12 mo) and long-term (12 to 32 mo). Rates of amenorrhea, heavy bleeding, cramping, and failure (repeat ablation or hysterectomy for heavy bleeding or persistent pain) were compared between the 2 groups. Results: The mean rates of amenorrhea for the patients not lost to follow-up at 3 mo, 3 to 12 mo, and 12 to 32 mo visits were 45.5%, 58.8%, and 44.4% for the RB-Lupron group, and 80%, 86.7%, and 100% for the RB-Novasure group (P .02, P .08, and P .02). Failure rates were 4.8%, 6.2%, and 55.6% for the RB-Lupron group; and 0 (0/20), 12.5% (2/16) and 0 (0/8) for the RB-Novasure group (P .51, P .50, and P .02). The RB-Novasure group had a significantly lower rate of heavy bleeding and cramping. 86.4%, 58.8%, and 33.3% patients reported satisfaction with their treatment in the RB-Lupron group and 100%, 87.5%, and 75% in RB-Novasure group (P .13, P .07, and P .11). Conclusion: Novasure ablation, for mechanical endometrial preparation before Roller Ball ablation, appears to be a superior alternative to medical preparation with GnRH agonists in patients with large uteri.
Role of the B Helix in Early Folding Events in Apomyoglobin: Evidence from Site-directed Mutagenesis for Native-like Long Range Interactions

The folding pathways of four mutants in which bulky hydrophobic residues in the B helix of apomyoglobin (ApoMb) are replaced by alanine (I28A, L29A, I30A, and L32A) have been analyzed using equilibrium and kinetic methods employing NMR, CD, fluorescence and mass spectrometry. Hydrogen exchange pulse-labeling followed by mass spectrometry reveals detectable intermediates in the kinetic folding pathways of each of these mutants. Comparison of the quench-flow data analyzed by NMR for the wild-type protein and the mutants showed that the substitutions I28A, L29A and L32A lead to destabilization of the B helix in the burst phase kinetic intermediate, relative to wild-type apomyoglobin. In contrast, the I30A mutation apparently has a slight stabilizing effect on the B helix in the burst phase intermediate; under weak labeling conditions, residues in the C helix region were also relatively stabilized in the mutant compared to the wild-type protein. This suggests that native-like helix B/helix C packing interactions occur in the folding intermediate. The L32A mutant showed significantly lower proton occupancies in the burst phase for several residues in the G helix, specifically F106, I107, E109 and A110, which are in close proximity to L32 in the X-ray structure of myoglobin, providing direct evidence that native-like helix B/helix G contacts are formed in the apomyoglobin burst phase intermediate. The L29A mutation resulted in an increase in burst phase proton occupancies for several residues in the E helix. Since these regions of the B and E helices are not in contact in the native myoglobin structure, these effects suggest the possibility of non-native B/E packing interactions in the kinetic intermediate. The differing effects of these B helix mutations on the apomyoglobin folding process suggests that each side-chain plays a different and important role in forming stable structure in the burst phase intermediate, and points to a role for both native-like and non-native contacts in stabilization of the folding intermediate.
Pseudourine formation in small nuclear RNAs

Abstract Recent in vitro studies on the formation of pseudouridine (Ψ) in the spliceosomal small nuclear RNAs (snRNA) are reviewed. Multiple Ψ synthase activities, in some cases more that one per snRNA, are responsible for this modification of uridine. There is a requirement for Sm protein binding for the efficient formation of Ψ in U5 RNA but not for the modification of U2 RNA. The inhibition of Ψ formation by the incorporation of 5-fluorouridine in the snRNA is also reviewed.