cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Functional near-infrared imager

We developed a continuous wave (cw) light imaging probe which includes 9 light sources and four pairs detectors (each pair has one 850 nm filtered detector and one 760 nm filtered detector). The light sources are controlled by a computer and the signals from the detectors are converted and processed in the computer. There are 16 measurement sections and total detection area is 9 cm multiplied by 4 cm which can be scanned every 8 seconds. The detector-source uses 2.5 cm spacing. In this study, we present the noise, drift, detectivity and spatial resolution test results of the imager. Changes of oxygenation and blood volume in about 2 cm depth from the surface of brain model can be detected. The temporal resolution is 8 seconds and spatial resolution is about 2 cm. The detectivity of OD changes can reach 0.008. With this cw imaging probe, we measured motor function in motor cortex area, visual function in occipital area, and cognitive activity in frontal forehead area of the human brian when the subjects are stimulated by moving fingers, viewing a flashing light and doing an analogy test, respectively. The experimental results show that the cw imaging probe can be used for functional images of brain activity, base upon changes of oxygenation and blood volume due to the stimulus.
On the Stability of Stochastic Hereditary Systems with Uncertain Elements

Conditions are presented for mean square asymptotic stability of systems described by nonlinear stochastic differential equations with multiple delays and uncertain terms. Stochastic Lyapunov method is used in the analysis which furnishes delay-independent stability results.
Immigrant Labor and the Issue of “Dirty Work” in Advanced Industrial Societies

Trends in the recruitment of unskilled immigrants to fill low-wage jobs in industrialized countries are analyzed for the period since World War II. Reasons for the United States to cease admitting such migrants are outlined. (ANNOTATION)
Multilevel fast multipole algorithm for elastic wave scattering by large three-dimensional objects

Multilevel fast multipole algorithm (MLFMA) is developed for solving elastic wave scattering by large three-dimensional (3D) objects. Since the governing set of boundary integral equations (BIE) for the problem includes both compressional and shear waves with different wave numbers in one medium, the double-tree structure for each medium is used in the MLFMA implementation. When both the object and surrounding media are elastic, four wave numbers in total and thus four FMA trees are involved. We employ Nystrom method to discretize the BIE and generate the corresponding matrix equation. The MLFMA is used to accelerate the solution process by reducing the complexity of matrix-vector product from O(N^2) to O(NlogN) in iterative solvers. The multiple-tree structure differs from the single-tree frame in electromagnetics (EM) and acoustics, and greatly complicates the MLFMA implementation due to the different definitions for well-separated groups in different FMA trees. Our Nystrom method has made use of the cancellation of leading terms in the series expansion of integral kernels to handle hyper singularities in near terms. This feature is kept in the MLFMA by seeking the common near patches in different FMA trees and treating the involved near terms synergistically. Due to the high cost of the multiple-tree structure, our numerical examples show that we can only solve the elastic wave scattering problems with 0.3-0.4 millions of unknowns on our Dell Precision 690 workstation using one core.
Evanescent field absorption in a passive optical fiber resonator using continuous-wave cavity ring-down spectroscopy

We combine the sensitivity advantages of cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) with the versatility of optical fiber sensing technology in a spatially extended passive fiber ring resonator constructed of common telecommunications components. The resonator is characterized with both pulsed and continuous-wave diode laser excitation, and it is shown to be a practical device for direct measurement of loss in a fiber-optic system as well for CRDS sensing in liquids. We demonstrate a minimum detectable loss of 0.017% per √Hz and show near-infrared absorption of 1-octyne with a minimum detectable concentration of 0.049% per √Hz in non-interacting solvent at 1532.5 nm.
SV40 INDUCTION FROM A MAMMALIAN CELL LINE BY ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION and THE PHOTOSENSITIZERS 8‐METHOXYPSORALEN and ANGELICIN

SV40-transformed weanling Syrian hamster kidney cells were exposed to long wavelength ultraviolet radiation in the presence of 8-methoxypsoralen or angelicin. The number of viruses induced as a result of this treatment was quantitated on CV-1P cells. The results indicate that angelicin, which is generally believed to form only monoadducts, is a potent viral inducing agent even when compared with 8-methoxypsoralen (8-MOP), which forms both monoadducts and crosslinks. At low radiation exposures 8-MOP is more effective than angelicin; as the radiation exposure is increased angelicin is capable of inducing the same peak level of virus expression as was 8-MOP. It appears that the induction of SV40 is a phenomenon possibly related to the repair of monoadducts.
Protein Diffusion and Macromolecular Crowding

Having recently quantified how crowding can affect equilibrium protein stability (1), we have turned our attention to diffusion. Our test molecule is the small globular protein, chymotrypsin inhibitor 2. Our crowding molecules are both the synthetic polymer polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and several globular proteins. We assessed both translational and rotational diffusion by using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (2). Whereas crowding by PVP results in negative deviations from the Stokes laws, crowding by globular proteins leads to positive deviations. I will discuss our results in terms of what can be learned from in vitro, versus in cell (3) studies.1. Charlton LM, et al. (2008) Macromolecular crowding effects on protein stability at the residue level. Journal of the American Chemical Society 130: 6826-6830.2. Li C, Wang Y, Pielak GJ (2009) Translational and rotational diffusion of a small globular protein under crowded conditions. Journal of Physical Chemistry 113: in press.3. Slade KM, Steele BL, Pielak GJ, Thompson NL (2009) Quantifying GFP diffusion in Escherichia coli by using continuous photobleaching with evanescent illumination. Journal of Physical Chemistry 113: 4837-4845.
Finding Money in the Haystack: Information Retrieval at Bloomberg

The financial markets are a rich domain for search, and it is not simple to serving the entire scope of financial professionals, who make their living on accurate, timely, and deep information. The data sources are many and disparate. This includes domains with rich structured data such as company and security attributes, textual data like research reports, and time sensitive news stories. Not only is the domain complicated, but some of the techniques that work for web search have to be adapted and reconsidered in an enterprise context with fewer eyeballs but just as complicated questions. At Bloomberg, we have been addressing these problems over the past four years in the search and discoverability group, heavily leveraging the insights from the academic and open-source communities to apply to our problems. We'll discuss about our efforts in Natural Language Question & Answer (NLQA), learning to rank, federated search, crowd sourcing, and how this all comes together to make search effective for our users.
Relation of ionizing groups to the structure of the collagen fibril

Abstract The hydrogen ion concentration of the medium during the reconstitution of collagen markedly influences the structure of the resulting fibril. The pH at which such morphological alterations occur and the titration of fibrils formed at various pH levels suggest that the imidazole moieties may be involved in the alignment and binding of adjacent molecules in collagen fibrils characterized by a 640 A axial periodicity.
The Effect of Drinking Age Laws and Alcohol‐Related Crashes: Time‐Series Evidence from Wisconsin

The imposition of a national 21-year minimum drinking age has sparked considerable controversy in recent years. Critics have contended that the perceived “successes” of the increased drinking age are actually due to underlying trends toward fewer alcohol-related crashes among teenagers, and would have occurred in the absence of an increased drinking age. I use monthly Wisconsin time-series data from 1976 to 1993 to estimate the effects of increased minimum drinking ages on alcohol-related crashes involving teenagers. I find that raising the drinking age has resulted in substantially lower alcohol-related crash rates involving teenagers. In addition, I find evidence that crashes increased in years in which Wisconsin's drinking age was lower than those of its neighbors, suggesting that “border hopping” resulted from interjurisdictional policy differences.
An Unknown Genetic Defect Increases Venous Thrombosis Risk, through Interaction with Protein C Deficiency

Summary We used two-locus segregation analysis to test whether an unknown genetic defect interacts with protein C deficiency to increase susceptibility to venous thromboembolic disease in a single large pedigree. Sixty-seven pedigree members carry a His107Pro mutation in the protein C gene, which reduces protein C levels to a mean of 46% of normal. Twenty-one carriers of the mutation and five other pedigree members had verified thromboembolic disease. We inferred the presence in this pedigree of a thrombosis-susceptibility gene interacting with protein C deficiency, by rejecting the hypothesis that the cases of thromboembolic disease resulted from protein C deficiency alone and by not rejecting Mendelian transmission of the interacting gene. When coinherited with protein C deficiency, the interacting gene conferred a probability of a thrombotic episode of ∼79% for men and ∼99% for women, before age 60 years.
An approximate Riemann solver for ideal magnetohydrodynamics

Abstract To construct numerical schemes of the Godunov type for solving magnetohydrodynamical (MHD) problems, an approximate method of solving the MHD Riemann problem is required in order to calculate the time-averaged fluxes at the interfaces of numerical zones. Such an MHD Riemann solver is presented here which treats all waves emanating from the initial discontinuity as themselves discontinuous. Thus shock jump conditions are used for rarefactions, which limits the applicability of this work to weak rarefactions, the case most important for computation. The solutions from our approximate MHD Riamnn solver consist of two fast waves (either shock or rarefaction) two rotational discontinuities, two rarefaction waves (either shock or rarefaction), and one contact discontinuity for a general MHD Riemann problem. In order to display rotational discontinuities, a three-component model is necessary. Only under very limited circumstances is there no rotational discontinuity involved and thus the two component approximation may be used in the MHD Riemann problem. The solutions of the MHD Riemann problem in the shock tube problem which generates the compound wave in the earlier work contain two fast rarefaction waves, two slow shocks, one contact discontinuity, and one rotational discontinuity in our formalism.
Cellulose Whisker/Epoxy Resin Nanocomposites

New nanocomposites composed of cellulose nanofibers or “whiskers” and an epoxy resin were prepared. Cellulose whiskers with aspect ratios of ∼10 and ∼84 were isolated from cotton and sea animals called tunicates, respectively. Suspensions of these whiskers in dimethylformamide were combined with an oligomeric difunctional diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A with an epoxide equivalent weight of 185−192 and a diethyl toluenediamine-based curing agent. Thin films were produced by casting these mixtures and subsequent curing. The whisker content was systematically varied between 4 and 24% v/v. Electron microscopy studies suggest that the whiskers are evenly dispersed within the epoxy matrix. Dynamic mechanical thermoanalysis revealed that the glass transition temperature (Tg) of the materials was not significantly influenced by the incorporation of the cellulose filler. Between room temperature and 150 °C, i.e., below Tg, the tensile storage moduli (E′) of the nanocomposites increased modestly, for example from 1...
Proteoglycan synthesis by clonal skeletal muscle cells during in vitro myogenesis: differences detected in the types and patterns from primary cultures.

Abstract Proteoglycan synthesis by two clonal murine skeletal muscle cell lines, G8-1 and C2, was examined. Cultures of skeletal muscle cells at both the myoblast and myotube stages were radiolabeled using [ 35 S]sulfate as a precursor. The proteoglycans of the cell layer and medium were separately extracted and isolated by ion exchange chromatography on DEAE-Sephacel followed by gel filtration chromatography on Sepharose CL-2B. The cell layer proteoglycans eluted from Sepharose CL-20 as a single peak with a K av of 0.66 and contained glycosaminoglycan chains with an average molecular weight of 20,000. The glycosaminoglycan chains were composed of nearly equal mixtures of chondroitin sulfate and heparan sulfate with the exception that C2 myoblast cultures contained larger amounts of heparan sulfate. Of interest, this line differentiates more rapidly in our laboratory than G8-1. The medium proteoglycans also eluted from Sepharose CL-2B as a single peak with a K av of 0.66 but contained glycosaminoglycan chains with an average molecular weight of 32,000. Based upon enzymatic and chemical analysis, the medium glycosaminoglycan chains were composed of a mixture of chondroitin sulfate (71–80%) and heparin sulfate (19–22%). Following chondroitinase ABC digestion, the predominant disaccharide released from all glycosaminoglycan fractions was chondroitin-4-sulfate. When the extracted cell layer proteoglycans were chromatographed on Sepharose CL-28 in the absence of detergent, a small but consistent proportion (14–18%) eluted in the void volume, suggesting the association of at least a portion of this proteoglycan with cellular lipid. These differences distinguish proteoglycan metabolism in fusing clonal lines from primary muscle cell cultures suggesting their utility in evaluating the contribution of these macromolecules in myogenesis.
Quasi-linear viscoelastic properties of costal cartilage using atomic force microscopy

Costal cartilage (CC) is one of the load-bearing tissues of the rib cage. Literature on material characterisation of the CC is limited. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has been extremely successful in characterising the elastic properties of soft biomaterials such as articular cartilage and hydrogels, which are often the material of choice for cartilage models. But AFM data on CC are absent in the literature. In this study, AFM indentations using spherical beaded tips were performed on human CC to isolate the mechanical properties. A novel method was developed for modelling the relaxation indentation experiments based on Fung's quasi-linear viscoelasticity and a continuous relaxation spectrum. This particular model has been popular for uniaxial compression test data analysis. Using the model, the mean Young's modulus of CC was found to be about 2.17, 4.11 and 5.49 MPa for three specimens. A large variation of modulus was observed over the tissue. Also, the modulus values decreased with distance from the cos...
Repetitive sequence transcripts in the mature sea urchin oocyte

The expression of interspersed repetitive sequences in the RNA of mature sea urchin oocytes was investigated. ^3H-DNA tracers representing short interspersed repetitive sequences a few hundred nucleotides long, and long repetitive sequences approximately 2000 nucleotides long, were prepared from genomic DNA of the sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus. These tracers were reacted with excess RNA from the mature oocyte. About 80% of the reactable short repeat tracer and 35% of the long repeat tracer hybridized. Thus most of the repetitive sequence families in the short repeat tracer are represented in oocyte RNA, and transcripts complementary to both strands of many repeat sequences are present. The kinetics of the reaction show that some transcripts are highly prevalent (>10^5 copies per oocyte), while others are rare (∼10^3 copies per oocyte). Nine cloned repetitive sequences were labeled, strand-separated and reacted with the oocyte RNA. Transcripts of both strands of all nine repeats were found in the RNA. The prevalence of transcripts of the cloned repeat families varied from ∼3000 to 100,000 copies per oocyte. Studies with both cloned and genomic tracers show that transcript prevalence is independent of the genomic reiteration frequency of the transcribed repetitive sequences. Most of the families represented by prevalent transcripts have fewer than 200 copies per haploid genome. The RNA molecules with which the cloned repeats react are at least 1000–2000 nucleotides in length. Other experiments show that a majority of the members of repeat families represented by prevalent transcripts in the oocyte RNA are interspersed among single-copy sequence elements in the genome.
Understanding cities through city brands: City branding as a social and semantic network

Abstract More and more towns, cities, regions, and countries are investing in branding campaigns in order to establish a reputation for themselves, and to have a competitive edge in today’s global market. In their essence, branding campaigns are places’ attempts to define themselves to target audiences. However, the literature and practice of place branding have focused on the competition of brands at the expense of exploring the relations between people, symbols, meanings, and physical characteristics of cities. Therefore, current branding measurement scales and indices used to understand the defining characteristics of places are problematic. This article first analyzes three of the prominent place branding indices: Anholt-GfK Roper City Brands Index, FutureBrand Country Brand Index, and East–West Nation Brand Perception Index. Subsequently, it proposes an analytical framework combining two network analysis methods – social and semantic – to evaluate place brands, called “ Define–Measure–Visualize ” (DMV). In order to argue for the feasibility of the proposed method, a sample dataset is created based on tweets about Boston and New York City. By introducing a consumer-centric and communications-based approach and exploring the connection between cities, people, and messages, the findings of this research can be used in understanding cities/places, measuring the success of branding campaigns, and managing future campaigns.
Differing effects of isoleucine deficiency on the toxicity of MNNG for 10T1/2 and CHO cells

Isoleucine deficiency sensitizes C3H 10T1/2 cells to the cytotoxic effects of MNNG. Synchrony of proliferation is not required for this effect since it occurs prior to full growth arrest and subsequent establishment of synchronous proliferation after refeeding in complete medium. Furthermore, confluence arrest of proliferation of 10T1/2 cells does not affect their cytotoxic response to MNNG, although they proliferate synchronously after replating at low density. In contrast, the toxicity of MNNG for CHO cells is not altered by isoleucine deficiency, even though these cells are readily synchronized by refeeding in complete medium after transient isoleucine deficiency.
The four subtypes of anomalous origin of the left main coronary artery from the right aortic sinus (or from the right coronary artery).

Abstract Most published reports of coronary arterial anomalies concern a single patient or only a small group of patients. Although much good and useful information, of course, can be derived from the study of a single patient, multiple cases of a major coronary anomaly are required to observe the various subgroups of a single major anomaly. We have studied at necropsy 17 patients in whom the left main coronary artery (LMCA) arose from either the right aortic sinus or the most proximal portion of the right coronary artery.1–5 After its origin, the LMCA coursed to the left side of the heart by 1 of 4 routes, and the clinical consequences of such courses are described in this report.
Evidence that the transforming gene of avian sarcoma virus encodes a protein kinase associated with a phosphoprotein.

Abstract Avian sarcoma virus (ASV) induces sarcomas in animals and transforms fibroblasts to a neoplastic state in cell culture. A single viral gene ( src ) is responsible for both the induction and maintenance of neoplastic transformation. Recent work has identified a protein with a molecular weight of 60, 000 daltons that is apparently encoded in src and may be the effector molecule for the gene (Brugge and Erikson, 1977; Purchio et al., 1978). The putative product of src can be immunoprecipitated by antisera obtained from rabbits bearing tumors induced by ASV. We have used this approach to isolate the protein to characterize further its genetic origins and possible function. Our rabbit tumor antisera precipitated a protein with a molecular weight of 60, 000 daltons; according to serological, biochemical and genetic criteria, this protein is encoded In src. We found that this protein is phosphorylated and therefore denoted it pp60. Phosphorylation of pp60 could be accomplished in vitro with extracts of ASV-infected cells. A temperature-sensitive conditional mutation in src had no demonstrable effect on either the production or stability of pp60 in the infected cell, but phosphorylation of the protein was temperature-sensitive. Since the mutant src is not expressed at the restrictive temperature, our findings raise the possibility that phosphorylation of pp60 is required for its function as the putative effector of src . Immunoprecipitates prepared with extracts of ASV-infected cells and the rabbit tumor antisera contained a protein kinase activity that catalyzed phosphorylation of the heavy chains of immunoglobulin molecules, using either ATP or GTP as phosphate donor. The kinase activity immunoprecipitated in parallel with pp60 was obtained only from cells that contained a functioning product of src and could not be precipitated with antisera directed against structural proteins of ASV. A temperature-sensitive conditional mutation in src caused the kinase activity to be thermally inactivated in vitro far more rapidly than the activity from cells infected with wild-type virus. We conclude that both the protein kinase and pp60 are encoded in src, and that the enzymatic activity may be an intrinsic property of pp60. Phosphorylation of pp60 in cellular extracts was inhibited by calcium ion, whereas the immunoprecipitable kinase activity was not, suggesting that the kinase responsible for pp60 phosphorylation may be distinct from that encoded in src . Collett and Erikson (1978) have also identified a protein kinase activity associated with pp60. These findings raise the possibility that phosphorylation of specific cellular targets might account for transformation of the host cell by src .
Novel Bicylic Donors for the Synthesis of 2-Deoxy-β-Glycosides†

Novel bicyclic glycosyl donors have been prepared by the cycloaddition reaction of glycals with 3-thiono-2,4-pentanedione 17 followed by methylenation of the resulting ketone. Treatment of the heterocyclic donors with triflic acid in the presence of a variety of alcohol acceptors leads to the formation of β-glycosides in good yields and with excellent stereoselectivities. Desulfurization of the C-2 carbon−sulfur bonds gives the corresponding 2-deoxy-β-glycosides. This method has been extended to the synthesis of glycosidic linkages found in the aureolic acid antibiotics. Tetra-N-butylammonium triflate proved to be a useful additive in these glycosylation reactions, suggesting an important role for triflate anion in stabilizing intermediates which are formed.
Adaptive multifunctional composites

The adaptive multifunctional composite structure studied here is to address two issues remaining in lightweight structural composites required by many engineering applications. The first is to add additional functionality to multifunctional composites and the second is to provide adaptive damping in structures that cover a wide range of frequencies and temperatures. Because of its potential for practical payoffs, passive structural damping can find wide application through the use of high-damping viscoelastic polymers or elastomers. However, all passive damping using these damping materials suffer from failing at certain temperatures and in certain frequency ranges. The extreme environments often seen by engineering systems provide high temperature, which is exactly where damping levels in structures reduce causing unacceptable vibrations. In addition, as loading frequencies reduce damping levels also fall off, and many loads experienced by large structures are low frequency. The proposed research addresses increasing the range of effectiveness of damping by addressing the temperature and frequency dependence of material damping by using a multifunctional composite system containing an active element. Previous research has yielded a finite element model of linear viscoelastic material and structural behavior that captures characteristic frequency-dependent behavior, continuing research has addressed the accommodation of temperature dependence, and the examination of the new concept of ‘electronic damping’ or ‘e-damping’. The resulting modeling approach is validated through experimental validation.
Heat induced capsid disassembly and DNA release of bacteriophage λ.

Successive structural changes of bacteriophage upon heating were characterized with quantitative experimental methods. In the commonly used Tris-Mg buffer, differential scanning calorimetry measurements first established that the protein capsid of phage melts at 87°C and its genomic DNA melts at 91°C. Interestingly, prior to the capsid melting, DNA was found to escape out of the capsid and subject to DNase digestion above 68°C, as concluded from light scattering, UV absorption, and electron microscopy studies. Further investigations indicated distinct temperature-dependent behaviors of the three phage proteins. Around 68°C, disruption of the tail first occurs and leads to the escape of DNA; above the capsid melting temperature of 87°C, the auxiliary protein gpD of the phage head remains soluble in solution and resists centrifugal sedimentation, whereas the major capsid protein gpE is easily precipitated and likely exists as aggregates.
THE PARTITION OF PLASMA CALCIUM AND INORGANIC PHOSPHORUS IN ESTROGENTREATED NORMAL AND PARATHYROIDECTOMIZED PIGEONS

IN OVIPAROUS VERTEBRATES each period of egg production is associated with a large increase in the non-ultrafiltrable fraction of the plasma calcium. Similar and evengreater increases in total plasma calcium of these vertebrates result from the administration of estrogens, but in these cases the partition of calcium has not been determined. The literature on this subject has been reviewed by Riddle (1942) and by Gardner and Pfeiffer (1943). A recent study by Riddle, Rauch and Smith (1945) has shown that parathyroidectomy has little or no effect on the ability of estrogens to cause hypercalcemia and medullary bone formation in the pigeon. Many of the same animals used in that investigation were further utilized for the present study of the partition of calcium and inorganic phosphorus in the plasmas of estrogen-treated pigeons.
Sediment microbial enzyme activity as an indicator of nutrient limitation in the great rivers of the Upper Mississippi River basin

We compared extracellular enzyme activity (EEA) of microbial assemblages in river sediments at 447 sites along the Upper Mississippi, Missouri, and Ohio Rivers with sediment and water chemistry, atmospheric deposition of nitrogen and sulfate, and catchment land uses. The sites represented five unique river reaches—impounded and unimpounded reaches of the Upper Mississippi River, the upper and lower reaches of the Missouri River, and the entire Ohio River. Land use and river chemistry varied significantly between rivers and reaches. There was more agriculture in the two Upper Mississippi River reaches, and this was reflected in higher nutrient concentrations at sites in these reaches. EEA was highest in the two Upper Mississippi River reaches, followed by the lower Missouri River reach. EEA was generally lowest in the upper Missouri River reach. Canonical correlation analysis revealed a strong correlation between EEA and the suite of water and sediment chemistry variables, and the percent of the catchment in anthropogenically dominated land uses, including agriculture and urban development. Nutrient ratios of the waters and sediments suggested carbon (C), nitrogen (N), or phosphorus (P) limitation at a large number of sites in each reach. C-limitation was most pronounced in the unimpounded Mississippi River and lower Missouri River reaches; N-limitation was prevalent in the two Missouri River reaches; and P-limitation dominated the Ohio River. Linking microbial enzyme activities to regional-scale anthropogenic stressors in these large river ecosystems suggests that microbial enzyme regulation of carbon and nutrient dynamics may be sensitive indicators of anthropogenic nutrient and carbon loading.
Full Navier-Stokes Analysis of an Axisymmetric Scramjet Inlet

A full Navier-Stokes (FNS) computation was carried out on a mixed-compression axisymmetric scramjet inlet at Mach 5. The geometry including a blunt nose and cowl leading edge was modeled using a multizone approach which permitted running either time-marching or space-marching on individual zones. A Baldwin-Lomax turbulence model was used to simulate the effects of turbulence. The flow solution agreed very well with the test data on the wall static pressure and throat total pressure. The inlet performance calculated by postprocessing the solution matched the wind-tunnel test data as well.
Parallel evidence propagation on multicore processors

We propose a parallel evidence propagation method on general-purpose multicore processors. Evidence propagation is a major step in exact inference, a key problem in exploring probabilistic graphical models. We explore the parallelism in evidence propagation at various levels. First, given an arbitrary junction tree, we construct a directed acyclic graph (DAG) with weighted nodes, each denoting a computation task for evidence propagation. Since the execution time of the tasks varies significantly, we develop a workload-aware scheduler to allocate the tasks to the cores of the processors. The scheduler monitors the workload of each core and dynamically allocates tasks to support load balance across the cores. In addition, we integrate a module in the scheduler to partition the tasks converted from cliques with large potential tables so as to achieve improved load balance. We implemented the proposed method using Pthreads on both AMD and Intel quadcore processors. For a representative set of junction trees, our method achieved almost linear speedup. The execution time of our method was around twice as fast as an OpenMP-based implementation on both the platforms.
The Penetration Behavior of an Annular Gas–Solid Jet Impinging on a Liquid Bath: Comparison with a Conventional Circular Jet

The top-blow injection technique of a gas–solid mixture through a circular lance is used in the Mitsubishi Continuous Smelting Process. One of the inherent problems associated with this injection is the severe erosion of the hearth refractory below the lances. A new configuration of the lance to form an annular gas–solid jet rather than a circular jet was designed in the laboratory scale. With this new configuration, solid particles leave the lance at a much lower velocity than the gas, and the penetration behavior of the jet is significantly different than with the circular lance in which the solid particles leave the lance at the same high velocity as the gas. The results of cold model tests using an air-sand jet issuing from a circular lance and an annular lance into a water bath showed that the penetration of the annular jet is much less sensitive to the variations in particle feed rate as well as gas velocity than that of the circular jet. Correlation equations for the penetration depth for both circular and annular jets show agreement among the experimentally obtained values.
Volume Data Correction for Single-Channel Advance Loop Detectors at Signalized Intersections

The single-channel detection scheme has been widely used in practice for traffic control. Differing from lane-by-lane detection, single-channel detection has all loop detectors across multiple lanes wired together and provides a single input to the controller. Although single-channel (wired-together) detectors are commonly used by traffic agencies, the traffic volume data collected from these single-channel loops are inaccurate because of high misdetection rates, compared with lane-by-lane detection. This study focuses on developing a probability-based approach for correcting the traffic volume data collected by the single-channel loop detectors at signalized intersections. The proposed probability-based nonlinear model (NM) explicitly describes a potential model compared with a multiple linear regression model. Both models were calibrated and validated using real-life data from seven two-lane intersection approaches and three three-lane intersection approaches under various traffic conditions. The result...
Synthesis of glycopeptide derivatives containing the 2-acetamido-N-(L-aspart-4-oyl)-2-deoxy-β-D-glucopyranosylamine linkage and having the amino acid sequences 32–34, 33–35,33–37, and 33–38 of bovine ribonuclease

Abstract The synthesis is described of the glycotripeptide derivatives 2-acetamido-3,4,6-tri- O -acetyl- N -[ N -(benzyloxycarbonyl)- L- -seryl- L -nitroarginyl- L -aspart-4-oyl]-2-deoxy-β- D -glucopyranosylamine, 2-acetamido-3,4,6-tri- O -acetyl- N -[ N -(benzyloxycarbonyl)- L -seryl- L -nitroarginyl- L -aspart-1-oyl-(1- p -nitrobenzyl ester)-4-oyl]-2-deoxy-β- D -glucopyranosylamine, and 2-acetamido-3,4,6-tri- O -acetyl- N -[ N -(benzyloxycarbonyl)- L -nitroarginyl- L -aspart-1-oyl-( L -leucine methyl ester)-4-oyl]-2-deoxy-β- D -glucopyranosylamine, and of the glycopentapeptide and glycohexapeptide derivatives 2-acetamido-3,4,6-tri- O -acetyl- N -[ N -(benzyloxycarbonyl)- L -nitroarginyl- L -aspart-1-oyl-( L -leucyl- L -threonyl-threonyl- N e -tosyl- L -lysine-( p -nitrobenzyl ester)-4-oyl]-2-deoxy-β- D -glycopyranosylamine and 2-acetamido-3,4,6-tri- O -acetyl- N -[ N -(benzyloxycarbonyl)- L -nitroarginyl- L -aspart-1-oyl-( L -leucyl- L -threonyl- N e -tosyl- L -lysyl- L -aspartic 1,4-di- p -nitrobenzyl ester)-4-oyl]-2-deoxy-β- D -glucopyranosylamine.
CHANGES IN THE PROFILE OF ORGANIC ACIDS IN PLAIN SET AND STIRRED YOGURTS DURING MANUFACTURE AND REFRIGERATED STORAGE

The organic acids profile in fermented dairy foods is an indicator of the metabolic activity of added bacterial cultures. These acids act as natural preservatives and contribute to the characteristic sensory properties. This study was done to determine the effect of encapsulation on the metabolic activity of probiotic supplements, i.e. bifidobacteria, in plain yogurts. Metabolically active bifidobacteria may increase the concentration of certain organic acids, mainly acetic and propionic acids, which might lead to decreased acceptability of the product. Changes in the profiles of organic acids were determined in plain set and stirred-type yogurts containing the starter culture and microencapsulated and nonencapsulated probiotic strains of either Bifidobacterium longum B6 or B. longum ATCC 15708. Ion-exchange high-performance liquid chromatography was used for the separation and quantification of the organic acids. Concentrations of acetic and lactic acid increased during storage, while those of citric and uric acid remained stable. No particular pattern was observed for propionic or butyric acid, while pyruvic acid initially decreased and then increased during storage.
Effects of soil compaction, forest leaf litter and nitrogen fertilizer on two oak species and microbial activity.

A greenhouse study examined the effects of soil compaction and forest leaf litter on the growth and nitrogen (N) uptake and recovery of red oak (Quercus rubra L.) and scarlet oak (Quercus coccinea Muencch) seedlings and selected microbial activity over a 6-month period. The experiment had a randomized complete block design with three replications. Ammonium 15N-sulfate at 33 mg 15N kg-1 was used to quantify seedling N uptake and recovery. After 6 months, seedlings were harvested and analyzed for dry matter production, total N, 15N uptake and N derived from 15N labeled fertilizer (Ndff). Soil enzyme activity and soil microbial biomass C and N were measured as indicators of microbial activity. Soil compaction significantly decreased seedling height, dry matter production, and 15N recovery of both oak species. Significantly greater N losses were observed in compacted pots compared with the non-compacted pots. Less 15N was immobilized in the soil microbial biomass in the compacted pots than under non-compacted conditions, probably due to greater overall 15N losses in the compacted conditions. Soil compaction significantly affected microbial activity by reducing acid phosphatase. Severe soil compaction decreased young tree growth and reduced N fertilizer uptake.
Young Children's Reactions to Mothers’ Disclosure of Maternal HIV+ Serostatus

Little is known about the impact of maternal disclosure of HIV-positive serostatus on young children. The objective of this study was to explore this topic, utilizing in-depth qualitative interviews. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 47 mothers who had disclosed to their young, well child, and with the children. The most prevalent child response was anxiety, primarily focused on the mother's health and fear of her death. A number of children also worried about other people finding out, and seemed aware of the stigma surrounding HIV. For most children anxiety decreased over time, although for a small number it sustained and became maladaptive. The majority of children appeared to adjust well to maternal disclosure. Mothers who are planning to disclose their serostatus to their young children should be encouraged to plan for appropriate psychosocial follow-up following the disclosure, with special focus on the stigma associated with HIV.
Ultrasonic Resonance Measurements of Sound Velocity in Thin Composite Laminates

An ultrasonic resonance technique for compressional and shear waves velocity measurements in thin composite laminates is described. The method utilizes a computer digitizing scheme and Fourier transform from time to frequency domain. Results showed an eight percent difference in compressional wave velocity across plies for specimens of two different fiber/resin systems. No difference was observed for specimens having different ply-orientations within a system. Shear wave velocity in one specimen was found to be 46% of the compressional wave velocity. The new technique could also be used for thickness measurements in thin-skin honeycomb structures.
WATER, BOTTOM DEPOSITS, AND ZOOPLANKTON OF FERN LAKE, WASHINGTON1

Water, sediments, and zooplankton from unproductive Fern Lake were compared with those from highly productive Bay Lake and with data from the literature. In all cases, values from the Fern Lake system were in the lower or lowest range of conductance and concentration values. Consistently higher values were found in the Bay Lake samples. Thcsc differences may account partially for the productivity differential between Bay and Fern Lakes, but a major factor may bc the difference in the flushing or the retention time of the lakes, as determined by the ratio of total precipitation on the watershed to Iake volume. This ratio has been estimated as 26 for Fern Lake and 4.8 for Bay Lake,
Inexact Schwarz‐algebraic multigrid preconditioners for crack problems modeled by extended finite element methods

SUMMARY Traditional algebraic multigrid (AMG) preconditioners are not well suited for crack problems modeled by extended finite element methods (XFEM). This is mainly because of the unique XFEM formulations, which embed discontinuous fields in the linear system by addition of special degrees of freedom. These degrees of freedom are not properly handled by the AMG coarsening process and lead to slow convergence. In this paper, we proposed a simple domain decomposition approach that retains the AMG advantages on well-behaved domains by avoiding the coarsening of enriched degrees of freedom. The idea was to employ a multiplicative Schwarz preconditioner where the physical domain was partitioned into “healthy” (or unfractured) and “cracked” subdomains. First, the “healthy” subdomain containing only standard degrees of freedom, was solved approximately by one AMG V-cycle, followed by concurrent direct solves of “cracked” subdomains. This strategy alleviated the need to redesign special AMG coarsening strategies that can handle XFEM discretizations. Numerical examples on various crack problems clearly illustrated the superior performance of this approach over a brute force AMG preconditioner applied to the linear system. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The ‘Immigrant Problem’: Modern-Day Nativism on the Web

This article examines present attempts to construct immigration as a social problem by studying the language and rhetoric of restrictionist groups on the World Wide Web in the aftermath of 9/11. The analysis of these websites reveals a variety of discourses that both describe and evaluate the consequences of recent immigration. The reasons against immigration currently being put forth include: defending the environment, enhancing national security and protecting jobs for native-born Americans. While the case can be made that these arguments are not based on hostility toward any specific group defined in terms of its racial, ethnic, cultural or religious characteristics, a case that typically is asserted by restrictionist groups themselves, my analysis reveals the existence of an alternative discourse defining those unworthy of participation in American society. My research also reveals that the most overtly nativist groups have the greatest number of web-links to other restrictionist groups, suggesting an...
A somatostatin analog improves tilt table tolerance by decreasing splanchnic vascular conductance.

Splanchnic hemodynamics and tilt table tolerance were assessed after an infusion of placebo or octreotide acetate, a somatostatin analog whose vascular effects are largely confined to the splanchni...
Results of a gallium phosphide photovoltaic junction with an AR coating under concentration of natural sunlight

Abstract A gallium phosphide (GaP) photovoltaic junction is grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) on a GaP substrate. An anti-reflection coating of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) is applied and the cell is measured under concentrations of 1× and 10.7× in an outdoor setting. Efficiencies up to 2.6% and open circuit voltages up to 1.57 V are reported.
Current concepts of leg lengthening.

Any lower limb discrepancy may be equalised by conservative means (insoles, prosthesis and orthosis). However, their long-term acceptance is low in regard to function, costs, expenditure and appearance. Timely epiphysiodesis is the best option in uniplanar deformities with adequate remaining growth and for patients whose predicted final body height is above the 50th percentile. However, many patients present late or with multi-planar deformities, which warrant more sophisticated operative approaches. The history of surgical bone lengthening comprises 100 exciting years of struggling, development and ongoing learning. The initial strategy of acute or rapid incremental distraction had lasted almost half a century until Ilizarov recognised the benefits of biological periosteum-preserving osteotomies and incremental lengthening at slow rates (1 mm/day) at a 4 × 0.25-mm daily rhythm, well appreciated as callotasis. In parallel, ring and wire constructs made complex three-dimensional axial, translational and rotational bone moulding possible. Taylor Spatial Frames—built on hexapod strut-linked platform technology as known from flight simulators—took limb correction to a more reliable, more precise and aesthetical level, all the more that the whole process became web-based. It represents state-of-the-art methodology and technology for complex, multi-plane deformities. Due to the significant risk of secondary malalignment, indications for lengthening by unilateral fixation have shrunken to moderate amounts of length disparity and uni- to bi-planar deformities in patients with still open physes. Mechanical or motorised, minimally invasively placed nails prevent muscle fixation and, therefore, ease rehabilitation, increase patient comfort and potentially shorten the overall time of sick leave and refrain from sports activities. Hence, they offer a valuable alternative for low-grade complexity situations. It remains to be proved if the significantly higher implant costs are compensated by lower treatment costs. Overall, limb lengthening, particularly in combination with multi-planar deformity correction, can still be an arduous endeavour. In any case, wise judgement of the patient’s deformity, medical and biological situation, psychosocial environment, selection of the appropriate method and hardware, as well as meticulous operating technique by an experienced surgeon are the cornerstones of successful outcomes.
Analysis of coarse parallel architectures for artificial neural processing

A methodology for comparing various neural architectures and implementations is illustrated. The methodology consists of writing the artificial neural network (ANN) equations in a summation form and the applying a tool termed algorithmic timing parameter decomposition (ATPD). ATPD decomposes an algorithm or set of equations into a computation time formula comprising basic system primitives. A particular architecture has a corresponding computational time formula. Similarly, the primitive elements are dependent on the actual hardware realization and thus will change with the processor used in the system. Computation times therefore can be estimated for different parallel architectures. Implementation of a multilayer perceptron is analyzed in several digital signal processor (DSP)-based parallel architectures. >
Inflammatory Responses to Migrating Brugia pahangi Third-Stage Larvae

Despite being central to parasite establishment and subsequent host pathological and immunologic responses, host-parasite interactions during early third-stage filarial larva (L3) migration are poorly understood. These studies aimed to define early tissue migration of Brugia pahangi L3 in the gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) and measure host cellular responses during this period. Gerbils were intradermally inoculated in the hind limb with 100 B. pahangi L3, and necropsies were performed at various times. At 3 h, most L3 (96.3%) were recovered from tissues associated with the infection site, with marked L3 migration occurring by 24 h. Larvae were dispersed throughout the lymphatics at 7 days postinfection (dpi), and at 28 dpi, most parasites were recovered from the spermatic cord lymphatics. Parasites were identified histologically at all time points. Inflammatory cells, primarily neutrophils, were frequently observed around larvae in the dermis and muscle near the injection site at 3 h and 24 h. Levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α mRNA peaked at 3 h in all tissues, with IL-6 levels also high in the spleen at 28 dpi. Levels of IL-4 mRNA were elevated in all tissues at 28 dpi. These observations demonstrate that L3 migrate quickly through various tissues and into lymph nodes in a predictable pattern. Migrating L3 induce an early acute inflammatory response that is modulated as parasites establish in the lymphatics. Polarization of the host response towards a dominant Th2-like profile is present at 7 dpi and is well established by 28 dpi in this permissive host.