cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Comparison of alternate and simultaneous tensioning of wires in a single-ring fixator construct.

Objective— To measure and compare the strain of wires tensioned with alternate (ALT) and simultaneous (SIM) tensioning in a single-ring fixator construct and compare the stiffness of these constructs under axial loading. Study Design— Experimental mechanical study. Sample Population— Twenty-four, 84 mm diameter, single-ring constructs. Methods— Twenty-four, 84 mm diameter, single-ring constructs were assembled using 2 1.6 mm wires placed at a 60° angle tensioned with either ALT or SIM technique to 90 kg tension. Voltage data from a strain gauge were recorded during the wire-tensioning process, cyclic axial loading, and load-to-failure testing. Wire strains were calculated for each wire and compared within constructs and between ALT and SIM groups. Construct stiffness was compared between groups. Results— There was no difference between the tensioning methods in final wire strains after initial tensioning for both the wire below the ring (W1; P=.698) and the wire above the ring (W2; P=.233). There was also no difference in final wire strains within each tensioning method group (ALT, P=.289; SIM, P=.583). Loss of wire strain (3.5–5%) occurred after cyclic loading for both wires in both groups. There was no difference in construct stiffness between the ALT and SIM groups (P=.126). Mode of failure was by wire breakage in all constructs and occurred most frequently in W1. Conclusion— ALT tensioning of wires produced similar wire strains within a single-ring construct after initial tensioning to SIM tensioned wires. There was no difference in construct stiffness under axial loading between AIM and SIM tensioned constructs. Clinical Relevance— ALT tensioning of wires in a single-ring fixator construct can be used as an alternative to SIM tensioning, as similar initial wire tensions are achieved.
Performance-based public management reforms: experience and emerging lessons from service delivery improvement in Indonesia

From both a practical and a theoretical perspective, improved public sector performance has preoccupied policymakers, managers, and analysts around the world. There is broad enthusiasm for performance-based initiatives to remedy service delivery failures, but conceptual boundaries are often vague, and empirical evidence for their effectiveness is mixed. This article reviews current thinking regarding service delivery improvement, and assesses several pathways to improved performance. We examine the pathways pursued in Indonesia’s rich experience with service delivery improvement, which shed particular light on the political economic factors shaping performance-based initiatives, and draw implications for reforms in other settings.Points for practitionersOur review of pathways for performance-enhancing reforms in Indonesia suggests that decentralization strongly influences the prospects of other pathways, but service improvements often depend on the center utilizing its leverage to monitor performance and ...
IGF-1–Overexpressing Mesenchymal Stem Cells Accelerate Bone Marrow Stem Cell Mobilization via Paracrine Activation of SDF-1α/CXCR4 Signaling to Promote Myocardial Repair

We hypothesized that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) overexpressing insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 showed improved survival and engraftment in the infarcted heart and promoted stem cell recruitment through paracrine release of stromal cell-derived factor (SDF)-1alpha. Rat bone marrow-derived MSCs were used as nontransduced ((Norm)MSCs) or transduced with adenoviral-null vector ((Null)MSCs) or vector encoding for IGF-1 ((IGF-1)MSCs). (IGF-1)MSCs secreted higher IGF-1 until 12 days of observation (P<0.001 versus (Null)MSCs). Molecular studies revealed activation of phosphoinositide 3-kinase, Akt, and Bcl.xL and inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase 3beta besides release of SDF-1alpha in parallel with IGF-1 expression in (IGF-1)MSCs. For in vivo studies, 70 muL of DMEM without cells (group 1) or containing 1.5x10(6) (Null)MSCs (group 2) or (IGF-1)MSCs (group 3) were implanted intramyocardially in a female rat model of permanent coronary artery occlusion. One week later, immunoblot on rat heart tissue (n=4 per group) showed elevated myocardial IGF-1 and phospho-Akt in group 3 and higher survival of (IGF-1)MSCs (P<0.06 versus (Null)MSCs) (n=6 per group). SDF-1alpha was increased in group 3 animal hearts (20-fold versus group 2), with massive mobilization and homing of ckit(+), MDR1(+), CD31(+), and CD34(+) cells into the infarcted heart. Infarction size was significantly reduced in cell transplanted groups compared with the control. Confocal imaging after immunostaining for myosin heavy chain, actinin, connexin-43, and von Willebrand factor VIII showed extensive angiomyogenesis in the infarcted heart. Indices of left ventricular function, including ejection fraction and fractional shortening, were improved in group 3 as compared with group 1 (P<0.05). In conclusion, the strategy of IGF-1 transgene expression induced massive stem cell mobilization via SDF-1alpha signaling and culminated in extensive angiomyogenesis in the infarcted heart.
Wave-front correction by one or more synthetic beacons

Adaptive optics has been used in a cooperative mode to measure the phase distortion of the light from a star and to correct its image with a deformable mirror. A wave-front sensor in the adaptive-optics system that measures the phase aberrations requires that an object be fairly bright for accurate performance of the measurement. The use of synthetic beacons provides a means of correcting the images of objects that are too dim to allow one to use their light to provide correction in a cooperative mode. Synthetic beacons at a finite distance do not provide a perfect correction in imaging an object at a greater distance. The error in making a correction with one or more beacons is analyzed. Analytical expressions that can be used to determine performance in a variety of geometries, with various beacon altitudes and numbers, are derived. This analysis is applied to 60-cm and 4-m systems.
Lipid-coated nanoscale coordination polymers for targeted delivery of antifolates to cancer cells

Nanoscale coordination polymers (NCPs) have been demonstrated as an interesting platform for drug delivery, as they possess many advantages over small-molecule chemotherapeutics such as high payloads, lower systemic toxicity, tunability, and enhanced tumor uptake. Existing formulations for the delivery of methotrexate (MTX), an antifolate cancer drug, have very low drug loadings. Herein, we report the incorporation of MTX as a building block in an NCP formulation with exceptionally high drug loadings (up to 79.1 wt%) and the selective delivery of the NCP to cancer cells. Encapsulation of the NCP in a functionalized lipid bilayer allows for targeted delivery and controlled release to cancer cells. A phosphor can be doped into the NCPs for monitoring particle uptake by optical imaging. The lipid-coated and anisamide-targeted NCPs have superior in vitro efficacy against acute lymphoblastic leukemia cells when compared to the free drug.
Animated Video Clips: Learning in the Current Generation

The teaching and learning processes have undergone a variety of changes and modifications in recent years. The overall academic goal is to produce engaged, lifelong learners who are capable of solving complex problems in diverse settings. These desired skills cannot be achieved via the traditional teaching and learning model that requires students to be passive recipients of knowledge. Therefore, teachers must acknowledge that as traditional teaching methods lose their relevancy in educational settings, they must be willing to make radical changes to the way they conceptualize the teaching and learning process. As a practical suggestion to address the challenges of constructing new learning applications, this article describes an innovative use of animated video clips to help achieve desired learning outcomes.
Spin Hall effect in two-dimensional p-type semiconductors in a magnetic field

We calculate the spin Hall conductivity driven by Rashba spin-orbit interaction in $p$-type two-dimensional semiconductors in the presence of a perpendicular magnetic field. For a highly confined quantum well, the system is described by a $k$-cubic Rashba term for two-dimensional heavy holes. The eigenstates of the system can be described by Landau spinor states. First we consider the conventional spin Hall conductivity. The contribution of the interband transitions to the Kubo-Greenwood formula gives the density dependent intrinsic spin Hall conductivity, which approaches its universal value ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{xy}^{z}=9e∕8\ensuremath{\pi}$ for weak spin-orbit coupling and low Fermi energies, in agreement with previous work. However two intraband contribution terms cancel this effect leading to zero conventional spin Hall conductivity. Adding the torque dipole contribution to the definition of spin current, we also study the effective spin conductivity. This is shown to be proportional to the total magnetization plus surface terms which exactly cancel it for small spin-orbit coupling. If in low magnetic field the intraband transitions evolve to vertex corrections, the fact that both effective and conventional spin Hall conductivities vanish is unexpected. This suggests that the zero magnetic field limit of the model is singular.
CITIZEN RATINGS OF THE POLICE: The Difference Contact Makes

Recent surveys repeatedly indicate that the public holds favorable attitudes toward the police. This analysis suggests positive public evaluations of the police may be in part the result of citizen satisfaction with police actions in handling specific incidents. Citizen-police contacts are found to be relatively common, and in the majority of these contacts, citizens are found to rate police actions favorably. Four types of citizen-police contacts are analyzed: contacts resulting from victimizations, assistances provided by the police, stops initiated by police, and citizen calls to the police for information. Contact type alone is found to have relatively little influence on citizen evaluations of the police services provided to their neighborhoods. But citizen satisfaction with police handling of contacts has a stronger impact, which appears to vary with contact type.
Theory and verification of formulae for successful operation of aerosol centrifuges

Aerosol centrifuges give a continuously graded measure of particle aerodynamic diameters. Such information is necessary in assessing the health hazards of airborne particulate matter. Centrifuge performance, however, is affected by secondary flow patterns and gas density differences between the sampled aerosol and the instrument's winnowing gas. An ideal winnowing gas would be identical to the gas phase of the aerosol; therefore, operating conditions which are dependent upon physical properties of the winnowing gas will vary for different aerosols sampled. A mathematical description of fluid dynamics within centrifuges is developed here and dynamic similarity of flow shown to exist when Rossby and Ekman numbers characterizing motion are preserved. As a result of this theoretical analysis successful operating conditions can be predicted a priori rather than by laboratory calibration. The theory is substantiated by experimental data. Application of the theory will make centrifuges more versatile and assure ...
Reply to "Interference and angular distribution of transition radiation"

An expression for the differential probability of transition radiation in our paper [Glauber and Lewenstein, Phys. Rev. A 43, 467 (1991)] is corrected. It is shown further that interference effects cancel from the sum of two suitably defined intensities measured in the forward and backward hemispheres.
Ontology for attack detection: An intelligent approach to web application security

Conventional detection techniques struggle to keep up with the inherent complexity of web application design and hence the ever growing variety of attacks that can exploit it. Security frameworks modeled using an ontological approach are a promising new line of defense that can be highly effective in detecting zero day and sophisticated web application attacks because they can capture the context of the contents of information such as HTML pages or in-line scripts and have the ability to filter these contents by taking into consideration their consequences to the target applications. The goal of this article is to demonstrate how an ontology-engineering methodology may be systematically applied for designing and evaluating such security systems. A detailed ontological model is shown that caters to the generalized working of web applications, the underlying communication protocols and attacks. More specifically the proposed ontological model because it captures the context can not only detect HTTP protocol specification attacks but also helps focus only on specific portions of the request and response where a malicious script is possible. The model also captures the context of important attacks, the various technologies used by the hackers, source, target and vulnerabilities exploited by the attack, impact on system components and controls for mitigation. A comprehensive and best metrics suite for ontology evaluation has been used for assessing the quality of proposed model which includes correctness, accuracy, consistency, soundness, task orientation, completeness, conciseness, expandability, reusability, clarity, integrity, efficiency and expressiveness. The proposed model ranked well against the above mentioned metrics. Moreover a prototype attack detection system based upon the proposed model showed improved performance and detection rate and low rate of false positives while detecting OWASP's top ten listed web attacks.
Effect of Undegradable Protein Amount Fed Prepartum on Postpartum Production in First Lactation Holstein Cows

Twenty primigravid Holsteins were paired by expected calving date and estimated producing ability and assigned randomly to one of two diets to determine the effect of prepartum supplemented undegradable protein on subsequent productive performance. Diets were isocaloric, isonitrogenous for degradable protein and differed in undegradable protein content. Prepartum diets were fed for ad libitum intake for 3 wk prior to calving. Following parturition, a single diet was offered for ad libitum intake. Cows did not differ in initial BW or body condition score. Body condition score, BW, and milk composition were measured weekly, starting at calving through the first 6 wk of lactation, Milk production was measured daily. Prepartum diet did not influence calf birth weight or mean prepartum DMI. Prepartum diet containing increased undegradable protein improved body condition score at calving through wk 6 postcalving and increased milk protein percentage. Mean daily protein production was consistently greater for the prepartum diet with additional undegradable protein. Milk, FCM, and milk fat were not influenced by prepartum diet. Supplemental undegradable protein prepartum may improve postpartum performance by minimizing mobilization of maternal labile protein pools to meet fetal and maternal growth requirements in late gestation.
Monoclonal antibodies localize oestrogen receptor in the nuclei of target cells.

Although it is widely accepted that specific intracellular receptor proteins are involved in the oestrogenic regulation of gene expression and growth in reproductive tissues, the precise nature of the regulation is poorly understood. Among the unresolved issues are the distribution and dynamics of the oestrogen receptor protein (oestrophilin) in target tissues in the presence and absence of oestrogens and antioestrogens. The use of radio-labelled and unlabelled receptor ligands to detect and measure oestrogen receptors in tissues has been complicated by the presence of other intracellular steroid-binding proteins1 and by the low concentration of receptors in responsive tissues. We report here the development of an immunocytochemical procedure that is suitable for localizing oestrophilin directly in frozen tissue sections or cells from human and several non-human sources. When monoclonal antibodies to oestrophilin were used to detect receptor in various oestrogen-sensitive tissues, specific staining was confined to the nucleus of all stained cells, suggesting that both cytosol and nuclear forms of the receptor protein may reside in the nuclear compartment.
Low-order ODE approximations and receding horizon control of surface roughness during thin-film growth

Abstract The problem of feedback controller synthesis with objective to control the microstructure during thin-film growth is considered. The problem of the non-availability of closed form dynamic models for the evolution of the microstructure is circumvented by deriving low-order state-space models that approximate the underlying kinetic Monte Carlo simulations. Initially, a finite set of “coarse” observables is identified from spatial correlation functions to represent the coarse microscopic state and capture the dominant characteristics of the microstructure during the deposition process. Subsequently, a state-space model is identified, employing proper orthogonal decomposition and Carleman linearization, that describes the evolution of the coarse observables. The state-space model is subsequently employed to design receding horizon controllers that regulate the surface roughness of the thin-film at a specified set-point during the growth process by manipulating the substrate temperature. The above approach is applied to: (i) a deposition process modeled using solid-on-solid model on a one-dimensional lattice; and (ii) an anisotropic deposition process on a two-dimensional lattice. Closed-loop simulations at various growth rates and in the presence of disturbances are performed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed controller design scheme.
Intestinal epithelial CD98 synthesis specifically modulates expression of colonic microRNAs during colitis

The transmembrane glycoprotein CD98 is known to be involved in intestinal inflammation. In the present study, we found that CD98 overexpression in intestinal epithelial cells does not normally affect the expression of colonic (epithelial and immune cell) microRNAs (miRNAs), small noncoding RNAs that posttranscriptionally regulate a wide variety of biological processes. However, upon dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) treatment, the expression of several colonic miRNAs, but not miRNAs from other tissues such as liver and spleen, were differentially regulated in mice overexpressing CD98 in epithelial cells compared with wild-type (WT) animals. For example, the level of colonic miRNA 132 was not affected by DSS treatment in WT animals but was upregulated in mice overexpressing CD98 in intestinal epithelial cells. Other colonic miRNAs, including colonic miRNA 23a and 23b, were downregulated in WT animals after DSS treatment but not in colonic epithelial cell CD98-overexpressing mice. Interestingly, the expression of potential miRNA target genes affected intestinal epithelial cells that overexpress CD98 and cell types that did not overexpress CD98 but were in close proximity to CD98-overexpressing intestinal epithelial cells. Taken together, these observations show that the combination of an inflammatory context and intestinal epithelial cell expression of CD98 affects the regulation of miRNA expression in colonic epithelial and immune cells. This is new evidence that protein expression modulates miRNA expression and suggests the existence of regulatory crosstalk between proteins and miRNAs in diseases such as colitis.
Mathematical formulas for ester hydrolysis and formation

Mathematical formulas are developed to describe the progress of ester hydrolysis reactions and the reverse reactions of ester formation, in aqueous solution. Included is a formula for the time to achieve a given degree of reaction. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 33: 277–280, 2001
IN VITRO AND IN VIVO EFFECTS OF VITAMIN D (CALCITRIOL) ADMINISTRATION ON THE NORMAL NEONATAL AND PREPUBERTAL PROSTATE

Purpose: Although many studies have investigated the role of calcitriol in the growth regulation of normal and cancerous prostates, little is known about its role in early prostatic development. The interactions between calcitriol and androgens, and their actions on the normal prostate have similarly been proposed but not evaluated. Previous studies in our laboratory have revealed that in utero administration of 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol or calcitriol can influence prostate growth and differentiation throughout the life of the animal. We further examined the influence of calcitriol on the normal prostate in vitro and in vivo by focusing on early stages of prostatic development.Materials and Methods: The effects of calcitriol on the growth of the normal human neonatal prostatic epithelial cell line 267B-1 was determined in the presence and absence of dihydrotestosterone (DHT). We also examined the effect of calcitriol on the growth of maturing rat prostates in vivo. Before puberty 4 groups of rats 27 t...
Reinnervation of peripheral nerve segments implanted into the rat central nervous system

Abstract Newly transected or denervated segments of isogeneic rat tibial nerve were implanted into the rat midbrain and sampled at weekly intervals up to 6 weeks post-operation. By 3 weeks, the peripheral nervous system (PNS) grafts were well-vascularized and contained Schwann cells, axons associated with Schwann cell processes, and macrophages. From 3 to 6 weeks, many axons within both the fresh and predegenerated grafts were myelinated by Schwann cells. The nerve fiber arrangement within the implant was similar to that of regenerating peripheral nerve in situ. The central nervous system (CNS) border of the implant was clearly demarcated by a rim of astrocytes behind which was a layer of regenerating oligodendrocytes and axons. Extending from the CNS margin were radial bridges of astroglial tissue which apparently guided regenerating axons into the implant. Between the CNS and the PNS implant, abundant collagen deposition was present. The findings suggest that regenerating CNS axons grow via astroglial bridges into transplanted PNS tissue and are capable of stimulating the implanted Schwann cells to form myelin. Even Schwann cells deprived of axonal contact for prolonged periods were still capable of PNS myelin formation.
Deuterated fatty acids as Raman spectroscopic probes of membrane structure

Raman spectra are reported for the C-D stretching region of stearic acid-d35 bound in egg lecithin multilayers. The temperature dependence of the spectra shows that the linewidth of the C-D stretching bands is a sensitive and non-perturbative probe of membrane hydrocarbon chain conformation. The utility of this approach for studying lipid conformation in membranes containing a significant fraction of non-lipid component is discussed.
Magnetic excitations in solids

Abstract This article presents a review of low to moderate frequency magnetic excitations, termed magnons or spin waves, in magnetically ordered materials. The emphasis is on intuitive behavior rather than analytical theory. Topics include spin waves, magnetostatic modes, dipole-exchange modes, surface anisotropy, dispersion properties, nonlinear effects, and relaxation. These phenomena are illustrated with experimental examples based on magnon light scattering results as well as conventional microwave techniques.
Oxidation of SO2over Supported Metal Oxide Catalysts

A systematic catalytic investigation of the sulfur dioxide oxidation reactivity of several binary (MxOy/TiO2) and ternary (V2O5/MxOy/TiO2) supported metal oxide catalysts was conducted. Raman spectroscopy characterization of the supported metal oxide catalysts revealed that the metal oxide components were essentially 100% dispersed as surface metal oxide species. Isolated fourfold coordinated metal oxide surface species are present for most oxides tested at low coverages, whereas at surface coverages approaching monolayer polymerized surface metal oxide species with sixfold coordination are present for some of the oxides. The sulfur dioxide oxidation turnover frequencies (SO2molecules converted per surface redox site per second) of the binary catalysts were all within an order of magnitude (V2O5/TiO2>Fe2O3/TiO2>Re2O7/TiO2∼CrO3/TiO2∼Nb2O5/TiO2>MoO3/TiO2∼WO3/TiO2). An exception was the K2O/TiO2catalyst system, which is inactive for sulfur dioxide oxidation under the chosen reaction conditions. With the exception of K2O, all of the surface metal oxide species present in the ternary catalysts (i.e., oxides of V, Fe, Re, Cr, Nb, Mo, and W) can undergo redox cycles and oxidize sulfur dioxide to sulfur trioxide. The turnover frequency for SO2oxidation over all of these catalysts is approximately the same at both low and high surface coverages, despite structural differences in the surface metal oxide overlayers. This indicates that the mechanism of sulfur dioxide oxidation is not sensitive to the coordination of the surface metal oxide species. A comparison of the activities of the ternary catalysts with the corresponding binary catalysts suggests that the surface vanadium oxide and the additive surface oxide redox sites act independently without synergistic interactions: the sum of the individual activities of the binary catalysts quantitatively correspond to the activity of the corresponding ternary catalyst. The V2O5/K2O/TiO2catalyst showed a dramatic reduction in catalytic activity in comparison to the unpromoted V2O5/TiO2catalyst. The ability of potassium oxide to significantly retard the redox potential of the surface vanadia species is primarily responsible for the lower catalytic reactivity.
Bulldog printing: cost estimation and information elicitation mini-case and teaching notes

Abstract This case describes a printing company that is concerned about predicting paper waste on their web offset presses as a component of both job estimating (pricing) and overall control standards in order to respond to competitive pressures. We use this case in the undergraduate cost/managerial course. Students first seek information from the instructor (representing company management). Then, using regression and correlation analysis, students identify the activities that best predict waste. Given the information about press speeds and paper waste generated, an obvious conclusion is that speed is the independent variable and waste the dependent. However, students find that there is a real question about which is x and which y. In fact, neither variable is the independent variable; both are dependent on other factors. In their first regression and correlation analysis using just speed and waste, they find that waste and speed are inversely related. They must then move on to isolate the intervening activities that can explain what is happening. Students should first determine that waste differs for the two paper types: newsprint and machine-coated. They then should determine that it is the level of complexity of the job that increases waste and decreases processing speed. These measures of complexity can then be used for pricing and control. While the case lends itself to many formats, it has been used as an information elicitation case using e-mail. Information elicitation (or incident process) cases help develop critical thinking as students identify key issues and ask questions to determine the best solutions. fn1 They are enjoyable for both the students and the professors, and place students in a more real-world situation where all the necessary information is seldom readily available. The use of e-mail correspondence is also more reflective of a real-world situation and has the advantage of providing the instructor with a record of the interactions. In this elicitation case, students are given limited information about paper waste at Bulldog. The instructor role-plays the controller of the company, Chris Walters, and students ask Walters appropriate questions to determine activities that relate to paper waste. The following presents the information provided to students. The Teaching Note explains the process and provides the controllers information.
Off-flavors in foods.

The major cause of consumer complaints to the food industry is off-flavors (Whitfield and Shaw 1985). These off-flavors may be due to incidental contamination of the food from environmental sources (e.g., air, water or packaging materials) or may arise in the food itself (e.g., lipid oxidation, non-enzymatic browning or enzymatic action). This chapter discusses some of the more common off-flavors. A more detailed treatment of the subject can be found in Charalambous (1980, 1990) or Nijssen (1991).
Characterization of the 5′ flanking region of the rat Na+/K+-ATPase β1 subunit gene

We have isolated the 5′ end of the rat Na + /K + -ATPase β1 subunit gene. A genomic fragment containing 817 bp of the 5′ flanking sequence, exon 1 and 479 bp of intron 1 was sequenced. The 5′ flanking region contains a potential TATA box and several putative CAAT and GC boxes. Potential binding sites for thyroid and glucocorticoid receptors were identified together with multiple sequence motifs which exhibit homology to calcium and serum responsive elements.
Benzo(a)pyrene modulates fluoranthene-induced cellular responses in HT-29 colon cells in a dual exposure system.

Our environment is contaminated with a diverse array of chemicals; one of which is polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). While some PAHs are potent by nature, others undergo interactions such as additivity, synergism, antagonism or potentiation to manifest their toxicity. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate whether exposure to benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), a PAH compound influences the cytotoxicity and metabolism of fluoranthene (FLA; another PAH compound) using HT-29 cells. Cells cultured in Dulbecco's Modified Eagle Medium were treated with 1, 5, 10, 25 μM BaP and FLA (0.01% dimethylsulfoxide as vehicle) individually and in combination over the course of 0–96 h. At the end of exposure, cells were stained with propidium iodide and the changes in cell cycle were analyzed using FACS analysis. Apoptosis was determined by caspase-3 assay. Post-incubation, samples were extracted and analyzed for FLA metabolites by reverse-phase HPLC with fluorescence detection. Cells exposed to BaP + FLA showed a marginal decrease in growth as compared to FLA alone and vehicle controls. Also, a decline in the percentage of cells in the S and G2 phases compared to G1 phase of cell cycle was noted when cells were treated with BaP and FLA together, compared to individual FLA treatment. The rate of FLA metabolism was more when cells were exposed to FLA in combination with BaP, compared to FLA alone. The enhanced biotransformation of FLA as a result of concomitant exposure to BaP may have implications for colon cancer risks arising from human dietary exposure to PAH mixtures through consumption of barbecued meat.
Blame Models and Assailant Research

Therapies of all kinds are based upon certain basic assumptions regarding the causes of the client's behavior. These assumptions are frequently not articulated by the treatment agent, and yet they are the premises on which information is gathered, various components of the client's behavior are examined, and, indeed, treatment programs are developed. Various treatment programs for sexual aggressives operate from a set of such assumptions, called blame models. Each blame model hypothesizes why sexual assault occurs. Brodsky and Hobart review four such blame models including the offender blame model, the victim model, the situational model, and a societal model. At present it is unclear as to which model or combination of models best explains the occurrence of sexual assault, but at least the field is beginning to investigate the various models and their relevance to the overall issues of the treatment of the offender and the prevention of rape.
Commentary on "Diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease: two decades of progress".

g K I was a participant in the 1985 Workshop on the Diagosis of Alzheimer Disease, which the author cites at the eginning of his article. I was also editor-in-chief of the rchives of Neurology and persuaded Dr. Khachaturian to ubmit the article to that journal as it summed up the nowledge of that day. My recollections of the workshop re now a little foggy, but I remember 2 themes that seemed o dominate the discussion. The first was the discussion among the neuropathologists bout which criteria were necessary for the diagnosis. It eemed to be a “numbers game” so that one argued for so any plaques or tangles per high-power field, and others ere adamant with different numbers. The second theme ad to do with the clinical diagnosis of cognitive impairent and dementia. The testing tools were not well develped at that point, as most tests were standardized on a uch younger sample. One of my colleagues pointed out at he time, that “normal” for an 85 year old was to be dead. As Dr. Khachaturian points out, we have come a long ay since that time with strides in testing, molecular biol-
Effect of sub-lethal damage to juvenile colonies of massive Porites spp. under contrasting regimes of temperature and water flow

In this study, juvenile colonies of massive Porites spp. (a combination of P. lutea and P. lobata) from the lagoon of Moorea (W 149°50′, S 17°30′) were damaged and exposed to contrasting conditions of temperature and flow to evaluate how damage and abiotic conditions interact to affect growth, physiological performance, and recovery. The experiment was conducted in April and May 2008 and consisted of two treatments in which corals were either undamaged (controls) or damaged through gouging of tissue and skeleton in a discrete spot mimicking the effects of corallivorous fishes that utilize an excavating feeding mode. The two groups of corals were incubated for 10 days in microcosms that crossed levels of temperature (26.7 and 29.6°C) and flow (6 and 21 cm s−1), and the response assessed as overall colony growth (change in weight), dark-adapted quantum yield of PSII (F v/F m), and healing of the gouged areas. The influence of damage on growth was affected by temperature, but not by flow. When averaged across flow treatments, damage promoted growth by 25% at 26.7°C, but caused a 25% inhibition at 29.6°C. The damage also affected F v/F m in a pattern that differed between flow speeds, with a 10% reduction at 6 cm s−1, but a 4% increase at 21 cm s−1. Regardless of damage, F v/F m at 21 cm s−1 was 11% lower at 26.7°C than at 29.6°C, but was unaffected by temperature at 6 cm s−1. The lesions declined in area at similar rates (4–5% day−1) under all conditions, although the tissue within them regained a normal appearance most rapidly at 26.7°C and 6 cm s−1. These findings show that the response of poritid corals to sub-lethal damage is dependent partly on abiotic conditions, and they are consistent with the hypothesis that following damage, calcification and photosynthesis can compete for metabolites necessary for repair, with the outcome affected by flow-mediated mass transfer. These results may shed light upon the ways in which poritid corals respond to biting by certain corallivorous fishes.
Pattern recognition in hydraulic backlash using neural network

An approach for estimating and classifying backlash clearance fault condition in hydraulic actuators is presented. Three networks (ADALINE network, a nonlinear neuron network, and multilayer perceptron network) are trained and applied to an experimental hydraulic system to identify the gap between an actuator pin and a load mass. The networks are trained on five clearance gaps of widths 1, 7, 12, 25, and 40 thousandths of an inch. They are tested on three clearance gaps of widths 10, 20, and 35 thousandths of an inch. The multilayer perceptron network performed very well in all testing. The other two networks did not perform well, except for small gaps.
Optimized reseeding by seed ordering and encoding

Mixed-mode logic built-in self-test (BIST) applies both pseudorandom test patterns and deterministic test patterns [from an automatic test pattern generation (ATPG) tool] to the combinational portion of the circuit under test. Each scan-test cycle consists of: 1) shifting a test pattern into the scan chains; 2) capturing the response to that pattern; and 3) shifting the captured response out of the scan chains. The shifting of the test pattern out of the scan chains is overlapped with shifting in the next test pattern. The pattern shifted into the scan chains comes from the output of the pseudorandom pattern generator (PRPG); this pattern is determined by the initial state or seed of the PRPG (the contents of the PRPG at the beginning of the shifting operation). In a pseudorandom cycle, the initial state is the final state (last PRPG contents) from the previous cycle. The initial state of a deterministic cycle is shifted into the PRPG either from an a tester or from an on-chip BIST controller. This paper describes techniques to minimize the number of deterministic seeds that must be used: the number of seeds determines the required storage either on the ATE or the chip being tested. These techniques interleave pseudorandom and deterministic cycles rather than first applying all of the pseudorandom cycles and then the deterministic cycles. The decision of when to change from a pseudorandom cycle to a deterministic cycle is made by comparing the final state of the pseudorandom cycle with previously generated ATPG patterns or by carrying out fault simulation on the final state. Which deterministic pattern is chosen for the deterministic cycle critically influences the remainder of the test. A methodology for doing this is described. In addition to interleaving test cycles, it is possible to use partial cycles in which the PRPG operates for a few clocks without loading the scan chains. This allows a new seed to be present without loading the seed from the ATE or controller. As might be suspected, this reduces the number of stored seeds at the penalty of more complexity in the control sequence. These techniques were simulated and compared with conventional reseeding for some ISCAS'89 benchmarks. Improvements varied between 25% and 85% in the required seed storage.
Effects of Age, Gender and Level of Co-contraction on Elbow and Shoulder Rotational Stiffness and Damping in the Impulsively End-Loaded Upper Extremity

Whether an arm will buckle under an impulsive end-load should partly depend on the elastic and viscous properties of the pretensed arm muscles. In measuring these properties we hypothesized that neither age, gender, nor muscle pre-contraction level would affect the bilinear elbow or shoulder lumped rotational stiffness or damping parameters in the impulsively end-loaded upper extremity of 38 healthy men and women. Subjects were instructed to preactivate triceps to either 25, 50 or 75% of maximum myoelectric activity levels. Then a standardized impulsive end-load was applied via a 6-axis load cell to the wrist of the slightly flexed arm in the prone posture. Arm kinematic responses were acquired at 280 Hz and an inverse dynamics analysis was used to estimate the bilinear rotational stiffnesses and damping parameters at the elbow and shoulder. The results show that pre-contraction level affected normalized joint rotational stiffness and damping coefficients (p < 0.02). Age affected the initial stiffness for the elbow (p < 0.05), and gender affected that of the shoulder in the sagittal plane (p < 0.006). Arm muscle strength was positively related to normalized stiffness at the elbow, but not the shoulder. We conclude that age, gender and pre-contraction level each affect the viscoelastic behavior of the end-loaded upper extremity in healthy adults.
Evaluation of Four Imaging Techniques for the Electrical Characterization of Solar Cells

We evaluate four techniques that image minority carrier lifetime, carrier diffusion length, and shunting in solar cells. The techniques include photoluminescence imaging, carrier density imaging, electroluminescence imaging, and dark lock-in thermography shunt detection. We compare these techniques to current industry standards and show how they can yield similar results with higher resolution and in less time.
Essential role of Drosophila black-pearl is mediated by its effects on mitochondrial respiration

Black-pearl (Blp) is a highly conserved, essential inner-mitochondrial membrane protein. The yeast Blp homologue, Magmas/Pam16, is required for mitochondrial protein transport, growth, and survival. Our purpose was to determine the role of Drosophila Blp in mitochondrial function, cell survival, and proliferation. To this end, we performed mitotic recombination in Drosophila melanogaster, RNAi-mediated knockdown, MitoTracker staining, measurement of reactive oxygen species (ROS), flow cytometry, electron transport chain complex assays, and hemocyte isolation from Drosophila larvae. Proliferation-defective, Blp-deficient Drosophila Schneider cells exhibited mitochondrial membrane depolarization, a 60% decrease in ATP levels, increased amounts of ROS (3.5-fold), cell cycle arrest, and activation of autophagy that were associated with a selective 65% reduction of cytochrome c oxidase activity. N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) rescued Blp-RNAi-treated cells from cell cycle arrest, indicating that increased production ...
The latent structure of alcohol use disorders: a taxometric analysis of structured interview data obtained from male federal prison inmates.

Aims: Archival data from structured interviews of 1193 male prison inmates were subjected to taxometric analysis to determine the latent structure of the alcohol use disorder construct. Methods: Analyses were performed using three taxometric procedures: mean above minus below a cut (MAMBAC), maximum eigenvalue (MAXEIG), and latent mode factor analysis (L-Mode). Results: The outcomes were based on three indicators: (1) DSM-IV alcohol dependence criteria 1 and 2 (tolerance/withdrawal), (2) DSM-IV alcohol dependence criteria 3, 4, and 5 and DSM-IV alcohol abuse criterion 3 (loss of control), and (3) DSM-IV alcohol dependence criteria 6 and 7 and DSM-IV alcohol abuse criteria 1, 2, and 4 (negative social/psychological consequences). The outcomes revealed consistent support for a taxonic (categorical) interpretation of alcohol use disorders. Conclusions: There may be a taxonic boundary separating those who do and do not qualify for a diagnosis of alcohol dependence or abuse with important implications for diagnosis and treatment.
Feature evalution of a full‐text information‐retrieval system

Evaluations of on‐line information‐retrieval systems have been largely dependent upon monitoring of users' searches and the cooperation of users in interviews and questionnaires. Since users have a variety of information needs and levels of experience, the evaluation process has been difficult. This paper describes and presents the results of a series of experiments designed to evaluate selected features of a full‐text information‐retrieval system in a controlled environment. Features are evaluated on the basis of their development and implementation cost and their effect on user performance and system load. A figure of merit is developed for each feature, and the results of statistical tests to determine the validity of these measurements are presented.
Buckling of a column on a Wieghardt foundation

This study considers the buckling of a uniform column on a Wieghardt elastic foundation. The column model incorporates both purely flexible, Bernoulli-Euler, and shear-deformable, Timoshenko, beams. Some comparisons with results reported in the existing literature are made, and numerical examples are evaluated to attempt shedding additional light on the problem.
Role of acylglycerol kinase in LPA-induced IL-8 secretion and transactivation of epidermal growth factor-receptor in human bronchial epithelial cells

LPA (lysophosphatidic acid) is a potent bioactive phospholipid, which regulates a number of diverse cellular responses through G protein-coupled LPA receptors. Intracellular LPA is generated by the...
Varying the abundance of O antigen in Rhizobium etli and its effect on symbiosis with Phaseolus vulgaris.

Judged by migration of its lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in gel electrophoresis, the O antigen of Rhizobium etli mutant strain CE166 was apparently of normal size. However, its LPS sugar composition and staining of the LPS bands after electrophoresis indicated that the proportion of its LPS molecules that possessed O antigen was only 40% of the wild-type value. Its LPS also differed from the wild type by lacking quinovosamine (2-amino-2,6-dideoxyglucose). Both of these defects were due to a single genetic locus carrying a Tn5 insertion. The deficiency in O-antigen amount, but not the absence of quinovosamine, was suppressed by transferring into this strain recombinant plasmids that shared a 7.8-kb stretch of the R. etli CE3 lps genetic region a, even though this suppressing DNA did not carry the genetic region mutated in strain CE166. Strain CE166 gave rise to pseudonodules on legume host Phaseolus vulgaris, whereas the mutant suppressed by DNA from lps region a elicited nitrogen-fixing nodules. However, the nodules in the latter case developed slowly and were widely dispersed. Two other R. etli mutants that had one-half or less of the normal amount of O antigen also gave rise to pseudonodules on P. vulgaris. The latter strains were mutated in lps region a and could be restored to normal LPS content and normal symbiosis by complementation with wild-type DNA from this region. Hence, the symbiotic role of LPS requires near-normal abundance of O antigen and may require a structural feature conferred by quinovosamine.
Future Directions in Electron Sources

The emittance-compensated rf photoinjector is in the process of evolving from an experiment in and of itself, to a laboratory instrument, to a workhorse component of large user facilities such as next-generation light sources. In recent years the performance achieved by the standard π-mode design has approached the levels predicted by theory and simulation. The basic design has been scaled from X-band down to less than 1 GHz in terms of operating frequency, and superconducting designs are presently undergoing initial testing at various locations. The requirements for linac-based light sources will require at least one order of magnitude improvement in beam quality; other applications, such as electron microscopes or high-energy electron lithography, require still greater improvements. The migration towards fully superconducting accelerators provides some additional design challenges. This paper briefly presents requirements for some future applications, and presents four new approaches to extending injector performance: the diamond-emitter photocathode, the planar focusing cathode, the magnetic-mode emittance compensation technique, and the field-emission-gated cathode.
The Stock Market Effects of CEO Succession in Bankrupt Firms

This article examines the effects of CEO successions on stockholder wealth in large firms that are also experiencing bankruptcy. Succession announcements that occurred prior to and subsequent to bankruptcy announcements are associated with positive abnormal returns, and we found a greater incidence of outside succession near bankruptcy than for successions in general. The market’s reaction was also more positive for outsiders than for insiders, and this was especially so when the succession happened after bankruptcy.