cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Pro- and Antiatherogenic Effects of a Dominant-Negative P465L Mutation of Peroxisome Proliferator–Activated Receptor-γ in Apolipoprotein E–Null Mic

Objective— The dominant-negative mutation, P467L , in peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) affects adipose tissue distribution, insulin sensitivity, and blood pressure in heterozygous humans. We hypothesized that the equivalent mutation, PPARγ- P465L , in mice will worsen atherosclerosis. Methods and Results— Apolipoprotein E–null mice with and without PPARγ- P465L mutation were bred in 129S6 inbred genetic background. Mild hypertension and lipodystrophy of PPARγ- P465L persisted in the apolipoprotein E–null background. Glucose homeostasis was normal, but plasma adiponectin was significantly lower and resistin was higher in PPARγ- P465L mice. Plasma cholesterol and lipoprotein distribution were not different, but plasma triglycerides tended to be reduced. Surprisingly, there were no overall changes in the atherosclerotic plaque size or composition. PPARγ- P465L macrophages had a small decrease in CD36 mRNA and a small yet significant reduction in very-low-density lipoprotein uptake in culture. In unloaded apolipoprotein E–null macrophages with PPARγ- P465L , cholesterol uptake was reduced whereas apolipoprotein AI–mediated efflux was increased. However, when cells were cholesterol loaded in the presence of acetylated low-density lipoprotein, no genotype difference in uptake or efflux was apparent. A reduction of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 expression in aorta suggests a relatively antiatherogenic vascular environment in mice with PPARγ- P465L . Conclusion— Small, competing pro- and antiatherogenic effects of PPARγ- P465L mutation result in unchanged plaque development in apolipoprotein E–deficient mice.
Joint source-channel coding of one random variable over the Poisson channel

We study the transmission of a single random variable across the Poisson channel, which takes a continuous-time waveform {λ t : 0 ≤ λ t ≤ T} as an input, where 0 ≤ λ t ≤ A, for all 0 ≤ t ≤ T. The output of the channel is a non-homogeneous Poisson arrival process with rate λT. We explore the class of schemes that are optimal in the distortion exponent sense under mean squared loss. We determine a family of optimal encoders for this channel which achieves the minimum mean squared error. In addition, we characterize the distortion exponent for ‘separation’ based schemes, and also provide an upper bound for the maximal distortion exponent across all joint source channel strategies under this setting.
The effects of affect and input source on flashbulb memories

Flashbulb memories of shocking news (Challenger Explosion, death of Princess Diana, Pearl Harbour and Iraq bombings) were employed to test two hypotheses: encoding emotion enhances memory and how one gets the shocking news will help determine the nature of what is recalled. Different groups of subjects (Total = 2405) remembered their discoveries at delays ranging from 2 weeks to 50 years on three memory measures: a free and probed recall test of their flashbulb discovery, and a probed recall of the facts concerning the events themselves. Subjects were grouped according to the source of their discovery (Media vs. Person), affect at encoding (calm vs. upset) and recounts (few vs. many). The results indicated that how one learns of shocking news determined the type and extent of the resultant memory. ‘Media’ subjects remembered more facts whereas ‘person’ subjects recalled more of their personal discoveries regardless of the initial flashbulb inspiring event. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Resonant magnetotunneling in GaAlAs-GaAs-GaAlAs heterostructures

We report the observation of resonant tunneling of electrons through Landau levels in double-barrier GaAlAs-GaAs-GaAlAs heterostructures, in the presence of a strong magnetic field perpendicular to the interfaces. This is a two-dimensional magnetotunneling effect which manifests itself as periodic structures in the current-voltage characteristics, with a period proportional to the electron cyclotron energy in the GaAs quantum well, from which the electron effective mass is determined.
TTX Converts Polymorphic VT to Monomorphic VT in Transgenic Rabbit Model of LQT1

Long QT syndrome Type 1 (LQT1) is a congenital disease defined by loss of function mutations in KCNQ1, and associated with syncope and sudden death preceded by polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (pVT). We hypothesized that inhibition of sodium channel function suppresses pVT formation. using a transgenic rabbit model of LQT1 (n=4), we simultaneously mapped activation patterns from a voltage sensitive dye and microelectrode. The AV node was ablated to slow intrinsic heart rate, isoproterenol (140nM) was injected to mimic sympathetic stimulation, and pVTs were subsequently observed (avg = 3-10 s). The associated activation patterns revealed multifocal activities and complex waveform propagation varying in spatial origin and direction. Subsequent perfusion of a sodium channel blocker, TTX (2 μM), notably converted pVTs toward monomorphic activation patterns. We also report evidence of fully rotating spiral waves, and their role in maintaining monomorphic VTs. Taken together, these results strongly suggest that 1) early afterdepolarizations (EADs) play an important role in maintaining pVTs complexity, 2) sodium currents significantly influence EAD regeneration by their continuous firing during pVTs, 3) sodium channel inhibition by TTX reduces EAD generation and stabilizes reentry into monomorphic VTs.View Large Image | View Hi-Res Image | Download PowerPoint Slide
A bounded compactness theorem forL1-embeddability of metric spaces in the plane

LetM=(W, d) be a metric space. LetL1 denote theL1 metric. AnL1-embedding ofM into Cartesiank-space ?k is a distance-preserving map from (W, d) into (?k,L1). Letc(k) be the smallest integer such that for every metric spaceM, M isL1-embeddable inRk iff everyc(k)-sized subspace ofM isL1-embeddable inRk. A special case of a theorem of Menger (see p. 94 of [5]) says thatc(1) exists and equals 4. We show thatc(2) exists and satisfies 6?c(2)?11. Whether or notc(k) exists for anyk?3 is an open question.
Thermal hysteresis and voltage shift analysis for differential pressure sensors

Abstract Pressure sensors should be capable of measuring pressure accurately and consistently without being disturbed by the temperature environment. With silicon's better thermal material properties, silicon micromachined pressure sensors are mass-produced and widely used. However, a silicon pressure-sensing element has to be packaged and protected. The thermal mismatching between the sensing element and packaging may generate stresses on the transducer of a sensing element and create thermal hysteresis and voltage shift during temperature cycling. The induced thermal stresses can easily deteriorate performance reliability. In this paper, finite element analyses (FEA) and experimental tests were conducted to reduce the thermal stress and thermal hysteresis for differential pressure sensors. With the glass substrate to isolate the stress from plastic housing, the thermal hysteresis can be significantly improved. The die placement and dispense pattern can be also optimized to further improve the thermal hysteresis.
Customer-economics of residential photovoltaic systems (Part 1): The impact of high renewable energy penetrations on electricity bill savings with net metering

Abstract Residential photovoltaic (PV) systems in the US are often compensated at the customer's underlying retail electricity rate through net metering. Given the uncertainty in future retail rates and the inherent links between rates and the customer–economics of behind-the-meter PV, there is growing interest in understanding how potential changes in rates may impact the value of bill savings from PV. In this article, we first use a production cost and capacity expansion model to project California hourly wholesale electricity market prices under two potential electricity market scenarios, including a reference and a 33% renewables scenario. Second, based on the wholesale electricity market prices generated by the model, we develop retail rates (i.e., flat, time-of-use, and real-time pricing) for each future scenario based on standard retail rate design principles. Finally, based on these retail rates, the bill savings from PV is estimated for 226 California residential customers under two types of net metering, for each scenario. We find that high renewable penetrations can drive substantial changes in residential retail rates and that these changes, together with variations in retail rate structures and PV compensation mechanisms, interact to place substantial uncertainty on the future value of bill savings from residential PV.
Marital functioning, chronic pain, and psychological distress

This study examined whether marital functioning variables related uniquely to psychological distress and diagnoses of depressive disorder independent of pain severity and physical disability. Participants were 110 chronic musculoskeletal pain patients. Hierarchical regression results showed that marital variables (i.e. marital satisfaction, negative spouse responses to pain) contributed significantly to depressive and anxiety symptoms over and above the effects of pain severity and physical disability. In contrast, marital variables were not significantly related to diagnoses of depressive disorder (i.e. major depression, dysthymia, or both) after controlling for pain variables. In multivariate analyses, physical disability and marital satisfaction were uniquely related to depressive symptoms whereas physical disability, pain severity, and negative spouse responses to pain were uniquely related to anxiety symptoms. Only physical disability was uniquely related to major depression. The results suggest that models of psychological distress in chronic pain patients might be enhanced by attributing greater importance to interpersonal functioning and increasing attention to anxiety.
Children's developing realization that some stories are true: Links to the understanding of beliefs and signs

Abstract Given that children are told stories about real as well as pretend protagonists, how do they differentiate between them? Previous research indicates that children's understanding of historical versus fictional stories develops between ages 3 and 5 ( Corriveau et al., 2009 . Cognition, 112, 225; Woolley and Cox, 2007 . Developmental Science, 10, 681). Across two experiments (N = 134), we asked if children's developing understanding of representation is related to their ability to differentiate between historical and fictional stories. Controlling for age and verbal ability, children's ability to correctly differentiate such stories is related to their developing understanding of false beliefs and false signs but not false photographs.
Utilization of biomass in the U.S. for the production of ethanol fuel as a gasoline replacement—II Energy requirements, with emphasis on lignocellulosic conversion

Abstract Silvicultural operation is estimated to have a liquid fuel requirement of 77 gal. of 192° PR ethanol fuel (or 46 gal. of diesel fuel) per acre/yr, to produce 10 oven-dry tons per acre/yr of wood chips for local conversion. The gross ethanol yeild of the conversion facility is 710 gal. of 192° PR per acre/yr. Enzymatic cellulose conversion processes are in the development stage and rapidly moving to commercialization. Novel approaches to pretreatment and product separation promise to substantially reduce present energy requirements. Optimized conversion processes can generate co-products (lignin, extractives and biogas) in quantities sufficient to allow process energy self-sufficiency if necessary. Alternatively, co-products may find strong demand for use as chemical feedstocks. Process energy may then be met by low-quality fossil fuel such as coal and peat, or by site-optimized, non-polluting sources such as geothermal energy or direct solar conversion. CO 2 and low-temperature heat are by-products that could represent a positive energy input to an adjoining greenhouse facility for high yield foodstuff production. The liquid fuel input critical to the overall process is found to be about one-ninth of the output.
Oxidation and embrittlement of Ti-6Al-2Sn-4Zr-2Mo alloy

Ti-6Al-2Sn-4Zr-2Mo titanium alloy is a candidate material for multiwall thermal protection system concepts for advanced space transportation system vehicles. The total oxidation kinetics for this alloy, exposed to laboratory air in the 593–760°C range, were monitored by thermogravimetric analysis. The oxide thickness was measured by microscopy and the substrate contamination was estimated from microhardness measurements. Tensile elongation was determined for selected foil specimens after exposure to simulated space shuttle reentry conditions. The variation of total weight gain with time was found to have two distinct parabolic stages separated by a transient region. This transient was due to a process which involved an increase in the parabolic growth rate constant for the oxide and a simultaneous increase in oxygen solubility at the oxide metal interface. The time dependent increase in oxygen solubility at the interface was from about 7 at. % in stage 1 to about 18 at. % in stage 2. The diffusion coefficient for oxygen in the alloy was determined as a function of temperature using the difference between the total weight gain in stage 1 and the corresponding weight gain due to oxide growth. A model for the total oxidation kinetics, accounting for the two individual components namely oxide growth and solid solution formation, is proposed. The activation energy for the diffusion of oxygen in the alpha-solid solution is shown to be roughly equal to the activation energy for the degradation of tensile elongation for the alloy in the foil gage condition.
On the mode theory of V. L. F. ionospheric propagation

The space between the earth and the ionosphere is considered as a wave-guide with sharply bounded walls. Employing a representation in terms of spherical wave functions of complex order, the field of a vertical dipole source is calculated for very low frequencies. It is shown that the dominant mode for 16 kc is of order one and not zero as has been commonly supposed. Good agreement is obtained with the experimental results ofJ. Heritage.
What Do Patients Express as Their Preferences in Advance Directives

completed; these were 64% of all the medical ADs. Of these, 7 did not specify any preference that patients wanted their proxy to follow. The remaining 203 forms were divided as follows: 189 individuals requested that they did not want life-sustaining treatment if the burdens of treatment outweighed the expected benefits; 12 wanted their lives to be prolonged unless they were in an irreversible coma; and 2 wanted their lives to be prolonged to the greatest possible extent regardless of the chances for recovery or the cost. There were 32 do not resuscitate forms executed exclusively by residents of nursing homes that specified that they did not want cardiopulmonary resuscitation or artificial feeding. Conclusions: The overwhelming desire expressed by the patients in the ADs was not to have their lives prolonged if their medical condition were such that treatment would merely delay death. Only a minuscule number of patients, less than 0.7%, wanted everything done to prolong life regardless of the chance for improvement or the cost. Because such a small percentage of patients have ADs, it is recommended that each hospital appoint a committee on ADs to do everything possible to encourage patients to execute an AD. A second mission of this committee would be to do everything possible to encourage physicians to pay close attention to their patients’ wishes for medical care at the end of life. Arch Intern Med. 1998;158:363-365
Effect of bismuth salts on systemic and mucosal immune responses to orally administered cholera toxin

While the antimicrobial and antisecretory effects of bismuth salts are well documented, little is known regarding their effects on immune responses to enterotoxins such as that of V. cholerae or to orally administered vaccine antigens. To evaluate the effects of Pepto Bismol (PB) on the induction of systemic and mucosal immune responses to cholera toxin (CT), C57BL/6 mice were orally administered 10 micrograms CT and PB, or mice were pretreated with PB 30 min prior to CT administration. When co-administered with CT, PB attenuated serum IgG1, IgG2a, IgG2b and IgG3 anti-CT responses in a dose-dependent manner and also reduced levels of circulating anti-CT IgA and total serum IgE. Similarly, anti-CT intestinal IgA responses were also decreased. However, when administered 30 min prior to CT, PB had little to no effect on serum or intestinal anti-CT immunoglobulin responses. Administration of bismuth subsalicylate (BSS), the active component of PB, or sodium salicylate did not reduce immune responses to CT, suggesting that the combination of BSS plus other constituents contained within PB contributed to the decreased immune response to CT. Moreover, bismuth subgallate alone inhibited antibody responses to CT. Our data are consistent with the hypothesis that, when administered orally with CT, PB and bismuth subgallate create a physical barrier to antigen uptake.
Sequence relationships between Kirsten retrovirus genomes and the genomes of other murine retroviruses.

Abstract RNA sequence relationships between the genomes of the Kirsten murine sarcoma virus (MSV-K) complex, the Kirsten murine leukemia virus (MuLV-K) complex, the Gross murine leukemia virus (MuLV-G), and the Moloney murine leukemia virus (MuLV-M) were investigated. Sedimentation analyses revealed the expected 30 and 34 S RNA subunits in the MSV-K complex and a previously undetected 30 S RNA subunit accompanying the 34 S RNA subunit in the MuLV-K complex. Nucleic acid hybridization data indicated that each Kirsten virus 30 S RNA subunit had about 40% sequence homology with the RNA genome of MuLV-G, although these sequences were only partially homologous between the two 30 S subunits. In contrast, the MuLV-K 34 S RNA subunit had 96% sequence homology with the MuLV-G genome, whereas the MSV-K 34 S RNA subunit displayed only 71% sequence homology with the MuLV-G genome. Similar relationships were indicated by oligonucleotide fingerprinting. The oligonucleotide data, taken with published sequence data on the MuLV-G and MuLV-M genomes, enabled us to construct partial sequence maps of the MuLV-K 34 S RNA subunit and the MSV-K 34 and 30 S RNA subunits. The sequence arrangements indicated that (1) the MuLV-K 34 S RNA subunit is a variant of the MuLV-G genome; (2) the MSV-K 34 S RNA subunit is a recombinant molecule, which maintains the lenght of its leukemia virus parent; and (3) the MSV-K 30 S RNA subunit may have been generated from the MuLV-K 34 S genome by a two-stage process, culminating in the retention of parental sequences only within the U5 and U3 noncoding segments and within several amino-terminal coding segments. Further examination of published retrovirus genome sequences revealed several strategically situated sets of potential recognition signals for transcription and translation and suggested a model for genetic recombination based on mRNA splicing signals and areas of limited sequence homology. This model may explain how foreign gene elements can be inserted into retrovirus genomes to generate either functional or defective recombinant retroviruses.
Histologic changes in the testis following anatomically successful orchidopexy.

Abstract For decades the family of a child with an undescended testis or testes has been told that surgical placement in the scrotum was necessary. We are unaware of work indicating the degree of histologic improvement that can be expected from an anatomically successful orchidopexy. This study was undertaken to try to determine what effect scrotal placement had on the architecture of the testis.
Dissipation of alachlor under in situ and simulated vadose zone conditions.

The purpose of the present study was to determine how in situ and simulated subsoil conditions affect the dissipation of alachlor in groundwater solution
Special imaging casebook. High imperforate anus with enterolithiasis and dysraphism with large meningomyelocele.

Special Imaging Casebook: High Imperforate Anus With Enterolithiasis and Dysraphism With Large Meningomyelocele
Ontogenetic changes in frequency mapping of a mammalian ear

Cochlear microphonic iso-response functions reported here suggest an explanation of frequency-dependent changes in hearing sensitivity during early development. The work is a direct demonstration of developmental changes in the spatial frequency map of the mammalian hearing organ. Intracochlear recordings from the midbasal turn in a series of age-graded gerbils reveal a progressive increase in best frequency, spanning approximately two octaves, from the time of onset of function until adultlike responses are seen. It is, therefore, suggested that ontogenetic changes in the cellular structure of the organ of Corti contribute to an age-dependent shift in micromechanical response.
The Economist and Rural Development: Concepts and Conflicts

D OMESTIC colonialism is said to prevail in rural areas where the bulk of important decisions that affect rural residents are made elsewhere. This domestic colonialism is the result of both economic and sociological changes. Examples are the change in demand for the "products" of the areas; a shift in the comparative advantage of rural areas, exhaustion of the resource base; structural changes in rural industries; the rise of job rather than neighborhood affiliations; the replacement of national for local allegiance in politics, athletics, etc.; increased impersonalization; and changing values regarding the "good life." Rural communities largely exist as sources of raw material for the metropolitan sphere and, to a lesser extent, as markets for the finished product of that same sphere. There are at least three possible economic interpretations of rural development: (1) the aggregate demand approach; (2) the equity approach; and (3) the efficiency approach. Since each has different premises, policy prescriptions that each implies are obviously different. However, each still tends to be "task oriented" in nature, an approach that may be at odds with policy derived from a sociological view of development. Sociologists view the web of interactions within a community as having both horizontal and vertical components. The former are characterized as structural and functional relations of various units and systems of the community to each other; the latter by the structural and functional relations of its units and systems to extracommunity systems. A sociological view of "development" is likely to focus on the nature of these two kinds of interactions.
Children with specific language impairment. Laurence B. Leonard. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1998. Pp. 339.

Laurence Leonard is one of the most prolific and well-respected researchers in the area of specific language impairment (SLI) in children, and he is well qualified to write a book surveying the topic. SLI is a disorder of unknown origin, which appears to have a genetic component, causing delays and disorders of language development in children of normal nonverbal intelligence with no significant medical, emotional, or sensory deficits. The primary purpose of this book is to provide a comprehensive review of research in the field of SLI, and Leonard has the minute knowledge necessary to succeed at the task. The coverage in the book reaches back to the earliest nineteenth-century descriptions of children who fit the profile and then moves forward quickly to the massive literature that has accumulated on the topic in the last 20 years. Following the introductory historical and definitional section, Leonard goes on to describe the nature of the linguistic impairment in SLI, including important cross-linguistic accounts and nonlinguistic cognitive issues. The book also covers hypotheses of causation, in a “nature versus nurture” section, and clinical issues of assessment and intervention. Part V, on theory, may be of most interest to psycholinguists who are not language disorders specialists. Overall, there is no doubt that this book is both an excellent introduction for those unfamiliar with SLI and a welcome overview and resource for experts. Leonard's knowledge is encyclopedic, his presentation erudite, and his grasp of detail unfailingly impressive.
The Impact of Therapeutic Case Management on Participation in Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment

Establishing the efficacy of case management in substance abuse treatment has been confounded by the lack of attention given to assessing the fidelity of case management implementation. The current study measured the fidelity of case management implementation and used fidelity information to examine the impact of therapeutic case management on attrition in an adolescent, outpatient, group, substance abuse treatment program. Ninety adolescent women enrolled in substance abuse treatment were randomly assigned to receive or to not receive case management. Treatment fidelity was measured using the Case Management Quality Inventory. Cox regression analyses revealed that higher fidelity of case management implementation predicted a decreased risk of dropping out of the substance abuse treatment program (RR = -11.21, p < 0.02). Higher proportions of total case management time spent on case management core functions predicted a decreased risk of dropping out of treatment (RR = 4.32, p < 0.03). This study confirms that programs need to first demonstrate that the case management model has been implemented faithfully before its efficacy in reducing attrition in the substance abuse treatment program can be fairly evaluated. It also suggests that core case management functions may have a greater influence on attrition in substance abuse treatment than does intensity.
Cell culture density as a modulator of collagenase expression in normal human fibroblast cultures

Abstract The effect of various stages of normal cell growth on human fibroblast collagenase found in the culture medium was studied, so that the regulatory mechanisms of synthesis, secretion and activity of the enzyme could be established. Specific activity of collagenase increased 6- to 10-fold shortly after confluence was reached when compared with low density levels and decreased in post-confluent cultures, suggesting that synthesis and/or release of the enzyme changes with culture density. To assess this possibility, culture medium was examined for immunoreactive collagenase protein by radioimmunoassay. After confluence was reached, immunoreactive collagenase had increased approx. 2-fold, indicating greater secretion, and probably synthesis, of the enzyme. However, the increase in specific activity of the enzyme observed shortly after confluence was greater than could be accounted for by an increase in immunoreactive enzyme protein. As a result of the disproportionate increase in collagenase activity, the collagenase activity per unit immunoreactive protein was also found to be greatest shortly after confluence and decreased in post-confluent cultures. This density-associated modulation of collagenase expression could be reproduced by initiating the cultures at high density after subculture. Expression of collagenase activity was dependent upon intact protein synthetic mechanisms, since cultures maintained in the presence of cycloheximide failed to secrete collagenase into the culture medium.
SmI2 cleavage of chromomycin A3 sugars

Abstract The CDE-trisaccharide of chromomycin A3 was cleaved with samarium diiodide and converted to a protected glycal for coupling to an aglycone.
The advanced neutron source: Designing for science☆

Abstract The Advanced Neutron Source (ANS) is a new experimental facility planned to meet the need for an intense steady-state source of neutrons. The facility will be build around a new research reactor with a fission power of about 330 MW, producing an unprecedented flux that will provide the most intense beams of steady-state neutrons in the world. This paper outlines the overall scientific mission and technical objectives of this project, defines the regulatory approach that is likely to be applied, and presents a summary of the facility layout, the major plant systems, and the reactor and experiment systems. Detailed discussions are then given related to the design of the reactor core and various options evaluated, and the approach taken on safety and severe accident analyses. A summary is also included on the topic of environmental compliance and several key aspects that must be addressed to ensure compliance in that area. A brief introduction here serves to define the fundamental aspects of the ANS facility. The project is planned around a four majore building array with the central structure a 60-m-diam cylindrical, domed reactor containment building. This building houses the reactor itself, with the first floor dedicated to beam and irradiation experiments, the second floor divided between experimental facilities and reactor operations, and a high bay top floor dedicated to reactor operations. The other structures surround this central complex and house the supporting systems as well as other experimental facilities. The reactor core is comprised of two right circular cylindrical elements that are coaxially aligned, separated on the vertical axis, and offset in radius such that unheated coolant enters each element. The core has a volume of approximately 67 L and is positioned in a replaceable core pressure boundary tube that constitutes a section of the primary coolant piping. Surrounding the core pressure boundary tube is a reflector tank holding heavy water, approximately 3-m in diameter, which serves as a neutron reflector and moderator for the reactor and experiment systems. Materials irradiation and transuranic production tartets are located inside the core pressure boundary tube near the core while beam tubes and other irradiation facilities are located in the reflector tank. For further moderation of neutrons to very low energies, the reflector tank will contain two cold sources. Each cold source is a helium-cooled cryostat containing a liquid deuterium moderator and serves as a source of cold neutrons.
EverFE: Rigid Pavement Three-Dimensional Finite Element Analysis Tool

The interactive and computational features of EverFE, a new rigid pavement three-dimensional (3D) finite element (FE) analysis tool, are presented. To date, the use of 3D FE analysis has been hampered by (a) the difficulty of model generation and result interpretation, (b) the inability of many programs to adequately model joint shear transfer due to aggregate interlock and dowel action, and (c) the large computational requirements of conventional solution techniques employed by available programs. The development of EverFE is motivated by the desire to make 3D FE analysis feasible for routine analysis of rigid pavements. The intuitive graphical user interface employed by EverFE, which greatly simplifies model generation and result interpretation, is demonstrated using a sample problem. A novel technique for modeling aggregate interlock joint shear transfer that rationally incorporates nonlinearities is developed and presented, as is a new method for modeling dowel joint shear transfer. The solution strat...
Conformational control of cyclohexane products by external stimuli

This review summarizes methods for the conformational control of cyclohexane derivatives and for the control of conformation-dependent molecular properties by external stimuli affecting the intra- and intermolecular interactions of substituents. These stimuli include complexation, change of medium acidity, change of the substituents’ size and structure, as well as formation and breaking of labile bonds. Successful application of the compounds equipped with such conformational switches as the acid-sensitive components of liposomes for targeted drug delivery, selective ion carriers in membrane transport, and fluorescent sensors for cations and acids opens a way for broad development in this area toward controllable compounds and intelligent materials.
Accuracy, reliability, and validity of a spatiotemporal gait analysis system

Abstract Background Making evidence-based decisions in the clinical management of gait dysfunction requires the ability to measure spatiotemporal gait variables validly and reliably. This study examined the accuracy, reliability, and validity of a clinical gait analysis system that is relatively inexpensive and portable, the GaitMat II (GM). Methods The trustworthiness of measures taken with the GM was investigated by comparing the placement of the switches on three different GM systems. Measures taken with the GM system were compared with the same measures taken simultaneously with the Vicon motion analysis system, using a repetitive dynamic signal presented to both systems. Findings Variability was present in the placement of switches on the surfaces of different GM systems. The variability in switch placement was much less than the normal variability of most gait variables measured with the GM. Excellent agreement was found between the GM and Vicon systems for timing variables but poor agreement was found for distance variables. The mean difference between the GM and Vicon measures for distance variables would have little clinical significance in adults for distance measures such as step length or stride length. Conclusion The results of these studies support the reliability and validity of the GaitMat II as a clinical gait analysis tool.
Concerns about mobile phones: A cross-national study

Mobile phones allow people to communicate when, where, and with whom they wish. However, users are often troubled to find themselves always available to others. To measure attitudes towards mobile phones, we asked students from universities in five countries what they liked most and what they liked least about having a mobile phone. Responses across all countries indicated that communication was both what subjects liked most and least — enjoying the ability to contact others but feeling trapped by other people’s ability to always contact them. Concerns about dependency on mobile phones corresponded to intensity of usage. Some distinctions between countries reflect variation in available technology, while others may result from cultural factors.
Increasing enrollment in drug trials: the need for greater transparency about the social value of research in recruitment efforts.

“Clinical trials and the consequent benefits to society are in jeopardy in the United States because of a decline in the ability to recruit patients in a timely manner to trials addressing key clinical issues.”1 So states a recent commentary in a leading medical journal, reflecting widespread concern in the research community about recruiting sufficient numbers of people into clinical trials. Anyone who cares about medical progress should share this concern. What, then, is to be done about it? The authors, reflecting discussions at a US National Institutes of Health sponsored workshop convened to address recruitment challenges, call for, among other things, a “national campaign to increase public awareness and participation in clinical trials” in hopes that it will establish research participation “as a valued contribution to the general public.”1 Bolstering their call is scholarship contending that people have an obligation to participate in clinical research.2–4
Reversible dynamical systems: dissipation-induced destabilization and follower forces

This paper uses results from the theory of reversible dynamical systems to examine the nonlinear stability of undamped follower force systems. The well-known dissipation-induced destabilization found in these systems is also examined and it is indicated how the postdestabilization dynamics can be determined using normal forms and an eigenvalue splitting criterion.
Aluminum alloy 2024-T3 protection by magnesium-rich primer with chromate-free metal salts ☆

Abstract This research examines novel Mg- and metal salt-rich primer formulations with low Mg metal pigment loading. The chromate-free metal salts were incorporated to assist in the passivation, corrosion inhibition, and pH buffering of the aluminum substrate. The total pigment volume concentration (PVC) in the examined coatings ranged from 6 to 20%, which is far below its critical pigment volume concentration (CPVC) as well as that of traditional Mg-rich primers (PVC ≈ 45%). The formulations were applied to aluminum alloy (AA) 2024-T3 panels and coated with a polyurethane topcoat. Non-pigmented and Mg-rich primer controls were used for comparison. The coating systems were subjected to accelerated weathering by ASTM B117 salt spray chamber and removed periodically for analysis by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and electrochemical noise measurements (ENM). Corrosion potential was also measured. Conventional, macroscopic examination was used to rank coating performance. The present findings support the significance of CO 3 compounds in the protection of aluminum and its alloys by Mg-rich primers. It is proposed that the addition of Li 2 CO 3 and Mg(NO 3 ) 2 to the primer facilitate the production of Mg(OH) 2 and MgCO 3 precipitates to improve protection. Anti-corrosion and anti-blistering effects were observed for formulations containing Li 2 CO 3 , Mg(NO 3 ) 2 , and a low percentage of Mg metal particulates. The Mg(NO 3 ) 2 appears to reduce blistering while the Li 2 CO 3 enhances defect protection. These effects are demonstrated throughout 1600 h of exposure to salt spray. Continued optimization presents the opportunity to design and implement unique cathodic protection plus corrosion inhibitor coating systems for use on aluminum substrates.
“If the shoe fits …”: Exploring male homosexual foot fetishism

This study of 262 respondents from an organization for homosexual and bisexual foot fetishists provides information from a broader sample than clinical cases and was guided by major ideas found in the literature on sexual fetishism. Some researchers see fetishism as the product of early learning experiences. Results of this study showed such experiences to occur around puberty and to be predominantly positive. Sources of learning were experiences with their father, other male adults or older peers, and especially same‐age peers. Suggested conditions for learning, viz, restrictive sexual socialization and social isolation during adolescence, did not appear to be common occurrences. Other researchers see fetishism as a correlate of a particular personality profile. Results of this study showed that some respondents fit such a profile, but they were in the minority. Finally, how closely these men fit the profile was found to be unrelated to the salience of fetishism in their lives.
Investigations on the effect of tobacco smoke condensate on seed germination of higher plants

Abstract The effect of water-soluble extract of tobacco smoke condensate (TSC) on the seed germination of Allium cepa, Avena sativa, Brassica oleracea, Daucus carota, Helianthus annuus, Lactuca sativa, Lycopersion esculentum, Nicotiana tabacum and Raphanus sativus was studied. In general, increasing concentrations of tobacco smoke condensate delayed germination and permitted fewer seeds to germinate. Responses were different for various species; Nicotiana tabacum proved most sensitive while Helianthus annuus was least susceptible to TSC. Inhibition by TSC was not permanent; seeds treated with 0·25% TSC, washed thoroughly with distilled water twice, and planted on moist filter paper, showed the same germination percentage as did the controls.
A unified framework for image database clustering and content-based retrieval

With the proliferation of image data, the need to search and retrieve images efficiently and accurately from a large image database or a collection of image databases has drastically increased. To address such a demand, a unified framework called Markov Model Mediators (MMMs) is proposed in this paper to facilitate conceptual database clustering and to improve the query processing performance by analyzing the summarized knowledge. The unique characteristics of MMMs are that it provides the capabilities of exploring the affinity relations among the images at the database level and among the databases at the cluster level respectively, using an effective data mining process. At the database level, each database is modeled by an intra-database MMM which enables accurate image retrieval within the database. Then the conceptual database clustering is performed and cluster-level knowledge summarization is conducted to reduce the cost of retrieving images across the databases. This framework has been tested using a set of image databases, which contain various numbers of images with different dimensions and concept categories. The experimental results demonstrate that our framework achieves better retrieval accuracy via inter-cluster retrieval than that of intra-cluster retrieval with minimal extra effort.
Supporting climate research using named data networking

Climate and other big data applications face substantial problems in terms of data storage, retrieval, sharing and management. While several community repositories and tools are available to help with climate data, these problems still persist and the community is actively looking for better solutions. In this project we apply NDN to support climate modeling applications. The information-centric nature of NDN, where content becomes a first class entity, simplifies many of the problems in this domain. NDN offers lightweight data publication, discovery and retrieval compared to IP-based solutions. However, introducing a new network architecture to a mature domain that routinely produces petabytes of datasets and a plethora of assorted tools to manipulate them, is a risky proposition. The advantages of NDN alone may not be sufficient to overcome the natural inertia. Our approach is to introduce NDN while carefully avoiding undue disruption to existing workflows. To that extent we employ a user interface that employs familiar filesystem operations to publish, discover and retrieve data, integrated with domain-specific translators that automatically convert and publish datasets as NDN objects. We outline the advantages of NDN in this application domain and the challenges we faced during the adaptation. We believe this is the first exercise in applying NDN in an existing, large, mature application domain.
Open-Ocean Barrier Islands: Global Influence of Climatic, Oceanographic, and Depositional Settings

STUTZ, M.L. and PILKEY, O.H., 2011. Open-ocean barrier islands: global influence of climatic, oceanographic, and depositional settings. Journal of Coastal Research, 27(2), 207–222. West Palm Beach (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. A satellite-based inventory of barrier islands was used to study the influence of depositional setting, climate, and tide regime on island distribution and morphology. The survey reveals 20,783 km of shoreline occupied by 2149 barrier islands worldwide. Their distribution is strongly related to sea level history in addition to the influence of tectonic setting. Rising sea level in the late Holocene (5000 YBP–present) is associated with greatest island abundance, especially on North Atlantic and Arctic coastal plains. Stable or falling sea level in the same time frame, a pattern typical of the Southern Hemisphere, is associated with a lower abundance of islands and a higher percentage of islands along deltas rather than coastal plains. Both coastal plain and deltaic island morphology are sensitive to the wave–tide regime; however, island length is 40% greater along coastal plains whereas inlet width is 40% greater on deltas. Island morphology is also fundamentally affected by climate. Island lengths in the Arctic are on average (5 km) only half the global average (10 km) because of the effect of sea ice on fetch and thus wave energy. Storm frequency in the high and middle latitudes is suggested to result in shorter and narrower islands relative to those on swell-dominated low-latitude coasts. The ratio of storm wave height to annual mean wave height is a good indicator of the degree of storm influence on island evolution. The potential for significant climate and sea level change this century underscores the need to improve understanding of the fundamental roles that these two factors have played historically in island evolution in order to predict their future impacts on the islands.
Synaptic contacts between physiologically identified neurons in the visual system of the barnacle

Neurons in the median visual system of the barnacle were injected with horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and their processes traced in serial thick (3 micrometers) and thin (100 nm) sections with light and electron microscopy. The anatomy confirms that the I-cells identified by Oertel and Stuart (Oertel, D., and A. E. Stuart (1981) J. Physiol. (Lond.) 311: 127-146) are second-order neurons in the median visual pathway. The terminal branches of the photoreceptor axons are associated in each half of the supraesophageal ganglion with a region of neuropil that extends for 30 to 40 micrometers along the commissure; this photoreceptor-associated neuropil is continuous with but much simpler than the main mass of neuropil in the core of each hemiganglion. The photoreceptor-associated neuropil consists of a small number of different neuronal elements, each with distinctive cytological features. The photoreceptor terminal processes dominate the neuropil; in addition, one finds there the most medial processes of the arborizations of the ipsilateral and contralateral I-cells and the processes of an axon or class of axons of unknown origin referred to as the "RL" fibers. These RL processes associate and branch with the receptor axons and constitute the only major neuronal element in this region of neuropil besides the median photoreceptors and the I-cells. In preparations with an HRP-filled I-cell, the photoreceptors were shown to be presynaptic to I-cell processes at synapses which are characterized by a pair of closely apposed postsynaptic profiles referred to as a dyad. The filled I-cell constituted only one element of the dyad. Receptor endings were also presynaptic to dyads where both postsynaptic elements were unfilled. The RL processes were presynaptic to the photoreceptor terminals at nondyadic synapses, and the receptor endings made specialized junctions, possibly synaptic, with the RL processes. Lateral to the region occupied by the photoreceptor arborization, varicosities of the I-cell are juxtaposed to processes of the A-cell; thus, these sites of the I-cell, where it is most likely to be presynaptic to the A-cell, are segregated from the sites at which it is postsynaptic to the photoreceptors. The I-cell is postsynaptic to photoreceptors and has varicosities juxtaposed to A-cell processes in both hemiganglia.