cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Nuclear data sheets for A = 195

Detailed level schemes and the experimental reaction and decay data on which they are based are presented for all the nuclei with mass number A = 195. The experimental data are evaluated, inconsistencies and discrepancies are noted, adopted values for level and gamma energies, gamma intensities and other nuclear properties are given. Conclusions regarding spin assignments as well as some configuration assignments are presented.
Analysis of vegetable oil volatiles by multiple headspace extraction

Quantitative determination of the volatiles produced from oxidized vegetable oils is an important indicator of oil quality. Five vegetable oils, low-erucic acid rapeseed, corn, soybean, sunflower and high oleic sunflower, were stored at 60°C for four and eight days to yield oils with several levels of oxidation. Peroxide values of the fresh oils ranged from 0.6 to 1.8 while those of the oxidized oils were from 1.6 to 42. Volatile analysis by the multiple headspace extraction (MHE) technique, which includes a pressure and time controlled injection onto the gas chromatography (GC) column (a chemically bonded capillary column), was compared with that obtained by static headspace gas chromatography (SHS-GC). Several volatile compounds indicative of the oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids from the vegetable oils were identified and measured by MHE; pure compounds of twelve major volatiles also were measured by MHE, and peak area was determined. Multiple extractions of the oil headspace provided a more reproducible measure of volatile compounds than was obtained by SHS-GC. Concentration of all volatiles increased with increased oxidation as measured by peroxide value of the oil.
A two-dimensional NMR method for assignment of deoxyribose proton NMR signals in d(ApGpCpT)

Abstract The ability to label the phosphoryl oxygens of d(ApGpCpT) and thus assign the 31 P signals, combined with a 2-D 31 P 1 H chemical shift correlated NMR spectral technique, provides a novel means for the ready assignment of the H5′ and H3′ protons coupled to the phosphates.
Packing of C60 molecules and related fullerenes in crystals: a direct view

Abstract High-resolution transmission electron microscopy images of crystals consisting largely of C 60 molecules (“buckminsterfullerene”) show that they form close-packed arrays. Domains containing closed-cage structural relatives of C 60 (“fullerenes”) that are both smaller and significantly larger than C 60 are evident. The larger fullerenes have the projected shapes of elongated ellipsoids, some of which we estimate to contain over 100 carbon atoms.
Poster: performance improvements of front tracking package

Computational resources on modern high-performance computers are underutilized mainly due to hardware and software performance bottlenecks. Identification of bottlenecks is primary goal of performance analysis, and performance tools are essential for this purpose. In this poster, we demonstrate a case study of the use of the TAU Toolkit to tune the front tracking computational fluid dynamics application FronTier on Argonne's IBM Blue Gene/P supercomputer and scale it to entire system with 62% efficiency.
The biasing of weight judgments in Alzheimer's and Huntington's disease: A priming or programming phenomenon?

The performances of Huntington's disease (HD) patients and patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT) were compared on an adaptation-level task involving the judgment of weights. In this task, subjects were first exposed to either a relatively heavy (heavy bias) or a relatively light (light bias) set of weights, and were later asked to rate the heaviness of a standard set of 10 weights using a 9-point scale. Patients with DAT and intact control subjects both perceived the standard set of weights as heavier following the light bias trials and lighter following the heavy bias trials, despite the DAT patients' poor explicit memory for the initial biasing session. In contrast, the weight judgments of the HD group as a whole was not significantly influenced by prior exposure to relatively heavy or light weights, and the size of the bias effect for this group was significantly correlated with the severity of their dementia. It is suggested that the impaired biasing performance of the HD patients, like their previously demonstrated impairment in motor skill learning, is due to a motor programming deficit resulting from neostriatal dysfunction.
In utero fetal oximetry via visible light spectroscopy in twin-twin transfusion syndrome.

Objective The purpose of this study was to assess fetal tissue venous oxygenation (StO2%) in utero during laser therapy for twin-twin transfusion syndrome via visible light spectroscopy (VLS). Study Design StO2% was measured in 10 donor and recipient twins at the level of the skin and placenta before and after laser therapy (SLPCV). Results Pre-SLPCV skin StO2% was significantly lower in the donor than in the recipient twin (21.6 ± 6.2 vs 31.2 ± 8.6, respectively; P = .01), but the difference disappeared after SLPCV. Placental surface StO2% measurements in 5 patients showed a significant increase in StO2% in the territory of the recipient ( P = .04). Preoperative linear streaming as evidence of nonadmixing deoxygenated and oxygenated blood disappeared after SLPCV. Conclusion In utero StO2% measurement is possible with VLS. Donor twins can have significantly less StO2% than recipient twins, but this is corrected after SLPCV. Further studies are warranted to determine the value of in utero VLS oximetry.
Coherent precipitates in the b.c.c./orthorhombic two-phase field of the TiAlNb system

Abstract Alloys of composition Ti2AlNb and Ti4AlNb3, cooled from 1400°C and equilibrated at 700°C for 26 days, were both found to consist of two phases: the Ti- and Nb-rich b.c.c. phase and the orthorhombic phase based on Ti2AlNb. Depending on the alloy composition, each phase was observed as a precipitate with a plate morphology in the matrix of the other phase. In both cases the phases share a common direction, [011]b.c.c. | [001]ort, and interface (habit) plane, ( 2 1 1 )b.c.c. | ( 1 1 0 )ort. Geometrical patterns of plates of the different orientational variants were also observed. Analysis of the orientation relation, habit plane and plate patterns are consistent with the concept of a strain-type transition even though long range diffusion is required.
Pathogenesis of Hypertension in African Americans

Hypertension is a compelling disease process that disproportionately affects African Americans. It is the single largest risk factor for cardiovascular disease in African Americans. The end organ manifestations of hypertension are striking and include higher rates of stroke, significantly increased renal disease including end-stage renal disease requiring dialysis, higher risk of left ventricular hypertrophy, and an associated higher risk of heart failure. The cause of these more aggressive end organ phenomena is likely multifactorial and includes a mix of genetic and environmental influences. Intriguing polymorphisms of the epithelial sodium channel are consistent with patterns of hypertension seen in African Americans. Obesity, especially in African-American women, may be closely related to hypertension as a result of sympathetic nervous system stimulation.
Use of a checklist to rule out pregnancy: a systematic review.

Abstract Background Safe initiation of contraceptive methods requires that pregnancy be excluded. The World Health Organization has developed a list of criteria to assess pregnancy status. This review was conducted to evaluate the evidence regarding these criteria in excluding pregnancy. Study Design The PubMed database was searched from database inception through March 2012 for all peer-reviewed articles in any language concerning the performance of a pregnancy checklist compared to urine pregnancy tests. The quality of each study was assessed using the United States Preventive Services Task Force grading system. Results Four analyses of data from three studies met inclusion criteria as direct evidence. All were diagnostic accuracy studies of fair quality that evaluated the performance of a pregnancy checklist compared with urine pregnancy test to rule out pregnancy. The performance of the checklist varied, with sensitivity ranging from 55–100% and specificity ranging from 39–89%. The negative predictive value was consistent across studies at 99–100%. Conclusion All four analyses demonstrated high (99–100%) negative predictive value for the pregnancy checklist.
Coupled equations and effective potentials for direct processes

Abstract The properties of the effective potential matrix which appears in an exact set of coupled equations are examined for the direct rearrangement collisions, especially the non-locality which arises due to inelastic channels and particle rearrangement. A symmetric parametrization of the effective potential is introduced such that the inelastic distortions on the elastic and pickup channels can be treated simultaneously within the same approximation, thus reducing the number of adjustable parameters in the theory. The usual distorted wave method may also be modified for elastic amplitudes, and this extension leads to additional constraints on the optical model potentials. Possibility of estimating the inelastic channel propagators from the shell-model calculation is explored.
Expression of extracellular calcium (Ca2+o)-sensing receptor in human peripheral blood monocytes

The calcium-sensing receptor (CaR) is a G protein-coupled receptor playing key roles in extracellular calcium ion (Ca2+o) homeostasis in parathyroid gland and kidney. Macrophage-like mononuclear cells appear at sites of osteoclastic bone resorption during bone turnover and may play a role in the "reversal" phase of skeletal remodeling that follows osteoclastic resorption and precedes osteoblastic bone formation. Bone resorption produces substantial local increases in Ca2+o that could provide a signal for such mononuclear cells present locally within the bone marrow microenvironment. Indeed, previous studies by other investigators have shown that raising Ca2+o either in vivo or in vitro stimulated the release of interleukin-6 (IL-6) from human peripheral blood monocytes, suggesting that these cells express a Ca2+o-sensing mechanism. In these earlier studies, however, the use of reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) failed to detect transcripts for the CaR previously cloned from parathyroid and kidney in peripheral blood monocytes. Since we recently found that non-specific esterase-positive, putative monocytes isolated from murine bone marrow express the CaR, we reevaluated the expression of this receptor in human peripheral blood monocytes. Immunocytochemistry, flow cytometry, and Western blot analysis, performed using a polyclonal antiserum specific for the CaR, detected CaR protein in human monocytes. In addition, the use of RT-PCR with CaR-specific primers, followed by nucleotide sequencing of the amplified products, identified CaR transcripts in the cells. Therefore, taken together, our data show that human peripheral blood monocytes possess both CaR protein and mRNA very similar if not identical to those expressed in parathyroid and kidney that could mediate the previously described, direct effects of Ca2+o on these cells. Furthermore, since mononuclear cells isolated from bone marrow also express the CaR, the latter might play some role in the "reversal" phase of bone remodeling, sensing local changes in Ca2+o resulting from osteoclastic bone resorption and secreting osteotropic cytokines or performing other Ca2+o-regulated functions that contribute to the control of bone turnover.
Dynamic Feature Space Construction Technique For Computer Vision Systems

This paper describes a new spatial-spectral feature extraction and selection technique for analysis and segmentation of the color images of natural scenes. It is a statistical-structural method which is developed by modeling several basic scene patterns such as uniformly colored object regions, textured image areas, and shadowed or highlighted image segments. The uniformly colored object parts are characterized by their spatial continuity property. The textured areas are identified by their spatial placement rules and spectral primitives. The shadowed and highlighted image segments are determined by their constant chromaticity and gradually varying lightness property. The basic rule used in this modelling process is the Julesz conjecture. The features are extracted by a simple averaging process in the local areas of these visual patterns, which are determined by the algorithm. This averaging process implicitly incorporates the spatial and spectral information contained in the local areas. Thus the extracted feature set is expected to provide better clustering in the feature space than the sensory data alone.
Panic attacks and alcohol withdrawal: Can subjects differentiate the symptoms?

Epidemiological studies conducted among alcoholics show a higher than expected prevalence of panic disorder (20%-30%) (Mullaney and Trippett 1979; Smail et al. 1984) compared with that reported in the general population (2%-5%) (Marks and Lader 1973; Robins et al. 1984). The reason for this increased prevalence remains unknown. However, it is consistent with the observation of Quitkin et al. (1972) that panic individuals frequently use alcohol to self-medicate unpleasant symptoms. Another possibility, which has received little attention, is that alcohol abuse itself may give rise to panic disorder. It is interesting that the DSM-III criteria for panic disorder include a number of somatic and cognitive symptoms that are shared by individuals experiencing alcohol withdrawal, such as shaking, palpitations, sweating, and even at times the sense of dying. In our work with alcoholic subjects who also experience panic attacks, we frequently find that they have difficulty differentiating symptoms of panic from alcohol withdrawal. Therefore, in order to further characterize the similarities and differences between these two clinical states, we administered a panic symptom checklist to subjects with a dual diagnosis of alcoholism and panic disorder. Eleven subjects (10 men and 1 woman, average age 29.8 + 11 years) were independently interviewed in a sober state by a psychiatrist and social worker. All subjects met DSM-III and Schedule for Affective Disorder and Schizophrenia (SADS) criteria for both alcoholism and panic disorder and had experienced panic attacks both while drinking and during periods of abstinence. Following a detailed interview with each subject, six patients were judged to be primary alcoholics while four patients experienced panic symptoms prior to significant alcohol ingestion. One individual experienced significant withdrawal and had her first panic attack at approximately the same time. Subjects were asked to complete a pair (one for panic and the other for alcohol withdrawal) of identical panic symptom checklists consisting of 29 somatic and cognitive symptoms associated with panic anxiety (Clark and Hemsley 1982). The severity of each symptom was rated by checking the appropriate box: (1) not at all, (2) slight, (3) moderate, (4) severe, and (5) very severe. The results were assigned a numerical value of l-5, corresponding to the symptom ratings just described. The Wilcoxon two-tailed matched pairs signed rank test was used to test for a statistical difference in severity between specific panic and alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
Transportation network research: Algorithmic and computational questions

The author elaborates upon several topics discussed by Friesz, TL in his paper and focuses primarily on algorithmic and computational questions. Comments are made on the possible application of new computer science technology to transport network planning. For Friesz's paper see IRRD 287450. (TRRL)
Effects of cardiopulmonary bypass surgery on intravenous ciprofloxacin disposition.

Abstract The pharmacokinetic parameters of intravenous ciprofloxacin were examined in five adult male patients on three separate occasions of open heart surgery: the 24 h before cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) surgery, (PRE), during surgery (SURG), and 48 to 72 h after surgery (POST). Serial blood (n = 16), urine, and SURG tissue samples were collected after intravenous administration of a single 300-mg dose of ciprofloxacin during each study period. All samples were assayed for ciprofloxacin by a specific high-performance liquid chromatographic method. Serum ciprofloxacin concentrations remained constant or continued to decline during the course of CPB surgery. A significant (P < 0.05) decrease in total body clearance was observed during the SURG and POST phases (298 and 306 ml/min/1.73 m2, respectively) compared with that during the PRE phase (364 ml/min/1.73 m2). Renal clearances and elimination half-lives were similar during all three study phases. A nonsignificant decline occurred in the apparent volume of distribution, from mean values of 2.1 and 2.0 liters/kg during the PRE and POST phases, respectively, to 1.7 liters/kg during the SURG phase. The mediastinal fat tissue ciprofloxacin concentrations ranged from 0.45 to 2.89 micrograms/g. Overall, little significant difference was noted in the disposition of intravenous ciprofloxacin during CPB surgery compared with that before and after surgery.
Electroless Copper Deposition with PEG Suppression for All-Copper Flip-Chip Connections

A fabrication technique using electroless copper deposition has been used to produce all-copper chip-to-substrate connections. This process replaces solder by electrolessly joining copper pillars on a chip and substrate. Previously, solid copper-to-copper bonding was demonstrated using a known electroless copper bath followed by low temperature annealing at 180°C for 1 h in a nitrogen environment. Although the process feasibility was demonstrated, it was inherently slow and required excessive process time. In this paper, an acceleration-suppression approach to copper plating was used to achieve a rapid deposition of high quality copper in enclosed regions. Elevated temperature was used for acceleration along with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) suppression. High temperature increased the transport of reactants and products in spatially restricted regions, and the addition of PEG provided control of the deposition rate. This allowed a kinetically controlled deposition while still maintaining good quality copper deposits without excessive porosity. Plating rates as high 6 μm/h in the spatially restricted region between mated pillars were achieved.
Increased half-life of μ immunoglobulin mRNA during mouse B cell development increases its abundancy

When B cells encounter antigen, the cells mature into terminally differentiated plasma cells and the amount of steady-state immunoglobulin (Ig) mu mRNA is increased 23-60-fold over the amount seen in earlier B cell stages. Most of this dramatic increase in Ig gene mRNA accumulation could be due to post-transcriptional regulation. We have treated a series of mouse cell lines fixed at different stages of B cell differentiation with an adenosine nucleotide analog 5,6-dichloro-1-beta-D-ribofuranosylbenzimidazole (DRB) which specifically blocks synthesis of new RNA polymerase II transcripts. The amount of mu heavy chain cytoplasmic RNA, measured by quantitative Northern blot analysis at various times post DRB treatment, is reflective of the transcript's stability. The mu mRNA half-life values observed from the earliest-stage lymphomas (70Z/3 and WEHI-231) are about 1.9-4 hr, whereas the t1/2 of mu mRNA in the hybridomas (Hyb54.3C2 and IdG11) is about 13-17 hr. There is, therefore, a nine-fold maximal increase in half-life of the mu mRNA in the Hyb54.3C2 over that observed in the earliest stage (70Z/3) cells.
Fate of captan and folpet in rats and their effects on isolated liver nuclei

Abstract Excretion and distribution of single and multiple intraperitoneal doses of [ 35 S]captan and [ 14 C]folpet were similar in normal and 70% hepatectomized male rats. After receiving the single dose of captan, the rats eliminate approximately 76% of the radioactivity in the urine after 72 hr. The elimination in the feces for the same time period was 13%. Normal rats administered single or multiple doses of [ 14 C]folpet excreted nearly 100% of the total dose in the urine within the first 24 hr. Nuclei isolated from the liver of normal and 70% hepatectomized rats receiving multiple doses of [ 35 S]captan contained 0.008–0.009 μg 35 S/g of tissue. Appreciable amounts of the radioactivity from [ 35 S]captan were bound by isolated nuclei from the livers of normal and partially hepatectomized rats. After a 1-hr treatment with [ 36 S]captan, the nuclei were fractionated into nuclear sap protein, deoxyribonucleoprotein (including histones), acidic ribonucleoprotein, and “residual” protein fractions. These proteins in normal nuclei bound 10, 14, 39, and 16% of the total label, respectively, with essentially the same results obtained with nuclei from regenerating rat liver. When compared by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, acidic nuclear proteins from treated and nontreated normal nuclei were characterized by band diffusion and the presence or absence of Amido Schwartz-staining bands. None of the abovementioned effects on histones from treated nuclei were observed. Captan treatment of isolated nuclei also altered the extraction characteristics of the nuclear protein fractions, presumably because of extensive aggregation of thiol-containing nuclear proteins.
The Nones: Social Characteristics of the Religiously Unaffiliated

In spite of the fact that more than 10 percent of Americans claim no religion, academic investigations of the "nones" represent an underdeveloped area in the sociology of religion. We find that people with religiously unaffiliated parents and those who attended religious services less as a child are more likely to claim no religion. In addition, we find a strong association between having a spouse and peer group that are non-religious and claiming no religion.
A conference on ethics for obstetric and gynaecological clerkship students.

Summary. Integrating the teaching of medical ethics into medical students' clinical education is challenging, given the competing demands on students' time and the need for teaching to be clinically relevant. This paper describes a model programme for incorporating ethics teaching into the obstetrics and gynaecology clerkship for third-year medical students. The programme is taught by two attending teachers and a medical ethicist with experience teaching in the clinical setting of obstetrics and gynaecology. Objective pretests and posttests showed substantial improvement in students' knowledge, and student feedback has been very positive.
Effect of Particle Size of Alfalfa Hay on Intake, Digestibility, Milk Yield, and Ruminal Cell Wall of Dairy Cattle

Alfalfa hay was chopped in a tubgrinder containing screens with apertures of 31, 63, or 100 mm. The hays were fed with concentrate to lactating cows (Experiment 1) and without concentrate to nonlactating, fistulated cows (Experiment 2). The objective was to find effects of forage particle size upon intake, digestibility, milk yield, and ruminal cell wall. In Experiment 1, there were no significant effects of forage particle size upon forage or total DM intake, digestibility of NDF, cellulose, nitrogen retained, milk yield, or milk fat percent. Digestibility of DM, ADF, and protein increased as particle size decreased. In Experiment 2, forage DM intake was greater for the 63 than the 100-mm forage but digestibility of cell wall and DM were not different among treatments. Ruminal volume for the 31 and 63-mm forages was greater than the 100-mm forage. Ruminal DM and ruminal cell wall were greater for the 63-mm forage than the 100-mm forage, with the 31-mm forage in between. Increased volume, DM, and cell wall probably account for increased intake of the 63-mm forage. Chopping alfalfa to these three sizes had no particularly positive or negative effects on animal productivity.
Acoustic radiation from turbulent premixed flames

Turbulent combustion processes are inherently unsteady and, thus, a source of acoustic radiation. While prior studies have extensively characterized their total sound power, their spectral characteristics are not well understood. This work investigates these acoustic spectral features, including the flame's low- and high-frequency characteristics and the scaling of the frequency of peak acoustic emissions. The spatiotemporal characteristics of the flame's chemiluminescence emissions, used as a marker of heat release fluctuations, were measured and used to determine the heat release spectrum, spatial distribution and spatial coherence characteristics. These heat release characteristics were then used as inputs to an integral solution of the wave equation and compared to measured acoustic spectra obtained over a range of conditions and burners and at several spatial locations. The spectral characteristics of the flame's acoustic emissions are controlled by two processes: the underlying spectrum of heat release fluctuations that are ultimately the combustion noise source, and the transfer function relating these heat release and acoustic fluctuations. An important result from this work is the clarification of the relative roles of these two processes in controlling the shape of the acoustic spectrum. This transfer function is primarily controlled by the spatiotemporal coherence characteristics of the heat release fluctuations which are, in turn, strongly influenced by burner configuration/geometry and operating conditions. Low-frequency acoustic emissions are controlled by the heat release spectrum essentially independent of flame geometry. Both the heat release spectrum and heat release-acoustic transfer function are important at intermediate and high frequencies. An important feature of the investigated geometry that controls the heat release phase dynamics is the high-velocity flow relative to the flame speed and anchored character of the flame. This leads to convection of flame sheet disturbances (i.e. heat release fluctuations) along the front that dominates the high frequency and peak frequency scaling of the flame's acoustic emissions.
Behaviors, Trust, and Goal Achievement in a Win-Win Negotiating Role Play

The study investigated whether negotiators' behaviors were related to changes in their opponents' initial trust, and whether trust and behaviors were related to their own goal achievement. Hypothes...
A powerful and general approach to context exploitation in natural language processing

In natural language, the meaning of a lexeme often varies due to the specific surrounding context. Computational approaches to natural language processing can benefit from a reliable, long-range-context-dependent representation of the meaning of each lexeme that appears in a given sentence. We have developed a general new technique that produces a context-dependent 'meaning' representation for a lexeme in a specific surrounding context. The 'meaning' of a lexeme in a specific context is represented by a list of semantically replaceable elements the members of which are other lexemes from our experimental lexicon. We have performed experiments with a lexicon composed of individual English words and also with a lexicon of individual words and selected phrases. The resulting lists can be used to compare the 'meaning' of conceptual units (individual words or frequently-occurring phrases) in different contexts and also can serve as features for machine learning approaches to classify semantic roles and relationships.
Societal Costs and Morbidity of Pertussis in Adolescents and Adults

BACKGROUND Since the 1980s, the reported incidence of pertussis among adolescents and adults has been steadily increasing. To understand whether the benefits of an acellular pertussis vaccine formulated for adolescents and adults might offset its costs, policy makers will need information about morbidity and societal (medical and nonmedical) costs of pertussis. METHODS Adolescents (age, 10-17 years) and adults (age, >or=18 years) with confirmed pertussis illness were identified by the Massachusetts enhanced pertussis surveillance system. We evaluated medical costs in a cohort of patients who had confirmed pertussis during the period of January 1998 through December 2000; nonmedical costs, by means of prospective interviews, in a cohort of patients who had confirmed pertussis during the period of December 2001 through January 2003; and morbidity in both cohorts. Our main outcome measures were mean costs per case, in 2002 US dollars. RESULTS In the analysis of medical costs, 1679 adolescents and 936 adults were found to have mean costs of 242 dollars and 326 dollars, respectively (P<.05). In interviews with 314 adolescents and 203 adults, adults had significantly higher nonmedical costs (447 dollars) than those of adolescents (155 dollars). A total of 83% of adolescents missed a mean of 5.5 days from school (range, 0.4-32 days), and 61% of adults missed a mean of 9.8 days from work (range, 0.1-180 days) because of pertussis. Thirty-eight percent of adolescents and 61% of adults were still coughing at the time of the interview, which occurred an average of 106 days and 94 days, respectively, after cough onset. CONCLUSIONS Pertussis causes significant morbidity in and costs for adolescents and adults, with time losses comprising the largest proportion of the cost. Societal costs should be considered when making decisions about potential vaccine use in the future.
Seed Dehydration and the Establishment of Desiccation Tolerance During Seed Maturation is Altered in the Arabidopsis thaliana Mutant atem6-1

The end of orthodox seed development is typified by a developmentally regulated period of dehydration leading to the loss of bulk water from the entire structure. When dehydration occurs, the cytoplasm condenses and intracellular components become more crowded, providing an environment amenable to numerous undesirable interactions that can lead to protein aggregation, denaturation and organelle-cell membrane fusion. Acquisition of desiccation tolerance, or the ability to withstand these very low water potentials and consequent molecular crowding, has been correlated with the accumulation of various protective compounds including proteins and sugars. Among these are the late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins, a diverse class of highly abundant, heat-stable proteins that accumulate late in embryo maturation coincident with the acquisition of desiccation tolerance. Previous work led us to hypothesize that the protein ATEM6, one of the two Arabidopsis thaliana group 1 LEA proteins, is involved in regulating the rate at which water is lost from the maturing embryo; homozygous atem6-1 mutants display premature dehydration of seeds at the distal end of the silique. Here we demonstrate that rehydrated, mature seeds from atem6-1 mutant plants lose more water during subsequent air drying than wild-type seeds, consistent with a role for ATEM6 protein in water binding/loss during embryo maturation. In addition, and possibly as a result of premature dehydration, mutant seeds along the entire length of the silique acquire desiccation tolerance earlier than their wild-type counterparts. We further demonstrate precocious, and perhaps elevated, expression of the other A. thaliana group 1 LEA protein, ATEM1, that may compensate for loss or ATEM6 expression. However, this observation could also be consistent with acceleration of the entire normal maturation program in atem6-1 mutant embryos. Interestingly, ATEM6 protein does not appear to be required in mature seeds for viability or efficient germination.
Evolution of the HIV-1 nef gene in HLA-B*57 Positive Elite Suppressors

Elite controllers or suppressors (ES) are HIV-1 infected patients who maintain viral loads of < 50 copies/ml without antiretroviral therapy. CD8+ T cells are thought to play a key role in the control of viral replication and exert selective pressure on gag and nef in HLA-B*57 positive ES. We previously showed evolution in the gag gene of ES which surprisingly was mostly due to synonymous mutations rather than non-synonymous mutation in targeted CTL epitopes. This finding could be the result of structural constraints on Gag, and we therefore examined the less conserved nef gene. We found slow evolution of nef in plasma virus in some ES. This evolution is mostly due to synonymous mutations and occurs at a rate similar to that seen in the gag gene in the same patients. The results provide further evidence of ongoing viral replication in ES and suggest that the nef and gag genes in these patients respond similarly to selective pressure from the host.
Role of a catheter lead system for transvenous countershock and pacing during electrophysiologic tests: an assessment of the usefulness of catheter shocks for terminating ventricular tachyarrhythmias.

The practicality and safety of using a single catheter system for transvenous countershock, programmed stimulation and ventricular pacing during electrophysiologic tests were evaluated in 13 patients with inducible sustained ventricular tachycardia (VT) or ventricular fibrillation (VF). The efficacy and patient toleration of transvenous countershock were compared with other methods of arrhythmia termination. The same lead was used for programmed stimulation at the right ventricular apex and for VT termination by pacing methods during serial testing (20 ± 15 days [mean ± standard deviation]). Synchronized countershock using energies that patients found tolerable (0.01 to 5 J) terminated 31 of 50 episodes (62%) of induced VT. Episodes of VT cardioverted with these low energies were distinguished from other episodes by a longer cycle length (352 ± 62 ms versus 297 ± 50 ms, p < 0.004). Among paired episodes of VT matched for patient, date of induction, morphologic characteristics, cycle length and drugs administered, pacing methods (single extrastimuli and bursts of rapid pacing) were just as effective as low-energy countershock for VT termination (25 of 25 versus 21 of 25, difference not significant). Transvenous countershock was uniformly effective for termination of ventricular flutter and VF when sufficient energy was used (range 5 to 30 J, mean 20.4 ± 7.7). This required interfacing leads to a defibrillation unit. VT acceleration occurred during 7 of 50 synchronized low-energy cardioversion attempts (14%). There was no evidence of myocardial injury as a result of shocks as high as 30 J, but patients required increasing sedation when energy exceeded 0.5 J. Thus, a single catheter system can be used for programmed stimulation, ventricular pacing and countershock during electrophysiologic tests. Low-energy countershock (0.01 to 5 J) is no more effective than pacing methods for VT termination and is tolerated less well. The most practical use of this catheter system, including any implantable unit, may be for slightly higher energy (5 to 30 J) countershock termination of repeated episodes of very rapid VT or VF, in which pacing techniques are ineffective. This method may be safer and less traumatic than conventional transthoracic countershock.
The Cakrasamvara Tantra: Its History, Interpretation, and Practice in India and Tibet

This essay explores the history of the Cakrasamvara Tantra and its related practice traditions. Beginning with the traditional Cakrasamvara origin myths, it introduces evidence concerning social context in which it was likely composed, and explores the debate concerning the degree to which it was influenced by Hindu Shaiva tantric traditions. It argues that the development of this tradition cannot be fully understood without taking into consideration the political ramifications of the tradition's mythology and iconography. The essay also overviews both the major practices associated with this tradition, and provides a short history of its transmission to Nepal and Tibet.
Abscisic Acid Activation of Plasma Membrane Ca2+ Channels in Guard Cells Requires Cytosolic NAD(P)H and Is Differentially Disrupted Upstream and Downstream of Reactive Oxygen Species Production in abi1-1 and abi2-1 Protein Phosphatase 2C Mutants

The hormone abscisic acid (ABA) regulates stress responses and developmental processes in plants. Calcium-permeable channels activated by reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been shown recently to function in the ABA signaling network in Arabidopsis guard cells. Here, we report that ABA activation of these ICa Ca2+ channels requires the presence of NAD(P)H in the cytosol. The protein phosphatase 2C (PP2C) mutant abi1-1 disrupted ABA activation of ICa channels. Moreover, in abi1-1, ABA did not induce ROS production. Consistent with these findings, in abi1-1, H2O2 activation of ICa channels and H2O2-induced stomatal closing were not disrupted, suggesting that abi1-1 impairs ABA signaling between ABA reception and ROS production. The abi2-1 mutation, which lies in a distinct PP2C gene, also disrupted ABA activation of ICa. However, in contrast to abi1-1, abi2-1 impaired both H2O2 activation of ICa and H2O2-induced stomatal closing. Furthermore, ABA elicited ROS production in abi2-1. These data suggest a model with the following sequence of events in early ABA signal transduction: ABA, abi1-1, NAD(P)H-dependent ROS production, abi2-1, ICa Ca2+ channel activation followed by stomatal closing.
System-level characterization of single-chip radios for wireless sensor network applications

We tested three single-chip ISM-band radio transceivers with an eye toward communication system-level performance in wireless sensor network applications. We compared the performance of an older-generation chip (Texas Instruments TRF6900A) with two recent chips (Texas Instruments CC1100 and Analog Devices ADF7020). To understand packetlevel sensitivity and the potential gains of forward error-control coding, we evaluated the packet error rate and bit error rate statistics as a function of received signal power at two data rates. We characterized features—automatic frequency control, digital received signal strength indication (RSSI), and digital transmit power control—of the two newer chips. We also modeled and evaluated their current consumption and energy efficiency (in terms of per-bit energy use). We found that the new-generation radio chips have significantly higher integration and overall performance, and that radio chip selection for wireless sensor node design is application-dependent. Our work can be used as a design pattern for further testing of additional and future radios for wireless sensor network nodes.
Wavelength conversion of 4× 112Gbit/s PD-RZ-QPSK signals based on single pump polarization diversity FWM scheme

We report wavelength conversion of 4×112Gb/s PD-RZ-QPSK signals based on single pump polarization diversity scheme and digital coherent detection. The OSNR penalty after wavelength conversion is smaller than 1dB.
Multivariable gain-phase and sensitivity integral relations and design trade-offs

We present several extensions of the classical Bode integral relations to multivariable systems. The main contributions are an extended gain-phase integral formula and an extended sensitivity integral relation. These results are useful for analyzing fundamental design limitations that arise in linear multivariable feedback systems. In particular, they provide important insights into feedback properties which are unique to multivariable systems and which cannot be inferred from the previously known integral relations applicable to single-input/single-output systems. Both results show that design limitations in multivariable systems depend strongly upon certain directionality properties.
Relationship between plasma S-adenosylhomocysteine concentration and glomerular filtration rate in children

S-Adenosylhomocysteine (SAH) is the metabolic precursor of all the homocysteine (Hcy) produced in the body. It is formed by the enzyme SAH hydrolase in a reversible reaction. In a previous study we have shown that plasma SAH is a more sensitive indicator of the risk for cardiovascular disease, and in a second study involving patients with renal disease, we also showed that it is a more sensitive indicator of renal insufficiency than plasma Hcy. However, in the latter study, the patients with renal disease were older and had a variety of other diseases such as diabetes and primary hypertension, which are associated with vascular disease and which could reduce renal function by involvement of the kidneys. Our objective was to rule out these complicating factors as the cause of the elevated SAH in renal disease and determine whether renal insufficiency alone was the cause of the elevated SAH. We therefore measured SAH, Hcy, folate, and vitamin B12 in 23 patients between the ages of 1 and 18 years with a wide range of renal function, but who had none of these complicating factors. Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was calculated using serum creatinine according to the Schwartz formula. None of the children were deficient in folate or vitamin B12. After adjusting for age, folate, and vitamin B12, there was a modest and insignificant decrease of 0.033 micromol/L of Hcy associated with an increase of 1 mL/min of GFR (95% confidence interval, -0.066 to 0.0002). However, there was a strong and statistically significant association between log(SAH) and log(GFR): P < .0005, R2 = 0.76. This result suggests that plasma SAH rather than Hcy is the metabolite primarily affected in renal disease. We suggest that plasma Hcy elevations that have been linked to vascular disease may be due to elevated SAH resulting from renal insufficiency.
Correlation of 2D parameters to lung and heart dose-volume in radiation treatment of breast cancer.

The use of radiation therapy in the post-lumpectomy/mastectomy setting in breast cancer is current standard of care and is an effective means of decreasing locoregional recurrences with good cosmet...
Comment on "Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy: A New Perspective in Asthma".

I read with interest the study by Marmoush et al. [1] about the 80-year-old woman with an exacerbation of her asthma who suffered Takotsubo syndrome (TTS), after using “her rescue albuterol inhaler several times.” As the authors state this is not the first case of an albuterol-triggered TTS, as shown by many similar cases of TTS published as single case reports and series of patients derived from cohorts admitted to the respiratory intensive care unit, treated with a variety of β2-adrenergic agents. I have some thoughts for the authors to consider. (1) The electrocardiogram (ECG) on admission showed complete left bundle branch block (LBBB), which they felt was new, presumably documented by comparison with a previous ECG of the patient; however, the LBBB persisted after recovery from TTS, which is at variance with the transient nature of LBBB in other patients with TTS reported in the literature heretofore, and it is conceivable that the LBBB emerged during the time intervals between the last preadmission ECG and the admission with TTS. (2) Irrespective of this, I wonder whether the authors noted any transient attenuation of amplitude of the ECG QRS complexes of the serial ECGs, from the admission ECG to the tracings recorded during hospitalization, at discharge, and finally at the 3-month outpatient follow-up, in keeping with a recently published new insight about the ECG and TTS [2]. (3) Did this patient have any history of similar excessive use of albuterol during an exacerbation of her asthma, which however did not precipitate similar symptoms or laboratory testing finding to the TTS admission? (4) In reference to the pathophysiologic mechanism(s) which led to TTS in their patient, do the authors feel that at the roots of the TTS attack was the excessive dose of albuterol, impacting directly the cardiomyocytes, or that the externally introduced catecholamine triggered an autonomic adrenergic surge, via the sympathetic nervous system and/or adrenal catecholamine secretion? We need to start delving in such questions if we have any hopes that we will eventually understand the pathophysiological underpinnings of this mysterious affliction.
The successful use of lipectomy in the management of airway obstruction in a woman with HIV-associated lipodystrophy

Lipodystrophy is a common complication of highly active antiretroviral therapy and is associated with significant comorbidities. Altered fat distribution, particularly lipohypertrophy of the dorsal cervical fat pad is associated with reduced quality of life as well as medical complications. We report the rare case of a patient with airway obstruction secondary to HIV-associated lipodystrophy. Ultrasound-assisted liposuction was successfully performed to relieve her airway obstruction and to facilitate a tracheostomy. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first documented case of its kind. We also provide a brief review of the literature on the current management options for HIV-associated lipodystrophy.
Primordial nucleosynthesis with a decaying tau neutrino.

Mass-lifetime limits are derived for the four generic decay modes assuming that the abundance of the massive [tau] neutrino is determined by its electroweak annihilations. In general, nucleosynthesis excludes a [tau] neutrino of mass 0.4 MeV--30 MeV for lifetimes greater than about 300 sec. These nucleosynthesis bounds are timely since the current laboratory upper bounds to the [tau]-neutrino mass are around 30 MeV, and together the two bounds very nearly exclude a long-lived [tau] neutrino more massive than about 0.4 MeV. Further, our nucleosynthesis bounds together with other astrophysical and laboratory bounds exclude a [tau] neutrino of mass 0.4 MeV--30 MeV of any lifetime that decays with EM daughter product(s). We use our results to constrain the mass times relic abundance of a hypothetical, unstable species with similar decay modes. Finally, we note that a [tau] neutrino of mass 1 MeV to 10 MeV and lifetime 0.1 sec--10 sec whose decay products include an electron neutrino can reduce the [sup 4]He yield to less than that for two massless neutrino species. This fact could be relevant if the primordial mass fraction of [sup 4]He is found to be less than about 0.23 and can also lead to a modification ofmore » the nucleosynthesis bound to the number of light ([much lt]1 MeV) neutrino (and other) particle species.« less
How to build a device that cannot be built

In this paper, we show how the GHZ paradox can be used to design a computing device that cannot be physically implemented within the context of classical physics, but nonetheless can be within quantum physics, i.e., in a quantum physics laboratory. This example gives an illustration of the many subtleties involved in the quantum control of distributed quantum systems. We also show how the second elementary symmetric Boolean function can be interpreted as a quantification of the nonlocality and indeterminism involved in the GHZ paradox.
129Xe NMR in Polymers

Abstract Through the efforts of many researchers, 129Xe NMR has shown to be a sensitive probe of phase morphology in polymers, providing a unique means of investigating the amorphous phase of bulk polymers. Recently developed models of the 129Xe chemical shift in polymers open the possibility of measuring van der Waals' interaction energies and chain dimensions from xenon spectra. In most cases, the information obtained from 129Xe NMR pertains only to the amorphous phase of the polymer, even in semicrystalline systems. The use of spin-polarized xenon has opened the possibility of probing the surface and near surface regions of polymers.