cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Do IPO Firms Purchase Analyst Coverage With Underpricing

We examine the links among IPO underpricing, post-IPO analyst coverage, and the likelihood of switching underwriters. Our findings indicate a significant positive relation between underpricing and analyst coverage by the lead underwriter. This positive association is robust to controls for other determinants of underpricing previously documented in the literature and to controls for the endogeneity of underpricing and analyst coverage. In addition, after controlling for other potential determinants of switching underwriters, we find that the probability of switching underwriters between IPO and SEO is negatively related to the unexpected amount of post-IPO analyst coverage. We interpret these findings as consistent with the hypothesis that underpricing is, in part, compensation for expected post-IPO analyst coverage.
The Other East and Nineteenth-Century British Literature: Imagining Poland and the Russian Empire

Responses to Central and Eastern Europe in nineteenth-century British literature have received relatively little scholarly attention, since most studies of the British global imagination during thi...
Health e-mavens: identifying active online health information users

Background Given the rapid increase of Internet use for effective health communication, it is important for health practitioners to be able to identify and mobilize active users of online health information across various web-based health intervention programmes. We propose the concept ‘health e-mavens’ to characterize individuals actively engaged in online health information seeking and sharing activities. Objectives This study aimed to address three goals: (i) to test the factor structure of health e-mavenism, (ii) to assess the reliability and validity of this construct and (iii) to determine what predictors are associated with health e-mavenism. Methods This study was a secondary analysis of nationally representative data from the 2010 Health Tracking Survey. We assessed the factor structure of health e-mavenism using confirmatory factor analysis and examined socio-demographic variables, health-related factors and use of technology as potential predictors of health e-mavenism through ordered regression analysis. Results Confirmatory factor analyses showed that a second-order two-factor structure best captured the health e-maven construct. Health e-mavenism comprised two second-order factors, each encompassing two first-order dimensions: information acquisition (consisting of information tracking and consulting) and information transmission (consisting of information posting and sharing). Both first-order and second-order factors exhibited good reliabilities. Several factors were found to be significant predictors of health e-mavenism. Discussion and conclusion This study offers a starting point for further inquiries about health e-mavens. It is a fruitful construct for health promotion research in the age of new media technologies. We conclude with specific recommendations to further develop the health e-maven concept through continued empirical research.
Consolidation of simulated slagging-pyrolysis-incinerator slags

Abstract The methods of arc melting and inclusion in concrete were used to consolidate slagging-pyrolysis-inciner (SPI) slags. The SPI is a wet-bottom, modified vertical-shaft furnace being considered for processing low-level radioactive wastes into granulated slag and metal. In the first method tested, three simulated SPI slag compositions (made from copper reverberatory slag and natural minerals) were melted in a I (metric) ton electric arc furnace and poured into 210 liter (55 gal), 1.5 mm thick (16 gage), low-carbon steel drums. Energy and electrode consumption were determined, and slag-refractory brick interaction was measured. The cooling rates for filled drums of slag were determined by an array of thermocouples spotwelded to the drums. Analyses of all raw materials and products, including baghouse dusts, are presented. Melting of granulated slag provided a 50% increase in bulk density. In the second method tested, granulated copper reverberatory slag (which has properties similar to those of granulated SPI slag) and Portland cement were mixed with water and poured into a similar low-carbon drum. The concrete was stronger than ordinary concrete, but the filled drum contained only about 70% as much slag as those filled with molten slag.
Parasitism-induced Effects on Host Growth and Metabolic Efficiency in Tobacco Hornworm Larvae Parasitized by Cotesia congregata

Parasitism by the braconid wasp Cotesia congregata affects the growth of Manduca sexta larvae in a parasitoid 'dose-dependent' fashion. Following parasitization of fourth-instar larvae, more heavily parasitized larvae grew larger compared to those containing fewer parasitoids due to an increase in host dry weight. The differences in host mass appeared to arise after oviposition. A 'dose-dependent' enhancement of host dry weight would appear nutritionally beneficial for the parasitoids developing in more 'crowded' hosts. The efficiencies of conversion of ingested and digested food to body mass and the approximate digestibility of the diet ingested by the host caterpillar did not vary significantly with clutch size although parasitoids took slightly longer to develop in the more heavily parasitized hosts. Larval parasitoids developing in the presence of many competitors weighed up to 50% less than those developing in hosts with fewer endoparasitoids, although the weight of adult female parasitoids did not vary significantly with wasp clutch size. The maximum number of emerging wasps was 200 parasitoids, possibly representing the host's 'carrying capacity' for larvae parasitized in the fourth-instar. The ratio of emerging to non-emerging parasitoids decreased as parasitoid clutch size increased, with few or none emerging from very heavily parasitized hosts containing more than 400 parasitoids. Copyright 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd. All right reserved
Workplace Communication: What The Apprentice Teaches About Communication Skills

This article reports the results of a content analysis of the debut season of the reality television show, The Apprentice. All 15 episodes were examined to determine the role that communication com...
The influence of long-range force truncation on the thermodynamics of aqueous ionic solutions

The extended‐RISM integral equation, with a renormalized HNC closure capable of accounting for truncated ion–solvent interactions, is used to examine the influence of electrostatic truncation on free energies and relative chloride and bromide ions at infinite dilution in SPC water are studied. Large effects in the ion–water distribution functions are observed for truncation distances between 7 and 12 A. The resulting free energies and relative free energies of hydration display a slight oscillatory behavior as a function of truncation distance, with the maximum deviations occurring for the shortest truncation distances. The observed oscillatory behavior is in qualitative agreement with earlier Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics results.
Organ-specific carboxylesterase profiling identifies the small intestine and kidney as major contributors of activation of the anticancer prodrug CPT-11

The activation of the anticancer prodrug CPT-11, to its active metabolite SN-38, is primarily mediated by carboxylesterases (CE). In humans, three CEs have been identified, of which human liver CE (hCE1; CES1) and human intestinal CE (hiCE; CES2) demonstrate significant ability to hydrolyze the drug. However, while the kinetic parameters of CPT-11 hydrolysis have been measured, the actual contribution of each enzyme to activate the drug in biological samples has not been addressed. Hence, we have used a combination of specific CE inhibition and conventional chromatographic techniques to determine the amounts, and hydrolytic activity, of CEs present within human liver, kidney, intestinal and lung specimens. These studies confirm that hiCE demonstrates the most efficient kinetic parameters for CPT-11 activation, however, due to the high levels of hCE1 that are expressed in liver, the latter enzyme can contribute up to 50% of the total of drug hydrolysis in this tissue. Conversely, in human duodenum, jejunum, ileum and kidney, where hCE1 expression is very low, greater than 99% of the conversion of CPT-11 to SN-38 was mediated by hiCE. Furthermore, analysis of lung microsomal extracts indicated that CPT-11 activation was more proficient in samples obtained from smokers. Overall, our studies demonstrate that hCE1 plays a significant role in CPT-11 hydrolysis even though it is up to 100-fold less efficient at drug activation than hiCE, and that drug activation in the intestine and kidney are likely major contributors to SN-38 production in vivo.
Evidence-Based Medical Therapy of Patients with Acute Coronary Syndromes

Acute coronary syndromes (ACS) present a major health challenge in modern medicine. With new clinical trials being conducted, our knowledge of latest therapies for ACS continually evolves. In this article, we review currently available medical therapies and provide evidence-based rationale for current pharmacologic therapies. Among the antiplatelet therapies, aspirin, clopidogrel, and glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors demonstrate significant efficacy in reducing morbidity and mortality. Among the anticoagulants, unfractionated heparin and low molecular weight heparin, particularly enoxaparin sodium, remain the hallmarks of therapy against which newer anticoagulants are often compared. Bivalirudin has recently showed significant efficacy in decreasing cardiovascular events and mortality, but with potentially less risk of bleeding than heparin. Results of trials evaluating warfarin remain inconsistent regarding potential benefits. Finally, fondaparinux sodium, recently tested, shows promise as a powerful yet safe anticoagulant. Fibrinolysis is an acceptable modality for reperfusion if facilities equipped for primary percutaneous revascularization are not available. Regarding anti-ischemic therapy, β-adrenoceptor antagonists and nitrates remain critical in the early management of ACS. Inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system have also shown significant reductions in the morbidity and mortality of patients presenting with ACS, particularly in patients with left ventricular dysfunction and clinical heart failure, with ACE inhibitors being first-line agents and angiotensin receptor antagonists being a reasonable substitute if ACE inhibitors are not tolerated. Among the lipid-lowering therapies, statins (HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors) have been documented as being the most well tolerated and most efficacious therapies for ACS patients and data exist that they should be administered early in ACS management. Studies evaluating combination therapy (antiplatelet drugs, β-adrenoceptor antagonists, ACE inhibitors, and lipid-lowering agents) show a clear benefit in mortality in patients with known coronary artery disease. Efforts to improve these key evidence-based medical therapies are numerous and include such programs as the American College of Cardiology’s Guidelines Applied in Practice, international patient registries such as the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events, and studies such as CRUSADE. Finally, patients with diabetes mellitus pose a challenge to clinicians both in terms of their glycemic control and in their apparent relative resistance to antiplatelet therapy. Studies involving ACS patients suggest that stringent glycemic control may result in benefits in both morbidity and mortality.
Serotonergic Hyperactivity as a Potential Factor in Developmental, Acquired and Drug-Induced Synesthesia

Though synesthesia research has seen a huge growth in recent decades, and tremendous progress has been made in terms of understanding the mechanism and cause of synesthesia, we are still left mostly in the dark when it comes to the mechanistic commonalities (if any) among developmental, acquired and drug-induced synesthesia. We know that many forms of synesthesia involve aberrant structural or functional brain connectivity. Proposed mechanisms include direct projection and disinhibited feedback mechanisms, in which information from two otherwise structurally or functionally separate brain regions mix. We also know that synesthesia sometimes runs in families. However, it is unclear what causes its onset. Studies of psychedelic drugs, such as psilocybin, LSD and mescaline, reveal that exposure to these drugs can induce synesthesia. One neurotransmitter suspected to be central to the perceptual changes is serotonin. Excessive serotonin in the brain may cause many of the characteristics of psychedelic intoxication. Excessive serotonin levels may also play a role in synesthesia acquired after brain injury. In brain injury sudden cell death floods local brain regions with serotonin and glutamate. This neurotransmitter flooding could perhaps result in unusual feature binding. Finally, developmental synesthesia that occurs in individuals with autism may be a result of alterations in the serotonergic system, leading to a blockage of regular gating mechanisms. I conclude on these grounds that one commonality among at least some cases of acquired, developmental and drug-induced synesthesia may be the presence of excessive levels of serotonin, which increases the excitability and connectedness of sensory brain regions.
Redefining Media Content and Structure in Terms of Available Resources Toward a Dynamic Human-Centric Theory of Communication

This study reconceptualizes redundancy, complexity, and emotion in terms of cognitive load (specifically as resources allocated and required), then measures the combined real-time impact of these variables on available resources and encoding over the course of an hour television news program. Operational definitions of redundancy in the literature were ordered by their theoretically predicted level of resources required, then coded overtime. Dynamic measures of audio and video complexity in terms of resources allocated and required were developed and tested. Over the course of the news program, all combinations of independent variables occurred and the theoretically derived combinations of cognitive load successfully predicted changes in resources available as measured by Secondary Task Reaction Times (STRTs) and encoding indexed by recognition. The results suggest that defining message variables in terms of dynamic changes in cognitive load can allow us to predict the simultaneous dynamic impact of multi...
Interaction between the blink reflex and the abnormal muscle response in patients with hemifacial spasm: Results of intraoperative recordings

Patients with hemifacial spasm (HFS) have an abnormal muscle response (AMR) that can be elicited by stimulating one branch of the facial nerve and recording electromyographically from muscles innervated by other branches of the facial nerve. In addition, the R1 component of the blink reflex can be elicited from the affected side in patients with HFS who are undergoing microvascular decompression (MVD) operations under inhalation anesthesia. A synkinetic component of the blink reflex response that corresponds to the R1 component can be recorded from the mentalis muscle. In the present study we show that the blink reflex elicited by electrical stimulation of the supraorbital nerve can suppress the AMR elicited by electrical stimulation of the temporal branch of the facial nerve in patients with HFS when the interval between stimulation of the supraorbital nerve and stimulation of the temporal branch of the facial nerve (interstimulus interval, ISI) is such that the blink reflex response would appear later than the AMR if they had been elicited independently. Within a short range of ISIs the two responses suppress each other partially or totally. We find evidence that the suppression of the AMR is the result of an interaction in the facial motonucleus. We believe that the results of the present study support the hypothesis that the facial motonucleus is hyperactive in patients with HFS, and we suggest that the AMR is a result of backfiring from the facial motonucleus and that it may thus be an exaggerated F-response.
Workers' Education, Spillovers, and Productivity: Evidence from Plant-Level Production Functions

^California Center for Population Research p U n i v e r s i t y of California - L o s A n g e l e s Workers' Education, Spillovers, and Productivity: Evidence from Plant-Level Production Functions Enrico Moretti CCPR-012-03 January California Center for Population Research On-Line Working Paper Series
Bis-β,β′-conjugate addition

Abstract Addition of organocuprates to α,β-enones which possess on the β′-carbon a heteroatom substituent leads in good to excellent yield to β,β′-dialkylated ketones. This process is termed bis-β,β′-conjugate addition.
Localized cell death caused by mutations in a Drosophila gene coding for a transforming growth factor-β homolog☆

Recessive mutations (dppdisk) in one region of the decapentaplegic (dpp) gene of Drosophila, which codes for a transforming growth factor-beta homolog, cause loss of distal parts from adult appendages. Different dppdisk alleles cause effects of different severity, the milder alleles removing distal parts and the more severe alleles removing progressively more proximal structures. In the wing disc derivatives, the most extreme dppdisk genotype removes the entire wing and leaves only a thorax fragment. We show that structures are lost in these mutants as a result of massive apoptotic cell death in the corresponding regions of the imaginal discs during the mid-third larval instar. The remaining disc fragments do not regenerate when cultured alone in the growth-permissive environment of the adult abdomen, but they can be made to regenerate by coculturing them with appropriate fragments of wild-type wing discs. This nonautonomous development is interpreted as showing that a product of dpp+, presumably the TGF-beta homolog, is secreted by the normal cells and can rescue the mutant cells in the mixed tissue.
Seismic Behavior of Self-Centering Precast Segmental Bridge Bents

This paper presents the cyclic behavior of four self-centering bridge bents with different construction details, including external energy dissipaters and neoprene isolation. The columns of these bents consisted of precast posttensioned concrete-filled fiber tubes (PPT-CFFT). A fifth monolithic moment resisting concrete bent was also tested as a reference specimen. The tests showed that PPT-CFFT bents can be used in bridge construction as a lateral load resistance system. The PPT-CFFT bents without external energy dissipaters displayed a lateral drift of approximately 9.2% without experiencing significant damage or residual displacement. The PPT-CFFT specimen with external energy dissipaters reached a drift angle of 9.2% with some damage. The reinforced concrete specimen failed at a drift angle of approximately 6.9% with substantial damage and residual displacement.
KCNE1 and KCNE2 Provide a Checkpoint Governing Voltage-Gated Potassium Channel α-Subunit Composition

Voltage-gated potassium (Kv) currents generated by N-type α-subunit homotetramers inactivate rapidly because an N-terminal ball domain blocks the channel pore after activation. Hence, the inactivation rate of heterotetrameric channels comprising both N-type and non-N-type (delayed rectifier) α-subunits depends upon the number of N-type α-subunits in the complex. As Kv channel inactivation and inactivation recovery rates regulate cellular excitability, the composition and expression of these heterotetrameric complexes are expected to be tightly regulated. In a companion article, we showed that the single transmembrane segment ancillary (β) subunits KCNE1 and KCNE2 suppress currents generated by homomeric Kv1.4, Kv3.3, and Kv3.4 channels, by trapping them early in the secretory pathway. Here, we show that this trapping is prevented by coassembly of the N-type α-subunits with intra-subfamily delayed rectifier α-subunits. Extra-subfamily delayed rectifier α-subunits, regardless of their capacity to interact with KCNE1 and KCNE2, cannot rescue Kv1.4 or Kv3.4 surface expression unless engineered to interact with them using N-terminal A and B domain swapping. The KCNE1/2-enforced checkpoint ensures N-type α-subunits only reach the cell surface as part of intra-subfamily mixed-α complexes, thereby governing channel composition, inactivation rate, and—by extension—cellular excitability.
Semi-transparent video interfaces to assist deaf persons in meetings

Meetings are a vital part of participation in social activities. For a deaf person who does not understand spoken language, following a discourse at meetings can become confusing if there are too many simultaneous sources of information. When the person focuses on one source of information, he misses information from another source; for example, while looking at a presenter's slides, the person misses information from the signing interpreter. Using semi-transparent video technology we have developed two applications to assist the deaf in local group meetings and remote personal meetings. The features of the applications were iteratively designed, as we incorporated feedback from the Deaf community. This research is an extension of our Facetop research project, which applies semi-transparent video for people without sensory disabilities.
Gray Squirrels Feeding on Insects in Car Radiators

Many instances are known of mammals exploiting unusual food sources. Notes that we have accumulated on the gray squirrel, Sciurus c. carolinensis , feeding on insects lodged in automobile radiators provide still another example of such behavior. The observations were made on the campus of the University of Florida, Gainesville, where gray squirrels are particularly numerous. We first witnessed an individual entering the grill of a car in a parking lot adjacent to the biology building on October 15, 1956. The squirrel had been foraging along a hedge bordering a row of parked cars. It remained inside the grill for a few moments before reappearing and jumping …
Enkephalin-like immunoreactivity in vocal control regions of the zebra finch brain.

Summary Singing in passerine birds is an androgen-dependent behavior typical of males, and in many species is learned during an early critical period. Brain regions which control song form a rather discrete, interconnected series of nuclei which have been described in the canary and zebra finch2,14. These regions include the caudal nucleus of the hyperstriatum ventrale (HVc), the robust nucleus of the archistriatum (RA), the magnocellular nucleus of the neostriatum (MAN), area X of the lobus parolfactorius, nucleus interface (NIF), intercollicular nucleus (ICo), and the tracheosyringeal portion of the hypoglossal motor nucleus (nXIIts). In the present report, we describe cell bodies and terminals in these brain regions which contain enkephalin-like immunoreactivity (ELI). This study is the third in a series12,21 investigating histochemical characteristics of the vocal control system in zebra finches.
TGF-α induces a stationary, radial-glia like phenotype in cultured astrocytes

Abstract Transgenic mice studies have suggested that transforming growth factor-α (TGF-α) influences the postnatal differentiation of astrocytes. To understand the role of TGF-α during astrocytic differentiation, it is important to determine how this factor affects astrocytes in the absence of other influences. We have thus examined in vitro under serum-free medium conditions the effect of TGF-α on the properties of astrocytes derived from the cerebral cortex of newborn rats. When TGF-α is added to serum-free medium, most astrocytes lose their polygonal shape and extend two long processes running in opposite directions. This bipolar morphology strikingly resembles that of radial glial cells. Intriguingly, serum inhibits this morphological transformation. TGF-α also triggers an increase in glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) expression and a decrease in nestin expression. Another major effect of TGF-α is to practically abolish the motility of astrocytes. TGF-α, however, does not appear to influence the proliferation and apoptosis of astrocytes. These results suggest that polygonal astrocytes are derived primarily from radial glial cells, and that in vivo TGF-α may be instrumental in determining the shape and migratory potential of radial glial cells.
Microcharacterization of spectral memory materials using nuclear forward scattering

In the past europium doped materials have been tailored in our group, which could exhibit the highest spectral storage densities known to date. In these materials, europium exists in both doubly and triply ionized states. Therefore, it is necessary to control the relative concentration of Eu 2+ and Eu 3+ . Due to accidental overlap of Eu 2+ and Eu 3+ optical transitions in this medium optical spectroscopy cannot be used to determine their relative concentration. For highly enriched europium samples, such a ratio can be determined by Mossbauer spectroscopy. However, at very low concentrations of the order of 0.01% of Eu in MgS that are necessary for these materials, conventional Mossbauer spectroscopy requires prohibitively long data acquisition times. In this article, we present and compare the ways of solving this problem with conventional and the time domain Mossbauer spectroscopy using Nuclear Forward Scattering. The synchrotron of the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory has been used as the source of high intensity, coherent and monochromatic gamma rays in NFS experiments. It is shown that in time domain Mossbauer spectroscopy the data acquisition times can be reduced by two orders of magnitude or more. This is of paramount importance for Mossbauer spectroscopy of very small samples or the samples with very low concentrations of the active isotope.
Dichotomy between Mitochondrial Ca2+ Uptake and Martix [Ca2+] in MICU1 Deficient Cells

Mitochondrial calcium uptake is central to cell physiology, but the underlying molecular mechanism remains elusive. Recently, MICU1 was identified as a mitochondrial protein required for Ca2+ uptake but dispensible for mitochondrial respiration or membrane potential generation. To study the specific role of MICU1 in mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake, we used wild type HeLa cells (Ctrl), MICU1 knockdown by 2 distinct shRNAs (KD) and MICU1 rescued cells (Rescue). First, we monitored the cytoplasmic and mitochondrial matrix [Ca2+] ([Ca2+]c and [Ca2+]m, respectively) during store-operated Ca2+ entry. Specifically, cells were preincubated in a Ca2+-free buffer containing thapsigargin (Tg), to deplete the ER Ca2+ store, and then Ca2+ was added back and the ensuing [Ca2+]c (fura2) and [Ca2+]m (mitochondria-targeted pericams) changes were measured. In both Ctrl and KD a [Ca2+]c increase occurred that was associated with a [Ca2+]m rise only in Ctrl. The Rescue behaved similarly to the Ctrl. Also, when Ca2+ was added to permeabilized cells, no [Ca2+]m increase appeared in the KD. These results confirm that the shortage of MICU1 causes suppression of the [Ca2+]m signal. Surprisingly, when the Ca2+ entry was followed by uncoupler addition to release the mitochondrial Ca2+ content, a huge [Ca2+]c increase appeared in KD, However, when the uncoupler was added prior to Ca2+ entry, no [Ca2+]c increase occurred. Thus, mitochondria in the KD also accumulated Ca2+ during Ca2+ entry. Mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake evoked by Ca2+ addition was also documented in permeabilized KD by measurement of ruthenium red sensitive 45Ca uptake and cytoplasmic Ca2+ clearance (fura2). Thus, Ca2+ is accumulated by MICU1 deficient mitochondria but it fails to result an increase in [Ca2+]m. We are currently investigating, whether suppression of the [Ca2+]m rise in the KD is due to enhanced matrix Ca2+-buffering.
Selective Uptake of Cytosolic, Peroxisomal, and Plasma Membrane Proteins into the Yeast Lysosome for Degradation

When glucose-starved cells are replenished with glucose, the key gluconeogenic enzyme, fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (FBPase), is selectively targeted from the cytosol to the yeast lysosome (vacuole) for degradation. The glucose-induced targeting of FBPase to the vacuole for degradation occurs in cells grown under a variety of metabolic conditions. Immunoelectron microscopic studies demonstrate that the uptake of FBPase by the vacuole is mediated in part by an autophagic process. FBPase can be found on the vacuolar membrane and also at the sites of membrane invaginations. Furthermore, FBPase is associated with different forms of vesicles, which are induced to accumulate inside the vacuole. We have identified peroxisomes as the organelles that are delivered to the vacuole for degradation when cells are replenished with glucose. Ultrastructural studies indicate that peroxisomes are engulfed by the vacuole by an autophagic process, leading to the destruction of whole organelles in the vacuole. Furthermore, the galactose transporter (Gal2p) is also delivered from the plasma membrane to the vacuole for degradation in response to glucose. Gal2p is delivered to the vacuole through the endocytic pathway, as mutants defective in receptor-mediated endocytosis fail to degrade Gal2p in response to glucose.
Modeling lake-water mineralization processes

Abstract A model for transient phenomena observed in lake-water aliquots is developed and discussed. The phenomena include directly observed rapid changes in inorganic nutrient concentrations subsequent to the addition of organic matter and deduced changes in microbial population density. An hypothesis is presented which provides a qualitatively consistent picture of the transient phenomena; this hypothesis is then incorporated into a model that is shown to provide a good quantitative description of the data. Model sensitivity, further applications and possible procedures for further testing of the model are briefly discussed. It is concluded that within the model framework, simple experiments involving additions of organic matter to lake-water allow a precise definition and determination of microbial carrying capacity.
ARCFLO analysis for high-enthalpy arc heaters

Feasibility, physical constraints, and preliminary design and operating envelope are calculated for a next-generation segmented arc heater with enthalpies of 70-90 MJ/kg, for simulation of fast lunar or Martian return trajectories. The ARCFLO computer program is modified for improved accuracy in high-enthalpy radiation-dominated flows. The ARCFLO band-radiation model is compared with the state-of-the-art spectral-radiation code NEQAIR. The band-radiation model is corrected, and band-absorption coefficients are reduced by up to 40 percent at high temperatures. Parametric studies show that, with conventional wall-heating limitations, high mass flow and high enthalpy are contradictory design goals owing to the increase of radiation losses with pressure, current density, and constrictor diameter. With existing hardware limitations, an enthalpy of 70 MJ/kg with a flow rate of 0.1 kg/s can be achieved in a constrictor with 5-6 cm diameter operating near 3-atm stagnation pressure. The total power is under 100 MW, but the current is very high: 14,000-18,000 amperes.
Doping Driven (π, 0) Nesting and Magnetic Properties of Fe 1+x Te Superconductors

To understand newly discovered superconductivity in Fe-based systems, we investigate the electronic structure and magnetic properties of Fe_{1+x}Te using first-principles density functional calculations. While the undoped FeTe has the same Fermi surface nested at (pi,pi) as in Fe arsenides, doping by approximately 0.5 electrons reveals a novel square-type Fermi surface showing a strong (pi,0) nesting and leading to a different magnetic structure. Our result strongly supports the same mechanism of superconductivity in chalcogenides as in the arsenides, reconciling theory with existing experiments. The calculated magnetic interactions are found to be critically dependent on doping and notably different from the arsenides.
The Apoptosome: Physiological, Developmental, and Pathological Modes of Regulation

Apoptosis, a form of programmed cell death, is executed by a family of zymogenic proteases known as caspases, which cleave an array of intracellular substrates in the dying cell. Many proapoptotic stimuli trigger cytochrome c release from mitochondria, promoting the formation of a complex between Apaf-1 and caspase-9 in a caspase-activating structure known as the apoptosome. In this review, we describe knockout and knockin studies of apoptosome components, elegant structural and biochemical experiments, and analyses of the apoptosome in various cancers and other disease states, all of which have provided new insight into this critical locus of apoptotic control.
Rural/Urban and Socioeconomic Differentials in Quality of Antenatal Care in Ghana

Author(s): Afulani, Patience A | Abstract: BACKGROUND:Approximately 800 women die of pregnancy-related complications every day. Over half of these deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Most maternal deaths can be prevented with high quality maternal health services. It is well established that use of maternal health services vary by place of residence and socioeconomic status (SES), but few studies have examined the determinants of quality of maternal health services in SSA. The purpose of this study is to examine the determinants of antenatal care (ANC) quality in Ghana-focusing on the role of place of residence and SES (education and wealth). The analysis also examines the interactions of these variables and the mediating role of ANC timing, frequency, facility type, and provider type. METHODS:The data are from the Ghana Maternal Health Survey (N = 4,868). Analytic techniques include multilevel linear regression with mediation and moderation analysis. RESULTS:Urban residence and higher SES are positively associated with higher ANC quality, but the urban effect is completely explained by sociodemographic factors. Specifically, about half of the urban effect is explained by education and wealth alone, with other variables accounting for the remainder. The effects of education are conditional on wealth and are strongest for poor women. Starting ANC visits early and attending the recommended four visits as well as receiving ANC from a higher level facility and from a skilled provider are associated with higher quality ANC. These factors partially explain the SES differentials. IMPLICATIONS:Ghanaian women experience significant disparities in quality of ANC, with poor illiterate women receiving the worst care. Targeted efforts to increase quality of ANC may significantly reduce maternal health disparities in Ghana and SSA. A particularly crucial step is to improve ANC quality in the lower level health facilities, where the most vulnerable women are more likely to seek ANC.
Teaching International Tourism: An Interdisciplinary, Field-based Course

An international tourism course involving coteaching international tourism subjects from different disciplinary perspectives in the form of a learning community and including a field trip to an international tourism destination was designed to explore opportunities to overcome some of the limitations inherent in traditional teaching approaches. This article provides a detailed description of the course structure, learning objectives, and contents as well as insights derived from the various evaluation processes, which involved the analysis of results from conventional evaluation surveys, field trip journals, student papers, posttrip discussions, institutional responses, and critical self-evaluation by the faculty.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SENSORY AND INSTRUMENTAL TEXTURE PROFILE ATTRIBUTES

Texture relationships were studied using both sensory and instrumental texture proJle analysis (TPA) techniques to evaluate twenty-one food samples from a wide variety of foods. High linear correlations were found between sensory and instrumental TPA parameters for hardness (r = 0.76) and springiness (r = 0.83). No sign@cant correlations were found between sensory and instrumental TPA parameters for cohesiveness and chewiness. Logarithmic transfonnations of data
A false-discovery-rate-based loss framework for selection of interactions

Interaction effects have been consistently found important in explaining the variation in outcomes in many scientific research fields. Yet, in practice, variable selection including interactions is complicated due to the limited sample size, conflicting philosophies regarding model interpretability, and accompanying amplified multiple-testing problems. The lack of statistically sound algorithms for automatic variable selection with interactions has discouraged activities in exploring important interaction effects. In this article, we investigated issues of selecting interactions from three aspects: (1) What is the model space to be searched? (2) How is the hypothesis-testing performed? (3) How to address the multiple-testing issue? We propose loss functions and corresponding decision rules that control FDR in a Bayesian context. Properties of the decision rules are discussed and their performance in terms of power and FDR is compared through simulations. Methods are illustrated on data from a colorectal cancer study assessing the chemotherapy treatments and data from a diffuse large-B-cell lymphoma study assessing the prognostic effect of gene expressions.
Interactions of “prepared” behaviors: burrowing and sand digging of rats

Little is known about the potential for laboratory shaping of “prepared” behaviors except that they are resistant to traditional manipulations. This paper shows that two forms of digging by Rattus norvegicus , behaviors that are remarkably uninfluenced by operant reinforcement, are strongly influenced when one experience precedes the other. Rats who burrowed in large boxes of dirt or dug sand from a hopper first showed a clear decrement of performance in the other digging paradigm. Additional experiments suggested that the mutually inhibitory effect is (1) not transitory, (2) probably related to raised thresholds, and (3) counteracted when an effective releaser or facilitator is added to the second digging experience. It may be that interference between the two types of digging is related to their different functions in nature.
Glacially influenced sedimentation in the late Neoproterozoic Mechum River Formation, Blue Ridge province, Virginia

The late Neoproterozoic (ca. 700–730 Ma) Mechum River Formation is exposed as a structural inlier within Grenvillian basement in the Blue Ridge province of central Virginia, United States. The southern portion of the Mechum River belt preserves evidence of glaciomarine sedimentation at the margin and basinward of grounding-line fans. Subaqueous glacial till, coarse-grained rhythmites, and dropstones record the incursion of ice into the basin. Marine deposition is evidenced by persistent laminations (cyclopsams) in rhythmically bedded diamictite and possibly by tidally pumped, distal turbidites in laminated mudstones. Glaciomarine sedimentation in the Mechum River Formation may have been coeval with Sturtian-Rapitan glaciations in northwestern Laurentia and Australia, and provides further evidence for a globally cold climate during the late Neoproterozoic.
Chylothorax following apparently spontaneous central venous thrombosis in a patient with septic shock.

Within the pediatric age group, chylothorax is rare and has been reported almost exclusively in the setting of thoracic surgical procedures or central venous hypertension secondary to central venous catheter thrombosis. We report on the development of central venous thrombosis and chylothorax in the absence of the usual risk factors in a patient with septic shock, and we expand on the role that procoagulant states, such as those induced by sepsis, might play in the development of this complication. This case reminds the practitioner that central venous thromboses and their complications may occur in the absence of the usually reported risk factors and must therefore still be considered when other clinical events suggest their presence.
Characterization of deposits on inside surfaces of lwr cladding

Abstract Samples of Zircaloy cladding from UO2 fuel rods, irradiated in water-cooled power reactors under two regimes of operation, were examined in a scanning electron microscope to determine the nature of the deposits formed on the inner surfaces of the cladding. In one case, the fuel rods examined had operated under conditions that resulted in significant fission gas release and solid fission product deposition on the cladding walls. In the other case, the rod examined had operated at a low power to a large burnup but with almost no fission gas release. That cladding was remarkably free of solid deposits of fission product. The likely mechanism of transport of fission products from the fuel to the cladding was through the vapor. The volatilities of the fission product compounds were estimated on the basis of the compounds expected to be present in the light of the oxygen potential calculated for the system.
Thermo-spectral properties of plastic lasers

We study the effects of temperature changes on the operating wavelength of all-polymer microresonator lasers, particularly on multilayered defect distributed feedback and distributed Bragg reflector lasers. The parameters that change the operating wavelength are discussed with comparisons between experiments and simulations.
Evaluating alternative implementations of the Lake States FVS diameter increment model

We evaluated the STEMS family of diameter increment models that have been incorporated in the Lake States variant of the Forest Vegetation Simulator. We paired validation using regression-based equivalence tests with evaluation of trends in errors across species and predictor variables, using independent data from the Michigan Forest Inventory and Analysis program. Our evaluation shows that 10-year increment bias is substantial, almost 17% on average, and our tests failed to validate the model for every one of the 30 most common tree species in the region. A comparative analysis among all alternative implementations demonstrated that error arose from structural weaknesses in the underlying model. Furthermore, the way the model is currently implemented in the Forest Vegetation Simulator partly masks poor performance at the tree level, but likely amplifies error at the stand level, a particularly troubling result in many conceivable applications. Our results also affirm that a simple adjustment factor as a function of dbh provides an inadequate correction of prediction bias. We argue that the diameter increment model needs to be re-engineered.
An unusual m-hydroxyacetophenone and three new chromanone derivatives from Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus

Abstract An unusual m-hydroxyacetophenone, named viscidone, and three new chroman-4-one derivatives were isolated from Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus ssp. lanceolatus, which also contained a known p-hydroxyacetophenone derivative. Their structures were determined by spectroscopic (1H and 13C NMR, UV, IR and MS) and chemical means.
Analysis of airborne particles sampled in the southern Appalachian mountains

Over 3 yr of particulate measurements were made at two high elevation sites in the southern Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee and Virginia. Both dichotomous samplers and filter packs were used to obtain day and night, week-long samples for subsequent elemental and ionic analysis. Total No inf3 sup− (HNO3 + No in3 sup− ) and SO inf4 sup2− averaged, respectively, 1.1 and 5.0 µg m−3 at Look Rock, Tennessee and 2.0 and 6.4 µg m−3 at Whitetop Mountain, Virginia. At Whitetop Mountain, the spring and summer seasons had the highest average SO inf4 sup2− concentrations. Seasonally, total N03 varied little. The diurnal variation of elements and SO inf4 sup2− was small. Only total NO inf3 sup− varied substantially with highest values during the day. The fine fraction (particle diameter < 2.5 µm) accounted for about 67% of the total mass. Fine mass and elemental concentrations were generally higher at Look Rock. The elements comprising the principal mass fraction of the coarse samples (2.5 gm < particle diameter < 10 to 15 µm) were of crustal origin (e.g., Al, Si, Ca, Fe) while the element comprising the principal mass fraction of the fine samples (i.e., S) was of manmade origin. Cluster analysis identified two groups of elements at Whitetop Mountain. These groups, in both the coarse and fine fraction, were associate with a soil and an automobile emission component. At Look Rock, only a soil component was obvious.
Thermal effects of magma degassing

Abstract The thermodynamics of diffusive bubble growth is dominated by latent heat of water exsolution (vaporization) and the work of gas expansion (P dV work). A numerical assessment of the effects of these on cooling of bubbly magma (water in albite) indicates that a magma can exsolve volatiles at equilibrium, or with varying degrees of oversaturation, depending on decompression history and degassing kinetics. Heat of water exsolution (vaporization) from magmatic melts has not previously been experimentally or analytically determined, and we have evaluated it from others thermodynamic functions known for the albite-water system. Heat of exsolution is small for pressures over 100 MPa, but can reach 20 kJ/mole at 1–2 MPa (10–20 bar). Oversaturation degassing at 10–20 bar can cause cooling of albite by 8 K/wt.% of exsolved water. The thermal effect of equilibrium degassing depends on the starting pressure of decompression because it follows the solubility curve. For a saturated melt at 100 MPa (4 wt.% water), it can cool a magma at least by 35 K before it disrupts into spray as gas volume fraction exceeds 0.8. Although we do not specifically consider the dynamics of bubble interactions in this study, our results suggest that the dynamic cooling rate could be significant at the vent of an erupting magma column, and under extreme eruption conditions, can lead to glass formation around fast growing bubbles of magmatic foam. This could cause fragmentation into fine ash by brittle failure. Conversely, bubble wall cooling (even before glass formation) can serve to reduce diffusive volatile flux into bubbles, decreasing the overall cooling of the system, and lead to solidification of oversaturated magmas, as occasionally observed in eruption products.
OntoIAS: An ontology-supported information agent shell for ubiquitous services

Abstract This study focused on the development of a core component “information agent shell,” – IAS, applied in general Web systems. We also investigated problems related to the extension of the proposed component in a wide variety of application areas. The shell contains four main components: OntoCrawler, OntoExtractor, OntoClassifier, and OntoRecommender, which are responsible for information searching, information extracting, information classifying, and information representing/ranking, respectively. This system introduced Protege and relevant APIs to construct the domain ontology and its related ontology services to support all of the operations of the shell that was called OntoIAS. Inside the shell, the proposed method further introduces the ubiquitous interface agent to explore related problems of the ontology-supported information agent shell in ubiquitous environments. The system creates an interaction diagram that both solves the congenital defect problems of mobile equipment and adequately elaborates the powerful functions of backend information systems. In this way, the system can effectively support the basic information requirements of users in ubiquitous environments. The preliminary experimental outcomes can also reveal the basic efficiencies of related sub-systems.