cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of heat treating Au/Ni thin film composites in various ambients

Abstract Morphology changes and oxide formation for 100 nm gold films over 60 nm nickel films deposited on SiO2 (300 nm of SiO2 on silicon wafers) have been studied in ambients of H2, O2, air, N2, helium and argon temperatures between 250 and 500°C and times of 5 min-4 h. Composition rearrangement was analyzed using Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy and sputter profilling Auguer electron spectroscopy, and changes in film morphology were observed using scanning electron microscopy. The data show that NiO formed very thick layers on the surface in O2, air or inert ambients (N2 and Ar), but not in H2. This was explained on the basis of the heat of formation of NiO and the kinetic theory of gases. It was shown that NiO passivates the gold surface and diffusion within the oxide, rather than diffusion in the gold film, limited the oxide thickness. In addition, porosity has been observed to develop in the gold film under all oxidizing conditions. This porosity interfered with the analysis of interdiffusion and therefore prevented the determination of the mechanism and coefficients describing diffusion between nickel and gold thin films.
Computational Simulation of a MEMS-Based Microactuator for Tissue Engineering Applications

The relationship between the 3D microstructure of tissue-engineered constructs (TECs) and their resulting mechanical and biological function is critical in providing TECs with clinically meaningful mechanical properties in reasonable incubation times. We hypothesize that the next generation of TECs must incorporate a controllable and optimized microstructure (and resulting mechanical properties) if they are to mechanically and biologically mimic tissue function. While the development of a robustly engineered tissue replacement will undoubtedly require simultaneous biochemical and biomechanical stimulation, this paper will focus on the development of a device to impose localized micro-mechanical stimulation.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Application of leakage energy minimization to wideband SAR data

The frequency domain support of wideband synthetic aperture radar data is nonrectangular and exhibits sidelobe artifacts in noncardinal directions. Leakage Energy Minimization (LEM) is an analytic image domain apodization scheme that has been successfully applied to SAR imagery. LEM uses a spatially varying finite impulse response filter, the coefficients of which are selected from a maximum likelihood criterion. LEM can be applied to wideband SAR data, which has an irregularly shaped frequency domain support. The algorithm successfully reduces the sidelobe artifacts without loss of resolution.© (1998) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Multiconfiguration wavefuntions for the lowest (ππ*) excited states of ethylene

Ab initio calculations have been carried out for the T(^(3)B_(1u)) and V(^(1)B_(1u)) states of ethylene in a planar nuclear configuration. A “double-zeta” gaussian basis, augmented by diffuse functions, was used. A wide variety of configuration interaction wavefunctions (including as many as 1605 configurations), optimized by the iterative natural orbital method, were computed. The calculations predict the ^(1)B_(1u) state to lie 3.8 – 4.1 eV above the 3B1u state. The spatial extent of the triplet state is that of a normal valence state with (x2) ≈ 12 bohr^2. The singlet state, on the other hand, is found to be quite diffuse or Rydberg-like, (x^2) ≈ 35 bohr^2; electron correlation was found to decrease (x^2) by 30% from the Hartree - Fock value (52 bohr^2). This result is not consistent with simple notions concerning π-electron theory.
End-User License Agreements: A New Era of Intellectual Property Control

Abstract This article analyzes the growing use of end-user license agreements in connection with the sale and licensing of patented and copyrighted products. It explores the limits and enforceability of such agreements through the analysis of relevant case law, including the decision in Lexmark v. Static Control Components. The article assesses the public policy implications of broadened enforceability of product licenses and makes recommendations for change.
Review: Vasoconstrictors for the treatment of portal hypertension

Vasoconstrictors have long been used in an attempt to mitigate the effects of portal hypertension. In this review, we discuss the current understanding of portal hypertension and the use of vasoconstrictors in the management of its sequlae, including variceal hemorrhage, hepatorenal syndrome, and paracentesis-induced circulatory dysfunction. Experimental and clinical evidence for the use of vasoconstrictors is considered, and several exciting recent developments are reviewed.
Primary plasma cell leukemia: morphologic, immunophenotypic, and cytogenetic features of 4 cases treated with chemotherapy and stem cell transplantation

Plasma cell leukemia (PCL) is a neoplastic disorder of plasma cells of which there are 2 forms, primary PCL and secondary PCL, the latter occurring in patients with a history of plasma cell myeloma. We describe 4 patients with primary PCL. In all cases, the bone marrow aspirate smears and biopsy specimens demonstrated a diffuse infiltrate of atypical plasma cells that were difficult to classify using morphologic criteria alone. Immunophenotypic studies showed that each case was positive for plasma cell-associated antigens (cytoplasmic immunoglobin, CD38, or CD138) and negative for CD20. Of 4 cases, 3 had complex karyotypes, including the t(11;14)(q13;q32) or del(11)(q13). Despite chemotherapy and the use of novel therapeutic agents and stem cell transplantation, all 4 patients had short survival.
Coronary flow and flow reserve in canines using MR phase difference and complex difference processing

Coronary artery disease continues to be the leading cause of death for adults in the United States. Magnetic resonance imaging (MR) has the potential to dramatically impact the diagnosis of heart disease by noninvasively providing a wide range of anatomic and physiologic information. Previous re search has shown that coronary flow, one component of a complete examination, can be accurately measured in the left anterior descending artery in viva The current work validates MR flow measurements in canine circumflex arteries using transit time ultrasound as a standard. The circumflex artery experiences greater in-plane motion and is a more stringent test for flow measurement accuracy. This work also com pares two methods of processing MR velocity data, phase difference and complex difference techniques, and examines the sources of error present in the animal validation model. Phase difference processing with a 30% magnitude threshold best matched the mean ultrasound flow values (30% PD = 1.04 × US + 1.49, r = 0.94), but it was very sensitive to vessel boundary identification. The complex difference process was less sensitive to vessel boundary identification and correlated well with the transit time ultrasound despite systematic un-derestimations. The reasons for the discrepancies are shown to stem from a number of possible sources including variabil ity of the ultrasound standard, low signal-to-noise ratios in the MR images, sensitivity of the MR technique to vessel bound ary identification, and motion artifacts in the images.
Robustness promotes evolvability of thermotolerance in an RNA virus

The ability for an evolving population to adapt to a novel environment is achieved through a balance of robustness and evolvability. Robustness is the invariance of phenotype in the face of perturbation and evolvability is the capacity to adapt in response to selection. Genetic robustness has been posited, depending on the underlying mechanism, to either decrease the efficacy of selection, or increase the possibility of future adaptation. However, the true effect of genetic robustness on evolvability in biological systems remains uncertain. Here we demonstrate that genetic robustness increases evolvability of thermotolerance in laboratory populations of the RNA virus φ6. We observed that populations founded by robust clones evolved greater resistance to heat shock, relative to populations founded by brittle (less-robust) clones. Thus, we provide empirical evidence for the idea that robustness can promote evolvability in this environment, and further suggest that evolvability can arise indirectly via selection for robustness, rather than through direct selective action. Our data imply that greater tolerance of mutational change is associated with virus adaptability in a new niche, a finding generally relevant to evolutionary biology, and informative for elucidating how viruses might evolve to emerge in new habitats and/or overcome novel therapies.
Failure Investigation of Direct Write Pen Tips

Scanning electron microscopy of direct write pen tips provided fractographic evidence that pen tip failure was due to impact fracture. It is recommended that safeguards be implemented into the direct write system that will prevent impact between the pen tips and the print media.
To see a rock in a grain of sand

Permeability is perhaps one of the most important yet elusive reservoir properties. Unlike porosity, it correlates poorly with the elastic properties of rocks and, as a result, cannot be mapped remotely. Rather, it has to be directly measured in the lab on core plugs extracted from a well. In such lab experiments, a pressure gradient is applied to a fluid-filled rock sample, the fluid's volume flux is recorded, and the absolute permeability is calculated from Darcy's law by relating the flux to the pressure gradient. Physical experiments may be augmented or even partially replaced by numerical experiments provided that a numerical simulation accurately mimics the physical process. Successful numerical “measurements” of permeability have been reported by Bakke and Oren (1997), Keehm et al. (2001), Knackstedt et al. (2004), and others. It appears that the absolute (and even relative) permeability can be recovered with reasonable accuracy from 3D micro-images of the pore space where the geometrical features of the pore-space structure relevant to fluid flow are carefully resolved and digitally represented in the computer. Such images are available from high-resolution X-ray tomography, also known as CT-scanning. CT-scan produces multiple closely spaced 2D slice-images of a rock that, when stacked together, represent the 3D volume. However, high-resolution scanning devices are still prohibitively expensive and the scanning time is too long to be practically useful in massive numerical experimentation. An alternative is a statistical reconstruction of 3D volume from a 2D slice. A flat thin section, where the pore space appears in a single color because it is impregnated with dyed epoxy and is easily distinguishable from the grains (Figure 1), can be used for this purpose. Thin sections are relatively easy and cheap to prepare either from core plugs or cuttings. Figure 1. A sandstone thin section. The pore space is filled with epoxy …
Heterosis and Overdominance Following Long-Term Selection for Body Weight in Japanese Quail

Although nonadditive genetic variation is more important in crosses among laying stocks than among meat stocks, development of special sire and dam lines to control the release of primary lines results in broilers being the product of three- or four-way crosses. Therefore, nonadditive genetic effects are important in meat stocks because of opportunities to combine stocks that complement each other. Four experiments were conducted to investigate heterosis and overdominance arising from crossing Japanese quail lines originating from the same base population and selected long-term ( > 85 generations) for high 4-wk BW under different selection environments. The different selection environments were established by feeding different levels of CP (28 and 20%) and different levels of thiouracil (0 and.2%). Estimates of heterosis were high for hatch of total eggs ( > 25%) and liveability (12 to 47%), and low for hatch weight (2 to 4%). Overdominance estimates followed similar patterns but were of lower magnitude. Percentage heterosis estimates for BW were high at 1 wk (20 to 30%) and declined linearly to 5 to 10% at 4 wk when quail were fed 28 and 24% CP diets. Contrariwise, when fed low-CP (20%) diets, heterosis values were low initially and remained stable or increased across age. Data obtained from measuring feed intake and feed efficiency indicated that heterosis for BW was closely related to change in feed intake. Heterosis values for feed intake closely followed those for BW, including the decline across age. Conversely, heterosis appeared to be absent for feed efficiency, except at 1 wk. Similar to heterosis estimates, overdominance estimates were high initially and declined across age and were more clearly demonstrated under the 24 and 28% diets. It was concluded that considerable heterosis is present for BW in Japanese quail following the crossing of lines selected long-term for high BW, but that it is dependent on both environment (diet) and age.
Optomechanical design of the Gemini multiobject spectrograph on-instrument wavefront sensor

The Gemini' Multi-Object Spectrographs (GMOS)' will exploit the excellent delivered image quality of the Gemini8-metre telescopes. An integral part of the GMOS optical design is the On-Instrument Wavefront Sensor (O1WFS). TheOIWFS measures image tip-tilt and focus (1TF) information and feeds this back to the telescope's active and adaptiveoptics systems. Since GMOS is Cassegrain mounted, the OIWFS was designed to be insensitive to the varying gravity vectoras the telescope tracks. The OIWFS utilizes a two-rotational-axis robotic platform to position the pickoff optics within thetelescope field. The mechanical design, optics, kinematics and an analysis of the optical measurement error due tomechanical flexure of the OIWFS are presented.Keywords: wavefront sensor, spectrograph, optics, kinematics, flexure
Light scattering by nearly perfect crystals

Abstract The theory of light scattering by crystals is developed in a form adapted to modern theories of lattice imperfections. In addition to thermal scattering, configurational scattering of two different types is considered: (1) scattering by macroscopically homogeneous distributions of point imperfections (vacancies, impurities) characterized by their concentration, polarizability, and radial distribution function, (2) scattering by bad regions in the neighborhood of dislocation lines characterized by their size, shape, and index of refraction. Interpreting recent scattering experiments in terms of this theory one estimates that single crystals of Harshaw sodium chloride have a dislocation density between 107 and 109 cm−2, an average vacancy concentration between 1015 and 1017 cm−3 and bad regions with an average diameter of about 1000A and an excess vacancy concentration of about 1018 cm−3.
The Effects of Local Ventricular Pacing on Recovery from Regional Myocardial Ischemia

Abstract After surgical revascularization of ischemic myocardium, temporary ventricular pacing is often used, yet no data exist to indicate whether pacing ischemic versus nonischemic myocardium affects myocardial recovery. Therefore, chronically instrumented conscious dogs were studied with segment length transducers in the left anterior descending (LAD) distribution, left ventricular and pericardial micromanometers, pneumatic occluders on the LAD and venae cavae, and bipolar ventricular pacing wires, one pair in the LAD zone and one pair in the nonischemic (LCX) zone. Six dogs underwent a total of twelve 15-min LAD occlusions, each followed by 48 hr of reperfusion. Just after reperfusion, either the LAD or LCX zone was paced at 150 bpm for 45 min. LAD versus LCX pacing decreased regional stroke work (6 ± 5 versus 19 ± 5 kerg · cm-2) and produced contractile asynchrony. Myocardial contractile function was assessed using preload recruitable work area (PRWA), the area under the regional stroke work versus end-diastolic length relationship. Relative to LCX pacing, LAD pacing significantly delayed the recovery of PRWA after 4 hr of reperfusion (54 ± 9 versus 83 ± 9% control PRWA, P
Chondrogenesis, joint formation, and cartilage metabolism

Chondrogenesis occurs as a result of mesenchymal cell condensation and chondroprogenitor cell differentiation. The chondrocytes then form the cartilage at the end of the opposing bones with the intervening interzones formed during cavitation or they undergo proliferation, terminal differentiation to chondrocyte hypertrophy, and apoptosis in a process termed endochondral ossification, whereby the hypertrophic cartilage is replaced by bone. A similar sequence of events occurs in the postnatal growth plate and leads to rapid growth of the skeleton. Human adult articular cartilage is a complex tissue of matrix proteins that varies from superficial to deep layers and from loaded to unloaded zones. A major challenge to efforts to repair cartilage by stem cell-based and other tissue engineering strategies is the inability of the resident chondrocytes to lay down new matrix with the same properties as it had when it was formed during development. This is particularly true of the collagen network, which is susceptible to cleavage once the proteoglycans are depleted. Thus, understanding and comparing the mechanisms of cartilage remodeling during development, osteoarthritis (OA), and aging may lead to more effective strategies for preventing cartilage damage and promoting repair. To identify and characterize mediators of cartilage remodeling common to these processes, we are using culture models of primary human and mouse chondrocytes and cell lines and mouse models to manipulate and compare gene expression with complementary approaches. MMP-13, the major type II collagen-degrading collagenase, is regulated by both stress and inflammatory signals that not only contribute to irreversible joint damage (progression) in OA, but importantly, also to the initiation/onset phase, wherein chondrocytes in articular cartilage leave their natural growth - and differentiation-arrested state. We and other investigators have found that there are common mediators of these processes in human OA cartilage and from early through late stages of OA in mouse models, including the surgical models (good matrix with abnormal loading) and the genetic models during aging (bad matrix with normal loading). We are validating our in vitro analyses of the signaling and transcriptional mechanisms that determine the expression and activities of these mediators by in vivo analyses of the consequences of knockout or transgenic overexpression of these genes in mouse models. In current studies, we are examining the epigenetic mechanisms and using proteomics and genomics approaches to map the signaling networks and microRNA targets that impact on gene expression programs during the onset and progression of OA in both human and murine cartilage. Since the chondrocytes in adult human cartilage are normally quiescent and maintain the matrix in a low turnover stated, understanding how they undergo phenotypic modulation and promote matrix destruction and abnormal repair in OA may to lead to identification of critical targets for therapy to block cartilage damage and promote effective cartilage repair.
Subduction tectonics in Japan

Surely, one of the real lessons to be learned from plate tectonics is that every major problem of historical geology must be treated in a global context. My personal horizons were markedly expanded by my experiences last summer, when I examined rock associations formed by subduction in Japan, a Neogene island arc. Cretaceous and Paleogene assemblages are similar to those in the California Coast Ranges. Lower Mesozoic and upper Paleozoic eugeosynclinal terranes in Japan and western North America are accreted oceanic facies that probably formed side by side within a vast Paleopacific Ocean.
A suggested chain process for radiation damage

It has been suggested that when an organism is exposed to ionizing radiation the initial damage results from the occurrence of ionization in a so-called sensitive volume due to absorption of radiation quanta. The initial radiation damage is then transmitted or amplified to a level of macroscopic perception. In this paper a mechanism by which this transmission may take place and a finite Markov chain model applicable to this transmission are postulated and discussed.
KCNJ2 mutation causes an adrenergic-dependent rectification abnormality with calcium sensitivity and ventricular arrhythmia

Background KCNJ2 mutations are associated with a variety of inherited arrhythmia syndromes including catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia 3. Objective To characterize the detailed cellular mechanisms of the clinically recognized KCNJ2 mutation R67Q. Methods Kir2.1 current density was measured from COS-1 cells transiently transfected with wild-type human Kir-2.1 (WT-Kir2.1) and/or a heterozygous missense mutation in KCNJ2 (R67Q-Kir2.1) by using the whole-cell voltage clamp technique. Catecholamine activity was simulated with protein kinase A–stimulating cocktail exposure. Phosphorylation-deficient mutants, S425N-Kir2.1 and S425N-Kir2.1/R67Q-S425N-Kir2.1, were used in a separate set of experiments. HA- or Myc-Tag-WT-Kir2.1 and HA-Tag-R67Q-Kir2.1 were used for confocal imaging. Results A 33-year-old woman presented with a catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia–like clinical phenotype and was found to have KCNJ2 missense mutation R67Q. Treatment with nadolol and flecainide resulted in the complete suppression of arrhythmias and symptom resolution. Under baseline conditions, R67Q-Kir2.1 expressed alone did not produce inward rectifier current while cells coexpressing WT-Kir2.1 and R67Q-Kir2.1 demonstrated the rectification index (RI) similar to that of WT-Kir2.1. After PKA stimulation, R67Q-Kir2.1/WT-Kir2.1 failed to increase peak outward current density; WT-Kir2.1 increased by 46% (n = 5), while R67Q-Kir2.1/WT-Kir2.1 decreased by 6% (n = 6) ( P = .002). Rectification properties in R67Q-Kir2.1/WT-Kir2.1 demonstrated sensitivity to calcium with a decreased RI in the high-calcium pipette solution (RI 20.3% ± 4.1%) than in the low-calcium pipette solution (RI 36.5% ± 5.7%) ( P Conclusions R67Q-Kir2.1 is associated with an adrenergic-dependent clinical and cellular phenotype with rectification abnormality enhanced by increased calcium. These findings are a significant advancement of our knowledge and understanding of the phenotype-genotype relationship of arrhythmia syndromes related to KCNJ2 mutations.
An Incomplete Contingency Table Approach to Paired-Comparison Experiments

Abstract A wide variety of paired-comparison experiments and surveys may be viewed within the framework of “incomplete” contingency table analysis. Bradley-Terry models for such data can be chosen and further examined by a noniterative logit analysis. Multivariate paired comparisons with factor structure can be analyzed through reparameterization of the underlying models for each combination of factor levels. The method is subject to sample-size restrictions but allows the experimenter to design his survey without complex symmetry conditions or independence assumptions.
Scaled Second Order Perturbation Corrections to Configuration Interaction Singles: Efficient and Reliable Excitation Energy Methods

Two modifications of the perturbative doubles correction to configuration interaction with single substitutions (CIS(D)) are suggested, which are excited state analogues of ground state scaled second-order Moller−Plesset (MP2) methods. The first approach employs two parameters to scale the two spin components of the direct term of CIS(D), starting from the two-parameter spin-component scaled (SCS) MP2 ground state, and is termed SCS−CIS(D). An efficient resolution-of-the-identity (RI) implementation of this approach is described. The second approach employs a single parameter to scale only the opposite-spin direct term of CIS(D), starting from the one-parameter scaled opposite-spin (SOS) MP2 ground state, and is called SOS−CIS(D). By utilizing auxiliary basis expansions and a Laplace transform, a fourth-order algorithm for SOS−CIS(D) is described and implemented. The parameters that describe SCS−CIS(D) and SOS−CIS(D) are optimized based on a training set that includes valence excitations of various organi...
Inclusion of parents in pediatric subspecialty team rounds: attitudes of the family and medical team.

AbstractThe importance of the family's involvement in caring for children with cancer is as tremendous as the need to successfully educate our medical students and residents about the value of effective communication and family-centered care. This article presents a model of change undertaken by one
Pattern based Declarative Constraint Solution for Model-Driven Service Deployment

Attempting to reduce the complexity of applying constraints to service deployment and guarantee its correctness, we propose a declarative constraint solution which includes three distinctive components: constraint pattern definition component, pattern-based constraint description component, and pattern-based violation analysis component. Correspondingly, a supporting tool for this solution is implemented and integrated with the deployment topology plan tool.
Sotalol: a novel beta-blocker with class III anti-arrhythmic activity.

Initially synthesized in 19630, sotalal is a novel beta-adrenoreceptor blocking agent that also possesses class III anti-arrhythmic properties. The drug's ability to lengthen repolarization and prolong effective refractory periods in all cardiac tissues in additian to its beta-blocking effects make sotalol an attractive a gent for use in a variety of supraventricular and ventricular arrhythmias
NNMT promotes epigenetic remodeling in cancer by creating a metabolic methylation sink

Nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT) is overexpressed in a variety of human cancers, where it contributes to tumorigenesis by a still poorly understood mechanism. Here, we show using metabolomics that NNMT impairs the methylation potential of cancer cells by consuming methyl units from S-adenosyl methionine to create the stable metabolic product 1-methylnicotinamide. As a result, NNMT-expressing cancer cells possess an altered epigenetic state that includes hypomethylated histones and other cancer-related proteins combined with heightened expression of pro-tumorigenic gene products. Our findings thus point to a direct mechanistic link between the deregulation of a metabolic enzyme and widespread changes in the methylation landscape of cancer cells.
The Effects of Choline on Hepatic Ultrastructural Changes Associated with the Intravenous Administration of Fat

Abstract : The administration of intravenous fat emulsion to rats produces dilatation of the hepatic rough endoplasmic reticulum similar to that which occurs in choline deficiency. In the present study the changes occurring in the livers of rats receiving multiple injections of an intravenous fat emulsion while maintained on choline-deficient, cholinerich and stock diets were determined by light and electron microscopy. Severe fatty metamorphosis of the liver developed in all rats on choline-deficient diets. This fatty change was increased by intravenous injection of Intralipid. Dilatation of the hepatic rough endoplasmic reticulum was produced in rats on a stock diet given injections of Intralipid, as well as in rats on choline-deficient diets, rats on choline-deficient diets given injections of Intralipid and in rats on choline-rich diets given injections of Intralipid. Dilatation of the rough endoplasmic reticulum associated with the intravenous administration of Intralipid was not prevented by dietary supplementation with choline. This indicates that the mechanism by which Intralipid produces dilatation of the hepatic rough endoplasmic reticulum is more complex than simply the production of a relative choline deficiency. A possible explanation for dilatation of the rough endoplasmic reticulum is presented on the hypothesis that rough endoplasmic reticulum undergoes morphologic and quantitative enzymatic change to become smooth endoplasmic reticulum. This is thought to be a compensatory phenomenon of the hepatocyte to metabolize the increased intracellular lipid. (Author)
Approximate capacity of the symmetric half-duplex Gaussian butterfly network

In this paper we study the capacity of the half-duplex wireless butterfly network, in which a relay node facilitates the communication between two interfering transmitter-receiver pairs. We use the deterministic approach to make progress towards approximating the capacity region of this network. We use the insights obtained from the analysis of the corresponding deterministic problem to derive a new upper bound on the capacity of this network. We also propose a transmission strategy and show that for symmetric channel gains the gap between its achievable rate region and the upper bound is at most equation bits/sec/Hz per user.
Multiple crazing at crack tips in PVC under plane strain conditions

The nature of the yield zone at the crack tip of poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) pipe materials has been investigated. Microscopy studies employing a plasma etching technique reveal the presence of multiple crazes ahead of the crack tip in the interior of specimens of pure PVC, CaCO3 filled PVC, and PVC pipe compound. The craze zone and the fracture toughness of blade-notched specimens are compared with those of fatigue pre-cracked specimens. Both types of specimens have similar fracture toughness values and form multiple crazes upon loading, suggesting that multiple crazing Is an intrinsic property of the material. The kinetics of craze initiation and the development of the multiple craze zones have also been explored.
Phase control of a micropatch antenna element designed for monolithic phased arrays

Our previous experimental work on the phase controlled micropatch antenna element has led us to pursue further the design and fabrication of an antenna element with greater phase shifting capability. Computer analysis of an antenna element with a new loading structure is described. Transmission phase shifts of up to 36 degrees in the model have been seen. Variations in the phase angle of the surface current with respect to the control capacitance are shown. Variations in the amplitude of the electric field measured in the far field region on bore sight are also shown. >
Echocardiographic predictors of pulmonary hypertension in patients with severe aortic stenosis.

Background Pulmonary hypertension complicating severe aortic stenosis increases morbidity and mortality. Causes and mechanisms of this are unclear. Methods This is a retrospective observational study of 626 patients with severe aortic stenosis who had measurable pulmonary arterial pressure by Doppler echocardiography. Clinical, echocardiographic and pharmacological data were related to the presence of pulmonary hypertension. Results Of the 626 patients, 119 (19%) had severe pulmonary hypertension defined as pulmonary artery systolic pressure ≥60 mmHg. Patients with severe pulmonary hypertension had a smaller aortic valve area ( P < 0.0001), a lower left ventricular ejection fraction ( P < 0.0001), a higher mitral E/A velocity ratio ( P < 0.0001) indicating a higher filling pressure and a higher prevalence of 3 or 4+ mitral regurgitation ( P < 0.001). They were less likely to be on a beta blocker ( P = 0.05) or a statin ( P = 0.02). Smaller aortic valve area, left ventricular dysfunction, mitral regurgitation and lack of statin use were independent predictors of severe pulmonary hypertension. Conclusions Severity of aortic stenosis, left ventricular dysfunction, and mitral regurgitation are risk factors for the genesis of pulmonary hypertension and statins may potentially be protective in patients with severe aortic stenosis.
An approach to designing an implantable intraocular pressure sensor

This paper will introduce an approach to finding a novel design for an implantable intraocular pressure sensor. Such a device is needed for detection and monitoring to prevent blindness from resulting in potential glaucoma patients. The pressure sensor will be fabricated with the use of silicon micromachining technology and designed to be to be embedded within the eye.
Simulating distributed elements with asymptotic waveform evaluation

A novel method for simulating distributed elements is described. The asymptotic waveform evaluation (AWE) technique is used to compute a low-order approximation to the admittance matrix for a system of coupled lossy lines. The Y-matrix can serve as a macromodel for the lines, so that they can be simulated together with arbitrary (nonlinear) terminations. A major advantage of the proposed method is that it allows general distributed elements to be simulated in the time domain without using computationally expensive lumped models or numerical inverse transform techniques. In addition, a novel frequency-shifting technique is introduced which can lead to more accurate AWE approximations. >
Intrahypothalamic Implantation of Progesterone in Castrated Male Whiptail Lizards (Cnemidophorus inornatus) Elicits Courtship and Copulatory Behavior and Affects Androgen Receptor- and Progesterone Receptor-mRNA Expression in the Brain

A primary tenet of behavioral neuroendocrinology is that gonadal steroid hormones act on limbic nuclei to activate mating behavior in vertebrates. Traditionally, research has focused on the regulation of male-typical sexual behavior by testicular androgens and female-typical sexual behavior by ovarian estrogen and progesterone. Indeed, progesterone generally is regarded as an antiandrogen, acting centrally to inhibit sexual behavior in males. However, experiments with lizards, and more recently with rats, have challenged this paradigm. For example, exogenous progesterone induces mating behavior in some, but not all, castrated male whiptail lizards. The present study determined that implantation of progesterone into the anterior hypothalamus preoptic area of castrated, progesterone-sensitive males completely restored sexual behavior but failed to elicit sexual activity in castrated, progesterone-insensitive males. Further, androgen receptor- and progesterone receptor-mRNA expression in specific brain regions was significantly different in progesteronesensitive versus progesterone-insensitive animals. Progesteronesensitive males showed significantly higher relative abundance of androgen receptor-mRNA in the preoptic area, amygdala, and lateral septum, as compared with progesterone-insensitive animals receiving the same treatment. In contrast, progesterone receptor-mRNA abundance was lower in preoptic area of progesterone-sensitive males than in progesterone-insensitive males. No differences were found in the baseline abundance of androgen receptor- or progesterone receptor-mRNA in these nuclei between control groups of progesterone-sensitive and progesterone-insensitive males who were castrated but not implanted. This suggests that progesterone differentially regulates its own receptor as well as androgen receptor in areas of the brain involved in the control of sexual behavior of males and that the
Synonymous codon bias and functional constraint on GC3-related DNA backbone dynamics in the prokaryotic nucleoid

While mRNA stability has been demonstrated to control rates of translation, generating both global and local synonymous codon biases in many unicellular organisms, this explanation cannot adequately explain why codon bias strongly tracks neighboring intergene GC content; suggesting that structural dynamics of DNA might also influence codon choice. Because minor groove width is highly governed by 3base periodicity in GC, the existence of triplet-based codons might imply a functional role for the optimization of local DNA molecular dynamics via GC content at synonymous sites (≈GC3). We confirm a strong association between GC3-related intrinsic DNA flexibility and codon bias across 24 different prokaryotic multiple whole-genome alignments. We develop a novel test of natural selection targeting synonymous sites and demonstrate that GC3-related DNA backbone dynamics have been subject to moderate selective pressure, perhaps contributing to our observation that many genes possess extreme DNA backbone dynamics for their given protein space. This dual function of codons may impose universal functional constraints affecting the evolution of synonymous and non-synonymous sites. We propose that synonymous sites may have evolved as an ‘accessory’ during an early expansion of a primordial genetic code, allowing for multiplexed protein coding and structural dynamic information within the same molecular context.
Nanomicellar carriers for targeted delivery of anticancer agents

Clinical application of anticancer drugs is limited by problems such as low water solubility, lack of tissue-specificity and toxicity. Formulation development represents an important approach to these problems. Among the many delivery systems studied, polymeric micelles have gained considerable attention owing to ease in preparation, small sizes (10–100 nm), and ability to solubilize water-insoluble anticancer drugs and accumulate specifically at the tumors. This article provides a brief review of several promising micellar systems and their applications in tumor therapy. The emphasis is placed on the discussion of the authors’ recent work on several nanomicellar systems that have both a delivery function and antitumor activity, named dual-function drug carriers.
Overdispersion of the Molecular Clock: Temporal Variation of Gene-Specific Substitution Rates in Drosophila

Simple models of molecular evolution assume that sequences evolve by a Poisson process in which nucleotide or amino acid substitutions occur as rare independent events. In these models, the expected ratio of the variance to the mean of substitution counts equals 1, and substitution processes with a ratio greater than 1 are called overdispersed. Comparing the genomes of 10 closely related species of Drosophila, we extend earlier evidence for overdispersion in amino acid replacements as well as in four-fold synonymous substitutions. The observed deviation from the Poisson expectation can be described as a linear function of the rate at which substitutions occur on a phylogeny, which implies that deviations from the Poisson expectation arise from gene-specific temporal variation in substitution rates. Amino acid sequences show greater temporal variation in substitution rates than do four-fold synonymous sequences. Our findings provide a general phenomenological framework for understanding overdispersion in the molecular clock. Also, the presence of substantial variation in gene-specific substitution rates has broad implications for work in phylogeny reconstruction and evolutionary rate estimation.
Food Insecurity is Associated With Social Capital, Perceived Personal Disparity, and Partnership Status Among Older and Senior Adults in a Largely Rural Area of Central Texas

This study examined the association of compositional measures of collective social functioning, composed of community and familial social capital and perceived personal disparity, with food security among older (aged 50-59 y) and senior (aged ≥ 60 y) adult residents of the largely rural Brazos Valley in Central Texas using data from the 2006 Brazos Valley Community Health Assessment (analytic N = 1059, 74% response rate). Among older adults and seniors, 18.6% reported food insecurity (5.5% often and 13.1% sometimes), defined as running out of food and not having money to buy more. Low community social capital was reported by 22.4% of participants, and 30.8% indicated they were single, widowed, or divorced, an indicator of limited familial social capital. A robust multinomial regression model found the odds of reporting greater food insecurity increased for individuals who were women, African American, residents of a household with a low or poverty-level income, individuals who perceived themselves to be worse off than others within their community, and those who had low social capital. The odds of being food insecure decreased for older respondents, partnered respondents and persons with more education (pseudo r(2) = 0.27, p < 0.0000). Compositional level measures of collective social functioning are important associates of food insecurity among older adults and seniors, regardless of severity.
Over-the-cell routers for new cell model

The authors present new over-the-cell routing techniques for the standard cell design style. They have developed both a two-layer and a three-layer router. The key feature of the routers is the use of a new cell model, in which the terminals are located in the middle of the cells in the second metal layer. This model is similar to one currently being developed for three-layer cell libraries in industry. Both the routers were implemented in C on a SUN SPARCstation 1+ and tested with several benchmarks including PRIMARY 1 and PRIMARY II from MCNC. Both of the routers outperformed all existing routers. In addition, both ICR-2 and ICR-3 were very fast-for example, ICR-3 completed the routing of the entire PRIMARY I benchmark in 5.8 s. >
Chisel: A Storage-efficient, Collision-free Hash-based Network Processing Architecture

Longest Prefix Matching (LPM) is a fundamental part of various network processing tasks. Previously proposed approaches for LPM result in prohibitive cost and power dissipation (TCAMs) or in large memory requirements and long lookup latencies (tries), when considering future line-rates, table sizes and key lengths (e.g., IPv6). Hash-based approaches appear to be an excellent candidate for LPM with the possibility of low power, compact storage, and O(1) latencies. However, there are two key problems that hinder their practical deployment as LPM solutions. First, naive hash tables incur collisions and resolve them using chaining, adversely affecting worst-case lookup-rate guarantees that routers must provide. Second, hash functions cannot directly operate on wildcard bits, a requirement for LPM, and current solutions require either considerably complex hardware or large storage space. In this paper we propose a novel architecture which successfully addresses for the first time, both key problems in hash based LPM  making the following contributions: (1) We architect an LPM solution based upon a recently-proposed, collision-free hashing scheme called Bloomier filter, by eliminating its false positives in a storage efficient way. (2) We propose a novel scheme called prefix collapsing, which provides support for wildcard bits with small additional storage and reduced hardware complexity. (3) We exploit prefix collapsing and key characteristics found in real update traces to support fast and incremental updates, a feature generally not available in collision-free hashing schemes.
Microhabitat characteristics of Akodon montensis, a reservoir for hantavirus, and hantaviral seroprevalence in an Atlantic forest site in eastern Paraguay

Hantaviruses may cause serious disease when transmitted to humans by their rodent hosts. Since their emergence in the Americas in 1993, there have been extensive efforts to understand the role of environmental factors on the presence of these viruses in their host rodent populations. HPS outbreaks have been linked to precipitation, but climatic factors alone have not been sufficient to predict the spatial-temporal dynamics of the environment-reservoir-virus system. Using a series of mark-recapture sampling sites located at the Mbaracayu Biosphere Reserve, an Atlantic Forest site in eastern Paraguay, we investigated the hypothesis that microhabitat might also influence the prevalence of Jabora hantavirus within populations of its reservoir species, Akodon montensis. Seven trapping sessions were conducted during 2005-2006 at four sites chosen to capture variable microhabitat conditions within the study site. Analysis of microhabitat preferences showed that A. montensis preferred areas with little forest overstory and denser vegetation cover on and near the ground. Moreover, there was a significant difference in the microhabitat occupied by antibody-positive vs antibody-negative rodents, indicating that microhabitats with greater overstory cover may promote transmission and maintenance of hantavirus in A. montensis.
THE ROLE OF LARVAL CASES IN REDUCING AGGRESSION AND CANNIBALISM AMONG CADDISFLIES IN TEMPORARY WETLANDS

Larvae of wetland caddisflies supplement their detrital diets with animal material. In some species this supplement is obtained by preying on other caddisflies. In this study, we conducted a series of laboratory experiments to a) compare intraspecific aggression and the propensity for cannibalism among six caddisfly species that occur along a gradient from vernal to autumnal to permanent high-elevation wetlands, and b) determine the importance of cases in preventing or reducing cannibalism and intraguild predation. We predicted that cannibalism and overall levels of aggression should be highest in species that occur in temporary habitats. We found that all of the species that use temporary habitats (Asynarchus nigriculus, Hesperophylax occidentalis, Limnephilus externus, Limnephilus picturatus, Limnephilus secludens) were extremely aggressive towards and cannibalized conspecifics without cases. Species that typically occur in short-duration temporary wetlands were more aggressive than those in long-duration temporary wetlands. Cases prevented cannibalism in four of these temporary-habitat species, and reduced cannibalism among Asynarchus larvae. The latter species occurs in extremely ephemeral habitats where cannibalism provides a dietary supplement that probably facilitates emergence before drying. Asynarchus also preys on Limnephilus spp., and we found that cases dramatically reduced vulnerability to intraguild predation. Larvae of Agrypnia deflata, a species that occurs only in permanent wetlands, were least aggressive and rarely cannibalized conspecifics. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that intraspecific aggression and the potential for cannibalism are highest in species that live in habitats with developmental time constraints. Many wetland invertebrates face developmental time constraints and selection for aggression in temporary habitats should be especially strong for taxa that rely on animal material to supplement a mainly detrital diet.
Sexuality in Long-Term Relationships

This chapter provides a broad overview of current research on sex in long-term relationships. First, I review descriptive research on sexual frequency, sexual satisfaction, sexual attitudes, sexual desire, and sexual dysfunction. I then review research that applies theoretical perspectives on emotion work and the performance of gender, age, and desire to the study of sex in long-term relationships. After reviewing the current literature, I examine methodological challenges and strategies for studying sex in long-term relationships. Finally, I discuss directions for future research on sex in long-term relationships, which include the need for more theoretically-informed studies, studies on gay and lesbian relationships, and studies that examine racial/ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic diversity.