cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Functional characterization of a melittin analog containing a non-natural tryptophan analog

Tryptophan (Trp) is a naturally occurring amino acid, which exhibits fluorescence emission properties that are dependent on the polarity of the local environment around the Trp side chain. However, this sensitivity also complicates interpretation of fluorescence emission data. A non-natural analogue of tryptophan, β-(1-azulenyl)-L-alanine, exhibits fluorescence insensitive to local solvent polarity and does not impact the structure or characteristics of several peptides examined. In this study, we investigated the effect of replacing Trp with β-(1-azulenyl)-L-alanine in the well-known bee-venom peptide melittin. This peptide provides a model framework for investigating the impact of replacing Trp with β-(1-azulenyl)-L-alanine in a functional peptide system that undergoes significant shifts in Trp fluorescence emission upon binding to lipid bilayers. Microbiological methods including assessment of the antimicrobial activity by minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) assays and bacterial membrane permeability assays indicated little difference between the Trp and the β-(1-azulenyl)-L-alanine-substituted versions of melittin. Circular dichroism spectroscopy showed both that peptides adopted the expected α-helical structures when bound to phospholipid bilayers and electrophysiological analysis indicated that both created membrane disruptions leading to significant conductance increases across model membranes. Both peptides exhibited a marked protection of the respective fluorophores when bound to bilayers indicating a similar membrane-bound topology. As expected, while fluorescence quenching and CD indicate the peptides are stably bound to lipid vesicles, the peptide containing β-(1-azulenyl)-L-alanine exhibited no fluorescence emission shift upon binding while the natural Trp exhibited >10 nm shift in emission spectrum barycenter. Taken together, the β-(1-azulenyl)-L-alanine can serve as a solvent insensitive alternative to Trp that does not have significant impacts on structure or function of membrane interacting peptides.
Improving Outcomes in Patients with Lupus and End‐Stage Renal Disease

The development of lupus-related end-stage renal disease (ESRD) confers the highest mortality rates among individuals with lupus. Lupus-related ESRD is also associated with higher morbidity and mortality rates compared with non-lupus ESRD. We review the evidence that persistent lupus activity, hypercoagulability, and continuing immunosuppression may contribute to unfavorable outcomes in dialysis and renal transplantation among lupus patients. Robust epidemiologic studies are needed to develop individualized evidence-based approaches to treating lupus-related ESRD. In the meantime, managing lupus-related ESRD presents a significant challenge for clinicians and requires a team approach involving nephrologists and rheumatologists. Goals of therapy after developing ESRD should include continuing monitoring of lupus activity, minimizing corticosteroid exposure, and choosing the most appropriate renal replacement therapy based on patient's risk profile and quality-of-life considerations.
The branching programme of mouse lung development

Mammalian lungs are branched networks containing thousands to millions of airways arrayed in intricate patterns that are crucial for respiration. How such trees are generated during development, and how the developmental patterning information is encoded, have long fascinated biologists and mathematicians. However, models have been limited by a lack of information on the normal sequence and pattern of branching events. Here we present the complete three-dimensional branching pattern and lineage of the mouse bronchial tree, reconstructed from an analysis of hundreds of developmental intermediates. The branching process is remarkably stereotyped and elegant: the tree is generated by three geometrically simple local modes of branching used in three different orders throughout the lung. We propose that each mode of branching is controlled by a genetically encoded subroutine, a series of local patterning and morphogenesis operations, which are themselves controlled by a more global master routine. We show that this hierarchical and modular programme is genetically tractable, and it is ideally suited to encoding and evolving the complex networks of the lung and other branched organs.
Differentiation and expansion of lentivirus vector-marked dendritic cells derived from human CD34(+) cells.

The in vitro genetic manipulation of dendritic cells (DCs) for the expression of foreign proteins or peptides will assist in the development of immunotherapeutic approaches to treat cancer, immunological disorders, and/or infectious diseases. Reports have shown the expansion and differentiation of CD34+ progenitor cells into mature DCs. In this article we describe the differentiation and expansion of lentivirus vector-marked DCs from umbilical cord blood, bone marrow, and cytokine-mobilized peripheral blood CD34+ cells in the presence of GM-CSF, TNF-α, SCF, Flt-3, and IL-4. Lentivirus-marked DCs expressed high levels of enhanced green fluorescent protein and the characteristic DC surface markers CD1a, CD83, HLA-DR, and CD80. Transduced DCs activated allogeneic CD3+ T cells as efficiently as control (nontransduced) DCs in mixed lymphocyte reactions. These results demonstrate the potential utility of lentivirus-transduced DCs in future immunotherapy protocols.
Influence of the invasive herb garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) on ground beetle (Coleoptera: Carabidae) assemblages

Garlic mustard, Alliaria petiolata (Bieb.) Cavara and Grande, is a widespread invader that has aggressively colonized woodland edges and forest interiors across North America, yet its ecological impacts remain scantily documented. We evaluated the effects of garlic mustard on ground beetle (Coleoptera: Carabidae) assemblages and their invertebrate prey by comparing carabid captures and species richness and invertebrate abundance in invaded and noninvaded areas of two forests in central New York. Geostatistical techniques were used to model ground beetle distribution and to determine spatial correlation between carabids, garlic mustard, ground beetle prey availability, understory plant species richness, and litter depth. Data were collected from April to September 2002, using a grid of 64 by 64 m, with 89 sampling points arranged in nested grids to capture the spatial correlation within and between each variable. Garlic mustard invasion had no effect on carabid captures and species richness or on invertebrate abundance. Ground beetle abundance and biomass were spatially correlated, but their distribution was independent of garlic mustard and all other environmental factors we recorded. Our data on carabid assemblages and their invertebrate prey clearly show that absence or presence of garlic mustard did not influence these organisms at our study sites. It is possible that garlic mustard invasion has negative ecosystem impacts; however, the biennial nature of the plant and its pattern of spread may produce subtle ecological effects that are difficult to quantify or are easily confounded by other dominating factors.
Heine: 'On the History of Religion and Philosophy in Germany'

This volume presents a colourful and entertaining overview of German intellectual history by a central figure in its development. Heinrich Heine (1797–1856), famous poet, journalist, and political exile, studied with Hegel and was personally acquainted with the leading figures of the most important generation of German writers and philosophers. In his groundbreaking History he discusses the history of religion, philosophy, and literature in Germany up to his time, seen through his own highly opinionated, politically aware, philosophically astute, and always ironic perspective. This work, and other writings focussing especially on Heine's rethinking of Hegel's philosophy, are presented here in a new translation by Howard Pollack-Milgate. The volume also includes an introduction by Terry Pinkard which examines Heine both in relation to Hegel and Nietzsche and as a thinker in his own right.
APL standardization

The Working Draft for an International Standard for the Programming Language APL is now in its fourth revision. It is the work of several national committees and many dedicated individuals. If all goes well, the document will be made available for public comment sometime in the latter half of this year [1983].
Theoretical Studies of Copper Oxide Clusters: Prediction of an Electronically Driven Phase Separation in YBa2Cu3Ox

On the basis of semi-empirical extended Hueckel molecular orbital calculations of copper-oxide clusters representing the new superconducting material YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub x/, a phase diagram is proposed which suggests that the 94/sup 0/K high-temperature superconducting phase of YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub x/ is characterized by an oxygen stoichiometry near 7.0. The phase diagram predicts that a plateau should exist for T/sub c/ in the region x = 0.0 to 0.25 and that in this region two phases are present which are characterized by compositions having oxygen stoichiometries 6.5 to 6.75 and ca. 7.0. 15 refs., 2 figs., 1 tab.
Salinomycin Toxicity in Turkeys

Abstract Five 7-day trials using 336, 24, 24, 40, and 40 Large White male turkeys when 7, 11, 15, 27, and 32 weeks of age, respectively, were conducted to determine the toxic effects of salinomycin. Salinomycin became more toxic as the age of the turkeys increased. When 7-week-old turkeys were fed diets containing 44 or 66 ppm salinomycin, only 1 of 84 died; when turkeys 27 or 32 weeks of age were fed those amounts, 13 of 20 died. Salinomycin at 22 ppm tended to depress rate of growth at young ages and to prevent or decrease growth and to increase mortality at older ages. Caution should be exercised to avoid salinomycin contamination of turkey diets.
Defect Functionalization of Hexagonal Boron Nitride Nanosheets

A pristine hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) powder sample with layered crystalline sheetlike particles of ∼1−10 μm in lateral sizes and a few hundred nanometers in thicknesses was mechanically treated using a ball-mill to intentionally introduce defect sites. The h-BN was ball-milled for various times and subsequently was functionalized with a long alkyl chain amine via Lewis acid−base interactions between the amino groups and the boron atoms of h-BN to obtain soluble amine-attached nanosheet samples as the products. The functionalized h-BN nanosheet samples were characterized via various microscopic and spectroscopic techniques. The results strongly support a direct correlation between increasing defect site concentrations of the h-BN nanosheet samples and improved reaction efficiency with the amine. This suggests the enhanced reactivity of defect boron atoms in comparison to conjugated ones on an unperturbed h-BN plane. NMR investigations provided the strongest evidence supporting the hypothesis that the ...
Hepatic abscess: Ultrasound as an aid to diagnosis

Diagnostic ultrasound has two major advantages over conventional imaging methods. It is able to distinguish solid from cystic masses and it is safe, using no ionizing radiation. The new technique of grey scale ultrasonography allows visualization and improved delineation of internal organ structure. Ultrasonography and radionuclide liver scans are complimentary examinations because of technical limitations and diagnostic advantages inherent in each technique. Early, combined use of these two imaging techniques should lead to an earlier diagnosis of hepatic abscess.
Groups with at most twelve subgroups

We classify all of the groups with twelve or fewer subgroups. This paper is the proof of the entries in a submission to the Online Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences.
A high-speed comparator for use in an ADC

The conversion time for high-speed analog-to-digital converters is limited by the rate at which the internal comparator(s) can amplify small voltages 1 into logic levels. Several comparators have been designed with response times of less than 10 ns [1,2]. However, these circuits are usually fabricated with bipolar transistors.
Do child welfare job preview videos reflect evidence on retention and turnover

Abstract To maintain a well-trained, competent work force and reduce turnover, child welfare agencies must use effective recruitment and retention practices. Many states use realistic job preview videos to recruit and retain appropriate, well-matched staff. The purpose of this study is to assess the content of child welfare realistic job preview videos to determine whether the content reflects current evidence on child welfare retention and turnover, and the mechanisms through which realistic job previews are most effective. The study involves content analysis of realistic job preview videos posted at the Child Welfare Information Gateway. A comparison of video content to findings from research on child welfare retention and turnover, and to research on realistic job preview effectiveness reveals some ways that the content of child welfare recruitment and retention efforts could be strengthened.
The α-Tubulin gene TUBA1A in Brain Development: A Key Ingredient in the Neuronal Isotype Blend

Microtubules are dynamic cytoskeletal polymers that mediate numerous, essential functions such as axon and dendrite growth and neuron migration throughout brain development. In recent years, sequencing has revealed dominant mutations that disrupt the tubulin protein building blocks of microtubules. These tubulin mutations lead to a spectrum of devastating brain malformations, complex neurological and physical phenotypes, and even fatality. The most common tubulin gene mutated is the α-tubulin gene TUBA1A, which is the most prevalent α-tubulin gene expressed in post-mitotic neurons. The normal role of TUBA1A during neuronal maturation, and how mutations alter its function to produce the phenotypes observed in patients, remains unclear. This review synthesizes current knowledge of TUBA1A function and expression during brain development, and the brain malformations caused by mutations in TUBA1A.
Information Visualization for Decision Support

While the amount of business information increases at a phenomenal rate, decision makers could easily feel overloaded. Simultaneously, they could also feel the lack of related information for decisions at hand. Various visualization techniques have been developed to help people gain more value from large-scale information collections, but applying visualization in the context of decision-making is not well understood. Through a review of related literature in information visualization and decision support, we identify different roles that visualization technologies could play in decision support. We also elaborate how evaluation studies could help decision makers take better advantage of existing visualization technologies.
Human Resource Management, TQM, and Firm Performance in Small and Medium-Size Enterprises

This study analyzes the moderating effect of two key human resource practices on the relationship between organizational strategy and firm performance. In a sample of 66 small to medium-sized manuf...
His Bundle Pacing: Getting on the Learning Curve

Permanent His bundle pacing prevents ventricular dyssynchrony in patients who depend on ventricular pacing and can provide an alternative means to implementing cardiac resynchronization therapy in patients with bundle branch disease and congestive heart failure. Adoption of His bundle pacing, however, has lagged in part due to perceived and real challenges in performing the procedure well and durably. This article focuses on what is required to get on the learning curve and developing technical competence.
How Do Enzymes Orient When Trapped on Metal–Organic Framework (MOF) Surfaces?

Enzyme immobilization in metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) offers retained enzyme integrity and activity, enhanced stability, and reduced leaching. Trapping enzymes on MOF surfaces would allow for catalysis involving large substrates. In both cases, the catalytic efficiency and selectivity depend not only on enzyme integrity/concentration but also orientation. However, it has been a challenge to determine the orientation of enzymes that are supported on solid matrices, which is even more challenging for enzymes immobilized/trapped in MOFs due to the interferences of the MOF background signals. To address such challenge, we demonstrate in this work the utilization of site-directed spin labeling in combination with Electron Paramagnetic Resonance spectroscopy, which allows for the first time the characterization of the orientation of enzymes trapped on MOF surfaces. The obtained insights are fundamentally important for MOF-based enzyme immobilization design and understanding enzyme orientation once trapped in...
Alfven-like waves along normal-superconductor phase boundaries

Abstract Alfven waves are transverse magneto-hydrodynamic waves resulting from motion of a conducting fluid in direction perpendicular to an applied magnetic field, that propagate along the magnetic field direction. I propose that Alfven-like waves can propagate along normal-superconductor phase boundaries in the presence of a magnetic field. This requires charge flow and backflow across the normal-superconductor phase boundary when the boundary moves, which is predicted by the theory of hole superconductivity but not by the conventional theory of superconductivity. The magnetic field and the domain wall energy provide elasticity, and the normal charge carriers’ effective mass provides inertia. It is essential that the normal state charge carriers are holes. I propose an experimental search for Alfven-like waves in superconductors.
Solute Transport in the Cerebrospinal Fluid: Physiology and Practical Implications

Abstract Despite decades of research, still no consensus exists on the directionality of solute transport in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), the mechanisms of solute clearance from the CSF, and the processes of entrance of CSF to the central nervous system (CNS). We investigated the in vivo transport of solutes administered to the CSF and evaluated the perivascular solute transport route from the CSF to the CNS, with emphasis on biopharmaceuticals and other prospective macro/supramolecular therapeutics. For these studies, we used minimally invasive techniques in the animal models most frequently used in pharmacological studies: rats and nonhuman primates. The data reported herein demonstrate that perivascular entrances can be exposed to an administered therapeutic throughout the entire CNS or regionally, and that the perivascular transport system provides a potentially robust therapy delivery route to the CNS.
Keratoconus in a patient with Alport syndrome: A case report.

BACKGROUND Known ocular manifestations of Alport syndrome include features such as anterior lenticonus and fleck retinopathy. Reports of keratoconus in such patients are limited. We report tomographic findings consistent with keratoconus in a patient with Alport syndrome. CASE SUMMARY A 52-year-old female was referred to our ophthalmology clinic with decreased vision and increased tearing. She was diagnosed with stage III Alport syndrome two years prior. Upon examination she was found to have average keratometries of 48 D bilaterally with tomographic evidence of keratoconus. CONCLUSION Although a rare presentation, concurrent Alport syndrome and keratoconus should be considered when reviewing the ocular health of Alport syndrome patients and appropriate management steps should be taken upon the diagnosis.
Influence of Select Non-Saccharomyces Yeast on Hanseniaspora uvarum Growth during Prefermentation Cold Maceration

This study investigated the effect of select non-Saccharomyces yeast strains on Hanseniaspora uvarum growth and acetic acid and ethyl acetate production during prefermentation cold soak. We tested commercially available non-Saccharomyces yeasts for their ability to reduce H. uvarum growth and acetic acid production during a simulated cold soak in a grape juice-based medium. All tested non-Saccharomyces yeast reduced H. uvarum growth and acetic acid production, with some yeast having a greater impact than others. Following the screening of non-Saccharomyces yeast, we tested 14 different H. uvarum isolates against a selected non-Saccharomyces yeast, Metschnikowia fructicola, and found that all H. uvarum isolates had reduced growth and acetic acid production when grown in co-culture with M. fructicola, with variation between isolates noted. Finally, we evaluated the effect of M. fructicola on H. uvarum during prefermentation cold soak of Pinot noir grapes. Pinot noir grapes were inoculated with a combination of H. uvarum and M. fructicola and cold soaked for six days at 8°C. At the end of cold soaking, treatments inoculated with M. fructicola contained lower populations of H. uvarum and significantly lower acetic acid and ethyl acetate concentrations compared with treatments not inoculated with M. fructicola. After the completion of alcoholic fermentation, wines where M. fructicola was added contained significantly lower ethyl acetate but no differences in acetic acid concentration. These results suggest that adding select non-Saccharomyces yeast may be another method to reduce the risk of spoilage by H. uvarum during prefermentation cold soaking.
DSTG: deconvoluting spatial transcriptomics data through graph-based artificial intelligence

Recent development of spatial transcriptomics (ST) is capable of associating spatial information at different spots in the tissue section with RNA abundance of cells within each spot, which is particularly important to understand tissue cytoarchitectures and functions. However, for such ST data, since a spot is usually larger than an individual cell, gene expressions measured at each spot are from a mixture of cells with heterogenous cell types. Therefore, ST data at each spot needs to be disentangled so as to reveal the cell compositions at that spatial spot. In this study, we propose a novel method, named deconvoluting spatial transcriptomics data through graph-based convolutional networks (DSTG), to accurately deconvolute the observed gene expressions at each spot and recover its cell constitutions, thus achieving high-level segmentation and revealing spatial architecture of cellular heterogeneity within tissues. DSTG not only demonstrates superior performance on synthetic spatial data generated from different protocols, but also effectively identifies spatial compositions of cells in mouse cortex layer, hippocampus slice and pancreatic tumor tissues. In conclusion, DSTG accurately uncovers the cell states and subpopulations based on spatial localization. DSTG is available as a ready-to-use open source software (https://github.com/Su-informatics-lab/DSTG) for precise interrogation of spatial organizations and functions in tissues.
Psychometric properties of the late positive potential in adult females.

Abstract The late positive potential (LPP) is an event related potential (ERP) that has been used to study the processing of emotional stimuli and has been proposed as a biomarker for depression. However, to relate the LPP to trait-like individual differences it is important to first determine its psychometric properties. The current study assessed the reliability and internal consistency of the LPP in a large adult sample of women. We assessed the LPP following pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral images at baseline (n = 266) and approximately eight weeks later (n = 193). The LPP demonstrated good test-retest reliability and good-to-excellent internal consistency at both time points. The LPP response was not associated with concurrent depressive symptoms. These findings suggest the LPP is a relatively stable and reliable measure of emotional processing, but further research with larger samples and more elevated depression scores may be needed in order to clarify the associations between depression and LPP.
A test of willingness to pay as penance in the demand for ethical consumption

Abstract This work uses an experimental design with random assignment to test the effect of guilt on demand for ethical product attributes, with a focus on goods produced by monasteries and other religiously affiliated organizations. On average, individuals assigned a positive premium to organic and local attributes, but only those with a religious affiliation assigned a positive value to the monastic attribute. Induction of reactive guilt was found to increase non-religious participants’ product ratings, but to decrease ratings among those with a religious affiliation. These findings suggest that the monastic attribute is not universally desirable despite that monastic, organic, and local producers share many of the same ethical principles. These results also underscore potentially important heterogeneity in moral cleansing behaviors by religious identity. The potential for religious identity to affect moral balancing has important implications for the study of pro-social and pro-environmental behavior, broadly, and ethical consumption, more specifically. Together, these findings contribute to the literature on the effect of moral emotions on economic behavior and provide the first analysis of willingness to pay for monastic goods.
Exposure Therapy in the Treatment of a Phobic Blind Person

A persistent and irrational fear of riding elevators was handicapping a blind client's mobility. Brief treatment involving real-life graduated therapeutic exposure to elevator-related stimuli effec...
Medical Student Experience and Outcomes, as Well as Preceptor Experience, with Rapid Conversion of a Preclinical Medical School Course to a Remote-Based Learning Format in the Setting of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

To assess student outcomes and experiences, as well as preceptor experiences, after emergently converting a preclinical medical school renal course to a remote setting during the COVID-19 pandemic. First-year medical student examination scores and responses to Likert-scale questions on end-of-course evaluations from the 2018–2019 (traditional) and 2019–2020 (remote) academic years were compared. Free-text responses from students and preceptors were analyzed using a qualitative summative approach to extract major themes in perceptions of remote learning. Mean student scores on course examinations did not significantly differ between the traditional and remote settings (p = 0.23 and 0.84 respectively). Quantitative analysis of student evaluations revealed no significant difference across all items in mean Likert-scale responses. Student and preceptor free-text responses identified course leader engagement and responsiveness as essential to the success of remote-based learning. Optimal group size and online etiquette are areas that require attention. Despite rapid conversion of a preclinical medical school renal course to a remote-based format in the setting of the COVID-19 pandemic, student scores and evaluations remain positive and largely unchanged.
Ultrafast and Ultrahigh-Resolution Diffuse Optical Tomography for Brain Imaging with Sensitivity Equation based Noniterative Sparse Optical Reconstruction (SENSOR)

Abstract We introduce a novel image reconstruction method for time-resolved diffuse optical tomography (DOT) that yields submillimeter resolution in less than a second. This opens the door to high-resolution real-time DOT in imaging of the brain activity. We call this approach the sensitivity equation based noniterative sparse optical reconstruction (SENSOR) method. The high spatial resolution is achieved by implementing an asymptotic l0-norm operator that guarantees to obtain sparsest representation of reconstructed targets. The high computational speed is achieved by employing the nontruncated sensitivity equation based noniterative inverse formulation combined with reduced sensing matrix and parallel computing. We tested the new method with numerical and experimental data. The results demonstrate that the SENSOR algorithm can achieve 1 mm3 spatial-resolution optical tomographic imaging at depth of ∼60 mean free paths (MFPs) in 20∼30 milliseconds on an Intel Core i9 processor.
SARS-CoV-2 Detection in Air Samples from Inside Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Systems- COVID Surveillance in Student Dorms.

Abstract Background The COVID-19 pandemic affected universities and institutions and caused campus shutdowns with a transition to online teaching models. To detect infections that might spread on campus, we pursued research towards detecting SARS-CoV-2 in air samples inside student dorms. Methods We sampled air in 2 large dormitories for 3.5 months and a separate isolation suite containing a student who had tested positive for COVID-19. We developed novel techniques employing 4 methods to collect air samples: Filter Cassettes, Button Sampler, BioSampler, and AerosolSense sampler combined with direct qRT-PCR SARS-CoV-2 analysis. Results For the 2 large dorms with the normal student population, we detected SARS-CoV-2 in 11 samples. When compared with student nasal swab qRT-PCR testing, we detected SARS-CoV-2 in air samples when a PCR positive COVID-19 student was living on the same floor of the sampling location with a detection rate of 75%. For the isolation dorm, we had a 100% SARS-CoV-2 detection rate with AerosolSense sampler. Conclusions Our data suggest air sampling may be an important SARS-CoV-2 surveillance technique, especially for buildings with congregant living settings (dorms, correctional facilities, barracks). Future building designs and public health policies should consider implementation of Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning surveillance.
Spiral Enteroscopy and “On Demand” Enteroscopy

Spiral enteroscopy is another technique available in the armamentarium of the endoscopist for the exploration of the small bowel (or difficult to intubate colon). It applies the principle of pleating the small bowel through rotation rather than push–pull as with other technologies. This implies a different technique and set of skills but the diagnostic and therapeutic yield, as well as safety are similar to other device-assisted methods.
Domain Behavior and Supercoil Dynamics in Bacterial Chromosomes

This chapter reviews classical results and incorporates a selected set of facts into models of chromosome dynamics. It emphasizes the topology of DNA during replication and transcription because these two processes exert the most dramatic topological influence on DNA. One focus is on structural properties of bacterial chromosomes that allow rapid adaptability. The chapter also discusses chromosome structure considered from a stochastic as opposed to a highly ordered perspective. The introduction of a limited number of single-strand nicks causes nucleoid sedimentation values to decrease in gradual stages. In vitro nucleoid studies stimulated searches for the controlling elements of domain behavior. Three generalizations of the his-cob interval have been extended to 2% of the chromosome. First, supercoil domains are more abundant when cells are undergoing DNA replication than when DNA replication is suppressed. Second, the resolution efficiency diminishes as a first-order function of distance along the chromosome. Third, the number of domains detected depends on the time period of the assay. Global structure provided by four topoisomerases and a group of about 10 DNA-binding proteins allows a plasticity that is useful for adaptation to different physiological conditions. These observations indicate that the organizational framework of a bacterial chromosome must be described in statistical terms rather than the highly ordered and predictable models that represent the crystal structures of many folded proteins that do biochemical work on the chromosome.
Optimal Staging Area Locations and Material Recycling Strategies for Sustainable Highway Reconstruction

This article has formulated a fixed integer linear program that simultaneously determines the optimal locations of fixed staging areas, mobile processing units, and the best material flow from supply to demand locations that can support highway reconstruction. Highway reconstruction consumes large amounts of energy and material resources and at the same time produces significant quantities of emissions during material processing, transportation, and site construction. Sustainable highway reconstruction requires strategies that optimally utilize recycled or virgin material from supply locations (e.g., existing roadway, material markets), assign material use in reconstruction process, select fixed staging area(s) and mobile unit location(s) to process material, and ship the material to the destinations (e.g., markets, landfills, highway construction sites). A decision support system based on a network optimization model that determines: (1) optimal locations of fixed staging areas and mobile processing units; and (2) optimal material recycling and shipment strategies that minimize the total cost for material procurement, transportation, staging area and mobile processing unit investment, and CO₂ equivalent (CO₂e) emissions. The trade off between recycled material contents and pavement service life needs to be considered carefully and alternative construction sequencing may further increase improvement by reducing hauling costs to the staging area. The article discusses how opening additional staging areas or mobile processors has a greater impact on the ton-miles of recycled material hauled relative to virgin material hauled. A hypothetical case study of a 35-mile reconstruction project was conducted to test the performance of the model and to draw insights on how different system parameters influence the optimal staging locations, recycled material use, and traffic management plan.
Name Authority Challenges for Indexing and Abstracting Databases

Objective - This analysis explores alternative methods for managing author name changes in Indexing and Abstracting (I&A) databases. A searcher may retrieve incomplete or inaccurate results when the database provides no or faulty assistance in linking author name variations. Methods -The article includes an analysis of current name authority practices in I&A databases and of selected research into name disambiguation models applied to authorship of articles. Results - Several potential solutions are in production or in development. MathSciNet has developed an authority file. The method is largely machine-based but it involves time-consuming manual intervention that might not scale up to larger or multidisciplinary databases. The use of standard numbers for authors has been proposed. Solutions in practice include author-managed registration records and linking among several authority files. Information science and computer science researchers are developing models to automate processes for name disambiguation, shifting the focus from authority control to access control. Successful models use metadata beyond the author name alone, such as co-authors, author affiliation, journal name, or keywords. Social networks may provide additional data to support disambiguation models. Conclusion - The traditional objective of name authority files is to determine precisely when name variations belong to the same individual. Manually-maintained authority files have served library catalogues reasonably well, but the burden of upkeep has made them ill-suited to managing the volume of items and authors in all but the smallest I&A databases. To meet the access needs of the 21st Century, both catalogues and I&A databases may need to implement options that present a high degree of probability that items have been authored by the same individual, rather than options that provide high precision with the expense of manual maintenance. Striving for name disambiguation rather than name authority control may become an attractive option for catalogues, I&A databases, and digital library collections.
1.6 Cosmic-ray detectors

This document is part of Subvolume A 'Instruments and Methods' of Volume 4 'Astronomy, Astrophysics, and Cosmology' of Landolt-Bornstein - Group VI 'Astronomy and Astrophysics'.
Ebbinghaus Illusions with Disc Figures: Effects of Contextual Size, Separation, and Lightness

Summary.—The Ebbinghaus illusion was produced using figures with four small or large contextual discs located either near or far from the central disc. For similar figures, the discs were either all black or all white; for dissimilar figures, black and white contextual and central discs were used in opposition. 48 observers, in equal numbers, were assigned to one of the four crossings of size and separation of the contextual discs and, using the converging method of limits, illusion magnitude scores for each Ebbinghaus configuration were obtained. The central disc appeared larger when bounded by small contextual discs and smaller when the contextual discs were more distant. Contrary to size contrast theory, uniformly colored discs did not generate greater illusions; instead, white central discs appeared larger than black ones regardless of contextual color. Collectively, the results indicated that contour interactions play a prominent role in producing the Ebbinghaus illusion.
The Effect of Feeding Two or Three Meals Per Day of Either Low or High Nonstructural Carbohydrate Concentrates on Postprandial Glucose and Insulin Concentrations in Horses

Eight mature idle gelding horses (mean body weight [BW], 558 ± 45 kg) were used in a replicated 2 × 2 Latin square design study. Horses received either two or three meals per day (MPD) for 7 days, of either a high (H; 43%; 215 g/100 kg BW) or low (L; 18%; 90 g/100 kg BW) nonstructural carbohydrate (NSC) concentrate feed to achieve four treatment groups: low NSC in two MPD (L2), low NSC in three MPD (L3), high NSC in two MPD (H2), and high NSC in three MPD (H3). On day 7 of the treatments, blood was collected before (baseline) and for 5 hours after feeding the morning meal (10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 90, 120, 150, 180, 210, 240, 270, and 300 minutes after feeding). Baseline insulin concentrations tended (P = .093) to be higher for horses fed high NSC than low NSC, and horses fed two MPD tended (P = .092) to have higher baseline insulin concentrations than horses fed three MPD. In addition, baseline glucose-to-insulin ratio (GIR) was higher in horses fed high NSC compared with low NSC (P < .001). Horses fed high NSC had higher area under the curve of insulin and higher peak insulin after feeding than those fed low NSC. These findings suggest that NSC content of a concentrate feed has an impact on baseline insulin and GIRs and on postprandial insulin concentrations. Meanwhile, the number (and therefore size) of MPD had fewer impacts on glucose metabolism.
Design and expected performance of an MCAO system for the Giant Magellan Telescope

Adaptive optics will play a crucial role in achieving the full potential of the next generation of large diameter telescopes. In this paper, we present an optical design for a multi-conjugate adaptive optics system for the Giant Magellan Telescope, a 25.7 m telescope with a primary mirror consisting of seven 8.4 m segments. The tri-conjugate MCAO optics is based on adaptive secondary technology developed for the MMT telescope and incorporates dynamic refocus optics for the laser guide star wavefront sensors. We use the results of analytic (non-Monte-Carlo) numerical simulations to determine the optimal configuration of deformable mirrors as well as laser and natural guide stars. The simulation results are extended to include and quantify the effects of wavefront sensor and control loop delay noise as well as dynamic refocus and fitting error on the expected system performance and sky coverage.
Time-reversal and MUSIC imaging of objects near rough surface based on surface flattening transform

Imaging and detection of objects located near rough ocean surface from transmitters to receivers which are also located on ocean surface are important practical problem. This problem is different from usual rough surface scattering including LGA (Low Grazing Angle) scattering, because the incident wave on the surface is neither a beam wave nor a spherical wave, but it is a mixture of the coherent and incoherent waves. Therefore, this needs to be studied on the basis of stochastic rough surface Green Function. Rough Surface Green Function has been obtained for perturbation solution, but it has been difficult for large rough surface heights. We have been considering this problem using the surface flattening transform. Using this transform, Green's function for rough surface is transformed to Green's function for flat surfaces with inhomogeneous random medium. Solutions for the transformed functions have been obtained using path integral and other method for several cases. We made use of the modified Rytov Method, which conserves the power, and obtained rough surface MCF (Mutual Coherence Function). The transformed equation contains the rough surface slope, the RMS height, and the correlation distances. The integral representations in the Rytov solution have been evaluated using asymptotic form and include the surface spectrum.
Motif Discovery and Feature Selection for CRF-based Activity Recognition

Due to their ability to model sequential data without making unnecessary independence assumptions, conditional random fields (CRFs) have become an increasingly popular discriminative model for human activity recognition. However, how to represent signal sensor data to achieve the best classification performance within a CRF model is not obvious. This paper presents a framework for extracting motif features for CRF-based classification of IMU (inertial measurement unit) data. To do this, we convert the signal data into a set of motifs, approximately repeated symbolic sub sequences, for each dimension of IMU data. These motifs leverage structure in the data and serve as the basis to generate a large candidate set of features from the multi-dimensional raw data. By measuring reductions in the conditional log-likelihood error of the training samples, we can select features and train a CRF classifier to recognize human activities. An evaluation of our classifier on the CMU Multi-Modal Activity Database reveals that it outperforms the CRF-classifier trained on the raw features as well as other standard classifiers used in prior work.
A Robust Model Following Controller

A control design Methodology applicable to linear, time-varying systems with bounded, Lebesgue measurable parametric uncertainty as well as a class of nonlinear, time-varying systemns is presented in this paper. A portion of this design methodology was suggested by the robust feedback control studies of Petersen in [7] and Schmitendorf in [8]-[9]. However, instead of considering asymptotic stability, uniform ultimate boundedness, as presented in Corless and Leitmann in [4] and Barmish and Leitmann in [51, is considered. The design strategy proposed combines results from robust feedback control with the signal synthesis Adaptive Model Following Control (AMFC) approach of Landau in [11]. In addition to demonstrating robustness with respect to bounded, Lebesgue measurable parametric uncertainty, suggestions are made for considering the effect of the presence of frequency domain uncertainties.
Theoretical Analysis of the Sequential Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer Mechanisms for H2 Oxidation and Production Pathways Catalyzed by Nickel Molecular Electrocatalysts

The design of electrocatalysts for the oxidation and production of H2 is important for the development of alternative energy sources. This Article focuses on the [Ni(P2RN2R′)2]2+ electrocatalysts, where P2RN2R′ denotes 1,5-diaza-3,7-diphosphacyclooctane ligands with substituent groups R and R′ covalently bound to the phosphorus and nitrogen atoms, respectively. Theoretical methods are used to investigate the mechanism of the step in the catalytic cycle corresponding to [HNiII(P2N2)2]+ – e– → [NiI(P2HN2)(P2N2)]2+ for H2 oxidation and the reverse reaction for H2 production. This step involves electron transfer (ET) between the Ni complex and the electrode as well as proton transfer (PT) between the Ni and the N. The sequential mechanisms, PT–ET and ET–PT, are investigated for the following (R,R′) substituents: (Me,Me), (Ph,Ph), and (Ph,Bz), where Me, Ph, and Bz denote methyl, phenyl, and benzyl substituents. Density functional theory is used to calculate reduction potentials, pKa values, and PT pathways, an...
Identification of ciprofloxacin resistance by SimpleProbe™, High Resolution Melt and Pyrosequencing™ nucleic acid analysis in biothreat agents: Bacillus anthracis, Yersinia pestis and Francisella tularensis

Abstract The potential for genetic modification of biological warfare agents makes rapid identification of antibiotic resistant strains critical for the implementation of suitable infection control measures. The fluorinated quinolone, ciprofloxacin, is an antibiotic effective for treating bacterial infections by inhibiting the enzyme activity of the DNA type II topoisomerases DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV. The genes that encode the subunits of DNA gyrase ( gyrA and gyrB ) and topo IV ( par C and parE ) contain hotspots within an area known as the quinolone resistance-determining region (QRDR). Base pair changes within this region give rise to mutations that cause resistance to the antibiotic by altering amino acids within the enzymes. Ciprofloxacin-resistant (cipro r ) strains of Bacillus anthracis , Yersinia pestis , and Francisella tularensis with one or more known mutations within the QRDR of gyrA , gyrB , parC , and parE genes were tested with SimpleProbe™ and High Resolution Melt (HRM) dye chemistries and Pyrosequencing™ genetic analysis to evaluate the ability to rapidly detect ciprofloxacin-induced mutations. While SimpleProbe™ and Pyrosequencing™ successfully identified all known mutants, the HRM assay identified all but those resulting from G ↔ C or A ↔ T substitutions.
Phase shift and cross talk of a self-pumped phase-conjugate mirror

Abstract Phase shift and cross talk of conjugate waves from a self-pumped phase-conjugate mirror are investigated by a phenomenological model based on the four-wave mixing process and measured as a function of a uniform phase change of a wave incident upon the mirror. We explain the experimental facts that the uniform phase changeof a single input is not reversed upon phase conjugation, while relative phases between two (or more) inputs are reversed, as required for wavefront reversal. It is also shown that the phase shifts of conjugate waves are nearly linear in response to the uniform phase change of one of the inputs, while the rate of charge depends on the relative power of the two inputs. This indicates cross talk between the input amplitudes and phases and the output phases.