cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Inhibition of EGF-induced ERK/MAP kinase-mediated astrocyte proliferation by μ opioids: integration of G protein and β-arrestin 2-dependent pathways

Although micro, kappa, and delta opioids activate extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)/mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase, the mechanisms involved in their signaling pathways and the cellular responses that ensue differ. Here we focused on the mechanisms by which micro opioids rapidly (min) activate ERK and their slower (h) actions to inhibit epidermal growth factor (EGF)-induced ERK-mediated astrocyte proliferation. The micro-opioid agonists ([d-ala(2), mephe(4), gly-ol(5)] enkephalin and morphine) promoted the phosphorylation of ERK/MAP kinase within 5 min via G(i/o) protein, calmodulin (CaM), and beta-arrestin2-dependent signaling pathways in immortalized and primary astrocytes. This was based on the attenuation of the micro-opioid activation of ERK by pertussis toxin (PTX), the CaM antagonist, W-7, and siRNA silencing of beta-arrestin2. All three pathways were shown to activate ERK via an EGF receptor transactivation-mediated mechanism. This was disclosed by abolishment of micro-opioid-induced ERK phosphorylation with the EGF receptor-specific tyrosine phosphorylation inhibitor, AG1478, and micro-opioid-induced reduction of EGF receptor tyrosine phosphorylation by PTX, and beta-arrestin2 targeting siRNA in the present studies and formerly by CaM antisense. Long-term (h) treatment of primary astrocytes with [d-ala(2),mephe(4),gly-ol(5)] enkephalin or morphine, attenuated EGF-induced ERK phosphorylation and proliferation (as measured by 5'-bromo-2'-deoxy-uridine labeling). PTX and beta-arrestin2 siRNA but not W-7 reversed the micro-opioid inhibition. Unexpectedly, beta-arrestin-2 siRNA diminished both EGF-induced ERK activation and primary astrocyte proliferation suggesting that this adaptor protein plays a novel role in EGF signaling as well as in the opioid receptor phase of this pathway. The results lend insight into the integration of the different micro-opioid signaling pathways to ERK and their cellular responses.
Mass, velocity, angular and charge-state distributions from the fusion of 32 S and 112 Sn

Evaporation residues from the fusion of $^{32}\mathrm{S}$ and $^{112}\mathrm{Sn}$ at ${E}_{^{32}\mathrm{S}}=160$ MeV were studied using an energy-mass spectrometer. The velocity selector of the energy-mass spectrometer was first utilized to measure summed fusion products as a function of velocity setting and reaction angle. In-flight mass separation of the fusion products with the energy-mass spectrometer identified masses 141, 140, and 139 from the evaporation of three to five nucleons from the $^{144}\mathrm{Dy}$ compound nucleus. Absolute cross-section measurements are compared to theoretical predictions of the statistical evaporation model. Velocity, angular and charge state distributions of evaporation residues are also compared to calculated values.
Coalitional Games in Cooperative Radio Networks

The framework of coalitional game theory is used to study the formation of coalitions in an M-link wireless interference channel when either the transmitters or the receivers cooperate. It is shown that the stable coalition structure, i.e., the coalition structure for which users have no incentives to defect, depends upon the apportioning scheme chosen to distribute the cooperative rate gains between the coalition members. Under both a flexible (transferable) and fixed (non-transferable) apportioning scheme, the stable coalitions formed by cooperating receivers are presented. The problem of determining stable coalitions for the case of cooperating transmitters is discussed.
Finding all solutions of nonlinearly constrained systems of equations

A new approach is proposed for finding alle-feasible solutions for certain classes of nonlinearly constrained systems of equations. By introducing slack variables, the initial problem is transformed into a global optimization problem (P) whose multiple global minimum solutions with a zero objective value (if any) correspond to all solutions of the initial constrained system of equalities. Alle-globally optimal points of (P) are then localized within a set of arbitrarily small disjoint rectangles. This is based on a branch and bound type global optimization algorithm which attains finitee-convergence to each of the multiple global minima of (P) through the successive refinement of a convex relaxation of the feasible region and the subsequent solution of a series of nonlinear convex optimization problems. Based on the form of the participating functions, a number of techniques for constructing this convex relaxation are proposed. By taking advantage of the properties of products of univariate functions, customized convex lower bounding functions are introduced for a large number of expressions that are or can be transformed into products of univariate functions. Alternative convex relaxation procedures involve either the difference of two convex functions employed in αBB [23] or the exponential variable transformation based underestimators employed for generalized geometric programming problems [24]. The proposed approach is illustrated with several test problems. For some of these problems additional solutions are identified that existing methods failed to locate.
Grazing impact of continuous droplet streams with a superhydrophobic surface

When high-velocity droplets make grazing impact with a superhydrophobic surface, the droplets undergo significant deformation before recoiling and rebounding from the surface. Two distinct operating regimes describe the response of the reflected droplet stream after impact. In the first regime, the droplets remain discrete and uniform after the impact, but exhibit rotation and significant oscillations. This regime dominates if each droplet can clear the impact region before the next droplet arrives. In the second regime, droplets cannot avoid coalescing into a puddle at the surface. A secondary jet is ejected from the puddle which breaks up into a random droplet stream after traveling a short distance due to the lack of a forced unstable perturbation. The droplet-to-droplet spacing in the incoming stream determines which regime rules, with the critical value correlated by a Weber number. In the first regime, a detailed accounting of the kinetic and potential energies reveals that neither droplet oscillation nor rotation can fully account for the loss of translational kinetic energy, indicating significant internal circulation must occur in the droplets at impact. An application of droplet rebound from a superhydrophobic surface is proposed.
Construction of polynomials that are orthogonal with respect to a discrete bilinear form

We describe a new algorithm for the computation of recursion coefficients of monic polynomials {p j } =0/ that are orthogonal with respect to a discrete bilinear form (f, g) := Σ =1/ f(x k )g(x k )w k ,m ≥n, with real distinct nodesx k and real nonvanishing weightsw k . The algorithm proceeds by applying a judiciously chosen sequence of real or complex Givens rotations to the diagonal matrix diag[x 1,x 2, ...,x m ] in order to determine an orthogonally similar complex symmetric tridiagonal matrixT, from whose entries the recursion coefficients of the monic orthogonal polynomials can easily be computed. Fourier coefficients of given functions can conveniently be computed simultaneously with the recursion coefficients. Our scheme generalizes methods by Elhay et al. [6] based on Givens rotations for updating and downdating polynomials that are orthogonal with respect to a discrete inner product. Our scheme also extends an algorithm for the solution of an inverse eigenvalue problem for real symmetric tridiagonal matrices proposed by Rutishauser [20], Gragg and Harrod [17], and a method for generating orthogonal polynomials based theoron [18]. Computed examples that compare our algorithm with the Stieltjes procedure show the former to generally yield higher accuracy except whenn ≪m. Ifn is sufficiently much smaller thanm, then both the Stieltjes procedure and our algorithm yield accurate results.
Development of a Passive Check Valve for Cryogenic Applications

Future astrophysics missions will rely on a new generation of cooling technologies to improve the resolution of infrared and x-ray sensors. A novel continuous cold cycle dilution refrigerator (CCDR) has been proposed by Prof. F.K. Miller to provide cooling for these sensors at temperatures below 100mK. A passive check valve for liquid 4He-3He mixtures is a key technological innovation required to implement the CCDR, as will be further explained in the paper. The design of a reed style passive check valve and initial results from tests with helium gas at room temperature and 80K will be detailed.
RADIATIVE CORRECTIONS TO CHARGED PION DECAYS MEDIATED BY VECTOR BOSONS

The lowest order electromagnetic corrections to the ratio GAMMA ( pi yields approximates e + nu )/ GAMMA ( pi yields approximates mu + nu ') have been calculataan intermediate vector boson theory. The results indicate that the ratio is relatively insensitive to the value of the boson's mass. The ratio agrees with the experimentally determined value. (auth)
An Inservice Program on Pharmacogenetics to Individualize Drug Therapy

Objectives. To provide an understanding of the principles and applications of pharmacogenetics in drug therapy optimization. Design. An online learning session accessed using the hospital intranet and a live case-based session were offered to hospital pharmacists, residents, students, and interns. Assessment. Knowledge was assessed with “check your knowledge” questions, case discussions, and a follow-up questionnaire. Pharmacists evaluated the instructor and the course using an anonymous survey tool. Conclusion. This education provided pharmacists with a basic understanding of pharmacogenetics and the ability to apply pharmacogenetics to clinical practice.
GPU-accelerated synthetic aperture radar backprojection in CUDA

Pleasingly parallel algorithms such as filtered back-projection have been documented to enjoy significant speedups when ported to run on a graphics processor instead of a standard CPU. Presented here is a two-dimensional SAR backprojection implementation for a single GPU using the NVIDIA CUDA framework. Given that input range projections may be too large to fit in graphics memory, our implementation allows the partitioning of the data along range as well as aperture. We show the efficacy of some CUDA optimizations, and apply it to two public datasets, one of which has varying start frequency.
Vulnerability: The Crossroads of Frailty and Delirium

Frailty and delirium, although seemingly distinct syndromes, both result in significant negative health outcomes in older adults. Frailty and delirium may be different clinical expressions of a shared vulnerability to stress in older adults, and future research will determine whether this vulnerability is age related, pathological, genetic, environmental, or most likely, a combination of all of these factors. This article explores the clinical overlap of frailty and delirium, describes possible pathophysiological mechanisms linking the two, and proposes research opportunities to further knowledge of the interrelationships between these important geriatric syndromes. Frailty, a diminished ability to compensate for stressors, is generally viewed as a chronic condition, whereas delirium is an acute change in attention and cognition, but there is a developing literature on transitions in frailty status around acute events, as well as on delirium as a chronic, persistent condition. If frailty predisposes an individual to delirium, and delirium delays recovery from a stressor, then both syndromes may contribute to a downward spiral of declining function, increasing risk, and negative outcomes. In addition, frailty and delirium may have shared pathophysiology, such as inflammation, atherosclerosis, and chronic nutritional deficiencies, which will require further investigation. The fields of frailty and delirium are rapidly evolving, and future research may help to better define the interrelationship of these common and morbid geriatric syndromes. Because of the heterogeneous pathophysiology and presentation associated with frailty and delirium, typical of all geriatric syndromes, multicomponent prevention and treatment strategies are most likely to be effective and should be developed and tested.
Acute myocardial ischemia: effects of reperfusion with arterial blood

Periods of severe ischemia of 15 minutes or less injure myocytes of the dog heart reversibly in that reperfusion of the affected tissue with arterial blood salvages all myocytes destined to die if the ischemia is not relieved. While the myocytes are ischemic, they develop numerous changes as a consequence of ischemic metabolism including depletion of P and accumulation of glycolytic intermediates, H+, and the endproducts of adenine nucleotide pool degradation. With restoration of arterial flow, aerobic respiration resumes. Lactate and other intermediates are reutilized or are washed to the systemic circulation. If the period of severe ischemia is extended to 40–60 minutes, the injury becomes irreversible. Such myocytes cannot be salvaged by reperfusion with arterial blood and are necrotic. When reperfused, irreversibly injured myocytes develop contraction-band necrosis and accumulate calcium phosphate. Although unproved, it is possible that some myocytes, alive at the time of reperfusion, may die as a con...
Disability, Social Support, and Concern for Children: Depression in Mothers With Multiple Sclerosis

Objective To investigate the relationship between disability, concern for children, social support, and depressive symptoms in a group of mothers with multiple sclerosis (MS). Design An exploratory secondary analysis using correlation and multiple regression techniques. Setting and Participants Two hundred one women with MS responded to a survey as part of a cohort participating in a longitudinal study of health promotion and quality of life. Outcome Measures Depressive symptoms were measured using the CESD-10. Results The results indicate that disability and concern for children are independent predictors of depressive symptoms, and social support can partially mediate the effect of concern for children on depressive symptoms. Conclusion Appropriate support should be identified and provided by nurses caring for mothers with disabilities such as MS to decrease the depressive symptoms related to the concern they have for their children.
Variational Boundary-Element Analysis of Small-Amplitude Fluid Oscillation in a Low-Gravity Environment

Abstract A variational boundary element technique is developed to analyse the small-amplitude oscillation of an incompressible, inviscid fluid contained in a rigid tank of arbitrary geometry under low-gravity conditions. Due to the influence of surface tension, the fluid usually oscillates about a curved free surface, which must first be determined by the solution of a nonlinear equilibrium problem. All of the energy expression for the linear vibration problem are derived in terms of the normal displacement of the fluid boundary, which leads to a generalized eigenproblem. Numerical results are presented for several two- and three-dimensional evaluation problems; whenever possible, comparisons are made with known analytical solutions. The results indicate that the boundary element technique is robust and accurate.
Flux to a trap

The flux of particles to a single trap is investigated for two systems: (1) particles in 3D space which jump a fixed step lengthl (the Rayleigh flight) and are adsorbed by a spherical surface, and (2) particles on a lattice, jumping to nearest neighbor sites, with a single adsorbing site. Initially, the particles are uniformly distributed outside the traps. When the jump length goes to zero, both processes go over to regular diffusion, and the first case yields the diffusive flux to a sphere as solved by Smoluchowski. For nonzero step length, the flux for large times is given by a modified form of Smoluchowski's result, with the effective radius replaced byR-cl, wherec=0.29795219 andcl is the Milne extrapolation length for this problem. For the second problem, a similar expression for the flux is found, with the effective trap radius a function of the lattice (sc, bcc, fcc) being considered.
The Coming Global Climate-Technology Revolution

Emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases can be reduced significantly using existing technologies, but stabilizing concentrations will require a technological revolution--a "revolution" because it will require fundamental change, achieved within a relatively short period of time. Inspiration for a climate-technology revolution is often drawn from the Apollo space program or the Manhattan Project, but averting dangerous climate change cannot be "solved" by a single new technology, deployed by a single government. The technological changes needed to address climate change fundamentally will have to be pervasive; they will have to involve markets; and they will have to be global in scope. My focus in this paper is not on the moderate emission reductions that can be achieved using existing technologies, but on the breakthrough technologies that are needed to reduce emissions dramatically. The challenges are formidable. Indeed, it is possible that the revolution needed to dramatically reduce emissions of greenhouse gases will fail. Should the climate change abruptly, the incentive to "engineer" the climate will be strong. There will be a climate-technology revolution, but its nature will depend on the institutions we develop to address the challenge we face.
Lack of Diurnal Variation in Vision, Refraction, or Keratometry After Excimer Laser Photorefractive Keratectomy

Purpose To examine whether diurnal variation in visual acuity, spherical equivalent, keratometry, or intraocular pressure occurs in patients who have undergone photorefractive keratectomy. Methods Twenty-nine post-photorefractive keratectomy patients underwent morning and evening measurements of visual acuity, spherical equivalent, keratometry, and intraocular pressure at intervals between 5 and 13 months after photorefractive keratectomy. Results There was no statistically significant post-photorefractive keratectomy diurnal variation in visual acuity, spherical equivalent, or keratometry in the group studied. Diurnal variation in post-photorefractive keratectomy intraocular pressure was not significantly different between patients' treated and untreated eyes. Conclusion Photorefractive keratectomy does not appear to result in diurnal variation in visual acuity, spherical equivalent, or keratometry post-operatively, nor does it seem to effect normal diurnal variation in intraocular pressure.
Treatment Outcomes for Obsessive‐Compulsive Disorder: A Critical Review

Counselors in the 21st century must not only respond to the pressures of managed care but also support the best interests of their clients. Criticism from consumers and professionals about the lack of empirical evidence of the efficacy of counseling as well as pressure from managed care companies have prompted a focus on evaluating treatment outcomes. This article provides a framework for developing standards of care by highlighting issues in outcome research in general and by reviewing treatment outcomes for obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Conducting Pathways in Organic Solids: A Phenalenyl-Based Neutral Radical of Low Conductivity†

The passage of a current through a solid requires a pathway for the movement of electrons or holes. A new class of phenalenyl-based neutral radical molecular conductors has recently been reported; a distinctive feature of these molecular solids is the absence of any obvious conducting pathway(s). These radicals do not stack in the solid state, and the requisite carbon−carbon contacts are all larger than the sum of the van der Waals distances. Magnetic susceptibility measurements show that the first compound to be isolated behaves as a free radical with one spin per molecule, apparently supporting the idea that there is little interaction between the molecules in the solid state. Nevertheless, this radical shows the highest conductivity (σRT = 0.05 S/cm), of any neutral organic solid, and the conduction mechanism is presently unresolved. In the present study, we report a structurally related radical with a resistivity 4 orders of magnitude higher than that of the previously reported radicals. We analyze th...
Minimum risk route model for hazardous materials

The objective of this study is to determine the minimum risk route for transporting a specific hazardous material (HM) between a point of origin and a point of destination (O-D pair) in the study area which minimizes risk to population and environment. The southern part of Quebec is chosen as the study area and major cities are identified as points of origin and destination on the highway network. Three classes of HM, namely chlorine gas, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and sulphuric acid, are chosen. A minimum risk route model has been developed to determine minimum risk routes between an O-D pair by using population or environment risk units as link impedances. The risk units for each link are computed by taking into consideration the probability of an accident and its consequences on that link. The results show that between the same O-D pair, the minimum risk routes are different for various HM. The concept of risk dissipation from origin to destination on the minimum risk route has been developed and dissipation curves are included.
Characterization of Human Glycogenin-2, a Self-glucosylating Initiator of Liver Glycogen Metabolism

Glycogenin-2 is a recently described self-glucosylating protein potentially involved in the initiation of glycogen biosynthesis (Mu, J., Skurat, A. V., and Roach, P. J. (1997) J. Biol. Chem. 272, 27589–27597). In human liver extracts, most of the glycogenin-2 was only detectable after treatment with α-amylase. Similarly, purifed highM r glycogen was only detected after release by α-amylase treatment. Based on analysis by polymerase chain reaction, the predominant isoform in liver was glycogenin-2β. Glycogenin-2 was found in Ewing's sarcoma RD-ES cells where, however, it was not associated with high M r carbohydrate. Both human liver and human RD-ES cell extracts also contained glycogenin-1. Glycogenin-1 and glycogenin-2 interact with one another, based onin vitro interactions and co-immunoprecipitation from liver and cell extracts. Mutation of Tyr-196 in glycogenin-2 to a Phe residue abolished the ability of glycogenin-2 to self-glucosylate but not to interact with glycogenin-1. Stable overexpression of glycogenin-2α in Rat-1 fibroblast cells resulted in a 5-fold increase in the level of glycogen present in the low speed pellet but little change in the low speed supernatant. This result is important since it indicates that the level of glycogenin-2 can determine glycogen accumulation and hence has the potential to control glycogen synthesis.
A simple method for the preparation of human serum albumin

A simple method, based on ethanol fractionation, for the preparation of highly purified human serum albumin with a higher yield than that of the conventional ethanol procedures is described. It consists of two purification steps, namely, precipitation of most of the other plasma proteins from a 3-fold diluted plasma with ethanol at 42% concentration, pH 5.75 and -5 degrees C, leaving over 96% pure albumin in the supernatant, followed by isoelectric precipitation of albumin from the supernatant at pH 4.8 and -5 degrees C. The paste thus obtained was processed to the final albumin solution according to the conventional methods. The yield of the final albumin with a purity of over 99% was equivalent to 29.5 g/l of plasma representing a recovery of over 93%. The possibility of recovering other plasma proteins and the suitability for large scale preparation are also discussed.
The clinical utility of endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration in the diagnosis and staging of pancreatic carcinoma.

Abstract Background: Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) guided fine-needle aspiration (FNA) of pancreatic lesions is being increasingly used. Our aim was to determine the safety, accuracy, and clinical utility of EUS-guided FNA in both the diagnosis and staging of pancreatic cancer. Methods: Forty-four patients (24 men/20 women) had EUS-guided FNA of pancreatic lesions (39 head/neck, 5 body, 3 tail) and/or associated lymph nodes. The mean age was 61 (range, 28 to 88 years). The indication for EUS-guided FNA was a pancreatic lesion seen initially on CT (39%), ERCP (43%), or EUS (18%). Follow-up data were collected on all patients for mean of 14.5 months (range 1 to 33 months). Results: CT detected only 15 of 61 (25%) focal lesions seen by EUS. Adequate specimens were obtained by EUS-guided FNA in 44 of 47 (94%) pancreatic lesions and 14 of 14 (100%) associated lymph nodes (overall adequacy was 95%). Of the 46 lesions in which specimens were adequate and a final diagnosis was available (32 malignant, 14 benign), EUS-guided FNA had a sensitivity of 92%, specificity of 100%, and diagnostic accuracy of 95% for pancreatic lesions and 83%, 100%, and 88% for lymph nodes, respectively. Six percent of pancreatic cases had inadequate specimens and, if included, lowered the sensitivity to 83%, specificity to 80%, and diagnostic accuracy to 88% for pancreatic lesions. In 3 patients with enlarged celiac nodes on EUS, EUS-guided FNA was able to make a tissue diagnosis of metastasis, which changed the preoperative staging and precluded surgery. EUS in combination with EUS-guided FNA precluded surgery in 12 of 44 (27%) and may have precluded surgery in an additional 6 of 44 (14%). EUS-guided FNA avoided the need for further diagnostic tests, thus expediting therapy in a total of 25 (57%) patients and influenced clinical decisions in 30 of 44 (68%) patients. The estimated cost savings based on surgeries avoided was approximately $3300 per patient. There was only one complication (2%), a post-FNA fever. Conclusion: EUS-guided FNA of the pancreas appears to be a safe and effective method that increases both the diagnostic and staging capability of EUS in pancreatic cancer. The clinical impact of EUS-guided FNA includes avoiding surgery and additional imaging studies with a substantial cost savings. (Gastrointest Endosc 1997;45:387-93.)
Complexity in a cellular model of river avulsion

Abstract We propose a new model of river avulsion that emphasizes simplicity, self-organization, and unprogrammed behavior rather than detailed simulation. The model runs on a fixed cellular grid and tracks two elevations in each cell, a high elevation representing the channel (levee) top and a low one representing the channel bottom. The channel aggrades in place until a superelevation threshold for avulsion is met. After an avulsion is triggered a new flow path is selected by steepest descent based on the low values of elevation. Flow path depends sensitively on floodplain topography, particularly the presence of former abandoned channels. Several behavioral characteristics emerge consistently from this simple model: (1) a tendency of the active flow to switch among a small number of channel paths, which we term the active channel set, over extended periods, leading to clustering and formation of multistory sand bodies in the resulting deposits; (2) a tendency for avulsed channels to return to their previous paths, so that new channel length tends to be generated in relatively short segments; and (3) avulsion-related sediment storage and release, leading to pulsed sediment output even for constant input. Each of these behaviors is consistent with observations from depositional river systems. A single-valued threshold produces a wide variety of avulsion sizes and styles. Larger “nodal” avulsions are rarer because pre-existing floodplain topography acts to steer flow back to the active channel. Channel stacking pattern is very sensitive to floodplain deposition. This work highlights the need to develop models of floodplain evolution at large time and space scales to complement the improving models of river channel evolution.
The evolution of retinal vascularization in mammals. A comparison of vascular and avascular retinae.

There is a bimodal distribution of retinal thicknesses among mammals. Avascular retinae that are totally dependent on the choroid measure less than the theoretical oxygen diffusion maximum of 143 microns. Vascular retinae often measure twice this distance, but their avascular portions do not exceed the calculated diffusion maximum. Avascular retinae also show heavy glycogen deposition in the Muller cells of the inner retina, short photoreceptors, and lack both a tapetum and retinal taper. It is argued (1) that these anatomical features represent adaptations to their nutritional dependence on the choroid, and (2) that the phylogenetic distribution of avascularity (monotremes, many marsupials, and some of the primitive placental mammals) suggests that it is the ancestral condition in mammals. Finally, it is noted that some of the pathologic changes associated with retinal vascular damage in humans, namely thinning, gliosis, and glycogen deposition, are reminiscent of these ancestral patterns for coping with a limited blood supply.
Predicting the effects of optimization on a procedure body

Practical application of procedure integration (inline expansion) as a program optimization requires some method for estimating the effects of subsequent optimization on the integrated procedure. A technique is described for predicting the code improvement that can be expected due to constant folding and test elision when a procedure call involving constant actual parameters is integrated. The technique is based on information collected during a single data flow analysis of each procedure body, and on execution frequency statistics for the procedure. This information can then be used to estimate the cost in code size and the benefit in execution speed of integrating each call to the procedure. The algorithm uses a syntax directed analysis technique suitable for structured programming languages without gotos.
A Reservoir Engineering Study of an Over-Pressured, Partial Water-Drive Gas Field in Southern Louisiana

This study presents a case history, and also provides guidelines for performing a reservoir study, in particular, a material balance analysis. The study involved manipulating a complex material balance equation into forms which isolated certain input parameters. The forms were used graphically not only to estimate the OGIP, but also to verify those parameters used in the analysis. Production decline curves were used in conjunction with the material balance equation to predict future reservoir performance. Theoretical recovery calculations justified the future predictions.
The State of Current Self-Force Research

We briefly review some of the issues relevant to self-force research. We consider frequency-domain and time-domain approaches, adiabatic and post-adiabatic waveforms, the need for a revised regularization method for 2 + 1D numerical-simulations, the so-called m-mode regularization, and the need for second-order self-forces and their effect on the gravitational waveforms.
Neoclassical Household Models and Modes of Household Production: Problems in the Analysis of African Agricultural Households:

Neoclassical models characterize agricultural households as unified production/consumptionunits in which labor is allocated according to principles of comparative advantage, income is pooled, and preferences for consumption and leisure are shared. This paper demonstrates that the assumptions and structure of both recursive and simultaneous agricultural household models are strikingly inconsistent with evidence from agricultural households in southern Cameroon and elsewhere in Africa. Fundamental revisions in the modeling of economic choice structures within agricultural households are required if men's and women's economic behavior is to be appropriately understood and reliably predicted. A Marxian analysis of the social relations of production within households can contribute to this process and can also indicate important new directions for agricultural policy analysis.
Critical mass hypothesis revisited: role of dynamical wave stability in spontaneous termination of cardiac fibrillation

The tendency of atrial or ventricular fibrillation to terminate spontaneously in finite-sized tissue is known as the critical mass hypothesis. Previous studies have shown that dynamical instabiliti...
Progressive Unilateral Encephalopathy of Childhood (Rasmussen's Syndrome): A Reappraisal

Twelve children with Rasmussen's encephalitis underwent hemispherectomy and have been followed for an average of 9.15 years. Our decision-making process leads to early, rather than late operation. Because hemiplegia is inevitable with or without operation, earlier operation may allow such children to resume a more normal life. We postulate that earlier operation may prevent some of the intellectual decline that accompanies the continued seizures and their treatment. In view of the variable pathologic findings and lack of evidence of a viral etiology, we suggest either use of the term "progressive unilateral encephalopathy of childhood" or "Rasmussen's syndrome" in recognition of its heritage.
Electrical Characterization and Surface Morphology of Optimized Ti ∕ Al ∕ Ti ∕ Au Ohmic Contacts for AlGaN ∕ GaN HEMTs

Low-resistance ohmic contacts to high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) are essential to ensure optimal device performance. Besides low contact resistance (< 1 Ω mm), good surface morphology and edge acuity are also desirable. We report a systematic study of the ohmic contact scheme Ti/Al/Ti/Au, where the total film thickness was kept constant at 285 nm and the relative ratios of Ti/Al inner layer thicknesses were varied. While the film with the highest Ti/Al ratio had slightly inferior electrical properties, the layer smoothness and edge acuity were far superior to the other ohmic contact schemes.
Commentary: Building a Developmental-Ecological Model of Criminal Culpability During Adolescence

In this issue of The Journal, Dr. Peter Ash offers the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law some ideas on developmentally informed assessment of criminal culpability during adolescence. After highlighting issues that complicate the definition and assessment of criminal culpability, Ash lists 10 constructs that he believes should be carefully considered by forensic clinicians in developing opinions about legal responsibility for a crime committed by a minor. I applaud Ash for beginning a dialogue on the clinical dimension of this topic, and I appreciate his emphasis on the need for developmentally informed assessment of juvenile defendants. In this commentary, I briefly illustrate how the principles of developmental psychopathology can be used to articulate a developmental-ecological model of criminal culpability for use by forensic clinicians in the assessment of younger defendants, as the courts more broadly accept the concept of mitigation of legal responsibility by reason of developmental immaturity.
A structure-based search engine for phylogenetic databases

Phylogenetic trees are essential for understanding the relationships among organisms or taxa. Many of the current techniques for searching phylogenetic repositories allow the user to perform a keyword-type search or an aligned sequence data search, or to browse a hierarchical list of taxa. Here we describe a new search engine that allows the user to present an example phylogeny, or a query tree, and then searches a phylogenetic database for trees that contain the query structure. The presented search engine is fully operational and is available on the World Wide Web.
Implications of the Current Insolubility of the Mind-Brain Problem for the Contemporary Practice of Psychodynamic Psychiatry

Even in this so-called era of the brain, there has been no consensual agreement on understanding the genesis of the mind by the brain, the prob- lem that also baffled Freud, the neurologist at the start of his great discoveries. Especially, there has been no progress in solving what is known as the "hard problem," namely, how neurophysiological processes in the brain can produce conscious experiences, feelings, and intentions that constitute the "qualia," the various aspects of the phenomena of consciousness. Some of the predominant contemporary positions on the mind- brain problem, from Freud's Project for a Scientific Psychology to the present day, will be described and some of the tech- nical vocabulary will be explained. I will conclude from this review that the "mysterian" position or some derivatives of it such as "anomalous monism" or "agnostic materialism" are probably the most plausible, given the present state of our knowledge and capacities. The latter two positions suggest that we simply do not know enough about the physical world of matter at this time but eventually perhaps discoveries about the nature of matter may solve the prob- lem. But as of now, the implication of this impasse is that the introspective data of consciousness are ontologically subjective, pointing to the absolute necessity for our studying this data in its own domain through introspection. The most meticulous and thorough method for this study is psychoanalytic psychiatry, which was specifically devised by Freud for that purpose.
Correction to 'Unsteady Convective Diffusion with Interphase Mass Transfer'

In the above-specified paper (Sankarasubramanian & Gill 1973), equations (48 a ) and (75) should read I ( j, l ) = I ( l, j )= ∫1 y 3 J ( μ j y ) J ( μ l y d y = 2(2 β 2+ μ 2 j + μ 2 l / ( μ 2 j – μ 2 l )2 J ( μ j ) J ( μ l ) ( j ≠ l ), K 2 ≈ 1/( Pe )2 + 64(1+6/ β ) λ 21 Ʃ ∞ l =1 λ 2 l +1 / ( λ 2 l +1 – λ 21)5∙
Ambient fine particulate air pollution triggers ST-elevation myocardial infarction, but not non-ST elevation myocardial infarction: a case-crossover study

Background We and others have shown that increases in particulate air pollutant (PM) concentrations in the previous hours and days have been associated with increased risks of myocardial infarction, but little is known about the relationships between air pollution and specific subsets of myocardial infarction, such as ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non ST-elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI).
A Lagrangian Advection Routine Applied to Microfluidic Component Design

An advection routine for determining the distributions of passive scalars flowing through microfluidic components is presented. This approach is then used to analyze and design passive, in-channel microfluidic mixers. The Lagrangian advection routine takes a steadystate velocity field through the component and calculates the distribution of conserved scalars exiting the component by backtracking upstream from points in the outflow plane. Each velocity component is assumed to vary linearly within a computational cell, and this assumption leads to an analytical solution for particle paths passing through the cell. The advection routine then constructs piecewise-exact solutions for the particle path through the component and need not numerically integrate the trajectory. This approach prevents particles from being “trapped” in slow regions near walls, and in contrast to placing tracer particles in the inflow and calculating where they exit the component, backtracking provides a uniform distribution of information across the entire outflow plane.
Sensitive quantitation of isoglobotriaosylceramide in the presence of isobaric components using electrospray ionization-ion trap mass spectrometry

Isoglobotriaosylceramide (iGb 3 ) is a stimulatory antigen for a unique type of T cell, Natural Killer T cells. Produced in the lysosomal compartment by mammalian antigen-presenting cells, iGb 3 is one of the few clearly identified carbohydrate ligands for biological receptors. A major source of glycoconjugate structural diversity arises from the possibility of forming different linkages between the same monosaccharide units. Globotriaosylceramide (Gb 3 ) exists as a natural isomer for iGb 3 , and both isomers are frequently found together in mixtures of glycosphingolipids extracted from mammalian cell membranes. Discriminating these isomers has been feasible using monoclonal antibodies raised against specific carbohydrate epitopes, or by unambiguous structural characterization, which requires relatively large amounts of pure compounds isolated from grams, or tens of grams, of biological samples. However, the precise detection of iGb 3 from small amounts of biological samples, where it may be mixed with Gb 3 present in much higher abundance, is a prerequisite for answering further important biological questions such as stimulation of NKT cells. Here we describe a specific and sensitive method based on ion trap mass spectrometry to discriminate iGb 3 from Gb 3 . We also demonstrate its application to quantifying the amount of iGb 3 in a prototype antigen-presenting cell, rat RBL-CD1d cells, using a chemically synthesized short N-acyl chain iGb 3 as internal standard. This methodology may have wide implications for functional glycosphingolipidomics of immune cells and glycosphingolipid biomarker analysis.
Water-Table Fluctuation in Response to Recharge

Analytical expressions are developed which describe the rise and fall of the water table in an extensive unconfined aquifer receiving localized vertical recharge and discharging into a surface reservoir in which the water level remains equal to that of the main flow before the incidence of recharge. The rate of recharge is maintained by a spreading area in the form of an infinitely long strip of finite width. The solutions are expressed in terms of the head averaged over the depth of saturation. They are applicable when the rise of the water table is smaller than 50% of the initial depth of saturation. A numerical example is presented.
Empowering All Students: Closing the CS Confidence Gap with an In-School Initiative for Middle School Students

The important goal of broadening participation in computing has inspired many successful outreach initiatives. Yet many of these initiatives, such as out-of-school activities or innovative new computer science courses for secondary school students, may disproportionately attract students who already have prior interest and experience in computing. How, then, do we engage the silent majority of students who do not self-select computer science? This paper examines this question in the context of ENGAGE, an in-school outreach initiative for middle school students. ENGAGE's learning activities center on a game-based learning environment for computer science. Results reveal that the initiative improved the computer science attitudes of students who were not already predisposed to study computer science, in a way that a corresponding after-school program could not. The results illustrate how an in-school initiative can empower young students who might not otherwise consider studying computer science.
Percutaneous Aspiration of Abscesses with Ultrasound

Pulsed ultrasound has proven to be a valuable aid in evaluating patients with possible intra-abdominal or retroperitoneal abscesses.1,2 When the abscess reaches 3 cm in size, it can be identified in the majority of cases.3 Occasionally some diagnostic difficulty will arise, however, when the abscess contains solid elements or when the clinical situation points to other explanations for a cystic abdominal mass. We have used ultrasonically guided aspiration of the suspected abscess in such cases and consistently have been able to confirm the diagnosis.
Opportunities with Polarized Hadron Beams

Spin physics at future hadron facilities provide unique opportunities for the study of QCD well beyond those available at existing facilities. Opportunities with polarized protons in the Fermilab Main Injector are discussed that encompass polarized Drell-Yan scattering of unprecedented precision and also enable measurements of transversity, helicty and other transverse momentum dependent distributions. Forthcoming measurements at COMPASS-II that aim to test fundamental predictions of non-perturbative QCD, and complementary studies at RHIC-Spin that address, among others, open puzzles such as the sharing of the nucleon spin among its constituents are also discussed.
Genetic mapping of symbiotic loci on the Rhizobium meliloti chromosome

To facilitate genetic analyses of Rhizobium meliloti genes that are involved in symbiosis, we determined the map positions of 11 symbiotic loci on the R. meliloti chromosome by using a combination of the Tn5-Mob conjugational transfer method described by Klein et al. (S. Klein, K. Lohmann, G. C. Walker, and E. R. Signer. J. Bacteriol. 174:324-326, 1992) and co-transduction of genetic markers by bacteriophage phi M12. Loci involved in effective nodule formation (fix-379, fix-382, fix-383, fix-385, and fix-388), polysaccharide synthesis (exoR, exoS, exoC, and ndvB), nodule invasion (exoD), and nitrogen regulation (ntrA) were ordered with respect to previously mapped markers and each other. The positions of two other loci, degP and pho-1, were also determined.
Relative Pathogenicity of Newly Isolated Strains of Poliomyelitis for Monkey Kidney Cells and Mice

SummaryPolio virus in tissue culture fluids from first or second passage in monkey kidney roller tubes was tested in mice. Fifty-one Type 1 and 20 Type 3 strains were entirely negative when inoculated I. S. Forty-five of 56 Type 2 strains produced paralysis by the I. S. route, and 11 by the I. C. route. Those having the higher titers by I. S. route tended to be positive I. C. No correlation between tissue culture titer and mouse I. S. titer was apparent. Six strains of Type 2 were isolated directly in mice from 39 stools tested.
Projected intensification of subseasonal temperature variability and heat waves in the Great Plains

Compared to changes in the climatological mean temperature, we have less confidence in how much and by what mechanisms temperature variability may be affected by anthropogenic climate change. Here based on a 30-member climate change projection from an earth system model, we find that summertime subseasonal temperature variability in the U.S. Great Plains is enhanced by approximately 20% in 2070–2100 relative to 1980–2010. In particular, daily temperature departures from the new climatologies during future heat waves are on average 0.6°C warmer than are the corresponding departures under present-day conditions. Although in both periods heat waves in the Great Plains tend to be associated with planetary wave events, the amplification of future heat waves does not appear to be induced by changes in planetary wave variability in the midlatitudes. Instead, in this experiment the strengthening appears to be primarily caused by enhanced local land-atmosphere feedbacks resulting from a warmer/drier future climate.
Ipsilateral arthrodesis of the metatarsophalangeal and interphalangeal joints of the hallux.

Background: Arthrodesis of the metatarsophalangeal joint of the hallux is frequently used for treatment of a variety of disorders. However, occasionally patients who have complex deformities or deg...
Hacking Away at Sustainability: Science, Ideology and Cynical Blockage:

In 2009 sustainability took some major hits. At the UN Climate Change Summit in Copenhagen, no agreement was reached over reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Nor was there any discussion about ...