cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Studies of spinodal decomposition in a ternary polymer-solvent-nonsolvent system

Much of the work in modeling and computer simulation of spinodal decomposition has been done for binary systems. This work attempts to carry out the analysis of spinodal decomposition in ternary polymer-solvent-nonsolvent systems, where the solvent is the monomer used to produce the polymer and the nonsolvent is the major component. Various experimental methods are used to determine values of the parameters of the ternary version of the Cahn-Hilliard equation of spinodal decomposition, such as cloudpoint experiments, time-resolved light scattering in the ternary system, and morphological development of polymer membranes formed during the early stages spinodal decomposition. The combination of these experimental methods and computer simulation work shows the validity of the assumptions made in characterizing spinodal decomposition in ternary polymer systems of interest.
New Family of Poecilostomatoid Copepods (Spiophanicolidae) Parasitic on Polychaetes From Southern California, With a Phylogenetic Analysis of Nereicoliform Families

ABSTRACT A new genus and species, Spiophanicola spinulosus, is described as a representative of a new family of poccilostomatoid copepods parasitic on three species of polychaetcs: Spio-phanesberkeleyorum Pettibone, S. missionensis Hartman, and S. kroyeri Grube collected off Huntington Beach and Santa Monica in southern California. Phylogenetic analysis of the nereicoliform families has revealed that there arc three major lines of evolution, namely, the clausidiid-synaptiphilid line, the clausiid-nereicolid line, and the catiniid-complex. The Spiophanicolidae is closest to the Serpulidicolidae on the clausiid-nereicolid line. which contains the bulk of the nereicoliform families. Another new family, the Entobiidae. is established to accommodate Entobius Dogiel, 1908, a genus that lives in the intestine of polychaetes.
Adaptive detection of terminal voltage collapses for Li-ion batteries

We introduce a novel approach for detecting and predicting terminal voltage collapses in Li-ion batteries without having complete knowledge of a battery model. We present a simplified dynamic model for a Li-ion battery that is forced to track the output voltage curve of a physical Li-ion battery by using universal adaptive stabilization (UAS). We prove that when the physical Li-ion battery becomes unstable, then the simplified dynamic model becomes unstable. Our results do not require a sophisticated model for a battery that faithfully captures all dynamics. Using our results, we present an algorithm for detecting impending voltage collapses for Liion batteries.
Theories without AB effect misrepresent the dynamics of the electromagnetic field

The suggestion by Professor Bocchieri, Professor Loinger, and others1 that the Aharonov-Bohm effect (AB) is not part of quantum mechanics or that it can be removed from quantum mechanics without ruining the theory, is an important one for many reasons. One reason which has perhaps been too little emphasized is that removing AB scattering from the theory would remove the justification for Dirac’s charge quantization law $$ \frac{{eg}}{c} = \frac{n}{2}\hbar, $$ (1) where e and g are the elementary units of electric and magnetic charge and n is an integer. In this discussion I shall summarize arguments that have been given in detail elsehwere2,3 to show why AB cannot in fact be removed from the theory except by spoiling the conservation and quantization of angular momentum. It is of course no coincidence that the most general proofs of Dirac’s charge quantization law also rely mainly on the quantization of angular momentum.4 I will not deal with that in this talk, but I will return briefly in an appendix to the relation between AB and Dirac’s original derivation of the charge quantization law from the now-familiar singular strings.
FIXing factor VIII inhibitors.

In this issue of Blood , Milanov and colleagues demonstrate that a Factor IX (FIX) variant that does not require activated Factor VIII (FVIIIa) for activity induces coagulation in hemophilia A mice with FVIII inhibitors.[1][1] This protein might be developed as a bypass agent. ![Figure][2]
Effects of inter-phase mass transfer in heated clays: A mixture theory

Abstract Saturated clay soils consist of an assemblage of clusters of platelets which with other non-clayey particles form the soil matrix with voids filled with water. Electro-chemical forces attract water firmly to the clay platelets, forming a water layer which is not able to flow under normal conditions. This kind of water is referred to as the firmly adsorbed water. The rest of water (called bulk water) is able to flow under sufficiently high pressure gradient. However, when clay soils are subjected to severe environmental loads such as elevated temperature variations or penetration of chemicals, the adsorption bonds tend to weaken, which eventually may cause a degeneration of the adsorbed water into bulk water. This degeneration process may affect hydraulic as well as mechanical behavior of saturated clays. In particular, the degeneration of the adsorbed water may critically affect permeability and compressibility of clays. In order to describe this coupled thermal-mechanical-hydraulic behavior, a mixture theory of two interacting clay constituents is developed. Appropriate forms of mass, linear momentum, and energy balance laws as well as constitutive equations are discussed. The focus is on the mass transfer between the adsorbed and bulk water simulating the degeneration of the adsorbed water at elevated temperatures. A cylindrical heating boundary value problem at constant heat output is then discussed and numerical results are presented. A zone of elevated water pressure forms around the heat source, and with time it gradually expands. The permeability may increase locally over 8 times due to the thermal degeneration of the adsorbed water into bulk water.
Abuse of Combinations of Gabapentin and Quetiapine

To the Editor: Medications may be misused, particularly if they produce sedative or anxiolytic effects. We describe misuse of combinations of gabapentin and quetiapine. Case report. A 42-year-old man was admitted to a treatment program after his second arrest for driving under the influence of an unknown substance. He had used marijuana and cocaine but stopped after obtaining employment requiring drug testing. Afterward, he had negative drug screens but sometimes appeared “stoned.” He had prescriptions for quetiapine and gabapentin and misused these 2 medications together to replace the drugs he had taken. Taking up to 5 tablets of gabapentin 300 mg with 3 to 4 tablets of quetiapine 200 mg simultaneously produced a sensation of sedation and euphoria. His girlfriend was prescribed and also misused gabapentin with quetiapine when she could not afford cocaine, taking 3 to 4 tablets of gabapentin 300 mg with 2 to 3 tablets of quetiapine 200 mg, sometimes with beer. She described similar, although weaker, effects. The couple was acquainted with 3 others who misused the same combination by taking 400–800 mg of quetiapine with 900–1,800 mg of gabapentin. Prescriptions were reportedly obtained by fabrication or exaggeration of symptoms. Tablets were sometimes sold or traded for illicit drugs. Evidence exists for abuse of both gabapentin and quetiapine. Both have been removed from several prison formularies because of abuse by inmates. A woman substituted gabapentin 600–1,500 mg daily for cocaine.1 Florida inmates admitted snorting gabapentin powder for effects reminiscent of cocaine.2 Benzodiazepine-like withdrawal and dependence have been described.3,4 Gabapentin has been misused to potentiate the effect of methadone.5 About 20 cases of gabapentin addiction have been described in Europe.6 There are several reports of oral quetiapine abuse (800–1,200 mg at a time) for sedating and anxiolytic effects.7 Quetiapine powder is sometimes snorted intranasally8; intravenous abuse has also occurred.9 Drug-seeking behavior, compulsive use, diversion, dependence, and withdrawal have been described.10,11 Quetiapine is sometimes called “quell” or “baby heroin” by inmates. Gabapentin inhibits voltage-gated calcium channels and entails an increase in γ-aminobutyric acid neurotransmission, as well as modulation of excitatory amino acids at N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor sites.4 Quetiapine acts as an antagonist at serotonin 5-HT1A and 5-HT2A, dopamine D1 and D2, histamine H1, and adrenergic α1 and α2 receptors.7 With the 2 drugs combined, many neuroreceptors are affected, and effects at high doses could be significant. Toxicity may exist for patients taking large amounts of gabapentin and/or quetiapine. Clinicians should exercise vigilance when using either to treat patients who use alcohol or illicit drugs, particularly if gabapentin and quetiapine are prescribed concomitantly.
Knowledge-based environment for investigating multicomputer architectures

Abstract Multicomputers for massively parallel processing will eventually employ billions of processing elements, each of which will be capable of communicating with every other processing element. A knowledge-based modelling and simulation environment (KBMSE) for investigating such multicomputer architecture at a discrete-event system level is described. The KBMSE implements the discrete-event system specification (DEVS) formalism in an object-oriented programming system of Scheme (a lisp dialect), which supports building models in a hierarchical, modular manner, a systems-oriented approach not possible in conventional simulation languages. The paper presents a framework for knowledge-based modelling and simulation by exemplifying modelling a hypercube multicomputer architecture in the KBMSE. The KBMSE has been tested on a variety of domains characterized by complex, hierarchical structures such as advanced multicomputer architectures, local area computer networks, intelligent multi-robot organizations, and biologically based life-support systems.
Diode laser spectroscopy of the transient VF5 radical following laser photolysis of VF6

Abstract Laser photolysis of low pressure samples of gaseous UF 6 in a long path cell produces transient UF 5 radicals. Absorption by these radicals in the 16 μm - 17μμm region of the infrared spectrum has been observed with an infrared diode laser monitor. The observed lifetime of the absorbing species is long (~500 μs) and suggests an additional channel for the production of uf 5 at low pressures. Absorption by excited UF 6 molecules formed by recombination of F atoms and VF 5 radicals has also been recorded.
Single machine scheduling with job-dependent convex cost and arbitrary precedence constraints

Abstract In this work we combine resource augmentation and alpha-point scheduling techniques, which have resulted in very good performance scheduling algorithms, to compute approximate solutions for a general family of scheduling problems: each job has a convex non-decreasing cost function and the goal is to compute a schedule that minimizes the total cost subject to precedence constraints. We show that our algorithm is a O ( 1 ) -speed 1 -approximation algorithm and our numerical experiments show that the speed-scaling ratio required is close to 1 .
STRUCTURE RECOGNITION BY CONNECTIONIST RELAXATION: FORMAL ANALYSIS

A formal description is given of a connectionist implementation of discrete relaxation for labelled graph matching. The network is shown to converge. The desired behavior of the algorithm is formally specified; then it is proved that the result of the relaxation meets the formal goal. The network is limited by complexity considerations to the detection and propagation of unary and binary consistency constraints. The application is fast parallel indexing into a memory of object models, based on a visually derived junction/link structure description. Implementation experiments are presented, and explicit and exact space and time requirements are developed.
The changing structure of school segregation: Measurement and evidence of multiracial metropolitan-area school segregation, 1989–1995

In this paper we examine aggregate patterns and trends in segregation among white (non-Hispanic), black, Hispanic, and Asian public school students in 217 metropolitan areas during the period 1989-1995. We first describe a set of methodological tools that enable us both to measure the mutual segregation among multiple racial groups and to partition total metropolitan-area school segregation into geographic and racial components. Then we use these tools to examine patterns and trends in metropolitan-area school segregation. We find that the average levels of multiracial school segregation have been unchanged from 1989 to 1995, but that this stability masks important shifts in the geographic and racial components making up average levels of total metropolitan school segregation. In particular, segregation between non-Hispanic white students and all other students has increased, on average, while segregation among black, Hispanic, and Asian student groups has declined. In addition, the contribution to average levels of total metropolitan segregation due to between-district segregation has grown, whereas the relative contribution of within-district segregation has declined.
A rugged and simple commutator for the electrical stimulation of the brain of unrestrained animals.

Abstract This paper describes a simple commutatory by which electrical stimuli can be delivered to the brain of freely moving animals studied in a self-stimulation operant conditioning paradigm. The device is inexpensive and can be constructed in the laboratory. It has proven reliable in continued use and does not distort the stimulus parameters of waveforms.
Novel Applications of the QCM Technique in Biomaterials Science

A quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) has been used to investigate polymer samples. The vapor sorption of three different polymer samples (poly(vinyl acetate), polybutadiene and polydimethylsiloxane) was studied. The change in resonance frequency of the quartz sensor uniformly coated with polymer films was measured as a function of the film thickness and water absorption at different temperatures. The range of linear frequency vs. mass response was determined in the absence of absorbed water. The glass transition temperature of thin poly(vinyl acetate) films (10 nm <thickness < 1000 nm) was found to be in reasonable agreement with published values for macroscopic samples.
The Molecular Machinery of Resurgent Sodium Current Revealed

Abstract Some TTX-sensitive sodium channels open transiently during recovery from inactivation, generating a "resurgent" sodium current that flows immediately following action potentials. In this issue of Neuron , Grieco and colleagues present evidence that resurgent sodium current results from a novel form of inactivation in which the cytoplasmic tail of the β4 subunit acts as a classic open-channel blocker.
Insulin stimulates inositol incorporation in hippocampus of lean but not obese zucker rats

Abstract We have previously reported that intraventricular insulin is ineffective in decreasing the body weight of obese (fa/fa) Zucker rats. In the present study, we report that insulin at concentrations of 1 and 5 nM significantly stimulates incorporation of 3 H-myoinositol into inositol phosphates (29±5% and 20±6% stimulation over control levels) and membrane inositol lipids (29±4% and 20±6% stimulation over control levels) within hippocampal slices from lean (Fa/Fa) Zucker rats (n=3 preparations). Smaller but significant stimulations were observed in the Fa/fa Zucker rat (n=5) hippocampus [10±3 and 13±4% stimulation over control levels (inositol phosphates) and 10±4 and 14±3% stimulation over control levels (inositol lipids) with 1 and 5 nM insulin]. Insulin had no effect on 3 H-inositol incorporation into hippocampal slices from obese (fa/fa) Zucker rats (n=5). No difference in insulin binding to hippocampal membranes was observed among the three genotypes. These findings confirm the behavioral observation of insulin insensitivity within the fa/fa Zucker CNS and suggest that this insensitivity may be gene-dose-related.
ILL‐Conceived Ideas

Welcome to The Column concerning interlibrary services in the OCLC universe! Dare if you will to join me in my continuing mission to infuse new life, explore strange new visions, and boldly go where no humor has gone before. In this episode we investigate new desires, tips, space visions, and titillating trends….
Investigation of circadian rhythms in a genetically anophthalmic mouse strain: Correlation of activity patterns with suprachiasmatic nuclei hypogenesis

ZRDCT-An mice are anophthalmic mutants with varying degrees of hypogenesis of the mediobasal hypothalamus and suprachias-matic nuclei. Statistical analysis of the wheelrunning activity patterns of these animals showed that most mice had circadian activity rhythms unentrained to the light-dark cycle. However, four of 22 animals had random or non-circadian activity patterns. Of these four mice, three had fewer than one third the typical number of cells in the suprachiasmatic nuclei. The absence of detectable circadian rhythms in mice with genetically produced hypogenesis of the suprachiasmatic nuclei is reminiscent of the effects of partial electrolytic lesions of the same tissue.
Oaklisp: An object-oriented dialect of scheme

This paper contains a description of Oaklisp, a dialect of Lisp incorporating lexical scoping, multiple inheritance, and first-class types. This description is followed by a revisionist history of the Oaklisp design, in which a crude map of the space of object-oriented Lisps is drawn and some advantages of first-class types are explored. Scoping issues are discussed, with a particular emphasis on instance variables and top-level namespaces. The question of which should come first, the lambda or the object, is addressed, with Oaklisp providing support for the latter approach.
Influence of temperature and strain rate on slip and twinning behavior of zr

The stress-strain behavior of pure Zr was studied systematically at various temperatures and strain rates. At 76 K, Zr deforms predominantly by twinning, whereas above room temperature (RT), slip is the controlling deformation mode. A transition in the rate-controlling deformation mode from slip to twinning has been observed to occur at intermediate temperatures during the course of plastic deformation. Above 373 K, slip dominates the entire course of deformation. The transition from slip to twinning in the stress-strain behavior is linked to differing strain-hardening rates and temperature sensitivities of the two deformation modes.
The technical and democratic approaches to risk situations: Their appeal, limitations, and rhetorical alternative

Because of the increasing number of “man-made” hazards in contemporary life, as well as the growing number of disastrous industrial accidents, interest in risk communication has burgeoned. Consequently, scholars and practitioners need to understand two of the more common responses to risk situations, the technical and democratic. This paper describes these two responses, identifies types of individuals likely to prefer each, and explains why, historically and sociologically, they are so intuitively compelling for many people. Arguing that both responses to risk situations are ultimately unconducive to rational discourse, the paper identifies problematic assumptions about communication that underlie both. The paper then sketches an alternative model of risk communication that recognizes the distinct features of communication in risk-ridden situations, describes ways in which communicators can identify characteristic tensions and goals in these situations, and specifies how to use research-supported heuristics for diagnosing the principal obstacles to their communicative goals and selecting the best strategies to address these obstacles.
Recurrent selection in oat : stability of yield and changes in unselected traits

Recurrent selection, primarily for grain yield in oat (Avena sativa L.), has been practiced at a single location for four cycles. Previous evaluations of this program had indicated that grain yield had been increased and that correlated changes, some undesirable, had also occurred. In some studies in other species, yield increases have come at the expense of stable productivity. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the stability of grain yield and to assess changes in nine unselected traits to determine the potential of lines from this program for cultivar development [...]
What Powers the Chevrolet in 2030

“The Annual Energy Outlook 2003” from the Energy Information Administration indicates an annual petroleum consumption of 38.5 quads with 25.7 quads imported. The transportation sector uses 26 quads, or 67% of the total. No other sector (residential, commercial or industrial) of our society has this level of dependence on petroleum. Electric power generation, for example, has less than 5% of its output dependent on petroleum. Recent energy policy has focused hydrogen as the next generation transportation fuel. Will this alternative stand technical scrutiny? What are the options? Do those of us laboring in the technology vineyard have a responsibility to speak out publicly on these options?Copyright © 2004 by ASME
Source parameters of the Anjar earthquake of July 21, 1956, India, and its seismotectonic implications for the Kutch rift basin

Abstract The Kutch rift basin is a major seismic region in India characterized by a low earthquake occurrence rate but a very high maximum intensity. The largest event in the region is the great Kutch earthquake of 1819 (estimated M w = 7.8). However, lacking instrumental data, its exact source parameters are not well known. The Anjar (or Rann of Kutch) earthquake of July 21, 1956 ( M w = 6.0) took place very close to the 1819 Kutch event and caused considerable damage and casualties. Our modeled waveforms of teleseismic P- and SH-waves and P-wave first motions determine a reverse faulting mechanism (strike = 235°, dip = 46.5°, and rake = 85°) as well as source parameters for the Anjar earthquake. A previous strike-slip mechanism for this event has been eliminated on the basis of waveform constraints. The two nodal planes of our solution both strike northeast, sub-parallel to the trend of the Kutch rift, very close to the trend of the isoseismals. The seismic moment is 1.19 × 10 25 dyne-cm. The focal depth and the stress drop are 15 km and 162 bar, respectively. The Anjar reverse fault may represent a reactivated normal fault undergoing tectonic inversion in the Kutch rift zone under present-day compressional stress. Two larger earthquakes adjacent to Anjar but outside of the Kutch rift are also found to be mainly reverse faulting with a minor strike-slip component. Judging from available information, the great Kutch event of 1819 is most likely a reverse faulting event.
Heterogeneous projections of the cat posteroventral cochlear nucleus

The anterograde tracer Phaseolus vulgaris-leucoagglutinin was used to identify the projections of the posteroventral cochlear nucleus in cats. After labeling predominately cells of the core and multipolar regions, varicose fibers were observed in a variety of auditory nuclei. Ipsilaterally, most varicose fibers were located in periolivary regions situated lateral to the medial superior olive of the superior olivary complex. Contralaterally, the majority of labeled fibers were located in the ventral nucleus of the trapezoid body and the ventral nucleus of the lateral lemniscus. Labeled varicose fibers were also observed in regions not commonly identified as receiving input from the posteroventral cochlear nucleus. These regions included bilaterally the principal nuclei of the superior olivary complex, some periolivary regions, and the sagulum, as well as the ipsilateral intermediate and dorsal nucleus of the lateral lemniscus, inferior colliculus, and lateral pontine nucleus. Both similarities and differences were observed in the projections of the core and multipolar regions. With the exception of calyceal-type endings in the contralateral ventral nucleus of the lateral lemniscus, the varicose fibers in all regions, including the contralateral medial nucleus of the trapezoid body, were beaded, en passant type terminal varicosities. J. Comp. Neurol. 390:439–453, 1998. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
T Cells Are Smad’ly in Love with Galectin-9

In this issue of Immunity, Wu et al. (2014) report that galectin-9 is required for the formation and stability of iTreg cells. Galectin-9 interacts with CD44 in association with TGF-β receptors to drive both Foxp3 and galectin-9 expression in a positive-feedforward loop involving Smad3 activation.
Quantitation of shock wave lithotripsy-induced lesion in small and large pig kidneys

BACKGROUND Shock wave lithotripsy (SWL) is known to cause injury to the kidney. However, it is not known how lesion size varies as the parameters of SWL treatment (number of shocks, kilovoltage, kidney size) are changed. This hypothesis could not be tested because there was no method available to quantitate accurately the SWL-induced renal lesion. METHODS A dosage of 2,000 shocks at 24 kV delivered by an unmodified Dornier HM3 lithotripter was applied to the lower pole calyx of the right kidney of small and large pig kidneys. A new method was developed to embed a whole pig kidney for serially sectioning, recording, and digitization. Automated computer color recognition made it possible to discriminate regions of hemorrhage from undamaged tissue and allowed quantitation of the lesion in single sections and in the entire kidney. RESULTS The new protocol resulted in an accurate identification of sites of hemorrhage and calculations of the volume fraction of injured renal tissue. Lesion size induced in small kidneys was significantly larger than that induced in the larger kidneys (7.6 +/- 1.2% and 1.6 +/- 0.7%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS Computer segmentation of serially sectioned SWL-treated kidneys has determined that kidney size is a risk factor for enhanced renal injury.
Bridging the Theory-Practice Divide: A Creative Approach to Effective Teacher Preparation.

Teacher educators need to remain current regarding the challenges that prospective teachers are going to face in their classrooms. One way to maintain this currency is for teacher educators periodically to spend some time in the K-12 classroom testing the theories they teach. This paper will discuss the benefits both teacher educators and prospective teachers will derive from engaging in such an activity. I. Introduction
Modeling and sensing risky user behavior on mobile devices

As mobile technology begins to dominate computing, understanding how their use impacts security becomes increasingly important. Fortunately, this challenge is also an opportunity: the rich set of sensors with which most mobile devices are equipped provide a rich contextual dataset, one that should enable mobile user behavior to be modeled well enough to predict when users are likely to act insecurely, and provide cognitively grounded explanations of those behaviors. We will evaluate this hypothesis with a series of experiments designed first to confirm that mobile sensor data can reliably predict user stress, and that users experiencing such stress are more likely to act insecurely.
Foramen of Morgagni hernia: changes in diagnosis and treatment.

Background. Foramen of Morgagni hernias are uncommon diaphragmatic hernias for which there are limited reported data. The purpose of this study is to report a recent case series of foramen of Morgagni hernias in the context of new diagnostic and treatment modalities. Methods. A retrospective chart review was performed over a 15-year period, from 1987 to 2001. Twelve patients who had a foramen of Morgagni hernia repaired at our hospital were identified, and data from these patients were collected. Results. The average age at treatment was 45 years, with 50% of patients being asymptomatic. Radiographic evaluation included computed tomography scans in two thirds of the patients with a 100% sensitivity for diagnosis. All hernias were right-sided, and the most common contents of the hernias were omentum and colon. The transabdominal route was the preferred surgical approach. Thoracoscopy was used in 2 patients to further characterize a mediastinal mass. Two patients underwent laparoscopic repair. Postoperative complications were infrequent, and there were no recurrences during a 6-month to 10-year follow-up. Conclusions. The emergence of highly accurate diagnostic computed tomography scans combined with less invasive surgical techniques utilizing laparoscopy and thoracoscopy has aided in the treatment of foramen of Morgagni hernias over the last 15 years.
Simplified Predictive Methodology For Nonlinear Repetitive Pulse And CW High Energy Laser Propagation

Systems analysis studies frequently require simplified predictive methodology for determining nonlinear thermal blooming effects on a high energy laser beam propagating through the atmosphere. Because of the many variables, tens of thousands of propagation runs may be required in the course of a systems study. As a result, the wave optics codes are generally not practical due to excessive computation times. A methodology highly suitable for systems analysis has been constructed by observing that a phase integral can be defined which has the properties of a similarity variable. For a particular aperture plane beam shape, a high energy laser beam propagating through a convective medium experiences beam spread due to thermal blooming which can accurately be correlated as a simple function of the phase integral. A few well chosen wave optics calculations provide the data base for the correlation which then becomes a "scaling law". This scaling law expresses the dependence of the non-linear beam spread as a function of beam properties such as power, pulse repetition frequency, wavelength, Fresnel number and atmospheric properties such as absorption, transmission and wind speed. This correlation is combined with formulations for jitter and turbulence providing the basis for a simple yet highly accurate predictive methodology.© (1979) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Narrative Review: The Pathophysiology of Fibromyalgia

Primary fibromyalgia is a common yet poorly understood syndrome characterized by diffuse chronic pain accompanied by other somatic symptoms, including poor sleep, fatigue, and stiffness, in the absence of disease. Fibromyalgia does not have a distinct cause or pathology. Nevertheless, in the past decade, the study of chronic pain has yielded new insights into the pathophysiology of fibromyalgia and related chronic pain disorders. Accruing evidence shows that patients with fibromyalgia experience pain differently from the general population because of dysfunctional pain processing in the central nervous system. Aberrant pain processing, which can result in chronic pain and associated symptoms, may be the result of several interplaying mechanisms, including central sensitization, blunting of inhibitory pain pathways, alterations in neurotransmitters, and psychiatric comorbid conditions. This review provides an overview of the mechanisms currently thought to be partly responsible for the chronic diffuse pain typical of fibromyalgia.
The equivalence of price and quantity competition with delegation

In a two-stage differentiated-products oligopoly model, profit-maximizing owners first choose incentive schemes in order to influence their managers' behavior. In the second stage, the managers compete either both in prices, both in quantities, or one in price and the other in quantity. If the owners have sufficient power to manipulated their managers' incentives, the equilibrium outcome is the same regardless of how the firms compete in the second stage. If demand is linear and marginal cost is constant, basing the manager's objective function on a linear combination of the firm's profit and its rival's profit is sufficient for the equivalence result. Copyright 2001 by the RAND Corporation.
Reduction of meteorological data from Cruise VII of the Carnegie

Before the Carnegie set out on her last cruise in May 1928, many of you heard about the program of meteorological observations to be carried out on that cruise. Perhaps you will now be interested to learn what has been done with the data that were obtained and something concerning the publication of the results. Hourly values of sea-surface temperature, air-temperature, relative humidity, vapor-pressure, and atmospheric pressure were obtained from the recording instruments for approximately 375 days of cruising in the open ocean. These values first had to be corrected for the usual instrumental and observational errors. One rather unusual correction which was made may be of interest. It was found possible to use the temperature-lapse between the deck and cross-trees to correct the mean daytime temperatures recorded in the Stevenson shelter on deck. It is believed that deck-temperatures so corrected more nearly represent the temperatures at the same height over the sea, though they probably are still too high during the daylight hours due to radiations from the deck, sails, etc. (K. B. Clarke, Mon. Weath. Rev., v. 59, 183–185, 1931).
Multicultural and Colorblind Ideology, Stereotypes, and Ethnocentrism among Black and White Americans

We examined Blacks' and Whites' perceptions of group variability and positivity as well as their beliefs about the extent to which multiculturalism and colorblindness would improve intergroup relations. In two studies, responses to questionnaires indicated that the tendency to endorse multiculturalism more than colorblindness was greater among Blacks than Whites; Blacks consistently endorsed multiculturalism more than colorblindness and Whites endorsed colorblindness more than did Blacks. Both studies also revealed evidence of out-group homogeneity and ethnocentrism. Stronger endorsement of multiculturalism relative to colorblindness predicted stronger stereotypes among Blacks, whereas stronger endorsement of colorblindness relative to multiculturalism predicted stronger stereotypes among Whites. In Study 2, stronger endorsement of multiculturalism relative to colorblindness predicted less ethnocentrism; this relationship did not depend on ethnicity.
An Exploration of Tinto's Integration Framework for Community College Students

Tinto's integration framework is often assumed to be inapplicable to the study of student persistence at community colleges because one of the linchpins of the framework—social integration—is considered unlikely to occur for students at these institutions. Community college students are thought to lack the time to participate in activities, such as clubs, that would facilitate social integration. Using in-depth interviews with students at two urban community colleges in the Northeast, we examine the ways that first-year community college students engage with their institutions. We find that the majority of them do develop attachments to their institutions. Moreover, this sense of attachment is related to their persistence in the second year of college. We also find that this integration is both academic and social. Contrary to findings from other studies that apply Tinto's framework, we find that these two forms of integration develop in concert for community college students. The same activities lead to ...
The fish story: a diet-heart hypothesis with clinical implications: n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, myocardial vulnerability, and sudden death.

Clinicians frequently are asked whether dietary fat intake influences the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD). However, many clinicians remain unclear about the role of dietary fat and fatty acids in the occurrence of CHD. The original diet–heart hypothesis focused on dietary saturated fat intake, serum cholesterol, and atherosclerosis; and, after more than 3 decades of research, it remains a source of controversy.1 Recent studies have focused on other dietary fatty acids, the n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) found in fish oil, and on a specific manifestation of CHD, sudden cardiac death.2–4 These studies suggest potentially large effects associated with modest dietary intake of n-3 PUFAs, but the findings also seem to conflict with other reports in the scientific literature.5,6 As a result, there is considerable clinical skepticism about the role of dietary fat and fatty acids in efforts to reduce CHD. See p 2646 The original diet–heart hypothesis was characterized by the following syllogism: (1) Dietary saturated fat intake increases serum cholesterol; (2) high serum cholesterol leads to atherosclerosis; and (3) atherosclerosis results in CHD morbidity and mortality. Taken individually, each element of this syllogism is supported by scientific evidence from one or more paradigms, including animal-experimental, genetic, pathological, nutritional, and ecological studies. However, epidemiological studies within populations have failed to consistently support the original diet–heart hypothesis. Some have attributed these negative studies to error in the measurement of saturated fat intake and/or a limited range in saturated fat intake within populations. Although a large, clinical primary prevention trial to test the original diet–heart hypothesis was considered, it was not conducted, in part, because of concerns about long-term adherence to dietary interventions to reduce saturated fat intake. Recently, a new diet–heart hypothesis has emerged. This diet–heart hypothesis focuses on the n-3 PUFAs and sudden cardiac death, …
Unscheduled multicasts in WDM broadcast-and-select networks

This paper considers the problem of scheduling multicast transmissions in a WDM broadcast based local area network. In very high speed networks optimal scheduling may be too time consuming and complex to be executed in real time, thus we are led to consider unscheduled (random) multicast transmissions. We consider two random scheduling schemes: in the first, a message is continuously retransmitted until it is received by all of its intended recipients; and in the second, a random delay is introduced between retransmissions of the same message. We develop an exact throughput analysis for both schemes using methods from discrete-time queueing systems and show that the algorithm with random delays between retransmissions results in higher throughput. Finally, we consider a number of receiver algorithms for selecting among multiple simultaneous transmissions and show that an algorithm where the receiver selects the message with the least number of intended recipients performs better than a random selection algorithm.
Mapping Chaparral in the Santa Monica Mountains Using Multiple Endmember Spectral Mixture Models

From Intro: A study was initiated in the Santa Monica Mountains to investigate the use of the Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS)for providing improved maps of chaparral coupled with direct estimates of canopy attributes (eg. biomass, leaf area, fuel load)...Analysis focused on AVIRIS data collected on October 19, 1994.
Impact of early life exposure to antiepileptic drugs on neurobehavioral outcomes based on laboratory animal and clinical research.

Abstract Epilepsy affects approximately 1% of children under the age of 15, making it a very common neurological disorder in the pediatric population (Russ et al., 2012 [1] ). In addition, ~ 0.4–0.8% of all pregnant women have some form of epilepsy (Hauser et al., 1996a,b; Borthen et al., 2009; Krishnamurthy, 2012 [2] , [3] , [4] , [5] ). Despite the potential deleterious effects of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) on the developing brain, their use is still required for seizure control in pregnant women (Krishnamurthy, 2012 [5] ), and they represent the standard approach for treating children with epilepsy (Chu-Shore and Thiele, 2010; Quach et al., 2010; Verrotti et al., 2011 [6] , [7] , [8] ). Even when AEDs are effective, there are potential side effects, including cognitive and affective changes or altered sleep and appetite. The consequences of AED exposure in development have been studied extensively (Canger et al., 1999; Modi et al., 2011a,b; Oguni, 2011 [9] , [10] , [11] , [12] ). Despite intensive study, there is still debate about the long-term consequences of early life AED exposure. Here, we consider the evidence to date that AED exposure, either prenatally or in early postnatal life, has significant adverse effects on the developing brain and incorporate studies of laboratory animals as well as those of patients. We also note the areas of research where greater clarity seems critical in order to make significant advances. A greater understanding of the impact of AEDs on somatic, cognitive and behavioral development has substantial value because it has the potential to inform clinical practice and guide studies aimed at understanding the genetic and molecular bases of comorbid pathologies associated with common treatment regimens. Understanding these effects has the potential to lead to AEDs with fewer side effects. Such advances would expand treatment options, diminish the risk associated with AED exposure in susceptible populations, and improve the quality of life and health outcomes of children with epilepsy and children born to women who took AEDs during pregnancy. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled “The Future of Translational Epilepsy Research”.
Optical-thermal design of laser-activated shape memory polymer microactuators

We are developing an intravascular device for mechanical thrombus removal using shape memory polymer. Laser heating activates the microactuator. Spectrophotometry, thermal imaging, and computer simulation aided the initial design effort and continue to be useful tools for optimization of the dye concentration and laser power.
Building on Young Children's Cultural Histories through Placemaking in the Classroom.

This article suggests placemaking as a framework to more deeply understand how teaching and learning can take into account young children's cultural histories. Placemaking, a form of analysis commonly found in land development literature, critically interprets the relationship between power, politics and the production of place. In this article, parallels are drawn between several tenets of placemaking, such as surveillance, self-definition, and a consciousness of solidarity, and the curricular spaces of a second-grade classroom as the children and their teacher participate in a biography project centered on the Harlem Renaissance. Through analysis of the class-wide inquiry, this article sheds light on the possibility for cultivating children's cultural imagination through placemaking in spite of political practices attempting to define in more narrow terms how teachers and children are to participate in the schooling spaces they inhabit.
Isometry Dimension of Finite Groups

Abstract We show that the isometry dimension of a finite group G is equal to the dimension of a minimal-dimensional faithful real representation of G . Using this result, we answer several questions of Albertson and Boutin [ J. Algebra 225 (2000), 947–955].
Spironolactone blocks glucocorticoid-mediated hearing preservation in autoimmune mice.

Hypothesis: Although autoimmune sensorineural hearing loss can be effectively treated with corticosteroids, little is known about how these drugs affect cochlear function. MRL/MpJ-Fas lpr autoimmune mice treated with a mineralocorticoid (aldosterone) have previously been shown to have hearing improvement equal to those treated with a glucocorticoid (prednisolone). This suggested that the restoration of hearing with steroids was the result of an effect on sodium transport rather than an antiinflammatory or immunosuppressive role. We hypothesized that corticosteroids reverse autoimmune hearing loss through the mineralocorticoid receptor and that blocking the mineralocorticoid receptor will prevent glucocorticoid effects. Methods: Spironolactone, a mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist, was administered to MRL/MpJ-Fas lpr autoimmune mice alone or in combination with corticosteroids. The four treatment groups were: spironolactone, spironolactone + aldosterone, spironolactone + prednisolone, and untreated water controls. Auditory brainstem response (ABR) thresholds were recorded before and during treatment (2, 3, and 4 mo) to measure the effect of steroids on hearing decline. Results: Hearing in spironolactone and spironolactone + prednisolone mice showed progressive decline in hearing similar to water controls. The hearing was preserved in spironolactone + aldosterone mice, presumably as a result of the fact that aldosterone has a higher affinity for the mineralocorticoid receptor than spironolactone. Thus, aldosterone was able to maintain cochlear function with autoimmune disease progression, similar to previous reports of aldosterone treatment effects. Conclusions: Spironolactone effectively blocked prednisolone from improving hearing in MRL/MpJ-Fas lpr autoimmune mice. This offers evidence that the inner ear mineralocorticoid receptor is the therapeutic target for corticosteroids used to treat autoimmune and sudden sensorineural hearing loss. Pharmacologic treatments that selectively target the mineralocorticoid receptor may provide greater clinical benefit with fewer systemic side effects than prednisone in patients with autoimmune sensorineural hearing loss.
Consumer preferences for imported kona coffee in South India a latent class analysis.

Considering India as a potential export market for 100% Kona coffee, this study explores consumer preferences for imported, specialty, high- end Kona coffee in South India. Conjoint choice experiment with latent class analysis is use d and results indicate that India offers an export market potential for Kona coffee, provided i t caters to consumer preferences. Results show a significant preference for strong taste. The relative importance of price is lower than taste but majority are also adverse to higher prices. How ever,15% of the sample population does not care about price but does care about taste, indicat ing the possibility of a high-end niche market segment. Based on the results, marketing strategies and policy recommendations have been suggested.