cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Characterization of Expressed Sequence Tag–Derived Simple Sequence Repeat Markers for Aspergillus flavus: Emphasis on Variability of Isolates from the Southern United States

Simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers were developed from Aspergillus flavus expressed sequence tag (EST) database to conduct an analysis of genetic relationships of Aspergillus isolates from numerous host species and geographical regions, but primarily from the United States. Twenty-nine primers were designed from 362 tri-nucleotide EST-SSR sequences. Eighteen polymorphic loci were used to genotype 96 Aspergillus species isolates. The number of alleles detected per locus ranged from 2 to 24 with a mean of 8.2 alleles. Haploid diversity ranged from 0.28 to 0.91. Genetic distance matrix was used to perform principal coordinates analysis (PCA) and to generate dendrograms using unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA). Two principal coordinates explained more than 75 % of the total variation among the isolates. One clade was identified for A. flavus isolates (n = 87) with the other Aspergillus species (n = 7) using PCA, but five distinct clusters were present when the others taxa were excluded from the analysis. Six groups were noted when the EST-SSR data were compared using UPGMA. However, the latter PCA or UPGMA comparison resulted in no direct associations with host species, geographical region or aflatoxin production. Furthermore, there was no direct correlation to visible morphological features such as sclerotial types. The isolates from Mississippi Delta region, which contained the largest percentage of isolates, did not show any unusual clustering except for isolates K32, K55, and 199. Further studies of these three isolates are warranted to evaluate their pathogenicity, aflatoxin production potential, additional gene sequences (e.g., RPB2), and morphological comparisons.
Mg2+ efflux from the isolated perfused rabbit heart is mediated by two states of the β1-adrenergic receptor

The non-selective β-adrenergic receptor agonist isoproterenol stimulates Mg2+ efflux from the perfused heart. The β-adrenergic receptor subtype governing Mg2+ efflux was determined in rabbit hearts perfused by the method of Langendorff with Mg2+-free Krebs Henseleit buffer. Magnesium efflux was examined during infusion of isoproterenol (a non-selective β-adrenergic agonist), dobutamine (β1-selective), salbutamol (β2-selective), BRL37344 in the presence of 200 nM propranolol (β3-selective conditions) or CGP12177 (β3/low affinity state β1-selective). Isoproterenol increased Mg2+ efflux in a dose-dependent manner, and was the most potent and efficacious agent used. Dobutamine and CGP12177 each significantly increased Mg2+ efflux, but with markedly different time characteristics. Dobutamine induced significantly less Mg2+ release than isoproterenol. Although the maximal effect of CGP12177 on Mg2+ release was 30% less than that of isoproterenol, the difference was not statistically significant. Neither salbutamol nor BRL37344 had any effect on Mg2+ efflux. These results suggest that isoproterenol-induced Mg2+ efflux is mediated by both the high and low affinity states of the β1AR, with the low affinity state making the larger contribution.
Plasma and dietary cholesterol in infancy: effects of early low or moderate dietary cholesterol intake on subsequent response to increased dietary cholesterol.

Abstract Variations in dietary cholesterol and polyunsaturated or saturated fatty acids were studied in the first yr of life in 21 normal and 18 hypercholesterolemic neonates to determine if the amount of dietary cholesterol in early infancy affects subsequent adaptation to increased dietary cholesterol in later infancy and childhood. At age 12 mo, plasma cholesterol levels in normal ( 129 mg 100 ml ) and hypercholesterolemic infants ( 200 mg 100 ml ) did not appear to be influenced by antecedent low or moderate cholesterol intake in early infancy.
Theoretical model for the equilibrium behavior of DNA superhelices.

A statistical-mechanical model for superhelical DNA is presented. The partition function for a DNA superhelix is written by using a combinatorial approach in order to allow for the known relation between the number of superhelical twists and the states of the base pairs in the double helix. While the theory allows any factors which might contribute to the free energy of superhelical twisting to be included in the statistical weights of the superhelical twists, only the reduction in configurational entropy is considered in this paper. Similarities between an imperfectly matched DNA double helix and a DNA superhelix are used in the derivation of expressions for the entropy of superhelical DNA. Although the partition function is presented in a general form, permitting many equilibrium properties of DNA superhelices to be treated, the application considered in this paper is the calculation of helix–coil transition curves. Several experimentally observed features of such transitions are predicted. For example, the curves are bimodal, with an early and a late transition relative to that of a nicked molecule. The results are very sensitive to the volume within which two parts of the double helix must meet when forming a superhelical twist. The free energy of superhelix formation is calculated, and the results are compared with those obtained from the data of Bauer and Vinograd for ethidium bromide intercalation. In the present model, the free energy increases less sharply with an increase in the number of superhelical twists than observed experimentally, indicating that factors other than configurational entropy probably make important contributions to the free energy of superhelix formation.
A schedulability condition for deadline-ordered service disciplines

In a deadline-ordered service discipline, packets are assigned transmission deadlines and eligibility times and are transmitted in increasing order of deadlines. Different deadline-ordered service disciplines are distinguished by how they calculate deadlines and eligibility times. One of the more difficult analytical problems one faces when designing a new deadline-ordered service discipline is to prove that one can bound the end of transmission times of packets relative to their assigned deadlines, which we call schedulability. We show that, no matter how one calculates deadlines, there is a simple schedulability condition for deadline-ordered service disciplines. This schedulability condition is necessary and sufficient for preemptive deadline-ordered service disciplines, and for a server that allows the presence of nonreal-time packets (i.e., packets with no deadlines), it is also necessary and sufficient for nonpreemptive deadline-ordered service disciplines. We also address the schedulability problem for service disciplines in general, and show the optimality of deadline-ordered service disciplines. To demonstrate how our results simplify schedulability determination, we use them to prove the known schedulability conditions of VirtualClock, Packet-by-Packet Generalized Processor Sharing (PGPS), Stop-and-Go, and Delay-Earliest-Due-Date (Delay-EDD), and to provide a new result, the necessary schedulability condition of VirtualClock.
A Revised Natural History Model for Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis

Objective To describe a natural history model for primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) that is based on routine clinical findings and test results and eliminates the need for liver biopsy. Patients and Methods Using the Cox proportional hazards analysis, we created a survival model based on 405 patients with PSC from 5 clinical centers. Independent validation of the model was undertaken by applying it to 124 patients who were not included in the model creation. Results Based on the multivariate analysis of 405 patients, a risk score was defined by the following formula: R=0.03 (age [y]) + 0.54 log e (bilirubin [mg/dL]) + 0.54 log e (aspartate aminotransferase [U/L]) + 1.24 (variceal bleeding [0/1]) – 0.84 (albumin [g/dL]). The risk score was used to obtain survival estimates up to 4 years of follow-up. Application of this model to an independent group of 124 patients showed good correlation between estimated and actual survival. Conclusions A new model to estimate patient survival in PSC includes more reproducible variables (age, bilirubin, albumin, aspartate aminotransferase, and history of variceal bleeding), has accuracy comparable to previous models, and obviates the need for a liver biopsy.
Black–White Summer Learning Gaps Interpreting the Variability of Estimates Across Representations

The estimation of racial test score gap trends plays an important role in monitoring educational equality. Documenting gap trends is complex, however, and estimates can differ depending on the metr...
Serial echocardiography using tissue Doppler and speckle tracking imaging to monitor right ventricular failure before and after left ventricular assist device surgery.

Objectives This study aimed to investigate the utility of serial tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) and speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) for monitoring right ventricular failure (RVF) after left ventricular assist device (LVAD) surgery. Background RVF post-LVAD is a devastating adverse event. Methods The authors prospectively studied 68 patients undergoing elective LVAD surgery. Echocardiograms were performed within 72 h before and 72 h after surgery. RVF was pre-specified as: 1) the need for salvage right ventricular assist device (RVAD); or 2) persistent need for inotrope and/or pulmonary vasodilator therapy 14 days after surgery. Patients were classified as Group RVF or Group Non-RVF. Results A total of 24 patients (35.3%) met criteria for RVF. Preoperative TDI-derived S’ was lower and RV E/E’ ratio was higher (3.7 ± 0.6 cm/s vs. 4.7 ± 0.9 cm/s, 12.0 ± 2.3 vs. 10.0 ± 2.5, both p l 0.001, respectively), and the absolute value of RV longitudinal strain (RV-strain) obtained from STE was lower (–12.6 ± 3.3% vs. –16.2 ± 4.3%, p l 0.001) in Group RVF vs. Group Non-RVF. Echo parameters within 72 h after surgery showed higher RV-E/E’, (13.9 ± 4.6 vs. 10.1 ± 3.0, p l 0.001) and lower RV-strain (–11.8 ± 3.5% vs. –16.7 ± 4.4%, p l 0.001) in Group RVF vs. Group Non-RVF. Preoperative S’l4.4 cm/s, RV-E/E’>10 and RV-strain l –14% discriminated patients who developed RVF at day 14 with a predictive accuracy of 76.5%. When we included postoperative RV-E/E’ and RV-strain, the predictive accuracy increased to 80.9%, with a sensitivity of 66.7% and a specificity of 88.7%. Conclusions Serial echocardiograms using TDI and STE before and soon after LVAD surgery may aid in identifying need to initiate targeted RVF specific therapy in this population.
Pastors' Retirement: Crisis Beyond the Shrinking of Social Security

This article examines the financial aspect of pastors' retirement using pastors from Korean churches in the Southern California area. Although the sample may not exactly reflect the retirement preparation of Korean pastors in Southern California, it is amazing that only a small number of churches consider their pastors retirement seriously and provide help into their golden years. In addition, the fact that more than 85% of the pastors do not prepare for their retirement brings the seriousness of the problem to attention. The findings that smaller churches and lower salaried pastors have much less retirement savings worsens the situation. The research results will assist church leaders in establishing a plan to provide pastors with a better quality of life in the retirement years.
Planning Environmental Risk Assessment for Genetically Modified Crops: Problem Formulation for Stress-Tolerant Crops

A scientifically sound environmental risk assessment is required for crops derived from modern biotechnology (also referred to as genetically modified [GM]) prior to unrestricted release into the environment. The scientific principles underlying the environmental risk assessments completed for
RISC versus CISC

The author carries out a comparison of CISC (complex instruction set computing) and RISC (reduced instruction set computing). The author discusses what RISC is and its shortcomings. The evolution of CISC and RISC microprocessors is then discussed and prospects for the future are examined. >
Transducer protein HtrI controls proton movements in sensory rhodopsin I.

Abstract Sensory rhodopsin I (SR-I λ max 587 nm) is a phototaxis receptor in the archaeon Halobacterium salinarium . Photoisomerization of retinal in SR-I generates a long-lived intermediate with λ max 373 nm which transmits a signal to the membrane-bound transducer protein HtrI. Although SR-I is structurally similar to the electrogenic proton pump bacteriorhodopsin (BR), early studies showed its photoreactions do not pump protons, nor result in membrane hyperpolarization. These studies used functionally active SR-I, that is, SR-I complexed with its transducer HtrI. Using recombinant DNA methods we have expressed SR-I protein containing mutations in ionizable residues near the protonated Schiff base, and studied wild-type and site-specifically mutated SR-I in the presence and absence of the transducer protein. UV-Vis kinetic absorption spectroscopy, FT-IR, and pH and membrane potential probes reveal transducer-free SR-I photoreactions result in vectorial proton translocation across the membrane in the same direction as that of BR. This proton pumping is suppressed by interaction with transducer which diverts the proton movements into an electroneutral path. A key step in this diversion is that transducer interaction raises the p K a of the aspartyl residue in SR-I (Asp76) which corresponds to the primary proton-accepting residue in the BR pump (Asp85). In transducer-free SR-I, our evidence indicates the p K a of Asp76 is 7.2, and ionized Asp76 functions as the Schiff base proton acceptor in the SR-I pump. In the SR-I/HtrI complex, the p K a of Asp76 is 8.5, and therefore at physiological pH (7.4) Asp76 is neutral. Protonation changes on Asp76 are clearly not required for signaling since the SR-I mutants D76N and D76A are active in phototaxis. The latent proton-translocation potential of SR-I may reflect the evolution of the SR-I sensory signaling mechanism from the proton pumping mechanism of BR.
Intermetallic compound layer formation between copper and hot-dipped 100In, 50In-50Sn, 100Sn, and 63Sn-37Pb coatings

The growth kinetics of intermetallic compound layers formed between four hot-dipped solder coatings and copper by solid state, thermal aging were examined. The solders were l00Sn, 50In-50Sn, 100In, and 63Sn-37Pb (wt.%); the substrate material was oxygen-free, high conductivity Cu. The total intermetallic layer of the 100Sn/Cu system exhibited a combination of parabolic growth at lower aging temperatures and t0.42 growth at the higher temperatures. The combined apparent activation energy was 66 kJ/mol. These results are compared to the total layer growth observed with the 63Sn-37Pb/Cu system which showed parabolic kinetics at similar temperatures and an apparent activation energy of 45 kJ/mol. Both 100Sn and 63Sn-37Pb diffusion couples showed a composite intermetallic layer comprised of Cu3Sn and Cu6Sn5. The intermetallic compound layer formed between In and Cu changed from a CuIn2 stoichiometry at short annealing times to a Cu57In43 composition at longer periods. The growth kinetics were parabolic with an apparent activation energy of 20 kJ/mol. The intermetallic layer growth of the 50In-50Sn/Cu system exhibited extreme variations in the layer thicknesses which prohibited a quantitative assessment of the growth kinetics. The layer was comprised of two compounds: Cu26Sn13In8 which was the dominant phase and a thin layer of Cu17Sn9In24 adjacent to the solder.
An energy-independent multipole analysis of pion photoproduction on protons below 450 MeV

Abstract In this paper results are presented of a multipole analysis of pion photoproduction on protons at 27 energies below a photon lab energy of 450 MeV, using almost all existing data. The analysis gives rise to one continuous solution. It is shown, however, that when omitting certain asymmetry ratio data, another solution is possible. The latter is closer to certain dispersion-theoretic predictions. A comparison of the solutions to the data and predictions for unmeasured quantities are given. In addition, the solutions are used to evaluate total cross sections for π + and π 0 photoproduction. As a byproduct of certain fits, the π N coupling constant is evaluated from forward π + differential cross sections. A comparison of the solutions is made to two other multipole analyses.
Group consumption, free-riding, and informal reciprocity agreements

We examine conditions under which group consumption is likely to involve informal reciprocity agreements rather than a price system. Our model shows that reciprocity agreements are used when transactions costs are high, the good is inexpensive, demand is inelastic, the group continues to interact over time, the consumers are patient, the time between interactions is short, and the group is small and homogeneous. Further, the results suggest that reciprocity agreements are likely to involve goods that are consumed along with other group benefits, such as companionship. We use the model to analyze overlapping social networks and investments in social capital.
Estrogenicity of benzophenones evaluated with a recombinant yeast assay: Comparison of experimental and rules‐based predicted activity

In a previous study, structure-based rules were formulated to predict estrogenicity of phenolic molecules. The determination of estrogenic activity (EC50) and acute toxicity (LC50) of benzophenones was undertaken, and experimental and predicted estrogenic potency values were compared. The Saccharomyces cerevisiae-based lac-Z reporter assay was used to generate experimental data. Estrogenicity was measured colormetrically as β-galactosidase activity. On the basis of the series of rules, β-galac-tosidase activity was predicted correctly for 14 of the 18 benzophenones tested. As predicted, benzophenone, as well as derivatives with a methyl-, chloro-, or nitro-substituent, exhibited no β-galactosidase activity. As anticipated, 4-hydroxybenzophenone exhibited weak β-galactosidase activity (EC50 value of e-06 M). The 3-hydroxybenzophenone exhibited almost the same activity as the 4-hydroxy derivative, whereas the 2-hydroxy derivative was nonactive. It was observed while replacing the para-hydroxyl group with an amino moiety decreased β-galactosidase activity by a half order of magnitude, replacement of the para-hydroxy moiety with a methoxy group negated activity. The nonsymmetrical trihydroxylated benzophenone exhibited activity near to the monohydrox-yl derivative. Near symmetrical tri- and symmetrical tetrahydroxylated benzophenones were determined to have greater estrogenic activity (EC50 values of e-07 M) than nonsymmetrical molecules. A comparison of estrogenicity (EC50) with acute toxicity (LC50) reveals a less than a 10-fold difference in activities for weaker estrogenic compounds. However, the more hydrophilic, stronger estrogenic compounds typically exhibit a difference of two to three orders of magnitude between EC50 and LC50 values.
Metacultural positioning in language socialization: Inhabiting authority in informal teaching among Peruvian Aymara siblings

Abstract In this article, I give an account of informal teaching among siblings as a caretaking practice among Peruvian, Aymara speaking children. To do so, I draw upon a notion of “metaculture” ( Urban, 2001 ) or a “theory of the cultural” to account for the sense in which informal teaching practices imply a form of authoritative, reflexive positioning toward the normativities qua normativities (“culture”) of everyday social life. Drawing on an analysis of interview data, I give an account of an Aymara “folk pedagogy” in which identities like oldest, older, and younger sibling are interpretable as forms of metacultural social positioning. An analysis of a series of video-recordings shows the way in which – that is, through acts of “correction” – older siblings deploy a theory of the cultural as they informally instruct their younger siblings.
Trauma and Aggressive Homeostasis Management

Three important issues concerning homeostasis in the acute care of trauma patients that are related directly to the stress response are hyperglycemia, lactic acidosis, and hypothermia. Recently, there has been a resurgence of interest in investigating the effects of aggressive thermal and glucose concentration and volume resuscitation on outcomes in critically ill and trauma patients. Significant reason exists to question the "conventional wisdom" relating to current approaches to restoring homeostasis in this patient population.
Volcanic Dust in the Atmosphere and the Interpretation of African Eclipse Traditions

The purpose of this discussion is to call attention to the presence at various times of large quantities of volcanic dust in the atmosphere. Remarkable visual effects from this dust may imply hitherto unconsidered problems in identifying alleged references to solar eclipses in African chronicles and oral traditions. Climatologist Hubert Lamb has compiled the data on volcanic eruptions and dust veils since 1500 AD and attempted to determine possible meteorological effects.1 Contemporary notions of volcanic activity are predisposed to spectacular lava flows, which make more interesting journalism and greater popular interest. However, eruptions characterized by free-flowing lava -conventionally termed Type A -are relatively unimportant in the volcanic dust question. We are interested in so-called Type B events, usually violent explosions resulting from the inability of lava or steam to find convenient outlets. Such an explosion may inject huge quantities of dust and debris into the atmosphere, causing a wide variety of visual anomalies as they are carried around the world by high-altitude winds. If the dust veil is sufficiently dense it may even cause short-term alterations in weather patterns. Easily the best known Type B event of large magnitude occurred at Krakatau Island in the Sunda Strait between Java and
Including fluid shear viscosity in a structural acoustic finite element model using a scalar fluid representation.

Abstract An approximate boundary condition is developed in this paper to model fluid shear viscosity at boundaries of coupled fluid–structure system. The effect of shear viscosity is approximated by a correction term to the inviscid boundary condition, written in terms of second order in-plane derivatives of pressure. Both thin and thick viscous boundary layer approximations are formulated; the latter subsumes the former. These approximations are used to develop a variational formation, upon which a viscous finite element method (FEM) model is based, requiring only minor modifications to the boundary integral contributions of an existing inviscid FEM model. Since this FEM formulation has only one degree of freedom for pressure, it holds a great computational advantage over the conventional viscous FEM formulation which requires discretization of the full set of linearized Navier–Stokes equations. The results from thick viscous boundary layer approximation are found to be in good agreement with the prediction from a Navier–Stokes model. When applicable, thin viscous boundary layer approximation also gives accurate results with computational simplicity compared to the thick boundary layer formulation. Direct comparison of simulation results using the boundary layer approximations and a full, linearized Navier–Stokes model are made and used to evaluate the accuracy of the approximate technique. Guidelines are given for the parameter ranges over which the accurate application of the thick and thin boundary approximations can be used for a fluid–structure interaction problem.
Modern imaging of the masseter muscle: Normal anatomy and pathosis on CT and MRI

Abstract Tremendous advances in diagnostic imaging technology have produced computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging—new ways to depict the normal anatomy and pathosis of the masseter muscle. This article reviews the masseter muscle's normal appearance on CT and MR images and demonstrates the clarity with which CT, in particular, is able to depict soft tissue lesions and neighboring bony involvement. Analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, and availability of these new techniques leads to the conclusion that CT is currently the test of choice for imaging masseteric lesions but that MR shows greater promise for the future.
IBM system z10 design for RAS

The IBM System z10™ server reliability, availability, and serviceability (RAS) design continues to reduce the sources of server outages through innovative RAS architecture and techniques. The z10™ server introduced functional improvements that challenged the RAS design. Increases were made in the performance of each processor, the total number of processors, the total size of the memory, the amount of cache, the bandwidth of the I/O, the thermal density, and the exposure to soft errors. These changes demanded stronger RAS functions to prevent unscheduled outages. Significant improvements were made to the IBM e-business on demand® functions (concurrent, customer-requested upgrades) that enable customers to better manage capacity without having to take planned outages. The hypervisor simplified configuration changes, such as adding cryptography or channel subsystems to logical partitions, by eliminating the need for preplanning. Single-core checkstopping and single transparent CPU (central processing unit) sparing were added. The RAS functions reduced the number of scheduled outages. Product improvements were complemented by improvements in RAS modeling. This paper describes these RAS improvements and how they provide value to the customer.
The Analytic Element Method for rectangular gridded domains, benchmark comparisons and application to the High Plains Aquifer

Abstract Groundwater studies face computational limitations when providing local detail (such as well drawdown) within regional models. We adapt the Analytic Element Method (AEM) to extend separation of variable solutions for a rectangle to domains composed of multiple interconnected rectangular elements. Each rectangle contains a series solution that satisfies the governing equations and coefficients are adjusted to match boundary conditions at the edge of the domain and continuity conditions across adjacent rectangles. A complete mathematical implementation is presented including matrices to solve boundary and continuity conditions. This approach gathers the mathematical functions associated with head and velocity within a small set of functions for each rectangle, enabling fast computation of these variables. Benchmark studies verify that conservation of mass and energy conditions are accurately satisfied using a method of images solution, and also develop a solution for heterogeneous hydraulic conductivity with log normal distribution. A case study illustrates that the methods are capable of modeling local detail within a large-scale regional model of the High Plains Aquifer in the central USA and reports the numerical costs associated with increasing resolution, where use is made of GIS datasets for thousands of rectangular elements each with unique geologic and hydrologic properties, Methods are applicable to interconnected rectangular domains in other fields of study such as heat conduction, electrical conduction, and unsaturated groundwater flow.
Surface-plasmon-assisted resonant tunneling of light through a periodically corrugated thin metal film

We present experimental results and a numerical model confirming that surface plasmons can resonantly enhance light transmission through a corrugated metal film. A new interpretation in terms of plasmon-assisted light tunneling is given to recent experiments on light penetration through periodic subwavelength holes in a thin metal film. We designed a narrow-band filter suitable for applications in optical communication by optimizing the film and the grating parameters.
Neutron Activation Analysis of Microleakage Around a Hydrophobic Composite Restorative

Neutron activation analysis with dysprosium as a tracer was employed to determine quantitatively the microleakage around the restorations of an experimental hydrophobic composite, as well as a commercial composite. Only a negligible uptake of tracer was obtained for the experimental composite, whereas a five-fold uptake was recorded for the commercial composite. Capillary penetration of fluid around a restoration could be greatly reduced by using a hydrophobic composite.
Structure and Function of Holliday Junctions Complexed with Ions and HU Protein

DNA four-way junctions (4WJ) are central intermediates in processes such as replication and recombination. This project studies how different conformations of the junction relate to function, and how proteins interact with the junction to enhance or repress function. Previously, we have examined the 4WJ structure in the presence of different ions, and used Forster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) to map the binding site of the protein HU onto the junction. It was found that in the presence of high salt concentrations the junction is stabilized into a stacked form rather than open form. These FRET measurements were used to build four different models for the binding of HU protein to the Holliday Junction, an interaction with a stoichiometry of 2 to 1. This was followed by molecular dynamics simulation to ensure that the models were energetically stable. The three stable models included HU bound to the major groove, minor groove, or face to face. The fourth model, which contained an open junction, though stable, did not agree with the FRET data acquired for the system, and was therefore not considered plausible. To distinguish between these models further FRET measurements are needed to narrow the possible orientations for HU binding the junction. To address the function of the protein bound junction, a new, migrating four way junction is being created and characterized. This junction will be analyzed by FRET in the presence of different ions and possibly HU as well to compare to the characteristics of the stationary junction used in the previous experiments. We will also be examining the free energy of both the mobile and immobile junctions by molecular dynamics to analyze the stability of each construct on their own and when complexed with HU.
Automated Architectural Exploration for Signal Processing Algorithms

This paper presents a design environment for efficiently generating application-specific Intellectual Property (IP) cores for system level signal processing algorithms. We present our view of a framework that combines common electronic design automation (EDA) tools to alleviate the designer from manually constructing the hardware models and analyzing their performance. We use our framework to efficiently implement design optimizations that improve the performance of the overall hardware architectures. Our framework is well suited for designers with a range of signal processing and hardware expertise. Our framework generates the dedicated IP cores and estimates the performance such as area, critical path delay, and latency within seconds. Parts of our framework also compare different hardware designs for various digital signal processing (DSP) algorithms and allows the designer to make architectural decisions earlier in the hardware design process. We use a GUI-based framework invoked from MATLAB to automatically build and analyze the hardware designs. Our framework generates efficient hardware designs described in SystemC and Verilog code, along with the performance metrics for each architecture. We illustrate the use of our framework by exploring and analyzing architectural variations of two case studies: finite impulse response (FIR) filters and adaptive channel equalizers.
Evaluation of antioxidant and proinflammatory gene expression in bovine mammary tissue during the periparturient period.

The incidence and severity of mastitis can be high during the period of transition from pregnancy to lactation when dairy cattle are susceptible to oxidative stress. Oxidative stress may contribute to the pathogenesis of mastitis by modifying the expression of proinflammatory genes. The overall goal of this study was to determine the relationship between critical antioxidant defense mechanisms and proinflammatory markers in normal bovine mammary tissue during the periparturient period. Mammary tissue samples were obtained from 12 cows at 35, 20, and 7 d before expected calving and during early lactation (EL, 15 to 28 d in milk). Enzyme activities for cytosolic glutathione peroxidase and phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase were relatively low during the dry period, but increased during EL, whereas activity of thioredoxin reductase 1 did not change significantly as a function of time. In contrast, gene expression for these antioxidant selenoproteins and for heme oxygenase-1 gradually decreased as parturition approached and then increased during EL. The expression of intercellular vascular adhesion molecule-1 and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 followed a similar trend where mRNA abundance gradually declined as parturition approached with a slight rebound in EL. Gene expression of the pro-oxidant, 15-lipoxygenase 1, which is known to increase during times of oxidative stress, also increased dramatically in mammary tissue from EL cows. Expression of the proinflammatory cytokines, IL-1β, IL-6, and IL-8 did not change significantly during the periparturient period. Strong positive correlations were found between several antioxidant enzymes (cytosolic glutathione peroxidase, thioredoxin reductase 1, and heme oxygenase-1) and vascular adhesion molecules (intercellular vascular adhesion molecule-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule-1) suggesting a protective response of these antioxidants to an enhanced proinflammatory state. Ability to control oxidative stress through manipulation of key antioxidant enzymes in the future may modify the proinflammatory state of periparturient cows and reduce incidence and severity of some diseases such as mastitis.
The Early History of the Russian Peasantry

The agitation in mid-nineteenth-century Russia for the abolition of serfdom gave the first great stimulus to Russian scholarly interest in the history of the peasantry. The persistence of the land problem down to the Revolution and since then the Soviet preoccupation with the primary producer have kept alive this interest. As a result, a large number of studies of the agrarian history of their country, many of them works of high value, have been written by Russian scholars both before and since 1917. One of the most recent and most important contributions to the literature of this subject has been made by B. D. Grekov in his history of the peasantry from earliest times to the seventeenth century. Although its author remains carefully within the doctrinal limits imposed by the current standards of orthodoxy in Soviet historiography, his work is indispensable for the study not only of agrarian history but of all phases of early Russian history.
Initial flight test results of Ohio University's 3-Dimensional Cockpit Display of Traffic Information

This paper discusses the initial flight test results of a 3-Dimensional Cockpit Display of Traffic Information (3D-CDTI). Ohio University's 3D-CDTI is a display format that combines existing Synthetic Vision System and Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast research. The goal of the 3D-CDTI is to contribute to the development of new display concepts for NASA's Small Aircraft Transportation System research program.
Differential interaction between cassava mosaic geminiviruses and geminivirus satellites.

Geminiviruses are often associated with subviral agents called DNA satellites that require proteins encoded by the helper virus for their replication, movement and encapsidation. Hitherto, most of the single-stranded DNA satellites reported to be associated with members of the family Geminiviridae have been associated with monopartite begomoviruses. Cassava mosaic disease is known to be caused by viruses belonging to nine different begomovirus species in the African continent and the Indian subcontinent. In addition to these species, several strains have been recognized that exhibit contrasting phenotypes and infection dynamics. It is established that Sri Lankan cassava mosaic virus can trans-replicate betasatellites and can cross host barriers. To extend these studies further, we carried out an exhaustive investigation of the ability of geminiviruses, selected to represent all cassava-infecting geminivirus species, to trans-replicate betasatellites (DNA-β) and to interact with alphasatellites (nanovirus-like components; previously called DNA-1). Each of the cassava-infecting geminiviruses showed a contrasting and differential interaction with the DNA satellites, not only in the capacity to interact with these molecules but also in the modulation of symptom phenotypes by the satellites. These observations could be extrapolated to field situations in order to hypothesize about the possibility of acquisition of such DNA satellites currently associated with other begomoviruses. These results call for more detailed analyses of these subviral components and an investigation of their possible interaction with the cassava mosaic disease complex.
Performance of traffic management strategies for interconnected high-speed local and metropolitan area networks

Interconnected high-speed local and metropolitan area networks are considered in which call-oriented resource allocation mechanisms are used for traffic management. Management domains are defined for the network, and call requests must be admitted by the appropriate domain manager. Assuming Poisson arrival rates and exponential service times, the state process can be modeled as a Markov process with the state defined as the number of active calls of each call type at time t. An equilibrium distribution can be found for this process, but the state space quickly becomes intractable with increases in link capacities and in the number of subnetworks. To reduce the state space, the network is partitioned into subnetwork groups, assuming independence. The probability of blocking can be calculated iteratively and leads to an approximate equilibrium distribution of the system. From these values the desired performance measures are computed: network utilization, delay, throughput, and packet loss probabilities. An example is presented which illustrates the effects of various surveillance strategies and decision policies on network performance. Implementing the iterative procedure using parallel processing is considered. >
A Shape Representation for Planar Curves by Shape Signature Harmonic Embedding

This paper introduces a new representation for planar curves. From the well-known Dirichlet problem for a disk, the harmonic function embedded in a circular disk is solely dependent on specified boundary values and can be obtained from Poissons integral formula. We derive a discrete version of Poissons formula and assess its harmonic properties. Various shape signatures can be used as boundary values, whereas only the corresponding Fourier descriptors are needed for the framework. The proposed approach is similar to a scale space representation but exhibits greater generality by accommodating using any type of shape signature. In addition, it is robust to noise and computationally efficient, and it is guaranteed to have a unique solution. In this paper, we demonstrate that the approach has strong potential for shape representation and matching applications.
Mortgage Delinquency and Changes in Access to Health Resources and Depressive Symptoms in a Nationally Representative Cohort of Americans Older Than 50 Years

Objectives. We evaluated associations between mortgage delinquency and changes in health and health-relevant resources over 2 years, with data from the Health and Retirement Study, a longitudinal survey representative of US adults older than 50 years.Methods. In 2008, participants reported whether they had fallen behind on mortgage payments since 2006 (n = 2474). We used logistic regression to compare changes in health (incidence of elevated depressive symptoms, major declines in self-rated health) and access to health-relevant resources (food, prescription medications) between participants who fell behind on their mortgage payments and those who did not.Results. Compared with nondelinquent participants, the mortgage-delinquent group had worse health status and less access to health-relevant resources at baseline. They were also significantly more likely to develop incident depressive symptoms (odds ratio [OR] = 8.60; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 3.38, 21.85), food insecurity (OR = 7.53; 95% CI = 3.01, ...
Solar energy shortage

According to the results of a recent study by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), there has been a decrease of a tenth of a percent in the total amount of solar energy reaching the earth over the 18-month period from February 1980 to August 1981. This conclusion is based on data obtained from the Active Cavity Radiometer Irradiance Monitor (ACRIM) that is incorporated onto the Solar Maximum Mission satellite. The results are significant for studies of the physics and geophysics of the sun and could have implications for short- and long-term weather patterns on the earth's surface. The ACRIM has a precision of better than 10 4, whereas the uncertainties in the best earth-based observations are on the order of 1% to 2%. The JPL group conducting the study suggests that the decrease in the sun's energy may even have been a factor in this year's unusually harsh winter.
Jensen-R&#233;nyi Divergence for Source Separation on the Time-Frequency Plane

Blind source separation aims at recovering the original source signals given only observations of their mixtures. Some common approaches to the source separation problem include second or higher order statistics based methods, and independent component analysis. Most of these methods are developed in the time domain, and thus, inherently assume the stationarity of the underlying signals. Since most real life signals of interest are non–stationary, there have been efforts to perform source separation in the time–frequency domain. In this paper, we propose a new approach for source separation on the time–frequency plane using an information–theoretic cost function. Jensen–Renyi divergence, as adapted to time–frequency distributions, is introduced as an effective cost function to extract sources that are disjoint on the time–frequency plane. The sources are extracted through a series of Givens rotations and the optimal rotation angle is found using the steepest descent algorithm. The performance of the proposed method is illustrated and quantified through examples.
Evaluation of two workshops for graduate students on communicating research in engineering and science

Graduate students face imposing hurdles in communicating their research. Unfortunately, many institutions do not have the resources to offer semester- long courses on presenting and documenting research. This paper presents the evaluation and subsequent improvement of two graduate student workshops on communicating research in engineering and science. These two workshops-one on research presentations and the other on research writing-were based on highly successful workshops developed for professional researchers. Over four years, we evaluated these two workshops in twenty offerings at five institutions: The Pennsylvania State University, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the University of Oslo, the University of Texas at Austin, and Virginia Tech. Program evaluations found more than 95% of participating students strongly agreed or agreed that the workshops were valuable experiences. We also found that the workshops were more effective when accompanied by pre-workshop assignments in which the students attempted to communicate a portion of their research, and by follow-up sessions in which the students critiqued each others' research communications. Moreover, the teachings of the workshops were better received when recruitment for the workshops occurred through the advising faculty members and when those faculty members were made aware beforehand of the workshop's approaches to gray-area stylistic issues, such as whether to use the first person in research documents.
Collision-free medium access control scheme for ad-hoc networks

The dual busy tone multiple access (DBTMA) scheme was designed for decentralized multi-hop networks. In DBTMA, the RTS/CTS dialogue is used to reserve the channel. In addition, two busy tones are employed to eliminate collisions between the RTS/CTS control packets and data packet transmissions. Data packet collisions can seriously decrease channel utilization for a MAC protocol, as data packets are much longer than control packets. Since DBTMA completely avoids data packet collisions, its performances are superior to other proposed protocols. We analyze the possible cases of data packet collision and prove that it is collision-free.
Calculations of Resistivity and Superconducting Tc in Transition Metals

A survey is given of various electron-phonon effects which have been calculated for the metals Nb, Mo, Ta, Pd, and Cu. These effects include the mass enhancement lambda, superconducting T/sub c/, electrical and thermal resistivity, Hall coefficient, magnetoresistance, and the successfully tested predictions of linewidths ..gamma../sub 0/ of phonons. The calculations use local density approximations (LDA) energy bands, experimental phonons, and the rigid muffin tin (RMT) approximation. Mesh size noise is less than 1% and the Bloch-Boltzmann integral equation has been solved to unprecedented accuracy.
Adolescent insecure attachment as a predictor of maladaptive coping and externalizing behaviors in emerging adulthood.

This study investigated whether insecure adolescent attachment organization (i.e., preoccupied and dismissing) longitudinally predicted self- and peer-reported externalizing behavior in emerging ad...
Developing countries in the WTO Trade Policy Review Mechanism

The Trade Policy Review Mechanism (TPRM) has been an integral part of the GATT/WTO since 1989 and shoulders a fundamental responsibility in making the regime more transparent. This paper asks: how has the TPRM responded to demands from developing countries for information and transparency? The paper uses a typology of information systems to explain the evolution of surveillance in the trade regime and asks whether the TPRM was assigned the functions of an ideal-type information system. The paper, then, evaluates the performance of the TPRM against its given mandate of increasing transparency to promote improved adherence with trade rules. It presents, for the first time, empirical evidence on the content of reports and the participation of countries, to highlight persisting content- and participation-related challenges. It discusses the capacity challenges within the WTO Secretariat and briefly outlines efforts made by developing countries to boost surveillance capacity at home. The paper ends by outlining priorities for monitoring in the trade regime: generating specific information that developing countries need, supporting domestic capacity for surveillance (including from non-official sources), and concentrating on improved peer review and follow-up procedures.Monitoring and surveillance is the rising agenda of the WTO.Pascal Lamy1
Evaluation of dinitroaniline herbicides for weed control in container landscape plant production.

Abstract Five formulations of three dinitroaniline (DNA) herbicides [Surflan (oryzalin); Pre-M, Southern Weedgrass Control (pendimethalin); and Barricade (prodiamine)] were applied at 4.48 kg ai/ha...