cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Schwannoma-derived growth factor must be transported into the nucleus to exert its mitogenic activity

Abstract Schwannoma-derived growth factor (SDGF) is a mitogen and neurotrophic protein which belongs to the epidermal growth factor (EGF) family. There are two basic amino acid clusters in the SDGF molecule which are homologous to the nuclear targeting signal of the simian virus 40-encoded large tumor antigen. Mutational analysis of these clusters showed that they function as nuclear targeting signals, and a gel retardation assay showed that SDGF binds to A+T-rich DNA sequences. Both the wild-type SDGF and a mutant defective in the nuclear targeting signals activate the immediate early genes NGFI-A and c-fos. The wild-type SDGF is a mitogen for Swiss mouse 3T3 fibroblasts, but the mutant defective in the nuclear targeting signals is not mitogenic. Moreover, wild-type SDGF potentiates [3H]thymidine incorporation in NIH mouse 3T3 cells bearing an EGF receptor defective in the kinase domain, whereas the mutant SDGF does not stimulate DNA synthesis. These results suggest that transport into the nucleus is required for SDGF to induce a mitogenic response.
Molecular dynamic studies of the interaction of a/6⟨112⟩ Shockley dislocations with stacking fault tetrahedra in copper. Part II: Intersection of stacking fault tetrahedra by moving twin boundaries

The interactions of moving twin boundaries with stacking fault tetrahedra (SFTs) have been studied by molecular dynamics. The results reveal a spectrum of processes occurring during these interactions. In general, they lead to damage of the parent SFT and formation of new defects in the twin lattice. The character of these defects depends on the nature of the twinning front, the size of the SFT and its orientation with respect to incoming dislocations. Typical structures that may be produced in the twin include product-SFTs, free vacancies, planar stacking faults bounded by partial dislocations, mutually linked stacking faults on non-coplanar {111} T planes, small {111} T tetrahedra and their partial forms. Dislocation mechanisms involved in the formation of these defects are being analyzed.
Predator identity and trait-mediated indirect effects in a littoral food web.

Perturbations to the density of a species can be propagated to distant members of a food web via shifts in the density or the traits (i.e. behavior) of intermediary species. Predators with differing foraging modes may have different effects on prey behavior, and these effects may be transmitted differently through food webs. Here we test the hypothesis that shifts in the type of predator present in a food web indirectly affect the prey's resource independent of changes in the density of prey. We assessed the importance of predator identity in mediating the grazing effects of the freshwater snail Physa integra on its periphyton resources using field and mesocosm studies. Field observations showed that Physa used covered habitats more in ponds containing fish than in ponds containing crayfish or no predators at all. A field experiment confirmed that snail behavior depended on predator identity. Physa placed near caged pumpkinseed sunfish (Lepomis gibbosus) selected covered habitats, but Physa placed near caged crayfish (Orconectes rusticus) moved to the surface of the water. The effects of predator identity on periphtyon were then examined in a mesocosm experiment, using caged predators. Habitat use of Physa was similar to their habitat use in the field experiment. In the presence of caged sunfish, periphyton standing crop in covered habitats was reduced to 34% of the standing crop in the presence of crayfish. In contrast, periphyton in near-surface habitats was 110% higher in the presence of fish than in the presence of crayfish. Thus, the effects of predator identity on Physa behavior cascaded through the food web to affect the abundance and spatial distribution of periphyton.
Regulation of vocal intensity in the presence of feedback filtering and amplification.

Subjects read while their voices were fed back with 0 and 20 dB of amplification. In Experiment I, feedback was returned unfiltered or low-pass filtered with cut-off frequencies of 1000, 500, and 3...
The role of divalent cations in epidermolysis

In experiments designed to elucidate the role of divalent cations in maintaining the integrity of the epidermis, newborn mouse skin was incubated in ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) or ethylene glycol tetraacetic acid (EGTA). In EDTA, epidermolysis occurred and was confirmed by rubbing the specimen to demonstrate that a sheet of epidermis could be split off. After 30 min incubation in 0-01 mol/EDTA the split occurred in the lower granular-upper spinous layer; after 45 min, it was in a spinous-suprabasilar location and at 60 min and later at the dermal-epidermal junction. Ultrastructurally, a clear zone of apparent intracellular oedema occurred along the cell membranes. The split then occurred intracytoplasmally through this clear zone and the adjacent cell membrane was lost. Since incubation in EGTA at pH 7-4 did not result in epidermolysis, we suggest that the removal of magnesium rather than calcium is responsible for epidermolysis. Thirty min after the addition of either calcium or magnesium to EDTA-treated specimens, epidermolysis could no longer be demonstrated.
Thermal Shock Resistance of Zirconia with 15 Mole % Titanium

Thermal shock resistance of zirconia with 15 mole percent titanium determined by radially quenching disks with thermally insulated faces
Regulating regulators in transitionally competitive markets

During the course of the first thirty CRRI conferences, we have gained considerable insight about how to design regulatory policy in the presence of developing competition. The insight to date has focused on how to harness competitive forces to motivate incumbent suppliers to serve the best interests of consumers. This paper stresses the importance of considering the incentives of regulators and explores the associated changes in standard recommendations for regulatory policy design in the presence of developing competition.
Fluorescence and the structure of proteins XXII. Fluorescence of aminotyrosyl residues formed in ribonuclease A

Abstract 1. 1.|Tyrosyl residues on ribonuclease A were nitrated with tetranitromethane and then reduced to aminotyrosyl residues. By variation of reaction conditions and degree of exposure of tyrosyl residues it was possible to convert from 1 to all 6 tyrosyl to aminotyrosyl residues. 2. 2.|At the lower levels of 1–3 aminated tyrosyl residues/molecule the change in conformation seemed minor and 70% of the enzymatic activity was retained. When the three buried tyrosyl residues or all six residues were aminated only 5% of the enzymatic activity was retained. 3. 3.|Titration data, susceptibility to urea denaturation, and fluorescence characteristics indicated that some of the aminotyrosyl residues were buried in the interior and others were exposed on the surface of the protein. On the basis of the activation/ emission wavelengths it was possible to distinguish buried (288/320 nm) and exposed (288/365–395 nm) aminotyrosyl residues as well as exposed tyrosyl residues (275–305 nm). 4. 4.|The modification of specific tyrosyl residues on a protein to aminotyrosyl residues appears to have some promise for observation of changes in environment of the residues that accompany various conformational changes by monitoring the fluorescence.
Order in metallic glasses and icosahedral crystals

The relationship between short-range icosahedral order in metallic glasses and long-range order in icosahedral crystals is explored. Metallic-glass structure factors are assumed to describe liquids in metastable equilibrium just above the glass transition. A density-functional mean-field theory is then used to search for nearby crystalline states with a lower free energy. We find that undercooled liquids are metastable with respect to an icosahedral crystal, similar to the recently discovered icosahedral phase of Al-Mn. Conventional bcc and fcc crystals have an even lower free energy. The icosahedral phase is favored by the short-range icosahedral order present in the liquid. There is, however, an energetic cost associated with long-wavelength fluctuations forced in by the incommensurability of the icosahedral density waves. The theory predicts a rapid falloff of intensities in reciprocal space at small wave vectors, and a specific decoration of Penrose rhombahedra with atoms in real space. Our results are obtained via an exact mapping, in the density-functional framework, of the theory of icosahedral crystals onto the theory of conventional crystals in six dimensions.
Surface characteristics of separated subpopulations of mouse teratocarcinoma cells.

Abstract Specific subpopulations of 129/J mouse teratocarcinoma cells were separated by velocity sedimentation in shallow density gradients using unit gravity or centrifugal force. The subpopulations were examined with perspective plots generated by a computer program. These plots permitted 360 ° rotation of the horizontal axis making it possible to examine the symmetry of the major cell populations. The teratoma consistently separated into two major populations of cells: ‘large’ cells and ‘small’ cells. Although the small and large cells bound many of the eight lectins tested, only the large cells agglutinated in the presence of low concentrations of lectins. The large cells, therefore, are more malignant-like than the small cells with respect to their agglutinability characteristics. This work demonstrates that a heterogeneous, in vivo teratocarcinoma tumor can be separated into specific cell populations that clearly differ with respect to certain cell surface characteristics.
Current Directions of Structural Health Monitoring and Control in USA

Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) is an important and growing field in civil engineering. The goal of SHM techniques is to identify, quantify and locate damage in structures. In light of the aging infrastructure and recent failures of important bridges, long-term monitoring techniques are being increasing investigated and adopted. In addition to SHM, structural control (SC) is increasingly adopted in modern structures around the world. In the past two decades a number of SC techniques, including, passive, semi-active, and active control methods have been developed and adopted in civil engineering–particularly, in infrastructure such as important tall buildings, critical facilities, and long span bridges. Both SHM and SC technology face significant challenges due to the size and scale of civil engineering structures. In response of these challenges researchers in the U.S.A and around the world have developed new and innovative techniques.This paper summarizes some of the ongoing research in the U.S.A. in the area of monitoring, damage detection and control in civil engineering structures.
Telescope performance near local midnight for the Japanese Advanced Meteorological Imager (JAMI)

Raytheon's Santa Barbara Remote Sensing (SBRS) division designed and built the MTSAT-1R Japanese Advanced Meteorological Imager for the Japanese Ministry of Transport between March, 1999 and July, 2002. In order to meet the stressing requirements of a geosynchronous orbit, a combination of structural, thermal, and optical (STOP) analyses were used to design and optimize the beryllium three-mirror anastigmat (TMA) telescope. This modeling approach was used to characterize and minimize the thermal distortion around local midnight. On-orbit temperatures and structural deformations were predicted using thermal Desktop/SINDA and PATRAN/NASTRAN software, respectively. The resulting optical performance was evaluated using Raytheon developed HEXAGON software. The telescope design was successfully optimized to attain specified visible channel performance for most of the 24 hour orbit.
Analysis of the geometry of the hydroxymethyl radical by the “different hybrids for different spins” natural bond orbital procedure

Abstract We have carried out ab initio UHF/6-31G* calculations on the hydroxymethyl radical, CH 2 OH, and have found the equilibrium structure to be nearly planar with barriers to internal rotation occurring at staggered and eclipsed geometries, in good agreement with experiment. The electronic structure of the radical was analyzed via the “different hybrids for different spins” natural bond orbital (DHDS NBO) procedure, which finds separate Lewis structures for each of the spin systems. The α spin Lewis structure resembles that of the anion; the β spin Lewis structure resembles the corresponding cation. This simple picture, in conjunction with Bent's rule, allows one to understand the principal electronic factors which dictate the structure of the radical CH 2 group and its torsional and inversion potentials. Charge transfer between oxygen non-bonding orbitals and the empty radical orbital in the β spin system is the dominant interaction determining the torsional potential. Smaller hyperconjugative interactions in the α spin system resemble interactions in closed-shell molecules and directly oppose the effect of radical hyperconjugation, thus illustrating the central idea that open-shell potential energy features result from competition between the two different spin systems.
Using penalty function and Tabu search to solve cell formation problems with fixed cell cost

In this paper, an integrated approach for manufacturing cell formation with fixed charge cost is presented. The solution of the problem includes not only cell formation decisions but also cell set-up decisions. A mixed integer non-linear programming model is formulated to solve the problem. The NP-hardness of the problem makes direct solution computationally prohibitive for real-life applications. A heursitic algorithm was developed to solve the problem efficiently based on the features of the model and model duality analysis. Tabu search was used to find the optimal or sub-optimal solutions of the problem. Numerical examples are presented.
TU‐A‐BRB‐08: A Technique to Determine the Gantry Laser and the Proton Pencil Beam Coincidence Using Computer Radiography Detector for Routine Quality Checks

Purpose: A computed radiography(CR)detector with photostimulable phosphors can detect both direct and indirect ionizationradiation, and is even sensitive to photons in the visible range. The purpose of this work is to develop and validate a technique using CR to check both protonradiation versus localization laser coincidence and spot positioning accuracy for magnetically scanned proton pencil beam spots (PPBS). Methods:CR plate is removed from its cassette and set up perpendicular to the incident beam and exposed to an array of PPBS irradiated at predefined coordinates. Upon exposure of the particle radiation, the CRdetector is then exposed to the gantry's laser systems. The plate is then put through a digital scanner which then reads the photo stimulated luminescence and converts the signal into a digital image pixel map. MATLAB®‐based analysis software and ImageJ®image processing tools were used to compute the dose gradient from the laser bleaching of the proton exposure of the detector and for quantification of the results of this QA check procedure. The technique further allows quantitative determination of both spot positions, and the relationship between X ray system used for image guided patient setup and the PPBS delivery. Results: Both the coincidence between laser representing the gantry isocenter and center of PPBS along the central axis and spot positions can be checked within 1mm accuracy with the CRdetector.Conclusions: We have demonstrated that our technique allows determining the coincidence between the laser and radiation beam. The technique described here is found to be suitable for periodic QA checks of relative positions of the spot center relative to the gantry isocenter and beam central axis. Improvements of this technique by considering the effect of detector's quantum yield and modulation transfer function on the data remain subject of further study.
Beyond the Shadow of a Doubt: Lesbian Desire in Maria Rosa Cutrufelli’s Complice il dubbio

AbstractThis article seeks to distance Maria Rosa Cutrufelli’s 1992 novel, Complice il dubbio, from dismissive analyses of the novel’s elaboration of lesbian desire by analyzing the deliberate interplay between unresolved confillig;ict and elusive desire. The article identifiilig;es the narrative technique of the double giallo and explores how the mystery of the death of Anna’s male lover overlaps and intersects with the mystery of her sexuality and her desire for a young woman named Marta. The technique of the double giallo deploys double entendre through dramatic irony. Each development in Anna’s fraught attraction to Marta gives rise to Anna’s haunting memories of the man’s death, while Anna herself remains unable or unwilling to identify or articulate her desire for Marta. Inspired by Teresa De Lauretis’s theories, the article also explores psycho-social barriers to Anna’s lesbian desire. The article concludes that both the mystery of the man’s death and the mystery of Anna’s desire remain stubbornly ...
Whatever happened to the women in folktale

Abstract This study examines the representation and function of women in English romance, specifically their development from older traditional Western narrative forms. It considers three English romances and their analogues: Le Petit Berger from the Lorraine valley, Cu Chulainn and the Wooing of Emer from Ulster, both folktales, and The Lord of Learn , a Scottish ballad. Then to show how the function of women dilates in romance, Sir Orfeo, Havelok the Dane , and King Horn are examined. In Western folktales women are stock characters who symbolically complete the hero's experience; their marriage provides a resolution to the action. In romance, however, women begin to determine the hero's sense of himself and his role in the world. This study provides a new way to look at the structural function of women characters in a genre that is thought to reinforce the values of the ruling class.
Epitope-specific regulation. III. Induction of allotype-restricted suppression for IgG antibody responses to individual epitopes on complex antigens.

Maternal antibody to the paternal Igh-1b (IgG2a) allotype induces chronic suppression for Igh-1b (1b) production in (BALB/c × SJL)F1 hybrid mice. These mice characteristically remain incapable of producing lb antibody responses until about 3 months of age and then enter a remission phase during which they produce normal 1b antibody responses to antigens introduced initially at this time. Thus young allotype-suppressed mice do not produce lb antibody responses to dinitrophenylated keyhole limpet hemocyanin (DNP-KLH) and 1b anti- KLH. The suppression of 1b antibody responses in young allotype-suppressed mice prevents the expression, rather than the development, of 1b memory for priming antigen epitopes. Furthermore, it not only prevents the expression of such memory cells initially but results in the induction of a continued suppression that specifically prevents their expression after the onset of remission. Thus mice primed with DNP-KLH while allotype suppression is still active develop normal 1b memory for DNP and KLH but nonetheless fail to produce lb anti-DNP and 1b anti-KLH responses, even when restimulated with DNP-KLH during remission. These mice also fail to produce 1b anti-DNP when stimulated with DNP on an unrelated carrier molecule, i.e., with DNP-chicken gamma globulin (CGG). This suppression is both epitope-specific and allotype-specific. That is, although 1b responses to DNP on CGG are suppressed, 1b responses to CGG epitopes on DNP-CGG proceed normally. Furthermore, there is no suppression of other isotype and allotype responses either to DNP or to the CGG epitopes. These data therefore define an Igh-restricted epitope-specific mechanism that can be induced to persistently suppress 1b antibody responses to epitopes introduced initially during active (1b) allotype suppression.
Unexpected High Energy Ions from a Chemical Ionization Source.

Doubly charged rare gas cations are produced in a chemical ionization source under conditions in which the energy of the primary ionizing electrons is more than 20 eV below the energetic threshold. The formation mechanism consists of creating secondary electrons outside the ion source followed by the acceleration of some of these electrons into the source where they initiate high energy ionization processes. Evidence suggesting that the secondary electrons arise from ionizing collisions between accelerated ions and background gas is presented. This process is expected to occur generally when positive ion chemical ionization is performed in magnetic deflection instruments.
Relationships between energy reserves and function in rat superior cervical ganglion.

—Major components of the energy reserves of the isolated superior cervical ganglion (ATP, phosphocreatine, glucose, glycogen and lactate) were measured under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. Complete anaerobiosis was maintained by incubation in mineral oil through which N2 had been bubbled. From the initial rate of change in the energy reserves, a metabolic rate was calculated which would be equivalent to the consumption of 93 m-moles of O2 per kg per hour. Under aerobic conditions (oxygenated moist chamber) a similar metabolic rate was calculated. In contrast to the anaerobic state, initial energy expenditure was almost exclusively at the expense of glucose. Continuous supramaximal stimulation in O2 increased energy expenditure by a factor of three; both glucose and glycogen were utilized from the outset, and lactate accumulated in the initial periods. Ganglionic transmission failed in both resting and stimulated states in spite of the continued presence of very substantial levels of ATP and phosphocreatine. Failure seemed to be associated not with ATP depletion but rather with the complete disappearance of glucose and glycogen.
Modeling the effect of mandatory district compactness on partisan gerrymanders

Abstract Geographic compactness standards have been offered as neutral and effective standards constraining redistricting. In this paper, we test this allegation. Redistricting is treated as a combinatoric optimization problem that is constrained by compactness rules. Computer models are used to analyze the results of applying compactness standards when political groups are geographically concentrated. Several population models are used to generate populations of voters, and arbitrary plans are created with combinatoric optimization algorithms. We find that compactness standards can be used to limit gerrymandering, but only if such standards require severe compactness. Compactness standards are not politically neutral—a geographically concentrated minority party will be affected by compactness standards much differently than a party supported by a geographically diffuse population. The particular effects of compactness standards depend on the institutional mechanism that creates districts.
Epilepsy: Psychiatric comorbidities and premature death in epilepsy

Patients with epilepsy have a higher mortality rate than the general population. A recent population-based study has found that external causes of death, such as suicide and accidental deaths of various types, account for 16% of the deaths in these patients, and that psychiatric comorbidity contributes significantly to their occurrence.
Transverse matrix cracks in cross-ply laminates: Stress transfer, stiffness reduction and crack opening profiles

Cross-ply laminates with transverse plies containing through-width matrix cracks across the thickness of the transverse plies are studied using an energy-based approach,complementary to that of Hashin. An upper bound on the effective axial stiffness of the cracked laminates with a uniform distribution of transverse cracks is derived. The equations governing the field variables in a typical RVE are derived using thelayerwise laminate theory of Reddy and are solved using the finite element method. The predicted reduction in the effective axial modulus is in good agreement with experimental results, and it approaches a fixed value with increase in crack density for laminates with bothstaggered andnon-staggered cracking. Laminates with staggered cracks showed a greater reduction in effective modulus at lower crack densities. The stress distribution and mechanics of load transfer is examined in detail, at two crack densities including the characteristic damage state. The crack opening profile has been normalized in a special way in terms of the crack density, layup parameters and material properties.
New Radiolarian Palaeoclimatic Index in the Plio-Pleistocene of the Southern Ocean

PLIOCENE-PLEISTOCENE palaeoclimatic investigations in the Southern Ocean have been carried out using five groups of microfossils: foraminifera1,2, calcareous nannofossils3, Radiolaria4–9, diatoms10, and silicoflagellates11. Radiolarian methods are particularly valuable in higher latitudes where carbonate sediments are susceptible to dissolution even in relatively shallow waters12,13. Established radiolarian techniques are based on oscillations of cold-water (Antarctic) relative to warmer-water radiolarian assemblages, established by determining their distribution in Recent sediments relative to the Antarctic Convergence (Polar Front)4. The cold-water assemblage used in these palaeotemperature determinations consists of eight species, whereas the warm-water assemblage consists of nine species4,9. Of the several dozen species known in Southern Ocean Quaternary sediments, these seventeen species represent more than 75% of the individuals4.
Supervised multidimensional scaling for visualization, classification, and bipartite ranking

Least squares multidimensional scaling (MDS) is a classical method for representing a nxn dissimilarity matrix D. One seeks a set of configuration points z"1,...,z"n@?R^S such that D is well approximated by the Euclidean distances between the configuration points: D"i"j~@?z"i-z"j@?"2. Suppose that in addition to D, a vector of associated binary class labels y@?{1,2}^n corresponding to the n observations is available. We propose an extension to MDS that incorporates this outcome vector. Our proposal, supervised multidimensional scaling (SMDS), seeks a set of configuration points z"1,...,z"n@?R^S such that D"i"j~@?z"i-z"j@?"2, and such that z"i"s>z"j"s for s=1,...,S tends to occur when y"i>y"j. This results in a new way to visualize the observations. In addition, we show that SMDS leads to a method for the classification of test observations, which can also be interpreted as a solution to the bipartite ranking problem. This method is explored in a simulation study, as well as on a prostate cancer gene expression data set and on a handwritten digits data set.
Cognitive Impairment, Depressive Symptoms, and Functional Decline in Older People

One of the most pressing problems for adults as they age is maintaining independence in functioning. U.S. national statistics indicate that 20% of noninstitutionalized people who are aged 70 and older need help in performing at least one activity of daily living (ADL), including bathing, dressing, eating, toileting, and transferring.1 Maintaining functional independence is also important because of increasing caregiver burden and healthcare costs. The relationship between cognitive status and depressive symptoms and their effect on functional decline is of significant clinical and public health importance because they are common, frequently coexist, and may be treatable. For example, depressive symptoms are thought to exacerbate cognitive problems in older people and may be an independent risk factor for cognitive impairment; conversely, cognitive impairment may lead to depression.2–4 Prior studies on the effect of cognitive impairment or depressive symptoms on functional decline have suggested that depressive symptoms and cognitive impairment are independently associated with functional decline,4–13 but prior studies are limited because they have not taken into consideration that cognitive impairment and depressive symptoms are interrelated, have not studied ethnically diverse populations, or have not evaluated these risk factors by degree of baseline functional dependence. We designed this study to test three hypotheses underlying the triad of cognitive impairment, depressive symptoms, and functional decline; first, that cognitive impairment and depressive symptoms are independent predictors of functional decline; second, that cognitive impairment and depressive symptoms act synergistically to potentiate the risk of functional decline, such that the risk of functional decline associated with having both risk factors is greater than that predicted by either alone; and third, we tested whether baseline ADL dependence affects the relationship between cognitive impairment, depressive symptoms, and functional decline. This study tests these hypotheses by analyzing data from a longitudinal cohort study of older Americans. Advantages of our study include use of a large nationally representative, ethnically diverse cohort; adjustment for a large number of potential confounders; and an analytic strategy that accounted for the combined effects of depressive symptoms and cognition in predicting functional decline.
Effect of Chloral Hydrate and Acetaldehyde on Mitochondrial Preparations from Sweet Potato

The inhibitory effects of chloral hydrate and acetaldehyde have been studied on oxidations performed by mitochondrial preparations of sweet potatoes ( Ipomea batatas ). With a variety of substrates, chloral acts very like amytal but only between a fifth and a tenth as effectively; it affects those reactions which would be expected to depend on the oxidation of intramitochondrial DPNH, more than the oxidation of succinate or of added DPNH. It also acts like amytal when oxygen is replaced by other electron accepting agents. It is more effective, for example, against the malate reduction of cytochrome c than against the malate reduction of 2:6-dichlorophenol-indophenol. Inhibitions producd by acetaldehyde are more complex. Some DPN-dependent oxidations, especially those of pyruvate and α-keto-glutarate, are strongly inhibited, while that of citrate is not. It is suggested that chloral affects the electron transport sequence of sweet potato mitochondria at a similar locus to amytal. Although the present work fails to provide unambiguous evidence that acetaldehyde acts in the same manner, experiments described in the literature have been interpreted in this way.
‘Minipatch’ penile skin graft urethroplasty in the era of buccal mucosal grafting

Objectives To describe our experience with ‘minipatch’ penile skin graft (PSG) urethroplasty, as at our institution we prefer excision and primary anastomosis (EPA) urethroplasty whenever feasible, as it gives better outcomes than substitution urethroplasty. However, despite careful preoperative planning, the unanticipated need for a small graft is occasionally recognised intra-operatively, and in such cases we have found that harvesting a minipatch is an efficient alternative to harvesting a buccal mucosal graft.
Phosphoglucomutase polymorphism in the rainbow trout,Salmo gairdneri

Es wird aufgrund von Starke-Gel-Zymogrammanalysen der Phosphoglukomutase in 72 Forellen (Salmo gairdneri) die Existenz eines polymorphen und zweier nicht variierender Gene ermittelt. Der Polymorphismus beruht auf 2 Allelen mit ubereinstimmenden Frequenzen im Hardy-Weinberg-Gleichgewicht.
Determining merchant shipping requirements in integrated military planning

To establish a perspective, a discussion is made of the over-all planning process involved in the determination of military requirements for the merchant shipping needed to support a prescribed military plan. Three of the principal parts of the planning process, namely: the determination of “pure” pipeline requirements, ship repair loads, and repair replacement ships, under convoy and nonconvoy conditions, are examined. After this, the newly developed models, assumptions, and methodologies for these are dissected and illustrated by means of figures. Typical characteristics and behavior of both the nonconvoy and convoy-type pipelines and the effect of the repair policies upon them are presented. Additional logistics problems, which were generated in the planning process and which require further research, are outlined.
Faculty development projects for international health professions educators: Vehicles for institutional change?

Background: Projects are an important tool in faculty development, and project emphasis may offer insights into perceived education priorities. Impact of projects has been focused on individuals, not institutions or health.Aim: Education innovation projects of Fellows in an international faculty development program were examined to better understand perceived needs in health professions education and institutional impact of projects.Method: Four hundred and thirty-five projects were analyzed to identify focus areas. Fellows were asked to identify changes in their schools and communities resulting from their projects.Results: New education methods and curriculum change were common project focus areas. Regional differences were evident with a higher percentage of education methods projects by Fellows residing in India (52%), compared with South Africa (25%) and Brazil (24%). Fifty-six percent of projects were incorporated into the curriculum and/or incorporated as institutional policy. One-third to two-thir...
Aerospace Applications of Intervals: From Geospatial Data Processing to Fault Detection in Aerospace Structures

This paper presents a brief introduction into interval computations and their use in aerospace applications.
Liquid chromatography coordination ion-spray mass spectrometry (LC-CIS-MS) of docosahexaenoate ester hydroperoxides

Coordination ion-spray mass spectrometry (CIS–MS) is a useful tool in the detection and identification of complex mixtures of cholesterol ester and phospholipid hydroperoxides. The methyl ester, cholesterol ester, and phospholipid hydroperoxides of docosahexaenoic acid were analyzed by LC–CIS–MS and their elution orders were identified. Their corresponding alcohols were also identified. The methyl hydroperoxydocosahexaenoate (HPDHE) elution order is 14, 17, 16, 13, 20, 11, 10, 4, 7, 8 while the methyl hydroxydocosahexaenoate (HDHE) elution order is 14 ≥ 17, 16, 13, 11, 10, 20, 7, 8, 4. The cholesteryl HPDHE elution order is 14, 17, 16, 13, 20, 11 ≥ 10, 4, 7, 8 and the cholesteryl HDHE elution order is 17, 14, 16, 13, 11, 20, 10, 7, 8, 4. The elution order of the 1-palmitoyl-2-docosahexaenoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphatidylcholine (PDPC) hydroperoxides and alcohols is 20, 16, 17, 13, 14, 10, 11, 7, 8, 4.
Verification of step-and-shoot IMRT delivery using a fast video-based electronic portal imaging device.

We present an investigation into the use of a fast video-based electronic portal-imaging device (EPID) to study intensity modulated radiation therapy(IMRT)delivery. The aim of this study is to test the feasibility of using an EPID system to independently measure the orchestration of collimator leaf motion and beam fluence; simultaneously measuring both the delivered field fluence and shape as it exits the accelerator head during IMRTdelivery. A fast EPID that consists of a terbium-doped gadolinium oxysulphide (GdO2S:Tb) scintillator coupled with an inexpensive commercial 30 frames-per-second (FPS) CCD-video recorder (16.7 ms shutter time) was employed for imagingIMRTdelivery. The measurements were performed on a Varian 2100 C/D linear accelerator equipped with a 120-leaf multileaf-collimator (MLC). A characterization of the EPID was performed that included measurements of spatial resolution, linac pulse-rate dependence, linear output response, signal uniformity, and imaging artifacts. The average pixel intensity for fields imaged with the EPID was found to be linear in the delivered monitor units of static non-IMRT fields between 3×3 and 15×15 cm2. A systematic increase of the average pixel intensity was observed with increasing field size, leading to a maximum variation of 8%. Deliveries of a clinical step-and-shoot mode leaf sequence were imaged at 600 MU/min. Measurements from this IMRTdelivery were compared with experimentally validated MLC controller log files and were found to agree to within 5%. An analysis of the EPIDimage data allowed identification of three types of errors: (1) 5 out of 35 segments were undelivered; (2) redistributing all of the delivered segment MUs; and (3) leaf movement during segment delivery. Measurements with the EPID at lower dose rates showed poor agreement with log files due to an aliasing artifact. The study was extended to use a high-speed camera (1–1000 FPS and 10 μs shutter time) with our EPID to image the same delivery to demonstrate the feasibility of imaging without aliasing artifacts. High-speed imaging was shown to be a promising direction toward validating IMRTdeliveries with reasonable image resolution and noise.
An improved algorithm for developing ‘special’ finite element shape functions

An improvement to a previously described algorithm that systematically generates shape functions is presented. The new method produces explicit closed-form shape functions which may be programmed directly. The previous method evaluated the shape functions numerically at the Gauss points by means of repetitive subroutine calls. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Transport studies in narrow-gap semiconductors revisited

Transport-related properties such as electron mobility, Hall coefficient, Fermi level, and energy gap are calculated with accurate analytical band structures, Fermi-Dirac statistics, and a full solution to the Boltzmann transport equation. These calculated values differ substantially from the ones obtained with parabolic or k-p generated band structure approximations for a Hg0.78Cd0.22Te alloy. A new way to analyze absorption data to extract the temperature variation of the band gap is also explained.
Capitalization and the Voucher: An Analysis of Precinct Returns from California's Proposition 174

Abstract In 1993, Californians voted on a school voucher initiative. We hypothesize that homeowners in good school districts understood the voucher to be a threat to their property values and thus voted against it. Precinct returns from Los Angeles County confirm this hypothesis. We also examine an alternative hypothesis explaining the relationship between school quality and precinct returns. According to the alternative, voters perceived the initiative to be a referendum on public school quality. To distinguish between the two hypotheses, we compare the voting patterns of homeowners and renters. The comparison does not favor one hypothesis over the other.
Differential Effect of Soy Isoflavones in Enhancing High Intensity Radiotherapy and Protecting Lung Tissue in a Pre-Clinical Model of Lung Carcinoma

Background Radiotherapy of locally-advanced non-small cell lung cancer is limited by radiation-induced pneumonitis and fibrosis. We have further investigated the role of soy isoflavones to improve the effect of a high intensity radiation and reduce lung damage in a pre-clinical lung tumor model.
Performance of polycrystalline silicon waveguide devices for compact on-chip optical interconnection

Optical interconnects offer advantages over electrical interconnects in terms of clock skew, crosstalk, and RC delay for ULSI (Ultra Large Scale Integrated-Circuit) silicon technology. Optical interconnects are also applicable in optical communications where compact optical devices are fabricated and incorporated in an on-chip integrated optical system. Polycrystalline silicon (polySi)/SiO2 is an attractive waveguiding system that offers significant advantages in both applications with its compact size and compatibility with multilevel CMOS processing. Based on the process optimization that led to a low-loss polySi material, we have fabricated compact waveguide bends and splitters that were microns in size. To study the modal behavior in bending and splitting, we compared multi-mode and single-mode waveguides that were used in fabricating bends and splitters. Two waveguide cross-section dimensions, 0.5 micron X 0.2 micron and 2 microns X 0.2 microns, were used for single- mode waveguide and multi-mode waveguide, respectively. Micron- sized bending was realized with a low loss of a few dBs. Single-mode bends showed less than 3 dB loss for a bending radius of 3 microns, which was lower than that for multi-mode bends. Two different types of splitters, single-mode Y- splitters and multi-mode Y-splitters were fabricated and characterized in terms of their splitting uniformity. One X four and 1 X 16 optical power distribution systems were built based on different splitting schemes and their output power uniformity was compared. Due to the high dielectric contrast of our polySi/SiO2 waveguide system, the smallest 1 X 16 optical power distribution was realized in an area smaller than 0.0001 cm2.© (1999) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Late spontaneous resolution of congenital Brown syndrome

Brown syndrome is characterized by restricted elevation in adduction. Congenital Brown syndrome usually is diagnosed during early childhood. It is believed to be caused by an abnormality of the superior oblique tendon as it passes through the trochlea. The natural history of Brown syndrome is poorly characterized. Many patients with congenital Brown syndrome undergo strabismus surgery during childhood in an attempt to correct the problem surgically. This report describes spontaneous regression of congenital Brown syndrome in an adult.
Endoreversible terrestrial solar energy conversion

The analysis of reversible radiation conversion is insightful in process optimization and provides the upper limit to performance of any conceptual device. However, in practice, irreversibilities are unavoidable and play an important role in performance optimization. The finite absorption of a radiative source flux, and the simultaneous emission of radiation, is an inherently irreversible process. Likewise, heat rejection from the conversion device is unavoidable and dependent on local environmental conditions and resources. The endoreversible model treats these irreversibilities as inherent but external to the conversion process. In this paper, the effect of these irreversibilities on performance is investigated for a model with irreversible radiative absorption combined with irreversible conductive or convective heat rejection. Previous models either do not include the magnitude of entropy rejection required by the second law or do not otherwise accurately represent terrestrial solar conversion. Analysis of the model provides a guide for optimal operating conditions. For relatively poor heat rejection, as can occur in arid climates, analysis of the model reveals regions of operating parameters that will result in zero or low theoretical work output, and/or high operating temperatures and increased risk of failure. This is of particular concern for photovoltaic systems with low maximum temperature limits. Analytical expressions for maximum ideal work are provided, given the specific radiative source flux and heat rejection conditions. A fair evaluation of system performance is thereby obtained by comparing actual work production to the ideal, given the specific external operating conditions or restrictions.
CHCA-Modified Au Nanoparticles for Laser Desorption Ionization Mass Spectrometric Analysis of Peptides

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have been studied as a potential solid-state matrix for laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (LDI-MS) but the efficiency in ionization remains low. In this report, AuNPs are capped by a self-assembled monolayer of cysteamine and modified with α-cyano-4-hydroxycinnanic acid (CHCA) for effective MALDI measurements. CHCA-terminated AuNPs offer marked improvement on peptide ionization compared with citrate-capped or cysteamine-capped AuNPs. The coating also effectively suppresses formation of Au cluster ions and analyte fragment ions, leading to cleaner mass spectra. Addition of glycerol and citric acid to the peptide/AuNPs sample further improves the performance of these AuNPs for LDI-MS analysis. Glycerol appears to enhance the dispersion of AuNPs in sample spots, increasing the sample ionization and shot-to-shot reproducibility, while citric acid serves as an external proton donor, providing high production of protonated analyte ions and reducing fragmentation of peptides on the nanoparticle-based surface. Optimal ratios of citric acid, glycerol, and AuNPs in sample solution have been systematically studied. A more than 10-fold increase for desorption ionization of peptides can be achieved by combining 5% glycerol and 20 mM citric acid with the CHCA-terminated AuNPs. The applicability of the CHCA-AuNPs for LDI-MS analysis of protein digests has also been demonstrated. This work shows the potential of AuNPs for SALDI-MS analysis, and the improvement with chemical functionalization, controlled dispersion, and use of an effective proton donor.
The injured elderly: a rising tide.

Background Injury remains a public health challenge despite advances in trauma care. Periodic survey of injury epidemiology is essential to the trauma system's continuous performance improvement. We undertook this study to characterize the changes in Florida injury rates during the past 15 years. Methods Injured patients were identified with the use of a statewide database over 15 years ending in 2010. Population data were obtained from the U.S. Census. Severe injury was defined by International Classification Injury Severity Scores less than 0.85. Injury rates were expressed in discharges per 100,000 residents. Trends were analyzed by linear regression. Results The 1.5 million patient discharges consisted of 5.2% children, 39.7% adults, and 55.1% elderly. The overall injury rate decreased in children by 18% but increased in adults by 2% and in the elderly by 17% during the study period. The proportion of severe injuries decreased in children and the elderly but did not change in adults. Injury patterns changed in all age groups. Conclusion Injury in the elderly is increasing at a rate seven times that of adults. In 2010, the elderly accounted for only 17% of the population but 55% of injury-related discharges. These trends have dramatic implications for the design of future trauma systems and health care resource use.
Genus Distributions of Cubic Outerplanar Graphs

We present a quadratic-time algorithm for computing the genus distribution of any 3-regular outerplanar graph. Although recursions and some formulas for genus distributions have previously been calculated for bouquets and for various kinds of ladders and other special families of graphs, cubic outerplanar graphs now emerge as the most general family of graphs whose genus distributions are known to be computable in polynomial time. The key algorithmic features are the syntheses of the given outerplanar graph by a sequence of edge-amalgamations of some of its subgraphs, in the order corresponding to the post-order traversal of a plane tree that we call the inner tree, and the coordination of that synthesis with just-in-time root-splitting.