cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
SU‐E‐T‐722: CT Calibration Curves for Proton Therapy: A Practical Approach

Purpose: To determine a practical approach to CT calibration for proton radiotherapy. Methods: Measurements of Hounsfield units (HU) of tissue substitutes of known elemental composition were made in a variety of scenarios using two series of plugs manufactured by different vendors. We determined the optimal area within the cross‐section of the plugs over which to assess the mean HU, and then studied the mean HU this way for each plug as a function of the slice thickness of the scan, the location of the plane selected for evaluation within the plug, the location of the plug in a 30 × 40 × 40 cm3 water‐filled tank, the orientation of this phantom, whether the tank was water‐filled or air‐filled, and whether the plugs were measured individually, one scan at a time, or simultaneously, in a single scan. Coefficients of the commonly‐employed stoichiometric calibration of the CT scanner for proton therapy were determined for each aforementioned scenario, and used to calculate CT‐number‐to‐proton‐stopping‐power‐ratio tissue characterization curves. Results: Different slice thicknesses show no meaningful difference in HU reading. No meaningful difference in HU reading was found when taken at various locations within the plug. CT calibration curve values were found to be within 2% for three different positions of the plug within the phantom, for both orientations of the phantom, whether measured in water or in air, and whether plugs were scanned separately in air or all at once. Conclusion: We assessed the variation in the CT‐number‐to‐proton‐stopping‐power‐ratio tissue characterization curve to be expected for a variety of different measurement scenarios. We found that such a curve is relatively insensitive to the setup used clinically and we therefore conclude that the necessary measurement data can be obtained quickly and confidently.
Dynamic nuclear protein interactions investigated using fluorescence lifetime and fluorescence fluctuation spectroscopy

The discovery and engineering of novel fluorescent proteins (FPs) from diverse organisms is yielding fluorophores with exceptional characteristics for live-cell imaging. In particular, the development of FPs for Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET) microscopy and fluorescence fluctuation spectroscopy (FFS) provide important tools for monitoring dynamic protein interactions inside living cells. Fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) quantitatively maps changes in the spatial distribution of donor FP lifetimes that result from FRET with acceptor FPs. FFS probes dynamic protein associations through its capacity to monitor localized protein diffusion. Here, we use FRET-FLIM combined with FFS in living cells to investigate changes in protein mobility due to protein-protein interactions involving transcription factors and chromatin modifying proteins that function in anterior pituitary gene regulation. The heterochromatin protein 1 alpha (HP1α) plays a key role in the establishment and maintenance of heterochromatin through its interactions with histone methyltransferases. Recent studies, however, also highlight the importance of HP1α as a positive regulator of active transcription in euchromatin. Intriguingly, we observed that the transcription factor CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein alpha (C/EBPα) interacts with HP1α in regions of pericentromeric heterochromatin in mouse pituitary cells. These observations prompted us to investigate the relationship between HP1α dynamic interactions in pituitary specific gene regulation.
The Ontology of Biological Groups: Do Grasshoppers Form Assemblages, Communities, Guilds, Populations, or Something Else?

Acridologists have used a variety of terms to describe groups of grasshoppers, including assemblage, community, guild, and population. This terminological diversity has raised the question of whether one of these descriptors is the correct one. I take the position that these terms pick out different features of the natural world such that there is no unconditionally or uniquely correct term. By adopting the framework of constrained perspectivism—a form of philosophical pragmatism—it is argued that a term is correct if it accurately reflects the conceptual framework of the investigator and effectively communicates this perspective to others. Such an approach gives rise to terminological pluralism that avoids the problems of relativism (the subjectivist's view that any term can be used) and absolutism (the objectivist's view that there is a single correct term). I describe the contexts in which the most common terms are appropriate.
Quantifying Position Accuracy of Multimodal Data from Global Positioning System–Enabled Cell Phones

The emergence of cell phones with embedded Global Positioning System (GPS) chips provides opportunities to push personalized real-time travel information subject to an individual's current location. One such application, a travel assistant device, notifies cognitively disabled public transportation users when it is time to request a stop and exit the vehicle. GPS-enabled cell phones must provide highly accurate real-time location data for this type of service. The components used in the data-collection process are identified, and a quantitative analysis of real-time GPS data obtained with a cell phone while walking, driving a vehicle, and riding public transportation is provided. The expectation was that position accuracy would suffer when the GPS signal was obstructed by a vehicle or the user's clothing. The obtained data demonstrate the results of location fix attempts over different transportation modes in an urban environment. The highest percentage of GPS fixes (79.0%) was obtained by users walking w...
Relationship between item strength and order of free recall

Probability of recall of an item, reflecting its “strength,” depends on its location in the presented list and its degree of learning. The present study investigated the relation between strength of items and their output position in free recall. Item strength and output positions were calculated for items of different degrees of learning in different parts of the input list. The results showed a curvilinear relationship between item strength and output order, such that items of intermediate strength were recalled before items of higher or lower strength. This finding is interpreted to reflect a minimal interference strategy which S s use to maximize recall.
Potential terrestrial fate and effects on soil biota of a coal liquefaction product spill

Contaminated soil samples collected from the site of a coal liquefaction product spill were used to study potential fates and effects of this synthetic fuel. Simulated weathering in the laboratory caused significant changes in residual oil composition. Soil column leachates contained high phenol levels that decreased exponentially over time. Toxicity tests demonstrated that the oil-contaminated soil was phytotoxic and caused embryotoxic and teratogenic effects on eggs of the cricket Acheta domesticus.
Opioid peptides decrease calcium-dependent action potential duration of mouse dorsal root ganglion neurons in cell culture

We investigated opioid peptide actions on somatic calcium-dependent action potentials of dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons grown in primary dissociated cell culture. We report that leucine-enkephalin decreased the duration and amplitude of DRG somatic calcium-dependent action potentials. The opioid peptide action was dose-dependent over 20 nM to 5 #M and was antagonized by naloxone, consistent with mediation by opiate receptors. Thus, DRG neuron membranes have opiate receptors which act to decrease calcium influx. It is likely, therefore, that opiate receptors on the somata of DRG neurons in culture are functionally similar to opiate receptors on primary afferent terminals.
The safety of 6-mercaptopurine for childbearing patients with inflammatory bowel disease: A retrospective cohort study☆

Abstract Background & Aims: 6-mercaptopurine/azathioprine is effective in IBD patients. However, data regarding toxicity associated with pregnancy are lacking, raising both patients' and physicians' concerns and sometimes resulting in elective abortion. Methods: To evaluate potential toxicity of 6-mercaptopurine (6-MP), we reviewed the records of 485 patients who had received the drug. We contacted 462, of whom 155 had conceived at least 1 pregnancy after developing IBD. Pregnancies were analyzed as to whether the patient had taken 6-MP before, or at the time of, conception. These were compared with IBD patients who had their pregnancies before taking 6-MP. We collected data on live births, spontaneous abortions, prematurity, abortions secondary to birth defects, major and minor congenital birth defects, infections, and neoplasia. Outcomes were analyzed comparing pregnancies from men and women who had taken or were currently taking 6-MP to controls. Results: There was no statistical difference in conception failures (defined as a spontaneous abortion), abortion secondary to a birth defect, major congenital malformations, neoplasia, or increased infections among male or female patients taking 6-MP compared with controls (RR = 0.85 [0.47–1.55], P = 0.59). Conclusions: 6-MP use before or at conception or during pregnancy appears to be safe. Discontinuation of the drug before and during pregnancy is not indicated. GASTROENTEROLOGY 2003;124:9-17
Steady and unsteady combustion of carbon

Dense carbon spheres, of 1.27 cm diam, were burned in oxygen and air atmospheres, suspendedin an electrically heated tube furnace, with simultaneous measurements of sample weight, diameter, and sample and gas temperatures. Under limited conditions, oscillatory reaction was found to occur, with temperature excursions of up to 100°C at periods from 10 to 100 sec. Parameters permitting oscillation were found to be: carbon porosity between 33% and 43%; pure oxygen; sphere temperatures about 1000°C; and ambient gas velocity between 0.51 and 1.0 cm/sec (STP). A finite-element model was developed to simulate combustion behavior. Results showed that CO, produced by internal reaction of carbon and oxygen, would burn entirely to CO 2 inside the sphere at low temperatures (
Reliable Ultra-Low-Voltage Cache Design for Many-Core Systems

We reduce cache supply voltage below the normally acceptable VDDMIN, in order to improve overall many-core system energy efficiency. Based on the observation that cache lines contain mostly one hard faulty cell at these ultra-low supply voltages, we exploit existing double-error correcting triple-error detecting codes, together with cache line disabling, to handle both soft and hard cache faults, thus enabling reliable ultra-low supply voltage cache operation. Compared to the next-best approach in the research literature, the proposed method reduces system energy consumption by up to 25% and energy-execution time product by nearly 10%, while introducing only 0.28% storage overhead and marginal instruction per cycle degradation, when the target yield loss rate is 1/1000.
A real-time radiation dose monitoring system for patientsand staff during interventional fluoroscopy using aGPU-accelerated Monte Carlo simulator and an automatic3D localization system based on a depth camera

Radiation monitoring systems able to accurately track the radiation dose received by the patient and the medical staff during interventional fluoroscopy can be used to minimize the likelihood and severity of radiation-induced skin injuries and estimate the accumulated organ doses. We describe a method to monitor doses in real time using automatic sensors in the imaging room and a CPU-accelerated computer simulator. The Monte Carlo simulation code MC-GPU is used to estimate patient and staff doses due to primary and scattered radiation, along with the associated statistical uncertainties. The geometrical configuration of the irradiation is automatically determined and updated using data from a depth camera that tracks the location and posture of each person in the imaging room. A virtual x-ray source graphical interface is used to manually trigger the simulations. The implemented computational framework separates the simulation of the x-ray transport through the patient and the operator bodies into two coupled, sequential simulations. The initial simulation uses the patient anatomy and a c-arm source model with a collimated cone beam emitted from a point focal spot. During this simulation a large phase space file with the energy, position and direction of x rays scattered in the direction of the operator is created. The phase space file is then used as the input radiation source for the following simulation with the operator anatomy model. Particle recycling is employed as a variance reduction technique to maximize the information obtained from the limited number of particles scattered towards the operator. For a typical image acquisition, a patient skin dose map can be displayed at the operator's monitor within 10 seconds with a peak skin dose error below 1%. This work demonstrates that a dose monitoring system based on accurate Monte Carlo simulations can be used to estimate in real-time the average and peak organ doses for both the patient and the staff in interventional fluoroscopy, and provide timely information regarding possible overdoses while the imaging procedure is being performed.
Reflections on Vincent Ostrom, Public Administration, and Polycentricity

Among Vincent Ostrom's many contributions to the study of public administration, policy, and political science, the concept of polycentricity remains his single most important legacy. This essay locates the origins of this concept in Ostrom's early research on resource management in the Western United States and demonstrates its continuing influence throughout The Intellectual Crisis in Public Administration, The Political Theory of a Compound Republic, and his other major publications. Although typically pigeonholed within the confines of the public choice tradition, Ostrom's body of work should be widely appreciated as an early statement of the critical importance of network forms of governance in democratic societies.
Network Architecture Design for Back-End Storage Networks

To realize the full potential of computer networking, design of a back-end storage network architecture should follow the general-purpose approach of an evolving network operating system.
Effects of lipid peroxidation products on the rat lens in organ culture: A possible mechanism of cataract initiation in retinal degenerative disease

Rat lenses in organ culture which are exposed to bovine rod outer segments (ROS) or to the major fatty acid of ROS, docosahexaenoic acid, are impaired in their ability to accumulate radiolabeled compounds which lenses normally accumulate by active processes. The extent of lens damage correlates well with the extent of lipid peroxidation in the culture medium as assessed by the thiobarbituric acid assay. Addition of vitamin E to the medium inhibits the effect on the lens while addition of Fe-ADP complexes potentiates the effect. Thus, the lens damage appears to be attributable to toxic species generated by peroxidation of the polyunsaturated lipid added to the culture medium. Toxic aldehyde products appear to be major mediators of the lens damage, since semi-carbazide, which avidly reacts with aldehydes, can protect lenses in this system. These findings may have relevance to the cataracts clinically associated with retinal degenerative diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa. The highly membranous photoreceptor cells are extremely rich in polyunsaturated lipid. Degeneration of these cells, which is the primary pathology in such diseases, would likely lead to peroxidation with generation of toxic products within the eye. Such products could potentially produce secondary damage to other ocular structures including the lens.
Pole placement by performance criterion modification

A procedure is presented that modifies the state weighting matrix Q and introduces a degree of relative stability into the original performance criterion to shape the resulting optimal dynamics by positioning the closed-loop eigenvalues along the real axis of the optimal system in the linear-quadratic regulator problem. It is based on the results of the algebraic Riccati equation (ARE) which establish the invariance of certain eigenspaces of the associated Hamiltonian matrix with respect to certain perturbations of Q and the degree of relative stability. >
Selective intercalation of polymers in carbon nanotubes

A room-temperature, open-air method is devised to selectively intercalate relatively low-molecular-weight polymers (approximately 10-100 kDa) from dilute, volatile solutions into open-end, as-grown, wettable carbon nanotubes with 50-100 nm diameters. The method relies on a novel self-sustained diffusion mechanism driving polymers from dilute volatile solutions into carbon nanotubes and concentrating them there. Relatively low-molecular-weight polymers, such as poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO, 600 kDa) and poly(caprolactone) (PCL, 80 kDa), were encapsulated in graphitic nanotubes as confirmed by transmission electron microscopy, which revealed morphologies characteristic of mixtures in nanoconfinements affected by intermolecular forces. Whereas relatively small, flexible polymer molecules can conform to enter these nanotubes, larger macromolecules (approximately 1000 kDa) remain outside. The selective nature of this process is useful for filling nanotubes with polymers and could also be valuable in capping nanotubes.
Children's mappings of large number words to numerosities

Abstract Previous studies have suggested that children's learning of the relation between number words and approximate numerosities depends on their verbal counting ability, and that children exhibit no knowledge of mappings between number words and approximate numerical magnitudes for number words outside their productive verbal counting range. In the present study we used a numerical estimation task to explore children's knowledge of these mappings. We classified children as Level 1 counters (those unable to produce a verbal count list up to 35), Level 2 counters (those who were able to count to 35 but not 60) and Level 3 counters (those who counted to 60 or above) and asked children to estimate the number of items on a card. Although the accuracy of children's estimates depended on counting ability, children at all counting skill levels produced estimates that increased linearly in proportion to the target number, for numerosities both within and beyond their counting range. This result was obtained at the group level (Experiment 1) and at the level of individual children (Experiment 2). These findings provide evidence that even the least skilled counters do exhibit some knowledge of the form of the mapping between large number words and approximate numerosities.
The Use of Music in Popular Film: East and West

Even before the advent of sound in film late in the 1920s, music has been inextricably connected with film performance. Whether used as a backdrop for film action, or as the principal focus for a cinematic scene, moviegoers have come to expect that film and music go together to the extent that the absence of music is considered a distinct stylistic choice on the part of a film director. Despite the close association of music with film, its use in cinematic tradition is not the same everywhere. In fact, the use of musical elements in different film traditions is one of the clearest ways of distinguishing these traditions from each other. This is hardly surprising. Although film is an almost universal artistic form today, it embodies at base a particular medium of expression—and this medium serves as a conduit for the distinct aesthetic sensibilities of the society for which the film is produced. In a real sense, the musical dimension of film is one of the principal semiotic levels on which the film-maker communicates with his audience.
Carbon Dioxide – Dilated Block Copolymer Templates for Nanostructured Materials

Periodic polymer/metal (Pt or Ag) and polymer/semiconductor (PbS) nanocomposites are prepared using block copolymers dilated with carbon dioxide (CO2) as templates. Specifically, organometallic compounds (metal precursors) are dissolved into supercritical CO2 and infused into polystyrene-block-poly(acrylic acid) or polystyrene-block-poly(vinylpyridine) copolymers. Upon infusion, the acid or pyridine block selectively binds the metal precursor. The excess is removed from the polystyrene phase by subsequent CO2 extraction. Reduction of the bound organometallic with hydrogen or hydrogen sulfide yields the desired metal or semiconductor clusters, which are confined to the precursor-binding domain and remain positioned on the copolymer lattice. The composites are characterized by transmission electron microscopy, x-ray scattering and electron diffraction.
Seasonal Marketing and Timing New Product Introductions

Virtually every product is seasonal; seasonality often dictates business strategy. In this article, the authors (1) show how to add known seasonal patterns to any dynamic model parsimoniously and w...
Cost-benefit analysis and the second best land use for transportation

Abstract Whether the naive cost-benefit analysis based on market prices tends to overinvest in roads is examined in the second best situation where traffic congestion is unpriced. The benefit and the cost calculated by using market prices are compared at the second best optimum. It is shown that the benefit exceeds the cost near the center of a city. However, if the compensated demand for housing has a price elasticity less than 1, the benefit becomes smaller than the cost near the edge.
Is postherpetic neuralgia more than one disorder

Acute herpes zoster is a highly stereotyped condition of viral recrudescence producing inflammation in a dorsal root ganglion, a segmental vesicular rash, and pain. The long-term outcome is unpredictable. Those acute zoster patients that develop postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) fall into three subtypes: (1) an “irritable nociceptor” group with minimal deafferentation and touch-evoked allodynia due to peripheral nociceptor input, (2) a deafferentation group with marked sensory loss and no allodynia, and (3) a deafferentation group with sensory loss and allodynia due to central reorganization. Response to therapy also shows significant inhomogeneity. Some patients obtain nearly complete relief by either topical agents or oral monotherapy with opioids, antidepressants, or anticonvulsants. Other PHN sufferers are refractory to all measures, similar to patients with spinal cord injury and central poststroke pain. Because the clinical picture of PHN falls into distinct patterns based on differing pathophysiology, PHN should be thought of as several disorders, which may respond differently to therapeutic interventions and which may or may not coexist in the same patient.
On wavelet projection kernels and the integrated squared error in density estimation

Abstract It is shown that the integrated squared errors of wavelet projection estimators of a density f satisfy both the central limit theorem and the law of the iterated logarithm under the essentially minimal assumption f ∈ L p for some p > 2 and very mild conditions on the scaling function.
Site amplification from S-wave coda in the Long Valley caldera region, California

Following the work of Phillips (1985), we have computed site amplification factors for coda waves at many sites in the Long Valley region in the eastern Sierra Nevada. We computed ratios of coda amplitudes measured at 15 stations in and around Long Valley caldera relative to a granitic site, MMPM, for six frequency bands centered at 1.5, 3.0, 6.0, 9.0, 12.0, and 15.0 Hz. All station sites located within the caldera experienced large ground motion amplification at 1.5 and 3.0 Hz, ranging between five and 17 times that of the reference site. However, at higher frequencies, these same sites exhibited significantly less amplification than the reference granite site. This is attributed to the competing effects of an impedance contrast between the basement rock and caldera fill and very high absorption in the caldera fill at high frequencies. Station MMLM, located on top of a volcanic plug, displayed the largest amplitudes of all the sites studied for frequencies between 9.0 and 15.0 Hz. A dike structure attached to the plug couples the basement rock to the surface. At high frequencies, the resulting large amplitudes at MMLM are not due to amplification resulting from a strong impedance contrast; rather, the absorption under this site is very low, perhaps lower than at the reference site, MMPM. Outside the caldera, another hard-rock site located at Devil's Postpile, MDPM, generally behaved like the reference site for all frequencies. The lowest amplifications observed came from a site outside the caldera, MDCM, located on thin pyroclastic ash deposits overlying granitic basement. This can be attributed to a dominance of absorption over the amplification caused by lower impedance of this layer. Variations among sites on similar surface geology may be due to small local variations in impedance and absorption under and adjacent to the site. The range in the spectral decay parameter, κ, between caldera and rock sites are comparable to results of Anderson and Hough (1984) for sites on alluvium and rock in the San Fernando region. These surprisingly different amplifications support the need for additional site-specific studies. Amplifications determined in this study for the frequency range 1.5 and 3.0 Hz correlate remarkably well with Eaton's (1990) residuals for duration magnitude, FMAG, and amplitude magnitude, XMAG, for the USGS northern California seismic array, further supporting the use of coda waves in determining site-specific amplification.
Tolerance Levels of Free Gossypol in Layer Diets as Influenced by Iron: Gossypol Ratios

Abstract Studies were conducted with commercial egg production-type hens to attempt to more closely define the levels of gossypol which could be acceptable and to determine the effectiveness of iron salts in reducing or eliminating the gossypol-induced olive yolk discoloration over a wide range of gossypol levels. Rate of egg production, egg weight, interior egg quality and feed intake were not significantly depressed at dietary free gossypol levels up to 200 p.p.m. However, dietary levels greater than 50 p.p.m. produced an increasing number of objectionable olive colored yolks. The addition of ferrous sulfate at 4:1 and 8:1 iron: gossypol ratios were fairly effective in eliminating the number of objectionable eggs up to 100 p.p.m. free gossypol but less effective at higher gossypol levels.
The effects of attentional load on auditory ERPs recorded from human cortex

Responses to acoustic input were recorded from human temporal cortex using subdural electrodes in order to investigate in greater anatomical detail how attentional load modulates exogenous auditory responses. Four patient-volunteers performed a dichotic listening task in which they listened for rare frequency deviants in a series of tones presented to both ears at interstimulus intervals (ISIs) of 400, 800, and 2000 ms. Across all ISIs, stimuli presented contralateral to electrode location produced the strongest deflections in the averaged ERP at approximately 90 and 170 ms post-stimulus on average (labeled N90stg and P170stg). Maximal recording sites for these peaks most often occurred over the Sylvian fissure or the upper bank of the posterior superior temporal gyrus. Neither ISI nor selective attention exhibited substantial effects on peak latencies. However, as presentation rates increased (decreasing ISI), overall averaged event-related potential (ERP) amplitudes declined significantly, while attending to the contralateral stimulus significantly increased both the N90stg and P170stg peaks for most patients. This effect of attention increased with decreasing ISI for both components most clearly in the difference between the grand-average ERPs for attending to vs. ignoring the contralateral stimulus, and even more dramatically in the percentage ratio of that difference over the mean peak amplitude. This amplifying effect of attention with increasing load, along with its anatomical location, suggests that attention can enhance exogenous sources in auditory cortex.
Is It Gender, Religiosity or Both? A Role Congruity Theory of Candidate Electability in Transitional Tunisia

Do voters regard male and female candidates equally? Does apparent religiosity of candidates help or hurt their electoral chances? Where biases exist, what explains them? We present a novel explanation of political bias, drawing from role congruity theory. It posits that political contexts shape citizens' perceptions of qualities that make a “capable leader,” which subsequently drives their willingness to vote for candidates. Evidence from a survey experiment embedded in the 2012 Tunisian Post-Election Survey demonstrates that this theory explains biases based on gender and religiosity better than dominant modernization and social identity theories. Moreover, these mechanisms are also likely to drive political biases related to other features and in other countries. This has important implications for policymakers aiming to reduce political biases in Tunisia, the MENA, or globally. It should encourage them to pay careful attention to stereotyped traits of underrepresented groups and successful leaders, and to use institutional solutions (e.g., electoral quotas) to shape expectations about underrepresented groups and leadership.
The Utilization of the Proteins of Corn by Hens

Abstract Brown1 in 1904 tabulated the existing data on digestion trials with poultry and pointed out the difficulties to be encountered in arriving at digestion coefficients with fowls. Chief among these difficulties is that the urine and feces are excreted together. Various means have been employed to overcome this obstacle to a direct determination. Brown1, and Bartlett2, used a collection bag, while Fields and Ford3 collected the excrement in removable trays in the bottom of wire cages. Kalugin4 used large wooden cages lined with oil cloth in his work. On the other hand Lebmann5, Paraschtschuk6, Kossa7, Voltz and Yakuwa8 and Szalagyl and Kriwuscha9, established a preternatural anus to permit the separate collection of the urine and feces. More recently Katayama10 subjected the above method to a critical study. He concluded that the digestibility of feeds can be obtained from the excrement of normal hens by applying factors to the various fractions . . .
Calpain secreted by activated human lymphoid cells degrades myelin

Calpain secreted by lymphoid (MOLT-3, M.R.) or monocytic (U-937, THP-1) cell lines activated with PMA and A23187 degraded myelin antigens. The degradative effect of enzymes released in the extracellular medium was tested on purified myelin basic protein and rat central nervous system myelin in vitro. The extent of protein degradation was determined by SDS-PAGE and densitometric analysis. Various proteinase inhibitors were used to determine to what extent protein degradation was mediated by calpain and/or other enzymes. Lysosomal and serine proteinase inhibitors inhibited 20-40% of the myelindegradative activity found in the incubation media of cell lines, whereas the calcium chelator (EGTA), the calpain-specific inhibitor (calpastatin), and a monoclonal antibody to m calpain blocked myelin degradation by 60-80%. Since breakdown products of MBP generated by calpain may include fragments with antigenic epitopes, this enzyme may play an important role in the initiation of immune-mediated demyelination. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Effects of glass content and oxidation on the spectra of SNC-like basalts: Applications to Mars remote sensing

[1] We have investigated the effects of crystallization and oxidation on the visible and near-infrared (VISNIR) and mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectra of materials with a Shergotty-Nakhla-Chassigny (SNC) basaltic composition in order to investigate potential links between Martian VISNIR spectra, Martian mid-IR spectra, and SNC meteorite data. SNC basalt samples of varying crystallinities were synthesized and subsequently oxidized in air at 700°C for 1–7 days, and reflectance spectra of both fine (≤75 μm) and coarse (75–500 μm) basalt samples were obtained before and after oxidation. The effects of crystallization on the spectral properties are readily observed in the unoxidized products. In the VISNIR, increasing crystallization is accompanied by an increasing influence of pyroxene absorptions and decreasing influence of glass absorptions. In the mid-IR, changes in spectral properties with crystallization are due to the variations in relative amounts of glass, pyroxene, and plagioclase. Oxidation alters the glass and pyroxenes within the samples, leading to changes in VISNIR and mid-IR spectral shapes, although distinct signatures of oxidation products are not always observed. Both spectral and electron microscopy data indicate that hematite is the dominant oxidation product in the pigeonite and glass of the samples. In pigeonite, hematite is present in nanophase form and leads to the diminishment of the diagnostic 1- and 2-μm pyroxene absorptions in the VISNIR as well as pyroxene absorptions expressed between 800 and 1100 cm−1 in the mid-IR. In glass, hematite forms a near-surface layer that is detected with varying efficiencies in the VISNIR and mid-IR depending on the crystallinity and particle size of the analyzed sample. Oxidized SNC basalt samples of various crystallinities and fine grain sizes provide the best analogs to Mars remote-sensing data in the VISNIR and mid-IR. In the VISNIR, partially crystalline, oxidized SNC basalts can reproduce Martian dark region characteristics. In the mid-IR, similarities exist between the spectra of a partially crystalline, oxidized SNC basalt and the basalt lithology detected by the Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES). The andesite lithology detected by TES is best matched by the spectrum of a fully crystalline, oxidized SNC basalt. These results imply that plagioclase-rich lithologies are not required by TES data and that observed variations in spectral character of dark regions across the Martian surface can be explained by SNC basalts influenced by oxidation coupled with variations in degree of crystallization.
STRV-2 payload early orbit experience and findings

The STRV-2 (Space Technology Research Vehicle) Experiment Module (EM), was launched June 7, 2000 on a Pegasus XL launcher out of Vandenberg Air Force Base. STRV-2 is the primary payload on this Triservice Experiment Mission 5 (TSX-5), which is the sixth mission for the Air Force Space Test Program (STP). The EM is an integrated collection of eleven active experiments and one passive. The active experiments are commanded and controlled by the STRV-2 System Control Module (SCM) over a 1553 bus. The SCM is also the data interface to the spacecraft's command, communications, and data handling processors. The active Experiments include high data rate optical communications, infrared imaging of aircraft and ships, vibration isolation and suppression, micrometeoroid impact detection, active pixel sensor imaging, micro-g accelerometers, contamination transport mechanisms, advanced solar photovoltaic systems, thermal control materials, and radiation monitors on a chip. The TSX-5 orbit is a 410-km by 1710-km elliptical orbit, which takes STRV-2 into the Mid-Earth Orbit (MEO) region of space. STRV-2 is the first to study the micrometeoroid and debris population at these altitudes.
Vision Photoscreening of Infants and Young Children in a Primary Care Pediatric Office: Can It Identify Asymptomatic Treatable Amblyopic Risk Factors?

Objective. The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility and accuracy of vision photoscreening a large cohort of asymptomatic children age 6 months to 6 years. Methods. Photoscreening was performed at the 6 and 18 months and annually at the 2- to 5-year scheduled pediatric health assessment visits. Results. A total of 1976 children underwent photoscreening for amblyopic risk factors during an 18-month period; 167 of them (8.5%) screened positive. Of the 94 study children who were evaluated by a pediatric ophthalmologist, 25 required intervention at their initial visit (26.6%). Ten children were diagnosed with amblyopia, representing 0.5% of all children screened. Conclusion. Vision photoscreening of 1976 young children identified 10 with previously undiagnosed amblyopia and an additional 15 with treatable pre-amblyopic risk factors. It is unlikely that any of these children with serious refractive errors would have been detected without the use of in-office vision photoscreening.
Roles of multiple-proton transfer pathways and proton-coupled electron transfer in the reactivity of the bis-FeIV state of MauG

The high-valent state of the diheme enzyme MauG exhibits charge–resonance (CR) stabilization in which the major species is a bis -Fe IV state with one heme present as Fe IV =O and the other as Fe IV with axial heme ligands provided by His and Tyr side chains. In the absence of its substrate, the high-valent state is relatively stable and returns to the diferric state over several minutes. It is shown that this process occurs in two phases. The first phase is redistribution of the resonance species that support the CR. The second phase is the loss of CR and reduction to the diferric state. Thermodynamic analysis revealed that the rates of the two phases exhibited different temperature dependencies and activation energies of 8.9 and 19.6 kcal/mol. The two phases exhibited kinetic solvent isotope effects of 2.5 and 2.3. Proton inventory plots of each reaction phase exhibited extreme curvature that could not be fit to models for one- or multiple-proton transfers in the transition state. Each did fit well to a model for two alternative pathways for proton transfer, each involving multiple protons. In each case the experimentally determined fractionation factors were consistent with one of the pathways involving tunneling. The percent of the reaction that involved the tunneling pathway differed for the two reaction phases. Using the crystal structure of MauG it was possible to propose proton–transfer pathways consistent with the experimental data using water molecules and amino acid side chains in the distal pocket of the high-spin heme.
A 0.37–0.43 THz wideband quadrupler with 160 μW peak output power in 45 nm CMOS

This paper presents a wideband 45 nm CMOS SOI quadrupler at 370 to > 430 GHz. The balanced multiplier results in a very low third harmonic component, and uses reflectors at the output port to reflect the fundamental and the second harmonic frequency into the quadrupler for improved efficiency. The measured output power is > 100 μW at 370-430 GHz with a peak value of 150-160 μW at 390-415 GHz and a conversion loss of 19-20 dB. To the author's knowledge, this is the first demonstration of a wideband CMOS quadrupler at THz frequencies.
An updated ‘Essex’ by ‘Forrest’ linkage map and first composite interval map of QTL underlying six soybean traits

DNA marker maps based on single populations are the basis for gene, loci and genomic analyses. Individual maps can be integrated to produce composite maps with higher marker densities if shared marker orders are consistent. However, estimates of marker order in composite maps must include sets of markers that were not polymorphic in multiple populations. Often some of the pooled markers were not codominant, or were not correctly scored. The soybean composite map was composed of data from five separate populations based on northern US germplasm but does not yet include 'Essex' by 'Forrest' recombinant inbred line (RIL) population (E x F) or any southern US soybean cultivars. The objectives were, to update the E x F map with codominant markers, to compare marker orders among this map, the Forrest physical map and the composite soybean map and to compare QTL identified by composite interval maps to the earlier interval maps. Two hundred and thirty seven markers were used to construct the core of the E x F map. The majority of marker orders were consistent between the maps. However, 19 putative marker inversions were detected on 12 of 20 linkage groups (LG). Eleven marker distance compressions were also found. The number of inverted markers ranged from 1 to 2 per LG. Thus, marker order inversions may be common in southern compared to northern US germplasm. A total of 61 QTL among 37 measures of six traits were detected by composite interval maps, interval maps and single point analysis. Seventeen of the QTL found in composite intervals had previously been detected among the 29 QTL found in simple interval maps. The genomic locations of the known QTL were more closely delimited. A genome sequencing project to compare Southern and Northern US soybean cultivars would catalog and delimit inverted regions and the associated QTL. Gene introgression in cultivar development programs would be accelerated.
A Short Method for Constructing an Abridged Life Table

The life table is so valuable a description of the age variation in danger of dying that it is desirable to have rapid methods of obtaining it from the recorded vital statistics. The principal value of the life table lies in the form in which agespecific risks of dying are stated. They are expressed as the probability of dying within a designated interval subsequent to an exact age, or as the probability of surviving from one exact age to another. Such probabilities are not only very descriptive, but they lend themselves readily to the treatment of mortality in a wide variety of problems.
Emission characteristics of gated silicon wedges

Gated field emission wedges of varying lengths have been fabricated and tested. These wedges emit at 180-200 V from multiple emission sites that are approximately evenly distributed along the wedge. This results in emission currents that scale with the length of the wedge. The maximum emission current observed is about 0.1 mu A/ mu m of wedge length, beyond which localized failure events occur. These localized failure events sometimes cause the wedge emitter to short to the gate, but frequently the emission characteristic of the wedge is not seriously affected as long as most of the wedge remains intact. A single wedge may undergo up to hundreds of individual failures and still emit. >
Implementations of learning control systems using neural networks

The systematic storage in neural networks of prior information to be used in the design of various control subsystems is investigated. Assuming that the prior information is available in a certain form (namely, input/output data points and specifications between the data points), a particular neural network and a corresponding parameter design method are introduced. The proposed neural network addresses the issue of effectively using prior information in the areas of dynamical system (plant and controller) modeling, fault detection and identification, information extraction, and control law scheduling. >
Mechanisms and Predictors of Insulator Degradation and Erosion Produced by Pulsed High-Current Surface Discharges

The mechanisms and predictors of insulator degradation and erosion by pulsed high-current surface discharges are presented and discussed. Erosion and degradation depend on the insulator material, the electrode material, the ambient gas, and the presence of UV stabilizers in, or on the surface of, the insulator. Insulator degradation is the result of material decomposition into conductive metal or carbon species and is measured by a decrease in the surface breakdown voltage. Insulator erosion is measured by the material's mass loss. The performance of a large group of ceramic, polymeric, and elastomeric materials tested with graphite and molybdenum electrodes is presented in this investigation. The insulators are exposed to repetitive 300-kA 20-mus-long surface discharges. Tests are performed in atmospheric air and pure nitrogen. Various methods to rank insulators in terms of holdoff voltage degradation, mass erosion, and holdoff voltage conditioning (HVC) using the material's thermochemical properties are presented and discussed. HVC is characterized by an initial increase in surface holdoff voltage. The ranking method developed by the authors characterizes the insulator according to the holdoff degradation resistance (HDR), mass vaporization coefficient (MVC), and HVC figures of merit calculated by the material's thermochemical properties. The investigation also shows the relationship between the HDR, MVC, and HVC figures of merit.
Dielectric and electromechanical properties of barium titanate single crystals grown by templated grain growth

Single crystals of BaTiO/sub 3/ were grown by templated grain growth (TGG). TGG involves contacting a single crystal "template" to a sintered polycrystalline matrix, then heating the assemblage to a temperature that promotes the migration of the single crystal boundary through the matrix. In this investigation the properties of millimeter-sized, plate-shaped and bar-shaped, single crystals of BaTiO/sub 3/ grown by TGG were examined in order to compare the results to single crystals grown by conventional methods. A dielectric constant, /spl epsi//sub 33//sup T///spl epsi//sub 0/, of 260, polarizations of P/sub R//spl sim/16 /spl mu/C/cm/sup 2/ and P/sub sat//spl sim/21.5 /spl mu/C/cm/sup 2/, electromechanical coupling coefficients of k/sub 33//spl sim/0.51 and k/sub 31//spl sim/0.18, and a piezoelectric coefficient of d/sub 33//spl sim/140 pC/N were achieved. Entrapped porosity in the crystals made fully poling the crystals difficult.
The Politics of Gay Rights and the Gender Gap: A Perspective on the Clergy

In this article, we explore the nexus of gender, religious leadership, and attitudes toward homosexuality and gay rights. Homosexuality has become a frontline issue in American politics, as illustrated most recently by gay marriage battles in the courts and state legislatures as well as state referenda campaigns designed to define marriage legally as the union of a man and a woman. Using survey data from a national random sample of 3,208 clergy who serve in six mainline Protestant denominations, we analyze the extent to which gender operates as a significant predictor of public speech on gay rights issues. Ordinal logistic regression allows us to demonstrate that women clergy are substantially more likely than their male counterparts to speak publicly on gay rights, as well as to model more generally the factors that compel clergy to take action to address this controversial issue in public.
Global Cancer Incidence and Mortality Rates and Trends—An Update

There are limited published data on recent cancer incidence and mortality trends worldwide. We used the International Agency for Research on Cancer's CANCERMondial clearinghouse to present age-standardized cancer incidence and death rates for 2003-2007. We also present trends in incidence through 2007 and mortality through 2012 for select countries from five continents. High-income countries (HIC) continue to have the highest incidence rates for all sites, as well as for lung, colorectal, breast, and prostate cancer, although some low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) now count among those with the highest rates. Mortality rates from these cancers are declining in many HICs while they are increasing in LMICs. LMICs have the highest rates of stomach, liver, esophageal, and cervical cancer. Although rates remain high in HICs, they are plateauing or decreasing for the most common cancers due to decreases in known risk factors, screening and early detection, and improved treatment (mortality only). In contrast, rates in several LMICs are increasing for these cancers due to increases in smoking, excess body weight, and physical inactivity. LMICs also have a disproportionate burden of infection-related cancers. Applied cancer control measures are needed to reduce rates in HICs and arrest the growing burden in LMICs.