cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Knowledge and Awareness of Added Sugar in Cigarettes

Introduction Sugars naturally occur in tobacco leaf but are also commonly added to cigarettes by tobacco companies. Added sugar increases levels of toxic chemicals in cigarette smoke. Little is known about smokers' knowledge of added sugar in cigarettes and awareness of its effects. Methods Adult cigarette smokers were recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk to participate in an online experiment on electronic cigarette advertising. After completing the experiment, participants (N = 4351) answered two items assessing knowledge and awareness of added sugar in cigarettes. Participants had the option of providing open-ended comments about the overall study, and two reviewers read and independently coded comments pertaining to the sugar items. Results Only 5.5% of participants responded "yes" to the question: "Is sugar added to cigarettes?", and only 3.8% of participants indicated being aware that added sugar increases toxins in cigarette smoke. Forty-eight participants mentioned the sugar items when asked to comment about the overall questionnaire. Fifty-two percent of these comments expressed an interest in obtaining more information about added sugar, and 23% described the sugar items as interesting or informative. Three participants commented that learning about added sugar motivated them to quit or cut down on smoking. Conclusions Among a large sample of smokers, few reported knowledge of added sugar in cigarettes and awareness of its effects. Further, several smokers expressed an interest in learning more about added sugar. Messages about added sugar in cigarettes may be a promising new angle for campaigns to discourage smoking. Implications Few American smokers are aware that sugar is added to cigarettes, and some participants expressed a desire to learn more about this additive. Given such low awareness, the interest among smokers, and increased popular concerns about added sugar in foods and beverages, messaging about added sugar in cigarettes should be developed and tested for inclusion in public health media campaigns.
How America disguises its violence: colonialism, mass incarceration, and the need for resistant imagination

This paper examines how a delusive social imaginary of criminal-justice has underpinned contemporary U.S. mass incarceration and encouraged widespread indifference to its violence. I trace the comp...
The Examination of non-pharmacologic treatment of pain after spinal cord injury

Background: One of the primary debilitating secondary health conditions experienced by individuals living with a spinal cord injury (SCI) is chronic pain. Approximately, over 30% of SCI patients endure chronic pain after sustaining the injury, and engage in opioid pharmacotherapy as the first form of treatment. The increase in use and misuse of prescribed opioids for chronic pain can lead to both physical and psychological health risks. This danger is exacerbated by the notion that a large percentage of the SCI population have a pre-existing condition of drug and alcohol abuse and addiction. This study will examine how pain is actually being addressed through non-pharmaceutical methods among the SCI adult population. Experimental Design: Employing a cross-sectional web survey design with a convenience sample of adults with a SCI. A Qualtrics survey is currently being administered to known individuals with SCIs via email. The survey questions will illuminate what pain management strategies are being implemented in the SCI population within the US. Anticipated Results: The results from the data will provide insight on what non-pharmacological interventions can be employed in place of or in combination with the pharmacological management. This will allow community-based rehabilitation therapies to incorporate appropriate pain management strategies. Potential Impact: Non-pharmacological interventions may hold the answer in treating chronic pain in the SCI population by limiting or eliminating the use of opioids. This study will help develop the most appropriate non-pharmacological intervention to test in quasi-experimental clinical trials, and ultimately minimize the use of opioids for chronic pain.
What Drives E-Book Usage: Comparative Study between Paper based Books and E-books

This research aims at understanding the reasons behind adoption of e-book using the Extended Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology2 (UTAUT2) and two additional constructs “long tail effect” and “trust”. For this a comparative study is conducted in Japan between e-book and paper-based book purchased through online channels. One is a physical product while the other is a digital product. Some differences in the reasons behind user adoption of these two products were found, which emphasize the importance of external market situations, industry standards, and the inherent characteristics of the products as some of the factors affecting the motivations behind the adoption of a product. Additional construct “trust” was found to have significant relationship with the intention to use for both the product, while “long tail effect” was found to have significant relationship with the intention to use for paper-based book. On the other hand, “price value” construct of UTAUT2 was found to have a significant relationship for e-book but was not found to have a significant relationship for paper-based book purchased through online channels. Inclusion of both “long tail effect” and “trust” constructs to the existing UTAUT2 research framework is proposed for future research.
A Survey of Deep-Learning Applications in Ultrasound: Artificial Intelligence-Powered Ultrasound for Improving Clinical Workflow

Abstract Ultrasound is the most commonly used imaging modality in clinical practice because it is a nonionizing, low-cost, and portable point-of-care imaging tool that provides real-time images. Artificial intelligence (AI)–powered ultrasound is becoming more mature and getting closer to routine clinical applications in recent times because of an increased need for efficient and objective acquisition and evaluation of ultrasound images. Because ultrasound images involve operator-, patient-, and scanner-dependent variations, the adaptation of classical machine learning methods to clinical applications becomes challenging. With their self-learning ability, deep-learning (DL) methods are able to harness exponentially growing graphics processing unit computing power to identify abstract and complex imaging features. This has given rise to tremendous opportunities such as providing robust and generalizable AI models for improving image acquisition, real-time assessment of image quality, objective diagnosis and detection of diseases, and optimizing ultrasound clinical workflow. In this report, the authors review current DL approaches and research directions in rapidly advancing ultrasound technology and present their outlook on future directions and trends for DL techniques to further improve diagnosis, reduce health care cost, and optimize ultrasound clinical workflow.
ENTHALPY OF FORMATION OF AQUEOUS HYDROFLUORIC ACID: REVISION NEEDED?

Abstract Accurate enthalpies of formation of hydrofluoric acid in the gas and liquid states as well as in aqueous solutions are critical for reduction and interpretation of combustion calorimetry data for fluorinated compounds. Analysis of current recommendations reveals inconsistencies with the existing literature that can significantly affect experimental values derived using these recommendations. Through thorough and comprehensive analysis of available experimental data, including the sources not considered before, we provide recommendations that substantially improve consistency with these results. However, the scatter in the existing data also prevents further improvements and uncertainty reduction. New experimental data, particularly for aqueous HF solutions, are needed to advance.
Does the Impact of Norms Vary by Type of Norm and Type of Conservation Behavior? A Meta-Analysis

Norms can be powerful motivators of conservation behavior. Research has distinguished between subjective or injunctive norms, descriptive norms, and personal norms. To date, there is no clear conse...
Temperature and crack detection of steel rods using an all-optical photoacoustic ultrasound system

Abstract Structural health monitoring (SHM) is crucial for extending service lives and preventing catastrophic failures of deteriorated infrastructures such as bridges, stadiums, and shopping centers from happening. An active all-optical photoacoustic ultrasound system (APUS) had been proposed. This paper investigates potential methods for measuring temperatures and detecting cracks of steel rods using ultrasonic waves generated and received by such APUS. In this study, radial displacements of ultrasonic waves were collected on the surface of steel rods. Short-time Fourier transform (STFT) was applied to obtain their spectrogram. Temperature measurement and crack detection were achieved by using the centroid of the spectrogram at the half-power level. Specifically, time-of-flight (TOF) of the centroid ( t c ) was used for temperature measurement. Frequency of the centroid ( f c ) was used for crack detection. It was found that, when temperature increases from 25 °C to 55 °C, t c reduces. Presence of crack was detected by the reduction of f c . Crack quantification was achieved by comparing the f c of damaged steel rods with the one of an intact steel rod. The reduction of f c becomes greater when the crack depth increases from 1 mm to 3 mm. Empirical equations were developed for measuring the temperature of steel rods and crack depths using t c and f c .
Increased aperiodic gamma power in young boys with Fragile X is associated with better language ability

ABSTRACT The lack of identified clinical biomarkers in Fragile X Syndrome (FXS), the most common inherited form of intellectual disability, has limited the successful translation of bench-to-bedside therapeutics. While numerous drugs have shown promise in reversing synaptic and behavioral phenotypes in mouse models of FXS, none have demonstrated clinical efficacy in humans. Electroencephalographic (EEG) measures have been identified as candidate biomarkers as EEG recordings of both adults with FXS and mouse models of FXS consistently exhibit increased resting-state gamma power. However, the developmental timing of these EEG differences is not known as thus far EEG studies have not focused on young children with FXS. Further, understanding how EEG differences are associated to core symptoms of FXS is crucial to successful use of EEG as a biomarker, and may improve our understanding of the disorder. Resting-state EEG was collected from FXS boys with full mutation of Fmr1 (32-84 months old, n=11) and compared with both age-matched (n=12) and cognitive-matched (n=12) typically developing boys. Power spectra (including aperiodic and periodic components) were compared using non-parametric cluster-based permutation testing. Associations between 30-50Hz gamma power and cognitive, language, and behavioral measures were evaluated using Pearson correlation and linear regression with age as a covariate. FXS participants showed increased power in the beta/gamma range (∼25-50Hz) across multiple brain regions. Both a reduction in the aperiodic (1/f) slope and increase in beta/gamma periodic activity contributed to the significant increase in high-frequency power. Increased gamma power, driven by the aperiodic component, was associated with better language ability in the FXS group. No association was observed between gamma power and parent report measures of behavioral challenges, sensory hypersensitivities, or adaptive behaviors. The observed positive association between increased aperiodic gamma power and language supports hypotheses that increased E/I ratios observed in FXS mouse models may reflect beneficial compensation.
How microbes can, and cannot, be used to assess soil health

Abstract Healthy soils are critical to the health of ecosystems, economies, and human populations. Thus, it is widely acknowledged that soil health is important to quantify, both for assessment and as a tool to help guide management strategies. What is less clear is how soil health should actually be measured, especially considering that soil health is not exclusively a product of soil physical and chemical characteristics. Given their well-established importance to many aspects of soil health, microbes and microbial processes are often used as metrics of soil health with a range of different microbe-based metrics routinely used across the globe. Unfortunately, it is our opinion that many of these pre-existing microbial measurements are not easy to interpret and may not necessarily provide credible inferences about soil health status. Here we review the microbial indices used to assess or monitor soil health and discuss some of the broader issues associated with their use. We provide recommendations to more effectively guide and improve how microbial information could be used to yield relevant and actionable assessments of soil health.
Horizontal innovation networks-by and for users

Innovation development, production, distribution and consumption networks can be built up horizontally—with actors consisting only of innovation users (more precisely, “user/self-manufacturers”). Some open source software projects are examples of such networks, and examples can be found in the case of physical products as well. In this article, we discuss three conditions under which user innovation networks can function entirely independently of manufacturers. We then explore related empirical evidence, and conclude that conditions favorable to horizontal user innovation networks are often present in the economy. Copyright 2007 , Oxford University Press.
Energy Emergencies vs. Manufactured Crises: The Limits of Federal Authority to Disrupt Power Markets

Because genuine emergencies demand a swift and decisive response, several federal laws consolidate limited emergency control over the energy industry in the Department of Energy (DOE) or the President, temporarily empowering them to override existing law and order actions inconsistent with the contracts, prices, or protocols that govern the industry’s day-to- day operations. These authorities, however, are narrow, as befits the nature of emergency response. Congress had specific types of threats in mind and limited the authorities granted to those needed to respond to a crisis. The relevant statutes outline the conditions under which federal actors may assert emergency powers and enumerate those powers with specificity. Since early 2017, the current Administration has flirted with invoking these powers to bail out coal-fired power plants. This paper examines statutes that provide federal agencies or the President with emergency powers over energy assets, including a law related to “defense critical materials” that is discussed in a leaked Administration document that purports to justify a bailout. We answer three key questions about these federal laws: 1) What conditions allow DOE to declare an “emergency” or to otherwise invoke these statutes? 2) What powers does DOE have under these statutes to alleviate emergency conditions or to respond to national security threats? And, 3) When do these statutory authorities expire once invoked? We conclude that these statutes do not provide the authority this Administration seeks to prop up economically failing coal plants. We first outline the extensive frameworks in place to ensure the reliability of the electric grid. Then we survey the statutory authorities available to respond to grid emergencies. Finally, we detail the Trump Administration’s proposals to support coal-fired generation and explain why the emergency statutes are a poor fit for these efforts.
State Variation in Chronic Opioid Use in Long-Term Care Nursing Home Residents

Abstract Objective Policies and regulations on opioid use have evolved from being primarily state-to federally based. We examined the trends and variation in chronic opioid use among states and nursing homes. Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting and Participants We used the nursing home Minimum Data Set and Medicare claims from 2014 to 2018 and included long-term care nursing home residents from each year who had at least 120 days of consecutive stay. Measurements Chronic opioid use was defined as use for ≥90 days. Three-level hierarchical logistic regression models (resident, nursing home, state) were constructed to estimate intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) at the state level and at the nursing home level. The ICC shows the proportion of variation in chronic opioid use that is attributable to states or nursing homes. All models were constructed separately for each calendar year and controlled for resident, nursing home, and state characteristics. Results We included 3,245,714 nursing home stays from 2014 to 2018, representing 1,502,131 unique residents. The stays ranged from 676,413 in 2014 to 594,874 in 2018, with residents contributing a maximum of 1 stay per year. Chronic opioid use among nursing home residents declined from 14.1% in 2014 to 11.4% in 2018. The variation (ICC) in chronic opioid use among states declined from 2.5% in 2014 to 1.7% in 2018. In contrast, the variation (ICC) among nursing homes increased from 5.6% in 2014 to 6.5% in 2018. Conclusions and Implications Variation in chronic opioid use declined by one-third at the state level but not at the nursing home level. National guidelines on opioid use and federal policies on opioid use may have contributed to reducing state-level variation in chronic opioid use.
Ca2+-inactivation of the mammalian ryanodine receptor type 1 in a lipidic environment revealed by cryo-EM

Activation of the intracellular Ca2+ channel ryanodine receptor (RyR) triggers a cytosolic Ca2+ surge, while elevated cytosolic Ca2+ inhibits the channel in a negative feedback mechanism. Cryo-EM carried out under partially inactivating Ca2+ conditions revealed two conformations of RyR1, an open state and an inactivated state, resolved at 4.0 and 3.3 Angstroms resolution, respectively. RyR1s were embedded in nanodiscs with two lipids resolved at each inter-subunit crevice. Ca2+ binding to the high affinity site engages the central (CD) and C-terminal domains (CTD) into a quasi-rigid unit, which separates the S6 four-helix bundle and opens the channel. Further out-of-plane rotation of the quasi-rigid unit pushes S6 towards the central axis, closing (inactivating) the channel. The inactivated conformation is characterized by a downward conformation of the cytoplasmic assembly, a tightly-knit subunit interface contributed by a fully occupied and partially remodeled Ca2+ activation site, and two salt bridges between the EF hand domain and the S2-S3 loop of the neighboring subunit validated by naturally-occurring disease-causing mutations. Ca2+ also bound to ATP, mediating a tighter interaction between S6 and CTD. Our study suggests that the closed-inactivated is a distinctive state of the RyR1 and its transition to the closed-activable state is not a simple reverse of the Ca2+ mediated activation pathway.
An evaluation of prophylactic penicillin administration to parturient women.

T HE effectiveness of penicillin in combating postpartum infections has suggested its use prophylactically during labor. The drug has already been used by Ode11 andPlassl in the control of intrapartum infections with considerable benefit to both mother and child. On the basis of these casual observations, it, seemed advisable to learn more accurately if penicillin administration during labor and the early puerperium would produce a significant reduction in the number of puerperal fevers. This study was directed at ascertaining this information by means of controlled experimental use of the drug. The patients were delivered in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the State University of Iowa.Hospitals between Feb. 3,1947, and Feb. 1,1948. So far as was practicable, alternate patients as determined by the delivery room nurse received prophylactic penicillin” according to a predetermined schedule. The only patients excluded were those delivered by the abdominal route and those receiving penicillin therapeutically prior to the onset of labor. All patients were delivered under similar delivery room technique by medical students, residents, or the senior staff. Postpartum temperatures were taken by mouth every four hours (excluding 2:00 A.M.) during labor and the postpartum stay, which averaged from six to nine days.
Multimodal Representations as Basis for Cognitive Architecture

In this talk, I outline a view of “cognitive state” as fundamentally multi-modal, i.e., as an integrated and interlinked collection of “images” in various modalities: the perceptual ones, and the kinesthetic and conceptual modalities. Thinking, problem solving, reasoning, etc. are best viewed as sequences of such states, in which there is no intrinsically preferred mode. Representational elements in one mode invoke elements in other modes. The external world also at various points contributes elements to one mode or another. Perception and imagination are more continuous in this view than in the traditional views. In recent years, there has been much interest in the notion of “mental images.” However, the focus in this stream of research has been on a very special class of mental images, namely visual ones. The proposed view is an extension and generalization of this notion, not only to other perceptual modalities, but also to kinesthetic and conceptual modalities. I think the proposed view of the essential nature of the mental state opens up new ways of thinking about cognitive architecture, and also suggests new ways of building smart machines. I’ll outline why I think so.
Solar tracking: design and simulation (X-ray emission detection)

A solar fine tracking system has been designed and simulated for the pointing of a hard X-ray experiment (pinhole/occulter facility) to be flown on the Space Shuttle or a high altitude balloon. The system hardware consists of a uniform-diameter pinhole camera, photodetector, and sample/hold and analog-to-digital converting circuits. The high-precision algorithm is based on the numerically derived intensity distribution of the solar image. Simulation results show that the algorithm can estimate the absolute planar pointing angle to the Sun with the resolution of +or-0.001 arc seconds. >
Heat bath approach to Landau damping and Pomeranchuk quantum critical points

We study the problem of the damping of collective modes close to a Pomeranchuk quantum critical point in a Fermi liquid. In analogy with problems in dissipative open quantum systems, we derive the Landau damping of a Fermi liquid by integrating out a macroscopic number of degrees of freedom from a generating functional. Being a reformulation of the linearized Boltzmann equation, this approach reproduces well-known results from the theory of Fermi liquids. We also study the Bethe-Salpeter equations within the Landau theory and discuss the implications of these results on quantum phase transitions of the Pomeranchuk type and its dynamical exponent, $z$. We apply our results to the electronic nematic instability and find $z=3$ in the collisionless limit.
Fast, local signal transduction between the mu opioid receptor and Ca2+ channels

We used patch-clamp methods to describe signal transduction between the mu opioid receptor, the binding site for morphine, and high-threshold Ca2+ channels in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) sensory neurons from adult rats. Opioid signaling persists in excised membrane patches, and an activated opioid receptor can only inhibit nearby Ca2+ channels; thus, no readily diffusible second-messenger molecule mediates between the mu receptor and Ca2+ channels. Inhibition of Ca2+ channels begins several hundred msec after application of opioid and it is maximal by 5 sec; this is faster than typical phosphorylation cascades. Blockade of the known serine-threonine kinases and phosphatases does not affect this opioid signaling and, as shown previously by Seward et al. (1991) and Moises et al. (1994a), pertussis toxin eliminates virtually all of the effect. Inhibited channels can open, but their half-activation voltage is unphysiologically positive. The link between the mu receptor and Ca2+ channels is clearly unlike the protein kinase C-dependent paths that couple mu receptors to NMDA channels in dorsal horn neurons (Chen and Huang, 1991) and alpha-adrenergic receptors to Ca2+ channels in DRG neurons (Diverse-Pierluissi and Dunlap, 1993). The rapid kinetics and tight localization of the signaling path are properties expected if receptor and channel are linked directly by a G-protein, but these properties do not constitute proof of such a pathway.
Glass compositions, plume-ridge interaction, and hydrous melting along the Galápagos Spreading Center, 90.5°W to 98°W

[1] The Galapagos Spreading Center (GSC) between 90.5°W and 98°W manifests its interaction with the nearby Galapagos plume by way of variations in lava geochemistry, crustal thickness, and morphology along the ridge axis. Natural glasses from stations with ∼9 km average spacing were analyzed for major and minor elements, H2O, and CO2. Samples can be classified as enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts (E-MORB), transitional MORB (T-MORB), or normal MORB (N-MORB) on the basis of K/Ti ratios. E-MORB dominate the GSC east of 92.6°W. T-MORB are mainly found between 92.6°W and 95.5°W. West of the propagating rift tip at 95.5°W, N-MORB dominate. High K/Ti E-MORB also have higher H2O, Al2O3, and Na2O and lower FeO*, SiO2, and CaO/Al2O3 relative to N-MORB at similar values of MgO, characteristics consistent with lower mean extents of partial melting relative to N-MORB. We examine the melting process along this section of the GSC with a set of equations that simulate a deep zone of hydrous melting related to the depression of the mantle solidus by H2O. This model constrains the range of mantle source compositions, the depth of the additional hydrous melting zone, the melt productivity in the hydrous region, and the ratio of mantle flow rate through the hydrous zone relative to the anhydrous zone (Uw/U0) that can explain the measured crustal thickness as well as the fractionation-corrected concentrations of K, Na2O, H2O, and Ti along the GSC. Far from the hot spot, the measured crustal thickness and N-MORB compositions are explained by passive mantle upwelling (Uw/U0 = 1), mean melt fraction () ∼ 0.06, and a source with ∼35 ppm K, 130 ppm H2O, 2300 ppm Na2O, and 1050 ppm Ti. The transitional zone has a source enriched in K and could have a slight excess plume-driven flow through the hydrous melting zone (Uw/U0 ≤ 1.5). The crustal thickness and glass compositions in the “enriched” region of the GSC nearest the hot spot are best explained by only a slight increase in the temperature of the mantle (<∼20°C), coupled with a mantle source moderately enriched (relative to N-MORB source) and plume-driven flow through the hydrous zone of Uw/U0 = 1.5–3.5.
Micropatternable elastic electrets based on a PDMS/carbon nanotube composite

This paper reports the fabrication and performance of an elastic electret based on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)/carbon-nanotube (CNT) nanocomposites. The composite formulation concentrates CNTs near the surface of the PDMS and thereby combines the excellent electrical properties and room temperature micropatternability of the CNT with the elasticity of PDMS. The fabrication approach preserves the good rheological properties of unfilled PDMS and also efficiently utilizes the CNTs. The material was corona charged and the charge storage behavior was characterized using surface potential measurements. Substantial improvements in charge storage capacity and stability were observed compared to either pure PDMS or CNTs on the surface of PDMS at room temperature over a 280 h measurement period. The power generation of the corona-charged elastic composite was initially demonstrated through a ball drop experiment.
Influence of hypoxia on the metabolism and excretion of misonidazole by the isolated perfused rat liver—A model system

Abstract The isolated perfused rat liver was evaluated as a model system for the characterization of misonidazole metabolism under hypoxic conditions. Misonidazole metabolism by livers perfused under aerobic conditions was also examined. The clearance of misonidazole was more than three times greater under anaerobic compared to aerobic conditions (4.94 ± 1.56 vs 1.27 ± 0.22 ml/min; x ± S.D., N = 3) . Misonidazole metabolites were detected only in the bile. Analysis of these metabolites by reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) demonstrated that misonidazole metabolism was also qualitatively changed when anaerobic conditions were employed. Misonidazole β-glucuronide was the major metabolite detected under aerobic conditions, but it was a minor metabolite in anaerobieally perfused livers. The three major metabolites produced under anaerobic conditions were not characterized, but desmethyl misonidazole (RO-07-9963) and the 2-amino-imidazole derivative of misonidazole (1-[2-aminoimidazol-1-yl]-3-methoxy-2-propanol) were excluded as possible structures.
Process engineering economic evaluation of the ethanol extraction of cottonseed: Preliminary analysis

This preliminary analysis was undertaken to determine if the operations being developed for the aqueous ethanol extraction of cottonseed oil are economical and whether further research of this process should be pursued. Results of the conversion of hypothetical hexane extraction plants to ethanol extraction, in the plant capacity range of 300-600 tons of cottonseed flakes/day and operating 150-350 days annually, show that two unconventional operations, namely, chill-separation of miscella exiting the extractor and reduction of oil in recycled ethanol by reverse osmosis, require less energy and are less expensive than conventional alternatives. However, additional work is needed to determine the overall efficiency of an alcohol process as compared to a conventional hexane process.
Changes in dehydrin expression associated with cold, ABA and PEG treatments in blueberry cell cultures

Abstract Cell cultures of highbush blueberry cultivar ‘Gulfcoast’ ( Vaccinium corymbosum L. x Vaccinium darrowi Camp) were used to determine if tissue cultures could be used as a surrogate for whole plants in studying dehydrin expression. Cell clusters in liquid medium were subjected to treatments known to induce dehydrins in whole plants, and dehydrin protein and RNA levels were monitored. Two dehydrins of 65 and 30 kDa were detected with a polyclonal antibody raised against the 65 kDa dehydrin of blueberry. Using a full-length cDNA clone of blueberry dehydrin 1 as a probe, one mRNA of 0.75 kb, an appropriate size to encode the 30 kDa dehydrin, was detected on RNA blots. When cells were grown at 4 °C, abundance of the 30 kDa dehydrin increased, but the 65 kDa dehydrin did not. Level of the 0.75 kb message increased temporarily then decreased with cold treatment. Disparities between protein and transcript levels suggested that post-transcriptional mechanisms were involved in regulation of dehydrin expression. Some of the abscisic acid (ABA) concentrations tested induced expression of both dehydrins. Polyethylene glycol in the cultures repressed expression of both dehydrins and of the 0.75 kb mRNA. Results obtained from cell culture differed in too many ways from those on whole plants to make cell culture suitable for studying dehydrin expression in blueberry.
A time accurate finite volume high resolution scheme for three dimensional Navier-Stokes equations

A time accurate, three-dimensional, finite volume, high resolution scheme for solving the compressible full Navier-Stokes equations is presented. The present derivation is based on the upwind split formulas, specifically with the application of Roe's (1981) flux difference splitting. A high-order accurate (up to the third order) upwind interpolation formula for the inviscid terms is derived to account for nonuniform meshes. For the viscous terms, discretizations consistent with the finite volume concept are described. A variant of second-order time accurate method is proposed that utilizes identical procedures in both the predictor and corrector steps. Avoiding the definition of midpoint gives a consistent and easy procedure, in the framework of finite volume discretization, for treating viscous transport terms in the curvilinear coordinates. For the boundary cells, a new treatment is introduced that not only avoids the use of 'ghost cells' and the associated problems, but also satisfies the tangency conditions exactly and allows easy definition of viscous transport terms at the first interface next to the boundary cells. Numerical tests of steady and unsteady high speed flows show that the present scheme gives accurate solutions.
Abstract 2140: Oral antiangiogenic therapy suppresses xenograft growth and is well tolerated in rats.

Lodamin, the oral formulation of TNP-470, a methionine aminopeptidase 2 (MetAp2) inhibitor, was previously shown to significantly inhibit angiogenesis and suppress the progression of fast growing murine tumors. Lodamins’ unique structure as a polymer micelle composed of poly(ethylene-glycol)-poly(lactic)acid (PEG-PLA) conjugate of TNP-470 is pharmacologically advantageous over the non-conjugated form. It shows better stability, oral availability, solubility in water and importantly, has an improved safety profile (Benny O. Folkman J et al, Nat Biotech, 2008). We now report the successful large scale synthesis of Lodamin, yielding pure and active product composed of mPEG-PLA-TNP-470 conjugate without residual free drug as confirmed by NMR and LC-MS/MS. The safety profile of Lodamin was studied in an acute high dose rat study (4 fold higher than therapeutic dose). Lodamin was administered at 10mg/kg or 60mg/kg via oral gavage while control rats were given vehicle only. After 7 days of daily treatment, no changes in body weight or behavior were observed compared to the control group. On day 8 post treatment, gross pathology of all rats was examined. This data showed Lodamin treatment had no adverse effect on tissue morphology. Lodamin is a potent antiangiogenic drug in numerous in vivo murine models including the corneal micropocket assay, matrigel assay, Delayed-Type Hypersensitivity (DTH) reaction and the choroidal neovascularization (CNV) model (Benny O. Folkman J et al, Nat Biotech, 2008, Benny O. D9Amato R et al, Plos One 2010). We now show that in addition to its dramatic anti-cancer effects on Lewis lung carcinoma and B16F10 melanoma murine tumors, Lodamin suppresses human tumors induced in nude mice. The volume of subcutaneous (s.c) human glioblastoma (U87MG) xenografts were reduced by 70% after 30 days, and 71% after 45 days when administered by gavage or in drinking water, respectively. Human breast tumor (MDA-MB231, s.c) growth was inhibited by 62% after 47 days of administration, and Human hepatocarcinoma (HepG2, s.c) tumor growth was inhibited by 60% after only 12 days. Taken together we have established Lodamin as a potent antiangiogenic drug which retains TNP-470 activity without TNP-470-associated side effects. Lodamin is a safe and efficacious drug in our animal models and hopefully will be reintroduced for the treatment of cancer in patients. Citation Format: Ofra Benny, Lauren Bazinet, Robert D9Amato. Oral antiangiogenic therapy suppresses xenograft growth and is well tolerated in rats. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2140. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-2140
Using the Context of Interactions to Adapt to Users

The context of human-computer interaction consists of those objects referred to by the users in the computer system and the users themselves. A contextual knowledge base (embedded within a computer system) can be used to facilitate and control the adaptation of the computer system based on information about users stored within this context. A general Context Management System design has been proposed and a prototype of this design implemented to meet the needs of the adaptation of systems to individuals and groups of users.
Foraminifera as indicators of methane-rich environments: A study of modern methane seeps in Santa Barbara Channel, California

Methane hydrates have been implicated as a possible forcing mechanism for rapid climate change during the late Quaternary, via the release of methane from marine reservoirs. Carbon isotopic excursions of foraminifera observed in high-resolution sediment records from Santa Barbara Basin (ODP Site 893) have been interpreted as evidence of episodes of methane release during the late Quaternary. However, the potential relationship between methane in the modern environment and its effect on the stable isotopic composition of benthic and planktonic foraminifera is not well understood. Short cores taken inside a ∼500-m-diameter pockmark with active methane seeps in Santa Barbara Channel, CA, USA, yield information on the effect of high concentrations of environmental methane on foraminiferal assemblages and their stable isotopic composition. These seeps reside at ∼120 m water depth in the eastern portion of the channel, associated with faults and fractures in the Miocene Monterey Formation. Planktonic foraminiferal assemblages and radiocarbon ages show that surface sediments are of late Glacial age (∼25 300 calendar years). This finding suggests an absence of Holocene and deglacial sedimentation in the seep area, likely due the formation of the pockmarks and subsequent winnowing or lack of sedimentation. Benthic foraminiferal assemblages are marked by high abundance of Bolivina tumida, a species previously observed during interstadial episodes and the early Holocene in Santa Barbara Basin, interpreted to include episodes of high methane flux from the basin. While oxygen isotopic values of both benthic and planktonic foraminifera appear normal for cool, glacial conditions, negative carbon isotopic values are seen in benthic foraminifera, primarily in the near-surface intervals. In one interval (1–2 cm below surface), both benthic and planktonic species record highly negative carbon isotopic values, implying that isotopically light methane influenced the entire water column. This spike is of similar or larger magnitude than several earlier observed spikes in the late Quaternary record from ODP Site 893. Single specimen isotopic analyses give an indication of the total range of carbon isotopic values recorded (−0.01 to −25.23‰ for benthics, −0.07 to −22.22‰ for planktonics) in the spike interval. Since modern methane seeps are commonly associated with authigenic carbonate precipitation, scanning electron microscopy was used to assess the possibility that post-depositional alteration may have affected the isotopic composition of the test. These experiments indicate that authigenic carbonate is absent and therefore unable to account for the highly negative carbon isotopic signatures. These data improve our understanding of methane-associated environments by showing that foraminiferal isotopic composition and assemblages may be used to discern the flux of methane from the oceanic reservoir in the geologic record.
The postnatal age of rat lung fibroblasts influences G1/S phase transition in vitro.

In the neonatal rat lung, alveolar development occurs from postnatal Days 4–13, during which time there is a fourfold increase in interstitial fibroblasts. Factors influencing emergence of new septa and cell proliferation associated with septal elongation have yet to be identified, in part because of difficulties inherent in studying this process in vivo. Using flow cytometric analysis of the DNA content of freshly isolated lung fibroblasts, we found that proliferation, as indicated by the percentage of cells in S plus G2/M phases, peaked on postnatal Day 4 (P<0.04). By Days 9–10 the proliferation rate was lower than on Days 3, 4, 5, or 6 (P<0.005). We then evaluated rates of in vitro proliferation as a function of postnatal age in first passage fibroblasts and found that the proliferative phenotype expressed in vivo persists in vitro. Fibroblasts from 4–5-d-old pups increased in number and incorporated 3H-thymidine at a faster rate than did fibroblasts obtained from pups at other postnatal ages (P<0.0001). Age-dependent differences in cell cycle transit time were compared in fibroblasts synchronized by serum starvation and analyzed by flow cytometry at 2-h intervals from 13–21 h after release from serum starvation. A greater percentage of cells from 5-d-old pups entered S phase during this period than was seen for cells obtained from 2-, 9-, 13-, or 23-d-old rat pups (P=0.0001). Cells from 5-, 9-, and 13-d-old pups reentered G0/G1 by 21 h after release from serum starvation, in contrast to fibroblasts from 2- and 23-d-old rats which did not. Throughout the 15-h period after release from serum starvation, levels of cyclin E, which peaks at the G1/S border, were highest in the 5-d-old cells (P<0.025). Synchronization with 2.5 mM hydroxyurea which inhibits DNA synthesis completely abolished age-related differences in cell cycle transit time, implying that age-dependent differences in lung fibroblast proliferation rates are the result of events occurring before S-phase entry.
SIRT1 Is a Circadian Deacetylase for Core Clock Components

The transcriptional activator CLOCK is a histone acetyltransferase that is required for the circadian expression of many genes. Asher et al. (2008) and Nakahata et al. (2008) now demonstrate that the NAD+-dependent enzyme SIRT1 functions as a histone deacetylase that counteracts the activity of CLOCK. These results broaden our understanding of the impact of cellular metabolism on the circadian system.
Skew Distributions Generated from Different Families

Following the recent paper by Gupta et al. [8], skew pdfs of the form \(2 f (u) G (\lambda u)\) are generated, where the pdf \(f\) and the cdf \(G\) are taken to be different and to come from normal, Student's \(t\), Cauchy, Laplace, logistic or the uniform distribution. The properties of the resulting distributions are studied. In particular, expressions for the \(n\)th moment and the characteristic function are derived. Graphical illustrations are also provided.
New photosensitive polymers derived from glycidyl cinnamate

Abstract New photosensitive polymers were derived from glycidyl cinnamate with which methylmethacrylate-methacrylic acid copolymer (I) or an acid anhydride (II) was allowed to react. The product from (I) showed better photosensitivity than that from (II) from the point of view of insolubility in tetrahydrofuran. Infra-red spectroscopy can be used to follow changes during irradiation.
Channel-Routing Problem in the Knock-Knee Mode Is NP-Complete

We will show that it is NP-Complete to decide whether an arbitrary instance of the channel-routing problem in the knock-knee mode can be laid out optimally. This result is extended to problems (arising in practice) involving nets of bounded degree
Effects of interface electronics on the performance of VCSEL-based optical interconnect systems

The performance of optical interconnects is directly related to the characteristics of the electronic interface between the optical interconnect components and the electronic processing elements. In this paper we examine this issue and determine limits on the power and bandwidth of optical interconnects with low threshold VCSEL sources. For a 0.8 micrometers CMOS process the effects of coupling parasitics and detector capacitance limit signal bandwidth below 500 MHz. The effects of device geometry, fanout, and line length are also studied and show that with existing optoelectronic devices optical interconnects are competitive with electrical connections at the board level, but not below this packaging level.
A new method for the selective halogenation of the methyl group of methyl ketones

Abstract Treatment of the ethanolamine-derived ketimine of two steroidal 20-ketones with either NCS or- NBS in ether at 25° followed by mild acidic hydrolysis has led to the corresponding 21-haloketones in high yield. Application of this halogenation procedure to 2-pentanone demonstrated that this method may be general for the selective halogenation of the Me group of methylketones.
Single-agent docetaxel (Taxotere) in the treatment of advanced non small-cell lung cancer: clinical concepts and commentary.

Chemotherapy in recurrent or metastatic non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has been shown to improve quality of life, and to provide a modest prolongation of survival. Docetaxel is a semisynthetic taxane that is an active agent for the treatment of NSCLC, both in previously untreated patients as well as those who have relapsed or progressed following cisplatin-based chemotherapy. After encouraging results in phase II studies, randomized trials have shown that treatment with single-agent docetaxel is superior to best supportive care for advanced NSCLC in both untreated and previously treated patients. This article will review the published data on the use of single-agent docetaxel in the treatment of advanced NSCLC.
Ventricular assist devices as destination therapy: psychosocial and ethical implications.

One of the candidate evaluation challenges is determining when and how psychosocial domains influence short- and long-term destination therapy ventricular assist device (DT-VAD) outcomes. There are very few DT-VAD studies and no validated instruments to identify psychosocial risk factors. General practice is to borrow from the transplant literature, which may not be applicable to this unique device application. We question the relevance of using transplant psychosocial evaluation for patients who are candidates for DT-VAD only, particularly because these patients require a certain level of cognitive, psychological, and behavioral functioning to ensure proper long-term self-care with the VAD. We may be missing important psychological characteristics in our pre-evaluations by “borrowing” from the transplant literature, thereby underplaying significant factors that are especially relevant for DT-VAD candidates. Conversely, we may be screening out candidates who may benefit greatly from DT-VAD by using transplant criteria as part of the screening process. We use a case study to illustrate some of the challenges of weighing psychosocial risk factors in the DT-VAD population and to emphasize the need for developing distinct psychosocial assessment criteria for DT-VAD patients.
Determination of the Ion Angular Distribution for Electron Cyclotron Resonance, Plasma-Etched HgCdTe Trenches

Ion angular distribution (IAD) affects the width and aspect ratio in electron cyclotron resonance (ECR)-etched HgCdTe trenches. The IAD was determined by etching studies together with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis. The results confirm that low-energy, large-angle ions contribute to the etching of the photoresist, while higher-energy, low-angle ions are responsible for HgCdTe etching. The HgCdTe ECR etching was further elucidated by sputter-bombardment theory. This model correctly predicts the nature and depth of the damage region in ECR-etched HgCdTe as well as the distribution and composition of the ejected material.