cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Lipid intermediates involved in the assembly of membrane-associated glycoproteins in calf brain white matter☆

Abstract When a membrane preparation from calf brain white matter is incubated with GDP-[ 14 C]mannose, [ 14 C]mannose is incorporated into a [ 14 C]mannolipid, a [ 14 C]mannose-containing oligosaccharide carrier lipid and [ 14 C]mannose-containing glycoproteins. The mannolipid has the chemical and chromatographic properties of β-mannosylphosphoryl-dolichol. The mannosylated oligosaccharide lipid is insoluble in H 2 O or CHCl 3 CH 3 OH mixtures but can be extracted and dissolved in CHCl 3 CH 3 OHH 2 O (10:10:3). The free oligosaccharide is released by treatment with mild acid. When the free oligosaccharide is chromatographed on a Bio-Gel P-6 column, two partially resolved fractions are observed. The [ 14 C]mannose-containing endogenous acceptors remaining in the membrane residue after delipidation are large molecular weight products as judged by chromatographic behavior on Sephadex G-150 after solubilization with 1% sodium dodecyl sulfate−0.1% mercaptoethanol. These products were characterized as glycoproteins by their sensitivity to pronase and trypsin digestion. The mannoproteins remained membrane associated after washing with 1 m KCl or 0.1 m EDTA. When the glycoproteins labeled by GDP-[ 14 C]mannose were analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis, several labeled polypeptides were observed. Evidence that the mannolipid can serve as a mannosyl donor was obtained by showing that, when white matter membranes were incubated with exogenous [ 14 C]mannolipid, label was transferred into oligosaccharide lipid and glycoprotein.
Use of electrophysiologic testing in patients with nonsustained ventricular tachycardia: Prognostic and therapeutic implications☆

Abstract Forty patients with coronary artery disease and nonsustained ventricular tachycardia on ambulatory electrocardiographic monitoring underwent programmed electrical stimulation. In 22 patients, monomorphic ventricular tachycardia was induced at baseline drug-free electrophysiologic testing; 9 of these patients subsequently developed a clinical sustained ventricular tachyarrhythmia. In 18 patients, no tachycardia could be induced, and none of these 18 had subsequent tachycardia. In 25 of the 40 patients, arrhythmia management was guided by the results of electrophysiologic testing; this group included 11 patients who received antiarrhythmic therapy for induced ventricular tachycardia and 14 patients without inducible ventricular tachycardia who did not receive antiarrhythmic therapy. In the remaining 15 patients, arrhythmia management was not based on the results of electrophysiologic testing. Only two episodes of clinical sustained tachyarrhythmia occurred in the group receiving electrophysiologically guided therapy compared with seven episodes in the group treated without electrophysiologic guidance (p Thus, in patients with coronary artery disease with nonsustained ventricular tachycardia on ambulatory electrocardiography, electrophysiologic testing can identify those at high and low risk for subsequent clinical tachycardia events. Furthermore, results of such testing can be used to optimize arrhythmia management in these patients.
Sinusoidal perturbation solutions for planar solidification

Ahstraet-A linear perturbation method is used to solve the two-dimensional heat conduction problem in which a liquid, initially at the melting temperature, becomes solidified by heat transfer to a plane mold the temperature of which is approximately uniform, but contains a small sinusoidal perturbation in one space dimension. Results are obtained for the consequent sinusoidal perturbation in the melt/solid boundary as a function of time and for the temperature distribution throughout the solid shell. These results are expressed in terms of a series of coniluent hypergeometric functions which shows good convergence for practical values of material properties and temperatures. The inverse problem, in which the melt/solid boundary is prescribed and the mold temperature is to be determined, is also briefly discussed.
Politics and Administration in Local Government

Abstract The study of city management is the study of how politics and administration intersect. While it was conventional in council-manager government at one time to view the governing body in terms of policy making and the administrative staff in terms of implementation, that convention does not pass the empirical test. The city manager sits at the nexus of what is politically acceptable and what is administratively feasible. It is his/her job to facilitate the connection. The key word is facilitate. But others are appropriate as well. The manager “convenes,” “builds bridges,” and creates “intersections.” In all of this, the manager must remain politically sensitive but politically non-aligned. One key to traversing this potential mind field is grounding one's actions in fundamental political values that create legitimacy. A case study is provided to illustrate how one manager's actions reflect this work and the grounding.
An analysis of the falling film gas-liquid reactor

A mathematical model of the falling film reactor is developed to predict the conversion and temperature distribution in the reactor as a function of the gas and liquid flow rates, physical properties, the feed composition of the reactive gas and carrier gas and other parameters of the system. Transverse and axial temperature profiles are calculated for the laminar flow of the liquid phase with concurrent flow of a turbulent gas to establish the peak temperatures in the reactor as a function of the numerous parameters of the system. The reaction rate in the liquid film is considered to be controlled by the rate of transport of reactive gas from the turbulent gas mixture to the gas-liquid interface. The governing equations are solved by reformulating the problem in integral equation form employing Green's functions. The predicted reactor characteristics are shown to agree with large-scale reactor performance, and the effects of the most sensitive parameters are elucidated to provide a basis for reactor optimization. Numerical results are presented for realistic sulfonation reactor conditions.
Evaluation of patients undergoing Senning repair with two-dimensional contrast echocardiography

The postoperative anatomy of the Senning interatrial diversion was defined by two-dimensional contrast echocardiography in ten patients. A modified apical four-chamber view proved most valuable, allowing for simultaneous visualization of both the systemic venous atrium and the pulmonary venous atrium. The anatomy was confirmed with two-dimensional contrast echocardiography utilizing catheters placed in the systemic venous atrium and pulmonary venous atrium at the time of surgery. In addition, in several of the patients, we were able to detect atrial or ventricular level shunts which were not clinically apparent. One patient who was judged to have a significant shunt by two-dimensional contrast echocardiography had no anatomic site found at autopsy to explain the shunting. We conclude that two-dimensional contrast echocardiography can define the postoperative anatomy following Senning repair allowing for immediate and future evaluation. Shunting at the atrial and ventricular levels can also be detected, but the method is very sensitive and difficult to quantitate or correlate clinically.
The Effects of Team Training on Team Outcomes: A Meta-Analysis

A meta-analysis was conducted to determine relationships between team training and team effectiveness. Results from the 21 studies provided evidence that training is positively related to team effectiveness and effectiveness in five outcome categories: affective, cognitive, subjective task-based skill, objective task-based skill, and teamwork skill.
Revisiting the South African Taung australopithecine endocast: The position of the lunate sulcus as determined by the stereoplotting technique

Falk's (1980a) claims regarding the pongid-like disposition of convolutional patterns on the South African australopithecine endocasts are critically examined. Using a stereoplotter apparatus and a small sample of chimpanzee brain casts, the angular coordinates of the lunate sulcus are recorded, and placed as such on the Taung and SK 1585 endocasts. The resulting location of such pongid-oriented lunate sulci violates the gross morphology of the australopithecine endocasts. Relative brain: body weight ratios for Australopithecus are shown to be advanced over any of the pongids. In addition, evidence is provided from LeGros Clark's (1947) paper that controverts certain of Falk's claims regarding his methods. It is concluded that the secondary sulci and gyri on the now available australopithecine endocasts are not clear enough to warrant unambiguous demonstration; with regard to the lunate sulcus, the Taung endocast does not show a pongid pattern.
High-speed bichromatic inspection of wheat kernels for mold and color class using high-power pulsed LEDs

High-speed optical sorting of seeds in commercial processing is routinely practiced for removal of discolored seeds, seeds from volunteer plants, and non-seed objects. Sorters are conventionally based on monochromatic or bichromatic light from broad wavebands in the visible and near-infrared regions of energy. A particular challenge for these devices has been the recognition and removal of wheat kernels that have been damaged by the mold caused by the fungal disease Fusarium Head Blight. Previous research using an off-the-shelf bichromatic design on Fusarium-damaged wheat kernels demonstrated that approximately half of damaged kernels were positively detected. The research described herein examines an alternative design for bichromatic lighting and applies this design to two scenarios: sound vs. Fusarium-damaged wheat and red vs. white wheat. The new design utilizes two high-power (HP) LEDs and one silicon photo diode detector. The LEDs are flashed in alternating sequence at high frequency (2,000 Hz), such that during the half-cycle time period (0.25 ms) that each LED is on, reflected energy readings at a 10× sampling frequency are captured from a kernel in flight. This permits the capture of approximately 20 cycles of pulsed light during the time the free-falling kernel passes through the field of view of a fiber optic probe. A linear discriminant analysis (LDA) classification algorithm was applied that used two values derived from the reflected energy readings. Based on the new design, the accuracy of sound vs. Fusarium-damaged classification was 78% on average; for red vs. white wheat classification, the average accuracy was 76%. Although these accuracy values are not at the level as that obtained from LDA models that utilize reflected energy readings at two wavelengths from stationary kernels (95% and 92% for sound vs. Fusarium-damaged and red vs. white, respectively), the new design offers an improvement over conventional bichromatic designs.
LACK OF OBJECTIVITY IN DISTINGUISHING INFANTS IN NEED OF HOME MONITORING OR PREDICTING SUBSEQUENT APNEA

Seventy patients referred following an apparent "apneic episode" were evaluated by detailed history (H), physical examination (PE) and objective studies (OS) which were indicated by the HP twenty infants on HM had subsequent A requiring intervention (Group III). All patients were followed at least past their first birthday with no deaths. In all patients the severity of the presenting episode failed to predict recurrent A. Of 20 infants requiring mouth-to-mouth (MTM) or cardiopulmonary resuscitation by H, 13 were monitored. Only 2/13 had subsequent A (1 requiring gentle shake, the other MTM). P obtained in 60 infants was abnormal in 7 (Group I-0/21;Group II-3/19;Group III-4/20), but not predictive of future A. GER was found in 16/49, 9 of whom were monitored. Eight of these infants had another A. The results of all other studies were non-contributory. We conclude that the decision for HM was largely subjective and that neither H or OS were predictive of outcome.
Real time computerization of two-dimensional echocardiography☆

A computerized system was developed for real time acquisition, enhanced processing, analysis, and display of cross-sectional images of the left ventricle derived by two-dimensional echocardiography (2DE). The new methodology couples a standard medical imaging computer system to the video output of any current 2DE unit, uses a 128 x 128 or 64 x 64 matrix window and stores the real time 30 frames/sec digitized images on a magnetic disk. Computerized beat-to-beat and frame-by-frame processing employs space-time smoothing the automatic detection of endocardial interfaces by standard threshold and second derivative techniques. Multiple views are displayed in real time with 256 levels of gray and color. The methodology was used to analyze and graphically display frame-by-frame changes throughout the cardiac cycle. In addition, regional wall motion and thickness were analyzed in 12 sectors of individual cross-sections using a standardized angular subdivision originating at the center of area and indexed by an external reference point. An algorithm was developed to correct cross-sectional interference definition from the commonly used trailing-to-leading edge to the more valid leading-to-leading outline technique. Computerized analysis of spatial and temporal variations of cardiac contraction were demonstrated in several clinical and experimental applications, including bicycle exercise testing, investigation of acute myocardial infarction, and assessment of interventions. Initial evaluation indicates that the new real time computerized digital acquisition and data analysis represents a major advances toward quantitation of left ventricular function using 2DE.
An implementation for ATM Adaptation Layer 5

IP over ATM technique is gaining popularity due to the Quality of Service (QoS) and other management features offered by ATM and its ease of integration with almost all existing technologies. This paper deals with the granularity of implementation of ATM Adaptation Layer 5 (AAL 5) protocol stack. The focus of this study is to propose an AAL 5 implementation that would outperform the existing implementation schemes. This paper also makes an effort to analyze the performance of the proposed implementation and validate the simulation results using analytic modeling. We also experimented with the simulation model to find out the best range of packet size and burst size for the AAL 5 stack. It was found that in order to achieve a good performance, the minimum recommended packet size should be 0.5KB. This is a reasonable packet size for IP over ATM. We can have higher packet sizes in order to obtain better efficiency, however, this may cause for problems with memory requirements. Therefore, the upper limit to packet size for efficient and practical implementation should be 10KB. Finally, it is very important on the segmentation side for the memory to be of fixed latency. If the Segmentation and Reassembly (SAR) interface to memory is not of fixed latency, further cycle loss could be introduced.
Effects of parenterally administered gamma-aminobutyric acid on the general behavior of the young chick

Abstract RECENTLY we reported that intravenous infusion of gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA) to young chicks (7–14 days post hatch) markedly altered the electroretinogram (ERG) and suppressed the bioelectrical potential in the optic tectum evoked by photic stimulation (1). These results, together with a briefly noted behavioural observation (2) that intraperitoneal injection of GABA to baby chicks, at dose levels sufficient to elevate its normal concentration in the brain, produced overt signs of uncoordinated motor activity suggests that parenterally administered GABA has a marked central action on young chicks. However, in a similar preparation, Kramer et al. (3) encountered no striking effects resulting from administration of GABA. In view of this seeming contradiction we made a more detailed study of the behavioural responses of young chicks to the parenteral administration of GABA.
Recent advances in the noninvasive diagnosis of renal osteodystrophy

Chronic kidney disease–mineral and bone disorder (CKD-MBD) is the term used to describe a constellation of biochemical abnormalities, bone disturbances that may lead to fractures, and extraskeletal calcification in soft tissues and arteries seen in CKD. This review focuses on the noninvasive diagnosis of renal osteodystrophy, the term used exclusively to define the bone pathology associated with CKD. Transiliac bone biopsy and histomorphometry with double-labeled tetracycline or its derivatives remains the gold standard for diagnosis of renal osteodystrophy. However, histomorphometry provides a ‘window’ into bone only at a single point in time, and is not clinically practical for studying continuous changes in bone morphology. Furthermore, the etiology of fractures in CKD is multifactorial and not fully explained by histomorphometry findings alone. The propensity of a bone to fracture is determined by bone strength, which is affected by bone mass and bone quality; the latter is a term used to describe the structure and composition of bone. Bone quantity is traditionally assessed by dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and CT-based methods. Bone quality is more difficult to assess noninvasively, but newer techniques are emerging and are described in this review. Ultimately, the optimal diagnostic strategy for renal osteodystrophy may be a combination of multiple imaging techniques and biomarkers that are specific to each gender and race in CKD, with a goal of predicting fracture risk and optimizing therapy.
Sour ageusia in two individuals implicates ion channels of the ASIC and PKD families in human sour taste perception at the anterior tongue.

Background The perception of sour taste in humans is incompletely understood at the receptor cell level. We report here on two patients with an acquired sour ageusia. Each patient was unresponsive to sour stimuli, but both showed normal responses to bitter, sweet, and salty stimuli. Methods and findings Lingual fungiform papillae, containing taste cells, were obtained by biopsy from the two patients, and from three sour-normal individuals, and analyzed by RT-PCR. The following transcripts were undetectable in the patients, even after 50 cycles of amplification, but readily detectable in the sour-normal subjects: acid sensing ion channels (ASICs) 1a, 1beta, 2a, 2b, and 3; and polycystic kidney disease (PKD) channels PKD1L3 and PKD2L1. Patients and sour-normals expressed the taste-related phospholipase C-beta2, the delta-subunit of epithelial sodium channel (ENaC) and the bitter receptor T2R14, as well as beta-actin. Genomic analysis of one patient, using buccal tissue, did not show absence of the genes for ASIC1a and PKD2L1. Immunohistochemistry of fungiform papillae from sour-normal subjects revealed labeling of taste bud cells by antibodies to ASICs 1a and 1beta, PKD2L1, phospholipase C-beta2, and delta-ENaC. An antibody to PKD1L3 labeled tissue outside taste bud cells. Conclusions These data suggest a role for ASICs and PKDs in human sour perception. This is the first report of sour ageusia in humans, and the very existence of such individuals ("natural knockouts") suggests a cell lineage for sour that is independent of the other taste modalities.
Occupation and Suicide

Objective. Research on occupation and suicide has neglected multivariate models. It is not clear, for example, if persons in alleged “high-risk” occupations have high suicide risk because of occupational stress associated with the occupation or because of the demographic composition of the people in the occupation. The present study explores the relationship between occupation and suicide for 32 occupational groups. Methods. Data are from the national mortality file tapes, which cover 21 states. They refer to 9,499 suicides and 134,386 deaths from all other causes in 1990. Results. Bivariate logistic regression models find a total of 15 occupations with either significantly higher (e.g., dentists, artists, machinists, auto mechanics, and carpenters) or lower (e.g., clerks, elementary school teachers, cooks) risk than the rest of the working-age population. Multivariate models that remove the demographic covariates of occupation find only eight occupations with greater or lower than expected risk of death by suicide. Conclusion. The results underscore the need for demographic controls in the assessment of occupational risk of suicide. They are consistent with a previous study based on data from England. The findings provide the first systematic evidence on the problem for the United States.
The problem of jettison in medieval Mediterranean maritime law

Abstract The necessity of jettison in the face of a threatened shipwreck was a ubiquitous phenomenon of medieval maritime travel, and thus a body of maritime law emerged to handle the consequences of this event. This paper examines the variety of solutions to the problems arising from jettison proposed by Roman and medieval lawyers in the Mediterranean world, both Christian and Muslim, from the 6th century to the 14th century. Although most legal texts indicated a common understanding of the principals of general average (an almost universal system for equitably distributing losses following a jettison), opinions varied widely on details of procedure. Who, for example, took part in the decision that jettison was necessary? How were calculations made for assessing loss and value, and who was liable to pay compensation? Differences of opinion on these and other issues suggest that regional maritime laws may have been more affected by local practice than by adherence to the particular legal tradition with which they were more generally affiliated.
Sentinel matters: the techno-politics of international crisis in Lebanon (and beyond)

In this article I focus on the crisis experts in Lebanon and, in particular, on one celebrated expert response to crisis, the crisis report. I suggest looking at the report as a techno-political tool that seeks to produce and disseminate knowledge about crisis and conflicts in different parts of the world, while packaged and structured in a universal format. As a first step I analyse the particular features of this format, such as size and scale. The main argument is that the report presents itself as an assemblage of a series of technical characteristics that help to shrink the world and make it fit the model format of the crisis expert. In a second step I open up the perspective and link the report’s micro-format to bigger questions on governing the world today. Here, I argue that, within current imaginaries of emergency, impending crisis and global terrorism, the crisis report functions as a particular kind of sentinel. I show that it can speak through the language of constant alertness and, crucially,...
A Bayesian mixture model for metaanalysis of microarray studies

The increased availability of microarray data has been calling for statistical methods to integrate findings across studies. A common goal of microarray analysis is to determine differentially expressed genes between two conditions, such as treatment vs control. A recent Bayesian metaanalysis model used a prior distribution for the mean log-expression ratios that was a mixture of two normal distributions. This model centered the prior distribution of differential expression at zero, and separated genes into two groups only: expressed and nonexpressed. Here, we introduce a Bayesian three-component truncated normal mixture prior model that more flexibly assigns prior distributions to the differentially expressed genes and produces three groups of genes: up and downregulated, and nonexpressed. We found in simulations of two and five studies that the three-component model outperformed the two-component model using three comparison measures. When analyzing biological data of Bacillus subtilis, we found that the three-component model discovered more genes and omitted fewer genes for the same levels of posterior probability of differential expression than the two-component model, and discovered more genes for fixed thresholds of Bayesian false discovery. We assumed that the data sets were produced from the same microarray platform and were prescaled.
Mechanisms of gut barrier failure in the pathogenesis of necrotizing enterocolitis: Toll-like receptors throw the switch☆

Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is the leading cause of death from gastrointestinal causes in premature infants, and its overall survival has not improved in the past three decades. While the precise cause of NEC remains incompletely understood, we and others have shown that a major predisposing factor in the development and propagation of NEC is a breakdown of the intestinal barrier which leads to bacterial translocation and systemic sepsis. In seeking to identify the causes involved, we and others have also determined that activation of the receptor for bacterial endotoxin, namely toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), is required for the development of intestinal barrier failure leading to NEC. We have also shown that the premature infant is endowed with strategies that can either limit or promote the extent of TLR4 signaling within the gut, which together determine the relative propensity with which NEC develops. In this review, we highlight the evidence for TLR4 signaling in the pathogenesis of NEC through a survey of its effects on gut barrier failure. We identify how TLR4 regulation within the gut can explain the unique susceptibility of the premature infant to the development of NEC, and highlight how strategies to limit the degree of TLR4 signaling can serve as novel therapeutic approaches for this devastating disease.
A technique for measuring epidemiologically useful features of birthweight distributions.

Birthweight distributions have been conceptualized as a predominant Gaussian distribution contaminated in the tails by an unspecified ‘residual’ distribution. Acknowledging this idea, we propose a technique for measuring certain features of birthweight distributions useful to epidemiologists: the mean and variance of the predominant distribution; the proportions of births in the low- and high-birthweight residual distributions, and the boundaries of support for these residual distributions. Our technique, based on an underlying multinomial sampling distribution, involves estimating parameters in a mixture model for the multinomial bin probabilities after having chosen the support of the residual distribution with a model selection criterion. A modest simulation study and experience with a few actual datasets indicate that use of a Bayesian information criterion (BIC) as model selection criterion is superior to use of Akaike's information criterion (AIC) in this application.
Lung development and implications for hypoplasia found in congenital diaphragmatic hernia

Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is associated with various degrees of pulmonary hypoplasia and severe persistent pulmonary hypertension in the newborn. These conditions have significant implications for the outcome for the patient. Defects in early lung development are likely to be central to the generation of hypoplasia. A number of mouse models with defects in pathways that are central to lung development were found to have CDH. Understanding all aspects of early lung development will provide fresh insight into the pathogenesis of CDH and its associated conditions.
A Plasminogen-like Protein Selectively Degrades Stearoyl-CoA Desaturase in Liver Microsomes

Stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD) is an integral membrane protein of the endoplasmic reticulum that is rapidly and selectively degraded when isolated liver microsomes are incubated at 37 degrees C. We previously reported the purification of a 90-kDa microsomal protein with SCD protease activity and characterized the inhibitor sensitivity of the protease. Here we show that the 90-kDa protein is a microsomal form of plasminogen (Pg) and that the purified SCD protease contains a spectrum of plasmin-like derivatives. The 90-kDa protein was identified as Pg by mass spectrometry of its tryptic peptides. The purified SCD protease reacted with Pg antibody, and immunoblotting demonstrated enrichment of Pg by the purification procedure established for the SCD protease. Analysis of microsomes by zymography demonstrated a single band of proteolytic activity at 70-kDa corresponding to the mobility of Pg in nonreduced polyacrylamide gels. When microsomes were incubated at 37 degrees C prior to zymography, an intense band of proteolytic activity developed at 30-kDa. The purified SCD protease displayed a spectrum of proteolytic bands ranging from 70 to 30 kDa. Degradation of SCD by the purified protease and by microsomes was inhibited by bdellin, a plasmin inhibitor from the medicinal leech Hirudo medicinalis. To explore the role of Pg in the degradation of SCD in vivo, we examined SCD expression and degradation in microsomes isolated from Pg-deficient (Pg-/-) mice. Compared with microsomes from wild-type littermate control mice, liver microsomes from Pg-/- mice had significantly higher levels of SCD. Degradation of SCD in microsomes from Pg-/- mice was markedly diminished, whereas liver microsomes from control mice showed rapid SCD degradation similar to that observed in rat liver microsomes. These findings indicate that SCD is degraded by a protease related to Pg and suggest that plasmin moonlights as an intracellular protease.
Balloon Occlusion of the Contralateral Iliac Artery to Assist Recanalization of the Ipsilateral Iliac Artery in Total Aortoiliac Occlusion: A Technical Note

Endovascular recanalization of chronic total aortoiliac occlusion is technically challenging. Inability to reenter the true aortic lumen, following retrograde iliac recanalization, is one of the most common causes of failure. We describe a case of a total aortoiliac occlusion where balloon occlusion of the right common iliac artery, following its recanalization from a brachial approach, was used to facilitate antegrade recanalization of the occluded contralateral left common iliac artery.
Close encounters between active genes in the nucleus

A recent paper demonstrates that coregulated genes on different chromosomes show surprisingly high frequencies of colocalization within the nucleus; this complements similar results found previously for genes localized tens of megabases apart on a single chromosome. Colocalization could be related to the earlier observation of active genes associating with foci where RNA polymerase II is concentrated.
Light-driven artificial molecular machines

Artificial molecular machines represent a growing field of nanoscience and nanotechnology. Stimulated by chemical reagents, electricity, or light, artificial molecular machines exhibit precisely controlled motion at the molecular level; with this ability molecular machines have the potential to make significant impacts in numerous engineering applications. Compared with molecular machines powered by chemical or electrical energy, light-driven molecular machines have several advantages: light can be switched much faster, work without producing chemical waste, and be used for dual purposes—inducing (writing) as well as detecting (reading) molecular motions. The following issues are significant for light-driven artificial molecular machines in the following aspects: their chemical structures, motion mechanisms, assembly and characterization on solid-state surfaces. Applications in different fields of nanotechnology such as molecular electronics, nano-electro-mechanical systems (NEMS), nanophotonics, and nanomedicine are envisaged.
Girls Incorporated of Alameda County at 50: A Voice for Girls (1958-2008)

Girls Incorporated of Alameda County is nonprofit human service organization that has delivered education, counseling, and advocacy services to girls aged 6 to 18 for 50 years. The organization began as a small, local girls club and has grown into a large multi-faceted service delivery organization attached to a national governing body. The history of Girls Incorporated of Alameda County introduces struggles in relation to external and internal factors that altered the way that the agency financed and managed and exemplifies the important role of nonprofit leadership. The organization's many accomplishments have also presented multiple challenges, particularly related to the changing roles of women in American society.
The Design of A Personal and Intelligent Pervasive-Commerce System Architecture

This paper studies the paradigm of pervasive commerce (p-commerce) and presents the design of a p-commerce system architecture which consists of e-commerce servers and store sensors. The architecture includes a personal device, PAM (Pervasive Activity Manager), that allows a user to interact with the smart e-commerce environment. PAM can be used to automatically collect sensor information, manage user preference and context, connect to servers and peers on the Web, conduct service checking and integration, and execute user transactions. Extended from traditional m-commerce devices, PAM is user-centric in the sense that it tries to help a user look for preferred products and find the best result for the user. It proactively conducts many context-aware operations in the background without user's explicit requests. We study the p-commerce system issues and define the capabilities to make such a device feasible. We also show shopping scenarios and present a simple PAM prototype using the PDA device available today
An experimental investigation of the instability of an incompressible, separated shear layer

Instability and transition to turbulence in separated shear layer produced by laminar boundary layer separation from rearward-facing step, noting periodic spanwise structure
Leukocyte-Dependent Responses of the Microvasculature to Chronic Angiotensin II Exposure

Angiotensin II (Ang II) contributes to the pathogenesis of hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases. Ang II induces a pro-oxidative, proinflammatory, and prothrombogenic phenotype in vascular endothelial cells. Although the peptide promotes the recruitment of leukocytes and platelets and induces oxidative stress in the microvasculature, it remains unclear whether and how the blood cell recruitment is linked to the production of reactive oxygen species. In this study, we addressed the contributions of Ang II type 1 receptors (AT 1 r) and gp91 phox to the recruitment of leukocytes and platelets and reactive oxygen species production in venules during chronic (2-week) infusion of Ang II in wild-type (WT) and mutant mice. Intravital video microscopy was used to measure the adhesion and emigration of leukocytes, the adhesion of fluorescently labeled platelets, and dihydrorhodamine oxidation (a measure of oxidative stress) in cremaster muscle postcapillary venules. In WT mice, Ang II infusion induced a time-dependent increase in the adhesion of leukocytes and platelets and enhanced reactive oxygen species production in venules. These changes in blood cell adhesion and reactive oxygen species production were not observed in AT 1 r −/− mice, AT 1 r −/− bone marrow chimeras (blood cells deficient in AT 1 r), gp91 phox−/− mice, gp91 phox−/− chimeras (blood cells or endothelial cells deficient in gp91 phox ), and in WT mice rendered granulocytopenic via intraperitoneal injection of antimouse granulocyte receptor 1 antibody. Thrombocytopenic WT mice (platelets depleted by intraperitoneal injection of rabbit antimouse thrombocyte antiserum) responded similar to WT mice. These findings implicate leukocyte-associated AT 1 r and gp91 phox in the induction of the pro-oxidative, proinflammatory, and prothrombogenic phenotype assumed by microvessels that is chronically exposed to elevated Ang II.
Assessing the Dyadic Approach to Interstate Conflict Processes: A.k.a. “Dangerous” Dyad-Years

The “dyad” has become the analytical cornerstone of quantitative interstate conflict studies. Stuart Bremer, in no small part due to his “Dangerous Dyads” article, has been identified with the dyadic/dyad-year approach. We think this has come at the expense of his interest in “process models” of interstate conflict. Our examination of his writings on The Process of War indicate that multilateral conflict processes are most probably misspecified by a dyadic approach. We draw on examples such as alliance coalition formation, extended deterrence, economic sanctions, and especially war expansion, to elaborate upon and support our claim. We conclude our assessment of the dyadic/dyad-year approach by suggesting some areas for our colleagues to consider before adopting a dyadic approach in their own research.
Implications of Even Flow Production Methodology for U.S. Housing Industry

Production building in the residential sector is often described as the portion of the construction industry that is most like the manufacturing sector. In modern tract construction in the United States, a small number of models are generally repeated several times in a relatively confined area, using specialized trade contractors to complete each phase of each home. Management of the handoffs between predecessor and successor trade contractors is therefore a critical component in the successful completion of a residential project. In order to bring more reliable planning to this process, a workflow-leveling strategy known as even flow production has come into use in the industry in recent years. Even flow production is a strategy intended to reduce the variability in the workflow for trade contractors in the process, thereby gaining production efficiencies. In practice, different operational definitions are in use. This paper describes a series of simulation experiments to identify the management implications of two common strategies (activity-based versus start-based). A special-purpose simulation template was built for the Simphony environment for this purpose. The pace chosen for the flow of activities was found to significantly affect the speed at which the subdivision was completed. The even flow strategy was found to affect the subdivision completion time only slightly, but to have a significant impact on workflow variability and management effort. Control of the pace of starts of only the first activity exhibited nearly the same degree of variability as if the pace of starts were matched to a sales pace.
Evidence that the endogenous histone H1 phosphatase in HeLa mitotic chromosomes is protein phosphatase 1, not protein phosphatase 2A

Histone H1 is highly phosphorylated in mitotic HeLa cells, but is quickly dephosphorylated in vivo at the end of mitosis and in vitro following cell lysis. We show here that okadaic acid and microcystin-LR block the in vitro dephosphorylation of H1 and that they do so directly by inhibiting the histone H1 phosphatase rather than by some indirect mechanism. The concentrations of microcystin and okadaic acid required for inhibition strongly suggest that the histone H1 phosphatase is either PP1 or an unknown protein phosphatase with okadaic acid-sensitivity similar to PP1. The histone H1 phosphatase is predominantly located in chromosomes with at most one copy for every 86 nucleosomes. This tends to support its identification as PP1, since localization in mitotic chromosomes is a characteristic of PP1 but not of the other known okadaic acid-sensitive protein phosphatases. We also show that treatment of metaphase-arrested HeLa cells with staurosporine and olomoucine, inhibitors of p34cdc2 and other protein kinases, rapidly induces reassembly of interphase nuclei and dephosphorylation of histone H1 without chromosome segregation. This result indicates that protein kinase activity must remain elevated to maintain a mitotic block. Using this as a model system for the M- to G1-phase transition, we present evidence from inhibitor studies suggesting that the in vivo histone H1 phosphatase may be either PP1 or another phosphatase with similar okadaic acid-sensitivity, but not PP2A.
Control of quality factor and critical coupling in microring resonators through integration of a semiconductor optical amplifier

We demonstrate the integration of ring resonators with semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs) using a vertically stacked asymmetric twin waveguide structure. The ring resonator and the bus waveguides are fabricated on a dilute waveguide structure while the active material for the optical amplifier is comprised of compressively strained In/sub 0.8/Ga/sub 0.2/As/sub 0.75/P/sub 0.25/ multiple quantum wells. The racetrack-shaped ring resonators with optical amplifiers integrated at the input showed /spl sim/10-dB contrast, a quality factor of 2.2/spl times/10/sup 4/, and a free spectral range of 0.25 nm. The main aspect in the present work is the control of the quality factor and critical coupling in microring resonators by altering the internal loss in the ring by means of an integrated SOA.
Acquisition and loss of a neuronal Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase during neuronal differentiation.

Abstract Calcium ions play a critical role in neural development. Insights into the ontogeny of Ca(2+)-signaling pathways were gained by investigating the developmental expression of granule cell-enriched Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase (CaM kinase-Gr) in the cerebellum and hippocampus of the rat. Neurons of these brain regions displayed characteristic schedules by which they acquired and lost CaM kinase-Gr during differentiation. In the cerebellum, granule cells did not begin to express CaM kinase-Gr until after birth when they migrated into the granule cell layer, and this expression persisted in the adult. Purkinje cells expressed CaM kinase-Gr prenatally and lost this expression by postnatal day 14. In contrast, the granule and pyramidal cells of the hippocampus expressed the enzyme prenatally and in the adult. Moreover, CaM kinase-Gr was localized to the processes and nuclei of developing neurons. This subcellular localization together with the scheduled expression of CaM kinase-Gr can serve to regulate a developing neuron's sensitivity to Ca2+ at different subcellular levels.
A chancellor's vision: Establishing an institutional culture of student success

A former chancellor outlines how he successfully transformed the culture of his campus to enhance retention and student success.
Signaling Cost Analysis of Handoffs in a Mixed IPv4/IPv6 Mobile Environment

The rapid growth of the Internet has led to the anticipated depletion of the addresses in the current version of the Internet protocol (IP), IPv4. This depletion has given rise to a newer version of the Internet protocol, internet protocol version 6 (IPv6). IPv6 provides sufficient address space to meet the predicted increase of the internet. Since IPv4 has been widely deployed, it is required that the existing IPv4 and the newly added IPv6 can co-exist and interoperate. Various mechanisms have been proposed for supporting the interoperability between IPv4 and IPv6. However, they are mostly designed for a static environment. Mobility introduces a new dimension to the problem of IPv4/IPv6 transition and interoperability. The mobility support of mobile terminals in a mixed IPv4/IPv6 environment remains largely unexplored. In this paper, we analyze various handoff scenarios for a dual stack mobile node with a predominant IPv6 home address (DSMNv6) roaming in a mixed IPv4/IPv6 environment. We investigate how handoffs can be supported and derive the handoff procedures for all scenarios. We also design an analytical model for the handoff signaling cost analysis. Numerical results are provided to demonstrate the signaling cost of various handoff scenarios. Conclusions from this study can give great insights in designing new cost-effective mobility-support mechanisms for IPv4/IPv6 transition and interoperability.
Managing eBusiness on demand SLA contracts in business terms using the cross-SLA execution manager SAM

It is imperative for a competitive e-business service provider to be positioned to manage the execution of its service level agreement (SLA) contracts in business terms (e.g., minimizing financial penalties for service-level violations, maximizing service-level measurement based customer satisfaction metrics). This paper briefly describes the design rationale of an integrated set of business-oriented service level management (SLM) technologies under development in the SAM project at IBM TJ Watson Research Center. The e-business SLA execution manager SAM, (1) enables the provider to deploy an effective means of capturing and managing contractual SLA data as well as provider-facing non-contractual SLM data; (2) assists service personnel to prioritize the processing of action-demanding quality management alerts as per the provider's SLM objectives; and (3) automates the prioritization and execution management Of approved SLM processes on behalf of the provider, including assigning SLM tasks to service personnel.
Artificially-Structured Superconductors

Superconductivity is perhaps the best understood cooperative phenomenon. Very successful theories (both microscopic and phenomenological) are available with which to help interpret experiments. At the same time superconductivity occurs in a wide variety of material systems, has many unique features and is influenced by a wide range of factors. As a result, superconductivity is increasingly being used as a tool with which to study other phenomena and/or as a probe of the properties of materials in general, as well as for its own sake. The topics of interest at this NATO ASI are a reflection of this fact. They are listed in Table I.
Organizational Identification and Group Involvement

The article presents a study which examined the relationship between organizational identification and group involvement. Correlations between organizational identification and external group ident...
Pteridines in the milkweed bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus (Dallas): I. Identification and localization

Abstract The milkweed bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus (Dallas), contains 3 pteridines, xanthopterin, isoxanthopterin, and 2-amino-4-hydroxypteridine. The 2-amino-4-hydroxypteridine is found only in the midgut; isoxanthopterin and bound xanthopterin are present in all body tissues and excrement throughout the life cycle. Xanthopterin may be freed by heat or acid or base treatment. Pteridines are present in members of 4 subfamilies of the Scutelleridae.
Comparative effect of arginine and monosodium glutamate on blood ammonia.

Summary1. Elevated levels of ammonia in the blood were induced in dogs by intravenous administration of glycine. 2. The effects on levels of ammonia in the blood of simultaneous or delayed administration with glycine of L-arginine hydrochloride or L-monosodium glutamate were then studied. 3. Arginine given concomitantly with glycine prevented any significant rise in blood ammonia. When administered one hour after the commencement of glycine infusion, it effected a prompt reduction of levels of ammonia in the blood. On the other hand, monosodium glutamate was only slightly effective under the former experimental conditions and completely ineffective under the latter. 4. The rise in blood urea which accompanied the marked fall in blood ammonia when arginine was given indicated that this amino acid exerted its effect on the blood ammonia by an influence on the production of urea.
Is Chinese “ESOP” Organization on Behalf of Employee Interests?

Employee Stock Ownership Plan" (ESOP) was invented in the United States of 1960s, and soon it became a popular and effective method in the west, to increase profits of one company by distributing stocks to employees, having them work harder and more loyal for their company. To adapt pressing reform needs of State-Owned enterprises, Chinese "ESOP" went its way in 1990s. However, the way to fulfill the original goals of this plan was not so smooth as reformers expected, mainly due to the uncertain legal nature and mechanism of "ESOP" organization, so called as "ESOA"(Employee Stock Ownership Association), which is always under supervision of Labor Union and entitled, as a whole shareholder, to represent all members of employees to vote as shareholder meetings hold. Based on many legislations and a variety of law scholar statements, this paper will restate one legal structure of Chinese "ESOP" organization that must be on behalf of employee interests.