cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Endoscopic resection of the submandibular gland in a porcine model.

Objective To examine the feasibility of endoscopic resection of the submandibular gland in a porcine model. Study Design Experimental, nonrandomized prospective study. Methods Twelve endoscopic submandibular gland resections were performed on seven Yorkshire adult pigs using a combination of balloon dissection and low-pressure CO2 insufflation. The operative time, blood loss, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, temperature, arterial blood gas values, and weight of the glands were measured. Results All 12 submandibular gland resections were successfully performed endoscopically, and no conversions to open resection were necessary. The procedures lasted 42 to 140 minutes (median duration, 59 min). The median estimated blood loss was 15 mL. The submandibular glands weighed 13.3 ± 1.5 g. The arterial blood pH varied from a decrease of 0.08 to an increase of 0.09 units from the beginning to the end of the operation. Similarly, the arterial CO2 pressure at the end of the case varied from a decrease of 15.8 to an increase of 16.2 mm Hg from the starting value. The presence of normal glandular architecture and lack of trauma or thermal injury were confirmed histologically. There were no cases of pneumothorax or air embolism, and no animals had to be killed. In one animal, a modest amount of subcutaneous emphysema could be appreciated, which was confined to the area over the operative pocket. Conclusion Endoscopic resection of the submandibular gland is possible by combining balloon dissection with low-pressure CO2 insufflation, thereby avoiding complications of high-pressure insufflation such as pneumothorax and air embolism.
Contact dermatitis from polyvinyl chloride identification bands

Abstract One case of allergic contact dermatitis caused by polyvinyl chloride identification bands is reported. Patch tests in this case were positive for three of four bands tested, resorcinol monobenzoate, and benzoyl peroxide. Manufacturers could not confirm the presence of resorcinol monobenzoate and benzoyl peroxide in their respective bands. It is concluded that the patient's reaction was allergic and due to an unknown chemical(s) in the bands. Additives may comprise a significant portion of polyvinyl choloride bands. These components may be leachable, and thus lead to contact sensitization with subsequent allergy. Although patch testing is an excellent first step in determining the offending allergen, specialized chemical analysis may be required for exact identification.
The length problem for a sum of idempotents

Abstract It was shown by R. E. Hartwig and M. S. Putcha and independently by P. Y. Wu that the complex square matrix T is a sum of finitely many idempotent matrices if and only if tr T is an integer and tr T ≥ rank T . We determine the minimal number of required idempotents for such matrices in terms of their traces and sizes, and we completely solve the problem for matrices T with size 2, 3, 4, or 5, also, we give some sufficient/necessary conditions for a complex matrix T to be the sum of three or more idempotents.
Are scientific societies serving the needs of graduate and postdoctoral students

Scientific societies have had a major role in facilitating scientific discoveries and disseminating them. The future of these societies is dependent on a strong and involved membership. However, many of the future members are currently graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, referred to as 'trainees'. Therefore it is essential that these trainees understand the value of scientific societies and are eager to become members of a society of their choice. The focus of the present paper was to determine what scientific societies should do for trainees to accomplish this goal. Trainees were surveyed to determine why they joined a scientific society, what is the value of belonging to a scientific society, what can the scientific society do to advance the trainees' career and what can trainees do to help scientific societies. From this survey, and also from years of interacting with trainees, a list of actions that scientific societies should do for their trainees was developed. There is no doubt that the most important people in educating trainees about the value of scientific societies and in influencing the trainees' decision to be active members are the trainees' current mentors, who have daily contact with the future members of scientific societies.
An inverse-measure-based unilevel architecture for reliability-based design optimization

Reliability-based design optimization (RBDO) is a methodology for finding optimized designs that are characterized with a low probability of failure. Primarily, RBDO consists of optimizing a merit function while satisfying reliability constraints. The reliability constraints are constraints on the probability of failure corresponding to each of the failure modes of the system or a single constraint on the system probability of failure. The probability of failure is usually estimated by performing a reliability analysis. During the last few years, a variety of different formulations have been developed for RBDO. Traditionally, these have been formulated as a double-loop (nested) optimization problem. The upper level optimization loop generally involves optimizing a merit function subject to reliability constraints, and the lower level optimization loop(s) compute(s) the probabilities of failure corresponding to the failure mode(s) that govern(s) the system failure. This formulation is, by nature, computationally intensive. Researchers have provided sequential strategies to address this issue, where the deterministic optimization and reliability analysis are decoupled, and the process is performed iteratively until convergence is achieved. These methods, though attractive in terms of obtaining a workable reliable design at considerably reduced computational costs, often lead to premature convergence and therefore yield spurious optimal designs. In this paper, a novel unilevel formulation for RBDO is developed. In the proposed formulation, the lower level optimization (evaluation of reliability constraints in the double-loop formulation) is replaced by its corresponding first-order Karush–Kuhn–Tucker (KKT) necessary optimality conditions at the upper level optimization. Such a replacement is computationally equivalent to solving the original nested optimization if the lower level optimization problem is solved by numerically satisfying the KKT conditions (which is typically the case). It is shown through the use of test problems that the proposed formulation is numerically robust (stable) and computationally efficient compared to the existing approaches for RBDO.
Bile acids LVII. Analysis of bile acids by high pressure liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry.

Several high pressure liquid chromatographic methods for the separation of conjugated and free bile acids are presented. A mixture of synthetic conjugated bile acids has been separated by reverse-phase systems consisting of either a Waters Associates’ “fatty-acid analysis” or a μBondapak/C18 column eluted with a mixture of 2-propanol/potassium phosphate buffer (pH 2.5 or 7.0). The major conjugated bile acids present in the gallbladder bile of obese subjects have been analyzed each in less than 30 min and quantitated with a U.V. detector set at 193 nm. Some of the 5α- and 5β-isomers of conjugated bile salts could be resolved in straight-phase systems on Corasil II or μPorasil columns. Mass spectra of the conjugated bile acids obtained by electron impact were characteristic of the type of amino acid attached to the side chain, and the number of hydroxyl substituents on the nucleus. Most of the isomers could readily be differentiated by the relative intensities of the fragment ions.
An acid dissociation bridging ELISA for detection of antibodies directed against therapeutic proteins in the presence of antigen

Bridging Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) is commonly used in detection of antibodies directed against therapeutic proteins. Advantages of the bridging ELISA include the capability to detect antibodies regardless of their isotype or the species of origin. However, detection of antibodies can be difficult, if not impossible, in the presence of high levels of the antigen in the sample matrix. This protocol describes a bridging ELISA that uses a covalently coupled high density antigen surface combined with an acid dissociation step to allow for antibody detection in the presence of antigen in human serum.
A Role For Photodynamic Therapy In Autologous Bone Marrow Transplantation

Simultaneous exposure to the amphipathic fluorescent dye merocyanine 540 (MC 540) and light of a suitable wavelength rapidly kills leukemia, lymphoma, and neuroblastoma cells but spares normal pluripotent hematopoietic stem cells. Tests in several preclinical models and early results of a phase I clinical trial suggest that MC 540-mediated photosensitization may be useful for the extracorporeal purging of autologous remission bone marrow grafts.© (1988) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
MULTIPLE REFERENCE FEEDFORWARD ACTIVE NOISE CONTROL PART I: ANALYSIS AND SIMULATION OF BEHAVIOR

In this work, two forms of frequency domain optimum solutions for multiple reference active noise control (MRANC) in a feedforward arrangement are given in terms of signal spectra and system frequency response functions (FRF). It is particularly noted that the optimum solutions are uncoupled if the reference signals are uncorrelated or the noise sources are directly available as reference signals. Other than the traditional control configuration which feed each reference signal into a different filter, another control configuration which combines multiple reference signals into a single input is also investigated. Although this configuration generally delivers a compromised control effect, the payoff is a simplified control structure and significant computational savings. In addition, under some circumstances, the desired performance which is comparable to other complex configurations can be achieved. Simulations based on sound transmission through a vibrating plate have been conducted and the results presented are consistent with the theoretical analysis.
Ultrastructural study on the fertilisation process in sturgeon (Acipenser), function of acrosome and prevention of polyspermy

Abstract Sturgeon gametes differ from other fish in that their spermatozoa possess acrosome with finger-like posterolateral projections, which undergo exocytosis and filament formation, whereas eggs possess numerous micropyles. The fertilisation process in Acipenser baerii was investigated by fluorescence and electron microscopy. A suitable activation solution containing 2.5 mM CaCl 2 , 15 mM Tris, pH 10 was found for detailed description of acrosomal reaction. The acrosome reaction includes the formation of a spear-like fertilisation filament coming from three endonuclear canals and implantation fossa through the acrosomes. It can accelerate the process of polyspermy prevention. Another unique feature of the acrosome was an anchor-like opening of the posterolateral projections. Mature eggs of A. baerii possessed 2–10 micropyles in the animal pole region. The eggs consisted of three principal layers and an outermost jelly coat blocking micropyle, and a layer of cortical granules in unfertilised eggs. With the exposure to freshwater, the jelly like layer separated from the egg surface, whereas the cortical granules swelled. No change between the layers of fertilised and unfertilised eggs, apart from the generation of an increasing perivitelline space by dissolution of the cortical granules, had been observed after the fusion of spermatozoon with an egg. A fertilisation cone blocked a fusion of other spermatozoa with cytoplasmatic projection in the fertilised micropyle.
Nomenclature for continuous renal replacement therapies

Continuous renal replacement therapy has now been applied to the management of critically ill patients for more than 15 years (1).
Taylor-Dean instability in channels with slowly varying curvature and gap-width

The classical Dean problem is modified by letting the radius of curvature of the channel and the channel thickness be functions of a slow variable S = δx. By taking Taylor-Dean disturbance theory to O(δ1/2), modifications to the spatial growth rate of the local problem are obtained. These are studied for three examples and it is found that divergence of the channel is destabilizing and convergence is stabilizing.
Translating research into political advocacy to improve infant and child health.

Abstract Dramatic improvements have occurred in the overall health of our children driven by rigorous research translated into clinical practice. However, all is not well for too many, not only for their health but for other outcomes of their lives. These outcomes reflect poorly on how professional groups in child life and health have advocated effectively at the political level for the needs of children and for the services to support them. Professional staff in child health, including those involved in neonatal care, must become more effective in translating research into political advocacy for the best interests of children. A scientific approach to political advocacy is needed that is equivalent in its rigour to the best of bio-medical research. Above all, the care of the newly born infant should not be seen in isolation, but in the overall context of childhood and the services to support children today.
Model calculations in the theory of excitation transfer

Abstract Memory functions appearing in the generalized-master-equation theory of excitation transfer are calculated in the context of the standard model of linearly interacting excitons and phonons, and their relation to other memory functions, calculated by Grover and Silbey, is established. The calculations confirm the prescription given by Kenhre and Knox for obtaining the memory functions from optical spectra.
Optimizing Selective Partial Hydrogenations of 4-Nitroacetophenone via Parallel Reaction Screening

The hydrogenation of 4-nitroacetophenone was optimized for selective reduction to the corresponding aniline-ketone (97%), aniline-alcohol (95%), and aniline-methylene (99%) as a case study demonstrating the optimization of the selective reduction of a polyfunctional substrate using a parallel pressure reactor. The catalyst, catalyst loading, pressure, temperature, and methanesulfonic acid stoichiometry were varied, first in an initial coarse screen (catalyst and acid stoichiometry), and then in a full factorial screen for selected catalysts. Facile profiling of hydrogen uptake in each reaction aided setting reaction time and parameter ranges for the full factorial analysis, allowed for quickly spotting under- and overreduction, aided predicting robust reaction endpoints, and provided data for analyzing kinetic behavior.
Osteocartilaginous necrosis of the sinonasal tract following cocaine abuse

Nasal inhalation («snorting») causes profound effects on the upper respiratory tract in addition to the well known nasal septal perforation. Septal necrosis can be accompanied by bleeding, granulation tissue, ulceration, and sinusitis. There are few reports of extensive sinonasal tract osteocartilaginous necrosis from cocaine abuse
Minority threat and police strength: an examination of the Golden State

This cross‐sectional study examined the relationships between indicators of law enforcement spending, police strength, and minority threat in California in 2004. Controlling for economic conditions, crime, and indicators of social disruption we find that counties with higher populations of American Indians, Asians, or blacks and non‐English speakers employ a greater number of sworn officers, or have increased spending on law enforcement. Further, this study also revealed that counties with less ‘white flight’ were likely to have a greater number of sworn officers. Implications for the study of formal social control, conflict theories, and policing are outlined.
Anthocyanins. III. Disc Sensitivity Assay of Inhibition of Bacterial Growth by Pelargonidin 3‐Monoglucoside and Its Degradation Products a,a, b

SUMMARY Pelargonidin 3-monoglucoside was isolated from frozen strawberries and subjected to heat degradation in IN HCl. The six fractions isolated were characterized chemically and physically. The unheated and heated pigment inhibited the growth of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, and exerted both a stimulatory and inhibitory effect on Lactobacillus casei culture. The stimulation may be due to a decrease in the oxidation-reduction potential of the media affected by the pigment, and/or the ability of the organism to split the β-glyeosyl bond and use the glucose moiety. The influence on growth of the test organisms of the various fractions resulting from heating the pigment was reported.
Electromagnetically Controlled Biological Assembly of Aligned Bacterial Cellulose Nanofibers

We have developed a new biofabrication process in which the precise control of bacterial motion is used to fabricate customizable networks of cellulose nanofibrils. This article describes how the motion of Acetobacter xylinum can be controlled by electric fields while the bacteria simultaneously produce nanocellulose, resulting in networks with aligned fibers. Since the electrolysis of water due to the application of electric fields produces the oxygen in the culture media far from the liquid-air boundary, aerobic cellulose production in 3D structures is readily achievable. Five separate sets of experiments were conducted to demonstrate the assembly of nanocellulose by A. xylinum in the presence of electric fields in micro- and macro-environments. This study demonstrates a new concept of bottom up material synthesis by the control of a biological assembly process.
Physiological day-to-day variability of select hormones at rest in exercise-trained men.

The purpose was to determine the day-to-day variability of total testosterone (tT), total T4 (tT4), total 3,5,3′-T3 (tT3), and Cortisol (C) levels in exercise-trained men [no.=63, 24±4 yr (X±SD)]. Resting blood samples were collected at the same time of day (morning) over 3 consecutive days, 24 h apart, under controlled conditions. Subjects were instructed to minimize mental stress and physical activity and to maintain a consistent diet, and sleep patterns during the period of blood collections. Radioimmunoassay procedures were used to measure all hormones. Repeated measures analysis of variances were used to test for differences within each hormone across days, and intra-class correlations (ICC) and typical error were used to assess reliability of hormone concentrations across days. Results revealed resting hormonal values were within accepted clinical ranges. No significant mean differences (p >0.05) from day-to-day were found in any of the hormones. Furthermore, each hormone displayed highly significant (p <0.01) ICC values; tT 0.891, tT4 0.861, tT3 0.705, C 0.886, and consistent daily typical errors. These findings suggest resting tT, tT4, tT3, and C concentrations are not highly variable and appear reliable from day-to-day in exercise-trained men. If researchers measure any of these hormones at rest, before and after (ie, 24–48 h later) an experimental exercise treatment, they can presume that any changes seen at the 24–48 h point (that exceed the typical error appropriately) are due to their treatment and not an artifact of day-to-day variability.
DOES PRACTICE MAKE PERFECT?: A STUDY OF INTERACTION PATTERNS AND L2 COMPETENCE1

The study reported here postulates the existence of two types of language learners who can be characterized by the intensity with which they practice a second language (L2). Any verbal interaction requiring L2 is defined here as practice. Learners who interact intensively, who seek out opportunities to use L2 and who cause others to direct language at them are termed high input generators. Learners who either avoid interacting or play relatively passive roles in language interaction situations are termed low input generators The subjects in this study are adult ESL students in an intensive program. They were grouped into one of the two categories described above based on a quantitative measure of verbal interaction in L2 classes. The subjects were then compared for performance or achievement on language tests, the amount of language contact outside the classroom, and field sensitivity. It was found that while placement test scores could not have predicted performance on final tests, measures of interaction could. It is concluded that interaction type is a determining variable in the acquisition of L2.
Capillary-gravity Kelvin-Helmholtz waves close to resonance

Capillary–gravity waves of permanent form at the interface between two unbounded fluids in relative motion are considered. The range of wavelengths for an internal resonance with the second harmonic and a period-doubling bifurcation are found to depend on the current speed. The Kelvin–Helmholtz instability of short waves becomes strongly subcritical near resonance. It is speculated that this instability is needed to trigger a period-doubling bifurcation. This notion is used to explain the development of waves at short fetch and the initiation of liquid slugs for gas–liquid flow in a horizontal pipe.
THE QUANTITATIVE MINERAL NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF PLANTS

Liebig (14) considered the percentage nutrient content of plants as constant and the nutrient composition, therefore, as representing their nutrient needs. He proposed returning to the soil in the fertilizer all of the "ash" constituents of the crops removed. Lawes and Gilbert (13) found, however, that plants may need in the fertilizer more phosphorus than other nutrients although they contain less phosphorus than many other nutrients, so they concluded that the nutrient composition of the crop removed "is no direct guide whatever ' ' to fertilizer needs. "Wolff (26), using increments of nutrients in water cultures, reported the "minimum" requirements of the mature oat plant for the single nutrients in terms of their percentage content in the plant. His "minimum" percentage is really the threshold optimum, and it corresponds to the critical percentage as used herein. Although Fraps, and Pfeffer have each reported this work by Wolff, the method has not become accepted. Wolff did not report the constancy of the nutrient requirements under various conditions, but his values of 1.0 per cent. N and 0.35 per cent. P2O5 for the oat plant agree well with the values obtained herein. Hall (10) considered the idea of a critical proportion of each nutrient being needed in the ash of plants, but he concluded that, while the supply of a nutrient did affect its percentage content in the plant, the effect of other factors was as great or greater. This was the conclusion of almost all later investigators. Hall's own paper contains the key to these erroneous conclusions. The phrase "will reflect the amount of plant food available in the soil, as measured by the response of the crop" embodies the concept of the sufficiency of a nutrient relative to all of the growth factors influencing yield rather than the absolute nutrient supply, about which Hall drew his conclusion. Table I presents the data selected by Hall to prove his point, together with
On the Sensitivity of Atmospheric Ensembles to Cloud Microphysics in Long-Term Cloud-Resolving Model Simulations

Month-long large-scale forcing data from two field campaigns are used to drive a cloud-resolving model (CRM) and produce ensemble simulations of clouds and precipitation. Observational data are then used to evaluate the model results. To improve the model results, a new parameterization of the Bergeron process is proposed that incorporates the number concentration of ice nuclei (IN). Numerical simulations reveal that atmospheric ensembles are sensitive to IN concentration and ice crystal multiplication.Two- (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) simulations are carried out to address the sensitivity of atmospheric ensembles to model dimensionality. It is found that the ensembles with high IN concentration are more sensitive to dimensionality than those with low IN concentration. Both the analytic solutions of linear dry models and the CRM output show that there are more convective cores with stronger updrafts in 3D simulations than in 2D, which explains the differing sensitivity of the ensembles to dimensionality at different IN concentrations.
Maintenance of constant leaf temperature by plants—I. Hypothesis-limited homeothermy

Abstract The relationship between the temperature of a plant and the temperature of its environment is an important consideration in the study of thermal stress. Plants are generally assumed to be poikilotherms that exist in eurythermal environments and some variation in plant temperature is thought to be normal for the plant. Recent investigations in our laboratory have indicated that the thermal dependencies of enzymes from several plants are more characteristic of those from homeotherms than eurytherms. Thus, while it is assumed that thermal variation is normal for a plant, the thermal dependencies of the enzymes of the plant suggest that such variation may be stressful. We present a conceptual framework for the active maintenance of a normative, or characteristics, temperature by the plant. We propose that the lower limit of the temperature of a plant is controlled by its environment while the upper limit, even under a wide variety of conditions, can be controlled by the plant and maintained at a normative value. We suggest the term “limited homeothermy” to describe this type of thermal behavior by the plant. We propose three constraints on the maintenance of the normative temperature by the plant; (1) sufficient energy influx to raise its temperature to the normative value, (2) sufficient water supply for transpiration, and (3) humidity low enough to allow for cooling to the normative temperature.
Neonatal administration of oxytocin increases novelty-induced grooming in the adult rat

Three-day-old Sprague-Dawley rat pups were intracisternally infused with a single dose of oxytocin (1 microgram/2 microliters) or saline, or were untreated. As adults, these animals were observed for novelty-induced grooming, analgesia measured by the hot-plate test, and behavior in the open field. Oxytocin treatment during infancy resulted in an elevation of novelty-induced grooming when compared to saline and untreated animals. There were no significant oxytocin treatment effects on analgesia response or open-field behaviors. Oxytocin given early in life may have permanent effects on certain behavioral responses to stress.
Recovery of VOCs from surfactant solutions by pervaporation

Abstract Surfactant-based processes are emerging as promising technologies to enhance conventional pump-and-treat methods for remediating soils contaminated with nonaqueous phase liquids (NAPLs), primarily due to the potential to significantly reduce the remediation time. In order to reuse the surfactant, thereby making the process more economical, the NAPLs must be separated from the surfactant solution. Pervaporation was identified as a potential technology for removing volatile NAPLs from surfactant solutions. Initial tests with 1,1,1-trichloroethane (TCA) in an aqueous solution of the non-ionic surfactant Triton X-100 showed that the surfactant had a negligible effect on both flux and selectivity at concentrations of up to four times the critical micelle concentration (4×CMC). Further tests with a 40×CMC surfactant solution yielded moderately lower TCA fluxes and selectivities than comparable aqueous solutions without surfactant. The reduced pervaporation performance at higher surfactant and TCA concentrations were found to result from two effects: (1) increases in the viscosity of the solution, which increases the liquid-side boundary layer mass transfer resistance and (2) partitioning of TCA into the micelles, thereby reducing the effective extramicellar concentration. Despite these reductions in performance, pervaporation was found to be quite capable of removing this volatile NAPL from the surfactant solutions.
Magnetic wire fabrication and applications

Depending on fabrication processes and methods, resultant magnetic wires exhibit a variety of magnetic structures. The situation becomes more complex and therefore more interesting when intrinsic properties based on the material chemical compositions are greatly affected by wire fabrication processes. Thus there are direct links between wire fabrication and its technological applications. Representative examples for the links are discussed in an attempt to explore new possibilities.
Ionospheric disturbances during the magnetic storm of 15 July 2000: Role of the fountain effect and plasma bubbles for the formation of large equatorial plasma density depletions

[1] We investigate the role of the fountain effect and plasma bubbles for the formation of the large equatorial plasma depletions during the geomagnetic storm of 15 July 2000. The large equatorial plasma depletions are detected in the Atlantic sector on the night of the 15th by the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) F15 and the first Republic of China Satellite (ROCSAT-1). The observations show discontinuous drop of the plasma density at the walls of the depletions, flat plasma density inside the depletions, and persistence or growth of the depletions over night. These properties are not consistent with the trough morphology induced by the fountain effect. The coincident ionospheric observations of DMSP F15 and ROCSAT-1 demonstrate that the large depletions are created in the longitude regions where plasma bubbles are present. The occurrence of the large depletions after sunset, elongation in the north-south direction, formation of steep walls, and colocation with plasma bubbles at lower altitudes or earlier times suggest that the large depletions are closely associated with plasma bubbles.
Exploring novel high power density concepts for attractive fusion systems

Abstract The Advanced Power Extraction (APEX) study is aimed at exploring innovative concepts for fusion power technology (FPT) that can tremendously enhance the potential of fusion as an attractive and competitive energy source. Specifically, the study is exploring new and ‘revolutionary’ concepts that can provide the capability to efficiently extract heat from systems with high neutron and surface heat loads while satisfying all the FPT functional requirements and maximizing reliability, maintainability, safety, and environmental attractiveness. The primary criteria for measuring performance of the new concepts are: (1) high power density capability with a peak neutron wall load (NWL) of ∼10 MW m −2 and surface heat flux of ∼2 MW m −2 ; (2) high power conversion efficiency, ∼40% net; and (3) clear potential to achieve high availability; specifically low failure rate, large design margin, and short downtime for maintenance. A requirement that MTBF>43 MTTR was derived as a necessary condition to achieve the required first wall/blanket availability, where MTBF is the mean time between failures and MTTR is the mean time to recover. Highlights of innovative and promising new concepts that may satisfy these criteria are provided.
Conflict and Coordination in the Aftermath of Oracular Statements

In the famous puzzle of the surprise execution, it is indisputable that the judge's announcement of the sentence does not make fulfilment of that sentence impossible. And so it follows that the sentence is both self-consistent and consistent with the prisoner's knowledge of it.Hence we require an account of what goes wrong with the prisoner's reasoning in support of the conclusion that the sentence cannot be carried out. In fact, the judge's announcement appears to be instrumental in bringing about its own fulfilment, just as the oracle's part in Sophocles' play is instrumental in bringing about Oedipus' tragic fate, which it foretells. Even so, each course of life - the prisoner's surprise execution on the one hand, and Oedipus' fate on the other - might have taken place in the absence of an oracular announcement anticipating it, although each fate appears to have been made more likely by an anticipatory announcement. So, just as we require an account of how the prisoner's reasoning goes wrong, we require too an explanation of how the oracle of the contemporary puzzle, the judge's announcement, participates in precipitating the situation it foretells.
Omnidirectional Viewing For Robot Vision

A fish-eye lens image can include information covering a 2Tr steradian field of view. Such a lens can be used as an element of the vision system of a robot. These images, which are recorded digitally, appear with an unavoidable inherent distortion which can be corrected with image processing techniques. A method for geometric restoration of such distorted images is derived and its resolution and error are analyzed. A system which may serve as a robot's vision system is described, along with examples of "distorted" and "undistorted" images to clarify the results of the above method.
Application of molecular (static) secondary ion mass spectroscopy to detection of organic molecules in amorphous titanium carbide

Molecular, or static, secondary ion mass Spectroscopy (SIMS) is applied to the detection of organic molecules in amorphous titanium carbide films. The presence of such organic clusters is thought to stabilize the amorphous phase to higher temperatures (>1000°C) and greater thicknesses. The high corrosion resistance properties of the TiC deposits are also attributed to the inclusion of such molecular entities. The processes whereby these molecular entities in the films are transformed into secondary ions during SIMS analysis are also investigated. It is shown that the dominant ionization mechanisms in this case are electron and momentum transfer.
Laboratory simulation of space and salt water environmental effects on polymers

Most polymers are eroded rapidly (>0.1 μm/h) in the low earth orbit (LEO) environment when facing the direction of flight. The rate of erosion varies little with the polymer type, except for fluoropolymers and silicones. Methods for simulating such an environment are reviewed. Secondly, the oxidation lifetime of stabilized and unstabilized polyolefins can be reduced 50 to 90 percent, with a, high yield of carboxylic acid (i.e. chain scission) oxidation products, when thermal oxidation at 70 to 90°C takes place in 0.01 to 0.1 molar sodium chloride solutions, as compared to thermal oxidation in air. Both sets of observations illustrate the need for detailed mechanistic investigations before accelerated test procedures can be developed to predict material lifetime.
Spinal cord thyrotropin releasing hormone receptors of morphine tolerant-dependent and abstinent rats.

Abstract The effect of chronic administration of morphine and its withdrawal on the binding of 3 H-[3-MeHis 2 ]thyrotropin releasing hormone ( 3 H-MeTRH) to membranes of the spinal cord of the rat was determined. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were implanted with either 6 placebo or 6 morphine pellets (each containing 75-mg morphine base) during a 7-day period. Two sets of animals were used. In one, the pellets were left intact at the time of sacrificing (tolerant-dependent) and in the other, the pellets were removed 16 hours prior to sacrificing (abstinent rats). In placebo-pellet-implanted rats, 3 H-MeTRH bound to the spinal cord membranes at a single high affinity binding site with a B max of 21.3±1.6 fmol/mg protein, and an apparent dissociation constant K d of 4.7±0.8 nM. In morphine tolerant-dependent or abstinent rats, the binding constants of 3 H-MeTRH to spinal cord membranes were unaffected. Previous studies from this laboratory indicate that TRH can inhibit morphine tolerance-dependence and abstinence processes without modifying brain TRH receptors. Together with the present results, it appears that the inhibitory effect of TRH on morphine tolerance-dependence and abstinence is probably not mediated via central TRH receptors but may be due to its interaction with other neurotransmitter systems.
Quantitative Extraction of Acid-soluble Human Skin Collagen with Age

IT has been shown that the acid-extractable collagen from the skin decreases with age (see review by Harkness1), but no quantitative data are available in man or animals which permit correlation of extractable collagen with growth, development, and age over the entire life-span. This communication presents and discusses such findings in man.
Active peptides from the carboxyl-terminal globular domain of laminin α2 and Drosophila α chains

The laminin α1 chain carboxyl-terminal globular domain (G domain) contains multiple biological activities. Recently, we identified five cell binding sequences from the G domain by screening with overlapping 12-mer peptides encompassing the entire domain. The structures of these five sequences in the α1 chain are conserved in the corresponding regions of the different laminin α chains. Here we characterize the adhesion activities of the corresponding peptide segments from both the mouse laminin α2 chain and Drosophila laminin α chain using peptide-coated plastic plates and peptide-conjugated Sepharose beads. Using several cell lines, the laminin α2 chain peptides showed cell attachment and/or spreading activities with cell type specificities. Cell spreading on MG-10 was inhibited by integrin antibodies. Four of the Drosophila laminin peptides showed cell attachment activities. These results suggest that biologically active regions in the G domain are conserved in the laminin α1 and α2 chains, and that these regions in laminin play an important role in cell surface receptor interactions.
Very slow carrier cooling in graphene measured by optical/THz pump-probe spectroscopy

We present results on the relaxation dynamics of photoexcited carriers in graphene using optical-pump terahertz-probe spectroscopy. Our measurements indicate that carrier cooling is extremely slow at low temperatures where electron-optical phonon cooling becomes inefficient.
The effect of hyperbranched polyglycerol coatings on drug delivery using degradable polymer nanoparticles.

A key attribute for nanoparticles (NPs) that are used in medicine is the ability to avoid rapid uptake by phagocytic cells in the liver and other tissues. Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) coatings has been the gold standard in this regard for several decades. Here, we examined hyperbranched polyglycerols (HPG) as an alternate coating on NPs. In earlier work, HPG was modified with amines and subsequently conjugated to poly(lactic acid) (PLA), but that approach compromised the ability of HPG to resist non-specific adsorption of biomolecules. Instead, we synthesized a copolymer of PLA–HPG by a one-step esterification. NPs were produced from a single emulsion using PLA–HPG: fluorescent dye or the anti-tumor agent camptothecin (CPT) were encapsulated at high efficiency in the NPs. PLA–HPG NPs were quantitatively compared to PLA–PEG NPs, produced using approaches that have been extensively optimized for drug delivery in humans. Despite being similar in size, drug release profile and in vitro cytotoxicity, the PLA–HPG NPs showed significantly longer blood circulation and significantly less liver accumulation than PLA–PEG. CPT-loaded PLA–HPG NPs showed higher stability in suspension and better therapeutic effectiveness against tumors in vivo than CPT-loaded PLA–PEG NPs. Our results suggest that HPG is superior to PEG as a surface coating for NPs in drug delivery.
Hematological study of the bluegill, Lepomis macrochirus Raf

Abstract 1. 1. Nineteen hematological parameters were examined in 160 adult bluegill. 2. 2. Measured hematological characteristics depended on sex of fish and season of the year. 3. 3. Good hematological indicators were primarily red blood cell morphology and secondarily thrombocyte-leucocyte distribution.
Analogous inhibitors of elastase do not always bind analogously.

It has been assumed that the structure of a single inhibitor complex is sufficient to define the available subsites of an enzyme that has a unique binding site and a uniquely defined mode for ligand binding — the specificity for these subsites can thus be probed by kinetic experiments. Elastase is an enzyme for which these traditional assumptions, which underlie such structural and kinetic studies, do not hold. Three new crystal structures of elastase complexed to chemically similar inhibitors with similar binding affinities reveal a diversity of binding modes as well as two new subsites on elastase. The existence of multiple binding sites and different binding modes for such similar inhibitors indicates that researchers must proceed with caution when using kinetics to map out protein subsites.
Aminophylline for methotrexate-induced neurotoxicity

Methotrexate, a mainstay treatment for children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, can cause neurotoxicity, with paralysis, seizures, somnolence, anorexia, and headaches. The pathophysiology of this reaction is unknown. It has been suggested that the anti-inflammatory effect of methotrexate in patients with arthritis is due to adenosine release brought on by inhibition of purine synthesis. Since adenosine is a central nervous system depressant, we wondered whether adenosine release in the central nervous system could account for some of the neurotoxicity due to methotrexate, and whether that toxicity could be lessened by displacement of adenosine from its receptor by aminophylline. 6 patients (age 3-16 years) who had methotrexate-induced neurotoxicity unresponsive to standard treatment received 2.5 mg/kg aminophylline. In addition, the concentration of adenosine in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from 11 children completing a 24-h systemic methotrexate protocol was compared with that in 8 newly diagnosed patients and 12 who had not received any treatment for at least a week. 4 of 6 patients with toxic signs and symptoms attributed to methotrexate and unrelieved by steroids, epidural blood patch, promethazine, 5-hydroytryptamine antagonists, paracetamol, and narcotics, had complete resolution of neurotoxicity after or during a 1-h infusion of aminophylline; 2 others had a pronounced improvement but persistent nausea. CSF adenosine concentrations of patients receiving methotrexate, even when there was very slight or no toxicity, were greatly increased compared with control subjects (mean values of 217 and 51 nmol/L, median 175 and 52 nmol/L). Subacute methotrexate neurotoxicity may be mediated by adenosine and relieved by aminophylline.
Oscillations of a solid sphere falling through a wormlike micellar fluid.

We present an experimental study of the motion of a solid sphere falling through a wormlike micellar fluid. While smaller or lighter spheres quickly reach a terminal velocity, larger or heavier spheres are found to oscillate in the direction of their falling motion. The onset of this instability correlates with a critical value of the velocity gradient scale ${\ensuremath{\Gamma}}_{c}\ensuremath{\sim}1{\mathrm{s}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}.$ We relate this condition to the known complex rheology of wormlike micellar fluids, and suggest that the unsteady motion of the sphere is caused by the formation and breaking of flow-induced structures.
Vegetables as Chemical Reagents

Biocatalysis is an important adjunct to the chemical armamentarium that organic chemists may bring to bear for the synthesis of important intermediates and finished pharmaceutical and other commercial products. For most of the world however, such catalytic reagents are not an option due to their high cost and import limitations. Recent studies indicate that the use of locally available vegetables may offer an alternative opportunity for countries to investigate their local resources for the effective conduct of key synthetic transformations with significant economic and ecological implications. This review offers a brief overview of the field of microbial and plant biocatalysts, discusses the studies thus far on the use of intact plant materials for conducting synthetic chemical reactions, and considers some opportunities for future development.
Diagnosing Snowband Predictability Using a Multimodel Ensemble System

AbstractThe forecast uncertainty of mesoscale snowband formation and evolution is compared using predictions from a 16-member multimodel ensemble at 12-km grid spacing for the 25 December 2002, 12 February 2006, and 14 February 2007 northeast U.S. snowstorms. Using these predictions, the case-to-case variability in the predictability of band formation and evolution is demonstrated. Feature-based uncertainty information is also presented as an example of what may be operationally feasible from postprocessing information from future short-range ensemble forecast systems. Additionally, the initial condition sensitivity of band location in each case is explored by contrasting the forecast evolutions of initial condition members with large differences in snowband positions. Considerable uncertainty in the occurrence, and especially timing and location, of band formation and subsequent evolution was found, even at forecast projections <24 h. The ensemble provided quantitative mesoscale band uncertainty informat...
Procedural Fairness, Return to Work, and the Decision to Dispute in Workers' Compensation

This study investigates how injured workers evaluate the fairness of the workers' compensation claims process and how that evaluation affects the decision to formally dispute their claim. Survey and administrative data are used to test a model where individuals are hypothesized to base their overall impression of the fairness of the process based on dimensions of procedural justice criteria. They are then hypothesized to decide whether to formally dispute the claim based on a combination of procedural fairness concerns and whether or not they returned to work with the same employer. The implications of the results for structuring the workers' compensation claims process are then discussed.
Evaluating the effect of replacing CNK with linux on the compute-nodes of blue gene/l

The Blue Gene machines in production today run a small single-user, single-process kernel (CNK) having a limited functionality. Motivated by the desire to provide applications with a much richer operating environment, we evaluate the effect of replacing CNK with a standard Linux kernel on the compute nodes of Blue Gene/L. We show that with a relatively small amount of effort we were able to improve benchmark performance under Linux up to a level that is comparable to CNK.
Eliminating speckle noise with three-dimensional single-track-location shear wave elasticity imaging (STL-SWEI)

Conventional multiple track location shear wave elasticity imaging (MTL-SWEI) is a powerful tool for noninvasively estimating tissue elasticity. The resolution and noise of MTL-SWEI systems, however, are limited by ultrasound speckle. Single track location SWEI (STL-SWEI) is a novel variant which fixes the position of the tracking beam and modulates the push location to effectively cancel out the effects of speckle bias. We present a 3D STL-SWEI system which provides full suppression of lateral and elevation speckle bias for high resolution 3D elasticity imaging, and requires no inherent spatial filtering to make precise measurements of shear wave speed. The system is demonstrated in a uniform elasticity phantom.
Interferometric testing of large optical components with circular computer holograms

In testing a large aspheric mirror such as a paraboloid, one uses as interferometric reference a small spherical mirror together with a test glass. The combination of mirror and test glass produces a parabolic wavefront for comparison. Recently holograms have been used as synthetic test glasses. The average fringe distance of the grating-like holograms has to be fine enough if separation of the diffraction orders is required. We propose to use holograms with circular fringes. Now the different diffraction orders come to focus at different locations on the optical axis, where all but one order can be eliminated. This is easily possible, since the waves coming from a mirror with a central hole are hollow cones. Several ways for making these computer-generated circular holograms are suggested.