cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Bonding properties of selenium-carbon complexes: Computational modeling of H3CSeH, H2CSe, HOCSeH, H2CSeO, SeC and HCSeOH

Abstract Structures and bond strengths have been assessed for H 3 CSeH, H 2 CSe, HOCSeH, H 2 CSeO, SeC, and HCSeOH complexes using B3PW91, B3LYP, MP2 and CCSD(T) in conjunction with augmented correlation consistent (aug-cc-pVXZ, where X = D, T, Q or 5) basis sets. Of these species, HCSeOH shows an atypical structure, with a carbon–selenium bond length and frequencies akin to those of the experimentally known triply-bonded SeC complex. Natural Bond Order (NBO) analysis provides further support of a triply bonded HCSeOH structure.
Looking at Diabetes Mellitus and Its Complications from a Different Angle

Gail Galasko provides her perspective as a professor of pharmacology and researcher working in the area of diabetes research. Dr. Galasko encourages those working with diabetes to communicate the bigger picture of diabetes and its complications by raising awareness of some newer research findings in the field.
Video recording of the operating room—is anonymity possible?

Abstract Background Video recording in the operating room (OR) has many potential applications for research, quality improvement, and education. Routine video recording is limited by patient and staff privacy concerns, but this may be overcome by creating videos that are deidentified but still retain sufficient video data for intended applications. It is unknown what effect video processing may have on staff perceptions of identifiability in video recordings; this study was designed to investigate this effect. Methods We presented OR staff members with short clips of the same staged surgical procedure, each representing different data formats or processing (unaltered video, blurred faces, infrared, and point clouds). Staff rated each video on a Likert scale (1 = anonymous, “no one could identify me”; 10 = not anonymous, “it would be easy to identify me) and provided qualitative comments. Results Eighty-three staff members agreed to participate. The mean response for the unaltered, blurred faces, infrared, and point cloud videos were 7.05, 3.75, 5.77, and 1.41, respectively (all P Conclusions This study demonstrates that surgical video postprocessing affects OR staff members' perceptions of anonymity and that it is possible to produce videos that retain details about surgical activity while still being perceived as anonymous. These findings are highly relevant to any study that uses video for quality improvement or health care research by providing the first normative data on “deidentification.”
A Potential Role for Felbamate in TSC- and NF1-Related Epilepsy: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

A 15-year-old girl with maternal inheritance of neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) and paternal inheritance of tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) developed intractable epilepsy at age 5. Her seizures were refractory to adequate doses of four antiepileptic medications until felbamate was initiated at age 7. She has since remained seizure-free on felbamate monotherapy. Although felbamate has multiple mechanisms of action, it is thought to have its most potent antiepileptic effects through inhibition of the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR). Previous studies have shown that the NMDAR is altered in varying epilepsy syndromes and notably in the cortical tubers found in TSC. The aim of this paper is to examine how felbamate monotherapy was able to achieve such robust antiepileptic effects in a unique patient and possibly offer a novel therapeutic approach to patients suffering from TSC- and NF-related epilepsy.
Characteristics of vertical p-channel MOSFETs for high density circuit application

Vertical p-channel MOSFETs have been experimentally fabricated and characterized. Device characteristics of vertical p-channel MOSFETs are comparable to those of planar surface devices. Conduction current of a vertical transistor can be increased as much as four times that of a planar transistor for the same device area. The feature of large W/L ratio allows further increase in device density. Conduction current increases linearly with the channel width. No 3D current conduction degradation effect has been observed. It is found that the crystallographic orientation of the conduction channel has some effect on the threshold and sub-threshold characteristics, due to oxide thickness difference or fixed charges in the oxide interface. >
Global patterns of terrestrial vertebrate diversity and conservation.

Identifying priority areas for biodiversity is essential for directing conservation resources. Fundamentally, we must know where individual species live, which ones are vulnerable, where human actions threaten them, and their levels of protection. As conservation knowledge and threats change, we must reevaluate priorities. We mapped priority areas for vertebrates using newly updated data on >21,000 species of mammals, amphibians, and birds. For each taxon, we identified centers of richness for all species, small-ranged species, and threatened species listed with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Importantly, all analyses were at a spatial grain of 10 × 10 km, 100 times finer than previous assessments. This fine scale is a significant methodological improvement, because it brings mapping to scales comparable with regional decisions on where to place protected areas. We also mapped recent species discoveries, because they suggest where as-yet-unknown species might be living. To assess the protection of the priority areas, we calculated the percentage of priority areas within protected areas using the latest data from the World Database of Protected Areas, providing a snapshot of how well the planet’s protected area system encompasses vertebrate biodiversity. Although the priority areas do have more protection than the global average, the level of protection still is insufficient given the importance of these areas for preventing vertebrate extinctions. We also found substantial differences between our identified vertebrate priorities and the leading map of global conservation priorities, the biodiversity hotspots. Our findings suggest a need to reassess the global allocation of conservation resources to reflect today’s improved knowledge of biodiversity and conservation.
Panic, suicide, and agitation: independent correlates of the TSH response to TRH in depression

We investigated the relationship between suicidality, agitation, panic attacks, and the thyrotropin-stimulating hormone (TSH) response to thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH), and tested the hypothesis that panic would account for the association between a reduced TSH response and the other conditions. Twenty-seven euthyroid primary unipolar depressed inpatient women received a TRH test and systematic psychiatric assessment. Panic attacks were insufficient to explain the link between the TSH response and suicidal intent, lethality, and agitation; each condition was independently associated with a lower TSH response. In an additive fashion, copresence of conditions further reduced TSH response. The symptom constellation of panic, agitation, and suicidality in depression may correlate with the greatest reduction in TSH response.
A Two-Time-Scale Redesign for Robust Stabilization and Performance Recovery of Uncertain Nonlinear Systems

In this paper we propose a robust redesign technique which recovers the trajectories of a nominal control design in the presence of additive input uncertainties. We design a high-gain filter and employ the fast variables arising from this filter in the feedback control law to cancel the effect of the uncertainties in the plant. Using singular perturbation theory we prove that the trajectories of the redesigned system approach those of the nominal system when the filter gain is increased. We illustrate the redesign by applying it to two physically motivated examples.
Employers' Attitudes Toward Persons with Disabilities in the Workforce: Myths or Realities?

A review of literature on employers' attitudes toward workers with disabilities was completed. Factors that may affect employers' attitudes toward persons with disabilities in the workforce are provided, as well as a description of the methodologies used in the investigations. Although several key themes emerge, decades of employer attitudinal research has generally produced inconsistent findings due to variations in research design.
Hip-Femoral Acetabular Impingement

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become a valuable technology for the diagnosis and treatment of femoroacetabular impingement (FAI). This article reviews the basic pathophysiology of FAI, as well as the techniques and indications for MRI and magnetic resonance arthrography. Normal MRI anatomy of the hip and pathologic MRI anatomy associated with FAI are also discussed. Several case examples are presented demonstrating the diagnosis and treatment of FAI.
Microarray analysis of the rat lacrimal gland following the loss of parasympathetic control of secretion

Previous studies showed that loss of muscarinic parasympathetic input to the lacrimal gland (LG) leads to a dramatic reduction in tear secretion and profound changes to LG structure. In this study,...
Steganography detection using RBFNN

A machine learning approach based on alpha-trimmed mean feature preprocessing is introduced to determine whether secret messages are hidden within JPEG images. This paper also integrates a multi-preprocessing sequence to develop the classification system which contains features generated from an image dataset including steganographic and clean images, feature ranking and selection, feature extraction, and data standardization. Neural networks using radial basis functions train the classifier to accomplish the decision making progress. The analyzed image is labeled as either a steganographic or a clean image. The computer simulations have shown that classification accuracy increases by 40% when using feature preprocessing within the complete detection system over a system without feature preprocessing. In addition, alpha-trimmed mean (including mean and median) statistics approach results in higher classification accuracy.
COMPUTATIONAL CLARIFICATIONS OF EXPERIMENTAL BLEND MORPHOLOGY TRANSITIONS IN IMMISCIBLE POLYMER MELTS ORGANIZED BY CHAOTIC ADVECTION

Chaotic advection has been used recently to organize immiscible polymer melts into thousands of alternating thin layers and controllably obtain from layer breakup a wide variety of useful derivative blend morphologies. Experiments suggested that morphology changes in the multiple layers occur progressively, volumetrically, and interactively via gradual layer refinement and the formation and growth of holes (i.e., ruptures). To theoretically evaluate the experimental findings and also clarify morphology development in multilayer melts, interactive hole growth in multiple layers and associated morphology transitions have been investigated for experimentally observed random and ordered-hole arrangements using the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM). Results also provide a three-dimensional generalization to multiple layers of prior studies focused on hole growth in thin film coatings.
Boundary mixing and nutrient fluxes in Mono Lake, California

Temperature-gradient microstructure and nutrient profiling were undertaken at both an inshore and an offshore site on Mono Lake, California, to determine whether boundary mixing occurred and the effects on nutrient flux within the lake. Turbulence, as quantified by rates of dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy, was two to three orders of magnitude higher at the inshore site where the pycnocline intersected the bottom than at the same depths at an offshore station. The intense turbulence primarily occurred within 3.5 m of the sediment‐water interface. In addition, temperature profiles were more incrementally stepped in the pycnocline inshore than offshore. The Turner angle indicated that double-diffusive processes may have augmented turbulent transport in the upper 10 m, where temperatures were inversely stratified, but not in the main pycnocline. Within the pycnocline, e exceeded the threshold value for buoyancy flux ( ethr 5 15yN 2 ) in 21% of the turbulent layers inshore but in only 1% of the layers offshore. The coefficient of vertical eddy diffusivity, Kz, was two to four orders of magnitude higher withi n4mo f thebottom inshore than offshore at the same depths. Spatially averaged values of Kz, obtained from the heat-flux method using data obtained from both conductivity‐temperature‐depth (CTD) profiles and moored thermistor chains, were two orders of magnitude less than those obtained nearshore with microstructure profiling. From the differences in Kz, we inferred that most heat flux occurred due to boundary mixing at the base of the pycnocline inshore with the heat redistributed laterally by advection. Boundary mixing was initiated after winds were strong enough for the Lake number to decrease to a value of 2; thermocline compression and steepening of internal waves at the base of the pycnocline occurred, followed by packets of high-frequency internal waves critical for wave breaking. Calculated ammonium fluxes at the inshore site were sufficient to support daily rates of primary productivity in the deep chlorophyll maximum throughout the lake. These results indicate the vertical flux of nutrients across the nutricline in Mono Lake occurs over a limited area during intense mixing events initiated by high winds.
Essential Role for the P55 Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor in Regulating Hematopoiesis at a Stem Cell Level

Hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) self-renewal is a complicated process, and its regulatory mechanisms are poorly understood. Previous studies have identified tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α as a pleiotropic cytokine, which, among other actions, prevents various hematopoietic progenitor cells from proliferating and differentiating in vitro. However, its role in regulating long-term repopulating HSCs in vivo has not been investigated. In this study, mice deficient for the p55 or the p75 subunit of the TNF receptor were analyzed in a variety of hematopoietic progenitor and stem cell assays. In older p55−/− mice (>6 mo), we identified significant differences in their hematopoietic system compared with age-matched p75−/− or wild-type counterparts. Increased marrow cellularity and increased numbers of myeloid and erythroid colony-forming progenitor cells (CFCs), paralleled by elevated peripheral blood cell counts, were found in p55-deficient mice. In contrast to the increased myeloid compartment, pre-B CFCs were deficient in older p55−/− mice. In addition, a fourfold decrease in the number of HSCs could be demonstrated in a competitive repopulating assay. Secondary transplantations of marrow cells from primary recipients of p55−/− marrow revealed impaired self-renewal ability of p55-deficient HSCs. These data show that, in vivo, signaling through the p55 subunit of the TNF receptor is essential for regulating hematopoiesis at the stem cell level.
The Eight-Year Study: From Evaluative Research to Demonstration Project, 1930-1940

From 1932 to 1940, the Progressive Education Association (PEA) conducted its Eight-Year Study. At first, the study appeared to be a poorly funded comparison of two groups of students in secondary schools. During the last four years, as more financial support became available, the Eight-Year Study became a broadly based demonstration of a wide range of educational innovations. For contemporary educators, the story of the Eight-Year Study represents an opportunity to reconsider popular principles of program evaluation such as utilization-focused evaluation or program theory in evaluation. Rather than set plans in advance, the PEA members seemed to follow the ideas of John Dewey; they allowed the purposes to widen and broaden as the study evolved. In this way, the Eight-Year Study represented a model of democratic policy evaluation. Its tentative type of planning allowed people to set and to change their own purposes in line with the needs of the wider organization. Part of the reason that the study changed direction was it gathered more financial support and could add consultants who worked in distinct program elements. In addition, the lack of consistency matched the varied nature that characterized the founding members of the PEA. Its democratic framework may have enabled the Eight-Year Study to become the PEA’s abiding contribution to American education.
Documenting Abilities And Achievements: The Use Of Professional Portfolios For Accounting Students And Young Accounting Professionals

Requiring students to develop portfolios as part of the educational process is a common technique that is utilized by educators who teach various subjects from kindergarten through graduate school. Collecting course assignments and projects into a portfolio helps students see the development of their skills as they progress through school toward graduation. Portfolio development is prevalent in certain majors – such as art and education – as well as in certain professions - such as marketing and communication. While portfolios are not typically utilized in the profession of Accounting, there are many benefits to requiring that undergraduate Accounting majors track their educational progress with a portfolio. Doing so will allow Accounting majors to understand their learning more – make it less cerebral and more recognizable. Portfolios will also assist the Accounting major to achieve entry-level professional employment.
Strain Dependence of Dynamic Mechanical Properties of Carbon Black-Filled Rubber Compounds

The strain dependencies of dynamic mechanical properties of carbon black-filled rubber compounds have been modeled by Kraus. Evaluation of the Kraus model with carbon black loading up to 110 phr shows that it provides a fairly good overall description to elastic modulus, G', as a function of strain, γ. The model description of G' strain dependence improves with decreased carbon black loading, and is very good with carbon black loading of 50 phr and less. The model description of viscous modulus strain dependence, G''(γ), is less sucessful than the G'(γ) description. Several empirical modification of the viscous modulus model are examined. The most improved model is a very good approximation to viscous modulus over a wide experimental strain-range. Its utility, and that of the Kraus G'(γ) model, are illustrated through calculation of simple shear dynamic properties from torsion property measurments on a solid cylinder, where the strain amplitude varies across the specimen radius. The models allow transformation of the apparent moduli, reported as functions of strain amplitude at the cylinder's outer edge, to their true counterparts, G'(γ) and G''(γ), as functions of uniform strain amplitude. Although the G'(γ) and mofified G''(γ) models apply to a wide range of experimental strains, some uncertainties associated with each model's accuracy remain, and there are inconsistencies in the relation of one model to the other. Reservations associated with the models might be resolved through refined treatments of the test specimen geometries.
Vererbungshierarchien und Prädikatenlogik

Nachdem zunachst pradikatenlogisch orientierte und framebasierte Wissensreprasentationssprachen als getrennte oder nur lose gekoppelte Formalismen aufgefast wurden, sind im Laufe der etwa drei letzten Jahre Vorschlage fur eine intensivere Integration der beiden Reprasentationsformen veroffentlicht worden. Die beiden Arbeiten (Ait-Kaci & Nasr 1986) und (Mycroft & O’Keefe 1984) mogen hier stellvertretend genannt werden. Der prinzipielle Ansatz sieht vor in einem mehrsortigen Pradikatenkalkul die Menge der Sorten mit einer Teilsortenbeziehung zu versehen und eine interne Struktur auf den Sorten einzufuhren. In den beiden zitierten Arbeiten wird dabei nur der universelle Hornklauselteil des Pradikatenkalkul betrachtet. Im Rahmen des Grundlagenforschungsprojekts LILOG, das die IBM Deutschland GmbH im Verbund mit funf deutschen Universitaten und einem Softwarehaus auf dem Gebiet der sprachverstehenden Systeme durchfuhrt, arbeitet man mit einer Variante dieses Ansatzes als Wissensreprasentationssprache. In der vorliegenden Publikation soll auf einen Teilaspekt dieses Unterfangens naher eingegangen werden. Wie in allen mehrsortigen Kalkulen, so hat man auch in der LILOG-Wissensreprasentationssprache die Wahl zwischen der Darstellung einer Menge als Sorte oder als einstellige Relation, ja sogar zwischen der Darstellung einer Beziehung als Sorte mit interner Attributstruktur oder als mehrstellige Relation. Wir geben in den ersten beiden Kapiteln eine prazise Ubersetzung der Sorten-, oder wie wir etwas neutraler sagen, der mengenorientierten Darstellung in eine relationenorientierte und zwar sowohl auf syntaktischer als auch auf semantischer Ebene. Unsere Ubersetzung weicht ab von der ublichen, die auf der relationenorientierten Seite nur ein- und zweistellige Relationen liefert.
Appropriate fees for wilderness day use: pricing decisions for recreation on public land.

An appropriate fee for the use of public lands strikes a balance between the need for fee revenues, the desire to maintain access and other normative concerns: fairness, equity, others' ability to ...
Insights into Microbicide Acceptability and Preferences Among Urban Adolescent Girls

Microbicides potentially offer women and girls more control over their HIV protection. Despite numerous trials, data describing adolescents’ microbicide preferences are limited. To address this gap, the authors interviewed and surveyed 26 African American, urban, adolescent girls to identify whether microbicides would be an acceptable method of HIV protection, their likelihood to use, and preferred characteristics. Survey results reported that all participants’ were willing to use microbicides; however, interviews revealed hesitancy due to a myriad of concerns. Factors impacting adolescents’ microbicide acceptability differed from those of adult women, indicating a need for support tailored to adolescents’ concerns. Additional mixed-methods studies are necessary to promote microbicide acceptability and adherence among this vulnerable population.
Multimedia Interfaces: Designing for Diversity

Every scientist and engineer dreams of reducing a problem to a few basic principles. Although our understanding of the human interface will continue to grow, it is unlikely that we will ever see a time when there is a simple, comprehensive model for the user interface. User interfaces become increasingly more diverse in their construction. Computer users, unless they are programmers, use languages designed for specific applications or languages based on interaction techniques, such as point-and-click, which require very little training to use. The interfaces commonly used now by computer users, the mouse, keyboard and screen, will be confined to those with desk jobs, and others will use a variety of input devices, from voice and pen to virtual reality interfaces. In the future, many of our interfaces will receive input through observing users rather than waiting for human action as in interfaces for tracking and teleconferencing.
Brazil and the field of socio-legal studies: Globalization, the Hegemony of the US, the Place of Law, and Elite Reproduction

This article is about the field of socio-legal studies and the sociology of the field. This division enables working with two dimensions of the author’s socio-legal scholarly personality, especially as it relates to Brazil. It is going to try to describe, not prescribe, and the description is very preliminary. It is in part meant to provoke responses and criticisms that will make the description better. Part one examines the rise and to some extent fall of the field of socio-legal studies in the United States. Part two will examine and make a preliminary contrast to a kind of parallel and contrasting story in Brazil. Part three moves to a different approach, a more sociological approach, focusing on lawyers as a point of entry into issues of law and state. Part four is the most tentative part of this talk as it a very preliminary contrast of the U.S. story with what I know preliminarily about Brazil in relation to the same issues of the place of law, elite production, hegemony, and globalization. Finally, it raises a couple of research projects and questions raised by this sociological examination.
“Scholarship in the Context of Struggle”: Activist Intellectuals, the Institute of the Black World (IBW), and the Contours of Black Power Radicalism

(2001). “Scholarship in the Context of Struggle”: Activist Intellectuals, the Institute of the Black World (IBW), and the Contours of Black Power Radicalism. The Black Scholar: Vol. 31, Black Power Studies: A New Scholarship, pp. 42-53.
Abstract 4853: Constitutively decreased TGF-β signaling and risk for colorectal cancer

Background: Approximately one third of all colorectal cancers (CRC) are inherited, but less than 7% are attributable to known gene mutations. Germline variants within the TGF-β signaling pathway may account for colorectal cancer risk since TGF-β inhibits early tumor development through the activation of SMAD proteins. We have previously shown that Tgfbr1 haploinsufficiency is a potent modifier of colorectal cancer development in mice and humans. We have recently shown a significant association between a 3 SNP TGFBR1 haplotype and constitutively decreased TGFBR1 allelic expression, a phenotype found to occur frequently in patients with CRC. In this family-based study, we aimed at determining the association of TGFBR1 and SMAD7 with colorectal cancer risk. Methods: We studied 1,558 colorectal cancer cases and 2,640 healthy controls recruited by the Colorectal Cancer Family Registry (CCFR). We genotyped 14 TGFBR1 haplotype tagging SNPs as well as a SMAD7 SNP associated with CRC in prior GWA studies. SNPs were genotyped in all cases and controls using ABI9s TaqMan platform, and associations were determined using logistical regression analysis (significance set at p Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 4853. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-4853
Poisson formulas for tumor control probability with clonogen proliferation.

I would like to add some comments regarding the accuracy of the so-called "LQ + time (linear-quadratic plus time)" equation for tumor control. I will not consider here the validity of the model assumptions (e.g. whether the assumption of tumor homogeneity is useful), or statistical fitting issues; this letter addresses only the accuracy of the method of including the time factor in the usual manner. We derive, using simple probability concepts, an accurate Poisson formula for tumor control including proliferation. This letter was prompted by a paper by Tucker et al. (1) which examined the usual Poisson formula for tumor control (Pc) in the presence of proliferation:
The role of turbulent convection in the primitive solar nebula: I. Theory

Abstract The theoretical framework for modeling the primordial solar nebula is presented in which convection is assumed to be the sole source of turbulence that causes the nebula to evolve. We use a new model of convective turbulence that takes into account the important effects of radiative dissipation, rotation, and anisotropy of convective motions. This model is based on a closure for the nonlinear interactions that employs the growth rates of hydrodynamic instabilities, a procedure that allows one to compute turbulence coefficients for instabilities other than convection. The vertical structure equations in the thin-disk approximation are developed for this new model, and a detailed comparison and critique of previous convective models of the solar nebula are presented. Numerical results are presented in a subsequent paper.
Variations in radiosensitivity among individuals: a potential impact on risk assessment?

Abstract—To have an impact on risk assessment for purposes of radiation protection recommendations, significantly broad variations in carcinogenic radiosensitivity would have to exist in significant proportions in the human population. Even if we knew all the genes where mutations would have major e
Isolation and identification of measles virus genotype D_9 detected for the first time in Beijing,2013

Objective To identify the genotype and molecular characteristic of imported measles virus genotype D_9.detected for the first time in Beijing.Methods The throat swabs and urine specimens were collected from the suspected imported measles patient to isolate virus by using Vero/SLAM cell line.Fragment of 676 nucleotide acids of the carboxyl end of nucleoprotein gene were amplified with reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR),and then the PCR products were directly sequenced and analyzed.The phylogenetic tree was constructed based on 450nucleotide acids of the carboxyl end of nucleoprotein gene,and homological analysis was performed at nucleotide acid level and amino acid level.Results The isolate BJCY13026-2 was within the same genotype group of WHO genotype D_9 reference strain Victoria.AUS 12.99,the homology of nucleotide acid and amino acid was 95.8%and 96%respectively.Compared with other 23 genetype reference strains,the homology of nucleotide acid and amino acid were88.1%-95.6%and 90.7%-96.7%respectively.Compared with the Chinese measles vaccine strain Shanghai- 191,the homology of nucleotide acid and amino acid was 91.1%and 90.0%respectively.Compared with the major circulating measles strain genotype H_(1a) in China,the homology of nucleotide acid and amino acid was 89.4%and91.3%respectively.Conclusion Measles virus genotype D_9 was detected from an imported measles case in Beijing.
Regulation of Ca2+-activated K+ channels by multifunctional Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase

Activation of mesangial cells by ANG II provokes release of intracellular Ca(2+) stores and subsequent Ca(2+) influx through voltage-gated channels, events that are reflected by a large transient increase in intracellular concentration [Ca(2+)](i) followed by a modest sustained elevation in [Ca(2+)](i). These ANG II-induced alterations in [Ca(2+)](i) elicit activation of large Ca(2+)-activated K(+) channels (BK(Ca)) in a negative-feedback manner. The mechanism of this BK(Ca) feedback response may involve the direct effect of intracellular Ca(2+) on the channel and/or channel activation by regulatory enzymes. The present study utilized patch-clamp and fura 2 fluorescence techniques to assess the involvement of multifunctional calcium calmodulin kinase II (CAMKII) in the BK(Ca) feedback response. In cell-attached patches, KN62 (specific inhibitor of CAMKII) either abolished or reduced to near zero the ANG II-induced BK(Ca) feedback response. This phenomenon did not reflect direct effects of KN62 on the BK(Ca) channel, because this agent alone did not significantly alter BK(Ca) channel activity in inside-out patches. KN62 also failed to alter either the transient peak or sustained plateau phases of the [Ca(2+)](i) response to ANG II. In inside-out patches (1 microM Ca(2+) in bath), calmodulin plus ATP activated BK(Ca) channels in the presence but not the absence of CAMKII. These observations are consistent with the postulate that CAMKII is involved in the BK(Ca) feedback response of mesangial cells, acting to potentiate the influence of increased [Ca(2+)](i) on the BK(Ca) channel or a closely associated regulator of the channel. An additional effect of CAMKII to activate a voltage-gated Ca(2+) channel cannot be ruled out by these experiments.
Commercializing Association: the Reform of Union Power

During the 1960s and 1970s weakening trade union power became a special concern for British governments. Legal restrictions, direct assaults, and negotiations in the context of collectivist pluralism failed to deflate their strength. Leaders of major unions shifted to the left, militancy flourished, and union membership grew. By the mid-1970s the ‘social contract’ and incomes policies further politicized industrial relations and fostered ideological factionalism. During the 1978–79 ‘Winter of Discontent’, uncoordinated militancy gained the upper hand. The 1979 election of the Thatcher government signalled the public’s mood for abandoning the collectivist framework and the unions’ privileged position within it.
Truth Untrembling Heart

Rendering Heidegger’s translation of Parmenides’ ἀτρeμἐϛ, being “unshaken,” Joan Stambaugh gives us “untrembling.”1 Anglophone readers used to other translations and reading Parmenides’ description of “well-rounded truth” as “unshaken” are inclined to prefer customary versions to Stambaugh’s “untrembling”—such is the force of habit that haunts first encounters with an author in translation, a habit in this case that crosses two linguistic spheres, not only German but also Greek, owing to the omnipresence of Kirk, Raven, and Schofield,2 where their unshaken (sometimes unmovable) follows the already classic tradition of Diels-Kranz’ own “unerschutterlich.”
Chapter 8 – Driving the plasma sheet

Publisher Summary The transport of the plasma sheet (PS) plasma affects the spatial structure of the whole magnetotail. This structure, its variation in location and time, ultimately depends on changes in the solar wind. Field-aligned currents (FACs), the auroral currents, couple the magnetosphere with the ionosphere, which in turn affects plasma transport there. It is now possible to predict the structure of the transport and energization of solar wind plasma under different interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions. The magnetosphere is constantly being stirred by momentum and energy transfer from the solar wind through the low-latitude boundary layer (LLBL). The primary process behind this inflow has some immediate effect on the aurora via initiation of flow and pressure build-up. The generation of two-cell (or sometimes four-cell) convection patterns is the result. The essential element is the formation of elongated narrow auroral arcs during the growth phase of substorms. The aurora is due to energetic particle impact on the upper atmosphere, but the reasons for the precipitation can differ. All auroras are not of the same kind. One may distinguish major classes: quiescent and dynamic convection-related aurora, growth-phase aurora, diffuse aurora, and very active forms of several kinds such as the westward traveling surge (WTS), omega bands, and pulsating aurora. The major entry site for solar wind plasma into the plasma sheet is the LLBL. Because of its electric dipole nature, the electric field is transferred from the magnetosheath into the plasma sheet by the LLBL. The LLBL also supplies the plasma through the polarization drift required to maintain the electric field for tailward flow.
A novel adjunctive cleansing method to reduce colony-forming units on duodenoscopes.

Background and study aims: Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography-related infections are of increasing global concern due to the emergence of multidrug-resistant bacteria such as carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae (CRE), with bacterial biofilm production postulated as one cause of persistent infection from such virulent organisms. Because N-acetylcysteine (NAC) has been shown to possess antibacterial and biofilm-disruption properties, we aimed to evaluate if NAC would demonstrate clinical utility in reducing the colony forming units (CFU) at the elevator end of a duodenoscope, one of the hardest areas to clean. Patients and methods: This was a pilot study of 16 procedures involving the use of a duodenoscope. After use, the elevator tip of a duodenoscope was cultured and submerged for 30 minutes, either in 20 % NAC (200 mg/mL, intervention) or in sterile water (control). After 30 minutes, the elevator tip was re-cultured. Results: Submersion of the distal end of a duodenoscope in 20 % NAC (200 mg/mL) for 30 minutes resulted in a statistically significant reduction in bacterial colony forming units compared to control (average reduction 41.6 % vs 8.8 %, P = 0.001). There was no visible damage and no optical distortion to the duodenoscope after submersion in NAC. Conclusions: In summary, NAC may be a safe, simple, and useful adjunct to currently available methods of duodenoscope reprocessing. Further research may better define NAC’s role in duodenoscope reprocessing, either broadly or specifically after procedures suspected to produce a high risk of bacterial contamination (e. g. choledocholithiasis).
Novel rat tail discitis model using bioluminescent Staphylococcus aureus.

Management of spondylodiscitis is a challenging clinical problem requiring medical and surgical treatment strategies. The purpose of this study was to establish a rat model of spondylodiscitis that utilizes bioluminescent Staphylococcus aureus, thus permitting in-vivo surveillance of infection intensity. Inocula of the bioluminescent S. aureus strain XEN36 were created in concentrations of 102 CFU/0.1 mL, 104 CFU/0.1 mL, and 106 CFU/0.1 mL. Three groups of rats were injected with the bacteria in the most proximal intervertebral tail segment. The third most proximal tail segment was injected with saline as a control. Bioluminescence was measured at baseline, 3 days, and weekly for a total of 6 weeks. Detected bioluminescence for each group peaked at day three and returned to baseline at 21 days. The average intensity was highest for the experimental group injected with the most concentrated bacterial solution (106 CFU/0.1 mL). Radiographic analysis revealed loss of intervertebral disc space and evidence of osseous bridging. Saline injected spaces exhibited no decrease in intervertebral spacing as compared to distal sites. Histologic analysis revealed neutrophilic infiltrates, destruction of the annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus, destruction of vertebral endplates, and osseous bridging. Saline injected discs exhibited preserved annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus on histology. This study demonstrates that injection of bioluminescent S. aureus into the intervertebral disc of a rat tail is a viable animal model for spondylodiscitis research. This model allows for real-time, in-vivo quantification of infection intensity, which may decrease the number of animals required for infection studies of the intervertebral disc. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved
Experimental Investigation of Turbulence Diffusion — A Factor in Transportation of Sediment in Open-Channel Flow

Turbulence diffusion in open-channel flow was investigated experimentally by photographing the spread of globules formed by the injection of an immiscible fluid into water. The mean-square transverse deviations of the globules at various distances downstream from the source were computed and analyzed in an effort to determine the shape of the velocity-correlation curve. Comparison was made between two types of curve which fitted the deviation data, one corresponding to a power-correlation law and the other to an exponential-correlation law.
Blame the Scapegoat: How Creating an Easy Target Can Help Non-Designers Critique Designs

We present a study testing whether adding a scapegoat design (one that is clearly stylistically worse than the other designs and thus easier to critique) will make users feel more comfortable with giving more feedback on the other designs that the experimenters want feedback on. We found that participants who are shown a scapegoat design in parallel with other designs did not only provide more critiques, but also more substantial critiques - resulting in both higher quality and quantity of user feedback. Our results imply that the psychology of scapegoating can be successfully adapted to help the HCI community improve the effectiveness of user testing.
Tritium Challenges and Plans for ITER Pellet Fueling and Disruption Mitigation Systems

AbstractITER will use a Pellet Injection System (PIS) for supplying deuterium-tritium (D-T) fuel to the fusion plasma and a Shattered Pellet Injection (SPI) system for rapidly injecting impurities (argon or neon mixed with deuterium) as solidified pellets into the plasma for the purpose of mitigating the harmful effects of plasma disruptions as part of a Disruption Mitigation System (DMS). Both systems are being designed to handle significant amounts of tritium in the process streams and are exposed to similar environmental conditions during operation, including exposure to gamma and neutron radiation and significant magnetic fields. Multiple barriers to prevent the potential release of the tritium inventory into the environment are included in the designs. The unique environmental conditions present some challenges and are currently being addressed during the design phase.
Never Let a Crisis Go to Waste: Recruiting the Next Generation of Infectious Diseases Physicians

Sometimes infectious diseases can seem to be the least interesting subspecialty of internal medicine. We don’t offer lifesaving or pain-relieving procedures. We offer the same advice over and over again hoping someday it might stick: wash your hands; stop prescribing antibiotics when there is no evidence of infection; and take your flu shot—it really won’t give you the flu. We give advice that some consider expendable. Shouldn’t all physicians be able to prescribe antibiotics with a little help from an online textbook or computer app? On top of all that, we apparently aren’t very stylish. One of my female colleagues recently told me she can pick out all of the male infectious disease physicians at scientific meetings by the standard uniform of ill-fitting khakis and button-down shirts. But a new crisis is always lurking to remind us that infectious diseases can be one of the most interesting and challenging areas of medicine. Emerging infections—often exotic and frightening—grab the attention of everyone from frontline personnel to the news media: Legionnaires’ disease; HIV; West Nile virus; SARS; MERS; chikungunya; Ebola virus; Zika virus; and Mycobacterium chimaera to name just a few. Without warning, common pathogens create havoc when they acquire new resistance mechanisms or virulence factors: multidrug-resistant gram-negative bacilli; Staphylococcus aureus ; and Clostridium difficile . Standard procedures such as transrectal biopsy of the prostate and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography suddenly become risky due to increasing antimicrobial resistance or inadequate methods for device reprocessing.
Biological Impacts on Carbon Speciation and Morphology of Sea Spray Aerosol

Sea spray aerosol (SSA) can have complex carbon speciation that is affected by biological conditions in the seawater from which it originates. Biologically derived molecules can also interact with other longer-lived organic and inorganic carbon species in the sea surface microlayer and in the process of bubble bursting. An isolated wave channel facility was used to generate sea spray aerosol during a 1 month mesocosm study. Two consecutive phytoplankton blooms occurred, and sea spray aerosol was sampled throughout. Scanning transmission X-ray microscopy coupled with near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy (STXM-NEXAFS) was used to determine spatially resolved carbon speciation within individual particles from 0.18 to 3.2 μm. During phytoplankton blooms, coarse-mode particles exhibited an increased abundance of carboxylic acid-rich needlelike structures. The extent of organic enrichment in fine-mode particles correlates with the occurrence of aliphatic-rich organic species, as detected by an...
Sounding out Sonority

This metastudy summarizes 264 recent experimental works involving sonority. The discussion here centers around an accompanying appendix that lists several details of each study, including the research question or hypothesis, outcome, language of focus, stimuli used to probe for the effect of sonority, methodology used to present test items and/or obtain results, participants' task, variables measured, and keywords. These metadata are presented in an Excel spreadsheet in order to give users flexibility to search and sort by details of interest, either alone or in various combinations. The overall findings of the 264 studies are naturally somewhat mixed but in general provide moderate support for the linguistic relevance of sonority.
Saturation of VCMA in out-of-plane magnetized CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB magnetic tunnel junctions

Voltage controlled magnetic anisotropy (VCMA) currently attracts considerable attention as a novel method to control and manipulate magnetic moments in high-speed and low-power spintronic applications based on magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs). In our experiments, we use ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) to study and quantify VCMA in out-of-plane magnetized CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB MTJ pillars. FMR is excited by applying a microwave current and detected via a small rectified voltage which develops across MTJ at resonance. The VCMA effective field can be extracted from the measured resonance field and was found to vary as a function of electrical bias applied to MTJ. At low applied biases, we observe a linear shift of the VCMA field as a function of the applied voltage which is consistent with the VCMA picture based on the bias-induced electron migration across the MgO/CoFeB interface. At higher biases, both positive and negative, we observe a deviation from the linear behavior which may indicate a saturation of the VCM...
Accelerating Graph Analytics by Co-Optimizing Storage and Access on an FPGA-HMC Platform

Graph analytics, which explores the relationships among interconnected entities, is becoming increasingly important due to its broad applicability, from machine learning to social sciences. However, due to the irregular data access patterns in graph computations, one major challenge for graph processing systems is performance. The algorithms, softwares, and hardwares that have been tailored for mainstream parallel applications are generally not effective for massive, sparse graphs from the real-world problems, due to their complex and irregular structures. To address the performance issues in large-scale graph analytics, we leverage the exceptional random access performance of the emerging Hybrid Memory Cube (HMC) combined with the flexibility and efficiency of modern FPGAs. In particular, we develop a collaborative software/hardware technique to perform a level-synchronized Breadth First Search (BFS) on a FPGA-HMC platform. From the software perspective, we develop an architecture-aware graph clustering algorithm that exploits the FPGA-HMC platform»s capability to improve data locality and memory access efficiency. From the hardware perspective, we further improve the FPGA-HMC graph processor architecture by designing a memory request merging unit to take advantage of the increased data locality resulting from graph clustering. We evaluate the performance of our BFS implementation using the AC-510 development kit from Micron and achieve $2.8 \times$ average performance improvement compared to the latest FPGA-HMC based graph processing system over a set of benchmarks from a wide range of applications.
Finite Element Formulation and Analyses

The rapid development of high—speed computers has facilitated the use of computational techniques in a variety of engineering applications. Today, the finite element method is one of the most popular and powerful techniques in modern engineering design and analysis of complicated structures and multi—field problems. In recent years, however, researches on active piezoelectric structures have focused primarily on experimental and theoretical studies; there has been little general—purpose piezoelectric finite element development (Tzou & Tseng, 1988ab Allik & Hughes, 1979; Nailon, et al., 1983).