cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract 4532: Differential protein and metabolite regulation in urothelial carcinoma highlights changes in immunity and receptor signaling pathways

Bladder cancer is ranked as one of the tumours posing high morbidity and mortality, with a pathogenesis which is still not well understood. A combination of genetic and lifestyle factors, including smoking, are known to contribute towards increasing the probability of encountering cancer. Here, we describe a multi-omic approach to reveal molecular factors that may be involved in these biomolecular processes. Plasma samples consisting of healthy controls and those from patients diagnosed with bladder cancer were prepared for proteomic, metabolomic and lipidomic analyses. Label-free LC-MS data were acquired using a QTof platform utilizing a data independent (DIA) workflow termed SONAR. Small molecule analysis consisted of using Progenesis QI for data processing to provide normalised values prior to statistical analysis. Unsupervised MVA of the data showed clear distinction between cohorts. OPLS-DA was used to filter for features of significant correlation and covariance prior to identification using metabolite and lipid specific databases. Identifications matching the following criteria, mass accuracy 2 were considered for further interrogation. SONAR-based analysis indicates that this method of data acquisition enabled over an order of magnitude more specificity than equivalent methodologies with the same resolution. Proteomic data were processed and searched against a Uniprot Homo sapien database, containing reviewed entries and limited to 1% FDR. Additionally, we also searched the data against a spectral library and comparatively analysed the results from both workflows. A number of significant proteins with differential regulation were exhibited for a number of protein groups involved in antigen and lipid binding. Proteins occurring in a minimum of two out of three replicates and with ANOVA p Citation Format: Lee Gethings, Adam King, Andrew J. Peck, Robert S. Plumb. Differential protein and metabolite regulation in urothelial carcinoma highlights changes in immunity and receptor signaling pathways [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 4532.
Expanding youth participatory action research: a Foucauldian take on youth identities

This paper explores the identity construction of multilingual and multidialectal middle school students in a semester-long youth participatory action research (YPAR) project. In particular, it move...
Patient-Reported Outcomes Following Treatment of Proximal Humerus Fractures in Adolescents

PURPOSE Treatment of proximal humerus fractures in the adolescent population remains controversial. While minimally displaced fractures are generally treated non-operatively, the choice of operative vs non-operative treatment remains unclear for more displaced fractures, especially in adolescents. Limited studies have reported patient-reported outcomes (PROs) of treatment in this population. We aimed to evaluate PROs for operative and non-operative management of proximal humerus fractures across a range of displacements in adolescents. METHODS We completed a retrospective review of all pediatric proximal humerus fractures treated at our level-1 pediatric trauma center from 2008-2017 with minimum …
Potential Capabilities of Microwave NDE Methods for Interrogation of Thermal Barrier Coatings

Thermal Barrier Coatings (TBC’s) are used in applications involving extreme heat. In order for TBC’s to be effective, there must not be any delamination, disbond, and changes in their material parameters or corrosion. There are several available nondestructive testing techniques for inspection of TBC’s (e.g., eddy current, ultrasonics, etc.). The usually layered geometry and the electromagnetic properties of TBC’s make microwave nondestructive evaluation techniques extremely conducive for their inspection. Potential applications of microwave nondestructive testing and evaluation (NDT&E) for detection of several common defects in TBC’s are presented in this paper.
Organ-on-a-Chip: A New Paradigm for Drug Development.

The pharmaceutical industry has been desperately searching for efficient drug discovery methods. Organ-on-a-Chip, a cutting-edge technology that can emulate the physiological environment and functionality of human organs on a chip for disease modeling and drug testing, shows great potential for revolutionizing the drug development pipeline. However, successful translation of this novel engineering platform into routine pharmacological and medical scenarios remains to be realized. In this review, we discuss how the Organ-on-a-Chip technology can have critical roles in different preclinical stages of drug development and highlight the current challenges in translation and commercialization of this technology for the pharmacological and medical end-users. Moreover, this review sheds light on the future developmental trends and need for a next-generation Organ-on-a-Chip platform to bridge the gap between animal studies and clinical trials for the pharmaceutical industry.
The Tyranny of openness: what happened to peer production?

This paper examines a “culture war” underway among software peer-production communities through relevant blog posts, legal documents, forum discussions, and other sources. Software licensing has be...
Status and movement of adfluvial brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis at Isle Royale, Michigan, Lake Superior

Abstract Adfluvial brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis populations in the Lake Superior basin have suffered declines over the last century due to habitat degradation and exploitation. Natural resources agencies throughout the basin have restored habitat and implemented restrictive angling regulations as tools to protect remnant coaster brook trout populations, but the success of these practices is unknown in some locations. We used electrofishing and passive integrated transponder (PIT) tag movement data from 2008 to 2020 to describe population characteristics, temporal trends, and adfluvial life history of coaster brook trout in Washington Harbor, Isle Royale National Park, Lake Superior after implementation of catch-and-release regulations in 2004. Our results document the presence of an adfluvial coaster brook trout population in Washington Harbor, Isle Royale. Temporal trends indicate that brook trout abundance and distribution in Washington Harbor increased since earlier observations in the late 1990s and early 2000s likely due to enactment of protective regulations, and increased stream flows and water levels observed in recent years in both Washington Creek and Lake Superior, respectively. Annual tag detection of Washington Harbor brook trout in Washington Creek at the antenna arrays varied from 25% in 2009 to 100% in 2011 and 2013, and averaged 60.7% throughout the study. Peak in adfluvial brook trout use of Washington Creek was from August – October with few detections occurring outside of the presumed spawning period. This study provides valuable insight into the population characteristics, movement patterns, and temporal increase in abundance of an adfluvial brook trout population in Lake Superior.
Kainic acid-induced excitotoxicity in neurons and glial cells.

Publisher Summary Kainic acid (KA) is known to exert a potent neuroexcitatory effect in the brain, causing damage to the neuronal cell body. A number of studies have implicated the involvement of Ca 2+ in this process. Kainic acid is shown to stimulate Ca 2+ influx in cultured neuronal cells, synaptosomes, and perfused hippocampus. The neurotoxicity of KA after peripheral administration is associated with its ability to cause the increase in intraneuronal Ca 2+ level. A number of cellular processes are critically dependent on the level of intracellular Ca2+ in cells. One of these is the activation of phospholipases leading to the breakdown of membrane phospholipids and release of arachidonic acid (AA). Cerebral ischemia as well as other forms of neuronal insults causes the release of AA in the brain. This chapter discusses evidence that AA may be a mediator that inhibits the glutamate uptake, and this phenomenon contributes to the KA-induced excitotoxicity in the brain.
Transnational Mass Claim Processes (TMCPs) in International Law and Practice

This article recognizes a growing overlap in the literature between international mass claims processes (“IMCPS”) and transitional justice claims processes (“TJCPs”), i.e. domestic reparations programs adopted by successor governments in the wake of mass atrocity. This convergence is reflected in a number of recent publications in both fields that promote the comparative analysis of IMCPs and TJCPs, which in turn, leads to the conclusion that the two processes share a number of analogous characteristics. Commentators tend to view these ostensibly shared traits as a natural source of “best practices” or “lessons” transferable between mass claims procedures in the international and domestic settings. Consequently, it is not uncommon in recent publications to find detailed analyses of individual IMCPs placed alongside TJCPs, often without more, implying that experiences should naturally translate from one process to the other. In this article, Professors Jason Palmer and Arturo Carrillo demonstrate how several of the assumptions underlying the increasing comparisons of IMCPs and TJCPs, as presented in the recent literature on mass claims processing and reparations for gross and systematic human rights violations, are flawed. Building on an in-depth study of seminal IMCP and TJCP experiences, Professor Palmer and Professor Carrillo conduct a comprehensive analysis of the two categories to provide answers to key questions in this regard: To what extent are IMCPs and TJCPs truly comparable? Which IMCP principles and precedents are most relevant to domestic reparations programs? Are there principles and precedents from the TJCP context that might nourish ongoing or future IMCP initiatives? And, of course, to what extent are IMCPs and TJCPs different? What is the nature of these differences, and what do they tell us about the underlying compatibility of the experiences and mechanisms contrasted? In answering these questions, the article exposes a number of inherent limitations to the comparison of IMCPs and TJCPs that to date have remained unaddressed. The article demonstrates that a number of basic IMCP characteristics apparently shared with TJCPs provide a dubious foundation for constructive comparison, including that central component of most mass claims processes: compensation. At the same time, the authors delineate more clearly a narrow but promising path of intriguing synergies, labeled “true parallels,” establishing furthermore that such parallels represent avenues for potential cross-fertilization in both directions.
Proper Assertion of the Deliberative Process Privilege: The Agency Head Requirement

Can any employee of an executive agency assert the deliberative process privilege in order to withhold information in response to a valid request? This Note examines the agency head requirement for assertion of the deliberative process privilege and concludes that only executive officials possessing policy-making authority may invoke the privilege. Such privilege determinations must come from a policy-making official in order to curb abuse and maintain the integrity of executive decisions. Recognition of such a policy-making distinction with regard to the agency head requirement will serve both the Executive’s and the public’s interest in ensuring effective governance.
Performance Instrumentation Techniques for Parallel Systems

Although the nascent state of parallel systems makes empirical performance measurement, analysis and tuning critical, rapid technological evolution, coupled with short product life cycles, has often made it difficult to isolate fundamental experimental principles from implementation artifacts. By definition, the apparatus for experimental performance analysis (i.e., instrumentation specification, data buffering, timestamp generation, and data extraction) is shaped by the intended experiment and the object of study. In some environments, certain experiments are not feasible. Balancing the volume of captured performance data against its accuracy and timeliness requires both appropriate tools and an understanding of instrumentation costs, implementation alternatives, and support infrastructure.
Princes of Peace and War and their Most Humble, Most Obedient Court Composer

J. S. Bach took many of his own vocal works conceived as tributes to earthly sovereigns and transformed them into glorifications of the heavenly King. Yet in contrast to the implications of some aspects of Luther's theology, these transformations leave undisturbed an underlying commitment to temporal authority and social obedience. Indeed, many of Bach's sacred works not only rely on rhetorical and musical topics associated with court life and the culture of war, but exploit these images in order to dramatize their message more immediately in the imaginations of contemporary churchgoing listeners.
Control of phosphorylase activity in a muscle glycogen particle. II. Activation by calcium.

Abstract The regulation of enzymatic activity of several enzymes involved in glycogen breakdown has been investigated in a skeletal muscle fraction containing a protein-glycogen complex and elements of the sarcoplasmic reticulum. In this fraction, phosphorylase is entirely in its inactive b form since phosphorylase kinase itself is totally inactive while phosphorylase phosphatase is fully active. Addition of Mg-ATP and Ca2+ triggers an immediate activation of phosphorylase (b to a conversion) resulting from kinase activation; no activation occurs with Mg-ATP alone. As soon as all the ATP has been consumed, phosphorylase a is rapidly reconverted to the b form by the phosphatase, and the over-all process can be repeated many times by successive readditions of ATP; this reaction cycle is referred to as "flash activation" of phosphorylase. The Ca2+ activation of kinase is reversed by chelation of the metal ion and, therefore, not the result of proteolytic attack by the calcium-dependent kinase-activating factor. Half-maximum activation of kinase in this system requires 2 x 10-6 m free Ca2+ (in contrast to approximately 10-7 m calcium for purified kinase solutions), i.e. the same Ca2+ concentration needed to trigger muscle contraction. Activation by Ca2+ resulted in a 13-fold increase in affinity of phosphorylase kinase for phosphorylase b. No evidence was obtained that it was mediated or accompanied by a phosphorylation of phosphorylase kinase. Only slight (20%) and delayed activation of endogenous phosphorylase b was produced by Mg-ATP and 10-5 m cyclic adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate in the absence of added Ca2+, although a 6-fold increase in kinase activity was measured in the usual assay system (at high dilution of phosphorylase kinase and in the presence of purified phosphorylase b). Disruption of the protein-glycogen complex by α-amylase digestion increased the affinity of phosphorylase kinase for Ca2+ 10-fold to the same level observed with the purified enzyme. Readdition of glycogen reversed this effect. Addition of 1 mm glucose-6-P suppressed the "flash activation" of phosphorylase both by a direct inhibition of the phosphorylase kinase reaction and, indirectly, by increasing the utilization of ATP. Furthermore, activated phosphorylase produced during the reaction was itself partially inhibited by glucose-6-P indicating that phospho-dephospho hybrids (rather than fully phosphorylated phosphorylase a) had been produced. Such hybrids were generated only in the intact (not in the disrupted) protein-glycogen complex.
Sectoral decision making: structures, processes and trust

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to synthesize multi-sector, cross-sector, and other interorganizational alliance structures and processes with particular focus on their saliency in partnership/alliance decision making. Design/methodology/approach – This is a conceptual paper focusing primarily on management and public administration literature that examines decision making in multi-sector, cross-sector, and other interorganizational alliances. Findings – The paper identified that decision making takes place at every stage of the partnership process, with complexity being dependent on organizational structure and design, i.e. dyad or network. Organization structures and key processes including coordination, cooperation, and trust are critical elements that impact decision making. Trust is foundational for the development and sustainability of collaborative alliances. Many of these same characteristics are also found in strategic alliance structures and processes. Practical implications – This analys...
Global Climate Change and the Need for Relevant Curriculum

With the rising importance of preparing students in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), the establishment of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) is critical to the development of disciplinary core ideas in the study of Weather and Climate. With the recent debate over the issue of global climate change, mostly instigated by the media, and its implications on human activities, economy and international policies, the insertion of this matter as a disciplinary core idea, both for middle and high school, is of great importance. Another factor contributing to the integration of this need is related to research findings about studentsâ€™ misconceptions about climate change and its direct correlation with media influences (Rajeev Gowda et al., 1997) and the lack of information about climate change inside curricular materials such as current science textbooks (Choi et al., 2010).
Barack Obama and the Rhetoric of Electoral Logic

Objectives This article examines Barack Obama's efforts to interpret and characterize the contrasting outcomes of the 2008 and 2010 elections, using an original data set of presidential communications. Methods We performed a content analysis of 241 presidential communications. Results Obama's post-2008 mandate claims alternated between claiming a mandate on a variety of policy issues and framing the election as a repudiation of Republican theories of governing. Post-2010, however, Obama framed the midterm results as evidence for electoral demand for bipartisan cooperation, rather than a repudiation of Democratic policies and ideas. Conclusions Obama's choices in framing the 2008 election contributed to the administration's failure to communicate effectively. Specifically, Obama neglected to create a strong narrative linking the election's results to support for his policy agenda, focusing instead on the election as a repudiation of Republican policies. In contrast, his interpretations of the 2010 midterms appear to be more effective. By identifying the Republicans' behavior as “dysfunctional” and conceding that the election had indicated a demand for the ideas of both parties, Obama offered a more successful alternative to the Republican narrative.
Aerobic Microbial Growth at Low Oxygen Concentrations

Sterilizable membrane probes were used to study the relation between oxygen concentration and respiration rate in Candida utilis growing on acetate. When the organism was grown in a continuous fermentor at various dissolved oxygen concentrations (0.23 × 10−6 to 32 × 10−6m), with time allowed for full adaptation to each oxygen concentration, the relationship between oxygen concentration and growth rate simulated Michaelis-Menten behavior, giving an apparent Km for oxygen of 1.3 × 10−6m. When respiration rate was measured at various oxygen concentrations without allowing time for adaptation, it was found that the respiration rate was directly proportional to O2 concentration at low O2 concentrations, and independent of O2 concentration at high O2 concentrations. Transition from one type of behavior to the other was fairly abrupt. The respiration rate in the presence of excess oxygen depended on the O2 concentration at which the cells were grown, but the rate at low O2 concentrations did not. There was evidence that, at low oxygen concentrations, oxygen diffusion through the cell substance limits respiration rate, at least in part.
Immunohistological localization of melatonin in the pineal gland and retina of the rat.

: An incubation procedure for the demonstration of melatonin is described using freeze-dried, unfixed material embedded in vacuum directly in glycolmethacrylate. The results indicate the binding of melatonin in the nucleus of pineal parenchymal cells and in the outer nuclear layer of the retina of rats; binding is greater at night than during the day.
Low temperature research in microgravity

Abstract The recent flight of the Lambda Point Experiment has demonstrated the potential for performing precise tests of fundamental theories using low temperature techniques in Earth orbit. NASA's Microgravity Science and Applications Division has established a program of successor experiments to investigate other aspects of condensed matter physics using the same low temperature flight facility. This paper will describe the new investigations that have been chosen for flight experiments, and those selected for ground-based studies that could lead to flight experiments later. The flight facility, which has now flown twice on the shuttle orbiter, will also be described. We shall also describe opportunities for investigators to apply for support of scientific studies that could gain significantly by being performed in a low gravity environment.
Abstract B14: Anti-miR-135b in colon cancer treatment

Background: MicroRNAs (miRs) are small non coding RNAs involved in cell homeostasis. miRs are deregulated in colorectal cancer (CRC). Our study aimed at identifying miRs with a driver role in carcinogenesis altered by similar mechanisms in both human and mouse CRC. Goal of the study was to use CRC mouse models for the pre-clinical development of anti-miRs as therapeutic drugs. Methods: Azoximetane (AOM)/Dextran-Sulfate (DSS) treated mice or CDX2Cre-APC f/wt mice were used to study inflammation-associated and sporadic APC-related CRC. Human Inflammatory Bowel Disease associated (n=30), and sporadic (n=90) CRC with their matched normal tissues were collected according to Good Clinical Practice recommendation and subjected to RNA extraction using Trizol. miR and gene expression profiling was assessed by nCounter technology (Nanostring Seattle). AntimiR-135b and scrambled probes for in vivo studies were synthesized by Girindus. Results: miRs profiling from AOM/DSS and CDX2Cre-APC f/wt CRC. revealed that miR-135b is one of the most up-regulated miRs in both models. In humans miR-135b over-expression was found in both IBD and sporadic CRC and was associated with reduced Progression Free Survival and Overall Survival in CRC patients. Molecular studies in Mouse Embryo Fibroblast and human CRC cell lines highlighted the role of two major pathways in the upstream activation of miR-135b: APC-β-Catenin and SRC-PI3K. MiR-135b up-regulation resulted in reduced apoptosis and increased invasion and metastasis due to the down-regulation of TGFRB2, DAPK1, APC and HIF1AN. Silencing of miR-135b in vivo reduced tumor multiplicity and tumor load in the AOM/DSS CRC model. Mice treated with anti-miR-135b showed well differentiated tumors and acinar pattern while tumors in the control groups showed low differentiation and adenomatous pattern. Conclusions: Our data suggest that miR-135b is a key molecule whose activation is downstream of oncogenes and oncosuppressor genes frequently altered in CRC. Our study defines specific pathways that converge on the activation of the same microrna. The “in vivo” silencing of miR-135 shows preclinical efficacy with low toxicity and represents the first in vivo study for the use of antimiRs in CRC treatment Note: This abstract was not presented at the conference because the presenter was unable to attend. Citation Format: Nicola Valeri, Roberta Gafa', Gerard Nuovo, Giovanni Lanza, Wendy Frankel, Peter K. Vogt, Joanna Groden, Michael Karin, Carlo M. Croce, Chiara Braconi, Pierluigi Gasparini, Sergei Grivennikov, Jonathan R. Hart, Alessio Paone, Francesca Lovat, Muller Fabbri. Anti-miR-135b in colon cancer treatment [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Noncoding RNAs and Cancer; 2012 Jan 8-11; Miami Beach, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(2 Suppl):Abstract nr B14.
Alternate-site isotopic labeling of ribonucleotides for NMR studies of ribose conformational dynamics in RNA.

Heteronuclear NMR spin relaxation studies of conformational dynamics are coming into increasing use to help understand the functions of ribozymes and other RNAs. Due to strong $$^{13}\hbox{C}--^{13}\hbox{C}$$ magnetic interactions within the ribose ring, however, these studies have thus far largely been limited to 13C and 15N resonances on the nucleotide base side chains. We report here the application of the alternate-site 13C isotopic labeling scheme, pioneered by LeMaster for relaxation studies of amino acid side chains, to nucleic acid systems. We have used different strains of E. coli to prepare mononucleotides containing 13C label in one of two patterns: Either C1′ or C2′ in addition to C4′, termed (1′/2′,4′) labeling, or nearly complete labeling at the C2′ and C4′ sites only, termed (2′,4′) labeling. These patterns provide isolated $$^{13}\hbox{C}--^{1}$$ H spin systems on the labeled carbon atoms and thus allow spin relaxation studies without interference from $$^{13}\hbox{C}--^{13}\hbox{C}$$ scalar or dipolar coupling. Using relaxation studies of AMP dissolved in glycerol at varying temperature to produce systems with correlation times characteristic of different size RNAs, we demonstrate the removal of errors due to $$^{13}\hbox{C}--^{13}\hbox{C}$$ interaction in T 1 measurements of larger nucleic acids and in T 1ρ measurements in RNA molecules. By extending the applicability of spin relaxation measurements to backbone ribose groups, this technology should greatly improve the flexibility and completeness of NMR analyses of conformational dynamics in RNA.
Two Additional Antecedents for Ursula Le Guin's “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”

(2003). Two Additional Antecedents for Ursula Le Guin's “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”. ANQ: A Quarterly Journal of Short Articles, Notes and Reviews: Vol. 16, No. 3, pp. 51-56.
Quantification of methyl farnesoate levels in hemolymph by high-performance liquid chromatography.

Abstract Methyl farnesoate (MF) is an acyclic sesquiterpenoid that has been detected in hemolymph and other tissues of crustaceans and insects. This paper describes a rapid and sensitive method for measuring MF in crustacean hemolymph. Extracts of hemolymph samples were separated by normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (5-μm silica, 250 × 4.6 mm I.D., 1.3% diethyl ether in hexane) and detected by UV (220 nm). The limit of detection with this method was less than 250 pg/ml. This method should be useful for studying the physiological functions of MF in crustaceans and other arthropods.
Suppression of Angular Momentum Transfer in Cold Collisions of Transition Metal Atoms in Ground States with Nonzero Orbital Angular Momentum

The Zeeman relaxation rate in cold collisions of Ti(3d(2)4s(2) 3F2) with He is measured. We find that collisional transfer of angular momentum is dramatically suppressed due to the presence of the filled 4s(2) shell. The degree of electronic interaction anisotropy, which is responsible for Zeeman relaxation, is estimated to be about 200 times smaller in the Ti-He complex than in He complexes with typical non-S-state atoms.
The impact of age upon interregional migration.

This paper examines the impact of age on migration by providing estimates of identically specified migration equations for each of six age groups. Hypothesized effects of age on the relative importance of various explanatory variables are developed from a model viewing migration as an investment decision. The effects of economic opportunity differentials on migration are found to decline sharply with age. Lagged migration, the “friends and relatives effect,” is found to be the most significant explanatory variable in all age group equations. Past migration is the only variable found to significantly influence the migration of persons over 65.
Organic electro-optic thin films by simultaneous vacuum deposition and laser-assisted poling.

Organic materials with a high second-order optical nonlinearity have an important application for the next generation of computing, telecommunications, and other industries. Because of a high electro-optic coefficient and low dielectric constant, N-benzyl-2-methyl-4-nitroaniline (BNA) single crystals have been grown and their optical properties have been extensively studied. In this Letter, a poled BNA thin film material was prepared through simultaneous vacuum evaporation and laser-assisted electrical poling. The linear electro-optic coefficients of BNA were measured by a Young’s two-slit interference electro-optic measurement method. The dependence of the resulting electro-optic properties on optical power was explored. Enhancement induced by laser illumination was demonstrated. The BNA thin film can exhibit an r33 value comparable to that of BNA single crystals.
Detection and generation of first sound in4He by vibrating superleak transducers

Measurement is made of the first-sound generation and detection efficiencies of vibrating superleak transducers (VSTs) operated in superfluid4He. This is accomplished by using an ordinary pressure transducer to generate first sound with a VST as the detector, and by using a pressure transducer to detect the sound generated by a VST. The results are in reasonably good agreement with the current theory of VST operation.
Optimal operation of multi-terminal VSC based MVDC power distribution systems

Medium Voltage Direct Current (MVDC) power distribution system enables higher power density with enhanced power control. Optimal operation of the MVDC power distribution system is essential to enable efficient power and energy usage in the tightly coupled and power limited systems. In this work, a Newton based optimal operation algorithm is developed for the multi-terminal VSC based MVDC power distribution system, which minimizes the operating costs over multiple periods by effectively coordinating generators, energy storages and VSCs, and also implements preventive/corrective actions for managing load changes and credible contingencies.
Automatic diagnosis of melanoma using machine learning methods on a spectroscopic system

Background Early and accurate diagnosis of melanoma, the deadliest type of skin cancer, has the potential to reduce morbidity and mortality rate. However, early diagnosis of melanoma is not trivial even for experienced dermatologists, as it needs sampling and laboratory tests which can be extremely complex and subjective. The accuracy of clinical diagnosis of melanoma is also an issue especially in distinguishing between melanoma and mole. To solve these problems, this paper presents an approach that makes non-subjective judgements based on quantitative measures for automatic diagnosis of melanoma.
Stem cells: Cues from steroid hormones

The steroid hormones oestrogen and progesterone have a role in sickness and in health. In breast tissue, both roles probably work through a single mechanism: controlling the number and activity of mammary stem cells. The ovarian hormones oestrogen and progesterone are involved in a complicated series of interactions in the mammary glands from the beginning of puberty to the menopause. Many of these changes are associated with cell proliferation, and breast cancer can result when errors occur. Two studies in this issue examine the effects of oestrogen and progesterone on mouse mammary stem cell (MaSC) function. They find that MaSC numbers decrease in virgin mice in the absence of both hormones due to ovariectomy or drug blockade, but increase with oestrogen and progesterone treatment. In addition, both groups implicate RANKL, a progesterone target known to be involved in bone remodelling and mammary gland formation, as an intermediary in the MaSC response to progesterone.
Image properties of the hemispherical analyzer applied to multichannel energy detection

Abstract Electron trajectories through a hemispherical analyzer are studied in relation to applications using high spatial resolution position sensitive devices for multichannel detection. Criteria are established for optimizing detection efficiency, choosing various parameters and analyzing effects of fringing electric fields and magnetic fields on analyzer performance.
Determinants of nocturnal Lepidopteran diversity and community structure in a conifer-dominated forest

Prediction of community response of fauna to anthropogenic or environmental disturbance requires knowledge of faunal distribution and abundance as well as an understanding of the mechanisms underlying community organization. We investigated linkages between Lepidoptera, one of the most influential insect taxa in forested ecosystems, and vegetation in riparian areas of conifer-dominated forests of western Oregon, USA. Using model selection techniques, we found that canopy cover explained variability in patterns of moth species dominance and diversity better than all other factors investigated, whereas elevation best explained patterns of moth species richness. Using canonical correspondence analysis, we determined that gradients in shrub species richness, elevation, and understory species richness accounted for the most variation in regional moth community structure. Results suggest that reductions of riparian forest canopy are likely to have the greatest impact on the variety and relative abundance of moths. Due to the relative rarity and patchy distribution of the majority of individual species, we predict that lower intensity vegetation manipulations distributed across larger spatial scales are likely to be less damaging to regional moth biodiversity than more intensive alterations at smaller scales. Finally, if global warming trends continue, upward elevational shifts in moth species distributions will make forested regions at higher elevation worthy of concerted protection.
Simulation of pore growth and coalescence

Simulation par ordinateur de la croissance et de la coalescence des pores lors de reactions gaz-solide, en vue d'evaluer la precision de la relation d'Avramic
Analysis of capture efficiency in suspension feeding: Application of nonparametric binary regression

Suspension feeding is an important mechanism by which many marine organisms obtain food. A nonparametric method for analyzing experimental results on capture efficiency in suspension feeding is described. This approach can be used to estimate capture efficiency along the length of a cilium and to compare the capture efficiencies of two different cilia. The method is applied to experimental data on feeding by larvae of the clamMerenaria merenaria (Linne), to examine changes in capture efficiency through time, and to assess the effect of particle electrostatic charge on capture efficiency.
Deciphering the paleoceanographic significance of Early Oligocene Braarudosphaera chalks in the South Atlantic

Abstract The recurrence of Braarudosphaera chalks in the lower Oligocene sequences of the subtropical South Atlantic has been a long-standing conundrum, with many hypotheses having been advanced to explain the genesis of these exotic nannofossil assemblages. Here, we evaluate different paleoceanographic models within the context of stable isotope (δ18O, δ13C) data measured from bulk-sediment samples and well-preserved foraminifera. Two closely-spaced Braarudosphaera layers from a lower Oligocene (foram Subzone P21a, 29.4–28.5 Ma) section drilled in the southeastern Atlantic (DSDP Site 363) are investigated. Maximum durations for the blooms that deposited the lower and upper Braarudosphaera layers are estimated to be 1.1 and 2.2 k.y., respectively. Bulk-sediment samples enriched in braarudosphaerid carbonate exhibit pronounced δ18O increases on the order of 0.6–1.0‰ which we attribute to isotopic disequilibria driven by braarudosphaerid vital effects. The two Braarudosphaera layers straddle a single peak in benthic foraminiferal δ18O values, suggesting that these blooms may recur on glacial/interglacial timescales. This same pair of braarudosphaerid layers also occurs as a couplet bundled with prolonged (∼6.7 k.y.) thermocline cooling, evidence that these stratigraphically distinct deposits may represent a ‘split signal’ for a single paleoceanographic/paleoclimatic event. Subsumed within this episode of subsurface cooling are two short-lived, negative excursions (∼0.5‰) in the δ13C record of a thermocline-dwelling planktonic foraminifer that coincide with the braarudosphaerid layers. Thus, benthic-to-thermocline δ18O and δ13C gradients were reduced during the braarudosphaerid blooms, a hallmark signature for strengthened upwelling. Both braarudosphaerid layers are marked by transient divergences in the stable isotopic signals of two shallow-dwelling species of planktonic foraminifera. These transient δ18O offsets may reflect subtle differences in the depth ecologies of these two mixed-layer species. If so, then braarudosphaerid depositional events may represent ‘subsurface blooms’ that took place within the lower parts of the euphotic zone. Alternatively, these transient δ18O offsets may reflect periods of pronounced seasonality, with braarudosphaerid blooms occurring during spring upwelling. The recurrence of Braarudosphaera blooms on both sides of the South Atlantic is believed to reflect rhythmic changes in the vigor and configuration of gyre circulation. We speculate that the termination of Braarudosphaera blooms in the South Atlantic near the end of the Early Oligocene may be related to paleoceanographic change caused by the crossing of a critical threshold in the tectonic opening of the Drake Passage and the development of the Antarctic Circum-Polar Current.
Mitochondrial DNA Control Region of Common Snook and Its Prospect for Use as a Genetic Tag

Abstract The mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region of common snook Centropomus undecimalis was investigated for its potential use as a genetic mark or “tag” for evaluating eventual stock enhancement efforts for this species. In addition, the general feasibility of recovering and recognizing a genetic tag from an enhanced wild population was evaluated. Snook mtDNA purified from ripe ovary tissue by ultracentrifugation in CsCl gradients was restriction mapped, and the control region was cloned and sequenced. When different clones from the same fish were compared, the control region was found to contain variable numbers of a 39-base pair (bp) tandemly repeating sequence beginning 26 by from the transfer RNA gene for proline. Further evidence of this variation in repeat number was observed between individuals after comparison of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products obtained from this region by using native mtDNA preparations. Following the repeats was a nonrepeating sequence of 701-bp in which two dist...
The cost-benefit of outsourcing: assessing the true cost of your outsourcing strategy

Abstract To outsource, or not to outsource? This article discusses the factors behind IBM's intensified drive to transfer non-core activities to external suppliers. While highlighting some of the potential pitfalls, it concludes that the benefits of a well-prepared outsourcing strategy go beyond simple cost savings. In the light of the author's own experience, recommendations are made about activities likely to respond well to outsourcing, and advice is offered on the best way to win backing for such moves within a company.
“Blackness,”“Femaleness” and Self‐Representation: Constructing Persons in a Colonial Mexican Court

This paper examines a case heard by the colonial Mexican Inquisition in 1655. It addresses individual negotiations of race and gender in a society that hierarchized notions of personhood through a system of rankings based on Early Modern ideas about natural difference. In the New World context, those rankings subordinated women, blacks, Indians and "mixed-races" to the authority of Spanish men.
On the Role of CO2 in NHC-Catalyzed Oxidation of Aldehydes

NHC-catalyzed oxidations using carbon dioxide as the stoichiometric oxidant have been carefully investigated. These studies support a secondary role of CO2 in suppressing side reactions and exogenous oxygen as the actual oxidant.
Products of simultaneous approximations of rational numbers

On etablit par une methode combinatoire une minoration de produits d'approximations simultanees de nombres rationnels
Authors' reply to Winkler and Ravnskov.

We agree with Winkler that the interpretation of dietary data requires appropriate perspective, context, and recognition of strengths and limitations, as is true for any scientific research.1 2 But Winkler’s concerns reflect only a partial understanding of the strengths and limitations of various nutritional assessment methods. The interpretation and validity of individual level dietary data depend on the dietary assessment tool used (such as diet records, diet recalls, semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaires, tissue biomarkers) as well as the level of …
Predictors of 6-month tobacco abstinence among 1224 cigarette smokers treated for nicotine dependence.

Abstract This study examined baseline characteristics associated with abstinence from tobacco 6 months after treatment for nicotine dependence. A total of 1224 cigarette smokers (619 females, 605 males) receiving clinical services for treatment of nicotine dependence between January 1, 1995 and June 30, 1997 were studied. The intervention involves a 45-min consultation with a nicotine dependence counselor. A treatment plan individualized to the patient's needs is then developed. The main outcome measure was the self-reported 7-day point prevalence abstinence from tobacco obtained by telephone interview 6-months after the consultation. A bootstrap resampling methodology for predictor variable selection was used to identify a set of multivariate predictors of 6-month tobacco abstinence. Five variables were multivariately associated with tobacco abstinence: male gender, no current psychiatric diagnosis, higher stage of change, longest duration of previous abstinence from tobacco of
Q limits for arbitrary shape antennas using characteristic modes

A robust and efficient method is presented for computing the Q limits of arbitrary shape electrically small antennas (ESAs). These limits are based on the theory of characteristic modes (CMs). In contrast to previous techniques, the CM method does not imply assumptions on the antenna shape, its transmit/receive properties and polarization or absorption efficiency. By finding the lowest-order ESA CMs, the lower bound of Q is readily obtained. We can also extract the exact antenna surface currents that minimizes Q. Examples are given for a variety of relevant antenna geometries.
Adolescent-Mother Agreement about Adolescent Problem Behaviors: Direction and Predictors of Disagreement

Correlations between adolescent and parent reports of adolescent problems are low in magnitude. In community samples adolescents tend to report more problems than parents and in clinical samples adolescents tend to report fewer problems than parents. Indices of agreement may be biased if some adolescents in a given sample report more problems and others report fewer problems than parents. In the current study, order and mean agreement between adolescent and maternal reports of adolescent internalizing and externalizing problems, taking into account the direction of disagreement, was examined in a community sample of 133 young adolescents and their mothers. Two-thirds to three-quarters of adolescents reported more problems than mothers. Accounting for the direction of discrepancies resulted in improved agreement between adolescents and mothers and differing patterns of predictors of discrepancies. Additionally, the results demonstrate the need to control for relations between adolescent-reported problems and discrepancies when exploring predictors of discrepancies.
Inclusive processes at high transverse momentum

Abstract The interchange theory for inclusive scattering at large transverse momentum is extended into kinematic regions where Regge effects are important. Hadronic bremsstrahlung is shown to lead inevitably to Reggeization of the fundamental production process as s goes to infinity for fixed, large, P T . The cross sections are shown to rise to their ultimate scaling limit. This transition zone connects smoothly with the Feynman scaling region at low p T , and the deep scale-invariant region at large p T ∼ O(√ s ). The inclusive results of the interchange theory have the form of the standard fragmentation, triple Regge, and pionization formulae in their respective regions, but in addition predict the behavior of the associated residues and trajectories at large t or p 2 T .
The linear algebra for linked loci with mutation

Abstract A linear algebra is defined describing this situation: Any number of loci are linked with arbitrary linkage distribution, and each allele may mutate into the other alleles with given frequencies. Mutations at different loci are assumed independent. It is shown that this gives a genetic algebra (in the sense of Gonshor or Schafer) which is also a special train algebra, and the train roots are found.
Value flow characterization during product lifecycle to assist in recovery decisions

The value of a product at the end of its useful life determines whether it is disposed, recycled, remanufactured or is handled some other way within the recovery infrastructure. This value changes over time, and depends on factors such as the quality of the product and its perception by business entities within the recovery infrastructure. Under the assumption that the last user wants to maximize economic gain, these factors can be considered as uncertainties that affect the decision of the last user with regard to product disposition. Since the choice made by the last user has a significant effect on the environmental impact of a product, it is important to understand the value of the product over its lifecycle and thus its end-of-life value. A model is proposed in this paper to characterize the value flow during the product lifecycle. The model considers three product lifecycle stages: (i) manufacturing (the value creation stage); (ii) usage (value consumption stage); (iii) recovery/post-use (value recl...
Re-Analysis of Morse Code Learning Data Using Structural Equation Models

The correlation matrix of 14 tests and the time to reach four levels of Morse code proficiency reported in Fleishman, Roberts and Friedman (1958) and Fleishman and Fruchter (1960) was analyzed using structural equation methodology. This methodology was not available at the time of the original research and is especially suited for the data in these studies. The method is based on the standard maximum-likelihood approach for parameter estimation and goodness of fit. Five factors were extracted from the correlation matrix of 14 tests. These factors were significantly correlated and differed only slightly from the factors obtained in the original factor analysis. The factors were auditory perceptual speed, auditory rhythm perception, speed of closure, visualization and verbal ability. The time to reach a level of proficiency on Morse code was significantly predicted by the time to reach the previous two proficiency levels. The Auditory Perceptual Speed factor was a significant predictor of Morse code learnin...
MORE UNUSUAL RADIO EVENTS IN CYGNUS X-3.

DURING September 2–11, 1972, an unprecedented radio event was observed1, 2 in the X-ray source Cyg X-3. We now report observations of additional outbursts of similar nature during September 18–25, 1972.