cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Immunologic and non-immunologic association of posttransplant diabetes mellitus (PTDM) a pilot study

Abstract Rationale PTDM is associated with morbidity, impairing patient and graft survival. Identifying PTDM risk factors is of interest. Methods Eighty-one kidney transplant recipients during 1995-2002 were evaluated. PTDM was defined as Fasting Plasma Glucose (FPG) >126mg/dl on at least 3 occasions, with the need for anti-hyperglycemic medications. Age, gender, ethnicity, family history of diabetes (FHD), body mass index (BMI), transplant type (living vs. cadaveric donor), mean FPG concentration during first month post-transplant, HLA phenotypes, presence of cytomegalovirus (CMV) and hepatitis-C virus (HCV) antibody were retrospectively examined. Results From 81 patients, 27 had diabetes mellitus prior to transplantation, 9 developed PTDM (17%; Group-I) and 45 did not develop PTDM (Group-II). In Group-I, majority of patients were between ages of 45-59 years (67% vs. 24%; P=0.02) and received cadaveric renal transplant (89% vs. 53%; p=0.0667). Differences in the categories of gender, race, HCV and CMV serology were insignificant between the two groups. A positive recorded FHD was also insignificant between the two groups. BMI was higher in Group-I as compared to Group-II (28.8 ± 0.63 vs. 24.5 ± 0.09; P=0.0075). Mean FPG were significantly elevated during day 0-3, 4-7 and 8-30 in Group-I than Group-II [161.6 ± 3.84 vs. 142.6 ± 0.49 mg/dl (p=0.0376), 138.9 ± 2.70 vs. 114.7 ± 0.40 mg/dl (p=0.0011), 143.4 ± 3.05 vs. 95.7 ± 0.31 mg/dl (p=0.0007), respectively]. Among HLA phenotype, HLA-DR3(18) and B27 were observed more frequently in Group-I (22% vs. 2%; P=NS). Conclusions Elevated FPG within first month, cadaveric renal transplant, older age at transplant, higher BMI, and HLA-DR3(18) and B27 phenotypes may predispose to post-transplant diabetes.
Learning in Microplitis croceipes Cresson (Hym., Braconidae).

Responses of experienced Microplitis croceipes Cresson females in a wind tunnel choice situation were tested at three periods. Training consisted of exposing females to cotton or soybean leaf material with host (Heliothis virescens) larvae for parasitization or without host larvae. Control parasitoids received no initial exposure. Testing periods were: within 1 hour after exposure; 3 days after exposure or after exposure to reverse training. Pairwise comparison of choices of trained wasps versus controls showed a significant difference in only one case. Pairwise comparison of cotton versus soybean exposed wasps within each training level showed significance for “rewarded” wasps in periods 1 and 3 with highest numbers of wasps flying to the source-plant of initial training. Results suggest the occurrence of associative learning of M. croceipes on host-host plants, and indicate a time dependent component in the learning process and irreversibility of this conditioning. Zusammenfassung Zum Lernverhalten von Microplitis croceipes Cresson (Hym., Braconidae) Mittels Wahlversuchen in einem Windkanal wurden die Reaktionen von gepragten Microplitis croceipes-Weibchen in drei verschiedenen Zeitabschnitten nach der Pragungsphase getestet. Die Pragung bestand darin, das den Weibchen Baumwoll- oder Sojabohnenblatter mit und ohne Wirtslarven (Heliothis virescens) angeboten wurden. Die Kontrolltiere wurden keiner Pragung unterzogen. Die Windkanalversuche wurden wie folgt durchgefuhrt: 1 Stunde nach der Pragung, 3 Tage danach oder nachdem die Weibchen nicht der Pragungspflanze, sondern der anderen Art ausgesetzt wurden. Der paarweise Vergleich der Ergebnisse der Wahlversuche bei den gepragten und den Kontrolltieren ergab nur in einem Fall einen signifikanten Unterschied. Der paarweise Vergleich von Parasitoidenweibchen, die auf Baumwolle bzw. Sojabohne gepragt waren, ergab in den Uberprufungsperioden 1 und 3 einen signifikant hoheren Anflug an die Pflanze, auf welche die Weibchen gepragt wurden. Die Ergebnisse lassen darauf schliesen, das bei M. croceipes eine Pragung auf Wirt und Wirtspflanze vorliegt, das diese Pragung zeitabhangig ist und das es sich dabei um eine irreversible Pragung handelt.
Distribution of an endogenous lectin during myogenesis as measured by antilectin antibodies

Antibodies to electrolectin, a lectin endogenous to embryonic skeletal muscle, have been used to study the distribution of lectin during myogenesis in L6 cells by using immunohistofluorescence microscopy. Evidence for both surface and cytoplasmic forms of lectin is presented. Cytoplasmic lectin does not appear to be strongly regulated by cell cycle or differentiation; it is uniformly distributed throughout the cytoplasm and all cells have about the same quantity as judged by the intensity of fluorescence. Surface lectin is characterized as being organized into puntate structures which can be found on both the upper and lower surfaces of the cell and occasionally on the surface of the dish. Surface lectin is strongly influenced by the differentiation of cells, i.e. it is highest on mononucleated cells and low on myotubes. Paraformaldehyde fixation causes patches of lectin to develop which are not found when live cells are used. The effect of paraformaldehyde is accentuated by Ca2+.
Ring maps for spatial visualization of multivariate epidemiological data

Abstract Please click here to download the map associated with this article. Epidemiological research often involves the visual exploration of numerous attributes to help discern patterns between health and characteristics of the physical, socioeconomic, or built environment. Unfortunately, many of the multivariate mapping techniques discussed throughout the cartographic literature can be challenging to create or interpret—particularly for individuals without a cartographic background. In this paper, we present a new style of multivariate map—the ring map—to aid in basic visualization of multivariate datasets. For purposes of example, we focus on the use of the ring map style for exploring county-level epidemiological data for the state of South Carolina to examine patterns of age, race, or gender specific mortality and morbidity within a population.
Performance evaluation of object localization based on active radio frequency identification technology

Localization of tagged objects is a valuable addition to the application of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology. This paper studies the localization performance in an indoor environment with an active RFID system. Three major localization methods, namely, multi-lateration, nearest-neighbor, and support vector machines (SVM) methods are implemented, and their results are compared. It shows that the SVM method outperforms the other two in terms of localization accuracy, but the three methods produce comparable localization precision values. For each method, observations and discussion are provided on how data sample size, beacon number, or neighbor number influences localization performance. In addition, time complexities of the three methods are compared. It is pointed out that, for practical applications, a balanced consideration of localization performance, method, hardware cost, and data collection effort is required for economical and yet satisfactory solutions.
Immunological and physiological changes associated with induced positive and negative mood.

Functional and phenotypic immunological parameters were examined before, at the end of, and 20 minutes after the induction of positive and negative mood states, varied for arousal level, and a neutral state. The subjects were 14 male actors who experienced each condition on a different day. Compared with a neutral condition, all mood states affected several immune parameters (e.g., natural killer cell percentage and activity and percentage of suppressor/cytotoxic T cells), regardless of the valence or arousal level of the mood induced. The only immune variable differentially sensitive to positive and negative mood states was the proliferative response to the mitogen phytohemagglutinin; the response increased after positive moods and decreased after negative moods. Analysis of covariance for repeated measures indicated that heart rate, alone or in combination with physical activity and cortisol levels, had an impact on mood effects for most of the immune parameters investigated.
Density Dependent Organizational Evolution in the American Brewing Industry from 1633 to 1988

The ecological model of density dependent organizational evolution is tested using data on the 7,709 breweries operating in the American market. Besides covering the longest time period studied to date, these data allow for exammacon of three important issues that critics of the model have raised: (1) applicability to commercial business organizations; (2) plausibility of alternative interpretations involving size and mass; and (3) measurement of legitimation. Estimates of stochastic rates of organizational founding and mortality show that, while there is ment in some of the criticisms, both rates are nonetheless non-monotomcally related to organizational density in ways predicted by the model. In most instances, these relationships persist when the rate functions are specified with different socio-economic control vanables. The strong support found for the model helps reconcile some previously reported negative evidence
A Universal Criterion for Amortization in Metallic Systems

Recent computer simulation studies of electron-bombarded metallic alloys have concentrated on finding a criterion for amorphization. It has been suggested that the thermodynamic properties of volume and total energy can be used as a gauge for defect induced amorphization. Our simulation results indicate that these properties can not be used due to their dependence on processing history. We propose that the distribution of the atomic level shear stresses can be used as this amorphization criterion. Using Finnis-Sinclair type many-body potentials and Lennard-Jones pair potentials, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations on several model systems have been performed. By quantifying the analysis using the average shear stress normalized, by the average shear modulus of the glass, we will present evidence that the crystal becomes amorphous at the defect concentration where the normalized average shear stress reaches a critical value, which is equivalent to the state obtained through quenching from the liquid.
Water-vapor adsorption on calcium-boroaluminosilicate glass fibers

Abstract The water-vapor adsorption isotherms of E-glass fibers were measured as a function of their aging in humid and aqueous environments, and of the amount of B2O3 in the glass composition. The specific surface area for adsorption was determined, independently, using inert gas adsorption, while X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to characterize the surface composition. In contrast to silica, where submonolayer coverage is observed in the low pressure range of the isotherm, these multicomponent glasses adsorbed the equivalent of 1 to 3 layers of water. The shape of the isotherms revealed that multilayer adsorption of water occurs on the fiber surfaces before the formation of a complete monolayer, i.e., water adsorption on these glass fibers was non-uniform, in general. It was found that the aging of these fibers in humid or aqueous environments greatly enhanced their capacity to adsorb water at low pressure, but the B2O3 content of the fibers had little effect.
The Surgeon General of the Public Health Service.

gIT_ 5 by a Surgeon General who is a clearly qualified, specially trained, broadly experienced community health professional of demonstrated expertise and recognized ability. Long-standing tradition and specific provisions of federal law have helped assure such leadership by requiring that the Surgeon General be appointed for fixed terms from the commissioned corps of USPHS professional officers. The Congress now has before it for consideration a proposal to waive or nullify certain provisions of the Public Health Service Act which is supposedly intended to address only the technical point of maximum age for commissioned corps appointment. It is our sincere belief that this proposal is, in reality, a thinly veiled attempt to circumvent a significant barrier to the designation of an unqualified candidate as Surgeon General. Accordingly, for the first time in over a century of collegial co-existence with the Public Health Service, we in the American Public Health Association are constrained to speak out against the appointment of a specific candidate being designated as Surgeon General. We oppose the confirmation of Dr. C. Everett Koop as Surgeon General, and any modification of federal law which would facilitate his appointment. There is ample evidence that Dr. Koop is a distinguished pediatric surgeon. He is much honored, doubtless deservedly, as a practitioner and teacher in his chosen medical specialty. It is not our intention to cast the slightest shadow upon his reputation as a highly skilled physician, exceptionally gifted in the art and science of surgery for infants and children. However, we must insist that these admirable qualities alone are wholly
Accurate quantitation of surface area and particle density in freeze-fracture preparations

Abstract A rapid, accurate method is described by which geometrical analysis (surface area, volume) as well as density of intramembrane particles in isolated vesicular fractions can be carried out on freeze-fracture preparations. These two parameters are essential for morphological quantitation and subsequent comparison of biochemical or transport phenomena.
Diffusion Deposition on a Fiber in Nontransverse Flow

The effect of a nontransverse flow on the diffusional deposition of particles in an aerosol on a cylindrical fiber is investigated. The aerosol is transported by a slow laminar flow whose mean direction is at an arbitrary angle ϕ to the axis of the cylinder. The particle concentration and the subsequent deposition rate on a cylinder for such a flow are found by using the first two terms of the asymptotic solution in terms of the diffusion boundary layer thickness. This is inversely proportional to the cube root of the Peclet number, a parameter which is large for many problems of practical importance. For a given flow angle ϕ an expression for the diffusion efficiency η(ϕ) is obtained. Under the assumption that the angular distribution of the fibers is uniform, a relation for the average value (η) for the diffusion efficiency is also derived. These formulas are generalizations of the results of Natanson and Stechkina for the diffusion efficiency in the case of purely transverse flow and with those of Bank...
Distributed open-domain conversational understanding framework with domain independent extractors

Traditional spoken dialog systems are usually based on a centralized architecture, in which the number of domains is predefined, and the provider is fixed for a given domain and intent. The spoken language understanding (SLU) component is responsible for detecting domain and intents, and filling domain-specific slots. It is expensive and time-consuming in this architecture to add new and/or competing domains, intents, or providers. The rapid growth of service providers in the mobile computing market calls for an extensible dialog system framework. This paper presents a distributed dialog infrastructure where each domain or provider is agnostic of others, and processes the user utterances independently using their own knowledge or models, so that a new domain and new provider can be easily incorporated in. In addition, to facilitate each service provider building their own SLU models or algorithms, we introduce a new component, extractors, to provide intermediate semantic annotations such as entity mention tags, which can be plugged in arbitrarily as well. Each service provider can then rapidly develop their SLU parser with minimum efforts by providing some example sentences with intents and slots if needed. Our preliminary experimental results demonstrate the power of this new framework compared to a centralized architecture.
Directory of educational discounts, donations, and grants

The information included here was compiled using responses from 36 hardware and software vendors who were among 189 exhibitors attending the 1991 SIGGRAPH Conference in Las Vegas. Product descriptions and other details vary, but in most cases, provide enough information for educators to inquire further about opportunities to obtain products at a discount, as a donation, or possibly as a grant in connection with academic research. Companies responding that have neither educational discount, donation nor grant programs are not listed. SIGGRAPH encourages its conference exhibitors to submit a Directory listing for the benefit of educators. Listing a company or product in the Directory does not imply endorsement by either ACM or SIGGRAPH. Neither does it imply that the listing reflects the most recent policy of any vendor in effect after November 15, 1991. Educators should confirm any discount opportunities directly with the vendor.
ARBITER 6-HALTS. Does it have the power to settle all matters?

The publication of the Arterial Biology for the Investigation of the Treatment Effects of Reducing Cholesterol 6-HDL and LDL Treatment Strategies study [ARBITER 6-HALTS (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00397657)] adds fuel to a controversy regarding the issue of combination therapy with ezetimibe in the prevention of cholesterol-related atherogenic disease [Taylor et al. 2009]. Patients who were at high risk for atherosclerotic vascular disease and receiving statin treatment were randomized to adjunctive therapy with either ezetimibe or niacin over a 14 month period. Progression of atherosclerosis was judged from changes in common carotid artery intima-media thickness.
Measuring the Heaviest Atoms

The existence of superheavy elements, those with many more protons than uranium (proton number 92), was predicted more than 40 years ago. Their increased stability against nuclear fission originates from nuclear shells that are filled with protons and neutrons, similar to the electron orbitals in an atom. For specific combinations of the number of protons and neutrons, so-called magic numbers, a more strongly bound system is formed that also has a longer half-life. The superheavy elements are predicted to populate an “island of stability” located around proton number 120 and neutron number 184. Several groups have sought to pinpoint ( 1 – 4 ) the location of this island, and along the way ( 5 ), several superheavy elements have been discovered, the latest being ununoctium with 118 protons. However, concluding whether this is the heaviest element cannot be done, and we are still far from knowing what the heaviest possible element could be. A critical point is understanding the nuclear shell effects that underlie the existence of the heaviest elements. On page 1207 of this issue, Minaya Ramirez et al. ( 6 ) shed light on such shell effects by “weighing” isotopes of the heaviest elements in an ion trap.
The Pathogenesis and Treatment of Acute Spinal Cord Injuries in Dogs

Acute spinal cord injuries (SCIs) are an extremely common problem in veterinary medicine and can lead to permanent, severe neurologic deficits affecting motor, sensory, and autonomic function. The most common causes of acute SCI in dogs are acute intervertebral disk herniations, fibrocartilaginous embolism (FCE), and trauma. Cats suffer from similar diseases but at different frequencies, with trauma being more common than intervertebral disk herniations and thromboembolic events much more common than FCE. These specific topics are covered in other articles in this issue. There is a wealth of information on numerous experimental therapies targeting different pathophysiologic events, which are reviewed elsewhere, 1–3 and the number of human clinical trials completed or being performed is escalating. 4 By contrast, few placebo-controlled clinical trials have been performed in dogs (Table 1). This article discusses the pathophysiology of acute SCI in terms of the primary and secondary pathologic events that occur and describes the therapies that are currently clinically applicable. The events that follow acute SCI are typically divided into primary and secondary damage, with the secondary damage developing over acute (0–48 hours), subacute (48 hours–2 weeks), and chronic phases. 1 Vascular injuries bypass the primary damage caused by physical trauma but induce the same secondary injury pathways. PRIMARY DAMAGE
The radiologist assistant: best new thing since sliced bread or Trojan horse?

Starting in 1912, Otto Frederick Rohwedder’s original experiments met with opposition from bakers, who thought that sliced bread would quickly go stale. His initial prototype design held the bread firmly together with metal pins and was unsuccessful. Sixteen years later innovator Rohwedder had perfected a piece of equipment that not only cut bread into slices but also wrapped it in waxed paper. The first loaf of sliced bread was sold on July 7, 1928 (possibly at a bakery in Battle Creek, Michigan). By 1933, American bakeries were turning out more sliced bread than unsliced. A spring-loaded pop-up toaster designed by Charles Strife suddenly made sense. The Chillicothe, Missouri Constitution-Tribune of July 7, 1928, carried a story of the new machine’s first use at M.F. Bench’s Chillicothe Baking Company, 100 Elm Street, in Chillicothe, Missouri. According to the story, Mr Bench assisted Rohwedder in fine-tuning the new bread-slicing machine. So—sliced bread may have been born in Chillicothe, Missouri. Obviously, [the phrase] “the best thing since sliced bread” cannot be older than 1928, but there is no record of its use before 1969. But what was the best thing before sliced bread? That’s the real puzzle. (1)
Diminishing effects of ant mounds on soil heterogeneity across a chronosequence of prairie restoration sites

Summary It is well recognized that mound-building ants affect soil and vegetation heterogeneity, yet little is known about the extent to which such changes are propagated through time. We compared soil properties from ant mounds (built by Formica montana and Acanthamyops claviger ) and from adjacent prairie soils at three tallgrass prairie restoration sites in the Midwestern United States, ranging in age from 8 to 26 years post-restoration of native species on former row-crop agriculture plots. We were particularly interested in N -dynamics on and off the mounds. All of the soil variables measured showed the greatest difference between mound and prairie soils at the 8-year old site. At that site, we found that ant mounds had significantly higher concentrations of total N, dissolved organic N, and NH 4 + compared to prairie soil. Differences in concentrations of these nitrogen pools between mound and prairie soils were, however, lost with increasing time since restoration. The lack of N-enrichment at the older sites suggests that nutrient enrichment of ant mounds may be a transient phenomenon in certain ecosystems. To our knowledge, this is the first report that illustrates a critical, but a temporally dynamic role of ant mounds in creating resource heterogeneity in a restoration project.
Repeated Hypothesis Testing on a Growing Data Set

In many problems, especially when data are collected over a long period of time, hypothesis testing is done repeatedly as new data arrive. It is shown both for one particular problem and for a more general class of problems that if testing is performed each time on the total amount of data accumulated, the true simple null hypothesis will be rejected at least once as the number of tests approaches infinity. Furthermore, it is conjectured that the conclusion holds for most problems of interest in which the null hypothesis is simple.
Study of Fracture in Nb-Al Alloys and Pure Metals by Computer Molecular Dynamic Simulation

In molecular dynamic studies of 15,000 atom arrays of A15 Nb3Al, BCC Nb and FCC Al containing crack under external stress in Mode I loading, it has been verified that fracture behavior can be predicted (starting in the vicinity of the crack) in terms of competition between dislocation nucleation and Griffith crack propagation. BCC Nb and FCC Al appears to be ductile and A15 Nb3Al appears to be brittle, in agreement with theoretical predictions. The elastic solution used for predictions was proposed by Rice[l] for the anisotropic material. The interatomic interactions used in the simulation were Embedded Atom Method (EAM) potentials developed by Voter and Chen[2] for the Al-Al and by Rifkin[3] for the Nb-Nb and Nb-Al.
Transverse squeeze flow of concentrated aligned fibers in viscous fluids

Abstract This paper examines the effect that aligned long fiber reinforcement has on the processing characteristics of thermoplastic composites. More specifically, the influence of fiber volume fraction on the transverse shear viscosity of unidirectional composites is explored. Through both experimental evaluation and theoretical modeling, the study focuses on the flow behavior of a model material consisting of unidirectional nylon or glass fibers algned in a clay matrix. The flow behavior of a commercially produced material (APC-2) composed of unidirectional carbon fibers aligned in a thermoplastic polyether ether ketone (PEEK) matrix is also examined. An experimental technique has been employed that characterizes both the bulk transverse shearing viscosity and the fluid mechanics of such highly filled fiber-resin systems in squeeze flow. Squeeze flow experiments were performed for the model material containing various fiber volume fractions and, with specially designed hot platens, for the carbon fiber-PEEK composites. Flow visualization techniques have been developed to measure the velocity profile of the material during flow. A cell model is proposed to calculate the effect of fiber volume fraction on the transverse shear viscosity of aligned fiber composites and, hence, the squeeze force requirements of such materials. The cell model, which calculates individual fiber interactions based on the lubrication approach with a viscous Newtonian or Carreau fluid, demonstrates the effects of varying the fiber volume fraction, fiber diameter and the shear thinning nature of the matrix fluid on the force requirement under constant squeeze rates. Comparisons are made between the experimenttally measured squeeze force and the cell model predictions. Good agreement is found at high fiber volume fractions as the lubrication flow assumptions become more accurate.
FURTHER EXPERIENCES WITH NON-SPECIFIC LOCAL CUTANEOUS IMMUNITY TO STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS LOCAL NON-SPECIFIC PROTECTION

1. Many substances besides the specific broth filtrates of Besredka can be utilized as topical applications to protect guinea pigs from the effects of massive doses of staphylococcus given subcutaneously. (Plain broth, peptone 10 per cent, peptone 1 per cent, Liebig's meat extract, mustard plaster and normal horse serum.) 2. Where such protection occurs, no matter what the stimulus is, the local skin reaction microscopically is the same as that previously described for broth compresses. 3. Many topical applications of such substances as saline, water, plain compresses, etc., may confer slight protection on an animal. 4. Specific filtrates (Besredka) confer no protection on the experimental animal if applied at the time of inoculation or thereafter. 5. The local protection described in our experiments is non-specific in its nature.
Cerebellar Contributions to Locomotor Adaptations during Splitbelt Treadmill Walking

Locomotor adaptability ranges from the simple and fast-acting to the complex and long-lasting and is a requirement for successful mobility in an unpredictable environment. Several neural structures, including the spinal cord, brainstem, cerebellum, and motor cortex, have been implicated in the control of various types of locomotor adaptation. However, it is not known which structures control which types of adaptation and the specific mechanisms by which the appropriate adjustments are made. Here, we used a splitbelt treadmill to test cerebellar contributions to two different forms of locomotor adaptation in humans. We found that cerebellar damage does not impair the ability to make reactive feedback-driven motor adaptations, but significantly disrupts predictive feedforward motor adaptations during splitbelt treadmill locomotion. Our results speak to two important aspects of locomotor control. First, we have demonstrated that different levels of locomotor adaptability are clearly dissociable. Second, the cerebellum seems to play an essential role in predictive but not reactive locomotor adjustments. We postulate that reactive adjustments may instead be predominantly controlled by lower neural centers, such as the spinal cord or brainstem.
Country rock monazite response to intrusion of the Searchlight pluton, southern Nevada

We investigated how monazite grains in country rocks responded to the intrusion of the Miocene Searchlight pluton in southern Nevada. Country rock samples were collected from the roof zone and along transects on the flanks (wallrock) of the 16 to 17 Ma pluton. Deep wallrock Ireteba granite monazite grains have patchy secondary growth zones of Searchlight age overprinting primary growth zones of Ireteba age (∼66 Ma). Shallow wallrock Proterozoic gneiss zircon grains define a discordia with an upper intercept age of 1.74 ± 0.02 Ga corresponding to crystallization of the protolith. Proterozoic gneiss monazite grains define a discordia with an upper intercept age of 1.64 ± 0.02 Ga and a poorly-defined lower intercept age of 75 ± 61 Ma that may correspond to the Ireteba intrusion. EMP analyses show that patchy secondary zones in Proterozoic gneiss monazite grains were contemporaneous with intrusion of the Ireteba granite, not the Searchlight pluton. Oxygen isotopes in Ireteba monazite, hydrogen and oxygen isotopes in whole rocks from the Ireteba transect, and oxygen isotopes in whole rocks from the Proterozoic gneiss transect show no systematic pattern related to the contact. No geochemical data support the hypothesis that hydrothermal fluids associated with intrusion of the Searchlight pluton caused monazite in the Proterozoic gneiss or Ireteba granite wallrock to partially recrystallize. Ireteba samples with the most intensely altered monazite were at the greatest paleodepths at the time of Searchlight intrusion and are the most deformed, suggesting that strain caused Ireteba monazite grains to partially recrystallize. In Proterozoic gneiss country rock monazite grains are present on the flanks but absent from the roof zone, suggesting that high fluid fluxes in the roof may have destroyed monazite. Strong focusing of hydrothermal fluid and heat into the roof zone prevented the development of a well-defined contact metamorphic aureole in Ireteba granite and Proterozoic gneiss wallrocks.
Recent progress in the development of a micro crystal element (MiCE) PET system

This work reports on the continuing development of a small animal PET system designed to image mice. The key component of the system is our micro crystal element (MiCE) detectors. Each MiCE detector consists of a 22/spl times/22 array of 0.8/spl times/0.8/spl times/10 mm mixed lutetium silicate (MLS) crystals. The crystals are placed within a grid made of a highly reflective polymer film material. The grid optically isolates the crystals and additionally functions as a reflective wrap. The detector unit is directly coupled to a 6+6 cross-anode position sensitive PMT. The PMT signals are fed to a simple resistor network and front end amplifier card that produces four (X+, X-, Y+, V-) position and the summed energy signals. A partial ring consisting of six detector modules has been built. Tomographic data sets have been acquired by rotating the source object within the limited field of view. A simplified data acquisition system designed using a field programmable gate array and commercial NIM and CAMAC electronic modules has been assembled. Using a two detector module coincidence setup, a reconstructed image resolution of 1.0 mm full width at half maximum has been achieved for a line source centered within the field of view. Mouse images have been acquired using the full evaluation system. These images illustrate the resolution capabilities of the MiCE scanner. The final system will consist of four rings of detector modules (i.e., 72 modules) and utilize a high bandwidth firewire (i.e., EEEE 1394a) based acquisition system. This system is currently under development.
Shell Bending and Instability

In earlier chapters, we derived the equilibrium, strain-displacement, and constitutive equations and stated the required boundary conditions for the bending theory of shells, referred to a system of orthogonal curvilinear coordinates. Also, we developed strain energy and potential energy expressions that can be incorporated into an energy formulation of the shell theory. In this chapter, these equations are specialized for various classes of shells, as we have done for the membrane theory equations in chapter 4.
Improving nonlinear control performance with a hybrid control strategy

To overcome inadequate performance behavior of nonlinear stabilizing control law derived from standard backstepping design, we propose a hybrid control approach to robustly stabilizing polynomial nonlinear systems in a global sense as well as improving the system performance in a local region. Specifically, we keep using backstepping controller in large space until the state trajectories entering a small region around the origin. Within the bounded region the states will be treated as parameter variables and the nonlinear system is reasonably represented as an LPV system. The construction of LPV state feedback control law together with the states/region boundedness characterization are expressed as semi-definite programming problems, and solved using SOS programming techniques. As shown by an example, the proposed hybrid controller not only maintains the system robustness but also enhances the performance by providing smaller L2 gain and faster convergence rate.
CMU System Combination via Hypothesis Selection for WMT'10

This paper describes the CMU entry for the system combination shared task at WMT'10. Our combination method is hypothesis selection, which uses information from n-best lists from the input MT systems, where available. The sentence level features used are independent from the MT systems involved. Compared to the baseline we added source-to-target word alignment based features and trained system weights to our feature set. We combined MT systems for French - English and German - English using provided data only.
Geometry compression of normal meshes using rate-distortion algorithms

We propose a new rate-distortion based algorithm for compressing 3D surface geometry represented using triangular normal meshes. We apply the Estimation-Quantization (EQ) algorithm to compress normal mesh wavelet coefficients. The EQ algorithm models the wavelet coefficients as a Gaussian random field with slowly varying standard deviation that depends on the local neighborhood and uses rate-distortion optimal scalar quantizers. We achieve gains of 0.5 to 1 dB with the EQ algorithm compared to the recently proposed zerotree compression for normal meshes.
Interaction of the IκBα C-terminal PEST sequence with NF-κB: Insights into the Inhibition of NF-κB DNA binding by IκBα

The transcription factor NF-κB (p50/p65) binds either a κB DNA element or its inhibitor protein, IκBα, but these two binding events are mutually exclusive. The reason for this exclusivity is not obvious from the available crystal structure data. The C-terminal PEST-like sequence of IκBα appears to be involved in the process, but it is located in both of the published X-ray structures of the IκBα/NF-κB complex at a significant distance away from the DNA contact loop in the NF-κB DNA-binding domain. We have used nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and differential isotopic labeling to probe the interactions between the p50/p65 NF-κB heterodimer and IκBα in solution. Our measurements are able to resolve a local structural discrepancy between the two crystal structures, and we confirm that the primary interaction of the IκBα PEST domain is with the DNA-binding domain of the p65 subunit. Mutagenesis of key arginine residues in the DNA contact sequence results in the loss of specific interaction of the PEST sequence with the p65 subdomain. We conclude that the local structure of the IκBα/NF-κB complex in the region of the PEST sequence is consistent with a direct interaction of this acidic sequence with the basic DNA contact sequence in p65, thus reducing the affinity of NF-κB for DNA by a competitive mechanism that is still to be elucidated fully.
Role of JC Virus Agnoprotein in DNA Repair

The late region of human neurotropic JC virus encodes a small 71-amino-acid agnoprotein that is also found in the polyomaviruses simian virus 40 and BK virus. Several functions of agnoprotein have been identified, including roles in regulating viral transcription and virion maturation. Earlier studies showed that agnoprotein expressed alone induced p21/WAF-1 expression and caused cells to accumulate in the G(2)/M stage of the cell cycle. Here we report that agnoprotein expression sensitized cells to the cytotoxic effects of the DNA-damaging agent cisplatin. Agnoprotein reduced the viability of cisplatin-treated cells and increased chromosome fragmentation and micronucleus formation. Whereas cisplatin-treated control cells accumulated in S phase, cells expressing agnoprotein did not, instead becoming aneuploid. Agnoprotein expression correlated with impaired double-strand-break repair activity in cellular extracts and reduced expression of the Ku70 and Ku80 DNA repair proteins. After agnoprotein expression, much of the Ku70 protein was located in the perinuclear space, where agnoprotein was also found. Results from binding studies showed an interaction of agnoprotein with Ku70 which was mediated by the N terminus. The ability of agnoprotein to inhibit double-strand break repair activity when it was added to cellular extracts was also mediated by the N terminus. We conclude that agnoprotein inhibits DNA repair after DNA damage and interferes with DNA damage-induced cell cycle regulation. Since Ku70 is a subunit of the DNA-dependent protein kinase that is responsible both for double-strand break repair and for signaling damage-induced cell cycle arrest, the modulation of Ku70 and/or Ku80 by agnoprotein may represent an important event in the polyomavirus life cycle and in cell transformation.
Revisiting the prognostic value of preoperative (18)F-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose ( (18)F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) in early-stage (I & II) non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC).

Purpose The aims were to determine if the maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) of the primary tumor as determined by preoperative 18F-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) is an independent predictor of overall survival and to assess its prognostic value after stratification according to pathological staging.
Auxin regulation of Arabidopsis flower development involves members of the AINTEGUMENTA-LIKE/PLETHORA (AIL/PLT) family

Auxin is an important regulator of many aspects of plant growth and development. During reproductive development, auxin specifies the site of flower initiation and subsequently regulates organ growth and patterning as well as later events that determine reproductive success. Underlying auxin action in plant tissues is its uneven distribution, resulting in groups of cells with high auxin levels (auxin maxima) or graded distributions of the hormone (auxin gradients). Dynamic auxin distribution within the periphery of the inflorescence meristems specifies the site of floral meristem initiation, while auxin maxima present at the tips of developing floral organ primordia probably mediate organ growth and patterning. The molecular means by which auxin accumulation patterns are converted into developmental outputs in flowers is not well understood. Members of the AINTEGUMENTA-LIKE/PLETHORA (AIL/PLT) transcription factor family are important developmental regulators in both roots and shoots. In roots, the expression of two AIL/PLT genes is regulated by auxin and these genes feed back to regulate auxin distribution. Here, several aspects of flower development involving both auxin and AIL/PLT activity are described, and evidence linking AIL/PLT function with auxin distribution in reproductive tissues is presented.
Closed-Form Estimation of Nonparametric Models with Non-Classical Measurement Errors

This paper proposes closed-form estimators for nonparametric regressions using two measurements with non-classical errors. One (administrative) measurement has location-/scale-normalized errors, but the other (survey) measurement has endogenous errors with arbitrary location and scale. For this setting of data combination, we derive closed-form identification of nonparametric regressions, and practical closed-form estimators that perform well with small samples. Applying this method to NHANES III, we study how obesity explains health care usage. Clinical measurements and self reports of BMI are used as two measurements with normalized errors and endogenous errors, respectively. We robustly find that health care usage increases with obesity.
Baseline susceptibility of western corn rootworm (Coleoptera: Crysomelidae) to Cry3Bb1 Bacillus thuringiensis toxin.

Susceptibility to Cry3Bb1 toxin from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) was determined for western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte, neonates from both laboratory and field populations collected from across the Corn Belt. Rootworm larvae were exposed to artificial diet treated with increasing Cry3Bb1 concentrations, and mortality and growth inhibition were evaluated after 4–7 d. The range of variation in Bt susceptibility indicated by growth inhibition was similar to that indicated by mortality. Although interpopulation variation in susceptibility was observed, the magnitude of the differences was comparable with the variability observed between generations of the same population. In general, the toxin was not highly toxic to larvae and estimated LC50 and EC50 values were several times higher than those reported for lepidopteran-specific Cry toxins by using similar bioassay techniques. These results suggest that the observed susceptibility differences reflect natural variation in Bt susceptibility among rootworm populations and provide a baseline for estimating potential shifts in susceptibility that might result from selection and exposure to Cry3Bb1-expressing corn hybrids.
X-Ray Image Intensifiers

Publisher Summary This chapter describes that an X-ray image intensifier (XRII) is a device that converts an incident X-ray pattern to yield a visible-light image of brightness, substantially higher than a simple phosphor screen. In most XRIIs, the final image is considerably smaller than the incident X-ray pattern that facilitates the coupling of optical lenses to transfer the image to the final image receptor such as video pickup, eye, cine film, and many more. The brightness gain is achieved in two ways: first, by increasing the number of light quanta generated from a given region of the X-ray pattern and second, by reducing the size of the final image so that the quanta is emitted from a smaller area. The chapter also discusses that in almost all XRIIs, the X-ray pattern is converted to a light pattern using a phosphor and the brightness of the light pattern is then intensified. Many systems employ electron-optical processes to provide the quantum gain, even though this requires additional stages of quantum conversion; the light from the input phosphor is converted to an electron image by a photoemitter that forms the cathode of an electron-optical system. After gaining energy by passing through an electrostatic field, the electrons are converted back into a light image in another phosphor.
Hydrogeological Methods for Estimation of Spatial Variations in Hydraulic Conductivity

Virtually every hydrogeologic investigation requires an estimate of hydraulic conductivity (K), the parameter used to characterize the ease with which water flows in the subsurface. For water-supply investigations, a single estimate of K averaged over a relatively large volume of an aquifer will usually suffice. However, for water-quality investigations, such an estimate is often of limited value. A large body of work has demonstrated that spatial variations in K play an important role in controlling solute movement in saturated flow systems (e.g., Sudicky and Huyakorn, 1991; Zheng and Gorelick, 2003). Numerous studies have shown that information about such variations is required to obtain reliable predictions of contaminant transport and to design effective remediation systems. Varieties of methods have been used in efforts to acquire this information. The primary purpose of this chapter is to describe these methods and assess the quality of the information that they can provide. Later chapters will discuss how geophysics can augment the information obtained with these approaches.
Unsettled Questions Relating to Cooperatives and Cooperation

R. STERN has raised many significant questions regarding cooperatives and cooperation. Each of the 16 or so unsettled questions he raised merit considerable scrutiny, both by economists and by cooperators. His paper raises the question of terminology which is used in discussing cooperatives. Terms such as: profits, capitalism, competition and cooperation seem to carry a variety of meanings. Should the term "profits" be restricted to earnings on invested capital, or should it include all of the self-gain economic motives such as savings, services and wages? What is capitalism today? How much stateism, private economic concentration and voluntary groupism is included in 1948 capitalism? Does competition apply only to the market where there is a host of sellers and buyers? Or can we also use the term "competition" to describe the action of large economic groups for self-gain? What is the name of the condition where there is only one seller and that a cooperative? Should the term "cooperation" be applied to a farmer's business organization where it is the only processor and the only merchandiser in the wholesale field? My few remarks will be devoted to discussing one group of unsolved questions. What is a cooperative? How define a cooperative? How study a cooperative and cooperation? Many of the roots of the business cooperative go back only a century. The environment in which the cooperative has been maturing has been constantly changing. The literature indicates a wide difference of opinion concerning what it is. During the last half of the past century students attempted to describe and define it in terms of the total society. Recently more attention has been given to the functioning of farmers' business organizations. Perhaps it is time that we attempt a more thorough analysis of the cooperative and cooperation. A few questions and suggestions are offered. 1. What are the principles of cooperation? There is a wide differ-
Book Review: Dictionary of Criminology and Criminal Justice By Ivanka Sket, Hajrija Sijerik-Olik and Emira Langusch

Professor Day provides a short book review of this useful criminal law dictionary. She recommends the work to criminal justice professionals in practice and in policy-making and suggests it become a required text for all students of criminal law and procedure.
Action of butyltolylsulfonylurea on liver glycogenolysis.

Summary1. In fasted rats butyltolylsulfonylurea (BTSU) produces hypoglycemia and decreased liver glycogenolysis. 2. In rats fed glucose only, BTSU also produces hypoglycemia but the amount of liver glycogen is comparable to that of untreated glucose-fed rats. 3. After treatment of rabbits with BTSU for four days, the spontaneous glucose output from liver slices was less than from liver slices of control animals. 4. The formation of inorganic phosphate by liver homogenate in the presence of glucoses-phosphate is less in the BTSU-treated rats than in control rats, indicating that the glu-cose-6-phosphatase activity is less in the BTSU-treated rats than in control rats. 6. These observations tend to indicate that BTSU produces hypoglycemia at least partially by decreasing glucose-6-phosphatase activity in the liver.