cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
MIXED convection in a large area atmospheric pressure CVD reactor

This paper investigates a new CVD reactor geometry to deposit uniform films on large area substrates at atmospheric pressure. The reactor employs a stagnation flow geometry with an impinging central jet. The substrate is also rotated in order to get film uniformity. Calculations have been performed for a wide range of parameters to investigate the effects of inlet flow rates, substrate rotation, and height of the reactor chamber. It is seen that for some combinations of the parameters the flow above the wafer is unsteady. The unsteadiness of the flow is subsequent to the sharp turning at the conclusion of the inlet nozzle. The sudden expansion makes the shear layer unsteady much in the same way as the flow in a sudden expansion. Thus, the effect of rounded corners on damping such instabilities of the shear layers is explored. By employing the rounded corners, we have been able to reduce the RMS non-uniformity to about 1% at atmospheric pressure on 30 cm wafer. The impinging jet geometry can therefore be used for the deposition of many thin solid films without the penalty of a vacuum system and associated equipment costs.Copyright © 2004 by ASME
Excitation of the clam heart by phorbol esters

Abstract 1. 1. The isolated ventricles of the clam Mercenaria mercenaria are excited by the phorbol esters phorbol 12,13-diacetate (PDA) and phorbol 12-acetate, 13-myristate (PMA). 2. 2. The frequency of the ventricular contractions was increased by both compounds at concentrations of 10 −9 M; the amplitude of the contractions was increased by 10 −9 M PDA, PMA did not produce a consistent inotropic effect. 3. 3. These results suggest that the cardioexcitatory effects of 5-hydroxytryptamine and the molluscan neuropeptide FMRFamide may be mediated, in part, by protein kinase C.
SU‐GG‐T‐555: Dosimetric Effect of Couch Position Variation for Intensity Modulated Arc Therapy

Purpose: To investigate the dosimetric effect of variation in treatment couch positioning relative to isocenter for intensity modulated arc therapy. Method and Materials: 5 RapidArc (Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA) treatment plans (2 head and neck, 2 prostate, and a lung) were selected that were calculated including the treatment couch with the support rails in the lateral position. Calculations were done for the couch positioned ±3 cm relative to isocenter and for the support rails in the center position. Dose‐volume histograms were compared for the targets and critical structures. Results: For ±3 cm shift, the largest deviation of the minimum, maximum, and mean target doses was 0.2%. For the critical structures, the largest deviation of the minimum, maximum, and mean doses was 0.6%, 0.4%, and 0.4%, respectively. The largest deviations occurred for the head and neck plans. Excluding the head and neck plans, the largest deviation of the minimum, maximum, and mean critical structure doses was 0.2%. For the support rails in the center, largest deviation of the minimum, maximum, and mean target doses from the planned lateral rail position was 1.6%, 1.6%, and 1.1%, respectively. For the critical structures, the largest deviation of the minimum, maximum, and mean doses from the planned lateral rail position plan was 0.9%, 3.8%, and 1.2%, respectively. Conclusion: The effect of couch shifts of up to 3 cm relative to isocenter is small. For positioning systems indexed to the treatment couch, the daily variation of the couch position can be safely ignored. However, for positioning systems that are independent of the couch, care must be taken to limit the daily deviation. The support rail positions have a more significant effect than couch position relative to isocenter. Conflict of Interest: First author has a sponsored research agreement with Varian.
Are thyroid peroxidase antibodies associated with cardiovascular disease risk in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism

Summary Objective Conflicting evidence has been reported about whether subclinical hypothyroidism (SCH) is associated with hyperlipidemia or cardiovascular disease. Thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOAb) are more common in persons with SCH. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the presence of (TPOAb) in people with SCH is associated with markers of cardiovascular disease. Design Cross-sectional study using multivariate regression. Patients Adults over age 40 who, in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III, met the criteria for SCH (n = 188). Measurements Participants were stratified into TPOAb-negative (n = 82) and TPOAb-positive (n = 106) groups. Markers of cardiovascular disease risk were compared between the TPOAb-negative and TPOAb-positive groups. Multivariate regression models were performed to adjust for potential confounders. Results In bivariate analyses, individuals with and without TPOAb had similar levels of triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, total cholesterol and C-reactive protein. Homocysteine levels were higher in the patients without antibodies (P = 0·01). After adjusting for, age, gender, smoking, hypertension, diabetes and use of a lipid-lowering medication, however, no statistically significant relationships were found between the presence of TPOAb and any of the cardiovascular risk markers. Conclusions The presence of thyroid peroxidase antibodies does not appear to correlate with cardiovascular disease risk in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism. This study does not support the measurement of TPOAb antibodies in SCH as a strategy for guiding treatment or assessment of cardiovascular disease risk.
UV bidirectional reflectance distribution function measurements for diffusers

Bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) is an important quantity to describe the scattering condition from a diffuse surface. The current presentation describes the instrumentation, instrument characterization and diffuser calibration in the ultraviolet (UV) spectral region.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Homogeneous fluorescence linewidths for amorphous hosts

A contribution to the homogeneous linewidth of optical transitions in amorphous hosts is calculated. The microscopic process is diagonal in the phonon interaction with two level systems (TLS) common to amorphous materials, and diagonal in the coupling between TLS and the optical center. The model predicts an optical homogeneous linewidth proportional to the square of the temperature at low temperature.
Dietary energy sources affect insulin sensitivity and β‐cell responsiveness of trained Arabian geldings during endurance exercise

Adaptation to diets which replace carbohydrates with fat as an energy source have been shown to avoid insulin resistance and improve metabolic regulation during exercise. This study compared the effects of diet and moderate-intensity exercise on glucose and insulin concentrations in 12 trained Arabian geldings. Six Arabians were adapted for 8 weeks to a feed high in sugar and starch (SS) and six were adapted to a feed rich in fat and fibre (FF). All horses were exercise-trained prior to and throughout feed adaptation. Horses were sampled between 0900 and 1000 h at rest and during moderate-intensity exercise on a treadmill at 57% of their lactate threshold following 25 min of warm-up. Plasma was analysed for glucose and insulin. Basal proxies for insulin sensitivity (LRIB = log[100/basal insulin]) and pancreatic β-cell response to circulating glucose (MIRG = log[(100·basal insulin)/(basal glucose – 50 mg/dL)]) were calculated. Basal insulin tended to be lower in FF adapted horses (p = 0.068) and was lower during exercise as compared to rest in FF horses (p = 0.013) but not SS horses (p = 0.44). Plasma glucose concentration was lower in FF horses (p < 0.001) and increased during exercise for SS adapted horses (p = 0.015) but not FF horses (p = 0.38). Insulin sensitivity as determined by LRIB was higher during exercise (p = 0.019) for all 12 horses while β-cell response as determined by MIRG was lower (p = 0.006). Arabians adapted to the FF diet also had higher LRIB (p = 0.047) but diet had no affect on MIRG (p = 0.20). Exercise tended to increase (p = 0.11) LRIB more in FF horses (34%) than SS horses (11%). These differences indicate that horses adapted to high carbohydrate diets have lower insulin sensitivity and impaired metabolic regulation involving insulin signalling. These effects are avoided in horses adapted to the FF feed, with potential benefits to their health and endurance exercise performance.
Heat Transfer in Composite Solids with Heat Generation

Steady-state heat transfer problems have been considered in a composite solid comprising two materials, one, a slab, which forms the bulk of the interior and the other, a plate, which forms a thin layer around the boundary. Through the use of appropriate Green’s functions, it is shown that the boundary value problem can be converted into a Fredholm integral equation of the second kind. The integral operator in the integral equation is shown to be self-adjoint under an appropriate inner product. Solutions have been obtained for the integral equation by expansion in terms of eigenfunctions of the self-adjoint integral operator, from which the solution to the boundary value problem is constructed. Two problems have been considered, for the first of which the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the self-adjoint operator were analytically obtained; for the second, the spectral decomposition was obtained numerically by expansion in a convenient basis set. Detailed numerical computations have been made for the second problem using various types of heat source functions. The calculations are relatively easy and inexpensive for the examples considered. These examples, we believe, are sufficiently diverse to constitute a rather stringent test of the numerical merits of the eigenvalue technique used.
Pyridoxine-dependent seizures: new genetic and biochemical clues to help with diagnosis and treatment.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW Pyridoxine dependency is an uncommon but important cause of intractable seizures presenting in infancy and early childhood. This paper discusses recent clinical, biochemical and genetic studies and how the findings should change our approach in evaluating young patients with antiepileptic drug-resistant seizures. RECENT FINDINGS Originally thought to be due to abnormal binding of pyridoxal phosphate to glutamic acid decarboxylase resulting in decreased gamma-aminobutyric acid, mutations in the gene encoding this enzyme have been ruled out. While linkage to 5q31 has been demonstrated, a disease-causing gene in that region has not been identified. Further haplotype analysis of six affected kindreds has demonstrated genetic heterogeneity for this rare disorder. Other studies demonstrate that some children with intractable seizures respond to pyridoxal phosphate rather than pyridoxine, including a rare form of neonatal epileptic encephalopathy shown to be due to mutations in the PNPO gene for pyridox(am)ine 5'-phosphate oxidase. While the biochemical explanation for this finding is not clear, elevated pipecolic acid levels may serve as a diagnostic marker for patients with pyridoxine-dependent seizures. SUMMARY The results of these studies should prompt clinicians to adopt new strategies for diagnosis and therapy for young patients with intractable seizures. Levels of both pipecolic acid and certain metabolites shown to be elevated in patients with PNPO mutations should be measured, and therapeutic trials of pyridoxal phosphate as well as pyridoxine should be considered early in the course of the management of infants and young children with intractable seizures.
Heart rate conditioning as a function of interstimulus interval in rats

Relatively unrestrained rats received HR conditioning consisting of the presentation of a white noise CS followed by electric shock UCS. Four groups received delayed ISIs of.05, 2.5, 5.0 or 10.0 sec respectively and a control group received CS only. All groups showed deceleration on initial trials followed by acceleration on later trials. HR Rs were greatest in the 2.5 and 5.0 sec groups and least for CS-only. Discrepancies regarding the direction of conditioned HR changes are noted.
Electrochemical nucleation and growth of lead dioxide on glassy carbon electrodes

Abstract A study was made on the deposition of lead dioxide onto both highly polished and etched glassy carbon surfaces by single- and double-potential-step methods. The anodic etching of surfaces as a pretreatment was found to produce more adherent and smooth deposits. Etching also activated the surface to nuclei formation and reduced the induction time, but had no effect on the overall nucleation and growth mechanism. Control of the nucleation mechanism by potentiostatic methods allowed the determination of the potential-dependent nucleation rate constants, since the current-time profiles during the potential step were in agreement with known relationships. The growth mechanism and hence the type of nuclei/deposits were also confirmed by scanning micrographs. It was found that trace quantities of phosphate in the solution effectively inhibited the three-dimensional growth of the deposits.
Texture feature standardization in digital mammography for improving generalizability across devices

Growing evidence suggests a relationship between mammographic texture and breast cancer risk. For studies performing texture analysis on digital mammography (DM) images from various DM systems, it is important to evaluate if different systems could introduce inherent differences in the images analyzed and how to construct a methodological framework to identify and standardize such effects, if these differences exist. In this study, we compared two DM systems, the GE Senographe 2000D and DS using a validated physical breast phantom (Rachel, Gammex). The GE 2000D and DS systems use the same detector, but a different automated exposure control (AEC) system, resulting in differences in dose performance. On each system, images of the phantom are acquired five times in the Cranio-Caudal (CC) view with the same clinically optimized phototimer setting. Three classes of texture features, namely grey-level histogram, cooccurrence, and run-length texture features (a total of 26 features), are generated within the breast region from the raw DM images and compared between the two imaging systems. To alleviate system effects, a range of standardization steps are applied to the feature extraction process: z-score normalization is performed as the initial step to standardize image intensities, and the parameters in generating co-occurrence features are varied to decrease system differences introduced by detector blurring effects. To identify texture features robust to detectors (i.e. the ones minimally affected only by electronic noise), the distribution of each texture feature is compared between the two systems using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S) test at 0.05 significance, where features with p>0.05 are deemed robust to inherent system differences. Our approach could provide a basis for texture feature standardization across different DM imaging systems and provide a systematic methodology for selecting generalizable texture descriptors in breast cancer risk assessment.
Prognostic Significance of Ultrasound Myocardial Tissue Characterization in Patients With Cardiac Amyloidosis

Background— Cycle-dependent variation of myocardial integrated backscatter (CV-IB) is an objective measurement that may detect myocardial abnormalities. However, no data exist about the prognostic value of CV-IB in primary cardiac amyloidosis. Methods and Results— We prospectively examined 208 consecutive biopsy-proven patients with primary amyloidosis. The magnitude of CV-IB was analyzed at the interventricular septum and left ventricular (LV) posterior wall and its prognostic value was compared with standard Doppler measurements with to the Tei index (isovolumic contraction time plus isovolumic relaxation time divided by ejection time). One hundred thirty-three patients had cardiac involvement (mean LV thickness > 12 mm). Forty-one patients (20%) (32 cardiac deaths) died during a mean follow-up of period of 307±156 days. Univariate analysis showed that the CV-IB at the LV posterior wall was the best predictor of cardiac death (P<0.0001) and all-cause death (P< 0.0001). The Tei index did not identify pat...
Two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiographic assessment of neonatal arterial repair for transposition of the great arteries.

Abstract The arterial switch procedure has become an accepted reparative technique for transposition of the great arteries with or without ventricular septal defect. In this study the accuracy of prospective noninvasive imaging in detecting arterial tract obstruction and the prevalence and severity of arterial valvular regurgitation (as assessed by Doppler ultrasound) were evaluated in survivors of arterial repair. All 53 study patients underwent two-dimensional echocardiographic examination 2 days to 20 months (median 7 months) postoperatively; 43 patients also had pulsed and continuous wave Doppler studies. The accuracy of the noninvasive evaluation of arterial tract obstruction was determined by comparison of Doppler maximal instantaneous gradients with peak to peak gradients at nonsimultaneous catheterization in 26 patients. Twenty-one (81%) of the 26 patients underwent catheterization and successful pulsed and continuous wave Doppler examination of the right heart; 17 (81%) of these 21 had a maximal pressure gradient within 20 mm Hg of the peak to peak gradient obtained at catheterization. Echocardiographic identification of the stenotic site was correct in all eight of the patients in this group requiring reoperation. Twenty-three (88%) of the 26 patients who underwent catheterization had successful Doppler interrogation of the aortic tract; 22 (96%) of these 23 had a maximal instantaneous gradient within 20 mm Hg of the peak to peak catheterization gradient. Fourteen (32%) of 43 patients had mild or moderate pulmonary regurgitation by Doppler study. Three (7%) of the 43 had mild aortic regurgitation.
Beyond Extended Myectomy for Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: The Resection-Plication-Release (RPR) Repair

Background Extended myectomy for left ventricular outflow tract obstruction (LVOTO) due to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) has good long-term results. In addition to the midseptal resection (R) for HCM, our group has introduced a novel variation in anterior leaflet plication (P) and release (R) of papillary muscle attachments. We sought to investigate the medium-term success of this three-step repair that addresses all aspects of complex HCM pathology. Methods Nineteen patients underwent resection-plication-release repair for complex HCM pathology. Transesophageal echocardiography was performed on all patients preoperatively and postoperatively to assess adequacy of resection, left ventricular outflow tract gradients, and mitral valve function. All patients underwent transthoracic outpatient echocardiography at a mean follow-up of 2.4 ± 2.1 years (range, 0.5 to 6). Results The average age of the patients was 57 ± 14 years. The preoperative peak LVOTO was 137 ± 45 mm Hg. The average degree of mitral regurgitation was 3.1. The average length of stay was 7.5 ± 3.3 days. There were no readmissions or deaths in the group. Initial postoperative transesophageal echocardiography demonstrated marked reduction in LVOTO to 10 ± 17 mm Hg ( p p p > 0.0001) and mitral regurgitation remained insignificant at 0.4 ( p Conclusions Anterior leaflet plication and papillary muscle release are logical adjuncts to septal resection in the treatment of the complicated pathophysiology of obstructive HCM. Durable long-term results can be achieved with an aggressive approach to mitral valve pathology in conjunction with extended myectomy.
College teachers: their effect on creativity of students.

This nationwide study concerned the relation of personality traits, classroom behavior, and student/teacher relationships to creativityin teadhing-at the college level. Creative teachers were identified through an evaluation of the research of those Ph.D. students who had studied under the teachers, and whd nominated them as having had the most facilitating effect on their creative development, or as having had a significant inhibiting effect. Normative groups matched on relevant variables also nominated teachers. The classroom behavior and student/teacher relations for a total of 671 teachers were described by nominating students. Four hundred ninety-two of these teacherS completed Factors A, C, E, C, and Q2 of the 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire, the Ghiselli Self-Description Inventory, the Barron-Welsh Art Scale, and several biographical items. Results indicated introversion, dominance, and self-sufficiency to be associated with creativity. Support was also provided for association of greater esthetic sensitivity and less adherance to social mores with creative teaching in psychology. Clear-cut behavio al patterns differentiated teachers who facilitated creative development from those who hindered it. Encouragement through individual contact was found to be the most important aspect of student/teacher relationships affecting creativity. The classroom was found to be of lesser importance.
EFFECT OF DIETARY PROTEIN AND MAGNESIUM ON PLASMA CHOLESTEROL LEVELS IN WEANLING RATS

The critical phase in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis may begin in early infancy. This is a report of dietary induction of an important risk factor, hypercholesterolemia, in male rats of 28-38 g fed laboratory chow (210 mg magnesium (Mg)/100g; 23.4 % crude vegetable protein) or purified diets varying in respect to Mg: (0 to 150 mg/100 g) and casein (1 to 40 %). Plasma cholesterol was measured on a Technicon SMAC autoanalyzer utilizing the Liebermann-Burchard reaction. Diets were fed A) 1 wk, B)2wk. A significant elevation in cholesterol levels was related to high did not significantly affect plasma cholesterol. Supp: Mo. Heart Ass
Quantitative determination of silanol in quartz applying diffuse reflectance infrared fourier transform and chemometrics.

The silanol concentration of quartz was determined by mixing 50 mg ground silica sample with 500 mg KBr followed by diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFT) spectroscopy and chemometric data analysis. Reference samples were prepared by blending ground quartz of different silanol content. Good correlation was achieved between 10 and 240 ppm Si–OH by mass. The chemometric model's quality is characterized by a correlation coefficient of 0.965 (cross-validation) using five latent variables (factors) and a root mean square error of calibration (RMSEC) of 7 ppm. Chemometric data is compared to results from univariate data analysis. The biggest impact on the reproducibility is due to sample preparation (grinding and blending), which is dependant on the operator involved.
Academic patents and materials transfer agreements: substitutes or complements?

U.S. universities and academic medical centers long have been important performers of research in the life sciences, but their role as a source of patented intellectual property in this field has changed significantly in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. The expanded presence of formal intellectual property rights within the academic biomedical research enterprise has occasioned numerous expressions of concern from scholars, policymakers, and participants. One widely expressed fear involves the effects of patenting on the conduct of the scientific research enterprise. There is also considerable concern over the possible role of Materials Transfer Agreements (MTAs) in raising research “transaction costs”. On the other hand, others suggest that the contractual structure provided by MTAs may reduce transaction costs and facilitate exchange. This paper undertakes a preliminary analysis of the role of MTAs in the biomedical research enterprise at the University of Michigan, a significant patenter and licensor of biomedical intellectual property. We examine the relationship among invention disclosures, patenting, licensing, and the presence or absence of an MTA. Although data limitations make any conclusions tentative, our analysis suggests that the increased assertion of property rights by universities through MTAs does not appear to impede the commercialization of university research through patenting and licensing.
Tamoxifen, esterified estradiol, and physiologic concentrations of estradiol inhibit oxidation of low-density lipoprotein by endothelial cells.

Abstract Objective: We investigated the antioxidant effect of tamoxifen, esterified estradiol, and physiologic concentrations of 17β-estradiol on endothelial cell–mediated oxidation of low-density lipoprotein. Study Design: Human umbilical vein endothelial cells were preincubated with nanomolar concentrations of estradiol, estradiol stearate, and tamoxifen. Low-density lipoprotein was isolated and incubated with cells in serum-free medium. Oxidation of low-density lipoprotein was quantified after 8, 16, and 24 hours of incubation as the formation of thiobarbituric acid–reactive substances. Results: Compared with control, preincubation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells with 1- or 10-nmol/L estradiol resulted in a 12% reduction in the formation of thiobarbituric acid–reactive substances at 24 hours. Preincubation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells with either 10-nmol/L estradiol 17-stearate or 10-nmol/L tamoxifen resulted in 26% and 20% decreases, respectively, in formation of thiobarbituric acid–reactive substances at 24 hours. The difference in the reduction in thiobarbituric acid–reactive substances between control and treatment wells became more pronounced over time. Conclusion: Under these experimental conditions, tamoxifen, esterified estradiol, and physiologic concentrations of exogenous estradiol inhibit oxidation of low-density lipoprotein by human umbilical vein endothelial cells. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2001;184:1060-3.)
Intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence of membranes of GH3 pituitary cells: quenching by thyrotropin-releasing hormone.

Abstract The intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence of membranes prepared from the GH3 strain of hormone-producing pituitary cells was monitored by spectrofluorometry. Membranes of GH3 cells have specific receptors which bind thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH). When TRH binds to GH3 membranes there is quenching of tryptophan fluorescence. The kinetics of the change in fluorescence of GH3 membranes and of TRH binding are similar. In addition, the concentration of TRH required to produce a half-maximum change in fluorescence is 10 nM, and that required for half-maximum binding of TRH to receptors is 11 nM. Inactive TRH analogs which do not bind to TRH receptors likewise do not alter GH3 membrane fluorescence, and a pituitary cell strain which lacks TRH receptors does not change membrane fluorescence on incubation with TRH. We conclude that the TRH-receptor interaction in GH3 membranes is associated with a change in membrane conformation that is readily measured by differential spectrofluorometry.
Assessing the Effects of Climate Change on Precipitation and Flood Damage in Wisconsin

AbstractStudies on the effects of anthropogenic climate change have found that the magnitude and frequency of intense precipitation events are expected to increase over the next century for the midwestern United States. The goal of this study was to use statistically downscaled and debiased precipitation projections for the state of Wisconsin derived from 14 general circulation models (GCMs) to assess the projected precipitation changes for the mid–21st century in a way that is relevant to water-resource decision making. The authors analyzed metrics that are relevant to storm-water design, such as the 100-year, 24-h quantile, and the authors also evaluated the changes in a risk-assessment context using idealized damage functions that translate precipitation depths into economic damages. The results of our design-metric analysis show that the 100-year, 24-h quantiles for Wisconsin are projected to have significant but modest increases of approximately 11% over the next 50 years. Our risk assessment shows t...
Hyperbolic metamaterials and their applications

Abstract This review aims at providing a comprehensive and updated picture of the field of hyperbolic metamaterials, from the foundations to the most recent progresses and future perspectives. The topics discussed embrace theoretical aspects, practical realization and key challenges for applications such as imaging, spontaneous emission engineering, thermal, active and tunable hyperbolic media.
One-pot synthesis of atomically monodisperse, thiol-functionalized Au25 nanoclusters

We report a one-pot method for synthesizing atomically monodisperse Au25 nanoclusters stabilized with various functionalized thiols. This approach permits facile incorporation of specific functionality [such as –OH, –COOH, and atom transfer radical polymerization initiator –OC(O)C(CH3)2Br] into the protecting thiol ligand shell and provides convenient access to new types of Au25 nanoclusters inaccessible by the previous two-phase approach. Importantly, a distinct “size-focusing” process was identified in the growth process of Au25 nanoclusters in the one-pot reaction. This facile, one-pot synthesis of thiol-functionalized Au25 nanoclusters allows for the development of specific surface chemistry for practical applications of such nanoclusters, such as bioconjugation, sensing, and surface polymerization, and thus makes the approach and the Au25 nanoclusters of broad utility.
Ballistic versus diffusive transport in current-induced magnetization switching

We test whether current-induced magnetization switching due to spin-transfer-torque in ferromagnetic/non-magnetic/ferromagnetic (F/N/F) trilayers changes significantly when scattering within the N-metal layers is changed from ballistic to diffusive. Here ballistic corresponds to a ratio r = lambda/t greater than or equal to 3 for a Cu spacer layer, and diffusive to r = lambda/t less than or equal to 0.4 for a CuGe alloy spacer layer, where lambda is the mean-free-path in the N-layer of fixed thickness t = 10 nm. The average switching currents for the alloy spacer layer are only modestly larger than those for Cu. The best available model predicts a much greater sensitivity of the switching currents to diffuse scattering in the spacer layer than we see.
Dispersion slope compensation using EDC and FEC in a 24×10 Gb/s 7800 km fiber transmission system

We compared EDC and FEC for dispersion slope compensation in a 24 times 10-Gb/s 7800 km WDM system. The simulation results show FEC has better performance at lower dispersion and EDC is better for large accumulated dispersion.
The Credit Scoring Conundrum

A bad credit score may cost a borrower tens of thousands of dollars, but it is not clear how it is calculated. The formula is a trade secret, immune from scrutiny. Lenders are moving beyond scoring to “credit analytics,” which tracks a consumer’s every transaction. Buy generic products instead of branded ones, and you may find your credit card’s interest rate rising and its limit falling. This essay critiques automation in the consumer-facing side of the finance industry. Reputation systems are creating new (and largely invisible) disadvantaged groups, disfavored due to error or unfairness. You may be one of those affected, labeled in a database as “unreliable,” “high medical cost,” “declining income,” or some other derogatory term. Since it is nearly impossible to find out exactly how one has been categorized by data brokers and other information collectors, those disadvantaged by secret, automated processes can’t even organize for better treatment. This essay documents their plight, and how current law fails to help. I propose new principles to guide the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission, and other regulators as they address the growth of unaccountable financial data sources.
Study of stability of time-domain features for electromyographic pattern recognition

Significant progress has been made towards the clinical application of human-machine interfaces (HMIs) based on electromyographic (EMG) pattern recognition for various rehabilitation purposes. Making this technology practical and available to patients with motor deficits requires overcoming real-world challenges, such as physical and physiological changes, that result in variations in EMG signals and systems that are unreliable for long-term use. In this study, we aimed to address these challenges by (1) investigating the stability of time-domain EMG features during changes in the EMG signals and (2) identifying the feature sets that would provide the most robust EMG pattern recognition. Variations in EMG signals were introduced during physical experiments. We identified three disturbances that commonly affect EMG signals: EMG electrode location shift, variation in muscle contraction effort, and muscle fatigue. The impact of these disturbances on individual features and combined feature sets was quantified by changes in classification performance. The robustness of feature sets was evaluated by a stability index developed in this study. Muscle fatigue had the smallest effect on the studied EMG features, while electrode location shift and varying effort level significantly reduced the classification accuracy for most of the features. Under these disturbances, the most stable EMG feature set with combination of four features produced at least 16.0% higher classification accuracy than the least stable set. EMG autoregression coefficients and cepstrum coefficients showed the most robust classification performance of all studied time-domain features. Selecting appropriate EMG feature combinations can overcome the impact of the studied disturbances on EMG pattern classification to a certain extent; however, this simple solution is still inadequate. Stabilizing electrode contact locations and developing effective classifier training strategies are suggested to further improve the robustness of HMIs based on EMG pattern recognition.
Modes of Reference in the Rituals of Judaism

It is through ritual that religions often express their deepest truths, and historians and anthropologists of religion have long recognized the impor-tance of its symbolic dimension. Yet it remains to be explained how religious rituals perform this function. That is, in what ways do ritual gestures (the term of art I will henceforth use to refer to all actions and objects that achieve ritual status) symbolize or refer – reserving these two general terms to cover all ways of bearing semantic-like relations to objects, events, and states of affairs? In this essay I will take some first steps toward answering this question by constructing a taxonomy of symbolic gestures in the rituals of Judaism, drawing for this purpose on various categories of reference, first distinguished by Nelson Goodman in his study of symbol systems, including the arts, and more recently elaborated by Israel Scheffler.
Synthesis of cyclic, multivalent Arg-Gly-Asp using sequential thiol–ene/thiol–yne photoreactions

A unique method has been developed for the formation of multivalent cyclic peptides. This procedure exploits on-resin peptide cyclization using a photoinitiated thiol–ene click reaction and subsequent clustering using thiol–yne photochemistry. Both reactions utilize the sulfhydryl group on natural cysteine amino acids to participate in the thiol-mediated reactions.
Efficacy of pest control strategies in Louisiana sugar cane: a preliminary survey

Although the first or second clonal cuttings of heat-treated sugar cane were widely used for seed, differences were not detected among crop years or locations in the incidence of ratoon stunting disease. Sugar-cane mosaic virus (SCMV) disease was widespread in all areas surveyed; however, the plant cane crop had a lower incidence of SCMV than the first or the second ratoon crop. The estimated cane yield was increased approximately 19·4 t/ha by heat treatment during the 2-year survey period. The management system used to control the sugar-cane borer (SCB), Diatraea saccharalis (F.), was effective regardless of the crop year or area surveyed. Season-long SCB control was achieved by the use of two (1981) or three (1982) properly timed applications of insecticide and the use of a SCB moderately resistant variety resulting in an average of 6–9% bored sugar-cane internodes. Poor weed management, particularly with johnsongrass ( Sorghum halepense (L.) Pers.), accounted for much of the reduction in cane yield (P
Body counts in lowland South American violence

Abstract Violence was likely often a strong selective pressure in many traditional lowland South American societies. A compilation of 11 anthropological studies reporting cause of death shows that violence led to about 30% of adult deaths, of which about 70% were males. Here violent deaths are further itemized at the level of ethnographically-reported death events (particular duels, homicides, and raids) to provide more detailed insight into the causes and consequences of within- and between-group violence. Data for 238 death events (totaling 1145 deaths) from 44 lowland South American societies show that attacks are more deadly when treachery is used, when avenging a previous killing, and on external warfare raids between ethnolinguistic groups. That revenge raids kill more people on average than the original grievance, at least when conflicts are between ethnolinguistic groups, indicates a tendency towards increasingly vicious cycles of revenge killings. Motives of killings as noted in ethnographic sources, in order of importance, reportedly include revenge for previous killings and other wrong-doings like sorcery, jealousy over women, gain of captive women and children, fear or deterrence of impending attack, and occasionally the theft of material goods. Results may have implications for understanding the potential for multi-level selection by delineating the force of competition at varying scales of analysis within and between lowland South American societies.
The endothelin receptor B (EDNRB) promoter displays heterogeneous, site specific methylation patterns in normal and tumor cells

The 5' region for the endothelin receptor B (EDNRB) gene is a complex CpG island giving rise to four individual transcripts initiating within the island. Here, for the first time, we analyze the relationship between methylation and gene expression in a CpG island located in the 5' region of a gene with multiple transcription start sites. The CpG island was unmethylated in normal prostate and bladder tissue, whereas it became methylated in apparently normal colonic epithelium. Tumors derived from these tissues were frequently hypermethylated relative to the respective normal tissues. Analysis of 11 individual CpG sites located throughout the CpG island showed that specific sites with high methylation levels in several tumors were also methylated in normal tissues, suggesting that they might serve as foci for further de novo methylation. This region also had high levels of methylation in several cancer cell lines, and we found that a low methylation level in a small region within the 5' region correlated with expression of the 5'-most transcript. Interestingly, almost complete methylation 200-1000 bp downstream of the transcriptional start site did not block expression of this transcript. Finally, we show that treatment with 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine can induce transcriptional activation of the four EDNRB transcripts. Our results show the existence of differential, tissue-dependent methylation at the EDNRB 5' region, suggest the existence of a spreading mechanism for de novo methylation, starting from methylation hotspots, and show that hypermethylation immediately 3' to a transcriptional start site does not prevent initiation.
Epidermal CCR6+ γδ T Cells Are Major Producers of IL-22 and IL-17 in a Murine Model of Psoriasiform Dermatitis

Cytokine components of Th17 pathway play vital roles in human psoriasis. Although much is known about TCR αβ T cells in psoriasis, the role of unconventional T cells, including γδ T cells, is unclear. In this study, using an IL-23 skin injection model of psoriasiform dermatitis in mice, we demonstrate that IL-22, IL-17A, and the IL-23R were highly enriched in a population of CCR6(+), TCR γδ-low expressing (GDL) T cells that accumulated in the epidermis after IL-23 injections. GDL cells were distinct from resident TCR γδ-high, Vγ3(+),CCR6(-) T cells in the epidermis that did not change appreciably in numbers following IL-23 injection. Large numbers of CCR6(+) cells were detected at or above the level of the epidermal basement membrane by confocal microscopy 5 d after repeated IL-23 injections at the same time GDL cells increased in numbers in the epidermis. TCR δ-deficient mice (lacking γδ T cells) exhibited decreased ear swelling and downregulated expression of IL-22 and IL-17A in the epidermis following IL-23 injection. Our data suggest that a subset of γδ T cells play a critical role in IL-23-mediated psoriasiform dermatitis.
Crystallization and preliminary X-ray characterization of a soybean seed lipoxygenase.

An isoenzyme of soybean (GZycine ma5 L. Merrill cv. Provar) lipoxygenase (EC 1.13.11.12) has been crystallized using the vapor diffusion method. Crystals were grown from solutions of the protein (7 mg/ml) using 10 to 20% (w/v) polyethylene glycol 8000 in citrate/ phosphate buffer (pH 5.7) containing 05% (w/v) n-octyl-P-n-glucopyranoside. The crystals reached maximum dimensions of 0.3 mm x 62 mm x > 2 mm. The enzyme crystallized in space group C222, with unit cell dimensions a = 246 A, b = 193 A and c = 75 8. A calculated V,,, value of 2.35 A3/dalton was obtained assuming two molecules per asymmetric unit. The density of the crystals was found to be 1.16 g/ml, which confirmed the presence of two molecules per asymmetric unit and indicated a solvent content of 47.5 %.
Origin of pyrimidine deoxyribonucleotide pools in perfused rat heart: implications for 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine-dependent cardiotoxicity

In adult non-replicating tissues such as heart, demand for dNTPs (deoxynucleoside triphosphates) is low but essential for mitochondrial DNA replication and nuclear DNA repair. dNTPs may be synthesized from salvage of deoxyribonucleosides or by reduction of ribonucleotides. We have hypothesized that the cardiac mitochondrial toxicity of the nucleoside analogue AZT (3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine; known as zidovudine) is caused by inhibition of thymidine kinase 2 of the salvage pathway and subsequent TTP pool depletion. The extent to which this hypothesis has merit depends on how much the heart relies on thymidine phosphorylation for maintenance of the TTP pool. In the present study, we used isotopic tracing to demonstrate that both TTP and dCTP are solely synthesized by phosphorylation of thymidine and deoxycytidine respectively, with no evidence for synthesis from other precursors. We have also shown that UTP and CTP are synthesized by phosphorylation of uridine and cytidine respectively, with no detectable role for the de novo pyrimidine synthesis pathway. Lastly, we have demonstrated that AZT decreased the TTP pool by 50% in 30 min of perfusion, while having no effect on other dNTPs. In summary, the present study demonstrated that adult rat heart has a limited mechanism for dCTP and TTP synthesis and thus these pools may be more sensitive than replicating cells to drugs such as AZT that affect the salvage pathway.
A Counter-History of Composition: Toward Methodologies of Complexity, Byron Hawk

What's becoming of the history of composition? In previous decades we generally spoke in terms of “rhetoric and composition,” with “composition” understood to be about the teaching of writing. Hist...
What you can't feel won't hurt you: Evaluating haptic hardware using a haptic contrast sensitivity function

In this paper, we extend the concept of the contrast sensitivity function - used to evaluate video projectors - to the evaluation of haptic devices. We propose using human observers to determine if vibrations rendered using a given haptic device are accompanied by artifacts detectable to humans. This determination produces a performance measure that carries particular relevance to applications involving texture rendering. For cases in which a device produces detectable artifacts, we have developed a protocol that localizes deficiencies in device design and/or hardware implementation. In this paper, we present results from human vibration detection experiments carried out using three commercial haptic devices and one high performance voice coil motor. We found that all three commercial devices produced perceptible artifacts when rendering vibrations near human detection thresholds. Our protocol allowed us to pinpoint the deficiencies, however, and we were able to show that minor modifications to the haptic hardware were sufficient to make these devices well suited for rendering vibrations, and by extension, the vibratory components of textures. We generalize our findings to provide quantitative design guidelines that ensure the ability of haptic devices to proficiently render the vibratory components of textures.
Structural Antecedents of Psychoactive Drug Use Among the Elderly

Current literature on the over use of psychoactive drugs by elderly people suggests that alienation, poverty, rolelessness and lack of drug experience in earlier life are principal causes. But these are mainly empirical observations which have not been ordered into any theoretical framework. In proposing the applicability of the concept of ‘internal colonialism’ as a mode of explanation, the paper presents a survey of drug use prevalence as a basis for later conceptual analysis. It is concluded that drug misuse is an institutionalized response which perpetuates dependency.
Dark-matter decays and self-gravitating halos

We consider models in which a dark-matter particle decays to a slightly less massive daughter particle and a noninteracting massless particle. The decay gives the daughter particle a small velocity kick. Self-gravitating dark-matter halos that have a virial velocity smaller than this velocity kick may be disrupted by these particle decays, while those with larger virial velocities will be heated. We use numerical simulations to follow the detailed evolution of the total mass and density profile of self-gravitating systems composed of particles that undergo such velocity kicks as a function of the kick speed (relative to the virial velocity) and the decay time (relative to the dynamical time). We show how these decays will affect the halo mass-concentration relation and mass function. Using measurements of the halo mass-concentration relation and galaxy-cluster mass function to constrain the lifetime–kick-velocity parameter space for decaying dark matter, we find roughly that the observations rule out the combination of kick velocities greater than 100 km s −1 and decay times less than a few times the age of the Universe. PACS numbers: