cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Nonuniform Transition Conductivity of Superconducting Ceramic

There is an extensive international research effort underway to understand the origin of high critical temperature (Tc) superconductivity. A considerable amount of this research is directed toward increasing both the critical current density (Jc) and Tc [l–4]. In order to increase both Tc and Jc further we must understand the mechanisms supporting the superconducting state and the mechanisms that degrade this state.
Contingency management treatments: controversies and challenges

While ideology, politics, and economics will impact the eventual expansion or failure to implement contingency management in countries around the world, the scientific data clearly indicate that this is an intervention worthy of continued investment.
Lagrangian Correlation and Some Difficulties in Turbulent Diffusion Experiments

Publisher Summary For turbulent diffusion, the need for the statistics of at least single “fluid particle” displacement is necessary. Particle displacement is an integral function of its (Lagrangian) turbulent velocity. If the turbulence level is sufficiently low, then the turbulence pattern is virtually “frozen” during the time interval required for the correlation to drop to zero. Then the pertinent “Taylor hypothesis,” on the equivalence of space and time correlations, is valid. The chapter highlights that little mathematical work appears to have been done on the properties of statistical functions, even in the degenerate case in which the trajectories are statistically independent of the fields. The immense complexity of the problem is brought out by the realization that each trajectory in the ensemble is related to the field it traverses. It also discusses that for a homogeneous, stationary turbulence Taylor shows that the mean square particle displacement in the continuum is, for one component.
Daughter of time

Truth, goes an old proverb, is the daughter of time. Fifty years ago, G. G. Simpson (1944) brought paleontology into the Neodarwinian fold, arguing that evolutionary tempo can be documented in the geological record and used to inform debate about evolutionary mode. Today, increasingly sophisticated paleontological investigations of rate—be it diversification, extinction, migration, morphological change, or divergence in macromolecular sequence—require calibration of the geological time scale with a precision far greater than Simpson could have anticipated. Expanding research on the relationships between environmental history and evolution also requires unprecedented resolution in correlation and geochronometry.
Galactic cosmic-ray intensity 0.99 to 5.26 astronomical units from the sun

The intensity of galactic cosmic radiation in interplanetary space has been observed over the heliocentric radial range 0.99 to 5.26 AU with five Geiger-Mueller tubes on Pioneer 10 and over the range 1.00 to 3.59 AU with three similar tubes on Pioneer 11. The observations span the time period 1972 March 3 to 1974 April 29, near the epoch of minimum solar activity. The contributions of solar energetic particles are eliminated. The effect of temporal trends is removed in a variety of ways - by comparison of simultaneous measurements on the two spacecraft; by comparison with data from Explorer 35 at 1.0 AU; and by comparison with terrestrial neutron monitor data. The radial gradient of the intensity of particles with energies greater than 80 MeV/nucleon is zero to within an experimental uncertainty of less than 2 per cent per AU over the range 0.99 to 5.26 AU. Hence, it is less than the theoretically expected value by at least a factor of 5.
Unsupervised learning of individuals and categories from images

Motivated by the existence of highly selective, sparsely firing cells observed in the human medial temporal lobe (MTL), we present an unsupervised method for learning and recognizing object categories from unlabeled images. In our model, a network of nonlinear neurons learns a sparse representation of its inputs through an unsupervised expectation-maximization process. We show that the application of this strategy to an invariant feature-based description of natural images leads to the development of units displaying sparse, invariant selectivity for particular individuals or image categories much like those observed in the MTL data.
Interactive media usage among millennial consumers

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to determine a comprehensive model of millennial usage of interactive technologies in the current marketing environment based upon actual behavior.Design/methodology/approach – A data mining approach using decision tree analysis (DTA) generates two comparative models (i.e. millennial versus generation X and millennial versus baby boomers) of interactive media usage across 21 technology applications. A large national sample (n=3,289) sourced from the Kantar Retail IQ constitutes the data for the models.Findings – Millennial respondents indicate significantly higher usage of interactive media compared to both generation X and boomers across 14 applications. Models indicate that millennials use interactive technologies for utilitarian/information gathering purposes as well as for entertainment. However, they are less likely to purchase online compared to their older counterparts.Research limitations/implications – Models provide evidence that both supports and extends p...
Environmental Interpretation for the Visually Impaired

(1980). Environmental Interpretation for the Visually Impaired. The Journal of Environmental Education: Vol. 11, No. 4, pp. 37-40.
Successful use of blunt microdissection catheter in a chronic total occlusion of a celiomesenteric artery.

Chronic mesenteric ischemia is often a disabling condition associated with intestinal angina, weight loss, and sitophobia (a morbid aversion of food). Significant stenosis of two of the three main arteries of the gut is usually required to produce symptoms. Surgical therapy has included reimplantation and bypass grafting, usually with synthetic conduits and occasionally endarterectomy. Newer techniques have made endovascular treatment an emerging modality in managing some of the difficult lesions in the mesenteric circulation that cause chronic mesenteric ischemia. We describe the first reported case of blunt microdissection using a Frontrunner XP® CTO Catheter (Lumend, Redwood City, CA) to successfully cross, subsequently wire and stent a four-year-old chronic total occlusions in a celiac trunk, which also gave origin to the superior mesenteric artery. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Experimental Control of the Activity of the Quiescent Centre in Excised Root Tips of Zea mays

Quiescent centres have been demonstrated in cultured excised root tips of both Pisum sativum and Zea mays. Upon addition of sucrose to Zea roots which have been deprived of carbohydrate, the cells of the quiescent zone as well as those of the rest of the meristem undergo DNA synthesis. Following the onset of proliferative activity in the meristem, DNA synthesis in the quiescent-centre cells is again arrested. It is suggested that the dividing cells of the meristem are responsible for the maintenance of the quiescent centre. It has also been shown that DNA-synthesising cells do occur within the quiescent centre and that they appear to be localised in specific regions.
A short intervention to encourage dental flossing may be more effective if the individual has already formed a behavioral intention to floss compared with an individual who has a more deliberative mindset.

Article Title and Bibliographic Information Effects of a short behavioural intervention for dental flossing: randomized-controlled trial on planning when, where and how. Schuz B, Wiedemann AU, et al. J Clin Periodontol 2009;36(6):498-505. Reviewer Hoda M. Abdellatif, BDS, MPH, DrPH Purpose/Question In adult patients, does planning intervention on dental flossing increase the frequency and acceptance of the behavior? Source of Funding Industry: Research Grant from Oral-B Gillette, Germany Type of Study/Design Randomized controlled trial Level of Evidence Level 2: Limited-quality, patient-oriented evidence Strength of Recommendation Grade Not applicable
Clinical and laboratory findings in childhoodmixed connective tissue disease: Presence of antibody to ribonucleoprotein containing the small nuclear ribonucleic acid U1

Seven children and adolescents are described with mixed connective tissue disease. The patients hadvarying clinical features, commonly characterized by Raynaud phenomenon, arthritis, abnormal pulmonary function, and esophageal dysmotility. All patients had speckled antinuclear antibodies and high titers (>1:100,000) of antibodies to ribonuclease-sensitive extractable nuclear antigen. We prepared extractable nuclear material from radioactively labeled HeLa cells, analogous to classic extractable nuclear antigen. Sera from all seven patients precipitated ribonucleoprotein containing the small nuclear ribonucleic acid species Ul from the HeLa cell extract. Antibody to U1 ribonucleoprotein was not found in sera from 51 of 53 children and adults having a variety of autoimmune and other diseases, nor in sera from nine normal individuals. The U1 ribonucleoprotein appears to be the component of extractable nuclear antigen characteristically reacting with sera from patients with mixed connective tissue disease. The finding of a distinct molecular marker in all children studied with mixed connective tissue disease indicates that this is a distinct disease entity and not a heterogeneous population of immune disorders.
Structure‐function relationships in rat brainstem subnucleus interpolaris: V. Functional consequences of neonatal infraorbital nerve section

In a prior study (Jacquin et al., '86c), the response properties and projections of neonatally axotomized trigeminal (V) primary afferents were studied in the adult rat. Here, single-unit recording, electrical stimulation, and receptive field (RF) mapping techniques were also used to assess the functional consequences of neonatal infraorbital nerve section upon postsynaptic cells in V brainstem subnucleus interpolaris (SpVi). Of 904 cells studied, 385 were from normal adults and 519 were from neonatally deafferented adults. Infraorbital nerve section at birth resulted in: (1) a substantial reduction in those areas of SpVi containing cells with infraorbital RFs, and only a slight increase in areas solely responsive to noninfraorbital surfaces, (2) an absence of orderly topography within cells expressing regenerate primary afferent inputs, (3) a slight increase in mean discharge latency to V ganglion or thalamic shocks, (4) an increased relative percentage of cells orthodromically activated by diencephalic or cerebellar shocks, (5) a decreased relative percentage of mystacial vibrissa-sensitive local circuit neurons, with a corresponding increase in local circuit nociceptors and unresponsive cells, (6) an increased relative percentage of mystacial nociceptors, vibrissae, guard hair, and/or skin sensitive cells projecting to thalamus and/or cerebellum, (7) an increased percentage of local circuit neurons with RFs including more than one vibrissa, whereas projection neurons did not differ from normal in the number of vibrissae composing their RFs, and (8) an increased relative percentage of cells expressing interdivisional and intermodality convergence, split RFs, spontaneous activity, directional, high velocity, and neuroma sensitivity. Thus neonatal nerve section produces changes in topography, inputs, projection status, and responses of surviving postsynaptic neurons. Although many of these centrally observed alterations can be attributed to altered peripheral projections in axotomized V primary afferents, others must reflect central reorganization. The central mechanisms responsible for the synthesis of deafferentation-induced RFs remain to be elucidated.
Numerical comparisons of panel methods at subsonic and supersonic speeds

Numerical comparisons between some recently developed surface panel methods and well-established methods are made to assess their accuracy at subsonic and supersonic speeds. The results at subsonic speeds indicate similar improvements for the methods investigated over the low order source method. At supersonic speeds, stable and accurate results were obtained with the surface panel methods. Significant differences between tangential mass flux and tangential velocity boundary conditions occurred, especially at low fineness ratios and higher Mach numbers. The advantages of the general source/doublet panel formulation at both subsonic and supersonic speeds are noted.
Land Multiple Attenuation - The Future is Bright

Summary The application of multiple elimination technology on land seismic data is not always straightforward. Contrary to marine environment, land multiple attenuation requires careful preprocessing and innovative thinking. A complex near-surface, combined with poor signal-to-noise and source/receiver coupling issues, are key obstacles which deteriorate the performance of multiple attenuation algorithms. In this paper, we briefly review model-based and data-driven algorithms for the suppression of multiple energy on land seismic data. We then propose a novel, model-based methodology rooted to the path-summation technology, which takes into account the unique characteristics of land seismic data. Finally, we conclude with some comments related to the new inverse data approach and its applicability for land multiple elimination. Model-Based Algorithms Model-based schemes for multiple attenuation are the “work horse” of any processing shop. They assume some degree of velocity discrimination between primaries and multiples and are commonly applied on NMO-corrected data in the CMP domain. The data (T) in the time-offset space is considered as a simple superposition of primaries (P), multiples (M), and noise (N). T = P + M + N
DI-MMAP: A High Performance Memory-Map Runtime for Data-Intensive Applications

We present DI-MMAP, a high-performance runtime that memory-maps large external data sets into an application's address space and shows significantly better performance than the Linux mmap system call. Our implementation is particularly effective when used with high performance locally attached Flash arrays on highly concurrent, latency-tolerant data-intensive HPC applications. We describe the kernel module and show performance results on a benchmark test suite and on a new bioinformatics metagenomic classification application. For the complex metagenomics classification application, DI-MMAP performs up to 4.88× better than standard Linux mmap.
Selected hormonal effects on protein secretion and amino acid uptake by acini from bovine mammary gland

Abstract 1. 1. Release of newly synthesized proteins from acini freshly isolated from lactating bovine ( Bos taurus ) mammary tissue was inhibited by cycloheximide. Millimolar concentrations of the cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase inhibitor theorphylline also inhibited release of protein from acini. 2. 2. Addition of either insulin or dibutyryl cyclic AMP to incubation medium stimulated release of newly synthesized protein from acini. Combinations of insulin and dibutyryl cyclic AMP were more effective than either alone. 3. 3. Cycloheximide inhibited uptake of the nonmetabolizable amino acid, 1-aminocyclopentane carboxylic acid (cycloleucine), by bovine mammary acini. Uptake of this amino acid was stimulated by inclusion of insulin and/or dibutyryl cyclic AMP in incubation medium.
Numerical simulation of the blast impact problem using the direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method

A particle approach using the Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method is used to solve the problem of blast impact with structures. A novel approach to model the solid boundary condition for particle methods is presented. The solver is validated against an analytical solution of the Riemann shocktube problem and against experiments on interaction of a planar shock with a square cavity. Blast impact simulations are performed for two model shapes, a box and an I-shaped beam, assuming that the solid body does not deform. The solver uses domain decomposition technique to run in parallel. The parallel performance of the solver on two Beowulf clusters is also presented.
SPIN ASSIGNMENTS IN THE 2p SHELL FROM J DEPENDENCE IN (d,p) ANGULAR DISTRIBUTIONS.

The empirically established $J$ dependence in ($d, p$) angular distributions is used to assign spin values to energy levels in the nuclei ${\mathrm{Ti}}^{47}$, ${\mathrm{Ti}}^{49}$, ${\mathrm{Ti}}^{51}$, ${\mathrm{Cr}}^{51}$, ${\mathrm{Fe}}^{59}$, and ${\mathrm{Ni}}^{65}$---most of which are populated by $l=1$ ($d, p$) transitions with large cross sections. The results are in general agreement with available nuclear-structure calculations.
Premalignant epithelium and microinvasive cancer of the vocal fold: The evolution of phonomicrosurgical management

Phonomicrosurgical treatment of premalignant vocal fold epithelium and microinvasive cancer combines principles of surgical oncology with advanced laryngoscopic microsurgical-techniques. This treatment is guided by mucosal-wave theory of voice production and strives not only to cure the disease but also to achieve optimal vocal function. Surgical techniques developed during the past two centuries have improved methods for vocal fold visualization, tissue retrieval, and tissue evaluation. Examination of the evolution of these surgical techniques reveals the incomplete convergence of laryngoscopic surgical theory with both the concept of premalignancy and the anatomical-physiological principles of voice production. This historical review, which helps to explain the lack of consensus about current treatment options, led to a series of four investigations. They were conducted with the aim of developing a laryngoscopic (phonomicrosurgical) management approach for improving the treatment of premalignant and microinvasive vocal fold epithelium. In the first of four investigations, 42 patients (each of whom had a significant smoking history) underwent microlaryngoscopic biopsy of 52 vocal fold lesions. These lesions, which were suspicious for atypia or malignancy and were confined to the musculomembranous vocal fold, were mapped according to surface involvement and depth of penetration. Review of the maps revealed that 27 of the 52 lesions involved only the superior/ventricular surface. For these patients, the entire layered vocal fold structure could potentially be preserved on the medial/vocalizing surface. Twenty-five of the 52 lesions involved both the superior/ventricular surface and the medial/vocalizing surface. No lesion involved only the medial surface. These data suggest that (in smokers) geographic localization of keratotic and erythroplastic lesions on the superior/ventricular surface of the musculomembranous vocal fold are likely to contain atypia. This characteristic facilitates the appropriate selection of patients for biopsy and may spare individuals, who have lesions resulting from hyperfunctional dysphonia and/or gastroesophageal reflux, from unnecessary biopsy. These two disorders typically result in pathology on the medial and/or posterior glottal surfaces. In order to determine whether a directed biopsy or an excisional biopsy approach is preferable for obtaining an accurate diagnosis, all specimens underwent whole-mount sectioning for three-dimensional histopathological analysis. Keratosis was noted: without atypia in 14; with atypia in 27; and with carcinoma in 11. The severity of the atypia usually varied throughout each specimen. The surface appearance of the lesion was not a reliable prognosticator of the severity of dysplasia either between patients or in different areas of the same lesion; therefore, excisional biopsy and whole-mount, multiple-section histopathological analysis were necessary for obtaining an accurate diagnosis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Future humidity trends over the western United States in the CMIP5 global climate models and variable infiltration capacity hydrological modeling system

Abstract. Global climate models predict relative humidity (RH) in the western US will decrease at a rate of about 0.1–0.6 percentage points per decade, albeit with seasonal differences (most drying in spring and summer), geographical variability (greater declines in the interior), stronger reductions for greater anthropogenic radiative forcing, and notable spread among the models. Although atmospheric moisture content increases, this is more than compensated for by higher air temperatures, leading to declining RH. Fine-scale hydrological simulations driven by the global model results should reproduce these trends. It is shown that the MT-CLIM meteorological algorithms used by the Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) hydrological model, when driven by daily Tmin, Tmax, and precipitation (a configuration used in numerous published studies), do not preserve the original global model's humidity trends. Trends are biased positive in the interior western US, so that strong RH decreases are changed to weak decreases, and weak decreases are changed to increases. This happens because the MT-CLIM algorithms VIC incorporates infer an overly large positive trend in atmospheric moisture content in this region, likely due to an underestimate of the effect of increasing aridity on RH. The result could downplay the effects of decreasing RH on plants and wildfire. RH trends along the coast have a weak negative bias due to neglect of the ocean's moderating influence. A numerical experiment where the values of Tdew are altered to compensate for the RH error suggests that eliminating the atmospheric moisture bias could, in and of itself, decrease runoff up to 14% in high-altitude regions east of the Sierra Nevada and Cascades, and reduce estimated Colorado River runoff at Lees Ferry up to 4% by the end of the century. It could also increase the probability of large fires in the northern and central US Rocky Mountains by 13 to 60%.
Bioelectric measurements in the frog lens

Abstract Three kinds of experiments are presented which suggest that fiber membranes deep in the lens are intact. In the first of these, Procion type dyes are electrophoretically infused into lenses of frogs through glass capillary microelectrodes. This dye stays within the confines of an individual fiber unless current levels are too large. In the second, double barrel microelectrodes are used to measure input resistances of individual fibers. The variability of repeat measurements from the same lens suggests different cells are being measured. Also, the charging times measured are compatible with the capacitance expected from a single lens fiber. These charging times are too brief to be compatible with the idea that the lens potential develops across a layer or two of superficial cells. In the third, potential differences profiles are measured as a glass microelectrode is driven into normal and hyperosmotic Ringer's treated lenses. In the hyperosmotic treated lenses, the electrode is found to pop in and out of individual fibers.
A methodology for controlling motion and constraint forces in holonomically constrained systems

Holonomic constraints are ubiquitous in multibody systems. We present an approach to effectively address the control of holonomically constrained systems using a novel decomposition of task, constraint, and posture space. In addition to providing a natural approach for motion control in the presence of constraints, this scheme also allows for concurrent specification of desired constraint forces, given sufficient actuation. It does this by exposing both motion coordinates and constraint forces within the control formalism, allowing for substantial flexibility in control synthesis. Implementations are presented based on a partitioning of the constraint forces into controlled and uncontrolled subsets, as well as a specification of implicit conditions on the constraint forces. A number of examples demonstrate the practical efficacy of the approach. Finally, a system-level methodology for constraint management during robot interactions with the environment is presented.
Response to comment on: Draznin et al. Pathways to quality inpatient management of hyperglycemia and diabetes: a call to action. Diabetes Care 2013;36:1807-1814.

We are pleased to hear from our British colleagues who agreed with our call to action to engage in more clinical research in order to generate data supporting the benefit of glycemic control in hospitalized patients with diabetes (1,2 …
Correlation of E. coli K-1 bacteremia and capsular polysaccharide antigenemia in acute and chronic infection

The K-1 polysaccharide is an important virulence factor in human E. coli infections. Using E. coli 016K1, we investigated the kinetic association of bacteremia and K-1 antigenemia in acute lapine and canine infections and in a chronic infection model of neutropenic rats. Additionally, we assessed the presence of K-1 antigenemia in E. coli K-1 bacteremic patients. K-1 was measured by a solid phase radioimmunoassay (RIA) using cross-reactive equine anti-Group B meningococcal IgM. In acute infections, none of the dogs or rabbits developed antigenemia even with a bacteremia of 2 X 10(4) CFU/ml or 5 X 10(5) CFU/ml, respectively. Antigenemia appeared in the rabbit only with an infecting dose of greater than or equal to 5 X 10(8) CFU. In the rat model we observed an initial bacteremia of 10(3) CFU/ml, which increased to 10(6) CFU/ml at 24 hrs. However, antigenemia was most often delayed, appearing in only greater than or equal to 30 hrs postinfection. Percent mortality was directly associated with the degree of bacteremia and antigenemia. In acute human E. coli K-1 bacteremia, 11 of 22 (50%) of patients were positive for K-1 antigenemia. The data demonstrated that K-1 polysaccharide was not usually detectable in the early stages of bacteremia, but occurred only after prolonged infection or very high infecting doses. The RIA to measure K-1 antigenemia would not be a useful diagnostic tool.
SORCE solar UV irradiance results

Abstract The Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment, SORCE, was launched in January 2003 and is now making the first comprehensive measurement of solar irradiance including both Total Solar Irradiance, TSI, together with spectral irradiance covering almost the entire electromagnetic spectrum of the Sun. The SORCE spectral observations extend from 0.1 to 2700 nm with only a portion of the EUV (35–115 nm) missing. Fortunately, the TIMED SEE instrument observes this missing EUV, and therefore, for the first time, the solar irradiance – both total and spectral – is being reported on a daily basis. This paper presents an overview of the SORCE spectral measurements with special emphasis on the UV and EUV ( λ
Simultaneous recording of pattern electroretinogram and visual evoked responses in neuro‐ophthalmologic disorders

Simultaneous pattern electroretinograms (P-ERG) and pattern visual evoked potentials (P-VEP) to transient and steady-state checkerboard pattern reversal were recorded in 52 normal volunteers. Twenty-seven patients were also studied. Three patterns of abnormalities emerged. Pattern 1 with prolonged P-ERG, prolonged P-VEP, and normal retino-cortical time (RCT) was found exclusively in early maculopathies. Pattern 2 with normal P-ERG, prolonged P-VEP, and prolonged RCT was found in optic nerve lesions without optic atrophy, probably indicating the presence of a demyelinating lesion of the optic nerve. Pattern 3, with very small or absent P-ERG and P-VEP, was observed in both maculopathies and optic atrophies.
A combined modal-joint space control approach for continuum manipulators

Continuum manipulators continue to gain popularity due to their ability to operate within difficult to reach environments, and their inherent safety characteristics. However, their flexible nature makes them prone to both steady-state positioning errors and undesirable vibrations. We propose a combined control system incorporating both a tracking position controller to reduce steady-state error, and a modal-space controller to improve the dynamic properties of the manipulator. To this end, we develop a lumped parameter model for use as a modal-space observer. Simulation results based on a planar two-segment manipulator and experimental results from a single-segment manipulator both show marked improvement using our combined approach. The improvements observed in both simulation and experimental results include reduced settling time, higher bandwidth trajectory control capability, and an improved response to external disturbances.
The use of survival analysis to examine sales force turnover of part-time and full-time sales employees

Abstract Part-time salespeople are becoming an important strategic sales tool for many firms and industries. There has been very little empirical work examining differences in part-time salespeople versus their full-time counterparts. It would seem intuitive that managerial strategies for the two groups must differ. Perhaps the most important variable that an organization must manage is turnover. Through the use of survival analysis, this study examines differences in turnover of an organization based on their full-time and part-time salespeople. The methodological implications of the survival analysis approach, and practical implications of analyzing full-time and part-time employees are discussed.
Substrate-selective and calcium-independent activation of CaMKII by α-actinin

Protein-protein interactions are thought to modulate the efficiency and specificity of Ca2+/calmodulin (CaM)-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) signaling in specific subcellular compartments. Here we show that the F-actin-binding protein α-actinin targets CaMKIIα to F-actin in cells by binding to the CaMKII regulatory domain, mimicking CaM. The interaction with α-actinin is blocked by CaMKII autophosphorylation at Thr-306, but not by autophosphorylation at Thr-305, whereas autophosphorylation at either site blocks Ca2+/CaM binding. The binding of α-actinin to CaMKII is Ca2+-independent and activates the phosphorylation of a subset of substrates in vitro. In intact cells, α-actinin selectively stabilizes CaMKII association with GluN2B-containing glutamate receptors and enhances phosphorylation of Ser-1303 in GluN2B, but inhibits CaMKII phosphorylation of Ser-831 in glutamate receptor GluA1 subunits by competing for activation by Ca2+/CaM. These data show that Ca2+-independent binding of α-actinin to CaMKII differentially modulates the phosphorylation of physiological targets that play key roles in long-term synaptic plasticity.
Listening Comprehension Strategies: A Review of the Literature

Abstract: Numerous studies related to listening comprehension strategies have been published in the past two decades. The present study seeks to build upon two previous reviews of listening comprehension strategies research. Of particular interest in this review are studies dealing with the types of cues used by listeners, the sequence of listening, differences between more- and less-proficient listeners, listening strategy instruction, strategies versus tactics, and identifying listening problems. This review first summarizes the findings of a number of studies in each of these areas. Based on these summaries, the review then posits some general conclusions and suggests directions for future research. The review demonstrates that listening comprehension strategies have been and continue to be a very fruitful area for researchers to explore.
Valyl-Transfer RNA: Role in Repression of the Isoleucine-Valine Enzymes in Escherichia coli.

α-Aminobutyric acid is activated but not transferred to valine-specific transfer RNA and is unable to repress the isoleucine-valine enzymes in Escherichia coli strain W. α-Amino-β-chlorobutyric acid is activated and transferred to valine-specific transfer RNA and completely replaces valine in repression.
Learning to build an IT innovation platform

IntroductionInformation Technology (IT) pervades every aspect of a firm's value chain as a vast electronic network of interconnected applications and data. Managers perceive the immense potential of this complex infrastructure to enhance products and processes and create altogether new ones. However, some have gone a step further and determined how to harness untapped IT business value again and again to create innovative and valuable applications by reconfiguring existing systems in new ways. Creative adaptation of existing functionality (such as broadband over power lines) to enable entirely new applications (such as real-time power grid monitoring) rules the day for these forward-thinking business leaders.What separates successful IT innovators from others? Is luck a primary driver, or are there deliberate actions that management can take to raise the odds of success? Given substantial implications for business performance, we set out to explore this question by interviewing senior IS and business executives with demonstrated track records of extracting untapped IT business value from existing IT infrastructural assets. Our objective was to uncover underlying mechanisms linking organizational actions with innovation outcomes.What we learned is that while serendipity can sometimes play a role, developing a specialized set of competencies, which we call an IT innovation platform, plays a much larger and decisive role. IT capabilities drive innovation by enabling organizations to redesign business processes, craft a competitive strategy, and identify and cater to customer preferences. As we discuss below, understanding what these competencies are, how they are developed, and how they work together holistically can yield significant new sources of growth and bolster performance. While our research is exploratory in nature and requires rigorous testing, we believe that this new perspective on IT business value expands managerial understanding of how to extract ever-greater value from existing IT assets.
Low CCR7-Mediated Migration of Human Monocyte Derived Dendritic Cells in Response to Human Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Human Metapneumovirus

Human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV) and, to a lesser extent, human metapneumovirus (HMPV) and human parainfluenza virus type 3 (HPIV3), can re-infect symptomatically throughout life without significant antigenic change, suggestive of incomplete or short-lived immunity. In contrast, re-infection by influenza A virus (IAV) largely depends on antigenic change, suggestive of more complete immunity. Antigen presentation by dendritic cells (DC) is critical in initiating the adaptive immune response. Antigen uptake by DC induces maturational changes that include decreased expression of the chemokine receptors CCR1, CCR2, and CCR5 that maintain DC residence in peripheral tissues, and increased expression of CCR7 that mediates the migration of antigen-bearing DC to lymphatic tissue. We stimulated human monocyte-derived DC (MDDC) with virus and found that, in contrast to HPIV3 and IAV, HMPV and HRSV did not efficiently decrease CCR1, 2, and 5 expression, and did not efficiently increase CCR7 expression. Consistent with the differences in CCR7 mRNA and protein expression, MDDC stimulated with HRSV or HMPV migrated less efficiently to the CCR7 ligand CCL19 than did IAV-stimulated MDDC. Using GFP-expressing recombinant virus, we showed that the subpopulation of MDDC that was robustly infected with HRSV was particularly inefficient in chemokine receptor modulation. HMPV- or HRSV-stimulated MDDC responded to secondary stimulation with bacterial lipopolysaccharide or with a cocktail of proinflammatory cytokines by increasing CCR7 and decreasing CCR1, 2 and 5 expression, and by more efficient migration to CCL19, suggesting that HMPV and HRSV suboptimally stimulate rather than irreversibly inhibit MDDC migration. This also suggests that the low concentration of proinflammatory cytokines released from HRSV- and HMPV-stimulated MDDC is partly responsible for the low CCR7-mediated migration. We propose that inefficient migration of HRSV- and HMPV-stimulated DC to lymphatic tissue contributes to reduced adaptive responses to these viruses.
Apartheid: Is There Any Hope Left in South Africa?

At the close of the nineteenth century the British explorer James Bryce pinpointed South Africa's primary problem: "Relations of the white race to the blacks constitute the gravest of difficulties which confront South Africa" (Bryce, 1899: 469). This is no less true nearly a century later, and the government harbors deep fear of a threat from within, from internal insurgency or terrorism. It is true that both the standard of living and the literacy rate of South African blacks are two to five times higher than those in any black-ruled country. Still, the most meaningful comparisons are not with Africans living in other countries and with whom the South African blacks never come in contact, but with the whites in adjacent cities whose relative prosperity is a visible, constant reminder of South African inequities.
Selective antimitochondrial agents inhibit calmodulin

Abstract Certain cationic-lipophilic compounds are known to selectively accumulate in tumor mitochondria and inhibit energy production. Since these substances bear a structural resemblance to known inhibitors of calmodulin, we studied whether rhodamine-123 or a bis-4-aminoquinaldinium could antagonize the action of calmodulin. Rhodamine-123 (IC50 = 58 μM) and dequalinium (IC50 = 1 μM) inhibited the activity of a calmodulin-stimulated cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase. Propylinium, a compound similar to dequalinium except for having a 3 rather than 10 carbon alkyl bridge connecting two non-substituted quinoline rings, had no inhibitory effect. Kinetic analysis showed that dequalinium competitively inhibited calmodulin's activation of phosphodiesterase. We also studied the antiproliferative effects of the compounds on the C6 astrocytoma cell line. Rhodamine-123 and dequalinium inhibited the proliferation of this cell line while propylinium had no effect. These studies demonstrate that rhodamine-123 and dequalinium are calmodulin-antagonists and inhibit cellular proliferation.
Chapter 1. Extension of the fundamental theorem of finite semigroups

Abstract This paper proves that some useful commutivity relations exist among semigroup wreath product factors that are either groups or combinatorial “units” U1, U2, or U3. Using these results it then obtains some characterizations of each of the classes of semigroups buildable from U1's, U2's, and groups (“buildable” meaning “dividing a wreath product of”). We show that up to division U1's can be moved to the right and U2's, and groups to the left over other units and groups, if it is allowed that the factors involved be replaced by their direct products, or in the case of U2, even by a wreath product. From this it is deduced that U1's and U2's do not affect group complexity, that any semigroup buildable from U1's, U2's, and groups has group complexity 0 or 1, and that all such semigroups can be represented, up to division, in a canonical form—namely, as a wreath product with all U1's on the right, all U2's on the left, and a group in the middle. This last fact is handy for developing characterizations. An embedding theorem for semigroups with a unique 0-minimal ideal is introduced, and from this and the commutivity results and some constructions proved for RLM semigroups, there is obtained an algebraic characterization for each class of semigroups that is a wreath product-division closure of some combination of U1's, U2's, and the groups. In addition it is shown, for i = 1,2,3, that if the unit Ui does not divide a semigroup S, then S can be built using only groups and units not containing Ui. Thus, it can be deduced that any semigroup which does not contain U3 must have group complexity either 0 or 1. This then establishes that indeed U3 is the determinant of group complexity, since it is already proved that both U1 and U2 are transparent with regard to the group complexity function, and it is known that with U3 (and groups) one can build semigroups with complexities arbitrarily large. Another conclusion is a combinatorial counterpart for the Krohn-Rhodes prime decomposition theorem, saying that any semigroups can be built from the set of units which divide it together with the set of those semigroups not having unit divisors. Further, one can now characterize those semigroups which commute over groups, showing a semigroup commutes to the left over groups iff it is “R1” (i.e., does not contain U1, i.e., is buildable form U2's and groups), and commutes to the right over groups iff it does not contain U2 (i.e., is buildable from groups and U1's). Finally, from the characterizations and their proofs one sees some ways in which groups can do the work of combinatorials in building combinatorial semigroups.
Evaluating a polymer concrete coating for protecting non-metallic underground facilities from sulfuric acid attack

Abstract Deteriorating underground facilities built with cement concrete and clay bricks require rapid in situ rehabilitation, and using coating as a corrosion protectant is one method currently being adopted. The performance of a polymer concrete coating was evaluated using a combination of full-scale and laboratory tests. The polyester-based polymer concrete coating had a density of 1.75 g/cm 3 (109 lb/ft 3 ) and hardness in the range 38–45 (Barcol hardness). A full-scale test on coating applicability and performance on the concrete substrate was performed under an external hydrostatic pressure of over 103 kPa (15 psi) of water, simulating the groundwater condition. Coated concrete cylinders and clay bricks with holidays (pinholes) were used to study the chemical resistance of the coating under acidic environments to represent the worst sewer and accelerated test conditions (ASTM G 20). Bond strength between the coating and the concrete/clay brick substrates were determined using the modified ASTM D 4541 test. The performance of the polymer concrete coating material was studied for over 3 years. The polymer concrete coating was applied with ease on dry and wet concrete surfaces. Test results showed that the polymer concrete coating had good bond strength with clay bricks and wet concrete surface. No failure was observed in 3 years with coated clay bricks. The coating extended the lifetime of dry and wet concrete by a factor of 29 and 71, respectively. The weight change of coated concrete was modeled using a film model.
Reflex control of the peripheral circulation

T HE purpose of the circulation is perfusion of tissues, and the major role of blood vessels in determining tissue perfusion must be appreciated. Knowledge of cardiovascular reflexes and neurohumoral control of the peripheral circulation has exploded in recent years. Despite the complexity of the control mechanisms, a greater understanding of their influence on the circulation in physiologic and in some pathologic states has been achieved. Reflex control of the peripheral circulation encompasses the neurohumoral regulation of every segment of the vascular tree. Its understanding requires knowledge of central nervous system (CNS) autonomic functions, of the coupling of the CNS with the various components and segments of the peripheral circulation, and of the modification of neurohumoral control of the circulation by local metabolic factors in the tissues. Central nervous system control is achieved through the autonomic system with its sympathetic and parasympathetic branches. The neural discharge from autonomic CNS neurons on the circulation is defined by three factors: (1) The continuous influx of afferent neural impulses that originate in the cardiovascular system as well as in other tissues and other parts of the CNS. The integration of these multiple inputs and their impact on the autonomic neurons are complex but important in the moment-to-moment regulation of vasomotor tone and the peripheral circulation. (2) The selectivity and nonuniformity of activation of the different efferent nerves of the autonomic system. Contrary to the old belief, efferent impulses
New approach to weighted subspace fitting using subspace perturbation expansions

ABSTRACT Weighted Subspace Fitting (WSF) is a method of estimating signal parameters from a subspace of a matrix of received data. WSF was originally derived using the asymptotic (large data length) statistics of sample eigenvectors. This paper presents a new approach to deriving statistically optimal weights for weighted subspace fitting (WSF) algorithms. The approach uses a formula called a "subspace perturbation expansion," which shows how the subspaces of a finite-size matrix change when the matrix elements are perturbed. The perturbation expansion is used to derivean optimal WSF cost function for estimating directions of arrival in array signal processing. The resulting costfunction is identical to that obtained using asymptotic statistics.Keywords : Subspace fitting , parameter estimation, D OA estimation , perturbation expansion 1. INTRODUCTION A  variety of parameter estimation problems in signal processing and system identification can be solved using"subspace" methods. These methods rely on the fact that a rank deficient matrix can be formed from noise-freedata. Furthermore, information about the signal or system parameters is embedded in the column space and/orrow space of this matrix. With noisy data, the appropriate subspace is estimated, usually with the singular valuedecomposition, and the parameters are extracted from the estimated subspace.A "subspace perturbation expansion" is a formula which shows how much of a subspace perturbation is inducedby additive noise in the data. This formula' is called a "subspace perturbation expansion." This formula was used
Simple compact quantum groups I

The notion of simple compact quantum group is introduced. As non-trivial (noncommutative and noncocommutative) examples, the following families of compact quantum groups are shown to be simple: (a) The universal quantum groups Bu(Q) for Q∈GL(n,C) satisfying QQ¯=±In, n⩾2; (b) The quantum automorphism groups Aaut(B,τ) of finite-dimensional C∗-algebras B endowed with the canonical trace τ when dim(B)⩾4, including the quantum permutation groups Aaut(Xn) on n points (n⩾4); (c) The standard deformations Kq of simple compact Lie groups K and their twists Kqu, as well as Rieffel's deformation KJ.
Reorientations of aromatic amino acids and their side chain models: anisotropy measurements and molecular dynamics simulations.

We present a study of reorientation dynamics of the three aromatic amino acids and their side chain models in aqueous solution. Experimentally, anisotropy decay measurements with picosecond time resolution were performed for blocked tryptophan, tyrosine, and phenyalanine and model compounds p-cresol and 3-methylindole. Computationally, rotational diffusion was modeled by molecular dynamics simulations for the three aromatic residues and their side chain models: benzene, toluene, phenol, p-cresol, indole, and 3-methylindole in explicit water. Our simulations used the CHARMM protein force field and associated TIP3P water model and tend to underestimate the rotational correlation times. However, the simulations yield several interesting qualitative insights into reorientational motions that complement the experimental measurements. The effects of substituent and temperature on reorientations of the parent compounds are well reproduced computationally. Additionally, simulations indicate strongly anisotropic r...
Continence-preserving anatomic radical retropubic prostatectomy: the "No-Touch" technique.

The technique of continence-preserving anatomic radical retropubic prostatectomy focuses on the preservation of the anatomic components of the external striated urethral sphincteric (EUS) complex. Three steps comprise this procedure for improving urinary control: 1) preservation of the anterolateral fascial attachments of the EUS, 2) protection of the innervation and the posterior fascial attachments of the EUS, and 3) avoidance of urethrovesical anastomotic sutures at the 5 and 7 oclock positions. Preserving the external striated urethral sphincter and its innervation by performing a continence-preserving anatomic retropubic prostatectomy fascilitates a shorter time period for achieving urinary continence.