cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Gas-phase acid-base chemistry and its effects on mass isotopomer abundance measurements of biomolecular ions

Various parameters which affect mass isotopomer abundance measurements of derivatives of palmitic acid ionized by electron ionization (EI) and electron-capture negative chemical ionization (ECNCI) were tested on a sector-field double-focusing mass spectrometer. Results on methyl palmitate ionized by EI are as follows: (i) sample size had a significant effect on mass isotopomer abundance ratios (MIARs); (ii) the electron multiplier gain of the detector also had an effect on MIARS ; and (iii) ion scattering by ion-neutral collisions in the mass analyzer did not appear to have any significant effect on MIARs (under standard analysis conditions). However, 'reagent' gas pressure (methane) had a significant effect on MIARs of pentafluorylbenzyl palmitate ionized by ECNCI. It was concluded that there are two compensatory effects which alter MIARs of methyl palmitate ionized by El: (i) gas-phase acid-base chemistry in the source (specifically, proton transfer between fragment cations and neutral molecules); and (ii) detector non-linearities, specifically, underestimation of less abundant isotopomers due to their signal disproportionately falling within the signal-to-noise ratio level of the electron multiplier. Gas-phase chemistry is the dominant cause of inaccuracy in MIAR measurements for large sample sizes, while detector non-linearity is the dominant cause of inaccuracy in MIAR measurements at small sample sizes. However, in a narrow intermediate range of sample size, these two effects balance each other and result in MIARs which are 'acceptable' when compared with the known MIAR values. It is emphasized that these two effects are present regardless of the type of mass analyzer used, e.g. quadrupole, sector-field. Improvements in the accuracy of MIAR measurements will require developments in mass spectrometry aimed at eliminating each of the contributory effects.
Violent conflict in Meta‘ society

A critical review of social structural approaches to violent conflict reveals a composite theoretical model that contrasts peaceful conflicting loyalties type societies with violent fraternal interest group type societies. Ethnohistorical data on warfare and fighting from a precolonial African society are used to illuminate relationships between violence and social structure more complex than any envisioned by advocates of the social structural approach. The analysis also yields a number of specific questions to be tested in cross-cultural research. [law, warfare, political organization, conflicting loyalties theory, Africa]
Pool boiling heat transfer enhancement over cylindrical tubes with water at atmospheric pressure, Part I: Experimental results for circumferential rectangular open microchannels

Abstract A two-part experimental study is conducted on pool boiling heat transfer over enhanced cylindrical microchannel test surfaces with water at atmospheric pressure. The objective of this work is to investigate the heat transfer enhancement and study the effects of geometric parameters on the pool boiling performance of the open microchannel surfaces over circular tubes. The effects of the horizontal and vertical orientation on heat transfer enhancement are also studied. In this part of the study, the results for the circumferential rectangular microchannels are presented. A maximum heat transfer coefficient of 129 kW/m2 K was achieved with test surface CRM3 in the horizontal orientation at a heat flux of 1095 kW/m2. The corresponding values for the vertical orientation are 109 kW/m2 K and 1093 kW/m2, respectively. The critical heat flux limit was also extended by a factor of 1.6 or more over a plain tube.
Conditions for invasion of synapse-forming HIV variants

Infection by Human Immunodeficiency Virus is a widespread cause of progressive immunodeficiency and death. The mechanisms of virus transmission and infection are well-documented from many experimental studies. These show that the infection of CD4+ T Cells by HIV happens by two distinct mechanisms: transmission by free viruses, and cell-cell transmission in which viral particles are transmitted directly across a tight junction or synapse between an infected and an uninfected cell. In this paper, a mathematical model of HIV transmission including both the free virus and cell-cell transmission pathways is introduced. A variation of this model is considered including two populations of virus. The first infects cells only by the free virus pathway, and the second infects cells by either the free virus or the cell-cell pathway. Steady-state and bifurcation analyses are performed on this model. A simple formula is presented describing the bifurcation point for local stability of a steady-state solution consisting entirely of the first viral subtype. This is equivalent to the conditions for invasion by a synapse-forming HIV variant. Synapse-forming HIV is shown to provide an evolutionary advantage relative to non synapse-forming virus when the average number of virus transmitted across a synapse is a sufficiently small fraction of the burst size. The exact bifurcation point depends on the fitness of the non synapse-forming virus and the likelihood of successful infection as a function of multiplicity of infection. These results are important for understanding synaptic transmission in HIV, which has been identified as a possible cause of continued replication during antiviral therapy.
Growth factor and receptor modulations in rat liver by choline-methionine deficiency☆☆☆

The essential roles of dietary choline in maintaining proper cellular and biological functions of various organs have been well characterized? ,2 Thus, it is not surprising to observe that its lack in the diet, resulting in a state of methyl deficiency, induces a variety of anatomical lesions in many organs of a wide variety of experimental animals. 3 The deficiency state also alters the responses of animals to various exogenous stimuli. One of the most extensively studied areas of modified host responses to external stimuli in methyl deficiency is its effects on processes of cancer development. It has indeed become evident from the results of many experimental studies conducted during the past 50 years that a choline-methionine (methyl-deficient) diet acts not only as a complete carcinogen in several species of animals, but also as a strong cocarcinogen and an efficient tumor promoter. 3,4,5 Even though the carcinogenicity of a methyl-deficient diet has been demonstrated in many organs, such as liver, pancreas, lung, and urinary bladder, except for the liver, its carcinogenicity is questionable? The target organs of the cocarcinogenic and promoting effects of the diet are limited to the liver with a few exceptions. 6 Many of the pathological lesions caused by choline deficiency are the consequence of disturbances of three major biological functions of choline. It is an essential component of phospholipids, it serves as a methyl donor in transmethylation reactions, and it is a precursor of acetyl-choline. The roles of a modified methylation state of cellular macromolecules in the pathogenesis of various lesions induced by choline-methionine deficiency, including modified carcinogenesis, have been dis-
Depositional Anticlines of Continental Margins and Their Oil-Producing Counterparts: ABSTRACT

Oceanic wind-driven currents such as the Gulf Stream have shaped immense depositional anticlines at the distal edges of detrital source areas along the present and past continental margins. These currents generally parallel the continents with high velocities, commonly sweeping to the base of the slopes. In contrast, the deeper geostrophic currents shape the continental rises as they move slowly along topographic strike. Occasionally, both systems are intersected by turbidity currents flowing down the margins at extremely high velocities. A striking example of wind-driven current deposition occurs in the Florida Strait where calcareous sands from the Florida reef vicinity are swept along a trough by the Gulf Stream and then onto a broad anticlinal rise. A similar slope-trough-rise profile is observed at the Anton Dohrn Seamount where the North Atlantic Current has shaped another rise from the available sediments as it veers around this buttress. A wind-driven current origin can plausibly explain the Poza Rica trend in Mexico. As the Golden Lane reef contributed its Tamabra talus downslope into swift currents of the Chicontepec foredeep, anticlines were shaped at the base of the slope, simulating the Anton Dohrn Seamount. Significant reserves in anticlines formed by wind-driven currents will be found beyond the reefs and laterally away from the deltas in the "poor" environment where the subtle slope-trough-rise has been unrecognized. Reservoirs such as Poza Rica attest to the excellent structural, reservoir, and source qualities which can be realized in an inspired search for such targets. End_of_Article - Last_Page 625------------
Electrical conduction in UO2+x

Abstract The temperature dependence of electrical conductivity in UO2+x has been measured in the temperature range 800–1340 K. It is suggested that an electrical current is carried by positive holes in the 2p band of oxygen, produced by the transfer of electrons to the vacant 5f band in U+5 ions associated with defect complexes.
A Survey of Soil Attributes in North Dakota by Landscape Position

Land surveys of soil attributes can provide valuable information on the geographic distribution of important soil attributes and summarize the levels found. Landscape position can have a major influence on soil attributes. Consideration of field landscape variables in selecting sampling locations and interpreting results, even in large-scale surveys, should help to reduce unexplained variability in many soil attributes. We report the results of a survey of selected soil attributes in agricultural fields across North Dakota at sites selected within each field by landscape position. Our objective was to determine if this sampling design might contribute to a better understanding of the distribution of soil attributes. Soils from two or three fields within each of the 53 counties of North Dakota were sampled in 1996. Within each field, three samples of surface soil (0–15 cm) were obtained. One sample was collected from an upland position, one from a slope, and one from a depression. Each field was georeferenced using a differentially corrected GPS receiver. The samples were analyzed for DTPA (diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid)-extractable Cu, Zn, and Cd; water soluble B and Se; and soil pH. Mapping and analysis showed distinct regional patterns of all soil factors. Some soil attributes, including pH and extractable Zn, Cu, and Cd, exhibited a strong relationship to field landscape position, while soluble B and Se were less related. The results suggest that separating field sampling locations into upland, sloping, and depressional areas will reduce the confounding effects of field landscape position on larger-scale spatial trends in soil attributes.
Epiphytic Macroinvertebrates as a Food Resource for Bluegills in Florida Lakes

Abstract Biomass of aquatic macrophytes, densities of benthic and epiphytic macroinvertebrates, and the food consumed by bluegills Lepomis macrochirus 75 mm in total length and longer were quantified and compared in different macrophyte communities in February, April, June, and August 1983 in two Florida lakes (referred to as community-date comparisons). Densities of benthic macroinvertebrates ranged from 88 to 1,933 individuals/m2. Densities of epiphytic macroinvertebrates ranged from 721 to 34,379 individuals above 1 m2 of bottom and were 30–99% of the total macro-invertebrates in and above the bottom. The composition of the bluegill diet was positively related (P ≤ 0.05) to the epiphytic macroinvertebrate assemblages in 13 of the 15 possible community-date comparisons but not related to the benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in any community-date comparisons. The greater similarity of the bluegill diets to the epiphytic than to the benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages suggested that bluegills obtai...
MINIMIZATION OF STEROIDS IN KIDNEY TRANSPLANTATION

The goal of steroid minimization trials has been to minimize or eliminate steroid-related side-effects while simultaneously not increasing the rate of acute rejection (AR) and chronic graft loss. Early trials of late steroid withdrawal (> or =3 months post-transplant) were associated with significantly increased AR rates and late graft loss. More recent trials of rapid discontinuation of prednisone (RDP) (< or =7 days post-transplant) have been associated with little or no increase in AR rates and no difference in graft survival (versus maintenance prednisone). Of note, induction therapy appears to be important for success; however, it is not clear if any single maintenance protocol is superior. Intermediate-term follow-up (5-7 years) is now available for some randomized and nonrandomized trials; graft survival and renal function remain excellent. Most of these trials have been done in low immunologic risk recipients, but there are reports of success of RDP in children, black recipients, sensitized recipients, recipients with potentially recurring disease, and kidney-pancreas recipients. Of critical importance, steroid-related side-effects have been minimized. Steroid minimization protocols can clearly be recommended for low-risk patients; additional trials are necessary for those at higher risk. Additional research is also necessary on integrating calcineurin inhibitor minimization with steroid minimization.
Identifying and quantifying prey consumption using stomach temperature change in pinnipeds.

SUMMARY For many marine predators knowledge of foraging behavior is limited to inferences based on changes in diving or movement patterns at sea. This results in an incomplete and potentially inaccurate view of the foraging ecology of a species. This study examined the use of stomach temperature telemetry to identify and quantify prey consumed in both a phocid (northern elephant seal Mirounga angustirostris) and an otariid (California sea lion Zalophus californianus) species. In addition, we used opportunistic water consumption by northern elephant seals to test a method to distinguish between prey and water ingestion. Over 96% of feedings could be identified based on a decline in stomach temperature, even when meals were separated by as little as 70 min. Water consumption was distinguishable from prey consumption, as the rate of recovery in stomach temperature was significantly faster for water (F1,142=79.2, P<0.01). However, using this method, the overlap in recovery rates between prey and water resulted in 30.6% of water ingestion events being misclassified as prey ingestion. For both species, the integral calculated from the decline in stomach temperature over time (area above the curve) could be used to estimate mass consumed, when adjusted for the temperature difference between the prey and core body temperature. For California sea lions, there was a significant effect of individual on the ability to quantify prey consumed, which was not related to their mass or sex. Although many factors may influence the ability to use stomach temperature change to identify and quantify prey consumed, this study has shown measures of stomach temperature can accurately identify prey consumption and provide an estimate of meal mass, allowing for a greater understanding of the feeding behavior of marine mammals.
5th International Conference of Animal Health Information Specialists (ICAHIS)

Purpose – A Conference Report from the 5th International Conference of Animal Health Information Specialists held for the first time on the African continent. To inform library colleagues about this specialty area of librarianship, the literature, concerns and work of animal science and veterinary librarians. The international scope of this meeting reinforced the importance.Design/methodology/approach – Description of conference content and introduction of speakers and participants.Findings – Information needs of animal health information specialists around the world appear to be the same but the digital divide is very significant with practitioners in Africa with issues concerning bandwidth, connectivity, local economies and other access related concerns continue to experience an information delivery gap.Research limitations/implications – Suggests the technological and access concerns of this special librarian population.Practical implications – Awareness and networking for this relatively small group o...
NUCLEOSIDE PHOSPHATASE AND CHOLINESTERASE ACTIVITIES IN DORSAL ROOT GANGLIA AND PERIPHERAL NERVE

In dorsal root ganglia and peripheral nerve of the rat and other species, nucleoside phosphatase and unspecific cholinesterase reaction products are found in the plasma membranes and spaces between them at two sites: (1) Schwann cell-axon interfaces and mesaxons of unmyelinated fibers, and (2) sheath cell-perikaryon interfaces and interfaces between adjacent sheath cells. Acetylcholinesterase reaction product is found in the perikaryon (within the endoplasmic reticulum) and the axon (axoplasmic surface). Nucleoside phosphatase reaction product is also found in the numerous vacuoles at the surface of perineurium cells, ganglion sheath cells, and cells surrounding some ganglion blood vessels. Nucleoside phosphatase activities in the sections fail to respond, in the manner described for "transport ATPase," to diisopropylphosphofluoridate, sodium and potassium ions, and ouabain. Nucleoside diphosphates are hydrolyzed more slowly than triphosphates in unmyelinated fibers, and are not hydrolyzed at the perikaryon surface. Nucleoside monophosphates are either not hydrolyzed or hydrolyzed very slowly. In contrast to these localizations, which are believed to demonstrate sites of enzyme activity, it is considered likely that diffusion artifacts account for the nucleoside phosphatase reaction product frequently found along the outer surfaces of myelinated fibers and within vacuoles at the Schwann cell surfaces of these fibers. The diffuse reaction product seen in basement membranes of ganglion and nerve may also be artifact.
The Nucleus of the Optic Tract: Its Function in Gaze Stabilization and Control of Visual‐Vestibular Interaction

1. Electrical stimulation of the nucleus of the optic tract (NOT) induced nystagmus and after-nystagmus with ipsilateral slow phases. The velocity characteristics of the nystagmus were similar to those of the slow component of optokinetic nystagmus (OKN) and to optokinetic after-nystagmus (OKAN), both of which are produced by velocity storage in the vestibular system. When NOT was destroyed, these components disappeared. This indicates that velocity storage is activated from the visual system through NOT. 2. Velocity storage produces compensatory eye-in-head and head-on-body movements through the vestibular system. The association of NOT with velocity storage implies that NOT helps stabilize gaze in space during both passive motion and active locomotion in light with an angular component. It has been suggested that "vestibular-only" neurons in the vestibular nuclei play an important role in generation of velocity storage. Similarities between the rise and fall times of eye velocity during OKN and OKAN to firing rates of vestibular-only neurons suggest that these cells may receive their visual input through NOT. 3. One NOT was injected with muscimol, a GABAA agonist. Ipsilateral OKN and OKAN were lost, suggesting that GABA, which is an inhibitory transmitter in NOT, acts on projection pathways to the brain stem. A striking finding was that visual suppression and habituation of contralateral slow phases of vestibular nystagmus were also abolished after muscimol injection. The latter implies that NOT plays an important role in producing visual suppression of the VOR and habituating its time constant. 4. Habituation is lost after nodulus and uvula lesions and visual suppression after lesions of the flocculus and paraflocculus. We postulate that the disappearance of vestibular habituation and of visual suppression of vestibular responses after muscimol injections was due to dysfacilitation of the prominent NOT-inferior olive pathway, inactivating climbing fibers from the dorsal cap to nodulouvular and flocculoparafloccular Purkinje cells. The prompt loss of habituation when NOT was inactivated, and its return when the GABAergic inhibition dissipated, suggests that although VOR habituation can be relatively permanent, it must be maintained continuously by activity of the vestibulocerebellum.
Ethnicity serostatus and psychosocial differences in sexual risk behavior among HIV-seropositive and HIV-seronegative women.

Childhood sexual abuse and related life traumas, and other psychosocial variables were investigated as contributors to ethnic differences in sexual risk behaviors among women who differed in HIV-serostatus. A multiethnic sample of 457 HIV-positive and HIV-negative women residing in Los Angeles county was recruited and studied over 2 years as part of the UCLA–Charles R. Drew University Women and Family Project (WFP) study. Comprehensive interviews were administered to participants by ethnically- and linguistically matched interviewers. Data on demographic information, sexual trauma, substance abuse/dependence, psychiatric distress, and sexual history and risk behaviors were collected. The sample for these analyses consisted of 155 African American, 153 European American, and 149 Latina women, and nearly two-thirds of the sample was HIV-seropositive. HIV-positive women were significantly more likely to report more posttraumatic stress, chronic stress, negative health behaviors, drug use, and psychiatric history than HIV-negative women. European American and African American women were more likely to report a history of sexual trauma than Latina women. Finally, Poisson regression analyses revealed that history of trauma, ethnicity, drug and alcohol use, homelessness, and being HIV-positive were associated with greater likelihood of engaging in high-risk sexual behaviors, with history of trauma increasing the likelihood of engaging in high-risk behaviors by 5.1%. These findings highlight important differences among women as a function of ethnicity and HIV status, and underscore the need for special services for HIV-positive women that address the risk-enhancing effects of substance abuse/dependence, homelessness, and sexual trauma.
Phenotypic Variation in Functional Disorders of Defecation

Background & Aims: Although obstructed defecation is generally attributed to pelvic floor dyssynergia, clinical observations suggest a wider spectrum of anorectal disturbances. Our aim was to characterize phenotypic variability in constipated patients by anorectal assessments. Methods: Anal pressures, rectal balloon expulsion, rectal sensation, and pelvic floor structure (by endoanal magnetic resonance imaging) and motion (by dynamic magnetic resonance imaging) were assessed in 52 constipated women and 41 age-matched asymptomatic women. Phenotypes were characterized in patients by principal components analysis of these measurements. Results: Among patients, 16 had a hypertensive anal sphincter, 41 had an abnormal rectal balloon expulsion test, and 20 had abnormal rectal sensation. Forty-nine patients (94%) had abnormal pelvic floor motion during evacuation and/or squeeze. After correcting for age and body mass index, 3 principal components explained 71% of variance between patients. These factors were weighted most strongly by perineal descent during evacuation (factor 1), anorectal location at rest (factor 2), and anal resting pressure (factor 3). Factors 1 and 3 discriminated between controls and patients. Compared with patients with normal (n = 23) or reduced (n = 18) perineal descent, patients with increased (n = 11) descent were more likely (P ≤ .01) to be obese, have an anal resting pressure >90 mm Hg, and have a normal rectal balloon expulsion test result. Conclusions: These observations demonstrate that functional defecation disorders comprise a heterogeneous entity that can be subcharacterized by perineal descent during defecation, perineal location at rest, and anal resting pressure. Further studies are needed to ascertain if the phenotypes reflect differences in the natural history of these disorders.
Effect of exchange on shallow-impurity calculations

The Thomas-Fermi-Dirac (TFD) screening equation is constructed for the exchange-correlation potential expressed in the $X\ensuremath{\alpha}$ approximation. The TFD equation is then solved in closed form in the linearized TFD approximation. The shallow-donor impurity ionization energy is then calculated using the linearized TFD screening function and including the exchange potential in the $X\ensuremath{\alpha}$ approximation.
Variable metric and conjugate direction methods in unconstrained optimization: recent developments

This paper discusses and summarizes three topics that are of current interest in the theory of unconstrained optimization. It treats variable metric algorithms that minimize convex quadratics in a finite number of steps without performing linear searches, variable metric and conjugate direction algorithms that minimize nonquadratics in a finite number of steps, and numerically stable variable metric updating formulas.
Concomitant protein phosphorylation and endogenous acetylcholine release induced by nicotine: dependency on neuronal nicotinic receptors and desensitization.

1. Nicotine stimulated two Ca2+-dependent processes in rat frontal cortex synaptosomes: the phosphorylation of an 80-kDa protein band and the release of endogenous ACh.3 Both effects were mediated by neuronal nAChRs and coincided with depolarization of the synaptosomal plasma membrane induced by the drug. Changes in the state of phosphorylation of the 80-kDa band (presumed to contain synapsin I) were correlated with changes in the release of ACh as follows, from 2 to 4. 2. Blockade of predominant, nerve terminal P-type Ca2+ channels with ω-agatoxin-IVA, did not prevent nicotine from stimulating ACh release. In contrast, exposure to the toxin partially inhibited the release promoted by the depolarizing agent veratridine and attenuated protein phosphorylation induced by either nicotine or veratridine. Taken together, these data suggest that, upon nicotine stimulation, Ca2+ enters nerve terminals through two distinct pathways. The first, via Ca2+ channels, is necessary (but not sufficient) for both nicotine-induced phosphorylation and ACh release. The second, both necessary and sufficient for nicotine-induced phosphorylation and release, is the neuronal nAChR itself. 3. Preincubation of the synaptosomes with a subeffective concentration of nicotine inactivated both nicotine-induced ACh liberation and phosphorylation. This shows that diminished release is associated to decreased phosphorylation of the 80-kDa protein band, most likely as a consequence of nicotine-promoted nAChR desensitization. 4. Augmented ACh release and phosphorylation of the 80-kDa protein band were achieved by using the protein phosphatase inhibitor okadaic acid. However, okadaic acid did not summate with either nicotine or veratridine to increase ACh release further. This is probably because okadaic acid, as in other neurons, increases intracellular Ca2+ (Cholewinskiet al., 1993), thus promoting desensitization of ACh release.
Cognitive radios and the vehicular cloud

Cognitive Radios can sense the radio environment and can dynamically reconfigure their parameters to best support the user needs. This "intelligence" has been made possible in part by recent advances in Software Defined Radios. An important motivation for using Cognitive Radios has been mobility. Mobile Cognitive Radios can dynamically adjust to new environments and mission needs. An example is the multibillion dollar JTRS (Joint Tactical Radio System) project. Recently, Cognitive Radios have been engaged in making efficient use of the scarce spectrum, for example, exploiting White Spectrum and opportunistically sharing allocated but underutilized spectrum (Dynamic Spectrum Sharing). The crowded spectrum is a critical problem in urban environment and effects the deployment of new Vehicular Applications. In this talk we briefly review the evolution of cognitive radios in commercial environments. We then propose the aggressive use of Cognitive Radio technologies to allow vehicles to open "radio trails" in the urban grid and advocate the development of a "cognitive spectrum service" for the Vehicular Cloud.
Progressive motor neuron disease associated with electrical injury

A patient in perfect health prior to electrical shock developed an ALS-like syndrome after the shock. Onset of the disease occurred in the limb through which the shock entered, and subsequently followed a course well-described in previous case reports. Possible mechanisms of disease are discussed.
A typology of international human resource management in Japanese multinational corporations: Organizational implications

This article outlines a typology of approaches to the design of international human resource management (HRM) systems in multinational corporations based on a ten-year study of Japanese affiliates in the United States, Europe, and Asia. After outlining four different approaches based on the dimensions of parent company imprint, problem attribution, and diffusion of HRM innovations, the article discusses the implications for organizations in the areas of flexibility, organizational learning, integration and coordination, and cost. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
A computer science minor for engineering and science students

There has been a great demand for scientists and engineers to become thoroughly acquainted with the application of digital computers to their discipline areas. As a result, engineering and science majors have been interested in complimenting their programs with a minor in Computer Science. Traditionally, minor programs required a specific number of thematically related courses in the minor discipline. However, this traditional approach does not necessarily fulfill the real demands of the students involved in Computer Science. A suggested minor program is presented with a review of experiences.
Application of the Island Blister Test for Thin Film Adhesion Measurement

Abstract The island blister test has recently been proposed as an adhesion test which allows the peel of thin, well-adhered films without exceeding the tensile strength of the film. The island blister test site is a modification of the standard blister test site, consisting of a suspended membrane of film with an “island” of substrate at the film center. The membrane support and island are secured to a rigid plate and the film is pressurized, peeling the film inward off the island. A model for this inward or “annular” peel indicates that even for systems of good adhesion, peel can be initiated at low enough pressures to prevent film failure by making the center island sufficiently small relative to the size of the film. We have fabricated island blister test sites using micromachining techniques and have used them to measure the debond energy of polymer films on various substrates. The peel data obtained from these island sites match well to the behavior predicted by a simple fracture mechanics analysis. ...
Induction of transplantation tolerance to fully mismatched cardiac allografts by T cell mediated delivery of alloantigen

Induction of transplantation tolerance has the potential to allow for allograft acceptance without the need for life-long immunosuppression. Here we describe a novel approach that uses delivery of alloantigen by mature T cells to induce tolerance to fully allogeneic cardiac grafts. Adoptive transfer of mature alloantigen-expressing T cells into myeloablatively conditioned mice results in long-term acceptance of fully allogeneic heart transplants without evidence of chronic rejection. Since myeloablative conditioning is clinically undesirable we further demonstrated that adoptive transfer of mature alloantigen-expressing T cells alone into mice receiving non-myeloablative conditioning resulted in long-term acceptance of fully allogeneic heart allografts with minimal evidence of chronic rejection. Mechanistically, tolerance induction involved both deletion of donor-reactive host T cells and the development of regulatory T cells. Thus, delivery of alloantigen by mature T cells induces tolerance to fully allogeneic organ allografts in non-myeloablatively conditioned recipients, representing a novel approach for tolerance induction in transplantation.
Optimising the Linda in primitive: understanding tuple-space run-times

ABSTRACT In this paper we examine tuple space systems from a distributed viewpoint. We show that current implementations are pessimistic about the timing of removal of tuples from a tuple space when an in is performed; this leads to agents having to unnecessarily block and to lowering systems performance. After providing evidence of the problem by examining distributed execution traces we then describe an implementation strategy that is highly e cient and is more optimistic about tuple removal. We discuss also the generalisation of the approach to support other primitives, which have been proposed as additions to Linda, such as the collect and copy-collect primitives.
The Role of Verbal Repetition in the Development of Infant Speech Preferences From 4 to 14 Months of Age

Four experiments investigated infants' preferences for age-appropriate and age-inappropriate infant-directed speech (IDS) over adult-directed speech (ADS). Two initial experiments showed that 6-, 10-, and 14-month-olds preferred IDS directed toward younger infants, and 4-, 8-, 10-, and 14-month-olds, but not 6-month-olds, preferred IDS directed toward older infants. In Experiment 3. 6-month-olds preferred IDS directed toward older infants when the frequency of repeated utterances matched IDS to younger infants. In Experiment 4, 6-month-olds preferred repeated IDS utterances over the same IDS utterances organized without repetition. Attention to repeated utterances precedes word segmentation and sensitivity to statistical cues in continuous speech, and might play a role in the discovery of these and other aspects of linguistic structure.
Diffuse Scattering from Defect Clusters near Bragg Reflections

The diffuse scattering from crystals containing defect clusters with strong displacement fields has been calculated. The scattering is extremely large and concentrated in small regions near the Bragg reflections. For small concentrations the diffuse intensity is essentially determined by a "cluster form factor" depending explicitly on the displacement field. The scattering is studied in detail for small and large deviations from the Bragg reflection. Exact expressions are given for the moments of the scattering, depending sensitively on the displacement field in the core of the cluster. The diffuse scattering for strong displacement fields shows a pronounced asymmetry; its center does not coincide with the position of the Bragg peak, in agreement with recent experimental observations.
Multilevel fast-multipole algorithm for solving combined field integral equations of electromagnetic scattering

The fast multipole method (FMM) has been implemented to speed up the matrix-vector multiply when an iterative method is used to solve the combined field integral equation (CFIE). FMM reduces the complexity from O(N2) to O(N1.5). With a multilevel fast multipole algorithm (MLFMA), it is further reduced to O(N log N). A 110, 592-unknown problem can be solved within 24 h on a SUN Sparc 10. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Connectomics signature for characterizaton of mild cognitive impairment and schizophrenia

Human connectomes constructed via neuroimaging data offer a comprehensive description of the macro-scale structural connectivity within the brain. Thus quantitative assessment of connectome-scale structural and functional connectivities will not only fundamentally advance our understanding of normal brain organization and function, but also have significant importance to systematically and comprehensively characterize many devastating brain conditions. In recognition of the importance of connectome and connectomics, in this paper, we develop and evaluate a novel computational framework to construct structural connectomes from diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data and assess connectome-scale functional connectivity alterations in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and schizophrenia (SZ) from concurrent resting state fMRI (R-fMRI) data, in comparison with their healthy controls. By applying effective feature selection approaches, we discovered informative and robust functional connectomics signatures that can distinctively characterize and successfully differentiate the two brain conditions of MCI and SZ from their healthy controls (classification accuracies are 96% and 100%, respectively). Our results suggest that connectomics signatures could be a general, powerful methodology for characterization and classification of many brain conditions in the future.
Evaluation of sand‐alumina‐P media for studies of P nutrition 1

Abstract Sand cultures in which P is supplied by a solid‐phase buffer offer several advantages in studies of P nutrition. Phosphorus concentrations may be maintained at realistically low levels, P supply can be localized in the medium, and roots can readily be removed from sand. However, information on pH, P adsorption and P desorption is needed to use solid‐phase buffers effectively to simulate P supply in soil. Experiments were conducted to characterize the effects of acid washing treatments and P concentration on P adsorption by alumina, and subsequent desorption of P from alumina‐P. Increasing the concentration of H in acid washing treatments decreased the equilibrium desorption P concentration and solution pH for any given adsorption P concentration. Increasing P concentration of adsorption solution led to increasing P concentration and pH of desorption solutions. Further experiments were conducted to determine the effect of percentage alumina‐P in sand‐alumina‐P mixtures on P concentration in the so...
Kink densities along a crystal surface step at low temperatures and under nonequilibrium conditions

The kink density along a (01) step on the (001) face of a Kossel crystal is derived from a kinetic steady state approach by considering the elementary events at the step. When the thermal energy kT is small compared with the kink formation energy ϵ, the kink density, ϱ, is found to be a function of the saturation ratio, S. For S>1, ϱ = 2a-1S12 exp(-ϵ/kT), whil S <1, ϱ = 2a-1 exp(-ϵ/kT)/(2-S)12. At S = 1, both equations reduce to the expression obtained by statistical thermodynam arguments. The limiting rate laws for growth and dissolution of a vicinal surface with steps originating from a screw dislocation are also obtained. The current finding may provide a theoretical background for interpreting the observed growth and dissolution kinetics for many sparingly soluble salts in aqueous solutions.
Wildfire Impacts on Red Imported Fire Ant Captures Around Forest Ponds in the Lost Pines Ecoregion of Texas

The impacts of high-intensity wildfires on red imported fire ant Solenopsis invicta abundances in forest systems are currently unknown. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a high-intensity wildfire around pond edges on red imported fire ant captures in the Lost Pines ecoregion of Texas, which provides habitat for most of the remaining endangered Houston toads Bufo houstonensis. The red imported fire ant is a known predator of Houston toads, and thus there is interest in understanding the potential and realized impacts of this species on Houston toad survivorship. Our results suggest the wildfire did not directly impact captures-per-unit-effort, but it had indirect positive impacts through reductions in canopy cover due to overstory tree mortality. The results of this study indicate that both area occupied by red imported fire ants and site-specific red imported fire ant densities could increase dramatically in the Lost Pines as a result of the wildfire and subsequent human-based recovery efforts.
Psychosocial Care for Family Caregivers of Patients With Cancer

Purpose To understand family caregivers' needs for better preparation and care, this state-of-the-science review examines the effect of caregiving on the health and well-being of caregivers, the efficacy of research-tested interventions on patient and caregiver outcomes, implications of the research on policy and practice, and recommendations for practice and future research. Methods We reviewed research that described the multiple effects of cancer on caregivers' well-being. Five meta-analyses were analyzed to determine the effect of interventions with caregivers on patient and caregiver outcomes. In addition, we reviewed legislation such as the Affordable Care Act and the Family Leave Act along with current primary care practice to determine whether family caregivers' needs have been addressed. Results Research findings indicate that caregiver stress can lead to psychological and sleep disturbances and changes in caregivers' physical health, immune function, and financial well-being. Research-tested int...
An Engineering-to-Biology Thesaurus for Engineering Design

Engineering design is considered a creative field that involves many activities with the end goal of a new product that fulfills a purpose. Utilization of systematic methods or tools that aid in the design process is recognized as standard practice in industry and academia. The tools are used for a number of design activities (i.e., idea generation, concept generation, inspiration searches, functional modeling) and can span across engineering disciplines, the sciences (i.e., biology, chemistry) or a non-engineering domain (i.e., medicine), with an overall focus of encouraging creative engineering designs. Engineers, however, have struggled with utilizing the vast amount of biological information available from the natural world around them. Often it is because there is a knowledge gap or terminology is difficult, and the time needed to learn and understand the biology is not feasible. This paper presents an engineering-to-biology thesaurus that affords engineers, with limited biological background, a tool for leveraging nature’s ingenuity. The thesaurus aids in many steps of the design process and increases the probability of a creative, analogical design. Biological terms in the thesaurus are correlated to the engineering domain through pairing with a synonymous function or flow term of the Functional Basis lexicon, which supports functional modeling and abstract representation of any functioning system. The version of the thesaurus presented in this paper represents an integration of three independent research efforts, which include research from Oregon State University, the University of Toronto, and the Indian Institute of Science, and their industrial partners. The overall approach for term integration and the final results are presented. Applications to the areas of design inspiration, comprehension of biological information, functional modeling, creative design and concept generation are discussed.
Effects of Ascorbic Acid and Antioxidants on the Color of Irradiated Ground Beef

Irradiation significantly decreased the redness of ground beef (P <0.05), and the visible colour of beef changed from a bright red to a green/brown, depending on the age of meat.Addition of ascorbic acid (0.1%, wt/ wt) ni ground beef prior to irradiation prevented color changes in irradiated beef,and the effect of ascorbic acid became greater as the age of meat or storage time after irradiation increased.Ground beef with added ascorbic acid had significantly lower oxidation-reduction potential than the control (P < 0.05), and the low oxidation acid had significantly lower oxidation-reduction potential than the control (P<0.05),and the low oxidation reduction potential of meat helped maintain the heme pigments to reduced from. Sesamol+ α-locopherol had no reduction potential of meat helped maintain the heme pigments in reduced from. Sesamol+α-locopheral had no effect in stabilizing color of irradiated beef.
Evaluating the effects of environmental education programming on connectedness to nature

With a growing movement to re-connect children to nature, an understanding of the ability of environmental education (EE) programs to foster connectedness to nature is needed. The purpose of this exploratory quantitative study is to determine the effect of seven EE programs on participants' connectedness to nature. Results from the 385 children who participated in this study suggest two of the programs may be associated with a significant increase in connectedness to nature; however, due to the limitations of the study and a potential ‘ceiling effect’ of high initial levels of connectedness, further research is needed.
Equations of Motion for Constrained Multibody Systems and their Control

This paper presents some recent advances in the dynamics and control of constrained multibody systems. The constraints considered need not satisfy the D’Alembert principle and therefore the results are of general applicability. They show that, in the presence of constraints, the constraint force acting on the multibody system can always be viewed as made up of the sum of two components whose explicit form is provided. The first of these components consists of the constraint force that would have existed were all the constraints ideal; the second is caused by the nonideal nature of the constraints, and though it needs specification by the mechanician who is modeling the specific system at hand, it has a specific form. The general equations of motion obtained herein provide new insights into the simplicity with which Nature seems to operate. They point toward the development of new and novel approaches for the exact control of complex multibody nonlinear systems.
Q tomography of the upper mantle using three‐component long‐period waveforms

SUMMARY We present a degree-8 3-D Q model (QRLW8) of the upper mantle, derived from three-component surface waveform data in the period range 60–400 s. The inversion procedure involves two steps. In the first step, 3-D whole-mantle velocity models are derived separately for elastic SH (transverse component) and SV (vertical and longitudinal component) velocity models, using both surface and body waveforms and the non-linear asymptotic coupling theory (NACT) approach. In the second step, the surface waveforms thus aligned in phase are inverted to obtain a 3-D Q model in the depth range 80–670 km. Various stability tests are performed to assess the quality of the resulting Q model and, in particular, to assess possible contamination from focusing effects. We find that the 3-D patterns obtained are stable, but the amplitude of the lateral variations in Q is not well constrained, because large damping is necessary to extract the weak Q signal from data. The model obtained agrees with previous results in that a strong correlation of Q with tectonics is observed in the first 250 km of the upper mantle, with high attenuation under oceanic regions and low attenuation under continental shields. It is gradually replaced by a simpler pattern at larger depth. At the depths below 400 km, the Q distribution is generally dominated by two strong minima, one under the southern Pacific and one under Africa, yielding a strong degree-2 pattern. Most hotspots are located above regions of low Q at this depth. Ridges are shallow features in both velocity and Q models.