cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A dynamical model for generating synthetic data to quantify active tactile sensing behavior in the rat

As it becomes possible to simulate increasingly complex neural networks, it becomes correspondingly important to model the sensory information that animals actively acquire: the biomechanics of sensory acquisition directly determines the sensory input and therefore neural processing. Here, we exploit the tractable mechanics of the well-studied rodent vibrissal ("whisker") system to present a model that can simulate the signals acquired by a full sensor array actively sampling the environment. Rodents actively "whisk" ∼60 vibrissae (whiskers) to obtain tactile information, and this system is therefore ideal to study closed-loop sensorimotor processing. The simulation framework presented here, WHISKiT Physics, incorporates realistic morphology of the rat whisker array to predict the time-varying mechanical signals generated at each whisker base during sensory acquisition. Single-whisker dynamics were optimized based on experimental data and then validated against free tip oscillations and dynamic responses to collisions. The model is then extrapolated to include all whiskers in the array, incorporating each whisker's individual geometry. Simulation examples in laboratory and natural environments demonstrate that WHISKiT Physics can predict input signals during various behaviors, currently impossible in the biological animal. In one exemplary use of the model, the results suggest that active whisking increases in-plane whisker bending compared to passive stimulation and that principal component analysis can reveal the relative contributions of whisker identity and mechanics at each whisker base to the vibrissotactile response. These results highlight how interactions between array morphology and individual whisker geometry and dynamics shape the signals that the brain must process.
The design and implementation of the Carolina Automated Reading Evaluation for reading deficit screening

Abstract This paper examines the design process and implementation of the Carolina Automated Reading Evaluation (CARE). Designed to automate the process of screening for reading deficits, CARE is an interactive computer-based tool that helps eliminate the need for one-on-one evaluations of pupils to detect dyslexia and other reading deficits. While other tests collect specific data points in order to determine whether a pupil has dyslexia, they typically focus on only a few metrics for diagnosis, such as handwriting analysis or eye tracking. The CARE collects data across up to 16 different subtests, each built to test proficiency in various reading skills. These skills include reading fluency, phoneme manipulation, sound blending, and many other essential skills for reading. This wide variety of measurements allows for a more focused intervention to be created for the pupil. For this study, elementary school pupils were tested both with the CARE and with the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) test, a well-established screener for elementary school-level reading deficits. The data collected was used in a comparison of average scores, a gradient boosting tree classifier, and a convergence test to determine if there was any correlation between the CARE and DIBELS scores. Based on these comparisons, a correspondence was found between the two tests, showing that the CARE can detect reading deficits comparable to manually administered testing instruments. Based on these findings, the CARE could be used as a replacement for current tests, giving the users more detailed data at a faster rate. This paper reviews the technical development and preliminary analysis of the CARE. It also provides insights into key considerations when translating standard psychological screeners onto computerized platforms.
The Evolution of Political Hyperbole and Polarization: Echo Chambers and Voter-Elite Feedback Loops

Many contemporary societies have witnessed increasingly polarized elites engaging in hyperbole in political discourse in order to inﬂuence public opinion and policy outcomes. In this paper, we build on the political economic themes explored by Gordon Rausser and extend our earlier collaborative work to study how polarization and hyperbole evolve over time as voter preferences and voices inﬂuence the political preferences of elites, while in turn being inﬂuenced by elite messages. The dynamic feedback loop between elites and voters generates insights into the critical roles of a number of facets of the polarization phenomenon: echo chambers, the relative inﬂuence of extreme versus moderate members within elites’ constituencies, voter sophistication in distinguishing hyperbole from valid information, and the permissive stances taken by social media in relation to fake news. We show that among all these factors, echo chambers play critically important roles in inﬂuencing the dynamic evolution of polarization and hyperbole.
Chapter 4 Microphysical Structures of Stratiform and Cirrus Clouds

Publisher Summary This chapter summarizes measurements of the physical and microphysical structures of stratus, stratocumulus, altostratus, and cirrus clouds, which are thought to have the greatest effect on climate because of the large areas they cover. These clouds can be loosely classified according to the phase(s) of the condensate: liquid, mixed-phase, and ice, respectively. Stratus clouds are layers or patches of low, often grey, clouds that hardly have definition and rarely produce precipitation. Altostratus clouds appear as gray or bluish sheets or layers, ranging from several hundreds to thousands of meters thick, often covering the entire sky. The layers are variously striated, fibrous, or uniform in aspect. Altocumulus clouds form in the mid-troposphere, in distinct layers often less than 100 m thick. From the ground, altocumulus clouds are identified by their sharp outlines, enclosing rounded often convective elements. Cirrus are detached clouds in the form of white, delicate filaments or mostly white patches or narrow bands, composed almost exclusively of ice crystals. Dense patches or tufts of cirrus may contain ice crystals large enough to acquire appreciable fallspeeds; extended trails of virga may sometimes be seen below such clouds. Wind shear and particle size affect the shape of the trails. One cirrus type displaying these features is cirrus uncinus; it is comma-shaped, terminating at the top in a hook or tuft, which is presumably an ice generation region.
Magnetic Moment of Co-Cu Solid Solutions with 40 to 85% Cu

Metastable Co–Cu solid solutions in the concentration range between 12% and 95% Cu were obtained by simultaneous evaporation of Co and Cu on a cold substrate. The spin moment of the as‐deposited alloys is equal to that of Fe–Ni, Co–Ni, Ni–Cu solid solutions with the same average number of electrons per atom. During annealing at 700°C for a suitable time the spin moment increases to the value calculated for the two‐phase equilibrium state of the alloys. For an alloy with 65% Cu the Curie temperature is 580°K. All alloys have fcc structure before and after annealing.
UHPLC‐MS/MS quantification of buprenorphine, norbuprenorphine, methadone, and glucuronide conjugates in umbilical cord plasma

Opioid use during pregnancy can result in the newborn being physically dependent on the substance, thus experiencing drug withdrawal, termed neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). Buprenorphine and methadone are two drugs used to treat opioid withdrawal and are approved for use in pregnancy. Quantification of these compounds in umbilical cord plasma would help assess in utero exposure of neonates in cases of buprenorphine or methadone use during pregnancy. An LC-MS/MS method using solid-phase extraction sample preparation was developed and validated for the simultaneous quantification of methadone, buprenorphine, norbuprenorphine, and glucuronide metabolites in umbilical cord plasma. The average accuracy (percentage error) and precision (relative standard deviation) were <15% for each validated concentration. Our data establishes a 2 week maximum freezer storage window in order to achieve the most accurate cord plasma concentrations of these analytes. Additionally, we found that the umbilical cord tissue analysis was less sensitive compared with analysis with umbilical cord blood plasma, indicating that this may be a more appropriate matrix for determination of buprenorphine and metabolite concentrations. This method was successfully applied to the analysis of cord blood from women with known buprenorphine or methadone use during pregnancy.
Indexing and searching XML documents based on content and structure synopses

We present a novel framework for indexing and searching schema-less XML documents based on concise summaries of their structural and textual content. Our search query language is XPath extended with full-text search. We introduce two novel data synopsis structures that correlate textual with positional information in an XML document and improves query precision. In addition, we present a two-phase containment filtering algorithm based on these synopses that improves the searching process. Our experimental evaluation shows that our data synopses indexing scheme outperforms the standard XML indexing scheme based on inverted lists; the query evaluation based on our data synopses is more accurate than related approximate approaches that do not consider positional information; our two-phase containment filtering algorithm is more efficient than a single-phase brute force algorithm.
Theoretical study of the turbulence induced scintillation of a dirty laser beam

Abstract : This work is concerned with predicting the temporal scintillation spectrum of a laser beam which has propagated through the turbulent atmosphere. Use is made of the Extended Huygens-Fresnel principle in deriving a very general but compact mathematical expression for the temporal scintillation spectrum of an unspecified source field with an arbitrary shaped extended receiver aperture. This formula, which is restricted to the weak turbulence regime, is then applied to the analysis of several situations of contemporary interest. Specifically, the analysis is directed toward the description of the effects of such a laser beam which is blemished in a deterministic sense. Spectra obtained under these conditions are shown to display increased sensitivity to the path distribution of the turbulence strength.
A practical computer-aided tuning technique for fuzzy control

A practical computer-aided technique is proposed for tuning max-min fuzzy inference engines. For users who have fuzzy controllers that have already been defined with preliminary membership functions and rules, the technique can be used to give advice about how to tune membership functions to make the fuzzy system approach the desired behavior. The implementation of this technique on a distributed control system shows its effectiveness for industrial applications. >
Simulating PET/fMRI studies of visual and auditory pattern recognition using biologically realistic large-scale neural models

Formidable conceptual problems exist in interpreting human functional neuroimaging data in terms of the underlying neural activity. To surmount these difficulties, we have developed two neurobiologically realistic models (one for vision, one for audition) of the object recognition pathway in human neocortex in which data at multiple spatiotemporal levels can be simulated and cross-validated by multiple disciplines, including PET and fMRI. Our models, based on neurophysiological and neuroanatomical data from primate and human studies, enable us to simultaneously simulate cellular electrophysiological and PET/fMRI activities in multiple, interconnected brain regions. These types of models enable us to quantitatively combine multiple data sets so that a coherent account of human cognition can be generated We illustrate this approach using delayed match-to-sample (DMS) tasks for visual shape and for auditory tonal patterns.
Testing the individual effective dose hypothesis

The assumption of the individual effective dose is the basis for the probit method used for analyzing dose or concentration-response data. According to this assumption, each individual has a uniquely innate tolerance expressed as the individual effective dose (IED) or the smallest dose that is sufficient to kill the individual. An alternative to IED, stochasticity suggests that individuals do not have uniquely innate tolerance; deaths result from random processes occurring among similar individuals. Although the probit method has been used extensively in toxicology, the underlying assumption has not been tested rigorously. The goal of the present study was to test which assumption, IED or stochasticity, best explained the response of Daphnia magna exposed to multiple pulses of copper sulfate (CuSO4 ) over 24 d. Daphnia magna were exposed to subsequent age-dependent 24-h median lethal concentrations (LC50s) of copper (Cu). Age-dependent 24-h LC50 values and Cu depuration test were determined prior to the 24-d bioassay. The LC50 values were inversely related to organism age. The Cu depuration of D. magna did not depend on age or Cu concentration, and 5 d was sufficient recovery time. Daphnia magna were exposed to 4 24-h Cu exposures, and surviving organisms after each exposure were transferred to Cu-free culture media for recovery before the next exposure. Stochasticity appropriately explained the survival and reproduction response of D. magna exposed to Cu.
Comparing Categories of Domains

We discuss some of the reasons for the proliferation of categories of domains suggested for the mathematical foundations of the Scott-Strachey theory of programming semantics. Five general conditions are presented which such a category should satisfy and they are used to motivate a number of examples. An attempt is made to survey some of the methods whereby these examples may be compared and their relationships expressed. We also ask a few mathematical questions about the examples.
Medical Treatment: Neuroprotection

Glaucoma is a neurodegenerative disease in which intraocular pressure (IOP) is a leading risk factor [1, 2]. Despite IOP lowering, glaucoma continues to worsen in a subset of patients [3–5]. The final stage in glaucoma involves retinal ganglion cell (RGC) damage and death [2]. This damage can occur at statistically high, average, or low levels of IOP. While the biomechanics of optic disc cupping – specifically, loss of neuroretinal rim and posterior bowing of the lamina cribrosa – have been extensively studied [6, 7], they do not adequately explain why certain patients continue to demonstrate worsening of the disease in spite of apparently low IOP.
Research and Practice: Orientations of Social Work Educators

Data from a national survey show that social work educa tors are convinced of the im portance of research but that they have stronger interest and skills in teaching. Com pared to those with master's degrees, faculty members with doctorates have higher levels of interest and involvement in research. The findings suggest that greater research interest and competence are needed throughout the profession to explore fully the potential of scientific research in practice. DISCUSSIONS of the role of research in social w rk stimulat consider
Cryoglobulinemia and renal disease.

Purpose of reviewCryoglobulinemia occurs in a variety of clinical settings including lymphoproliferative disorders, infection and autoimmune disease. The worldwide pandemic of hepatitis C virus infection has resulted in a significant increase in its extrahepatic complications including cryoglobuline
Observation of Enhanced Raman Scattering for Molecules Adsorbed on TiO2 Nanoparticles: Charge-Transfer Contribution

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering from molecules adsorbed on TiO2 nanoparticles has been observed. This is attributed to the dominant contribution of the TiO2-to-molecule charge-transfer mechanism. The charge-transfer process is largely dependent on the intrinsic nature of the adsorbed molecules and the surface properties of the semiconductor. Both the stronger electron attracting ability of groups para- to the mercapto group bonded with TiO2 surface and the plentiful surface states of TiO2 nanoparticles are favorable to TiO2-to-molecule charge-transfer and SERS for molecules adsorbed on TiO2.
HCV Induces the Expression of Rubicon and UVRAG to Temporally Regulate the Maturation of Autophagosomes and Viral Replication

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) induces autophagy to enhance its replication. However, how HCV regulates the autophagic pathway remains largely unclear. In this report, we demonstrated that HCV infection could induce the expression of Rubicon and UVRAG, which inhibited and stimulated the maturation of autophagosomes, respectively. The induction of Rubicon by HCV was prompt whereas the induction of UVRAG was delayed, resulting in the accumulation of autophagosomes in the early time points of viral infection. The role of Rubicon in inhibiting the maturation of autophagosomes in HCV-infected cells was confirmed by siRNA knockdown and the over-expression of Rubicon, which enhanced and suppressed the maturation of autophagosomes, respectively. Rubicon played a positive role in HCV replication, as the suppression of its expression reduced HCV replication and its over-expression enhanced HCV replication. In contrast, the over-expression of UVRAG facilitated the maturation of autophagosomes and suppressed HCV replication. The HCV subgenomic RNA replicon, which expressed only the nonstructural proteins, could also induce the expression of Rubicon and the accumulation of autophagosomes. Further analysis indicated that the HCV NS4B protein was sufficient to induce Rubicon and autophagosomes. Our results thus indicated that HCV, by differentially inducing the expression of Rubicon and UVRAG, temporally regulated the autophagic flux to enhance its replication.
Integer-Coefficient Polynomials Have Prime-Rich Images

It is well known that a nonconstant polynomial f (x) with integer coefficients produces, for integer values of x, at least one composite image. In this note, we use Taylor expansions to improve this elementary result, showing that f (x) takes an infinite number of composite values. Given a positive integer n, we show that f (x) takes an infinite number of values that are divisible by at least n distinct primes, and an infinite number of values that are divisible by pn for some prime p.
The ultrastructure of the atrium in the adult newt Notophthalmus viridescens (Amphibia, Salamandridae)

The atrial wall of Notophthalmus viridescens is 25-75 μm thick and is trabeculated sparsely. Coronary vessels are absent. The endocardial endothelium is continuous and has 50-60 nm-wide fenestrae with diaphragms, rests on a discontinuous basal lamina and lacks occluding junctions. Cells found in the subendothelial connective tissue are xanthophores, melanophores, mast cells, fibroblasts, macrophages, and unmyelinated nerve fibers with Schwann cell investments. Epicardial mesothelial cells contain numerous 6-7 nm filaments and lamellar bodies which resemble myelin figures. Mesothelial cell junctions include maculae adhaerentes diminutae, desmosomes, and interdigitations. The epicardial connective tissue layer is more extensive than that of the endocardium, with xanthophores and melanophores rarely present and nerve fibers never observed. The myocardium consists of a mesh-work of myocytes 3-5 cell layers thick with little intervening connective tissue. Myocytes are 6-10 μm in diameter and have two or three peripheral myofibrillae. Typical A, I, H, Z, and M bands are present with a sarcomere length of 2.5 μm. T tubules are not observed. The sarcoplasmic reticulum has subsarcolemmal dilations. The nuclear pole region contains abundant mitochondria and atrial granules, extensive Golgi, and elements of smooth and rough-surfaced endoplasmic reticulum. Lateral intercellular junctions consisting of dense plaques, frequently continuous with Z-line material, are common. Oblique and transversely oriented junctions consisting of primarily of fascia adhaerentes, are present. It appears that amphibian atrial myocytes more closely resemble those of the amphibian ventricle than those of the mammalian atrium. Structural differences between amphibian atrial and ventricular myocytes seem to be quantitative rather than qualitative in nature.
FRP pultruded structural shapes

The availability, diversity and utilization of fiberreinforced polymeric (FRP) pultruded structural members in new construction, and also in the rehabilitation and strengthening of existing structures, have increased at a remarkable rate during the past two decades. This trend is expected to continue with increasing requirements for light weight, high stiffness and/or high strength, and non-corroding materials. Despite the exceptional properties of FRP, design engineers are hesitant about using them mainly due to the absence of design criteria and specifications. This reluctance also comes about because the behavior of structural elements made of FRP materials under loads is very limited. This articles surveys analytical and experimental investigations pertaining to the behavior and design of pultruded structural members.
Pre- and postsynaptic volatile anaesthetic actions on glycinergic transmission to spinal cord motor neurons.

1. A common anaesthetic endpoint, prevention of withdrawal from a noxious stimulus, is determined primarily in spinal cord, where glycine is an important inhibitory transmitter. To define pre- and postsynaptic anaesthetic actions at glycinergic synapses, the effects of volatile anaesthetic agents on spontaneous and evoked glycinergic currents in spinal cord motor neurons from 6 - 14-day old rats was investigated. 2. The volatile anaesthetic agents enflurane, isoflurane and halothane significantly increased the frequency of glycinergic mIPSCs, enflurane to 190.4% of control+/-22.0 (mean+/-s.e.m., n=7, P<0.01), isoflurane to 199.0%+/-28.8 (n=7, P<0.05) and halothane to 198.2%+/-19.5 (n=7, P<0.01). However without TTX, isoflurane and halothane had no significant effect and enflurane decreased sIPSC frequency to 42.5% of control+/-12.4 (n=6, P<0.01). All the anaesthetics prolonged the decay time constant (tau) of both spontaneous and glycine-evoked currents without increasing amplitude. With TTX total charge transfer was increased; without TTX charge transfer was unchanged (isoflurane and halothane) or decreased (enflurane). 3. Enflurane-induced mIPSC frequency increases were not significantly affected by Cd(2+) (50 microM), thapsigargin (1 - 5 microM), or KB-R7943 (5 microM). KB-R7943 and thapsigargin together abolished the enflurane-induced increase in mIPSC frequency. 4. There are opposing facilitatory and inhibitory actions of volatile anaesthetics on glycine release dependent on calcium homeostatic mechanisms and sodium channels respectively. Under normal conditions (no TTX) the absolute amount of glycinergic inhibition does not increase. The contribution of glycinergic inhibition to anaesthesia may depend on its duration rather than its absolute magnitude.
Oceanographic research at the Scripps Institution Of Oceanography during April 1936 to April 1937

Research vessel—On November 13, 1936, the Institution's boat Scripps was lost owing to explosion and fire. Two men were badly injured, one died a week later and the other is still in the hospital. In order to replace the Scripps. Robert P. Scripps bought on April 5, 1937, a 104-foot auxiliary schooner which, after remodelling, he will give to the Institution. The new vessel will, in addition to the crew, accommodate a scientific party of six, will contain good laboratory space, and will carry three winches for oceanographic work.
Velocity synchronization of networked Euler-Lagrange systems with switching network topologies subject to actuator faults

In this paper, we first introduce a distributed control strategy for velocity synchronization (or velocity consensus seeking) of multiple heterogeneous Euler-Lagrange (EL) systems with switching communication network topologies. This controller is denoted as the “nominal” controller. To guarantee velocity synchronization for switching communication network topologies we require existence of non-vanishing dwell-time between any two sequential switches. Next, we consider two types of actuator faults namely (1) additive actuator fault, and (2) loss of effectiveness actuator fault. By employing the nominal control algorithm developed for velocity synchronization, we introduce two control algorithms for velocity synchronization in presence of the two types of faults. Simulation results illustrate and demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed control algorithms.
Pending Laboratory Tests and the Hospital Discharge Summary in Patients Discharged To Sub-Acute Care

Background Previous studies have noted a high (41%) prevalence and poor discharge summary communication of pending laboratory (lab) tests at the time of hospital discharge for general medical patients. However, the prevalence and communication of pending labs within a high-risk population, specifically those patients discharged to sub-acute care (i.e., skilled nursing, rehabilitation, long-term care), remains unknown.
Turbulent diffusion behind vehicles: Effect of traffic speed on pollutant concentrations

Recent theoretical and experimental investigations Indicate that turbulent diffusion behind moving vehicles Is Influenced by the speed of the vehicle. Vertical wake induced turbulent diffusion, explicitly treated in the numerical ROADWAY model, is proportional to the square of the wind speed relative to the moving vehicle. Hence, the model predictions of turbulent mixing and pollutant concentrations on and downwind of a roadway are dependent upon the traffic speed. It Is expected from theoretical considerations that the effect of vehicle speed on pollutant concentrations will be more significant during stable atmospheric conditions, because in neutral and unstable conditions the vehicle-wake turbulence is quickly masked by the ambient turbulence. In this study, experimental data are utilized to evaluate the theoretical predictions of the effects of traffic speed on the ambient pollutant concentrations. The effects of vehicle speed upon ambient concentrations are investigated through wind tunnel experiment...
Adaptive control via quasilinearization and differential approximation

Suppose that a system undergoes a process described by a set of differential equations. The equations contain some unknown parameters and not all the initial conditions are known. Observations are made on some of the state variables during the course of the process. We wish to determine the system parameters and initial conditions which lead to best agreement with the observations.
Biodegradation of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) by a bacterial enrichment consortia and its monoculture isolates.

Summary Methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), an important gasoline additive, is a recalcitrant compound posing serious environmental health problems. In this study, MTBE-degrading bacteria were enriched from five environmental samples. Enrichments from Stewart Lake sediments and an MTBE contaminated soil displayed the highest rate of MTBE removal; 29.6 and 27.8% respectively, in 28 days. A total of 12 bacterial monocultures isolated from enrichment cultures were screened for MTBE degradation in liquid cultures. In a nutrient-limited medium containing MTBE as the sole source of carbon and energy, the highest rate of MTBE elimination was achieved with IsoSL1, which degraded 30.6 and 50.2% in 14 and 28 days, respectively. In a nutrient-rich medium containing ethanol and yeast extract, the bacterium (Iso2A) substantially removed MTBE (20.3 and 28.1% removal in 14 and 28 days, respectively). Based upon analysis of the 16s rRNA gene sequence and data base comparison, IsoSL1 and Iso2A were identified as a Streptomyces sp. and Sphingomonas sp., respectively. The Streptomyces sp. is a new genera of bacteria degrading MTBE and could be useful for MTBE bioremediation.
Quasi-stationary solitons for Langmuir waves in plasmas

Abstract The multiple-scale perturbation analysis is used to study the perturbed nonlinear Schrodinger’s equation, that describes the Langmuir waves in plasmas. The perturbation terms include the non-local term due to nonlinear Landau damping. The WKB type ansatz is used to define the phase of the soliton that captures the corrections to the pulse where the standard soliton perturbation theory fails.
Tumor imaging with a macromolecular paramagnetic contrast agent: gadopentetate dimeglumine-polylysine.

Rationale and Objectives. We evaluated magnetic resonance (MR) contrast enhancement of tumor tissue following injection of the macromolecular conjugate, gadopentetate dimeglumine-polylysine. Methods. T1-weighted MR imaging scans were performed on female Fisher-344 rats with subcutaneously implanted mammary adenocarcinoma tumors. Following the baseline scan, gadopentetate dimeglumine-polylysine or gadopentetate dimeglumine was injected at a dose of 0.1 mmol gadolinium per kilogram. Results. Gadopentetate dimeglumine-polylysine injection resulted in a maximum enhancement of tumor contrast of 310 ± 60% ( n = 7). Tumor tissue remained enhanced and well defined for several days after gadopentetate dimeglumine-polylysine injection. Gadopentetate dimeglumine injection at the same dose resulted in a 70 ± 25% ( n = 4) maximal tumor enhancement and a corresponding 25 ± 4% muscle enhancement. Conclusion. Gadopentetate dimeglumine-polylysine provides higher, more sustained tumor contrast than does gadopentetate dimeglumine for the same dosage of gadolinium.
Estimation and reconstruction for zero-one Markov processes

Abstract Given a Markov process with state space {0, 1} we treat parameter estimation of the transition intensities and state estimation of unobserved portions of the sample path, based on various partial observations of the process. Parameter estimators are devised and shown to be consistent and asymptotically normal. State estimators are computed explicitly and represented in recursive form. Observation mechanisms include regularly spaced samples, regular samples with time jitter, Poisson samples. Poisson samples with state 0 unobservable, observability defined by an alternating renewal process, averaged samples, observation of transition times into state 1 and observation of a random time change of the underlying process. The law of the observability process may be partly unknown. The combined problem of state estimation with estimated parameters is also examined.
College Student Evaluations of Parent–Child Disciplinary Situations

This study examined the influence(s) of the type of physical discipline administered and the type of child misbehavior on college student’s evaluations of parent–child disciplinary situations. Participants evaluated vignettes describing a child’s behavioral transgression and the subsequent parental disciplinary response. Evaluations were assessed in terms of the abusiveness, effectiveness, and appropriateness of the discipline. As predicted, evaluations varied as a function of both the type of physical discipline and the type of behavioral transgression. For example, parent–child interactions were evaluated as being more abusive when the severity of the discipline exceeded the severity of the transgression. Gender differences emerged with women evaluating mild discipline as being just as appropriate as moderate discipline while men evaluated mild discipline as being less appropriate than moderate discipline. Further, men evaluated moderate and severe discipline as being more effective than mild discipline. Results are discussed in terms of how the current research extends previous work in this area. Implications and areas for future research also are discussed.
Brain Circadian Oscillators and Redox Regulation in Mammals

Abstract Significance: Functional states of organisms vary rhythmically with a period of about a day (i.e., circadian). This endogenous dynamic is shaped by day–night alternations in light and energy. Mammalian circadian rhythms are orchestrated by the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), a brain region specialized for timekeeping. These autonomous ∼24-h oscillations are cell-based, requiring transcription–translation-based regulation. SCN circadian oscillations include the maintenance of intrinsic rhythms, sensitivities to input signals, and generation of output signals. These change predictably as time proceeds from dawn to day, dusk, and through the night. SCN neuronal excitability, a highly energy-demanding process, also oscillates over ∼24 h. The nature of the relationship of cellular metabolism and excitability had been unknown. Recent Advances: Global SCN redox state was found to undergo an autonomous circadian rhythm. Redox state is relatively reduced in daytime, when neuronal activity is h...
Auditory brainstem responses in neonatally sound deprived CBA/J mice

Abstract Auditory brainstem responses (ABR) from ten normal (3 males, 7 females) and ten environmentally sound deprived CBA/J mice (6 males, 4 females) were elicited by 30 dB HL click stimuli delivered via specially constructed, matched insert earphones. The mice were tested at 44–49 days of age under chloral hydrate sedation using an electrode montage of vertex/linked bilateral bullae/presacrum. The deprived mice were killed immediately after testing and serial transverse sections were prepared from their brains. Examination of globular cells in the ventromedial ventral cochlear nuclei revealed significantly smaller cross-sectional areas of these cells than in previously studied normal mice. Although monaural thresholds did not differ between the two groups, significantly shorter mean latencies were observed in the ABRs of the sound deprived group in wave I as well as in the interpeak latencies of the later ABR components (I–IV. I–V. and III–V). These electrophysiologic alterations in brainstem conduction presumably reflect the anatomical changes demonstrated in neonatally sound deprived mice.
Otitis media in early infancy.

Acute purulent otitis media (APOM) occurs frequently during childhood, particularly in the first two years of life.le5 However, this infection seems to develop less often in infants less than three months of age. Additionally, APOM in the child during the first three months is difficult to diagnose and may lead to serious complications. It is often necessary to attempt to isolate a specific etiologic agent and to begin treatment with intravenous antibiotics. Because APOM affects young infants less often than older children, the emergency physician may not be fully aware of its manifestations during the first few months of life; yet, an accurate diagnosis assumes even greater importance because of the potential for life-threatening complications. We describe a neonate seen in our emergency department with bacteriologically confirmed APOM and discuss the clinical manifestations, diagnostic modalities, bacteriology, complications, and treatment regimens in the young infant.
Real-time chemical analysis of aerosol particles

An important aspect of environmental atmospheric monitoring requires the characterization of airborne microparticles and aerosols. Unfortunately, traditional sample collection and handling techniques are prone to contamination and interference effects that can render an analysis invalid. These problems can be avoided by using real-time atmospheric sampling techniques followed by immediate mass spectrometric analysis. The former is achieved in these experiments via a two state differential pumping scheme that is attached directly to a commercially available quadruple ion trap mass spectrometer. Particles produced by an external particle generator enter the apparatus and immediately pass through two cw laser/fiberoptic based detectors positioned two centimeters apart. Timing electronics measure the time between detection events, estimate the particles arrival in the center of the ion trap and control the firing of a YAG laser. Ions produced when the UV laser light ablates the particle`s surface are stored by the ion trap for mass analysis. Ion trap mass spectrometers have several advantages over conventional time-of-flight instruments. First, they are capable of MS/MS analysis by the collisional dissociation of a stored species, This permits complete chemical characterization of airborne samples. Second, ion traps are small and lend themselves to portable, field oriented applications.
Dispersion and deposition of Brownian particles from point sources in a simulated turbulent channel flow

Abstract The diffusion of Brownian submicrometer-size particles from a point source in a simulated turbulent channel flow field is studied. The turbulent flow velocity field is generated by a direct numerical simulation of the Navier-Stokes equation with the pseudospectral method. The equation of motion of particles including the Brownian effects is used, and ensembles of 8192 particle trajectories are evaluated and statistically analyzed. Effects of particle size, density ratio, and source distance from the wall on the particle concentration profile and wall deposition rate are studied. The results are compared with those obtained from the exact solution to the corresponding convective diffusion equation in the absence of turbulent fluctuations. The relative importance of the Brownian motion and turbulence in the diffusion of small particles near the channel walls is also assessed.
Retrieval of categorized items increases without guessing

Without any feedback to distinguish correct recall from intrusions, spontaneous retrieval (without further presentation after initial recall of each item) of a list of 20 animals increased rapidly during free recall verbal learning. Intrusions, elicited by requiring forced recall of 20 items on each trial, decreased as correct recall increased. List items were recalled with great consistency once they were spontaneously retrieved; total recall was limited more by the initial difficulty of retrieving an item from long-term storage for the first time. Since these results show that subjects know which items belong to the list, they indicated that spontaneous retrieval of items from the same category does show retention and retrieval, rather than guessing. Forced recall increases retrieval even more than extended recall does, not through guessing but by encouraging further search in long-term storage for recovery of more items, which are correctly discriminated when found.
Specular Microscopy Before and After Enucleation of Live Donor Eyes

Purpose To compare the results of specular microscopic examination of corneal endothelium before and after enucleation of eyes from live donors. Methods Endothelial cell density (ECD), coefficient of variation of cell area (CV), and percent hexagonal cells were compared for 34 cornea donors before enucleation of their eyes and after excision of the corneoscleral rims and placement in preservative media. Results There was no statistically significant difference in ECD, CV, or percent six-sided cells after enucleation. The pre-enucleation and postenucleation ECD measurements were significantly correlated (rs = .85, P Conclusions There was no significant difference in ECD, CV, or percent six-sided cells between measurements taken from the epithelial side in vivo and those taken of the same corneas from the endothelial side in vitro after enucleation and corneoscleral rim excision. These findings suggest that it is reasonable to compare postkeratoplasty clinical measurements with those of the donor corneas taken in the eye bank.
The influence of drop size-dependent fog chemistry on aerosol processing by San Joaquin Valley fogs

Abstract Drop size-resolved measurements of fog chemistry in California's San Joaquin Valley during the 1995 Integrated Monitoring Study reveal that fog composition varies with drop size. Small fog drops were less alkaline and typically contained higher major ion (nitrate, sulfate, ammonium) concentrations than large drops. Small drops often contained higher concentrations of Fe and Mn than large drops while H2O2 concentrations exhibited no strong drop size dependence. Simulation of an extended fog episode in Fresno, California revealed the capability of a drop size-resolved fog chemistry model to reproduce the measured (based on two drop size categories) drop size dependence of several key species. The model was also able to satisfactorily reproduce measured species-dependent deposition rates (ammonium>sulfate>nitrate) resulting from fog drop sedimentation. Both the model simulation and direct analysis of size-resolved fog composition observations and measured gas-phase oxidant concentrations indicate the importance of ozone as an aqueous-phase S(IV) oxidant in these high pH fogs. Due to the nonlinear dependence of the rate law for the ozone pathway on the hydrogen ion concentration, use of the average fog drop composition can lead to significant underprediction of aqueous phase sulfate production rates in these chemically heterogeneous fogs.
Monitoring Public Health Concerns Using Twitter Sentiment Classifications

An important task of public health officials is to keep track of spreading epidemics, and the locations and speed with which they appear. Furthermore, there is interest in understanding how concerned the population is about a disease outbreak. Twitter can serve as an important data source to provide this information in real time. In this paper, we focus on sentiment classification of Twitter messages to measure the Degree of Concern (DOC) of the Twitter users. In order to achieve this goal, we develop a novel two-step sentiment classification workflow to automatically identify personal tweets and negative tweets. Based on this workflow, we present an Epidemic Sentiment Monitoring System (ESMOS) that provides tools for visualizing Twitter users' concern towards different diseases. The visual concern map and chart in ESMOS can help public health officials to identify the progression and peaks of concern for a disease in space and time, so that appropriate preventive actions can be taken. The DOC measure is based on the sentiment-based classifications. We compare clue-based and different Machine Learning methods to classify sentiments of Twitter users regarding diseases, first into personal and neutral tweets and then into negative from neutral personal tweets. In our experiments, Multinomial Naive Bayes achieved overall the best results and took significantly less time to build the classifier than other methods.
Health-related quality of life for patients with vasculitis and their spouses

Objective Chronic disease affects both patients and spouses, yet the effect of vasculitis on the spouses of patients has not been systematically examined. We addressed this research gap by describing 8 dimensions of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) for antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody–associated vasculitis (AAV) patients and their spouses and compared patients and spouses with norms for the general US population. We also determined whether the impact of AAV on HRQOL differs by sex for patients or their spouses. Methods Ninety-seven patients with AAV and their spouses completed a mailed questionnaire that included demographic information and a measure of HRQOL (Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36.) Using the RAND method, we calculated 8 HRQOL dimensions: general health, physical functioning, emotional role limitations, physical role limitations, social functioning, mental health, bodily pain, and energy/vitality. Using norm-based scores, we compared the HRQOL of patients and spouses with the general US population. We then used multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) test for sex differences in HRQOL for patients and spouses. Results Patients with AAV scored lower than the US norm on all HRQOL subscales with the exception of bodily pain. In contrast, spouses scored similarly to national norms. When age, education, race, illness duration, and disease severity were controlled, there were no significant sex differences in HRQOL for patients or spouses. Conclusion AAV negatively impacts HRQOL for patients; whereas, spouses do not appear to be as negatively impacted. Long-term marriages may attenuate the effect of sex on HRQOL. Quality of life should be assessed throughout the disease course for both patients and spouses.
Virus-Induced Leukopenia: Colorado Tick Fever as a Human Model

Eight patients with Colorado tick fever were studied to determine whether alterations in the production of granulopoietic stimulatory or inhibitory factors (or both) could be found in association with the leukopenic state of the disease. The studies demonstrate that in the patients with Colorado tick fever the mononuclear cell production of colony-stimulating factor is decreased and that there is an increase in circulating inhibitory factors in the serum of such patients. The depressed mononuclear cell colonystimulating activity does not appear to be reversible by addition of either endotoxin or normal human serum. Characterization of these serum inhibitory factors may facilitate understanding of leukopenia in human disease. Leukopenia, particularly granulocytopenia, occurs in association with a large number of viral infections. Interest in viras-related and other leukopenic states has grown recently because of increased understanding of the factors regulating granulopoiesis and the possible relevance of these factors to the pathophysiologic events occurring in human im
Replication-Deficient Vaccinia Virus Encoding Bacteriophage T7 RNA Polymerase for Transient Gene Expression in Mammalian Cells

The vaccinia virus/bacteriophage T7 hybrid transient expression system employs a recombinant vaccinia virus that encodes the T7 RNA polymerase gene, a plasmid vector with a gene of interest regulated by a T7 promoter, and any cell line suitable for infection and transfection. Although high expression in a majority of cells is achieved, the severe cytopathic effects of vaccinia virus and the safety precautions required for use of infectious agents are undesirable features of the system. Here, we report the construction of a highly attenuated and avian host-restricted vaccinia virus recombinant that encodes the T7 RNA polymerase gene (MVA/T7 pol) and demonstrate the use of the virus for transient expression in mammalian cells. MVA/T7 pol has reduced cytopathic effects compared to the previously used replication-competent vaccinia virus, while providing a high level of gene expression in multiple mammalian cell lines.
Adult sibling expressed emotion and fellow sibling deviance: a new piece of the family process puzzle.

Seventy-three older siblings were assessed in early adulthood with the Five-Minute Speech Sample (FMSS) measure of expressed emotion. Sibling critical expressed emotion was linked with younger brother concomitant and future antisocial behavior, substance use, deviant peer association, increased rate of criminal arrests, and early onset sexual activity. Siblings of younger brothers with behavior problems were also more likely to be critical of, and to report negative relationships with, these brothers than were siblings of well-adjusted brothers. Sibling critical expressed emotion also predicted younger brothers' maladjustment 1-2 years later, after controlling for earlier sibling conflict and parent disciplines. The findings accentuate the importance of understanding the influence of intrafamilial processes in the etiology of behavior problems.