cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Recent developments towards high resolution X-ray imaging

Abstract The resolution capabilities of different soft X-ray imaging methods are discussed. Contact micrography with electron beam magnification has demonstrated a resolution of 100 A. A resolution better than 1000 A can be expected from direct X-ray magnification using either zone plates or normal incidence mirrors with multilayer coatings. Grazing incidence microscopes have obtained 1–2 μm resolution and require improved fabrication tolerances for submicron resolution.
The essential coexistence phenomenon in dynamics

This article is a survey of recent results on the essential coexistence of hyperbolic and non-hyperbolic behaviour in dynamics. Though in the absence of a general theory, the coexistence phenomenon has been shown in various systems during the last three decades. We will describe the contemporary state of the art in this area with emphasis on some new examples in smooth conservative systems, in both cases of discrete and continuous-time.
Nondestructive and on-line monitoring of tablets using light-induced fluorescence technology

A system using light-induced fluorescence (LIF) technology was developed for rapid and nondestructive analysis of active pharmaceutical ingredients on tablet surfaces. Nonhomogenous tablets with defined layer of active ingredients were made by 3-Dimensional Printing technology to determine penetration depths of the light source and the resultant fluorescence responses. The LIF method of analysis showed penetration to depths of up to 3 mm into tablets. A correlation between LIF signals from analysis of tablet surfaces and the total drug content of the respective tablets was established. This method of surface analysis was verified with UV spectrometric methods for the total drug content of each respective tablet. The results from a small sample population of tablets made from both homogeneous and nonhomogeneous powder mixtures established good correlation between LIF surface monitoring and total tablet content. The use of on-line monitoring of the individual tablet for surface content demonstrated consistent LIF profiles from simulated production rates up to 3000 tablets a minute. The instrument was also field tested successfully on a tablet analyzer.
Soft adaptive fusion of sensor energy for large-scale sensor networks (SAFE)

Target tracking for network surveillance systems has gained significant interest especially in sensitive areas such as homeland security, battlefield intelligence, and facility surveillance. Most of the current sensor network protocols do not address the need for multi-sensor fusion-based target tracking schemes, which is crucial for the longevity of the sensor network. In this paper, we present an efficient fusion model for target tracking in a cluster-based large sensor networks. This new scheme is inspired by the image processing techniques by perceiving a sensor network as an energy map of sensor stimuli and applying typical image processing techniques on this map such as: filtering, convolution, clustering, segmentation, etc to achieve high-level perceptions and understanding of the situation. The new fusion model is called Soft Adaptive Fusion of Sensor Energies (SAFE). SAFE performs soft fusion of the energies collected by a local region of sensors in a large-scale sensor network. This local fusion is then transmitted by the head node to a base-station to update the common operation picture with evolving events of interest. Simulated scenarios showed that SAFE is promising by demonstrating a significant improvement in target tracking reliability, uncertainty, and efficiency.
The Role of Partnership in Shaping the Diversity Agenda

This study examines how external stakeholders, collaborators, and partners help shape the diversity agenda in post‐secondary education. Results from a comparative case study analysis of four professional schools (public health, business, social work and engineering) at a large American research university suggest that external social actors are influential in stimulating diversity‐related activity and determining how post‐secondary organizations address pressures, expectations, demands, requirements and incentives related to diversity.
Occurrence of an exotic earthworm (Amynthas agrestis) in undisturbed soils of the southern Appalachian Mountains, USAThe 7th international symposium on earthworm ecology · Cardiff · Wales · 2002

Summary This study documents the occurrence of an aggressive invasive earthworm species in undisturbed forest soils of the southern Appalachian Mountains of northern Georgia, USA. Earthworms were sorted from samples collected in pitfall traps that had been set in mature, mesic oak-hickory forests in remote, high elevation, locations across northern Georgia. Specimens were continuously collected in these traps over the course of the summer and autumn of 1993, and more than 600 earthworms were collected from 35 different trapping sites. There were at least 9 different earthworm taxa collected during the study including three species not native to North American soils (Amynthas agrestis, Octolasion tyrtaeum, and O. cyaneum). The majority of earthworms collected in the study were A. agrestis. Because large numbers of A. agrestis were trapped at a single site, we made measurements of individuals in an attempt to examine the reproductive status of A. agrestis at that site over time. Small numbers of A. agrestis were trapped in July and August, peak abundance occurred in September, and there was a decline in abundance through November to zero trapped in December. Sexually mature adults were first trapped in small numbers in late August, but made up 80% of the total population by mid September, and 100% of the population in October and November.
Diffusion tensor imaging in brainstem tuberculoma

Abstract Integrity of descending white matter tracts can be evaluated by diffusion tensor imaging. In rim-enhancing intraparenchymal lesions, this technique can assist in the differentiation of demyelinating disease from tumor or abscess. Diffusion tensor imaging characteristics of tuberculoma have not been previously reported to our knowledge. A patient with headaches, dizziness, and mild left-sided weakness underwent MRI with diffusion tensor imaging. A large, rim-enhancing lesion within the pons was discovered, which subsequently was diagnosed as tuberculoma. Tractography maps prepared from diffusion tensor imaging data revealed predominantly displaced descending fiber tracts in the region of the rim-enhancing lesion. A few tracts adjacent to the lesion appeared truncated, and this abnormal finding correlated to the patient’s clinical deficit. The tractography characteristics of diffusion tensor imaging in this patient potentially are distinct from those seen with demyelinating lesions, which may show more extensive tract truncation. Together with the consonance of exam findings and tract truncation seen in this patient, tractography may prove useful in the diagnosis of suspected tuberculoma.
Julian dates and introduced temporal error in remote sensing vegetation phenology studies

Remote-sensing-based vegetation phenology studies are commonly used to study agriculture, forestry, species distributions, and the effect of climate change on vegetation. These studies utilize annual time series of NDVI data to characterize seasonal growth patterns. The NDVI data for most of these studies have been pre-processed using a maximum value compositing process to minimize contamination from clouds. A side effect of this process is a degradation of temporal data, since NDVI values are assigned to multiday periods rather than the specific date of image capture. In this study, the compositing process is examined to determine if there is a reliable pattern to pixel selection. Also, the magnitude of the introduced error is estimated by comparing vegetation phenology metrics calculated using the temporally degraded data and metrics calculated using the actual date of each pixel. The root mean square errors between these datasets ranged from 9.4 to 10.9 days, much larger than is acceptable for most phenology studies. We conclude that vegetation phenology studies must make use of accurate temporal data to characterize changes in vegetation seasonality.
Modification of the Lipid Concentration in Own Mothers' Milk (OMM) Feedings in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU): Clinical Application of the Creamatocrit (CRCT) Technique

Modification of the Lipid Concentration in Own Mothers' Milk (OMM) Feedings in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU): Clinical Application of the Creamatocrit (CRCT) Technique
DESIGN AND OPERATING PARAMETERS FOR A CONTINUOUS CENTRIFUGAL FLUIDIZED BED DRIER (CFB)

The objective of this work was to demonstrate the feasibility of a continuous centrifugal fluidized bed drier constructed from a perforated horizontal cylinder rotating inside a plenum with air blowing across the cylinder perpendicular to its axis of rotation. This paper describes a prototype unit and presents details of solutions to construction and instrumentation, and operating problems encountered in reducing the concept to practice.
Embryotoxicity and fetotoxicity from maternal inhalation of methyl methacrylate monomer in rats.

Inhalation of methyl methacrylate (MMA) has been reported to produce systemic toxicity in laboratory animals, and parenteral administration of MMA has induced embryo-fetal growth retardation and some fetal malformations in rats. To ascertain whether or not inhalation of MMA might also have an effect on reproduction, pregnant rats were exposed to air containing approximately 110 mg/liter MMA. The acute LT50 was determined to be 72.2 min. Pregnant rats were exposed daily to approximately one-quarter and three-quarters of the acute LT50 on Days 6 through 15 of gestation. Data from MMA-treated groups were compared to two groups of controls, a group similarly exposed to air only, and an untreated group. Significant differences (p<0.05) were indicated between one or both treated groups and one or both controls for maternal weight and food consumption, and for fetal weight, crown-rump length, early fetal deaths, and for certain gross and skeletal anomalies, but not for numbers of fetuses per litter or resorptions.
Does Syndrome X Exist in Hypertensive Elderly Persons With Impaired Glycemic Control

Background This report focuses on the glycemic state in relation to insulin and lipid levels of a cohort of elderly hypertensive persons to estimate the prevalence of syndrome X. Methods A cross-sectional study was performed at the University of Tennessee, Memphis, and the General Clinical Research Center (GCRC) on 95 participants in the Trial of Nonpharmacologic Interventions in the Elderly (TONE) study who agreed to participate in an ancillary study. A standard oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) with insulin and C-peptide levels and a fasting lipid profile were obtained. Results In this sample of healthy elderly participants with hypertension who were taking an antihypertensive medication, 43 (45.3%) had normal glucose tolerance (NGT), 41 (43.2%) had impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), and 11 (11.6%) had undiagnosed non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). Fasting hyperinsulinemia occurred in only one participant, who was in the IGT group. Hypertriglyceridemia and low high density lipoprotein (HDL) occurred in four persons, none of whom had hyperinsulinemia. Persons in the NIDDM and IGT groups had decreased beta cell function compared to persons in the NGT group, but did not have increased peripheral insulin resistance as estimated from the OGTT data. Conclusions Our data demonstrated that in this cohort of elderly hypertensive participants with a high prevalence of central obesity, impaired glycemic control was common, but was not associated with fasting hyperinsulinemia or peripheral insulin resistance. Furthermore, we conclude that syndrome X essentially did not occur in these participants and postulate that the primary etiology for their impaired glycemic control is beta cell dysfunction. Further research is needed to elucidate these relationships.
Comparative Longevity of Pet Dogs and Humans: Implications for Gerontology Research

The effect of breed and body weight on longevity in the pet dog was analyzed, and a method was developed to standardize the chronological age of dogs in terms of physiological time, using human year equivalents. Mortality data from 23,535 pet dogs were obtained from a computerized data base of North American veterinary teaching hospitals, and the median age at death was determined for pure and mixed breed dogs of different body weight. Body size in the dog was inversely related to longevity. Within each body weight category, the median age at death was lower for pure breed dogs compared with mixed breed dogs. The difference between the standardized physiological ages of mixed breed dogs of the same chronological age in the smallest and largest body weight categories varied from 8 to > 15 years, and between large and small pure breed dogs, the disparity was even greater. Laboratory research to explore the biological basis for these breed and body weight specific differences in life span among dogs may provide additional clues to genetic factors influencing senescence.
Mobility of atrazine from alginate controlled release formulations

Abstract Controlled release (CR) formulations can significantly influence the fate of herbicides in the environment. The influence of alginate‐encapsulated CR formulations on the mobility of atrazine (6‐chloro‐N‐ethyl‐N´‐ (l‐methylethyl)‐1,3, 5‐triazine‐2,4‐diamine) in two soil profiles was investigated. Two CR formulations were evaluated based on Na‐alginate (1%), kaolin (10%) and Tween 20 (0.5%). The first formulation (CR‐Oil) was prepared with linseed oil (4%) and the second formulation (CR‐N) did not have oil. These formulations were compared to technical grade (TG) atrazine and to a commercial liquid (CL) formulation (Aatrex 4L). Formulations labeled with 14C were applied to packed soil columns containing a surface and a subsoil horizon. The columns were then leached with 3‐cm of 0.01 M CaCl2 per day at a rate of 1.5 cm hr‐1 for a period of ten days. At the termination of the experiment the columns were sectioned in 5‐cm increments and extracted with MeOH. Leachate samples and extracts were analyzed ...
The Association between Thoughts of Defecation and Thoughts of Death.

Three studies were conducted examining the relationship between thoughts of defecation and thoughts of death. In Study 1 and Study 3 it was found that making thoughts of feces salient reduced the accessibility of death thoughts. In Study 2 it was found that making thoughts of death salient decreased the accessibility of feces thoughts. It is proposed that this tendency for keeping thoughts of death and feces separate is part of a broader inclination for keeping the sacred from the profane.
Mouse Transgenesis in a Single Locus with Independent Regulation for Multiple Fluorophores

A major barrier to complex experimental design in mouse genetics is the allele problem: combining three or more alleles is time-consuming and inefficient. Here, we solve this problem for transgenic animals with a simple modification of existing BAC transgenesis protocols, and generate triple-colored ‘prism’ mice in which the major cell types of the brain: neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes, are each labeled with a distinct fluorophore. All three fluorophores are expressed from the same locus, yet each fluorophore is expressed in an independent temporal and spatial pattern. All three transgenes are generally co-inherited across multiple generations with stable genomic copy number and expression patterns. This generic solution should permit more sophisticated experimental manipulations to assess functional interactions amongst populations of cell types in vivo in a more rapid and efficient manner.
The second-generation HDD car navigation system

This work presents the technology of our latest HDD car navigation system. The system includes a high performance music server, realizing quadruple speed recording/playback with music characteristics detection, a new technology of map drawing and enhanced network functions that can be used both in a car and at home.
HEAT TRANSFER IN MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC LAMINAR RADIAL CHANNEL FLOW

Heat transfer in the steady axisymetrical laminar source flow of an incompressible electrically conducting fluid between two parallel disks in the presence of a transverse applied magnetic field is analyzed. The energy equation is solved numerically for the temperature distribution, where both Joulean and viscous heating are included. Both local and average Nusselt numbers for the case of constant wall temperature are evaluated. For fluids of moderate and high Prandtl numbers, Nusselt number is seen to be a strong function of both Hartmann number and a heat generation parameter together with a modified Peclet number. However, for fluids of small Prandtl number, Joulean heating and viscous dissipation can be neglected without appreciable error.
A pilot trial of 13-cis-retinoic acid and alpha-tocopherol with recombinant human erythropoietin in myelodysplastic syndrome patients with progressive or transfusion-dependent anemias

A pilot study was performed to determine the efficacy of 13-cis-retinoic acid (CRA) and alpha-tocopherol (AT) with increasing doses of recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO) in anemic patients with primary myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), to determine response rate and to determine the dose requirement and long-term effects of rHuEPO therapy on the transition to acute non-lymphocytic anemia and survival of these patients. Twenty-four consecutive MDS patients were entered into the study. Patients were stratified according to their FAB classification at study entry. Therapy consisted of a 6 month trial of CRA (100 mg m(-2) day(-1) and AT (800 mg day(-1)) with rHuEPO (150 units kg(-1) body weight subcutaneously three times a week). The rHuEPO dose was escalated to daily doses at 2 months, and 300 U kg(-1) body weight given three times a week for another 2 months and continuing therapy after 6 months in responsive patients. Response was measured by elimination of transfusions requirement (partial response, PR) and normal hemoglobin level and complete blood counts (complete response, CR). Observed responses for the 23 evaluable patients were 2 CR and 6 PR (34.8%). Odds ratio analysis showed that patients with anemia alone were 14 times more likely to respond than patients with pancytopenia (p = 0.06). In our study, two patients (8%) transformed to acute leukemia in CRA + AT + rHuEPO-treated patients. Median survival of 34 months with a median follow-up of 17 months (range 3-70 months) was observed. The response rates with the addition of rHuEPO to CRA and AT was similar but occurs earlier at 2 months compared to 6-10 months with CRA and AT alone and did not alter survival. There was no increase in the risk for leukemia in the group treated with rHuEPO. Response to either therapy appeared to be limited to patients in the early stages of MDS.
Mycophenolate mofetil in pediatric liver transplant patients with renal dysfunction: preliminary data.

: The prolonged use of CNI has been associated with nephrotoxicity. MMF is a new immunosuppressive agent. In the present study, the consequences of introducing MMF and reduction of CNI in liver-transplant children were analysed. The present study included eight pediatric liver-transplant patients who had transplantation at least 5 yr previously, had stable graft function and had renal dysfunction as a probable side-effect of CNI therapy. CNI was replaced with MMF in all patients and serum creatinine, uric acid concentration, azotemia and creatinine clearance before and 6 months after study entry were measured. The patients were monitored closely for side-effects of MMF as well as graft function. Six months after study entry serum creatinine, uric acid concentration, azotemia and creatinine clearance improved in all the patients at the last follow-up. The aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase concentrations were stable during the study period and did not observe any serum bilirubin increased as well. No side-effects were reported in patients on MMF. Only one patient reported temporary pruritis and nausea. The results indicate that renal dysfunction significantly improved when MMF therapy is started and CNI reduced. Furthermore present data suggest that the risk of acute allograft rejection is very low when the CNI desired reduction is achieved in not too short time and absolutely when the MPA levels are strictly monitored.
Picosecond surface restricted grating studies of n-GaAs(100) liquid junctions. Evidence for interfacial charge transfer approaching adiabatic limits

Abstract In situ grating studies of n-GaAs/1 M KOH (Se 2−/1− ) aqueous liquid contacts have observed 1–2 picosecond decay components in the presence of the selenium redox couple. Based on the bias and concentration dependencies of the grating signal, and known hole scavenging properties of Se 2− , the fast initial decay is assigned to interfacial hole transfer. The similarity in time scales between charge transfer and the diffusive component to the solvent relaxation along the reaction coordinate at the Helmholtz double layer indicates the electronic coupling at the interface is near the strong coupling limit.
Membrane transport of nucleosides in rabbit polymorphonuclear leukocytes.

The membrane transport of nucleosides in rabbit polymorphonuclear leukocytes has been examined by use of a rapid sampling technique. Both purine and pyrimidine nucleosides are transported by a single saturable system as indicated by the identity of their Km's and Ki's against a spectrum of nucleosides. The specificity of the carrier was examined in detail. Adenosine (Km = 0.010 mM, vmax approx. 10 pmoles/106 cells per 45 sec) has the highest affinity for the system. Its fate after uptake is deamination and subsequent conversion to nucleotide. The most critical structural requirements for binding include the pyrimidine base moiety and a 3′-OH configuration on pentose, but other groups make significant contributions to binding. From an analysis of the substrate specificity it is argued that changes in the conformation of the carrier active site are induced by the substrate.
Medical care inconsistent with patients' treatment goals: association with 1-year Medicare resource use and survival.

OBJECTIVES: To describe how frequently seriously ill persons perceive that the care they receive is inconsistent with treatment preferences and the effect on 1-year resource utilization. SETTING: Five U.S. teaching hospitals. DESIGN: Secondary analysis of interview data. PARTICIPANTS: Seriously ill Medicare beneficiaries. MEASUREMENTS: Interviews about patients' preferred approaches to care and whether they perceived care was consistent with these preferences. Part A and B costs for up to 1 year, adjusted for cost differences across hospitals and over time and for 1-year survival. RESULTS: Forty percent of the 1,185 study patients expressed a preference for treatment to focus on extending life, whereas 60% expressed a preference for comfort care. Eighty-six percent of the patients who wanted aggressive treatment reported that care was consistent with their preferences, but only 41% of those who preferred comfort care reported that care was consistent with their preferences. More than one-third of those with a preference for comfort care (35%) reported that the medical care that they received was inconsistent with their goals; 24% were unsure of treatment goals. Those who preferred comfort care but believed that their care was inconsistent with their wishes had higher estimated mean 1-year costs than those who believed that their care was consistent with their wishes ($92,442 vs $52,098, P < .001). Even after adjusting for differences in disease severity, age, gender, race, functional status, income, and years of education, adjusted costs were 1.4 times (95% confidence interval = 1.2–1.6) higher. However, 1-year survival was lower in these patients who stated that care was consistent with their preference to focus on comfort care than for those who wished to receive comfort care and stated that care was not consistent with their preference (38% vs 55% 1-year survival, P < .001). CONCLUSION: More than one in three seriously ill persons who prefer comfort care believe that their medical care is at odds with their preference that treatment focus on palliation. Such discord was associated with higher 1-year healthcare costs and increased survival. J Am Geriatr Soc 50:496–500, 2002.
Force-induced globule-coil transition in single polystyrene chains in water.

Force induced globule-to-coil transitions have been studied in single homopolymer (polystyrene) chains in water using atomic force microscopy-based force spectroscopy. The conformational change showed signatures of a first-order-like transition. The characteristic plateau force observed in water disappears in the presence of 6 M guanidine hydrochloride (chaotropic salt), while in the presence of 1 M NaCl (kosmotropic salt) the plateau force is enhanced. These observations indicate that the characteristic plateau force observed may be governed by hydrophobic interactions.
On the Notion of Equivalent Specific Liquid Water Content and Its Applications to the Thermodynamics of Clouds

Abstract A linear combination of specific liquid water content and temperature excess over the environmental value is found, which for an entrained, nonprecipitating parcel has the property of being approximately independent of environmental humidity. The proofs of this and some other properties are given and certain applications proposed.
Association of a 14-3-3 protein with CMP-NeuAc:GM1 α2,3-Sialyltransferase

CMP-NeuAc:GM1 α2,3-sialyltransferase (ST-IV) was purified to homogeneity from rat brain. Microsequencing of the tryptic peptides derived from the purified enzyme revealed two amino acid sequences homologous to the 14-3-3 proteins. A polyclonal antibody was raised against purified ST-IV. A 33 kDa protein was co-immunoprecipitated from rat brain extracts with the anti-(ST-IV) antibody as detected by Western blot analysis. This protein was identified as a subtype of 14-3-3 family by an anti-(14-3-3) antibody. Screening of a rat brain λgt11 library using the anti-(ST-IV) antibody resulted in the identification of a cDNA clone coding for the subtype of 14-3-3 protein. These results indicate an association of the 14-3-3 protein with the sialyltransferase. Since the 14-3-3 protein has PKC inhibitor activities and the activity of sialyltransferases is, at least in part, regulated by PKC, the association of the 14-3-3 protein with ST-IV may indicate a role for this protein in the post-translational regulation of the sialyltransferase activity through the processes of phosphorylation and dephosphorylation.
Photon propagation in nuclear matter and the correction to the theoretical nuclear charge density

The polarization function is derived for a virtual photon propagating in uncorrelated nuclear matter. The modification of the photon propagator and the induced charge distribution in the presence of the external field source are expressed in terms of a finite effective photon mass which is dependent on the Fermi momentum. The application is made to a finite nucleus by subtracting the local field due to the surrounding infinite matter distribution. It is found that the correction to the potential due to the scattering of exchanged virtual photons by the nucleus results in a short-range repulsive force on the orbiting muon in muonic atoms. The estimated energy shifts are -560 eV for the 2p$sub 1$/ $sub 2$$Yields$1s$sub 1$/$sub 2$ transition, and -291 eV for the 3d$sub 5$/$sub 2$$Yields$2p$sub 3$/$sub 2$ transition in $sup 208$Pb; and -58 eV and -2.5 eV, respectively, in $sup 90$Zr. The effects are negligible for higher orbits.
Unsettled accounts : Stool debts, chieftaincy disputes and the question of asante constitutionalism

In a recent study, Fred Cooper argues that strikes and other forms of labor protest had a clarifying effect on official thinking not only about labor policies but also about the aims and, ultimately, the viability of colonial rule. As Africans went on strike, from the Copperbelt to the docks of Mombasa and the Gold Coast Railway, to demand better wages and working conditions, colonial administrators first envisioned and then embraced the idea of an African working class and the possibility that African workers could be managed with the same kinds of labor codes and social welfare policies that obtained in Europe.Of course, the image of a working class applied only so far in Africa. Colonial officials never fully understood the way African workers lived or the place of wage employment in African society, and were dismayed when their newly acquired understanding of Africans as universal workers was challenged in the 1950s by former strike leaders who began to insist on Africans' rights to political autonomy. Nonetheless, as Cooper shows, the effects of recurrent, often highly effective, strikes were far-reaching. As officials confronted the financial and political implications of providing all Africans with social welfare benefits and economic development comparable to those of Europe, they decided it was time to abandon the imperial enterprise.
Compassion fatigue following the September 11 terrorist attacks: a study of secondary trauma among New York City social workers

Experience suggests that individuals working in the caring and psychotherapeutic professions are among those to provide mental health services to disaster victims suffering from psychological trauma following catastrophic events. Yet, few studies have focused on the emotional exhaustion from working with such clients, referred to as compassion fatigue (CF) in this study, and how CF differs from other occupational hazards, such as secondary trauma (ST) and job burnout. In the present study, we used recently validated scales to predict ST and job burnout related to providing services to those affected by the World Trade Center (WTC) attacks. Our study data were based on a random survey of 236 social workers living in New York City (NYC), over 80% of which reported being involved in post-WTC disaster counseling efforts. Our analyses indicated that controlling for demographic factors, years of counseling, and personal trauma history, ST was positively associated with WTC recovery involvement (p <. 001) and negatively associated with having a supportive work environment (p < . 01). In contrast, job burnout was negatively associated with having a supportive work environment (p < .01), but not associated with WTC involvement or WTC counseling efforts. We discuss these results in light of future conceptual and empirical research needs.
Impacts of beach closures on perceptions of swimming-related health risk in Orange County, California.

Following a major beach closure due to bacterial contamination, a survey of beachgoers was conducted in Huntington Beach, California in 1999 to assess perceived health risk from swimming. Responses were compared to those of beachgoers at the unaffected Laguna Main Beach. No significant differences were found in risk perception. Respondents were aware of the closures (83%), yet the majority (83%) felt the water was safe for swimming. Proximity of residence to the beach was strongly associated with closure awareness (Spearmans q ¼ 0:427, p < 0:0001). Although 83% of respondents felt that water quality was important in deciding to go to the beach, only 25% of respondents who did not plan to swim cited pollution or contamination as a reason not to swim. Most respondents (70%) trusted local health agency officials decisions about when to open/close beaches. Surveyed beach visitors were likely to bathe (84%) and were not highly concerned with swimming-related health risks. 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
OFDM in bandpass nonlinearity

The behavior of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) signals in bandpass nonlinearity is presented. In particular, in-band bit-error-rate (BER) degradation and induced adjacent channel interference, as a result of amplitude limiting or clipping, are analyzed. In the presence of both nonlinear distortion and additive Gaussian noise, optimized output power back-off is provided to balance the requirements of the minimum BER and the tolerance of adjacent channel interference for a given OFDM system.
Diffusion of gases in electrolytic solutions

Measurements of the diffusion coefficients of hydrogen and methane in strong aqueous electrolytes have been made with the use of the diaphragm cell method. The variation of the diffusion coefficients with electrolyte concentration, type of ion, and temperature has been studied over the electrolyte concentration range zero to saturated, and for temperatures in the range 25° to 65°C. The results have been interpreted with the Eyring rate theory. The presence of ions in water increases the activation energy for diffusion which results in a decrease in the diffusion coefficient. The increase in activation energy is represented by terms that are additive for the ions involved. The influence of ions on the diffusion coefficient increases rapidly with ionic charge, but seems to be little affected by temperature or solute for the systems studied.
The Mitogenic Function of Hepatitis B Virus X Protein Resides within Amino Acids 51 to 140 and Is Modulated by N- and C-Terminal Regulatory Regions

The hepatitis B virus (HBV) X protein (pX) is implicated in hepatocarcinogenesis by an unknown mechanism. pX variants encoded by HBV genomes found integrated in genomic DNA from liver tumors of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) generally lack amino acids 134 to 154. Since deregulation of mitogenic pathways is linked to oncogenic transformation, herein we define the pX region required for mitogenic pathway activation. A series of pX deletions was used to construct tetracycline-regulated pX-expressing cell lines. The activation of the mitogenic pathways by these pX deletions expressed in the constructed cell lines was measured by transient transreporter assays, effects on endogenous cyclin A expression, and apoptosis. Conditional expression of pX51-140 in AML12 clone 4 cell line activates the mitogenic pathways, induces endogenous cyclin A expression, and sensitizes cells to apoptosis, similar to wild-type (WT) pX. By contrast, pX1-115 is inactive, supporting the idea that amino acids 116 to 140 are required for mitogenic pathway activation. Moreover, this pX deletion analysis demonstrates that WT pX function is modulated by two regions spanning amino acids 1 to 78 and 141 to 154. The N-terminal X1-78, expressed via a retroviral vector in WT pX-expressing 4pX-1 cells, coimmunoprecipitates with WT pX, indicating this pX region participates in protein-protein interactions leading to pX oligomerization. Interestingly, pX1-78 interferes with WT pX in mediating mitogenic pathway activation, endogenous gene expression, and apoptosis. The C-terminal pX region spanning amino acids 141 to 154 decreases pX stability, determined by pulse-chase studies of WT pX and pX1-140, suggesting that increased stability of naturally occurring pX variants lacking amino acids 134 to 154 may play a role in HCC development.
Antioxidants and Endothelial Expression of Vcam-1: A Molecular Paradigm for Atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is a complex, multisystem disease whose underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms are poorly understood. Recent insights into the etiology and pathogenesis of this disease suggest that atherosclerosis may be viewed as an inflammatory disease linked to an abnormality in oxidation-mediated signals in the vasculature. The purpose of this brief review is to extend this notion to the molecular level by viewing oxidation-mediated signals as physiological regulators of vascular gene expression that function through specific oxidation-reduction (redox)-sensitive signal transduction pathways and transcriptional regulatory networks. Redox-sensitive regulation of vascular gene expression, especially of genes involved in vascular inflammatory and growth responses, represents an intriguing paradigm for understanding atherogenesis as well as for the development of novel therapeutic treatment regimens, drug design and diagnostic assessment of disease state.
The Level of Expression of the Minor Pilin Subunit, CooD, Determines the Number of CS1 Pili Assembled on the Cell Surface of Escherichia coli

CooD, the minor subunit of CS1 pili of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli, is essential for the assembly of stable, functional pili. We previously proposed that CooD is a rate-limiting initiator of CS1 pilus assembly and predicted that the level of CooD expression should therefore determine the number of CS1 pili assembled on the cell surface. In this study, we confirm that CooD is required for the initiation of pilus assembly rather than for the stabilization of pili after they are assembled by demonstrating that specific modulation of cooD expression also modulates the number of CS1 pili on bacterial cells.
Solar Arctic-Mediated Climate Variation on Multidecadal to Centennial Timescales: Empirical Evidence, Mechanistic Explanation, and Testable Consequences

Soon (2005) showed that the variable total solar irradiance (TSI) could explain, rather surprisingly, well over 75% of the variance for the decadally smoothed Arctic-wide surface air temperature over the past 130 years. The present paper provides additional empirical evidence for this physical connection, both through several newly published high-resolution paleo-proxy records and through robust climate-process modeling outputs. This paper proposes a mechanistic explanation, involving: (1) the variable strength of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (MOC) or thermohaline circulation (THC); (2) the shift and modulation of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) rainbelt and tropical Atlantic ocean conditions; and (3) the intensity of the wind-driven subtropical and subpolar gyre circulation, across both the North Atlantic and North Pacific. A unique test of this proposed solar TSI-Arctic thermal-salinity-cryospheric coupling mechanism is the 5- to 20-year delay effect on the peak Atlantic MO...
Ambiguity in visual language theory and its role in diagram parsing

To take advantage of the ever-increasing volume of diagrams in electronic form, it is crucial that we have methods for parsing diagrams. Once a structured, content-based description is built for a diagram, it can be indexed for search, retrieval, and use. Whenever broad coverage grammars are built to parse a wide range of objects, whether natural language or diagrams, the grammars will overgenerate, giving multiple parses. This is the ambiguity problem. This paper discusses the types of ambiguities that can arise in diagram parsing, as well as techniques to avoid or resolve them. One class of ambiguity is attachment, e.g., the determination of what graphic object is labeled by a text item. Two classes of ambiguities are unique to diagrams: segmentation and occlusion. Examples of segmentation ambiguities include the use of a portion of a single line as an entity itself. Occlusion ambiguities can be difficult to analyze if occlusion is deliberately used to create a novel object from its components. The paper uses our context-based constraint grammars to describe the origin and resolution of ambiguities. It assumes that diagrams are available as vector graphics, not bitmaps.
Characterization of the Conus bullatus genome and its venom-duct transcriptome

The venomous marine gastropods, cone snails (genus Conus), inject prey with a lethal cocktail of conopeptides, small cysteine-rich peptides, each with a high affinity for its molecular target, generally an ion channel, receptor or transporter. Over the last decade, conopeptides have proven indispensable reagents for the study of vertebrate neurotransmission. Conus bullatus belongs to a clade of Conus species called Textilia, whose pharmacology is still poorly characterized. Thus the genomics analyses presented here provide the first step toward a better understanding the enigmatic Textilia clade. We have carried out a sequencing survey of the Conus bullatus genome and venom-duct transcriptome. We find that conopeptides are highly expressed within the venom-duct, and describe an in silico pipeline for their discovery and characterization using RNA-seq data. We have also carried out low-coverage shotgun sequencing of the genome, and have used these data to determine its size, genome-wide base composition, simple repeat, and mobile element densities. Our results provide the first global view of venom-duct transcription in any cone snail. A notable feature of Conus bullatus venoms is the breadth of A-superfamily peptides expressed in the venom duct, which are unprecedented in their structural diversity. We also find SNP rates within conopeptides are higher compared to the remainder of C. bullatus transcriptome, consistent with the hypothesis that conopeptides are under diversifying selection.
Actin and Tubulin Arrays in Cultured Xenopus Melanophores Responding to Melatonin

Melatonin induces pigment granule aggregation in amphibian melanophores. In the studies reported here, we have used fluorescence microscopic techniques to test the hypothesis that such melatonin-induced pigment movement is correlated with alterations in either the actin or tubulin cytoskeletal patterns of cultured Xenopus melanophores. In general, the cytoplasmic domains of the cultured melanophores were flat and thin except in the perinuclear region (especially when the pigment was aggregated). The microtubules and microfilaments were usually found in the same focal plane; however, on occasion, microfilaments were closer to the substratum. Microtubules were arranged in arrays radiating from what are presumed to be cytocenters. A small percentage of the melanophores were very large, had actin-rich circular perimeters and did not respond as rapidly to melatonin treatment as did the other melanophores. Melanophores with either aggregated or dispersed melanosomes had low intensity rhodamine-phalloidin staining of actin filaments compared to nonpigmented cells, whereas the FITC anti-tubulin intensities were comparable in magnitude to that seen in nonpigmented cells. When cells were fixed prior to complete melatonin-induced pigment granule aggregation there was no abrupt diminution in either the tubulin or actin staining at the boundary between pigment granule-rich and pigment granule-poor cytoplasmic domains. Nor could the actin and tubulin patterns in cells with partially aggregated melanosomes be reliably distinguished from those in melanophores in which the melanosomes were either completely dispersed or completely aggregated. These data argue against the hypothesis that melatonin causes consistent large-scale rearrangements of tubulin and actin polymers as it induces pigment aggregation in Xenopus melanophores.
Advancements in Procedural Fidelity Assessment and Intervention: Introduction to the Special Issue

Interest in procedural fidelity has grown rapidly since 1981 as evidenced by the growing numbers of research publications across disciplines on this topic. As a result, the past 30 years of research has yielded a variety of procedures to guide research and practice, which we hope translates into better educational practices and services. Despite our progress, much remains unknown. As an introduction to the special issue on advancements in procedural fidelity, this article will briefly describe the conceptual and definitional issues surrounding this topic, summarize the relevance of procedural fidelity to education and research, and highlight the articles in this issue that address proposed research priorities.
Dynamic Valuation Decomposition Within Stochastic Economies

I explore the equilibrium value implications of economic models that incorporate responses to a stochastic environment with growth. I propose dynamic valuation decompositions (DVD’s) designed to distinguish components of an underlying economic model that influence values over long investment horizons from components that impact only the short run. A DVD represents the values of stochastically growing claims to consumption payoffs or cash flows using a stochastic discount process that both discounts the future and adjusts for risk. It is enabled by constructing operators indexed by the elapsed time between the trading date and the date of the future realization of the payoff. Thus formulated, methods from applied mathematics permit me to characterize valuation behavior and the term structure of risk prices in a revealing manner. I apply this approach to investigate how investor beliefs and the associated uncertainty are reflected in current-period values and risk-price elasticities.
Long-term survival of skin allografts in mice treated with fractionated total lymphoid irradiation

Treatment of recipient Balb/c mice with fractionated, high-dose total lymphoid irradiation, a procedure commonly used in the therapy of human malignant lymphomas, resulted in fivefold prolongation of the survival of C57BL/Ka skin allografts despite major histocompatibility differences between the strains (H-2d and H-2b, respectively). Infusion of 10(7) (C57BL/Ka x Balb/c)F1 bone marrow cells after total lymphoid irradiation further prolonged C57BL/Ka skin graft survival to more than 120 days. Total lymphoid irradiation may eventually prove useful in clinical organ transplantation.
Simulation of Quantum Efficiency Spectroscopy for Amorphous Silicon P-I-N Junctions

Quantum efficiency(QE) spectroscopy of amorphous silicon and alloy solar cells has been used for many years now to determine the mobility-lifetime products for minority carriers. Similarly, matching of I(V) curves, assuming a linear model for collection as a function of applied voltage, has been used to quantify the effects of degradation on cell performance by estimating changes in the collection length [or range] of holes. In this paper, we do a numerical simulation of these techniques, using the AMPS I-D model developed by Fonash and his coworkers. The simulation shows that neither the lifetime nor the electric field in the devices is constant as a function of position. Nor is the electric field a linear function of applied voltage, particularly when the voltage exceeds about half the built-in voltage. The uniformity of the lifetime depends on the applied bias and on the defect densities in the material. This variation in electric field and lifetime and nonlinearity with applied voltage makes questionable some of the conclusions drawn from fitting device I(V) curves, particularly under forward bias. However, when one uses only a limited range of forward bias, or, preferably, make measurements in cells with thicker i layers under reverse bias, one c.an make reasonable estimates of the hole mobility-lifetime(μτ) product or the collection lengthl The simulations also show that indeed, it is the hole μτ product which is the limiting parameter.