cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Nonlinear thermomechanical response and constitutive modeling of viscoelastic polyethylene membranes

Thin films of linear low-density polyethylene show a significant time-dependent behavior, strongly reliant on temperature and strain rate effects. A constitutive nonlinear thermo-viscoelastic relation is developed to characterize the response of thin membranes up to yielding, in a wide range of temperatures, strain rates, and mechanical loading conditions. The presented plane stress orthotropic formulation involves the free volume theory of viscoelasticity and the time-temperature superposition principle, necessary to describe non-linearities and non-isothermal conditions. Uniaxial tension tests at constant strain rate and long-duration biaxial inflation experiments have been employed in the calibration of the material parameters. The model has been implemented in the Abaqus finite element code by means of a user-defined subroutine based on a recursive integration algorithm. The accuracy of the constitutive relation has been validated against experimental data of full field diaphragm inflation tests and uniaxial tension, relaxation and cyclic experiments, covering sub-ambient temperatures and strain rate ranges observed during the operation of stratospheric balloons.
Characterization of copper-based pigment preparation and alteration products

Copper-based pigments are common in works of art that show signs of decay on green and blue areas and are frequently associated with the degradation of organic substrates and/or media (drying oils, cellulose, etc.). The exact causes of degradation remain unknown. This prompted us to study possible starting and degradation products of one especially reactive copper pigment, verdigris (copper acetate), as well as pigments of the same family (salt and soap greens). Preparation of pigments using historical methods was followed by spectroscopic and crystallographic characterization using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Synthesis of verdigris and verdigris-like pigments resulted in a mixture of starting polymorphs of verdigris, including neutral and basic verdigris. With accelerated aging, pigments degraded to a polymorph of basic verdigris when not affected by organic media, whereas pigments on cellulosic substrates showed oxidized copper species. With this study, we are beginning to understand verdigris starting materials and highlight the complex interactions between pigments and substrates that influence pigment degradation pathways.
Thermal Stresses in Compliant Leaded Systems

The stresses of handling (flexing), shock, and vibration can be reduced by engineering a safer environment for the circuit board system. Thermal stress, however, is induced in the operational mode, owing to the differential expansion of interconnected components. Even before functional stress cycles can test the fatigue strength of the leads, severe thermal loads may arise during the cooling accompanying manufacturing, i.e., the soldering (reflow) process.
Small Business, Entrepreneurship, and Industrial Dynamics

Most firms are small and don’t grow very much. Small firms have lower productivity and shorter life expectancy, pay lower wages, and provide fewer benefits and less employment security than large firms. They create a lot of new jobs, but they also often fail, so that their role as net creators of employment is unclear. Nevertheless, a strong argument can be made that small firms, especially entrepreneurial ones, are important — indeed, indispensable — for long-term economic growth and economic welfare.
Specificity of Primate Amygdalar Pathways to Hippocampus

The amygdala projects to hippocampus in pathways through which affective or social stimuli may influence learning and memory. We investigated the still unknown amygdalar termination patterns and their postsynaptic targets in hippocampus from system to synapse in rhesus monkeys of both sexes. The amygdala robustly innervated the stratum lacunosum-moleculare layer of cornu ammonis fields and uncus anteriorly. Sparser terminations in posterior hippocampus innervated the radiatum and pyramidal layers at the prosubicular/CA1 juncture. The terminations, which were larger than other afferents in the surrounding neuropil, position the amygdala to influence hippocampal input anteriorly, and its output posteriorly. Most amygdalar boutons (76-80%) innervated spines of excitatory hippocampal neurons, and most of the remaining innervated presumed inhibitory neurons, identified by morphology and label with parvalbumin or calretinin, which distinguished nonoverlapping neurochemical classes of hippocampal inhibitory neurons. In CA1, amygdalar axons innervated some calretinin neurons, which disinhibit pyramidal neurons. By contrast, in CA3 the amygdala innervated both calretinin and parvalbumin neurons; the latter strongly inhibit nearby excitatory neurons. In CA3, amygdalar pathways also made closely spaced dual synapses on excitatory neurons. The strong excitatory synapses in CA3 may facilitate affective context representations and trigger sharp-wave ripples associated with memory consolidation. When the amygdala is excessively activated during traumatic events, the specialized innervation of excitatory neurons and the powerful parvalbumin inhibitory neurons in CA3 may allow the suppression of activity of nearby neurons that receive weaker nonamygdalar input, leading to biased passage of highly charged affective stimuli and generalized fear.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Strong pathways from the amygdala targeted the anterior hippocampus, and more weakly its posterior sectors, positioned to influence a variety of emotional and cognitive functions. In hippocampal field CA1, the amygdala innervated some calretinin neurons, which disinhibit excitatory neurons. By contrast, in CA3 the amygdala innervated calretinin as well as some of the powerful parvalbumin inhibitory neurons and may help balance the activity of neural ensembles to allow social interactions, learning, and memory. These results suggest that when the amygdala is hyperactive during emotional upheaval, it strongly activates excitatory hippocampal neurons and parvalbumin inhibitory neurons in CA3, which can suppress nearby neurons that receive weaker input from other sources, biasing the passage of stimuli with high emotional import and leading to generalized fear.
Experimental analysis of the water salinity impact on the energy consumption of small desalination plants

Abstract In the present research, the topic of desalination is investigated both theoretically and experimentally. In the theoretical part, information is provided on water consumption aspects in Greece and worldwide, on the problem of water shortage globally and on the solution of desalination. In the experimental part, the pilot Reverse Osmosis (RO) unit used for the conduction of this study is presented in detail, while following that, the experimental results are analysed, mainly focusing on the energy consumption of the RO desalination unit. Additional results concerning the effect of water pressure and water salinity on the energy consumption and the clean water production flow rate of the experimental desalination unit are presented and the relative conclusions are drawn.
Abstract WP460: Use of Red Cell Microparticles to Limit Hematoma Growth Following Intracerebral Hemorrhage

Currently there is no effective treatment for spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (sICH). Limiting hematoma extension in sICH is an attractive therapeutic target. Earlier studies demonstrated that...
Abstract P336: Predictors of High Intensity Statin Initiation for Primary Prevention in Veterans With Familial Hypercholesterolemia Phenotype

Introduction: Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) phenotype, defined in part by LDL-Cholesterol (LDL-C) ≥190mg/dL, is a strong risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). The 2013 ACC/AHA choleste...
Firearm Policy: Physician Organizations' Role in Political Action Committee Funds, 2018.

Objectives. To compare donations to individual politicians from physician organization political action committees (PACs) and from the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund (NRA PVF) in...
Synthesis of porous organic cage CC3 via solvent modulated evaporation

Abstract We demonstrate a Humidity Modulated Solvent Evaporation (HMSE) approach to promote the nucleation and growth of CC3 crystals. This approach relies on the gradual evaporation of dichloromethane (solvent) from a diluted concentration of CC3 precursors deposited on aluminum foil. The slow solvent evaporation allowed enough time for the organization and formation of CC3 porous organic cage. The solvent diffusion rate was modulated by the relative humidity in the system. The slow kinetics implied during the development of CC3 phase, allowed the formation of CC3 crystals. HRTEM, SAED, SEM, and XRD patterns were used as pivotal characterization techniques to follow and confirm the formation of CC3 crystals.
Distributed Dynamic Event-Triggered Algorithms with Positive Minimum Inter-Event Times on Weight-Balanced Digraphs

This paper considers event-triggered strategies for the well-known multi-agent average consensus problem. While many results on this topic either require global knowledge of the network topology or cannot guarantee a positive minimum inter-event time, more recent works have been able to establish a positive minimum inter-event time using a fully distributed dynamic triggering mechanism. However, these results only apply to undirected communication networks and are tied to specific Lyapunov functions. This paper presents two different novel distributed dynamic event-triggered algorithms with designable positive minimum inter-event times for directed communication networks. We show that both algorithms have the same asymptotic convergence properties and compare their transient properties through simulations.
Floods: impacts on livelihood, economic status and poverty in the north-west region of Pakistan

Climate change-induced floods have diversified effects on the physical and economic system of the dwelling societies. These effects mainly hit agricultural livelihood and livestock ending up in poverty. These irreversible damages are associated with high magnitude and frequency of floods, which are common in the South Asian countries. Similarly, Pakistan was hit hard by 2010 floods which were biggest in history as affecting over 20 million people and causing loss of over US$ 10.85 billion. The devastations were extended to rural poor communities of north-western part of Malakand division in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, which were studied in this research on deploying 500 questionnaires at household level. It was to evaluate the extend of damages to livelihood and economic status of locality. Furthermore, this study tried to analyse the rise in poverty level, compared to the situation before inundating event of 2010. The results of cross-tabulation and logistic regressions confirmed that 1% increase in floods led to 0.44%, 0.31% decrease in livelihood and economic status, respectively. It was also found 1% increase in flooding ended up in 1.947% increase in the poverty level at household level. Further, the loss of livelihood resulted in the economic losses due to damages to crops and livestock and caused rise in poverty. The poverty syndrome was coupled with loss of savings and borrowing of funds that further ruined the economic situation of the locality. Conclusively, the flooding was declared to have posed adverse impacts on sustainable livelihood provision and rise in poverty in the area as not yet addressed through any institutional/governmental intervention.
The Molecular Perspective: Cyclooxygenase-2

Imagine preventing cancer before it even starts. Of course, cancer prevention starts at home. We can stay away from smoke, solvents, and sunlight, avoiding unnecessary risks to our cells. We can also eat healthy foods like fruits and vegetables that are filled with protective antioxidants and cleansing fiber. But researchers are now looking to chemistry to provide new compounds to reduce the risk of cancer. The goal is to create a long-term preventive therapy that blocks the early steps of cancer formation and progression, providing extra protection for susceptible individuals. Surprisingly, a drug that is probably already in your medicine cabinet may be a candidate. Evidence is mounting that regular doses of aspirin, or other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, can decrease the risk of cancer, in particular, of colon cancer. Aspirin is a true wonder drug: an effective painkiller, a tool in the fight against heart disease and stroke, and now, a potential new weapon in the arsenal against cancer. As one might expect from a drug with such profound and manifold effects, aspirin acts at a central point of communication in the body, attacking the messages that are delivered by prostaglandins. Smooth muscle contraction, pain signaling, and inflammation are all modulated by prostaglandin molecules. Aspirin attacks the first step in the synthesis of these important messengers. Arachidonic acid
Paraganglia of the Gallbladder: An Underrecognized Incidental Finding and Potential Diagnostic Pitfall.

Context.— The identification of paraganglia (PG) in the gallbladder (GB) is infrequent, and easily overlooked as it is not something routinely reported. Occasionally they may be misinterpreted as neoplastic cells, such as low-grade carcinomas, germ cell tumors, or because of their close resemblance to neuroendocrine cells, as low-grade neuroendocrine neoplasms. Objective.— To evaluate the incidence and histological features of PG of the GB in patients that underwent cholecystectomy, and discuss the potential misinterpretation of these benign structures as clusters of neoplastic cells. Design.— A retrospective study of cholecystectomy specimens performed over a 6-month period were reviewed for identification of PG. Immunohistochemical studies for chromogranin, synaptophysin, S100, and cytokeratin AE1/AE3 were performed in selected cases. Results.— A total of 365 GB were reviewed and in 16 cases (4.4%) PG was identified within the subserosal connective tissue of the GB wall or cystic duct adjacent to small capillaries, nerves, and ganglia. They consisted of well-demarcated, lobular structures ranging in size from 0.2 to 0.5 cm, which were predominantly composed of chief cells; with strong expression for chromogranin and synaptophysin and negative CKAE1/AE3, and a minor component of S100-positive sustentacular cells. Conclusions.— PG is an uncommon finding with a prevalence of 4.4% in our study. Awareness of their location, histologic features, and immunohistochemical profile may help practicing pathologists to confirm their benign nature, avoid a misdiagnosis of malignancy, and prevent unnecessary diagnostic work-up and treatment.
Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic factors contribute to synergism between let-7c-5p and 5-fluorouracil in inhibiting hepatocellular carcinoma cell viability

Pharmacological interventions for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are hindered by complex factors, and rational combination therapy may be developed to improve therapeutic outcomes. Very recently, we have identified a bioengineered microRNA let-7c-5p (or let-7c) agent as an effective inhibitor against HCC in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we sought to identify small-molecule drugs that may synergistically act with let-7c against HCC. Interestingly, we found that let-7c exhibited a strong synergism with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) in the inhibition of HCC cell viability as manifested by average combination indices of 0.3 and 0.5 in Hep3B and Huh7 cells, respectively. By contrast, coadministration of let-7c with doxorubicin or sorafenib inhibited HCC cell viability with, rather surprisingly, no or minimal synergy. Further studies showed that protein levels of multidrug resistance-associated protein (MRP) ATP-binding cassette subfamily C member 5 (MRP5/ABCC5), a 5-FU efflux transporter, were reduced around 50% by let-7c in HCC cells. This led to a greater degree of intracellular accumulation of 5-FU in Huh7 cells as well as the second messenger cyclic adenosine monophosphate, an endogenous substrate of MRP5. Since 5-FU is an irreversible inhibitor of thymidylate synthetase (TS), we investigated the interactions of let-7c with 5-FU at pharmacodynamic level. Interestingly, our data revealed that let-7c significantly reduced TS protein levels in Huh7 cells, which was associated with the suppression of upstream transcriptional factors as well as other regulatory factors. Collectively, these results indicate that let-7c interacts with 5-FU at both pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic levels, and these findings shall offer insight into molecular mechanisms of synergistic drug combinations. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: Combination therapy is a common strategy that generally involves pharmacodynamic interactions. After identifying a strong synergism between let-7c-5p and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) against hepatocellular carcinoma cell viability, we reveal the involvement of both pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic mechanisms. In particular, let-7c enhances 5-FU exposure (via suppressing ABCC5/MRP5 expression) and cotargets thymidylate synthase with 5-FU (let-7c reduces protein expression, whereas 5-FU irreversibly inactivates enzyme). These findings provide insight into developing rational combination therapies based on pharmacological mechanisms.
Centralized Fault Detection and Classification for Motor Power Distribution Centers Utilizing MLP-NN and Stockwell Transform

Industrial processes require continuous operation of low voltage Motor Power Distribution Centers (MPDC). Hence, lowering the interruption rates via pioneering a fault analysis scheme is necessary for the optimum reliability of such systems. This article presents an advanced approach using Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) and Stockwell Transform (ST) to detect and classify Single Line to Ground (SLG) faults in a simulated MPDC. The virtual faulty and healthy three-phase current signals were measured from a centralized position, that represents the accumulation of all load current waveforms, and processed through ST to obtain behavioral characterizing features. Whereas the Multilayer Perceptron Artificial Neural Network (MLP-NN) utilized the statistical features to diagnose faults. The presented results confirm the effectiveness of the proposed fault diagnosis scheme.
Human guanylate binding proteins: nanomachines orchestrating host defense

Disease-causing microorganisms not only breach anatomical barriers and invade tissues but also frequently enter host cells, nutrient-enriched environments amenable to support parasitic microbial growth. Protection from many infectious diseases is therefore reliant on the ability of individual host cells to combat intracellular infections through the execution of cell-autonomous defense programs. Central players in human cell-autonomous immunity are members of the family of dynamin-related guanylate binding proteins (GBPs). The importance of these interferon-inducible GTPases in host defense to viral, bacterial, and protozoan pathogens has been established for some time; only recently, cell biological and biochemical studies that largely focused on the prenylated paralogs GBP1, GBP2, and GBP5 have provided us with robust molecular frameworks for GBP-mediated immunity. Specifically, the recent characterization of GBP1 as a bona fide pattern recognition receptor for bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) disrupting the integrity of bacterial outer membranes through LPS aggregation, the discovery of a link between hydrolysis-induced GMP production by GBP1 and inflammasome activation, and the classification of GBP2 and GBP5 as inhibitors of viral envelope glycoprotein processing via suppression of the host endoprotease furin have paved the way for a vastly improved conceptual understanding of the molecular mechanisms by which GBP nanomachines execute cell-autonomous immunity. The herein discussed models incorporate our current knowledge of the antimicrobial, proinflammatory, and biochemical properties of human GBPs and thereby provide testable hypotheses that will guide future studies into the intricacies of GBP-controlled host defense and their role in human disease.
Prematurity, the diagnosis of bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and maturation of ventilatory control

Infants born before 32 weeks gestational age and receiving respiratory support at 36 weeks postmenstrual age (PMA) are diagnosed with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). This label suggests that their need for supplemental oxygen (O2 ) is primarily due to acquired dysplasia of airways and airspaces, and that the supplemental O2 is treating residual parenchymal lung disease. However, emerging evidence suggests that immature ventilatory control may also contribute to the need for supplemental O2 at 36 weeks PMA. In all newborns, maturation of ventilatory control continues ex utero and is a plastic process. Among premature infants, supplemental O2 mitigates the hypoxemic effects of delayed maturation of ventilatory control, as well as reduces the duration and frequency of periodic breathing events. Nevertheless, prematurity is associated with altered and occasionally aberrant maturation of ventilatory control. Infants born prematurely, with or without a diagnosis of BPD, are more prone to long-lasting effects of dysfunctional ventilatory control. This review addresses normal and abnormal maturation of ventilatory control and suggests how aberrant maturation complicates assigning the diagnosis of BPD. Greater awareness of the interaction between parenchymal lung disease and delayed maturation of ventilatory control is essential to understanding why a given premature infant requires and is benefitting from supplemental O2 at 36 weeks PMA.
Longitudinal Cost Profiles of Pipeline Embolization Device Versus Stent-Assisted Coiling in Propensity-Matched Unruptured Small Anterior Circulation Aneurysms.

BACKGROUND The cost profiles of stent-assisted coiling (SAC) vs Pipeline embolization device (PED) in small unruptured anterior circulation aneurysms have not been studied. OBJECTIVE To compare the 2 modalities cost profiles in a propensity-matched cohort controlling for potential technical complexity confounders including size and location. METHODS Patients treated with either SAC or PED at our institution were identified. Following propensity-score algorithm, 46 patients, 23 in each group were matched. The procedural and follow-up costs in each group were analyzed and compared. RESULTS Median maximal aneurysm size in the SAC and PED cohort were 5.3 vs 5.1 mm, respectively. Costs of access guide materials were significantly higher in the SAC group (P < .01). The average implant cost was not significantly different between the SAC and PED cohorts (${\$}$13973.2 ± ${\$}$2886.2 vs ${\$}$14,760.7 ± ${\$}$3782.1, respectively; P = .43). Similarly, total procedural costs were not different (${\$}$18341.5 ± 4104 vs ${\$}$17484.3 ± 2914.1, respectively, P = .42). Although there were significantly more total follow-ups (P = .02) and longer follow-up duration (P = .01) in SAC cohort, no significant difference in follow-up costs between the 2 groups was identified (${\$}$20557 ± ${\$}$9247 vs ${\$}$18958 ± ${\$}$9171.9, P = .56). Overall cost was similar between the SAC (${\$}$38898.9 ± ${\$}$9645.5) and PED groups (${\$}$36442.4 ± ${\$}$9076) (P = .38). CONCLUSION In small unruptured anterior circulation aneurysms (excluding anterior communicating artery aneurysms) matched for technical complexity confounders, SAC and PED offer an overall equivalent economic cost profile. Postprocedural noninvasive imaging was more frequent in the SAC group. However, follow-up costs and total costs were not significantly different.
Auditing Fair Value: Security-Level Evidence on Auditor Expertise

In this paper, I study whether and how auditors develop domain-specific expertise in auditing difficult-to-audit fair value (FV) measurements. Specifically, by analyzing the dispersion in the FV estimates of the same security held by different insurance clients of the same auditor, I provide security-level evidence that auditors influence their clients’ FV measurements. Importantly, I find that auditors get better at estimating security FV when they observe multiple valuations of the same securities at different clients. I also find evidence that auditors use their built-up competency to curb insurance clients’ incentives to overstate the FV of securities stemming from their regulatory capital levels. Overall, these results shed light on the role of domain-specific expertise in the auditing process, suggesting that auditors develop such expertise through a specific learning mechanism that they apply to curb managerial incentives.
Defining Hybrid Editors with the Synthesizer Generator

The purpose of the Synthesizer Generator is to facilitate the construction of editors that provide powerful synthesis, analysis, and manipulation resources while preventing counterproductive and meaningless transactions. These goals are partially met by structure editors, which furnish a set of commands for instantiating and restructuring objects. Structure editors are based on the premise that the objects being edited are not just strings of text, but are hierarchical compositions of well-formed fragments. Structure editors permit objects to be edited in environments that consistently acknowledge and reinforce this viewpoint. One of their principal advantages is that they place constraints on the user’s activities that prohibit many common syntactic mistakes. In addition, the editor can take care of details of secondary importance, such as formatting.
Rest as a Virtue: Theological Foundations and Application to Personal and Professional Life:

In a culture that values availability, productivity, and speed, a strong work ethic is honored and rewarded. Hard work is seen as virtuous, while rest is given little attention. However, Scripture ...
Twenty-one Polymorphic Markers from Human Chromosome 12 for Integration of Genetic and Regular Article

Twenty-one physically mapped, polymorphic markers have been developed from a chromosome 12-specific cosmid library. The markers consist of CA repeat-containing sequence-tagged sites (STSs) derived from cosmid clones mapped by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Three methods for determining the sequence flanking CA microsatellites were used, including one using degenerate primer sets for direct sequence analysis. Oligonucleotide primer pairs suitable for use in polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were selected from the sequences flanking the CA microsatellite and were tested for their ability to generate unique PCR products. The informativeness of these STSs as genetic markers was determined by typing 10 unrelated individuals who are part of the Centre d'Etude du Polymorphisme Humaine (EPH) pedigrees. Eleven of the 21 FISH-mapped, polymorphic STSs are heterozygous in 7 or more of the individuals tested. Since these markers are derived from physically mapped cosmids, genetic linkage analysis with them will facilitate the integration of the developing physical and genetic maps of chromosome 12.
Asymmetric reductions of propargyl ketones : An effective approach to the synthesis of optically-active compounds

Abstract Propargyl ketones are readily reduced by the asymmetric reducing agent B -3-pinanyl-9- borabicyclo[3.3.1]-nonane (Alpine-borane). The reagent prepared from (+)-α-pinene and 9-BBN provides the R enantiomer while the S enantiomer can be obtained from (-)-α-pinene. Alternatively the S enantiomer can be prepared from the reagent derived from 9-BBN and the benzyl ether of nopol (6,6-dimethyl-bicyclo[3.11.]hept-2-ene-2-ethanol). The limiting factor in obtaining high enantiomeric induction is often the enantiomeric purity of the α-pinene. With 100% enantiomerically pure α-pinene, propargyl alcohols of essentially 100% ee can be obtained. A predictive rationalization of the transition state leading to this remarkable selection is presented. The acetylene unit of the propargyl alcohol provides a convenient handle for transformations to other useful, optically-active products. The use of propargyl alcohols for the synthesis of optically-active α- and β-substituted γ-lactones, and δ-lactones is illustrated
Postneonatal diarrhea mortality of Mexican American and Anglo American infants: Trends and context

In the 1930s and 1940s, the Mexican origin population of San Antonio, Texas, USA, was desperately impoverished and inhabited some of the worst slums in the USA. Mortality of Mexican origin infants in the 1930s and 1940s was dominated by diarrhea, a cause of death identified with fecal contamination of the environment. The postneonatal diarrhea mortality rate (risk) was 48 per 1,000 Mexican origin infants, but only 7 per 1,000 Anglo infants. By 1970 this cause of death had virtually disappeared in both populations, but in the 35 years of 1935-1969, Mexican origin infants accounted for over 90 percent of all diarrhea deaths in the city. Limited evidence suggests that miserable living conditions without proper water supplies and sanitation in the densely settled Mexican American neighborhoods gave rise to environmental contamination which resulted in high diarrhea morbidity and mortality. The hypothesis is suggested that reduction of mortality from diarrhea was a consequence of specific community interventions.
The Market and the Masses in Latin America: Policy Reform and Consumption in Liberalizing Economies

Part I. Introduction and Theory: 1. Consuming the Washington consensus 2. Theoretical framework: the top-down and bottom-up sources of public opinion Part II. Mass Beliefs about Market Policies in Latin America: 3. The economic consequences and elite rhetoric of market reform in Latin America 4. Are Latin Americans neoliberals? 5. Are the poor neoliberals? Part III. Mass Support for Reform in Brazil: 6. The economic consequences and elite rhetoric of market reform in Brazil 7. How many Brazilians support market reforms? 8. Which Brazilians support market reforms? Part IV. Conclusion: 9. The politics of consumismo in Latin America.
ReliaPrep[trade] Large Volume HT gDNA Isolation System: gDNA isolation from blood samples

The ReliaPrep™ Large Volume HT gDNA Isolation System enables automated purification of genomic DNA (gDNA) from up to 96 samples of whole blood at a time. The system dramatically increases laboratory throughput while conserving reagents by scaling the purification chemistry automatically to each sample's input volume, providing DNA that is ready for storage or for use in downstream applications without a need to resuspend DNA pellets.
Performance Tests of High-Speed Load and Frequency Control Equipment [includes discussion]

NONMEMBERAIEE between TVA'ssystem anditsneighboringsystems. Themainobject hasbeen tocontrol theloadwithout passing onto theother systems anyunduefluctuations. Tomeetthis objective, numerous studies andtests havebeenmadetofind andcorrectbasic problems intheregulation of tie-line load.Thelatest available equipmentofmanufacturers wasapplied, and tests ofnewequipment havebeenmade. In1939greater difficulties were- encountered intie-line regulation because of expansion andincreased numberofinterconnections. Itwassoonfound thatcontrol equipment available atthattimefora widely dispersed system camefarshort ofgiving thedesired performance. Adequatetelemetering equipment wasnot available whichwouldoperate overdistances ofseveral hundred miles andstill havetimedelays nogreater thanthatencountered withswitchboard instruments andyetusetransmission facilities available, suchaspower-line carrier current and carrier current on telephone circuits. Fastcommercial equipment available at thattimerequired asolid metallic line, andhencewaslimited tocomparatively short distances. Equipment whichwas available forlong-distance usesatthis timeonelectric powersystems wasgenerally oftheimpulse-duration orbase-rate typeandthetimedelays ofeacharewell known.In1941and1942,numerous
How Much is Your Customer Worth? A Gamma-Poisson Model to Assess Customer Profitability

Assessing the profitability of a customer is very important to a firm from the standpoint of planning retention (and even acquisition) initiatives. Customer profitability is also the defining concept of customer relationship management (CRM). In this paper we propose a framework to quantify the expected profitability of a customer. This is done by first postulating that a customer's probability of responding to a marketing solicitation follows a discrete hazard process (specifically, the customer's inter-purchase times are distributed Poisson), whose parameters are allowed to vary across customers on account of both observed heterogeneity and unobserved heterogeneity (specifically, we assume the heterogeneity distribution to be Gamma). This yields an unconditional model of customers' inter-purchase times, with the "memory" property, that we call the Gamma-Poisson Model (not to be confused with the NBD model, which compounds "memoryless" Exponential inter-purchase times with Gamma heterogeneity). We then show how to use the estimated parameters to score the firm's customers in terms of their expected profitability to the firm at any point of time. These profitability scores are customer-specific and generated by (1) Bayesian updating of the estimated population-level parameters using the observed customer purchases, as well as (2) the time elapsed since the customer's last purchase with the firm. Our proposed procedure enables the firm to track the time-varying profitability of its customers, and also facilitates the elimination of unprofitable customers as and when appropriate. Lastly, we discuss possible ways of dealing with optimal customer prospecting based on our analyses. We illustrate our proposed technique using individual-level purchasing data from 529 customers of a catalog firm. First, we estimate the parameters of our proposed Gamma-Poisson Model. As an empirical benchmark, we also estimate the Beta-Binomial Model, which can be interpreted as a discrete-time analogue of the widely used NBD Model. Our proposed model shows superior empirical performance - in terms of both (1) in-sample calibration fit, and (2) holdout validation fit - over the benchmark. We then demonstrate, using a variety of segmentation analyses, the substantive benefits of employing our proposed Gamma-Poisson Model in terms of how one could effectively segment customers based on their predicted profitability scores. We believe that our proposed technique will greatly assist marketing efforts of firms that possess customer databases.
A digital designer's guide to phase-locked loop clock drivers

This paper will discuss the basic behavior of a phase-locked loop (PLL) and investigate how this behavior will influence a design's timing budget. By understanding the overall behavior of a PLL and applying design methodologies which address the adverse timing effects caused by this behavior one can successfully integrate PLL devices into a high performance clock distribution tree.
Functional loss after total knee arthroplasty for poliomyelitis

Recurvatum deformity secondary to poliomyelitis was corrected during total knee arthroplasty. Modular distal augmentation of the femoral component was successful in achieving and maintaining correction. This case also shows the potential functional disadvantages of correcting recurvatum in patients with quadriceps weakness.
Selection for dental practice of chemical disinfectants and sterilants for hepatitis and AIDS.

The advent of HIV infection, AIDS, and renewed interest in hepatitis B has prompted the dental profession to become more interested in good infection control practices. This article reviews parameters which must be considered in the selection of heat sterilization techniques (autoclave, chemiclave, or dry heat) and also chemicals for disinfection and sterilization (2 per cent glutaraldehyde, quaternary ammonium compounds, iodophors, alcohol, sodium hypochlorite, and synthetic phenols). The advantages and disadvantages of each of the chemicals is listed along with recommendations for immersion sterilants/dis-infectants and surface disinfection.
Chronic pollution in freshwaters, evaluation of ecological impacts and implications for water resource management

Conventional techniques for assessing and monitoring water quality have been primarily based either on the use of living material as “bio‐indicators” or on the employment of analytical measurements to provide information about the physical and chemical status of aquatic ecosystems. The former have predominantly utilised the presence of selected species to indicate the quality of waters in which they are found, whilst the latter require an adequate understanding of the toxic effects of specific physio‐chemical phenomena in order that their ecological impacts may be fully gauged. These approaches are well established but more recently attention has turned to the use of sub‐lethal effects to give a better measure of the sensitivity of populations and individuals to environmental change. Chronic exposure to toxic compounds in freshwater may allow individuals to survive but, owing to impaired growth, altered reproductive potential or behaviour modification, the population structure and dynamics may show symptoms of exposure. This paper explores whether the evaluation of sub‐lethal effects may provide the basis of techniques which are capable of providing ecologically relevant information about pollution impacts in a cost‐effective manner.
U.S. Outer Continental Shelf Petroleum Resources

Despite estimates that the US Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) could yield half of undiscovered US hydrocarbons, less than 6% has been offered for lease, and only 2% is currently leased from the Department of the Interior (DOI). Controversy and uncertainty about these lands demonstrate the need to reevaluate existing policies. A review of OCS policy history, recent studies of industry procedures and competitive bidding patterns, and environmental issues find a consensus that the resources are substantial and optimism that prospects for finding oil are good. The constraints from economic policies that prohibit joint bidding may be offset by a new five-year schedule for leasing. Although environmental groups and affected states oppose exploration and development of the OCS and will keep these resources unavailable during the 1985-2000 period, recent amendments to the OCS lands act suggest a compromise policy is possible in the long run. 34 references, 2 figures, 3 tables.
Low‐frequency magnetic field measurements near the epicenter of the Ms 7.1 Loma Prieta Earthquake

The authors report the results of measurements of low frequency magnetic noise by two independent monitoring systems prior to the occurrence of the M{sub s} 7.1 Loma Prieta earthquake of 17 October 1989. Their measurements cover 25 narrow frequency bands in the more than six-decade frequency range 0.01 Hz-32 kHz, with a time resolution varying from a half hour in the ULF range (0.01-10 Hz) to one second in the ELF/VLF range (10 Hz-32 kHz). The ULF system is located near Corralitos, about 7 km from the epicenter. The ELF/VLF system is located on the Stanford campus, about 52 km from the epicenter. Analysis of the ELF/VLF system is located on the Stanford campus, about 52 km from the epicenter. Analysis of the ELF/VLF data has revealed no precursor activity that they can identify at this time. However, the ULF data have some distinctive and anomalous features. First, a narrow-band signal appeared in the range 0.05-0.2 Hz around September 12 and persisted until the appearance of the second anomalous feature, which consisted of a substantial increase in the noise background starting on 5 October and covering almost the entire frequency range of the ULF system. Third, there was an anomalousmore » dip in the noise background in the range 0.2-5 Hz, starting one day ahead of the earthquake. Finally, and perhaps most compelling, there was an increase to an exceptionally high level of activity in the range 0.01-0.5 Hz starting approximately three hours before the earthquake. There do not appear to have been any magnetic field fluctuations originating in the upper atmosphere that can account for this increase. Further, while the systems are sensitive to motion, seismic measurements indicate that there were no significant shocks preceding the quake. Thus, the various anomalous features in the data, and in particular the large-amplitude increase in activity starting three hours before the quake, may have been magnetic precursors.« less
Damage by Rice Stink Bug to Grain Sorghum

Although Oebalus pugnax (F.) fed on stems, rachis branches, and glumes of grain sorghum, they were primarily seed feeders. Seeds damaged by rice stink bugs were smaller and lighter in weight than undamaged seeds. The percentage of seeds per panicle with feeding punctures and the number of punctures per seed generally increased as infestation levels of rice stink bug increased. Bugs reduced grain yield and percent seed germination, but reduction levels varied, depending on the number of bugs per panicle and infestation period during grain development. Bugs caused more seed damaged during early grain development. Larger reductions in yield occurred when 16 rice stink bugs were maintained on panicles from the milk stage of grain development to maturity (28 days) than when they were maintained on panicles from the soft-dough stage to maturity (20 days). Yield was not significantly reduced when 16 bugs infested panicles during the last 10 days of grain development, but small reductions occurred in percent germination. Reductions in yield which occurred when panicles were infested by rice stink bug during the anthesis stage of grain development were due to reduced numbers of seeds per panicle. Later infestations of bugs generally reduced weight but not number of seeds per panicle.
Association of proteins undergoing slow axonal transport with goldfish visual system myelin.

Abstract [ 3 H]Proline derived radioactivity which is slowly transported in the goldfish optic nerve has been isolated in association with purified preparations of optic tectal myelin. Acrylamide gel analysis reveals that most of the slowly transported radioactivity is distributed among the high molecular weight mylein proteins with a major peak comigrating with a band ( ∼ 42,000daltons) which is prominent in goldfish brain myelin. A similar peak is not seen in gels of whole synaptosome protein. Relatively small but measurable amounts of radioactivity comigrate with the basic and proteolipid proteins. A low density myelin subfraction is 3–5-fold lower in specific radioactivity (disint./min/μg protein) than a corresponding high density fraction and shows particularly low specific radioactivities in the basic and proteolipid bands. The results are discussed with reference to the possible adherence of specific axonal membrane fragments as well as other potential sources of myelin label.
Hypericin-mediated photooxidative damage of α-crystallin in human lens epithelial cells.

St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum), a perennial herb native to Europe, is widely used for and seems to be effective in treatment of mild to moderate depression. Hypericin, a singlet oxygen-generating photosensitizer that absorbs in both the visible and the UVA range, is considered to be one of the bioactive ingredients of St. John’s wort, and commercial preparations are frequently calibrated to contain a standard concentration. Hypericin can accumulate in ocular tissues, including lenses, and can bind in vitro to α-crystallin, a major lens protein. α-crystallin is required for lens transparency and also acts as a chaperone to ensure its own integrity and the integrity of all lens proteins. Because there is no crystallin turnover, damage to α-crystallin is cumulative over the lifetime of the lens and can lead to cataracts, the principal cause of blindness worldwide. In this work we study hypericin photosensitization of α-crystallin and detect extensive polymerization of bovine α-crystallin exposed in vitro to hypericin and UVA. We use fluorescence confocal microscopy to visualize binding between hypericin and α-crystallin in a human lens epithelial (HLE) cell line. Further, we show that UVA irradiation of hypericin-treated HLE cells results in a dramatic decrease in α-crystallin detection concurrent with a dramatic accumulation of the tryptophan oxidation product N-formylkynurenine (NFK). Examination of actin in HLE cells indicates that this cytoskeleton protein accumulates NFK resulting from hypericin-mediated photosensitization. This work also shows that filtration of wavelengths <400 nm provides incomplete protection against α-crystallin modification and NFK accumulation, suggesting that even by wearing UV-blocking sunglasses, routine users of St. John’s wort cannot adequately shield their lenses from hypericin-mediated photosensitized damage.
Pyrethroids, knockdown resistance and sodium channels

Knockdown resistance to DDT and the pyrethrins was first described in 1951 in the housefly (Musca domestica L.). This trait, which confers reduced neuronal sensitivity to these insecticides, was subsequently shown to confer cross-resistance to all synthetic pyrethroid insecticides that have been examined to date. As a consequence, the worldwide commercial development of pyrethroids as a major insecticide class over the past three decades has required constant awareness that pyrethroid overuse has the potential to reselect this powerful resistance mechanism in populations that previously were resistant to DDT. Demonstration of tight genetic linkage between knockdown resistance and the housefly gene encoding voltage-sensitive sodium channels spurred efforts to identify gene mutations associated with knockdown resistance and understand how these mutations confer a reduction in the sensitivity of the pyrethroid target site. This paper summarizes progress in understanding pyrethroid resistance at the molecular level, with particular emphasis on studies in the housefly.
Using projections for phase retrieval

The mathematical study of phase retrieval was started in 2006 in a landmark paper of Balan, Casazza and Edidin. This quickly became a heavily studied topic with implications for many areas of research in both applied mathematics and engineering. Recently there have been developments in a new area of study pertaining to phase retrieval given by projections. We give an extensive overview of the papers regarding projection phase retrieval.
Multiple Subpial Transection for Landau-Kleffner Syndrome

Landau-Kleffner syndrome (LKS) is an acquired epileptic aphasia caused by a lesion in the speech centers of the cerebral cortex during a critical period of childhood development. Characteristics of LKS include language deterioration, seizure disorders, and severe electroencephalogram abnormalities. Multiple subpial transection (MST) is a surgical procedure that eliminates seizure activity in the cerebral cortex while preserving the child's normal cortical functions of speech, movement, primary sensation, and memory. This article presents a summary of clinical studies on LKS and discusses the diagnosis of LKS, traditional medical treatments, patient selection for MST procedures, and perioperative care of children undergoing MST procedures.
Breakdown of absolute rate theory and prefactor anomalies in superionic conductors

Abstract We suggest that the anomalously low prefactors observed for the ionic hopping rate in defect-structure superionic conductors are due to a breakdown of absolute rate theory. A treatment that takes dissipative processes into account is introduced and a new expression for the prefactor is obtained. We present NMR data on the superionic conductor Li2Ti3O7 that supports these ideas and extract the value of the elemental energy transfer per collision.