cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effect of 2,450 MHz microwave radiation on the development of the rat brain

Male Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to 2,450 MHz microwave radiation at an incident power density of 10 mW/cm2 daily for 3 hours from day 4 of pregnancy (in utero exposure) through day 40 postpartum, except for 2 days at the perinatal period. The animals were killed, and the brains removed, weighed, measured, and histologically examined at 15, 20, 30, and 40 days of age. The histologic parameters examined included the cortical architecture of the cerebral cortex, the decline of the germinal layer along the lateral ventricles, the myelination of the corpus callosum, and the decline of the external germinal layer of the cerebellar cortex. In 40-day-old rats, quantitative measurements of neurons were also made. The spine density of the pyramidal cells in layer III of the somatosensory cortex, and the density of basal dendritic trees of the pyramidal cells in layer V were measured in Golgi-Cox impregnated specimens. In addition, the density of Purkinje cells and the extent of the Purkinje cell layer in each lobule were measured in midsagittal sections of the cerebellum stained with thionin. There were no remarkable differences between microwave-exposed and control (sham-irradiated) groups for any of the histologic or quantitative parameters examined; however, the findings provide important information on quantitative measurements of the brain. The data from this study failed to demonstrate that there is a significant effect on rat brain development due to microwave exposure (10 mW/cm2) during the embryonic, fetal, and postnatal periods.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Hard decision and iterative joint source channel coding using arithmetic codes

Current proposals for using arithmetic coding in a joint source/channel coding framework require 'soft' information to provide error correction. However, in many applications only the binary arithmetic coded output is available at the decoder. We propose a hard decision technique that uses only the information in the bitstream to provide error correction. Where soft information is available this decoder can also be used to substantially enhance the performance of any soft decision decoders by using the two decoders in an iterative fashion.
A convex characterization of classes of problems in control with specific interaction and communication structures

We present a list of optimal disturbance rejection problems in systems in which the overall control scheme is required to have a certain structure. These structures correspond to various classes of controlled systems which include what we refer to as nested, chained, hierarchical, delayed interaction and communication, and, symmetric systems. The common thread in all of these classes is that by taking an input-output point of view we can characterize all stabilizing controllers in terms of convex constraints in the Youla-Kucera parameter. The disturbance rejection problem can therefore be casted as a convex, yet nonstandard, model matching problem. Approaches that solve this problem are presented for various optimality criteria.
A Formal Design Verification System Based on an Automated Reasoning System

In recent years, interest has grown in the possibility of developing a formal design verification approach as an alternative to standard simulation techniques for verification. Several researchers have used, or suggested the use of, artificial intelligence techniques in such a formal system. The purpose of this paper is to briefly describe the ongoing work on the development of a viable formal design verification system based on an automated reasoning system. This system, called LMA (Logic Machine Architecture), has been developed at Argonne National Laboratory. This paper describes the basic ideas underlying this formal system for verification and discusses several of the current research projects.
Abuse during pregnancy: current theory and new contextual understandings.

This study used Landenburger's theory, a process of leaving and recovering from an abusive relationship, as a framework to interview 35 pregnant women identified as being at high risk for abuse. Results are reported on 18 women who disclosed active abuse during the study. Landenburger's model was not a good fit. Our participants became trapped and endured violent relationships if they perceived this was the best situation for their unborn child. Additionally the chaos, instability, and lack of resources experienced by these women likely contributed to their inability to complete the four phases described by Landenburger's model for non-pregnant women
Exploring Culture-Specific Learning Styles in Accounting Education.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review whether culture affects accounting students’ learning processes to identify practical guidance for accounting educators facing a culturally diverse classroom. In spite of a significant literature thread in accounting education on student learning, relatively, little emphasis has been placed on culture-specific learning differences. The literature gap is particularly acute with respect to practical culture-specific guidance for accounting educators. This paper is organized along three primary inquiries into the role of culture in accounting education: first, do we know if culture impacts learning? Second, how much do we know about culture-specific learning styles in the accounting field? Third, what implications do culture-specific learning styles carry for accounting educators? Design/methodology/approach – Initially, the author surveys culture-specific learning styles literature, after which a more in-depth analysis of accounting-specific literature is con...
Peptide Signals for Satiety

Over the past 20 years, basic research aimed at determining the fundamental physiological mechanisms that produce meal-ending satiety has made significant advances. A major element in this progress has been the demonstration of the key role of a small group of gut peptides, including cholecystokinin, glucagon, and bombesin-like peptides. These peptides, which are released peripherally by the ingestion of food, appear to provide an informational link between the gut and the brain. Studies from several laboratories have identified common themes uniting the effects of these preabsorptive signals: (1) When administered systemically they produce potent, dose-related, and behaviorally specific inhibitions of short-term food intake in a wide variety of animal species and in humans. Thus, they appear to elicit or accelerate meal-ending satiety. (2) Their sites of action are peripheral, not central. (3) Afferent nerves relay these initial effects centrally, with the abdominal vagus playing a major role. (4) This information is integrated with other visceral and gustatory information in the dorsal hindbrain. (5) Gastrointestinal peptides interact with each other and with traditional neurotransmitter systems in producing satiety. Finally, (6) the development of highly specific receptor antagonists and antisera directed against these peptides has allowed tests of their physiological relevance, providing demonstrations that endogenous cholecystokinin and glucagon play important roles in controlling food intake.
The Morality of Marriage and the Transformative Power of Inclusion

Marriage is the most important, foundational moral institution of society, but in recent years, same-sex unions have sought to be included within its definition. However, including same-sex unions within the definition of marriage transforms the definition and the morality of marriage. This article discusses what the morality of marriage is, first by introducing the paradigm of relationship division into kinship and strangers. Ten moral influences of marriage are listed and described, and the legitimacy of defending marriage’s morality is explained. The article describes eleven moral values and precepts that marriage embodies, as well as the important function of channeling sexuality. The morality of gay and lesbian relationships is discussed, as well as their potential impact on transforming marriage by being included. The article concludes that in order to protect marriage, morality, and society, same-sex unions should not be included within the definition of marriage.
EUS-guided portal pressure gradient measurement with a novel 25-gauge needle device versus standard transjugular approach: a comparison animal study

Background and Aims Portal hypertension (PH) is a serious adverse event of liver cirrhosis. The hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) accurately reflects the degree of PH and is the single best prognostic factor in liver disease. Currently, portal pressure gradient (PPG) measurement is performed at interventional radiology (IR) with a standard transjugular approach requiring radiation and intravenous contrast. The aim of this study was to develop a novel EUS-guided system using a 25G FNA needle and compact manometer to directly measure PPG and to evaluate its performance and clinical feasibility. Methods Experiments were performed in 3 swine that were under general anesthesia. Manometry was performed in venous (baseline and PH) and arterial (aorta) systems. The PH model was created by rapid Dextran-40 infusion peripherally. Under EUS guidance a 25G FNA needle with attached manometer was used to puncture (transgastric-transhepatic approach) and measure pressures in the portal vein, right hepatic vein (RHV), inferior vena cava (IVC), and aorta. With the IR approach, RHV (free and wedged), IVC, and aorta pressure were measured with an occlusion balloon. Pressure correlation was divided into 3 groups; low pressure (baseline), medium pressure (noncirrhotic portal hypertensive model), and high pressure (arterial). Correlation between the 2 methods of measurement was charted in scatter plots, and the Pearson's correlation coefficient (R) was calculated. Results EUS identification, access, and manometry was successful in all targeted vessels. There was excellent correlation (R, .985-.99) between EUS and IR methods in all pressure ranges. No adverse event occurred. Conclusions This novel technique of EUS-PPG measurement using a 25G needle and novel manometer was feasible and demonstrated excellent correlation with the standard transjugular method throughout low, medium, and high pressure ranges.
The Impact of Municipal Renewable Electricity Use on Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the United States

Local governments are increasingly taking initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, limited and inconsistent data makes evaluating the aggregate impact of relevant actions difficult. This paper focuses specifically on U.S. city governments’ use of renewable electricity to power their own operations. It develops a range of rough estimates for the cumulative nationwide impact of this activity and finds that it results in an annual abatement of between 5.8 and 29.2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e), with the best approximation being 6.2 million tons CO2e a year. This is about 20% of the estimated total that could be reduced if city governments used only renewable electricity to power their operations. Despite the considerable potential that remains untapped, even the maximum direct impact resulting from local government renewable electricity use is roughly estimated as less than 0.5% of total annual U.S. GHG emissions. Government procurement policies and “leading by example” provide opportunity for additional indirect impact.
A nonlinear singularly perturbed Volterra integrodifferential equation of nonconvolution type

We consider the nonconvolution initial value problemwhere μ is a small positive parameter, b(t, s) is a given real kernel, and F, g are given real functions. For the convolution case b(t,s) = a(t − s). Lodge, McLeod, and Nohel recently established many qualitative properties of the solution of (+); we extend their results to the general nonconvolution problem. In particular, conditions are given that ensure that the solution of (+) decreases to a limiting value α(μ) > 1 as t → ∞.
Metastatic Colon Cancer in an 18-Year-Old without Predisposing Factors.

While colorectal carcinoma is a common gastrointestinal cancer in adults, it is rare in pediatrics with an incidence of 1 : 1,000,000 and represents a fraction of neoplasms encountered in children. Malignant neoplasms represent a major cause of mortality in the pediatric age group. While presenting with weight loss, iron deficiency, rectal bleeding, abdominal pain, and change in bowel habits, or symptoms similar to acute appendicitis, the working diagnosis may be considered to be anorexia. This case illustrates the importance of considering colon cancer among other disease entities as a cause of unintentional weight loss in adolescents. While this is a rare occurrence in the pediatric population, significant unintentional weight loss with altered bowel habits should prompt a search for underlying malignancy—even in the absence of a positive family history or predisposing cancer syndromes.
Investigating the Effects of Modality and Instruction on Structural Knowledge

Previous research has shown that individuals process stimuli differently based on the modality in which the stimuli are presented. In an effort to further understand how stimuli are processed and organized, the current study utilized card sorting in one of three media modalities (text only, picture only, and text and picture combined) and in one of two instructional styles (free sort or structured sort, via function) to assess the degree of sharedness between the resulting mental models. It was believed that structure sorts would produces greater levels of sharedness and that the semantic nature of the structured sort would yield the greatest levels of sharedness in the text only condition. Structured sorts did in fact produce better results than unstructured sorts as expected; however, in the structured sort, the picture only condition provided the best results. In addition, comparisons were made to a previous study suggesting that the proper instruction by modality combination should be evaluated based ...
Abstract 1654: Cisplatin resistance is associated with autophagy in SPARC expressing medulloblastoma cells.

Proceedings: AACR 104th Annual Meeting 2013; Apr 6-10, 2013; Washington, DC Medulloblastoma is the most common malignant brain tumor in children and is associated with a poor outcome. Our previous studies indicate that SPARC expression suppressed medulloblastoma tumor growth in vitro and in vivo. We were interested in gaining further insight into the potential of SPARC expression as a novel approach to sensitize medulloblastoma to chemotherapeutic agents. In this study, we demonstrate that SPARC: expression resulted in enhanced resistance of cancer cells to cisplatin, a commonly used chemotherapeutic drug in the treatment of medulloblastoma. We also demonstrate that autophagy was involved in SPARC expression mediated resistance to cisplatin. We further demonstrated that suppression of autophagy by autophagy inhibitors, 3-methyladenosine (3MA) and small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) targeting Atg5 in SPARC expressed cells enhanced the sensitivity of medulloblastoma cells to cisplatin compared to cells treated with cisplatin alone. Moreover, sensitization to cisplatin by inhibition of autophagy is SPARC expressed cells was accompanied by induction of apoptosis indicating that suppression of autophagy indeed renders tumor cells more sensitive to cisplatin. Further we show overexpression of High mobility group box 1 (HMGB1 in SPARC expressed cells rendered medulloblastoma cells resistant to cell death; whereas depletion of HMGB1 using RNA interference suppressed autophagy and increased the sensitivity of medulloblastoma cells to cisplatin as assessed by microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3) lipidation, redistribution of LC3 into cytoplasmic puncta, and accumulation of autophagosomes and autolysosomes. Further our data suggest a role for HMGB1 in the regulation of autophagy through the MEK-ERK pathway in SPARC over expressed cells. The results of our study revealed a new mechanism for enhancing cisplatin sensitivity in SPARC expressed cells. These findings have important clinical implications for the design of experimental treatment protocols for medulloblastoma. Citation Format: Padmavathi Pannuru, Ranadheer Dontula, Herbert Engelhard, Howard Ozer, Sajani S. Lakka. Cisplatin resistance is associated with autophagy in SPARC expressing medulloblastoma cells. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 1654. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-1654 Note: This abstract was not presented at the AACR Annual Meeting 2013 because the presenter was unable to attend.
Temporary Measures: The Production of Illegality in Costa Rican Immigration Law

This article examines the everyday lives of Nicaraguan immigrants in Costa Rica to understand the temporal aspects of illegality produced by immigration law. Two sets of temporary measures highlight the temporality of both law and illegality. First, frequent legal reform, temporary immigration measures, and the bureaucratic labyrinth of immigration administration create a sense of Costa Rican immigration law as temporary. The ongoing temporary character of law and the forms of immigrant illegality it generates create uncertainty about the boundaries between legality and illegality among migrants in Costa Rica. Second, Nicaraguans in Costa Rica respond to the indeterminacy of the law and their economic and social position in relation to it through their own temporary measures. These measures constitute two forms of waiting: first, immigrants feel “locked up” by the shifting legal and administrative complexities of immigration; and second, they create quasi-legal ways to navigate immigration law during the long process of legalization of their status.
Peer Reviewed: Following Single Cell Dynamics with Native Fluorescence Microscopy

Fluorescence imaging opens the door to following dynamic chemical changes in cells at video rates, if not faster.
ADP-induced platelet shape change and mobilization of cytoplasmic ionized calcium are mediated by distinct binding sites on platelets: 5'- p-fluorosulfonylbenzoyladenosine is a weak platelet agonist

Platelet stimulation with ADP results in several responses, including shape change, increase in cytoplasmic ionized calcium concentration [Ca2+]i, an inhibition of adenylate cyclase. 5′-p-Fluorosulphonyl benzoyladenosine (FSBA), which covalently labels an ADP binding site on platelets, blocks platelet shape change but not the inhibition of cyclic AMP levels by ADP, whereas p-chloromercuribenzenesulfonate (pCMBS), a nonpenetrating thiol reagent, has the opposite effects. We examined the effect of FSBA and pCMBS on ADP-induced increase in [Ca2+]i using platelets loaded with fluorescent Ca2+ indicators quin2 and fura-2. FSBA (50 to 200 mumol/L) induced a dose-dependent rise in [Ca2+]i, indicating that it is a weak platelet agonist. Under conditions of covalent labeling of the ADP binding sites, FSBA (50 to 100 mumol/L) did not inhibit the ADP-induced increase in [Ca2+]i or its inhibition of adenylate cyclase, whereas pCMBS (up to 1 mmol/L) abolished both these responses but not shape change. These findings suggest that ADP-induced Ca2+ mobilization and inhibition of adenylate cyclase are mediated by platelet binding sites distinct from those mediating shape change.
Self-reliance: A Gender Perspective on its Relationship to Communality and Leadership Evaluations

We posit a female advantage in the relationship between self-reliance and leadership evaluations. We test this prediction in four studies. First, using multi-rater evaluations of young managers, we...
Latin America and the United States in the Twentieth Century

There can be few areas of the world as complex or as rich in paradox as Latin America. Although most of the republics are strongly Iberian in culture, share a common colonial and historical background, a common religion and legal system, a common political culture and a common intellectual and educational tradition, it is the enormous variation, the startling contrast, not the common pattern, that prevails. Ethnically, Argentina, Uruguay and Chile are largely homogeneous societies of European stock; Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Mexico are dualistic Indian-Spanish societies; Brazil, Venezuela and Cuba are blends of Indian, Iberian and African. For most of the twentieth century, the countries have varied from repressive authoritarian regimes (Paraguay until 1989) to liberal and democratic societies (Costa Rica). Even military regimes have been intriguingly different: rightist, leftist, nationalist and a variety of mixed civilian-military regimes exist. Economic conditions are equally diverse. Capitalism, socialism, semi-feudalism and mercantilist economies exist alongside each other. Argentina, Mexico and southern Brazil are industrially developed economies. Ecuador and Paraguay, among others, are essentially agricultural economies.
Kinetics of milk lipid droplet transport, growth, and secretion revealed by intravital imaging: lipid droplet release is intermittently stimulated by oxytocin.

Intravital imaging reveals how lipid droplets are assembled and secreted into milk from mammary epithelial cells. Lipid droplets grow by fusing with each other during transport to the surface, in n...
An Integrated Human Decision Making Model under Extended Belief-Desire-Intention Framework

In this keynote talk, we discuss an extended Belief-Desire-Intention (BDI) framework for human decision making and planning, whose sub-modules have been developed using Bayesian belief network (BBN), Decision-Field-Theory (DFT), and a probabilistic depth first search (DFS) technique. A key novelty of the proposed approach is its ability to represent both the human decision-making as well as decision-planning functions in a coherent framework. In this talk, the proposed framework is illustrated and demonstrated for human's evacuation behaviors under a terrorist bomb attack situation. To mimic realistic human decision-planning and decision-making behaviors, attributes of the extended BDI framework are calibrated from the human-in-the-loop experiments conducted in the Cave Automatic Virtual Environment (CAVE) available at The University of Arizona. A crowd simulation is then constructed, where individual human behaviors are modeled based on what was learned from the CAVE experiments. In this work, the simulated environment (e.g. streets and buildings) and humans conforming to the extended BDI framework are implemented in AnyLogic® agent-based simulation software, where each human entity calls external Netica BBN software to perform its perceptual processing function and Soar software to perform its real-time planning and decision-execution functions. The constructed crowd simulation is used to evaluate the impact of several factors (e.g. number of policemen, information sharing via speakers/mobile phones) on the evacuation performance. Finally, we briefly discuss other applications (e.g. driver's behaviors) and research extensions (e.g. human learning/forgetting and human interactions) for the extended BDI framework.
Simulations of anti-parallel reconnection using a nonlocal heat flux closure

The integration of kinetic effects in fluid models is important for global simulations of the Earth's magnetosphere. In particular, it has been shown that ion kinetics play a crucial role in the dynamics of large reconnecting systems, and that higher-order fluid moment models can account for some of these effects. Here, we use a ten-moment model for electrons and ions, which includes the off diagonal elements of the pressure tensor that are important for magnetic reconnection. Kinetic effects are recovered by using a nonlocal heat flux closure, which approximates linear Landau damping in the fluid framework. The closure is tested using the island coalescence problem, which is sensitive to ion dynamics. We demonstrate that the nonlocal closure is able to self-consistently reproduce the structure of the ion diffusion region, pressure tensor, and ion velocity without the need for fine-tuning of relaxation coefficients present in earlier models.
Structure Toxicity Relationships - How Useful Are They in Predicting Toxicities of New Drugs?

Several new drugs have either been removed from the market soon after their release, or been flagged for careful monitoring and restricted use because of severe toxic effects. Although in some cases the parent drug structure may be responsible for the observed toxicities, in most cases reactive metabolites are formed that interact with cellular macromolecules to stress cells directly, and/or more commonly, yield immunogenic products. Since it is the structures of drugs and their metabolites that dictate reactivity, and not the metabolic pathways themselves, this chapter will focus on what can be empirically learned from comparisons of structures associated with toxic effects and similar structures that are less toxic.
High-resolution rapid neonatal whole-body composition using 3.0 Tesla chemical shift magnetic resonance imaging.

BackgroundTo evaluate a whole-body rapid imaging technique to calculate neonatal lean body mass and percentage adiposity using 3.0 Tesla chemical shift magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).MethodsA 2-Point Dixon MRI technique was used to calculate whole-body fat and water images in term (n=10) and preterm (n=15) infants.ResultsChemical shift images were obtained in 42 s. MRI calculated whole-body mass correlated closely with measured body weight (R2=0.87; P<0.001). Scan-rescan analysis demonstrated a 95% limit of agreement of 1.3% adiposity. Preterm infants were born at a median of 25.7 weeks' gestation with birth weight 840 g. At term-corrected age, former preterm infants were lighter than term-born controls, 2,519 vs. 3,094 g regressing out age and group as covariates (P=0.005). However, this was not because of reduced percentage adiposity 26% vs. 24% (P=0.28). At term-corrected age, former preterm infants had significantly reduced lean body mass compared with that of term-born controls 1,935 vs. 2,416 g (P=0.002).ConclusionRapid whole-body imaging for assessment of lean body mass and adiposity in term and preterm infants is feasible, accurate, and repeatable. Deficits in whole-body mass in former preterm infants at term-corrected age are due to reductions in lean body mass not due to differences in adiposity.
Behavioral variation post-invasion: Resemblance in some, but not all, behavioral patterns among invasive and native praying mantids

Abstract Animal invasions can be devastating for native species. Behavioral variation is known to influence animal invasions, yet comparatively less is known about how behavioral variation influences invasive-native species interactions. Here we examined how the mean and variance surrounding several behavioral traits in two sympatric species of praying mantis differ and how these behavioral types translate to actual prey capture success using the introduced European mantis, Mantis religiosa, and the native bordered mantis, Stagmomantis limbata. We assayed time spent in the open (risk proneness), response towards a novel prey, and voracity within a population of M. religiosa and S. limbata. We found that the native and invasive mantids displayed no differences in their average behavioral tendencies. The native exhibited significant levels of repeatability in voracity while the invasive did not. The lack of repeatability in the invasive appears to be driven by lower levels of among-individual variation in voracity. This may have evolutionary consequences for native S. limbata if it results in strong selection in native levels of mean and among-individual variation. Significant levels of among-individual differences were found in other behaviors (response to a novel prey and risk proneness) across species, suggesting less selection on invasive behavioral variation in these traits. Risk proneness and response towards a novel prey also formed a behavioral syndrome across species, yet neither behavior was correlated with voracity in either species. Our results illustrate the need to examine the ecological effects of behavioral variation of both invasive and native species to determine how that might impact invasive-native interactions.
Programma “Ragazze nello spazio”

Il generale di brigata dell’Air Force Donald Flickinger sperava di procedere in fretta a testare Jerrie Cobb. Essendo gia stato responsabile della progettazione dei test di valutazione di simulazione di volo spaziale di tutti e sette gli astronauti del Programma Mercury presso la Wright-Patterson Air Force Base di Dayton, Flickinger desiderava mettere alla prova Miss Cobb sulle stesse esercitazioni per poter confrontare i suoi punteggi con quelli raggiunti dagli uomini la primavera precedente. Mentre il primo stadio dei test per gli astronauti, gestito presso la Lovelace Foundation, era incentrato sull’idoneita fisica del soggetto al volo spaziale, il secondo, che veniva condotto poco dopo alla Wright-Patterson, stimava le potenziali reazioni dell’aspirante astronauta alle peculiari sollecitazioni dello spazio cosmico. Sotto la guida di Flickinger, il personale del Wright-Patterson Air Development Center’s Aeromedical Laboratory somministrava una batteria completa di esami psicologici, incluso un test d’isolamento sensoriale che aveva lo scopo di valutare la risposta di un astronauta al silenzio e all’immobilita simulati dello spazio. I test presso la Wright-Patterson misuravano anche la capacita degli astronauti di operare in assenza di peso e in balia delle intense forze gravitazionali della centrifuga1.
The NTD Process—A New Reactor Technology

We wish to extend a warm welcome to all of you for attending and supporting this meeting. Without your interest and urging, this conference would not have taken place. In particular, we would like to thank John Cleland and Dick Wood of Oak Ridge National Laboratory for hosting the first NTD Conference and for suggesting that a second conference be held at the University of Missouri. Our sincere appreciation extends also to the Monsanto Corporation, the conference catalyst in the early planning stages, both financially and otherwise We also thank the Air Force Office of Scientific Research and the Office of Naval Research for their encouragement and support and Rockwell International who supported the publishing of the abstracts.
Feature points on point-based surface and their applications

Surface acquisition methods are becoming popular for many practical applications in manufacturing, art, and design. With the growing amount of geometric data, efficient tools for matching and recognition of complex surfaces become more important. In order to achieve such efficiency, many existing methods operate on a limited subset of feature points sampled from the surfaces, often randomly. In this thesis, we introduce an alternative way to achieve the efficiency by detecting a set of salient feature points from complex 3D geometry data. The method builds a scale-space representation for the input surface and use local extrema of the difference along normal direction between neighbor scales as salient points (or features). For every feature detected, we define a point signature vector that reflects the variation of local surface normals. Salient points and their signatures are invariant to rigid transformation and are stable under surface variation. This provides a good basis for a single feature to find its correct match with good probability in a large database of features. We show the effectiveness of selected features and their signatures by applying them to solve several 3D computer vision problems. We first use the features for pairwise surface registration that matches two partial surface scans or matches a partial scan to its CAD model. The result of pairwise surface matching is used to align multi-view scans of the same object to reconstruct the complete model. We also use the selected features and their signatures for 3D object recognition, and evaluate their performance on both synthetic and real world 3D data with clustering and occlusion. Experiments demonstrate that the proposed features and signatures are robust for the applications.
Complete Genome Sequence of Moraxella bovis Strain Epp-63 (300), an Etiologic Agent of Infectious Bovine Keratoconjunctivitis

ABSTRACT We report here the complete closed genome sequence of Moraxella bovis strain Epp-63 (300) (Epp63). This strain was isolated from an infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis (IBK) case in 1963. Since then, Epp63 has been used extensively for IBK research. Consequently, the genome sequence of Epp63 should help elucidate IBK host-pathogen interactions.
Twenty-Five Years of Opposing Trends: The Demystification of Science in Law, and the Waning Relativism in the Sociology of Science

This chapter identifies two opposing trends—reverse trajectories—over the past 25 years: one in legal contexts with respect to admissibility of scientific expertise and the other in the sub-discipline of sociology known as the sociology of science (or simply “science studies”). As to law, the chapter argues there has been a shift, or trend, away from an idealistic view of science (observed in the now-famous Daubert case) to skepticism of science. This shift in law, with respect to how science is viewed or theorized, is the opposite of what has developed in science studies, insofar as a field of inquiry that was based upon a skeptical view of science (emphasizing its social aspects) is now setting standards for expertise—the third wave of science studies introduces a normative orientation even as it acknowledges the second-wave social contexts of science.
Three Ways to Polyamides: The Impact of Polymerization Mechanism on Polymer Properties.

Polymer chemistry lab experiments present a unique opportunity to allow students to experience the consequences of reaction mechanisms on the properties of the resulting product. In this organic chemistry experiment, students prepared a polyamide by three different reaction mechanisms that represent step-growth and chain-growth methods of polymerization: melt polycondensation of an amine and a carboxylic acid, interfacial polymerization of an amine and an acid chloride, and ring-opening polymerization of a lactam. Characterizing the polymers by both FTIR spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry requires students to consider how the choice of mechanism affects conversion of monomer to polymer, the resulting crystallinity of that polymer, and the challenges that must be overcome when setting up and executing the polymerization procedure.
Two‐stage enrichment clinical trial design with adjustment for misclassification in predictive biomarkers

A two-stage enrichment design is a type of adaptive design, which extends a stratified design with a futility analysis on the marker negative cohort at the first stage, and the second stage can be either a targeted design with only the marker positive stratum, or still the stratified design with both marker strata, depending on the result of the interim futility analysis. In this paper, we consider the situation where the marker assay and the classification rule are possibly subject to error. We derive the sequential tests for the global hypothesis as well as the component tests for the overall cohort and the marker-positive cohort. We discuss the power analysis with the control of the type I error rate and show the adverse impact of the misclassification on the powers. We also show the enhanced power of the two-stage enrichment over the one-stage design and illustrate with examples of the recent successful development of immunotherapy in non-small-cell lung cancer.
Ovarian Hormones and Reward Processes in Palatable Food Intake and Binge Eating

Ovarian hormones are associated with risk for binge eating in women. Recent animal and human studies suggest that food-related reward processing may be one set of neurobiological factors that contr...
Bisretinoid phospholipid and vitamin A aldehyde: shining a light.

Abstract Vitamin A aldehyde covalently bound to opsin protein is embedded in a phospholipid-rich membrane that supports photon absorption and phototransduction in photoreceptor cell outer segments. Following absorption of a photon, the 11-cis-retinal chromophore of visual pigment in photoreceptor cells isomerizes to all-trans-retinal. To maintain photosensitivity 11-cis-retinal must be replaced. At the same time, however, all-trans-retinal has to be handled so as to prevent nonspecific aldehyde activity. Some molecules of retinaldehyde upon release from opsin are efficiently reduced to retinol. Other molecules are released into the lipid phase of the disc membrane where they form a conjugate [N-retinylidene-PE (NRPE)] through a Schiff base linkage with PE. The reversible formation of NRPE serves as a transient sink for retinaldehyde that is intended to return retinaldehyde to the visual cycle. However, if instead of hydrolyzing to PE and retinaldehyde, NRPE reacts with a second molecule of retinaldehyde, a synthetic pathway is initiated that leads to the formation of multiple species of unwanted bisretinoid fluorophores. We report on recently identified members of the bisretinoid family, some of which differ with respect to the acyl chains associated with the glycerol backbone. We discuss processing of the lipid moieties of these fluorophores in lysosomes of retinal pigment epithelial cells, their fluorescence characters, and new findings related to light- and iron-associated oxidation of bisretinoids.
Effects of a trace amine-associated receptor 1 agonist RO 5263397 on ethanol-induced behavioral sensitization.

Abstract Background Alcohol dependence is a chronic and severe health problem which puts a heavy burden on society. Alcohol activates mesolimbic dopamine circuity to achieve its reinforcing effect. While TAAR1 is critically involved in the modulation of dopamine, there is little evidence indicating that TAAR1 could play a role in behavioral effects of ethanol. Methods By using the animal model of behavioral sensitization induced by ethanol in mice, the present study was performed to investigate whether the activation of TAAR1 would affect the behavioral plasticity of ethanol. Results Repeated administration with ethanol induced a significant increased locomotion in WT mice with females showing higher level of sensitization to ethanol than male mice. The TAAR1 agonist RO5263397 significantly decreased the expression of ethanol-induced behavioral sensitization both in male and female WT mice (0.1 and 0.32 mg/kg). Repeated RO5263397 exposure also prevented the development of behavioral sensitization to ethanol both in male and female WT mice. Moreover, while TAAR1-KO mice developed normal levels of ethanol-induced behavioral sensitization, RO5263397 did not affect this behavior in TAAR1-KO mice. Conclusions These results indicated that the TAAR1 agonist RO5263397 negatively regulated the expression and development of ethanol-elicited behavioral sensitization in WT but not in TAAR1-KO mice. The present study suggests that TAAR1 is probably involved in certain addiction-like effects of alcohol and could be a useful drug target for the development of new medications to treat alcohol dependence.
Complicidad íntima como estrategia narrativa en la Segunda relación de Hernán Cortés al emperador Carlos V

La Segunda relacion de Hernan Cortes al emperador Carlos V fue escrita con una doble finalidad, pues al tiempo que narra los hechos y sucesos mas relevantes ocurridos en Mexico todo el escrito se articula como una sutil y eficaz defensa legal del conquistador frente a la acusacion de traicion que pesa sobre el. La estrategia narrativa de Cortes consiste en dirigirse a su rey como un aliado intimo de su ideario, motivaciones y actuacion para hacerlo participe en complicidad de los valores morales y politicos de la monarquia y la religion. La habilidad y variedad de los recursos narrativos, retoricos y argumentales de Cortes explican su exito ante el emperador asi como el exito editorial que esta obra tuvo en toda Europa donde pronto alcanzo gran difusion.
Historical Performance of Put-Writing Strategies

This paper analyzes the historical performance of two Cboe put-writing indices through the end of 2018. PUT and WPUT indices are found to have had a strong performance in several areas: 1) Long-term performance. Over more than 32-year period, PUT has the annual compound return comparable to that of the S&P 500 Index, but with a substantially lower standard deviation. As a result, the annualized Sharpe ratio is 0.65 for PUT and 0.49 for S&P 500. 2) Annual premium income: From 2006 to 2018, the average annual gross premium collected is 22.1% for PUT and 37.1% for WPUT. Premiums for WPUT are smaller, but collected weekly instead of monthly, which results in higher aggregate premiums. 3) Lower risk: Since the launch of Weekly options in 2006, WPUT has lower standard deviation, market beta, and drawdowns than PUT and S&P 500. In particular, the maximum drawdowns are 24.2% (WPUT), 32.7% (PUT), and 50.9% (S&P 500). 4) PUT versus option buying strategy PPUT: Since 1986, PUT has a much higher annual compound return that PPUT (9.54% versus 6.64%), a lower standard deviation (9.95% versus 12.08%), much higher risk-adjusted measures, and a less severe drawdown (the maximum drawdown of -32.7% versus -38.9%, the longest drawdown of 40 months versus 80 months). PUT has a negative exposure to the volatility risk, which accounts for 0.29% of its average monthly return. In contrast, PPUT has a positive exposure to the volatility risk, which accounts for -0.17% of its average monthly return.
Accelerated Optimization of Metasurfaces with the Woodbury Matrix Identity

Direct optimization of the impedances of a metasurface is difficult due to the large number of subwavelength elements comprising a metasurface. Gradient-based optimization techniques numerically approximate the gradient using finite differences requiring at least one cost evaluation for each element in the metasurface. If the cost evaluation is expensive or the number of elements is large, then the calculation of the gradient becomes time-consuming and impractical. When metasurfaces are modeled using integral equations, the cost function evaluation involves matrix inversions of the linear system constructed with the method of moments. Since each component of the gradient perturbs the linear system along a few diagonal elements of the impedance matrix, the matrix inversions can be accelerated using the Woodbury Matrix Identity. This accelerated solution of the linear system allows the gradient to be calculated efficiently permitting the direct optimization of metasurface impedances. In this paper, an acceleration technique for the gradient descent optimization of metasurfaces modeled with integral equations is presented. Numerical results are provided and show up to a 26.5 times improvement in computation time for the cases presented.
Some Public Policy Issues

This volume has been concerned with psychiatric inpatient care in general hospitals. To discus the public policy issues properly, we need to place our data in the context of all psychiatric inpatient care, and that in the context of all mental health care. However, one sees very little evidence of any national planning, organization, or funding of mental health care.
Learning Human Face Detection in Cluttered Scenes

This paper presents an example-based learning approach for locating vertical frontal views of human faces in complex scenes. The technique models the distribution of human face patterns by means of a few view-based “face” and “non-face” prototype clusters. A 2-Value metric is proposed for computing distance features between test patterns and the distribution-based face model during classification. We show empirically that the prototypes we choose for our distribution-based model, and the metric we adopt for computing distance feature vectors, are both critical for the success of our system.
The TFTR D-T experience

In November 1993, trace experiments consisting of less than 1% tritium in deuterium mixture were performed to initially qualify the TFTR tritium systems, tokamak, neutral beams and diagnostic systems with tritium. These successful preliminary experiments were soon followed, in December 1993, with nominally 50:50 mixtures of deuterium and tritium which quickly resulted in the production of more than six megawatts of fusion power. These experiments and those conducted since that time have demonstrated improved plasma confinement properties (including advanced tokamak "reversed-shear" profiles), ICRF heating of D-T plasmas, indications of alpha heating, reactor level fusion power densities and the attainment of more than ten megawatts of fusion power and 6.5 megajoules of fusion energy. In support of these accomplishments, the TFTR equipment has met or exceeded the original design criteria. The toroidal magnetic field has been operated up to six Tesla (on-axis) and the neutral beams up to 40 megawatts with deuterium and tritium fueling. Since November 1993, there have been more than 12000 plasma shots including more than 500 deuterium-tritium pulses producing a total of more than 3/spl times/10/sup 20/ D-T neutrons and alpha particles and one gigajoule of fusion energy. Over 600 kCi of tritium have been processed through the TFTR facility. Maintenance and repair activities have become routine in this nuclear facility. More than 500 calibrations, repairs and installations requiring work on tritium contaminated systems have been performed.
Artificial Nature: Immersive World Making

Artificial Nature is a trans-disciplinary research project drawing upon bio-inspired system theories in the production of engaging immersive worlds as art installations. Embodied world making and immersion are identified as key components in an exploration of creative ecosystems toward art-as-it-could-be. A detailed account of the design of a successfully exhibited creative ecosystem is given in these terms, and open questions are outlined.
A paradoxical increase of a metabolite upon increased expression of its catabolic enzyme: the case of diadenosine tetraphosphate (Ap4A) and Ap4A phosphorylase I in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Abstract The APA1 gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes Ap4A phosphorylase I, the catabolic enzyme for diadenosine 5',5"'-P1,P4-tetraphosphate (Ap4A). APA1 has been inserted into a multicopy plasmid and into a centromeric plasmid with a GAL1 promoter. Enhanced expression of APA1 via the plasmids resulted in 10- and 90-fold increases in Ap4A phosphorylase activity, respectively, as assayed in vitro. However, the intracellular concentration of Ap4A exhibited increases of 2- and 15-fold, respectively, from the two different plasmids. Intracellular Ap4A increased 3- to 20-fold during growth on galactose of a transformant with APA1 under the control of the GAL1 promoter. Intracellular adenosine 5'-P1-tetraphospho-P4-5"'-guanosine (Ap4G) and diguanosine 5',5"'-P1,P4-tetraphosphate (Gp4G) also increased in the transformant under these conditions. The chromosomal locus of APA1 has been disrupted in a haploid strain. The Ap4A phosphorylase activity decreased by 80% and the intracellular Ap4A concentration increased by a factor of five in the null mutant. These results with the null mutant agree with previous results reported by Plateau et al. (P. Plateau, M. Fromant, J.-M. Schmitter, J.-M. Buhler, and S. Blancquet, J. Bacteriol. 171:6437-6445, 1989). The paradoxical increase in Ap4A upon enhanced expression of APA1 indicates that the metabolic consequences of altered gene expression may be more complex than indicated solely by assay of enzymatic activity of the gene product.