cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Chromosomal aberrations and delays in cell progression induced by X‐rays in tradescantia clone 02 meristems

In root meristems of Tradescantia clone 02 (developed by Sparrow and his colleagues for mutation studies), X-rays interfere with the progression of cells through the cell cycle and induce chromosomal aberrations in a dose-dependent manner consistent with linear-quadratic kinetics. Sequential mitotic cell accumulations after irradiation indicate that sensitivity to aberrration induction is probably greatest in cells from late S to early G2, with chromatid interchanges the most frequent aberration type and all aberrations consistent with intiation from the interaction between two lesions. The ratio of the coefficients in the linear (..cap alpha..) and the quadratic (..beta..) terms (..cap alpha../..beta..) is equal to the dose average of specific energy produced by individual particles in the site where interaction takes place. The ratio ..cap alpha../..beta.. for chromosomal aberrations is similar to that previously found for X-ray-induced mutation in Tradescantia stamen hairs, supporting the proposal that radiation-induced mutational events are due to chromosomal aberrations with interaction distances of about 1 ..mu..m. Abrahmson and co-workers have noted that both ..cap alpha../..beta.. ratios appear to be related to nuclear target size and are similar for chromosomal and mutational endpoints in the same organism. These findings support this concept; however, it is apparent that any situationmore » which diminishes yield at high doses (e.g., mitotic delay) will primarily affect the ..beta.. component, resulting in low assessments of interaction site diameters.« less
Nursebots to the rescue? Immigration, automation, and care

Abstract This paper explores the rising cost of care services in affluent countries, with a particular focus on nursing. It suggests that competitive pressures lead to forms of ‘over-commodification’ that can both lower the quality of care and lead to deterioration of the work environment. While immigration and automation can help reduce costs, they can also pose threats to care quality. Care providers and care recipients need to collaborate in efforts to set and enforce high quality standards.
The K 1 0 - K 2 0 mass difference inS-matrix theory

General considerations are presented on the perturbing effect of weak interactions onS-matrix dynamics specifying the neutral K-meson states. The perturbations due to weak-interaction amplitudes in theN/D dynamical scheme are illustrated for two models of the neutral K’s:a) K≡σK bound state (σ=ππ,I=0,Jπ=0+),b) K≡ωK bound state (ω=3π,I=0,Jπ=1−). The main result of examining these perturbations is the relationm(K2)>m(K1). Inadequacies of the (current) dynamical models permit only a crude estimate of the magnitude of the mass difference, namely between 10−5 and 10−6 electronvolt.
Muscle Contractures in the Limbs of Dogs and Cats

Muscle contractures causing varying degrees of lameness commonly occur from skeletal muscle fibrosis, the result of injury such as that caused by circulatory insufficiency, infection, autoimmune reaction, or trauma. Quadriceps contracture, whether congenital or acquired, is treated by sectioning the cordlike fibrotic muscle group by “Z” plasty, resulting in lengthening it enough to allow the knee to assume a normal standing angle. Adhesion of the muscle group to a large femoral callus (muscle tie down) may occur and require additional surgical correction. Infraspinatus contracture results in a typical foreleg deformity and change in gait. Surgical repair by tenotomy is usually followed by rapid return to normal. Gracilis contracture, though common in racing greyhounds, is not commonly reported in pet dogs. Surgical excision of the entire affected muscle mass is curative.
Estimating Ancestral Population Parameters

The expected numbers of different categories of polymorphic sites are derived for two related models of population history: the isolation model, in which an ancestral population splits into two descendents, and the size-change model, in which a single population undergoes an instantaneous change in size. For the isolation model, the observed numbers of shared, fixed, and exclusive polymorphic sites are used to estimate the relative sizes of the three populations, ancestral plus two descendent, as well as the time of the split. For the size-change model, the numbers of sites segregating at particular frequencies in the sample are used to estimate the relative sizes of the ancestral and descendent populations plus the time the change took place. Parameters are estimated by choosing values that most closely equate expectations with observations. Computer simulations show that current and historical population parameters can be estimated accurately. The methods are applied to DNA data from two species of Drosophila and to some human mitochondrial DNA sequences.
Simian parvovirus infection: a potential zoonosis.

EDITORIAL COMMENTARY Ebola Virus Ecology Joseph B. McCormick 1893MAJOR ARTICLES AND BRIEF REPORTS VIRUSES A Serological Survey of Ebola Virus Infection in Central African Nonhuman Primates E. M. Leroy, P. Telfer, B. Kumulungui, P. Yaba, P. Rouquet, P. Roques, J.-P. Gonzalez, T. G. Ksiazek, P. E. Rollin, and E. Nerrienet 1895 Simian Parvovirus Infection: A Potential Zoonosis Kevin E. Brown, Zhengwen Liu, Giorgio Gallinella, Susan Wong, Ian P. Mills, and M. Gerard O'Sullivan 1900 Antibody Maturation and Viremia after Primary Cytomegalovirus Infection, in Immunocompetent Patients and Kidney-Transplant Patients Christoph Steininger, Michael Kundi, Josef Kletzmayr, Stephan W. Aberle, and Theresia Popow-Kraupp 1908 Use of the P Gene to Genotype Human Metapneumovirus Identifies 4 Viral Subtypes Ian M. Mackay, Seweryn Bialasiewicz, Zubair Waliuzzaman, Glenys R. Chidlow, David C. Fegredo, Somprasong Laingam, Penny Adamson, Gerald B. Harnett, William Rawlinson, Michael D. Nissen, and Theo P. Sloots 1913Reduced Numbers and Impaired Ability of Myeloid and Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells to Polarize T Helper Cells in Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection Tatsuya Kanto, Michiyo Inoue, Hideki Miyatake, Aki Sato, Mitsuru Sakakibara, Takayuki Yakushijin, Chika Oki, Ichiyo Itose, Naoki Hiramatsu, Tetsuo Takehara, Akinori Kasahara, and Norio Hayashi 1919 Parenteral Influenza Vaccination Influences Mucosal and Systemic T CellMediated Immunity in Healthy Adults Terry Guthrie, Christopher G. L. Hobbs, Victoria Davenport, Rachel E. Horton, Robert S. Heyderman, and Neil A. Williams 1927 AntiG Protein Antibody Responses to Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection or Vaccination Are Associated with Inhibition of G Protein CX3C-CX3CR1 Binding and Leukocyte Chemotaxis Jennifer L. Harcourt, Ruth A. Karron, and Ralph A. Tripp 1936Variable Resistance to Palivizumab in Cotton Rats by Respiratory Syncytial Virus Mutants Xiaodong Zhao, Fu-Ping Chen, A. George Megaw, and Wayne M. Sullender 1941 HIV/AIDS Time to Virological Failure of 3 Classes of Antiretrovirals after Initiation of Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy: Results from the 1947
Connectivity of agroecosystems: dispersal costs can vary among crops

Knowledge of how habitat heterogeneity affects dispersal is critical for conserving connectivity in current and changing landscapes. However, we generally lack an understanding of how dispersal costs and animal movements vary among crops characteristic of agroecosystems. We hypothesized that a physiological constraint, desiccation risk, influences movement behavior among crops and other matrix habitats (corn, soybean, forest, prairie) in Ambystoma tigrinum (tiger salamander) in Illinois, USA. In a desiccation experiment, salamanders were added to enclosures in four replicate plots of each matrix habitat, and water loss was measured every 12 h for 48 h. Changes in water loss were examined using a linear mixed model. Water loss varied among treatments, over time, and there was a significant treatment-time interaction. Water loss was greater in corn and prairie than in forest and soybean. To assess whether salamanders move through matrix habitats that minimize desiccation, we tracked movements of individuals released on edges between habitats for two treatment combinations: soybean–corn, and soybean–prairie. As predicted based on our desiccation experiment, movements were oriented towards soybean in both cases. Thus, variation in desiccation risk among matrix habitats likely influenced movement decisions by salamanders, although other factors such as predation risk could have contributed to habitat choice. We argue that conceptualizing dispersal cost as uniformly high in all crop types is too simplistic. Estimating crop-specific dispersal costs and movement patterns may be necessary for constructing effective measures of landscape connectivity in agroecosystems.
Behavioral neuroendocrinology in nontraditional species of mammals: Things the ‘knockout’ mouse CAN'T tell us

The exploration of many of the fundamental features of mammalian behavioral neuroendocrinology has benefited greatly throughout the short history of the discipline from the study of highly inbred, genetically characterized rodents and several other ‘‘traditional’’ exemplars. More recently, the impact of genomic variation in the determination of complex neuroendocrine and behavioral systems has advanced through the use of single and multiple gene knockouts or knockins. In our essay, we argue that the study of nontraditional mammals is an essential approach that complements these methodologies by taking advantage of allelic variation produced by natural selection. Current and future research will continue to exploit these systems to great advantage and will bring new techniques developed in more traditional laboratory animals to bear on problems that can only be addressed with nontraditional species. We highlight our points by discussing advances in our understanding of neuroendocrine and behavioral systems in phenomena of widely differing time scales. These examples include neuroendocrine variation in the regulation of reproduction across seasons in Peromyscus, variation in parental care by biparental male rodents and primates within a single infant rearing attempt, and circadian variation in the regulation of the substrates underlying mating in diurnal vs. nocturnal rodents. Our essay reveals both important divergences in neuroendocrine systems in our nontraditional model species, and important commonalities in these systems.
Regulated Expression of ADAMTS Family Members in Follicles and Cumulus Oocyte Complexes: Evidence for Specific and Redundant Patterns During Ovulation

Protease cascades are essential for many biological events, including the LH-induced process of ovulation. ADAMTS1 (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin-like repeats-1) is expressed and hormonally regulated in the ovary by LH and the progesterone receptor. To determine whether other family members might be expressed and regulated in the rodent ovary, those closely related to ADAMTS1 (ADAMTS4 and ADAMTS5) were analyzed in the mouse ovary by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction as well as by Western blot, immunohistochemical, and immunocytochemical analyses using highly specific antibodies. Prior to ovulation, ADAMTS4 and ADAMTS5 were coexpressed in granulosa cells of most follicles, whereas ADAMTS5 was also present in granulosa cells of atretic follicles. Following ovulation, ADAMTS1 and ADAMTS4 (but not ADAMTS5) were expressed in multiple cell types, including those within the highly vascular ovulation cone that marks the site of follicle rupture, endothelial cells of newly forming corpora lutea, and cumulus cells within the ovulated cumulus cell-oocyte complex (COC). Versican, a substrate for ADAMTS1 and ADAMTS4, colocalized with these proteases and hylauronan on the cumulus cell surface. To further characterize induction of these proteases and associated molecules, COCs and granulosa cells were isolated from preovulatory follicles and treated with FSH. In expanded COCs and differentiated granulosa cells, FSH induced expression of ADAMTS4 and versican message and protein, whereas increased levels of ADAMTS1 protein was observed in the media of granulosa cells where it was stabilized by heparin in this in vitro system. These studies provide the first evidence that ADAMTS1, ADAMTS4, and ADAMTS5 are expressed in spatiotemporal patterns that suggest distinct as well as some overlapping functions that relate to the broad expression pattern of versican in granulosa cells of small follicles, expanded COCs, and endothelial cells of the mouse ovary.
Exaggerated Levothyroxine Malabsorption Due to Calcium Carbonate Supplementation in Gastrointestinal Disorders

OBJECTIVE:To describe a patient with primary hypothyroidism in whom ingestion of levothyroxine with calcium carbonate led to markedly elevated serum thyrotropin concentrations.CASE SUMMARY:A 61-year-old white woman with primary hypothyroidism, systemic lupus erythematosus, celiac disease, and history of Whipple resection for pancreatic cancer was euthyroid with levothyroxine 175–188 μg/d. After taking a high dose of calcium carbonate (1250 mg three × daily) with levothyroxine, she developed biochemical evidence of hypothyroidism (thyrotropin up to 41.4 mU/L) while remaining clinically euthyroid. Delaying calcium carbonate administration by four hours returned her serum thyrotropin to a borderline high concentration (5.7 mU/L) within a month. Serum concentrations of unbound and total thyroxine and triiodothyronine tended to decrease, but remained borderline low to normal while the patient concomitantly received levothyroxine and calcium carbonate.DISCUSSION:Concomitant administration of levothyroxine and c...
A Cumulative Risk Model Predicting Caregiver Quality of Life in Pediatric Asthma

Objective To examine the relationship between a cumulative risk model and caregiver quality of life (QOL) in pediatric asthma and determine whether caregiver QOL is predicted by a linear or quadratic model of cumulative risk. Methods One hundred and ninety-three families of children between the ages of 5 and 12 years with mild to severe asthma completed a background questionnaire and measures of QOL, asthma severity, family burden, and family stress. A cumulative risk model based on risk factors from these measures was calculated for each caregiver. Results The cumulative risk model significantly predicted caregiver QOL as a quadratic function. Caregivers with numerous risk factors experienced a dramatic worsening of QOL. Conclusions Findings suggest that caregiver QOL is best predicted by the interaction and not the summation of these factors. Interventions focused on one area of family risk may be effective in reducing poor QOL in caregivers of children with asthma.
Serum Amyloid A Activates the NLRP3 Inflammasome and Promotes Th17 Allergic Asthma in Mice

IL-1β is a cytokine critical to several inflammatory diseases in which pathogenic Th17 responses are implicated. Activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome by microbial and environmental stimuli can enable the caspase-1-dependent processing and secretion of IL-1β. The acute-phase protein serum amyloid A (SAA) is highly induced during inflammatory responses, wherein it participates in systemic modulation of innate and adaptive immune responses. Elevated levels of IL-1β, SAA, and IL-17 are present in subjects with severe allergic asthma, yet the mechanistic relationship among these mediators has yet to be identified. In this study, we demonstrate that Saa3 is expressed in the lungs of mice exposed to several mixed Th2/Th17-polarizing allergic sensitization regimens. SAA instillation into the lungs elicits robust TLR2-, MyD88-, and IL-1-dependent pulmonary neutrophilic inflammation. Furthermore, SAA drives production of IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-23, and PGE(2), causes dendritic cell (DC) maturation, and requires TLR2, MyD88, and the NLRP3 inflammasome for secretion of IL-1β by DCs and macrophages. CD4(+) T cells polyclonally stimulated in the presence of conditioned media from SAA-exposed DCs produced IL-17, and the capacity of polyclonally stimulated splenocytes to secrete IL-17 is dependent upon IL-1, TLR2, and the NLRP3 inflammasome. Additionally, in a model of allergic airway inflammation, administration of SAA to the lungs functions as an adjuvant to sensitize mice to inhaled OVA, resulting in leukocyte influx after Ag challenge and a predominance of IL-17 production from restimulated splenocytes that is dependent upon IL-1R signaling.
Nonlinear Optical Microscopy of Single Nanostructures

We review recent advances in nonlinear optical (NLO) microscopy studies of single nanostructures. NLO signals are intrinsically sensitive to the electronic, vibrational, and structural properties of such nanostructures. Ultrafast excitation allows for mapping of energy relaxation pathways at the single-particle level. The strong nonlinear response of nanostructures makes them highly attractive for applications as novel NLO imaging agents in biological and biomedical research. NLO modalities based on harmonic generation, multiphoton photoluminescence, four-wave mixing, and pump-probe processes are discussed in detail.
THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT

Domestic abuse allegations have become a serious problem in our society. They present our court system with difficult decisions and problems. This becomes an even more difficult situation when the abused is an illegal immigrant. Many of the abused are too frightened or intimidated to go to the authorities for help. This article examines how the U.S. government is attempting to protect these immigrants.
DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMS FOR ILL‐STRUCTURED PROBLEMS: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY

Decision support systems (DSSs) are more complex than most other traditional decision-aid systems. For what types of problems are they more effective, and what design characteristics make them more effective? The laboratory experiment reported here examined the effect of three design characteristics of these systems in the context of decision makers faced with ill-structured problems. The characteristics were presence or absence of decision-aid heuristics, degree of interaction between the user and the system, and whether or not the system was computerized. The dependent variables were (1) quality of user performance, (2) user productivity of ideas, (3) user confidence in the quality of his/her performance, (4) user satisfaction with the decision aid or support system, (5) changes in user attitude toward the problem addressed, and (6) changes in user attitude toward computers. Use of heuristics and increased interaction had positive effects on decision quality, user productivity, and attitude toward computers; they had negative effects on user confidence, satisfaction, and attitude toward the problem addressed. Whether or not the system was computerized did not have a significant effect on any dependent variable. The findings concerning negative effects, in particular, suggest the need for research on the design of heuristics for addressing ill-structured problems—heuristics that will deliver the positive but not the negative effects observed in this study. The findings also suggest the need for research on how to benefit from computers in the context of solving ill-structured problems.
Troponin-Tropomyosin: An Allosteric Switch or a Steric Blocker?

The interaction of myosin subfragment 1 (S1) with actin-tropomyosin-troponin (regulated actin) is highly nucleotide dependent. The binding of S1 or S1-ADP (but not S1-ATP nor N,N'-rho-phenylenedimaleimide-modified S1-ATP) to regulated actin activates ATP hydrolysis even in the absence of Ca(2+). Investigations with S1 and S1-ADP have led to the idea that some actin sites are directly blocked toward the binding of S1 either by tropomyosin or troponin. The blocked state is thought to occur only at ionic strengths greater than 50 mM. The question is whether nonactivating S1 binding is blocked under the same conditions. We show that troponin inhibits binding of the nonactivating state, N,N'-rho-phenylenedimaleimide-S1-ATP, to actin but only when tropomyosin is absent. A lag in the rate of binding of activating S1 to actin (an indicator of the blocked state) occurs only in the presence of tropomyosin. Thus, tropomyosin inhibits binding of rigor S1 but not S1-ATP-like states. No evidence for an ionic strength-dependent change in the mechanism of regulation was observed either from measurements of the rate of activating S1 binding or from the equilibrium binding of nonactivating S1 to actin. At all conditions examined, N,N'-rho-phenylenedimaleimide-S1-ATP bound to regulated actin in the absence of Ca(2+). These results support the view of regulation in which tropomyosin movement is an allosteric switch that is modulated by activating myosin binding but that does not function solely by regulating myosin binding.
Collision avoidance in a multiple-robot system using intelligent control and neural networks

A new hierarchical collision avoidance scheme is proposed to coordinate multiple robots in a common workspace by combining the techniques of intelligent control and neural networks (NNs). The high level in the hierarchy is formed by a knowledge-based coordinator (KBC) and an NN-based predictor, and the low level consists of the robots to be coordinated. The authors state the problem of coordinating multiple robots for collision avoidance and the basic principles of the KBC. The knowledge acquisition and representation of collision detection and avoidance for both cylindrical- and revolute-type robots are discussed. Design of the NN-based predictor and the KBC is summarized. The proposed scheme was tested extensively via simulations for both types of robots, showing promising performance. >
The information triad: Collaborating across structured and non-structured information

Central to any collaboration problem is the need that the information being considered is as complete and up-to-date as possible. However, information sources tend to be disparate in their location and in both their structure and semantics. Additionally, many information sources such as web pages, blogs, etc were developed for interaction between humans and not in a form that can be shared easily between humans and machines. For example, a query of a web site can identify whether it contains a set of terms but cannot infer that “if two individuals have a working relationship, and one of these individuals works for a particular organization, then the second individual likely knows the first person and is a member of the same organization”. The ability to extract structured information from unstructured sources such as web pages and to merge that with information from more structured sources including databases and ontologies is the core focus of the paper. Extracted information is mapped to an ontology, allowing both machines and humans to understand and reason with the information and allowing information to be provided that is compatible with the data needs of an application. The extraction capability is generic and allows the extraction and mapping of individuals (and their roles), groups and organizations to the ontology. Future developments of the extraction capability will provide the ability to extract, edit and merge new classes and associate appropriate instances of individuals, groups, etc. The paper provides details of the Information Bridging System (IBS) and its three key support technologies: int-SEARCH, int-MAPPER and int-EXTRACTOR, which provide the capability to access, search, fuse and merge information from structured and unstructured sources. This allows users and systems to perform semantic queries to identify “connections” between information in different sources, ensuring information is kept up-to-date as sources and their “connections” change, ensuring an efficient and productive process.
Technosocial predictive analytics in support of naturalistic decision making

Motivation - Anticipate outcomes through predictive and proactive reasoning across domains as diverse as energy, security, the environment, health and finance in order to maximize opportunities and counter adversities. Research approach - New methods for anticipatory critical thinking have been developed that implement a multi-perspective approach to predictive modeling in support of Naturalistic Decision Making. Research limitations/Implications - This is ongoing work. Work on assessing the strength and limitations of the approach in terms of utility and usability has just recently started (Scholtz & Whiting 2009). Originality/Value - Integration of technosocial predictive modeling with knowledge management and analytic gaming to support collaborative decision making. Take away message - The emerging approach is uniquely multidisciplinary in two main regards. First, it strives to create decision advantage through the integration of human and physical models. Second, it leverages knowledge management, visual analytics and gaming to facilitate the achievement of interoperable knowledge inputs and enhance human cognitive processes.
Desired Order Continuous Polynomial Time Window Functions for Harmonic Analysis

An approach for the construction of a family of desired order continuous polynomial time window functions is presented without self-convolution of the parent window. The higher order of continuity of the time window functions at the boundary of the observation window helps in suppressing the spectral leakage. Closed-form expressions for window functions in the time domain and their corresponding Fourier transform are derived. The efficacy of these new window functions in discerning the weak signal is demonstrated by computer simulations.
Chern Numbers, Quaternions, and Berry's Phases in Fermi Systems

On determine les nombres de Chern, les quaternions, et les phases de Berry dans des systemes de Fermi. Certaines parties de l'article sont assez concretes
Natural market segments: religion and identity – the case of “zongos” in Ghana

Purpose – “Zongos” are a part of the urban phenomena in Ghana that have escaped critical social inquiry. The purpose of this paper is three fold. It seeks insight into the reasons zongos continue to attract new dwellers despite their “unattractive” reputation; the role of religion in the choice of residential locations; and the role of Islamic marketing vis‐a‐vis zongos.Design/methodology/approach – As an exploratory study whose objective is to generate insight, the study uses interview technique as an investigative tool. The researcher interviewed eight zongo dwellers from four different zongos (different parts of the country) and from different educational and socio‐economic backgrounds. The interviews were conducted individually with an unstructured format that provides for unlimited follow‐up questions.Findings – The findings suggest that: religion and identity are the common threads that bind zongo dwellers together; zongo dwellers seem to be more religious than the average city dweller; religion inf...
Characterization of choline O-acetyltransferase (ChAT) in the BALB/C mouse spleen

The synthesizing enzyme, Choline-O-acetyl transferase (ChAT) (EC 2.3.1.6) and the degradation enzyme, acetylcholinesterase (EC 3.1.1.7) for the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, have been anatomically and biochemically characterized in the thymus of the BALB/C mouse. In the present study we continue to analyze the possibility of cholinergic immunomodulation of immune tissues by determining if ChAT is present in the BALB/C mouse spleen. Our enzymatic evaluation of ChAT activity in splenic extracts revealed .05 nmoles/min/mg protein as compared to .1 nmoles/min/mg of protein activity in controls prepared from whole brain extracts. No detectable levels of ChAT activity were observed in the serum. Immunoblotting and immunoprecipitating using the anti ChAT monoclonal antibody, MB16, demonstrated two bands in the brain and one band in the spleen. Membrane bound ChAT in the brain was composed of two subunits with apparent molecular weights of 28 and 50 kDa. The spleen demonstrated only one form of ChAT with an apparent molecular weight of 28 kDa. Immunoprecipitation of the enzyme from both the brain and spleen resulted in a recovery of 59% and 60% of the activity respectively.
Context and Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK): A Systematic Review

AbstractContext is an important aspect of educational research and the technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) framework, but is often missing from TPACK research, or its specific meaning is not clear. To provide a systematic and comprehensive view of the extent to which context is included in such research, and to understand the meaning of context when it is included, we conducted a systematic review of publications about TPACK. Context was included in descriptions, explanations, or operationalizations of TPACK among 36% of the 193 empirical journal articles we examined. When context was included, classroom and school factors and those related to teachers were more likely to be included than those related to students and society. The grounds for context being included among around one-third of the articles and why some contextual factors are examined more than others are discussed. Implications for practice and recommendations for future research focus on investigating the complexity of pract...
Dynamics of spontaneous roughening on the GaAs[001] surface

Devices based on III-V compound semiconductors have fueled the growth of the multi-billion dollar telecommunications industry. Unlike silicon-based devices, which are produced primarily by ion implantation, III-V device structures must be produced by depositing one plane of atoms after another until the entire structure is grown. Necessarily, III-V device fabrication occurs solely at a surface. The better one can control and manipulate the motion of atoms on surfaces, the more sophisticated the device structures one can make. In order to better understand the surface processes important to device fabrication, we have combined, for the first time, three major advances in semiconductor growth and characterization: (1) state-of-the-art semiconductor growth via molecular beam epitaxy (Riber 32P), (2) optical transmission substrate temperature determination via the band gap (0-700/spl deg/C with /spl plusmn/2/spl deg/C accuracy, updated at 1 Hz), and (3) in situ, atomic-resolution surface characterization via scanning tunneling microscopy (Omicron). With these three technological breakthroughs, we have successfully conducted nanoscale experiments on the well-studied GaAs[001]-(2/spl times/4) surface.
Bacterial Meningitis and Brain Abscess

More cases of bacterial meningitis now occur in older adults, and their outcomes are worse than those seen in younger patients, especially with Streptococcus pneumoniae infection.
Effects of mild hypohydration on cooling during cold-water immersion following exertional hyperthermia

We investigated the effects of mild hypohydration compared to euhydration on the cooling efficacy of cold-water immersion (CWI). Fourteen participants (eight male, six female; age 26 ± 5 years; ht 1.77 ± 0.08 m; wt 72.2 ± 8.8 kg; 20.6 ± 7.4 % body fat) completed one euhydrated (EU) trial followed by one hypohydrated trial (HY; via 24 h fluid restriction) in an environmental chamber (33.6 ± 0.9 °C, 55.8 ± 1.7 % RH). Volitional exercise was performed in a manner that matched end-exercise rectal temperature (T re) through repeating exercise mode and intensity. Participants were then immersed in ice water (2.0 ± 0.8 °C) until T re reached 38.1 °C or for a maximum of 15 min. T re, heart rate (HR), skin blood flux (SBF) and mean skin temperature (T sk) were monitored continuously during cooling. Pre-cooling body mass was decreased in the HY trial (−2.66 ± 1.23 % body mass) and maintained in the EU trial (−0.66 ± 0.44 %) compared to baseline mass (P < 0.001). Cooling rates were faster when EU (0.14 ± 0.05 °C/min) compared to HY (0.11 ± 0.05 °C/min, P = 0.046). HR, SBF, and T sk were not different between EU and HY trials (P > 0.05), however, all variables significantly decreased with immersion independent of hydration status (P < 0.001). The primary finding was that hypohydration modestly attenuates the rate of cooling in exertionally hyperthermic individuals. Regardless of hydration status, the cooling efficacy of CWI was preserved and should continue to be utilized in the treatment of exertional hyperthermia.
"Dawdling and Gaping": James's A Small Boy and Others

A Small Boy and Others (1913) is rarely discussed for failing to explain the artist Henry James became — indeed, for failing to cohere as narrative at all. This essay attempts to do that. The reason for both of these failures is due in part to James’s two-dimensional depiction of himself as a youth, “wondering and dawdling and gaping,” and in part to the nature of the narrator who mirrors that earlier self, also lost in wonder. This symbiosis of “small boy” and aged artist subverts an autobiographical logic by lauding both earlier and present selves as passive receptacles. The question is why James deliberately mystifies readers this way, given the care with which he reconstructed his past. The answer is that his personal reasons for revisiting his past coincided with a set of different assumptions about consciousness and psychology than had informed his late novels.
Facial pain: After the dentist and ENT have finished

A 63-year-old woman is referred for neurologic consultation because of electrical shocks of pain in a left V3 distribution. The attacks are very brief, but occur many times a day, triggered by cold, touch, and chewing. In between attacks, she is pain free. Her neurologic examination is normal. This straightforward presentation of trigeminal neuralgia leaves the consulting neurologist wondering what to do with the other 45 minutes of the visit. The current article is vignette-based and deals with patients who may not fit into such a neat category. It is meant for the general neurologist, not the headache specialist. Aside from routine scenarios, it includes discussions of atypical facial pain, temporomandibular joint disorder, burning mouth syndrome, and other vexing types of facial pain.
Effect of 1-(3-Hydroxyphenyl) 2-Methylaminoethanol (Phenylephrine) and 1-(3-Hydroxyphenyl) 2-Aminoethanol (Norphenylephrine) on Intestinal Motility

Summary(1) The effects of dl-phenylephrine and dl-norphenylephrine on motility of isolated strips of rabbit intestine were studied. Comparisons of their actions were made with the action of l-epinephrine and with each other to obtain relative potency of these phenylethylamine derivatives as inhibitors of intestinal smooth muscle. (2) The potency of dl-norphenylephrine as an inhiibtor of isolated rabbit intestine is approximately one-half that of dl-phenylephrine.
Effect of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) on the metabolism of 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA) in rats

The influence of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), an adrenal steroid, on the biotransformation of the carcinogen 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA) in rats has been investigated. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (2-3 months old) were fed DHEA for 14 days at a dietary level of 0.8%. There was an increase in liver weights with increases per whole liver, in total protein, microsomal and cytosolic protein and cytochrome P-450, and cytosolic glutathione transferase activity in DHEA fed rats. DNA content of the liver, however, remained constant. Forty-eight hours after a single i.p. dose of [3H]DMBA (133 mumol/kg body weight, 102 muCi/rat) binding of DMBA derived metabolites to DNA decreased significantly both per unit of DNA (605 versus 194 pmol/mg DNA) as well as per whole liver DNA (25.4 versus 8.5 nmol) in DHEA fed rats. However, a significantly higher amount of DMBA-derived metabolites were bound to total hepatic protein (455 versus 288 nmol) in the steroid fed rats. Microsome mediated binding of DMBA to DNA was 3-fold higher in DHEA fed rats. Excretion of DMBA-derived metabolites in urine was 2-fold higher in DHEA fed rats. The results of this study demonstrate that DHEA inhibits binding of DMBA to hepatic DNA in vivo in spite of the increased metabolic activation of the carcinogen perhaps due to increased detoxification and competitive binding of its active species to proteins.
Shihezi Area the Central Transfer Payments to TB Control Project 6 Years Implementation Effect Analysis

OBJECTIVE Discusses the implement ation of Shihezi Area transfer payment project TB control work of the influence and control effect. METHODS By 2003—2008 reported tuberculosis control project quarterly, tuberculosis report relevant information system for statistical data and analysis. RESULTS After the project implementation of smear active tuberculosis proportion by the project before 62.82% to 83.53%, to reach the highest in 2004, after 85.52% declined year by year. The new smear positive check in rate project implementation by the former 12.12/10 million in 2006, rising to reach the highest 36.10/10 million, after the 2007 reduced during the project smear patients and guanLiLv patients with Yin to 99.59% and 99.54%, smear 96.79% to cure patients.CONCLUSION The central transfer payment project implementation increased the rate of TB control effect significantly, tuberculosis.
Cognitive impairment following closed head injury

Cognitive impairments are usually the most disabling sequelae of CHI. The earliest stage of recovery from moderate to severe closed head injury is a period of PTA that typically includes memory loss for events preceding and surrounding the injury and memory loss for events occurring since the injury. Following resolution of PTA, deficits may be present in a number of cognitive domains. Memory and attention/information processing speed and efficiency are typically the cognitive domains most severely affected by head injury. Intellectual, language, and perceptual skills tend to be relatively preserved. Neurologic variables such as pupillary reactivity and worst GCS score are prognostic of cognitive impairment at 1 to 2 years postinjury. Following mild head injury, impairments of memory and information processing may be apparent within the first week of recovery. These deficits usually resolve in 1 to 3 months, although chronic complaints persist in a minority of individuals. The long-term cognitive effects of CHI are typically more severe for younger children than older children. Neuropsychologic assessment provides an objective way to measure the presence and severity of cognitive impairment.
The Effects of Fluidic Loading on Underwater Contact Sensing with Robotic Fins and Beams

As robots become more involved in underwater operations, understanding underwater contact sensing with compliant systems is fundamental to engineering useful haptic interfaces and vehicles. Despite knowledge of contact sensation in air, little is known about contact sensing underwater and the impact of fluid on both the robotic probe and the target object. The objective of this work is to understand the effects of fluidic loading, fin webbing, and target object geometry on strain sensation within compliant robotic fins and beams during obstacle contact. General descriptions of obstacle contact were sought for strain measurements in fins and beams. Multiple phases of contact were characterized where the robot, fluid, and object interact to affect sensory signals. Unlike in air, the underwater structure-fluid-structure interaction (SFSI) caused changes to strain in each phase of contact. The addition of webbing to beams created a mechanical coupling between adjacent beams, which changed contact strains. Complex obstacle geometries tended to make contact less apparent and caused stretch in fins. This work demonstrates several effects of fluidic loading on strain sensing with compliant robotic beams and fins as they contact obstacles in air and underwater, and provides guidance for future work in underwater active sensing with compliant manipulators.
The Rugby Player as Celebrity

On 2 December 2008 the Daily Mail newspaper considered it newsworthy that Wasps and England outside-half Danny Cipriani had taken his girlfriend out for a kebab. Described by the newspaper as ‘the meal of choice for football fans and drunken lads out on the town’, Cipriani’s choice of food was deemed a national news story. Of course he is not the only ‘celebrity’ whose every move is logged and analysed. The ‘celebrity’ has become a defining feature of our times which in addition to a long-standing historical preoccupation with being famous is now also about celebrities becoming products themselves (Cashmore, 2006). Indeed it was the fact that Cipriani was dating the model/actress Kelly Brook that catapulted him into the sphere of ‘celebrity’ and increased his visibility in other areas of popular culture. Brook herself represents a conspicuous figure in the age of celebrity having previously dated, and been engaged to, actors Jason Statham and Billy Zane respectively. Both these relationships became a staple feature of newspaper gossip columns and magazine spreads. Such spaces have remained the preserve of actors and musicians for many years but not really the place where a rugby player was likely to appear. In this chapter I look at the place of celebrity in contemporary society, the increased visibility of the sporting celebrity and finally at the small number of rugby players who move beyond the sports pages and into the wider celebrity sphere.
Molecular probing of TNF: From identification of therapeutic target to guidance of therapy in inflammatory diseases

Therapy by blocking tumor necrosis factor (TNF) activity is highly efficacious and profoundly changed the paradigm of several inflammatory diseases. However, a significant proportion of patients with inflammatory diseases do not respond to TNF inhibitors (TNFi). Prediction of therapeutic response is required for TNFi therapy. Isotope labeled anti-TNF antibodies or TNF receptor have been investigated to localize TNF production at inflammatory tissue in animal models and in patients with inflammatory diseases. The in vivo detection of TNF has been associated with treatment response. Recently, fluorophore labeled anti-TNF antibody in combination with confocal laser endomicroscopy in patients with Crohn's disease yielded more accurate and quantitative in vivo detection of TNF in the diseased mucosa. More importantly, this method demonstrated high therapeutic predication value. Fluorophore labeled TNF binding aptamers in combination with modern imaging technology offers additional tools for in vivo TNF probing.
TeraHertz Time-Domain Spectroscopy for Explosive Trace Detection

This paper presents Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy for stand-off detection of explosive traces. Despite several well-developed explosive detection techniques available, the detection of a small amount of explosive traces is still challenging. Terahertz spectroscopy demonstrates potential for explosive detection through unique absorption spectra pattern of various kinds of explosive materials. Terahertz waves show good penetration through many dielectric materials that are visually opaque. These characteristics promise the effectiveness of Terahertz radiation in the detection of concealed explosives.
Comparison of Spark Resource Managers and Distributed File Systems

The rapid growth in volume, velocity, and variety of data produced by applications of scientific computing, commercial workloads and cloud has led to Big Data. Traditional solutions of data storage, management and processing cannot meet demands of this distributed data, so new execution models, data models and software systems have been developed to address the challenges of storing data in heterogeneous form, e.g. HDFS, NoSQL database, and for processing data in parallel and distributed fashion, e.g. MapReduce, Hadoop and Spark frameworks. This work comparatively studies Apache Spark distributed data processing framework. Our study first discusses the resource management subsystems of Spark, and then reviews several of the distributed data storage options available to Spark.
Hawkish Biases and the Interdisciplinary Study of Conflict Decision-Making

Psychological biases strongly affect foreign policy decision-making. The authors argue that the biases recently uncovered by psychological research favor hawkish decisions in conflict situations. By “hawkish,” they refer to a propensity for suspicion, hostility and aggression in the conduct of conflict, and for less cooperation and trust when the resolution of a conflict is on the agenda. While much extant work examines links between cognitive biases and conflict, they offer a new and developed formulation based on the excellent insight of Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman in the field of psychology and Jonathan Renshon’s knowledge of IR and conflict.
An Application of Externality Theory: Global Warming

Chapter 8 concludes the coverage of externalities with an analysis of consumption-production externalities, using global warming as the example. After developing the general model, the chapter considers a number of specific topics related to global warming, including the use of taxes versus marketable permits to reduce CO 2 emissions, defensive antipollution strategies, and the problem of long-lived externalities.
Closed-Loop Continuous Hand Control via Chronic Recording of Regenerative Peripheral Nerve Interfaces

Loss of the upper limb imposes a devastating interruption to everyday life. Full restoration of natural arm control requires the ability to simultaneously control multiple degrees of freedom of the prosthetic arm and maintain that control over an extended period of time. Current clinically available myoelectric prostheses do not provide simultaneous control or consistency for transradial amputees. To address this issue, we have implemented a standard Kalman filter for continuous hand control using intramuscular electromyography (EMG) from both regenerative peripheral nerve interfaces (RPNI) and an intact muscle within non-human primates. Seven RPNIs and one intact muscle were implanted with indwelling bipolar intramuscular electrodes in two rhesus macaques. Following recuperations, function-specific EMG signals were recorded and then fed through the Kalman filter during a hand-movement behavioral task to continuously predict the monkey’s finger position. We were able to reconstruct continuous finger movement offline with an average correlation of $\rho = 0.87$ and a root mean squared error (RMSE) of 0.12 between actual and predicted position from two macaques. This finger movement prediction was also performed in real time to enable closed-loop neural control of a virtual hand. Compared with physical hand control, neural control performance was slightly slower but maintained an average target hit success rate of 96.70%. Recalibration longevity measurements maintained consistent average correlation over time but had a significant change in RMSE ( $p ). Additionally, extracted single units varied in amplitude by a factor of +18.65% and −25.85% compared with its mean. This is the first demonstration of chronic indwelling electrodes being used for continuous position control via the Kalman filter. Combining these analyses with our novel peripheral nerve interface, we believe that this demonstrates an important step in providing patients with more naturalistic control of their prosthetic limbs.
Collective behavior of multiple atoms in general electromagnetic environments: Dressed atom fields and bound states

The fully quantized Hamiltonian of multiple harmonic oscillator atoms coupled via dipole interaction to a general lossless electromagnetic environment is factorized into dressed atom fields. Both the rotating wave and counter rotating wave terms are considered. Atom field bound states are found and their effects on collective spontaneous emission studied.