cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Phase Change Insulation for Energy Efficiency Based on Wax-Halloysite Composites

Phase change materials (PCMs) have gained extensive attention in thermal energy storage. Wax can be used as a PCM in solar storage but it has low thermal conductivity. Introducing 10% halloysite admixed into wax yields a novel composite (wax-halloysite) which has a thermal conductivity of 0.5 W/mK. To increase the base conductivity, graphite and carbon nanotubes were added into the PCM composite improving its thermal energy storage. Thermal conductivity of wax-halloysite-graphite (45/45/10%) composite showed increased conductivity of 1.4 W/mK (3 times higher than the base wax-halloysite composite). Wax- halloysite-graphite-carbon nanotubes (45/45/5/5%) composite showed conductivity of 0.85 W/mK while maintaining the original shape perfectly until 91 °C (above the original wax melting point). Thermal conductivity can be further increased with higher doping of carbon nanotubes. This new composites are promising heat storage material due to good thermal stability, high thermal/electricity conductivity and ability to preserve its shape during phase transitions.
Clinical neuropharmacology of hypothalamic releasing factors.

DURING the past decade developments in the area of neuroendocrine research have transformed it into one of the most exciting and rapidly changing aspects of endocrinology. The chemotransmitter conc...
AN EVALUATION OF THE KERNEL EQUATING METHOD: A SPECIAL STUDY WITH PSEUDOTESTS CONSTRUCTED FROM REAL TEST DATA

This study examines how closely the kernel equating (KE) method (von Davier, Holland, & Thayer, 2004a) approximates the results of other observed-score equating methods—equipercentile and linear equatings. The study used pseudotests constructed of item responses from a real test to simulate three equating designs: an equivalent groups (EG) design and two non-equivalent groups with anchor test (NEAT) designs, one with an internal anchor and another with an external anchor. To compare results, the study sets the equating function in the EG design as the equating criterion. In these examples, the KE results were very close to the results from the other equating methods. Moreover, in almost all situations investigated, the KE results were closer to the equating criterion.
Prostaglandin E2 promotes the induction of anergy during T helper cell recognition of myelin basic protein

Remission of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in Lewis rats may involve mediators such as prostaglandins (PG) that are produced within demyelinating lesions and are known to potently inhibit T cell responses. In support, this study shows that PGE2 inhibited myelin basic protein (MBP)-specific responses of proliferation and IL-2 production by continuously propagated lines of T-helper cells. Simultaneous exposure to PGE2 and immunogenic MBP rendered T cells profoundly anergic. Even after several weeks of propagation in IL-2-containing medium, anergic T cells exhibited marked reductions in MBP-stimulated proliferation and IL-2 production responses when restimulated with optimal concentrations of MBP and irradiated splenocytes (SPL). PGE2 did not block other measures of MBP-dependent activation, including induction of postactivation refractoriness in IL-2 production pathways, activation-dependent decreases in MBP reactivity, and activation-dependent increases in PGE2 sensitivity. Proliferative responses by anergic T cells were reduced in magnitude but were not altered in their sensitivity to MBP. PGE2-mediated anergy was manifest as an intrinsic deficit rather than an acquired suppressive activity and was associated with reduced mitogenic responsiveness and a block in IL-2 production pathways. Anergic T cells were responsive to IL-2 and eventually regained full antigenic reactivity after extended propagation in IL-2-supplemented medium. In summary, a limited exposure to PG had long-lasting inhibitory effects on subsequent T cell responsiveness to the target autoantigen MBP. These findings support the hypothesis that PG may promote disease remission by inducing anergy in helper T cells.
Primary pancreatic lymphoma: a population-based analysis using the SEER program.

Background Primary pancreatic lymphoma (PPL) is a rare disease, accounting for only 0.5% of all pancreatic masses. A paucity of literature exists on the epidemiology and outcomes of PPL. Here, we present a series of 523 cases of PPL obtained from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. Methods Patients diagnosed with a PPL from 1973 to 2007 were identified. Data on patient and tumor characteristics as well as initial treatment with surgery or radiation were extracted. Survival rates were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method. A multivariate analysis was performed to determine independent prognostic factors predicting mortality hazard ratios using Cox proportional hazards modeling. Results Fifty-eight percent of patients identified were male. The median age range at diagnosis was 65 to 69 years. The most common histologic subtype in the present series was diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, which accounted for 56% of all patients. The 5-year overall survival for the group was 45%. Multivariate analysis suggests that age more than 60 years at diagnosis, race of "other" (compared with "white"), and marital status of single or widowed were predictive of increased all-cause mortality (P Conclusions This represents the largest published series of patients with PPL. Age more than 60 years, female sex, and marital status of married were identified as independent prognostic factors predicting for decreased all-cause mortality.
Resources in Older Adults' Old and New Friendships

This research investigated the exchange of resources in old and new friendships with a sample of twenty-seven older adults who had recently relocated to a retirement community. Using quantitative measures, the study documented specific short-term changes in resource exchange (love, status, information and services) and measured related changes in affection. Open-ended interviews were used to tap the participants' views of the importance of resource exchange in developing and maintaining friendships, the role of each resource in each friendship, and the differences between old and new friendships. Old friendships remained stable in resource exchange and affection, while newly developing friendships increased in both dimensions. Supporting the quantitative results, participants' comments emphasized continuity as an essential quality of old friendships. Participants also spoke about the somewhat different meanings of love, status, information and services in old and new friendships.
Haptic Perception of the Horizontal by Blind and Low-Vision Individuals

We examined haptic perception of the horizontal in visually impaired people. Blind people (late blind and congenitally blind), persons with very low vision, and blindfolded sighted individuals felt raised-line drawings of jars at four angles. They had to demonstrate their understanding that water remains horizontal, despite jar tilt, by selecting the correct raised-line drawing given four choices. Low-vision subjects, with near perfect scores, performed significantly better than the other groups of subjects. While the late-blind and blindfolded sighted subjects performed slightly better than the congenitally blind participants, the difference between the late-blind and congenitally blind groups was nonsignificant. The performance of the congenitally blind subjects indicates that visual experience is not necessary for the development of an understanding that water level stays horizontal, given container tilt.
Women in Public: Between Banners and Ballots, 1825-1880

On May 15, 1862, U.S. General Benjamin Butler, commander of occupied New Orleans, ordered that any woman who publicly insulted Union soldiers be subject to prosecution as a prostitute. Not all nineteenth-century women, Butler learned, felt their place was in the home. As his order implies, women were governed by an unwritten code of public conduct, appeared on public streets, spoke out on public issues, and were subjects of public policy. In "Women in Public" noted historian Mary P. Ryan examines each of these issues as it affected women in New York, New Orleans, and San Francisco. Contrary to current perceptions, Ryan contends, nineteenth-century women appeared in public in a variety of roles. They took part in civic ceremonies, from Independence Day celebrations to ethnic festivals. Whether they sonsorted in parks designed for "ladies" or in the increasingly regulated haunts of prostitutes, their place in the everyday life of the streets became more segregated and distinct. Denied access to the voting booth, they practiced "outdoor politics," waving handkerchiefs at rallies--and wielding brickbats in riots. Exploring little-noted aspects of nineteenth-century political discourse, Ryan shows how gender and sexual imagery in public language changed as the century progressed. She analyzes the construction of boundaries between private and public spheres and examines the American political system's failure to accommodate difference within democratic order.
Automated welfare client-tracking and service integration: the political economy of computing

The impacts of an automated client-tracking system on the clients, caseworkers, administrators, and operations of the welfare agencies that use it are reported. The major impact of this system was to enhance the administrative attractiveness of the using agencies in the eyes of funders rather than to increase their internal administrative efficiency. This impact is a joint product of both the technical features of the computer-based system and of the organizational demands placed upon different agencies, administrators, and caseworkers. It illustrates the way “successful” automated information systems fit the political economies of the groups that use them.
INCREASING PRODUCTIVITY OF GOVERNMENT'S RELIANCE UPON OUTSIDE ORGANIZATIONS TO PROVIDE ANALYSIS AND MANAGEMENT SERVICES

The federal government spends vast sums of money for management and analysis services. The authors contend that the selection process to determine the winners of the awards of contracts to perform these services too often disregards cost competitiveness as a factor in the award. The relative importance of technical proficiency and cost are examined and a model is proposed whereby a high level of technical expertise can be obtained at a more reasonable cost.
A Bad Case of Good’s Syndrome

Good’s syndrome is a relatively rare immunodeficiency condition that presents in the fourth or fifth decade of life and is defined by hypogammaglobulinemia in the setting of a thymoma. The humoral defect may be severe enough to cause an absence in B cells, with a consequent recurrence of sinopulmonary disease, chronic non-infectious diarrhea and opportunistic infections. The prognosis in patients with Good’s syndrome appears to be worse than in those with X-linked agammaglobulinemia (XLA) and common variable immune deficiency (CVID). There have only been three cases of Good’s syndrome associated with mycobacterium, and only one case with a cavitary lesion in the lungs. We present here a unique case of Good’s syndrome with a non-mycobacterial cavitary lesion.
Loss of prestress prediction based on nondestructive damage location algorithms

As damage accumulates in structure, the stiffness of the structure changes. Changes in stiffness are reflected in changes in the frequencies and mode shapes vibration of the structure. A theory of structural damage evaluation in which changes in the dynamic characteristics of a structure are used to predict the location and severity of damage has been developed by Stubbs et al. The objective of this study is to investigate the feasibility of using such technique for detecting loss of prestress in a prestressed concrete bridge. In order to achieve this goal the following tasks were performed: (1) a review of the state of the art modeling of prestressed concrete using finite elements, (2) a finite element model of a 3-D prestress beam using a commercial finite element code (ABAQUS/PATRAN) was developed, (3) dynamic modal analyses of the undamaged and damaged (less prestress) models are performed, (4) evaluation of an existing damage location algorithm for predicting location and severity of damage. The inability of the algorithm to predict loss of prestress is observed and explained. An improved version of the algorithm is qualitatively presented.
Learning to unlearn: How a service-learning project can help teacher candidates to reframe urban students

Abstract Teachers' views and expectations of students directly impact student learning, and unless they are challenged during the preparation period, these views are unlikely to change. This study investigated how a group of prospective teachers explained the shift in their perspectives of low-income, urban youth as a result of participating in a service-learning project that explicitly attended to issues of status and processes of unlearning. The findings indicate that when fused with student voice work, service learning can help prospective teachers to uncover, examine, and revise their assumptions about students, particularly those whose backgrounds differ from their own.
Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Neural Progenitors Incorporate into Degenerating Retina and Enhance Survival of Host Photoreceptors

Embryonic stem (ES) cells differentiate into all cell types of the body during development, including those of the central nervous system (CNS). After transplantation, stem cells have the potential to replace host cells lost due to injury or disease or to supply host tissues with therapeutic factors and thus provide a functional benefit. In the current study, we assessed whether mouse neuralized ES cells can incorporate into retinal tissue and prevent retinal degeneration in mnd mice. These mice have an inherited lysosomal storage disease characterized by retinal and CNS degeneration. Sixteen weeks after intravitreal transplantation into adult mice, donor cells had incorporated into most layers of the retina, where they resembled retinal neurons in terms of morphology, location in the retina, and expression of cell type–specific marker proteins. Presence of these donor cells was correlated with a reduction in the sizes and numbers of lysosomal storage bodies in host retinal cells. The presence of transplanted donor cells was also accompanied by enhanced survival of host retinal neurons, particularly photoreceptors. These results demonstrate that neuralized ES cells protect host neurons from degeneration and appear to replace at least some types of lost neurons.
Recall of health-risky behaviors for the prior 2 or 4 weeks via computerized versus printed questionnaire

Abstract Sixty-three undergraduate women and men were assigned randomly to either computerized or printed questionnaires requesting recall of frequencies of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use, of driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, of exercise, and of risky sexual behaviors over either the preceding 2 or 4 weeks. Participants in the computerized questionnaire condition viewed items presented by a computer via an overhead projection pad and responded on individual keypads networked to the computer. Participants in the printed questionnaire condition saw items, and responded, on paper questionnaires. The less anonymous, computer conditions produced significantly and substantially lower reports of risky sexual behavior. For self-reports of sexually transmitted diseases, anonymity of mode of presentation interacted with gender. Men's but not women's reports of aerobic exercise were affected by mode of presentation. Perceived anonymity did not affect self-reports of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use in general. Binge drinking, however, was reported at significantly and substantially higher levels by men than by women, but only in the 4-week recall condition. Also, students were significantly more comfortable reporting their health-related behaviors over a 4- versus a 2-week period.
Semliki Forest virus effects on the rat central nervous system.

Abstract Evidence is presented to indicate that Semliki Forest virus, cultured in mouse brain homogenate or chick embryo fibroblasts, would replicate and produce a fulminating, irreversible encephalitis in approximately 50% of the adult rats when the virus was administered i.v. The EEG changes were typical of the disease process and indicated progressive CNS deterioration.
A Theoretical Analysis of Long-Term Bisphosphonate Effects on Trabecular Bone Volume and Microdamage

Bisphosphonates increase bone mass and reduce fracture risk, but their anti-resorptive action may lead to increases in fatigue microdamage. To investigate how bisphosphonate effects influence changes in bone volume and microdamage in the long term, a strain-adaptive model of bone remodeling and microdamage balance was developed for a continuum-level volume of postmenopausal trabecular bone by invoking Frost's mechanostat hypothesis. Both disuse and fatigue microdamage were assumed to stimulate the activation frequency of basic multicellular units (BMUs) such that bone remodeling served to remove excess bone mass and microdamage. Bisphosphonate effects were simulated as follows: low, intermediate, high, or complete suppression of BMU activation frequency either without a change in resorption by the BMU or with an independent decrease in resorption while the bone formation process was unaffected (i.e., formation initially exceeded resorption). Of the bisphosphonate effects, a reduction in resorption relative to formation dictated the long-term gain in bone volume while the potency of activation frequency suppression controlled the rate of gain. A plateau in the bone mass gain that typically occurs in clinical studies of bisphosphonate treatment was predicted by the model because the resultant reduction in strain forced bone formation by the BMU to decrease over time until it matched the reduction in BMU resorption. A greater suppression of activation frequency proportionally increased microdamage, but the accumulation was limited over the long term as long as remodeling was incompletely suppressed. The results of the model suggest creating bisphosphonates that provide minimal suppression of remodeling and a large decrease in BMU resorption because this would minimize damage accumulation and increase bone mass, respectively.
Decreased Tolerance of Mice to Intraperitoneal Glucose Injections in Certain Neurotropic Virus Infections.

SummaryMice in the symptomatic stages of various neurotropic virus infections are more susceptible than normal mice to the lethal effect of intraperitoneally injected glucose. The dehydration produced by intraperitoneal glucose appears to be a major factor in this differential susceptibility.
Modeling Climate-Fire Connections within the Great Basin and Upper Colorado River Basin, Western United States

The specific temporal patterns of antecedent conditions associated with fire occurrence in the Great Basin and Upper Colorado River Basin are poorly understood. Using 25 years of combined fire and climate data, we identified unique antecedent patterns of climate conditions prior to fires in the Great Basin and Upper Colorado River Basin. Five distinct antecedent patterns of climate related to fire were found within the region; with these antecedent patterns we were able to construct models of fire danger. The occurrence of these antecedent patterns varies both spatially and temporally, and appears to be driven by drought severity. We used a Maximum Entropy approach to model the spatial extent and strength of these fire-climate patterns, and the associated fire danger. This approach provides land managers with a practical way to assess fire danger at a relatively fine spatial scale and also gives researchers a tool for assessing future fire danger.
Security and Energy Considerations for Routing in Hierarchical Optical Sensor Networks

In this paper we evaluate the energy and security consideration for a security-aware routing protocol proposed for uni-directional, hierarchical optical sensor network. We bootstrap the unconstrained resources of the base station to design GORA, a greedy optimized routing algorithm, in which the base station is responsible for network route optimization and updates. This paper extends our recent work on OPSENET, a novel and efficient protocol that facilitates secure routing in directional optical sensor networks. We evaluate security and energy metrics for our scheme proposed scheme. Analysis and simulation results are used to show the performance of our algorithm, compared with other hierarchical bi-directional clustering routing schemes.
Henry Bence Jones (1813-1873): on the influence of diet on urine composition. Including a previously unpublished treatise on the subject and a bibliography of his writings.

Eponyms have done much to perpetuate the fame and fortune of physicians. In the case of Henry Bence Jones 1 , the application of his name to the unique protein appearing in the urine of patients with multiple myeloma persists in the vocabulary of modern medicine but largely obscures the reality of the man and his contributions. In fact, other than contributing a single publication on the subject [15] in which he erroneously concluded that the protein was an oxide of albumin, Jones displayed no particular interest in the disease. Rather, he was a physician and chemist with perhaps the widest ranging knowledge of chemical pathology in England during the mid-nineteenth century and counted such eminent persons as T.H. Huxley, Charles Darwin, Hermann von Helmholtz and Michael Faraday amongst his friends and patients [57].
Development of a ToF version of the desktop MiniSIMS utilising a continuous primary ion beam

The Millbrook MiniSIMS remains a unique concept in SIMS instrumentation. An upgraded version of the MiniSIMS based on a time-of-flight (ToF) mass spectrometer has now been developed. Unlike the vast majority of ToFSIMS instruments, the ToF MiniSIMS uses a continuous primary ion beam and a pulsed secondary ion beam. The instrument has the usual ToF attributes of parallel mass detection, extended mass range and higher mass resolution, but also features a high duty cycle. The result is very fast data acquisition, especially in imaging mode. Moreover, in depth profiling, a continuous beam allows all sputtered material to contribute to the analysis by eliminating the requirement for cycling between etching and analysis modes. The combination of a ToF spectrometer and a continuous primary beam is thus ideally suited to the MiniSIMS concept of a high-throughput instrument able to acquire spectra, images and depth profiles. The higher performance opens up new applications for the MiniSIMS instrument in the identification of organic materials and small area analysis, especially for materials with largely unknown composition or depth distribution.
Constraints on deep water age and particle flux in the equatorial and South Atlantic Ocean based on seawater 231Pa and 230Th data

High-precision measurements of 231 Pa and 230 Th in filtered seawater and suspended particulate matter samples are reported for the Equatorial and South Atlantic. Distributions of 231 Pa and 230 Th clearly indicate the influence of advection, as evidenced by departures from scavenging models that predict a linear increase with depth for these tracers. Application of a scavenging-mixing model implies a deep water transit time of ∼60-100 years from the northern source water regions. The average particulate 231 Pa/ 230 Th activity ratio is 0.0498 ± 0.0160, a factor of ∼2 lower than the 231 Pa/ 230 Th production ratio of 0.093 and in agreement with reported excess 231 Pa/ 230 Th ratios of 0.06 ± 0.004 in Holocene sediments north of 50°S in the Atlantic. These water column data further suggest that lateral eddy diffusive transport combined with enhanced scavenging in high-particle flux marginal regions (boundary scavenging) is weakly expressed in the Atlantic. Particle fractionation of these tracers is also indicated by the elevated fractionation factors of F Th/Pa = 4.32-24.04 (ave. = 9.97 ± 4.98) compared to values of ∼1-4 in the Southern Ocean.
Chemical erosion of first wall materials by atomic hydrogen at high temperatures

Abstract The chemical erosion of C and TiB2 by reaction with H has been studied from 420 to 1540 K using H pressures characteristic of fusion devices. For graphite, erosion yields range from 2.0 × 10−4 to 7.4 × 10 −4 C H over this temperature range. A change in the gas phase product distribution is observed as a function of temperature and reaction time. Methane is most abundant at low temperatures and short reaction times, while C2 and C3 species increase in abundance at higher temperatures and after extended reaction times. TiB2 shows no evidence of reaction below 1300 K and lower erosion yields than graphite at higher temperatures. The superior erosion resistance of TiB2 suggests that it may be a better candidate material than graphite for fusion applications requiring refractory low-Z materials.
Electron transfer reactions between excited diarylmethyl and triarylmethyl carbocations and aromatic donors

Abstract The excited singlet states of a variety of diarylmethyl and triarylmethyl carbocations were characterized by fluorescence spectroscopy. The dibenzosuberenyl, xanthenyl and 9-phenylxanthenyl cations are strongly fluorescent (Φ = 0.1–0.3) and have fluorescence lifetimes in the 30–40 ns range in 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol. The fluorescence of each of these cations is efficiently quenched by a variety of substituted aromatics ( e.g. cumene, anisole, toluene) with rate constants in excess of 10 9 M −1 s −1 . There is a correlation between the observed rate constants and the oxidation potential of the aromatic quencher which suggests that an electron transfer process occurs to generate a dibenzosuberenyl radical/silane radical cation pair. This hypthesis is confirmed by irradiation of the dibenzosuberenyl cation in the presence of benzyltrimethylsilane. This reaction produces 5-benzyldibenzocycloheptene, which is formed by addition of the benzyl radical produced via cleavage of the silane radical cation to either the dibenzosuberenyl radical or cation. Quenching studies suggest that the efficiency of product formation is controlled by the competition between cage escape and back electron transfer for the initial geminate radical/radical ion pair.
Appearance of Hipparion in the Tertiary of the Siwalik Hills of North India, Kashmir and Pakistan

SIMONS et al.1 have discussed the earliest occurrence of Hipparion, a tridactyl fossil equid, in the Tertiary of the Siwalik Hills (Pakistan and India). Their statements are confusing and they have misinterpreted one of my publications. Simons et al.1 reject a possible Chinji occurrence of the genus, partly because “Hussain has pointed out that regardless of the validity of occurrence of the Hipparion reputed to have been found near the base of the Chinji, the teeth of these specimens are very large. It is implausible that such animals should have preceded in time the small and structurally different species Hipparion nagriensis Hussain”.
Characterizing uncertainty when evaluating risk management metrics: Risk assessment modeling of Listeria monocytogenes contamination in ready-to-eat deli meats

This report illustrates how the uncertainty about food safety metrics may influence the selection of a performance objective (PO). To accomplish this goal, we developed a model concerning Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat (RTE) deli meats. This application used a second order Monte Carlo model that simulates L. monocytogenes concentrations through a series of steps: the food-processing establishment, transport, retail, the consumer's home and consumption. The model accounted for growth inhibitor use, retail cross contamination, and applied an FAO/WHO dose response model for evaluating the probability of illness. An appropriate level of protection (ALOP) risk metric was selected as the average risk of illness per serving across all consumed servings-per-annum and the model was used to solve for the corresponding performance objective (PO) risk metric as the maximum allowable L. monocytogenes concentration (cfu/g) at the processing establishment where regulatory monitoring would occur. Given uncertainty about model inputs, an uncertainty distribution of the PO was estimated. Additionally, we considered how RTE deli meats contaminated at levels above the PO would be handled by the industry using three alternative approaches. Points on the PO distribution represent the probability that - if the industry complies with a particular PO - the resulting risk-per-serving is less than or equal to the target ALOP. For example, assuming (1) a target ALOP of -6.41 log10 risk of illness per serving, (2) industry concentrations above the PO that are re-distributed throughout the remaining concentration distribution and (3) no dose response uncertainty, establishment PO's of -4.98 and -4.39 log10 cfu/g would be required for 90% and 75% confidence that the target ALOP is met, respectively. The PO concentrations from this example scenario are more stringent than the current typical monitoring level of an absence in 25 g (i.e., -1.40 log10 cfu/g) or a stricter criteria of absence in 125 g (i.e., -2.1 log10 cfu/g). This example, and others, demonstrates that a PO for L. monocytogenes would be far below any current monitoring capabilities. Furthermore, this work highlights the demands placed on risk managers and risk assessors when applying uncertain risk models to the current risk metric framework.
Uncertainty Quantification for Robust Control Design of Smart Material Systems

The objective in robust control design is to provide mechanisms to achieve tracking or stabilization objectives in the presence of unmodeled dynamics. This is usually achieved by assuming worst case model discrepancies which can significantly degrade control authority if the uncertainty bounds are overly conservative. In this paper, we use uncertainty quantification techniques to construct densities for control outputs that can be used to derive optimal robust control designs. We illustrate the performance of these techniques in the context of systems with smart material actuators and sensors.Copyright © 2013 by ASME
Voltage sensing and activation gating of HCN pacemaker channels.

Abstract Activation of pacemaker channels underlie the spontaneous diastolic depolarization of sinoatrial node cells in the heart. Four similar genes encoding these h yperpolarization-activated, c yclic n ucleotide-gated channels were recently cloned and subsequently named HCN1-4. Here we review the physiological role of HCN channels and recent findings regarding mechanisms of channel gating. Like all other voltage-gated channels, site-directed mutagenesis analysis indicates that the highly charged S4 transmembrane domain is the voltage sensor. However, unlike most other channels channel, opening occurs in response to membrane hyperpolarization rather than depolarization.
Cloning and Characterization of cDNAs Encoding a Candidate Glycogen Storage Disease Type 1b Protein in Rodents

Glycogen storage disease type 1 (GSD-1) is a group of genetic disorders caused by a deficiency in the activity of the enzyme glucose-6-phosphatase. (G6Pase). GSD-1a and GSD-1b, the two major subgroups, have been confirmed at the molecular genetic level. The gene responsible for GSD-1b maps to human chromosome 11q23 and a candidate human GSD-1b cDNA that encodes a microsomal transmembrane protein has been identified. In this study, we show that this cDNA maps to chromosome 11q23; thus it is a strong candidate for GSD-1b. Furthermore, we isolated and characterized candidate murine and rat GSD-1b cDNAs. Both encode transmembrane proteins sharing 93-95% sequence homology to the human GSD-1b protein. The expression profiles of murine GSD-1b and G6Pase differ both in the liver and in the kidney; the GSD-1b transcript appears before the G6Pase mRNA during development. In addition to G6Pase deficiency, GSD-1b patients suffer neutropenia, neutrophil dysfunction, and recurrent bacterial infections. Interestingly, although the G6Pase mRNA is expressed primarily in the liver, kidney, and intestine, the GSD-1b mRNA is expressed in numerous tissues, including human neutrophils/monocytes.
Ranking federal reserve system research departments by publications in professional journals

This study investigates the publishing performance of the Board of Governors and the regional banks in the Federal Reserve System. Published pages by authors affiliated with these institutions are compared to previously published rankings of academic institutions. In addition, changes through time in the relative output of the various Federal Reserve System institutions are tabulated and compared.
T Cell Anergy: Where It's LAT

T cell receptor engagement activates selective signaling pathways in T lymphocytes under different conditions. In this issue of Immunity, Hundt et al. (2006) demonstrate that anergic T cells are selectively defective in LAT activation.
Lack of effect of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor on secretion of interferon-τ, other proteins, and prostaglandin E2 by the bovine and ovine conceptus

Abstract Three experiments tested the effects of recombinant bovine granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (rbGM-CSF) on the preimplantation bovine and ovine conceptus. There was no effect of rbGM-CSF on the secretion of total radiolabeled protein in conditioned medium, immunoreactive interferon-τ (IFNτ), antiviral activity, or prostaglandin E 2 from Day 16–18 bovine conceptuses cultured for 24 hr with [ 3 H]leucine and ±10 ng/ml rbGM-CSF. Similarly, there was no effect of 1 ng/ml rbGM-CSF on the secretion of total radiolabeled protein, IFNτ, or antiviral activity from Day 17 ovine conceptuses. There was also no beneficial effect of 1 or 10 ng/ml rbGM-CSF on the presence of immunoreactive IFNτ in conditioned medium from in vitro-produced bovine blastocysts at Day 7–8 after fertilization. Results indicate that IFNτ secretion from bovine and ovine conceptuses are unresponsive to rbGM-CSF at the concentrations tested.
Changes in vigilance and foraging behaviour with light intensity and their effects on food intake and predator detection in house finches

Animals foraging in groups face different challenges, like avoiding predators and competing for food. One factor that has received little consideration is illuminance. Social animals exploiting sunlit patches could image the sun on their retinas, restraining visual perception, and, as a result, the use of personal and social information. Our goal was to assess the effects of illuminance under different levels of predation risk by studying pairwise interactions in house finches, Carpodacus mexicanus. We manipulated predation risk levels (low and high) and illuminance (low and high), and recorded changes in patch use, scanning and foraging behaviour, food intake rate, and predator detection. We found that illuminance affected the behaviour of house finches, which (a) avoided sunlit patches, (b) changed vigilance behaviour under high illuminance by reducing scan bout duration, (c) reduced foraging attempts under high light conditions, although food intake was not affected, and (d) increased the latency to detect a predator attack when foraging in pairs under high light conditions and when conspecifics showed antipredator responses that were more difficult to detect visually. If personal and social information sources about predation risk are restricted in sunlit patches, animals might increase their perceived predation risk. We discuss alternative interpretations, such as higher predation risk in sunlit patches due to greater visual exposure to predators. We suggest that heterogeneity in light conditions should be considered an ecological factor affecting foraging and antipredator behaviour in groups.
Nanoindentation Assisted Self-Assembly of Quantum Dots

The ability to pattern quantum dots with high spatial positioning and uniform size is critical for the realization of future electronic devices with novel properties and performance that surpass present technology. This work discusses the exploration of an innovative nanopatterning technique to direct the self-assembly of nanostructures. The technique focuses on perturbing surface strain energy by nanoindentation in order to mechanically bias quantum dot nucleation. Growth of InAs quantum dots on nanoindent templates is performed using molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). The effect of indent spacing and size on the patterned growth is investigated. The structural analysis of the quantum dots including spatial ordering, size, and shape are characterized by ex-situ atomic force microscopy (AFM). Results reveal that the indent patterns clearly bias nucleation with dot structures selectively growing on top of each indent. It is speculated that the biased nucleation is due to a combination of favorable surface strain attributed to subsurface dislocation strain fields and/or multi-atomic step formation at the indent sites, which leads to increased adatom diffusion on the patterned area.Copyright © 2006 by ASME
Planning for a radiation accident.

With careful organization and training of both plant and community health facilities the confusion of radiation accidents can be significantly decreased. Rational approaches to potential radiation accidents are described and discussed. (C.H.)
Expression of Smad4 in the FaDu cell line partially restores TGF‐beta growth inhibition but is not sufficient to regulate fibronectin expression or suppress tumorigenicity

Mutations of the Smad4 gene, a member of a group of TGF-β signal transduction components, occur in several types of cancer suggesting that its inactivation significantly affects TGF-β responsiveness in these tumors. To further investigate the role of Smad4 with respect to TGF-β signaling and carcinogenesis, we reexpressed the Smad4 gene in the Smad4-deficient cancer cell line FaDu by microcell-mediated chromosome transfer (MMCT) and retroviral infection to closely approximate physiological protein levels. The Smad4-expressing FaDu clones were then evaluated for TGF-β responsiveness to assess the role of Smad4 in TGF-β-induced growth inhibition and target gene regulation. We found that the re-expression of the Smad4 gene by either method partially restored TGF-β responsiveness in FaDu cells with respect to both growth inhibition and expression of p21 W A F 1 / C I P 1 and p15 I N K 4 B . However, only the microcell hybrids showed growth retardation in organotypic raft culture and an enhanced ability to upregulate fibronectin. In contrast, the re-expression of Smad4 by either method failed to suppress tumorigenicity. These results suggest that in addition to a homozygous deletion of Smad4, FaDu cells contain additional defects within the TGF-β signaling pathway, thereby limiting the extent of TGF-β responsiveness upon Smad4 re-expression and perhaps accounting for the inability to induce p15 I N K 4 B to a high level. They also demonstrate the advantages of providing a physiological extracellular environment, when assessing TGFβ responsiveness.
Radiographic interpretation of experimentally produced bony lesions.

Abstract Simulated bone-destroying lesions were created at the apices of two molars and four premolars in a sectioned mandible. All radiographic variables other than bone loss were strictly controlled. Results indicated that in the premolar region it is possible to detect radiographic change without involvement of the junctional or cortical bone, at least to a greater degree than in the molar region.
In-Flight Estimation of Helicopter Gross Weight and Mass Center Location

The ability to compute the weight and balance of a helicopter in flight under general conditions is an enabling technology for future condition based maintenance systems as well as advanced automatic flight control systems. This paper creates a real-time weight and balance estimation algorithm using an extended Kalman filter framework. To highlight estimation characteristics, the algorithm is exercised on the OH-6A helicopter in a variety of flight regimes. The algorithm is examined in hover and forward flight as well as situations where loads are dropped and picked up in flight. For sample scenarios considered, the algorithm quickly estimates station line and butt line mass center position (1 s) and more slowly converges on helicopter weight (10 s). To estimate the helicopter waterline, the algorithm requires modest flight maneuvering where a nonzero roll rate is present. The algorithm is also shown to be reasonably robust relative to sensor and model errors with increasing estimation error with increasing levels of model mismatch and sensor error.
Analysis of a passively mode-locked self-starting all-fiber soliton laser

Modeling results are presented for a passively mode-locked figure-eight laser (F8L) supporting a linear polarization state. Starting from amplified spontaneous emission, the model produces soliton, chirped, red-shifted, ultra-short pulses. The self-starting conditions of the laser are investigated, and the erbium-doped fiber amplifier gain threshold to passively mode-lock the laser is determined as a function of the center coupler splitting ratio (C/sub r/). The influence of C/sub r/, as well as the effects of the cavity length (L/sub c/), first- and second-order group velocity dispersion to the F8L operating, parameters, and output pulse characteristics such as width, peak power, chirp, self-frequency shift and envelope distortion, are studied. >
Binding of Aldolase and Glyceraldehyde-3-Phosphate Dehydrogenase to the Cytoplasmic Tails of Plasmodium falciparum Merozoite Duffy Binding-Like and Reticulocyte Homology Ligands

ABSTRACT Invasion of erythrocytes by Plasmodium falciparum requires a connection between the cytoplasmic tail of the parasite’s ligands for its erythrocyte receptors and the actin-myosin motor of the parasite. For the thromobospondin-related anonymous protein (TRAP) ligand on Plasmodium sporozoites, aldolase forms this connection and requires tryptophan and negatively charged amino acids in the ligand’s cytoplasmic tail. Because of the importance of the Duffy binding-like (DBL) and the reticulocyte homology (RH) ligand families in erythrocyte binding and merozoite invasion, we characterized the ability of their cytoplasmic tails to bind aldolase and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), both of which bind actin. We tested the binding of the cytoplasmic peptides of the two ligand families to aldolase and GAPDH. Only the cytoplasmic peptides of some RH ligands showed strong binding to aldolase, and the binding depended on the presence of an aromatic amino acid (phenylalanine or tyrosine), rather than tryptophan, in the context of negatively charged amino acids. The binding was confirmed by surface plasmon resonance analysis and was found to represent affinity similar to that seen with TRAP. An X-ray crystal structure of aldolase at 2.5 A in the presence of RH2b peptide suggested that the binding site location was near the TRAP-binding site. GAPDH bound to some of the cytoplasmic tails of certain RH and DBL ligands in an aromatic amino acid-dependent manner. Thus, the connection between Plasmodium merozoite ligands and erythrocyte receptors and the actin motor can be achieved through the activity of either aldolase or GAPDH by mechanisms that do not require tryptophan but, rather, other aromatic amino acids. IMPORTANCE The invasion of the Plasmodium merozoite into erythrocytes is a critical element in malaria pathogenesis. It is important to understand the molecular details of this process, as this machinery can be a target for both vaccine and drug development. In Plasmodium sporozoites and Toxoplasma tachyzoites, invasion involves a glycolytic enzyme aldolase, linking the cytoplasmic tail domains of the parasite ligands to the actin-myosin motor that drives invasion. This binding requires a tryptophan that cannot be replaced by other aromatic residues. Here we show that aldolase binds the cytoplasmic tails of some P. falciparum merozoite erythrocyte-binding ligands but that the binding involves aromatic residues other than tryptophan. The biological relevance of aldolase binding to cytoplasmic tails of parasite ligands in invasion is demonstrated by our observation that RH2b but not RH2a binds to aldolase and, as previously shown, that RH2b but not RH2a is required for P. falciparum invasion of erythrocytes.
Doppler Ultrasound Characteristics of Fetal Nasal Flow in Pregnancies Complicated by Diabetes Mellitus

The purpose of our study was to determine the Doppler ultrasound characteristics of fetal breathing-related nasal fluid flow velocity in pregnancies complicated by diabetes mellitus and to examine any changes in the timing parameters of fetal breath cycle relative to maternal blood glucose level. Fetal nasal fluid flow velocity was studied in 67 women at 30–41 weeks of gestation. In 37 cases, the pregnancy was uncomplicated; in 13 cases, the pregnancy was complicated by type I diabetes mellitus; and in 17 cases, the pregnancy was complicated by gestational diabetes. At the examination, subjects with diabetes mellitus were grouped by glucose control (normoglycemic and hyperglycemic) and by gestational age: 30–36 weeks and 37–41 weeks. Maternal hyperglycemia was defined as a plasma glucose value ranging from 140 to 205 mg per 100 ml. A continuous videotape record of the spectral Doppler imaging of fluid flow velocity in the nose was made during each study session. Based on a sample of 25 consecutive fetal b...
Quantifying microhabitat availability: stratified random versus constrained focal-fish methods.

During a study of microhabitat use by gilt darters (Percina evides), we compared two methods for quantifying microhabitat availability in a southern Appalachian stream (USA). The first method used stratified random sampling throughout the site and the second involved taking constrained random measurements within a 2-m radius of the focal fish. Darters were generally over-represented in microhabitats with higher average velocities, greater amounts of erosional substrata, and lower amounts of depositional and large substrata. The two methods generally yielded similar patterns of microhabitat use. Nonetheless, of the seven microhabitat categories in which differential microhabitat use occurred in summer, four were present in both data sets, but three differed between methods. We observed no differences between methods for autumn data. Finally, the standard deviations of the summer-stratified random data set were significantly greater (sign test, P < 0.05) than those of the constrained data set. Our results suggest that either method for quantifying microhabitat availability can be used to quantify the general habitat use patterns of this species, but constrained analyses yielded a more restricted view of the total habitat available. Nonetheless, if the fishes range over a site, clearly stratified habitat availability analysis is preferred.
The Empirical Relationship Between Stock Prices and Long-Term Earnings

This article shows stock prices to be related to be a function of long-term earnings forecasts, as is consistent with financial theory. Stock prices reflect not only the average of the IBES long-term earnings predictions but also some superior forecasting power beyond that aggregated average prediction.