cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Characterization of Matrix Groups That Act Transitively on the Cone of Positive Definite Matrices

Abstract It is well known that the group of all nonsingular lower block-triangular p×p matrices acts transitively on the cone P ∗ of all positive definite p×p matrices. This result has been applied to obtain several major results in multivariate statistical distribution theory and decision theory. Here a converse is established: if a matrix group acts transitively on P ∗, then its group algebra must be (similar to) the algebra of all lower block-triangular p×p matrices with respect to a fixed partitioning. This implies the nonexistence of multivariate normal linear statistical models with unrestricted covariance structure that admit a transitive group action, other than those classical models invariant under a Full block-triangular group.
Acoustic velocities and refractive index of SiO 2 glass to 57.5 GPa by Brillouin scattering

The hypersonic sound velocity and refractive index of ${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}$ glass has been measured to 57.5 GPa at room temperature by Brillouin scattering in diamond cells. On compression, both longitudinal and tranverse modes exhibit an anomalous change in slope in the low-pressure region. Between 12 and 23 GPa, the sound velocities increase rapidly. At higher pressures, the bulk velocity follows a trend similar to that expected for coesite. At 57.5 GPa, the longitudinal velocity of ${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}$ glass is 11.85 (\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.51) km/s and the transverse velocity is 6.12 (\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.06) km/s. The refractive index increases monotonically with pressure and reaches a value of 1.924 (\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.081) at 57.5 GPa. It decreases reversibly on decompression to 26 GPa, but displays an irreversible change when decompressed from 16 GPa to ambient pressure. The pressure-density relation calculated from the measured sound velocities within the elastic compression region is in good agreement with several previous determinations.
Preference based evaluation measures for novelty and diversity

Novel and diverse document ranking is an effective strategy that involves reducing redundancy in a ranked list to maximize the amount of novel and relevant information available to users. Evaluation for novelty and diversity typically involves an assessor judging each document for relevance against a set of pre-identified subtopics, which may be disambiguations of the query, facets of an information need, or nuggets of information. Alternately, when expressing a \emph{preference} for document A or document B, users may implicitly take subtopics into account, but may also take into account other factors such as recency, readability, length, and so on, each of which may have more or less importance depending on user. A \emph{user profile} contains information about the extent to which each factor, including subtopic relevance, plays a role in the user's preference for one document over another. A preference-based evaluation can then take this user profile information into account to better model utility to the space of users. In this work, we propose an evaluation framework that not only can consider implicit factors but also handles differences in user preference due to varying underlying information need. Our proposed framework is based on the idea that a user scanning a ranked list from top to bottom and stopping at rank $k$ gains some utility from every document that is relevant their information need. Thus, we model the expected utility of a ranked list by estimating the utility of a document at a given rank using preference judgments and define evaluation measures based on the same. We validate our framework by comparing it to existing measures such as $\alpha$-nDCG, ERR-IA, and subtopic recall that require explicit subtopic judgments We show that our proposed measures correlate well with existing measures while having the potential to capture various other factors when real data is used. We also show that the proposed measures can easily handle relevance assessments against multiple user profiles, and that they are robust to noisy and incomplete judgments.
Enough Already! It's Deborah Kass's Turn to Take the Stage

Contemporary painter Deborah Kass appropriates the forms of post-war masters such as Andy Warhol, Jackson Pollock, and Frank Stella in her work, but her subject choices are often conscious manifestations of her nostalgic identifications with middlebrow Jewish artists and Broadway musicals. Her radical take on nostalgia draws from lyrics, idiomatic sayings, and iconic Jewish figures to promote a progressive rather than conservative agenda. Kass's performative interventions insert her feminist-Jewish-lesbian self squarely at the center of visual culture's frame and on the stage of art's history.
Efficient spectral-Galerkin methods for polar and cylindrical geometries

A new spectral-Galerkin approach for solving the Poisson-type equation in polar geometry is introduced and analyzed. The pole singularity is treated naturally through an appropriate variational formulation. Clustering of collocation points near the pole, a problem common to the spectral-Galerkin algorithms in the literature, is prevented through a change of variable in the radial direction. The method is very efficient and gives spectral accuracy, and can be easily adopted to solve problems in cylindrical geometries and with general boundary conditions. Boundary lifting of general inhomogeneous boundary conditions is also addressed.
Management of acute pediatric asthma

Pediatric asthma prevalence, morbidity, and severity are increasing. Direct costs associated with providing emergency department and inpatient care account for more than 40% of overall dollars spent for this disease in the United States. Physicians in many health care settings may be required to treat a child in severe respiratory distress caused by acute asthma. This article reviews the pathophysiology, evaluation, and treatment of severe asthma exacerbations, or status asthmaticus.
Metabolic and toxicological considerations for sepsis drug treatments

Introduction: Sepsis, a complex interaction between pathogen and host response, presents a difficult challenge for clinicians and researchers alike. With an increasing understanding of the pathophysiology of the disease, new treatment paradigms are evolving. Areas covered: This article reviews the metabolic and toxicological considerations in sepsis, including the unique issues involved in neonatal and pediatric populations that differentiate it from adult sepsis. The authors cover metabolic issues, such as perfusion, renal and hepatic dysfunction and fluid retention in conjunction with their impact on therapy. Furthermore, the authors examine toxicological considerations of nephrotoxicity, ototoxicity and adverse drug reactions. The authors also present novel biomarkers of sepsis and current clinical tests utilized for the diagnosis of sepsis, as well as the limitations in animal models of sepsis and newer therapies. An extensive literature search including relevant formulae, publications and textbooks s...
Alkylated Lariat Ethers as Solvent Extraction Reagents: Surveying the Extraction of Alkali Metals by Bis-t-octylbenzo-14-crown-4-acetic Acid by Use of Potentiometric Two-Phase Titration

Abstract Two-phase potentiometric titrimetry was used to survey the extraction of alkali metal cations from aqueous chloride solution by the lipophilic, ionizable lariat ether bis-(t-octylbenzo)-14-crown-4-acetic acid (BOB14C4AA) in o-xylene. Analysis of the data indicates that ion-exchange extraction by the crown-carboxylic acid at low loading (i.e., low conversion of BOB14C4AA to its salt form) is stronger for lithium ion than for the other alkali metals. Little or no selectivity occurs at high loadings. In comparison with the long-chain carboxylic acid 2-methyl-2-heptylnonanoic acid (HMHN), BOB14C4AA extracts lithium and sodium at significantly lower pH; in the loading range of 0.1 to 0.7, the pH shift is 1.4–1.8 pH units for sodium ion and 1.7–2.3 pH units for lithium ion. The titration data are interpreted in terms of aggregated organic-phase species. In the case of lithium extraction, clear evidence was found for a species in which neutral BOB14C4AA participates in the organic-phase complexation of ...
Monoclonal antibodies in cell-mediated cytotoxicity against human melanoma and colorectal carcinoma.

Hybridoma-derived monoclonal anti-melanoma antibodies and anti-colorectal carcinoma antibodies were found to mediate in vitro antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) reactions against melanoma and colorectal carcinoma cells, respectively. The antigen(s) detected in ADCC on melanoma cells maintained for more than one hundred passages in tissue culture were also found on two recently established melanoma cell lines. These antigens were not detected on skin fibroblasts of the same patients from whom the melanomas were obtained. The ADCC reactivities of anti-melanoma and anti-colorectal carcinoma antibodies were found to be specific for melanoma cells and colorectal carcinoma cells, respectively.
Highlights from the magnetism reflectometer at the SNS

The magnetism reflectometer at the SNS has passed the phase of commissioning and is in operation for users. The high power of the neutron source demands that special attention be paid to the optimization of the background in order to be able to measure the two-dimensional maps of reflected and scattered intensities with polarized neutrons in a broad range of momentum transfer. It implies an effective separation of the magnetic and non-magnetic reflectivity, off-specular scattering and the grazing incidence SANS in a high range of momentum transfer. Therefore the polarizing and the analyzing efficiencies are of particular importance on this time-of-flight instrument. At the beginning of July 2008 the world's first 3He neutron analyzer with on-line pump-up polarization was successfully installed and the tests with a magnetic multilayer film showing a strong off-specular spin-flip scattering were made. The performance of the instrument is under constant improvement in order to make it an effective and optimal instrument for the applications in nanosciences.
Project PROMIS to coordinate satellites

The present extensive program of research in solar-terrestrial physics is an outgrowth of the centuries-old effort of scientists to understand the auroras and their associated geomagnetic and ionospheric effects. In every century, scientists have been quick to apply advances in technology and in the physical sciences to their search for this understanding. The opening of the space age ∼30 yr ago finally brought the opportunity to carry instruments into space around the earth to examine the physical processes there that are associated with the auroras. This tremendous technological advancement soon revealed the radiation belts and, beyond those, the intricate structure of the outer magnetosphere and the complexities of its interactions with the ionosphere and the upper atmosphere, as well as the solar wind.
Automated fixture design for a rapid machining process

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a methodology for the automated design of a fixturing system for a rapid machining process.Design/methodology/approach – The method proposed is the use of sacrificial fixturing, similar to the support structures in existing rapid prototyping (RP) processes. During the machining process, sacrificial supports emerge incrementally and, at the end of the process, are the only entities connecting the part to the remaining stock material.Findings – The support design methods have been shown to be extremely flexible in securing a variety of complex parts with relatively tight part tolerances using a rapid machining process.Research limitations/implications – The automated design of support structures is currently relegated to use in a CNC rapid prototyping process that uses a fourth axis for rotary setups.Practical implications – The methods used here make rapid machining feasible, as it solves the daunting problem of automated fixturing.Originality/value – The p...
An Upflow Microbial Fuel Cell with an Interior Cathode: Assessment of the Internal Resistance by Impedance Spectroscopy†

An upflow microbial fuel cell (UMFC) system with a U-shaped cathode inside the anode chamber was developed and produced a maximum volumetric power of 29.2 W/m3 at a volumetric loading rate of 3.40 kg COD/(m3 day) and an operating temperature of 35 °C while feeding sucrose continuously. The Coulombic efficiency decreased from 51.0% to 10.6% with the increase in the volumetric loading rate from 0.57 to 4.29 kg COD/(m3 day). In addition, the lab-scale UMFC maintained soluble chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiencies exceeding 90% and volatile fatty acid concentrations of ∼40 mg/L, indicating efficient wastewater treatment. The analysis of impedance spectroscopy, generated by fitting experimental data into an equivalent circuit, revealed that at a volumetric loading rate of 3.40 kg COD/(m3 day) the overall internal resistance was 17.13 Ω. This internal resistance was composed of electrolyte resistance (8.62 Ω), charge-transfer resistance (7.05 Ω), and diffusion resistance (1.46 Ω). Electrolyte resista...
Hemochromatosis in Salers Cattle

Two 2-year-old Salers cattle from different herds raised on pasture were evaluated for retarded growth and diarrhea. Increase of liver enzyme activities and prolonged sulfobromophothalein (BSP) half life (T1/2) indicated liver disease with impaired liver function. Histopathologic examination of liver biopsies revealed a micronodular cirrhosis with marked deposition of hemosiderin in hepatocytes, Kupffer cells, and arterioles. Transferrin saturation (TS) and liver iron content were markedly increased, consistent with a diagnosis of hemochromatosis. Both animals were euthanatized due to deterioration in their condition. Necropsy findings included hepatomegaly and hemosiderin accumulation in the liver, lymph nodes, pancreas, spleen, thyroid, kidney, brain and other glandular tissue. Continued surveillance of the second herd (serum iron, total iron binding capacity [TIBC], unsaturated iron binding capacity [UIBC], and TS), identified a heifer as a hemochromatosis suspect in a subsequent generation. Liver biopsies from that animal revealed the same histopathologic changes as the previous 2 animals, and similar increases in liver iron content (8,700 ppm, normal range 45 to 300 ppm). The 3 affected cattle were all products of line breeding programs and shared a common ancestor. The absence of dietary iron loading in conjunction with the histopathologic and metabolic findings were consistent with a diagnosis of primary hemochromatosis. The reported disease is similar to idiopathic hemochromatosis in human beings in which there is a hereditary defect in iron metabolism.
Hydroxylation of taurolithocholate by isolated human liver microsomes. II. Cytochrome P-450 dependency.

Abstract The conversion of taurolithocholate to taurohyodeoxycholate by 6α-hydroxylation by isolated human liver microsomes and NADPH is inhibited by CO and the inhibition is maximally reversedby monochromatic light at 450 nm indicating that the reaction is cytochrome P-450 dependent.
Effects of shortened erythropoietin exposure on sheep marrow cultures.

Summary. To determine whether erythropoietin (Ep) is required only to trigger, or also to sustain the growth of erythroid progenitor (CFU-E) in vitro, the effect of limiting the time of exposure of sheep bone marrow CFU-E to Ep on erythroid colony (EC) formation was examined. Restricting the in vitro exposure of CFU-E to 2–24 h, either by brief preincubation with Ep or by neutralization of Ep present in culture with anti-Ep, resulted in a 70–90% reduction of EC formation, and the colonies that were produced were of a small size. In contrast, no inhibition of EC size or number occurred when CFU-E were exposed to Ep for more than 24 h. These results suggest that Ep also modulates the proliferative events subsequent to the initial triggering of CFU-E which lead to the formation of erythrocytes.
Amino Acid Biases in the N- and C-termini of Proteins are Evolutionarily Conserved and are Conserved Between Functionally Related Proteins

Analysis of the Arabidopsis thaliana, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Mus musculus, Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Thermoplasma acidophilum, and Sulfolobus tokodaii genomes demonstrate that many amino acid biases occur at the N- and C-termini of proteins, a statistically significant number of these biases are evolutionarily conserved, and these biases occur in amino acids beyond the first and last five amino acids. Analyses designed to shed light on the mechanism causing amino acid biases suggest that in at least some cases the bias is caused by forces acting at the nucleic acid level. It is also demonstrated that in E. coli functionally related proteins show similar biases at the N- and C-termini suggesting that the mechanisms causing the biases are complex and in some cases are related to function.
The contested plains : Indians, goldseekers, & the rush to Colorado

Deftly retracing a pivotal chapter in one of America's most dramatic stories, Elliott West chronicles the struggles, triumphs and defeats of both Indians and whites as they pursued their clashing dreams of greatness in the heart of the continent. "The Contested Plains" recounts the rise of the Native American horse culture, white Americans' discovery and pursuit of gold in the Rocky Mountains, and the wrenching changes and bitter conflicts that ensued. After centuries of many peoples fashioning many cultures on the plains, the Cheyennes and other tribes found in the horse the power to create a heroic way of life that dominated one of the world's great grasslands. Then the discovery of gold challenged that way of life and led finally to the infamous massacre at Sand Creek and the Indian Wars of the late 1860s. Illuminating both the ancient and more recent history of the plains and eastern Rocky Mountains, West weaves together a brilliant tapestry interlaced with environmental, social and military history. He treats the "frontier" not as a morally loaded term - either in the traditional celebratory sense or the more recent critical sense - but as a powerfully unsettling "process" that shattered an old world. He shows how Indians, goldseekers, haulers, merchants, ranchers and farmers all contributed to and in turn were consumed by this process, even as the plains themselves were utterly transformed by the clash of cultures and competing visions. Exciting and engaging, "The Contested Plains" is the first book to examine the Colorado gold rush as the key event in the modern transformation of the central great plains. It also exemplifies a kind of history that respects more fully our rich and ambiguous past - a past in which there are many actors but no simple lessons.
Dyslipidemia in the era of HIV protease inhibitors.

Human immunodeficiency virus protease inhibitors are associated with metabolic abnormalities that may increase risk of atherosclerotic vascular disease, including dyslipidemia, insulin resistance, and central obesity. Dyslipidemia, characterized by hypercholesterolemia and hypertriglyceridemia, small low- and high-density lipoprotein particles, and in some cases lipoprotein(a) excess, can be severe and has been associated with endothelial dysfunction and carotid atherosclerosis. The mechanisms underlying protease inhibitor-associated dyslipidemia have not been elucidated completely, but appear to involve hepatic overproduction of very low-density lipoproteins and to a lesser extent, impaired clearance. Insulin resistance appears to mediate part of the adverse lipoprotein changes observed in patients taking protease inhibitors. Ongoing epidemiological and surrogate endpoint studies are investigating the atherogenicity of these medications. Until the risk associated with use of protease inhibitors is better understood, identifying patients at high risk for adverse vascular events such as heart attacks, cardiac death, and stroke is a high priority. This article reviews the lipid and lipoprotein abnormalities associated with use of protease inhibitors, possible mechanisms for protease inhibitor-associated dyslipidemia, its potential atherogenicity, and use of the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III Guidelines for the management of patients with dyslipidemia.
Numerical experiments with cosmic strings in flat spacetime.

The numerical model of Smith and Vilenkin is used to study the equilibrium properties of a system of strings in flat spacetime. When the energy density of the system is low, the dominant part of the string is in the form of closed loops of the smallest allowed size. At a certain critical density ${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{c}$ the system undergoes a phase transition characterized by formation of infinite strings. In the asymptotic regimes of \ensuremath{\rho}\ensuremath{\gg}${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{c}$ and \ensuremath{\rho}\ensuremath{\ll}${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{c}$ the numerical results agree with the analytic calculations by Frautschi, Carlitz, and by Mitchell and Turok.
Cationically cured natural oil‐based green composites: Effect of the natural oil and the agricultural fiber

Green composites were produced from various cationically cured natural oil-based resins and agricultural fibers. The natural oils and agricultural fibers of interest included corn, soybean, fish, and linseed oils and corn stover, wheat straw (WS), and switchgrass fibers. The effects of the types of natural oil and agricultural fiber on the structure and thermal and mechanical properties of the composites were studied using Soxhlet extraction, thermogravimetric and dynamic mechanical analysis, and tensile testing. The green composites, with agricultural fiber loadings of 75 wt %, have thermal stabilities up to 275°C. The Young's moduli and tensile strengths of the composites ranged from 1590 to 2300 and 5.5 to 11.3 MPa, respectively. In general, an increase in the degree of unsaturation of the natural oil resulted in improvements in the thermal and mechanical properties of the composites. The WS fibers tended to give composites with the best thermal and mechanical properties. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012
Solving an apparel trim placement problem using a maximum cover problem approach

A trim placement problem from the apparel industry is presented and solved. The problem is related to cutting and packing problems, which have received attention in the literature for close to 40 years. The problem is motivated by a pants layout problem involving irregularly-shaped pieces. A two-stage strategy is commonly employed, with large pieces, or panels, arranged first, followed by smaller pieces, or trim. This paper assumes the panels have been arranged, and presents an approach for placing the trim pieces into unused “containers” of the stock material. Groups of trim pieces are first generated using existing polygon containment algorithms. Then, groups are assigned to containers to maximize a weighted function of the trim pieces. The mathematical programming formulation is developed, which is a generalization of the Maximum Cover Problem, a well-known problem in the location literature. Due to wide variability in branch and bound solution times, a Lagrangian Heuristic incorporating an improvement...
Hidden transcripts among the Rarámuri : Culture, resistance, and interethnic relations in northern Mexico

An understanding of Raramuri (Tarahumara) cultural style and resistance to domination is enhanced when interpreted in relation to theories of muffled protest and discourse strategies based on dissimulation. In this article, I consider Scott's (1990) notion of discerning everyday resistance through what he calls "hidden transcripts," here in the context of Raramuri-Mestizo relations in northern Mexico. Scott's generalizing framework should be tempered in light of discussions of concealment, secrecy, and isolationism in Raramuri culture. Analysis of the ritual, language, and behaviors associated with Raramuri secrecy indicates that although the broad outline of his thesis is corroborated, specific elements invite reassessment. When hidden transcripts go public, the most compelling part of Scott's framework is also the weakest, [resistance, secrecy, interethnic relations, political symbolism, Tarahumara, Raramuri, Mexico]
Influence of the Human Parainfluenza Virus 3 Attachment Protein's Neuraminidase Activity on Its Capacity To Activate the Fusion Protein

In order to examine functions of the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase (HN) protein that quantitatively influence fusion promotion, human parainfluenza virus 3 (HPIV3) variants with alterations in HN were studied. The variant HNs have mutations that affect either receptor binding avidity, neuraminidase activity, or fusion protein (F) activation. Neuraminidase activity was regulated by manipulation of temperature and pH. F activation was assessed by quantitating the irreversible binding of target erythrocytes (RBC) to HN/F-coexpressing cells in the presence of 4-GU-DANA (zanamivir) to release target cells bound only by HN-receptor interactions; the remaining, irreversibly bound target cells are retained via the fusion protein. In cells coexpressing wild-type (wt) or variant HNs with wt F, the fusion promotion capacity of HN was distinguished from target cell binding by measuring changes with time in the amounts of target RBC that were (i) reversibly bound by HN-receptor interaction (released only upon the addition of 4-GU-DANA), (ii) released by HN′s neuraminidase, and (iii) irreversibly bound by F-insertion or fusion (F triggered). For wt HN, lowering the pH (to approach the optimum for HPIV3 neuraminidase) decreased F triggering via release of HN from its receptor. An HN variant with increased receptor binding avidity had F-triggering efficiency like that of wt HN at pH 8.0, but this efficiency was not decreased by lowering the pH to 5.7, which suggested that the variant HN′s higher receptor binding activity counterbalanced the receptor dissociation promoted by increased neuraminidase activity. To dissect the specific contribution of neuraminidase to triggering, two variant HNs that are triggering-defective due to a mutation in the HN stalk were evaluated. One of these variants has, in addition, a mutation in the globular head that renders it neuraminidase dead, while the HN with the stalk mutation alone has 30% of wt neuraminidase. While the variant without neuraminidase activity triggered F effectively at 37°C irrespective of pH, the variant possessing effective neuraminidase activity completely failed to activate F at pH 5.7 and was capable of only minimal triggering activity even at pH 8.0. These results demonstrate that neuraminidase activity impacts the extent of HPIV3-mediated fusion by releasing HN from contact with receptor. Any particular HN′s competence to promote F-mediated fusion depends on the balance between its inherent F-triggering efficacy and its receptor-attachment regulatory functions (binding and receptor cleavage).
Gastrointestinal Problems in Children with Autism, Developmental Delays or Typical Development.

To compare gastrointestinal (GI) problems among children with: (1) autism spectrum disorder (ASD), (2) developmental delay (DD) and (3) typical development (TD), GI symptom frequencies were obtained for 960 children from the CHildhood Autism Risks from Genetics and Environment (CHARGE) study. We also examined scores on five Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC) subscales comparing ASD children with high versus low frequency GI symptoms. Compared to TD children, those with ASD [aOR 7.92 (4.89–12.85)] and DD [aOR 4.55 (2.51–8.24)] were more likely to have at least one frequent GI symptom. Restricting to ASD children, those with frequent abdominal pain, gaseousness, diarrhea, constipation or pain on stooling scored worse on irritability, social withdrawal, stereotypy, and hyperactivity compared with children having no frequent GI symptoms. Frequent GI problems affect young children with ASD and DD more commonly than those with TD. Maladaptive behaviors correlate with GI problems, suggesting these comorbidities require attention.
Uptake of Spartina-derived humic nitrogen by estuarine phytoplankton in nonaxenic and axenic culture

Humic substances are a collection of colored organic acids characterized by high molecular weight and low nitrogen (N) content that are thought to be biologically recalcitrant. We examined a suite of nonaxenic estuarine phytoplankton isolates to determine their ability to take up 15N-labeled humic substances formed in the laboratory and supplied as the sole N source. All 17 estuarine and coastal strains took up the added humic N, but the one polar isolate did not. Two of the coastal isolates (Heterosigma akashiwo and Fibrocapsa japonica) could take up the humic N in nonaxenic culture but not in axenic culture, suggesting that bacterial remineralization played a role in making humic N accessible to these species. The ability of nonaxenic phytoplankton isolates to use humics of different ages (1 week to 1 yr old) was tested using three strains capable of taking up humic N at high rates. Younger, fresher humics were taken up by the phytoplankton strains at higher rates than older, more fulvic-like compounds, and at rates higher than inorganic N uptake run in parallel. Time-course results indicate that while uptake of the inorganic N forms was sustained, high rates of humic N uptake declined after the first few hours of incubation. Additional humic substances were labeled with both 15N and 13C, and the relative incorporation of N versus carbon (C) was used to infer potential uptake mechanisms. None of the isolates took up humic C, suggesting that uptake of the humic N followed breakdown of the humic molecule by bacteria or via extracellular enzyme cleavage of humic N. Regardless of the mode of uptake, the observation that humic N can be rapidly used by phytoplankton suggests that the importance of humic N as a source of phytoplankton N nutrition should be reevaluated.
Polyacrylamide as an organic nitrogen source for soil microorganisms with potential effects on inorganic soil nitrogen in agricultural soil

Abstract Linear polyacrylamide (PAM) is gaining considerable acceptance as an effective anti-erosion additive in irrigation water. The potential effects of repeated PAM application on soil microbial ecology and the potential for biotransformation of this polymer in soils are not completely known. Untreated and PAM-treated soils (coarse-silty, mixed, mesic Durixerollic Calciorthids) were collected from agricultural fields near Kimberly, ID. Soils were analyzed to determine the effects of PAM treatment on bacterial counts and inorganic N concentrations and the potential for PAM biotransformation. Culturable heterotrophic bacterial numbers were significantly elevated in PAM-treated soil for the plot planted to potatoes; this effect was not observed in the plot planted to dry pink beans. Total bacterial numbers, determined by AODC, were not altered by PAM treatment in any of the soils sampled. Polyacrylamide-treated soil planted to potatoes contained significantly higher concentrations of NO 3 − and NH 3 (36.7±2.20 and 1.30±0.3 mg kg −1 , respectively) than did untreated soil (10.7±2.30 and 0.50±0.02 mg kg −1 , respectively). For bean field soil there was no difference between treated and untreated soil inorganic N concentrations. Enrichment cultures generated from PAM-treated and untreated soils utilized PAM as sole N source, but not as sole C source. While the monomeric constituents of PAM, acrylamide and acrylic acid, both supported bacterial growth as sole C source, the PAM polymer did not. Enrichment cultures that used PAM for N exhibited amidase activity specific for PAM as well as smaller aliphatic amides. Utilization of PAM for N, but not for C, indicates that ultimately PAM may be converted into long chain polyacrylate, which may be further degraded by physical and biological mechanisms or be incorporated into organic matter.
The assessment and management of adults with status asthmaticus

Despite advancing knowledge of the pathophysiology and treatment of asthma, asthma morbidity and mortality are on the rise. To help avert this trend, clinicians and patients must focus their attention on the early identification and treatment of asthma exacerbations. As in the words of Dr. Thomas Petty: " ... the best treatment of status asthmaticus is to treat it three days before it occurs." (7) Still, there will be asthmatics with life-threatening attacks that require careful assessment and aggressive management. Inhaled beta-agonists, systemic corticosteroids, and oxygen remain the drugs of choice in SA. Anticholinergics play a lesser role in the treatment of acute asthma, and debate continues regarding the efficacy of theophylline in this setting. Available data do not support the routine use of magnesium sulfate or antibiotics in patients with SA. Patients failing drug therapy should be considered early for intubation and mechanical ventilation. A strategy of mechanical ventilation that prolongs TE by limiting VE and decreasing inspiratory time, and that tolerates hypercapnia, avoids excessive lung hyperinflation and barotrauma and should improve the outcome of these most critically ill asthmatics. Intubated and mechanically ventilated patients should be aggressively sedated. Paralytic agents should be used only if adequate control of the cardiopulmonary status cannot be achieved by sedation alone. Minimizing the use of paralytic agents may decrease risk of myopathy and other adverse consequences of muscle paralysis. Finally, after successful treatment of a life-threatening episode of asthma, the treatment team should address prevention of future episodes of SA prior to discharge.
Edible Coatings for Fresh-Cut Fruits

The production of fresh-cut fruits is increasingly becoming an important task as consumers are more aware of the importance of healthy eating habits, and have less time for food preparation. A fresh-cut fruit is a fruit that has been physically altered from its original state (trimmed, peeled, washed and/or cut), but remains in a fresh state. Unfortunately since fruits have living tissue, they undergo enzymatic browning, texture decay, microbial contamination, and undesirable volatile production, highly reducing their shelf life if they are in any way wounded. Edible coatings can be used to help in the preservation of minimally processed fruits, providing a partial barrier to moisture, oxygen and carbon dioxide, improving mechanical handling properties, carrying additives, avoiding volatiles loss, and even contributing to the production of aroma volatiles.
Lycopene, Tomato Products, and Prostate Cancer Incidence: A Review and Reassessment in the PSA Screening Era

Lycopene has been proposed to protect against prostate cancer through various properties including decreased lipid oxidation, inhibition of cancer cell proliferation, and most notably potent antioxidant properties. Epidemiologic studies on the association between lycopene and prostate cancer incidence have yielded mixed results. Detection of an association has been complicated by unique epidemiologic considerations including the measurement of lycopene and its major source in the diet, tomato products, and assessment of prostate cancer incidence and progression. Understanding this association has been further challenging in the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening era. PSA screening has increased the detection of prostate cancer, including a variety of relatively indolent cancers. This paper examines the lycopene and prostate cancer association in light of epidemiologic methodologic issues with particular emphasis on the effect of PSA screening on this association.
Collateral Ligament Reconstruction of the Unstable Metatarsophalangeal Joint: An in Vitro Study:

Anatomic reconstruction of the collateral ligaments of the lesser metatarsophalangeal joints is proposed for certain cases of metatarsophalangeal instability. The suggested reconstruction involves replication of the attachments of the collateral ligaments. As an example of such a reconstruction, the interosseous tendon was used in this study as a graft for anatomic replacement of the collateral ligaments. The tendon was left attached distally where its attachments include the volar plate and proximal phalanx, thereby resembling the distal attachment of the collateral ligament. The proximal portion of the tendon was inserted into the metatarsal head, replicating the attachment of the collateral ligament at that location. Preliminary testing of such a reconstruction shows that it can re-establish stability caused by loss of the collateral ligaments. Such a procedure may be applicable in select cases of crossover toe deformity and straight vertical instability.
Characteristics of U.S. Mental Health Facilities That Offer Suicide Prevention Services.

Objective:This study characterized mental health facilities that offer suicide prevention services or outcome follow-up after discharge.Methods:The study analyzed data from 8,459 U.S. mental health...
Limb skeleton and locomotor adaptations of apidium phiomense, an Oligocene anthropoid from Egypt

Apidium phiomense is the most common primate from the early Oligocene deposits of Fayum, Egypt. It is known from hundreds of dental remains and dozens of skeletal remains, including numerous representatives of the long bones of the forelimb and hindlimb. Apidium phiomense was a small (1,600 g) arboreal quadruped. The forelimb bones of this species show features characteristic of arboreal quadrupeds and lack characteristic features found in the forelimb bones of vertial clingers, terrestrial quadrupeds, or suspensory species. The pelvis and hindlimb bones show numerous adaptations for leaping from a quadrupedal position. In general, Apidium lacks characteristic features of either cercopithecoid monkeys or hominoid apes. Overall, the skeleton shows greatest similarities to the same elements of small platyrrhines such as Saimiri and is also very similar to the hypothetical morphotype for the ancestral platyrrhine. The skeleton of Apidium phiomense is the most primitive anthropoid postcranial skeleton known. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Attachment Theory: Seven Unresolved Issues and Questions for Future Research

Although Bowlby (1968) assumed that attachment theory was relevant to relationships from birth to old age, early studies have focused on mothers and infants. We briefly describe extensions of attachment research across the life span and relationships. We then discuss 7 unresolved issues and questions: Is attachment best measured as categories or continua? Do individuals hold unitary or multiple models of attachment? Does early attachment to a caregiver serve as a template for attachments throughout life? Does attachment change developmentally over time? Is attachment culture specific or universal? How can a family systems perspective increase understanding of cross-generational adaptation? Is attachment theory helpful to parents and therapists? Although suggesting the necessity for revisions of attachment theory, we acknowledge its powerful contributions to the study of human relationships.
Power minimization with quality-of-information outages

In this paper, we consider Quality-of-Information (QoI) aware transmission policies for a dynamic environment. In particular, we focus on the time-varying nature of the observation quality of the environment in practical networks which leads to uncertainty in satisfying QoI requirements specified by end users. The goal of this paper is to meet QoI requests from end users with minimum resources. Specifically, power is allocated dynamically depending on observation accuracies and QoI requirements. We formulate a dynamic scheme for scheduling with the objective of minimizing the energy consumption at the network while satisfying constraints on outage probability for QoI. Lyapunov stability arguments are used to define a policy based on the instantaneous observation qualities and QoI requirement satisfaction levels. Numerical results demonstrate that significant improvements in delivered QoI are realized with identical power expenditure using our QoI-aware resource allocation algorithm compared with traditional maximum-rate schedulers.
3D volumetric multispectral estimates of reflector curvature and rotation

One of the most accepted geologic models is the relation between reflector curvature and the presence of open and closed fractures. Such fractures, as well as other small discontinuities, are relatively small and below the imaging rangeofconventionalseismicdata.Dependingonthetectonic regime, structural geologists link open fractures to either Gaussian curvature or to curvature in the dip or strike directions. Reflector curvature is fractal in nature, with different tectonic and lithologic effects being illuminated at the 50-m and1000-m scales.Untilnow,suchcurvatureestimateshave been limited to the analysis of picked horizons. We have developed what we feel to be the first volumetric spectral estimates of reflector curvature. We find that the most positive and negative curvatures are the most valuable in the conventional mapping of lineations — including faults, folds, and flexures.Curvatureismathematicallyindependentof,andinterpretatively complementary to, the well-established coherence geometric attribute. We find the long spectral wavelengthcurvatureestimatestobeofparticularvalueinextracting subtle, broad features in the seismic data such as folds, flexures, collapse features, fault drags, and under- and overmigrated fault terminations. We illustrate the value of these spectral curvature estimates and compare them to other attributes through application to two land data sets — a salt domefromtheonshoreLouisianaGulfCoastandafractured/ karsteddatavolumefromFortWorthbasinofNorthTexas.
The autonomic and hemodynamic effects of oral theophylline in patients with vasodepressor syncope.

Adenosine appears to be an important mediator of hypotension and bradycardia in certain subsets of patients with vasodepressor syncope. Adenosine receptor blockade with methylxanthines may hypothetically prevent the vasodepressor spell. We studied the chronotropic, hemodynamic, and cardiac autonomic responses to head-up tilt in patients (mean age 40.7 ±18.1 years) with vasodepressor syncope before and after treatment with oral theophylline. At baseline, hypotension and syncope or near syncope were induced at 11.7±2.3 minutes of 60° head-up tilt in all patients. Cardiac vagal and sympathetic tone showed biphasic and directionally opposite changes during tilt. Repeat tilt during oral theophylline therapy (6-12 mg/kg/day for 14±6 days) did not provoke symptomatic hypotension in 82% of patients, During 10.7±6.1 months of follow-up, seven patients had no recurrence of vasodepressor syncope and seven patients discontinued theophylline because of adverse reactions. Low-dose theophylline prevents tilt-induced vasodepressor syncope and may prevent spontaneous vasodepressor syncope in selected patients who can tolerate theophylline. ( Arch Intern Med . 1991;151:2425-2429)
Coupled multi‐scale cohesive modeling of failure in heterogeneous adhesives

A multi-scale cohesive numerical framework is proposed to simulate the failure of heterogeneous adhesively bonded systems. This multi-scale scheme is based on Hill's variational principle of energy equivalence between the higher and lower level scales. It provides an easy way to obtain accurate homogenized macroscopic properties while capturing the physics of failure processes at the micro-scale in sufficient detail. We use an isotropic rate-dependent damage model to mimic the failure response of the constituents of heterogeneous adhesives. The finite element method is used to solve the equilibrium equation at each scale. A nested iterative scheme inspired by the return mapping algorithm used in computational inelasticity is implemented. We propose a computationally attractive technique to couple the macro- and micro-scales for rate-dependent constitutive laws. We introduce an adhesive patch test to study the numerical performance, including spatial and temporal convergence of the multi-scale scheme. We compare the solution of the multi-scale cohesive scheme with a direct numerical simulation. Finally, we solve mode I and mode II fracture problems to demonstrate failure at the macro-scale.
Estimated and forecasted trends in domain specific time-use and energy expenditure among adults in Russia.

Background: Examination of historical trends and projections in estimated energy expenditure in Russia is important given the country’s economic downturns and growth. Methods: Nationally representative data from the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey (RLMS) from 1995–2011 was used to determine the metabolic equivalents of task (MET)-hours per week from occupational, domestic, travel, and active leisure physical activity (PA) domains, as well as sedentary leisure time (hours per week) among adults 18–60 years. Additionally, we projected what these values would be like in 2020 and 2030 if observed trends continue. Results: Among male adults, the largest contributor to total PA was occupational PA followed by travel PA. In contrast, domestic PA followed by occupational PA contributed most to total PA among female adults. Total PA was 282.9 MET-hours per week in 1995 and declined to 231.7 in 2011. Total PA is projected to decrease to 216.5 MET-hours per week in 2020 and to 193.0 MET-hours per week in 2030. The greatest relative declines are occurring in travel PA. Female adults are also exhibiting significant declines in domestic PA. Changes in occupational and active leisure PA are less distinct.
Local fuel concentration, ignition and combustion in a stratified charge spark combustion in a stratified charge spark ignited direct injection engine: Spectroscopic, imaging and pressure-based measurements

AbstractA recently developed spark emission spec-troscopy technique has been used to measure the effects of fuel injection timing, spark timing and intake swirl level on the individual-cycle fuel concentration at the spark gap in a wall-guided spark ignited direct injection (SIDI) engine. The fuel-concentration measurements were made simultaneously with measurements of individual-cycle spark discharge energy and cylinder pressure. Endoscopic imaging of the fuel spray and high-speed imaging of combustion (both broadband and spectrally resolved) augment these quantitative data. For optimum engine operation, the fuel-air equivalence ratio at the spark gap just after spark breakdown is rich on average (〈φ〉 ≈1.4–1.5) and varies widely from cycle to cycle (∼25 per cent). The evolution with crank angle of the mean equivalence ratio and its cycle-to-cycle fluctuations are correlated with the cylinder pressure, heat release and imaging data to provide insights into fuel transport and mixture preparation that are i...