cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Comparing the results of five lifting analysis tools.

Abstract The objective of this study was to compare the results of the NIOSH, ACGIH TLV, Snook , 3DSSPP and WA L&I lifting assessment instruments when applied to a uniform task (lifting and lowering milk cases with capacities of 15 and 23 l). To enable comparisons between the various lifting assessment instruments, the outputs of each method were converted to an exposure index similar to the NIOSH Lifting Index. All instruments showed higher exposures associated with lifting the 23 l cases versus the 15 l cases . The NIOSH , ACGIH TLV and Snook methods were similar in their results with respect to the pattern of exposure over various height levels and the differences in exposures associated with lifting 15 and 23 l cases. However, the WA L&I and 3DSSPP predicted substantially lower exposures. The reasons for instrument differences are presented so that practitioners can better select the methods they need and interpret the results appropriately.
Synthesis of new ferecrystals (SnSe) y (TSe 2 ) where T = V and Ta

(SnSe) 1.09 (VeSe 2 ) and (SnSe) 1.16 (TaSe 2 ) ferecrystals were synthesized using the modulated elemental reactant (MER) technique. The materials composition, in-plane crystalline structure, and layering characteristics were characterized through electron microprobe, x-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscope analysis.
Solution of a certain class of nonlinear two-point boundary value problems☆

The methods of quasilinearization and invariant imbedding are combined to form an effective numerical algorithm for solution of the two-point boundary value problem du/dz = f(u, v, z), −dv/dz = g(u, v, z), u(0) = a, v(x) = y, 0 ⩽ z ⩽ x. The method is applied to several examples and seems to be fast, accurate, and simple to use. It can be generalized and extended in various ways.
The influence of 3d transition metal substitution on the magnetic properties of MnGaGe

Abstract A study has been made of the effect of 3 d transition element substitution on the magnetic moment and Curie temperature of MnGaGe. Substitution of 3 d elements with atomic number less than Mn (i.e. Ti, V, or Cr) cause relatively small changes in magnetic properties, whereas substitution of Fe, Co, Ni and Cu cause a large reduction in moment and Curie temperature, e.g. substitution of 5 at.% Fe for Mn causes the moment to decrease by 30 per cent. The moment and ferromagnetism of MnGaGe are described in terms of a band model involving both strongly correlated and intinerant 3 d electrons. The effect of 3 d element substitution may be qualitatively understood in terms of this model.
Lipase Catalyzed Synthesis and Thermal Properties of Poly(dimethylsiloxane)–Poly(ethylene glycol) Amphiphilic Block Copolymers

Resin immobilized lipase B from Candida antarctica (CALB) was used to catalyze the condensation polymerization of two difuctional siloxane and poly(ethylene glycol) systems. In the first system, 1,3-bis(3-carboxypropyl)tetramethyldisiloxane was reacted with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG having a number-average molecular weight, Mn = 400, 1000 and 3400 g mol−1, respectively). In the second system, α,ω-(dihydroxy alkyl) terminated poly(dimethylsiloxane) (HAT-PDMS, Mn = 2500 g mol−1) was reacted with α,ω-(diacid) terminated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG, Mn = 600 g mol−1). All the reactions were carried out in the bulk (without use of solvent) at 80 °C and under reduced pressure (500 mmHg vacuum gauge). The progress of the polyesterification reactions was monitored by analyzing the samples collected at various time intervals using FTIR and GPC. The thermal properties of the copolymers were characterized by DSC and TGA. In particular, the effect of the chain length of the PEG block on the molar mass build up and on the thermal stability of the copolymers was also studied. The thermal stability of the enzymatically synthesized copolymers was found to increase with increased dimethylsiloxane content in the copolymers.
The effect of dental deficiency on mastication and food preference.

Abstract Fifty subjects with varying degrees of dental deficiency were subjected to tests for masticatory performance, maximum force on all molars and premolars, food platform area, and were questioned as to food preferences. Complete dental examinations were made. Those persons who expressed a preference for tougher foods were found to have a greater maximum biting force than those preferring soft foods. The correlation coefficient between the two tests was 0.50 and was found to be statistically significant. The area for mastication rather than force that could be exerted was important in determining the deficiency in masticatory performance. The degree of deficiency was dependent upon the area lost rather than upon the type or number of teeth which were missing. Bone loss tended to reduce the maximum force which could be exerted. Other findings suggest that age and sex will have to be controlled in any further survey but do not indicate that fillings or extractions will affect the maximum force. Pain during mastication appears most important in determining which side will be favored in mastication. If pain is absent and there is a large difference in performance of the two half dentitions, persons usually will prefer the side on which mastication is best. When the two half dentitions are about equal in performance, the majority of persons prefer the right side. The side with greatest performance is usually the side with largest area, because these measurements are well correlated. The maximum force is apparently not a factor that influences the selection of side for mastication.
A Reexamination of the Core Helium Flash

The possibility of a dynamical core helium flash has been studied with two-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations using three separate turbulence models for the treatment of time-dependent convection. Two of these are simple algebraic eddy viscosity models. The third model involves a separate equation for the turbulent kinetic energy density, which then feeds into an expression for the eddy viscosity. One of the simple eddy viscosity models is that used by Cole & Deupree in studies of the core helium flash about fifteen years ago. I find that this model can be made to produce a more quiescent flash than Cole & Deupree found by substantially reducing the eddy viscosity from their value. When this is done, all three turbulence models produce the same primary result--the flash does not produce a hydrody-namic event. However, the traditional assumption of adiabatic convection through the flash evolution is found in all cases to be inadequate, primarily through the extensive heating of the region interior to the convective region.
Anesthetic technique for safe laser use in surgery.

The use of lasers has simplified, shortened, and made less traumatic many surgical procedures. It has also increased the range of conditions amenable to treatment in all of the surgical specialties. There are, however, potentially serious hazards associated with the surgical use of lasers. The most serious hazards are explosions and fire, particularly during surgery on the airway, where flammable material, i.e., the endotracheal tube, high oxygen concentrations, and the laser, which is a high energy ignition source, are in close proximity. This report deals with techniques of anesthesia delivery that minimize the risks to the patient and operating room environment consequent on laser use in the airway. Laser use elsewhere in or on the body is associated with no greater danger than the use of electrocautery and requires no special anesthetic adaptation.
μ-Opioid receptor agonist injections into the presumed pre-Bötzinger complex and the surrounding region of awake goats do not alter eupneic breathing

Opioids are clinically important in the alleviation of pain. An undesirable side effect of opioids is depression of breathing. Data from isolated preparations suggest this effect is due to attenuat...
Heat Stress Degranulation of the Basophil Leucocyte in Man

LONG an obscure but distinctive type of leucocyte, the basophil has in recent years been shown to play an active part in the immediate-type hypersensitivity reaction1,2. Evidence is accumulating that this cell releases its granules containing histamine and heparin in the presence of an antigen and a reactive antibody. These morphological changes of degranulation, however, are not specific nor limited to the allergic state. Certain drugs may induce similar degranulation in the complete absence of any sensitivity3. The investigation reported here extends our view of the role of this cell, since it shows that, in man, acute heat stress also induces the morphological changes of degranulation in the circulating basophil.
Inftuence of Temperature and Humidity on the Immature Stages of Hemerobius pacificus

The rate of development and the survival of Hemerobius pacific us Banks were determined over the temperature range of the species. The optimum temperature for continuous rearing is 18.3°C. The lower thermal threshold is extremely low (O.4°C for eggs, 4.1°C for larvae, 0.6°C for pupae), while the upper thermal threshold is around 27°C. Under fluctuating temperatures the maximum amount of heat tolerated above this threshold is ca. 1.3° d per day, with the pupae being the most sensitive stage. Extreme humidities are responsible for additional mortality but do not influence the developmental times of the immature stages. The impact of different humidities is greatest under extreme temperature conditions, eggs surviving best in the upper humidity range, the larvae in the lower one, and pupae at 65% RH. Among predators and parasites of aphids, Hemerobius pacificus has the lowest known temperature threshold, and it can develop at lower temperatures than its aphid prey.
Singulation for imaging ring arrays of capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers

Singulation of MEMS is a critical step in the transition from wafer-level to die-level devices. As is the case for capacitive micromachined ultrasound transducer (CMUT) ring arrays, an ideal singulation must protect the fragile membranes from the processing environment while maintaining a ring array geometry. The singulation process presented in this paper involves bonding a trench-patterned CMUT wafer onto a support wafer, deep reactive ion etching (DRIE) of the trenches, separating the CMUT wafer from the support wafer and de-tethering the CMUT device from the CMUT wafer. The CMUT arrays fabricated and singulated in this process were ring-shaped arrays, with inner and outer diameters of 5 mm and 10 mm, respectively. The fabricated CMUT ring arrays demonstrate the ability of this method to successfully and safely singulate the ring arrays and is applicable to any arbitrary 2D shaped MEMS device with uspended microstructures, taking advantage of the inherent planar attributes of DRIE.
α-1-Antichymotrypsin interaction with Aβ (1–40) inhibits fibril formation but does not affect the peptide toxicity

Abstract Recent studies have shown that senile plaque-associated or glial-derived proteins can prevent fibril formation of β-amyloid peptide (Aβ), while increasing the neurotoxicity of the latter (in the case of glutamine synthetase, apolipoprotein J or thrombin). α-1-Antichymotrypsin (ACT) is a glial-derived protein associated with senile plaques in the Alzheimer's brain. In this report we show that ACT, a minor protein component of β-amyloid deposits, is able to inhibit Aβ (1–40) aggregation into fibrils, but unable to modulate the toxicity of Aβ (1–40) in primary rat hippocampal cell cultures. These results are discussed in terms of the potential role of glial-derived proteins on Aβ aggregation and neurotoxicity.
Aortic intramural hematoma: Current diagnostic and therapeutic recommendations

Aortic intramural hematoma (IMH) is an acute, potentially lethal disorder that is similar to but pathologically distinct from acute aortic dissection. Although hemorrhage into the aortic media occurs in both disorders, an intimal tear with resultant false lumen is not present in IMH. Instead, hemorrhage occurs within the aortic wall either due to rupture of the vasa vasorum or, less commonly, because of an atherosclerotic penetrating aortic ulcer. The most common risk factors associated with IMH are hypertension, atherosclerosis, and advanced age. IMH is life-threatening because the hematoma may extend along or rupture through the aorta, leading to hemothorax, cardiac tamponade, stroke, mesenteric ischemia, or renal insufficiency. Optimal treatment is still somewhat controversial; however, there is no question that hypertension must be treated effectively and immediately. This is usually best accomplished by intravenous infusion of beta-blocking agents, with or without the addition of sodium nitroprusside. Recent studies support surgical treatment (ie, aortic root replacement) for IMH involving the ascending aorta, although some subsets of this population may be at lower risk and may benefit from medical therapy alone. In patients with IMH involving only the descending aorta, medical therapy alone is recommended (unless impending rupture, aortic aneurysm, or end-organ ischemia occurs). Patients who survive the acute event require intensive treatment of hypertension and frequent follow-up examinations. Because this population (especially the subset with penetrating aortic ulceration) is at high risk for aortic aneurysm and rupture, serial imaging studies of the aorta are essential.
Pharmacologic approaches to sedation, pain relief and neuromuscular blockade in the intensive care unit. Part I. Sedation.

Providing a comfortable environment for patients in the critical care unit may require pharacotherapy of anxiety, delirium and pain. The choice of sedative agents is often tradition-based, but literature supports some specific application. This overview discussed the use of benzodiazepines, propofol, halopericol, barbiturates, etomidate, dexmedetomidine and ketamine in critically ill patients, as well as methods for evaluating level of sedation and weaning patients from prolonged sedative exposure.
How to bet on the location of the termination shock; A summary overview of the symposium

This paper loosely summarizes the Symposium in the context of estimating the distance to the solar wind termination shock. Thus the major constituents of the heliosphere are first reviewed including the solar wind and its shocks, magnetic structure and stream structure, the interstellar neutral gas and its daughters, the interstellar pickup ions and the cosmic ray anomalous component, and the galactic cosmic rays. Then a direct calculation of the distance to the termination shock is presented, which yields 80 AU but with large error bars. Finally information carried by messengers from the termination shock and heliosheath (the kHz radio bursts observed by Voyager, galactic cosmic rays, the cosmic ray anomalous component, and the interstellar neutral gas and backscattered photons) is assessed and interpreted. The paper concludes that 80 AU is the best bet.
The Benefits of Multilingualism

Multilingualism—the ability to understand and speak several languages—is exceptional in the United States but common elsewhere, especially in small-scale traditional societies. For instance, once while I was camped with some New Guinea Highlanders conversing simultaneously in several local languages, I asked each man to name each language in which he could converse. It turned out that everyone present spoke at least 5 languages, and the champion was a man who spoke 15. What are the cognitive effects of such multilingualism? Recent studies ( 1 – 5 ) show that children raised bilingually develop a specific type of cognitive benefit during infancy, and that bilingualism offers some protection against symptoms of Alzheimer's dementia in old people.
Homeland as social construct: Territorialization among Kazakhstan's Germans and Koreans

Among the most pressing tasks confronting leaders of the Central Asian states is the reconciliation of their desire to expedite legitimation of rule by reifying titular cultural paradigms with the need to construct inclusive civic modes of national self-conception. Kazakhstan is perhaps the best example from the region wherein the construction of a multicultural, inclusive homeland concept is essential to the future of the state. The poignancy of Kazakhstan's situation relates to the fact that its population consists of nearly equal numbers of titular and non-titular peoples, often living compactly in different regions of the state. Large-scale migration of predominately European ethnic minorities from Kazakhstan's territory since the late Soviet period has coupled with high birth rates among ethnic Kazakhs and the “return migration” of diasporic Kazakhs to elevate the titular community to a 53.4% majority (from 40.1 in 1989).
An evaluation of Gay's solution in the treatment of asthma.

Abstract Forty-three patients with severe asthma were treated with Gay's solution (Fowler's solution which contains potassium arsenite, tincture of digitalis, sodium phenobarbital, and potassium iodide). Eight of 25 patients in a pilot uncontrolled study and 13 out of 18 patients on arsenic in a double-blind study were improved. The results of the double blind study were statistically significant at a p
Organized recall: Individual functions

Individual Ss’ recall of categorized lists is shown to vary systematically with number of categories used, adding about four words per category. The recall performance of an individual S can be manipulated and reliable individual Category-Recall functions were obtained. The study supports previous theoretical work on long-term memory and suggests further approaches to the study of individual differences in recall.
Teaching Internal Medicine Residents in the New Era: Inpatient Attending with Duty-Hour Regulations

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the impact of resident duty-hour regulations on the inpatient teaching experience.
A comparison of freshman and senior engineering design processes

Abstract In this paper we report the results of an in-depth study of engineering student approaches to an open-ended design problem. To do this, verbal protocols were collected from 26 freshman (first year) and 24 senior (fourth year) engineering students as they designed a playground for a fictitious neighborhood. We analysed these protocols to document and compare the student design processes. The results show that the seniors produced higher quality designs. In addition, compared to the freshmen, the seniors gathered more information, considered more alternative solutions, transitioned more frequently between design steps and progressed further into the final steps of the design process.
RasGRP4 regulates the expression of prostaglandin D2 in human and rat mast cell lines.

Mast cells (MCs) are a major source of prostaglandin (PG) D2 in connective tissues, and the expression of this eicosanoid has been linked to asthma and other inflammatory disorders. While it is known that the surface receptor c-kit controls PGD2 expression in MCs by regulating the levels of a synthase that converts PGH2 to PGD2, the intracellular signaling proteins that act downstream of c-kit in this cyclooxygenase pathway have not been identified. We recently cloned a new cation-dependent, guanine nucleotide exchange factor/phorbol ester receptor (designated RasGRP4) that is required for the efficient expression of granule proteases in the human MC line HMC-1. GeneChip analysis of ∼12,600 transcripts in RasGRP4− and RasGRP4+ HMC-1 cells revealed a >100-fold difference in the levels of hematopoietic PGD2 synthase mRNA. No other transcript in the eicosanoid pathway was influenced by RasGRP4 in a comparable manner. As assessed by SDS-PAGE immunoblot analysis, RasGRP4+ HMC-1 cells contained substantial amounts of PGD2 synthase protein. RasGRP4+ MCs also produced ∼15-fold more PGD2 than did RasGRP4− MCs when both cell populations were activated by calcium ionophore. The induced transcript is therefore translated, and substantial amounts of functional PGD2 synthase accumulate in RasGRP4+ MCs. In support of the conclusion that RasGRP4 controls PGD2expression in MCs, inhibition of RasGRP4 expression in the rat MC line RBL-2H3 using a siRNA approach resulted in low levels of PGD2 synthase protein.
Circular dichroism and optical rotatory dispersion of sesquiterpene lactones

Abstract The CD curves of a large number of sesquiterpene lactones together with a limited number of ORD curves have been measured. A simple correlation between the sign of the Cotton effect (CE) and the stereochemistry of the α-methylene-γ-lactone chromophore can be deduced from the resulting data. In addition the CE of several ketones (both saturated and unsaturated) and pyrazolines are reported.
Oscillator strengths and transition probabilities from the Breit–Pauli R-matrix method: Ne IV

Abstract The atomic parameters–oscillator strengths, line strengths, radiative decay rates ( A ), and lifetimes–for fine structure transitions of electric dipole (E1) type for the astrophysically abundant ion Ne IV are presented. The results include 868 fine structure levels with n ≤ 10, l ≤ 9, and 1/2 ≤ J ≤ 19/2 of even and odd parities, and the corresponding 83,767 E1 transitions. The calculations were carried out using the relativistic Breit–Pauli R-matrix method in the close coupling approximation. The transitions have been identified spectroscopically using an algorithm based on quantum defect analysis and other criteria. The calculated energies agree with the 103 observed and identified energies to within 3% or better for most of the levels. Some larger differences are also noted. The A -values show good to fair agreement with the very limited number of available transitions in the table compiled by NIST, but show very good agreement with the latest published multi-configuration Hartree–Fock calculations. The present transitions should be useful for diagnostics as well as for precise and complete spectral modeling in the soft X-ray to infra-red regions of astrophysical and laboratory plasmas.
The treatment of nasal fractures: a changing paradigm.

Objectives To compare the efficacy of closed vs open treatment of nasal fractures, and to suggest an algorithm for nasal fracture management that includes closed and open techniques. Methods Retrospective study of 86 patients with nasal fractures who received either closed treatment (41 patients) or open treatment (45 patients) between January 1, 1997, and December 30, 2007. Fractures were classified as 1 of 5 types. Revision rates were calculated for each group. Preoperative and postoperative photographs were rated, if available, and patients were interviewed about aesthetic, functional, and quality of life issues related to surgical treatment. Results The revision rate for all fractures was 6%. The revision rate for closed vs open treatment was 2% vs 9%, respectively. Many closed treatment cases were classified as type II fractures, whereas most open treatment cases were classified as type IV fractures. There was no statistical difference in revision rate, patient satisfaction, or surgeon photographic evaluation scores between the closed and open treatment groups when fractures were treated in the recommended fashion. Conclusions Patients who undergo open or closed treatment have similar outcomes if the surgical approach is well matched to the individual fracture. Our treatment algorithm provided consistent aesthetic and functional results while minimizing the need for revision procedures.
Peripheral Vasoconstriction Associated with Hyperpotassemia

Hyperpotassemia was induced in hamsters by intravenous infusions of potassium salts. The caliber of blood vessels (10 to 100µ in diameter) in the cheek pouch was measured and comparisons were made when serum potassium concentration was maintained at 9.0 (σ= ± 1.64 mEq./L.) for 10 to 14 minutes and again at 12.3 (σ= ± 1.14 mEq./L.) for 10 to 14 minutes. In unoperated controls, a significant degree of vasoconstriction occurred in all arterial vessels at both levels of hyperpotassemia. Venular constriction was found at the higher potassium concentrations. Sympathetic denervation of the blood vessels had no effect on the vasoconstrictor response. Adrenalectomy prevented vasoconstriction at a potassium level of 9.0 mEq./L., but vasoconstriction was still evident in small arterioles at higher potassium levels. Sympathetic denervation of blood vessels in adrenalectomized animals, or treatment of intact animals with Dibenzylene, prevented vasoconstriction produced by hyperpotassemia. These data indicate that peripheral vasocontriction associated with hyperpotassemia is an indirect effect of the potassium ion.
Stochastic multifractality and universal scaling distributions

A hierarchical random process can be characterized by a scaling probability distribution describing the stochastic multiplicative process occurring at each generation. Replica averages of the associated random partition functions yield multifractal spectra \ensuremath{\tau}(q,n) dependent on the number of members n in the replica average chosen, with the exponents generated by quenched (n=0) and annealed (n=1) averaging being but two points in this continuous spectrum. As a consequence the \ensuremath{\alpha} versus f(\ensuremath{\alpha}) description has to be generalized for stochastic multifractals. Robust properties of these multifractal spectra, including the position and singularities of generalized dimensions at phase transitions, spectral inequalities and asymptotics, and the scaling behavior of minimal probabilities, are found to depend on universal properties of the scaling probability distribution, specifically on the form of singularities in the distribution, the strength of correlations between measure and length scale during fragmentation, and whether or not the process is conservative. We apply our approach to both the mass and growth scaling probability distributions for diffusion-limited aggregation and show that their construction is Markovian, but while the mass measure is log normal, the singularities in the growth measure do not obey the central limit theorem.
Fast exploration of bus-based on-chip communication architectures

As a result of improvements in process technology, more and more components are being integrated into a single System-on-Chip (SoC) design. Communication between these components is increasingly dominating critical system paths and frequently becomes the source of performance bottlenecks. It therefore becomes extremely important for designers to explore the communication space early in the design flow. Traditionally, pin-accurate Bus Cycle Accurate (PA-BCA) models were used for exploring the communication space. To speed up simulation, transaction based Bus Cycle Accurate (T-BCA) models have been proposed, which borrow concepts found in the Transaction Level Modeling (TLM) domain. More recently, the Cycle Count Accurate at Transaction Boundaries (CCATB) modeling abstraction was introduced for fast communication space exploration. In this paper, we describe the mechanisms that produce the speedup in CCATB models and demonstrate the effectiveness of the CCATB exploration approach with the aid of a case study involving an AMBA 2.0 based SoC subsystem used in the multimedia application domain. We also analyze how the achieved simulation speedup scales with design complexity and show that SoC designs modeled at the CCATB level simulate 120% faster than PA-BCA and 67% faster than T-BCA models on average.
Selectivity enhancement of a metal-sensitive flame ionization detector for capillary gas chromatography

A novel modification of a hydrogen-atmosphere flamo ionization detector (HAFID) is presented which attenuates response to hydrocarbon compounds, significantly enhancing selectivity towards organometallic compounds by more than an order of magnitude. Chromatograms of an organometallic compound test mixture and regular leaded gasoline are presented to depict the specificity of the response.
Does sleep disturbance mediate the health impacts of post-traumatic stress disorder?

Two sets of independent variables (PTSD and sleep quality) were used in a series of stepped logistic regression analyses to examine the strength of their relative effects on self-reported health status. PTSD was assessed using the Mississippi Scale–Civilian Version (MS-CV), sleepand health-related items were excluded. Sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), excluding items assessing absolute sleep latency and duration of sleep. Two dependent measures of health status were physical functioning, assessed using the Physical Composite Score (PCS) of the SF-12, and somatic symptoms, assessed using the Somatization subscale of the Symptom Checklist-90-R (SCL-90). Three sets of potential confounding variables (demographics—specifically age and Hispanic ethnicity; alcohol abuse, and duty-related trauma history) were entered in the first step of each hierarchical logistic regression analysis. The relative changes in the proportion of variance explained by PTSD or sleep quality were explored.
Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of embryogenic cultures and plant regeneration in Vitis rotundifolia Michx. (muscadine grape).

A method to produce transgenic plants of Vitis rotundifolia was developed. Embryogenic cultures were initiated from leaves of in vitro grown shoot cultures and used as target tissues for Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation. A green fluorescent protein/neomycin phosphotransferase II (gfp/nptII) fusion gene that allowed for simultaneous selection of transgenic cells based on GFP fluorescence and kanamycin resistance was used to optimize parameters influencing genetic transformation. It was determined that both proembryonal masses (PEM) and mid- cotyledonary stage somatic embryos (SE) were suitable target tissues for co-cultivation with Agrobacterium as evi- denced by transient GFP expression. Kanamycin at 100 mg l -1 in the culture medium was effective in sup- pression of non-transformed tissue and permitting the growth and development of transgenic cells, compared to 50 or 75 mg l -1 , which permitted the proliferation of more non- transformed cells. Transgenic plants of ''Alachua'' and ''Carlos'' were recovered after secondary somatic embryo- genesis from primary SE explants co-cultivated with Agrobacterium. The presence and stable integration of transgenes in transgenic plants was confirmed by PCR and Southern blot hybridization. Transgenic plants exhibited uniform GFP expression in cells of all plant tissues and organs including leaves, stems, roots, inflorescences and the embryo and endosperm of developing berries.
Acquiescence and Recency Response-Order Effects in Interview Surveys

Split-ballot experiments for three sets of items measuring attitudes towards lawyers, anomia, and self-esteem were included in a telephone survey to test for both acquiescence and response-order effects. The experimental design also investigated whether these response effects would be reduced by giving respondents an explicit opportunity to say “don't know” (a filtered question form). Extensive evidence for both acquiescence and recency response-order effects was found. These response effects also often occurred for the same item. Thus the use of a forced-choice form to avoid acquiescence to agree-disagree items may often substitute one type of response effect (recency order effects) for another (agreeing-response bias). Furthermore, there was very little evidence that the use of a filtered-question form would reduce these response effects. In addition to these practical conclusions, the patterns of these response effects across the three different types of attitudes, as well as their relationships to edu...
Bone lead levels in adjudicated delinquents: A case control study

Background: Lead exposure shares many risk factors with delinquent behavior, and bone lead levels are related to self-reports of delinquent acts. No data exist as to whether lead exposure is higher in arrested delinquents. The goal of this study is to evaluate the association between lead exposure, as reflected in bone lead levels, and adjudicated delinquency. Methods: This is a case-control study of 194 youths aged 12–18, arrested and adjudicated as delinquent by the Juvenile Court of Allegheny County, PA and 146 nondelinquent controls from high schools in the city of Pittsburgh. Bone lead was measured by K-line X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy of tibia. Logistic regression was used to model the association between delinquent status and bone lead concentration. Covariates entered into the model were race, parent education and occupation, presence of two parental figures in the home, number of children in the home and neighborhood crime rate. Separate regression analyses were also conducted after stratification on race. Results: Cases had significantly higher mean concentrations of lead in their bones than controls (11.0±32.7 vs. 1.5±32.1 ppm). This was true for both Whites and African Americans. The unadjusted odds ratio for a lead level 25 vs. 25 ppm than controls (OR=4.0, 95% CL: 1.4–11.1). Conclusion: Elevated body lead burdens, measured by bone lead concentrations, are associated with elevated risk for adjudicated delinquency. D 2002 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.
Local Story: the Massie–Kahahawai case and the culture of history

Local Story is the most recent work on two infamous, interconnected criminal cases from the early 1930s, which demonstrated and maintained the overwhelming power of whites, or haoles, over non-whit...
Mixing of a two-phase fluid by cavity flow.

Interface stretching during mixing of a two-phase fluid in shear flow is investigated numerically by introducing a mesoscopic description of the fluid. The classical infinitely thin boundary of separation between the two phases is replaced by a transition region of small but finite width, across which the order parameter of the two-phase fluid changes continuously. We consider the case of a conserved scalar order parameter and a fluid velocity that satisfies a modified Navier-Stokes equation that includes an explicit coupling term to the order parameter. In the macroscopic limit of a very thin interface, this coupling term gives rise to capillary forces. We focus on the limit of low Reynolds number flow and compute the interface stretching as a function of time for a range of parameters of the fluid. At early times and small coupling, our calculation agrees with the classical case of a material line passively advected by the flow. At later times, the interface stretching is seen to reach a maximum as capillary forces and diffusive relaxation of the order parameter become dominant.
Mechanisms of Bioaccumulation in Aquatic Systems

The presence of persistent hydrophobic organic chemicals, e.g., polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and polychlorinated dibenzodioxins (PCDDs) in aquatic systems continues to be a matter of intense concern [International Joint Commission (IJC) 1993]. Although the levels of many of these contaminants have decreased as much as 10–100 times (Gilbertson 1993; Borgmann and Whittle 1992), adverse symptoms associated with exposure to these chemicals in wild animals have persisted (Tillitt et al. 1992). In addition, accumulation of these contaminants in aquatic food chains and the potential for biological magnification in top carnivores, including man, are perceived to be ongoing health threats to consumers (Crossland et al. 1987; Van der Oost et al. 1994; Oliver and Niimi 1988; Rasmussen et al. 1990).
Pion-Nucleon Scattering in the Mandelstam Representation

Using the analytic properties of partial wave scattering amplitudes, as derived from Mandelstam's representation, we have studied the J=3/2, P state of the pion-nucleon system. The method used is covariant, it incorporates unitarity, and the effect of a possible pion-pion resonance has been investigated. Using the "single nucleon term" and the low-energy scattering properties of the "crossed states," we obtain a resonance in the J=3/2, T=3/2 pion-nucleon state without the aid of a cutoff. We have also investigated the scattering in the T=1/2 state. The pion-pion resonance appears to have only a very small effect in the T=3/2 state whereas in the T=1/2 state it increases the phase shift by a factor of 2. The resonance obtained in the T=3/2 state occurs at too low an energy. There are several factors which may account for this: We have not been able to include fully the contributions from crossed states, and we have not systematically included inelastic scattering.
Cyclic Behavior of Zipper-Braced Frames

Two one-third-scale three-story models of special inverted-V-braced frames with zipper struts were tested under quasistatic cyclic loads. Zipper frames utilize a vertical element at the intersectio...
Unified transport layer support for data striping and host mobility

Data striping across multiple network interfaces and its applications to mobile environments was recently investigated (Phatak and Goff, 2002). Therein, a network-layer Internet protocol (IP)-in-IP encapsulation mechanism was proposed to aggregate the bandwidth of multiple network paths by striping a single transport layer [transmission control protocol (TCP)] connection across them. The analysis and experimental results from that study demonstrated fundamental limitations to TCPs performance in such scenarios. In this paper, we therefore propose a method of overcoming these limitations by striping data at the transport layer. For a proof-of-concept demonstration we use a substantially enhanced version of the stream control transmission protocol (SCTP). Our analytical results and experimental data illustrate that there are significant advantages to using a transport protocol with native support for the simultaneous use of multiple network interfaces, as opposed to stretching TCP to a point where it is no longer effective. This work naturally leads to another fundamental issue of end-to-end support for host mobility at the transport layer. Our analysis and results demonstrate that transport layer support for multiple network (IP) interfaces, together with the capability to dynamically add or delete IP addresses can yield the following advantages: higher bandwidth, load balancing, and increased fairness, enhanced reliability, and end-to-end support for host mobility. This is independent of the underlying network-layer and, hence, is applicable to static/wired, as well as wireless/ad hoc environments. The proposed protocol offers a unified solution to both data striping across multiple networks interfaces, as well as end-to-end mobility support.
Chromenes: potential new chemotherapeutic agents for cancer

Cancer is a major devastating disease, and is a leading cause of death worldwide. Despite the progress in cancer treatment, cancer mortality rate remains high. Therefore, the discovery and development of improved anticancer drugs to treat cancer are needed. 4H-chromenes have strong cytotoxicity against a panel of human cancer cell lines involving pathways that include microtubule depolarization and tumor vasculature disruption. A chromene analog, Crolibulin™ (EPC2407) is currently in Phase I/II clinical trials for the treatment of advanced solid tumors. This article reviews the general synthesis, biological activities and structure-activity relatinships of different classes of chromenes.
Higher-order image statistics for unsupervised, information-theoretic, adaptive, image filtering

The restoration of images is an important and widely studied problem in computer vision and image processing. Various image filtering strategies have been effective, but invariably make strong assumptions about the properties of the signal and/or degradation. Therefore, these methods typically lack the generality to be easily applied to new applications or diverse image collections. This paper describes a novel unsupervised, information-theoretic, adaptive filter (UINTA) that improves the predictability of pixel intensities from their neighborhoods by decreasing the joint entropy between them. Thus UINTA automatically discovers the statistical properties of the signal and can thereby restore a wide spectrum of images and applications. This paper describes the formulation required to minimize the joint entropy measure, presents several important practical considerations in estimating image-region statistics, and then presents results on both real and synthetic data.
Estimation of maximal heritability parameters in dairy cattle breeding.

Abstract Heritabilities of milk yield, milk fat yield, and milk fat percentage, all expressed as deviations, and the genetic correlations among these traits were estimated from the within-sire regressions of daughter on dam. The data were grouped into a discontinuous form and phenotypic scales for each of the traits were found on which the heritabilities of the traits are maximized. The maximized heritability estimates were 0.366, 0.376, and 0.566 for each of milk yield, milk fat yield, and milk fat percentage, respectively. Although all three are larger than estimates obtained by using additive scales, the differences are not large enough to be of practical significance. The three new scales are close to additive in form, although there is an indication of possible nonadditivity in the scale for milk fat percentage deviation.
ACTIVATION OF PROTEIN KINASE A CONTRIBUTES TO THE EXPRESSION BUT NOT THE INDUCTION OF LONG-TERM HYPEREXCITABILITY CAUSED BY AXOTOMY OF APLYSIA SENSORY NEURONS

Nociceptive sensory neurons (SNs) in Aplysia provide useful models to study both memory and adaptive responses to nerve injury. Induction of long-term memory in many species, including Aplysia , is thought to depend on activation of cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA). Because Aplysia SNs display similar alterations in models of memory and after nerve injury, a plausible hypothesis is that axotomy triggers memory-like modifications by activating PKA in damaged axons. The present study disproves this hypothesis. SN axotomy was produced by (1) dissociation of somata from the ganglion [which is shown to induce long-term hyperexcitability (LTH)], (2) transection of neurites of dissociated SNs growing in vitro , or (3) peripheral nerve crush. Application of the competitive PKA inhibitor Rp-8-CPT-cAMPS at the time of axotomy failed to alter the induction of LTH by each form of axotomy, although the inhibitor antagonized hyperexcitability produced by 5-HT application. Strong activation of PKA in the nerve by coapplication of a membrane-permeant analog of cAMP and a phosphodiesterase inhibitor was not sufficient to induce LTH of either the SN somata or axons. Furthermore, nerve crush failed to activate axonal PKA or stimulate its retrograde transport. Therefore, PKA activation plays little if any role in the induction of LTH by axotomy. However, the expression of LTH was reduced by intracellular injection of the highly specific PKA inhibitor PKI several days after nerve crush. This suggests that long-lasting activation of PKA in or near the soma contributes to the maintenance of long-term modifications produced by nerve injury.
The Neuropterid Fauna of Dominican and Mexican Amber (Neuropterida: Megaloptera, Neuroptera)

Abstract The neuropterid fauna of early Miocene Dominican and Oligocene-Miocene Mexican amber is treated. The fauna consists entirely of Megaloptera and Neuroptera while the snakeflies (Raphidioptera) are not presently known in Tertiary ambers from the New World. Fifteen species are recognized, all in living genera and subgenera: Sialidae, Sialis (Protosialis) casca, new species (Dominican); Ascalaphidae, Ululodes paleonesia, new species (Dominican), Amoea electrodominica, new species (Dominican); Chrysopidae, Chrysopa glaesaria, new species (Dominican), C. vetula, new species (Dominican), Leucochrysa (Nodita) prisca, new species (Dominican); Coniopterygidae, Coniopteryx antiquua, new species (Dominican), Spiloconis glaesaria Meinander (Dominican), S. oediloma, new species (Dominican); Hemerobiidae, Notiobiella thaumasta Oswald (Dominican), Sympherobius sp. (Dominican); Mantispidae, Dicromantispa electromexicana, new species (Mexican), D. moronei, new species (Dominican); Feroseta prisca Poinar, nomen eme...
Monte Carlo and thermal noise analysis of ultra-high-speed high temperature superconductor digital circuits

We model the high temperature superconductor (HTS) rapid single flux quantum (RSFQ) toggle (T) flip-flop including process variations and thermal noise. A Monte Carlo method is used to calculate the theoretical yield of the circuit at speeds ranging from 1-83 GHz and for various process parameter spreads. Thermal noise is also included in the simulations and we calculate bit error rates at 1-150 GHz as a function of temperature. Our results demonstrate quantitatively the difference between HTS layouts with and without parasitic inductance. Furthermore, our simulations suggest that using the existing HTS process with a 250 /spl mu/V I/sub c/R/sub n/ product the T flip-flop operating temperature should be below 40 K in order to obtain bit error rates less than 10/sup -6/ at gigahertz speeds.
Placement of clock gates in time-of-flight optoelectronic circuits

Time-of-flight synchronized optoelectronic circuits capitalize on the highly controllable delays of optical waveguides. Circuits have no latches; synchronization is achieved by adjustment of the lengths of waveguides that connect circuit elements. Clock gating and pulse stretching are used to restore timing and power. A functional circuit requires that every feedback loop contain at least one clock gate to prevent cumulative timing drift and power loss. A designer specifies an ideal circuit, which contains no or very few clock gates. To make the circuit functional, we must identify locations in which to place clock gates. Because clock gates are expensive, add area, and increase delay, a minimal set of locations is desired. We cast this problem in graph-theoretical form as the minimum feedback edge set problem and solve it by using an adaptation of an algorithm proposed in 1966 [IEEE Trans. Circuit Theory CT-13, 399 (1966)]. We discuss a computer-aided-design implementation of the algorithm that reduces computational complexity and demonstrate it on a set of circuits.
Epidemiology of downy mildew diseases of maize, sorghum and pearl millet∗

Abstract The downy mildews of maize, sorghum and pearl millet are among the most destructive diseases in the tropics and subtropics. The pathogens causing the diseases are Peronosclerospora sorghi, P. heteropogoni, P. philippinensis, P. sacchari, P. maydis and Sclerospora graminicola. In spite of an increase in research on graminaceous downy mildews during the last decade, broad gaps in information still exist which prevent their adequate control. Information on seed transmission, collateral hosts as sources of inoculum and effects of environment on the conidial and oospore phases of these diseases is reviewed, and some of the important information gaps are discussed.
Managing Medications in Clinically Complex Elders: “There's Got to Be a Happy Medium”

Multiple medication use is common in older adults and may ameliorate symptoms, improve and extend quality of life, and occasionally cure disease. Unfortunately, multiple medication use is also a major risk factor for prescribing and adherence problems, adverse drug events, and other adverse health outcomes. Using the case of an older patient taking multiple medications, this article summarizes the evidence-based literature about improving medication use and withdrawing specific drugs and drug classes. It also describes a systematic approach for how health professionals can assess and improve medication regimens to benefit patients and their caregivers and families.