cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Tectonics of western Yunnan Province, China

Seismicity and focal mechanism of aftershocks in Jianchuan Basin in western Yunnan Province, China, show that the basin was formed mainly by listric normal faulting parallel to the eastern edge of the basin. Similar basins in this region are generally elongated in the north-south direction and bounded by north-south normal faults and northeast-striking left-lateral strike-slip faults, or northwest-striking right-lateral strike-slip faults. An analysis of the Landsat image over this area shows that these faults divide western Yunnan into many blocks. The relative motion of the blocks is consistent with a nearly north-south compressive stress and a nearly east-west tensile stress.
Promoting Academic Achievement in Secondary Schools.

while this is a time of con troversy for the nation's schools, there are some signs of emerging confidence, and the situation is improv ing, says this au thor, who offers a model for schools seeking to improve.
Back to the Future? Health Benefits, Organized Labor, and Universal Health Care

The umbrella of employment-based health benefits is growing increasingly threadbare. As a result, health benefits are once again a major arena of labor-management strife, and once again calls for universal health care by many labor leaders mask important differences between them over health care reform. Some labor leaders advocate a bottom-up mobilization in support of a single-payer solution that would dismantle the system of job-based benefits rooted in private insurance. Others stake their health care strategy on wooing key business leaders to be constructive partners in some kind of unspecified comprehensive reform of the health system. Organized labor faces enormous obstacles, both institutional and ideological, to forging an effective united front to fight for comprehensive, high-quality, affordable health care for all. Two entrenched features of the shadow welfare state of job-based benefits, notably the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) of 1974 and the union-run health and welfare funds created under the Taft-Hartley Act, remain daunting barriers on the road to reform, exacerbating tensions and differences within organized labor. Moreover, a dramatic ideological schism in the labor movement about its future direction vexes its stance on health care reform. These ideological differences fuel vastly different views within organized labor about how best to confront the unraveling of job-based health benefits and the growing popularity among business leaders, insurers, and public officials of the "individual-mandate" solution, which would penalize people who do not have adequate health insurance.
Preparation of Tritium-Labeled Halothane (2-Bromo-2-chloro-1,1,1-trifluoroethane)*

Halothane was labeled with tritium (Wilzbach method) by exposure to 2.3 curies of tritium gas for fourteen days. The one hydrogen of the molecule was labeled and on purification gave a final specific activity of 2.9 mc. per Gm. In the preparation a considerable amount of ‘loose’ tritium and highly active impurities were separated and the purity of the final product following gas chromatographic purification was better than 99.95 per cent.
Porting to the Intel Xeon Phi: Opportunities and Challenges

This work describes the challenges presented by porting code to the Intel Xeon Phi coprocessor, as well as opportunities for optimization and tuning. We use micro-benchmarks, code segments, assembly listings and application level results to illustrate the key issues in porting to the Xeon Phi coprocessor, always keeping in mind both portability and performance. While executing code on the Xeon Phi in native mode is fairly straightforward it can be a challenge to achieve good performance. The complexity of optimization increases as one introduces offload, distributed offload, or symmetric execution modes. We will initially focus on the fundamental issues that can prevent acceptable performance in native execution, and then address the key issues in data transfers due to either offloaded regions or MPI exchanges with the host CPU. Some of the issues are of a generic nature and affect any code using heterogeneous execution - PCIe bandwidth bottleneck -, and others are specific to the Xeon Phi and its software environment - Host/MIC MPI exchanges. We will also make an effort to indicate which issues are specific to this platform and which are of general applicability. In particular we will draw comparisons between the data management models in the Intel Xeon Phi and in the NVIDIA CUDA environment.
Photoemission studies of the low-temperature reaction of metals and oxygen

X-ray photoemission and synchrotron-radiation photoemission were used to study the reaction of metals and molecular oxygen at low temperatures. Combined core-level and valence-band measurements permit the identification of various oxygen species. When Li, Cs, K, and La are deposited on solid oxygen, an O 1s feature near 535 eV is observed and attributed to the superoxide species. Features ranging from 531.5 to 533 eV are also observed and identified as the peroxide species. In contrast to the case of Li and of most other metal oxides, for Cs or K ``oxides'' an O 1s feature is seen at 528 eV and attributed to the ${\mathrm{O}}^{2\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}}$ species in a metallic matrix.
Promoting Preservice Elementary Teachers' Awareness of Learning and Teaching Mathematics Conceptually Through KTEM

In this article, we describe preservice elementary teachers' reactions to Liping Ma's (1999) book, Knowing and Teaching Elementary Mathematics (KTEM), from five universities. Ma's discussion of solely teaching elementary mathematics procedurally and its consequences awakens the preservice teachers' memories of learning elementary mathematics. Ma's analysis of and solution to the problem ignites strong emotions in the preservice elementary teachers and promotes a desire to teach elementary mathematics conceptually. Through the analysis of writing assignments, we summarize how reading and reflecting on KTEM gives preservice teachers an opportunity to examine their beliefs about teaching and learning elementary mathematics conceptually.
Effect of repeated stress on a number of plasma amino acids and related compounds in young and old rats

A number of amino compounds were studied in the plasma of young and old rats exposed to an immobilization stress on 3 different days. Baseline values were similar for all compounds between age groups except for slightly higher phenylalanine levels in old animals. Most differences were seen in the stress responses. Stress response intensities for alanine, aspartic acid, methionine, phenylalanine, and tyrosine were generally higher in old rats and recovery times from stress were usually longer. Although the stress responses decreased in young rats for some compounds over the three exposures, old rats showed no or less adaptation during this time. All the other amino acids showed no marked age effects. This study shows that certain plasma amino acids can serve as selective indicators of biological age and that their stress responses might be better markers of the aging process than their resting levels.
Orbital Targeting Using Reduced Eccentric Anomaly Low-Thrust Coefficients

A method to evaluate the trajectory dynamics of low-thrust spacecraft is applied to targeting and optimal control problems. Averaged variational equations for the osculating orbital elements are used to estimate a spacecraft trajectory over many spiral orbits. Fourteen Fourier coefficients of the thrust acceleration vector represent the fundamental trajectory dynamics. Spacecraft targeting problems are solved using the averaged variational equations and a general cost function represented as a Fourier series. The resulting fuel costs and dynamic fidelity of the targeting solutions are evaluated. The goal of the method is not precise targeting, but easy reconstruction of the basic elements of the thrusting trajectory and control law.
Farnesoid X receptor antagonizes nuclear factor κB in hepatic inflammatory response

The farnesoid X receptor (FXR) is a nuclear receptor that plays key roles in hepatoprotection by maintaining the homeostasis of liver metabolism. FXR null mice display strong hepatic inflammation and develop spontaneous liver tumors. In this report, we demonstrate that FXR is a negative modulator of nuclear factor kappaB (NF-kappaB)-mediated hepatic inflammation. Activation of FXR by its agonist ligands inhibited the expression of inflammatory mediators in response to NF-kappaB activation in both HepG2 cells and primary hepatocytes cultured in vitro. In vivo, compared with wild-type controls, FXR(-/-) mice displayed elevated messenger RNA (mRNA) levels of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), interferon-inducible protein 10, and interferon-gamma in response to lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Examination of FXR(-/-) livers showed massive necroses and inflammation after treatment with LPS at a dose that does not induce significant liver damage or inflammation in wild-type mice. Moreover, transfection of a constitutively active FXR expression construct repressed the iNOS, COX-2, interferon-inducible protein 10 and interferon-gamma mRNA levels induced by LPS administration. FXR activation had no negative effects on NF-kappaB-activated antiapoptotic genes, suggesting that FXR selectively inhibits the NF-kappaB-mediated hepatic inflammatory response but maintains or even enhances the cell survival response. On the other hand, NF-kappaB activation suppressed FXR-mediated gene expression both in vitro and in vivo, indicating a negative crosstalk between the FXR and NF-kappaB signaling pathways. Our findings reveal that FXR is a negative mediator of hepatic inflammation, which may contribute to the critical roles of FXR in hepatoprotection and suppression of hepatocarcinogenesis.
The pleistocene calcareous nannoplankton of the subantarctic Pacific Ocean

Abstract The stratigraphic distribution and relative frequencies of Pleistocene calcareous nannoplankton from eight subantarctic cores and one subotropical core have been determined. The extinction and first appearance of certain species allow the division of the Pleistocene into four zones. Two have been previously descibed (Emiliania huxleyi and Gephyrocapsa Zone), one, the Cocclitius doronicoides Zone, is new, and another, the Pseudoemiliania lacunosa Zone, is redefined. Extrapolation from excess thorium-230 dates, and previously determined and dated radiolarian permit the dating of two nannoplankton zonal boundaries. The age of the Pseudoemiliania lacunosa/Gephyrocapsa datum is estimated at 520,000 to 580,000 years. The age of the Gephyrocapsa/Emiliania huxleyi datum in the subantarctic, is estimated at about 150,000 years. During the last 400,000 years, in the subantarctic, interglacial conditions have resulted in relatively high frequencies of Cyclococcolithus leptoporus and Coccolithus pelagicus. During glacial stages very low frequencies of these two species occured and the dominant coccolithophorid was the eurythermal Gephyrocapsa caribbeanica. A G. caribbeanica maximum, which occured at about 400,000–500,000 years ago and resulted in a coccolith ooze, is apparently due to optimum conditions attained during the relatively intense warming of the early ‘V’ interglacial zone of Ericson and Wollin (1968).
Contractile proteins of vascular smooth muscle: effects of hydrogen and alkali metal cations on actomyosin adenosinetriphosphatase activity.

Abstract This investigation continues recent studies of the ionic dependencies for ATPase activity of the actomyosin isolated from hog carotid arteries. The response to the concentration of H + , Li + , Na + , K + , Rb + , and Cs + were determined and compared with those of myosin B isolated from rabbit skeletal muscle. The arterial contractile protein ATPase activity has a biphasic pH dependence, with an optimum at pH 5.2 and a smaller peak at pH 7.5, in contrast to the single optimum at pH 6.5 for skeletal muscle actomyosin. Although the enzymatic activity of skeletal muscle actomyosin is very sensitive to the total ionic strength, earlier reports of differences in ATPase activity in the presence of various alkali metal cations were not confirmed. The ATPase activity of arterial proteins was insensitive to changes in the ionic strength in the 0.04-0.16 range under a variety of conditions. No evidence was obtained in support of the hypothesis that transmembrane Na + K + exchanges during activity could stimulate vascular smooth muscle contraction by a direct potentiation of the actomyosin ATPase activity by Na + .
Fusion of Sendai virus with liposomes: Dependence on the viral fusion protein (F) and the lipid composition of liposomes

The characteristics of fusion of the membrane of Sendai virus with that of liposomes has been investigated using two different methods to monitor the fusion reaction. The first method, which permits quantitation of lipid fused with virus, depends on separation by centrifugation of unfused liposomes from those fused with virus. The second involves the digestion after fusion of internal viral proteins by trypsin contained in liposomes; this assay is completely independent of exchange of lipid between liposomal and viral membranes in the absence of fusion. A fusion-inactive mutant virus, pa-cl, with an uncleaved F protein served as the appropriate control in these experiments. It was found that fusion of the virus with liposomes that contained no protein required cleavage of the F protein; such cleavage was previously shown to be required for fusion of the virus with cell membranes. This indicates the relevance of this model system for studies of fusion. Kinetic studies indicated that at neutral pH fusion was 88% complete in 10 min at 37 degrees. Investigation of the effects of liposomal lipid composition indicated that the presence of cholesterol in the liposomal membrane was required for fusion; a 0.3-0.4-mole fraction of cholesterol was optimal. The presence of neuraminic acid in the membrane was not essential for fusion. The results obtained are compatible with previous evidence suggesting a hydrophobic interaction between the cleaved F protein and the target membrane during fusion.
Ethanol causes epicardial coronary artery vasoconstriction in the intact dog.

Ethanol produces in vitro vasoconstriction of coronary arteries and can precipitate angina in patients with coronary obstructive disease. To demonstrate the in vivo effect of ethanol on coronary dynamics, baseline measurements of left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery dimension by quantitative angiography, hemodynamics, arterial and coronary sinus blood gases, and blood ethanol levels were obtained in 14 closed-chest mongrel dogs. Three ethanol levels were established by intravenous bolus followed by 1-hour maintenance infusions. All measurements made at baseline were recorded every 30 minutes. Phentolamine (5 mg i.v.) and nicardipine (0.15 mg/kg i.v.) were given to evaluate constrictor mechanisms. Blood ethanol levels achieved at 60, 120, and 180 minutes were 649 +/- 48, 1,285 +/- 81, and 2,546 +/- 130 micrograms/ml, respectively. LAD cross-sectional area was reduced significantly from control at the end of each of the three dosing periods (-24 +/- 5%, -40 +/- 3%, and -53 +/- 3%; p less than 0.004). alpha-Adrenergic blockade had no effect on LAD cross-sectional area, while nicardipine partially reversed the ethanol-induced vasoconstriction. No significant change in vessel cross-sectional area took place in control dogs. These data suggest that ethanol induces epicardial coronary artery vasoconstriction in dogs at clinically important blood levels. alpha-Adrenergic blockade does not alter or reverse ethanol-induced vasoconstriction, while calcium channel blockade appears to be an effective vasodilator of ethanol-constricted vessels.
Cultural control of yellow nutsedge (Cyperus esculentus) in transplanted cantaloupe (Cucumis melo) by varying application timing and type of thin-film mulches

Irrigated field trials were conducted in Tifton, GA, at the Coastal Plain Experiment Station to determine the effectiveness of thin-film mulch application times and mulching materials in suppressing yellow nutsedge in transplanted cantaloupe production. Thin-film mulches were applied to freshly tilled seedbeds the day of transplanting, 1, 2, and 3 weeks prior to transplanting. Mulching materials were clear, black, and white on black low-density polyethylene (LDPE), along with a non-covered (bareground) control. Yellow nutsedge emergence in transplanted cantaloupe was suppressed by the combined effects of a physical barrier provided by thin-film mulches and competitive size differential provided by using cantaloupe transplants. All of the thin-film mulches applied to freshly prepared seedbeds either the day of transplanting or 1 week before transplanting effectively suppressed yellow nutsedge in transplanted cantaloupe production, without the need for fumigants or herbicides. Yellow nutsedge suppression in bareground seedbeds freshly prepared within 1 week of transplanting was nearly as effective as suppression from thin-film mulches. Seedbed preparation and applying thin-film mulch 2 or 3 weeks before transplanting did not effectively suppress yellow nutsedge and cantaloupe yields were reduced. In systems where soil fumigation and herbicide use are not possible, yellow nutsedge can be effectively suppressed and crop yields protected by applying thin-film mulches immediately prior to transplanting cantaloupe.
Assumptions and Beliefs About the Role of AD Dolls in Child Sexual Abuse Validation Interviews: Are They Supported Empirically?

The use of anatomically detailed dolls in child sexual abuse validation interviews is based on a number of underlying assumptions and beliefs. However, only over the last 12 years have researchers begun to evaluate the validity of these assumptions and beliefs systematically. This consideration of the existing AD doll empirical literature reveals that the support for some of the assumptions underlying the use of the dolls, as well as the surrounding beliefs, is available. However, for other assumptions and beliefs support is less firm, frequently contradictory, and sometimes absent. The evidence of support for these assumptions and beliefs is discussed and future research needs are identified.
Mining data streams under block evolution

In this paper we survey recent work on incremental data mining model maintenance and change detection under block evolution. In block evolution, a dataset is updated periodically through insertions and deletions of blocks of records at a time. We describe two techniques: (1) We describe a generic algorithm for model maintenance that takes any traditional incremental data mining model maintenance algorithm and transforms it into an algorithm that allows restrictions on a temporal subset of the database. (2) We also describe a generic framework for change detection, that quantifies the difference between two datasets in terms of the data mining models they induce.
On the fate of sulfate during hydrothermal circulation at mid-ocean ridges

Reliable sulfate data are reported for seafloor hydrothermal vents at the Galapagos Rift at 86°W and the East Pacific Rise at 21°N. Making use of sulfate-3He systematics, a loss of sulfate comparable to the river input is estimated. It is argued that the dominant chemical mechanism is reduction by iron, a conclusion based on strontium systematics and indicators of the water/rock ratios. Controls on the fate of sulfate in laboratory experiments are examined. It is proposed that the Mg/Ca ratio exerts a significant influence on the rate of sulfate reduction. Mixing of the hydrothermal endmember with seawater is considered. With slow mixing, alkaline earth sulfates should precipitate. Such precipitation accounts for the greater sulfate/heat ratio in the Galapagos fluids which are diluted extensively subsurface. The particular sulfate mineral formed is not known because of questions concerning the control of alkalinity.
Intrasexual Vigilance: The Implicit Cognition of Romantic Rivalry

Four experiments tested the hypothesis that concerns about infidelity would lead people, particularly those displaying high chronic levels of romantic jealousy, to display a functionally coordinated set of implicit cognitive biases aimed at vigilantly processing attractive romantic rivals. Priming concerns about infidelity led people with high levels of chronic jealousy (but not those low in chronic jealousy) to attend vigilantly to physically attractive same-sex targets at an early stage of visual processing (Study 1), to strongly encode and remember attractive same-sex targets (Study 2), and to form implicit negative evaluations of attractive same-sex targets (Studies 3 and 4). In each case, effects were observed only for same-sex targets who were physically attractive-individuals who can pose especially potent threats to a person's own romantic interests. These studies reveal a cascade of implicit, lower order cognitive processes underlying romantic rivalry and identify the individuals most likely to display those processes. At a broader conceptual level, this research illustrates the utility of integrating social cognitive and evolutionary approaches to psychological science.
Remote results of the replantation of the kidneys

When a kidney is extirpated from an animal and replanted on the same animal with a proper technique, it does not undergo any anatomical or physiological changes. In several cases, I examined a kidney several months after its extirpation and replantation and could not detect any anatomical change. Ten months after the resection and the replantation of the left kidney of a dog, the organ was examined. Its size and appearance were identical to those of the right kidney. The vascular and ureteral anastomosis were almost invisible. There were no microscopical differences between the kidneys.Two years ago, a bitch underwent a double nephrectomy and the replantation of the left kidney. Since that time she has become pregnant twice, has had a number of normal pups, and is still in perfect health.These experiments show that, from a surgical standpoint, the question of the graft of organs is solved. The bad results obtained by some experimenters are due merely to faults of technique.
Influence of neuroendoscopic third ventriculostomy on the size of ventricles in chronic hydrocephalus.

Our intention was to compare the clinical outcome after surgical treatment of chronic hydrocephalus between patients who were subjected to neuroendoscopic third ventriculostomy and patients who underwent shunt implantation. At the Department of Neurosurgery of the Research Institute of Polish Mothers' Memorial Hospital from 1999 to 2001, 29 children, of an average age of 7 years (±7.1 years SD), underwent successful neuroendoscopic procedures, and from 1992 to 1994, 59 children, of an average age of 2 months (±1.9 months SD), underwent shunt implantation. The size of the ventricular system was described by the Frontal Horn Index and its change after operative procedures by the ratio of the final to the primary Frontal Horn Index. Head circumference was measured in percentiles according to the Kurniewicz-Witczakowa chart for Polish children. The reduction in head circumference after a neuroendoscopic procedure was, on average, significantly less than after a shunt implantation (0.39 percentiles ± 29.6 SD v...
A graph-based toy model of chemistry.

Large scale chemical reaction networks are a ubiquitous phenomenon, from the metabolism of living cells to processes in planetary atmospheres and chemical technology. At least some of these network...
Using Discrete Event Simulation to Assess Human Lifting and Assembly of Vehicle Armor

The Future Combat Systems (FCS) program goal is to develop the next generation of vehicles and networks for the Army. Eight configurations of Manned Ground Vehicles (MGV) are being designed as part of this effort. Requirements state that each MGV must weight less than 20 Tons to be C-130 transportable. To achieve this weight limitation the armor will be removed before flight. The armor will be flown in on a separate aircraft and installed at the destination. A specific challenge for the manufacturer of the MGVs is determining how best to utilize human resources in the installation process. This poster will describe the use of discrete event simulation to develop a human performance model that helps determine an optimal combination of manpower, armor panels, and installation equipment. Four different “up-armor” scenarios were simulated each with different manpower, number of armor pieces, size of armor pieces, and material handling equipment requirements.
Shapes of Impurity Absorption Bands in Solids

Optical-absorption line shapes arising from interaction of the electronic states of impurities with the vibrational modes of the crystal are considered. It is shown that this line shape may be expressed as an $N$-fold convolution integral, where each element of the convolution is the line shape due to a single vibrational mode of the ground state of the system. Two types of vibrational modes, linear and quadratic, are considered in detail in both the semiclassical approximation and quantum mechanically. It is shown that the semiclassical approximation, although often of use for linear interactions, has limited validity for quadratic modes. Formal methods are developed for performing the convolution integral to obtain the line shape due to a number of vibrational modes. Explicit numerical examples are presented.
Chronic ectopic pregnancy: Two cases of acute rupture despite negative βHCG

We present the cases of two women with chronic ectopic pregnancies who presented with acute tubal rupture and hemoperitoneum despite negative β-human chorionic gonadotropin (βhCG) pregnancy tests. The appropriate screening use of βhCG assays to ascertain pregnancy status, the mechanisms by which ectopic pregnancy may be seen with negative βhCG tests, and the limitations of various assays are discussed. One patient, not initially believed to be pregnant, underwent computed tomography (CT) scan. Experience with use of CT scan in ectopic pregnancy diagnosis is limited; our case illustrates some of the possible CT scan findings. These cases illustrate the potential for ectopic pregnancy to rupture with low, if not undetectable βhCG hormone levels, and consequently why it is not recommended to rely on quantitative βhCG levels to guide the decision to proceed with ultrasound imaging.
Gold Nanoparticles for Nucleic Acid Delivery

Gold nanoparticles provide an attractive and applicable scaffold for delivery of nucleic acids. In this review, we focus on the use of covalent and noncovalent gold nanoparticle conjugates for applications in gene delivery and RNA-interference technologies. We also discuss challenges in nucleic acid delivery, including endosomal entrapment/escape and active delivery/presentation of nucleic acids in the cell.
Transmission electron microscopy examination and analysis of an anomalous stacking fault in h.c.p. metals

Abstract An anomalous stacking fault is reported that is observed within deformation twins in Ti and Zr. Their formation may be restricted to situations where deformation twinning takes place. An understanding of this process sheds new light on the twinning process. In this work the crystal structure of the stacking fault and its formation mechanism are investigated.
Motor neuron growth factors

The last 5 years have witnessed a great outgrowth in the number of clinical trials testing neuronal growth factors as potential treatments in ALS. These attempts to prevent motor neuron degeneration in ALS with the use of growth factors have their basis in the profound abilities of these molecules to affect motor neuron survival in experimental animals during early development and into maturity. Recent advances in molecular biology have led to the identification of a large number of new potential motor neuron growth factors Table 1, as well as insights into the molecular mechanisms regulating motor neuron death after growth factor deprivation. A major challenge in the field is now to select those growth factors that are the most promising for future ALS trials either alone or in combination therapy. View this table: Table 1. Motor neuron growth factors Two members of the prototypical family of nerve growth factors, the neurotrophins, are powerful modulators of motor neuron survival during development and into adulthood. The neurotrophin family in mammals comprises four members, including nerve growth factor (NGF), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), neurotrophin-3 (NT-3), and neurotrophin-4 (NT-4), molecules that share a significant degree of sequence homology. [1] An early indicator that one or more members of this neurotrophin growth factor family might affect motor neurons derived from experiments performed by Yan and colleagues. [2] These investigators demonstrated that motor neurons have the ability to retrogradely transport members of the neurotrophin family, including BDNF and NT-3, after these molecules have been injected into peripheral muscle. This experiment provided evidence that motor neurons express receptors for neurotrophins and might, in fact, respond to them. Localization studies have also demonstrated that skeletal muscle normally synthesizes neurotrophins (BDNF, NT-3, and NT-4) during the period of motor neuron innervation, during the maturation of synapse formation, and into adulthood. [3,4] …
Polymorphic type inference for the relational algebra in the functional database programming language neon

A database programming language is a programming language extended with database operations. In this paper we extend a core functional language with explicitly labeled tuples and the operations of the relational algebra. We present the functional database programming language Neon along with a polymorphic type inference algorithm that can infer a 'type formula', that is, a type together with type constraints, for any valid Neon program. Neon has the following salient features: (1) let-bound polymorphism, (2) explicitly labeled tuples, (3) polymorphic tuple operations, notably extension, (4) sets and set operations, and (5) polymorphic relational algebra operations, notably natural join. To type-check a Neon program the standard Damas-Milner type inference algorithm needs to be extended so that it collects constraints on type variables imposed by tuple and relational operations. The type inference algorithm has been successfully implemented in Haskell.
Arboreal behaviour of the red-back vole, Clethrionomys gapperi

Arboreal behaviour in the red-back vole, Clethrionomys gapperi, was compared with that of a semi-arboreal species, the white-footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus. Trapping 1·5 m up on trees resulted in significantly more captures of P. leucopus than C. gapperi. Laboratory observations also indicated less activity on above surface objects by C. gapperi. C. gapperi displayed only slightly less inclination to climb vertical stems than did P. leucopus. P. leucopus readily crossed horizontal stems 1·0 cm in diameter while C. gapperi seldom crossed such stems. When forced to cross horizontal dowels C. gapperi was much less adept at maintaining its balance on small stems than was P. leucopus. C. gapperi could not cross stems 5 mm in diameter whereas P. leucopus readily crossed them. Analysis of slow motion movies indicated hindfoot position to be an important factor in ability to cross horizontal stems. C. gapperi places the entire hindfoot (toes to heel) on the surface of a stem; P. leucopus runs on the tips of its toes. C. gapperi is not able to twist its hindfeet far enough inward to gain purchase on the smaller stems, frequently resulting in slipping from the top or falling from the stem. P. leucopus is able to twist its hindfeet far enough inward to get an adequate toehold on even the smallest stems. The inability to cross over small branches may be a contributing factor in the absence of significant arboreal behaviour on the part of the red-back vole.
A Simplification of Prins' Formula for Diffraction of X-Rays by a Perfect Crystal

The intensity formula of Prins for diffraction of x-rays by a perfect crystal has been simplified so that $F(l)$ is a real, single-valued, algebraic function of $l$, the deviation of the glancing angle from the corrected Bragg angle. By neglecting absorption in the crystal, Darwin's formula is obtained in a new form. By differentiation the maximum ordinate of the diffraction pattern is obtained. To calculate percent reflection (i.e., maximum ordinate of the rocking curve of a double crystal spectrometer in the 1, -1 position) $\ensuremath{\int}{\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\infty}}^{+\ensuremath{\infty}}F(l)\mathrm{dl}$ and $\ensuremath{\int}{\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\infty}}^{+\ensuremath{\infty}}{F}^{2}(l)\mathrm{dl}$ are needed, and these integrals have been evaluated analytically for Darwin's case of no absorption, leading to a value of 4/5 for $P(0)$. To include absorption $F(l)$ has been expanded into a series in powers of $\frac{B}{D}$ and an approximate formula obtained for $P(0)$ in terms of the constants of the crystal. This formula agrees with the graphically determined values of $P(0)$ to within a few percent.
Integrated kinetic modelling and transient FTIR studies of CO oxidation on Pt/SiO2

The reaction dynamics and multiplicity features of CO oxidation on a Pt/SiO2 catalyst are studied via transient experiments combining Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) with temperature-programmed reaction (TPR) and with concentration-programmed reaction (CPR). Bifurcation diagrams of the surface and bulk concentrations and temperatures obtained in these experiments are used to develop a reaction-reactor model to interpret the results. The model integrates non-equilibrium elementary step kinetics, based on single-crystal studies, with heat and mass transport effects and reactor modelling. The model reproduces well bifurcation cross-section diagrams at various experimental conditions and simulates well the TPR and CPR experiments. A parametric sensitivity analysis reveals how changes in the parameters affect the reaction behaviour, as well as how the rate-determining step changes with the operating conditions. The results of this work demonstrate how the many interactions between the kinetics, transport processes and reactor environment affect experimental observations, and provide a method for the proper assessment of such interactions.
Hedgehog signal transduction: recent findings

The Hedgehog (Hh) family of signaling molecules are key agents in patterning numerous types of tissues. Mutations in Hh and its downstream signaling molecules are also associated with numerous oncogenic and disease states. Consequently, understanding the mechanisms by which Hh signals are transduced is important for understanding both development and disease. Recent studies have clarified several aspects of Hh signal transduction. Several new Sonic Hedgehog binding partners have been identified. Cholesterol and palmitic acid modifications of Hh and Sonic hedgehog have been examined in greater detail. Characterization of the trafficking patterns of the Patched and Smoothened proteins has demonstrated that these two proteins function very differently from the previously established models. The Fused kinase has been demonstrated to phosphorylate the kinesin-like protein Costal2 and the sites identified, while Cubitus interruptus has been shown to be phosphorylated in a hierarchical manner by three different kinases. Finally, the interactions, both genetic and physical, between Fused, Costal2, Cubitus interruptus, and Suppressor of Fused have been further elucidated.
Clustering and Coverage Control for Systems With Acceleration-Driven Dynamics

In this technical note, we consider the dynamic coverage control problem from a clustering perspective, to which we apply control-theoretic methods to identify and track the cluster center dynamics. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first work to consider tracking cluster centers when the dynamics of the system elements involve acceleration fields. We show that a dynamic control design is necessary to achieve dynamic coverage under these acceleration fields. We pose the goal of maximizing the instantaneous coverage as a combinatorial optimization problem, and propose a framework that extends the concepts of the deterministic annealing algorithm to the dynamic setting. The resulting Lagrangian is used as a control Lyapunov function for designing coverage control. The algorithms we propose guarantee asymptotic tracking of cluster group dynamics, and we further establish continuity and boundedness of the corresponding control laws. Simulations are provided to corroborate these results.
Mediation and Legal Literacy.

This study uses fieldwork to investigate the sponsorship of legal literacy within a court mediation program. This examination of institutional involvement in literacy sponsorship demonstrates the ideological nature of literacy by showing the importance of context, investigating literacy-based relationships, and uncovering the intertwined nature of oral and written forms of discourse. Little research has examined the sponsor’s perspective on literacy, and this study also examines how sponsors may accrue and distribute benefits. Further, the study explicates an approach to literacy sponsorship through mediation which, while still embedded with disparate power relations, may provide an equitable literacy sponsorship model for other community organizations.
Skeptical Theism: A Response to Bergmann

Bergmann suggests that STI is reasonable-or at least not unreasonableowing to our "awareness of our cognitive limitations and the vastness and complexity of reality." And he notes that I seem to have some sympathy with STI. He then considers my "new evidential argument from evil" and argues that it depends on "a rejection of this skeptical thesis and, therefore, suffers from the same problem that afflicts his [Rowe's] original argument." In what follows, after a preliminary comment, I will respond to Bergmann's discussion of my 1996 argument from evil. The constant theme in my discussions of the problem of evil is our awareness that no good within our ken can reasonably be thought to justify an allpowerful, all-knowing, perfectly good being in permitting any particular instance of the vast number of instances of horrific suffering (both animal and human) that occurs daily in our world. Skeptical theists like Bergmann do not directly dispute this point, although they think my claim exceeds what we are fully justified in asserting.3 Rather, they contend that given the disparity between our knowledge of goods and the conditions of their realization and the knowledge of these matters possessed by God, if he exists, we simply aren't epistemically qualified to make any reasonable judgments whatever about the amount of seemingly pointless, horrific evil such a being would need to allow in the world. For all we know, they say, the world could contain a great deal more seemingly point-
The Contributions of Truth to Reconciliation: Lessons From South Africa

The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) is undoubtedly the most widely discussed truth and reconciliation process in the world, and by many accounts, the TRC is among the most effective any country has yet produced. What is the explanation for its success? This article has two objectives. First, it seeks to identify the characteristics of South Africa’s truth and reconciliation process that contributed to its performance. Second, it then asks whether the truth and reconciliation process is itself endogenous. Thus, the ultimate objective is to assess whether truth and reconciliation processes can have an independent influence on reconciliation and especially on the likelihood of consolidating an attempted democratic transition. The conclusion of this article is that the truth and reconciliation process in South Africa did indeed exert independent influence on the democratization process through its contributions toward creating a more reconciled society.
HADTS: A decision technology system to support Army housing management

Abstract The Department of Army must provide its personnel with acceptable housing at minimum cost within the vicinity of military installations. To achieve these housing objectives, the Army often must enter into agreements for the longterm construction of onpost housing or the leasing of existing offpost housing. A decision support system, called HANS, has been developed to project the necessary construction or leasing. HANS had some gaps in supporting the construction and leasing decisions. This paper describes the gaps and shows how a decision technology system, called the Housing Analysis Decision Technology System (HADTS), can help Army managers to overcome the support gaps. It also overviews HADTS's benefits, challenges, and limitations.
The expanding role of mitochondria in apoptosis

The initial insight into the genetic basis of apoptosis, or programmed cell death, was gained from ingenious studies of the roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans (for review, see Horvitz 1999). These studies revealed a linear pathway whereby the products of two genes, designated Ced-3 andCed-4, were necessary and sufficient to trigger the perfectly timed and orchestrated death of 131 preordained cells during development. The relevance of this pathway to higher animals was established by the discovery of apparent mammalian orthologs of these genes and the demonstration that the mammalian Ced-3-related genes encode proteases (designated caspases) whose activities are responsible for the morphological changes characteristic of apoptosis (for review, see Hengartner 2000). The complexity of the apoptotic program began to increase with the discovery of Bcl-2, a gene whose product causes resistance to apoptosis in lymphocytes (Vaux et al. 1988; McDonnell et al. 1989). Bcl-2 was shown to correct partially the phenotype of a C. elegans mutation in Ced-9, a cell survival gene that functions upstream of Ced-4 and Ced-3 (Vaux et al. 1992). This finding suggested an apparent one-for-one correlation between the C. elegans and mammalian proand antiapoptotic pathways. However, this correlation did not explain two observations made in mammalian cells. First, the Bcl-2 protein was found on the membrane of mitochondria, which were not implicated in C. elegans apoptosis; and second, apoptotic changes could be produced in Xenopus laevis oocyte extracts only when a membrane fraction enriched in mitochondria was present (Hockenberry et al. 1990; Newmeyer et al. 1994). The complex role of mitochondria in mammalian cell apoptosis came into focus when biochemical studies identified several mitochondrial proteins that are able to activate cellular apoptotic programs directly (Liu et al. 1996; Susin et al. 1999; Du et al. 2000; Verhagen et al. 2000; Li et al. 2001). Normally, these proteins reside in the intermembrane space of mitochondria. In response to a variety of apoptotic stimuli, they are released to the cytosol and/or the nucleus. They promote apoptosis either by activating caspases and nucleases or by neutralizing cytosolic inhibitors of this process. A complex picture has emerged in which mitochondrial and cytosolic proapoptotic proteins interact with antiapoptotic proteins with each cell’s life or death hanging in the balance. This review summarizes the recent data on the expanding and complex role of mitochondria in apoptosis.
A robust compile time method for scheduling task parallelism on distributed memory machines

A desirable property of a compile time scheduling algorithm is robustness against the variations in the computation and communication costs so that the run time performance is close to the compile time estimates; this aspect of scheduling has been left open in the literature. This paper introduces a compile time scheduling algorithm for variable number of available processors and then examines the impact of change of computation and communication costs on the generated schedule. The cost variations for all the nodes and all the edges are assumed to be uniform (in other words, all the node costs change by the same ratio and the edge costs change by the same ratio). This type of cost variation could result from either (i) an inaccuracy in the estimation of the instruction execution cost or the unit message passing delay, or (ii) upgrade in the CPU or routing schemes. The percentage change in the schedule time due to differences in compile time estimated performance and the run time performance with coat variations is a measure of the robustness of the algorithm. We discuss the essential conditions for robustness of the proposed algorithm and demonstrate it through an experimental study.
Evidence for a relationship between head shape and prevalence of middle ear effusion in children

To determine if there is an association between head shape type (brachycephaly, mesocephaly, and dolichocephaly) and prevalence of middle ear effusions, we performed tympanometry and head measurements on 203 children who were enrolling in kindergarten and who were 4 or 5 years old. Maximum head length and head breadth were measured using anthropometric spreading calipers, and the cephalic index (CI) was calculated for each child (head width/head length × 100). Children with a CI > 1 standard deviation (SD) from the mean were classified as brachycephalic, those with a CI < 1 SD as dolichocephalic, and the remainder as mesocephalic. The overall distribution of flat tympanograms (indicative of middle ear effusions) by head shape type was unlikely to have occurred by chance (X2(2) = 6.2; P < 0.05). Brachycephalic children had a significantly greater prevalence (39%) of flat tympanograms, than did mesocephalic children (19%; P = 0. 015). There was a trend toward more dolichocephalic children having effusions (29%) than mesocephalic children (19%), but the difference was not significant (P = 0.24). Neither race nor sex affected the relationship between brachycephaly and middle ear effusions. Brachycephaly is a physical finding associated with flat tympanograms and, therefore, middle ear effusions in preschool children. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Ovarian cancer progression is controlled by phenotypic changes in dendritic cells

We characterized the initiation and evolution of the immune response against a new inducible p53-dependent model of aggressive ovarian carcinoma that recapitulates the leukocyte infiltrates and cytokine milieu of advanced human tumors. Unlike other models that initiate tumors before the development of a mature immune system, we detect measurable anti-tumor immunity from very early stages, which is driven by infiltrating dendritic cells (DCs) and prevents steady tumor growth for prolonged periods. Coinciding with a phenotypic switch in expanding DC infiltrates, tumors aggressively progress to terminal disease in a comparatively short time. Notably, tumor cells remain immunogenic at advanced stages, but anti-tumor T cells become less responsive, whereas their enduring activity is abrogated by different microenvironmental immunosuppressive DCs. Correspondingly, depleting DCs early in the disease course accelerates tumor expansion, but DC depletion at advanced stages significantly delays aggressive malignant progression. Our results indicate that phenotypically divergent DCs drive both immunosurveillance and accelerated malignant growth. We provide experimental support for the cancer immunoediting hypothesis, but we also show that aggressive cancer progression after a comparatively long latency period is primarily driven by the mobilization of immunosuppressive microenvironmental leukocytes, rather than loss of tumor immunogenicity.