cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Determinants of Positive Long-Term Performance in Strategic Mergers: Corporate Focus and Cash

Using a sample selection and benchmarking methodology designed to more accurately assess merger-related changes in corporate focus, we find a significantly positive relationship between corporate focus and long-term merger performance. We find that focus-decreasing (FD) mergers result in significantly negative long-term performance. On average, FD mergers result in an over 18% loss in stockholder wealth, a 9% loss in firm value, and significant declines in operating cash flows three years after merger. Mergers that either preserve or increase focus (FPI) result in mostly insignificant changes in long-term performance. These results are consistent with prior corporate focus studies, suggesting that existing merger studies finding the opposite result are the result of measurement error. After controlling for other variables related to post-merger performance - method of payment, managerial resistance, and book-to-market ratio - we find that the positive relationship between changes in focus and long-term performance continues to hold. A continuous measure of focus change (DHI) also indicates that the magnitude of focus changes is significant. Every 10% decrease in focus results in a 9% loss in stockholder wealth, a 1+% decline in operating performance, and a 4% discount in firm value. Cash is positively related to long-term performance, but the relationship is significant only for operating performance. Cash-financed FPI mergers exhibit the best and stock-financed FD mergers the worst long-term performance. The negative performance of stock-financed FD mergers is driven by pure conglomerate mergers in the early years of our study. FPI mergers outperform FD mergers in both time periods, but differences are significant only in the earlier years. However, the DHI variable is significant in both time periods, indicating that the magnitude of corporate focus changes is the more important measure of corporate focus or diversification.
Periodicity on Partial Words

A partial word of length n over a finite alphabet A is a partial map from {0, … , n - 1} into A. Elements of {0, … , n-1} without image are called holes (a word is just a partial word without holes). A fundamental periodicity result on words due to Fine and Wilf [1] intuitively determines how far two periodic events have to match in order to guarantee a common period. This result was extended to partial words with one hole by Berstel and Boasson [2] and to partial words with two or three holes by Blanchet-Sadri and Hegstrom [3]. In this paper, we give an extension to partial words with an arbitrary number of holes.
Refinement of EM restored images using adaptive POCS

A new iterative algorithm for image restoration and point spread function (PSF) estimation is presented. The method initially restores the image with the expectation maximization (EM) algorithm. The resulting estimate is then significantly improved by using the adaptive row action projection (RAP) algorithm which is based on the theory of projection onto convex sets (POCS). The PSF is re-estimated using a least squares technique. Computer simulations show the method's competitiveness in restoring degraded images and estimating the PSF from noisy blurred images with unknown PSF. >
Plasma Equation of State

The equation of state for an electron gas in a positive background is derived. The difficulty previously encountered is shown to be the result of a misinterpretation of the asymptotic solution of the differential equation for the twoparticle correlation. (L.B.S.)
REGULATION OF RIGHT VENTRICLE AND AORTIC ARCH FORMATION BY THE bHLH PROTEIN, dHAND • 145

Heart development during embryogenesis involves mesodermal and neural crest-derived cell types. Mesodermal cells from a straight heart tube, which undergoes rightward looping followed by formation of atrial and ventricular chambers, while neural crest cells populate the developing aortic arches. Cell fate analyses have demonstrated that the straight heart tube is patterned into anterior to posterior segments that give rise to distinct compartments of the heart including the aortic sac, conotruncus (cardiac outflow tract), right ventricle, left ventricle, and atria, respectively. While several contractile protein genes are expressed in a chamber-specific fashion after cardiac looping, there have been no molecular markers for the early segments of the heart tube nor have regulatory factors that may control cell fates along the anteroposterior axis of the heart tube been identified. dHAND and eHAND are related basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors that are expressed in mesodermal and neural crest-derived structures of the developing heart. We show that during mouse cardiogenesis, dHAND and eHAND were expressed in a complementary fashion and were restricted to segments of the heart tube fated to form the right and left ventricles, respectively. dHAND and eHAND represent the earliest cardiac chamber-specific transcription factors yet identified. Targeted gene deletion of dHAND in mouse embryos resulted in embryonic lethality at E10.5 from heart failure. dHAND-null mutants had only a single left-sided ventricle, failure of muscular trabeculation, and a grossly dilated aortic sac without evidence of branching aortic arch arteries. While most markers of cardiomyocyte differentiation were expressed in the mutants, the expression of the transcription factor, GATA-4, was down-regulated. The cardiac phenotype of dHAND mutant embryos demonstrates a requirement for dHAND in formation of the right ventricle and specific neural crest-derived compartments of the developing heart and reveals a novel cardiogenic subprogram for right ventricular development.
OBTAINING A FEASIBLE GEOMETRIC PROGRAMMING PRIMAL SOLUTION, GIVEN A NEAR-OPTIMAL DUAL SOLUTION

A dual algorithm applied to a posynomial geometric programming problem generally terminates with a dual feasible solution which is only approximately optimal. The usual methods for recovering the primal solution then yields solutions with corresponding slight infeasibilities in the primal constraints. This paper demonstrates a linear programming problem for computation of a primal solution which is strictly feasible
Proton Affinity of Peroxyacetic Acid

The proton affinity of peroxyacetic acid has been studied using ab initio methods. The most stable peroxyacetic acid structure forms a nearly planar five-membered ring in which the carbonyl oxygen ...
An extended finite element formulation for contact in multi‐material arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian calculations

A contact method for the multi-dimensional Lagrangian step in multi-material arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) formulations is presented. The extended finite element method (X-FEM) is used to create independent fields (i.e. velocity, strain rate, force, mass, etc.) for each material in the problem. The accelerations of the multi- material nodes are obtained by coupling the material force and mass fields as a function of the prescribed contact; similarly, the velocities of the multi-material nodes are recalculated using the conservation of momentum when the prescribed contact requires it. The coupling procedures impose the same nodal velocity on the coupled materials in the direction normal to their interface during the time step update. As a result, the overlap of materials is prevented and unwanted separation does not occur. Three different contacts are treated: perfectly bonded, frictionless slip, and slip with friction. Example impact problems are solved and the numerical solutions are presented
The isolation of a dimer of gene 8 protein of bacteriophage fd.

Abstract Gene 8 protein was isolated in a highly aggregated form in aqueous solution from purified fd bacteriophage. Gene 8 protein was dissociated to a stable dimeric form in the presence of 10 m m -sodium deoxycholate. The dimer obtained in the presence of the detergent was stable to further dissociation by sodium dodecyl sulfate, and was estimated to have a 51% helical content on the basis of circular dichroism data. When the deoxycholate was removed, the dimers were observed by electron microscopy to self-associate to complex string-like structures. The dimer obtained is thought to be a result of one of the interactions between adjacent monomers in the model proposed by Marvin & Wachtel (1975).
On the nonreconstructibility of combinatorial geometries

Abstract Matroids G and H are constructed on the same set S from incidence schemes associated with the pseudo-rhombicuboctahedron and rhombicuboctahedron respectively showing that the Ulam edge reconstruction problem for graphs can not be generalized to arbitrary combinatorial geometries. In particular, for all points p and p′ in S, the subgeometries G − p, G − p′, and H − p are isomorphic; however G and H are not isomorphic. In fact, H has a transitive automorphism group while G does not.
The evaluation of rhytidectomy flap healing after CO2 laser resurfacing in a pig model

Objective: This study was conducted to determine when it becomes safe to perform laser resurfacing after rhytidectomy flap elevation. Study Design: Eighty-four sites on 12 domestic Yorkshire pigs were selected; 4 × 10-cm skin flaps were elevated in 72 of the 84 sites and shortened 10%. The 12 remaining sites (controls) were treated with laser resurfacing alone. Laser resurfacing was also performed at days 0, 7, 14, 21, and 28 after closing the skin flaps. The healing time for the laser-resurfaced sites without flap elevation were compared to that of the skin flaps treated with the laser at days 0, 7, 14, 21, and 28. Twelve “skin flap” controls were elevated, shortened 10%, and closed without laser treatment. Resurfacing was performed using 2 passes with the Sharplan Silk Touch CO2 laser. Results: The average healing time for the skin flaps treated with the laser at day 0 was 23.9 days. All of these flaps showed skin slough with delayed healing followed by scar formation. The areas treated with the laser alone (controls), and the subsequent skin flaps treated with the laser postoperatively at days 7, 14, 21, and 28 days completely re-epithelialized in an average of 7.8, 8.1, 7.3, 7.4, and 7.3 days, respectively. There were no statistically significant differences in healing time between the controls and flaps treated with the laser on or after 7 days (P > 0.05). However, there were statistically significant differences in healing time between the laser-treated skin flaps at day 0 and the controls, between the laser-treated flaps on day 0 and day 7, and between the laser-treated flaps on day 0 and day 14 (P < 0.001). Because there was little difference in healing time after 14 days, only the healing times for laser-treated skin flaps up to 14 days were compared using paired t tests. Conclusions: From our observations using a pig model, we conclude that skin flaps may be safely laser resurfaced about 1 week postoperatively. On the other hand, simultaneous flap elevation and laser resurfacing results in delayed healing with subsequent scar formation. (Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2001;125:590-2.)
Tropical forest mimicry in Swiddens: A reassessment of Geertz's Model with Amazonian data

Geertz's famous hypothesis that horticulturalists practicing shifting cultivation intercrop their plots to mimic the protective structure of the tropical forest is evaluated in view of data on the structural ecology of the tropical forest and swidden plots in Amazonian Ecuador. The cultivation practices of the Siona-Secoya Indians reveal a three-fold typology of cropping patterns (high-diversity intercropping, low-diversity intercropping, and monocropping), with variation among the types in terms of plot size and distribution, cultigen inventory, structural complexity, and function. These gardens and the tropical forest are compared and analyzed in terms of morphology, ecological characteristics, and human manipulation and utilization. Gardens with high-diversity intercropping show certain similarities to the tropical forest, as Geertz's model predicts, but their highly transient structure does not function as a mature ecosystem. Furthermore, plots with low-diversity intercropping and monocropping show few similarities to the forest. Garden structure is best understood in terms of the economic utilization of tropical cultigens displaying specific habits, rather than by analogy to tropical forest physiognomy and function.
The genetic basis of adaptation to selection for longevity inDrosophila melanogaster

Analysis of electrophoretic loci shows that at least four differences exist in isozymes of long- and short-lived populations ofD. melanogaster, descended by selection from a common ancestral stock. Adults of longlived populations differ in gene dosage of phosphoglucomutase (PGM), NAD malate dehydrogenase (MHD), NADP malic enzyme (ME) and by additional mobility variants of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD). Larvae, however, differ only by variants of G6PD. The differences in these enzymes, considered together with the greater flight endurance that long-lived populations have shown elsewhere, suggest that increased glycogen synthesis plays a significant role in the improved life span of selected populations. Adaptation to selection for increased life span may, therefore, derive from an improved ability to use dietary sucrose in the media provided. The distribution of electrophoretic loci agrees with the results of a study indicating the position of genetic elements contributing to life span.
Quasi-relativistic electron precipitation due to interactions with coherent VLF waves in the magnetosphere

The equations of motion for the cyclotron resonance interaction between coherent whistler mode waves and energetic particles are rederived with the inclusion of relativistic effects. The pitch angle scattering of the near-loss-cone quasi-relativistic electrons trapped in the magnetosphere is studied using a test particle method employing these relativistic equations, and the precipitated energy spectrum due to the wave-induced perturbations of a full distribution of particles is computed. Results show that the full width at half maximum peak width of the rms scattering pattern of the near-loss-cone particles would give an upper bound to the peak width of the associated precipitated energy spectrum under the conditions of moderate wave intensities in the low L shell region. In addition, it is found that the peak widths are within the upper limit values measured by recent satellite experiments. It is concluded that interactions of inner radiation belt particles with monochromatic waves could produce precipitated fluxes with relatively sharp spectral widths, and that therefore the L-dependent narrow peaks observed by low altitude satellite particle detectors could be caused by such interactions.
Analysis of excitatory amino acid transmission within the rostral ventromedial medulla: implications for circuitry

Two classes of neurons with distinct responses to opioids have been identified in the rostral ventromedial medulla (RVM), a region with a well-documented role in nociceptive modulation. 'On-cells' are directly inhibited by opioids, and opioids can thus gain access to the modulatory circuitry of the RVM by an action on these neurons. 'Off-cells' are likely to exert a net inhibitory effect on nociceptive processing, and are activated by opioids. Because the opioid activation of off-cells is indirect, it has been proposed that on-cells function as inhibitory interneurons, and that opioid-induced suppression of on-cell firing in turn activates off-cells via disinhibition. The aim of the present study was to test this possibility. We had previously shown that excitatory amino acid (EAA) neurotransmission is crucial to the nocifensor reflex-related on-cell burst. We therefore infused the non-selective EAA receptor antagonist kynurenate (0.5-2 nmol, 200-500 nl) into the RVM while recording activity of on-, off- and neutral cells in lightly anesthetized rats. Kynurenate infusions produced a significant decrease in on-cell firing, with suppression of the on-cell burst. Off-cells nonetheless continued to display a tail flick-related pause in firing. Tail flick latency was used as an index of nociceptive responsiveness, and was unaffected by kynurenate infusions. These results demonstrate that a burst of on-cell firing is not required in order for the off-cell to exhibit a reflex-related pause in discharge, and do not support the proposed crucial role for on-cells as inhibitory interneurons within the RVM. In addition, preferential suppression of on-cell tiring was not associated with an increase in tail flick latency. This suggests that, under the conditions of these experiments, on-cell discharge is not a potent regulator of moment-to-moment variations in nociceptive responsiveness.
Expression and sequence analysis of the SDI1/WAF1/CIP1/p21 tumor suppressor gene in prostate cancer cell lines

The SDI1/WAF1/CIP1 gene encodes a M(r) 21,000 protein (p21) that can arrest cell growth by associating with and inhibiting cyclin-dependent kinase complexes necessary for cells to exit G(1). It is a critical downstream effector in the p53 growth control pathway and can be transcriptionally upregulated by increasing levels of wild-type p53 protein. Somatic mutations in the p21 gene have been detected in 17% of primary prostate cancers. In the current study, we examined four prostate cancer cell lines for expression of and mutations in the p21 gene. Transcripts for p21 mRNA were present in all PC cell lines; p21 protein was detected in androgen-dependent LNCaP cells, as well as in androgen-independent DU-145 and TSU-Pr1 cells but not in androgen-independent PC-3 cells. Examination of the entire coding region of the p21 gene by SSCP analysis and direct DNA sequencing did not detect mutations in the coding domains of the p21 gene. These data indicate that mutations of the SDI1/WAF1/CIP1/p21 gene are not present in cultured PC cells and suggest that defects in the p21 gene are infrequent in prostate cancers.
Evidence of deep ultraviolet amplified spontaneous emission in electron beam pumped AlGaN multiple-quantum-well-based structures

In this paper we report detailed cathodoluminescence (CL) studies of deep UV emitting AlGaN multiple quantum wells (MQWs) embedded in AlN cladding layers to simulate a deep UV laser structure. These structures were produced by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) on 6H-SiC substrates. The AlGaN QWs were grown under excess gallium conditions, a growth mode consistent with liquid phase epitaxy rather than physical vapor phase epitaxy. This growth mode leads to AlGaN films with compositional inhomogeneities and thus band structure potential fluctuations. The degree of such compositional inhomogeneities depends on the amount of excess gallium and employment of indium as a surfactant during growth. The structure and microstructure of these MQWs were investigated by x-ray diffraction and TEM/STEM. Their optical properties were investigated with spatially-resolved CL spectroscopy and mapping. E-beam pumping experiments were performed by irradiating the top surface and collecting the luminescence from the cleaved edge. The observed superlinear dependence of the QW CL intensity on beam current together with linewidth narrowing strongly suggests light amplification by stimulated emission.
The WTO, safeguards, and temporary protection from imports

Contents: Acknowledgements Introduction Chad P. Bown PART I HISTORY AND INSTITUTIONS 1. John H. Jackson (1997), 'Safeguards and Adjustment Policies' 2. Alan V. Deardorff (1987), 'Safeguards Policy and the Conservative Social Welfare Function' 3. J. Michael Finger (2002), 'Safeguards: Making Sense of GATT/WTO Provisions Allowing for Import Restrictions' PART II ECONOMIC THEORY: DIFFICULTIES IN MAKING THE CASE FOR IMPORT-RESTRICTING SAFEGUARD POLICIES 4. Jagdish N. Bhagwati (1976), 'Market Disruption, Export Market Disruption, Compensation and GATT Reform' 5. Michael Mussa (1978), 'Dynamic Adjustment in the Heckscher-Ohlin-Samuelson Model' 6. Robert W. Staiger and Guido Tabellini (1987), 'Discretionary Trade Policy and Excessive Protection' PART III ECONOMIC THEORY: SAFEGUARD PROVISIONS AND DESIGN 7. Kyle Bagwell and Robert W. Staiger (1990), 'A Theory of Managed Trade' 8. Ronald D. Fischer and Thomas J. Prusa (2003), 'WTO Exceptions as Insurance' 9. Kyle Bagwell and Robert W. Staiger (2005), 'Enforcement, Private Political Pressure, and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade / World Trade Organization Escape Clause' PART IV ECONOMIC THEORY: SAFEGUARDS AND 'ADJUSTMENT' 10. Kaz Miyagiwa and Yuka Ohno (1995), 'Closing the Technology Gap Under Protection' 11. Arye L. Hillman (1982), 'Declining Industries and Political-Support Protectionist Motives' 12. S. Lael Brainard and Thierry Verdier (1997), 'The Political Economy of Declining Industries: Senescent Industry Collapse Revisited' 13. Carl Davidson and Steven J. Matusz (2004), 'An Overlapping-generations Model of Escape Clause Protection' PART V EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF SAFEGUARDS 14. Steven Berry, James Levinsohn and Ariel Pakes (1999), 'Voluntary Export Restraints on Automobiles: Evaluating a Trade Policy' 15. James C. Hartigan, Philip R. Perry and Sreenivas Kamma (1986), 'The Value of Administered Protection: A Capital Market Approach' 16. Robert E. Baldwin and Jeffrey W. Steagall (1994), 'An Analysis of ITC Decisions in Antidumping, Countervailing Duty and Safeguard Cases' 17. Wendy L. Hansen and Thomas J. Prusa (1995), 'The Road Most Taken: The Rise of Title VII Protection' 18. Chad P. Bown (2004), 'Trade Disputes and the Implementation of Protection Under the GATT: An Empirical Assessment' 19. Robert W. Staiger and Guido Tabellini (1999), 'Do GATT Rules Help Governments Make Domestic Commitments?' 20. Chad P. Bown and Rachel McCulloch (2004), 'The WTO Agreement on Safeguards: An Empirical Analysis of Discriminatory Impact' PART VI POLICY USE, LEGAL PROCESS AND DISPUTE SETTLEMENT 21. Douglas A. Irwin (2003), 'Causing Problems? The WTO Review of Causation and Injury Attribution in US Section 201 Cases' 22. Alan O. Sykes (2003), 'The Safeguards Mess: A Critique of WTO Jurisprudence' Name Index
Clinical cooling out of poor people.

Through what means do professionals in child psychiatry clinics arrive at their pronouncements that poor people are unworkable in psychotherapy? Those procedures whereby the poor are simultaneously rebuffed and consoled by the middle class are presented as being illustrative of cooling out, a basic pattern of interaction in urban bureaucratized society.
Cuomo at Notre Dame: Rhetoric without religion

Mario Cuomo, through his 1984 speech at Notre Dame University, constructs a version of the role of religious rhetoric in public policy. Confronted by church officials for the contradiction between his abortion policy and church teaching, Cuomo responds with an appeal grounded in the wall of separation between church and state. The discourse fashions a public forum in which Cuomo can advocate the paradox in his position as necessary to preserve democratic pluralism. This essay explores how Cuomo's discourse invites listeners to adopt Cuomo's construct and evaluates his version of appropriate religious argument in public rhetoric.
Combining Single-Version and Evolutionary Dependencies for Software-Change Prediction

The paper advocates the need for the investigation and development of a software-change prediction methodology that combines the change sets estimated from software dependency analysis (via single-version analysis) and the actual change sets found in software version histories (via multiple-version analysis). Traditionally prescribed methodologies such as Impact Analysis (IA) are based on the former, whereas a more recent methodology, mining software repository (MSR), is based on the latter. The research hypothesis is that combining these two methodologies will result in an overall improved support for software-change prediction.
Spectral detection of metal contaminants in water using an on-chip microglow discharge

This paper reports on the detection of trace contaminants in water by spectroscopy of micro glow discharges that operate in air or at moderate vacuum using liquid electrodes. A liquid electrode spectral emission chip (LEd-SpEC) has been developed to perform this function. The device is fabricated by a four mask process, and provides a reservoir and channels in a glass substrate, along with electrodes that bias the water sample. Liquid from the cathode is sputtered into the discharge, for spectroscopic detection of impurities. Using a commercial spectrometer, Na concentrations <10 ppm, and Pb concentrations of 5 ppm, and Al and Cr concentrations of 10 ppm have been measured. The ratio of Na spectral intensity to that of ambient N/sub 2/ is shown to be a suitable measure of Na impurity concentration over several orders of magnitude. The addition of HNO/sub 3/ to lower the pH of the liquid solution increases this ratio by almost an order of magnitude. By selectively doping the solution, the device can also be used as a customizable optical source for UV and visible wavelengths.
Inverse techniques in hyperthermia: a sensitivity study

Numerical modeling methods and hyperthermia treatment temperature measurements have been used together to reconstruct steady-state tumor temperature distributions. However, model errors will exist which may in turn produce errors in the reconstructed temperature distributions. A series of computer experiments was conducted to study the sensitivity of reconstructed two-dimensional temperature distributions to perfusion distribution modeling errors. Temperature distributions were simulated using a finite element approximation of Pennes' bioheat transfer equation. Relevant variables such as tumor shape, perfusion distribution, and power deposition were modeled. An optimization method and the temperatures "measured" from the simulated temperature distributions were used to reconstruct the tumor temperature distribution. Using this procedure, the sensitivity of the reconstructed tumor temperature distribution to model-related errors, such as the perfusion function, was studied. It was found that: 1) if the problem is conduction dominated, large errors in the perfusion distribution produce only small errors in the reconstructed temperature distribution (maximum error >
Enhanced peel resistance of fiber reinforced phenolic foams

Abstract Short-fiber reinforced phenolic foams were synthesized and characterized by climbing drum peel tests and tensile tests. Significant improvements in mechanical properties were realized, including a multiple-fold increase in peel strength. Because peel strength is closely linked to the fracture toughness of foams, particular attention was focused on the mechanism responsible for the enhanced peel resistance. Scanning electron microscope observations revealed that phenolic foams reinforced with aramid fibers exhibited a unique ‘micro-peel’ process. This process was caused by a moderately weak interface between the flexible aramid fibers and the surrounding phenolic matrix, resulting in higher toughness relative to similar foams reinforced with stiffer glass fibers. In addition, a design-of-experiments analysis supported the expectation that fiber loading and length were primary factors contributing to the improved peel strength.
A Ladder of Empowerment

Empowerment is often envisioned as a solution to poverty acceptable to both the political right and left. Yet the question that is rarely asked or answered is, What is empowerment? While the empowerment literature provides a rich array of techniques and goals through which individuals and groups seek to alter their circumstances, it is contradictory in assumptions and emphases and provides little coherence or structure with which to make informed decisions. This paper develops a typology, a ladder of empowerment, based on existing empowerment literature, so that planners and others may gain a clearer understanding of empowerment and its varied potential.
Extreme Dependence of gH and gL Expression on ORF57 and Association with Highly Unusual Codon Usage in Rhesus Monkey Rhadinovirus

Standard vectors for high-level expression elicited undetectable levels of the gH and gL glycoproteins of rhesus monkey rhadinovirus (RRV) following transient-transfection assays under a variety of conditions. These same vectors and conditions yielded high levels of RRV gB expression. Unlike other genes of RRV, both the gH and gL genes were noted to have a highly aberrant, suboptimal codon usage. High levels of RRV gH and gL expression were achieved by two alternative means: codon optimization or coexpression of RRV ORF57. The failure of gH and gL to be expressed in the absence of ORF57 and in the absence of codon optimization could not be explained by the failure of RNA to egress from the nucleus. Rather, the defect in gH and gL expression appeared to be cytoplasmic in nature. It is not clear at the present time whether the aberrant codon usage for gH and gL of RRV is an intentional regulatory strategy used by the virus or whether it is driven by some external force, such as intrinsic immunity. In any event, our results indicate that the need of ORF57 for gH and gL expression can be circumvented by codon optimization, that RRV ORF57 acts principally to allow translation of gH and gL RNA in the cytoplasm, and that this activity of ORF57 is related in some way to the aberrant codon usage of the gH and gL RNAs.
Material options for restoring intentionally misaligned implants on maxillary edentulous arch: A clinical report

Without major bone grafting procedures, anatomic challenges may dictate less than ideal implant placement. When surgical correction is impossible, it may be possible to place implants on an angle and use angled abutments to compensate. This article presents 2 patient treatments where angled abutments were used to facilitate the fabrication of an implant-supported fixed complete-arch prosthesis. In both scenarios the supporting bars for the prostheses were milled in titanium. Soft tissue shaded ceramic was used to simulate the soft tissues for one patient and soft tissue shaded composite resin was used for the second. The prostheses were completed by cementing 12 individual crowns on each bar.
Inhibition of Polyomavirus ori-Dependent DNA Replication by mSin3B

When tethered in cis to DNA, the transcriptional corepressor mSin3B inhibits polyomavirus (Py) ori-dependent DNA replication in vivo. Histone deacetylases (HDACs) appear not to be involved, since tethering class I and class II HDACs in cis does not inhibit replication and treating the cells with trichostatin A does not specifically relieve inhibition by mSin3B. However, the mSin3B L59P mutation that impairs mSin3B interaction with N-CoR/SMRT abrogates inhibition of replication, suggesting the involvement of N-CoR/SMRT. Py large T antigen interacts with mSin3B, suggesting an HDAC-independent mechanism by which mSin3B inhibits DNA replication.
Effects of bovine somatotropin on milk yield and composition, dry matter intake, and some physiological functions of Holstein cows during heat stress.

Abstract Thirteen Holstein cows (46 to 106 d postpartum) were assigned to a partially balanced incomplete block experiment to evaluate effects of bovine somatotropin (20.6 mg monomer/d) and environment (shade and no shade) on milk yield and composition, feed intake, rectal temperature, respiration rate, and concentrations of hormones in plasma. Two treatment periods were 29 d each, preceded by 10-d preliminary periods. Water and cotton seed hull-based diet were available ad libitum. Mathematical model for statistical analyses included cow, period, treatment, environment, day, and estimable interactions. Black globe temperature and respiration rate and rectal temperature of cows were higher in no shade. Milk and 3.5% FCM yields and feed intake of cows in no shade were approximately 9.5 and 16% less than for cows in shade. Much of the effect of heat stress was associated with reduced DM intake. The 3.5% FCM, but not milk yield, was increased by injections of bovine somatotropin. Dry matter intake was unaffected, but milk, 3.5% FCM, and component yields were increased by bovine somatotropin when adjusted for DM intake. Response of cows to bovine somatotropin was not different in the two environments, except cows injected with bovine somatotropin had slightly higher body temperature and respiration rate. Increased production responses of heat-stressed cows due to bovine somatotropin were less than in cows injected under more temperate conditions.
DESTINATION EFFECTS: RESIDENTIAL MOBILITY AND TRAJECTORIES OF ADOLESCENT VIOLENCE IN A STRATIFIED METROPOLIS*

Two landmark policy interventions to improve the lives of youth through neighborhood mobility—the Gautreaux program in Chicago and the Moving to Opportunity (MTO) experiments in five cities— have produced conflicting results and have created a puzzle with broad implications: Do residential moves between neighborhoods increase or decrease violence, or both? To address this question, we analyze data from a subsample of adolescents ages 9–12 years from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods, a longitudinal study of children and their families that began in Chicago—the site of the original Gautreaux program and one of the MTO experiments. We propose a dynamic modeling strategy to separate the effects of residential moving across three waves of the study from dimensions of neighborhood change and metropolitan location. The results reveal countervailing effects of mobility on trajectories of violence; whereas * We thank Stephen W. Raudenbush for his comments and collaborative work on some of the difficult modeling issues that we faced and three anonymous
Improved mutants from directed evolution are biased to orthologous substitutions

We have engineered human epidermal growth factor (EGF) by directed evolution through yeast surface display for significantly enhanced affinity for the EGF receptor (EGFR). Statistical analysis of improved EGF mutants isolated from randomly mutated yeast-displayed libraries indicates that mutations are biased towards substitutions at positions exhibiting significant phylogenetic variation. In particular, mutations in high-affinity EGF mutants are statistically biased towards residues found in orthologous EGF species. This same trend was also observed with other proteins engineered through directed evolution in our laboratory (EGFR, interleukin-2) and in a meta-analysis of reported results for engineered subtilisin. By contrast, reported loss-of-function mutations in EGF were biased towards highly conserved positions. Based on these findings, orthologous mutations were introduced into a yeast-displayed EGF library by a process we term shotgun ortholog scanning mutagenesis (SOSM). EGF mutants with a high frequency of the introduced ortholog mutations were isolated through screening the library for enhanced binding affinity to soluble EGFR ectodomain. These mutants possess a 30-fold increase in binding affinity over wild-type EGF to EGFR-transfected fibroblasts and are among the highest affinity EGF proteins to be engineered to date. Collectively, our findings highlight a general approach for harnessing information present in phylogenetic variability to create useful genetic diversity for directed evolution. Our SOSM method exploits the benefits of library diversity obtained through complementary methods of error-prone PCR and DNA shuffling, while circumventing the need for acquisition of multiple genes for family or synthetic shuffling.
Surveillance and Tracking System with Collaboration of Robots, Sensor Nodes, and RFID Tags

In this paper, we propose a divide and conquer based surveillance framework, in which a large surveillance area is divided into small areas by critical points and critical lines. Sensor nodes, sinks, robots, and RFID tags are all used. We deploy sensor nodes along critical lines only instead of all over the region. Our aim is to do surveillance with efficient deployment of sensor nodes and sinks, and to detect then track and even capture targets, e.g., an intrusion tank or forest fire, with the collaboration of robots and sensor nodes. In this paper, we propose a divide and conquer based surveillance framework, in which a large surveillance area is divided into small areas by critical points and critical lines. We deploy sensor nodes along critical lines to capture or detect abnormal events, e.g., intrusion tank or forest fire. We study boundary coverage along critical lines under several conditions including regular deployment, uniform deployment, and deployment with Poisson distribution. Meanwhile, to save energy and extend the lifetime of the network, we apply Randomized Scheduling Scheme. Based on the discussion of boundary coverage, we achieve an abstract model of the problem which provides an optimizing solution to surveillance problem. The goal of this paper is to provide maximum surveillance in terms of coverage with limited resources, i.e., a limit number of stationary sensor nodes and mobile robots. We believe that our proposed framework is very useful for many surveillance applications.
Specification and Implementation of Social Science Models

Social science knowledge is best approached qualitatively, and efforts to force research into quantitative form (as with statistical analysis of, say, terrorist incidents versus alleged determinants) are often counterproductive because the data analysis of historical events is intellectually flawed, with problems of hidden variables, uncontrolled variables, and poor proxy variables. This chapter demonstrates that qualitative causal models can be more informative even if they cannot be used to make predictions as one would use a weather model or a model of whether precision-guided munitions would be able to destroy some particular target. They can be valuable for structuring issues, explaining what happens, and planning under uncertainty. Although the causal-loop or influence-diagram methods of system dynamics are powerful qualitatively, the uncertainties in dynamics are significantly worse even than those in a static situation. The chapter focuses on the static depiction and then discusses dynamics qualitatively.
Prediction of Institutional Misconduct Among Civil Psychiatric Patients: Evaluating the Role of Correctional Adaptations

Research has shown that psychiatric patients with criminal histories report attitudes reminiscent of the prison culture that predict therapeutic alliance. This study examined the impact of these “correctional adaptations” on the behavior of a sample of 75 discharged civil psychiatric patients whose medical charts were reviewed for incidents of institutional misconduct including cigarette dealing, drug use, and weapons possession. Patients had been previously administered the Psychopathy Checklist–Screening Version (PCL-SV), Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), and Structured Assessment of Correctional Adaptation (SACA). Of the sample, 53% (n = 40) committed at least one act of misconduct, with an average of M = 2.8 (range = 0–18, SD = 4.27) incidents. Bivariate analyses revealed a significant relationship between incidents and the total SACA score, rs(74) = .33, p = .004. Ordinal regression analyses showed the SACA to be significantly predictive of misconduct, regardless of arrest history.
Genetic polymorphism at Val80 (rs700518) of the CYP19A1 gene is associated with aromatase inhibitor associated bone loss in women with ER (+) breast cancer☆☆☆

Abstract Purpose Polymorphisms in the CYP19A1 (aromatase) gene have been reported to influence disease-free survival and the incidence of musculoskeletal complaints in patients taking aromatase inhibitors (AIs) for estrogen receptor positive (ER +) breast cancer. Bone loss and fractures are well-recognized complications from AI therapy. The objective of this study is to determine the influence of polymorphisms in the CYP19A1 gene on bone loss among patients taking aromatase inhibitors for ER + breast cancer. Patients and methods The subjects consisted of 97 postmenopausal women with ER + breast cancer who were initiated on third-generation AIs. Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry at baseline and at 6 and 12 months. Twenty-four hour urine N-telopeptide (NTX) was measured by Elisa and serum estradiol was measured by ultrasensitive radioimmunoassay at baseline, and at 6 months. Genotyping was done by Taqman SNP allelic discrimination assay. Results Women with the AA genotype for the rs700518 (G/A at Val 80 ) developed significant bone loss at the lumbar spine and the total hip at 12 months relative to patients carrying the G allele (GA/GG); both p = 0.03. There was a borderline greater increase in urinary NTX in those with the AA genotype compared to patients with the G allele, p = 0.05; but no significant difference in changes in estradiol levels among the genotypes. Conclusion Patients with the AA genotype for the rs700518 polymorphism in the CYP19A1 gene are at risk for AI-associated bone loss and deserve close follow-up during long-term AI therapy.
Fibroblastic reticular cell infection by hemorrhagic fever viruses

Viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHFs) often cause high mortality with high infectivity, multiorgan failure, shock and hemorrhagic diathesis. Fibroblastic reticular cells (FRCs) within secondary lymphoid organs provide a supporting scaffold to T-lymphocyte areas. These cells regulate the movement of various immune cells and soluble molecules that promote T-lymphocyte homeostasis. We previously reported Ebola virus infection of FRCs, but ascribed little significance to this finding. Here, we studied infection of FRCs by Ebola, Marburg and Lassa viruses. We demonstrate that FRCs, or the extracellular ‘conduit’ of the fibroblastic reticulum of nonhuman primates, are targets of Ebola, Marburg and Lassa viruses. Furthermore, we observed that FRC damage correlates temporally and spatially with lymphocyte damage and that FRCs serve as nidi of fibrin deposition. In addition, we show that nonhuman primate FRCs express p75 NGF receptor and tissue transglutaminase. Our data suggest that viral infection of FRCs may be cruci...
Engineering Redox-Sensitive Linkers for Genetically Encoded FRET-Based Biosensors

The ability to sense intracellular or intraorganellar reduction/oxidation conditions would provide a powerful tool for studying normal cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. Genetically encoded biosensors enable monitoring of the intracellular redox environment. We report the development of chimeric polypeptides useful as redox-sensitive linkers in conjunction with Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET). α-helical linkers differing in length were combined with motifs that are sensitive to the redox state of the environment. The first category of linkers included a redox motif found in the thioredoxin family of oxidoreductases. This motif was flanked by two α-helices of equal length. The second and third categories of redox linkers were composed of α-helices with embedded adjacent and dispersed vicinal cysteine residues, respectively. The linkers containing redox switches were placed between a FRET pair of enhanced cyan and yellow fluorescent proteins and these constructs were tested subsequ...
A Knowledge-Based Tool for Generating and Verifying Hardware-Ready Embedded Memory Models

Using memory models in a hardware-assisted acceleration/emulation environment, as contrasted with a software simulation environment, is often infused with some very specific problems. This paper describes a novel, yet reliable, methodology to capture the essential functionalities and timings, from a chip designer's perspective, of commonly used embedded memories. The captured data is placed in a structural template for creating a knowledge base, which is transformed into targeted hardware-ready memories. A testbench is also created to verify the new models against the original behavioral models. This methodology has been used for years in many real design projects with great success.
Tobacco Industry Opposition to Designating Environmental Tobacco Smoke Through E-codes

This manuscript examines the public policy importance of 1993, United States Department of Health and Human Services actions to require doctors and hospitals to report a new external cause of injury code or E-code for environmental tobacco smoke related to causes of death such as lung cancer and severe heart disease. Methods included a qualitative archival analysis of all previously internal tobacco industry documents, pertinent newspaper and magazine articles, Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights database, and pertinent websites regarding environmental tobacco smoke and E-codes from 1993 to 1998. The E-code has continued to the present because of scientific and administrative recognition that environmental tobacco smoke is conclusively linked to illness and death. The industry argued that the E-code was unnecessary because of costs to business and no conclusive scientific evidence linking environmental tobacco smoke with pulmonary and cardiovascular deaths. This regulatory action based on current scientific evidence and medical decision–making contradicts the industry's claim that no deaths are conclusively associated with environmental tobacco smoke.
Clinical Manifestations of Genital Infection Due to Chlamydia trachomatis in Women: Differences Related to Serovar

The relationship between the infecting Chlamydia trachomatis serovar and the clinical manifestations of genital tract infection was evaluated in a study of 155 women attending a sexually transmitted diseases clinic; 99 women had lower genital tract infection and 56 had Chlamydia-associated pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). In the group with lower genital tract infection, women with serovar F differed from those with serovars of class B or C in that they exhibited fewer signs of cervical infection, including easily induced bleeding (P = .04), edema of the zone of cervical ectopy (P = .06), and colposcopic evidence of mucopurulent endocervical discharge (P = .007). Serovar F also produced fewer infections with inclusion counts of > or = 1,000 and fewer rectal infections (P = .04). There was no apparent association of any specific serovar with PID. Thus, in this population, serovar F was associated with fewer objective clinical manifestations of mucopurulent endocervical discharge, and the distribution of chlamydial serovars found in PID reflected that found in lower genital tract infection.