cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Facilitatory effect of thinking about movement on motor-evoked potentials to transcranial magnetic stimulation of the brain

Two experiments using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) were undertaken to investigate facilitatory effects of thinking about a specific movement without voluntary discharges on motor-evoked potentials (MEP). First, surface electromyographic (EMG) responses from the abductor pollicis brevis were recorded with maximal stimulator output in the three conditions: the muscle being at rest, contracting with 10% of maximal muscle activity, and with the subject "only thinking" about thumb abduction (nine subjects). Median value of MEP amplitudes during "only thinking" was twice that at rest (P = 0.008) and one-half that during voluntary contraction (P = 0.008). Second, needle EMG responses from the first dorsal interosseus were compared at rest, during thinking about index finger abduction, and during TMS at threshold intensity. Four normal subjects were tested with stimulation of each cerebral hemisphere for a total of eight tests. The number of detectable MEP responses of 20 stimuli to one hemisphere was counted for each condition of rest or thinking. The mean MEP response rate during thinking (58%) was higher than that at rest (12%) (P < 0.005). These results demonstrate that thinking about a specific movement has facilitatory effects on MEP and that the degree of facilitation in thinking is smaller than in voluntary contraction.
Sociology in the women’s annex: Inequality and integration at Harvard and Radcliffe, 1879–1947

This article examines gender stratification in sociology by analyzing how the subject was presented to undergraduates at Harvard and Radcliffe from the late nineteenth century to the mid-1940s. Data for relevant courses in economics and social ethics, as well as sociology, demonstrate that women were disadvantaged throughout the period. The analysis also shows, however, that women gradually attained relative equality, and argues that gender integration was always a covert goal of Harvard's policy of "coordinate education." The article explains the process of equalization in terms of cooperative relationships in informal work groups. Ironically, however, integration disempowered Harvard faculty and Radcliffe administrators while augmenting the power of Harvard's centralizing administration.
Carbon Sequestration in Clay Mineral Fractions from 14C-Labeled Plant Residues

An understanding of organic C dynamics in soils is necessary to develop management options to enhance soil organic C sequestration. The objective of this research was to study the distribution of newly formed humic materials into mineralogically distinct clay-size fractions of a silt loam soil. Oats (Avena sativa L. cv. Ogle), grown under simulated no-tillage conditions, were pulse labeled with 14 CO 2 . After senescence, the labeled surface residue was removed and replaced with unlabeled residue and the labeled roots were allowed to decompose in the soil for 360 d. The soil clay fraction (<2 μm) was separated into coarse, medium, and fine clay size-fractions (0.2-2.0, 0.02-0.2, and <0.02 μm, respectively) by centrifugation. X-ray diffraction indicated that quartz, illite, and kaolinite were the dominant mineral phases in the coarse clay fraction while smectite was the dominant mineral phase in the fine clay fraction. The organic C content in the coarse and fine clay fractions (3.70 and 3.93%, respectively) was similar. Scintillation analysis indicated an increase in 14 C specific activity in all fractions after 360 d of incubation. For both sampling times, 0 and 360 d, the highest 14 C specific activity occurred in the fine clay fraction (847.2 and 1529 Bq g -1 C, respectively), whereas the lowest 14 C specific activity occurred in the coarse clay fraction (565.8 and 770.9 Bq g -1 C, respectively). The results suggest that new humic materials are preferentially forming or accumulating on smectite surfaces.
Fast kinetics of calcium liberation induced in Xenopus oocytes by photoreleased inositol trisphosphate

Inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (InsP3) acts on intracellular receptors to cause liberation of Ca2+ ions into the cytosol as repetitive spikes and propagating waves. We studied the processes underlying this regenerative release of Ca2+ by monitoring with high resolution the kinetics of Ca2+ flux evoked in Xenopus oocytes by flash photolysis of caged InsP3. Confocal microfluorimetry was used to monitor intracellular free [Ca2+] from femtoliter volumes within the cell, and the underlying Ca2+ flux was then derived from the rate of increase of the fluorescence signals. A threshold amount of InsP3 had to be photoreleased to evoke any appreciable Ca2+ signal, and the amount of liberated Ca2+ then increased only approximately fourfold with maximal stimulation, whereas the peak rate of increase of Ca2+ varied over a range of nearly 20-fold, reaching a maximum of approximately 150 microMs-1. Ca2+ flux increased as a first-order function of [InsP3]. Indicating a lack of cooperativity in channel opening, and was half-maximal with stimuli approximately 10 times threshold. After a brief photolysis flash, Ca2+ efflux began after a quiescent latent period that shortened from several hundred milliseconds with near-threshold stimuli to 25 ms with maximal flashes. This delay could not be explained by an initial "foot" of Ca2+ increasing toward a threshold at which regenerative release was triggered, and the onset of release seemed too abrupt to be accounted for by multiple sequential steps involved in channel opening. Ca2+ efflux increased to a maximum after the latent period in a time that reduced from > 100 ms to approximately 8 ms with increasing [InsP3] and subsequently declined along a two-exponential time course: a rapid fall with a time constant shortening from > 100 ms to approximately 25 ms with increasing [InsP3], followed by a much smaller fail persisting for several seconds. The results are discussed in terms of a model in which InsP3 receptors must undergo a slow transition after binding InsP3 before they can be activated by cytosolic Ca2+ acting as a co-agonist. Positive feedback by liberated Ca2+ ions then leads to a rapid increase in efflux to a maximal rate set by the proportion of receptors binding InsP3. Subsequently, Ca2+ efflux terminates because of a slower inhibitory action of cytosolic Ca2+ on gating of InsP3 receptor-channels.
Future approaches in immunotherapy

Advances in our understanding of the complex mechanisms of immune regulation and the interactions between tumor cells and the immune system have provided a solid foundation for advancing cancer immunotherapy and have inspired novel therapeutic strategies. Optimizing the effectiveness of immunotherapy will require targeting the antitumor immune response at multiple levels, and this may be achieved through synergistic combinations. Examples include combining two cancer vaccines to achieve a "prime and boost" effect, combining two immune checkpoint inhibitors, combining immunotherapy with targeted agents, or combining immunotherapy with low-dose chemotherapy or radiation. Immune checkpoint inhibitors, such as ipilimumab and nivolumab, will likely play an important role in the future of immunotherapy. The ability to block key pathways by which tumor cells seek to evade or suppress the immune response is critical to realizing the potential of cancer immunotherapy. Other exciting advances include recombinant oncolytic viruses and adoptive transfer of chimeric antigen receptor T cells. However, many challenges remain if durable tumor eradication with minimal toxicity is to be achieved in a broader population of cancer patients.
Effect of a neutral N2 cloud on the electrical charging of an electron beam‐emitting rocket in the ionosphere: Echo IV

The interaction of 114 moles of neutral N2 and a 40-kV, 80 mA electron beam was studied during the Echo IV rocket flight. Neutralizing return currents to the rocket body preferentially followed a route back through the region where the electron beam interacted with the cloud. Photometric observations of a complex luminous discharge accompanying beam injection are reported. Observations of 3914-A emission produced by the beam indicated a maximum neutral N2 number density of nearly 10 to the 15th power per cu cm. An oscillatory discharge with a frequency somewhat lower than the N2 (+) ion gyrofrequency was noted at one point.
Hydride imaging using scanning Auger spectroscopy

Abstract Scanning Auger spectroscopy has been used for the first time in the imaging of hydrides. Results of this technique on deuterium implanted titanium samples have proven to be extremely sensitive to local variations in the deuterium-substrate loading ratios.
The Unusually Poor Physical Health Status of Cambodian Refugees Two Decades After Resettlement

To better document the health status of Cambodian refugees, the physical health functioning, disability, and general health status of Cambodian refugees was compared to that of non-refugee Asian immigrants with similar demographic characteristics. Data were collected between October 2003 and February 2005, from 490 face-to-face interviews conducted with a stratified probability sample of households from the Cambodian community in Long Beach, California. Data on the health status of the general adult population (n = 56,270) was taken from the California Health Interview Survey, a telephone interview of a representative sample California residents. Cambodian refugees reported exceedingly poor health when compared to both the general population to the Asian participants. This disparity was only slightly reduced when Cambodian refugees were compared to the subsample of Asian immigrants who were matched on gender, age, income, and urbanicity. Although Cambodians refugees are older and poorer than the general population, their poor health cannot be fully attributed to these risk factors. Research is needed to guide health policy and practices aimed at eliminating this health disparity.
Physiological reactivity during autobiographical narratives in older adults: the roles of depression and anxiety.

Objectives: Physiological reactivity (PR) describes the change in physiological functioning (e.g., heart rate, blood pressure, pulse pressure) that occurs after the induction of a stressful task. This study aims to understand the influence of mental health symptoms on patterns of PR during autobiographical narratives in an older adult sample.Method: Eighty older adults completed self-report measures regarding their symptoms of depression and anxiety. Next, their blood pressure was recorded while they completed two verbal autobiographical narratives.Results: During the positive narrative, anxiety was positively associated with increased PR while depression was negatively associated with PR. During the negative narrative, a significant interaction occurred whereby anxiety was significantly positively associated with PR for those participants low in depression.Discussion: The above results are explained in the context of the Tripartite Model of Depression and Anxiety, which predicts different patterns of PR ...
Composite MRI Scores Improve Correlation with EDSS in Multiple Sclerosis

Background: Quantitative measures derived from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have been widely investigated as non-invasive biomarkers in multiple sclerosis (MS). However, the correlation of sing...
Blackbody Radiation Law: Quantum or Classical Explanation?

The long-time behavior of a system of two nonlinear oscillators interacting through a linear continuous string is investigated numerically. The string is treated exactly (no spatial lattice). It is found that such classical systems display many features normally associated with quantum mechanics, such as a phase space which breaks up into an infinite number of finite-size cells of ergodic motion.
Sales Prediction with Social Media Analysis

Social media has been valuable sources to predict the future outcomes of some events such as box-office movie revenues or political elections. This paper focuses on periodic forecasting problems of product sales based on social media analysis and time-series analysis. In particular, we present a predictive model of monthly automobile sales using sentiment and topical keyword frequencies related to the target brand over time on social media. Our predictive model illustrates how different time scale-based predictors derived from sentiment and topical keyword frequencies can improve the prediction of the future sales.
Aged rats: diminished sympathetic—adrenal medullary responses to acute stress

Plasma levels of norepinephrine and epinephrine were measured before and after acute exposure of Fischer 344 male rats (4, 12, and 24 months old) to 1 min of inescapable footshock. Basal plasma levels of both catecholamines were similar in animals of the three ages prior to the stress treatment. In contrast, footshock-induced increments in plasma levels of norepinephrine and epinephrine of 12- and 24-month-old rats were 38–63% less than those of young adults. In addition, there was an age-related decrease in the locomotor response to footshock. Thus, a diminished responsiveness of the sympathetic—adrenal medullary system may underlie the reduced capacity of aged animals to adapt to stressful stimulation.
Charge-density wave and superconductor competition in stripe phases of high-temperature superconductors

We discuss the problem of competition between a superconducting (SC) ordered state and a charge-density wave (CDW) state in stripe phases of high ${T}_{c}$ superconductors. We consider an effective model for each stripe motivated by studies of spin-gapped electronic ladder systems. We analyze the problem of dimensional crossover arising from interstripe SC and CDW couplings using non-Abelian bosonization and renormalization group (RG) arguments to derive an effective $O(4)$-symmetric nonlinear $\ensuremath{\sigma}$ model in $D=2+1$ for the case when both interstripe couplings are of equal magnitude as well as equally RG relevant. By studying the effects of various symmetry lowering perturbations, we determine the structure of the phase diagram and show that, in general, it has a broad regime in which both orders coexist. The quantum and thermal critical behavior is discussed in detail, and the phase coexistence region is found to end at associated $T=0$ as well as $Tg0$ tetracritical points. The possible role of hedgehog topological excitations of the theory is considered and argued to be RG irrelevant at the spatially anisotropic higher dimensional low-energy fixed point theory. Our results are also relevant to the case of competing N\'eel and valence bond solid orders in quantum magnets on two-dimensional isotropic square as well as rectangular lattices interacting via nearest-neighbor Heisenberg exchange interactions.
A defensin-like gene expressed in the black-legged tick, Ixodes scapularis.

Abstract. The black-legged tick Ixodes scapularis Linnaeus (Acari: Ixodidae) is an important vector of microbial pathogens. Knowledge of the tick's innate immune response, particularly defensin and other antimicrobial peptides, is important for understanding how microbes survive in this tick. A defensin gene (slnA) from I. scapularis was obtained by reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (RT–PCR) using mRNA extracted from tissues of female ticks. RT–PCR indicated the gene was expressed in the midgut, haemocytes, and fat-body, although no evidence of a peptide was found. Sequencing a cloned cDNA fragment revealed a 225 bp open reading frame encoding a 74 amino acid pre-prodefensin, including the putative 38 amino acid mature peptide. Similarity between the defensin amino acid sequences of I. scapularis and Dermacentor variabilis (Say) (Acari: Ixodidae) was 62.2% for the pre-prodefensin region; for the mature defensins from these two species the similarity was 78.9%, with the six cysteine residues being located in the same relative position. PCR amplification and sequencing of chromosomal DNA suggests that slnA, along with vsnA, the defensin gene from D. variabilis, does not contain any introns. This is in contrast to the defensins described for the soft tick, Ornithodoros moubata (sensu Walton) (Acari: Argasidae). The role of defensin in the innate immune response of I. scapularis following microbial invasions is discussed.
Alterations in fibrin detected in coronary sinus blood after heparin and coronary angiography with a nonionic contrast agent (iohexol).

Abstract Although heparin and some radiographic contrast agents inhibit coagulation, thrombi can still form in their presence. The chemical environment in which a thrombus forms affects fibrin structure that may alter the ability of the thrombus to be lysed. Therefore, we assessed changes in fibrin structure in 13 patients referred for coronary angiography. Blood was obtained from the femoral vein, femoral artery, ascending aorta, left main coronary artery (LMCA), and coronary sinus (CS) before, during, and after coronary angiography was performed with iohexol. The number of fibrin monomers per fiber cross section was determined by turbidity measurements of fibrin gels formed from plasma samples. At baseline there was no difference in the number of fibrin monomers per fiber cross section in plasma gels generated from the different sampling sites. After iohexol administration, there was a significant decrease in the number of fibrin monomers per fiber cross section at the sampling sites ranging from −13% to −25% compared with the respective baseline values with the largest change in the LMCA CS (51 ± 16 to 38 ± 15, p
Effect of prostaglandin F2 alpha on sperm transport in the reproductive tract of female macaques (M. fascicularis).

This investigation was designed to evaluate the effect of prostaglandin F2α on sperm transport and the fate of spermatozoa in the primate reproductive tract of nonhuman primate. Six adult female crab-eating macaques were bred at midcycle to males of known fertility and sperm quality. Treated (3) and untreated (3) females were matched with regard to amount and properties of cervical mucus, follicular maturation as determined by laparoscopy and preovulatory LH surge. Prostaglandin F2α was administered in four subcutaneous injections of 2.5 mg each every 2.5 hr, between mating and autopsy. Twelve hours after mating the reproductive tract was fixed in vivo. Sagittal sections were made from the cervix and uterine corpus. Longitudinal serial sections were made from the oviducts. Spermatozoa were counted in histological sections. The mean values, standard error and ranges were evaluated for treated and untreated animals, using Student's t-test for statistical analysis. The significantly higher numbers of spermat...
Changes in Imja Tsho in the Mount Everest region of Nepal

Abstract. Imja Tsho, located in the Sagarmatha (Everest) National Park of Nepal, is one of the most studied and rapidly growing lakes in the Himalayan range. Compared with previous studies, the results of our sonar bathymetric survey conducted in September of 2012 suggest that its maximum depth has increased from 90.5 to 116.3 ± 5.2 m since 2002, and that its estimated volume has grown from 35.8 ± 0.7 to 61.7 ± 3.7 million m3. Most of the expansion of the lake in recent years has taken place in the glacier terminus–lake interface on the eastern end of the lake, with the glacier receding at about 52 m yr−1 and the lake expanding in area by 0.04 km2 yr−1. A ground penetrating radar survey of the Imja–Lhotse Shar glacier just behind the glacier terminus shows that the ice is over 200 m thick in the center of the glacier. The volume of water that could be released from the lake in the event of a breach in the damming moraine on the western end of the lake has increased to 34.1 ± 1.08 million m3 from the 21 million m3 estimated in 2002.
Garbage Culture and The Culture of Garbage: The Solid Waste Management Quagmire:

We live in a profligate world. Sustainability may require substantial change in our conception of natural resources. But what change should be made? And what may happen if basic social and cultural...
Raman imaging for quantification of the volume fraction of biodegradable polymers in histological preparations

Postretrieval analysis of biodegradable polymeric constructs for degradation rates requires correct identification of the degradable polymer, de novo tissue and the confounding presence of a secondary polymer used for embedding. Similarities between the structures of many tissue engineering polymers may make them difficult to distinguish from the polymer used to embed explants prior to histological sectioning. In this study, we assessed the feasibility of a chemical imaging method, Raman microscopy, to discriminate between more than one polymer species. From the perspective of spectroscopy, this is not a straightforward process because of the emergence of multiple peaks, ubiquity of embedding medium, and presence of observations sourcing from points sampled at the interface of two phases. A multivariate K-means data clustering method was used to discriminate between different polymeric components. The method was able to classify 95% of the observations to the correct category. The remaining data displayed multiple memberships because of (1) the laser spot coinciding with the interfaces of more than one phase or (2) infiltration of histological embedding polymer. Combined with multivariate analysis methods, this technique may prove useful in the future for tissue engineering and biomaterials analysis of degradation rates of, and tissue ingrowth into, polymer scaffolds.
Sexual Dysfunction after Uterine Artery Embolization

JVIR 2000; 11:755–758 HYSTERECTOMY has been the traditional treatment of choice for symptomatic uterine leiomyomata and is relatively safe; however, it has inherent complications, some of which have been a source of debate. Thakar et al discussed changes in bladder, bowel, and sexual function after hysterectomy, including increased urinary incontinence, increased constipation, decreased vaginal lubrication, and altered orgasmic sensations (1). Conversely, Virtanen et al contended that hysterectomy does not produce adverse urinary or sexual symptoms, as evidenced by their finding of reduced urinary incontinence and no change in orgasms evaluated at 1 year after surgery (2). It is undeniable, however, that the uterus is related to sexuality and femininity (3). The uterus has represented an integral part of the sexual response, as recognized by Masters and Johnson (4). The substantial emotional and psychological problems that may occur in a woman after hysterectomy are well-described (3,5–7). It is, therefore, understandable why a woman may consider herself as “one-half of a woman,” “desexed,” and even as an “empty woman” after hysterectomy (3). With all the potential surgical and psychological complications, a recent trend toward other less-invasive treatments is surfacing. An emerging option is the use of uterine artery embolization for the treatment of uterine fibroids. Reported major complications include death (8,9), pelvic infections (10,11), and amenorrhea (12–14). Unlike hysterectomy, no reports of sexual dysfunction after uterine artery embolization have been reported based on our review of the literature. We present a patient who developed sexual dysfunction after embolotherapy.
Statins are associated with lower risk of gastrointestinal bleeding in patients with unstable coronary syndromes: analysis of the Orbofiban in Patients with Unstable coronary Syndromes-Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction 16 (OPUS-TIMI 16) trial.

Background It has recently been shown that statins increase the myocardial content of prostaglandin (PG) I2 (prostacyclin) and PGE2. A systemic increase of PG production may protect the gastric mucosa and prevent gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding. We hypothesized that statins would lower the risk of GI bleeding associated with antiplatelet therapy in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Methods We retrospectively analyzed data on 10 288 patients with ACS included in the OPUS-TIMI 16 trial and received aspirin and either the oral IIb/IIIa inhibitor orbofiban or placebo. Results Inhospital GI bleeding rate was significantly lower in patients who were receiving lipid-lowering drugs before admission compared with those who were not (0.2% vs 0.6%, P = .031). Throughout 10 months of follow-up, GI bleeding occurred in 1.8% of non–statin users compared with 1.0% of statin users (P = .001). Statin use was associated with less overall bleeding in both the orbofiban (1.4% vs 2.4%, P = .006) and the placebo groups (0.2% vs 0.8%, P = .047). Severe and major bleeding occurred less frequently with statin use (0.8% vs 1.5%, P = .001) in both the orbofiban (1.1% vs 2.0%, P = .006) and the placebo groups (0.1% vs 0.5%, P = .119). Logistic regression analysis showed that age >65 years, orbofiban treatment, Killip class >1, history of cerebrovascular disease, and calcium-channel blocker use were associated with higher risk of GI bleeding, whereas statin therapy was associated with a lower risk (odds ratio 0.68, 95% CI 0.45-1.04, P = .079). Conclusions Statins may exert protective effect against GI bleeding in patients with ACS. Additional studies are warranted to explore this additional potential benefit of statins.
A review of the epidemiology of oral and pharyngeal carcinoma: update

Oral and pharyngeal cancers are the sixth most common cancers internationally. In the United States, there are about 30,000 new cases of oral and pharyngeal cancers diagnosed each year. Furthermore, survival rates for oral and pharyngeal cancers have not significantly improved over the last three decades. This review examines the scientific literature surrounding the epidemiology of oral and pharyngeal cancers, including but not limited to risk factors, disparities, preventative factors, and the epidemiology in countries outside the United States. The literature review revealed that much of the research in this field has been focused on alcohol, tobacco, and their combined effects on oral and pharyngeal cancers. The literature on oral and pharyngeal cancer disparities among racial groups also appears to be growing. However, less literature is available on the influence of dietary factors on these cancers. Finally, effective interventions for the reduction of oral and pharyngeal cancers are discussed.
The AF-6 Homolog Canoe Acts as a Rap1 Effector During Dorsal Closure of the Drosophila Embryo

Rap1 belongs to the highly conserved Ras subfamily of small GTPases. In Drosophila, Rap1 plays a critical role in many different morphogenetic processes, but the molecular mechanisms executing its function are unknown. Here, we demonstrate that Canoe (Cno), the Drosophila homolog of mammalian junctional protein AF-6, acts as an effector of Rap1 in vivo. Cno binds to the activated form of Rap1 in a yeast two-hybrid assay, the two molecules colocalize to the adherens junction, and they display very similar phenotypes in embryonic dorsal closure (DC), a process that relies on the elongation and migration of epithelial cell sheets. Genetic interaction experiments show that Rap1 and Cno act in the same molecular pathway during DC and that the function of both molecules in DC depends on their ability to interact. We further show that Rap1 acts upstream of Cno, but that Rap1, unlike Cno, is not involved in the stimulation of JNK pathway activity, indicating that Cno has both a Rap1-dependent and a Rap1-independent function in the DC process.
Power spectral analysis of Jupiter's clouds and kinetic energy from Cassini

Abstract We present suggestive evidence for an inverse energy cascade within Jupiter’s atmosphere through a calculation of the power spectrum of its kinetic energy and its cloud patterns. Using Cassini observations, we composed full-longitudinal mosaics of Jupiter’s atmosphere at several wavelengths. We also utilized image pairs derived from these observations to generate full-longitudinal maps of wind vectors and atmospheric kinetic energy within Jupiter’s troposphere. We computed power spectra of the image mosaics and kinetic energy maps using spherical harmonic analysis. Power spectra of Jupiter’s cloud patterns imaged at certain wavelengths resemble theoretical spectra of two-dimensional turbulence, with power-law slopes near −5/3 and −3 at low and high wavenumbers, respectively. The slopes of the kinetic energy power spectrum are also near −5/3 at low wavenumbers. At high wavenumbers, however, the spectral slopes are relatively flatter than the theoretical prediction of −3. In addition, the image mosaic and kinetic energy power spectra differ with respect to the location of the transition in slopes. The transition in slope is near planetary wavenumber 70 for the kinetic energy spectra, but is typically above 200 for the image mosaic spectra. Our results also show the importance of calculating spectral slopes from full 2D velocity maps rather than 1D zonal mean velocity profiles, since at large wavenumbers the spectra differ significantly, though at low wavenumbers, the 1D zonal and full 2D kinetic energy spectra are practically indistinguishable. Furthermore, the difference between the image and kinetic energy spectra suggests some caution in the interpretation of power spectrum results solely from image mosaics and its significance for the underlying dynamics. Finally, we also report prominent variations in kinetic energy within the equatorial jet stream that appear to be associated with the 5 μm hotspots. Other eddies are present within the flow collar of the Great Red Spot, suggesting caution when interpreting snapshots of the flow inside these features as representative of a time-averaged state.
Optimal foraging online: Increasing sensitivity to delay

This experiment is a replication and extension of the Rajala and Hantula (2000) study of sensitivity to feedback delay while shopping in a simulated Internet mall. The experiment consisted of three conditions: One group had an ascending clock placed on the computer screen to cue the passage of time, another group had a descending clock placed on the computer screen, and as a control and replication condition, another group had no clock on the computer screen. Participants were more sensitive to the delays in the various stores in the cybermall when an ascending clock was present on the screen. A hyperbolic discount function fit best described the number of entries into each store, amount of time spent in each store, and relative number of purchases in each store. A customer-satisfaction survey showed decreasing positive attitudes toward the stores as a function of delay. These results have implications both in terms of foraging theory applied to human behavior, as well as for the practice of online marketing. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Fine-Resolution Analysis of Products of Intrachromosomal Homeologous Recombination in Mammalian Cells

Mouse Ltk- cell lines that contained a herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) thymidine kinase (tk) gene with a 16-bp insertion mutation linked to either a defective HSV-2 tk gene or a hybrid tk sequence comprised of HSV-1 and HSV-2 tk sequences were constructed. HSV-1 and HSV-2 tk genes have 81% nucleotide identity and hence are homeologous. Correction of the insertion mutant HSV-1 tk gene via recombination with the hybrid tk sequence required an exchange between homeologous tk sequences, although recombination could initiate within a region of significant sequence identity. Seven cell lines containing linked HSV-1 and HSV-1-HSV-2 hybrid tk sequences gave rise to tk+ segregants at an average rate of 10(-8) events per cell division. DNA sequencing revealed that each recombinant from these lines displayed an apparent gene conversion which involved an accurate transfer of an uninterrupted block of information between homeologous tk sequences. Conversion tract lengths ranged from 35 to >330 bp. In contrast, cell lines containing linked HSV-1 and HSV-2 tk sequences with no significant stretches of sequence identity had an overall rate of homeologous recombination of <10(-9). One such cell line produced homeologous recombinants at a rate of 10(-8). Strikingly, all homeologous recombinants from this latter cell line were due to crossovers between the HSV-1 and HSV-2 tk genes. Our results, which provide the first detailed analysis of homeologous recombination within a mammalian genome, suggest that rearrangements in mammalian genomes are regulated by the degree of sequence divergence located at the site of recombination initiation.
Oxidative stress and gamma radiation-induced cancellous bone loss with musculoskeletal disuse

Exposure of astronauts in space to radiation during weightlessness may contribute to subsequent bone loss. Gamma irradiation of postpubertal mice rapidly increases the number of bone-resorbing osteoclasts and causes bone loss in cancellous tissue; similar changes occur in skeletal diseases associated with oxidative stress. Therefore, we hypothesized that increased oxidative stress mediates radiation-induced bone loss and that musculoskeletal disuse changes the sensitivity of cancellous tissue to radiation exposure. Musculoskeletal disuse by hindlimb unloading (1 or 2 wk) or total body gamma irradiation (1 or 2 Gy of 137Cs) of 4-mo-old, male C57BL/6 mice each decreased cancellous bone volume fraction in the proximal tibiae and lumbar vertebrae. The extent of radiation-induced acute cancellous bone loss in tibiae and lumbar vertebrae was similar in normally loaded and hindlimb-unloaded mice. Similarly, osteoclast surface in the tibiae increased 46% as a result of irradiation, 47% as a result of hindlimb unloading, and 64% as a result of irradiation + hindlimb unloading compared with normally loaded mice. Irradiation, but not hindlimb unloading, reduced viability and increased apoptosis of marrow cells and caused oxidative damage to lipids within mineralized tissue. Irradiation also stimulated generation of reactive oxygen species in marrow cells. Furthermore, injection of α-lipoic acid, an antioxidant, mitigated the acute bone loss caused by irradiation. Together, these results showed that disuse and gamma irradiation, alone or in combination, caused a similar degree of acute cancellous bone loss and shared a common cellular mechanism of increased bone resorption. Furthermore, irradiation, but not disuse, may increase the number of osteoclasts and the extent of acute bone loss via increased reactive oxygen species production and ensuing oxidative damage, implying different molecular mechanisms. The finding that α-lipoic acid protected cancellous tissue from the detrimental effects of irradiation has potential relevance to astronauts and radiotherapy patients.
Inpatient Brain MRI for New-Onset Seizures: Utility and Cost Effectiveness:

Inpatient magnetic resonance imaging for evaluation of new-onset afebrile seizures can extend hospital stay, can add cost, and may not affect acute management. The study was to assess cost and impact on acute management of inpatient brain magnetic resonance imagings performed as part of new-onset seizure evaluation. Retrospective chart review of brain magnetic resonance imagings on pediatric inpatients admitted for new-onset afebrile seizure has been carried out. Seventy-five patients were identified. Seventy-one of the patients (95%) stayed an additional day for the magnetic resonance imaging. Thirteen had abnormal results. No patient had treatment changes based upon the magnetic resonance imaging results. If these magnetic resonance imagings had been done as an outpatient, the savings to the hospital could have been $215 575. Thus, obtaining an inpatient brain magnetic resonance imaging for evaluation of new-onset seizures did not lead to acute changes in management and added to facility costs and lengt...
A high‐speed integrated renderer for interpreting multiple 3D volume data

This paper proposes an integrated rendering algorithm for visualizing 3D volumetric and geometric data, such as surfaces, lines and points, simultaneously with depth information, and other algorithms for improving the performance of the rendering process of the first. The first algorithm extends a volume rendering algorithm based on ray-tracing so that it can handle both 3D volumetric and geometric data. It processes these data in accordance with their original representation formats to eliminate conversion artefacts such as spurious or missing surfaces, and also gives special treatment to volume segments so as to avoid errors in visibility at the intersections between volume segments and geometric data. The other algorithms employ adaptive termination of ray-tracing, elimination of rays that do not intersect the volume, and adaptive undersampling over an image plane. These improve the performance by three to seven times over the brute-force approach. The cost and versatility of the algorithm are evaluated by using data from the results of 3D computational fluid dynamics.
Na Impurity Chemistry in Photovoltaic Cigs thin-Films: An Investigation with Photo- and Auger Electron Spectroscopies

The incorporation of Na into Cu(In{sub 1{minus}x}Ga{sub x})Se{sub 2} thin-films is known to lead to an improvement in device performance. The authors use X-ray photoelectron and Auger electron spectroscopies to determine the chemical nature of Na in Cu(In{sub 1{minus}x}Ga{sub x})Se{sub 2} thin-films. The Na concentration is determined to be {approximately}0.1 atomic percent in the bulk of Cu(In{sub 1{minus}x}Ga{sub x})Se{sub 2} thin-films. The Na is chemically bonded to Se. The authors propose a model invoking the replacement of column III elements by Na during the growth of Cu(In{sub 1{minus}x}Ga{sub x})Se{sub 2} thin-films. These Na{sub In} and Na{sub Ga} defects act as acceptor states to increase the p-type conductivity of Cu(In{sub 1{minus}x}Ga{sub x})Se{sub 2} thin-films.
Vector generalized finite element method on tetrahedral meshes and applications of its features in electromagnetic simulations

The vector generalized finite element method (VGFEM) offers several appealing features for solving electromagnetic (EM) problems. These include flexibility on the choice of basis functions, use of different types of basis functions or mixed polynomial orders within a simulation, and inclusion of physics in solution space. These features can be exploited to yield more accurate and convergent solutions to EM problems. In this paper, we would like to demonstrate use of mixed polynomial orders and use of mixed basis functions in the same simulation domain. The VGFEM framework defined on tetrahedral meshes is used in this demonstration for the analysis of both open and closed domain electromagnetic problems.
Ribonuclease S redux

The S-peptide and S-protein components of bovine pancreatic ribonuclease form a noncovalent complex with restored ribonucleolytic activity. Although this archetypal protein-fragment complementation system has been the object of historic work in protein chemistry, intrinsic limitations compromise its utility. Modern methods are shown to overcome those limitations and enable new applications.
TDCS, OFDM, and MC-CDMA: a brief tutorial

This article gives a brief tutorial on transform-domain communication system (TDCS), OFDM, and MC-CDMA. The primary goal of this article is to give a detailed description of the TDCS transmitter and receiver systems and to highlight the fundamental differences relative to OFDM and MC-CDMA. The fundamental idea in TDCS is to synthesize a smart adaptive waveform to avoid interference at the transmitter instead of the more traditional mitigating of interference at the receiver. Unlike OFDM and MC-CDMA, TDCS has very little exposure in the current literature.
Observer design for systems with multivariable monotone nonlinearities

Globally convergent observers are designed for a class of systems with multivariable nonlinearities. The approach is to represent the observer error system as the feedback interconnection of a linear system and a state-dependent multivariable nonlinearity. We first extend an earlier design (Automatica 37 (12) (2001) 1923) to multivariable nonlinearities, satisfying an analog of the scalar nondecreasing property. Next, we exploit the structure of the nonlinearity to relax the positive real restriction on the linear part of the observer error system. This relaxed design renders the feasibility conditions less restrictive, and widens the applicability of the observer, as illustrated with examples. Finally, output nonlinearities are studied and the design is extended to be adaptive in the presence of unknown parameters.
Pricing multicasting in more practical network models

The problem of designing efficient algorithms for sharing the cost of multicasting has recently seen considerable attention. In this paper, we examine the effect on the complexity of pricing when two practical considerations are incorporated into the network model. In particular, we study a model where the session is offered at a number of different rates of transmission, and where there is a cost for enabling multicasting at each node of the network. We consider two techniques that have been used in practice to provide multiple rates: using a layered transmission scheme (called the layered paradigm) and using different multicast groups for each possible rate (called the split session paradigm). We demonstrate that the difference between these two paradigms has a significant impact on the complexity of pricing multicasting.For the layered paradigm, we provide a distributed algorithm for computing pricing efficiently in terms of local computation and message complexity. For the split session paradigm, on the other hand, we demonstrate that this problem can be solved in polynomial time if the number of possible rates is fixed, but if the number of rates is part of the input, then the problem becomes NP-Hard even to approximate. We also examine the effect of delivering the transmissions for the various rates from different locations within the network. We show that in this case, the pricing problem becomes NP-Hard for the split session paradigm even for a fixed constant number of possible rates, but if layering is used, then it can be solved in polynomial time by formulating the problem as a totally unimodular integer program.
A data-driven framework for archiving and exploring social media data

Social media data are available and accumulated at the extra-byte level every day. As social media applications are widely deployed in various platforms from personal computers to mobile devices, they are becoming a natural extension to human sensory system. The synthesis of social media with human intelligence has the potential to be the intelligent sensor network of unprecedented scale and capacity. However, it also poses several grand challenges to archive and retrieve information from massive social media data. One of these challenges is how to archive, retrieve and mine such massive unstructured data set efficiently to support real-time emergency response. To explore potential solutions, this paper utilizes parallel computing methods to harvest social media data sets, using Twitter as an example, and to store, index, query and analyse them. Within this framework, a Not Only SQL database (DB), MongoDB, is used to store data as document entries rather than relational tables. To retrieve information fro...
Physicochemical Properties of Encapsulated Red Raspberry (Rubus idaeus) Powder: Influence of High-Pressure Homogenization

Encapsulated red raspberry (Rubus idaeus) powders with gum arabic were produced using a spray-drying method. The raspberry puree samples were treated with and without high-pressure homogenizers prior to spray drying. The physicochemical properties of spray-dried raspberry powders were analyzed. The median particle size (X 50) of raspberry powder produced with high-pressure homogenized puree (14.6 µm) was smaller than raspberry powder produced without high-pressure homogenization applied to puree (18.3 µm). Glass transition temperatures and water contents of encapsulated raspberry powders were not significantly different (p > 0.05) at equivalent water activities. High-pressure homogenization of puree resulted in greater apparent density and porosity for encapsulated raspberry powder. Greater particle size resulted in higher hygroscopicity and water solubility index (WSI) for encapsulated raspberry powder produced without high-pressure homogenization of puree. Anthocyanins concentration was greater in raspb...
The Isoflavone Genistein Inhibits Internalization of Enteric Bacteria by Cultured Caco-2 and HT-29 Enterocytes

The dietary isoflavone genistein is the focus of much research involving its role as a potential therapeutic agent in a variety of diseases, including cancer and heart disease. However, there is recent evidence that dietary genistein may also have an inhibitory effect on extraintestinal invasion of enteric bacteria. To study the effects of genistein on bacterial adherence and internalization by confluent enterocytes, Caco-2 and HT-29 enterocytes (cultivated for 15-18 d and 21-24 d, respectively) were pretreated for 1 h with 0, 30, 100, or 300 micromol/L genistein, followed by 1-h incubation with pure cultures of Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella typhimurium, Proteus mirabilis, or Escherichia coli. Pretreatment of Caco-2 and HT-29 enterocytes with genistein inhibited bacterial internalization in a dose-dependent manner (r = 0.60-0.79). Compared to untreated enterocytes, 1-h pretreatment with 300 micromol/L genistein was generally associated with decreased bacterial internalization (P < 0. 05) without a corresponding decrease in bacterial adherence. Using Caco-2 cell cultures, decreased bacterial internalization was associated with increased integrity of enterocyte tight junctions [measured by increased transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER)], with alterations in the distribution of enterocyte perijunctional actin filaments (visualized by fluorescein-labeled phalloidin), and with abrogation of the decreased TEER associated with S. typhimurium and E. coli incubation with the enterocytes (P < 0.01). Thus, genistein was associated with inhibition of enterocyte internalization of enteric bacteria by a mechanism that might be related to the integrity of the enterocyte tight junctions, suggesting that genistein might function as a barrier-sustaining agent, inhibiting extraintestinal invasion of enteric bacteria.