cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of abstinence on the brain: quantitative magnetic resonance imaging and magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging in chronic alcohol abuse.

Background: Structural brain damage, especially to white matter, is well documented in chronic alcohol abuse. There is also evidence for brain metabolic abnormalities in this condition. It is unknown, however, to what extent these structural and metabolic changes are present in treated alcohol abusers who achieve long-term abstinence versus treatment-naive, heavily drinking individuals. Methods: This study compared 12 recovering alcoholics with 8 actively heavily drinking subjects. Participants underwent magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and proton MR spectroscopic imaging of the brain. Semiautomated image segmentation techniques yielded volumes for gray matter, white matter, white matter lesions, and cerebral spinal fluid in multiple brain regions defined by Talairach stereotaxic coordinates. Automated spectral processing methods yielded gray and white matter concentrations of the metabolites N-acetylaspartate, creatine, and choline for the same regions. Results: Recovering alcoholics had greater volumes of frontal white matter, but the opposite was true for white matter in a “remainder” region encompassing the basal frontal and temporal lobes, the cerebellum, and the brainstem. Recovering alcoholics also had smaller volumes of white matter lesions in whole brain, in occipital and mesial parietal regions, and in the remainder region. Recovering alcoholics had greater gray matter volumes in the orbital frontal pole and postcentral gyrus, but smaller gray matter volumes in the anterior cingulate. Whole-brain and regional metabolite concentrations did not differ significantly between the two groups. Conclusions: White and gray matter volumes in different regions of the brain were greater or smaller in recovering, treated alcoholics. The findings suggest region-specific structural recovery from chronic alcohol–induced brain injury, but also region-specific long-term structural damage in abstinent alcoholics. White matter lesions were widespread in active drinkers and may partly resolve during long-term abstinence. Proton MR spectroscopic measures, as applied in this cross-sectional study, were largely ineffective in revealing metabolic effects of abstinence on the alcohol-damaged brain.
Hypoglycemia events associated with gatifloxacin and levofloxacin

Purpose Hypoglycemic events have been reported with fluoroquinolone antibiotics. The odds of hypoglycemia after gatifloxacin and levofloxacin are unknown. Methods Unmatched, case-control study of 85 in-patients who received gatifloxacin or levofloxacin between November 2000 and November 2002 and had blood glucose less than 50 mg/dL. A random sample of controls (n=239) received gatifloxacin or levofloxacin during the same period without hypoglycemia. Logistic regression adjusted odds of hypoglycemia for significant covariates: renal failure, severity of illness, and hypoglycemic drug therapy. Results Unadjusted odds for exposure to gatifloxacin versus levofloxacin was 2.38 (95% CI 1.42 to 3.99) times higher for patients with low blood glucose than for controls. After adjustment for covariates, the adjusted odds for gatifloxacin versus levofloxacin was 2.02 (95% CI 1.08 to 3.79) times higher. Sensitivity analysis used a subset of 35 cases who displayed Whipple's hypoglycemic triad. Odds for gatifloxacin versus levofloxacin was 4.03 (95% CI 1.70 to 9.59) times higher in the subset cases. Conclusion When comparing gatifloxacin and levofloxacin, the odds of hypoglycemia are greater with gatifloxacin even after adjustment for other risk factors associated with hypoglycemia. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (2005) 77, P70–P70; doi: 10.1016/j.clpt.2004.12.161
Sensitivity of corticosteroid-dependent insulin-resistant lipogenesis in marrow preadipocytes of obese-diabetic (db/db) mice

IT is well known that adipocytes with specific cell-membrane insulin receptors respond to insulin by increasing glucose uptake, oxidation and lipogenesis in the presence of glucose1–4. Maintenance of adipocyte insulin sensitivity during a state of relative muscle cell insulin resistance has been considered a possible mechanism for obesity in diabetes mellitus5. I now report that a distinct cell phenotype resists insulin but accumulates lipid in response to corticosteroid. Furthermore, corti-costeroid-induced lipogenesis is significantly greater in marrow preadipocytes of mutant diabetic-obese mice.
Determination of the Encapsulation Efficiency of Individual Vesicles Using Single-Vesicle Photolysis and Confocal Single-Molecule Detection

This paper describes a new method to measure the encapsulation efficiency of individual lipid vesicles. Single vesicles were first optically trapped (with a CW Nd:YAG laser at 1064 nm) and then photolyzed with a single 3-ns UV laser pulse (from a N2 laser at 337 nm) to release the molecules encapsulated within the vesicle; confocal detection with single-molecule sensitivity (laser excitation at 488 nm from a CW Ar+ laser) was used to measure the number of released molecules. By placing the confocal probe volume a few micrometers from the vesicle and by monitoring the transit times and the number of released molecules that crossed this probe volume, we could calculate the total number of molecules released from the vesicle using a three-dimensional diffusion equation. Unlike traditional definitions of encapsulation efficiencies based on bulk assays, because we can measure the contents of and release from individual vesicles, we can define the encapsulation efficiency by dividing the concentration of molecu...
Sources of age and date-of-birth misreporting in the 1900 U.S. census

Analysis of the characteristics of people with discrepancies between reported age and reported date of birth or with missing data on these variables suggests that discrepancies between age and date of birth in the 1900 U.S. census were largely generated by enumerators carelessness in recording or inferring age. Missing data however appear to have been generated by ignorance about age and systematic forms of miscommunication as well as by enumerators carelessness. An analysis of digital preferences provides little evidence that other forms of age misreporting were concentrated among those with discrepancies or missing data or that birth year was more accurately enumerated than age. This is a revised version of a paper originally presented at the 1984 Annual Meeting of the Population Association of America (see Population Index Vol. 50 No. 3 Fall 1984 p. 414). (EXCERPT)
REARING METHODS AND DEMOGRAPHIC STATISTICS FOR A SUBTERRANEAN MORPH OF THE SUGARBEET ROOT APHID (HOMOPTERA: APHIDIDAE)

A reliable method for rearing the subterranean summer morph of the sugarbeet root aphid, Pemphigus betae Doane, is described. Field-collected aphids were reared using hydroponic growth pouches that allowed exposed root tissue to be fed on by P. betae. The aphid has been maintained in continuous culture for over 3 years. Open pouches were subsequently modified with cages to provide more successful mass rearing. Cages placed on the pouch were devised to provide an arena that concentrated aphids on one area of the pouch, minimized wandering behavior, and ensured a more vigorous colony. During a 10-week mass rearing experiment, caged pouches consistently averaged 120.8 ± 9.6(se) aphids per cage (fourth instars and adults) following 2-week incubation periods. Caged pouches also were used to isolate individual aphids for development and fecundity studies. Age-specific life tables were developed for P. betae using both open pouches at 20°C, and caged pouches at 24°C. Although the intrinsic rate of increase (rm) was lower at 20°C on a daily time scale (rm = 0.2314 versus 0.2591), rm was significantly greater at 20°C on a degree-day (DD > 7.6°C) time scale (rm = 0.0187 versus 0.0158). The difference on a DD basis resulted primarily from a longer time interval from birth to first reproduction (TFR) at 24°C(TFR = 158.5 versus 147.1 DD at 20°C). These results corroborate previous experience with P. betae, indicating that 20°C appeared to be an optimum temperature for mass rearing. Stable age distributions for P. betae cohorts were only slightly affected by temperature; on average approximately 55, 22, 11, 7, and 5% of the aphids were first, second, third, and fourth instars, and adults, respectively. Though similar studies have not been reported for other Pemphigus spp., all demographic statistics were characteristic of many foliar-feeding aphids held under similar constant temperature conditions.
Environmental dynamism, capital structure and performance: a theoretical integration and an empirical test

An ongoing argument in financial management has been how to craft a capital structure which maximizes shareholder wealth. This question has gained prominence within the strategic management field because of the apparent link between capital structure and the ability of firms to compete. By integrating models from organizational economics with the strategic management literature, we are able to theorize that a firm’s capital structure is influenced by environmental dynamism, and that the match between environmental dynamism and capital structure is associated with superior economic performance. Our large-scale empirical analyses provide supportive evidence for the proposition that competitive environments moderate the relationship between capital structure and economic performance. From a theoretical standpoint, these findings provide another link between capital structure and corporate strategy. More importantly, we are able to move the discussion beyond the limitations of financial risk and incorporate the strategy concept of decision making under uncertainty. For practical application, these findings offer informed advice for managers on how to craft a capital structure. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Beauty is only skin deep

The largest of our organ systems, skin is the interface between us and the world. Though we may think of skin as inherently part of oneself, it is actually a highly complex balance between self, microbe, and environment. Bouslimani et al . used detailed molecular and spatial characterizations to describe the interplay between our skin, its microbiome, and the chemicals in our environment. Approximately 400 sites on each of two volunteers (one male and one female) were swabbed twice. One swab was used to define the microbiome with 16S ribosomal RNA amplicon analysis. The other swab was used to define the site’s metabolite, lipid, and protein composition using mass spectrometry (MS). This study, the most comprehensive in the field, is notable for several reasons. MS analysis is a technically well-defined task. However, making sense of the vast data generated posed a major challenge. The authors combined multiple reference libraries so that MS spectra could be accurately annotated; correlated redundant results into molecular families; discriminated between skin, microbial, or environmental origins; correlated molecular and bacterial diversity; and created three-dimensional (3D) spatial maps of these molecular and bacterial populations on the human skin. Among the key findings was that different body regions revealed distinct populations of microbes and chemicals. Moreover, only 41% of MS spectra matched between the two volunteers, suggesting a high degree of interindividual variability. The single largest category of detected and annotated chemicals (8% of the total) derived from beauty products or cosmetic ingredients. This was true even though volunteers had not showered or applied hygiene products for 3 days prior to sampling. Despite this comprehensive approach to skin analysis, there are still notable limitations, driven primarily by an incomplete spectral library annotation (<3% of the total MS spectra could be annotated). The distribution of sources for compounds found on the skin will change as the annotation of detected molecules improves. However, studies such as this serve as the groundwork upon which to build a more comprehensive understanding of how we interface with the world around us. A. Bouslimani et al. , Molecular cartography of the human skin surface in 3D. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 10.1073/pnas.1424409112 (2015). [[Full Text]][1] [1]: http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2015/03/26/1424409112.full.pdf
On power homogeneous spaces

Abstract The notion of a Moscow space [A.V. Arhangel'skii, Comment. Math. Univ. Carolinae 24 (1983) 105–120] and a new notion of a weakly Klebanov space, introduced below, are applied to study topological properties of spaces X such that some power of X is homogeneous. Under this approach, a crucial role is played by a theorem of Y. Yajima [J. Math. Soc. Japan 36 (1984) 689–699]. Several general theorems are established that expose the general rules behind certain earlier more concrete results of E. van Douwen [Proc. Amer. Math. Soc. 69 (1978) 183–192] and V.I. Malychin [Proceedings of Leningrad International Topology Conference, Nauka, Leningrad, 1983, pp. 50–61]. In particular, it is proved that every Corson compact space X such that Xτ is homogeneous, for some cardinal number τ, is first countable (Corollary 4.9). This shows why every power of the one-point compactification of an uncountable discrete space is not homogeneous [Proc. Amer. Math. Soc. 69 (1978) 183–192]. V.I. Malychin proved that (ω1+1)τ is not homogeneous for any τ [Proceedings of Leningrad International Topology Conference, Nauka, Leningrad, 1983, pp. 50–61]. This is covered by Corollary 4.12 below: if some power of a compact scattered space X is homogeneous, then X is countable. It is also shown that, on many occasions, βX is the only compactification of X that can be homogeneous or power homogeneous.
The effects of training community leaders in prevention science: Communities That Care in Pennsylvania

Abstract This paper examines the effects of training community leaders in prevention science in the context of Communities That Care (CTC). The data analyzed here comes from an evaluation of CTC in 21 Pennsylvania communities, including in-depth interviews with 203 community leaders. The association of attendance at training sessions was investigated at the individual and community levels. Multi-level modeling supported the findings from the corelational analyses at each level separately. The findings suggest that training is positively, albeit modestly, linked with participant attitudes and knowledge, and with internal and external functioning of the CTC coalition. Training was not linked to perceived community readiness nor perceived CTC efficacy. In addition, some evidence suggests that the long-term influence of training in this context may be found at the group or coalition level, not at the individual level.
Timothy-specific IgG antibody levels vary with the pollen seasons.

Serum samples were collected from eight grass pollen hypersensitive children during a 4-year period. The sera were assayed for contents of timothy-specific IgE antibodies by RAST. Timothy-specific IgG and IgA antibodies were quantified by a refined ELISA in which covalent binding of the antigen to the polystyrene solid phase had been performed. IgG antibodies were also assayed by a Sepharose-protein-A technique with radiolabelled timothy allergens as the antigen. It was possible to register clearcut seasonal variations with postseasonally boosted antibody levels not only of timothy-specific IgE but also of IgG antibody. Both igG1 and IgG4 antibodies specific for timothy showed seasonal variations of a similar degree. It was not possible to register seasonal variations of the same magnitude of timothy-specific IgA antibodies.
Metal Binding Kinetics of Bi-Histidine Sites Used in ψ Analysis: Evidence of High-Energy Protein Folding Intermediates†

The zinc-specific fluorophore, Zinpyr-1, is used in competition assays to determine the kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of Zn2+ binding to engineered bi-histidine sites located in ubiquitin and the B domain of protein A (BdpA). These binding sites are used in ψ analysis studies to investigate structure formation in the folding transition state identified by the change in folding rate upon addition of metal ions. For ubiquitin, the on-rate binding constant and binding affinity for a site located along an α-helix are measured to be ∼107 M−1 s−1 and 3 μM, respectively. For a site located across two β-strands, the metal binding affinity was too weak to measure in the dye competition assays (Kd > 55 μM). The equilibrium-determined values for the Zn2+-induced stabilization of ubiquitin and BdpA match the values derived from changes in the global folding and unfolding rates. Therefore, metal ion binding is in fast equilibrium during the transit over the free energy barrier. Accordingly, the folding rate mus...
Vision and electroreception: Integration of sensory information in the optic tectum of the weakly electric fishApteronotus albifrons

The responses of single neurons to visual and electrosensory stimulation were studied in the optic tectum of the weakly electric fishApteronotusalbifrons. Most of the cells recorded in the region of the tectum studied, the anterior medial quadrant, were poorly responsive or completely insensitive to flashes of light or to bursts of AC electrical stimuli applied to the entire fish. However, these cells gave vigorous responses to moving visual or electrosensory stimuli. Most cells showed differences in their response contingent upon the direction of the stimulus movement and most received input from both the visual and electrosensory systems. Electrosensory responses to moving stimuli were depressed by jamming stimuli, 4 Hz amplitude modulation of the animal's electric organ discharge, presented simultaneously with the moving stimulus. However, the jamming signal presented alone typically evoked no response. Moving visual stimuli, presented simultaneously with the electrosensory, were usually able to restore the magnitude of a response toward its value in the unjammed situation. For most of the cells studied the receptive fields for vision and electroreception were in register. In some cases the visual and electrosensory components could be separated by presenting the two types of stimuli separately, or by presenting both simultaneously but with some amount of spatial separation, which causes the two to be misaligned relative to the fish. In other cases the individual responses could not be separated by spatial manipulations of the two stimuli and in these cases differences in the alignment of the two types of stimuli could cause changes in the intensity of the cells' responses.
Orbital resonances in the solar nebula - Implications for planetary accretion

The influence of gas drag and gravitational perturbations by a planetary embryo on the orbit of a planetesimal in the solar nebula was examined. Non-Keplerian rotation of the gas causes secular decay of the orbit. If the planetesimal's orbit is exterior to the perturber's, resonant perturbations oppose this drag and can cause it to be trapped in a stable orbit at a commensurability of order j/(j + 1), where j is an integer. Numerical and analytical demonstrations show that resonant trapping occurs for wide ranges of perturbing mass, planetesimal size, and j. Induced eccentricities are large, causing overlap of orbits for bodies in different resonances with j greater than 2. Collisions between planetesimals in different resonances, or between resonant and nonresonant bodies, result in their disruption. Fragments smaller than a critical size can pass through resonances under the influence of drag and be accreted by the embryo. This effect speeds accretion and tends to prevent dynamical isolation of planetary embryos, making gas-rich scenarios for planetary formation more plausible.
Changes in reactive surface area and porosity during char oxidation

The intrinsic reactivity of coal chars has long been of fundamental scientific interest, but concern about this reactivity has grown in recent years. Both nitrogen BET and CO 2 surface areas are in common use for characterizing the surface areas available for reaction of chars under intrinsic reaction-rate control and zone II conditions. The best choice of adsorptive is not yet clear. This study compares nitrogen, argon, and carbon dioxide to explore the porosity of a subbituminous coal char burned off to differing extents in oxygen, nitric oxide, and carbon dioxide. The results confirm that reaction in zone II does not permit as effective opening up of microporosity, mesoporosity, and macroporosity as reaction under zone I conditions. It also appears possible that microporous area might be utilized to a very limited extent during reaction, as neither the size nor the population of micropores changes very much over wide ranges of burn-off. This may have important implications for the normalization of reaction rates using the traditional surface-area measurements. These traditional methods may overstate the importance of the micropores in providing reactive surface.
Religion and American Public Life

In his 2000 best seller Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Civic Community, Robert Putnam analyzed the links between social capital and civic engagement. Lamenting the decline of “civic America,” he called for a Tocquevillean renewal of voluntary association in the United States. In American Grace, Putnam and coauthor David Campbell—who also helped with the preparation of Bowling Alone —return to the analysis of American civil society, focusing their attention on America's changing religious landscape and its implications for democracy. Their basic argument is that while the United States is religiously diverse and pluralistic to a profound degree, and while in recent years it has witnessed growing religious polarization, it has also succeeded in muting religious tensions and hostilities. As they conclude: “How has America solved the puzzle of religious pluralism—the coexistence of religious diversity and devotion? And how has it done so in the wake of growing religious polarization? By creating a web of interlocking personal relationships among people of many different faiths. This is America's grace” (p. 550). Given the importance of religion in American life and the influence of Putnam's broad agenda on much current social science research on social capital and civic engagement, we have decided to organize a symposium around the book, centered on three questions: 1) How is American Grace related to Putnam's earlier work, particularly Bowling Alone , and what are the implications of the continuities and/or discontinuities between these works? 2) What kind of a work of political science is American Grace, and how does it compare to other important recent work dealing with religion and politics in the United States? 3) What are the strengths and weaknesses of Putnam and Campbell's account of “how religion divides and unites us,” and what is the best way of thinking about the contemporary significance of religion and politics in the United States and about the ways that the religious landscape challenges U.S. politics and U.S. political science?
Network Coding in a Multicast Switch

We consider the problem of serving multicast flows in a crossbar switch. We show that linear network coding across packets of a flow can sustain traffic patterns that cannot be served if network coding were not allowed. Thus, network coding leads to a larger rate region in a multicast crossbar switch. We demonstrate a traffic pattern which requires a switch speedup if coding is not allowed, whereas, with coding the speedup requirement is eliminated completely. In addition to throughput benefits, coding simplifies the characterization of the rate region. We give a graph-theoretic characterization of the rate region with fanout splitting and intra-flow coding, in terms of the stable set polytope of the "enhanced conflict graph" of the traffic pattern. Such a formulation is not known in the case of fanout splitting without coding. We show that computing the offline schedule (i.e. using prior knowledge of the flow arrival rates) can be reduced to certain graph coloring problems. Finally, we propose online algorithms (i.e. using only the current queue occupancy information) for multicast scheduling based on our graph-theoretic formulation. In particular, we show that a maximum weighted stable set algorithm stabilizes the queues for all rates within the rate region.
An evaluation of the California Instructional School Garden Program.

ObjectiveCalifornia Assembly Bill 1535 awarded $US 15 million to California public schools to promote, develop and sustain instructional school gardens through the California Instructional School Garden Program (CISGP). The present study was designed to assess the effectiveness of the CISGP at assisting schools in implementing, maintaining and sustaining an academic school garden programme, determine how schools utilized the funding they received and assess the impact of the California state budget crisis on the CISGP.DesignA mid-term evaluation was used to assess the degree to which schools achieved their instructional garden-related goals.SettingCalifornia.SubjectsOnly schools that applied for the CIGSP grant as part of a school district and also provided a contact email and had a unique contact person were included in the study (n 3103, 80·6 %).ResultsIn general, many schools reported not achieving their predicted goals with regard to the CISGP grant. Only 39·4 % of schools reported accomplishing all of their garden-related goals. Over one-third (37·8 %) of schools reported that their school gardens were negatively affected by the California budget deficit.ConclusionsThe difference between predicted and actual utilization of the CISGP grants may be due to a combination of the effects of budget shortfall and insufficiency of the grant award amount.
Pharmacological Inhibition and Genetic Deficiency of Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor-1 Attenuates Angiotensin II/Salt-Induced Aortic Remodeling

Objective— To test the hypothesis that pharmacological plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI)-1 inhibition protects against renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system-induced cardiovascular injury, the effect of a novel orally active small-molecule PAI-1 inhibitor, PAI-039, was examined in a mouse model of angiotensin (Ang) II-induced vascular remodeling and cardiac fibrosis. Methods and Results— Uninephrectomized male C57BL/6J mice were randomized to vehicle subcutaneus, Ang II (1 μg/h) subcutaneous, vehicle+PAI-039 (1 mg/g chow), or Ang II+PAI-039 during high-salt intake for 8 weeks. Ang II caused significant medial, adventitial, and aortic wall thickening compared with vehicle. PAI-039 attenuated Ang II-induced aortic remodeling without altering the pressor response to Ang II. Ang II increased heart/body weight ratio and cardiac fibrosis. PAI-039 did not attenuate the effect of Ang II on cardiac hypertrophy and increased fibrosis. The effect of PAI-039 on Ang II/salt-induced aortic remodeling and cardiac fibrosis was comparable to the effect of genetic PAI-1 deficiency. Ang II increased aortic mRNA expression of PAI-1, collagen I, collagen III, fibronectin, osteopontin, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, and F4/80; PAI-039 significantly decreased the Ang II-induced increase in aortic osteopontin expression at 8 weeks. Conclusions— This study demonstrates that pharmacological inhibition of PAI-1 protects against Ang II-induced aortic remodeling. Future studies are needed to determine whether the interactive effect of Ang II/salt and reduced PAI-1 activity on cardiac fibrosis is species-specific.
Swing-up control of the acrobot: An impulse-momentum approach

An impulse-momentum approach is proposed for swing-up control of the acrobot. The algorithm is based on increasing the total energy of the system using impulsive inputs. After increasing the energy of the system, rest-to-rest maneuvers are employed to regulate the system energy to the desired level that corresponds to the upright configuration of the acrobot. The proposed algorithm is implemented with two sets of acrobot parameters taken from the literature. As compared to the approaches in the literature, the simulation results show shorter swing-up time and lower maximum continuous torques. Furthermore, the proposed algorithm does not impose any restrictions on the initial conditions and controller gains for swing-up.
Wolbachia-Induced Cytoplasmic Incompatibility in Single- and Superinfected Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae)

Maternally inherited bacteria of the genus Volbachia can cause cytoplasmic incompatibility resulting in the developmental arrest of early embryos. Previous studies have shown that both single- and superinfections of Wolbachia naturally occur in populations of Aedes albopictus (Skuse). Here, we report crossing experiments using three infection types occurring in Ae. albopictus: uninfected, single-infected, and superinfected individuals. Crosses were monitored over the lifetime of adults to detect possible effects of host age on cytoplasmic incompatibility levels and infection virulence. Both single- and superinfections induced high levels of cytoplasmic incompatibility throughout the lifetime of Ae. albopictus, demonstrating that both the single- and superinfections are well adapted for invasion of Ae. albopictus populations. Superinfected females were the longest lived and had the highest oviposition rates, whereas in males, uninfected individuals were the longest lived. These latter results demonstrate the need for additional experiments to better elucidate Wolbachia effects on host fitness in addition to cytoplasmic incompatibility.
Incremental testing of the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system version 4.7

Abstract. This paper describes the scientific and structural updates to the latest release of the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system version 4.7 (v4.7) and points the reader to additional resources for further details. The model updates were evaluated relative to observations and results from previous model versions in a series of simulations conducted to incrementally assess the effect of each change. The focus of this paper is on five major scientific upgrades: (a) updates to the heterogeneous N2O5 parameterization, (b) improvement in the treatment of secondary organic aerosol (SOA), (c) inclusion of dynamic mass transfer for coarse-mode aerosol, (d) revisions to the cloud model, and (e) new options for the calculation of photolysis rates. Incremental test simulations over the eastern United States during January and August 2006 are evaluated to assess the model response to each scientific improvement, providing explanations of differences in results between v4.7 and previously released CMAQ model versions. Particulate sulfate predictions are improved across all monitoring networks during both seasons due to cloud module updates. Numerous updates to the SOA module improve the simulation of seasonal variability and decrease the bias in organic carbon predictions at urban sites in the winter. Bias in the total mass of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is dominated by overpredictions of unspeciated PM2.5 (PMother) in the winter and by underpredictions of carbon in the summer. The CMAQv4.7 model results show slightly worse performance for ozone predictions. However, changes to the meteorological inputs are found to have a much greater impact on ozone predictions compared to changes to the CMAQ modules described here. Model updates had little effect on existing biases in wet deposition predictions.
Generalized Floquet Formulation of Time‐Dependent Density Functional Theory for Multiphoton Processes in Intense Laser Fields

We present a short review article of recent new developments of Floquet formulations of time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) for ab initio nonperturbative treatment of multiphoton and high-order nonlinear optical processes of many-electron quantum systems in intense laser fields. In the presence of monochromatic or polychromatic (multi-color) time-dependent fields, it is shown that the time-dependent Kohn-Sham equation can be exactly reformulated as a time-independent generalized Floquet matrix eigenvalue problem. The theory has been extended to include the time-dependent current density functional theory (TDCDFT) as well. In the case of bound-free transition processes such as multiphoton ionization or dissociation, we show that the complex scaling transformation can be implemented into the Floquet formulation of TDDFT and TDCDFT, and the field-induced complex quasienergy (dressed) states of many-electron quantum systems can be determined by means of the solution of a time-independent non-Hermitian Floquet matrix eigenvalue problem. To facilitate the exploration of the constraints satisfied by the universal but unknown time-dependent exchange-correlation energy functionals, we develop several exact relations and theorems for the quasienergy functionals. Finally we present some initial applications of the Floquet-TDDFT formalism for the study of multiphoton ionization of neutral atoms and electron angular distribution in multiphoton detachment of negative ions in intense laser fields. The Floquet-TDDFT/TDCDFT formalism provides a powerful new theoretical foundation and feasible procedures for the exploration of many-electron atomic and molecular physics in strong fields in the future.
Parallel bacterial evolution within multiple patients identifies candidate pathogenicity genes

Bacterial pathogens evolve during the infection of their human host(1-8), but separating adaptive and neutral mutations remains challenging(9-11). Here we identify bacterial genes under adaptive evolution by tracking recurrent patterns of mutations in the same pathogenic strain during the infection of multiple individuals. We conducted a retrospective study of a Burkholderia dolosa outbreak among subjects with cystic fibrosis, sequencing the genomes of 112 isolates collected from 14 individuals over 16 years. We find that 17 bacterial genes acquired nonsynonymous mutations in multiple individuals, which indicates parallel adaptive evolution. Mutations in these genes affect important pathogenic phenotypes, including antibiotic resistance and bacterial membrane composition and implicate oxygen-dependent regulation as paramount in lung infections. Several genes have not previously been implicated in pathogenesis and may represent new therapeutic targets. The identification of parallel molecular evolution as a pathogen spreads among multiple individuals points to the key selection forces it experiences within human hosts.
Studies in histochemistry: effects of stress conditions, ACTH, cortisone and desoxycorticosterone on the quantitative histological distribution of ascorbic acid in adrenal glands of the rat and monkey.

MEASUREMENTS of ascorbic acid in rat adrenals have been commonly employed as an indication of adrenal cortical function following treatments such as the imposition of stress conditions (Sayers et al., 1945), or the administration of adrenocorticotropin (Sayers et al., 1944, 1946), or crystalline steroid compounds, (Sayers and Sayers, 1947; Winter, 1950). In these studies the concentration of adrenal ascorbic acid rapidly diminished as the result of stress conditions or ACTH administration. Injection of cortisone or desoxycorticosterone 1 hour before exposure to stress prevented the depletion of adrenal ascorbic acid. On a milligram basis, cortisone was about four times as effective as desoxycorticosterone. However, daily administration of cortisone for six weeks resulted in a diminution of the concentration of ascorbic acid. Most of these studies involved whole gland analyses which can only give a picture of the average of the changes in the separate zones of the adrenal.
TeamXchange: A Team Project Experience Involving Virtual Teams and Fluid Team Membership

TeamXchange, an online team-based exercise, is described. TeamXchange is consistent with the collaborative model of learning and provides a means of fostering enhanced student learning and engagement through collaboration in virtual teams experiencing periodic membership changes. It was administered in an undergraduate Organizational Behavior course over two 4-week sessions using WebCT classroom support technology. Quantitative and qualitative results demonstrate some support for the exercise objectives. Specifically, learning of course material, learning about teamwork, and confidence for working in virtual teams were enhanced among those without prior experience working in virtual teams. Team cohesiveness and social loafing behavior were lower in fluid teams than in stable teams. Finally, introverted individuals perceived themselves as having more influence and their teams as more cohesive and communicative than did more extraverted individuals. These results suggest the potential value of TeamXchange, ...
Minimizing crosstalk noise in vias or pins by optimizing signal assignment in a high-speed differential bus

Vias in packages and boards, land-grid-array pins, and connector pins introduce significant crosstalk in high-speed differential buses. There are many possible differential signal assignments in those areas that have very different electrical performance. This paper proposes and demonstrates an efficient method to find a large number of possible assignments and assess them to obtain an optimal assignment with the best performance.
Spatiotemporal junction analysis for motion boundary detection

Conventional approaches to 2-D motion estimation have relied on assumptions of data conservation and smoothness, which has made analysis of motion boundaries difficult. We propose that one of the cues present at motion boundaries, kinetic occlusion, can be detected using spatiotemporal junction analysis. Junction analysis is accomplished by constructing distributed representations of motion, and spatiotemporally filtering these signals to detect orientation stopping or starting in space-time. Our occlusion detection scheme differentiates accretion from deletion of surface texture at motion boundaries. We demonstrate successful motion boundary extraction on spatiotemporal stimuli containing occluding surfaces in motion.
Ultra-Widefield Imaging With Autofluorescence and Indocyanine Green Angiography in Central Serous Chorioretinopathy

Purpose To describe the spectrum of ultra-widefield autofluorescence (AF) and indocyanine green (ICG) angiographic findings in central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). Design Retrospective observational case series. Methods In 37 patients, 65 eyes with CSC from 2 vitreoretinal clinical practices were imaged using ultra-widefield AF and 24 of these eyes with ultra-widefield ICG angiography. Images were correlated with clinical findings and spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT). Results In 37 (57%) eyes, a variety of altered AF patterns, including gravitational tracts, extended beyond the posterior 50 degrees of retina. Hyper-AF corresponded to areas of subretinal fluid (SRF) on spectral-domain OCT and was found to persist in 44 (70%) eyes for up to 8 years despite resolution of SRF. These areas corresponded to outer retinal atrophy with viable retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) on spectral-domain OCT and may be explained by the unmasking of normal background RPE AF. Ultra-widefield ICG angiography revealed dilated choroidal vessels and choroidal hyperpermeability in areas corresponding to altered AF on ultra-widefield AF in all 24 eyes. In 20 (83.3%) eyes, dilated vessels were observed in association with 1 or more congested vortex veins ampullas, suggesting that outflow congestion may be a contributing factor to the pathogenesis of CSC. Conclusions Ultra-widefield AF and ICG angiography in CSC revealed more widespread disease in a single image than with standard field imaging and may be useful for identifying peripheral areas of previous or ongoing SRF and choroidal hyperpermeability that can assist in the diagnosis of CSC, surveillance of recurrent disease and treatment of active disease.
Antigen-Presenting Dendritic Cells Rescue CD4-Depleted CCR2−/− Mice from Lethal Histoplasma capsulatum Infection

Excessive production of interleukin-4 impairs clearance of the fungal pathogen Histoplasma capsulatum in mice lacking the chemokine receptor CCR2. An increase in the interleukin-4 level is associated with decreased recruitment of dendritic cells to lungs; therefore, we investigated the possibility that these cells influence interleukin-4 production. Adoptive transfer of wild-type or CCR2(-/-) bone marrow-derived dendritic cells loaded with heat-killed yeast cells to infected CCR2(-/-) mice suppressed interleukin-4 transcription. Surprisingly, transfer of cells did not reduce the fungal burden despite the fact that it limited interleukin-4 transcription. Yeast cell-loaded bone marrow-derived dendritic cell-mediated regulation of interleukin-4 transcription was dependent on major histocompatibility complex II antigen presentation to CD4(+) T cells. We previously showed that CD4(+) T cells were a source of interleukin-4 in infected CCR2(-/-) mice, but their contribution to the TH2 phenotype was unclear. Here we demonstrated that these cells were functionally important since elimination of them prior to infection, but not elimination of them at the time of infection, reduced the interleukin-4 level in infected CCR2(-/-) mice. However, the fungal burden was reduced only in CD4-depleted CCR2(-/-) mice that received yeast cell-loaded bone marrow-derived dendritic cells. Taken together, the data indicate that generation of excess interleukin-4 in lungs of H. capsulatum-infected CCR2(-/-) mice is at least partially a consequence of decreased recruitment of dendritic cells capable of antigen presentation. Furthermore, CD4(+) T cells had a deleterious impact on immunity in infected CCR2(-/-) mice.
Diagnosis of Active Tuberculous Serositis by Antigen-Specific Interferon-γ Response of Cavity Fluid Cells

BACKGROUND: To develop a more accurate methodology for diagnosing active tuberculous pleurisy, as well as peritonitis and pericardits of tuberculous origin, we established an antigen-specific interferon gamma (IFN-gamma)-based assay that uses cavity fluid specimens. METHODS: Over a 19-month period, 155 consecutive, nonselected patients with any cavity effusion were evaluated. Study subjects were 28 patients with bacteriologically confirmed active tuberculous serositis and 47 patients with definitive nontuberculous etiology. Culture was performed for 18 h with fluid mononuclear cells in the supernatant of the effusion together with saline or Mycobacterium tuberculosis-specific antigenic peptides, early secretory antigenic target 6 and culture filtrate protein 10. IFN-gamma concentrations in the culture supernatants were measured. RESULTS: In patients with active tuberculous serositis, antigen-specific IFN-gamma responses of cavity fluid samples were significantly higher than those of nontuberculous effusion samples. Area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) curve was significantly greater for cavity fluid IFN-gamma response (AUROC curve, 0.996) than for cavity fluid adenosine deaminase and whole-blood IFN-gamma responses (AUROC curve, 0.882 and 0.719, respectively; P = .037 and P < .001, respectively). Although the AUROC curve was greater for cavity fluid IFN-gamma response than for background cavity fluid IFN-gamma level (AUROC curve, 0.975), the AUROC curves were not statistically significantly different (P = .74). However, multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that cavity fluid IFN-gamma responses were significantly associated with the diagnosis, even after adjustment for background IFN-gamma level (adjusted odds ratio, 1.21; 95% confidence interval, 1.03-1.42; P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: The cavity fluid IFN-gamma assay could be a method for accurately and promptly diagnosing active tuberculous serositis.
BREAKDOWN IN CORRELATIONS DURING LABORATORY EVOLUTION. I. COMPARATIVE ANALYSES OF DROSOPHILA POPULATIONS

We provide evidence from comparisons of populations of Drosophila that evolutionary correlations between longevity and stress resistance break down over the course of laboratory evolution. Using 15 distinct evolutionary regimes, we created 75 populations that were differentiated for early fecundity, longevity, starvation resistance, desiccation resistance, and developmental time. In earlier experiments, selection for postponed aging produced increases in stress resistance, whereas selection for increased stress resistance produced increases in longevity. Direct estimates of correlations also indicated an antagonistic relationship between early fecundity on one hand and longevity or stress resistance on the other. Laboratory evolution of extreme values of stress resistance, however, led to a breakdown in these evolutionary relationships. There was no evidence that these significant changes in correlation resulted from genotype-by-environment interactions or inbreeding. These findings suggest that correlations between functional characters are not necessarily durable features of a species, and that short-term evolutionary responses cannot be extrapolated reliably to longer-term evolutionary patterns.
Violent Crime and The Spatial Dynamics of Neighborhood Transition: Chicago, 1970–1990

Integrating ecological, demographic, and criminological theory, this article examines the role of violent crime and socioeconomic disadvantage in triggering population decline in Chicago neighborhoods from 1970 to 1990. The results show that high initial levels of homicide and increases over time in the spatial proximity to homicide were associated with large losses in total population across 826 census tracts. However, the authors also observe sharp group differences in patterns for black and white. Although both black and white populations declined in response to high initial levels of homicide and socioeconomic disadvantage, increases in neighborhood homicide, spatial proximity to homicide, and socioeconomic disadvantage were associated with black population gain and white population loss. In discussing these findings, they argue that taking violent crime and spatial processes into account resolves the apparent contradiction between W. J. Wilson's depopulation hypothesis and D. S. Massey's segregation hypothesis on the increasing concentration of urban poverty
Intermittent Hypoxia Conditioning Prevents Behavioral Deficit and Brain Oxidative Stress in Ethanol Withdrawn Rats

Intermittent hypoxia (IH) has been found to protect brain from ischemic injury. We investigated whether IH mitigates brain oxidative stress and behavioral deficits in rats subjected to ethanol into...
Improved vocabulary independent search with approximate match based on Conditional Random Fields

We investigate the use of Conditional Random Fields (CRF) to model confusions and account for errors in the phonetic decoding derived from Automatic Speech Recognition output. The goal is to improve the accuracy of approximate phonetic match, given query terms and an indexed database of documents, in a vocabulary independent audio search system. Audio data is ingested, segmented, decoded to produce a sequence of phones, and subsequently indexed using phone N-grams. Search is performed by expanding queries into phone sequences and matching against the index. The approximate match score is derived from a CRF, trained on parallel transcripts, which provides a general framework for modeling the errors that a recognition system may make taking contextual effects into consideration. Our approach differs from other work in the field in that we focus on using CRFs to model context dependent phone level confusions, rather than on explicitly modeling parameters of an edit distance. While, the results we obtain on both in and out of vocabulary (OOV) search tasks improve on previous work which incorporated high order phone confusions, the gains for OOV are more impressive.