cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Dislocation Patterns in Strained Layers from Sources on Parallel Glide Planes

The interaction of dislocations on parallel glide planes in a strained epitaxial layer is investigated numerically. It is found that if two dislocations approach closely enough they will form an immobile bound complex. If a third dislocation now comes near such a complex, it will knock one of the partners forward and in turn bind with the survivor. The repetitive action of this simple process leads to the growth of elaborate network structures in the substrate. The network geometry predicted by the calculation is remarkably similar to previously unexplained dislocation structures observed in transmission electron microscopy images.
Migration of a Holliday junction through a nucleosome directed by the E. coli RuvAB motor protein.

Abstract Chromatin plays a critical role in regulating access to DNA by proteins that direct recombination and repair. The E. coli RuvAB protein complex promotes branch migration of the Holliday junction recombination intermediate. The ability of RuvAB to negotiate passage of the junction through nucleosomal DNA is examined. The model system involves the formation of a Holliday junction positioned upstream of a nucleosome. Unassisted, the junction is blocked by a histone octamer. In the presence of RuvAB and ATP, rapid branch migration through the nucleosome is observed. It results in disruption of the histone–DNA interactions leading to the removal of the octamer from the junction intermediate. These results suggest that eukaryotic DNA motor proteins analogous to RuvAB could function during recombination to promote branch migration through chromatin.
Mother‐provider interaction and the provider‐child relationship in family child care homes

Indirect effects of the mother‐provider relationship on the provider‐child relationship were investigated in family child care homes. Twenty‐five mother‐provider pairs were observed twice during la...
Design Of Fabry-Perot Laser-Based External Cavity Structures For Coherent Communications

Design of Fabry-Perot laser-based external cavity structures is presented with particular emphasis on linewidth and tunability. The important design parameters of this structure (ECSL-External Cavity Semiconductor Laser) which affect the linewidth are: optical feedback ratio, reflectivity of the laser facet nearer to the feedback component, frequency detuning of the optical feedback, external cavity length, and feedback bandwidth. We also studied the tuning charac-teristics of external cavity Fabry-Perot semiconductor lasers with strong feedback. It is shown that the gain change mechanism induced by the strong optical feedback in Fabry-Perot cavity is responsible for the spectral tuning. The Fabry-Perot resonator with external cavity can sup-port broad frequency detuning with varying threshold gain. The threshold gain decreases as the diffraction grating is tuned towards longer wavelengths.
Association of knowledge of adult protective services legislation with rates of reporting of abuse in Iowa nursing homes.

Objective To determine if there is an association between abuse reporting to state authorities by nursing home administrators and directors of nursing and their characteristics and knowledge of the law. Design Survey. Setting Iowa's 409 Medicare certified nursing homes. Participants Four hundred nine administrators and 409 directors of nursing. Measurements Nursing home abuse incidents, reports, and substantiations, Medicare's Nursing Home Compare Reports, Urban Influence Codes, and county census demographics. Results A single or double response was received from 369 (90%) of the 409 nursing homes. Being a male administrator and having a higher level of education is associated with higher substantiation rates. A greater knowledge of the dependent adult protective services law is associated with higher incident and report rates for directors of nursing. Conclusions Nursing home administrators' and directors of nursing's knowledge of the law and their characteristics are associated with nursing home incident, report, and substantiation of abuse allegations.
Insects – An Open Access Journal of Entomology

Conventional thought would suggest that there are sufficient venues for the publication of entomological scientific inquiries and begs the question: “Why begin another outlet for insect-related scientific comment?” The open access journal Insects is a response to the pressing global thirst for information and an acknowledgement of the potential of electronic media. Dissemination of information is critical to growing the global knowledge base through easy and open access. This new journal is a celebration of the diversity of insects, other arthropods, and their relationship with humans in our shared environment. [...]
Biochemical Association of CD45 with the T Cell Receptor Complex: Regulation by CD45 Isoform and during T Cell Activation

CD45 is the predominant transmembrane tyrosine phosphatase in lymphocytes and is required for the efficient induction of T cell receptor signaling and activation. However, the regulation of CD45 activity and substrate specificity are poorly understood. In the present study, we demonstrate a basal biochemical association of CD45 with the T cell receptor complex that is regulated in part by CD45 isoform expression. Further, maintenance of CD45/TCR association is differentially regulated following TCR ligation with peptide: a partial agonist peptide induces CD45/TCR dissociation while an agonist peptide promotes sustained association in a CD4-dependent manner. These data suggest that T cell receptor signaling pathways may be modulated by altering access of CD45 to TCR-associated substrates involved in T cell activation.
The deformation of a viscoelastic drop subjected to steady uniaxial extensional flow of a Newtonian fluid

Abstract In this paper, we investigate the fluid motion and shape of a non-Newtonian drop, modeled as a Chilcott–Rallison fluid, in the steady, uniaxial extensional flow of an unbounded Newtonian liquid. We consider two values of the capillary number, Ca = 0.05 and 0.10, below the critical value for continuous elongation of a Newtonian drop in the same flow. Solutions are then obtained for two values of the Chilcott–Rallison extensibility parameter, L2 = 144 and 600, appropriate roughly for polymer solutions in the Boger fluid range of concentration, each for several values of the viscosity ratio λ, and the polymer concentration, c. It is shown that the main region of impact of the polymer on the flow inside the drop occurs on the central symmetry axis, and near the tips of the drop. The effect of polymer on the drop shape is complicated. In general, there is a balance between the influence of the viscoelastic tensile stress contribution in the direction of the symmetry axis, which tends to pull the interface inward and thus decrease the flow-induced deformation at the ends of the drop, and modifications of the viscous stress due to changes in the flow and the pressure due viscoelasticity, both of which tend to increase deformation. For L2 = 600, the tensile stress effect is dominant and the viscoelastic drop is less deformed overall and has lower curvature at the tip than for a Newtonian drop at the same capillary number. For L2 = 144, however, this trend is reversed and the effect of viscoelasticity is to increase deformation and increase the curvature at the end of the drop.
First Order or Higher Order General Factor

The Schmid‐Leiman decomposition of a hierarchical factor model converts the model to a constrained case of a bifactor model with orthogonal common factors that is equivalent to the hierarchical model. This article discusses the equivalence and near‐equivalence of the hierarchical and bifactor models and the implications of the difficulty of distinguishing between these models because of low power in samples commonly found in academic research.
Polynomial filtering in latent semantic indexing for information retrieval

Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) is a well established and effective framework for conceptual information retrieval. In traditional implementations of LSI the semantic structure of the collection is projected into the k-dimensional space derived from a rank-k approximation of the original term-by-document matrix. This paper discusses a new way to implement the LSI methodology, based on polynomial filtering. The new framework does not rely on any matrix decomposition and therefore its computational cost and storage requirements are low relative to traditional implementations of LSI. Additionally, it can be used as an effective information filtering technique when updating LSI models based on user feedback.
Dimensions of Social Stratification for Whites and Blacks: The Toledo Study.

The aims of this study were (a) to determine the major dimensions of social stratification for whites as well as blacks and (b) to explore the existence of distinct social classes. A survey was conducted with 225 white and 206 black household heads in Toledo, Ohio, using a highly structured interview that included variables reflecting major theoretical dimensions of stratification, important indexes, and well established correlates. Eighteen first-order factors were found for whites and 19 for blacks. Five factors matched in the two samples: social status, residence, organization activity, political activity and efficacy, and main support's social status. Other important factors, unique to each sample, were: for whites, self-employed and majority group membership, and for blacks, class consciousness and method variance. The indexes, except for Own Education, did not consistently load the factors that they presumably tap. Second- and third-order factors were also obtained, but they were difficult to interpret. Two separate cluster analyses of individuals, based on their score profiles on social status variables, identified 37 and 47 clusters of white respondents, the largest cluster containing 13 people. (The cluster analyses were not done for blacks.) All in all, the present findings indicate that stratification is more complex than anticipated by current conceptualizations, previous research, and existing indexes. These results also point up the need for revising the theoretical formulations and using more appropriate measures of the salient dimensions.
Mechanism of action of some antithyrotoxic substances.

Dietary antithyrotoxic substances such as liver residue and hemoglobin (Hb) partially inhibited the absorption and enterohepatic recycling of oral or ip injected thyroxine (T4). Approximately twice as much thyroxine was excreted into the feces and only half as much T4 was absorbed into the plasma when a single dose of 131I-T4 was given to rats receiving a diet containing one of the antithyrotoxic substances. The poor T4 absorption was probably the result of at least 2 contributory factors. First, antithyrotoxic substances caused an oral dose of T4 to move rapidly through the lower ileum and large intestine, which are the most active sites for T4 absorption. The fecal mass was much greater in these animals, and this may have been responsible for the greater intestinal motility. Second, T4 probably formed an unavailable complex with the antithyrotoxic substance or its degradation product. Two types of evidence were obtained to support this concept: 1) the fecal T4 from Hb-fed animals had little biological a...
Evolution of the concept and termiology of borderline ovarian tumours

Abstract The borderline category of ovarian tumours was established in the early 1970s because of the observation that a group of proliferative epithelial ovarian tumours lacking invasion that generally behaved in a benign fashion occasionally pursued an indolent malignant course. Over the last 25 years, a large database on these tumours has been accrued. Recent studies suggest that the borderline group can now be subclassified into benign and malignant neoplasms. The survival for patients with serous borderline tumours confined to the ovaries is virtually 100%. Patients with ovarian serous borderline tumours with invasive peritoneal implants have a 34% mortality rate; therefore, these cases are classified as low grade carcinomas. Micropapillary serous carcinoma, a distinctive neoplasm that fails to display unequivocal evidence of invasion and therefore has been included in the borderline category, is strongly associated with invasive implants and recurs as invasive carcinoma. After these neoplasms with invasive implants are excluded from the group of tumours classified as borderline, the remaining advanced stage serous borderline tumours (those with non-invasive implants) have a disease-specific survival rate of nearly 100% and should be considered benign. In a similar fashion, the vast majority of mucinous borderline tumours reported to display aggressive behaviour have been associated with the clinical syndrome of pseudomyxoma peritonei. It is now clear that pseudomyxoma peritonei is a condition of appendiceal origin in virtually all cases. In addition, there is a small group of mucinous carcinomas typically from the pancreas and biliary system that present with relatively bland-appearing metastases to the ovaries that closely simulate mucinous borderline tumours. Once these metastatic carcinomas and mucinous tumours associated with pseudomyxoma peritonei are removed from the borderline category, the remaining mucinous borderline tumours are always confined to the ovaries and have a benign behaviour. Finally, review of the literature indicates the other epithelial types of borderline tumours (endometrioid, clear cell and transitional cell) behave in a benign fashion. Since borderline tumours can now be classified into benign and malignant types, the borderline category has no further utility and can be abandoned. This will be of great benefit to patients and clinicians, and will also help in more clearly focusing research efforts on ovarian cancer.
Regulation of α2AR trafficking and signaling by interacting proteins

The continuing discovery of new G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) interacting proteins and clarification of the functional consequences of these interactions has revealed multiple roles for these events. Some of these interactions serve to scaffold GPCRs to particular cellular micro-compartments or to tether them to defined signaling molecules, while other GPCR-protein interactions control GPCR trafficking and the kinetics of GPCR-mediated signaling transduction. This review provides a general overview of the variety of GPCR-protein interactions reported to date, and then focuses on one prototypical GPCR, the alpha(2)AR, and the in vitro and in vivo significance of its reciprocal interactions with arrestin and spinophilin. It seems appropriate to recognize the life and career of Arthur Hancock with a summary of studies that both affirm and surprise our preconceived notions of how nature is designed, as his career-long efforts similarly affirmed the complexity of human biology and attempted to surprise pathological changes in that biology with novel, discovery-based therapeutic interventions. Dr. Hancock's love of life, of family, and of commitment to making the world a better place are a model of the life well lived, and truly missed by those who were privileged to know, and thus love, him.
Biomass Storage Options Influence Net Energy and Emissions of Cellulosic Ethanol

Incremental biomass losses during the harvest and storage of energy crops decrease the effective crop yield at the biorefinery gate. These losses can affect the environmental performance of biofuels from cellulosic feedstocks by indirectly increasing agricultural inputs per unit of fuel and increasing direct emissions of pollutants during biomass decomposition in storage. In this study, we expand the Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy Use in Transportation (GREETTM) model to include parameters for harvest and storage of dry bales, bale silage, and bulk silage and examine the potential impact of the biomass supply chain on energy use and air pollutants from cellulosic ethanol from corn stover, switchgrass, and miscanthus feedstocks. A review of storage methods shows substantial differences in expected losses (4.2 to 16.0 %) and variability. Model results indicate that inclusion of feedstock harvest and storage pathways increases net fossil energy consumption (0.03–0.14 MJ/MJ) and greenhouse gas emissions (2.3–10 g CO2e/MJ) from cellulosic ethanol compared to analyses that exclude feedstock losses, depending on the storage scenario selected. Greenhouse gas emissions were highest from bulk ensiled silage and bale silage pathways, driven by direct emissions of greenhouse gasses during storage and material use, respectively. Storage of dry bales indoors or under cover minimizes emissions. This report emphasizes the need to increase the detail of biofuel production models and address areas of great uncertainty in the biomass supply chain, such as biomass decomposition emissions and dry matter losses.
Worldwide estimates and uncertainty assessments of laser propagation for diverse geometries for paths in the altitude regime of 3 km and below at wavelengths 0.355 μm to 10.6 μm

The directed energy modeling and simulation community can make important direct contributions to the joint warfighting community by establishing clear and fully integrated future program requirements. These requirements are best determined via analysis of the expected variability/uncertainty in system performance arising from spatial, spectral and temporal variations in operating conditions. In this study of atmospheric effects on HEL systems, the parameter space is explored using the Air Force Institute of Technology Center for Directed Energy's (AFIT/CDE) High Energy Laser End-to-End Operational Simulation (HELEEOS) parametric one-on-one engagement level model. HELEEOS is anchored to respected wave optics codes and all significant degradation effects-including optical turbulence and molecular, aerosol, and liquid water drop/droplet absorption and scattering-are represented in the model. Beam spread effects due to thermal blooming caused by the various absorbers are considered when appropriate. Power delivered in a 5 cm diameter circular area normalized by the total transmitted power is the primary performance metric used in the study, with results presented in the form of histograms. The expected performance of laser systems operating at both low and high powers is assessed at 24 wavelengths between 0.355 mm and 10.6 mm for a number of widely dispersed land and maritime locations worldwide. Scenarios evaluated include both up and down looking generally oblique engagement geometries over ranges up to 6000 meters in which anticipated clear air aerosols and thin layers of fog, and very light rain are simulated. Seasonal and boundary layer variations (summer and winter) for nighttime conditions for a range of relative humidity percentile conditions are considered to determine optimum employment techniques to exploit or defeat the environmental conditions. Each atmospheric particulate/obscurant is evaluated based on its wavelength-dependent forward and off-axis scattering characteristics and absorption effects on laser energy delivered. In addition to realistic vertical profiles of molecular and aerosol absorption and scattering, correlated optical turbulence profiles in probabilistic (percentile) format are used, a feature unique to HELEEOS.
Lipids and Lipoproteins in a Triethnic Sample of 5- or 6-Year-Old Type A or Type B Children

Abstract The Type A behavior pattern (TABP) has been proposed as a risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD). Several studies have indicated an association between Type A behavior and serum cholesterol levels. If the effects of TABP are mediated by conventional CHD risk factors, evidence for a causal relationship between TABP and CHD would be strengthened if associations were detected among the young. This paper addresses the following: (1) Do levels of serum lipids and lipoproteins among young children vary by ethnicity, gender, or TABP? (2) Can obtained differences be accounted for by possible confounding factors, such as SES or body composition? ANCOVA revealed no significant ethnic, gender, or TABP effects for total serum cholesterol or HDLc. Analyses of LDLc and triglycerides disclosed significant main effects for gender and for ethnicity. A Competition subscale by ethnicity interaction was the only effect to approach statistical significance for TABP. The strongest findings were a replication of ...
Third-order optical nonlinearities of α,ω-dithienylpolyenes and oligo(thienylvinylene)

Abstract α,ω-Dithienylpolyenes and oligo(thienylvinylene) are interesting third-order nonlinear optical materials for a variety of device applications. To better understand the third-order nonlinear response of these materials, the third-order susceptibilities ( χ (3) ) and nonlinear absorption behaviors of two α,ω-dithienylpolyenes with different conjugation length and two oligo(thienylvinylene) with different substituents on the thiophene rings have been studied using degenerate four wave mixing (DFWM) and nonlinear transmission techniques at 532 nm. The χ (3) values of 1×10 −3 mol/l solutions are all of the order of 10 −13 esu. The χ (3) values increase with the increase of the linear absorption coefficient. In addition, these compounds exhibit reverse saturable absorption for nanosecond laser pulses. The strength of reverse saturable absorption varies when the conjugation length and substituents change. Moreover, the nonlinear absorption characteristics of these compounds in the picosecond regime differ from those in the nanosecond regime. The different nonlinear absorption behavior is due to the relative contributions from excited singlet–singlet and triplet–triplet absorption. The strong reverse saturable absorption characteristics of two of the compounds suggest that they could be potential candidates for optical limiting applications in the nanosecond regime.
How Common Are Extraribosomal Functions of Ribosomal Proteins

Ribosomal proteins are ubiquitous, abundant, and RNA binding: prime candidates for recruitment to extraribosomal functions. Indeed, they participate in balancing the synthesis of the RNA and protein components of the ribosome itself. An exciting new story is that ribosomal proteins are sentinels for the self-evaluation of cellular health. Perturbation of ribosome synthesis frees ribosomal proteins to interface with the p53 system, leading to cell-cycle arrest or to apoptosis. Yet in only a few cases can we clearly identify the recruitment of ribosomal proteins for other extraribosomal functions. Is this due to a lack of imaginative evolution by cells and viruses, or to a lack of imaginative experiments by molecular biologists?
Surgery for chronic hyperplastic rhinosinusitis.

Davison pointed out in 1953 that his purpose in treating sinusitis was to utilize the smallest amount of surgery that would produce permanent relief of symptoms. By 1963 he had become convinced that extensive disease required extensive surgery. Hyperplastic rhinosinusitis is treated by a variety of surgical techniques including polypectomy, turbinate cautery, submucous resection of the turbinates or nasal septum, anterior ethmoidectomy, and spheno-ethmoidectomy. Sixty-eight patients are presented who have undergone bilateral spheno-ethmoidectomy between January, 1969, and January, 1974. These patients were predominantly allergic, with a high percentage of previous polypectomies and desensitization which failed to control their recurring nasal polyps. Ten patients were lost to follow-up. Forty-seven of 68 patients have had no recurrence of polyps in from 12 to 60 months. All patients continued to have mucosal manifestations of allergy or infection, but the recurrence of late polyps was limited to 11 patients. The spheno-ethmoidectomy technique is utilized, stressing complete removal of the middle turbinate. Kidder has shown an improved rate of polyp control in patients following ethmoidectomy with middle turbinate removal rather than with partial or total preservation of the middle turbinate. Complete resection of the middle turbinate with opening of the sphenoid air sinus permits a thorough exenteration of the ethmoid labyrinth and better control of chronic disease. A complication rate of 5.9 percent is presented and is deemed acceptable, since there were no disabling complications or complications related to poor visualization.
Quantitative identification of the protonation state of histidines in vitro and in vivo

The C[bond]N coupling constants centered at the C(epsilon 1) and C(delta 2) carbons in histidine residues depend on the protonation state and tautomeric form of the imidazole ring, making them excellent indicators of pH or pK(a), and the ratio of the tautomeric states. In this paper, we demonstrate that the intensity ratios for the C(epsilon 1)-H and C(delta 2)-H cross-peaks measured with a constant time HSQC experiment without and with J(C[bond]N) amplitude modulation are determined by the ratios of the protonated and deprotonated forms and tautomeric states. This allows one to investigate the tautomeric state of histidines as well as their pK(a) in situations where changing the pH value by titration is difficult, for example, for in-cell NMR experiments. We apply this technique to the investigation of the bacterial protein NmerA and determine that the intracellular pH in the Escherichia coli cytoplasm is 7.1 +/- 0.1.
Noteworthy Articles in 2013 for Cardiothoracic Anesthesiologists

In 2013, the field of cardiothoracic anesthesiology has continued to grow at the same astounding rate as in previous years. It has become increasingly difficult for practicing anesthesiologists to stay current on impactful publications related to our exciting subspecialty. The scientific output has expanded to such a great extent that following the literature in specialty journals barely scrapes the surface of available knowledge. With the recent emphasis on teamwork spanning multiple medical specialties in the care for complex patients, the door has opened for our research to be presented in nontraditional, nonanesthesiology venues. In this review, we have selected a small sample of noteworthy contributions to the field of cardiothoracic and vascular anesthesiology published in 2013 with potential impact on our clinical practice.
Dipole moment of the H2SO4-H2O complex

[1] Stark effect measurements have been performed on three rotational transitions of the H2SO4-H2O complex using pulsed-nozzle Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy. The total dipole moment (μT), as well as its projection onto the a-inertial axis of the complex (μa), have been determined for each of two tunneling states, designated A and B. For the A state, μT is 3.024(94) D and μa is 2.630(20) D. For the B state, these values are 3.052(17) and 2.6402(65) D, respectively. Ab initio calculations at the HF/aug-cc-pVTZ, MP2/aug-cc-pVDZ, MP2/aug-cc-pVTZ, MP2/aug-cc-pVQZ, and MP3/aug-cc-pVDZ level/basis set have been performed and compared with experimental values for both H2SO4 and H2SO4-H2O. Models for homogeneous nucleation requiring the dipole moment of the H2SO4-H2O adduct should use the B-state value of μT = 3.052(17) D.
Internationalization and Performance: The S-curve Hypothesis and Product Diversity Effect

This study uses data from 255 global pharmaceutical/biotechnological companies to (1) determine the impact of internationalization on firm performance and (2) explore the moderating effect that product diversity has on the relationship between internationalization and company performance. The results highlight the rewards of pursuing internationalization and demonstrate that companies benefit from internationalization activities by achieving higher overall performance. This finding contrasts with recent empirical evidence that an S‐curve relationship exists. Analysis of the moderating effect of product diversity indicates a strong effect on the internationalization‐performance relationship and thus shows that the payoff from internationalization is moderated by product diversity
Power Substation Automation Using a Knowledge Based System - Justification and Preliminary Field Experiments

Conventional automation and control devices are passive and responsive. These devices typically "respond" to changes in the power system as measured against fixed thresholds and preset limits. These systems are designed to prevent catastrophic failures and incorrect operations and work well for general data acquisition and remote supervisory control. How ever, feedback control, system diagnostics, advanced protection, and contingency control are difficult to implement on the ever changing power system with these conventional approaches. Knowledge based systems have the potential for following the changes in the power system and adjusting decision criteria accordingly. Decisions can be made on a more complete data base which is constantly adjusted to changes ir system parameters and operation. This paper describes the various functions where knowledge based systems could ideally be used. The use of a knowledge based, adaptive system approach for diagnosing distribution system disturbances and equipment failures is presented. Two field experiments are described.
Alterations in glutamine metabolism and its conversion to citrulline in sepsis

In enterocytes, glutamine serves as the major source of energy; another metabolic fate of glutamine is conversion to citrulline. Because sepsis can affect gut function and integrity, alterations in glutamine metabolism may exist and lead to decreased citrulline production. This study aimed to investigate how sepsis affects glutamine metabolism, including its conversion to citrulline, by measuring glutamine and citrulline flux, fractional splanchnic extraction of glutamine and leucine, and the contribution of glutamine nitrogen to citrulline in septic patients and healthy controls. Eight patients with severe sepsis and 10 healthy controls were given primed, constant intravenous infusion of [2H2]citrulline and sequential administration of intravenous and enteral [α-15N]glutamine and [13C]leucine in the postabsorptive state. The results showed that, compared with healthy controls, septic patients had a significantly lower whole body citrulline flux and plasma concentration, higher endogenous leucine flux, and higher glutamine clearance. Fractional splanchnic extraction of leucine was higher in septic patients than in controls, but fractional extraction of glutamine was not different. The majority of the 15N label transferred from glutamine to citrulline was found at the α-position. These results demonstrate that lower glutamine plasma concentrations in sepsis were a result of increased glutamine clearance. Despite adequate splanchnic uptake of glutamine, there is decreased production of citrulline, suggesting a defect in the metabolic conversion of glutamine to citrulline, decreased uptake of glutamine by the enterocyte but increased uptake by the liver, and/or shunting of glutamine to other metabolic pathways.
The effect upon channel capacity in wireless communications of perfect and imperfect knowledge of the channel

We present a model for time-varying communication single-access and multiple-access channels without feedback. We consider the difference between mutual information when the receiver knows the channel perfectly and mutual information when the receiver only has an estimate of the channel. We relate the variance of the channel measurement error at the receiver to upper and lower bounds for this difference in mutual information. We illustrate the use of our bounds on a channel modeled by a Gauss-Markov process, measured by a pilot tone. We relate the rate of time variation of the channel to the loss in mutual information due to imperfect knowledge of the measured channel.
The Narcoeconomy and Small-town, Rural Mexico

Little ethnographic research has been conducted on how the illegal drug trade has affected and transformed rural communities in Mexico and the rest of Mesoamerica. It is a topic that is dif?cult and potentially dangerous to explore, at least directly; thus it is not surprising that relatively few researchers have openly studied it. For those of us working on rural development problems, it means that our analyses are silent on a critical dimension of the local economy. This paper describes the effects of drug traf?cking on a small, rural town in Mexico’s central highlands in which a highly interpenetrated legal-illegal economy has emerged. A series of ethnographic vignettes provide the entry point for exploring how the narcoeconomy manifested itself both materially and in the imaginations of local people. An ordinary town, in fact, had extraordinary inequalities: opulent houses; the subversion of traditional forms of leisure; a new urban-oriented consumer culture; and new farmer entrepreneurs. All were und...
Water transport in invertebrate peripheral nerve fibers.

Osmotic and diffusion permeabilities (Pf and Pd) of invertebrate nerve fibers to tritiated water were measured to determine what water flux studies could reveal about "the nerve membrane" and to directly test the possibility of active transport of water into or out of invertebrate nerve fibers. Pf/Pd ratios for lobster walking leg nerve fibers were found to be about 20 ± 7 at 14°C. Pd measurements were made for squid giant axons at 25°C. and found to yield a value of 4 x 10–4 cm.–1 sec.–1. When combined with the data of D. K. Hill for Pf, a Pf/Pd ratio of 21 ± 5 is obtained. These Pf/Pd ratios correspond to "effective pore radii" of about 16 ± 4 angstrom units, according to theories developed by Koefoed-Johnsen and Ussing and independently by Pappenheimer and his colleagues. Variations of water flux ratios with temperatures were studied and apparent activation energies calculated for both diffusion experiments and osmotic filtration experiments using the Arrhenius equation, and found to be close to 3 to 5 cal. per mole of water transferred. Cyanide (5 x 10–3 molar) and iodoacetate (1 x 10–3 molar) poisoned lobster leg nerve fibers showed no appreciable change in diffusion or osmotic filtration water effluxes. Caution in interpreting these proposed channels as simple pores was emphasized, but the possibility that such channels exist and are related to ionic flow is not incompatible with electrophysiological data.
Identification, synthesis and SAR of amino substituted pyrido[3,2b]pyrazinones as potent and selective PDE5 inhibitors.

A new class of potent and selective PDE5 inhibitors is disclosed. Guided by X-ray crystallographic data, optimization of an HTS lead led to the discovery of a series of 2-aryl, (N8)-alkyl substituted-6-aminosubstituted pyrido[3,2b]pyrazinones which show potent inhibition of the PDE5 enzyme. Synthetic details and some structure–activity relationships are also presented.
Improving Shockwave Lithotripsy Outcomes

Shockwave lithotripsy (SWL) is one of the most consistently utilized procedures for the treatment of upper urinary tract stones. SWL was initially applied widely as a treatment for upper tract stones until the limitations of the technology became apparent. Over the last decade a number of advances have been introduced that have improved SWL outcomes without the use of new or improved lithotripters and these measures have contributed to maintaining the widespread applicability of SWL in the treatment of urinary stones. These advances include refining patient selection, including the use of nomograms, to increase the chance of successful treatment. Medication adjuncts have been used as part of SWL treatment to enhance stone fragmentation and potentially reduce SWL-induced renal injury. Pharmacologic and mechanical measures have been initiated to improve stone clearance and reduce post-SWL recurrences. This chapter will review these nontechnologic advances that have been introduced to enhance SWL outcomes.
The bose metal: a commentary

We review the concept of the Bose metal state which arises in 2D superconductors in the quantum limit where vortex loops can grow spontaneously in (2+1) dimensions and, as zero point motions become larger, eventually lead to an insulating state. A nonlocal Coulomb charging term in a Josephson array type model leads to an effective transverse gauge field which can suppress the condensate of vortices in the superinsulating state leading to an intermediate Bose liquid which is not superfluid at T=0, the Bose metal state. We comment on recent work on this state and on other non-superfluid Bose liquids.
Harmonizing the Humanitarian Aid Network: Adaptive Change in a Complex System

Humanitarian aid operations save many lives, but they also fail to help many people and can have unintended political consequences. A major reason for the deficit is poor coordination among organizations. In contrast to “lessons learned” studies that dominate the literature on this topic, this article uses systemic network theory, drawn from business management literature. It presents the humanitarian aid community as a complex, open, adaptive system, in which interaction of structure and processes explain the quality of the response to environmental demands. Comparison of aid operations in Rwanda in 1994 and Afghanistan in 2001 probes the argument that the humanitarian system is becoming more effective by developing characteristics of a network through goal-directed behavior of participating organizations. The study finds development of network characteristics in the system when clusters of organizations learn to coordinate more closely, but the system is constrained by the workload of a crisis environment, lack of trust among organizations, and the political interests of donor governments.
The other side of the engram: experience-driven changes in neuronal intrinsic excitability.

Modern theories of memory storage have largely focused on persistent, experience-dependent changes in synaptic function such as long-term potentiation and depression. But in addition to these synaptic changes, certain learning tasks produce enduring changes in the intrinsic excitability of neurons by changing the function of voltage-gated ion channels, a change that can produce broader, even neuron-wide changes in synaptic throughput. We will consider the evidence for persistent changes in intrinsic neuronal excitability — what we will call intrinsic plasticity — that is produced by training in behaving animals and by artificial patterns of activation in brain slices and neuronal cultures. These intrinsic changes might function as part of the engram itself, or as a related phenomenon such as a trigger for the consolidation or adaptive generalization of memories.
Activities of a Nitrofurazone-Containing Urinary Catheter and a Silver Hydrogel Catheter against Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria Characteristic of Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection

The in vitro inhibitory activity of a nitrofurazone-coated urinary catheter (NFC) against 86 recently obtained susceptible and multidrug-resistant (MDR) clinical isolates of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Citrobacter freundii, Staphylococcus aureus, coagulase-negative staphylococci, and Enterococcus faecium, which are species implicated in catheter-associated urinary tract infection and which traditionally have been susceptible to nitrofuran derivatives, was determined using an agar diffusion assay. In a subset of these strains, the activity of the NFC was compared with that of a silver hydrogel urinary catheter (SHC), and the durability of each catheter's inhibitory activity was assessed during serial daily transfers of catheter segments to fresh culture plates. Except for vancomycin-resistant E. faecium, the NFC was active against all isolates tested and showed comparable inhibition zones with susceptible and MDR strains of each species. In contrast, the SHC inhibited only certain staphylococci (P < 0.01 versus the NFC), and among these strains, the SHC produced smaller inhibition zones than did the NFC (P < 0.01). Inhibition was evident for up to 5 days with the NFC, but for only 1 day (if at all) with the SHC (P < 0.01). These data document that, for most genera which traditionally have been susceptible to nitrofuran derivatives, the NFC remains active against contemporary MDR isolates. They also demonstrate that the in vitro antibacterial activity of the NFC is markedly superior to that of the SHC in several respects. Thus, the NFC shows promise for clinical use in the current era of MDR bacteria.
DSD-Crasher: a hybrid analysis tool for bug finding

DSD-Crasher is a bug finding tool that follows a three-step approach to program analysis: D. Capture the program's intended execution behavior with dynamic invariant detection. The derived invariants exclude many unwanted values from the program's input domain.S. Statically analyze the program within the restricted input domain to explore many paths.D. Automatically generate test cases that focus on verifying the results of the static analysis. Thereby confirmed results are never false positives, as opposed to the high false positive rate inherent in conservative static analysis..This three-step approach yields benefits compared to past two-step combinations in the literature. In our evaluation with third-party applications, we demonstrate higher precision over tools that lack a dynamic step and higher efficiency over tools that lack a static step.
Technihadron production and decay in low scale technicolor

We discuss the production and decay rates of the lightest color-singlet technihadrons, spin-one ${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{T}$ and ${\ensuremath{\omega}}_{T}$ and spin-zero ${\ensuremath{\pi}}_{T},$ in a minimal ``straw-man'' model of low-scale technicolor. Because of walking technicolor enhancements of technipion masses, the decay channels ${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{T}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{\ensuremath{\pi}}_{T}{\ensuremath{\pi}}_{T}$ and ${\ensuremath{\omega}}_{T}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{\ensuremath{\pi}}_{T}{\ensuremath{\pi}}_{T}{\ensuremath{\pi}}_{T}$ are likely to be closed. The largest decay modes then are ${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{T}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}W{\ensuremath{\pi}}_{T},\ensuremath{\gamma}{\ensuremath{\pi}}_{T}$ and ${\ensuremath{\omega}}_{T}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\gamma}{\ensuremath{\pi}}_{T},$ while ${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{T},$ ${\ensuremath{\omega}}_{T}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{l}^{+}{l}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ offer low-rate but very clear signatures. The revised ${\ensuremath{\rho}}_{T}$ and ${\ensuremath{\omega}}_{T}$ decay rates to $\ensuremath{\gamma}{\ensuremath{\pi}}_{T}$ presented here affect the technicolor searches planned for run II of the Fermilab Tevatron collider.
Mossy Leg — An Unusual Therapeutic Success:

Elephantiasis verrucosa nostrum occurs when lymphatic obstruction of sufficient magnitude causes back pressure in the lymphatic channels forceful enough to produce superficial vessel dilation which has a "pebbly" or cobble-stone appearance. Unchecked this can progress to a marked verrucous or mossy appearance, frequently complicated by infection, with swelling and gross deformity.The patient presented here was both post-phlebitic and post-lymphatic with significant deformity. He showed dramatic improvement on a regimen of antibiotics and elevation followed by decompression and routine use of pressure-gradient support garments. This has not recurred and he has remained under control since 1979.
Two Kinds of Predictability in the Lorenz System

The Lorenz system is used to discuss two kinds of predictability: the model sensitivity to inaccurate initial conditions (first kind) and to inaccurate boundary conditions (second kind). The first kind of predictability has been investigated for a long time, but not the second kind. It was found that the Lorenz system has a capability to detect both kinds of predictability since the boundary condition is represented by a model parameter, r. Two sensitivity runs are designed by perturbing the initial condition and the model parameter r by the same small relative error (1024), which is equivalent to 10% of the instrumentational accuracy for surface temperature measurement. Comparison of model output between the control run and the sensitivity runs shows that the model error growth and the growing period are comparable between the two kinds of predictability. This indicates the importance of preparing accurate boundary conditions in numerical prediction.
A Marian Spirituality for Lay Ecclesial Ministers

The section on spiritual formation in the US Catholic Bishops' document on lay ecclesial ministry, Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord (2005), calls for lay ecclesial ministers to cultivate a Marian spirituality. This essay proposes four reasons why it makes sense to do so, points out six forms and sources for such a spirituality, describes several practices for cultivating it, and concludes with a selected bibliography of further readings helpful for exploring this topic in greater depth and taking next steps in putting it into practice. The essay aims to be useful to lay ecclesial ministers themselves as well as to administrators, instructors, and spiritual directors in formation programs. (Revised version of a workshop presented at the 2009 Annual Conference of NALM, the National Association for Lay Ministry.)
Minority Access and Health Reform: A Civil Right to Health Care:

Whether the racial disparities in treatment decisions are caused by differences in income and education, socio-cultural factors, or failures by the medical profession, they are unjustifiable and must be eliminated. Not only do the disparities violate fundamental principles of fairness, justice, and medical ethics, they may be part of the reason for the poor quality of health of minorities in the United States.
Lateral Interbody Decompression and Fusion: Which Side to Approach From?

Bertagnoli et al. initially described lateral lumbar interbody surgery in 2003 when they described the approach to implant prosthetic nuclear devices into the lumbar spine [1]. Ozgur and Pimenta described the extreme lateral transpsoas approach for interbody fusion in 2006 [2]. Over the last 7 years, the popularity and applications for minimally invasive lateral retroperitoneal approaches to the lumbar spine have grown. As the indications and applications have broadened, so have the dilemmas regarding which side to approach. In cases of a one-level fusion for degenerative disc disease, the point may be moot, and the approach should be based on which side appears easier to access on x-ray with respect to the ribs or iliac crest or whether the patient had prior retroperitoneal surgery on one side or the other. In more complex cases with coronal and sagittal deformities, the side of the approach becomes more poignant.
Molecular Signatures of Lung Cancer

Molecular profiling holds great promise for improving our ability to diagnose, prognosticate, and select individualized treatments for lung cancer patients. However, using multidimensional data and novel technologies to derive these profiles is limited by our ability to employ the assay in a clinical scenario where it can impact the course of disease. Although many molecular signatures have been reported in lung cancer, as of yet, few have been sufficiently validated for widespread clinical use. Recently, several novel signatures have been reported, which address critical aspects of patient care and/or demonstrate improved efforts for appropriate clinical validation. Here, we present our opinion on the current state of the field of molecular signatures in lung cancer.