cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Particle transport over rough hillslope surfaces by dry ravel: Experiments and simulations with implications for nonlocal sediment flux

[1] Past studies of hillslope evolution have typically assumed that soil creep processes are governed by a linear relationship between local hillslope angle and transport distance. The assumption of “linear diffusion” has fallen out of favor because, when coupled with an expression of mass continuity, it yields unrealistic hillslope profiles. As a consequence, a better understanding of the mechanics of sediment transport is needed. Here we report results from a series of flume experiments performed to investigate sediment transport by dry ravel, a common soil creep process in arid and semiarid environments. We find that, at gentle slopes, transport distances follow distributions characteristic of local transport. As gradients steepen, a fraction of the particles begins to exhibit nonlocal transport, and that fraction increases rapidly with slope. A stochastic discrete element model that couples an effective friction term with a shock term reproduces the results from the flume experiments, suggesting that it can be used to explore the nature of particle transport on rough surfaces. The model predicts that exponential distributions of transport distances on gentle slopes evolve into quasi-uniform distributions on steep slopes, and the transition occurs as slopes approach the angle of repose. Our results support previous findings that the angle of repose represents a threshold between friction and inertial regimes. In addition, we propose that the angle of repose represents a fuzzy boundary between local and nonlocal transport.
Absorption spectra of bacterial chromatophores at temperatures from 300° K to I° K

Abstract Absorption spectra of chromatophores from R. spheroides and from Chromatium have been measured at temperatures from 300° K to 1.3° K. The absorption bands of bacteriochlorophyll are narrowed and intensified slightly, but not dramatically, at low temperature. The spectrum of R. spheroides chromatophores is not changed by drying them; cooling the dried material changes the infra-red absirption bands of bacteriochlorophyll in a manner suggesting a suppression of bacteriochlorophyll-carotenoid interactions. Such a change is produced in Chromatium chromatophores simply by drying them; the change becomes greater as the dried Chromatium chromatophores are cooled.
Reflective Display Configurations Based on Total Internal Reflection and Grating-Grating Coupling of Holographic Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystals (H-PDLC)

ABSTRACT We report on a novel electro-optical reflective configuration based on total internal reflection and grating-grating coupling fabricated in Holographic Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystals (H-PDLC) materials. In this device, two symmetric slanted gratings are temporally multiplexed into a single film. A narrowband light is selected and diffracted from two coupled Bragg gratings creating a reflected image. These reflective configurations have switching voltages that are at least one-half that of H-PDLC reflective displays reported in the literature, and therefore have potential as low power, reflective display devices.
Photodynamic therapy of human bladder cancer cells in vitro correlated with cellular fluorescence levels of Photofrin-II.

In order to determine optimum dose of Photofrin-II (PHI) timing and dose of laser therapy and differential effects of laser on normal and neoplastic human bladder cancer cells in vitro, experiments were carried out using 3 cell lines of human bladder cancer (253-J, 639-V, and 647-V) and a human fibroblast line (CRL-1507). Cellular Pf-II uptake and excretion studied using flow cytometric fluorescence analysis of the cells and fluorescence levels of the culture medium showed a wide variability of uptake of Pf-II among the cell lines. Pf-II excretion occurred most rapidly in the first 4 h after incubation reaching maximum at 24-48 h in all cells studied. Cellular concentration of Pf-II and supernatant levels of Pf-II estimated by fluorescence levels had a reciprocal correlation. Laser treatment of one cancer line and the fibroblast line at 20 J (630 nm) at various times after incubation with 50 μ.g m−l of Pf-II showed that the photodynamic effect correlated directly with cellular fluorescence. These results suggest that in vitro: (1) initial uptake of Pf-II is generally higher in neoplastic than normal cells but that excretion rates are similar; and (2) photodynamic effect is related primarily to initial cellular levels of photosensitizer rather than differential excretion rates.
Photon-absorption and electron-pair cross sections of Ta and Bi

Cross sections sigma/sub kappa/ for pair creation by photons on Ta and Bi nuclei were deduced with 1% uncertainty between 3 and 28 MeV from total absorption measurements which were combined with data already published from the same apparatus. The gamma ray spectrometer consisted of a photoneutron time-of-flight detector and a liquid deuterium target. Energy resolution varied from 0.6% at 6 MeV (40 keV) to 1.9% at 25 MeV. At 10 MeV, sigma/sub kappa/(Bi) is (13.04 +- 0.07) b, exceeding by 1.7% a value calculated for Bi from a theoretical result for uranium which assumes a point nucleus but is otherwise exact. New tables of atomic cross sections agree closely with our measurements for Ta and Bi up to 10 MeV. The agreement in the case of Ta remains good at higher energies where older tables significantly underestimate the pair cross sections of heavy elements. For Bi the experimental sigma/sub kappa/ exceed even the new tabulated values by (0.8 +- 0.7) % around 20 MeV.
Focal increases of white matter glucose utilization produced by electrical stimulation of rat motor cortex.

Summary: The right motor cortex was electrically stimulated in adult, awake rats for 45 min. Local cerebral glucose utilization (LCGU) was measured in white matter pathways with the (14C)-2-deoxyglucose method. Stimulation increased LCGU in focal regions of the right internal capsule to 51.3 µmol/100 g/min, compared to 39.8 on the control left side. Stimulation also increased LCGU in the right, medial pontine pyramidal tract to 36.2 µmol/100 g/min, compared with 27.3 on the control left side. The data demonstrate that electrical stimulation of motor cortex neurons increases LCGU 30 to 40% in the efferent myelinated axons of those neurons.
Symmetries in the Optimal Control of Solar Sail Spacecraft

The theory of optimal control is applied to obtain minimum-time trajectories for solar sail spacecraft for interplanetary missions. We consider the gravitational and solar radiation forces due to the Sun. The spacecraft is modelled as a flat sail of mass m and surface area A and is treated dynamically as a point mass. Coplanar circular orbits are assumed for the planets. We obtain optimal trajectories for several interrelated problem families and develop symmetry properties that can be used to simplify the solution-finding process. For the minimum-time planet rendezvous problem we identify different solution branches resulting in multiple solutions to the associated boundary value problem. We solve the optimal control problem via an indirect method using an efficient cascaded computational scheme. The global optimizer uses a technique called Adaptive Simulated Annealing. Newton and Quasi-Newton Methods perform the terminal fine tuning of the optimization parameters.
In vivo microwave dielectric spectroscopy of breast tumor xenografts with intra-tumoral injections of SWCNT dispersions

We present a preliminary in vivo study of the microwave-frequency dielectric properties of mice breast tumor xenografts with accumulation of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). Dispersions of SWCNT-DSPE-PEG at various concentrations were injected directly into 22 tumors. Dielectric properties (1-6 GHz) before and after the injection were characterized using an open-ended coaxial probe technique. Baseline measurements (sham control and PEG only) were also conducted in 12 tumors. We found at least a ~10% relative permittivity enhancement effect upon injection of 100 μl of SWCNT stock solutions at concentrations ranging between 3 and 7 mg/ml.
MyD88-dependent production of IL-17F is modulated by the anaphylatoxin C5a via the Akt signaling pathway

The interleukin-17 (IL-17) family of cytokines plays important roles in innate immune defenses against bacterial and fungal pathogens. While much is known about IL-17A, much less information is available about the IL-17F isoform. Here, we investigated gene expression and release of IL-17F and its regulation by the complement system. IL-17F was produced in mouse peritoneal elicited macrophages after TLR4 activation by LPS, peaking after 12 h. This effect was completely dependent on the presence of the adaptor protein MyD88. The copresence of the complement activation product, C5a (EC50=10 nM), amplified IL-17F production via the receptor C5aR. In vitro signaling studies indicated that LPS or C5a, or the combination, caused phosphorylation of Akt occurring at threonine 308 but not at serine 473. Treatment of macrophages with pharmacologic inhibitors of PI3K-Akt greatly reduced production of IL-17F as well as mRNA for IL-17F. In endotoxemia, C5a levels peaked at 6 h, while IL-17F levels peaked between 6–12 h. Full in vivo production of IL-17F during endotoxemia required C5a. A similar result was found in the cecal ligation and puncture sepsis model. These data suggest that maximal production of IL-17F requires complement activation and presence of C5a.—Bosmann, M., Patel, V. R., Russkamp, N. F., Pache, F., Zetoune, F. S., Sarma, J. V., Ward, P. A. MyD88-dependent production of IL-17F is modulated by the anaphylatoxin C5a via the Akt signaling pathway.
Minimizing Oxidation and Stable Nanoscale Dispersion Improves the Biocompatibility of Graphene in the Lung

To facilitate the proposed use of graphene and its derivative graphene oxide (GO) in widespread applications, we explored strategies that improve the biocompatibility of graphene nanomaterials in the lung. In particular, solutions of aggregated graphene, Pluronic dispersed graphene, and GO were administered directly into the lungs of mice. The introduction of GO resulted in severe and persistent lung injury. Furthermore, in cells GO increased the rate of mitochondrial respiration and the generation of reactive oxygen species, activating inflammatory and apoptotic pathways. In contrast, this toxicity was significantly reduced in the case of pristine graphene after liquid phase exfoliation and was further minimized when the unoxidized graphene was well-dispersed with the block copolymer Pluronic. Our results demonstrate that the covalent oxidation of graphene is a major contributor to its pulmonary toxicity and suggest that dispersion of pristine graphene in Pluronic provides a pathway for the safe handling and potential biomedical application of two-dimensional carbon nanomaterials.
Generation of photon-number states using repetitive parametric downconversion and conditional measurement

In a Monte Carlo simulation, we feedback with conditional measurements and a multiple-step spontaneous parametric downconversion process to generate number-squeezed photonic states with sub-Poissonian variance. A 12 photon state is demonstrated with a success rate of 30%.
Performance of media based information leakage protection

There are many occasions that an organization needs to distribute important data to only authorized agents. However, there might happen illegal interceptions of the data by unauthorized agents. Commonly used methods of protecting information from unauthorized accesses have been based on text, but there have also appeared media based approaches in the literature. In this paper, we model and implement several combinations of the authentication systems based on the methods of using text, image and video, and evaluate their performances. In our practice, we developed 13 refined combinations of the testing models and implemented them in Java with Visual Studio as the front-end and a SQL server as the back-end. Performance analysis is done comparatively in the aspects of information protection rate and system access time delay. The experimental results revealed that the model with the combination of a text and 1 or 2 images with fine-grained access yielded the best performance with very low overheads.
Influence of structural geometry on the severity of bicuspid aortic stenosis

Doppler-derived gradients may overestimate total pressure loss in degenerative and prosthetic aortic valve stenosis (AS) due to unaccounted pressure recovery distal to the orifice. However, in cong...
Nuclear Factor-κB Activation: From Bench to Bedside:

Nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) is a proinflammatory transcription factor that has emerged as an important player in the development and progression of malignant cancers. NF-κB targets genes that promote tumor cell proliferation, survival, metastasis, inflammation, invasion, and angiogenesis. Constitutive or aberrant activation of NF-κ is frequently encountered in many human tumors and is associated with a resistant phenotype and poor prognosis. The mechanism of such persistent NF-κB activation is not clear but may involve defects in signaling pathways, mutations, or chromosomal rearrangements. Suppression of constitutive NF-κB activation inhibits the oncogenic potential of transformed cells and thus makes NF-κB an interesting new therapeutic target in cancer.
Evidence on the deleterious impact of sustained use of polynomial regression on causal inference

It is common in regression discontinuity analysis to control for third- or fifth-degree polynomials of the assignment variable. Such models can overfit, leading to causal inferences that are substantively implausible and that arbitrarily attribute variation to the high-degree polynomial or the discontinuity. This paper examines two recent studies that make use of regression discontinuity to discuss evident practical problems with these estimates and how they interact with pathologies of the current system of scientific publication. First, we discuss a recent study that estimates the effect on air pollution and life expectancy of a coal-heating policy in China. The reported effects, based on a thirddegree polynomial, are statistically significant but substantively dubious, and are sensitive to model choice. This study is indicative of a category of policy analyses where strong claims are based on weak data and methodologies which permit the researcher wide latitude in presenting estimated treatment effects. We then replicate a procedure from Green et al., in which regression discontinuity is used to recover estimated treatment effects relative to an experimental benchmark, to illustrate one practical problem with the regression discontinuity estimates in the coal-heating paper: high-degree polynomials yield noisy estimates of treatment effects that do not accurately convey uncertainty. We recommend that (a) researchers consider the problems which may result from controlling for higher-order polynomials; and (b) that journals recognize that quantitative analyses of policy issues are often inconclusive and relax the implicit rule under which statistical significance is a condition for publication.
Scalable Synthesis of Graphene on Patterned Ni and Transfer

We present an approach to mass produce high-quality graphene on insulator substrate. Ni dots with single or few grains were achieved by annealing. Electron backscattered diffraction indicated that almost all of the Ni dots had (111) surface that is parallel to the substrate. Single-layer graphene with good crystalline quality has been grown on Ni dots. The patterned graphene films were transferred to insulating substrates by wafer bonding and etch back technique, which resulted in zero misalignment, low contamination, and high yield (>90%). Graphene-based field-effect transistors with self-aligned gate were fabricated with this method, which demonstrate the potential of this method as a candidate for mass production of graphene transistors.
Review of studies on the effectiveness of instructional analogies in science education

The body of research on instructional analogies in science education is growing steadily in recent years. This study reviews a representative sample of studies that dealt with the effectiveness of text-based or teacher-based analogies in learning science concepts. The purpose is to provide a synthesis of the findings and to present implications for teachers and researchers in science education. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Self Encapsulated Poly(3‐hexylthiophene)‐poly(fluorinated alkyl methacrylate) Rod‐Coil Block Copolymers with High Field Effect Mobilities on Bare SiO2

Conjugated rod-coil block copolymers provide an interesting route towards enhancing the properties of the conjugated block due to self-assembly and the interplay of rod-rod and rod-coil interactions. Here, we demonstrate the ability of an attached semi-fluorinated block to significantly improve upon the charge carrier properties of regioregular poly(3-hexyl thiophene) (rr-P3HT) materials on bare SiO2. The thin film hole mobilities on bare SiO2 dielectric surfaces of poly (3-hexyl thiophene)-block-polyfluoromethacrylates (P3HT-b-PFMAs) can approach up to 0.12 cm2 V−1 s−1 with only 33 wt% of the P3HT block incorporated in the copolymer, as compared to rr-P3HT alone which typically has mobilities averaging 0.03 cm2 V−1 s−1. To our knowledge, this is the highest mobility reported in literature for block copolymers containing a P3HT. More importantly, these high hole mobilities are achieved without multistep OTS treatments, argon protection, or post-annealing conditions. Grazing incidence wide-angle x-ray scattering (GIWAX) data revealed that in the P3HT-b-PFMA copolymers, the P3HT rod block self-assembles into highly ordered lamellar structures, similar to that of the rr-P3HT homopolymer. Grazing incidence small-angle x-ray scattering (GISAXS) data revealed that lamellar structures are only observed in perpendicular direction with short PFMA blocks, while lamellae in both perpendicular and parallel directions are observed in polymers with longer PFMA blocks. AFM, GIWAXS, and contact angle measurements also indicate that PFMA block assembles at the polymer thin film surface and forms an encapsulation layer. The high charge carrier mobilities and the hydrophobic surface of the block copolymer films clearly demonstrates the influence of the coil block segment on device performance by balancing the crystallization and microphase separation in the bulk morphological structure.
ATE hardware diagnostics, fault detection, and fault isolation tool (self-test adapter)

The question of multiple levels of self-test for automatic test equipment (ATE) is examined, and a three-level self-test concept is proposed. Level one will verify test resource communications and built-in test (BIT), level two will check all of the switching resources, and level three will test the measurement and output stimulus resources. All three levels are distinct in their functions but each is dependent on the successful completion of the functions tested at the previous level. Depending on the problems encountered, only one or two levels of self-test will need to be run. >
Crystal Structure of the Catalytic Core of Human DNA Polymerase Kappa

We present the crystal structure of the catalytic core of human DNA polymerase kappa (hPolkappa), the first structure of a human Y-family polymerase. hPolkappa is implicated in the proficient extension of mispaired primer termini on undamaged DNAs, and in the extension step of lesion bypass. The structure reveals a stubby "fingers" subdomain, which despite its small size appears to be tightly restrained with respect to a putative templating base. The structure also reveals a novel "thumb" subdomain that provides a basis for the importance of the N-terminal extension unique to hPolkappa. And, most surprisingly, the structure reveals the polymerase-associated domain (PAD) juxtaposed on the dorsal side of the "palm" subdomain, as opposed to the fingers subdomain. Together, these properties suggest that the hPolkappa active site is constrained at the site of the templating base and incoming nucleotide, but the polymerase is less constrained following translocation of the lesion.
Facets of personality linked to underweight and overweight.

Objective—Personality traits underlie maladaptive behaviors, and cognitive and emotional disturbances that contribute to major preventable causes of global disease burden. This study examines detailed personality profiles of underweight, normal, and overweight individuals to provide insights into the causes and treatments of abnormal weight. Methods—More than half of the population from four towns in Sardinia, Italy (N=5,693; aged 14-94; M=43; SD=17), were assessed on multiple anthropometric measures and 30 facets that comprehensively cover the five major dimensions of personality, using the Revised NEO Personality Inventory. Results—High Neuroticism and low Conscientiousness were associated with being underweight and obese, respectively. High Impulsiveness (specifically eating-behavior items) and low Order were associated with BMI categories of overweight and obese, and with measures of abdominal adiposity (waist and hip circumference). Those scoring in the top 10% of Impulsiveness were about 4 Kg heavier than those in the bottom 10%, an effect independent and larger than the FTO genetic variant. Prospective analyses confirmed that Impulsiveness and Order were significant predictors of general and central measures of adiposity assessed 3 years later. Conclusions—Overweight and obese individuals have difficulty resisting cravings and lack methodical and organized behaviors that might influence diet and weight control. While individuals’ traits have limited impact on the current obesogenic epidemic, personality traits can improve clinical assessment, suggest points of intervention, and help tailor prevention and treatment approaches.
Web Image Clustering

While image clustering has many important applications ranging from personal to Web image management, its use is often limited by the difficulty of extracting reliable semantics from low level image features. The image clusters can be improved by using features extracted from image regions rather than the whole image. Region segmentation can be improved in turn, by considering all images within the same cluster rather than segmenting each image independently. This observation leads to the unified Bayesian framework for image clustering and segmentation presented in this paper. The experimental results, reported using several types of visual feature extractors on a database of Web documents containing over 6000 images, illustrates a significant improvement over existing techniques.
Aortic coarctation diagnosed by 64-slice computed tomography angiography.

A 69-year-old woman with long standing refractory hypertension (220/90), despite quadruple drug therapy, was found to have a calcified mass in the left upper chest on routine chest radiograph that was suspected of being vascular in origin. Femoral pulses were markedly diminished on exam. A 64-slice computed tomography (CT) angiogram, performed to evaluate the mass and the aorta for pathology, revealed the presence of a high-grade juxtaductal discrete coarctation (A, arrow) In addition, the mass on chest radiograph was determined to be a 2.3-cm aneurysm of the first intercostal artery. The intercostal artery serves as a collateral bypassing the coarctation (B). The scan graphically displays other prominent collaterals with the internal thoracic arteries anastomosing with the superior and then the inferior epigastric arteries (C, Cover).
Implicit LES for Shock/Blunt Body Interaction

The numerical simulation of the three-dimensional flow upwind of a vertical cylinder over a flat plate is achieved with a parallel LES code which is called DNSUTA Version III. The preliminary computational results with a coarse grid find that the flow structure is similar to experimental observations. The bow shock is very clear, and a separation shock is formed ( Λ-structure). Inside the separation region, there is a supersonic zone clearly visible. We also observe a high pressure zone near the cylinder wall, where the separation shock meets the bow shock. We observe high temperatures at the cylinder surface, as detected in experiments. The streamlines show the separation zone and the vortices are clearly outlined. Also, the root vortex is clearly shown at the base of the cylinder. With a finer grid which we plan to use, it will be very likely to observe more details of the structure for shock/blunt body interaction.
Polyethylene fiber formation in tubular flow. II. Discussion of precursor formation and nucleation time analysis

This is a continuation of the preceeding paper, Part I, and presents a discussion of the nature of the precursor structure formation process observed in the flow-induced crystallization experiments described in I. A discussion of stress-induced crystallization theory as applied to these experiments is also given and a first-order analysis of crystal nucleation rates is presented. Conclusions regarding the nature of flow-induced crystallization and our current ability to quantitatively model the overall process are also presented.
Pen as a Technology

In the current electronic age where voice mail, cell phones and e-mail are being employed extensively, no substitute has been found to replace the pen. Even when, one is browsing the internet, he or she still puts a pen within reach, which can be used to write down notes, scribble phone numbers or even doodle (Russell-Ausley, 2011). Even though technology has advanced significantly, businesses are still relying heavily on the pen. For some businesses, this may be for legal reasons or convenience. The evolution of pen technology has been discussed by many scholars. However, the users of pens have never thought of how the technology and mechanisms used in writing started. Beginning with sharp stones, which were used by cave men to digital pens, which are currently fancied by many people, this paper traces back the pen technology to its origin.
Towards modelling the impact of cyber attacks on a smart grid

This paper provides an introduction to cyber attack impact analysis in the smart grid and highlights existing research in the field. We present an impact analysis framework where we focus on the model synthesis stage where both cyber and physical grid entity relationships are modelled as directed graphs. Each node of the graph has associated state information that is governed by dynamical system equations that model the physics of the interaction (for electrical grid components) or functionality (for cyber grid elements). We illustrate how cause-effect relationships can be conveniently expressed for both analysis and extension to large-scale smart grid systems.
And Yet It Moves: The Effect of Election Platforms on Party Policy Images

This article analyzes the effect of parties’ election statements on voter perceptions of party policy positions. It reveals robust evidence that campaign policy announcements do influence party ima...
Gutta-percha obturation of lateral grooves and depressions.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the movement of gutta-percha into lateral grooves and depressions in the apical 7 mm of a root canal by using the System B Heat Source for the continuous wave of condensation and the Obtura II for the backfill. A split-tooth model was constructed with lateral grooves and dentin depressions prepared at 1, 3, 5, and 7 mm from working length (WL). The study included three experimental groups with 10 obturations in each group: group A—System B Fine heat plugger used at 5 mm from WL; group B—System B Fine heat plugger used at 4 mm from WL; and group C—System B Fine heat plugger used at 3 mm from WL. Group C had statistically better movement of gutta-percha into the 1-mm dentin depression than either group A (p = 0.0005) or group B (p = 0.0025) and better movement of gutta-percha into the 3-mm dentin depression than group A. A significant difference in gutta-percha flow into the lateral grooves was seen at 3 mm from WL with group C (p
EFTu provides an internal kinetic standard for translational accuracy

Abstract During polypeptide chain elongation the ribosome interacts with aminoacyl-transfer RNA (aa-tRNA) and with elongation factor (EFTu). The rate constants characterizing the ribosome's interactions with EFTu are independent of whether the aa-tRNA is cognate or noncognate. These rate constants act as an internal kinetic standard to measure the kinetics of the ribosome's interaction with the aa-tRNA, and thereby help determine whether the aa-tRNA is cognate or noncognate.
Controlling Home and Office Appliances with Smart Phones

The personal universal controller system lets users interact with their appliances through automatically generated remote control interfaces on their smart phone devices. In this article, we present a framework for automatically generating appliance interfaces from abstract specifications of appliances' functions. These interfaces control each appliance's full functionality and are consistent with the phone's other interfaces. Our interfaces are also fully interactive, which incrementally adjust the appliance's features, such as volume, in real time. Our work demonstrates the feasibility of automatically generating high-quality interfaces for a wide range of appliances on a smart phone device
Phase I Study of Replication-Competent Adenovirus-Mediated Double-Suicide Gene Therapy in Combination with Conventional-Dose Three-Dimensional Conformal Radiation Therapy for the Treatment of Newly Diagnosed, Intermediate- to High-Risk Prostate Cancer

The primary study objective was to determine the safety of intraprostatic administration of a replication-competent, oncolytic adenovirus containing a cytosine deaminase (CD)/herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSV-1 TK) fusion gene concomitant with increasing durations of 5-fluorocytosine and valganciclovir prodrug therapy and conventional-dose three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT) in patients with newly diagnosed, intermediate- to high-risk prostate cancer. Secondary objectives were to determine the persistence of therapeutic transgene expression in the prostate and to examine early posttreatment response. Fifteen patients in five cohorts received a single intraprostatic injection of 10(12) viral particles of the replication-competent Ad5-CD/TKrep adenovirus on day 1. Two days later, patients were administered 5-fluorocytosine and valganciclovir prodrug therapy for 1 (cohorts 1-3), 2 (cohort 4), or 3 (cohort 5) weeks along with 70-74 Gy 3D-CRT. Sextant needle biopsy of the prostate was obtained at 2 (cohort 1), 3 (cohort 2), and 4 (cohort 3) weeks for determination of the persistence of transgene expression. There were no dose-limiting toxicities and no significant treatment-related adverse events. Ninety-four percent of the adverse events observed were mild to moderate and self-limiting. Acute urinary and gastrointestinal toxicities were similar to those expected for conventional-dose 3D-CRT. Therapeutic transgene expression was found to persist in the prostate for up to 3 weeks after the adenovirus injection. As expected for patients receiving definitive radiation therapy, all patients experienced significant declines in prostate-specific antigen (PSA). The mean PSA half-life in patients administered more than 1 week of prodrug therapy was significantly shorter than that of patients receiving prodrugs for only 1 week (0.6 versus 2.0 months; P < 0.02) and markedly shorter than that reported previously for patients treated with conventional-dose 3D-CRT alone (2.4 months). With a median follow-up of only 9 months, 5 of 10 (50%) patients not treated with androgen-deprivation therapy achieved a serum PSA < or = 0.5 ng/ml. The results demonstrate that replication-competent adenovirus-mediated double-suicide gene therapy can be combined safely with conventional-dose 3D-CRT in patients with intermediate- to high-risk prostate cancer. The shorter than expected PSA half-life in patients receiving more than 1 week of prodrug therapy may suggest a possible interaction between the oncolytic adenovirus and/or double-suicide gene therapies and radiation therapy.
Electromagnetically induced transparency over spectral hole-burning temperature in a rare-earth–doped solid

We have observed electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) in rare-earth Pr3+-doped Y2SiO5 over the spectral hole-burning temperature. The transmission of the probe laser beam is increased by a factor of exp(1.4) at 12 K when a coupling laser of 1.2 kW/cm2 is applied to the system. The observation of EIT over the spectral hole-burning temperature in a rare-earth–doped solid represents important progress toward high-density echo-based optical memories at higher temperatures.
Electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection of giant magneto-resistive (GMR) recording heads with a silicon germanium technology

Experimental studies on the ESD protection were completed on advanced magnetic recording giant magneto-resistive heads using a BiCMOS silicon germanium technology for the first time. SiGe-based active and passive elements, such as isolated MOSFETs, varactors and Schottky diodes were used to evaluate the influence of turn-on voltage on the protection levels.
The effect of intrinsic motivation on success in a technology management undergraduate program

In this study we track the academic performance of twenty-two students in a Technology Managements bachelor's program to look at the relationship that age, total number of semester credit hours, and time invariant factors that vary across observational units but do not vary across time have on academic performance. We find scant evidence for a significant relationship between either age of total number of credit ours on grade point average, but our regression analysis does suggest that time invariant factors of the sort mentioned earlier do play a significant role in academic performance. Lastly, we conduct a Hausman test to determine whether a fixed effects or random effects model is appropriate, and find that the fixed effects model is preferred; a conclusion that tells us that these time invariant factors are likely correlated to the other right-side variables (age, total number of credit hours) that we have included in the model.
Habitual Use of Vocal Fry in Young Adult Female Speakers

Summary The purpose of this study was to examine the use of vocal fry in young adult Standard American-English (SAE) speakers. This was a preliminary attempt (1) to determine the prevalence of the use of this register in young adult college-aged American speakers and (2) to describe the acoustic characteristics of vocal fry in these speakers. Subjects were 34 female college students. They were native SAE speakers aged 18–25 years. Data collection procedures included high quality recordings of two speaking conditions, (1) sustained isolated vowel /a/ and (2) sentence reading task. Data analyses included both perceptual and acoustic evaluations. Results showed that approximately two-thirds of this population used vocal fry and that it was most likely to occur at the end of sentences. In addition, statistically significant differences between vocal fry and normal register were found for mean F 0 minimum, F 0 maximum, F 0 range, and jitter local. Preliminary findings were taken to suggest that use of the vocal fry register may be common in some adult SAE speakers.
Pathological Alteration of FoxO3a Activity Promotes Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Fibroblast Proliferation on Type I Collagen Matrix

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a prevalent, progressive, and incurable fibroproliferative lung disease. The phenotype of IPF fibroblasts is characterized by their ability to elude the proliferation-suppressive properties of polymerized type I collagen. The mechanism underlying this pathological response is incompletely understood but involves aberrant activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase–Akt signaling pathway owing to inappropriately low phosphatase and tensin homolog phosphatase activity. Akt can phosphorylate and inactivate the forkhead box O3a (FoxO3a) transcriptional factor, which, when transcriptionally active, increases the expression of the CDK inhibitor p27 and promotes cell cycle arrest. Herein, we demonstrate that IPF fibroblasts display high levels of inactive FoxO3a compared with nonfibrotic control fibroblasts because of their high Akt activity. We found that p27 levels are decreased in IPF compared with control fibroblasts cultured on polymerized collagen. Furthermore, overexpression of FoxO3a in IPF fibroblasts increases p27 levels and suppresses the ability of IPF fibroblasts to proliferate on polymerized collagen. In contrast, the expression of dominant-negative FoxO3a augmented control fibroblast proliferation. IHC examination of fibroblastic foci in IPF lung tissue demonstrates the presence of inactive FoxO3a in cells within fibroblastic foci. These data indicate that the ability of IPF fibroblasts to circumvent the proliferation-suppressive properties of polymerized collagen involves inactivation of FoxO3a by high Akt activity, resulting in down-regulation of p27.
Antimicrobial Treatment of Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia

Ventilator-associated pneumonia is a common complication of ventilatory support for patients with acute respiratory failure and is associated with increased morbidity, mortality, and costs. Optimal antimicrobial therapy is an essential part of successful management of ventilator-associated pneumonia. Numerous safe and effective antimicrobial drugs are available, and their efficacy can be optimized by attention to basic pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic principles. An adequate initial empiric antimicrobial regimen is essential, because inadequate initial therapy is consistently associated with increased mortality. This regimen must be selected before final microbiology results become known, but likely pathogens and antimicrobial resistance patterns can be predicted based on published guidelines, patient-specific factors, and local epidemiologic data. Nevertheless, the initial regimen must often be broad-spectrum and typically requires combination therapy, with 2 or 3 different drugs, if there are risk factors for multidrug-resistant pathogens. The antimicrobial regimen can be narrowed or discontinued as culture and susceptibility results permit. This deescalation strategy ensures adequate initial antimicrobial therapy for most patients but lessens unnecessary antimicrobial exposure. The best diagnostic approach used to guide therapy, the optimum duration of therapy, and the roles of combination therapy, rotating therapy, and unconventional approaches to antimicrobial therapy all remain uncertain.
Abstract 4421: GPER-mediated activation of the cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) and subsequent IGFBP-1 expression is altered during the development of tamoxifen resistance

Tamoxifen is a commonly prescribed anti-estrogen treatment for breast cancer patients; this selective estrogen receptor modulator functions as an ERα-antagonist in breast tissue and inhibits cell proliferation and survival of breast cancer cells. More recently, the active metabolite of tamoxifen, 4-OHT (Tam), has been shown to activate the G protein-coupled estrogen receptor (GPER). Previous studies from our laboratory identified a novel, GPER-dependent mechanism of Tam action in breast cancer cells that requires the extracellular accumulation of the insulin-like growth factor binding protein-1 (IGFBP-1). The molecular mechanisms of Tam-induced IGFBP-1 production mediated by GPER have not been determined. GPER activation has been shown to stimulate cAMP production and PKA activation in several cell types. We hypothesized the cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) activation is required for Tam-induced IGFBP-1 production in breast caner cells. To determine if CREB activation may be involved in IGFBP-1 transcription, CREB phosphorylation (S133) status and nuclear accumulation were determined in MCF-7 cells after Tam treatment. The phosphorylation and nuclear accumulation of CREB were observed in Tam-treated MCF-7 cells suggesting that CREB activation may be required for Tam-induced IGFBP-1 transcription. Increased CREB phosphorylation and IGFBP-1 transcription were inhibited by pretreatment with the PKA inhibitor H-89 supporting a role for CREB in Tam-induced IGFBP-1 expression. H-89 pretreatment also significantly decreased the previously reported inhibition of IGF-1-stimulated signaling by Tam treatment in breast cancer cells. We have previously reported that Tam-induced IGFBP-1 expression is dysregulated in Tam-resistant MCF-7 cells (MCF-7TamR). To determine if aberrant CREB signaling results in the observed dysregulation, similar experiments were performed in MCF-7TamR cells. Our results show that CREB phosphorylation and nuclear accumulation are decreased in Tam-resistant cells compared to Tam-sensitive cells. Taken together, these results suggest that activation of GPER results in CREB-dependent IGFBP-1 production and subsequent inhibition of IGF-1-stimulated signaling in breast cancer cells treated with Tam. Furthermore, dysregulation of GPER-mediated CREB activation may be involved in the development of Tam resistance in breast cancer. Citation Format: Ali Vaziri-Gohar, Kevin D. Houston. GPER-mediated activation of the cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) and subsequent IGFBP-1 expression is altered during the development of tamoxifen resistance. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 4421. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-4421
Methodology and Strategies in the Laboratory

The investigation of chemocommunication in mammals demands a flexible methodology and, more importantly, attention to relevant biological problems, such as the nature of chemosignals, reactions to signals, biological attributes of the organism, physiological processes, ecological influences, and the relationship of chemocommunication to genetic fitness. Laboratory techniques can isolate and identify parameters of the signaling system, but the full understanding of chemocommunication will only follow combined laboratory and field investigations. Special emphasis should be given to the integration of various signaling systems within the ecological and genetic constraints of the organism.
Handling Mobility in Wireless Sensor and Actor Networks

In wireless sensor and actor networks (WSANs), the collaborative operation of sensors enables the distributed sensing of a physical phenomenon, while actors collect and process sensor data and perform appropriate actions. WSANs can be thought of as a distributed control system that needs to timely react to sensor information with an effective action. In this paper, coordination and communication problems in WSANs with mobile actors are studied. First, a new location management scheme is proposed to handle the mobility of actors with minimal energy expenditure for the sensors, based on a hybrid strategy that includes location updating and location prediction. Actors broadcast location updates limiting their scope based on Voronoi diagrams, while sensors predict the movement of actors based on Kalman filtering of previously received updates. The location management scheme enables efficient geographical routing, and based on this, an optimal energy-aware forwarding rule is derived for sensor-actor communication. Consequently, algorithms are proposed that allow controlling the delay of the data-delivery process based on power control, and deal with network congestion by forcing multiple actors to be recipients for traffic generated in the event area. Finally, a model is proposed to optimally assign tasks to actors and control their motion in a coordinated way to accomplish the tasks based on the characteristics of the events. Performance evaluation shows the effectiveness of the proposed solution.
Analytical Coupled Modeling and Model Validation of Hydraulic On/Off Valves

The goal of this paper is to describe a method for modeling high speed on/off valves. This model focuses on the nonlinearities of the electromagnetic, fluidic, and mechanical domains, specifically within solenoid driven poppet style valves. By including these nonlinearities, the model accurately predicts valve transition time for different driving voltages and valve strokes. The model also predicts fluid transients such as pressure ripple. Unique attributes of the model are the inclusion of the effect of eddy currents and fringing while still being fully coupled with the fluid and mechanical domains. A prototype was constructed and used to experimentally validate the model. By developing accurate lumped parameter models, valve dynamics can be applied to hydraulic systems to accurately capture their dynamics.
A probabilistic simulation of fluid leakage in multiple cracks situation

In pressure vessels and piping the leak-before-break (LBB) assessment method is employed to avoid any catastrophic failure prior to a detectable leakage. One of the most important parameter, the leak rate, is investigated in the present paper by means of the Monte Carlo method. A brief review is carried out with emphasis on aspects such as crack growth, crack size with detectable leakage, crack opening area and leak rate. Issues concerning the property and behaviour of multiple cracks are also covered along with a review of the characteristics of leak rate through distributed multiple cracks using a statistical simulation method. The simulation results show that the effect of multiple cracks is quite significant to the LBB concept. Both the relationship between leak rate and crack length (or time) and the statistical characteristics of the leak rate are considerably different for different initial crack conditions.
Emotional contagion of anger is automatic: An evolutionary explanation

Emotional contagion--the transfer of emotions between people--is thought to occur automatically. We test the prediction, based on evolutionary psychology, that negative, threat-related emotions transfer more automatically than positive emotions. We introduce a new paradigm for investigating emotional contagion where participants are exposed to videos of faces that morph from neutral to angry or happy expressions. Participants watched these videos under high or low cognitive load. Participants reported more happiness in the happy condition than the anger condition and more anger in the anger condition than the happy condition, supporting our new paradigm. Participants in the happy condition were significantly happier under low compared with high load. Participants were equally angry in high and low load conditions.