cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
On the origins of the Mendelian laws

The two laws usually attributed to Mendel were not considered as laws by him. The first law, the law of independent segregation occurs in Mendel's paper as an assumption or hypothesis. Hugo de Vries refers to this as a law discovered by Mendel. This appears to be the first use of an expression equivalent to Mendel's law. In his paper de Vries did not associate the observable characters with structures having a causitive role. That was done by Correns, who transformed the law of segregation of characters into a law of the segregation of anlagen. The second law, the law of independent assortment, is present in embryonic form in Mendel's paper. Here the independent assortment of characters appears as a secondary conclusion to a series of experiments involving several pairs of traits. Mendel repeats the primary conclusion later in the paper but not the secondary one. This leads us to believe that he considered the secondary conclusion as of lesser importance. We note in this context that the 9:3:3:1 ratio commonly associated with the idea of independent assortment, and attributed to Mendel, also does not occur in his paper. A careful reading of the papers of his discoverers shows it was Correns who first drew attention to this ratio. However, he did not formulate the second Mendelian law even though it was clearly implied. Neither was it stated by de Vries. Indeed, the first clear separation of the two laws and the naming of the second law was by T. H. Morgan some 13 years later.
Dialect and identification in persuasive messages.

Using northern college students as subjects, this experiment attempted to examine the effects of regional identification in responses to speeches relevant and irrelevant to regional norms. For a mo...
Structure of trans-N-methylacetamide: planar or non-planar symmetry?

Abstract The structure of trans-N-methylacetamide has been fully optimized, i.e., all frequencies real, at the Hartree-Fock (HF) level with twelve basis sets from 6G–31G∗ through 6–311 + + G∗∗ and with electron correlation at the second-order Moller-Plesset perturbation level (MP2) with the 6G–31G∗, 6G–311G∗∗, 6–31 + G∗, 6–311 + G∗, and 6–311 + + G∗∗ basis sets. Minimum energy structures are non-planar at HF and MP2 levels without diffuse functions. With diffuse functions included, the minimum energy structure is planar for all basis sets at the HF level and tends toward planarity at more complete levels of MP2 electron correlation. These results, as well as MP3, MP4 (SDQ), and CISD optimizations without frequency calculations, lead us to conclude that, within the expected torsion angle variations in such calculations, the equilibrium structure of the isolated molecule has planar symmetry.
Framing and Power in Aging Advocacy

The number of groups advocating on behalf of older people, their activities, and their influence suggest that a transnational advocacy network around aging is emerging, but there have been no attempts to study how dense this network is, nor how power is distributed within it. Through collective action frame analysis, this article explores whether organizations advocating on behalf of older people represent the variety of global aging experiences in both developed and less-developed contexts. The analysis relies on four types of evidence: documentary, survey, interview, and observation. Advocacy groups use a number of diagnostic, prognostic, and motivational frames. The findings support arguments in the literature that diverse collective action frames can be more of an asset than a liability because they increase the network's reach and resonance with multiple stakeholders. Although the aging advocacy network is not very dense, it is becoming denser because of the rise of the human rights master frame and ...
Transfer of Mathematical Knowledge: The Portability of Generic Instantiations

— Mathematical concepts are often difficult to acquire. This difficulty is evidenced by failure of knowledge to transfer to novel analogous situations. One approach to this challenge is to present the learner with a concrete instantiation of the to-be-learned concept. Concrete instantiations communicate more information than their abstract, generic counterparts and, in doing so, they may facilitate initial learning. However, this article argues that extraneous information in concrete instantiations may distract the learner from the relevant mathematical structure and, as a result, hinder transfer. At the same time, generic instantiations, such as traditional mathematical notation, can be learned by both children and adults and can, in turn, allow for transfer, suggesting that generic instantiations result in a portable knowledge representation.
False signature reduction in channeled spectropolarimetry

Channeled spectropolarimetry measures the complete polarization state of light, using a single spectrum, by amplitude modulating the Stokes parameters onto spectral carrier frequencies. However, spectral features that are not band limited in the Fourier transform domain, such as narrow-band atomic absorption lines, can generate false polarimetric signatures. We present a false-signature (aliasing) reduction technique that reduces the error induced by these non-band-limited features. Additionally, the spectral resolution of the S0 Stokes parameter is improved, up to the maximum resolution offered by the spectrometer. A theoretical model for implementing the technique on a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer is presented, including an enhanced model that accounts for dichroism within the crystal. The approach is experimentally demonstrated in the middle-wavelength infrared (3-5 µm) with the use of two multiple-order yttrium vanadate retarders. Additional results demonstrating the technique for wavelengths spanning 2.5-15 µm are obtained using cadmium sulfide retarders. Reconstructions are compared to conventional channeled spectropolarimetric reconstructions from the same system.
Wheat Streak Mosaic Virus Infects Systemically Despite Extensive Coat Protein Deletions: Identification of Virion Assembly and Cell-to-Cell Movement Determinants

Viral coat proteins function in virion assembly and virus biology in a tightly coordinated manner with a role for virtually every amino acid. In this study, we demonstrated that the coat protein (CP) of Wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV; genus Tritimovirus, family Potyviridae) is unusually tolerant of extensive deletions, with continued virion assembly and/or systemic infection found after extensive deletions are made. A series of deletion and point mutations was created in the CP cistron of wild-type and/or green fluorescent protein-tagged WSMV, and the effects of these mutations on cell-to-cell and systemic transport and virion assembly of WSMV were examined. Mutants with overlapping deletions comprising N-terminal amino acids 6 to 27, 36 to 84, 85 to 100, 48 to 100, and 36 to 100 or the C-terminal 14 or 17 amino acids systemically infected wheat with different efficiencies. However, mutation of conserved amino acids in the core domain, which may be involved in a salt bridge, abolished virion assembly and cell-to-cell movement. N-terminal amino acids 6 to 27 and 85 to 100 are required for efficient virion assembly and cell-to-cell movement, while the C-terminal 65 amino acids are dispensable for virion assembly but are required for cell-to-cell movement, suggesting that the C terminus of CP functions as a dedicated cell-to-cell movement determinant. In contrast, amino acids 36 to 84 are expendable, with their deletion causing no obvious effects on systemic infection or virion assembly. In total, 152 amino acids (amino acids 6 to 27 and 36 to 100 and the 65 amino acids at the C-terminal end) of 349 amino acids of CP are dispensable for systemic infection and/or virion assembly, which is rare for multifunctional viral CPs.
Laparoscopic approaches to abdominal malignancy

The use of laparoscopy for diagnosis and staging of intra-abdominal malignancies is not an exclusive procedure. It is another modality in the armamentarium of caring for the patient. The selection of the appropriate patients is discussed in detail and must include a determination of the long-range plans for intervention. The technical issues include problems of previous abdominal surgery, adhesions, ability to tolerate general endotracheal anesthesia, and ability to properly position the patient for an adequate examination. The endoscopic surgeon must be able to differentiate between the benign and malignant process during endoscopic examination and must be skilled in obtaining appropriate biopsies. In the staging of lymphoma, laparoscopy has virtually replaced the open celiotomy technique. Laparoscopic removal of appropriate lymph nodes is essential. The role of laparoscopy in a second-look operation is discussed as well as contraindications and complications of the procedure. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Isotope Effect, Mechanism, and Origin of Catalysis in the Decarboxylation of Mandelylthiamin

The mechanism of decarboxylations in water and the catalysis of mandelylthiamin (MTh) decarboxylation by pyridinium ions is explored. It has been recently proposed that a decarboxylation step forming an intermediate molecule/CO2 pair is reversible and that pyridinium ions catalyze the MTh decarboxylation by trapping the intermediate, preventing reversion to MTh. A calculation of the barrier for the back reaction goes against this proposal, as the diffusional separation of CO2 would be on the order of 10 000 times faster. A comparison of predicted and experimental isotope effects for a series of decarboxylations including the MTh reaction shows in each case the absence of significant reversibility of the decarboxylation step. An alternative origin of the pyridinium catalysis of decarboxylation is proposed, based on the formal binding of the pyridinium ions to the decarboxylation transition state.
Duplex-specific nuclease (DSN): A method for the rehabilitation of low-copy number DNA profiles

Abstract A continual challenge in the field of forensic DNA analysis is the amplification and interpretation of degraded and low-copy number (LCN) DNA obtained from amounts of limited biological evidence. It has been well established that DNA profiles obtained from the amplification of low quality, degraded, and/or LCN DNA samples are often of limited value due to the frequent occurrence of preferential amplification during polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The by-products of preferential PCR amplification are often observed as inter- and intra-locus peak imbalance, allelic dropout, and/or locus dropout. These are all artifacts that are identified during the interpretation phase of analysis rather than by improving the quality of the DNA present. While it is theoretically possible to obtain a complete DNA profile from a single cell, in reality, profiles obtained from suboptimal amounts of DNA are difficult to interpret and frequently inconsistent when replicated. Inspired by advances in next-generation sequencing techniques, we propose a methodology for simultaneously normalizing the abundance of PCR products across all short tandem repeat (STR) loci using the DNA exonuclease, duplex-specific nuclease (DSN). DSN is an enzyme isolated from the hepatopancreas of Red King (Kamchatka) crab that possesses a strong affinity for digesting double stranded DNA (dsDNA) and has limited activity toward single stranded DNA (ssDNA). Degraded DNA known to display peak imbalance and allele dropout was amplified using AmpFlSTR ® Identifiler ® Plus for 28 cycles. Following amplification, samples were denatured at 99.9°C for 5min and incubated with one unit of DSN at 62°C in a 28μl volume for 1min. Nuclease activity was terminated through the addition of equal volume of 10mM EDTA and 95°C incubation for 2min. Following DSN treatment, 21 of 30 alleles within the known profile exhibited some improvement in peak height balance. The findings obtained support the potential use of DSN treatment as a method for normalizing STR profiles and improving the quality of data from degraded and low quantity DNA samples.
Serum leptin levels in Ache Amerindian females with normal adiposity are not significantly different from American anorexia nervosa patients.

Serum leptin, a polypeptide hormone secreted primarily by adipocytes, is a reflection of somatic fat availability in humans and other vertebrates. Among Ache Amerindians, leptin levels are very low in contrast to other populations, despite comparable adiposity with individuals exhibiting much higher leptin levels. In order to gain a greater understanding of these differences, leptin levels were compared between Ache Amerindian females (n = 12, mean age = 32.2 ± 14.0 SD), American females diagnosed with anorexia nervosa (n = 22, mean age = 23.0 ± 4.0), and non-anorectic American controls (n = 23, mean age = 23.0 ± 4.0). Ache leptin (5.6 ± 3.2 ng/ml) was not significantly different from anorectic patients (5.6 ± 3.7 ng/ml; P > 0.98) despite greater adiposity (Ache 33.3% ± 4.4% vs. anorectic 7.0% ± 2.0%; P < 0.0001). Ache adiposity was also higher than American controls (leptin 19.1 ± 8.1 ng/ml; fat 28% ± 5.0%; P < 0.004) underscoring the uniqueness of Ache leptin profiles. This suggests a greater range of population variation in leptin physiology than previously suspected and intimates the potential role of chronic environmental conditions. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 17:207–210, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Evaluation of two inflow control devices for flight simulation of fan noise using a JT15D engine

The program was developed to accurately simulate flight fan noise on ground static test stands. The results generally indicated that both the induct and external ICD's were effective in reducing the inflow turbulence and the fan blade passing frequency tone generated by the turbulence. The external ICD was essentially transparent to the propagating fan tone but the induct ICD caused attenuation under most conditions.
Automated Proton Spectroscopic Image Processing

An automatic data processing and display protocol for proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging is described. The spectroscopic images are generated using the fitted peak areas of phased metabolite resonances using the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm. This automated spectroscopic image processing is tested and evaluated using phantom and human brain data. This algorithm is robust, simple to use, and minimizes user bias in processing and quantifying serial changes of metabolite levels in brain tissue.
Space reactor power system programs overview

The present development history and current development status evaluation of space reactor power system technologies gives attention to subsystem and component readiness and performance, and assesses the technology data base available in each case. This data base characterization gives attention to the most compatible reactor-power conversion system combinations for prospective DOD and commercial missions, as well as NASA missions. Candidate systems for near, middle, and far term application are selected and prioritized on the basis of technical risk. The programs covered encompass SNAPs 1, 2, 8, and 10A, SNAP 50, and SP-100.
Incidental Rectal Mucosa Obtained via Transrectal Ultrasound-Guided Prostatic Core Biopsies

A retrospective review was conducted of material from 782 transrectal ultrasound-guided prostatic core biopsies to determine whether incidental pieces of rectal mucosa obtained in this manner could harbor clinically significant rectal pathology or incur artifacts that cause diagnostic difficulty. Material from 114 biopsies (14.6%) showed rectal mucosa, and material from 19 (16.7%) showed rectal pathology, including a hyper-plastic polyp in 1, changes consistent with ulcerative proctitis in 8, focal active proctitis in 7, and granulomas in 3. The original pathologist overlooked the hyperplastic polyp. In 1 specimen, rectal lymphocytes and plasma cells that were displaced over prostatic tissue closely mimicked prostatic adenocarcinoma (Gleason score 5). Conversely, in another specimen, prostatic adenocarcinoma (Gleason score 5) that was displaced near rectal mucosa closely mimicked a rectal lymphoid aggregate. Incidental rectal mucosa obtained via transrectal ultrasound-guided prostatic core biopsies occasi...
Development of Metal Supported Solid Oxide Fuel Cells for Operation at 500–600°C

A novel metal-supported solid oxide fuel cell has been developed that is capable of operating at temperatures of 500–600 °C. The rationale behind the materials used to construct this fuel cell type is given, and results are presented from cell testing on hydrogen and reformed natural gas, including durability trials of some 2500 h duration. This new fuel cell variant is shown to be tolerant of carbon monoxide, durable, robust to thermal and redox cycling, and capable of delivering technologically relevant power densities.
New applications of mu to real-parameter variation problems

The structured singular value (SSV) has been used in recent studies of the robust stability of feedback systems subject to real-parameter variations. In this paper, we summarize the results obtained when some new upper-bounds on the SSV for real-parameters (reference [1]) were used in two studies of flight control systems. The perturbation structure for higher rank perturbations is discussed and the issue of lower-bounds for the SSV in the real-parameter problem is considered. A new theoretical result relevant to lower-bounds in a special case is given.
Characterization and modeling of a microcapillary driven liquid–vapor phase-change membrane actuator

Abstract Factors affecting the efficiency of liquid–vapor phase-change actuators during dynamic operation are explored. To do this, a model actuator was specifically designed so that actuator geometry, material properties and operation could be easily varied in order to parametrically study their effects on actuator efficiency. A numerical model was developed so that the detailed energy budget within the device could be elucidated. It was found that device efficiency was maximized when the energy input to actuator was equal to the energy required to dry out the evaporator. Membrane thermal mass and compliance, as well as the thickness of the evaporating liquid layer were also found to have a large impact on efficiency. In contrast, membrane thermal conductivity was found to have a minimal effect on efficiency for dynamic operation. Based on the parameter study, a liquid–vapor phase-change membrane actuator fabricated with a 10.3 μm thick wicking structure and a 200 nm thick, 3 edge length silicon nitride actuation membrane was shown to demonstrate improved performance characteristics. The actuator generated peak pressures and deflections of 123 kPa and 167 μm when actuated with a 14.3 mJ heating pulse for a thermal efficiency of 0.15%.
Bivalent vaccination against pneumonic pasteurellosis in domestic sheep and goats with modified-live in-frame lktA deletion mutants of Mannheimia haemolytica.

Abstract A temperature-sensitive shuttle vector, pBB80C, was utilized to generate in-frame deletion mutants of the leukotoxin structural gene ( lkt A) of Mannheimia haemolytica serotypes 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 12. Culture supernatants from the mutants contained a truncated protein with an approximate molecular weight of 66 kDa which was reactive to anti-leukotoxin monoclonal antibody. No protein reactive to anti-LktA monoclonal antibody was detected at the molecular weight 100–105 kDa of native LktA. Sheep and goats vaccinated intramuscularly with a mixture of serotypes 5 and 6 mutants were resistant to virulent challenge with a mixture of the wild-type parent strains. These vaccinates responded serologically to both vaccine serotypes and exhibited markedly-reduced lung lesion volume and pulmonary infectious load compared to control animals. Control animals yielded a mixture of serotypes from lung lobes, but the proportion even within an individual animal varied widely from 95% serotype 5–95% serotype 6. Cultures recovered from liver were homogeneous, but two animals yielded serotype 5 and the other two yielded serotype 6 in pure culture.
African states, citizenship and war: a case–study†

This article, first given as a talk to a seminar of the Uganda Parliament in 2000, is a reflection on that aspect of the colonial political legacy that passes for common sense in the region of the African Great Lakes. The author takes a fresh look at recent events leading to civil war in Uganda (1981–6), Rwanda (1990–94) and eastern Congo (1997–.) The article contextualizes three issues: citizenship, civil society and political majorities and minorities as outcomes of the democratic process. To explore how notions of these issues have been changing over the past decade, the author examines the dilemma of a particular cultural group in the Great Lakes region—the Banyarwanda.
The state of hydrogen peroxide on Europa

[1] We report infrared reflectance studies in the laboratory that reveal the state of hydrogen peroxide on Europa. Detailed analysis of the 3.5 μm infrared absorption band for hydrogen peroxide grown in a number of water ice environments shows that, for temperatures and concentrations relevant to Europa (80–130 K), hydrogen peroxide molecules exist in isolated trimers H2O2•2H2O. If the temperature on an icy body containing H2O2 approaches 150 K, as on Ganymede, the trimers aggregate into precipitates of crystalline dihydrate H2O2•2H2O.
Nitric oxide: Delivery, measurement, and clinical application

The biologic and therapeutic roles of NO are rapidly being elucidated. Before inhalational NO administration is commonplace, there is a clear need for consensus regarding safe and accurate delivery and measurement systems. The potential for NO usage appears large and potentially life-saving; yet multicenter trials need to carefully evaluate efficacy and safety.
Verification of Fourier phase and amplitude values from simulated heart motion using a hydrodynamic cardiac model.

Using pusher-plate-type artificial hearts, changes in the degree of synchrony and stroke volume were compared to phase and amplitude calculations from the first Fourier component of individual-pixel time-activity curves generated from gated radionuclide images (RNA) of these hearts. In addition, the ability of Fourier analysis to quantify paradoxical volume shifts was tested using a ventricular aneurysm model by which the Fourier amplitude was correlated to known increments of paradoxical volume. Predetermined phase-angle differences (incremental increases in asynchrony) and the mean phase-angle difference calculated from RNAs showed an agreement of -7°±4.4° (mean ±SD). A strong correlation was noted between stroke volume and Fourier amplitude (r=0.98; P<0.0001) as well as between the paradoxical volume accepted by the ‘aneurysm’ and the Fourier amplitude (r=0.97; P<0.0001). The degree of asynchrony and changes in stroke volume were accurately reflected by the Fourier phase and amplitude values, respectively. In the specific case of ventricular aneurysms, the data demonstrate that using this method, the paradoxically moving areas may be localized, and the expansile volume within these regions can be quantified.
More process simulation in singular regions

Abstract The behavior of Newton-based equation-solving methods in regions containing saddle points is studied. It is shown that saddle points can cause Newton's method to settle into periodic or aperiodic orbits or diverge. To improve reliability and computational efficiency, a quadratic acceleration technique is used in the context of a complex domain trust region method together with approximate eigendecomposition in these and other singular regions. The quadratic acceleration technique gives rapid convergence to saddle points while the approximate eigenvalue-eigenvector decomposition provides a path from any saddle point to a solution. A numerical example for a binary mixture with retrograde behavior is used to illustrate the key features of the algorithm.
Analysis of mammographic findings and patient history data with genetic algorithms for the prediction of breast cancer biopsy outcome

A decision model is presented to increase the specificity of breast biopsy directly optimized on the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) area index. ROC area has higher clinical significance as a performance measure than the traditional metric mean-squared error (MSE). Excisional biopsy as practiced is highly sensitive to cancer but nonspecific; only one in three biopsies is malignant. Data for this study consists of 500 cases randomly selected from patients who underwent excisional biopsy for definitive diagnosis of breast cancer. For each case, inputs to the model consist of mammographic findings and patient history features. Outputs from the model built may be thresholded to correspond to the decision to biopsy a suspicious breast lesion. While clinically relevant, ROC area is a discontinuous function which cannot be optimized directly so a genetic algorithm approach is used to train a nonlinear artificial neural network. Performance using the genetic algorithm method of training was similar to that of a decision model trained using the traditional approach for this data set. ROC areas were obtained after training using three different approaches: genetic algorithm training optimized on ROC area produced an ROC area of 0.845 +/- 0.039, genetic algorithm training optimized on MSE produced an ROC area of 0.845 +/- 0.039, and traditional training using backpropagation produced an ROC area of 0.848 +/- 0.039. Despite the similar performance measures for models trained on this data, it is possible that with different data sets, training on ROC instead of MSE will produce models with significantly different performance. In this case, the genetic algorithm approach will prove useful.© (1998) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Oscillatory thermocapillary convection in a simulated floating-zone configuration

Abstract Oscillatory thermocapillary flows in floating zones under reduced gravity conditions are investigated experimentally in a simulated configuration in which a drop of liquid is suspended vertically between two small circular rods which are maintained at different temperatures. Various zone lengths and diameters and two different fluids are tested to study their effects on the oscillatory convection. The onset of oscillations, free surface temperature distributions and flow structure are investigated. Based on the results it is explained that flexibility of the free surface is an important factor in causing the oscillation.
Variational retrieval of sea surface wind vectors using a polarimetric approach

Abstract This study presents one-dimension variational retrieval of sea surface wind vectors using simulated microwave polarimetric measurements at 10.7, 18.7, and 37 GHz. The algorithm only requires four Stokes components at a single frequency; and therefore runs very efficiently. Under non-precipitation conditions, the errors of wind direction and speed are about 10° and 0.6 m/s, respectively, if the random noises of 0.1 K for vertical and horizontal polarization states and 0.15 K for the third and fourth Stokes components are taken into account. In hurricane conditions, polarimetric measurements at 10 GHz, especially for the 3rd and 4th Stokes components, vary within a few degree of Kelvin and provide unique information on surface wind direction.
STM studies of the initial stages of growth of Sb on Si(100) surfaces

The Sb:Si(001) surface prepared in situ by evaporation of submonolayer amounts of Sb onto Si(001) at temperatures less than 500°C has been investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS). We find that antimony displaces silicon in the top layer of atoms of the Si(001) surface at elevated temperatures rather than forming islands on top of the surface. We find a transition temperature range from 180 to 250°C at which Sb goes from residing on top of the surface to incorporating into the top layer of atoms. The areas of antimony incorporation have the dimer row structure of the pure Si(001) surface but have a high density of ordered defects. Appearance of the defects can be explained by strain relief because of the atomic size difference of silicon and antimony atoms. Antimony clusters and dimers on top of the surface and antimony-rich regions in the top layer of the surface can be distinguished by bias-dependent imaging. I – V scans taken over the antimony rich regions display a more metallic behavior than scans from the non-passivated silicon surface. The displaced silicon atoms form ordered islands in which the dimer rows run perpendicular to those of the substrate.
Persistent attentional dysfunction in remitted bipolar disorder.

Objectives Although previous research has shown that attentional dysfunction is common during acute mood episodes in individuals with bipolar disorder (BPD), few studies have examined whether attentional deficits are evident during periods of symptom stability. The goal of this study was to determine whether clinically stable individuals with BPD would have attentional disturbances relative to healthy subjects. Methods Fourteen patients with BPD and 12 healthy comparison subjects participated in the study, and were administered the Degraded Stimulus Continuous Performance Test (DSCPT), Digit Span Distractibility Test (DSDT) and Grooved Pegboard Test (GPT). Psychiatric symptoms were assessed with the Young Mania Rating Scale and the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms. Medication side effects were measured with the Simpson Rating Scale. Results The patient group responded significantly more slowly than the control group on the DSCPT (z = -2.52, p = 0.01) and the GPT (z = -3.37, p = 0.001). There was a trend towards the BPD patients demonstrating impaired perceptual sensitivity on the DSCPT (z = 1.68, p = 0.09). The two groups did not differ on the DSDT (z = -1.06, p = 0.3). Poor performance on the GPT and DSCPT target reaction time were not associated with symptom ratings or medications. Conclusion The findings suggest that impairments in fine motor skills and reaction time may be present in clinically stable patients with BPD, even after accounting for psychiatric symptoms and medication effects. Performance decrements on attentional tasks may be in part reflective of motor impairments in patients with BPD.
Idempotents in nest algebras

Abstract The algebraic equivalence and similarity classes of idempotents within a nest algebra Alg β are completely characterized. We obtain necessary and sufficient conditions for two idempotents to be equivalent or similar. Our criterion yields examples illustrating pathology and also shows that to each equivalence class of idempotents there corresponds a “dimension function” from β × β into N ∪ { ∞ }. We complete the characterization of the algebraic equivalence classes by proving that any dimension function corresponds to an equivalence class of idempotents. Also, to each sequence of dimension functions, there corresponds a commuting sequence of idempotents. A criterion is obtained for when an idempotent is similar to a subidempotent of another. The mapping which sends an equivalence class (or idempotent) to its associated dimension function plays a role in the nest algebra theory analogous to the role played by the mapping sending a projection in a Type I W ∗ -algebra to its center valued trace. We prove that almost commuting, similar idempotents are homotopic; this contrasts with the situation in certain C ∗ -algebras. Using this, we show that similar, simultaneously diagonalizable idempotents are homotopic, and in the continuous nest case, every diagonal idempotent is homotopic to a core projection.
New kind of field instability in CdS in the range of negative differential resistivity

Abstract Subdomains are observed, which occur within the high field domain of CdS and move from the anode to the cathode edge of the main domain, indicating a p-type transport mechanism and causing higher frequency oscillations superimposed on the current oscillations due to main domain creation and annihilation.
Scope for policy in an oil based economy: Mexican stabilization efforts in the 1970s

Abstract Mexico's current economic crisis and failure at reaching economic equilibrium through various stabilization programs point to the need for a fresh approach toward identifying the economic mechanisms at work in that country. Through development of a macro-economic optimal control model, the analysis presented in the paper indicates that, under reasonable assumptions, there is a mix of policies that are compatible with increased real growth, and expansion in private sector activity under conditions of fiscal restraint and price stability.
A selective intramolecular aldol condensation directed by a bifunctional enzyme mimic

Abstract The intramolecular aldol condensation of a dialdehyde carrying a t-butylphenyl group is almost random with simple imidazole buffer catalysis, but shows a 97% preference for a single regiochemistry of cyclization when the reaction is catalyzed by the imidazole groups of a cyclodextrin-bis-imidazole enzyme mimic.
Is redistribution of membrane lipids and sterols a significant aging phenomenon

Abstract Professor Schroeder's paraphrased hypothesis is that a central determinant of impaired membrane function (neuroendocrine, transport, secretory and immunoregulatory processes) with age is loss of lipid asymmetry (change in lipid distribution) caused by lipid peroxidation and biopolymer cross-linking, primarily on the cytoplasmic side of the bilayer.
On the inapplicability of gibbs phase rule to coherent solids

A relationship is derived between the number of degrees of freedom, independent chemical components, and number of phases for a specially constructed nonhydrostatically stressed coherent solid in complete thermodynamic equilibrium. The results obtained are based on the thermodynamics of crystalline solids, and indicate that the degrees of freedom are independent of the number of phases present. This model is used to demonstrate that coherent solids do not obey Gibbs phase rule. It is also shown that domains of what are the same phase in the absence of all stress effects may occupy different states of deformation and hence possess different equilibrium compositions when the system is constrained to behave coherently. The results derived here are in complete agreement with recent work on coherent phase diagrams.
Plio-Pleistocene environments of Bed I and Lower Bed II, Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania

Abstract The Plio-Pleistocene sediments of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, are well known for their records of both hominid evolution and the paleoenvironments where these early hominids lived. This paper investigates the paleohabitat reconstructions of Bed I and Lower Bed II of Olduvai and provides an analysis using bovid tribes as habitat indicators. The habitat inferences based upon the bovids are compared with paleoenvironmental reconstructions from studies of the micromammals, pollen profiles, isotope geochemistry, and geology. These various habitat indicators are shown to corroborate each other closely with regard to both the kind of habitat present and the timing of inferred habitat change. The general agreement on habitat types appears to present especially strong support for the paleoecological reconstructions of Bed I and Lower Bed II. Paleohabitats ranged from closed woodland or forest to a mixture of open woodland and grassland to open grassland. The pattern of paleohabitats through time supports the idea of a climatic trend towards greater aridity, but with intermittent shifts to more humid conditions. The Plio-Pleistocene climatic history of the Olduvai basin may prove useful in understanding the evolution of East Africa climates.
Bladder cancer risk as modified by family history and smoking.

BACKGROUND. The familial risk of bladder cancer (BC) is not well understood and, to date, little attention has been paid to the joint effect of smoking and family history in modifying the risk of BC. The authors investigated the role of family history in association with the risk of BC. METHODS. Case and control probands were identified as part of an on-going BC case–control study. The relative risk associated with a family history of BC was estimated. RESULTS. In total, 713 cases and 658 controls were included. In a case–control analysis, compared with individuals who never smoked and who had no family history of BC, probands who had smoked and who also had a positive family history were at 5.31-fold increased risk of BC (P for interaction = .04). The 713 case probands and the 658 controls reported 5160 and 4816 first-degree relatives, respectively. Compared with never-smoking relatives who had probands diagnosed with BC at an older age (age >65 years), ever-smoking relatives who had probands diagnosed at a younger age (ages 40–65 years) showed a 6.89-fold (95% confidence interval, from 2.25-fold to 21.12-fold) increased risk. Similar results were obtained for the joint effects of family history of BC and smoking. CONCLUSIONS. The current results indicated that a positive family history of BC may have interacted with smoking habits to increase the risk of BC in the study population. Cancer 2006. © 2006 American Cancer Society.
Integral bounds for solutions of nonlinear reaction-diffusion equations

Differential inequality techniques are used to obtain upper bounds for theL 1 norm of solutions of nonlinear reaction-diffusion equations. Essential use is made of Sobolev type integral inequalities. An extension to third order pseudo-parabolic equations is included.
Simulation of summer-time diurnal bacterial dynamics in the atmospheric surface layer

Abstract A model was prepared to simulate the observed concentration dynamics of culturable bacteria in the diurnal summer atmosphere at a Willamette River Valley, Oregon location. The meteorological and bacterial mechanisms included in a dynamic null-dimensional model with one-second time step are solar radiation, convective mixed layer depth, bacterial concentration in the residual layer, bacterial flux from ground sources, and SR sensitivity of two bacterial populations. Reasonable agreement of the model to observed airborne bacterial concentration data was found for the dawn fumigation and afternoon accumulation peaks where the activating mechanisms were included in the model. But little agreement was found in the late afternoon where unaccounted-for mechanisms of bacteria-sparse seabreeze intrusion and downslope mountain movement of airmasses are thought to be present at the observation location.
Antibacterial properties of bile acid oxazoline compounds.

Abstract Chenooxazoline3 (50–100 μM) inhibited (>50%) both 7α and 7β-dehydroxylase activities in whole cells and cell extracts of Eubacterium sp. V.P.I. 12708. Chenooxazoline (>50 μM) and methylchenooxazoline (>25 μM) but not lithooxazoline (≤100 μM) inhibited growing cultures of Eubacterium sp. V.P.I. 12708. Chenooxazoline (100 μM) also inhibited the growth of certain members of the genera Eubacterium , Clostridium , Bacteroides and Staphylococcus but not Pseudomonas , Escherichia , Salmonella or the eucaryotic microorganism, Saccharomyces cerevisiae (_
Learning Risk Factors for Suicide: A Scenario-Based Activity

We created a classroom activity to illustrate factors that may predict suicide. In the activity, students rank 4 fictional individuals in terms of their relative risk for attempting or committing suicide. Students described the activity as "eye-opening," and students who participated in the activity learned more about the warning signs of an impending suicide attempt than students who did not participate.
Characterization and nitric oxide release studies of lipophilic 1-substituted diazen-1-ium-1,2-diolates

Lipophilic esters of the naturally occurring polyamines putreanine and spermic acid were synthesized, characterized, and modified with nitric oxide to form the corresponding 1-substituted diazen-1-ium-1,2-diolates (previously known as NONOates). The resulting compounds were insoluble in water but were able to release nitric oxide (NO) when placed in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) at physiological pH. The two categories of compounds examined were putreanate esters of cholesterol or hexadecanol, and spermate diesters of cholesterol or hexadecanol. The putreanate NONOate esters of cholesterol and hexadecanol had NO release half-lives of 60 h and 81 h, respectively while the spermate NONOate diesters of cholesterol and hexadecanol had NO release half-lives of 23 days and 7.1 days, respectively. The presence of 5% Tween 20 increased the half-life of the cholesteryl putreanate NONOate to 104 h but only slightly increased the half-life of the hexadecyl putreanate NONOate to 89 h. The 1% presence of the pharmaceutical lung surfactant Survanta did not significantly alter the half-life of NO release for the cholesteryl putreanate NONOate or for the hexadecyl spermeate NONOate, but the surfactant did increase the amount of NO release by 46% and 67% respectively.
The Dhod locus of Drosophila: Mutations and interrelationships with other loci controlling de novo pyrimidine biosynthesis

Mutations at the Dhod locus have been isolated following ethylmethanesulfonate mutagenesis. These mutants express those phenotypes common to other mutations of the de novo pyrimidine pathway: specific wing and leg defects and female sterility. Dihydroorotate dehydrogenase activity is severely reduced in all Dhod mutants, whereas levels of the other pathway enzymes are largely unaffected. The twelve Dhod mutations described here comprise a single complementation group. All of these mutations are nonlethal and the collection includes apparent amorphic as well as hypomorphic alleles. These results are discussed relative to the properties of the complex loci that encode the other steps of de novo pyrimidine biosynthesis.
The adequacy of prenatal care utilization index : its US distribution and association with low birthweight

The proposed Adequacy of Prenatal Care Utilization Index is applied to data from the 1980 National Natality Survey to assess the adequacy of prenatal care utilization and its association with low birthweight in the United States. The index suggests that only 61.1% of women received adequate prenatal care, including 17.7% with more intensive care; 16.7% received inadequate care. More White women (63.4%) than Black women (51.9%) received adequate prenatal care. Low-birthweight rates were elevated among women with inadequate prenatal care and among those who received more intensive prenatal care.
Agonist-induced closure of constitutively open γ-aminobutyric acid channels with mutated M2 domains

Ligand-gated ion channels display a fundamental property—channels remain virtually closed at rest and open upon agonist binding. Here we show that substituting alanines for either of two amino acid residues (T314 or L317) in the M2 region of the γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) ρ1 subunit results in spontaneous channel opening in the absence of ligand. Surprisingly, for two single point mutants (T314A or L317A), application of very low concentrations of agonist partially suppressed this spontaneous current, while higher concentrations re-activated the receptors. When both of these sites were mutated (T314A/L317A), GABA nearly completely suppressed the constitutive current and did not re-activate the current even at very high concentrations. This study provides important new insights into the structure–function relationship of ligand-gated ion channels, where modification of the structure of the channel pore region not only alters the allosteric transition of the receptor protein but also reverses the polarity of agonist regulation of channel gating. Our results suggest that the sites where these two residues are located are structurally critical for channel gating.
C/NOFS satellite observations of equatorial ionospheric plasma structures supported by multiple ground-based diagnostics in October 2008

[1] In early October 2008, the C/NOFS satellite orbited near the magnetic equator at its perigee altitude of ∼400 km at dusk in the Peruvian sector. This provided an ideal opportunity for a comparison, under the current very low solar flux condition, of equatorial ionospheric disturbances observed with the Communication/Navigation Outage Forecasting System (C/NOFS) in situ measurements and ground-based observations available near Jicamarca Observatory. The primary objective was the comparison of plasma density disturbances measured by a Planar Langmuir Probe (PLP) instrument on the C/NOFS satellite with VHF scintillation activity at Ancon near Jicamarca for this period. Here we discuss in detail two extreme cases: one in which severe in situ disturbances were accompanied by mild scintillation on a particular day, namely, 10 October while there was little in situ disturbance with strong scintillation on 5 October. This apparent contradiction was diagnosed further by a latitudinal ground-based GPS network at Peruvian longitudes, a Digisonde, and the incoherent scatter radar (ISR) at Jicamarca. The crucial distinction was provided by the behavior of the equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA). The EIA was well-developed on the day having severe in situ disturbances (10 Oct). This led to lower equatorial plasma density and total electron content (TEC) at the equator and consequently reduced the scintillations detected at Ancon. On the other hand, on the day with severe scintillations (5 Oct), the EIA was not so well developed as on 10 October, leading to relatively higher equatorial plasma density and TEC. Consequently the severe scintillations at Ancon were likely caused by ionospheric structure located below the altitude of C/NOFS. The NRL SAMI2 model was utilized to gain a greater understanding of the role of neutral winds and electric fields in reproducing the TEC as a function of latitude for both classes of irregularities. Spectral studies with high resolution in situ PLP data were also performed. The power law spectra within the plasma bubbles showed two slopes: the low frequency slope being ∼−5/3 and the high frequency ∼−5 with a break around λ = 70 m. This particular type of two-slope spectra may be related to the extremely low solar activity and its impact on ion composition and temperature.
Conflict and rent-seeking success functions: Ratio vs. difference models of relative success*

The rent-seeking competitions studied by economists fall within a much broader category of conflict interactions that also includes military combats, election campaigns, industrial disputes, lawsuits, and sibling rivalries. In the rent-seeking literature, each party’s success pi (which can be interpreted either as the probability of victory or as the proportion of the prize won) has usually been taken to be a function of the ratio of the respective resource commitments. Alternatively, however, pi may instead be a function of the difference between the parties’ commitments to the contest. The Contest Success Function (CSF) for the difference form is a logistic curve in which, as is consistent with military experience, increasing returns apply up to an inflection point at equal resource commitments. A crucial flaw of the traditional ratio model is that neither one-sided submission nor two-sided peace between the parties can ever occur as a Cournot equilibrium. In contrast, both of these outcomes are entirely consistent with a model in which success is a function of the difference between the parties’ resource commitments.