cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Architecture of a Java framework for developing genetic algorithms in AI class

In this paper we present the architecture of a flexible, object-oriented Java solution framework for implementing genetic algorithms (GA) solutions to NP-hard problems. The framework realizes problem-independent features of any GA solution. Its flexibility lies in the fact that it can be easily configured with components specific to a particular solution. We discuss the classroom usage of our framework and also present how instructors can use this framework to vary the level of difficulty of a GA programming project, depending on the desired learning outcomes. Finally, we present a comparison of our framework with others that are available on the Internet.
The Fragility of the Affordable Care Act's Universal Coverage Strategy

This Essay examines the very fragile nature of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) approach to near-universal health insurance coverage, as accentuated by a variety of implementation hurdles and challenges. The ACA’s vision for expanding insurance coverage was to build on our existing patchwork of market-based health insurance delivery for most, combined with government insurance for select segments of the population. But that patchwork strategy is only as strong as the threads that tie it together. Over the past four and a half years since the ACA was enacted, the threads have unraveled in several critical spots. The essay examines the impact and potential impact of judicial, administrative, and other attacks on three key areas of reform: government health care programs, employer-sponsored health insurance, and the individual private market.
Borrelia burgdorferi HtrA: evidence for twofold proteolysis of outer membrane protein p66

In prokaryotes, members of the High Temperature Requirement A (HtrA) family of serine proteases function in the periplasm to degrade damaged or improperly folded membrane proteins. Borrelia burgdorferi, the agent of Lyme disease, codes for a single HtrA homolog. Two-dimensional electrophoresis analysis of B. burgdorferi B31A3 and a strain that overexpresses HtrA (A3HtrAOE) identified a downregulated protein in A3HtrAOE with a mass, pI and MALDI-TOF spectrum consistent with outer membrane protein p66. P66 and HtrA from cellular lysates partitioned into detergent-resistant membranes, which contain cholesterol-glycolipid-rich membrane regions known as lipid rafts, suggesting that HtrA and p66 may reside together in lipid rafts also. This agrees with previous work from our laboratory, which showed that HtrA and p66 are constituents of B. burgdorferi outer membrane vesicles. HtrA degraded p66 in vitro and A3HtrAOE expressed reduced levels of p66 in vivo. Fluorescence confocal microscopy revealed that HtrA and p66 colocalize in the membrane. The association of HtrA and p66 establishes that they could interact efficiently and their protease/substrate relationship provides functional relevance to this interaction. A3HtrAOE also showed reduced levels of p66 transcript in comparison with wild-type B31A3, indicating that HtrA-mediated regulation of p66 may occur at multiple levels.
Air Photonics: Tera – Mid Infrared Radiation

Air, especially ionized air (plasma), has been used to generate intense peak THz waves (THz field > 2.5 MV/cm) with a broadband spectrum (10% bandwidth covers entire THz gap, and extends into mid-IR range). Remote sensing using air as THz wave emitter and sensor is demonstrated.
The Salience of Stakeholders and Their Attributes in Public Relations and Business News

Stakeholder theory contends that organizations owe an obligation to other stakeholder groups that extends beyond shareholders. This study uses stakeholder theory to examine which groups public relations practitioners and journalists attend to as well as which attributes—legitimacy, power, and urgency—they highlight. Content analysis of press releases and news stories found that the stakeholder most frequently mentioned in both press releases and newspapers was the shareholder group. Both press releases and news stories focused more on legitimacy than power or urgency for all stakeholders except government. The findings support criticisms that, in general, business news and corporate communications concentrate on the interests of shareholders. The ethical implications from the perspective of stakeholder theory are discussed.
Focal adhesion kinase and its potential involvement in tumor invasion and metastasis.

Background Integrins are cell surface receptors which, in part, mediate the adhesion of cells to the extracelluar matrix. In addition to providing a molecular “glue” essential for tissue organization and survival, integrins are dynamic signaling molecules. Integrins allow normal, nontransformed cells to sense that they are adhered to the extracellular matrix, thus providing a cell survival signal. This signal allows cells to proliferate in the presence of growth factors and in some instances prevents apoptosis. Integrins also mediate cell migration as it occurs in normal processes such as angiogenesis, wound healing, immune system function, and development. Aberrances in the expression and function of integrins contribute to many disease states including cancer. Results Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) becomes phosphorylated and activated during integrin-mediated cell adhesion. Focal adhesion kinase is a signal transducer of integrins (and certain soluble growth factors). Cells derived from FAK −/− mouse embryos exhibit reduced migration relative to wild-type cells. Cells which overexpress FAK show increased migration relative to wild-type cells. Focal adhesion kinase promotes cell survival under certain in vitro conditions. Focal adhesion kinase is overexpressed in invasive and metastatic colon, breast, thyroid, and prostate cancers. Enhanced FAK immunostaining is detected in small populations of preinvasive (carcinoma in situ) oral cancers and in large populations of cells in invasive oral cancers. Conclusions Focal adhesion kinase is probably not a classical oncogene but may be involved in the progression of cancer to invasion and metastasis. It is hypothesized that overexpression of FAK in subpopulations of tumor cells leads to populations of cells with a high propensity toward invasion and metastasis. Focal adhesion kinase would have a dual role in this regard: Overexpression of FAK leads to (1) increased cell migration and (2) increased cell survival under anchorage-independent conditions. Further work is needed to test this model and to determine whether FAK represents a viable target for anticancer therapy. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Head Neck 20: 745–752, 1998.
A Three-Dimensional Adaptive Integral Method for Scattering From Structures Embedded in Layered Media

A 3-D extension of the adaptive integral method (AIM) is presented for fast analysis of scattering from electrically large perfect electrically conducting structures embedded inside a single layer of a planar layered medium. The proposed scheme accelerates the iterative method-of-moments (MOM) solution of the combined-field integral equation by employing a 3-D auxiliary regular grid. It uses the auxiliary grid to execute the standard four-stage AIM procedure; unlike the procedure for free space, two different sets of matrices are obtained for the AIM propagation stage by decomposing the Green functions to terms that are in convolution or correlation form in the stratification direction. These matrices are in (three level) block-Toeplitz and Hankel-(two level)-block-Toeplitz forms and can be multiplied by using 3-D FFTs. The dominant computational costs of the scheme are the evaluation of O(N) different layered-medium Green functions, which is accelerated by extracting asymptotic terms and using interpolation tables, and the matrix multiplications in the propagation stage, which require only O(NC log NC) per iteration; these should be contrasted to the O(N2) Green function evaluations and O(N2) operations per iteration required by the classical MOM. Here, NC denotes the number of nodes on the auxiliary grid, and N denotes the number of degrees of freedom of the surface current density. Numerical results validate the proposed method's complexity, demonstrate its accuracy for several large-scale structures in layered media, and compare its computational costs to those of its counterpart for free space.
Determinants of perennial and annual grass distribution in Mediterranean-climate California

In California prairies, native perennial grasses have been almost entirely replaced by Eurasian winter-annual grasses. Landscape-scale descriptions of perennial versus annual grass distribution are lacking. To quantify perennial persistence in California grasslands, 50 randomly selected grassland meadows were sampled within three latitudinal belts of central California, from the Pacific coast inland to the Central Valley. Native perennial grasses were present at all but four of the sampling sites, although usually at low density. Proximity to the Pacific coast was positively correlated to perennial grass cover at all latitudes. Annual degree days above 18 °C and increasing slope were significantly negatively correlated to perennial grass dominance, and average warm season precipitation was significantly positively correlated to perennial dominance. Cover of non-native annual grasses was significantly lower in prairies <2 km from the coast than in all other sites. Non-native perennial grasses were occasionally important grassland community components at sites near the coast, but relatively uncommon inland. These results suggest that environmental conditions near the California coast tend to increase the success of perennial grasses, including exotic perennials. Intensity and duration of seasonal water stress likely play a central role in determining perennial grass distribution in California.
Vortex dynamics in ferromagnetic superconductors: Vortex clusters, domain walls, and enhanced viscosity

We demonstrate that there is a long-range vortex-vortex attraction in ferromagnetic superconductors due to polarization of the magnetic moments. Vortex clusters are then stabilized in the ground state for low vortex densities. The motion of vortex clusters driven by the Lorentz force excites magnons. This regime becomes unstable at a threshold velocity above which domain walls are generated for slow relaxation of the magnetic moments and the vortex configuration becomes modulated. This dynamics of vortices and magnetic moments can be probed by transport measurements.
A population-based evolutionary search approach to the multiple minima problem in de novo protein structure prediction

Elucidating the native structure of a protein molecule from its sequence of amino acids, a problem known as de novo structure prediction, is a long standing challenge in computational structural biology. Difficulties in silico arise due to the high dimensionality of the protein conformational space and the ruggedness of the associated energy surface. The issue of multiple minima is a particularly troublesome hallmark of energy surfaces probed with current energy functions. In contrast to the true energy surface, these surfaces are weakly-funneled and rich in comparably deep minima populated by non-native structures. For this reason, many algorithms seek to be inclusive and obtain a broad view of the low-energy regions through an ensemble of low-energy (decoy) conformations. Conformational diversity in this ensemble is key to increasing the likelihood that the native structure has been captured. We propose an evolutionary search approach to address the multiple-minima problem in decoy sampling for de novo structure prediction. Two population-based evolutionary search algorithms are presented that follow the basic approach of treating conformations as individuals in an evolving population. Coarse graining and molecular fragment replacement are used to efficiently obtain protein-like child conformations from parents. Potential energy is used both to bias parent selection and determine which subset of parents and children will be retained in the evolving population. The effect on the decoy ensemble of sampling minima directly is measured by additionally mapping a conformation to its nearest local minimum before considering it for retainment. The resulting memetic algorithm thus evolves not just a population of conformations but a population of local minima. Results show that both algorithms are effective in terms of sampling conformations in proximity of the known native structure. The additional minimization is shown to be key to enhancing sampling capability and obtaining a diverse ensemble of decoy conformations, circumventing premature convergence to sub-optimal regions in the conformational space, and approaching the native structure with proximity that is comparable to state-of-the-art decoy sampling methods. The results are shown to be robust and valid when using two representative state-of-the-art coarse-grained energy functions.
Stream sediment tourmaline geochemistry in massive sulfide exploration: an example from Virginia, U.S.A.

Abstract Semi-quantitative analyses of tourmaline grains were made using a scanning electron microscope equipped with an energy dispersive X-ray analyzer. The tourmaline was collected from 60 stream sediment samples within the Cambrian (?) central Virginia volcanic-plutonic belt. Compositionally, most of the tourmaline is dravite or schorl, with a minor uvite component in some samples. A probability plot of FeO/(FeO + MgO) in tourmaline has a sharp positive inflection at 0.235. Nine of the 10 samples with tourmaline FeO/(FeO + MgO) ratios For comparison, concentrations of Zn and Fe were also determined in minus-80 mesh stream sediment samples. Of the 10 samples considered statistically anomalous, only six are downstream from sulfide prospects. The downstream distance of these samples from mineralization averages 1 km and none of the samples is more than 2 km downstream. Based on relationships in this study, the presence and distribution of strongly dravitic tourmaline in stream sediment may be a sensitive and reliable guide to the location of submarine exhalative sulfide deposits. Although the cost per sample is greater than that for analyses of minus-80 mesh sediment, the total cost of a survey could be similar if increased downstream detectibility results in fewer samples being required to adequately cover an area for exploration.
The present status of breast reconstruction following mastectomy in the female.

During the last 10 years increased interest has developed in reconstruction of the female breast following mastectomy. A number of methods of reconstruction are now available. These are immediate reconstruction by means of a silicone implant, delayed reconstruction by means of a silicon implant, use of local flaps with the silicone implant, and use of distant tissue and movement of tissue by microvascular anastomosis.
Rapid Annealing in Advanced Bipolar Microcircuits

Several new device technologies were characterized for rapid-annealing following a burst of fast neutrons. The annealing responses for the "breakout" devices were found to be consistent with those predicted from existing models. An analytical expression derived from the model is presented. Several of the "breakout" devices studied indicated that digital integrated circuits produced from some of the technologies studied could have neutron hardness levels in excess of 1×1015 nvt (E > 10 keV). In addition the neutron response data for FAST and ALS nand gates are presented.
Electronic Measurement and Control of Electrical Machine Torque

A nonmechanical, completely electronic scheme for measuring the instantaneous electrically developed shaft torque of electrical machines is proposed. The method, which can be applied to all conditions of operation and all types of electrical machines, utilizes the two basic laws: T = Ki? and ? = ?(e - ri) dt.
Effect of flow shear on induced drag.

V Karman and Tsien formulated the lifting line theory for a wing in nonuniform flow in 1945. In their formulation, the approaching flow may have arbitrary variations in the plane perpendicular to the flight direction. By working with the perturbation pressure rather than the perturbation velocities, they have obtained the condition for the minimum induced drag and the method of calculation for the induced drag of a lifting line with arbitrary spanwise lift distribution. No specific examples, however, were given. In this note, we present the calculation of the induced drag of an elliptically loaded lifting line in an exponentially sheared flow in the vertical direction. The result applies equally well to a linearly sheared flow provided the shear rate is small. Consider a lifting line with a unit semispan in an incompressible, inviscid stream which is sheared in the vertical direction. Let the rectangular coordinate system be such that the y axis is in the direction of the span with the lifting line extending from y = — 1 to y = +1, the x axis in the direction of the approaching flow U(z), and the z axis pointing upwards. By considering the flow in the Trefftz plane (x -> oo ), von Karman and Tsien give the following governing equation: ] = 0 (1)
Inhibition of Myogenesis by Multiple Cyclin-Cdk Complexes COORDINATE REGULATION OF MYOGENESIS AND CELL CYCLE ACTIVITY AT THE LEVEL OF E2F

During skeletal myogenesis, cell cycle withdrawal accompanies the expression of the contractile phenotype. Here we show that ectopic expression of each D-type cyclin is sufficient to inhibit the transcriptional activation of the muscle-specific creatine kinase (MCK) gene. In contrast, ectopic expression of cyclin A or cyclin E inhibits MCK expression only when they are co-expressed with their catalytic partner cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (Cdk2). For each of these conditions, myogenic transcriptional inhibition is reversed by the ectopic co-expression of the general Cdk inhibitor p21. Inhibition of MCK expression by cyclins or cyclin-Cdk combinations correlates with E2F activation, suggesting that the inhibition is mediated by the overall Rb-kinase activities of the Cdk complexes. In support of this hypothesis, a hyperactive mutant of Rb was found to partially reverse the inhibition of MCK expression by cyclin D1 and by the combination of cyclin A and Cdk2. These data demonstrate that the inhibition of myogenic transcriptional activity is a general feature of overall Cdk activity which is mediated, at least in part, by an pocket protein/E2F-dependent pathway. MCK promoter activity is also inhibited by ectopic E2F1 expression, but this inhibition is not reversed by the co-expression of p21. Analyses of a series of E2F1 mutants revealed that the transcriptional activation, leucine zipper, basic, and cyclin A/Cdk2-binding domains are dispensable, but the helix-loop-helix region is essential for myogenic inhibition. These data demonstrate that myocyte proliferation and differentiation are coordinated at the level of E2F and that these opposing activities are regulated by different E2F domains.
Effects of a triage process conversion on the triage of high-risk presentations.

Objectives: The objective was to determine effects of a modification in triage process on triage acuity distribution in general and among patients with conditions requiring time-sensitive therapy. Methods: The authors retrospectively reviewed triage acuity distributions before and after modification of their triage process that entailed conversion from the Canadian Triage and Acuity Scale (CTAS) to the Emergency Severity Index (ESI). The authors calculated the ratio of the odds of being triaged to a nonemergent level (3, 4, or 5) under ESI to the odds of being triaged as nonemergent under CTAS. The authors calculated sensitivity and specificity of triage to an emergent acuity level (1 or 2) for identifying patients with common presentations who required time-sensitive care. Results: There were shifts from higher to lower acuity levels for all subsets, with odds ratios ranging from 2.80 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.75 to 2.86) for all patients to 21.39 (95% CI = 14.66 to 31.21) for patients over 55 years of age with a chief complaint of chest pain. The sensitivity of triage for identifying abdominal pain patients requiring admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) or operating room (OR) or emergency department (ED) death was 80.7% (95% CI = 73.2 to 86.5) before versus 50.8% (95% CI = 43.5 to 58.1) following the transition to ESI. Specificity under CTAS, 55.2% (95% CI = 54.0 to 56.4), was significantly lower than under ESI, 83.6% (95% CI = 82.7 to 84.4). The authors found similar effects for patients presenting with chest pain. Conclusions: Monitoring for changes in the sensitivity of the triage process for detecting patients with potentially time-sensitive conditions should be considered when modifying triage processes. Further work should be done to determine if the decreased sensitivity seen in this study occurs in other institutions converting to ESI, and potential causative factors should be explored. ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE 2008; 15:916‐922 a 2008 by the Society for Academic Emergency
The Treadmill Is a Better Functional Test Than the 6-Minute Walk Test in Therapeutic Trials of Patients With Peripheral Artery Disease

Patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) have a severe functional limitation in community walking ability, peak exercise performance, and activities of daily living.1–3 The limb manifestations of PAD that are associated with reduced exercise performance not only are classic intermittent claudication but also include atypical symptoms ranging from leg discomfort during exercise to exercise limitations without any clearly referable symptoms in the lower extremity.4 Despite the diverse nature of limb symptoms during exercise, patients with PAD uniformly have a severe reduction in peak and endurance exercise performance.5,6 Thus, in this article, the term PAD-limited is used to define the exercise impairment that is well described in PAD, replacing the term claudication-limited to better characterize the diverse nature of exercise-limiting symptoms described in the disease. Response by McDermott et al p 78 The quantification of the exercise limitation in PAD and the implications for daily walking ability and community activities can be conceptualized by understanding the metabolic work required to perform a range of activities. The metabolic equivalent of task (MET) is based on a multiple of the resting metabolic rate (≈3.5 mL oxygen·min−1·kg−1) and can be used to characterize a given activity. The MET can be used to rank physical activities from very mild (walking at a slow pace is 2 METs) to intense (running at 6 mph is 10 METs).7 Common activities such as walking on level ground at a speed >3 mph, vacuuming, shopping for groceries, and transporting packages all require 4 to 5 METs.7 Measurements of oxygen consumption can also be made to characterize both submaximal and maximal workloads and related to METs. Typically, patients with PAD have a PAD-limited peak exercise performance of ≈15 mL oxygen·min−1·kg−1 or the equivalent of 4 …
Pilot study of the inpatient rehabilitation – scales of therapeutic occupation

The IR – SOTO is a self-help instrument that assists the occupational therapist in evaluating the adherence of an inpatient rehabilitation facility to an occupational approach to therapy. The IR – SOTO focuses on individualization of therapy, holism, naturalistic occupations, documentation of occupation and communication of occupational therapy principles. A series of practitioner panels provided feedback on the content validity of early versions of the instrument. Pilot testing of the revised instrument (a 62-item survey using seven-point Likert scales) was carried out using a mailed survey (n = 138) to nine inpatient rehabilitation facilities in different areas of the United States. The pilot version of the IR–SOTO was internally consistent, with alpha = 0.91. The overall mean score across items and across subjects of 5.48 on a seven-point scale (sd = 0.52) indicates some adherence to an occupational approach to therapy. The scores of one facility were significantly lower than five of the other facilities. Continued revision of the instrument to enhance reliability and validity is recommended, with testing of test–retest reliability as a priority. The IR–SOTO holds promise for measuring a facility's approach to the use of occupation as therapy in inpatient rehabilitation. Copyright © 1998 Whurr Publishers Ltd.
Condensation polymerization and addition mechanisms of enol carbonates with substituted phenols

Polycondensation du bisphenol A avec l'enolcarbonate cyclique derive de la pentanedione-2,4
MULTIBAND PHOTOMETRY OF RICH ABELL CLUSTERS: CONSTRAINTS ON THE DWARF STAR CONTENT OF DARK MATTER

We present results of large-aperture (~1') JK photometry and CCD BVRI photometry near the centers of three distant (0.11 ≤ z ≤ 0.22), rich Abell clusters of galaxies. The colors of the integrated light are consistent with those of nearby E and S0 galaxies. The absence of anomalous reddening implies that no more than 2 h-1% (1 σ limit) of the dark matter in these clusters can be in the form of low-mass (~0.1 M☉) subdwarfs or old disk dwarfs. The limit increases to 3 h-1% if expressed in terms of zero-metallicity dwarfs. These results constrain the mass function of baryonic objects which might contribute to the dark matter.
Phylogeny of Drosophilinae (Diptera: Drosophilidae), with comments on combined analysis and character support

Drosophilidae (Diptera) is a diverse, cosmopolitan family of flies. Here, we present a combined analysis phylogeny of Drosophilinae, one of the two subfamilies of Drosophilidae, based on data from six different data partitions, including both molecular and morphological characters. Although our data show support for the monophyly of the Hawaiian Drosophilidae, and the subgenus Sophophora, neither the genus Drosophila nor the subgenus Drosophila is monophyletic. Partitioned Bremer support (PBS) indicates that morphological data taken from Grimaldi's monograph (Grimaldi, 1990a), as well as sequences from the mitochondrial (mt) 16S rDNA and the nuclear Adh gene, lend much support to our tree's topology. This is particularly interesting in the case of Grimaldi's data, since his published hypothesis conflicts with ours in significant ways. Our combined analysis cladogram phylogeny reflects the catchall designation that the name Drosophila has become, in that the cladogram does not support the monophyly of either the genus or subgenus Drosophila.
The spatial mismatch hypothesis: A review of recent studies and their implications for welfare reform

Abstract In 1992, Housing Policy Debate published John Kain's comprehensive review of the extensive scholarly literature on the spatial mismatch hypothesis. This hypothesis maintains that the suburbanization of jobs and involuntary housing market segregation have acted together to create a surplus of workers relative to the number of available jobs in submetropolitan areas where blacks are concentrated. Since Kain's review, more than two dozen new studies on the spatial mismatch hypothesis have been completed. Generally, these studies use more suitable data and superior methodologies than earlier studies and therefore provide the most reliable evidence to date on the spatial mismatch hypothesis. This article critically reviews the new studies and assesses what implications can be drawn for welfare reform.
Comparison of lidocaine and bronchodilator inhalation treatments for cough suppression in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Background: This study aimed to assess and compare the effectiveness of lidocaine and bronchodilator inhalation treatments for rapid cough suppression in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods: Prospective comparison study carried out in a tertiary emergency department. Consecutive COPD patients presenting with intractable cough were randomly assigned to receive lidocaine or terbutaline inhalation treatments for cough suppression. Patients with dyspnoea, unstable vital signs, and pneumonia or neoplasm on chest x ray were excluded. A subjective, 10 point questionnaire based cough severity score was used for assessing the outcome. Results: The final study sample included 127 patients (mean (SD) age, 69.2 (12.1) years; 33.1% women) of whom 62 received nebulised lidocaine and 65 nebulised bronchodilator. The cough severity score was significantly reduced one hour after inhalation treatment with both lidocaine and bronchodilator, with no significant difference in efficacy. Common but mild side effects in the lidocaine group included oropharyngeal numbness and bitter taste, and, in the bronchodilator group, tremor and palpitation. Dyspnoea, dizziness, and nausea and vomiting were equally uncommon in both groups. None of these problems caused any of the patients to discontinue their treatments and no allergic reactions were reported. Conclusions: Both lidocaine and bronchodilator inhalation treatments are equally effective for short term cough suppression in patients with COPD.
Functional genomics in mice by tagged sequence mutagenesis

Most mammalian genes will soon be characterized as cDNA sequences with little information about their function. To utilize this sequence information for large-scale functional studies, a gene trap retrovirus shuttle vector has been developed to disrupt genes expressed in murine embryonic stem (ES) cells. A library of mutant clones was isolated, and regions of genomic DNA adjacent to 400 independent provirus inserts were cloned and sequenced. The flanking sequences, designated 'promoter-proximal sequence tags', or PSTs, identified 63 specific genes and anonymous cDNAs disrupted as a result of virus integration. The efficiency of tagged sequence mutagenesis suggests that many of the 10,000-20,000 genes expressed in ES cells can be targeted, providing defined mutations for the analysis of gene functions in vivo. In addition, PSTs provide the first expressed sequence tags derived from genomic DNA, and define gene features such as exon boundaries and promoters that are missing from cDNA sequences.
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance in Cerous Magnesium Nitrate at Temperatures below 1°K

The nuclear resonance of the protons in cerous magnesium nitrate, ${\mathrm{Ce}}_{2}$${\mathrm{Mg}}_{3}$${(\mathrm{N}{\mathrm{O}}_{3})}_{12}$\ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}24${\mathrm{H}}_{2}$O, has been studied in a single crystal cooled to temperatures below 1\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}K by partial adiabatic demagnetization and adiabatic rotation. The area under the nuclear resonance was used as a thermometric parameter. The area did not obey Curie's law as a result of the temperature-dependent local rf field. A $T\ensuremath{-}{T}^{*}$ relation was derived which gave temperature ratios on adiabatic rotation which agreed within 5-10% with ratios calculated from the properties of the crystal. The lowest measured temperature was 5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}K.
Localization of cytochrome oxidase (COX) activity and COX mRNA in the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex of the monkey brain: correlation with specific neuronal pathways.

Abstract Cytochrome oxidase (COX) activity and COX II mRNA expression were localized in the hippocampal formation and entorhinal cortex of the rhesus monkey brain by means of enzyme histochemistry and in situ hybridization, respectively. Within the hippocampal formation, the terminal field of the perforant pathway showed the highest levels of COX activity, whereas COX II mRNA was localized mainly in neuronal cell bodies. In the entorhinal cortex, COX II mRNA was detected in neuronal cell bodies of layers II and IV. These results indicate that the pattern of localization of COX and its mRNA in entorhinal cortex correlates with the input and output pathways of the hippocampus.
Expanding 'Community' in the Community Response to Intimate Partner Violence

Community coordination refers to a formalized system of collaboration between various social service agencies to help meet the needs of specific populations. In cases of intimate partner violence (IPV), community coordination includes a system of policies, information sharing, and referrals between the criminal justice system and counseling centers and shelters for survivors. The life model of social work practice suggests that social workers utilize both formal and informal groups as environmental resources for clients. In an effort to address the failures of community coordinated responses to IPV, community needs to be reconceptualized to include these additional groups, especially employers.
A distributed data storage and processing framework for next-generation residential distribution systems

Abstract As the number of smart meters/sensors increases to more than hundreds of thousands, it is rather intuitive that the state-of-the-art centralized information processing architecture will no longer be sustainable under such a big data explosion. Hence, an innovative data management system is urgently needed to facilitate the real-world deployment of a future residential distribution system. In this paper, we investigate a radically different approach through distributed software agents to translate the legacy centralized data storage and processing scheme to a completely distributed cyber-physical architecture. We further substantiate the proposed distributed data storage and processing framework on a proof-of-concept testbed using a cluster of low-cost and credit-card-sized single-board computers. Finally, we evaluate the proposed distributed framework and proof-of-concept testbed with a comprehensive set of performance measures.
Smooth muscle in an animal model of myotonic dystrophy

Abstract Although 20,25-diazacholesterol (20,25-D) administration in rats causes myotonia, little is known of the effects of this drug on smooth muscle in this animal model of moytonic dystrophy. Female rats were treated weekly with 300 mg/kg 20,25-D and killed after periods as long as 144 days. Samples of aorta, portal vein, carotid artery, trachea, lower esophagus, ileal longitudinal muscle, and uterus were removed, extracted, and analyzed for sterols in a gas-liquid chromatograph. Massive replacement of cholesterol by desmosterol occurred in all these tissues within 3 to 8 weeks, together with decreases in total sterols; these changes were similar to those seen also in cardiac and skeletal muscle. Muscarinic receptor parameters were determined in ileal longitudinal muscle by assaying the specific binding of the muscarinic antagonist, [ 3 H]quinuclidinyl benzilate (QNB). After chronic 20,25-D treatment a small but statistically significant increase in the dissociation constant for QNB was found, suggesting that receptor conformation had been altered resulting in a decreased affinity for QNB. Receptor density, measured as picomoles receptor per milligram protein, was significantly increased by 20,25-D. These experiments established that 20,25-D causes desmosterol accumulation in smooth muscle at rates and magnitudes comparable to those seen in skeletal muscle, and suggest that modification of muscarinic receptors may be a contributing factor to any altered functional characteristics of smooth muscle in this animal model.
Development of morphine tolerance and physical dependence in rats depleted of brain catecholamines by 6-hydroxydopamine.

Abstract The present study was undertaken to evaluate the roles of brain norepinephrine (NE) and/or dopamine (DA) in the development of morphine tolerance and physical dependence in rats. Rats were permanently depleted of brain catecholamines (CA, i.e. NE + DA) or DA by 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) treatment alone or desmethylimipramine plus 6-OHDA treatment at two weeks of age. Five weeks after either treatment, twice daily morphine injections were begun and continued for 32 consecutive days. The antinociceptive activity of morphine in the tail-flick test and the naloxone-precipitated abstinence syndrome were periodically observed throughout the course of chronic morphine treatment. A decreased antinociceptive response to morphine occurred in DA-depleted rats in both the non-tolerant and tolerant states, but the development of tolerance was not affected. The antinociceptive effect of morphine was not modified in either non-tolerant or tolerant CA (NE + DA)-depleted rats, nor was the development of tolerance affected. The spontaneous withdrawal syndrome after abrupt cessation of morphine after 32 days of treatment was markedly enhanced in CA-depleted rats. The results suggest that DA may be involved in mediating the antinociceptive effect of morphine, but not in the development of tolerance to that effect.
A novel approach to enhancing limb control in older adults.

Two recent experiments have demonstrated that young adult participants were able to make faster and more harmonic movements in a typical reciprocal Fitts task (ID = 6) following a practice session of sine wave tracking (Boyle et al. in Exp Brain Res 223:377–387, 2012; J Mot Behav 46:277–285, 2014). The purpose of the present experiment was to replicate these findings with a young adult population (age 18–25) and determine whether sine wave tracking also enhances goal-directed limb movements in an older adult population (age 65–90). To establish a performance baseline, all participants were first pretested on a typical ID = 6 Fitts task. Participants in each age group were then randomly assigned to one of the two training conditions where they practiced (45 trials) on a typical Fitts task (ID = 6) or they were asked to track a sine wave template (45 trials). Following practice, all participants were then posttested under the ID = 6 Fitts conditions. The results demonstrated that both young and older adult participants that practiced under the sine wave conditions enhanced their Fitts task performance compared to participants in their respective age groups who practiced under the Fitts conditions. These enhancements included faster movement times, smaller dwell times, and more harmonic movements, all without decreases in movement accuracy. These results replicate our previous findings with young adults and extend the finding to older adult participants. Interestingly, the performances of the older adults following sine wave practice were as fast and as accurate as the young adults following Fitts task practice.
Insulin Inhibits NFκB and MCP-1 Expression in Human Aortic Endothelial Cells

In view of our recent demonstration that insulin inhibits the expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and the fact that ICAM-1 expression is known to be modulated by nuclear factor-κB (NFκB), we have now investigated whether insulin inhibits intranuclear NFκB binding activity. We have also investigated whether insulin inhibits the pro-inflammatory chemokine, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), which attracts leucocytes to the inflamed sites and is also regulated by NFκB. Insulin was incubated with cultured human aortic endothelial cells (HAEC) at 0, 100 and 1000μ U/mL. Intranuclear NFκB binding activity was suppressed by approximately 45% at 100 μU/mL and by 60% at 1000 μU/mL (p< 0.05). MCP-1 mRNA expression was also suppressed by 47% at 100μ U/mL and by 79% at 1000 μU/mL (p < 0.05). We conclude that insulin at physiologically relevant concentrations exerts an inhibitory effect on the cardinal pro-inflammatory transcription factor NFκB and the pro-inflammatory chemokine MCP-1; the...
The Case of the Disappearing Drug Target

In this issue of Molecular Cell, Hoshi et al. (2010) report two examples in which small molecule inhibitors are rendered ineffective when their kinase targets are involved in protein-protein interactions, highlighting differences between in vivo and in vitro inhibition kinetics.
Contribution of VH Replacement Products in Mouse Antibody Repertoire

VH replacement occurs through RAG-mediated recombination between the cryptic recombination signal sequence (cRSS) near the 3′ end of a rearranged VH gene and the 23-bp RSS from an upstream unrearranged VH gene. Due to the location of the cRSS, VH replacement leaves a short stretch of nucleotides from the previously rearranged VH gene at the newly formed V-D junction, which can be used as a marker to identify VH replacement products. To determine the contribution of VH replacement products to mouse antibody repertoire, we developed a Java-based VH Replacement Footprint Analyzer (VHRFA) program and analyzed 17,179 mouse IgH gene sequences from the NCBI database to identify VH replacement products. The overall frequency of VH replacement products in these IgH genes is 5.29% based on the identification of pentameric VH replacement footprints at their V-D junctions. The identified VH replacement products are distributed similarly in IgH genes using most families of VH genes, although different families of VH genes are used differentially. The frequencies of VH replacement products are significantly elevated in IgH genes derived from several strains of autoimmune prone mice and in IgH genes encoding autoantibodies. Moreover, the identified VH replacement footprints in IgH genes from autoimmune prone mice or IgH genes encoding autoantibodies preferentially encode positively charged amino acids. These results revealed a significant contribution of VH replacement products to the diversification of antibody repertoire and potentially, to the generation of autoantibodies in mice.
On quadratic Poisson structures

We provide a general study on quadratic Poisson structures on a vector space. In particular, we obtain a decomposition for any quadratic Poisson structures. As an application, we classify all the three-dimensional quadratic Poisson structures up to a Poisson diffeomorphism.
Ral small GTPase signaling and oncogenesis: more than just 15 minutes of fame

Abstract Since their discovery in 1986, Ral ( Ra s- l ike) GTPases have emerged as critical regulators of diverse cellular functions. Ral-selective guanine nucleotide exchange factors (RalGEFs) function as downstream effectors of the Ras oncoprotein, and the RalGEF–Ral signaling network comprises the third best characterized effector of Ras-dependent human oncogenesis. Because of this, Ral GTPases as well as their effectors are being explored as possible therapeutic targets in the treatment of RAS mutant cancer. The two Ral isoforms, RalA and RalB, interact with a variety of downstream effectors and have been found to play key and distinct roles in both normal and neoplastic cell physiology including regulation of vesicular trafficking, migration and invasion, tumor formation, metastasis, and gene expression. In this review we provide an overview of Ral biochemistry and biology, and we highlight recent discoveries.
The effects of age and carbon black on airway resistance in mice.

Context: Ambient particulate matter (PM) is associated with acute exacerbations of airflow obstruction. Additionally, elderly individuals are more susceptible to increased functional morbidity following acute PM exposure. Objective: The purpose of this study is to determine the aging effects of PM exposure on the responsiveness of airway smooth muscle in mice. We hypothesized that airway reactivity induced by methacholine (Mch) will increase with age in PM exposed mice.Materials and methods: Male C57BL/6 (B6) mice at 11, 39, 67, and 96 weeks of age were exposed to carbon black (CB) or room air (RA) for 3 h on 3 consecutive days. One day after the last exposure, mice were anesthetized and airways resistance (Raw) was measured by forced oscillation following half-log dose increases of aerosolized Mch.Results: Baseline Raw was significantly lower in 67 and 96 week mice compared to 11-week mice (p < 0.05). In RA exposed mice, an age-dependent decline in Mch-induced airway reactivity occurred in association wi...
Faculty salary equity: Issues in regression model selection

Faculty salary equity is a hot political issue that may have severe legal, monetary, and human consequences. It is also an issue that often requires the use of sophisticated statistical techniques for the determination of inequity. The purpose of this paper is to identify the areas in which human judgment must be made in order to conduct a statistical analysis of salary equity and to provide some informed guidelines for making those judgments. The direction and magnitude of the final results are contingent on the way these statistical decisions are made. Therefore, careful consideration of these issues is essential for conducting a fair and defensible salary equity study. This paper will provide a framework based on four decision elements and four fields of study as the basis for establishing criteria for selecting an appropriate salary equity model. Through this discussion, the author hopes to bring a broader perspective and, if not objectivity, then ethical fairness to the process of designing salary equity models.
Attempts to grow bdellovibrios micurgically-injected into animal cells

Incubation in buffer of Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus 109J, B. stolpii UKi2, or B. starrii A3.12 with washed eucaryotic animal cells (mouse liver, hamster kidney, or bovine mammary gland) resulted in neither attachment nor growth of the bdellovibrios. When cells of these bdellovibrio strains were incubated with erythrocyte suspensions (bovine or rabbit) a very low level of bdellovibrio attachment and penetration occurred, but no growth could be detected. Using micurgical procedures, bdellovibrios were injected into the perivetelline space or the cytoplasm of rabbit ova. After 18–24h incubation, neither a significant loss nor increase of injected, intracellular bdellovibrios was observed. Limited axenic growth of bdellovibrios (109J or UKi2) occurred in media containing rabbit ova extracts and dilute nutrient broth. It is concluded that eucaryotic rabbit ova do not provide a suitable environment for intracellular bdellovibrio growth.