cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Single-shot detection of wavepacket evolution.

We have developed a new instrument for monitoring electronic wavepacket dynamics using a single electromagnetic pulse pair. The operation of the device is analogous to that of single-shot cross-correlators commonly used to monitor the temporal evolution of short laser pulses. We have used the instrument to probe wavepacket evolution over time scales ranging from 100 psec to less than 1 fsec. The device reduces the amount of time required to collect pump-probe time delay data by orders of magnitude, greatly reducing the deleterious effects of experimental drifts. In addition, the single-shot feature provides real-time feedback as to the affect of various experimental parameters on the electron dynamics, allowing us to literally tune-up our equipment to enhance desired behavior at specific times.
Que(e)rying the clinic before AIDS: practicing self-help and transversality in the 1970s.

In this paper, I offer a treatment of “the clinic” in which the clinic—as concept and space—is que(e)ried, that is, both questioned and made queer. I present two historical case studies that queer clinical thought and practices in the period before AIDS and before the full-blown arrival of queer theory on the western theoretical landscape. These two cases—the practice of self-help developed in the women’s health movement in the United States and the practice of tranversality developed out of and beyond the Institutional Psychiatry movement in France—challenge the practice of medicine in the prehistory of both AIDS and queer theory, yet, they are not generally seen as precursors, or related in any way, to AIDS activism. In a sense, then, I also want to question and make queer the history of AIDS as we conventionally know it today by extending that history backwards and outwards to earlier queer critical and clinical practices like self-help and transversality.
Associations Between Message Features and Subjective Evaluations of the Sensation Value of Antidrug Public Service Announcements

The effective targeting of high sensation-seeking adolescents, who are most at risk for drug abuse, requires the creation of high sensation value messages. Whereas previous research has focused on subjective reactions of receivers as the primary way to define message sensation value (MSV), we conceptualize message sensation value as the formal and content features (audio, visual, and format) of a message that contribute to subjective message sensation evaluations. The three objectives of this study were (a) to identify message design features that would aid in the development of effective prevention messages targeting high sensation seekers, (b) to develop an objective measure of message sensation value based on formal and content features of messages, and (c) to determine whether high message sensation value messages were associated with higher subjective evaluations of message sensation value. In the present study, 418 undergraduates each viewed 10 PSAs selected at random from a pool of 109 PSAs that had been previously coded for message sensation value. Analyses provide support for the central hypothesis of the study, indicating that perceived message sensation value is at least in part a product of the formal and content features of a PSA. In 1998, the U.S. Congress stepped up the nation’s focus on drug and alcohol abuse by allocating $1 billion to the Office of National Drug Control Policy for mass media‐based prevention campaigns and evaluations. We now know some of the key elements of effective media-based antidrug campaigns, including effec
How social identity shapes the working self-concept

Abstract This research investigates the process by which salient ingroups alter the working self-concept. The antagonism account , exemplified by self-categorization theory, contends that when ingroups are salient, the collective self defines the self-concept whereas the individual self recedes. In contrast, an adaption account argues that the individual self operates as a stable source of self-definition. While the working self-concept may flexibly incorporate aspects of salient ingroups, attributes that define the individual self are always actively represented. We also considered the ingroup's psychological utility as a moderator of its influence on the self-concept. To directly test these hypotheses, we manipulated the salience of an ingroup previously rated as either low or high in psychological utility and asked participants to classify traits as self-descriptive or not. When ingroups were made salient, participants increasingly endorsed ingroup traits as self-descriptive. Critically, this effect mainly emerged for groups with high psychological utility. Contrary to the antagonism account, but consistent with the adaption account, the impact of individual self-traits on the self-concept did not diminish as a result of ingroup salience.
A cross-linguistic quantitative study of homophony*

Abstract Homophony is ubiquitous across languages. It is an important source of ambiguity which is a distinctive feature of human language. There have, however, been few quantitative investigations on questions such as “Do languages have similar degrees of homophony?”, “Can the degree of homophony in a language be predictable?” We report a preliminary attempt to answer these questions. We measure the degree of homophony of two sets of languages, one including twenty Chinese dialects and the other including three Germanic languages. It is found that there exists a strong correlation between the degree of homophony and the number of occurring syllable types (which can be taken as an estimation of the size of the phonological resource of a language), or the number of monosyllabic words in the lexicon. Furthermore, the distributional properties of homophony reflect some self-organization characteristics of language as a system, as illustrated by two pieces of evidence: the first is the correlation between the...
The influence of cone adaptation upon rod mediated flicker

The influence of annular fields on sensitivity to sinusoidal flicker was assessed in the dark adapted parafoveal retina. Test stimuli were 2 degrees 20' in diameter; annuli had a 2 degrees 20' inner and 7 degrees 30' outer diameter. Rod flicker was studied with a "green" stimulus too dim to influence cones. Selective cone flicker was obtained using red and green flicker in counterphase and yoked together in modulation depth and scotopic illuminance. Results showed the following. (1) Annular stimulation of rods slightly facilitated rod-mediated flicker sensitivity to frequencies less than 10 Hz. In contrast, annular stimulation of cones greatly facilitated rod-mediated sensitivity, particularly for flicker frequencies greater than 7 Hz. We designate this effect, cone-rod interaction. (2) Annular stimulation of cones has a negligible influence upon sensitivity to cone-mediated flicker frequencies less than 15 Hz. In contrast, annular stimulation of rods has a large influence upon sensitivity to cone-mediated flicker, an effect we designate rod-cone interaction. (3) Within limits, both rod-cone and cone-rod interaction increase as the annular illuminance increases and as flicker frequency increases; the limiting frequency and illuminance values, however, are different for the two forms of interaction. Results are compared with prior evidence that rod and cone signals summate to produce an absolute threshold or flicker sensation. We suggest that there are at least three mechanisms for interaction between rod- and cone-related signals.
Why is the lawn buzzing

Graminoids, including grasses, are frequently described in the botanical literature as being wind-pollinated. This paper offers visual evidence for insect pollination of a grass. Three of the bees involved were found to have 100% grass pollen in their pollen sacs. In reviewing the literature for this paper, it was evident that those working with bees are well aware that these insects often pollinate graminoids. It is not clear why this information has not been incorporated into the botanical literature.
Interfacial crack-tip field in anisotropic elastic solids

Abstract For interfacial cracks in anisotropic elastic solids, controversies exist in that several different definitions for the crack-tip field have been proposed in the literature. In this paper, we first devise a novel and convenient scheme for constructing the interfacial crack fields and then carry out a mismatch analysis for understanding the oscillatory structure of the crack-tip stress singularity. It is hoped that the mismatch analysis can shed some light on the controversial issues from a different perspective. Among different definitions for the stress intensity factors, it is found that the solution proposed by Wu [Int. J. Solids Struct. 27, 455 (1991)] , which conforms to a general definition suggested by Rice [J. appl. Mech. 55, 98 (1988)] , is consistent with the analysis of local interface mismatch near the crack tip. Critical quantities governing the oscillation and mismatch are numerically evaluated for a number of materials including two fiber-reinforced composites and a group of crystals of cubic symmetry.
Anisotropic path modeling to assess pedestrian-evacuation potential from Cascadia-related tsunamis in the US Pacific Northwest

Recent disasters highlight the threat that tsunamis pose to coastal communities. When developing tsunami-education efforts and vertical-evacuation strategies, emergency managers need to understand how much time it could take for a coastal population to reach higher ground before tsunami waves arrive. To improve efforts to model pedestrian evacuations from tsunamis, we examine the sensitivity of least-cost-distance models to variations in modeling approaches, data resolutions, and travel-rate assumptions. We base our observations on the assumption that an anisotropic approach that uses path-distance algorithms and accounts for variations in land cover and directionality in slope is the most realistic of an actual evacuation landscape. We focus our efforts on the Long Beach Peninsula in Washington (USA), where a substantial residential and tourist population is threatened by near-field tsunamis related to a potential Cascadia subduction zone earthquake. Results indicate thousands of people are located in areas where evacuations to higher ground will be difficult before arrival of the first tsunami wave. Deviations from anisotropic modeling assumptions substantially influence the amount of time likely needed to reach higher ground. Across the entire study, changes in resolution of elevation data has a greater impact on calculated travel times than changes in land-cover resolution. In particular areas, land-cover resolution had a substantial impact when travel-inhibiting waterways were not reflected in small-scale data. Changes in travel-speed parameters had a substantial impact also, suggesting the importance of public-health campaigns as a tsunami risk-reduction strategy.
Immunochemical studies of phospholipids: production of antibodies to triphosphoinositide.

Abstract Antibodies to triphosphoinositide (TPI, I-phosphatidylinositol-3,4-bisphosphate) were raised in rabbits immunized with a hapten suspension of TPI, lecithin and cholesterol (1:4:30 by wt) in 0.1% methylated BSA. The hapten suspension was administered i.v. every two days for three weeks with each rabbit receiving a total of 3 mg TPI. Immunodiffusion with the partially purified immunoglobulin fraction and the comparison of complement-isofixation curves demonstrate complete cross-reactivity between TPI and diphosphoinositide (DPI) and very little specificity towards phosphatidylinositol (PI) and cardiolipin.
Concentrations of nitrate in normal human urine and the effect of nitrate ingestion.

Abstract A method suitable for the analysis of nitrate in human urine was developed. Normal urinary concentrations of nitrate in urine of human volunteers in Dade County, Florida, where the drinking water contains negligible amounts of nitrate, averaged 47.6 ppm of NO 3 − (SD = 17.3). On a vegetable and preserved-meat-free diet, the nitrate concentration was reduced (10 to 30 ppm of NO 3 − ), but, on nitrate-supplemented drinking water, the urinary concentration rose to a range of 34–87 ppm of NO 3 − . A high vegetable diet resulted in peak urinary nitrate concentrations of 270–425 ppm. These results indicated that nitrate in drinking water is a factor in determining urinary nitrate concentration, but that vegetable ingestion is of greater significance.
Contrasting roles for symmetrically disposed β-turns in the folding of a small protein

Abstract To investigate the role of turns in protein folding, we have characterized the effects of combinatorial and site-directed mutations in the two β-turns of peptostreptococcal protein L on folding thermodynamics and kinetics. Sequences of folded variants recovered from combinatorial libraries using a phage display selection method were considerably more variable in the second turn than in the first turn. These combinatorial mutants as well as strategically placed point mutants in the two turns had a similar range of thermodynamic stabilities, but strikingly different folding kinetics. A glycine to alanine substitution in the second β-turn increased the rate of unfolding more than tenfold but had little effect on the rate of folding, while mutation of a symmetrically disposed glycine residue in the first turn had little effect on unfolding but slowed the rate of folding nearly tenfold. These results demonstrate that the role of β-turns in protein folding is strongly context-dependent, and suggests that the first turn is formed and the second turn disrupted in the folding transition state.
Reversal of the toxicity of hydrazine analogues by pyridoxine hydrochloride

Single subcutaneous injections of each of five substituted hydrazines were given alone and jointly with pyridoxine hydrochloride (PH) to Swiss mice. The convulsive, toxic, and lethal effects of four compounds--methylhydrazine (MH), ethylhydrazine hydrochloride (EH), n-butylhydrazine hydrochloride (BH), and beta-N-[gamma-L(+)-glutamyl]-4-hydroxymethylphenylhydrazine--were successfully prevented by administering PH before and/or after injection. The toxic symptoms caused by N-methyl-N-formylhydrazine (MFH) were, however, only slightly inhibited by this vitamin.
Experimental Analysis of Heuristic Algorithms for the Dominating Set Problem

We say a vertex v in a graph G covers a vertex w if v=w or if v and w are adjacent. A subset of vertices of G is a dominating set if it collectively covers all vertices in the graph. The dominating set problem, which is NP-hard, consists of finding a smallest possible dominating set for a graph. The straightforward greedy strategy for finding a small dominating set in a graph consists of successively choosing vertices which cover the largest possible number of previously uncovered vertices. Several variations on this greedy heuristic are described and the results of extensive testing of these variations is presented. A more sophisticated procedure for choosing vertices, which takes into account the number of ways in which an uncovered vertex may be covered, appears to be the most successful of the algorithms which are analyzed. For our experimental testing, we used both random graphs and graphs constructed by test case generators which produce graphs with a given density and a specified size for the smallest dominating set. We found that these generators were able to produce challenging graphs for the algorithms, thus helping to discriminate among them, and allowing a greater variety of graphs to be used in the experiments.
Inhibition of exocytosis in bovine adrenal medullary cells by botulinum toxin type D

Botulinum toxins are known to block transmitter release at peripheral cholinergic synapses1, producing muscular weakness and paralysis. The toxins may also block adrenergic transmission2–5, although this effect is less well understood1. The mechanisms by which toxins act are unclear. They are proteins of relative molecular mass ∼150,000 and are structurally similar to tetanus toxin. It is generally accepted that a rise in intracellular calcium concentration is sufficient to trigger secretion by exocytosis6–13, but it is not known whether the toxins block secretion by preventing this Ca transient14,15 or whether they act downstream from Ca entry by interfering with the process of exocytosis itself. We have attempted to resolve these questions in the case of the adrenergic system by studying the effects of botulinum toxins (types A, B, D and E) on the secretory response of isolated bovine adrenal medullary cells maintained in culture16. The cells were either challenged with various secretagogues or rendered leaky and challenged directly with Ca buffers. We report here that botulinum toxin type D inhibits secretion in a time- and dose-dependent manner, the results being entirely consistent with the idea that the toxin acts at or near the site of exocytosis rather than at the sites controlling the rise in free Ca.
Statin inhibits kainic acid-induced seizure and associated inflammation and hippocampal cell death

Statins are inhibitors of HMG-CoA reductase that have been recently recognized as anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective drugs. Herein, we investigated anti-excitotoxic and anti-seizure effects of statins by using kainic acid (KA)-rat seizure model, an animal model for temporal lobe epilepsy and excitotoxic neurodegeneration. We observed that pre-treatment with Lipitor (atorvastatin) efficiently reduced KA-induced seizure activities, hippocampal neuron death, monocyte infiltration and proinflammatory gene expression. In addition, we also observed that lovastatin treatment attenuated KA- or glutamate-induced excitotoxicity of cultured hippocampal neurons. These observations suggest a potential for use of statin treatment in modulation of seizures and other neurological diseases associated with excitotoxicity.
A genetic relationship between diabetes and cancer.

Abstract The hexosemonophosphate (H.M.P.) shunt, an efficient pathway for the synthesis of the pentose sugar precursors of nucleic acids, is activated in carcinogenesis. It is also stimulated by insulin and depressed in diabetes mellitus. The frequency of cancer may be selectively decreased among the males of certain populations which have a relatively high prevalence of diabetes. It is postulated that the apparent negative association between these two diseases in males is a function, at least in part, of the tissue levels of particular glucose-6-phosphate-dehydrogenase variants.
Basic mechanisms of light scattering in tissue

Tissue strongly scatters light. Therefore, virtually all techniques for probing tissue with light are dependent on the scattering interactions of light with tissue. In particular, noninvasive optical methods for determining tissue morphology are dependent on light scattering. A fundamental understanding of what cellular features scatter light and of how changes internal cellular structures affect the measurement of light transport are needed. In this work, we describe some of the recent progress made towards understanding the basic mechanisms of light scattering in tissue.
Engagement among Students with Intellectual Disabilities and First Year Students: A Comparison.

A phenomenon is spreading across institutions of higher education (IHEs)—the participation of students with intellectual disabilities (ID) in inclusive postsecondary education programs. Data on two cohorts of first-year students with ID indicate that these students are experiencing college life, as measured by the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), similarly to other first-year college students. These results provide preliminary evidence of the feasibility and value of educating students with cognitive challenges on university campuses.
Pathogenesis of sciatic pain : role of herniated nucleus pulposus and deformation of spinal nerve root and dorsal root ganglion

The basic pathophysiologic mechanisms related to disc herniation and sciatica are poorly understood. Recently it was demonstrated that nucleus pulposus from an intervertebral disc could induce structural and functional changes in adjacent nerve roots when applied epidurally, however, it is not known if such changes are painful. In a model for inducing disc herniation in the rat, we found that puncture of a lumbar disc with subsequent herniation of nucleus pulposus without nerve root compression, or chronic displacement of the 4th lumbar nerve root and ganglion, did not individually induce significant changes in thresholds for mechanical or thermal stimulation compared to sham-operated animals. However, the combination of disc puncture and displacement induced a reduction of the threshold for thermal stimulation, indicating hyperalgesia, that was present 2 days after surgery and gradually recovered during a 14-day period. These data and the associated description of this new model for experimental disc herniation may increase our understanding of the pathophysiologic events leading to sciatica and help in evaluating new modalities for diagnosis and treatment of disc herniation and sciatica.
Does access to comprehensive outpatient care alter patterns of emergency department utilization among uninsured patients in East Baltimore

Background: The annual number of emergency department (ED) visits in the United States increased 23% between 1997 and 2007. The uninsured and those with chronic medical conditions are high users of...
Ragweed-induced expression of GATA-3, IL-4, and IL-5 by eosinophils in the lungs of allergic C57BL/6J mice.

Allergen-induced recruitment of T lymphocytes and eosinophils to the airways is associated with increased expression of the transcription factor GATA-3. In this study, the relationship between airw...
Hot wire chemical vapor deposition of Si containing materials for solar cells

A review of the hot wire chemical vapor deposition (HWCVD) of Si-containing materials for solar cell applications is given. A short history of the technique is given, starting from the early 1970s up to the present time. This is followed by a summary of radical detection and gas phase interaction results aimed towards achieving a basic understanding of this process. Next, issues particular to HWCVD growth are presented. These deal mainly with the filament, and include different methods of mounting filaments, filament contamination issues, filament alloying and its effect on both filament lifetime and film properties, and substrate heating by the filament. Differences between PECVD and HWCVD growth are then summarized, and this is followed by examples of research results indicating unique film properties. Included in these examples are works on amorphous silicon, microcrystalline silicon, silicon nitride, and a new technique for deposition of large grained poly Si by utilizing the etching of silicon by atomic hydrogen produced by the filament. Finally, the future prospects of HWCVD are briefly discussed.
Activation of rat mesenteric arterial KATP channels by 11,12-epoxyeicosatrienoic acid.

Epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs), the cytochrome P-450 epoxygenase metabolites of arachidonic acid, are candidates of endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factors. We have previously reported that E...
Stereochemistry of guanidine–metal interactions: Implications for L‐arginine–metal interactions in protein structure and function

The geometries of 150 guanidine-metal ion interactions retrieved from crystal structures deposited in the Cambridge Structural Database have been analyzed. Metal ions exhibit a preference for anti coordination stereochemistry in the plane of the unprotonated guanidine group, usually in chelate complexes with a diguanidine moiety, but syn-oriented interactions are occasionally found for single guanidine-metal interactions. Three L-arginine-metal coordination interactions are found in metalloenzyme structures deposited in the Protein Data Bank: biotin synthase from E. coli, His-67 --> Arg human carbonic anhydrase I, and inactivated B. caldovelox arginase complexed with L-arginine. In these proteins, L-arginine-metal coordination adopts syn/out-of-plane and anti/in-plane coordination stereochemistry. The implications of these results for L-arginine-metal interactions in protein structure and function are discussed. Although such interactions are rare, this analysis serves as a useful reference point for the growing interest in enzymes containing L-arginine residues that function as general bases or metal ligands.
The Adipocyte and Hemostatic Balance in Obesity: Studies of PAI-1

Plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 is the primary physiological inhibitor of plasminogen activation in vivo, and elevations in plasma PAI-1 appear to compromise normal fibrin clearance mechanisms and promote thrombosis. PAI-1 is dramatically upregulated in obesity, a complex condition associated with increased risk for myocardial infarction, accelerated atherosclerosis, hypertension, glucose intolerance, insulin resistance, hyperinsulinemia, and NIDDM. In spite of the apparent link between elevated PAI-1 levels and thrombotic disease, little is known about the origin of this plasma inhibitor in obesity/NIDDM or about the signals that control its biosynthesis. Potential insights into the underlying molecular events have come from recent studies of genetically obese mice and of cultured adipocytes. These studies are reviewed here.* They emphasize the key role played by the adipocyte, a cell whose numbers, size, and metabolic activity are grossly altered in obesity/NIDDM. They also suggest that multiple cytokines, hormones, and growth factors may be involved, and they raise the possibility that the abnormal expression of other hemostatic genes by adipocytes in obesity/NIDDM may also contribute to the cardiovascular complications of this disorder. In this regard, our preliminary studies indicate that TF gene expression is elevated in the adipose tissues of the obese mouse. PAI-1 appears to be the primary physiological inhibitor of plasminogen activation in blood, since it is the only PAI found complexed with single-chain tissue-type PA in carefully collected human plasma, and the second-order rate constant for its interaction with tissue-type PA and urokinase-type PA (≈3.5×107 [mol/L] −1 · s−1) is at least two orders of magnitude higher than that of other PAIs.1 2 3 4 The normal concentration of PAI-1 protein in human plasma ranges from …
Teacher Support and Student's Self-efficacy Beliefs

Abstract The present study investigated the role of teacher support and its influence on middle school student’s self-efficacy beliefs. A statewide survey of 9,702 urban and rural middle school students found that teacher support declined across the middle school years and that this had negative effects on student self-efficacy beliefs. The data do show that girls received more support than did boys and that girls also had generally higher self-efficacy beliefs than did boys. Overall, the results show that middle school teachers can do more in fostering self-efficacy, particularly in boys, and maintaining support throughout a student’s middle school experience. The present study of student’s perceptions of teacher support over the middle school years is an important step in our ability to understand the complex ways in which teachers influence student’s self-efficacy beliefs.
Dynamic Regulation of cpg15 during Activity-Dependent Synaptic Development in the Mammalian Visual System

During visual system development, neural activity regulates structural changes in connectivity including axonal branching and dendritic growth. Here we have examined a role for the candidate plasticity gene 15 (cpg15), which encodes an activity-regulated molecule that can promote dendritic growth, in this process. We report that cpg15 is expressed in the cat visual system at relatively high levels in the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) but at very low levels in its synaptic target, layer 4 of the visual cortex. Prenatally, when cpg15 mRNA in the LGN is most abundant, expression is insensitive to action potential blockade by tetrodotoxin. Postnatally, activity regulation of cpg15 emerges in the LGN coincident with development of ocular dominance columns in the visual cortex. cpg15 can be detected in layers 2/3 and 5/6 of visual cortex postnatally, and expression in layers 2/3 is activity-regulated during known periods of activity-dependent plasticity for these layers. Localization and regulation of cpg15 expression in the visual system are consistent with a presynaptic role for CPG15 in shaping dendritic arbors of target neurons during activity-dependent synaptic rearrangements, both in development and adulthood.
Repair of congenital and acquired pulmonary vein stenosis.

Background. Congenital pulmonary vein stenosis is a rare cause of obstruction of pulmonary venous blood flow with a high mortality. Acquired pulmonary vein stenosis is an equally serious condition. Methods. Eight patients (age range, 3 months to 43 years; median age, 1.5 years) underwent surgical relief of pulmonary vein stenosis. Two had congenital pulmonary vein stenosis, 5 had pulmonary vein stenosis that was acquired after surgical treatment of total anomalous pulmonary venous connection, and 1 had pulmonary vein stenosis associated with idiopathic mediastinal fibrosis and calcification. Results. One infant died 2 months after correction of acquired pulmonary vein stenosis. At follow-up extending to 16 years (median follow-up, 6.5 years), 6 patients are in New York Heart Association functional class I, and 1 patient is in class II. Conclusions. In view of the dismal natural history of untreated pulmonary vein stenosis, prompt surgical relief of the stenosis may be a rewarding undertaking.
A Confirmatory Analysis of Information Systems Security Success Factors

Information security has received a great deal of attention from a number of researchers. However, there has been little research aimed at understanding the dimensions - within the organizational context - of information security success. The current study reviews a large body of information security literature and organizes the research based on the research findings. This structure is used to develop factors composing information security success. The dimensions are tested using survey-based methodology and Confirmatory Factor Analysis. Findings indicating mixed levels of model fit are presented, with indicators above and below levels of confidence, implying a need for further iterative study.
THE DROSOPHILA GENE BEARDED ENCODES A NOVEL SMALL PROTEIN AND SHARES 3' UTR SEQUENCE MOTIFS WITH MULTIPLE ENHANCER OF SPLIT COMPLEX GENES

Gain-of-function alleles of the Drosophila gene Bearded (Brd) cause sensory organ multiplication and loss phenotypes indistinguishable at the cellular level from those caused by loss-of-function mutations in the genes of the Notch pathway (Leviten, M. W. and Posakony, J. W. (1996). Dev. Biol. 176, 264–283). We have carried out a molecular analysis of the structure and expression of both wild-type and mutant Brd transcription units. We find that the Brd transcript is truncated and accumulates to substantially higher levels in the gain-of-function mutants, due to the insertion of a transposable element of the blood family in the Brd 3′ untranslated region (UTR). The wild-type Brd 3′ UTR includes three copies of a 9-nucleotide sequence (CAGCTTTAA) that we refer to as the ‘Brd box’. Moreover, the 3′ UTRs of Brd and of the m4 transcription unit of the Enhancer of split gene complex [E(spl)-C] exhibit an unusually high degree of sequence identity that includes not only Brd box sequences but also a second motif we refer to as the ‘GY box’ (GTCTTCC). We find that both the Brd box and the GY box are also present in the 3′ UTRs of several basic helix-loop-helix repressor-encoding genes of the E(spl)-C, often in multiple copies, suggesting that a novel mode of post-transcriptional regulation applies to Brd and many E(spl)-C genes. The fact that the more abundant Brd mutant mRNA lacks the GY box and two of the Brd boxes present in wild-type Brd mRNA suggests that either or both of these elements may confer instability on transcripts that contain them. Finally, we find that Brd encodes a novel small protein of only 81 amino acids that is predicted to include a basic amphipathic alpha-helix. The deduced Brd protein shows sequence similarity to the E(spl)m4 protein, which is likewise expected to include a basic amphipathic alpha-helix, suggesting that the two proteins have related biochemical functions.
Crystal Nucleation in Liquids and Glasses

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on measurements and theories pertaining to homogeneous nucleation under cooled liquids and glasses that transform to phases of the same composition. The dynamical model describing the cluster evolution appears to be quantitatively correct. Although there are some experimental and theoretical difficulties with the classical theory, there are also many approaches to rectify these problems. At present, there are no experiments that can demonstrate or can refute conclusively the validity of the classical theory in the regime where it is expected to be valid. This is partially because of a lack of knowledge of the correct values for the parameters that are fit by the theory. Better measurements of the steady-state and time-dependent nucleation rates and the free-energy difference as a function of temperature, and the design of new experiments such as the multistep annealing treatments discussed in the chapter are used to test more rigorously nucleation theories. Time-dependent nucleation and the interface kinetics are incorporated into the field-theoretic approaches to give theories that are as widely applicable and, hence, testable as the classical theory.
Comparison of Sample-Unit Sizes for D-Vac® Sampling of Cotton Arthropods in Mississippi

Sample-unit-sizes of 30, 7.5, 4 and 1 linear m row of cotton were compared for sampling cotton arthropods with a D-vaC® vacuum sampler. Analysis of data indicated that the smaller the sample-unit-size, the greater the estimate of the number of arthropods present. However, small sample-unit-sizes also tended to have the greatest SE at a fixed cost per sample-unit-size. Comparison of the relative variation values shows little differences among the sample-unit-sizes.
Not Too Taxing: Researching Federal Tax Law with Free Resources

For years, researching tax issues required access to either expensive loose-leaf serial sets like CCH’s Standard Federal Tax Reporter or the sets maintained by Prentice-Hall or its successor Thomson Reuter’s RIA. In recent days, similarly pricey electronic services like RIA Checkpoint and CCH’s IntelliConnect have become the standard tool of tax professionals. Nonetheless, through the efforts of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Treasury Department and the nimble programmers of Cornell’s Legal Information Institute (LII), lawyers have access to some solid tools.
Establishing the precise evolutionary history of a gene improves prediction of disease-causing missense mutations

Predicting the phenotypic effects of mutations has become an important application in clinical genetic diagnostics. Computational tools evaluate the behavior of the variant over evolutionary time and assume that variations seen during the course of evolution are probably benign in humans. However, current tools do not take into account orthologous/paralogous relationships. Paralogs have dramatically different roles in Mendelian diseases. For example, whereas inactivating mutations in the NPC1 gene cause the neurodegenerative disorder Niemann-Pick C, inactivating mutations in its paralog NPC1L1 are not disease-causing and, moreover, are implicated in protection from coronary heart disease. We identified major events in NPC1 evolution and revealed and compared orthologs and paralogs of the human NPC1 gene through phylogenetic and protein sequence analyses. We predicted whether an amino acid substitution affects protein function by reducing the organism’s fitness. Removing the paralogs and distant homologs improved the overall performance of categorizing disease-causing and benign amino acid substitutions. The results show that a thorough evolutionary analysis followed by identification of orthologs improves the accuracy in predicting disease-causing missense mutations. We anticipate that this approach will be used as a reference in the interpretation of variants in other genetic diseases as well. Genet Med 18 10, 1029–1036.
Primary Psoas Abscess: Case Report and Review of Literature

AbstractWe report a case of a primary non-tuberculous psoas abscess and review the literature. Most psoas abscesses are secondary to extension of inflammatory processes from adjacent structures. Primary psoas abscess is a relatively rare condition and is usually staphylococcal in nature. The pathophysiology, clinical presentation and treatment are discussed. Accepted for publication September 12, 1980. The opinions or assertions contained herein are the private views of the authors and are not to be construed as official or as reflecting the views of the Department of the Army or the Department of Defense.
Cloudiness over the Amazon Rainforest: Meteorology and Thermodynamics

Comprehensive meteorological observations collected during GOAmazon2014/15 using the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Mobile Facility #1 (AMF1) and assimilated observations from the Modern Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications -Version 2 (MERRA-2) are used to document the seasonal cycle of cloudiness, thermodynamics, and precipitation above the Amazon Rainforest. The reversal of synoptic scale vertical motions modulates the transition between a wet and dry season. Ascending moist air during the wet season originates near the surface of the Atlantic Ocean and is advected into the Amazon Rainforest where it experiences convergence and, ultimately, precipitates. The dry season is characterized by weaker winds and synoptic scale subsidence with little or no moisture convergence accompanying moisture advection. This combination results in the drying of the mid-troposphere during June through October as indicated by a decrease in liquid water path, integrated water, and the vertical profile of water vapor mixing ratio. The vertical profile of cloud fraction exhibits a relatively consistent decline in cloud fraction from the LCL to the freezing level where a minimum is observed, unlike many other tropical regions. Coefficients of determination between the Lifting Condensation Level (LCL) and cloud fractional coverage suggest a relatively robust relationship between the LCL and cloudiness beneath 5 km during the dry season (R2 = 0.42), but a weak relationship during the wet season (0.12).
Sparse-view CT reconstruction using curvelet and TV-based regularization

The reconstruction from sparse-view projections is one of important problems in computed tomography limited by the availability or feasibility of a large number of projections. Total variation (TV) approaches have been introduced to improve the reconstruction quality by smoothing the variation between neighboring pixels. However, the TV-based methods for images with textures or complex shapes may generate artifacts and cause loss of details. Here, we propose a new regularization model for CT reconstruction by combining regularization methods based on TV and the curvelet transform. Combining curvelet regularizer, which is optimally sparse with better directional sensitivity than wavelet transforms with TV on the other hand will give us a unique regularization model that leads to the improvement of the reconstruction quality. The split-Bregman (augmented Lagrangian) approach has been used as a solver which makes it easy to incorporate multiple regularization terms including the one based on the multiresolution transformation, in our case curvelet transform, into optimization framework. We compare our method with the methods using only TV, wavelet, and curvelet as the regularization terms on the test phantom images. The results show that there are benefits in using the proposed combined curvelet and TV regularizer in the sparse view CT reconstruction.
A Final Appraisal

The time has come to review the main points of Heilbroner’s economic method. Let me begin with an innocent question. Is Heilbroner an economist? If we define an economist as one who practices the science of ‘economics’ the answer is no. He certainly does not employ the standard methods of the modern science of economics. We have previously seen that Heilbroner openly questions the relevance of this approach. In fact he has gone as far as saying economic science can actually veil any true understanding of the problems. The typical methods employed by the profession direct our attention to the symptoms of the economic problem and not the cause. Surface price fluctuations are an epiphenomenon; the real problems lie below the surface. The real problems reside deep within the nature and logic of the capitalist system. However, while Heilbroner is not an economist who is cut from the same cloth as modern reductionist theorists, he is an economist in that he is a practitioner of ‘political economy’.
Perceived Stress and Cognitive Decline in Different Cognitive Domains in a Cohort of Older African Americans.

Background Research indicates that stress is linked to cognitive dysfunction. However, few community-based studies have explored the relationship between perceived stress and cognitive decline, and fewer still have utilized cognitive domains rather than a global measure of cognition. Objective We examined the relation between perceived stress and the rate of decline in different cognitive domains. Methods Participants were older African Americans without dementia from the Minority Aging Research Study (MARS; N = 467, mean age: 73 years, SD: 6.1 years). A battery of 19 cognitive tests was administered at baseline and at annual intervals for up to 9 years (mean follow-up: 4 years), from which composite measures of global cognitive function and five specific cognitive domains were derived. The four-item Cohen's Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) was also administered at baseline. Results In linear mixed-effects models adjusted for age, sex, education, and vascular risk factors, higher perceived stress was related to faster declines in global cognition (β = −0.019; SE: 0.008; t (1951) = −2.46), episodic memory (β = −0.022; SE: 0.011; t (1954) = −1.99), and visuospatial ability (β = −0.021; SE: 0.009; t (1939) = −2.38) all p Conclusions Results indicate that older African Americans with higher levels of perceived stress have more rapid declines in global cognition than those with lower levels, most notably for episodic memory and visuospatial ability.
Life history plasticity does not confer resilience to environmental change in the mole salamander (Ambystoma talpoideum)

Plasticity in life history strategies can be advantageous for species that occupy spatially or temporally variable environments. We examined how phenotypic plasticity influences responses of the mole salamander, Ambystoma talpoideum, to disturbance events at the St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge (SMNWR), FL, USA from 2009 to 2014. We observed periods of extensive drought early in the study, in contrast to high rainfall and expansive flooding events in later years. Flooding facilitated colonization of predatory fishes to isolated wetlands across the refuge. We employed multistate occupancy models to determine how this natural experiment influenced the occurrence of aquatic larvae and paedomorphic adults and what implications this may have for the population. We found that, in terms of occurrence, responses to environmental variation differed between larvae and paedomorphs, but plasticity (i.e. the ability to metamorphose rather than remain in aquatic environment) was not sufficient to buffer populations from declining as a result of environmental perturbations. Drought and fish presence negatively influenced occurrence dynamics of larval and paedomorphic mole salamanders and, consequently, contributed to observed short-term declines of this species. Overall occurrence of larval salamanders decreased from 0.611 in 2009 to 0.075 in 2014 and paedomorph occurrence decreased from 0.311 in 2009 to 0.121 in 2014. Although variation in selection pressures has likely maintained this polyphenism previously, our results suggest that continued changes in environmental variability and the persistence of fish in isolated wetlands could lead to a loss of paedomorphosis in the SMNWR population and, ultimately, impact regional persistence in the future.
The Mothers and the Children

In this chapter, I opt for what Ellingson (2011) calls “openly subjective knowledge” (p. 599) and ethnopoetics (Rothenberg, 1990) as a way to represent the narratives of the women and children in this project. Ethnopoetics it is talked about in historical terms, as a methodology that leaves as its legacy “investigative poetry” (Hartnett & Engels, 2005 [1999, 2003]).
The Effect of Oxidants on the Membrane Sulfhydryl Groups of the Lens

The effects of -SH oxidants, iodosobenzoate and diamide, on lens membrane function were studied. Both oxidants decrease the ability of the rabbit lens to concentrate rubidium (Rb) ions. Diamide is more effective than iodosobenzoate. Under the conditions used, diamide affects both the uptake and the leak out processes. While iodosobenzoate affects Rb uptake but does not affect the leak out process to a significant extent. These effects are observed in the absence of glucose. The presence of glucose in the medium abolishes the effects of the -SH oxidants. A marked increase in the oxidation of carbon one atom of glucose is observed in the lens incubated with diamide suggesting the stimulation of the pentose shunt mechanism to provide TPNH necessary to maintain the sulfhydryl groups in the reduced form.
Magnesium Zinc Oxide Nanostructure-modified Quartz Crystal Microbalance for Dynamic Monitoring of Antibiotic Effects and Antimicrobial Resistance

Abstract We demonstrate a magnesium zinc oxide (MZO) nanostructure-modified quartz crystal microbalance (MZO nano -QCM) biosensor to dynamically monitor antimicrobial effects on E. coli and S. cerevisiae. The MZO nanostructures were grown on the top electrode of a standard QCM using metal-organic chemical-vapor deposition (MOCVD). The MZO nanostructures are utilized as the sensing material due to their multifunctionality, biocompatibility, and very large effective sensing surface. The MZO surface-wettability and morphology are controlled, offering high-sensitivity to various biological/biochemical species. The MZO nano -QCM was applied to detect the effects of ampicillin and tetracycline on sensitive and resistant strains of E.coli , as well as effects of amphotericin-B and miconazole on S. cerevisiae through the device's time-dependent frequency shift and motional resistance.