cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
WSN04-6: Energy-Efficient Coverage Measurement for Wireless Sensor Networks

In this paper, we propose a coverage measurement protocol (CMP) which can provide the base station an accurate and in-time measurement of the current connected coverage in an energy-efficient way, and our CMP is location-error tolerant. Moreover, the major component of our CMP, i.e., BOundary Node Detection (BOND) scheme, can be reused to provide many other functionalities for WSNs.
Strategies for Supporting Transitions of Young Children with Special Needs and Their Families.

Young children with special needs and their families often experience transitions across multiple environments in the early childhood years. Many transitions are identified as stressful for childre...
Measurement of permeability of oriented Y-type hexaferrites

Abstract There is a need to develop high μ materials at microwave frequencies. In the past we were able to prepare by special techniques hard magnetic materials such as Y-type hexaferrites into soft magnetic materials. In this paper, we show results of a measurement technique to measure μ as a function of frequency on these materials. Using a thru-line-reflect calibration technique and a HP 8510B network analyzer we measured S 21, transmission coefficient of microstrip line, to deduce the permeability as a function of frequency of oriented Y-type hexaferrites. The microstripline measurements were consistent with microwave cavity measurements at one frequency. The real part of the permeability was constant and equal to 3–4 from 0.5 to 6 GHz with minimal measured magnetic loss tangents. Higher values of permeability may be possible with thinner samples.
Magnetic resonance imaging of knee hyaline cartilage and intraarticular pathology

Injuries to the hyaline cartilage of the knee joint are difficult to diagnose without invasive techniques. Even though these defects may be the most important prog nostic factors in assessing knee joint injury, they are usually not diagnosed until arthrotomy or arthroscopy. Once injuries to hyaline cartilage are found and/or treated, no technique exists to follow these over time. Plain radiographs, arthrograms, and even computed tomography fail to detail most hyaline cartilage defects.We used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to eval uate five fresh frozen cadaver limbs and 10 patients whose pathology was known from arthrotomy or ar throscopic examination. Using a 0.35 Tesla supercon ducting magnet and spin-echo imaging technique with a head coil, we found that intraarticular fluid or air helped to delineate hyaline cartilage pathology. The multiplane capability of MRI proved to be excellent in detailing small (3 mm or more) defects on the femoral condyles and patellar surface. Cruciate ligaments were best...
The self-intersection formula and the ‘formule-clef’

We shall consider exclusively algebraic non-singular quasi-projective irreducible varieties over an algebraically closed field. If V is such a variety will be the Chow ring of rational equivalence classes of cycles of Vand the group homomorphism defined by any proper morphism φ: V1 → V2. Alsodenotes the ring homomorphism defined by φ.
Design, Synthesis, and Evaluation of Matrix Metalloprotease Inhibitors Bearing Cyclopropane-Derived Peptidomimetics as P1‘ and P2‘ Replacements

We have previously used trisubstituted cyclopropanes as peptide replacements to induce conformational constraints in known pseudopeptide inhibitors of a number of important enzymes. Cyclopropane-derived peptide mimics are novel in that they are among the few replacements that locally orient the peptide backbone and the amino acid side chain in a predefined manner. Although these dipeptide isosteres have been employed to orient amino acid side chains mimicking the gauche(−) conformation of χ1-space, their ability to project the side chains into an anti orientation has not been evaluated. As a first step toward this goal, the conformationally constrained pseudopeptides 8 and 10 and their corresponding flexible analogues 9 and 11 were prepared and tested as inhibitors of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). These compounds are analogues of 4 and 5, which were known to be potent MMP inhibitors. The anti orientations of the isopropyl side chain in 8 and the aromatic ring in 10 relative to the peptide backbone sub...
Isomer-Specific Analysis and Toxic Evaluation of Polychlorinated Naphthalenes in Soil, Sediment, and Biota Collected near the Site of a Former Chlor-Alkali Plant

Concentrations and composition of polychlorinated naphthalene (PCN) congeners were determined in soil, sediments, blue crab, striped mullet, and boat-tailed grackle collected near a chlor-alkali plant to determine their congener profile, bioaccumulation properties, and toxic potential. Concentrations of total PCNs as high as 23 μg/g, dry wt, were found in sediments collected at the marsh contaminated by disposal of wastes from the chlor-alkali process. The spatial distribution of sediment−PCN concentrations was not related with those observed for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The PCN congener profile did not resemble those of any technical mixtures. Hepta- and octa-chloronaphthalenes were the most abundant congeners accounting for greater than 50% of the total PCN concentrations in soil and sediments. A characteristic profile of PCNs in samples collected at the chlor-alkali site suggests the formation of chloronaphthalene congeners during chlor-alkali process, as has been suggested for polychlorinated...
Duty hours: where do we go from here?

In this issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 2 articles explore the effects that limiting resident physician duty hours have had on the learning environment and patient care.1,2 These articles will prompt discussion among resident physicians and their faculty and evoke memories for those of us who completed residency training in an earlier era. In this regard, I am no exception.
Transverse myelitis presenting in a patient with Hughes-Stovin syndrome.

Hughes-Stovin syndrome (HSS) is a lymphocytic vasculitis defined by the constellation of venous thrombosis and multiple pulmonary artery aneurysms. Aneurysmal rupture with massive hemorrhage is a frequent fatal event. HSS is thought of as a forme fruste of Behcet's disease (BD), sharing similar histological findings, but without other associated manifestations that characterize BD. Classically patients with HSS do not have oral and genital ulcers, inflammatory eye disease, skin pathergy, nor do they develop neurological manifestations that can arise with
Fluxes of N2, O2, and CO2 in nearshore waters off Martha's Vineyard

Abstract Accurate, high-resolution time series measurements of aqueous CO2, O2, and N2 were used to investigate the fluxes and transformations of these gases in a complex and dynamic nearshore environment. The measurements were made at 5-m depth over 10 days in June 2002 at the Martha's Vineyard Observatory, MA (41°19.722′ N and 70°33.096′ W). The average depth of the water column at this location was 13 m. Supporting measurements include water temperature, salinity, fluorescence, and local meteorological conditions. For the analysis, the data set was partitioned into discrete events characterized by similar environmental conditions. Approximately 30% of the total data set was chosen for detailed analysis: two ‘wind events’ where 5
Orientation and swimming behavior of hatchling loggerhead turtles Caretta caretta L. during their offshore migration

Loggerhead turtle Caretta caretta L. hatchlings emerging from nests on the eastern coast of Florida swim offshore toward the Florida Current. Part of the trip is accomplished during an initial 20-h period of swimming (the “frenzy”); the remainder may take a day or more of oriented swimming. Swimming speeds are slower than those of green turtles Chelonia mydas L. Hatchlings are well oriented in an offshore direction when released into the ocean during the day or night. Completion of a crawl down the beach or a plunge into the surf are unnecessary for proper orientation. Immediately after entering the ocean at night, responses to light appear essential for oriented swimming. However, present hypotheses based upon phototropotaxis may not account for orientation later in the migration.
Could genetic polymorphisms related to oxidative stress modulate effects of heavy metals for risk of human preterm birth

Human preterm birth (PTB) is a complex medical outcome influenced by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Research on the causative factors of PTB has mostly focused on demographic, socio-behavioral and environmental risk factors. Recent studies turn the spotlight on the effects of heavy metals exposure on adverse pregnancy outcomes. Here we present and evaluate the hypothesis that heavy metals may cause PTB through oxidative stress, and that this effect may be modified by polymorphisms in genes related to oxidative stress. Indeed, accumulating data suggest that the risk of PTB is correlated with polymorphisms in genes involved in detoxification, oxidative stress and lipid metabolism. These and other polymorphisms have independently been associated with susceptibility to the adverse effects of heavy metals.
Three-dimensional localization of fluorescent masses deeply embedded in tissue

In this paper we present preliminary results obtained for tissue-like phantoms and ex vivo tissue slabs using a prototype system for CW infrared fluorescence imaging of fluorescent markers. Besides the design of the experimental system itself, we have developed a theoretical model of photon migration under experimental conditions and associated 3D reconstruction algorithms to estimate the distribution of fluorescent markers. Application of the developed algorithms in the analysis of 2D intensity distributions of the fluorescent light demonstrated their ability to reconstruct positions of the markers (including their depths) with good accuracy (error ?10%) both for the Intralipid phantoms and ex vivo tissue slabs.
Decomposition algorithm for convex differentiable minimization

In this paper, we propose a decomposition algorithm for convex differentiable minimization. This algorithm at each iteration solves a variational inequality problem obtained by adding to the gradient of the cost function a strongly proximal related function. A line search is then performed in the direction of the solution to this variational inequality (with respect to the original cost). If the constraint set is a Cartesian product ofm sets, the variational inequality decomposes intom coupled variational inequalities, which can be solved in either a Jacobi manner or a Gauss-Seidel manner. This algorithm also applies to the minimization of a strongly convex (possibly nondifferentiable) cost subject to linear constraints. As special cases, we obtain the GP-SOR algorithm of Mangasarian and De Leone, a diagonalization algorithm of Feijoo and Meyer, the coordinate descent method, and the dual gradient method. This algorithm is also closely related to a splitting algorithm of Gabay and a gradient projection algorithm of Goldstein and of Levitin-Poljak, and has interesting applications to separable convex programming and to solving traffic assignment problems.
Gender differences in parental grief

Abstract Gender differences in grief of parents who lost their child were examined using the Grief Experience Inventory. Participants were 35 bereaved couples who ranged in age from 27 to 73. Results showed that the mothers' scares were signihantly higher than those of fathers on the following scales: Atypical Responses, Despair, Anger/Hostility, Guilt, Loss of Control, Rumination, Deper-sonalization, Somatization, Loss of Vigor, Physical Symptoms, and Optimism/ Despair No significant differences were found on the scales of Denial, Social Desirability, Social Isolation, Death Anxiety, and Loss of Appetite. The potential usefulness of the GEI in helping the bereaved is discussed.
A niche opportunity for stem cell therapeutics

The success of hematopoietic stem cell (HSC)-based therapies relies on the ability of the stem cells to both engraft and self-renew sufficiently in the bone marrow microenvironment. Previous studies identified that a number of components of bone contribute to the regulation of HSCs indicating that they participate in a stem cell 'niche'. This niche is a dynamic microenvironment that changes during development and with varying physiologic states. Components of it, such as the osteoblast, can be modulated through pharmacological treatment. Reasoning that the stem cell niche may be manipulated to augment the effectiveness of stem cell therapies, we demonstrated that daily treatment with parathyroid hormone (a clinically approved method for increasing osteoblast function) resulted in therapeutic benefit in three clinically relevant models of stem cell therapy. These results suggest that the niche may be a pharmacological target for altering stem cell function in settings of regenerative medicine.
Electron impact excitation of Fe25

Abstract A three-state close-coupling calculation of the impact excitation of the 2s and 2p states of the hydrogenic ion Fe25+ has been performed using the algebraic variational method.
What Is Sarcopenia

Advancing adult age is associated with profound changes in body composition, the principal component of which is a decrease in skeletal muscle mass. This age-related loss in skeletal muscle has been referred to as sarcopenia. Age-related reduction in muscle is a direct cause of the age-related decrease in muscle strength. Muscle mass (not function) appears to be the major determinant of the age- and sex-related differences in strength. This relationship is independent of muscle location (upper vs lower extremities) and function (extension vs flexion). Reduced muscle strength in the elderly is a major cause for their increased prevalence of disability. With advancing age and extremely low activity levels seen in the very old, muscle strength is a critical component of walking ability. The high prevalence of falls among the institutionalized elderly may be a consequence of their lower muscle strength. Daily energy expenditure declines progressively throughout adult life. In sedentary individuals, the main determinant of energy expenditure is fat-free mass, which declines by about 15% between the third and eighth decade of life, contributing to a lower basal metabolic rate in the elderly. Data indicate that preservation of muscle mass and prevention of sarcopenia can help prevent the decrease in metabolic rate. In addition to its role in energy metabolism, skeletal muscle and its age-related decline may contribute to such age-associated changes as reduction in bone density, insulin sensitivity, and aerobic capacity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Evidence for the nonenzymatic and irreversible binding of cytembena to rat liver microsomes in vitro.

Abstract Characteristics of the irreversible binding of cytembena (CYT) to rat liver microsomal proteins have been investigated in vitro . Binding of [ 14 C]CYT to rat liver microsomal proteins remained unchanged in the presence of SKF-525A or after heat denaturation and was not dependent upon the presence of pyridine nucleotide (NADPH or NADH). Ethacrynic acid, cysteine, dithiothreitol, and lysine were found to block the irreversible binding of [ 14 C]CYT to microsomal proteins in a dose-dependent manner. The rank order of effectiveness as inhibitors of CYT binding was ethacrynic acid > cysteine > dithiothreitol > lysine. In other studies, CYT was shown to preferentially form adducts with cysteine rather than lysine or glycine. Using structural analogs and metabolites of CYT, it was found that 4-methoxybenzoylacrylic acid and β-benzoylacrylic acid were effective competitors of [ 14 C]CYT binding to liver microsomal proteins. By contrast, 4-methoxybenzoylpropionic acid, 5-(4-methoxyphenyl)dihydro-2(3 H )furanone and 4-hydroxy-4-(4-methoxyphenyl)butyric acid were ineffective as inhibitors of the irreversible binding of CYT. These data suggest that sulfhydryl groups are involved in the nonenzymatic binding of CYT and that the presence of a carbon-carbon double bond in CYT, in debrominated metabolites or structural analogs, is requisite for an interference of the binding of CYT to microsomal proteins.
Two cases of junctional epidermolysis bullosa (Herlitz-Pearson).

SUMMARY Clinical details of one surviving and one fatal case of junctional epidermolysis bullosa, previously termed epidermolysis bullosa letalis-Herlitz, are reported and factors affecting prognosis are discussed.
Whole-body robot sensing and human-robot interaction

Applications that require robots that operate in an uncertain environment, and/or require close human-robot interaction, are in great demand. Examples include robots preparing the Mars surface for human arrival; robots for assembly of large space telescopes; robot helpers for the elderly; robot search and disposal of war mines. Advances in this area, while impressive, are also slow to appear. Difficulties are multiple, both on the robotics and on human side: robots have hard time adjusting in unstructured tasks, while human cognition has serious limits in manipulating 3D motion. As a result, applications where robots operate near humans - or far away from them - are exceedingly rare. The way out of this impasse is to supply the robot with a whole-body sensing, plus related intelligence - an ability to sense surrounding objects at the robot's whole body and utilize this data in real time. This calls for large-area flexible arrays - sensitive skin covering the whole robot body. The whole-body sensing brings interesting, even unexpected, properties: robots become inherently safe; human operators can move them fast, with “natural” speeds; resulting robot motion strategies exceed human spatial reasoning skills; natural synergy of human-robot teams becomes realistic; a mix of supervised and unsupervised operation becomes possible. We will review the algorithmic, cognitive science, hardware (materials, electronics, computing), and control issues involved in realizing such systems.
Correlation between potassium efflux and copper sensitivity in 10 Arahidopsis ecotypes

SUMMARY To study the relationship between copper sensitivity and membrane permeability in Arabidopsis, the seedling growth rates (measured as root extension and f. wt increase) of 10 ecotypes with differing copper sensitivities were compared with their patterns of potassium efflux and copper uptake. At 36 h, inhibition of root extension in 40 μi Cu correlated well with K+ efflux (r= 0.96) and a decrease in osmolality (r= 0.96). By contrast, neither tissue osmolality nor K+ efflux correlated significantly with growth inhibition after 4 h Cu treatment. In detailed time-course studies of two of the less sensitive ecotypes (Shadhara and Ws) and two of the more sensitive ecotypes (Berkeley and Limeport) in 20 μM Cu, growth, K+ retention and osmolality decreased rapidly during the first 4 h. Only the two less sensitive ecotypes recovered during the following 32 h. A similar pattern was observed with 40 μM Cu, except that growth inhibition was more marked. Interestingly, after 4 h the less sensitive ecotypes exhibited greater inhibition than the more sensitive. In time-course measurements, the Cu contents of the four ecotypes were not significantly different when normalised on a f. wt basis. We conclude that variations in the metal sensitivities of Arabidopsis ecotypes are not due to constitutive differences in membrane permeability but, rather, to differences in the ability to reverse K+ efflux. The possibility that short-term Cu-induced K+-leakage is regulated by channels rather than lipid oxidation is discussed.
An unproven technique with potentially fatal outcome: provocation⁄neutralization in a patient with systemic mastocytosis

Objective To describe the risks associated with use of an unproven technique, provocation/neutralization, in diagnosis and treatment of a putative "food allergy" in a patient with systemic mastocytosis. Methods A case report of a 68-year-old woman with mastocytosis is reported. The patient was interviewed, examined, and all medical records were reviewed. Photos were taken, and skin and colonic biopsies were performed. Results The patient was previously diagnosed with urticaria pigmentosa but also had significant diarrhea that was well-controlled by oral cromolyn sodium. She saw a physician who practiced provocation/neutralization and was told that food allergies were the cause of her gastrointestinal symptoms. She was placed on "neutralizing" injections of milk and wheat, but experienced flushing, palpitations, and lightheadedness with syncope upon injections into her thigh, which is a skin area highly involved by visible lesions of cutaneous mastocytosis. Later evaluation revealed increased numbers of mast cells in her colonic mucosa as well as confirmation of cutaneous mastocytosis. Conclusions The patient's previous history of urticaria pigmentosa, orally communicated by the patient, documented in medical records, and easily visible on physical examination, was discounted by a practitioner of an alternative and unproven medical treatment, provocation/neutralization. She subsequently had potentially life-threatening reactions to "provocative" skin testing and "neutralizing" injections. Patients with systemic mastocytosis are at risk for significant mast cell mediator release during immunotherapy, conventional or alternative.
Swallowing in the Elderly: Evidence From Fluoroscopy

An understanding of changes in swallow associated with aging, differentiated from effects of disease processes or other factors characteristic of aging, is critical to clinicians working with elderly dysphagic patients. Rapid growth in our aging population, and the prevalence of dysphagia within this group, underscore this need. The intent of this paper is to review current information regarding typical changes in aging with implications for swallowing. Particular emphasis is on evidence from fluoroscopic studies of swallow function. Objective measures of timing and displacement, and other observations, were collected for 63 normal, non-dysphagic adults under the age of 65 years, and 74 carefully-screened, non-dysphagic volunteers over the age of 65 years. Differences between the groups are discussed, with special attention to their clinical relevance and application. Information provided will hopefully serve clinicians in recognizing typical and atypical swallow in the elderly, as well as characteristics...
Large-scale clustering: algorithms and applications

Clustering is a central problem in unsupervised learning for discovering interesting patterns in the underlying data. Though there have been numerous studies on clustering methods, the focus of this dissertation is on developing efficient clustering algorithms for large-scale applications such as text mining, network analysis, image segmentation and bioinformatics. We first present a time and memory efficient technique for the entire process of text clustering, including the creation of the vector space model for documents. This efficiency is obtained by (i) a memory-efficient multi-threaded preprocessing scheme, and (ii) a fast clustering algorithm that fully exploits the sparsity of the data set. We show that this entire process takes time that is linear in the size of the document collection. Clustering algorithms which are based on heuristics can get trapped in inferior local optima therefore yielding qualitatively poor results. As the second part of our work, we propose the use of local search and annealing to improve the quality of the clustering results. In local search, we create a chain of incremental point moves that leads the objective function out of local optima; while the idea of annealing is that we enforce the perturbation of cluster centers after clusters become stablized. The effectiveness of these techniques is illustrated in text clustering and gene expression analysis. Data in many domains, such as cluster analysis of the world wide web or circuit partitioning, is represented as graphs. Clustering is often used to find and analyze structural and functional properties of these graphs. In the last part of the dissertation, we present an efficient, high-quality multilevel kernel-based graph clustering algorithm, which outperforms previous state-of-the-art spectral methods in quality and runs hundreds or even thousands of times faster. Our multilevel graph clustering algorithm is based on a theoretical connection with the weighted kernel k-means clustering algorithm. We empirically demonstrate that our algorithm is efficient and effective on large social networks, protein interaction networks and image segmentation.
Effects of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs on renal function in patients with renal insufficiency and in cirrhotics.

We have assessed the effects of acute and chronic administration of etodolac, ketoprofen, and indomethacin on renal function in patients with mild to moderate chronic renal insufficiency (CRI). We studied 18 normal volunteers and 24 patients with CRI due to hypertension and/or diabetes mellitus with creatinine clearances between 19 and 83 mL/min/1.73 m 2 . Clearance studies were performed with the first dose of nonsteroidal anti! nflammatory drug (NSAID) to compare acute effects of the agent with a no-drug control. Subjects then received the NSAID for three to five days and, on the last day of study, underwent another clearance study to assess the effects of a single dose of NSAID superimposed on chronic dosing. With each dose of each NSAID, inulin and paraaminohippurate (PAH) clearances and fractional excretion of NA + decreased. However, the baseline control collections after chronic dosing did not differ from the no-drug control periods. Hence, the decline in renal function with each dose is transient, and no overall adverse effect on renal function occurred with chronic dosing. In five patients with cirrhosis, we assessed the renal sparing effects of sulindac. After equilibration on a fixed sodium intake, they received a 200-mg dose of sulindac. In one patient, no adverse effect occurred; the remaining patients suffered declines in creatinine clearance of 29%, 87/0, 37%, and 37%, respectively. This effect was transient and returned to control values six to eight hours after sulindac administration. At the time of maximal depression of renal function, serum concentrations of sulindac sulfide were comparable to those in subjects with normal hepatic function. Hence, in susceptible patients, sulindac, like other NSAIDs, can adversely affect renal function.
Imaging of hydrogen peroxide generation in cultured cells using dichlorofluorescein derivatives.

There is growing evidence that generation of reactive oxygen molecules (e.g., hydrogen peroxide, superoxide, hydroxyl and nitric oxide radicals) plays an important role in cell death. In this report we evaluated the effectiveness of the membrane permeable probe carboxy- dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate acetoxymethyl ester (C-DCDHF-DA-AM) for imaging the production of H2O2 in cultured cells. We examined the properties of three derivatives of the ester in saline droplets and compared the results with responses recorded from cells loaded with the ester. Results indicated that fluorescence was generated in cells and droplets by a photo-oxidative process involving H2O2. Videomicroscopy demonstrated that the cellular responses originated in small vesicles (presumably peroxisomes), with large responses filling the cytosol and enveloping the nucleus. We interpreted these responses as due to light-induced activation of flavin-containing oxidases, which generate H2O2 in peroxisomes, followed by diffusion of H2O2 throughout the cell. Escape of H2O2 from peroxisomes into Fe2+-containing compartments could have dire consequences on cell viability due to the production of hydroxyl free radicals. Such a mechanism could underly the phototoxic effects of visible light on cultured cells.© (1996) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
RADIUS common development environment

RCDE is a software environment for the development of image understanding algorithms. The application focus of RCDE is on image exploitation where the exploitation tasks are supported by 2D and 3D models of the geographic site being analyzed. An initial prototype for RCDE is SRI's Cartographic Modeling Environment (CME). This paper reviews the CME design and illustrates the application of CME to site modeling scenarios.
Shear band spacing in thermoviscoplastic materials

Abstract A closed-form expression for shear band spacing in strain-hardening, strain-rate-hardening and thermally softening thermoviscoplastic materials is derived by studying the stability of a homogeneous solution of equations governing its simple shearing deformations. The wavelength of the perturbation that maximizes its initial growth rate is assumed to determine the shear band spacing, L s . The dependence of L s upon various material parameters and the nominal strain rate, ɛ ˙ , is delineated. When written as L s = A 1 k χ 1 or A 2 ɛ ˙ χ 2 where A 1 and A 2 are parameters and k is the thermal conductivity, it is found that χ 2 ≃ - 0.787 and χ 1 depends upon the strain-rate hardening exponent m ; χ 1 ≃ 0.5 for m ≃ 10 - 6 and n ≃ 0.011 , decreases rapidly to 0.21 for m ≃ 10 - 4 and n ≃ 0.011 , and then increases slowly to 0.25 for m ≃ 0.05 and n ≃ 0.011 . However, for m = 0 and n ≠ 0 , χ 1 = 1 .
Distributed control of spatially invariant systems

We consider distributed parameter systems where the underlying dynamics are spatially invariant, and where the controls and measurements are spatially distributed. These systems arise in many applications such as the control of vehicular platoons, flow control, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), smart structures, and systems described by partial differential equations with constant coefficients and distributed controls and measurements. For fully actuated distributed control problems involving quadratic criteria such as linear quadratic regulator (LQR), H/sub 2/ and H/sub /spl infin//, optimal controllers can be obtained by solving a parameterized family of standard finite-dimensional problems. We show that optimal controllers have an inherent degree of decentralization, and this provides a practical distributed controller architecture. We also prove a general result that applies to partially distributed control and a variety of performance criteria, stating that optimal controllers inherit the spatial invariance structure of the plant. Connections of this work to that on systems over rings, and systems with dynamical symmetries are discussed.
Naturaleza de las emociones positivas en la evaluación de la Depresión: una nueva visión en psicometría

Los estudios cientificos de las emociones han demostrado concluyentemente una robusta relacion causal entre eventos estresantes de la vida diaria y la depresion clinica. El marco conceptual del presente estudio toma en consideracion los marcos teoricos de Alex Zautra y de Susan Folkman acerca de la co-existencia de emociones positivas y negativas en el proceso de estres y depresion. El proposito de este estudio es reportar el analisis de items y la validez convergente del Inventario Multicultural de la Depresion, Estado-Rasgo (IMUDER). En base a una muestra multicultural, se realizo los analisis psicometricos en base al coeficiente de correlacion de Pearson, a fin de determinar la validez convergente. Los resultados de dichos analisis realizados en forma separada para la escala estado y para la escala rasgo, nos indican un elevado nivel de asociacion y validez convergente entre las escalas estado y rasgo del IMUDER, dimensiones de distres y eustres, y las pruebas de depresion utilizadas en este estudio. Estos datos indican que el IMUDER es un instrumento psicometrico que presenta una solida validez convergente y propiedades psicometricas adecuadas.
In vivo effects of cocaine on immune cell function

Cocaine use has been shown to increase the risk of HIV infection in humans, and this increased risk cannot be explained by i.v. drug use alone. It is thought that this increased susceptibility may be a result of decreased immune responsiveness in cocaine addicts. Scientists are now using animal models to study the effects of cocaine on immune function in vivo under controlled conditions. Many facets of the immune system are being examined, which include immune cell number and distribution, cellular- and humoral-mediated immunity, cytokine production, and immunocompetence to challenges such as infection and tumor growth. The effects of cocaine on many of these functions are not yet clear. Often there are variations in the response of the immune system to cocaine. Potential confounding factors include variations in dose, duration of treatment, and route of administration of cocaine, as well as variations in assay protocols. In addition, there appear to be species differences in immune responses to cocaine. Although it is clear that more research is necessary to resolve the discrepancies, a sufficient number of trends are starting to emerge. This review will systematically evaluate the reported effects of cocaine on immune cell function in vivo. In addition, the possible mechanisms that may be contributing to the immune modulation observed with cocaine in vivo will be addressed. Further, data will be presented describing the effects of cocaine on the autonomic nervous system and the neuroendocrine system suggesting that inhibition of serotonin uptake may be an important component of the overall effects of cocaine on the immune system.
Endocannabinoid System as Novel Therapeutic Target for Autism Treatment

Dario Siniscalco1-3* 1Department of Experimental Medicine, Second University of Naples, Italy 2Centre for Autism – La Forza del Silenzio, Caserta, Italy 3Cancellautismo – No Profit Association for Autism Care, Florence, Italy *Corresponding author: Dario Siniscalco, Department of Experimental Medicine-Division of Pharmacology, Second University of Naples; via S. Maria di Costantinopoli, 16 80138 Napoli, Italy, Tel: +39 (0)81 5665880; Fax: +39 (0)81 5667503; E-mail: dariosin@uab.edu
Potentiating effect of caffeine on the teratogenicity of acetazolamide in C57BL/6J mice

Pregnant C57BL/6J mice were treated with 0 or 50 mg of caffeine (CAFF) per kg, and 0, 200 mg/kg (L) or 1,000 mg/kg (H) of acetazolamide (ACZM) during day 9 of gestation (9DPC). Individual fetuses were examined for gross morphological abnormalities and skeletal variations. The increase in fetal malformations seen, especially right forelimb electrodactyly, was augmented at both dose levels of acetazolamide by concomitant exposure to caffeine. Both frequency and severity of ectrodactyly were potentiated by caffeine. Skeletal examination revealed a reduction of the number of ossified cervical and caudal vertebral centra among litters exposed to ACZM at either dose. In either case (ACZM-H, ACZM-L) that effect was augmented by co-administration of CAFF. The first cervical vertebra (C1) appeared to provide the most sensitive index of teratogenic exposure. This study provides evidence that a subteratogenic dose of caffeine can potentiate the teratogenic effect of acetazolamide in C57BL/6J mice when dams are treated on day 9 of gestation. In addition, skeletal examination provided evidence that simultaneous treatment with both agents delayed fetal development. Many litters exposed to ACZM or both agents displayed a reduction in skeletal ossification even in the absence of gross morphological abnormalities, suggesting that ossification can be used as an indicator of prenatal exposure to potentially harmful substances in the C57BL/6 mouse strain.
A General Purpose Image Processing Chip: Orientation Detection

A 80 × 78 pixel general purpose vision chip for spatial focal plane processing is presented. The size and configuration of the processing receptive field are programmable. The chip's architecture allows the photoreceptor cells to be small and densely packed by performing all computation on the read-out, away from the array. In addition to the raw intensity image, the chip outputs four processed images in parallel. Also presented is an application of the chip to line segment orientation detection, as found in the retinal receptive fields of toads.
Radiometric measurements of ocean surface thermal variability

[1] Measurements of diurnal temperature variability at the ocean surface have been available primarily from satellite Sea Surface Temperature (SST) retrievals and a small number of ship-based radiometers. Since most areas are sampled from polar orbiting satellites at most twice a day, surface diurnal variability studies relied on theoretical modeling or extrapolation of results from in situ measurements at depth. The ocean surface responds very rapidly to changes in fluxes of heat and momentum, therefore diurnal variability at the ocean surface may be quite different than heating at depth. Measurements from the Marine Atmospheric Emitted Radiance Interferometer (M-AERI) provide one of the few skin SST data sets augmented by ancillary measurements necessary for investigations into surface diurnal heating and cooling. This unique data set spans all major ocean basins and contains many days with diurnal warming. The timing of the peak in diurnal warming is directly related to the minimum wind speed and varies from 8:00 to 18:00 local-mean-time. Fluctuations in wind speed can result in multiple peaks in diurnal heating during a single afternoon. As wind speed increases, diurnal warming decreases (negatively correlated) and as insolation increases, diurnal warming increases (positively correlated). Changes in wind speed affect diurnal warming amplitudes very rapidly, while changes in insolation have a more gradual effect. The maximum correlation of wind speed (insolation) with changes in diurnal warming is at a time lag of 0 (50) min.
The yeast Ku heterodimer is essential for protection of the telomere against nucleolytic and recombinational activities

The Ku heterodimer, conserved in a wide range of eukaryotes, plays a multiplicity of roles in yeast. First, binding of Ku, which is composed of a 70 kDa (Hdf1p) and an 80 kDa (Hdf2p) subunit [1-3], to double-strand breaks promotes non-homologous end-to-end joining of DNA [3]. Second, Ku appears to participate in DNA replication, regulating both the number of rounds of replication permissible within the cell cycle and the structure of the initiation complex [3,4]. Furthermore, mutations in HDF1 or HDF2 rapidly reduce telomeric poly (TG1-3) tract size [1-3], hinting also at a possible telomeric function of Ku. We show here that the two subunits of the Ku heterodimer play a key role in maintaining the integrity of telomere structure. Mutations in either Ku subunit increased the single-strandedness of the telomere in a cell-cycle-independent fashion, unlike wild-type cells which form 3' poly(TG1-3) overhangs exclusively in late S phase [5]. In addition, mutations enhanced the instability of elongated telomeres to degradation and recombination. Both Ku subunits genetically interacted with the putative single-stranded telomere-binding protein Cdc13p. We propose that Ku protects the telomere against nucleases and recombinases.
Contribution of gravitational potential energy differences to the global stress field

SUMMARY Modelling the lithospheric stress field has proved to be an efficient means of determining the role of lithospheric versus sublithospheric buoyancies and also of constraining the driving forces behind plate tectonics. Both these sources of buoyancies are important in generating the lithospheric stress field. However, these sources and the contribution that they make are dependent on a number of variables, such as the role of lateral strength variation in the lithosphere, the reference level for computing the gravitational potential energy per unit area (GPE) of the lithosphere, and even the definition of deviatoric stress. For the mantle contribution, much depends on the mantle convection model, including the role of lateral and radial viscosity variations, the spatial distribution of density buoyancies, and the resolution of the convection model. GPE differences are influenced by both lithosphere density buoyancies and by radial basal tractions that produce dynamic topography. The global lithospheric stress field can thus be divided into (1) stresses associated with GPE differences (including the contribution from radial basal tractions) and (2) stresses associated with the contribution of horizontal basal tractions. In this paper, we investigate only the contribution of GPE differences, both with and without the inferred contribution of radial basal tractions. We use the Crust 2.0 model to compute GPE values and show that these GPE differences are not sufficient alone to match all the directions and relative magnitudes of principal strain rate axes, as inferred from the comparison of our depth integrated deviatoric stress tensor field with the velocity gradient tensor field within the Earth's plate boundary zones. We argue that GPE differences calibrate the absolute magnitudes of depth integrated deviatoric stresses within the lithosphere; shortcomings of this contribution in matching the stress indicators within the plate boundary zones can be corrected by considering the contribution from horizontal tractions associated with density buoyancy driven mantle convection. Deviatoric stress magnitudes arising from GPE differences are in the range of 1–4 TN m−1, a part of which is contributed by dynamic topography. The EGM96 geoid data set is also used as a rough proxy for GPE values in the lithosphere. However, GPE differences from the geoid fail to yield depth integrated deviatoric stresses that can provide a good match to the deformation indicators. GPE values inferred from the geoid have significant shortcomings when used on a global scale due to the role of dynamically support of topography. Another important factor in estimating the depth integrated deviatoric stresses is the use of the correct level of reference in calculating GPE. We also elucidate the importance of understanding the reference pressure for calculating deviatoric stress and show that overestimates of deviatoric stress may result from either simplified 2-D approximations of the thin sheet equations or the assumption that the mean stress is equal to the vertical stress.
CO2 assisted mechanical expression of fat from rendered materials

Abstract This work employs liquid and supercritical carbon dioxide for the enhanced expression of fat from rendered materials, specifically a finished poultry meal. Current industrial rendering processes use continuous screw presses or expellers to remove fats from rendered materials; however, this process can leave 10 to 15% residual fat. The higher economic value for the fat and emerging markets for low fat rendered protein meals makes enhanced fat recovery desirable. Results from this work demonstrate the use of CO 2 assisted mechanical expression where the rendered material is pressed in the presence of pressurized CO 2 . The fat content of the poultry meal was reduced from an initial 12.1% down to 2.3% after pressing. The optimal conditions for a maximum expression were on the order of 40 °C, 210 bar of CO 2 , and 500 bar of effective mechanical pressure. An optimum effective mechanical pressure was observed at around 500 bar, which can be attributed to a reduced permeability of the CO 2 –fat mixture through the protein matrix at high mechanical pressures, as described by Darcy's law. At CO 2 pressures greater than 172 bar, expression enhancement is negligible, likely due to a plateau reached for the viscosity of the oil–CO 2 mixture beyond such pressure. The primary mechanisms governing the enhanced expression were the reduced viscosity of the fat with CO 2 dissolution; which increases the drainage of fat through the cake, and the confinement rupture due to swelling upon CO 2 dissolution. Overall, it was demonstrated that high expression yields can be achieved when conducting a gas-assisted mechanical expression of rendered materials, using only a fraction of the amount of CO 2 used for CO 2 -only extractions. Furthermore, the optimum operating conditions are suitable for application in screw presses or expellers currently used on industrial scales.
Partner's Stake in Conformity and Abused Wives' Psychological Trauma

This study investigates the potential buffering effect of help-seeking in the association between intimate partner assault and women's psychological trauma, and how this, in turn, may depend on the partner's stake in conformity. The sample consists of 374 women reporting the experience of domestic violence from a current intimate partner, drawn from the larger survey Violence and Threats of Violence Against Women and Men in the United States, 1994-1996. Help-seeking did not appear to buffer the impact of assault severity, contrary to expectation. However, the partner's stake in conformity did condition the effect of his or her having been arrested. Victims had higher levels of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) when police arrested partners of average or below-average stake in conformity. But victims of partners characterized by higher than average stake in conformity did not show elevated PTSD due to their partners having been arrested. On the other hand, PTSD was higher among women experiencing more emotional abuse from the partner.
Charge reversal of the conjugate base of formamide

Charge reversal collisional activation mass spectremetry of negative ions has been used in conjunction with positive ion collisional activation to investigate several isomeric [H2, C, N, O]+ ions. Generation of m/z 44 ions from formamide, acetamide, JV-methylformamide, acetaldoxime and by charge reversal of the [M–1]− ion formed from formamide yields several different isomeric structures. Charge reversal of the conjugate base of formamide appears to yield a mixture of singlet and triplet H2NCO+ ions; experiments with deuterium-labeled compounds have been used to support this. Ab initio molecular orbital calculations indicate that the triplet ion is a stable structure, existing in a potential minimum 390.6 kJ mol−1 above the ground state singlet.
Owner reports of attention, activity, and impulsivity in dogs: a replication study

When developing behaviour measurement tools that use third party assessments, such as parent report, it is important to demonstrate reliability of resulting scales through replication using novel cohorts. The domestic dog has been suggested as a model to investigate normal variation in attention, hyperactivity, and impulsive behaviours impaired in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD). The human ADHD Rating Scale, modified for dogs and using owner-directed surveys, was applied in a European sample. We asked whether findings would be replicated utilizing an Internet survey in a novel sample, where unassisted survey completion, participant attitudes and breeds might affect previous findings. Using a slightly modified version of the prior survey, we collected responses (n = 1030, 118 breeds representing 7 breed groups) primarily in the United States and Canada. This study was conducted using an Internet survey mechanism. Reliability analyses confirmed two scales previously identified for dogs (inattention [IA], hyperactivity-impulsivity [HA-IM]). Models including age, training status, and breed group accounted for very little variance in subscales, with no effect of gender. The factor invariance demonstrated in these findings confirms that owner report, using this modified human questionnaire, provides dog scores according to "inattention" and "hyperactivity-impulsivity" axes. Further characterization of naturally occurring variability of attention, activity, and impulsivity in domestic dogs may provide insight into genetic backgrounds underlying behaviours impaired in attention and associated disorders.