cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Does Digital Game Interactivity Always Promote Self-Efficacy?

Abstract Interactive digital games can promote self-efficacy by engaging players in enactive and observational learning. However, interactivity does not always lead to greater self-efficacy. Important constructs in social cognitive theory, such as performance outcome and perceived similarity, are often not accounted for in studies that have tested the effect of digital game interactivity on self-efficacy. This study assessed the effects of interactive digital games compared with passive digital games based on video comparison, a common experimental design used to test the effect of digital game interactivity on self-efficacy. In addition, this study also evaluated player performance and measured perceived similarity to the observed player. Findings suggested that in general, digital game interactivity predicted higher self-efficacy compared with noninteractive passive games. However, in the noninteractive conditions, the effects of performance on self-efficacy were moderated by perceived similarity betwee...
Intravascular transfusion of fetuses with rhesus incompatibility: prediction of fetal outcome by changes in umbilical venous pressure.

OBJECTIVE: We examined whether abnormal elevations in umbilical venous pressure during intravascular transfusion predict post-transfusion mortality. METHODS: Umbilical venous pressures were measured during intravascular transfusion of human fetuses with Rhesus incompatibility. Five fetuses died within 24 hours after transfusion and nine fetuses survived the procedure. RESULTS: Survivors and non-survivors were similar in demographic and clinical data, as well as in transfusion characteristics. The only difference between the groups was the change in umbilical venous pressure during the transfusion: 5.0 +/- 6.3 mmHg for survivors versus 18.1 +/- 10.4 mmHg for non-survivors (P = .01). An increase in the umbilical venous pressure of 10 mmHg or more predicted fetal death with a sensitivity of 80% and specificity of 89%. CONCLUSION: Based on these results, we have modified our transfusion technique. If the change in umbilical venous pressure during intravascular transfusion approaches 10 mmHg, we discontinue the procedure. If the change in pressure exceeds 10 mmHg during transfusion, we remove blood and replace it with an equal volume of saline.
Toward Building a Mobile App Experience to Support Users' Mobile Travel Needs

Users' reliance on mobile devices has grown tremendously in recent years. For travelers in particular, the use of mobile travel (hereafter, referred to as 'mtravel') apps has been increasingly important in order to check the status of hotels, convert currencies, and provide convenience when traveling away from home. Examples of such applications used for travel purposes include hotel/motel apps, airline apps, location-based services such as maps, and travel tools such as translators, currency converters, etc.
Road Disturbance Estimation and Cloud-Aided Comfort-Based Route Planning

This paper investigates a comfort-based route planner that considers both travel time and ride comfort. We first present a framework of simultaneous road profile estimation and anomaly detection with commonly available vehicle sensors. A jump-diffusion process-based state estimator is developed and used along with a multi-input observer for road profile estimation. The estimation framework is evaluated in an experimental test vehicle and promising performance is demonstrated. Second, three objective comfort metrics are developed based on factors such as travel time, road roughness, road anomaly, and intersection. A comfort-based route planning problem is then formulated with these metrics and an extended Dijkstra’s algorithm is exploited to solve the problem. A cloud-based implementation of our comfort-based route planning approach is proposed to facilitate information access and fast computation. Finally, a real-world case study, comfort-based route planning from Ford Research and Innovation Center, Michigan to Ford Rouge Factory Tour, Michigan, is presented to illustrate the efficacy of the proposed route planning framework.
Clinical strategies in the chemotherapy of gastrointestinal cancer.

Clinical strategy in chemotherapy of gastrointestinal cancer depends on availability of drugs with single-agent activity. If active drugs are available, combination chemotherapy trials can be developed. In gastric cancer, combinations of 5-fluorouracil with chloroethyl nitrosoureas or adriamycin and mitomycin C are capable of producing responses in 40–50% of patients. Such active combinations may now be evaluated in patients with less advanced gastric carcinoma, The role of combination chemotherapy is now being defined in patients with locally unresectable cancer and in the surgical adjuvant situation. In pancreatic and colorectal cancer, combination chemotherapy regimens have been of marginal effectiveness. The major thrust of clinical investigation must be directed toward phase II evaluations of single agents in these diseases.
Gender differences in hypoxic acclimatization in cyclooxygenase-2-deficient mice.

Abstract The aim of this study was to determine the effect of cyclooxygenase‐2 (COX‐2) gene deletion on the adaptive responses during prolonged moderate hypobaric hypoxia. Wild‐type (WT) and COX‐2 knockout (KO) mice of both genders (3 months old) were exposed to hypobaric hypoxia (~0.4 ATM) or normoxia for 21 days and brain capillary densities were determined. Hematocrit was measured at different time intervals; brain hypoxia‐inducible factor ‐1 α (HIF‐1 α ), angiopoietin 2 (Ang‐2), brain erythropoietin (EPO), and kidney EPO were measured under normoxic and hypoxic conditions. There were no gender differences in hypoxic acclimatization in the WT mice and similar adaptive responses were observed in the female KO mice. However, the male KO mice exhibited progressive vulnerability to prolonged hypoxia. Compared to the WT and female KO mice, the male COX‐2 KO mice had significantly lower survival rate and decreased erythropoietic and polycythemic responses, diminished cerebral angiogenesis, decreased brain accumulation of HIF‐1 α , and attenuated upregulation of VEGF, EPO, and Ang‐2 during hypoxia. Our data suggest that there are physiologically important gender differences in hypoxic acclimatization in COX‐2‐deficient mice. The COX‐2 signaling pathway appears to be required for acclimatization in oxygen‐limiting environments only in males, whereas female COX‐2‐deficient mice may be able to access COX‐2‐independent mechanisms to achieve hypoxic acclimatization.
Unique determination of stratified steady water waves from pressure

Abstract Consider a two-dimensional stratified solitary wave propagating through a body of water that is bounded below by an impermeable ocean bed. In this work, we study how such a wave can be recovered from data consisting of the wave speed, upstream and downstream density and velocity profile, and the trace of the pressure on the bed. In particular, we prove that this data uniquely determines the wave, both in the (real) analytic and Sobolev regimes.
Disclosure Frequency Induced Myopia and the Decision to be Public

This study examines whether disclosure frequency induced myopia influences the types of firms that go public and their choice of listing exchanges if they decide to do so. We find that the incentive to stay private in order to avoid disclosure frequency induced myopia creates a downward kink in the relation between the length of the cash conversion cycle and the proportion of public firms at the industry level around the time frame that corresponds to the mandatory reporting interval. Second, at the firm level, public firms with longer cash conversion cycles relative to industry peers are more likely to list on exchanges that require less frequent mandatory disclosure to minimize disclosure frequency induced myopia. Furthermore, when the mandatory reporting frequency increased from semi-annual to quarterly, we observe a sharper decline in the percentage of public firms from industries whose cash conversion cycles are between one quarter and two quarters relative to those from other industries both in the United States and in the United Kingdom.
Review of Polymer Coatings Used for Blast Strengthening of Reinforced Concrete and Masonry Structures

This paper presents a literature review on the use of polymer coatings in strengthening reinforced concrete and masonry structures against the effects of blast. The use of glass and carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (GFRP and CFRP) in blast strengthening applications has been studied very well in the past two decades. However, experimental and numerical studies of polymer coatings used in blast strengthening applications are scarce in literature. This paper compiles the available experimental and numerical studies that utilized polymer coatings as protective layers, including, but not limited to, polyurea and polyurethane spray-on polymers.
Economic trade-offs between hydroelectricity production and environmental externalities: A case for local externality mitigation fund

Abstract Many proposed solutions for mitigating environmental externalities from hydroelectricity generation raise equity concerns and do not adequately address uncertainties and fluctuations in energy production. To balance the disparity caused by locally concentrated negative externalities and nationally or globally dispersed benefits, this study makes a case for the adoption of a locally negotiated endogenous externality mitigation fund (EMF) – one that directly compensates individuals for the specific environmental externality – as a policy alternative to lump-sum taxation and/or indirect measures such as integrating externality costs into energy prices. Using downstream crop damage due to the restricted flow of water as a representative externality, we employ optimal control framework to conduct comparative analyses of exogenous and endogenous EMFs relative to the base case with no EMF. Our findings show that endogenous EMF, when compared to the base case, reduces crop loss by 87.5% with a corresponding energy production trade-off of 11.8%. On the other hand, exogenous EMF, contrary to its purported intent, exacerbates externality by incentivizing the firm to increase production to self-compensate for the payment towards the fund. Results indicate that endogenizing the EMF is preferable because the consequential reduction in energy production is economically outweighed by the externality damages avoided.
Modified Coprecipitation Synthesis of Mesostructure-Controlled Li-Rich Layered Oxides for Minimizing Voltage Degradation

Modified carbonate coprecipitation synthesis without addition of chelating agent is introduced to obtain mesostructure-controlled Li-rich layered oxides. The designed mesostructure for target material Li1.2Ni0.2Mn0.6O2 has uniformly dispersed spherical secondary particles with size around 3 μm. These micrometer-sized particles consist of self-assembled crystallites with size of ∼150 nm. This unique design not only decreases the surface area compared with the sample with dispersive particles, but also increases overall structural mechanical stability compared with the sample with larger dense secondary particles as observed by transmission X-ray microscope. As a result, the voltage decay and capacity loss during long-term cycling have been minimized to a large extent. Our findings clearly demonstrate that mesostructure design of Li-rich layered oxides play a key role in optimizing this class of cathode materials. Surprisingly, the voltage fading issue can be partially mitigated by such an approach.
A Human Robot Interaction Framework for Robotic Motor Skill Learning

A considerable amount of research in the field of human-robot interaction has shown that a human teacher can be an integral component during the learning process of a robot. In this paper, we propose a learning framework that is based on learning from demonstration at a trajectory level. Specifically, we illustrate a scenario where the Sawyer Robotic Arm must learn to pick and place a specific object according to the demonstration of a human teacher. The purpose of the experiment is to facilitate the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Space, Time, and Agency on the Indian Street

The ubiquitous neighborhood commercial street in India demonstrates how the use of space, accompanied by the temporal patterns of use of the street, creates affordances and agency for diverse groups in the city and offers interactions in public space that are an important building block of urban social order. A detailed analysis of behavior and interactions on the Indian street reveals the workings of the street as a negotiated and fluid space of access, commerce, leisure, sociability, and survival. Bottom-up urbanism here is not characterized by insurgency but operates on complex modes of negotiation where the coexistence of diverse groups, activities, forms, objects, and modes of control, make the street a social, cultural, economic, and political space.
Prevention of cardiac complications in peripheral vascular surgery.

We recommend that all peripheral vascular patients undergo preoperative screening for coronary artery disease with dipyridamole thallium-201 imaging. Those with large areas of potentially ischemic myocardium should either be treated conservatively or offered a procedure of reduced magnitude. The best opportunity for long-term survival would appear to be through staged coronary and peripheral vascular reconstruction.
A NOTE ON NONCONTINUABLE SOLUTIONS OF A DELAY DIFFERENTIAL EQUATION

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the behavior of certain non-continuable solutions of the n-dimensional retarded differential equation x′(t) = q(t, x(t − τ(t))), 0 ≤ t < T (eq. 1) with initial data x(t) = φ(t), t ∈ [−r, 0] (eq. 2), where φ: [−r,0] → ℝn is continuous function, r and Τ are positive constants, and q: [0, ∞) × ℝn → ℝn and τ: [0, +∞) → [0, +∞) are continuous functions. The chapter discusses the behavior of lim|x(t)| as t → T− given that x(t) is a non-continuable solution of (eq. 1)–(eq. 2) having the property that limt→T− sup|x(t)| = +∞.
Utility Invariance in Non-Cooperative Games

Traditionally, game theorists have contented themselves with specifying a single numerical payoff function for each player. They do so without any consideration of the units in which utility is measured, or what alternative profiles of payoff functions can be regarded as equivalent. This paper will have succeeded if it leaves the reader with the impression that considering such measurement issues can considerably enrich our understanding of the decision-theoretic foundations of game theory. A useful byproduct is identifying which games can be treated as equivalent to especially simple games, such as two-person zero-sum games, or team games.
Oxidative Stress and Aging

Oxidative stress is increasingly accepted as a likely cause of age-related diseases and mortality. The main lines of evidence supporting this hypothesis are that (1) oxidative stress increases with age, (2) sensitivity to oxidative stress increases with age, (3) many age-related diseases are clearly caused by oxidative stress, and (4) many manipulations that increase the life span reduce oxidative stress. The effects of oxidative stress on cellular function almost certainly involve the mitochondria, but the precise mechanisms remain to be elucidated.
Nurturing transformative U.S. energy research: Two guiding principles

We raise for debate and discussion what in our opinion is a growing mis-control and mis-protection of U.S. energy research. We outline the origin of this mis-control and mis-protection, and propose two guiding principles to mitigate them and instead nurture research: (1) focus on people, not projects; and (2) culturally insulate research from development, but not science from technology. Energy research is critical to continuing advances in human productivity and welfare. In this Commentary, we raise for debate and discussion what in our view is a growing mis-control and mis-protection of U.S. energy research. This flawed approach originates in natural human tendencies exacerbated by an historical misunderstanding of research and development, science and technology, and the relationships between them. We outline the origin of the mis-control and mis-protection, and propose two guiding principles to mitigate them and instead nurture research: (i) focus on people, not projects; and (ii) culturally insulate research from development, but not science from technology. Our hope is to introduce these principles into the discourse now, so they can help guide policy changes in U.S. energy research and development that are currently being driven by powerful geopolitical winds. Summary: Two foundational guiding principles are proposed to mitigate a growing mis-control and mis-protection of U.S. energy research, and instead to nurture it.
Modulation of SPARC/Hevin Proteins in Alzheimer’s Disease Brain Injury

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an age-related progressive form of dementia that features neuronal loss, intracellular tau, and extracellular amyloid-β (Aβ) protein deposition. Neurodegeneration is accompanied by neuroinflammation mainly involving microglia, the resident innate immune cell population of the brain. During AD progression, microglia shift their phenotype, and it has been suggested that they express matricellular proteins such as secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) and Hevin protein, which facilitate the migration of other immune cells, such as blood-derived dendritic cells. We have detected both SPARC and Hevin in postmortem AD brain tissues and confirmed significant alterations in transcript expression using real-time qPCR. We suggest that an infiltration of myeloid-derived immune cells occurs in the areas of diseased tissue. SPARC is highly expressed in AD brain and collocates to Aβ protein deposits, thus contributing actively to cerebral inflammation and subsequent tissue repair, and Hevin may be downregulated in the diseased state. However, further research is needed to reveal the exact roles of SPARC and Hevin proteins and associated signaling pathways in AD-related neuroinflammation. Nevertheless, normalizing SPARC/Hevin protein expression such as interdicting heightened SPARC protein expression may confer a novel therapeutic opportunity for modulating AD progression.
IoT Security A Comprehensive Life Cycle Framework

Securing the Internet of Things (IoT) is not straightforward because of device heterogeneity, highly dynamic and unprotected environments, and large scale. In this paper, we first outline IoT security risks and a security lifecycle for IoT systems. We then discuss various tools and methods that can be used for the different phases of such a lifecycle. For each such phase, we also discuss research directions. We conclude the paper by outlining a few challenges.
Prolonged Melanopsin-based Photoresponses Depend in Part on RPE65 and Cellular Retinaldehyde-binding Protein (CRALBP).

Intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) contain the photopigment melanopsin and can signal light continuously for many hours. Melanopsin is excited when its chromophore 11-cis-...
Greater Length of Stay and Hospital Charges for Severe Asthma in Children with Depression or Anxiety

RATIONALE Asthma is one of the most common chronic disorders of childhood and is associated with significant healthcare utilization and costs. Comorbid psychiatric illnesses, specifically depression and anxiety, are more prevalent in patients with asthma and associated with worse asthma control, more emergency department visits, and increased hospitalization rates. OBJECTIVES We aimed to compare hospital outcomes and charges for children with severe asthma with and without comorbid depression and anxiety, hypothesizing that those with depression and anxiety would have longer hospitalizations and higher charges. METHODS Retrospective review of the 2000-2012 Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project's Kids' Inpatient Databases for admissions of patients aged 10-21 years with an ICD-9 code severe asthma (status asthmaticus or any asthma diagnosis with a procedure code for endotracheal intubation). Depression and Anxiety subgroups were created based on ICD-9 codes. Data collected included demographics, hospital outcomes and charges and comparisons made between groups. RESULTS There were 52,485 admissions for severe asthma: 45,094 (86%) with No Comorbid Psychiatric Illnesses, 1284 (2.4%) with depression, and 1297 (2.5%) with anxiety. Patients with depression or anxiety were older, had longer hospitalizations, and higher hospital charges (p < .001 for all). CONCLUSIONS Comorbid depression or anxiety is associated with significantly longer hospitalizations and higher charges for children with severe asthma. These findings add to prior reports of worse outcomes for children with asthma and comorbid depression or anxiety and suggest that improved screening for and management of these conditions in children with asthma could improve hospital outcomes and reduce costs.
An Evaluation of the Mental Health, Financial Stress, and Anticipated Debt-at-Graduation Across Clinical and Counseling PhD and PsyD Students:

Clinical and counseling psychology doctoral programs are popular avenues for graduate education. However, little is known about the mental health and financial stress of students across the differi...
God's Century: Resurgent Religion and Global Politics

Monica Duffy Toft, Daniel Philpott and Timothy Shah, God's Century: Resurgent Religion and Global Politics. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2011, 276 pp., $25.95, ISBN 978-0-393-06926-6 Anytime a poli...
Correlation between structure and function in phosphatidylinositol lipid-dependent Kir2.2 gating

Abstract Inward rectifier K+(Kir) channels regulate cell membrane potential. Different Kir channels respond to unique ligands, but all are regulated by phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P2). Using planar lipid bilayers we show that Kir2.2 exhibits bursts of openings separated by long quiescent inter-burst periods. Increasing PI(4,5)P2 concentration shortens the Kir2.2 inter-burst duration and lengthens the burst duration without affecting dwell times within a burst. From this, we propose that burst and inter-burst durations correspond to the CTD-docked and CTD-undocked conformations observed in the presence and absence of PI(4,5)P2 in atomic structures. We also studied the effect of different phosphatidylinositol lipids on Kir2.2 activation and conclude that the 5’ phosphate is essential to Kir2.2 pore opening. Other phosphatidylinositol lipids can compete with PI(4,5)P2 but cannot activate Kir2.2 without the 5’ phosphate. PI(4)P, which is directly interconvertible to and from PI(4,5)P2, might thus be a regulator of Kir channels in the plasma membrane.
Examination of Academic Library Websites Regarding COVID-19 Responsiveness

The COVID pandemic has affected all aspects of life including academic libraries. While many are now open, services have changed to accommodate social distancing such as limiting guests to those wi...
Effect of Dysphagia on Hospital Outcomes and Readmissions in Patients with Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

Objectives Dysphagia is a common symptom in patients hospitalized with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). There are limited data on the relation between dysphagia and important hospital outcomes. The aim of our study was to assess the impact of dysphagia on hospital costs, length of stay (LOS), mortality, and 30-day readmission rates in HIV patients hospitalized with dysphagia. Methods We used the Nationwide Readmissions Database to identify all adult hospitalizations with HIV between January 2010 and September 2015. We stratified cases according to the presence of dysphagia (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification code 787.2) as a primary or secondary diagnosis, and compared clinical and hospital characteristics between the two groups. Multivariable regression models were used to compare LOS, total hospital costs, in-hospital mortality, 30-day mortality, and 30-day readmission rates between the two groups. Results A total of 206,332 hospitalized patients with HIV were included in the study. Of these, 8699 (4.2%) patients had dysphagia. Patients with dysphagia were more likely to have Candida esophagitis (26.8% vs 3.6%), esophageal strictures (3.1% vs 0.2%), and malnutrition (41.6% vs 17.6%); and they were more likely to undergo upper endoscopy (23.2% vs 3.8%) and percutaneous feeding tube placement (9.2% vs 0.7%), all P Conclusion In hospitalized patients with HIV, dysphagia is a significant independent predictor of longer LOS, higher costs, and higher rates of 30-day readmissions. These findings highlight the importance of optimizing treatment of dysphagia in patients with HIV to mitigate its negative impact on patient and hospital outcomes.
Scope and Mechanistic Analysis for Chemoselective Hydrogenolysis of Carbonyl Compounds Catalyzed by a Cationic Ruthenium Hydride Complex with a Tunable Phenol Ligand

A cationic ruthenium hydride complex, [(C6H6)(PCy3)(CO)RuH]+BF4– (1), with a phenol ligand was found to exhibit high catalytic activity for the hydrogenolysis of carbonyl compounds to yield the corresponding aliphatic products. The catalytic method showed exceptionally high chemoselectivity toward the carbonyl reduction over alkene hydrogenation. Kinetic and spectroscopic studies revealed a strong electronic influence of the phenol ligand on the catalyst activity. The Hammett plot of the hydrogenolysis of 4-methoxyacetophenone displayed two opposite linear slopes for the catalytic system 1/p-X-C6H4OH (ρ = −3.3 for X = OMe, t-Bu, Et, and Me; ρ = +1.5 for X = F, Cl, and CF3). A normal deuterium isotope effect was observed for the hydrogenolysis reaction catalyzed by 1/p-X-C6H4OH with an electron-releasing group (kH/kD = 1.7–2.5; X = OMe, Et), whereas an inverse isotope effect was measured for 1/p-X-C6H4OH with an electron-withdrawing group (kH/kD = 0.6–0.7; X = Cl, CF3). The empirical rate law was determine...
Micromolding of high Q toroid resonators

Using silica ultra-high-Q toroid microcavity masters, replica molding is applied to fabricate polymer microcavity arrays with Q factors in excess of 10/sup 5/.
Price Dynamics in China

Chinese inflation, particularly non-food inflation, has been surprisingly modest in recent years. We find that supply factors, including those captured through upstream foreign commodity and producer prices, have been important drivers of non-food inflation, as has foreign demand for Chinese goods. Domestic demand and monetary conditions seem less important, possibly reflecting a large domestic output gap generated by many years of high investment. Inflation varies systemically within China, with richer (and urban) provinces having lower, more stable, inflation, but this urban inflation also influence that in lower-income provinces. Higher Mainland food inflation also raises inflation in non-Mainland China.
Recognition of exon-intron boundaries by the Halobacterium volcanii tRNA intron endonuclease.

Abstract The intron-containing tRNA(Trp) precursor from Halobacterium volcanii, like many intron-containing archaebacterial precursor tRNAs, can assume a structure in which the two intron endonuclease cleavage sites are localized in two three-nucleotide loops separated by four base pairs. To investigate the role of this structure in cleavage by the halophilic endonuclease, a series of mutant tRNA(Trp) RNAs were prepared and evaluated as substrates. We find that alterations in this structure result in the loss of cleavage at both 5' and 3' sites. Cleavage of a 35-nucleotide model RNA substrate, containing only these features, demonstrates that sequences and structures present at the exon-intron boundaries are sufficient for recognition and cleavage. We have also examined the mechanism used by the halophilic endonuclease to identify the cleavage sites. Addition of a single base, or a base pair in the anticodon stem above the cleavage sites, does not affect the cleavage site selection. The addition of nucleotides between the two cleavage sites significantly decreases cleavage efficiency and has an effect on the cleavage site selection. These results demonstrate that the halophilic endonuclease requires a defined structure at the exon-intron boundaries and does not identify its cleavage sites by a measurement mechanism like that employed by eukaryotic tRNA intron endonucleases.
Guard cell abscisic acid signalling and engineering drought hardiness in plants

Guard cells are located in the epidermis of plant leaves, and in pairs surround stomatal pores. These control both the influx of CO2 as a raw material for photosynthesis and water loss from plants through transpiration to the atmosphere. Guard cells have become a highly developed system for dissecting early signal transduction mechanisms in plants. In response to drought, plants synthesize the hormone abscisic acid, which triggers closing of stomata, thus reducing water loss. Recently, central regulators of guard cell abscisic acid signalling have been discovered. The molecular understanding of the guard cell signal transduction network opens possibilities for engineering stomatal responses to control CO2 intake and plant water loss.
Purification and Properties of Yeast Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide Synthetase

Abstract Yeast NAD synthetase was purified 2,000-fold. The purified enzyme gave one protein band on disc gel electrophoresis and was found to be monodisperse on high speed equilibrium ultracentrifugation with an apparent molecular weight for the "native" enzyme of 630,000. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis showed the presence of apparent nonidentical subunits with molecular weights of 80,000 and 65,000. The amino acid composition of "native" enzyme revealed no unusual amino acid residues. The specificity of the substrates, nucleoside triphosphate requirement, and divalent and monovalent metal ion requirements were studied. Nicotinate adenine dinucleotide, but not nicotinate mononucleotide, is the amide acceptor, and glutamine or free ammonia is the amide donor. The enzyme is specific for ATP, exhibiting a stoichiometric cleavage into AMP and PPi during the amidation. Mg2+ and K+ are required for enzymatic activity. Mn2+ or Co2+ can replace Mg2+ to a certain extent. NH4+ is as effective as K+ in stimulating enzymatic activity. The enzyme displays a broad peak of activity between pH 6.2 and 8.4, with maximal activity being observed around pH 7.6 when l-glutamine is used as the amide donor. However, when ammonium chloride is employed as the substrate, the enzymatic activity exhibits a rather narrow peak between pH 8.4 and 8.8. The apparent Km values for nicotinate adenine dinucleotide, ATP, and l-glutamine at pH 7.6 were found to be 1.9 x 10-4, 1.7 x 10-4, and 5 x 10-3 m, respectively. The Km for NH4Cl at pH 8.6 is 6.4 x 10-3 m. The catalytic constant was calculated to be approximately 1,260 moles of NAD produced per min per mole of enzyme, based on a molecular weight of 630,000. When the enzyme was previously incubated with azaserine, nicotinate adenine dinucleotide, and ATP, glutamine-dependent activity was progressively inhibited as a function of prior incubation time, whereas with NH4Cl as the amide donor there was an initial 20% inhibition and then NH4Cl-dependent activity remained constant. p-Chloromercuribenzoate and heavy metals inhibit both glutamine- and NH4Cl-dependent activity. Hydroxamate analogues were formed when (nicotinate adenine dinucleotide + ATP) and/or glutamine were incubated with enzyme and hydroxylamine. Hydroxamate analogues were not formed from nicotinate adenine dinucleotide unless ATP was also present. Hydroxamate analogue formation was additive when glutamine, nicotinate adenine dinucleotide, and ATP were added.
Enterprise Information Systems: Contemporary Trends and Issues

This book analyzes various aspects of enterprise information systems (EIS), including enterprise resource planning, customer relationship management, supply chain management systems, and business process reengineering. It describes the evolution and functions of these systems, focusing on issues related to their implementation and upgrading. Enhanced with pedagogical features, the book can be read by graduate and undergraduate students, as well as senior management and executives involved in the study and evaluation of EIS.
Temporal patterns of muscle activation for arm movements in three- dimensional space

Little is known about the patterns of muscle activation that subserve arm movement in three-dimensional space. In this study, activation patterns of seven arm muscles were related to the spatial direction of human arm movement. Twenty movement directions defined two orthogonal vertical planes in space. The arm movements were moderately paced; each movement lasted approximately 500 msec. New techniques of EMG analysis were developed to describe the temporal pattern of muscle activation. For each muscle, a principal component analysis revealed a common phasic and tonic waveform for all directions of movement, within one plane. A temporal shifting procedure based on best covariance values revealed activation delays associated with different movement directions. The results show a consistent pattern of temporal shifting of the common waveform for movements in different directions. Coupled with past results showing that activation amplitude is a function of the cosine angle of movement or force direction, the present results suggest a relatively simple control strategy for mechanically complex arm movements: neural circuits produce a common phasic and tonic activation waveform that is scaled in amplitude and delayed in time, depending on the desired movement direction.
Serologic behavior of crystalline preparations of hypophyseal growth hormone.

THE existence of the anterior hypophyseal growth hormone and the preparation of a protein from the anterior lobe of ox pituitary which had the biological characteristics of the growth hormone have been demonstrated in a series of papers (Evans, 1936; Li and Evans, 1944; Li, Evans and Simpson, 1945; Li, 1947 and Li and Moskowitz, 1949) found that the purified protein although not crystalline, behaved as a single component by criteria of diffusion, electrophoretic mobility, solubility and ultracentrifugation. By the latter method, the molecular weight was calculated to be 44,000. The isolation of a crystalline growth hormone was announced by Fishman, Wilhelmi and Russell (1947) and by Li, Evans and Simpson (1948) using similar techniques, the protein in each case having only growth-promoting qualities. The antigenicity of certain hormonal proteins has been unequivocally demonstrated by means of the quantitative precipitin technique of Heidelberger and Kendall (1935).
Long-Term Remissions in Childhood Acute Leukemia Use of Infrequent Infusions of Methotrexate; Supportive Roles of Platelet Transfusions and Citrovorum Factor

Here reported is the present status of studies exploring the possibility of large- scale destruction of leukemic cells by the use of infrequent but regular massive treatments with chemotherapeutic agents, aided by unusual supportive measures. Many noteworthy long remissions have been observed.
Presynaptic effects of potassium ion on the mammalian neuromuscular junction.

THE depolarization of motor nerve terminals by the application of a cathodic current increases the frequency of spontaneous miniature potentials (m.e.p.p.s), but under these conditions the number of such quantal units of transmitter released by a nerve impulse is decreased in proportion to the intensity of the presynaptic depolarization1–3. Although the depolarization of the nerve terminal by elevating the potassium concentration also causes an increase in the frequency of m.e.p.p.s, the potentiation in this case continues to develop even after depolarization has reached a maximum3,4. Although equivalent depolarization can be achieved both electrically and chemically, the effects of these stimuli are not entirely parallel, as the quantum content of the end-plate potential is decreased in the first case but is potentiated in the second1,2,5.
Who Gains from the “No War No Peace” Situation? A Critical Analysis of the Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict

Since the outbreak of the conflict in the second half of the 1980s, Nagorno-Karabakh has been represented from two perspectives of ethnic incompatibility, which justifies ethnic cleansing by matching the state borders with ethnic ones, and the Great Game narrative, which examines the conflict as part of the global power struggle in the Eurasian continent by disregarding societies and undemocratic regimes in the region. However, time has revealed that these perspectives neither appreciate the internal conditions of the conflict nor offer a way out of the current impasse. By criticising the ‘commonsense’ and ‘realness’ of these representations, this study argues that analysing who gains from the current status quo will offer solutions for a sustainable peace in the region. As long as undemocratic regimes of Azerbaijan and Armenia are satisfied with the status quo and outside powers maximise their interests, the ‘no war no peace’ situation will not be challenged. A way out is only possible by including the p...
Método rápido de determinación del sexo en el erizo comestible Loxechinus albus (Molina, 1782) y su aplicación en estudios biológico-pesqueros

La identificacion del sexo en el erizo comestible Loxechinus albus (Molina, 1782), es dificil de realizar si no se realiza un analisis de laboratorio, lo que motiva que en la mayoria de las investigaciones efectuadas sobre este recurso se consideren ambos sexos en conjunto. En el presente articulo se describe una metodologia simple para establecer el sexo en el erizo, lo que permite obtener parametros biologico-pesqueros en forma separada para machos y hembras. A traves de los procedimientos que se describen, es posible separar las distribuciones de frecuencias de tallas obtenidas en los muestreos, sin diferenciar el sexo, en las correspondientes a machos y hembras. Este procedimiento es especialmente util cuando los sexos presentan diferencias de crecimiento o mortalidad.
Preliminary evaluation of polyesters with pendent adamantyl groups synthesized from 5-adamantylisophthalic acid and 1,4-butanediol

Adamantane-containing polyesters were prepared from dimethyl 5-adamantylisophthalate and 1,4-butanediol using melt polymerization catalyzed by titanium isopropoxide. The adamantyl group caused a large increase in Tg (of 80 to 142 °C) by inhibiting chain segmental motion in these flexible chain polymers. Surprisingly, the copolymer with 25 mol% dimethyl 5-adamantylisophthalate displayed semi-crystalline behavior as confirmed by DSC and X-ray diffraction results. The amorphous copolymers were soluble in chloroform and methylene chloride while the semicrystalline material was not.
Deletion of acetyl-CoA synthetases I and II increases production of 3-hydroxypropionate by the metabolically-engineered hyperthermophile Pyrococcus furiosus.

Abstract The heterotrophic, hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus is a new addition to the growing list of genetically-tractable microorganisms suitable for metabolic engineering to produce liquid fuels and industrial chemicals. P. furiosus was recently engineered to generate 3-hydroxypropionate (3-HP) from CO 2 and acetyl-CoA by the heterologous-expression of three enzymes from the CO 2 fixation cycle of the thermoacidophilic archaeon Metallosphaera sedula using a thermally-triggered induction system. The acetyl-CoA for this pathway is generated from glucose catabolism that in wild-type P. furiosus is converted to acetate with concurrent ATP production by the heterotetrameric (α 2 β 2 ) acetyl-CoA synthetase (ACS). Hence ACS in the engineered 3-HP production strain (MW56) competes with the heterologous pathway for acetyl-CoA. Herein we show that strains of MW56 lacking the α-subunit of either of the two ACSs previously characterized from P. furiosus (ACSI and ACSII) exhibit a three-fold increase in specific 3-HP production. The ΔACSIα strain displayed only a minor defect in growth on either maltose or peptides, while no growth defect on these substrates was observed with the ΔACSIIα strain. Deletion of individual and multiple ACS subunits was also shown to decrease CoA release activity for several different CoA ester substrates in addition to acetyl-CoA, information that will be extremely useful for future metabolic engineering endeavors in P. furiosus .
A Prenatal Presentation of Severe Microcephaly and Brain Anomalies in a Patient With Novel Compound Heterozygous Mutations in the STIL Gene Found Postnatally With Exome Analysis

Abstract Objective This report outlines how current fetal neuroimaging and genomic technologies can aid in determining the causes of prenatal microcephaly. Background The differential diagnosis and prognosis of fetal microcephaly is a challenging and common presenting problem to the child neurologist and perinatologist. There was a time that the prospective parents could only be told that the child would be microcephalic. Not much could be determined in regard to exact diagnosis or prognosis. Methods At 20 weeks' gestation the fetus was observed to have isolated microcephaly on fetal ultrasound. Karyotyping and a nontargeted genomic microarray were performed at 21&4/7 weeks gestation on amniocytes and the results were normal. At this time, toxoplasmosis, rubella, syphilis, cytomegalovirus and herpes studies were also negative. Fetal magnetic resonance imaging at 31 weeks' gestation revealed severe microcephaly with an anomaly consistent with holoprosencephaly. Whole-exome sequence analysis was performed. Results Postnatal whole-exome sequence analysis revealed two novel compound heterozygous mutations in the STIL gene (c.2354_2355dupGA and c.3835C>T), which is consistent with microcephaly and migrational anomalies. The postnatal magnetic resonance imaging reveals agenesis of the corpus callosum, agyria of the frontal and temporal lobes, and a large cyst along the interhemispheral fissure extending to the parietal and occipital regions in addition to pontine and cerebellar dysgenesis. Conclusion This case demonstrates the state-of-the-art approach to the clinical challenge of prenatal microcephaly and defines unique findings associated with compound heterozygous STIL gene mutations c.2354_2355dupGA and c.3835C>T.
Tactile Cues in Continuous Operations: A Preliminary Study

Research on vibrotactile displays shows that they can improve performance of military flight personnel in degraded visual situations. They have also been shown to be effective during hover over moving targets. The duration of the test flights has been relatively short though, so it is unclear whether the tactile systems are effective over an extended time period. Issues of adaptation and habituation have not been investigated. This study evaluated the use of vibrotactile displays over a period of 12 hours. It also evaluated the effect of perspiration on vibrotactile sensitivity. Findings of this preliminary study suggest that performance and response to vibrotactile display is not affected by adaptation or habituation, or under conditions of skin moisture.
Accumulation of N-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids cultured human Y79 retinoblastoma cells

The metabolism of the n-3 class of polyunsaturated fatty acids, which occur in relatively high quantities in neural tissues, was studied in human Y79 retinoblastoma cells. These cells contained low levels of n-3 polyunsaturates when grown in culture media supplemented with fetal bovine serum. The cells readily incorporated performed docosahexaenoic acid (22.6 n-3) into phospholipids, but human skin fibroblasts did this to a similar extent. When 10 to 30 mumol/ml linolenic acid (18:3 n-3) was added, the cell also accumulated 22:6 in phospholipids. The capacity to convert appreciable amounts of 18:3 to 22:6 appears to be a unique property of the retinoblastoma cells as compared with other continuously cultured cell lines. More 18:3 than linoleic acid (18:2 n-6) was incorporated into phospholipids by the retinoblastoma cultures, and 18:3 was channeled to a larger extent into the ethanolamine glycerophospholipid fraction. These findings indicate that retinoblastoma cells handle n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in a manner very similar to neural tissue in vivo. Based on the results obtained with this model system, it appears that three processes may contribute to the accumulation of 22:6 in retina and neural tissue: increased ability to incorporate 18:3, the capacity to convert 18:3 to 22:6, and channeling of 18:3 and its metabolites into ethanolamine glycerophospholipids.
Modeling Operational Criteria for Evaluating Speech Communication

Thesis: Evaluation of systems can be conducted best under controlled circumstances which approximate operational conditions. In the present paper, we have examined this thesis as it applies to the test and evaluation of multi-person systems. Our specific focus has been the development of a conceptual model of speech communication requirements and the study of the impact of degraded speech intelligibility on performance of these multi-person systems. To obtain the control necessary to evaluate performance using speech intelligibility, an electronic circuit was developed and employed in a series of simulated tests of operational tasks. The application of these research findings to the task of system test and evaluation is described in the present paper.
The oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane by nitrous oxide over molybdenum oxide supported on silica gel

The oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane over partially reduced MoO3 supported on silica has been investigated using nitrous oxide as the oxidant at temperatures of 280–350 °C. Ethylene typically comprised 80% of the product gases for 100 min of reaction. Although the initial rate for the formation of C2H4 on a fresh catalyst was high, the reaction was inhibited by coke and OH−, and eventually a steady state was observed at 280 °C. Whereas the rate of formation of C2H4 became essentially constant, the mole fraction of CO2 continued to increase with time. It was found that the conversion was dependent on the extent of reduction of the molybdena and increased significantly for small levels of reduction. On the basis of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA) studies, it appears that a fraction of the Mo5+ ions formed during reduction were active catalytic sites. In a separate experiment the decomposition of N2O over the partially reduced MoO3SiO2 resulted in the formation of O− ions which reacted rapidly with ethane to produce C2H4 in amounts comparable to the original O− concentrations. The maximum concentrations of O− that could be obtained at 90 °C were of the same order of magnitude as the amount of C2H4 produced initially in the reactions of N2OC2H6 mixtures at 280 °C. Moreover, the ethylene formed from the reaction of O− and C2H6 completely desorbed at less than 300 °C, which is consistent with the C2H4 produced via the reaction of N2OC2H6 mixtures. These facts support the role of O− as the active form of oxygen in the dehydrogenation reaction.
Phase transition in binary fluid between two solids

Abstract In order to study the effect of the solid-fluid interactions in porous collectors, phase transition in a binary fluid between two flat (generally, different) solid surfaces is considered using gradient theory. The free energy density of the homogeneous fluid is assumed to be an arbitrary function with two inflection points; the short-range solid-fluid interactions are considered. Possible fluid structures are described. The universal asymptotic dependences of the capillary pressure and the coexistence curve shift on the surface separation distance are obtained. Using the theory of wetting transitions, we give an explanation of the phenomenon of the temporary increase of the heavy components production from a gas-condensate field when the reservoir pressure drops below the dew point.