cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Macromolecular permeability across the blood-nerve and blood-brain barriers

The permeability of insulin (Ins), nerve growth factor (NGF), albumin (Alb), transferrin (Trf), and IgG across the blood-nerve barrier (BNB) and blood-brain barrier (BBB) in normal adult rats was quantified by measuring the (permeability coefficient x surface area) product (PS) with the i.v. bolus-injection technique in the cannulated brachial vein and artery using radioiodinated proteins. The PS values of the BNB for IgG and Alb were low: 0.079 +/- 0.029 x 10(-6) and 0.101 +/- 0.088 x 10(-6) ml.g-1.s-1, (mean +/- SD, respectively). The PS values for NGF and Trf were 16.1-fold and 25.5-fold higher than for Alb. The PS for Ins across the BNB was 33.190 +/- 2.053 x 10(-6) ml.g-1.s-1--a remarkable 329-fold increase compared with Alb. The PS values of the BBB for IgG and Alb in different brain regions were all low, from 0.028 +/- 0.017 to 0.151 +/- 0.035 x 10(-6) ml.g-1.s-1 (mean +/- SD). NGF and Trf had comparable PS values from 13- to 32-fold higher than for Alb, except for the brain stem, where the PS for Trf was 66-fold higher than for Alb. The mean PS for Ins across the BBB ranged from 15.78 +/- 5.45 x 10(-6) ml.g-1.s-1 for the cortex to 22.62 +/- 7.50 x 10(-6) ml.g-1.s-1 for the brain stem--again a remarkable 105- to 390-fold increase relative to Alb. Because reliable PS measurements were obtained for all proteins tested, the BBB and BNB cannot be considered impermeable to proteins--a concept that has plagued brain- and nerve-barrier research. The low PS values for IgG and Alb indicate low rates of transfer; however, Alb, in particular, is the major protein of endoneurial and ventricular fluid, which suggests that these PS values may be significant. Ins had the highest PS values, which likely reflect the mechanism of transport across the barriers--that is, receptor-mediated transport. Because NGF and Trf had PS values 13- to 66-fold higher than for Alb, whether this reflects receptor-mediated uptake, adsorptive-mediated transcytosis, or some other mechanism is unclear. That the PS values for NGF and Trf differ from Alb and IgG clearly suggests, however, a different uptake mechanism. Finally, the remarkably high PS values for Ins across the BBB and BNB identify this protein and its putative receptor on capillary endothelial cells as a potential target for drug delivery into the central and peripheral nervous systems.
TH-C-L100F-07: FROC Curves Without Arbitrary Scoring of Marks: Perceptual Vs. Scored Analysis of CAD Data

A free‐response study generates data in the form of mark‐rating pairs. Any mark closer to a lesion than the acceptance radius (or closeness or overlap criterion) is scored as lesion localization and other marks are scored as non‐lesion localizations. A scored FROC curve is a plot of lesion localization fraction vs. non‐lesion localization fraction. Because of the inherently arbitrary nature of the acceptance radius choice, the FROC curve is also arbitrary. A method of statistically modeling the spatial distribution of the marks with respect to lesion centers is described. This model allows one to obtain statistical (i.e., maximum likelihood) estimates of the numbers of marks that were true lesion localizations as opposed to false localizations. These estimates can be used to plot a perceptual FROC curve that is totally independent of acceptance radius choice. The method was applied to several CAD datasets. It was found that the perceptual and scored curves were in good agreement in most cases, and minor deviations were attributed to some cases of questionable classifications of marks. CAD developers could use this method to evaluate their algorithms in a manner that makes inter‐comparisons more meaningful.
Transport of methotrexate in basolateral membrane vesicles from rat liver.

Abstract Transport of the antifolate cancer drug methotrexate was studied in vesicles isolated from the basolateral membrane of rat liver. Transport of methotrexate by basolateral membrane vesicles (BLMVs) was mostly via uptake into an osmotically active intravesicular space, with some binding (approximately 9%), as shown by initial uptake studies and by varying medium osmolarity with increasing concentrations of sucrose. Methotrexate transport was linear for the first 20 s of incubation. Transport was not affected by imposition of a Na + gradient across the vesicular membrane. Transport of methotrexate displayed a broad pH optimum: at an intravesicular pH of 7.5, the initial rate of uptake was not significantly different at extravesicular pH values ranging from 5.5 to 7.5, but uptake was less at extravesicular pH of 5.0 or 8.0. Methotrexate transport was saturable: K m = 0.15 ± 0.05 μM and V max = 11.4 ± 1.1 pmol 10 s −1 mg −1 protein. Methotrexate uptake into BLMVs was not inhibited by 5-methyltetrahydrofolate nor by 5-formyltetrahydrofolate but was weakly inhibited by folic acid in a concentration-dependent manner. Uptake was also inhibited by the anion-exchange inhibitor 4,4′-diisothio-cyanostilbene-2,2′-disulfonic acid (DIDS), and by the structurally unrelated anions ATP, ADP, Cl − , SO 4 2− , and oxalate 2− . Adenosine (no negative charge) had no effect on transport. When vesicles were preloaded with anions (ADP, SO 4 2− , oxalate 2− ) such that an anion gradient existed from the intra- to the extravesicular compartment, and methotrexate uptake was measured, no stimulation of uptake was seen. Methotrexate uptake into rat liver BLMVs was electrogenic as shown by stimulation of the initial rate of uptake by a valinomycin-imposed K + diffusion potential across the vesicular membrane. These results suggest that methotrexate is transported into the hepatocyte across the basolateral membrane by an electrogenic, multispecific anion carrier system.
From phenotype to genotype.

SUMMARY Advances in the field of genomics have made it possible to decipher the genetic and transcriptional changes that underlie differences among organisms. Here we discuss the merits and drawbacks of these strategies as they relate to evolutionary biology. We suggest that the molecular basis of natural variation can best be interpreted via the intersection of genomic and transcriptome approaches. We outline how this might be accomplished in practice and assemble the components of a method to comprehend the evolutionary interplay between genotype and phenotype.
The role of the school psychologist in the inclusive education of school-age children with autism spectrum disorders

Abstract Two independent trends are impacting school psychologists with regard to their involvement in the education of students with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs): increasing prevalence estimates of ASDs and an emphasis on the inclusion of students with special needs in regular education classrooms. In light of these trends and growing awareness of the need for evidence-based practices in the field, school psychologists can expect to be involved in the educational programming of students with ASDs and should be knowledgeable about empirically supported strategies relevant to inclusive education of these children. The purpose of this review is to familiarize school psychologists with currently available intervention techniques by describing each strategy and outlining the degree of empirical support for each. Strategies for managing disruptive behaviors, promoting learning, and facilitating social integration are reviewed.
PARAMETER ESTIMATION FOR LOW‐ORDER AUTO‐REGRESSIVE MODELS WITH MISSING VALUES

Summary Longitudinal data analysis in epidemiological settings is complicated by large multiplicities of short time series and the occurrence of missing observations. To handle such difficulties Rosner & Munoz (1988) developed a weighted non-linear least squares algorithm for estimating parameters for first-order autoregressive (AR1) processes with time-varying covariates. This method proved efficient when compared to complete case procedures. Here that work is extended by (1) introducing a different estimation procedure based on the EM algorithm, and (2) formulating estimation techniques for second-order autoregressive models. The second development is important because some of the intended areas of application (adult pulmonary function decline, childhood blood pressure) have autocorrelation functions which decay more slowly than the geometric rate imposed by an AR1 model. Simulation studies are used to compare the three methodologies (non-linear, EM based and complete case) with respect to bias, efficiency and coverage both in the presence and in the absence of time-varying covariates. Differing degrees and mechanisms of missingness are examined. Preliminary results indicate the non-linear approach to be the method of choice: it has high efficiency and is easily implemented. An illustrative example concerning pulmonary function decline in the Netherlands is analyzed using this method.
Recovery of Pt Surfaces for Ethylene Hydrogenation-Based Active Site Determination

The effect of pretreatment (O2 or H2) and catalyst history was investigated through room temperature ethylene hydrogenation reaction over several types of platinum based nanoparticle systems: 1.6 nm Pt/TTAB, 4.1 nm Pt/PVP (with and without UV treatment), 4.1 nm Pt with a silica shell, and e-beam evaporated Pt thin films were tested. The H2 pretreatment resulted in the absence of activity. However, Pt active sites for the ethylene hydrogenation reaction were recovered after an O2 pretreatment irrespective of the catalyst history, regardless of the particle size nor the presence, absence or type of capping agent. The calculation of the average TOF resulted in 10.13 ± 3.27. This value correlates well with data from the literature. Thus, the ethylene hydrogenation reaction can be used to determine available sites of Pt catalysts if the reaction is following an O2 pretreatment. .
End-of-life and brain death in acute coma and disorders of consciousness

Consulting neurologists are often asked to evaluate patients in acute nontraumatic coma. The authors review prognostication of functional outcomes, determining brain death, and managing end-of-life care. Prognostication of outcome after cardiac arrest in comatose patients is a frequently encountered scenario with high-stakes implications. However, current guidelines are limited by a failure to address the use of therapeutic hypothermia and thus may lead to overly pessimistic outcome prediction. Pupillary light responses and corneal reflexes remain highly predictive clinical signs of a poor prognosis. Motor responses have a high false-positive rate for predicting a poor outcome, especially in patients treated with therapeutic hypothermia. Ancillary testing with electroencephalography, somatosensory evoked potentials, serum neuron-specific enolase, and neuroimaging is often useful in predicting outcomes. Brain death is a clinical condition of irreversible coma of known cause with absent brainstem reflexes and apnea. An understanding of the value of confirmatory testing and the potential for confounding factors is essential in making a correct diagnosis. As coma carries a high mortality rate, neurologists must be capable of guiding goals of care, discussing end-of-life issues, and understanding organ-procurement procedures.
Some open problem

Abstract This conference proceedings covers a variety of topics, related by a common theme: solitons and coherent structures. An objective of this paper is to exhibit some of the relations between topics, by identifying some unsolved but well-defined problems that either were or might have been discussed during the conference, and by suggesting how they might be solved using methods that were discussed here. The problems were chosen to identify unifying themes, rather than to identify the most important problems in each area. For example I will not discuss any of the important work of Baxter, despite its fundamental role in the development of solvable lattice models. The problems discussed come from quantum field theory, transonic flow, water waves, and the two-dimensional motion of a perfect fluid.
Pharmacokinetics of a single dose of morphine in preterm infants during the first week of life.

We studied morphine pharmacokinetics after a single intravenous dose of 0.1 mg/kg in 20 newborn infants, who were born at 26 to 40 weeks of gestation and were less than 5 days of age. In the 10 infants whose gestational age was ≤30 weeks, the mean (±SD) distribution half-life was 50±35 minutes, elimination half-life was 10±3.7 hours, and clearance was 3.39±3.28 ml/kg/min; the corresponding values for the three term infants were 19±8 minutes, 6.7±4.6 hours, and 15.5±10 ml/kg/min, respectively. The data suggested a trend of decreasing values for distribution and elimination half-lives with increasing gestation, but a considerable degree of variation was seen. The morphine clearance rate increased as a function of gestational age at a rate of 0.9 ml/kg/min per week of gestation. Between 18% and 22% of the drug was found to be protein bound. Four hours after the dose, the drug level remained ≥12 ng/ml in 8 of 10 infants born at ≥31 weeks of gestation. In 8 of 10 infants born at ≤30 weeks of gestation, similar levels were maintained at 8 hours after the initial dose. We conclude that (1) there is a marked degree of variation in morphine pharmacokinetics during the neonatal period, (2) nearly 80% of the intravenously infused drug remains free, which might explain the high sensitivity to morphine in this age group, and (3) during the first week of age, adequate blood levels can be maintained by administration of morphine at 4- to 6-hour intervals in term infants and at less frequent intervals in very premature infants (≤30 weeks of gestation).
Middle-ear development V: Development of umbo sensitivity in the gerbil

Abstract Purpose: The development of the umbo response in the gerbil was studied in order to further elucidate the contribution of the middle ear to the development of auditory function. Materials and Methods: Laser interferometry was used to study the development of umbo velocity in Mongolian gerbils between 10 days after birth and maturity. Results: Before 15 days after birth, immaturities in the middle ear prevented any reliable measures of middle-ear motion. However, between 15 and 20 days after birth, a 10 dB improvement in umbo velocity was noted in the low-frequency (0.5 to 2.0 kHz) region of the umbo response. This improvement in sensitivity was correlated to an increased admittance due to an expanding bulla volume. Interestingly, umbo velocity remained relatively constant in the mid- and high-frequency regions of the response curve between 15 and 42 days after birth. The umbo response in the adult gerbil was decidedly different when compared with the response at 42 days after birth. Conclusion: We speculate that a decrease in bulla volume along with increased ossicular mass contributed to the changes in the adult umbo response. When the maturation of the umbo response was compared with more central ontogenetic measures, it became apparent that structures more central to the middle ear continued to develop well past the time the middle ear was structurally and functionally mature.
Photopolymerized Acrylate Copolymer Films with Surfaces Enriched in Sulfur Pentafluoride (−SF5) Chemistry

Acrylate monomers bearing side chains terminated in sulfur pentafluoride (−SF5) groups have been synthesized. These monomers have been copolymerized into films with the conventional aliphatic acrylic monomer 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) using neat cast mixed monomer films and photoinitiation. Depth-dependent surface analysis of these photocured films using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy shows that surfaces are enriched nonstoichiometrically in the −SF5 functionality, even when compositions of the binary mixed film heavily favor the HEMA component. All polymer films containing the SF5−acrylate have a surface composition corresponding to an enriched overlayer of pure SF5−acrylate. The thickness of the surface-enriched overlayer decreases as the bulk concentration of SF5−acrylate monomer decreases. At the lowest bulk concentration examined, 1 wt % SF5−acrylate monomer, the overlayer thickness was approximately 20 A. Results mirror previous surface enrichment observed for fluorinated/aliphatic epoxide...
Investigation of laser temporal pulse duration on Rayleigh scattering

Relative Rayleigh-scattering cross sections from nitrogen have been measured for various pulse durations and wavelengths of incident laser radiation. No pulse-duration dependence has been observed for laser pulses as short as 5 ns, and classical theory is found to be still valid over the pulse-width range (5< or =..delta..t< or =110 ns) of our observations.
Limits on dark matter using ancient mica.

The combination of the track etching method and atomic force microscopy allows us to search for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) in our Galaxy. A survey of 80 720 \ensuremath{\mu}${\mathrm{m}}^{2}$ of 0.5 Gyr old muscovite mica found no evidence of WIMP-recoil tracks. This enables us to set limits on WIMPs which are about an order of magnitude weaker than the best spin-dependent WIMP limits. Unlike other detectors, however, the mica method is, at present, not background limited. We argue that a background may not appear until we have pushed our current limits down by several orders of magnitude.
T Cell Mimicry and Epitope Specificity of Cross-Reactive T Cell Clones from Rheumatic Heart Disease

Mimicry between streptococcal M protein and cardiac myosin is important in the pathogenesis of rheumatic heart disease. M protein-specific human T cell clones derived from rheumatic carditis were cross-reactive with human cardiac myosin, and laminin, a valve protein. Among the 11 CD4(+) and CD8(+) cross-reactive T cell clones, at least 6 different reactivity patterns were distinguished, suggesting different degrees of cross-reactivity and a very diverse T cell repertoire. The latter was confirmed by a heterogeneous Vbeta gene and CDR3 usage. HLA restriction and Th1 cytokine production in response to rM6 protein were preserved when the T cell clones were stimulated by human cardiac myosin or other alpha-helical proteins, such as tropomyosin and laminin. The cross-reactive human T cell clones proliferated to B2 and B3A, dominant peptide epitopes in the B repeat region of streptococcal M protein. In human cardiac myosin, epitopes were demonstrated in the S2 and light meromyosin regions. In our study, T cell mimicry was defined as recognition of structurally related Ags involved in disease and recognized by the same T cell. Mimicry in our study was related to alpha-helical coiled coil proteins which have a repetitive seven-aa residue periodicity that maintains alpha-helical structure and thus creates a high number of degenerate possibilities for recognition by T cells. The study of human T cell clones from rheumatic heart disease revealed potential sites of T cell mimicry between streptococcal M protein and human cardiac myosin and represents some of the most well-defined T cell mimicry in human autoimmune disease.
Transient absorption spectroscopy of ruthenium and osmium polypyridyl complexes adsorbed onto nanocrystalline TiO2 photoelectrodes

Transient absorption spectroscopy has been used to probe the electron injection dynamics of transition metal polypyridyl complexes adsorbed onto nanocrystalline TiO2 photoelectrodes. Experiments were performed on photoelectrodes coated with Ru(H2L‘)2(CN)2, Os(H2L‘)2(CN)2, Ru(H2L‘)2(NCS)2, or Os(H2L‘)2(NCS)2, where H2L‘ is 4,4‘-dicarboxylic acid-2,2‘-bipyridine, to study how the excited-state energetics and the nature of the metal center affect the injection kinetics. All of these complexes exhibited electron injection dynamics on both the femtosecond and picosecond time scales. The femtosecond components were instrument-limited (<200 fs), whereas the picosecond components ranged from 3.3 ± 0.3 ps to 14 ± 4 ps (electron injection rate constants k2‘ = (7.1−30) × 1010 s-1). The picosecond decay component became more rapid as the formal excited-state reduction potential of the complex became more negative. Variable excitation wavelength studies suggest that femtosecond injection is characteristic of the nonth...
Growth of InSb on GaAs Substrates Using InAlSb Buffers for Magnetic Field Sensor Applications

We report the growth of InSb on GaAs using InAlSb buffers of high interest for magnetic field sensors. We have grown samples by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition consisting of {approx}0.55{micro}m thick InSb layers with resistive InAlSb buffers on GaAs substrates with measured electron mobilities of {approx}40,000 cm{sup 2}/V.s. We have investigated the In{sub 1-x}Al{sub x}Sb buffers for compositions x {le} 0.22 and have found that the best results are obtained near x = 0.12 due to the tradeoff of buffer layer bandgap and lattice mismatch.
Organization of nitrogen fixation genes in a nonheterocystous, filamentous cyanobacterium

Abstract The nonheterocystous, filamentous cyanobacterium, Plectonema boryanum fixes nitrogen only under microaerophilic conditions. The organization of nitrogen fixation genes (nifH, D, K) in Plectonema was determined by using cloned fragments from the Anabaena nif genes as probes in Southern hybridizations. Regions of Plectonema DNA were homologous to Anabaena nifH, nifD, and nifK genes, and the resulting pattern of hybridization was used to construct a map of nifH, D, K DNA isolated from Plectonema cells grown under non-nitrogen fixing conditions (combined nitrogen and O2 present). The nifH and nifD genes are on the same 3 kbp HindIII fragment, and nifK is on a 1 kbp HindIII fragment. All three nif fragments are adjacent to one another on a 12 kbp ClaI fragment.
The Effects of Endogenous Sex Hormones and Acute Hypoxia on Vasoconstriction in Isolated Rat Pulmonary Artery Rings

Background Studies have noted gender differences in various models but have not investigated whether hormone depletion will abolish these differences. Therefore, we measured isometric force displacement in normal males, castrated males, normal females, and ovarectomized females. Materials and methods Adult male, adult female, castrated male, and ovarectomized female (250–350 g) Sprague Dawley rat pulmonary arteries (n = 7–8/group) were isolated and suspended in physiological organ baths. Force displacement was continuously recorded for 60 min of hypoxia. Data (mean ± SEM) was analyzed with two-way analysis of variance with post-hoc Bonferroni test or Student’s t-test. Results Maximum vasodilation of normal males was −79.47 ± 3.34%, while normal adult females exhibited a maximum vasodilation of −88.70 ± 6.21% (P = 0.8149). In addition, delayed, phase II vasoconstriction of male pulmonary arteries rings was 89.79 ± 7.25%, while adult females demonstrated a maximum phase II vasoconstriction of 95.90 ± 14.23% (P = 0.9342). Hormone depletion of males exhibited a maximum vasodilation of −70.45 ± 5.08% for castrated males as compared to −79.47 ± 3.34% for normal adult males (P = 0.3805). Castrated males exhibited a maximum phase II vasoconstriction of 86.20 ± 15.76% compared to 89.79 ± 7.25% exhibited by normal adult males (P = 0.9516). Conclusions Hormone depletion in males and females did not alter pulmonary vasoreactivity in acute hypoxia.
Real-time implementation of an intelligent algorithm for electric ship power system reconfiguration

The naval electric ship is often subject to severe damages under battle conditions. The damages or faults might even affect the generators and as a result, critical loads might suffer from power deficiency which may lead to an eventual collapse of rest of the system. In order to serve the critical loads and maintain a proper power balance without excessive generation, the ship power system requires a fast reconfiguration of the remaining system under fault conditions. A fast intelligent algorithm using the Small Population based Particle Swarm Optimization (SPPSO) for dynamic reconfiguration of the available generators and loads when a fault in the ship power system is detected is presented in this paper. SPPSO is a variant of PSO which operates with fewer particles and a regeneration concept, where new potential solutions are generated every few iterations. This concept of regeneration makes the algorithm fast and enhances its exploration capability to a large extent. The strength of the proposed reconfiguration strategy is first illustrated with Matlab results and then with a real-time implementation on a real time digital simulator and a digital signal processor
Optimal path determination for a robot in a 2D workspace using quadtree modeling

Avoiding collisions is the primary objective for a robot moving in a workspace with obstacles. The conventional obstacle avoidance algorithms suffer from the drawbacks due to considerable approximations and lack of flexibility. The proposed obstacle avoidance algorithms are developed based upon the geometric modeling of robot workspace using quadtree data structure. By examining the obstacle-quadtree, nodes that can allow safe passage for the mobile robot are identified. By connecting all such nodes, a set of collision-free paths are generated and subsequently the optimal path is chosen.
EFFECTS OF PRIOR KNOWLEDGE, EXPLICITNESS, AND CLAUSE ORDER ON CHILDREN'S COMPREHENSION OF CAUSAL RELATIONSHIPS

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of prior knowledge, explicitness and clause order on fifth‐ and sixth‐grade readers’ ability to infer causal cohesive ties in text. One hundred sixty‐eight fifth‐ and sixth‐grade students were randomly assigned from three prior knowledge blocks to participate. A text booklet comprised of four versions of six experimental passages was developed: an explicit‐normal‐clause‐order version, an implicit‐normal‐clause‐order version, an explicit‐reversed‐clause‐order version, and an implicit‐reversed‐clause‐order version. Comprehension of the causal relationships in the passages was measured by free recall task, a yes‐no‐why question, cohesion cloze tasks, literal and inferential questions. Significant effects for explicitness were found for fifth‐grade readers on all variables but only on the cohesion cloze task for sixth‐grade. Significant effects for prior knowledge were found for fifth‐ and sixth‐grade students on all variables except the cohesio...
RESPONSES OF KENTUCKY BLUEGRASS TO VARIATIONS IN TEMPERATURE, LIGHT, CUTTING, AND FERTILIZING.

Of primary importance among the several environmental factors which influence the production and maintenance of turf are seasonal variations in temperature, amount and intensity of sunlight, and cutting and fertilizing practices. It has long been observed that bluegrass grows best during the cooler seasons, although the reasons for such behavior have never been fully understood. When bluegrass is cut short and heavily watered or fertilized, especially during the hot summer months, undesirable results follow. The turf thins out, the production of new leaves ceases, and during the cooler, wetter period of fall large numbers of the plants fail to recover. In attempts to maintain a vigorous green growth, nitrogenous fertilizers are often added to such turf when actually such an addition may be harmful instead of beneficial, especially during the hot weather of summer. With a view to determining a possible cause for the widely differing results often obtained from apparently similar practice, the following experiments were conducted in sand culture. All cultures were obtained from the vegetative propagation of one original bluegrass plant. More particularly the experiments dealt with: (a) the effect of cutting to 0.5 inch, 1 inch, and 2 inches, plants which were supplied either with a solution high in ammonium nitrogen and low in nitrate nitrogen, or one high in nitrate and low in ammonium nitrogen; (b) the type of growth produced at different seasons of the year and the effect upon such growth of varying degrees and times of defoliation; (c) the effect of cutting plants grown with a continuous nitrogen supply as contrasted with some which had had no nitrogen during a period beginning 6 weeks prior to the initial cutting and extending to the close of the experiment; (d) the type of recovery growth produced when cultures were cut back to 1 inch in height every ten days, at 60°, 80°, and 100° F., with and without a nitrogenous fertilizer. The experiments were conducted in the University of Chicago greenhouse, from the fall of 1930 to the fall of 1932. Several recent papers contain literature reviews of some length on much the same subjects as taken up here. Graber, Nelson, Luekel, and Albert (2), Pierre and Bertram (7), Luekel and Coleman (6), and Graber (1) have published recent papers on the food reserves of grasses in relation to
SimEd: Simulating Education as a Multi Agent System

This paper describes our efforts in creating SimEd, a simulation of the education system. The longterm aim of this work is to be able to model the types of interactions and interplays that occur between students, teachers and administrators, resulting in a toolkit and a methodology that will allow policy makers on various levels to experiment with their decisions, examining effects over time and across levels. Here, we outline our reasoning for selecting the multi agent system paradigm and the particular techniques chosen. We present details of two components within the SimEd toolkit and show results of experimental simulations executed with each. In constructing these tools, we have begun to identify special attributes of the education environment that set it aside from more typical agent-based application areas, such as e-commerce. We highlight these aspects and discuss current and future work extending agent techniques to accommodate these types of environments.
Attributions of Blame in Sexual Assault to Perpetrators and Victims of Both Genders1

Previous research found that men attribute more blame to rape victims than do women; men also attribute less blame to perpetrators. In rape situations with a male perpetrator and a female victim, the roles of perpetrator and victim are confounded with gender category. To determine whether men are more lenient toward perpetrators or toward other males, the present study examined attributions of blame in scenarios that varied the gender category of both perpetrator and victim. Results showed that men's and women's attributions of blame to perpetrators were based on the role that was enacted, rather than gender per se: Men attributed less blame to perpetrators than did women, regardless of the perpetrator's gender category, indicating that men were more lenient toward perpetrators than were women. In addition, when the victim was female, the perpetrator was blamed more and the victim was blamed less than when the victim was male.
Exchange rate regimes and international output co-movement

Utlizing Johansen's (1988) multivariate cointegration testing procedure, we find a cointegrating vector between the outputs of five major industrialized nations for the fixed exchange rate period. However, this relationship breaks down for the flexible exchange rate era. We argue that the breakdown of monetary policy coordination caused by the abandonment of the fixed exchange rates explains the weakening of the international character of business cycles.
An Exploratory Study of the Introduction of Online Reverse Auctions

Abstract Buyers are increasingly turning to online reverse auctions in their negotiations with suppliers. How do these price competition mechanisms affect buyer-supplier relationships? The author considers this question in the context of a quasi experiment involving six online reverse auctions conducted in the supply base of a major industrial buyer. The results indicate that these auctions increase both new and current suppliers’ beliefs that buyers act opportunistically, particularly in open-bid auctions. Current suppliers are generally more willing than new suppliers to make dedicated investments toward the buyer. Paradoxically, in sealed-bid auctions, both current and new suppliers increase their willingness to make dedicated investments toward the buyer. Although these auctions can yield cost savings, the savings are category specific and are not systematically related to an open- or sealed-bid format. The author also discusses implications for the use of online reverse auctions in industrial sourcin...
A Framework for Elastic Execution of Existing MPI Programs

There is a clear trend towards using cloud resources in the scientific or the HPC community, with a key attraction of cloud being the {em elasticity} it offers. In executing HPC applications on a cloud environment, it will clearly be desirable to exploit elasticity of cloud environments, and increase or decrease the number of instances an application is executed on during the execution of the application, to meet time and/or cost constraints. Unfortunately, HPC applications have almost always been designed to use a fixed number of resources. This paper describes our initial work towards the goal of making existing MPI applications elastic for a cloud framework. Considering the limitations of the MPI implementations currently available, we support adaptation by terminating one execution and restarting a new program on a different number of instances. The components of our envisioned system include a decision layer which considers time and cost constraints, a framework for modifying MPI programs, and a cloud-based runtime support that can enable redistributing of saved data, and support automated resource allocation and application restart on a different number of nodes. Using two MPI applications, we demonstrate the feasibility of our approach, and show that outputting, redistributing, and reading back data can be a reasonable approach for making existing MPI applications elastic.
Comparison of Larval and Adult Drosophila Astrocytes Reveals Stage-Specific Gene Expression Profiles

The analysis of adult astrocyte glial cells has revealed a remarkable heterogeneity with regard to morphology, molecular signature, and physiology. A key question in glial biology is how such heterogeneity arises during brain development. One approach to this question is to identify genes with differential astrocyte expression during development; certain genes expressed later in neural development may contribute to astrocyte differentiation. We have utilized the Drosophila model and Translating Ribosome Affinity Purification (TRAP)-RNA-seq methods to derive the genome-wide expression profile of Drosophila larval astrocyte-like cells (hereafter referred to as astrocytes) for the first time. These studies identified hundreds of larval astrocyte-enriched genes that encode proteins important for metabolism, energy production, and protein synthesis, consistent with the known role of astrocytes in the metabolic support of neurons. Comparison of the larval profile with that observed for adults has identified genes with astrocyte-enriched expression specific to adulthood. These include genes important for metabolism and energy production, translation, chromatin modification, protein glycosylation, neuropeptide signaling, immune responses, vesicle-mediated trafficking or secretion, and the regulation of behavior. Among these functional classes, the expression of genes important for chromatin modification and vesicle-mediated trafficking or secretion is overrepresented in adult astrocytes based on Gene Ontology analysis. Certain genes with selective adult enrichment may mediate functions specific to this stage or may be important for the differentiation or maintenance of adult astrocytes, with the latter perhaps contributing to population heterogeneity.
Setting Performance Standards for an Anesthesia Department

Abstract The Stanford University Department of Anesthesia established performance standards by identifying aspects of their service that were related to an important "customer's" perception of quality. A "quality grid" targeted service attributes that surgeons scored high for importance and low for performance. Control charts and flow charts helped establish reasonable performance levels for "timely first case starts" and "turnaround time." Control charts indicated that a reasonable performance standard for timely first case starts was "less than 20% of first case delays will be related to anesthesia activities." For turnaround time, the standard was set at "less than 10% of all turnaround times will be greater than 15 minutes, because of anesthesia-related activities." After instituting performance standards, the performance for first case start times improved from a 36% defective rate to a 9% defective rate. Anesthesia-related delays in turnaround times stabilized at a 16% defective rate. Using appropriate service standards can improve performance.
The Many Facets of Hyperhomocysteinemia: Studies from the Framingham Cohorts

Homocysteine is a sulfur amino acid whose metabolism stands at the intersection of 2 pathways: remethylation, which requires folic acid and B-12 coenzymes, and transsulfuration, which requires pyridoxal-5'-phosphate, the B-6 coenzyme. Data from several studies suggest that mild elevations of homocysteine in plasma are a risk factor for occlusive vascular disease. In the Framingham studies we have shown that plasma total homocysteine concentration is inversely related to the intake and plasma levels of folate and vitamin B-6 as well as vitamin B-12 plasma levels. Almost two-thirds of the prevalence of high homocysteine is attributable to low vitamin status or intake. Elevated homocysteine concentrations in plasma are a risk factor for prevalence of extracranial carotid artery stenosis of at least 25% in both men and women. Prospectively elevated plasma homocysteine is associated with increased total and CVD mortality, increased incidence of stroke, increased incidence of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, increased incidence of bone fracture, and higher prevalence of chronic heart failure. This multitude of relationships between elevated plasma total homocysteine and diseases that afflict the elderly point to the existence of a common denominator that may be responsible for these diseases. Whether this denominator is homocysteine itself or whether homocysteine is merely a marker remains to be determined.
Electrochemical Cells and Electrical Conduction of Pure and Doped Al2O3

Data concerning the types of charge carrier responsible for electrical conduction in single-crystal aluminum oxide are reviewed, and explanations are offered for discrepancies in terms of the experimental conditions. Measurements on undoped and Co2+ and Mg2+ doped crystals, made using a volume guard to avoid surface and gas conduction, are used to describe Al2O3 as an ionic conductor with Al interstitial ions as the principal charge carriers at high oxygen activity. A defect model is proposed and the mobility of Ali3+, the concentration of Ali3+ in undoped crystals, and the equilibrium constant for defect formation at high temperatures are estimated.
Ideal microlens design for flatting the equiphase distribution of a Gaussian laser beam

An ideal microlens profile for flatting the equiphase distribution of a Gaussian laser beam is obtained analytically by a new design tool based on the combination of Gaussian beam theory and ray optics. A comparative study with similar microlens design by ray tracing technique is performed by using a wide-angle beam propagation method with (2, 2) Pade/spl acute/ order expansion. The results show that a substantial improvement of lens profile design accuracy can be achieved by employing this new design tool.
Facing the noise: addressing the endemic variability in D(LCO) testing.

Single-breath diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (DLCO) is a common pulmonary function test that measures the ability of the lung to exchange gas across the alveolar-capillary interface. DLCO testing is used to narrow the differential diagnosis of obstructive and restrictive lung disease, to aid in disability and transplant assessment, and to monitor medication toxicity. The variability in the measurement limits the utility of the test. Variability is attributable to differences in equipment, testing conditions, patient factors, and reference equations. Laboratories can minimize variability by ensuring that equipment meets recommended standards, implementing effective quality control programs, standardizing testing conditions and testing procedures, and accounting for pertinent patient characteristics.
A prototype AMSR-E global snow area and snow depth algorithm

A methodologically simple approach to estimate snow depth from spaceborne microwave instruments is described. The scattering signal observed in multifrequency passive microwave data is used to detect snow cover. Wet snow, frozen ground, precipitation, and other anomalous scattering signals are screened using established methods. The results from two different approaches (a simple time and continentwide static approach and a space and time dynamic approach) to estimating snow depth were compared. The static approach, based on radiative transfer calculations, assumes a temporally constant grain size and density. The dynamic approach assumes that snowpack properties are spatially and temporally dynamic and requires two simple empirical models of density and snowpack grain radius evolution, plus a dense media radiative transfer model based on the quasicrystalline approximation and sticky particle theory. To test the approaches, a four-year record of daily snow depth measurements at 71 meteorological stations plus passive microwave data from the Special Sensor Microwave Imager, land cover data and a digital elevation model were used. In addition, testing was performed for a global dataset of over 1000 World Meteorological Organization meteorological stations recording snow depth during the 2000-2001 winter season. When compared with the snow depth data, the new algorithm had an average error of 23 cm for the one-year dataset and 21 cm for the four-year dataset (131% and 94% relative error, respectively). More importantly, the dynamic algorithm tended to underestimate the snow depth less than the static algorithm. This approach will be developed further and implemented for use with the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer-Earth Observing System aboard Aqua.
The Well-Man Visit: Addressing a Man's Health to Optimize Pregnancy Outcomes

Male health and health care before conception has received little attention by many physicians. Only recently has the importance of the health of men before conception been explored. The benefits of preconception care are important, including ensuring that all pregnancies are planned and wanted, improving the man's genetic and biologic contributions to the pregnancy, improving reproductive health and outcomes for female partners, improving the man's capacity for and understanding of parenthood, and enhancing the man's overall health through access to primary care.
Cerebellar Subjects Show Impaired Adaptation of Anticipatory EMG During Catching

We evaluated the role of the cerebellum in adapting anticipatory muscle activity during a multijointed catching task. Individuals with and without cerebellar damage caught a series of balls of diff...
Possible involvement of queuine in oxidative metabolism.

The possibility that the base queuine (Q) or tRNA’s containing Q may play a role in controlling oxidative metabolism has been investigated. There was less thiobarbituric acid-reactive material in queuine-deficient (Q-) mouse liver and kidney than in (Q+) liver and kidney. (Q−) LM cells grown in culture had 53% less of the mitochondrial superoxide dismutase than did (Q+) cells. The enzymatic insertion of queuine into tRNA requires oxygen.
Abstract TP261: Spontaneous Strokes In Sickle Cell Transgenic Mice Captured Ex Vivo With Magnetic Resonance Imaging

With 11% of children with sickle cell disease (SCD) having strokes, many as early as 1 to 5 years old, the underlying mechanisms are still unclear, and it is still unknown why this subpopulation has greater risk. More will suffer from subclinical silent strokes that cause cognitive rather than physical impairments. Sickling of red blood cells due to a point mutation in hemoglobin induces chronic inflammation and vascular remodeling in SCD. We have previously shown that powerful proteases, cathepsins, are activated in SCD to promote vascular remodeling that could lead to stroke. However, a mouse model of detectable sickle cell stroke is required to study mechanism and intervention strategies. Here, we used Townes sickle transgenic mouse, with murine hemoglobin knocked out and replaced with human, sickle hemoglobin, to test the hypothesis that sickle transgenic mice have MRI detectable strokes and increased cathepsin proteolytic activity. Three mice homozygous for sickle mutation (SS) and 6 heterozygous littermate controls (AS) were perfused at 8 weeks. Brains were isolated, embedded in gadolinium-agarose, and scanned using a Bruker 9.4 Tesla magnet with a T2-weighted protocol (TE = 13.4 ms. TR= 10,000, 512 x 512 x 70). Of the 3 SS mice, 2 had abnormalities suggestive of stroke (Figure 1, red arrows), with none noted in the AS controls. Separately, immunohistochemistry with anti-cathepsin K antibody indicated a gene dosing effect of sickle allele on cathepsin K expression (SS>AS>AA), verified in aorta homogenates by multiplex cathepsin zymography assays (n=3, p
Bidirectional Control of Flow in Thin Polymer Films by Photochemically Manipulating Surface Tension

The Marangoni effect causes liquids to flow toward localized regions of higher surface tension. In a thin film, such flow results in smooth thickness variations and may represent a practically useful route to manufacture topographically patterned surfaces. An especially versatile material for this application should be able to be spatially programmed to possess regions of higher or lower relative surface tension so that the direction of flow into or out of those areas could be directed with precision. To this end, we describe here a photopolymer whose melt-state surface tension can be selectively raised or lowered in the light exposed regions depending on the wavelength and dose of applied light. The direction of Marangoni flow into or out of the irradiated areas agreed with expected surface tension changes for photochemical transformations characterized by a variety of spectroscopic techniques and chromatographic experiments. The maximum film thickness variations achieved in this work are over 200 nm, wh...
Nosocomial Conjunctivitis Caused by Adenovirus Type 4

An outbreak of conjunctivitis caused by adenovirus type 4 (AV 4) occurred in hospital personnel who had contact with a patient with AV 4 pneumonia. Nine ill individuals were identified. AV 4 infection was demonstrated in all by isolation of AV 4 and/or a fourfold or greater rise in serum titer of specific neutralizing antibody. The incubation period was seven to 10 days, and the illness lasted five to seven days. Infectious virus was regularly present in the affected eyes for one week but not usually for more than 10 days after the onset of symptoms. Visual disturbance persisted for at least five months in one patient, who developed subepithelial deposits. The outbreak occurred after isolation procedures were abandoned in the care of the patient. No secondary case appeared. Isolation of patients with adenovirus pneumonia and barrier nursing are recommended as practical means of preventing nosocomial adenoviral infection and its consequences.
Improvement of Pellet's theorem for scalar and matrix polynomials

Abstract We improve Pellet's theorem for both scalar and matrix polynomials by using polynomial multipliers.