cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Psychotropic Medication Claims Among Religious Clergy

This study examined psychotropic medication claims in a sample of Protestant clergy. It estimated the proportion of clergy in the sample who had a claim for psychotropic medication (i.e., anti-depressants and anxiolytics) in 2005 and examined associations between sociodemographic characteristics, occupational distress and having a claim. Protestant clergy (n = 749) from nine denominations completed a mail survey and provided access to their pharmaceutical records. Logistic regression models assessed the effect of sociodemographic characteristics and occupational distress on having a claim. The descriptive analysis revealed that 16 % (95 % Confidence interval [CI] 13.3 %–18.5 %) of the clergy in the sample had a claim for psychotropic medication in 2005 and that, among clergy who experienced frequent occupational distress, 28 % (95 % CI 17.5 %–37.5 %) had a claim. The regression analysis found that older clergy, female clergy, and those who experienced frequent occupational distress were more likely to have a claim. Due to recent demographic changes in the clergy population, including the increasing mean age of new clergy and the growing number of female clergy, the proportion of clergy having claims for psychotropic medication may increase in the coming years. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the use of psychotropic medication among clergy.
Risk Premia in Foreign Currency Futures: A Reexamination

This paper reexamines the significant autocorrelation results of foreign currency futures reported by Liu and He [12] in this journal. It argues that extremely thin trading early in the life of individual futures contracts induces unreliable results in [12]. Moreover, the Monte Carlo results clarify the power performance between Lo and MacKinlay's [13] variance ratio tests and Diebold's [3] Q-statistics; both tests are used by Liu and He.
Commentary: Scientists, show your good side

Scientists need to oppose faith-based governing by emphasizing science's ethics, says Lawrence Krauss
Uranyl-Sensitized Photochemical Oxidation of Naphthalene by Molecular Oxygen. Role of Electron Transfer

Naphthalene quenches the excited state *UO22+ in two parallel pathways: oxidation to naphthalene radical cation, C10H8•+ (Φ = 0.3), and exciplex formation. The overall rate constant in aqueous ace...
Relationships of Indices of Eighth Grade Academic Achievement to Sex and to Measures of Differentiated Aptitudes and Personality Traits

Relationships between achievement measures and those of aptitude, sex, and personality traits were explored in a sample of 226 eighth grade students in a suburban school. Eighteen aptitude measures and a 14-scale personality inventory were administered and factor analyzed; salient tests and scales were selected as predictors of standardized measures of academic achievement. Results of a sequential, step-wise multiple regression analysis indicated that an evaluation of systems test (Figure Analogies) and a production of systems test (Word Grouping) together predicted 48 to 52% of variances in standardized tests of language, mathematics, and social studies. That sex was not a significant predictor of achievement reflected a possible breakdown in the previously identified strong sex-linked patterns between traits and achievement.
Multiplexed protein detection using antibody-conjugated microbead arrays in a microfabricated electrophoretic device

We report the development of a microfabricated electrophoretic device for assembling high-density arrays of antibody-conjugated microbeads for chip-based protein detection. The device consists of a flow cell formed between a gold-coated silicon chip with an array of microwells etched in a silicon dioxide film and a glass coverslip with a series of thin gold counter electrode lines. We have demonstrated that 0.4 and 1 μm beads conjugated with antibodies can be rapidly assembled into the microwells by applying a pulsed electric field across the chamber. By assembling step-wise a mixture of fluorescently labeled antibody-conjugated microbeads, we incorporated both spatial and fluorescence encoding strategies to demonstrate significant multiplexing capabilities. We have shown that these antibody-conjugated microbead arrays can be used to perform on-chip sandwich immunoassays to detect test antigens at concentrations as low as 40 pM (6 ng/mL). A finite element model was also developed to examine the electric field distribution within the device for different counter electrode configurations over a range of line pitches and chamber heights. This device will be useful for assembling high-density, encoded antibody arrays for multiplexed detection of proteins and other types of protein-conjugated microbeads for applications such as the analysis of protein-protein interactions.
Null category-length and target-lure relatedness effects in episodic recognition: a constraint on item-noise interference models.

There are two main classes of model of interference effects in recognition memory: item-noise and context-noise. Item-noise models predict that a loss of memory discriminability will occur with an increase in the number of studied items from the same taxonomic category (category length, CL) and that forced-choice recognition performance will be higher when the target and lure are related rather than unrelated. Context-noise models, however, predict null effects for both of these manipulations. Although results from some recent experiments suggest that CL and target–lure relatedness have a trivial or no effect on memory discriminability when the related items from the same taxonomic category are “not back to back in the study list but are separated (spaced) by interleaving items from other semantic categories,” these experiments have methodological limitations that were eliminated in the present experiment in which exemplars representing category lengths of 2, 8, or 14 were presented spaced apart within th...
Spatial Patterns and Cross-Correlations of Temporal Changes in Soil Carbonates and Surface Elevation in a Winter Wheat–Fallow Cropping System

Soil erosion and deposition impact the sustainability of agricultural lands within the semiarid Great Plains in the United States. Temporal differences between high-resolution digital elevation maps provide physical estimates of spatial erosion or deposition, and the depth to a calcic horizon is a chemical indicator. We hypothesized that soil surface layer CaCO₃ concentration is inversely correlated with the change in surface elevation (Δz). We studied a 109-ha field in northeastern Colorado under winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)–fallow rotation in alternating strips perpendicular to the prevailing wind. Soil samples (top 30 cm) collected from 185 landscape positions in 2001 and 2012 were analyzed for CaCO₃ using a modified pressure-calcimeter method. The change in CaCO₃ (ΔC) was significantly correlated with large-scale erosional and depositional areas (west and east blocks, respectively) and with soil units, whereas Δz was correlated with management strips and blocks. The west block had an average ΔC of 3.2 g kg⁻¹ with 2.0 cm of erosion, whereas the east block decreased by 4.4 g kg⁻¹ with 4.2 cm of deposition. Summit positions had the highest CaCO₃, and toeslope positions had the lowest. We found inverse relationships between Δz and ΔC in summit and toeslope positions at both erosional (Δz 5 cm) areas, but Δz was not correlated significantly with ΔC overall. High values of CaCO₃ (>100 g kg⁻¹) decreased with time. A high-resolution map of Δz showed complex spatial patterns across scales, which inferred water and wind erosion and deposition affected by terrain and management.
Lateral Diffusion Limitations of Ingaas/Gaas for Nanostructure Fabrication

We have investigated the technique of implantation enhanced interdiffusion (IEI) for optical nanostructure fabrication in strained InxGal-xAs/GaAs quantum wells. Implantation masks with widths from 40 nm to 40 μm were fabricated on the surface of InxGal-xAs/GaAs (x+0.1, 0.2) 3.5 nm quantum well material which was implanted with 100 kV As+ with doses ranging from 5 × 1012 to 8.5× 1013 ions/cm2. After mask removal and a high temperature anneal, cathodoluminescence (CL) spectroscopy was used to investigate the optical properties of the resulting structures. We have measured electron-heavy hole recombination energy shifts due to quantum well interdiffusion of up to 60 meV for the highest doses used here with broad area implants. However, while quantum well emission under large (40 μm) masks is preserved, smaller masks show an emission blue shift not due to ions penetrating through the mask. A simple model of the width dependence of this shift yields an enhanced lateral diffusion length of approximately 1 μm which is many times larger than the lateral straggle of the implanted As+. We conclude that lateral diffusion effects may impose a limit on nanostructure fabrication in the InxGal-xAs/GaAs system with this technique.
Massive gastrointestinal hemorrhage.

The poor prognostic factors in massive gastrointestinal hemorrhage have been enumerated. The accuracy, complications, and value of early diagnostic studies have been discussed. The management of massive gastrointestinal hemorrhage based upon these considerations has been outlined.
A task-driven intelligent workspace system to provide guidance feedback

We introduce a vision-based human-computer interaction system which collaborates with a user by providing feedback during user activities. We design an intelligent workspace system that analyzes the context of a user's tasks and generates appropriate feedback guiding the user to complete the tasks correctly. While a user is performing the high-level activity, our system analyzes what sub-events the user has already completed and what sub-events are needed next in order for the user to finish the activity. Based on this analysis, the system generates hierarchical feedback messages to assist the user. We test our system on three different types of tasks: tightening nuts on a wheel of a car, assembling a toy spaceship with LEGO blocks, and assembling a laptop computer with its parts. Experimental results demonstrate the accuracy of the vision-based activity analysis, and a comparative user study shows that our system's feedback enables users to complete assembly tasks with significantly improved efficiency.
Social structure and family law

Abstract This article tests five models of factors related to enactment of laws regarding grandparents. Sociologists and legal observers have argued that laws regarding grandparents reflect demographic and social changes and the increasing importance of grandparents in extended families due to these changes. This project considers political activity of grandparents, state motivations and capabilities, and state legal climates, as well as demographic and social change variables, as possible influences. Higher state percentages of people 45 and older are associated with lower amounts of grandparental law, contrary to earlier predictions. Social change variables are not associated with the amount of laws. Measures of grandparent activism, state interests, and state legal climates are associated with more laws referencing grandparents. As amount of state laws regarding grandparents is influenced by these other factors, as well as demographic changes, the results indicate that assumptions about variables affecting modifications in family law must be carefully examined.
Differential effects of the serotonin1A agonist, 8-OH-DPAT, on masculine and feminine sexual behavior of the ferret

Administration of the serotonin (5-HT)1A receptor agonist 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin (8-OH-DPAT) facilitates the expression of masculine sexual behavior in male and female rats as well as in male rhesus monkeys and inhibits lordosis behavior in female rats. In the present study the effects of 8-OH-DPAT on masculine coital and feminine proceptive and receptive behaviors were evaluated in the ferret, a carnivore. Doses of 8-OH-DPAT (0.1 or 0.2 mg/kg) that facilitate masculine sexual behavior in rats inhibited masculine sexual behavior in castrated, estradiol benzoate (EB)-treated male ferrets. Lower doses of 8-OH-DPAT (5 or 10 µg/kg) had no effect on the expression of masculine sexual behavior in either males or females. In contrast to the female rat, administration of 8-OH-DPAT significantly facilitated receptive behaviors in ovariectomized, EB-treated female ferrets. None of the doses of 8-OH-DPAT tested modified proceptive behaviors of gonadectomized, EB-treated male or female ferrets, as assessed in a T-maze in which the subjects could choose to approach either a castrated, sexually inactive male or a castrated, testosterone-primed stud male. Thus whereas the 5-HT1A receptor agonist 8-OH-DPAT facilitates masculine sexual behavior and inhibits lordosis in the rat, it inhibits masculine sexual behavior and facilitates receptivity in the ferret. The different effects of 8-OH-DPAT observed in these two species may reflect differences in the neural control of their masculine coital and feminine receptive responses, respectively.
Reduction behavior of potassium-promoted iron oxide under mixed steam/hydrogen atmospheres

Potassium-promoted iron oxide catalysts are used in large volume for the commercial ethylbenzene dehydrogenation to styrene process. Short-term deactivation of these catalysts, which is addressed by operating in excess steam, is thought to be caused due to reactive site loss through coking and/or reduction. However, the relative importance of the two mechanisms is not known. Presented are results concerning the reduction behavior of potassium-promoted iron oxide materials in the absence of carbon. Thermogravimetric experiments and X-ray diffraction analysis were used to examine the reduction behavior of potassium-promoted iron oxide materials. The reduction behavior was then compared with results from isothermal ethylbenzene dehydrogenation reactor studies under low steam-to-ethylbenzene operation. Potassium incorporation was found to stabilize the iron oxide against reduction apparently through the formation of KFeO2. Chromium addition improved the reduction resistance, which gave good qualitative agreem...
Operative treatment of truncus arteriosus communis coexisting with tricuspid atresia

The coexistence of tricuspid atresia and common arterial trunk is extremely rare. We present a successful three-stage surgical treatment of this defect. The first stage included disconnection of the pulmonary arteries from the common trunk, atrial septectomy and systemic-to-pulmonary shunt; the second stage, a hemi-Fontan procedure; and the third stage, a fenestrated Fontan completion. The child is now 8 years old and is developing well.
Securing computerised models and data against integrity attacks

Many computerised systems use electronic models that get triggered when certain business conditions arise. Unauthorised triggering of such computerised models has been overlooked in the security literature. In this paper, we propose two frameworks to analyse the security of systems that have the data-triggering computerised model architecture. The frameworks help understand how to mitigate the cyber attacks that can be launched against the data-model systems, by modifying the computerised models or the data. We then propose a Deterministic Specification distributed intrusion Detection System (DSdIDS) to secure the data-triggering model systems from internal as well as external cyber threats.
Spurious limit cycles and related phenomena during CO oxidation on supported platinum

A study of CO oxidation on Ptα-Al2O3 catalyst was carried out in the temperature range 370 to 420 °K, in oxygen. Attention was devoted specifically to isothermal limit-cycle phenomena in this reaction. Spurious limit-cycle phenomena resulting from trace impurities in the oxygen stream were observed. Some characteristics of these, and the conditions under which they occur were elucidated. Further, changes in catalytic behavior proceeding from modifying treatments in oxidizing and reducing environments were noted and related to similar phenomena reported by other authors.
Rotationally oscillating drill (Ros-Drill) for mouse ICSI without using mercury.

Intracytxoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is an important assisted reproductive technology (ART). Due to deployment difficulties and low efficiency of the earlier (conventional) version of ICSI, especially in the mouse, a piezo-assisted ICSI technique had evolved as a popular ART methodology in recent years. An important and remaining problem with this technique, however, is that it requires small amounts of mercury to stabilize the pipette tip when piezoelectric force pulses are applied. To eliminate this problem we developed and tested a completely different and mercury-free technology, called the “Ros-Drill©” (rotationally oscillating drill). The technique uses microprocessor-controlled rotational oscillations on a spiked micropipette without mercury or piezo. Preliminary experimental results show that this new microinjection technology gives high survival rate (>70% of the injected oocytes) and fertilization rate (>80% of the survived oocytes), and blastocyst formation rates in early trials (∼50% of the survived oocytes). Blastocysts created by Ros-Drill© ICSI were transferred into the uteruses of pseudopregnant surrogate mothers and healthy pups were born and weaned. The Ros-Drill© ICSI technique is automated and therefore; it requires a very short preliminary training for the specialists, as evidenced in many successful biological trials. These advantages of Ros-Drill© ICSI over conventional and piezo-assisted ICSI are clearly demonstrated and it appears to have resolved an important problem in reproductive biology. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 75: 1744–1751, 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
The contribution of biological particles to observed particulate organic carbon at a remote high altitude site

Abstract Although a significant fraction of atmospheric particulate mass is organic carbon, the sources of particulate organic carbon (POC) are not always apparent. One potential source of atmospheric POC is biological particles, such as bacteria, pollen, and fungal spores. Measurements of POC and biological particles, including bacteria, fungal spores, and pollen, were made as part of the Storm Peak Aerosol and Cloud Characterization Study in Steamboat Springs, CO in March–April 2008. Biological particles were identified and characterized using several methods. The results suggest that biological particles could account for an average of 40% of the organic carbon mass in particles with aerodynamic diameters less than 10 μm. These estimates of POC mass from biological particles are highly uncertain; however, the results suggest that biological particles could be a significant source of organic aerosol in the background continental atmosphere and further observations are needed to better constrain these estimates.
Spatial thickness variations in laser-deposited thin films

We have theoretically studied spatial thickness variations in ‘on-axis’ and ‘off-axis’ laser deposited thin films. During ‘on-axis’ deposition, the substrate-target axes are coincidental to each other, while in the ‘off-axis’ mode, the axis of the rotating substrate is off-set by a fixed distance from the target axis. The ‘on-axis’ laser-deposited films show a wide range of thickness variations ranging from cos2 θ to cos14 θ thickness distribution, where θ corresponds to the angle subtended by the normal at any point on the substrate and the radial vector joining the target and the substrate. The thickness variations are controlled by a number of laser and other deposition variables including laser wavelength, pulse energy density, substrate-target distance and shape and size of the laser-irradiated spot. Calculations show that the laser-irradiated spot size is the most important parameter which controls the spatial thickness variations. It was found that for large laser irradiated spot diameters (>8 mm), the film uniformity was found to decrease with decreasing spot diameters, but this trend reversed at smaller irradiated spot sizes. Depending on the laser irradiated conditions and substrate-target geometry, the thickness variations have been found to vary from (cos θ)2.5 to (cos θ)12. Theoretical investigations were also conducted to understand the effect of processing variables (substrate-target distance, plume directionality, off-set distance, etc.) on the thickness uniformity during ‘off-axis’ laser-deposition conditions. The maximum uniformity diameter (for ± 5% uniformity) was found to be always less than substrate-target distance for directed laser plumes (>cos10 θ distribution).
Feasibility of NOTES Omental Plug Repair of Perforated Peptic Ulcers – Results from a Clinical Pilot Trial

Ulcer perforation carries up to a 30 % 1-year mortality rate. Intervention-related adverse events are among statistically significant predictors of 1-year mortality. A natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgical (NOTES) approach may be less invasive and may decrease procedure-related adverse events by diminishing the so-called second hit, thus leading to decreased morbidity and mortality. We sought to assess the feasibility of an endoscopic transluminal omental plug technique in patients with perforated gastroduodenal ulcers under laparoscopic guidance. Patients with suspected acute gastroduodenal ulcer perforations were offered participation in this prospective pilot study. Closure of the perforation was attempted using the NOTES omental plug technique. Demographic, clinical, endoscopic, and radiographic data were abstracted, as were data for morbidity, mortality, and pilot data regarding quality of life (QOL). From February 2010 through February 2012, a total of 17 patients presented to a tertiary care center with clinically suspected perforated ulcer. Of seven patients (mean age 79 years, range 64–89 years) who consented to the study, three underwent the study procedure. All patients had multiple comorbidities. Two patients presented with 4–6 mm perforated peptic ulcers and underwent successful laparoscopic-assisted NOTES omental and falciform ligament patch closure, respectively. Postoperative radiographic contrast studies showed no leak, and patients were discharged home on postoperative days 3 and 4. The third patient had undergone enterocutaneous fistula repair with herniorrhaphy 6 weeks before. Although a transluminal endoscopic approach was feasible, the omentum was under too much tension to be secured. This procedure was converted to an open omental patch repair. For all but one patient who provided consent, obtaining QOL data was feasible. Initial results from a laparoscopic-assisted NOTES approach for closure of perforated peptic ulcers appear promising and enable swift recovery in selected patients. This is especially important in elderly and/or immunocompromised patients. Technical details and patient selection criteria continue to evolve.
Fundamentals of on-road tracking

Among the various ways in which ground targets differ from air-targets, a most important one is that in order to travel substantial distances, ground targets generally need to move on roads. Alpha-beta type filters or Kalman filters, i.e., tracking filters designed for air-targets, have not dealt with constrained target motion. The use of road-constraints changes both the prediction and update steps in the tracing problem. In this paper a Bayesian framework is developed, in which the road information, in standard vector-product form, is incorporated with the predicted target location into the Bayesian prior. Both the maximum a posterior and Bayes least-squares solutions are then computed. An examination of the results shows that the MAP solutions is potentially unstable when two conditions coincide: the target is located near a road bend and the sensors return is located inside the bend. Because of this potential instability, the preferred update solution turns out to be the along-road average of the updated location probability density. Formulas for calculating or effectively approximately the solution and its along-road variance are given, as well as an association measure for multi-target tracking, track initiation, and clutter rejection by gating.
Lynx multi-mode SAR in support of NATO Unified Vision 2012 trial

In June 2012, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) Reconnaissance Systems Group participated in the NATO Unified Vision 2012 (UV12) Joint ISR (JISR) Trial at Orland Main Air Station in Brekstad, Norway. GA-ASI supplied a modified King Air 200 as a Predator B/MQ-9 Reaper Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) surrogate outfitted with a Lynx Block 30 Multi-mode Synthetic Aperture Radar/Ground Moving Target Indicator (SAR/GMTI), a FLIR Star SAFIRE 3800HD Electro-optical/Infrared (EO/IR) sensor, and a L-3 Tactical Common Data Link. This airborne platform was combined with GA-ASI’s new System for Tactical Archival, Retrieval, and Exploitation (STARE) for full integration into the NATO ISR exploitation community. UV12 was an event sponsored by the NATO Joint Capability Group on Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) to focus on the interoperability of national ISR assets and improving JISR concept of operations. The Predator B RPA surrogate flew alongside multiple NATO ISR assets in nine missions that showcased the platform’s all-weather ISR capabilities focusing on the Lynx SAR/GMTI and Maritime Wide Area Search (MWAS) modes. The inclusion of the STARE technology allowed GA-ASI’s radar and Full Motion Video (FMV) data to be seamlessly processed and passed to joint networks where the data was fused with other NATO ISR products, resulting in a full battlefield reconnaissance picture.
PBL-height derivation from the CALIOP/CALIPSO and comparing with the radiosonde and ground-based lidar measurements

The planetary boundary layer (PBL) heights are derived from the CALIOP/CALIPSO level-1B attenuated backscatter profile using the wavelet transform technique. The results are compared to those by the radiosonde and ground-based lidar coincident measurements. The comparison generally indicates the good agreement and the correlation coefficient is greater than 0.7. In addition, we found the good consistence between the CALIOP-derived PBL height and the selected aerosol-layer-top of CALIPSO level-2 aerosol-layer products (5-km average). Finally, the spatial distribution of PBL heights and their seasonal differences are initially illustrated over the US continent.
A network formation model for internet transit relations

Most Autonomous Systems in the Internet need to select one or more transit providers. The provider selection process is complex, influenced by dynamic pricing, contracts, performance, marketing and other factors. We propose a simple dynamic model that captures the salient features of the provider selection process. The model creates a positive feedback effect, where "the bigger a provider is the bigger it gets". We then study the resulting internetwork formation process, showing that it always leads to a stable, but not unique, internetwork. We also use computational experiments to understand how the convergence delay scales with the size of the network, the factor(s) that affect the number of distinct equilibria, and the impact of three key model parameters.
Structural regions of ERα critical for synergistic transcriptional responses contain co-factor interacting surfaces

Abstract Most highly estrogen responsive genes are synergistically activated by multiple copies of estrogen responsive elements (EREs) capable of binding to the estrogen receptor (ER). We examined here the structural features of the receptor necessary to interact with co-regulatory proteins and to produce a synergistic pattern of activation from multiple EREs. Using full length and truncated variants of ERα, we show in transfected mammalian cells that although the carboxyl (AF-2) and the amino (AF-1) terminal activation domains are functionally integrated to induce transcription, AF-1 is critical for mediating synergy. Partial characterization of AF-1 sub-domains revealed that both Box-1 and Box-2 regions (amino acids 41–64 and 87–108, respectively) are essential for a synergistic response to estrogen. We show that members of the p160 family of co-factors and TIF-1 interact with the AF-2 domain of ERα. We also found that TIF-2, a member of the p160 family, can interact with the Box-1 region of AF-1. Apparently, structural regions required for the ability of ERα to induce transcription synergistically from tandem ERE sequences are also critical for the interaction of the receptor with the co-regulatory proteins.
Myocardial Recovery and the Failing Heart: Medical, Device and Mechanical Methods

Abstract Background Cardiac remodeling describes the molecular, cellular, and interstitial changes that cause the ventricle to develop pathologic geometry as heart failure progresses. Reverse remodeling, or the healing of a failing heart, leads to improved mortality and quality of life. Findings Therapies that lead to reverse remodeling include medications such as β-blockers and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors; cardiac resynchronization therapy with biventricular pacing; and mechanical support with left ventricular assist devices. Conclusions Further study is needed to better predict which patients will benefit most from these therapies and will then go on to experience reverse remodeling and myocardial recovery.
Synthesis of Sodium (+)-(12S,13R)-Epoxy-cis-9-octadecenyl Sulfonate from Vernonia Oil

A water-soluble, foaming epoxyalkene sulfonate, sodium (+)-(12S,13R)-epoxy-cis-9-octadecenyl sulfonate, was synthesized from vernonia oil (VO) by a series of simple reactions that include transesterification, metal hydride reduction, tosylation, and SN2 reactions. Conversion of VO into vernonia oil methyl esters (VOME) using sodium methoxide was quantitative. Subsequent reduction of VOME with lithium aluminum hydride yielded (+)-(12S,13R)-epoxy-cis-9-octadecenol (94%), along with minor amounts of hexadecenol, octadecenol, cis-9-octadecenol, and cis-9,12-octadecandienol. The (+)-(12S,13R)-epoxy-cis-9-octadecenol, was tosylated with p-toluenesulfonyl chloride to give (+)-(12S,13R)-epoxy-cis-9-octadecenyl tosylate at 96% yield. Iodination of the tosylate with sodium iodide and subsequent SN2 reaction with sodium sulfite afforded (+)-(12S,13R)-epoxy-cis-9-octadecenyl sulfonate (63% yield). This study demonstrates the ability to produce an epoxyalkenyl sulfonate, belonging to a class of anionic surfactants, from VO without destroying the epoxy functionality in the (+)-(12S,13R)-epoxy-cis-9-octadecenyl moiety of VO. The critical micelle concentration of the synthesized sulfonate was also determined.
Photoaffinity labelling of a 150 kDa (Na + K + Cl)-cotransport protein from duck red cells with an analog of bumetanide.

Abstract We have used a radiolabelled, benzophenone analog of bumetanide, 4-[3H]benzoyl-5-sulfamoyl-3-(3-thenyloxy)benzoic acid ([3H]BSTBA) to photolabel plasma membranes from duck red blood cells. BSTBA, like bumetanide, is a loop diuretic and a potent inhibitor of (Na + K + Cl) cotransport, and ([3H]BSTBA) binds to intact duck red cells with a high affinity similar to that of [3H]bumetanide ( K 1 2 ≌ 0.1 gmM ). We incubated duck red cells with ([3H]BSTBA), then lysed the cells and exposed the ghosts to ultraviolet light. The ghosting and photolysis was done at 0°C to prevent dissociation of the ([3H]BSTBA). The ghosts were then sonicated to remove the nuclei and run on SDS-polyacrylamide gels. Analysis of H2O2-digested gel slices revealed ([3H]BSTBA) to be incorporated into a protein of approx. 150 kDa. This is the same molecular weight we obtain for a protein from dog kidney membranes which is photolabelled by ([3H]BSTBA) in a manner highly consistent with labelling of the (Na + K + Cl) cotransporter (Haas and Forbush (1987) Am. J. Physiol. 253, C243-C252). Several lines of evidence strongly suggest that the 150 kDa protein from duck red cell membranes is an integral component of the (Na + K + Cl)-cotransport system in these cells: (1)Photolabelling of this protein by [3H]BSTBA is blocked when μM unlabelled bumetanide is included in the initial incubation medium with [3H]BSTBA; (2) Photoincorporation of [3H]BSTBA into the 150 kDa protein is markedly increased when the initial incubation medium is hypertonic or contains norepinephrine, conditions which similarly stimulate both (Na + K + Cl) cotransport and saturable [3H]bumetanide binding in duck red cells; (3) The photolabelling of this protein shows a saturable dependence on [3H]BSTBA concentration, with a K 1 2 (0.06 μM) similar to that for the reversible, saturable binding of [3H]BSTBA and [3H]bumetanide to duck red cells; and (4) [3H]BSTBA photoincorporation into the 150 kDa protein, like saturable [3H]bumetanide binding to intact cells, requires the simultaneous presence of Na+, K+, and Cl− in the medium containing the radiolabelled diuretic.
Collisional damping in heated nuclei within the Landau-Vlasov kinetic theory

Collisional damping of nuclear collective vibrations is studied within the framework of the Vlasov-Landau equation including retardation (memory) effects in the collision integral. Expressions for the nuclear two-body viscosity and the collisional width \ensuremath{\Gamma} of the giant multipole resonances in heated nuclei are obtained in the case of the quadrupole dynamic distortion of the Fermi surface. An improved formula for \ensuremath{\Gamma} is also proposed in which all multipolarities of the distortion of the Fermi sphere are taken into account. The collisional width of the giant dipole resonance is calculated as a function of excitation energy for the Sn nuclei region using this formula. It shows a weak variation with temperature. In the temperature range of T\ensuremath{\approxeq}2.5--7 MeV, the contribution of collisional damping to GDR width does not exceed 50% of the experimental values.
Additional evidence that corticosteroid binder IB is not derived from binder II by limited proteolysis.

Summary Corticosteroid Binder IB (20– 26A) is the sole activated glucocorticoid-receptor complex in rat kidney cortex and represents a portion of the activated hormone-receptor complexes in liver cytosol. Binder II (50–60A) is the major activated species formed in vitro in liver cytosol. If kidney cytosol prelabelled with [ 3 H]triamcinolone acetonide [TA] is mixed 1:1 with liver cytosol preincubated with unlabelled TA and heat activated (25°C, 30 min), only Binder IB is formed, a typical kidney pattern. Addition of TA labelled kidney cytosol to liver cytosol prelabelled with [ 3 H]TA during activation (25°C, 30 min) does not increase the proportion of Binder IB formed relative to Binder II when compared to a liver control. These experiments indicate that Binder IB is not derived from the activated Binder II by limited proteolysis.
Fast recognition of Baxter permutations using syntactical and complete bipartite composite dag's

A correspondence is developed between permutations and two-dimensional digraphs. When the graphs are also required to be completely bipartite composite (CBC), their permutations then correspond to a class called the Baxter permutations. A permutation can be tested for the Baxter condition by a linear time processing of its digraph. This processing involves a pair of traversals of the digraph and is made possible by exploiting a relationship with the syntactical graphs used in language theory.
The first eigenvalue of a spherical cap

We find upper and lower bounds for the first eigenvalue of the Laplacian on the two-sphere from which a disk has been removed, with Dirichlet conditions imposed on the resulting boundary. When the radius of the disk tends to zero our lower bound is sharper than that obtained by Del Grosso, Gerardi, and Marchetti in the preceding paper.
Adrenocortical function, feedback, and alphabet soup

This essay examines the historical significance of an APS classic paper that is freely available online: Ingle DJ. The effects of administering large amounts of cortin on the adrenal cortices of no...
Lack of stability in neonatal adrenocortical reactivity because of rapid habituation of the adrenocortical response.

The purpose of the study was to examine the stability of the adrenocortical response to stimulatin in the human neonate. Forty-nine healthy newborns were examined twice responding to discharge examinations performed on two consecutive days. The dependent measures were salivary and plasma cortisol and behavioral state. Little evidence of stability was obtained. Instead, the results showeds significant elevations in cortisol only in response to the first discharge examination. No significant elevation in cortisol was noted to the second discharge examination although the newborns continued to exhibit behavioral distress. Time since delivery was not a significant factor in producing these results. The findings are discussed with regard to neonatal coping processes and the importance of novelty in regulating increases in adrenocortical activity.
Mitigating dead‐time effects during multivariate analysis of ToF‐SIMS spectral images

ToF-SIMS spectra are formed by bombarding a surface with a pulse of primary ions and detecting the resultant ionized surface species using a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. Typically, the detector is a time-to-digital converter. Once an ion is detected using such detectors, the detector becomes insensitive to the arrival of additional ions for a period termed as the (detector) dead-time. Under commonly used ToF-SIMS data acquisition conditions, the time interval over which ions arising from a single chemical species reach the detector is on the order of the detector dead-time. Thus, only the first ion reaching the detector at any given mass is counted. The event registered by the data acquisition system, then, is the arrival of one or more ions at the detector. This behavior causes ToF-SIMS data to violate, in the general case, the assumption of linear additivity that underlies many multivariate statistical analysis techniques. In this article, we show that high-mass-resolution ToF-SIMS spectral-image data follow a generalized linear model, and we propose a data transformation and scaling procedure that enables such data sets to be successfully analyzed using standard methods of multivariate image analysis. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
An Integrative Approach to the Psychotherapy of the Elderly

The focus of this chapter will be to present an integrative approach to individual psychotherapy with the elderly patient. The theoretical basis for this approach is best understood from an object relational position which emphasizes the individual’s relationships with significant figures in one’s life as the basis for psychopathology. The approach relies heavily on attachment theory derived from John Bowlby’s three volume work on Attachment and Loss (1973, 1980, 1982), and Mary Ainsworth’s (1978) empirical strategies to studying this phenomena. From Bowlby’s perspective, loss is a central factor in determining psychopathology. To the extent that aging involves the experience of loss in a number of arenas of psychic life, whether personal (physical), interpersonal (loss of spouse or family and friends), or social (occupational or financial), it is a crucial determinant of how the aging process is experienced.
Transplantation in Obese Patient

Obesity is a worldwide epidemic leading to severe comorbidity that damages end-organ function. Overall transplant outcomes in this population are inferior to those in nonobese patients. Large population studies show decreased patient and graft survival in obese kidney transplant patients. Despite the poorer outcomes, kidney transplantation is considered because of the survival benefit as compared with the wait-listed dialysis patients. In liver transplantation, the benefit to transplantation as compared with remaining on the list is obvious, as there is no viable liver dialysis at this time. Obesity in potential organ donors impacts both medical and surgical issues. Obesity-related kidney disease affects both the remaining and transplanted kidney. Pancreas donor organs are associated with decreased early graft survival. Liver donor organs with significant steatosis lead to an increased risk for delayed or nonfunction of the organ. Immunosuppressive drugs with variable lipophilicity and altered volume of distribution can greatly affect the therapeutic usefulness of these drugs. Transplant candidates benefit from a multidisciplinary team approach to their care. As the epidemic progresses and less-invasive treatments for metabolic surgery evolve, we are likely to require more patients to lose weight prior to transplantation as we continue to strive for improved outcomes.
Application of Cover's theorem to the evaluation of the performance of CI observers

For any N points arbitrarily located in a d-dimensional space, Thomas Cover popularized and augmented a theorem that gives an expression for the number of the 2N possible two-class dichotomies of those points that are separable by a hyperplane. Since separation of two-class dichotomies in d dimensions is a common problem addressed by computational intelligence (CI) decision functions or “observers,” Cover's theorem provides a benchmark against which CI observer performance can be measured. We demonstrate that the performance of a simple perceptron approaches the ideal performance and how a single layer MLP and an SVM fare in comparison. We show how Cover's theorem can be used to develop a procedure for CI parameter optimization and to serve as a descriptor of CI complexity. Both simulated and micro-array genomic data are used.
Kinetics processivity and the direction of motion of Ncd.

The kinetic mechanism of the nonclaret disjunctional protein (Ncd) motor was investigated using the dimer termed MC1 (residues 209-700), which has been shown to exhibit negative-end directed motility (Chandra et al., 1993). The kinetic properties are similar to those of the monomeric Ncd motor domain (Pechatnikova and Taylor, 1997). The maximum steady-state ATPase activity of 1.5 s(-1) is half as large as for the monomeric motor. Dissociation constants in the presence of nucleotides showed the same trend but with approximately a two-fold decrease in the values: K(d) values are 1.0 microM for ADP-AlF(4), 1.1 microM for ATPgammaS, 1.5 microM for ATP, 3 microM for ADP, and 10 microM for ADP-vanadate (in 25 mM NaCl, 22 degrees C). The apparent second-order rate constants for the binding of ATP and ADP to the microtubule-motor complex (MtMC1) are 2 microM(-1) s(-1). Based on measurements at high microtubule concentrations the kinetic steps were fitted to the scheme,[see text] where N refers to one head of the dimer and T, D, and P stand for ATP, ADP, and inorganic phosphate. k(1) and k(-4) are the first-order rate constants of the transition induced by the binding of mant ATP and mant ADP respectively. ADP release is the main rate-limiting step in the MtMC1 mechanism. The binding of the MC1-mant ADP complex to microtubules released less than half of the mant ADP (alternating site reactivity). The second mant ADP is only released by the binding of nucleotides that dissociate the MtMC1 complex (ATP and ADP but not AMPPNP). The apparent rate constant for dissociation of the second mant ADP is four times smaller than the first and much smaller than the rate of dissociation of MtMC1 by ATP or ADP. These results are explained by a model in which MC1.ADP is first dissociated from the microtubule by ATP, followed by rebinding to the microtubule by the ADP-containing head. Ncd may follow a different reaction pathway than does kinesin, but the differences in rate constants do not explain the opposite direction of motion. The kinetic evidence and the high ratio of motile velocity to ATPase support a nonprocessive, low duty cycle mechanism for the Ncd motor.
RFID-CoA: The RFID tags as certificates of authenticity

The inadequacy of the traditional, digitally encoded RFID tags in combating counterfeiting prompts us to investigate new hardware-enabled technologies that can complement the remote identification functionality of typical RFIDs in an effective and very low cost way. In this paper, we present RFID-CoA; a system that aims to render typical RFID tags physically unique and hard to near-exactly replicate by complementing them with random 3D scattering structures, which serve as certificates of authenticity (CoA). The unique near-field response, or “fingerprint”, of the CoAs is extracted as a set of S 21 curves by our reader prototype, the design and development details of which are discussed. The results of our performance analysis show that the intersection probability of the false positive and false negative error probability curves is inconceivably small (<10−200). The RFID-CoA tag's lifecycle from fabrication site to store is presented, and a strategy to block potential attacks is discussed. Our system bridges the world of RFID with a large array of anti-counterfeiting applications by exploiting “hardware-enabled”, modified-material scattering characteristics in the near-field. Based on our multifaceted analysis, we firmly believe that the demonstrated RFID-CoA technology can prove a valuable tool for the low-cost ubiquitous applicability of RFID technology against counterfeiting.