cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Dor no recém-nascido: percepções da equipe de enfermagem

Results are presented of a quantitative-qualitative research conducted with nursing professionals working in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit seeking to assess the knowledge they have of the pain felt by the newborn. Data were collected using an open and closed-question questionnaire, in August, 2002. The analysis showed that all subjects were female, with the greatest percentage around 20-29 years of age. The category of professional highly represented is that of auxiliaries, a large number of them working for more than 3 years in the profession. Many of them believe newborns feel pain of an intensity equal to that of adults. The participants believe a baby cry to be the best parameter to identify the presence of pain in the newborn, and most of these professionals try to sooth them by means of touch and analgesics. Results point to a limited knowledge of the influence the environment has on pain. All of the subjects of the study believe the concern towards pain should be emphasized, and they point the technical procedures as what triggers the pain. They are able to recognize an already installed pain, but they are not sure about what else might be involved in determining pain, other than the technical procedures.
Pulsating White Dwarf Stars

I briefly review the observed properties of pulsating white dwarfs. Examples of some of the applications of seismology to these stars demonstrate how they can provide useful constraints on stellar evolution theory.
Characteristics Mode Analysis of a dipole antenna loaded with DNG material

Characteristic Mode (CM) Analysis of a dipole antenna loaded with DNG material is presented. The eignevalues and eigencurrents are calculated as function of DNG material parameter variations. It is observed that by properly adjusting the DNG material loading the CM resonances of a dipole antenna can be shifted lower in frequency allowing antenna size reduction.
Ethical issues in perinatal genetics

Ethics is an essential dimension of perinatal genetics. This article introduces perinatologists to the ethical principles of beneficence and respect for autonomy and uses these ethical principles to articulate the ethical concept of the fetus as a patient. Together these constitute an ethical framework that we apply to risk assessment, in response to which women may be divided into four groups: prenatal genetic counseling, and the responsible management of pregnancies complicated by genetic anomalies of the fetus.
Early Sign Language Acquisition and the Development of Hand Preference in Young Children

Hand preference for signing and for nonsign actions was examined longitudinally in 24 young children (3 deaf, 21 hearing) with deaf parents. Most of these children showed a strong preference for their right hands in their sign production. This preference emerged early in their development, was relatively consistent over time, and predicted mature hand preference. Although most of the children also preferred to use their right hands in nonsign actions, their right-hand preference for signing was much stronger. Hand preference scores for two types of nonsign actions, communicative gestures and object actions, were significantly correlated with those for signing. Hand preference also was linked to rate of motor development but not to sign language acquisition. These findings are discussed with regard to current conceptualizations about the interrelationships among language, motor processes, and laterality.
Public health clinical demonstration project for smoking cessation in veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder

Veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder are at high risk for smoking and experience difficulty with smoking cessation. We designed this clinical demonstration project to provide a low-cost, feasibly implemented smoking cessation intervention that would maximize the number of smokers who accessed the intervention. Five hundred eighty-four veteran smokers were contacted by invitational letters. Interested veterans received follow-up telephone calls using standardized scripts offering three intervention resources: 1) a referral to the National Cancer Institute's Smoking Quitline, 2) web-based counseling, and 3) local Veteran Affairs pharmacologic treatment for smoking cessation. Twenty-three percent of survey recipients participated in the clinical program. Two months after these resources were offered by phone, follow-up phone calls indicated that 25% of participants providing follow-up information reported maintaining smoking abstinence. This clinical demonstration project was associated with a 2.6% impact (i.e., reach [31.1% of smokers accessed intervention] by efficacy [8.4% of those accessing intervention quit]), meaning that 2.6% of the total number of targeted smokers reported 8 week abstinence. Results suggested that this brief, low-cost intervention was feasible and promoted smoking cessation in veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder.
The Order of the Antipode of Finite-dimensional Hopf Algebra

Abstract Examples of finite-dimensional Hopf algebras over a field, whose antipodes have arbitrary even orders ≥4 as mappings, are furnished. The dimension of the Hopf algebra is qn+1, where the antipode has order 2q, q ≥ 2, and n is an arbitrary positive integer. The algebras are not semisimple, and neither they nor their dual algebras are unimodular.
Lipid raft-based membrane order is important for antigen-specific clonal expansion of CD4(+) T lymphocytes.

Lipid rafts are cholesterol and saturated lipid-rich, nanometer sized membrane domains that are hypothesized to play an important role in compartmentalization and spatiotemporal regulation of cellular signaling. Lipid rafts contribute to the plasma membrane order and to its spatial asymmetry, as well. The raft nanodomains on the surface of CD4+ T lymphocytes coalesce during their interaction with antigen presenting cells (APCs). Sensing of foreign antigen by the antigen receptor on CD4+ T cells occurs during these cell-cell interactions. In response to foreign antigen the CD4+ T cells proliferate, allowing the expansion of few antigen-specific primary CD4+ T cell clones. Proliferating CD4+ T cells specialize in their function by undergoing differentiation into appropriate effectors tailored to mount an effective adaptive immune response against the invading pathogen. To investigate the role of lipid raft-based membrane order in the clonal expansion phase of primary CD4+ T cells, we have disrupted membrane order by incorporating an oxysterol, 7-ketocholesterol (7-KC), into the plasma membrane of primary CD4+ T cells expressing a T cell receptor specific to chicken ovalbumin323–339 peptide sequence and tested their antigen-specific response. We report that 7-KC, at concentrations that disrupt lipid rafts, significantly diminish the c-Ovalbumin323–339 peptide-specific clonal expansion of primary CD4+ T cells. Our findings suggest that lipid raft-based membrane order is important for clonal expansion of CD4+ T cells in response to a model peptide.
On well-posed feedback systems - In an algebraic setting

The well-posedness, the complete solution, and the coprimeness of the feedback systems are presented in an algebraic setting. It is an extension of an earlier paper by Desoer et al. [1]. In particular, the condition on coprimeness and the existence of fractional representation in H are removed. In addition, it also resolved the case for non-linear operators.
A cepstral F statistic for detecting delay-fired seismic signals

Time- and frequency-domain approaches to detecting a consistent pattern of reflections on an ensemble of seismic recordings are developed. Such patterns are characteristic of mining bursts and not of nuclear explosions or earthquakes so that detecting a ripple delay structure can serve as one component for discrimination. In the frequency-domain approach, a generalization of cepstral analysis is used to derive an F statistic for detecting delay-fired events observed on an array. Detrended log-spectra are considered as realizations of stationary processes whose periodic components are frequencies, with periods proportional to delay-time differences. An F statistic is derived that is proportional to the stacked or summed cepstra and the spectrum of the stacked log-spectra. Advantages of the cepstral F statistic accrue from better resolution and the fact that statistical significance can be established for delay peaks. It is also easily incorporated into automatic detection systems. The frequency-domain appr...
Cytogenetic and other effects of the chemosterilants tepa, metepa, apholate and hempa in insects (a review)

Abstract A review of the literature revealed that the chemosterilants tepa (tris(1-aziridinyl)phosphine oxide), metepa (tris(2-methyl-1-aziridinyl)phosphine oxide), apholate (2,2,4,4,6,6-hexakis(1-aziridinyl)-2,2,4,4,6,6-hexahydro-1,3,5,2,4,6-triazatriphosphorine), and hempa (hexamethylmelamine) affected both reproductive and somatic tissues in over 65 species of insects. The effects were cytological, physiological, and genetic and varied from slight to severe. In some cases the deleterious effects may have been species-specific, but in general, they appeared to be dose-dependent. More than 150 publications are cited.
Vulnerability to assaultive violence: further specification of the sex difference in post-traumatic stress disorder.

Background. We examine potential sources of the sex differences in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the community.Methods. Data were obtained from a representative sample of 2181 persons aged 18–45 years in the Detroit primary metropolitan statistical area, which is a six-county area containing more than four million residents. A random digit dialling method was used to select the sample and a computer-assisted telephone interview was used to obtain the data. DSM-IV PTSD was assessed with respect to a randomly selected trauma from the list of qualifying traumas reported by each respondent.Results. The lifetime prevalence of exposure and the mean number of traumas were lower in females than males. The overall conditional risk of PTSD (i.e. the probability of PTSD among those exposed to a trauma) was approximately twofold higher in females than males, adjusting for the sex difference in the distribution of trauma types. The sex difference was due primarily to females' greater risk following assaultive violence. The sex difference in the avoidance and numbing symptom group following assaultive violence exceeded the sex differences in other symptom groups.Conclusions. Future research should focus on sex differences in the response to assaultive violence, including potential explanations for females' greater probability to experience avoidance and numbing.
Novel functionally grafted pseudo-semi-interpenetrating networks constructed by reactive linear-dendritic copolymers.

This paper describes the synthesis of amphiphilic pseudo-semi-interpenetrating polymer networks (pseudo-semi-IPNs) containing linear poly(styrene) and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) cross-linked through monodendritic fragments. A unique feature of the synthetic strategy is the permanent attachment of the linear segment to the PEG network by a transesterification reaction between the hydroxyl groups at both ends of the PEG and peripheral ethyl ester moieties in the monodendron portion of a linear poly(styrene)−dendritic poly(benzyl ether) AB block copolymer. The proceeding of the reaction is monitored by 1H NMR and size exclusion chromatography (SEC). The formation of an interlock structure between the linear block and the network matrix in the pseudo-semi-IPN is evidenced by the results from spectroscopic analyses and differential scanning calorimetry measurements. The accessibility of functional centers in the grafted semi-IPN is confirmed by model reactions with fluorescent markers, fluorescence spectrosco...
British Town and Country Planning: Local Participation.

The sacrifice of local autonomy and the subordination of individual rights to the implementation of public policy have long been prominent among the charges against planning writ large. Few would deny the existence of these potentials. While a generous optimism may assume that planners are motivated by public purpose alone, the experience of our time has too often demonstrated that power corrupts. And planning is uniquely power. On the other hand, though the vesting of authority commensurate with great ends necessarily provokes the threat of arbitrary decision, the crushing economic problems which face Britain today demand solution, and great power must be ventured. Happily, however, power is negotiable. A tradition of civil freedom and a responsible Parliament provide impressive sanctions against maladministration. Nor is authority inevitably the antagonist of liberty. Indeed, one may suggest, with Kant, that far from adversary, authority is the condition making liberty possible, for law is the foundation of freedom. From Robert Owen on, British socialists have insisted that socialism must mean a recasting of the political Weltanschauung of the individual. Historic concepts of individualism must be modified by a community ethic. Greater demands simultaneously are made of the individual. If planning is to succeed, he must become the perfect egoist, self-disciplined enough, virtuous enough, to forego immediate gains for those of a future he may never know. This is to ask intellectually that the dogma of automatism be abandoned in favor of a view bound up with evolution and relativity, the supereminent realities of the new science. The world becomes dynamic, pluralistic, a world in which synthesis and direction await planning. While planners are not unaware of the anti-rationalist challenge of planning,' nor ignorant of the sometimes compelling logic of those who see in the expanding periphery of national control a painful constriction of individual liberty, these are lesser imperatives, the former unduly pessimistic, if not undemocratic, the latter a conditional good assigned, with Wootton's "private producer freedoms," a relatively lower priority in the national hierarchy of ends.2
Exact solution for the gravitational field of a charged, magnetized, spinning mass

A family of solutions of the Einstein-Maxwell field equations is presented, corresponding to the exterior of stationaryaxisymmetric sources with charge, mass, angular momentum, and magnetic dipole moment. The Riemann tensor vanishes asymptotically for each member of the family; some solutions are asymptotically flat and some have NUT-like behavior asymptotically. For the asymptotically flat solutions, the gyromagnetic ratio may vary from zero to one. The corresponding value for the Kerr-Newman solution is one. A method for generating infinite chains of families of solutions of the Einstein-Maxwell equations is described.
Permeability of the blood-brain barrier to fructose and the anaerobic use of fructose in the brains of young mice.

—Fructose levels were determined in plasma and brain of 8- to 12-day-old mice at intervals after the injection of 30 mmol/kg intraperitoneally; controls received NaCl, 15 mmol/kg. In normal animals brain fructose increased very slowly despite a rapid rise in plasma levels (120 times the control value in 5 min). At 40 min the cerebral level was 1.54 ± 0.23 mmol/kg; the corresponding plasma level was 47.1 ± 4.8 mM. The data suggest that fructose can serve as a source of energy to the brain in times of critical need: during insulin hypoglycemia brain fructose increased to only 0.88 ± 0.05 mmol/kg during the same interval (40 min) despite plasma fructose values equal to those in control animals; also 30 s after cerebral ischemia (decapitation) brain fructose fell from a zero time value of 1.19 ± 0.09 mmol/kg (20 min after fructose injection) to 0.76 ± 0.06 mmol/kg (P= 0.005). Under both circumstances (hypoglycemia and ischemie anoxia) an apparent threshold concentration of fructose for utilization was observed—0.6–0.7 mmol/kg. The most likely explanation for this finding appears to be that this level of fructose was in the extracellular space of the brain. Hexokinase activity in brain homogenates of 8- to 12-day-old mice with fructose and ATP at concentrations found in vivo and during ischemie anoxia did not appear to be rate-limiting. We concluded that the major handicap to the use of fructose by the brain was the limited penetration of fructose from the blood to the brain.
Association of EEG alpha variants and alpha power with alcohol dependence in Mexican American young adults

Abstract Several studies support an association between electroencephalogram (EEG) voltage and alcohol dependence. However, the distribution of EEG variants also appears to differ depending on an individual's ethnic heritage, suggesting significant genetic stratification of this EEG phenotype. The present study's aims were to investigate the incidence of EEG alpha variants and spectral power in the alpha frequency range in Mexican American young adults based on gender, and personal and family history of alcohol dependence. Clinical ratings (high-, medium-, and low alpha voltage variants) and spectral characteristics of the EEG in the alpha frequency range (7.5–12Hz) were investigated in young adult (age 18–25 years) Mexican American men ( n =98) and women ( n =138) who were recruited from the community. Nineteen percent ( n =45) of the participants had a low-voltage alpha EEG variant, 18% had a high-voltage variant, and 63% had a medium-voltage variant. There were no significant differences in the distribution of the EEG variants based on family history of alcohol dependence. There was a significant relationship between gender and the three alpha variants ( χ 2 =9.7; df =2; P χ 2 =5.8; df =2; P F =4.4; df =1,96; P F =5.3; df =1.96; P
Early cerebrovascular inflammation in a transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease

Amyloid plaques associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) induce inflammatory responses associated with activated microglia and reactive astrocytes, which exacerbate neurodegeneration through release of inflammatory cytokines, reactive oxygen species, and other factors. Inflammation contributes to neurodegeneration at later stages of AD, but it may also play a role in early disease pathogenesis. We found that before plaque deposition, amyloid precursor protein (APP)/presenilin 1 (PSEN1) transgenic mice (PSAPP mice), a well-characterized model of AD, exhibit evidence of cerebrovascular inflammation. Expression of the endothelial cell-specific antigen MECA-32 (mouse endothelial cell antigen-32) was upregulated in the cerebrovasculature of young PSAPP mice (3 months old) and was similar to that observed in mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, a model of multiple sclerosis characterized by neuroinflammation. MECA-32 is normally expressed in central and peripheral vasculature throughout development, but expression in the cerebrovasculature is downregulated on establishment of the blood-brain barrier (BBB). However, CNS inflammation triggers re-expression of MECA-32 in compromised cerebrovasculature. Our study indicates that MECA-32 may be a robust marker of cerebrovascular inflammation and compromised BBB integrity, triggered by soluble amyloid-β early in disease pathogenesis.
Calibration improvements to electronically scanned pressure systems and preliminary statistical assessment

Orifice-to-orifice inconsistencies in data acquired with an electronically-scanned pressure system at the beginning of a wind tunnel experiment forced modifications to the standard, instrument calibration procedures. These modifications included a large increase in the number of calibration points which would allow a critical examination of the calibration curve-fit process, and a subsequent post-test reduction of the pressure data. Evaluation of these data has resulted in an improved functional representation of the pressure-voltage signature for electronically-scanned pressures sensors, which can reduce the errors due to calibration curve fit to under 0.10 percent of reading compared to the manufacturer specified 0.10 percent of full scale. Application of the improved calibration function allows a more rational selection of the calibration set-point pressures. These pressures should be adjusted to achieve a voltage output which matches the physical shape of the pressure-voltage signature of the sensor. This process is conducted in lieu of the more traditional approach where a calibration pressure is specified and the resulting sensor voltage is recorded. The fifteen calibrations acquired over the two-week duration of the wind tunnel test were further used to perform a preliminary, statistical assessment of the variation in the calibration process. The results allowed the estimation of the bias uncertainty for a single instrument calibration; and, they form the precursor for more extensive and more controlled studies in the laboratory.
Comparison of atmospheric mercury speciation and deposition at nine sites across central and eastern North America

[1] This study presents >5 cumulative years of tropospheric mercury (Hg) speciation measurements, over the period of 2003-2009, for eight sites in the central and eastern United States and one site in coastal Puerto Rico. The purpose of this research was to identify local and regional processes that impact Hg speciation and deposition (wet + dry) across a large swath of North America. Sites sampled were selected to represent both a wide range of mercury exposure and environmental conditions. Seasonal mean concentrations of elemental Hg (1.27 ± 0.31 to 2.94 ± 1.57 ng m -3 ; x ± σ), reactive gaseous mercury (RGM; 1.5 ± 1.6 to 63.3 ± 529 pg m -3 ), and fine particulate Hg (1.2 ± 1.4 to 37.9 ± 492 pg m -3 ) were greatest at sites impacted by Hg point sources. Diel bin plots of Hg° and RGM suggest control by a variety of local/regional processes including impacts from Hg point sources and boundary layer/free tropospheric interactions as well as from larger-scale processes affecting Hg speciation (i.e., input of the global Hg pool, RGM formed from oxidation of Hg° by photochemical compounds at coastal sites, and elemental Hg depletion during periods of dew formation). Comparison of wet Hg deposition (measured), RGM and fine particulate Hg dry deposition (calculated using a multiple resistance model), and anthropogenic point source emissions varied significantly between sites. Significant correlation between emission sources and dry deposition was observed but was highly dependant upon inclusion of data from two sites with exceptionally high deposition. Findings from this study highlight the importance of environmental setting on atmospheric Hg cycling and deposition rates.
Post-transcriptional regulation of a salt-inducible alfalfa gene encoding a putative chimeric proline-rich cell wall protein

A cDNA previously shown to identify a salt-inducible root-specific transcript in Medicago sativa was used to screen an alfalfa library for the corresponding genomic sequence. One positive clone was recovered. The nucleotide sequence of a subclone contained a 329 bp 5′ region upstream of the first ATG codon, a 1143 bp coding segment, and a 447 bp 3′-untranslated region interrupted by a single 475 bp intron. Translation of the coding segment, which was designated MsPRP2, suggested it encodes a chimeric 40 569 Da cell wall protein with an amino-terminal signal sequence, a repetitive proline-rich sequence, and a cysteine-rich carboxyl-terminal sequence homologous to nonspecific lipid transfer proteins. The 3′-untranslated region of MsPRP2 contained a sequence similar to one found to destabilize mRNAs transcribed from the elicitor-regulated proline-rich protein gene PvPRP1. Transcription run-on experiments using nuclei from salt-sensitive and salt-tolerant alfalfa callus suggested that the accumulation of MsPRP2 transcripts in salt-tolerant alfalfa cells grown in the presence of salt is due primarly to increased mRNA stability. The MsPRP2 gene thus may be a useful model for studying post-transcriptional salt-regulated expression of cell wall proteins.
Breast epithelial tissue morphology is affected in 3D cultures by species-specific collagen-based extracellular matrix

Collagen-based gels have been widely used to determine the factors that regulate branching morphogenesis in the mammary gland. The patterns of biomechanical gradients and collagen reorganization influence the shape and orientation of epithelial structures in three-dimensional (3D) conditions. We explored in greater detail whether collagen type I fibers with distinct biomechanical and fiber-assembling properties, isolated from either bovine or rat tail tendon, differentially affected the epithelial phenotype in a tissue culture model of the human breast. Rat tail collagen fibers were densely packed into significantly longer and thicker bundles compared to those of the bovine type (average fascicle length 7.35 and 2.29 μm, respectively; p = 0.0001), indicating increased fiber alignment and biomechanical enablement in the former. MCF10A epithelial cells formed elaborated branched tubular structures in bovine but only nonbranched ducts and acini in rat tail collagen matrices. Ductal branching in bovine collagen was associated with interactions between neighboring structures mediated through packed collagen fibers; these fiber-mediated interactions were absent in rat tail collagen gels. Normal breast fibroblasts increased the final size and number of ducts only in rat tail collagen gels while not affecting branching. Our results suggest that the species of origin of collagen used in organotypic cultures may influence epithelial differentiation into alveolar or ductal structures and the patterns of epithelial branching. These observations underscore the importance of considering the species of origin and fiber alignment properties of collagen when engineering branching organs in 3D matrices and interpreting their role in the tissue phenotype.
Pigment compositions, spectral properties, and energy transfer efficiencies between the xanthophylls and chlorophylls in the major and minor pigment-protein complexes of photosystem II.

Absorption, fluorescence, and fluorescence excitation spectra have been measured from CP26, CP29, and monomeric and trimeric LHCIIb light-harvesting complexes isolated from Photosystem II subchloroplast particles from spinach. The complexes were purified using a combination of isoelectric focusing and sucrose gradient ultracentrifugation. The chlorophyll (Chl) and xanthophyll pigment compositions were measured using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Using the pigment compositions from the HPLC analysis as a starting point, the absorption spectral profiles of the complexes have been reconstructed from the individual absorption spectra obtained for each of the pigments. Also, the fluorescence excitation spectra of the complexes have been deconvoluted. The data reveal the energy transfer efficiencies between Chl b and Chl a and between specific xanthophylls and Chl a in the complexes. The spectral analyses reveal the underlying features of the highly congested spectral profiles associated with t...
Multi-tasking: nuclear transcription factors with novel roles in the mitochondria

Coordinated responses between the nucleus and mitochondria are essential for the maintenance of homeostasis. For over 15 years, pools of nuclear transcription factors (TFs), such as p53 and nuclear hormone receptors, have been observed in the mitochondria. The contribution of the mitochondrial pool of these TFs to their well-defined biological actions is in some cases clear and in others not well understood. Recently, a small mitochondrial pool of the TF signal transducer and activator of transcription factor 3 (STAT3) was shown to modulate the activity of the electron transport chain (ETC). The mitochondrial function of STAT3 encompasses both its biological actions in the heart as well as its oncogenic effects. This review highlights advances in our understanding of how mitochondrial pools of nuclear TFs may influence the function of this organelle.
Interrelationships between descriptive texture profile sensory panel and descriptive attribute sensory panel evaluations of beef Longissimus and Semitendinosus muscles.

The objectives of our study were to examine the relationships between highly trained and experienced descriptive texture profile (DTP) sensory panel and trained descriptive attribute (DA) sensory panel evaluations, and to evaluate the effects of muscle fiber orientation on sensory panel tenderness scores of beef longissimus lumborum (LL) and semitendinosus (ST) muscles. Eighteen LL and 18 ST muscles were cut into 2.54 cm steaks and cooked to 71°C; then 1.27×1.27×2.54-cm cubes were removed using two methods (parallel with the muscle fiber orientation and perpendicular to the steak cut surface) and presented to the two sensory panels. Both panels detected differences among replications (muscles from different carcasses); however, a panelist × replication effect occurred for the DA sensory panel. Both panels detected differences (p<0.05) in LL muscle fiber orientation for most attributes related to tenderness; however, few differences were detected for flavor and juiciness traits for either muscle. Numerous significant (r ⩾ 0.50 or ⩽ −0.50) correlations occurred between DTP and DA panel attributes and were generally higher when cubes were cut perpendicular to the steak cut surface. The DTP panelists were more consistent in their evaluations of texture attributes; however, they were more sensitive to muscle fiber orientation. Both panels were effective in detecting differences among replications.
Hadamard's theorem for locally Lipschitzian maps

If the derivativef’(p) of a continuously differentiable mapffrom R” into itself is an invertible linear transformation for each p, then by the classical inverse function theorem f is a local homeomorphism: every p has a neighborhood U mapped homeomorphically onto its image f(U). A natural and intriguing question-under what further conditions will f be a homeomorphism of R” onto itself-was answered in one way by Hadamard [8] in 1906, using a condition on the norms ]]B]] = max{]Bh]: ]h] = I} of the inverses B = f ‘(p)-‘:
The Influence of S-C-R Compatibility and Resource Competition on Performance of Threat Evaluation and Fault Diagnosis

Stimulus/central processing/response compatibility defines the optimum assignment of tasks to input modalities (auditory, A and visual, V) and output modalities (manual, M and speech, S). Spatial tasks are S-C-R compatible with visual/manual assignments. Verbal tasks are compatible with auditory/speech assignments. Ten subjects time-shared a spatial task of aerial threat evaluation with a verbal task of fault diagnosis. All four i/o modality combinations of the threat task were performed while the fault task was performed with A/M and V/M assignments. The joint effects of compatibility, and competition between tasks for input and output modalities were demonstrated. When resource competition was held constant, the effects of compatibility were found to be enhanced in dual task conditions. When both influences varied they were demonstrated to counteract in certain conditions and balance each other's effect.
Hedonic contrast and condensation: good stimuli make mediocre stimuli less good and less different.

Loud sounds make soft sounds softer (contrast) and also make them less discriminable (which we callcondensation). We report on parallel phenomena in hedonics: Good stimuli reduce the pleasantness of less good stimuli, and also reduce people’s preferences among the less good stimuli. In Experiment 1, subjects rated the pleasantness of fruit juices diluted to approximate hedonic neutrality. Subjects who had just previously drunk and rated some good-tasting full-strength juices rated the diluted juices lower than did subjects who had not (hedonic contrast). In Experiment 2, subjects drank pairs of diluted juices and rated their preference for one juice over the other. Subjects who had just previously drunk and rated pairs of full-strength juices gave lower preference ratings between the diluted juices than did subjects who had not (condensation). Thus the same stimulus set produced contrast in Experiment 1 and condensation in Experiment 2, paralleling results in loudness.
Hydrodynamic limit for a Fleming-Viot type system

We consider a system of N Brownian particles evolving independently in a domain D. As soon as one particle reaches the boundary it is killed and one of the other particles is chosen uniformly and splits into two independent particles resuming a new cycle of independent motion until the next boundary hit. We prove the hydrodynamic limit for the joint law of the empirical measure process and the average number of visits to the boundary as N approaches infinity.
The influence of semantic fit on on-line sentence processing

The interactive influence of verb complement preferences and noun phrase semantic fit on resolution of temporary syntactic ambiguity was investigated in an eye movement experiment. The present semantic fit manipulation included noun phrases that fit well as direct objects of the verbs that they followed and noun phrases that were possible but less likely direct objects of the verbs in question. This contrasted with existing research on the use of verb complement preferences and semantic fit during sentence processing, in which processing of noun phrases that are possible direct objects has been compared with processing of noun phrases that are not possible direct objects of the verbs that they follow. Verb complement preference information and noun phrase semantic fit interacted at early stages of on-line sentence processing. Implications of these results for interactive and structural models of sentence processing are discussed.
NCL Implementation of Dual-Rail 2 S Complement 8×8 Booth2 Multiplier using Static and Semi-Static Primitives

In this work, we use static and semi-static versions of NULL Convention Logic (NCL) primitives (i.e., threshold gates) to implement a dual-rail 8times8 2s complement multiplier using the Modified Booth2 algorithm for partial product generation and a Wallace tree for partial product summation. We establish the multiplier's functionality utilizing VHDL-based simulations of the gate-level structural design. The design is then implemented at the transistor-level and layout-level using both static and semi-static threshold gates, for a 1.8V 0.18mum TSMC CMOS process; and these two implementations are compared in terms of area, power, and speed.
The phylogenetic significance of bone types in euteleost fishes

The paradentary is a small, sometimes dentigerous element in the lower jaw of some atherinomorph neoteleost fishes. Identification of the paradentary as a neomorphic, perichondrally ossified bone prompted re-examination of theories of the association of bone and teeth in teleost fishes. Teeth on a chondral lower jaw bone might be explained simply by epidermal-mesodermal interactions. Since the work of Kolliker in 1859, it has been known that there are two basic types of bone in teleost fishes: cellular bone, characterized by a matrix that has enclosed osteoblasts or osteocytes; and acellular bone, characterized by a relatively featureless matrix that lacks these bone-forming cells. Cellular bone is typical of lower teleosts, whereas acellular bone is typical of higher teleosts. Ontogenetic data indicate that acellular bone is derived relative to cellular bone. Even though identification of cellular and acellular bone can be made readily with histological preparations, acellular bone has been used infrequently as a character in analyses of teleost phytogeny. Acellular bone is considered here to be a derived character within teleost fishes. It is found in all Neoteleostei as well as some, but not all Salmoniformes. Independent of studies of bone, derived types of teeth in teleosts have been described in terms of their failure to become completely mineralized. Acellular bone and teeth of higher teleosts share several properties, including a large fraction of collagen. Teleosts lack a parathyroid gland; bone type is critical to the mechanism of calcium regulation. It is proposed that the character of acellular bone be incorporated into phylogenetic analyses of teleost fishes by correlating it with derived types of tooth structure.
Amyloid Formation in Light Chain Amyloidosis

Light chain amyloidosis is one of the unique examples within amyloid diseases where the amyloidogenic precursor is a protein that escapes the quality control machinery and is secreted from the cells to be circulated in the bloodstream. The immunoglobulin light chains are produced by an abnormally proliferative monoclonal population of plasma cells that under normal conditions produce immunoglobulin molecules such as IgG, IgM or IgA. Once the light chains are in circulation, the proteins misfold and deposit as amyloid fibrils in numerous tissues and organs, causing organ failure and death. While there is a correlation between the thermodynamic stability of the protein and the kinetics of amyloid formation, we have recently found that this correlation applies within a thermodynamic range, and it is only a helpful correlation when comparing mutants from the same protein. Light chain amyloidosis poses unique challenges because each patient has a unique protein sequence as a result of the selection of a germline gene and the incorporation of somatic mutations. The exact location of the misfolding process is unknown as well as the full characterization of all of the toxic species populated during the amyloid formation process in light chain amyloidosis.
Determining Rapid-Setting Material Suitability for Expedient Pavement Repairs: Full-Scale Traffic Tests and Laboratory Testing Protocol

Numerous commercial off-the-shelf products have become available for small surface repairs in portland cement concrete (PCC) pavements, providing short set times, high early strengths, and good durability to withstand heavy loads. These materials have been used successfully for both small repairs in the transportation industry and industrial applications in which the repair was less than 0.03 m3 (1 ft3). Applying these products for larger-volume repairs while still achieving a traffickable surface within 3 h of pavement repair has been a challenge. Experience gained from testing these products for full-depth repairs provides guidance for repair techniques that will expedite opening airfield or highway pavements to traffic and minimize the frequency of maintenance activities. An investigation conducted at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, in Vicksburg, Mississippi, examined nine rapidsetting materials for repair of PCC pavements through laboratory characterization and full-scale traff...
Investigating the numerical effects of ascertainment bias in linkage analysis: Development of methods and preliminary results

It is general practice to have nonsingle ascertainment of pedigrees for linkage studies, along with intrafamilial sampling that is dependent on who among the related individuals was initially ascertained (Proband dependent or PD sampling). Vieland and Hodge [1995; 1996] have shown that under these conditions, the likelihood used in calculating the lod score is not strictly correct and can produce asymptotically biased estimates of the recombination fraction, θ. However they speculated that this bias would be small in most applications. This paper presents preliminary work aimed at quantifying the numerical magnitude of the bias introduced by PD sampling and nonsingle ascertainment in linkage analysis. We considered five generating models where we varied the ascertainment procedure, intrafamilial sampling scheme, and the sample size, for each model. In this limited initial set of simulations, asymptotic bias θˇ in appears to be trivial, while PD sampling procedures can increase the efficiency of θˇ. These preliminary results support the view that the advantages of unsystematic ascertainment may offset any small estimation bias that may arise. © 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Morphology and sedimentary processes in and around Tortugas and Agassiz Sea Valleys, southern Straits of Florida

Abstract Continuous seismic reflection profiling and new bathymetry data in the southern Straits of Florida over an area dominated by the Tortugas and Agassiz Valley systems have allowed a more detailed analysis of the morphology and sedimentary processes active in this region. Four dives in the submersible DSV “Alvin” supplement the seismic and bathymetric data. The continental slope in the study area can be divided into two physiographic provinces: (I) an irregular topography controlled by the Florida Escarpment west of Tortugas Valley; and (II) the remainder of the continental slope which contains the majority of features under investigation. Seismic data indicate that the valleys are being filled shoreward of 290 fathoms (530 m) by a wedge of prograding sediments derived from the Florida shelf. The morphology of the two valley systems reflects probable differences of origin. Tortugas Valley appears to have originated coincident with the eastern terminus of the Florida Escarpment and province-I-type topography. The Agassiz valleys may have an origin associated with jointing patterns observed by divers aboard DSV “Alvin”. Current meter readings and bottom photographs from “Alvin” indicate that currents are relatively sluggish and not very effective in the transport of sediment within the valleys. An area of undulations west of Pourtales Terrace was investigated and concluded to be erosional in origin. Slumping appears to have played a large part in shaping many features in the study area. The bottom morphology and sediment distribution on the continental slope and in the axis of the Straits of Florida suggest that bottom currents are active in shaping the entire area.
Production of submicron SiC particles by d.c. thermal plasma: a systematic approach based on injection parameters

Aiming at producing high temperature structural ceramics, ultra-fine SiC powders were synthesized by the gas phase reaction of silicon tetrachloride with methane in a d.c. thermal plasma. The influence of parameters as the SiCl4 feeding rate, C/Si and H2/C molar ratios and internal pressure on the powder properties were investigated. The SiC powders were characterized by chemical analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and scanning electronic microscopy. The experimental set-up allows the production of β-SiC powders at a rate of 200 g h−1 with particle size around 0.1 μm. The main impurities in the as-produced powder handled at ambient atmosphere are: oxygen (1.8–2.5%) and free carbon (3–4%). Interesting relationships were found between the SiCl4 feeding rate and the H2/C molar ratio and between the C/Si molar ratio and the internal pressure. The internal pressure plays a major role in controlling the particle size.
Statistics on the macrophysical properties of trade wind cumuli over the tropical western Atlantic

[1] This study presents a comprehensive statistical overview of the macrophysical properties of trade wind cumulus clouds over the tropical western Atlantic using 152 scenes taken from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) between September and December 2004. The size distribution, shapes, and spatial distribution of cumulus clouds were examined with ASTER near-infrared data at 15 m resolution. The height distribution of these cumulus clouds was derived from ASTER thermal infrared data at 90 m resolution. The size distribution of cumuli exhibited a power law form and an exponent of 2.19 with a correlation coefficient of 0.99 using a direct power law fit method. The total cloud fraction of trade wind cumulus was 0.086, half of which was contributed from clouds smaller than 2 km in equivalent area diameter. An area-perimeter power law was observed with a dimension of 1.28 and a correlation coefficient of 0.87. The majority of cloudy pixels had cloud top altitudes around 1 km and increasing altitude with increasing cloud equivalent area diameter. Seventy-five percent of clouds have a nearest neighbor within a distance of 10 times their area-equivalent radius. Our results are compared to other studies of small cumulus taken over different parts of the world observed using different instruments. The statistics of cumuli observed in this study are poorly related to synoptic scale meteorological conditions from reanalysis data.
Participants' perspectives on cognitive–behavioral therapy for adherence and depression in HIV

As part of the process of developing cognitive–behavioral therapy (CBT) for medical adherence and depression (Safren, Gonzalez, & Soroudi, 2007), the authors conducted exit interviews among 14 HIV-infected patients who received the intervention, and transcribed, coded, and analyzed these data. The authors concluded that CBT was structured yet flexible, developed self-awareness emphasized social support, and involved therapist empathy and supportiveness. Limitations included the discomfort of discussing personal information and the impact of feeling ill on attendance and homework completion. Suggestions included more sessions, more flexibility in scheduling appointments, and more realistic and clear expectations regarding homework. These results provide insights about strengths and limitations of this psychotherapy with medically ill patients and may help to maximize intervention effectiveness and client acceptability.
Chicken Embryos as a Potential New Model for Early Onset Type i Diabetes

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of blindness among the American working population. The purpose of this study is to establish a new diabetic animal model using a cone-dominant avian species to address the distorted color vision and altered cone pathway responses in prediabetic and early diabetic patients. Chicken embryos were injected with either streptozotocin (STZ), high concentration of glucose (high-glucose), or vehicle at embryonic day 11. Cataracts occurred in varying degrees in both STZ- and high glucose-induced diabetic chick embryos at E18. Streptozotocin-diabetic chicken embryos had decreased levels of blood insulin, glucose transporter 4 (Glut4), and phosphorylated protein kinase B (pAKT). In STZ-injected E20 embryos, the ERG amplitudes of both a- and b-waves were significantly decreased, the implicit time of the a-wave was delayed, while that of the b-wave was significantly increased. Photoreceptors cultured from STZ-injected E18 embryos had a significant decrease in L-type voltage-gated calcium channel (L-VGCC) currents, which was reflected in the decreased level of L-VGCCα1D subunit in the STZ-diabetic retinas. Through these independent lines of evidence, STZ-injection was able to induce pathological conditions in the chicken embryonic retina, and it is promising to use chickens as a potential new animal model for type I diabetes.
Long wavelength GaInNAsSb/GaNAsSb multiple quantum well lasers

The high demand for 1.3-1.55 /spl mu/m lasers has led to the investigation of GaInNAsSb/GaNAsSb on GaAs. In-plane lasers operating out to 1.49 /spl mu/m, with threshold current density of 930 A/cm/sup 2/ per quantum well and pulsed power up to 70 mW, are presented. In addition, photoluminescence out to 1.6 /spl mu/m from GaInNAsSb quantum wells was observed.