cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Convergent and Divergent Mechanisms of Epileptogenesis in mTORopathies

Hyperactivation of the mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) due to mutations in genes along the PI3K-mTOR pathway and the GATOR1 complex causes a spectrum of neurodevelopmental disorders (termed mTORopathies) associated with malformation of cortical development and intractable epilepsy. Despite these gene variants’ converging impact on mTORC1 activity, emerging findings suggest that these variants contribute to epilepsy through both mTORC1-dependent and -independent mechanisms. Here, we review the literature on in utero electroporation-based animal models of mTORopathies, which recapitulate the brain mosaic pattern of mTORC1 hyperactivity, and compare the effects of distinct PI3K-mTOR pathway and GATOR1 complex gene variants on cortical development and epilepsy. We report the outcomes on cortical pyramidal neuronal placement, morphology, and electrophysiological phenotypes, and discuss some of the converging and diverging mechanisms responsible for these alterations and their contribution to epileptogenesis. We also discuss potential therapeutic strategies for epilepsy, beyond mTORC1 inhibition with rapamycin or everolimus, that could offer personalized medicine based on the gene variant.
Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis Versus Automated Peritoneal Dialysis – Are There Differences in Outcomes?

This chapter summarizes available studies that focus on the evidence that compares treatment with continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) or automated peritoneal dialysis (APD) on clinically meaningful outcomes. Published evidence, primarily from observational studies, has been unable to consistently demonstrate any difference in the rate of loss of residual kidney function, peritonitis rate, volume balance, technique survival, mortality, or health-related quality of life in individuals undergoing CAPD compared with those undergoing APD. Given these considerations, it appears that patient choice should drive the decision about PD modality.
Neoadjuvant chemotherapy for advanced stage endometrial cancer: A systematic review

Objective While primary cytoreductive surgery (PCS) is considered the standard of care for women who present with stage IV endometrial cancer, neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) followed by interval cytoreductive surgery (ICS) has emerged as an alternative treatment strategy. We summarized the literature and compared outcomes of PCS compared to NACT and ICS. Methods We conducted a systematic search on PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Scopus for articles published from January 1, 1990 to December 31, 2020. Key search terms included multiple descriptors of advanced disease status in combination with "endometrial cancer" and "neoadjuvant chemotherapy". Our review included studies that examined survival and surgical outcomes of patients with stage III or IV endometrial cancer treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by interval cytoreductive surgery versus those who received primary cytoreductive surgery. We excluded studies examining only patients with leiomyosarcomas, carcinosarcomas, and stromal sarcomas due to the biologic heterogeneity of these malignancies. Results The nine included studies encompassed 5,844 patients, of which 1,317 (22.5%) received NACT and 4,527 received PCS (77.5%). With the exception of a single study, all were retrospective observational studies or case series. Use of NACT in patients with stage IV EC increased from 16.0% in 2010 to 23.9% in 2015. Five studies analyzed median overall survival and all but one reported no significant difference between NACT + ICS vs. PCS. Optimal cytoreduction (<1 cm of residual disease) rates were similar across both treatment groups in three separate analyses, however pooled data suggest improved rates of optimal cytoreduction for NACT + ICS vs. PCS patients (81.9% vs. 51.5% respectively). Patients receiving NACT experienced significantly shorter hospital admissions and lower operative times compared to PCS counterparts. Conclusions NACT followed by ICS reduces perioperative morbidity while offering similar overall survival.
Progesterone-induced glycogen accumulation in human endometrium during organ culture.

Abstract An organ culture system was used to evaluate the response of human proliferative endometrium to progesterone stimulation. The glycogen content of proliferative tissue was increased as much as thirteenfold during organ culture in media containing progesterone. The steroid-induced increase in tissue glycogen was detectable after 16 hours and reached a maximum at 48 and 72 hours of culture. Progesterone induced a significant increase in glycogen at a media concentration of 1.6 × 10 −6 M and a maximal increase at 3.2 × 10 −7 to 3.2 × 10 −6 M. At higher media concentrations of progesterone (1.6 × 10 −5 M), glycogen levels failed to reach the maximum obtainable. The extent of the response correlated poorly with the initial glycogen content of the tissue and not at all with the initial content of high-affinity progesterone-binding sites in cytosol. Addition of estradiol-17β to medium (10 −10 M to 10 −7 ) had no effect on the progesterone-induced increase in tissue glycogen. Delaying the addition of progesterone to the cultures for 24 hours resulted in a diminished glycogen response; the reduced response may be related to a rapid decrease in high-affinity progesterone-binding sites as measured in cytosol prepared from tissues cultured in the absence of progesterone. High-affinity progesterone-binding sites in endometrial cytosol were found to decrease rapidly during the first 24 hours of culture. The addition of cycloheximide or actinomycin D to the culture media inhibited the increase in tissue glycogen caused by progesterone. These results demonstrate that progesterone can induce an in vitro response in human proliferative endometrium similar to that seen in vivo. The response of the endometrium is reproducible and allows for comparisons between grouped data obtained by using tissues from several different donors.
Major thrombocytopenia after balloon-expandable transcatheter aortic valve replacement: prognostic implications and comparison to surgical aortic valve replacement.

Objectives We sought to investigate the magnitude and clinical importance of thrombocytopenia post transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Background Thrombocytopenia has been observed after TAVR but has not been well studied. Methods Major thrombocytopenia (platelet count <100 × 109/L) was studied following aortic valve interventions in a single center. Changes in platelets were compared in 246 patients undergoing balloon-expandable TAVR and a similar population of 57 cases undergoing surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR in the US PARTNER IA trial). Results An early drop in platelets was seen on the day of intervention. The drop day 1 post procedure was similar but slightly greater with SAVR vs. TAVR. In both platelet counts continued to drop, reaching a nadir of approximately 50–60% of the baseline platelet count at day 2–3, starting to recover after day 5. Early major thrombocytopenia occurred post TAVR in 37% of patients but was not significantly related to major bleeding (OR 0.89, 95% CI 0.51–1.60, P = 0.69) or risk of stroke (HR 0.61, 95% CI 0.16–2.20, P = 0.45); there was a trend to greater acute kidney injury (OR 1.76, 95% CI 0.95–3.26, P = 0.073) and mortality (HR 1.47, 95% CI 0.98–2.22, P = 0.065). Major thrombocytopenia was persistent in 7.7% of patients and this was independently associated with mortality (HR 3.65, 95% CI 1.63–8.16, P = 0.002). Conclusions Post-TAVR thrombocytopenia is a common phenomenon and its magnitude appears similar to that seen after SAVR. It is most often transient, not associated with adverse sequelae and, unless persistent, should be managed in an expectant fashion. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Reduction in the toxicity of fission product wastes through transmutation with deuterium-tritium fusion neutrons

A waste management concept that employs irradiation of fission products in fusion reactor blankets is evaluated. The purpose of the irradiation is to reduce the toxicity of the material to be commi...
Open Adoption and Adolescence

In open adoptions, birth and adoptive families exchange identifying information and have contact. Although most adoptions today include some form of openness, much of the public remains wary of thi...
Chemical studies of isolated myofibrils in vitro. I. The role of magnesium, calcium and nitrogen-phosphorus partition in contraction induced with adenosinetriphosphate.

Abstract 1. 1. Isolated, structurally intact rabbit skeletal myofibrils contracted instantaneously when ATP was added in the presence of magnesium ions. 2. 2. An ATPase associated with the myofibrils split added ATP, yielding inorganic phosphate and ADP, neither of which was permanently bound to the contracted myofibril. Furthermore, there was no significant loss of nitrogenous material from the myofibrils during contraction unless it was accompanied by an equal shift of nitrogen from the suspending medium into the myofibrils. 3. 3. ATPase was active both before and after contraction. Dialyzed magnesium-depleted myofibrils did not contract but split added ATP, indicating that ATP-splitting alone is not a sufficient event to cause contraction. Fully contracted myofibrils retained ATPase activity despite the absence of structural changes accompanying this activity. 4. 4. Dialyzed magnesium-depleted myofibrils contracted instantaneously and split ATP when first magnesium ions and then ATP were added; but when calcium ions and then ATP were added, contraction did not occur despite ATPase activity. 5. 5. There was no evidence of antagonism between these ions, since myofibrils to which were added both calcium and magnesium ions followed by ATP contracted and split ATP. 6. 6. Although contraction was not obtained without the addition of ATP, it has not been shown that ATP splitting is essential for contraction.
Nebraska High School Students' Computer Skills and Attitudes.

AbstractThe widely held conception based on previous studies is that differences exist between gender and racial groups in their attitudes toward and their usage of computer technology. This study used a survey with many open-ended questions to investigate possible differences between high school males and females and racial groups in coeducational and same-sex schools in Nebraska in their attitudes, use, and career interest in technology. Results indicate some areas of difference and some commonalities between gender and racial groups. Hispanics showed a significantly higher interest in computer careers than any other racial group. Implications for educators are discussed.
Tutorials [2 abstracts]

These tutorials discuss the following: Statistical Adaptive Test Methods Targeting “Zero Defect” IC Quality and Reliability; and Testing TSV-Based 3D Stacked ICs.
Hypertonic dehydration in infancy.

This article points out certain areas of clinical significance that may serve to identify the hypertonic group of infants from a population of dehyradated children to demonostrate some of the pathologic physiology of the condition and to help indicate optimal therapeutic procedures. Increased concentrations of sodium and chloride in extracellular fluid are the biochemical characteristics of dehydration. But the genesis of hypernatremia and hyperchloremia is in the relatively greater expenditure of water than electrolyte via the skin lungs feces and urine. In these hypertonic infants the water deficit in primarily intracellular however and cation deficits are minimal. The clinical signs to look for in a population of dehydrated infants which denote possible hypertonicity include varying degrees of depression of the central nervous system ranging from lethargy to convulsons to coma. The traditional signs of water deficit associated with dehydration are absent although all other classical signs of dehydration exist. For repair of this hypertonic condition dilute solutions of electrolyte are indicated. But if rapidly adjusted the shock seems to further accentuate the central nervous system effects in these infants; therefore repair is best carried out over a 2-3 day period rather than quickly.
An altered glucose concentration increases plasma membrane injury in alveolar cells

Lung injury has been associated with such insults as inflammation, infection, transfusion of blood products and mechanical ventilation with high tidal volumes (VALI). In the critically ill, intensive control of hyperglycemia with insulin results in decreased mortality and length of ICU stay. Whether or not abnormal glucose concentration contributes to VALI is unknown. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of an altered glucose environment in lung cell injury.
Comments on the QUAD scheme for electronic band structure calculations

Abstract The QUAD and the Gilat-Raubenheimer schemes for calculating densities of states are discussed on a comparative basis. A semiquantitative analysis is drawn to enable such a comparison for tests of accuracy and convergence.
17α-estradiol is neuroprotective in male and female rats in a model of early brain injury

Abstract One of the most critical times in the human lifespan is the late embryonic/early postnatal period, due to the careful orchestration of numerous events leading to normal brain development. This period is also characterized by a heightened incidence of harmful events that act via the GABAergic system, including hypoxia–ischemia, seizures and drug exposure from maternal circulation (e.g., alcohol, barbiturates). Unfortunately, there are few effective means of attenuating damage in the immature brain. In the current investigation, we documented the effect of 17α-estradiol, a natural epimer of 17β-estradiol that has potent estrogen receptor-independent actions, on excessive GABAA receptor-induced damage to the neonatal brain. We observed that treatment with 17α-estradiol significantly attenuates the GABAA receptor-induced reduction in hippocampal volume and impaired hippocampal-dependent performance on the Morris water maze and radial arm maze. 17α-Estradiol-mediated neuroprotection is hypothesized to be achieved by attenuating GABAA receptor-induced cell loss, assessed in primary hippocampal cultures using both the lactate dehydrogenase assay and TUNEL, with equivalent prevention of cell loss in the presence or absence of the estrogen receptor antagonist, ICI-182,780. These data highlight one of the initial investigations of the neuroprotective potential of 17α-estradiol in an in vivo model of injury to the immature brain.
Separation ofPodophyllum lignans by micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography (MECC)

Separation of the mainPodophyllum lignans by MECC has been achieved using a phosphate-borate buffer system with the pH of 7.25, containing 25 mM SDS and 15% methanol. Optimum temperature and voltage were found to be 35°C and 20kV, respectively, UV-detection was performed at 220 nm. The method was successfully used to analyse different samples ofPodophyllum peltatum collected in the southern USA, and showed great qualitative and quantitative variations among these populations. The quantitative MECC results for podophyllotoxin were in good agreement to those obtained by HPLC.
Complete Thoracic Mediastinal Lymphadenectomy Leads to a Higher Rate of Pathologically Proven N2 Disease in Patients With Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Background The American College of Surgery Oncology Group Z0030 study was a prospective randomized study that showed that mediastinal lymph node sampling (MLNS) offered similar results to mediastinal lymph node dissection (MLND) in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, that study only randomized patients after thorough samplings that were negative on frozen section in several N2 and N1 nodal stations. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of MLND to the more common practice of ruling out N2 disease preoperatively and then resection without sending lymph nodes for frozen section. Methods This is a retrospective study of patients clinically staged as N0 with NSCLC. The incidence of pathologic N2 disease reported by the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) database was considered to represent MLNS and it was compared with our patients who underwent complete MLND. Results Between January 2002 and December 2009, 1,358 patients clinically staged as N0 underwent lobectomy or segmentectomy and MLND (not MLNS). Our incidence of pathologic N2 disease in 1,107 patients who underwent lobectomy was 10.6% compared with 9.4% in the 24,896 STS lobectomy patients (p=0.196). Our incidence of pathologic N2 disease in 251 patients who underwent segmentectomy was 13.0% compared with 5.3% in the 2,150 STS segmentectomy patients (p Conclusions When complete MLND is performed in patients during pulmonary resection who are clinically node negative (have benign N2 nodes after selective endobronchial or esophageal ultrasound or mediastinoscopy) without using intraoperative frozen section of N2 or N1, more patients are pathologically staged with N2 disease; thus, more are considered for adjuvant chemotherapy. The impact on survival in these patients is unproven.
Biomass conversion to hydrocarbon fuels using the MixAlco™ process at a pilot-plant scale

Abstract Texas A&M University has built a MixAlco™ pilot plant that converts biomass to hydrocarbons (i.e., jet fuel, gasoline) using the following steps: fermentation, descumming, dewatering, thermal ketonization, distillation, hydrogenation, and oligomerization. This study describes the pilot plant and reports results from an 11-month production campaign. The focus was to produce sufficient jet fuel to be tested by the U.S. military. Because the scale was relatively small, energy-saving features were not included in the pilot plant. Further, the equipment was operated in a manner to maximize productivity even if yields were low. During the production campaign, a total of 6.015 Mg of shredded paper and 120 kg of chicken manure (dry basis) were fermented to produce 126.5 m 3 of fermentation broth with an average concentration of 12.5 kg m −3 . A total of 1582 kg of carboxylate salts were converted to 587 L of raw ketones, which were distilled and hydrogenated to 470 L of mixed alcohols ranging from C3 to C12. These alcohols, plus 300 L of alcohols made by an industrial partner (Terrabon, Inc.) were shipped to an independent contractor (General Electric) and transformed to jet fuel (∼100 L) and gasoline (∼100 L) byproduct.
Transverse disks, symbolic dynamics, homology direction vectors, and Thurston–Nielson theory

Abstract We review some properties of transverse disks and use symbolic dynamics to determine rotation vectors from the return map to a transverse disk. We also prove connections between the symbolic dynamics and Nielson equivalence of orbits.
3′-O-(4-Benzoyl)benzoyladenosine 5′-Triphosphate Inhibits Activity of the Vacuolar (H+)-ATPase from Bovine Brain Clathrin-coated Vesicles by Modification of a Rapidly Exchangeable, Noncatalytic Nucleotide Binding Site on the B Subunit

It was previously observed that the B subunit of the tonoplast V-ATPase is modified by the photoactivated nucleotide analog 3′-O-(4-benzoyl)benzoyladenosine 5′-triphosphate (BzATP) (Manolson, M. F., Rea, P. A., and Poole, R. J. (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 12273-12279). We have further characterized the nucleotide binding sites on the V-ATPase and the interaction between BzATP and the B subunit. We observe that the V-ATPase isolated from bovine clathrin-coated vesicles possesses approximately 1 mol of endogenous, tightly bound ATP/mol of V-ATPase complex. BzATP is not a substrate for the V-ATPase, but does act as a noncovalent inhibitor in the absence of irradiation, changing the kinetic characteristics of ATP hydrolysis. Irradiation of the V-ATPase in the presence of [3H]BzATP results primarily in modification of the 58-kDa B subunit, with complete inhibition of V-ATPase activity occurring upon modification of one B subunit per V-ATPase complex. Inhibition occurs as the result of modification of a rapidly (t1/2
System-level optimization and design of the high speed machining process using ceramic cutting tools

Abstract Research on ceramic cutting tools is interdisciplinary, straddling across engineering studies of stress analysis and heat transfer and materials science studies of microstructure-property relationships. A systems analysis methodology is used to investigate the linkages between these two disciplines. System-level partitioning of the functional relationships has identified three key linking variables: hardness, temperature and thermal diffusivity. The linking variables are used to estimate the flash temperature existing at the cutting interface. The flash temperature depends on the interaction between the change in the intrinsic hardness of the ceramic material with temperature and the influence of material hardness on the heat generated at the cutting interface. This information is used to construct process performance diagrams which may be useful in optimizing wear rate in the ceramic cutting tool against material removal rate and surface finish. The results are applied to two kinds of ceramic cutting tools: alumina and titanium carbide. The work piece is assumed to be AISI 4340 steel. The study highlights three key problems in materials science that need to be addressed in order to extend the microscopic understanding of materials to ceramic grinding and machining processes: (i) micromechanistic understanding of temperature-dependence of hardness of ceramics; (ii) micromechanisms of wear and thermal shock behavior in the local, strongly varying temperature fields near the contact area between the tool and the work piece; and (iii) microstructural understanding of thermal conductivity of cutting tool materials.
Different levels of DNA modification at 5'CCGG in murine erythroleukemia cells and the tissues of normal mouse spleen

Abstract The DNA of a Friend erythroleukemic cell line (clone DS-19) and that of mouse spleen from which it was derived were compared with respect to modification at 5'CCGG. Methylation patterns in clone DS-19 DNA were very different from those in normal spleen DNA. Our results suggest that the mechanism by which the internal cytosine in the 5'CCGG sequence is modified has been partially inactivated in clone DS-19. We observed a general decrease of about two-fold in total modification at this site in DS-19 DNA. This general decrease was shown to extend to 5'CCGG sites in specific classes of repeated sequences with two-dimensional displays of restriction fragments. Interspersed repeated sequences which are concertedly modified (i.e., modified at many different chromosomal locations) in spleen, were found to be unmodified at these locations in the cell line. However, we did not detect a difference in DNA modification at 5'CCGG with these techniques when uninduced and hexamethylene-bis-acetamide (HMBA) induced cells of clone DS-19 were compared. In other experiments, we obtained further evidence that selected classes of repeated sequences in Physarum polycephalum are methylated to the same extent independent of chromosomal location.
Experimental acoustic field characterization of enclosures by impedance estimates and modal analysis

La methode utilise une approximation (par difference finie) de la pression acoustique par deux microphones espaces pour estimer l'impedance acoustique specifique
Analysis of thin thermal silicon nitride films on silicon

We have investigated the chemical and electrical properties of very thin (<32 A thick) silicon nitride films grown by rapid thermal nitridation of silicon. These films were of interest as a possible means of tailoring the barrier heights of silicon Schottky barrier diodes. Auger and XPS analysis showed that the level of oxygen contamination in the films was very low ([N]/[N]+[O]) =0.85 to 0.95). The oxygen is located primarily at the surface and interface of the films. Metal-nitride-silicon devices were characterized by I-V and C-V techniques. These measurements indicated an increase in barrier heights to p-type substrates and a decrease in barrier heights to n-type substrates compared to values measured in the absence of the nitride layers. The magnitude of the change in barrier height increases with increasing nitride thickness. The barrier height can be varied reproducibly over a wide range. For molybdenum on p-type, this range is greater than half the bandgap. For titanium and molybdenum on p-type diodes, barrier heights higher than 1.0 V can be achieved. These measurements could be explained by a reduction in the density of silicon interface states with increasing nitride thickness or by the presence of positive fixed charge in the nitride layer.
Attention during memory retrieval enhances future remembering

Memory retrieval is a powerful learning event that influences whether an experience will be remembered in the future. Although retrieval can succeed in the presence of distraction, dividing attention during retrieval may reduce the power of remembering as an encoding event. In the present experiments, participants studied pictures of objects under full attention and then engaged in item recognition and source memory retrieval under full or divided attention. Two days later, a second recognition and source recollection test assessed the impact of attention during initial retrieval on long-term retention. On this latter test, performance was superior for items that had been tested initially under full versus divided attention. More importantly, even when items were correctly recognized on the first test, divided attention reduced the likelihood of subsequent recognition on the second test. The same held true for source recollection. Additionally, foils presented during the first test were also less likely to be later recognized if they had been encountered initially under divided attention. These findings demonstrate that attentive retrieval is critical for learning through remembering.
DNA immunization: Effects of vehicle and route of administration on the induction of protective antiviral immunity

The effectiveness of DNA immunization has been demonstrated in several model systems, usually following intramuscular injection of DNA in saline, or topical administration to the skin. In this study we have compared DNA delivered by three routes (intramuscular, intravenous, and intraperitoneal) and, for each route, in two vehicles (cationic liposome complex and pH sensitive liposome). These two lipid vehicles were evaluated because they are frequently used in gene therapy studies, but their immunogenicity has not been extensively studied. Each of these six combinations has been evaluated not only by assay of marker gene expression in a variety of tissues, but also by measurement of biologically-relevant parameters of immunity induction of antibodies, cytotoxic T lymphocytes, and protection against viral challenge. By both criteria (marker gene expression and induced immunity), the outcomes vary markedly among the six combinations. The combination leading to maximal marker gene expression (DNA with cationic lipid, administered i.v.) also induces detectable antibodies and CTL, and is the only one of the six combinations to induce immune responses comparable to those seen following i.m. injection of DNA in saline. However, marker gene expression can be detected in other combinations in the absence of induced immunity thus the value of marker gene expression in predicting the protection induced by a microbial antigen is questionable suggesting that, when evaluating various promoter constructs, marker gene expression may not adequately replace the direct measurement of biological outcomes.
Design using software engineering principles: overview of an educational program

In 1981 IBM initiated a corporate-wide training program to introduce a standard, software engineering-based, programming technology, based on a similar program established in the Federal Systems Division during the late seventies.The Software Engineering Workshop has a strong mathematical orientation. The central focus is on mathematical models for program functions and data abstractions. The models allow mathematical statements of specifications, stepwise refinement, and function-based mental verification of each refinement step. The technology and a textual design language encourage orderly problem decomposition, encapsulation, and separation of concerns.This paper introduces the material taught in the workshop and summarizes the workshop's history and results. Use of the technology is producing higher quality programs and providing greater professional satisfaction among its users.
OKONKWO AND THE EXECUTION OF IKEMEFUNA IN CHINUA ACHEBE'S THINGS FALL APART: A STUDY OF IGNOBLE DECISIVENESS

(1990). OKONKWO AND THE EXECUTION OF IKEMEFUNA IN CHINUA ACHEBE'S THINGS FALL APART: A STUDY OF IGNOBLE DECISIVENESS. English Studies in Africa: Vol. 33, No. 2, pp. 131-142.
The Study of Interface Bone Formation Resulting from the Use of Intraosseous Titanium Implants

The histopathologic characteristics of interface phenomena existing along the surfaces of intraosseous metallic implants has been the subject of much discussion in relating the composition and configuration of implant fixtures to maximal osteointegration. (1,2) The purpose of this study was to evaluate and characterize host bone changes to various types of intraosseous metal implants placed in the femurs of six Papio anubis baboons. We wished to evaluate changes in recipient site bone remodeling which could be related to the specifics of configuration and type of metal implant used.
Miscegenation and the Free Negro in Antebellum “Anglo” Alabama: A Reexamination of Southern Race Relations

More than a quarter-century ago, the southern historian Frank L. Owsley predicted: "If the history of every county, or even smaller community in every Southern State would be written from the basic sources, a history of the South would emerge vastly different from any previously written."' A new generation of historians has accepted this challenge, returning to those longneglected basic sources. While their approach has been more topical than geographical (as Owsley suggested, the results have definitely called into question many of the standard interpretations of the antebellum South. The southern free Negro-and the miscegenation that is credited with producing him-may serve as an excellent case at point.2 Traditional interpretations of his genesis and evolution generally have followed a monolithic pattern. As a class, by and large, he owed his existence to libidinous, but conscience-stricken, white planters-male planters, necessarily, since the unwritten double-standard of southern white society winked at white male exploitation of Negro women but tolerated no sexual relations that hinted of racial equality, such as white female relations with Negro males or legal interracial marriages. Within free Negro society, allegedly, the family unit was unstable, due as much to the pattern of sexual incontinency that slavery forced upon blacks as to the desire of free black women to breed lighter offspring who might pass into white society. As a class, the free black is believed to have been a threat to the institution of slavery. Thus his contacts with slaves were limited, he was ostracized by white society (with the occasional exception of
A contact mating pheromone in the biting midge, Culicoides melleus

A hexane-soluble contact mating stimulant pheromone, bioassayable by sexual response of tethered males, was extracted by prolonged (5-day) washing of whole, freshly-killed male and female Culicoides melleus. Assays were performed by allowing males to manipulate (with their feet) very small cubes of cork on which extract had been deposited by evaporation. Silica-gel chromatography of crude extract yielded total hydrocarbon fractions to which, when assayed at 10 ♀♀ (or ♂♂) equivalents. 75% or more of the males responded. The diluted total hydrocarbon fraction from females elicited significant male response at 1 ♀ equivalent, but not at 110 equivalent or less. Assays of synthetic n-alkanes showed no activity, but among several methyl-substituted alkanes (2-methyl-docosane, 8-methyl-docosane, 9-methyl-tricosane, 10-methyl-docosane), the first three produced significant response assayed at 1 μg per model.
Thermal-Piezoresistive Energy Pumps in Micromechanical Resonant Structures

The internal thermoelectromechanical transduction loop in micromechanical resonant structures has been studied in this work and utilized to electronically enhance their quality factor or generate spontaneous mechanical vibrations. Electrothermal force generation in a micromechanical structure can be coupled to the structural stress through piezoresistive effect. Under certain conditions (specially having a negative piezoresistive coefficient in n-type crystalline silicon), this could allow mechanical vibrations of the structure to feed from a dc bias current applied to the structure, forming an electromechanical energy pump. At lower dc bias currents, the mechanical energy generated by the pump can only compensate a portion of the mechanical losses of the resonant structure, leading to self-Q-enhancement, whereas at higher currents, it can fully compensate all the mechanical losses, leading to self-sustained oscillation. Extensional-mode dual-plate resonators with frequencies as high as 18.1 MHz were fabricated, and quality factor amplification was successfully demonstrated for such. The ability of such resonators to initiate and maintain self-sustained oscillations under both vacuum and atmospheric pressures has also been demonstrated. Frequencies as high as 19.4 MHz, output voltage peak-to-peak amplitudes as high as 825 mV, and power consumptions as low as a few milliwatts have been demonstrated for such self-sustained oscillators.
A signal detection analysis of morphine effects on the response bias of rats in a two-shock discrimination task

Abstract Signal detection theory techniques were used to assess the extent to which morphine affects response bias of rats in a two-choice shock discrimination task. The ratio of low shock (“noise”) to high shock (“signal”) trials was varied to produce different response biases prior to drug administration. Morphine significantly reduced signal sensitivity (d′) under all three conditions without systematically affecting any of the measures of response bias assessed in this study. While consistent with most reports with respect to d′, these results conflict with a few previous reports of morphine disrupting performance more when the discriminative stimulus is the presence of shock than when it is the absence of shock.
R. KEITH SAWYER , Improvised dialogues: Emergence and creativity in conversation . Westport, CT: Ablex, 2003. Pp. xi, 262. Hb $69.95.

This is a study of dialogues performed in improvisational (“improv”) theater. Improv actors work without scripts, using mime and dialogue to come to a working agreement about cast of characters, setting, and plot, usually within a few interactional turns. Their performances are thus an ideal site for studying how framing works: how interactants come to a mutual understanding of what is going on that is shaped by and subsequently shapes their contributions. Although it does not quite meet its ambitious theoretical goals, the book is well worth reading, both for the descriptions and examples of a fascinating set of language games and for Sawyer's intriguing suggestions about what we can learn from them.
E3KARP mediates the association of ezrin and protein kinase A with the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator in airway cells.

Abstract Although it is generally recognized that cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) contains a PSD-95/Disc-large/ZO-1 (PDZ)-binding motif at its COOH terminus, the identity of the PDZ domain protein(s) that interact with CFTR is uncertain, and the functional impact of this interaction is not fully understood. By using human airway epithelial cells, we show that CFTR associates with Na+/H+ exchanger (NHE) type 3 kinase A regulatory protein (E3KARP), an EBP50/NHE regulatory factor (NHERF)-related PDZ domain protein. The PDZ binding motif located at the COOH terminus of CFTR interacts preferentially with the second PDZ domain of E3KARP, with nanomolar affinity. In contrast to EBP50/NHERF, E3KARP is predominantly localized (>95%) in the membrane fractions of Calu-3 and T84 cells, where CFTR is located. Moreover, confocal immunofluorescence microscopy of polarized Calu-3 monolayers shows that E3KARP and CFTR are co-localized at the apical membrane domain. We also found that ezrin associates with E3KARP in vivo. Co-expression of CFTR with E3KARP and ezrin in Xenopus oocytes potentiated cAMP-stimulated CFTR Cl− currents. These results support the concept that E3KARP functions as a scaffold protein that links CFTR to ezrin. Since ezrin has been shown previously to function as a protein kinase A anchoring protein, we suggest that one function served by the interaction of E3KARP with both ezrin and CFTR is to localize protein kinase A in the vicinity of the R-domain of CFTR. Since ezrin is also an actin-binding protein, the formation of a CFTR·E3KARP·ezrin complex may be important also in stabilizing CFTR at the apical membrane domain of airway cells.
Processing of polarized light by squid photoreceptors.

Behavioural tests1–4 have demonstrated that cephalopods can discriminate light polarized in different planes, and the receptors have been localized by electrophysiological studies of the eye5–10. Discrimination of the plane of polarization is a consequence of both the structure of the microvilli in the outer segments of the photoreceptors11 and the orientation of the photosensitive chromophore on these membranes2,12,13. However, between the depolarizing receptor response resulting from photoreception and the behaviour of the animal, nothing is known about neuronal processing of polarized light by cephalopods. Here we show that some squid photoreceptors discriminate the plane of polarization within the spike train, and that any particular plane is seen as a variable intensity. Given the well known orthogonal orientation of microvilli in outer segments of adjacent photoreceptors and the physiological preference for one of two mutually perpendicular planes of polarization by single photoreceptors, we conclude that cephalopod vision is based on two complementary views of the world, each determined by the transformation of polarization-sensitive receptors into complementary intensity scales. A visual system based on this transformation would lead to enhanced contrast underwater and visualization of object details obscured by confounding highlights.
Blind estimation of compartmental model parameters

Computation of physiologically relevant kinetic parameters from dynamic PET or SPECT imaging requires knowledge of the blood input function. This work is concerned with developing methods to accurately estimate these kinetic parameters blindly; that is, without use of a directly measured blood input function. Instead, only measurements of the output functions - the tissue time-activity curves - are used. The blind estimation method employed here minimizes a set of cross-relation equations, from which the blood term has been factored out, to determine compartmental model parameters. The method was tested with simulated data appropriate for dynamic SPECT cardiac perfusion imaging with Tc-teboroxime and for dynamic PET cerebral blood flow imaging with O water. The simulations did not model the tomographic process. Noise levels typical of the respective modalities were employed. From three to eight different regions were simulated, each with different time-activity curves. The time-activity curve (24 or 70 time points) for each region was simulated with a compartment model. The simulation used a biexponential blood input function and washin rates between 0.2 and and washout rates between 0.2 and . The system of equations was solved numerically and included constraints to bound the range of possible solutions. From the cardiac simulations, washin was determined to within a scale factor of the true washin parameters with less than 6% bias and 12% variability. Tc-teboroxime washout results had less than 5% bias, but variability ranged from 14% to 43%. The cerebral blood flow washin parameters were determined with less than 5% bias and 4% variability. The washout parameters were determined with less than 4% bias, but had 15-30% variability. Since washin is often the parameter of most use in clinical studies, the blind estimation approach may eliminate the current necessity of measuring the input function when performing certain dynamic studies.
The Golden Christ of Cortona and the Man of Sorrows in Italy Part One

The image of the Cross-bearing Man of Sorrows would not at first appear to be an especially unusual one, yet it is perhaps the least common form in which Christ is shown in the late Middle Ages and the fifteenth century. With its penetrating exposition of the corporeal Christ, displaying and asserting his sacrifice, depicted in a miraculous state of living death, bearing the chief instrument of the Passion, the Corton a Christ is among the first of a series of such pietistic forms to appear in Italy. Outstanding among the early fifteenth-century Tuscan depictions of this subject is the altarpiece of Santa Lucia, San Giovanni Valdarno, attributed to Mariotto di Cristofano (1393–1457) (Fig. 20). Still earlier in date is the fresco from the late fourteenth-century church of Santa Maria Nuova in Viterbo (Fig. 21).81 This formula came to be especially closely allied with the Eucharist, and hence selected for depiction on the door to the altar sanctuary behind which the Host was stored, as seen in the tabernacl...
Phosphorus‐Nitrogen Compounds XIX: Distribution of 32P and Effect of an Active Oncolytic on Intracerebral Leukemia in Rodents

Abstract P,P ‐Bis(1‐aziridinyl)‐ N ‐1‐adamantylphosphinic amide displayed oncolytic activity against intracerebral and intra‐peritoneal L‐1210leukemia. Administration of the isotope‐labeled compound to rats shows 32 P distribution to the brain.
Meals for Schools — What Next? Multiple Cause and Multiple Response

Like the Pied Piper, Jamie Oliver ‐ followed by a growing throng of parents and teachers ‐ has forced government action and purse‐strings to raise the financing and therefore the quality of school meals in England. With £280m of new money, it looks as though at last, and at least, children will take in some nutritious food in the course of their young lives. But the reasons for and challenges presented by childhood obesity are multi‐factorial and demand a multi‐disciplinary response. This article considers the various causes of the rise in childhood obesity, and looks at past and planned initiatives aimed at tackling it. It also looks ahead to the potential for future developments that might take the baton carved by Jamie Oliver and pass it on through a range of services.
Strain concentrations in notched laminates under bending

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine the validity of using classical laminated plate theory to predict strain concentration factors in notched laminates under bending.Design/methodology/approach – The objective was accomplished by comparing results predicted by classical theory to those from more refined theories that incorporate transverse shear and other 3D effects in the analysis. Three notch sizes and two laminate types were considered. The results were obtained through finite element analysis.Findings – Strain concentration factors predicted by the classical theory were generally found to be significantly lower than those predicted by the more refined theories. However, these differences tended to be very localized to the vicinity of the notch tip.Originality/value – This study points out a potential deficiency in a commonly used design tool. The seriousness of this deficiency can best be determined by further research, particularly through a systematic testing program.
Biofilm formation by vaginal Lactobacillus in vivo.

Biofilm formation by nonpathogenic bacteria is responsible for their stable maintenance in vivo ecosystems as it promotes long-term permanence on the host’s vaginal mucosa. Biofilm formation by Lactobacilli has been reported in vitro but not in vivo. We hypothesize the presence of biofilm formation in vivo could be also documented by microscope photographs (MP) of wet mounts obtained from uninfected vaginal samples satisfying rigorous scientific identification criteria. We analyzed 400 MP from our database, and we were able to determine that 12 MP from 6 different patients contained clues of the formation of biofilm by Lactobacilli. The most probable lactobacillus involved is presumed to be Lactobacillus jensenii. The documentation of biofilm formation by vaginal Lactobacilli at fresh wet mount preparation is significant and has several important clinical preventive and therapeutic implications.
Microbial Phytase Can Replace Inorganic Phosphorus Supplements in Channel Catfish Ictalurus punctatus Diets

.– Juvenile channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus (initial weight: 6.8 g/fish) were fed four practical diets containing 0, 250, 500, and 750 units of microbial phytase/kg and a diet containing 1% feed grade dicalcium phosphate (but no microbial phytase) under laboratory conditions for 12 wk. Fish fed the diets containing 250 units of microbial phytase/kg and above consumed more feed, gained more weight, and had a lower feed conversion ratio (FCR) in comparison to fish fed the basal diet containing no microbial phytase. Fish fed the diet containing dicalcium phosphate had intermediate weight gain and feed conversion ratio as compared to fish fed the basal diet and diets containing microbial phytase. Bone ash and phosphorus concentrations were lower for fish fed the basal diet than for fish fed other diets. No differences in weight gain, feed consumption, FCR, bone ash and bone phosphorus were observed among fish fed the diets containing various levels of microbial phytase. Fish fed the diet containing dicalcium phosphate had a lower bone phosphorus concentration than fish fed diets containing microbial phytase. Fecal phosphorus concentrations were lower for fish fed the diets containing microbial phytase than for fish fed the basal diet and the diet containing dicalcium phosphate. Results from the present study indicated that addition of 250 units of microbial phytase/kg to practical diets can effectively improve bioavailability of phytate phosphorus to channel catfish and may possibly eliminate the use of an inorganic phosphorus supplement in channel catfish diets. However, these data must be verified in trials conducted in ponds, prior to recommending removal of supplemental phosphorus from channel catfish diets.
Reasons for the lack of argumentation and debate in the Far East

Abstract This essay examines Chinese and Japanese attitudes towards speech communication, particularly in public settings. Social, linguistic, and philosophical perspectives are used to explain the absence of dialogue and debate. Section one argues that geodemographic factors influenced East Asia to exalt human-centered hierarchies over prepositional truth in their thought systems. Section two looks at the hieroglyphic character and grammatical presuppositions of Chinese and Japanese, to explain a mind-set more oriented towards imagery and sympathetic understanding than to definition and distinction. Section three traces the views of the leading East Asian philosophies towards oral communication—Confucianism, Taoism, Zen Buddhism, and the Ming-chia (School of names), respectively—finding yet other grounds for East Asian rejection of argumentation. This essay does not intend to imply the superiority of Western logic or thought patterns to East Asian ones. Rather, it is intended to alert a Western audience as to the culture-boundedness of Western appreciation of discussion and debate, as well as to the deep-seated Sino-Japanese prejudices against these communication styles.