cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Isolation and Properties of the Envelope of Spinach Chloroplasts

A method has been described for isolating separately the envelope and thylakoids of chloroplasts. The method makes use of the fact that gentle swelling of intact chloroplasts causes breakage and total detachment of the envelope. The envelope was purified by a sucrose density gradient procedure. The thylakoids and the envelope appeared to be very different in structure. All the activities associated with thylakoids (ferredoxin: NADP+ oxidoreductase, latent Ca2+-dependent ATPase) and the stroma (fructose 1,6-diphosphatase, P-glycolate phosphatase, carbonic anhydrase) were entirely absent in the envelope. NAD(P)H:cytochrome c oxidoreductase activity was found to be negligible in the envelope. Hence, this fraction was essentially free of microsomal and mitochondrial contaminations. Phosphatidylcholine comprised 75% of the total phospholipids and violaxanthin 50% of the total carotenoids in the envelope. Chlorophylls a and b were barely detectable in the envelope. A Mg2+-dependent ATPase, insensitive to N,N′-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide was associated with the envelope.
Your Muscles See More than Your Eyes

(1966). Your Muscles See More than Your Eyes. Journal of Health, Physical Education, Recreation: Vol. 37, No. 7, pp. 38-40.
An unusually simple HP1 gene set in Hymenopteran insects

The heterochromatin protein 1 (HP1) gene family includes a set of paralogs in higher eukaryotes that serve fundamental roles in heterochromatin structure and maintenance, and other chromatin-related functions. At least 10 full and 16 partial HP1 genes exist among Drosophila species, with multiple gene gains, losses, and sub-functionalizations within this insect group. An important question is whether this diverse set of HP1 genes and their dynamic evolution represent the standard rule in eukaryotic groups. Here we have begun to address this question by bio-informatically identifying the HP1 family genes in representative species of the insect order Hymenoptera, which includes all ants, bees, wasps, and sawflies. Compared to Drosophila species, Hymenopterans have a much simpler set of HP1 genes, including one full and two partial HP1s. All 3 genes appear to have been present in the common ancestor of the Hymenopterans and they derive from a Drosophila HP1B-like gene. In ants, a partial HP1 gene containing only a chromoshadow domain harbors amino acid changes at highly conserved sites within the PxVxL recognition region, suggesting that this gene has undergone sub-functionalization. In the jewel wasp Nasonia vitripennis, the full HP1 and partial chromoshadow-only HP1 are expressed in both germ line and somatic tissues. However, the partial chromodomain-only HP1 is expressed exclusively in the ovary and testis, suggesting that it may have a specialized chromatin role during gametogenesis. Our findings demonstrate that the HP1 gene family is much simpler and evolutionarily less dynamic within the Hymenopterans compared to the much younger Drosophila group, a pattern that may reflect major differences in the range of chromatin-related functions present in these and perhaps other insect groups.
Aviation Weather Surveillance Systems: Advanced Radar and Surface Sensors for Flight Safety and Air Traffic Management

This book provides a comprehensive introduction to the science, sensors, and systems that form modern aviation weather surveillance systems. Focusing on radar-based surveillance, it presents logical, incremental detail on the fundamentals of the various disciplines involved and their complex interplay. This includes giving a background to aviation systems and control, atmospheric and meteorological aspects, weather issues in relation to aviation, and broad coverage of modern aviation weather surveillance and information systems, including detailed material on Doppler weather radar, plus new generation atmospheric sensors.Aviation Weather Surveillance Systems is an excellent resource for civil and military aviation professionals; electronic engineers, especially those working in radar; meteorologists; pilots; and flight crews.
Reconfiguration and experiments on a faulty hypercube

It is often desirable to reconfigure a faulty hypercube so as to retain as many fault-free nodes as possible. This inspires us to identify maximal incomplete subcubes in a faulty hypercube, as the subcube so reconfigured is often much larger than a complete subcube obtainable and is likely to retain performance batter. An efficient algorithm is first presented to find incomplete subcubes in a faulty hypercube. To study the actual performance difference on an incomplete system and a complete one, tree applications are then implemented on both systems. Among the three applications, Gaussian elimination takes exactly the same mapping scheme on an incomplete system as on a complete one, while FFT requires some efforts to make it adaptive to the incomplete topology. Our experimental results collected on the Intel iPSC/860 show that an incomplete system may outperform its complete counterpart significantly. The measured results of the three applications indicate that reconfiguring a faulty hypercube into an incomplete subcube is beneficial in practice. >
Oxidative damage and defense.

Increased production of reactive oxygen species is a feature of most, if not all, human disease, including cardiovascular disease and cancer. Dietary antioxidants may be especially important in protecting against human diseases associated with free radical damage to cellular DNA, lipids, and proteins. Ascorbic acid is an effective water-soluble antioxidant, and epidemiologic studies suggest that increased ascorbate nutriture is associated with reduced risk of some degenerative diseases, especially cancer and eye cataracts. Population studies have also shown that high vitamin E intakes are associated with decreased risk of coronary heart disease, possibly as a result of inhibition of atherogenic forms of oxidized low-density lipoprotein. Recent data suggest that β-carotene provides protection against lipid peroxidation in humans, as well as provitamin A activity. Yet, present data are not sufficient to quantitate micronutrient requirements needed to protect against oxidative damage. The antioxidant roles of many food constituents, such as polyphenols, have not been clarified. Most antioxidants can act as prooxidants under certain conditions, and more research is needed to determine the occurrence and importance of this in vivo. The few controlled intervention trials carried out so far have shown mixed results as to the potential of antioxidant supplements for reducing the incidence of chronic diseases. Definitive recommendations on antioxidant intakes for disease prevention must await evidence from controlled studies and intervention trials, some currently in progress. Overall, the present data suggest that protection against oxidative damage and related disease is best served by the variety of antioxidant substances found in fruit and vegetables.
A customized Raman system for point-of-care detection of arthropathic crystals in the synovial fluid

Monosodium urate (MSU) and calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate (CPPD) are the most frequently observed crystals in joint space, leading to painful arthropathies. Correct diagnosis of the crystal identity is critical for the appropriate course of treatment. In this work, a custom Raman device in combination with a practical and efficient sample preparation method is used for chemically selective diagnosis of MSU and CPPD crystals in an automated fashion. The samples were prepared by brief enzymatic digestion treatment of synovial fluid followed by a customized filtration process which was able to congregate crystals over a submillimeter sized spot. The data acquisition and collection were automated to collect multiple spectra distributed over the filtration spot. The performance of the cost-efficient Raman system was compared to a research-grade high fidelity Raman instrument. The custom-designed Raman device could detect MSU crystals at sub-clinical concentrations of 0.1 μg mL−1 and 1 μg mL−1 for CPPD crystals. This practical sample preparation approach in tandem with the low-cost customized Raman device has potential to be a novel tool for point-and-shoot Raman diagnosis of arthritic crystals in synovial fluid at the point of care.
Complexity of enzymatic inhibition by cigarette smoke.

Die Hemmung der Alkoholdehydrogenase aus Hefe durch Zigarettenrauch beruht auf verschiedenen Inaktivierungsmechanismen. Die Gasphase zeigt eine kompetitive Hemmung, die Partikelphase und der ganze Rauch eine gemischte Hemmung. Da die Hemmung durch den ganzen Rauch nicht der Summe der Hemmungen beider Phasen entspricht, ist anzunehmen, dass Wechselwirkungen zwischen den Inhibitoren und Antagonisten vorliegen.
Educational Policy, Politics, and Mixed Heritage Students in the United States

This article describes local, state, and federal policies related to collecting, aggregating, and reporting data on student race and ethnicity in U.S. K-12 and postsecondary education. It traces data policy from the 1997 decision by the Office of Management and Budget to change from single-race reporting to a format that permits respondents to choose more than one race, to the October 2007 issuance of final guidance from the Department of Education. Taking a K-20 perspective, I consider how policies for data collection and reporting may affect educational and developmental outcomes for students, as well as local, state, and national education policy environments.
Effect of Isolation and Crystallization on the Electrophoretic Mobility of β-Lactoglobulin as Determined by Paper Electrophoresis

Summary To study the electrophoretic properties of milk proteins under conditions as nearly similar as possible to those found in milk, a paper strip electrophoresis apparatus was designed which required small volumes of electrolyte and in which electro-osmosis could be substantially reduced. Using this apparatus, it was shown that β -lactoglobulin could be isolated from milk, crystallized, and returned to its native environment without grossly affecting its initial charge density.
Bayesian network using edge probabilities for target detection and recognition

It has been noted recently that, in a number of applications, effective approximations to complex posterior probabilities can be computed through the framework of probability propagation in Bayesian networks. In this paper, we develop a Bayesian network for the problem of target detection and recognition. Our multiply-connected Bayesian network is based on a distribution decomposition of the form p(y,t,e)=p(y|t,e)p(t|e)p(e), where y is an observed image, t is a set of target pixels together with identifying labels, and e is a set of edge pixels. Running a probability propagation algorithm on this network leads to an approximation of the desired posterior probability p(t|y) as a product of terms that correlate the conditional observation distribution p(y|t,e) and target distribution p(t|e) with a posterior edge distribution p(e|y). We describe approaches for generating the required posterior edge distribution and for calculating the correlations through template matching. The result is a computationally-efficient algorithm for computing posterior target probabilities that can be used either to generate hard decisions or for fusion with other information. Target detection based on the posterior probability p(t|y) is discussed in the paper.© (2001) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Real-time face tracking and pose correction for face recognition using active appearance models

This paper presents a fully automatic real-time face recognition system from video by using Active Appearance Models (AAM) for fitting and tracking facial fiducial landmarks and warping the non-frontal faces into a frontal pose. By implementing a face detector for locating suitable initialization step of the AAM shape searching and fitting process, new facial images are interpreted and tracked accurately in real time (15fps). Using an Active Appearance Model (AAM) for normalizing facial images under different poses and expressions is crucial to providing improved face recognition performance as most systems degrade matching performance with even smallest pose variation. Furthermore the AAM is a more robust feature registration tracking approach as most systems detect and locate the eyes while AAMs detect and track multiple fiducial points on the face holistically. We show examples of AAM fitting and tracking and pose normalization including an illumination pre-processing step to remove specular and cast shadow illumination artifacts on the face. We show example pose normalization images as well as example matching scores showing the improved performance of this pose correction method.
Multi-objective optimization of functionally graded materials with temperature-dependent material properties

Abstract We propose a methodology for the multi-objective optimization of material distribution of functionally graded materials with temperature-dependent material properties for steady thermomechanical processes. The proposed approach focuses on metal/ceramic and metal/metal functionally graded materials, which offer great promise in high temperature and high heat flux applications. The two-dimensional quasi-static heat conduction and thermoelasticity problems are analyzed using the element-free Galerkin method. The formulation takes into account the change in material properties due to temperature. The spatial distribution of the volume fraction is obtained by piecewise bicubic interpolation of volume fractions defined at a finite number of grid points. The effective material properties at a point in the domain are estimated from the local volume fractions of the material constituents using the Mori–Tanaka and self-consistent homogenization schemes while the effective yield stress for metal/metal functionally graded materials is determined using either the Hashin–Shtrikman lower estimate or the Hashin–Shtrikman upper bound. The volume fraction distribution is optimized using an elitist, non-dominated sorting multi-objective genetic algorithm. We use the genetic algorithm and element-free Galerkin analyses to optimize the material composition for two model problems. In the first problem, we simultaneously minimize the mass and minimize the peak effective stress of a zirconia/titanium alloy component subjected to a specified temperature load. The goal of the second model problem is to simultaneously minimize the mass and maximize the factor of safety of a two-dimensional tungsten/copper alloy FGM under an intense heat flux, subject to constraints on the factor of safety and maximum temperature experienced by the constituent phases.
Phosphonium ion fragmentations relevant to organophosphonate biodegradation

Microbial degradation of organophosphonates 1 via carbon to phosphorus (C-P) bond cleavage has prompted a rapid expansion in chemical literature relevant to the biodegradation. However, the chemistry of organophosphonates under reducing conditions, particularly in regard to C-P bond cleavage, is still largely unknown. This report examines the single-electron and hydride reduction of organophosphonates and organotrineopentoxy-phosphonium trifluoromethanesulfonates 4a-e (Table 1) structurally related to organophosphonium ion 2 (Scheme 1).
Multi-Touch: A New Tactile 2-D Gesture Interface for Human-Computer Interaction:

The naturalness and variety of a touch-based hand gesture interface offers new opportunities for human-computer interaction. Using a new type of capacitive sensor array, a Multi-Touch Surface (MTS)...
Effective magnetic moments of heavy fermions and the Wilson ratio for Kondo lattices.

The formation of heavy-fermion bands is discussed on the basis of the relativistic Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker equation. It is shown that only one specific linear combination of six local $f$ states can hybridize with a conduction state of given $\mathbf{k}$ and spin. It follows that the magnetic moments of the heavy fermions are sharply quenched. The Wilson ratios calculated from these effective magnetic moments fit experimental data much better than without this correction.
Molecular dynamics simulation of four-α-helix bundles that bind the anesthetic halothane

Abstract The mutation of a single leucine residue (L38) to methionine (M) is known experimentally to significantly increase the affinity of the synthetic four-α-helix bundle (Aα 2 ) 2 for the anesthetic halothane. We present a molecular dynamics study of the mutant (Aα 2 –L38M) 2 peptide, which consists of a dimer of 62-residue U-shaped di-α-helical monomers assembled in an anti topology. A comparison between the simulation results and those obtained for the native (Aα 2 ) 2 peptide indicates that the overall secondary structure of the bundle is not affected by the mutation, but that the side chains within the monomers are better packed in the mutant structure. Unlike the native peptide, binding of a single halothane molecule to the hydrophobic core of (Aα 2 –L38M) 2 deforms the helical nature of one monomer in a region close to the mutation site. Increased exposure of the cysteine side chain to the hydrophobic core in the mutant structure leads to the enhancement of the attractive interaction between halothane and this specific residue. Since the mutated residues are located outside the hydrophobic core the observed increased affinity for halothane appears to be an indirect effect of the mutation.
SmartReflex Power and Performance Management Technologies for 90 nm, 65 nm, and 45 nm Mobile Application Processors

In the last couple of decades, handheld wireless devices such as cell phones have become one of the most prolific electronic devices in history. With this has come an exploding demand for performance and features that cover almost every aspect of our digital multimedia interconnected lives including 3-D gaming, still and video cameras, WAN, Bluetooth, high-speed data connections, and so on. As ever increasing features continue to be integrated into these products, there is an ongoing need to develop innovative ways to reduce power consumption and extend battery life. Only through continual process and circuit cooptimization are we able to reap the benefits of technology scaling required to meet the feature and performance demands in the face of increasing process variations and exponentially increasing leakage currents. As a result, SmartReflex power and performance technologies have been developed and applied to 90 nm, 65 nm, and 45 nm system-on-chip (SoC), to achieve optimal power and performance. SmartReflex technologies consist of two major components to optimize SoC power and performance: static and dynamic techniques. Static techniques like power-gating, retention and off-mode are used to lower leakage and allow for extended battery lifetimes for standby times. Dynamic techniques such as dynamic power switching, adaptive voltage scaling, dynamic voltage/frequency scaling with split-rail memories, and adaptive body-biasing address active power and performance challenges. These techniques enable SoC solutions with the performance of the latest process technology and provide the user with advanced multimedia features with orders of magnitude of power reduction.
An efficient computational method for dynamic stress analysis of flexible multibody systems

Abstract This paper presents an efficient computational method of dynamic stress history calculation for a general three-dimensional flexible body by combining flexible multibody dynamic simulation and quasi-static finite element analysis (FEA). In the dynamic simulation of flexible multibody systems, flexible components can undergo nonsteady gross motion and small elastic deformation that is described with respect to the body reference frame by using the assumed mode method. D'Alembert inertia loads from the gross body motion and the elastic deformation are expressed as a combination of space-dependent and time-dependent terms that are obtained from the dynamic simulation. D'Alembert inertia loads that are associated with each unit value of the time-dependent terms are then distributed to all finite element nodes in order to compute a corresponding stress influence coefficient through quasi-static structural analyses. Total dynamic stresses due to D'Alembert inertia loads are obtained by multiplying actual magnitude of time-dependent terms with the associated stress influence coefficients. By the proposed method, it is shown that, for a general three-dimensional component, the required number of FEAs can be significantly reduced.
Perceptual and Conceptual Processes in Infancy

It is suggested that we must distinguish 2 types of object categorization in infancy. One is perceptual categorization, which is an automatic part of perceptual processing that computes the perceptual similarity of one object to another. It creates perceptual schemas of what objects look like. The other is conceptual categorization, which is based on what objects do. It consists of the redescription of perceptual information into conceptual form, particularly the paths that objects take and the interactions among them. This process creates the notion of kinds, such as animals, plants, vehicles, and furniture. The similarity in this kind of categorization is of roles in events, not the physical appearance of the objects. Several differences between the 2 types of categories are discussed, of which the most important is the different functions they serve. Perceptual categories are used for object identification; conceptual categories control inductive inference. Experimental results are described showing th...
The influence of clay and bacteria on the concentration of dissolved hydrocarbon in saline solution

Dodecane solubility was found to be compatible with published low molecular weight alkane solubilities according to expressions relating either concentration logarithm or RT In mol fraction to molecular size. We compute dodecane solubility at 1.82 μg/1 from saline medium measurements of 1.78 μg/1. Bacteria were shown to utilize dissolved hydrocarbon from solution reducing concentration to < 0.14 μg/1, final values depending on residence time. Neither suspended estuarine sediment nor smectite removed significant quantities of dodecane from saturated saline solutions. At 15 saturation of dodecane in distilled water, no dodecane (< 0.001 μg/g clay) associated itself with clay, and the dodecane could be recovered from the suspension by solvent extraction. Thus the dissolved hydrocarbon is removed from true solution by bacteria but not by clay.
PAC1 Receptors Mediate Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide- and Progesterone-Facilitated Receptivity in Female Rats

Pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP) acts as a feed-forward, paracrine/autocrine factor in the hypothalamic ventromedial nucleus (VMN) for receptivity and sensitizes pituitary hormone release for ovulation. The present study examined receptor(s) and signaling pathway by which PACAP enhances rodent lordosis. PACAP binds to PACAP (PAC1)- and vasoactive intestinal peptide-preferring receptors (VPAC1, VPAC2). Ovariectomized rodents primed with estradiol (EB) were given PACAP or vasoactive intestinal peptide directly onto VMN cells. Only PACAP facilitated receptivity. Pretreatment with VPAC1 and VPAC2 inhibitors blocked both PACAP- and progesterone (P)-induced receptivity. Antisense (AS) oligonucleotides to PAC1 (not VPAC1 or VPAC2) inhibited the behavioral effect of PACAP and P. By real-time RT-PCR, EB, P and EB+P enhanced VMN mRNA expression of PAC1. Within the total PAC1 population, EB and EB+P induced expression of short form PAC1 and PAC1hop2 splice variants. Finally, blocking cAMP/p...
A study of ethylene and CO2 evolution from ethephon in tobacco

Abstract Buffers and leaf discs of mature tobacco ( Nicotiana tabacum L.) were utilized to study [ 14 C]-ethylene and 14 CO 2 evolution from radiolabeled ethephon, (2-chloroethyl)phosphonic acid. Metabolic fate of [ 14 C]ethephon in leaf discs was investigated by use of thin-layer chromatography, high-voltage paper electrophoresis, autoradiography, and liquid scintillation spectroscopy. The evolution of labeled ethylene generally increased with increasing buffer pH, buffer volume, and dosage of [ 14 C]ethephon. [ 14 C]Ethylene was evolved, increasingly with time, from [ 14 C]ethephon either added to the buffer or applied to leaf discs. The rate of [ 14 C]ethylene evolution was maximum during the first day and leveled off on the fourth day. More than 50% of the total [ 14 C]ethylene evolution over a 96-hr period was recovered during the first 24 hr after [ 14 C]ethephon application. No 14 CO 2 was evolved when [ 14 C]ethephon was degraded in the presence of buffer or leaf discs. Only ethephon itself, and no detectable metabolite thereof, was discovered in the methanolic extract of the leaf disc tissue. An insignificant amount of 14 C activity (approximately 2% of the extracted 14 C) was detected in the residue. By means of gas chromatography, it was confirmed that in buffers and tobacco leaf tissue ethephon breaks down to release ethylene but not CO 2 .
On the validity of Fick's law for transient diffusion through a porous medium

Abstract The method of spatial averaging is applied to derive a macroscopic form of Fick's law for unsteady diffusion through a rigid porous medium. The validity of this form is found to be restricted by the requirements that diffusion is quasi-steady on a pore scale and that interphase mass transfer rates depend at most linearly upon concentration. Under these conditions the effective diffusivity of the porous medium involves the product of the molecular diffusivity and a dimensionless “intrinsic conductivity” of the porous medium, which is found to be a symmetric and positive definite second order tensor. A reciprocal theorem plays a key role in achieving the macroscopization of Fick's law.
Ongoing Gas Stripping in the Virgo Cluster Spiral Galaxy NGC 4522

The Virgo Cluster galaxy NGC 4522 is one of the best spiral candidates for intracluster medium–interstellar medium (ICM-ISM) stripping in action. Optical broadband and Hα images from the WIYN telescope of the highly inclined galaxy reveal a relatively undisturbed stellar disk and a peculiar distribution of Hα emission. Ten percent of the Hα emission arises from extraplanar H II regions which appear to lie within filamentary structures ≥3 kpc long above one side of the disk. The filaments emerge from the outer edge of a disk of bright Hα emission which is abruptly truncated beyond 0.35R25. Together the truncated Hα disk and extraplanar Hα filaments are reminiscent of a bow shock morphology, which strongly suggests that ISM of NGC 4522 is being stripped by the gas pressure of the ICM. The galaxy has a line-of-sight velocity of 1300 km s-1 with respect to the mean Virgo Cluster velocity and thus is expected to experience a strong interaction with the intracluster gas. The existence of H II regions apparently located above the disk plane suggests that star formation is occurring in the stripped gas, and that newly formed stars will enter the galaxy halo and/or intracluster space. The absence of H II regions in the disk beyond 0.35R25 and the existence of H II regions in the stripped gas suggest that even molecular gas has been effectively removed from the disk of the galaxy.
Polypeptide composition of measles and canine distemper viruses.

Abstract The proteins of measles and canine distemper viruses were studied by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Six polypeptides were detected in each virus. These had estimated molecular weights of 79,000; 71,000; 61,000; 53,000; 46,000; and 37,000 daltons. A direct comparison of the number and estimated molecular weights of the polypeptides of Sendai virus made in this study and results previously reported by others for Sendai, SV5 and Newcastle disease viruses reveal marked similarities between measles and canine distemper viruses and the three previously well characterized members of the Paramyxovirus group.
Synthesis of ent-25-hydroxycholesterol

25-Hydroxycholesterol (25-HC) appears to play a role in several important biological processes, including regulating cellular cholesterol levels and promoting apoptosis. However, in most cases the mechanisms by which 25-HC elicits its biological effects are not known. Insights into mechanisms of 25-HC action can be gained by studying the activity of its enantiomer (ent-25-HC). ent-25-HC is physically and chemically identical to 25-HC; however, 25-HC and ent-25-HC can be distinguished in chiral environments, like a protein binding site. In order to probe the mechanisms of 25-HC action, we have synthesized the enantiomer of 25-HC (ent-25-HC).
The bisexual identity of transsexuals: Two case examples.

Clinical data from two cases of male transsexualism, a child and an adult, illustrate the nature of the bisexuality typical of such patients. The first, an 8-year-old boy whose desire to be a girl is seen in his constant dressing and acting like a girl, confirms in play therapy, story telling, and drawings his fantasies of being a female. However, these fantasies are never free of the knowledge that he has a penis and a male identity as well. That this bisexuality persists into the transsexual's adulthood is exemplified in the fantasy life of the second case, a 30-year-old operated male transsexual. The memory, “I was once a boy” never quite fades away; no matter how successfully the passing as a woman is managed, she cannot rid herself of the secret maleness. The belief in such patients that they are fundamentally female though possessed of an anatomically normal male body will persist through adulthood, unaltered by “sex change,” by hormonal or surgical procedures, or by living successfully for years as a woman. This bisexuality is conscious, painful, and not assuaged by symptom formation, forgetting, or other defenses that would remove the conscious sense of having two sexes. In the child the unwanted sense of belonging to the male sex, which causes a disquieting undercurrent, can be used as the base upon which a more solid sense of masculinity can be built. Unfortunately, for the adult transsexual the balance of the “two-sexed” awareness cannot be tipped to a willingness to live as a man; despite treatment aimed at making them more manly, adult transsexuals retain their wish to be female—and their secret knowledge that, after all the operations and female hormones, a male part remains untouched within.
Two-component signal transduction in Enterococcus faecalis.

Enterococci are gram-positive constituents of the normal human microflora, typically colonizing the intestinal tract and skin ([34][1], [47][2]). However, these organisms are capable of causing disease as opportunistic pathogens, mainly in immunocompromised patients ([35][3], [58][4]). The problem
A more superior preformed particle gel with potential application for conformance control in mature oilfields

The present work presents a nanocomposite preformed particle gel for conformance control in mature oilfields. This product was observed to have a better performance than conventional hydrogels without nanomaterials. Preformed particle hydrogel was designed by the reaction of monomer, initiator, crosslinker, additives, and calcium montmorillonite nanomaterial, whereas conventional hydrogel is designed from just monomer, initiator, crosslinker and additives. The presence of nanomaterial in hydrogel design affords it tremendous improvement in nanocomposite gel properties and behavior compared to conventional hydrogels without any nanomaterial. Additionally, swelling performance, post-degraded gel viscosity, and long-term thermal resistance of nanocomposite gel increased by several orders of magnitude compared to hydrogels with no nanomaterial. Environmental Scanning Electron Microscopy (ESEM) revealed the presence of a very dense 3-D network compared to hydrogels with no nanomaterial. On incorporation of nanomaterial, increase in gel strength of up to 2,150 % was observed. Thus, they are potential replacements for existing preformed particle gels in mitigating permeability variations in mature reservoirs.
Angular orientation of trabecular bone in the femoral head and its relationship to hip joint loads in leaping primates.

The elastic properties and mechanical behavior of trabecular bone are largely determined by its three-dimensional (3D) fabric structure. Recent work demonstrating a correlation between the primary mechanical and material axes in trabecular bone specimens suggests that fabric orientation may be used to infer directional components of the material strength and, by extension, the hypothetical loading regime. Here we quantify the principal orientation of trabecular bone in the femoral head and relate these principal fabric directions to loading patterns during various locomotor behaviors. The proximal femora of a diverse sample of prosimians were scanned using a high-resolution X-ray computed tomography scanner with resolution of better than 50 μm. Spherical volumes of interest were defined within the femoral heads and the 3D fabric anisotropy was calculated using the mean intercept length and star volume distribution methods. In addition to differences in bone volume and anisotropy, significant differences were found in the spatial orientation of the principal trabecular axes depending on locomotor behavior. The principal orientations for leapers (Galago, Tarsius, Avahi) are relatively tightly clustered (α95 confidence limit: 8.2; angular variance s: 18.2°) and oriented in a superoanterior direction, while those of nonleapers are more variable across a range of directions (α95: 16.8; s: 42.0°). The mean principal directions are significantly different for leaping vs. nonleaping taxa. These results further suggest a relationship between bone microstructure in the hip joint and locomotor behavior and indicate a similarity of loading across leapers despite differences in kinematics and phylogeny. J. Morphol. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Morphologic and Molecular Characterization of the Sarcocysts of Sarcocystis rileyi (Apicomplexa: Sarcocystidae) from the Mallard Duck (Anas platyrhynchos)

Abstract Macroscopic sarcocysts are often observed in ducks, but at present their taxonomic status remains uncertain because ducks serve as intermediate hosts for several such parasites in the genus Sarcocystis. One such species, Sarcocystis rileyi, was long ago established to involve the northern shoveler duck (Anas clypeata) and the striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis) as its intermediate and definitive hosts, respectively. Here, we employed light microscopy, electron microscopy, and DNA sequencing to more precisely describe diagnostic attributes of parasites presumed to represent S. rileyi occurring in a naturally-infected mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos). By light and transmission electron microscopy, sarcocysts from the mallard duck resembled the S. rileyi described from A. clypeata. We document 18S, ITS-1, and 28S rDNA sequences from the mallard duck, the first for S. rileyi from any host. Sequences of conserved and variable portions of nuclear ribosomal DNA indicated that S. rileyi is related to, but...
Cyclic voltammetry of [Co(sep)]3+ incorporated in Nafion polymer films on glassy carbon electrodes and ultramicroelectrodes

Abstract Cyclic voltammetry has been used to characterize the incorporation of cobalt(III) sepulchrate trichloride (1,3,6,8,10,13,16,19-octaazabicyclo[6.6.6]eicosanecobalt trichloride) into Nafion polymer modified glassy carbon electrodes and ultramicroelectrodes. Well-defined cyclic voltammograms are obtained under a variety of film loading conditions. Formal potential values are relatively invariant as a function of pH (
On the mechanism of ceruloplasmin-catalyzed oxidations

1. 1. The ceruloplasmin-catalyzed oxidation of p-phenylenediamine and other related compounds was studied spectrophotometrically and manometrically. 2. 2. For p-phenylenediamine, the reaction sequence proceeded through three stages. The first probably involved the formation of a charge-transfer complex between substrate and ceruloplasmin Cu2+. The second involved the transfer of a single electron from substrate to Cu2+ to form a yellow free radical, as determined using electron paramagnetic resonance techniques. The third step involved the loss of another electron from the yellow free radical, either through a disproportionation process or by reaction with enzyme, to form a short-lived diradical species that reacted with more p-phenylenediamine to form a stable purple product. 3. 3. The purple product formed in p-phenylenediamine oxidation can act as an inhibitor for the oxidation of p-phenylenediamine and other substrates. 4. 4. The oxidative sequence of durenediamine was similar to that for p-phenylenediamine, except here the diradical that formed rearranged and hydrolyzed in water to form duroquinone and ammonia.
Raman scattering in a-Ge1−xSix:H alloys

Abstract Raman scattering measurements have been performed on a-Ge1−xSix:H alloys (x=0.5−1.0) prepared by glow discharge deposition. The widths of high frequency optic-like bands are found to be narrowed relative to studies of r.f. sputtered films, indicating increased bond angle order about both Si as well as Ge sites. The SiSi TO band width changes provide a means of estimating contributions of structural and compositional disorder. The low frequency TA spectra exhibit fine structure in x= 0.7 and 0.8 alloys that is not predicted for an average mass determined band shape.
Using cumulative graphic traces in the visualization of sorting algorithms

Some instructionally oriented graphic displays of algorithm execution can be enhanced by the use of a cumulative graphic trace, which presents a stylized visual representation of the history of the algorithm's operation on a data structure. This graphic trace can convey information about the order in which operations were done or elements were processed, information which is often not available in dynamic displays of algorithm execution. It can also in some cases serve as in "icon" to help students remember the algorithm or contrast it with similar algorithms. The use of cumulative graphic traces in the study of various sorting algorithms is illustrated.
Hydrological Variability and Uncertainty of Lower Missouri River Basin Under Changing Climate

The lower Missouri River Basin has experienced increasing streamflow and flooding events, with higher risk of extreme hydrologic impacts under changing climate. The newly available North American Regional Climate Change Assessment Program (NARCCAP) climate projections were used as atmospheric forcing for Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model which runs with varying potential evapotranspiration (PET) methods to assess the hydrological change and uncertainty of 2040-2069 over 1968-1997. The NARCCAP temperature and precipitation predictions were refined using a bias correction method. The results show that, following the seasonal variability of precipitation, various water fluxes would increase in most seasons except the summer. Expected precipitation tends to increase in intensity with little change in frequency, triggering faster surface water concentration to form floods. The greatest streamflow increase would occur from November to February, increasing by around 10% on average. An increase of 3% occurs in the other months except for July and August in which river discharge decreases by around 2%. The climate predictions contribute more uncertainty annually, but PET algorithms gain more influence in winter or when other weather factors such as wind play a relatively more important role on evapotranspiration flux. This study predicts an even wetter environment compared to the historically very wet period, with the possibility of more flooding.
pH Modification of Human T-Type Calcium Channel Gating

Abstract External pH (pH o ) modifies T-type calcium channel gating and permeation properties. The mechanisms of T-type channel modulation by pH remain unclear because native currents are small and are contaminated with L-type calcium currents. Heterologous expression of the human cloned T-type channel, α 1H, enables us to determine the effect of changing pH on isolated T-type calcium currents. External acidification from pH o 8.2 to pH o 5.5 shifts the midpoint potential ( V 1/2 ) for steady-state inactivation by 11mV, shifts the V 1/2 for maximal activation by 40mV, and reduces the voltage dependence of channel activation. The α 1H reversal potential ( E rev ) shifts from +49mV at pH o 8.2 to +36mV at pH o 5.5. The maximal macroscopic conductance ( G max ) of α 1H increases at pH o 5.5 compared to pH o 8.2. The E rev and G max data taken together suggest that external protons decrease calcium/monovalent ion relative permeability. In response to a sustained depolarization α 1H currents inactivate with a single exponential function. The macroscopic inactivation time constant is a steep function of voltage for potentials o 8.2. At pH o 5.5 the voltage dependence of τ inact shifts more depolarized, and is also a more gradual function of voltage. The macroscopic deactivation time constant ( τ deact ) is a function of voltage at the potentials tested. At pH o 5.5 the voltage dependence of τ deact is simply transposed by ∼40mV, without a concomitant change in the voltage dependence. Similarly, the delay in recovery from inactivation at V rec of −80mV in pH o 5.5 is similar to that with a V rec of −120mV at pH o 8.2. We conclude that α 1H is uniquely modified by pH o compared to other calcium channels. Protons do not block α 1H current. Rather, a proton-induced change in activation gating accounts for most of the change in current magnitude with acidification.
Lipid stability in the drying of Artemia by several methods

Abstract Brine shrimp were dried by freeze, vacuum, and hot air dehydration methods. The total lipid, fatty acid profiles and cholesterol content were determined in order to estimate the extent of the lipid degradation after the drying processes. Three chemical tests of lipid oxidation — peroxide value, 2-thiobarbituric acid (TBA) test, and iodine value — were performed. Total lipid was found to have 8·9% and 25% loss in vacuum and hot air-dried Artemia, respectively. These apparent losses were due to the shrinkage phenomenon during drying. This resulted in an incomplete extraction by the Bligh & Dyer method (Can. J. Biochem. Physiol. Vol. 37 (1959) pp. 911-17). The Soxhlet method gave the same lipid content in the freeze and hot air-dried Artemia. The fatty acid composition of freeze, vacuum, and hot air-dried Artemia gave the same result as newly hatched nauplii. There was no evidence of oxidation in any fatty acid from the three drying methods. Hot air drying resulted in a 5·6% loss of cholesterol whereas there was no loss of cholesterol in Artemia dried by freeze or vacuum-drying. The peroxide test indicated a significant change in the hot air-dried sample whereas the value was not significantly different in the freeze or vacuum-dried sample from the undried control. The iodine value was also significantly different in the hot air-dried sample from the above dried samples. The 2-thiobarbituric acid values for the four samples were not significantly different.
Zinc sorption by some Alabama soils

Abstract Zinc (Zn) sorption by six Alabama soils, virgin and cultivated was studied. Sorption data was collected at 10° and 30°C and plotted according to the Langmuir, Freundlich, and BET equations. The differential isosteric heats of sorption, AH, were used to aid in the interpretation of the data. The high pH soils sorbed more Zn compared to acid soils. Zinc sorption increased with an increase in temperature indicating that the sorption process was an endothermic reaction. All of the soils gave curvilinear lines when plotted according to the Freundlich equation. The same was true for the Langmuir equation except for the two high pH soils which gave one straight line. Deviation from the ideal Langmuir model was interpreted to be due to the variation in heat of sorption, AH, due to surface heterogeneity. However, the BET equation gave the best fit for the data, yielding one straight line for all soils. The Langmuir sorption maximum, b, was correlated with some selected soil properties. The results indicat...
Laser-induced contained vaporization in tissue

When a transparent liquid or solid medium is present in front of an opaque target being irradiated by an intense laser beam, then the expansion of hot vapors generated (at the interface between the medium and the target) by the irradiant heating of the target is restrained by the medium. The tamping effect of the overlying liquid or solid can cause a much larger fraction of the deposited energy to go into kinetic energy, which leads to enhanced tissue disruption, compared to when a gas or vacuum is in front of the target. Condensable vapors and high thermal conductivity in the surrounding material facilitate rapid energy transport out of the vapor, which can cause a major reduction in the tamping enhancements. This contained-vaporization process is likely important in laser-medical applications such as, for example, laser angioplasty and laser lithotripsy. The work enhancement by the process is probably advantageous for lithotripsy in providing the necessary energy to break urinary stones; however, for angioplasty, the enhancement may provide little aid in removing plaque but may cause significant damage to arterial walls. If gas could be introduced into the artery proceeding irradiation of the plaque, then the enhancements could be avoided. In summary,more » careful management of the tamping conditions during tissue irradiations in the clinical applications of lasers should lead to significant improvements in the overall desired outcome.« less
Imported Malaria in The Bronx: Review of 51 Cases Recorded from 1986 to 1991

The cases of 51 patients with malaria seen at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine hospitals from January 1986 to June 1991 are reviewed. Thirty-five patients acquired infection on journeys to their country of origin. Of these 35 patients, 83% of whom had lived in the United States for > or = 2 years, only 17% received antimalarial prophylaxis. Ten of the 51 patients were born and raised in the United States, and 70% received prophylaxis (P < .01). Six of the 51 patients were visitors to the United States from areas endemic for malaria. Overall, 64% of patients acquired malaria in West Africa, south of the Sahara; 20% in Asia; 8% in Ecuador; 6% in Haiti; and 4% in the Middle East. The majority of infections were due to Plasmodium falciparum. Six patients traveled to a zone endemic for malaria while pregnant, and none received prophylaxis. In nine of 13 patients who received prophylaxis, there was inadequate dosing or poor compliance. Individuals born in regions endemic for malaria are at high risk of acquiring malaria on return to their countries of origin and are less aware of the need for malaria prophylaxis than are other travelers.