cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Infinite iteration of matrix semigroups II. Structure theorem for arbitrary semigroups up to aperiodic morphism

(where 0 is defined by (a,,..., a,)8= a,. .. a,.) Here intuitively A + is “easily globally computed” because concatenation of two strings is a transparent multiplication and A + < A + i s surely special. However, here 0 need not be “line’‘-the unsolvability of the word problem for semigroups is one way to state this; we shall formulate it differently later (in fact, using the 25 0021-8693/86 $3.00
Discourses on rurality in post-socialist news media: The case of Lithuania's leading daily “Lietuvos Rytas” (1991–2004)

Abstract The Soviet regime defined rurality as a collective-farm or kolkhoz -based society. Since the late 1980s such a state-imposed definition of rurality was rapidly unraveling under the tensions and conflicts produced by perestroika and post-socialist reforms. In the new politics of the rural, the role that the news media was playing in shaping public opinion on rural matters was of growing importance. The paper analyzes 3827 articles on rural issues published during the post-independence period (1991–2004) in the leading Lithuanian daily “Lietuvos Rytas” (LR). Two types of discourses in rural coverage are discerned. During the 1990s rural coverage in LR was reflective of conflicts and tensions between relatively prosperous urban classes which benefited from post-socialist reforms and pauperized rural population. Rurality was increasingly associated with the failure of “the moral modernization” of the rural population. Rural population was stigmatized as deficient in values and character, remaining in the grips of the Soviet mentality and state dependency and, therefore, unable to take advantage of opportunities created by the reforms. Since the early 2000s when economic situation in the country improved significantly and Lithuania started negotiations on European Union membership, rurality in LR coverage was gradually re-defined in EU terms as a socio-spacial entity shaped by regional, national, and local policies promoting multifunctionality of rural areas, well-being of rural communities, and active citizenship. Factors that influenced changes in rural discourses are analyzed. Impacts of changing discourses on rural identities, rural politics and policies are discussed.
Application of Single Molecule Detection to Dna Sequencing

Abstract A flow cytometric, single molecule approach to DNA sequencing is described. A single, fluorescently labeled DNA fragment is suspended in a flow stream. An exonuclease is added to sequentially cleave the end base into the flow stream where it is detected and identified by laser-induced fluorescence.
Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of nitroglycerin and its dinitrate metabolites in conscious dogs: Intravenous infusion studies

Intravenous infusions of nitroglycerin (GTN), 1,2-glyceryl dinitrate (1,2-GDN), and 1,3-glyceryl dinitrate (1,3-GDN) were given to four conscious dogs at 10 micrograms/min, 30 micrograms/min, 50 micrograms/min, and 70 micrograms/min of GTN and 20 micrograms/min and 100 micrograms/min of GDNs. The steady state plasma concentrations (Css) of GTN were reached after about 60 min whereas for 1,2-GDN and 1,3-GDN the Css were reached at about 150 min after the infusion began. Except for one dog, the Css of GTN were not proportional to infusion rate, however, all dogs together showed a good linear relationship between Css of GTN and infusion rates with an average correlation coefficient of 0.917 +/- 0.102. Large variability in GTN clearance after various infusion rates was observed in all dogs. The Css ratios of 1,2-GDN/GTN and 1,3-GDN/GTN yield overall averages of 31.5 +/- 17.2 and 5.47 +/- 3.19, respectively. Average Css ratios of metabolites 1,2-GDN/1,3-GDN were 5.78 +/- 1.23. This ratio is different from those obtained after iv bolus and oral dosing indicating that the biotransformation of GTN to 1,2-GDN and 1,3-GDN differs for each dosing route. The clearances for 1,2-GDN and 1,3-GDN were not changed over the dose range of 20 micrograms/min to 100 micrograms/min. Terminal half-lives of 1,2-GDN and 1,3-GDN postinfusion were similar to those values obtained after a single bolus dose (45 min). It appears that all the GTN dose at steady state can be accounted for by the formation of measurable 1,2-GDN and 1,3-GDN. Large intra- and interdog variations in systolic blood pressure decrease (SPD) following infusions of GTN were observed, however, all dogs showed a clear systolic blood pressure decrease when the highest infusion rate (70 micrograms/min) was given. No significant systolic blood pressure drop was detected following 20 micrograms/min infusions of 1,2-GDN or 1,3-GDN. It was clear that systolic blood pressure in all dogs decreased following 100 microgram/min infusions of 1,2-GDN or 1,3-GDN. When SPD values were plotted vs. log GTN concentrations following the infusion of 70 micrograms/min of GTN in all four dogs, a counterclockwise hysteresis was observed indicating the significant contribution of the active dinitrate metabolites to GTN pharmacodynamics.
Studies of the hydrogen held by solids: XXVI. Proton resonance from alumina and molybdena-alumina catalysts

Abstract Wide-line NMR techniques have been used to investigate the dehydroxylation of γ-alumina and an 8% molybdena-alumina. Second moments for surface hydroxyl groups were calculated based on the model proposed recently by H. Knozinger and P. Ratnasamy ( Catal. Rev. 17, 31, 1978). The decrease in the percentage of hydroxyls observed by NMR with increasing temperature of dehydroxylation suggested a strong interaction between the “unobservable” hydroxyls (shown to be present by D 2 -exchange measurements) and the 27 Al ions exposed at the surface by the removal of water. Restoration of these hydroxyl groups to detection by NMR upon adsorption of D 2 O supported this hypothesis. The details of the reduction of the molybdena-alumina catalyst were investigated by studying the nature of the hydrogen species held by this solid. Although new hydroxyl groups were introduced by the reduction (H 1 ), the fraction detectable by NMR decreased. This was attributed to the introduction of paramagnetic centers by reduction, e.g., Mo +5 . Calculation showed, however, that the number contributing to the NMR signal was larger than possible were the paramagnetic centers and surface hydroxyls uniformly distributed over the catalyst surface, suggesting clustering. The nature of the high-temperature reversibly held hydrogen (H R ) was further defined by an isothermal desorption technique, which demonstrated that this species can be removed as H 2 quantitatively only at the reduction temperature. Furthermore, readsorption of H R was slow. NMR studies showed that the removal of H R is accompanied by a decrease in the integrated intensity of the NMR line corresponding to the disappearance of a single hydroxyl group per molecule of hydrogen removed. This is in agreement with recent infrared evidence and strongly suggests that formation and removal of H R is a heterolytic process.
Development of neuron-specific enolase immunoreactivity in avian nervous tissue in vivo and in vitro.

Abstract Neuron-specific enolase (NSE) is a glycolytic isoenzyme that is primarily located in neurons and neuroendocrine cells. The development of NSE immunoreactivity in the avian nervous system at the level of the hind limb has been examined using immunocytochemical methods. NSE immunoreactivity is first detected in ventral horn motor neurons and dorsal root ganglion neurons at embryonic day 9–10. This is at least 2–3 days after some neurons in both these populations are capable of electrical activity. The glycogen body, a non-neuronal structure, also exhibits NSE (+) staining, but the onset of this immunoreactivity is earlier, at 8 days of embryonic development. NSE immunoreactivity was absent from the cell bodies of paravertebral sympathetic ganglia throughout development, but was present in cellular processes and terminals in the adult ganglia. NSE immunoreactivity also develops in tissue cultures containing cells of neural tube and neural crest origin.
5 FATTY ACID ANALYSIS OF BREAST MILK OF ATOPIC AND NON ATOPIC WOMEN

Impaired function of the enzyme δ-6-desaturase has been proposed as a pathogenetic factor for atopic eczema. Such a defect would cause an increase in linoleic acid and a decrease of its metabolic products (e.g. γ-linolenic acid and arachidonic acids) and should be detectable in human milk. To examine this hypothesis we analysed the fatty acid patterns of breast milk samples at 31 healthy and 33 atopic mothers. The atopic individuals were suffering from allergic rhinitis, allergic bronchial asthma or atopic eczema (n = 10). Serum-IgE was above 100 kU/I in all atopic individuals. The quotient of linoleic acid and the sum of Dihomo-γ-linoleic acid plus arachidonic acids is considered the best measure of δ-6-desaturase activity. Both atopic and non-atopic mother's diet did not differ. Breast milk samples were gained by manual expression under standardized condition and immediately frozen in liquid nitrogen. Cold fat extraction and mehtylation proceeded fatty acid analysis by means of gas-chromatography. Results: Quotients of atopic mothers' milk (11.22 ± 3.24) were not different from those of non-atopic mothers' (10.89 ± 3.24). This was valid for both the total group of all atopic mothers as well as the subgroup of exzematous mothers (11.57 ± 3.38). Conclusion: Our results do not confirm an impaired activity of δ-6-desaturase in atopic individuals. Thus, the biochemical basis and rationale for supplementing lactating atopic mothers wjth γ-linolenic acid preparations seems questionable.
Biochemical and structural characterization of the ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme UBE2W reveals the formation of a noncovalent homodimer.

The biochemical and structural characterization of ubiquitin-conjugating enzymes (E2s) over the past 30 years has fostered important insights into ubiquitin transfer mechanisms. Although many of these enzymes share high sequence and structural conservation, their functional roles in the cell are decidedly diverse. Here, we report that the mono-ubiquitinating E2 UBE2W forms a homodimer using two distinct protein surfaces. Dimerization is primarily driven by residues in the s-sheet region and Loops 4 and 7 of the catalytic domain. Mutation of two residues in the catalytic domain of UBE2W is capable of disrupting UBE2W homodimer formation, however, we find that dimerization of this E2 is not required for its ubiquitin transfer activity. In addition, residues in the C-terminal region, although not compulsory for the dimerization of UBE2W, play an ancillary role in the dimer interface. In all current E2 structures, the C-terminal helix of the UBC domain is at least 15A away from the primary dimerization surface shown here for UBE2W. This leads to the proposal that the C-terminal region of UBE2W adopts a noncanonical position that places it closer to the UBC s-sheet, providing the first indication that at least some E2s adopt C-terminal conformations different from the canonical structures observed to date.
Nitroxia: The pathological consequence of dysfunction in the nitric oxide–cytochrome c oxidase signaling pathway ☆

It is now recognized that mitochondria play an integral role in orchestrating the response of the cell to a wide variety of metabolic and environmental stressors. Of particular interest are the interactions of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species with the organelle and their potential regulatory function. The best understood example is the O(2) sensitive binding of NO (nitric oxide) to the heme group in cytochrome c oxidase. We have proposed that this reversible process serves the function of both regulating the formation of hydrogen peroxide from the respiratory chain for the purposes of signal transduction and controlling O(2) gradients in complex organs such as the liver or heart. It now appears that maladaptation in this pathway leads to a mitochondrial dysfunction which has some of the characteristics of hypoxia, such as a deficit in ATP, but occurs in the presence of normal or enhanced levels of O(2). These are the optimal conditions for the formation of reactive nitrogen species (RNS), such as peroxynitrite which lead to the irreversible modification of proteins. We term this unique pathological condition Nitroxia and describe how it may contribute to the pathology of chronic inflammatory diseases using ethanol-dependent hepatotoxicity as an example.
Multiphoton ionization spectrum of fluorobenzene

Abstract The multiphoton ionization (MPI) spectrum of fluorobenzene vapor has been recorded in the one-photon wavelength region 3600–5500 A. The spectrum contains one valence and several Rydberg band systems. A Rydberg transition terminating in a 3s orbital is observed as a two-photon resonance around 3900 A (origin at 50914 cm −1 ); three-proton resonances in p and d or f orbitals occur in the region 4100–4600 A and around 5400 A. An extensive band system with the origin near 5300 A represents the 1 B 2 (L b ← 1 A 1 (S 0 ) valence transition as a two-photon resonance v 11 , v 12 , v 14 and v 16 , are observed as coupling modes. The spectrum strongly supports a ground state mechanism for the intensity of the dominant vibronic coupling mode, v 14 , in benzene and its derivatives. The spectrum also eliminates Herzberg—Teller schemes involving A 28 excited states as major mechanisms for the activity of the important coupling mode v 12 in substituted benzenes. There is evidence for interference between vibronic and Franck—Condon intensity contributions for this mode. A general conclusion is that σ-electron contributions to the two-photon absorption amplitude in benzene and its derivatives are unimportant compared to those due to π-electrons.
Aromatase Promoter I.f is Regulated by Estrogen Receptor Alpha (ESR1) in Mouse Hypothalamic Neuronal Cell Lines

Aromatase (CYP19A1) catalyzes the conversion of C(19) steroids to estrogens. Aromatase and its product estradiol (E(2)) are crucial for the sexually dimorphic development of the fetal brain and the regulation of gonadotropin secretion and sexual interest in adults. The regulation of aromatase expression in the brain is not well understood. The aromatase (Cyp19a1) gene is selectively expressed in distinct neurons of the hypothalamus through a distal brain-specific promoter I.f located approximately 36 kb upstream of the coding region. Here, we investigated a short feedback effect of E(2) on aromatase mRNA expression and enzyme activity using estrogen receptor alpha (ESR1; also known as ER alpha)-positive or ESR1-negative mouse embryonic hypothalamic neuronal cell lines that express aromatase via promoter I.f. Estradiol regulated aromatase mRNA expression and enzyme activity in a time- and dose-dependent manner, whereas an E(2) antagonist reversed these effects. The nucleotide -200/-1 region of promoter I.f conferred E(2) responsiveness. Two activator protein 1 (AP-1) elements in this region were essential for induction of promoter activity by E(2). ESR1 and JUN (c-Jun) bound to these AP-1 motifs in intact cells and under cell-free conditions. The addition of an ESR1 mutant that interacts with JUN but not directly with DNA enhanced E(2)-dependent promoter I.f activity. Independently, we demonstrated an interaction between ESR1 and JUN in hypothalamic cells. Knockdown of ESR1 abolished E(2)-induced aromatase mRNA and enzyme activity. Taken together, E(2) regulates Cyp19a1 expression via promoter I.f by enhanced binding of an ESR1/JUN complex to distinct AP-1 motifs in hypothalamic cells. We speculate that this mechanism may, in part, regulate gonadotropin secretion and sexual activity.
Seasonal and environmental effects on the blood hemoglobin concentrations of some Panamanian air-breathing fishes

Interspecific differences in blood hemoglobin concentration ([Hb]) occur among air breathing fishes. However, the effect on [Hb] of factors such as air-breathing organ structure and blood circulation pattern, air breathing behavior, as well as season and environmental conditions have not been fully examined. [Hb] in seven Panamanian species of air-breathing freshwater teleost fishes were compared and were monitored for most species during the wet and dry seasons and in hypoxic laboratory conditions. Fishes studied were Ancistrus, Hypostomus, and Loricaria (Family Loricariidae); Hoplosternum (Callichthyidae); Synbranchus (Synbranchidae); Piabucina (Lebiasinidae); and Dormitator (Eleotridae). [Hb] in these species ranged from 4.8 to 14.6 g 100 ml−1 (g%). Ancistrus, Hypostomus, and Dormitator significantly increased [Hb] during the dry season and, with Piabucina, also increased [Hb] when acclimated to hypoxia in the laboratory. An increase in [Hb] during the dry season may precondition facultative air breathers for habitat hypoxia (and the need to respire aerially) in the event this occurs. Intraspecific differences in both [Hb] and in red cell Hb-phosphate ratio, an index of oxygen affinity, were found in populations of Hypostomus and relate directly to differences in habitat oxygen level. In all species tested alterations in blood hematocrit (Hmct) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) occurred only with correspondingly large net changes in blood [Hb]. The [Hb] of Loricaria, Synbranchus, and Hoplosternum was not affected by season or hypoxia and this may be due to behavioral and physiological adaptations that reduce the transbranchial loss of aerially-obtained oxygen or to a ventilatory mode that precludes this possibility.
“Structural differentiation and the poetics of violence shaping Barack Obama's presidency: a study in personhood, literacy, and the improvisation of African–American publics”

Abstract This paper follows the social role of the United States' logocratic history of citizenship and literacy through education brought to bear as an ideological scaffolding of ‘patriotism’ in the service of a new, growing, and overt racial poetics of violence against President Barack Obama and, as consequence, the constraints and possibilities to political black publics. This semiotic circulates beyond the ‘fringe’ and into the interaction of today's politicians, conservative think tanks, mass media pundits, and their consortia of elite special interest groups, lobbies, and markets. Its uptake and recirculation, particularly as massive mediatized everyday language, has brought into relief a narrating register of racial belonging hearkening from the social, political, and legal history of structural subjugation to minorities and black people in the United States since the founding words of its inception. Following the slurs and other tropes of racist talk, images, and memes, the study then examines how these structural histories inform and are used to naturalize an exclusionary rhetoric of violence in an immutable master narrative structuring a shared moral and democratic order. And, it looks to the descriptive violence as well as calls for action, all targeted at President Barack Obama's rupture to this moral order, limiting any arrangements of black collective political agency into improvisational contexts, at best. It follows such differentiation and regulation at two structuring levels: 1) the institutionalization of citizenship; and, 2) civic literacy through formal education of African–Americans.
Early postoperative alterations in infant energy use increase the risk of overfeeding

Abstract Aim of Study : Energy needs in infants are decreased after surgery because of growth inhibition (resulting from catabolic stress metabolism), decreased insensible losses, and inactivity. Using standardized formulas that account for growth, activity, and insensible losses during this stress period can lead to overfeeding in excess of 200% of the actual measured requirement. Overfeeding during this acute injury period can result in increased CO 2 production from lipogenesis. This study determined the effects of a reduced rate of mixed caloric repletion on infant energy use during the early postoperative period. Methods: C-reactive protein (CRP), oxygen consumption (VO 2 ), carbon dioxide production (VCO 2 ), measured energy expenditure (MEE), and total urinary nitrogen (TUN) were measured serially in seven infants (average age, 78 days) during the first 72 hours after abdominal or thoracic surgery. Nonprotein respiratory quotient (RQ np ), and values for oxidation of carbohydrate (C e ) and fat (F e ) were calculated. Injury severity was stratified based on serum CRP concentrations of ≥6.0 mg/dL (high stress) or Results : Average total caloric intake (64.56 ± 18.51 kcal/kg/d; approximately 50% of predicted energy requirement) exceeded average MEE (42.90 ± 9.98 kcal/kg/d) by approximately 50%. Average TUN was 0.18 ± 0.07 g/kg/d (high stress 0.2 ± 0.05 versus low stress 0.16 ± 0.09 g/kg/d). Average RQ np was 1.05 ± 0.13 and average C e was 37.28 ± 16.86 kcal/kg/d. The average calculated F e was 0.0 ± 12.27 kcal/kg/d, reflecting approximately equal amounts of fat oxidized compared with fat generated from excess glucose (lipogenesis). When individual studies were analyzed at a CRP cutpoint of 2.0 mg/dL, overfeeding (RQ > 1.0) was significantly less likely in the resolving (26 studies, 33.4%) versus acute stress (913 studies, 69.2%, Z test P e values (average −9.89 ± 10.02) reflecting net lipogenesis. The RQ np for these nine studies was 1.14 ± 0.11 versus 0.97 ± 0.09 for the remaining 10, and this difference was significant ( P 2 (Pearson r = .6951, P 2 (Pearson r = .6591, P Conclusion: Lipogenesis with increased CO 2 production is substantial, even at reduced caloric delivery rates that exceeded MEE by only 50%, during the early postoperative acute metabolic stress period in infants. These data suggest that caloric requirements during stress are likely equal to or only minimally in excess of actual MEE. Intersubject variability, especially in more severely stressed infants, underscores the importance of serial measurements of energy expenditure to enable precise caloric delivery and avoid overfeeding. In the absence of calorimetric measurement, the data suggest that PBMR (predicted basal metabolic rate) should be used to estimate caloric delivery until CRP values are ≤2.0 mg/dL.
The Idea of an Overlapping Consensus Revisited

John Rawls claims that a society must be stable in order to be just, and in his later work he argues that this requirement of stability can be satisfied in a liberal constitutional democracy only if it includes an overlapping consensus. In an overlapping consensus, all reasonable citizens endorse a common conception of justice, but they do so from within divergent conceptions of what is good. Rawls articulates the idea of overlapping consensus in recognition of the burdens of judgment, which are factors that make it difficult for us to exercise judgment about certain subject matters, including especially controversial questions of morality and metaphysics, such as what is good for human beings and the nature of personhood. We have different experiences. We have been exposed to different evidence. The evidence we have sometimes conflicts and significantly underdetermines theories that might explain it. In view of these difficulties in forming views about morality and metaphysics, Rawls maintains, we should not in general expect consensus in these domains. We should expect instead the fact of reasonable disagreement, where persons engage in open and sincere deliberation yet reach different conclusions. In light of the inevitable reasonable disagreement, Rawls contends that we should strive in the public realm to achieve consensus only about distributive justice, not more generally about what is right and what is good. It is commonly believed that the need for overlapping consensus is produced simply by the conjunction of the fact of reasonable disagreement with the requirement of stability. The stability requirement Rawls advances consists in part
Online non-invasive fetal sound analysis

A method is presented to non-invasively separate the fetal phonocardiograms (FPCG) of the fetuses in a multiple fetus pregnancy. The method uses a device like a stethoscope. We assume that the phonocardiograms of the fetuses are statistically independent. Results of simulations are included in the paper.
Symptoms of depression predict change in physical health after burn injury

This study investigated the prevalence of symptoms of depression in patients hospitalized with severe burns and the association of symptoms of depression in the hospital with physical health 2 months after discharge, controlling for pre-burn physical health as measured by the SF-36 physical composite score. Survivors of acute burns were evaluated during the hospitalization (N=262) and at 1 week (N=165) and 2 months (N=100) after discharge. The prevalence of at least mild to moderate symptoms of depression (Beck Depression Inventory > or = 10) ranged from 23% to 26%. In-hospital symptoms of depression predicted change in physical health from pre-burn to 2 months post-discharge (p=.02), controlling for patient demographics, burn severity, and symptoms of PTSD. These results suggest that patients should be screened for depression, both in-hospital and during rehabilitation after discharge.
Promoting Private Health Insurance In Australia

Health insurance policy in Australia has been distinguished by considerable instability over the past five years. This paper reviews the rationale and emerging evidence on three major policy initiatives—a move to allow selective contracting, the introduction of a 30 percent government subsidy for private health insurance, and the abolition of pure community rating. Policy making on private health insurance has been characterized by insufficient attention to research that might provide a stronger evidence basis for policy reforms.
Experimental Study on Vaporization and Extraction of Volatile Organic Compounds in MGP

Heated Soil Vapor Extraction (HSVE) is a technology that has been used successfully to clean up subsurface soils at sites containing chlorinated solvents and petroleum hydrocarbons. The areas around chemical companies or waste disposal sites have been seriously contaminated from the chemicals and other polluting materials that are disposed off. The process involves heating the soil thereby vaporizing the VOCs and removing them using a suction well installed vertically in the soil. The extraction well is attached to a blower which would remove the vaporized gases out of the system. Our previous studies were successful in removing higher boiling compounds such as naphthalene, etc., to non-detectable level. Thus, the current technology is very promising for removing most of the chemicals compounds; and can also remove these high boiling compounds from the saturated zone. Gas chromatography (GC) is utilized in monitoring the relative concentration changes over the extraction period. The objectives of this study are to identify contaminants and time required to remove them through HSVE treatment and provide data for computation fluid dynamics CFD analysis. During a run of 26 days the concentration of VOCs in the Saturated and Unsaturated regions came down by about 65% and 92% respectively of the original.
CXHist: an on-line classification-based histogram for XML string selectivity estimation

Query optimization in IBM's System RX, the first truly relational-XML hybrid data management system, requires accurate selectivity estimation of path-value pairs, i.e., the number of nodes in the XML tree reachable by a given path with the given text value. Previous techniques have been inadequate, because they have focused mainly on the tag-labeled paths (tree structure) of the XML data. For most real XML data, the number of distinct string values at the leaf nodes is orders of magnitude larger than the set of distinct rooted tag paths. Hence, the real challenge lies in accurate selectivity estimation of the string predicates on the leaf values reachable via a given path.In this paper, we present CXHist, a novel workload-aware histogram technique that provides accurate selectivity estimation on a broad class of XML string-based queries. CXHist builds a histogram in an on-line manner by grouping queries into buckets using their true selectivity obtained from query feedback. The set of queries associated with each bucket is summarized into feature distributions. These feature distributions mimic a Bayesian classifier that is used to route a query to its associated bucket during selectivity estimation. We show how CXHist can be used for two general types of queries: exact match queries and substring match queries. Experiments using a prototype show that CXHist provides accurate selectivity estimation for both exact match queries and substring match queries.
Transcription of an RNA aptamer by a DNA polymerase.

Therminator DNA polymerase, a variant of the 9°N DNA polymerase, is shown to synthesize a functional RNA aptamer; thus providing a simple route for making DNA-tagged RNA aptamers for use in DNA nanotechnology.
Horizontal gene transfer in plants

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) has played a major role in bacterial evolution and is fairly common in certain unicellular eukaryotes. However, the prevalence and importance of HGT in the evolution of multicellular eukaryotes remain unclear. Recent studies indicate that plant mitochondrial genomes are unusually active in HGT relative to all other organellar and nuclear genomes of multicellular eukaryotes. Although little about the mechanisms of plant HGT is known, several studies have implicated parasitic plants as both donors and recipients of mitochondrial genes. Most cases uncovered thus far have involved a single transferred gene per species; however, recent work has uncovered a case of massive HGT in Amborella trichopoda involving acquisition of at least a few dozen and probably hundreds of foreign mitochondrial genes. These foreign genes came from multiple donors, primarily eudicots and mosses. This review will examine the implications of such massive transfer, the potential mechanisms and consequences of plant-to-plant mitochondrial HGT in general, as well as the limited evidence for HGT in plant chloroplast and nuclear genomes.
Surface and borehole neutron probes for the construction and resource utilization explorer (CRUX)

The construction and resource utilization explorer (CRUX) project aims to develop an integrated, flexible suite of instruments with data fusion software and an executive controller for the purpose of in situ resource assessment and characterization for future space exploration. The instrument suite includes two neutron detectors, the surface neutron probe (SNeuP) and the borehole neutron probe (BNeuP) to help locate and assess potential hydrogen-bearing resources at the lunar poles and on Mars. SNeuP offers a rover-borne surveyor function for locating near-surface water (or other hydrogenous volatiles) in a lightweight (481 g) package. BNeuP serves a borehole prospector function by determining the stratigraphy of hydrogenous subsurface layers to depths of up to 10 meters within a drill string segment. The instruments' heritage includes the Lunar prospector neutron spectrometer and numerous programmatic space instrument applications at Los Alamos. We have tested the SNeuP and BNeuP prototypes and have demonstrated their ability to detect near-surface hydrogenous materials. In a lunar or Mars exploration application the instruments could be passive, sounding materials through the detection of neutrons produced by cosmic ray spallation in soils and ice. However, in terrestrial field tests we have used a neutron source to 'illuminate' surrounding materials and gauge the instruments' efficacy.
Regulation of ACAT activity by a cholesterol substrate pool during the progression and regression phases of atherosclerosis: implications for drug discovery.

Abstract The regulation of aortic ACAT by a cholesterol substrate pool (CSP) was investigated in a rabbit progression/ regression model of dietary-induced atherosclerosis. ACAT activity increased 25-fold during the 10-week progression phase of the study. ACAT activity decreased 8-fold during the 24-week regression phase of the study, however, it was still 14-fold greater than in normal aortas. ACAT activity assayed in the absence vs. the presence of exogenous cholesterol was used as a qualitative measure of the amount of cholesterol in the CSP. The CSP was filled to 28% of capacity in normal aortas, this increased to 75% during the progression phase. By the end of the regression phase, the CSP was filled to 100% of capacity even though serum cholesterol levels had returned to normal. The data are discussed in terms of emerging concepts of intracellular cholesterol trafficking, ACAT inhibitors, and the types of atherosclerotic lesions which may be subject to amelioration by ACAT inhibitors.
Pre- and post-alighting host discrimination by Euphydryas editha butterflies: The behavioural mechanisms causing clumped distributions of egg clusters

Abstract Egg clusters of the checkerspot butterfly, Euphydryas editha , are contagiously distributed among host plants ( Pedicularis semibarbata ) at one mid-elevation montaine site in California. Large, isolated plants receive more egg clusters than is expected from their proportional representation in the population. This study attempts to determine the behavioural causes of that contagious distribution. Non-random alighting by ovipositing females appears to be the primary cause of the observed contagious distribution. Females alight more often than would be expected by chance on large, isolated plants. Females also appear to exhibit a weak post-alighting bias in favour of large, isolated plants, though this bias is not statistically significant. However, manipulative experiments reveal that postalighting acceptance is not random; certain plants are accepted repeatedly while others are rejected repeatedly. The results also indicate that searching females distinguish among different classes of plants within a host species.
FLOW CYTOMETRIC APPLICATIONS OF SULFORHODAMINE 101 AS A FLUORESCENT STAIN FOR TOTAL CELLULAR PROTEIN

In this paper, the use of Sulforhodamine 101 (SR 101; C.I. 14318) as a fluorescent stain for flow cytometric determinations of total cellular protein (TCP) is described. Flow cytometric quantification of TCP fluorescence can provide a valuable analytical parameter for assessing both changes occurring in overall cellular protein content, such as in response to blast transformation, and heterogeneity in cellular size within a specimen, such as a tumor. Very little information is available in the literature pertaining to the use of SR 101 as a protein stain. Like fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC), SR 101 can be excited at 488 nm; however, it binds ionically and has an emission maximum at 600 nm, which is advantageous in certain staining and filter combinations. In this report, the utility of SR 101 staining is demonstrated using pokeweed mitogen-stimulated lymphocytes and cycloheximide- and dimethylsufloxide-treated cells. Single, two- and three-color flow cytometric applications are possible, using SR 101 in combination with 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) and/or FITC.
Block double differential design for OFDM with carrier frequency offset

Carrier frequency offset (CFO) estimation for orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) has caught attention as OFDM systems have become widely adopted in recent years. In this paper, we design a novel double differential codec with low computational complexity. Our design bypasses CFO and channel estimation and is easy to be implemented at both transmitter and receiver. It also guarantees full multipath diversity, and reduces the peak-to-average power ratio from the number of subcarriers to the channel order. In addition, it is robust to CFO drifting. The closed form of the performance for our design is derived for OFDM transmissions over frequency-selective channels with CFO. Thorough simulation results corroborate our claims.
The mechanics and behavior of cliff swallows during tandem flights.

Cliff swallows ( Petrochelidon pyrrhonota ) are highly maneuverable social birds that often forage and fly in large open spaces. Here we used multi-camera videography to measure the three-dimensional kinematics of their natural flight maneuvers in the field. Specifically, we collected data on tandem flights, defined as two birds maneuvering together. These data permit us to evaluate several hypotheses on the high-speed maneuvering flight performance of birds. We found that high-speed turns are roll-based, but that the magnitude of the centripetal force created in typical maneuvers varied only slightly with flight speed, typically reaching a peak of ~2 body weights. Turning maneuvers typically involved active flapping rather than gliding. In tandem flights the following bird copied the flight path and wingbeat frequency (~12.3 Hz) of the lead bird while maintaining position slightly above the leader. The lead bird turned in a direction away from the lateral position of the following bird 65% of the time on average. Tandem flights vary widely in instantaneous speed (1.0 to 15.6 m s−1) and duration (0.72 to 4.71 s), and no single tracking strategy appeared to explain the course taken by the following bird.
An energy efficient wideband RF front-end for a DVB-H/ISDB-T receiver

A power-efficient high data-rate OFDM based wideband radio front-end implemented in 90nm CMOS technology using a combination of circuit, system, silicon integration, and analog built-in-self calibration techniques is presented. These techniques are illustrated in the context of a direct conversion wideband DVB-H/ISDB-T receiver front-end signal path operating over the 470 to 702MHz bands, including a narrowband selectable cascode LNA, harmonic reject passive mixers, area and power efficient baseband filtering, providing a 73.5dB voltage gain, 4dB noise figure, +4dBm out of band IIP3, with 50mW power consumption.
Effect of Erythropoietin on Proliferation of Erythroid Stem Cells in the Absence of Transplantable Colony-forming Units

A single administration of Myleran eradicated colony-forming stem cells from marrow or spleen of mice for a period of two weeks or longer. Erythropoiesis was restored during that time, and the exclusion of cell influx from the colony-forming progenitors into the intermediary erythroid stem cell compartment permitted a study of the effects of erythropoietin on the kinetics of the latter. The results indicate that erythropoietin, in addition to its role in transforming immediate precursors into proerythroblasts, stimulated the proliferation of erythroid stem cells. The significance of this in regard to stem cell kinetics and rate regulation of erythropoiesis is discussed.
Links between parental depression and longitudinal changes in youths’ neural sensitivity to rewards

Parental depression is a significant risk factor for adolescents' engagement in risk taking. Yet the neural processes that mediate the link between parental depression and adolescents' functioning remain unknown. Using a longitudinal functional magnetic resonance imaging design, we investigated how parental depression is associated with changes in adolescents' neural reactivity to rewards during a risk-taking task, and how such changes in neural reactivity are associated with changes in risk-taking behavior. Greater parental depressive symptoms were associated with increases in their adolescent child's risk taking and self-reported externalizing behavior over time. At the neural level, adolescents of parents with greater depressive symptoms showed longitudinal increases in the ventral striatum and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex to rewards during risk taking. Longitudinal increases in adolescents' ventral striatum activation mediates the link between greater parental depression and increases in adolescents' risk taking and externalizing behavior. These findings provide novel evidence that parental depression may contribute to changes in adolescents' neural reactivity to rewards over time, which is associated with greater increases in their risk taking and externalizing behavior.
Kinematic Barrier Constraints on the Magnitudes of Additional Great Earthquakes Off the East Coast of Japan

Online Material: Figures showing potential areas and magnitudes of earthquakes rupturing partially coupled regions of the subduction zones. In the wake of the 2011 great Tohoku‐Oki, Japan, earthquake, questions were asked about the extent to which this earthquake ruptured a part of the subduction zone that had been strongly coupled in the decades prior to the event (Avouac, 2011; Lay and Kanamori, 2011; Loveless and Meade, 2011). The primary means for investigating this question is the analysis of interseismic geodetic data. These data record both tectonic motions and the accumulation of elastic strain the upper crust. Combined with elastic dislocation and block models, Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) data from the GNSS Earth Observation Network System (GEONET) array had been used to estimate the spatial variation in interseismic coupling (defined as the fraction of relative motion between tectonic plates that contributes to elastic strain accumulation) along the Japan trench subduction interface prior to the occurrence of the 2011 event (Nishimura et al. , 2004; Suwa et al. , 2006; Hashimoto et al. , 2009; Loveless and Meade, 2010). Each of these estimated interseismic coupling distributions identified a partially to strongly coupled region, extending for ∼400 km between 36° and 40° north latitude along the Japan trench, approximately bounding the lateral and down‐dip extents of the coseismic rupture (Loveless and Meade, 2011). However, none of these estimates show a perfect spatial correspondence between the coseismic rupture extent and complete preseismic coupling. Rather, the coseismic rupture was laterally bounded by regions of the Japan subduction zone with a coupling fraction c of ∼0.3, in which 30% of the relative plate motion contributes to elastic strain accumulation during the interseismic regime (Loveless and Meade, 2011). This spatial relationship could result from insufficient elastic strain accumulation around portions of the interface characterized by …
Cryofibrinogenemia: incidence, clinical correlations, and a review of the literature.

Cryofibrinogens are fibrinogen complexes which precipitate at 4 C. Cryofibrinogenemia is present in 3.4% of oxalated blood samples submitted to the hospital clinical laboratory for complete blood counts. Individuals with cryofibrinogenemia are more likely to have diabetes mellitus than is a random hospital patient. Patients with cryofibrinogenemia are four to five times more likely to have invasive cancer, or a severe thromboembolic episode, or to die, than is a random hospital patient. Patients with cryofibrinogenemia have hyperfibrinogenemia and elevated levels of alpha-1-anti trypsin.
Characterization of ice-induced low-frequency flowfield oscillations and their effect on airfoil performance

Wind tunnel measurements were used to determine the unsteady location of shear-layer reattachment on an NACA 0012 airfoil with a leading-edge horn-ice shape, along with the corresponding time-resolved unsteady iced-airfoil performance. Similar trends in lowfrequency content were identified between the unsteady shear-layer reattachment location and the iced-airfoil performance. Conditional averaging was used to determine the average relationship between the unsteady reattachment location and the iced-airfoil performance corresponding to this common low-frequency mode. A phase relationship was also identified between the shear-layer reattachment location and the iced-airfoil performance. Changes in spectral content over time in the airfoil performance and reattachment location were analyzed using wavelet transforms. The low-frequency oscillations were observed to occur at similar time instances between these signals, and appeared to originate in the separation bubble at a location corresponding to nearly half of the separation bubble length. This lowfrequency mode was then propagated throughout the surface pressure flowfield, affecting both the airfoil performance and the separation bubble length. A summary of the lowfrequency oscillation in the airfoil flowfield is presented.
Modeling and design of an X-band rf photoinjector

A design for an $X$-band rf photoinjector that was developed jointly by SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC) and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is presented. The photoinjector is based around a 5.59 cell rf gun that has state-of-the-art features including: elliptical contoured irises; improved mode separation; an optimized initial half cell length; a racetrack input coupler; and coupling that balances pulsed heating with cavity fill time. Radio-frequency and beam dynamics modeling have been done using a combination of codes including PARMELA, HFSS, IMPACT-T, ASTRA, and the ACE3P suite of codes developed at SLAC. The impact of lower gradient operation, magnet misalignment, solenoid multipole errors, beam offset, mode beating, wakefields, and beam line symmetry have been analyzed and are described. Fabrication and testing plans at both LLNL and SLAC are discussed.
Using Shared Decision-Making Tools to Improve Care for Patients with Disorders of Sex Development.

Disorders of sex development (DSD) are complex conditions and require a different and comprehensive approach to assure adequate education for the patient and caregivers. Patient/family values must be considered when discussing sensitive issues regarding the body and sexual activity, regardless of patient age. Controversies in the care of these patients should be shared with the ageappropriate patients and/or caregivers in an up-to-date and unbiased manner. Informed consent involves a complete understanding of the expected outcomes. All questions must be answered thoroughly before irreversible surgery, especially regarding gonads or other reproductive organs.
Neural responses to nostalgia-evoking music modeled by elements of dynamic musical structure and individual differences in affective traits

Nostalgia is an emotion that is most commonly associated with personally and socially relevant memories. It is primarily positive in valence and is readily evoked by music. It is also an idiosyncratic experience that varies between individuals based on affective traits. We identified frontal, limbic, paralimbic, and midbrain brain regions in which the strength of the relationship between ratings of nostalgia evoked by music and blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signal was predicted by affective personality measures (nostalgia proneness and the sadness scale of the Affective Neuroscience Personality Scales) that are known to modulate the strength of nostalgic experiences. We also identified brain areas including the inferior frontal gyrus, substantia nigra, cerebellum, and insula in which time-varying BOLD activity correlated more strongly with the time-varying tonal structure of nostalgia-evoking music than with music that evoked no or little nostalgia. These findings illustrate one way in which the reward and emotion regulation networks of the brain are recruited during the experiencing of complex emotional experiences triggered by music. These findings also highlight the importance of considering individual differences when examining the neural responses to strong and idiosyncratic emotional experiences. Finally, these findings provide a further demonstration of the use of time-varying stimulus-specific information in the investigation of music-evoked experiences.