cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A robust algorithm for a system identification approach to digital human modeling: an application to multi-fingered hand movement

A recent study [2] proposed a forward bio-dynamic model of multifingered hand movement. The model employed a physics-based heuristic algorithm for system identification of the model parameters, and succeeded in replicating measured multi-fingered flexion-extension movement. However, while the model itself is general and readily applicable to other bodily movements, the heuristic algorithm required empirical adjustments to initial setups, and was therefore difficult to generalize. This paper introduces a rigorous and more robust parameter estimation algorithm to enhance the intended general modeling approach for digital human movement simulation. The algorithm is demonstrated by solving the same modeling problem posed in [2].
Multiple tests of association with biological annotation metadata

We propose a general and formal statistical framework for multiple tests of association between known fixed features of a genome and unknown parameters of the distribution of variable features of this genome in a population of interest. The known gene-annotation profiles, corresponding to the fixed features of the genome, may concern Gene Ontology (GO) annotation, pathway membership, regulation by particular transcription factors, nucleotide sequences, or protein sequences. The unknown gene-parameter profiles, corresponding to the variable features of the genome, may be, for example, regression coefficients relating possibly censored biological and clinical outcomes to genome-wide transcript levels, DNA copy numbers, and other covariates. A generic question of great interest in current genomic research regards the detection of associations between biological annotation metadata and genome-wide expression measures. This biological question may be translated as the test of multiple hypotheses concerning association measures between gene-annotation profiles and gene-parameter profiles. A general and rigorous formulation of the statistical inference question allows us to apply the multiple hypothesis testing methodology developed in [Multiple Testing Procedures with Applications to Genomics (2008) Springer, New York] and related articles, to control a broad class of Type I error rates, defined as generalized tail probabilities and expected values for arbitrary functions of the numbers of Type I errors and rejected hypotheses. The resampling-based single-step and stepwise multiple testing procedures of [Multiple Testing Procedures with Applications to Genomics (2008) Springer, New York] take into account the joint distribution of the test statistics and provide Type I error control in testing problems involving general data generating distributions (with arbitrary dependence structures among variables), null hypotheses, and test statistics.
The Challenge of Designing and Evaluating "Interaction" in Web-Based Distance Education.

The purpose of this paper is threefold: (1) to discuss issues related to the design of interaction on the World Wide Web using models of interaction developed for distance education; (2) to examine several techniques for the analysis of interactions and the quality of the learning experience in a computer-mediated group conference; and (3) to propose a model for analyzing the social construction of knowledge in such a group conference. The paper provides guidelines for both designers and evaluators of Web-based instruction. The definition of interaction in a computer mediated communication (CMC) environment is examined since definitions of interaction for interpersonal communication used by communication researchers to study face-to-face dialogue do not transfer well to the CMC context. Three types of interaction are discussed: learner-content, learner-instructor, and learner-learner. The strengths and shortcomings of the interaction analysis techniques that have been developed are pointed out, and a model for analyzing the quality of CMC interactions and learning experiences is proposed. The application of this model for analyzing interaction is briefly discussed. (Contains 17 references.) (MES) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. 1 BEST COPYAVAILABLE THE CHALLENGE OF DESIGNING AND EVALUATING 'INTERACTION' IN WEB-BASED DISTANCE EDUCATION Charlotte Gunawardena University of New Mexico lani@unm.edu
Stability and Performance of List Scheduling With ExternalProcess Delays

Non-preemptive static priority list scheduling is a simple, low-overhead approach to scheduling precedence-constrained tasks in real-time multiprocessor systems. However, it is vulnerable to anomalous timing behavior caused by variations in task durations. Specifically, reducing the duration of one task can delay the starting time of another task. This phenomenon, called Scheduling Instability, can make it difficult or impossible to guarantee real-time deadlines. Several heuristic solutions to handle scheduling instability have been reported. This paper addresses three main limitations in the state of the art in schedule stabilization. First, each stabilization technique only applies to a narrowly defined class of systems. To alleviate this constraint, we present an Extended Scheduling Model encompassing a wide range of assumptions about the scheduling environment, and address the stability problem under this model. Second, existing stabilization methods are heuristics based on a partial understanding of the causes of instability. We therefore derive a set of General Instability Conditions which are both necessary and sufficient for instability to occur. Third, solutions to scheduling instability range from trivial constraints on the run-time dispatcher through complex transformations of the precedence graph. We present scheduling simulation results comparing the average performance of several inherently stable run-time dispatchers of widely varying levels of complexity. Results show that for representative real-time workloads, simple low-overhead dispatchers perform nearly as well as a complex ’’minimally stabilized‘‘ dispatcher. Thus, complex schedule stabilization methods may be unnecessary, or even detrimental, due to their high computational overhead.
Robust Control Design for a Benchmark Problem Using the Maximum Entropy Approach

Robust controllers are developed for a benchmark problem by using the Maximum Entropy/Optimal Projection design methodology.
Prediction of body weight for the nonambulatory elderly from anthropometry

Body weight is one of the most important measurements in assessing nutritional status. Weight is also an important variable in equations that are needed to predict caloric expenditure and in indexes of body composition. Equations to predict the body weight of nonambulatory elderly persons with known errors should make use of body measurements that are indexes of the actual constituents of body composition and that can be collected regardless of an elderly person's level of mobility. The study samples consisted of a validation sample of 228 ambulatory white elderly persons, a cross-validation sample, and a clinical-validation sample of nonambulatory white elderly persons. Equations to predict body weight in the validation sample were derived from recumbent measures of arm and calf circumferences, triceps and subscapular skinfolds, and knee height. The accuracy, sensitivity, and validity of the equations were independently tested in the cross-validation sample; mean signed differences in actual and predicted weight ranged from 0.1 to 1.8 kg. In the clinical-validation sample, the mean differences were larger. Prediction equations are presented using two, three, and four body measurements to allow the selection of an equation based upon those measurements that are possible to collect from a nonambulatory person on an individual basis.
The experimental consumer price index for elderly Americans (CPI-E): 1982-2007

Kenneth J. Stewart The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures the average change over time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a representative market basket of consumer goods and services. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) publishes measures of price change for two official population groups. The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) represents the spending habits of about 87 percent of the population of the United States,1 and the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), a subset of the CPI-U population, represents about 32 percent of the U.S. population. As the U.S. population ages, policymakers have become increasingly interested in issues facing older Americans.2 In 1987, Congress directed BLS to begin calculating a consumer price index for the elderly. In response, BLS developed an experimental consumer price index for Americans 62 years of age and older. Commonly called the CPI-E, the index was reconstructed to 1982; hence, CPI-E data are now available for 25 years, from December 1982 through December 2007.3 The experimental CPI-E has moved somewhat differently than the CPI-U and the CPI-W over the last quarter century. From December 1982 to December 2007, the experimental CPI-E rose 126.5 percent, compared with increases of 115.2 percent for the CPI-U and 110.0 percent for the CPI-W. That translates into average annual increases of 3.3 percent, 3.1 percent, and 3.0 percent for the CPI-E, CPI-U, and CPI-W, respectively.
La transformación de las maras centroamericanas

Las maras han ganado notoriedad no solo por su presencia en los barrios y las prisiones del Salvador sino tambien porque se han convertido en poderosos grupos criminales con la capacidad de desafiar a los gobiernos nacionales y forzar procesos de negociacion. La migracion y la deportacion de pandilleros desde los Estados Unidos jugaron un papel importante en el desarrollo de las maras, pero esta no es la unica causa ni tampoco la mas importante. Para comprender la situacion actual de las pandillas centroamericanas es preciso tomar en cuenta las politicas del Estado para hacerles frente, las cuales giraron en torno al uso excesivo de la fuerza, hasta que en los ultimos anos se iniciaron estrategias de negociacion
On the hopf fibration over Z

Let h : R 4 → R 3 be a quadratic map defined by For a natural number t , put
Diffuse cerebral microhemorrhages in a patient with adult-onset Pompe’s disease: a case report

Background: Pompe’s Disease is a glycogen storage disease that manifests as vasculopathy, progressive neuropathy and myopathy. There are a few reports of vasculopathy in this disease, thought to be from small and medium vessel arteriopathy. We present a case of late-onset Pompe’s disease with microhemorrhages and review of the pertinent literature. Methods: We describe a case of microhemorrhages in a patient with known late onset Pompe disease. Results: Our patient was noted to have numerous microhemorrhages concentrated in the posterior circulation distribution in what can best be described as central microhemorrhages, distinct from the pattern seen in amyloid angiopathy. Previous autopsy studies have found vacuoles in the vessel wall resulting in small aneurysms as a part of the Pompe syndrome. Conclusions: There is an accumulating body of evidence that suggests cerebral vasculopathy as one of the primary manifestations of adult onset Pompe’s disease. This is manifested as dolichoectasia of basilar artery, aneurysms and microhemorrhages that are central in distribution. The primary pathology is thought to be glycogen deposition in small and medium size intracranial vessels. Controlling blood pressure aggressively and screening intracranial vascular imaging is recommended. Further definition of the syndrome is continuing from phenotypic and genotypic dimensions.
Developing a Macroscopic Lens Into Middle School Reform: Psychometric Properties of the AMLE SIA

The purpose of this study was to assess the validity and reliability of the AMLE SIA, which was developed by the NMSA to provide the best educational programs for young adolescents to improve their skills. To promote these skills, NMSA suggested that schools needs to implement 16 characteristics nested within three categories. However, many middle schools failed to implement the practices. The reason might be the instrument itself due to including 96 items and the design. Therefore, the validity of the instrument was analyzed; response organization system was redesigned; the items were revised and eliminated by using regression (83 items); and the final instrument’s validity was analyzed by using EFA (73% of variance explained) and the reliability (.98) was calculated.
Search for theχ′ c charmonium states as solution to the CDFψ′ puzzle

The efforts of Roy-Sridhar-Close-Cho-Wise-Trivedi to resolve the CDFψ′ anomaly with cascades from above-thresholdχ′ c states require well defined signatures [a small total width and a large branching fraction forχ′ cJ →γ+ψ′] for the solution to be viable. Here we estimate the production of such states from BR(B→χ′ cJ +X)BR(χ′ cJ →γψ′) andγγ production ofχ′ c2 at CLEO II, and comment on the feasibility of testing the hypothesis in terms of current experimental capabilities.
Fast group membership using a strong generating test for permutation groups

Many important algorithms in computations with permutation groups require an efficient solution to the group membership problem. This requires deciding if a given permutation is an element of a permutation group G specified by a set of generators. Sims [8] developed an elegant solution to this problem. His method relies on the construction of an alternative generating set for G known as a strong generating set which can be easily used to test membership of an arbitrary permutation in G. This algorithm was shown to have worst case time O(n 6). Later versions [1, 5, 6] have improved the theoretical worst case time but without necessarily improving the performance in practice. An algorithm is presented here which has an observed running time of O(n 4) for all permutations groups for which it has been tested. (The worst-case time for this algorithm is O(n 5).) The key idea is a new test [3] for whether a set of generators is a strong generating set. Each call to this last test has worst case time O(n 4). A further reduction in time is achieved by using a fast algorithm for finding reduced generating sets. For groups with small bases, the running running time is O(n 2), which is optimal for the data structure used.
Gold Ore Column Studies with a New Mercury Precipitant

The 1,3-benzenediamidoethanethiol ligand (BDET) completely precipitates soft heavy metals from aqueous solutions under a wide range of conditions. In the present study, the sodium salt of this ligand was applied during the cyanide leaching of ore samples collected from an active gold-mining site in South America. The ligand irreversibly binds mercury from solutions containing cyanide, similarly to those present in the gold−cyanide process (GCP). The present work tests the industrial viability of BDET in the GCP through a column leaching study on ores from South America. The average mercury concentration in the ore samples was 5.22 ppm (milligrams of Hg per kilogram of ore), leached by 19.1% after cyanide extraction. After addition of BDET to the extractant solution, leached mercury from the columns decreased to 0.001 ppm, whereas the leached gold and silver concentrations remained unaffected.
Environmental grain and polychaete species' diversity in a bathyal benthic community

Patterns of polychaete species' dispersion in the San Diego Trough, Southern California Continental Borderland, North Pacific Ocean, at a depth of 1230 m are analyzed. Samples consist of 4 replicate 0.25-m2 box cores, each partitioned into twenty-five 0.01-m2 subcores, and of 1 unpartitioned core. The sampler is biased but, when this bias is taken into account, few species show strong aggregation either between or within cores. If all species are considered together as replicates, intraspecific aggregation is detected between cores, but uniform dispersion dominates within cores. Patchiness or habitat partitioning on the assayed scales can thus account for little of the extremely high species' diversity observed. Apparently due to an environmental structure having a “grain” smaller than 0.01-m2, the diversity of species assumed to be sedentary is higher than the diversity of species assumed to be mobile. One evidence of such structure is a negative covariance between paraonid abundance and density of “mudballs” constructed by a cirratulid. Consideration of these results suggests that either grain specialization or simultaneous, biogenic disequilibrium or both act on spatial scales smaller than 0.01-m2 to maintain high polychaete species' diversity in the San Diego Trough.
Solution structure of a consensus stem-loop D RNA domain that plays important roles in regulating translation and replication in enteroviruses and rhinoviruses.

Stem-loop D from the cloverleaf RNA is a highly conserved domain within the 5‘-UTR of enteroviruses and rhinoviruses. Interaction between the stem-loop D RNA and the viral 3C or 3CD proteins constitutes an essential feature of a ribonucleoprotein complex that plays a critical role in regulating viral translation and replication. Here we report the solution NMR structure of a 38-nucleotide RNA with a sequence that encompasses the entire stem-loop D domain and corresponds to the consensus sequence found in enteroviruses and rhinoviruses. Sequence variants corresponding to Poliovirus type 1 and Coxsackievirus B3 have virtually the same structure, based on small differences in chemical shifts. A substantial number (136) of 1H−13C one-bond residual dipolar coupling (RDC) values were used in the structure determination in addition to conventional distance and torsion angle restraints. Inclusion of the RDC restraints was essential for achieving well-defined structures, both globally and locally. The structure of...
Large Atrial Appendage Thrombus in the Presence of Severe Mitral Regurgitation: Contradictory Hemodynamics or Expected Findings

A case of a large left atrial appendage thrombus in the presence of severe mitral regurgitation is presented. The use of transesophageal echocardiography in this setting was not only useful but also crucial despite the low anticipated diagnostic yield given the expected altered left atrial flow dynamics from the turbulent regurgitant lesion. However, additional confounding factors could have acted as potential mechanisms to enhance thrombosis in this setting and consequently are discussed.
Effect of process parameters on the phase formation, particle size and magnetic properties of MnBi nanoparticles prepared by mechanochemical synthesis

Abstract Nanoparticles of MnBi are obtained from Bi 2 O 3 and Mn by mechanochemical synthesis. The effect of excess dispersant (CaO) in mechanochemical synthesis and the temperature of subsequent thermal treatment on phase formation, particle size and magnetic properties of MnBi nanoparticles is investigated by means of X-ray diffraction analysis, scanning electron microscopy and magnetometry. With increase of excess dispersant, the average particle size decreases and the particles are observed to be more separated. Saturation magnetization ( M s ) was found to decrease with increase of excess dispersant, while the coercivity ( H c ) increases with the increase of dispersant up to 40 wt.% and thereafter it decreases. The formation of MnBi phase increases as the heat-treatment temperature is increased; however, the average particle size increases from nano to micrometer (200 nm to 2 μm).
The Submission Data File System Automating the Creation of CDISC SDTM and ADaM Datasets

AbstractFrom its inception the SDF System was designed to tackle many of the difficulties that have plagued statistical programming ever since the first programs were developed to analyze clinical trial data. The system scope includes the following areas:•Automating front-end and back-end data security•Providing rapid access to raw and derived datasets to all sites within the organization•Implementing large scale systems design and software engineering principles in the clinical trials programming domain to reduce the software development effort required for each statistical analysis•Modeling the complex relationships inherent within clinical data to provide sophisticated impact analysis tools with the capability to manage and cascade change•Implementing an object-oriented (OO) approach to the definition and reuse of clinical data standards•Improving review and quality control processes by coupling the specification of a program together with it's source code to create one logical entity•Reducing the vali...
Pauropoda from New Mexico

Length, .92 mm.; width of the head, .09 mm.; width of the body, .12 mm. The head has three rows of slightly plumed hairs on the dorsal side. There are eight in the anterior row, four in the middle row and three in the caudal row. The eye areas were not marked. The first body segment has two rows of slightly plumed hairs in two rows with two in the cephalic row and six in the caudal. To correspond to each leg pair there is a row of from six to eight hairs dorsally. All the setae are slightly plumed and short. The next to the last body division has besides the pair of long plume hairs, two rows of two each, all short and slightly plumed
Assembly of Protein Kinase a RIIβ Macromolecular Complexes

Protein Kinase A is assembled in cells as an inactive tetrameric holoenzyme with Regulatory-subunit dimers and two Catalytic-subunits. In mammalian cells there are four functionally non-redundant R-subunits (RIα, RIβ, RIIα and RIIβ). Although all R-subunits share the same domain organization, the quaternary structures of each holoenzyme are unique and their allosteric mechanisms for activation differ from one another. In order to understand PKA signaling in cells, we now need to go beyond PKA holoenyzme and look at how PKA is scaffolded with other signaling proteins into macromolecular complexes that are targeted by A Kinase Anchoring Proteins (AKAPs) to channels, receptors, and transporters in cells. Most AKAPs are RII specific. AKAPs can not only recruit PKA to specific cellular sites but can also bring PKA to the vicinity of its substrates and other signaling proteins such as adenylate cyclases, phosphodiesterases, and phosphatases. This creates a mechanism to control the cellular actionsof PKA both spatially and temporally. The PKA-AKAP79-calcineurin (CaN) complex presents a highly approachable system for examining PKA macromolecular signaling scaffolds. It serves at least two purposes: positioning CaN and PKA near critical substrates, and focusing Ca2+ and cAMP signaling in “microdomains” built around voltage gated Ca2+ channels. PKA phosphorylates and activates the Ca2+ channel. Ca2+ then enters the cell and binds to CaN and anchored calmodulin. Activated CaN can then dephosphorylate the channel, decreasing its activity. Furthermore CaN dephosphorylates the RIIβ regulatory subunit of PKA, promoting its binding to the catalytic subunit and inactivation of PKA. We used small angle solution scattering and native mass spectrometry methods to study the stoichiometry and structure of this macromolecular complex. We also found that Ca2+ can support the single turnover of phosphate in the RIIβ holoenzyme although it cannot support steady state catalysis.
Activation of phosphorylase phosphatase by a novel procedure: Evidence for a regulatory mechanism involving the release of a catalytic subunit from enzyme-inhibitor complex(es) of higher molecular weight

Abstract Phosphorylase phosphatase in crude tissue extracts of rat liver, skeletal and heart muscle can be markedly activated by a treatment involving precipitation with ammonium sulfate and ethanol. The activation of the enzyme in rat liver extracts is shown to occur with the concomitant conversion of the enzyme from multiple molecular weight forms to a single form of lower molecular weight (M.W.∼30,000). After activation by ethanol treatment, phosphorylase phosphatase activities of rat liver, skeletal and heart muscle were shown by sucrose density ultracentrifugation to sediment in a similar manner with a sedimentation coefficient of 2.8S and M.W. 32,000.
Early differentiation and volatile accretion recorded in deep-mantle neon and xenon

Noble gas contents of the Iceland mantle plume show that neither the Moon-forming impact nor billions of years of mantle convection has erased the signature of Earth’s heterogeneous accretion and early differentiation. This analysis of noble gas content in Icelandic basaltic rocks — material produced by the melting of a deep upwelling of hot rock in Earth's mantle — indicates that their source is less degassed than that of mid-ocean-ridge basalts and that Earth's mantle has accreted volatiles from at least two separate sources. The author concludes that neither the Moon-forming impact nor billions of years of mantle convection has erased the signature of Earth's heterogeneous accretion and early differentiation. The isotopes 129Xe, produced from the radioactive decay of extinct 129I, and 136Xe, produced from extinct 244Pu and extant 238U, have provided important constraints on early mantle outgassing and volatile loss from Earth1,2. The low ratios of radiogenic to non-radiogenic xenon (129Xe/130Xe) in ocean island basalts (OIBs) compared with mid-ocean-ridge basalts (MORBs) have been used as evidence for the existence of a relatively undegassed primitive deep-mantle reservoir1. However, the low 129Xe/130Xe ratios in OIBs have also been attributed to mixing between subducted atmospheric Xe and MORB Xe, which obviates the need for a less degassed deep-mantle reservoir3,4. Here I present new noble gas (He, Ne, Ar, Xe) measurements from an Icelandic OIB that reveal differences in elemental abundances and 20Ne/22Ne ratios between the Iceland mantle plume and the MORB source. These observations show that the lower 129Xe/130Xe ratios in OIBs are due to a lower I/Xe ratio in the OIB mantle source and cannot be explained solely by mixing atmospheric Xe with MORB-type Xe. Because 129I became extinct about 100 million years after the formation of the Solar System, OIB and MORB mantle sources must have differentiated by 4.45 billion years ago and subsequent mixing must have been limited. The Iceland plume source also has a higher proportion of Pu- to U-derived fission Xe, requiring the plume source to be less degassed than MORBs, a conclusion that is independent of noble gas concentrations and the partitioning behaviour of the noble gases with respect to their radiogenic parents. Overall, these results show that Earth’s mantle accreted volatiles from at least two separate sources and that neither the Moon-forming impact nor 4.45 billion years of mantle convection has erased the signature of Earth’s heterogeneous accretion and early differentiation.
Hallucinations and mortality in Alzheimer disease.

Objective The authors tested the relationship of hallucinations and delusions to mortality in Alzheimer disease (AD). Methods A group of 407 persons with clinically diagnosed AD completed a uniform clinical evaluation, after which vital status was monitored for a mean of 3.7 years. At the initial evaluation, a previously established, structured, informant interview was used to ascertain the presence of hallucinations and delusional thinking. The evaluation also included a structured medical history, inspection of all medications, and detailed assessment of cognitive functioning and parkinsonian signs. Results At study onset, hallucinations were present in 41.0% of participants and delusions in 54.4%. During follow-up, 146 deaths occurred. In a proportional-hazards model adjusted for age, sex, race, and education, hallucinations were associated with a 78% increase in risk of death. The association was not substantially altered in subsequent analyses that controlled for level of cognitive impairment, severity of parkinsonism, use of antipsychotic medications, and the presence of chronic medical conditions. Risk of death was more than doubled in those with both auditory and visual hallucinations. By contrast, we did not find evidence of an association of delusions with mortality. Conclusion Hallucinations are associated with an increased risk of death in AD.
1H NMR spectroscopy of carbohydrates from the G glycoprotein of vesicular stomatitis virus grown in parental and Lec4 Chinese hamster ovary cells.

Abstract Carbohydrate moieties derived from the G glycoprotein of Vesicular Stomatitis Virus (VSV) grown in parental Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells and the glycosylation mutant Lec4 have been analyzed by high-field 1 H NMR spectroscopy. The major glycopeptides of CHO VSV and Lec4 VSV were purified by their ability to bind to concanavalin A-Sepharose. The carbohydrates in this fraction are of the biantennary, complex type with heterogeneity in the presence of α(2,3)-linked sialic acid and α(1,6)-linked fucose residues. A minor CHO VSV glycopeptide fraction, which does not bind to concanavalin A-Sepharose but which binds to pea lectin-agarose, was also investigated by 1 H NMR spectroscopy. These carbohydrates are complex moieties which appear to contain N -acetylglucosamine in β(1,6) linkage. Their spectral properties are most similar to those of a triantennary complex oligosaccharide containing a 2,6-disubstituted mannose α(1,6) residue. Carbohydrates of this type are not found among the glycopeptides of VSV grown in the Lec4 CHO glycosylation mutant.
Src-dependent Phosphorylation of the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor on Tyrosine 845 Is Required for Zinc-induced Ras Activation *

Previous studies have shown that exposure of cells to Zn2+ ions induces Ras and MAPK activation through the EGF receptor (EGFR). To further determine the role of EGFR in Zn2+-induced signaling, mouse B82L fibroblasts expressing no detectable EGFR protein (B82L-par), wild type EGFR (B82L-wt), kinase-deficient EGFR (B82L-K721M), or COOH-truncated EGFR (B82L-c'958) were tested. Exposure to Zn2+ induced Ras activity in B82L-wt, B82L-K721M, and B82L-c'958 but not in B82L-par cells, indicating that the tyrosine kinase domain and the auto-phosphorylation sites of the EGFR were not required for Zn2+-induced Ras activation. Zn2+ induced Src activation in all B82L cell lines, including B82L-par, indicating that Src activation is independent of the presence of the EGFR. A Src kinase inhibitor blocked Zn2+-induced Ras activation in all the B82L cell lines capable of this response, suggesting the involvement of Src kinase in Zn2+-induced Ras activation via the EGFR. Zn2+ induced the association of the EGFR with Src and specifically increased the phosphorylation of EGFR at tyrosine 845 (Tyr-845), a known Src phosphorylation site. Stably transfected B82L cells with a point mutation of the EGFR at Tyr-845 (B82L-Y845F) exhibited only basal Ras activity following exposure to Zn2+. These data demonstrate that Src-dependent phosphorylation of the EGFR at Tyr-845 is required for EGFR transactivation and Zn2+-induced Ras activation.
A computational study of water and CO migration sites and channels inside myoglobin

Pathways are computed for transport of H2O and CO in myoglobin (Mb), using the single sweep and zero-temperature string methods in a fully atomistic, explicitly solvated model system. Our predictions of sites and barriers in the pathways for CO transport agree with previous studies. For H2O, we predict a binding site in the distal pocket (DP), in agreement with crystallographic observations, and another one close to Leu 29 which explains the importance of this residue in controlling the pocket's hydrophobicity, as well as disordered minima in the largely apolar xenon cavities. In particular, H2O can occupy and transition among the xenon cavities, Xe4, Xe2, and Xe3. Our results support the hypothesis that the thermodynamically most favorable entry/exit portal for H2O is the so-called histidine gate (HG), the same as for CO. This result, along with the observation of water occupation of both DP and apolar Xe cavities, suggest that water and small gas molecules like CO compete for access to the protein interior, and therefore models of gas molecule transport within proteins should also explicitly consider water transport.
The low-frequency array (LOFAR): opening a new window on the universe

Abstract We present an overview of the low-frequency array (LOFAR) that will open a window on one of the last and most poorly explored regions of the electromagnetic spectrum. LOFAR will be a large (baselines up to 400 km), low-frequency ( ν ∼ 10 – 240 MHz ) aperture synthesis array with large collecting area ( ∼ 10 6 m 2 at 15 MHz ) and high resolution ( ∼ 1 . 5 ″ at 100 MHz), and will provide sub-mJy sensitivity across much of its operating range. LOFAR will be a powerful instrument for solar system and planetary science applications as reviewed by papers in this monogram. Key astrophysical science drivers include acceleration, turbulence, and propagation in the galactic interstellar medium, exploring the high red-shift universe and transient phenomena, as well as searching for the red-shifted signature of neutral hydrogen from the cosmologically important epoch of re-ionization.
A Capacity Planning Framework for Multi-tier Enterprise Services with Real Workloads

With complexity of systems increasing and customer requirements for QoS growing, new methods and modeling techniques that explain large-systems' behavior and help predict their future performance are required to effectively tackle the emerging performance issues. To accurately answer capacity planning questions for an existing production system with a real workload mix, we propose a new capacity planning framework that is based on the following three components: i) a Workload Profiler that dynamically builds the workload profile; ii) a Regression-based Solver that is used for deriving the CPU demand of client transactions on a given hardware; and iii) an Analytical model that is based on a network of queues representing the different tiers. To validate our approach, we conduct a detailed case study using the access logs from two heterogeneous production servers that represent customized client accesses to a popular and actively used HP Open View Service Desk application.
Identifiability of unknown noise covariance matrices for some special cases of a linear, time-invariant, discrete-time dynamic system

This paper investigates the identification of unknown noise covariance matrices Q and R of an LTI discrete-time dynamic system. Two algorithms based on maximum a posteriori (MAP) and maximum likelihood (ML) cost functions are evaluated. It is demonstrated that the cost functions exhibit local minima versus those elements of Q and R which dominate the steady-state output covariance matrix. The following three special cases are considered: 1) single-input single-output (SISO) system; 2) multiinput single-output (MISO) systems; and 3) single-input multioutput (SIMO) systems with a diagonal R . For these special cases, specific identifiability criteria are presented and verified by examples. The improvement of the MAP algorithm over the ML algorithm is also demonstrated.
Acid-base actuation of [c2]daisy chains.

A versatile synthetic strategy, which was conceived and employed to prepare doubly threaded, bistable [c2]daisy chain compounds, is described. Propargyl and 1-pentenyl groups have been grafted onto the stoppers of [c2]daisy chain molecules obtained using a template-directed synthetic protocol. Such [c2]daisy chain molecules undergo reversible extension and contraction upon treatment with acid and base, respectively. The dialkyne-functionalized [c2]daisy chain (AA) was subjected to an [AA+BB] type polymerization with an appropriate diazide (BB) to afford a linear, mechanically interlocked, main-chain polymer. The macromolecular properties of this polymer were characterized by chronocoulometry, size exclusion chromatography, and static light-scattering analysis. The acid−base switching properties of both the monomers and the polymer have been studied in solution, using 1H NMR spectroscopy, UV/vis absorption spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry. The experimental results demonstrate that the functionalized [c...
How AI can change the way we play games

While artificial intelligence (AI) in games is often associated with enhancing the behavior of non-player characters, at its cutting edge AI offers the potential for entirely new kinds of gaming experiences. In this talk I will focus on this frontier of AI in games through three examples of games from my research that are not only enhanced by AI, but would not even be possible without the unique AI techniques behind them. In these experimental games, called NERO, Galactic Arms Race, and Petalz, players become teachers, AI creates its own content, and unique creations are explicitly bred and traded by the players themselves. The discussion will focus on the inspiration for the technologies behind these games (including some related applications) and the long-term implications of unique and creative AI algorithms for gaming.
Pressure Oscillations From Acoustic Standing Waves Interacting With Steam Flow Instability in Vessel Equipment and Piping

The mechanism causing a fatigue failure of an in-vessel mechanical component has been identified through fundamental thermal-hydraulic analysis, and verified by experiments at several scales. It was found that pressure oscillations, caused by acoustic standing wave interaction with flow-instabilities, similar to vortex shedding, created the oscillatory driving force that initiated the failure. It was necessary to determine the dominant scaling laws in order to design scale models, which would result in time-dependent behavior that was representative of full size systems. The scaling laws showed, and it was confirmed experimentally, that room temperature air could be used in place of steam in small-scale testing, to provide representative behavior of the interactive acoustics and the flow instabilities. Tests of the scale models showed that minor changes in geometry and edge sharpness caused significant changes in the pressure oscillations at a given flow rate. It was also found that the piping configuration attached to a vessel may significantly alter acoustic pressure oscillations within the vessel. The study of interactive acoustic and flow instability phenomena in small scale models makes it possible to study the effect of parameter changes on the magnitude of thermal-hydraulic forces, which can play a role in fatigue failures.Copyright © 2003 by ASME
Transitions in extendible arrays

Arrays are among the best understood and most widely used data structures. Yet even now, there are no satisfactory techniques for handling algorithms involving extendible arrays (where, e.g., rows and/or columns can be added dynamically). In this paper, the problem of allocating storage for extendible arrays is examined in the light of our earlier work on data graphs and addressing schemes. A formal analog of the assertion that simplicity of array extension precludes simplicity of transition (marching along rows/columns) is proved.
Long-term acid-base measurements in the fetaland maternal baboon

Summary OBJECTIVE : The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between maternal and fetal acid-baseindexes in the baboon. STUDY DESIGN : Eight animals maintained in a tether system were studied during the third trimester.Results were analyzed using analysis of variance. RESULTS : After recovery from surgery, pH in carotid artery blood of the fetus was 7.40 ± 0.027 (mean ± SD), Po 2 , 27.5 ± 3.45 mm Hg; Pco 2 , 34.0 ± 2.37 mm Hg; base deficit, 3.0 ± 2.15 mEq/L; Hot, 33.4% ± 2.69% and HbO 2 , 61.3% ± 8.65%. The corresponding values in the mother were 7.48 ± 0.035, 100.7 ± 9.44 mm Hg, 26.4 ± 2.95 mm Hg, 3.6 ± 1.71 mEq/L, 32.6% ± 4.0% and 97.9% ± 1.28%, respectively. All indexes remained essentially the same until the onset of active labor, at which time the fetus became slightly acidotic and hypoxemic (pH 2 CONCLUSION : The baboon fetus has slightly higher pH 2 and lower Paco 2 than the human fetus and Pao 2 ,base deficit, and maternal-fetal gradients across the placenta in these two primate species are comparable.
E-mail tutoring, a new way to do new work☆

Abstract Although writing centers have used computers for over a decade now, they have used them primarily in autotutoriols (computer-assisted instruction) and for word processing. These applications reflect the influence of the process movement in composition studies and the writing center's commitment to the individual writer. Yet as the field moves towards the social in its scholarship and its writing technologies, writing centers might look towards e-mail to seek out new forms of tutor-student collaboration. The essay describes an experiment with e-mail tutoring and explores implications of new working conditions for online tutors.
Life history variation in the black swallowtail butterfly

The growth, development, and reproduction of black swallowtail butterflies (Papilio polyxenes) from Turrialba, Costa Rica and Brooktondale, New York are compared. When New York larvae are reared under a short photoperiod, they produce pupae that diapause and are smaller than those produced under long photoperiods. As a consequence, reproduction in the field is limited to two broods per summer and the adults of Brood I are smaller. Costa Rican larvae exhibit no response to photoperiod and breeding occurs throughout the year. Dispersal of adults in Costa Rica is thought to serve a function analogous to that of diapause in New York: to bridge temporal or spatial gaps between favorable habitats. Under favorable conditions, females from both locations grow rapidly, lay several hundred eggs soon after adult eclosion, and are short-lived, as expected for a colonizing species. However, differences occur in three specific life history traits: adult females from Brood I in New York are similar in size to Costa Rican females, but lay fewer eggs and at a slower rate; adult females from Brood II in New York are larger than Costa Rican females, but have a similar rate of egg production and total fecundity; the eggs of New York females are larger than those of Costa Rican females. It is unclear whether or not these differences reflect divergent adaptation of the life history to different environments. An adaptive hypothesis that emphasizes selection for early age at first reproduction in Costa Rica and for high fecundity in New York, and predicts disrupted latitudinal clines in size, is proposed to account in part for the observations reported here.
Preparticipation cardiovascular screening of young athletes: an epidemiologic perspective.

Sudden cardiac death in young competitive athletes is a rare—but often highly publicized—event. Preparticipation screening for potentially lethal cardiovascular conditions is a complicated and controversial issue. Clinicians need a firm grasp of sound epidemiologic principles concerning screening programs when using the history and physical examination, echocardiography, and electrocardiography to detect potential problems. The very low prevalence of potentially lethal conditions and the low sensitivity and low specificity of the available methods of detection, used alone or in combination, render the positive predictive value of these screening methods exceedingly low.
What should the standard of care for psychiatric diagnostic evaluations be

Recent research has raised concerns about the adequacy of psychiatric diagnostic evaluations conducted in routine clinical practice. Semistructured diagnostic interviews have been considered the diagnostic gold standard. Judged against this standard, studies comparing unstructured clinical evaluations with semistructured interviews have found that there is a high rate of missed diagnoses and misdiagnosis using the usual clinical assessment. Whether this is clinically significant is uncertain because there are no studies that have examined whether the use of standardized research interviews improves clinical outcome. Based on common sense, however, it seems reasonable that greater diagnostic precision will improve outcome. More complete and accurate diagnostic evaluations may impact on patients' satisfaction with the diagnostic assessment, alliance with the treating clinician, selection of medication, or recommendation for psychotherapy. Additionally, improved diagnostic practice may be a better predictor of course and outcome, another important function of diagnosis. In the meantime, until studies are conducted to determine whether standardized research-like evaluations improve outcome or the prediction of outcome, clinicians may want to consider whether one of the recently developed broad-based self-administered diagnostic screening questionnaires could be a useful adjunct to their unstructured diagnostic interview. The results of recent work on the Psychiatric Diagnostic Screening Questionnaire (PDSQ) are summarized.
Dynamics- and Laser-Based Boundary Effect Evaluation Method for Damage Inspection of One- and Two-Dimensional Structures

This paper presents new damage indicators and current capabilities of a dynamics-based Boundary Effect Evaluation Method (BEEM) for damage inspection of large one-and two-dimensional structures. Damage introduces new boundaries to a structure, and influences of boundaries on steady-state high-frequency dynamic response are spatially localized effects. The BEEM is a signal processing method that takes advantage of these localized effects in performing area-by-area extraction of damage-induced boundary effects from steady-state Operational Deflection Shapes (ODSs) to reveal damage locations. Steady-state ODSs of a structure can be measured using a scanning laser vibrometer or any other full-field measurement tool, and the BEEM decomposes an ODS into central and boundary solutions by using a sliding-window least-squares data-fitting technique. Numerical and experimental results show that boundary solutions are excellent damage indicators because of Gibb’s phenomenon, and the central solutions can be used to clearly identify actual boundary conditions. Except for experimental ODSs of the damaged structure the method requires no model or historical data for comparison. Experimental results of many one-and two-dimensional structures validate the high sensitivity and accuracy of BEEM for detection and estimation of multiple small defects in structures.
Experimental and numerical study of solidification and melting of pure materials

Solidification experiments in an enclosure are performed with caprillic acid as the phase-change fluid, and the experimental results for the temperature and solidification front advancement are presented. Caprillic acid, with its less than ambient melting point and low volume reduction on solidification, emerges as a good candidate for solidification experiments. An enthalpy formulation for convection/diffusion phase change in conjunction with an algorithm similar to SIMPLER is used in a formulation developed by Voller for solid-liquid phase change, to generate a numerical solution for lowand high-Prandtl-number fluids. The numerical solution is compared with solidification experimental data. In addition, the numerical solution is also compared with experimental melting data of Wolf and Viskanta for pure tin. The results indicate a good agreement between the experimental data and numerical solutions. This adds confidence to the formulation used in this numerical model.