cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Postapocalyptic Fantasies in Antebellum American Literature

Even before the Civil War, American writers were imagining life after a massive global catastrophe. For many, the blank slate of the American continent was instead a wreckage-strewn wasteland, a new world in ruins. Bringing together epic and lyric poems, fictional tales, travel narratives, and scientific texts, Postapocalyptic Fantasies in Antebellum American Literature reveals that US authors who enthusiastically celebrated the myths of primeval wilderness and virgin land also frequently resorted to speculations about the annihilation of civilizations, past and future. By examining such postapocalyptic fantasies, this study recovers an antebellum rhetoric untethered to claims for historical exceptionalism - a patriotic rhetoric that celebrates America while denying the United States a unique position outside of world history. As the scientific field of natural history produced new theories regarding biological extinction, geological transformation, and environmental collapse, American writers responded with wild visions of the ancient past and the distant future.
Mere social knowledge impacts children’s consumption and categorization of foods

How does social information affect the perception of taste early in life? Does mere knowledge of other people's food preferences impact children's own experience when eating? In Experiment 1, 5- and 6-year-old children consumed more of a food described as popular with other children than a food that was described as unpopular with other children, even though the two foods were identical. In Experiment 2, children ate more of a food described as popular with children than a food described as popular with adults. Experiment 3 tested whether different perceptual experiences of otherwise identical foods contributed to the mechanisms underlying children's consumption. After sampling both endpoints of a sweet-to-sour range (applesauce with 0 mL or 5mL of lemon juice added), children were asked to taste and categorize applesauce samples with varying amounts of lemon juice added. When classifying ambiguous samples that were near the midpoint of the range (2 mL and 3 mL), children were more likely to categorize popular foods as sweet as compared to unpopular foods. Together, these findings provide evidence that social information plays a powerful role in guiding children's consumption and perception of foods. Broader links to the sociality of food selection are discussed.
PRIMARY CARDIAC B-CELL LYMPHOMA IN PREGNANCY

The diagnosis and management of cancer and cardiovascular disease during pregnancy poses a clinical challenge, with the potential for significant morbidity and mortality. A 30-year-old woman, g2p1, 10 weeks pregnant, noted progressive dyspnea and one episode of syncope. Past history was
In Silico Design and in Vitro Characterization of Universal Tyrosine Kinase Peptide Substrates

A majority of the 90 human protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) are understudied “orphan” enzymes with few or no known substrates. Designing experiments aimed at assaying the catalytic activity of these PTKs has been a long-running problem. In the past, researchers have used polypeptides with a randomized 4:1 molar ratio of glutamic acid to tyrosine as general PTK substrates. However, these substrates are inefficient and perform poorly for many applications. In this work, we apply the KINATEST-ID pipeline for artificial kinase substrate discovery to design a set of candidate “universal” PTK peptide substrate sequences. We identified two unique peptide sequences from this set that had robust activity with a panel of 15 PTKs tested in an initial screen. Kinetic characterization with seven receptor and nonreceptor PTKs confirmed these peptides to be efficient and general PTK substrates. The broad scope of these artificial substrates demonstrates that they should be useful as tools for probing understudied PTK act...
COMPUTERIZED CONTENT ANALYSIS OF NARRATIVE IN ANNUAL REPORTS: A COMPUTER IN THE HUMANITIES LOOKS AT THE CORPORATE WORD

Two colleagues in Business Administration and I are experimenting with a computerized content analysis system–Howard P. Iker's WORDS package–to investigate narrative in financial reports of American corporations. For example, do narrative portions of corporate annual reports reflect or obscure the quantitative information scrutinized by auditors in the financial statements? Discussion includes theoretical assumptions, computer methods, and preliminary results of this research–textual analysis, including grammatical and statistical components, and isolation of “theme” clusters of related words.
Position Auctions in Practice

Google and Bing employ a generalized second price (GSP) auction to allocate billions of dollars of sponsored search advertising. Despite evolving from a naive, first-price, rank-by-bid auction, the GSP has been shown to achieve an efficient allocation and favorable revenue properties via a tight theoretical link with the equilibrium of the truthful Vickrey-Clarke-Groves mechanism. This link hinges on a critical assumption about the causal impact of ad position on user click probabilities: moving up increases click-through-rate by the same scaling factor for all ads. Because an ad's position is the endogenous outcome of an auction, these assumptions have gone largely untested. We overcome this identification problem by developing a novel method to re-purpose internal business experimentation at a major search engine. Using a broad cross-section of advertisers we strongly reject the conventional multiplicatively-separable model, instead finding substantial heterogeneity of the causal impact of position on click-through-rates. For brand queries, off-brand competitors benefit much more from position than the advertiser matching the query. For generic queries, higher quality and less-well known websites benefit more from position. The impact of position differs by up to 100% across ad types. These findings raise serious concerns about the efficiency properties of the GSP as currently employed.
State gun laws, gun ownership, and mass shootings in the US: cross sectional time series

Abstract Objective To determine whether restrictiveness-permissiveness of state gun laws or gun ownership are associated with mass shootings in the US. Design Cross sectional time series. Setting and population US gun owners from 1998-2015. Exposure An annual rating between 0 (completely restrictive) and 100 (completely permissive) for the gun laws of all 50 states taken from a reference guide for gun owners traveling between states from 1998 to 2015. Gun ownership was estimated annually as the percentage of suicides committed with firearms in each state. Main outcome measure Mass shootings were defined as independent events in which four or more people were killed by a firearm. Data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Uniform Crime Reporting System from 1998-2015 were used to calculate annual rates of mass shootings in each state. Mass shooting events and rates were further separated into those where the victims were immediate family members or partners (domestic) and those where the victims had other relationships with the perpetrator (non-domestic). Results Fully adjusted regression analyses showed that a 10 unit increase in state gun law permissiveness was associated with a significant 11.5% (95% confidence interval 4.2% to 19.3%, P=0.002) higher rate of mass shootings. A 10% increase in state gun ownership was associated with a significant 35.1% (12.7% to 62.7%, P=0.001) higher rate of mass shootings. Partially adjusted regression analyses produced similar results, as did analyses restricted to domestic and non-domestic mass shootings. Conclusions States with more permissive gun laws and greater gun ownership had higher rates of mass shootings, and a growing divide appears to be emerging between restrictive and permissive states.
PMSM Current Sensor FDI Based on DC Link Current Estimation

Sensors are significant in electric machine applications, such as electric vehicles, to maintain the safe operation of a system. The sensor reliability must be ensured to help avoid unexpected system failure caused by faulty sensor signals. To mitigate the machine current sensor fault impact on permanent magnet synchronous machines (PMSMs), this paper proposes a novel PMSM current sensor fault detection and isolation (FDI) method based on DC link current estimation. The fault detection is achieved by comparing the residual between measured and estimated DC link currents with a threshold value; the fault isolation is achieved based on the phase signals estimation and residuals examination. The proposed method is easy to implement without complicated modeling, not influenced by system imbalance and capable of distinguishing between machine current sensor and non-sensor faults. As compared to the existing PMSM systems without the proposed FDI method, the system failure risk under a machine current sensor fault is reduced when the proposed method is integrated into the PMSM controller. The effectiveness of the proposed FDI method is validated by simulation results in MATLAB.
Religiosity and Risk of Perpetrating Child Physical Abuse: An Empirical Investigation:

We empirically examined the hypothesis that Conservative Protestants are at greater risk than Mainline Protestants, Catholics, or the religiously unaffiliated to perpetrate child physical abuse (CP...
The quality reporting reality at a large Academic Medical Center: Reporting 1600 unique measures to 49 different sources

Objective: This paper explores the complexity and costs associated with quality reporting at a large, tertiary Academic Medical Center (AMC). Methods: For each quality measure reported during fiscal year (FY) 2014, we noted the associated agency or registry and any repeated use of identical measures (measure overlap). In addition, the cost of quality reporting was examined – including personnel, registry expenses, and rewards and penalties. Results: The AMC reported over 1600 unique measures to 49 different sources; measure overlap was 9%. This effort cost $2,367,168, including 24.8 full-time equivalent employees hired specifically to conduct or support quality reporting. Pay-for-performance rewards and penalties totaled $29,197. As a result, $2,337,971 was the FY 2014 cost of quality reporting. Conclusions: There are financial and personnel burdens associated with quality reporting and considerable inefficiencies. As the number of metrics increase, measures need to be carefully assessed, standardized across agencies, and incorporated into electronic health records. The following core competencies are addressed in this article: Systems-based practice, Practice-based learning and improvement.
Proposed Search for States of Forbidden Permutation Symmetry

Publisher Summary All known systems of identical particles are well described by wave functions that are either symmetric or antisymmetric under particle interchange. The fundamental status of these symmetries is codified in the symmetrization postulate. If the dimensionality of space is greater than three, permutation symmetries that are perfect in n-dimensions may be broken in three dimensions. The axiomatic indistinguishability of identical particles requires that the Hamiltonian be symmetric to particle interchange. This precludes permutation-symmetry-breaking terms in the Hamiltonian and thus limits the type of observables that can be utilized to search for a forbidden symmetry. There can be no coherent superposition and interference or transition of states of different permutation symmetry. This is in contrast to parity violation, for example, which is attributable to the reflection-symmetry-breaking weak interaction term in the Hamiltonian. The photon-burst method involves repeatedly exciting a transition. The transition must be within an effective two-level system, and the lower level must be long-lived. As a resonant species crosses the laser beam, it can be excited and de-excited many times, giving off a burst of photons in fluorescence. The method is useful when single-atom sensitivity and high discrimination are required.
Evolving White Matter Injury following Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury.

This study is unique in that it examines the evolution of white matter injury very early and at 12 months post-injury in pediatric patients following traumatic brain injury (TBI). Diffusion tensor ...
Role of core body temperature in nephrolithiasis.

Objectives To assess the role of core body temperature in urinary stone formation using a large clinical dataset. Patients and methods We retrospectively collected 14 519 039 individual temperature measurements from 580 416 patients with medical history, laboratory values and medication history between 2013 and 2018 at a single institution. After exclusions and matching 2:1 (controls:cases) to account for confounding variables, 7104 patients with a history of urinary stones were identified. Results Patients with a history of urinary stones (cases) had an elevated mean (SD) oral temperature compared to matched controls, at 36.666 (0.17) vs 36.659 (0.20)°C (P = 0.012). Logistic regression of matched samples showed that higher core body temperature was predictive of a history of nephrolithiasis (odds ratio 1.21, 95% confidence interval 1.04-1.4; P = 0.015). Conclusion Core body temperature was significantly higher in patients with a history of urinary stones compared to matched controls, contrary to the anticipated thermodynamic considerations leading to crystal aggregation. Given that the core body temperature is elevated, rather than decreased, thermodynamic process driving stone formation is unlikely.
The Lawyers Justice Corps: A Licensing Pathway to Enhance Access to Justice

The idea for establishing a Lawyers Justice Corps (LJC) emerged out of efforts to solve a problem: how to license lawyers at a time when COVID-19 had expanded the need for new lawyers while also making an in-person bar exam dangerous, if not impossible. We—the Collaboratory on Legal Education and Licensing for Practice --proposed the Lawyers Justice Corps to provide a different--and better--way of certifying minimum competence for new attorneys while at the same time helping to create a new generation of lawyers equipped to address a wide range of social justice, racial justice, and criminal justice issues. When implemented, the Lawyers Justice Corps will accomplish two critical and related goals: enhancing access to justice and creating an effective and equitable method of licensing lawyers. This essay begins by outlining the general contours of the Lawyers Justice Corps. It then explains how the Corps will enhance access to justice for the many underserved clients in our society. In a third section, the essay describes the racial injustice perpetuated by the traditional bar exam, as well as the exam’s failure to adequately measure lawyer competence. A final section shows how the Lawyers Justice Corps would provide a licensing path that both trains for and better assesses competencies required for law practice. The essay concludes that the time is ripe for multiple alternative licensing paths, including the Lawyers Justice Corps.
Boric acid removal with polyol-functionalized polyether membranes

Abstract Poor selectivity of conventional desalination membranes for boron often necessitates multi-stage treatment trains to achieve desired boron removal for end uses such as irrigation. One approach to membrane design for improved single-pass boric acid removal is via incorporation of chelating ligands that selectively sorb boron. In this study, membranes based on epoxy-amine cross-linked poly(glycidyl glycidyl ether) (PGGE) were synthesized and functionalized with N-methyl- d -glucamine (NMDG), a polyol known to interact selectively with boron. PGGE and PGGE-NMDG membranes exhibited boron sorption isotherms that were well-described by dual mode isotherms. PGGE-NMDG sorbed 2.5 mmol B/g dry polymer from a neutral aqueous solution containing 100 mmol B/L, which was almost three times the adsorption density of a commercial boron selective resin, Amberlite IRA743. The membranes were regenerated in acid without a significant loss of boron sorption capacity over four cycles. Interactions between boron and NMDG and PGGE sites (e.g., epoxides) impacted boron diffusion in both membranes. The use of ligand functionalized membranes to capture target solutes such as boron requires high loading of interacting sites to maximize uptake capacity. Establishing fundamental structure/property rules for boron selectivity could lead to new material designs with improved boron separation properties for water purification.
Ways to Address Perinatal Mast Cell Activation and Focal Brain Inflammation, Including Response to SARS-CoV-2, in Autism Spectrum Disorder

The prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) continues to increase, but no distinct pathogenesis or effective treatment are known yet. The presence of many comorbidities further complicates matters, making a personalized approach necessary. An increasing number of reports indicate that inflammation of the brain leads to neurodegenerative changes, especially during perinatal life, “short-circuiting the electrical system” in the amygdala that is essential for our ability to feel emotions, but also regulates fear. Inflammation of the brain can result from the stimulation of mast cells—found in all tissues including the brain—by neuropeptides, stress, toxins, and viruses such as SARS-CoV-2, leading to the activation of microglia. These resident brain defenders then release even more inflammatory molecules and stop “pruning” nerve connections, disrupting neuronal connectivity, lowering the fear threshold, and derailing the expression of emotions, as seen in ASD. Many epidemiological studies have reported a strong association between ASD and atopic dermatitis (eczema), asthma, and food allergies/intolerance, all of which involve activated mast cells. Mast cells can be triggered by allergens, neuropeptides, stress, and toxins, leading to disruption of the blood–brain barrier (BBB) and activation of microglia. Moreover, many epidemiological studies have reported a strong association between stress and atopic dermatitis (eczema) during gestation, which involves activated mast cells. Both mast cells and microglia can also be activated by SARS-CoV-2 in affected mothers during pregnancy. We showed increased expression of the proinflammatory cytokine IL-18 and its receptor, but decreased expression of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-38 and its receptor IL-36R, only in the amygdala of deceased children with ASD. We further showed that the natural flavonoid luteolin is a potent inhibitor of the activation of both mast cells and microglia, but also blocks SARS-CoV-2 binding to its receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). A treatment approach should be tailored to each individual patient and should address hyperactivity/stress, allergies, or food intolerance, with the introduction of natural molecules or drugs to inhibit mast cells and microglia, such as liposomal luteolin.
Constructing Topological Maps of Displays with 3-D Positioning Information

To better coordinate information displays with moving people and the environment, software must know the locations and three dimensional alignments of the display hardware. In this paper we describe a technique for creating such an enhanced topological map of networked public displays using a mobile phone. The result supports a richer user experience, without the cost of maintaining a high resolution reconstruction of a smart environment.
Inductive learning of structural descriptions: Evaluation criteria and comparative review of selected methods

Abstract Some recent work in the area of learning structural descriptions from examples is reviewed in light of the need in many diverse disciplines for programs which can perform conceptual data analysis, i.e., can describe complex data in terms of logical, functional, and causal relationships. Traditional data analysis techniques are not adequate for discovering such relationships. Primary attention is given to methods of learning the simplest form of generalization, namely, the maximally specific conjunctive generalizations (MSC-generalizations) which completely characterize a single set of structural examples. Various important aspects of structural learning in general are examined and criteria for evaluating learning methods are presented. The criteria include the adequacy of the representation language, generalization rules used, computational efficiency, and flexibility and extensibility. Selected learning methods, developed by Buchanan et al. [2–4, 32], Hayes-Roth [8–11], Vere [34–37], Winston [38, 39], and the authors, are analyzed according to these criteria. Finally some goals are suggested for future research.
Planning Robot Motion Strategies for Efficient Model Construction

This paper considers the computation of motion strategies to efficiently build polygonal layouts of indoor environments using a mobile robot equipped with a range sensor. This problem requires repeatedly answering the following question while the model is being built: Where should the robot go to perform the next sensing operation? A next-best-view planner is proposed which selects the robot’s next position that maximizes the expected amount of new space that will be visible to the sensor. The planner also takes into account matching requirements for reliable self-localization of the robot, as well as physical limitations of the sensor (range, incidence). The paper argues that polygonal layouts are a convenient intermediate model to perform other visual tasks.
The costs and impacts of testing for hepatitis C virus antibody in public STD clinics.

Approximately 4.1 million people in the United States (1.6% of the total population) have been infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV), which is acquired through contact with an infected person's blood.1 Injection drug use behaviors, such as sharing needles or syringes or other injection paraphernalia (e.g., cotton, cookers, water), are the most important behavioral risk factors for HCV infection.1,2 As many as 85% of those infected with HCV develop chronic infection, which may lead to chronic liver disease, cirrhosis, liver cancer, and death.2 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends routine HCV antibody (anti-HCV) testing for high-prevalence groups, particularly people who have ever injected drugs (i.e., injection drug users [IDUs]) or received blood transfusions from infected donors. People who test positive for anti-HCV need follow-up testing for the presence of virus, and to distinguish current from past HCV infection, and are usually referred for follow-up testing as part of medical evaluation. HCV counseling, testing, and referral (CTR) may delay progression of chronic HCV infection and complications because some HCV-infected people change behaviors that speed progression (e.g., alcohol consumption) or are referred for medical evaluation, care, and possible antiviral treatment.3 Public sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinics represent a promising setting for HCV CTR, but few STD clinics currently offer it. (Personal communication, Chris Taylor, NASTAD, August 2006.) Most STD clinics offering HCV CTR services (including the anti-HCV test) target IDUs, but clients may not report injecting drugs, perhaps because of perceived stigma.4–6 For example, in a San Diego STD clinic, Gunn et al.7 found that 40% of HCV-positive clients who initially denied injecting drugs admitted this behavior after diagnosis. For this reason, STD clinics may be reluctant to limit testing to self-reported IDUs (hereafter “IDUs”), but most clinics cannot afford to implement universal testing, and it may be inefficient to do so, even if funds were available. STD clinics need guidance to help them decide how to target HCV CTR services. This article provides estimates of the STD clinic cost per additional positive anti-HCV identified among IDUs and other subgroups potentially at risk for HCV infection. Clinics can use these estimates to inform decisions about whether to offer anti-HCV testing and to whom.
Fine structure of heparan sulfate regulates syndecan-1 function and cell behavior

Two myeloma cell lines, MPC-11 and P3X63Ag8.653 (P3), have almost identical amounts of syndecan-1 at their cell surface. The syndecan-1 molecules from both lines are similar in size, have indistinguishable core proteins, and have similarly sized heparan sulfate chains. Nevertheless, syndecan-1 on MPC-11 mediates cell adhesion to type I collagen, whereas P3 cells do not bind collagen. Affinity co-electrophoresis reveals that intact syndecan-1 isolated from P3 cells binds collagen poorly and that syndecan-1 heparan sulfate isolated from MPC-11 has a 20-fold higher affinity for collagen than syndecan-1 heparan sulfate from P3. Analysis of disaccharide composition and oligosaccharide mapping also reveals differences between MPC-11 and P3 heparan sulfate. Most notably, the level of N-sulfation and 2-O-sulfation is higher, and 6-O-sulfation lower, in syndecan-1 heparan sulfate from MPC-11 than from P3. Interestingly, levels of total sulfation of syndecan-1 heparan sulfate from MPC-11 and P3 are similar (75.6 and 72.6 sulfates/100 disaccharides, respectively), indicating that the difference in their affinity for collagen is not due to a difference in net charge. These data indicate that the fine structure of heparan sulfate can differ on identical proteoglycan core proteins, and these differences can control fundamental cellular properties such as cell-matrix adhesion.
Measurement accuracy limitation analysis on synchrophasors

This paper analyzes the theoretical accuracy limitation of synchrophasors measurements on phase angle and frequency of the power grid. Factors that cause the measurement error are analyzed, including error sources in the instruments and in the power grid signal. Different scenarios of these factors are evaluated according to the normal operation status of power grid measurement. Based on the evaluation and simulation, the errors of phase angle and frequency caused by each factor are calculated and discussed.
Debugging aspect-enabled programs

The ability to debug programs composed using aspect-oriented programming (AOP) techniques is critical to the adoption of AOP. Nevertheless, many AOP systems lack adequate support for debugging, making it difficult to diagnose faults and understand the program's composition and control flow. We present an AOP debug model that characterizes AOP-specific program composition techniques and AOP-specific program behaviors, and relates them to the AOP-specific faults they induce. We specify debugging criteria that we feel all AOP systems should support and compare how several AOP systems measure up to this ideal. We explain why AOP composition techniques, particularly dynamic and binary weaving, hinder source-level debugging, and how results from related research on debugging optimized code help solve the problem. We also present Wicca, the first dynamic AOP system to support full source-level debugging. We demonstrate how Wicca's powerful interactive debugging features allow a programmer to quickly diagnose faults in the base program behavior or AOP-specific behavior.
Litigating a Rights-Based Approach to Climate Change

Most discussions of a rights-based approach to the environmental crises facing the planet have centered on demanding that governments take action to prevent or mitigate environmental harm that diminishes, for those within their territory and jurisdiction, the enjoyment of internationally-guaranteed human rights. Yet, the consequences of pollution - especially anthropogenic climate change due to greenhouse gas emissions - are not confined within the boundaries of a single state: pollution knows no boundaries. Instead, throughout the world, individuals, communities and entire nations face significant threats to their wellbeing and even their lives from climate change and its effects.A key fact in the human rights dimension of climate change is that anthropogenic climate change has and will continue to have its most devastating impacts on poor and minority communities and countries, on those who are least responsible for creating the problem. These serious consequences already being felt demand consideration of whether governments commit violations of internationally recognized human rights when they fail to control or reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.This paper attempts to assess two potential avenues for pressing rights-based claims, the first being individual or group petitions to international human rights bodies. The second potential proceeding is an inter-state complaint on behalf of the human rights of affected individuals and communities joined to an action to protect national resources and territory.
Fuzzy Sets and Fuzzy Logic: Theory and Applications

Fuzzy Sets and Fuzzy Logic is a true magnum opus. An enlargement of Fuzzy Sets, Uncertainty, and Information—an earlier work of Professor Klir and Tina Folger—Fuzzy Sets and Fuzzy Logic addresses practically every significant topic in the broad expanse of the union of fuzzy set theory and fuzzy logic. To me Fuzzy Sets and Fuzzy Logic is a remarkable achievement; it covers its vast territory with impeccable authority, deep insight and a meticulous attention to detail. To view Fuzzy Sets and Fuzzy Logic in a proper perspective, it is necessary to clarify a point of semantics which relates to the meanings of fuzzy sets and fuzzy logic. A frequent source of misunderstanding fias to do with the interpretation of fuzzy logic. The problem is that the term fuzzy logic has two different meanings. More specifically, in a narrow sense, fuzzy logic, FLn, is a logical system which may be viewed as an extension and generalization of classical multivalued logics. But in a wider sense, fuzzy logic, FL^ is almost synonymous with the theory of fuzzy sets. In this context, what is important to recognize is that: (a) FLW is much broader than FLn and subsumes FLn as one of its branches; (b) the agenda of FLn is very different from the agendas of classical multivalued logics; and (c) at this juncture, the term fuzzy logic is usually used in its wide rather than narrow sense, effectively equating fuzzy logic with FLW In Fuzzy Sets and Fuzzy Logic, fuzzy logic is interpreted in a sense that is close to FLW. However, to avoid misunderstanding, the title refers to both fuzzy sets and fuzzy logic. Underlying the organization of Fuzzy Sets and Fuzzy Logic is a fundamental fact, namely, that any field X and any theory Y can be fuzzified by replacing the concept of a crisp set in X and Y by that of a fuzzy set. In application to basic fields such as arithmetic, topology, graph theory, probability theory and logic, fuzzification leads to fuzzy arithmetic, fuzzy topology, fuzzy graph theory, fuzzy probability theory and FLn. Similarly, hi application to applied fields such as neural network theory, stability theory, pattern recognition and mathematical programming, fuzzification leads to fuzzy neural network theory, fuzzy stability theory, fuzzy pattern recognition and fuzzy mathematical programming. What is gained through fuzzification is greater generality, higher expressive power, an enhanced ability to model real-world problems and, most importantly, a methodology for exploiting the tolerance for imprecision—a methodology which serves to achieve tractability,
Developmental signaling: Does it bridge the gap between cilia dysfunction and renal cystogenesis?

For more than a decade, evidence has accumulated linking dysfunction of primary cilia to renal cystogenesis, yet molecular mechanisms remain undefined. The pathogenesis of renal cysts is complex, involving multiple cellular aberrations and signaling pathways. Adding to this complexity, primary cilia exhibit multiple roles in a context-dependent manner. On renal epithelial cells, primary cilia act as mechanosensors and trigger extracellular Ca2+ influx in response to laminar fluid flow. During mammalian development, primary cilia mediate the Hedgehog (Hh), Wnt, and Notch pathways, which control cell proliferation and differentiation, and tissue morphogenesis. Further, experimental evidence suggests the developmental state of the kidney strongly influences renal cystic disease. Thus, we review evidence for regulation of Ca2+ and cAMP, key molecules in renal cystogenesis, at the primary cilium, the role of Hh, Wnt, and Notch signaling in renal cystic disease, and the interplay between these developmental pathways and Ca2+ signaling. Indeed if these developmental pathways influence renal cystogenesis, these may represent novel therapeutic targets that can be integrated into a combination therapy for renal cystic disease. Birth Defects Research (Part C) 102:159–173, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Tau Differences between Short-Day Responsive and Short-Day Nonresponsive White-Footed Mice (Peromyscus leucopus) Do Not Affect Reproductive Photoresponsiveness

In laboratory-bred rodent populations, intraspecific variation in circadian system organization is a known cause of individual variation in reproductive photoresponsiveness. The authors sought to determine whether circadian system variation accounted for individual variation in reproductive photoresponsiveness in a single, highly genetically variable population of Peromyscus leucopus recently derived from the wild. Running-wheel activity patterns of male and female mice, aged 70 to 90 days, from artificially selected lines of reproductively photoresponsive (R) and nonresponsive (NR) lines were monitored under short-day photoperiod (8 h light, 16 h dark), long-day photoperiod (16 h light, 8 h dark), and constant darkness (DD). NR mice displayed a significantly longer mean free-running period (24.08 h) in DD compared with R mice (23.75 h), due in large part to a difference between NR and R females (24.25 h vs. 23.74 h, respectively). All other entrainment characteristics (alpha, phase angle of activity) under short days, long days, and DD were similar between R and NR mice. Variation in free-running period and entrainment characteristics has been shown to affect photoresponsiveness in other rodent species by altering the manner in which the circadian system interprets short days. To determine whether variation in photoresponsiveness in P. leucopus is due to differences in free-running period instead of variation downstream from the central circadian clock in the pathway controlling photoresponsiveness, the authors exposed young R and NR mice to DD and measured the effect on reproductive organ development. If variation in free-running period affected how the circadian system of mice interpreted short days, then both R and NR mice exposed to DD should have exhibited a delay in gonadal development. Only R mice exhibited pubertal delay in DD. NR mice exhibited large paired testes, paired seminal vesicles, paired ovaries, and uterine weight typical of mice nonresponsive to short days, whereas R mice exhibited reproductive organ weight typical of mice responsive to short days. These data suggest that despite significant differences in free-running period between R and NR mice, individual variation in photoresponsiveness is not due to differences in how the circadian systems of R and NR mice interpret the LD cycle.
X-ray and computer modeling studies on gellan-related polymers: molecular structures of welan, S-657, and rhamsan.

Abstract The primary structures of the four bacterial polysaccharides gellan, welan, S-657, and rhamsan are the same with respect to their backbones, but have different side-chains. This difference has a profound influence on their behavior in aqueous media. Solutions of gellan gum form stable aqueous gels under appropriate ionic conditions. By contrast, welan, S-657, and rhamsan do not gel but give very viscous solutions over a wide range of thermal, pH, and salt conditions. X-Ray fiber diffraction analysis and computer modeling of these branched polysaccharides demonstrate that they all have the same half-staggered, double-helical conformations as in the unbranched gellan, suggesting, therefore, that the side chains are responsible for diminishing gelling behavior. Depending on the size and location, the side chains shield that carboxylate groups to varying degrees; this shielding is substantial in welan and S-657, but less in rhamsan. In all cases, side-chain-main-chain interactions within the double helix prevent the carboxylate-mediated aggregation of double helices that is necessary for the gelation.
A novel method for locating faults on distribution systems

Abstract Accurate location of faults in an electric power distribution system is important in maintaining system reliability. Diverse methods have been proposed in the past, which usually have different assumptions and thus are applicable to specific circumstances. This paper attempts to put forth a novel, general fault location method that is applicable to distribution networks with unbalances and multi-sources by employing voltages and currents at the local substation. The method considers feeder shunt capacitances and is applicable to both overhead and underground networks. The method does not require the fault type to be known, and is applicable to any type of faults. The method is based on bus impedance matrix that enables the establishment of the equations governing the relationship of the measurements and the fault location. Evaluation studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed method and its robustness with respect to potential measurement errors and load variations.
A simple quantitative treatment of the spreading of monolayers on thin liquid films

Abstract A simple steady-flow treatment of the spreading of a monolayer over a thin liquid film leads toχ 2 = (2h/μ)π 0 t, where χ is the distance spread in time t, h the liquid-film thickness, μ the coefficient of viscosity of the liquid underlying the monolayer, and π 0 is the spreading pressure of the lens (located at χ = 0 ) generating the monolayer. The spreading of oleic acid on glycerol films was followed by observation of talc markers, and found in remarkably good agreement with this simple equation. Limitations of the equation, associated with neglect of pressure gradients and idealization of flow patterns, are briefly discussed. The equation should be most nearly valid for thin, wide films, but even in this case idealizations involved in the theory are such that its success in representing data is surprisingly good.
Probing the Solvent Shell with 195Pt Chemical Shifts: Density Functional Theory Molecular Dynamics Study of PtII and PtIV Anionic Complexes in Aqueous Solution

Ab initio molecular dynamics (aiMD) simulations based on density functional theory (DFT) were performed on a set of five anionic platinum complexes in aqueous solution. 195Pt nuclear magnetic shielding constants were computed with DFT as averages over the aiMD trajectories, using the two-component relativistic zeroth-order regular approximation (ZORA) in order to treat relativistic effects on the Pt shielding tensors. The chemical shifts obtained from the aiMD averages are in good agreement with experimental data. For Pt(II) and Pt(IV) halide complexes we found an intermediate solvent shell interacting with the complexes that causes pronounced solvent effects on the Pt chemical shifts. For these complexes, the magnitude of solvent effects on the Pt shielding constant can be correlated with the surface charge density. For square-planar Pt complexes the aiMD simulations also clearly demonstrate the influence of closely coordinated non-equatorial water molecules on the Pt chemical shift, relating the structu...
DIRECT STIMULATION OF PHOSPHATIDYLINOSITOL DEGRADATION BY ADDITION OF VASOPRESSIN TO PURIFIED RAT LIVER PLASMA MEMBRANES

Rat liver plasma membranes were incubated in Ca2+-free buffer plus 0.5 mM ethyleneglycol-bis(beta-aminoethyl ether)-N,N'-tetraacetic acid (EGTA) containing 0.5 mg/ml deoxycholate or 50 mU/ml vasopressin or both compounds. The membrane phospholipids were extracted, separated by two-dimensional chromatography and quantitated by phosphorus analysis. Vasopressin significantly enhanced degradation of phosphatidylinositol in the presence of deoxycholate (21% with deoxycholate alone versus 32% in the presence of vasopressin plus deoxycholate). However, no significant effects of deoxycholate or vasopressin were seen on the degradation of phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine or phosphatidylserine. These results indicate that specific degradation of phosphatidylinositol can be seen after direct addition of vasopressin to a plasma membrane preparation.
Carbon fibers brominated by electrochemical intercalation

Abstract Bromine was intercalated in pitch-based carbon fibers (Thornel P-100 of Amoco) by either exposure to Br 2 or anodic oxidation (i.e., electrochemical intercalation). The former method resulted in fibers that exhibited in-plane disorder at room temperature and in-plane melting at 271 K, whereas the latter method resulted in fibers that exhibited in-plane superlattice order at room temperature and in-plane melting at 373 K. Compared to fibers prepared by the former method, fibers prepared by the latter method exhibited more homogeneous intercalation, a more uniform chemical state of the intercalated bromine, a higher electron transfer from bromine to carbon, a lower bromine concentration, a lower electrical conductivity, enhanced oxidation resistance, and an increased activation energy for oxidation. Highly oriented pyrolytic graphite did not undergo electrochemical intercalation under the same conditions as the fibers.
Diphosphines Possessing Electronically Different Donor Groups: Synthesis and Coordination Chemistry of the Unsymmetrical Di(N-pyrrolyl)phosphino-Functionalized dppm Analogue Ph2PCH2P(NC4H4)2

The unsymmetrical diphosphinomethane ligand Ph2PCH2P(NC4H4)(2) L has been prepared from the reaction of Ph2P-CH2Li with PCI(NC4H4)(2). The diphenylphosphino group can be selectively oxidized with sulfur to give Ph2P(S)CH2P(NC4H4)(2) 1. The reaction of L with [MCl2(cod)] (M = Pd, Pt) gives the chelate complexes [MCl2(L-kappa(2)P,P')] (2, M = Pd; 3, M = Pt) in which the M-P bond to the di(N-pyrrolyl)phosphino group is shorter than that to the corresponding diphenylphosphino group. However, the shorter Pd-P bond is cleaved on reaction of 2 with an additional 1 equiv of L to give [PdCl2(L-kappa(1)P)(2)] 4. Complex 4 reacts with [PdCl2(cod)] to regenerate 2, and with [Pd-2(dba)(3)].CHCl3 to give the palladium(l) dimer [Pd2Cl2(mu-L)(2)] 5, which exists in solution and the solid state as a 1:1 mixture of head-to-head (HH) and head-to-tail (HT) isomers. The palladium(11) dimer [Pd2Cl2(CH3)(2)(mu-L)(2)] 6, formed by the reaction of [PdCl(CH3)(cod)] with L, also exists in solution as a mixture of HH and HT isomers, although in this case the HT isomer prevails at low temperature and crystallizes preferentially. Complex 6 reacts with TIPF6 to give the A-frame complex [Pd-2(CH3)(2)(mu-Cl)(mu-L)(2)]PF6 7. The reaction of L with [RuCp*(mu(3)-Cl)](4) leads to the dimer [(RuCp2*)-Cp-2(mu-Cl)(2)(mu-L)] 8, for which the enthalpy of reaction has been measured. The reaction of L with [Rh(mu-Cl)(cod)](2) gives a mixture of compounds from which the dimer [Rh-2(U-Cl)(cod)(2)(U-L)]PF6 9 can be isolated. The crystal structures of 2.CHCl3, 3.CH2O2, 4, 5.1/4CH(2)Cl(2), 6, 7.2CH(2)Cl(2), 8, and 9.CH2Cl2 are reported.
The almost cyclicity of the fundamental groups of positively curved manifolds

Recall that a pure F-structure is a kind of generalized torus action. The main result asserts that if a compact positively curved manifold Mn admits an invariant pure F-structure such that each orbit has positive dimension, then the fundamental group has a finite cyclic subgroup with index less than wn, a constant depending only on n. As an application, we conclude that for all 0<δ≦1, the fundamental group of a δ-pinched n-manifold either has a cyclic subgroup with index less than wn or has order less than w(n,δ), a constant depending only on n and δ. In particular, this substantially improves the main result in[Ro1].
Hospice enrollment and hospitalization of dying nursing home patients.

Abstract PURPOSE: This study's purpose was to evaluate whether Medicare hospice care provided in nursing homes is associated with lower hospitalization rates. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This retrospective cohort study included nursing home residents in five states who enrolled in hospice between 1992 and 1996 (n = 9202), and who died before 1998. For each hospice patient, 3 nonhospice residents (2 in 106 instances) were chosen (n = 27,500). Medicare claims identified hospice enrollment and acute care hospitalizations. RESULTS: Twenty-four percent of hospice and 44% of nonhospice residents were hospitalized in the last 30 days of life. Adjusting for confounders, hospice patients were less likely than nonhospice residents to be hospitalized (odds ratio 0.43; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.39 to 0.46). Considering all of nonhospice residents who died (n = 226,469), those in facilities with no hospice had a 47% hospitalization rate, whereas rates were 41% in facilities with low hospice use and 39% in facilities with moderate hospice use (5%+ of patients in hospice). Hospitalization was less likely for nonhospice residents in facilities with low hospice use (odds ratio 0.82; 95% CI: 0.80 to 0.84) and moderate hospice use (odds ratio 0.71; 95% CI: 0.69 to 0.74), compared with those in facilities with no hospice. CONCLUSIONS: When integrated into the nursing home care processes, hospice care is associated with less hospitalization for Medicare hospice patients. Additionally, possibly through diffusion of palliative care philosophy and practices, nonhospice residents who died in nursing homes having a hospice presence had lower rates of end-of-life hospitalizations.
Bias in the Twenty-Statements Test: administration time, incomplete protocols, and intelligence.

Investigation of the relationship between completion of the Twenty-statements Test and intelligence indicates that completers of the test are more intelligent than are noncompleters when the test is rapidly administered. Elimination of incomplete protocols from analysis therefore biases the working sample in favor of the more intelligent respondents. Administration times of at least 12 min. or the use of shorter forms can be expected to reduce or eliminate this bias.
Characterization of Murine Cathepsin W and Its Role in Cell-mediated Cytotoxicity

Cathepsin W is a member of the papain-like family of cysteine proteases. In this report, we have isolated the cDNA for murine CtsW (mCtsW) from a splenocyte library. The deduced 371-amino-acid sequence shares 68% identity with human CtsW and includes the conserved catalytic triad cysteine, histidine, and asparagine found in all members of this family. In addition to the fulllength form of mCtsW, we have isolated an alternatively spliced form of the mRNA that lacks a complete catalytic triad. An S1 nuclease protection assay and a Western blot analysis showed that mCtsW is mainly restricted to the CD8+ T cell and natural killer cell compartments. In addition, we confirmed that, like its human homologue, mCtsW is localized mainly to the endoplasmic reticulum and its expression is up-regulated upon activation. We also characterized the mCtsW locus using bacterial artificial chromosome clones. The gene consists of 10 coding exons and 9 introns spanning 3.2 kb. To elucidate the physiologic role of this protease, we generated mice deficient in mCtsW. Our data establish that mCtsW is not required for cytotoxic lymphocyte-induced target cell death in vitro. In addition, mCtsW deficiency does not alter the susceptibility of cytotoxic lymphocytes to suicide or fratricide after degranulation. Thus, mCtsW does not have a unique role in target cell apoptosis or cytotoxic cell survival in vitro.