cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Photoactivatable Formaldehyde Donor with Fluorescence Monitoring Reveals Threshold To Arrest Cell Migration

Controlled light-mediated delivery of biological analytes can enable the investigation of highly reactivity molecules within living systems. As many biological effects are concentration dependent, it is critical to determine the location, time, and quantity of analyte donation. In this work, we have developed the first photoactivatable donor for formaldehyde (FA). Our optimized photoactivatable donor, photoFAD-3, is equipped with a fluorescence readout that enables monitoring of FA release with a concomitant 139-fold fluorescence enhancement. Tuning of photostability and cellular retention enabled quantification of intracellular FA release through cell lysate calibration. Application of photoFAD-3 uncovered the concentration range necessary for arresting wound healing in live cells. This marks the first report where a photoactivatable donor for any analyte has been used to quantify intracellular release.
Improving Device Directedness Classification of Utterances With Semantic Lexical Features

User interactions with personal assistants like Alexa, Google Home and Siri are typically initiated by a wake term or wake-word. Several personal assistants feature "follow-up" modes that allow users to make additional interactions without the need of a wakeword. For the system to only respond when appropriate, and to ignore speech not intended for it, utterances must be classified as device-directed or non-device-directed. State of the art systems have largely used acoustic features for this task, while others have used only lexical features or have added LM-based lexical features. We propose a directedness classifier that combines semantic lexical features with a lightweight acoustic feature and show it is effective in classifying directedness. The mixed-domain lexical and acoustic feature model is able to achieve 14% relative reduction of EER over a state of the art acoustic-only baseline model. Finally, we successfully apply transfer learning and semi-supervised learning to the model to improve accuracy even further.
Chemisorption-Driven Roughening of Hydrothermally Grown KTa1-xNbxO3 Nanoparticles

The chemical and physical properties of nanoparticle surfaces have significant effects on their growth processes and resulting morphology. Hydrothermally grown KNbO3, KTaO3, and KTa1-xNbxO3 were st...
Legal Discontinuities — Opening Remarks

The law inevitably draws lines, but why do the lines have such dramatic effects? Being a bit too incautious can turn what would have been lawful conduct into a million dollar claim for negligence. Being a bit unreasonable in assessing danger can turn what would have been justified self-defense into murder with a life sentence. Many have the intuition that as we gradually cross some boundary from permissible conduct into tortious or criminal conduct, the legal consequences should also change gradually. Yet laws often have all-or-nothing effects even when they could be gradual. To better understand these and related phenomena, we convened an international group of scholars with diverse interests in the law, spanning property, tax, torts, crimes, contracts, and more, for the Legal Discontinuities Conference. The event was held at Tel Aviv University Law School’s Cegla Center for Interdisciplinary Research of the Law from December 29-30, 2019. Contributing papers will be published in a special open access issue of Theoretical Inquiries in Law. This short paper is adapted from my opening conference remarks.
Mapping the supramolecular assembly space of poly(sarcosine)-b-poly(propylene sulfide) using a combinatorial copolymer library

A combinatorial copolymer library was created to rapidly screen the landscape of self-assembled nanostructure morphologies formed by block copolymers composed of hydrophilic peptoid polysarcosine (PSarc) and hydrophobic poly(propylene sulfide) (PPS) blocks. By probing rationally selected hydrophilic/hydrophobic copolymer weight fractions, the rapid and reproducible fabrication of micellar and vesicular nanostructures was optimized.
Molecular Characterization of a Fungal Ketide Synthase Gene Among Swainsonine-Producing Alternaria Species in the USA

Locoweeds are toxic leguminous plants in Astragalus and Oxytropis genera that contain fungal endophytes of Alternaria section Undifilum species. These fungi produce swainsonine, an alkaloid α-mannosidase inhibitor that causes a neurological syndrome, locoism in grazing animals. A SWN gene cluster has been identified in many swainsonine-producing fungi. The swnK gene, which is an essential component of the swainsonine biosynthetic pathway, encodes a polyketide synthase-nonribosomal peptide synthase (PKS-NRPS). To determine if swnK was conserved among Alternaria section Undifilum endophytes of locoweed, the sequence of the KS region of swnK was compared between various swainsonine-producing fungi. The internal transcribed spacer (ITS), and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPD) regions from the same fungi were also assessed. Sequences were examined at the nucleotide and protein levels. Alternaria oxytropis, A. fulva, A. cinerea, and Alternaria sp. from Swainsona species produced distinct clades for all multigene data sets. swnK–KS sequence did not differ among fungi isolated from Astragalus mollissimus varieties or A. lentiginosus varieties. The swnK-KS amino acid sequence was essentially identical among all swainsonine-producing Alternaria sp. Two low swainsonine-producing fungi, Alternaria bornmuelleri and A. gansuense, clustered together, as did non-pathogen Alternaria endophytes. The swnK-KS sequence comparisons were effective in identifying swainsonine production capability and differentiating among swainsonine-producing fungal species.
Transnational Networks and Global Shi‘i Islamic NGOs in Tanzania

Media and policy analysis often depicts African Muslims as pawns in the rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran, ignoring the wider history of trans-regional connections between Africa, the Middle East and Asia. In examining two prominent Shi‘a Islamic organizations in Tanzania, this chapter demonstrates that Iran is not the only Shi‘i player in town. Within the context of the marginalization of Muslims in this religiously mixed country, indigenous Tanzanian Shi‘a, as minorities within a minority, tap into global ties that lead to opportunities for their empowerment. Comparing the origins, discourses and objectives of Bilal Muslim Mission, funded through the East African Indian Khoja Ithna Asheri community, and Ahl al-Bayt Centre, with connections to Kuwait, highlights the interconnection of diverse local, national and transnational actors in social welfare provision.
Reaction pathways of molecular growth for bay-region methyl-substituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons during supercritical pyrolysis of n-decane, as determined from experiments with 4-methylchrysene dopant

Abstract To investigate the molecular-growth reactions of bay-region methyl-substituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in the supercritical n-alkane-fuel pyrolysis environment, we have performed supercritical n-decane pyrolysis experiments with and without the dopant 4-methylchrysene (dopant concentration, 0.684 mg/g n-decane), in an isothermal, silica-lined stainless-steel flow reactor at 568 °C, 94.6 atm, and 133 s, conditions of rapid PAH growth. Analyses of the reaction products by high-pressure liquid chromatography with diode-array ultraviolet-visible absorbance and mass-spectrometric detection reveal that in the supercritical n-decane pyrolysis environment—where the aliphatic growth species methyl, ethylene, propene, and 1-butene are abundant—molecular growth of the four-ring 4-methylchrysene to high-ring-number PAH occurs chiefly through two routes, both of which take advantage of the bay-region position of 4-methylchrysene's methyl substituent. In the first route, 4-methylchrysene's resonance-stabilized arylmethyl radical 4-chrysenylmethyl attacks the aryl carbon just across the bay of 4-methylchrysene's structure to form the C19H12 methylene-bridged PAH 4H-cyclopenta[def]chrysene, whose resonance-stabilized radical 4-cyclopenta[def]chrysenyl reacts with methyl and ethylene in ring-expansion reactions that selectively produce the five-ring C20H12 benzo[a]pyrene and its derivatives 4- and 5-methylbenzo[a]pyrene. The arylmethyl radicals 4- and 5-benzo[a]pyrenylmethyl then undergo a series of reactions with n-decane's high-yield C2 C4 1-alkenes to selectively produce particular six- to nine-ring peri‑condensed benzenoid PAH such as dibenzo[a,e]pyrene, benzo[a]naphtho[2,3-e]pyrene, dibenzo[e,ghi]perylene, benzo[a]coronene, and naphtho[8,1,2-abc]coronene—all of whose yields increase dramatically with 4-methylchrysene doping. In 4-methylchrysene's second major route of molecular growth, 4-chrysenylmethyl's attack of the aryl carbon across the bay is followed by an intramolecular rearrangement that produces 4H-benzo[cd]fluoranthene, a non-fully aromatic C19H12 PAH with an internal five-membered ring. Reactions of the resonance-stabilized benzo[cd]fluoranthenyl radicals with methyl, propene, and 1-butene selectively produce the six-ring C22H12 indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene and four particular seven-ring C26H14 benzindeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrenes—each of which contains an internal five-membered ring, evidencing the distinctive molecular-growth pathways of bay-region methyl-substituted PAH in the supercritical n-alkane-fuel pyrolysis environment.
Effect of hemopexin treatment on outcome after intracerebral hemorrhage in mice.

Abstract Heme release from hemoglobin may contribute to secondary injury after intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). The primary endogenous defense against heme toxicity is hemopexin, a 57 kDa glycoprotein that is depleted in the CNS after hemorrhagic stroke. We hypothesized that systemic administration of exogenous hemopexin would reduce perihematomal injury and improve outcome after experimental ICH. Intraperitoneal treatment with purified human plasma hemopexin beginning 2 h after striatal ICH induction and repeated daily for the following two days reduced blood–brain barrier disruption and cell death at 3 days. However, it had no effect on neurological deficits at 4 or 7 days or striatal cell viability at 8 days. Continuous daily hemopexin administration had no effect on striatal heme content at 3 or 7 days, and did not attenuate neurological deficits, inflammatory cell infiltration, or perihematomal cell viability at 8 days. These results suggest that systemic hemopexin treatment reduces early injury after ICH, but this effect is not sustained, perhaps due to an imbalance between striatal tissue heme and hemopexin content at later time points. Future studies should investigate its effect when administered by methods that more efficiently target CNS delivery.
High-Speed Rail and the Spatial Pattern of New Firm Births: Evidence from China

This study examines the impact of China’s high-speed rail (HSR) on the spatial pattern of new firm births. Difference-in-differences regressions show that both agglomeration economies and HSR access influence the spatial pattern of new firm births. New firm births decline significantly in counties with HSR access. We find more service sector firms in urban districts due to HSR while primary and manufacturing firms relocate to areas without HSR access. Geographically, the Central China is the most attractive to firms, while other regions are fell behind. Firm movement patterns, therefore, can indicate how HSR reshapes the spatial distribution of economic activities.
Unos documentos sobre las empresas cortesianas en Panamá y Acajutla, 1569-1540

En los anos 1538-1540 Hernan Cortes desde sus estados en el Marquesado del Valle tenia esperanzas de vender 10$ productos de estos con mayor ganancia en la ciudad de Panama, la que en aquellos anos surtia de ab~stecimientos al Peru nuevamente conquistado. A la vez queria cobrar unas deudas que se le debian en el Peru como resUltado de la venta de lo llevado alli en dos Viajes anteriores. con estoS propositos mando dos agentes a Panama, uno, Alonso de Zamudio, con destino. even tual en el Peru y el otro, Juan d~ Segura, como factor en la ciudad de Panama. El malogro de estas venturas cortesianas se han descrito en otros lugares 1. con base a la
Are age of smoking initiation and purchasing patterns associated with menthol smoking

Aims The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between age of cigarette smoking initiation and cigarette purchasing patterns on menthol smoking among current smokers. Design Secondary analyses were conducted using logistic regression with balanced replicated weights. Setting Data from the 2003 and 2006/07 Tobacco Use Supplement (TUS) to the Current Population Survey (CPS), collected by the National Cancer Institute, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Census Bureau, formed the basis for this investigation. Participants A total of 66 145 current smokers who participated in the TUS CPS administration in 2003 and 2006/07 were examined. Measurements Demographic characteristics (gender, race/ethnicity, age, education and income), smoking frequency, purchase type (pack, carton, or both), age of initiation and menthol cigarette use were assessed. Findings One-quarter of the sample smoked menthol cigarettes; most purchased their cigarettes by the pack when rather than by the carton; average age of cigarette smoking initiation was 18 years; and females, ethnic/racial minorities and younger participants were more likely to smoke menthol cigarettes compared with males, whites or older respondents. Other demographic factors associated with menthol cigarette use among current smokers included a high school education (the prevalence of menthol use among this cohort was greater than either those with less education or those with more). The multivariate logistic model only marginally revealed that age of smoking initiation predicted menthol smoking: findings are suggestive that the longer the delay of initiation the more likely that an individual smoked menthol cigarettes [odds ratio (OR) = 1.01; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.00–1.01]. In addition, relative to those who purchased cigarettes by the pack, smokers who purchased cigarettes by the carton were less (OR = 0.86; 95% CI: 0.81–0.91) likely to be menthol smokers. Conclusions Menthol smokers in the United States are more likely to be female, younger, from ethnic minority groups, and to have a high school education. The findings that menthol smokers in the U.S. tend to start smoking later than smokers of other types of cigarettes are suggestive only and require further study.
Characterization of bone perfusion by dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography in the Dunkin-Hartley guinea pig model of advanced osteoarthritis.

This study characterizes changes in subchondral bone circulation in OA and examines relationships to bone structure and cartilage degeneration in Dunkin–Hartley guinea pigs. We have used dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI) and PET, with pharmacokinetic modeling, to characterize subchondral bone perfusion. Assessments are made of perfusion kinetics and vascular permeability by MRI, and blood volume and flow, and radionuclide incorporation into bone, by PET. These parameters are compared to cartilage lesion severity and bone histomorphometry. Assessments of intraosseous thrombi are made morphologically. Prolonged signal enhancement during the clearance phase of MRI correlated with OA severity and suggested venous stasis. Vascular permeability was not increased indicating that transvascular migration of contrast agent was not responsible for signal enhancement. Intraosseous thrombi were not observed. Decreased perfusion associated with severe OA was confirmed by PET and was associated with reduced radionuclide incorporation and osteoporosis. MRI and PET can be used to characterize kinetic parameters of circulation in OA and correlate them with subchondral bone metabolism of interest to the pathophysiology of OA. The significance of these observations may lie in alterations induced in the expression of cytokines by OA osteoblasts that are related to bone remodeling and cartilage breakdown. © 2014 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 33:???–???, 2015.
Energy-aware code cache management for memory-constrained Java devices

This paper focuses on the influence of memory size limitation on the dynamic translation of Java methods into native code. Specifically, we address the issue of managing a "code cache", a small memory space allocated for storing the dynamically generated native code. We show that by adopting a smart bypassing strategy we can enhance the effectiveness of a code cache based system significantly.
Circuit design for a neuron in a pulse-coupled network

This paper presents a baseline design for an analog-VLSI implementation of a neuron for use in a pulse-coupled neural network. >
Preparing for child welfare practice: Themes, a cognitive-affective model, and implications from a qualitative study

Summary Specialized child welfare MSW programs and stipend support for child welfare MSW students have been developed in several states through the Federal Title IV-E program. Thirty-seven focus groups conducted over four years with approximately 550 Title IV-E MSW students in California were submitted to qualitative thematic analysis. The intense emotional challenge of child welfare work emerged in the focus groups. A three stage cognitive-affective model of student development is proposed. This exploratory study suggests several hypotheses for further research: that students at more advanced cognitive-affective levels should be less prone to burnout, better able to make the difficult value-based decisions demanded by child welfare work, and more likely to integrate and use the emotions of themselves and others. Implications are explored for graduate programs, professors, and supervisors.
Detection and subcellular localization of three Ptl proteins involved in the secretion of pertussis toxin from Bordetella pertussis.

Abstract The ptl locus of Bordetella pertussis contains eight open reading frames which are predicted to encode proteins (PtlA to PtlH) that are essential for secretion of pertussis toxin from the bacterium and which are members of a family of transport proteins found in other types of bacteria. We have detected PtlE, PtlF, and PtlG in immunoblots of extracts of B. pertussis by using antibodies raised to fusion proteins consisting of maltose-binding protein and the individual Ptl proteins. These proteins have apparent molecular weights similar to those predicted by DNA sequence analysis. Cell fractionation studies indicated that all three Ptl proteins are associated with the membranes of B. pertussis, suggesting that the Ptl proteins form a gate or channel which facilitates transport of pertussis toxin. Cell extracts of other Bordetella spp. were probed with antibodies to Ptl proteins for the presence of these transport proteins. Neither Bordetella parapertussis nor Bordetella bronchiseptica contained detectable levels of PtlE or PtlF. This lack of detectable Ptl protein may provide an explanation for previous observations which indicated that introduction of the genes encoding pertussis toxin subunits from B. pertussis into other Bordetella spp. results in production of the toxin but not secretion of the toxin.
Ultra-wideband circular polarized microstrip Archimedean spiral antenna loaded with chip-resistor

In this paper, an ultra-wideband (UWB) right hand circular polarized (RHCP) low-profile microstrip Archimedean spiral antenna operating with a chip-resistor load is presented. The radiating spiral patch is implemented on a typical FR4 printed circuit board (PCB) and is center fed through an SMA surface-mount connector. A chip-resistor loading at the outer edge of the spiral provides an excellent bandwidth for the impedance matching. From experiments, the antenna offers a VSWR-<2 about 180% and a 3 dB axial ratio of 133%. The maximum antenna gain is determined to be -3.36 dBi at 10 GHz.
Bearing Witness: Picturing National Identity and International Conflict

Kennedy, L., & Patrick, C. (Eds.). (2014). The violence of the image: Photography and international conflict. London, England: IB Tauris. 288 pp. (Paperback).In our visually saturated age, the news...
Impact of L-DOPA on striatal acetylcholine release : effects of 6-hydroxydopamine

We investigated the effects of the dopamine (DA) precursor L-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) on electrically evoked acetylcholine (ACh) overflow from rat striatal slices. Some animals were pretreated 1 to 2 months earlier with 6-hydroxydopamine, (6-OHDA), a catecholamine neurotoxin, so as to selectively destroy DA terminals (98.6% striatal DA depletion). Although the addition of L-DOPA (10 microM) produced a 37% inhibition of ACh overflow in slices from lesioned rats, it failed to affect ACh overflow in slices from intact animals. In contrast, ACh overflow from intact slices exposed to L-DOPA and to the DA uptake inhibitor nomifensine (1 microM) was 22% greater than in the presence of nomifensine without L-DOPA. ACh overflow from slices prepared from lesioned rats was 45% greater with both drugs than in the presence of nomifensine by itself. Superfusion with the aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) inhibitor NSD-1055 (250 microM) abolished the inhibitory effects of L-DOPA, as did L-sulpiride (1 microM), an inhibitor of DA receptors of the D2 subtype. These results suggest that inhibition of ACh overflow by L-DOPA is mediated by DA formed from exogenous L-DOPA which then acts on D2 receptors. They further indicate that the net impact of the loss of nigrostriatal terminals is an increased dopaminergic inhibition of striatal cholinergic interneurons in response to exogenous L-DOPA. This appears to result in large part from a lesion-induced reduction in high-affinity reuptake of DA formed from exogenous L-DOPA.
Spring-Thaw Nitrous Oxide Emissions from Reed Canarygrass on Wetness-Prone Marginal Soil in New York State

In temperate climates, a significant fraction of annual emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O) from agricultural land can occur during soil thaw in late winter and early spring. The objective of this study is to determine the impact of land use change from long-term fallow grassland to managed perennial grass crops on these thaw-related N2O emissions, and to identify field-scale drivers that influence emissions. Using static chambers, we monitored mid-afternoon N2O fluxes during the 2013 spring thaw from March 27 to April 7, observing fallow grassland and second year reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinaceae L., v. Bellevue) over a short topographical gradient. Soil temperature, soil moisture and residual above-ground biomass were also observed, as were hourly air temperature and precipitation. Fluxes of N2O were generally low (-9.8 to 21.3 μg N2O-N m-2 hr-1) except for one observation of 77.6 μg N2O-N m-2 hr-1. Hot-moment analysis, non-parametric statistical tests, and ANOVA results showed that downslope positions converted to managed and fertilized grass had significantly higher N2O emissions compared to the fallow and upslope positions. We found that these downslope managed grass sites had mean soil moisture of 75.0 % water filled pore space (WFPS) and less insulating residual above-ground biomass than the fallow grassland. Our results suggest that converting fallow grassland to managed perennial grass cropping systems for bioenergy or other uses could increase springthaw N2O emissions in wetness-prone areas.
Recombinant human milk proteins - an opportunity and a challenge.

Several human milk proteins have physiologic functions in infants. These proteins are involved in defense against infectious agents and in the optimization of nutrient uptake from milk. Therefore, interest in producing recombinant human milk proteins to use in infant formula has been growing. Microorganisms and transgenic animals can now be used for the production of bioactive proteins. However, the benefits of each protein must be evaluated in cells, animal models, and infants before claims can be made that adding them to formula improves the health or nutrition of infants. Once benefits are shown, proper manufacturing conditions must be developed for introducing the protein or proteins into formula. Processing conditions must be evaluated to ensure that biologic activity is maintained. Dry blending, aseptic processing, sterile filtration, and other techniques will likely be necessary for introducing proteins that require specific tertiary structure for activity. The importance of posttranslational modifications must also be considered : some proteins may require proper glycosylation or phosphorylation for physiologic activity.
A Practice Audit of CT-Guided Injections of Pars Interarticularis Defects in Patients with Axial Low Back Pain: A Primer for Further Investigation

Objective To assess whether computed tomography(CT)-guided injections of local anesthetic and corticosteroid into chronic lumbar pars interarticularis defects may identify and provide benefit to a cohort of patients where the pars defects act as a primary axial pain generator. Design Retrospective practice audit. Setting Single academic radiology pain management practice. Patients 59 consecutive patients undergoing CT-guided injections of lumbar pars defects. Methods Patients were assessed with a pain numerical rating scale (NRS, 0–10) and Roland–Morris disability questionnaire (R–M) prior to injection and at 2 weeks and 2 months follow-up. For categorical outcomes, successful pain relief response was defined as either ≥50% reduction in NRS or pain 0/10; functional response was defined as ≥40% reduction in R–M score. Continuous outcomes (mean NRS, R–M scores) were assessed for significant change following injection. Results For categorical outcomes, 37.9% of patients were responders at 2 months' follow-up; 20.7 % had complete relief of index pain. For functional recovery, 34.5% were responders at 2 months. Using continuous outcomes, mean NRS was 5.4 ± 2.1 prior to injection and 3.6 ± 2.6 at 2 months (P < 0.0001). Mean R–M score was 11.7 ± 6.0 prior to injection and 9.0 ± 5.4 at 2 months (P = 0.001). There were no complications. Conclusions This practice audit suggests that in patients with axial low back pain and chronic pars defects, the pars defects may be implicated as the primary axial pain generator in a small subgroup of patients. Local deposition of corticosteroids into the pars defect may provide significant pain relief in one out of three patients, and complete relief in one out of five patients. This data suggest there may be benefit to pursuing randomized controlled trials of pars injections comparing steroid injection with placebo.
Reflection in professional play

Computer simulations make it possible to create computational microworlds—“environments where people can explore and learn from what they receive back from the computer in return for their exploration” (Hoyles, Noss, & Adamson, 2002). This has been shown in STEM programming environments (Papert, 1980; Resnick, 1994; diSessa, 2000), direct manipulation environments (Goldenberg, and Cuoco, 1998), and game worlds (Adams, 1998; Barab et al., 2001). Working in these environments gives students opportunities to learn STEM subjects through problems that are realistic, complex, and meaningful.
Acoustics of shells

We discuss the physical phenomena that arise in the scattering of acoustic waves from fluid-immersed elastic (metal) shells which may be either evacuated or filled with the same or with a different fluid. The phenomena occurring here include the formation of circumferential (peripheral, or “surface”) waves that circumnavigate the shells, propagating either as elastic waves in the shell material or as fluid-borne waves of the Scholte-Stoneley type in the external or the internal fluid. By phase matching along a closed circuit, these waves may lead to prominent resonances in the acoustic scattering amplitude, and we demonstrate how the set of observed resonance frequencies is related to the dispersive phase velocities of the surface waves, so that one can be determined from the other. In addition, we discuss how the dispersion curves (phase velocity plotted vs. frequency) of the various types of surface waves show repulsion phenomena due to their coupling through the boundary conditions. The cases of spherical and cylindrical shells are investigated here as typical examples, and as an introductory topic we additionally mention surface waves on plates where related phenomena also occur. Both the theoretical and the experimental aspects of the present subject will be considered, including the experimental visualization of the surface waves.
Synthesis, Structure, and Properties of One-Dimensional Partially Oxidized Tetracyanoplatinate Complexes

Abstract The crystal structure of anion-deficient partially oxidized tetracyanoplatinate complexes generally can be classified into one of two categories. The electrical properties of compounds in the two categories are also observed to be different. We have prepared a new complex which does not fall into either of the previous categories. Its synthesis, structure and properties are described.
Compacting MIMOLA microcode

We address the problem of reducing the word length of microprograms. Two techniques are described: overlaying of fields and encoding of the microprogram. Formal analyses are presented of different encoding methods, assuming a VLSI implementation. A maximal encoding strategy appears to be the most area-efficient. Field overlaying is formulated as a clique-partitioning problem, and an efficient and practical clique-partitioning algorithm is presented. Based on these results, a microword compaction strategy that consists of field overlaying followed by maximal encoding has been implemented for the MIMOLA synthesis system (a design tool that generates excessively long microinstructions). Some considerations that are relevant to MIMOLA, and probably general to other similar tools, are discussed.
An approach to screening for Coulomb wave functions

Abstract A possible method for generalizing analytic representations of Coulomb wave functions to include screening is described. One-dimensional integral representations for the Coulomb problem are replaced with two-dimensional integral representations which include the screening function in the kernel. The equations for a two-dimensional representation with exponential screening are presented. A formal solution of the equations is obtained for the nonrelativistic case.
Computational Mapping Identifies Localized Mechanisms for Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common heart rhythm disorder in the Western world and a common cause of hospitalization and death. Pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic therapies have met with limited success, in part due to an incomplete understanding of the underlying mechanisms for AF. AF is traditionally characterized by spatiotemporally disorganized electrical activation and, although initiating triggers for AF are described, it is unclear whether AF is sustained by spatially meandering continuous excitation (re-entrant waves), localized electrical sources within the atria, or some other mechanism. This has limited therapeutic options for this condition. Here we show that human AF is predominantly caused by a small number (1.8±0.9) of localized re-entrant waves or repetitive focal beats, that remain stable with limited spatial migration over prolonged periods of time. Radiofrequency ablation that selectively targeted the sites of these sources was able to immediately terminate fibrillation and eliminate the arrhythmia with high success. Our results show that human AF, despite apparent spatiotemporal disorganization, is often perpetuated by a few spatially-constrained and temporally conserved sources whose targeted ablation can eliminate this complex rhythm disorder.
Apoptosis induced by β-N-oxalylamino-l-alanine on a motoneuron hybrid cell line

Abstract It has been suggested that β-N-oxalylamino- l -alanine, a non-protein amino acid present in the Lathyrus Sativus seeds, may play a role in the etiopathogenesis of neurolathyrism, a toxic form of motor neuron disease clinically characterized by a severe spastic paraparesis. In order to investigate the mechanisms of β-N-oxalylamino- l -alanine-mediated cell death, we studied the effect of this neurotoxin as well as other excitatory amino acids agonists on the growth and survival of motoneuron hybrid ventral spinal cord 4.1 cells. β-N-oxalylamino- l -alanine was toxic to ventral spinal cord 4.1 cells in a concentration-dependent fashion (0.5–10 mM). Among the excitatory amino acids tested, only glutamate (1–10 mM), quisqualate (1 mM) and, with less extent, β-N-methylamino- l -alanine (10 mM) induced a significant reduction of cell survival. The effect of Lathyrus Sativus neurotoxin was a slow process, becoming apparent only after 24–48 h of incubation. Interestingly, a mathematical analysis applied to the time course and dose curve of β-N-oxalylamino- l -alanine toxicity suggested that even for very low concentrations of the amino acid it is theoretically possible to predict a time-dependent effect. The cell death was not blocked by antagonists of N-methyl- d -aspartate or non-N-methyl- d -aspartate receptors; aurintricarboxylic acid and α-tocopherol gave a partial protection; cysteine (1 mM) prevented the toxic effect of both Lathyrus Sativus neurotoxin and glutamate as well as quisqualate. Morphologically, in the presence of either β-N-oxalylamino- l -alanine, glutamate or quisqualate, ventral spinal cord 4.1 cells showed apoptotic features also confirmed by ISEL technique and agarose gel electrophoresis of genomic DNA. Thus, our results suggest that in ventral spinal cord 4.1 motoneuron hybrid cells, in the absence of functional synaptic excitatory amino acid receptors, β-N-oxalylamino- l -alanine induces cell degeneration through an apoptotic mechanism, possibly mediated by a block of cystine/glutamate X−c antiporter.
The Work of Memory in Madagascar

This article examines the practices through which the Betsimisaraka of Madagascar attempt to recode, assimilate, and contain the influences of the outside world. The Betsimisaraka endured colonization by the Merina and the French for 130 years. They rarely refer to this colonial past except on certain occasions when it is powerfully evoked. They prefer instead to commemorate ancestors. A processual view of remembering and forgetting productively complicates anthropological understandings of the colonization of consciousness and the consciousness of colonization, revealing how local cultural autonomy can be partially maintained through the work of memory. [Madagascar, memory, forgetting, colonization, Bartlett]
Framing air pollution epidemiology in terms of population interventions, with applications to multipollutant modeling.

Air pollution epidemiology continues moving toward the study of mixtures and multipollutant modeling. Simultaneously, there is a movement in epidemiology to estimate policy-relevant health effects that can be understood in reference to specific interventions. Scaling regression coefficients from a r
The effects of helpers in cooperatively breeding purple gallinules

The effects of helpers in a population of cooperatively breeding purple gallinules (Porphyrula martinica) were examined. All young birds past the age of 2 months helped feed and protect subsequent broods of chicks and participated in territorial defense. Most helpers remained on their natal territories for approximately 1 year. The number of helpers varied both among and within breeding groups. Clutch production and chick survival were related positively to the number of helpers in the group. The increase in chick survival was independent of several measures of territory quality. Helpers possibly aided chick survival by provicing extra food for the chicks and decreasing predation risk. Helpers were necessary in order for a breeding pair to keep a territory long enough to produce more than one clutch of eggs. A change in the number of helpers (increase or decrease) often was followed by a similar change in territory size. These results suggest that purple gallnule helpers can increase the reproductive success of the breeding group and may be vital for the continued maintenance of a breeding territory.
Confirmatory factor analysis of the Neurological Evaluation Scale in unmedicated schizophrenia.

Abstract Factor structure of the Neurological Evaluation Scale (NES) was evaluated in 95 unmedicated patients with schizophrenia using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). CFA was used to test four competing models that were based on prior empirical work examining the factor structure of the NES, as well as on theoretical considerations. A three-factor solution composed of "repetitive motor," "cognitive-perceptual," and "balance-tandem" factors best accounted for the data. These findings are consistent with prior exploratory studies that have suggested the NES is a multidimensional procedure that assesses diverse neurological domains. The current results contribute to the development of empirical subscales for neurological assessment procedures to be used in psychiatric conditions.
Theory, Locality, and Methodology in Archaeology: Just Add Water?

Continuing the work of the ‘Vienna Circle’, philosopher Carl Hempel created explanatory models to ground scientific inquiry in logic and empirical truth. Beginning with the physical sciences, he explored the application of these models to the social sciences as well. Terrestrial archaeologists incorporated Hempelian concepts by calling for global changes in archaeological methodology. These changes, explicitly designed to maximize data collection (a necessary first step to develop archaeological general laws crucial to Hempelian explanation and confirmation), were developed using particular idiosyncratic geographical cues that would undermine archaeology if implemented in other contexts. In this article, I argue that similarly unconscious artifacts of particular archaeologists’ goals and locations have also governed underwater archaeology’s growth as a discipline, much to its detriment. It is my hope that understanding the philosophical and archaeological issues that have led archaeology to this point wil...
Mediating Effects: A Study of the Work Environment and Personality in the Quick-service Restaurant Setting

The relationship between core self-evaluation (Judge, Locke & Durham 1997) and job satisfaction and organisational commitment is explored. Two workplace environment factors are examined as potential mediators of these relationships; empowerment and organisational climate. The sample for the study consisted of employees from one quick-service restaurant chain well regarded in employee and community relations. The findings of the research support mediation of the core self-evaluation and job satisfaction relationship as well as the core self-evaluation and organisational commitment relationship. A discussion of the relevance of these findings for hospitality practitioners and the hospitality literature alike is provided.
Changes in spectral properties of detached birch leaves

A study conducted in order to determine the rate of changes in spectral properties of detached leaves and to evaluate the effectiveness of low temperature and cytokinins for delaying the changes, is examined. For five minutes, leaves from red birch are immersed in water or 0.001 M BAP, and then stored in plastic bags in the dark at either 5 or 25 C. Using a spectroradiometer and an integrating sphere, total directional-hemispherical reflectance and transmittance of the adaxial surface of the leaves are measured over the 400-1100 nm wavelength region. The results indicate that for leaves stored at 5 C for one week, the changes in the spectral properties are less than 5 percent of the initial values, whereas storage at 25 C promotes rapid senescence and large changes in the spectral properties. It is shown that low temperature is more effective than BAP in delaying senescence.
Real-time three-dimensional soft tissue reconstruction for laparoscopic surgery

Accurate real-time 3D models of the operating field have the potential to enable augmented reality for endoscopic surgery. A new system is proposed to create real-time 3D models of the operating field that uses a custom miniaturized stereoscopic video camera attached to a laparoscope and an image-based reconstruction algorithm implemented on a graphics processing unit (GPU). The proposed system was evaluated in a porcine model that approximates the viewing conditions of in vivo surgery. To assess the quality of the models, a synthetic view of the operating field was produced by overlaying a color image on the reconstructed 3D model, and an image rendered from the 3D model was compared with a 2D image captured from the same view. Experiments conducted with an object of known geometry demonstrate that the system produces 3D models accurate to within 1.5 mm. The ability to produce accurate real-time 3D models of the operating field is a significant advancement toward augmented reality in minimally invasive surgery. An imaging system with this capability will potentially transform surgery by helping novice and expert surgeons alike to delineate variance in internal anatomy accurately.
Mitochondrial and Nuclear Accumulation of the Transcription Factor ATFS-1 Promotes OXPHOS Recovery during the UPRmt

Mitochondrial diseases and aging are associated with defects in the oxidative phosphorylation machinery (OXPHOS), which are the only complexes composed of proteins encoded by separate genomes. To better understand genome coordination and OXPHOS recovery during mitochondrial dysfunction, we examined ATFS-1, a transcription factor that regulates mitochondria-to-nuclear communication during the mitochondrial UPR, via ChIP-sequencing. Surprisingly, in addition to regulating mitochondrial chaperone, OXPHOS complex assembly factor, and glycolysis genes, ATFS-1 bound directly to OXPHOS gene promoters in both the nuclear and mitochondrial genomes. Interestingly, atfs-1 was required to limit the accumulation of OXPHOS transcripts during mitochondrial stress, which required accumulation of ATFS-1 in the nucleus and mitochondria. Because balanced ATFS-1 accumulation promoted OXPHOS complex assembly and function, our data suggest that ATFS-1 stimulates respiratory recovery by fine-tuning OXPHOS expression to match the capacity of the suboptimal protein-folding environment in stressed mitochondria, while simultaneously increasing proteostasis capacity.
NOAA's Merged Land-Ocean Surface Temperature Analysis

This paper describes the new release of the Merged Land–Ocean Surface Temperature analysis (MLOST version 3.5), which is used in operational monitoring and climate assessment activities by the NOAA National Climatic Data Center. The primary motivation for the latest version is the inclusion of a new land dataset that has several major improvements, including a more elaborate approach for addressing changes in station location, instrumentation, and siting conditions. The new version is broadly consistent with previous global analyses, exhibiting a trend of 0.076°C decade−1 since 1901, 0.162°C decade−1 since 1979, and widespread warming in both time periods. In general, the new release exhibits only modest differences with its predecessor, the most obvious being very slightly more warming at the global scale (0.004°C decade−1 since 1901) and slightly different trend patterns over the terrestrial surface.
Linear Results on the Barrier Effects of Mesoscale Mountains.

Abstract We examine the factors determining whether a mountain acts as a strong barrier to an impinging flow. A primary concern is the extent to which the barrier effect is reduced when smoothed orography is used in a numerical model. These questions are addressed within the model of linear, rotating, stratified flow over topography first studied by Queney. The ground level Green's functions for this model are derived and their near- and far-field asymptotic behavior is discussed. Using the asymptotic results, the upstream deceleration is estimated as a function of Ro=U/fL and hm=Nhm/U, where U is the far upstream speed of the cross-mountain flow, f the Coriolis parameter, L the mountain width, N the Brunt-Vaisala frequency, and hm is the maximum mountain height. Effects of terrain shape are also considered. The Green's functions are evaluated numerically and used to calculate the response to a family of mountain profiles; a comparison with asymptotic results shows the latter to be very useful. It is conc...
Design of an arthroscopic instrument for dynamic testing of articular cartilage properties

An instrument to estimate the dynamic properties of articular cartilage in vivo is proposed. Through the use of a mechanical indenter adapted from in vitro testing methods and an ultrasound data acquisition system, a time constant for articular cartilage can be obtained. Dynamic lumped parameter models of articular cartilage and the instrument were developed using bond graph techniques for evaluating the feasibility of microfabricating the tool. Simulation results showed that a characteristic time constant for cartilage reswelling could be measured using the probe. Measurement protocols were designed to isolate fluid resistance and cartilage stiffness. Scaling the size of the instrument down lowered the amplitude of the forces required to indent the cartilage and reduced the length of the time the surgeon would need to hold the instrument in a single position in order to perform a test.
Folate and vitamin B12 transport systems in the developing infant

B vitamin transport systems in infants are not as well studied as those for amino acids and glucose. For most B vitamins, a 2-step process allows for digestion of coenzyme forms of the vitamins in food, followed by specific transport systems for the free vitamin in the intestine. Folate and vitamin B12 have specific binding proteins, which carry the vitamins in human milk and blood, and other unique binding proteins, which convey the vitamins across the placenta, intestine, and blood-brain barrier. The permeable infant intestine permits the efficient intact transfer of protein-bound folate and vitamin B12 from intestinal lumen to bloodstream. As the intestine matures, specific carriers and receptors facilitate uptake and transport of these vitamins.
Air entrainment upon liquid impact

The impact of round and plane liquid jets on plane liquid surfaces is simulated numerically on the basis of a potential flow model. It is found that the mass of the jet is as important as its momentum in determining the flow. For sufficiently long jets and small Froude numbers air cavities are entrained. Entrainment is more unlikely in two dimensions than in three.
Sampling Pink Bollworm (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) Eggs: Potential for Improved Timing and Reduced Use of Insecticides

A presence-absence egg sampling plan for pink bollworm (PBW), Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders), developed to provide a more accurate index of moth (target stage) activity, was evaluated during 1986 to determine whether egg sampling rather than conventional larval sampling provided more optimal timing of insecticide applications. The large-scale field test (260 ha) consisted of 16 commercial fields, ca. 16.2 ha each, in the Palo Verde Valley, Calif. Of the eight fields that were treated based on egg sampling (treatment threshold, 6 to 8% egg-infested bolls), an average 35% seasonal reduction in insecticide use was obtained when compared with larval sampling. Despite the reduction in insecticide use, PBW larval infestations were not significantly different in fields sampled for eggs and fields sampled for larvae from June to September. Lint yields as well as lint quality parameters were also not significantly different between the two sets of fields. Economic and environmental benefits of a 35% reduction in insecticide use is discussed.