cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The effect of multiple paternity on the genetically effective size of a population

With the availability of highly variable microsatellite loci, many previously elusive aspects of the lives of animals have been revealed. One important finding is that multiple paternity (MP) appears to be somewhat common throughout the metazoa. Frequently, along with the discovery of MP are assertions that it can increase the genetically effective size of the population (N(E)). I argue that MP is not likely to have a positive effect on N(E) because it increases the variance in male reproductive success. Published studies suggesting the contrary have implicitly or explicitly included other changes to the breeding system, and these additions are likely responsible for the presumed increase in N(E).
Mechanistic Studies of Catalytic Olefin Dimerization Reactions Using Electrophilic η3-Allyl−Palladium(II) Complexes

The dimerization of olefins by well-defined cationic η3-allyl−palladium complexes of the type [(C3H5)Pd(L)(PR3)]+[BAr‘4]- (Ar‘ = [3,5-C6H3(CF3)2]; L = OEt2, H2O; R = cyclohexyl (Cy), n-butyl (nBu)) has been studied. These complexes react with ethylene or methyl acrylate at −80 °C with loss of L to form the η2-olefin complexes [(C3H5)Pd(η2-olefin)(PR3)]+[BAr‘4]- (olefin = H2CCH2, CH2CHC(O)OCH3). Upon warming, allyl−olefin coupling occurs. The dimerization of ethylene occurs rapidly at 0 °C with an observable ethyl−ethylene intermediate [(C2H5)Pd(C2H4)2(PCy3)]+[BAr‘4]-. Methyl acrylate reacts to form a stable acrylate chelate complex, [(CH3O(O)CCH2CH2)Pd(CH2CHC(O)OCH3)(PR3)]+[BAr‘4]-, which is the catalyst resting state for methyl acrylate dimerization which occurs at room temperature to give predominantly trans-dimethyl-2-hexenedioate.
Evidence for hybrid formation between rubella virus and a latent virus of BHK21/WI-2 cells

Abstract Three cell lines of BHK21/WI-2 cells persistently infected with rubella virus were established. These persistently infected cells constantly released a small number of rubella virus particles. The released viruses were temperature-sensitive variants ( pi variants). The uninfected BHK21/WI-2 cells also released a presumed latent virus by culturing at 34° but not at 39.5°. This temperature-sensitive latent virus carries reverse transcriptase and DNA-dependent DNA polymerase activities. Infection of BHK21/WI-2 cells with the wild-type rubella virus at a nonpermissive temperature (37°) resulted in a concomitant release of the latent virus with rubella virus. When the antigenicity of the rubella pi variants was examined, anti-rubella rabbit serum inhibited the hemagglutinating activity of the variants and the wild-type virus and neutralized the plaque-forming ability of the wild type but not the variants. However, the pi variants propagated either in BHK21/WI-2 or in Vero cells were neutralized with antiserum against the latent virus, whereas the wild-type rubella virus was not affected by the same serum. Therefore it is concluded that the rubella variants are hybrids and antigenically mosaic with a latent virus of BHK21/WI-2 cells.
Noninvasive study of high-energy phosphate metabolism in human heart by depth-resolved 31P NMR spectroscopy

Phosphorus-31 nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra showing the relative concentrations of high-energy phosphate metabolites have been recorded noninvasively from the human heart in vivo. Spectral data were spatially localized by combining a pulsed magnetic field gradient with surface NMR excitation-detection coils. The location of the selected spectral region was determined by conventional proton NMR imaging immediately before examination by phosphorus-31 NMR spectroscopy.
Screening Constants for Systems of Charged Particles

Based on graphical considerations a systematic approach is given for the evaluation of the screening constants for many-particle systems interacting with Coulomb forces.
Dyson's lemma and a theorem of Esnault and Viehweg

In the classical theory of diophantine approximation, as encountered in the work of Thue, Siegel, Dyson, Roth, and Schmidt, finiteness results are obtained by constructing an auxilliary polynomial. One knows a priori that the polynomial vanishes to high order at certain approximating points and this contradicts an upper bound on the order of vanishing obtained by other techniques. The difficult part of the argument is always bounding the order of vanishing from above. This technique of diophantine approximation has recently been extended with great success [V3, V4, V5, F1, F2] in order to obtain finiteness results for rational points on certain subvarieties of abelian varieties. An intermediate stage in this development occurred when Esnault and Viehweg [EV1] proved a generalized version of Dyson’s lemma strong enough to imply Roth’s theorem. A few years later, Vojta [V1] built upon this work to prove a variant of Dyson’s lemma valid on a product of curves of arbitrary genus. This played an essential role in his proof [V3] of the Mordell conjecture. Faltings [F1], further extending the work of Vojta, was able to prove finiteness results for certain higher dimensional subvarieties of abelian varieties. Dyson’s lemma, however, plays no immediate role in Faltings’ proof; instead he uses a geometrical result called the product theorem. Though Dyson’s lemma is not used in [F1] there is nonetheless a close relationship between the arguments used in section 4 of [F1] and those occurring in section 5 of [EV1]. In particular, in both instances the proof is by induction on the dimension of product subvarieties with Lemma 2.9 of [EV1] replacing Corollary 4.3 of [F1] and with the Main Lemma 5.3 in [EV1] taking the place of the product theorem in [F1]. In this note, we propose to generalize the main theorems of [EV1] and [V1]. In order to state our results, we need to fix some notation. Let
Phosphotransfer and CheY-binding domains of the histidine autokinase CheA are joined by a flexible linker.

Multidimensional heteronuclear NMR techniques were applied to study a protein fragment of the histidine autokinase CheA from Escherichia coli. This fragment (CheA_(1-233)) contains the phosphotransfer domain and the CheY-binding domain joined by a linker region. Comparison of chemical shift and NOE cross-peak patterns indicates that the structures of the two domains in CheA_(1-233) remain nearly the same as in the two individual domain fragments, CheA1-134 and CheA_(124-257). Relaxation properties of the backbone ^(15)N nuclei were measured to study the rotational correlations of the two domains and properties of the linker region. Dynamics data were analyzed both by an isotropic motional model and an anisotropic motional model. The experimental T_1 and T_2 values, the derived rotational correlation times, and motional anisotropy are significantly different for the two domains, indicating the two domains reorient independently and the linker region is highly flexible. Dynamics data of CheA_(1-233) were also compared with those of CheA_(1-134). Our studies show that flexible domain linkers and extended and flexible terminal polypeptide chains can have significant effects on the motional properties of the adjacent structured regions. These observations suggest a model for the graded regulation of CheA autophosphorylation activity. In this model, the various activity states of the receptor are generated by controlling the access of the mean position of the kinase domain to the phosphotransfer domain. This would then modulate the diffusional encounter rate of the domains and hence activity over a wide and graded range of values.
Elections and the Electoral Process in the Ottoman Empire, 1876–1919

The 1876 constitution and its reinstitution in 1908 have been acknowledged as landmarks in the historiography of the late Ottoman Empire. The promulgation of a constitution signified a critical political transformation despite the brevity of the First Constitutional Period (1876–78). During the next three decades of Sultan Abdulhamid's autocratic rule, the ultimately successful struggle to restore the constitution against the Sultan's relentless resistance became central to the political life of the empire. In 1908, the Young Turk Revolution inaugurated a decade of social and political change, the Second Constitutional Period.
Rapid detection of the S247N neuraminidase mutation in influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 virus by one-step duplex RT-PCR assay

Neuraminidase inhibitors, especially oseltamivir, have been used worldwide for the prophylaxis or treatment of pandemic influenza H1N1 2009 (A(H1N1)pdm09) viruses. The most commonly detected oseltamivir-resistant A(H1N1)pdm09 viruses possess the H275Y mutation in neuraminidase (NA). Recently, a novel A(H1N1)pdm09 variant containing the S247N mutation in NA was found mainly in the Asia-Pacific area. This mutation reduces sensitivity to oseltamivir and confers extremely high resistance to oseltamivir in association with the H275Y mutation compared with the resistance caused by the H275Y mutation alone. In this study, a rapid and simple one-step duplex RT-PCR assay for identifying A(H1N1)pdm09 viruses possessing the S247N mutation was developed. This assay is based on an endpoint genotyping analysis method and can use isolates from cell culture supernatants without RNA extraction, similar to the H275Y RT-PCR assay reported previously. The combination of the S247N and H275Y RT-PCR assays is a powerful surveillance method for determining whether A(H1N1)pdm09 viruses with the S247N mutation acquire the H275Y mutation.
INTERMODAL PERCEPTION OF TEMPORAL ORDER AND MOTOR SKILLS: EFFECTS OF AGE

Summary.-Employing visual, auditory, and tactile stimuli, intermodal differences in perceptual latency were inferred by means of perception of temporal order (PTO) and by varieties of serial reaction rimes (RT) to the same stimuli. Skill at reading, peg board, tapping, and tracking was also determined for the same Ss. Mean intermodal differences in latency inferred from PTO were significantly different from those obtained from mean RTs. A correlation matrix showed that individual differences in visual, auditory and tactile latencies inferred from PTO were relatively independent of latencies inferred from RT. Consonant with previous studies, IT0 scores correlated with reading rate and also with peg board speed. Taking age of Ss into account, the latter correlations were seen to be due exclusively to the presence of older Ss, who did show a correlation between PT0 and RT. It was hypothesized that aged Ss show a decrease in perceptual "channel capacity" and a resulting overloading of short-term memory when faced with a complex perceptual and motor task.
Russia's Twentieth Century in History and Historiography

Discussions of Russian history have frequently been marked by a preoccupation with the question of Russian ‘backwardness’, or, during the Soviet period from 1917 to 1991, with its obverse: the claim of the Soviet Union to play a vanguard role in world history. This paper offers a critical survey of twentieth-century Russian and Soviet history, and of its often highly politicised historiography, in the light of these debates. The extent to which the Soviet ‘building of socialism’ represented a project of modernisation will be considered, along with differing interpretations of this project by both Western and post-Soviet Russian historians. While the work of the new generation of post-Soviet historians promises substantive advances in our knowledge of the Soviet past, it is suggested here that debates on Russia's past are once again being overshadowed by old concerns about Russia's backwardness vis-a-vis the West.
ENA observations of a global substorm growthphase dropout in the nightside magnetosphere

[1] We report a global decrease of the energetic neutral atom (ENA) flux coming from the entire nightside magnetosphere detectable out to dipole L = 14 during the growth phase of a substorm at 08:00–09:09 UT on 4 October 2000. The ENA images were obtained in the 27–60 keV range by the high energy neutral atom (HENA) imager onboard the IMAGE spacecraft. The underlying proton distribution is derived by inverting the ENA images using a constrained linear inversion technique. The magnetosphere experienced enhanced convection and the geomagnetic field at geosynchronous was stretched. The global ENA flux decrease is found to be related to the rapid stretching of the tail inducing a dusk to dawn electric field. The phenomenon can be explained either as a resulting “choking” of the E × B drift from the tail, or, as an adiabatic de-energization of the azimuthally drifting ring current protons.
Water Transport across Yeast Vacuolar and Plasma Membrane-Targeted Secretory Vesicles Occurs by Passive Diffusion

To determine whether solute transport across yeast membranes was facilitated, we measured the water and solute permeations of vacuole-derived and late secretory vesicles in Saccharomyces cerevisiae; all permeations were consistent with passive diffusive flow. We also overexpressed Fps1p, the putative glycerol facilitator in S. cerevisiae, in secretory vesicles but observed no effect on water, glycerol, formamide, or urea permeations. However, spheroplasts prepared from the strain overexpressing Fps1p showed enhanced glycerol uptake, suggesting that Fps1p becomes active only upon insertion in the plasma membrane.
The Origin of Language as a Product of the Evolution of Modern Cognition

Further work on the origin of language as derivative of the origin of double-scope conceptual integration. Based on chapter 9 of The Way We Think.
Role of spermine in amyloid beta-peptide-associated free radical-induced neurotoxicity.

The polyamines, relatively low-molecular-weight aliphatic compounds, are the main inducers of eukaryotic cell growth and proliferation. Although polyamine requirements for cell growth are well defined, their role is still enigmatic. We have previously reported that amyloid beta-peptide (A beta), the main constituent of senile plaques in Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain, is toxic to neurons through a free radical-dependent oxidative stress mechanism and that A beta(1--42), the principal form of A beta in AD brain, causes an increase in polyamine metabolism manifested by up-regulated polyamine uptake and increased ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) activity. Both effects were prevented by the free radical scavenger vitamin E. Spermine has been reported to function directly as a free radical scavenger. In the current study, we aimed to address whether up-regulation of polyamine metabolism is a defense against, or a result of, A beta-induced oxidative stress by investigating the capability of spermine to quench A beta-associated free radicals in solution and to assert a protective function of spermine in neuronal culture against A beta. Pretreatment of cultured neurons with spermine prior to A beta exposure failed to prevent A beta-induced cell death. Indeed, A beta plus spermine added to cultured neurons was even more neurotoxic than either agent alone. Additionally, inhibition of the polyamine synthesis by difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) did not protect cells from A beta-induced free radical toxicity, and stimulation of the synthesis of putrescine and spermine by the aminopropyltransferase inhibitor S-adenosyl-1,8-diamino-thiooctane (AdoDATO), rather, further enhanced A beta-induced toxicity. Although spermine is capable of scavenging free radicals generated by A beta in solution as measured by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, the up-regulated transport of exogenously added spermine together with A beta may lead to overaccumulation of a cellular spermine pool, with resulting enhanced neurotoxicity.
Predictors of noncompliance in an oral contraceptive clinical trial.

Abstract Background This analysis was conducted to identify the participant characteristics associated with noncompliance in an oral contraceptive (OC) clinical trial. Study Design We studied ovarian suppression among normal-weight and obese women during the use of levonorgestrel (LNG)-containing combination OCs. Participants underwent twice weekly phlebotomy during the study cycle and received up to $360 for participation. Along with other study assays, we analyzed 903 specimens from 181 women to measure LNG to assess OC compliance. Consistently undetectable LNG levels indicated noncompliance. To evaluate predictors of OC noncompliance during this study, we compared the characteristics of compliant and noncompliant participants using multivariable logistic regression. We assigned each participant to a relative poverty level based on US census data; all other individual characteristics came directly from participant responses during the baseline interview. Results One hundred eighty-one women completed the study; 31 were noncompliant (17%). In multivariable analyses, poverty level was the strongest predictor of noncompliance. Compared with those women in the quartile with the lowest level of residential poverty, other women were far more likely to be noncompliant, especially women in the quartile with the greatest prevalence of poverty (adjusted odds ratio, 8.4; 95% confidence interval, 1.5–46.1). Additional factors associated with noncompliance were education level less than a bachelor's degree and Hispanic ethnicity. Other demographic and psychometric measures were not associated with compliance. Conclusions We found that noncompliance was strongly associated with residential poverty level, an indirect measure of individual income. In the United States, poverty is associated with female obesity, Hispanic ethnicity and low education, which were also associated here with noncompliance. Study compensation may motivate poor individuals to participate in clinical trials for income. Noncompliance in clinical trials, particularly differential noncompliance, jeopardizes study validity.
RF CMOS circuit optimizing procedure and synthesis tool

In this paper, we discuss a methodology to design and synthesize analog CMOS components such as RF amplifiers. The inputs of the synthesis tool are the circuit specifications described at high-level of abstraction, fabrication dependent technology parameters and un-sized circuit topologies. The output is a sized net list, which meets the user constraints.The synthesis environment considers user-defined performance parameters into account, and it relies on a genetic algorithm based heuristic method to search for a solution in a large design-space. The synthesis tool determines a solution set of design parameters such that the circuit satisfies the overall design constraints.
Toward a multiscale model of antigen presentation in immunity

A functioning immune system and the process of antigen presentation in particular encompass events that occur at multiple length and time scales. Despite a wealth of information in the biological literature regarding each of these scales, no single representation synthesizing this information into a model of the overall immune response as it depends on antigen presentation is available. In this article, we outline an approach for integrating information over relevant biological and temporal scales to generate such a representation for major histocompatibility complex class II-mediated antigen presentation. In addition, we begin to address how such models can be used to answer questions about mechanisms of infection and new strategies for treatment and vaccines.
A self-sustaining advanced lignocellulosic biofuel production by integration of anaerobic digestion and aerobic fungal fermentation.

Abstract High energy demand hinders the development and application of aerobic microbial biofuel production from lignocellulosic materials. In order to address this issue, this study focused on developing an integrated system including anaerobic digestion and aerobic fungal fermentation to convert corn stover, animal manure and food wastes into microbial lipids for biodiesel production. Dairy manure and food waste were first anaerobically digested to produce energy and solid digestate (AD fiber). AD fiber and corn stover were then processed by a combined alkali and acid hydrolysis, followed by fungal lipid accumulation. The integrated process can generate 1 L biodiesel and 1.9 kg methane from 12.8 kg dry dairy manure, 3.1 kg dry food wastes and 12.2 kg dry corn stover with a positive net energy of 57 MJ, which concludes a self-sustaining lignocellulosic biodiesel process and provides a new route to co-utilize corn stover and organic wastes for advanced biofuel production.
John Hunter: Early Association of Type A Behavior With Cardiac Mortality

Free-floating (easily aroused) hostility is a cardinal symptom of the type A behavior pattern, the first psychosocial factor scientifically linked to coronary artery disease (CAD). Anger and hostility are associated with the onset and outcome of CAD, triggering of myocardial infarction, and lowering the threshold to ventricular arrhythmia, all increasing the risk of sudden cardiac death. The life of the legendary eighteenth century English surgeon John Hunter is illustrative of the type A behavior pattern. His demise and that of a contemporary surgeon provide important lessons for the management of anger in contemporary society.
Production Costs, Scale Economies, and Technical Change in U.S. Textile and Apparel Industries

The elimination of quotas in textiles and apparel poses new threats from import competition. To survive, the sectors need to find least-cost methods of production. The production–cost structure of the U.S. textile and apparel industries is examined using a dual cost framework. A translog cost function is used to measure substitution elasticities between inputs, scale economies, and the nature of technical change. The scope for factor substitution in textiles remains limited with all substitution elasticities being less than unity. Labor and materials are complements in apparel production, but there is evidence of substitution between capital and labor. The rate of technical change is higher in textiles than in apparel. Given the intense import competition from low wage countries, in both industries, technical progress is labor saving. Overall, economies of scale are larger in apparel; however, scale economies have continued to increase in textiles.
Dose rate effects of a bipolar A/D converter

Total ionizing dose-rate tests of an AD574 analog-to-digital converter were performed at dose rates of 2 to 10 rad(Si)/sec at an operating temperature (41/spl deg/C). The AD574 has been manufactured by Analog Devices using Bipolar II technology. Results were compared with previous results from others to see trends. The results show increasing failure rate as dose rate increases. Unlike off-line test results at room temperature, no sign of degradation at low dose rates was found from the in-situ tests of AD574 devices at elevated temperature. Fast recovery of failure within 20 minutes post-irradiation annealing was observed. This recovery automatically rules out an interface-trap buildup as a dominant failure mechanism. The contribution of bulk-oxide charges seems to be a major factor.
Stress intensity factor solutions for cracks in finite-width three layer laminates with and without residual stress effects

Approximate stress intensity factor solutions for cracks in finite-width three layer laminates, with the crack located in the middle layer, were derived on the basis of force-balance between the applied stress and the modified Westergaard form of normal stress distribution ahead of the crack tip. This yielded a simple and closed form equation for the stress intensity factor that included the effects of the ratio of the moduli of the layers and the relative layer thicknesses. A comparison of the stress intensity factor values from this equation and with finite element data indicated that the difference between these two data sets was small for most of the crack lengths and the modulus ratio of the layers. The maximum difference occurred at crack lengths approaching the interface and at high moduli ratios, but was less than 10%, in general. The equations were also modified to incorporate the effects of residual stresses that arise during cooling after laminate processing, on the stress intensity factor. A comparison of the analytical data with the finite element data obtained by imposing thermal and mechanical boundary loads on the laminate specimens indicated a good agreement. The present closed form approximate solutions may be useful in fracture analyses of finite-width laminates containing cracks.
Self-Reported Pediatric Measures of Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior and Strength Impact for PROMIS®: Item Development

Background: Children’s activity level is commonly assessed in clinical research, but rigorous assessment tools for children are scarce. Our objectives were to improve pediatric activity self-report measures using qualitative methods to develop item pools that measure these concepts. Methods: On the basis of the items generated from our conceptual framework development, we applied cognitive interviews and comprehensibility reviews to ensure children readily understood the items. Results: Our methods resulted in 129 unique items—physical activities (80 items), sedentary behaviors (23 items), and strengthening activities (26 items)—that were comprehensible to children between the ages of 8 and 18 years. Comprehensibility review resulted in the deletion of 4 items. Conclusions: The resultant item pools reflect children’s experiences and understanding of the concepts of physical activities, sedentary behaviors, and strengthening activities. The item pools will undergo
Tapered fields in cylindrical and spherical spaces

The authors show how variations of a magnetic field along a cylindrical or spherical axis are effected for both longitudinal and transverse orientations. Field profiles in cylindrical structures of both orientations and various cross sections (square, octagonal, and circular) are compared with each other and with a spherical shell source with a tapered longitudinal field. Methods of coping with field irregularities arising from architectural and materials compromises forced by operational peculiarities of particular devices are described and compared. >
Characterization of a Receptor Subtype-Selective Lysophosphatidic Acid Mimetic

Despite an intriguing cell biology and the suggestion of a role in pathophysiological responses, the mechanism of action of such lipid phosphoric acid mediators as lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) remains obscure, in part because of an underdeveloped medicinal chemistry. We report now the agonist activity of a synthetic phospholipid in which the glycerol backbone of LPA is replaced by L-serine. Like LPA, the L-serine-based lipid mobilizes calcium and inhibits activation of adenylyl cyclase in the human breast cancer cell line MDA MB231. Treatment with LPA desensitizes MDA MB231 cells to subsequent application of the L-serine compound; when the order of application is reversed, however, the L-serine compound does not prevent calcium mobilization by LPA, which might indicate the existence of two LPA receptors in these cells. The analogous D-serine-based phospholipid was distinctly less potent than the L-isomer in those assays; this finding demonstrates stereoselectivity by an LPA receptor. Unlike LPA, the L-serine-based lipid does not evoke a chloride conductance in Xenopus laevis oocytes, but injection of poly(A)+ RNA from HEK 293 cells confers this phenotype on the oocyte. The latter result has practical importance in that it allows use of the frog oocyte for expression cloning of an LPA receptor DNA, an assay system made problematic by the oocyte's strong endogenous response to LPA.
An Investigation of the Relationship between Self-Control and Alcohol-Induced Sexual Assault Victimization:

Recently, scholars have begun to examine victim self-control as a correlate of vulnerability to general victimization. The scope of victimization contained among the studies testing this relationsh...
Appraisal: the process of choice

In 1987 the manuscripts and archives staff of the New York Public Library participated in the field testing of the "Black Box" appraisal model developed by Frank Boles and Julia Marks Young. Based on this experience, the author evaluates the Boles and Young model in light of its taxonomic function, its usefulness for staff training, and its contribution for furthering the development of appraisal theory. The discussion is extended to consider other recent developments such as cooperative appraisal projects and documentation strategies. The article concludes by emphasizing the value to archivists of documenting and sharing their appraisal decisions.
Dynamic systemic-functional grammar: a new frontier

(1989). Dynamic systemic-functional grammar: a new frontier. WORD: Vol. 40, Systems, Structures, and Discourse: Selected Papers from the Fifteenth International Systemic Congress, pp. 263-286.
Active RC Synthesis of Two-Variable Admittance Polynomials

A simple procedure is given to the realization of grounded one-ports and floating networks characterized by two-variable driving point admittance polynomials. Only resistors, capacitive elements and operational amplifiers are used in the realization The circuits have low active and passive sensitivities. Illustrative examples are included.
Effect of Temperature Variations on Paper Electrophoretic Migration of Serum Lipoproteins.

SummaryPaper electrophoretic studies showed that the rate of migration of beta-lipoproteins was considerably less at 5°C than at summer room temperature or at 35°C. No effect of temperature was evident in the case of the lipoproteins migrating with the albumin, alpha1-globulin. The rate of movement of the main serum proteins was apparently the same at the different temperatures, but the resolution of the alpha2- and beta-globulins was sometimes less distinct at the higher temperature. The results presented show the importance of using relatively constant temperatures when comparative paper electrophoretic studies are carried out, especially of beta-lipoproteins.
Development of Intelligent Time-Frequency Test and Analysis System

The accuracy of the time-frequency test in a power system is directly related to the consistency and validity of data acquisition,storage and analysis. On the basis of introducing time-frequency test techniques and aiming at the deficiencies of the current timefrequency test in the power system, an intelligent time-frequency test and analysis system combining software and hardware was developed in this paper. Firstly, the design scheme of the hardware and its characteristics were introduced. In the following section, the development environment, function features and design processes of the software were described. Then the functions of the intelligent time-frequency test and analysis system as well as its business processes were described. Finally, the functionality and performances of the system were verified by a test example.
Microbial ecology: Linking omics to biogeochemistry

Natural volcanic CO2 seeps (mofettes) provided a natural experiment to use omic and biogeochemical approaches to explore how flooding a system with CO2 impacts algal photosynthesis and methanogenesis.
Neoliberal Backgrounding, the Meatless Monday Campaign, and the Rhetorical Intersections of Food, Nature, and Cultural Identity

This article offers a critical rhetorical ecofeminist analysis of the Meatless Monday campaign, a U.S.-based meat reduction initiative focused on public health and the environment. By examining the campaign's online discourse, the study sheds light on vegetarian advocacy defined by an apolitical small-steps strategy and identifies constraints on the campaign's significant empowerment potential. Extending past scholarship on how some vegetarian discourses resist and reproduce meat-eating culture's hegemonic norms of gender, race/ethnicity, class, and human–nonhuman relations, I develop and demonstrate what I call the critique of neoliberal backgrounding as an intersectional ecofeminist heuristic. I conclude that the campaign should address the meaningful consequences that its affirmation of neoliberalism has for its targeted areas of concern and for interconnected societal problems.
Blow the germs away

At a time when we are plagued by the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, we may not need to look very far to identify new antimicrobial compounds with a low likelihood of resistance. Conventional wisdom has driven us to mine bacteria in soil to identify new antimicrobials, given the high
What the Tweets say: A critical analysis of Twitter research in language learning from 2009 to 2016:

This study presents an overview and critical analysis of the literature related to Twitter and language learning published from 2009 to 2016. Seventeen studies were selected for inclusion based on ...
Environmental Fate and Toxicology of Carbaryl

Carbaryl is an agricultural and garden insecticide that controls a broad spectrum of insects. Although moderately water soluble, it neither vaporizes nor volatilizes readily. However, upon spray application the insecticide is susceptible to drift. It is unstable under alkaline conditions, thus easily hydrolyzed. Carbaryl has been detected in water at ppb concentrations but degradation is relatively rapid, with 1-naphthol identified as the major degradation product. Indirect and direct photolysis of carbaryl produces different naphthoquinones as well as some hydroxyl substituted naphthoquinones. Sorption of the insecticide to soil is kinetically rapid. However, although both the mineral and organic fractions contribute, because of its moderate water solubility it is only minimally sorbed. Also, sorption to soil minerals strongly depends on the presence of specific exchangeable cations and increases with organic matter aromaticity and age. Soil microbes (bacteria and fungi) are capable of degrading carbaryl; the process is more rapid in anoxic than aerobic systems and with increased temperature and moisture. Carbaryl presents a significant problem to pregnant dogs and their offspring, but some have questioned the applicability of these data to humans. In addition, for toxicokinetic and/or physiological reasons, it has been argued that dogs are more sensitive than humans to carbaryl-induced reproductive or developmental toxicity. However, these arguments are based on either older pharmacokinetic studies or on speculation about possible reproductive differences between dogs on the one hand and rats and humans on the other. In view of the wider evidence from both human epidemiological and laboratory animal studies, the question of the possible developmental and reproductive toxicity of carbaryl should be considered open and requiring further study.
Progress in fusion technology in the U.S. magnetic fusion program

Abstract Much progress has been made in the last two years in the U.S. magnetic fusion technology program. Notable advancements have been made in superconducting magnets, gyrotrons, reduced activation materials, pellet injectors, and safe handling of tritium to name a few. Advancements in fusion plasma conditions and economic, environmentally attractive reactor designs will continue to require significant improvements in the technology of magnets, heating, fueling, materials, and safety. The ITER process will provide a forum and an opportunity to accelerate the development of fusion technology through new international collaborations, and we should take advantage of that opportunity.
On a Generalized Weyl-Von Neumann Converse Theorem

For two bounded selfadjoint operators A and A + B with the same essential spectra, there exists a unitary operator U such that B − (UAU* − A) is compact (Weyl-Von Neumann). More generally, an operator B in B(H) is compact iff σe (A + B) = σe (A) for all A ∈ B(H) (Gustafson-Weidmann), and in fact one needs only σ(A + B) ∩ σ (A) not empty for all A ∈ B(H) (Dyer, Porcelli, Rosenfeld). Aiken (Is. Math. J., 1976) and Zemanek (Studia Math., to appear) have studied the question of when for an arbitrary Banach algebra with identity the last condition guarantees that B is in some proper two-sided ideal. We give new results for this question, including a number of examples.
Quantitative proteomics identify Tenascin-C as a promoter of lung cancer progression and contributor to a signature prognostic of patient survival

The extracellular microenvironment is an integral component of normal and diseased tissues that is poorly understood owing to its complexity. To investigate the contribution of the microenvironment to lung fibrosis and adenocarcinoma progression, two pathologies characterized by excessive stromal expansion, we used mouse models to characterize the extracellular matrix (ECM) composition of normal lung, fibrotic lung, lung tumors, and metastases. Using quantitative proteomics, we identified and assayed the abundance of 113 ECM proteins, which revealed robust ECM protein signatures unique to fibrosis, primary tumors, or metastases. These analyses indicated significantly increased abundance of several S100 proteins, including Fibronectin and Tenascin-C (Tnc), in primary lung tumors and associated lymph node metastases compared with normal tissue. We further showed that Tnc expression is repressed by the transcription factor Nkx2-1, a well-established suppressor of metastatic progression. We found that increasing the levels of Tnc, via CRISPR-mediated transcriptional activation of the endogenous gene, enhanced the metastatic dissemination of lung adenocarcinoma cells. Interrogation of human cancer gene expression data revealed that high TNC expression correlates with worse prognosis for lung adenocarcinoma, and that a three-gene expression signature comprising TNC, S100A10, and S100A11 is a robust predictor of patient survival independent of age, sex, smoking history, and mutational load. Our findings suggest that the poorly understood ECM composition of the fibrotic and tumor microenvironment is an underexplored source of diagnostic markers and potential therapeutic targets for cancer patients.
A garden of parathyroid adenomas

Despite improvements in parathyroidectomy success rates, patients with persistent primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) after initial surgery continue to challenge clinicians. Some of the challenges are due to ectopic parathyroid adenomas, including thymic, intrathyroidal, carotid sheath and mediastinal glands, and others are because of supernumerary glands. While uncommon in PHPT, multigland disease is also an important consideration in patients requiring reoperative surgery for persistent disease. For this reason, localisation studies including sestamibi, ultrasound, CT scan and venous sampling for abnormal glands may be an essential component of the preoperative workup. In this report, we describe an unusual case of a patient who required a total of four operations to cure PHPT arising from seven parathyroid adenomas.
Sparse interaction between oligodendrocyte precursor cells (NG2+ cells) and nodes of Ranvier in the central nervous system

Regeneration of propagating action potentials at nodes of Ranvier allows nerve impulses to be conducted over long distances. Proper nodal function is believed to rely on intimate associations among axons, myelinating oligodendrocytes, and perinodal astrocytes. Studies in the optic nerve, corpus callosum, and spinal cord suggest that NG2+ cells are also key constituents of CNS nodes and that these glia may influence conduction efficacy and formation of axon collaterals. However, the prevalence of NG2+ cell processes at CNS nodes of Ranvier has not been rigorously quantified. Here we used a transgenic mouse expressing membrane-targeted EGFP to visualize the fine processes of NG2+ cells and to quantify the spatial relationship between NG2+ cells and nodes of Ranvier in four distinct CNS white matter tracts. NG2+ cell processes came within close spatial proximity to a small percentage of nodes of Ranvier and approximately half of these spatial interactions were estimated to occur by chance. The majority of NG2+ cell process tips were not found in close proximity to nodes and gray matter NG2+ cells in regions of low nodal density were as morphologically complex as their white matter counterparts, indicating that attraction to nodes does not critically influence the elaboration of NG2+ cell processes. Finally, there was no difference in nodal density between small regions devoid of NG2+ cell processes and those containing numerous NG2+ cells processes, demonstrating that the function of CNS nodes of Ranvier does not require ongoing interaction with NG2+ cells.
Texture development and coercivity enhancement in cast alnico 9 magnets

The effect of Y addition and magnetic field on texture and magnetic properties of arc-melted alnico 9 magnets has been investigated. Small additions of Y (1.5 wt.%) develop a (200) texture for the arc-melted alnico 9 magnet. Such a texture is hard to form in cast samples. To achieve this goal, we set up a high-field annealing system with a maximum operation temperature of 1250 °C. This system enabled annealing in a field of 45 kOe with subsequent draw annealing for the solutionized buttons; we have been able to substantially increase remanence ratio and coercivity, from 0.70 and 1200 Oe for the Y-free alnico 9 to 0.90 and 1400 Oe for the Y-doped alnico 9, respectively. A high energy product of 7.3 MGOe has been achieved for the fully heat-treated Y-doped alnico 9. The enhancement of coercivity is believed to arise from the introduction of magnetocrystalline anisotropy from 80 nm Y2Co17-type grains, which are exchange-coupled to the main-phase alnico rods.
Distributed estimation of smooth graph power spectral density

Stochastic modeling of modern datasets entails the need for accurate descriptions of random phenomena on graphs. In this respect, wide sense stationary (WSS) graph processes have been defined and studied. Fundamental to precise modeling of these processes is the knowledge of the power spectral density (PSD). In this paper we propose an estimator for the PSD of WSS graph processes. The estimator consists of a collection of graph filters applied to a single realization of the process. Additionally, the estimator is distributed in the sense that it is obtained from computing the output of the filter bank at a single node. Leveraging a notion of smoothness on the PSD, we derive conditions under which the proposed estimator is consistent and asymptotically unbiased. Numerical experiments on Erdos-Renyi graphs and stochastic block models are simulated.
Insurgent Fragmentation in the Horn of Africa: Rebellion and its Discontents

When insurgent organizations factionalize and fragment, it can profoundly shape a civil war: its intensity, outcome, and duration. In this extended treatment of this complex and important phenomenon, Michael Woldemariam examines why rebel organizations fragment through a unique historical analysis of the Horn of Africa's civil wars. Central to his view is that rebel factionalism is conditioned by battlefield developments. While fragmentation is caused by territorial gains and losses, counter-intuitively territorial stalemate tends to promote rebel cohesion and is a critical basis for cooperation in war. As a rare effort to examine these issues in the context of the Horn of Africa region, based upon extensive fieldwork, this book will interest both scholarly and non-scholarly audiences interested in insurgent groups and conflict dynamics.
Maternal nicotine exposure effects on adolescent learning and memory are abolished in alpha(α)2* nicotinic acetylcholine receptor-null mutant mice

Abstract The objective of the current study is to test the hypothesis that the deletion of alpha(α)2* nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) (encoded by the Chrna2 gene) ablate maternal nicotine-induced learning and memory deficits in adolescent mice. We use a pre-exposure-dependent contextual fear conditioning behavioral paradigm that is highly hippocampus-dependent. Adolescent wild type and α2-null mutant offspring are exposed to vehicle or maternal nicotine exposure (200 μg/ml, expressed as base) in the drinking water throughout pregnancy until weaning. Adolescent male offspring mice are tested for alterations in growth and development characteristics as well as modifications in locomotion, anxiety, shock-reactivity and learning and memory. As expected, maternal nicotine exposure has no effects on pup number, weight gain and only modestly reduces fluid intake by 19%. Behaviorally, maternal nicotine exposure impedes extinction learning in adolescent wild type mice, a consequence that is abolished in α2-null mutant mice. The effects on learning and memory are not confounded by alternations in stereotypy, locomotion, anxiety or sensory shock reactivity. Overall, the findings highlight that the deletion of α2* nAChRs eliminate the effects of maternal nicotine exposure on learning and memory in adolescent mice.
Achieving highly accurate profile control by applying a multi-zone polish head for 200mm thin-film SOI CMP

The specification for the total thickness variation (TTV) of the top Si layer of silicon on insulator (SOI) wafers is getting tightened for the future application [1] [2]. Therefore, the current Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP) process cannot meet the flatness requirement, especially at wafer edge, which could cause up to 5% yield loss. This paper describes how an Applied Materials Mirra® CMP configured with a multi-zone polish head was introduced to develop a new thin film SOI polishing process. The resulting TTV improvements demonstrated by the CMP step generates a competitive and effective method for achieving the best possible profile control.
cAMP attenuates TGF-β’s profibrotic responses in osteoarthritic synoviocytes: involvement of hyaluronan and PRG4

Osteoarthritis (OA) is characterized by synovitis and synovial fibrosis. Synoviocytes are fibroblast-like resident cells of the synovium that are activated by transforming growth factor (TGF)-β to ...
One Way to Leave Your Lover: The Role of Treatment in Changing Addictive Behaviors

Whether the topic is addictive behavior, infections or fractures, the traditional view of treatment in a medical model is that it addresses the cause of the disorder and either returns the person to normal functioning or helps the individual achieve a reasonable accommodation to a disability. For treatment of withdrawal Symptoms, the medical model is defensible — the disorder has a known physiological basis, the treatment derives from that knowledge, and the treatment is reliably effective. For other aspects of addictive behavior, especially compulsive use, the model’s fit is very questionable. The basis for the behavior is neither understood nor necessarily physiological (although drug effects have a physiological basis, this does not mean that the ‘cause’ of their use is physiological).
A First Primer on Federal Practice

An overview of the primary differences in civil litigation between federal and state courts for general practitioners in Michigan. The essay was the lead article in a theme issue of the Michigan Bar Journal devoted to the topic of Federal Practice.