cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Teaching On-Line Retrieval Systems at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Abstract All library school students should be provided with an opportunity to obtain hands-on experience in using such bibliographic retrieval systems as ORBIT, DIALOG, OCLC, etc. Yet, such training is both costly and time consumming. Two key issues that must be resolved in order to make the training more efficient and more effective are: (1) the integration of training in the curriculum as a module in cataloging and reference courses or as a separate course; and (2) the method of training which may include the use of videotapes, demonstrations, training manuals, etc. The teaching program at UCLA provides for discussion and demonstration of on-line retrieval techniques in the basic courses and advanced search training in a separate course using a specially prepared training manual.
Counterion and coion distribution functions in the counterion condensation theory of polyelectrolytes

We develop formulas for the counterion−polyion and coion−polyion potentials of mean force in the context of counterion condensation theory. For separation distances on the scale of a Debye screening length, both potentials conform to Debye−Huckel screening behavior. Close to the polyion, in the region defining the layer of condensed counterions, the counterion potential is attractive and unscreened. A coion in this region acts like a charged group on the polyion; its potential is repulsive, and it augments the ability of the polymer to condense counterions. There is an interfacial region between condensed layer and diffuse cloud from which counterions are expelled back into the cloud but which accumulates coions. The associated radial distribution functions exhibit two peaks for the counterion and a single peak for the coion.
RF power harvesting for underground sensors

RF power harvesting for sensors buried inside soil is studied here. Our analytical formulations relay on the plane wave propagation models, and focus on calculating the transmission loss and propagation loss of RF waves penetrating soil at various incident angles. Specifically, analysis leads to the identification of an optimum frequency range within 10–100 MHz that is validated through antenna coupling full-wave EM simulations. Also, optimized rectenna is designed in order to harvest the ambient RF signals and charge the underground sensors.
Culture is a good thing: A welfare-economic judgment

Cul ture comprises some of the best, most valuable things life has to offer. People involved in a cultural activity or interested in its products instinctively feel it to be so; but instinctive beliefs are not always easy to substantiate by logical reasoning. In the ease of cultural activities, however, a very simple argument establishes them as superior sources of satisfaction, from the individual's as well as from society's point of view.
Envelope proteins of the BALB/c myeloma mink cell focus-inducing (MCF) viruses.

Abstract A recent report from this laboratory demonstrated that the BALB/c myeloma retroviruses, MO-21 and FL-1, have a polytropic host range and exhibit “mink cell focus-inducing” (MCF) activity. Because previous MCF isolates have been shown to possess a recombinant envelope (env) gene, we undertook neutralization and peptide mapping studies to analyze the envelope proteins of MO-21 and FL-1 viruses and compare them to various prototype murine retroviruses. Like other MCF viruses, the infectivity of the myeloma viruses was inhibited by normal mouse serum. Two-dimensional peptide mapping data show that the viral envelope protein (gp70) of MO-21 and FL-1 has several distinct peptides which distinguish them from the gp70 of any of the prototype viruses we analyzed. Unlike other MCF viruses, the gp70s of MO-21 and FL-1 are indistinguishable from one another. These results suggest that these MCF retroviruses may not be (env) gene recombinants. MO-21 FL-1 viruses also contain another viral-coded envelope protein which has an apparent higher molecular weight than the gp70. The possible significance of this gp70-like protein is discussed.
Religion and the Wyatt Rebellion of 1554

In his book Two Tudor Conspiracies, D. M. Loades challenged the traditional view among historians that the Wyatt rebellion was influenced by Protestant concerns over the Catholic policies of Mary Tudor. In Loades' account of the event, religion played no prominent part; the conspirators were secular and anti-clerical, but otherwise their religious convictions remain “shadowy.” Loades contends that apart from William Thomas, the well-known Protestant enthusiast, “all had conformed without protest under Edward, and those still alive were to do so again under Elizabeth, but throughout the period of the rebellion and trials which followed it, all protested their loyalty to the Catholic Church.” The real reasons for the revolt, he asserts, were secular and political—namely, fear of foreign domination through the Queen's intended marriage to Philip of Spain.
Determination of the HIV integrase inhibitor, MK-0518 (raltegravir), in human plasma using 96-well liquid-liquid extraction and HPLC-MS/MS

Abstract An HPLC-MS/MS method was developed for the determination of MK-0518 (raltegravir), an HIV integrase inhibitor, in human plasma over the concentration range of 2–1000 ng/mL. Stable isotope labeled 13 C 6 -MK-0518 was used as an internal standard. The sample preparation procedure utilized liquid–liquid extraction with hexane:methylene chloride in the 96-well format with a 200 μL plasma sample size. The compounds were chromatographed on an Ace C 18 (50 × 3.0 mm, 3 μm, titanium frits) column with 42.5/57.5 (v/v %) 0.1 mM EDTA in 0.1% formic acid/methanol mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min. Multiple reaction monitoring of the precursor-to-product ion pairs for MK-0518 ( m / z 445 → 109) and 13 C 6 -MK-0518 ( m / z 451 → 367) on an Applied Biosystem API 4000 HPLC-MS/MS was used for quantitation. Intraday precision of standard curve concentrations in five different lots of control plasma was within 3.2%, while accuracy ranged from 94.8 to 106.8%. The mean extraction recovery of spiked plasma samples was 87%. Quality control (QC) samples were stored at −20 °C. Initial within day analysis showed QC accuracy within 7.5% of nominal with precision of 3.1% or less. The plasma QC samples were demonstrated to be stable for up to 23 months at −20 °C. The method described has been used to support over 18 clinical studies during Phase I through III of clinical development.
Doppler estimation for OFDM based Aeronautical Data communication

The frequency spectrum is deemed to be a valuable estate. Mobile users specifically the high-speed platforms are dependent on connectivity from satellite systems. Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) in combination with dense encoding, offers a robust communication and spectrum compression. OFDM is sensitive to frequency shift. This results in intercarrier interference (ICI) and degrades bandwidth efficiency. High mobility platform, such as train and aircraft offer a challenging environment for increasing the spectral efficiency of the physical layer. This paper discusses the potential development of an Aeronautical Data Network (ADN) and its channel issues in particularly the high mobility and its effects of using an OFDM communication structure. OFDM ICI and frequency shift caused by the high mobility of the platform is investigated and potential methods are proposed.
Shrines, cultivators, and muslim 'conversion' in Punjab and Bengal, 1300-1700

This article discusses the growth of predominantly Muslim populations in two regions of South Asia—western Punjab and eastern Bengal. No evidence supports conventional understandings that Islamisat...
Monte Carlo liquid water simulation with four-body interactions included.

Abstract A four-body interaction potential for water molecules is derived. The new terms are combined with previously developed two- and three-body potential terms and applied in a Metropolis—Monte Carlo simulation at 298 K for an (N, V, T) ensemble with 512 water molecules. Improvements, relative to the results using only two-body, or two- and three-body interactions, are reported for the correlation function g(OO), for the X-ray and neutron-beam scattering intensities, and for the enthalpy.
Increasing agent physicality to raise social presence and elicit realistic behavior

The concepts of immersion and presence focus on the environment in a virtual environment. We instead focus on embodied conversational agents (ECAs). ECAs occupy the virtual environment as interactive partners. We propose that the ECA analogues of immersion and presence are physicality and social presence. We performed a study to determine the effect of an ECA's physicality on social presence and eliciting realistic behavior from the user. The results showed that increasing physicality can elicit realistic behavior and increase social presence but there was also an interaction effect with plausibility.
Paleontologic and Sedimentologic Character of Corell's Point Faunal Assemblage (Upper Devonian: Famennian), Southwestern New York State: ABSTRACT

The Corell's Point faunal assemblage of the lower Gowanda Shale Member, Canadaway Formation, represents a series of burrowed zones yielding biocoenoses of benthos, taphocoenoses of nektos, and wood fragments. Marine-transported animals and plants are generally pyritized, but many endemic organisms are not. The faunal assemblage occurs at various levels in the Gowanda Shale, and may recur in adjacent stratigraphic units. The Corell's Point faunal assemblage and associated pyrite nodules apparently formed in a "starved" shelf setting, influenced by sporadic influxes of sediment, possibly by distal turbidites. Cephalopods were added to the Corell's Point assemblage by postmortem pelagic drift; their attendant epizoans probably detached and gave rise to small, locally abundant auloporid mounds. Some organisms may have been rafted in attached to algal mats; these mats possibly carried ammonoids, nautiloids, wood fragments, pelmatozoans, bivalves, gastropods, and fishes, producing infrequent dense associations of these organisms. Mild bioturbation of surface muds was effected by Zoophycos and infaunal mollusks. Winnowing of fine muds by organisms may account for the consistent silty texture of sediment associated with the Corell's Point faunal assemblages; underlying and overlying strata are generally fine-grained with discrete siltstone beds. Zoophycos and other lebensspuren, plants, and some cephalopods are encountered in sections of the Gowanda Shale lacking the Corell's Point faunal assemblage. These shales and siltstones exhibit relatively little evidence of fauna-induced sediment mixing. End_of_Article - Last_Page 1164------------
Transport of nonmethane hydrocarbons to Jupiter's troposphere by descent of smog particles

Abstract Ethane and other C2 and C3 nonmethane hydrocarbons were observed by the Galileo Probe Mass Spectrometer to have a deep minimum in mixing ratio near and below the tropopause, rising to much larger values at and below the 15 bar level. This minimum requires that these hydrocarbons condense on smog particles at low temperatures. The large amounts at deeper levels were produced in the pumping system of the instrument and any contribution from the ambient atmosphere cannot be resolved, although evaporation from the smog particles is proposed and incorporated in a model. In the stratosphere some of the ethane is released by photon-stimulated desorption. The other light nonmethane hydrocarbons are not modeled, but can be expected to show the same behavior as ethane.
Liebermann-Burchard Reaction with Carotene:

ConclusionsCarotene can readily be detected in as low a quantity as 0.01 mg. dissolved in chloroform by means of acetic anhydride and concentrated sulphuric acid. The reaction is similar in method of performance and in final color production to the one employed in the Liebermann-Burchard test for cholesterol. The difference in the duration of the green color developed may serve, however, to differentiate one compound from the other. The green color obtained with carotene develops its maximum intensity at once and fades within 2 minutes, leaving a dirty yellow brown color. The green color obtained with cholesterol develops its maximum intensity at the end of 15 minutes.Carotene does not interfere with the quantitative estimation of cholesterol in the blood. The extraction with chloroform of a mixture of blood and plaster of Paris removes the cholesterol, but does not release the carotene present.We have postulated some common chemical configuration, actually present or easily produced as a result of chemic...
The oxidation state of cerium in Ce2MoO6

Abstract Synchrotron radiation was used to determine the oxidation state of cerium in Ce 2 MoO 6 through Ce L-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS). The results from this direct spectroscopic investigation reveal that, to the level of sensitivity of the technique, cerium is trivalent in Ce 2 MoO 6 . Magnetic susceptibility data over the temperature range 10–300 K do not follow the Curie Law and, therefore, cannot be used to support any assignment of valence. The possible origins of the unique structure and colour of the RE=Ce analogue of the RE 2 MoO 6 series are discussed.
Adaptation to Optically-Increased Interocular Separation under Naturalistic Viewing Conditions

Mirror spectacles which enhance binocular disparity by optically doubling the normal separation between the eyes were used to create conditions of combined perceptual and oculomotor conflict. Apparent depth and distance, as well as tonic accommodation, tonic vergence, and accommodative-vergence gain (response AC/A ratio), were assessed immediately before and after a 30 min exposure period of naturalistic viewing with the spectacles. Wearing the spectacles produced an increase in tonic vergence, and perceptual aftereffects consisting of increased apparent distance and depth. The results indicate that oculomotor conflict associated with enhanced interocular separation may be resolved through adaptation of tonic vergence, rather than through alteration of accommodative-vergence gain. The results also demonstrate that perceptual conflict between disparity and multiple veridical depth cues does not necessarily produce adaptive modification of the relationship between binocular disparity and apparent depth.
Experimental study of ventilation effectiveness and air velocity distribution in an aircraft cabin mockup

Ventilation effectiveness in aircraft cabins is a critical factor for minimizing the cross-contamination of airborne pathogens exhaled by the passengers. In this study, a full-scale section of a Boeing 767 aircraft cabin containing thirty five mannequins was used for evaluating the ventilation effectiveness and characterizing the air distribution. Each mannequin was attached with a body heater and an outlet of carbon dioxide to simulate breathing. A set of experiment trials was conducted to measure the local mean age of air and the ventilation effectiveness factor (VEF) at the breathing level of the passengers. Carbon dioxide was used as the trace gas to determine the local mean age of air and the VEF. The air velocity profiles measured using a volumetric particle tracking velocimetry (VPTV) system was used to generate the airflow patterns and investigate the underlying mechanism affecting the local mean age of air and the VEF. In addition, measurements were conducted at different air supply rates to examine its effect on the ventilation performance.
Estimating the urban bias of surface shelter temperatures using upper-air and satellite data. Part 1: Development of models predicting surface shelter temperatures

Multiple regression techniques were used to predict surface shelter temperatures based on the time period 1986-89 using upper-air data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) to represent the background climate and site-specific data to represent the local landscape. Global monthly mean temperature models were developed using data from over 5000 stations available in the Global Historical Climate Network (GHCN). Monthly maximum, mean, and minimum temperature models for the United States were also developed using data from over 1000 stations available in the U.S. Cooperative (COOP) Network and comparative monthly mean temperature models were developed using over 1150 U.S. stations in the GHCN. Three-, six-, and full-variable models were developed for comparative purposes. Inferences about the variables selected for the various models were easier for the GHCN models, which displayed month-to-month consistency in which variables were selected, than for the COOP models, which were assigned a different list of variables for nearly every month. These and other results suggest that global calibration is preferred because data from the global spectrum of physical processes that control surface temperatures are incorporated in a global model. All of the models that were developed in this study validated relatively well, especially the global models. Recalibration of the models with validation data resulted in only slightly poorer regression statistics, indicating that the calibration list of variables was valid. Predictions using data from the validation dataset in the calibrated equation were better for the GHCN models, and the globally calibrated GHCN models generally provided better U.S. predictions than the U.S.-calibrated COOP models. Overall, the GHCN and COOP models explained approximately 64%-95% of the total variance of surface shelter temperatures, depending on the month and the number of model variables. In addition, root-mean-square errors (rmse's) were over 3 C for GHCN models and over 2 C for COOP models for winter months, and near 2 C for GHCN models and near 1.5 C for COOP models for summer months.
International Trade and Shift-Share Analysis: A Specification Note

As part of the focus on estimating the links between regional economies and the global economy through international trade, the authors have examined some of the recent strategies. These approaches and extensions of a prior model are of great value, and in this vein, we support these approaches. As a complement to the Noponen, Markusen, and Driessen (1997) Economic Development Quarterly article, we have suggested some essential but minor modifications.
Synthesis of PP graft copolymers via anionic living graft-from reactions of polypropylene containing reactive p-methylstyrene units

In this article, we discuss a new chemical route for preparing polypropylene (PP) graft copolymers containing a PP backbone and several (polar and nonpolar) polymer side chains, including polybutadiene, polystyrene, poly(p-methylstyrene), poly(methyl methacrylate), and polyacrylonitrile. The new PP graft copolymers had a controlled molecular structure and a known PP molecular weight, graft density, graft length, and narrow molecular weight distribution of the side chains. The chemistry involves an intermediate poly(propylene-co-p-methylstyrene) copolymer containing few p-methylstyrene (p-MS) units. The methyl group in a p-MS unit could be lithiated selectively by alkylithium to form a stable benzylic anion. Because of the insolubility of the PP copolymer at room temperature, the excess alkylithium could be removed completely from the lithiated polymer. By the addition of the anionically polymerizable monomers, including polar and nonpolar monomers, the stable benzylic anions in PP initiated a living anionic graft-from polymerization at ambient temperature to produce PP graft copolymers without any significant side reactions. The side-chain length was basically proportional to the reaction time and monomer concentration. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 4176–4183, 1999
Variation of throughflow velocity in a 2-D rising bubble

Abstract A model has been developed to predict throughflow velocity in a single isolated bubble rising at a constant velocity in a two-dimensional fluidized bed. This two-dimensional model incorporates the voidage variation on the surface of a circular bubble, and also includes the dynamic and kinematic conditions on the free surface of the bed. Predicted values of throughflow velocities at the nose of the bubble were compared with the available experimental data and good agreement was obtained. It was observed that the throughflow velocity at the nose of the bubble increases initially, and when the bubble reaches a certain elevation it starts to decrease.
Neurogenesis and Helplessness Are Mediated by Controllability in Males But Not in Females

Background Numerous studies have implicated neurogenesis in the hippocampus in animal models of depression, especially those related to controllability and learned helplessness. Here, we tested the hypothesis that uncontrollable but not controllable stress would reduce cell proliferation in the hippocampus of male and female rats and would relate to the expression of helplessness behavior. Methods To manipulate controllability, groups of male and female rats were trained in one session (acute stress) or over seven sessions (repeated stress) to escape a footshock, whereas yoked control subjects could not escape but were exposed to the same amount of stress. Cell proliferation was assessed with immunohistochemistry of bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) and immunofluorescence of BrdU and neuronal nuclei (NeuN). Separate groups were exposed to either controllable or uncontrollable stress, and their ability to learn to escape during training on a more difficult task was used as a behavioral measure of helplessness. Results Acute stress reduced cell proliferation in males but did not affect proliferation in the female hippocampus. When animals were given the opportunity to learn to control the stress over seven days, males produced more cells than the yoked males without control. Repeated training with controllable stress did not influence proliferation in females. Under all conditions, males were more likely than females to express helplessness behavior, even males that were not previously stressed. Conclusions The modulation of neurogenesis by controllability was evident in males but not in females, as was the expression of helplessness behavior, despite the fact that men are less likely than women to experience depression.
Investigating the effects of gender and age group based differences in identical twins

This work investigates feature-based techniques for component-face recognition on one of the most difficult tasks: recognition of identical twins. The challenge with solving face recognition for identical twins is to find a feature extraction and template formulation approach that sufficiently separates the identical twins in match space. This work extends this premise to investigate which components of the face (eye areas, nose, or mouth) are the most discriminative features. This work uses a patch-based feature extractor and compares it to two well-known texture techniques: LBP and HOG, for the full face and the component face. We show that a single face component, the eye area, nearly matches the performance of the full face and that a simple fusion of the components outperforms the full face face on the recognition task. Further we demonstrate that the proposed feature extractor does not exhibit gender biases as does some face recognition systems, i.e. it performs almost equally on males and females. And, finally we investigate the claims that face recognition becomes easier as the twins grow older. This work adds a final contribution by experimenting on the largest public identical twins corpora available to date: ND/WVU (2009, 2010, 2011) and the CASIA Twins Face Dataset.
Reed-Muller transform image coding

Abstract A new technique using the Reed-Muller transform has been applied for image data bandwidth compression. The basic concept wad derived from the Reed-Muller canonical expansion of boolean functiona. The transform over Galois field 2 was investigated in this work. A fast algorithms has been developed for the computation of the Reed-Muller transform. Simulation results indicate that the Reed-Muller transform provides good quality reconstructed images with approximately 2.5 bits per pixel for monochrome images. The computational efficiency and simple hardware realization of this transform might make it a viable candidate for certain real time image data compression applications.
Motion-based recognition a survey

Abstract Motion-based recognition deals with the recognition of an object or its motion based on motion in a sequence of images. In this approach, a sequence containing a large number of frames is used to extract motion information. The advantage is that a longer sequence leads to recognition of higher level motions, like walking or running, which consists of a complex and coordinated series of events that cannot be understood by looking at only a few frames. This paper provides a review of recent developments in the computer vision aspect of motionbased recognition. We will identify two main steps in motionbased recognition. The first step is the extraction of motion information and its organization into motion models. The second step consists of the matching of some unknown input with a constructed model. Several methods for the recognition of objects and motions will then be reported. They include methods such as cyclic motion detection and recognition, lipreading, hand gestures interpretation, motion verb recognition and temporal textures classification. Tracking and recognition of human motion, like walking, skipping and running will also be discussed. Finally, we will conclude the paper with some thoughts about future directions for motionbased recognition.
Ranking scholarly outlets for information technology

The purpose of this paper is to establish a ranking for scholarly outlets for those publishing in the field of information technology. Many well-established disciplines have a number of outlets for scholarly work, including archival journals, conference proceedings, and periodicals. These outlets are well-known within the discipline, and many have a recognized reputation and even ranking. Faculty seeking to publish in one of these disciplines, and seeking to advance in rank and tenure status, are well served by knowing the most common scholarly outlets and their rankings. In a previous study, a first effort was made toward establishing a ranking system of scholarly outlets in the relatively new discipline of Information Technology1. The conclusions of that study were based on a survey conducted among members of the IT community about their perceptions of the quality of various journals and conference proceedings. This paper presents the findings of a similar but more extensive survey including nearly 3 times as many journals and conferences. Furthermore, using resources on ISI Web of Science, citation counts have been made of the journals, providing an insight on how frequently these journals are used in the academic world. Scholars and professionals in IT will benefit greatly from this study, which is meant to provide a final, definitive ranking system of scholarly outlets.
Briusov and the Healing Art: Northern Nature in “Na granitakh”

ST he Northern myth," already freighted with significance in Russian culture, took on new meanings at the dawn of Russian modernism. Beginning with Vladimir Solov'ev's Saima poems, which invested the lovely Finnish lake with profound metaphysical meaning, modernist poets took further and in new directions themes that had figured in the literary tradition for over two centuries and that, in some instances, reached back to the beginnings of Russian history. Eighteenth-century poets like Lomonosov and Derzhavin employed Northern imagery to define the specificity of Russia.' In the early nineteenth century the northern landscape, severe and melancholy, became masterfully fixed in the Russian poetic imagination in the work of Evgeny Baratynsky, while Pushkin's Bronze Horseman rose on the "mossy, marshy banks" from which hitherto only the Finnish fisherman, "nature's sad stepson," had cast his nets. However, beginning in the 1890s new vistas opened, as that setting became the place for explorations of heroic myth, history, and personal visions by Symbolists, Acmeists, and others drawn by a sense of "the 'otherness' and mystery of the North." A notable echo of Solov'ev's Northern poems, though in another key, occurs in Valery Briusov's poetic cycle "Na Saime (On Saima)" (Stephanos, 1906), which celebrated his sojourn in Finland with his mistress Nina Petrovskaia in the summer of 1905.2 This interlude produced a memorable cycle of love poems against the background of Lake Saima.3 Less noticed, but also a significant marker in Briusov's life and career, is another northern cycle, "Na granitakh" ("On the Granite Shores"). These poems date from a stay in Sweden
Resonance Raman and electronic absorption spectral studies of some beta-(2-furyl)acryloylglyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenases.

Electronic absorption and resonance Raman spectra, together with rates of arsenolysis, are used to show that the acylated subunits of the rabbit furylacryloylglyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (FA-rabbit enzyme), but not the FA-sturgeon enzyme, exist as a mixed population of at least two forms. One form of the FA-rabbit enzyme has a high rate of arsenolysis, and its near-UV absorption maximum (lambda max) is red shifted on binding NAD+, while the other has a lower rate of arsenolysis, and its absorption spectrum appears to be unaffected by excess NAD+. The FA-sturgeon enzyme exists as a single population that has a high rate of arsenolysis, and its lambda max is red shifted on binding NAD+. This red shift and the concomitant position of v C==C, the band due to the ethylenic double bond stretching vibration in the resonance Raman spectrum, indicate that in the presence of NAD+ the pi electrons of the FA chromophore are polarized, i.e., a permanent dipole has been set up along the long axis of the FA group. It is argued that this does not result in activation of the carbonyl group by setting up polarization (i.e., delta + C--O delta -) within that group alone. A comparison of the vC==C's and lambda max's for a series of FA derivatives of the type (formula, see text) where X = H, N, or O, shows a clear correlation. However, when X = S as, e.g., in thiol esters, this correlation breaks down. This is explained in terms of a possible through-space d pi-p pi overlap between the ethylenic bond pi orbitals and the empty sulfur 3d orbitals.
An apparatus for the study of wear under dynamic loading conditions

Abstract A multipurpose wear testing apparatus has been designed, constructed and calibrated. The apparatus is primarily an impact wear testing device, but it may also be used for vibratory and oscillatory wear experimentation. The system utilizes a versatile displacement- and force-controlled device, which allows accurate control and measurement of the load cycles and their frequencies and the relative normal and transverse velocities between the wear surfaces as well as their time of contact. Features of this design permit testing at elevated frequencies and investigation of the effect of individual parameters on the wear process. These features include a facility to manipulate the system stiffness, the ability to control the impact and rotational velocities independently, feedback to maintain a constant nominal stress parameter, the ability to use spherical or cylindrical wear specimens and a method of applying the load and relative transverse motion in a constant, random or prescribed manner. The design facilitates modifications to include lubrication and environmental control, measurement of friction forces and fretting wear capabilities. Some initial results are included.
Discriminative stimulus properties of 1.25 and 5.0 mg/kg doses of clozapine in rats: examination of the role of dopamine, serotonin, and muscarinic receptor mechanisms.

Abstract Clozapine (CLZ), an atypical antipsychotic drug (APD), produces minimal extrapyramidal side effects (EPS) and has significant advantages for treating both positive and negative symptoms in schizophrenic patients. CLZ has been established as a discriminative cue in the drug discrimination paradigm and in generalization tests the CLZ cue is more selective for atypical, rather than typical, APDs. However, greater selectivity for atypical antipsychotics has been demonstrated with a lower (1.25 mg/kg) CLZ training dose in rats [Psychopharmacology, 149 (2000) 189], rather than the traditional, higher training dose (5.0 mg/kg). It is therefore of interest to evaluate the properties mediating the 1.25 mg/kg CLZ discriminative cue. In the present study, rats were trained to discriminate either 1.25 mg/kg ( N =7) or 5.0 mg/kg ( N =7) CLZ from vehicle in a two-lever drug discrimination task. The typical antipsychotic haloperidol (0.1–0.4 mg/kg) did not substitute for either CLZ cue, whereas the atypical antipsychotic melperone (0.37–3.0 mg/kg) provided full substitution in both groups (>80% CLZ-appropriate responding). The 5-HT 1A receptor agonist (+)-8-OH-DPAT (0.04–0.16 mg/kg), and the selective 5-HT 2A receptor antagonist M100907 (0.03–1.0 mg/kg) did not produce substitution in either group. (+)-8-OH-DPAT combined with haloperidol (0.05 mg/kg) engendered only partial substitution (>60% CLZ-appropriate responding) for both CLZ cues, and M100907 combined with haloperidol (0.05 and 0.1 mg/kg doses) failed to provide substitution in either group. Trihexyphenidyl (0.18–6.0 mg/kg), a muscarinic M 1 -preferring receptor antagonist, engendered full substitution for the 1.25 mg/kg CLZ cue, but only partial substitution for the 5.0 mg/kg CLZ cue. These results provide evidence that antagonism at the muscarinic M 1 receptor is sufficient to provide 1.25 mg/kg CLZ-like discriminative stimulus effects.
Rapid Soils Analysis Kit for Low-Volume Roads and Contingency Airfields

The ability to determine the construction requirements for soil without the need to conduct laboratory testing is essential in performing an expedient airfield or highway design. Until now, only subjective field analysis techniques satisfied this requirement, but their results failed to provide tangible numeric data that could be used to determine moisture–density and California bearing ratio (CBR) design criteria. This paper introduces a rapid soils classification kit with instruments that are compact and easily transported to provide an immediate measure of soil moisture, grain-size distribution, and plastic limit. An accompanying software program incorporates the numeric data generated from the soils kit, classifies the soil, and performs multiple regression routines based on a statistical analysis of a large database of soil properties to predict optimum water content and maximum dry density for the soil of interest. Built-in, higher-order regression equations allow the user to visualize complete moisture–density curves for varying compaction energies as well as soaked and unsoaked CBR as functions of water content for the constructed condition of the soil. The moisture–density curve and CBR strength represent the critical data necessary to enable contingency design and construction of highways and airfields.
Basic Components of XML

Extensible Markup Language (XML) provides a method for marking the significance of information, leading to the ability to combine information from disparate resources by automated means. At the same time, by denoting the significance of information, XML represents a return to indexing information. Due to its flexibility, it has gained prominence in a wide range of seemingly unrelated technologies. Combining XML with style sheets such as CSS and XSL allows control of the visual appearance of XML data. Document Type Definitions (DTD) provide a method for defining the structure of XML data. This paper presents a simple example of XML and the use of style sheets and DTDs which may serve as a step toward learning XML.
Prediction of the optimum pH for ammonia-n oxidation by nitrosomonas Europaea in well-aerated natural and domestic-waste waters

Abstract Three assumptions were needed to model whole-cell and cell-extract data showing how pH affects the rate and optimum pH of the first step of nitrification: (1) un-ionized ammonia-N is the substrate; (2) substrate ionization occurs; and (3) ampholytic ionization of only the rate-limiting enzyme-substrate complex, and not the free enzyme, controls the rate of ammonia-N oxidation. The rate was shown to obey a Michaelis-Menten rate law where the apparent maximum-velocity coefficient V = V m /[1 + ( H K 1 ) + ( K 2 H )] and the apparent half-saturation coefficient K = K m /[1 + ( H K 3 )]/[1 + ( H K 1 ) + ( K 2 H with Vm and Km being the Michaelis-Menten maximum-velocity and half-saturation coefficients, respectively; K1 and K2, the acid dissociation coefficients for the enzyme; K3, the acid dissociation coefficient for aqueous ammonium. The optimum pH (pH0) was shown to decrease almost linearly with the logarithm of total ammonia-N concentration over the concentration range found in natural and domestic-waste waters: pH 0 ≈ 1 2 ( p K 2 + p K 3 ) − 1 2 log 10 ( N K M for N
Comparison of an Incremental Versus Single-Step Retraction Model for Intraoperative Compensation

Distortion between the operating field and preoperative images increases as image-guided surgery progresses. Retraction is a typical early-stage event that causes significant tissue deformation, which can be modeled as an intraoperative compensation strategy. This study compares the predictive power of incremental versus single-step retraction models in the porcine brain. In vivo porcine experiments were conducted that involved implanting markers in the brain whose trajectories were tracked in CT scans following known incremental deformations induced by a retractor blade placed interhemispherically. Studies were performed using a 3-D consolidation model of brain deformation to investigate the relative predictive benefits of incremental versus single-step retraction simulations. The results show that both models capture greater than 75% of tissue loading due to retraction. We have found that the incremental approach outperforms the single-step method with an average improvement of 1.5% - 3%. More importantly it also preferentially recovers the directionality of movement, providing better correspondence to intraoperative surgical events. A new incremental approach to tissue retraction has been developed and shown to improve data-model match in retraction experiments in the porcine brain. Incremental retraction modeling is an improvement over previous single-step models, which does not incur additional computational overhead. Results in the porcine brain show that even when the overall displacement magnitudes between the two models are similar, directional trends of the displacement field are often significantly improved with the incremental method.
Managed Care and Dental Education and Research: Should Academicians Be Concerned?:

This paper examines the restructuring of the delivery system resulting from managed care. As HMOs consolidate to a few large companies in urban areas, they put great pressure on medical providers to reduce their costs and excess delivery capacity. In this environment, academic health centers face serious problems, because HMOs are reluctant to pay their higher charges, and public educational subsidies are declining. Managed care is unlikely to have the same impact on dentistry. Although managed dental care is growing, most Americans will not be enrolled, since they do not have dental insurance. Also, the supply of dentists is starting to decline, increasing the relative demand for dental services. Managed care will have only a limited direct impact on most dental schools, but a significant indirect effect. As academic health center budgets are reduced, all health professional schools can expect to contribute to solving the financial problems of University hospitals and medical schools. The response of dental academicians to these challenges will determine the future of dental education and research for the next decade. Bold new initiatives are needed to find new sources of revenue to support educational and research programs.
Recast Density and Acquisition of Novel Irregular Past Tense Verbs

Purpose Children with specific language impairment (SLI) lag behind children with typical language (TL) in their grammatical development, despite equivalent early exposure to recasts in conversation (M. E. Fey, T. E. Krulik, D. F. Loeb, & K. Proctor-Williams, 1999) and the ability to learn from recasts in intervention as quickly as do children with TL (K. E. Nelson, S. Camarata, J. Welsh, L. Butovsky, & M. Camarata, 1996). This experiment tested whether this apparent paradox could be attributed to variations in the density of recasts in conversation versus intervention. Method Thirteen children (7–8 years of age) with SLI and 13 language-similar children (5–6 years of age) with TL were exposed to 3 recast densities of novel irregular past tense verbs (none, conversation-like, intervention-like) over 5 sessions. Outcomes were based on spontaneous conversational productions and a post-test probe. Results As predicted, at conversation-like densities, children with TL more accurately produced the target verbs...
Dialysis for Undocumented Immigrants in the United States

The United States offers near-universal coverage for treatment of ESRD. Undocumented immigrants with ESRD are the only subset of patients not covered under a national strategy. There are 2 divergent dialysis treatment strategies offered to undocumented immigrants in the United States, emergent dialysis and chronic outpatient dialysis. Emergent dialysis, offering dialysis only when urgent indications exist, is the treatment strategy in certain states. Differing interpretations of Emergency Medicaid statute by the courts and state and federal government have resulted in the geographic disparity in treatment strategies for undocumented immigrants with ESRD. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 ignored the health care of undocumented immigrants and will not provide relief to undocumented patients with catastrophic illness like ESRD, cancer, or traumatic brain injuries. The difficult patient and provider decisions are explored in this review. The Renal Physicians Association Position Statement on uncompensated renal-related care for noncitizens is an excellent starting point for a framework to address this ethical dilemma. The practice of "emergent dialysis" will hopefully be found unacceptable in the future because of the fact that it is not cost effective, ethical, or humane.
Visual perception: Monkeys see things our way

Neural mechanisms of visual perception can be studied in detail only in non-human animals. But recent work in humans has revealed a striking functional homology between the human and monkey visual systems, confirming the relevance of animal data and establishing a paradigm for cross-species studies of brain function.
A figure of merit for vocal attack time measurement.

Summary Objectives To develop and evaluate a figure of merit (FOM) for the measurement of vocal attack time (VAT) for sustained / a /. The FOM assesses a critical assumption of vocal startup on which the VAT measure is based and therefore represents integrity of the derived measure. Methods Pearson's correlation coefficient (0≤| r |≤1) was determined from amplitude features of sound pressure (SP) and electroglottographic (EGG) signals (n=1,033 tokens) to serve as a candidate FOM for the study. SP and EGG signals from 102 tokens were visually inspected to empirically derive a criterion level of FOM less than 0.75 to indicate when an assumption underlying a measurement had failed and the VAT measure should be disregarded. Results The median FOM value for all 1,033 tokens was 0.975. Thirty-two tokens (2.8%) were rejected on the basis of the FOM criterion. There was no correlation between VAT and FOM. Conclusions A companion metric, Pearson's r , can be readily obtained to assess the quality of VAT measurement. Decisions to retain or disregard VAT measures may therefore be made on the basis of measurement quality rather than on the basis of group statistics.
Urban landscape conservation and the role of ecological greenways at local and metropolitan scales

Greenways are promoted for land conservation in both rural and urban areas, but less attention has been paid to the potential of greenways to serve urban biodiversity conservation goals. This paper presents results of a biodiversity planning study of a highly urbanized environment in Washington, DC (USA) that demonstrate the critical role of ecological greenways and parks in urban species conservation. The Cameron Run study raises fundamental questions about the way biodiversity is defined in urban areas, the scale of analysis required in heterogeneous urban environments, the role of sociocultural factors in urban biodiversity conservation, and the importance of regional greenway connections across the urban gradient. The Cameron Run study is a pilot project for an urban biodiversity information node (UrBIN) in the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) program of the US Geological Survey (USGS). This paper draws connections between the rapidly expanding literature on biodiversity conservation and the smaller, but growing, body of research concerning the ecology of greenways and urban areas, and it does so through the lens of landscape planning. Findings on the Cameron Run watershed are reported, and biodiversity conservation in the watershed is discussed in the context of greenway efforts at local and metropolitan scales.
Executive functions in school‐aged children: Potential efficacy of tasks in discriminating clinical groups

The performance of three groups of children on a battery of executive function tasks was investigated. A double dissociation paradigm was used, including six executive function tasks (Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, Matching Familiar Figures Test, visual search, verbal fluency, Tower of Hanoi, and mazes) and two vocabulary tasks (Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test‐Revised and the Boston Naming Test). Executive function was defined as goal‐directed behavior including strategic planning, impulse control, organized search, and flexibility of thought and action. One hundred and fifteen children, aged 6.0 to 12.11 years, participated in the study (36 children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, 34 children with developmental language disorder, and 45 nondisabled children). Four main results were found: (a) groups differed on three of the executive function tasks, (b) groups differed on both of the nonexecutive function tasks, (c) the relationship between age and performance was linear, and (d) discriminan...