cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Give me that online-time religion: The role of the internet in spiritual life

Online religious forums allow individuals to meet and interact with others who share their faith, beliefs, and values from the privacy of their homes. Active membership in traditional religious organizations has been shown to fulfill important social needs and to be associated with a number of benefits for the individuals involved. The survey study we report here found that many of the self and social benefits derived from participation in local religious institutions also accrue for those who take part in virtual religious forums. These interactive online forums were found to attract both those who are actively engaged in their local religious organizations and those who are unaffiliated.
The Relationship between the K-ABC and the Stanford Achievement Test with Reading Disabled Children

This study examined the relationship between the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) and the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT) in a sample of reading disabled children. The sample included 87 reading disabled children (48 males and 39 females), who ranged in age from approximately 8 through 12 and were enrolled in grades 2 through 6. All children were in the Average range of intellectual functioning and were at least two grade levels below their current grade placement on a word recognition screening test. The SAT was administered to all children as part of a routine group achievement testing procedure in the school district. All K-ABC testing occurred within a 2-month period after administration of the SAT. Results indicated that the K-ABC Achievement Factor significantly correlated with SAT Reading, Math, and Vocabulary, and the specific K-ABC reading and arithmetic subtests were related significantly to their respective SAT subtests. The K-ABC Cognitive Factors and their respective subtests d...
Pressure profiles in a thermonuclear plasma sheath containing energetic α-particles

The pressure balance equation for a plasma sheath made up of fictitious fuel ions, electrons and α-particles is solved. The ions are assumed to be electrostatically confined which turns out to imply quasi-neutrality for sufficiently diffuse boundaries. The α-particles are assumed to satisfy the Vlasov equation and to be produced mono-energetically with a spatial source distribution proportional to the square of the fuel ion density. The final steps of the calculation are performed numerically and results for a few sets of parameters are shown. The α-particle pressure is dominant in all regions of space for cases of practical interest.
Convective Heat Transfer Enhancement Due to Intermittency in an Impinging Jet

An experimental investigation has been performed to study the effect of flow intermittency on convective heat transfer to a planar water jet impinging on a constant heat flux surface. Enhanced heat transfer was achieved by periodically restarting an impinging flow and thereby forcing renewal of the hydrodynamic and thermal boundary layers. Although convective heat transfer was less effective during a short period when flow was interrupted, high heat transfer rates, which immediately follow initial wetting, prevailed above a threshold frequency, and a net enhancement occurred. Experiments with intermittent flows yielded enhancements in convective heat transfer coefficients of nearly a factor of two, and theoretical considerations suggest that higher enhancements can be achieved by increasing the frequency of the intermittency. Enhancements need not result in an increased pressure drop within a flow system, since flow interruptions can be induced beyond a nozzle exit. Experimental results are presented for both the steady and intermittent impinging jets at distances up to seven jet widths from the stagnation line. A theoretical model of the transient boundary layer response is used to reveal parameters that govern the measured enhancements. A useful correlation is also provided of local heat transfer results for steadily impinging jets.
The effect of major depression on functional status in patients with coronary artery disease

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effect of major depression on reported functional status in a group of patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). SETTING: An inpatient cardiology service. PARTICIPANTS: Three hundred thirty-five inpatients with coronary artery disease who were free of dementia, Parkinson's disease, and other primary neurological illnesses. MEASUREMENTS: Duke Depression Evaluation Schedule, a structured psychiatric interview which included the Diagnostic Interview Schedule depression subscale, the Cumulative Illness Rating Scale, and two scales for measuring instrumental and self-maintenance activities of daily living. RESULTS: Twenty-seven subjects met DSM-IV criteria for major depression. Compared with subjects without major depression, depressed subjects were more than twice as likely to report a self-maintenance ADL deficit and were significantly more likely to report an IADL deficit than were non-depressed subjects (93 vs 71%). In regression models, female gender, older age, greater medical illness severity, and presence of major depression were significant predictors of self-maintenance ADL disability; and female gender, older age, greater medical severity, and presence of major depression significantly predicted greater IADL impairment. CONCLUSION: The presence of major depression was associated with functional disability in patients with CAD. Further research is needed to clarify whether antidepressant treatment significantly impacts both affective symptoms and functional status in patients with coronary heart disease.
Amorphous-silicon thin film transistor with two-step exposure process

The two-step-exposure (TSE) technology has been developed in application for combination the active layer with metal II layer. And this TSE technology has been applied in our Reduced-Mask process (five-mask) for cost reduction. The result shows that this amorphous-silicon thin-film transistor with four-photolithography process has great potential in mass production.
Interferometric tomography of fuel cells for monitoring membrane water content

We have developed a system that uses two 1D interferometric phase projections for reconstruction of 2D water content changes over time in situ in a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell system. By modifying the filtered backprojection tomographic algorithm, we are able to incorporate a priori information about the object distribution into a fast reconstruction algorithm which is suitable for real-time monitoring.
Anisotropic yield criterion for polycrystalline metals using texture and crystal symmetries

Abstract An anisotropic yield criterion for polycrystalline metals which uses texture data and takes advantage of crystal symmetries is presented. A linear transformation is developed to map an anisotropic yield surface for a polycrystal to an appropriate isotropic yield surface. The transformation developed reflects the symmetry of the material being modeled. First, the transformation is determined. Then, information regarding the orientation distribution (texture) of the crystals in a polycrystalline aggregate is used to determine, via averaging, the transformation for the polycrystal. The transformation, along with appropriate isotropic yield surface, provides a phenomenological approach to modeling yield, yet accounts for microstructural texture. The approach reduces to the Hill (1950) anisotropic plasticity theory under certain conditions. The yield surfaces and R-values for various face-centered-cubic ( fcc) polycrystalline textures are computed by this method. Results compare favorably with those given by other theories, and with experiment. The method proves to have the computational efficiency of phenomenological approaches to modeling yield, while effectively incorporating the physics of more complex crystallographic approaches.
The Sclerotinia sclerotiorum mating type locus (MAT) contains a 3.6-kb region that is inverted in every meiotic generation.

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum is a fungal plant pathogen and the causal agent of lettuce drop, an economically important disease of California lettuce. The structure of the S. sclerotiorum mating type locus MAT has previously been reported and consists of two idiomorphs that are fused end-to-end as in other homothallics. We investigated the diversity of S. sclerotiorum MAT using a total of 283 isolates from multiple hosts and locations, and identified a novel MAT allele that differed by a 3.6-kb inversion and was designated Inv+, as opposed to the previously known S. sclerotiorum MAT that lacked the inversion and was Inv-. The inversion affected three of the four MAT genes: MAT1-2-1 and MAT1-2-4 were inverted and MAT1-1-1 was truncated at the 3’-end. Expression of MAT genes differed between Inv+ and Inv- isolates. In Inv+ isolates, only one of the three MAT1-2-1 transcript variants of Inv- isolates was detected, and the alpha1 domain of Inv+ MAT1-1-1 transcripts was truncated. Both Inv- and Inv+ isolates were self-fertile, and the inversion segregated in a 1∶1 ratio regardless of whether the parent was Inv- or Inv+. This suggested the involvement of a highly regulated process in maintaining equal proportions of Inv- and Inv+, likely associated with the sexual state. The MAT inversion region, defined as the 3.6-kb MAT inversion in Inv+ isolates and the homologous region of Inv- isolates, was flanked by a 250-bp inverted repeat on either side. The 250-bp inverted repeat was a partial MAT1-1-1 that through mediation of loop formation and crossing over, may be involved in the inversion process. Inv+ isolates were widespread, and in California and Nebraska constituted half of the isolates examined. We speculate that a similar inversion region may be involved in mating type switching in the filamentous ascomycetes Chromocrea spinulosa, Sclerotinia trifoliorum and in certain Ceratocystis species.
Effects of chronic lithium and rubidium administration upon experimentally induced conflict behavior

Abstract 1. 1. Chronic treatment of rats with lithium chloride produced a significant reduction of shock induced suppression of feeding behavior (passive avoidance) in the rat. 2. 2. Rubidium chloride, on the other hand, caused additional suppression of feeding under the same conditions. 3. 3. These results suggest that two drugs may affect anxiety processes in opposite directions, and this may be of clinical significance.
Cubic-spline interpolation to estimate effects of inbreeding on milk yield in first lactation Holstein cows

Milk yield records (305d, 2X, actual milk yield) of 123,639 registered first lactation Holstein cows were used to compare linear regression (y = β(0) + β(1)X + e), quadratic regression, (y = β(0) + β(1)X + β(2)X(2) + e) cubic regression (y = β(0) + β(1)X + β(2)X(2) + β(3)X(3) +e) and fixed factor models, with cubic-spline interpolation models, for estimating the effects of inbreeding on milk yield. Ten animal models, all with herd-year-season of calving as fixed effect, were compared using the Akaike corrected-Information Criterion (AICc). The cubic-spline interpolation model with seven knots had the lowest AICc, whereas for all those labeled as "traditional", AICc was higher than the best model. Results from fitting inbreeding using a cubic-spline with seven knots were compared to results from fitting inbreeding as a linear covariate or as a fixed factor with seven levels. Estimates of inbreeding effects were not significantly different between the cubic-spline model and the fixed factor model, but were significantly different from the linear regression model. Milk yield decreased significantly at inbreeding levels greater than 9%. Variance component estimates were similar for the three models. Ranking of the top 100 sires with daughter records remained unaffected by the model used.
Relative phase and amplitude response to gravity waves of minor species in the thermosphere

Abstract The response of minor species to gravity waves in the thermosphere varies according to the mass of the species. The relative density perturbation of any minor constituent may be related to the relative density perturbation of the atmosphere due to the waves via a complex function of frequency and wavenumber that may be represented as an amplitude and phase response. Peaks and dips in response and large phase shifts are found that are associated with complex poles and zeroes of the response function. These poles and zeroes depend on background quantities, so that the nature of the response is model dependent; collisions are most important. The effects of background and collisions are examined using numerical computations. Relationships to some satellite observations are discussed.
Observations on the phagocytosis and elimination of carmine particles injected into the abdominal musculature of the white shrimp, Penaeus setiferus.

Abstract White shrimp, Penaeus setiferus, were injected in the abdominal musculature with 0.03 ml of a 1.4% carmine-saline solution and were kept at a temperature of 26°–28°C and a salinity of 23–26‰. Tissue samples were taken at hourly intervals of 1, 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, 42, and 72 hr and at 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, 19, and 33 days post-injection and were examined histologically to determine the sites of phagocytosis and elimination of foreign particulate matter. Within 1 hr post-injection, extracellular clumps of the carmine particles were formed in the hemolymph. These clumps had been invaded by hemocytes at 18 hr, but they persisted throughout the study. Phagocytosis of the particles was accomplished by hemocytes circulating in the hemolymph and by fixed phagocytes in the gill, heart, loose connective tissue, and blood sinusoids in the abdomen. The fate of some phagocytized carmine was climination by the migration of hemocytes through the epithelium of the gills, gut, hepatopancreas, and through the extremities of the pereiopods and the pleopods. Encapsulations or brown nodules were formed in the musculature of the pereiopods around necrotic hemocytes that had phagocytized carmine. A large blister or cyst filled with carmine was formed in the gill cover of one specimen. The obsevation of carmine particles at 33 days post-injection indicates a slow clearance rate of large amounts of abiotic particulate matter in penaeid shrimp.
Removal of Water from Aqueous Nitric Acid Using Bifunctional Perfluorinated Ionomer Membranes

A series of Nafion films with both carboxylic and sulfonic acid functional groups were prepared and tested for water/nitric acid permselectivity. Unlike the commercially available Nafion 90209 membrane, which is comprised of a sulfonate ionomer laminated to a carboxylate ionomer, the membranes in the present study contained carboxylate groups distributed among sulfonate groups, rendering them fundamentally different. The membranes were examined in both pervaporation and reverse osmosis modes of operation. Using pervaporation, the water/acid separation factor increased by 3 orders of magnitude, and the water permeability decreased by 3 orders of magnitude as carboxylate content increased from 0 to 30%. Both flux and selectivity increased with an increase in temperature and/or a decrease in feed concentration. In all instances, the separations achieved in pervaporation were less than those predicted for a flash separation. Using a liquid feed pressurized from atmospheric pressure to the point of mechanical ...
Predictive thread-to-core assignment on a heterogeneous multi-core processor

As multi-core processors are becoming common, vendors are starting to explore trade offs between the die size and the number of cores on a die, leading to heterogeneity among cores on a single chip. For efficient utilization of these processors, application threads must be assigned to cores such that the resource needs of a thread closely matches resource availability at the assigned core. Current methods of thread-to-core assignment often require an application's execution trace to determine its runtime properties. These traces are obtained by running the application on some representative input. A problem is that developing these representative input sets is time consuming, and requires expertise that the user of a general-purpose processor may not have. We propose an approach for automatic thread-to-core assignment for heterogeneous multicore processors to address this problem. The key insight behind our approach is simple - if two phases of a program are similar, then the data obtained by dynamic monitoring of one phase can be used to make scheduling decisions about other similar phases. The technical underpinnings of our approach include: a preliminary static analysis-based approach for determining similarity among program sections, and a thread-to-core assignment algorithm that utilizes the statically generated information as well as execution information obtained from monitoring a small fraction of the program to make scheduling decisions.
Production of a heat stable enterotoxin by Plesiomonas shigelloides

Abstract Eight strains of Plesiomonas shigelloides were assayed for enterotoxin production in the rabbit ileal loop assay. Seven strains required serial in vivo passage in the rabbit's intestine before enterotoxin activity was detected in the cells' filtrate. Enterotoxin production was readily lost with subculture of these toxinogenic cells. Heat treatment of the cells' filtrate from three strains that had never been passed in vivo led to detectable enterotoxin activity in three of six separate assays. Using LT, CT, STIa, STIb and STII as probes, no homology to the whole cell DNA of the eight strains was detected on Southern hybridization under low stringency conditions. The enterotoxin of P. shigelloides appears to be novel since production is induced by in vivo passage, activity is seen with heat treatment of cells' filtrate and there is no DNA homology to the cloned enterotoxin genes of Escherichia coli and Vibrio choleraea.
Systematic development of high bandwidth, low drive voltage organic electro-optic devices and their applications

Abstract Organic electro-optic (EO) materials have recently been prepared that exhibit EO coefficients in the range of 60–100 pm/V at the telecommunications wavelengths of 1.3 and 1.55 μm. The demonstration of devices with low drive voltage (0.8–2.0 V), together with high bandwidths (40–100 GHz) and low insertion loss (
Basal forebrain neurons in the dementia of Parkinson disease

Demented patients with Parkinson disease share certain neuropathological and neurochemical features with patients suffering from Alzheimer disease. Recently, loss of cholinergic neurons in the basal forebrain, particularly the nucleus basalis of Meynert, has been implicated in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer disease. The present investigations of 12 patients with Parkinson disease demonstrates that the demented patients with this disease also show a selective loss of cells in the nucleus basalis of Meynert, thus providing an important link between the dementias of Alzheimer disease and Parkinson disease.
Mycobacterium tuberculosis ManLAM inhibits T-cell-receptor signaling by interference with ZAP-70, Lck and LAT phosphorylation

Abstract Immune evasion is required for Mycobacterium tuberculosis to survive in the face of robust CD4+ T cell responses. We have shown previously that M. tuberculosis cell wall glycolipids, including mannose capped lipoarabinomannan (ManLAM), directly inhibit polyclonal murine CD4+ T cell activation by blocking ZAP-70 phosphorylation. We extended these studies to antigen-specific murine CD4+ T cells and primary human T cells and found that ManLAM inhibited them as well. Lck and LAT phosphorylation also were inhibited by ManLAM without affecting their localization to lipid rafts. Inhibition of proximal TCR signaling was temperature sensitive, suggesting that ManLAM insertion into T cell membranes was required. Thus, M. tuberculosis ManLAM inhibits antigen-specific CD4+ T cell activation by interfering with very early events in TCR signaling through ManLAM’s insertion in T cell membranes.
Poisson/gamma random field models for spatial statistics

SUMMARY Doubly stochastic Bayesian hierarchical models are introduced to account for uncertainty and spatial variation in the underlying intensity measure for point process models. Inhomogeneous gamma process random fields and, more generally, Markov random fields with infinitely divisible distributions are used to construct positively autocorrelated intensity measures for spatial Poisson point processes; these in turn are used to model the number and location of individual events. A data augmentation scheme and Markov chain Monte Carlo numerical methods are employed to generate samples from Bayesian posterior and predictive distributions. The methods are developed in both continuous and discrete settings, and are applied to a problem in forest ecology.
Temperature compensation of auxin dependent developmental patterning

The establishment of localized auxin gradients plays a central role in developmental patterning in plants. Auxin levels and responses have been shown to increase with temperature although developmental patterning is not affected. This suggests the existence of a homeostatic mechanism that ensures that patterning occurs normally over a range of temperatures. We recently described the cloning and characterization of BOBBER1 (BOB1), an Arabidopsis gene which encodes a small heat shock protein. BOB1 is required for the establishment of auxin gradients and for normal developmental patterning. BOB1 is also required for organismal thermotolerance and localizes to heat shock granules at elevated temperatures. Since BOB1 functions in both temperature responses and developmental patterning we propose that BOB1 may encode a component of a developmental temperature compensation mechanism.
Changes in citrus leaf flavonoid concentrations resulting from blight-induced zinc-deficiency

Increased flavonoid concentrations were found to correlate with the elevated levels of leaf phenolic compounds occurring in blight-induced zinc-deficient citrus. In orange (Citrus sinensis L.) leaves, the increases occurred primarily in hesperidin and diosmin, whereas in grapefruit (C. paradisi Macf.) the largest increases occurred in naringin and rhoifolin. Zinc-deficiency occurring in the blighted citrus leaves appeared to be the important contributing factor to the increased flavonoid content. Although the leaves from trees with blight were typically smaller than leaves from unaffected trees, the increased flavonoid content was not significantly due to a concentration effect. Large differences occurred in the percent increases in concentrations of certain citrus leaf flavonoids. While large increases occurred for a number of flavanone and flavone glycosides, much smaller percent increases occurred for other minor flavone glycosides, and the polymethoxyflavone aglycones. The parallel increases occurring in the concentrations of certain flavone glycosides and their flavanone analogs provide a further indication that flavanone glycosides are precursors in the biosynthesis of flavone glycosides in citrus.
Impact of a Community Pharmacist on Patient Knowledge of NPMs

Background:Nonprescription medications (NPMs) account for more than 100,000 products for approximately 450 ailments. It has been estimated that 59% of the American population self-medicates with NPMs. A recent survey found that patients are deficient in reading drug labels and identifying active ingredients and that they are exceeding the recommended daily dose of NPMs.Objective:To evaluate the impact of one-on-one pharmacist counseling sessions on patients' knowledge of NPMs, looking at specific patient populations.Methods:We conducted a randomized prospective intervention trial. Patients over the age of 18 years taking blood pressure and/or diabetes medications were randomized into control and intervention groups. All patients received baseline preintervention surveys. Patients in the intervention group completed a postintervention survey after a 20-minute NPM counseling session, while patients in the control group completed the postintervention survey without completing a counseling session. t-Test and...
Emergence of a seizure phenotype in aged apolipoprotein epsilon 4 targeted replacement mice

The apolipoprotein e4 allele is the strongest genetic risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD) and is associated with earlier age of onset. The incidence of spontaneous seizures has been reported to be increased in sporadic AD as well as in the early onset autosomal dominant forms of AD. We now report the emergence of a seizure phenotype in aged apolipoprotein E4 (apoE4) targeted replacement (TR) mice but not in age-matched apoE2 TR or apoE3 TR mice. Tonic-clonic seizures developed spontaneously after 5 months of age in apoE4 TR mice and are triggered by mild stress. Female mice had increased seizure penetrance compared to male mice, but had slightly reduced overall seizure severity. The majority of seizures were characterized by head and neck jerks, but 25% of aged apoE4 TR mice had more severe tonic-clonic seizures which occasionally progressed to tonic extension and death. Aged apoE4 TR mice progressed through pentylenetetrazol-induced seizure stages more rapidly than did apoE3 TR and apoE2 TR mice. Electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings revealed more frequent bursts of synchronous theta activity in the hippocampus of apoE4 TR mice than in apoE2 TR or apoE3 TR mice. Cortical EEG recordings also revealed sharp spikes and other abnormalities in apoE4 TR mice. Taken together, these findings demonstrate the emergence of an age-dependent seizure phenotype in old apoE4 TR mice in the absence of human amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) overexpression, suggesting increased central nervous system neural network excitability.
Constraints on vector meson photoproduction spin observables

Extraction of spin observables from vector meson photoproduction on a nucleon target is described. Starting from density matrix elements in the vector meson's rest frame, we transform to spin observables in the photon-nucleon c.m. frame. Several constraints on the transformed density matrix and on the spin observables follow from requiring that the angular distribution and the density matrix be positive definite. A set of constraints that are required in order to extract meaningful spin observables from forthcoming data are enunciated.
Microelectrode arrays for stimulation of neural slice preparations

A planar 6×6 array of iridium electrodes with four reference electrodes has been developed for use with neural tissue preparations. Precise knowledge of the relative locations of the array elements allows for spatial neurophysiological analyses. The 10 μm diameter platinized iridium electrodes on a 100 μm pitch have been used to stimulate acutely prepared slices of spinal cord from free-ranging rodents. An intracellular recording from a single neuron in the substantia gelatinosa (SG) using the whole-cell, tight-seal technique allowed low noise, high resolution studies of excitatory or inhibitory electrical responses of a given neuron to inputs from the primary afferent fibers or from stimulation by individual electrodes of the array. The resulting maps of responses provide an indication of the interconnectivity of neural processes. The pattern emerging is that of limited interconnectivity in the SG from areas surrounding a recorded neuron but with strong excitatory or inhibitory effects from those oriented in a longitudinal (rostral–caudal) direction relative to the neuron. The observations to date suggest the neurons of the SG are arranged in sets of independent networks, possibly related to sensory modality and input from particular body regions.
The effects of organizational image and identification on absenteeism and extra-role behavior

In this study, we investigated the roles of organizational image and identification to explain organizational behaviors, in the public and nonprofit sector. More specifically, we developed a theore...
Influence of sociodemographic variables on neuropsychological test performance in Spanish-speaking older adults

There is limited information regarding the impact of sociodemographic variables on the neuropsychological test performance of the Spanish-speaking older adult residing in the United States (US). This study examines the influence of age, education, gender, age of arrival in the US, percentage of lifetime in the US, acculturation, and reported depressive symptoms on neuropsychological test performance in a group of cognitively normal Spanish-speaking elders, the majority of whom were Cuban born. Educational attainment had a broad effect on test scores, with the other variables having only limited effects. These results underscore the impact of educational attainment on neuropsychological test performance among the cognitively normal Spanish-speaking older adult.
Gender Role Egalitarian Attitudes Among Chinese College Students

This study was designed to examine the relationships between gender role egalitarian attitudes and gender, age, parents’ education and occupations, anticipated age of marriage and child bearing, desired family size, career choices, and preference for sex of the children among 470 Chinese college students. Statistically significant relationships were observed between gender role egalitarian attitudes and gender, age, and anticipated age of marriage and childbearing. There were no relationships between gender role egalitarian attitudes and preference for sex of the children, desired family size, parents’ education and occupation, and Chinese students’ career choices.
A flavodiiron protein and high molecular weight rubredoxin from Moorella thermoacetica with nitric oxide reductase activity

A five-gene "oxidative stress protection" cluster has recently been described from the strictly anaerobic, acetogenic bacterium, Moorella thermoacetica [Das, A., et al. (2001) J. Bacteriol. 183, 1560-1567]. Within this cluster are two cotranscribed genes, fprA (for A-type flavoprotein) and hrb (for high molecular weight rubredoxin) whose encoded proteins have no known functions. Here we show that FprA and Hrb are expressed in M. thermoacetica under normal anaerobic growth conditions and report characterizations of the recombinant FprA and Hrb. FprA contains flavin mononucleotide (FMN) and a non-heme diiron site. Mossbauer spectroscopy shows that the irons of the diferric site are antiferromagnetically coupled, implying a single-atom, presumably solvent, bridge between the irons. Hrb contains FMN and a rubredoxin-like [Fe(SCys)4] site. NADH does not directly reduce either the FMN or the diiron site in FprA, whereas Hrb functions as an efficient NADH:FprA oxidoreductase. Substitution of zinc for iron in Hrb completely abolished this activity. The observation that homologues of FprA from other organisms show O2 and/or anaerobic NO consumption activity prompted an examination of these activities for M. thermoacetica FprA. The Hrb/FprA combination does indeed have both NADH:O2 and NADH:NO oxidoreductase activities. The NO reductase activity, however, was significantly more efficient due to a lower Km for NO (4 M) and to progressive and irreversible inactivation of FprA during O2 reductase turnover but retention of activity during NO reductase turnover. Substitution of zinc for iron in FprA completely abolished these reductase activities. The stoichiometry of 1 mol of NADH oxidized:2 mol of NO consumed implies reduction to N2O. Fits of an appropriate rate law to the kinetics data are consistent with a mechanism in which 2NO's react at each FprA active site in the committed step. Expression of FprA in an Escherichia coli strain deficient in NO reductase restored the anaerobic growth phenotype of cultures exposed to otherwise toxic levels of exogenous NO. The accumulated results indicate that Hrb/FprA is fully capable of functioning in nitrosative stress protection in M. thermoacetica.
CREB-Induced Inflammation Is Important for Malignant Mesothelioma Growth

Malignant mesothelioma (MM) is an aggressive tumor with no treatment regimen. Previously we have demonstrated that cyclic AMP response element binding protein (CREB) is constitutively activated in MM tumor cells and tissues and plays an important role in MM pathogenesis. To understand the role of CREB in MM tumor growth, we generated CREB-inhibited MM cell lines and performed in vitro and in vivo experiments. In vitro experiments demonstrated that CREB inhibition results in significant attenuation of proliferation and drug resistance of MM cells. CREB-silenced MM cells were then injected into severe combined immunodeficiency mice, and tumor growth in s.c. and i.p. models of MM was followed. We observed significant inhibition in MM tumor growth in both s.c. and i.p. models and the presence of a chemotherapeutic drug, doxorubicin, further inhibited MM tumor growth in the i.p. model. Peritoneal lavage fluids from CREB-inhibited tumor-bearing mice showed a significantly reduced total cell number, differential cell counts, and pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines (IL-6, IL-8, regulated on activation normal T cell expressed and secreted, monocyte chemotactic protein-1, and vascular endothelial growth factor). In vitro studies showed that asbestos-induced inflammasome/inflammation activation in mesothelial cells was CREB dependent, further supporting the role of CREB in inflammation-induced MM pathogenesis. In conclusion, our data demonstrate the involvement of CREB in the regulation of MM pathogenesis by regulation of inflammation.
Medication Use in an ICF/MR for Nonambulatory Severely and Profoundly Mentally Retarded Children

The preponderance and pattern of several categories of medication was surveyed over 1 year in an ICF/MR for children with multiple handicaps and profound mental retardation. The use of laxatives was found to be almost universal. Anticonvulsant and muscle relaxant drug prescription was much higher than in surveys with ambulatory populations, whereas psychotropic drugs were virtually unused in this sample. Apparent seasonal changes were noted for analgesic and antibiotic medications. Several marked differences in drug prescription between multihandicapped and ambulatory populations were identified.
Generality of the failure-to-escape (helplessness) phenomenon in rats

A series of four experiments investigated a number of parameters reported to produce “helplessness” in rats. Consistent differences in escape behavior were not found between inescapably shocked and restrained rats when a FR 1 shuttling response was used. Escape latencies also did not differ between groups when a reduced shock intensity was employed during escape training in FR 2 procedure or when an increased FR 3 response was employed during escape training. Findings are discussed in terms of the robustness of the failure-to-escape phenomenon from which “helplessness” in the rat is inferred.
Investigation of Various Source Models in the Diffusion Approximation

Applications involving foams in industrial processes are widespread. Foams are encountered in enhanced oil recovery and drilling operations, in the production of cosmetics, in the production of food and in the development of new insulation and construction materials. Often the development of foam is a desired outcome. However, in applications such as glass melting or fermentation processes, foam layers act as barriers to heat and mass transfer, and the presence of foam is undesirable. Due to their widespread use and importance, techniques for characterizing foams are of interest. A technique known as diffusing-wave spectroscopy has shown promise as a method for determining the radiative properties of foam. Relationships between measurable quantities and the radiative properties of the foam are derived using the diffusion approximation to the radiative transfer equation. The objective of this paper is to investigate the use of various models for the source term in the diffusion approximation. The diffusion model is validated by comparison with a Monte Carlo simulation for one case.Copyright © 2003 by ASME
ELECTROHYDRODYNAMIC INSTABILITY IN A SUPERTHICK SUPERFLUID FILM

In an experiment designed to study the potential of a very thick helium film under the combined influence of van der Waals forces, gravity, and an applied electric field, we have discovered and electrohydrodynamic instability which places an upper limit on the film thickness that can be reached by this technique. The theory of the instability and its observation are described.
Endothelial cell calcium and vascular control.

FALCONE, J. C. Endothelial cell calcium and vascular control. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc., Vol. 27, No. 8, pp. 1165-1169, 1995. The endothelium has been shown to contribute to the modulation of vascular smooth muscle tone. Using digital imaging microscopy, we measured calcium in endothelial cells of isolated skeletal muscle arterioles. First-order arterioles (N = 6) were isolated from rat cremaster muscle and cannulated. All vessels developed spontaneous tone (99.4 μm ; 60%-80% of passive diameter). Endothelial cells were loaded with Fura-2-AM (5 μM), a ratiometric calcium-sensitive fluorescent dye. The Fura-2-AM was placed in the lumen of the vessel for approximately 10 min and removed. Fluorescent images of endothelial cells were acquired following excitation at 340- and 380-nm wavelengths and the data expressed as the 340/380 ratio which is directly proportional to intracellular calcium. Acetylcholine (Ach ; 10 -6 M), an endothelium-dependent dilator, caused significant dilation (132% of control) and increased calcium to 186% of control. Adenosine (Adn ; 10 -4 M), an endothelium-independent agent, produced similar dilation (127% of control) but did not alter endothelial cell calcium. Increasing intraluminal pressure produced a myogenic constriction with no change in endothelial calcium. Flow, induced by a 20 cm H 2 O pressure gradient, failed to dilate the arterioles and produced no increase in endothelial cell calcium. However, flow induced by a 40 cm H 2 O pressure difference did increase endothelial cell calcium prior to a significant arteriolar dilation. Removal of the endothelium by physically rubbing the intimal surface eliminated both the dilation and increase in calcium to Ach or flow (40 cm H 2 O) while the response to Adn remained unchanged. Endothelial cell fluorescence was absent in denuded arterioles and residual fluorescence was less than 10% of the fluorescence in endothelium-intact vessels. These results demonstrate that endothelium-dependent dilation involves an increase in cell calcium that precedes actual vessel dilation. This increase in endothelial cell calcium could be initiated by agonist or changes in shear stress at the lumenal surface of the endothelial cell membrane. Furthermore, this implied mechanism may play an important part in the ability of skeletal muscle to increase blood flow during exercise.
Facile synthesis of plasmalogens via Barbier-type reactions of vinyl dioxanes and vinyl dioxolanes with alkyl halides in LiDBB solution.

Plasmalogens (i.e. plasmenylcholines or plasmenylethanolamines) are a biologically important class of glycerophospholipids that have been difficult to synthesize due to the presence of an acid and oxidatively labile (Z)-vinyl ether substituent at the sn-1 position and a base-labile sn-2 acyl substituent that easily migrates during silica gel purification. We report two facile synthetic methods for the preparation of racemic plasmenylcholines via a tandem reductive vinyl dioxane/dioxolane ring opening and alkyliodide coupling process that proceeds in a single pot reaction. The key step in the formation of (Z)-vinyl ether precursors for the production of plasmenylcholines is accomplished using LiDBB under Barbier-type conditions to give the corresponding TBDMS-protected 1-O-Z'-vinylglycerol intermediate in moderate yields. This pathway is the most direct synthetic route for the formation of plasmenylcholines to date, requiring a total of six transformations from acrolein and glycerol or solketal as inexpensive starting materials, to generate glycerophosphocholine-type plasmalogens in 4% overall yield.
An auto-indexing technique for databases based on clustering

Considering the wide deployment of databases and its size, particularly in data warehouses, it is important to automate the physical design so that the task of the database administrator (DBA) is minimized. An important part of physical database design is index selection. An auto-index selection tool capable of analyzing large amounts of data and suggesting a good set of indexes for a database is the goal of auto-administration. Clustering is a data mining technique with broad appeal and usefulness in exploratory data analysis. This idea provides a motivation to apply clustering techniques to obtain good indexes for a workload in the database. We describe a technique for auto-indexing using clustering. The experiments conducted show that the proposed technique performs better than Microsoft SQL server index selection tool (1ST) and can suggest indexes faster than Microsoft's IST.
On the use of metallized cavities in printed slot arrays with dielectric substrates

A detailed analysis of infinite slot arrays excited by delta-function current sources is presented. The existence of severe array blindness is proved for most of the cases of slots without metallic cavity separators.
Ligand directed self-assembly vs. metal ion coordination algorithm-when does the ligand or the metal take control?

Polyfunctional hydrazone ligands with multidentate terminal donor groups offer metal ions many donor choices, and the coordination outcome depends mainly on the identity of the metal ion. Co(II) and Ni(II) prefer to adopt largely undistorted, six-coordinate geometries, while Cu(II) can easily adapt to a variety of coordination situations (e.g. CN 4–6), and will optimize its coordination number and stereochemistry based on all the available donors. Ni(II) and Co(II) form simple [2 × 2] [M4-(μ2-O)4] square grids with such ditopic hydrazone ligands, and ignore other coordination options, while Cu(II) tries to bind to all the available donors, and forms extended and 2D structures based on linked Cu(II) triads rather than grids. Ni(II) is also reluctant to compromise its desire to maximize its crystal field stabilization energy (CFSE) by binding to ‘weak’ ligands, and with a tetratopic pyrazole bis-hydrazone ligand it ignores the oxygen donors in favour of nitrogen, forming a novel trinuclear, triangular cluster. Also, reaction of a linear Ni(II)3 complex of a tetratopic pyridazine bis-hydrazone ligand with NiN6 coordination spheres with Cu(II), leads exclusively to a square Cu12 grid based complex, and complete displacement of nickel. Structural and magnetic properties are highlighted, and metal–ligand interactions are discussed in detail.
HCV lookback in the United States:effectiveness of an extended lookback program

BACKGROUND: In 1998, the FDA recommended look-back for HCV. The recommendation was initially limited, however, to donors who reacted on a multiantigen HCV screening test and to components collected since January 1, 1988. A lookback program was extended to include donors who reacted on the first-generation (single-antigen) HCV screening test and who were positive on a supplemental assay (RIBA-1 or -2) and all components for which transfusion records could be found (back to 1978). STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The yield of the incremental lookback programs was compared to that originally recommended by the FDA by comparing the number of newly identified HCV-positive recipients in each program. The results of lookbacks were reviewed on 385 blood components for which 314 transfusion recipients were identified. RESULTS: Of the 135 recipients in the FDA program, 70 percent were dead, 28 percent were living and notified, and 2 percent could not be located. In the incremental programs, there were 179 recipients, of whom 80.4 percent were dead, 16.2 percent were living and notified, and 3.4 percent could not be located. Most adult recipients were dead (81%), but the majority of pediatric recipients were alive (57%); 76 percent of tested recipients were HCV seropositive, with no significant difference between programs. One-half of test-positive recipients in each program were newly identified through the lookback program. Seven of the 20 newly identified HCV-positive recipients were found through the incremental programs. The yield, defined as newly detected HCV cases per total number of recipients, was 9.6 percent for the FDA and 3.9 percent for the incremental programs. This difference was significant (p = 0.04). CONCLUSION: The yield of both programs was limited by the high percentage of recipients who had died. Pediatric recipients were more likely to be living at the time of notification. The incremental program was less efficacious than the FDA program in identifying newly HCV-positive recipients, but one-third of the newly detected HCV cases were identified through the incremental program.
Atherogenic effect of sucrose and white flour fed to obese mice

Des souris mâles obeses nourries ad libitum avec 50% de cereales, 25% de farine blanche, et 25% de sucrose ont presente une augmentation en cholesterol de serum 2,7 fois plus grande que celle des animaux nourris seulement de cereales. Des depots de matieres grasses ont ete trouves dans la media aortique.
Predicting Pesticide Transport in Mulch-Amended Soils

With adoption of combine harvest technology, massive sugarcane (Saccharum Spp. Hyb.) residue is left on the soil surface following each harvest, which could affect the environmental fate and efficacy of applied pesticides in subsequent cropping seasons. The objective of this study was to quantify the retention characteristics and mobility of a commonly used herbicide, atrazine (2-chloro-4-ethylamine-6-isopropylamino-S-triazine), in soils when sugarcane mulch residue was present. Specifically, adsorption and desorption kinetic batch experiments were performed to quantify atrazine retention by the mulch residue over time. Atrazine sorption exhibited time-dependent behavior and was followed by slow release regardless of input concentration. A kinetic-equilibrium model based on a second-order two-site (SOTS) formulation was successful in describing atrazine adsorption versus time by the mulch residue. One set of model parameters was capable of describing atrazine release based on six successive desorption steps. As a test for the applicability of the model, data sets from two other experiments where sorption and release was measured for extended time periods (1348 and 2476 h) were successfully predicted by the SOTS model. Miscible displacement methods were used to measure the mobility of atrazine in packed columns where the mulch residue was mixed with a reference sand material or a Sharkey clay soil (very fine, smectitic, thermic Chromic Epiaquerts). Use of batch-measured model parameters did not adequately describe atrazine mobility in the sand-mulch column. In contrast, for a Sharkey-mulch soil column, a two-compartment SOTS model was successful in predicting atrazine breakthrough results where independently estimated parameters for the mulch residue and the soil matrix were used as the input parameters. Results also showed that mixing of mulch with soil created physical non-equilibrium condition in the columns, which was responsible for errors in model predictions.
Seismic interaction in linearly connected electrical substation equipment

An electrical substation consists of a complex set of equipment items that are interconnected through conductor buses or cables. If the connections are not sufficiently flexible, significant dynamic interaction may occur between the connected equipment items during a seismic excitation. This interaction is believed to be responsible for some of the observed substation equipment damage in recent earthquakes. This paper investigates the interaction between two equipment items connected by a linear spring-dashpot or spring-dashpot-mass element representing a conductor bus. It is found that the interaction between the two equipment items may significantly amplify the response of the higher-frequency equipment item. The influences of various key parameters on the interaction effect are quantified. Means for reducing the adverse interaction effect are described. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.