cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Permeability of Polyester Film (PEN) to Copper Ions

Ion exchange membranes (IEM) are often applied in the processes of separation and purification solutions, primarily in the chemical, food, and pharmaceutical industries. Most are currently made from organic polymers, such as polyamide and polyimide. In this work, a study of the permeability of polyethylene naphthalate film (PEN) to copper Cu(II) (heavy metal), using the Donnan dialysis technique, has allowed us, first, to highlight a new anion exchange membrane (AEM), and second, to improve its capabilities for the elimination of copper ions after heat treatment.
Hematopoietic cytokine production by human brain endothelial cells (Hubec) Is associated with the ex vivo expansion of CD34+CD38− cells

Abstract We have recently demonstrated that primary human brain endothelial cells (HUBEC) supplemented with GMCSF+IL-3+ IL-6+SCF+Flt-3 ligand support a 400-fold increase in CD34 + CD38 − cells in 7 day cultures. In order to identify soluble factors which might contribute to this hematopoietic effect, we performed ELISAs on supernatant collected from HUBEC monolayers and compared this with supernatant from human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) which do not support the expansion of CD34 + CD38 − cells. In unconcentrated HUBEC supernatant, we detected high levels of VEGF (1951 pg/mL±561), IL-11 (1832 pg/mL±142), IL-6 (2625 pg/mL±39), and SCF (172 pg/mL±2), and surprisingly low or nonmeasurable levels of GMCSF (nm), GCSF (22 pg/mL±1), Epo (nm), IL-3 (nm), and Flt-3 ligand (18 pg/mL±0.1). In contrast, supernatant collected from HUVEC contained no measurable VEGF or IL-11, but had very high levels of GCSF (2278 pg/mL±76) and PDGF (2369 pg/mL±235). In addition, HUVEC supernatant contained IL-6 (767 pg/mL±21), GMCSF (67 pg/mL±3), and SCF (340 pg/ml±6), but Flt-3 ligand and Epo were not detectable. In summary, HUBEC secrete high levels of IL-11 and VEGF which have both been identified to induce the proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) in vitro. In contrast, HUVEC produce neither IL-11 nor VEGF but do secrete high levels of GCSF which likely contributes to the differentiation of progenitor cells in vitro. We are currently studying the capacity of HUBEC supernatant to induce HSC proliferation in the absence of cell-to-cell contact and the contribution of known or novel cytokines toward this effect.
Heterologous Expression of Lysergic Acid and Novel Ergot Alkaloids in Aspergillus fumigatus

Different lineages of fungi produce distinct classes of ergot alkaloids. Lysergic acid-derived ergot alkaloids produced by fungi in the Clavicipitaceae are particularly important in agriculture and medicine. The pathway to lysergic acid is partly elucidated, but the gene encoding the enzyme that oxidizes the intermediate agroclavine is unknown. We investigated two candidate agroclavine oxidase genes from the fungus Epichloe festucae var. lolii × Epichloe typhina isolate Lp1 (henceforth referred to as Epichloe sp. Lp1), which produces lysergic acid-derived ergot alkaloids. Candidate genes easH and cloA were expressed in a mutant strain of the mold Aspergillus fumigatus, which typically produces a subclass of ergot alkaloids not derived from agroclavine or lysergic acid. Candidate genes were coexpressed with the Epichloe sp. Lp1 allele of easA, which encodes an enzyme that catalyzed the synthesis of agroclavine from an A. fumigatus intermediate; the agroclavine then served as the substrate for the candidate agroclavine oxidases. Strains expressing easA and cloA from Epichloe sp. Lp1 produced lysergic acid from agroclavine, a process requiring a cumulative six-electron oxidation and a double-bond isomerization. Strains that accumulated excess agroclavine (as a result of Epichloe sp. Lp1 easA expression in the absence of cloA) metabolized it into two novel ergot alkaloids for which provisional structures were proposed on the basis of mass spectra and precursor feeding studies. Our data indicate that CloA catalyzes multiple reactions to produce lysergic acid from agroclavine and that combining genes from different ergot alkaloid pathways provides an effective strategy to engineer important pathway molecules and novel ergot alkaloids.
The Role of Type of Offense and Work Qualifications on Perceived Employability of Former Offenders

Investigating barriers to successful reentry of former offenders is important to better prepare inmates for community integration, especially since a former criminal history can deter employability and contribute to the high unemployment rate of this population. The present research experimentally manipulated the effects of two offender characteristics, type of offense and work qualifications, on the perceived employability of a hypothetical job applicant. Four different components of employability were also assessed using mediational analysis to test the underlying reasons or justifications for why the offender characteristics impact hirability. Results indicate the separate moderating effect of each offender characteristics (type of offense and work qualifications) and the mediating effect of components of employability (basic skills, thinking skills, personal qualities, and dangerousness) for work qualifications.
Electronegativity: why has it been so difficult to define?

Abstract The use of a valence bond representation to visualize chemical bonding led early researchers to define electronegativity, χ, as an in situ molecular property, thereby defeating the possibility of achieving an accurate, measurable quantity. To overcome this problem a free atom χ is required and it then follows from a logical sequence of arguments that χ must be an intrinsic coordinate of the Periodic Table defined as configuration energy (CE) the occupation weighted-average ionization potential of valence electrons. Addition of CE completes the periodic table by resolving its existing shortcomings and as a consequence its chemical bonding organizing power is greatly enhanced. CE values match the two best established electronegativity scales, are strongly correlated with atomic energy level spacings, and have a ‘broken symmetry’ relationship with the Periodic Table's taxonomy.
The Effect of Egg Shell Quality on Hatchability and Embryonic Mortality

Abstract Three experiments were conducted utilizing broiler-type breeder hens which were 36, 52, or 64 weeks of age. Eggs were collected at 2-hr intervals from 0800 to 1600 or 1800 hr and specific gravity determined the following morning. Eggs were held 1 week at 11 C, separated into groups according to specific gravity, and set. They were candled prior to transfer, and all eggs appearing infertile were broken to determine true fertility and/or age that embryonic death occurred. In the third experiment, egg weights were recorded prior to specific gravity determination, setting, and transfer to establish weight loss during holding time and incubation. Results demonstrated that eggs with the lowest specific gravities had the greatest weight losses, highest early embryonic mortalities, and lowest hatchabilities. In eggs with specific gravities higher than 1.080, there appeared to be little relationship between specific gravity and hatchability. It was concluded that shell quality may be a significant factor in declining hatchability as the hen ages.
A Genome Wide Linkage Scan of Metacarpal Size and Geometry in the Framingham Study

Bone geometry is a significant component of bone strength, and has a clinical utility in predicting fractures and quantifying bone loss. Bone geometry is known to have a substantial genetic component. We performed linkage analysis to identify chromosomal regions governing metacarpal bone geometry. A genome-wide scan (with a set of 615 markers with spacing of ∼5.7 cM) was performed on 1,702 individuals from 330 extended families of the Framingham Study. Midshaft width was measured and several indices calculated, namely Metacarpal Cortical Thickness (MCT), Cortical Index (MCI), and Section Modulus (MZ), using digitized X-rays of 1,380 participants (men, n = 666, mean age 55.2 yr, women, n = 714, 55.5 yr). Metacarpals 2, 3, and 4 were averaged. Heritability was significant for all indices, ranging from 0.51 to 0.72. Linkage analysis of indices adjusted for age, age2, and estrogen status in women, identified chromosomal regions 6p21, 9p21, 11q21-q22, and Xq26-Xq27, with LOD scores >2.0. Additional adjustment for smoking, height, and BMI, generally reduced the LOD scores. Finally, bivariate linkage analysis confirmed that a QTL on chr. 6 (51 cM) was shared by midshaft width and MZ (LOD = 2.40, adjusted for all covariates). Neither MCT nor MCI shared linkage loci with width or MZ. In conclusion, we have identified chromosomal regions potentially linked to bone geometry. Genes in these regions may regulate bone geometry via effects on body size. Identification and subsequent characterization of loci for bone geometry can further elucidate the genetic contributions to bone's resistance to stress. Am. J. Hum. Biol., 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Emission of Neutrons from Argon, Chlorine, Aluminum and Some Heavier Elements Under Alpha-Particle Bombardment

The emission of neutrons from chlorine, argon, scandium, titanium, manganese and iron under alpha-particle bombardment was established. The yield from argon is considerable and enabled a measurement of the energy of the neutrons to be made: the majority are associated with a group of energy change -5.6\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}1.0 Mev, but two groups must be present. The excitation curve for these neutrons was plotted for alpha-particle energies between 3.5 and 9.0 Mev and varies smoothly in agreement with penetration through a barrier of radius 7.6\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}13}$ cm. This smooth variation means that the total neutron yield does not change rapidly as a new group is excited, from which it is deduced that observations on single groups would show apparent resonance effects. The excitation curve for chlorine fits a theoretically derived function for a nuclear radius of 6.0\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}13}$ cm and a similarly plotted curve for aluminum agrees with a radius of 5.8\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}13}$ cm. These last elements have radii approximately fitting the formula $R={R}_{0}{A}^{\frac{1}{3}}$ with ${R}_{0}=1.94\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}13}$, while argon has a radius which is definitely too large to fit the above relation. This abnormally large radius is linked with the large neutron content of the argon nucleus.
Multicystic dysplastic kidney: A retrospective study

To report the renal structural and functional anomalies in children with multicystic dysplastic kidneys. Retrospective descriptive analysis of 47 children with multicystic dysplastic kidney seen in a pediatric nephrology unit over a period of 6 years. Antenatal diagnosis of multicystic dysplastic kidney was made in 34 (72.3%) patients. On follow up of 31 children for more than 12 months, 21 (68%) had involution, 4 [13%] had non-regression, and 4 (13%) were nephrectomized. Vesico-ureteric reflux (n=13; 28%) was the commonest renal abnormality. The serum creatinine values were higher (P=0.006) in children with contralateral reflux. Sub-nephrotic proteinuria was noted in 9 (29%) and was significantly associated with complete involution (P=<0.023). None of the patients developed hypertension and 2 (6.4%) had renal failure. Close nephrological follow-up is needed in children with multicystic dysplasia of kidneys.
Sheridan Le Fanu, the supernatural and the sounds of the Irish countryman

Sheridan Le Fanu was an Irish writer in the Gothic tradition, an innovator of the genre of the supernatural tale, and master story-teller, whose use of language we examine here; his use of the core linguistic features of words, syntax and sounds for literary expression and his use of narrative and dialogue and of the registers (speech and written styles) and dialects of his speech community for a sense of realism and authenticity. We also examine the difference between written and the spoken language, and the way Le Fanu imparted to the written word the features of the Irish oral story-telling tradition.
Presence of histaminase and ornithine decarboxylase activities in rat thymus

Abstract Rat thymus was found to contain high levels of histaminase (diamine oxidase), an enzyme that deaminates histamine, putrescine and other diamines. The histaminase activity was high in thymus of a variety of rat strains, including germ-free rats and the spontaneously hypertensive rat. The enzyme activity remained high after involution of the thymus in older rats. Depletion of thymus lymphocytes by administration of a single dose of dexamethasone (100–2000 μg/kg s.c.) produced a 40–60 per cent decrease in thymus weight but no decrease in histaminase activity per thymus. These results indicated that histaminase is located in thymic tissue other than lymphocytes. Thymus also contained high omithine decarboxylase activity but no histidine decarboxylase activity, which suggested that putrescine, rather than histamine, is a major substrate for the thymus histaminase. Since putrescine is the precursor of the polyamines, spermidine and spermine, the rat thymus may provide a useful model to study the role of these amines in tissues.
Coping in a group of expectant adolescent fathers: an exploratory study.

Twenty expectant adolescent fathers were interviewed during the course of their partners' pregnancies. Ten coping strategies used by these subjects in response to the upcoming transition to fatherhood were identified. These coping strategies were categorized according to the Lazarus paradigm as direct actions, information-seeking, intrapsychic processes, and inhibition of action. These strategies dealt either with the potential problem (i.e., fatherhood) or the accompanying stressful emotions.
Intralaryngeal nevus in a child. A case report.

Summary A case of junctional nevus of the true vocal cord in a 10-year-old black girl is described. It appears to be the first reported case of lesion in the larynx. The significance of melanocytes in the larynx of a child is discussed.
Using computational methods to discover student science conceptions in interview data

A large body of research in the learning sciences has focused on students' commonsense science knowledge---the everyday knowledge of the natural world that is gained outside of formal instruction. Although researchers studying commonsense science have employed a variety of methods, one-on-one clinical interviews have played a unique and central role. The data that result from these interviews take the form of video recordings, which in turn are often compiled into written transcripts, and coded by human analysts. In my team's work on learning analytics, we draw on this same type of data, but we attempt to automate its analysis. In this paper, I describe the success we have had using extremely simple methods from computational linguistics---methods that are based on rudimentary vector space models and simple clustering algorithms. These automated analyses are employed in an exploratory mode, as a way to discover student conceptions in the data. The aims of this paper are primarily methodological in nature; I will attempt to show that it is possible to use techniques from computational linguistics to analyze data from commonsense science interviews. As a test bed, I draw on transcripts of a corpus of interviews in which 54 middle school students were asked to explain the seasons.
Relating Pitch Awareness to Phonemic Awareness in Children: Implications for Tone-Deafness and Dyslexia

Language and music are complex cognitive and neural functions that rely on awareness of one's own sound productions. Information on the awareness of vocal pitch, and its relation to phonemic awareness which is crucial for learning to read, will be important for understanding the relationship between tone-deafness and developmental language disorders such as dyslexia. Here we show that phonemic awareness skills are positively correlated with pitch perception–production skills in children. Children between the ages of seven and nine were tested on pitch perception and production, phonemic awareness, and IQ. Results showed a significant positive correlation between pitch perception–production and phonemic awareness, suggesting that the relationship between musical and linguistic sound processing is intimately linked to awareness at the level of pitch and phonemes. Since tone-deafness is a pitch-related impairment and dyslexia is a deficit of phonemic awareness, we suggest that dyslexia and tone-deafness may have a shared and/or common neural basis.
Direct use of high molecular weight polysaccharide by heterotrophic flagellates

In aquatic ecology it is assumed that the heterotrophic (non-photosynthetic) protozoa that are abundant in marine and fresh water cannot compete with smaller-sized bacteria for labile dissolved substrates of low relative molecular mass (Mr), such as simple sugars and amino acids, at the low concentrations found in situ1,2 (typically 1–100 μg litre−1) because of surface to volume considerations. Consequently dissolved organic matter (DOM) is not considered to be a source of nutrition for heterotrophic protozoa, which are thought to be predominantly phagotrophic on bacteria and other small planktonic cells2. But there is no information as to whether protozoa might be able to use DOM of higher Mr. Here I report that heterotrophic flagellates in a salt marsh estuary and in a freshwater pond were able to ingest molecules of the polysaccharide dextran of Mr> 500,000 (500K). Mixed species cultures of estuarine and pond flagellates also showed enhanced growth in the presence of 2,000K, but not 40K, dextran. Compounds with high-Mr are often a large fraction of total DOM in natural waters3,4, and the concentrations (dry weight litre−1) of some types of labile high-Mr compounds in natural waters are equal to, or greater than, those of bacterioplankton5,6. Thus DOM of high Mr may be an alternative food resource for aquatic flagellates. Direct ingestion of high Mr compounds by heterotrophic flagellates would represent a more efficient pathway for returning a portion of DOM to aquatic food webs compared with the DOM-bacteria-flagellate-ciliate microbial loop7.
PDD-NOS Symptoms in Adults with Intellectual Disability: Toward an Empirically Oriented Diagnostic Model

PDD-NOS has been an illusive diagnostic category in Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). It is a frequently occurring ASD, but it has typically been defined by what it is not-autism. This latter condition has received the bulk of the attention in the development of diagnostic methods, while PDD-NOS has largely been ignored from a diagnostic standpoint. The symptoms that characterize PDD-NOS in adults with intellectual disability (ID), beyond the extrapolation of a few child studies, are largely unknown. This study is an attempt to provide systematic empirical data to describe the condition of PDD-NOS in adults with ID. The implication of these data for diagnosis and future research are discussed.
Nematic liquid-crystal polarization gratings by modification of surface alignment

The stylus of an atomic force microscope is used to scribe preferred directions for liquid-crystal alignment on a polyimide-coated substrate. The opposing substrate that comprises the liquid-crystal cell is rubbed unidirectionally, resulting in a twisted nematic structure associated with each micrometer-sized pixel. The polarization of light entering from the uniformly rubbed substrate rotates with the nematic director by a different amount in each pixel, and each of the two emerging polarization eigenmodes interferes separately. Two examples are discussed: a square grating that allows only odd-order diffraction peaks and a grating that combines rotation with optical retardation to simulate a blazed grating for circularly polarized light. The gratings can be electrically switched if used with semitransparent electrodes.
Retrieval of extensive gutta-percha extruded into the maxillary sinus: use of 3-dimensional cone-beam computed tomography.

Abstract Introduction Close proximity of the maxillary sinus to the roots of maxillary teeth can predispose to the inadvertent deposition of endodontic products into the maxillary sinus. One such material is thermoplasticized injectable gutta-percha, which has gained popularity of late. As a consequence of overfilling, some patients warrant surgical retrieval. Methods A case report of extreme overextension of gutta-percha within the maxillary sinus after endodontic retreatment on tooth #14 was provided. The distobuccal and palatal canals had been obturated with gutta-percha master cones and backfilled with thermoplasticized injectable warm gutta-percha. The mesiobuccal canal had only been filled with thermoplasticized injectable warm gutta-percha, the origin of the extrusion. Imagery with 3-dimensional cone-beam computed tomography was performed for localization of the gutta-percha. Results The patient underwent a Caldwell-Luc approach for removal of the extruded material. The gutta-percha was successfully removed intact, and the patient had an unremarkable postoperative course. However, the patient continues to have mild tenderness in the sinus region. Conclusions The featured case exemplified the consequence of overinstrumentation and ensuing inadequate apical stop. In these situations, the obturation of a maxillary tooth with thermoplasticized injectable gutta-percha, without master cones, can potentially result in overfilling and deposition into the antrum. Use of 3-dimensional cone-beam computed tomography could enhance endodontic diagnosis, serve as an aid for visualization of foreign materials within the sinus and contiguous soft tissue structures, and improve clinical outcome.
Quasi-optics of the evanescent wave excitation of planar dielectric waveguides

The two governing equations for the evanescent wave excitation of planar dielectric waveguides are deduced by a quasi-optical technique. These governing equations, which are in a canonical form that is appropriate for any coupler with a guided mode and a radiated wave, satisfy reciprocity and power-conservation requirements.
The antigenicity of synchronous cancers of the colon and rectum.

Immuno-reactivity to tumor extracts in patients with colorectal cancer was evaluated by the direct leukocyte migration inhibition assay. Hypertonic potassium chloride extracts were prepared from a group of synchronous colorectal cancers and from single colorectal cancers. Both groups of extracts were tested in patients with single colorectal cancers. All patients were tested preoperatively, none were previously treated, and none had distant metastases. Synchronous extracts showed no significant migration inhibition in allogeneic assays. Single colorectal cancers showed highly significant inhibition to autologous extracts only and not to allogeneic extracts. These data support the contention that colorectal cancers are antigenically dissimilar.
Analysis of the confluence of three patterns using the Centering and Pointing System (CAPS) images for the Advanced Radiographic Capability (ARC) at the National Ignition Facility

The Advance Radiographic Capability (ARC) at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) is a laser system that employs up to four petawatt (PW) lasers to produce a sequence of short pulses that generate X-rays which backlight highdensity internal confinement fusion (ICF) targets. Employing up to eight backlighters, ARC can produce an X-ray "motion picture" to diagnose the compression and ignition of a cryogenic deuterium-tritium target with tens-ofpicosecond temporal resolution during the critical phases of an ICF shot. Multi-frame, hard-X-ray radiography of imploding NIF capsules is a capability which is critical to the success of NIF's missions. The function of the Centering and Pointing System (CAPS) in ARC is to provide superimposed near-field and far-field images on a common optical path. The Images are then analyzed to extract beam centering and pointing data for the control system. The images contain the confluence of pointing, centering, and reference patterns. The patterns may have uneven illumination, particularly when the laser is misaligned. In addition, the simultaneous appearance of three reference patterns may be co-incidental, possibly masking one or more of the patterns. Image analysis algorithms have been developed to determine the centering and pointing position of ARC from these images. In the paper we describe the image analysis algorithms used to detect and identify the centers of these patterns. Results are provided, illustrating how well the process meets system requirements.
Ly phenotype of T-cells releasing T-cell replacing factor.

THE Ly phenotype of T cells which cooperate with B cells in the production of antibody has been described as Ly 1+2− (refs 1 and 2). Helper T cells are distinct from cytotoxic T cells (Ly 1− Ly 2+)1,2 and suppressor T cells (Ly 1−2+)3,4. In tissue culture, helper activity does not depend on the presence of intact T cells but can be mediated by cell-free supernatants from stimulated T cells. Stimulation with antigen induces the release of antigen-specific helper factors5,6 as well as factors which support antibody response against unrelated antigens7. Factors similar or identical to the latter are produced by splenic T cells in response to alloantigens8–10 and concanavalin A11. It is tacitly assumed that the mechanism by which helper T cells collaborate with B cells in the production of antibody is to be attributed to the release of these mediators. We report here that with respect to their Ly phenotypes, T cells which release T-cell replacing factor (TRF)8 in response to alloantigen belong to the same subpopulation of T cells as helper cells.
Steady heat conduction from an infinite row of holes in a half-space or a uniform slab

Abstract A special boundary integral equation is used to analyze steady heat conduction from an infinite row of circular holes located below the surface of a half-space or along the midplane of a uniform slab. Numerical results show that standard handbook approximations for the total heat flux from any one hole can give sizable errors in both problems, even for modest values of the problem parameters. An alternative approximation proposed recently for the half-space problem is shown to offer a substantial improvement in accuracy.
Strip Layout: A New Layout Methodology for Standard Circuit Modules

In this paper we describe Strip Layout, a new layout methodology that is suitable for automatically laying out standard circuit modules and for automatic module generation from transistor net-list. We demonstrate that the new layout methodology yields circuits that are denser than standard cell layout while retaining all the advantages of standard cells. Moreover, Strip Layout could be generated by simple algorithms at high speed.
A model of real time control system production

Many facets of Computer Science and associated technologies may be profitably viewed as dedicated real time control activities. Production of systems to exercise such control has been difficult and costly. An abstract model of the process of producing these systems is presented. The model indicates three areas of the design problem amenable to automation: 1) the selection and configuration of hardware; 2) the production of software; and 3) the selection of a monitor to maintain real time integrity of the entire system. The concept of hardware binding is introduced and it is shown that delaying the point in the design cycle where hardware is functionally bound allows a new approach to machine independence.This paper comprises two chapters of a larger work which developes an implementation-independent application-specification language and techniques to automate control system design. Such an automation system is intended to produce a hardware configuration listing and software which together define a complete dedicated real time controller. Development of this system is based on the model presented here and is an on-going design automation project at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory.
Cancer Stem Cells in Hematopoietic Malignancies

Most hematopoietic malignancies are comprised of cells that are functionally heterogeneous, with only a subset being responsible for tumor maintenance. These cancer stem cells are so named because they possess qualities reminiscent of normal tissue stem cells including self-renewal, prolonged survival, and the ability to give rise to cells with more differentiated characteristics. Effort is now focused on identifying cancer stem cells in various hematopoietic malignancies, and defining the cells of origin such that the stepwise accumulation of genetic/epigenetic events necessary for cancer stem cell development can be delineated. A detailed understanding of these processes could lead to development of therapeutics that more effectively treat hematopoietic malignancies and potentially other cancers.
Clinical Indices of Familial Alcohol Use Disorder

ALCOHOL USE DISORDER (AUD) is a clinically heterogeneous syndrome, as affected individuals vary widely in their age at onset (AAO), pattern of recurrence, and symptom profiles. While many studies document that the risk for AUD is strongly influenced by familial/genetic factors (e.g., Goodwin, 1981; Heath et al., 1997; Prescott and Kendler, 1999), these results reflect averages of a group of affected individuals. Individuals with AUD undoubtedly differ in the level of their underlying familial risk. In DSM-III (American Psychiatric Association, 1980), III-R (American Psychiatric Association, 1987), and IV (American Psychiatric Association, 1994), AUDs have consisted of 2 syndromes: alcohol abuse (AA) and alcohol dependence (AD). Their interrelationship has been controversial. The original conception was that abuse was a milder but largely independent syndrome that might evolve into dependence over time. Empirical results, however, have suggested that the symptoms of the 2 disorders are highly correlated and that the criteria for abuse are not at all “milder” than the dependence criteria (Saha et al., 2006). A broad but significant question within the literature has been the degree to which an individual’s familial vulnerability to AUDs can be meaningfully related to the clinical features of their AUD. This association has previously been investigated in studies that have compared the clinical features of familial and nonfamilial alcoholism (Alterman et al., 2002; Goodwin, 1984; Limosin et al., 2001; Penick et al., 1987). In this paper, we explore this question using a different approach. We begin by selecting individuals from the Virginia Adult Twin Study of Psychiatric and Substance Use Disorders (VATSPSUD) who meet lifetime criteria for AUD as assessed at personal interview. We then determine whether the clinical features of their AUDs as reported by these individuals (e.g., AAO, patterns of recurrence, treatment, and the presence or absence of individual AA and AD criteria) predict the risk of AUDs in their cotwin and in their parents. The results of these analyses will have clinical, research, and nosological implications. For both clinical and research purposes, it would be useful to know, from the clinical features of their illness, which individuals with AUDs were likely to have a high versus low familial risk of illness. Nosologically, these analyses provide information about the validity of the individual diagnostic criteria. As the seminal article of Robins and Guze (1970), familial aggregation has been a key validator for psychiatric diagnoses. This approach would suggest that individual AUD criteria that index the familial risk for the disorder would be of particular diagnostic value.
Modulation of Gingival Fibroblast Minocycline Accumulation by Biological Mediators

Gingival fibroblasts actively accumulate tetracyclines, thereby enhancing their redistribution from blood to gingiva. Since growth factors and pro-inflammatory cytokines regulate many fibroblast activities, they could potentially enhance fibroblast minocycline accumulation. To test this hypothesis, we treated gingival fibroblast monolayers for 1 or 6 hours with platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF), fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF), transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF), or tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF). Minocycline uptake was assayed at 37° by a fluorescence method. All 4 factors significantly enhanced minocycline uptake (P ≤ 0.008, ANOVA), primarily by increasing the affinity of transport. Treatment for 6 hours with 10 ng/mL FGF, PDGF, TGF, or TNF enhanced fibroblast minocycline uptake by 19% to 25%. Phorbol myristate acetate enhanced fibroblast minocycline uptake by 28%, suggesting that protein kinase C plays a role in up-regulating transport. These effects on transport provide a mechanism by which sy...
THE METABOLISM OF SILICON IN THE RAT AND ITS RELATION TO THE FORMATION OF ARTIFICIAL SILICEOUS CALCULI

The urinary excretion of silicon in the rat was found to be enhanced beyond normal levels by the administration of various chemical forms of silicon. The excretion was enhanced to a much greater degree by the administration of ethyl silicate than by magnesium trisilicate, sodium metasilicate, or water glass. The tolerance level of rats to sustained daily doses of ethyl silicate fed via stomach tube was approximately 15 to 30 mg. of silicon per rat per day. Urinary silicon excretion was found to be a straight line function of the concentration of ethyl silicate administered, via stomach tube, with approximately 18 per cent of the administered silicon appearing in the urine at all levels tested. Using sustained dietary additions of ethyl silicate as a means of enhancing urine silicon levels, artificial siliceous urinary calculi were consistently produced on zinc pellets implanted in the bladders of rats.
Media, Political Pressure, and the Firm: The Case of Petroleum Pricing in the Late 1970s

This paper empirically examines whether major domestic oil companies held down product prices relative to their less visible counterparts during the 1979 oil crisis. We compare company prices on unregulated fuel oil with a measure of political pressure—the level of television coverage of the energy crisis. We find that media coverage influenced home heating oil price ratios, but did not influence residual fuel oil price ratios for the same companies. We argue that this differential pricing pattern is rational in a politically sensitive period.
Motion of a Deformed Sphere With Slip in Creeping Flows

The motion of a rigid particle whose surface is a slightly deformed sphere is studied for creeping flows with the assumption of slip on the particle. Expressions are obtained for the hydrodynamic force and torque exerted by the fluid on a deformed sphere using an asymptotic method introduced by H. Brenner, wherein the normalized amplitude of the deviation from sphericity is assumed to be a small parameter. The Stokes’ resistance calculated by this method is validated by comparing with existing solutions the limiting cases of no slip and perfect slip. The equations describing the motion of a deformed sphere with a slip surface in a simple shear flow are also derived and solved. The motion of the deformed sphere is shown to differ significantly from the no-slip case for low values of a dimensionless parameter that incorporates the slip coefficient. The period of rotation of the deformed sphere is longer, and for cases where the slip coefficient is low, the spheroid rotates to a fixed angle and reaches a quasi-steady orientation.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
The role of object-oriented techniques and multi-agents in story understanding

A story understanding system using object-oriented techniques and multi-agents is described. First, to help gauge future systems, a meter based on the goals and criticisms of previous work is established. In an attempt to satisfy this meter, a multi-agent script-based story understanding system is then described. This system is based on the high-level comprehension process psychologists believe humans use. The knowledge base (or memory) is oriented with respect to object-orientation. Thus, in a simple sense, understanding takes the form of objects and their relationships to other objects. Multi-agents help by encapsulating domain specific knowledge and in transforming the knowledge into the understanding.
An orchestration language for parallel objects

Charm++, a parallel object language based on the idea of virtual processors, has attained significant success in efficient parallelization of applications. Requiring the user to only decompose the computation into a large number of objects ("virtual processors"), Charm++ empowers its intelligent adaptive runtime system to assign and reassign the objects to processors at runtime. This facility is used to optimize execution, including dynamic load balancing. However, in complex applications, Charm++ programs obscure the overall flow of control: one must look at the code of multiple objects to discern how the sets of objects are orchestrated in a given application. In this paper, we present an orchestration notation that allows expression of Charm++ functionality without its fragmented flow of control.
Prototype-Driven Grammar Induction

We investigate prototype-driven learning for primarily unsupervised grammar induction. Prior knowledge is specified declaratively, by providing a few canonical examples of each target phrase type. This sparse prototype information is then propagated across a corpus using distributional similarity features, which augment an otherwise standard PCFG model. We show that distributional features are effective at distinguishing bracket labels, but not determining bracket locations. To improve the quality of the induced trees, we combine our PCFG induction with the CCM model of Klein and Manning (2002), which has complementary stengths: it identifies brackets but does not label them. Using only a handful of prototypes, we show substantial improvements over naive PCFG induction for English and Chinese grammar induction.
Peopling the Age of Elegance: Reinterpreting Spokane's Campbell House--A Collaboration

In the spring of 2001, Janice Williams Rutherford9s graduate public history seminar, "Interpreting History through Material Culture" at Washington State University joined in a collaborative project with the staff at Campbell House, a historic house museum owned by the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture in Spokane, Washington, and outside museum consultant Margaret Piatt. The students undertook the research required to draft a new interpretive script for the museum and worked with staff and consultant to identify appropriate objects and suggest interpretive dialogue gleaned from the archival research. Steven E. Shay, one of the students from the seminar, continued working with museum staff after the academic semester ended to refine the script for adults and school children. The project was a successful learning experience in the area of academic/public collaboration. This article explores its successes and its limitations.
Cardiovascular Effects of Caffeine and Stress in Regular Coffee Drinkers

The effects of caffeine on cardiovascular activity at rest and in response to psychological stress were studied in a group of 30 healthy males who were regular coffee drinkers to replicate caffeine-stress interactions found previously in caffeine-naive subjects. Measures of heart rate, blood pressure, and forearm blood flow were recorded at rest and during the performance of a stressful mental task in two separate sessions. Caffeine (250 mg) or placebo was administered double-blind in a within-subject design. Relative to placebo, caffeine had a pressor effect at rest which persisted during stress and recovery such that blood pressure during stress was higher if caffeine had been consumed. Caffeine also magnified the forearm blood flow and forearm vascular resistance responses to stress, suggestive of a synergistic interaction of caffeine and stress. Analysis of individual difference variables suggested that caffeine effects on the forearm vascular variables were greatest in subjects who were Type B and had a positive family history of hypertension. Results suggest that regular caffeine use does not necessarily lead to tolerance for caffeine-stress interactions and that certain characteristics may be associated with greater sensitivity to caffeine's effects.
Reliability Modeling of Generation Systems Including Unconventional Energy Sources

A method for reliability evaluation of electric power systems with unconventional energy sources, such as solar power plants and wind turbine generators, is presented. The fluctuating nature of energy produced by such unconventional units has a different effect on the overall system reliabilitv than conventional units. Methods described in the published literature appear to have several deficiencies. The method presented in this paper combines conventional and unconventional units into separate groups. The analysis proceeds by creating a generation system model for each group. The models of the unconventional groups are modified hourly depending on the limitations of energy. All the models are combined hourly to find the loss of load expectation and the frequency of capacity deficiency for the hour in question. This procedure is accomplished using a discrete state algorithm as well as the method of cumulants. Results obtained in a case study using the proposed method are described.
Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging and endothelin-1: a step forward in the detection of microvascular obstruction.

In recent years, cardiac magnetic resonance has become an indispensable clinical and research tool widely used for the assessment of cardiac function and infarct size in patients following an acute myocardial infarction (MI). Left ventricular size and function are well known and important predictors of adverse remodeling and cardiac death after an ischemic event. However, the presence of myocardial stunning and/or hibernation in patients following MI has demonstrated that left ventricular function may provide a poor estimation of the severity and the extent of myocardial damage. The development of contrastenhanced cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (ce-CMR) to highlight differences in tissue characteristics has played a decisive role in the expansion of this non-invasive technique in cardiology. In particular, late gadolinium contrast enhancement allows easy differentiation between areas of infarction and scar from normal myocardium and blood pool. This technique has been shown to have high spatial resolution, great reproducibility and good correlation with the histopathological infarcted areas. Moreover by delineating the transmural extent of irreversibly infarcted myocardium, potentially salvageable myocardium can be evaluated. This distinction of dysfunctional yet viable myocardium is of crucial importance for the management of cardiac patients in predicting functional recovery following acute reperfusion to improve patient outcomes and long-term prognosis. In spite of the monumental achievements in improving patient prognosis following an acute MI, the integrity and maintenance of microvascular perfusion during acute myocardial reperfusion remains an important target. Even with successful restoration of epicardial coronary patency after MI, adequate reperfusion is not always achieved at the microvascular level. Microvascular obstruction (MO) can be assessed using different methods as summarized in Table 1. However, ce-CMR provides a direct assessment of myocardial perfusion and is widely considered the reference technique for MO identification and direct quantification.
Reliability of MIM HAO capacitor for 70nm DRAM

In order to verify the package reliability of a MIM HAO capacitor module, mass production 256M DDR processes with 0.1 /spl mu/m design rule were adopted. The capacitor dielectrics used were HAH and Hf/sub x/Al/sub y/O/sub z/ and showed Tox.eq of 12/spl Aring/ and Lc of<0.2 fA/cell, respectively. With proper thermal compensation for adjusting the cell Vt, we could get a high probe test yield, and high package yield when a MIM HAO capacitor was introduced instead of an SIS Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ capacitor. With package samples, the refresh time of the device did not degrade after IR and EFR stresses, and finally, we could confirm the reliability of MIM HAO capacitors at package level through long term operation lifetime testing.
Regulation of TGF-α-induced activation of AP-1 in the aging gastric mucosa

Although the age-related activation of EGF receptor (EGFR) in the gastric mucosa of Fischer 344 rats is associated with increased DNA binding activity of activator protein-1 (AP-1), little is known...
Astrocytic Processes Ensheathing Synaptic Glomeruli cause Anomalous Extracellular Diffusion

Brain extracellular space forms a channel where signaling molecules, growth factors and therapeutics diffuse. Characterization and quantification of the extracellular diffusion is thus important for intercellular signaling and drug delivery. We have recently reported that the extracellular diffusion is anomalous in the granular layer of rat cerebellar slices (anomalous diffusion model quantified an average anomalous exponent dw = 5.0). In this respect, the granular layer significantly differs from most brain regions where the extracellular diffusion is normal (i.e., dw ≈ 2.0). In biological systems, anomalous diffusion may be caused by concave geometrical formations that transiently trap diffusing particles. In rat granular layer, large and abundant synaptic glomeruli formed by concave processes of astrocytes that ensheathe complex synapses may function as the traps. To test this hypothesis, we employed Integrative Optical Imaging method to measure diffusion of small dextran molecules (MW 3000) in the granular layer of isolated turtle cerebellum where complex synapses are present but have no or very limited astrocytic ensheathment. In turtle granular layer, the anomalous diffusion model quantified dw = 2.6, which is significantly less than dw = 5.0 observed in rat granular layer but similar to dw extracted from normal diffusion in a free medium (2.1) and in other brain regions (e.g., 2.3 in rat neocortex). Thus the extracellular diffusion was normal in the granular layer of turtle cerebellum that lacks trap-like astrocytic ensheathment of synaptic glomeruli. In conclusion, diffusion measurements in turtle support our hypothesis that astrocytic processes ensheathing synaptic glomeruli cause anomalous extracellular diffusion. Our approach is potentially useful for quantification of astrocytic ensheathment in the living brain under normal and pathological conditions. Our result also has implications for the interstitial transport of molecules and drugs in brain regions containing synaptic glomeruli. Supported by NIH(NS047557).
Cardiac arrhythmias elicited by the two-step exercise test

The resting, exercise and postexercise electrocardiograms of 600 patients who were examined successively and who underwent 1,145 two-step tests were analyzed for arrhythmias. Arrhythmias were found in 170 patients (28.3 percent); the incidence was greatest in men with organic heart disease (38 percent). Patients with organic heart disease manifested practically every type of arrhythmia except sustained ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation. The arrhythmias were not only unsuspected but explained the patients' chief complaints. Exercise had no apparent effect on the majority of arrhythmias that were already revealed in the resting electrocardiogram. Our findings suggest that vigorous antiarrhythmic measures are advisable to relieve symptoms and prevent possible progression of the rhythm disorder to life-threatening ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation