cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Physiological, behavioral, and ecological aspects of migration in reptiles

Seasonal movements between foraging, breeding, and overwintering sites occur in a wide variety of reptile species. Terrestrial snakes, lizards, and turtles migrate short distances (<20 km) between seasonal habitats, whereas fully aquatic marine turtles migrate hundreds to thousands of kilometers between foraging and breeding areas. The purpose of this article is to summarize aspects of migratory physiology and behavior in reptiles, particularly with regards to energetics and sensory mechanisms for navigation and orientation. We discuss the influence of aerobic scope, endurance, and cost of transport on migratory capacity, the effects of temperature and circulating hormones on activity and behavior, and mechanisms of detecting and transducing environmental cues to successfully navigate and orient toward a goal during migration. Topics worthy of further research are highlighted in the text, and we conclude with a discussion of how information on migration patterns of reptiles may be used to manage and conserve threatened populations.
Modeling degranulation with liposomes: Effect of lipid composition on membrane fusion

Degranulation involves the regulated fusion of granule membrane with plasma membrane. To study the role of lipid composition in degranulation, large unilamellar vesicles (LUVs) of increasing complexity in lipid compositions were constructed and tested for Ca(2+)-mediated lipid and contents mixing. Lipid-mixing rates of LUVs composed of phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) and phosphatidylserine (PS) were strongly decreased by the addition of either phosphatidylcholine (PC) or sphingomyelin (SM), while phosphatidylinositol (PI) had little effect. "Complex" LUVs of PC:PE:SM:PI:PS (24:27:20:16:13, designed to emulate neutrophil plasma membranes) also showed very low rates of both lipid mixing and contents mixing. The addition of cholesterol significantly lowered the Ca2+ threshold for contents mixing and increased the maximum rates of both lipid and contents mixing in a dose-dependent manner. Membrane remodeling, which occurs in neutrophil plasma membranes upon stimulation, was simulated by incorporating low levels of phosphatidic acid (PA) or a diacylglycerol (DAG) into complex LUVs containing 50% cholesterol. The addition of PA both lowered the Ca2+ threshold and increased the rate of contents mixing in a dose-dependent manner, while the DAG had no significant effect. The interaction of dissimilar LUVs was also examined. Contents-mixing rates of LUVs of two different cholesterol contents were intermediate between the rates observed for the LUVs of identical composition. Thus, cholesterol needed to be present in only one fusing partner to enhance fusion. However, for PA to stimulate fusion, it had to be present in both sets of LUVs. These results suggest that the rate of degranulation may be increased by a rise in the cholesterol level of either the inner face of the plasma membrane or the outer face of the granule membrane. Further, the production of PA can promote fusion, and hence degranulation, whereas the subsequent conversion of PA to DAG may reverse this promotional effect.
The Cortical Mouse: A Piece of Forgotten History in Noninvasive Brain&#8211;Computer Interfaces

Early research on brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) was fueled by the study of event-related potentials (ERPs) by Farwell and Donchin, who are rightly credited for laying important groundwork for the BCI field. However, many other researchers have made substantial contributions that have escaped the radar screen of the current BCI community. For example, in the late 1980s, I worked with a brilliant multidisciplinary research group in electrical engineering at the University of Florida, Gainesville, headed by Dr. Donald Childers. Childers should be well known to long-time members of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society since he was the editor-in-chief of IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering in the 1970s and the recipient of one of the most prestigious society awards, the William J. Morlock Award, in 1973.
Characterization of the active site and insight into the binding mode of the anti-angiogenesis agent fumagillin to the manganese(II)-loaded methionyl aminopeptidase from Escherichia coli

EPR spectra were recorded for methionine aminopeptidase from Escherichia coli (EcMetAP-I) samples (~2.5 mM) to which one and two equivalents of Mn(II) were added (the latter is referred to as [MnMn(EcMetAP-I)]). The spectra for each sample were indistinguishable except that the spectrum of [MnMn(EcMetAP-I)] was twice as intense. The EPR spectrum of [MnMn(EcMetAP-I)] exhibited the characteristic six-line g≈2 EPR signal of mononuclear Mn(II) with Aav(55Mn)=9.3 mT (93 G) and exhibited Curie-law temperature dependence. This signal is typical of Mn(II) in a ligand sphere comprising oxygen and/or nitrogen atoms. Other features in the spectrum were observed only as the temperature was raised from that of liquid helium. The temperature dependences of these features are consistent with their assignment to excited state transitions in the S=1, 2 ... 5 non-Kramer’s doublets, due to two antiferromagnetically coupled Mn(II) ions with an S=0 ground state. This assignment is supported by the observation of a characteristic 4.5 mT hyperfine pattern, and by the presence of signals in the parallel mode consistent with a non-Kramers’ spin ladder. Upon the addition of the anti-angiogenesis agent fumagillin to [MnMn(EcMetAP-I)], very small changes were observed in the EPR spectrum. MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry indicated that fumagillin was, however, covalently coordinated to EcMetAP-I. Therefore, the inhibitory action of this anti-angiogenesis agent on EcMetAP-I appears to involve covalent binding to a polypeptide component at or near the active site rather than direct binding to the metal ions.
Tales from the Underground: A Natural History of Subterranean Life

We are all aware of the soil beneath our feet, yet how many of us stop and really think about it? A great diversity of life lies within the soil; it even contains organisms that have changed the course of human history In Tales from the Underground, David Wolfe takes readers on a tour of the soil and underground environment that ranges from the origins of life to the consequences of human impact on the Earth. The result is insight into a critical component of the natural world that many of us take for granted.
Silicon fertilization for disease management of rice in Florida

Abstract Although silicon is not considered an essential element; plant development, growth and yield has been increased in many graminaceous and some nongraminaceous crop species. Silicon also is known to reduce plant diseases especially in rice. Silicon fertilization has become a routine practice in Florida rice production. The information within provides an overview on the history of silicon in Florida, application of silicon and disease suppression by silicon and its interaction with fungicides and rice genotypes. Although the focus is on rice and organic soils, this information should be of interest to those working on other grass crops on organic soils as well as rice production on weathered, low-silicon mineral soils. An outlook and future research needs also are presented.
Psychological factors in dental disorders: a comprehensive approach

The modern dentist is doubtless familiar with the term psychosomatic in the dis­ cipline of medicine. Essentially it refers to the psychogenic basis of many physical disorders. The term as such is recent, and is in part a reaction to the somatopsychic approach to medicine which for two cen­ turies has underscored the psychological effects of bodily disorders. Thus, pain, discomfort and physical illness were seen to cause irritability, unhappiness, anxiety and other dysphoric feelings. There is abundant evidence, however, that the situation may be the reverse. Feelings, motives, and attitudes— of which the in­ dividual may or may not be aware— can and do cause drastic changes in body structure and body function. It is not unusual to hear pediatricians, gynecolo­ gists, internists and skin specialists talk like psychologists and psychiatrists. Since the terms psychosomatic and somatopsychic suggest an artificial duality between mind and body, in which the one has an apparently irreversible effect on the other, their use is unfortunate. In reality the emphasis should be on the behavior of the whole person. The em­ phasis should be on the interaction, the interrelation, the covariation of the two elements of these terms, so that the pri­ macy of one over the other ceases to exist except in terms of the professional predi­ lections of a particular scientific dis­ cipline. What each discipline chooses to study, to understand and control, or to treat is only a facet of a multi-faceted whole person. Naturally, because dentists are fre­ quently more human than scientist, they tend to behave as if that facet which falls within their professional purview is the most important, or even the only one. The inadequacy of such a professional attitude has already been recognized by some circles of the medical profession. The term medical psychology is becoming more fashionable these days than psycho­ somatic medicine, and it is intended to be broader and to include a wider variety of interactions. This term is not much improvement over the older one, however, because it retains the suggestion of duality, and neglects the contributions of such other disciplines as anthropology, sociology and guidance. A more recent term, comprehensive medicine, has been suggested.1 This term seems more in keeping with the current vogue in medical thinking, with the basic premise o f a multifaceted whole person, and with research evidence bearing on the interaction of mental, social and physiological processes in causing illness.
α-Oxygenation of a trans-3,4-disubstituted γ-lactone. A comparative study

The available methods for the α-oxygenation of a carbonyl derivative are examined for a trans-3,4-disubstituted γ-lactone and analyzed with respect to chemical yield and diastereomeric control.
Glutaric acidemia type II: heterogeneity of clinical and biochemical phenotypes

We have examined 23 fibroblast lines from patients with neonatal and late onset glutaric acidemia type II and fibroblasts from four parents of these patients. Fifteen of these patients are previously unreported. Results of these investigations show deficiency of electron transfer flavoprotein or electron transfer flavoprotein-ubiquinone oxidoreductase activity in all of the patients' fibroblasts. Immunoblots indicate that the steady state levels of the antigens is very low or undetectable in most of the neonatal onset patients; however, cross-reacting antigen without electron transfer activity is observed in several glutaric acidemia type II fibroblast lines. Assay of parental lines confirm the autosomal transmission of deficiencies of proteins. Of particular interest is the clinical heterogeneity among these patients. Patients may present with an extrapyramidal movement disorder as observed in glutaric aciduria type I, without the typical organic aciduria typical of glutaric acidemia type II even in the presence of severe enzyme deficiency, or with renal cystic dysplasia accompanying electron transfer flavoprotein deficiency. Renal cystic dysplasia had previously been reported only in patients with electron transfer flavoprotein-ubiquinone oxidoreductase deficiency.
Functional Characterization of the Chicken Peptide Transporter 1 (Pept1, Slc15a1) Gene

Dietary amino acids can be transported into intestinal epithelial cells as di- and tripeptides by the action of the peptide transporter, PepT1 (SLC15A1). Expression of the chicken PepT1 (cPepT1) gene changes in response to dietary crude protein level; however, the molecular mechanism governing this regulation is unknown. This study analyzed the promoter region of the cPepT1 gene. Using deletion analysis, positive-acting (-314 to -261, -169 to -155, and -120 to -60) and negative-acting (-419 to -386 and -214 to -169) regions were mapped in transfected chick embryo fibroblasts (CEF). The addition of neither amino acids Phe, Arg, or Val, nor the dipeptides Gly-Sar (glycyl-sarcosine), Gly-Pro, Gly-Phe, Met-Pro, Met-Lys or Lys-Lys, had an effect on cPepT1 promoter activity in transfected CEF. The cPepT1 promoter was more active in CEF and primary chicken intestinal cells than in chicken liver cells. This study represents a functional characterization of the molecular regulation of the chicken PepT1 gene.
The effect of thiodiglycol and dithiothreitol on the alkaline hydrolysis products of certain amino acid phenylthiohydantoins.

Abstract The thiazolinone and phenylthiohydantoin derivatives of most amino acids can be hydrolyzed with alkaline dithionite to generate the free amino acid. The acidification of this hydrolysate with 3 n HCl containing thiodiglycol leads in the case of glutamic acid, glutamine, aspartic acid, asparagine, and S -carboxymethyleysteine to the generation of ninhydrin-reacting components having the chromatographic properties of other amino acids. The use of dithiothreitol instead of thiodiglycol appears to be more satisfactory in most instances.
A simple derivation of transient queue statistics and applications

A simple derivation for the time derivative of a large class of statistics associated with the size of a queue is presented. This method is based on a discrete time approximation in conjunction with conditional expectation and is suitable for any queueing system with multiple interconnected and controlled queues such that the overall dynamics can be modeled as a continuous-time Markov chain. The general procedure is specialized to obtain the Jackson network time-varying kth moment of system size (queue+server) as well as several special cases. Results are also obtained for a network of queues with Erlangian servers. Applications of these results to closure approximations for Jackson networks and to the approximation of statistics of controlled queues are also given.
Complexes of lanthanide elements with mercapto acetate ligands

Abstract Stability constants have been determined by the Bjerrum method for the complexes of the α-mercaptoacetate ion with yttrium (III) and several trivalent lanthanide ions. The investigation indicates that the α-mercaptoacetate ion acts as a monodentate ligand.
Synthesis and Characterization of Repeating Sequence Copolymers of Fluorene and Methylene Monomers

A series of well-defined multiblock (mb) copolymers consisting of alternating 9,9-dihexylfluorene and methylene segments has been prepared. Poly(9,9-dihexylfluorene-mb-methylene)s (PFMs) with repeat units of FxMy (x = 1−4, y = 10, 18 and x = 5−8, y = 18) were assembled by tandem metal-catalyzed acyclic diene metathesis (ADMET) polymerization/hydrogenation from α,ω-olefin bearing precursors. The polymers exhibited weight-average molecular weights ranging from Mw = 10 to 57 kDa. The PFMs exhibit photophysical properties, absorbance, and emission consistent with the length of the fluorene sequence. Glass and melting transition temperatures also increase with fluorene segment length.
Avoidance deficits in rats after recovery from mild to moderate thiamin deficiency.

Rat littermates (Sprague-Dawley) were administered either a thiamin-deficient diet or an equivalent amount of complete control diet (pair-fed controls) for 2, 3, or 4 weeks beginning at 28 days of age. At the end of treatment all groups were allowed 30 days of recovery on ad lib. normal diet prior to testing in a Y-maze for avoidance and brightness discrimination acquisition. Y-maze testing lasted for 20 days, 25 trials/day. All three thiamin-deficient groups showed avoidance acquisition deficits, none showed discrimination deficits. The data indicate that even mild to moderate degrees of thiamin deficiency that do not produce over neurological symptoms are capable of producing long-term changes in behavior.
223 GLYCOHEMOGLOBIN (Hb AI c ): CORRELATION WITH MATERIAL BLOOD GLUCOSE CONTROL IN PREGNANCY

Hemoglobin AIc (Hb AIc), the glycosylated form (β-chain) of Hb A, normally comprises <6% of total hemoglobin, but has been found by us previously in third trimester diabetic pregnancy to be elevated (7-10%) and to correlate with infant birth weight. In contrast, non-pregnant uncontrolled diabetics have glycohemoglobin levels which may be 8-15% and may represent the integrated mean blood glucose level over the previous weeks and months. Since fetal size in infants of diabetic mothers has been related to maternal third trimester blood glucose control, we examined the relationship between third trimester maternal Hb AIc and maternal blood glucose control. Twelve diabetic women without evidence of vascular disease and with singleton births had Hb AIc levels determined in their third trimester using Amberlite cation exchange chromatography. Mean random blood glucose values (n=5-32) for each subject were determined for the twelve week period prior to Hb AIc measurement. Hb AIc correlated significantly with mean random blood glucose (r=0.84, p <0.01) as well as birth weight corrected for gestational age (r=0.78, p <0.01). In eight of these same women who required insulin, Hb AIc was determined serially 5-8 months postpartum. Seven of eight had higher Hb AIc levels postpartum (6.0±0.5 vs 8.4±0.6, M±SEM) at a time when glucose management was not accomplished. We speculate that lower levels of Hb AIc later in diabetic pregnancy are due to better blood glucose control during this period.
Understanding Dr. B. R. Ambedkar

Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, also called Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar in affection and respect, was born in 1891 in a Mahar Untouchable family and died in 1956 after a lifetime of service to his people and to India. His influence has spread throughout India and his image, a Western-dressed gentleman pointing to the future and carrying a book, is found in many villages and all cities. The book represents the Constitution of independent India. His followers know the facts of his life and are so reverential that one right wing critic called him a ‘false God’. The word now used broadly for Untouchables, Tribals, and other low castes and classes is ‘Dalit’, which means ground down, but began a proud use in the 1970s with a literary movement called ‘Dalit Sahitya’, made famous at first by the ‘Dalit Panthers’ named in reference to the militant American ‘Black Panthers’. Like the word ‘Black’, it can be a source of controversy today. The term coined by Mohandas K. Gandhi, ‘Harijan’ or people of God, was resented by Ambedkar as patronizing, and the two also clashed over the idea of separate electorates for untouchables; Gandhi's win is still resented by some as depriving Dalits of their chosen leaders. Dr. Ambedkar's influence may be seen in literature, in educational and political institutions, in a massive Buddhist conversion, and in increased pride and self-confidence among Dalits.
Home-Based Mental Health Services for Older Adults: A Review of Ten Model Programs

Objective The objective is to provide information on successful programs providing home-based services to mentally ill elderly in order to assist other communities wishing to establish such programs. Participants The ten programs described in this article were selected by peer review from applications for an award given by the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry and were participants in an invitational conference. Results Eight of the programs were components of a community agency and two were components of a medical school department of psychiatry. Six of the programs focused primarily on individuals with anxiety and depression and utilized a range of individual psychotherapies. The other four accepted patients with any psychiatric diagnosis including dementia and included medication management as part of their services. The numbers served by the ten programs ranged from about 50 to 300 new cases per year, and the staffing ranged from 2 to 13 often with a combination of full and part time. The annual budget for the ten programs ranged from $30,000 to $1,250,000. Budget sources usually included some combination of public funds, philanthropy, and fee-for-service income. Conclusions Despite the logistic and fiscal challenges of providing home-based services to mentally ill older adults there are many long-standing successful programs that can serve as models for communities wishing to establish similar programs. A great opportunity exists for a unified outcome research endeavor as well as expansion into many more communities.
Informing patients about drug side effects

Two hundred forty-nine newly diagnosed hypertensive patients prescribed thiazide medication were recruited for study. Two-thirds were given a leaflet or patient package insert (PPI) that described the drug and its possible side effects, and one-third were not. At a revisit about 1 month later, patients were asked whether they had experienced any of 17 different “health problems.” For each problem that they experienced, they were asked whether they thought the problem was related to the medicine they were taking. Ten of the health problems were taken verbatim from the PPI's list of possible drug side effects. Patients who received the PPI reported experiencing about the same number of side effects as the non-PPI subjects. However, those who recieved the PPI were more likely to attribute experienced reactions to the drug. This was true both for reactions specifically listed in the PPI and for similar reactions not listed. Results support the notion of an “attribution-labeling” process rather than a “suggestion” effect.
Cost-effectiveness of treatment and endoscopic surveillance of precancerous lesions to prevent gastric cancer

BACKGROUND: Although surveillance for Barrett esophagus and other gastrointestinal precancerous conditions is recommended, no analogous guidelines exist for gastric lesions. The objective of this study was to estimate the clinical benefits and cost-effectiveness of treatment and endoscopic surveillance to prevent gastric cancer. METHODS: The authors developed a state-transition decision model for a cohort of US men with a recent incidental diagnosis of gastric precancerous lesions (dysplasia, intestinal metaplasia, or atrophy). Strategies included 1) no surveillance or treatment and 2) referral for surveillance and treatment, and varied by surveillance frequency (none, every 10 years, every 5 years, or every year) and treatment modality for dysplastic and cancerous lesions (surgery or endoscopic mucosal resection [EMR]). The term “post-treatment surveillance” was restricted to surveillance of individuals after treatment. Data were based on published literature and databases. Outcomes included lifetime gastric cancer risk, quality-adjusted life expectancy, lifetime costs, and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios. RESULTS: For a cohort of men with dysplasia aged 50 years, the lifetime gastric cancer risk was 5.9%. EMR with annual surveillance reduced the lifetime cancer risk by 90% and cost $39,800 per quality-adjusted life year (QALY). Addition of post-treatment surveillance every 10 years provided little incremental benefit (∼5%) but cost >$1 million per QALY. Results were most sensitive to surgical risks and the proportion of lesions completely removed with EMR. For intestinal metaplasia, surveillance every 10 years reduced lifetime cancer risk by 61% and cost $544,500 per QALY. CONCLUSIONS: EMR with surveillance every 1 to 5 years for gastric dysplasia was promising for secondary cancer prevention and had a cost-effectiveness ratio that would be considered attractive in the United States. Endoscopic surveillance of less advanced lesions did not appear to be cost-effective, except possibly for immigrants from high-risk countries. Cancer 2010. © 2010 American Cancer Society.
The effects of IMF programs on U.S. foreign direct investment in the developing world

Given the popular wisdom that the U.S. government influences IMF policies and tends to support the business community, it might be expected that IMF programs benefit U.S. firms abroad and thus borrower nations are attractive destinations for U.S. foreign direct investment (FDI). Surprisingly, no study has tested the impact of IMF loans on U.S. FDI. Controlling for common explanations in the literature, we use a treatment effects model and interviews with IMF staff researchers to investigate whether countries under different kinds of IMF programs receive more U.S. FDI than countries not under IMF arrangements. Using panel data for 126 developing countries from 1980 to 2003, we find that IMF borrowers tend to be more attractive to U.S. investors but not all IMF programs have the same effect. Our findings suggest that differences in loan duration, the extent of borrower input in policy decisions, and loan amounts affect borrowers’ leverage with the Fund and the U.S.
The role of coenzyme Q10 in the pathophysiology and therapy of experimental congestive heart failure in the dog

Abstract Background: Coenzyme Q 10 (CoQ 10 ) is essential for ATP generation and has antioxidant properties. Decreased CoQ 10 levels have been reported in human heart failure (CHF), but it remains unclear if this is a conserved feature of CHF. The objective of the study was to determine if tachycardia-induced CHF in the dog is associated with reduced CoQ 10 levels. Furthermore, it was hypothesized that CoQ 10 supplementation may improve CHF severity by preventing CoQ 10 deficiency (if present) or via antioxidant effects. Methods and Results: Serum and myocardial levels of CoQ 10 were examined in normal dogs (n = 6), dogs with CHF (control, n=5), and dogs with CHF treated with CoQ 10 (CoQ 10 ; 10 mg/kg/day, n=5). Serum CoQ 10 levels did not change with CHF in control dogs, and myocardial levels were similar to those of normal dogs. CoQ 10 therapy increased serum but not myocardial levels of CoQ 10 . In early CHF, CoQ 10 -treated dogs had lower filling pressures, and, in severe CHF, CoQ 10 -treated dogs had less hypertrophy as compared with untreated dogs. Other indices of CHF severity were similar in control and CoQ 10 -treated dogs. Conclusion: These data indicate that CoQ 10 deficiency is not present in this model of CHF. Although dramatic effects on hemodynamics were not observed, CoQ 10 supplementation did appear to attenuate the hypertrophic response associated with CHF.
Ecological risk assessment framework for low-altitude aircraft overflights: II. Estimating effects on wildlife.

An ecological risk assessment framework for aircraft overflights has been developed, with special emphasis on military applications. This article presents the analysis of effects and risk characterization phases; the problem formulation and exposure analysis phases are presented in a companion article. The framework addresses the effects of sound, visual stressors, and collision on the abundance and production of wildlife populations. Profiles of effects, including thresholds, are highlighted for two groups of endpoint species: ungulates (hoofed mammals) and pinnipeds (seals, sea lions, walruses). Several factors complicate the analysis of effects for aircraft overflights. Studies of the effects of aircraft overflights previously have not been associated with a quantitative assessment framework; therefore no consistent relations between exposure and population-level response have been developed. Information on behavioral effects of overflights by military aircraft (or component stressors) on most wildlife species is sparse. Moreover, models that relate behavioral changes to abundance or reproduction, and those that relate behavioral or hearing effects thresholds from one population to another are generally not available. The aggregation of sound frequencies, durations, and the view of the aircraft into the single exposure metric of slant distance is not always the best predictor of effects, but effects associated with more specific exposure metrics (e.g., narrow sound spectra) may not be easily determined or added. The weight of evidence and uncertainty analyses of the risk characterization for overflights are also discussed in this article.
Action of Azotobacter vinelandii poly-β-d-mannuronic acid C-5-epimerase on synthetic d-glucuronans

Abstract Eleven different glucans (wheat starch, potato amylopectin, potato amylose, pullulan, alternan, regular comb dextran, α-cellulose, microcrystalline cellulose, CM-cellulose, chitin, and chitosan) that had their C-6 primary alcohol groups oxidized to carboxyl groups by reaction with 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-piperidine oxoammonium ion (TEMPO), were reacted with Azotobacter vinelandii poly-β-(1→4)- d -mannuronic acid C-5-epimerase. All of the oxidized polysaccharides reacted with the C-5-epimerase, as evidenced by comparing: (1) differences in the relative viscosities; (2) differences in the carbazole reaction; (3) differences in their susceptibility to acid hydrolysis, and (4) differences in their ability to form calcium gels, before and after reaction. We further show the formation of l -iduronic acid from d -glucuronic acid for oxidized and epimerized amylose by 2D NOESY and COSY+1H NMR.
Safely backdriving low voltage devices at in-circuit test

Effective in-circuit digital testing sometimes forces upstream devices to an opposite logic level with large currents during the test. Safely "backdriving" has been a challenge for in-circuit digital testing since its introduction two decades ago. A widely used approach has been to limit the duration of the backdrive current based on physical device parameters and failure mechanisms. This predictive method has recently been updated based on new research using modern low voltage (LV) logic families
Systematic Analyses of Practical Problems Related to Defects and Metallic Impurities in Silicon

Systematic approaches are introduced for (i) oxygen precipitation behavior, which is important for internal gettering, and (ii) segregation induced gettering behaviors of p/p+ epitaxial wafers and Poly-Si Back Seal (PBS) wafers. (i) Oxygen precipitation behavior during a whole sequence of a thermal process is predicted by a practical computer simulation technique involving a novel empirical function. The predicted oxygen precipitation behavior agrees with the corresponding experimental results reasonably well. (ii) For a systematic description of Fe segregation gettering, explicit expressions of the Fe segregation coefficients are obtained as functions of temperature and time. Using the determined expressions of the segregation coefficients and introducing diffusion dynamics, one can predict [Fe] behavior as a function of process time during a whole sequence of a thermal process. For both behaviors of(i) oxygen precipitation and (ii) segregation induced gettering, experimentally observed characteristics of a high-temperature process and a low-temperature process are well understood by aids of those simulations. (iii) For a high-sensitivity detection of an important heavy metal impurity Cu, we present a novel bulk impurity collection technique using a room-temperature Cu drift phenomenon accelerated by Corona charge showering on a Si wafer surface.
Negative ECG-gated cardiac CT in patients with low-to-moderate risk chest pain in the emergency department: 1-year follow-up.

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this article is to determine the frequency of adverse cardiac events during the year following a negative cardiac CT angiogram in a population of patients presenting to the emergency department with low-to-moderate risk chest pain.SUBJECTS AND METHODS. Eighty-one consecutive patients who had standard of care evaluation for low-to-moderate risk chest pain in the emergency department were enrolled and consented to have a cardiac CT angiogram added to their workup and to have follow-up for 1 year. Eleven patients were excluded, six because their cardiac CT examinations were unsuccessful, four because of a positive cardiac CT angiogram result, and one was lost to follow-up. Seventy patients with negative cardiac CT angiographic results (< 50% stenosis) were included and were interviewed in detail at 3, 6, and 12 months about intervening cardiac events, diagnostic testing, and therapy. Electronic medical records were also reviewed at each time point.RESULTS. None of the 70 patients re...
Bilinear Mixed Effects Models for Dyadic Data

This article discusses the use of a symmetric multiplicative interaction effect to capture certain types of third-order dependence patterns often present in social networks and other dyadic datasets. Such an effect, along with standard linear fixed and random effects, is incorporated into a generalized linear model, and a Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm is provided for Bayesian estimation and inference. In an example analysis of international relations data, accounting for such patterns improves model fit and predictive performance.
A comparative analysis of coarse-grain and fine-grain power gating for FPGA lookup tables

Leakage power dissipation is becoming a concern in field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) due to scaling in FPGA technology. Widely available commercial FPGAs are based on lookup tables (LUTs) consisting of SRAM arrays and multiplexers. In this paper, we analyze the leakage power dissipation in the SRAM-array of a FPGA LUT for a 65nm CMOS process. We apply power-gating to an FPGA LUT SRAM array in two different ways, namely, coarse-grain power gating and fine-grain power gating. We carry out a comparative analysis of the two methods. In our research, we found that power-gating can be employed to drastically reduce the leakage power dissipation in the SRAM. More leakage savings were obtained with coarse-grain power-gating than with fine-grain power gating. The coarse-grain and fine-grain power-gating techniques yielded approximately 99 percent and 81 percent leakage savings, respectively, over the case where no power-gating is applied.
Buddhist Politics and Their Revolutionary Origins in Thailand

Thailand is often viewed as an Asian country which has experienced no fundamental revolutionary change because the two major institutions on which the Thai nation is predicated—the monarchy and the...
Modeling and simulation of hot-carrier-induced device degradation in MOS circuits

The physical models and an integrated simulation tool are presented for estimating the hot-carrier-induced degradation of nMOS transistor characteristics and circuit performance. The proposed reliability simulation tool incorporates an accurate one-dimensional MOSFET model for representing the electrical behavior of locally damaged transistors. The hot-carrier-induced oxide damage can be specified by only a few parameters, avoiding extensive parameter extractions for the characterization of device damage. The physical degradation model includes both fundamental device degradation mechanisms, i.e., charge trapping and interface trap generation. A repetitive simulation scheme has been adopted to ensure accurate prediction of the circuit-level degradation process under dynamic operating conditions. >
The asymmetric transmission properties of a single dressed sub-wavelength aperture

We demonstrate that the optical transmission properties of a sub-wavelength aperture with surrounding periodic nanostructuring are determined primarily by the properties of the illuminated surface. This is in sharp contrast to the behavior of a periodic array of sub-wavelength apertures.
Interpolating the stage of exponential expansion in the early universe: Possible alternative with no reheating

In the standard picture, the inflationary universe is in a supercooled state which ends with a short time, large scale reheating period, after which the universe goes into a radiation-dominated stage. An alternative is proposed here in which the radiation energy density smoothly decreases all during an inflationlike stage and with no discontinuity enters the subsequent radiation-dominated stage. The scale factor is calculated from standard Friedmann cosmology in the presence of both radiation and vacuum energy density. A large class of solutions confirm the above identified regime of nonreheating inflationlike behavior for observationally consistent expansion factors and not too large a drop in the radiation energy density. One dynamical realization of such inflation without reheating is from warm inflation-type scenarios. However the solutions found here are properties of the Einstein equations with generality beyond slow-roll inflation scenarios. The solutions also can be continuously interpolated from the nonreheating-type behavior to the standard supercooled limit of exponential expansion, thus giving all intermediate inflationlike behavior between these two extremes. The temperature of the universe and the expansion factor are calculated for various cases. Implications for baryongenesis are discussed. This nonreheating, inflationlike regime also appears to have some natural features for a universe thatmore » is between nearly flat and open. {copyright} {ital 1997} {ital The American Physical Society}« less
The side-chain positioning problem: a semidefinite programming formulation with new rounding schemes

Side-chain positioning is a central component of the protein structure prediction problem and has been the focus of a large body of research. The problem is NP-complete; in fact, it is even inapproximable. In practice, it is tackled by a variety of general search techniques and specialized heuristics. We investigate a new formulation of the problem as a semidefinite program. We introduce two novel rounding schemes and provide theoretical justifications for their effectiveness under various input conditions. We also present computational results on simulated data that show that our method outperforms a recently introduced linear programming approach on a wide range of inputs. Beyond the context of side-chain positioning, we are hopeful that our rounding schemes, which are very general, will be applicable elsewhere.
Epithelial interleukin-4 receptor expression promotes colon tumor growth

Inflammatory mediators are of considerable interest as potential therapeutic targets in various cancers. Here we investigate whether interleukin (IL)-4 receptor alpha (IL4Ralpha), a component of the receptor complex for the T helper 2 cytokines IL4 and IL13, plays a role in colonic tumorigenesis. IL4Ralpha protein expression was seen in tumor cells of 28/48 human colon adenocarcinomas on a tissue microarray. In human and murine colon tumor cell lines analyzed in vitro, all of which expressed IL4Ralpha, treatment with exogenous ligand resulted in dose-dependent increases in proliferation. IL4 decreased apoptosis only in HCT116 cells. An orthotopic allograft model was used to determine in vivo effects of tumor cell-specific IL4Ra ablation. MC38 murine tumor cells with the IL4Ra gene knocked down showed reduced proliferation but no difference in apoptosis compared with controls after implantation in ceca of syngeneic mice. Mice null for IL4Ra and wild-type controls were treated with azoxymethane and dextran sulfate sodium to induce tumor formation. Mice with global deletion of IL4Ra had significantly fewer and smaller tumors. Reduced tumorigenicity correlated with decreased proliferation and increased apoptosis. Systemic blockade of IL4Ralpha-IL4 interactions with a chimeric soluble receptor protein gave similar results in the cecal implant model. Thus, IL4Ralpha, a component of the IL4R and IL13R, contributes to tumor formation in a mouse model of colitis-associated cancer. Proliferation appears to be directly mediated via IL4Ralpha on the epithelial tumor cells. Survival may be an indirect response mediated via other host cells. Our results support therapeutic targeting of IL4Ralpha in colon cancer.
Plant Anticancer Agents XXVII: Antileukemic and Cytotoxic Constituents of Dirca occidentalis (Thymelaeaceae)

Two antileukemic daphnane esters, Pimelea factor P2 (I) and the new compound dircin (II), were isolated from the twigs and flowers of Dirca occidentalis A. Gray (Thymelaeaceae). Three lignans, (-)-medioresinol (III), (+)-syringaresinol (IV), and (-)-lariciresinol (V), as well as the coumarin daphnoretin (VI), were found to be additional cytotoxic constitents of this taxon.
PROTOTROPY IN KAOLINITE DURING PERCUSSIVE GRINDING

When kaolinite undergoes percussive grinding, pronounced changes take place in its i.r. absorption spectrum even in the earliest stages of the grinding when the lattice is not yet destroyed. In this report, attention is directed to the change in the stretching bands of the hydroxyl ions. A remarkably rapid effect on the band of the intralayer hydroxyl ions has been observed and is attributed to a permanent removal of the protons from these ions. Auxiliary measurements of X-ray diffraction, thermal water loss, and DTA were used to corroborate the spectroscopic evidence for this ready prototropy.
State Variation in Underinsurance Among Children With Special Health Care Needs in the United States

OBJECTIVE: National attention has focused on providing health insurance coverage for children. Less awareness has been given to underinsurance, particularly for children with special health care needs (CSHCN). Defined as having inadequate benefits, underinsurance may be a particular problem for CSHCN because of their greater needs for medical care. METHODS: We used the 2005–2006 National Survey of Children With Special Health Care Needs, a nationally representative study of >40 000 CSHCN, to address state variations in underinsurance. CSHCN with health insurance were considered underinsured when a parent reported that the child9s insurance did not usually or always cover needed services and providers or reasonably cover costs. We calculated the unadjusted prevalence of underinsurance for each state. Using logistic regression, we estimated state-specific odds and prevalence for underinsurance after adjusting for poverty level, race/ethnicity, gender, family structure, language use, insurance type, and severity of child9s health condition. We also conducted multilevel analyses incorporating state-level contextual data on Medicaid and the State Children9s Health Insurance Program. RESULTS: Bivariate and multivariate analyses indicated that CSHCN′s state of residence had a strong association with insurance adequacy. State-level unadjusted underinsurance rates ranged from 24% (Hawaii) to 38% (Illinois). After multivariate adjustments, the range was largely unchanged: 23% (Hawaii) to 38% (New Jersey). Multilevel analyses indicated that Medicaid income eligibility levels were inversely associated with the odds of being underinsured. CONCLUSIONS: The individual-level and macro-level factors examined only partly explain state variations in underinsurance. Furthermore, the macro-level factors explained only a small portion of the variance; however, other macro-level factors may be relevant for the observed patterns.
Analysis and design of a high-Q differential active inductor with wide tuning range

The analysis and design of a high- Q differential active inductor with wide tuning range is presented in this study. The self-resonant frequency (SRF) and quality factor ( Q ) of the inductor can be tuned independently. The inductor was implemented in a 0.13 μm CMOS process. The measured SRF is tunable from 0.5 to 10.2 GHz. The obtained maximum quality factor is as high as 3000. The analysis shows that higher inductance corresponds to higher inductor noise while the correlation between quality factor and noise is relatively weak. Measurement results confirmed these predictions. The measured results show that this inductor structure is suitable for broadband reconfigurable radio-frequency system development. Further analysis and measurements show that the inductor is intrinsically non-linear, so are gyrator-C-based active inductors in general. A compensation circuit is proposed to improve the linearity characteristics of such inductors.
Anionic derivatives of uracil: fragmentation and reactivity

Uracil is an essential biomolecule for terrestrial life, yet its prebiotic formation mechanisms have proven elusive for decades. Meteorites have been shown to contain uracil and the interstellar abundance of aromatic species and nitrogen-containing molecules is well established, providing support for uracil's presence in the interstellar medium (ISM). The ion chemistry of uracil may provide clues to its prebiotic synthesis and role in the origin of life. The fragmentation of biomolecules provides valuable insights into their formation. Previous research focused primarily on the fragmentation and reactivity of cations derived from uracil. In this study, we explore deprotonated uracil-5-carboxylic acid and its anionic fragments to elucidate novel reagents of uracil formation and to characterize the reactivity of uracil's anionic derivatives. The structures of these fragments are identified through theoretical calculations, further fragmentation, experimental acidity bracketing, and reactivity with several detected and potential interstellar species (SO2, OCS, CS2, NO, N2O, CO, NH3, O2, and C2H4). Fragmentation is achieved through collision induced dissociation (CID) in a commercial ion trap mass spectrometer, and all reaction rate constants are measured using a modification of this instrument. Experimental data are supported by theoretical calculations at the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory. Lastly, the astrochemical implications of the observed fragmentation and reaction processes are discussed.
The psychology of robots

In recent years, neural networks have been proposed that portray many of the complexities of adaptive behavior. The networks describe how agents learn to predict future events by: 1) building models of the would, 2) inferring new predictions from past experiences, 3) combining elementary environmental stimuli into complex internal representations, 4) attending to stimuli associated with environmental novelty, and 5) attending to stimuli that are good predictors of other environmental events. When a predictive network is attached to a goal seeking system, the resulting architecture is able to describe spatial and maze navigation, as well as problem solving and planning. When the predictions of future events are based on the combination of environmental stimuli and the animal's own responses the networks provide the information necessary to choose between alternative behaviors. When the agent's own responses can be identified with the responses of other agents, the networks can describe learning by imitation. It is suggested that these principles might be applied to the design of adaptive, communicating autonomous robots.
Microzonation in Wind Engineering

The writers indicate a direction for the improvement of the wind design of structures. The direction involves the extension of previous wind speed mapping procedures to incorporate local meteorological conditions in the development of a wind speed map for a local geographic region. A case study indicates several important elements which must be incorporated in a wind microzonation study. Structural engineering examples demonstrate the importance of microzonation in the establishment of design wind loads.
The Triangle Research Libraries Network: A History and Philosophy

This article provides the history of the Triangle Research Libraries Network (TRLN) and of library cooperation since the 1940's.