cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) measurements on conjugated polymers and studies of poly-(n-vinyl carbazole) (PVK) based LEDs

Combinatorial screening of poly (9-vinyl carbazole) (PVK) OLEDs is described. The brightness of the devices improved 10 fold by treating the poly (3,4-ethylenedioxy- thiophene)/poly (styrene sulfonate) (PEDO/PSS) hole injecting layer with ethylene glycol (EG) and 5 fold with optimizing the thickness of the hole blocking layer (HBL) and electron transport layer (ETL) which results in increased electron injection. The optimized device exhib i ted a maximal rad iance R 200 mW/cm 2 and ex te rna l quan tum ef f ic iency r j e x l -1 .0 % with an electroluminescence (EL) spectrum edge at 350 nm and peak at 410 nm.. Introduction PVK has been studied since 1946 and since the 70s it is used as the thin photoconductive layer in xerography [1], Only recently, with developing interests in OLEDs, it is being considered as a hole transport layer (HTL) or as a host material for several other doping materials [2], due to its large gap and high triplet energy [3]. Excimer emission from PVK was reported as earlier as 1969 [4]. However, it has not been used as an actual emitting material in OLEDs, due to its large highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) gap of 4.9 eV [5], The HOMO of PVK, measured from the vacuum level, is 6.1 eV. Since the work function of indium-tin oxide (ITO) is 5 eV, the barrier to hole injection is > 1 eV, and hole injection
Sensor array shape estimation using active sonar clutter

This paper concerns the problem of array shape estimation from clutter (ASEC) for a towed active sonar array. Although heading sensors can provide towed-array shape information, they are sometimes not sufficiently available or accurate to facilitate beamforming with low sidelobe levels necessary for detection of low-Doppler targets, especially in the presence of severe bottom reverberation. We propose a maximum likelihood array shape calibration technique that exploits the azimuth-Doppler frequency relationship of the clutter by fitting the reverberation snapshots from a single sonar ping to the low rank space-time clutter subspace.
The current status of cardiovascular surgery in the People's Republic of China.

Dr. David Bregman was invited to participate in a thirteen-physician American Teaching Delegation led by Dr. Tsung O. Cheng, Professor of Medicine at George Washington University Medical Center in Washington, D.C. The trip was sponsored by the American College of Physicians. Deputy Director of the delegation was Dr. Samuel Asper, Deputy Executive Vice President of the American College of Physicians and Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins University. The American Teaching Delegation was the first of its kind to be invited to lecture and impart new medical-surgical techniques throughout the People's Republic of China. The trip lasted approximately one month, from September to October, 1979, and included the September 30 to October 1 celebrations in Peking commemorating the 30th Anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Principal cities visited were Peking and Shanghai, as well as Chengtu, Chungking, and Wuhan. Dr. Bregman demonstrated, for the first time in the People's Republic of China, intraaortic balloon pumping, a new percutaneous intraaortic balloon, and other cardiac assist techniques.
Applications of the Chinese Remainder Theorem

In the last chapter we showed that there is a unique polynomial f(x) with real coefficients of degree < n whose graph y = f(x) passes through any n specified points with distinct abscissas. Finding a polynomial passing through a given set of points is called interpolation. In this chapter we give two applications of interpolation, one classical, one modern.
The Curious Exclusion of Corporations from the Privileges and Immunities Clause of Article IV

Since the mid-nineteenth century, courts consistently have held that corporations cannot be citizens for purposes of the Privileges and Immunities Clause of Article I of the U.S. Constitution. Judges reasoned that because corporations were not humans, they were unable to be “citizens” eligible for the clause’s protection against discriminatory treatment by states. Yet the Supreme Court also held that corporations were citizens for purposes of federal judicial jurisdiction, as well as “persons” under the Fourteenth Amendment. Extending these constitutional protections to corporations is based on the idea that businesses are owned by actual people who are harmed when their companies suffer from arbitrary treatment by government. Precisely the same rationale was a major reason for including the Privileges and Immunities Clause in the Constitution.This essay examines the history of the exclusion of corporations from Article IV, and compares it to the Court’s extension of Fourteenth Amendment rights and diversity jurisdiction in federal courts to business entities. In hindsight, it would have been more logical for the Court to have likewise decided that corporations should be treated as citizens for purposes of Article IV. When interstate corporations are harmed by state discrimination, the actual losers are individual shareholders. While it is highly unlikely that the Court would reverse more than 150 years of precedent and apply the clause to corporations, a study of the history involved reveals significant changes in attitudes about corporations and citizenship since the creation of the Constitution.
Bats initiate vital agroecological interactions in corn

In agroecosystems worldwide, bats are voracious predators of crop pests and may provide services to farmers worth billions of U.S. dollars. However, such valuations make untested assumptions about the ecological effect of bats in agroecosystems. Specifically, estimates of the value of pest suppression services assume bats consume sufficient numbers of crop pests to affect impact pest reproduction and subsequent damage to crops. Corn is an essential crop for farmers, and is grown on more than 150 million hectares worldwide. Using large exclosures in corn fields, we show that bats exert sufficient pressure on crop pests to suppress larval densities and damage in this cosmopolitan crop. In addition, we show that bats suppress pest-associated fungal growth and mycotoxin in corn. We estimate the suppression of herbivory by insectivorous bats is worth more than 1 billion USD globally on this crop alone, and bats may further benefit farmers by indirectly suppressing pest-associated fungal growth and toxic compounds on corn. Bats face a variety of threats globally, but their relevance as predators of insects in ubiquitous corn-dominated landscapes underlines the economic and ecological importance of conserving biodiversity.
Lateral drug diffusion in human nails.

The main objective of the current work is to demonstrate the process of passive lateral diffusion in the human nail plate and its effect on the passive transungual permeation of antifungal drug ciclopirox olamine (CPO). A water soluble dye, methyl red sodium salt (MR) was used to visualize the process of lateral diffusion using a novel suspended nail experiment. The decline in concentration of CPO correlates with that of concentration of MR from the proximal to the distal end of the nail in suspended nail study. Three toenails each were trimmed to 5 mm × 5 mm (25 mm2), 7 mm × 7 mm (49 mm2), and 9 mm × 9 mm (81 mm2) to study the extent and effect of lateral diffusion of the CPO on its in vitro transungual permeation. The permeation flux of CPO decreased as the surface area of the toenail increased. There was a positive correlation between the concentrations of CPO and MR in the area of application and in the peripheral area of the toenails of the three surface areas, confirming the findings in the suspended nail experiment. Profound lateral diffusion of CPO was demonstrated and shown to reduce the in vitro passive transungual drug permeation and prolong the lag-time in human toenails. The study data implies that during passive in vitro transungual permeation experiments, the peripheral nail around the area of drug application has to be kept to a minimum, in order to get reliable data which mimics the in vivo situation.
Survey of Florida green turtles for exposure to a disease-associated herpesvirus

A recently developed enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to assess exposure of Florida wild green turtles Chelonia mydas to LETV, the herpesvirus associated with lung-eye-trachea disease (LETD). Plasma samples from 329 wild juvenile green turtles netted in the Indian River lagoon, along the Sebastian reef, or in the Trident basin (Indian River and Brevard Counties, Florida) were tested by ELISA for the presence of antibodies to LETV. Plasma samples from 180 wild juvenile green turtles were tested from these study sites to compare the prevalence of anti-LETV antibodies. While some plasma samples from each site contained anti-LETV antibodies (confirmed by Western blot analysis), plasma samples collected from the Indian River lagoon had statistically higher optical density values measured in the ELISA. No statistical differences were observed when these same plasma samples were analyzed for changes in the level of anti-LETV antibodies over 3 years (1997, 1998, and 1999). To explore the relationship between anti-LETV antibodies and fibropapillomatosis (FP), plasma from 133 green turtles scored for fibropapilloma tumor severity were tested by ELISA. There was no correlation between tumor severity and the presence of antibodies against LETV. Additional plasma samples collected from 16 tagged green turtles captured and sampled more than once (recaptures) were also tested to monitor antibody levels to LETV relative to the FP status of individual turtles over time. Again there was no clear relationship between FP tumor status and the presence of antibodies to LETV. Finally, ELISA tests on plasma from 13 nesting female turtles (9 green and 4 loggerhead) revealed high levels of anti-LETV antibodies in 11 individuals, including 2 loggerhead turtles. These results provide strong evidence that wild Florida green turtle populations at these 3 study sites are exposed to LETV or a closely related virus and that loggerhead turtles may be exposed as well. Based on a cutoff optical density value of 0.310, 71 out of the 329 wild Florida green turtles tested were seropositive for LETV antibodies (seroprevalence = 21.6%). In addition, no relationship between FP tumor severity or status and the presence of anti-LETV antibodies was found, further supporting the hypothesis that LETV and the FP-associated herpesvirus (FPHV) are separate infections of marine turtles.
Generation of inner ear sensory epithelia from pluripotent stem cells in 3D culture

The inner ear contains sensory epithelia that detect head movements, gravity and sound. It is unclear how to develop these sensory epithelia from pluripotent stem cells, a process that will be critical for modelling inner ear disorders or developing cell-based therapies for profound hearing loss and balance disorders. So far, attempts to derive inner ear mechanosensitive hair cells and sensory neurons have resulted in inefficient or incomplete phenotypic conversion of stem cells into inner-ear-like cells. A key insight lacking from these previous studies is the importance of the non-neural and preplacodal ectoderm, two critical precursors during inner ear development. Here we report the stepwise differentiation of inner ear sensory epithelia from mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) in three-dimensional culture. We show that by recapitulating in vivo development with precise temporal control of signalling pathways, ESC aggregates transform sequentially into non-neural, preplacodal and otic-placode-like epithelia. Notably, in a self-organized process that mimics normal development, vesicles containing prosensory cells emerge from the presumptive otic placodes and give rise to hair cells bearing stereocilia bundles and a kinocilium. Moreover, these stem-cell-derived hair cells exhibit functional properties of native mechanosensitive hair cells and form specialized synapses with sensory neurons that have also arisen from ESCs in the culture. Finally, we demonstrate how these vesicles are structurally and biochemically comparable to developing vestibular end organs. Our data thus establish a new in vitro model of inner ear differentiation that can be used to gain deeper insight into inner ear development and disorder.
Scalar Curvature Deformation and a Gluing Construction for the Einstein Constraint Equations

On a compact manifold, the scalar curvature map at generic metrics is a local surjection [F-M]. We show that this result may be localized to compact subdomains in an arbitrary Riemannian manifold. The method is extended to establish the existence of asymptotically flat, scalar-flat metrics on ℝn (n≥ 3) which are spherically symmetric, hence Schwarzschild, at infinity, i.e. outside a compact set. Such metrics provide Cauchy data for the Einstein vacuum equations which evolve into nontrivial vacuum spacetimes which are identically Schwarzschild near spatial infinity.
Medical complications of anorexia nervosa

Anorexia nervosa is a serious systemic disease affecting virtually all major organ systems. It is frequently undiagnosed, or there is a significant delay in the diagnosis. Anorexia nervosa is one of the few major medical diseases where patients frequently do not seek help and may actively hide their symptoms, making it especially hard for physicians to diagnose and treat. Anorexia has many endocrine and reproductive complications, including amennorhea or irregular menses, delayed puberty, changes in ovarian morphology, and infertility. Women with anorexia have worse pregnancy outcomes; pregnancy itself may also worsen their symptoms of anorexia. Anorexia nervosa is a disease with high morbidity and mortality; patients may die, especially from cardiovascular complications. Anorexia also can cause gastrointestinal, renal, biochemical, hematologic, dermatologic, and metabolic complications. Comorbid psychiatric illnesses occur in greater than 50% of patients with anorexia. Ob/Gyn physicians must know how to adequately assess patients for the presence of anorexia and understand basic treatment principles.
Improved low-energy absolute pair-production cross-section measurements in targets of Z = 26 , 2 9 , 5 0 , 8 2 , and 92

Absolute cross sections for the production of electron-positron pairs by photons incident on targets of iron, copper, tin, lead, and uranium were measured using an improved internal source spectrometer which employs two large intrinsic Ge detectors. The measurements were made for 2.615 MeV and a mixture of 1.1732- and 1.3325-MeV $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ rays in the decays of $^{228}\mathrm{Th}$ and $^{60}\mathrm{Co}$, respectively. The results are in excellent agreement with theory and clearly indicate that there are no deviations of the experimental cross sections from theory, of more than a few percent, down to the effective energy of the $^{60}\mathrm{Co} \ensuremath{\gamma}$ rays. The results also indicate that the improved spectrometer should yield cross sections near threshold with far smaller uncertainties than those measured with the older version.
The Future of Social Movement Organizations: The Waning Dominance of SMOs Online

This article examines the role of social movement organizations (SMOs) in Internet activism. While SMOs may still play a vital role in offline protest that is facilitated online, I argue that SMOs do not necessarily offer strong returns on investment for forms of protest in which participation occurs online or in which entire movements are organized online. Specifically, I argue that several critical functions for SMOs in offline social movements are not as applicable online, rendering SMOs less necessary for online participation and/or organizing. However, that SMOs may no longer be prerequisites for online protest does not imply their extinction for several reasons. First, noninstrumental motives may drive SMO formation and maintenance. Second, other situations remain, such as facilitating offline protest using the Internet, in which SMOs are still likely to provide significant returns on investment. Third, SMOs may be important to healthy movement ecologies such that entire social movements that are de...
A parallel general implementation of Kohonen's self-organizing map algorithm: performance and scalability

Abstract Kohonen's self-organizing map algorithm provides computational neurobiology with a useful model of the primate cerebral cortex. However, simulations of only modestly sized maps quickly exceed the capacity of even very fast workstations. Here, we report that a parallel implementation of the algorithm on a Beowulf commodity-class computing cluster scales very favorably with the number of available nodes and greatly speeds the computation of medium-to-large-scale cortical maps.
Somatic control of germline sexual development is mediated by the JAK/STAT pathway

Germ cells must develop along distinct male or female paths to produce the sperm or eggs required for sexual reproduction. In both mouse and Drosophila, the sexual identity of germ cells is influenced by the sex of the surrounding somatic tissue (for example, refs 1, 2, reviewed in refs 3, 4); however, little is known about how the soma controls germline sex determination. Here we show that the janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK/STAT) pathway provides a sex-specific signal from the soma to the germ line in Drosophila embryonic gonads. The somatic gonad expresses a JAK/STAT ligand, unpaired (upd), in a male-specific manner, and activates the JAK/STAT pathway in male germ cells at the time of gonad formation. Furthermore, the JAK/STAT pathway is necessary for male-specific germ cell behaviour during early gonad development, and is sufficient to activate aspects of male germ cell behaviour in female germ cells. Our findings provide direct evidence that the JAK/STAT pathway mediates a key signal from the somatic gonad that regulates male germline sexual development.
A study of forward smolder ignition of polyurethane foam

Experiments have been conducted to study ignition of forward smolder of a high void fraction, flexible, polyurethane foam in a forced airflow. Tests are conducted in a small-scale, vertically oriented, cylindrical test section with supporting instrumentation. A Nichrome wire heater placed between two porous ceramic disks, one of which is in contact with the foam surface, is used to supply the necessary power to ignite and sustain a smolder reaction. A constantpower is applied to the heater for a given time, and the resulting smolder is monitored. Reaction zone temperature and smolder propagation velocity are obtained from the temperature histories of thermocouples embedded at predetermined positions in the foam with junctions placed along the fuel centerline. Air is forced through the heater and foam and controlled via mass flow controllers. Forced flow air velocities of 0 to 10 mm/s during smolder ignition and 1 to 10 mm/s during smolder propagation were used. the results show a well-defined smolder ignition regime primarily determined by two parameters, igniter power flux, and the time the igniter is powered. They also show that a requirement for ignition is that the fuel-igniter interface must attain a minimum temperature. An energy balance model has been developed that describes the observed ignition results. The model is based on the assumption that for ignition to occur the heater must provide a heat flux equivalent to a propagating smolder front at a given distance from the igniter.
The effect of variable properties of air on the boundary layer for a moving continuous cylinder

Abstract The laminar boundary layer flow on an isothermal moving flat sheet and moving cylinder was analyzed by finite differences including variation of air properties in the range 66°C ≤ Tw ≤ 1093°C. As to the constant property case, the moving cylinder problem was solved also by an integral method to test the accuracy of the finite difference scheme that was employed. The constant property solutions for both moving flat sheet and moving cylinder are in good agreement with other reported findings. The effect of air property variations is manifested in the increase of Cfχ and Nuχ with increasing Tw. The results are presented in a practical range of Reχ.
Quality Assurance in Bariatric Surgery

Quality assurance is a function that exists in manufacturing, engineering, and the service industry. Bariatric surgery is an undertaking with a special form of consumer product and service. In this day of limited resources and significant value exchanges among stakeholders (ie, patients, surgeons, third-party payers), the goal of the bariatric community is to deliver quality outcomes with safety, efficacy, and efficiency. The American Society for Bariatric Surgery and the Surgical Review Corporation, in conjunction with the bariatric community, will use quality assurance methods to produce quality outcomes that will satisfy the value exchanges of all stakeholders.
Can Budget Institutions Counteract Political Indiscipline

The budget is an expression of political rather than economic priorities. We confirm this proposition for a group of new and potential members of the European Union, finding that politics dominates. The contemporary practice of democracy can increase budget deficits through not only ideological preferences, but also more fragmented government coalitions and higher voter participation. Long-term structural forces, triggered by societal divisions and representative electoral rules, have more ambiguous implications but also appear to increase budget pressures, as others have also found. However, our most robust, and hopeful, finding is that budget institutions – mechanisms and rules of the budget process – that create checks and balances have significant value in curbing fiscal pressures even when the politics is representative but undisciplined, and when long-term structural forces are unfavourable. — Stefania Fabrizio and Ashoka Mody
Validation of a HTS-amenable assay to detect drug-induced mitochondrial toxicity in the absence and presence of cell death.

Abstract Drug-induced mitochondrial dysfunction is known to contribute to late stage compound attrition. Recently, assays that identify mitochondrial dysfunction have been developed but many require expensive reagents, specialized equipment, or specialized expertise such as isolation of mitochondria. Here, we validate a new 384-well format cell-based dual parameter assay that uses commonly available detection methods to measure both mitochondrial toxicity and cytotoxicity. In our initial evaluation, antimycin A, CCCP, nefazodone, flutamide, and digitonin were tested in K562 cells in both glucose- and galactose-supplemented media with a 2 h incubation. The assay was able to correctly differentiate these compounds into mitochondrial toxicants and non-mitochondrial toxicants, and had excellent reproducibility. We next tested 74 compounds in K562 cells in both types of media and show that the assay was able to correctly identify some of the compounds as mitochondrial toxicants. Moreover, the assay could be simplified, without loss of information, by using K562 cells in galactose-containing medium alone. This simple, robust assay can be positioned as a rapid, early readout of mitochondrial and cellular toxicity. However, since the assay fails to identify some mitochondrial toxicants, further assays may be required to detect mitochondrial toxicity once lead compounds have been selected.
Inhibition of chemically elicited feeding and drinking by autonomic blocking agents.

Feeding and drinking can be elicited by the injection of microgram quantities of Norepinephrine or Carbachol, respectively, into the limbic system and hypothalamus of the rat. The effects, on these ingestive responses, of intracerebral injection of the adrenergic antagonist, phentolamine, or the cholinergic antagonist, atropine, were investigated. In one condition, both the agonist and antagonist were injected into the same site; in the other condition, the two agents were injected into two different sites. The evidence suggested some selective blockade of adrenergic feeding and cholinergic drinking by autonomic blocking agents.
A Pilot Study of the Noninvasive Assessment of the Lung Microbiota as a Potential Tool for the Early Diagnosis of Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia

BACKGROUND Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) remains a common complication in critically ill surgical patients, and its diagnosis remains problematic. Exhaled breath contains aerosolized droplets that reflect the lung microbiota. We hypothesized that exhaled breath condensate fluid (EBCF) in hygroscopic condenser humidifier/heat and moisture exchanger (HCH/HME) filters would contain bacterial DNA that qualitatively and quantitatively correlate with pathogens isolated from quantitative BAL samples obtained for clinical suspicion of pneumonia. METHODS Forty-eight adult patients who were mechanically ventilated and undergoing quantitative BAL (n = 51) for suspected pneumonia in the surgical ICU were enrolled. Per protocol, patients fulfilling VAP clinical criteria undergo quantitative BAL bacterial culture. Immediately prior to BAL, time-matched HCH/HME filters were collected for study of EBCF by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Additionally, convenience samples of serially collected filters in patients with BAL-diagnosed VAP were analyzed. RESULTS Forty-nine of 51 time-matched EBCF/BAL fluid samples were fully concordant (concordance > 95% by κ statistic) relative to identified pathogens and strongly correlated with clinical cultures. Regression analysis of quantitative bacterial DNA in paired samples revealed a statistically significant positive correlation ( r = 0.85). In a convenience sample, qualitative and quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis of serial HCH/HME samples for bacterial DNA demonstrated an increase in load that preceded the suspicion of pneumonia. CONCLUSIONS Bacterial DNA within EBCF demonstrates a high correlation with BAL fluid and clinical cultures. Bacterial DNA within EBCF increases prior to the suspicion of pneumonia. Further study of this novel approach may allow development of a noninvasive tool for the early diagnosis of VAP.
Mechanism-based Toxicology in Cancer Risk Assessment: Implications for Research, Regulation, and Legislation

The National Toxicology Program (NTP) has broad responsibilities for: 1) expanding the toxicology database on the impact of chemical interactions with biological sys? tems; 2) providing data that strengthen the science base for regulatory decisions; 3) developing and validating alternative test systems; and 4) communicating strategies and findings to the scientific community, regulatory agencies, and the public. To meet these responsibilities, NTP strategies and approaches are evolving along a num? ber of fronts. The overall objective of these initiatives is to more efficiently test chemi? cals for toxic effects using a broad array of test systems and to generate data that strengthen the scientific foundation on which risk assessments are based. To devel?
American college students' protestant ethic: A smallest space analysis

Results are reported of responses of liberal arts undergraduates from three southwest universities and one university in Hawaii to the Mirels-Garrett Protestant Ethic Scale. The findings indicate a moderate endorsement of the scale. Interpretation of the scale using smallest space analysis R-l indicates that the American Protestant Ethic for university students has two major clusters?one emphasizing "work" and the other emphasizing "leisure"
Structural dynamics in glass forming liquids from Brillouin scattering

Abstract The Brillouin light scattering technique was used to measure the complex mechanical modulus of glass forming liquids of variable fragility, at GHz frequencies, allowing one to characterize structural dynamics on a molecular scale. The data invalidates the assumption of thermo-rheological simplicity (time-temperature superposition) over extended temperature ranges. A model has been developed which consistently describes the temperature dependence of the complex moduli for all investigated substances. This model assumes that two types of structural relaxations occur. One is purely visco-elastic, and the other involves transitions between thermodynamically distinct structural states. The latter is responsible for the transition between glassy and liquid structures, and controls the static modulus. The structural transitions are locally abrupt, but affect the entire system only gradually, over a range of temperatures. By combining the complex modulus data with findings from molecular dynamic simulations, and with the knowledge from conventional structural analysis, mechanisms for the transition between liquid and glass structures have been identified.
RAPID 3D IMAGING OF CONTRAST FLOW: DEMONSTRATION OF A DUAL BEAM TECHNIQUE

Perfusion imaging in a 3D volume using ultrasound contrast agent may improve vascular characterization compared with 2D imaging. Conventional 3D acquisition requires excessive scan time. A dual transducer technique using conventional systems has been introduced that allows 3D imaging of contrast dynamics with drastically reduced scan times (LeCarpentier et al. 2003). Two transducers are translated across a volume where the leading transducer effects contrast clearance and the following transducer images at desired contrast refill times. With 2D arrays that allow simultaneous clearance and imaging pulses, scan times could be further reduced and the need for two transducers eliminated. The dual transducer technique was demonstrated on a tube phantom, with observed contrast profiles matching those expected. Measured center velocities of (± std dev) 1.46 ± 0.21 and 2.25 ± 0.5 did not statistically differ from expected values of 1.75 and 2.50 (all mm/s), (p > 0.05). This technique is introduced for rapid acquisition of 3D contrast refill images. (E-mail: gllec@umich.edu)
Moving beyond the Child Support Revolution

The single most studied, debated, and legislated issue in family law over the past 15 years has been the problem of child support enforcement. Billions of dollars of state and federal money have been spent to transform what was once a minor aspect of state law into a complex nationwide scheme for establishing paternity, determining support obligations, and collecting payment. As the term deadbeat dad has entered our lexicon and political consciousness, Congress has enacted at least five major pieces of child support legislation, all with strong bipartisan support and usually during presidential election years.1 Much of the motivation for the enormous national effort and expense devoted to the child support revolution was the promise that better support enforcement would help keep single-parent families off the welfare rolls and allow the government to recoup its growing expenditures for public benefits. The transformation swept up all families with child support orders, however, including those with no connection to the welfare system. In the new regime, there are computerized systems to locate absent parents and their assets and keep track of support orders and a variety of new enforcement
Stimulation of hepatic cytochrome b5-mediated lipid desaturation by renal microsomes

Abstract Although microsomes prepared from rat kidney cortex contained significant concentrations of both NADH cytochrome b 5 reductase and cytochrome b 5 , they did not catalyze cytochrome b 5 -dependent Δ 9 oxidative lipid desaturation. However, incubation of kidney microsomes in the presence of control liver microsomes resulted in a two-fold increase in fatty acid desaturase activity over that seen with liver microsomes alone. Addition of kidney microsomes to liver microsomes prepared from animals maintained on a fat free diet resulted in an increased desaturase activity which was twice that seen with the control liver preparation. Kidney microsomes alone did not catalyze the cytochrome P-450-dependent N-demethylation of aminopyrine, and in contrast to the desaturate, no increase in demethylase activity was observed when kidney microsomes were added to liver microsomes.
Theory of Two-Photon Spectroscopy in Solids

The coefficient of absorption of two photons is calculated for a two-band model of a solid. The frequency and polarization dependence is evaluated for the case that one photon (laser) frequency is fixed while the second is varied. Wannier exciton states are explicitly included in both the intermediate and final states. Depending upon the symmetry of the two energy bands, the final state may either be an exciton $s$, $p$, or $d$ state. All three cases have different frequency and polarization dependences. The final formulas for the matrix element are complicated, and approximate formulas are given which are useful for many applications. It is shown that some of the two-photon spectroscopy experiments in semiconductors and alkali halides which have been reported so far can be explained by these calculations.
Concentration and determination of traces of metal ions

Abstract A procedure for the preconcentration and determination of Ag+, Cd2+, Co2+, Cu2+, Ni2+, Pb2+ and Zn2+ is presented. The conditions for the simultaneous extraction of all these metal ions with dithizone in ethyl propionate are described. The metal dithizonates are very stable in ethyl propionate and the chelate-solvent system enhances the sensitivity for the atomic absorption method used for the determination. With 10:1 aqueous-organic solvent ratios, the sensitivities for 1% absorption of the signal range from 0.001 μg/ml for Cd2+ and Zn2+, to 0.004 μg/ml for Pb2+. Interference effects of 38 diverse ions and compounds were studied and their tolerance levels are given. The resulting procedure is very sensitive and selective.
A functional MRI investigation of the association between childhood aerobic fitness and neurocognitive control

We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine brain activity of higher fit and lower fit children during early and late task blocks of a cognitive control flanker paradigm. For congruent trials, all children showed increased recruitment of frontal and parietal regions during the early block when the task was unfamiliar, followed by a decrease in activity in the later block. No within-group changes in congruent accuracy were reported across task blocks, despite a decline in performance across all participants, likely due to fatigue. During incongruent trials, only higher fit children maintained accuracy across blocks, coupled with increased prefrontal and parietal recruitment in the early task block and reduced activity in the later block. Lower fit children showed a decline in incongruent accuracy across blocks, and no changes in activation. We suggest that higher fit children are better at activating and adapting neural processes involved in cognitive control to meet and maintain task goals.
An Idiographic Examination of Day-to-Day Patterns of Substance Use Craving, Negative Affect, and Tobacco Use Among Young Adults in Recovery

Psychological constructs, such as negative affect and substance use cravings that closely predict relapse, show substantial intraindividual day-to-day variability. This intraindividual variability of relevant psychological states combined with the “one day at a time” nature of sustained abstinence warrant a day-to-day investigation of substance use recovery. This study examines day-to-day associations among substance use cravings, negative affect, and tobacco use among 30 college students in 12-step recovery from drug and alcohol addictions. To account for individual variability in day-to-day process, it applies an idiographic approach. The sample of 20 males and 10 females (mean age = 21) was drawn from members of a collegiate recovery community at a large university. Data were collected with end-of-day data collections taking place over an average of 26.7 days. First-order vector autoregression models were fit to each individual predicting daily levels of substance use cravings, negative affect, and tob...
TESTING FOR LOCAL ACTIVITY AND EDGE OF CHAOS

In this paper we study the local activity, local passivity and edge of chaos of continuous-time reaction–diffusion cellular nonlinear networks (CNN) with one-port first-order, one-port second-order, two-port second-order, two-port third-order and three-port third-order cells. We prove that the local passive regions determined by cell impedance ZQ(s) and cell admittance YQ(s) for first- and second-order cells are equivalent to each other. We also present an efficient procedure to determine the edge-of-chaos parameter region by combining the local active regions derived from YQ(s) and the pole locations of ZQ(s). In order to characterize the fundamental limitations of local passivity on the emergence of complexity we study the local active property from a parameter space spanned by both the cell parameters and the external excitations called the cell's port currents (in view of its interpretations from classical circuit theory). Analytical results of locally passive, restricted locally passive, edge-of-chaos and locally active parameter regions for CNN cells modeled by cubic nonlinearities are presented. We illustrate our results by analyzing CNN cells modeled by Chua's circuits with a cubic nonlinearity. We find that the morphology of the edge-of-chaos and the local active parameter regions have a close connection to the pattern formation behaviors of CNNs. Simulation results are presented to verify our theoretical results.
Psychology of the Scientist: XXXV. Terminal and Instrumental Values of American Graduate Students in Psychology

Summary.-The terminal and instrumental values of 954 graduate students from 98 psychology departments across the United States were compared with the values of a national subsample of Americans matched on age, race and educational background. Comparisons were also made between graduate students specializing in nine different fields of psychology. The results showed little agreement between the graduate students and the national comparison group on the importance of various values. Among those majoring in the different specialties, disparities were less marked, but clinical majors tended to emphasize interpersonal affective values such as true friendship, loving and helpful, while experimental majors placed relatively greater emphasis on cognitive competency values such as logical and intellectual. Some of the more notable controversies in contemporary psychology revolve around the issue of values. For example, while few question the behavior modifiers' ability to change behavior by controlling an organism's access to rewards, many, because they are reluctant to relinquish the values of freedom and responsibility, see such techniques as undesirable (Skinner, 1971). And while many acknowledge the advantage of employing deception in research designs, others oppose its use, for deception violates the great importance they attach to being honest (Milgram, 1964; Baumrind, 1964; Kelman, 1967). To take a more controversial example, it can be argued that adversaries may be doing little more than projecting the importance they attach to the value equality when interpreting the somewhat incomplete findings concerning genetic determinants of racial differences on intelligence tests (Jensen, 1969; Brazziel,
Short term exposure to di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) disrupts ovarian function in young CD-1 mice.

Di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) is present in many beauty and medical products. Human exposure estimates range from 0.007–0.01 mg/kg/day in the general population and up to 0.233 mg/kg/day in patients taking DBP-coated medications. Levels of phthalates tend to be higher in women, thus, evaluating ovarian effects of DBP exposure is of great importance. Mice were given corn oil (vehicle) or DBP at 0.01, 0.1, and 1000 mg/kg/day (high dose) for 10 days to test whether DBP causes ovarian toxicity. Estrous cyclicity, steroidogenesis, ovarian morphology, and apoptosis and steroidogenesis gene expression were evaluated. DBP exposure decreased serum E2 at all doses, while 0.1DBP increased FSH, decreased antral follicle numbers, and increased mRNA encoding pro-apoptotic genes (Bax, Bad, Bid). Interestingly, mRNAs encoding the steroidogenic enzymes Hsd17b1, Cyp17a1 and Cyp19a1 were increased in all DBP-treated groups. These novel findings show that DBP can disrupt ovarian function in mice at doses relevant to humans.
Enhancement of the propagation of human embryonic stem cells by modifications in the gel architecture of PMEDSAH polymer coatings

Abstract Well-defined culture conditions are essential for realizing the full potential of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) in regenerative medicine where large numbers of cells are required. Synthetic polymers such as poly[2-(methacryloyloxy) ethyl dimethyl-(3-sulfopropyl) ammonium hydroxide] (PMEDSAH), offer multiple advantages over mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) and Matrigel™ for hESC culture and expansion. However, there is limited understanding of the mechanisms by which hESCs are propagated on synthetic polymers coatings. Here, the effects of PMEDSAH gel architecture on hESC self-renewal were determined. By increasing the atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) reaction time, the thickness of PMEDSAH was increased and its internal hydrogel architecture was modified, while maintaining its overall chemical structure. A 105 nm thick ATRP PMEDSAH coating showed a significant increase in the expansion rate of hESCs. Theoretical calculations suggested that 20,000 hESCs cultured on this substrate could be expanded up to 4.7 × 10 9 undifferentiated cells in five weeks. In addition, hESCs grown on ATRP PMEDSAH coatings retained pluripotency and displayed a normal karyotype after long-term culture. These data demonstrate the importance of polymer physical properties in hESC expansion. This modification of PMEDSAH coatings may be used to obtain large populations of hESCs required for many applications in regenerative medicine.
High-density SNP genotyping to define β-globin locus haplotypes

Five major beta-globin locus haplotypes have been established in individuals with sickle cell disease (SCD) from the Benin, Bantu, Senegal, Cameroon, and Arab-Indian populations. Historically, beta-haplotypes were established using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis across the beta-locus, which consists of five functional beta-like globin genes located on chromosome 11. Previous attempts to correlate these haplotypes as robust predictors of clinical phenotypes observed in SCD have not been successful. We speculate that the coverage and distribution of the RFLP sites located proximal to or within the globin genes are not sufficiently dense to accurately reflect the complexity of this region. To test our hypothesis, we performed RFLP analysis and high-density single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping across the beta-locus using DNA samples from healthy African Americans with either normal hemoglobin A (HbAA) or individuals with homozygous SS (HbSS) disease. Using the genotyping data from 88 SNPs and Haploview analysis, we generated a greater number of haplotypes than that observed with RFLP analysis alone. Furthermore, a unique pattern of long-range linkage disequilibrium between the locus control region and the beta-like globin genes was observed in the HbSS group. Interestingly, we observed multiple SNPs within the HindIII restriction site located in the Ggamma-globin intervening sequence II which produced the same RFLP pattern. These findings illustrated the inability of RFLP analysis to decipher the complexity of sequence variations that impacts genomic structure in this region. Our data suggest that high-density SNP mapping may be required to accurately define beta-haplotypes that correlate with the different clinical phenotypes observed in SCD.
The General Education Diploma (GED) as a Springboard to Success?: Black Women, High School Education, and Community Values

This study reflects the experiences of four Black women who succeeded in gaining their General Education Diploma. Their experiences in high school are a poignant example of the way in which talented youth are displaced in formal school settings. Their stories of learning to live with a minimum level of education provide the background for the study of their motivation to succeed. The twenty-seven interviews reveal the reasons for dropping out of high school, the situations that led to them returning to school, and the results of them staying on long enough to complete the General Education Diploma. Also, the participants reveal character traits that make their commitment to overcoming obstacles a strong feature of their journey to higher educational credentials. Through the lens of the women's determination to succeed in formal education we are able to understand the formidable odds that they have had to endure as Black, female, and literate in this society.
Effect of methanol on spinach thylakoid ATPase

Abstract Methanol at 35% ( v v ) overcomes the latency of spinach thylakoid ATPase. Activation is immediate and reversible involving changes in the Vmax, not the Km of the enzyme, MgATP is a much better substrate than CaATP; free Mg2+ noncompetitively inhibits activity. This inhibition can be overcome by the addition of Na2SO3. While both MgATP and MgGTP act as substrates, free ATP and GTP both inhibit activity. ADP and MgADP are also inhibitory. Insensitivity to certain inhibitors indicates that methanol neither induces the same conformational changes in CF1 as illumination does, nor does it lead to coupling between H+ movement through CF0 and ATP hydrolysis. Methanol activation provides a much improved method for assaying thylakoid ATPase.
Generalized Detection Fusion for Hyperspectral Images

The purpose of this paper is to introduce a general type of detection fusion that allows combining a set of basic detectors into one more versatile detector. The fusion can be performed based on the spectral information contained in a pixel, the global characteristics of the background and target spaces, as well as spatial local information. As an example of generalized fusion, we introduce a new class of detectors called the directional segmented matched filters (DSMFs). We then concentrate on the more basic type of fusion that does not use the spatial local information. Our goal is to build a theoretical foundation for the future more sophisticated detectors. Within this setup, we define max-min and min-max types of fusion, which turn out to be equivalent to the geometric approach to continuum fusion already introduced in the literature. Nevertheless, this new framework allows natural formulation of other types of approaches, such as discrete fusion, without the continuity assumption. This new formalism also allows formulation of a general theorem about the relationship between the max-min and min-max detectors. We also provide experimental results that demonstrate the benefits of the new approach. We compare two new detectors with the global matched filter using two different targets in an AVIRIS (Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer) image. The results show that various forms of the DSMFs dominate depending on the target type.