cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Atlantic hurricane activity following two major volcanic eruptions

[1] In 1982 and 1991, two major volcanic eruptions loaded the stratosphere with long-lived sulfate aerosols, altering the global climate by redistributing longwave and shortwave radiation at the surface and throughout the atmosphere, cooling the surface and subsurface waters of the tropical oceans. Theory and observations demonstrate, through direct and indirect mechanisms, a causal relationship between tropical North Atlantic sea surface temperatures and seasonal Atlantic hurricane frequency, duration, and intensity. Therefore, it is plausible that hurricane activity in the seasons immediately following these eruptions is diminished. However, to date, such a theory remains untested. Here I use observations, reanalysis data, and output from a numerical model to suggest that the number, duration, and intensity of hurricanes in the years following the eruptions of El Chichon (1982) and Mount Pinatubo (1991) decreased via the aerosol direct effect. Determining the effects of each eruption on seasonal cyclone activity is complicated by simultaneous positive ENSO events; thus further study of the relationship between Atlantic tropical cyclones and major volcanic eruptions is warranted.
Atrial natriuretic factor maternal and fetal concentrations in severe preeclampsia.

Abstract There is a reduction in intravascular volume in patients with preeclampsia. Since the secretion of atrial natriuretic factor by human atrial myocytes is stimulated by increased intraatrial pressure or atrial distention, we sought to determine whether circulating maternal plasma atrial natriuretic factor concentrations were lower in patients with preeclampsia compared to normal pregnant women. The level of α-human atrial natriuretic factor was measured by a specific radioimmunoassay. Maternal venous concentrations of a α-human atrial natriuretic factor were higher in patients with severe preeclampsia (116.12 ± 13.37 pg/ml) than in normal pregnant women (80.30 ± 4.02 pg/ml). Umbilical artery α-human atrial natriuretic factor concentrations were higher in fetuses born to patients with severe preeclampsia (197.68 ± 29.10 pg/ml) than normal control subjects (118.00 ± 12.52 pg/ml). Umbilical artery α-human atrial natriuretic factor concentrations were higher than umbilical or maternal venous concentrations. In cases of severe preeclampsia, despite the presumed volume changes, maternal atrial natriuretic factor concentrations are higher than in normal pregnant women. The fetus appears to produce its own atrial natriuretic factor. Umbilical artery atrial natriuretic factor concentrations in fetuses born to preeclamptic mothers are higher than those seen in normal control subjects.
Learning over social networks via diffusion adaptation

We propose a diffusion strategy to enable social learning over networks. Individual agents observe signals influenced by the state of the environment. The individual measurements are not sufficient to enable the agents to detect the true state of the environment on their own. Agents are then encouraged to cooperate through a diffusive process of self-learning and social-learning. We show that the diffusion algorithm converges almost surely to the true state. Simulation results also illustrate the superior convergence rate of the diffusion strategy over consensus-based strategies since diffusion schemes allow information to diffuse more thoroughly through the network.
Acute pulmonary toxicity after low-dose amiodarone therapy

Amiodarone-induced pulmonary toxicity is usually seen in cardiac surgical patients who have received large doses of amiodarone for ventricular arrhythmias over prolonged periods. In this report, we describe a case of amiodarone-induced pulmonary toxicity after a short course of therapy for postoperative atrial fibrillation.
Vice Presidential Selection in the Convention Era: Experience or Electoral Advantage?

This article examines all formally contested major party vice presidential nominations from 1832 through 1928 to test the notion that strategic considerations trumped those of qualification, or experience in public office, in the selection process. Conditional logit demonstrates that parties chose presidential running mates in order to further their electoral goals, and were not necessarily concerned with issues of qualification. In particular, findings show that the electoral consideration of state competitiveness was a significant factor in the selection process. In addition, while other electoral considerations such as state size and regional balance were not significant, descriptive analyses reveal that the candidate pool was overwhelmingly limited to those individuals who came from larger states and who added regional balance to the ticket. Importantly, candidate qualification, as measured by years of political experience, was not significant in the analysis. The research represents the first empiric...
Fabrication and Analysis of a Novel 3 DOF Parallel Wrist Mechanism

This paper describes a three-degrees-of-freedom parallel-actuated wrist mechanism developed at Ohio University. This mechanism is capable of pointing an axis within a cone from the nominal position. The mechanism allows unlimited rotation about the pointing axis. Experiments were conducted to validate the kinematic model of the designed wrist.
Adverse Housing and Neighborhood Conditions and Inflammatory Markers among Middle-Aged African Americans

Adverse housing and neighborhood conditions are independently associated with an increased risk of various diseases and conditions. One possible explanation relates to systemic inflammation, which is associated with these adverse health outcomes. The authors investigated the association between housing and neighborhood conditions with inflammatory markers using data about 352 persons aged 49–65 years from the African American Health study. Participants were identified by a multistage random selection process in 2000 to 2001(response rate, 76%). Blood was analyzed for soluble cytokine receptors (interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor α), C-reactive protein, and adiponectin. Neighborhood and housing characteristics consisted of five observed block face conditions (external appearance of the block on which the subject lived), four perceived neighborhood conditions, four observed housing conditions (home assessment by the interviewers rating the interior and exterior of the subject’s building), and census-tract level poverty rate from the 2000 census. Differences in some inflammatory markers were found by age, gender, chronic conditions, and body mass index (all Bonferroni-adjusted p 0.0034). Inflammation does not appear to be a mediator of the association between poor housing/neighborhood conditions and adverse health outcomes in middle-aged African Americans.
Analysis and Optimization of a Pressurized Mid-plane Asymmetric Noncircular Sandwich Fuselage

For efficient cargo space in a global range transport aircraft, a noncircular cross-section fuselage is investigated. The cross-section investigated is a rectangle with rounded corners. In order to minimize the resulting bending stresses, sandwich construction is investigated, and in particular a mid-plane asymmetric construction is studied to utilize bending stretching coupling to minimize these bending stresses still further in the sandwich construction.Traditionally, in almost all cases of sandwich constructions to date, the construction is mid-plane symmetric, i.e. the faces are of the same material and thickness. There are many needs for sandwich constructions using different faces. For example, for a racing boat, one face is subjected to corrosion, the other face is primarily subjected to an internal environment. On the other hand, considering that many advanced composite materials have different strengths and elastic moduli in tension and compression, even if the two faces are made of the same mate...
Changing Interactions Between Physician Trainees and the Pharmaceutical Industry: A National Survey

BACKGROUND Increasingly, medical school policies limit pharmaceutical representatives’ access to students and gifts from drugmakers, but little is known about how these policies affect student attitudes toward industry.
Hydroxyl chain‐end functionalization of polymeric organolithium compounds with oxetane

Hydroxyl chain-end functionalizations of polymeric organolithium compounds with oxetane (trimethylene oxide) were studied in benzene at 25 °C. Functionalizations of poly(styryl)lithium and polystyrene-oligo-butadienyllithium proceed efficiently to form the corresponding ω-hydroxypropyl-functionalized polymers in 98 and 97% isolated yields, respectively. No nonfunctional polymer (≤1–2%) was detected by thin layer chromatography (TLC) analysis for either polymer. All functionalized polymers were characterized by 13C and 1H NMR analyses; no evidence for oxetane oligomerization at the chain end was observed. The MALDI-TOF mass spectrum of ω-hydroxypropylpolystyrene was consistent with the expected structure without any detectable oligomerization of oxetane. A small, but detectable series of peaks corresponding to nonfunctional polystyrene was also observed in the MALDI-TOF mass spectrum. The functionalization of the adduct of 1,1-diphenylethylene and PSLi produced the corresponding ω-hydroxypropyl-functionalized polymer in only 86% isolated yield. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 2684–2693, 2006
Clinically significant valvular heart disease in systemic lupus erythematosus

Purpose Clinically significant valvular heart disease due to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) has generally been considered rare, and Libman-Sacks endocarditis has been thought to be predominantly an autopsy finding. With the declining prevalence of rheumatic heart disease, however, the spectrum of valvular heart disease is changing. We retrospectively analyzed our experience with SLE between 1975 and 1987 for the presence of hemodynamically significant valvular heart disease. Patients and methods An existing data base of 421 patients with SLE was selected for review. Patients were selected for inclusion in the study if they met four or more of the criteria of the American Rheumatism Association for SLE, they had clinically significant valvular heart disease, and tissue from the involved valve was available for review. The etiology of the valve lesion was determined by assessment of the clinical history, chart review, gross morphology, and valve histology. Results Of 14 cases with pathologic material available for review, six had anatomic features of SLE valvular heart disease such as verrucous vegetations or valvulitis with necrosis and vasculitis. Two of these patients underwent successful valve replacements and four died from complications of their valve disease. Conclusion We suggest that significant morbidity and mortality may result from SLE valvular heart disease in about 1 to 2 percent of SLE patients and that the pathogenetic mechanisms underlying valve dysfunction in SLE patients are multifactorial.
Weighted Positivity of Second Order Elliptic Systems

Integral inequalities that concern the weighted positivity of a differential operator have important applications in qualitative theory of elliptic boundary value problems. Despite the power of these inequalities, however, it is far from clear which operators have this property. In this paper, we study weighted integral inequalities for general second order elliptic systems in ℝ n (n ≥ 3) and prove that, with a weight, smooth and positive homogeneous of order 2–n, the system is weighted positive only if the weight is the fundamental matrix of the system, possibly multiplied by a semi-positive definite constant matrix.
Vortex energies in the two-dimensional easy-plane ferromagnet

Abstract In the core region of a planar vortex in the two-dimensional Heisenberg model, the continuum approximation breaks down and a cut-off radius must be introduced as the lower limit of the energy integral. By expressing the total vortex energy as the sum of discrete core and continuum contributions it is possible to determine this cut-off radius as well as an accurate estimate of the vortex energy.
Three-dimensional organotypic culture: experimental models of mammalian biology and disease

Mammalian organs are challenging to study as they are fairly inaccessible to experimental manipulation and optical observation. Recent advances in three-dimensional (3D) culture techniques, coupled with the ability to independently manipulate genetic and microenvironmental factors, have enabled the real-time study of mammalian tissues. These systems have been used to visualize the cellular basis of epithelial morphogenesis, to test the roles of specific genes in regulating cell behaviours within epithelial tissues and to elucidate the contribution of microenvironmental factors to normal and disease processes. Collectively, these novel models can be used to answer fundamental biological questions and generate replacement human tissues, and they enable testing of novel therapeutic approaches, often using patient-derived cells.
INTERACTIONS OF MITOCHONDRIAL STRUCTURAL PROTEIN WITH PHOSPHOLIPIDS.

Abstract A new procedure is described for the preparation of structural protein from beef heart mitochondria. Structural protein prepared in this manner combines spontaneously with micellar phospholipids at neutral pH. The interaction is qualitatively and quantitatively similar to the rebinding of phospholipids by “lipid-deficient” mitochondria.
The epidemiology of thoracic aortic injuries in pedestrians

BACKGROUND: Traumatic rupture of the thoracic aorta is recognized as a common cause of occupant death after rapid deceleration in motor vehicle collisions. The incidence of thoracic aorta rupture in pedestrian victims of vehicular collisions, however, is unknown. This study focuses on the epidemiology of injury to the thoracic aorta in pedestrian vehicular collisions. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of all pedestrian fatalities and survivors of rupture of the thoracic aorta during a 6-year period at a regional Level I trauma center and medical examiner's office. RESULTS: There were 220 pedestrian fatalities during the study period. Laceration of the thoracic aorta was noted in 28 of the 220 pedestrian victims (12.7%). Two additional pedestrians survived laceration of the thoracic aorta, for a mortality of 94%. Hospital mortality was 66% (4 of 6). The comparative hospital mortality for patients with rupture of the thoracic aorta secondary to motor vehicle collision was 42%. CONCLUSION: The incidence of thoracic aortic injury in pedestrian fatalities of 12.7% is comparable with previous reports of motor vehicle collision fatalities. Because of the presence of increased associated injuries, pedestrians have a significantly higher mortality. Severely injured pedestrians are at a similar risk to motor vehicle occupants for a life-threatening injury of the thoracic aorta.
Effects of aldose reductase inhibition on the retina and health indices of streptozotocin-diabetic rats.

Experiments were performed on Streptozotocin-diabetic rats to investigate the preventive effect of an aldose reductase inhibitor, Sorbinil, on the deterioration of electroretinograms and retinal tissue that normally occurs during diabetes, and to determine Sorbinil's effect on the general health indices: food and water intake, urine glucose and ketones, body weight, and blood glucose levels in diabetic rats. Two dosages of Sorbinil were tested, 60 mg/kg/24 hours and 10 mg/kg/24 hours. Electroretinograms and the above health indices were measured before injection of Streptozotocin and again after a three week period of diabetes. Sample eyes were then examined by electron microscope and the thickness of the retinal capillary basement membranes was measured. Statistical evaluation showed that Sorbinil-treated diabetic rats did not experience the same len-gthening of latencies and reduction in amplitude of various electroretinogram components that occurred in non-treated diabetic rats. Sorbinil improved the general health of diabetic rats and reduced their mortality rates as well. Preliminary electron microscope studies showed a correlation between thickness of the retinal capillary basement membrane and various electroretinogram parameters.
Education for regional planning in developing countries

Friedmann J. (1968) Education for regional planning in developing countries, Reg. Studies 2, 131–138. There is a growing world-wide demand for planners able to exercise a technical competence in promoting the development of regional subsystems of national economies. A model of planning activities is presented in which regional is joined with national development planning. Technical Analysis is an important aspect of all the planning activities identified. Types of analysis are described in detail for two levels of integration: national and regional. Two types of planning skills are then derived from this model: those of regional planners and of regional planning specialists. The former have an intellectual basis in regional economics and quantitative geography; the latter come from a variety of contributing fields. Both types of analysts, however, must be able to think in planning terms and to work effectively within a planning process. A model curriculum is proposed for regional planners which is grouped...
Rnd3/RhoE induces tight junction formation in mammary epithelial tumor cells.

Abstract Glucocorticoid hormones stimulate adherens and tight junction formation in Con8 mammary epithelial tumor cells through a multistep process in which the membrane organization of structural apical junction proteins and tight junction sealing is controlled by specific signal transduction components. We have previously shown that dexamethasone stimulation of apical junction formation requires down-regulation of the small GTPase RhoA. Here we identified Rnd3/RhoE, a GTPase-deficient Rho family member and RhoA antagonist, as a key regulator of apical junction dynamics. Exogenously expressed Rnd3/RhoE co-localized with actin at the cell periphery and induced the localization of the adherens junction protein β-catenin and the tight junction protein ZO-1 to sites of cell–cell contact, and led to the formation of highly sealed tight junctions. Treatment with glucocorticoids was not required to achieve complete apical junction remodeling. Consistent with Rnd3/RhoE acting as an antagonist of RhoA, expression of Rnd3/RhoE rescued the disruptive effects of constitutively active RhoA on apical junction organization. Our results demonstrate a new role for the Rho family member Rnd3/RhoE in regulating the assembly of the apical junction complex and tight junction sealing.
Quasi-line benzaldehyde phosphorescence spectra from toluene solutions

Abstract Low temperature phosphorescence spectra have been measured for benzaldehyde, acetophenone and benzophenone in toluene glasses. The emission is typical of an nπ∗ triplet. On slow cooling the spectra sharpen and appear to originate from two different crystal sites for which there is a considerable energy difference, ≈350 cm -1 for benzaldehyde.
Secure web-based retrieval of documents with usage controls

Usage controls enable the provider of some information to limit how recipients may use it. Usage controls may be desirable in enterprise environments, e.g., for regulatory compliance or to protect intellectual property in collaborative endeavors. We contribute Web protocol, server, and browser modifications for hardening existing software-based usage controls (e.g., PDF's) with Trusted Platform Modules (TPMs). TPMs are low-cost secure coprocessors present in an increasing number of computers. We use the TPM to prevent untrusted software from opening usage-controlled files. We implemented the proposed solution on Linux by adding a Linux Security Module to the kernel and modifying Apache and Firefox. No modifications are necessary in applications used for authoring and displaying usage-controlled files (e.g., OpenOffice and xpdf). Experiments show that the proposed scheme has modest impact on client response time and server CPU utilization.
Transforming growth factor-beta induces skeletal muscle atrophy and fibrosis through the induction of atrogin-1 and scleraxis.

Introduction: Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-b) is a well-known regulator of fibrosis and inflammation in many tissues. During embryonic development, TGF-b signal- ing induces expression of the transcription factor scleraxis, which promotes fibroblast proliferation and collagen synthesis in tendons. In skeletal muscle, TGF-b has been shown to induce atrophy and fibrosis, but the effect of TGF-b on muscle contrac- tility and the expression of scleraxis and atrogin-1, an important regulator of muscle atrophy, were not known. Methods: We treated muscles from mice with TGF-b and measured force pro- duction, scleraxis, procollagen Ia2, and atrogin-1 protein levels. Results: TGF-b decreased muscle fiber size and dramatically reduced maximum isometric force production. TGF-b also induced scleraxis expression in muscle fibroblasts, and increased procollagen Ia2 and atrogin-1 levels in muscles. Conclusion: These results provide new insight into the effect of TGF-b on muscle contractility and the molecular mechanisms behind TGF-b-mediated muscle atrophy and fibrosis. Muscle Nerve 45: 55-59, 2012
QUESTIONING THE EMPATHY-ALTRUISM SCALE '

Summary.-In Batson's research, people are frequently divided into an empathy group and a distress group depending on their answers to a questionnaire after being exposed to someone in distress. The present study followed this procedure but obtained preexposure measures on the questionnaire as well. Analysis indicated that the distress group (n = 15) is well named-they do respond with increased distress after exposure. There was no evidence to support the claim (a) that the empathy group (n = 14), relative to the distress group, responded with increased empathy upon seeing someone in distress or (b) that the empathy group showed a greater increase in empathy than in distress. Batson, Dyck, Brandt, Batson, Powell, McMaster, and Griffitt (1988) suggest that people respond to distressed others in one of two different ways. They either respond with empathy, in which case they are concerned with acting in a selfless manner to aid the other, or they respond with personal anxiety and distress, in which case they are more concerned with acting in a selfish manner to reduce their own discomfort. It is standard procedure in Batson's research to administer the empathyaltruism scale after participants are exposed to the suffering confederate. Participants indicate the extent to which they feel alarmed, upset, worried, disturbed, distressed, grieved, perturbed (generating a distress total score) and the extent to which they feel empathic, moved, sympathetic, compassionate, softhearted, concerned (generating an empathic total score). In some studies, the distress score is subtracted from the empathy score, subjects are ranked on the resulting net score and divided at the median into the "empathy group" and the "distress group." To document that some react with distress while others react with empathy to a distressed other, it would be better to obtain "preexposure scores" on the questionnaire and then examine changes in their scores after people see someone in distress. To do so, 29 participants were asked to complete the empathy-altruism scale, then were shown a picture of a young suffering black child, and re-rated their feelings on the empathy-altruism scale plus two single traits, sad and happy (traditional in Batson's research). The photograph showed a young, sick black child with bandages on neck, abdomen, and head and was (correctly) identified as a very young Haitian child lying near death.
Antimitotic effects of chloramphenicol and other inhibitory agents in Chlamydomonas

Abstract Three Chlamydomonas species with division cycles characterized by the occurrence of 2 to 4 mitoses per cycle, were subjected to chemical or physical antimitotic agents incorporated into or applied to agar on which predominantly single cells were spread. In several cases, the sensitive stages in the cell cycle were determined from the distributions of microcolony sizes at the cessation of cell division. Two species showed a highly specific response to chloramphenicol similar to the response to lethal X-ray doses. The first mitosis of a cycle was sensitive to chloramphenicol, while the second mitosis was resistant. This is inferred from the observation that nearly all colonies were arrested in the 1-, 4-, or 8-cell stage. Most cells went through one complete cycle after plating on chloramphenicol or after irradiation; one-half of the cells did so after a combined treatment. Assays of macromolecular components of chloramphenicol-inhibited cells were consistent with the hypothesis that chloramphenicol acts as an inhibitor of protein synthesis. It has been suggested that X-ray inactivation involves the failure of some process which triggers the first mitosis of the cell cycle, but which is not required for the subsequent mitoses. This process, or some other process occurring at approximately the same stage, is inhibited likewise by chloramphenicol, as is overall protein synthesis. Possibly, some particular protein or ribosomal component, essential at the critical stage, is involved. The pattern of 1-, 4-, and 8-celled colonies formed in the presence of chloramphenicol or after x-irradiation could not be duplicated by the response to ultraviolet irradiation, β-mercaptoethanol, 5-fluorouracil or darkness.
Complete basis set and Gaussian-2 ab initio computational studies of planar Hückel and Möbius aromatic hydrogen clusters

Energies for highly symmetric cyclic hydrogen clusters (Hn) with Dnh symmetry were evaluated with Gaussian-2 (G2) and quadratic complete basis set (CBSQ) ab initio approaches. The energies were compared with linear hydrogen clusters as well as with their energies of formation from hydrogen and charged hydrogens. To better estimate aromaticity and eliminate ring strain energy, energies of formation for hydrogen clusters of the same ring size but with different electron numbers were compared. In this way, it was confirmed that the planar hydrogen clusters in singlet electronic configurations follow the Huckel aromatic rule, while aromaticity of the planar hydrogen clusters in an excited state (triplet) follows the Mobius 4n aromatic rule. It was also determined that hexagonal H6 is actually the transition-state structure for hydrogen exchange. The activation barrier for this exchange was estimated to be around 75 kcal/mol. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Quant Chem 69: 679–687, 1998
Post-industrial transformations and cyber-space: a cross-national analysis of Internet development

Abstract At century's end, a combination of telecommunications and computer technologies has resulted in the creation of the Internet, a global network of computers that has been growing at an exponential rate. Although the Internet/World Wide Web combination is widely hailed as a new, powerful engine of global social and economic change, there has been very little sociological theorizing and even less sociological research on the globalization of the Internet. Using classical macrosocial theories of development as a springboard, we hypothesize that the level of development, political openness/democracy, mass education, the presence of a sizeable tertiary/services sector, and interactions between some of these variables will drive the Internet's growth and spread around the globe. In our cross-national analysis of approximately 74 developed and developing countries, we find that Internet capacity is not in fact a simple linear function of economic and political development, but rather has been driven by complex interactions that could aptly be termed “post-industrialism.” Uncovering some of these structural preconditions and determinants of Internet diffusion provides a first step toward providing a theoretical and empirical sociology of this “third technological revolution.”
Asymmetric induction, time and solvent dependence in the metallation of perrocenylalkyl ethers

Ferrocenylmethoxymethan (Ia) sowie das Racemat (Ib) und die definierte Methylverbindung (Ic) liefern mit Methyllithium und Benzophenon Gemische aus den Carbinolen (II)-(IV).
Ultrasonic assessment of internal thoracic artery graft flow in the revascularized heart

We investigated the clinical applicability of the transit-time ultrasound technique for quantitation of internal thoracic artery (ITA) graft flow in coronary artery bypass grafting. Intraoperative measurements of arterial and venous coronary graft flow were performed in 63 patients using an ultrasonic flowmeter. Native ITA blood flow was determined using a skeletonized segment of the ITA and a flexible perivascular flow probe. Simultaneous measures of ultrasonic blood flow from the proximal part of the ITA and free flow from the distal cut end of the ITA validated reliability. After coronary grafting, separate perivascular flow probes over the saphenous vein and ITA grafts were positioned to measure flows during cardiopulmonary bypass and immediately before the sternal closure. Mean native ITA flow was 7 +/- 0.8 mL/min and ITA graft flow was 35 +/- 4 mL/min, a fivefold increase after grafting to the coronary artery (p < 0.001). Mean saphenous vein graft blood flow of 38 +/- 4 mL/min was not significantly different from the mean ITA graft flow (p = 0.37). Coronary blood flow via saphenous vein and ITA conduits was unaffected by the cardiopulmonary bypass (p = 0.73). No complications were directly caused by the flow measurements. Flow impedance resulting from pedicle twist at the distal anastomosis was easily detected in 2 patients using the ultrasonic flowmeter. We conclude that ITA graft flow can be quantitated intraoperatively by the transit-time ultrasound technique. Ultrasonic assessment of ITA graft flow in the revascularized heart may be a useful means of detecting immediate coronary graft failure caused by technical errors.
Condensed-matter physics: A duo of graphene mimics

The synthesis of analogues of graphene by two different means provides insight into the origins of massless particles and paves the way for studies of materials with exotic topological properties. See Letters p.302 & p.306 The electronic structure of certain solids causes them to exhibit 'Dirac points', which lie at the heart of many fascinating phenomena in condensed-matter physics. In graphene, for example, they cause electrons to act as massless Dirac fermions, able to travel at the speed of light. Two very different methods for controlling the properties of Dirac fermions are presented in this issue of Nature. In conventional solids, the electronic structure of the material cannot be varied, so it is difficult to see how the properties of Dirac fermions could be controlled. To avoid this constraint, Tarruell et al. create a tunable system of ultracold quantum gases within an adjustable honeycomb optical lattice. This model simulates condensed-matter physics, with atoms in the role of electrons. The Dirac points can be moved and merged to explore the physics of exotic materials such as topological insulators and graphene. Gomes et al. describe a more direct approach, creating an artificial form of molecular graphene by arranging carbon monoxide molecules, with atomic precision, in a honeycomb pattern on top of a two-dimensional electron system. Lattice parameters are adjustable, allowing the study of the properties of Dirac electrons and even the production of 'pseudo' electric and magnetic fields. This work highlights an innovative technique for constructing artificial materials with molecular assembly, including designer Dirac materials harbouring new ground states.
Against Court-Ordered Apologies

Court-ordered apologies add very little of value to the meanings and functions already present in contemporary legal proceedings and punishments. They also present considerable costs. This article first evaluates Kant’s infamous advocacy for court-ordered apologies as retributive humiliation as well arguments from contemporary Kantians who support court-ordered apologies on somewhat less divisive grounds. It then considers various consequentialist arguments for and against court-ordered apologies. Throughout these discussions clean distinctions between voluntary and involuntary apologies deteriorate. Any value we might derive from court-ordered apologies can probably be better realized through less problematic means.
Large-scale Protein-Protein Interaction prediction using novel kernel methods

Knowledge of Protein-Protein Interactions (PPIs) can give us new insights into molecular mechanisms and properties of the cell. In this paper, we propose a novel domain-based kernel method to predict PPIs. A new kernel that measures the similarity between protein pairs based on a new feature representation is developed and applied to a large scale PPI database. Experimental results demonstrate its effectiveness. Furthermore, we evaluate the problem of cross-species PPI prediction and the effect of the number of negative samples on the performance of PPI predictions, which are two fundamental problems in most in silico PPI methods.
On Experiential Sentences

In the study of the syntactic category EXPERIENTIAL, it has been known that the experiential is mainly concerned with indefinite (or nonspecific) situations. However, a comparative study of the experiential in Chinese, Japanese and Korean reveals that there exists another type of experiential which is concerned with definite (or specific) situations. All three languages share the semantic properties of repeatability, uniqueness, discontinuity and relevant duration for the experiential. The distinction between the indefinite and definite experiential is supported by syntactic as well as semantic evidence.
Model computations of power spectra for ionospheric scintillations at GHz frequencies.

Abstract Recently, two models of ionospheric electron density irregularities have been proposed to interpret the GHz scintillation phenomenon. One is an irregularity slab of thickness about 200 km or so around the F -region peak with electron density fluctuations of the order of 20% about its background value. The other assumes an ensemble of field-aligned irregularities throughout the large part of the magnetosphere as the cause for signal fading. Power spectra of GHz scintillation signals for these two models are investigated in this paper from the viewpoint that comparisons between experimental results and model computations may yield important information about the irregularities.
Earthquake Engineering: Observations from California's Experience:

Abstract A building's structural quality and seismic resistance are determined by decisions at each step in design, construction, management and maintenance. Key determinants are design‐team skills, grasp of seismic‐design issues, and ability to communicate with each other and the owner. In seismic regions, the design of all structures should incorporate adequate resistance to earthquake forces. First in the process come the crucial early decisions on a structure's budget, configuration, siting, and design. Major or critical structures should have their designs peer reviewed. Construction of all significant structures should be observed and inspected by qualified personnel who report to the owner. Plan checking and inspection by the building department should verify code compliance. Good construction work complying with design intent and detail will help assure a quality building that should perform as expected. After a building is put in use, its serviceability and life will be affected by the way it is ...
CHROMOPHORE-SOLVENT DYNAMICS

Experimental and theoretical studies of polar solvation dynamics and spectral line broadening are described. Photon echo and fluorescence Stokes shift experiments are discussed, and the relationship between the information content of the two techniques clarified. The interaction of the chromophore with its solvent bath is described by a spectral density, and the connection of this spectral density with the liquid’s instantaneous normal modes discussed. The ubiquity of the ultrafast phase of solvation dynamics is demonstrated, and a discussion of its physical origin given. The slower phases of solvation vary strongly from solvent to solvent. Molecular theories of liquid dynamics are able to rationalize such variations over at least a 2000-fold range of time scale. The review concludes with a brief discussion of the relevance of ultrafast solvation to chemical dynamics.
Neuropsychological mechanisms of interval timing behavior.

Interval timing in the seconds-to-minutes range is believed to underlie a variety of complex behaviors in humans and other animals. One of the more interesting problems in interval timing is trying to understand how the brain times events lasting for minutes with millisecond-based neural processes. Timing models proposing the use of coincidence-detection mechanisms (e.g., the detection of simultaneous activity across multiple neural inputs) appear to be the most compatible with known neural mechanisms. From an evolutionary perspective, coincidence detection of neuronal activity may be a fundamental mechanism of timing that is expressed across a wide variety of species. BioEssays 22:94-103, 2000.
Condensation of gases on metals: The one-dimensional square well model

Abstract Trapping probabilities of gas atoms at surfaces are calculated assuming a classical onedimensional square well potential as a function of gas and surface temperatures. It is shown that initial sticking coefficients of chemisorbed gases on transition metal surfaces can in most cases be fit fairly well by this model using reasonable values of the interaction energy, although the model does not predict observed behavior for surface temperatures>600°K. For some systems the initial sticking coefficients are higher than predicted by this model, indicating that other mechanisms of energy transfer are probably operative. The angular dependent sticking coefficient which would be measured in a molecular beam experiment is also computed.
Minimal Antichains in Well-founded Quasi-orders with an Application to Tournaments

We investigate the minimal antichains (in what is essentially Nash-Williams' sense) in a well-founded quasi-order. We prove the following finiteness theorem: If Q is a well-founded quasi-order and k a fixed natural number, then there is a finite set ?k of minimal antichains of Q with the property that for any ideal I of Q obtained by excluding at most k elements of Q, I is well-quasi-ordered if and only if its intersection with each antichain in ?k is finite. When applied in a suitably sharpened form to an algorithmic problem arising in model theory, this yields a strengthening of the main result of 18].
TSF: Trajectory-Based Statistical Forwarding for Infrastructure-to-Vehicle Data Delivery in Vehicular Networks

This paper proposes a data forwarding scheme called Trajectory-based Statistical Forwarding (TSF), tailored for the data delivery from infrastructure nodes (e.g., Internet access points) to moving vehicles in vehicular networks. To our knowledge, this paper presents the first attempt to investigate how to effectively utilize the packet destination vehicle’s trajectory for such an infrastructure-to-vehicle data delivery. This data delivery is performed through the computation of a target point based on the destination vehicle’s trajectory that is an optimal rendezvous point of the packet and the destination vehicle. TSF forwards packets over multi-hop to a selected target point where the vehicle is expected to pass by. Such a target point is selected optimally to minimize the packet delivery delay while satisfying the required packet delivery probability. The optimality is achieved analytically by utilizing the packet’s delivery delay distribution and the destination vehicle’s travel delay distribution. Through theoretical analysis and extensive simulation, it is shown that our design provides an efficient data forwarding under a variety of vehicular traffic conditions.
Behavior Analysis and Environmental Protection: Accomplishments and Potential for More

The contributions and merits of an applied behavior analysis approach to encouraging proenvironment behavior are reviewed, along with a discussion of ways behavioral science can play a greater role in protecting the environment. After presenting the most serious threats to the earth's environment, the targets, settings and techniques of the behavioral intervention literature are reviewed. It is argued that behavior analysis can play a greater role in solving environmental problems through (a) reexamination and expansion of intervention targets, (b) increased focus on long-term maintenance of pro-environment behavior, and (c) more effective dissemination of intervention strategies and research findings.
Charge-Based Inhibitors of Amylin Fibrillization and Toxicity

To test the hypothesis that electrostatic repulsion is an important force opposing amyloid fibril assembly, we designed peptides that substitute strings of positively or negatively charged residues into the sequence of the amyloidogenic hormone amylin, which contributes to type 2 diabetes pathology. Arg-1 and Arg-2 substitute four positively charged arginines for segments that in structural models of amylin fibrils form the end of strand β1 and the beginning of strand β2, respectively. Mem-T substitutes negatively charged aspartates for the peptide segment with the largest avidity for membranes. All three charge-loaded peptides fibrillize poorly on their own and inhibit fibril elongation of WT-amylin at physiological ionic strength. The inhibition of WT-amylin fibril elongation rates is salt-dependent indicating that the analogs act through electrostatic interactions. Arg-1 protects against WT-amylin cytotoxicity towards a MIN6 mouse model of pancreatic β-cells, and Arg-2 protects at higher concentrations, whereas Mem-T has no effect. The most effective variant, Arg-1, inhibits WT-amylin fibril elongation rates with an IC50 of ~1 µM and cytotoxicity with an IC50 of ~50 µM, comparable to other types of fibrillization inhibitors reported in the literature. Taken together, these results suggest that electrostatic interactions can be exploited to develop new types of inhibitors of amyloid fibrillization and toxicity.
Benefits of Skill Chaining in Serial Production Lines with Cross-Trained Workers

To gain insight into the potential logistical benefits of worker cross-training and agile workforce policies, we study simple models of serial production systems with flexible servers operating under a constant work-in-process (CONWIP) release policy. Two important and interrelated issues are: (a) how to decide which skill(s) are strategically most desirable for workers to gain, and (b) how to coordinate these workers to respond dynamically to congestion. We address these by considering two cross-training strategies: a straightforward capacity-balancing approach, which we call cherry picking (CP), and an innovative overlapping zone strategy that we call skill chaining . Our comparison shows that skill-chaining strategies have the potential to be robust and efficient methods for implementing workforce agility in serial production lines.
Structural competency: Theorizing a new medical engagement with stigma and inequality

This paper describes a shift in medical education away from pedagogic approaches to stigma and inequalities that emphasize cross-cultural understandings of individual patients, toward attention to forces that influence health outcomes at levels above individual interactions. It reviews existing structural approaches to stigma and health inequalities developed outside of medicine, and proposes changes to U.S. medical education that will infuse clinical training with a structural focus. The approach, termed “structural competency,” consists of training in five core competencies: 1) recognizing the structures that shape clinical interactions; 2) developing an extra-clinical language of structure; 3) rearticulating “cultural” formulations in structural terms; 4) observing and imagining structural interventions; and 5) developing structural humility. Examples are provided of structural health scholarship that should be adopted into medical didactic curricula, and of structural interventions that can provide participant-observation opportunities for clinical trainees. The paper ultimately argues that increasing recognition of the ways in which social and economic forces produce symptoms or methylate genes then needs to be better coupled with medical models for structural change.
The appropriate use of chemotherapy in older adults with colon cancer.

Clinicians are repeatedly faced with the challenge of balancing the risks and benefits of new treatment interventions. This is especially pertinent for older adults with multiple comorbidities in whom the introduction of new medications often initiates an iatrogenic “cascade” that is difficult to reverse. The case outlined here highlights the importance of evidence-based treatment as a means to avoid such complications, especially true for cancer chemotherapy. This case also focuses on the challenges inherent in balancing complex oncologic, medical, and psychosocial issues. Although providers frequently feel a compulsion to treat, inaction is often a wiser choice.
Photosynthetic and antioxidant enzyme responses of sugar maple and red maple seedlings to excess manganese in contrasting light environments.

Manganese (Mn) toxicity may be a significant constraint to forest health on acidic, non-glaciated soils. We hypothesised that sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) and red maple (Acer rubrum L.) seedlings differ in their tolerance to excess Mn, and that photosynthetic sensitivity to excess Mn is exacerbated at higher light intensities through photo-oxidative stress. To test these hypotheses, we assessed photosynthesis and antioxidant enzyme responses of sugar maple and red maple seedlings at variable Mn and light levels in a greenhouse study. In both species, high Mn treatments impaired photosynthetic function, particularly in high light conditions. Responses to Mn and light depended on the developmental stage of the leaves. All sugar maple leaves were sensitive to Mn toxicity except shaded young leaves. For red maple, only mature leaves exposed to high light were prone to Mn toxicity. Antioxidant enzyme and ФPSII / ФCO2 data suggested that photo-oxidative stress did not explain the observed photosynthetic responses to treatment variables. Our results indicate that in natural forest environments, sugar maple and red maple foliage exposed to high light intensity (outer canopy, canopy gaps) may be more prone to Mn toxicity.
Scheduling Power Consumption With Price Uncertainty

The problem of causally scheduling power consumption to minimize the expected cost at the consumer side is considered. The price of electricity is assumed to be time-varying. The scheduler has access to past and current prices, but only statistical knowledge about future prices, which it uses to make an optimal decision in each time period. The scheduling problem is naturally cast as a Markov decision process. Algorithms to find decision thresholds for both noninterruptible and interruptible loads under a deadline constraint are then developed. Numerical results suggest that incorporating the statistical knowledge into the scheduling policies can result in significant savings, especially for short tasks. It is demonstrated with real price data from Commonwealth Edison that scheduling with mismatched modeling and online parameter estimation can still provide significant economic advantages to consumers.
Asymptotically-optimal component allocation for Assemble-to-Order production–inventory systems

Abstract We consider component allocation in Assemble-to-Order production–inventory systems. We prove that asymptotic optimality on the diffusion scale can be achieved under a continuous-review policy. We also show that in many systems, meeting this optimality criterion requires component reservation.