cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Escanaba Trough, Gorda Ridge hydrothermal system: Temporal stability and subseafloor complexity

Abstract The composition and temperature of vent fluids sampled from the active hydrothermal system in Escanaba Trough, Gorda Ridge in 2000 and 2002 remain unchanged from the only time this field was previously sampled, in 1988. ODP Leg 169 drilled nine bore holes at this site in 1996, some within meters of the vents, yet this disturbance has not impacted the measured compositions or temperatures of the fluids exiting at the seafloor. The fluids have maximum measured temperatures of 218°C and contain ∼20% more chloride than local ambient seawater. Our interpretation is that the fluid compositions are generated by supercritical phase separation of seawater, with much of the water-rock reaction occurring within the ∼400m thick sedimentary section that overlies the basalt at this site. The ODP drilling results provide information on the mineralogy and composition of materials below the seafloor, as well as direct constraints not typically available on the physical conditions occurring below the seafloor hydrothermal system. Calculations utilizing geochemical modeling software suggest the fluids are close to saturation with a suite of minerals found subsurface, suggesting equilibrium between the fluids and substrate. These results provide an explanation for why the fluids have remained chemically stable for 14 yrs. The pore water data from drilling suggest that the hydrology and chemistry of the hydrothermal system are much more complex within the sediment cover than would be expected from the surface manifestations of the hydrothermal system. While the pore waters have chloride contents both greater and less than the local seawater, only fluids with higher chloride contents vent at the seafloor. Our calculations suggest that at the current conditions the “brines” (fluids with chlorinity greater than seawater) are actually less dense than the “vapors” (fluids with chlorinity less than seawater). These density relationships may provide an explanation for why the “brines” are now venting preferentially to the “vapors,” a situation opposite to what is usually observed or inferred.
The failure of antepartum or neonatal exposure to grass pollen to influence the later development of grass sensitivity.

Abstract The observation that injection of antigen into fetal or newborn animals produces inhibition of specific antibody formation in the mature animal suggested the hypothesis that antepartum or neonatal exposure to pollen might confer protection against future development of pollen sensitivity. The birthdays of 150 children with grass pollinosis who were born in an area of heavy exposure to grass pollen were recorded. No seasonal distribution in their birthdays was found. It was concluded that antepartum or neonatal exposure to grass pollen is not a factor in the determination of pollinosis.
Day 3 and day 5 morphological predictors of embryo viability

Controlling multiple pregnancies in patients undergoing artificial reproductive procedures requires consideration of single embryo transfers. Therefore, refinements for embryo evaluation are needed that select for the most developmentally competent embryo. The present study was designed to identify day 3 and day 5 morphological predictors of viability following transfers in which the morphology and fate of each embryo was precisely determined. Assessments on day 3 included cell number, and the extent of fragmentation and asymmetry, and on day 5, the developmental stage. Embryos resulting in a viable fetus at 11 weeks gestation were considered developmentally competent. The relationships among individual and collective embryo morphological characteristics were evaluated. Analysis of the interactions among morphological characteristics of embryos transferred on day 3 enabled identification of a multivariable selection order. Assessment of day 5 embryos revealed that expanding and expanded blastocysts exhibited comparable developmental potential that was superior to that of either morulae or early blastocysts. However, expanding or expanded blastocysts derived from 7-cell or 8-cell embryos were developmentally superior to those derived from other cleavage stages, regardless of fragmentation or asymmetry. Collectively, these findings further understanding of morphological predictors of viability, thereby improving the ability to select the most viable embryo for transfer.
Interactive presentation: Automatic model generation for black box real-time systems

Embedded systems are often assembled from black box components. System-level analyses, including verification and timing analysis, typically assume the system description, such as RTL or source code, as an input. There is therefore a need to automatically generate formal models of black box components to facilitate analysis.We propose a new method to generate models of real-time embedded systems based on machine learning from execution traces, under a given hypothesis about the system's model of computation. Our technique is based on a novel formulation of the model generation problem as learning a dependency graph that indicates partial ordering between tasks. Tests based on an industry case study demonstrate that the learning algorithm can scale up and that the deduced system model accurately reflects dependencies between tasks in the original design. These dependencies help us formally prove properties of the system and also extract data dependencies that are not explicitly stated in the specifications of black box components.
Global solar dynamo models: Simulations and predictions

Flux-transport type solar dynamos have achieved considerable success in correctly simulating many solar cycle features, and are now being used for prediction of solar cycle timing and amplitude. We first define flux-transport dynamos and demonstrate how they work. The essential added ingredient in this class of models is meridional circulation, which governs the dynamo period and also plays a crucial role in determining the Sun’s memory about its past magnetic fields. We show that flux-transport dynamo models can explain many key features of solar cycles. Then we show that a predictive tool can be built from this class of dynamo that can be used to predict mean solar cycle features by assimilating magnetic field data from previous cycles.
Management Development Programs in Large Public Libraries in the United States

There is an urgent need to identify potential library managers and prepare them for responsible positions. There is an equally pressing need for programs designed to provide current managers with additional information on new trends and developments in library administration. In order to expand and update the knowledge, skills, and abilities of present library managers and to establish a larger pool of qualified candidates for managerial positions, planned management development programs and/or activities are necessary. This study is an effort to determine the direction in which large public libraries are moving toward planning and establishing management development programs as well as to explore strategies used to attain financial support for such programs.
Behavior of a rigid sphere at a liquid—liquid interface

Abstract Behavior of particles, drops and bubbles in two phase liquid—liquid systems is important in many fields of chemical and metallurgical engineering. This work examines the behavior of a rigid sphere in the vicinity of a liquid—liquid interface. A rigid sphere approaching the liquid—liquid interface may either attain an equilibrium at the interface or may pass through it, depending on forces acting on the sphere. A geometrical model is developed for the sphere resting at an interface. Mathematical analysis employing this model successfully predicts the angle subtended with the axis of symmetry by the interface in contact with the sphere. It is also predicts height z c of the plane interface above the uniform film thickness zone and a critical radius ( R crit , below which no sphere would pass through the interface. The solution is presented in algebraic and graphical forms. Predictions are verified experimentally. Photographic observations of the gravity fall of rigid spheres in two phase liquid—liquid systems reveal that the sphere carry a column of the upper phase liquid while passing through the interface Acceleration of the sphere oversome distance is followed by the rupture of this column of liquid. The sphere, still enveloped in a layer of the upper liquid, ultimately attains an almost constant velocity. This entire phenomenon is illustrared by graphs and photographs.
Subacute thyroiditis: a diagnostic possibility for the dentist.

Abstract Since pain referred to the jaw is a common complaint of patients with subacute thyroiditis, it becomes important for the dentist to familiarize himself with this disease. The series of forty patients with subacute thyroiditis seen at the Mayo Clinic in 1955 and 1956 included thirty-one women and nine men. The median age of the patients was 42 years. The most common complaint was a tender neck, and pain in the jaw or mandible was present in 37 per cent. Two patients sought dental treatment before they consulted a physician.
A simulation experiment of photochemical reactions in the mesosphere

An ionospheric simulation experiment has been performed in a large vacuum chamber. The chamber is filled with NO and other gases including N2, O2, CO2, NH3 and H2O in the pressure range of 0.01 torr. A lamp which produces photons at 1236- and 1165-A by means of microwave discharge in krypton is utilized as an ionization source. In addition to 30+ large quantities of the water cluster ions 55+, H3O(+).(H2O)2, 73+, H3O(+).(H2O)3 and 91+, H3O(+).(H2O)4 were observed when nitric oxide and water were present. This closely approximates the condition of the terrestrial D region. After long periods of UV irradiation 74+ and 104+ ions grow in intensity. These ions are tentatively identified as NO(+).N2O and NO(+).NO.N2O. In addition the series 18+, 36+, 54+, and 72+ is detected which can be labeled NH4(+), NH4(+).(H2O), NH4(+).(H2O)2 and NH4(+).(H2O)3. These same species of ions are observed with the introduction of ammonia into the chamber. Presumably both N2O and NH3 are products of the photolysis.
Specific Interactions between Biotin and Avidin Studied by Atomic Force Microscopy Using the Poisson Statistical Analysis Method

The interactions between biotin and avidin or streptavidin, a prototypical example of a specific biological ligand−receptor system, were studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS). Although this and other ligand−receptor systems have been studied by several techniques, including AFM, in this paper, a statistical analysis method which makes use of the properties of the Poisson distribution was applied, and the rupture strength of an individual interaction was obtained from the total adhesion forces measured by the AFM. Tip- and surface-modification chemistries were investigated by XPS and TOF-SIMS. The magnitudes of the interactions between biotin−avidin and biotin-streptavidin pairs, as determined by the Poisson method, were found to be 173 ± 19 and 326 ± 33 pN, respectively, for loading rates between 2 × 105 and 8 × 105 pN·s-1. These values are comparable to the values reported by other groups for the sam...
THE ROLE OF BLADDER NECK BIOPSY IN MEN UNDERGOING RADICAL RETROPUBIC PROSTATECTOMY WITH PRESERVATION OF THE BLADDER NECK

AbstractPurpose: Radical retropubic prostatectomy is often performed with preservation of the bladder neck. We examine the incidence of benign and malignant prostatic tissue at the bladder neck margin in men undergoing radical retropubic prostatectomy with preservation of the bladder neck for clinically localized prostate cancer.Materials and Methods: The study included 100 cases of radical retropubic prostatectomy with preservation of the bladder neck performed by a single surgeon (H.L.). A 2 mm. thick circumferential specimen was excised from the bladder neck, divided into 4 quadrants (anterior, posterior, right and left) and submitted for frozen section examination. The permanent sections from these bladder neck biopsies and the entire surgical specimens were analyzed by a single pathologist (J. M.).Results: The frozen section diagnosis from the bladder neck biopsies were adenocarcinoma, benign prostatic tissue and no prostatic tissue in 3, 38 and 59 cases, respectively. The permanent section diagnosis...
Pyrroloquinoline Quinone Acts with Flavin Reductase to Reduce Ferryl Myoglobin in Vitro and Protects Isolated Heart from Reoxygenation Injury

Abstract Pyrroloquinoline quinone has been isolated from bacteria and recently has been detected in mammalian tissues and fluids. We report in vitro studies which show that pyrroloquinoline quinone serves as a high-affinity substrate for an erythrocyte "flavin reductase" and that the pyrroloquinoline quinol generated by this catalysis reacts rapidly with ferryl myoglobin radical. Western blot analysis of rat and rabbit heart homogenates detects a cross-reactive protein which has a molecular weight identical to the erythrocyte reductase from the same species. Low concentrations of pyrroloquinoline quinone protect isolated rabbit heart from reoxygenation injury, serving as an effective tissue-protective agent in this model for cellular oxidative damage. We propose that this tissue protection is due to a pyrroloquinoline quinol-mediated reduction of reactive oxygen species.
Merger wave in a small world: Two views

Abstract I attempt a more balanced assessment of mergers in terms of systemic risk versus other effects. First, using the simplest network model, I illustrate how mergers can increase systemic risk by reducing the degree of separation among firms. Then, recasting the firms in a simple economic model that features consumers explicitly, I show how a merger wave – a contagious urge to merge – can occur and what benefit it may bring to consumers. Together, these two models suggest that there is a tradeoff to consider: While a merger wave may result in higher systemic risk, it may also bring about higher consumer welfare.
Performance of multiresolution pattern classifiers in medical image encoding from wavelet coefficient distributions

The fidelity of the reconstructed image in an image coding/decoding scheme and the lowest transmission bit rate from rate-distortion theory can be predicted provided the image statistics are known. Currently popular subband image coding assumes Gaussian source with memory for optimal performance. However, most images do not follow the ideal distribution. The advantage of subband coding lies in the fact that the wavelet coefficients in decomposed subimages have probability distribution functions (pdf's) that can be modeled as a generalized Gaussian when proper parameters are chosen experimentally. However, the filter length chosen for digital implementation of a specific wavelet is crucial in shaping the pdf characteristics and hence in the ability to predict the achievable bit rate at minimum distortion in a quantization scheme. We have analyzed the pdf's of a number of wavelets and chosen filter lengths providing the best fit to a generalized Gaussian distribution for encoding an image by vector quantization of multiresolution wavelet subimages using an adaptive clustering. Our results demonstrate that the performance of the adaptive vector quantizer improves significantly when wavelet filter lengths are chosen to fit the generalized Gaussian distribution.
Investigating Tx coils and magnetic field Rx sensor configurations for underwater geo-location

In this work, new configurations of magnetic field transmitter coils (Tx) and receiver sensors (Rx) are studied for underwater (UW) geo-locations. The geo-location system, based on low frequency magnetic fields, uses measured vector magnetic fields at a given set of points in space. It contains an active pulsed direct current transmitter, tri-axial field receivers, and a global positioning system unit (GPS). The GPS is coupled with the EMI system and provides continuous geo-referencing of the UW system's position. UW geolocations are estimated using a) closed form solution, that uses the total vector magnetic field tensor's gradient, and b) nonlinear optimization technique based of the differential evolution (DE) algorithm. In this work we first investigated the advantages and disadvantages of the proposed UW low frequency magnetic field geo-location system. Namely, we present systematic studies on: a) magnetic field transmitter configurations to determine the best compromise between size, shape and practical implementation to achieve maximum transmitter range in the UW environment, b) the placements of tri-axial receiver sensors with respect to the Tx to accurately estimate the UW geo-location from the measured magnetic fields; c) different sources of noise (such as the air-water interface, coupling between targets' EMI responses and the geo-location system's signals, water conductivity), to estimate how these noises influence the system's performance and localization precision. Finally, we assessed the capabilities of the closed-form solution and the DE technique to predict the location of an underwater interrogation system by comparing their corresponding estimated results to the true value. We found that for realistic water conductivities, the frequency should be less than 100 Hz. We showed that when the primary magnetic field is contaminated with random noises due to the presence of underwater metallic targets, water conductivity/frequency changes, and finite size of the transmitter, the performance of the full vector magnetic field tensor gradient approach degrades significantly compared to that of the DE method. In addition, the number of receivers required by the vector magnetic field tensor gradient technique and its sensitivity with respect to the sensor separation prevented us from further considering this technique for UW geo-location, leaving the non-linear approach, that uses only three vector Rx, as our technique of choice for tracking the location of underwater interrogation sensors with centimeter-level accuracy.
Ectopic Intratracheal Thyroid Causing Airway Obstruction

INTRODUCTION: Thyroid ectopia can be found at the site of thyroid origin in the floor of the mouth, or anywhere along its path of embryological descent, thus reflecting the normal migration of thyroid progenitor cells. The most frequent sites of ectopic thyroid tissue are lingual, sublingual, thyroglossal and laryngotracheal, with ectopic intratracheal thyroid (EITT) accounting for a small minority of these cases. EITT represents approximately 1% of all primary endotracheal tumors (1). First noted by Ziemssen in 1875, there have been at least 130 cases of EITT described (2). Most cases have been reported from the endemic goiter regions of the world, and commonly detected in the third to fifth decades of life (3,4). Approximately 75% of EITT are associated with orthotopic goiters (3,4).
Application of gravity and magnetic methods to assess geological hazards and natural resource potential in the Mosida Hills, Utah County, Utah

Gravity and magnetic data were collected in the Mosida Hills, Utah County, Utah, at over 1100 stations covering an area of approximately 58 km 2 (150 mi 2 ) in order to help define the subsurface geology and assess potential geological hazards for urban planning in an area where the population is rapidly increasing. In addition, potential hydrocarbon traps and mineral ore bodies may be associated with some of the interpreted subsurface structures. Standard processing techniques were applied to the data to remove known variations unrelated to the geology of the area. The residual data were used to generate gravity and magnetic contour maps, isometric projections, profiles, and subsurface models. Ambiguities in the geological models were reduced by (1) incorporating data from previous geophysical surveys, surface mapping, and aeromagnetic data, (2) integrating the gravity and magnetic data from our survey, and (3) correlating the modeled cross sections. Gravity highs and coincident magnetic highs delineate mafic lava flows, gravity lows and magnetic highs reflect tuffs, and gravity highs and magnetic lows spatially correlate with carbonates. These correlations help identify the subsurface geology and lead to new insights about the formation of the associated valleys. At least eight new faults (or fault segments) were identified from the gravity data, whereas the magnetic data indicate the existence of at least three concealed and/or poorly exposed igneous bodies, as well as a large ash-flow tuff. The presence of low-angle faults suggests that folding or downwarping, in addition to faulting, played a role in the formation of the valleys in the Mosida Hills area. The interpreted location and nature of concealed faults and volcanic flows in the Mosida Hills area are being used by policy makers to help develop mitigation procedures to protect life and property.
Relationship Between Quality of Life and Depression in Patients With Head and Neck Cancer

Objective: This study describes the relationship between health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and depression in patients following major surgery for head and neck cancer. Design: Cross-sectional study using medical chart review, patient interview, and test administration. Method: Fifty patients were evaluated 6 months to 6 years following surgery using one global HRQOL measure (The Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General [FACT-G]); three disease-specific measures of HRQOL (the HN module of the FACT [FACT-HNS], The University of Washington Quality of Life Scale [UWQOL], and The Performance Status Scale for Head and Neck Cancer); and one measure of depression (The Beck Depression Inventory [BDI]). Results : The study population showed a high occurrence of depressive symptoms (22%). A negative correlation existed between the BDI and HRQOL as measured by the FACT-G ( r = -0.49, P <.001) and the UWQOL (r = -0.44, P =.003). When somatic symptoms of depression were removed, the BDI remained correlated with HRQOL and was most highly correlated with the Emotional Well-Being (EWB) subscale of the FACT-G (r = -0.42, P =.003). There was no correlation between clinician judgments of EWB and any patient-rated measures of HRQOL or depression. Conclusions: Results demonstrate an inverse relationship between patient-reported HRQOL and depression. The lack of correlation between physician and patient ratings of HRQOL and EWB stresses the importance of obtaining patient ratings in addition to traditional clinician ratings when assessing outcomes. Finally, the multidimensional construction of the FACT with its specific subscales may make it a useful clinical tool for assessing patient status and augmenting patient interviews.
Monotonic expectations, Neyman-Pearson lemma, and some properties of the SPRT

Abstract Let f0(x) and f1(x) be probability density functions relative to a σ-finite measure μ under respective probability measures P0 and P1. Let X be a random variable governed by either P0 or P1, and let Ei denote the expectation under Pi, i = 0, 1. Let ф and ψ ( 0⩽ф⩽1, 0⩽ψ⩽1 ) be real functions such that (ф − ψ)(λ 1 f 1 − λ 0 f 0 )⩾0 for all x, where λ0 and λ1 are positive constants. It is shown in an elementary manner that λ 0 E 0 (ф − ψ)⩽λ 1 E 1 (ф − ψ) . This monotonic property immediately gives the Neyman-Pearson lemma and the optimal Bayes test, and hence both share the same intrinsic monotonicity of expectation. This result is generalized in a number of ways which reflect several properties of the Neyman-Pearson test. A sequential extension is also given and this implies the monotonicity of the power function of a certain SPRT. The monotonic property of the average sample number of an optimum sequential test with power one is also discussed.
Development of Morphological Instability and Cells During Rapid Solidification of Laser Annealed Silicon Alloys

The details of morphological instability occurring during rapid solidification have been studied in In+, Ga+, Sb+, Bi+, Ge+, Fe+ and Cr+ implanted silicon specimens after pulsed laser annealing. The average cell sizes were determined at the onset of instability and in the region of well-developed instability using x-section and plan-view electron microscopy. The total and substitutional solute concentration profiles were determined using Rutherford backscattering and channeling techniques. The formation of cells and the critical solute concentrations associated with instability were studied as a function of velocity of solidification, which was varied by controlling the substrate temperature or the laser parameters. The results on the cell formation and the critical solute concentrations were compared with the predictions of the perturbation theory which took into account the dependence of distribution coefficients on the velocity of solidification. A good agreement between the calculations and the experimental results was obtained. We also examined theoretically the effect of reduction in surface tension due to segregation of impurities on cell sizes and critical solute concentrations associated with instability.
Conformal solid T-spline construction from boundary T-spline representations

To achieve a tight integration of design and analysis, conformal solid T-spline construction with the input boundary spline representation preserved is desirable. However, to the best of our knowledge, this is still an open problem. In this paper, we provide its first solution. The input boundary T-spline surface has genus-zero topology and only contains eight extraordinary nodes, with an isoparametric line connecting each pair. One cube is adopted as the parametric domain for the solid T-spline. Starting from the cube with all the nodes on the input surface as T-junctions, we adaptively subdivide the domain based on the octree structure until each face or edge contains at most one face T-junction or one edge T-junction. Next, we insert two boundary layers between the input T-spline surface and the boundary of the subdivision result. Finally, knot intervals are calculated from the T-mesh and the solid T-spline is constructed. The obtained T-spline is conformal to the input T-spline surface with exactly the same boundary representation and continuity. For the interior region, the continuity is C 2 everywhere except for the local region surrounding irregular nodes. Several examples are presented to demonstrate the performance of the algorithm.
Technology and the Decentralization of Information Systems

More than 100 IS executives discuss their organizations' plans to decentralize information systems and the larger role decentralization will play in their systems architecture. This changing architecture reflects a changing role for IT, which will be increasingly more responsible for setting enterprisewide standards and supporting business strategies.
Selective quantifiable facial assessment of aging

Imaging represents a technique of choice in evaluation of the visual effects of aging and associated with that occurrence of wrinkles. In particular, skin wrinkles typically occur due to aging processes, including loss of body mass, sun damage, smoking, squinting and other factors. They represent a clear and easily accessible indicator of changes. As such, one can also acquire useful information about the aging process in skin by analyzing the wrinkles. To this end, we utilize a combination of numerical techniques, including color quantization, image segmentation, and various edge detection algorithms in order to perform automated wrinkle counting and wrinkle density calculations. As a more appropriate alternative to chronological age, such a methodology allows us to come up with quantifiable measures for skin aging, which may be used for performing statistics and extracting general patterns associated with physiological aging of the skin, as well as extending such numerical techniques for other biomedical applications in which distinct topological features contain important information about biological processes. Different subjects were used to test the techniques and extract aging patterns by examining the skin immediately underneath the lower eyelid as our region of interest. Numerically processed photographs, included counting the number of wrinkles meeting predefined threshold conditions, and calculating the corresponding wrinkle density for a given subject and particular conditions. Applicability and practicality of different edge detection methods were also a part of the studies as demonstrated.
The Mediterranean Diet and Your Health

The Mediterranean diet has long been celebrated as the gold standard of healthy diets for its highly palatable nature and favorable impact on the prevention of chronic diseases, promotion of greate...
Frontal lobe and frontal-striatal substrates for different forms of human cognitive flexibility

Abstract Frontal lobe and basal ganglia lesions have been associated with similar cognitive impairments, although their specialized roles in behavior are likely to be different. We examined whether these structures mediate distinctive or overlapping aspects of a complex behavioral process that has been associated with both neural sites, i.e. cognitive flexibility. Patients with focal ischemic lesions to the frontal lobe and basal ganglia were compared on two forms of cognitive flexibility: (1) shifting response set (i.e. reactive flexibility), and (2) producing a diversity of ideas (i.e. spontaneous flexibility). Results indicated that frontal lobe and basal ganglia damage each caused a similar degree of impairment in reactive flexibility, both groups performing at a significantly lower level than posterior cortical lesion and normal comparison groups. However, frontal lobe damage markedly disturbed spontaneous flexibility, while performance after basal ganglia lesion was significantly higher and comparable to posterior cortical lesions. Findings suggest that the frontal lobe and basal ganglia participate differently in the neural substrate of cognitive flexibility. The frontal lobe appears to mediate spontaneous flexibility. The production of diverse ideas may require direct cortical-cortical interactions by the frontal lobe in order to access knowledge systems with novel strategies that transcend the most common semantic linkages. In contrast the corticostriate system appears to mediate reactive fexibility, as the frontal lobe, basal ganglia and their interconnections are required for its operation.
Relationship between adrenal steroids and renal Na-K-ATPase. Effect of short-term hormone administration on the rat cortical collecting tubule.

Mineralo- and glucocorticoids stimulate renal Na−K-ATPase activity if given over a few days, but their immediate effect on the enzyme (i.e. within the time period required to alter electrolyte transport) remains controversial. We evaluated the short-term (3 h) in vivo effect of physiologic and pharmacologic doses of the natural glucocorticoid (corticosterone) and mineralocorticoid (aldosterone), and of a semisynthetic glucocorticoid (dexamethasone) on Na−K-ATPase activity in cortical collecting tubules microdissected from adrenalectomized rats. This nephron segment was chosen because it is a major target site for both classes of corticoids. Neither corticosterone (0.006, 0.6, and 5 mg/100 g body wt, IM), nor dexamethasone (5 mg/100 g body wt, IM) or aldosterone (10 μg and 50 μg, IV) altered significantly Na−K-ATPase activity in the cortical collecting tubule of these animals 3 h after administration. These results confirm our previous observations in the mouse, and suggest that the enhancing effect of corticosteroids on the renal enzyme seen after longer intervals represents a secondary phenomenon, possibly related to augmentation of the sodium load presented to the pump.
Intravenous nicotine self-administration and cue-induced reinstatement in mice: Effects of nicotine dose, rate of drug infusion and prior instrumental training

Intravenous nicotine self-administration is the most direct measure of nicotine reinforcement in laboratory animals, but this procedure has proven difficult to establish in mice. We found that stable responding for nicotine in C57BL6/J mice was facilitated by prior instrumental training for food reward, initial exposure of mice to a lower unit dose of nicotine (0.03 mg kg(-1) per infusion) before access to higher doses, a slower rate of drug delivery (3-s versus 1-s infusion), consistency in schedule of daily testing, and low extraneous noise during testing. Under these conditions, we found that mice lever-pressed for nicotine (0.03-0.4 mg kg(-1) per infusion; 60-min test sessions) under a fixed-ratio 5 time-out 20-s (FR5TO20) reinforcement schedule and consumed the drug according to an inverted 'U'-shaped dose-response curve. Mice switched their responding onto a previously non-reinforced lever to continue earning nicotine infusions when the active/inactive lever assignment was reversed. The nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) antagonist mecamylamine decreased responding for nicotine, but not food rewards, verifying that nAChRs regulate nicotine self-administration in mice. The cue-light paired with nicotine delivery did not support responding when delivered independently of nicotine infusions, further verifying that mice responded selectivity for the drug. Nicotine-seeking responses extinguished when nicotine infusions and the cue-light were withheld, and exposure to the cue-light reinstated responding. Finally, mice without prior instrumental food training acquired stable responding for nicotine under the FR5TO20 schedule, but required a greater number of sessions. These data demonstrate that nicotine is an effective reinforcer in mice and establish conditions under which the drug is reliably self-administered by mice.
On the Magnitude of Cavitation Pressure of Steady-State Lubrication

The value of cavitation pressure plays an important role in the implementation of the mass-conservative algorithm. This is particularly crucial in applications that deal with analysis of surface textures. In this paper, published research on cavitation of journal bearing and surface textures are reviewed, and experiments and simulations of textured surface are conducted in order to gain insight into the choice of cavitation pressure for steady-state lubrication. Contrary to the common assertion that cavitation pressure is close to the ambient pressure, both experiments with journal bearings and simulations of surface textures indicate that low cavitation pressure around 30 kPa is possible. Research reveals that the cavitation pressure in steady-state lubrication is affected by the supply of gas dissolved in the oil film. The results of a series of experiments involving the load-carrying capacity of a textured parallel thrust bearing are presented. The comparison between theoretical and experimental results confirms that the value of cavitation pressure could vary depending on the operating conditions.
Affinity-based hash tables

From a trace of data accesses, it is possible to calculate an affinity hierarchy that groups related data together. Combining this hierarchy with the extremely common hash table, there is an opportunity to both improve cache performance and enable novel applications. This paper describes both the construction of the affinity hierarchy and its application to hash tables.
Gene expression during excystation of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts.

The present study describes transcription of mRNA from genes encoding metabolic or structural proteins during excystation of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts. RNA was harvested from C. parvum oocysts before excystation, and at 5, 10, and 15 min during excystation. Subtractive cDNA libraries were prepared by using mRNA from non-excysted C. parvum oocysts to “subtract out” mRNA from excysting oocysts. The “subtracted” cDNA was used to prepare libraries enriched for transcripts possibly involved in excystation. From these libraries, over 1,000 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) were analyzed by DNA sequencing followed by BLAST-N and BLAST-X analysis. While several gene products involved in cell metabolism and cell signaling were consistently recovered, transcription levels, as reflected by the relative number of cDNA sequences (19.2% total), were highly up-regulated in genes coding for structural proteins such as Cp2, CpTSP, CpHC10, and CpSAg. Moreover, of the greater than 1,000 clones analyzed, a high percentage (12.3%) of ESTs detected in excysting oocysts were for hypothetical C. parvum proteins (CpHyP), whose functions are presently unknown.
Gestalt Therapy with Parents When a Child is Presented as the Problem.

Findings from this study suggest that parents (N = 23) who sought therapy because of "problematic" children differed in valuing styles (e.g., rejection, extrinsic valuing, overprotection) from two samples of parents from normal populations. Parents who participated in Gestalt therapy groups made significant changes in their reported parenting styles. Parents who chose not to participate in the therapy (N = 8) showed no similar improvements in parenting styles, and provided behavioral data which suggested deterioration of those relationships over the same period of time. Gestalt therapy is discussed.
Electronic materials process modeling

This report focuses on current needs in the process modeling of materials used in electronic and optoelectronic device fabrication and provides specific recommendations in addressing these needs. The establishment of relationships between materials structure and processing is identified as the critical modeling need in the electronics industry. A hierarchical modeling approach is suggested aiming at the development of efficient and robust process simulators with predictive capabilities and, thus, providing modeling tools for development of optimal materials processing strategies. This approach is based on linking a variety of existing theoretical and computational methods which include: ab initio, semi-empirical, and empirical atomic-scale simulation methods for accurate calculation of materials properties and mechanistic physical understanding; microstructural-scale thermodynamic, transport, and kinetic modeling; and macroscopic process-specific process simulation. Issues of interdisciplinary communication and collaboration and exploratory research for new materials are also addressed.
Cascading Trilinear Tensors for Face Authentication

This paper presents a method to improve the accuracy rates of face authentication between images with different poses. Trilinear tensors are used to adjust the pose of the training and testing images. All the images are transformed by a pose adjustment algorithm so novel images are generated that have the same pose. These novel images are then used to train and test support vector machine (SVM) face authentication functions to verify the identity of the people in the images. The overall results show that the accuracy improves when the poses of the images are adjusted.
Modulation of transfected gene expression mediated by changes in chromatin structure

Abstract We examined the molecular basis of modulation of transfected herpes simplex virus (HSV) thymidine kinase (tk) gene in mouse fibroblasts. We observed that one tk + cell line is capable of reversion to a tk − phenotype, and rereverts to a tk + phenotype at high frequencies (5%). The revertants lacked tk enzyme activity and tk-specific transcripts. We detected no differences in the organization of foreign DNA or in the CpG methylation patterns in the revertants and rerevertants. We probed the chromatin structure of the revertants and rerevertants, and found the tk sequences in the rerevertants to be more highly sensitive to digestion with DNAase I than the corresponding revertant cells. We conclude that the high frequency switching of gene expression we observed is mediated by changes in chromatin structure, and that this may reflect the behavior of the host sequences at the site of foreign DNA integration.
A COMPUTER MODEL OF GLOBAL THERMOSPHERIC WINDS AND TEMPERATURES

Output data from the NCAR Thermospheric GCM and a vector-spherical-harmonic (VSH) representation of the wind field are used in constructing a computer model of time-dependent global horizontal vector neutral wind and temperature fields at altitude 130-300 km. The formulation of the VSH model is explained in detail, and some typical results obtained with a preliminary version (applicable to December solstice at solar maximum) are presented graphically. Good agreement with DE-2 satellite measurements is demonstrated.
Methylidene and hydrazone complexes of the cluster family: Cp′3M3(CO)2(CH2) (M=Co, Rh, Ir)

Abstract The reactions of diazoalkanes and trinuclear complexes of the form Cp′M(CpCo)2(CO)2 are described where Cp′ is one of several types of cyclopentadienyl ligands and M is either Co, Rh and Ir. Two types of products which preserve the trinuclear cluster skeleton are formed: the methylidene complex, reflecting loss of dinitrogen and incorporation of the methylidene ligand, and the hydrazone complex where incorporation of the intact diazoalkane occurs. NMR and X-ray structural investigations define the general and specific structural elements of these two product types. More detailed NMR investigations have been used to monitor the dynamic behavior of the methylidene ligand in these complexes. In several instances both degenerate and nondegenerate movement of this ligand in concert with the carbonyl ligands is observed.
In the Millhauser Archives

(1996). In the Millhauser Archives. Critique: Studies in Contemporary Fiction: Vol. 37, No. 2, pp. 149-160.
Sex difference in muscular strength in equally-trained men and women

Although the magnitude of the sex difference in muscular strength is well documented, the extent to which it reflects long-term behavioural differences in physical activity compared to innate biological differences in muscle mass or neuromuscular function is unclear. The purposes of this study were to determine: (1) the magnitude of the sex difference in upper- and lower-body strength in groups of men and women with similar backgrounds of physical activity and (2) the extent to which the difference in strength could be explained by indices of muscle size. Maximum curl, bench press, handgrip, leg press and leg extension strengths; fat-free weight (FFW); and upper-arm, forearm and thigh fat-free cross-sectional areas (FFCSA) were measured on 24 male and 25 female swimmers and 23 male and 25 female non-athletes, 15-28 years of age. Sex differences in absolute strength for both groups were typically smaller than those previously reported. Sex differences in absolute strength were generally smaller for the swi...
Classifier performance prediction for computer-aided diagnosis using a limited dataset

In a practical classifier design problem, the true population is generally unknown and the available sample is finite-sized. A common approach is to use a resampling technique to estimate the performance of the classifier that will be trained with the available sample. We conducted a Monte Carlo simulation study to compare the ability of the different resampling techniques in training the classifier and predicting its performance under the constraint of a finite-sized sample. The true population for the two classes was assumed to be multivariate normal distributions with known covariance matrices. Finite sets of sample vectors were drawn from the population. The true performance of the classifier is defined as the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) when the classifier designed with the specific sample is applied to the true population. We investigated methods based on the Fukunaga-Hayes and the leave-one-out techniques, as well as three different types of bootstrap methods, namely, the ordinary, 0.632, and 0.632+ bootstrap. The Fisher's linear discriminant analysis was used as the classifier. The dimensionality of the feature space was varied from 3 to 15. The sample size n2 from the positive class was varied between 25 and 60, while the number of cases from the negative class was either equal to n2 or 3n2. Each experiment was performed with an independent dataset randomly drawn from the true population. Using a total of 1000 experiments for each simulation condition, we compared the bias, the variance, and the root-mean-squared error (RMSE) of the AUC estimated using the different resampling techniques relative to the true AUC (obtained from training on a finite dataset and testing on the population). Our results indicated that, under the study conditions, there can be a large difference in the RMSE obtained using different resampling methods, especially when the feature space dimensionality is relatively large and the sample size is small. Under this type of conditions, the 0.632 and 0.632+ bootstrap methods have the lowest RMSE, indicating that the difference between the estimated and the true performances obtained using the 0.632 and 0.632+ bootstrap will be statistically smaller than those obtained using the other three resampling methods. Of the three bootstrap methods, the 0.632+ bootstrap provides the lowest bias. Although this investigation is performed under some specific conditions, it reveals important trends for the problem of classifier performance prediction under the constraint of a limited dataset.
High-throughput sample preparation and analysis using 96-well membrane solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for the determination of steroids in human urine

A 96-well solid-phase extraction (SPE) system is used to rapidly prepare human urine samples for high-throughput quantitative analysis of two steroids, equilenin and progesterone, by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry using deuterated estrone as the internal standard. We define high-throughput here as analysis of 384 samples in a 24 h period. A total of 384 samples and standards were extracted by an individual in one day and subsequently analyzed within a 24 h period. The inter- and intratray accuracy and precision obtained over the course of these injections was within 8% coefficient of variation when analyzed by atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry using positive ion detection. A semiautomated sample processing workstation was used to add internal standard and then process 96 samples at a time. The recovery of the analytes from the SPE was approximately 85%. The accuracy and precision obtained was comparable to that ordinarily obtained using manual sample preparation techniques.
The ingestion of sow's faeces by suckling piglets

1. Six sows were housed in solid-floored farrowing pens and fed daily with approximately 200 microCi 198 Au, three of them from 3 d before farrowing until their piglets were 10 d old and three fr om 10 d after farrowing until their piglets were weaned at 21 d. 2. The sows' faeces and sawdust bedding became radioactive but their milk remained free of radioactivity. The piglets' radioactivity was measured daily in a whole-body counter after they had been washed to remove external contamination. 3. The piglets' mean whole-body radioactivity was equivalent to 20.9 +/- 2.5 g (range 5.7-85 g) of faeces and bedding. If the average passage time of the digesta through the gastrointestinal tract is assumed to be 24 h these values are equal to the average daily intake of faeces and bedding by the piglets. 4. This intake of faeces could possibly prevent the piglets becoming anaemic if the sow's diet were supplemented with iron to increase the Fe concentration of her faeces to approximately 2 mg Fe/g fresh faeces.
Towards applications of particle filters in wildfire spread simulation

Wildfire propagation is a complex process influenced by many factors. Simulation models of wildfire spread, such as DEVS-FIRE, are important tools for studying fire behavior. This paper presents how the sequential Monte Carlo methods, i.e., particle filters, can work together with DEVS-FIRE for better simulation and prediction of wildfire. We define an application framework of particle filters for the problem of wildfire spread using the DEVS-FIRE model, and discuss several applications. A case study example is provided and preliminary results are presented.