cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Picosecond pulse radiolysis of aromatic solutes in cyclohexane: formation of solute triplet states

Abstract Evolution of the absorption spectra due to transient species produced by the pulse radiolysis of biphenyl, pyrene, diphenylamine, and naphthalene in cyclohexane was measured over 50 ps to 3 ns. The initial (50 ps) yield of triplet is only a small fraction of the yield (G ≈ 0.3) at 3 ns.
Visualizing the Complex Brain Dynamics of Chronic Pain

Chronic pain is now recognized as a disease state that involves changes in brain function. This concept is reinforced by data that document structural and morphological remapping of brain circuitry under conditions of chronic pain. Evidence for aberrant neurophysiology in the brain further confirms neuroplasticity at cellular and molecular levels. Proper detection of pain-induced changes using emerging non-invasive and cost-effective technologies, such as analytical electroencephalography methods, could yield objective diagnostic measures and may guide therapeutic interventions targeting the brain for effective management of chronic pain.
Characterisation of various intravenous immunoglobulin preparations.

Summary Five commercially available immunoglobulin preparations are characterised with regard to molecular weight distribution, immunoglobulin subclass distribution and antibody content. Preparations processed utilising enzymic or chemical modification demonstate considerable variance of molecular weight species and subclass distribution when compared to native preparations. Similarly, cytomegalovirus and antistreptolysin O antibody content is dramatically reduced in the modified preparations. Possible reasons for the differences are discussed. In-process inactivation of Human Immunodeficiency Virus is reviewed with regard to one of the native preparations.
Indoleamides are active against drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Responsible for nearly two million deaths each year, the infectious disease tuberculosis remains a serious global health challenge. The emergence of multidrug- and extensively drug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis confounds control efforts, and new drugs with novel molecular targets are desperately needed. Here we describe lead compounds, the indoleamides, with potent activity against both drug-susceptible and drug-resistant strains of M. tuberculosis by targeting the mycolic acid transporter MmpL3. We identify a single mutation in mmpL3, which confers high resistance to the indoleamide class while remaining susceptible to currently used first- and second-line tuberculosis drugs, indicating a lack of cross-resistance. Importantly, an indoleamide derivative exhibits dose-dependent antimycobacterial activity when orally administered to M. tuberculosis-infected mice. The bioavailability of the indoleamides, combined with their ability to kill tubercle bacilli, indicates great potential for translational developments of this structure class for the treatment of drug-resistant tuberculosis.
Conservation laws for materials exhibiting power-law creep

Abstract Conservation laws are derived from materials whose constitutive behavior is characterized by power-law creep with elastic strains. This is accomplished by formulating an adjoint variational principle which has as its Euler-Lagrange equations the governing equations as well as a set of adjoint equations involving adjoint variables. Conservation laws are then derived by an application of Noether’s theorem to the variational principle. The results are analogous to those obtained in linear elasticity, in that conservation laws are shown to arise from translations of spatial and temporal coordinates, rigid-body rotations, and self-similar scalings. A path-independent integral formulation of one of the conservation laws, valid under special circumstances, is derived.
Multiclass feature selection for improved pediatric brain tumor segmentation

In our previous work, we showed that fractal-based texture features are effective in detection, segmentation and classification of posterior-fossa (PF) pediatric brain tumor in multimodality MRI. We exploited an information theoretic approach such as Kullback-Leibler Divergence (KLD) for feature selection and ranking different texture features. We further incorporated the feature selection technique with segmentation method such as Expectation Maximization (EM) for segmentation of tumor T and non tumor (NT) tissues. In this work, we extend the two class KLD technique to multiclass for effectively selecting the best features for brain tumor (T), cyst (C) and non tumor (NT). We further obtain segmentation robustness for each tissue types by computing Bay's posterior probabilities and corresponding number of pixels for each tissue segments in MRI patient images. We evaluate improved tumor segmentation robustness using different similarity metric for 5 patients in T1, T2 and FLAIR modalities.
The Neighborhood Quality of Subsidized Housing

Problem, research strategy, and findings: Housing policy in the United States has struggled for decades to assess the relative importance of neighborhood context in the provision of subsidized housing. In this study, we enter the debate over the value and limitations of neighborhood settings and the “dispersal-versus-development” approach by looking at the issue from an alternative perspective: neighborhood access. We provide a large-scale, quantified assessment of the neighborhood context of subsidized housing, with specific attention to six metropolitan areas in the United States. Using data on neighborhood access (measured by a walkability index) and locations of federally subsidized housing, we investigate three primary areas of research: an analysis of the level of access for subsidized housing, the question of whether low-poverty neighborhoods translates to low access, and the degree to which neighborhood access is compromised by an increase in negative factors like crime, poverty, or segregation. W...
Forced torsional oscillations of multilayered solids

Abstract A new approach is proposed for obtaining the dynamic elastic response of a multilayered elastic solid caused by a forced torsional oscillation inside the solid. The elastodynamic Green’s function of the center of rotation and a point load method are used to solve the problem. The solution of the center of rotation for multilayered solids is obtained by solving a set of simultaneous linear algebraic equations using the boundary conditions for the singularity and for the layer interfaces. The solution of the forced torsional oscillation is formulated by integrating the Green’s function over the contact area with unknown surface traction. The dual integral equations of the unknown surface traction are established by considering the boundary conditions on the contact surface of the multilayered solid, which can be converted into a Fredholm integral equation of the second kind and solved numerically.
Is facilitated percutaneous coronary intervention superior to primary percutaneous coronary intervention

Is facilitated percutaneous coronary intervention superior to primary percutaneous coronary intervention?
Fission cross sections of 241Am and 242mAm

Abstract The acquisition and analysis of neutron cross section data from an experiment using an underground nuclear detonation are discussed with specific reference to fission cross sections measured in the Petrel event in June 1965. Results are presented for 241 Am and 242m Am over the energy range 20 eV to 1 MeV, measured simultaneously in a single experiment covering the entire energy range, with very low background. Considerable sub-threshold fission was observed for 241 Am. The fission cross section of the doubly old nucleide 242m Am is about twice that of 239 Pu over most of the neutron energy range, but only about 20% greater at 1 MeV.
Bi-velocity transport processes. Single-component liquid and gaseous continua

Abstract The present contribution supplements the previous findings regarding the need for two independent velocities rather than one when quantifying mass, momentum and energy transport phenomena in fluid continua. Explicitly, for the case of single-component fluids the present paper furnishes detailed expressions for the phenomenological coefficients appearing in the constitutive equations governing these bi-velocity transport processes. Whereas prior analyses furnished coefficient values only for the case of dilute monatomic gases using data from Burnett’s solution of the Boltzmann equation, the present study furnishes values applicable to all fluids, liquids as well as dense gases. Moreover, whereas prior coefficient calculations derived these values (for dilute monatomic gases) from Burnett’s solution of Boltzmann’s gas-kinetic equation, the latter a molecular theory, the present analysis derives the liquid- and gas-phase values from purely macroscopic data requiring knowledge only of the fluid’s coefficients of thermal expansion, isothermal compressibility, and thermometric diffusivity. In the dilute monatomic gas case common to both levels of analysis, the respective molecularly and macroscopically derived phenomenological coefficients are found to be in excellent agreement, confirming the credibility of both bi-velocity theory and the theory establishing the values of the phenomenological coefficients appearing in the constitutive relations derived therefrom. Whereas the preceding macroscopic calculations invoked Onsager’s reciprocal theorem relating coupled phenomenological coefficients, an alternative scheme is presented at the conclusion of the paper, one that reverses the usual order of things, at least in the present single-component fluid case. This alternate scheme enables Onsager’s nonequilibrium reciprocal relation, originally derived by him using molecular arguments, to be derived using purely macroscopic arguments originating from knowledge of Maxwell’s equilibrium reciprocal relations, the latter fundamental to equilibrium thermodynamics.
The performance of density functional approximations for the structures and relative energies of minimum energy crossing points

The structural parameters and relative energies of the minimum-energy crossing points (MECPs) of eight small molecules are calculated using five different representative density functional theory approximations as well as MP2, MP4, and CCSD(T) as a reference. Compared to high-level wavefunction methods, the main structural features of the MECPs of the systems included in this Letter are reproduced reasonably well by density functional approximations, in agreement with previous works. Our results show that when high-level wavefunction methods are computationally prohibitive, density functional approximations offer a good alternative for locating and characterizing the MECP in spin-forbidden chemical reactions.
Novel network polymer for templated carbon photonic crystal structures

Inverse opaline photonic crystal structures are created from carbon precursor polymer networks derived from the thermal Bergman cyclopolymerization of bis-ortho-diynyl arene (BODA) monomers. A new hydroxy-functional BODA monomer was prepared that exhibited excellent compatibility with silica opal templates. Monomer melt infiltration of the template, in situ thermal polymerization, and pyrolysis, followed by removal of the silica with HF affords a carbon inverse opal structure that conserves the original dimensions of the template. The photonic crystal was characterized by the reflectance spectra, and the refractive index of the carbon was estimated. The functionality of the carbon opal as a sensor element was demonstrated with water/acetonitrile mixtures and reveals a bandstop shift of 13 nm over a refractive index change of 0.011.
Two-Dimensional Simulation of Dynamic Surface Roughness for Aerodynamic Flow Control

This study addresses the issue of controlling flow separation through the use of dynamic surface roughness. The work focuses on two areas: 1) development of simulation tools for detailed analysis of moving flow boundaries and 2) investigation of the effects of dynamic roughness on aerodynamic flow separation. The process of generating a quality grid for a surface that contains complex roughness can be a labor-intensive project. The addition of dynamic surface roughness, or roughness that grows (or shrinks) in time, can further complicate this process. The current study proposes a method that not only accounts for the perturbations to the surface but also allows for the surface to move dynamically, which produces a robust gridding method that is well suited for this application. The method is applied to dynamic surface roughness in the leading-edge region of an airfoil but could also be used for analysis of internal surface roughness. The dynamic surface roughness examined in this study demonstrated a major effect on the flow field, with the resulting flow being significantly different than the flow found with similar static surface roughness. The dynamic roughness was able to delay or eliminate the unsteady flow separation for the conditions tested at both constant angle of attack and dynamic stall regimes and shows strong potential as an aerodynamic-flow-control mechanism.
Measurement of the Tei index: a comparison of M-mode and pulse Doppler methods.

Background The Tei index is a useful echocardiographic measure of ventricular function in adults and children. Most studies have used pulse or tissue Doppler imaging to calculate this index. M-mode, with its higher frame rate and sharp deflections, may be an accurate method of calculating the Tei index. Methods M-mode and pulse Doppler (PD) measurement of the Tei index were performed in 68 children. The mitral closure to opening time ("a") and ejection time ("b") intervals for calculating the Tei index were measured by M-mode and PD methods. Results Both M-mode and PD were found to be reproducible methods of calculating the Tei index. There was a close correlation between measurements of the "a" and "b" intervals by M-mode and PD, with less variability with M-mode than with PD. Conclusion M-mode is a simple, reproducible echocardiographic alternative method for calculating the Tei index in children and has a lower variance than PD.
Microbial community shifts influence patterns in tropical forest nitrogen fixation.

The role of biodiversity in ecosystem function receives substantial attention, yet despite the diversity and functional relevance of microorganisms, relationships between microbial community structure and ecosystem processes remain largely unknown. We used tropical rain forest fertilization plots to directly compare the relative abundance, composition and diversity of free-living nitrogen (N)-fixer communities to in situ leaf litter N fixation rates. N fixation rates varied greatly within the landscape, and ‘hotspots’ of high N fixation activity were observed in both control and phosphorus (P)-fertilized plots. Compared with zones of average activity, the N fixation ‘hotspots’ in unfertilized plots were characterized by marked differences in N-fixer community composition and had substantially higher overall diversity. P additions increased the efficiency of N-fixer communities, resulting in elevated rates of fixation per nifH gene. Furthermore, P fertilization increased N fixation rates and N-fixer abundance, eliminated a highly novel group of N-fixers, and increased N-fixer diversity. Yet the relationships between diversity and function were not simple, and coupling rate measurements to indicators of community structure revealed a biological dynamism not apparent from process measurements alone. Taken together, these data suggest that the rain forest litter layer maintains high N fixation rates and unique N-fixing organisms and that, as observed in plant community ecology, structural shifts in N-fixing communities may partially explain significant differences in system-scale N fixation rates.
Self-Efficacy of Children and Adolescents: A Meta-Analysis

The current study analyzed empirical work examining the relationship of self-efficacy to subsequent behavior in children under the age of 16. Applying meta-analytic techniques to 26 studies (N = 1692) published in the psychological literature between 1977 and 1989 resulted in a mean effect size (r) of .334 across studies.
Chemiluminescence from Acetaldehyde Oxidation by Xanthine Oxidase Involves Generation of and Interactions with Hydroxyl Radicals

The ability of acetaldehyde to generate free radicals is often ascribed to its oxidation by xanthine oxidase, with the subsequent production of reactive oxygen intermediates. Chemiluminescence associated with the oxidation of acetaldehyde by xanthine oxidase was inhibited by superoxide dismutase, catalase, or several hydroxyl radical scavenging agents, and was stimulated by the addition of EDTA or ferric-EDTA. This suggests that the light emission is primarily due to the production of hydroxyl radicals via an iron-catalyzed Haber-Weiss type of reaction. Chemiluminescence with hypoxanthine as substrate for xanthine oxidase was much lower than that found with acetaldehyde, yet rates of hydroxyl radical production were greater with hypoxanthine. Acetaldehyde increased light emission in the presence of hypoxanthine by a greater than additive effect. These results suggest a complex role for acetaldehyde in catalyzing xanthine oxidase-dependent chemiluminescence. It appears that besides being a substrate for xanthine oxidase, acetaldehyde also reacts with the generated hydroxyl radical to produce acetaldehyde radicals, which yield chemiluminescence upon their decay. Further studies will be required to evaluate whether the production of such species contributes to or plays a role in the generation of reactive oxygen intermediates and toxicity associated with acetaldehyde metabolism.
Generalized state relationships for scalar properties in nonpremixed hydrocarbon/air flames

Generalized state-relationship correlations giving the mass fractions of major gas species (N2, 02, fuel, CO2, H20, CO, and H2) and temperature as functions of local fuel-equivalence ratios were studied for hydrocarbon-air diffusion flames. The data base included existing measurements in laminar methane, propane, n-heptane, acetylene, and ethylene flames burning in air (or N2/O2 mixtures) with burner configurations involving porous cylinders in crossflow, coflowing round jet flames, and flat-laminar diffusion flames. Reasonably good generalized staterelationship correlations were found for major gas species over the available data base, which included molar fuel H/C ratios in the range 1-4 and fuel-equivalence ratios in the range 10-2-102 . Typical of state relationships for particular fuels, the generalized state relationships approximated thermodynamic equilibrium for fuel-lean conditions and departed from equilibrium in a relatively universal manner for near-stoichiometric and fuel-rich conditions. Temperature state-relationship correlations were also reasonably good, over the more limited available data base, in view of uncertainties concerning radiative heat losses from the test flames and thermocouples. The results should be useful for estimating the scalar properties and the infrared gas-band radiation properties of laminar and turbulent hydrocarbon/air diffusion flames--the latter in conjunction with the laminar flamelet concept.
Corneal Endothelial Cytoskeletal Changes in F-Actin With Aging, Diabetes, and After Cytochalasin Exposure

We investigated the changes in endothelial cytoskeletal F-actin that occur with aging, diabetes, and exposure to cytochalasin D. Rabbit corneas, human donor corneas (with or without polymegethism), and corneas of diabetic individuals were studied. Endothelial F-actin was stained using nitrobenzoxadiazole-phallacidin. Results of these experiments demonstrated that F-actin of the rabbit and human corneal endothelium was arranged in linear circumferential strands that formed a hexagonal array. After in vitro perfusion of cytochalasin D to the corneal endothelium, the F-actin became randomly distributed throughout the cytoplasm, the hexagonal shape of the endothelial cell was disrupted, and endothelial permeability to carboxyfluorescein increased. Changes in F-actin were also observed in the endothelium of the human corneas with polymegethism, and in donor tissue having had previous posterior chamber intraocular lens implantation. The corneas of diabetic individuals also showed marked irregular F-actin fibers crossing the endothelial cell cytoplasm. These abnormal patterns of F-actin may contribute in part to the polymegethism observed in the corneal endothelial cells and may be the result of constant stress in cell volume regulation, particularly in the corneas of diabetic individuals.
The effect of vitamin A on cellular differentiation and mucous glycoprotein synthesis in long-term rat tracheal organ cultures.

Rat tracheal explants maintained as organ cultures exhibited a normal mucociliary epithelium for at least 46 days in the presence of retinyl acetate. In the absence of vitamin A the explant epithelium became quiescent or underwent a metaplastic change to a keratinizing squamous epithelium. This process was accelerated if explants were derived from vitamin A-deficient animals. Autoradiographic examination showed that [3H]glucosamine label accumulated in various cell types in the explant, but especially in the epithelium. It was found that the explants secreted mucous glycoproteins into the medium and that the production and biochemical characteristics of a specific mucin fraction were dependent upon the vitamin A status of the explant.
Ethical Issues in Observational Family Research

Ethical issues raised by the increasing reliance on observational technology in family research are discussed. The tensions between scientific advancement and participant welfare are highlighted by delineating the process of observational research and the nature of the relationship between family scientists and the families they study. Guidelines are proposed for ethical decision making regarding potential child abuse, suicidality, informed consent, confidentiality, and debriefing.
Influence of cherry rootstock on the cold hardiness of twigs of the sweet cherry scion cultivar

Abstract Scion twig tissue of the sweet cherry cultivars ‘Hedelfingen’, ‘Napoleon’ and ‘Gold’ were subjected to cold hardiness evaluations in the late fall (November 21, 1984) and early spring (March 1, 1985) of the same dormant season. ‘Hedelfingen’ and ‘Gold’ were grafted to the rootstocks ‘Colt’ and ‘Mazzard’. At sampling, the twig tissues were stratified statistically as to apical and basal positions on the twig. A comparison of scion tissues grown on the rootstocks in common (‘Mazzard’ and ‘Colt’) showed a scion cultivar hardiness ranking of ‘Gold’ > ‘Hedelfingen’ > ‘Napoleon’. Separate evaluations included two other rootstocks: ‘MxM-39’ for ‘Gold’ and ‘Hedelfingen’, and ‘Mahaleb’ for ‘Napoleon’. Rootstock influence on scion twig tissue showed that ‘Gold’ and ‘Hedelfingen’ produced the following hardiness ranking: ‘MxM-39 > ‘Mazzard’ > ‘Colt. For ‘Napoleon’ the ranking was: ‘Mahaleb’ > ‘Colt’ > ‘Mazzard’. Basal tissues on sampled twigs were more hardy than apical tissues on the dates sampled.
Mechanisms that lead to disease of the endocrine system in animals.

Endocrine glands are collections of specialized cells that synthesize, store, and release their secretions directly into the blood stream. They are sensing and signalling devices located in the ext...
Patient-centered communication: do patients really prefer it?

OBJECTIVE: To investigate patient preferences for a patient-centered or a biomedical communication style. DESIGN: Randomized study. SETTING: Urgent care and ambulatory medicine clinics in an academic medical center. PARTICIPANTS: We recruited 250 English-speaking adult patients, excluding patients whose medical illnesses prevented evaluation of the study intervention. INTERVENTION: Participants watched one of three videotaped scenarios of simulated patient-physician discussions of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Each participant watched two versions of the scenario (biomedical vs. patient-centered communication style) and completed written and oral questionnaires to assess outcome measurements. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Main outcome measures were 1) preferences for a patient-centered versus a biomedical communication style; and 2) predictors of communication style preference. Participants who preferred the patient-centered style (69%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 63 to 75) tended to be younger (82% [51/62] for age 59; P<.03), more educated (76% [54/71] for postcollege education; 73% [94/128] for some college; 49% [23/47] for high school only; P=.003), use CAM (75% [140/188] vs. 55% [33/60] for non-users; P=.006), and have a patient-centered physician (88% [74/84] vs. 30% [16/54] for those with a biomedical physician; P<.0001). On multivariate analysis, factors independently associated with preferring the patient-centered style included younger age, use of herbal CAM, having a patient-centered physician, and rating a “doctor’s interest in you as a person” as “very important.” CONCLUSIONS: Given that a significant proportion of patients prefer a biomedical communication style, practicing physicians and medical educators should strive for flexible approaches to physician-patient communication.
Culture and morphoogenetic response of a lethal, chlorophyll-deficient mutant of tobacco to hormones, amino acids and sucrose.

This report describes the culture of Su/Su, Su/su and su/su tissue in vitro. High levels of auxin and low levels of cytokinin increase growth of the cells. The cells do not need exogenous amino acids for rapid growth and the chlorophyll deficiency cannot be overcome by amino acids. Reduced levels of auxin and sucrose enhance differentiation, whereas cysteine in the autoclaved medium inhibit differentiation. The Su chlorophyll mutant of tobacco provides a marker for in vitro studies on photosynthesis and photorespiration, chloroplast genetics and cell fusion techniques.
A Model of Sexual Constraint and Sexual Emancipation

In the United States, public concern in sexual matters and stigmatization of sexual identities make people retreat into privacy. This sexual constraint makes people experience shame and guilt. According to Scheff, shaming is a cause of violence. In contrast, German society shows less public concern and social opposition in the sexual-erotic domain. This sexuality allows privatization as independence and creates sexual emancipation. Consequently, Germans associate less shame with their sexual identities and will be less likely to introduce violence into the sexual-erotic domain. This article develops a recursive cultural/structural model to investigate and explain cultural, subcultural, and historical differences in sexual constraint and emancipation.
Performing Master Han

In asking what it means to perform an ethnographic other, I, a middle-aged White American man, struggle with a performance of my older Taiwanese Tai Chi teacher. Although everyday life performance (ELP) leads me ever closer to an exact copy of Master Han’s behaviors, it simultaneously clarifies difference. Is it mimesis or alterity? Am I presenting or representing? Am I integrating participant and observer? Is autoethnography, like poetry, something that can get near but not there? When I perform my Tai Chi master, does my audience see him, me, both, or something else? What knowledge claim would I make were I to perform my own brother instead of Master Han? How do we understand knowledge that resides in the body? How do we know that we know? My experience performing Master Han leads me to further question the epistemology of representation.
Paired box genes in vertebrate neurogenesis

Abstract The Pax genes encode a family of transcription factors containing a novel DNA binding domain, the paired domain. A number of these genes have been identified in vertebrates where many are active during the development of the nervous system. Many of the Pax genes exhibit restricted patterns of expression in early neural development that suggest they are involved in the regionalisation of the nervous system. Recently mutations in two Pax genes have been described both of which result in defects in neural structures. These studies and other experiments analysing the function of the Pax genes are strong evidence for the involvement of the Pax genes in the patterning of the vertebrate nervous system.
Change in the retrograde atrial activation sequence following radiofrequency modification of the atrioventricular node: implications for the electrophysiologic circuit of a variant of atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia.

Introduction: Despite the great success in treating AV nodal reentrant tachycardia (AVNRT) with radiofrequency modification of the AV node, the dimensions of the electrophysiologic circuit of this arrhythmia remain unclear, and simple models fail to explain all tachycardia-related phenomena. Methods and Results: We describe three unusual cases of supraventricular tachycardia (SVT). In all three cases, retrograde atrial activation during ventricular pacing or during SVT manifested local left atrial electrograms recorded from the coronary sinus preceding the septal atrial electrograms (eccentric activation), with earliest atrial activity at the lateral or posterolateral mitral annulus. Electrophysiologic maneuvers and observations were consistent with AVNRT as the mechanism in each case. In all cases, radiofrequency modification of the AV node eliminated inducible SVT and abolished dual pathway AV nodal physiology. The retrograde atrial activation sequence during ventricular pacing changed after ablation in each case, with septal atrial electrograms preceding left atrial electrograms recorded from the coronary sinus (concentric activation). Conclusion: The observations in these cases cannot be explained by the traditional model of slow, fast, and intermediate AV nodal pathways. A model incorporating a circuit close to the AV node with left atrial and coronary sinus connections is proposed.(J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 14, pp. 461-466, May 2003)
Culture-independent analysis of bacterial diversity in a child-care facility

Child-care facilities appear to provide daily opportunities for exposure and transmission of bacteria and viruses. However, almost nothing is known about the diversity of microbial contamination in daycare facilities or its public health implications. Recent culture-independent molecular studies of bacterial diversity in indoor environments have revealed an astonishing diversity of microorganisms, including opportunistic pathogens and many uncultured bacteria. In this study, we used culture and culture-independent methods to determine the viability and diversity of bacteria in a child-care center over a six-month period. We sampled surface contamination on toys and furniture using sterile cotton swabs in four daycare classrooms. Bacteria were isolated on nutrient and blood agar plates, and 16S rRNA gene sequences were obtained from unique (one of a kind) colony morphologies for species identification. We also extracted DNA directly from nine representative swab samples taken over the course of the study from both toy and furniture surfaces, and used "universal" 16S rRNA gene bacterial primers to create PCR-based clone libraries. The rRNA gene clones were sequenced, and the sequences were compared with related sequences in GenBank and subjected to phylogenetic analyses to determine their evolutionary relationships. Culturing methods identified viable bacteria on all toys and furniture surfaces sampled in the study. Bacillus spp. were the most commonly cultured bacteria, followed by Staphylococcus spp., and Microbacterium spp. Culture-independent methods based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing, on the other hand, revealed an entirely new dimension of microbial diversity, including an estimated 190 bacterial species from 15 bacterial divisions. Sequence comparisons and phylogenetic analyses determined that the clone libraries were dominated by a diverse set of sequences related to Pseudomonas spp., as well as uncultured bacteria originally identified on human vaginal epithelium. Other sequences were related to uncultured bacteria from wastewater sludge, and many human-associated bacteria including a number of pathogens and opportunistic pathogens. Our results suggest that the child-care facility provided an excellent habitat for slime-producing Pseudomonads, and that diaper changing contributed significantly to the bacterial contamination. The combination of culture and culture-independent methods provided powerful means for determining both viability and diversity of bacteria in child-care facilities. Our results provided insight into the source of contamination and suggested ways in which sanitation might be improved. Although our study identified a remarkable array of microbial diversity present in a single daycare, it also revealed just how little we comprehend the true extent of microbial diversity in daycare centers or other indoor environments.
Single-crystalline silicon solar cell with pp+ heterojunction of c-Si substrate and μc-Si : H film

Abstract Annealing effects of the single-crystalline silicon solar cells with hydrogenated microcrystaline silicon (μc-Si : H) film were studied to improve the conversion efficiency. Boron-doped (p + ) μc-Si : H film was deposited in a RF plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition system (RF plasma CVD) on the rear surface of the cell. With the optimized annealing conditions for the substrate, the conversion efficiency of 21.4% (AM1.5, 25°C, 100 mW/cm 2 ) was obtained for 5 × 5 cm 2 area single crystalline-solar cell.
Diagnosing the Naturalistic Fallacy: Principia Ethica Revisited

L'A. etudie le chapitre 4 des «Principia Ethica» de Moore, chapitre dont il fait resortir l'importance trop negligee selon lui. L'A. explique ainsi les causes que Moore attribue a «l'erreur naturaliste» dans sa critique des l'empirisme moral
Asteroid orbit evolution due to thermal drag

Thermal drag, a variant of the Yarkovsky effect, may act on small asteroids with sizes from a few meters to a few tens of meters. Yarkovsky thermal drag comes from an asteroid's absorbing sunlight in the visible and reradiating it in the infrared. Since the infrared photons have momentum, by action-reaction, they kick the asteroid when they leave its surface. The reradiation, which is asymmetric in latitude over the asteroid, gives a net force along the asteroid's pole. Due to the asteroid's thermal inertia, averaging this force over one orbital period produces a net drag if the spin axis has a component in the orbital plane. Thermal drag tends to circularize orbits. It can increase or decrease orbital inclinations. An object whose spin axis points in random directions over its lifetime displays little change in orbital inclination. Thermal drag appears to have little to do with the delivery of chondrites from the asteroid belt; the thermal drag timescale (10(exp 8) years for meter-sizzed objects) is long compared with their cosmic ray exposure ages, and aphelia in the asteroid belt are not expected for mature thermal drag orbits. However, Yarkovsky thermal drag may act on the recently discovered near-Earth asteroids, which have radii of 10-30 m. Asteroid 1992 DA, for instance, might have its orbit shrunk by 0.1 AU in 3 x 10(exp 7) years, removing it from an Earth-crossing orbit. The near-Earth asteroids also tend to have small to moderate orbital eccentricities, as expected for highly evolved thermal drag objects. However, the time needed to bring them in from the asteroid belt (about 10(exp 9) years) is long compared with the collisonal and dynamical lifetimes (both about 10(exp 8) years) for Earth-crossing objects, arguing against their emplacement by thermal drag.
TOO MANY LEAKS, WHICH ONE TO FIX?

Echocardiography remains the mainstay of cardiac imaging in evaluating valvular heart disease. However, patients with ventricular dysfunction due to multi-valvular disease and/or intra-cardiac shunting will require accurate estimation of the individual contribution of each lesion. Cardiac magnetic
A privacy protection for an mHealth messaging system

In this paper, we propose a new software system that employs features that help the organization to comply with USA HIPAA regulations. The system uses SMS as the primary way of communication to transfer information. Lack of knowledge about some diseases is still a major reason for some harmful diseases spreading. The developed system includes different features that may help to communicate amongst low income people who don’t even have access to the internet. Since the software system deals with Personal Health Information (PHI) it is equipped with an access control authentication system mechanism to protect privacy. The system is analyzed for performance to identify how much overhead the privacy rules impose.
Laser annealing of nanocrystalline gold nanowires.

The efficacy of laser annealing for the thermal annealing of nanocrystalline gold nanowires is evaluated. Continuous laser illumination at 532 nm, focused to a 0.5 μm diameter spot, was rastered perpendicular to the axis of nanocrystalline gold nanowire at ∼2 kHz. This rastered beam was then scanned down the nanowire at velocities from 7 to 112 nm/s. The influence on the electrical resistance of the gold nanowire of laser power, polarization, translation speed, and nanowire width were evaluated. Nanocrystalline gold nanowires were prepared on glass surfaces using the lithographically patterned nanowire electrodeposition (LPNE) method. These nanowires had a rectangular cross section with a height of 20 (± 3) nm and widths ranging from 76 to 274 nm. The 4-contact electrical resistance of the nanowire is measured in situ during laser annealing and a real-time decrease in electrical resistance of between 30 and 65% is observed, depending upon the laser power and scan rate along the nanowire. These resistance ...
Glutamate decarboxylase immunoreactive neurons in rat neostriatum: their morphological types and populations.

Abstract Morphological types and populations of glutamate decarboxylase (GAD)-immunoreactive neurons in rat neostriatum (Str) were studied. Str of colchicine-treated animals contained 3 types of neurons immunoreactive for GAD. The first type, which makes up 80–84% of Str neurons, was medium in size and showed moderate intensity GAD-staining. The somatic morphology of the neurons was identical to the medium-spiny projection neuron. The second type, 3–5% of Str neurons, was small to medium in size and was in-intensely stained for GAD. The somata of the neurons were round or oval and contained a narrow ring of cytoplasm surrounding the nucleus, which often had nuclear invaginations. There were only a few in each section of the third type, which were large, polygonal, and intensely stained. GAD-immunoreactive neurons, including all 3 types, ranged from 85–87% of the total neuron population. The present study indicated that GABAergic neurons in the Str are not a single morphological type and that most Str projection neurons are GABAergic.
Adaptation of Drosophila enzymes to temperature--I. Acetylcholinesterase and NADP-dependent isocitrate-dehydrogenase.

Abstract 1. 1. The relationship between Km and assay temperature was examined in three tropical and two temperate Drosophila species, and in the cosmopolitan species, D. melanogaster, for isocitrate dehydrogenase and acetylcholinesterase. 2. 2. For both enzymes Km patterns were similar among species from the same habitat, and different between habitats. No such parallelism was seen with respect to thermal inactivation. 3. 3. The Q10 values in general reflected temperature dependent changes in Km, but exceptions were noted.
Multiple Contacts of Similar Elastic Materials

The contact problem for an elastic body indenting a similar half-space resulting in multiple contacts is important for various applications. In this paper an exact fast numerical method based on singular integral equations is developed to solve the normal contact (including applied moments), partial slip, and shear-reversal problems for such contacts. The contact patches are considered to be fully interacting, with no simplifying assumptions. A contact algorithm to automatically generate trial values based on an analysis of the profile and to subsequently guide the solver toward convergence is detailed. Some applications are discussed, including regular rough cylinders and a regularly rough flat punch with rounded edges. The examples involve between 3 and 29 contacts. The partial slip problems include demonstration of cases with multiple stick zones in some contact patches and complete sliding in others.
Atomic Layer Deposition Al $_{2}$ O $_{3}$ Films for Permanent Magnet Isolation in TMR Read Heads

Al2O3 films made with atomic layer deposition (ALD) have been developed for use as isolation layers in CPP tunneling magnetoresistive readers. A low-temperature deposition process was developed to permit integration with a self-aligned patterning scheme. The resulting films show excellent thickness uniformity ( 9 MV/cm). TEMs of sub-100 nm TMR readers fabricated using these processes show>95% conformality on junction sidewalls, indicating nonselective growth of ALD Al2O3 on the various stack and bottom shield surfaces. Permanent magnets with well-controlled junction grain structure and coercivities in excess of 2500 Oe have been deposited with existing processes. FEM modeling shows the effective stabilizing field from the magnets at the junction edge scales inversely with ALD layer thickness, in agreement with device-level free layer stability metrics showing improvements at lower ALD thicknesses. As the conformal ALD layer thickness is easily tuned, this technology provides flexibility in trading off reader amplitude and stability that should support scaling of the abutted TMR design out to 1 Tb/in2 and beyond.
Optical constants of sulphuric acid in the far infrared

The IR absorption spectrum of a 75% sulphuric acid solution is obtained experimentally in the 20-50 micron wavelength region. The complex refractive index is determined from these measurements by integration of the Kramers-Kronig dispersion relation. The application of this data to radiative transfer processes in the atmosphere of Venus is briefly discussed.
A Pilot Annotation to Investigate Discourse Connectivity in Biomedical Text

The goal of the Penn Discourse Treebank (PDTB) project is to develop a large-scale corpus, annotated with coherence relations marked by discourse connectives. Currently, the primary application of the PDTB annotation has been to news articles. In this study, we tested whether the PDTB guidelines can be adapted to a different genre. We annotated discourse connectives and their arguments in one 4,937-token full-text biomedical article. Two linguist annotators showed an agreement of 85% after simple conventions were added. For the remaining 15% cases, we found that biomedical domain-specific knowledge is needed to capture the linguistic cues that can be used to resolve inter-annotator disagreement. We found that the two annotators were able to reach an agreement after discussion. Thus our experiments suggest that the PDTB annotation can be adapted to new domains by minimally adjusting the guidelines and by adding some further domain-specific linguistic cues.
Quantitative color analysis of laryngeal erythemain chronic posterior laryngitis

The purpose of this study was to quantitatively analyze the degree of erythema visible in the larynges of normal subjects and of patients with symptoms of chronic posterior laryngitis. Video-documented examinations of laryngoscopy were digitized and then analyzed using computer image analysis software that allowed quantification of average color values, hue, saturation, and brightness from digitized color images. Documented laryngoscopic images from 7 normal subjects and 64 patients complaining of chronic laryngitis symptoms were examined, and additional patient examinations which were obtained and documented during treatment for reflux laryngitis were analyzed. Analysis was made of five different areas of each laryngeal image: the right and left vocal folds, the right and left vocal processes, and the posterior arytenoid mucosa. Data analysis showed that average color value ratings of redness for the patients with chronic laryngitis were significantly (p <0.0561) greater than the average values for normal subjects for the vocal folds. Color values for redness of the posterior laryngeal structures and vocal folds in the patients who were treated for reflux laryngitis were significantly (p <0.05) reduced over time and correlated with the clinical response to treatment. The data suggest that computer color analysis of documented video-laryngoscopic examinations can provide quantitative data on degree of erythema and may be useful as a quantitative means of diagnosis and documentation of treatment outcome for reflux laryngitis.
Alternative application-specific processor architectures for fast arbitrary bit permutations

Block ciphers are used to encrypt data and provide data confidentiality. For interoperability reasons, it is desirable to support a variety of block ciphers efficiently. Of the basic operations in block ciphers, only bit permutation is very slow on existing processors, followed by integer multiplication. Although new permutation instructions proposed recently can accelerate bit permutations in general-purpose processors, reducing the number of instructions needed to achieve an arbitrary n-bit permutation from O(n) to O(log2n), the data dependency between permutation instructions prevents them from being executed in fewer than log2n cycles, even on superscalar processors. Since Application-Specific Instruction-Set Processors (ASIPs) have fewer constraints on maintaining standard processor datapath and control conventions, six alternative ASIP approaches are proposed in this paper to achieve arbitrary 64-bit permutations in one or two cycles without increasing the cycle time. These approaches use new BFLY and IBFLY instructions. We also compare these approaches and their efficiency in performing arbitrary 64-bit permutations.
Step Test Scores Are Related to Measures of Activity and Participation in the First 6 Months After Stroke

Background: The Step Test (ST) is a measure of dynamic standing balance and paretic–lower-extremity motor control in patients with stroke. Little is known about the extent to which impairments assessed by the ST relate to activity and participation during stroke recovery. Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine relationships between ST scores and measures of activity and participation during the first 6 months after stroke. Design: This was a prospective cohort study. Methods: Thirty-three individuals (18 men, 15 women) with a diagnosis of a single, unilateral stroke participated in the study. Participants were tested one time per month from 1 to 6 months poststroke. The ST was considered an impairment-level measure. Self-selected gait speed and the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) Physical Function Index (PFI) were used to assess physical function. Three domains (mobility, basic and instrumental activities of daily living, participation) of the Stroke Impact Scale were used to assess self-reported disability. Regression analyses were conducted to examine the bivariate associations between ST scores and each physical function and disability measure at each time point (1–6 months). Results: The ST scores were positively associated with both physical function measures. The associations were stronger for self-selected gait speeds (R2=.60–.79) than for the PFI scores (R2=.32–.60). During the first 6 months after stroke, each additional step with the paretic lower extremity on the ST corresponded to a 0.07-m/s to 0.09-m/s increase in gait speed, and each additional step with the nonparetic lower extremity was associated with a 0.07-m/s to 0.08-m/s gait speed increase. The impairment-disability associations were weaker than the impairment-physical function associations. Limitations: Limitations of the study include a relatively small sample size and lack of examiner blinding with regard to participant characteristics. Conclusions: Impairments in balance and paretic–lower-extremity motor control, as measured by the ST, relate to physical function and disability during the first 6 months following stroke.