cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A parametric study of joint performance in sheet metal assembly

In sheet metal assembly, joints are designed to facilitate welding the parts and to form various shapes and dimensions of sheet metal products. The most commonly used joints are lap joints, butt joints and butt-lap joints. Different joint configurations have different performance characteristics. One of the performance criteria is the level of dimensional variation in the assembly. This paper presents a parametric study of the dimensional variation characteristics of the three basic joints. An offset finite-element-model-based variation simulation methodology is used in the parametric study in order to take into consideration possible part deformation. This parametric study helps determine the circumstances under which part variation or tooling variation will contribute more variation to assembly variation. These results provide improved understanding of sheet metal assembly processes and provide data for robust product/process design.
Operation of residential hybrid renewable energy systems: Integrating forecasting, optimization and demand response

This paper presents a methodology to systematically formulate a hybrid renewable energy system (HRES), which consists of solar, wind and diesel generator as a backup resource as well as battery storage, from the preliminary design stage to the optimal operation. Detailed modeling of each system component, including photovoltaic(PV) panels, wind turbines and lead-acid batteries, are introduced as the basis for simulation. System sizing considering energy flows is conducted to get the optimal combination of PV and wind generation units. Power management strategies from both the demand-side and generation-side are developed to realize the objectives of meeting the electricity demand while minimizing the overall operating and environmental costs. Real-time weather forecasting and model updating are also integrated into the proposed methodology using a receding horizon optimization strategy.
Diaryl urea analogues of SB-334867 as orexin-1 receptor antagonists

As a part of our program to develop OX1-CB1 bivalent ligands, we required a better understanding of the basic structure-activity relationships (SARs) of orexin antagonists. A series of SB-334867 analogues were synthesized and evaluated in calcium mobilization assays. SAR results suggest that the 2-methylbenzoxazole moiety may be replaced with a disubstituted 4-aminophenyl group without loss of activity and an electron-deficient system is generally preferred at the 1,5-naphthyridine moiety for OX1 antagonist activity. In particular, substitution of larger potential linkers such as n-hexyl provided compound 33 with equivalent activity at the OX1 receptor compared to the lead compound SB-334867. These compounds should be of value in the development of ligands targeting the orexin-1 receptor and its potential heterodimers.
The role of the electron-hole coulomb interaction in quantum confined stark effect

Abstract The luminescence peak energy and tunneling lifetime of an exciton in a semiconductor quantum well with a small valence band offset in the presence of a perpendicular electric field is calculated by generalizing the variational approach of quantum confined Stark effect normally used for systems of GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells. At a finite electric field, the electron-hole Coulomb interaction provides additional confinement to each of the carriers and significantly enhances the Stark shift and the exciton lifetime against field ionization. Numerical results are presented for ZnSe/Zn1−xMnxSe heterostructures studies in recent experiments.
Improving priority scores in grant applications.

JCPN Commentary presents a series of observations, opinions, and analyses of issues and trends in education and practice in psychiatric and mental health nursing, and social policy factors that influence families, or the delivery of health services to youth and their families.
A case report of confusional psychosis with abrupt onset and rapid resolution of symptoms.

Psychiatric consultants are frequently asked to evaluate patients with acute confusion. Since confusion is a prominent symptom of delirium, a thorough medical and neurologic evaluation is always warranted. However, primary psychotic disorders should be considered in the differential diagnosis of confusion even though confusion-predominant psychotic disorders with an abrupt onset may not appear to be “psychiatric” in etiology. The Kraepelinian dichotomy of psychotic illnesses into schizophrenia and manic-depressive illness has had an enormous influence on the psychiatric classification. However, because Kraepelin emphasized the deteriorating course of schizophrenia, patients with psychotic illnesses and good outcome can be difficult to categorize. Cycloid psychosis, bouffee delirante, reactive psychosis, and atypical psychosis all describe transient psychotic disorders classifiable as neither schizophrenia nor manic-depressive illness. The existence of non-affective transient psychotic disorders is acknowledged in both ICD-10 and DSM-IV-TR. The ICD-10 classifies these transient psychotic disorders into the category of acute transient psychotic disorders (ATPD), while in DSM-IV-TR, brief psychotic disorder and schizophreniform disorder are designed to capture these remitting psychotic illnesses. We report the case of a young woman who presented with an acute change of behavior and prominent confusion, with rapid resolution of symptoms. We review cycloid psychosis and the ICD-10 classification scheme of transient psychotic syndromes to alert clinicians to rare yet well-described psychiatric syndromes that can mimic deliria or acute confusional states.
Restriction of gene expression in B lymphocytes and their progeny. I. Commitment to immunoglobulin allotype.

Lymphocytes from b5/b9 rabbits were stained in suspension with fluorescent antiallotype antibody reagents to selectively label with fluorescent molecules those cells bearing membrane immunoglobulin (Ig) of the b5 or b9 allotype. After staining, the cells were separated by the fluorescence-activated cell sorter into populations markedly enriched in cells bearing b5 or b9 membrane Ig or totally depleted of cells with detectable membrane Ig. The potential of these separated cells to give rise to Ig-synthesizing plasma cells either in vivo after transfer into irradiated recipients or in vitro during culture in the presence of phytohemagglutinin or pokeweed mitogen was assessed by immunofluorescence. The relative proportion of b5 and b9 cytoplasmic Ig-stained cells (CSC) arising from the separated cells was determined to test directly whether B lymphocytes and their progeny are committed to the synthesis of Ig of one allotype. It was found that b5- and b9-bearing cells gave rise almost exclusively to b5- and b9-producing plasma cells, respectively, in both the in vivo and in vitro assay systems. Most of these CSC were probably not derived from previously existing CSC but arose as the result of the differentiation of lymphocytes with membrane Ig. When cell populations totally depleted of Ig-bearing lymphocytes were cultured, very few CSC were found, indicating that the majority of immediate precursors of CSC have membrane Ig. These results suggest that individual B cell clones are phenotypically restricted to the expression of immunoglobulin genes on one chromosome; the significance of this clonal allelic exclusion is discussed.
Consideration of dipole orientation angles yields accurate rate equations for energy transfer in the rapid diffusion limit

Dipole-dipole energy transfer between suitable donor and acceptor chromophores is an important luminescence quenching mechanism and has been shown to be useful for distance determination at the molecular level. In the rapid diffusion limit, where the excited-state lifetime of the donor is long enough to allow the donor and acceptor to diffuse many times their average separation before deexcitation, it is usually assumed that the relative dipolar orientation is completely averaged due to rotational Brownian motion. Under this simplifying assumption, analytical expressions have been derived earlier for the energy transfer rate between donor and acceptor characterized by different geometries. Most such expressions, however, are only approximate because complete angular averaging is permitted only in a geometry that possesses spherical symmetry surrounding each chromophore. In this paper analytical expressions that correctly account for incomplete angle averaging due to steric hindrance are presented for several geometries. Each of the equations reveals a dependence of the energy transfer rate on chromophore orientation. It is shown that correctly accounting for this effect can lead to improvements in estimates of the distance of closest approach from measured quenching rates based on energy transfer experiments.
Factors affecting mosquito populations in created wetlands in urban landscapes

Constructed, created and restored wetlands are gaining popularity in urban areas due to many ecosystem services they provide. However, there is a concern over mosquito breeding in such wetlands. We studied factors affecting mosquito populations in two experimental flow-through created wetlands, a stormwater wetland, a pond and 40 mono-specific and mixed plant mesocosms (1 m2) at the Olentangy River Wetland Research Park (ORWRP) in Columbus, Ohio. The flow-through created wetlands had less mosquito larval density (2 to 4/dip) compared to the pond (36.2 ± 8.4/dip) (p < 0.00001) and stormwater wetland (24.9 ± 10.2/dip) (p = 0.002). Sites with higher larval density in the flow-through wetlands were outflow regions (p = 0.009) and emergent vegetation sites (p = 0.023). Mixed vegetation communities consisting of Sparganium eurycarpum, Juncus effusus, and Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani rather than mono specific Typha communities provided most conducive environment for mosquito breeding (p < 0.0001). Mesocosm plots with steady inflow (10 cm depth) and deep water (20 cm) in summer and shallow water (5 cm) in spring had higher mosquito densities than mesocosm plots with other hydrological conditions. Among water quality parameters, conductivity (p = 0.004) positively and dissolved oxygen (p = 0.052) negatively correlated with mosquito larval density. Six mosquito species identified in all water bodies were Culex pipiens, Culex salinarius, Culex restuans, Uranotaenia sapphirina, Anopheles quadrimaculatus, and Anopheles punctipennis some of which may transmit deadly human pathogens. This information will be useful for targeting mosquito populations in specific sections of urban created wetlands and to develop improved designs for urban wetlands.
Corticosterone urinalysis and nicotinic receptor modulation in rats

A routine method of measuring circulating corticosterone (CORT) levels in rats involves sampling of plasma from cannulated animals. However, being somewhat invasive, this method can potentially be confounded by its inherently stressful nature. This study investigated the feasibility of measuring corticosterone using a non-invasive sampling method from voided urine of male rats. Reliability was assessed pharmacologically with nicotinic compounds previously demonstrated to modulate plasma glucocorticoid levels. Nicotine (0.1-1mg/kg sc) dose-dependently increased corticosterone levels in rat urine at 30-70 min following administration. The short-lived nature of this elevation was confirmed as CORT levels measured 6 and 24h later were shown to have returned to basal levels. Both basal and nicotine-induced (0.5mg/kg sc) elevations in urinary CORT were consistent between groups of animals with weights ranging from 200 to 400 g. The magnitude of urinary CORT elevation induced by nicotine (0.5mg/kg sc) was found to be similar to that induced by a forced swim stressor in male Lister ) antagonist mecamylamine (0.05-0.5mg/kg sc) dose-dependently reversed the effects of nicotine (0.5mg/kg sc) on urinary CORT. Finally, the alpha(4)beta(2)-subunit preferring agonist TC-2559 induced a dose-dependent increase in CORT, whereas alpha(7)- and beta(4)-subunit preferring ligands had no effect, suggestive of the potential for differential involvement of nicotinic receptor subtypes in the mediation of this response. In conclusion, urinary corticosterone sampling in rats represents a robust assay sensitive to experimental manipulations of both pharmacological and behavioural relevances.
A Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the California Verbal Learning Test—Second Edition (CVLT-II) in the Standardization Sample:

The purpose of this study is to determine the latent structure of the California Verbal Learning Test—Second Edition (CVLT-II; Delis, Kramer, Kaplan, & Ober, 2000) at three different age levels, us...
Inhibitory effect of amines on polar filament extrusion byPlistophora anguillarum spores

In in vitro tests, amines were screened for the inhibition of polar filament extrusion by spores ofPlistophora anguillarum, a microsporidian parasite of the eel. Primary amines having C8 − C18 alkyl chains were effective, irrespective of the anions bound. Secondary amines having a branched C8 chain and tertiary amines having C14−C18 chains were also effective. Asymmetry in side chains seemed to be required for inhibitory action. Quaternary ammonium salts having C12−C16 alkyl chains and some germicides or disinfectants such as cetyl pyridinium chloride and benzethonium chloride were also effective. Diamines and amides were ineffective regardless of the length of their alkyl chins. In in vivo tests, eel larvae-fed for 4 days with a commercial feed supplemented with 5×108 cells of spores and 4g of laurylamine aspartate/100 g feed, and thereafter with the usual commercial feed for 26 days—were not infected.
Cryptic brain cell injury caused by fetal nicotine exposure is associated with persistent elevations of c-fos protooncogene expression

Neurobehavioral teratogenesis caused by prenatal nicotine exposure is associated with deficiencies in brain cell numbers that reflect, in part, effects on cell replication but that also involve delayed cell loss. In the current study, pregnant rats were given nicotine by implanted minipump infusion either from gestational days 4–12 or 4–21 and fetal and neonatal brain regions were examined for expression of the mRNA encoding c-fos, a nuclear transcription factor that becomes chronically elevated when cell injury or apoptosis are occurring. Fetuses exposed to nicotine on gestational days 4–12 did not show elevations of c-fos mRNA on gestational day 18 whereas animals undergoing exposure through day 21 did. In the latter group, elevated c-fos expression was still present on postnatal day 2 despite the cessation of nicotine exposure on gestational day 21. In contrast to the elevation of c-fos seen with prenatal nicotine, postnatal nicotine injections given to 2-day-old rats did not cause acute stimulation of c-fos expression. The ability of injected nicotine to evoke acute rises in c-fos emerged by postnatal day 8 and initially displayed regional specificity paralleling the concentration of nicotinic cholinergic receptors. With increasing maturity, regional selectivity of the c-fos response to acute nicotine was lost, consistent with indirect actions that could be mediated through nicotine-induced hypoxia/ischemia. These results indicate that prenatal nicotine exposure causes chronic elevations of c-fos expression in fetal and neonatal brain that are distinguishable from the later onset of the ability of acute nicotine to cause short-term stimulation of c-fos. The critical period and dose threshold for these effects correspond to those of subsequent cell damage and cell loss identified in previous studies with fetal nicotine exposure. Given that chronic elevations of c-fos are known to be associated with cell injury and to evoke apoptosis in otherwise healthy cells, these results suggest that prenatal nicotine exposure evokes delayed neurotoxicity by altering the program of neural cell differentiation, and that elevated c-fos expression provides an early marker of the eventual deficits.
Suppression of feeding induced by phenylephrine microinjections within the paraventricular hypothalamus in rats

Abstract Rats were treated with the alpha-2 agonist clonidine (4, 20 and 50 nMol) and with the alpha-1 agonist 1-phenylephrine (50, 100, 200 and 400 nMol). Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) is a phenythylamine anorectic drug that exerts direct agonist effects predominantly on alpha-1 adrenergic receptors, with some alpha-2 adrenergic activity. We recently reported that injection of PPA significantly suppressed feeding in rats. Prior studies have noted that into the paraventricular hypothalamus (PVN) microinjections of the alpha-2 adrenergic receptor agonist clonidine into the PVN induced feeding behavior in satiated rats. However, the effect on feeding of administration of alpha-1 adrenergic agonists within the PVN remains unknown. In the present study, unilateral guide cannulae aimed at the PVN were surgically implanted in adult male rats. In an initial 60 min feeding test conducted under free-feeding (“non-deprived”) conditions, each rat was found to eat significantly more food after injection of 25 nMol norepinephrine (NE) into the PVN. In subsequent tests, the feeding increased significantly to 4 nMol clonidine; however, feeding was suppressed by 50 nMol clonidine. Food intake after 20 nMol clonidine was not significantly different from that recorded after vehicle. In contrast, phenylephrine (100–400 nMol) reliably suppressed feeding behavior. In the final phase of the study, the rats ate significantly less food after injection of 160 nMol PPA into the PVN but consumed significantly more food after a final injection of 25 nMol NE into the PVN. These results suggest that the anorexic action of PPA may be linked to activation of alpha-1 adrenergic receptors within the PVN.
HAT: a hardware assisted TOP-DOC inverted index component

A novel Hardware Assisted Top-Doc (HAT) component is disclosed. HAT is an optimized content indexing device based on a modified inverted index structure. HAT accommodates patterns of different lengths and supports a varied posting list versus term count feature sustaining high reusability and efficiency. The developed component can be used either as an internal slave component or as an external co-processor and is efficient in resource demands as the component controllers take only a minimal percentage of the target device space leaving the majority of the space to term and posting entries. A Very High Speed Integrated Circuit (VHSIC) Hardware Description Language (VHDL) is used to model the HAT system.
COMPARATIVE INOCULUM POTENTIAL OF SPORES OF SIX VESICULAR‐ARBUSCULAR MYCORRHIZAL FUNGI

Summary Using the most probable number method, differences in inoculum potential between six vesicular-arbuscular (VA) mycorrhizal fungal isolates were demonstrated. Inoculum of Glomus mosseae had the highest inoculum potential while G. constrictus, and G. fasciculatus isolate 92, and isolate 0–1 were approximately 1/5, 1/6 and 1/12 as effective. G. fasciculatus isolate 185 and G. epigaeus were approximately 1 /50 as effective. These differences were not correlated with differences in spore viability or germinability since approximately 75 % germination occurred in all species after 3 weeks. While G. mosseae has the largest spore size and had the highest inoculum potential, no further correlation between spore size and inoculum potential was observed. The rate of increase of infection by these six VA mycorrhizal fungi differed more when equal spore numbers were used as inoculum than when equalized inoculum potentials were used. The percentage root infection, subjected to the multiple infection correction, was regressed against log of inoculum density and yielded slopes of 063 to 070 for all VA mycorrhizal fungi tested. The inoculum density-infection relationships of mycorrhizal fungi are discussed with respect to Baker's epidemiological models.
Switch Therapy with β-Lactam/β-Lactamase Inhibitors in Patients with Community-Acquired Pneumonia

BACKGROUND:Antimicrobial drugs are prescribed inappropriately nearly 50% of the time. To address this problem, a hospital antimicrobial team was formed integrating the talents of infectious disease physicians, pharmacists, microbiologists, infectious control practitioners, and nurses. The primary goal of the team is to provide optimal, cost-effective antimicrobial therapy.OBJECTIVETo review the principles of streamlining antimicrobial therapy, with an emphasis on antibiotic switch therapy.DISCUSSION:With appropriate guidelines, switch therapy appears to be an important means to provide optimal antimicrobial therapy complementing the many social pressures placed on patients, while positively impacting on the overall cost of treatment. The use of β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations as the antibiotics for initial intravenous medication to oral combination switch therapy is a viable approach to the treatment of hospitalized patients with community-acquired pneumonia. Preliminary data from our institut...
Focus Issue: Computational Approaches in Signal Transduction

This STKE Focus Issue describes the STKE contribution to a coordinated effort by Science and Science 9s Online products to bring together a series of resources highlighting the importance and application of mathematics in biology. In addition to several articles on the topic, STKE will host a Forum that will allow users to discuss modeling and simulation environments available for analysis of cellular signaling processes with the authors of the articles.
A rapid, flexible approach to tradespace definition and exploration

This paper provides an overview of the Mission Tradespace Tool (MTT), a methodology and software framework developed to improve JPL's early design process by offering a rapid, structured, and inexpensive way to identify feasible space mission design architectures from a wide array of candidate architectures. There has been a growing consensus at JPL that to improve the quality of service offered to design customers it is desirable to explore a wide tradespace of candidate architectures prior to forming a conceptual design baseline. This paper describes the rationale behind the MTT's approach to meet this need. Notable features of the framework are introduced and explained
Predicting human interruptibility with sensors: a Wizard of Oz feasibility study

A person seeking someone else's attention is normally able to quickly assess how interruptible they are. This assessment allows for behavior we perceive as natural, socially appropriate, or simply polite. On the other hand, today's computer systems are almost entirely oblivious to the human world they operate in, and typically have no way to take into account the interruptibility of the user. This paper presents a Wizard of Oz study exploring whether, and how, robust sensor-based predictions of interruptibility might be constructed, which sensors might be most useful to such predictions, and how simple such sensors might be.The study simulates a range of possible sensors through human coding of audio and video recordings. Experience sampling is used to simultaneously collect randomly distributed self-reports of interruptibility. Based on these simulated sensors, we construct statistical models predicting human interruptibility and compare their predictions with the collected self-report data. The results of these models, although covering a demographically limited sample, are very promising, with the overall accuracy of several models reaching about 78%. Additionally, a model tuned to avoiding unwanted interruptions does so for 90% of its predictions, while retaining 75% overall accuracy.
The Foreign Policy-Making Process in Britain, 1934–1935, and the Origins of the Anglo-german Naval Agreement*

Studies of the Anglo-German naval agreement of 1935 have so far failed to provide a complete analysis of the factors which prompted the British government's decision to sanction German naval rearmament. Diverse views on the causes of this British decision have included the interpretation that the naval agreement represented the beginning of appeasement, that it was an attempt to curry favour with Hitler's Reich at the expense of France and other continental powers, or that it was intended to become part of a general international system of naval arms limitations but because of unforeseen difficulties remained simply a bilateral agreement. The severest critics of the agreement suggest that British statesmen were the victims of Hitler's guile and of their own ignorance and credulity which blinded them to the serious consequences their conduct had for British foreign relations.
Degradation of Carmustine in Mixed Solvent and Nonaqueous Media

The degradation rate of carmustine in several solvent mixtures and in mannitol solution was investigated at 5, 22, and 37°. The solvents chosen were those utilized as parenteral diluents. The apparent first-order degradation rate constants were computed using a linear regression procedure. The most nonaqueous solvent mixtures demonstrated minimum apparent degradation rates. The apparent degradation rate constant decreased with a decrease in the macroscopic dielectric constant. From the data at several temperatures, the apparent activation energies for carmustine degradation in the several solvent mixtures were calculated. There was no evidence for a relationship between the apparent activation energy and the dielectric constant.
The collective: a cache-based system management architecture

This paper presents the Collective, a system that delivers managed desktops to personal computer (PC) users. System administrators are responsible for the creation and maintenance of the desktop environments, or virtual appliances, which include the operating system and all installed applications. PCs run client software, called the virtual appliance transceiver, that caches and runs the latest copies of appliances locally and continuously backs up changes to user data to a network repository. This model provides the advantages of central management, such as better security and lower cost of management, while leveraging the cost-effectiveness of commodity PCs.With a straightforward design, this model provides a comprehensive suite of important system functions including machine lockdown, system updates, error recovery, backups, and support for mobility. These functions are made available to all desktop environments that run on the x86 architecture, while remaining protected from the environments and their many vulnerabilities. The model is suitable for managing computers on a LAN, WAN with broadband, or even computers occasionally disconnected from the network like a laptop. Users can access their desktops from any Collective client; they can also carry a bootable drive that converts a PC into a client; finally, they can use a remote display client from a browser to access their desktop running on a remote server.We have developed a prototype of the Collective system and have used it for almost a year. We have found the system helpful in simplifying the management of our desktops while imposing little performance overhead.
Valuing Indirect Ecosystem Services: the Case of Tropical Watersheds

Mitigating the harmful effects of development projects and industries (negative environmentalism) is inadequate, especially in resource-dependent economies whose resources are at risk from other forces. While positive environmentalism includes conservation projects, the non-market benefits of such projects are difficult to evaluate. This paper provides and illustrates a method for evaluating the indirect, watershed benefits of a tropical forest, without resorting to survey methods. The conservation of trees prevents a reapportionment from groundwater recharge to runoff that would otherwise occur. The value of the water saved is then valued at the shadow prices obtained from an optimizing model. An illustration of the model shows that watershed conservation projects may have very high payoffs, even before assessing existence values and other forest amenities.
Accurate repeat finding and object skipping using fingerprints

This paper introduces a novel and very accurate segmentation algorithm. It is very efficient and consumes less than 10% of CPU on a simple desktop PC to segment a stream in real-time. It operates on an audio stream, or on the audio portion of a audio-visual stream. It is very accurate: it accurately detects the positions and durations of objects on an over-the-air broadcast television signal, and songs on both FM and internet radio stations (as checked against labeled ground truth streams). The algorithm does not require any prior information or training. We detail the system design and present results of segmenting broadcast streams.
Intragenomic heterogeneity of internal transcribed spacer rDNA in neotropical malaria vector Anopheles aquasalis (Diptera: Culicidae).

Intragenomic heterogeneity of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) array was investigated in Anopheles aquasalis Curry mosquitoes from two geographic locations in each of Brazil and Venezuela, and one in Suriname. Polymerase chain reaction-amplified copies of the ITS were cloned and sequenced. The length of the entire array ranged from 782 to 990 bp, with most variation due to microsatellite insertions in ITS1. We detected 40 different ITS1 sequences and 15 different ITS2 sequences of the 71 to 72 clones examined. The sequence divergence within localities ranged from 0.002 to 0.043 for ITS1 and from 0 to 0.006 for ITS2. Point mutations were common to both spacer regions, but dinucleotide microsatellite repeats were restricted to ITS1. Sequences from neither ITS1 nor ITS2 had a diagnostic distribution or were informative in distinguishing these populations, providing additional support for the status of An. aquasalis as a single species.
The secondary structure of human 28S rRNA: the structure and evolution of a mosaic rRNA gene.

We have determined the secondary structure of the human 28S rRNA molecule based on comparative analysis of available eukaryotic cytoplasmic and prokaryotic large-rRNA gene sequences. Examination of large-rRNA sequences of both distantly and closely related species has enabled us to derive a structure that accounts both for highly conserved sequence tracts and for previously unanalyzed variable-sequence tracts that account for the evolutionary differences in size among the large rRNAs.
The Failure of Nuclear Power

This article is concerned with one of the largest scale technological failures that has ever occurred in a major nation: the failure of nuclear power. Actively promoted in the period following World War II, nuclear power appeared to have unlimited prospects as a source of electricity. Today this promise is unfulfilled, the nuclear dream blighted. The public is no longer in favor of the technology, fearing catastrophic accident, and the electric utilities have long since abandoned new plant construction, owing to unreliable plant operation, uncontrolled costs, and public opposition. Nuclear power has caused severe financial troubles for numerous utilities and has left the country with far too many reactors which produce uneconomical electricity. The future seems to hold only a slow decline for nuclear power, possibly punctuated by a disruptive accident.
Classroom Learning, Teaching, and Research: A Task‐Based Perspective

In an increasing number of second language (L2) classrooms, teachers and researchers are taking on new roles and responsibilities. From these new perspectives, they are developing similar concerns about L2 learning processes, which they typically express in ways that reflect their different backgrounds and goals. To support learning, teaching, and research in the L2 classroom, researchers and teachers have attempted to develop activities that both address their concerns and accommodate their differences on a long-term basis. This article reflects my participation as a researcher in this context and presents the ways in which the teachers and students with whom I have worked have turned to information gap tasks to serve many of our needs. The first part of the article describes the contributions of information gap tasks as seen from our learning, teaching, and research perspectives. The second part describes the issues and challenges we have faced in integrating and implementing them. Then the third part presents an approach that we have developed for designing information gap tasks both as authentic activities for teaching and learning and as reliable instruments for research. Examples of our tasks are provided, together with excerpts from the discourse of their classroom implementation. These excerpts reveal the effectiveness of the tasks in drawing students' attention to form, function, and meaning in ways that we considered vital to students' L2 learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Hegar uterine dilator as an unusual cause of small bowel obstruction: a case report

Introduction The unusual event of surgical instrument retention in the abdominal cavity usually occurs after laparotomy.
Local‐ and regional‐scale effects of wave exposure, thermal stress, and absolute versus effective shore level on patterns of intertidal zonation

Rocky intertidal ecosystems are characterized by marked zonation patterns in which species replace one another along the vertical gradient of emersion time. Yet, we still do not fully understand the reasons that zonation patterns are variable in space and time. Here, we use effective shore level (ESL), a metric that incorporates the modifying influence of wave splash, to describe the relationship between uninterrupted emersion time and the zonation patterns of two ecologically important species: the mussel Mytilus californianus and the barnacle Balanus glandula. At the local scale (10s to 100s of meters) on Tatoosh Island, the upper limits of both species are closely related to ESL, regardless of substrate aspect or maximum temperature. At larger spatial scales (10s to 100s of kilometers), the upper limit of Balanus is related to ESL at cool sites but not at hotter sites. Thus, although ESL explains most of the local-scale variation in zonation at a cool site, other factors (temperature, desiccation) likely become important as spatial scale increases to incorporate warmer sites. Our results emphasize that an understanding of where and when specific ecological factors are limiting is crucial for our ability to explain and predict large-scale biological patterns in space and time.
Anionic polymerization of α-methylstyrene

The polymerization of α-methylstyrene catalyzed by sodium naphthalene has been studied below 0°. Measurable amounts of monomer remained in equilibrium with the polymer down to −40°, even though the color indicated that active chain ends were still present. This behavior is expected of α-methylstyrene since, due to a low heat of polymerization, the reverse of the chain propagation step must be important at these temperatures. From the equilibrium monomer concentrations determined experimentally, the heat and entropy of polymerization of α-methylstyrene has been calculated.
Statins for primary prevention of coronary artery disease

argue that there is no evidence that lipid-lowering therapy reduces mortality in individuals without evident coronary artery disease (CAD), despite a signiﬁ cant decrease in CAD events.They do not take into account the fact that, owing to the young age of the participants and short treatment period, none of the primary prevention studies was powered to detect changes in total mortality. Also, many participants would not be candidates for lipid-lowering treatment on the basis of current guidelines.
Economic liberalization and price response of aggregate private investment: time series evidence from India

. This paper presents evidence on the effects of economic liberalization of 1991 on the price responsiveness of aggregate private investment in India. The wide ranging reforms are expected to increase the price response of private investment due to (i) the Le Chatelier effect, (ii) a higher price elasticity of demand for final goods, and (iii) possible relaxation of the credit constraint. The empirical results, based on alternative specifications, estimation methods, and sample periods, show a dramatic increase in the price response; the elasticity of investment with respect to the relative cost of capital has increased five times after the dismantling of the ‘Licence Raj.’ Ce texte examine les effets de la liberalisation de 1991 sur la reponse des prix de l’investissement prive agrege en Inde. On aurait pu s’attendre a ce que ces reformes importantes accroissent la reponse des prix de l’investissement privea cause (i)de l’effet Le Chatelier, (ii) de la plus forte elasticite de la demande de biens finaux, et (iii) de la relaxation possible de la contrainte financiere. Les resultats empiriques fondes sur des specifications, des methodes d’estimation, et des periodes d’echantillonnage differentes, suggerent un accroissement dramatique dans la reponse des prix; l’elasticite de l’investissement par rapport au cout relatif du capital s’est accru par un facteur de 5 apres le demantelement du regime Raj.
Anti-α4 antibody treatment blocks virus traffic to the brain and gut early, and stabilizes CNS injury late in infection.

Four SIV-infected monkeys with high plasma virus and CNS injury were treated with an anti-α4 blocking antibody (natalizumab) once a week for three weeks beginning on 28 days post-infection (late). Infection in the brain and gut were quantified, and neuronal injury in the CNS was assessed by MR spectroscopy, and compared to controls with AIDS and SIV encephalitis. Treatment resulted in stabilization of ongoing neuronal injury (NAA/Cr by 1H MRS), and decreased numbers of monocytes/macrophages and productive infection (SIV p28+, RNA+) in brain and gut. Antibody treatment of six SIV infected monkeys at the time of infection (early) for 3 weeks blocked monocyte/macrophage traffic and infection in the CNS, and significantly decreased leukocyte traffic and infection in the gut. SIV – RNA and p28 was absent in the CNS and the gut. SIV DNA was undetectable in brains of five of six early treated macaques, but proviral DNA in guts of treated and control animals was equivalent. Early treated animals had low-to-no plasma LPS and sCD163. These results support the notion that monocyte/macrophage traffic late in infection drives neuronal injury and maintains CNS viral reservoirs and lesions. Leukocyte traffic early in infection seeds the CNS with virus and contributes to productive infection in the gut. Leukocyte traffic early contributes to gut pathology, bacterial translocation, and activation of innate immunity.
Intimate Partner Violence Victimization Among Undergraduate Women at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)

Despite the evidence that young and minority women may be particularly vulnerable to intimate partner violence (IPV), there is little research on the IPV experiences of minority undergraduate women. This study addresses this gap by estimating the prevalence of IPV and examining factors associated with experiencing IPV among undergraduate women attending Historically Black Colleges or Universities (HBCUs). Findings suggest alarmingly high victimization rates; however, factors associated with IPV among HBCU women are similar to those found in prior research with women in the general population. The results also suggest that some risk factors are differentially associated with experiencing specific types of IPV.
Fish Assemblages of Natural and Artificial Habitats within the Channel Border of the Upper Mississippi River

Abstract The influence of specific types of habitat structure on fish assemblage structure, diversity and abundance in large rivers is largely unknown. This study determined whether fish assemblages differed among various artificial and natural habitats within the main channel border (shallow, nearshore areas) of the upper Mississippi River, and assessed whether different types of artificial structure influenced fish assemblage structure over long (>0.2 km) sections of shoreline habitat. Daytime electrofishing during August and October 1994 captured 31 different fish taxa from main channel border habitats in Pool 6 of the upper Mississippi River. Nine species of fish preferred specific types of nearshore habitat. Fish abundance and diversity measures differed little among habitat types, but significantly larger fish were present at locations with structure (wing dikes, woody snags) than at sites without (bare shore). Cluster analysis indicated that different fish assemblages occupied different habitat typ...
The Effects of Spatial Patchiness on the Stratigraphic Signal of Biotic Composition (Type Cincinnatian Series; Upper Ordovician)

Abstract Patchiness affects fine-scale patterns of biological variation because compositional differences among localities depend on the composition of the patch sampled for paleoecological analysis. This can inflate compositional differences among localities that otherwise may have similar faunal constituents, which can obscure the true signal of biotic composition. In the type Cincinnatian Series, comparisons of fine-scale faunal-assemblage patterns acquired through gradient analysis have been difficult to accomplish because of significant deviations in biotic composition. Here, the role of patchiness in creating these deviations is tested by quantifying the amount of lateral variation in composition at a single outcrop of the Kope Formation. Because the lateral expression of individual beds in the Cincinnatian is variable, patchiness is more effectively assessed for bedsets rather than individual beds. Using gradient analysis to evaluate lateral variation at one locality reveals that patchiness is the ...
Prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome in women seeking treatment from community electrologists

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of the polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) among women seeking electrology, clients presenting to nine electrology centers completed a questionnaire. STUDY DESIGN: Women with potential risk factors were referred to the University of Alabama at Birmingham. They underwent a detailed history and physical examination, including hirsutism scoring by a modified Ferriman-Gallwey (F-G) method. Serum was assayed for total testosterone, sex hormone binding globulin and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate. RESULTS: Three hundred fifteen (40%) of 779 patients had potential risk factors for hyperandrogenism and were referred. Eighty-two (26%) completed their evaluation. Six were excluded secondary to prepubertal or menopausal status. Of the remaining 76 patients, 20% had F-G scores of 7 or 8, 13% had scores of 9 or 10, and 21% had scores > 10. Forty-nine (64%) patients reported irregular menstrual cycles. Sixty-four patients were not receiving hormonal therapy: 25 reported regular menstrual cycles, and 39 reported irregular cycles. Seventeen (68%) of the 25 had at least one abnormal androgen value, while 33 (85%) of the 39 women had at least one abnormal value (nonsignificant difference). Overall, PCOS was evident in 39 of the 76 women, or 12% of the 315 patients who were referred for further evaluation. CONCLUSION: Thirty-nine of the 315 referred patients (12%) fulfilled the diagnostic criteria for PCOS. However, they were not receiving medical care for this condition. In addition, this percentage is a conservative estimate in that 74% of the referred patients did not pursue a medical evaluation. Therefore, efforts to educate both electrologists and their clients of the possibility of underlying endocrine disorders and subsequent metabolic morbidity should be undertaken.
Molecular dynamic simulation of layered graphene clusters formation from polyimides under extreme conditions

Abstract The previous experimental study illustrated that a direct laser scribing on polyimide (PI) induced layered graphene, which opened a new door of producing graphene associated materials. However, the underlying conversion mechanism is unknown, especially from theoretical perspectives. In this paper, we performed molecular dynamics (MD) simulation of this mechanism under extreme conditions of high pressure and temperature which mimic those generated by laser induction. We investigated this process using the ReaxFF potential in a nanosecond time scale. We found out that at a pressure of ∼3 GPa and temperature of >2400 K generated from NVT processes, layered graphene clusters were crystallized from PI without metal catalysts, which is consistent with previous experimental results. However, if simulated under NPT processes with a pressure of 27 MPa, the PI was decomposed into small molecules, and no graphene layers were observed. Furthermore, by analyzing the number of the carbon rings and the pair distribution function of them we quantified the crystallinity of the graphene clusters. Through tracing the emission of the small molecules such as H 2 O, N 2 , H 2 , CO we propose possible reaction paths for both of the NVT and NPT processes.
Theoretical studies of monomer and dimer of Cyclo[(-L-Phe1-D-Ala2-)n] and Cyclo[(-L-Phe1-D-MeN-Ala2-)n] (n = 3-6)

The monomer and dimer structures of cyclo[(-L-Phe 1 -D-Ala 2 ) n -] and cyclo[(-L-Phe 1 -D- M e N-Ala 2 ) n -] (n = 3-6) were studied by using the semiempirical molecular orbital AMI method and the density functional B3LYP method. The structural characteristics of these molecules were revealed, some of which are not yet confirmed experimentally. The influences of the substituents and ring size on molecular structure and the self-assembly process are discussed in detail. The inherent impetus for these molecules to self-assemble to polypeptide nanotubes is discussed.
Best face forward: crystal-face competition at the ice-water interface.

The ice–water interface plays an important role in determining the outcome of both biological and environmental processes. Under ambient pressure, the most stable form of ice is hexagonal ice (Ih). Experimentally probing the surface free energy between each of the major faces of Ih ice and the liquid is both experimentally and theoretically challenging. The basis for the challenge is the near-equality of the surface free energy for the major faces along with the tendency of water to supercool. As a result, morphology from crystallization initiated below 0 °C is kinetically controlled. The reported work circumvents supercooling consequences by providing a polycrystalline seed, followed by isothermal, equilibrium growth. Natural selection among seeded faces results in a single crystal. A record of the growth front is preserved in the frozen boule. Crystal orientation at the front is revealed by examining the boule cross section with two techniques: (1) viewing between crossed polarizers to locate the optica...
Neodymium and Erbium Implanted GaN

Strong rare earth (RE) emissions from Nd and Er implanted into MOCVD grown GaN were observed through photoluminescence (PL) with below bandgap excitation from an Ar+laser. Three well resolved manifolds of 4f lines from the crystal-field split 4F3/2 → 4I9/2, 4F3/2 → 4I11/2, and 4F3/2 → 4I13/2 transitions of Nd3+ were observed at low temperature at ˜0.98, ˜1.14, and ˜1.46 μm, respectively. The Er implanted GaN showed both the 4I13/2 → 4I15/2 Er3+ transition at ˜1.54 μm and the 4I11/2 → 4I15/2 Er3+ transition at ˜1.00 μm. The Er luminescence at ˜1.54 μm and Nd luminescence at ˜1.1 μm persisted to room temperature. Both Er and Nd implanted samples showed increasing RE3+ signal as annealing temperature increased from 700 to 1000 °C. The growth of new 4f crystal-field split-lines in the ˜1.54 μm 4I13/2 → 4I15/2 manifold as annealing temperature was increased to 1000 °C suggests multiple Er3+ radiative centers.